Happy birthday to me!

A series of possible blog topics have come into my head this week, and then promptly gone right back out, so for now we're stuck with just the random thoughts I can gather on this, my thirty-fourth birthday. Thirty four! One last year of being marketed to, and then I might as well just curl up on the couch and read dusty old library books or something, because things like the funny Budweiser commercials, new electronic gadgets, and great TV shows...? NO LONGER FOR ME. Sob!

I did get a really cool present from my husband-o: A digital piano! What came with it? A STARTLING revelation that I am NO GOOD at piano any more! I have concentrated on singing much too long -- and only one note at a time. All this "two hands, ten fingers together" nonsense is far, far too much to keep up with. I have just realized this is why I seem GOOD at singing, sight-reading, and rhythm when I'm in a chorus. IT'S EASIER, EINSTEIN!!

Rather than clunk around every time I sit down at my new favorite gadget, I have chosen three songs to begin practicing on the piano, until I get them down. I took piano lessons for 10 years, for crying out loud -- it is so embarrassing to only have the capacity to perform "Big Chief Indian" and "Spinning Song." The songs are "Fur Elise," because, as I told DH, every twelve-year-old in town can already play it; and two nice Wesleyan hymns, because hymns are relatively easy -- just your basic 4-part chords and a few progressive notes in-between. (Right? Don't we call those "progressive notes?" Oh, gees, I can't remember ANYTHING.)

The idea, of course, is for AJ and KT to have a piano around to get interested in, so that I can thereby introduce the concept of Piano Lessons without any fuss. Brilliant, no? At first I was thinking, "I can even teach AJ a kind-of 'pre-lessons' before he starts with a real teacher." But... perhaps not. Even if he WERE to listen to me, which he won't, since I'm his PARENT and that automatically knocks down his level of respect for me versus a stranger, I probably shouldn't teach him much more than Middle C. I can't even do scales properly, people. Whew. It's been a tough birthday for more reasons than getting OLD.

Speaking of respecting his parents... Sigh. We're having Dinner Table Issues, again. It seems we just get this situation licked, then whammo, he comes up with something new. I won't go into the gory details, but if you're interested in sharing your Dinnertime Rules for Happiness, Toddler/Preschooler Edition, go ahead. Last night Husband and I had to DISCUSS what our new plan of attack is going to be, because what we've been doing is simply not working. That new plan is detailed below:

1. No more snack after school. (We get home around 5:15; dinner's no later than 6:30.) He can have a yummy drink, but no food. My giving him snacks is totally sabotaging dinner. I admit: I've been a dumbass about this repeatedly.

2. He'll get Three Chances to behave at the table. After that, dinner will be over. He may go play (but not watch TV).

3. A small dessert will be placed on the table at the beginning of the meal and he can eat it at the end of his meal. He should eat as much dinner as he wants but we will not specify how much. If he thinks he's eaten enough, he may eat dessert and then get down. (We will not say, "You can't have dessert if you don't eat your dinner." We will not say, "Eat three more bites and then you may get down.")

THE END.

I think those are simple enough rules for a nearly 4-year-old, do you?

Memory days, and gifts

We went to visit DH's grandmother for Memorial Day weekend, and I was sitting on the back porch in gorgeous 75-degree sunshine on Sunday afternoon, holding KT baby for a few minutes of peace and quiet. Enjoying her cooing – she’s really picked up the back and forth of conversation, and loves to answer me when I go, “Ooo,” or “Mmm,” – and staring into her pretty little blue eyes, I just kept telling myself, “Remember this. Remember it.” Because I know that I sat staring at AJ and cooing with him in the same way, 3 and a half years ago, I know it… but it’s hard to recall the exact moment. The way the sky looked. What outfit he was wearing.

I can remember ONE time, and I’d better write it down now before it slips away again: it was the day before I went back to work. I have pictures of it, even, so I DO know what he was wearing – a little green onesie. We sat on OUR back porch that time, and it was fall, and I guess we talked and laughed and blew raspberries in the same way, but that part’s fuzzy.

Anyway, KT and I sat there “bbbb”ing at each other in rhythm, one after the other, and she had on the adorable orange gingham outfit from Aunt Jane that says “Love” on the knee. My legs were propped up on the chair in front of me, and she lay on my legs. I’d alternate between pulling her up to sitting, and letting her rest on her back. We stayed out there for about 20 minutes. I kissed her soft cheeks every other minute. She is so smiley.

Remember this.

---------

I had a nice morning today. Well, nice, and a little funny/frustrating. I’d intended to work from home. Got everyone dressed and out the door, got the first load of laundry in and my coffee poured. Opened Firefox…. Nothing. No Internet. I should have known, since Comcast cable was out this morning, too. Bother. I decided I’d better call to see what the deal was, and Comcast’s automated lady told me there was an outage in my neighborhood but technicians were working on it.

So I decided I’d go for a walk. Actually I wanted to do an aerobic workout On Demand but, whoops! No On Demand without cable! So, a walk it shall be. I had planned to do this anyway today. Got my shoes on and out the door… without my key. THAT made me say “Frak!” Luckily my neighbor has a key and I did have my cell phone with me, so I called him. Took my 20-minute walk. UP and DOWN the big hills in my neighborhood – my heart got pumping! Felt great. AND it was my favorite kind of morning – really cool, damp even, and cloudy. I call those kind “Walden mornings,” because the week when I first read Walden, the weather was like that and I loved to read it out on my balcony. And it seems to me the weather at Walden Pond must have been like that a lot, too.

Anyway, that’s all. I finished my walk, got my spare key from the neighbor, went in and got dressed. Oh, during the walk I found the 4 Comcast trucks in the neighborhood. “You guys have an ETA or should I go into the office today?” “Ummm…. I’d go in to the office.” “Okay, thanks.” Heh. Traffic wasn’t too bad since I didn’t leave until 9:00.

It was just… nice. A little gift.

Smell me

One thing that a long commute is good for, is radio listening. If you are not getting enough friendly DJ banter in your life, go out and find yourself a job located 35 miles from your home. You can thank me later for that tip.

Radio can also be good for blog fodder, like today on my radio station of choice, they were doing an interview with the woman who wrote this brand new book about perfume. What fun! This is a topic I've enjoyed once before, in fact; I wonder if it's an Obsession? Hardee har har har!

I don't buy a lot of perfume but I have had scents that were my hard and fast favorites at a particular moment in time, and everyone knows about the olfactory-memory connection. This morning they were talking about the scents of the '80s, which were much stronger than most other decades. I can think of several -- Lauren, by Ralph Lauren, Beautiful by Estee Lauder, Chanel No. 5 of course, Fendi, Elizabeth Taylor's Passion, and one of my personal favorites, Liz Claiborne in the triangle bottle. The boys wore Polo or Drakkar Noir.

Remembering Liz Claiborne made me remember high school, naturally, where my best friend and I and our circle of cheerleaders wore this bold combo: Aussie hairspray (grape!) + Liz perfume, plus a little Liz purse slung over our shoulders. (It had no scent but carried an AURA!)

Someone called in to mention Gingham, by Bath & Body Works. Yes! I wore that! And everyone had to try Exclamation when it came out. The one I really adored, but only bought once and have never found again, was called "Etages," and I think Limited Express made it. You know, the bastion of parfumerie excellence that they are.

Today I forgot to wear perfume. Yesterday I was wearing Island by Michael Kors, from a tiny sample I am saving. I'm having fun playing on this website. Too bad my brand-new computer doesn't come with scratch-n-sniff, though.

Day in the life

Thursday, May 22, 2008

(I've been wanting to do one of these, to remember how our days go right now, with a 3 yr old and a 3 month old. Someday I'M SURE I will want to re-live it. Ha!)

5:50 am -- Wake-up time. Someone needs to get in the shower, I guess it will be me first. :) Try not to wake up AJ as I crawl out of bed over him.

6:07 am -- DH enters bathroom. His turn. I put on robe, go wake up AJ. He's compliant this morning, thank goodness. Wants to go downstairs and get his breakfast.

6:10 am -- Stand in front of (mostly empty) pantry. I have intended to go grocery shopping all week but haven't yet. Offer AJ a waffle (Eggo, obv.), Frosted Flakes, or Cinnamon Toast Crunch because we're out of his 2 favorites, Oatmeal and Pop-Tarts. He pouts. Doesn't want any of that. Try to cajole him, to no avail. Fine. I go back upstairs to check on KT baby and put on jeans and a blue shirt.

6:20 am -- Change KT's diaper. She always wakes up so agreeable. Stretches and yawns while I'm changing her. Then I hear AJ calling me, saying "Mama, I waaaaaaant breakfast." SIGH. Go back downstairs, with KT and her warmed-up bottle. Get waffle into the toaster (one-handed) and scowl at Mister Whiney Pants. Get him V8 Fusion juice from the fridge. He gripes about that, too. I ignore. He has no choice in the matter, he'll drink it and LIKE IT.

6:33 am -- KT swallows the last of her bottle. She is FAST when she's hungry.

6:40 am -- Head upstairs to change her clothes and finish getting myself dressed/dry hair/put on makeup. DH says, "Don't you need to get dressed? I thought you weren't going into the office today." But I am. So I hand baby to him and he gets her dressed while I finish up at the mirror. He chooses a lavender Winnie-the-Pooh outfit and coos at her while he changes her. So cute.

6:50 am -- I start rushing around. Not pleased with my own outfit, I put on a skirt instead. Better. Get a bracelet. Get clothes to take downstairs for AJ, since that's where he gets dressed lately (in front of TV).

6:55 am -- Rush around the kitchen. We need to be ready to leave in five minutes (7:00 am). Get KT's bottles, already labeled by helpful DH, into her bag. Throw leftovers into a grocery sack for my lunch. Thanking the gods that I remembered to set my coffeepot last night, I pour a cup for the road. 3 Splendas + fat-free Half-n-half. Perfect. Grab a granola bar, too.

7:02 am -- Okay. AJ's dressed, he wants his Nemo vitamins. Gets mad when I don't lift him up so he can reach them. Man, is he grumpy! DH comments that I'm funny when I'm rushing around. Ha, ha. (Luckily I'm in a good enough mood that it doesn't bother me.) I realize I won't get to see KT all day, again, and want to hug her. CLASSIC MOM MOMENT: already late, dressed, pick up baby and what does she do? Spits up on my shirt, of course! I wave my fist and tease her about her sneakiness, and run back upstairs to change.

7:11 am -- Finally in the car and on the road. It was DH's turn to take the kids to daycare. HOOray. Listen to five minutes of NPR but decide it'd be better for my still-frantic morning mood to turn on the iPod. Choose U2.

8:04 am -- Traffic is getting worse near my office bldg, which was built nearly 2 years ago in what was then a pretty remote area. Now there are strip malls galore and more office spaces, too. Crawl along at 4 mph for about 2 miles. Still listening to U2. "Elevation" got me pumped up earlier, and "Peace on Earth" reminded me to be grateful.

8:15 am -- Begin workday. Voice Mail from a client who wants a live chat service. Start Googling. :)

8:45 am -- phone call on my cell -- it's Mom & Dad from Vienna! They're having fun, but Mom sounds tired. I know she is ready to come home. They've been gone nearly 2 weeks already. But I'm looking forward to the pictures when we see them next, and jealous 'cause they're going to a Mozart concert tonight. In VIENNA. Pretty cool.

... work continues... I check both Facebook and the daycare webcam 2 or 3 times today, which is unusual. I typically forget or don't have time. Start this blog post. I wish I had time to check Google Reader but I resist... 'til later... :)

11:30 am -- Realize it's lunchtime. Will I walk or eat? ... Eat. I'm hungry. Enjoy tetrazini, steamed broccoli, and Diet Coke. Still think I might walk 30 minutes after my food digests.

12:40 pm -- I manage to walk 15 minutes. Almost 1 mile. LOOK LIKE A DORK in my skirt and tennies, and worry the entire time if someone I know is going to drive by and see me. (Vain, much??) But BOO-YAH for getting out there anyway to get the heart pumping. Think maybe I can fit in another 15 minutes after work today. (Then wonder if I can, REALLY, when I said that yesterday, too, and didn't manage it...)

1:43 pm -- Answer some email. Hear this tragic news and feel very, very sad for the Chapman family.

... work continues...

3:00 pm -- Ruin the good I did walking by taking a trip to the vending machines. Although I did resist chocolate and had Welch's Fruit Snacks instead. I could feel my blood sugar dropping and just NEEDED something. I don't know why kids, or specifically my kid, thinks Fruit Snacks are the bee's knees. After about the third one, it's just a big bag of pectin and disappointment. Not like brownies, which continue to deliver all the way to the end of the pan...

3:47 pm -- Start wishing for 4:00 already, so I can leave. This day has been unusually longer and more boring than most, since my return to work. Maybe because it's a holiday weekend and people have already left town? Or maybe because I'm detailing it so faithfully?

3:48 pm -- Look at workitmom.com and Google Reader some more.

4:00 pm -- Quietly leave the office and start the long drive home. Or, more specifically, to the daycare. On the drive I make a few phone calls, confirming lunch plans with a friend, making KT her 4-month well-baby appointment for June, and trying to catch up with my sis before she goes to Copenhagen this evening, for a week.

5:00 pm -- Pick up kids! Best time of the day. :) I am stressed, however, about dinner because there's really not much to eat at the house, AJ needs a haircut, and it's bath night. Lots to do tonight. I decide we can have pizza at SteviB's, which is right next door to Great Clips, and DH can meet us there. Call DH.

6:00 pm -- We opt for Mexican instead, next door to a different Great Clips. Either way. I have a spinach quesedilla, yum. AJ behaves but doesn't eat, KT mostly sleeps through dinner, we get AJ's hair cut (and he goes ALL BY HIMSELF to the chair, which is a first, and talks to the stylist with such charm and confidence that I'm beside myself), then it's time to head home. ACK! I realize the poor dog got forgotten and is probably crossing his legs and starving. But I still have to fill up my car which is on Empty. SIXTY DOLLARS LATER we're on our way.

7:00 pm -- Bath time for bozos. (Hubs always says this to the kids -- "Bedtime for Bozos! Who's a Bozo?" I don't know where it came from.) AJ of course wants to help bathe KT baby, and he does. Then he gets in his bath and enacts wild, drawn-out Ninja Turtles scenes, telling us what's going to happen in detail before doing it. By the way, he looks SO CUTE with his hair cut short. :)

8:00 pm -- Daddy reads stories to AJ (A Ladybug magazine and then some book called "Barnaby the Baby Bear" which we all think is dumb but AJ picked it anyway) -- he manages to stay awake even though he's dead tired and says his blood sugar is low. (Mexican food!) Meanwhile, I pick up a few stray dirty clothes items and put away the bath stuff. Then it's bedtime. We put AJ down (KT's already in her crib for tonight, but this is unusual) and 5 minutes later, he's back in our room. We surprise him by being there -- typically he just sneaks into our covers and stays there 'til we come upstairs. I convince him to go back to his room by putting his pillow at the foot of his bed instead of the head. He thinks this is funny, and makes his room "good," where before it was "not good." ?! Who knows.

9:00 pm -- I'm a little fuzzy on the rest of the evening (it's the next day as I type this, obviously), but I think we watched Season4 Episode4 of Battlestar Galactica. We are FINALLY caught up with this show, and we can't believe it! We had more than 10 episodes DVR'd from Seasons 2 and 3, for the longest time. It's a super-good show, I hope you're watching it.

10:00 pm -- I decide to go to bed. Had already been dozing anyway. Grab the cooler and 2 bottles and place them quietly in baby's room. She's still out like a light. Wash face (Mary Kay bar facial soap) and brush teeth (Colgate Total). Turn on "Ace of Cakes" to fall asleep to. Duff needs to stay shaved, he looks like a Tool with his beard. That's the last thing I remember. KT sleeps until 4:15 am, which is awesome.

Health kick post

I'm trying, I really am. I mean, insofar as that includes eating a good bit of chocolate every day (HELLO STARBUCKS CHOCOLATE, NICETOMEETYOUmmMMRMFFF!), and not really counting calories or points or what-have-you. I AM trying to make better decisions -- like having a salad instead of 10 wings -- and having vinagrette with that salad instead of RANCH, duh. Those were the bad habits that I reintroduced during my pregnancy just because I could. But my overall energy level about this whole health-kick, lose-weight thing (...and can I just say: it's LOSE weight (v.), not "LOOSE" weight! ...People! Grammar! Sorry...) my energy level is just not quite there. I want to lose weight and get fit but I don't have the desire to log in to Fitday all the damn time.

Today I knew I would arrive to my Tuesday meeting site at least 15 minutes early, so I tossed my shoes and socks in the car. I HATE all the "Sneak Exercise In Wherever You Can" tips. Walk up the Stairs! Park far Away! Do butt-crunches while you shower! And yet... that seems to be the only way I'm going to get any exercise in, ever, until my kids are grown up and moved away. Time is just not on my side about this. And yes, I suppose I could wake up an hour earlier. I've considered torturing myself that way ONE day a week -- I don't think that would officially kill me, although trying to do that EVERY day most definitely would.

So. Yesterday I did one 10-minute all-over-body-sculpt via the ON DEMAND menu from Comcast during KT's first nap of the day, and then a 12-minute one later in the day. Last Friday I did step aerobics (10 minutes) on my living room staircase while trying to "rock" KT to sleep. Then the two kids and I took a 20 minute walk later. And today, I took my little morning walk (20 minutes) around the midtown Target where we meet. I was wearing my khakis, my pearls, and my running shoes. GAH!! Hate! I am that girl! Work clothes with athletic shoes! (At least I wasn't wearing a skirt and hose, but oh man, was I ugly in that outfit.)

I'm trying to go at this EASY, because I know, I know, I just had a baby 3 short months ago and I should cut myself some slack about losing weight. I have lost only 1 pound since starting to consider weight-loss about 3 weeks ago. Mostly I just want to claim to be a smart person. And smart people know that you HAVE to exercise. Period. And you can't eat potato chips and brownies all the livelong day.

I wonder if I do this kind of slackery health kick for a while and really try to DO some exercise regularly, will I ACTUALLY WANT to start counting cals again? Sigh. I probably will. Let's hope.

Sigh, again.

Deprived

I keep doing this: Saving the "cute" outfits of KT's for daycare days, and opting when she's home with me for the plain onesie. I deny myself, as if she has to get "dressed" for "work" like I do -- because I save my "good" t-shirts for office days, too. Heh.

First quarter

Little KT Baby,

Or should I say, “Big KT Baby,” because you are a big girl even in your infanthood! Twelve pounds already on your 3-month birthday, and growing still, despite the fact that you seem to eat so little. Two ounces here, 3 ounces there... you have your own way of doing things, Little Miss, not letting your parents fuss over you to any extent and knowing what you want and don't want already.

Can it really be three months already? I find it so hard to believe. The pictures are telling, though – where before you were a squirmy little thing, light practically shining through your willowy fingertips, now you’re sturdy and confident, holding your head up just like a big kid.: You are a high achiever, sweetie-girl. You're meeting every milestone right on time, and we're somehow more aware of them all this time than the last. First it was following objects with your eyes, then oodles of smiling, now cooing and talking, wanting to grab and hold things, and standing right up on our laps. It's so fun to watch you take shape and Become! We're determined not to miss a moment.

With each day, whether I’m with you at home or entrusting you to our good friends at school, it sinks in a little more that I’m really, truly, a Mommy now – a Mommy of two. It’s a title I’ve wanted since I, myself, was a child, and I couldn’t be happier to share the privilege of Mommyhood with you and your brother.

And, oh, the two of you together. He wants to know you, KT, and he loves you already. He wants to help raise you, even – he’s always “helping” me, and “very strong.” I know because he tells me. ;) And I can tell he’s becoming more interested as you change into someone he can relate to. He can’t go a day without “getting his smiles” from you; if he doesn’t, he tells me he’s sad. I am eager for the day you and he will interact as friends, on the one hand -- the happiness that will afford me is exciting. On the other hand, I just want you to stay little and cuddly and so, so smiley for as long as possible. Your dad and I can say with confidence that you are a happy baby. An easy baby. We say all the time, yesterday and today, that you are a precious baby. A treasure.


Three months!

Love,
Mommy

One day this, next day that

Two weeks ago all we could DO outside was play golf with these little plastic clubs that we got when AJ was about 1 year old. This week it's playing "Bad Guys," and, "Ninja Turtles with Bad Guys," using weapons of all sorts made from the various branches that have fallen into our yard. We fight Shredder and "Goliath" and "Vampiro."

Two weeks ago we were watching KT just begin to smile at us when we'd appear in front of her. This week she wants to stand on her feet a little bit, and gets excited about using those muscles. AND she's starting to want to grab at things dangled in front of her.

It all goes so darn fast.

So fast, I can't seem to keep up with blogging, or anything else, either. My days start with an alarm and a wish for just fifteen more minutes, and once I get to work it's all business, whip this stuff out, until time to go (OH, right now it's time to go!) and then we get home and dinner-bath-another bath-TV and bed. Last night I was so useless to my husband that he took the dog out, folded laundry, made bottles, probably waxed the cars, and massaged my foot that's hurting, which I don't even remember because I had begun my nightly snooze -- no, my nightly semi-conscious-state -- to the tune of Dirty Jobs on Discovery. And, man, do I love that show. Such a bummer that I always miss half of it. (not to mention the massage)

I realized this morning I haven't played hardly any music for KT -- no lullabyes or the 8 CDs of baby music I have stocked in her room. I guess because she doesn't need it -- she's so agreeable she goes to sleep and I don't have to lull her. But now I feel like she's "behind" on her music. Or, I am behind in teaching her -- see, baby? Music! Is nice! And comforting! Oh well.

I'm sure we'll look back fondly on this time of our lives one day. Right now we're just motoring.

Product Reviews: Bottle Warmer & Heart Warmer

Was I a complete moron as a first-time mom? YES. Yes I WAS. I did not think about the potential benefits of this bottle warmer. Thank God I got smarter between then and now. UM, HELLO? Do YOU own a 2-story home? Do YOU keep a microwave -- or even better, a stove and a pan of hot water -- on the same floor as your bedrooms? No, neither do I. And this bottle warmer has SAVED my aching KNEES, my almost-34-year-old KNEES, for the love of God, from having to stumble downstairs at 2:00 am carrying a hungry baby. So, Five Stars, Bottle Warmer. You are AWESOME.

------

You need this Mulberry Whoosh. Seriously. Got kids, around 4 years old? You need this. It is so fun -- a book with a CD, which, in our house, makes it automatically the BEST BOOK EVER -- and is a darling updated take on "Here We Go 'Round the Mulberry Bush." I never could remember the words to the original song anyway. Was it a "cold and frosty morning?" or "so early in the morning?" No matter -- now I have plenty of silly verses to get stuck in my head.

The narrators/singers on the CD use all these wacky, nasaly or strangely-pitched voices, which at first made me wrinkle my nose, but once again: AM I A MORON? Kids eat thar stuff up. Funny voices? COOOOOL. AJ laughs and sings along and mimics said voices from start to finish. Besides that, the illustrations are bomb-diggity -- a real work of art. AJ loves this book. And so do I. And I wanted to share.

For Mother's Day

I really liked Arwen's thoughts about motherhood and about sharing the burdens and joys of it, instead of throwing them at each other in a useless competition for Best Parenting. For me, this part hit home:

"I'm guilty of it too, absolutely. It is true that I feel confident in my relationship with my daughter, but I am not without my moments of self-doubt. More than one time I have looked at another mother and felt relieved that she was not measuring up in some way, because it took the (self-inflicted) pressure off me."

Oh, Yes. Amen, sister. There's one particular mom at our daycare, Amy, who works for a large red soda company based here in Atlanta, and whose son is in AJ's class. She's never been anything but nice to me and yet, I have this mental block about her. Like maybe she's doing things better than I am. Or maybe she makes more money than I do and therefore fancies herself better than me. I know from AJ's teachers that her kid often gets in trouble and sometimes it secretly relieves me. I don't know where these thoughts come from, but I'm taking Arwen's wise advice and putting a stop to them today. I know in my heart that she has the same struggles as I do. The same hurt when she can't pick her boy up as early as she'd like to. The same sadness when he's sick or badly behaved. The same tired wish for him to LISTEN to her, and for him to grow up happy. Anyway, Amy, wherever you are today (probably on the connector right now, wishing traffic weren't such a PITA), I'm thinking of you in SOLIDARITY and FRIENDSHIP. :)

And for my own mother, who's headed off to visit Croatia (!!! brave woman, goodhearted wife !!!) this weekend, I wish a very happy Mother's Day. Because you, as I've always said, have given me such a gift in yourself. I'm blessed and lucky that you chose to be my Mom. :) ...Also because your Hallmark cards may not arrive before you leave the country. From one mom to another, I'm sure you understand.

Contents

I think my last post was lame.

This one, The Continuation, might not promise to be much better, but hey, I'm a slave to the subject matter that the Internet demands at this moment. ;)

So, inside the Diaper Bag, a visual:


clockwise from left:
- $10 bill because I'm too lazy to put it IN the wallet
- wallet, OLD
- gift card to Ann Taylor LOFT (thanks, Mom!)
- program from AJ's Spring Program (can't decide whether to file it under "Heartstrings" or "Excess Crap")
- aforementioned burp cloths, onesies, formula, diapers, wipes, & changing pad
- oh! a hanger! leftover from this weekend's baptism of KT, which I have to tell you about -- the "custom" at our church (evidently) is NOT to dress the baby in the White Garment until After the water part of the rite (yes...! interesting... and weird!)
- yellow toy cell phone, or so I thought, until AJ informed me indignantly that IT'S A CALCULATOR. From a Wendy's Kids' Meal (mom of year award!)
- Welcome envelope of coupons from my new hair salon
- raisins in mini boxes. For emergencies
- gum in 2 flavors
- missing from photo: Fave lip gloss. Where is it? Not sure. Also, bottle of water, which I realized right after taking the photo but had already put everything else back in, and, not going to re-create at 10:00 pm.

My other bag is smaller, pinker, and perfect when I go to work. I just transfer the wallet and a few other important Ida., and can JET!



- Target gift cards. Still have 2 to spend, around $30 each! Wooohoo!
- purse itself. A Tommy Hilfiger I got at Marshall's for cheap.
- nail file, nice and dusty (eww)
- Palm Zire. I loved this when I first got it but it doesn't hold a charge for crap. It's an electronic address book since that's the only feature I really use. Bummer.
- iPod nano in handy carrying pouch. MWAH!
- more raisins. (I don't love 'em that much, but they are served so rarely at our house that they're a great diversion when AJ is Extrememly Pissy-slash-Hungry.)
- pen, lipsticks, and more gum. I am a bit obsessed with gum lately.

So. Fun for you? Fun for me. Oh, I forgot my cell phone because I often keep it in my back pocket like a teenager. I also chose not to photograph all the gum wrappers, used grocery lists (several), and various other detritus that just gets lost in the big bag. It's a shame when a pretty bag becomes a Receptacle. Pennies and expired coupons are the BANE.

In the bag

I win I win I win! Surely you heard that I won one of Swistle's fabulous contests. :) I am so excited for her new writing gig. And happy about my PRIZE from this artist!

I can't even begin to tell you how much I love purses. When I go to Target, it's all I can do to avoid that purse area, which is always RIGHT UP FRONT in every different Target I frequentwhyIS THAT? The lovely bags at Target are usually $24 or less, which is good for me, but I still don't buy as many of them as I would like.

...Unrelated Aside: Oh, dear, my baby swing is dead of "C" batteries this morning. I do not have four Cs in the house, not even if I strip them from AJ's other toys, and ACK, I am working from home today. Can't be done without a baby swing! A trip to Target, therefore, will be made here SHORTLY.

Anyway, I thought, in light of my new bag, it'd be fun to show you my old bags, and what's in them (a good ol' fashioned Internet trick).

My Diaper bag:


... is not very fancy. It's one of your general choices at Babies R Us and it's really a prettier chocolate brown than this photo indicates. But I like it a lot. I wish two things: that it had TWO side pockets for bottles, and that the buttons on the front were sewed more tightly on (one of mine has already come off). BUT! It's pretty much just what I wanted. PINK trim helps. :) Inside, for baby:
- a nice changing pad (came with bag)
- diapers (although I discovered we were down to ZERO on Saturday when KT was in her white, heirloom christening gown and I thought she'd pooped... thankfully she hadn't)
- wipes
- an empty bottle
- a thing of formula powder
- a bottled water
- 2 onesies, a burp cloth, and a light blanket

...for me:
- Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush lip gloss (LOVE!)
- some other lipsticks in case of emergency
- my iPod nano, when I remember to charge it
- cell phone
- gift cards and coupons for diapers

...aaaaaaand KT's woken up from my second attempt at a morning nap. This will have To be continued when I get back with batteries. Up next, we'll view INSIDE the purse(s). WOooooooo! Cliffhanger!

Useless information

Once again, I dreamed that I was friends with Amy. That just by virtue of my reading her, she knew me and we were friends. In this dream (as opposed to another one I had -- multiple dreams, is what I'm saying!), some gamer-boy had referred to her on his blog or a message board, with a negative comment about "mommy bloggers." He'd even spelled her name wrong (Am-lah). I laughed knowingly with her as if to say, "Silly gamr dude, with his misspelling! But any PR is good PR in this crazy blogging business, right? Wink, wink, AmyMYBESTFRIEND." As if *I* am in the blogging business. And as if she needs more PR. HAaaaaa. Love Amy. Anyone else dream about your fellow bloggers?

* * * * * * * * *

Something I think about alot of the time is my German heritage. Although we do more cultural celebration of my Mom's side of the family (Cajun), my maiden name (one of those below) and my Dad's heritage is decidedly German. In fact, the little town I grew up in, in Texas, had a large collection of German-descended folks. I realized last night that it was concentrated mostly within our Catholic church, and that having the perspective of a child when I lived there is why it has seemed to me for years that "everyone" was German -- really it was just our general circle. The town had plenty of Scottish, English, Hispanic of course, and even French-sounding names. Anyway, the German thing is endlessly fascinating to me and I often find myself listing out all the names I can remember from from my elementary (parish) school or our family's acquaintances:

Albrecht
Berend
Geiger
Gerber
Herr
Kriegshauser
Lindeman
Lueb
Lowerwald
Reinart
Reinauer
Schilling
Schrandt
Schroeder
Schumacher
Wagner
Walterscheid
Wilhelm
Zinzer

I don't know why this interests me, but it does. My school served sausage and sauerkraut at its spring carnival, by the way.

* * * * * * * * *

Did I take a leave of absence from work because I had a baby or something? It is strange to me that, coming back, it really feels like I didn't much leave. Now, I advised this and I generally think it's a good thing, but lately it has seemed like I never was pregnant and that hospital thing was just a blip on the screen. I turn around and check behind me like, "Did that really happen?" I don't know -- the last time I returned from maternity leave it just felt a whole lot more monumental. This time it's just life, continued. Strange. Maybe KT is getting short shrift. Maybe TIME FLIES.

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)