There and Back Again: A Violet's Tale

We're back! It feels like I've been gone forever, both from home and the bloggy world! But never fear, I have returned, and with a gazillion pictures to share with you. I'm going to have to break our trip up into several posts or I might melt our computer trying to get all the photos up, but that just means you'll get to check back often to see more!

For those of you who don't know, we spent the Fourth of July weekend in Columbus, Ohio for Matt's family reunion. While there, we spent time hanging out in our hotel, we met lots and lots of family (some for the first time), ate great food, went to the zoo and a baseball game, swam, played at the farm, survived the 12 hours in the car there and back, and lived to tell about it! Here are a few random highlights of what we did.

Violet points the way. She loved pushing and riding on the luggage carts at the hotel.

"Wah-duh" was another big highlight. From the moment she spotted the hotel's water feature, she didn't stop talking about it. If the "why?" phase is anything like "wah-duh," we are in for it big time.

Violet's first trip to the zoo! We hit the zoo first thing after we arrived. It was hot and Violet ended up passing out just a couple hours in. Oh well, at least we gave it a shot. She might be a little too young still.

Can you guess her favorite part of the zoo? Yep, the wah-duh!

We also took in the Columbus Clippers minor league baseball game.

One of the trip highlights was getting to visit Great-Grandma in her swanky nursing home. Here we are in the ice cream parlor where you can dish out as much delicious ice cream as you want, whenever! The buckeye ice cream was the best!

Taking a dip in Aunt Stephanie's pool.

And thanks to everyone who voted in the roadtrip poll. On the way there, we split the trip in two so we could arrive in Columbus fresh. Coming home, we trucked it through all in one day. Violet was actually an excellent traveler, especially on our journey home. With plenty of 'nacks and Elmo on the DVD, she was good to go. We made it home in just under 12 hours, and boy were we happy to see our own beds!

Your Table is Ready

So remember how yesterday I was complaining about when Violet wigged out at the dinner table on me and had to go to time out? Well, perhaps she was just trying to tell me she's ready to graduate to the big boys' table. After all, which looks like more fun? This scene, or a lame high chair sandwiched between mom and dad? Yeah, I think so too. The night after her meltdown Violet asked to sit with the boys, and she rocked it! Girlfriend didn't move out of her seat once, despite some serious distractions! And she cleaned her plate, including veggies, and even got seconds! I'm so proud!

Your table is ready.

All done!

Time Out

Violet has added a new command to her arsenal - up.

Sometimes it comes out like "hup! hup! hup!" when she's done with dinner or knows it's time to get out of the car.

Other times it's a wailing "uuuuuuuup!" complete with arms stretched in the air, often when my own arms are full of something else.

Either way, it's one of the more annoying demands she has learned. I'm trying to be patient, I am. But I can't help but wonder if my advanced little girl is hitting her terrible twos a bit early.

See, Violet's also mastered the word "no". Ironically, she still can't say yes or even nod. So every question is answered with "no" or sometimes "nuh?" her little voice trailing up at the end to turn it into its own question.

Not only does she answer questions with no, she also lets the dreaded word fly whenever she's the slightest bit displeased. When I turn off the tv. When I remove her plate because she's tossing food on the floor after being asked to stop. No has even been accompanied by a disrespectful swat of the hand (she batted at a little girl in the library the other day and I thought I would die of mortification).

I feel like we've reached a crucial stage in our parenting where it's time to really start laying the foundation for how we are going to rear this child, and I don't want to botch it, but she makes me so mad sometimes! Somehow I have to teach her that she's not allowed to just say no to her mommy because she feels like it... at least not until she's 15!

So... we've started time out. The pediatrician said it was fine (it was actually one of the topics in our 15-month well check packet), my trusted mom friends said it was time, and hopefully the grandmas won't freak out when they hear about it. If she's old enough to sass me, she's old enough to pay for it!

And trust me when I say that Girlfriend knows exactly what she's doing. I'm not punishing the innocent, don't worry. Case in point: the other day during our neighborly dinner, Violet kept whining about my water. She had her own cup (with a lid, because she hasn't mastering drinking topless lidless) but no, that wasn't good enough. She wanted my water. Finally, just to give us all some peace, I gave her a sip. But then she wanted to stick her nasty, grubby little hand in my pristine, refreshing water. I repeatedly asked her to stop, in a tone that escalated in firmness until finally I took her hand out of the glass and said sternly, "If you put your hand in my water again, you are going to time out." Well, she meekly withdrew. We resumed eating. And 30 seconds later, her fingers were slyly submerging themselves again.

A collective gasp went up from the table. And if there's one thing I do know about parenting (or teaching or life in general), it's that you have to follow through. So I promptly whisked my disobedient child out of her chair with an ominous "uh-oh" and plopped her in time out. Then I returned to the dining room where we all listened to Violet holler her head off. But she stayed put for the full minute, and I give her credit for that. I'm not exactly sure she understood the lesson, and just to be safe I decided that dinner was over for that particular night.

Oh well, it's a work in progress. I'm pretty sure I deserve a few timeouts myself every now and again.

And just to prove she's not all rotten... May I present: Chocolate Chip Muffins for Breakfast (Not My Brightest Mom Moment): An Act in Three Parts

Bed Head

Whatever

Cheese!

Calling the Dawgs!

"Goooooooo Dawgs! Sic 'em! Woof woof woof woof woof!"

Rainbow Bright

Needless to say, Violet had quite a bit of fun in her splash pool the other day.

Baby Shower Envy

This weekend we celebrated the upcoming arrival of my friend Jeanette's baby girl. You might remember my story of helping out a friend... Well, since she outed herself in the comments, I feel like I can share a little more of her story. Jeanette, a sweet friend from my neighborhood, has been in and out of the hospital lately, getting monitored in these last few weeks of pregnancy. Earlier this week I had the great honor of hanging out with her there while we waited for her husband to arrive home from a business trip, and since she was again in the hospital this weekend, that's where we got to have her baby shower!

Despite the last minute change in location, the event was beautiful. (As in, I'm totally jealous and am already planning to steal some of these adorable ideas for any upcoming showers or birthdays I host.) And as for the icing on the cake, mom and baby were both doing so well that Jeanette was discharged the next day! 

 

 

1. Cupcakes with a bit of sparkle from Creations Bakery in Cumming.
2. A stunning "congrats!" banner made by my crafty neighbor K. I'm thinking a "Mrs. Loughman" version for my classroom,  yes?
3. Refreshing frozen fruit cups (and a glimpse of the photographer in the spoon).
4. Milk bottle beverageware, such an adorable idea.
5. The glowing mama-to-be.
6. Party in progress.

Hitting the Road

So in the near future, our little family of three will be hitting the road, headed the 10 hours north to Ohio for a family reunion.

Once again, I am afraid. It was one thing to jump in the car with my neighbors and head to the beach. For one thing, that journey was only seven hours. Plus, Violet was in the car with two little boys she knows and loves who kept her entertained (or at least distracted with their own complaints... hey, misery loves company). But this time it's just me, Matt and Violet. She'll be alone in the backseat. Well, alone with her DVD players and Elmo and as many snacks as I can toss her way.

Does anyone have any brilliant tips to share on how to get us all there in one piece, sanity intact?

As I see it, we have three options, none of which is overly appealing to me right now.

Option 1 (and Matt's favorite): Leave around dinner time. Drive halfway, with the intent that Violet will fall asleep in the car. Somehow wrangle sleeping babe from dark car, through bright lobby, into hotel room where pack-n-play must be silently set up. Everyone sleeps beautifully, rises refreshed and we trek the rest of the way the next day. (Note my escalating sarcasm as I contemplate the potential number of things that will go wrong here.) Worst case scenario, Violet wakes up when we get to the hotel, and after sleeping soundly for the last leg of the trip, decides it's time to bust a move in a rented room the size of our master bath while irate neighbors bang on the walls and ceiling.

Option 2 (which could totally work, Matt!): Go to bed early and set the alarm for 4 a.m. Pop a sleeping Violet into her car seat and stealthily creep onto the dark highway. Make the journey in one day, arriving in time for Violet to get her wiggles out in the hotel pool, surrounded by grandparents who are eager to let us take a nap. (It's sounding better and better, Matt, admit it!) Worst case, Violet wakes up at 4 a.m. and gives us guff for a few miles. She is bound to sleep at some point in the trip, right?

Option 3: We suck it up, leave at a godly hour in the morning (say, 9-ish) and make the drive straight through the day. This is what we did for Florida and it worked okay (see first paragraph for my concerns with this option).

Option 4, driving through the night, was discounted due to the fact that it's a) dangerous, b) dumb, and c) how insane would I have to be to arrive at a new destination with no sleep exactly when my child is waking from a blissful slumber, ready to rumble?

Option 5, flying, was taken off the table due to a) cost, b) Violet's inability to sit still for more than 20 minutes at a time, and c) the sheer amount of crap we're lugging with us (pack-n-play, stroller, booster seat, suitcases, Elmo, Babydoll (pronounced BAH-boo), miscellaneous toys, snacks, diaper bag, extra measures of grace, mercy, a large heap of patience, some extra patience in case the first measure runs out, some extra sanity while we're at it... you get the picture).

So what do you guys think? Any advice? Any horror stories to share? No, scratch that, I don't want to know. I only want helpful, sympathetic comments revealing the secrets of hitting the road with a child.

Hmm... maybe a new poll is in order!