Thursday, April 10, 2008

Yikes

So last night i was typing on the computer when I noticed that one of my diamonds in my wedding ring is missing! At least it was one of the small ones on the side, but still. My heart dropped. I felt like the lady in the parable who swept her house looking for the lost coin, but unfortunately, after a whole day of sweeping, there was no joy in finding it. Nuts. I looked everywhere. I even turned off all the lights and shined a flashlight hoping for a happy little glimmer smiling back at me, but no such luck.

So our next door neighbor owns a nursery, and is planting a billion plants next door. It looks awesome. Except why do people have to ruin it by putting one of those pink flamingo things in their yard? Except this one...is a big green and orange Toucan. ?!? But the cool part is that they are giving us all their "leftover" plants that have lost most of their leaves....but they'll grow soon. I'm starting to like gardening. I'm learning how to separate plants, and which ones like shade/sun. I was digging in the yard with a pick axe, and someone came up to me and said ....."you American women really don't mind hard work." Mind you that 3 construction workers were taking naps on my yard while I was hacking away at rocks in my soil. :)

So just for those moms out there reading...what do you do with your kids to keep them occupied when making dinner? Especially ones that aren't interested in playing with toys. Noah isn't allowed in the kitchen, (just a rule I decided to make so he doesn't hurt himself) and every night I battle to come up with ideas to keep him in a spot where I can watch him properly. :) So....what are your ideas?

6 comments:

Ben and Melissa James said...

Did you check the soil that you were digging in outside for the diamond? When the girls are napping I try to prep as much dinner as possible...cutting stuff up, cooking what can be made ahead of time, etc. But if dinner lends itself to last minute stuff then I buckle Emma in her high chair and either put a Baby Einstein movie on, or give her some cheerios and I talk to her or give her a few blocks or other little toys to play with. Sometimes I give her measuring spoons or other non-breakable kitchen items and she enjoys banging those around. If she's too squiggly for the high chair then I'll set up the pack 'n' play and put some pots to bang on or big spoons to throw around in there. This way she feels like she's in the middle of everything without really being in the middle of everything. When they get a little older...like 2ish...I pull up a chair to the sink and let her help me wash dishes. I'll put some plastic and silverware in the sink and some soap and water and let her go at it. They really do feel like they're helping and sometimes you'll even get your floor mopped in the process. Just make sure to put an apron or something that can get wet on. Now since Charis is almost 4, I let her "make" dinner with me. She stirs stuff or pours stuff in. I try to talk to her throughout the whole process so she can start to learn about measuring, kitchen safety, ingredients and stuff like that.

Unknown said...

yikes about your diamond! one time i dropped my entire wedding ring down the sink. we fished it out but i know the feeling!
i struggle to keep cael occupied during dinner time too. so he either sits in the high chair with teething biscuits. or in his crib, lights and music on, with special toys just for his "crib time". this has been very successful for me/us. i use it about 30 minutes a day for either dinner prep or cleaning time.

cynthia said...

i've heard some people call 4pm "the witching hour" which i'm not a big fan of, but the name is not too far off! it's so hard when they're little, because you can hardly reason with them. i'm so thankful that at this point, at almost-5-and-3 my kids can obey, "stay in your room til i call you for dinner." and they read books, play with toys, make forts out of blankets, etc etc. but for your 11 month old, could you perhaps have special stuff, or a special place to sit, or a special blanket that is only for that time? i know that's hard while he's trying to crawl and walk, etc... i guess it's a season that will pass soon enough. i like the idea of getting the prep done during nap (although aren't there more fun things you'd rather do on your 'break'? :)). i don't know how you feel about videos, or even how noah does with a video (some kids don't sit still for them, as i'm well aware), you might try it every other day or so, during dinner prep. pretty soon noah will be helping you rinse carrots and begging to peel them himself! :)

Mrs. Dan said...

I'm not sure if my idea counts as being in the kitchen or not but I put my 14 month old daughter (who is also not a fan of toys) in her high chair in the middle of our kitchen. I do all my prep on the counter in front of her. (Her favorite part is watching potatoes being cut and then tossed in the bowl. She giggles so hard!) When it's time for me to cook, I put a couple of things for her to play with on the high chair tray.

Otherwise, ditto Melissa. :)

So sorry about your diamond! I hope you find it!

Lou and Amy said...

The idea of having the kids in high chairs helps with Gracie and Rocky. Sometimes putting music on in the kitchen helps, too. It can help them to mellow out a bit. Gracie loves playing with a plastic spoon and a bowl...she makes her own "meal" while I cook!

H said...

Yes, I see a trend. I also put my daughter (who doesn't like toys anymore) in her highchair where she can clearly see me preparing the meal. She gets antsy unless I explain every part of what I'm doing to her. I'm not joking. I actually talk like I'm on a cooking show. I even say things like, "Some people like Monterey Jack cheese in this dish, but your father and I prefer cheddar." She watches so carefully and to me it's better than her crying or whining while I'm trying to cook.

So sorry about your diamond! I will pray it turns up somewhere soon!