This That and the Other Thing - Ramblings and Readings and Getting Ready for 3!

Little L turns 3 in a couple of weeks. We just ordered her a "Tigey" cake (like from the TV show - the one that gets shmooshed), and I'm trying to get her banner completed. We are low-keying the party, since every time I ask her what she wants for her birthday, she lists (without fail) balloons, flags (the banner), a cake, and candles. She doesn't care about having presents or guests. LOL. I'm sure next year will be different, but for now I'm relishing not having to overextend myself planning a party for a kidlet who doesn't give a rip about all of those trappings that we grown-ups fuss over. Big birthday bashes, crafts, gift/goodie bags, fancy decor, fancy food... who are we impressing anyway? In our household, only the birthday girl needs to be impressed.

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Speaking of her birthday, I've decided not to get her the balance bike and helmet until the summer. There is a rainfall warning for the greater metro area as we speak, so winter isn't exactly ideal biking weather. If I bought her the bike now, I suspect she'd be chomping at the bit wanting to take it out, only to be regularly disappointed by the schizo forecasts of the lower mainland. Also, I still haven't done enough research to determine the best bike to get Little L, who isn't exactly the most coordinated kid on the planet; the one that I really wanted is only sold in the UK. Instead of the bike, we are going to get her a pet fish. I'm thinking a Betta (Siamese Fighting Fish) since those things are pretty tough and can survive well as loners. 

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I've also started selling off some of the gear we have amassed for our lone child. The caveat is that I'm only selling to make room for more. We currently have a Maclaren umbrella stroller that we paid way too much for, to use as a travel stroller. While it's a fantastic stroller for lightweight kids, its alleged 50-pound capacity doesn't actually hold up in practice with a 37-pound preschooler. So, I'm now seeking a buyer so that I can recover a bit of the cost and apply it towards our new travel stroller: Baby Jogger Citi Mini Zip. Does anyone have experience with this particular buggy?

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It has taken forever but the Christmas stuff is finally down. Yay me! I blame it on Little L's weird flu bug and our nanny coming down with a sinus infection. When do you take down your Christmas decor? Pre-baby, I used to want to keep it up well into January. This year, I wanted everything down by the end of the first week of 2015. Not sure what's up with that. 

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So I've become one of those FB article "sharers." I'm trying to be judicious but there is a lot of interesting stuff out there to read. A few recent pieces that have caught my attention and/or my heart:

Quit Pointing Your Avocado at Me
Man, this author totally nailed it.

Why Young Children Protest Bedtime
 It's an interesting perspective. While I'm not an evolutionist, I kind of agree.

When None of It Mattered
I've walked this road before, and come out on the better side.

Once We Become Parents, We Don't Wanna Hang Out with You Anymore...
So, so true. I think my single or DINK friends are certain I've abandoned them, but really, that's not the case.

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By the way, do you like the phrase mompetition? When I first heard it, I fell in love with the word, partly because I'm a cheeseball and I love puns, but also because it is so, so true. Like, why do parents compare themselves to one another? Or try to outdo each other? Or "humblebrag"? I'm guilty too, but I hope that my awareness of my own weakness gives me the perspective to avoid doing this all the friggin' time. I've been noticing, on several blogs I follow, the level of defensiveness that moms have expressed when other moms espouse a practice or opinion that is contrary to their own. I've read it in lengthy rebuttals and justifications and arguments that they post "in response." Moms don't let other moms have their own opinions. We are the worst. THE. WORST.

The big spats I've most recently seen have been about liberal "free-range" parenting versus keeping kids safe "in a bubble," and between those who are for and against parents being Pinterest-y, crafty, and going the extra miles to "make childhood magical" for their littles.

I'm sure you and I have opinions on both of these issues. We probably fall on opposite sides for some of them, too. But the mompetition of it all seems to be this undercurrent that flows through every one of these issues. It's, at its root, a question of what makes for a good mother. What makes for a better mother? What kind of mothering is best of all? Because every mother wants to be the best, and to give their kids their best, and the threat of not being the best is very difficult to accept. Hence the defensiveness and the mompetition.

But why? In hindsight, in perspective, isn't it all ridiculous when there are babies starving and dying in the world and people being sold like slaves and global climates waging war with our food supplies? #firstworldproblems

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So lately, Little L has been protesting the use of Hubbs' bathroom for washing her hands. She has designated our ensuite the "girls' bathroom" and Hubbs' as the "boy's bathroom." I have never described them that way, but at the library they do, and somehow she has transferred her understanding of the library bathrooms (they have private bathrooms for boys, girls, and families) to our washrooms at home.

And can I just say that Hubbs has been a bad influence on Little L? While we used to refer to the bathrooms as "potties," she now prefers to say that "I have to go to the can." :S