Whoever came up with this is brilliant. Enter your birth name into the Sarah Palin baby name generator, and out pops a gun-toting, Alaskafied version. My name, had I been lucky enough to have been born of Palin stock, may have been Sack Panther Palin.
About three hours ago, I thought I was going to lose my mind. Somehow, in the length of time it took me to blowdry my hair, thin trails of tiny, rubbery, sticky, sand-like globules appeared all throughout my house. A trail around the dining room table, across the living room floor, down the hallway, in front of the full length mirror in the master bedroom, under the crib in the baby's room. What the hell could it be? I couldn't figure it out, I was panicked that it had come out of a stuffed animal or a toy. And meanwhile, I couldn't seem to clean the stuff up. It would not be vacuumed, stuck to every surface, resisted both a damp and dry paper towel. And it was EVERYWHERE.
Finally, I noticed a stream of rubber-sand trailing out of my daughter's pant leg. Did you KNOW this is what diapers are made of?? Somehow she'd torn a hole in her diaper and was trailing this toxic-seeming, rubber sand funk all over the house. Anyway, it took two people a full 45 minutes to clean it all up and there are still thousands of little granules distributed in every room in my home. Disgusting.
Big girl room planning continues....I'm obsessed with the Rose Petal Cottage! Does anyone out there have one? I like how it closes up and hides all the toys from view. 
We're also getting ready to rehab my old dollhouse, so I'm in the market for non-chokeable dollhouse furniture...coordinated and stylish, of course.
We are just back from a three day, several-hundred mile trip to Disneyland with our 20-month-old daughter. You may have heard of her? She's crazy, insomniac, loud and while we love her dearly, kicks our collective ass on even a normal weekday. Six hours in the car (each way)? A theme park chock-full of sugar crazed kids and loud Disney soundtracks and adrenaline galore? Abandoning our schedules and rituals? Are we nuts?
Well, let me say first that while I have been excited about taking her to Disneyland since the day she was born, I was really scared this trip wouldn't work out. My main concern was that she wouldn't get it, like, Why am I supposed to care about this mermaid? I was also really worried that my husband and I would be worn ragged, as we were the last time we tried to vacation con bambina. Happily, it seemed to work out really well, her little mind was awed and amazed and the parents had a good time too, in spite of the fact that we didn't get much sleep.
Here's what I learned. I hope it helps *you* dear reader, whoever you may be:
1. Pay the big bucks to stay in the park (Disneyland Hotel or Grand Californian), even if it means a shorter trip. After much consternation we chose the Grand Californian. The general consensus is that while the Disneyland Hotel is more themed and cartooney, the Grand Californian is more subdued and adult. We loved it. The atmosphere is serene and calming, and hardly Disneyish at all - a real tonic after hours in the park. The proximity is a huge help to weary parents with small kids who need naps. Its worth cutting your trip shorter (as we did) so that you can shell out for this blessed proximity.
2. Bring your own food.Moms do this anyway, usually, but I'm telling you, sister: Even if you are flying, pack a suitcase of food. Unless you want to eat mammoth platters of cheeseburgers for each meal, you will truly appreciate the convenience of "normal" food your toddler won't reject. The comfort of her regular cereal, essential soymilk (which was rare as diamonds in the parks), snacks and fruit made for a calmer and better fed toddler. I had learned on earlier trips that my honey child likes to go on hunger strike while on holiday and so I came prepared. I even brought peanut butter. Our room at the Grand Californian came with an (empty) fridge, and I believe the rooms at Disneyland Hotel do as well. Also, you should know that a single banana in the park will cost you $1.75.
3. You must check out the baby care room just off Main Street, if only for the blessed quiet and serenity. I learned about this magic room from a fellow (and very pregnant) toddler mom in the park. Just off Main Street (to your right as you are facing the castle, just before the roundabout) is a well-stocked, peaceful baby care room equipped with highchairs, toddler chairs and tables, diapers in a variety of sizes, a microwave, partitioned nursing stations and a sweet elderly attendant.
4. Trick out your stroller.Before this last trip I never noticed how many strollers there are in Disneyland. Dozens and dozens of strollers stack up three deep outside each of the rides. This adds up to a lot of similar or even identical Gracos, MacLarens and even pricier models. Trust me, yours will not be one of a kind. I had heard enough stories about evil stroller-snatchers to be paranoid about theft as well as an accidental switcharoo. Decorate! Streamers on the handlebars, stickers, a balloon as well as several labels with last name and a cell number only. No need to advertise your address.
5. The best coffee is to be found in the bookstore in Downtown Disney.
6.Don't even bother with California Adventure if you have a toddler.I really don't even get why they messed with the perfection of Disneyland in the first place, but maybe I'll understand once the Bambina is a teenager. I went in for a couple of hours with my husband (the baby was with her aunt) and I didn't really see anything that would appeal to a child under 5.
7.Use the Rider Switch option on rides if you and your partner/spouse want to go on any of the "fun" rides. My sister joined us for a day in the park so that we could have some adult fun, but it also works to send one adult on a big ride while the other waits with the stroller. Ask for a "Rider Switch" card on the way in to the ride, and then the other adult can go in the fast pass line right afterward to take the second ride. Its not as fun as going together, but its still pretty fun that way.
8. If you can, schedule a non-park, "pool day" for swimming, relaxing and nap-taking.We did this on our second full day and it really helped the adults feel like they were having a vacation too. I also think there's only so much intensity a small kid can take and three back to back days in the park might be too much for a kid this little.
The main takeaway is this: I had thought that we should wait a few years to go, but honestly, I don't see what difference another year or two would have made in terms of our enjoyment/hassle ratio. So if you are contemplating a Disney trip with *your* rowdy toddler, I say, go for it!
My poor husband. He deals with long hours, lots of work-related stress and instant messages from me like, "I want to paint the entryway eggshell blue. What do you think? Don't be mad." I can't help it. I'm at home SO MUCH that I can't help but drive myself and everyone around me crazy with my constant nesting and tinkering and catalog dog-ear-ing. I see every single scratch, weird angle and unused bit of space in my little four walls. I also change my mind a lot. My one virtue is that I'm bigger on listmaking and dreaming than I am on actually shopping and buying things.
You'd think it would be enough that we basically rebuilt our entire house from scratch last summer and that we've spent most of this year landscaping our front and back yards, but no. I sit here during the quiet hours of naptime and think: I wonder if we could do a built-in bookcase around the door? Eggshell blue or a cheerful yellow? An office armoire or a secretary desk? Honestly, I don't know how anyone puts up with me.
I don't know about this Gymboree place. One visit, and the entire family is sick as hell, lurching around the house, feebly looking for our tissues. What kind of sick petri dish particles are floating around that place? Ugh. Midnight and waiting for the children's Dimetapp to kick in. For me.
I'm not ashamed to admit that I watched the preteen flick Nancy Drew today. Yes, I know I have better things to do. But whatever. I am totally obsessed with Nancy Drew and still have the books. So....where the hell were Bess and George? How come Hannah Gruen only got a 5 second cameo? Oh, the disappointment. I mean, why was Carson Drew trying to discourage Nancy from sleuthing? In the books, she's always helping with his cases! Didn't they read the books?
While we try to figure out for certain if the Bambina is/is not allergic to gluten and milk products, we're taking the safe road and feeding her a dairy-free, gluten-free diet. As long as you make sure to take it easy on soy products, and choose calcium-fortified juice and soymilk whenever possible, its totally fine for kids to eat this way. Meat, veggies, fruit, rice, beans, peanut butter, soymilk. Nothing wrong with those things, and its actually a very healthy way to eat, it just takes more preparation and you can't rely on shortcuts (can't just feed your kid Goldfish all day). But its nice to have a few prepared foods so that I don't have to knock myself out over every single meal. Here are some favorites. 
Aunt Gussie's Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies, Gorilla Munch Cereal ("Monkeys Seer-sull"), Van's Gluten Free Blueberry Waffles, Ian's Chicken Nuggets, Amy's Gluten Free Lentil Soup
New doctor seems great. So glad we're dumping the old one though: Even though I requested, OVER TWO WEEKS AGO, that the Bambina's file be transferred it still has not shown up. Ugh.
Recent entries:
Cakies - Pancakes
Rah-rahs - Raisins
Moos - Cows
Shakies - Milkshake
Duck-a-doo! - What a rooster says
A while ago, I decided in a huff to dump my pediatrician. She was a little too laid back for my liking, didn't return a couple of calls and didn't seem concerned enough about my daughter's recently discovered food allergies and lack of weight gain. But I really *hate* looking for a doctor. Its such a crapshoot. How will you know if you like them until you go there a few times? And then if they suck, you've "wasted" your alloted well-baby check up appointment.
And you don't know if they're good or not until you're in some sort of emergency situation. Speaking from experience, its not a lot of fun to have some sort of crisis on your hands with your kid and realize in that moment that you have the wrong doctor. Recommendations are good, but its such a matter of personal taste. I loved my first pediatrician, particularly because the office had an advice nurse on staff and after-hours care, but we moved and now we're a little lost. I want someone nice and loving towards the Bambina, but also really on top of their game and very responsive and smart. We have an appointment next week and I've got my fingers crossed.
We have a little problem. At one time we were able to just have one or two iced coffees, once in a while. But now an entire drug culture has sprung up in our home surrounding this lethally addictive drink, and we find ourselves using several times a day. We have little rituals and nicknames for it. Every once in a while, we wonder if we should quit. But then we think: But then I won't get as much done! I won't be able to work as fast!
Hmmm.
