Six Years Ago Today...

I Hope she Learned her Lesson

Yesterday during quiet time, Maddie decided to shove a piece of foam from a Nerf ball up her nose. Sheer panic ensued shortly thereafter. While talking to Ryan and after calming Maddie down, we decided to wait until he arrived home from work, since he had some long tweezers and was almost certain he would be able to remove the object.

Maddie ended up forgetting completely about the obstruction and I put her to bed that evening. Ryan came home an hour or so later and we decided to get her up and attempt to remove the foam while she was still sleepy and dazed.

Over an hour later, all three of us were completely exhausted and the object was still lodged in her right nostril. We could see the blue foam, but every time the tweezers got within an inch of our little girl's nose (as in, they weren't even touching her yet), she started shrieking (and I mean shrieking) in placebo-like pain. No distraction, bribe, threat, or even sheer force (I tried holding her down with all my might while Ryan attempted to remove the Nerf, but Maddie was too strong and I couldn't keep her completely still). She was simply scared out of her mind and unable to stay calm and completely still. It was a devastating experience for all of us and we decided to send her back to bed and come up with another plan of attack for the morning.

My biggest fear was that if she was acting this way with us, she probably wouldn't be any calmer for the doctor and they would end up having to sedate her. I really really didn't want to go to that extreme when we could see the object (just barely if a light was shone directly into her nose...so close yet so far away!) but couldn't keep her calm and still for the ten seconds it would take to pull the blasted thing out. It was jammed up her nose too high to use anything but those long scary tweezers to get it out.

While Maddie was using the potty before heading off to bed for the second time that night--by now it was 11pm--Ryan read somewhere online (thank you google!)about a tactic we  hadn't tried yet. It was our only hope. Just as she got out of the bathroom, he called to her.

"Maddie, can Papa give you a big silly kiss before bed?" By now she had calmed down completely and was chipper as could be.

"Um, Sure!" she bounced.

He then put his hand over the clear nostril, covered his mouth over hers, CPR-style, and blew into her mouth.

"That tickles, Daddy!" she giggled. So he did it again, but this time making sure everything was airtight. Then he blew like the big bad wolf right into her tiny pie hole.

Like a little miracle, the broken Nerf ball (about the size of a kidney bean) flew out of her nose and across the floor. I was so happy I could have kissed that piece of foam (but I didn't).

Everyone cheered and the three of us celebrated with ice cream and talked excessively about how we should never put anything up our noses.

I hope she learned her lesson and doesn't attempt this again.

I know I learned mine. No more Nerf balls during quiet time.

Maddie holding the offending object after it flew out of her nose. 

Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

I first heard of Amy Chua (aka the Tiger Mother) a few months ago after a friend emailed me an article from the NY Times about her new book. I found the article intriguing and enjoyed discussing some of the differences between Chinese parenting (how she refers to herself) and Western parenting (how she labels American parents).

A couple of weeks ago when I took the kids to the local library for the first time, I noticed "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother" on the shelf. It turns out she is a law professor at Yale. Since the campus is just a few minutes from where we live and Ryan is working as a resident at Yale University's hospital system for the next three years, I decided I would read this book I had heard so much about. I ended up really liking it. Sure, many of her parenting views/tactics are downright crazy, but so much of the book inspired me. I definitely gained a greater respect for "Chinese Parenting" in general, and I found myself constantly reassessing my own views on effecitive parenting and what is really best for my children.

One of the basic arguments that she makes is that "American parents" coddle their children too much (praising them for the smallest of accomplishments, like waving a stick or kicking a ball), shelter them from anything that is difficult (i.e. sports leagues where everybody wins, or intervening when a child doesn't receive a birthday invitation), and generally don't push them enough to reach their potential because it's just too hard to see them struggle. On that note, here is just one of the many paragraphs that made me think:

Western parents try to respect their children's individuality, encouraging them to pursue their true passions, supporting their choices, and providing positive reinforcement and a nurturing environment. By contrast, the Chinese believe that the best way to protect their children is by preparing them for the future, letting them see what they're capable of, and arming them with skills, work habits, and inner confidence that one one can ever take away.


It was an interesting and quick read. Chua is candid and open about mistakes that she has made as a mother of two teenage girls. And even though her views on effective parenting are drastically different than mine, I have a lot of respect for her. There is no doubt that she loves her daughters and that she works really hard doing what she believes is best for them.

Halfway there

A few nights ago, before Ryan began orientation for his new job, he and I pulled out a map and decided to count how many states each of us had been to in our lifetime (Not counting layovers. Not travel-worthy enough). Due to Ryan's jam-packed-road-trip schedule last year, he beat me by a landslide--he has seen 35 of the 50 states. "Twenty-four." I declared after adding mine up. "Well," he said, "Let's head to Rhode Island for the day tomorrow and make it 25." So we did. And now I have seen half of the states in this blessed union which we live.Rhode Island is one of the most beautiful.

We arrived in Newport around lunchtime, so we stopped at Flo's Clam Shack. It really was a shack, right on the beach, and exactly my kind of restaurant. A total dive but with award after award hanging crookedly all over the walls. We got take-out and took the kids to McDonald's since we were pretty sure they wouldn't appreciate the seafood like we would. Hooray for clam chowder, a crab cake sandwich, coleslaw, and fried clam cakes.

Newport's beaches had the clearest water I've seen since our vacation to the Bahamas for our honeymoon.

This little girl can't get enough of throwing rocks into the ocean.

We took a walk along the boardwalk. Newport reminded me a lot of Park City, just with a beach instead of mountains. When we asked Maddie to smile for the camera, she barked back, "I ALREADY DID!" Easy, girl, No need to be so touchy. This shot was taken right before Davis somehow wriggled out of his stroller seat belt and attempted to dive headfirst to the ground in the middle of the street in a busy intersection. He got about an inch away from success before we saved him.

We also took a tour (in our car) of the beautiful mansions that Newport is famous for. Someday I would like to go back and walk through them (sans cute kiddos, of course). The kids were all so tired that they slept almost the entire drive home.

Only 25 more to go.

Now Both of My Sons have Slept in a Closet

After going back and forth for weeks about whether to rent or buy while living here in Connecticut, we finally concluded that renting was our best option. We did something super-risky and didn't even fly out to see our new abode before rolling into the driveway a little over three weeks ago. It was just going to be too pricey and we felt good about taking the risk. Our instincts didn't let us down---the house was exactly what the realtor said it would be (people out here go through a realtor to rent their homes as well as buy them) and the pictures were true to real life. Here are a few photos of our new place after Mary-Ann worked her magic. I can't figure out how to get blogger to put them in the correct order, so here is your sporadic photo tour:

Remember when Davis slept in this closet as a newborn? Well now Ike sleeps in a large closet upstairs, about the size of a bathroom.  We convinced him it was cool  with the Lightning McQueen decal.  Everyone gets more rest when D and Isaac aren't in the same room--they play too much and sleep too little. 

I love having a yard. We even planted a little garden as soon as we got here.

The playroom. 

Another one of the playroom. Have I mentioned I LOVE having a playroom?

Davis' wing of the bedroom.

Maddie's wing. We had originally purchased a bed for her from Ikea (did I mention we bought almost EVERYTHING there?), but when a new ward friend was selling her daughter's entire canopy bedroom set for $50, we took the Ikea bed back and now she has this one. No canopy yet but hopefully someday. Maddie is in love with her pink wallflower lights. 

Our bedroom.

This picture makes the lights above the bed look a little crazy, but in reality they look wonderful and I love them. The perfect little  reading light. 

I call this the multipurpose room because it doubles as an office/bathroom extension/laundry-folding station/exercise room/guest bedroom. 

The dining room. Isn't that curtain funky? You'd never guess we bought it in the shower curtain section. Just one of Mary-Ann's many design secrets.

Rapunzel's tower and the bane of my existence. I can't keep Davis off these dangerous stairs (no matter how strictly I discipline him) and I might have to break down and buy a gate.

The living room. Go Backyardigans!

One of the many things I love about this room is the window into the kitchen. I also love the funky light that sits on the sill. And of course the corner with a picture of each of my kiddos.

Another thing I love is the mantel. There is a mirror just above it and it makes it a fun place to decorate.

My tiny kitchen. Mary-Ann did a nice job of making it bigger...

By doing fun things like hanging canisters on the wall to give me more storage space.

Not too shabby a place to stay during a New England vacay, eh?