All in a Day's Work

 

Hooray for weekend projects!  For a while now I have been thinking of making Elliot a sandbox.  We had the perfect spot for one in an area right under her swing set that was really doing nothing except serving as a gathering spot for fallen leaves and stray grass.  Well, yesterday I decided to make this thing a reality.  So before church Elliot and I ventured to Home Depot in search of landscaping fabric, play sand, and some plywood.  To give you a visual, picture me pushing a regular sized shopping cart with Elliot in the child seat in the front, both of us in our Sunday church dresses, trying to lift and load six bags of sand into a cart that was clearly too small for the job.  Yeah.  I had no idea how big and heavy bags of sand are and I certainly didn't know how many bags I would need.  To my credit, the guy there tried to convince me I needed ten bags, and I knew that was too many, so I got six...turns out I only needed five.  Meanwhile, when I told Elliot that morning I was going to make her a sandbox, I think she was confused and thought I was taking her somewhere to play in a sandbox.  So when we arrived at Home Depot she was pretty sure there was a giant sandbox in there just waiting for her.  She kept looking around saying, "Mommy, sandbox?"  Eventually, we got it sorted out, and thanks to the good people at Home Depot, who brought me a cart appropriate for the job, loaded it up for me, and then loaded it into my car, we were on our way!

 

During girlfriend's afternoon nap I got to work on my project.  

 

 

Step 1: Clean out the area of all debris, including random grass clumps, leaves, roots, and, as the case was, wayward golf balls.

 

 Step 2: Cut the appropriate length of landscaping fabric and pin it down with some fabric staples.  Your dog can help.

 

 Step 3: Fill the sucker with sand.  (Actually, Step 3 should be carrying the bags of sand from your car to the sandbox, which was, by far, the hardest part of the whole project.  But as it was just me and those bags of sand were 50 lbs. each, there was no way a selfie was happening.)  Once all the sand is dumped in, rake it out so it can remain pristine for 30 seconds before the dog runs through it.

 

 Step 4: Insert ecstatic, post-nap toddler.  (Me: Do you love it? Elliot: I LOVE it!)

 

I am proud to report that this is a success story!  It turned out well, didn't it?  And I earned some pretty big Mom Points.  She has played in it pretty much non-stop, insisting she go out first thing this morning in her jammies.

 

Oh, and did I mention that in addition to making a sandbox yesterday I also made a pie, entertained my in-laws, cared for my toddler, and took care of my sick hubby?

 

Supermom out.



Adventures in Potty Training

Warning - Despite the beautiful pink potty chair with a dancing Disney character depicted on it, shown above, there is nothing pretty about potty training.  If you find any of the following words/phrases offensive, I recommend you read no further: potty, pee, poo, poopy, giant log, deuce, farted, explosion, yuck, yuck is right, turd ferguson, naked, butt cheeks...ok, ok I am not actually going to use all of these, ahem, expressions, in this blog post, but if you were to come around to our house these days I can't make the same promise.

Ok, so a couple months ago we embarked on what I now refer to as "it was the worst of times and it was the worst of times": potty training.  Elliot was starting to show signs she was ready to use the big girl potty, and let's be honest, diapers are freaking expensive, and it seemed like a win/win.  I decided it was time.  And it was exciting!  We made a big show of going out to pick out her potty.  We went to the potty aisle, laid out her options at one end and then set her at the other end and let her walk up to the one she wanted.  She picked Minnie, unequivocally.  Then we got to move on to the big girl underwear section!  Dora, Princess, Elmo, flowers...too cute and fun.  We paid for our items and headed home, excited for what was to come.

When we got home, we unloaded our purchases, set up the Minnie pot, and then I did what any well-researched, highly competent, potty-training mama would do; I called my Mom.  I believe my exact words were "Ok, we got a potty.  Now what is step 1?"  To my relief, step 1 was getting the potty, so we were already headed in the right direction.  (Side bar: For some reason, early on before we had even decided to start potty training, I decided I was going to do one of these "potty training boot camps" that guarantee your child is potty trained in one weekend.  Great idea, in theory.  However, when I actually looked into it, it sounded like a lot of nonsense.  First of all, one of the instructions was to get a potty chair for every room in the house.  What?  Those things are like $20 each.  If I was made of money I would have paid someone to potty train her for me!  Then, it said to go to a furniture store and buy some kind of special fur covering to put in the car seat.  No thank you.)

Big girl underwear!

 

So we started employing what I call the "Gail Method" (my Mom's name is Gail) to potty training.  And it was going well!  There were obviously many accidents, lots of loads of laundry, and plenty of frustrating moments, but for the most part she was getting it.  And let me tell you, even though it is the absolute worst thing about parenting I have experienced so far, potty training has lead to so much laughter in our house, albeit sometimes through fat, frustrated, tears.  (Mine, not Elliot's.)  There is the unavoidable increase of poo and pee related words to the toddler's vocabulary, so we heard a lot of "No poo poo!  No potty!"  My favorite though, is the phrase she really held on to: "Yuck is right!"  The background is, she had a number 2 accident and Erik (or was it my Dad?) was changing her and she said "Yuck!" and he answered "Yuck is right!" and from then on she has thought the name for the actual poo log is "yuck is right."  So whenever she would drop a deuce she would shout out "Mommy! Daddy! Yuck is right!"  In fact, recently we were walking up my Mom's walkway and there was an unfortunately shaped pinecone Elliot spotted.  She stopped in her tracks, shocked, and pointed at it saying "Yuck is right! Yuck is right!"  But I digress...

Anyway, I say it was going well because a few weeks ago she decided she was done.  D.O.N.E.  She had been having a few days in a row where she didn't make it to the potty at all.  Not only that, she made no effort to get to the potty at all, preferring instead to go in her pants and then tell us to change her afterward.  She was with my Dad when it happened.  I guess she was sitting there for a while and then suddenly stood up, slammed the potty shut, and promptly pooed on the floor in protest!  After that, she showed so little interest in the whole process we decided to put the potty away for a while and try again in a couple months.  Was this the right thing to do?  I don't know.  Was it was the easier option for these first-time parents?  Absolutely.  We figured, she's not even two yet, it's still acceptable for her to be in diapers.  Now, if she's heading off to kindergarten and we haven't resolved this yet...different story.  But for now, cost of diapers be damned!

2014 Countdown (It's not too late, right?)

Ok, so over the past two plus years that I have done this blog, I have come to realize you really need a theme to focus your writing.  And I had this one planned out since, well, the beginning of the new year but never got around to writing it.  Today I was signing some documents at work and realized "holy cow, it's the 29th already!"  So, even though it is the end of the month, it is still January, at least for a couple more days, and I am sticking with the plan.

I have never really been a resolution kind of gal.  As a kid the main excitement of New Year's Eve was always watching the ball drop and doing the countdown.  So in the spirit of the New Year's Eve countdown, here are my top ten favorite things about my number one girlfriend this year.

TEN!

 

It's all books, all the time.  For this girl there ain't no party like a book party.  Unless it's a...

 

 

NINE!

 

...hanging out in our big girl underwear party!

 

 

EIGHT!

 

Whenever I dreamed of having a little girl, this is what I pictured.  The bonus I did not even think to dream of: she thinks all my shoes are awesome and tells me how pretty they are when I wear them.

 

SEVEN!

 

Dancing and singing are a very big deal right now.  Whether or not they are a bigger deal than eating chips?  Jury's still out.

 

SIX!

 

 

The promise of "pitty nails" can stop a tantrum in its tracks.  She goes from a screaming nightmare to this adorable cherub blowing her nails dry and then admiring them in a matter of seconds.

 

 

FIVE!

 

She now kisses on demand and even of her own volition.  Sometimes she even demands a pretend moustache kiss.  She has a book about moustaches.  She's pretty into it.

FOUR!

She always makes sure everyone has enough to eat.

THREE!

She exhibits such wonder at new experiences.  Here is her first glimpse of herself after her first face painting ever.

TWO!

 

These two.  They make my year.

 

 

ONE!

 

 

She is the silliest, most fun, and lovable girl of the world and every day I thank God for sending her to us.  (Please don't tell her I put a picture of her on the potty on the internet when she is older.)

 

 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!



 









Merry Christmas from the Rammelsbergs!

 

Dear Family and Friends,

 

This blog post is a little different from the others because this year, instead of printing out a Christmas letter and including it all our Christmas cards, we decided to put it up on the blog.  So if you are a regular follower, Merry Christmas to you too, and there is going to be some overlap from previous blog posts.  If you are a first-timer and are here because you received a Christmas card, welcome!  We hope you come back for more all year :).

 

Well, let's start with the star of the show!  Ms. Elliot celebrated her first birthday in June.  It was a beautiful day and we held her birthday party at one of her favorite places: the park at the library, complete with gazebo, cake, and a splash park.

She is now 18 months old and so much fun!  This is my favorite age so far.  She is talking fairly well now and love, love, loves books!  Her favorite activities include being outside (sometimes difficult this time of year because it is soooo cold), playing on Mommy & Daddy's bed, and playing guitar with Daddy.

She recently had her 18 month well-child doctor's appointment and we learned that she is 35.5 inches tall (nearly 3 feet!) and around 25 pounds, which places her in the 99th percentile for height and around the 54th percentile for weight.  In other words, she is built exactly like Erik.

 

Erik is now working as a nurse in the Emergency Department at Trios Health (formerly known as Kennewick General Hospital).  He took that position in October and so far seems to really like it.  Unfortunately, he is on the night shift, so for about 2 weeks per month we don't see him as much as we would like, since he has to sleep most of those days.  The up side is that after he completes his 6 day shift he then gets 8 days off.  As I write this, in the middle of the afternoon, he is snoozing away :).  The other up side, this year anyway, is that since he is still training he gets to have Christmas off.  I guess they don't want to pay someone at the holiday rate that doesn't really need to be there!

 

In January of this year I changed jobs.  I still work for the Yakama Nation, but now I am prosecuting rather than defending.  A job in the Office of the Prosecutor opened up, I applied, they offered it to me, and I was able to negotiate working part time.  It has been wonderful!  I work 30 hours per week, so I still get to spend a lot of time with Elliot.  It's the best of both worlds.

 

This summer we took a family "vacation" to Lutherhaven in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, the summer camp where Erik and I met when we worked there in college.  I say "vacation" because it wasn't one in the traditional sense.  Erik actually volunteered to be the medic for a week of camp and Elliot and I got to come along.  It was so much fun!  Elliot lives to be outside, so a full week of being almost exclusively outside was heaven to her.  She got to go swimming and hiking, she got to sit around a camp fire and sing, and she even got to try her first s'more.  She was also quite popular with the campers, especially the little girls.  It will always be a special place to our family, given our history.  And what a beautiful, Christ-filled, alive environment!  We hope to go back next summer.

 

Toast Rammelsberg (the family pup) has had a rough year.  In March, he had a huge seizure that lasted upwards of 45 minutes.  We took him to the vet and he was diagnosed with epilepsy.  He now has to take medicine twice daily and it makes him feel hungry all the time so...let's just say he's a little bigger now than he was at this time last year...haha.  It doesn't help that Elliot is always throwing her food to him.  The two of them are the best of friends, although Toast still gets jealous of her.  Sometimes she gets in his bed and that really riles him up! 

 

Well that's about all the news we have for you this year.  Please check back occasionally to see what we are up to as it is happening!  I will send you off with some pics of our Christmas preparations.  We hope you are all enjoying this time with family and friends and wish you all the best for 2014!  Merry Christmas!

 

Love,

Erik, Jessica, Elliot, and Toast



Checking out the "pitty lights" (pretty lights, in Elliot).

Hanging out around the tree.

Helping Daddy put up the lights and then being silly.

Engaging in Elliot's favorite tradition: 12 Days of Christmas Books!



Grandparents

Grandma Gail

Grandpa Bill & Grandma Sue

Grandpa "Poppy" Cres

 I always love hearing people talk about their grandchildren.  It doesn't matter who it is (my co-worker, the lady sitting at the table next to mine, or my own mother), but something just comes over them.  Their faces radiate pure joy.  The grandparent/grandchild relationship is one of the most special relationships we, as humans, experience, whether we are lucky enough to be a part of one or merely observe them going on around us.

Elliot with her Grandpas at Famous Dave's

And with her Grandmas at her birthday party

 I don't think I realized what a wonderful relationship it is until I became a parent.  Elliot hit the grandparent jackpot.  Both my parents and Erik's are amazing grandparents.  She is the only grandchild on both sides, so not only is her company highly sought after, but she is spoiled rotten.  I am always in awe of her relationship with each one of them.  Not just how she is able to interact with each of them differently and read their personalities, but also how she changes them.  For example, my parents, who have been divorced since I was 8, are much more friendly and patient with each other and often work together to cover baby duty when Erik and I are not available.  We noticed a big change in Erik's parents when we come to visit them in Pullman.  Before Elliot was born they were always happy when we came to visit, but they never came bounding out the door to meet us at the car like they do now!

My mom has been looking forward to having grandchildren since I was in grade school.  I vividly remember her packing away toys we had outgrown and saying "I am saving this one for my grandbabies!"  And she did!  She's always pulling out all these toys for Elliot that I used to play with.  The most recent recovery is the "My Little Ponies"collection.  I think I might have more fun playing with those than Elliot.  Mom and Elliot have a beautiful relationship.  She understands her sometimes better than I do.  And there is no one out there better at celebrating Elliot and the things she accomplishes.  Sometimes I just watch her watching Elliot because I like to see so much joy on her face.

When we told my Dad I was pregnant, he literally jumped up and down.  Several times.  It was probably the best reaction we got, bar none.  His attitude toward the news pretty much sums up his attitude toward her in everything.  I don't think he could ever get enough Elliot.  And I am sure all of his phone contacts wish his camera would break down for a while so he would stop sending them pictures of her!  As many of you know, he recently underwent a very serious brain surgery that ended up keeping him in the hospital longer than expected.  Even when he was in his most drugged up and uncomfortable state, he would still ask about her and long to see her.

Bill and Sue are two of my (and Elliot's, of course) favorite people.  I am forever grateful I married into the Rammelsberg family.  It is unfortunate they live in a different town and Elliot does not see them as often as her other grandparents.  Fortunately, they are only a couple hours away and we see them at least once a month.  When we visit Sue always makes sure everything is just right for Elliot, from the food she buys to the crib bedding.  She also always encourages Mommy and Daddy to get out of the house for the purpose of giving us a break (but actually so she can be alone with Elliot...we know what you are doing! lol).  She never gets tired of playing and reading with her and showers her with compliments.  She is also a wonderful storyteller, so I am looking forward to Elliot learning all about her relatives from Sue as she grows up.

Bill is a "comfortable silence" kind of guy.  By that I mean, he is a man of few words.  But he is the sweetest man in the world and Elliot adores him.  She can convince him to do just about anything.  And he was willing to abandon his home comforts to come sleep on our crappy spare bed for a few nights all to stay with her.  One day he was watching her while we were at work and I texted him asking how it was going.  His reply was it was good and they were "just cuddling and watching shows."  Precious.  A lifelong WSU fan (I am not sure "fan" is even a strong enough word) he taught Elliot how to say "Go Cougs!" last time he was here.  I wonder what he will do if she decides to become a Vandal like her mama.  Or even worse, a Husky!

Grandma Vera at our wedding in 2009

In all seriousness, I have been considering the grandparent relationship a lot recently because we are coming up on the one year anniversary of losing my Grandma.  Right after she passed I thought about writing about her in my blog and what she meant to me several times, but could never bring myself to do it.  There is a Native American tradition, or perhaps just a Yakama Nation tradition, that when someone dies you do not look at a picture of them or really speak of them for one year.  While I do not personally subscribe to that tradition, I recognize a kind of beauty in it.  Soon after losing someone emotions are so raw that they tend to cloud anything you do or say.  So I guess, in a way, that is why I never did blog about it.

She was a wonderful Grandma.  I miss her dearly.  I spent a lot of time with her growing up and as an adult, and I will never regret that time.  Now that I see the way Elliot's grandparents love her I understand how she must have felt about me, and my siblings and cousins.  What I do regret is that she didn't live long enough to answer all the questions I have for her that come up as I go through day to day activities.  I should have asked her more about her parents and what they were like.  I wish I could ask her what it was like to raise four kids and whether she would recommend having that many now.  But most of all I wish I could just sit around her table with her and talk.  About nothing.  About everything.  I see her in many places in my life.  Especially when I host a gathering and when I am cooking one of her signature dishes.  I hope to one day be rolling up a batch of her cinnamon rolls, cutting off the end piece and handing it to my granddaughter, telling her all about Grandma Vera.

Her house recently sold, and seeing someone else parked in her driveway and living their life in the house that is as familiar to me as my own childhood home was like a punch to the gut.  But I know what Grandma would say, after she scoffed at the current state of her yard: It's just stuff.  She was so uncomfortable at the end with her various infirmities, that I am grateful that she is at peace.  When we found her, after she had passed, she was lying peacefully on her bed, fully clothed, and comfortable.  I cannot imagine a more perfect way for her to go.  Still, it's difficult on the rest of us.

Grandma with Elliot last Halloween, the last time I saw her.

I am so grateful for her life, that I got to be a part of it, and that she got to meet Elliot.  She is gone but not forgotten.  Cheers to you, Grandma!  We miss you.