Our Impossible Adoption Story
If you're looking for the unbelievable account of how "impossible" became "done" in 5 business days, start here.
Weekend Project
aka: Look, ma! I sewed something!
Some really adorable bloggers post really great pictures of their renovation or craft projects, because they’re awesome and inspiring.
This is not that.
This is more bragging on our awesome friends, but still.
I sewed something!
Some really sweet friends gave us this high-chair last weekend:
She texted, asking if I wanted it for the baby, and I didn’t even have to think about it. Pretty sure I had one of these when I was little. I love it.
She loves it too, which I really appreciate. She said it was hard to let it go, but her third is just too big and it’s not getting used.
That makes me love it even more.
My little Meatball, though, likes to dive out of chairs, so we made a quick trip to our local craft store and spent less than $5 on two yards of nylon strap and two silver ring things.
The best part was probably me, pushing a sleeping baby back and forth in a stroller … and back and forth … and back and forth … as I stood in front of the small display of fasteners in the sewing section.
And back and forth … and back and forth …
Initially, I thought I’d loop one strap around the back two support posts and just sew it there, then bring it around to the front to bring up between his legs.
Wait a minute … how are you going to sew it there? By hand? With what industrial strength needle, and what extra half-hour?
I can get that clip and fasten it in a loop around the back two support posts. Or I can wrap it around like a slip-knot, but that would be extra strap for no good reason. The plastic buckles are all black. Why are there no white ones?
Back and forth … back and forth …
I can do the two metal loops, like a cheap belt, but is that going to be strong enough? Will he be able to pull out of it? Or the spring-latch thing and a loop. The square loop will pull sideways and twist the strap, but the curved ones won’t. I could do a spring-latch thing in the front and the back. But it needs to be adjustable, and that won’t be adjustable.
Back and forth … back and forth …
If any one was watching me, they may have wondered if we were both sleeping. I probably stood there for 20 minutes imagining options, trying to work through each one step-by-step in my head.
I’m not very crafty.
But it worked in the end. And much easier than I thought. One strip with a loop at each end – front and back. One long strip with a folded hem at one end (the wrong way, of course, because I thought about folding both hems the same way – and was proud of myself for thinking about it – on the first piece, but not on the second), and two metal rectangle-loops at the other. Cheap-belt-style. Adjustable. Easy, and no, he can’t pull out of it.
We love it.
Hoard of the Flies
I posted a version of this last night on Instagram:
With the following caption:
What goes on behind those eyes? I wish he could tell me what he’s thinking. Sometimes I get the impression he knows the world better than I do.
Because it’s true. And because he looks very contemplative. The lighting is soft and direct, from the window. It’s meditative, and tranquil. I like this picture.
He really is contemplating something, but it’s not deep or mysterious.
It’s flies.
Somehow, several weeks ago, some slutty preggo fly made its way into our house and released a plague.
Every summer there are a few of those tiny kitchen ants, and we remember to be more diligent about wiping up every crumb. And our house is old, and there are creepy centipedes in the basement that occasionally get bold and make their way upstairs.
But flies
Everywhere
And they’re slow, lazy flies – maybe as a product of being born and raised in captivity. More than once I’ve tried to pick up what I thought was a dead fly on the carpet (with a paper towel), and the not-dead fly didn’t even move until I actually touched it. And even then, they let out a low, lazy zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz as they slowly float away, apparently completely annoyed at the inconvenience of sparing their own gross lives.
They gather at the windows. Probably to brag to the neighbors that they’ve taken over our house. And they’re stupid, so they get stuck behind the blinds.
The Meatball likes to stand against the back of the love-seat in his room to look out the window, and that morning he noticed the flies. Two or three of them would take turns dropping to the window sill, and then slowly make their way back up under the blinds gathered at the top third of the window. He was fascinated.
I was disgusted, but the light coming in the window was great.
There’s this adorable blogger named Crystal who hosts a little get-together on Tuesdays. Friends post their pretty pictures, and then tell the sometimes-no-so-pretty truth behind the scenes. It’s a good time. Clicky for more.
It’s a Good Day
Mama Becomes Pupil, Episode 2
It doesn’t matter how the day goes – it’s still a good day.
Husband connected with an old high school friend a couple of months ago on Facebook. They talked and then conversation lagged until she and her boys planned to be in Chicago for a mini-vacation. She got in touch, and invited us to meet them for an afternoon at Lincoln Park Zoo.
We invited my mom. ‘Cause my mom loves the zoo, and I couldn’t imagine Meatball’s first trip to the zoo without her.
The plan was to take off right after church, treat ourselves to lunch, and spend a full afternoon at the zoo – and maybe the lake-front.
But other obligations pushed off the “right after church” part. By about an hour. No problem.
We met them at the hotel where they were staying – somewhere between our ‘burb and downtown – and headed to Portillo’s for lunch. But it was closed. And by then, we were all just kind of ready to get on with the day. So Wendy’s would have to do.
Then – well it was the first day that wasn’t hellish-ly hot in the Chicagoland area in some time, and it was Sunday, so traffic in Lincoln Park was ridiculous. We rolled into the area around 3:30, and I pulled up the website on my phone.
“They’re open until 6:30 on Sundays. No problem.”
The parking lot is full, though. Sooo … we sat in stop-and-go traffic for another 20 minutes or so to get one block further so we could start looking for parking. “It’s going to be the funnest half-hour at the zoo ever!” I quipped. Husband and Mom laughed. Half-way there, the old/new friend called from behind us in traffic.
“My car over-heated.”
Timothy’s 2005 Focus dies in summer Chicago traffic, and hers was a much older something-or-other. She turned it off between inching forward, and – thank God – made it through the light to the next street to search for parking. Parking found. Sweet. Unload people. Short walk to the zoo entrance. 4:15 PM – still plenty of time for a good zoo trip.
“The zoo will be closing at 5 today.” Read more…
Cloth Diapering 101: An Interview With A Pro
Photo Credit: Melanie McDermott
Through four years of baby-hoping, and 40+ weeks of pregnancy, I never planned to use cloth diapers. But then I decided to try it … and it wasn’t so bad. And then I started to really look into it … and now I’m hooked.
(Thinking about trying it? Already hooked? Check the bottom of this post for a sweet discount code, just for Spits and Wiggles readers, for one week only!)
A couple of months ago, I stopped by a little cloth diaper store I had heard about through another mama friend.
That’s right – I said, “cloth diaper store.” They exist. Who would have thought?
I was blown away – both by the huge selection and the number of options, and by just how cool this place was.
So I got in touch with Justine, the founder and owner of Fluff Envy in South Elgin, Illinois, and we had a little chat about cloth diapers and about her awesome store.
It kind of seems like cloth diapers are making a little come-back with a new generation of mommies. Why do you think that is?
People are realizing that disposables might not be the best option for everyone. There are so many benefits of cloth diapering, and for some it just makes sense to make the switch.
Benefits like … ?
They are certainly more environmentally-friendly. Each year, billions of disposables enter landfills. And while there is no definitive answer, they calculate that it takes at least 500 years for each disposable to decompose.
There are no harsh chemicals against baby’s skin. SAP was banned from tampons in the 80’s due to it causing Toxic Shock Syndrome. Yet SAP is still allowed to be used in disposable diapers, where it is in contact with our babies’ sensitive skin 24/7. Many disposables also contain dioxins from when they go through the bleaching process.
And families that choose cloth over disposables can save an average of $2500 for one child. If they use the same diapers on subsequent children, they save even more!
And really, who can resist a cute print or color that matches their outfit?!
Photo Credit: Ethan John
Cloth diapering has come a long way from white, cotton towels and big safety pins. How do they work these days? Read more…
Good Reads
10 Techniques to Shape Children’s Behavior {Dr. Sears}
Praise is a valuable shaper; children want to please you and keep your approval. Yet, you can easily overdo it. Praise the behavior, not the person. Praises like “good girl” or “good boy” risk misinterpretation and are best reserved for training pets. These labels are too heavy for some children. (“If I don’t do well, does that mean I’m bad?”)
Babies Don’t Manipulate – They Communicate {The Natural Parent Magazine}
And hear this well, parents, your relationship with your teenager is being established now, while your child is still a toddler. Your discipline issues with your nine-year-old are being minimized or intensified right now, while he is reaching out to you in infancy. Preschooler’s tantrums are being moderated or exacerbated at this moment by your response or lack of response to your baby’s cries.
Dustin Hoffman Explains What Women Already Know
Spits and Wiggles 