Together Alone

Little humans never cease to amaze me. They are so much smarter and more in-tune with their small world than we'd ever imagine...

On Shabbos the eruv in our city was down, and since my sister (thanks Rivkee!) was staying with me for the weekend I was able to leave Hudi at home with her and walk to Shul with Freida. As we were leaving she was a little perturbed as to why Hudi had to stay behind, but after asking a few questions about why her and Rivkee weren't coming along, she seemed satisfied that all was alright. We were walking about half a block when she stopped and said "Mommy I want to tell you something important. I really, really love doing something alone with you like this!", and flashed me the brightest, more hopeful smile ever.

Naturally, I melted. And suddenly realized just how seldom she and I get time alone together. And I mean alone (as in not with a napping baby that will wake any minute and a sink full of dishes calling my name). She completely opened my eyes as to how important this is for our relationship. The same way I make it a priority to spend time with my husband alone, I need to find the time to spend with my daughter alone. So! Today I am coming up with a little list of teeny-tiny one-on-one activities we can share together throughout the week (an evening tricycle ride around the block after dinner, a Sunday morning cartoon screening before dad and baby wake etc.), and I'm so looking forward to seeing how these small one-on-one snippets of time with her will enhance the development of the very complex mother/daughter relationship we share.

I smiled right back at her, squeezed her still-pudgy hand a little tighter than usual, and made a promise to share many more times like this with her - together, and alone.

Happy Father Day + Weekend Round-up!!

Hello friends! "Mommy Camp" had commenced on Friday, and with a sweet, bright and sunshine-filled start (frozen yogurt and hours at Coldwater Canyon Park), I'm very much looking forward to Summer filled with heaps of fresh air, frequent trips, and lots of hands-on learning! So happy to be able to spend the next few months watching my little girls laugh,eat, play, and grow - together.

Anyways, while I re-arrange and pencil in some more of our June lessons plans, and decide just how decadently we'll be treating Mr. Dad tomorrow morning, here's a list of things I've been checking out this week:

- A hilarious song (that Freida and I have been singing non-stop!) to kickstart your weekend!

- Can't wait to make these oats + caramel bars this week to keep in stock for impromptu summer picnics.

- Wondering if I can pull-off neon eyeliner...?

- The absolute cutest little pair of baby girl shoes!!

- Water blob's look freaking awesome!! Will definitely be trying this out over the summer!

- More elephant awesomeness!

- Coveting this grey bathing beauty.

- This new iPad app looks like heaps of artistic fun!

- Ha! Love this!!

Have a lovely weekend! And special thanks to all the Daddies out there - you make it all worthwhile!!!

Modern Crafts

Yesterday was Freida's last little day at Gan Chai :(

She been telling everyone "my Morah Esther is crying right now because she is going to miss us so much." (HUGEST thank you to the best Auntie Morah ever!!). She's also been telling everyone (mailman, neighbors, stray cat) "My Gan is over and it's the Summer and I'm starting MOMMYCAMP!". Nothing like a little pressure, eh?

Anyways, to jumpstart your children-home-from-school days I thought I'd let you in on some fabulous crafting supplies and kits that are just around your corner. Apparently, Kid Made Modern has collaborated with Target! I was so excited when I was browsing the aisles and happened upon a heap of Kid Made Modern supplies! Who knew?? You gotta love the minimalistic and cheerful packaging, plus the little details - like the names of the colored pencil shades. :)

If you have a little window with your kids home between school and camp, or just want to arm yourself with some spur-of-the-moment entertainment for the evenings, head over and snag yourself some of the modern jewelry kits, a hip duct-tape crafting set, make-your-own board book kit, giant gem crayons, acrylic paints, and heaps more goodies!!

Cheers to Todd Oldham! And cheers to Summer break (hope you're not driven to drinking already)!

Lady Ladybug!

When I read online that you can buy a bucket of ladybugs at any local nursery, I couldn't resist!! I actually bought them for the Babyccino clan since our theme on Monday was all about ladybugs. It was so awesome to see those little polka-dotted bugs crawling up pudgy little baby arms, and on and off of baby-sized Saltwater sandals, and it was also awesome to see the kids reaction to the many bugs continuously coming out of the container - such sweet awe!! Anyways, when the kids attention span was up, I capped the container and brought the remnants home for Freida. She couldn't believe I brought her bugs! I don't know if you remember her bug obsession, but let's just say these $4 bugs made a little lady very, very happy!

You can buy a bucket of bugs online here, or pick them up at any local nursery. Summer fun!!

Mamaste!

I recently started having some mild back pain, and while it's pretty normal to have some posterior discomfort after having a baby (laboring positions,breast weight, carrying a child around, bad posture for breastfeeding etc.), I really think mine is in part due to the fact that I haven't been keeping up with all the Yoga I was doing while pregnant... I definitely feel a difference in my flexibility and my core strength, and it's resulting in a pain in the back! (I must get back onto the Tracy Anderson train!!!)

Anyways, while I scrounge around for my post-pregnancy DVD (Freida seems to have her hand in all the multi-media in this house!), I thought I'd let you all in on an interesting city-find - Yoga studios that cater directly to mothers!  I wish I would have heard about MaYoga while I was carrying Hudi! With studios in Beverly Hills, Costa Mesa, Hancock Park, and Sherman Oaks, it's pretty much a hop, skip, and a sun-salutation away from just about anyone in this city. They offer a free trial class, and I'm definitely looking forward to heading down there to give their post-natal Yoga a go. You can check out the assortment of classes and other information about them here.