Finding the Perfect Halloween Costumes

Ok I know, I know what you are thinking….what and why!?!? We are 2 months away from Halloween how can anyone possibly be thinking of Halloween costumes when the pool is still open?!?! Well, not sure if you noticed it, but my profile picture on here and Twitter, yes the one of me dressed up in a matching costume with my baby, yeah that really happened and yes, I love Halloween/ dressing up/ making costumes out of random things lying around. I have pretty much had a passion for dressing up my whole life and now….I have a little mini person to dress up! WOOHOO! And she doesn’t protest what I put her in yet….double WOOHOO! So now comes the dilemma: figuring out what we will be for Halloween.  

This really is no joke, we take Halloween very seriously in the Patterson household, see photo evidence below:

 Our first year together, my husband and I dressed up as Dog the Bounty Hunter and his wife, Beth. You gotta admit, hardcore awesomeness! I even made us the star "badges" out of foil.

 

Year two, we went as two of the characters from the super bowl commercial where there are a bunch of cutesy characters (I'm a sock monkey if you hadn't figured it out...which of course you had) get into a car and drive around having fun. Remember that? Yeah, neither did anyone else since it was October and the super bowl was in January, so we got a lot of weird looks, but it was awesome to us. And yes, homemade costumes once again!

 

 

 

 

 Last year I could not resist! I finally had a baby to coordinate outfits with (daddy was working unfortunately and I'm not sure if I would have been able to sell him on the whole ladybug idea). Emma had a store bought costume which was fine but, I was not too impressed with the adult versions of a ladybug costume (6 months after giving birth I was not about to shimmy into a tutu and tights with knee high boots.) So I took a trip to my trusted friend…the thrift store! The top you see was an old bed sheet that I billowed with stuffing to get the ladybug shell shape. The dots came from another bed sheet I cut up. The pants I had and the antenna my husband hand crafted out of craft store materials. All total, the costume was under $10 to put together.

Well this year, I am looking to top that! I have a few possibilities swirling around in my head and I wanted to get some input from you! I mean who wouldn’t want a hand in helping my family pick out their Halloween costumes! The reason I am asking now (in the month of August) is to give myself enough time to gather materials etc. So here are my top 5 picks for our family Halloween costumes (feel free to pitch your own idea in the comments as well):

Rock Stars: Emma is in love with her heart shaped sun glasses so I thought it would be cute to pull together some glitter and some leather and go as bad 80s hair band rock stars!  We already have the wigs from when we were Dog the Bounty Hunter and Beth.

Pandas: Emma got the cutest panda hat when we went to the zoo. It is in the shape of a panda so I thought it would be super easy to get some fluffy materials to make the rest of the costume.

Mickey/ Minnie Mouse: In honor of her favorite show. We could all be mice for Halloween. This option also gives me the store bought costume flexibility I might need.

The Flintstones: This was my husband’s idea, which is cute, but I kind of feel like everyone has been there, done that.

Wonder Woman: Why not all dress up like super heroes! I am all for a bad ass family costume theme!

Ok so now it’s your turn, take a second and vote below! Let me know which costume idea you like the best!

First Pony Ride

I don’t think I’ve ever divulged this information before, but I used to LOVE horses. I mean really LOVE LOVE horses. I had all the My Little Ponies and a bunch of other beautiful toy horses growing up as a child. I also had a ton of books about horses too (The Saddle Club – anyone ever read those?) I even had a book that taught you how to ride. I would always beg my parents for riding classes but riding is an expensive sport, so I always got turned down.

Until one glorious summer, an opportunity came for me to go to a Girl Scout ridding camp. After much begging I was finally given the green light to go and boy was I in heaven. I endured a week’s worth of latrines and really bad (and I mean REALLY bad) camp food just to get to spend a few precious hours a day ridding. In my older years I have not pursued the whole horse thing but I am always looking to see if Emma shows any interest, which is why my heart jumped for joy when I saw the sign for “Pony Rides” at our county fair.

Now, it could have been the wet, muddy, downhill slope leading up to the ride that did it, but somehow (no clue how), I ended up flying down to the line so fast you’d think they were giving away free college tuition or something. I finally made it to the front of the line, bouncing Emma through the air with glee. “Look at the HORSIEEEEEEEES’” I squealed with vein bulging delight. Just to pause a moment and put things into perspective for you, it was getting towards the end of the day and Emma hadn’t had a proper dinner. She was tired and had already seen so many sights at the fair that she was on simulation overload so that might soften the blow from the devastating reality I am about to put before you.

My child, my offspring, my very DNA, did NOT like her first pony ride. Well either that or she had already assumed her competitive face for future equestrian events. Either way, all of my smiling and “WEEEEEEEing” did nothing to penetrate her stoic persona. She did not crack a smile once, not even her signature half a smile just to humor me. I am assuming she was concentrating on not falling off because her form, I mean come on, show champion quality for sure. As soon as I put her in the seat it was like she knew what to do. She grabbed ahold of the horn part of the saddle, which I’m sure has a real name but I will not pretend to be a horse snob and reference it (yeah too tired to do a google search right now.) She kept her balance and moved with the horse for the whole 2 minutes of the ride (really I thought we would go around the ring twice but it appears that not even pony rides can escape the evil reach of inflation.) 

 

 

So there you have it, no smiles, no laughter, no magic moment. Just a girl perched atop a gentle giant doing her best to process a situation that in all honesty was way too hurried of an experience for a toddler to fully understand. At least that is the story I am sticking with since after all, who knows, she could absolutely love horses one day!

Greener Grass

It’s been pretty quiet around here this past week and to be honest I have not been doing too much. We had a fun weekend which I will post about but in all honesty, last week was just one of those rough weeks. It’s life’s little curve balls that twist their way into your carefully crafted plans that casue problems. For me, it has been a week of uncertainty and what-ifs. I am waiting to hear back on the start date for my new job but, in the meantime, I have been thinking that this is a turning point in my career and overall as a mom.

My path to becoming a working mom at first seemed to be a simple one. I had been raised to be independent and to choose a career that would support myself and my family. Not working was never an option much less a passing thought in my mind. When I got pregnant, I planned everything out easily. There were no blips on my radar when I found a daycare and set my return date for work because well, in my world it would be just that. Go have a baby, return to work, life goes on. Except, something happened in those weeks away from work. Once my maternity leave was over, I found myself in a very different place than just weeks before. The sharp, focused career woman had softened. My priorities shifted and I found myself in a new place. I wanted to be home with my child.

We all know ultimately the decision I made, mainly out of necessity at the time and that necessity still exists. However, as I find myself once again (ironically a year later) in a place of change. There’s been another shift and the fork in the road seems to be defining itself once again. I have this job opportunity waiting for me and at the same time, I could just say forget it all and be with my child. As of now, the fence I am sitting on is leaning toward the work side due to financial need, but as I wait in this weird limbo, I can’t help but peak over onto the other side of the fence, onto what could be and that grass is looking really really green.

Our Trip to the Children’s Museum

Another beautiful summer weekend has come and gone. Today, we were supposed to meet up with Emma’s grandma to go looking for fossils on the “fossil beach” (a beach notorious for having lots of fossils) nearby but, the weather had other plans. It never rained really hard but the drizzle was enough to cancel our fossil hunt. Since we had planned for a trip south, we decided to stop by and check out the new children’s museum in the area. I was hesitant about going to this children’s museum in particular because I read reviews that it wasn’t the greatest, but for a quick trip on a Sunday we figured we’d give it a shot.

We picked up Emma’s older cousin and headed off on our rainy day adventure. The area that the museum is located was not crowded and there was parking steps away which was great. I am a fan of no crowds so already that was a plus. When we got to the entrance, we were greeted with a life sized big bird sculpture. Emma kept pointing up and waving to him.

Upon entering, there is a large room to the left and one to the right with different activities. I wanted to just let Emma run around but it was difficult getting her to go in any sort of direction that made sense so we ended up carrying her between exhibits. They had a lot of great activities for older kids (her cousin is 7) and for kids Emma’s age. She spent quite a bit of time at the big puzzles and the cars. They also had an area for dress up and a large kitchen. There was also a section for the kids to go grocery shopping (Emma did not understand the concept of putting the groceries back on the self - which makes sense since we don’t normally shop and then put things back.) There was also an awesome international exhibit where you could press buttons to hear different phrases in different languages and see different computer keyboards from different countries (mommy got excited for this part.)

 

 

Then we went into the under 3 year old room which had a climbing area that Emma LOVED (future gymnast I swear.) There were tunnels and stairs and a slide. She kept going back and forth over and over and loving every minute of it. She was the smallest kid in there too! The room also had a bunch of toys for free play which was nice but you had to watch and make sure sharing was going on (Emma and this one girl were having a slight tiff over a plastic fork – apparently Emma found a fellow fork lover.) Thus my helicopter propellers were working overtime (hence the picture below.) She also took to the plastic zoo animals, in which she picked them up, held them in the air, and screamed DOOOOOGGGGIIIIEE!! (blurry picture evidence below) Several parents looked over and all I could do was explain she has 4 dogs at home so anything that walks on all fours is a doggie to her.

 

 

 

We didn’t make it to the Theater or the other events scheduled. To be honest the layout got a little confusing or maybe running after two kids disoriented us. This was our second time taking Emma’s cousin with us somewhere and let me tell you, watching over two kids running around is a lot more complicated (mental note for later.) So it felt like we were lucky to make it out of there with both kids and all of our belongs in tact.

Overall for a rainy Sunday back up plan, it was a good visit. In the future, it would be nice to see what else the museum offers. I did wish they had a little bit more, maybe more active activities if that makes sense. There seemed to be only three main areas so, not quite as grand as it could have been but, as we were leaving we did see a sign that they will be adding an outdoor adventure area, so we look forward to that. I am still really excited to go to the other children’s museum in our area, which I hear is epic. It is a bit further away so it will probably be an all day excursion but hey this is childhood bring on the adventure!

What Emma's Been Up To

 

Sometimes I get so caught up in the drama of my own existence that I forget the first and foremost reason for this blog is to share and document all the lovely little things my toddler is doing. What milestones has she hit? What new words does she say? What are the little quirks that make Emma….Emma. So, I complied a little list for you to catch up on all things Emma and this way I can at least tell her what she was up to at 14 months old:

New Words: Her latest verbal splendor is the word Hippo (pronounce in Emma speak as Ap-po). I think it is freaking adorable and also kind of funny that the only two animal names she can say

are doggie and hippo (and duck if you count cak cak – read quack quack as a sutable way to identify an animal. I suppose in the world of toddlerhood is it acceptable.)

Her Tantrums: We seem to be in a temporary tantrum lull for the time being. She still makes eh eh eh sounds repeatedly (yes like the sand people from Star Wars) when she is frustrated or wants you to do something but it hasn’t been super intense as of late.

 

 

 

Her Desire to be a Big Girl: She is constantly trying to do things that are a little bit beyond her physical capabilities such as walking the dogs or walking down stairs, but her determination and positive attitude is amazing to see. I hope she never loses those qualities.

 

 

 



 

Swings: She loves the swings at the park and would contently swing for hours if only her mom’s arm had the stamina to keep up.

 

 

Food: We’ve probably hit all of the major food milestones for now. Due to my lack of time, know how, passion, and over all talent for cooking, we sort of rotate meals as best we can with her. Of all of the things my mother did that I vowed to do differently, having a lot of dinner variety was one of them but it seems that will be the one hurdle I don’t clear. I will try to do better when it comes time to pack lunches down the road. As for Emma, her favorite foods right now are anything with marinara sauce and gummy bunnies. We made the mistake of putting the gummy bunny box up but not out of sight one day and she threw an epic sand people tantrum until we figured out what she wanted. We now make sure to keep the box out of sight completely. She also has a strange obsession with straws.

 

 

 

Entertainment: Her favorite show by far is Mickey Mouse Club house (followed closely by Sesame Street). She got a Mickey Mouse chair from her Nana and will point to it and look at me, which is my cue to start singing the theme song…or else! This request happens no less than twice a day.

 

 

Shoes: She finally grew out of her first pair of shoes (don’t get me wrong I am thrilled they lasted as long as they did.) So we got her a new pair of sneakers that , well for some reason, look like big girl shoes and I’m having a hard time coping with that, but she loves them. They are very light weight which makes it easier for her to run away from me faster.

 

Her Mothering Nature: So already Emma knows the word baby, in fact, she got a baby doll from her great grandmother (yes I cringed a little bit but I could not deny a gift from great grandma.) And not only does she call it baby but she also mothers it. She will get a blanket and wrap the baby up in it and hold her sippy cup up for the baby to drink out of and basically she hugs and kisses the baby  

(which I am guessing she learns from watching the other babies at daycare being cared for.) Yes it is very sweet and it melts my heart, but it also makes me want to run to the store and get her a dump truck and a race car track. Yes I am a girly-girl phobic if you hadn’t figured it out (possibly more on that later.)

 

 

Anyways, hope you enjoyed a quick peak at what Emma’s been up to these days. What milestones/ new things is your toddler getting into?

The Time that Helicopter Parenting Didn’t Work

14 Months, yes I haven’t been good about announcing how things have been going each month but by far, this month has been the most physically active for Emma. She is learning more and more how her body works and what she needs to do to get where she wants to go. This of course means more bumps and scrapes (both of her knees are scraped up right now.) It also means I have been on high alert. Chair standing and stair climbing have become her new favorite things to do and my poor nerves are constantly on edge. Maybe this is why I have become the ultimate helicopter parent.

Emma hasn’t quite figured out that one misstep, one foot wobble and she will come crashing down from wherever she is hanging at the moment. I find myself constantly following, constantly on watch. This is not how I want to be. I want to be the type of mom who lets their child explore and learn on their own, or as my husband says “let her fall, that’s how she will learn not to do things.” Yeah, not sure I’m on board with that one just yet. I am trying to strike a balance, but as of now you can find me walking around with my arms outstretched, hands cupped at the ready. Like an over worked Frankenstein zombie mom ready to catch, grab or swoop in on a bad situation.

Well, all of this of course led up to our morning playground romp on Sunday. Emma was enjoying her swing time and ingesting her woodchip fiber, when she decided that the stairs up onto the playground equipment looked inviting. I of course panicked and raced up the side stairs to beat her to the top while her father watched from below. She seemed to not be too interested in the slides or anything else really, but walking up and down the stairs…that was where the real fun was at. I held my breath each time she went up and down. Each time she got up to me I followed her down to her father. Well, the last time, she decided to take the side stairs down and no one was near her. My husband ran over but it was too late. Emma fell onto the soggy wood-chipped ground. The fall was not far at all, only from the last step, but it was still scary for her (and me) nonetheless.

After a few minutes of hugs and some swigs from her sippy to get rid of the dirt, and Emma was back to her old self, ready to go. Looking back would it even have mattered, was all of my worrying for nothing? I know she will take tumbles, life is loaded with them but, she is still small so I feel like I need to be near her. At the same time, she is big enough to run around a little bit on her own at least. I’m just not sure how to balance the two yet. Perhaps in a few more months after she has grown and experienced more she will be ready for less of me hovering over her.

What are your thoughts on helicoptering? Am I worrying way too much?

 

Working Mom Dilemma: The Commute from Hell

Disclaimer: I realize any job opportunity should be celebrated and by no means am I complaining about having an amazing opportunity. Take most of this with a grain of salt/ all in good fun. I know how lucky I am to be where I am.

Well folks as you have probably read, I got offered an amazing job opportunity. Near dream job status really. This job will launch my career and I know I will learn so much as well as have so much to contribute. Of course you are picturing me sauntering down the halls of my shiny office building wearing my new, 30% off suit from Marshals (yeah not making big time money yet), hair flowing in the air conditioned breeze, grinning from ear to ear, and holding up a manual I just perfected. Think again. This job is located DOWNTOWN people. DOWNTOWN. Which means one thing, my pampered suburban car driving, cushy 20 minute commuting ass is going to have to take PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION. Gasp! I know. This means that I will more likely be running into the building sweaty and in my gym shoes, hair dripping wet from whatever horrible weather elements I must now endure, and my shoulder dislocated from slugging around that damn 300 page manual everywhere!

For the first time ever in my life, I will be relying on public transportation to get to work. Now don’t get me wrong, I have had my fair share of public transit experiences in the past (heck I drove a bus for close to 5 years.) The commute is bad this is true, but let me tell you where this makes me fall apart, I will no longer be in the same building as Emma. In fact, my commute has more than doubled now, which means less time in the afternoons with Emma (40 minutes less but still.)

I almost can’t handle it. I knew if I took this job what was to come. I am constantly asking myself “Am I now a horrible mother for taking the money over the extra time with my child?” In the long run it will get us to a safer neighborhood and more opportunities for her so I just have to keep playing out that scenario in my head over and over again. That still does not keep me from an unhealthy obsession to figure out how I can have the “best commute” (not that I think there is such a thing after I have been spoiled for over 2 years.) I am going from driving 20 minutes, dropping off my kid and literally driving around the block to the parking garage where I park for FREE. To having to drive to a subway, pay for parking, pay for a train ticket, and transfer at least once. What’s funny is I physically live about 20 minutes from where I will work but there’s no way I can shell out $20+ a day to park downtown.

With my unhealthy obsession, I have called daycares in different areas, I have mapped out no less than 3 different routes to take offering various amounts of driving and transit dependency. It is really tough living in a very densely populated area because simply put, all of the daycares are full and have year long waitlists and all of the people who work downtown get paid well so they can afford the ridiculously overpriced centers. Leaving me to keep Emma at her current center (yes my OLD office building) for the time being. This means I will be commuting to my old office building (which is across from the subway) to drop her off at daycare which takes me 20 minutes AWAY from my new job downtown, thus doubling my commute.  It is pretty ridiculous I know. I still have a few more daycare centers to call but for now, we are doomed to this fate.

I guess I really shouldn’t complain too much, I got a great job and an extra 40 minutes is not the end of the world, but then again, being a working mom, every second counts. At least to me.