Mini-me

Mothers that dress their daughters like themselves used to give me the creeps.

Now I am one of them.

Paint it!

Here is a nice idea I have found in Paris:
A tablecloth which children can paint on. Once the party is over, you can throw the tablecloth into the washing machine and reuse again, as the ink is washable.

There are several sets you can buy. We opted for the “Paris Monuments”.
And you can find them here.

I recommend buying an additional pen set, as they dry very fast (and children usually forget to close the pens).
I must confess, I had a great time painting! I cannot even draw a stick figure, so I am quite happy to fill in the blanks!
It says it is not suitable for kids under 3 years old. I can imagine it is because they could put the pens into their mouths. In any case, my daughter is 18 months old and I do not leave her unattended when she is painting.
She really likes it a lot and asks me to take it out when she feels like painting. In this age, she is not really interested in filling the blanks but paints around wherever she wants and likes looking at the many figures that are drawn. This is perfect as long as she enjoys what she is doing!

And in case you want to keep the “art d’oeuvre” for ever and ever, you can buy special pens for clothing.

Have fun with your little ones!

Handmade clothing

More about children clothing…

I guess many of you know Dawanda. It is quite similar to Etsy I think, but mainly with German Products.

One very nice lady is Miriam from “Liebkind”. She has lovely handmade clothing and is really fast in sending an order!

I ordered the cutest overall and received it in just some days! But some days later I saw that she had designed the same overall in two more patterns. Awwww! I want to have them all, they are just lovely. Plus, I really like when children clothing are versatile, adaptable and wearable during more than one season. The overall ca be bought one size bigger as the cuffs on the legs can be folded to make it shorter. The straps can also be adjusted.
And of course it can be worn with a one piece and stockings during colder days.

I want to show you some of my favourite pieces of her collection:

Here is where you can get in contact with Miriam or order your favourite clothing through Dawanda.

Have a lovely week!

Back to writing

Hello dear readers!

Yes, I am back! Or at least, I hope I am going to find my way back to writing and posting.

The last few weeks have been quite hectic. Flues, bacterial infects, (luckily Sofia has skipped all our illnesses) working more than usual and a little girl who is a real toddler now.

Sofia Luna has changed a lot lately. Well, to be honest, she has not changed in terms of character. It is just that her character is showing more and more. She has a lot of temperament, no patience at all and has shown quite an amount of humour.
She is a lot of fun to be with, but this means more attention for the little girl and less time for me.
It is very interesting to see the continuous changes she is going through.
The teeth, coming out first by pairs, are coming out now by 4 at a time. With 16 months she already has almost all 12 teeth and 4 molars out. And this means: constantly drooling.
She is talking all day. Usually without understandable meaning (at least for me) and some days in an understandable language. I sometimes try to imitate her language. This is a lot of fun. Usually she starts giggeling like mad.
She says ‘heiss’ for ‘hot’ and ‘ässä’ for ‘eating’. No spanish word until now. Let’s see what comes next.
And what is really fun to see is that she can express quite clearly what she wants without talking. She wants me to pick her up from the floor, then points the way I should go and then to whatever she wants me to take / make / show.

The other side of the story is that she is quite frustrated when she wants me to show or tell me something and I do not get it. I guess it is a hard time. She understands so much but has a lot of limitations in expressing herself.
So she spends an incredibly high amount of time crying because of this frustration…

Now I am looking forward to some holidays in Berlin. Our Easter Holidays in Paris were not really enjoyable because Alex spent 4 days in bed due to his illness.

And: the sun is shining! I think I have forgotten how it is like to have warm temperatures in Zurich!

The most important thing

Attachment parenting.
This is apparently my parenting style. I did not even know there were names for parenting. Or that there was even anything called parenting.

I read one or two books during pregnancy. Usually the time when you still have time to read, so you want to prepare. What is the best baby cot, diapers, clothing, pushchair, parenting style, birth style? The good thing: as soon as the baby arrives, everything is different.
Now, where to begin?
With the time I had to find out that you do not even begin ‘doing’ anything. Not planning or ‘training’. What I did understand from the beginning she was born was that she is a person who has her own character. And they are able to express this much more than I thought!
In the first months I did not even get to think about doing anything that I had read. I completely forgot everything and only acted out of instinct.

Basically, I think I did everything wrong of what is to find in the regular books: Sofia fell asleep in my arms, night after night, I took her in my arms whenever she was crying, she slept with us, I did not care about routines or fix timings but just reacted out of impulse on answer to my daughter’s signs.

I often thought that I was doing everything wrong and that sooner or later, I would have to ‘pay the price’ for being so attentive with her. Or I thought: when she gets a bit older, I will start a routine or I will do this or that. But until now I have not changed a single thing. And I am happy I did not, because it has shown that for my daughter and for us, it was the best thing to do.

Well no, not absolutely correct. If there is one thing I would change, it would be to have skipped the mashed food phase and let her lead the way with food instead. I have found out with so many things, that if I let her lead (eating, playing, sleeping etc.) she is happy and relaxed and does everything out of her own will, which works perfectly. I only have to give her the time to figure out things, to try herself to do things. That does not mean that she can do whatever pleases her and whenever she wants, but she has a lot of space to develop her personality.

What I am trying to say in the end is not that what I do is best or that I am doing it better or worse than anyone else. But I think it is really important to only do things that come from the bottom of your heart. If this or that technique, this training or that way of routine: Do what you see suits your child best. At the end of the day, you should be able to go to bed with a happy heart, knowing that you are doing the best for your child. And this is not to be found in any book, because your child is as unique as you are.

One thing we all have, rich or poor, tall or small, working parent or full-time carer, is a lot of love to give. And this is something which is never too much!
Enjoy the day!

Zurich Impressions

Back home I have asked myself why I do not look at things the same way as when on holidays. Well, I am trying to do so but one difficulty is that we usually do the same way over an over when at home.
I willl give it a try!

More than words

Exactly one year ago, Sofia Luna was born.
Happy Birthday, my love!
I love you more than words can say, crazy little girl!

Books for Sofia

Babies show an interest for books and illustrations as soon as they can grab and see.
With the passing months, their interest grows and they want to touch, grab, bite and feel the books. Sometimes they tear the pages apart or just look at the images.

As Sofia is still too young to read or understand a story, we have bought a pile of Grimm’s Tales books in a thrift shop. She can do wathever she likes with them.

As for the stories themselves, I think I will go for the newer and lighter ones as soon as she will understand.
Grimm’s Tales are always so gloomy and grey, and even if they usually have a happy end, the story itself is not very cheerful. Those were collected tales from another time. But they are quite ok for the feel and the biting!

Ah, and talking about Grimm’s Tales! Do you know the story about “Rapunzel”? Must be a really weird name for English speaking people, right? Well, I always thought it was a really strange name for a child, even in a very old tale.
Hm, looking at the book I just bought, I saw the illustration of Rapunzel and I thought: no way!

Rapunzel is the German name for corn salad! To all German speaking friends: Did you know that or is it me? Well, we call it differently in Swiss German, that is why I never made the connection!
Moral: You are never too old to learn something new!

What kind of stories did you or do you read to your little ones?

I also started telling her made-up stories while lying in bed, but out of my own experience, this is not a good idea!
My parents used to do that, telling me stories they knew by heart. But eventually, they changed this or that detail and I would go really angry, telling them they should tell me the story the “right” way!
Well, make sure that you always tell fairy tales exactly the same way, children can sometimes be really nit-picky!

The Story of the Book – Part 2

Finally! My little story continues!
If you want to read from the beginning, please read Part 1.

————————————————————-

I looked at the tables and saw that there were cards with names on them. There was always one empty space between one name card (and the chair behind the table) and the next.

It was impossible to read the cards from where I was standing, I had no clue if I was going to be sitting in the front, in the back or in the middle. But I was going to find out rather soon.

„Dear parents, I will take good care of your little ones. Please pick them up at noon.“
That meant that our parents had to leave. I grabbed my mother’s hand even tighter and my stomach was going on a rollercoaster. I looked at her and tried to beg her to stay or even better, to take me with her, only with the look of my eyes.
But she tenderly lightened up my firm grip, gave me a kiss on the forehead and walked away. She looked back once to blew me a kiss and then she was gone, together with the rest of the parents.

We were all standing there, still looking at the door, when Mrs. Boden closed it. For some strange reason, I felt trapped.

„Now. Go and sit down, the names are written on the cards“, she said. It seemed that she started all of her sentences the same way. Some of my new classmates started to move, but were instantly interrupted by Mrs. Boden: „I will not tolerate any running around in my classroom!“ she told them, „and to make it clear this very moment, I do not like noisy children either“.

The four children seemed to be frozen on the spot. And the rest of us did not dare to move.
„I told you to sit down. Or do you want to spend the day standing there?“

I did not like her, not at all. My mouth was dry and I had to hold back my tears. I felt very abandoned and helpless.
We all looked around at each other and we all started to move very slowly and trying not to make any noise.
I saw my name in the front row, at the right of the aisle between the rows of tables.
Mrs. Boden’s massive table was located at the left, next to the chalkboard. She was sitting on her chair, which looked more like a throne with armrests. She had put on her glasses and was looking at us from the rim.

„Good“, she said, smiling slightly. „I see that you have all found your places. I am going to start with some rules, which I want you to keep in mind, as I do not like to repeat myself.
First: Do not chat. If you want to say something, raise your hand. Do not wave or click with your fingers, just raise your hands.
Second: I want to see your hands. Leave them on your tables. Not on your leap, or holding your head.
Third: As I already told you, no running around in my classroom.
Fourth: This is for the girls: I do not want you to come to my class with make up or painted nails. This is nothing for little girls.
All other rules will be explained when the time has come”.

I was feeling worse with every passing minute. Nobody had told me that school would be like this and that teachers were old, unfriendly persons. In my head, school was a nice place where you see other children, read and write. Which would have been perfectly fine with me.

Mrs. Boden rose from her throne and took a pile of books from her desk, which she started to distribute to us.

The first hours in my school-life passed rather slowly, as it happens with visits to the dentist.
Mrs. Boden had a predefined way of thinking, but I could not know then, I was only a child. I thought teachers were like that, although I remembered vaguely older children telling a different story.
If you think that the four rules were hard enough for little children, you were right. But it was not the end of the rule-setting. Not at all!

The morning passed and our parents came to pick us up for lunch, and believe me, I did not want to go back in the afternoon. But all my crying and sobbing did not help. I had to return to the dungeon (yes, it felt like a dungeon, even if the classroom was located in the first floor). And my teacher was the dragon.
The first day passed and so did the other days of my school-week. I knew I did not like school way before the weekend came.
I had a little diary which some relatives had given to me, and I was looking forward to use it, and write down what school was all about. It was red and had a tiny lock and a matching key.

The first day of week two started just as my mood was: sad and grey. I trotted behind my mother, my sight stuck on the pavement.
Like every morning, we were all sitting quiet on our desks, with our tiny hands where our teacher could see them.
She greeted us to the new week and handed out a paper with some basic math exercises.

And then I noticed the sudden stop behind my back and I heard my teacher gasping. I turned around in fear of having done something to upset my teacher.
But she was not looking at me, she was looking at the girl sitting behind me, Belinda.
„Now Belinda!“ I heard this unfriendly voice say. „What is rule number four?“
We were all looking at Belinda. And believe me, nobody wanted to be in her place.
„N-no m-make-up and painted n-nails“ she stuttered, her face turning a light pink. Belinda was a very pretty girl, the tallest of us all. And she also looked older than the rest of us.
„Why are you not following the rule, if you know it?“ Mrs. Boden barked.
Belinda was looking scared and puzzled at the same time. Obviously, she did not know what it was all about. „I do not have any make-up and my nails are not painted“, she said, holding her hands up, so Mrs. Boden could see.
„It is not your nailssss!“ she hissed. „ And do not try to make a fool out of me! I can clearly see that you have used mascara on your eyelashes!“
„No!“ Belinda yelled, looking at us as if to ask for help. But we were all sitting on our little chairs, completely impotent and scared as well. Mrs. Boden had never told us what a punishment an infraction of her rules would bring.
„Stand up!“ Mrs. Boden yelled again, and then she grabbed Belinda by her arm and draggled her to the wash basin. She then took the hand towel, damped a corner with water and started rubbing Belinda’s right eye in front of the whole class.

A kind of surreal feeling invades me now that I remember this moment, but I swear it happened this way.

The towel remained as white as it was before. No little strain or smear was left behind. But that did not hold back Mrs. Boden, who rubbed Belinda’s eye some more. The poor girl was crying and cringing, trying to get the towel out of her face.
At the end, Mrs. Boden let her go, mumbling that she could not explain what kind of mascara she was using that did not come off with water.
Belinda was sobbing and I felt the urge to console her, but I was too scared to do so.
Mrs. Boden just continued with the math exercise, as if nothing had happened. At least she left Belinda alone for the rest of the day.

When my mother came to pick me up, I dragged her out of the school building to tell her what had happened. But she slightly smiled and told me that I surely was exaggerating.
That evening I wrote some phrases into my diary. Telling my paper friend what had happened and how evil our teacher was. „Why is nobody helping us?“ I asked my diary. „Why?“

The next morning seemed to start with some friendly sunshine. I used to sleep without closing the shutters, and this is something that has never changed.
There was no cloud in the sky. But this fact could not cheer me up. I did not even want to eat breakfast. The pieces of my toast seemed to get stuck in my throat.
„What is the matter, my sweety?“ my mother asked. „I do not want to go to school! Please, can I stay at home? Why don’t you tell Mrs.Boden I am sick in bed?“
„We are not even going to start with this“, my mother replied. And this was it.

The way to the school seemed much too short to me. I tried everything to be late. Maybe Mrs. Boden would not leave me into class if I was late. But my mother was merciless and held my hand with a firm grip.

I was one of the last pupils to enter the classroom, but I was not late.
The atmosphere was rather tense and my schoolmates were very nervous somehow.
I flit to my seat and then I saw what was happening: our teacher was sitting at her desk, wearing dark sunglasses.
The sun was shining outside, but it was not that bright inside the classroom to be wearing sunglasses. I wondered if somebody had died, as I remembered that people usually wore dark sunglasses at funerals.

I looked at my left and my right, but all others seemed as confused as me.
Finally, Mrs. Boden began to speak: „I have to wear these glasses today. This morning I woke up and my eyes felt like if somebody had rubbed them with sandpaper. It is very painful. We are going to end today’s class at noon.“

I could not believe what I was hearing. I felt hot and cold at the same time and had the feeling that my face was blushing. It was impossible… but at the same time… how could it be possible?
This was exactly what I had asked my diary to happen!

Going slightly mad

Have you ever noticed how many things you do without thinking?

There are situations where you react because you simply do it every day. And suddenly, when you stop and think, you do not know where you have left your keys. Because they are not where you usually left them.

Since Sofia is born, there are really comical things that happen. I think I am sometimes really absorbed in my musings, that I do not notice what I am doing.
I wanted to take some hand creme the other day, and rubbed Sofia’s bum creme in my hands. Veeery nice.
Or I wanted to put formula milk powder into my coffee instead of sugar.

And I ask myself where my head is. I guess I am already thinking what to do for lunch or wathever is on my to-do list and completely forget the world around me.
But I am happy it does not happen during work!

Now that I remember, this is not happening since Sofia is born. I admit, I have always been a dreamer, this has never changed. Alex calls me an “orientation dyslexic” because whenever he is around, I just do not spend a second thinking how to reach our destination. Funilly, this never happens when I am on my own. But that is the reason I do not drive!

I remember once, as a kid, my mum gave me a bag with something we had just bought. After some time my mother discovered that I was not carrying the bag anymore, but I could not tell where I had left it or when I let it go.

Very strange things. But I never got lost nor am I the perfect victim for pick-pockets! Lucky me!
I think I am just very good in fading out things I am not interested in.
During the soccer euro cup here in Switzerland we had a massive security contingent. I came home one day and Alex asked me if I had seen the row of about 6 police box-wagons on the street. I mean, they are not really small. And 6 of them together are really difficult to oversee. But I did. I swear I did not see them.
On the other hand I can be really focused when I like something. This means I can see this as a gift. I simply do not have to care about things that really do not concern me, because I just do not see them. Very practical!

Well, if I start to write completely incomprehensible sentences, you better tell me!