What kind of mom am I?

I never know which kind of mom to be...the one that gives you good healthy food on your plate every night and makes you try at least one bite of everything on your plate before you can get down OR the one that gives you good healthy food on your plate every night and trusts that eventually you'll taste, enjoy and learn to love a variety of foods so to not pressure you to eat.

All I really want out of the deal is for my children to try many different foods, develop a healthy wide ranging palette and get the nutrition they need from a variety of foods - fruits and vegetables included. I know I can't really complain about the way my kids eat - and I'm not - I do understand that I have it really good in how much they'll try new things and how much they love certain fruits and veggies. BUT, what kind of mom am I? I can't decide what is better for them - to make them try everything I have made? I mean, I did slave over five different food groups on purpose - for their essential growth, right? So then why should I watch two of them go untouched, just to be tossed down the garbage disposal (or if I was really green, in the compost...more on that later in life). So, lately the rule has been you have to at least TRY one bite of everything on your plate. I also hate the idea that you have never even tried something but you just choose not to eat it because you don't like how it looks...that doesn't fly in my book.

BUT, I also want my kids to have a healthy association with food. And to be able to make their own choices about what their body finds healthy and satisfying (as long as it really is healthy!...disclaimer!...I want to be in control!). So, I like the idea of them saying, "No, I'm full, I don't want to try that." or "No, I'm not going try that tonight." And I hate hate HATE the idea of them having bad memories of sitting at the table for 3 hours because they refuse to try the green beans. That luckily hasn't happened yet - not even close. But she has sat for 10 minutes. And that is long for a 3 year old to think about eating one green bean.

Goat riding

We visited Steven Rhodes in Iowa last week - and thus we got to visit his goats. He has them to chew/mow his grass. It was a highlight for the kids, even though Dylan walked away with about 20 mosquito bites (and we were only outside for about 20 minutes!).

Here are some pics...

Someone (who's name starts with an S) thought it would be a great idea if Dylan rode the goat.

Falling off the goat...

Noah and I chillin with the mosquitos. Noah looks hot.

Daddy and Noah exploring the grounds.

A slice of our summer

Finally I'm getting a moment to blog! We've been around the midwest visiting family in Champaign and Iowa for the last week and a half. When did this summer get so busy? Let's just get right to it. I'll not talk much, but instead let the pictures do the talking and show you what we've been up to the last month or so.

Noah feeding a bite to his sister. She clearly enjoyed it.

Noah's summer obsession: "ball-ball" The last few days he has literally asked us to play ball every waking moment of the day - either carrying around a baseball glove and bat/ball or a basketball.

These pictures start a series where we are visiting the Japanese garden near our house - it's really cool and Jason discovered it recently while on a walk with the kids. It dates back to the World's Columbian Exposition here in Chicago. Everything from the World's Columbian Exposition has been demolished except the old Palace of Fine Arts, which is now the Museum of Science and Industry and this Japanese garden. Come visit us and we'll take you there!

Dylan loves to bring bread and feed the ducks there.


What you can't see is that I am yelling "hold on to her!" while I take this picture.

Queen of the world!

Mommy/daughter cuddles while we have a snack in the garden.

Chewing on grass.

Guess where they learned that from? (it's hard to see in this pic, but they all have grass in their teeth)


"Happy and Blessed" - putting on a Beatitude Attitude show for us on 4th of July (on Grandma and Grandpa Karen and Warren's deck).

Playing frisbee golf in G&G's backyard.

Dylan and Auntie Susie were out on the backyard picking flowers .


"Noah - can you do surprise face?"


Laundry hamper FUN! Dylan figure out how to get in here by herself, and of course, monkey see, monkey do.

The Beatitude Attitude

I really have to post about this - it's outrageously cute and hilarious (at least for me and my mom). My mom wrote (yes WROTE all the songs, dialogue, etc.) and directed a children's musical for her church in champaign called The Beatitude Attitude. It was an amazing performance (May 11th, 2008) and Dylan was thrilled to be there to be in the audience. WELL, fast forward more than two months. We now have the DVD of the performance, and we watch it at least 4 times/week. She LOVES it. No, that is a gross understatement. She is insanely obsessed with it. I can't fully describe how much she is nuts for this thing, but here is my attempt. First of all, she sings her own soundtrack of the musical pretty much all day long (for several weeks now). She busts out with microphone (usually a drumstick, traintrack or baseball bat) and all, and does a very convincing rendition of "Remember What Jesus Said" or "Poor in Spirit" (all with motions and dancing...). It's hysterical and of course adorable. She talks incessantly about the characters, acting like they are celebrities. And most hilarious/cute of all, she quotes the dialogue to me randomly in normal conversation. Here are two examples of the direct quotes from the show she has repeated to me:

"Mom, don't expect me to be your best friend." (as we are walking back to the park from a potty break...ummm...OK!)

(as we are shopping downtown) "Mom, you're not exactly rolling in the dough." Yes, Dylan, you are right on that one.

quick sleep update

I haven't blogged in awhile about my sleep issues with Noah. So, here is a quick update. We are on night 4 tonight of "cry it out with reassurance by daddy." Mommy stays out of the whole bedtime routine and daddy gets the pleasure of one on one time with Noah reading stories, prayers, etc. and then he goes in his crib. He is thrilled let me tell you (that was sarcastic...hard to get that over the internet), but it is getting better and I feel remarkably good about letting my child cry and scream alone in his crib. I am usually quite content on the far side of the other camp - cosleeping, breastfeeding, babywearing - really most things attachment parenting. But when your kid is almost 17 months old and you haven't had a full night of sleep (he still wakes up 3-5 or more times/night) in that long (or more since you don't sleep that well at the end of pregnancy)...well then you take a one way ticket to the "cry it out" camp and you don't look back. At least that's what I'm trying to do here. I still have moments (like the first night when Jason came out and said he was asleep finally - after an hour - standing up, head laying on the side of the crib rail) - where I want to abort and snuggle and nurse and be that mom that I "am." But NO...we must go through this for I will be a better mom when I can finally say, "Wow, that was a good night's sleep." Ahhh, the mouth-watering craving I have for sleep.