My Geek Baby

Anyone who watched the Yo Gabba Gabba episode with the refrain “Try it, You’ll like It” or read Dr. Seuss’ Green Eggs and Ham knows that there are a lot of picky eaters out there. Indie, once the Wonder Eater, has become a bit more selective about what she’s willing to try. She’s not interested in mashed potatoes, for instance, and this seems like the one thing every kid eats. But she loves her strawberries, blueberries, carrots and corn, so I’m not too worried about her nutrition. She’s getting lots of good stuff. But I was intrigued by this cookbook written by Jessica Seinfeld.

This book has some great recipes! I’m thinking that it’s less about hiding veggies but consciously incorporating good stuff into the comfort foods I love so much. I love potato soup but am doubtful that there’s a lot of great nutrition in that meal. However, add some carrot and cauliflower puree to this soup and voila! Same goes for homemade macaroni and cheese, a house favorite with the adults but again Indie is lukewarm on it anyway so I might as well “health it up” while she’s still figuring out what food should taste like. She’s not a big meat eater so I give her fake chicken nuggets and soy hot dogs and she eats them up. So I kind of think that because there are so many varieties of packaged food and lots of recpes to make your own, she won’t necessarily think there’s only one way mac n cheese should taste. But then…on the flip side…

It’s possible I’ve contributed to her picky eating or food snobbery. I bought some cheese sticks from Target that were different from her usual brand. When we got home I gave her one and I also wanted a snack and opened up my Cracker Barrel sharp cheddar to have with crackers. The next thing I know she is throwing her cheese stick on the floor and asking for a piece of the cheese I was eating. So now she’s a cheese snob. Boy, elementary school lunchtime is going to be a lot of fun! I’ll just have to pack her Grey Poupon in her backpack and call it a day. Maybe it comes in fun size!?

I’ll circle back to Deceptively Delicious after I’ve tried a few recipes. We’re about to get socked with another snow storm so it’s likely that I’ll make both of these dishes this weekend. Stay tuned.

As a journalist in search of balance, I’d be remiss if I didn’t address the claim that Jessica borrowed (without crediting) her ideas from the author of The Sneaky Chef. The outcome of the court case was that neither copyright nor trademark law was broken. It’s very coincidental that the two books came out around the same time and have similar themes and recipes. I suspect neither author is the true “first” on this one; I”m pretty sure moms across the world have been sneaking carrot puree into batches of brownies since the invention of fire.

I didn’t think I’d write about the Pavlik harness Indie wore for several months, but now that her hips are in good shape I think it might be useful for other parents.

On day one in the hospital her pediatrician diagnosed her with hip dysplasia and wanted us to triple diaper her so her hip didn’t come loose from the socket. We were told to get to an orthopedic specialist immediately. I had never heard of this condition except in dogs. My friend’s beautiful white Great Pyranees had this condition and walked on three legs (and quite well, actually).

So I panicked. Does this mean my new daughter won’t crawl, won’t have two legs of the same length, WON”T WALK? Egads. She was barely in this new world and already I was preparing for the worst. (this is very much like me).

Also, I was recovering from a c-section, so going from one hospital in a wheel chair to walking through the halls of a children’s hospital, in jake’s slippers because I was still full of IV fluid and my shoes didn’t fit, foggy from all the pain meds, and terrified that someone might BREATHE near my newborn was enough to send me sailing clear off the edge. Because it’s a children’s hospital I saw clowns walk by the door of the room I was holed-up in away from the germy BREATHERS, but was afraid one might pop his head in and I would have FREAKED and possibly PUNCHED A CLOWN. I’m not a fan of clowns anyway but especially on that day…

But fast-forward to meeting the good doctor who prescribed the Pavlik harness and the orthopedic doc who we visited for many months to see how Indie was improving. Greatly! Yes, it was a hassle because this device had to be worn 23 hours per day and kept her in what I call a “cowboy stance”. Ok fine, she wasn’t crawling yet anyway. And by the time she WAS crawling, the harness was almost a faint memory.

Last week we had a final xray of her hips and they are growing beautifully. She had been walking since 11 months and now at 2 years is quite the runner. Without the harness, she could have grown up fine but may have had very early arthritis in the hips, possibly requiring surgery. Because we kept that thing on day and night and she grew normally, this is not something we need to worry about anymore.

Also, our usually energetic doctor was yawning through our visit. He’d just returned from Haiti and spent a week in surgery after surgery putting people back together. His story REALLY put this whole experience into perspective. Yes, we were freaked out for a few months and had lots of follow up visits, but nothing compares to what’s going on in Haiti. For this whole experience I’m again grateful for the reminder: keep it in perspective…

I’m not entirely sure Indie knows what her birthday is but we started celebrating at 6:48AM on the morning of her big day by having a dance party in the living room to the Beatles’ “Birthday” song. I said, “Happy Birthday, Indie,” to which she replied, “Happy Birthday, Mom” as if it were a pleasant holiday greeting like “Merry Christmas.”

I tried not to stress internally as I observed her twirling around in her new dress and sparkly shoes on the day of her party that she’s growing up so fast but it does seem like she’s growing up rather quickly.

I mostly observe this in the way she talks. We were sitting at the table and I told her to do something, I can’t even remember what, something innocuous, like “Please take your head off the table, you’re getting milk in your hair,” and she replied, “I don’t think so, Mom, I don’t think so.” It made me laugh inside and think she had fast-forwarded to turning 12, not 2; that was startling.

But then she does things that remind me she still is 2 like fighting to put her coat on to go outside and five seconds later diving into the same coat because she’s now excited about going outside or for a ride in the car.

For this birthday, I got a few Sesame Street decorations and tried my hand at crafty Elmo cupcakes.

I think they were a hit with the party-goers, especially this one.

After Pin the Nose on Elmo and a Sesame Street pinata rained down candy and tiny dinosaurs and flower-shaped erasers, Indie gave her dad some video direction.

Boy, she is growing up, so so fast.

Aah, the magical quality of snow…

It drapes the trees that have lost all their leaves, covers last season’s hibernating plants, and creates an ethereal atmosphere.

The rumor of snow that takes me back to elementary school days when I wished for a Snow Day! We didn’t have a ton of snow where I grew up so every time it snows, as an adult, I anticipate it and enjoy it as much as the neighborhood kids.

Indira was in awe of the snow. It started coming down after she went to sleep so she was amazed to see it when she awoke on Saturday. “That’s a lot of snow!” she said, and then, “Yucky!” which seemed odd. Later on, when I mentioned snow boots and snow pants she was so excited to try them on and go outside. Once outside however, she wasn’t a big fan of the cold snow but we tried the sled a few times before we started to feel like Frosty.

The next day, the snow seemed slightly less intimidating. Nearly two feet of snow created a wonderland I only imagine in December. We started to clean off our cars and put the little one right to work.

I didn’t think we’d start talking about the meaning of holidays with our toddler before she could well, hold a conversation, but the week of Thanksgiving, our little one came home with two hats, a pilgrim hat and an Native American hat. When I called her my indian princess she said, “No I not innian princess, I’m Indie Sue” and she thinks the other hat is her pirate hat. So that was really the end of the conversation about the Thanksgiving holiday. We’ll get into all the history of this holiday next year.

It’s important that we create a family tradition to let our friends and families know we’re thankful and why. I’m thankful for Jake. He gets up in the middle of the night with Indie, among many other thankless tasks. I’m thankful for my parents who remind me not to sweat the small stuff. I’m thankful for my sister who always has a funny story at the ready, or nowadays, a picture. I’m thankful for my brothers, who taught me to stand up for myself and to throw a proper punch. My friends, both old and new, who let me be who I am, and just roll their eyes while I go on a tangent about my rant of the day. And for my daughter, who has changed my perspective 100% and taught me to laugh and laugh and then try not to laugh (when she’s doing something bad and I should be serious). Many Thanks!

Indie started calling us “Guys” recently. We’re having dinner and I tell her that the carrots on her plate look deslish. “I know, guys!” she said. What? Guys? We were Mama and Papa for a few months, which morphed into MaPa and sometimes Pommy, now we’re just guys.

Not knowing how quickly she’d pick up language, we started with sign language but by the time we all got the hang of it, she was saying the word “More” when and signaling when she wants more, so there’s no mistaking it. Now we’re in translation phase, and even sometimes I’m not sure what she’s saying.

We were topping dinner with shredded cheese one day and she started calling it “burgers” and we couldn’t figure it out. But last week when she said “I have burgers I need a nakin” I realized that she needed a tissue. Nakin=napkin in our house. Oh! I can only guess that someone at daycare was calling cheese boogers and they probably fell on the floor laughing as kids are prone to do when they think they made a naughty joke.

A friend at work remembered her early elementary school bus days when the kids were daring each other to say bad words and she said, “I know what the F word is!” And they gathered around and she whispered, “Fart” with pride that she knew something they didn’t. But of course, the kids erupted into laughter…at her.

Happy Anniversary Sesame Street! I’m now enjoying the show (that I watched as a kiddo) with my little girl. The show has changed over the years, added new characters, but the educational messages remain the foundation. Even with all the competing shows–we do love Yo Gabba Gabba and Jack’s Big Music Show–Sesame Street still stands out as one of the best children’s programs. No surprise that Indie’s favorite character is Elmo but I have a special place in my heart for Kermit.

Today there’s a whole website, Sesame Workshop, dedicated to all things related to those lovable monsters. Check it out!

All the baby’s tiny socks are matched and put away neatly

You might have a toddler if…

Mismatched Elmo socks also double at mittens that she wears around the house

You might be a new parent if…
You made sure the baby ate a variety of fruits and veggies daily

You might have a toddler if…
Shredded cheese is considered a side dish

You might be a new parent if…

You make smoothies in the bathroom with the door closed so not to wake the napping baby

You might have a toddler if…

You hide in the same bathroom nearly two years later to drown out whining with the hair dryer on full blast and start thinking of repackaging and selling it on Amazon as the WhineBlaster 3000

Getting Indie ready for her second Halloween brought back memories of great costumes I had growing up. One year my mom sewed a shark costume I was so proud of. We went Trick or Treating in those days and I also attended our church’s Halloween alternative, Harvest Party, but in both scenarios there were costumes and candy so it’s pretty much a win-win. In fact, I won Best Costume that year of the Shark, even though a few people mistook it for a nun. Another time, when I was too old to Trick or Treat, three friends and I dressed as the Fruit of the Loom guys. I was the green grapes, covered in green balloons. This is a picture I must dig up.

Readers may remember our little prisoner of ‘08, who stayed home and helped entertain trick or treaters, but this year we went out for the fun of going door-to-door. The neighborhood had a face-painting party outside, although Indie wouldn’t let the painters near her, and Jake ended up with an orange butterfly painted on his hand. We visited a few of the neighbors houses but Indie did some knocking and then running away scared of the people who answered the door. So, her fear of strangers is fully intact, that’s good. And she’s not eating much of the candy anyway.

Here’s our butterfly ballerina…

More things Indie is saying:

Finish coffee..
Finish coffee, Mister Papa!
Get off couch.
Dance with me!
That’s Mine!
Come on running.
Tickle Tickle Mommy Sue
(in response to Tickle Tickle Indie Sue)

Words she can’t quite say but sure sounds cute trying:

Coconut sounds like “Cookie Butt”
Cracker sounds like “Quacker”
Flip Flops sound like “Fwip Fwops”

She’s also started addressing us as a single unit, MaPa.