Mara on Eye Makeup

I was putting on mascara before our March “date,” and Mara was watching with her mouth-gaping, when-I-figure-out-what-you’re-doing-I’ll-quit-staring-and-go-play expression.

“I’m putting on mascara,” I told her, leaning into the mirror.

“Mara put on mascara?” she asked sweetly, still watching intently.

“Noooo,” I said, “not till you’re a big girl.”

“When big, Mara put on little-scara,” she told me.

I turned around. “When you’re a big girl, you’re gonna put on little-scara?”

“Yeah,” she smiled her sweet smile, nodding as she tilted her head to the side. “Nice little-scara!”

The Potty Dance

We got a Huggies flyer in the mail, advertising the Potty Dance. Mara loves looking at the mail, and always asks me about the pictures in ads. She will say “Little girl doing this,” and mimic the exact stance of the child in the ad–down to facial expressions and tilt of the head! Of course, she was curious about the Huggies ad, and since we are close to potty training, I went online and let her watch it.

Wow. How they ever convinced this guy and a whole host of children and their parents to sing “The Potty Dance” is beyond me! I would seriously consider that a career-limiting move. Perhaps even a career-is-over-forever move.

But, that guy’s career aside, Mara loved it, and probably watched it a dozen times today. At least it gets her thinking about going potty. After watching the “dance,” she went a couple times today without my suggesting it, and then she would repeat the words from the dance, “Mara not need bipers [diapers] any more!”

I was amused by the whole thing, mostly imagining the Huggies staff working behind the scenes: writing the dance, choreographing it, editing it (wow, imagine the outtakes!!), parents bringing their children to try out for a part . . . yes, very amusing to me!

But the best part of this dance was how disturbed my husband was when he watched it. I guess you have to know my husband! LOL! He categorically forbid me to play it again when he was in the house!!! I’m just laughing at his overreaction. . .

On second thought . . .

the dance really was disturbing. . .

The Big Snow of March 2009

mjsnowtongue

The entire Eastern United States was blanketed with snow for the past couple of days. We had about 6 inches here. As young as my children are, we didn’t stay out long because it was only 23 degrees, but I snapped a few pictures for the memory books!

micahmakingsnowangelMara absolutely loved the snow!

I thought Micah might enjoy making a snow angel. Not so much. He cried, so I held him to comfort him and keep him warm the rest of the time.

Here are my two little snow buddies!

twosnowbuddies

Seen and Heard

Last night after church we experienced the moment I have been dreading. I knew it was coming. I knew it was only a matter of time.

We had a pizza dinner/church business meeting, so while we ate pizza, our pastor and other church leaders were in the front of the room discussing church business. The room was largely quiet as everyone ate, when Mara dropped her fork on the floor. She was across the table from me, so I couldn’t reach it.

“Fork!” she shouted. “Fork!”

Only she can’t enunciate those ‘r’s yet, so when she says ‘fork,’ it comes out tooootally different. Actually. . . . it comes out really bad! And since I wasn’t instantaneously picking up the fork, Mara kept shouting, even louder, “Fork!! FOOOOORK!!!”

Fortunately her voice carried only to the three tables around us, who understandably were staring in shock at my 2-year-old daughter as I said quietly, “Fork–she’s saying fork.”

“Just to clarify!” the woman next to me laughed. There was visible relief on the faces of others.

Since Mara was still shouting ‘fork,’ I turned to the girl who was sitting next to her across the table. “Do you mind picking up the fork, just so she will stop shouting that?. . . Thank you,” I said apologetically.

The more I thought about it, the more I understood the old philosophy, “Children should be seen and not heard.” Or at least, at church business meetings, until they can enunciate properly.

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We folded four loads of laundry today. Well, I folded, and Mara did the commentary. When I pull each article of clothing out of the basket, she announces to whom it belongs: “Mawa’s shirt! Micah’s sleeper!”

Then Mara found two of my no-frills white Hanes sport socks and held them up.

“Sooo cute, Mommy!” she exclaimed with a smile.

We need to discuss what “cute” means–because that’s not it! I started laughing and Mara said, “Call Gama Bubben!” (She knows I call Grandma to share cute stories.)

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When Mara woke up this morning, I took her straight from her crib to the changing table. She carried Blue Bear with her. I do this every morning, assuming that after she sleeps all night, her diaper will need to be changed.

“Mara, is your diaper wet?” I asked her, expecting full agreement.

“No,” she replied with a puzzled inflection. Then she held Blue Bear up to her face and finished, “Blue Bear?!–must be you!”

Wednesday With My Littles

Mara's First Bubble Bath

Mara loves the Curious George book where he makes “lather and more lather and MORE lather!” And she’s always asking for bubbles (in the kitchen sink or in her bath), so I thought she would LOVE a bubble bath. Tonight was her first one! And I’m learning that maybe she likes to live these things out vicariously through others in books, rather than experience their uncertainties in real life.

I started filling the tub and then went in her room to take off her clothes and change her diaper. When we came back, the entire tub was covered with bubbles! and instead of being super-excited as I had anticipated, she seemed troubled as I set her in the tub. “Where water go?” she asked. Then she swooshed the bubbles aside with her hand, and seeing the water still underneath, she said delightfully, “BOO, water!” It was really cute!

Then she was disturbed about the effect the bubbles were having on the toys. “Guck eyes!” she said sadly as she held up the duck (whose eyes were covered with bubbles).

“Well, help him out!” I said. “Rinse the bubbles off!” After that, she got so excited and she must have spent 45 minutes playing in the tub.

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Today Mara had a PB&J sandwich for lunch (her favorite). She pointed at it and said, “Sandwich! Sandwich in Mara’s book.”

“Yes, you’re right! There is a sandwich in your book,” I agreed. In “Wings on Things,” there are two children eating sandwiches for a picnic lunch, while bees swarm around them.

Then she said emphatically: “Bees–in our house!”

“Bees?” I repeated. “In our house?”

“Yeah,” she insisted.

“Where are the bees?” I asked, still not convinced.

She pursed her lips and squinted, looking off to the side. Then suddenly her eyes lit up and she said, “GONE!”

I replied, “Well, they must be gone, because I certainly don’t see any bees in our house!”

At the time, it was pretty funny.

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A friend from church came over for awhile this afternoon, and Mara of course wanted to entertain her. Mara put her Hello Kitty stickers up on the wall by the stairs and pointed at three of them. “M-O-B. Mara,” she stated.

This is always how she spells her name. I told Daniel, She thinks she’s part of the mob.

No matter how many times I say, “Mara. M-A-R-A.” She still repeats: “Mawa. M-O-B. Mawa.”

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We had tortilla chips at dinner and Mara was munching on one beforehand. I was at the kitchen sink, and could see her reflection in the window pane.

She was headed straight to Micah in his walker, holding out the tortilla for her little brother.

I said firmly, “NO, Mara! Micah is not old enough for chips!”

So she looked at Micah and said, “No chips, Micah! No soup, Micah. ONLY Mara.”

She had tried to give Micah her sippy cup of milk earlier in the day, and I told her that Micah couldn’t have that kind of milk until after he turned one. So now, that’s what she tells him. “SOUP, Micah! Atter ber-day ONE!”

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Little Micah, on the other hand, just kept eating! Today he ate a Gerber 1st Foods container of Peaches with oatmeal for breakfast; 2 ice cubes of peas with oatmeal for lunch; and 2 ice cubes each of sweet potatoes and bananas, as well as more oatmeal for dinner! And then he lowered his head down and began knawing on the high chair tray, as if I had fed him nothing all day! . . . He still looked ravenous, but I really couldn’t see feeding him more at that point!