Happy 4th Birthday!

Halloween Pictures

As our frequent readers may remember, we gave Malcolm a mohawk at the start of June for a fun summer one-time haircut. As things turned out, he loved his mohawk and asked us very sweetly not to cut it off. We're now in November, and every morning while I'm combing out the mohawk strip, "Mommy, please don't cut off my mohawk!!" Fresh out of the bath, oiled and combed, it's nearly an inch tall now!!

Ever heard the phrase "play to your strengths"? Well, if you're son thinks he's a rockstar . . . and it's October . . . what else are his parents to do?

Please note all the fabulous details . . . florescent red mohawk, tattoos, spiked metal bracelet, (ribbed jeans not visible in the picture), the Pez-candy rolled up in the sleeve (Matt's awesome idea) and the inflatable guitar (or as the little Rockstar calls it, his Air Guitar).

Halloween adventures included all sorts of fun. Such as the Al Sigel Center Walkabout at the Mall . . .

. . . including an impromptu guitar solo in the middle of the walkway . . .

We also enjoyed a Halloween Parade at his preschool . . .

. . . followed by a Halloween Party.

Sadly, Trick-or-Treating was called on account of rain, sleet, snow and hail (yes, all in one day! Thank you upstate NY!)

Happily, we continue to find all sorts of dress up fun.

Potty Training Update

Malcolm pretty much mastered potty training in about 24 hours. The key, as it turned out, was to let him pick which 24 hours . . . . and he chose just a few short weeks before his 4th birthday. Long time coming, but a short time mastering. He's still in pull ups at night, but during the day, he's got it down pat!

He Did It!!!!

This morning, after a series of successful moments over the last week, we launched our day with a pair of spiffy Big Boy Underwear! Malcolm takes pride in the fact that he can now dress himself in the morning without assistance, and asked that I fill one of the low drawers with Big Boy Underwear. He picked out one with cars, trucks, and a bright orange waistband.

I am sure you can imagine how proud we were of him, and how incredibly pleased with himself he was, when at bedtime, he took that same pair of underwear off, as clean and dry and when he put them on 12 hours ago!

Way to go, Big Man!!!!!!

WOOOOOO HOOOOOOO ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

Pumpkin Fun

Pie Pumpkins are now in season, and Malcolm and I enjoyed cooking them up together. He wasn't too interested in sinking himself into the pumpkin guts up to his elbows, but happily picked the pumpkin seeds out of my handful of pumpkin guts.

The flesh we cooked up, mashed, then froze in ice cube trays to use for recipes: pumpkin oatmeal, pumpkin smoothie, pumpkin soup, pumpkin bread, pumpkin cookies . . . the possibilities are endless. Sadly, our pumpkin supply isn't. For those of you out in reader land who haven't cooked with real fresh pumpkin I highly recommend it. It is a very different experience than the canned pumpkin. A little more work, perhaps, but so very, very worth it!

Plus, there is nothing like fresh roasted pumpkin seeds. Malcolm thought mixing these up (stirring, spreading out on the tray, sprinkling with kosher salt) was glorious fun. Second only to eating them when they came out of the oven!

Saving the Ta Tas

Sunday was the Big Walk, and we had loads of fun, despite the rain. Malcolm alternated between riding on Daddy's shoulders, and walking by himself. It was crazy crowded, even in the cold wet weather. In the picture of Matthew and Malcolm on the sidewalk, look carefully behind them at the crowd walking. At the very top of the picture, you can see that the road slopes uphill a bit, and you can get an idea of just how crazy huge this crowd was! Despite the epic numbers of people, everyone was really polite - no pushing, rude behavior, etc.

One of my favorite parts of the walk was seeing all the fun shirts (lots of men in pink!) Here are a few of our favorite t-shirt slogans we saw . . .

• Save the Ta Tas
• We love the Boo-Bees (they were all in bumblebee costumes)
• Fight Like a Girl
• Save Second Base

Do It For All The Breasts You Know & Love

Dear Friends & Family,

On October 3rd, I will be Making Strides to help cure breast cancer. Would you like to help? This fundraising walk relies on the generosity of individuals to help raise the money to continue the research to find a cure, as well as support patients and their families in their fight against cancer.

If you'd like to donate, you can mail me a check (email me, or post a comment, if you need my mailing address), or you can donate on line by clicking here!

Think pink & help save the Ta-Tas!

Teresa

The Big Ten

This morning's weigh in marked the achievement of my first major goal -- to lose 10% of my starting body weight. With a starting weight of 237 pounds, that means losing 23.7 pounds. Making my goal 213.3 pounds. I've been hovering just shy of it for the last four weeks, making barely any progress. So this past week, I pumped my week full of extra exercise and a high-fat treat on the weekend (sounds counter-intuitive, but it really helps as long as the portion size is reasonable and I have the weight watchers points to cover it.)

And . . . voila! This morning's weigh in -- 210.6 (making last week a 3.6 pound loss, nearly my best week ever) and putting my total lost at 26.4 pounds!

Now that I've met the Big 10% goal, I must consider what is to come. My final goal weight is under much debate among my healthcare professionals . . . but for now I'll set it as the heaviest among the choices -- I can always set a new goal when I get there. This makes my End Goal - 165 pounds (with options).

26.4 pounds down, 45.6 pounds to go . . . that is totally do-able! Even if my rate of loss slows (though it's only a grand average of 1.1 pounds per week since I started in May) I should still be able to achieve my End Goal by next summer. I think that's pretty exciting!

I Finished My Crochet Project

(Double Click the Picture to Enlarge)

Usually I crochet blankets -- you know, one-size-fits-all and flat? My few attempts at clothing in the past didn't work out so well . . . . Grandma's sweater vest that ended up big enough to pass as a circus tent . . . David's socks that ended up with not just one, but two, points on each toe . . .

But, I decided to try this little project -- a bikini top with matching hip sarong for my cousin, Liz. There were some . . . ahem, problems, with the fit at first, but after tearing it apart and remaking it a few times, it turned out just fine. Rather fine, in face. So fine, in fact, that my cousin agreed to me posting a picture of her in said bikini-ensemble online.

What do you think?

Pre Pre-school

As you may know, Matthew will start his medical technology internship in a few weeks. When he does, Malcolm will be in full time daycare/preschool. Malcolm is old enough to participate in the Universal Pre-K program, offered at a wonderful daycare across the street from our apartment complex. The preschool program, proper, doesn't start until September, but the summer program is in the same classroom, with the same teacher, curriculum, and classmates. Matthew and I decided to have Malcolm start a few weeks early, and go twice a week -- a chance to get used to the new routine, before attending five days a week in August.

Today was Malcolm's first day there. Since it's in preparation for attending the pre-K program, you could essentially call this "Pre Pre-School." As it turns out, Malcolm loved it! His new teachers appear to adore him, and he told me in the short car ride home all about the fun things he did at school. The marble maze, playground and teachers were among his favorites. He even took a nap (first time in over a year!) simply because that was what his classmates were doing! Looking forward to the weeks ahead!

Still doing well on weight watchers

T hasn't updated that little side bar in a while, but I wanted to let people know we're still doing well on weightwatchers. I am personally now down 28.2 pounds, not sure where she is. I've passed where I was before Squam, which is a relief, because while I didn't diet while on vacation, I paid for it too.

Happy Birthday, Daddy!!!

Sending out some huge birthday wishes to my sweet husband! You are an amazing man, a devoted husband, and a brilliant father! We love you so much!

(If you liked this video, check out last year's post!)

Summer Sillies!

I'm a few weeks late it getting these pictures up, but here they are. Summer is a time for silly and light hearted things . . . . Like Malcolm's new haircut!

Ankle Update & a Cute Malcolm Story

First an update . . . officially the doc has diagnosed Malcolm with "a stress injury" which means he probably twisted his ankle, or pulled a muscle, or some such while playing as three year olds are wont to do. He gets to wear his "boot" for 7 to 10 days, then I call the doctor back and we'll go from there. Along the way, the doctor ordered X-rays (to check for fractures) and blood work (to check for infection, sickle cell, etc.) All tests came back clean, so no worries there.

But, this order for blood work meant that Malcolm had to get a needle! His first in a very long time. The last "poke" he got, he was too young to remember, so in many important ways, this was a first for him. Of course, as a child life specialist, the first thing I asked for was Emla, LMX, cold spray, buzzy, j-tip, or any sort of dermal anesthesia at all! Sadly, the lab had none. So, with no help on that front, I was left with preparation, medical play, modeling, positioning for comfort and distraction as my tools to get him thru the blood draw with minimal negative effect.

The lady who did the draw was fantastic! Super professional, cheerfully agreed to my requests for positioning and such, and hit the vein on the first try! Malcolm sat in my lap, with his legs tucked securely between mine, and my arms wrapped around his tummy and left arm, in a big "bear hug." The nurse showed him the "big blue rubber band" which he seemed a little unsure of, so I held my arm out, and she tied it around my arm, to show him what it was for. At my request, when she put it on him, she did it over his shirt sleeve (hurts less than on the skin!) Next came the alcohol swab "cold and wet!" then the poke. I told him that "it's going to poke your skin. It might hurt a little, but it will be over very quick. Your job is to hold your arm still." Then . . . . . poke!

Would you believe it? Three years old . . . and he held perfectly still. He didn't cry, yell, scream, or pull away. He didn't even flinch! He just sat there and watched. I thought for a moment that it might be one of those super rare pokes, where the nurse manages to miraculously slide the needle between nerve endings, but no. As she started to fill the second tube, Malcolm calmly announced "Oh, well . . . that kind of just hurts a little bit." That was it. Then we sang ABCs together while she finished filling the various tubes with blood. I couldn't be more proud of him! What an amazing young man. Needless to say, I showered him in exuberant praise, telling him what an amazing job he did holding still. The nurse was amazed, and showered him in stickers, and asked me if he was really only three. The tech who had the role of holding his arm still felt entirely superfluous, I think.

I'm interested to see what his response will be if he needs to get another needle anytime in the next few months. Whether he'll remember this, and if he does whether the remembered pain makes him anxious, or the remembered success and mastery makes him confident. I'm guessing the latter. In the car ride home, he told me "She took my blood, Mommy. It really hurt a lot, but it was over really fast, and I held so very very still!"

And now for a completely unrelated story . . . .

When I arrived home sick from my trip to Phoenix last week (head cold), I didn't want to spread it to my sweet son. So when he tried to kiss my face, I told him that I was sick, and would only kiss his belly, so that I didn't give him my germs. Malcolm took this in stride, and gleefully accepted many belly kisses. Later in the day, he asked me how I got sick. I told him that someone in the airport didn't cover their cough, so I caught their germs. In retrospect, I can see exactly how a three year old would process this information, and confabulate the two separate discussions. Nonetheless, I was completely caught off guard when, later in the evening, he told Matthew, "Daddy! Mommy kissed someone at the airport, and now she's sick!" Gotta love the way preschooler's think!

Re: The Boot and the Boy

OK, so T's post there was a little cryptic. The likely scenario here is that Mal sprained his ankle over the weekend. He was limping for a few days, but it didn't seem to slow him down all that much, and when it did, I suspect he was reading my concern about his movements more than he was having any physical troubles.

We took him for x-rays yesterday, and are waiting to hear back but we can manipulate the foot and leg without any pain really so they are very confident it's a sprain. He's in the boot for a week and a half at the max, and it's just a brace to keep pressure of the ankle. I know they did some blood work on him to rule out any unlikely but still plausible diagnoses, but we haven't heard back yet so nothing to report. Really, it is likely that we are dealing with a sprain, but I thought I would flesh out T's blog post a bit to alleviate any concerns.

Wee Walker

Friends, let me introduce the Wee Walker -- a device I never wanted to know anything about. I'll post more soon, but click on this link to find out why I have my hands full right now.

Why Does It Sound So Different When He Says It?

This afternoon, we hosted a small gathering at our home, Baha'i Feast (this is a once-a-Baha'i-month (aka every 19 days) event, that is comprised of three parts: the spiritual portion for saying prayers and such, the administrative portion to talk about events in the community, and the social portion). Most Baha'i Feasts in our community tend to take place in the evening (past bedtime for Malcolm), so it is a rare treat when Feast falls on a weekend. It did this month, so we offered to host the event in the afternoon. It was great fun, with a wonderful turn out, including the other Baha'i family in our community with young children -- twin girls about a year and a half younger than Malcolm.

Malcolm has been very excited to host Feast, helping to clean the apartment, helping me to decorate a cake to serve, practicing reciting a prayer from memory, even picking out all his musical toys to share with the guests to sing songs together (a common part of the spiritual portion). Often, when the administrative portion starts, the kids will go off to play, returning for the closing prayer and joining in on the social portion. So when we got to that part, I told Malcolm that he was welcome to stay, or that he could invite the other children to go to his room and play with toys.

For the record, my exact words to my son were "Malcolm, you may invite your friends to see your room and share in your toys." See how I model good behavior? How I use words of courtesy and welcome, like "invite" and "share"?

Does he say "Friends, please be welcome"? No. How about "Would you like to play with my toys?" No. Heck, I'd even settle for "Let's go to my room!"

Instead, he goes running by the other kids, and as he reaches the start of the hallway, he turns around and yells at the kids "Keep up!"

Recipe: Fish Tacos

With weight watchers in full swing here at our home, we're trying all sorts of new recipes. This one was a big hit, so I thought I'd share.

FISH TACOS (my own original recipe)

Ingredients:

3 tilapia fillets

2 tsp olive oil

2 Tbsp corn meal

salt & pepper to taste

6 mini flour tortillas (6" size)

1 generous cup of shredded cabbage

1 lime (don' substitute with bottled lime juice, it just doesn't work for this recipe!!)

Directions:

1. Spray non-stick pan with olive oil mist and heat to medium-high heat. Rubbed tilapia with olive oil. Mix corn meal with salt (I use kosher salt) and pepper (add some red or white pepper, too, if you like spicy!). Sprinkle evenly over the tilapia.

2. Cook fish in pan, gently breaking it apart into flakes as it cooks.

3. Heat up the tortillas (I do mine directly on the rack of a 350 degree oven for a minute, but you can drop them in a hot dry skillet, or microwave with wet paper towels, however you like.)

4. Divide the shredded cabbage among the 6 tortillas. (I buy the bag of "coleslaw mix" which has carrots, too. To be clear, just the veggies, not actual coleslaw with dressing!)

5. Divide the cooked, shredded fish over the cabbage. Squeeze generously with wedges of fresh lime. Serve immediately.

With my ingredients and measurements, it came out to about 11 points for three tacos (half the batch) which was a HUGE serving. I think I could divide this into 2 taco servings (for about 8 or 9 points) and be just as happy and full at the end of the meal.

The Changing Face of Cuteness

It's Working!

To date, I have lost 9.8 pounds, and Matthew has lost 12.6 pounds.

Woo Hoo!!!!

We're starting to notice a difference, too. Matt's belt, and my bra, are both cinched a notch tighter now. My pants are starting to feel loose, and Matt's shirts are, too!

My Easter Finest (complete with Moccasins!)

Monday Moments

And So It Begins . . .

Tomorrow, Matthew and I will start Weight Watchers. We did this together four years ago, with tremendous success (roughly speaking, I lost 50 pounds, and Matthew lost 70!) We're doing it together again, and looking forward to similar spectacular results.

And you, my dear friends and family, can follow our progress if you like (no, not on Twitter!) I will set up a widget on the left hand side of the blog, that tracks our weight loss progress. Encouragement is always welcome. If I can talk Matthew into it, there will be monthly photos, as well.

So stay tuned . . . and get out your foam fingers, pom-poms, and other cheering paraphernalia!

Riddle

What do you get when you cross a 3 year old rock star with frozen blueberries?

Goth Star!

Musical Moments

Honey

A well known reality of feeding toddlers and preschoolers: They are much more likely to eat it, if they helped to make it. With that in mind, I recruited Malcolm to help me make a vegetable to go with tonight's main course of Dirty Rice with Sausage. Malcolm expressed great enthusiasm over helping me with my cooking project, from start to finish. He picked out a butternut squash from the fridge, and washed his hands while I washed the squash. I cut it in half, then he enthusiastically stabbed it repeatedly with a fork, to break the skin. We microwaved it, then scooped out the pulp. Malcolm sprinkled it with kosher salt and ground the pepper almost all by himself. I saved the best part for last. I let him squeeze the honey.

Now, please understand, that honey is a favorite food for Malcolm, bordering on a sacred experience. When he's sick, he gets a spoonful of honey, per his pediatrician's orders, to help sooth the coughing. This is why Malcolm enjoys being sick. "I can have honey, Mommy?"

Needless to say, Malcolm was delighted to learn that he could squeeze honey into the squash. I watched him stir it all together while I put the honey jar away, listening to him talk about how he was going to eat it, and could he taste it, and Mommy, please put some on my plate. I thought to myself, "I should get the smartest Mommy of the year award."

Dinner came, and he ate his vitamin, then picked all the sausage out of his dirty rice . . . and my dirty rice . . . and Matt's dirty rice . . . and the leftovers still on the stove. But he didn't touch his squash. Hmmm . . . .

"Malcolm," I asked. "Are you going to eat the squash? Remember, you helped me make it. We poked it with the fork, and you mixed the honey in?"

He looked at me, then the squash. "That's the squash, with the honey in it," I told him again.

"I need you to get it out!"

About ten minutes later, when Matthew and I stopped laughing so hard we turned purple, Malcolm sent us back into gales of laughter by adding in his most serious voice, and looking hopefully towards where we store the spoons, "Mommy, I need honey in a different way."

Child Life Month

The month of March is designated as "Child Life Month," a time for Child Life Specialists to promote, educate and celebrate their profession. Here is a poem for you, adapted from a poem written by Steve Slowinski)

I am not a nurse, a doctor or social worker.

I am not the Keeper of Toys, or the magical “make-this-kid-not-cry” person.

I am not just someone to play with the kids.

I am not superfluous.

I am a teacher, a helping hand, a support, an advocate.

I am an active listener, a therapeutic touch and a child development expert.

Every single day.

I am an Or prep-er, an IV teacher,

A de-coder of PICC, VCUG, MRI and NG,

A distraction provider, an inpatient support,

And a guide and voice for siblings.

All in the same day.

I am calm despite cancer, CAT scans and catheters.

I am strong in the face of syncope, sickle cell and surgery.

I am flexible and go where I’m needed,

Because children can’t always be flexible

About when they’re going to freak.

I am a Child Life Specialist.

When kids say they can’t, I tell them they can.

(Guest Blogger Matthew) Passing a Bluff Check

We play a particular game a lot called "I'm Going to Get There First." The title is pretty self-explanatory but what can I say, it gets the manbeast places in a happy and fast way and has really shorted out some imminent tantrums.

Anyway we took Teresa to work this morning and we get back to the apartment complex. We're headed to our building, and once we are at the sidewalk, I initiate IGTGTF. And I'm keeping a couple paces in front of him for the stretch, as I usually do, planning on coming up slow at the end, as per usual. He's a couple paces behind and says in his "I am not having fun" voice, "No, Daddy, I have to hold your hand." I assent, slow to a walk and hold out my hand. For his part, he briefly clasps my hand before tugging back on it and rocketing forward at a full run, leaving me behind. So... hello deception.

Why Are You Going to Work, Mommy?

This morning, I was getting ready for work, putting on my coat and shoes, grabbing my travel mug of coffee, when Malcolm inevitably asks me, "Mommy, where are you going?"

This is almost a ritual, these days. He asks where I'm going, and I tell him, "I'm going to work." He usually responds by asking me "you're going to work?" as if to verify that he's truly understood. But today, he instead asks me:

"Why are you going to work, Mommy?"

This is an important question, and the first time he's asked. So I put down my coffee, and sat down next to him on the couch. "There are some kids at the hospital who are sick, or hurt," I told him. "Sometimes they feel sad or scared, and it's my job to help them feel better."

He looked at me with such a serious face, clearly thinking about what I had just said. He then nodded, and told me, "Mommy, I want to come with you and help."

And Now a Word From our Guest Blogger

Hello Mommy's Blog Readers!

I'm going to write about my brothers. I have three brothers. They live with my B-Ma. (B-Ma is my name for my birthmom.)

I have one big brother. His name is Nahlo. In the picture, he's holding the baby. I have two little brothers, too. Noah is a year younger than me. Now there's Baby Michael, too.

My new brother is too little to play. But Nahlo and Noah and I like to play toys, and chase and giggle.

We like to eat pudding, too.

I like to play at B-ma's house with my brothers. I love my brothers very much.

- Malcolm Schoell

(guest writer)

An Invitation

In yesterday's mail, we found an envelope hand addressed to our son. Matthew and Malcolm sat down together on the couch to open it. It was an invitation to our friend's birthday party. Matthew read each word aloud to Malcolm, pointing to each word as he went.

Malcolm then carried the invitation around all night, and would climb first into my lap, then Matthew's in turn, and point to each word, and recite the invitation from memory, making up words when he couldn't remember them, and occasionally asking us "Uh, what comes next?"

I can't tell if he's more excited to be invited to a party? To have received mail addressed to him? Or to "read" it to us, as we read it first to him?

More Photo Catch Up

Photo Catch Up Time!

I've been quite lax, lately, about blogging and posting pictures. Bad Teresa, no biscuit. So, over the next week, please enjoy my pictures catch up days. Let's start with these, take last month at the storybook exhibit at our local museum.

Malcolm never pulled the sword from the stone . . . but you gotta admire his sincere efforts!

I Love My Job

It's been a while since I've written anything about my job as a Child Life Specialist. Or, per my last post on the subject, I should rightly say Certified Child Life Specialist (CCLS). I have had an amazing few weeks, culminating in my reflection this evening: I love my job.

I would love to blog all about some of my amazing patients, and how child life services have made a difference for them, but can't without violating their trust and privacy -- which I value far above and beyond the HIPPA laws.

Instead, let me share with you the impact my work is having on me . . . I wake up in the morning, think about my upcoming day, and this completely genuine smile slow melts across my face, as I think I get to go to work today. There have been so many days this month, where driving home from work, I think to myself, I really made a difference today in the life of a child. I helped that family through a terrible and painful ordeal. I made the hard stuff a little bit easier. Sure, there are some days when I feel like I've worked 8 hours straight and accomplished nothing but answering a bunch of emails, handing out a bunch of crayons, and attending a bunch of meetings. But I know those things are part of the foundation that a quality child life practice is built upon. And I truly don't mind days like that.

But what I love most, is days like today. Days when I see tears of gratitude in a father's eyes. I feel so lucky to wake up each day, and go to my job where I do meaningful and gratifying work.

And at the end of the day, I get to come home and snuggle my sweet son, and amazing husband, and know that I am so lucky to have them, and their support. Driving home I think, I love my job and I am so glad I got to go to work today. And now I'm going home to my family, I love that even more!