Our TIme in Eden (forgive me Natalie Merchant)

Today Holden and I spent time in the garden while Zoë tok a little afternoon siesta. It was pretty much how I imagined gardening with him to be (or how I've been hoping it would be). For the past two summers he's been too young, I think. I mean there's obviously been valuable lessons and great opportunities for him to learn about the world around him... but he never seemed entirely content. I spent most of the time "entertaining" him in the garden; often getting frustrated he wasn't better at self-play in our time in Eden. 

But today he took to the soil like a champ:

"We're digging for dinosaur bones."
"Oh hello worm, my name is Holden."
"We've got snails!" (Which we don't, but he kept saying we did.)

Everything was exciting.

"This is soo fun!" He'd say, and then fall face down into the (soon-to-be) home of our tomatoes. "Oh! I'm stuck."

It was awesome. I got so much "work" done today - I'm even happy to report that I dove into our compost to spice up the ph of the planter boxes. And he just entertained himself - along side me, in the front yard and never once made an attempt to sneak into the street or out of my (liberated-but-still) watchful eye.

We found carrots already sprouting, and oregano plant that survived the winter and looks awesome! An onion start, rhubarb ready for crisp (any day now) and that the potatoes had indeed done their job as week deterrents making a nice new space for beans and such this year.

Finally, a day (or a few moments) realistic to like I purport to lead on facebook (you bliss, eco - whatnot.)

Three years old RULES.

A quick note about today...

I promised myself I'd be quick (because I am exhausted!)

But I just wanted to mention that today was Zoë's blessing day. She turned 3 months old on the 7th; and is already weighing in at a "healthy" 15-plus pounds. (As a lot of you know, Baby's a typically blessed as newborns -- but my parents have been out of the country, and schedules were not really matching up until today.)

Anyway, I love this girl.

She is perfection in every way.

She's a good natured baby -- an amazing eater, an awesome sleeper and has the greatest baby smile. I love her noises - her coos and ahs. I love how she looks for her brother when she hears his voice and how she lights up when he sings her a verse of "baby bumble bee."

And my heart was about to burst open today -- Zoë in the blessing dress my mom made, in Danny's arms with Holden sitting on my lap. (Neither of the kids crying.) Holdeb just kept asking "Where's Zoë?" He could hear his Dad talking but couldn't see him.

It was a beautiful blessing. I can't wait to tell you the details -- but actually I'm going to have to wait to tell you, because my legs feel like they used to after I'd been working at Mini Indy for SkyWest Airlines.... spent.

But you should know -- my day was perfect.

Just perfect.

I'll write more later...

But seriously -- perfection.

"All done Jesus" and other awesomeness

In an effort to feng shui my life, this week I worked on a few of our 'junk drawers." (Has that show Hoarders made anyone else a little freaked out about their extra "stuff?") Anyway, I cleaned out our medicine cabinet (I can't believe that Hoodia didn't make me a size 2!!!), and a couple of other shoe boxes full of crap. (Exhibit A to the right, had Vitamin C that expired in 2006.)

In one of them I discovered a mason jar I had kept in the kitchen to write down funny things Holden said/did. One, recorded said "All done Jesus." (Labeled 3/15;) I wish I would've recorded the context in which it was said, but it make me smile just thinking about him saying that. Since currently most of his sentences contain references to Transformers, Super Heroes, Bad Guys and the All-Spark.

One other AWESOME thing Holden said happened after I told him he needed pants on to play in our sunroom. After the kid uses the bathroom he has a tendcy to just leave his pants by the toilet. He hasn't mastered the art of just pulling them down enough not to pee on them so he can easily pull them back up. So needless to say, he's half-naked quite often. So I said to him, "Holden, you need pants on in the sun room. I don't want people looking at your private parts." And he looked at me and said "Jesus made them special."

So awesome! With all this Sandusky crap, and crazy John Powell and his creepy Dad, and all the horror stories on the news about awful things happening to kids, I've felt a sense of urgency in talking to Holden about strangers and creep-ohs, and so I was trying to help him understand about his body. At the same time, I don't want him growing up with a repressed sexuality that haunts him later on. So I explained that God had made his body special, and his private parts are only for him to touch (preferably in the bathtub when washing) or Mom and Dad, or the doctor (in front of Mom or Dad). That sounds kind of confusing now that I write it down, but my point is, he gets that God made them special... and that they're private. Now if he'd just put his pants back on....

In other news (and yes, I'm seeing how many paragraphs I can start a sentence with the word "In")...In other news, on Day 2 of Lent I wrote:

"I may have given up refined sugar, but I didn't give up white flour. I think I ate half-a-loaf of sourdough last night. I made a salad for dinner and thought, croutons are awesome... so I warmed a bit of olive oil and butter (mmmm, butter) and made some croutons. Home-made croutons are the best. Every time I make them I think, "Why would you waste time with anything else?" But the irony is, people don't really "waste their time" with croutons, do they? They specifically buy them so they won't waste time with croutons. But I'm just telling you, I think the ones you buy from a store are worthless. Why waste a carb or 60 on something that tastes like cardboard diped in butter (mmm, butter.) I don't ever buy croutons (unless I'm in charge of them for a big church function or something odd like that....not interesting.)

Any who, my processed-sugarless-Lent is going fine. I get the urge to bake chocolate chip cookies about, hmmm, once every hour or so. But this body needed to do something different.

Oh and just for the record - I plan on splurging on Zoë's blessing day. It will be my own "Fat Tuesday" on Sunday March 11th. I'm hoping to indulge in those awesome brownies that have marshmallow smacked deliciously between layers of cake and frosting. Just so you know...I'm ok with it, hope you are too.

This post wasn't supposed to be this long. I just wanted to write down what Holden had said before I throw that paper away and forget. So on that note, I'll sign off:

All done Jesus.

Love-handles for Lent and other musings

Totally got a kick out of this Lent word-cloud

I found at theblueroomblog.org

Yesterday I tweeted that I was giving up my love handles for Lent. Obviously it was a joke... but the more I thought about it, the more I figured I was kind of serious. Much like with Holden, with Zoë I lost a bunch of weight fast apres delivery... then I hit a plateau. And that plateau happened to be about 8 lbs more than I weighed before I got pregnant (the difference with Zoë is that I started about 10 lbs lighter than I did with Holden). If I were a superhero, I would've been called "Super-Chubs."

Anyway, my point is, I've got some lovely love-handles... top grade. Just squishy enough for excellent muffin-topping; yet giggle-tastic so it's hours of fun for the whole family. Act now, and you can receive my front-bum at no extra charge!

I don't want to be obsessive about losing weight. I know I have plenty of milk for Zoe; so I really dont think that's going to be a problem if I ease up a bit on my caloric intake... (for some reason, there is a direct correlation to milk-prduction and my int-ake of cupcakes and cinnamon rolls. it was the same with Holden... it's like I start lactating and my internal GPS starts playing the role of Siri "I have found 12 dozen cupcakes within a 5 mile radius." Only in my case, it's a 2 foot radius because I keep baking the friggin' things.

I need an overhaul.

I'm not a horrible eater. I bake most of the "junk-food" I consume...and ironically, it's made with organic cane sugar. Ha! But I recognize that doesn't make it healthy.

I read this Louise L. Hay article about heel spurs (mine has reappeared and is ever so annoying). She advocated taking in more protein and green veggies. (Makes sense. I've been waking up lately craving green smoothies, but then end up eating... yes, cinnamon rolls, instead.)

Ms. Hay says that "metaphysically, feet symbolize direction as well as our understanding of ourselves. The heels are 'shock absorbers' for the family, both within and without. The spurs can be a deep-seated fear of the unknown and a sense of total vulnerability."

And then asks "Do you feel out of step with everyone around you?"

I wouldn't say I feel out of step with everyone around me; but I am having a bit of a time trying to figure out what/where I should be stepping. I have questions about how I'm raising Holden... the right choice for pre-school and schooling in general. I wonder if Zoë is getting the full attention she needs, and I know that Danny is constantly at the short end of that stick.

I miss working out, going for a run, and my yoga practice is definitely suffering.

Perhaps I am living the oxygen-mask analogy...neglecting myself, and thus everyone else around me suffers. The irony is that I'm not playing the martyr. I am not putting everyone else ahead of me out of selflessness. I'm just making poor eating choices and struggling with time-management.

That said, I am turning over a new leaf for Lent.

I think I'll give up desserts and processed sugar. That is one of the healthiest things I can do for myself... there by choosing into my best self, and thus being better for all those around me.

On a separate but similar note, I'm sure my husband just wishes I'd spend more time...well, I don;t really need to say it do I? I mean, my father-in-law reads this, you know.

Cassandra in a Word-Cloud

So, today is Cassandra Suite-Smith's birthday. For those of you in the know, you know she's my older sister. For those of you not in the know, you now are in the know; otherwise, you are in the know, now...WOW.

So my sister is a somewhat private person, so I probably should've just written this in a card to her -- but it's nice that you know a little bit more about her.

So here is a word cloud of my sister.

tenacious beautiful rock-solid-bod LOVES HOLDEN

great mama Loving Wife Health-and-Fitness-Nut

Yoginni Runner-fast runner-super fast runner good cook

ATHLETE excellent party hostess thoughtful

assertive (and yes, even at time aggressive) passionate

believer strong-willed dedicated indefatigable

Sister-Sister

And just for good measure, a video of Cassandra helping Holden rock climb from last summer.

Love you Cassandra, hope you have an amazing day. You totally deserve it.

Zoë's Birth Announcement

Pretty ridiculous...I have a bunch of these addressed at my house, and they have been for a couple of week... but i am having a hard time making it to the post office for their 'special' pricing... LAMENESS.

Holden 3 Year Review

Wow Bud, three years on February 1st?!?! Pretty awesome. Here are some things worth noting about you~

You are a terrific big brother to Zoë. You often ask where she is (usually sleeping). You call her “my baby.”

You ask to hold her sometimes and have often commented on the fact that she “has no teeth.”

Quirky and Fabulous

Instead of saying ‘she,’ you have a tendency to combine it with the word ‘her’…so when talking about females it often comes out “shers” (eg. Shers is eating some milt.)

You pronounce Milk – Milt. In fact a lot of your “k” sounds end with a “t” instead.

Things You LOVE

Transformers ~ Superheros ~Dinosaurs ~ Cars

(just in general, not specifically the Disney-Pixar themed toys,

but you play with those too.)

You like to steal my phone and watch “Weet Woo!” (For any parents out there with kiddos that find themselves on YouTube, this is the greatest invention…it filters content on the web specific to a child’s age… the biggest problem is that Holden can literally disappear with my phone and could entertain himself forever without my involvement. Not necessarily the “media policy” we’re striving for at the Mangum household.)

You like to help me mop the floors and clean the toilets. (And truth be told the mopping of the hardwoods IS actually faster with your help then when I do it by myself. How about that?!?!)

You love taking showers/baths.

You are FINALLY wearing big boy pants (why did you hate them for so long?)

You like to help me bake…I need to remind myself to enjoy having your help more often; because how long does a boy ask to cook with his mom in the kitchen?

We’re working on – putting your coat on by yourself, getting dressed by yourself. For all the things you like to do independently, you have never been real interested in this.

You love whole wheat cinnamon rolls – you would eat them every day if given the option. Seems like we’re baking these about every week or so nowadays.

You like playing with paydough, fighting bad guys, anyone’s toys, making up songs and “watching shows.”

Some of my favorite phrases you use:

"You will never defeat me."

"The Hult is misunderstood." (Hult=Hulk)

"Come on!"

"That’s a great idea!"

"It’s a piece of my home planet."

"Spiderman helps us." (This is also often replaced with the Prophet, Jesus, etc.)

"Will you wipe my bottom?" (I know it sounds odd that I like this one, but to me it means my three year old has just gone #2 in the potty, by himself, without any coaxing from me and is just waiting in the bathroom...and I had no idea it had happened. Awesome.)

Life with you pretty much rules.

Holden at iFly for his 3rd birthday