Easter, Standing, and Tooth!

Yesterday was Easter and I'm not going to lie, it was not the best Easter ever. Mr. Mustard had to work and I was home by myself with the kids. I had planned to go to a church in our new neighborhood in the morning, but Paprika slept in late and I was worried she was coming down with something, so I didn't want to get her up- and of course, I wasn't going to take her to a new church (or any church for that matter) and have her around other kids if she was feeling sick.

We had planned on doing an egg hunt and baskets before Mr. Mustard went to work- but then Paprika slept in late, and again...I didn't want to wake her, so we skipped that.

By the time she woke up, she was feeling fine...but church was done and Mr. Mustard was at work. Paprika wanted to know if the Easter bunny had left her eggs to find in the backyard. I had to tell her that the Easter Bunny wasn't coming until Wednesday (Mr. Mustard's day off)- because I didn't want to do the egg hunt and baskets without him there.

I felt like the worst mommy ever. I know, I know...she won't know the difference between Easter Sunday and this Wednesday, but still I felt pretty bad about it.



Ginger was being fussy, and she's into everything...and I was just feeling overwhelmed. Sometimes it's just a lot to handle with family so far away. I did get to talk with my mom's side of the family in Indiana on the phone- they had a big Easter lunch, and it was so great and refreshing to chat with them.

Everyone in my neighborhood was having their extended families over for Easter, and I could smell their barbeques going in the backyard, and hear them laughing...and there I was wiping butts and averting disaster by myself all day long. I am embarrassed to say, I was feeling very sorry for myself.

So, it was basically a big ole' pity party until I thought about what Easter is really all about and why we even celebrate it in the first place...and how much pain and suffering Jesus went through on the cross- for each and every one of us. And so, you know...that kind of put things in perspective. ;-)

I also thought about how much I have to be grateful for and how incredibly wonderful it was that I got to spend the day with Paprika and Ginger...how lucky I am to have them and to have the life I have. I also thought about the promise of the afterlife and how I hope to see Vivian and Annemarie in Heaven.

Pity party ended.

It doesn't really matter how alone we are or how alone we feel- the real message of Easter is that none of us are alone, and we are all loved and cherished by our Heavenly Father.

Needless to say, next year I will be planning better and won't be spending Easter (or any holiday for that matter) alone again if I can help it.

Mr. Mustard got home late, and we treated ourselves to take-out...Thai food- which was very un-Easter-like. But by the time he got home, that was all that was available, and I was not in the mood to cook! :-)



It turns out, Ginger was fussy for good reason. This morning I saw that the tiniest bud of a tooth had popped through her bottom gum- her very first tooth. I guess that money I've been saving for her dental implants can be put to use elsewhere... ;-)

Today she also went from being a kneeling baby to an almost-exclusively standing baby. Standing is now her favorite thing to do. She gets frustrated because she wants to walk- but she can't yet! I am fine with her just standing. A tooth and standing up...all in one day. A pretty big day, if you ask me!

Beach Bums!

Last week, Mr. Mustard had a day off from DWTS, so we all headed to the beach. Our new house is almost walking distance to the beach, which is kinda like a dream to me. After spending 21 years in the landlocked Midwest, it's pretty awesome to live just down the street from the ocean.



Mr. Mustard grew up 5 minutes from the beach in Santa Barbara, so I'm not sure he gets how cool it is to wake up minutes from the waves...but the experience never gets old to me. I love these beach days, and am excited that Paprika and Ginger are growing up as little beach babes.



On this particular day, I was holding Ginger while I was taking the photos, so that's why she's not in these pictures. I did put her down for a few moments, but at that point she started eating the sand. She was fascinated by the sand and wanted nothing more than to immerse her whole face right in it. Needless to say, she had a bath immediately when we got home!



Anyhoo, it was one of those gorgeous days when you're just happy to be alive. Even though Mr. Mustard works very long and very stressful, crazy hours and is not home a whole lot, I am grateful for the days he does get off, especially when they fall right in the middle of the week.



Maybe it's because the time we have together is so fleeting and rare, I appreciate it so much. We always have a great time together, whatever we're doing as a family...and that is the sweetest thing of all...just hanging out with the people you love.

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter!

We dyed eggs last night, and what can I say...I got the planning about 90% right. I bought the neccessary dye kit, and even made sure the Easter Bunny got good things for the baskets, but I forgot to buy eggs! Doh!

So, we had to make due with what we had- eight brown eggs, and three of the eight we had cracked during boiling! I tried to get philosophical about the eggs and chalked it up to a metaphor for the imperfect world we live in (and yet there is still so much beauty in the world). A teachable moment for Easter?

Paprika didn't care a hoot about the broken eggs. She was so excited to have fun with what we had.



I hope you enjoy this beautiful Easter Sunday. I am off to focus on what this holiday is really all about. Easter is one of my very favorite holidays- right up there with Christmas! It fills me with so much hope and I am so grateful for the true reason for this season. :-)

More pics of our egg dyeing:







Happy Easter!!!

A Princess Bed!

I have been wanting to get Paprika a beautiful bed frame like the Pottery Barn one pictured above. Problem was that those beds retail for well over $1000, not to mention we didn't have a box spring to go with it, which would add another couple hundred dollars. Cha-ching!

Since Paprika outgrew her toddler bed, she has been sleeping on a Queen mattress on the floor. It was the mattress we bought when we got married (we've since upgraded to a King)- and it's a great bed. We just haven't had a frame to put it on (besides which, I've been nervous about Paprika rolling off it and in the few months she's been sleeping on it, she never has).

Anyhoo, her bed has looked like this for awhile (well, except usually it has sheets and blankets, of course!):



Well, long story short, I found a bed frame on Craigslist that I loved...originally retailed for $1500 plus shipping and I bought it for $200 even. Problem was that I didn't have a box spring, and that was going to cost a few hundred dollars.

So, I sent Mr. Mustard over to pick up a box spring off Craigslist for $30 that the person said was "like new" and had been sitting in her guest bedroom untouched.

I now realize that you ALWAYS have to ask for pictures or go yourself because Mr. Mustard brought home THIS box spring, and I just about cried. (In his defense, he picked it up late at night and there wasn't enough light for him to really get a good look at it!)



It was seriously the nastiest thing I'd seen in awhile and I guess it probably was new thirty years ago, but it certainly wasn't NEW anytime in the 21st Century! The whole thing really grossed me out, and I told him to "take it back to her and get our money back!"



After I stewed (and the person we bought it from did not answer our calls or emails), I calmed down. I was like..."Okay, here's $30 that has already been wasted/spent, so have fun with it."

So, the next day while Ginger was napping, I took out the stuffing:



And I ripped off all the fabric. Then I washed the whole thing down with a solution of 3 parts water, 1 part bleach. Then I set it in direct sunlight and let it dry. I wanted anything remotely germy or gross to be obliterated.



Then, while it was drying, I set up the bed I had bought on Craigslist. I love it, and since it's a Queen, it's something she can have for a long time. A real find!



Then, I brought in my stripped down box spring.



Covered it with an old mattress cover we'd been meaning to replace due to ripped elastic on the edges. The padding on top is nice (and washable)!



Then, I took some fabric I had lying around and made a bed skirt (using some masking tape). I was doing this while Ginger took a nap, so I wanted to be quick. At some point, I may go back and do this "the right way"- but for now, it will do...



See, here's the tape. I put that there so that the bedskirt wouldn't slide when I put the mattress on top.



Then, I loaded the mattress on top.



And then I was done! Not perfect, of course...but not bad for an hour's work, which is all I had time for since I had to get it done while Ginger was napping.

Before:



After:



I guess the proof is in the pudding, because when I showed Paprika the finished product (I made her close her eyes and everything), she flipped out and jumped right into the bed.



It was definitely a huge success!



I think she'll enjoy it for a long, long time!

Happy April!

I can't believe it's already April. We've been at our new house a month now! I can hardly believe it.

Ginger is now almost 9 1/2 months old. She has started doing so many new things in the past month. She can say Mama and Dada. She can sign Milk and Yes.

She is super mobile and can lift herself to standing (or more often, half-way to standing) if she hangs on to something (like the edge of a chair).

She is eating baby food! I can hardly believe it. Over the past few weeks, she's become much more receptive. She is still eating "Stage 1" (Earth's Best Organic), which is for babies 4 months and up. I am nervous to try anything more chunky til she gets a better hang of things. She is also starting Biter Biscuits, which she loves. I give those to her when we're having dinner so that she feels included. I can tell she really likes feeling included. Otherwise, she gets frustrated that she's not eating like the rest of us. Other than her few tastes of food, she's still nursing pretty much 24/7. Her favorite place to be is still in the Ergo, facing me (where she is at the moment, actually!)



Paprika is at a wonderful age. Is there any age more magical than 3 1/2? I love all ages, of course. There is just something so special about her current age - she loves to learn anything and everything, the world is so magical to her, she is full of 100% love for her sister, her family, and everyone she meets. I would like to bottle age 3 1/2 and pass it around the world, thank you very much!



Paprika had her last day at her preschool a few weeks ago. Since we moved to the other side of Los Angeles, it's just not practical for her to go there anymore (it would be about 1 1/2 hours in traffic). I was so sad to say goodbye, because I had so many wonderful memories of the school and her dear teachers. Paprika learned so much there and it was such a positive experience, I was really worried that Paprika would miss it terribly.

Well, it turns out that I miss it much more than she does! I had feared that she'd have this huge separation anxiety and be terribly upset about it. But nope! When we moved, I offered to drive her every day to school and she said no, she wanted to stay home. In fact, she's become a homebody since we moved- very content to just be here.

I have wanted to get her involved in playdates with Mom's organizations near our new house, but the times that they meet for Paprika's age group are always right during Ginger's naptime. And if Ginger misses that afternoon nap, it's no fun for any of us!

I've been looking into classes for Paprika. Maybe some art classes? We stopped going to ballet because of the mean teacher (and we moved away anyway). There's also the possibility of finding her a new preschool...but I'm not in any rush. I am really enjoying this time at home with her, and she seems to love being here at home. She knows her alphabet, can count, add, subtract, and spell/write Mommy, Daddy, Paprika, Ginger, Grandma, Ann (her Godmother's name), and just started spelling the name of her best friend. So, I think academically she's doing fine for a 3 1/2 year old!

To make up for the social stuff, we have been getting out to see friends from time to time. Now that we moved, it's much more of a drive, but it's worth it! Recently, we went to see Devon and her two daughters. We all had a wonderful time. Sweet Pea is getting so big and active- it's so wonderful seeing her thriving!



The girls had a great time playing together...even the littlest two! Sweet Pea is quickly catching up with Ginger. Before long, she might overtake her!



So, that's what we're up to. It's amazing how fast Ginger and Paprika are growing up. I want to stop and take in every second of it. It's an amazing time- one I don't want to forget or take a second of it for granted. Even just the simple, little moments are the best. I know that. I don't want to miss a moment of it- it's just too sweet for words!