William Tell Overture for Moms

If you are a mom, you've got to watch this!!!

Several of my mom friends sent this to me. OMG, I laughed, and laughed, until tears came out!!! Hey, some say a good belly laugh equals crunches. This definitely counts -- all 2 minutes and 55 seconds of it! LOL!



Your Action Challenge: After you're done laughing, pass it on!

In Praise of Green Beans

Tonight's dinner was rice, rotisserie chicken and sauteed green beans. LK and CB love the chicken, but turned their noses up about green beans. That's not a surprise -- in my 10+ years as a mom, I haven't personally met many kids who love green beans or green peas, or any green veggies, for that matter.

In order to get them to try different vegetables and to make vegetables a regular part of their diet, I've set a rule since they were little. My rule is, they have to finish whatever vegetables I serve at dinner time (I mean the portion I put on their plate). It's OK if they don't finish their rice/noodles or protein (usually chicken or fish, which they love anyway), but they have to finish their veggies.

They both know that's my rule, and there's no way around it.

So, they'd complain (or whine) from time to time, but they do finish their veggies, and even learn to love some of them. For example, LK and CB love corns, carrots, snow peas, cabbages, Chinese bean sprouts, celery, cucumber, and spinach. They just don't like green beans and green peas. And broccoli is something they love sometimes and hate sometimes, depending on their moods.

Anyway, we had green beans tonight, and, not surprisingly, they both groaned when they saw that on the dinner table. Their mood was quickly lifted by the golden-brown honey rotisserie chicken, and they started to joke about how yucky green beans are. The other day, I shared with them that someone who lives in Indonesia sent me a special acrostic made from my name. That must have made an impression on them. Before I knew it, LK started writing an acrostic of beans on a sticky note, right at the dinner table.

This is what LK wrote:

Boring
Ew!!!
Atrocious
Never will eat
Salty

She even took out a dictionary to look up "atrocious", just to make sure she got the right word she was looking for. Then she read it out loud for us:

"Atrocious, adjective, very bad, outrageously cruel".

"Yup, that's the word", LK said, satisfied with her choice of word.

How can innocent little green beans be "outrageously cruel"? Beats me!

Now, CB always loves to follow his big sister's footprints. Of course, he'd have to write an acrostic too! So this is what CB came up with:

Black souls
Ewwww!
Astonishingly gross
Never'll eat, ever
Sardine-like taste

We were all cracking up!!! LK exclaimed, "You don't even know what sardines taste like!!!"

CB shouted back, "I imagine they would taste as gross as green beans!"

We laughed until tears came out!

"OK, guys, now it's time to finish your green beans!!!" I hate to break up a party, but we had to finish dinner and move on to other tasks before bedtime.

Much to my delight, this time, the kids finished their green beans without further complaints. :-)

Carnival of Family Life 1-Year Anniversity Edition

The Carnival of Family Life is celebrating its 1-year Anniversary at its founder Kailani's blog An Island Life this week. There are a whopping 61 submissions this week!

I have participated in a lot of blog carnivals, and I can honestly say that the Carnival of Family Life is one of those that consistently host high-quality articles. I'm very happy to be part of this 1-Year Anniversary edition this week. Make sure you go over there to check out those wonderful (and some downright hilarious) articles at the Carnival of Family Life this week!

My Little Thomas the Tank Engine

I came across this post on Reflections of Time today, in which a father talks about his 3 1/2 years old son's love for Thomas the Tank Engine. Ah, this brought back so many sweet memories!

My son CB used to be a HUGE fan of Thomas the Tank Engine when he was little. I bought him his first Thomas when he was about 1 year old, and he fell madly in love with Thomas at first sight! He would carry his little Thomas the Tank Engine wherever he went. He often quietly played with & stared at Thomas while lying on his tummy on the floor, until he fell asleep. Back then he couldn't tell me what's on his mind, but I often imagined he must be talking to Thomas in his mind and making up all sorts of adventures he and Thomas' friends could go on together.

His collection of Thomas & friends quickly grew, as his passion for Thomas and all trains grew with him. He's got so many engines, train tracks, videos, books, outfits, and of course, he had to be Thomas the Tank Engine for Halloween -- 3 years in a row! He could name ALL 100+ engines in the Thomas the Tank Engine series, and their different personalities. He had a big 24-piece floor puzzle of Thomas, and he could put together that puzzle upside down! We took him to ride the Thomas the Tank Engine (a full-size steam locomotive) at the Strasburg Railroad, TWICE in 3 years. That's how much we loved Thomas!

When he was about 2 1/2 years old, we went to my daughter's first piano recital (she was 5). LK did a great job playing her very first recital piece. When she was done, the MC gave her a little trophy that every kid who played in the recital got. LK excitedly ran back to me and DH to show us her trophy. What we did not expect was that CB walked straight up to the piano, while I was busy taking a picture of LK with her first trophy. The audience started giggling when CB walked right to the MC, handed the MC the Thomas the Tank Engine that he was holding, and proceeded to climb up the piano bench as if he was going to give a recital. The MC happened to be LK's piano teacher who, amused by CB's impromptu performance, turned to the audience and said, "I know he is not in the program, but, do you mind?" The audience burst into laughter and applauded for CB. So, in front of the full auditorium, CB performed his "Impromptu Op no. 1", which was about 10 seconds long, I think. The audience was cheering for him when he finished.

I had a picture of his very first (although informal) piano recital. He was so little sitting at the concert grand piano. Last winter (he was almost 9) when he was complaining about piano practice and saying he didn't like recitals, I told him about his very first piano recital. Of course, he didn't remember at all. His eyes drew very wide, as if I was telling some kind of fantasy adventure story.

Like all parents who wish their babies would never grow up, I thought CB's love affair with Thomas the Tank Engine would last forever. I knew that was my wishful thinking, but I didn't want to face the reality. He was still playing with Thomas when he was in second grade. Then, out of the blue, one day he told me, "Mom, I think I'm too old for Thomas".

"What? Too old for Thomas?!! But, but, you love Thomas soooo much!!!" I was in shock!

CB calmed explained to me that he liked Bionicles better now, and that I could give away ALL of his Thomas trains.

I couldn't believe my ears! My baby Thomas was all grown up!

I asked DH to put away all Thomas trains in the attic, and told CB that he could ask us to take them out when he wanted to play with them again. He never did. He has moved on to Bionicles, and he never looked back.

We finally decided to sell CB's train table last winter, because it's just sitting there taking up precious space in his little room. On a cold, rainy night, a young couple with a baby boy just over one year old came to look at the train table and bought it. I told them how much CB enjoyed that train table playing his Thomas & friends, and that their son will enjoy the train table for years to come. When they left with the train table, I felt like a part of me left with it.

It was the end of an era, a very important chapter of CB's life (and mine too). Somehow, I was the only one feeling sad....

Carnival of Family Life is up at GNMParents

The Carnival of Family Life is up today at GNMParents. As usual, there are so many wonderful and some outrageously funny posts on parenting, family life, kids' funny behaviors, etc. And because holidays are approaching, there are quite a few posts about holiday preparation, family traditions, managing holiday stress, etc. I also submitted Pressure-proof Your Holidays and Thanksgiving Feast for Squirrels. Check out The Carnival of Family Life today!

Thanksgiving Feast for Squirrels

Over the Thanksgiving weekend, my son uncovered a whole bag of acorns in his school backpack that he had collected, every morning, at the bus stop last month. He had totally forgotten about them until now. Thinking it would be a waste to simply throw them away, considering how much time it took him to collect these acorns, I suggested that we think of a way to make a better use of these acorns.

I was pleasantly surprised when he suggested that perhaps we could offer these acorns to the squirrels in our backyard. Cold winter is upon us, and he thought they would appreciate some extra supplies of food.

Of course, my son wouldn't just put out the acorns on the deck. He decided to offer a Thanksgiving Feast in style for our little furry friends. So he asked me for two styrofoam bowls and paper plates, and set up two dishes of acorns on our deck, right outside of the kitchen glass sliding door.

Then we waited, and waited, and waited some more, for the squirrels to come to their surprise Thanksgiving Feast.

The first few hours, there were no takers. They might have come when we were out running errands, but we didn't see one single squirrel near those bowls. My son went to bed disappointed.

The second day the kids went back to school. While I was sitting at the kitchen table, talking to my cousin on the phone, it happened!

The first squirrel timidly approached the bowls of acorns. It sniffed at the acorns and looked around, as if to check if this was a trap. It finally decided to pick up an acorn and hurried off.

A few minutes later, the second squirrel (or perhaps the same one) came and ran off with another acorn. The word must spread quickly within the squirrel community, because pretty soon, there was a steady stream of traffic to our backyard acorn feast. Our two cats Katie and Whisper quickly noticed the commotion on the deck. They gathered in front of the screen door and watched the "show" with intense interest. You can tell if there was a squirrel approaching by observing which direction their little heads turned.

At one point, one unsuspecting squirrel got too close to the glass door, stood up and found itself face-to-face, only inches apart, with two big cats! Both cats and the squirrel jumped with startle. It was so funny to watch!

The squirrels took turns to pick up the acorns, and then rushed off to bury them in the backyard. I could see that some of them were buried in our flower bed, and some by the utility shed. They must be overwhelmed by this unexpected Thanksgiving gift.

Of course, I wouldn't pass up this Kodak moment. I've got to make sure I get some good pictures to show my kids, when they come back from school. Here are some of the pictures I took.

Katie (on the right) and Whisper

After taking the pictures, I took the bowls inside. I wanted the kids to see how the squirrels enjoy their Thanksgiving Feast with their own eyes. So, after they came home from school, I told them what happened during the day, and showed them the pictures in my camera, then we put the bowls back on the deck.

It took a while, but the squirrels finally came back for more. We ate our afternoon snacks, while enjoying this live entertainment, made possible by my son's act of kindness. My heart was filled with abundance and gratitude. I hope my kids' did, too.

(By the way, it took the squirrels almost the whole day to move all the acorns. When we woke up the next morning, the bowls were all empty.)

The Older Women Are On The Prowl!

I read this post by Jen at Stay-at-Home Motherdom today, called "The Older Women Are On The Prowl! (Parental Advisory)", and it cracked me up!!!

Jen talked about how her 3-year-old son (a real cutie) has an "older" (4-year-old) girlfriend in his preschool called Flower, who is a little too affectionate toward her son. She is thinking of "locking him in the house until he's 35", and pleading "LADIES, KEEP YOUR GIRLS AWAY!"

My son CB had a similar experience when he was perhaps 3 or 4 years old. He attended a Catholic Montessori preschool back then. At the Chrismas party for parents, I overheard a mom telling the sister how her daughter LOVED my son and talked about him every day at home. I was very skeptical when I heard that. I mean, CB was (still is) a real cutie pie. The sister called him "my handsome boy". However, my son had NEVER mentioned any girls in his class.

When I asked the sister about it, imagine my shock when she confirmed that there were TWO girls fighting over my son every single day -- fighting to sit next to him, and hugging & kissing him all the time!!! Later that semester, when I visited his classroom, I witnessed one of the girls "bear hug" him from behind during Circle Time. I had the same reaction as Jen did -- Aggghhh! LOL!

CB is now 8 1/2 years old. Over the years, there were always a few girls who were friendly with him, but nothing like those two "girlfriends" back in preschool. He kinda prefers to play with "the guys" and his Bionicles now, instead of girls. For now, Mommy is still his "Favorite Girl", and he is my "Funny Valentine". I know, things will change when he gets a little older, but I hope that day will not come too soon.....