Top Ten Tuesday: Knitting

My blog has been so quiet lately! I've been taking some time to work on things, so I haven't been online much. Hopefully we'll be in more of a routine soon, and I'll be able to write - I miss it!

For today, I'm participating in Top Ten Tuesday at OhAmanda.com.

Top Ten Things I Want to Knit:

1. Mittens - I have some great self-striping yarn that I would love to use to make mittens for Wendy. I just need to find a pattern or figure it out on my own.

2. New Hat for David - I made him a hat a couple of weeks ago, and I love it, but it is too small. It barely fits him, so I'd like to make the same pattern again and make it bigger.



3. New Hat for Wendy - I don't think Wendy has a warm hat that fits right now, and I need to get working on that!

4. David's Blanket - I started a blanket for David the day we found out he was a boy, and I haven't finished it yet! Other projects have taken over. I really need to get on it & finish it up so that he can use it this winter.

5. An iPod Cozy - I saw this pattern on Ravelry, and I'm pretty sure I could adapt it for my iPod. If you knit - these would probably make good Christmas gifts!

6. Sweater for Wendy - now that I am back in the habit of knitting & have learned some new skills, I'd like to tackle a sweater. I've never made a sweater before, but I think I can do it. All I need is the right yarn & enough time to get it done!

7. Jumper/Dress for Wendy - I have this pattern saved in my queue (I like to use that word whenever possible) on Ravelry, and Steph at Adventures in Babywearing wrote about it last week. I like the fact that the pattern is knit from the top down, so that you can add length as your girl grows - Wendy is growing so fast, it's hard to keep her in dresses that are long enough.

8. Pillow covers - we could really use some pillows for our couch & floor, and I'm sure I could knit something that I would like a lot better than what I've seen in the stores.

9. Socks - I would love to knit a pair of socks! It looks a little complicated, but I think once I finished one, I'd be able to do them pretty quickly.

10. Christmas presents - and since some of the recipients might read my blog, that's all I'm going to say about THAT.

Are you a knitter or crocheter? What's in your list of projects?

Only in My House...

...could someone go to bed & find a dried black-eyed pea centered perfectly by the pillow.

Things I Love Thursday: Ministar

When Wendy was a baby, I spend about half of every day putting socks back on her cold little pudgy feet - until I discovered Ministar baby shoes at Target. They're essentially like Robeez, but much more affordable for the average parent. I got a pair because I had a coupon, not thinking I would even like them, and once I tried them, I was hooked!!

These shoes stay on. They're soft, flexible leather, so they conform to baby's growing foot. Wendy never did figure out how to get them off; the XL size lasted until she was 2 1/2, and she still couldn't get them off.

When we were putting together a baby registry when David was on the way, these shoes were one of the first things we added. They work so well, and keep his feet warm (but not too hot) and keep his socks on.

We started with this pair:
Then, today, I got him a new pair for fall & winter:
I wish they made these boots in my size!

For more Things I Love Thursday, visit The Diaper Diaries!

WFMW: Cleaning Scorched Pans

A few months ago, when we were still adjusting to life with a preschooler and a newborn, I made a mistake. One I wasn't sure I could correct.

I scorched an entire saucepan full of white sauce. Scorched it badly, too - the layer of black on the bottom of the pan was nearly 1/4" thick in spots. (Aside: women who are caring for a newborn and a 3 year old, and running on very little sleep, should not attempt to multi-task when it comes to cooking.)

I soaked. I scrubbed. I soaked more. I Googled. I tried baking soda. Soaking with baking soda. Boiling the baking soda. Mixing the baking soda with vinegar and soaking. Boiling vinegar. All of those methods were successful - if you measure success a few molecules at a time.

I mentioned my problem to my mother, and she said, "Don't you have any oven cleaner?"

"Oven cleaner?" I replied. "I haven't bought oven cleaner in years and years, not since we got our first self-cleaning oven."

She suggested that I give it a try, and it worked WONDERS. Wonders, I tell you. I followed the directions on the can, and it took two applications, but the scorched-on food came right off. The saucepan has never looked better! I have since used the oven cleaner on some cookie sheets, and they look brand new!

Oven cleaner works for me! For more tips and ideas, visit Works-For-Me Wednesday at We Are THAT Family.

Top Ten Tuesday: Read-Aloud Books for 2-3 Year Old

I love books. I love children's books. But when it comes to reading aloud, a book has to meet certain criteria for me.

1. Repetition is great for kids - but not so great for the adult who is reading the same book over and over. One of Wendy's favorite books is "The Little Engine That Could," but reading it more than once a week is enough to drive me insane. Books with a lot of repetition tend to get "lost" in the back of the bookshelf...if you get my drift.

2. I really enjoy reading books out loud that have a rhythmic cadence. They don't have to rhyme, but if they do, that's even better. (I think perhaps I like that style of book because I love to sing.) The #1 book on my list below, The Gruffalo, is my current favorite for just that reason.

3. Sharing stories is one of the best ways to teach children about life - about morals, work ethic, consequences, manners, etc. The books I choose to read with my children are ones that SAY something - not just, "Look at Duck. Look at Duck swim. Quack, Quack, little Duck!"

4. Illustrations are a great way to involve kids in the stories being read. Wendy really pays attention to the illustration, and will ask questions about the things that she sees. Whether they are simple and vibrant, detailed and complex, or colorful and realistic, the illustrations play a key role in my selection of books for my children.

I've listed my top ten favorite read-aloud books for children from 2-3 years old. They fit all of my picky criteria above, and they can all be read in 5 minutes or less. They are the books that I turn to when Wendy asks me to read to her, and they are also the ones that she is most likely to look at and "read" on her own.

1. The Gruffalo


2. My Lucky Day


3. Click, Clack, Moo



4. Ten Apples Up On Top


5. Green Eggs and Ham


6. If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, etc.


7. The Very Hungry Caterpillar


8. The Little Red Caboose


9. Richard Scarry books


10. Sandra Boynton books

Same Recipe, Different Cookies

Exhibit A: Wendy, left, 3 months; David, right, 4 1/2 months

Exhibit B: Wendy, left, 5 months; David, right, 4 1/2 months

I've heard that saying before - "same recipe, different cookies" - referring to the differences between children in the same family. I figured it was true; after all, my brother and I look alike but we have quite different personalities. Now that I am a mother of two, I can personally testify to the truth of that saying!

Wendy and David look a lot alike, as seen in Exhibit A and Exhibit B above. I don't notice their physical similarities most of the time, because I am comparing a 3 year old with an infant. Looking at their baby pictures side-by-side does show their commonalities: big blue eyes, very fair skin, chubby cheeks, and silly smiles.

What pictures don't show is the personality behind both of those silly smiles. Wendy is a perpetual-motion machine. She is constantly moving, climbing, running, jumping, and goofing, and there's usually quite a bit of noise involved in whatever it is she's doing. She is very smart and very inquisitive, which means that nothing in the house is safe.

David, on the other hand, is very relaxed, laid-back, and happy. He is just a little bit behind on his physical development, because he just isn't motivated to do much but look around, chew on his fists, and smile. He has been able to turn over (front to back) since he was 12 weeks old, but he only does it a few times a week. Instead, he'd rather play for awhile on his tummy, pushing up & looking around & talking, and then put his head down & go to sleep. He loves to interact and he loves to smile and laugh - he's such a jolly, content baby that he makes me want to have another right away. (Not really. But he's a very good boy!)

Here's an example of a typical day:

Wendy was "cooking" in her play kitchen last week, busily making some bean-beans and cookies. (That's what she told me, anyway.) I was in the other room, folding laundry. I realized that I was hearing a metal-on-metal sound, and recognized it as the jingle of the big Pampered Chef pizza cutter that is stored in the knife drawer in our kitchen. I went to investigate, and found her standing on a chair in the kitchen, trying to use the pizza cutter blade as a screwdriver for the battery compartment of a V-Smile Pocket that we had been given a few days before. Why was she trying to take it apart? Why was she using a pizza cutter? How did she know where the pizza cutter was stored? How did she not hurt herself? I guess I should be glad she wasn't trying to use one of the steak knives.

And David? He was laying on the floor, contentedly gnawing his fist & watching the ceiling fan.

Things I Love Thursday: FUNtainer

Having a 3 year old is a bit like living in limbo. You're outgrowing toddler clothes, but can't quite shop in the regular kid section. You're almost potty-trained but not without random accidents. The desire to be a "Big Kid" is there, but the ability...well, we're working on it.

Wendy really doesn't need sippy cups any more, especially when we're at home. However, the idea of giving her some kind of cup without a spill-proof lid when we're in the car or out and about is enough to make me want to hug my bottle of OxiClean.

Then I came across this beauty, the Thermos FUNtainer:

This cup is fantastic!! It's basically a 12-oz Thermos with a spill-proof straw that pops up when you open the lid. We only have one, since they're quite a bit more expensive than the typical sippy cup, but it's worked out well for us. I'm impressed with how easy it is to use and to clean.

The insulation is pretty impressive, too. I bought Wendy an apple juice slush at Sonic the other day & put it in this cup. It was still icy 8 hours later, when I took the cup apart to wash it! All of the other "insulated" cups that we have tried haven't worked very well at all, but this Thermos FUNtainer is great!

Wendy's is a Disney Princess design (what else?) but they come in a lot of different designs, for boys and for girls. I'm so glad I bought one - she loves it, we love it, and it works - and I think Santa might bring her another one for Christmas!

Visit Things I Love Thursday at The Diaper Diaries!