Natural Parenting: Natural Intuition

As you know, one of my favorite small businesses is Jack Be Natural. Well, they've partnered with a couple other natural living companies to start a blog, and they've asked me to be a guest writer! I've been so blessed by Stacy and John at JBN and am SO excited to be a part of their blog launch. They've asked me to share some thoughts on natural parenting. So, check out their blog called Natural Intuition and my article about how Randy and I came into this wacky, crunchy, granola world. ;-)

VerNoAhcular

Randy and I were discussing Noah's vernacular last night and decided it was high time we started keeping a log. A kid's language is too funny not to share, so I thought the best way to keep this list forever and spread a little joy at the same time was to post about it here. :-) I'll add to the list as we remember more and discover new words and phrases. Ready, Set, Doh!

"Choo choo" -- Thank you

"Melcome" -- You're welcome

"Pyoomees" -- Excuse me 

"Boose" -- Boof (his fave stuffed animal, ladybug pillow pet)

"Sheshaboh" -- Despereaux (The Tale of Despereaux)

"Pablo, Peekah, Sasha, Tyrone, Ahshin" -- Pablo, Uniqua, Tasha, Tyrone, Austin (Backyardigans)

"Bah-da-boot" -- Barbaloot (Lorax) "Wahwack" -- Lorax

"Beeta beeta" -- Tweetle beetle (Fox in socks) 

"Dah Keen" -- Lion King
"Bamina" -- Banana

"Veeshay" -- This way 

"Show me" -- When he wants you to come with him 

"Weh weh" -- Noah 

"Ah mo piss" -- I want another sip 

"Dat down" -- Sit down

"Hee dat?" -- Hear that? 

"Cahdet" -- Target 

"Wahwahmock" -- Walmart

"Ah mo kah" -- I want more fox (Fantastic Mr. Fox

"I too much" -- I'm too much

"Hahvook" -- Fireworks

"Cahcoh" -- Color

"Peeyah" -- Playdough

"Dink" -- Drink 

"Tinkle Sar" -- Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

"Ahbeesees" -- A B Cs

"Butt" -- Button
"Pahkah" -- Parker (the neighbor dog in Abilene)
"oo ah yoo?" -- Where are you?
"I need bacon" -- lol!!!!! :-) 
"Bite hee/dare" -- Right here/there 
"Ahoh why kit" -- I don't like it
"Cheeee" -- Cheese
"Iss boken now" -- It's broken now

Project 52:7--bath buddies

More iPhone Instagram app pics. :-) Noah took a bath in our tub for the first time since he was an infant. At first, he freaked. But as soon as we brought in the reinforcements, all was well. Hooray for bath buddies! They make hair washing better, not completely tear-free...but better.

Project 52:4--conquering your fears

We made a trip to our local park this past week. This is a trip we're frequenting more and more as the weather gets nicer. Can't. Wait. For. Spring! Noah now takes to playground equipment like ants to a picnic basket. And while he was going nuts Randy and I discussed our first trip to this playground, when Noah could not yet climb the stairs by himself much less slide down this GINORMOUS slide. We meticulously taught him how to crawl up each step, grasping the rails for safety along the way. Then, a couple months after that, we moved on to walking up the steps. And before we knew it, he was running up them! Many of these kinds of playgrounds have various "holes" where kiddos can climb up and down, in and out. We still avoid these "holes" as Noah maintains his fearlessness. I'm sure someday we'll reveal them. But...someday. And now to the slide. One of us has typically bobsledded down with Noah, backing him up the whole way down. But now, he doesn't need us. Foreshadowing? Yup. What a bittersweet moment. So exciting seeing him burst out of his shell and show the world his Noahness! And so scary letting him go! I know this moment is scary for every parent. It's particularly nerve-wracking because Noah greets the world head first, runs a muck with his eyes closed, and dances, plays, sings, talks, and fights maybe while hanging upside down. Who knows?! It's his way. Full speed ahead...and a lot of times...backwards. But he owns it. And I wouldn't change a thing. :-)

Project 52:3--repurposing

Ok, so this P52 post is more on the silly side, but I just couldn't help myself. On Friday, Noah and I were busy bees playing in his room and putting toys away. He also recently starting "using" his very own little potty, housed in the bathroom by his room. While he currently loves said potty and frequently plays with it, including "drinking" from the cup, he mostly likes sitting on it and standing up and sitting on it and standing up...over and over and over again...and doing a little dance in between. I'm sure this will become known as his "pee pee" dance when he actually does pee in it one day. So, on this particular afternoon, he was going about his usual potty fun time, but this time that involved taking the cup out and hiding toys inside. This was all fine and fun til he finally dug them out, and in the blink of an eye, plopped them in the REAL potty. So, what did I do? Well, first. I laughed. Second, I ran for my camera. And finally, I schooled him on the proper contents of the porcelain throne.

I really do love repurposing things around my house. I truly believe in repurposing and renovating before buying new. (Like, come on people, do you REALLY need NEW cabinets? Can't ya just paint your current ones? Did they expire? Do they not HOLD stuff? And, yes, our diaper shelf used to be that cabinet you have above your fridge.) But THIS kind of repurposing is the kind I briefly cherished, am psyched to have captured, and will discourage from this day forth......til the next piece of our house is deemed worthy of a Noah-reno. :-)

A Stroll in the Park with Friends

Noah and I made a long-awaited trip to the park the other day. (I'm desperately wanting winter to end and spring to arrive so we can play outside.) And let me tell you, it did not disappoint. We met up with The Wiethoff crew (sans Brent) for a walk/stroll/bike ride excursion and ended up transporting ourselves through the park to the playground. I'm sure it was hard for Noah to stay in the stroller while Cooper and Sadie road their bikes, but he had a blast as soon as he got out. And the kids were so cute on their bikes. Sadie's quickly learning and terribly cute on her little pink bike, so Cooper would speed ahead and stop and play for a bit waiting for us all to catch up.  I've been around these kiddos for a long time, but this trip to the park was particularly fun because of the multiple stops while waiting for Sadie to pedal her way along. The journey to the playground was actually more fun than the actual playground itself. We talked about everything we saw: birds, trees, joggers, volleyball players, and "Mommy, why is that man laying on the ground?" (he was exercising). I know I've said it before, but seeing the world through the eyes of a child is very enlightening and entertaining. I just love these kiddos!

And, now to the pictures...I brought my camera along, of course. And boy am I glad I did! What fun it was shooting my best friend and her kiddos! It was totally candid and unscripted, the best kind of shoot. And it turned out pretty awesome, I think.

Cooper was cracking me up with his sense of daring and exploration.

Sadie just touched my heart, so precious and sweet and eager to learn.

And I couldn't help but get a few of Sally with her babies. I loved watching her coach Sadie, teaching her why her bike would tip, and give Coop freedom to roam while maintaining a watchful eye, something I'm hope I'll come to do with Noah the older he gets.

Funny thing about this adventure, I didn't get that many good pics of Noah.

Here's my one really good photo of him.

Still trying to figure out how to capture that moving target. But, it kinda doesn't even matter. I loved the time we had with our friends and feel blessed to have captured the memory.

Project 52:2--cake

This weekend Noah and I both had our first-ever Starbucks cake pops. And what an experience it was! I had chocolate raspberry, and he had (what I'm assuming to be) strawberry vanilla. He had no idea what a cake ball or cake pop even was, but he didn't care. Anything on a stick HAS to be good, right? I thought he'd down the sucker in one bite, maybe two. But nope. He took his sweet, sweet (pun intended) time. Savoring every little tiny bite. And I sorta did too. ;-) 

On a photog note, I had been taking pics all week. And with each somewhat acceptable shot, I thought, "Well, this would be good for my P52, I guess." OR going out and intentionally taking shots FOR the project thinking, "I've GOT to get a shot this week, I've GOT to get THE shot!" freaking out and all anxious about it. This series (there are actually four pics) was completely spontaneous and happened on Saturday! Right down to the wire. And as SOON as I saw the bottom pic after I took it, I just knew. I LOVE that! There's something so beautiful (and joyful, which is fitting) about not planning this project out and just letting it happen. Which, for those of you who know me, is very tough for me. 

So, there it is! Project 52:2! This is turning out to be a very fun, challenging, thrilling, and growing project indeed. And might I add, the boy's rockin the pink, isn't he?! :-)

Project 52:1--scenic

Here it is! The first post in my 2012 Project 52. I will post a new pic every week (hopefully the better I get at this the fresher the pics will be) centered around my theme: a simple joy. It took me forever to pick a theme because everything I chose was either too narrow or too broad. But, everything I kept thinking of reminded me of the simple joys I get from them (living organically, natural parenting, beauty in simple things, motherhood, etc...). So, I will be choosing pics that encompass all of these areas and explaining their simple joys in my life.

The P52:1 photo was taken while on Christmas vacation in Montana. i love the snowy mountains in the background, the Christmas lights wrapped around the railing, the rocks below the bridge, and the angle of the shot. Not mention, Noah in focus while RUNNING. He thrives in wide open spaces and more than just enjoyed all the running and sledding, so it wasn't difficult to get a pic of him joyful in this scenery. :-) I must admit I'm very proud of this photo. It was one in a string of burst shots I took while he was running very rapidly back and forth, up and down the bridge pictured here. Dangerous, yes. But worth it, ABSOLUTELY!

Lions and Tigers and...Giraffes, oh my!

I've been meaning to write this up for a very long time. It's been crazy around here. And this is even rushed, which frustrates me. But, here it is! Noah had his first zoo experience in September at the Abilene Zoo. It was possibly the funnest zoo trip I've ever been on. It was amazing, touching, and exhausting. We're definitely going back! Thanks to Mom and Dad for helping me chase my little monkey around. His faves? Monkeys and any form of bird. I took a TON of pictures, so here are a few. Mommy had some photog fun as well (seen in the smaller column of pics on the right). The Abilene Zoo is definitely not what I remembered it to be. It's BETTER! Or maybe everything's better when you're with a child? (To view collage larger on a desktop, hold down the Ctrl key and punch the + key several times. Again, I need better photog software.)

True, Tiny Love

I recently made a photo book of Noah's first year of life, making copies for the grandparents. It was a great book, with lots of fun photos and details of each group of months to commemorate milestones. But, it didn't hold that something in my heart, it didn't capture the essence of the Noah I know. So, I decided to make a special, tiny book just for me that did just that.

   Click here to view this photo book.