Sunday morning learning . . .

Overheard in our kitchen:

MH: I wish I was an octopus so I could have 152 thousand (152 is her favorite number du jour) arms and legs!

Mommy: You know octopuses don't really have that many legs! Hey, how many sides does an octagon have?

MH: I don't know. Oh yeah, 8.

Mommy: So, octagon . . . octopus - how many legs does an octupus have?

MH: I don't know . . . eight.

Mommy: Right! Octo is latin (ok, not positive about that one, but I went with it) for eight. Get it, octagon, octopus - one has 8 sides, one has 8 legs.

Daddy: Oooohhhh, listen to Mommy getting all fancy this morning!

MH: OY! Oy, Oy, Oy!


Guess it's a good thing I didn't start with Octo-Mom.

And now, for my next trick ...

I will attempt to post a picture!

It is, after all, Wordless Wednesday!

So here goes:

My little fashionista came up with this ensemble all on her own the other day. Love it!

OK, so for now I can only get pics from my phone. But I linked my Picasa account, so I think I might just need to play around a little more.

Look out Bloggywood - I think MLTB may be back with a vengeance!

Can I Actually Do This?

Well. We're about to find out!

I've been thinking. This iPhone of mine can do just about anything but wash and fold my laundry (although I'm sure I could use it to easily find a service for that!?).

With an app for everything, surely they'd have one for blogging through Blogger, right? I mean, I read blogs on here through Google Reader, right?

Right!

Let's hope I chose the correct (free) one.

I'm thinking that with my iPhone being an extension of my right arm, maybe this can help get those thoughts down in my blog as they happen, rather than forget about them or lack the time later. Which is really the main cause of my blog neglect. By the time I get around to it, there's just something else taking precedence.

We'll see how it goes - wish me luck!

Rachael (you'll need to envision my cute little sig here)

Dear Santa

In this house, we don't celebrate Christmas. Upon being asked her favorite Christmas song, if she's excited for Santa to come to her house, the Mad Hatter has always given a very poised and adorable answer of "Actually (actu-a-wee), Santa doesn't come to my house because I celebrate Hanukkah!". She is very proud of this statement (as are her parents), and often astounds adults with her immediate, clear, and eloquent response. You know, being so little and all. And the fact that some of them actually ask her who will be coming to her house instead.

However.

This has not stopped her from having a slight obsession with Santa this year.

If I'm correct, Christmas was actually 4 days ago.

For the last 2 days I have been listening, non-stop, to a medley of Santa Claus is Comin' to Town (a la The Boss, complete with the accompaniment of her sunshine drum), and Jingle Bells.

Did you know how much fun it is to ride in a "one-arm oaken" sleigh?

Apparently, very.

Yesterday, I was on the phone when she walked in with a piece of paper - all decked out in glittery stickers, smiley faces, and "words" she'd written. The words did not look familiar, but her name at the bottom was perfect.

"Mommy, can you please mail this to Santa for me?"

"Sweetie, uh, Santa doesn't come to our house. Why would we send him something? Besides, Christmas is already over."

"Mom. It's a thank you note - I want to thank him for coming to my preschool. It was really nice of him."

Well. At least I've taught her a thing or two about manners.

Still a bit stunned, I told her I wasn't sure what Santa's address was. Her answer?

"Just ask one of my teachers, mommy. Of course they know what it is! Or you could just look it up on the internet!"

I'll get right on it.

And for the record, after yesterday's stunt with Mommy's pashmina and your hair clips, don't be waiting for Santa to visit our house next year either!

WW - 1.2.3. ACTION!

I am not a fan of snow.

Perhaps it's the 4 years I spent at college in Ithaca, NY, where it snows from October through May (note: if you're visiting in the summer, don't let "Gorges" Ithaca fool you!).

However, if something is going to make me like snow - perhaps even love it - it's this picture:

The total epitome of what it means to be 6 weeks away from turning five (YIKES!), living life to the extreme without a worry  in the world, and soaking up every last second of it with wild abandon.

WW - If a picture is worth a thousand words . . .

Then this one is most definitely going down in the family books.

Most likely for blackmail purposes, say when she hits her teen years and doesn't remember these good old days when she promised us she'd never give us attitude as a teen, would always be as lovey and snuggly as she is right now, we'll forever be her best friends in the whole world, maybe around prom time . . .

Anyways, a few weeks ago, we went on MH's first field trip, to a local farm. So much fun - riding a schoolbus, going on a hayride, picking a pumpkin. But the best part? The driver stopped several times along the hayride to show us different veggies grown on the farm, and even passed veggies around for the kids to touch and examine.

To say I have a child who LOVES vegetables is an understatement. She BEGS for tomatoes for dessert. She picks spinach out of my pasta fagioli soup, leaves the rest, and begs for more. We bribe her with veggie "treats" to get her to eat her meals.

So, imagine her delight when the farmer passed around fresh parsley (she ate an entire bunch), a green pepper (she grabbed it and ate it like an apple), and this "pickle", which she and her BFF actually fought over!

BFF's mom and I were chatting away when we suddenly heard lots of giggles and commotion. We looked to find that they were each eating said "pickle" with reckless abandon, and having the best. time. ever.

I was snapping away with my camera and did not realize until I uploaded my pics that I had captured the best shot ever.

Seriously - this one will forever by the one that makes me stop, laugh hysterically, and remember that day as if it were yesterday. I especially love the stalk of parsley (boy, did she have sweet breath!) held tightly in her little mittened hand!

MH - you never fail to make mommy smile, and in this case, laugh until my belly aches!

The post where I come back after 2 months . . .

. . . and the crazy reason why!

I have been getting comments (which I now realize are spam) for months now in another language.

Somethine potentially Chinese.

Or Japanese.

Or Korean.

I've even tried to translate it. You know, just out of sheer curiosity.

Nothing.

Well now, it's just plain annoying.

If you want to comment on something I wrote 4 months ago, talk to me in a language I understand.

So unfortunately for those of you who read my blog hahahaha, isn't that hilarious since I've written nothing to be read in say, FOREVER! and leave me comment love, I've decided to turn on word verification for a while to see if this will help resolve the issue.

While I'm here, I may as well do a brief update, filled with bits of random:

1) After a week of a cold/virus that seemed like it was getting better, I turned the road into sinus hell yesterday and am now on antibiotics for a raging sinus infection.

2) Said antibiotics are causing extreme nausea because a) I have a weak stomach and b) I can barely muster an appetite to get any food down to eat with these bad boys. I pretty much feel like a truck ran me over, backed up, and did it again.

3) My little Mad Hatter is more endearing and loveable than ever. She is going to be 5 in a little less than THREE MONTHS! I am in complete denial. My baby can not be turning 5.

4) I am now a part-time working mom! This has been a huge adjustment on many levels - one of which being that the last time I had a career, I was not yet a mommy. I also didn't realize or maybe was just in complete denial that agreeing to a part-time job would actually equate to a full-time career that far exceeds the hours I am "supposed" to be working on a weekly basis. I work 3 full days a week and just finished my second month. It's flown and I love most aspects of it - especially the empowerment of that paycheck that gets direct-deposited every other Friday. It feels totally different after not working for 5 years.

5) I have total blog neglect guilt. I have so much to say, so many people's blogs I'd love to be reading and commenting on, and miss all of my bloggy and Twitter friends. But there are only so many hours in the day and this tired Mommy has been a lot more discerning about her lack of free time. I had the respect before, but let me tell you -those of you with more than one child and full-time career - I am now bowing down to you. I don't know WHERE you find the time do deal with your regular life AND blog, comment, and even do giveaways and reviews. You. Amaze. Me.

6) I just got the most amazing tea at Trader Joe's. It's called RENEW and it's an herbal green tea that is both delicious and soothing. I highly recommend it. If I could meet Joe I'd give him a big fat kiss for enhancing and enriching the status of my family's gastric lives.

7) The MH is finally getting the H1N1 vaccination tomorrow - something I never thought I'd actually be excited about, but if I'd been sans brain-crushing headache last night, would have been jumping up and down about when I got the pediatrician's email and scored a spot at the clinic.

8) I really hope that this will be the last of my blog neglect. Now that I'm here visiting my own special space, it's like catching up with an old, missed friend. Blog, you know I haven't meant to neglect you. My life has just taken over. But, my life is what I'm here to document, it's why I started you. So, for now I'll be realistic and set a goal of spending some quality time with you at least once a week.

If I'm doing a proper blog post, I should include a little eye candy for the grandparents, uncle, and anyone else who cares:

My gorgeous little Ariel ready for Halloween

Whose hair I patiently and lovingly worked on for ONE HOUR . . .

The awesome (if I do say so myself) hair clip I made to go with her costume (photo taken on preschool dress-up day) Note to self, the half hour of braiding wet hair the night before schoool was well worth the time and effort because as you'll see in the following shot . . .

THIS is what her hair looked like exactly one hour after I finished my hard work with that curling iron. I lost one hour of my life, nearly lost my temper a couple of times, may or may not have needed a drink by the time I was done . . . but all in all, would not change a thing because the bottom line is this:

It was gorgeous while it lasted, and if you ask me, waves or not - my girl is just plain stunning!

Friends who are loyal and still here reading, I love you and miss you!

And, I guess I should give props where props are due:

Thank you Asian spammers. Thanks for bringing me back.