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We finally got Buttercup a pair of rain boots.  I have firmly decided that rain boots are the most wonderful product for children.

We bought them while we were on vacation.  We went to a Disney store, and she was having a blast – fascinated by all the adorable products.  They had two pairs of rain boots on sale – Daisy Duck or Tigger & Pooh.  Rather than pick from the boots on sale, she spotted a pink pair of Minnie Mouse boots.  Those were the ones we ended up getting, and she loves them.

While we were on vacation, it rained quite a bit, and she was thrilled to be stomping away in the puddles – reveling in the splash factor.  Now, everywhere we go, she has her eyes open for puddles.  I might just let her wear the rain boots for the rest of April everywhere we go.  It’s been raining almost every other day, and the puddles can be found anywhere.  The parking lots seem to have the most, and there’s a church parking lot down the street from us that’s always empty.  She’s been soaked and muddy every night, just the way an April toddler should be.  I swear, the muddier and dirtier she is at bedtime these days, the better I feel about my parenting.  The great outdoors are back in play, and I cannot say I’m sorry to see January – March go.

I find myself wishing I had a pair of rain boots to stomp with her :)  Maybe I’ll find a pair in mommy-size so I can be a puddle-stomping mommy with my little gal.

Buttercup, for the first time, has been getting scared at night.  It’s the most heart-rending thing I’ve ever come across, that child in her pajamas saying, “Mommy, I’m scared.”  I think it’s the sirens at night.  Whenever she hears a fire truck or cop car, it upsets her a lot even though we’ve had conversations about this and tried to make it a happy thing.  Let’s face it:  sirens sound scary.

She’s never had a “lovey.”  It’s just never been her thing.  I think I’m the lovey.  However, we took the advice of a friend and went and purchased Twilight Turtle.  He’s basically a nightlight with a soft huggable body and a shell with star cut-outs that cast constellations around the nursery.  She’s totally in control of it and can push various buttons to change the color of the light.  The shades are soothing and mellow.  She appears to be enthralled so far, and we’ve had talks about if she gets scared, she can turn on Twilight Turtle.

What really led me to looking for something like this is that my little electrical estimator’s granddaughter loves light switches.  In fact, one of the things that helps her at night is climbing up onto the chair I’ve placed under the light switch to turn off the light.  She likes to be in control of the lighting, and I can dig it.  So, now she has a little night light that she can operate.  Here’s hoping!

Here’s the problem with toddler shoes:  they fit for like two weeks.  My Buttercup is growing like a weed.  It seems like every month I have to buy her new shoes.  In fact, I do.

The other day, we went to a local department store to get her new shoes, and I nearly had a stroke.  When did toddler shoes start costing more than mine?  I mean, good God.  Children’s shoes cost so much money; it’s amazing.  Because, it’s not like they need one new pair:  oh no, no.  My little girl needs a whole new collection of shoes.  Whether it’s dress shoes, sneakers, boots, slippers, or whatever, when Buttercup needs shoes, it’s not just a pair:  it’s an arsenal of new shoes.

What really drove me nuts was that I could not find a pair of little girl shoes that were lace-ups or Velcro.  What I mean by that is that there wasn’t a pair that fully covered her foot.  They were all “Mary-Jane” style shoes with a cute little strap across her foot.  Welp, it’s getting to be freezing cold around here, and I want a little more than that.  We found a set of “Thomas the Train” shoes that I’m sure were designed for little boys, but there weren’t any available in her size.  So, I ended up with a pair of Disney Princess Sneakers that are entirely ridiculous except she can get them on and off without assistance.  That does come in handy, to be honest.  However, I just can’t believe how much they cost.  Don’t they entail like 85% less material than my shoes?  My baby fashionista, I wouldn’t have anything less, but dear God….give me a break!

I want to find Buttercup a pair of perfect rain boots.  When I was a kid, I think there must have been a story in the Ramona Quigley books about rain boots, but there’s something about rain boots that just make me think of childhood rainy days in this sweet nostalgic light.

So, I went on a search for them in some of our local stores.  Once there, I realized that buying a toddler a pair of rainboots entails a raincoat and an umbrella, too :)  They had some of the cutest damn boots I’ve ever seen in my life.  There was a pair of green rainboots designed like little frogs that nearly killed me.  However, they cost a small fortune, and I realized:  it’s November.  We’re going to need rain boots in spring, and she’s going to be two shoe sizes larger.  So, no rain boots for now, however…I will find them!

When I was at the end of my pregnancy, I went on a warpath of googling every baby layette list I could find.  I think it was a nesting instinct, because I could not stop myself, and I tried!

In hindsight, there were a handful of things that I needed that no one said to get.  I guess they’re pretty minor, but all of them have made my world a more functional place.  Here we go.

Batteries:  Oh my God, how many batteries will you need.  All those toys that light up and play the most horrific music you will never be able to remove from your head require tons of batteries, which leads me to my next item.

Tools:  You’ll need tiny Philips Head and Flathead Screwdrivers to get the backs off of all those toys.  Hide them, stash them.  Don’t let the man take them away from you.

Dust Buster:  I could go on for pages about the Dust Buster.  Oh, beautiful Dust Buster, I cannot live without you.  Kid’s chucked Cheerios all over the house for the 32908432043289 time?  Dust Buster!  Need to clean up under the table after the first night with spaghetti?  Dust Buster!  (Read this w/the Ghost Buster Theme in you head:  Who you gonna call, Dust Buster!)  Go ahead and get the Wet/Dry Dust Buster.  Once sippy-cups come into play, you’ll need it.

Dark/Heavy Curtains For La Nursery:  All those times when you need a moment of mommy-sanity, and it’s nap time - you need dark curtains.  I bought these beautiful white curtains that matched the crown molding my dad put up in the nursing.  I was thrilled, walking around big and pregnant (See pic above, it was the most flattering I could find), sitting in that room with the white curtains looking so lovely and clean.  Once Buttercup came, I hated those curtains with a passion.  I changed them out for dark blue ones PRONTO.  Once nap time comes, you just pull those beautiful curtains shut, and the nursery becomes a dark soothing place to sleep in.  It helped.  Get dark curtains.

Quality Vacuum:  Register for vacuum of the year:  the most expensive vacuum you/your friends and relatives can afford.  Once Buttercup started crawling all over the place, the vacuum became key.  Those tiny bits of whatever, little one will find them and stick them in her mouth.

Noise Maker:  We live in the city.  Actually, we live very near our downtown district where they have outdoor music, parades, and all kinds of noisy stuff.  The street factor wakes Buttercup up still.  Once we bought a noise maker, you know the kind, the one that makes sounds like the ocean, the wind, the rain, etc, it all became easier.  It might be a crutch, but it saved us a lot of grief.

CrockPot:  Finally, my crock pot has kept my family from starving.  Really, as my mother would say, it’s Irish cooking.  You throw it all in one pot; you get the nutritious benefits of it all with half the hassle.  Pot roasts, roasted chicken, red sauce, chicken and dumplings, soups and stews, pork barbeque, chili, vegetables and side dish, the list goes on and on.  You can make your rice, mashed potatoes, baked potatoes or whatever starch you want on the side.  I’ve found that if you want a good gravy, the crock pot is the way to go anyway.  You just let it cook all day, lift the meat and vegetables out, add a little flour or milk, whisk the heck out of it, and you’ve got a spectacular gravy.  Also, we have a gas stove - can’t get an electric because of our service, and it saves us a mint in gas costs.  I truly think even my French grandmother would approve!