Life is Like a Box of Chocolates

We don’t usually do much in the way of Valentine’s presents…we try to focus on a fun family day with crafts and a yummy meal.  In years’ past I’ve given them a little book, or some fun new socks.

This year I decided to treat the girls to their first [miniature] chocolate sampler.  I bought a little heart-shaped box of chocolates for each of them.  There were five pieces inside.  They were thrilled.

For the past few days, the girls have chosen one piece of chocolate after supper.  Baby A chose a chocolate covered cherry the first night.  B observed, and – instead of following suit --  she said she would save her chocolate covered cherry for last, since that is her favorite.

The next three occasions, the girls discussed their choices and picked the same piece from their boxes.

The last night, Baby A got to her box before B.  She popped that final piece of chocolate in her mouth…and made a surprised face.

My poor kiddo learned a tough lesson about a box of chocolates...and maybe about life…it’s not always possible to save your favorite for last.

Hee hee!

“It’s a candy inside a candy!” she puzzled.  Poor A landed upon a cream-filled chocolate.  I’m with her on the ICK.  I felt sorry for her, so I told her she could have one piece of candy from her school Valentine’s haul.  She chose a Starburst…and then made a big face after eating that.  “It’s cherry!  It tastes like medicine!”  (We've had more than our share of cough medicine these past few weeks.  That must have hit too close to home.)

Hee hee, again!

I think my A is done with eating candy for a while.

How to Get Your Kid NOT to Like Jellybeans

It wasn’t intentional.  But I’m certainly not going to beg you to eat jellybeans.  They’re not exactly prominent on the food guide pyramid…and…if you don’t eat them, there’s more for Mommy.

For Christmas I got a beautiful jar of Jelly Belly jellybeans.  It was really an awesome gift…in addition to the beautiful jar…it was an edible, delectable confection that didn’t have to be consumed in the midst of all the holiday goodies we always have on hand.

The girls were drawn to the beautiful colors, though, and they did NOT want to wait until a beautiful spring day to break open the seal.  I held them off until some time in January, when I finally acquiesced to opening the jar.

I didn’t go through a very detailed process in selecting approximately 6 jellybeans as part of their afternoon snack (in addition to nuts and pretzels, if I recall).  Apparently the girls each landed a cinnamon flavor Jelly Belly, though…and those are a bit on the spicy side.

They were not impressed.  At all.

A week or so later, before I had polished off the jar (!!!), I asked the girls if they wanted more jellybeans.  They both declined.  I promised I would be on the lookout for any mean flavors, but they refused.

OK.  Suit yourselves!  More for Mommy!

For Valentine’s Day, I ran upon the cutest miniature boxes of Jelly Belly jellybeans, and I bought one for each of the girls as the treat in their little heart-shaped bags.  They didn’t much react…but I didn't think much of it, figuring maybe they were taken with the cool new sunglasses I gave them.

Later that week, I opened one of the little boxes and again awarded them six jellybeans.  I read the flavors on the back of the box, assuring them there weren’t any spicy beans to be found.

I think my A ate her jellybeans, but B only had a couple.  One she remarked tasted “like dirt”...maybe the coconut one?  Yikes!

I didn’t think much about this until St. Patrick’s Day.  The Jelly Belly jellybeans were long gone, but I’d just gotten the first bag of the season of Brach’s Classic Jelly Bird Eggs.  I found two green ones, and one white, for each of the girls (in addition to nuts and pretzels, served in green bowls).  I thought they would be delighted at the festiveness.

While A was more excited, B didn’t say much.  After snack, I noticed she’d eaten her almonds and her pretzels, but left the jellybeans untouched.

The poor kid is scarred.

I certainly didn’t mean to ruin her for life, but I guess there are worse things than not developing a taste for jellybeans.  Oh, and did I mention that means there’s more for me???

A Bit About Me, March Edition

My birthday is February 23^rd, and on the 23^rd of each month, I post a couple of random facts about myself.  So here’s the randomness for the month of March…

I didn’t get my first pair of jeans until I was about six.

My mom thought that little girls should be dressed in frills.  I think I had some corduroy pants, and I know I had shorts in the summer, but she didn’t like the idea of jeans.  I finally asked for some for my birthday one year, and I got Gloria Vanderbilt jeans from my grandparents.

I have to laugh about that now.  My girls got their first pair of jeans when they were about seven months old, and jeans are a huge wardrobe staple at our house.  I may pair the girls’ jeans with cutesy buttons and bows, but I’ve gotta have my denim!

I wonder if my palate is maturing a bit.

Don’t get me wrong…I COULD eat several entire bags of jelly beans during the time between Valentine’s Day and Easter…but I haven’t CRAVED them this year like I did in the past.  To date, I’ve consumed part of one bag, and I’m not even sure if I’ll have any more.  I don’t mean to jinx myself, but I wonder if my taste buds might actually be growing up???  It's probably not a bad thing.

There it is!  Until next month...

Pumpkin Spice Turtles...Yes, Please!

I'll admit I went to the store looking for Candy Corn M&M's.  I couldn't find them, but since I'd gone with the express intent of buying chocolate, I felt I couldn't leave empty-handed.  I bought a bag of Hershey's Pumpkin Spice Kisses, my dreams of fall-inspired confections satisfied.

I first made these Pumpkin Spice Kiss Cookies, and they were deee-lish!

I still had half a bag or so of Kisses in the pantry, and they were begging me to eat them.  [You may recall I have zero willpower, and sweets, in particular, almost literally seem to call me.]

Hmmm...what goes with pumpkin spice deliciousness???  Pecans, of course!  And my idea of Pumpkin Spice Turtles was born from there.

For the past few holidays, I've been making Pretzel Turtles, a Rolo melted on top of a pretzel, topped with a pecan half...but instead of Rolos, I used Pumpkin Spice Kisses.  Viola!  The perfect fall combination, a taste and texture delight!

So easy...SO delicious...and the girlies even helped me!

Count out Kisses and unwrap them.  (A great fine-motor activity, by the way!)

Place Kisses on pretzels -- I like the little square ones.

Place assembled pretzel-Kisses on a cookie sheet.

Bake at 275 degrees for 2 1/2 to 3 minutes, until Kisses are very soft, but not runny. 

While the Kisses are in the oven, count out your pecans...find the pretty ones!

Here are my melty Kisses.

Top each with a pecan half, pressing down slightly.  (I did this, as I still don't trust the girls near a hot pan.)

I allowed the pan to cool about 10 minutes, and then I put the pan in the freezer for 20 or 30 minutes to set.

I will say that these turtles never completely set up like the Rolo turtles do.  The only impact that has, I think, is that I wouldn't stack these in a gift basket, but rather serve them on a single-layer plate.

ENJOY!!!

Rogue Bunnies...Or, Why My Kids Don't Often Get Sugar

That’s not entirely true…our girls get sugar from time to time, and I’ve often felt like they must be “immune” to its effects. I can’t remember ever thinking they must have had too many sweets, judging by the way they were acting…

…at least until yesterday.

While I downplayed the build-up to Halloween, Christmas, and Valentine’s Day, for some reason the girls were really excited about Easter approaching. I went right along with it. And I had so much fun asking them if they thought they’d get Easter baskets, and what would be in them.

So perhaps it wasn’t just the sugar…I know the anticipation of the day – and the break in our regularly-scheduled programming – also contributed to the day’s “challenges”.

The girls got up on time, and breakfast went pretty smoothly. I told them they’d get their baskets after breakfast, and they were fine with that. I forewent my usual coffee time and let them open baskets pretty soon after breakfast. They enjoyed looking through their goodies, but it wasn’t long before they were asking for CHOCOLATE.

I let them have their morning snack early – including two mini Cadbury eggs from their baskets. After they ate, they were content to play for a few minutes, but it wasn’t long before they were asking, “More chocolate, please!”

I tried to engage them with their new books, but they did not want to sit still. I tried to get them involved in setting up a birthday party with their new play food, but they were too fidgety.

I finally decided we needed to get outside, so we dressed for a walk. The girls did well outside, and played in the yard when we got home.

But…the first thing they did when we came inside for me to start making lunch? “Can we have more chocolate?”

NO!!!

We all ate lunch, relatively uneventfully, but they were a bundle of energy afterwards. I knew they were tired, but I was so afraid they wouldn’t nap.

Thankfully, after Mommy having to go into their room a couple of times, they went to sleep. They didn’t nap long, though, waking up to ask for MORE CHOCOLATE.

I did allow the girls a tiny bit more chocolate as part of their afternoon snack, and we spent an hour or so outside hunting eggs.

We came in for a bath, and my, oh, my, were they rambunctious.

By late afternoon, I just didn’t think I could will myself to bake a ham and roast the asparagus. I instructed Daddy to go pick up a pizza.

When the girls asked why we were having pizza – a rare treat – I said something vague, like, “I just thought it would be nice.” I didn’t tell them that they’d worn their mama completely out today!

And after pizza, what did they say??? “Can we have some chocolate?”

No, I think we’ve had our fill of chocolate to last us until next Easter.

***

As I type this sequence of events, it doesn’t sound quite as bad as it felt at the time. Frankly, the girls were fussy and whiny and just not very content, and it was nothing short of exhausting.

In hindsight, I know I can’t really blame the chocolate. The chocolate was probably a contributing factor, coupled with their expectations of the day, AND the break in routine. I can usually play around with one of those elements, but manipulating multiple variables is something I’ll try not to do again for quite a while.

A Wet Anniversary, and a Sticky One, Too

As Easter approaches, I can’t help but think about what we were doing a year ago.

***

In the couple of weeks leading up to Easter last year, Baby A started taking off her diaper, asking to sit on the potty. After taking a few days to mentally prepare myself for the adventure ahead, we officially bid farewell to diapers on the Saturday before Easter.

I remember taking pictures in the living room, the girls in their beautiful smocked dresses…as nervous as a cat. I wanted to savor the unveiling of the Easter baskets…but I was anxious to get my babe back into knit pants as quickly as possible!

All in all, potty training went very well. Baby A only had two real accidents, both of which fell on Easter day.

A year later, I can still say those couple of weeks after Easter were some of the most stressful in my parenting career to date. The responsibility for reading Baby A’s cues was so incredibly constant. And allowing the newness of the potty experience to run its course was nothing short of exhausting.

This year, Hubby’s spring break falls the week after Easter. I’m so incredibly thankful to be looking forward to a week of zoo trips, a visit to the orchard, and a treat at the dairy barn…what should be a relatively relaxing, relatively stress-free time.

I’ll have my travel potty in my bag, and an extra pair of undies, just in case…but there is no tightness in my chest as I think about those precautions.

***

There is one additional anniversary that occurred to me last week…that of the girls’ first jelly bean.

I generally limit the girls’ sugar intake. I don’t mind them having a cookie here or there – particularly if it’s homemade – but my babies seem much too young for the evils of sugar candy.

Still, I’m quite the jelly bean aficionado. Last year, I decided I’d let the girls try one. Yes, one. Actually, they each had ¼ of a jelly bean. I was so scared of the choking hazard, that was all I could muster!

This year, I decided I’d give the girls a couple of jelly beans as a special treat one day. I carefully chose four yummy flavors, and cut them in half. I served them along with a few pretzels for an afternoon snack.

I told the girls they needed to chew the jelly beans very, very carefully, one at a time. They really seemed to enjoy their first taste, and they really took their time to chew it. I decided it was OK to turn my back to them while I fixed them cups of water.

And what did I find not 10 seconds later??? A lump of goo in Baby A’s hair, closely resembling pine sap (with which I became acquainted last Memorial Day weekend…anniversary post to come in a few weeks, I’m sure).

It was surely the Food Pyramid God, reigning down on my poor decision to allow my girls candy.

We’ll see if this lesson is still fresh in my mind next Easter…or if, at four years old, the girls will have worked up to eating a whole jelly bean.

Fab 5 Friday...and ME!

Hubby has been on Spring Break this week, which is pretty fabulous in itself! We’ve jam-packed the week with numerous appointments and some fabulous family fun…I can’t believe it’s Friday already!

1) The weather has been pretty nice this week. The girls and I have gotten out for walks almost every day…AND Daddy has been waiting for us at home to help unbuckle strollers and take off shoes.

2) We went on a 170-mile round trip shopping adventure on Tuesday, and the girls did GREAT!!! It wasn’t exactly relaxing, but got all our errands accomplished with very minimal fuss, and I dare say we all had a pretty great time!

3) I carried Baby B to the dermatologist on Wednesday, as she’s really been struggling with dry skin. I was SO proud of her…her chin quivered a couple of times, but she didn’t cry even once! (That's a HUGE improvement over any doctor visit she's had in the past year, at least!!!)

4) When we were leaving the dermatologist’s office, I told B that she had been such a big girl that she deserved a lollipop from the basket on the reception counter (her first). She immediately said, “And Sissy!” (I love how the girls always look out for each other.)

When we got to the car, I unwrapped the lollipop, intending to let B have a couple of licks, like an ice cream cone. Instead she popped it right in her mouth, like she knew just what to do. I let her enjoy it for a minute or so before I told her we needed to go (and I ate the rest of it...hee hee).

I forgot about the second lollipop in my bag until we were putting the girls to bed that night. Out of nowhere, B exclaimed, “I had a lollipop!” I couldn’t help but laugh at my blabbermouth…and then I changed the subject quickly before I had to explain why we wouldn’t be sharing the other one before bedtime.

5) During our bedtime routine earlier in the week, Baby A began a little soliloquy. “I love you, Mommy…I love you, Daddy…I love you, Sissy…I love you, Sasha.” And then she finished it off by saying, “I am happy.” Melt.my.heart.

And what did I do for ME this week???

As part of my resolution to start dressing more nicely in and around the house, I spent some time…ALONE…shopping this week. I shopped for me, and only me. I can’t remember the last time I went to the mall and didn’t so much as browse through one of the children’s stores!

My shopping trip was rather fruitful. I scored three pairs of casual Capri pants, a couple of new sweaters, and several sundresses. I certainly wasn’t shopping for sundresses, but I couldn’t resist. I don’t expect to be wearing them around the house exactly, but they’ll be great for casual family dinners and jaunts to the yogurt shop this summer.

I think I’m standing up straighter already!

Fab 5 Friday...and ME!

Lots of fabulousness going on at our house this week!

1) I let the girls finger paint on Thursday, even using three different colors of paint. We talked about the “rules” beforehand…your hands touch ONLY your paper, nothing else. I was so proud of the girls for following directions! They had a great time, and I didn't even break a sweat!

2) We were rushing on Thursday night to get the girls’ baths, as they were very tired. Baby B took her bath first, so her hair had a chance to air dry. I was worried that Baby A’s hair would still be wet at bedtime, though. I asked if she wanted to try Mommy’s hairdryer, and she said she did. She giggled when I blew air on her hand, and then she sat so still – for a good five minutes – while I dried her hair a bit. I can’t get over what a big girl she was!

3) I don’t know what the context was, but I heard Baby B say to her sister while they were playing this week, “Bless your heart!” Now that’s my Southern girl!

4) Baby B told me she found a “hair” in the den. I went to take it from her, and realized it was one of the cat’s whiskers. I told the girls what it was, and I let them feel it against their hands. Baby A got a worried look on her face. “Mommy, go put it back!” Put it back where? I asked her. “On Sasha’s face!”

5) There is a mention of jelly beans in one of the girls books. To date they didn’t know what that was. (When I was sneaking some jelly beans from the pantry a couple of weeks ago, one of them asked me what I was eating. “Beans,” I told them without hesitation.) I bought some jelly beans [I am addicted!] at the grocery this week. I decided to let the girls try one. I cut a nice red one in half…and then I decided to cut it again, afraid of a choking hazard. So my girls have each had ¼ of a jelly bean. They ate it very tentatively, but their faces were soon beaming. Baby B got a wistful look on her face and said, “Like a cookie!” Hahaha!!! Hey, don’t get too attached, kiddos…the rest of that bag is for Mommy!

And what did I do for ME this week (besides indulge in jelly beans!)???

In keeping with my hobos-no-more vow, I finally invested in some nicer bags. To date, I’ve shuffled around a number of different bags…usually a diaper bag and one or two smaller black canvas bags. One canvas bag usually contained a subset of the diaper bag, and one served as our “restaurant” bag, holding our high chair covers and wipes. It was a tawdry assortment.

I am now the proud owner of a larger utility bag with all sorts of great pockets, an insulated medium-sized bag, and a purse…which all match each other AND happen to coordinate with my diaper bag!

The bags are floral- and paisley-type prints, and I somehow feel like that puts me in a different “mom” category…like I’m somehow now – finally – a Stay-at-Home-Mom. But hey, they look great in the back of my mid-size SUV! Hahaha!!!