Why I love T.V. and a whole lot more...

1) I'll admit. I love T.V. I know it's a horrible habit to start in childhood. But I love having the darn thing on in the background during the day. I always swore I'd never let Fa watch...But there are a few great children's shows out there...I am addicted to Noggin. When she's napping, I watch it. So anyway, we found a few shows that we both like to watch...Fa loves Oobi and Oswald, I love Jack's Big Music Show and Pinky Dinky Doo...Knowing full well, I leave the tube on way too much. (I can hear the T.V.-hating moms gasp at the thought) I have been starting to turn it off again during the day. (I miss it.)

When the 'acceptable' or mutually agreed upon shows are on, we catch them if we are around. That frickin' Pinky Dinky has gotten Fa to start telling her own stories. I tell ya. I can't believe it. Now, don't get me wrong. She is by no means plopped in front of the tube all day every day. I am a teacher in real life you know, I think I have been doing a fantastic job on her so far. She is a very bright lady. She loves to read and we read all the time...She has a load of books under her memory-belt and she reads them to us now...word for word...(I know, she's the smartest 2.6 year old ever..I know) But she made up this story one night as I was putting her to bed:

Once upon a time, mommy was sleeping in her bedroom. Fa was sleeping. The air conditioner was on, the ceiling fan was spinning. The duckies were sleeping and the walls were purple. My toenie nails were blue and my hair was blowing in the wind. The moon was shining and the sun was going down. It was dark in the bedroom. I was drinking water. I gave Mommy a big hug. The daddy was cooking and Auntie was playing in the yard. I went to sleep with mommy in her bed and we snuggled under her covers. The vacuum cleaners were 'Big Mamma' and 'Baby' and they were off doing neeno. And she lived happily ever after. The End.

I was flabberghasted. I asked her where she got that story from and she said, "She made it up like Pinky Dinky." Wholly bookworms Batman! I love that T.V. See, it's not all gore and garbage...There is some intelligence to children's programming out there. Yes, I know her content leaves a lot to be desired. There is somewhat of a beginning, middle and end and her story structure needs work. She's got some story elements there like setting and characters, but her plot needs work..Hot damn though, she's better than some of the 4th graders I've had in my life.

I'm sure when her Noggin days are over, I'll be singing another tune...But until then. You go Noggin!

2) I also love the smell of Fa's feet. It is such a distinct smell and BD thinks I'm crazy, but I just can't get enough if them...I can sit and sniff them all day long if she'll let me. We also like to pick out her 'fuzzy punk' from between them..She tells me, "Mommy, get the fuzzy punk!" I love that...

3) Her hair is also one of my favorite things in the world. I love that I have done many styles on her head...I love to style it into all sorts of different ponies and clips. She loves that too. It' so soft and luxurious. When she was born, she had a full head of jet-black hair...Now, it has grown way past her shoulders and it's brown with a kiss of blonde throughout...I'd kill for hair like hers. I want her curls, her color and her texture. It's perfect. When she's 13 she'll cut it into a mowhawk and dye it green, I'm sure. But for now, I will enjoy it in all its glory.

4) I love my husband's eyes. They are the most amazing color of green/blue and brown I have ever seen. They have an outer greenish-blue layer with an inner brown-speckled layer around the pupil...Very interesting and oh! so nice to look at.

5) I love music. I love dancing around the livingroom with Fa to all kinds of music. We listen to this (Fa's fave is "Catch the Moon") and this and even this. She bangs her head like a true rocker and makes those "rock on" horns with her hand...I get such a kick outta that. I love that she adores music as much as I do. We have so much in common...Did I make her that way, or is it truly her taste? Hmmm....

6) I have a new appreciation for the moon. I have always had a connection with it. I have always been drawn to it. But since Fa; I have fallen in love with it. She adores the moon. She looks for it at night and loves books about it. I also love that she reads these books to me at night...The moon has been something that has driven me throughout life and now I see the same connection in her. Maybe she'll be an astronomer when she grows up. I love that.

7) I loves me my coffee in the mornin'. Hot damn. I can't get through without it. (like my strong coffee-lovin' accent?) It just makes me happy. I love to drink it with a little bit of Silk Creamer mostly. But I have found that Silk Soy Milk and a dash of vanilla International Delight works just as nicely. I started getting really attached to the java so I had to cut down quite substantially but I will never give up the mornin' brew. Oh! And this place is my heaven...When I die, I wanna live here...

8) I love when Fa sings. She's doing it right now in her crib. She belts out the tunes all day. She sings in her crib, in the tub, in the car and in the park. She loves to sing. She sings songs she already knows by heart, like Twinkle Twinkle or The Rainbow song...but the best is when she makes up her own words, and melodies. Where does she get that from? What makes her so confident that she can sing just about anywhere? How happy is this kid or what? That. I. Love.

9) I love California. More specifically, Northern California. BD and I used to go there on vacation every year before we got married. Then we got married there and I have fallen deeper in love with it since then. We haven't been there in 5 years. But I am itching to go back. I love Napa and Monterey, Bodega Bay and San Francisco. I love the Golden Gate Bridge and all of its surroundings. I wish we lived there. Maybe one day, when Fa is off to college in California, we'll move there. I can only hope.

10) Lilies. The most beautiful flower out there. I love these Lilies the best. But these are so beautiful too...I love the fact that they come in all kinds of styles and colors and there isn't an ugly one out there. They are a fantastic flower with so much to offer their admirer.

So, this turned into a list. I hafta stop here. 10 is a nice round number. I'll leave it at that...