So while Lily's in dance class she expects me to be waiting either right outside the door or down the hall. In almost two years of class she has never come out during the 45 minute session. One day, I'm a little hungover from the previous night's mom's night out at Friday's (and it was only Tuesday how sad) and the other mom's convince me to go with them to Connecticut Muffin which is only 2 blocks away.  I say no no she might come out and they're like, "Don't be silly she never comes out...go ahead....have a muffin...a muffin can be quite filling."

Lily likes to chow down the minute she walks in the door after school.  She's so ravenous that I've found it's the best time to introduce new healthy foods.  She usually begs me for sugar filled cookies and cakes but I find when she's this hungry anything will do....even something different (god forbid!).  So yesterday, I tried something new: instead of just chips I gave her hummus and crackers.  Normally, she doesn't like dips, gravies, spreads or any kind of condiment but she chowed down on that hummus!  Yeah!!!!   I found a great organic brand by Tribe.  She kept saying, "It's sooo good mama!"  Wunderbar, a snack that is not loaded with crap like preservatives and artificial colorants...and she liked it (so do I!).  Go on, give chickpeas a chance.  Yes, the war has been won.  Now today, we're going to go for the ultimate snack - SALAD!  Wish me luck ladies.  This one is going to be a hard sell.

I recently went to Babies R' Us to buy a family friend a gift from her baby registry.  I couldn't help but be completely overwhelmed (once again) by what I call the 'wall of confusion'.  That wall of bottles, pacifiers, etc that hits you when you first walk in the store.  It's all very confusing.  Which one is the best?  Which one is the most proven brand?  Which is safest?  And wouldn't you know, it was just like being pregnant again.  Some woman came up to me, a complete stranger, and offered hours of unsolicited advice on what I 'should' be buying.  I think she was just trying to be helpful or maybe she just liked the sound of her own voice....probably the latter.  I told her, "I'm not pregnant, I'm just fat."  With that awkward blurt, she walked away.  Mission accomplised.

Our 7 year old is (unfortunately) starting to show an interest in computer games.  I'd much rather she continue playing her imaginary games outside with her friends.  Like recently, she and her two girlfriends donned bunny ears and played 'hopping bunnies' outside for hours.  They had a great time jumping from snow pile to snow pile foraging for imaginary hidden berries and acorns.  It was a delight to watch.  Sadly, she announced yesterday that she played games on the computer during her 'free time' that she earned at school.  I'm not anti technology I just feel they have their whole lives to log on and facebook away, why start now??  Let them be kids for as long as they can.  Any rate. thank goodness the game was educational (it was in school).  So, in the spirit of continued education I found that PBSKids has some great free (just in time for the latest jobs report....uuuggghhhh) educational games on their site.  They have this new great game called LIFEBOAT TO MARS, a new interactive game that is part of their STEM-based offerings (science, technology, engineering, math).  The game actually makes STEM fun (hard to believe but true).  Check it out, it's not too egg heady and is very, very cool....and I repeat FREE!

Whatver you do, don't share with anyone (unless they're really close friends that get you) the names you're thinking of if you're expecting.  My friend Jenn just shared with her aunt the name she is leaning towards for her unborn daughter - Madison.  Her aunt unleashed a torrent of unwanted advice and criticsm on the expectant mom.  "Madison?  What kind of a name is that?  How about Lexington or Park Avenue?  Who cares if it's trendy?  Can't you be original?"  It was rough.  Now I have to tell you, I'm not thrilled about the name Madison either but is that any of my business??...No!  So, just to show her support, a kind of emotional I'll-hold-your-hair-for-you-while-you-puke, I said I love it.  Because that's what you're supposed to do.  You're supposed to just agree and smile and say that sounds lovely.  It's called baby name etiquette.....unless they're leaning towards "Jeffrey Dahmer", "Moonraker" or a name like "Nazi Apple". Apple is so the rage right now.  Thanks Gwyneth. 

Have you ever met a child who is just the perfect girlfriend?  Where you can tell it from the time they were born??  I have, that child is my 10 year old niece Emma.  We celebrated Lily's 7th birthday on Christmas Day with the rest of the family.....seeing as her actual birthday is 12/22.  When she went to blow out the candles, I noticed Emma, instinctively holding Lily's hair back for her.  Very cool.  Very Sex In The City, so I-got-your-back-girlfriend.   I had a flash of Christmas future where Emma is holding Liy's hair back for her while she pukes her guts up from too much eggnog at her college holiday party.  It tickled me.  I hope these two are as close in the future as they are now.  There's nothing like a girlfriend....who's also family.

You know what I like most about the holidays?  The food.  That's right.  Screw the presents and the awkward moments with my in-laws, it's the food I'm after baby.  That's probably why new memberships for Weight Watchers and gyms go through the roof in January....because of people like me.  Despite the recession, a box of Duncan Hines cake mix is still under 2 bucks which means plenty of scrumptious cupcakes for us.  Cheap eats.  Lily had a holiday party at school and I brought in naked cupcakes (un-frosted) for the kids to decorate and they had a blast. 

Can you believe Lily is seven today?!  I know all parents seem so say that with every passing year, "Can you believe so and so is 2?....Can you believe my baby is graduating college?!"  Well, I found myself saying the same and getting all wistful yesterday.  I was actually misty eyed when her class sang happy birthday to her during the holiday party.  She was born 7 years ago on Dec. 22nd and we brought her home on Christmas Eve during a blizzard.  The snow was deep and we didn't see the ground again til the end of January.  Maybe that's why she likes skiing and ice skating and playing in the snow so much: she's a winter baby. 

I had a playdate with my 11-month-old niece yesterday.  We had a fantastic time.  She's just starting to walk and it's so exciting.  She's at the point where she can walk while holding on to furniture or by balancing herself with a table....just like a little drunk.  Everytime she fell on her tush I was like, 'what's the matter? too many margheritas baby?'  Thank goodness for those bulky diapers, they're a great cushion when you're learning to walk.  She's also teething like mad too.  I gave my sister a milk feeding bib to help absorb milk of course.....and also to absorb the drool from teething.  Now this bib is from Tommee Tippee and it's got this amazing absorbent collar that I've just never seen on a bib before.  I wish I'd had one of these when Lily was teething! (They probably did, I just didn't know about them.)  We used to go through 4 or 5 bibs a day.  The Tommee Tippee bib's collar really protected her skin from the milk, spit up and the drool...and from that sour sweet, funky milk smell that babies get from milk on their clothes.  It even had pink edging for color coordinating outfits.  I totally gave up on color coordinating Lily's clothes when she was a baby.  She had a shock of short, blonde hair till she was 1 year old.  I would have her in a pink bib, pink dress and some fool would always walk up to me and say, "Oh how adorable!  What's his name?"  I'd respond, "His name is Lily.  The bib says daddy's girl not whose your daddy?!"

  Lily is going to be 7 on December 22nd but she's still scared of Santa!  She likes the notion of Santa but the actual sitting on his lap produces great terror....even from a mall Santa (see the photo, she's very annoyed with me for and I quote, "forcing her" to talk to him.)  You have to admit he does sound like a stalker....he sees you when you're sleeping he knows when you're awake.....sounds like we need an order of protection.  But honestly, we use Santa as a bribe to get her to do things like chew with her mouth closed and other lofty goals but the minute she sees him that's all out the window.  I don't get it.  Is it the suit?  The beard?  I get being scared of the Easter Bunny.....that's like an acid flash back but this guy's jolly and he brings presents.  I told her maybe we should leave some cookies out for Santa again this year and she replied, "I don't think so mama, he's fat enough it's just not healthy.  Maybe some carrots and hummous."  She's definitely a modern kid. This is probably going to be her last year believing in him so we'd better make the best of it and snap some more photos of her in abject terror of the kindly old man....they're going to build a lovely summer home for her therapist.