Diddle Dumpty

Hey Diddle Dumpty The Cat And The Humpty...

So tonight e's book of choice was the very large Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes. After skipping over quite a few...seriously have you read some of them lately? Farmers wife cutting off tails, Mistress Kitty biting off heads, and blackbirds snapping off noses! He took immediately to Humpty Dumpty so after learning that one we tried learning Hey Diddle Diddle. Tucking him into bed he decided to morph them together. Pretty funny.

P.S. Night #4 paci free. You're asking me for it but tonight I managed to distract you with tickling and remembering all we did over the weekend so you could tell Daddy tomorrow when he picks you up from school.

I'm proud of you e!

2 in 1

I have too much to say so I'm putting two entries into one.

First entry is about e's dream. Well, we think it was a dream...Oh wait! in order of importance! last night was night 3 PACI FREE! Ok, back to his dream...last night around midnight e woke very upset. I went to him, cradled him and was able to get him back to sleep after being ordered to walk around as he nestled himself in my arms. When he woke this morning I asked him if he remembered being upset last night. He said yes and went into reason, e: I fall down at Daddy's house, Daddy came down stairs, I have a hurt right here |pointing to his forehead|. me: Did your Daddy make it better? e: Yep.

So in our normal morning fashion I talked to Scott asking him about this. Wondering if in fact it was memory of having a fall or really a dream. Scott couldn't remember the last time he bumped his head so we think that he must have been truly dreaming it. If in fact our memory (as parents) isn't escaping us, this is pretty neat. e is able at 2.5 to articulate his dreams. I often want to know what that boy of mine is thinking about.

Ok, now on to another subject, entry #2:

Yesterday after Church e and I headed to LaLa and Pop's house. It worked out for me to take him and this was great because I was overdue for a visit. I love the fact that I can take you out to your father's parents house. I love how comfortable I still feel out there and that you can experience going out there with your Mommy too! Not many children can say that e (children from untraditional homes). So just let me say, YOU LOVE IT OUT THERE! You shadowed Pop's every move asking "why" to everything and answering with a very southern sounding "Yep!" (this is new). Just because I am from the south and my voice from time to time will leak this, I did not teach you this and your father and I can't figure out where it came from.

Greeting us at LaLa and Pops was both Grandpas (great to you) and soon to arrive was Aunt Vickie and Brittany. You showed off in the garage (where Pop builds his cars) on the tractor taking it for a pretend ride and then shared a tune, your ABC's. After Pop was finished working we all went upstairs to have dinner and play. After dinner you helped feed Sandy dog (truly wish I would have had a camera). Walking up to Sandy a Samoyed, a Siberian dog with the fluffiest white hair (you are both the same height, weight...not so much) you held a plate out for her. The plate full of steak you decided once chewed you didn't want and a potato peel. She gobbled it up, all but one piece. e: "finish Sandy, one more piece" and then patted her on the head telling her, "good job Sandy" (with slight prompting). Kasey a golden also greeted you at playtime with a wagging tail and nose in the face, you, didn't flinch.

There was a time when you couldn't get used to those two dogs but still loved them dearly to put them at the top of your prayer list. Now you're ready to run and (almost) wrestle with them. Play-time consisted of bringing down a large basket full of toys and tools, you walking around fixing this and that and then hoping up on Pop's lap to have some giggles. I took my usual spot on the couch curdled up watching you play just as LaLa did at my feet.

Thanks for having us out and most importantly making me still feel like part of the family! Love you guys!

Love you e!

Earth Hour

Lights out for one hour 8-9pm to acknowledge environmental awareness.

After story time we turned all the lights out and you sang yourself to sleep. Tonight is night two of sleeping without your pacifier. When your Daddy dropped you off today he shared last night was night one. I am following his lead. You asked for it a couple of times but I simply changed the subject with a song and you quickly chimed in. Great job e!

Thank You Karl

drop.io: simple private sharing

Karl has taught me how to upload and edit video....Watch Out! e, now I will be videoing your every move! I have already posted pics of Easter in a previous entry but this...this is VIDEO!

For those family members and friends who are enjoying this blog and have expressed the fun (Aunt Pat felt like she'd been on vacation with us)...it just got better! Who knew it could?!

Love to you all,
Enjoy! and Thank You Karl for video #1.

P.S. Could someone please tell me WHO hid the egg in the bathroom? Gross! John...was this your idea? Nice!

Eek! Leak!

Pretty certain you are not going to notice that I didn't add an entry last night.

Pretty certain if I shared this info with you, you would ask "Why?".

Last night as I was tucking you into bed we watched the lightening and listened for the thunder. I was pleasantly surprised you were not afraid. As we enjoyed the storm, the rain got heavier, so heavy I swore I could hear it raining inside. Well, that is quite a bit of an exaggeration but we both did get out of bed and go investigate. There in the laundry room was the culprit a small leak, eeek! I went and grabbed a chair and bowl and stuck it on top of the washer/dryer stack (the chair cause I'm small). Talk about questions as I tucked you back in bed! "Water, why?, Bowl, why? Chair, why? Hole, why? Raining, why?" Wasn't sure when you'd get to sleep. Exhausted I went straight to bed after getting you asleep, no entry was written.

So of course minus one entry I have an overload of silliness to write......

• Easter book, Big, Bad, Bunny: Favorite part is "Eek!" |you have the perfect voice for it|
• OREO cookie eating, well, Newman-O's eating...your father is a master of devouring a bag, I'll let him teach you how to eat them!
• I must record you singing Twinkle Twinkle and your ABC's, blogging about it won't do it justice...to be continued
  
• You love pushing your own mini grocery cart. The woman at the check out made a comment to me about starting you early, I told her that I didn't have a choice in the matter. 2.5 sees a mini cart, 2.5 pushes mini cart. Mommy needs more room in the basket...tough!

He's all yours Scott! It would probably help if I filled the cup with milk. What's that other stuff you ask...rice, shrimp fried rice from Trader Joes!...He did have a good technique going, he would squash the cookie together the cream would then squish out the sides and he'd eat it. Newman-O's filling isn't as solid as OREO cream, it must be because it's organic. Ha!

I love you e.

Impatient

|wrestling to get e's school clothes on|
me: come on e put your foot in!
e: okey, okey, and turn me around |singing with a grin on his face|

When I picked him up from school the other day they were doing the Hokey Pokey. I had never heard him sing it before or dance it. My impatience was quickly/cleverly met with song after I told him to put his "foot in". I just stopped and giggled.

I love you e.

Wanna Trade?

From time to time I look at the real estate market and see what opportunities are out there. What I have found in a relatively short amount of time is that two people (perhaps technically 1 1/2) can grow out of a petite space. Our home is beautiful and was the perfect buy at the time. Since then our lives have changed and I see us needing a larger space. With our Church community and e's father in the city, it would be nice to make it back that direction.

The smartest move for me to make in this market is a trade and a trade with this home could be a fantastic investment property for the right person. Our villa is completely renovated, in a sought after location, and a condo association sees to the maintenance on the outer structure and grounds.

The home is a 2 bedroom, 1 bath villa. It is an open floor plan with vaulted ceilings, hardwood floors throughout and new carpet in both bedrooms. The kitchen is complete with stainless steal appliances and granite counter tops. The bathroom features a jacuzzi tub, all new fixtures and a slate floor. You can also enjoy a front patio in addition to a back deck, this home is perfect for entertaining!

If you know of anyone who would be interested feel free to point them in my direction. For privacy purposes I will not place an address or phone number. If you are at this entry it is because you are either a family member, friend or Realtor any other inquires may leave a comment.

Easter 2008

It snowed this year.


Good Ol Wrestling!


Ewan enjoying his treats.


e found one.

Thanks for coming over John, Kara, Jenn, Daniella, David, Grandma Carol, Karl and Ewan! e and I had a great time!

After lunch and a nap we successfully hid Easter eggs throughout the house cause....IT WAS SNOWING!!! Yes, yet another cold Easter. We just might have to hit up our family in Florida next year!

To all our family and friends, Happy Easter!
With Love, Jodi and Elliott

P.S. Continue to check out e's Flickr site for more photos.

Easter Goodies (08)

Easter is tomorrow and I've been preparing for friends to come over for lunch. Tomorrow we'll go to Church with Grandma and Ewan and then after Church head home to welcome more friends. We have quite the feast for the day and after lunch and a nap...let the hunt begin!

Your Easter eggs are filled with more healthy yummies just like last year. While I can, I'll keep pumping you full of healthy alternatives doing my best to keep you away from colors with numbers and fructose yuckies. This year we have the organic healthy version of OREO's by Newman's Own called Newman-O's. Animal crackers from Trader Joes and cheddar bunnies by Annie's. Both you and Ewan will be delighted with the yummy treats until that day when you get a hold of a Snickers bar, then I'm certain I'll hear about how I deprived you of the good ol American diet.

Happy Easter!
Love you e.

Baby Girl

Karl, Louise, Ewan and Anya.

The Scott's welcome Anya Leonie.
3/20/08 10:44pm
8 lbs, 14 oz, 20.5" long

e and I picked up Ewan this morning and headed to the hospital so Ewan could meet his new baby sister. While e and I grabbed a cup of coffee the Scott's had private family time. Everyone is doing wonderfully!

The boys are asleep now after a full day. I'm barely hanging on to get this blog out before I head to bed myself. After having a late night last night and chasing two very active, very good boys around I'm turning in early. The boys truly are good boys and play so nicely together. I absolutely applaud all mothers out there who are either stay at home Mommies or single Mommies with multiple kids, WOW! You are amazing women!

Congratulations friends! e and I love you all very much! Good night.


Elliott and Ewan bringing 4 roses to the hospital.


Big brother Ewan holding Anya.


Elliott and Ewan having lunch after our hospital visit. Don't worry Karl and Louise I'm keeping him well fed and clothed!

Ewan's brother or sister is soon to arrive!

A photograph of Louise I took last weekend.

Our dear friends the Scott's are expecting and it could be any day now. Soon your buddy Ewan will be a big brother to a little baby girl or boy. It's very exciting.

You showed this excitement as we said our prayers this evening. I told you that baby might be here soon and if so that we would be helping to care for Ewan. This made you very happy. If baby comes this Easter weekend I shared with Karl and Louise that Ewan could come stay with us. We can see that he makes it up to the hospital to be with his new family and that he would be included in any/all Easter plans, anything to make the new family transition a comfortable one. You and Ewan play very well together and with the weather warming up we can be sure to have lots of fun!

Many blessings to our friends Karl, Louise, Ewan and Baby. These are very exciting times.

P.S. Savannah in West Palm is to be a big sister too any day now. I can't wait to get the call from Nikki! Blessings to the Goldings too!

Andrew Bird : Card Puppet

Your Daddy leaves tomorrow to go to New York. You had a great evening with him last night and was able to see him again this evening because school invited us to "Literacy Night". Your classroom read the book Polar Bear, Polar Bear What Do You Hear?, one of your all time favs that you read aloud. Outside the classroom they set up an activity table where you made the animals in the book out of tooth pics and marshmallows. Did you know they made lemon flavored marshmallows? No, you wouldn't know and I had wished you would have stopped shoving those evil, little, yellow #5, fructose crappies in your mouth! But I'm a human Mommy and allowed it. Your Dad just smiled, squatted down next to you and created mellow-sculpture under the table only to bring them up claiming they were your very own creation. And yes, I put the yellow one in my mouth learning they make them taste like lemons now. Anyway, you're probably wondering what this has to do with Andrew Bird and card puppets...I'm getting to that...

Your Daddy asked if we'd walk him out where he handed me the largest stack of Andrew Bird CD's. He wanted to make sure you listened to him while he was away. We already have a few of his CD's so I'll add these to your collection. A perfect meld, your love of the violin and Andrew Bird. Being a fan myself I went on a YouTube hunt for a video that I had seen on one of the CD's your father and I used to share. In trying to locate it, I found this Card Puppet video. Enjoy!

I don't want to leave this entry without sharing one more part of our evening...
This evening as I tucked you into bed you started to get a little melancholy for your Daddy. You have done this a little bit recently and I'm seriously wondering if you haven't fully comprehended that your Dad is traveling/going away for a little bit. When you do this I encourage you to share all the fun things you do at Daddy's house. You enjoy this and it puts you in a good mood. Tonight I tried something a little different after I asked you to share your past evening. I told you to close your eyes and use your imagination...e: I want my Daddy. me: Ok, buddy close your eyes, are they closed? |looking at his eyes| Ok, can you see Daddy? e: No. me: Do you see an elephant? Lola? e: No. me: e, use your imagination. e: I see Mommy, I see Daddy. me: Good boy. When you want your Daddy just close your eyes and use your imagination, use your dreams to see Daddy. |a little time goes by as I'm still trying to get him to sleep| me: Close your eyes buddy and go to sleep. |closing his eyes| Do you see a beach? e: |pause| I have water in my eyes! me: Water in your eyes? e: A swimming pool. me: Are you and Daddy at the swimming pool? e: Yeah! me: Are you splashing? e: Naaaooooo. |long and drawn out, kinda southern and silly| me: Swimming? e: No splashing! me: Night, night buddy. |giggling for several reasons, 1. his imagination and 2. he understood the concept|.

I love you e.

Beautiful Etsy Posters

Here are some posters I fell in love with for e's room. I've thought about wall papering his wall with beautiful printed posters. Here are some I marked as "favorites" but since I last visited half of these are already SOLD. Enjoy exploring Etsy's prints, they have lithographs, letterpress and monotypes (just to name a few).

Happy Shopping!

Let's call Daddy!

me: e, time for bed. Let's put on your PJ's.
e: No Mommy.
me: I like yes Mommy.
e: No Mommy. |this goes on for a few rounds, then he is finally caught|
e: I pee pee in the potty Mommy.
me: e? Do you need to go pee pee?
e: Yes Mommy, I stand up.
me: Do you need to pee pee?
e: Yes Mommy, I stand up.
me: Oh, you want to stand up and go pee pee in the potty.
e: Yes Mommy! |so we rush to the potty and I put his stool in place. Excited to try to pee pee in the potty standing up he proceeds to do a delicate dance where he squats, leans, straddles, and bends all to get his private body in just the right place. Yes, I call his body his private body. I'm giggling watching this dance trying to explain that he can stand up straight all at the same time trying to make sure the stool doesn't slip out from underneath him. He continues dropping his body so low that it touches the cold toilet|
e: Too cold, too cold.
me: e, honey you can stand up straight. |he finally stands up straight and with some help proceeds to pee pee in the potty|
e: I pee pee in the potty Mommy! Like Daddy!
me: Good job buddy! Do you want to call Daddy?
e: Yeah!
me: Ok, let's call Daddy!

"I push button Mommy"

e + computer = photo booth

Celebrate Friends

Jenn (Birthday girl) and her brother John.

Last night we celebrated Jenn's Birthday at Jubilee. The night was perfect! A perfect evening of friends! I brought my camera and studio equipment so we could capture the evening in style. Some of the photos are priceless....


Mike Goodson "skippy" looking so dapper.


Bryan, Dan and David...I think that hurts!


Rachel, Jenn, Kara and myself.

Friends are gifts, cherish them!

sweetest voice

Mommy: something/anything/you name it, say it, express it.
e: "why?"
Mommy: thoughtful answer.
e: "why?"
Mommy: another thoughtful answer.
/multiply this by 10/
and hopefully it ends with his (when satisfied)
e: "OH?? OK." (earlier described as the sweetest voice ever).

love you e.

What is Maté?

Mate is the gentle hum of an awakened mind and a vibrant body. It is energy that's balanced, not frantic. The people of the South American rain forest discovered the magic before we did. From these green leaves emerged the tea that sings the body electric. With a llama-load of antioxidants, mate trickles grinning into your system. It won't leave you drooping or demand addiction. Drink deep. You're safe here.

Among other valuable phytonutrients, Yerba Mate contains practically all of the vitamins necessary to sustain life, including vitamins A, E, B-complex and C. In addition, it contains 15 different amino acids and significant amounts of magnesium, calcium, iron, sodium, potassium, manganese, phosphates, zinc, niacin, sulfur, chlorophyll, choline and inositol.

Jorge Weil, MD Monograph, January 2006

Whether in new ready-to-drink bottles, handy bags, loose tea or convenient concentrate, you can have your Pixie Mate and sip it, too. Hot or cold. Strong or mild. Plain or fancy. With flavors from traditional to oh-so-rich-and-tasty. Your pleasure awaits...

I didn't write that...I'm not a spokes person, just a pixie Mommy that needs to stay awake from time to time. I did notice however that I should probably put my full mug of Pixie Mate down if I want to sleep "at all!" tonight. Probably a good morning routine. e and his milk, I with my Pixie Mate! Yum!

www.pixiemate.com is where you can read all about them and make a purchase or two. You can find it locally (I'm sure other places too) at Park Avenue Coffee.

Cheers!

Top 10

Top 10 songs e loves for Mommy to sing...
(notice in the top 5, three of my "made up" songs!)

1. Poo Poo In The Potty (pronounced Pah-Tay) (sung after using the potty and comes with a dance.)
2. Moon Song Lullaby
3. No Whining, No Crying, It's OK, Bomp Bomp (another Mommy original saved for when he's sad. The bomp bomp part is where I tap his nose and he giggles. Oh yeah, and that is all the words in the song, sung on repeat.)
4. Twinkle Twinkle
5. Elliott Goes To School One Day (this one I believe is taken from a "real" song using a phrase e will say, "I go to school one day, Mommy?")
6. Clean Up
7. Itsy Bitsy Spider
8. ABC's
9. Old McDonald
10. I'm A Little Tea Pot

KONZUK

This piece is under the powder-coated line.

KONZUK rejects the perception of jewelry as a mere accessory burdened by unnecessary details and overly complicated flourishes. KONZUK jewelry, with its highly personal elements such as a subtle use of color and an innovative use of materials, is faithful to the clean, minimalist aesthetic of contemporary industrial design and architecture. Combining materials like stainless steel, concrete and powder-coated enamel with processes like laser cutting, CNC machining and photo engraving, the KONZUK collection embraces materials and methods that reflect the design-centric philosophy of its wearers.


Given to me by your father in 2005.

Enjoy visiting: www.konzuk.com

"new table Mommy...why?"

Just look at it son!
Love,
Mom

P.S. Yes you're seeing it minus one leaf. I had to take it off in order for it to fit in the car. Me being anxious to see it in place I just left it off. It's against the wall and I don't have any large dinner parties planned soon so...it's perfect! Simply perfect!

UNO

Uno loves the forest and builds his home among colorful plants and the wondrous Moopaloops, Lumpybums, and Frinklepods. This is both a visual treasure trove and a cautionary yet hopeful tale of environmental awareness and responsibility.

ShelleRosenfeld

Your story choice this evening was Uno's Garden, also one of my new favorites. We'll go for weeks only reading this book - to not reading it in weeks - then back to it. Tonight you chose it without hesitation and after I read it once you were ready for me to read it again. I told you it was time for bed so you immediately took out your paci and said "I read it Mommy".

Not sure if you've ever heard a 2.5 year old with the sweetest, softest voice in all the world describe a forest where creatures like Moopaloops and Puddlebutts live...well (coming from hearing it first hand) PRECIOUS! (and quite funny). So we made it to the second page where the 9 Lumpybums live, you read out loud first "Puddlebutts" (cause for some reason you remember those guys) then you said "monkeys Mommy". I corrected you and said that they were in fact Lumpybums, you then corrected yourself with slight hesitation and said "Lumpybums, Hey! Mommy it's a butt, peanut butt!" So we finished up his story time pointing out all the purple "lumpy bums/peanut butts" on the page.

Thank you Aunt Pat for this wonderful book AND for getting it personally signed!

Night, Night Snortlepig. Sweet dreams e!

Boston Buddy

This is your Boston buddy, Ana Vega. Tonight we met up with friends at Momo's. Sara and Ana came in town due to a death in the family. We had just visited with them in Dec/Jan so you were VERY excited to see them again. Andrea, Charlie, Jeanie, Sara, and Ana all came out to visit and you had a ball!


Sara (Ana's Mommy) and Jeanie.

Sara and Ana now live in Boston, we don't get to see them very often so we cherish the time we do! All morning you talked about seeing them and remembering back to our last visit. It's amazing how much you retain already .

Your first comment was that you wanted Momo's hummus (after I told you they had it) then you wanted to know why they had couches. The booth we were in (and their decor in general) is very plush. There were lots of pillows to play with. You pigged out on pita bread and hummus, wanted to give red onions a try (and did a couple of times until you decided they were "too spicy Mommy"), grapes, French fries and fried cheese (yes, that would be two fried items...not doing so well...I'll ramp up your Organic intake to make up for it!..ha!)

You and Ana enjoyed the music and danced a majority of the night away. That is until the belly dancer started to dance and then you, my boy, were in a trance. Unfortunately the camera died after picture #6 so this was all I got. Andrea took more so I'll get those from her and post them to your Flickr site.

As you'll grow up to understand...there is nothing like your friends! And these two...SUPER SPECIAL!

We love and miss you guys! Many blessings!
Jodi and e

Snow Fight

Order: throwing, packing, teasing, and then contemplating your next move.

I wanted to post these pictures of you since you were with Daddy yesterday. Today I picked you up a little early from school and we came home to have a snow fight. You shared all the way home from school how much fun you had at Daddy's, "I throw snow balls at him."

You could have played out there for hours.

Afterwards we came in, put our PJ's on and made dinner. Tonights menu: sole, mac&cheese, zucchini and grapes for dessert! Yum!...Oh yeah, have I mentioned you are an amazing eater!

Love you e!

e's Snow Day

This morning we woke up to lots of snow. School was canceled so Daddy came and picked you up before it got any worse to spend the day and night.

I headed into work only to be sent home.

As I worked from home your Dad called with a cute story to share: Apparently you were standing on the couch so you could watch the snow fall out the window. Daddy asked you not to stand on the couch. You replied something to the effect of "Daddy I stand on the couch to see the snow." Dad insisted you get on your knees so you listened, pouted, propped your chin on the arm and said "see Daddy I can't see". Oh...such a little boy.

Your father and I do a lot of story swapping. I'll call him about a funny this and him with a funny that. Neither one of us want to miss a beat.

Cause you were with your Dad I haven't any pictures of you in a foot and a half of snow. It's really deep! I went out to take pictures and then got a little stir crazy inside and decided to grab the video camera and make a snowman. e, you need to teach Mommy how, I'm not so good at it. I was going to post the video but I'm still learning how. Another time....

Love you my boy, stay warm!

Who do I look like?

So often I get asked, "who does e favor?" I usually give the same answer, "looks like me when I was a child and like his father does now." Not sure what his Dad's answer would be? I just know that when I'm cheek to cheek* with him looking in the mirror I don't really see it now, but there is no denying it when you look at my baby pictures.

I knew when he was in my belly that he would have Scott's dark dark brown eyes and his top lip (not to be mistaken with upper lip). He definitely has the "Hertz" signature upper lip and my cheeks (more so when he was a super chunk).

So I decided to go through his Flickr site and pull some pictures I thought looked more like me and some where he looks more like Scott.

Like Daddy:


I remember when you were first born e, the first thing I said was that you looked like Papa (Hertz) and couldn't wait to tell Gran (Great Gran). But in this picture I see so much of your father! And these...



Now this next picture...Wow Wee! That's Me!




I posted this picture because there is a picture of me close to the same age, with the same belly and diapers, but with pig tails and red shoes. I'll have to ask my Mom where that picture is and do another side by side.


Maybe my nose and shape of eyes(?).

He'll change a thousand more times and flip flop back and forth and it will continue to be a blast capturing every expression on his sweet little face!

*I taught e how to dance with a lady:

1. Cheek to Cheek
2. Hand in Hand
3. With her hand in yours you guide her forwards and backwards and round and round.

You'll have to ask him. The cutest is the cheek to cheek, he really squishes it!

Love you e!

SIUE 50th Anniversity Alumni Exhibition

My date for the SIUE 50th Anniversary Alumni Art Exhibition 1957-2007.

October 5 - November 2, 2007 the University Center Gallery at SIUE displayed 50 years of creativity. I was proud to have been chosen to be a part of such an impressive exhibition. I entered "Snail Island Diptych", photographs I took while visiting family in La Jolla, CA. One morning while the fog was lifting and while Aunt Pat and Tia Pina were keeping e occupied I took a walk with my camera. I did not have to go far to capture this image. As I laid down in the flowers focusing my lens I thought to myself, "this must be where the little people live".


If you look close enough you might just see one.

The exhibition was published and today I received my thoughtfully designed, intimate in size copy. For those of you that would like to purchase your own copy visit: www.lulu.com.



Thank you to the family and friends who attended the opening it meant a lot to have such loving support.