The Bailey Chronicles

"On the paper please" is the phrase I find myself saying over and over again. Monkey seems to have an uncanny ability to locate a stray pen or highlighter within minutes of waking up. Having a husband in sales means never having a shortage of writing utensils. Originally when she would locate one of these treasures she would find the nearest wall and begin to create her masterpiece. This is not something that makes me mad because its just a wall and it can either be magic erased or touched up but we cant have our blooming artist expressing herself on whatever she pleases. So that means mean mommy would come along and take away her newly found toy and tell her no. This would turn into instant tantrum and it seemed like a never ending cycle until finally my montessory training kicked back in. She was genuinely upset that i wasn't praising her for how lovely her newest creation was turning out to be but obviously the wall is not appropriate coloring media. This time instead of prying the pen out of her tight little munchkin grip I simply found some paper and asked her to color on that and showed her the difference between right and wrong. She instantly dried her tears and listened to the lesson as I praised her art on paper and said coloring on the wall is a no no. For the last few days I have reminded her of the rule but have not had a single tantrum or slip up with wall art. Sometimes its hard to remember that two year olds can be reasoned with and not have to be sat in a time out or whatever punishment style you choose with endless heartbreaking tears and some times migraine worthy screams, but it is encouraging and even refreshing when they prove you wrong and show you they can listen and learn without the tears. And rules can be enforced without a battle. Its moments like these that show what a bright and receptive young lady she is turning out to be, and how proud I am of her.

Snapfish was doing a special around Halloween for buy 1 photo book get 2 free!  I was so excited to receive my 3 books today!  I know I take a gazillion pics of my baby, but I really don't have many that are printed.  So you can imagine how happy they make me.

I've been doing a lot of crafts lately to get ready for her 2nd birthday, can't believe it's already here!  We are doing an Olivia themed party.  Who's Olivia?  She's a cute little pig that has her own series of books and a show on Nick Jr.  Monkey loves her, and loves the fact that she has a black cat, and a brother named Ian.  So Olivia is her party theme, and for some reason she's not extremely main stream like Dora and Yo Gabba.  It's very difficult to find pre-made party themed Olivia items unless you go on etsy, which can be spendy, so it's a DIY event I guess.  The good thing is is that her colors are red, white and black and with Christmas around the corner it makes finding the color theme pretty easy with lots of wonderful choices!  Candi is going to make her a custom outfit, and wouldn't you know they are either sold out or discontinued on most Olivia fabrics.  Luckily I scored a FQ on eBay for $7.95, the next day it was selling for over $20... crazy.  Still though $7.95 for a quarter of fabric... robbery I tell ya!  I have decided not to do her party on Thanksgiving this year, even though her actual birthday falls on it.  For one it's too much to try to coordinate in one day, for two I would have to do it early in the morning if I expected anyone to come and it seems too early to chow down on cupcakes and candy and then sit down to a super filling meal.  The date is not totally set yet, but I'm thinking the Sunday after Thanksgiving will work best for everyone involved.  So until then I will be meticulously crafting, cooking, planning, cleaning, decorating, shopping, etc.      

I don't know what it is about Yo Gabba, but they seriously have a song that can apply to almost all aspects of life.  Here I am minding my own business and then something is said or done that pops one of their little tunes into my brain.  Brainwashed I tell ya!  

As a homemaker for the past several years I have been trying to broaden my scope of recipes.  Cooking is not something I fully enjoy doing.  I don't mind doing it, but it seems like a lot of effort.  I think between cooking and cleaning I honestly get more enjoyment out of cleaning.  However, with that being said, I am still pretty good at cooking, I just don't want to do it.  It's one of those things I have forced myself to keep after in hopes of one day truly enjoying it... maybe.  The good thing is my husband likes just about everything I make and has full confidence in my ability to recreate recipes from meals we have tried.  He is also willing to try anything and is not incredibly picky. 

If I choose to cook I usually opt for the easy way out.  A few ingredients, one pot dishes, crock pot options, etc.  Last year my cousin Jennifer turned me on to this blog, A Year of Slow Cooking, and it has shown me many easy options to just throw in the pot and forget about.  A few weeks ago she made a post stating, "stop, look no further.  Hands down best Brussels Sprout recipe in the world!"  Brussels Sprouts?!  Ok, so I've only tried them once as a kid and I thought they tasted the way feet smell.  But to their defense I used to be an incredibly picky eater so despite my previous experience with them and their bad reputation I decided the recipe looked easy enough to give it a try.  

What you'll need:

1 lb brussels sprouts

1 tbs of Dijon Mustard

3 tbs of butter

1/4 tsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/4 c water

   

I had a budget costume of a witch.  Originally it was just going to be a witch hat, but then I found cool eyelashes and black light make up when I was picking out a Halloween pale for Bailey yeah.  I never did find a black light to see the overall effect :(  maybe next year?   

Our friend Ian came to trick or treat with us.  He was a cute little hobo, and was totally ready to put on the charm to get some candy.   

That night Bailey and Ian crashed early, so Holly and I carved up our pumpkins.  Better late than never! I did the haunted house, and Holly did a spider in a web... her candle was going out in hers so this was the best pic I could get of it (I liked how the spider's eyes were glowing).  We also watched the movie Paranormal Activity with John, the first one, I hear the second one is WAY more intense.  All three of us are total scaredy cats when it comes to ghosts and scarey movies... so it was interesting haha, we probably couldn't handle the second one.  It took everything I had to resist playing some mean jokes on John later that night when we were going to bed, but I resisted and let him freak out on his own doing.