Porky Stories

Once upon a time, there was an itsy-bitsy, roly-poly, fatty-watty, pudgie-wudgie, piggledy-widdledy pink pig named Porkus M. Piggus. But his Mommy called him "Porky," for short.

...thus began the bedtime stories of my childhood. My Granny told Porky Stories when we spent the afternoon or evening with her, at naptime or at night. Porky had soft pink ears, a big pink belly, and "a little pink corkscrew tail." I distinctly remember one afternoon in her large "kids' bedroom," my sister and I each occupying one twin bed, heads cool on her down pillows. The light was just so, and she sat in the rocker in the corner of the room. The first words were always the same. Comforting, that. Now that I think about it with an adult's perspective.

I don't know where she got the idea of Porky Pig for her main character, but these were the only kind of stories she knew, apparently. :) I also don't remember what activities Porky participated in, but I wish I did, because I have introduced Porky into my son's future memories of storytime... and I am running out of ideas!

I mean, Granny had 4 boys of her own, so I'm sure many of her tales were from their real-life antics on the farm. Me, I've only come up with a few Porky Stories that are worth telling more than once:

• Porky and Stinky (his best friend) walk to the swimming pool, but on the way, they get distracted in a field. They climb a tree, play baseball with sticks and rocks, and share a piece of gum with Old Mister ...Wilson (was all I could come up with -- ya have an older neighbor, it has to be "Mr. Wilson," right?)... and then they hardly have any time to swim... but realize they had a super-fun day, anyway.
• Porky's birthday party, where he gives party hats to all his friends (Stinky, Hortense, and various other piglets named with the names of AJ's school buddies, coincidentally) and then opens presents (this is an especially good way to find out what AJ's hoping for around Christmas or birthday-time). I also let him decide who gets which color balloon. And all this participation by the listener DOES sorta defeat the purpose of Putting Him To Sleep, but I digress.
• Porky Eats Too Many Pickles and Gets a Tummyache. ...I know, right? But, um, the moral of the story is... don't eat too many pickles. AJ loves this one for some reason.

So anyway, I was thinking of inviting a little audience participation. How about this: You give me some ideas for my next Porky Stories -- since I seem to be getting requests for them more than once a day lately. Be creative! Here's the general set-up: Porky is a young boy-piggy, around 5, an only child who loves his Mommy and Daddy. He calls his Mom his "Poopy-Dommy Mommy" when he wants something or is feeling particularly grateful to her., as in, "Oh, I love you, my Poopy-Dommy-Mommy!" (...Yeah, I don't know, either!? But it's a non-negotiable feature of every story -- he has to say that at some point. Granny must have been trying to remind her boys to LOVE THEIR MOTHER. Heh.) His best friend is Stinky. In the original series, Porky got himself into plenty of mischief and learned valuable life lessons. In "Porky: The New Generation," he mostly wanders around "going to the store" or some other lame adventure since I can't think of any more complicated plots than that and the pickles.

So, help. Maybe I'll even type some up here after the fact and let you know how they were received. And Jilly, feel free to chime in with original editions if you remember any! Oh, and P.S., Historically, these stories are reeeallly long, like a winding path over hills and through deep valleys. If the storyteller falls asleep (and maybe snores) before the end, for instance... it's extremely genuine, is what I'm saying. ;)

I love this right now

Our son:
- Enjoys playing outside, getting his sunshine "and vitamin C" ("D, honey..."), and making up new games like driveway golf and dump-truck racing. Also enjoys a good game of Red Light, Green Light, where he is "all the colors." (Meaning everyone else runs.) Just like his Mama, that one.

- Goes on Missions with his Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, switching out their gear and (dare I say it?) weapons, hunting aliens and fighting off bad guys with one fell swoop. Or "Piiiyooo, pieeerr."

- Uses his highest pitch to speak lovingly to his sister. The best is when he coos, "Oh, don't cry, I'm right here," with a giant smile on his face and the green pacifier in launch position on his finger. How he loves sticking it in her mouth to SAVE her! Even when she's not fussing.

- Gets upset when I ask him if he needs to use the bathroom. One day he stopped and turned to me, saying, "MAMA. When I have to go, I just run to the potty and gostopASKINGMETHAT!" (He's been trained now for months, he's right, I need to stop bugging him about it.)

- Feels safest in our bed, nestled in between us, and has thankfully stopped kicking in his sleep so much. His warm little frame doesn't really even phase us anymore, despite having a queen-size. We're too lazy/tired to keep taking him back to his bed, which I'm sure is going to be a problem at some point, but right now it's just so NICE snuggled up there, we three.

Our daughter:
- Is so easy to care for. Hungry, wet, dirty, or tired. Those are really the only options we have to consider, and the solutions are cut and dried.

- Can have a smiling marathon when prompted, and just glows with innocence and joy. Nothing compares to a baby's big smile. She keeps me from getting things done because I get sucked right in to her sweet face and ask her to produce MORE smiles, and ONE MORE for Mommy, and yes, another one. She especially loves being on the changing table, after she's all cleaned up and fresh. We stay there a long time.

- Is beginning to sleep for longer stretches both at night and during the day. We're heading toward the three-month milestone and she seems to be right on track so Mommy and Daddy will be EDIT: hope to be! no jinxies! getting a little more REM soon.

- Knows just how to snuggle into my neck, making me feel warm and happy and loved, the safest place she knows. Aside from the hour of the clock in many of those moments, there's bliss there, and I'm soaking it all up.

My so-called diet

I stink at this. So far, I seem to be taking an "Every two days I'll eat healthy" approach. Yesterday started out well:


1 pumpkin muffin no butter

coffee w/ff 1/2 n 1/2

Then...

tricuits and cream cheese spread (left here by my dastardly cousin)

4 chocolate chip cookies (hello mcfly? cookies???)

1/2 cup black bean salad (virtuous)

1 dark chocolate candy (for antioxidants)

Had a high point:

30 minutes of this workout OMG which I coudln't even DO and I pride myself on being able to pick up aerobics choreography pretty easily...

And

dinner: pork roast, rice a roni, and a big green salad.... and a slice of chocolate pie. The rest has since been thrown out of this house! GAH!

Random drawer and return to work

I can't start off my first work-from-home day without blogging. It just wouldn't feel right. HA!

Yesterday I went to the office for a "quick meeting" that turned out to be ALL DAY. It was good. I am glad to be starting back to Real Life, even though my Pretend Life of full-time leave was quite nice. I got a lot done, but not everything on my list. My "random drawer" in my bedroom (scarves, really old jewelery, some stationery, a lint-remover, etc.) is not yet cleaned out. I haven't spent the gift certificate my Mom gave me at KT's birth for new non-maternity clothes. I haven't gotten a favorite necklace repaired yet. I haven't called my parish school to pre-register AJ for Kindergarten ('09).

But these are all things that still can and will get accomplished, and meanwhile on Monday through Thursday I will be concentrating on a certain large university's email marketing efforts full-time. Whew -- nothing like jumping back in with both feet.

Meanwhile, KT baby has begun her daycare career, and yesterday the report was good. She behaved, took her bottles without protest, and didn't tick off the class bully, apparently. Hee hee. There are a lot of things I love about the Infant Room. One of the ladies always slips -- at least I think of it as "slipping" -- and tells me she "serviced" KT at 2:30 or whatever time. I would think she's supposed to refer to it (rocking the baby, feeding the baby, CARING FOR the baby) as something a little less custodial than "servicing," when talking to the parents. But she's great. I love that they already had her crib labeled with her name when we arrived first thing yesterday morning, and a spot in the fridge with her name, where we line up her bottles each day. They'd already put her diapers neatly in her own drawer. AND since she was the New Girl, she got the Fancy Bouncy Seat yesterday. :) She slept A LOT during the day, and after she got home, with all the excitement. I barely saw her eyes yesterday.

I wish that every family's daycare experience could be as great as ours has always been.

So anyway, I've got laundry to switch and LOTS of email marketing crap to sort though, as well as dinner to put in a crock pot (sorry, DH, but that's the way it has to be, I'm afraid) and *caffeinated* coffee to drink.

Oh! Two other things! Tomorrow, AJ's class is having a Spring Program. His first Spring Program!! I'm SO glad I have Fridays off so I can attend. And BELIEVE ME, there will be photos and video.

Also: He is coming home EVERY DAY lately with grass-stained pants, and some days, HOLES. What do we do about the holes, Moms? Patch them? Or just toss the pants and buy new?

What's in YOUR random drawer, by the way?

Riches

Saturday morning I drove down my street feeling richly blessed. The sun wasn't out and it was much too cool for April in Atlanta, but somehow I felt warm and happy.

It could have been that I'd had my hair cut on Friday by someone new, who made me feel like I'd known her a long time. (Score! New stylist, close to home!)

It could have been that after the haircut, my next-door neighbor called and invited me to lunch, and we spent two hours on the patio of one of our favorite local hangouts, and talked and laughed.

It could have been that MB and I chatted on the cellies, as usual, about nothing and everything and the daily round, and I just LOVE that I have a girlfriend with whom I can share my nothing and everything.

It could have been from Friday night, when Mandy and her sweet family came over for dinner, because we cousins got on like we'd been socializing together for years, even though it was our first meeting since she and I were about fifteen. Our conversation was easy, our boys played, shared and screeched like the best of 3-year-old friends, and we found uncanny parallels in our lives as parents of these precious kids. (So glad you guys could make it! And thanks for outfitting our pantry -- I'm enjoying my pie and AJ's enjoying his Hippie Goldfish. Heh.) I prolonged our dinnertime with inept kitchen mistakes, but... I hope no one cared. I sure enjoyed the extra time to visit. :)

So Saturday I was on my way to baptism preparation class for KT baby, which turned out to be a nice tie-up-with-ribbon reminder of how much joy exists in our lives, after experiencing the gift of it all so acutely. (I mean, a good haircut? Serious JOY.)

About babies

I think I have cracked the code on babies. Or part of it.

As we all now know, colic is a fake term for "crying baby." It really indicates nothing, there are no symptoms of colic, it's just a crying baby for a certain period of time. (The THINGS they never tell you before you get pregnant. I mean, seriously: THE. THINGS.)

Yesterday in the shower I had a revelation. Colic is probably an unreachable itch. Think about it -- what is super annoying and when you can't get it resolved, it just makes you crazy? ITCHING. I think colic could really be when the baby has an itch on the top of its head. Not on its back, not its leg, but the top of the head. Because when Mommy or Daddy picks Baby up, do they scratch his head? No. The top of the head is largely ignored in favor of the cheeks, the neck, the ear nuzzle. "Don't cry, Baby." Mommy could solve an itch on the baby's back or leg by accident, because her arms touch those areas naturally when she holds him. But not the top of the head.

(Why yes, I think I do have dandruff instead of postpartum hair-falling-out, why do you ask? And no, my baby isn't colicky, Thank Heavens, I was just thinking.)

Indulgence

Okay, have any of you been watching The Real Housewives of NYC on Bravo? It is the one non-news TV show I have allowed myself -- well, the second... I also watch Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations on the Travel Channel at 1:00 pm most days if I'm home -- during my maternity leave. Not even Oprah!

Well, I just watched my DVR'd episode from last night and O.M.G! What is with Ramona?? I could not bee-lieve the drama! For those of you who don't indulge in this severely guilty pleasure like I do, pleeeease let me elaborate. You don't want to miss it.

One of the five women that the show profiles decided to host a dinner party for... the 4 other women. It was to be a Girls' Night, with a special dinner and super fancy million-dollar plates and table settings because they're all richer than God, of course, in the tradition of "Real Housewives" profile-ees.

Well. Alex, who fancies herself much more high society than she actually IS, asked if she could bring Simon, her husband, to the dinner... The Girls' Night dinner. The hostess was perplexed and thought, "Man, that Alex is kinda bizarre," but if you've been following the show you'd know that Alex and Simon are sickeningly, cheesily attached at the eyeballs. They shop together, they get dressed together, they parlez le francais badly together (and teach their toddlers badly, too, so they'll be "educated," natch, when they enroll in a Swiss boarding school or some such) and they are disturbingly In Love. Gah. Anyway, yes, it was weird, but the hostess said if you must, you must.

Well, Simon shows up with Alex. Then Ramona, who plays the rather trampy-but-has-a-boatload-of-money housewife (and again, NOT A HOUSEWIFE -- she has a job)... Ramona FREAKS OUT. She goes into hysterics, basically, saying, "I had a really tough day and was really looking forward to Girls' Night, and then YOU come here and ruin it!" She really laid into him. He was speechless, as well he should have been (although a self-deprecating retort wouldn't have hurt), and the rest of the guests had no idea what was happening. One woman kept saying, "But he's here now, and we're going to make him feel WELCOME, aren't we, Ramona?" as if Ramona was a 2-year-old! Hahahahaha! It was high comedy at her expense.

Later at dinner, they start this conversation about Class versus Etiquette, and Ramona gave further evidence that money equals neither one. In fact, after the soup course she inexplicably gets up and leaves, saying, "Oh, I forgot to tell you I have other plans at 9:30." WT? Such a faker! The next day she dug her hole EVEN further by trying to apologize and reiterate that she JUST FORGOT about those other plans and .... well, it just devolved into her being a spaz. Generally, I think that's her major malfunction, that she's just ditzy. And oh, is it fun to watch.

I basically love everything about this show -- from the New York accents (LOVE!) to the townhouses (gorge!), to the Countess, to the way they edited it so that each woman gets made fun of in some way, to the one single girl (with R.H. money) who actually has a brain and calls out all the other women for their high-class nonsense.

Season finale next Tuesday! Conveniently lined up with my last day of leave, which is AWESOME.

Flexing It

No secret: I'd prefer to have a part-time job rather than a full-time one. We need some sort of income from me, so the option of having a no-time job is really not an option, nor do I think I would handle it very well, judging by that week in March when AJ was home sick with me and KT. Lordy-mercy. (Although, here in my 8th week of maternity leave, I AM getting into the rhythm of getting shit done, as evidenced by my MOPPED FLOORS and FOLDED LAUNDRY. Gooooo me! I could be a good housekeeper, at least, if not a good SAHM.) Also, by the way, Where did March go?? Geez!

Well anyway, turns out my 8th week of maternity leave is going to be my last, as the company called last week. Someone has resigned, and could I please consider coming back early? ....That kinda sucks, doesn't it?

But I was considering shortening my leave anyway, "flexing" it so that I'd have Fridays off. And that's exactly how I'm going to work it to my advantage. In fact, for the first 2 weeks, they don't even want me in the office so I'll be working from home. I was doing that the last 2 weeks or so before KT was born, wisely thinking I didn't want to deliver her in my cubicle 32 miles from home. So it has been a nice long break from the hallowed halls of ___ Communications, actually, and who doesn't like Fridays off? 'Til July! I think it'll be nice. Except when I feel guilt for sticking KT in the bouncy seat while I type (um... like I'm doing now...) all day long. But that will only be 1 day a week -- she'll start daycare on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.

I feel much better about daycare this time than last, naturally, since the school has become our second home and everyone's been waiting for her for nearly a year now. The infant teacher came out to see her today and told AJ she'd get his old crib ready for her. He liked that idea, and I think he likes the idea that she'll be at his school with him. I wonder if the first day I will cry or not. Last time I wept through my commute, then had little Moments during the day when I got sad. This time? I just wonder. I feel so mature and learn-ed about it. Hee.

----------

The Dieting is going poorly because my parents in law came to visit. You know how it is. It's like that, plus homemade chocolate chip cookies that MIL insists on bringing every time she visits. (And I insist on inhaling.)

The Exercising is going okay, if you consider doing 1 or 2 workouts "okay." Bah. Let's try the whole thing again. I'm going to start a diet and hey, have you tried Weight Watchers' Pumpkin Muffins?

Life Cycle of a Mommy Blog

So now I've done the reveal, the symptoms-log, the naming post, the birth story... oh, wait, I didn't do the birth story? Here it is: my water broke all over the WORLD (at home actually, at 10:30pm), we went to the hospital, where my water continued to break all down the halls, I got hooked up to an IV with saline, antibiotics (StrepB positive), then later my glorious epidural and pitocin. I was itchy and they gave me Benadryl or something, I was sniffly and they gave me Claritin, I labored comfortably for 8 hours or so, pushed 3 times during one contraction and poof: Baby!... I am PRETTY GOOD at birthing babies, aren't I? AJ's delivery was equally easy.... anyway, the next thing I'm supposed to post as a bona-fide Mommy Blogger is

The Auspicious Beginning of My Diet and Exercise Regime.

Yeah.

Last weekend I went to Publix with a specific list in my hand, the list that included V8 juice, hummus, smoked almonds for gosh sakes, and celery. Who even puts CELERY on a LIST? Someone on a diet, that's who. Except I'm not quite ready to be on a Diet, and I'm not quite sure how it works when you're breastfeeding a little bit.

I'm trying to not to hurry things too much as I know you have to allow plenty of time to lose the baby fat that took 9 months to put on. Everyone says that. But not everyone has a beach vacation planned in June, harumph. I have a feeling I will want some faster results than "9 months off."

I believe in the "Change One" method, where you don't begin a diet full-on, but little by little. I had already been eating fairly good breakfasts and lunches -- balanced with fruits and veggies, and reasonable portions -- but dinner and snacks are where I need to make changes. I need to kiss regular Coca-Cola goodbye (sob!), and donate the 2nd bag of Oreos to AJ's daycare for THEIR snacktime.

I also like the idea of the "Just One More" healthy living promise. Hence, the V8. I love salad, so it really shouldn't be too hard. Hopefully those dietary changes will move the scale a bit to get me motivated. And then I've GOT to figure out a way to get more exercise in. My cable package includes some ExerciseTV On Demand, and it's cool because there are lots of workouts in 10, 16, and 22-minute increments. I bet I can do those for starters.

I just made Weight Watchers' Pumpkin Muffins, the recipe for which I found at SundryBuzz, in the comments section of this handy post. I thought you all should see it live and up close since I know some of you are on health-kicks, too, so I'm posting it here. It is a WEIRD recipe. Who in the world thought of this combination of ingredients? But put 'em together and they're pretty damn tasty with a virtuous spread of non-butter butter, like Smart Balance.

WW Yummy Pumpkin Bran Muffins

3 cups all-bran cereal
2 cups warm water
MIX together… let sit for five minutes

[seriously.... weird. I even felt weird buying All-Bran.]

1 box dry cake mix (SPICE flavor)
1 can pumpkin puree
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
MIX well.
ADD cereal mix.

1 TBSP vinegar

[even weirder!]

Hand mix this into batter.
Spoon into muffin cups sprayed with PAM.
BAKE 20 minutes at 400 degrees.
Makes 24 muffins.

Natal-ity = done

Just had the 6-week checkup. My days of pre-natal and natal at the doctor are over. I was a little bit sad when the doc left the room! KT is all done being gestated, she's here, and my medical life now goes back to being my very own, and not scrutinized every month by the OBs. Kinda weird. End of an era, too, since our plan is to not have enough kids to outnumber us.

AJ is feeling better. He had a strep test but no strep, so it's just been a bad cold, whose fever finally ended in the middle of the night last night. He's fine to go to school tomorrow, but I kinda want to complete the "week off" and keep him home on a day when he feels good. We'll see. His Dad's pushing for taking him to school tomorrow, so he won't be completely "ruirnt" for it, as they say here in Georgia. I also want to make a lasagna tomorrow, so it may serve me better for him to go to school, too! Selfish, who? Me? I'd pick him up early though. Now that I'm better at this gig, I feel like I can get us out the door pretty much any time of day.

I was composing a post on my way home that I thought I'd title, "Me and The Girls," with a mention of Book Club tonight, deceptively on-topic, and then casually turn to the metaphoric topic of breastfeeding. (Oh, who am I kidding, I can't ever casually turn into a topic; it'd be an abrupt paragraph change like always.) It was going to be a touching history of the difficulty I had trying to nurse AJ, and my subsequent hesitation about nursing this time. But I don't have time for all that. The Girls, they have performed pretty well for KT. I can tell you it still satisfies me when she first starts a feeding and swallows after every suck, like there's actually -- a lot of -- liquid coming out of those babies! It's hard for me to believe, honestly. Anyway, I was relieved to hear from my OB today that she continued to b'feed her son 'til he was nearly a year, without having to pump at work. THAT would work for me. Because people, I do not have the energy or drive to pump at work. I have alternately wanted to absolutely quit breastfeeding when it was still painful, and then want to maybe hang on just a bit longer, these last six weeks. In fact, my only goal was to get to 1 month, and my hope was to get to 6 weeks -- both accomplished. *golf claps for me!* Of course I know I'm going back to work and so at this point we're doing every other feeding with a bottle of formula. I wonder how my supply will handle a further weaning, and if I really CAN hold onto one or two feedings for a while. Like everything I ever say, I guess We'll See. (I should have named my blog that.)

I gotta go because it's 70 degrees out and AJ needs fresh air. :) Tomorrow's Friday, hooray!

Day 2 at home with 2 kids

Pssst..... hey, over here:

O.M.G. HOW does this work???


(AJ is home sick(ish) today.But well enough, thanks Motrin, that he wants to play. All. day. I am.... let's see... flummoxed? Is that the right word? It's too cold and he's too sick to play outside, we can't go do errands because of baby's eating schedule.... he refuses to color and has already watched 5.79 hours of TV at least......p.s.? He played at the sink in the bubbles -- oh, yes, I tried it -- for approximately 5 minutes.)

SAHMs are truly, truly my heroes.

Pride (In the Name of Easter)

(Notice how suspicious KT looks! Ha!)

I was not certain we'd be able to pull off any semblance of an Easter celebration, but we DID! The bunny came, and his cleverness was appreciated, both in toy selection ("Wow, the Bunny KNEW I wanted a yellow RACE CAR!") and candy options, which included a Nerds Rope and some Sweet Tarts. We managed to get ourselves out the door and to the 9:00 AM Mass (I KNOW! NINE A.M.!), with both kids dressed and hair combed, and even better, we stayed in our seats the entire service. I don't think my Husband has spent a whole Mass next to me in at least a year. He usually carts a fussing toddler out to the narthex, and stays there.

It helped that we attended the Family Mass in the school gym, complete with children's choir and songs that clap. That kept AJ entertained a bit, and he even came home singing, "This is the DAAAY, This is the DAY-AY, This is the DAAAY that the LORD HAS MADE." (More on that in coming post but you KNOW my chorister heart was smiling!) Maybe we'll have to do the Family Mass more often. I've tried to avoid it because it's all Drums and Electric Guitar. Gah. But... sometimes you gotta lower your standards. I lowered them in one other way that helped our cause: brought AJ a Ziploc'd snack. Now, I have long abhorred the idea of snacks in church, because HELLO, WE didn't have snacks and yet we managed to behave most of the time (and walked uphill both ways). But... again, I just decided why fight it.

Smartest thing we did -- saved Easter Egg Hunting for After Mass. Brilliant way to convince AJ to sit still. Not that we'd THREATEN to skip the Egg Hunting of course. Ahem. But the opportunity was there just in case.

I even made fancy Easter dinner -- or, more to the point, served it fancily on good china with linen napkins. We hardly ever eat in the dining room but you know, there has to be a Special Occasion once in a while that you HARNESS, and Make Special. Plus, using china and silver makes ME feel good (and it's all about me, after all). Dinner was a roast chicken breast, steamed asparagus with lime sauce, and Uncle Ben's. Actually not that exciting, but the whole presentation gave me great satisfaction.

What did you guys do to celebrate?

Oh gosh, yes, we're FINE

Melessa asked if I'd update to say that we're okay after the I-guess Famous Atlanta Tornadoes of 2008 -- Yes, we're perfectly FINE. Funny that she's the Oklahoman, asking about MY tornadoes. :) It was quite a weird weekend, though, with our local ABC-affiliate broadcasting their greenscreen and 3D maps all day. DH got pretty good at understanding the meterologists' mumbo-jumbo about BTIs and F-numbers. I was happy for them, getting their Big Day. I just love when meteorologists take off the sports coats and roll up their sleeves, like, "We've got to get down and dirty here, folks, this shit is SERIOUS." Secretly they're in the breakroom high-fiving each other and saying, "WOO HOO, AIR TIME!!"

My big event of Saturday, between warning sirens, was a birthday party at where else? Chuck E. Cheese. I went with AJ and left KT baby at home with her daddy, and it was really fun. AJ and I haven't gotten to spend a lot of quality time together, just us, in the last 4 weeks. Sure, we play the occasional game of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles when he's in the bathtub, and I've been reading a lot to him (only thing you can do with no hands), but as for going out together? Like we used to? Not so much. (Don't be fooled, I'm not talking about appletini and pedicure dates. We just used to go to Publix or Target together after I picked him up from school on weekdays. Special time on the cereal aisle, y'know.)

So, Chuck E. is still the same ridiculous beeping and flashing place it always has been, in case you're wondering. You'd be wise NOT to schedule your kids' birthdays there, but you probably will; people always do. So of course we're now thinking about AJ's next birthday -- we've only done small parties at our house so far, but since his classmates seem to be having Parties now, capital P, we probably will, too, come July. I'm thinking one of the jumping places.

If you can believe this, I'm also already dreaming about our summer vacation at the beach. Simply can't wait. Guess my Oreo habit will have to be terminated before swimsuit season, but I think I'll give myself two more weeks ('til my 6-week OB visit) before cutting down to one lousy cookie per day. THAT will sure be a buzzkill.

SPEAKING of buzzkills (I am all over the place with 2-sentence paragraphs today) --! Holy crap, did I have a meltdown last night. After 2 hours of rocking, walking, rocking again (my back hurted, waaa), letting her suck on my finger, her pacifier, her hands (she'd already had both b00b and bottle at 10:30pm), she STILL wasn't falling asleep. Meanwhile, I WAS, and at 12:40 I went crying downstairs with her, and actually told her to "Shut Up and go to Sleep." Sigh. I hate those kind of (perfectly normal) feelings. Gawd, they make you hate yourself 2 seconds after you say them out loud, don't they? After five more minutes of me snuffling and her nursing, thank goodness she settled.

Hey, ONE last thing -- I LIED to our pediatrician yesterday. "Does she always sleep on her back?" *Nods head convincingly* "Oh, yes." (Anyone else? C'mon, I can't be the only rebel out there.)

One, two, and three

My father, being the fine, upstanding fellow that he is, bought me something to replace some somethings he had helped polish off, when he was here last month. I am both thrilled and horrified with him for this, because

THESE are the somethings;


because they were on sale TWO for ONE;

and because I like to eat them THREE at a time.

Tasks and Outings

This is my game plan these days: Tasks and Outings.

Tasks include things like emptying the dishwasher. Doing a load of laundry. Addressing birth announcements. Cleaning toilets. I try to do one per day. If more are accomplished, good for me, but there's only a self-imposed requirement of One.

Outings are self-explanatory. I can mange about one outing per day, either in the 10 o'clock hour or the 1 o'clock hour (but usually, we are nursing at 1 o'clock, and watching Anthony Bourdain on the Travel channel). I don't always have an outing, taking the opportunity to nap if needed instead. We go to the grocery store one day, the toy store another (for Easter basket stuff), Target or Staples or wherever is mission-critical at the moment. On my list for the future: A trip to Old Navy for summer clothes for AJ, Wal-Mart because I have a gift card and we need Easter candy (NEED!), Babies R Us to return a few gifts (why didn't more people include gift receipts?), and a lunch outing or two in the works.

I'm enjoying this part of maternity leave. Going back to work is on my mind all the time, not only because the HR people KEEP calling me to confirm all my dates and such nonsense, but also because I'm considering how exactly I'm going to approach it. I'm almost wishing I had only taken 6 weeks off, and could plan to use the other 6 weeks for every Friday off. That would have been smart. I suppose it's not too late to change to that plan, but it would mean more dealings with HR and NO THANK YOU.

I ended up leaving KT baby at home when I went to the shower on Sunday. It was not about MY baby, it was about my friend, plus the drive was really long. Based on her schedule from that morning, I'd have had to either nurse KT on the side of Georgia Rt. 400 or arrive at the party with a screaming infant, and neither option seemed good. ("Hi, I'm so happy you're having a BABY!! They scream, isn't it cute??") So I left them with the Fabulous DH. When I called to say I was on the way home, and asked how things were going, he whispered, "Everybody is asleep." He rocks my world, to say the least.

She's crying, so I've got to go for now. I really miss reading all of y'all every day.

Who likes paperwork?

Here's what I don't want to be doing these quiet milk-toast days: Driving all over town to get Short-Term Disability forms filled out by my doctor (*additional forms, never before mentioned by the short-term disability people and yet suddenly "DUE TODAY, MRS. EL-E-E-OMG," upon penalty of me never getting my rightful pay*), then to Staples to fax them appropriately. And yet, that is what I did today. With a side-item of sitting in the OB/GYN's inadequate parking lot fuming at a lady who exited the office, got in her car, then promptly SAT THERE not leaving for 10 minutes, while a line of 6 of us were very obviously WAITING for just ONE parking spot to open up. Rrrrr. Road rage is even better when the 3-week-old is in the back seat crying and you can't do anything about it.

Blah! I also enjoyed re-faxing some paperwork to a freelance client -- for which I sent an invoice more than a MONTH AGO. Hello, client, you are annoying. But I want my $250 so there ya go.

This morning at 7, I felt quite guilty lying on the couch with the precious sleeping baby as my husband scurried around, doing the HARDEST part of the day -- Getting (AJ) Out The Door -- all by himself. So next week, that's the end of that. I've had three weeks to be sleep-deprived and overwrought, and now I'm just going to have to suck it up and re-insert myself into the morning routine. Unless, of course, it's been a particularly awful night. But we haven't had one of those in a few days now, so it's time. I have a sling, a bouncy seat, a pack n play, and, oh yeah, her crib -- if KT's still sleeping I just need to plop her gently into some device and go about the business of getting juice and waffles and backpack items for AJ.

On the upside, I did submit an article I have been meaning to write (for pay -- peanuts, but still pay). It's been hanging over my head forever. And it's not the best work I've ever done, but who cares, it's DONE.

I would like to please go back to diapers and nipple soreness (still) now kthanxbye.

(I'm not ALL grumpy. Am looking forward to the weekend and planning to attend a baby shower -- eek, my first possible nurse-in-public situation EVER. Glad it'll be with friends who have baby on the brain already. Maybe I can give lessons for the mom-to-be, HA!! Anyway, it was fun buying a gift since I'm all about baby items lately. I got her Boudreaux's Butt-Paste, Purell, a multi-use lap pad, and the receiving blankies she registered for, and also unloaded a couple of duplicate "The Poky Little Puppy"s and "Thomas & the the Big, Big Bridge"s I have had laying around. So that's all GOOD! Also? It's Friday night and "Lost" is on TiVo. Big party for me!)

Yellow blanket

Taken yesterday. I think she's already changing and filling out. Her cheeks are, unfortunately, not edible.

On my own

My parents left yesterday. Bittersweet. Today has been alright but I had to make my OWN sandwich for lunch. Such a chore. I think I need a nap from doing that... or possibly from being up from 11 pm to 4 am last night. One or the other.

KT baby slept in her sling today. W00t! The first time I tried her in it, she was displeased, so today was a victory. Then I was an idiot and tried to take her out of it, and place her gently in her crib. "HAHAHAHAHAhahaha, oh ha, Mother," she said. Seems she is a bit spoiled by all the holding and loving we have been doing (even through the night). Yes, I have allowed this to happen -- she and I have slept on the couch, tummy to tummy, most every night. At this point I guess I've cared less about the future "cry it out" question and more about the present SLEEP question. If we are sleeping, it is GOOD. Tell me I am not going to regret this later. Please, tell me.

I am enjoying a root beer at the moment (did not know all this time that it is caffeine-free! I could have avoided all that dang SPRITE during pregnancy!), and she is happily bouncing in her bouncy seat. Awake. During the day. Good girl.

When will I feel I have something to post other than Baby-N-Me updates? I don't know. You, beggars, can't be choosers. :)

Announcements

1. Nicole had her baby! Go see! She's a cutie!

2. I have showered two days in a row!

Accomplishing, and sitting

Today I've gotten some minor details taken care of, like calling for dentist appointments that are long overdue for all three of us big people, faxing a form for my work leave of absence, blah blah. Yesterday, Darling Husband cleaned the house, tip -top to bottom -- I can't thank him enough. [I was grumpy with him, unfortunately, and am choosing to blame it on hormones and say I'm really sorry, honey. I miss the fact that while we were in the hospital those 2 days, it was just him, me, and Baby. Kind-of like a retreat. Since we've gotten home it's been less just us and more "let's hurry and get back into our regular (new regular) rhythm." Kinda makes me sad but I guess it's reality. I've joked that eventually I'll have to stop being the invalid and start taking responsibility for things again. Thank goodness my Mom's still here to help me put THAT off.]

KT baby is just the sweetest thing. She's doing an every-other-night routine of good sleeping. Last night was her "off" night. Heh. The night before she gave me two stints of 3-hour sleeping and I felt GREAT yesterday. A friend wisely pointed out that because I'm fairly certain this is the last time I'll be doing this newborn thing, I'm probably less aggravated by being up with her. It's a time that's so fleeting, and I know to cherish it..... Okay, I'll admit being a little aggravated -- mostly because it still hurts to sit for too long, ifyaknowwhatimean -- but man, when the house is all quiet and I just get to sing "Hush, Little Baby..."? That's not such a bad lot in life.

So, what are you people doing? Did we watch the Oscars? (We did.) Did we care? Not really. In fact it probably worked well that KT was up last night, since I wanted to be up, anyway. I've been watching a lot of late-night TV -- keeping it on provides just the right amount of light in our bedroom for nursing and burping. I've watched a whole night's worth of Dirty Jobs, a whole night of FoodTV [go away, Paula Deen], 2 episodes of Married With Children (!?), and even a western -- Shenandoah -- for reasons unknown. Anyway, I thought most of the dresses last night were very pretty, except Tilda Swinton's. Gah. She ought to try makeup, too. I thought most of the awards were probably deserved and I enjoyed all the musical numbers from Enchanted! Go Amy Adams -- it was a little feast for a former musical theater nerd like myself. :)

Ooh, I also accomplished these Mocha Chip scones, and accomplished eating half of them myself. TRY THEM. No butter!

Day 5 Dispatch

The first few days are obviously about surviving -- in our case so far, they are about cold cereal breakfasts and afternoon talk shows. Supply and demand in the feeding department, of course (going okay so far, and I'm proud of myself for powering through some of what I know must be just early pain that WILL go away -- I'm like a marathoner, wooooo! push through that next mile), and keeping things like the spilled sugar on the kitchen countertop out of my mind.

She checked out fine at the first peds appointment. Had to get rechecked for bilirubin levels and ever-so-slight jaundice, but all came back normal.

My husband is a dream come true. He is overcome with love for his Kate.

My parents have been wonderful helping with everything, and AJ -- what can I say about that wonderful boy? HE is also surviving these weird days. I don't get too emotional, post-partum-wise, except when I think about him, and how MUCH I love him and the unfortunate requirement that I neglect him a bit more than I'm used to while I'm utterly and so, so willingly attached, literally and figuratively, to this precious little girl. I can't stand to be away from her. It's overwhelming. :)

Welcome

Katelyn Elise
born February 15, 2008

6 lbs, 15 oz

18.5 inches

~We are a family of four!~

Distraction - My Post Meme

I've been tagged by my friend at LagLiv to do a meme that's, surprise, all about me! And my posts. Past ones, you see, that I like. Here we go. (Hey, one thing first: Did you guys know I'm thisclose to having a baby? Except, not?)

THE RULES:
** Post about the meme and link back to the person that tagged you.
** Go back to your archives and link to your five favorite posts.

Link One: must be about family
Link Two: must be about friends
Link Three: must be about yourself
Link Four: must be about something you love
Link Five: can be anything you choose

** Tag five other people (at least two must be new acquaintances so that you can get to know them better).


1. My post about Family: Well, there are lots of posts about the family that lives inside my house, but since my parents have joined us this week to help with the baby prep, let's read about them and how good they were (are) at parenting.

2. My post about Friends: Looking through all my posts, I realized I don't post very much about my friends. However, I have some wonderful ones! Including, of course, MaryB, whom you should all know and be reading. I met her a few weeks before freshman year of high school, either at Orientation or at the meeting for those interested in cheerleading. We were fast friends and I can only recall one or maybe two fights in all these coughtwentyohmygodcough years. In our adult lives, she has also become my clothing supplier! Love her!

3. My post about Me: This one.

4. My post about something I love: Of course, it's about
music. I love being able to read music, knowing a little something about theory, and having an outlet for performing it.

5. Anything I like: This is one about working out and dieting, which is not always a heartwarming topic, but during this pregnancy as I've watched other people make resolutions and start fitness programs, I've gotten kind-of... jealous. I miss my old body (not that it was ever perfect), and I've been thinking about how I'll tackle the losing weight issue in 6 or 8 months or (18 months) whenever I can muster up the gumption.

Alright, tagging my five people! Gerah, because she's BACK! And maybe she should unearth some of her old stuff for all her new readers. Slynnro, because I'm new to her blog and it appears she has plenty of archives to choose from. Mandy! because she's my 2nd cousin and maybe she has some MySpace archives she could link us to. Arwen, because maybe she needs a writing prompt to thaw her out (and because she writes beautifully), and Skiplovey, because I definitely want to learn more about her funny self.

I feel ... sheepish*

Y'all, I am feeling really stupid for not having had a baby yet. My MIL left yesterday and her "reinforcements," my parents, arrived. Reinforcements for what, I don't know. For sitting on my couch and possibly folding my laundry. I'm glad they're here, of course.

Went to WBlech-Mart yesterday and drove the cart so slowly around the aisles that AJ fell asleep in there. Hee! It was cute. But the trip wore me right out. Afterwards I could do nothing but sit, sit, sit. Oy, the Gravity was painful.

I'm worried my cold has turned into a sinus infection.

Aren't I lovely??

In happier news, I think the nursery looks great:




*no one remembers that line from Aladdin, but it is my favorite. By the inimitable Robin Williams as the Genie.

Building a kid's self-esteem

Ah, self-esteem. The thing all of us probably have, or have had, trouble with during our lives. Whether it's in your pre-teen years when you just realize that other folks are looking at you, or in that most awful of times, high school, or even after you're an adult and have kids of your own. Helping our kids establish a healthy sense of self is so important. This article made me think about it, and had a lot of good points, I thought.

AJ is very small and very shy. He doesn't particularly play with any specific "friends" yet, and sometimes I wonder about how his self-esteem will play out, as he gets older. We're good about most of the things the article mentions. We love him unconditionally, set limits (or try to), let him know mistakes are okay, pay attention to him, etc. I am intrigued by their discussion of the delicate balance between "Praise" versus "Encouragement." I'm very prone to saying "I'm proud of you" when he does well with something. I've also been known to tell him he's pretty smart -- because he is! I do wonder, can that kind of praise really be detrimental? I guess I need to attach a specific task to it, like, "Good job, remembering to throw away your empty juice box." Or, "You are really learning your numbers, do you like to count?"

On the other hand, maybe it's all just over-thinking.

---------

To build MY self-esteem (and distract me from my tummy) my friend Lauren gave me this! We're blog buddies! What fun! I would like to pass it on to black sheeped, because she is so spunky and sweet. :)

Still no news...

Forget waterboarding, this Having No Idea When This THING is Going to Happen is about to be classified as INHUMANE. Went to the doc today and had dilated a slight bit more, but no other significant developments. Except the doctor went in and waved her magic little fingers to maybe start up some action.

Still.... No. Idea.

I'm ready for a little snuggly baby to hold. I'm ready to go productively to the hospital. I'm most of all ready to turn on my 'Out of Office' message on LOTUS NOTES at work, and be done with that stuff. I just can't concentrate on it now but I feel like, if I'm not contracting, I might as well be emailing and finishing things up. I mean, I guess it's still conceivable that I'll be pregnant on Feb 24th, so... just, who knows. That would make me weep, you know.

Mostly I'm irritable when real-life strangers KEEP asking me "When are you due?" like the door-to-door sales-kid did today; or "No news??" like AJ's daycare teachers keep doing. (Not YOU people, of course, or people I love. Moms, best friends, sisters, and blog buddies can ask all you like.)

I've also gotten advice to "go for a walk," so labor will really start. Dudes, if I could walk comfortably around the house, I'd walk down the block. But let me say this: cement shoes.

But no, wait, this is all a MIRACLE and a JOY.

Grateful

I'm so thankful that my mother-in-law has arrived to TAKE CARE OF US. Yeesh, yesterday I was so fuzzy under the blanket of a stupid head-cold, and I felt like such absolute kee-rap that when she appeared at the door at 2:30, I nearly cried with relief and collapsed in her arms. Of course, of course, I wish it were MY own mom -- even my MIL realizes that we all want our OWN mommies, which gives her BIG POINTS in my book. But we determined that I'd rather have my mom here AFTER baby girl joins us, so I can cry in HER arms when everything is WRONG, WRONG, WRONG. So MIL is here now.

And I'm super grateful.

She is, as I type this, folding her third or fourth load of laundry.

She drove on up, because Sunday night was more than a SuperBowl, wasn't it? I mean, the game, yeah, the game was great. Even the commercials were better, I thought, than the last few years. But for us it was REALLY more: I had 3 hours of -- seriously, y'all -- 4-minutes-apart contractions. I thought for sure we'd be heading to the hospital and we considered which kind of homage we should pay the football gods for delivering her safely that night: we could've named her Manning, Brady, or maybe Belly-Check (HAR DEE HAR HAR)! That's what we spent the first 2 quarters doing, anyway. Checking my belly. It was big fun. Sitting down didn't stop 'em. Lying down didn't. Cold water didn't. But I was still able (and willing) to eat my share of our hosts' spinach dip and pizza ring, and I walked around a bit without my "cement shoes," as hubby calls it when I waddle around at a snail's pace... so I couldn't really decide if it was "REAL" labor or what. Called the doctor, who didn't seem concerned. Then everything subsided and we all went about our business.

I fell asleep during the beginning of the 4th quarter (body a little worn out, maybe?) then woke up in time for the best part of the game.

* * * * * * * *

I've gotten a little sad a couple times this week, thinking, "But our family is just perfect like it is." Even though I know it will only get MORE perfect and there will be MORE love. It's a little bittersweet, I guess. And then Beth started taking pictures of her daughter's "last only-child" moments, and... I hadn't even thought of that.

What I've Done Today

-- timed contractions for an hour (5-6 am, ugh). They were about 16 minutes apart. And stopped around 6:30 or 7.

-- got my hair cut. for the last time before Baby. also for the last time with that stylist, she's leaving (sob!).

-- made my husband paint a few items of nursery decor (told ya I couldn't stand it)

-- wondered, "are THESE my THIGHS? (How did they get so... wide?)"

Admittedly

Alright, maaayyyybeeee I got a little overheated about yesterday's doctor's appointment. Maybe. I sat still as much as I could last night (hoooooray for LOST's return to the TV screen! 2 hours of mind-boggling entertainment) and never had any regular contractions, and usually they were at least a half-hour apart. So. But DOODS! Here I was thinking, "Oh, I still have at least 3 weekends to finish all these Major Preparations, la la la..." and the idea that maybe I don't just freeeeeaked me out a bit.

So I made two casseroles last night for dinner instead of one (freezer-time!) made hubby get the infant carseat out of storage, and made that trip to Babies R Us for a few last-minute items. I sort-of hate that Baby's room is just not quite finished yet (bare walls! no toys cleverly placed to appear as "decor!") but I suppose second kids just get the shaft and she may as well get used to it. Fewer photos, half-assed baby book, boring nursery. Not to mention she won't be living in there the first few weeks anyway. Blah. Stop worrying, self. Settle. Down.

But thanks for all your supportive comments. This little adventure is about to begin!

Here's my question to you: for your warehouse membership needs, Costco or Sam's? Both are equidistant from my house and I'm remembering how much I love their ha-yooge boxes of diapers. The land of plenty! C'mon, admit it -- you shop there too. To which should I become a loyal subscriber, do you think?

And seriously, Lost, y'all. Does Matthew Fox look even better this year or is it just me? The flash-forward scenes where he's all dressed in a business suit... SIGH. Very pretty. ;)

Edited to add: Hey, someone started it in comments: Let's have a Guessing Game! Closest to the actual due date WINS! (my love and affection)

HO.LY. ----

Anyone want to hear some numbers?

1.5 cm
50% eff.

If that means anything to you, then please join me as I start to PANIC.

:) ? !

p.s.? My husband remembers getting a doctor's report of "1.5 cm" last time. We went to Labor & Delivery that very night.

panic panic panic panic panic...

Coming back

I'm feeling things again, spiritually. Throughout this pregnancy, and even before then, I guess, I've felt like I had this dark hallway in my heart that nothing was getting through. Not depression, not sadness, just a flatline of emotion, especially concerning faith and matters of spirit. Oh, I've gone to church; I've prayed here and there. But nothing real, nothing genuine seemed to stay at the forefront.

Of course, we were so busy. For so long. And I let that stress really take over my thoughts and push out the clean breath of knowing how small I am, knowing how good God is, and living for that every day. Instead I lived for details and schedules and had nearly forgotten to look up at the sky once in a while, and take that clean breath.

Lately I can feel my heart coming back. I wonder if it's the nearness of new life, the impending birth of a new baby, and my inner self instinctively knowing that it's about to be washed - baptised again - by love and hope for her?

I find things are moving me that haven't, in a year: A song on the radio this morning, one that has been released a long while, and I've heard but never really tuned into, reached me today and got me teary. (It prays that God will "Cover up my heart,/ cover up my soul,/ cover up my life/ and everything I know/... and I felt the words exactly when I heard it today.) Last night in bed my hands and fingers throbbed, and while my first thought was, "Gawd, why me? Why this? It HURTS..." my second thought was, "Wait, be still and grateful -- this pain is a gift. The gift of a life that we get to have and hold and be responsible for. God? I'd rather be thankful for this privilege."

Getting his own juice

My wee baby son, who not so long ago was barely learning to talk
and then stepping down stairs, and learning to do lots of other big-boy things, is now in front of the fridge he opened, pouring his own apple juice and not. even. spilling. it.

Wait, hang on... he remembered to close the fridge door when he was done.

Good thing that as I finished that paragraph he also asked me urgently to help him, "I can't do 'Menu,' Mama! Can't do 'Menu!'" (on the DVD remote). Whew, he still needs me. :)

Little dude had a fever yesterday and was just so pathetic. Laying down on the couch of his own free will? What is that? Covered with a blanket, no less. He did that TWICE. Thank goodness they haven't taken Children's Tylenol off the shelves yet, though I'm sure that's coming. My friend who was born on a farm in the fifties reminds me that his mom gave him a spoonful of turpentine when his stomach hurt. Y'know, to EASE the pain. HA! I am sure we'll have to revert to that in this next uber-regulated, nothing's-safe-to-sell day and age. It'll be like the bomb hit or something and we have to start over from scratch.

But I digress.

So he's home with me today and we're trying to keep it low-key, but he obviously feels
fine now. We were just outside playing -- kicking the soccer ball. He's pretty darn good -- can stop it when it's coming to him, and kick it back in a fairly straight line. He's also being brave: willing to go retrieve the soccer ball when it rolls near the yard with three (fenced-in) big, barky labs. He totally would NOT have done that a year ago. He would have cried 'til I did it for him. We play board games like Parker Brothers is going out of style: Sorry, Disney Candyland (at least twice a day each), and sometimes Leapfrog Bingo and Caribou. He knows that an Eleven in Sorry means he can either move eleven spaces or switch with an opponent. (He doesn't always choose the most strategic of the two, but HEY.) He goes to the bathroom all by himself -- moves the stepstool under the light switch to turn the light on himself, then scoots it back to the potty. He even sometimes washes his hands if I shout at him a little. He tolerates one or two spicier foods. He fork-cuts his own pieces into smaller bites, if they're too big. He'll sit across from me at the table and color with markers for a span of ten or fifteen minutes.

He's still not brushing his own teeth so DH or I do it, which is getting to be a pain. He's still not over making a giant mess at mealtime by smearing something on his vinyl placemat. He's still employing the whine tactic a lot when he thinks he's not going to get his way. He still wants me to lie down with him as he falls asleep.

But as a general rule, the kid is actually growing up, right in front of my very eyes. I'm not going to know what to do when a new infant shows up next to him, and reinforces this fact by her very presence.

My baby.

Productivity

Well! After a particularly good morning on the work-front, wherein I completed Contract Negotiations for one client (sounds impressive but has really been a giant pain in my ass for 4 months -- or is that a pain in my giant ass?), compiled some data and made Pivot Tables for my boss (hear me ROAR! Pivot Tables are HARD for me! Excel-hater here...), and wrote a stunning, "outstanding" email to another client (acc'd to the VP who reviewed it).... I am pretty much mentally pooped. It may be all I can do to read blogs and appear busy the rest of the day.

I also need something chocolate. Oh, vending machine? I fly to thee.

However, my productivity shall continue tonight: I plan to pack the ever-important hospital bag. I think I can get away with a small-ish tote bag this time. All I'm going to take are the following:

-- iPod and ear buds (but they live in my purse)
-- magazines like People and Cosmo: no real books!
-- lip balm
-- gum
-- a present for AJ "from Baby Sister"
-- my camera, OBVIOUSLY
-- a couple of nightgown-type garments for me
-- a couple of going-home-type garments for her
-- a few snacks I like... i.e., NOT Goldfish
-- a small makeup bag with the essentials (toothbrush, paste, comb, shampoo, powder foundation and lipgloss)
-- pads and possibly some good, big underwear (although last time I did get pretty friendly with the fishnet variety the hospital provides)
-- a bottle and some formula just in case
-- a clean pillowcase to put on the pillow I will be bringing from my very own bed

I don't know if hubby wants me to include any items for him since we'll be close to home this time. Probably a toothbrush would be wise. I'm thinking even my going-home outfit can just be retrieved the first time someone is available. I figure there will be much more running in-between hospital and house this time, with AJ to attend to, and no interstate on the paththankGod.

What makes me excited about this packing list is that I probably need to run by our favorite store to get some of these things. (See. Spot.) And AJ requested that his Daddy pick him up from school today, so Hooray! You'll know where to find me at 5:00 p.m.

Happy Friday.

iPod, and adding Injury to Insult

This morning I heard two songs on the radio that I want to download immediately:

Goo Goo Dolls: Better Days (2005)

and

Brandon Heath: I'm Not Who I Was (2007)

I'm also psyched about a few of the songs from this album, by my real-life friend from college. Go listen! Buy! He is very, very talented.

I've been compiling a list of other songs I want, and I'm excited to have a big gift card for iTunes from Christmas. New music is something I haven't wanted in a long time. I think because I so rarely get to listen to my iPod anyway -- or if I do, it's with AJ in the car, and he requests the same songs every time. Good songs! But the same ones. "Particle Man," "No! No! No!," and the Spiderman theme song as sung by the Ramones (I think). :)

All these songs I want are really calm, acoustic-y ones, which complements my theme for early 2008 -- trying to relax myself and chill out before the impending Unrelaxed State due Feb 24th. I hope one of these becomes a real favorite. During AJ's birth, I had a very sweet song stuck in my head (Amy Grant's "My Jesus, I Love Thee"), and I really hope that happens again for this Baby's entrance to the world. I might have to employ the iPod, actually, to make it happen. We'll see.

- - - - - ...and now back to our regularly scheduled complaining... - - - - -

Okay, this third trimester stuff is really just NOT a whole lot of fun, can I tell you? In the past week I've had a couple of very painful nights of crampy bullsh*t, where my lower abdomen just feels like it's on FIRE. They're not regular-interval cramps like contractions, just one loooong contraction I guess. On top of that, the pelvic pain and hip pain is beginning to really hurt during the night. I mean, I do sit most of the day, and commute; there is a lot of weight helping gravity's natural tendency there. And the launch-pad's creaky beams are making room and making ready, so okay, I can deal. I know it's all normal -- the doctor told me so -- and I'm not a first-timer. I'm trying not to get all het up about "normal."

I'm also getting BIGGER as we speak, and last week I had to go buy, 5 weeks before I'm due mind you, 3 pairs of pants in size large because my mediums are just not working anymore. Fine, whatever, I'm Large and in Charge. But on top of the pain already emanating from down there, Monday I wear some of the new pants without washing them first (desperate times), and the seam is so rough on the insides of my (dry, can't-reach-'em-with-lotion) thighs that now I also have to deal with flaming, bumpetty skin.

Gah. It is no wonder pregnant women waddle. (Warm baths every night have been very helpful for the contrax, by the way, although I can't lay down in the bath. I just sit there and pour big cupfuls of water over my shoulders for about 30 minutes. Quite nice. Send more bubble bath.)

What does a girl have to do to get a doc to write "Bed Rest" on a little white slip of paper? Because I'm thinking that would make it allllll better.

This is more like it

Not Snow Much

Well, metro Atlanta survived our fifteen flakes of snow with nary a frostbitten pinky toe, as usual making mountains out of molehills. Me included. I guess we just can't help getting excited to see the white stuff we hear so much about falling out of the actual sky. AJ and I were coming out of the grocery store when it started, and his first-time enthusiasm coupled with my nostalgia made for tongues hanging out to catch it, and positively joyful laughter as we soaked up the wintery-ness of it all. It was so fun to watch him. I may have accidentally mentioned that if it snowed a lot we wouldn't have school. And in my defense, they were predicting a lot of frozen rain and low overnite temps, which might have wrecked the streets and power lines... but it didn't. It all ended with some very uninteresting rain, making things just wet and annoying instead of "fairytale wonderland." Oh well.

Luckily, AJ went off to school this morning without any protesting, which has become pretty rare until this week. I think we're over yet another little tantrum hurdle -- when do these stop, exactly? Sigh. He's doing great in his new classroom, though, bringing home artwork where he has lined up elephant pictures from biggest to smallest, or drawn lines in diagonals across the page from SOCK to SHOE and HAT to HEAD and other things that match. I just love watching him learn.

I went to the OB yesterday and have finally gone all the way through their rotation, so I saw a doc I'd seen before, and decided I really like him. He's got a gentle bedside manner but tells it like it is, and I appreciate both of those things very much. Here's hoping he is on call the day I deliver. We've also got the nursery coming together (slowly but surely) and I washed a big load of itsy bitsy clothes -- none of which really needed washing. My friend who donated girl things to me obviously washed them before she gave them to me -- they even smelled like detergent -- and I had washed my own stuff before binning it three years ago.... but still. [Aside -- I am surprised at how many of AJ's onesies and little sleep gowns I am getting to reuse. He seems so BOY now, I forgot that sometimes 'baby' is just 'baby,' no matter what flavor you get. We had a ton of yellows, oranges, and greens and I'm so excited to cuddle and squeeze see them again. Hee.] You feel like you WANT TO do those Dreft loads. It's a ritual or something, a true PART OF getting ready for a baby. Next up is the casserole-freezing, I guess. And muffins. (Inspiring!)

High Class Trash

I am strangely addicted to yet another BravoTV hit, The Real Housewives of Orange County. Show of hands: Anyone? It's a love-hate thing for me -- these women are portrayed as whiny, bitchy, have-it-alls -- and I do mean ALL, we're talking millions of gadollars here. Exactly the type of person that makes me gag.... yet I can't. stop. watching. (Not meaning to judge, of course, because I certainly have everything I could ever want or need and *I* certainly whine and bitch, but you know what I mean.)

Last night rewarded my enduring XBox Live and hockey all week (love you Honey, and there's nothing else on anyway) with TWO episodes. In the first, they were having a Botox Party at a local plastic surgeon's office, complete with sushi, wine, and free consultations. Now I'm no expert on plastic surgeons, but um.... it seems to me if the invitation said they were going to seduce me with fancy wine in a big glass and THEN conduct my free consultation, I would notice that *something is fishy about this.* Sure enough, once the 39-year-old housewife was drunk enough, she thought everything the doctor said was either hysterical or GOSPEL TRUTH. She "wasn't planning to have anything done, but after the doctor told me I needed this lift and that lift..." she jumped right up onto the table for a Botox injection right then and there.

Brilliant of the doctor, I guess. I should give him credit for being a smart businessman and knowing his customers.

The second episode was the 39-year-old's 40th birthday party in which she MOANED and CRIED and RENT HER GARMENTS about turning 40, on her yacht... until her husband presented her with a BIG FAKE "I spent my last few dollars on this" Diamond encrusted -- no, Diamond Covered Rolex. And oh, ho, ho, by "last few" he meant "forty-thousand." The other women, in their confessional scenes where they speak directly to the camera, were all, "It's a rite of passage to receive your first (diamond) Rolex." BWAHH HAHAHAHAHA! God, they are funny. My first Fossil must be the middle-class equivalent. (I love my Fossil.)

After that, she didn't mind being forty so much, though. Go fig. Time to get drunk again, she said, pass the champagne.

It does sort-of bother me that they're calling all these women "housewives" when a) most of them have housecleaners and gardeners and pool-boys, which I'm not sure but I think means they don't fit the traditional definition of the word housewife. And b) two of them aren't even married, they've been divorced for more than 10 years each. ("You keep using dat word... I do not tink it means what you tink-a it means.") In Season One there was a single girl on the show who happened to be dating a very rich Orange County guy whose money she spent hither and yon. Dear Bravo: NOT A HOUSEWIFE.

To think, this used to be the network that showed intelligent, arthouse movies and James Lipton.

And yet... I'm a bit excited that they're doing a New York City spin-off this spring.

Let it snow, and photos

Ooh, they're predicting some sort of cold and precipitation for Wednesday/Thursday! Yay! Maybe we can get a snow-day out of it. You know, big southern city goes all Chicken Little when there's a potential for white stuff coming out of the sky.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

I have been meaning to post a few pictures of the New Year's Eve wedding bash, mostly to show off the world's most adorable three-year-old in a tuxedo:

Practicing our runway walk before the festivities...

Charming the ladies on the dance floor...

Sampling his bartending skills (Sprite, meatballs, pretzels, chocolate-dipped marshmallows, and a strawberry) ... doesn't look like it's much of a hit...hey, I didn't care, it kept him occupied...

and finally...

Causing mom and dad to burst with pride and joy and Happy New Year feelings that will last and last. Awwwwww. Look, all dressed up we're pretty festive!

Things I love

Sunrise. The cool, gradual lift of darkness.


My car. A comfortable ride.


Happy baristas at the drive thru.


The potential of a weekend and a Target gift card in my purse.

Starting to think

I am starting to really think about just HOW this thing is going to work, this BABY thing.

....HOW is it going to work, y'all??

I mean, we had our little routine for getting up and out of the house with one baby:

>get awakened 4:30 or 5am
>warm bottle
>feed bottle, snooze in chair
>place baby back in crib
>go back to bed and snooze a while, if lucky

...and that evolved naturally into "with one kid:"

>wake with alarm, hit snooze
>let kid sleep while we're showering
>wake kid, get him snack or breakfast
>turn on his shows
>get him dressed

We now get it done within about an hour-fifteen (and usually without much screamingKNOCKWOOD). But what exactly happens when you add another baby to that mix? We already wake up at the crack of dawn -- well, I mean, I KNOW that the actual 'crack' of dawn is entirely relative when there's an infant involved -- so am I going to have to wake up and feed the infant at 5:00 am and then just continue on to our regular 5:45 start-time for showers and cereal and shows and scurrying around the dresser and bathroom sink? I guess I will. With no extra time for the snooze button! What am I going to DOOOOO without my SNOOOOOOZE? Sob.

I would say screw the whole thing while I'm on maternity leave, we'll just wake up when we wake up... but we need to keep AJ on his regular schedule as much as we can because GOD KNOWS he is better when he's in his groove. He needs a hat or something that warns: "Does not respond well to change."

Oh wait, I just remembered -- at least during maternity leave I can take my Today Show nap. I mean, if this baby cooperates. It's just crazy that you can't predict! Anything! She may not sleep the same way AJ did! I'm going to have to re-learn everything... with an extra distraction just for a challenge, you know.

Where did I read yesterday... someone's comments section -- a mom said "You're just tired for 16 years. You get used to it."

Every mom is superwoman, I think -- especially those of you with more than TWO! I BOW IN YOUR DIRECTION, YOU AMAZING CREATURES.

The glow of pregnancy

Here's me, showing off my World-Championship Ladies Bowling League gear.

No, wait, that's not it. Those are my "ROCK ON!" eyes and snarl.

No... no... hang on, I'll get it: These are the wrist braces I purchased today from Walgreen's so that my hands will cease feeling like they've been ground to stumps with a hacksaw.

Carpal tunnel, baby. One of the many millions of things they just don't tell you about pregnancy. I never had carpal tunnel before -- even though I've worked mostly at the computer for ten years. AJ gave me a mild case, which never completely disappeared but had become mostly unnoticeable until a few months ago. But that was just some tingling and numbness. Baby #2 is really letting me know how much she needs my good blood flow with PAAAAAIN. So I'm sporting my Hott New Look for winter. In a lovely twist of fate, the weather's gotten warm enough for short sleeves here, for a couple of days, so I can't even hide these monstrosities under a nice sweater. I feel like the biggest dork! All for a good cause, of course, and the braces actually do seem to help. They're a bitch to type with (again, ironic since that's probably why/how I got it in the first place), but the real test will be sleeping with them tonight. That's when the pain level usually shoots up to eleven -- sometimes I'll wake up at night to pee and have to shake and massage my wrists out for ten minutes before they loosen back up.

In other pregnancy griping, my stomach hurts. Just... all the time. I mean, crampy kind of hurting. No, it's not REALLY all the time, just seems like a lot. Don't worry, I have counted. No more than one "contraction" (Braxton-Hicks, obviously) in any given hour. They just seem long. Maybe I'm doing too much. Maybe I need to spend more time on the couch with my friends Haagen and Dazs.

While I was in Walgreen's, I peeked at InStyle magazine's cover story on Katie Holmes. I had no idea she is 30. Here I thought she was a teenage bride but, not really. Just a girl, in love with a boy, OH SIIIIIGHhhhhh, and she loves being a mom. I was disappointed the interviewer didn't ask her one single time if Tom is as wacko as he seems. It was all, like, professional and benefit-of-the-doubt and stuff. Oh well. Katie said "the weather is here, wish you were [as] beautiful [as me]." (Truly, the photos of her were somewhat bizarre and beautiful.)

*********

Have I told you my secret weapon for parenting? J-E-L-L-O. I swear, the days I make it, you'd think I hung the very moon. Today, just hinting that there was Jello in the fridge for dessert meant AJ cleaned up his snack debris, played nicely with the neighbor kids, read stories willingly with his Dad while I got dinner ready, Pleased and Thank You'd all through the meal ("Mama, do you want me to please pass anything to you?"), patiently endured his bath/shampoo, and went to bed when I said "It's bedtime."

Maybe I'm wrong -- maybe it's the new dresser. But I think it's the Jello.

*********

Today I received my customized Starbucks gift card in the mail. Have you heard of this? You can create "art," or simply choose a coffee cup with your "signature" drink spelled out on it, or any number of other mod designs. I can't wait to use it tomorrow. Thanks, Mom!

More bold moves

First it was OUT with the list-making.

Then today, I actually said NO to something, just because I DIDN'T WANT TO DO IT. This all-good-for-me, all the time, attitude is surprising.

The commitment was a request to sub for a cantor at Mass this Saturday. At first, I quickly but reluctantly typed out, "Sure, I can take it, Ralph. Hope you have a very Happy Birthday. Send me the song list if you can." Then I backspace-deleted every letter and typed,

"Sorry, Ralph, I'm afraid I'm already committed for Saturday. Hope someone else can sub for you. Have a very Happy Birthday!"

(Even though guess what? I'm not committed!) DANG, that feels good. I hit "Send" with no regret.

Look at me, I'm all zen and stuff

Believe me, if I had anything to say, I'd be blogging it. People are writing such gosh-dang funny things these first few days of 2008. I'd say it's going to be another banner year for the Mighty Internet. I just hope I'll have something to contribute, too.

This weekend we're going to get a dresser for AJ's room, and once we have that, I feel like many other things will snap into place. I can move his clothes into there, and thus move Baby's clothes out of the corner of MY room, and once AJ's clothes are there, his toys might as well be, too, and I can CLEAN UP FREAKIN' CHRISTMAS which is as of yet, still strewn about the living room floor. (Just his toys, I mean, and the tree. Which we plan to take down tonight.)

(He's already sleeping in his new room, btw. I think he likes it there.)

So really, that one item of business ought to make my entire home come to order in one hot second -- at least that's how I'm choosing to look at it. All hail the dresser.

I have not made any single list in 2008. Not counting my work to-do list, of course. But I'll tell you, not having every item of crap in front of me on a dog-eared piece of paper has greatly helped my mood. I'm just taking things one at a time and trying to be careful of getting overwhelmed. Sometimes I start listing in my head, and have to stop myself. (Dreft... hospital bag... mostly baby-arrival things. But I have time.)

I wonder how long I'll be able to keep this up? More later. It's Friday night, after all!

Just fine, and how was yours?

I suppose the thing to do would be to get out my to-do list, place it neatly on my desk, and start a clean page with "Jan 2 - Jan 4," underlined. Then begin listing out the must-do work-tasks of the day: finish the XYZ sitemap. Start the annual review paperwork. Invoice job #4022. Update project tasks list.

But GAWD, doesn't that all sound depressing?

Instead, I'm still trying to enjoy some of the lingering scent of the holidays that have come and gone. (But not the evergreen centerpiece my mother-in-law sent us; no, no, it was lovely -- beautiful, even -- but I think my pregnancy hormones are misinterpreting pine needles. To me it smells like B.O. every time I walk by it. What a bummer. I usually love evergreen.) The scents I like to remember are the ones of tape and wrapping paper being ripped and balled up, of mashed potatoes that turned out smooth and not-too-salty, of plentiful Honey-Baked Ham leftovers but Taco Bell for lunch on the 27th ANYWAY, and this year, of bridesmaids' hairspray and delicious lemony wedding cake.

Yes, my brother-in-law got married Monday night, New Year's Eve! We had a fancy party to attend for the first time in... ever. It was nice to get all dressed up and go someplace with good food, a dance floor, and an open bar (Sprite for me, WITH LIME, oooooh). In general the "wedding weekend" was a bit of a logistical disaster, but I think that comes with the territory. I managed to keep my good attitude up front EXCEPT:

> a couple of hours before the wedding -- when my DARLING BIL the groom called his mother to "run to the mall" for him real quick, and by the way, if I come over would you make me something to eat?? ...and then...

> during the ceremony, for which AJ had walked BEAUTIFULLY down the aisle holding hands with me and generally making my heart burst with pride and joy, and looking SO ADORABLE in his tuxedo... when he began whining out loud for 15 minutes straight, "Mama I wantta go OUUUUUT. I wantta go OUUUUUT. I need to go POTTTTY. (Which he didn't, but was using as an excuse, to which I replied: Hush, honey, in one minute.) It's been ONE MINUUUUUUTE..... WAAAHhhh..." causing the minister to notch up his volume a bit for the ring ceremony. I finally decided there was nothing to do but take him out and I will always remember it as stomping back down the aisle and then speaking harshly to the little guy outside through embarrassed hot tears, as everyone else watched the bride and groom kiss and be announced as Mr. and Mrs. I hate that I couldn't just laugh and say "HEY, he's THREE," and forgive him on the spot for nothing -- he did nothing wrong, he was just himself, a three-year-old asked to stand in a fancy suit and be still. But I let my pride get the best of me.

Definitely lost my cool there for a moment.

I shouldn't even post that -- I'd rather not remember it, except when AJ himself gets engaged someday and has a three-year-old niece or nephew or cousin that he thinks would be a great nominee for "wedding party member." Heh.

Anyway, we're back, the New Year has begun. I may or may not make any lists today, and my only resolution is to try to make each day better than the last. I think that about covers everything.

Gerunds, and a well-planned Christmas morning

Am doing a bit of sorry-for-myself-feeling, what with the first-to-the-office-being today: Friday, the last day before vacation-beginning. I am the pregnant one! Shouldn't *I* be doing more easy-it-taking than most people? Yes, decidedly. But nooooo, I have project-managing to attend to. Stoopid money-making.

Anyway, last night I was talking with Maryb and she shared with me the very logical, sensible Christmas morning plan that her family has followed through the years. I want to write it down so that someday when my life turns organized and sensible (!), I can consider it.

First, some personal history. It seems our Christmas mornings as teens -- that is, the ones I remember most clearly, which became our usual tradition -- were slightly chaotic. We never liked going to the 4:00pm Christmas Eve Children's Mass at our church because it was standing-room only, and a little bit ridiculous. The youth group always did this crazy thing where, right before the blessing and dismissal, they sent an "elf" or "elves" up the aisle with jingle bells (one year the guy ran screaming and hollering excitedly - and very stupidly) to announce SANTA'S ARRIVAL! And then Santa would process around the church for a few minutes making all the children go wild and... well, it was just too much after a Mass that went over an hour in the first place. Not to mention ruining the solemnity of Christmas Eve, GAH. So we generally preferred singing with my cousins at the 8:30am Mass Christmas morning.

However! That meant waking up at the crack of dawn to get the presents opened (tree first, then stockings) and still have time for showers. Which we wanted to do before Mass, because right AFTER Mass we had all the family over for brunch, most of those years. It wasn't a BAD way to do it, but it wasn't quite cozy and relaxed. (No one's fault, Mom! Don't go feeling bad! Still good memories, I promise -- I mean, Christmas brunch?? That right there is divinely inspired.)

But here's how Maryb's family did it:

Wake up. Open STOCKINGS first. Her Santa *wrapped* all the stocking presents, and that was the way the kids knew which wrapping paper under the tree was "theirs." This way, Santa did not have to give himself away with his handwriting on gift tags! wink wink! Brilliant. Each kid had his own pattern and discovered it on his own. So while they did that, Mom and Dad had coffee, and Mom put cinnamon rolls in the oven. (Mmmm, cinnamon rolls.) Cozy.

After stockings, they took a break for breakfast. And that turned into a break for 8:30 Mass. Again, brilliant, because no one goes to 8:30 Mass on Christmas morning so it's nice and quiet, and really, the anticipation is almost as much fun as the opening of presents. Putting it off for one hour (8:30 Mass is quick since no one's there) didn't hurt anything. Then after that, they'd come home and tackle the presents under the tree. And have the rest of the day to play, or make dinner, or whatever.

Doesn't that seem smart to you? What's your Christmas morning schedule?

Our house hasn't really established one yet. Last year AJ woke up, glanced at the presents, then declared he wanted his Froot Loops. Ha! We waited. I have a feeling this year will be different, but we'll just have to see. I haven't decided about Mass times, and I want to do breakfast. Oh well, whatever way it works out will be perfect. It's the togetherness anyway, not the logistics. Have a merry one, everybody! :)

Round up: Thoughts

> I've simply got to get started on work, but don't have the necessary oomph. As any holiday approaches, my work motivation just starts seeeeeping out the cloth walls of the cube. By Friday I'll have nothing.

> We've finally started receiving Christmas cards, hooray! It's the only time of the year when getting the mail is actually fun. Unless you subscribe to Southern Living like I do, and then once a month you have a fun mailbox. I finally have enough cards to display them on the pantry door. One of AJ's big things lately is wanting to tape his artwork to every available cabinet door in the house, so this is a good project for him. Hey, I bought him a glue stick the other day. HOURS of fun! I just cut out random images from Reader's Digest, and he sticks them to a piece of construction paper! How easy is that?! He made his first masterpiece the other day and was SUPER excited to give it to Daddy "for his office." CUTE!!

> Speaking of artwork and 3 year olds -- are they supposed to be able to hold the pencil/marker/crayon correctly yet? AJ wants to write the alphabet, and sort-of can, but he's holding the writing instrument... mmm, how to describe?... his fist curls over the top of the crayon instead of around the side/back. DH and I debate over whether we should correct that or not. I'm sure he'll get it eventually. I kinda want to make it easier on him. However, he isn't much interested in trying the 'right' way, so I guess I just answered my own question: Leave him alone.

> We seem to have turned the corner on this latest round of tantrumy behavior from him. I tell ya, every time I should remind myself, THIS IS JUST A PHASE! But in the thick of it, you really forget. You start analyzing and doubting and being sad and worried. BOO for that! I suspect it is easier with the second child.

> She, by the way, was kicking/punching me on both sides of my stomach this morning at 3. Like SHE was having little fits. DEAR LORD, already??

> I got the daycare teachers $10 Target gift cards, and the 3 directors $10 Chick Fil A gift cards (because they get out for lunch). Everyone seemed pleased.

That is all.

Poppyseed Bread

Not necessarily festive, but altogether delicious!

(makes 2 loaves)

3 cups all purpose flour
2.5 cups sugar
1.125 cups (that's one and one-eighth cups) vegetable or canola oil
1.5 cups milk
3 eggs
.5 tsp salt
1.5 tsp baking powder ('exsqueeze me? baking powder?' I always think this. Still.)
1.5 tsp vanilla extract
1.5 tsp almond extract
1.5 tsp butter extract
2 tsp poppyseeds

Grease 2 loaf pans. Mix all ingredients together with a spoon, pour into pans, and bake at 350 for one hour.

Glaze:

.25 cup orange juice
.75 cup sugar
.5 tsp vanilla ext.
.5 tsp butter ext.
.5 tsp almond ext.

Bring to a boil and pour over hot bread.

Only thing hard about this recipe is that you may not have butter extract on-hand. But you SHOULD!! I found it at my regular grocery store. And it will seem like there is too much glaze. Not so! It'll soak in and make everything even more LOVELY.

PS - sorry about the decimals. I wanted to do 1/4c for the 1/4c items, but then it was inconsistent and I had to edit that. Decimals seem much less elegant but then again, cooking is the only science I've ever loved, so there ya go.