Tricks for Treats

We have managed to avoid candy for the most part for our now 4 and 1/2 year old. She has had a very occasional something at a party or other event where it would have been a big fuss to say no, but for the most part she doesn't eat much sugar and when she does it is in things that are real food.

This year, however, she is very determined to go trick-or-treating. I'm not even sure she knows exactly what it is, but her friends have probably filled her in on the glorious details. I've actually been very impressed at her creativity and planning for the holiday. We went to the fabric store a few weeks ago and picked up some supplies, and while I had intended to do some very simple costume creating, Adelaide actually commandeered some fabric and created her own. Couple of leg holes, place for the head, flip it over the back and voila, Princess of the Unicorns. So I am feeling good about the majority of aspects of this holiday. We decorated her room, carved pumpkins, and have done lots and lots of creating.

But I still couldn't reconcile myself to the big bag of candy. I want this holiday to be fun because of all of the things we are doing beforehand, not because we are going to drop everything and load up on lots of things we work so hard to stay away from (myself included). We have given out prizes (playdo, glow sticks, small toys, etc.) to the kids who come to our door, but we can't count on that when we knock on our neighbor's doors on Friday.
I would rather not simply say "no" to trick-or-treating. Nor would I like to take away the treats once she has collected them. I think the lesson in that would be "mom doesn't let me" rather than "this isn't the best choice for my body." So I have devised a system to entice Adelaide to choose for herself. Enter, the prize list. I found lots of good stuff for the trick-or-treaters (playdo again, but also Halloween watches, whistles, spiders and glasses), and then I went for a few big-ticket ($2 and $3) items. I made a brochure (didn't want to explain what will happen to the items she doesn't choose, which is that she will likely get them, too, just doled out later) and Adelaide can use it to select which items she wants to trade her candy for. I am going to encourage her to just keep one or two pieces of candy to eat, and to use most of what she gets for things that will last a long time and provide her with more fun than a quick sugar hit.
I know that I won't be able to prevent all the candy, junk food, and other unhealthy things from being available to Adelaide, and being too controlling will likely backfire. But I do remain hopeful that by educating my daughter about healthy choices and providing her with support and guidance in how to make those choices, I can give her a foundation to draw on later when she is faced with all the temptation which we deal with almost everywhere we go.

Two Weeks' Notice

Dear U.S.A.,

I regret to inform you that I will be resigning from your country on Nov. 5, 2009, should you choose to elect the Republican Candidate for President of the United States of America (hereafter referred to as RCPUSA, [rec PUH sa]. I will no longer be able to live in a country capable of such crimes, given that I have served my term of Eight Long Years under Republican Rule. Please be aware that you can retain my services as citizen and public servant, simply by electing the most qualified and best candidate, Barack Obama, at the polls in November.

I urge you to consider the devastating economic impact which your organization could incur, should my resignation and those of others like me take place. In the event that 51% of the population is denied, as in the past, I believe that a mass exodus of the educated, tax-paying, socially conscious and charitable contributors will also resign, leaving your organization to cope with the reality of the RCPUSA's leadership and policies.

Until such time as the election is complete, and I hope also afterwards, I remain,
Sincerely, your citizen,

Christine A. Dunbar

Adelaide's Day with her Mom (Title by Adelaide)

Adelaide did not get enough sleep for the first few nights this week. Which meant that our first day home together, yesterday, was a series of negotiations, name-calling and diversions intended to distract a crabby 4 year-old from her own grumpiness. The end result was a day of parenting that I am actually quite proud of. We talked through how to express frustration, how to identify feelings and use words to inform others of them, and how to move on when things don't go your way. By the end of the day, Adelaide was telling me that she was disappointed about not going out to Pho for dinner, rather than telling me she will never eat Pho that I cook and she hates it (well, she did say that first, but was able to revise).We had our first longer bike ride together (the picture is from our test ride Sunday), in the rain and up some hills, and it was a success. Hard pedaling for me but Adelaide just needs another half inch or so until she can pedal too. We went to run some errands and Adelaide picked out a lovely matching set of jewelry for her and Princess Presto (who also came along for the bike ride).
All in all it was a good day, and I continue to discover areas for self-improvement via the things I am trying to teach my daughter. Wouldn't it be great if I could verbalize calmly about my feelings of anger and frustration, resolve my conflicts with others, and move on happily.

Spiced Harvest Soup

Tonight's dinner was a soup blended with delicata squash, pumpkin, and sweet potato, spiced with garlic, ginger, cumin and jalepeno. With a dash of Greek yogurt and cilantro, it was the perfect way to warm up.

Bad Hair Day?

Yesterday I had the luxury of a husband and child on an overnight outing together, so I treated myself to a haircut at the walk-in barbershop. I frequently consider getting a haircut and then decide it is not worth wasting my precious little free time to do it. Especially given how long it can take and how hit or miss the result can be.

I brought my book and didn't mind the wait, and when it was my turn I was greeted by a very friendly, older stylist named Liam. He was very thorough and asked me a lot of questions. Most of which I failed. No, I do not own a hairdryer. No, not getting one in the near future. No, I don't use "product" (though I have a few odds and ends cluttering up the bathroom). Yes, I brush my hair when it is wet. No, I am not willing to spend more time on my hair than I already do. I might have felt terrible about being such a styling slacker, but the curious thing was, Liam was also full of compliments about how healthy my hair is, and how shiny, how full and well- cared for. He would lift, snip, and rave. Then he would admonish me for using Pantene. Didn't I know that it contained wax, which will begin to build up on my hair? My luxurious, gorgeous hair that is so beautiful?

I liked Liam and liked the cut he gave me, but I am uncertain how to proceed. I doubt much will change (though I may try to avoid some of the dangerous, terrible sins I have been committing to my poor, defenseless hair), but I also wonder how my hair has possibly managed this level of radiance given my choices. I guess I should just be pleased that it has been cut and I can ignore it again for a few more months.

Princess Presto Beauty Belding

Adelaide is in a stuffed animal phase and has many "babies" that are in her care. Because many of them are also princesses, they have fairly complex names to keep them straight. Featured in this video are Rosabella and Princess Presto.

Time for a trim

Warming up the set

When I was a kid, I liked having the job of "warming up the set." It may have been a hold-over from when my parents were young, and the television actually took a long time to have sound and picture. I think ours might have taken a short while to be ready, but it was more about the ritual of sitting down together to watch something special. This was intentional television viewing, something I still try to practice today. As in, I am turning on the television to watch something I have previously selected and consider entertaining enough to be worth my time. Rather than something I sometimes do but am never satisfied by, which is decide that I am bored and flip on the set hoping to find something to cure that boredom.

It's a little early now, but I have that "warm up the set" warm fuzzy feeling about tonight's debate. It's mostly Schadenfreude, I must admit, as I expect Palin to be pretty much of a total failure. I have more of a "Saturday Night Live" feeling about this debate than a "NewsHour" one. But in any case, it is fun to have an excited anticipation building today in my household.