priligy espaol

Halloweening

by verdemama on October 31, 2010

Note to self: trying to get a toddler to wear a garden gnome hat is an exasperating exercise in futility. Go hatless next year.

Hey! What is this thing on my head?


No, seriously. What the heck is that thing?


Riight, the hat. I thought I told you I wasn’t wearing the hat.


I’m outta here!


Okay, now I’m happy.


You can wear the hat, daddy. You sure look silly!


You look pretty silly, too, Mama.


Yep, pretty silly. I’m still not wearing the hat.


Carving pumpkins… that’s more like it!



Happy Halloween, everybody!

{ 6 comments }

More iPhone Apps for Toddlers

by verdemama on October 27, 2010

It’s been a while since my last list of iPhone apps for babies and toddlers, so I figured it’s time for an update!

Orion still loves playing with my iPhone, which I let him do, usually only in those emergency instances of extreme-boredom-bordering-massive-meltdown. I still think human interaction, getting out in nature, reading books, cuddling, etc. are the ideal options for quality time with one’s offspring, but we all know not every moment can be ideal. (So there’s my disclaimer. Spend time with your kids, people!) When you need five minutes of quiet sanity, there are always iPhone apps. Thank. God.

Splish Splash Inn


This app was a pleasant surprise—a fantastical underwater hotel populated by charmingly illustrated musical sea creatures. Kids can select a door 1 through 10 and see who and how many creatures live therein, then tap the animals to create different musical sounds. Orion loves fish (we are members of the Aquarium of the Pacific and go there often) and he’s crazy about this app. ($1.99)

My Very First App


This is more like Orion’s 40th app, but considering it’s based on the celebrated illustrations of Eric Carle (author of The Very Hungry Caterpillar and countless other classics), this particular app’s name is, well, apt. I did have my doubts about this one at first, even though it’s from the developers of Orion’s beloved Peekaboo Barn and Peekaboo Wild apps. It seemed a little difficult and not terribly exciting for a young toddler to use, but it turns out Orion is drawn to these familiar illustrations (and anything featuring a fire truck is a winner in his book). He’s currently in full-on parrot phase as well, so he enjoys repeating the words he hears played in the game. ($.99 for the basic app; add-ons extra)

Itsy Bitsy Spider


We’re pretty much in love with all apps developed by Duck Duck Moose, and this one especially has kept Orion entertained through countless high-stress situations, including airplane trips and our barf-tastic Alaskan cruise illness. Like all DDM apps, this one is highly interactive with tons of educational aspects. Check out their other apps as well, because they’re all fantastic, and affordable to boot. ($.99)

I do get sent quite a few promo codes to try out new iPhone apps—including Splish Splash Inn and My Very First App—but I don’t feature them all. So rest assured, if you see them on verdemama.com, they are Orion-approved.

{ 0 comments }

The One About the Pumpkin Patch

by verdemama on October 26, 2010

October is pretty much the best month ever, amiright? While the Ohio girl in me misses seeing the leaves change into a million different shades and feeling the air turn briskly cool, there’s something nice about wearing shorts and feeling sunshine on my shoulders well into autumn. (With the exception of the weird rainy weather this year, which actually I don’t mind at all.)

Of course, no fall would be complete without a visit to the pumpkin patch, which in Southern California means an empty urban lot decked out with imported hay, pumpkins, gourds, carnival rides, etc. A far cry from the real life, actually-growing-pumpkins pumpkin patches of my youth, but fun nonetheless. We drive by this one on the daily so it’s becoming a regular stop for us. He’s going to be so sad come Nov. 1st when the carnies pack this baby up and leave town.



{ 5 comments }

Our Cozy Mess

by verdemama on October 25, 2010

The best part about going on a trip is coming home. We had a great time visiting friends and family in the Bay Area this weekend, but it feels so good to be back in our own cozy house, surrounded by all the comforts therein. Orion feels the same. He spent the remaining hours of Sunday evening running excitedly around the house getting out every single toy, book, shoe, etc. he owns. Here’s to our cozy mess.

{ 0 comments }

Accessories Make the Outfit

by verdemama on October 21, 2010

We were on the way out the front door today to visit some friends, when Orion had to run back in the house for some reason. When he came out, he was wearing this—his fireman’s hat (worn backwards, of course, ‘cause he’s gansta like that), bequeathed by our firefighting friend and former neighbor. Now we were ready to roll.

I can’t believe in a mere 20 months, this kid has gone from being a crying lump of drool to a person that needs to accessorize before leaving the house. He blows my mind on a daily basis.

*****

If you would be so kind, would you mind giving us a lil’ ol’ click on ye olde topbabyblogs.com? Thank you kindly!

Click To Vote For Us @ Top Baby Blogs Directory!

{ 0 comments }

The New Stool, Part II

by verdemama on October 18, 2010

Orion’s new stool is really coming in handy. It’s great for removing and rearranging the contents of the cupboards while I’m not looking.

{ 4 comments }

I’m Pretty Much Awesome

by verdemama on October 14, 2010

As of tomorrow evening, we will have survived another week of solo parenting. Erik was in Boulder on a business trip, and other than the house being a totally scary, dangerously cluttered disaster, I’d say we fared fairly well. O and I always have a pretty good time together.

{ 4 comments }

The New Stool

by verdemama on October 13, 2010

No, this post isn’t going to be about toddler feces. (You’re welcome.) It’s about the new step stool we got for Orion so he could wash his hands all by himself. We decided to put it in the kitchen so he would have easy access to the sink for hand washing, and I could also use it to finally reach those just-out-of-arms-length shelves in the cupboard. Pretty great idea, right?

Ha! ::facepalm:: Rookie parent mistake, big time. Sure, Orion can hop right up to the sink to wash his hands now, but he can also reach the microwave, the coffee pot, the food cupboards, etc. My little Curious George has been getting into absolutely everything, scooting the stool around the kitchen as needed.

It reminds me of the little red stool my brother had as a child, which now resides in my mom’s kitchen. On it it reads:

This little stool is mine

I use it all the time

To reach the things I couldn’t

And lots of things I shouldn’t

Truer words were never written.

I’m sure it’s just a matter of time before he realizes he can move the stool outside of the kitchen and get into even more trouble in other rooms. I’ll be adding this to my running list of brilliant parenting decisions, for sure.

{ 5 comments }

Orionese

by verdemama on October 12, 2010

Whoops! I can’t believe it’s been almost a week since I’ve posted. In my head I’ve been busy writing blog posts these past six days, but in reality my fingers haven’t typed a word. Seems like life keeps getting in the way of blogging. I don’t know how some of these moms do it, juggling kids, husbands, multiple websites, day jobs, etc. I’m definitely not a Type-A person and some nights I’d rather plant my rear on the couch and make out with my DVR than blog, sooo… I guess you’ll just have to deal with that. Love me as I am—a sporadic, sometimes-ambitious, sometimes-lazy blogger.

Orion eating “bweez,” or “babies,” as he now calls them.

Anyhoo. We’ve been enjoying being back home in beautiful California. I’ve always loved traveling to Europe (or any country/continent, for that matter), but I’m always even happier coming home. Seeing different parts of the world and how other people live makes me so grateful for my own little spot on this ball o’ clay. There are 101 reasons why traveling is awesome. It expands our hearts and minds in ways I can’t quite put my finger on.

For example, since we’ve been home, Orion has been talking up a storm. He’s always been a little babbling jabberwocky, but now he’s stringing multiple words together, his pronunciation is greatly improving, and he repeats, like, everything I say. (Note to self: watch what you say.)

We think maybe Orion was an African Bushman in a past life because of some of the hilariously bizarro sounds he makes. He can’t make the “k” sound yet, so instead he clicks his tongue. Instead of saying “truck,” he says, “truh-(tongue click)” or instead of “snack,” he says, “snah-(tongue click). He also calls his sippy cup (or even a glass of water) “baba-(lip pop),” which is weird considering he never used bottles and we don’t call his sippy cup a bottle either. He may just be trying to say “water” and it’s coming out “baba-(lip pop).” I have no idea why he adds the pop sound at the end, but we think it’s quite entertaining.

He also has a few made-up words that he uses all the time. Cars and trucks are called daddos. At first I thought he was calling Erik daddo, because he said daddo every time Erik pulled into the driveway at the end of his workday. But soon enough I realized any ol’ car or truck was a daddo. Now we ride in the daddo, play with daddos and see daddos everywhere we go. It’s a daddo world and we’re just along for the ride.

When we were in Prague, we rode the didoo, i.e. the train. I’m assuming this word evolved from a combination of daddo and the “choo choo” sound some trains make. (Although the Prague subway was decidedly choo choo-less.)

I love that he’s able to tell me what he wants now. He asks for his baba-(lip pop) when he’s thirsty and asks, “Nurse nigh nigh?” before bed, among other things.

I’m so excited for all the sure-to-be-enthralling stories he’ll have to tell us in the coming months and years, but it’s also a little bittersweet to watch him sprouting into a kid right before my eyes.

{ 1 comment }

Czech Out My Lame Prague Recap!

by verdemama on October 6, 2010

I’m going to try to keep this as succinct as possible—basically one step beyond grunting and pointing—because I could truly write a novella about our Prague experience but I don’t have the time or the mental bandwidth at the moment to do so. So without further ado, here is our trip to Prague, in (mostly) pictures.

Riding the Airtrain at JFK, before the long haul to Frankfurt, then Prague. This was the first of many trains we rode last week. Orion was unbelievably excited. Airplanes AND trains, together at last!

We went to Prague so Erik could attend a conference, and while Erik was busy working, Orion and I hit the town. I don’t have tons of photos from Orion’s and my solo adventures because I didn’t want to haul around a big digital SLR in addition to wrangling a toddler (pick-pocketing and petty crime is a problem in Prague, so I wanted to avoid walking around with a big bulls-eye on my back), so I instead relied on my trusty iPhone.

During Erik’s breaks from the conference we saw all the major sites, including Staré Město (Old Town), Pražský Hrad (Prague Castle), Karlův Most (Charles Bridge) and more. Prague is a gorgeous little city, something right out of a fairy tale, although we did see some crazy-ass, blatant heroin use right out in the streets. Aside from the in-yer-face drug use, Praha, as the locals call it, was so much fun and definitely worth Czeching out if you ever have the opportunity. Har har.










In case you’re wondering, Orion was an amazing little traveler, even during the convoluted 30 hour journey home. To all the parents who are afraid to travel with their young kids, I say, you’ll never know how well they can handle it until you try, and the more you do it, the better they’ll be at it. It’s so important to me that my kids are citizens of the world. Erik and I have traveled a lot (like, A LOT… we used to go out of the country several times a year) together before we had Orion and we always knew we didn’t want having kids to change that.

And so far, it hasn’t.

Peep some more Prague pix here, if you’re so inclined.

Related Posts with Thumbnails

{ 5 comments }