mommapalooza

desperately seeking

"Active toddler in diapers (ATID) seeking other ATIDs (or without) for regular social interaction, occasional sharing of toys and germs, and maybe a chicken pox party"

This isn't the first time that I thought Madeline ought to write a personal ad since moving to St. John's.  There seems to be a missing cohort of 1 & 2-year olds here. At the one playgroup we sometimes go to, there are lots of preschoolers, and a handful of babies, but it's a lucky day when there is another toddler or two there.  Nothing against infants and preschoolers, but putting all ages together in one room results in a wild craziness that I hadn't experienced before when Madeline was with similarly-aged kids in her actitivies in Calgary. Another challenge of the playgroup at Wedgewood Park here in STJ and of the playgroup at the Y is navigating amongst the mommy-cliques (or the nanny-cliques). I read Bridgermama's post about politics of playgroups a few days ago and I could relate to every little bit of it.  A lot of the times when I do talk to other moms here, I tense up, worrying that somehow the facts that Madeline is *still* nursing (formula is a hot seller in Newfoundland, from what I understand) and that her carseat isn't turned forward-facing will escape and I'll be labeled as some weird hippie mom (not that there is anything wrong with being a wild hippie mom - I'm just not cool enough to be one of them).

Happily, Madeline and I have had some positive social experiences of late. I've chatted with some fun young moms of toddlers this week and I hope that I'll chat with them again.  Interestingly, every one of them has moved here within the last year. We've all traded info on where there are swim classes, gymnastics classes, and storytimes in the hopes of finding out where all of the toddlers in this city are hiding ...

Catching Up

We recently took Madeline on her second outside-of-Canada holiday, during which she celebrated her second Easter. She wore her first official Easter dress, though (and yes, those are Babylegs peeking out from under the dress). 

While we were away, I realized just how impressed I've become with our little communicator. Up to this point, Madeline has been on the low end of normal in terms of language acquisition.  She's managed to just squeak by Calgary Health's language milestone handout, uttering  just enough new words not to warrant us taking her for an evaluation by a speech/language pathologist. But in the last few weeks, she's been chatting up a storm. Seeing her point to her scraped knee and say "boo-boo!" is pretty darn cute!   I haven't checked to see where she falls on the speech guidelines charts, but I'm feeling really good about her progress for the first time in a long while.

maybe they're just out-of-fashion

I've been making weekly pilgrimages to Old Navy lately, trying to score a few pairs of capri pants for Madeline to navigate the too-warm-for-pants but too-chilly-for-shorts weather that I anticipate arriving any day now. To make the shopping trip avec toddler faster, I usually glance at the Old Navy website and pick out the items that I'd like to buy for Madeline. The only problem with this system is that the Old Navy here is tiny and has maybe one-third of the online inventory.  Of course, that third contains only spring dresses, swimwear, and Perfect Ts in girly shades of black, white, and grey. Blah. I've been there three times in the last three weeks and there was nary a pair of capris to be found.  The last time I made a purchase at the St. John's Old Navy, I was selected to fill out their online customer feedback survey, and I actually filled out the comment form at the end, pleading for capris pants. I'm sad, yes.

I was window-shopping on the Babylegs site again, and they have a some new styles in purple. The frivolous part of me thinks that Madeline totally needs another pair of legwarmers, but the sensible part of me says that we're almost past the cold weather and the two pair she already has will do.  If I hadn't sworn off white (aka "stain magnet") shirts for Madeline, I'd be all over the Ts at Ellabeebaby, though. My faves are Food Critic, Buttercup, and Beeloved.  Ah, who am I kidding? I'd also be ordering I Eat Bunnies, Sea Monster, and Are We There Yet?  from the seasonal page. That's $95.70 worth of t-shirts, if anyone is keeping track.

Bad Hair Day

The back-to-sleep campaign might have helped Madeline get to the ripe old age of 21 months, but frankly, it isn't doing anything for her looks. First, there was the baby bald spot. Now, every morning, she wakes up with a frizzy mat of hair on the back of her head. Sometimes it appears to be threatening to turn into a dreadlock. 

Sometimes, after I've dampened and detangled her hair in the morning, the Hair Mat™ will re-appear after sitting a spell in the carseat.  Argh!  I can just hear the other parents at the grocery store thinking "why didn't that woman brush her child's hair?" ... if they only knew!