Shut it! / look at me look at me!

Toddler art is drying on a random wall and will grace next weeks post. Instead I'm going to regale you all with the most charming two phrases my daughter has begun to use on me.

Now in the midst of the trying two's my daughter will now shout at me to "Mommy stop talking!" when she is angry with me for something, denying her ice cream when she hasn't had any of her dinner, say, or possibly when I insist on bedtime when it's actually her bedtime. If I persist in talking she repeats it over and over until I zip my lip (a phrase I am studiously avoiding the use of so that I won't be tempted to fasten a zipper to her mouth so she'll zip it herself) Where she got this oh so adorable phrase is beyond me. I've been wracking y brains to remember if I've asked her to stop talking at any given time and I'm not recalling anything.

My pleas for her to use her words and talk to me were apparently not totally ignored. Now, if I'm on the phone with my Mom or in the middle of a task that requires that she is not the center of attention; a place she knows is rightfully hers. I get the yelled demand to "talk to me Mommy! Talk to me!" This one's easy to deal with. All I have to do is acknowledge her, tell her I'm talking to Grandma, making dinner or sopping up the pee pee accident that she just had and she's mollified.

In some cases the Stop Talking's and the Talk to me's are demanded in the same sentence. On days like this I pray to all Gods that the well of patience that I've dug won't run dry, that the words I choose next time around will be better chosen and that I do better tomorrow

Toddler Tuesday

Orca Whale and Ocean pictures

I draw a blue watery sun and clouds drifting off to sleep

More art from my refrigerator gallery

Toddler Tuesday

Just what the title suggests, plus it's got that handy alliteration thing going for it.

So my daughter is a walking snot factory complete with "I'm not feeling very well" melt downs and random whines of "mommy mommy mommy". The only time she's not crying and telling me that she's crying or that she's not a happy girl anymore is when I've filled her dimpled hands with crayons and paint brushes and slapped a nice piece of paper down in front of her.

So as I'm watching yet another rivulet of mucus exit her now tender little nose (mommy I don't want to blow my nose, I don't like tissues) while she swirls a paintbrush around the lime green tempera block, I realize that I should make sure to hang this latest creation on the refrigerator and then it occurs to me that I should also share it with however many people stop in and read what I've been up to.

Right now Miranda is using the jumbo pencils and asking me if the drawing she is making is brilliant, true story.

Here's another drawing she made earlier today.

Decking our halls

As the 25th of November falls in the middle of the week this year, we are decorating our tree today. This is the first year Miranda will help with the decorating. I'm excited about sharing the experience with her and a little nervous about the aftermath.... What if helping to decorate the tree gives her the idea that she can pull on, yank, or knock over the tree at will? It's a very distinct possibility.

I've already started with the pro-active "tell the toddler what's expected" mantra and I'm hoping for the best. I'll keep you posted on how well that's working out. Or if it's a spectacular failure I'll post full descriptions and pictures.

One of our family traditions is to add a new ornament to the tree each year. Because we've decided to do our holidays handmade this year, the new ornament this year is one made by Funktionslust We ordered it last week and it arrived safely in the mail yesterday even prettier in person than it was in the shop. Funktionslust is a fairly new Etsy shop opened in May 2008 and is chock full of lovely glass pieces from abstract sun catchers to gorgeous pendants and earrings.

My personal favourites are Abstract Distraction no.3, Abstract Distraction no.1 and Mossy Pendant and her tree ornaments are little works of whimsy to add to your holiday decor. We'll be treasuring our blue tree ornament for years to come.