In case you missed it, Entry #1 was the last post. Yes, I am going to continue talking about my experiences thus far disciplining a 1-year old (well, an almost 1-year old). I apologize if this bores you, I really do, because I know that before I had a child, I had just about no interest in them. But raising one = Lauren and Nathan's life these days, so, dear readers, that's whatcha get.
Anyway, here's the thing. When I was a kid, I lived for very few things. Among them were reading and tickling my brother. That second one might strike you as a little strange, but, you see, Ken is about the most ticklish person on the face of the earth. And boy, did I love to torture--excuse me, tickle--Ken. Oh my gosh, it was so fun.
I don't think I can quite convey how awesome it was to tickle Ken. The best word for it is satisfying, but that doesn't give you a sense of how seriously I enjoyed it. Looking back on it, tickling my brother was almost like an addiction. When I tickled him, it was like a craving had been fulfilled, or like a thirst had been quenched. Weird, but true.
So I tickled Ken just about every chance I got. The poor guy--once I got started, he was debilitated and pretty much couldn't fight back. I could get him going so well that I could touch him anywhere, even in a spot that isn't normally ticklish (like his forehead), and it would tickle him. I really did torture him.
Eventually, I developed strategies. For example, the best place to catch him and tickle him was in the car, because he couldn't get away. This, however, had a drawback, which was that my parents were witnesses of my cruelty, which always ended in punishment for me, because, as you can imagine, it got beyond the fun and games stage.
My parents came up with a lot of punishments for my tickling over the years. The one they say finally worked was making me pay a quarter (and later, a dollar) every time I tickled Ken. I was a penny-pincher, and I wanted to save my money for the stuff I really wanted, so I hated to be fined, docked, or monetarily punished in any way. But at some point, I realized that sometimes, dangit, it's just worth it. Sometimes, even though I knew an unpleasant punishment was coming my way, it was still worth it to me to put up with paying the price, literally, in order to have the pleasure of doing the crime.
Well, I think Noah must be like his mama. For some reason, he really loves pulling a wire that comes out of the back of our TV. The other thing he loves to do is swivel our flat screen. Okay, both of those things are not only annoying but dangerous. I can just see our heavy TV falling on him, and it freaks me out. So we have been telling him "no" and slapping his hand. (We have no doubt that he understands that what he is doing is wrong. He'll often turn and look at us with a wry, mischievous smile before he grabs the wire). The problem is that this discourages him not at all. He'll immediately turn back around and go back to do it again. Argh!!! It really is very frustrating that the discipline does not work at all. Even if we are totally consistent and do the same thing every single time he disobeys, he still goes back and messes with the TV five or six times in a row, until we can finally distract him with something else. It is simply too wildly attractive to him, for some reason. Just like tickling was for me. Just like me, disobeying is just worth the price, at least when it comes to touching and tugging on the TV.
Sigh.
We are going to have to get a new entertainment center/TV stand really soon, because I think we just need to put some physical distance between The Boy and his temptation.
However, it could be worse. I just want you all to think of Nathan's brother, Daniel, the next time your kid does something dangerous, and thank your lucky stars your child is not as inquisitive or mischievous as he was. Nathan's mom told me last night that she walked in on him doing various dangerous things when he was little, such as poking the back of the TV with a screwdriver and pulling a chair over to the stove in order to turn all the flaming burners on. Sheesh!
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Monday, January 5, 2009
Funny and Unfunny
Oh, Noah. It's funny to watch you grow up, but it is distinctly unfun to have to be a disciplinarian.
Funny:
Yesterday Noah showed us how sometimes what we intend to teach him somehow gets a little lost in translation. For months, we have been telling him to "be gentle" when he pets the cats. At first, he'd grab their fur and pull, but eventually he got the idea that he is supposed to flatten his hand and pet. Well, yesterday, as Nathan was playing with him, Noah got a little too rough, so Nathan said, "No, Noah. Be gentle." And do you know what that kid did? He reached up to the top of Nathan's head and petted his hair. Now that is funny. He did the same thing to me. So apparently he thinks that "be gentle" means to pet.
Unfunny:
Today and yesterday, he has been screaming a lot. Now, he has gone through phases of trying out different verbal sounds, and we have endured a couple of screaming days, but this time it's starting to get a little out of control. He screams when he is frustrated about something--a long, high-pitched, yucky scream, usually quickly succeeded by one or two more. Well, if that's not bad enough, today he started screaming in the checkout line at the grocery store. He didn't seem inclined to stop, so I put my hand over his mouth, which is the only thing I could think of to at least dampen the sound for the sake of the other customers. And then, the unthinkable happened: my child bit me. Oh yes he did.
I just need to stop a moment and lament the passing of my perfect little angel. I see we are venturing into toddlerhood and increased independence, and on the horizon I see a two-year-old.
I was so shocked I didn't do anything to discipline him. Then I realized I am not sure what I would have done, anyway, because this whole discipline thing is new to me. Add to that that there was another mom in line behind me who was watching intently, which would make me feel weird to do something and also not to do something.
One of the things I've been learning at my Mom to Mom group is that this parenthood thing is a journey. You can't expect to have all the answers at the beginning. Of course, I know in my head that that's true, but I guess it hadn't sunk in, because Noah is teaching me pretty consistently that I have to have some grace with myself when new situations arise. I don't know how to handle some things the first time they happen, but I generally figure it out (often with help!). Even though I am the mom, I am learning too. There is a lot of freedom in that. There's also a lot of freedom in knowing that I am not the only one giving myself grace--God gives me grace, too. Thank goodness for that!
Funny:
Yesterday Noah showed us how sometimes what we intend to teach him somehow gets a little lost in translation. For months, we have been telling him to "be gentle" when he pets the cats. At first, he'd grab their fur and pull, but eventually he got the idea that he is supposed to flatten his hand and pet. Well, yesterday, as Nathan was playing with him, Noah got a little too rough, so Nathan said, "No, Noah. Be gentle." And do you know what that kid did? He reached up to the top of Nathan's head and petted his hair. Now that is funny. He did the same thing to me. So apparently he thinks that "be gentle" means to pet.
Unfunny:
Today and yesterday, he has been screaming a lot. Now, he has gone through phases of trying out different verbal sounds, and we have endured a couple of screaming days, but this time it's starting to get a little out of control. He screams when he is frustrated about something--a long, high-pitched, yucky scream, usually quickly succeeded by one or two more. Well, if that's not bad enough, today he started screaming in the checkout line at the grocery store. He didn't seem inclined to stop, so I put my hand over his mouth, which is the only thing I could think of to at least dampen the sound for the sake of the other customers. And then, the unthinkable happened: my child bit me. Oh yes he did.
I just need to stop a moment and lament the passing of my perfect little angel. I see we are venturing into toddlerhood and increased independence, and on the horizon I see a two-year-old.
I was so shocked I didn't do anything to discipline him. Then I realized I am not sure what I would have done, anyway, because this whole discipline thing is new to me. Add to that that there was another mom in line behind me who was watching intently, which would make me feel weird to do something and also not to do something.
One of the things I've been learning at my Mom to Mom group is that this parenthood thing is a journey. You can't expect to have all the answers at the beginning. Of course, I know in my head that that's true, but I guess it hadn't sunk in, because Noah is teaching me pretty consistently that I have to have some grace with myself when new situations arise. I don't know how to handle some things the first time they happen, but I generally figure it out (often with help!). Even though I am the mom, I am learning too. There is a lot of freedom in that. There's also a lot of freedom in knowing that I am not the only one giving myself grace--God gives me grace, too. Thank goodness for that!
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
This is a new discovery of mine. I made this soup shortly after Christmas, at which point I was kind of tired of all the decadent food I'd been eating since Thanksgiving. The lemon and parsley in this soup are such bright, clean flavors that it just feels cleansing to eat this soup after a series of heavy-eating holidays.
I adapted this recipe from Cooking Light. The only thing I'd warn you about is that the lemon flavor intensifies the longer the soup is kept. So if you think you might have leftovers that will get increasingly lemony as they sit in the fridge, you might consider limiting the amount of lemon juice the recipe calls for and perhaps just squirting a bit of fresh juice over each individual bowl instead. As for me, I don't mind a little extra lemon.
Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
2 lbs. chicken, cooked and cut into bite size pieces*
9 cups chicken broth (two 32-oz. boxes plus one cup)
1 bay leaf
1-1/3 c. chopped carrot
1 c. chopped celery
1-1/4 c. chopped onion
2 tsp. salt
8 oz. orzo, cooked (rice would be a good substitute)
1/4 c. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2-1/2 tsp. grated lemon rind (about one large lemon)
1/4 c. fresh lemon juice
Pour broth into a large Dutch oven or a large pot. Add the bay leaf, carrot, celery, onion, and salt. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Add reserved chicken and simmer 3 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Add pasta, parsley, rind, and juice. Remove bay leaf. Add fresh cracked black pepper, if desired.
*You probably already have a preferred way to cook your chicken, but I just wanted to throw a couple options out there for you, because it has taken me a few years to find a method that doesn't result in rubbery chicken, isn't too much trouble, and doesn't result in a bunch of dirty dishes. So here are some different methods:
- First of all, you can cook your chicken in water. The thing to remember here is that you do not want to boil it the whole time--that's how you get rubbery meat. You simply want to bring the water to a boil then simmer the chicken until it's done.
- Another option is to roast your chicken. This works best if it's a bone-in piece with skin (it dries out the least this way). Just rub some olive oil on the skin and pop it in the oven at about 350 till it's done.
- However, my method of choice these days is to throw it in the crock pot. It takes about 3 hours (high for chicken breasts and low for tenders), and the chicken comes out moist and perfectly easy to chop or shred. It's also very low maintenance and pretty foolproof because you don't have to watch a pot or the oven. Just be sure to add about a cup of water to the slow cooker to make sure the chicken doesn't stick.
I adapted this recipe from Cooking Light. The only thing I'd warn you about is that the lemon flavor intensifies the longer the soup is kept. So if you think you might have leftovers that will get increasingly lemony as they sit in the fridge, you might consider limiting the amount of lemon juice the recipe calls for and perhaps just squirting a bit of fresh juice over each individual bowl instead. As for me, I don't mind a little extra lemon.
---------------
Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
2 lbs. chicken, cooked and cut into bite size pieces*
9 cups chicken broth (two 32-oz. boxes plus one cup)
1 bay leaf
1-1/3 c. chopped carrot
1 c. chopped celery
1-1/4 c. chopped onion
2 tsp. salt
8 oz. orzo, cooked (rice would be a good substitute)
1/4 c. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2-1/2 tsp. grated lemon rind (about one large lemon)
1/4 c. fresh lemon juice
Pour broth into a large Dutch oven or a large pot. Add the bay leaf, carrot, celery, onion, and salt. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Add reserved chicken and simmer 3 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Add pasta, parsley, rind, and juice. Remove bay leaf. Add fresh cracked black pepper, if desired.
---------------
*You probably already have a preferred way to cook your chicken, but I just wanted to throw a couple options out there for you, because it has taken me a few years to find a method that doesn't result in rubbery chicken, isn't too much trouble, and doesn't result in a bunch of dirty dishes. So here are some different methods:
- First of all, you can cook your chicken in water. The thing to remember here is that you do not want to boil it the whole time--that's how you get rubbery meat. You simply want to bring the water to a boil then simmer the chicken until it's done.
- Another option is to roast your chicken. This works best if it's a bone-in piece with skin (it dries out the least this way). Just rub some olive oil on the skin and pop it in the oven at about 350 till it's done.
- However, my method of choice these days is to throw it in the crock pot. It takes about 3 hours (high for chicken breasts and low for tenders), and the chicken comes out moist and perfectly easy to chop or shred. It's also very low maintenance and pretty foolproof because you don't have to watch a pot or the oven. Just be sure to add about a cup of water to the slow cooker to make sure the chicken doesn't stick.
Friday, January 2, 2009
Developments
Noah has developed so much on this trip to Texas!
Physically, he's taken his first steps! It's so exciting! He only takes a couple every day, but he definitely can do it. He also loves to push his stroller around--I thought it might be too fast for him (when he's tried to do it in the past, his feet can't keep up), but he's much more coordinated now, and he has no trouble keeping up with the quickly-rolling stroller. He just be-bops along behind it.
Speaking of fast, he gets into stuff so dang quickly. It's ridiculous. He is just really quick at crawling. As of the last couple of days, he's really into climbing, too. This is really going to be a challenge for me, because I have to watch him so carefully now. He can climb stairs incredibly fast--we are so impressed and wary at the same time! And he has started trying to climb up onto my parents' fireplace hearth, as well. He hasn't thought of climbing onto the furniture, or he'd be doing that, too. Anyway, there will be a lot more opportunities for trouble once we get home.
Noah is also becoming more affectionate. He had starting laying his cheek on us before we left for Texas, which was really sweet. But now he'll give us all-out hugs. He wraps his arms around your neck and pulls as tightly as his little arms can, pressing his cheek against yours as hard as possible. It is so fun! If you get one of his hugs, you feel really special. :)
He's picking up a lot of words, too. He doesn't say much yet, but he understands more and more. He knows "come here," "turn the page," "no," "pick it up," "moo," and much more. He also understands phrases you haven't practiced with him before, like "put it in your mouth." I am always surprised when he follows my instructions, not only because it shows that he understood what I said, but also because he obeyed!
He is growing up! I can't believe he will be a year old a week from today.
Physically, he's taken his first steps! It's so exciting! He only takes a couple every day, but he definitely can do it. He also loves to push his stroller around--I thought it might be too fast for him (when he's tried to do it in the past, his feet can't keep up), but he's much more coordinated now, and he has no trouble keeping up with the quickly-rolling stroller. He just be-bops along behind it.
Speaking of fast, he gets into stuff so dang quickly. It's ridiculous. He is just really quick at crawling. As of the last couple of days, he's really into climbing, too. This is really going to be a challenge for me, because I have to watch him so carefully now. He can climb stairs incredibly fast--we are so impressed and wary at the same time! And he has started trying to climb up onto my parents' fireplace hearth, as well. He hasn't thought of climbing onto the furniture, or he'd be doing that, too. Anyway, there will be a lot more opportunities for trouble once we get home.
Noah is also becoming more affectionate. He had starting laying his cheek on us before we left for Texas, which was really sweet. But now he'll give us all-out hugs. He wraps his arms around your neck and pulls as tightly as his little arms can, pressing his cheek against yours as hard as possible. It is so fun! If you get one of his hugs, you feel really special. :)
He's picking up a lot of words, too. He doesn't say much yet, but he understands more and more. He knows "come here," "turn the page," "no," "pick it up," "moo," and much more. He also understands phrases you haven't practiced with him before, like "put it in your mouth." I am always surprised when he follows my instructions, not only because it shows that he understood what I said, but also because he obeyed!
He is growing up! I can't believe he will be a year old a week from today.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
New Year's Resolutions
Do you have any New Year's Resolutions? I do, and I feel that in the name of feeling more accountability towards them, I should make them public, which is why I'm publishing them here.
If you feel the need for the same accountability that potential public humiliation brings, leave a comment with your goals for this year. ;)
Anyhow, what is your New Year's resolution? Do you want to lose weight? Work harder? Save money? Serve more? Do tell.
If you feel the need for the same accountability that potential public humiliation brings, leave a comment with your goals for this year. ;)
- Lose 10 lbs. and get more toned.
- Get better at sticking to our budget.
- Continue to work at our marriage so that it stays strong.
- Spend more quality time with God (which is harder than I thought with a baby).
Anyhow, what is your New Year's resolution? Do you want to lose weight? Work harder? Save money? Serve more? Do tell.
January Arbonne Specials
Happy New Year!
Arbonne is starting 2009 with lots of great specials. Enjoy!
29 Years of Arbonne; Lots of Products for $29
During the month of January, purchase any of the following products for only $29, in honor of Arbonne's 29th anniversary:
29 Years of Arbonne; Lots of Products for $29
During the month of January, purchase any of the following products for only $29, in honor of Arbonne's 29th anniversary:
NutriMinC RE9 Illuminating Enzyme Peel; RE9 Wrinkle Filler; SeaSource Detox Spa Foaming Sea Salt Scrub, Detoxifying Mask, Sea Mud Face and Body Mask, Essential Massage Oil, Renewing Body Gelee, Purifying Sea Soak, Fortifying Hair Mask, Re-Mineralizing Body Lotion, and Spa Robe.
$29 Anniversary Surprise Bag
With every $75 srp order, qualify to purchase an Anniversary Surprise Bag for $29. Each unique bag is filled with up to $175 srp worth of products, including items from the About Face, f.y.i, Figure 8 Vanish, and Before Sun product lines.
20% Off Figure 8 Vanish
Visually tone skin and diminish the puffy look and feel of water retention. Receive a 20% discount on the Figure 8 Vanish Water Relief Treatment Serum, a $40 value, for $32.
Best,
Lauren
$29 Anniversary Surprise Bag
With every $75 srp order, qualify to purchase an Anniversary Surprise Bag for $29. Each unique bag is filled with up to $175 srp worth of products, including items from the About Face, f.y.i, Figure 8 Vanish, and Before Sun product lines.
20% Off Figure 8 Vanish
Visually tone skin and diminish the puffy look and feel of water retention. Receive a 20% discount on the Figure 8 Vanish Water Relief Treatment Serum, a $40 value, for $32.
Best,
Lauren
--
Lauren Benesh
Independent Consultant
Arbonne International
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