The Great Return

Happy and Anxious Anticipation... ...Eliza was dreaming about it. It's like going to bed on Christmas Eve so Santa comes sooner... That's how excited Eliza was to meet her Uncle Robby... ...she was even all dressed up in her authentic Brazilian soccer jersey and woke up just in time... ...we finally caught a glimpse... ...and the slow people in front of him finally got out of the way and realized that we weren't smiling and taking pictures and waving at them... ... and we finally got to have our awkward greetings/welcome home to the touch-shy Elder Meldau...!! ... Uncle and niece finally meeting... ...Brother and Sisters finally REUNITED!!!....

(notice how much I'm leaning towards Elder Meldau and how rigid he looks in comparison. Haha!)

First American Meal... at the International House of Pancakes, no less! No longer a set-apart missionary! Mom, Robby, Dad, and Stake Pres. Jensen Robby, Mom Robby, Mom, Eliza Meldau Family!

Robby, we're so glad you're home-- words can't describe! But we're so grateful for the service and happiness you gave to the many many Brazilian people--old,young, member, convert, missionary, and us back home... the list goes on.

I'm impressed by the humble and hard working person you've grown into. (I knew you had changed the instant you started setting the table without even being asked. jk.)

I am especially grateful for the testimony of the atonement that you shared when it was just you and me talking and also during your talk. Especially these words:

2 Corinthians 4:17 For our light affliction which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;

Alma 7:11 And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people.

If I had the chance to do it over again, I would totally serenade you with Whitney Houston's Hero song... all for you. Way to go little brother.

Just Twirlin' and Talkin'

*Please excuse the mess. Eliza loves spreading out our
DVD collection and her book collection across the living room floor.

Between last Wednesday and today, Eliza learned how to say "Go!" and not the baby version of go that really sounds like "glubah!" and her doting parents insist that she means go, but for real this time. She usually pairs her Go's with an enthusiastic arm thrust that makes her look like Super Man right before he takes off flying. It's neat. This morning she also learned how to "moo" like a cow and "quack" like a duck! So she can add that to her animal sound repertoire.

This morning when I asked her if she wanted more grapes, she answered me with, "Yessth!" I was really surprised and impressed by her mastering of this word and also think that her lisp is freakin' adorable.

Saturday she learned how to twirl in circles. I personally think she learned it from watching my mom's standard poodle, Orah, do her amazing break dance/crazy twirls when told to roll over.

Keep up the good work, 'Liza!

A Happy Birthday and a Happy Return

I had the blessing of being born between two of the most intelligent, clever, and innately benevolent people I've ever known.

This week is a celebration of these people I have the boon to call my siblings.

It's a Happy Birthday to Katy today! and it's a happy return from a 2 yr. mission in Brazil to Robby tomorrow!

Unfortunately, poor Katy will be stuck in the car with Steve, Eliza, me, and our nervous dog, mika for 6 hours as we head down to SC tonight. Talk about Birthday fun!
Robby arrives in the Columbia, SC airport around 11am tomorrow morning. We're so excited. I'm dressing Eliza in the authentic Brasil soccer jersey that Robby gave her last Christmas. It's gonna be awesome- he's never even met Eliza! Yahoo!

Equal Opportunity JibJab: It's time for some campaignin'!

How do you solve a problem like Eliza?

I often find myself in situations with this strong-willed toddler of mine, and I wonder how strict/permissive should I be? Should I stick to what my pediatrician insisted was the best course of action, or should I try to be more flexible and "roll with the punches" or just try to keep the peace?

I honestly wonder at some of these times what other people would do. Especially many of the mothers and caregivers I admire. Maybe you'd respond in a great way that never occurred to me!

I'd really like to know what you'd do! So, I made up this quiz with some help from Steve about some of our hardest moments with Eliza.

Please take the quiz and let me know what you're answers are in the comments, whether you're a mother or father or not.

I know some of the answers might seem a little silly, but I honestly have probably done all of these things at one time or another!!

So, What would you do?

1. Eliza's just woken up from her 2 hour nap at 1pm. What do you do?
a. Immediately change her diaper. She's had over 2 hours to fill it up, and we don't want a diaper rash! If she's gotten any stains on her clothes, you change those now too.
b. Carry her downstairs and let her loose on the animals and her toys. Wait until she starts fussing to decide what to do next with her.
c. Start scrounging through the fridge with Eliza on your hip to figure out some lunch.
d. Put Baby Einstein on. It's been 3 hours since her last TV fix.
e. Something Awesome I haven't thought of:________________________________

2. Lunch time. You decide to...
a. Strap her into her booster seat while you plan her nutritious meal. She should be able to entertain herself for 5 minutes while you get things ready. If not, then she can just yell and fuss for 5 minutes- she'll survive.
b. Let her walk around and wander through the kitchen, clinging to your pants while you try to navigate around her and the other 2 furry creatures who always manage to show up for meals. You pick her up once in a while when she starts picking things out of the trash or climbing into the fridge.
c. Hold her in your arms as much as possible during the cooking and food prep. Narrate each action and step you take and give her turns every once in a while to stir, close the microwave, wash her hands, or hold the silverware. If it becomes necessary to have 2 hands, you pull out a stunningly fascinating object that holds her attention for a whole minute-- such as playing drums on pots and pans or stirring a bowl full of cotton balls. You pick her up as soon as you only need one hand again.
d. Put Baby Einstein on. Hopefully it'll entertain her for a few minutes before she hears her stomach growling/is reminded of reality.
e. Something Awesome I haven't thought of:________________________________
3. Somehow while the fridge is open, Eliza catches sight of Steve's fat free pudding cups and grabs one. She holds it up to you and starts signing "more" and "eat" and whining. You...
a. Pop open the lid, grab a spoon a give it to her right there.
b. Snatch it away from her and give her something else to hold in hopes that it'll distract her. She'll cry for a little while, but eventually forget it about it.
c. Pop her in her booster seat and give her two bites until she shakes her head "no" because she doesn't want anymore.
d. Eat it yourself. Hold her on your lap and give her a bite every now and then too, while you watch Baby Einstein together on the couch.
e. Something Awesome I haven't thought of:________________________________
4. Lunch is FINALLY ready. Who knew noodles could take so long to boil? For now she's in her booster seat. You start offering the spaghetti sauce and penne noodles to Eliza. She eats 3 and then shakes her head and refuses to take anymore. She gives you the "all done" sign even though she's only been eating for a measly 2 minutes. You...
a. Ignore her sign even though you want to encourage her communication skills. You offer her some grapes to see if those will get a better reception. She eats like 1 1/2 before she starts throwing them down to the pets. You then offer her another one of her favorites, crackers with cream cheese. Those get sent to the floor. She gives you the "all done" sign again. You grab the sippy cup, and she drinks for like a whole minute straight.
b. You already are prepared with a drink and offer her whole milk with a straw and she gulps it all up, and then says and signs, "Brrr!" After that she accepts a couple more noodles and grapes before sending them to the floor, but only with the help of your airplane/tap dance performance that has her so entertained that she forgets that she was "all done."
c. You let her out and let her finish the rest of her meal from your lap and the floor and she runs from toys back to food, then kitty back to the food, and so on. Turns out she wasn't "all done" with her meal, just the booster seat. Oh, well, maybe next time! At least she's happier!
d. You turn on Baby Einstein and try to sneak a bite in to her here and there while she's distracted by the movie.
e. Something Awesome I haven't thought of:________________________________

5. Lunch time's finally over and Eliza's free from her high chair. She's full enough to be pleasantly be playing by herself / with the pets. You...
a. Take this chance to clear your sink of breakfast and lunch dishes and sanitize the counters and take out the trash. Your sink of course was empty before breakfast. You never go to bed with a dirty sink of dishes!
b. Take this chance to put in a load of laundry and grab socks and shoes for you and Eliza and the dog's leash, sun hats, sun lotion, stroller, water bottle, camera, and pacifier for a stimulating trip to the park!
c.Lay back and read another chapter of the spectacular book you've been reading. It's enlightening and adult and reminds you of your favorite comp lit course in college. Finally a minute break from poopy diapers and animal sounds! You let the dog lick up the dirty lunch dishes... haha. After she gets bored, you start playing with her and singing songs about animals, insects, and nature with actions and everything.
d. Turn on Baby Einstein to stretch the entertained minutes out. You use the time to do some picking up in the living room and then use the rest of the time to blog and check your e-mail.
e. Something Awesome I haven't thought of:________________________________
6. A few hours have passed. Eliza's gotten really tired and is showing signs of being worn out. She's already had dinner and it's too late to put her down for a nap...
a. You go ahead and let her fall asleep. Just go with the flow. If she ends up waking up again late at night, then you'll play with her for a while longer-- then she'll be in a better mood!
b. You lie down on the floor with her and let her crawl, cuddle, wrestle and yell at you to kill time and maybe read a book or two until Dad/Mom gets home from work or the gym. You'll let them decide what to do with her when they get back. You're just as worn out as she is. You turn the TV on so you don't miss Oprah/International News Report.
c. You start the water for a bath and let Eliza enjoy an extra long bath time! Water is the ultimate form of fun!
d. Let her wander around outside and maybe go on a little walk in the cul-de-sac while you point out pretty plants and the cat and dog running around. Then come in and turn on Baby Einstein.
e. Something Awesome I haven't thought of:________________________________
7. Eliza's finally asleep. You're worn out but happy to be alone with your spouse. You feel like relaxing, and you decide to...
a. get those dishes done! Mold doesn't sleep! While you've got those rubber gloves on, you might as well change the cat litter, wipe down the toilet bowl, pick up the living room and do a load of wash. Then you collapse on your pillow with a feeling of accomplishment.
b. Watch Jeopardy, check your favorite blogs and email and let out a sigh of relief! The work day is over! You might pick up a few things in the kitchen or living room and take out the trash to the curb, but you're ready to call it a night.
c. Take an hour break to relax, blog, or watch TV, then do a half hour of housework before you hit the sack and read your book!
d. Take a walk with your spouse where you talk about love and life and then do 20 minutes of cleaning together. Then play a game together, share a bowl of ice cream and watch ABC's Wipe-out and laugh at people getting smacked in the face.
e. Something Awesome I haven't thought of:________________________________
8. It's Sacrament Meeting! Eliza's getting restless. You...
a. Take her out to the hall and let her run wild to her heart's content. You catch a sentence from the talks here and there.
b. You're excited to get some cuddle time and want to teach Eliza the principle of reverence, so you try to keep her in your lap or seated right next to you on the pew. You read all of the books you brought 5 times each, draw on the etch a sketch and program 5 different times, and urge her to fold her arms for every prayer. During the songs you let her move around some. If she really starts losing it, you take her out to the hall, but then you still have her to sit in your lap.
c. You've got a diaper bag packed full of quiet but stimulating stuff-- including reverent books, quiet toys, grapes and apples slices, string cheese, cheerios, and juice. You try to keep her within your row/pew and you don't take her out to the hall unless she's screaming. Once she's calm and distracted, you bring her back in.
d. You entertain her with stories and toys, but when she starts to get bored, you let her wander around the sacrament meeting room saying hi to other people and visiting their families and playing with their kids' toys. Everyone loves babies, right?
e. Something Awesome I haven't thought of:________________________________

Ode to Fiber One Bars

I love you Oats & Chocolate Fiber One bars.

I can eat one of you for breakfast in the car, and you keep me full all the way til lunchtime.

Plus, you're only ONE delicious weight watcher point.

Beautiful.

Eating my Garden

I am a proud mamma of a freakin' giant squash! This zucchini squash has brought so much joy in my life... both financially and sensory joy. Delicious!

We've been enjoying our cilantro, parsley, and basil all along, but it's been fun to finally be enjoying the long anticipated garden products. Snap peas, Zucchini and FRIED GREEN TOMATOES.

Carol made us some delicious FGT's while the Morrison's were visiting. YUMMY!
Pretty impressive, right? Almost as good as Heiman's seafood in Charleston, which is saying a lot.

Taurus

I don't give much credence to Astology, but sometimes I read them in the newspaper for a laugh. I thought Eliza's horoscope this week was especially appropriate.

In the coming weeks, I think that once or twice ...you will feel you can and should heed the dictates of your own conscience and please the people who control things. But most of the time, I suspect you'll have to decide between being either an impeccable rebel or loyal devotee.

Impeccable Rebel

Loyal Devotee

Ms Eliza goes to Washington

Contrary to my whiny last post, we did have a fun fourth of July weekend. Even in spite of the technical difficulties!

Steve's family is visiting and we went up to DC for a patriotic weekend at the capital!

(Tim, Carol, Steve, and Steve's brother, Davey. Oh, yeah, and that's Eliza hiding behind Steve's head)

(Eliza walking with her Morrison grandparents on the Mall)

We also got to have a blast at the amazing DC Zoo! Eliza was exhausted, but she still really enjoyed seeing the Sloth Bear and petting the miniature goats and meditteranean donkeys... and then LOVED washing her hands afterwards... that was actually her favorite part of the whole zoo, silly girl! (she had only gotten like 6 interrupted hours of sleep the night before in the pak-n-play).

(Stopping to get some of the cool mist the zoo has every 1/2 mile or so along the trail. It was a HOT day... until it started pouring rain.)

We also couldn't leave DC without taking a little trip to the National Gallery of Art.
And yes, Eliza's favorite part was again the water! She was in LOVE with the fountains!
Thanks, Morrison's, for a fun trip! We have more fun in store this week in Charlottesville while Steve's parents are visiting.

Happy 4th of July

I've been trying to be a more positive person.

HOWEVER, pouring rain, a flat tire, and blisters on the 4th of July?!

COME ON!

Grrrrowl!

I just got done with Eliza's pre-nap storytime, and my throat is sore! This is due to the fact that Eliza's favorite part of every single book I read to her is finding any sort of animal that might growl, pointing it out and growling... and continuing to point it out and growl until I do the same. Apparently it's starting to wear on my vocal chords?

Eliza loves doing animal sounds, but even her sheep's "baa" and goat's "maa" is just a growl that starts with the B or M sound. And her elephant is not much different from a growl either.

Another storytime habit of Eliza's lately, especially when she's either really excited or really spent, is to point out a book for us to read to her, and then as soon as we start reading it, she flips through all of the pages until she finds her favorite. It can be kind of frustrating, but like in our Big Little book she will flip right to the page with the Mommy and Daddy on one page and point them out excitedly. Then we'll continue reading for a page or two and she flips right back to it.

I like that she's really noticing and figuring out what the pictures are portraying, but it makes it hard to get through any of the books all the way. Thank goodness for the library. I think Eliza, Steve, and I all have had Eliza's dozens of books memorized for quite some time now. So we're now open for donations...

I think that growling is a real fav for a lot of kids Eliza's age. Yesterday at the library, I was reading the Eric Carle Zoo book to Eliza, and she was growling away with the lions and bears and crocodiles, etc and a little boy whose about Eiza's age from our Mother Goose Story Time class was sitting a few feet away from us and he started growling right along with us. It was funny. A chorus of growls in the kid's section.