Imagine going to your friendly neighbourhood butcher shop to buy your meat for the week. Now imagine your freindly neighbourhood butcher handing you your bag with goodies and saying, with a freindly smile: "That comes to 72.00 swiss franks sir." Ok, now imagine that you reach in your pocket and realize you've forgotten your wallet at home. Keep imagining. Imagine, just for a second, that you smile back at your friendly neighbourhood butcher and say: "Oh gosh, I seem to have forgot my wallet, but thank you for the meat, I'll be sure to pay you next week when I'm in." Still with me? Now imagine, just for a split second, that your friendly neighbourhood butcher, still smiling his friendly smile, hands you the grocery bag, thanks you for shopping at your friendly neighbourhood butcher shop and even holds the door open for you so your son can roll out on his tricycle. A nice euthopian dream, no? No.
That just happened to my husband this morning. Only in Switzerland. Well, hold on, that's not entirely true. Because, you see, I'm not sure if that would have gone down like that somewhere in Zurich or Geneva. But in this little, sleepy, swiss Alp village, it sure does. In this little, sleepy, swiss Alp village, where (for better or for worse...and in this case, for better) "everybody knows your name, and they're sure glad you came", even if you came without your wallet. After all, they know where you live!
Turns out my husband forgot a couple of things and I'm on my way now (soon as I finish typing) back to our friendly neighbourhood butcher shop to get them. Oh, and pay the bill!
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Thursday, August 11, 2011
"All (little) Eyes On Me, In The Center of the Rink (Uh, I mean shower), Just Like A Circus" ... Uh huh!
Pop Quiz: How do you shower while you're being watched by two curious two-year-olds?
Answer: Very fast!
Yesterday morning I jump in the shower, just like any morning. About two minutes into it, as I'm humming along, the bathroom door swings open and two two-year-olds rush in, splat their faces on the shower door and yell: Whatcha doin'? Whatcha doin'?
For the love of God and all that is holy!!!
Any normal person with half a brain in their scull would have locked the door of the bathroom as they go in to have a shower knowing their son and his little girlfriend are playing around in the house. I, however, posess no gray matter and therefore forgot to do that. Yes, I was lucky, one of my observers was my son and the other, a girl. Yes, I realize it could have been worse - they could have been twelve with an iPhone in hand and access to the internet. But STILL! Imagine trying to shower with two little flat noses against the shower door and four little curious eyes staring at you. What the hell were we thinking when we bought a glass shower door anyway? No, not tinted glass. No, not frosted glass either. Just plain, seethrough glass. Well I'll tell you what we were NOT thinking. We were surely not thinking that about three years into the future we'll have a son and he'll have a friend and one day Momma's gonna forget to lock the bathroom door when she went in to have a shower.
"Whatcha doin' now?"
"Well, now I'm lathering up with the shower gel, making lots of bubbles..see the bubbles? See?"
"And now? Whatcha doin' now?"
"Well, now I'm shaving my leggs."
"And whatcha doin' now?"
"For crying in the sink, don't you kids have anything more interesting to do out there???!!!"
"No."
I tell ya, I shall never forget to lock the darn door ever again! Even when I'm all alone in the house!
Answer: Very fast!
Yesterday morning I jump in the shower, just like any morning. About two minutes into it, as I'm humming along, the bathroom door swings open and two two-year-olds rush in, splat their faces on the shower door and yell: Whatcha doin'? Whatcha doin'?
For the love of God and all that is holy!!!
Any normal person with half a brain in their scull would have locked the door of the bathroom as they go in to have a shower knowing their son and his little girlfriend are playing around in the house. I, however, posess no gray matter and therefore forgot to do that. Yes, I was lucky, one of my observers was my son and the other, a girl. Yes, I realize it could have been worse - they could have been twelve with an iPhone in hand and access to the internet. But STILL! Imagine trying to shower with two little flat noses against the shower door and four little curious eyes staring at you. What the hell were we thinking when we bought a glass shower door anyway? No, not tinted glass. No, not frosted glass either. Just plain, seethrough glass. Well I'll tell you what we were NOT thinking. We were surely not thinking that about three years into the future we'll have a son and he'll have a friend and one day Momma's gonna forget to lock the bathroom door when she went in to have a shower.
"Whatcha doin' now?"
"Well, now I'm lathering up with the shower gel, making lots of bubbles..see the bubbles? See?"
"And now? Whatcha doin' now?"
"Well, now I'm shaving my leggs."
"And whatcha doin' now?"
"For crying in the sink, don't you kids have anything more interesting to do out there???!!!"
"No."
I tell ya, I shall never forget to lock the darn door ever again! Even when I'm all alone in the house!
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
To Dry Or Not to Dry
This is the big question in my family at the moment. Drying dishes. Simple enough task but oh the cause of so much discussion in my household as of late.
I am of the opinion that drying the dishes is a total waste of perfectly good time and energy that can be spent on something(s) so much more important or fun. The dishes can't wash themselves, so you gotta wash them. But they can surely dry themsleves if you just leave them there, so why shouldn't you? bracket:we do have a dishwasher, but here we talk about some oversized pots and pans or casserole dishes or delicate ones which can't go in the machine:end bracket.
Now, my husband is of the opinion that we should most definitely dry the dishes after we've washed them. His reasoning: that way they don't sit there in a huge pile beside the sink being a thorn in the eye and there's no water spots (true, we do have very hard water up here).
So now we've had this debate for a couple of weeks and frankly, I'm getting tired of it. Hope my husband is too.
To Dry Or Not to Dry
This is the big question in my family at the moment. Drying dishes. Simple enough task but oh the cause of so much discussion in my household as of late.
I am of the opinion that drying the dishes is a total waste of perfectly good time and energy that can be spent on something(s) so much more important or fun. The dishes can't wash themselves, so you gotta wash them. But they can surely dry themsleves if you just leave them there, so why shouldn't you? bracket:we do have a dishwasher, but here we talk about some oversized pots and pans or casserole dishes or delicate ones which can't go in the machine:end bracket.
Now, my husband is of the opinion that we should most definitely dry the dishes after we've washed them. His reasoning: that way they don't sit there in a huge pile beside the sink being a thorn in the eye and there's no water spots (true, we do have very hard water up here).
So now we've had this debate for a couple of weeks and frankly, I'm getting tired of it. Hope my husband is too.
Monday, February 8, 2010
Bottles Up, Uhrr, I Mean, Bottoms Up!
Yesterday, my baby graduated from the breast to the bottle. Big step. How do I feel? Well, my feelings are mixed.
Those of you who know the kind of problems we had with breastfeeding from the start might think, hey, what mixed feelings, rejoyce! Yes, I do rejoyce, but I'm also a bit sad.
I rejoyce because I'm free. I can now eat and drink whatever I want and whenever I want and as much of it as I want. I can also wear normal bras and tops, and not ones with openings on the front, which, mind you, my husband thought....well, nevermind now, let's not get off topic here :) In other words, I now have my body back, fianlly. But it's also sad that my baby's all grown up and so fast. I will miss the closeness, the nurturing and being needed.
I think back 6 months ago and remember the infections, the fever, the sore, cracked nipples and the pain, the leaking, the loooong, frequent feeds. Man, it felt like my baby was hanging on my boob the whole time. I remember eating something I loved and then having to pay for it with a cranky, collicky baby because it didn't agree with him. Yes, when I think of those times, I sure am glad they are behind us.
But if I think back only a couple months, breastfeeding had become easy and even, yes, enjoyable. I could afford to eat a bigger variety of foods without my baby getting an upset tummy, the leaking had stopped or subsided quite a bit, the nipples had gotten used to the constant abuse and were not hurting anymore and my baby was feeding less frequently and much quicker. So then it was actually fun. And convenient and economical. No need to worry about washing and sterilizing bottles and such, whether the temperature was right, whether the powder was running out and we needed a new box stat! And if we were going out somewhere, no need to pack all those extra things with us and worry where we are going to get hot water from.
Not to mention the health benefits to my baby from drinking Mommy's milk. Well, he wasn't exclusively breastfed as is recommended by WHO and everyone else and their mother, but he did have Mommy's milk every day for his first 6 months. We couldn't have him exclusively breastfed with all the problems we had in the beginning. When Mommy's boobs were pulgged up and baby was not strong enough to pull the milk out, he got dehydrated and we gave him a bottle or two right from the start. And later, as he was growing up to be a big and sturdy boy and needed more than Mommy could provide, we gave him a bottle or two here and there. But that only helped to get him used to the bottle and now we have absolutely no problem with the weaning. Lately, he loved his bottle more than the breast even.
We've also now started some solid foods, like baby cereals and mashed banana, which we love. Time flies by so quick that before I know it, he'll be eating steak and fries with a fork and knive. So, I cherish every minute with my angel and every step we go, stage after stage.
Cheers All!
Bottles Up, Uhrr, I Mean, Bottoms Up!
Yesterday, my baby graduated from the breast to the bottle. Big step. How do I feel? Well, my feelings are mixed.
Those of you who know the kind of problems we had with breastfeeding from the start might think, hey, what mixed feelings, rejoyce! Yes, I do rejoyce, but I'm also a bit sad.
I rejoyce because I'm free. I can now eat and drink whatever I want and whenever I want and as much of it as I want. I can also wear normal bras and tops, and not ones with openings on the front, which, mind you, my husband thought....well, nevermind now, let's not get off topic here :) In other words, I now have my body back, fianlly. But it's also sad that my baby's all grown up and so fast. I will miss the closeness, the nurturing and being needed.
I think back 6 months ago and remember the infections, the fever, the sore, cracked nipples and the pain, the leaking, the loooong, frequent feeds. Man, it felt like my baby was hanging on my boob the whole time. I remember eating something I loved and then having to pay for it with a cranky, collicky baby because it didn't agree with him. Yes, when I think of those times, I sure am glad they are behind us.
But if I think back only a couple months, breastfeeding had become easy and even, yes, enjoyable. I could afford to eat a bigger variety of foods without my baby getting an upset tummy, the leaking had stopped or subsided quite a bit, the nipples had gotten used to the constant abuse and were not hurting anymore and my baby was feeding less frequently and much quicker. So then it was actually fun. And convenient and economical. No need to worry about washing and sterilizing bottles and such, whether the temperature was right, whether the powder was running out and we needed a new box stat! And if we were going out somewhere, no need to pack all those extra things with us and worry where we are going to get hot water from.
Not to mention the health benefits to my baby from drinking Mommy's milk. Well, he wasn't exclusively breastfed as is recommended by WHO and everyone else and their mother, but he did have Mommy's milk every day for his first 6 months. We couldn't have him exclusively breastfed with all the problems we had in the beginning. When Mommy's boobs were pulgged up and baby was not strong enough to pull the milk out, he got dehydrated and we gave him a bottle or two right from the start. And later, as he was growing up to be a big and sturdy boy and needed more than Mommy could provide, we gave him a bottle or two here and there. But that only helped to get him used to the bottle and now we have absolutely no problem with the weaning. Lately, he loved his bottle more than the breast even.
We've also now started some solid foods, like baby cereals and mashed banana, which we love. Time flies by so quick that before I know it, he'll be eating steak and fries with a fork and knive. So, I cherish every minute with my angel and every step we go, stage after stage.
Cheers All!
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Old McDonald Had A Farm...And It Ruined His Social Life
Howdy! If you have the time to be reading this, that means you're not a true Farmville person, or not one at all.
Farmville. The new craze on Facebook. Millions of people are playing and have become addicted to it. I am/was one of them. Am, because I still play. Was, because I don't let it take over my life anymore.
You could ask, how, with having a small baby, was I able to keep up with it? Well, that's exactly the point. I had no time, yet I still played feverishly. Which meant, I was neglecting my house work, and .. NO, NOT MY BABY, HOW COULD YOU EVEN THINK THAT, and myself. So, my house work and myself. My life was, baby and Farmville. And that's all. Sad, no? I tried to get as much ahead as possible, jump from level to level, expand, and get medal after medal.
A friend of mine began playing much later than me and soon after that had already passed me. That with me trying all kinds of things to get points and stay ahead of him. Didn't work. But it made me sit back, take a deep breath and think about what I was doing ... or not doing for that matter. I realized what I'd been missing. Instead of reading a good book, or watching a good film while my son slept, I was clicking away on the computer and at the end had nothing to show for it. Oh, I had tons - a huge farm with a huge cabbin, tons of trees, crops, animals, lots of money. But was that all real? No. It was and is just a game. A game. Not my life.
So after my eyes had been opened and my addiction cured, I now just play the game. Whenever I feel like and and have the time. And now, it's actually fun!
Yeeeehaaaa!
Old McDonald Had A Farm...And It Ruined His Social Life
Howdy! If you have the time to be reading this, that means you're not a true Farmville person, or not one at all.
Farmville. The new craze on Facebook. Millions of people are playing and have become addicted to it. I am/was one of them. Am, because I still play. Was, because I don't let it take over my life anymore.
You could ask, how, with having a small baby, was I able to keep up with it? Well, that's exactly the point. I had no time, yet I still played feverishly. Which meant, I was neglecting my house work, and .. NO, NOT MY BABY, HOW COULD YOU EVEN THINK THAT, and myself. So, my house work and myself. My life was, baby and Farmville. And that's all. Sad, no? I tried to get as much ahead as possible, jump from level to level, expand, and get medal after medal.
A friend of mine began playing much later than me and soon after that had already passed me. That with me trying all kinds of things to get points and stay ahead of him. Didn't work. But it made me sit back, take a deep breath and think about what I was doing ... or not doing for that matter. I realized what I'd been missing. Instead of reading a good book, or watching a good film while my son slept, I was clicking away on the computer and at the end had nothing to show for it. Oh, I had tons - a huge farm with a huge cabbin, tons of trees, crops, animals, lots of money. But was that all real? No. It was and is just a game. A game. Not my life.
So after my eyes had been opened and my addiction cured, I now just play the game. Whenever I feel like and and have the time. And now, it's actually fun!
Yeeeehaaaa!
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Hi
I'm back. A positive change in my life has brought me back here. Here's where I started and here's where I'd like to continue..even if I don't blog as often now that I've got a very active and naughty 2 year-old. But that hasn't stopped me from being opinionated, lol, and it really helps to let some steam off on here. Mom, I know you didn't like the new blog, so here you go, you can do your click on your old link and read me on here...just like old times. I'm importing the couple entries from the new (and now officially closed blog).
Your Lana (happy to pick up where I left off)
Your Lana (happy to pick up where I left off)
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