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Tater Tot is sick. No fever, thank God. Just snots and coughs. Lots of snots. A few coughs. It hasn’t really slowed her down so far, just made her a wee bit cranky. Oh. I forgot the poop. How could I forget the poop? Loose. Sticky. Blech. Not fun with cloth diapers. Been spending more of my time than I’d like with my hands in the toilet scrubbing them. Only a few of them, though. Not enough to make me switch to disposables until she’s better. But enough.

Other than that, the fridge and TV are both wigging out so I’ve got to get repair people out to tend to them. And I’ve got to eat the leftovers so they don’t spoil. Pity. Well, I’d better get to it!

Usually Princess Tater Tot and I don’t have a whole heckuvalot to do and that’s the way we like it! Takin’ it slow and not rushing around. Just getting our errands/chores done and doing a lot of playing. This weekend, however, we were busy, busy, busy! Friday we wento to The Grandma and Grandpa’s house (Mommy’s Mom and Dad) for a visit until Saturday afternoon. We did lots of catching up with them (and lots of shopping with Grandma)! Then, today, the other Grandma and Grandpa (Daddy’s Mom and Dad) came for a visit. Okay, now that I type that, it doesn’t sound like much. But she’s a toddler who really, really likes her routine and familiar surroundings. Basically the whole weekend was nothing like it usually is. She is a Drama Queen but she did okay. It just took a little extra work on my part. And Mr. Duckie. If I had forgotten Mr. Duckie, I would have been screwed. When everything is topsy turvy in Taterland, just hand the kid Mr. Duckie and her world is restored to order. Boy am I grateful for this duck!

The visit to Grandma and Grandpa’s house was soooo much fun! Tater Tot loved to walk in the back yard with all the grass and to walk with Grandma down to the corner of their street. She was a little bit upset when Grandma wouldn’t let her walk out into the traffic but she got over it. There were so many new rooms to explore! Rooms she had seen before but hadn’t explored on foot. Getting to bed wasn’t as easy as usual and napping was kinda hard due to all the excitement but we had a good time.

Now it’s back to the usual…

Lately Tater Tot’s favorite “lovey”, Mr. Duckie is smelling, uh, less than fresh. He goes just about everywhere with her. When she sees him, her eyes light up and she breaks out in a huge grin. I swear she’s happier to see that duck than she is to see me sometimes! He is a rather large, fuzzy stuffed duck. You could even say that he is a bit shaggy since his “feathers” are longer than you would expect for a duck. Kinda like the Suzy’s Zoo duck . My dilemma is how to clean this duck? Warm soapy water? I don’t think I can throw the thing in the washing machine, unfortunately. The other dilemma is when to clean this duck! When can I clean it without her throwing a fit because she sees it and wants it? What’s gross about this whole situation to me is that the duck does not look dirty. It just smells dirty. Ewwww.

Well, I just took a break to look up how to clean stuffed animals and came up with some good suggestions!

Mommy Tip: Baking soda apparently works for a “dry bath” and I think it would probably take care of the smell since it is a natural deodorizer. I like that it’s natural because this thing is in Tater Tot’s mouth quite a bit. Leave it on for 15 minutes and then just brush it off.

A couple of web sites recommended just throwing the thing in a pillowcase, closing it and putting it in the washer even if the tag says not to (there are exceptions for animals with sound boxes, of course). This site has an extensive primer on stuffed animal care, in case you are in need as I am.

So at some point when Mr. Duckie is not critically needed by The Tot, I guess I will be throwing his Duckie Butt in a pillowcase and takin’ him on a ride in the washing machine. Wish me luck!

Lest you think I am crazy, this is a line from one of my current favorite kid’s books, “Belly Button Book (Boynton on Board)“. It is the cutest thing! It tells the story of a teeny hippopotamus and her “beebo” (belly button). According to this book, hippos really love their belly buttons. I had no idea! They like to wear “bathing suits too little” so that you can admire them. The story is cute and the illustrations are great but my favorite thing about the book is hearing The Daddy belt out a wailing rendition of “The Belly Button Song” that the hippos like to sing to their belly buttons. This quiet and usually rather reserved man holds nothing back and sometimes hits notes that are close to only being heard by dogs! And Tater Tot loves it. She thinks it’s the greatest thing. And I do too. I am grateful that The Daddy likes to spend time with The Tot and that he is willing to make a complete and utter fool of himself for her. Even with the windows open and neighbors listening. Priceless.

Tater Tot went to her 15 month well-child doctor visit today and all is well. Of course she screamed through 99% of the visit but that is to be expected from her. I knew she would so we just talked (shouted) louder in between my renditions of “The Wheels On The Bus”.

I was relieved that she was average in terms of height and weight since the neonatologist had warned me, “She eats too much” at the visit to the developmental clinic. And her pediatrician basically said that he couldn’t be any more pleased with her growth and development. There were two things on his checklist that she hadn’t quite accomplished yet but she is well on her way. I sometimes forget that she was born prematurely because she doesn’t seem to have any real delays to speak of. She’s getting two molars which could explain some of the not-napping and fussy behavior as of late. But it really hasn’t been as bad as I expected it to be with the molars. I had heard that the molars were soooo much worse than the other teeth. So far so good. Hope I didn’t just jinx myself.

Other than the doctor visit, we played and played and played some more. And she took two, count ‘em, TWO naps today! And went to bed at her regular time. Imagine that! I am grateful. Well, I’m off to work on a Shutterfly.com photobook for Father’s Day….

I took a good look at my feet the other day since it’s time to bust out the flip flops here in So Cal and realized that it’s time to get those Mommy Feet in shape! I will spare you the details but let’s just say they look just short of the pic above. Not pretty. I went rootin’ around at Drugstore.com and found a few natural alternative pedicure products that can help a Mommy get those feet Summer ready!

Treat your feet to a foot massage to reduce stress, improve circulation,and soothe knots and tension in the arches and toes. The Burt’s Bees Pedicure Kit contains Coconut Foot Creme with Vitamin E, and Exfoliating Pumice Stone, and cute Burt’s Bees socks embossed with their bee logo.	The rich cremes and penetrating overnight treatments in the Burt’s Bees Tips n’ Toes Hands & Feet gift set are loaded with emollient Cocoa Butter and Beeswax, vitamin enriched oils and botanical extracts of Rosemary, Lemon and Mint to naturally soften rough skin and cure brittle nails, for unsurpassed softness, naturally.
Barielle’s essential oil lubricants and exfoliating sea salts will get those rough feet in shape in no time!	Soak, scrub, moisturize and protect your feet naturally with this kit from Gilden Tree using traditional healing ingredients like Aloe Vera, Jojoba, Shea Butter, Vitamin E and Comfrey Root Extract.

Once you’ve got your feet soft and beautiful, you might need some polish to brighten them up. Try this great color from Maybelline! How can you go wrong with this vibrant red, Cherry Rain?

Or try this pretty pale pink from Cover Girl for a more natural look!

If all of that just seems like a bit too much work, head on over to Spa Finder and search for a spa in your area! You can search by location, type of spa, and even the services they provide. Let somebody else work on those tired Mommy dogs!

Mommy Tip: Spafinder gift cards are a great (and easy) gift for your Significant Other to get for you, whatever the occasion. The Daddy has done this in the past and it’s great because I can choose the spa that I go to and the services that I want.

Once you’ve got those tootsies in shape, look at these great sandals from zappos.com
to put on ‘em! You’ll have the best looking Mommy Feet on the block!

These are my favorite flip flops of ALL TIME! They are soft. They are comfy. They are good. Reef Costa Rica flip flops.	Or for those days when you feel like standing out, the hot pink Reef Morocho is just the ticket! They’ve got other colors, too, for those days you don’t quite feel like standing out that much.
If you like a sportier flip flop, the Reef Fanning is the model for you! If you can’t tell, I’m a flip flop girl. Nothin’ better!	If you’re looking for something dressier, check out this cute mule from Luichiny! What a great “Summer-ey” shoe!
This red Nine West sandal would look great with jeans or a cute sundress. They could even dress up shorts during the day! If you’re the mother of someone over the age of 10, of course. Tater would run me ragged in these! I’ll have to save them for a night out with The Daddy.	Oooh! Here’s a cute sandal that I could wear running after The Tater Tot!

Well, I’m off to spend some quality time with my Mommy Feet. I think I’m going to need to do this in installments, they’re that bad. Pass the pumice stone!