OH HEY THERE!

HI! I totally forgot you existed little bloggy.

Maybe it was my allergies? No.

Let's try the week after that. Cold? No.

h1n1? Nah. I have yet to be infected. Nope. It was just plain life I guess. You see, I don't have much time (or really feel like it half the time) to jump on here and tell you about my boring life of nodding my head and saying, "Yep Mason, that's a CAAAARRRRRR". Because that's what I have been doing. All.day.every.day.

Mason does go to a little daycare-ish place now. Well, at the gym. That's right, this stay-at-home mom makes poor early childhood education majors watch her crazy toddler so she can work on her fitness. I enjoy every single second of that 2 hours (usually less) that I get to just crank up some Britney and sweat my ass off. Plus they totally LOVE him. And he totally LOVES them. He has so much fun and is in such a great mood when I pick him up. The funniest part is that when he gets his little sad face when I drop him off, you would think I would want to scoop him up and just go home. Nope. Not this girl. SEE YOU LATER CHILD.

I guess that shininess finally wore off, huh?

Loves.

What I love RIGHT NOW:

The fact that my husband stopped working today when Mason walked over to him holding one of his favorite books, (What's Wrong Little Pookey?) to read to him. In the middle of the day. Like, ahhhhh swoooon.

Forever 21. Can they make cuter clothes? Can they be any cheaper? A friend and I recently shopped there for an upcoming trip and I may just petition them to open a store closer to me.

The fact that fall is here. I love the colors, the air, the smells, the food, the clothes. I love it all. For some reason, the colors on the trees look even more vivid this year.

The fact that Mason resembles a tiny drunk man when we walks. It just blows my tiny mind that my child is walking. He is walking. And he carries stuff around the house. Like a real little person. And he loves to clean and put things in and out of other things. How soon can I teach him to unload the dishwasher? Oh, right. Knives.

Ornery.

I have an ornery child.

Did I know this was coming? Yes, probably. I mean, look at me. Usually he contains his madness to the confines of our home. He is always an angel when we venture out. People are constantly commenting on how good he is. Yes, he has his occasional outbursts in places (usually the places where he can hear his echo) but NEVER has he thrown an all-out fit.

Welcome to toddlerhood.

I had a meeting at a Panera yesterday and I had to take Mason. It was right after a nap so of course all he wanted to do was run around and play. And I am not kidding when I say RUN. The kid has only been walking for a week and he literally is RUNNING already. Luckily, the girl I was having said meeting with was VERY nice and VERY understanding.

Mason arched his back in protest when I tried to hold him or put him in his stroller, he flung juice all over the poor girl's computer, threw goldfish everywhere (sorry Panera people), screamed constantly so I couldn't hear what was being said, etc etc etc. Imagine every meltdown you have ever witnessed and scoffed at in public. That was my meeting. I even let him play with my new-er precious Blackberry. Yeah, it was THAT bad.

Once we left, he instantly turned into my angel again, and he has been ever since. I don't know what it was about that meeting yesterday but OH HOLY HELL HELP.

The Drunk

Where have I been AGAIN you say?
Let this video explain:

First Steps from Tiffany Luc on Vimeo.

Where I Have Been

It's not like I was going to be all, "Hey! Internets! I am going to the beach for a week! My house will be empty! Come rob me! I bet my neighbor whom we generally trust will leave the front door unlocked for God knows how long!"

I will explain this picture more later: Nah. I am much more stealth than that. I am mysterious. I disappear without notice. I run away from the blog world without so much as a "see you later suckas!". I pack up my family and head to the beach. We play in sand. We play in water. I get thy ass kickethed by ocean. I gather large amounts of sand in my bathing suit bottoms. I call it, "sand turds". I climb to the top of a lighthouse that I had to sign a release form for. I am afraid of heights. More on that later. I watch as a glass of wine gets spilled on my Blackberry. I am on my 4th phone in less than a year. I am way too smart for Verizon. Annnnnd more later.My kid is the best traveler eva. I will tell you all about this. Later.And the cutest.

Way too fast.

This might not seem like a big deal...I mean, he has been walking behind toys for months and months and months BUT this toy, this incredible annoying lawn mower toy, it provides NO balance or stability for him at all.

This is all happening so fast. He only started standing alone last week. Now, he is on his way to resembling a really small drunk person.

He Begins to Walk from Tiffany Luc on Vimeo.

I am very, very sneaky.

Somewhere between completely devouring every spoonful of awful puree we put in front of his face, and well, this afternoon, Mason became a picky eater. According to my doctor this is normal for his age, they decide they hate vegetables and refuse to eat them. I noticed. Especially when he began only eating solid foods, he decided that he hated vegetables. He loves macaroni and cheese, so I decided that HA! I shall hide peas in the cheese!

Oh stupid mommy. Don't you know that he will find them? He will. AND he will suck the cheese off and spit them out.

He also loves to organize his food on his tray. Yucky vegetables go in this cup holder, macaroni and cheese goes in my mouth and milk goes in this cup holder. What happens when all that is left on his tray are the veggies? TO THE FLOOR THEY GO! Ohhhh and that pisses me off. Do you know how hard it is to clean dried, crusty carrots off the floor?

Enter Jessica Seinfeld and her much talked-about (not always for the best reasons, but hey TEAM JESSICA!) cookbook, Deceptively Delicious. My precious. My sweet, sweet precious. I classify this book in with my Maclaren stroller and now my Blackberry. Lovies. Mommy lovies. The cover should read: For kids who find veggies even when you hide them in mac and cheese.

Her secret, and now mine: back to purees. Only this time you aren't sitting there making airplane noises and shoving spoonfuls into your children's mouths. This time you are hiding purees in what looks like yummy every day foods. I must say, these recipes are yummy. So yummy in fact that now mom and dad are getting their day's worth of veggies as well.

Behold, one of Mason's faves: Spinach Pita Pizza (or as I call it, PIZZA!)

Here is the shortened version, the full version is of course available in the book:

Whole Wheat Pitas

Part-skim Mozzarella cheese

Sauce (I use whatever is left over in the fridge, preferably Muir Glen Organic)

Spinach Puree (all you have to do is cook some baby spinach leaves in a pan with a little water until they wilt. Put into a food processor and blend until smooth, adding more water if needed - I keep a frozen batch of all my purees on hand at all times.)

Pre-heat oven to 350

Spread some spinach puree onto the pita, spoon on some sauce, sprinkle cheese and bake until the cheese is melted. TA-DA!

I cut a pizza up into small pieces and Mason gobbles the entire thing down. What he doesn't know is that there is spinach pieces all over his face and in his belly. Lovely.