5 Rules for Camping with a Toddler

Last weekend, we went camping at Assateague Island State Park in Maryland.  I was a little nervous, not knowing how T would do camping, but it ended up being an awesome adventure.   Here are five things I learned from camping with a toddler.

 #1 Go with another family.

We went with another family on this trip.  Forget toys and books. T’s entertainment was their son and her best friend.  We’ll call him A.  A and T are inseparable.  From the moment they both wake up in the morning they are asking when they can see each other.  They communicate with one another without speaking.  It’s actually a little freaky how in sync they are with one another. They also get into trouble together.  They also have a lot of fun with each other.  T didn’t need toys.  She needed her buddy.  A’s mom is also one of my best buddies as well, so it worked out all around!

#2 Be over prepared.

I brought almost everything, and what I didn’t bring I was able to borrow from my friend and vice versa. (See Rule#1)  When in doubt, bring it.

#3 Bring A LOT of food.

We brought snacks and snacks and more snacks.  I kid you not we had a big cooler and a separate suitcase just for food.  Granola bars, fruit leather, applesauce pouches, dried fruit, goldfish (or bunnies, in our case) and graham crackers are just a few of the snacks I brought for them.  The kids weren’t very patient about waiting for the dads to get the fire going to BBQ.

#4 Expect the worst and enjoy the best.

I wasn’t sure if T would sleep in the tent.  I wasn’t sure if she would be okay on the ride down and back. I didn’t know if she would take her nap.  I was nervous about lots of things, and she ended up doing really well.  Even if she didn’t do fabulous, I knew I was signing up for an adventure when I decided to go camping.  That includes the good, bad and really ugly. Luckily, there was no ugly.

#5 Let them be free.

I let her run the beach.  I let her run into the freezing water in really cold weather with her clothes on. She got really dirty.  Like REALLY dirty.  She ate whatever and whenever she wanted.  It was her vacation, too.  Let the kids “rough it” a bit too.

The only negative part of the trip was it was REALLY cold, especially at night.  It was in the 40s at night and the wind was pretty wicked. I wore a lot of layers, but then again, I’m always cold.  However, it was so awesome to camp with the ocean right next to us, listen to the waves crashing at night and watch wild ponies graze the island.  Simply amazing.  I can’t wait to do it again… in slightly warmer weather.

On Being Late

T and I had a play date with a mom and her son a few months ago.  When we first met one another, I thought she was very cool and we had a lot in common.  At the first play date, she was 15 minutes late, and I brushed it off.  The second time, she was 30 minutes late.  She insisted that was not like her at all.  I brushed it off again.  The third time she was 25 minutes late.  Her excuses were lame.  She didn’t even give a reason for her tardiness the third time we met up.  She has now disappeared and probably because she knew how irritated I was with her lack of punctuality.

I really hate when people are always late, and I hate many of their excuses.  Like one of my previous employers, I give everyone a “grace period” of about 10 minutes.  If you arrive at 10:07 and we agreed for 10:00, I’m not going to freak out.  If you get there at 10:15, I’m going to be a bit irritated, especially if you didn’t call or text to let me know you would be late.  If you are 45 minutes late and don’t bother calling or texting me… well, let’s just say, I won’t be there anymore.

Why am I offended by people who are constantly late? By being late consistently you are saying with your actions that “My time is much more valuable than your time.”

I am a mother of a toddler and I am still rarely late for anything.  In the past two years, I can count on one hand how many times I’ve been late, and I made sure to call or text ahead on those few occasions.  So to those of you who are late:

If you know it takes you an hour to do your hair, go through your closet for a half hour, try on 10 different outfits and then watch a rerun of the Real Housewives of Orange County, then give yourself that time.  If you know you need to do a full grocery shopping, go to a doctors appointment and get a pedicure, don’t try doing all that shit an hour before you said you would meet me.  If you are always late, try setting your clock an hour a head, so at least you will always be on time and maybe even a little early.  If you are always late, don’t make plans with me at a time that may or may not work for you.

It comes to a point that this problem will cause serious issues with our relationship.   I usually joke about it at first. I figured you would never be here on time anyway. Haha! *wink wink*  Then, I get serious.  Half hour late, again? A bit much don’t you think?  Then, I just simply stop making plans with you.  I’ve been busy. Really busy. I don’t know when we can hang. I’ll let you know.

I respect your time by being punctual, and I expect the same.  The person who is always late will not be tolerated.  I understand there are times in our lives when we simple can’t help it.  Maybe your toddler has a melt down every time you try to leave the house.  Maybe you’ve been sick a lot lately or have not gotten any sleep.  I’m not talking about those people.  I’m talking about the people who give cliché lame excuse that they use over and over and over again.   You know there is traffic on the parkway at 4 in the afternoon.  You know it takes an hour and half for your hair to dry naturally after a shower.  You know you want (or “need” ) to see your boyfriend/husband/girlfriend/wife before he or she leaves for work at 2 in the afternoon.  If you know all these things then consider two options: give yourself plenty of time to do all those things or don’t make plans with me at all.  I’ll respect you a whole lot more if you can admit that you are going to be late and will respect my time by telling me so.

T and I are busy ladies, and we will wait for no one who disrespects us by being late all of the time and thinking that our time is not as valuable as theirs.  Our time is just as precious as everyone else’s, and we have plenty of other fun things that we could be doing instead.

Easter Friday, a Cinderella Dress and Carrot Cake Cupcakes

The hubby has an awkward schedule. Most people who work retail do.  Especially as a manager, he works long days and a lot of holidays with the exception of Christmas and Thanksgiving.  Even though Easter isn’t as big a deal as lets say HALLOWEEN or another holiday in this house, I still enjoy celebrating it.  When the hubby told me his schedule for Easter, my heart sank.  He would be gone as soon as she got up and wouldn’t get home till right before she went to bed.  The thought of him not getting able to experience the Easter Bunny basket or a fancy schmancy meal with the family made me sad, until I realized, Easter Sunday would have to be Easter Friday.

So the Easter Bunny came Friday morning with a basket and *drum roll please* a Cinderella dress.  A HANDMADE Cinderella dress.  The Easter Bunny had no idea if she, er I mean he could make one, but surprised herself er I mean himself.   Of course the chocolate, princess stickers and mini Ariel doll were a hit, too.

Yes, I know you can see me in the glass – It was the best picture I could get because she spent so much time spinning and spinning and spinning…

Extra bonus: Since Easter was Friday and some of my family observed the no meat part of Good Friday, I made a completely VEGETARIAN holiday meal!  Veggie lasagna, yummo!  I’d like to think that fate wanted me to have a complete feast for at least one holiday.

Anyway, onto the very tasty carrot cake cupcake recipe.  This was adapted from Smitten Kitchen’s Carrot Cake recipe.  I used my own quick cream cheese frosting recipe. My only problem was I made WAY too much frosting and threw about half of it out.  So please note that the frosting recipe is for 24 cupcakes, not 12.

Carrot Cake Cupcakes

(adapted from Smitten Kitchen)

Makes 12 cupcakes

1 cup all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp canola oil

2 large eggs

1 1/2 cups grated peeled carrots

1/4 cup raisins

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line the muffin tins with adorable cupcake papers (or boring ones, whatever). Put the raisins in a little bowl of hot water so they plump up a bit. In a medium sized bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg with a whisk.  Set aside.  In a big bowl, whisk together the oil and sugar.  Then add one egg at a time.  Mix together the dry and the wet until combined.  Then add the carrots and raisins.  (Drain the raisins! Don’t add the water)  Fill the tins about 3/4 of the way up.  (Confession: I made 11 not 12! Gasp! But I always do that. I’m sure you can figure out how to divide them better than me.)  Bake for 14-18 minutes.  (Mine took closer to 18 minutes, but ovens may vary.)

Cool completely then frost with lots of cream cheese frosting!

Cream Cheese Frosting

For 24 cupcakes

1 package of cream cheese (room temperature)

1 stick of butter (room temperature)

2 1/2 cups of confectioners sugar

Cream together the cream cheese and butter.  Then slowly add the confectioners sugar until it is the consistency you want.

You could halve the cream cheese frosting recipe, or let your toddler eat some of the leftover frosting and  watch her spin around like crazy in the middle of living room in her new Cinderella dress.  It was quite entertaining.

How I Lost 100 Pounds

I stepped on the scale a week or so ago and realized I lost 100 pounds.

Very cool.

Though I hadn’t been crazy dieting,  I’ve been going to the gym and managed to lose a few more pesky pounds.

I started back in 2008 and it’s been a slow process. First, I lost a lot. Then a little. Then a little more. Then, I got pregnant. Then, I lost it back plus some. Then stopped.  Then… well, you get the idea.

I could tell you this long-winded back story about how I got fat, but it’s pretty stereotypical.  I ate out too much, ate my feelings too much, didn’t exercise, blah, blah, blah.

Anyway, how did I do it? So glad you asked! I lost 100 pounds in the most obvious ways possible.

Walk, walk, and walk some more. After T was born, I walked upwards of 4 miles a day.  You have to move your butt if you want to lose it.  Everyone can walk.  It doesn’t require a gym or special equipment.

I learned to like exercising.  If you don’t like it, you won’t do it.  So try everything.  Maybe you’ll like Pilates and yoga.  Maybe you’ll Zumba till you can’t Zumba no more.  I like yoga, walking, Pilates, weights, elliptical, that other stair thingy… And dare I say, I’m beginning to kind of like running.

I counted calories.  I’m a bit obsessive, but you should really learn what a REAL serving size is and about how many calories are in a meal.  Personally, I got super obsessive with counting calories, but it worked for me.  Nowadays, there are fancy apps that do all the work for you.   Lucky you.

I read a lot of healthy magazines, blogs, etc.  You learn stuff, and you have “health” drilled into your head constantly.  What’s so bad about that? Besides I love to read, so it really wasn’t torture.

I set realistic goals  My original goal was not 100 pounds.  It was 20.  Then another 20.  Then 10 and so on. If you say 100, your brain will get overwhelmed and explode.

I became a vegetarian.  You don’t see too many obese vegetarians do you?  You don’t have to be a full-blown vegetarian, but eating a few vegetarian meals a week will do wonders to your waistline.  My hubby (a non-vegetarian) lost a few pounds when I started cooking vegetarian meals for both of us and he wasn’t even trying to lose weight.  I do have to say becoming a vegetarian was what really helped me to lose and keep the weight off.

I had support. I had a great group of friends, co-workers, family and especially my hubby who were supportive.  If you have no support system, it makes it a bit harder.

I did it to be healthy, and not because I wanted to be super super skinny.  I’m a size 8/10 right now.  Great.  If I ever get down to a 6, super.  I didn’t mind when I was a 12 or 14.  I enjoyed being a healthy.  I feel better and isn’t that what matters most?

I found inspiration, but did it for myself.  T and the hubby were my inspiration. I want my daughter to have a fit mom who can run and play with her.  I want my hubby to have an attractive wife.  I want to be able to see my grandchildren and great-grandchildren and not die of a heart attack from being obese.  Ultimately though, I want to be skinnier and healthier for me, because it makes me feel good.

The reward? Waking up one morning, stepping on the scale and realizing that you are one healthy, skinny sexy mama.  Yup, go me.

So to all my ladies (and gents) trying to lose a little or a lot of weight, good luck.  It’s so worth it.

Happy Valentine’s and Anti-Valentine’s Day

Last year, I wrote a blog entry about my Anti-Valentine’s Day plans with my hubby.  I didn’t realize how popular of a post it would be last year and again this year.

So this year is a little different.  T understands things a bit more than the past two Valentine’s and I don’t want to deprive her of a holiday, because of my strong opinions about Valentine’s Day.  I don’t want to force them on her.  We can have the discussion when she is much older about over commercialization of certain holidays.

The hubby and I will be having our own Anti-Valentine’s Day celebration, but tomorrow on Valentine’s Day, my Valentine is T.   We began our celebration early this week with the Lambertville Library’s annual Valentine’s Day party.  I made cookies.  T ate a lot of sugar.  We made crafts.  She ran around like a maniac with her friends. It was great.  I haven’t enjoyed Valentine’s things like that since…. Actually, I can’t remember when I’ve enjoyed Valentine’s things so much.

For my little Valentine, I won’t be getting her flowers and chocolate though.  I am in the process of planning out a nice little adventure that I think she will enjoy.

Well maybe I’ll get her a little chocolate… Just probably not a heart shape box of chocolate.  I’ll get her the good stuff.

So Happy Valentine’s Day and Anti-Valentine’s Day to everyone!

Hair today, gone today

I’m quite impulsive and impatient.   When I get an idea in my head, it needs to happen immediately… like the urge to cut my hair.

I’ve been growing my hair out ever since I got pregnant.  And it was short… like really really short.  And then it got long.  Like really really long.  Like longer than I’ve ever had it in my entire life.  I tried to challenge myself to let it grow really long and I accomplished that. I went almost 3 years without cutting it short.  That’s a huge record for me.

Today, however, I couldn’t take it anymore.  It was too much hair.  It was either in my way or up in a messy bun.  I missed having hair that I could let down and it not be a complete nuisance.  I also missed my curly hair.  It was slowly disappearing because of the weight of all that dang hair.

So here is the before (complete with funny face):

And the after…

Not too short, but shoulder length is perfect for now.  The best part?  It cost nothing.  I cut it myself.  I like it. The curls and waves are starting to bounce back already.

Next impulsive behavior may be hair color… I will still stick to the red family, but  I’m considering either more copper or more burgundy.  Let’s see what happens…

Get thee to a gym

I got a gym membership. Again. For the fourth time. Fourth times a charm, right?

And I swear it wasn’t a New Year’s Resolution. Remember, I don’t believe in those.

The first gym I belonged to was a little local gym in the small town I used to live in. Not a chain or anything fancy. The second time was at L.A. Fitness. I went faithfully for about three months then stopped because I didn’t see results. (Or because I was still eating fatty crappy foods and thought I’d lose weight anyway.) The third time was at Anytime Fitness. I loved it. I lost weight, felt great, then got pregnant. When my year contract ended, I left. I was 5 months pregnant and didn’t want to commit to another year not knowing if and when I would be able to go to the gym with a new baby.

Now, it’s Planet Fitness. I’ve been kind of obsessed with wanting to go there. Why? Because it’s $10. I mean, come on! $10?! How could you not want to work out? What’s even stranger is this time around, I’m not actively trying to lose a bunch of weight. I just like to work out. No, seriously. I do. Stop laughing. I like to work out.

So why did I sign up? Other than the fact that it is $10, it was the right time. T is no longer really little and I can go before the hubby goes to work. The downside: I have to wake up at 4:30 am to go.

Ironically, T will also be joining a gym in February… The Little Gym, that is. We went for an introductory class and she loved it. How could I deny her a gym membership?

So these two ladies will be fit and trim. Well, T is naturally fit and trim, but you know what I mean.