Otay Ranch Fountain

6/19/08: We are having a busy week! Today we went to the Otay Ranch Shopping Village. I love that mall. We hung out with my Mom all day and night- which was a lot of fun and a huge help and distraction for me after being on my own all week. Miles had a lot of freedom at the book store to play and rearrange their shelves. Then we headed over to the children’s play area. They have a wonderful fountain where the kids can play (under age 7). I was actually prepared this time with a suit and change of clothes for Miles! He LOVED it. It’s so amazing and fun to watch him interact with other children and explore a new experience. He’s not shy at all. He loves to talk to and watch other kids. You can just see him soaking everything in. He talks a ton lately although not much that’s understandable in English, a lot is understandable in tone. Here’s a picture of the set up. We’ll be back for sure, but next time I’ll bring a towel! (almost perfect!) For more pictures of this week, email me...

The Misadventure of a Novice Mom or Morning at the Beach

Upon hearing that it would be in the nineties today, I decided last minute to go to the beach this morning. I had a vision- We would sit on a blanket under the umbrella and I could read my book while he played in the sand. So with this in mind I put the wagon, the umbrella, a blanket and a lunch in the car and we headed off to Coronado at 8:30 in the morning. This is what really happened. We parked right next to the wheel chair ramp that leads out to the sand. I put him in the Ergo, loaded the wagon and off we went to find a good spot not too close to the water, so he wouldn’t be tempted to run off into the ocean. I laid out the blanket and put up the umbrella and put Miles down and he took off, made a straight line for the ocean. So I hopped up and ran after him, taking his sandals off and running back to throw them in the wagon.

He ran screaming like a wild boar straight into the water and promptly fell on his butt. Okay so his shorts and cloth diaper are wet, no big deal, I thought. I tried from then on to keep him in the shallow water, but selfishly, I wanted to get video of all the cute noises he was making, so I made a decision. I let him go. He ran into the waves and got knocked down and roll in the water, get up shake it off and do it again. So I took off his shorts. All the while I was very aware his sun block only went to his knees. His cloth diaper was soaked and hanging heavily between his legs- probably what kept knocking him down. He had sand all over his body, caked on like sandpaper. After a little while of trying to get video and pictures without letting the ocean take him or getting my camera wet I decided that enough was enough and I would try to salvage my original vision. Having forgotten towels, swim diapers, or a change of clothing and being unable to put sunblock on him as he was covered in sand, I thought I would strip him down and let him dry off in the shade of the umbrella. That was a joke. He ran all over the beach picking up sand and throwing it, mostly on himself, while totally naked. Meanwhile it was nearing 10 am so the beach was starting to become more crowded with other Moms and older kids. Boy did they all get a kick out of seeing me in my wet clothes and floppy hat running after the wild and naked boy.


Cursing myself for being so totally unprepared I made an executive decision to cut my losses and pack up. I decided to try to hose him off at the bathroom shower. So again, naked (him, not me!) I tried to put him under the shower. He was very interested in pushing the button although he was shaking like he had Parkinson’s from the cold. We managed to get most of the sand off him and a relatively clean and dry cloth diaper on him. I let him play in the car while I loaded it up. Finally, donning a cloth diaper only, I buckled him in to his seat and defeated, headed for home.

On the way home I was trying to feed him little pieces of the sandwich I had hoped to eat on the beach. I was driving and reaching back to hand him pieces. He grabbed my hand and steered it to his mouth and then held my hand, patting it and laughing. I felt like he was thanking me for the short time at the beach. And that made it all worth while. But next time I’m bring bathing suits and towels. Duh.

Purple Corduroy Pants.

6/17/08: I went to the San Diego Fair today with my friend Lauren. After the long drive to Del Mar and the hot wait in line to get in, we decided the kids needed to run around and be free from their strollers. So we headed over to the garden exhibit to tear things up a bit. Miles would run up to people- everyone and anyone- stop right in front of them and wave at them with this big, goofy, expectant smile on his face, wait for them to acknowledge him (or trip over him), then run to the next stranger to personally greet them. Most people were older, and kinda hippy-ish and were very responsive to his salutations. Some of the younger crowd just pretended not to see him. But he waves with his whole arm and hand, so it’s hard not to see him.

There was one special couple, who were standing close to each other, the man’s round belly almost toughing the lady. Miles ran up and dashed in between them, under the belly. I think he thought their bodies made a tunnel. The woman had long, grey hair, thick glasses and a fanny pack over her bright purple, tapered leg corduroy pants. When he made his mad dash between them, they kind of jumped back saying “Oh!” Miles thought it was the most fun thing to do, but when he circled back to give it another go they were walking away, so he ran up behind the lady and head butted her in the posterior and she spread her legs so he could run through them! And then back again, and again. Keep in mind he’s a tall boy and wasn’t really ducking so she was kind of trying to hop up to avoid being pegged in the crotch. Miles was laughing so hard the entire time. Finally the couple said good-bye and tried to make an escape from this crazy boy but he followed them until I finally grabbed him, kicking and screaming and went to go find Lauren.

His other favorite part of the fair was the trip to the infield where we had to go through a real tunnel. Miles hollered and yelped and bellowed the entire length of the tunnel so he could hear his echo. We also stopped in an old timey photo booth- which he was amazed with- and we watched a band play some old surf rock for a while.


I managed to be swindled and conned by a carnie at the balloon/dart booth. It was $2 for one dart or $5 for 3. I gave the tall, smiley, man my $5 and popped 2 out of 3 balloons with the darts. The last one I missed. The man said, “Say “Pop!”” So I said, "Pop!" and he said, “You won!” But it was one of those crappy little toys that I won so I decided to go for the big stuffed dragon. When I asked him how much I would need to spend to get the dragon he told me he would make me a deal, and for each dart that hit a balloon it would count for 3 points and I needed 12 more points. So I needed to hit 4 balloons. I agreed and tried to pay him but he graciously told me to pay him AFTER I took the shots. I knew then that he was somehow going to take me for my $20.00 and I even said so. Again, I hit 4 balloons and was so impressed with my dart skills. He gave me a high five and got me the desired Dragon and then told me I owed him $20.00. What?! $20- It should have been $7.00- But each dart counted for 3- he explained. Oh- He got me. Such a con. But I had agreed to that, so how could I argue? Besides I had so much fun winning the dragon, and I knew he was conning me and I thought it was such a funny cliché- that I just handed him my twenty and laughed as I walked away. How he sleeps at night though, I’ll never know.

After that we walked through the farm and headed back to the car, stopping along the way to indulge in a chocolate dipped banana. Miles now thinks that chocolate dipped bananas are the next best thing to num nums (nursing). He clutched it and gnawed on it with his eyes closed all the way back to the car. Not bad for a one dollar ticket to the Fair!

Skin Deep, Green Bag Lady, and More!

6/11/08: You can always tell when my life is crazy by how long I wait to update this blog. Things are challenging here while Miles learns to talk… and listen! And we are always in flux with sleeping arrangements and schedules. Very loosey goosy. As long as he’s getting enough sleep, that’s good enough for me. I do okay with half a brain. Ha.

Here’s a few sites that have been sent to me recently. Sites that will open your eyes to the scary world of chemicals that we live in. My friend just mentioned that the FDA has really let us down, and I couldn’t agree more. http://www.cosmeticdatabase.com/ This is the site to check out the products you use on your skin. It’s awesome because once you discover how toxic your products are, you can find ones that are less so. And this one http://www.thedailygreen.com/living-green/blogs/organic-parenting/sunblock-sunscreen-55040201 has some great information in general, but this link will take you to an article on sunblock.

On a happy note, I received my “Green Bag Lady” Bag that I requested through http://www.greenbaglady.blogspot.com/ Not long ago I heard about this artist who sews reusable market bags for people and gives them away for free. In fact she mailed my bag to me for free, costing her $1.95. I noticed that her envelope had a stamp that asked me to reuse the envelope. So I did. I promptly picked out some extra fabric that I had laying around and took it to the post office today. She gets fabric donations from around the US (at least). I’m glad I can add to it. What she’s doing kinda renews my believe in humankind’s goodness. Rock on Green Bag Lady! And thanks for my beautiful bag!