Samma's 2nd birthday was last Thursday, so I really wanted to make sure the day was dedicated to her and us as a small little family.
I had DVR'd every part of the SunnySide Up Show in search of her card, but alas all we had was her name running across the bottom of the day's very first segment. Better than nothing, I say!
Our intent was for Sam to open up the presents from us on Thursday night, but I swear the Terrible Twos kicked right in on that day, and the night was spent calming down meltdown after meltdown... we were only able to open one of the 3 presents we had for: The Duplo My First Zoo!
Friday was a better night, and we were finally able to get through the rest of the presents we had for her. I just preferred giving her our gifts ahead of time because I feel it's more special for us that way, and honestly, after the way gift-opening went at the party, I'm glad we did it this way, but more on that in another post.
Sometimes I go overboard buying clothes, and I really love getting Samma a nice complete outfit every special holiday, so I usually take a trip to Gymboree and buy a set, top to bottom. Here's this birthday's ensemble!
I also did a lot of theme-like gift searching this year. Since we were sticking with Blue's Clues I checked high and low for Blue's Clues themed items. As I mentioned in a previous post, I was able to find the invitations, cupcake baking cups, and treat bags, plus the t-shirt that had her name on it! Well, in my super-sleuthing, I came across this lovely item:
Yes, that is a Blue's Clues backpack! And what better to put in a Blue's Clues backpack?
Samma's own Handy Dandy Notebook, that's what! I found it on Etsy, made by KreativeKaleb. I'm just gonna say, Samma's eyes lit up the minute she realized the had her own Handy Dandy Notebook... Chris also had the camcorder rolling, so I'm glad we have it memorialized!
And since Sam was in a better mood Friday night, we had cake!
Leftover Chocolate Hazelnut cake from our anniversary dinner at The Capital Grille, but cake nonetheless!
So that was pretty much her actual birthday rundown. As for her actual party?
Ever since Samma started climbing on the arms of the couches and attempting to jump off for fun, we knew that gymnastics was going to be the ideal past time for her as soon as she was old enough, and luckily our local gym starts taking toddlers at 2 years old, and with her birthday upon us, the time had arrived.
Practicing
Last Saturday was Samma's first day of gymnastics, and I think I was more excited about it than she was. Of course, she was having a day when we went, and I think she was overtired from the night before, so I'm not going to blame her too much, and just chock it up to next week will be better.
I'm glad I called when I did too, for the Saturday class was filling up - and fast! Joan's Olympic Gym has been in Braintree since 1983, and me and everyone else I knew attended at some point in their childhood. The crazy thing about this was that Joan, the owner and still teacher, actually remembered ME when I went in to register Sam... what goes around, my friends.
As Samma was going to be 5 days shy of 2 when the Gym Tots classes started, I had to confirm it was OK for her to sign up for this session. For those who may be curious, the class is $70 for 4-week "terms" plus the $25 yearly registration fee. I'm glad it's broken up into terms because at least we won't be locked into months of torment should Sam really not want to attend. But all was well, and she was still right up there with the rest of them, ready to go!
Of course, taking pictures to document the day was a little harder...here we are trying to take a "before" picture prior to our first gymnastics class.
I had to hold her down to even begin taking a picture...
Reading a book was much more fun than looking at the camera...
... so's climbing on the crib.
Class started at 10am - we arrived around 9:55am and they were already getting ready to go. We started with the parachute, then the kids were split into 3 separate groups, one for floor, one for vault, and then beam/bars. The first lesson they wanted to teach all the kids is that you start with "TA-DA" with your arms in the air before and after all you do. In talking to Joan, she mentioned that the "TA-DA" was the first step in practice and once they got that down, everything would start fallowing after.
We started with the floor, and everyone had to bring their own little mat with them to each station to sit on. With floor they were shown how to tumble, obviously with the help of the teachers.
Mats were then carried over to the vault, where they first were able to jump off just the springboard, then were able to run to the spring board, jump, climb over a rectangular pad, and then jump down to the floor. Samma had absolutely no problem running and jumping.
From the vault, we marched over to the balance beam, which Sam is pretty much a pro at already (see picture above). The teacher just held her hand, and she walked to the end. They also had this little beam that sat on the floor, called a "french fry" that they allowed the kids to play on with the parents' supervision. Samma loved that, too!
From the beams, it was a quick turn-around to the bars, another of Sam's favorites. They had the kids grab onto the bars, tuck their knees in, and swing - 1, 2, 3! - and jump off... all with the teacher assistance, of course.
As the end of the 40 minutes, each kid was given a Star Card, and they were able to pick a sticker for their card. The parents were informed that these were theirs to bring to each class, and that we should put them on the fridge for all to see!
Showing off her Star Card
I was with her the whole time, and the whole time was spent wrangling her to stay with the group (as opposed to running off and playing with the other equipment) as well as sitting on her mat and waiting her turn... the turn-waiting is going to be the thing to work on. Every time someone went, she goes "my turn!" and started to get up to go next, in which I then had to pull her back to her mat and remind her no, she had to wait her turn.
Samma is not impressed.
One of the things I applauded Joan for was coming to the groups and reminding us parents that this was all about participation, not where or not they do something right. I could see a few parents around us who were getting frustrated because their child was running around, or not doing as the teacher asked them - when they're this young, can you really expect them to follow every direction? But she reminded us it will be better with time, and just remember to praise them for all they're doing.
Honestly, I'm excited that Sam has something to do now and an outlet for her energy, even if it is one day a week. I think it's really worth the time and money, and I'm looking forward to bringing her on Saturdays for as long as she wants to go.
Two years ago today our lives changed changed forever, and now I don't know what we would ever do without her. Happy Birthday, Samantha! You make every day a new adventure - we are so proud of you and all you have already accomplished! You are so smart, beautiful, fun, energetic.... so special to every life you touch. Continue to be the amazing little you you've become, today and every day. ♥
My friend Ames sent me this blog post from The Maternal Lens, which then directed me to the original article here. Though not as talented or ambitious as The Maternal Lense, I thought the "19 Things We Should Say to Children" was fantastic (even for a Christian website!), and I wanted to post it here to share as well as keep for later.
19 Things we should say to Children
1. I love you! There is nothing that will make me stop loving you. Nothing you could do or say or think will ever change that.
2. You are amazing! I look at you with wonder! Not just at what you can do, but who you are. There is no one like you. No one!
3. It’s all right to cry. People cry for all kinds of reasons: when they are hurt, sad, glad, or worried; when they are angry, afraid, or lonely. Big people cry too. I do.
4. You’ve made a mistake. That was wrong. People make mistakes. I do. Is it something we can fix? What can we do? It’s all over. You can start fresh. I know you are sorry. I forgive you.
5. You did the right thing. That was scary or hard. Even though it wasn’t easy, you did it. I am proud of you; you should be too.
6. I’m sorry. Forgive me. I made a mistake.
7. You can change your mind. It’s good to decide, but it is also fine to change.
8. What a great idea! You were really thinking! How did you come up with that? Tell me more. Your mind is clever!
9. That was kind. You did something helpful and thoughtful for that person. That must make you feel good inside. Thank you!
10. I have a surprise for you. It’s not your birthday. It’s for no reason at all. Just a surprise, a little one, but a surprise.
11. I can wait. We have time. You don’t have to hurry this time.
12. What would you like to do? It’s your turn to pick. You have great ideas. It’s important to follow your special interests.
13. Tell me about it. I’d like to hear more. And then what happened? I’ll listen.
14. I’m right here. I won’t leave without saying good-bye. I am watching you. I am listening to you.
15. Please and Thank You. These are important words. If I forget to use them, will you remind me?
16. I missed you. I think about you when we are not together!
17. Just try. A little bit. One taste, one step. You might like it. Let’s see. I’ll help you if you need it. I think you can do it.
18. I’ll help you. I heard you call me, here I am. How can I help you? If we both work together, we can get this done. I know you can do it by yourself, but I’m glad to help since you asked.
19. What do you wish for? Even if it’s not yet time for birthday candles and we don’t have a wishbone, it’s still fun to hear about what you wish for, hope for, and dream about.
... Samma asked the nurse while we visited the pediatrician on a Sunday thanks to a flare up of the hives we've been finding on her body off and on for the last week.
The one thing I can say about my daughter -- even when she's feeling off, she still has the best disposition.
The story goes we had been monitoring a breakout / rash that's been spontaneously showing up on her arms, legs, belly, back, face... yeah, you get the point. It would come out as hives, mostly at night, and she would scratch them. She even got her face so bad one day that it started bleeding. =(
We hadn't given her anything new to eat, and we weren't using anything new that would be in contact with her skin, so the origins were unknown to us. Chris had a minor skin reaction to something in our yard the previous weekend but he had been very cautious about coming in contact with her while it was irritating him, and the hives weren't anything like the rash he had.
Chris finally brought her to the pediatrician's office on Wednesday because her face was looking bad and puffy... but unfortunately without seeing the actual hives the doctor didn't have much to go on. They took a strep test - it came back negative, so at least we knew it wasn't anything too serious. She told us to just keep the face dry and moisturized, much like her regimen for eczema, and keep an eye on it should the hives surface again.
Sure enough, Sunday afternoon as soon as she woke up from her nap, Chris noticed them on her face and arm. Of course, at this point it was about 2:15pm in the afternoon, and the office closed at 3pm on Sundays (have I ever mentioned how much I love our pediatrician's office for this????) but I called, they asked how close we were, and said if we came RIGHT NOW we could be seen. Poor Samma was in the middle of eating her lunch, but I scooped her up and hopped in the car.
The hives at this point had started spreading to her stomach, and the poor thing couldn't help but itch. The good news it that the doctor was finally able to see what we were seeing and deducted it was viral... luckily the strep test came back negative again, and she advised Benadryl every 6 hours for the next 3-4 days (we're on day 3 of it now). She also prescribed an antibiotic ointment for where she scratched her face to bleeding, and that's 3 times a day until it goes away.
In addition, we were told not to give her anything new -- sorry Samma, no peanut butter & banana sammich for your birthday -- and to monitor if/when the hives came back. If they do come back over 3-4 weeks, we're supposed to let them know and then we'll have to see an allergist for further testing. I'm crossing my fingers it doesn't have to get to that.
And when all was said and done, she still got her popsicle.
Last weekend we decided it was time to get Samma's hair trimmed for the first time. It was a debate for a while - I didn't want to do it, then when I finally decided it needed to get done, Chris was uncertain it needed to be done. This went back and for for a little bit, and there was even the off-chance that I would cut her hair myself. Eventually, I made the call, and decided to bring her to Snip-Its in Hingham.
The shop is obviously catered to toddlers and children, so I felt comfortable in knowing that the stylist would know how to work with a nosy toddler like Sam. The downside was that they don't accept appointments, and when we walked-in on a Sunday afternoon there was a 90-minute wait. At the time, this was OK because there were plenty of other places to walk to and things to see while we waited, but if it was any other time I'm not sure it would have been as convenient.
I will say, when it was close to our appointment, they took us right away. We strapped Samma into the chair, turned on a video for her to watch, and the stylist (I believe her name was Sarah) started spritzing away.
The only issue we came across had nothing to do with Sam - it was all of the other children who where there, and I'm assuming they were getting their first hair cuts as well, for the screams and cries we were hearing could only mean just that. And Samantha, being the concerned little girl she is, was very busy paying attention to them rather than keeping her head straight for the stylist to cut her hair. For a while, I was even starting to think she was going to cry because everyone else around her was, but we quickly nipped it in the bud with a lollipop. Once she had something to nom on, it was smooth sailing from there.... not the most ideal distraction, but it worked, and when there are scissors near my daughter, I'll be happy to do whatever it takes to keep her still.
So, without further ado, I give you.... Samma's first haircut! (Chris was much better at taking photos of her than I was... I think I was too preoccupied making sure the stylist didn't cut too much off!)
Getting ready!
Lollipop distractions
All done!
She pinned her hair back with a bobby pin that has "Snip-Its" written on it. Adorable, but unnecessary product placement.
We also received a little certificate that had her name, the date, and a little sealed baggie of some of her hair clippings. You may call it gross, but the mommy in me was happy to have the memento. I'll probably put it in a shadowbox with the aforesaid Snip-Its ribbon and call it a day.
Once Sam was able to get out of the seat, they brought her over to a prize machine where she got to put in this large credit card-type object and then reach in and grab her prize for being so good. She came out with a little squeeze seahorse, and she was OK with this.
When all was said and done, we paid $18.99 plus tip - I had Samma give it to Sarah and say thank you because I thought it was cute. A little pricey, but like I said it wasn't something I was ready to do myself, so I was fine with it.
Long story short, we were extremely happy with the experience, Sam's hair came out fine like we wanted it, and I definitely plan on going back for future trims.
Signed, sealed, and delivered -- Samma's card is finally up on Sprout's website, and one week before her birthday, just like they said it would be! Now I have to remember to record the SunnySide Up Show on September 20th to see if her card made it on TV!
That screen shot of the card there makes it look like it got a little beaten up in transit... I hope the rest of it's OK.
But yeah, I'm way too excited about all this... I'm just thinking about how awesome it would be for Sam to see herself on TV and watch them wish her a happy day. ♥_♥
With Samma's party a little over a week away, there's going to be a lot of planning going on, so it might be a good time to get this party started... literally and figuratively! Here are the basics:
The Date: Saturday, September 22, 2011
The Place: Our house
The Time: 2pm
The Theme: Blue's Clues! And thanks to VistaPrint for actually having a Blue's Clues invitation template!
The Menu: Chris wants to keep it simple this year, so I think we're going to have burgers and dogs and other kid-friendly items.
The Cake: Nikki and I are going to make cupcakes again, but I think that's what we're going to go with instead of an actual cake. I'm thinking chocolate with vanilla frosting, and then we're going to pipe Blue's Clues paw prints on the top with blue frosting. And you'll never believe it, but I was able to find Blue's Clues baking cups on eBay!
The Presents:Samma's WishList - been working on the same one since last year!
The Ensemble: In sticking with the Blue's Clues theme, I bought Samma a tshirt from VistaPrint:
I also have a shirt I bought her from Old Navy that I was planning on having her wear to her 2yo pictures this coming weekend - should she need a costume change throughout the day (which is possible) she may also wear that.
The Guest List: The invitation have been made, sent, and RSVPs are due in by this Saturday, September 15th. Unfortunately, we have to trim the guest list back majorly from last year because there's just no way we could entertain 50-60 people every year, and that's not even included any kids who Samma may want to invite. So this year we've invited our immediate families, my two grandmothers, our close friends with children, and Samma's daycare friends. The numbers totaled 35 plus the parents of the daycare kids, which seems to be much more doable when there are going to be toddlers running around.
The main thing I need to focus on now is buying the party supplies and making up the goodie bags for the kids. For party supplies I'm probably just going to get blue and purpose balloons, steamers, plates, cups, and napkins. As for the goodie bags, I was able to find cellophane bags on eBay in... you guessed it... a Blue's Clues theme!
I'm thinking I'll stuff them with toddler smoothies, Motts fruit snacks, beads, bubbles, stickers, and maybe a little toy if I can find it. Of course, this is all depending on how big these bags actually are when I get them.
As for what we're getting her, I think we have that covered, but I'll get into it when I do another post for her actual birthday -- can't give away all the surprises at once, can we?? ;)
This might be TMI for some, if not most, but I'm a proud mama right now, so I'm about to shout it from the rooftops -- you've been warned.
SAMANTHA USED THE POTTY!!!!
(Yes, this is the exact picture I texted to Chris, that's how excited I was. )
I'll be the first to admit, I didn't think I would be writing this post, like this, so soon... in fact, I had a completely different potty post laid out, but I almost feel like it might be moot to proceed as I was intending, but we will see.
I will take it back a little bit and explain a little about how we got to this point.
A month or so ago - maybe two, since it really happened while we were on vacation in July - Samma was almost shy and wanting privacy while she was pooping (I told you this was going to be TMI), so much so that she started standing in the corner while she was going so that we weren't so much around to bother her. Now, she would let us know when she had gone in the past, but the corner thing was a completely new thing to us, so we figured it was going to be time sooner than later.
I had also started to bring her into the bathroom with me when I had to go, and explained it to her as best as I could so that she could understand it on a toddler level. Soon enough, she was asking for her own potty... and who am I to deny my daughter anything??!
After some searching and review-reading on Amazon.com, I came upon this:
I figured a 4.5/5 star rating with 597 reviews has to stand for something, right? And I asked Samma what color she wanted, and she specifically asked for pink, so pink she received.
I also wanted to get her a potty book so that she would have something to "read" while she was on the potty... again, I turned to Amazon and found this one:
Again, 4.5/5 stars with 137 reviews definitely got my attention with this one. The book itself, is pretty fantastic -- it's easy to read with her, and the pictures are gentle while at the same time able to convey the... event, I guess, of using the potty. Samma loves reading this book with us, and there are times when she seems to be reading the book at us instead of vice versa. This definitely gets my thumbs-up as a decent way to teach a 2-year-old about the bathroom.
So once the potty was received, Samma loved that it was hers, and every time I brought her in with me, she had to sit in her potty too. Full dressed, mind you, but it was HER "pink potty" and Mamma's "big potty."
There were a couple of times when she specifically asked to go up stairs and use the potty, so I would bring her up, strip her, and sit her down while she tried to go. I would give her a good 5-10 minutes each time, but alas, to no avail. It's OK, I told her... it's OK to try, and we'll keep trying. I mean, she's not even 2 yet... I'm going to let her set the pace for this - there's no rush.
The other thing we started doing, within the last week or so, was sitting her down on the potty before she took a bath, and up until tonight we didn't get anything out of her. Now tonight, I stripped her down, and asked her if she wanted to try the potty before we got in the tub, she said yes, and sat right down. I told her if she felt like she needed to pee, to go ahead and do it..... and sure enough, she did! I was in shock, I think I scared her... but I got down and hugged and kissed her, and told her how good of a job she did, and I think she understood. I continued to applaud her while she was in the tub, and she would smile at me saying "I used the potty!" And that's where the picture above that I sent to Chris came in.
So where do we go from here? Your guess is as good as mine. This is one thing I definitely have no experience with, and even less knowledge about, so just like everything else, it's going to need come research. I've received a couple of good emails from various parenting websites, like this Potty Training 101 from Parents.com, plus I've been flipping through What to Expect - The Toddler Years for some insight as well. At this point, however, I don't think I'm going to change any of what we've been doing, at least not much anyway. I may try to schedule some "potty time" like first thing in the morning and before getting ready for bed, to give her a little more chance to practice... but again, she's still not 2 yet, and I'm looking forward to discussing this with Sam's pediatrician when that appointment comes in the next couple of weeks.
As of today, anonymous posting will no longer be allowed / tolerated when commenting on this blog.
Honestly, I didn't think it would be an issue, so I never thought to turn it off.
Apparently, someone decided it was necessary to respond as such on my I'm Mom Enough post from the end of May, and it wasn't until I was revamping the blog this past weekend that I came upon this lovely gem.
I'm not going to delete it - no, I plan on leaving this comment there for all to see. Who am I to deny someone the right to their opinions?
But I will say this -- anyone who feels the need to defend themselves anonymously clearly feels insecure in their own life decisions. I hope this individual finds the strength they need to carry on, and no longer feels the need to be shrouded in mystery.
So that's the end of it. Nothing more to see here. Moving on...
... and I say that with my most heartfelt condolences. For as of today, I am back to working Mondays.
Some may say this is a First World Problem, but when you haven't been doing it since January of 2011, it's a little world-rocking.
Long story short, a daycare slot opened up for Sam, we jumped on it, so I'm back to 40 hours/week. Not to mention, it was getting hard to keep her entertained - she didn't enjoy running errands with me like she used to - and I know she has a better time running around with her daycare friends than hanging out with me anyway. Most of the time.
So work was on board, quite enthusiastically actually, and the rest is history.
This isn't to say I'm 100% happy with this decision. Sure, it was mine to make, but I was quite emotional throughout the day, finding myself missing my Samma time, and questioning my decision to let her go. Honestly, it felt like it was the first day at school.
But I know in the long run it's for the best, and I don't necessarily have to be doing it forever. Especially if BabyBaby² plans pan out in the next year or so.
So it may have casually been mentioned before, but Samma somewhat enjoys Sprout.
For those who are unaware, Sprout is a 24/7 toddler/preschool TV channel, "home to trusted favorites like Sesame Street and Barney & Friends, plus innovative Sprout Originals such as The Sunny Side Up Show and The Good Night Show. From morning to night, parents and kids can share everything from singing and dancing to birthday wishes and bedtime stories." -- yup, totally got lazy and swiped that from the website.
I know there are some people who don't get Sprout - we're very fortunate that Verizon FiOS happily carries it. The good news is that Sprout is going to start hosting NBC's Saturday morning line-up, and I know a bunch of their shows are going to be showcased, so finally there will be Sprout for everyone!
Sam has been watching Sprout since she has been able to sit up on her own and have something grasp her attention. The channel is wonderful as it's programming is in 10-15 minute snipits, just long enough to hold a toddler's attention and then move onto something new just as they could possibly be losing it. Shows such as Caillou, Pajanimals, Poppy Cat, and Super Why played alongside the likes of The Wiggles, Thomas, Barney, and Sesame Street, it brings the old and new together and creates a fantastic balance of children's programming.
Now, the previously mentioned Sunny Side Up Show is live with a different human host along side Samma's favorite chicken puppet, Chica! They have this thing where a couple of times every day, they celebrate birthdays, be it with handmade cards sent in by parents, or online well-wishes with uploaded photos. Names are also scrolled along the bottom of the screen, listing the "Sproutlets" who have birthdays on that particular day. And they all sing the same birthday song, which goes a little something like this:
Happy happy birthday to you!
Happy happy birthday to you!
You're good to grow
So count the candles and blow!
Happy happy birthday to you,
To you,
To you!
Anyway, I didn't have it in me to send a card in for her first birthday (honestly, I think they request that it be for kids older than 2 years old anyway) so I promised myself I would send one in when she turned 2.... and yeah, that came up a lot sooner than I was expecting. I think it was one day a week or so ago I was watching Sprout with Sam and they mentioned a reminder to send in your September birthday cards. Yup... I was at Michael's the very next day.
There are specifications for sending in a card - I made sure to follow them as well as I could to up the chances of Sam's card getting on TV... and even if it doesn't, it'll still be scanned and displayed on Sprout's website the day of, so at least that will be special, too.
Anyway, they said to avoid white, pink, or orange paper as it doesn't show up well on TV - check! They also said to make sure you use only Sprout TV show characters..... duh. Third, I needed to complete and sign an entrant release form to allow them to show the card - done and done! And then, it was go time!
Now, I will be the first to tell you that arts and crafts are no longer my forte, but with a margarita in hand, I had my fun. I had bought the yellow cardboard, as well as black and green because I wasn't sure which one the blue sparkley letters would work on the best... Chris helped me decide, so thank you for that, sir! Also, I had to buy 3 packages of those damn letters just to get the card to read what I wanted it to say... the upside to this was that I figured out they were adhesive once I started to lay them down, so it did make my job a helluva lot easier!
As for the pictures, I used Google and a fantastic color printer... we'll just leave it at that. I picked a picture from each of Sam's favorite shows - The Wiggles, Caillou, Sesame Street, Super Why, The Good Night Show, Poppy Cat, Chica, and The Pajanimals. I will say, the printer I used was so awesome, it even made pictures from Facebook look good.
The card itself took me two nights to finish - I wanted to make sure Sam was in bed before I pulled everything out. From printing to cutting and pasting, I now give you the finished product:
Amongst the pictures, there's a little blurb from Chris and I that reads:
Happy Birthday, Samma!
We love you to the moon and back! You make every day an exciting new adventure, and we wouldn't have it any other way! We hope you have a very happy happy 2nd birthday!!
Love, Mamma and Dadda
Yes.... I am probably way too excited about this card. But now that the card was done, the hard part was figuring out how to mail a half piece of cardboard-sized card all the way to Pennsylvania... but alas, I had thought of this as well.
I decided to take a standard 3M 12" x 12" x 6" mailing box and instead of folding it to make it all box-like, I kept it flat and taped up both ends so it was more of a cardboard envelope. It actually worked out just as well, if not better than I intended... now I just need to get it to the post office, beg them not to fold or bend it, and make sure I get a delivery confirmation number on that bad boy!
But by now you must be asking yourself - wait MB... Samma's birthday isn't for a couple of weeks, right? RIGHT, but another of the requests was that you send the cards in about 2 weeks before the actual birthday, and if my calculations are correct, the two week mark would be this coming Thursday, so go me! I'm actually ahead of the game!
So there you have it -- the card goes in the mail tomorrow, and now all of you must watch Sprout on September 20th and look for Samma's card. I myself will be setting the DVR up for each every Birthday portion of the Sunny Side Up Show between 9am and 12pm, hoping and praying that at least Samma's name scrolls across the screen -- fingers crossed!
EDIT - 9/5/2012: The card is in the mail! I went to the post office first thing this morning and sent it out Priority, so it should be there by Saturday at the latest. I also tacked on Delivery Confirmation like I said I would, so $6.40 later I'm hoping my ridiculous efforts haven't been in vain...
I don't know why it's taken me this long to write a post about being a mother with a stroller, but something that occurred during this past Monday's trip to the outlets with Samantha really got under my skin, so please pardon my forthcoming rant.
Now, we own a couple of strollers, each with a different purpose.
We have our Graco stroller from the travel system we received when Sam was born. It's somewhat bulkier, sturdier, and larger than the others, but it's comfortable for her, has storage room for me, and pretty easy to maneuver. This is my usual go-to stroller for errands, and always lives in my car.
Then we have a Babies R Us umbrella stroller - this is much lighter and smaller than the Graco stroller, but at the same time has not storage and it's not the easiest thing to control. Retailing at $20.00, we actually got this one free from friends who received it as a promo for buying something else, and they had no use for it at the time. It's not my ideal mode of transportation for Sam, but it does come in handy when we're going on trips and want to save packing room. This one lives in Chris' car.
And there's this Baby Trend Expedition jogging stroller I REALLY wanted when we were registering because I had this crazy idea that I was going to take up running once I had Sam to get back into shape, and the best way to do that was to get me a stroller to run with. Clearly. Go ahead - ask me how many times I've used this stroller, let alone run with it. I don't think it would go beyond one hand. If anything, it's been used more as an emergency backup whenever the Graco was left in Chris' car when I needed it while he was at work. Sidenote: If anyone is looking for a jogging stroller, we may be looking to sell this in the near future. Let me know if you're interested!
Anyway, since my Mondays with Samma are soon coming to an end (we'll get to that later) I decided it was time to take a trip down to the Wrentham Outlets while we still had the time to do it. Packing Sam up wasn't a problem, especially as she slept most of the way down and back, and traffic wasn't even an issue at 10am in the morning, and I was able to grab my usual parking spot, so I was in pretty good spirits when we started.
Three hours later, however, it was a totally different story, and I was pretty much ready to punch anyone who got in the way of me, Sam, her stroller, or my car.
For one, you would think a store that caters to children and newborns would have accessible aisles large enough for strollers within their store, but you would be amazed. Stores such as Carter's, Gymboree, and StrideRite were so cramped and crowded and awkward with product overflowing from their shelves and endcaps that I was lucky to even get the chance to look at anything while I was there. Not going to lie, it was a serious turn off, and yet a blessing in disguise, because it definitely was a factor in the amount I didn't spend while we were there.
Second, and this may be more for me than anyone else, but I know for a fact that I will never purchase a double-wide stroller for whenever BabyBaby² comes along. Those things are massive and you thought I was having a hard time walking through those stores with my single Graco... there was this woman in front of me at StrideRite who was not having an easy time, and she was getting pissed off at everyone else around her because THEY were in HER way while she was trying to get her massive stroller around a corner. There was even one instance where she was so aggravated she more or less plowed her stroller on through, creating a pile of shoeboxes in her wake, leaving me behind her to clean them up without even looking pack.
Finally, and this is the one that made me the most angry, was the lack of courtesy from those around me. I couldn't tell you how many times someone in front of me didn't bother to look behind them as they walked into a store, or how often someone came up behind me, saw I was struggling to get the door open with one hand, and just stood there, waiting for me to get the door for them. This infuriated me to no extent.
Now, I'm not saying that because I have the stroller, there's a sense of entitlement for the world to hold the door for me, but at the same time there's also a level of expected common courtesy. Or maybe it's a Mom thing... a couple of times there were individuals who not only helped me out, but made off-handed comments about those who didn't, so you could tell there was almost a camaraderie there amongst the moms that knew what you were going through.
So there's my little rant. Not much, just some food for thought.
So to all of you out there who don't think we notice when you let a door slam behind you... oh yes, we do.
And to all of those who go that extra step to help a mom out, that, too, is noticed. And appreciated. So thank you.
