random discoveries

so I just figured out what may have been an additional cause of our late-night drama. In checking to see if Zoe's canine teeth were coming in, (she's got one right below the surface ready to pop through) I discovered she's already got a molar that's probably been there for several days... duh, Mom....way to notice!
I also discovered a great place to find cheap toys--one which I don't know why I haven't taken notice of before....the dollar store! We stopped by there in search of books and found some good toys as potty-training 'incentives'. I'm praying that the new princess markers hanging on the wall will be a reminder to Lily that she'll actually want to try the potty. lol! we'll see how it works. It's a start anyway.
And lastly, I'm so glad to have discovered long ago that places like Walmart, Target and Costco are great places to let my kids burn some energy and test out the toys. Sometimes the large pile of toys at home is just that...a large pile of toys, not as fun because they're not 'new'. It's an added bonus when Andrew gets to come along on one of his days off, and we get to enjoy a gourmet meal at the food court (a yogurt twist and diet coke, anyone?)

Dejavu

A little reminiscing, remembering and slight dejavu as we had quite the night with Zoe last night. She got her 12 month vaccinations a week ago--four to be exact, three of which she'd never had before. We were told that if any reaction occurred--fever, rash, etc., it would be a week in the future. This was, of course, the exact thing we were told when Lily received the same vaccinations at her year check-up. At that time, exactly a week later, we were at my dad's in Kansas City and sure enough, Lily broke out in a rash which we actually thought was chicken pox. See below. She had a terrible time falling asleep and was up for hours past her usual bedtime. I remember it being a very sleep-deprived vacation.

So back to last night. Zoe is normally a very good sleeper. She goes right down at 8:00--I lay her down, she pops her thumb in her mouth, I leave the room, and she goes to sleep. Not the case with last night. She would pop right up after lying her down and just cry and cry--tears, snot, red eyes, the whole bit. Luckily Lily fell asleep amid Zoe's loud cries. 10:00 rolled around, 11:30, 12:30--she was WIDE awake. Eventually Andrew got her to fall asleep on his shoulder but as soon as he tried to lay her down she'd start bawling. We figured out she was actually asleep but was just crying in her sleep--sleep 'crying', I guess you could call it. She finally would lie on our bed without crying but would wake up every several minutes and immediately sit up and seem very disoriented. We'd lay her down, she'd fall asleep, repeat, repeat...This went on pretty much all night...so I was brought back to that night 19 months ago when we did the same thing with Lily. I guess certain reactions just run in families. I wouldn't have been surprised to see a rash, but we lucked out that Zoe hasn't shown signs of one--yet.

Hair

So it's Spring...well, at least according to the calendar it is. So that means that around this time I'm itching to shed my winter hair for a more springish 'do. I've never been a fan of me and short hair. I don't think I have the right face shape for the cute short cuts. I've been keeping my hair a little below shoulder length at its shortest, and it grows and gets longish-ugly after about three months. But lately I've really been frustrated with my lack of style-change--a few inches separates my shortest and longest range.
Color is a different matter--love all of them and am willing to do whatever. I actually loved my color, but for change's sake I need to mix it up. That way my dark color is missed and re-appreciated when I go back to it in the Fall. Color can always be changed, but cuts take a little longer to grow out if that's your current passion.
Here is a picture of me, yesterday, and I have to say for the record I was actually having a decent hair day (hard to come by as of late).

That being said, I have been feeling rather adventurous and in much need of a bigger change than my 'usual'. Andrew is always pushing me to do something 'edgy'. If it was him, he'd put a streak of purple in my hair and give it razory edges that flip out everywhere. However, since I'm the one who actually has to do it, I usually settle for a little more low-maintenance style. (Realistically my hair is often pulled back) But, getting back to my point, I was in need of something to spice things up. I had an idea of a cute cut which I pictured looking pretty decent on me. I knew it'd be rather short--shorter than I've ever been, and I wanted to go blonde. Seeing as my current hair was rather dark, my stylist lifted the color as much as possible but said I'd have to process it more and more to get a really blonde color, so rather than go through a rather rigorous and damaging regimen I opted for the once-lifted color. I actually am liking the color--it's different and lighter and more springish--my main purpose. (Next time it'll go much blonder seeing as it's already been considerably lightened)
However, the cut was a little more drastic than I saw in my mind's eye. See below. I don't hate it--i really don't, but I am reminded why I don't like short hair. It looks so much better on other people. I love my stylist, and she actually did exactly what I told her. There was another stylist who had this same cut and looked darling, so I referred to her as a model. (sidenote: It doesn't matter how cute it looks on someone else, it will look different on you!)

All in all, it's a lesson that I could only have learned by actually trying it out. I'm proud to be adventurous in some ways. It's one area that is pretty easily fixed, and since I'm not so willingly brave in other areas and rather resist change in many areas of my life, I consider it a feat that at least my hair can be a baby step towards trying new things and helping my comfort zone stretch at the same time. Plus, when we're too comfortable with life (including hair), it's almost as if we've resigned ourselves to stagnate, or dare I say fester, in a pool of our own mediocrity. Sitting too long in 'comfort' hastens a loss of motivation to progress and change, and we perhaps miss out on an EXPERIENCE which we'll only have if we're but willing to TRY. This is one of my bigger weaknesses--allowing myself to stay comfortably in my little zone, where I know it's relatively easy and safe. I compare it to exercise.

In physical fitness, our physical bodies are designed to adapt and respond, growing accustomed to whatever physical demands we place on them. For example, if you strive to be able to run three miles a day at a 5 mph pace there will come a point where your body will reach a plateau, a state when your body has become entirely accustomed to that particular activity and you move with ease. It will only stay comfortably easy if you continue to run that same regimen each day. Our spiritual lives are the same way. We essentially have three choices-- we can continue to do the same old thing and remain at our current fitness level, stop running at all and lose what we had gained OR push ourselves harder to run faster and/or longer. In my life, I find myself sticking with the 'usual run'. And at times when I want a 'rest', I slowly lose the fitness level I had already attained, backtracking and having to re-do or re-learn things I had already done. It's very frustrating and not very satisfying at all.

Thus, being too comfortable defeats the purpose of what we need to be doing in this life--stretching ourselves beyond our limits (or what we self-set as our limits), progressing, moving, changing and allowing ourselves to LEARN (even if the outcome is less than desirable). It's the learning and experience that makes us who we are, not necessarily all our accomplishments and positive outcomes.
So I'll take the desire to change when it's there, (whether it's hair or something else) and count my blessings that I have the opportunity to discover new territory....and maybe discover something about myself that I wouldn't have otherwise been able to find.

(...who'd have thought I turn this 'before' and 'after' hair post into a life lesson? Because that really wasn't my original intention...)

where does she get this?

I figured out one answer to the classic open-ended question--You know, when your child says or does something and you think, 'where do they learn this?...nursery? t.v.?
I was doing my hair while Andrew was playing with the girls in the other room, and I overhear:
Lily: Look! I have boogers!
Andrew: Yeah, we don't wipe boogers on the wall (something of late that Lily has been doing). Wipe them on the floor.
Lily: Yeah, wipe on the floor!

HELLO! I guess a mother's work is never done. Now I have to unteach Lily some of her Daddy's 'wisdom'!

fave pix from March

Here is Lily running away with a stolen 'tote' (coke), although it is really a Fresca.

chugging like the best of 'em

Her and cousin, Logan, playing with Zoe's new popper toy while doing psycho eyes
Daddy and his punkins reading a book right on their level :o)

Zoe discovering a new trick--playing peek-a-boo in her shirt

and then, seeing a camera, decides to ham it up as usual
awwww, aren't I cute?
...and lastly, Zoe decides that closer must be better.
('If I'm cute far away, I must be even cuter REALLY close up!')

R&R

So for some reason this week ended up being an R&R week for me. I got to do a lot of things for me and me only most of the time! :o)

I went to see Horton Hears a Who with Lily on Monday...a little mom and me time. Andrew's not too hip on seeing 'kid shows', but they're actually the type I like the most. Lily did pretty good, she got a little restless and decided to go up and down the lighted stairs while watching the giant screen, but for the most part watched the whole show without disrupting anyone else. I really liked the flick, it was really well-made with a cute message.

Tuesday night I got to go out with some of my fam AND Andrew's fam. Andrew's sister had purchased tickets to go see Odyssey dance theater's production of "Shut Up and Dance", a plethora of dances set to the music of the Beatles. She got tickets for all the Pedersen girls but some couldn't make it in the end, so I got to invite my Mom and sister, Hannah, to accompany us. We enjoyed a nice, relaxing dinner at Olive Garden and then headed over to Kingsbury Hall for two hours of great entertainment. It was a lot of fun.

And then Wednesday I had a facial/massage scheduled via an awesome rebate through Walgreens. I'd been able to do 2 other sessions in weeks past, all in all--$300 of services for about $5 plus the tip. Can't beat that! It was so great, and I will miss the guilty pleasure of just being pampered. Pure bliss!

And all through this Andrew willingly watched the girls--no complaints. What a great guy! I guess he's saving up his 'solo' time for the near future when it'll be a little warmer and he'll want to go golfing.

To top it all off, we went to the mall to do my least favorite thing to shop for-- a new bra. While I didn't find anything but pure frustration in the bra department, we ended up getting our cell phones upgraded for FREE! Good thing, too, because our old ones were two years old and in desperate need of new batteries. The new Sony Ericcsons are very cool and Andrew was very stoked to show off all he had learned from the salesman while I was off in the dreaded dressing room.

Gotta love a little change-up of a week thrown in here and there from time to time. (and how's that for a great sentence?!)

Dance, baby, dance

(you'll have to pause the background music to the blog first--that way you can hear the music that zoe is grooving to. Go to the playlist box on the right hand side of the blog, near the bottom and press the pause.)

Zoe is quite the little dancing queen as you can see. She loves to be-bop to any type of rhythm/melody and really gets into it. She's sitting down here and is limited to what she can do, but when she's standing her little legs bounce up down in beat to the music and her head gets going. She must get the dancing gene from her mother. (we'll have to work on the lips though...it's all about the facial expressions)