Hi, all!
Time for a rare photo-free post~! :)
I've been meaning to post more about Ella Rose's milestones in development for the benefit of keeping relatives up-to-date as to her going-ons. I know I've missed a lot, but before I forget this quasi-milestone, I want to record here that...
...Ella's first two-word combo was on November 26th: red balloon
...and her first three-word combo was on December 6th: hi, baby dinosaur
And then today, she said "shark eat pink" when she stuffed her mini pink dolphin into the mouth of the shark she plays with on the potty. Hee ^_^
She's really sailing with the two-word combos now with lotsa color-noun statements and her top favorite has to be "pink socks".
I don't think this is particularly early (or late?) in the way of speech development, but again, I just wanted to record this somewhere.
I remember her first word was "bye" at 9 months in the airport out of Cancun, and her first sign-language word was "light"...though I don't quite remember when that was...
They say the time between 18-months and 2 years can be one of a lot of change, so very soon these little two- and three-word combo statements will lose their esteem. But for now, they are music to my ears!! <3
That's all for now. So see you again soon and until then, happy talking!
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Saturday, November 13, 2010
No more diapers?!
Guess whose these are...
That's right!
At 19 months old, Ella Rose has finally graduated from cloth diapers to panties as she now regularly uses her potty.
Not bad, right?? :)
Granted it's not a perfect system yet as she really is only comfortable using her potty (thanks, Arc ReSale Store!) And, if left in the company of anyone other than Mama and Daddy, it's likely that she'll fail to communicate her elimination needs...and have an accident. Oopsies!
But still~ All in all, our happy household is very much enjoying this step forward -- Ella especially. :)
I know that everybody has their own way of going about potty training and it's not like Ella Rose is terribly young in comparison to most children, but I still thought I'd take this time to share our way of introducing it into her life as reference for other parents out there tackling the big ol' P.T. stage.
Here goes!
(1) The Rhythms
It's quite clear to me that most of these P.T.ing efforts are not so much Ella's as my own. Knowing her elimination patterns and watching for signals to get her where she needs to be to keep from soiling herself. That's my job~!
Although I'd been Elimination Communicating as best I could starting when Ella Rose was 4 months old, all I really did was catch her first elimination of the day -- which consisted of holding her over some container immediately after waking in the morning, to save just one more diaper. She didn't necessarily signal anything to me (at least, nothing that I picked up on). It was just me realizing that that was a constant pattern in her biological functions.
The potty aspect of the whole deal started when Ella Rose was maybe about 8 or 9 months old. Same deal, only on a potty. It slowly but surely progressed to noticing that she also had to empty her bladder immediately after napping. So just with those sleep patterns perceived, I was good to "catch" at least two potty trips a day.
Finally, starting around 17 months old, when Ella Rose was really holding her pee pretty well, simply offering a trip to the potty right before an outing and immediately upon returning was good enough to catch all her elimination needs. Then, with one more sit on the potty right before bedtime, that cinched the deal and I realized Ella really didn't need the diaper on anymore.
(2) Location, location, location
Ever since I first nabbed her little potty back in October of last year, it's been a staple fixture in our bathroom so that Ella Rose could get used to its sight and always knew that bathroom = where you do your business ;)
Some folks recommend having different potty stations throughout the house for the convenience of the child, and I see where they're coming from. But in our case, the one sole potty in the bathroom was plenty enough for Ella.
And it was definitely very much personalized to accommodate her as you'll see below...
(2) Making it fun!
As I mentioned before, with Ella Rose sitting on the potty first thing in the morning, it was important to keep her happy while on that potty no matter how chilly it could be in those winter mornings. And that was all thanks to the loyal group of books we kept by the potty. That has not changed to this day, and I think it's her favorite time to read, period!
Again, around the 17 months mark, when she started happily agreeing to sit on the potty in general, we introduced other sources of entertainment that helped greatly too.
Namely, her little sea-life friends... (thanks to Alexis' pop, Eric~!)
And, most recently, crayons!
What better a place to really let the "creative juices" flow.
Get it? Eh? Eh?? Punnnnn~
So yep! That's all I can really say on the matter.
And that's another 2010 New Year's Resolution taken care of. Phew!
Now to see if Ella Rose could maybe graduate to using the big person potty~?
Because, for now, it looks like we'll be taking Li'l Miss Potty with us all the way to Tucson! Ha!
Until then, Happy Pottying~!!
That's right!
At 19 months old, Ella Rose has finally graduated from cloth diapers to panties as she now regularly uses her potty.
Not bad, right?? :)
Granted it's not a perfect system yet as she really is only comfortable using her potty (thanks, Arc ReSale Store!) And, if left in the company of anyone other than Mama and Daddy, it's likely that she'll fail to communicate her elimination needs...and have an accident. Oopsies!
But still~ All in all, our happy household is very much enjoying this step forward -- Ella especially. :)
I know that everybody has their own way of going about potty training and it's not like Ella Rose is terribly young in comparison to most children, but I still thought I'd take this time to share our way of introducing it into her life as reference for other parents out there tackling the big ol' P.T. stage.
Here goes!
(1) The Rhythms
It's quite clear to me that most of these P.T.ing efforts are not so much Ella's as my own. Knowing her elimination patterns and watching for signals to get her where she needs to be to keep from soiling herself. That's my job~!
Although I'd been Elimination Communicating as best I could starting when Ella Rose was 4 months old, all I really did was catch her first elimination of the day -- which consisted of holding her over some container immediately after waking in the morning, to save just one more diaper. She didn't necessarily signal anything to me (at least, nothing that I picked up on). It was just me realizing that that was a constant pattern in her biological functions.
The potty aspect of the whole deal started when Ella Rose was maybe about 8 or 9 months old. Same deal, only on a potty. It slowly but surely progressed to noticing that she also had to empty her bladder immediately after napping. So just with those sleep patterns perceived, I was good to "catch" at least two potty trips a day.
Finally, starting around 17 months old, when Ella Rose was really holding her pee pretty well, simply offering a trip to the potty right before an outing and immediately upon returning was good enough to catch all her elimination needs. Then, with one more sit on the potty right before bedtime, that cinched the deal and I realized Ella really didn't need the diaper on anymore.
(2) Location, location, location
Ever since I first nabbed her little potty back in October of last year, it's been a staple fixture in our bathroom so that Ella Rose could get used to its sight and always knew that bathroom = where you do your business ;)
Some folks recommend having different potty stations throughout the house for the convenience of the child, and I see where they're coming from. But in our case, the one sole potty in the bathroom was plenty enough for Ella.
And it was definitely very much personalized to accommodate her as you'll see below...
(2) Making it fun!
As I mentioned before, with Ella Rose sitting on the potty first thing in the morning, it was important to keep her happy while on that potty no matter how chilly it could be in those winter mornings. And that was all thanks to the loyal group of books we kept by the potty. That has not changed to this day, and I think it's her favorite time to read, period!
Again, around the 17 months mark, when she started happily agreeing to sit on the potty in general, we introduced other sources of entertainment that helped greatly too.
Namely, her little sea-life friends... (thanks to Alexis' pop, Eric~!)
And, most recently, crayons!
What better a place to really let the "creative juices" flow.
Get it? Eh? Eh?? Punnnnn~
So yep! That's all I can really say on the matter.
And that's another 2010 New Year's Resolution taken care of. Phew!
Now to see if Ella Rose could maybe graduate to using the big person potty~?
Because, for now, it looks like we'll be taking Li'l Miss Potty with us all the way to Tucson! Ha!
Until then, Happy Pottying~!!
Monday, November 8, 2010
The Mantel
Hi, again!
Sorry for not writing in so long, but we have been busy, busy, busy! :)
And now we are fully into the Autumn Season and entering the Holiday/Winter one too!
But I'm glad that before that happened, I was able to instate what I hope will become more of a tradition around here!
Our Seasonal Mantelpiece:
I don't know if I've mentioned this before, but Amanda Blake (or "Soule Mama") has become a real source of inspiration for me ever since Ella Rose was born. And she has reminded me how beautiful and important it is to be aware of the changing cycles of seasons, to embrace them, and to bring them into the home so that our homes reflect the nature outside.
So here is the Autumn 2010 version of the Seasonal Mantelpiece. Not much, but it warms the area immensely, I think ;)
The branch was something I picked up while on a walk with Tak'e and I must admit I don't know what species of tree it came from, but I'm glad it has a nice home now. :)
Ella Rose and I have been picking up all the beautiful leaves we've been seeing on our walks and in the park, and adding them to our display. And we even have a seasonal "greeting card" (a Happy Halloween shout from Ella Rose's great-grandmother!)
As Winter starts to take hold here in the Northwest, we'll probably see a sprinkling of pine cones and needles, and some crafty homemade snowflakes too! :)
Until then, Happy Autumn and stay warm!!
Sorry for not writing in so long, but we have been busy, busy, busy! :)
And now we are fully into the Autumn Season and entering the Holiday/Winter one too!
But I'm glad that before that happened, I was able to instate what I hope will become more of a tradition around here!
Our Seasonal Mantelpiece:
I don't know if I've mentioned this before, but Amanda Blake (or "Soule Mama") has become a real source of inspiration for me ever since Ella Rose was born. And she has reminded me how beautiful and important it is to be aware of the changing cycles of seasons, to embrace them, and to bring them into the home so that our homes reflect the nature outside.
So here is the Autumn 2010 version of the Seasonal Mantelpiece. Not much, but it warms the area immensely, I think ;)
The branch was something I picked up while on a walk with Tak'e and I must admit I don't know what species of tree it came from, but I'm glad it has a nice home now. :)
Ella Rose and I have been picking up all the beautiful leaves we've been seeing on our walks and in the park, and adding them to our display. And we even have a seasonal "greeting card" (a Happy Halloween shout from Ella Rose's great-grandmother!)
As Winter starts to take hold here in the Northwest, we'll probably see a sprinkling of pine cones and needles, and some crafty homemade snowflakes too! :)
Until then, Happy Autumn and stay warm!!
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Spa Fashion Show!
Okay, so this was actually a couple weeks ago, but I only just now got around to doing a post about it -- sorry!
So! Saturday, September 18, The Epic Day Spa in Corvallis celebrated their One Year Anniversary with a fashion show!!!
And since Celeste is one of the administrative directors there, I got (happily) roped into being a model for it :)
Even though Celeste kept insisting I was doing them a huge favor...I felt like I was the one getting the favor! For the week prior to the big event, I got my hair dyed, my nails painted, my eyebrows shaped...and all for free! I felt so pampered and girled-out~ For the first time since...my wedding!!?
Then, the day of the event, I got my hair and make-up done, and got to model clothes from the local consignment shop, Second Glance. All in all, I rocked a Mad Men-esque retro sexy office worker. I loved the bright red lipstick, beehive hair, and plaid jacket.
That's me in the pedicure section of the spa. Doesn't it have the most beautiful interior design? And, yes, those are rose petals floating in the bath water...siiiiigh~
As you can see, Ella Rose was there too!
They also had the most killer food which I wish I had photos of...but oh well!
For the record, these are who did me up:
- dye job = awesome Alicia
- nails + eyebrows = magical Michelle
- make-up + hair-do = noteworthy Nicole
A fabulous team in all and I will definitely be going there to book any future grooming needs! :)
Ta-ta for now, and happy modeling~!
So! Saturday, September 18, The Epic Day Spa in Corvallis celebrated their One Year Anniversary with a fashion show!!!
And since Celeste is one of the administrative directors there, I got (happily) roped into being a model for it :)
Even though Celeste kept insisting I was doing them a huge favor...I felt like I was the one getting the favor! For the week prior to the big event, I got my hair dyed, my nails painted, my eyebrows shaped...and all for free! I felt so pampered and girled-out~ For the first time since...my wedding!!?
Then, the day of the event, I got my hair and make-up done, and got to model clothes from the local consignment shop, Second Glance. All in all, I rocked a Mad Men-esque retro sexy office worker. I loved the bright red lipstick, beehive hair, and plaid jacket.
That's me in the pedicure section of the spa. Doesn't it have the most beautiful interior design? And, yes, those are rose petals floating in the bath water...siiiiigh~As you can see, Ella Rose was there too!
They also had the most killer food which I wish I had photos of...but oh well!
For the record, these are who did me up:
- dye job = awesome Alicia
- nails + eyebrows = magical Michelle
- make-up + hair-do = noteworthy Nicole
A fabulous team in all and I will definitely be going there to book any future grooming needs! :)
Ta-ta for now, and happy modeling~!
Friday, September 24, 2010
A Chore for Every Day
Wash on Monday
Iron on Tuesday
Mend on Wednesday
Churn on Thursday
Clean on Friday
Bake on Saturday
Rest on Sunday.
Perhaps some of you are familiar with this traditional saying that sorta dictated how American household chores were to be handled back in the day.
It made a fair amount of sense, too. By cleaning all week, your house was nice and clean for Sunday and the guests you might be entertaining. And by baking on Saturday, all your good eats would be fresh and ready for the big Sunday evening dinner. And finally, if you washed all those good linens and clothes that might have been soiled over the weekend on Monday, you eliminated the risk of stains setting in.
A very good system indeed.
And I have decided to make up such a Weekly Chore system for my household too.
Here it is~
Iron on Tuesday
Mend on Wednesday
Churn on Thursday
Clean on Friday
Bake on Saturday
Rest on Sunday.
Perhaps some of you are familiar with this traditional saying that sorta dictated how American household chores were to be handled back in the day.
It made a fair amount of sense, too. By cleaning all week, your house was nice and clean for Sunday and the guests you might be entertaining. And by baking on Saturday, all your good eats would be fresh and ready for the big Sunday evening dinner. And finally, if you washed all those good linens and clothes that might have been soiled over the weekend on Monday, you eliminated the risk of stains setting in.
A very good system indeed.
And I have decided to make up such a Weekly Chore system for my household too.
Here it is~
Bake on Monday
Vacuum on Tuesday
Sweep on Wednesday
Clean Bathroom on Thursday
Clean Kitchen on Friday
Laundry on Saturday
Dust on Sunday
It goes without saying that I don't need a day for churning or a day for ironing. For the former, I don't make my own butter (yet ^_-) and for the latter, I just don't iron my clothes. Ha!
I can't claim any clever logic as to why certain chores go to certain days, besides baking our weekly bread on Monday to get us off to a good start. ^_^
And I suppose that by cleaning the bathroom later on in the week, it will make it clean for company we might have over Friday through Sunday.
And today is Saturday, and first thing this morning, I threw in a load to do. And it felt nice, so might as well do it every Saturday hereafter why not ^_-
Well!
I'll let you know how this Chore Schedule goes and if things get swapped around for one reason or another.
'til then, take care and Happy Housekeeping!
HA!
Vacuum on Tuesday
Sweep on Wednesday
Clean Bathroom on Thursday
Clean Kitchen on Friday
Laundry on Saturday
Dust on Sunday
It goes without saying that I don't need a day for churning or a day for ironing. For the former, I don't make my own butter (yet ^_-) and for the latter, I just don't iron my clothes. Ha!
I can't claim any clever logic as to why certain chores go to certain days, besides baking our weekly bread on Monday to get us off to a good start. ^_^
And I suppose that by cleaning the bathroom later on in the week, it will make it clean for company we might have over Friday through Sunday.
And today is Saturday, and first thing this morning, I threw in a load to do. And it felt nice, so might as well do it every Saturday hereafter why not ^_-
Well!
I'll let you know how this Chore Schedule goes and if things get swapped around for one reason or another.
'til then, take care and Happy Housekeeping!
HA!
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Our Daily Bread
I don't think I've ever told you all this, but for the past year, since moving to Oregon, Daddy and Mama have been baking our own bread. :)
Nothing fancy, just your average whole wheat bread. Someday, I'd like to venture into adding dried fruits and whatnot (like Kae and her amazing raisin bread that sustained us for the first part of the trip East earlier this month ;) )
But, I must say, for us novices, even nailing down whole wheat bread has been a challenge.
The challenge being, namely, how to make it light and fluffy. Not dense and squat.
We initially started with the "Honey Whole-Wheat Bread" recipe from Williams-Sonoma Essentials of Baking but it was a little rich for all the us. And so thick and heavy!! ;_;
So we started to adapt the "Whole-Wheat Sandwich Bread" recipe from The Joy of Cooking 75th Anniversary (a must-have for any kitchen, we say!!) and have slowly but surely been getting better and better results...
One effective trick we learned was keeping the bread, while it was rising, in the greased rice cooker on "Warm".
But what would start out as a big, fluffy mass of dough...would inevitably collapse into a thick log.
It wasn't until reading The Little House Cookbook that I learned the key tidbits of advice to making a fluffy and delicious bread.
And that being heating the water and milk in the recipe not to piping hot, but to an eerie but effective bloodwarm.
Just look at that fluffy, golden-brown bread!!
I swear, I am never going back.
No more having to slice the bread horizontally to make decent-sized sandwich slices! XD
Even Ella seems to approve...sorta.
You know who she reminds me of in this photo?
One of the Gelflings from the Dark Crystal!! Don't you think~?
And can you believe she's just shy of turning the big ol' 18 months old!!
My, how time flies~
Well! Happy baking, everyone~
And take care!!
Nothing fancy, just your average whole wheat bread. Someday, I'd like to venture into adding dried fruits and whatnot (like Kae and her amazing raisin bread that sustained us for the first part of the trip East earlier this month ;) )
But, I must say, for us novices, even nailing down whole wheat bread has been a challenge.
The challenge being, namely, how to make it light and fluffy. Not dense and squat.
We initially started with the "Honey Whole-Wheat Bread" recipe from Williams-Sonoma Essentials of Baking but it was a little rich for all the us. And so thick and heavy!! ;_;
So we started to adapt the "Whole-Wheat Sandwich Bread" recipe from The Joy of Cooking 75th Anniversary (a must-have for any kitchen, we say!!) and have slowly but surely been getting better and better results...
One effective trick we learned was keeping the bread, while it was rising, in the greased rice cooker on "Warm".
But what would start out as a big, fluffy mass of dough...would inevitably collapse into a thick log.
It wasn't until reading The Little House Cookbook that I learned the key tidbits of advice to making a fluffy and delicious bread.
And that being heating the water and milk in the recipe not to piping hot, but to an eerie but effective bloodwarm.
Just look at that fluffy, golden-brown bread!!
I swear, I am never going back.
No more having to slice the bread horizontally to make decent-sized sandwich slices! XD
Even Ella seems to approve...sorta.
You know who she reminds me of in this photo?
One of the Gelflings from the Dark Crystal!! Don't you think~?
And can you believe she's just shy of turning the big ol' 18 months old!!
My, how time flies~
Well! Happy baking, everyone~
And take care!!
Monday, September 13, 2010
Our new home
That's right.
We did it.
:)))))
That's why I've been so AWOL for the month of August.
Buying a house can be like that, apparently -- you feel an ever flux in how close the house is...and then how far! But when the lender and Title company and the whole gang finally announced that the place was finally ours...wow. What a good feeling!!!! o(^.^)o
But it really was a drama all the way up to the last day...and hours!
We officially closed on Friday the 27th, and proceeded to completely empty out our old abode, live off of fast food while our plates were in boxes, and wait and wait until Tuesday the 31st came around so that we could:
(1) load the moving van - 9 am
(2) wait for the current inhabitants to skedaddle - noon
(3) finish unloading the moving van - 3pm
(4) catch a plane to the East Coast for my oldest sister's wedding!! - 8pm
What a day!!
So glad it's over and so happy to start putting our happy little Home back together again!
But first, below is a video that Dash put together for me of our Home moments before we started filling it with boxes. Enjoy the tour!!
We've now been here for almost one week, and despite the terrible cold that struck Ella as well as mad rushing to meet some deadlines, we are down to only two or three boxes left unpacked :) Not bad, all things considered, I say.
The only regret I have is...I didn't picked up my needles once the whole month of August and have therefore technically broken my 2010 resolution of knitting something every month ;_;
But, hey, when I made that resolution I never even imagined something like this coming along to take up my time and attention! So I think that excuses me this once ^_-
I'm also glad that we've already had three home-cooked meals using an initially intimidating retro Jenn-Air style of range + oven including Corn Chowder, Carrot Soup, and the Dashiell Family staple: Mexican Night!!
I even made my first batch of blackberry jam.
Which I would like to mention was one of the main reasons why I decided to start blogging just about a year ago. Because I wanted to show off my newfound canning skills. Pfft~!
My, how the time has flown!!
I hope I remember to mark the 1 year anniversary coming up on the 26th -- it'll be fun to reminisce over all that a year can do...
Well!
Next time I write here, hopefully there will be some knitting news. Or better yet! Another video showing a more put-together Dashiell Dwelling ;)
'til then, take care and thanks for stopping by~!!
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