Fun with Noodles! or Finally! Great Italian Food!

Since Greg and I moved here at the end of 2006, we've been bemoaning the lack of good restaurants in the Plainfield/Joliet area. Most of the time, when we want to go out to eat, we drive up to Naperville. That's because most of the restaurants out here are of the local diner or chain restaurant variety, and honestly aren't very good. It's kind of frustrating to have to drive 45 minutes for a nice meal. But we recently found one excellent restaurant just a few miles from home. We went there the day after Christmas, and were really impressed. It's called Barolo Ristorante. Here we are at our table.

The food was really creatively prepared, and my pasta dish was so cool-looking that I had to take a picture of it. There are spinach and regular pasta noodles with a cream sauce, asparagus, and cherry tomatoes. The seafood is scallops and shrimp. It was absolutely everything I wanted in an Italian meal.

Nick ate very well, too. He ate plenty of calamari (which was perfectly cooked and not chewy at all), some salad, tons of my noodles, and a bunch of Greg's duck. I guess Greg had never had duck before, and he really liked the way they prepared it. Oh, and the tiramisu was just perfect. You know how sometimes it's too cakey? This was just creamy enough, with lots of the coffee flavor. Nick loved it, too.

Nick was especially fond of the noodles, although he hasn't quite mastered the art of eating them with a fork. That's more of an advanced fork skill, though, so I guess he'll figure it out soon.

"I See Fishies!" Or, A Visit to the Shedd Aquarium

To celebrate the first day of 2011, Greg and I decided to take Nick to the Shedd Aquarium. Nick has never been before, mostly because every time we go downtown the line looks really long (out the door!), and we've never been brave enough to wait. I love going downtown, but the cost is often frustrating, so we don't go all that often. For this trip, parking cost $19.

Our hope was that since it was New Year's Day, everyone would be at home sleeping it off, and the lines would be more manageable. We still had to wait about 40 minutes, but at least our waiting was inside. Nick kept saying, "Fishies?" When we finally got to the counter, we were astonished at the prices. Now, the good news is that I got in for free, because I'm a public school teacher. Nick was also free because he's under 3. But Greg, alone, cost $37 with tax for admission plus the show. What will we do when we have two children over three? Urgh.

The aquarium itself was pretty cool, and Nick loved interacting with other children any chance he got. I have to work with him on his waving, though. If he says "Hi!" to another child, and they don't respond, he keeps repeating it and waving his hand in their face until they react. Oh, well. At least he likes to play with other kids.

I think Nick's very favorite thing at Shedd was the wave tank, which was pretty awesome. He kept asking for it to go "Again!" It was the only time he sat for more than thirty seconds the whole day.  :)

Despite the expense, I will say that the upstairs eatery at the aquarium (Soundings Cafe) is ten times nicer than most museum cafes. The food was well-made and they bring it to your table. They advertise organic, locally grown ingredients, and if that is true then I guess the price was worth it. The tables had a great view of the lake, too. Nick loved his pickle the best.

The show was really neat, as well, but this is when Nick started misbehaving. It was a Christmas themed show, and I think this was the last weekend it was running. There were lots of other kids his age there, and all of them sat quietly in their parents' laps. Not my boy. He kept moving around and climbing down to sit with another family that had a very cute little girl. Nick can be a big flirt. He loved the show, though, especially when Santa came flying out in a little boat that landed on the water. When Santa went away, Nick yelled, "Santa! Where Santa? Want Santa!"

After the show, there was a big hubub about Nick not wanting to stay in the stroller or  hold someone's hand. Our kid is very high-energy, and both of us worry sometimes about him not listening.

I know that it is normal for a two-year-old to be defiant, but it was frustrating seeing all of the other kids his age walking contentedly with their parents while our child kept trying to run away. It's all about being more stubborn than your kid, though, and eventually Greg and I convinced him that he'd have to pick: hold hand or stroller. He did better after that little power struggle. Especially when we found the Polar Play area where little kids can climb and play, pretending to be penguins.

We ended up staying at the aquarium the whole day and not leaving until after 5 p.m. (We wanted to get our money's worth, you see.) Despite Nick's misbehavior, it was a very fun day, and Nick thoroughly enjoyed himself. When we went out this morning, he asked me, "We go see fishies?"

I had to tell him, "Not for awhile, baby." Especially considering the price of admission.  But I'm glad we went, even though my feet were killing me the next two days. Many of my pictures turned out kind of blurry because of: (1.) the constantly moving two-year-old, and (2.) the poor lighting. But Greg got some pretty good video of Nick talking about the fishies.

If you've got plenty of dough, I'd highly recommend the Shedd Aquarium if you've got little kids.

So Let Me Tell You a Little Story. . .

. . . about a new parenting technique I learned from The Happiest Toddler on the Block, by Harvey Karp. There's this idea for increasing good, or "green light" behaviors, in toddlers, that I really liked when I read it. What you do is whenever your child does something specific that is positive, you give him a little check mark (in pen) on his hand. Then, at the end of the day, you can talk about what each check was for. The idea, of course, is to avoid labels such as "good boy," and to concentrate on praising the actions rather than the child. Nick has responded really well to this, and he loves getting the pen checks and showing them off to everyone. I've been using it only a few days, and it's been pretty successful. Today he got a pen check for helping me pick up the fruit snacks that had fallen on the floor, and another for immediately stopping when I told him to leave the kitty alone. I reminded him what those checks were for several times, and he got a big smile every time I talked about them. There is one problem, however. . .

You see, Nicholas just received some of those Crayola Pipsqueaks markers for Christmas, and he decided (while I was on the phone, I believe) to give himself some checks. Never mind that he was squeaky clean and had just had a bath not one hour before this photo was taken. Look at his right hand, in this picture and the next. Those are really big checks. He must've done something spectacular. Nick also gave himself a moustache. Then he decided the refrigerator would make a really good canvas. . .

Yes, I know there would've been less damage done if I had taken the marker away before going to get my camera. But I hate my refrigerator anyway, and pregnancy horomones have me so messed up lately that all I could do is snap a few pictures, grab that marker, and then sit on the floor laughing. I didn't say a word to him, but I think he got the picture. He stood staring at me for a minute, then looked back at his hand and his refrigerator artwork that needed no magnets. Nick came and sat in my lap and said, (and I quote) "Color on paper ONLY." Yes, Nick. That's the rule.

I do think that I will be putting the markers up for awhile, and only taking them out when I'm closely supervising the action. I noticed later on that my couch covers and the rug under my cocktail table also have some marker stains. Sigh. We'll see if the magic eraser and some Oxy-Clean will do the trick with these stains. One day, if my son is a famous artist, I can use these pictures as proof of his innate creative ability, even from a young age. Or I can look at them and smile.

My Resolutions for 2011 (Plus, Another Dancing Video, Just Because!)

First of all, if you're already sick of reading everyone's New Year's Resolutions, you can just skip down to the bottom of this post, where I've thoughtfully added another dancing video. In this one, Nick is dancing around shirtless, in jeans, with a bucket on his head. Just for fun.

I'm guessing that 2011 will be a pretty busy year for me, and I want to make my resolutions attainable. I made resolutions last year, and while I didn't do too badly, I want to have more success than last year. Here is my recap of last year's resolutions. Some of my resolutions this year will be similar, but I also have some changes. Here we go:

1. Devote plenty of time to playing/reading/singing/building with Nick. I think I do a pretty darned good job of this already, but if I don't make it a priority, I'm afraid it will fall by the wayside. Spending quality time with my son (plus the new baby, when he comes along) has to be my #1 resolution. I'm hoping that as Nick matures this year, he can have fun helping me with things that I like to do, such as cooking and gardening. Last year he mostly ate the dirt and threw the flour, but he understands much better lately. Plus, I'm not afraid of a little mess. (Or a big one!)

2. Do whatever it takes to keep my body healthy. As for eating healthy, I've been most successful with eating only when I'm hungry and indulging cravings in small amounts. Right now, I'm mostly concerned with the pregnancy and the physical therapy, but I'd also like to either walk or work out on the elliptical trainer at least a little bit, now that I'm past the first trimester. Greg is bringing it in from the garage right now, so I won't be able to ignore it.

3. Properly back up and organize my pictures and files.About a year and a half ago I bought a backup drive, and it suddenly stopped working a few months later.  No one from either the company or any experts could help me--they all said to just buy a new one. I'm thinking when our tax returns come in, I can get a new drive and have everything organized properly. We wouldn't want pictures like the one below lost.

4. Be easier on myself. I've often felt guilty for not being a good enough mother/wife/teacher/housekeeper. This year, my goal is to concentrate on what I enjoy. For example, I will stop blaming myself for not being able to keep things organized, and instead I'll spend that time doing things that earn me money. For example, last year I earned well over $800 by posting lesson plans and powerpoints on Teachers Pay Teachers.  I spent that money on a cleaning lady who can do in 5 hours what would take me an entire weekend (if I even finished it at all.) I need to find more ways to reallocate my time like this so that I'm not wasting time on things I hate. For me, this probably means spending more time writing or tutoring, and then using the money I earn to outsource the tasks that are time-suckers.

5. (Same goal as last year) I want to have more dates with my husband. Once we have two children, this will be harder, but we need to find a way. We have never once regretted going out by ourselves.

6. Get rid of crap. I have clothing in sizes 8-12, and at least 50 pairs of shoes (size 9, mostly) that have barely been worn. Now that my doctor is telling me I have to wear thick, heavy orthotics, most of my shoes are useless. I need to either have a garage sale, list some things on ebay, or donate some stuff as a last resort. Let me know if you're interested.  :)

7. Somehow keep up with my gardening and indoor plant tending, despite being in the last trimester of pregnancy during the spring. I'm a fair weather gardener, literally. This means that if it is the least bit cold, or wet, or humid, I get neglectful about my gardening. Greg has promised to help, but I really want to have a decent garden this year, even if it is small.

8. Writing. I really enjoy writing, and blogging specifically. I'd like to keep up with my average of about 15 posts per month on this blog. I'd also like to investigate other ways I can earn money with my writing, even though the economy still isn't doing too well.


Okay, boring resolutions over. Now for the fun stuff. Here's Nick posing in his jeans and shaking his groove thing.

First Post of the Year. . .

but I will not be making resolutions tonight. I'll work on those tomorrow, perhaps. We just got back from the Shedd Aquarium, and I currently have heating pads on each of my legs. I am far, far too tired to write anything substantial. Therefore, I'm going to default to cute and silly.

This is Nick with one of his new toys. He received it for Christmas from his Grandpa Jay and Grandma Linda. It's Dance Star Mickey, and he is quite cheesy. Basically, you press his hand, and he talks and leads the kids through several dances. He even dances a bit himself. While he isn't as creepy as the Tickle-Me-Elmo, toys that talk make me a little wary. This is because, at least in my house, they seem to talk at odd times. Greg and I will be quietly sitting on the couch, when all of a sudden, we hear "Moo!" from one of his farm toys, or "Blue hand!" from Nick's talking puppy. I was skeptical about the Mickey at first. However, he makes Nick dance up a storm. He really loves it, and I'm so glad he got this toy for Christmas. It is helping him work off all of the Christmas cookies he ate.  ; )  The last two nights in a row, he's asked specifically for dance time. "Dance with Mickey?" he asked pleadingly.

Below you will see a video of Nick dancing with Mickey, and Nick's daddy helping. You can see where Nick got his dance moves.

To answer your questions:

1. Yes, Greg knew that I was specifically videotaping this to post on the Internet.

2. No, I have no idea why Nick is wearing only one sock.

3. Yes, Nick did go to sleep immediately after this dance. He was out like a light. He seems to need to burn off a lot of energy, and the dancing helps.

By the way, tonight is night #5 without the binky. So far, so good. Although I've noticed Nick chewing on his fingers more. Sigh. You can't win them all.

2010 Recap

I'm not usually one for memes, but I think these end of year recaps are actually pretty interesting to read. I've enjoyed reading those that others have written, so here is mine for your consideration. I borrowed this meme from Jennifer, although I've seen it in multiple forms all over the Internet. I've interspersed it with pictures of Nick playing in the snow, for no particular reason. (Other than the fact that the pictures are cute, of course.) Today the snow actually melted, so Greg never did have to shovel. His philosophy is, "Why shovel it when it will just melt eventually." He was right.  : )

So here we go. A recap of my 2010:

1. What did you do in 2010 that you’d never done before?

Swam in a corn pool. That was awesome.

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

Well, I kept some of them. Specifically #2, #5, and #6. Although, to be honest, the only reason I kept #5 is because I hired a cleaning lady to come in a few times and help me organize it. But that counts, right?

As for #2, about eating healthy, I was doing pretty good until the end of the year, when I was pregnant. Something about pregnancy horomones make me crave foods that are not good for me. Specifically orange foods: macaroni and cheese, cheetos, spaghetti o's, etc. If an eight-year-old would love it, that's what I've been craving. Not that I don't eat healthy most of the time--it's just that I've been eating far more processed foods than I would like. Strangely enough, though, I weigh 6 pounds less than I did this time last year, and I'm 16 1/2 weeks pregnant! I hadn't lost a pound since leaving the hospital after having Nick, and I only started losing weight when I found out I was pregnant in October.

Yes, I'll probably make some more resolutions for 2011. Will I meet them? Sigh. Judging from my track record, perhaps I can meet 50 % of them. That isn't actually too bad, considering.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Nope, but I will next June.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
 No, thankfully.

5. What places did you visit?

Greg and I went to Chicago in June, and up to Northern Wisconsin in September. Oh, and I went to Iowa in October.  


6. What would you like to have in 2011 that you lacked in 2010?
Hmm. Not sure on that one. Perhaps being able to walk without pain in my feet. I'm pretty grateful for the life that I have, and I know I'm not the only person who'd like more money and more time. Even if I had more money, though, I'd just use it to outsource jobs that I hate so I could have more time for myself and time with my family. 

7. What dates from 2010 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
I never remember specific dates, but I know for sure I'll remember Nick getting his first haircut. I still miss those curls. Oh, and Nick breaking his arm. Poor guy.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Actually, blogging itself, I think. I have a hard time sticking to things, but I've kept up with this blog pretty regularly for a year and a half now. This year, I averaged about 15 posts per month, which isn't too shabby. I'm pretty proud of myself for that.

I'm also pleased with how far I've come with my gardening and plant tending. I've killed far fewer plants this year, and while my thumb definitely isn't green, at least it isn't the death signal for anything within a 10 yard radius.

9. What was your biggest failure?
Exercise. I did a great job the first part of the year, and then it kind of fell by the wayside. Between medical issues, a miscarriage, a chemical pregnancy, fertility drugs, and then finally getting a pregnancy to stick, it just wasn't a priority. I've exercised, but definitely not 4 times a week, and I skipped exercise entirely during the first trimester of this pregnancy. The last three weeks, though, I've done physical therapy at least 3 times a week for an hour, plus exercising at home. So maybe in January I'll just get on the elliptical again.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?


Yup. Especially the last few months, my feet have been driving me crazy. When I wake up, I hobble and limp, and sometimes my legs go out from under me a bit. The podiatrist says that if physical therapy doesn't significantly improve my pain and range of motion, I'm probably going to have to have tendon lengthening surgery on the backs of both of my legs once this baby is born. So needless to say, I've been working my rear end off during physical therapy and keeping up with the exercises at home.
 
11. What was the best thing you bought?

Buying things makes me happy. One of these days I want to do a post on the awesome things I've been finding at TJ Maxx--just little, inexpensive things that make me smile.

But the best thing? Our new living room set, probably has the greatest impact on my daily life, since I spend way too much time sitting on it.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
My husband's, of course. He does all of the dishes and most of the cleaning. As we speak, he is folding the laundry that I never got around to taking out of the dryer. But I can't forget the hard work of Nicholas, who mastered both walking and talking this year.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

People who judge, especially xenophobics and those who close their minds to the opinions of others. Even though my husband and I are agnostic, liberal democrats, I have quite a few friends who are religious and/or pretty conservative. But we can have conversations and find middle ground, with both of us agreeing that morality can come in many contexts other than religion.

But what really gets my goat is when people pre-determine their opinions without knowing all of the facts, and only educate themselves about one side of an argument. This depresses me, because it reflects on the weakness of our educational system--no one is taught to debate constructively nowadays.

14. Where did most of your money go?

Bills. Mortgage, student loans, car payments, etc. My husband and I together have more than $90K in student loans, so this sucks up a lot of what would be our discretionary income. Ah, well. That's what happens when two people with Master's Degrees get married. Plus, both of us have careers where we can make a deep impact on the lives of people in need. That should count for something, right.  ; )

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

Finding out the results of the CVS testing in December. It was like my whole body, which had been tensed since October, spontaneously relaxed. I know things could still go wrong, but for some reason, I couldn't get even a little bit excited about the pregnancy until I got those results.

Also, we were thrilled when Greg got his promotion in September. He used to be a Clinical Therapist (LCPC) for children and adolescents with mental illnesses. Now he is the Clinical Supervisor for the entire Adult Mental Health Department at his company.  He also got a nice little raise, too, and in the middle of a recession. Now that's something to get excited about.

16. What song will always remind you of 2010?

Unfortunately, the theme song to Calliou. Nick loves that show, and I've heard the theme song so many times it often runs through my head while I'm sleeping. I need to listen to some better tunes in 2011.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:

a) happier or sadder?  Hmm, probably a little happier or about the same.

b) thinner or fatter? Strangely enough, I'm 6 lbs. thinner even though my belly is already sticking out. I'm sure that trend won't continue for too long, especially since Greg bought us cheese fries for lunch.

c) richer or poorer? I think poorer, thanks to the housing market. We'll work on paying down debts this year.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?

Being outside when the weather was nice. I really miss sunshine and the smell of flowers. I think I need to schedule outside time for myself everyday in the spring and summer for 2011.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?

Desperately searching for missing items. I'm notoriously disorganized. The only bright spot was that in 2010 I finally gave in and hired a cleaning lady to come in and help me get stuff in order. Hopefully I can afford to keep her coming in 2011, because after she comes, I can find my stuff for a good week and a half.

20. How did you spend Christmas?

Which one? See my last few posts for an in-depth description, but basically we spent Christmas up to our ears in wrapping paper, toddler toys, and naughty foods.

21. Did you fall in love in 2010?

Not in the traditional sense, although I definitely fell in love with a few blouses, some really cool flowerpots, and a new fuzzy blanket for the couch.

22. What was your favorite TV program?

I like Glee and Modern Family, although I haven't allowed myself to watch lately. You see, TV is my bribe for working out on the elliptical trainer. I only let myself watch when I'm exercising. Since I haven't been exercising, I skip the shows. My master plan is to rent the DVDs and work out to those and get caught up with TV as I get caught up with exercise. We shall see, however.

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?

I'm not a hate kind of person, although I definitely get ticked off at someone every now and again. This morning it was the jerk who cut me off and stole my parking space at the Costco. But I'll be over it by tomorrow.
24. What was the best book you read?

What the Dog Saw, by Malcolm Gladwell

I also really liked Barbara Kingsolver's The Bean Trees. I figured out how to reserve books from the library online, so I've been doing that this year, and it has really cut down on my amazon budget. Though I miss getting those nice new boxes of books in the mail.

25. What was your greatest musical discovery?

Sigh. That playing music in the car keeps my son happier than when I listen to NPR for the whole drive home. He'll even shout at me, "Mommy, want music!" I miss my news.

26. What did you want and get?

A new couch. In fact, we got a couch, a loveseat, and a nice armchair.
27. What did you want and not get?

A nice shelf to put our tv on and a flat screen tv to replace our late 1990s model.

28. What was your favorite film of this year?

We liked "The Kids are Alright," and "Milk."  Honestly, though, we didn't see many movies.

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

Do you know, I actually had to look it up on my blog, because I honestly couldn't remember. Greg took Nick and I out to a nice seafood place. I turned 32.

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

A really nice vacation. I'd love to go to Europe again, or on a nice cruise with lots of beaches.
31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2010?

Fashion concept? I don't exactly have one, although I certainly spent enough on clothes. For much of they year, it was "Hide the baby weight I never lost." Then, during the end of the year, it was, "Find clothes that make me look pregnant instead of fat."

32. What kept you sane?

Coffee, definitely, and the reading of books, magazines, and this little thing called the Internet. Also, time spent playing with Nick, whether reading, playing blocks, or coloring.


33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

James Tupper from "Mercy," a soap-opera-ey show that got cancelled.
34. What political issue stirred you the most?

All of the teacher bashing that went on. I'd like to see all of the so-called "education reformers" spend a week in a poor, urban classroom and then talk about how it's the teacher's fault those students don't meet standards on the state tests.

35. Who did you miss?

Hmm. I guess it's not a whom but more of a what. I missed going out with friends and having fun without kids being around. Something about having a toddler tends to stifle any semblance of a social life.

36. Who was the best new person you met?

Probably some of my new coworkers at school. I really work in a great place, and it's been great getting to know the new members of my team.

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2010.

With doctors, don't assume that they remember who in the heck you are. Remind them, and ask them to read your chart before they see you. Also, do not hesitate to call, and then call again, if your questions are not answered.

38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.

"Old McDonald had a farm, E I E I O." I must've sung that song ten thousand times with Nick. He begs me to sing it again and again, especially in the car. During nice weather, I'm sure the nearby cars thought I was a total nutjob, singing my heart out as I drove down the road.

Happy New Year everyone! Tonight, we're going to be doing a nice bit of nothing. Pizza for dinner, then probably homemade popcorn with real butter later. No drinking for me, but maybe I'll treat myself to some nice earl grey tea around ten p.m. If I don't, then I won't make it to midnight without falling asleep.  ; )

Christmas Post #4: Santa Came Late

Since we spent Christmas Eve night and all of Christmas Eve day at my mother-in-law's house, Santa decided to hold off on leaving presents until the night of the 25th. Since Nick cannot read a calendar yet, no harm done.  ; )   He was pretty excited when he came downstairs to find what Santa had left him.

Santa noticed that Nick loves building with his Mega Bloks, which I picked up from http://www.napervilleyardsales.com/ last year for $7. So he brought Nick a whole new box of Mega Bloks, plus a table for building. He was duly impressed.

Nick also got a neat train puzzle that, when completed, makes train noises. Plus, Santa brought him a stamp set with vehicles and colored pencils, so that Nick can stamp his own airplanes and fire trucks and then color them in. Or, he can get ink everywhere and smear it on the furniture. Either way, he'll have fun.

I have decided that next year, (from Santa at least) Nick will get one thing to play with, one thing to wear, and one thing to read. I'm sure Santa will agree that this is for the best. My boy is already spoiled silly by presents from all of his grandparents and various other relatives. I cannot imagine the intense level of toys that will hit my home once I have two little boys at various stages of development.  I can imagine, however, that it will be great fun.   : )  It's a very good thing I'm not afraid of messes.