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April 6, 2003
Yard Sale Junkie
One of the things that I have really been looking forward to, now that spring is here are yard sales! I know that I have mentioned in the past that I can be…ur… frugal and yard sales are like a candy store for me. I have it down to a pretty strict system. Jamie knows that 9AM on Saturday I am leaving Ella with him and hitting the road (she would slow me down and timing is key to do these things right). Kids stuff is great to get from yard sales since, unlike most of the other things out there, it isn’t for sale because it is old or outdated or used up or junky but merely because the person’s child has outgrown it. It has gotten to the point where I hardly every buy her new toys or books because I know I could get them for 1/20 of the price at a yard sale. I have gotten her a lot of board books for anywhere from ten to fifty cents and all sorts of toys, walkers, bikes, outdoor equipment, never paying more the five dollars. Take them home, give them a nice bleach bath, and Ella is thrilled. I don’t even mind going from sale to sale as it is such a nice satisfying rush when you finally stumble upon a good one, with lots of kids stuff. I know I’ve hit the jackpot when I can see big brightly colored plastic from two blocks awayJ. This does mean however, that she doesn’t get hardly any new toys or books over the winter (except for Christmas and occasional grandparent’s gifts--this, kid is not exactly deprived J ) so I have been chomping at the bit waiting for things to thaw out and the weather to warm up. Some specific things that I will be on the lookout for this summer are a really good wooden blocks set, a kitchen (or grocery store) set, and any random artsy type things.
Just recently I got Ella a Magna-Doodle (for fifty cents) from one of these yard sales. She loves it, but even more then writing on it herself, she loves to have Jamie and I draw pictures for her, which she then scribbles all over. Lately she has taken to waking Jamie up by clambering over to him, dragging this big drawing board that is clattering all over the place, demanding “ki kat! Ki kat! Girl! Girl! (and the favorite) ElMO! ElMO!” She is very demanding that one, I tell you!
Snow snow, go away, little Ella wants to play!
Well, spring has taken one step forward and two giant steps back here. Last weekend we had a beautiful spring day with warm temps and lots of sun. We had Ella out for three walks and two different playgrounds and she loved it. Since then, however temperatures have plummeted and we even had no less then three snow squalls, with another forecasted for tomorrow. It is.just killing me, it’s April for goodness sake! Even worse, now that Ella has had a taste of fresh outside air and all the fun of the playgrounds and the park, she wants to go all the time. First thing in the morning to late in the afternoon, it is “Siee? Sieee?” (Translated: Mommy, can we please go outside to play?) How it breaks my heart to tell her we can’t and to have her get upset and fuss. And now that daylight savings time is here there is even more light outside hours that we are missing due to this horrible screwed up weather and the winter that won’t give in. I’m really afraid now that winter will just go straight through to September and spring and summer will just be passed over this year (can you tell my sanity is starting to go?!?!)
The Mommy Warden
Like a perfect little chapter from the toddler books, Ella has been testing Jamie and I up and down the aisle. The other day she went over to the dog bowl (which she knows she is not supposed to play with) and stands right in the food dish, sending kibble scattering all over the kitchen. In I swoop! “Ella! Leave the dog food alone! The floor is for standing, not the dog food” Well, you know what comes next – testing, testing—in goes her boot into the dog’s water dish. I look up from picking up kibble to see her standing there, boot firmly planted in the dish just staring defiantly at me “What if my foot is in the water dish Mommy” Well, that was the day that Ella got her first time out (this is something we have discussed before. She knows the water dish is no place to stand.) I picked her up and told her that she was going to have to sit on a chair and not get up for THIRTY SECONDS!!!! . This kid scrunches up her face and lets a wail out like I had lobbed off one of her arms, not made her SIT IN A CHAIR (heavens!). I was a little pleased when she got so upset at this, as it meant at least that she knew this was not a game. Well, we sat out our thirty seconds and then left the kitchen altogether. The first time out of many, I am sure!
Things are shaping up
Ella has learned two of her shapes, circles and squares. She is so clever, will point them out all over the place when she sees them. She can say circle perfectly but doesn’t say square yet, but I can tell when she is trying to show me one. The other day she noticed that our kitchen floor was made up of square tiles. She went from one end of the kitchen to the other pointing out every square along the way.
I could just watch her all day as she discovers the world. It is such a joy to me.
I do have a question for parents out there. I don’t want this taken the wrong way, because I really am very blessed with a wonderful husband and we have what I consider a pretty great relationship. But, like all couples, we of course have our fights from time to time. I really thought when I imagined my family that we would make it a point to not fight in front of the kids. But I find now that this is a lot easier in theory then in actuality. When we are in the heat of the moment it is very hard for me to keep this away from Ella. For one thing, she is always around and usually becomes even clingier if we are fighting (I know this is probably because she is disturbed by it). I also feel, though, that if I just said to Jamie I will not discuss this until after Ella goes to bed that it could be perceived as withdrawing and refusing to face up to controversy (which I have been accused of even pre-Ella so I try to make a point not to do). I guess I know in my heart that this is how things should be handled, I just never thought about how hard it can be, especially when tempers are short, feelings are hurt, and passions are ignited. Any tips would be appreciated, or even an ‘I know how you feel’ and maybe a reassurance that we haven’t psychologically doomed our daughter, at least not yet…
On that note, thanks for reading!
Bonnie
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