Thank you, Thank you, Thank you, SANTA!

Last night, Bunny received a phone call from Santa! You can hear all about it over at SciFi Dad's place.

In the phone call, Santa mentioned how nice it would be if she would try her very best to ride the school bus in the morning to school. Bunny went into an explanation why she hasn't want to do this, but she ended with saying that she would try.

She has been saying that she will think about it every day since the day that she decided she no longer wanted to ride the bus.

On my birthday, a couple of weeks ago, she decided that she was going to seriously try (up until then, it was only thinking and we had our "new" routine of me driving her). We got to the bus stop and she completely lost it.

After that day, I decided there was no point in even pushing until after Christmas, knowing very well that January would be like starting fresh again.

However, Santa must have renewed some braveness in the Bunny because this morning, not only did she tell me she was thinking about taking it...she actually took it!

Can you believe it? Bunny actually rode the school bus today for the first time since October! AND, there were NO TEARS! She was happier than ever. Not even an ounce of reservation. This surprises me because even at the school end when I was driving here, there were still occasional tears AND an uneasy look as she said goodbye to me.

Anyhow, no one will ever know what really gave her the courage to do this. Was it Santa, was it time? Who knows because no bribery and no tricks up Mommy's sleeve was good enough to convince her to ride the bus!

And, icing on the cake for Mommy today? The only reason why I have the time to type this post right now is because Little Man is sleeping! He has had a few terrible nights and last night was the worse. He crashed at 8am this morning which gave me the chance to take Bunny to the bus, just me and her. I'm sure that helped in the success!!!

Happy Holidays, everyone! I am SO Happy! My one wish came true.



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Busy, Busy, Busy!

'Tis the Season of....being BUSY!!!!

My computer time has taken a huge hit since having two weddings to go to (and shop for, etc.), one of which I am in, making holiday calendars with photos for our families, making homemade gift tags with family photos (so the kids can hand out the gifts without having to read), baking, shopping, wrapping...you know the drill!

I'm still here, but not really!

I feel badly for not posting.

I hope to have a minute or two to update you with some photos of what I've been working on....soon!

In the meantime, I did manage to get a couple of reviews up at Multi-Testing Mommy.



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Celebrate Being Me!

Yesterday, I celebrated my 34th Birthday. Age isn't something that bothers me at all. I honestly don't know if I'll ever feel old.

Parts of my day were awesome and other parts were...well.....not so awesome!

Bunny screamed going into school, but we made some progress as she was led through the playground with the playground Supervisor rather than Mommy, so that was great.

I spent the day with my Mom and Little Man. We bought the last part to my cousin's wedding gift (a Wedgewood china Christmas ornament--marked 2009--a wedding cake, it's gorg!) and we went out to lunch.

Note to self: continue to stay on the "Little Man is not at a good age for restaurants right now" path!

I got lots of hugs and kisses AND I spent a couple of hours in the bathroom.

Let me explain...I have IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) and it acts up when I least expect it to sometimes. I ate some spicy pumpkin loaf that my Mom brought and 15 minutes later, I was in distress. NOT FUN! This changed our food plan for the rest of the day, but I did manage to eat back some yummy cake (I just HAD to, you know?!).

Especially when it was decorated so nicely:

Yes, that is my one year old, decorating a cake!

Sorry, honey! I had to cut out the cleavage.

SciFi Dad and I finished the night with a hilarious movie called Four Christmases. It was light and exactly what I needed.

All in all, it was really a great day!



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Fight the Flu

I signed up for a blog tour, hosted by Mom Central regarding the flu season.

The reason why I signed up was very simple, in order to share some flu resources with you, my readers.

This flu season, I am using more hand sanitizer than I ever have. I have a bottle of it in my car and when you step in my front door. I have always been good about washing hands whenever I come home from being out, but I am encouraging even more frequent hand washing in my house. I am cleaning door knobs regularly and having everyone use their own hand towel.

We have decided not to get the H1N1 vaccine for now, but I certainly am not against anyone getting it, it's a choice and a difficult one for sure.

You can get up to date flu clinic information on this government website.

As well, the Ministry of Health has an influenza assessment tool that can help Moms determine if their child needs medical care. The tool can be found here.

Other useful information can be found at www.health.gov.on.ca/en/ccom/flu

I hope that you and your family have a healthy year and you successfully avoid the really nasty bugs that are floating around!



I wrote this post while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central and will be receiving a Mom Central gift pack to thank me for taking the time to participate.



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JK Update and The Worst Morning in History

Last Friday, Little Man, the Bunny and I had a pretty rough morning.

I had, what I thought, was a pretty fun idea. I suggested that Friday could be Backwards Day.

My two backwards ideas were:

Bunny could take the bus TO school and I would pick her up (instead of the the opposite, which is what I have been doing for weeks now)

I would give her some treats in her lunch bag and she could eat them first and then eat the healthy stuff

I asked Bunny to help me brainstorm more ideas and she was SO on board with this. She was actually excited. Even for the bus ride to school, which is something that she has refused to do for a couple of months now.

The goal of "Backwards Day" was to get Bunny to take the bus to school.

Yeah, it didn't work. Not even one single bit!

I loaded up the kids in the van extra early and we drove to our secret little spot where we blow kisses and smiles and secret messages to her school. We had to call Daddy because she started to cry in the car.

By the time we reached the bus stop, she was in full meltdown mode, shaking, sobbing and eating her fingers. She told me that she was willing to stay in the van all day, even until dinner, but she would not get on the bus.

I broke down and drove her to school. We were running slightly behind by this point so I decided to carry Little Man (instead of loading him into the stroller like I usually do).

Bunny wouldn't go in the playground until she saw the teacher open the door for the kids to go in. Then, when she finally agreed to line up with the other kids, she fell in a mud puddle and hurt her knee. I had to enter the playground (something that we had successfully moved past for a couple of weeks now) and helped her up. By this point, she was crying again.

Little Man was so squirmy and I discovered that he had a poo, so not only was he unhappy, but he was stinky too.

I had to go into the classroom (again, another step that we had successfully moved past) to discover that it was a supply teacher (funny enough, this didn't seem to bother her one bit, she just didn't want ME to go). It took me a good 15 minutes to be able to leave. In that time, Bunny chased me out the door and into the playground 5 times. The teacher kept teaching the class this whole time.

I wanted to bring her home with me, but I knew that I couldn't. I could not establish the fact that I would be willing to bring her home if she a) cried b) got hurt or c) there was a supply teacher.

When Little Man and I got home, I went to change his diaper to discover that not only was it a huge poop, but it was a really messy one too (poor little guy) and he wanted to grab himself which meant that he got poo all over his hands. YUCK!

It was not a fun morning to be MTM.

Wish me luck today. It's another school day. We are not talking the bus, although I have told her that is what I want for my birthday on Thursday, for her to take the bus to school. I'm half joking when I say it, but truthfully, that would make my day. When I feel proud of one of my kids, it has got to be one of, if not THE best feeling in the world! Is that mean and cruel of me?

We're at a loss. And, SciFi Dad and I disagree about how we should be handling this.

I feel like she is only 4 1/2 and she will get over this eventually. I don't want to push her. Separation anxiety can be tricky and I don't want to make it worse. I also don't want to have to start all over again in January, I'd rather continue on the path we are on right now until after Christmas and try suggesting her taking the bus in the New Year.

SciFi Dad feels like we should be pushing her more (maybe he'll explain his side in the comments a bit more).

Thoughts anyone?



I've been interviewed over at The Unlikely Housewife

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Amazing Article about Raising a "Good Enough" Child

A little while ago, I received this article in my inbox. I thought that there were some excellent tips for parents in this article, so I asked permission to republish it here on my blog. I hope you get as much out of it as I did!



5 Ways to Raise a "Good Enough" Child
By Jan Denise

How many times have you told your ebullient child he's too loud or too active? How often have you told your contemplative, cautious child not to be a scaredy-cat and so shy?

In subtle ways, you are giving your child, when is expressing his or her unique temperament, the message that he's not good enough. He will get the same messages at school, at church or temple, and from the media. By the time your child is an adult, he will have learned how not to follow the beat of his own drummer and how not to be himself. He will have learned exactly how to act in order to get the approval of others.

If you think that's not much a problem for a child, wait till she grows up and marries someone she thinks she should marry, works in a job she hates because it's expected of her, gets in debt buying a house or car that makes her seem more successful than she really is, or is on a perpetual diet and hates her body because women are supposed to be rail thin.

You can stop this negative conditioning! As a parent, you already instinctively know that your child is good enough. Your child was born good enough. Here are five ways to reinforce that positive message.

· Be there for him. Let your child have his true feelings--sadness or fear, for example. Show him with your support, reassurance, and presence that it's okay to have emotions, and that you'll stay with him through all those feelings, without judging.
· Teach her not to personalize rejection. If someone tells her she's ugly or too brainy, for example, remind her that someone else's words aren't the truth. The truth is that she's fine--just the way she is.
· Teach him not to worry what other people think. If he's afraid to take chorus at school for fear of being teased, or cuts class with his friends to be part of the "cool" crowd, help him understand that following others opinions won't help him be happy.
· Encourage her individuality. If your child wants to wear a pink tutu to church and it embarrasses you, consider the message you might be giving her about being an individual and expressing herself. Unless it's an act that could harm your child, try to allow her to be and do what she needs in order to fully explore who she is.
· Show him he is loved--unconditionally. Remind your child dozens of times a day, in gestures, words, and acts, that you love him just the way he is. A child who learns that he really is good enough will grow into a confident, healthy, fulfilled adult.

* * * * *
Jan Denise is a syndicated newspaper columnist, an empowerment guru, and author of the new book, Innately Good: Dispelling the Myth that You're Not (Health Communications, 2009). You can find out more about her and her teachings at www.innatelygood.com.



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Are you having a chocolate craving? If so, check out my latest recipe for Fantastic Fudge Brownies

More Cute Words

Bunny and I were having yet another discussion about changing bodies, puberty, etc. She was wondering when I was going to hit puberty and I had to figure out a way to explain to her that I already had.

I showed her a timeline with a newborn baby at one end and a Grandmother on the other. I pointed out where she was and where I was on the time line. Then, I showed her where puberty tends to occur.

After this conversation, she said:

Bunny: Mommy, so when you were 100 years old....
Me: No, sweetheart, Mommy isn't 100 years old, not for a long, long time.

Bunny: Oh, ok. So, when you were 40 years old....
Me: No, sweetheart, Mommy isn't 40 years old yet either (thank goodness!

Bunny: Well then Mommy, just how old are you?
Me: I am 33 and will soon be 34.

Bunny: Oh, ok....well, I forget what I was going to explain to you about your puberty anyhow.
Me: Ok, sweetheart.



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