Motherhood and Potatoes

Bifocals Again

motherhoodandpotatoes — Fri, 21 May 2010 19:46:57 +0000

Well, we are back to bifocals for C. Her eyes are straight when viewing distance. Her eyes cross a bit when viewing up-close so the goal is to make her not work so hard up-close. Her prescription is still +3.50 and +4.00, but now with a +3.00 added for the bifocal portion.

This is probably a very minor point to mull over, but it’s hard to find frames that fit a small child’s face AND that are round/big enough for a bifocal lens. I tend to the like the more rectangular frames, and it seems there are more of them. But, the bifocals to help with strabismus needs to bisect the middle of the eye/pupil so that the bifocal portion for a child is larger than for an adult. And, with a rectangular frame, that doesn’t leave much room above the bifocal portion for viewing.

We found some cute frames for C though. We’re back to more round/ovalish frames.

C adjusted to the bifocals easily – probably because she had worn bifocals before her surgery. I have to observe her more when she views up-close. It’s harder to do so because she is often looking down (ie. reading a book) so I have to get down to her level or lower!

Where Does the Time Go?

motherhoodandpotatoes — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 21:46:01 +0000

I don’t know where the time goes. Being a SAHM, you’d think that I have a lot of time while C is playing. I haven’t had a chance to write anything in over a month.

I do have to say that I’m looking forward to the nice Spring weather. Being outside. Of course I say that now – I’ll probably want to be inside with the AC when it’s hot outside.

Here’s to Spring!

Fun on a Rainy Day

motherhoodandpotatoes — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 04:51:30 +0000

I often like to stay home when it rains, but today, C and I put on our raincoats and stepped out. We took a trip to see some water fountains. It was great – there was a break in the rain, no one else was around. C ran around, screaming in delight, seeing the water. I’m sure she wanted to run though it!

I love how she stood there, captivated, whenever the water would come out.

Birthday Time

motherhoodandpotatoes — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 04:21:47 +0000

The candles on my burnt almond birthday cake is not representative of how old I am! And, this cake was yummy!

My birthday gift – new lens for my camera. I’m learning so much about using my Canon DSLR camera. I hope to capture great portrait shots with this new lens!

7 Layer Bean Dip

motherhoodandpotatoes — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 19:34:30 +0000

This yummy 7 layer bean dip was a hit at our Super Bowl party. And, it was so easy to make!

I wish I had some now.

Books to Read

motherhoodandpotatoes — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 19:27:00 +0000

I’m looking for a good book to read next. Sometimes I read several books in a row, and then I take a break. My method of finding new books to read is pretty random. I often browse the Amazon bestsellers list to see if any titles sound interesting. Then, I read the description and download a sample to my Kindle. Or, I may see some popular titles reviewed in a magazine and decide to take a look at the book.

I checked out Positive Discipline for Preschoolers at the library a few weeks ago, but I don’t count that as reading for pleasure. (C is pretty well behaved, but I wanted to see what this “approach” is all about.)

S tells me that I should review books on Amazon so that their system can give me good recommendations. Perhaps I’ll do that.

Preschool Nervousness

motherhoodandpotatoes — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 17:04:14 +0000

Yesterday, we signed C for a preschool – a big step. She has been going to a parent-tot class once a week where I stay in the class with her. But now, she’ll be by herself without me when she starts her preschool at the end of this month.

I had originally wanted her to start preschool in the Fall of 2010 at 3.5 years old. However, we were touring a school yesterday, and one spot was available. Taking this spot would also mean that we had priority enrollment for the Fall. The class for C’s age group only has 10 kids so there aren’t many openings with returning students and siblings having higher priority.

During the tour, C integrated very well with the class – she played, ate cupcakes with them, and was chatty. Watching this and having a good feeling about the school, S and I decided to enroll for the open spot even though we were not planning on it.

I hope C is ready. I have a couple of weeks to work on her potty training – she is almost there, but is not consistent. The teacher says that is OK for class enrollment so I sure hope so. We’ll have to switch her to real underwear!

I hope I am ready! It will take some time not to worry about her when she is in preschool by herself, wondering what she is doing, whether she is talkative, or if she is playing by herself or with other kids. Mostly, if she is having fun.

So, the preschool nervousness in the title of this post is about me, not C!

Happy New Year

motherhoodandpotatoes — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 16:51:49 +0000

Happy New Year 2010!

We had a wonderful holiday season. Here are a few photos showing a festive Christmas display that we went to. The best part was C’s excitement!

Food Galore!

motherhoodandpotatoes — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 17:06:10 +0000

Our pictures from The French Laundry Chef’s Tasting Menu. (There is a also a Vegetarian Tasting Menu, but we did not order that.) There were a few choices within the tasting menu so S and I would order one of each choice so you’ll see a lot of dishes here. I did not take any photos of the amuse bouches (something with cheese and a salmon tartare cone). Also, the photo for one of my favorites of the night – Maine Lobster Tail – did not come out.

The presentation on all the dishes was exquisite, and of course, the flavors of the food was mouth-watering! * I’m not going to label all the photos – just enjoy!

Here are two photos of Brioche Bakery. I had a citrus pistachio brioche which was yummy! S had a blueberry muffin, and we shared a hot chocolate with whipped cream.

* If you want to know what a particular dish is, just leave a comment with some description, and I’ll reply. Just too lazy to type it all in ahead of time!

Wineries Visited

motherhoodandpotatoes — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 23:19:05 +0000

A few snapshots of two of the wineries we visited.

Silver Oak

Chimney Rock

(btw, this is the winery where they filmed Top Chef finale according to the person who poured our wine for us!)

Up next: The French Laundry food photos!