melissa

There is a two year-old running around my house!

family, flora, friends, life, parenthood, sean No Responses »

Sep 062010

Flora turned two on Saturday. It’s hard to believe that it’s been two years. Sometimes the time goes quickly and sometimes it feels like the boring, lather-rinse-repeat parts will go on forever. (For the record, the boring, lather-rinse-repeat parts aren’t so much family-related as they are maintenance and logistics-related.)

The last few weeks leading up to Flora’s birthday have brought small, but noticeable shifts and progression in who this kid really is. She’s been talking quite well for a while now, but she’s really starting to talk in full sentences and answer questions clearly and in ways that make sense.

She has her own little jokes and remembers things someone said to her and repeats them when they talk to her next. An example: Sean’s mum was giving Flora some orange pieces for breakfast. Grandma started teasing her that they were peaches. Flora said “No, oranges” and the conversation quickly turned into giggly shouts of “Oranges!” and “Peaches!” at each other. (At least we know where Sean gets his sense of humour from.) Every time Flora talked to her grandma, the argument could be started again just by grandma saying “peaches”. Sean and I could also get her going ourselves if we started the conversation.

(Click on the pictures to view larger versions)

The birthday girl in her new princess dress and Daddy’s hat.

The imagination switch has also been turned on. It is so much fun to watch her play with her toys now. She’s talking to them and bossing them around. We did some helium balloons for the party and she (and our other young party guest) couldn’t get enough of them, even when they flew away to the ceiling.

Flora and Thomas get a big kick out of the balloons

I know that this stuff is perfectly ordinary and that all kids go through it. It’s still amazing to watch your own kid go through it for themselves. The changes are so big when they are so little.

Here are some more pictures from the party:

The birthday girl in the party dress that Grandma made. The winter boot accessorizing was all Flora’s idea.

Grandma really liked that present

The tricycle Sean picked out for her. It was a hit.

Thomas gets a turn on the tricycle

Flora wasn’t sure about what to do with the candles, but she had some helpers to show her what to do.

Flora now has her own (toy) laptop. No one is allowed to press her buttons (since she’s not allowed to press ours).

Tricycling with Grandma the next morning.

I don’t think they were arguing about oranges and peaches here, but you never know.

Birthdays, beauty marks and being bummed out

family, irritants, life, motherhood, thinking No Responses »

Aug 312010

Today is my birthday. I am 32 years old.

I’ve always been a birthday person, but over the last few years, I’ve found it harder and harder to celebrate it. I don’t have issues with my age – I’ve always said that getting older will force people to take me seriously. Since my birthday falls at the end of August, it always feels like celebrating my birthday goes hand in hand with mourning the end of summer. I always get bummed out a few weeks before my birthday, knowing that the end of summer is imminent and my birthday and then Labour Day weekend will put the final nails in the coffin. Once fall starts to really kick in, my bummed-out feelings start to fade and I start to enjoy the warmer clothes and cooler days and everything continues on as usual.

Working on my birthday doesn’t help these bummed-out feelings. Being a summer baby, I didn’t go to school on my birthday until I was in my last year at college. Once I started working, I booked my birthday off as often as I could. I stopped that for the last few years due to enforced vacation time at the beginning of August when my office closes for a week. I didn’t want to blow two thirds of my allotted vacation time in one month.

So I started working on my birthday. And my birthday, and all the special things I’d like to do that day just felt like another bunch of items to complete on the to-do list. Nothing special, just obligatory. Now that Flora’s birthday is four days after mine, my birthday should rightfully take second place to hers. At two, she’s not birthday-crazy yet, but at four, or seven, or eleven, she will be. My birthday stuff shouldn’t eclipse hers. I’m okay with that but I still want my day to be at least a little special.

I’m hoping I’ll be able to sneak out and get a pedicure during lunch, but I’m playing that by ear. If I can, great. If I can’t, no big deal. I want to spend time with Sean and Flora, but I also want some time to myself. I wanted that before I became a parent, and I still want it now. I like to wander around, pretend I’m a woman about town. Do some shopping (window or real). Do some spa-type stuff. Read a good novel. Write something interesting about it all. It’s hard to fit all that in after a full work day and being a contributing member to my family.

I don’t want cake because every time we buy a cake for me, Sean and I eat a slice or two and the rest gets chucked after weeks in the fridge. I bought some mini cupcakes that will satisfy the need for birthday cake, and any leftovers can be brought out at Flora’s party without it looking strange.

You’re probably reading this and wondering “why was she babbling about beauty marks in the title of this post?” I’ll tell you that now.

I have two moles on my face. One near my right eye and one under my chin. I’ve had them forever and they don’t bother me – they’re just part of my face. I never thought about them much until Flora started pointing them out to me asking what they were then saying “Amole.” (She says it as if it was one word.) “Mummy’s mole. Flora’s mole.” (Everything mine is hers, even if they’re attached to my face.)

Last week, I was getting ready for bed and was surveying my face for zits. (I must still be young; I look for zits and not wrinkles.) Then I noticed something unusual about my moles.

They have hair growing out of them.

Eww. Eww. Fucking EWW!

They’re not big gross long dark hairs, but I never thought I’d be one of those ladies with the big hairy moles on their face. For all I know, those hairs have grown there forever and I’m only just noticing them now.

Only now that I’ve noticed them, I can’t unnotice it. I wonder if I could (or should) be getting them removed? How much would it cost (since it would likely be cosmetic). Is the potential scarring worth it in two places on my face? What if the doctor poked my eye by accident?

I’m sure I’ll be mostly over this by the time fall rolls around. I may bring it up with my doctor when I have my next physical. But until then, those moles are the symbol of my fading youth and my impending middle age. I never thought I’d be that grumpy about fading youth and impending middle age but those mole hairs really grossed me out.

So yeah, it’s my birthday. Hopefully it’s a good one. The moles will get mad if it isn’t.

Public Service Announcement: Get a professional bra fitting

adventures, life, shopping No Responses »

Aug 252010

Note: no boob pictures will be posted in this entry. Sorry to disappoint.

My first public service announcement was to tell everyone to floss their teeth. This public service announcement is just for the ladies.

Go and get a professional bra fitting. It makes clothes fit better, makes your shoulders and back feel better and makes your figure look way better.

I went to my favourite store that does bra fittings recently when I heard they were having their annual summer sale. High-quality, well-made foundation garments really make a difference to a girl’s figure. Especially a busty fat girl’s figure like my own. Properly-fitted bras make me look like I *have* a figure.

Now, I admit that this can be an expensive venture. In the few years that I have worn expensive bras, I find that with proper care, they last and hold things up longer. The cheap bras I’ve bought in the past usually fall apart within weeks of wearing with blown underwires and ripped lace from constant adjusting. They didn’t look as nice under a sweater either.

It feels unladylike to air my dirty laundry about such an intimate part of my laundry. But I truly believe that if more women would get properly fitted for their bras, more manufacturers would make bras in an expanded range of sizes. You know that stat about most women are wearing the wrong size of bra. Totally true. And that size changes from bra to bra. I bought three bras and each one of them is a slightly different size. And they all fit well.

So if you are looking for one really good investment piece for your wardrobe, invest in a good bra (or as many as you can afford). It really does make everything else you wear look better.

I used to be with it

irritants, life, music, thinking 2 Responses »

Aug 202010

“I used to be with it, but then they changed what “it” was. Now, what I’m with isn’t it, and what’s “it” seems weird and scary to me. It’ll happen to you.“

Grampa Simpson, ‘Homerpalooza‘ episode of The Simpsons (Episode 3F21, original airdate: May 1996)

I didn’t believe Grampa Simpson at the time, but in the 14 years since this episode originally aired, I find this statement applies more and more to my life.

I’ve paid attention to music since I was a little kid. I remember rocking out with my parents when my mum and dad would put their records on and turn it up. I also remember when they’d turn up the music when they were having parties and my sister and I were supposed to be sleeping. Not sure how we were supposed to sleep through “Paradise by the Dashboard Light” played at top volume, but it helped when I knew what that song was when they played it at high school dances. (I clearly remember saying “Oh my *gawd*, my *parents* used to listen to this song!”)

I used to read a lot of music magazines. I didn’t always pick up the albums the critics recommended, but I liked knowing about them, and being able to know something about who was singing the song on the radio or on TV. Now, I rarely buy new music. I may pick up the odd album that a favourite band or artist has put out, but I find I’m even doing that less and less. Good thing I didn’t end up becoming a music critic as I dreamed of being when I was in high school.

I’ve recently started tuning into the pop stations when I’m driving by myself for errands and whatnot. I’m a rocker so this feels weird to me, but it gets me out of my head for a few minutes, even if I think some of the songs on today’s playlists are dirty dirty. (Another example of me no longer being with it – where did my cane go so I can shake it at the kids while I tell them to get off my lawn?) I’ve even been known to drive around a little longer just to hear the end of a song – something I haven’t done since I was a teenager.

While I’ve been writing this I’ve been trying out Grooveshark. I was happy to find some of my old favourites, but I got a huge kick out of the Lady Gaga/Beyonce/Metallica mashup “Enter Telephone”. Maybe I will catch up with today’s music yet. Or maybe not – Sean just bought us concert tickets to see KISS – a band that made it big before either of us were even born. We’re crazy excited about it – we’ve never seen them before, and the show should be high on spectacle. Should be good value for my buck.

Because the biggest thing I’ve discovered about music since becoming an adult is that I’m a lot choosier about what I spend my money on.

Are you still up on the music of your youth? Do you pay attention to the music the kids are listening to? Does music sound as good as it did when you were a teenager? Let me know in the comments.

I love you - now on video

family, flora, life, parenthood, sean, silly No Responses »

Aug 152010

Sean went out Friday night and I went out Saturday morning. We sent video messages to each other just to make the other person smile. Sometimes technology is pretty neat. Even if it is being used for something totally sappy and silly like this. Especially when it is being used for something totally sappy and silly like this.

See below for the videos we sent each other.

I Love You Daddy from Melissa Price-Mitchell on Vimeo.

I love you Mummy from Melissa Price-Mitchell on Vimeo.

Wordless Wednesday: At the Beach

adventures, family, flora No Responses »

Aug 112010

Snuggling

family, flora, parenthood, sean No Responses »

Aug 092010

I took these pictures of Sean and Flora last night. They were making faces, fake sleeping and snuggling under Flora’s new favourite blanket – my red sarong. I was putting it away yesterday and Flora stole it for herself and is calling it her “red blanket”. I haven’t gotten it back yet. I didn’t expect Flora to steal items from my wardrobe and accessory collection so quickly. We’ve been taking turns wearing one of my necklaces this weekend as well. I think I have a fashionista on my hands. Hopefully she becomes more fashionable than I am.

It’s hard to believe, that nearly two years ago, Sean and Flora looked like this together:

Time definitely flies when you’re having fun.

New section: Noteworthy

hellomelissa.net No Responses »

Jul 192010

I’ve just finished putting together a page showcasing some of my favourite posts.

Noteworthy: my favourite posts on hellomelissa.net

Part of me feels like this is a little arrogant and circular, but part of me is thinking “Awesome! It’s like having my own Greatest Hits album that has a commercial on late-night TV!”

The joys of curating your own content.

While many posts are more recent (nothing before 2005 made this version of the list), have a look and read anything you haven’t seen before.

Cabbage Patch Kids: a history of a well-loved doll

family, flora, life, parenthood 3 Responses »

Jul 112010

I started writing a long comment on Karen’s post about her Cabbage Patch Kid when I realized we’d both be better off if I wrote a post and linked to that in her comments instead.

Like many kids growing up in the mid-eighties, both my sister and I had Cabbage Patch Kid dolls. We got them for Christmas the year they were so popular in Canada – 1985 I think? My mother doesn’t remember any stampedes but remembers that they were hard to find. Mine was named Sylvia Estelle and Kyla’s was named Susan Zora. I remember both of us signing the adoption papers and my mother telling my sister that she wasn’t allowed to throw hers on the floor (apparently, she was a doll thrower).

We played with them a *lot*. My mom made clothes for them. My sister cut their hair (something I only discovered recently when I couldn’t get the ponytails fixed properly). I remember going to a Cabbage Patch Kid party where all the girls brought their dolls and we all played. Someone took a picture of at least ten dolls on the couch and while their faces essentially looked the same, each one of them was unique enough that you knew exactly whose doll was whose.

Before we got the “real” Cabbage Patch Kids, we were given homemade dolls made by one of our favourite aunts. They weren’t the same as the Cabbage Patch Kids, but they were pretty close. We loved those dollies too. They were loved hard because I remember mine getting holes in her face and some of her hair was falling off. My sister also put lipstick on my doll (“to see what it would look like”) so they were definitely one of a kind. What made them extra special was that my aunt made them look like us – Betty Lou had short brown hair like me and Lily was blonde like Kyla.

Fast forward to now. These dolls are still at my mom’s house, and the Cabbage Patch Kids have both been brought out for Flora to play with when she’s at Grandma’s. (I think the homemade dolls are a little fragile for a toddler.) Fun fact: when I was pregnant, my mother had me practice my swaddling on my Cabbage Patch Kid. Later in the evening, I realized I was still cradling my swaddled “baby” and jiggling her as if she was a real baby. Big laughs all around.

Flora playing with her aunt's Cabbage Patch Kid

Flora playing mummy to her dolly

Flora adores these dolls and plays with them every time she visits Grandma’s house. Interestingly, she seems to have taken a bigger shine to Kyla’s doll and not mine – I think Susan Zora got better placement in the house.

When my mom heard that the 25th anniversary dolls were released, she was excited to buy one for Flora and gave it to her for her first birthday. I think they’re running out of names in the Cabbage Patch because her dolly is named “Fairy Artie”. I had to get my sister to repeat it when she told me on the phone before we actually saw the doll. She told me “Fairy as in ‘fairy godmother’ and Artie as in ‘Artie Ziff’”. My reponse: “Oh, so little Fartie then”. Again, big laughs all around. Little Fartie sits on Flora’s toy shelf as she seemed a little large for Flora’s hands. Writing this post made me realize that I should take Little Fartie down and let Flora play with her. She was a big hit and will be entering regular rotation.

Birth Certificates for Flora's Cabbage Patch Kids

Yup, that doll really is named Fairy Artie. The other kids in the Patch must have had a field day with her.

L-R: Ericka Alessandra, Fairy Artie

I think my mom likes these dollies as much as we do. When she saw the little preemie dolls that came out recently, she went and bought one of those for Flora as well. Ericka Alessandra is a little smaller than a regular Cabbage Patch Kid and is made completely out of plastic. Flora adores her and plays with her regularly. One of her favourite things to do with it is take off all of dolly’s clothes. Then I have to put them back on because she hasn’t gotten the hang of that part yet. (Kind of like Flora herself.) Sometimes I hear her talking to her dolly like I talk to her: “change your diaper”, “all clean”, “time to play”, “feed baby”. It shocked me just how early that kind of play starts, although it makes sense when I think about it.

I’ve always said I can’t wait for Flora to be old enough for Barbies so we could play together (I *loved* Barbies as a kid). I’ve enjoyed her Cabbage Patch Kid phase immensely though. I’m so thankful my mom had the foresight to save the Cabbage Patch Kids (and the clothes she made) so the next generation of our family could enjoy them.