Birth of an American Consumer

Happy Easter! Once again, we are pretty low-key with our celebration and it does seem to be just right for Julia. So many times I wonder whether we were the best family for Julia – would bigger or younger have been better, but when we have a day like this one when we have hit Julia's comfort level and have challenged her a little bit, I feel like we are perfect for each other.

It is Easter and last night we dyed eggs the old fashion American way. No Ukrainian eggs this year. Julia helped through the whole process. She put the eggs in water to boil and watched the water boil. She helped me make the dye and thrilled to dipping eggs in dye cups and removing jeweled toned wonders. Is there anything better than a green egg with your name written across it?

Because of our weekend sleeping routine – that is, one of us gets to sleep late and the other gets up with Julia – the Easter Bunny did not make his appearance last night. Instead, after a home made pancake breakfast, Julia and Daddy took Latkah out for a walk and the Easter Bunny did his work. As it happened, when I finished hiding eggs and filling the basket, I looked out the front door and in the snow, right in front of the door in the snow, was non-dog or cat animal prints. They might have been squirrel prints but I am pretty sure they belonged to a rabbit.

Julia came back from her walk and very happily looked for the hidden plastic eggs and then found her basket in the front hallway. She opened some of her eggs and found chocolate eggs and pink peeps – the peeps are her favs – and tore at the small gifts in her basket. There was a mini-kite that we won't be flying for another month (who knew?), bubbles for practicing blowing hard and gently, a chck in a show globe, and her favorite – a littlest pet shop kittie and fish. The “pets” came with a booklet of pet merchandise and Julia uttered the magic words, “I want this stuff!” And with that she became a complete American consumer.

She was enthralled with all the pictures of big headed tiny bodied cats, dogs, fish, turtles, and birds with all sorts of rediculous little houses, little playthings, and little junk! I hate the stuff – plastic trash that there is no way of keeping a hold on. It all gets lost and there is no convenient way to keep it together. But when my little consumer said she wanted stuff, I figured we had a way into the stickers for good behavior and rewards world. So tonight we set up a calendar. Julia can get one sticker for having a good day (defined as no hitting, no time outs, and generally being nice), a sticker for anything special that she has done during the day (like when I asked her to speak quietly at the movies and she did), and/or a sticker from having a good day at school. When she gets 10 stickers, she can get a new pet. I figure that she has the possibility of getting a new toy every 4 days. The pets are pretty cheap, and I am sure what she will want is the house and shop stuff eventually that is bigger and more expensive. That's when the sticker number will go up.

We tried using stickers to promote good behavior when Julia first came home and it was way too far beyond her. No way to make her understand what we were doing and what she was supposed to do. I hope we can use it now. It would be helpful to enforce good behavior and to change some of the ucky stuff.

Yesterday, Julia and I went to the clay store and Julia painted the star she made a few weeks ago. Her clay teacher, that nice high school senior guy, told us that he could fire the turtle and house that we made this week at home. Julia made a hanging vase and we turned in two projects that we did at home. She is still constrained by the rules of clay making. She does not yet understand the process of using the wet clay, drying it, firing it, painting it, and firing it once again. It will be awhile yet before she is free to create creatures and scenes like she does with the Fimo that she uses for fun, but I believe that she will get to that point.

We saw Horton Hears a Who at the movies this afternoon. It is a great movie for little kids and Julia loved it. She is still having a bit of trouble with the big sounds at movies, but after the previews the sound went down some (David asked the PTB to turn down the sound. Either they did it, or the movie was just quieter.) and she could take her fingers out of her ears. Big noise still hangs around as too stimulating for Julia. We are thinking of bringing some ear muffs or head phones to dull sound a bit. The movie is gentler than any other Dr. Suess media experiment. Even with Jim Carey doing one of the voices, there is restraint.

Julia was drawing on Friday when she called me to her white board and announced that she had drawn a Y and Y was for yo-yo. She then drew a yo-yo and a Julia playing with it. Then yesterday in the car, she was looking at the Ice Age DVD box. When we stopped, she wanted me to read words that she pointed to. I believe that after months of memorizing her little books with single words or single sentences, she is going to start reading soon. I bet by the end of summer, she is recognizing words!

This afternoon after the movie, I was on the couch at my computer and Julia was playing with her clay. She had asked me to make a kangaroo and then totally remade what I made for her, so much better than mine! She came over to me and looked in my eyes for a really long time. And then she said, “Mommy, I love you.” She laughed at me, watched my eyes to see herself in them and hugged me. Julia is growing deeper and deeper in love with us, and we more than return the favor.

Tender Shadows

Is it spring yet? Maybe. Maybe. The daytime temperatures are in the high 30s the last few days. We saw 40+ twice last week, and oh so shockingly, 40 feels like I should be expecting something, like, like green growing things. Maria, my next door neighbor, has bulbs coming up on our side of her house. Green shoots about an inch or so high. Oh, they look good. There is still snow on lots of the yards but near the houses and near the sidewalk, it is melting. Fringes on both sides. Our highest terrace has only a little bit of snow and the side of our house around the corner is pretty bear. But no bulb shoots.

David was saying today that he saw a guy up the street raking some of his flower beds and he chuckled about over enthusiatice gardners. I had to admit that I had been planning to get out next week and do a bit of that myself, where ever the snow has melted, just to be doing it. My plan was to do it during the week when most folks are at work, thereby saving myself from getting caught by the likes of my dear husband and chuckled at.

It has been a long winter. Even for old time Wisconsin-ers. A friend commented that the first snow was greeted with glee for all the expected winter sports, more snow just meant buckling down and doing the Wiconsin snow-thing diligently, more snow brought a bit of silence among even those who professed a great love of the fourth season, and now melting snow is bringing lots and lots of sighs of relief.

We watched the original Peter Pan, with Mary Martin, with Julia. She watches most animation well but doesn't really watch live- action movies apart from Annie and a few others. She loved Peter Pan – the singing and dancing was all so exciting, but the story, the kids, the flying, and the pirates were even move. Julia has a muppets pirate ship that she plays with so pirates are already part of her vocabulary of imagination. She even knew a few of the songs because they are sung by kids singers and we play them in the car. She loves the lullaby “Tender Shepherd” but has no idea what a shepherd is and so sings “Tender Shadows.” I tried to correct her but she said “It Peter Pan song.” And she is right – Peter loses his shadow and Wendy sews it back on. I think she will be singing “Tender Shadows” for a long time.

Cheshire will be a New York City school teacher next year. She clicked the box online and took the job. This was a hard decision, and I am very proud that she has made it. Brava, my girl!

Mother's Day

Looking at houses, carrying Julia piggy-back, catching a nap, and a beer and salad -- a great mother's day! David and I agree that we have re-set our expectations. Madison is a great town and we are going to be happy with a smaller house and one that may need as much work as our Washington Blvd house and one that may be at the top of our price range. This was a hard pill to swallow a few weeks ago, but I am definitely more open to the possibilities this time round. We saw three today -- one was a second visit for me and probably the one that needs the least work, a second house was a small cape in a school district I am checking out tomorrow, and the third in a great location with good "bones" but in need of LOTS of cosmetic work and a new bathroom. The two houses needing work are empty and flexible in terms of closing, and the owners of the bigger house are moving down the block and rather flexible.

I have two appointments to show our Indy house this week so I am optimistic there as well. And we sign with a realtor on Friday if those don't work out. Somehow, we are going to be in Madison asap, I am hoping for a June moving.







We are watching the Lilo and Stitch movies with Julia. She likes Stitch more than Lilo. So my spicy dragon wants to ask like a little blue monster. What is a mother to do?