365 Days of Everything Georgia

January 14, 2012 - Life's Ups and DOWNS

>> January 14, 2012 – life

There is no picture today. Life is full of joy and sorrow, but I feel more inclined to take pictures on the days filled with joy. I know, I know, I should capture all of life. Maybe my heart will harden and grow cynical, and I'll be able to do just that. After all, we all must face reality, right?

Life is funny - I say that a lot - because when life slaps you in the face, what else can you really say?

I showed the devil my heart, and the devil laughed at it. The devil is laughing still...

January 13, 2012 - Love and Baking

>> January 13, 2012 – family, food

My mother's baking was always filled with love.

You could taste it in the ooze of a still-warm chocolate chip or the flakiness of a pie crust.

You could hear it in the slap of a rolling pin onto dough or the scrap of a cookie sheet against the oven rack.

You could see it in the expression on her face as she stirred, chopped and kneaded her next creation.

You could touch it in the softness of a cookie or the moistness of a piece of pumpkin bread.

You could smell it in the richness of her Boston Creme Pie or the spices in a cake.

You could feel it all around when everything combined into a delicious treat which my mother always found time to bake because she knew we enjoyed it.

I had a day off of work today, so I decided to pass on some of that love to Georgia. We made chocolate chip cookies.

(I'm now using the timer feature on my camera so I can finally be in some pictures!)

While my baking will never compare to my mother's - I'm a cook not a baker - I still hope the love will surround Georgia as we measure, mix and bake these little morsels of yumminess.

As the blue genius known as Cookie Monster said, "C is for cookie. That's good enough for me."

Love and baking. Love your baking, bake for love.

January 12, 2012 - My Enemy ~ Cleaning

>> January 12, 2012 – housework, too busy

"Our house is clean enough to be healthy, and dirty enough to be happy." ~Author Unknown

Right? Because who wants to spend all their time cleaning house and miss out on just living life? Not me... just take a look around my house right now. Sometimes I'll be driving to/from work or sitting on the floor with Georgia or just taking a few minutes to veg out in front of the TV, and I'll think of all the things that have to be done at the moment, and I'll admit it gets me frazzled a bit. But then I think of all the things I would have had to stop doing or won't get to do if I take the time to get it ALL done - that picnic in the backyard with Georgia, that Play-Doh date we had at her table, the circles we danced to her favorite Mickey Mouse song on TV or the time we spent just cuddling on the couch and doing nothing. No thanks on the wall-to-wall cleaning, I'd rather keep all those moments and the dust bunnies too.

But of course we must chip away at the mess little by little, otherwise I am fairly certain it would smother us. So today Georgia and I did some laundry.

Unlike me, and I'm pretty certain her daddy too, Georgia likes doing laundry. In fact, she likes helping me clean. She just says the entire time, "Georgia is helping" and "Georgia helps."

And she is such a big help. I mean, without Georgia's help, who would I have to iron out the laundry by rolling on it?

Or how would I ever find the time to see what articles of clothing fit over my head?

Mommy's top - yes

Daddy's pant leg - no

Mommy's T-shirt - kind of

Mommy's fuzzy sock - um... definitely not

And Lord help me, without Georgia's help, who would point out when I didn't fold my jeans just right and then snap them up and go running across the room with them to teach me a lesson?

Georgia's help just makes those house chores fly by, and even if it doesn't, it sure makes for more memories.

January 11, 2012 - Like Mommy, Like Daughter

>> January 11, 2012 – food

Georgia and I might as well post a sign in our home, "Say NO to Crust!" We do not like the crust on our sandwiches. My grandmother would be so disappointed.

I swear, I did not sway her in this direction. When she started eating sandwiches, I left the crust on hers and actually ate mine to set a good example (yuck!). But time and time again, she'd eat her sandwich but leave those crusty outlines on her plate. So, now I cut the crusts off her sandwiches and the dogs are extremely happy about this!

I have a long history of crust-hating. I don't know if my mother ever tried to make me eat my crusts because my earliest memories are of her cutting them off for me. She understood me and my crust defiance. My grandmother always told me I should eat them because the crust was more nutritious than the rest of the bread. You know, like the skin of some fruits (actually) hold more nutrition than the meat of the fruit. Um... I didn't buy it - I was a smart kid. And then I had this teacher in pre-school who obviously hated crust-haters as much as I was one. At one point, she MADE ME eat my crust. I threw it up for her. She sent me home. I won!

So I hope Georgia one day realizes she has it pretty good. She has a mommy who fully understands what it's like to just wish for a world of crust-less bread.

January 10, 2012 - An Obsession With Stuffing and Polyester

>> January 10, 2012 – Christmas, growing, the little things

Meet "puppy."

"Puppy" is Georgia's best friend, security blanket, cuddle buddy, emergency pillow, partner-in-crime and constant companion. In fact, I can't believe I haven't dedicated a blog post to "puppy" until now. She (Georgia has determined "puppy" is a she) is a permanent fixture in our daily life.

Now I know it's not unusual for kids to have something they cling to for their early years - whether it be a blanket, stuffed animals or some of the more odd items I've heard mothers describe (read Georgia's further down in this blog) - but this lovey is actually a new phenomenon in my life. I don't remember ever having one, nor do I remember any of my three siblings having a strong attachment to something. But now there is a "puppy" in my life, and Georgia's attachment to her is actually quite cute.

Well, cute, until we have to go to daycare. "Puppy" is not allowed at daycare, so all Hell breaks loose when we have to put "puppy" down and walk out the door. I would like to say it's gotten better in the last week of daycare... but... would you want to leave this face?

So "puppy" I can handle, but "puppy" is having to learn to share Georgia a little bit because "Christmas Hat" moved in just before, well, Christmas. This is now Georgia's other (and slightly odd) obsession!

She wears "Christmas Hat" around the house almost all the time, to the grocery store, to the park, out on a walk and ALWAYS to bed. Yes, "Christmas Hat" has become the evil twin to "puppy." I get "puppy" and I accept "puppy," but that damn hat and I don't see eye to eye... or eye to fuzzy ball.

It makes her head sweat excessively at night (of course, the damn thing's polyester and therefore not breathable), it makes the static in her hair uncontrollable, it smells, it also cannot go to daycare, it's always there to mess up the hair brushing and barrette placement I just finished, and it ain't Christmas anymore.

I know, I know what you're saying - she's two and she'll move on eventually. I know you're right and that's why "Christmas Hat" is still around. But I'm hoping this polyester obsession will soon be in the company of the lights and bulbs and garland living happily in those green and red Rubbermaid bins in the attic.

January 9, 2012 - Jobs With Benefits

>> January 9, 2012 – family, work

I started a new job six months ago and my husband started a new job a little more than a week ago. Starting a new job is never easy. You have to figure out where everyone stands and where you will fall into the mix. You have to develop a new routine. You have to figure out where the break room and bathrooms are. You have to feel out your new managers and how they will be to work for. You basically have to start from scratch and figure everything out all over again. It sucks, actually, it really does, especially when we had both been with our previous employers for a decent amount of time and had become very settled.

So while we are both, no doubt, still adjusting to it all and most certainly comparing the pros and cons versus our last jobs, both our new jobs certainly offer one big benefit that was not possible for us in Omaha - we get to come home for our lunch/dinner breaks!

That means more family time which, as we all know, is an absolutely priceless benefit. In Omaha, our commute was just too far but here - 10 minutes for the hubby and 15 minutes for me, and I get the added benefit of an hour and a half dinner break.

There's just nothing like a home-cooked meal with family. Mark down a "pro" for the new jobs.

January 8, 2012 - Bacchus & Bailey

>> January 8, 2012 – dogs, family

Georgia's arrival into our lives more than two years ago made my husband's and my life amazingly better... in ways we never knew were lacking. Those of you who are parents will know exactly what I mean. All the sudden this little, screaming, red-faced baby enriched our lives to the millionth degree and made us a complete family.

However, I can't say her arrival did the same for two others in our family - Bacchus and Bailey - our dogs. Before Georgia, they pretty much ruled the house, got attention and playtime all the time and treats pretty regularly. But Georgia knocked them right out of their thrown without so much as an "I'm sorry." Georgia's arrival was a complete shock and rude awakening for our two four-legged babies.

It has taken awhile - many days of hair pulling, ear yanking, nose poking, scary screams and laughs at the top of her lungs, toy snatching and the like - but I think Bacchus and Bailey are finally coming around to this "new" family member. Sometimes, she ain't all that bad.