ten minutes to myself

there is a seven year-old girl inside of me

I am pleased to say that the first thing that springs into my mind when I remember 1984 is an incredible dystopian tome by George Orwell that I read in twelfth grade, but some people may remember that year as the one when our parents battled in the toy section of Sears to score one of these:

These are Alphonsine Clarissa and Glen Reuben, the two survivors of the 2010 Cabbage Patch Kid purge at my parents' house (four of their "siblings", as it were, didn't make the cut). Each of my kids brought one of my old dolls back to Saigon with us after our summer holiday. 

Over the last quarter-century, this pair has undergone a couple of changes. Alphonsine has been nicknamed "Nell" after the daughter of a friend of mine, and Glen, as it turns out, is gender-fluid. He's wearing cute hand-sewn coveralls in this pic, but I often find him lounging about in a frilly dress. This is probably because the majority of our extra outfits are traditional girl clothes. Still, the kids and I support his lifestyle choices whole-heartedly, and I've been advised that "fashion has no gender."

It's actually really fun for me to see Madeline and Sadie playing with my old dolls. The Cabbage Patch Kids and my collection of My Little Ponies are the toys that I remember playing with the most when I was little. My birthday and Christmas wish lists must have been crammed with CPK items because I know that I had a good collection of accesories: the knock-off Snuggli, a highchair that attached to a table, a playpen, a CPK diaper bag ... 

Nearly three decades later, my fondest memories of my Cabbage Patch Kid obsession are about these:

Somehow, somewhere in the mid-80s, my mom found to time to sew tons of tiny little outfits for the dolls that my sister and I had. Our dolls had fuzzy winter parkas. There was even a tiny pair of turquoise stirrup pants that matched a pair that I owned! Anyway, I think that I have to record "sewing little outfits for my Cabbage Patch dolls" as one of the awesome things that my mom has done. And they still look good on Alphonsine/Nell and Glen. 

old navy read my mind, obviously

So, remember a couple of weeks ago when I posted about scoring some terrifically cute fabric with little monkeys frolicking in toques and earmuffs and mittens? And how it would make awesome pajamas for my kids? Well, apparently, I am not the only person who thought so. May I present Exhibit A:

I was at one of the Saigon Squares last week, and many of the stall were selling monkey-print pajamas. So, in addition to me, an executive at Old Navy/The Gap had the same idea! I picked up a pair in 3T because they were cheap and I'm lazy and would now not have to worry about not having enough fabric to cover both of my kids in monkey pajamas. 

I normally don't like shopping here much, but Saigon Square is growing on me. I'm not sure how it all gets there (cough, cough), but there is a lot of American-brand clothes for sale there, at a decent discount.  One of the long-sleeved tees that I bought for about $4.50 had a price tag from Kohl's still attached and it read $66. And probably most importantly: the vendors leave me alone to look without harassing me!

And before I log out: If anyone knows where to find child-sized fake Uggs in HCMC, give me a shout, okay?

 

second guesser

Behold the imitation replica PBK Cameron shelving unit that we had made from Mother Goose. I think it's really cute and am indescribably pleased that Sadie's books and toys are no longer permanently living on the floor of her bedroom. I wish that there was space in her room for an entire wall full of Cameron shelving units. 

However. 

I am not sure that I made a good choice with the finish. I was aiming for something that matched the finish on her DIKTAD changing table/chest of drawers, a colour that IKEA describes as “Antique”. The colours are pretty similar.

However. 

Well, the colour looks appropriately rustic on the changing table/chest of drawers, but on this shelving unit, it kind of looks like the old mahogany cabinets that my parents tore out of their kitchen about ten years ago. Argh.

Chris hasn't yet seen Sadie's new furniture, but I am anticipating that he won't be won over. He's gone sour on Madeline's bedroom furniture, not liking the finish that I chose for it. I think that this piece will be the same story. I had to admit that I am trying to envision it painted red or white or navy instead ...

the harder to find

Only after living in the Bangkok area for two years did we realize that there is a small treasure trove of lovely children's shops in the vicinity of Sukhumvit Soi 49/Thonglor 15. Mother Goose is now on Thonglor (decor and furniture), as is a very similar shop called Tiny Tots, which only seems different to me in that they also have a small stash of Gymboree and BabyGap clothing (score!). I saw one store from the window of my car that had a line of Stokke Tripp Trapps in their front window, but I wasn't in a good position to stop, get out, and investigate. I didn't even catch the name of the business! 

This weekend Chris and I were on Sukhumvit 49 to visit a yarn shop and I noticed that Lottie & Max was in the Terrace 49 building across the street. I wish this shop had a website because it was so full of lovely things and I cannot possibly describe them well. They carry crib and bed linens for children, decorative pillows (including cute ones shaped like letters of the alphabet), bunting, bath towels and face clothes with pretty cotton trim, swim cover-ups, and on the other side of the shop was clothing. The sales associate said that they sizes up to nine years. The clothes were largely woven cotton, and they had many styles for boys and girls. Madeline scored a knit nightgown, which we are all thrilled with because it hasn't exactly been easy to find her sleepwear that doesn't have Hello Kitty, a Disney Princess, or Minnie Mouse on it here ... 

I am kind of tempted to go back there and pick up a couple of Christmas gifts ... 

small audience

In order to somewhat alleviate the between-the-naps blahs that Sadie and I seem to have succumbed to, I've been investigating what was available in our corner of Thailand in terms of scheduled classes. All summer long, I was anticipating the arrival of August, when I could take her to the local (and inexpensive) children's music class held in the room above the local coffee shop. And then the registration email was sent out, requesting kids fifteen months old and older, and I was rather crushed. Sigh. So, I had to spread my horizons and willingness to commute. 

In the past couple of weeks, Sadie and I have "previewed" classes at both The Little Gym and Gymboree Play and Music, and there has been a surprising similarity between them that goes beyond the bubbles and parachute time. First, we've been the only pair in the classes, which left me feeling rather awkward and self-conscious. Second, the classes have been led by shaggy-haired twenty-something Thai men who can play musical instruments, which is pretty much the opposite of every other single parent-and-child class I've taken in the last five years. 

Sadie, on the otherhand, seemed to rather enjoy the bubbles and her private musical serenades ...

sweet dreams

Madeline's new bed
Originally uploaded by goingdomestic.

Madeline's six months of sleeping on a mattress and box spring on the floor of her bedroom came to a close this past Thursday, when her new bed frame and chest of drawers were delivered.

This project was a little tricky. Her mattress and box spring are the double size, and that's not sold here in Thailand, so it wasn't like I could just hop over to Index (the fake-Ikea) and buy a new bed frame. We had to find a company that could make a bed frame to fit her mattress, instead.

We received quotes from three companies, and ended up going with Mother Goose. They make lovely nursery furniture, as well as having some nice gifts for babies and small children in their store. I merely went to the store with mattress and boxspring measurements and this photo of the Morigeau Lepine bed that we really liked. About eight weeks later, two pieces of incredibly solid furniture were installed in Madeline's bedroom.

Chris and I are thrilled with the results of this project - it's kind of nerve-wracking to be waiting on furniture that is going to recreated from a photograph - and Madeline seems to be, too. We've decorated her bed with bows and a string of colourful dragonflies in the tradition of Fancy Nancy, and she's reserved one of the drawers in her new bureau for her "secret treasures".

the things you find when you're lost

This morning, I loaded Madeline up in the car and set out to run two errands - dropping a spare pair of contact lenses off at my husband's office and then onward to the yarn shop. The first errand was accomplished deftly enough (considering that we drive to this office multiple times a week), but it was our subsequent journey where things went quite wrong. The yarn shop is located in a part of town that I am embarrassingly unfamiliar with, so I was using my TomTom to get there. Only, I must have inadvertently turned the sound off, so I have no idea what kind of directions it was giving me, I kept driving straight for way too long, turned off somewhere, and I suddenly found myself on the highway to the Irish Loop. Ooops. I took the first exit of the highway, and ended up on Topsail Road. Was there anything good on Topsail Road? Why, yes! St. John's sole baby boutique, coo chi coo. Hadn't been there before.
 

Madeline's not really a baby anymore, but I did think that maybe this place would stock the Mustela shampoo that I'd been recommended for finally banishing her cradle's cap, so we stepped in.

Lo and behold, they did carry Mustela products. And tons of other nifty things like Zooper strollers, Hotslings, Babylegs, and Bjorn potties, which I had in the past ordered over the internet, and often from the US (hello, duty fees). They carry Snack Traps, an item that I quested after while in Edmonton this past summer. Manhattan Baby toys, which we liked spoiling Madeline with when we were still in Calgary. And other cool things, too. I offered to buy Madeline a Steady Cup, but she turned me down, saying those were for babies (hee hee!). She tried on a few pairs of SKRs, but the Size 9s were an inch too big, and the Size 8s were a squeeze. Boo.

I'm kind of impressed that the types of things are so much more available domestically than they were when Madeline was an infant, and even more impressed that it's possible to buy a pair of Babylegs without having to leave St. John's!

it's a bird, it's a plane ...

  ... no, it's Super Madeline, wearing her playsilk from Bumbershoot Baby like a cape on her back. I ordered one of those for her a few weeks ago after reading about their play potential on the Baby Bargains board. I was originally going to make one for her, but I found that the shipping charges to Canada from the Dharma Trading Co. for undyed habotai silk squares a bit exorbitant (something like $15 for my $6 square). So far, Madeline likes to wear the playsilk like a cape, use it as a blanket for her stuffed animals, and on occasion thinks it's fun to tie it on like a skirt.

Today's links:

• Shape of a Mother, in case someone somewhere on the internet hasn't heard of it. (It might not be cool to open this one at work, btw.)
• This post at Diary of a Playgroup Dropout. I started reading this blog because of the catchy name, having struggled with the whole playgroup genre myself (and check out my all-time fave photo of baby I don't know).
• I've been trying to keep up with Picture This. I love that is a blog out there dedicated to helping average parents take better photos of their little people. I am so glad that the recent posts have been on cropping, as it just occured to me that lack of cropping is why I'm not so smitten with the proofs from Madeline's latest photo session. I better take another look at them ...

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.

The First Law of Toddler-Stain Dynamics

The degree of difficulty in removing a stain from an article of clothing is directly proportional to the retail cost of said article.

I'm facing my third round with the mysterious orange coloured stains on Madeline's cute little green jogging pants from BabyGap.  I've Oxy-Cleaned and rubbed, Oxy-Cleaned and rubbed. From past experience, I know that if I'd bought these at Wal-Mart, the marks would have come out in the wash the first time ...

What's the point of buying Madeline a few nice outfits? They're the first to get introduced to mud puddles and tomato sauce, and the hardest to launder.