I am shamelessly in love with downtown Bath. Walking the brick sidewalk this morning, MJ in stride with a yellow balloon, I was once again reminded what a tremendous gem it is. We parked the car to finish a transaction at Country Farm Furniture, strolled to Cafe Creme for a Latte and cookie, and said Hello to Joe from Reny's as he set out the sidewalk sale. Two men plucked guitars on a bench in the sun. The Spring breeze caught brightly colored garments outside Bohemian Rose. Shoppers, and business folk and a handful of tourists unite here with various errands. From souvenirs, to laundry baskets, to fondue pots there is a store for every need. We can park the car, do our banking, get a gift or two and stock the pantry. Unlike many of the tourist destinations of the coast, Bath is a lovely combination of the eclectic and the practical. It's not untouchable nor lofty nor snootish. It's industry, art, business and history and it works so well. So as we walked in the sun this morning I paid silent gratitude to those who make it all possible.
http://visitbath.com/
Friday, April 29, 2011
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Will you accept this call?
There must be a well-guarded secret about having a decent telephone conversation with the kids present. For anyone who has children, you know exactly what I mean. I could roller-skate naked through the living room with the TV on, and be ignored (this could go for spouses too), but let them get a whiff of my being on the phone and every possible want or need is urgent.
When I first had Nina I was gifted a Baby Einstein DVD and in it, are lots of little vignettes of Mommies home with the kiddos, looking freshly showered and slim, happily chatting on the phone or tapping on the computer while the cherubs play blocks nearby.
Over the last 7 years at the helm, I've tried to recreate that scene. There's zillions of articles and books that provide suggestions and I've tried nearly everything. One suggestion was to provide scissors, bits of scrap paper and those little round stickers that help reinforce notebook paper. " Give them to the kids and let them have at it while you make your call. " A brilliant idea for distracting them for a time, as long as cleaning up after the cat's new haircut and scraping stickers of the woodwork is in the schedule for the afternoon.
Another tip was to simply ignore them. A pragmatic approach of not taking the bait. Fearless MJ just gets louder and more demanding, Nina becomes a cling-on quietly but consistently pulling on my clothes saying "Mama, Mama, Mama....but it's REALLY important"
Preparation is key. Everyone peed? check. Had their snack? check. Have something to do? Check. And then the pep talk. Eye contact a must. "Mommy has a business call to make.... I need you to be quiet until I am done...understand?"...the nodding of heads and "yes Mama, we understand." I am totally convinced they do understand and want to please at the time. But there seems to be something hard-wired within their cute little brains that sends the "I need Mommy" signal that they just can't help.
And time-outs, rewards, preparation and even bribery can't seem to intercept their impulse to interrupt.
So this morning when I had to talk to our financial advisor I turned on Curious George and stocked MJ with a cup of dry cereal. That afforded me ten minutes or so I needed and everyone was happy. In the end, 'plugging them in' and awarding with food worked for me, despite what the parenting magazines advise. Mj was out slogging in the mud with his dump truck within the half hour and I had another 'to do' checked off my list.
What is your secret?
When I first had Nina I was gifted a Baby Einstein DVD and in it, are lots of little vignettes of Mommies home with the kiddos, looking freshly showered and slim, happily chatting on the phone or tapping on the computer while the cherubs play blocks nearby.
Over the last 7 years at the helm, I've tried to recreate that scene. There's zillions of articles and books that provide suggestions and I've tried nearly everything. One suggestion was to provide scissors, bits of scrap paper and those little round stickers that help reinforce notebook paper. " Give them to the kids and let them have at it while you make your call. " A brilliant idea for distracting them for a time, as long as cleaning up after the cat's new haircut and scraping stickers of the woodwork is in the schedule for the afternoon.
Another tip was to simply ignore them. A pragmatic approach of not taking the bait. Fearless MJ just gets louder and more demanding, Nina becomes a cling-on quietly but consistently pulling on my clothes saying "Mama, Mama, Mama....but it's REALLY important"
Preparation is key. Everyone peed? check. Had their snack? check. Have something to do? Check. And then the pep talk. Eye contact a must. "Mommy has a business call to make.... I need you to be quiet until I am done...understand?"...the nodding of heads and "yes Mama, we understand." I am totally convinced they do understand and want to please at the time. But there seems to be something hard-wired within their cute little brains that sends the "I need Mommy" signal that they just can't help.
And time-outs, rewards, preparation and even bribery can't seem to intercept their impulse to interrupt.
So this morning when I had to talk to our financial advisor I turned on Curious George and stocked MJ with a cup of dry cereal. That afforded me ten minutes or so I needed and everyone was happy. In the end, 'plugging them in' and awarding with food worked for me, despite what the parenting magazines advise. Mj was out slogging in the mud with his dump truck within the half hour and I had another 'to do' checked off my list.
What is your secret?
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