Monday Mommy Tip: Looking Younger

You think it's easy being this good-looking? I manage a house, a husband, a 2 year old, and 2 cats. Life gets busy. Either good genes or smart body-care, I get a lot of comments on my age. It used to be that I looked more mature than my real age; recently, it's been on how fabulous I look for my real age. Which by the way, is NOT that old, thank you very much.

How do I do it? Well, there's exercise. And water. And eating well. Sure, sure, all that happy crap. Let's be honest, I don't have the time or the money to get regular spa treatments or lunch botox. I inherited great skin. But I also take care of it. I use lotion & facial cream like it's going outta style, and through all my skin care lessons, I learned the following incredible tips.

ALICIA'S SKIN CARE TIPS:
1. Take off your make-up at the end of the day, no matter what. Ladies, it doesn't matter how tired you are or how inebriated you got at that work party, TAKE IT OFF! Leaving make-up on can age you ten years or more. At least, that's what I heard... hey, I'm not citing this stuff, so believe what you want to believe. Or buy into what I'm saying blindly and look younger.

2. Use eye cream on your mouth laugh lines. Swear to God, this works. The eye cream is formulated to reduce fine lines, so use it where your fine lines are! Dab it on the under-eye area as well as around your mouth.

3. If you are older than 25, use a skincare regime that includes targeting your eyes and moisturizing your skin. Some women swear by a microderm set, and I have one. I use it when I remember... which is usually every 4 - 6 months. I have no idea if it works, but hell, it feels relaxing. And who are we kidding, I'll take relaxation whenever I can get it!

Product endorsement? Sure, I use Mary Kay products. Mostly because I have an inside connection, but I'm also pretty regimented. I have no interest in going out there and shopping around for more product. I also don't have the cash (it's a *good* connection). As long as I keep getting compliments, that's what I will use. Well, unless it starts to smell. Or there's some horrible animal testing, 3rd world child slavery issue. Until then, I'm a happy girl!

Monday Mommy Tip: Traveling

As those of you who follow me on twitter (@BabyMakesChaos) know, we had quite the adventure coming home from Michigan this past Sunday. This recent travel (9 hours in the car, one way... without stopping) gave me some insight on how to get things to go more smoothly in the future.

ALICIA'S MOMMY TIPS ON TRAVELING
1. When able, travel by night or when your child is most likely to sleep. The red-eye driving out to Michigan was tough the next day [for the adults] but we only had to stop for gas mid-transit. Plus we avoided most of the construction.
2. Bring something that plays movies. Not only is this invaluable on a plane or in a car, it's incredibly helpful if you're in a hotel room and need to get ready for an event but don't want your small child sticking their fingers in the electrical outlet. Dig?
3. Ask for a refrigerator. 99% of the hotels I've stayed at will give you one if you ask. This is clutch for food, medicine, water, and alcohol. 
4. I've discovered the more that I travel with Olivia, the more I need the following tucked away in the luggage: scissors (do NOT put these in carry-on bags!), baggies, plastic [grocery] bags, travel tissues, travel wipes. You'll figure out why in due time.

For those 45 minutes when your child is screaming, "I want my toy back!" at the top of her lungs, do yourself a favor and bring noise-cancelling headphones... or drugs - OTC, of course. :-)

Kids Say the Darnedest Things

Overheard recently in a conversation between my 2 year old and my husband.

Olivia: When I grow up, we catch a wood-pecker.

Frank: When you grow up, we'll catch a wood-pecker?

Olivia: Yeah! Let's do that!


Your guess is as good as mine. 

Monday Mommy Tip: Bookworms

I know this sounds silly, but this insider secret comes from your local librarian: teach your child to love books. Whether they are hard, chunky board books or beautifully illustrated Caldecott Medal award-winning pieces of literature, most of the moms I know have a home filled with children's books. Our own house has baskets and cloth bins overflowing with everything from the classics to the kid's meal under-3 versions. Even my car, purchased new only 6 months ago, is littered with Liv's favorites. It doesn't take a brain surgeon to see the wonders of this skill. I could go on and on about the academic potential of children who love to read or the benefits to society these young ones go one to become, but you know all that!

The real reason: your sanity. Point blank, I said it. When you have a tot that can spend hours (or precious minutes) sitting on the floor (or carseat or doctor's office or church pew...) quietly engaged with a book, you will count your blessings (and the many chores/tasks that you can now accomplish).

Start young. I read daily to pre-natal Olivia. Poor, naive Frank listened graciously each evening as I recited "Brown Bear, Brown Bear" [by Bill Martin Jr. & Eric Carl] to my belly. It is now, swear on my life, Olivia's favorite book. You can see her "reading" it above with her bestie, T, at the library. Post-birth, it was at least a book a day. When she could hold the books, I gave her board books, not worrying about the drool or excessive bending. She used the soft books as teethers, but by then, the impact was done. She was hooked and still is. We read at home, before nap and bed, as well as the library and church and in the car. She will stare at tween, barely illustrated novelettes in the doctor's office, and once, she demanded to read my Runners' World magazine. In the morning when I want to shower, I set her in the crib with about 15 books and know that I have about 20 minutes. I hear her through the monitor, chatting away - reciting the ones she knows and making up the ones she doesn't.

It is fantastic. Oh and your child will grow up to be a genius.

Alicia's Teach your Child to be a Bookworm Tips

1. Start young, pre-natal if you dare.

2. Be silly when you read and do fun things before and/or after reading.

3. Too many words? Make up a story. Use your child's name and their friends' names.

4. ALWAYS keep a bag of books in the car. This is just as wise as keeping a small box of crayons in every bag. And your fellow worshipers will appreciate this, even if they never say it.

5. Chick-fil-a (I should really be compensated for all the free advertising I give them...) gives fabulous, tiny board books as their "under 3" toy. They are perfect for the car.

Monday Mommy Tip: Baking Assistance

Olivia hit this wonderful, help you, independent stage. It's great. No, really... just greaaaat. (Note sarcasm.)

I do enjoy, however, when she wants to help me bake. We go through the hand-washing and necessary sanitary measures, but generally, I limit her helping to dumping ingredients into the mixing bowl. It's great fun for us both, and she loves "cooking" with Mommy.

One of the recipes for cookies involves refrigerating the dough for at least 24 hours, and when I pulled it out, she wanted to help. In a slight predicament, I figured out an easy way that she could help and maintain my sanitary expectations. After all, I wanted to be able to give these to others and not feel guilt over them eating germ-laden, yet delicious (!), baked goods.

These tips are cookie-related only [for now] and mostly applicable to children who don't understand they shouldn't lick their fingers or pick their noses while baking.

ALICIA'S TIPS FOR INCLUDING KIDS DURING COOKIE BAKING:

1. Choose a bake time right before nap or bedtime. This allows your child(ren) to only help with one batch before being swept away.

2. Have them wash their hands and stand in front of the baking sheet.

3. Portion out a ball of cookie, hand it over to your child, and allow them to roll it and put it on the sheet.

4. Slightly overbake this batch. DO NOT BURN!

That last step is most important. This way you will know which cookies your child touched, and because they are slightly overcooked, you will be less likely to give them to your friends. And let's be honest, your friends are less likely to take a slightly overbaked cookie than one that looks deliciously chewy. Just remember not to burn the cookies or your kids won't eat 'em either.

Happy Baking!

Monday Mommy Tip: Surviving the Community

Today's mommy tip is brought to you by free stuff and crayola (figuratively):

ALICIA'S COMMUNITY SURVIVAL TIP:

1. Always keep a small pack of crayons in your purse.

2. Keep an extra pack in your gym bag, the diaper bag, and any other heavily used bag.

3. You can get free ones from Korner Bakery, Nordstrom's Cafe, and Outback.

4. Or simply throw a few in a plastic baggy and tuck them away! Be super prepared and keep scrap paper in there, too.

The crayons will become clutch in key wait situations: doctor's office, restaurants, church, etc. I often encourage parents to keep handy toys for all of these places, but when you forget, it's super easy to get out the crayons. Bonus: these aforementioned locations often have scrap paper readily available (church bulletin, back of placemat, & Liv's fave, the paper covering the patient seat in the exam room).

This is not age specific either - Olivia has enjoyed the crayons since she was around 9 months. If she didn't scribble, she loved watching me draw as I sang or spell words that were familiar to her. Now, she colors for a good 10 - 15 minutes independently.

So, go ahead, pocket that handy box of crayons the next time you are at Outback! Your child & your sanity will thank you later!

Monday Mommy Tip (Potty-Training)

I am starting a new feature on the blog: every Monday I will post a Mom's tip. Something that I or my friends' do that I find incredibly helpful in parenting my child. A little lesson or task that makes my life easier. Or just some general wisdom from someone who has come before.

This first installment comes from the realm of potty-training. Having just gone through this with Olivia, I felt this was a good place to start. Whether or not you choose to do the highly intense, boot camp-esque methods I employed is irrelevant. This tip is perfect for anyone trying to teach their child to go in the toilet.

My post about the potty-training experience can be read here. Note that we had quite the first night - 7 accidents in a row! This left me wondering about how I would survive the next day on my own. When Liv had an accident, Frank was essential [in my mind] to getting through it. One of us cleaned up Liv and talked her through practicing, while the other cleaned up the immediate area. It involved getting clean clothes, washing hands, and spraying the area with Lysol (not in that order). So, I figured out a way to make it easier to do everything on my own:

ALICIA'S POTTY-TRAINING TIPS

1. Have a bucket handy filled with water and OxiClean (or any product like OxiClean). The idea is that as soon as clothing becomes soiled, you can immediately throw the garment(s) in the water for soaking until you can wash them. This made my life so much easier! Toss 'em in and forget about 'em.

2. Keep everything within arm's reach. I had her extra underwear & clean clothes, M&Ms, a roll of toilet paper, a roll of paper towels, a thing of wipes, a plastic bag [for garbage], my recording sheet, a stool for me to sit on, and a box of tissues [damn, the allergies!] all in a 4 foot radius of the potty. Nearby, but safely out of reach, was the container of Lysol. I never had to go more than two steps to get anything I needed. It was a thing of beauty; I wish I had taken a picture. There should have been a sign on the door that said: Potty-training in Progress... Don't Touch Anything!

3. I trained her using a tiny potty because our bathrooms are located upstairs and in the basement; nothing is on the first floor, which is where our easy-to-clean laminate flooring is. I didn't want to train her to use the upstairs bathroom because of (1) the carpet, (2) we don't spend a lot of time up there unless we are on the bed, and (3) it would have been a longer travel distance had we been downstairs. The basement was out because of the carpet and the [golf-ball sized] crickets. If you can avoid carpeting, do so. It's much easier to clean a hard surface than to scrub carpets (especially if you are alone).

4. The tiny potty had to be emptied into the flushable toilet, which wasn't an issue... until she pooped and I mistakenly used wipes. We cannot flush wipes at our house, so they had to be thrown in the plastic bag -- kind of smelly and gross in my opinion. I started using the toilet paper to clean her as best I could and finished off with wipes. Much less odor and a little more sanitary.

5. If you do the intense potty-training like I did, don't bother with pants until your child has the concept [and is having zero accidents]. Otherwise, they just get in the way. Liv went 3 1/2 days without pants, and the first day I put them on her, she said, "Where we goin?"

Good luck!

A Passing Moment

Olivia has been having some nap troubles. Specifically, I want her to nap, and she feels it's unnecessary. We've gone through this before; the outcome of which was she learned that Mommy is not going to come get me but Daddy might and Mom Mom will. So, if she thinks I am not home, she will cry. Now, over time her cries have become more cunning, more manipulative. Initially, she cried. Then, she screamed hysterically. She started yelling out our names. A few weeks ago, she began loudly calling, "I love you, too!" or "I miss you!" Last week, it became, "Help!" My child needs to use these powers for a greater good...

Then, we potty-trained. And my daughter, the future CIA agent, pulled out her Ace-in-the-hole: "I need to go potty!"

Except she doesn't know what she's dealing with because her mommy is a behavior analyst who deals with cunning & shrewdness everyday. Her mommy puts her on the potty for a minute or two and then puts her right back to bed.

Today, however, in a passing moment of weakness, I sat with her in the glider and rocked her. I cradled her in my arms, told her to close her eyes, and softly counted. As I counted, I realized just how big my baby is with her head and feet over the armrests [laying on my arms]. I thought about how I used to hold her in this very position when she was a newborn and refused to sleep. I listened as her breathing slowed and hit a more rhythmic smoothness. I felt this radiant love - me to her and bouncing back.

She may be shrewd but she is still just perfect. As I shifted to move her into the bed, her eyes opened into tiny slits, and I whispered, "I'm going to lay you in your crib. It's time to take a nap." I softly brushed her hair aside before creeping quietly from the room.

The angel slept for almost 3 glorious hours.

Pee Everywhere

Yikes! If I went to confession, this would start with a huge omission of guilt. I have not been posting and have been so busy that I don't feel bad.

You'll live. I'm pretty sure there aren't many out there knocking down the door to check our humble blog each day.

Finally, what has been deemed [by me] as "the worst school year ever" is over. After spending a week enjoying breathing, I hunkered down for POTTY TRAINING!

I have to admit, I am not afraid of toilet-training. Doesn't scare me. Doesn't intimidate me. Doesn't make me wince or cower with fear of ruined clothing, floors or furniture. Why? Because I am a behavior analyst working with children with special needs. Toilet-training is what I do on a regular basis, so I figured I would stick to the plan and do what I normally do.

I don't usually talk about what I do on the blog, which is meant to highlight Olivia and our family, but the wonderful success of toilet-training has inspired me to spread the word. As a behavior analyst, I use the research-based methods put forth by Drs. Foxx & Axrin. It has worked well with all my clients, so I figured it would work with Liv, too.

You can find a short description of their book here, on the Best Nanny Newsletter. Essentially, it's an intense, scheduled system that utilizes reinforcement for success & teaching/practicing when accidents occur. The book is very easy to read and can be purchased on Amazon for relatively little. I've used this many times with my clients, so I did a slightly modified version with Liv, especially after the initial 7 straight accidents in about 20 minutes incident on the first night. I switched to a 5 mins on the toilet/5 minutes off after that and increased by 5 minutes [off] after the 3rd straight success. Instead of "pumping her full of liquids," as I often suggest to clients, I gave her about 1/4 - 1/2 box of juice every hour. And I cut her off about 1 - 1.5 hours before nap/bedtime. She does still sleep in pull-ups. We were at 20 mins off/2 - 5 mins on when she self-initiated for the first time. I waited for a second time and stopped scheduling her all together.

There was some major, hysterical, roof-raising crying every time she wetted herself, which affected her willingness to even sit on the little, green potty conveniently set up in our living room. So I did a little re-pairing and allowed her to watch her most favorite show, Yo Gabba Gabba! I also set aside M&Ms - 2 for pee pees and 4 for poops. Eventually, I faded the TV show to books (see the picture above), so I could also give her Gabba when she successfully used the toilet. In order to keep the allure of Gabba high, we did not watch any TV... this did lead to my temporary insanity and a strong desire to interact with other adults that may have bordered on unhealthy.

Tomorrow I'm letting her wear pants again (she's been running around in her skivvies and a t-shirt), and I'll put the TV on non-child-friendly programs. Over the weekend I'll fade out the use of Yo Gabba Gabba as a reward, and then, I'll start thinning the use of M&Ms.

I began the program after I picked her up from daycare on Monday -- so around 5pm. It's Thursday (4pm-ish), and I can honestly say that she's got it. She may still have an occasional accident, but I'm so proud of her. That first day there were 6 wet accidents in about 4 hours. The second day 1 wet and 1 poop; yesterday, 1 wet accident. So far today, nothing (knock wood...). She is telling us when she has to go, and for the past two naps, she has woken up dry. Maybe I shouldn't count my chickens, but it is, at the very least, exciting.

And for all you fellow behavior analysts: Yes, I took data.

Cabin Fever

Liv has been sick all week. All week. All.... Week.

Turns out [during the SECOND trip to the doctor] she has an ear infection AND pneumonia. Awesome.

Good news: she's feeling better already with just 4 doses of antibiotics. Bad news: she's feeling better already and our house looks like a tornado zipped through.

So I have tons of posts to post and pictures to share, but it will have to wait until I can sit and type it all out. Because I also have tons of surfaces to disinfect, laundry to do, groceries to buy, and snotty old tissues to discover and throw out.

But, here's a MOM TIP: buy a special snack to give post-medicine.

Olivia usually doesn't mind taking her medicine, but this time (new pharmacy, maybe?) she really hates the taste. So, we bought some delicious, mini-cupcakes that we present to her for after the medicine. She's super excited about the cupcake, and we just keep saying, "You have to take your medicine first! Then you can eat the cupcake!" We set it out so she can see it, and BAM, the medicine dropper comes out. She hates the meds but it's much smoother with the cupcake.

In the words of the great philosopher, Brobee, "Try it. You'll like it!"

The Simple Things

Frank and I didn't spend a ton of money on Christmas this year. Good thing. She was thrilled with the boxes that everything shipped in.

Lesson learned.

You Get What You Give

And then there was that time when we had a snow day. Frank cooked chili in the slow cooker. The whole family had cabin fever and went for a joy ride to Dunkin' Donuts. Olivia was so excited that she giggled in the car as we pulled in the lot. We picked up fresh, just-baked French bread from a local market before returning home to enjoy chili.

We gave it to Olivia at 6pm. She loved it.

She gave it back to us around 8:30pm.

Aaaah, memories.

Snow Day

Things are getting better with the computer but still ever so slooooow...

As I sit snowed in for the third time this winter, I have been attempting to patiently update the blog and add some pictures. Included here are pictures I took of Olivia decorating the tree.

For Christmas, Santa gave me a Canon EOS Rebel XS DSLR, which I had been begging for. I was getting annoyed that all my pictures of Olivia were coming out blurry, an unfortunate by-product of having a mobile child. Sidenote: we are incredibly happy to have a mobile child after watching her develop post-DDH surgery & cast. However, my point-and-click was NOT holding up. So Santa did me a solid and Black Friday shopped.

The pictures are coming out amazing, but it's totally accidental. I have no idea what I'm doing. If I see something that I think would look pretty as a photograph, I try to quietly snap the memory. Look for future pictures to come. I will say, I'm deleting more than I did previously and editing as best as possible. I'll be looking for more information on how to use the camera, which is currently set to basic sport mode.

The other delightful outcome of this holiday season was that Olivia completely understood it! Her Christian daycare instilled the idea of Jesus' birth, so she sang "Happy Birthday" to Jesus the entire month. On Christmas Eve, she knew that Santa was coming and bringing her presents but only if she was asleep. It was perfect. I have a lot of photos to sort through, so look for those in the, hopefully, near future.

But our holiday cards came out just lovely. So thank you, Santa, for making me quite the happy mommy this winter. And a happy mommy means a happy house!

Quiet Time

This moment sponsored by Mom Mom and Aunt Gina who donated the lovely, Liv-sized chair... that matched our furniture (hand-to-God, we did not special-order this).

Olivia finally has a place to sit like a big girl... and climb over... and stand on... and be bouncy on... and be the first thing that lead to a time-out.

Yo Gabba Gabba, The Pre-Party!

MUNO! He's tall and friendly! FOOFA! She's pink and happy!

Figured it out yet? I've mentioned it before - Liv's love of the NickJr. TV show, Yo Gabba Gabba! She knows all the character's names, sings the theme song, recognizes and dances to the others songs. There's not an episode we haven't seen or DVRed. She had a birthday party centering around this theme. Are you picking up what I'm putting down? Have you solved the mystery of where I might possibly be going with this?

The next three posts (this one included) will be a 3-part homage to the Yo Gabba Gabba Live! There's a Party in My City Tour. And, might I add, the expensive, all kids over the age of 1 need a ticket, tour. Olivia, when you are old enough to read this, do know that Mommy and Daddy love you very much and thoroughly enjoyed themselves, and I'm sure you can't even remember that we didn't buy groceries that week...

The Pre-Party, as I'm calling it, occurred a couple of weeks before the tour and involved Muno and Foofa making an appearance at the Please Touch Museum (seriously, get a membership so I can stop talking about how fantastic that place is). Frank and I figured this would be a test run helping us determine if taking her to the show was really a good idea. Let's be honest, not many 16 month olds can sit through a live show.

Mobbed doesn't even explain the main atrium of the PTM. I stood there with Liv and Mom Mom questioning, really questioning, my decision-making abilities. Then, we saw Muno in all his cardboard cut-out glory. Had I a better camera, I may have had more pictures of Olivia and the joy she exuded standing next to him. Unfortunately, most of the shots taken by my low-tech behemoth were blurry because who in their right mind tries to ask a 16 month old to stand still during a dance party with her heroes. Oh, right, me.

Luckily my camera has a video mode. Girl's got mad skills.

And then, they appeared. In my mind, it occurred in slow motion. Although, in actuality, that might not be far from the truth, considering their "handlers" had to push through what felt like thousands (or hundreds) of small children, not-so-small children, and their not-at-all small but equally as excited adults. This was Olivia's face (thank you, Camera Gods, for getting the focus right).

Foofa. She really is pink and happy, folks. Totally true. Believe me, I've seen it.

After the dance party madness, we stood in line for a photo op with the Pink Goddess herself. While in line, I maaaay have prepped Olivia on what to expect. However, she did answer the questions on her own without me feeding her lines. Scouts honor.

Olivia meets her idol. Mommy unsuccessfully hides her excitement at being in the presence of greatness.

It was at that point that Frank and I knew we had to figure out a way to scrape up the money for tickets (sell the cats? the car?). Check back frequently for parts 2 and 3 or Dance Party and Post-Party as I refer to them.

Hip Baby Blues No More!

We had quite a week last week! Olivia celebrated being cast-free for one year on August 26, 2010. For any new readers, Olivia was diagnosed with bilateral developmental dysplasia of the hip when she was 5 days old. It was so severe, doctors had to correct it with open-reduction surgery, culminating in a spica cast(s). It's hard to remember what that life was like, so here she was on her 4 month birthday in spica cast #2 (always happy!).



Well, I couldn't let the day go by unnoticed (or un-celebrated!), so we headed off to the Please Touch Museum to see OLIVIA! in person.

My Olivia was thrilled, despite the [second] picture that appears otherwise. I, on the other-hand, need some modeling tips.

And to put it all in perspective, one year to the date, we had her re-eval with the county we now live in to determine elegibility for continued physical therapy [which she had qualified for last fall in our previous county of residence]. Olivia was a bright shining star and excelled in all areas, including motor skills. There was 0% delay (which was no surprise to us, having watched her move around all summer). I'm including a July video where she tried to imitate gymnastics (televised) to emphasize how far she's come.

So that's it. We feel tremendous gratitude to Miss Janet, her PT, Dr. B. (her pediatric orthopedic surgeon), and all the nurses and staff at Nemour's (DuPont location), as well as the countless family and friends that prayed for her and supported us. I don't want to count my chickens but it looks like this chapter in the book of Olivia, mine, not Ian Falconer's, is complete. Period.

Insider Information

Our wild and crazy summer is coming to a close, and if you've spoken with me recently, you'll know that we spent A LOT of time at The Philadelphia Zoo and The Please Touch Museum. We have memberships to both, and I cannot tout these enough. Olivia and I (and whomever else we can drag along with us) have thoroughly enjoyed exploring all that these places have to offer.

I thought I'd take some time to show off some of our excursions as well as give some visiting tips:

The Zoo
Location: 34th St & Girard Ave

Traveling by car? Take the back roads! Getting to the zoo from I-76 is always congested on beautiful days, so consider alternative directions. If you are coming from the western suburbs (in other words, you are traveling toward the city on 76 East), get off at Montgomery Dr, make the right off the exit and then a left onto Belmont. You can follow signs at this point, but Belmont intersects with Girard. Make a left on Girard and the zoo will be on the right.

Traveling by car on a weekday or in the winter? Warning: You cannot take this route during the weekends from April through October due to the closure of Martin Luther King Dr (aka West River Dr). Take an even faster route! Get off at Montgomery from I-76 no matter what direction. If you were headed west (coming from the city), then take a right off the exit ramp. If you were headed east (toward the city), then take a left off the exit ramp. Then, take a right on Martin Luther King Dr (aka West River Dr). Make a right at Sweetbriar Dr (it should be the next light). Make a left at the stop sign and VOILA! The next intersection is 34th and Girard Ave -- so easy!

Come early... or late! We've found that the best time to visit the zoo is either right when it opens at 9:30am or about 1 - 2 hours before it closes. Why? The animals are fed just before the zoo opens and right when it closes (unless otherwise noted in the daily schedule), so they are generally active, moving, and, most importantly, easily seen! Also, it's easiest to park at these times of day. Even more flexible? Go on a weekday! The only crowds we hit Monday through Friday are school groups and other moms. Very worth it!

Parking -- The best lot to park in is the Tiger Lot, which is located on 34th St. The lot is immediately located next to the entrance of the zoo, but many people get lured by the lot on Girard Ave and all the cars turning here. If you are arriving very early or late, bypass the Girard Ave lots and make the right onto 34th. Or if you take my super-simple, weekday or winter directions, just go straight after making the left at the stop sign! The Tiger Lot is just past the zoo entrance on the right.

Check out the events schedule on the website and see if there is anything special going on! For instance, we just enjoyed the Rock 'N' Roar Concert with Two of a Kind. Every other Tuesday throughout the summer, the zoo is hosting kid-friendly musicians on the Impala Lawn at 11am. Olivia had a blast running around and dancing to the music. Other upcoming events: Extended hours for pajama wearing, more kid-friendly rockin' and members-only early entry.

Got infants or children in strollers? All exhibits are wheelchair/stroller accessible! So, if all you see are stairs, look around. There will be a ramp or elevator located nearby; this includes the PECO Primate Reserve -- look for the elevator to the Mezzanine level for even better primate viewing. The only exhibit which does not allow strollers is the McNeil Avian Center because for the short 5 minute walk-through, you actually walk with - or under - the birds! Leave the stroller at the door and enjoy pointing out each feathered-friend. Olivia really loved being so close to the birds, which surprised me; she even let out a "Wow!" the first time we entered. And stay for the show -- there is a short, 14 minute animated, 4D show about migration and conservation. I was amazed at how much Olivia enjoyed it at 15 months old!

Lastly -- if you live in the area, get a membership! Each visit can get costly with $12 for parking (as of August 2010), and tickets for everyone over the age of 2. Not to mention it's tough to see everything in one trip! A membership allows us to pick up and go on a moment's notice without caring about the cost or worrying about how much time we have. And with a toddler, that's huge!

Olivia and her friend Matthew check out some primates

The Please Touch Museum
Location: 4231 Avenue of the Republic
GPS address (from the website): 4231 North Concourse Drive

Traveling by car? It's super easy to get to PTM! Take the Montgomery Dr exit off I-76 and get yourself to Belmont Ave. In other words, turn right if traveling toward the city or left if traveling away from the city [on I-76], and then, make a left onto Belmont Ave. The Avenue of the Republic is the first left once you are on Belmont. The PTM is the beautiful building on the left.

Parking costs $8 (as of August 2010); the lot is very safe. Occassionally you can find a spot on the street for free, but tourist beware -- you should only park on the same block as the museum is located. Use safety, caution and good judgement when parking on the street.

Flexible in your arrival time? The best time to visit is on perfectly sunny days because everyone else is outside! Other than that, the same holds true as the zoo - come early or late. There are less crowds first and last thing of the day. This is vital information if you have a toddler who won't stand up to the hustle and bustle. Also, every Thursday in August [2010], the PTM is open until 8pm.

Leave your strollers in the car! Unless you have a very small infant, then keep the stroller away. They can be cumbersome in the museum where the point is to allows kids to be hands-on. Use a carrier if your bambino is not yet walking, which will also enable him to more easily see the exhibits and other children playing.

Check the website for special events. For example, the new Playhouse Theater Show "Gram Adele" can only be seen Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Some other fun events are limited to Tuesdays and Thursdays. Is your tot a fan of Sprout (PBS Kids)? There will be a Sprout Host visiting the museum August 26th and September 23rd [2010] in the morning. They also celebrate different children's author's birthdays, so do your homework and see if there are any upcoming events sure to please your child.

And you guessed it! Get a membership if you live in the area! This one was a no-brainer for us. Olivia loved the PTM, and this summer, we've gone at least once a week. Even more than the zoo, trips to PTM can get costly because tickets start for children over the age of 1! A family of 3 plus parking costs around $50 and basic membership starts at around $150 [as of August 2010], so if you think you'll be back, go the distance and pay for the membership!

Olivia enjoys splashing in the duck pond with Daddy

Humoring Mommy for a pose with the Goose... yes, I now know it's a Swan

Playing the piano - a recent and now favorite discovery

Priorities

In my early to mid-twenties, I sat with my best girlfriends and created a "30 Before 30" list of things I wanted to achieve before turning 30. It was full of short and long-term goals, some crazy and lofty, others benign and mundane. I can happily say that most of the items on the list were crossed off before the big three-oh. Lose weight and keep it off. Check. Travel to Ireland. Check. Run a 5K -- ha ha, quadruple check! Go to the grand opening of a supermarket - wait, what?

Ok, so that last item wasn't on the official list. But sure enough, today I found myself excited to be at the grocery recently built close to home with a large organic section! Olivia and I roamed the aisles, oohing and aaahing over the product selection and delighting in the free samples. When I left and called my husband to gloat, I had an epiphany. Did I really just become giddy over this? So I reflected. I started keeping a running tally of things that I've done that would never, ever have made that list. Or any list. Not even a Bucket List.

For instance, I recently wore - to a night out with my best girlfriends nonetheless (same ones noted above in case anyone is keeping tabs) - a pair of pants that became marred by strawberries. In a flash, out came the Tide-To-Go pen and whoosh, gone went the red blotch. Former Me would have gone home, sprayed the spot with Shout, and dumped the pants in the washbin. New Me set them aside on a dresser, too lazy and tired to even fold them... and then wore them again. I am ashamed to admit that I wore those pants TWICE MORE! In fact, on one excursion, some spots of blood rubbed off from Liv's scraped knee during a Mommy's-kisses-make-it-better moment (thank you again, Tide-To-Go). And I wore them again! I continued wearing them after chalk marks and dirty footprints (another snuggle moment), until finally, while shopping at Target, I realized the pants needed to be washed. Desperately.

Which brings up another did-I-really-just-do-that moment! I took my 16 month old daughter to Target... at 8:30pm. She blissfully ran around the toy section while I, laden with a box of Pampers, organic cookies, and two more sippy cups, followed behind praying that she would lose steam and go to bed without screaming. How? How did I get to this point? How did I become one of those moms? The ones that take their kids out shopping at bizarre hours; the ones you look at and silently think, "My kid will be in bed by 9pm on a weeknight!" Well, I'll tell you! You become her when your child decides she is anything but tired between the hours of 7pm and 9pm, and when you go to lay her down, she screams bloody murder, but your windows are open because for the first time in what feels like forever, it isn't 100 degrees and you don't have to run the air conditioning, so everyone in your new neighborhood can hear her tears piercing the residential nighttime quiet. That's how. That's why you take your alert toddler to run around the large aisles and expend energy trying to get a large ball from a tightly packed rack. And that's why you stop caring if your pants are clean. Apparently God also had a message for me because my arms were too full to splurge on the new Jennifer Weiner book. Sigh. But success! She fell asleep sans misery.

And did I mention that I haven't had a hair cut or color in over 3 months? Somewhere my 21 year old self is hiding her head in shame, silently screaming. Poor thing.

Good thing the 30 year old me told her to shut up and deal with it.

So Big!

Liv turned 15 months old the day we decided to move EVERYTHING from the "rental property" (as we began dubbing it) to our brand-new-to-us, first home. That being said, there aren't any good pictures, although the picture posted yesterday was taken on July 11th.

The difference between her now and 3 months ago is astonishing! She's walking all over, on the verge of running. She still keeps her hands up for balance, so her run is really a trot. She moves over, around, through, and under obstacles, which can be hilarious. And, as Miss K, her old daycare teacher put it, she is determined! When my Livie Lu sets her mind to something, there is absolutely no stopping her! Case in point: our recent visit to the Please Touch Museum when Olivia discovered the grocery store. She had it in her mind to put all the cans on the shelf in her cart, which she mostly did. However, on each shelf, located behind plexiglass, is the Model Can which is a way for kids and parents to know where to put each item once you're done. Well, Miss Thang started crying when she realized she couldn't get to the Model Cans... Mommy has a long row to hoe with this tiny tot! I'm posting the video (sans meltdown), which was taken 2 days shy of 15 months. Enjoy!

At 15 months, Olivia...

weighs 20 lbs. 12 oz. (although I don't think the measurement was accurate)

is 31 1/4 inches long

wears size 4 diapers

wears 12 months & 18 months clothing (especially if she needs to wear pants!)

eats food (no more baby food!) - favorites are 'nanas, hard-boiled eggs, & yogurt

feeds herself with a spoon... with about 50% accuracy

drinks water and soymilk from a sippy cup (we are graduating to a no-handles sippy cup tomorrow)

plays independently with toys

loves books and balls

loves Yo Gabba Gabba & Elmo

gives high 5s

blows kisses

says hi and bye on her own and when asked

pretends to eat play food, make pretends phone calls & waltzes around with purses on each arm

can touch/show her head, hair, eyes, ears, nose, mouth, teeth, arms, hands, fingers, legs, feet, and belly!)

says either by independently asking for or labelng somewhere between 40 and 50 words

most common words: 'nana, Melmo, book, ball, Mommy, Dada, 'nack, wawa, shoe, coocuh (cookie), kack kack (quack quack), roar

counts 1-2, followed by a whole lot of rhythmic babble!

reads books by pointing at the pictures and saying something (real or babble)

will point to large letters and intentionally babble... which sounds a lot like one-two (lol)

understands at least twice that number & follows many 2 step directions

follows routine directions, simple or complex

sings songs with recognizable tones, rhythm & hand motions (loves Row Row!)

can give animal sounds for a cat, dog, lion, monkey, bear, duck, cow, and sheep

The Movin Van

Moving with a 15 month old is much harder than originally imagined... New "product(s) of the moment:" snack traps and label makers.