Shave and a haircut

Two bits of awesomeness I got to witness today:

1. Green bean theatre:
Scene - Kitchen, lunchtime. Anonybabe is in her highchair after a leisurely lunch while I putter around the stove, back turned.
Thump, thump, thump of a green been being walked across her tray
Anonybabe: Oh! Gween bean! You o-tay?
Anonybabe-as-greenbean: (In a high falsetto) Oh! No! I pall down!
Anonybabe: Oh no! Apple toss! You o-tay?
Anonybabe-as-apple sauce: (In a gruff low voice) Oh! Yes! I o-tay.
Thump, thump, thump of green bean walking towards blue spoon, who embraces green been and then proceeds to eat her.
Anonybabe-as-blue-spoon: Nom, nom, nom!

2. Unclear on the concept bee:
Since Anonybabe seemed to dig on learning her letters, we got her some alphabet magnets to put on the fridge and will occasionally spell out her name, or ours, or simple words.
Scene - kitchen, standing at the refrigerator
Anonybabe: May wore!
Me: May wore?
Anonybabe: May wer oh pidge!
Me: ???
Anonybabe (lining letters up backwards on the fridge): Eeeeck, Teeee, Seeeee, Eyeeeee, Beeeee, Deeee!
Me: Oh! Make words on the fridge?
Anonybabe (pointing to each letter as she says it): Eck, Tee, See, Eye, Bee, Dee pell (and here she draws her finger backwards along the line of letters she made "I hab idea!"
Me (swoon)

Aw, girl

I just kept Anonybabe transfixed on the changing table for a good 5 minutes with a Keith Sweat-esque song I called "Poop in your boodie, girl"

That is all

I hab idea

Anonybabe has been cracking me up and charming me with all her new thangs.

Two faves:
1. She has been announcing lately that she "hab idea" before toddling off to do something.

2. She fed pretend food to her Micky Mouse doll when we were waiting in the car for Anonyhub's train. She wanted to feed Micky some of the banana we'd just finished, and I told her we didn't have any more. So she said "Anonybabe...gib...Micky...ba..na..NAAAA" and made a motion like she was scooping something out of her hand. Then "Anonybabe...gib...Micky....tawbewwies!" and made another hand-scoop motion.

This is a pretty literal-minded child and this is the first time I've seen her imagine like that without any props. I felt like I did when she got her teeth. Over the moon elated and surprised by my own delight.

Climb every mountain? Nah, just this one.

Today's revelation is a little weightier (for me) than yesterday's; I'm still trying to figure out what to do with it. Here's some simplified exposition:

The hubby wants to change professions - from record store manager with an eye on starting his own store to landscape architect - a move that I fully support. The change will land us in the poor house for the foreseeable future since it will likely involve unpaid internships and lots of additional schooling, but it really suits his dreams and his temperament.

But! I more or less ixnayed his plans to go to school this fall because his first (and almost only) pick was a college that is an hour away from his parents. Even though the school's program is relatively cheap and nearly perfectly suited for his goals. I felt certain if we lived that close to the in-laws, our marriage would be in jeopardy. It was a touchy touchy subject to broach with him, one that kicked off many a horrible fight.

My revelation is this: my problem isn't with my in-laws. It's with Anonyhub and the way he relates to them. The way he sees them. I could happily live next door to them if Anonyhub weren't so fixated on them. Okay next door is a stretch, but it's damn near true. He doesn't realize how emotionally dependent on them he is. When we are away from them, this rarely comes up...it makes me think it's a non-issue. When we are around them, I am reminded of how much I hate how Anonyhub relates to them. How he goes on and on and on about them.

The friends I've talked to about this will say..."what do you mean this is a new revelation? You said the very same thing to me 3 months ago; 8 months ago; 2 years ago!" Yes, but I thought it was a peripheral problem. One we could keep avoiding. Not a deal breaker. Now that it's the big old mountain standing smack dab between us and our next destination, I'm thinking it might be time to tackle this.

So I think I need to bring this up to him. Sit him down, look him in the eye, and admit it. This is a big deal to me. What can we do about it?

Anonybabe and Big Bird and Mama and Anonybabe and Sid and Super Why**

My revelation-of-the-day (My fortune cookie revelations. Just as easily consumed, just as easily forgotten):

I'm taking myself waaaaay too seriously with this parenting business. I feel responsible for my child's education, physical, mental, and spiritual well-being. Although I won't be providing her with her personality, I'm going to be providing her with her starter self-image. I gave her her mother flippin' name.

These are just some of the reasons I walked around with a look of abject terror on my face for the first year of her existence.

It is all a heavy burden. But to quote my grandmother, who, when 21 year-old me told her I didn't think I would have kids for the above reasons: "You aren't supposed to know that ahead of time! You're supposed to figure it out after it's too late!" I laughed. She didn't. She wasn't kidding.

There's something to be said for taking a la-de-da attitude with parenting. Whistle while you work. Thrill with the sheer adrenaline of it, like that tightwalk roper guy who walked between the twin towers. Don't look at yourself splattered on the sidewalk, look at yourself thousands of feet in the air, defying gravity.




**I told Anonybabe I was writing a story about her and asked her what I should title it. :-)

The wind in his Mangina

Truly beautiful post about loving your kids the way they are:

http://windinyourvagina.blogspot.com/2009/01/parenting.html

Rise, Sir Mom!

This morning I had a moment of clarity, in which I felt my mom status through and through.

We were all up with the sun (a rarity) since Anonybabe woke early and giggled and cuddled and requested that "Mama...Daddy...Anonybabe...Eat!"

I stripped so I could take a shower while Anonyhub fixed breakfast. I wanted to clean and reinsert my diva cup first and sat down on the toilet to do so. Anonybabe toddled over and announced "Anonybabe...weed...Ernie...Bert!" and decided my knee was as good a place as any to set her book.

I was on the john, naked and knuckle deep in my own bloody twat, trying not to elbow my daughter in the face or upset her Sesame Street book into the toilet when it hit me:

I am so a mom.