Wassup?

Well good golly Batman! I seem to be forgetting everything. I mean everything. I know the whole pregnancy brain thing can hit pretty hard but, really? Today alone, I got up at least three times to get another cup of water and forgot what I needed the moment I turned the corner of my cubicle. Ah well, at least I’m getting some exercise, right?

But yes, other than the attention span of a gnat, I’m doing pretty good. The nausea seems to have given me some kind of a break for a little while. And my tummy is now getting to the point where I really can’t fit into my clothes. I think I may have to ask Aaron to go to the attic and get my bin of preggy clothes.

I’m also in a pretty great mood because the girls were over this weekend. We didn’t do a whole lot, mostly hanging out and relaxing. It was lovely. We also got to catch up on things; some great, some kinda sad and some things that left me scratching my head. We also got to run through a few great movies before calling it a night. You know you’re in good company when you can just recite movies and not have to really watch the thing. :) I just wish the weekend were longer.

Hungry?

The signs so far are pointing to this little one being a boy. I say this because so far, this is pretty completely different form the first time around.

For example, the last time I only battled “morning” sickness for about three-ish weeks in the beginning of the second trimester. This time around, I have been REALLY nauseated from about week six or so. I have been feeling moody as hell and all I want to do is sleep. Last time around, I wondered what I had heard all the other women complaining about. I felt perfectly happy and had enough energy to do just about anything. 

Then there’s the hunger/complete lack of hunger. On any given day, I go from feeling fine and not peckish in the slightest, to I am about to eat your face if you don’t hand over that cookie, NOW! It’s kind of scary, actually. I have to keep my purse stocked with extra food, just in case. Then of course, once I eat about three bites of something, I feel full to the point to discomfort. I try to keep small snacks around in an attempt to stay at a happy mid-point, but that hasn’t really worked.

So yeah, I am still guessing (and hoping) it’s a boy, but I won’t really get to find out for another few weeks. I should really start taking bets on this. :)

Angry and Disgusted

Just recently I was hit with some pretty disturbing news. Not to worry, it’s not about me, personally, but someone very close to me. And while I’ll avoid the gory details, I will say this; I hate it when I am right about a person— particularly when the initial gut feeling wasn’t favorable.

But yes, I am extremely disappointed with someone in my life and what hurts is that this person is too damn selfish to even acknowledge they are in the wrong. I really hoped—I mean, really hoped—that this person would prove my initial gut feeling wrong, but time and time again, they just proved that they weren’t worth the effort. I am disgusted with this person and hope that Karma catches up with them and quickly.

"Good News Everyone!"

Hiya all! So I have been kind of stockpiling my posts, well, short thoughts on the days for a while. Mostly because I have been kind of brain dead and not really able to get more than a few sentences "down on paper" at a time.

So here's the good news *ahem* Aaron, Baby Girl and I will be welcoming a new miniature person in mid April! Yep.

We're absolutely thrilled and I will be posting blobby photos of the new little one and, yes, a belly pics from time to time, but since I don't want to dump all this stuff on you at once, here's a little of what I have been going through so far:


August 5: Happy day! We got a positive HPT! The best thing about it is that I used a digital one so this time, Aaron couldn’t argue with me over whether or not he saw a second pink line. Huzzah!

Now that funny part is that the day before, on two occasions, friends asked if I was expecting. I hadn’t taken the test so I said no. I was supposed to have gotten the period at some point between Friday and Tuesday. I jumped the gun a touch. I couldn’t wait. In retrospect, however, the fact that I was doing an impersonation of Frosty in the greenhouse all weekend (even in the ac), couldn’t shake off a crazy, mild headache, and was tired beyond reason, all could have been clues. Ha!

August 6: Made my appointment with the GYN. We’re in on the 23rd at 2:15! Huzzah! By the way, it could all be totally psychosomatic but I swear my stomach is in knots. Could also be a touch of stress given that I am having dog training issues and we now have a bit of a daycare crisis on our hands (see the other August 6 entry). Again, this could totally be in my head, but I also feel crazy bloated.

August 7: Nothing but bloating. Blech. The other thing I’ve noticed is the increased need to go to the bathroom. I swear I didn’t remember it starting so early.

August 8: This morning was interesting, I felt queasy for most of the morning. I kind of felt as if I were just on this side of motion sick. On the verge of feeling like crap but not yet ready to boot. Awesome. Luckily, I haven’t felt a whole lot like an aversion to foods, smells, etc. to anything yet; although, I have been feeling kind of short tempered. But that could be due to the scaling back of coffee.

August 13: The Baby Girl’s first day at daycare. I felt a little sad dropping her off this morning. But in the long run, I know that this will be a good thing for her. Besides the fact that this is a huge adjustment for her, I think she should be able to handle it. She has spent most of her life interacting with adults, now she’ll get to spend the day playing with kiddos.

August 14: She didn’t really take the changes too well, but the lady who runs the daycare seems to think she will eventually catch on and all will be good. She also told us that the Princess is stubborn. As if we didn’t already know that.

August 16: I have been feeling pretty good lately. The other day I had a combination headache (no allergy meds, drastic reduction in caffeine, and lack of sleep because of the baby and dog) but really, it’s been okay. My biggest issue is that I am tired as hell and I am trying to cope with the stress from trying to get everything in order while I can still move freely. The Baby Girl is doing as well as can be expected under the circumstances, but she has become really sticky. All she wants is for someone to carry her around.

August 17: Today is Friday, and thank the Lord for it. I can’t wait to get home and rest a touch. I do have to say, I can’t help but feel a little stressed out lately. I am really unhappy at work and I am trying to find a new job. The problem is what to do. Do I keep looking? Or do I stop? If so, when should I stop? Questions, questions.

August 20: I’ve decided it would be for the best to stop looking for a new job. I really don’t need the stress of working, interviewing, and then having to figure out what to tell a potential new employer that I will have to go on maternity leave within a few months.

August 23: First trip to the doctor’s and all is well. We saw an undefined blob on a screen with a wee little blinking center. Yay heartbeat! We’re at week six. Woohoo!

August 26: We’ve reached week seven. I feel okay. Just tired, mostly- a little queasy but not too bad.

September 3: Thank the lord we have a day off. I really needed it. I have been really tired lately and really, really nauseated. Like, just on this side of booting by face off.

September 10: So lately I have just been sick as can be and have thrown up at least two times. What hurts is, those times I booted, I didn’t exactly feel better afterwards. :)

On the plus side, I met up with a few friends today. I was also reminded why I don’t usually hit route 17 in Jersey on Sundays. Everything closes. We initially wanted to go to lunch in the Paramus Mall. But when I got there, I was eerily reminded of scenes from Dawn of The Dead (empty mall). Ah well, at least we were able to eventually find a place for lunch. I shared the news with my friends. It still kind of feels surreal.

September 25: Lucky me! I asked to go home. This stroke of fortune came about after I puked on my boss’s shoes. A bit splattered off the toilet seat. I would kind of feel bad but I already feel terrible. Blech.

October 1: NT Scan fail! The little one was completely uncooperative. We tried for about 30 minutes but the little guy/girl just wouldn’t get into the right position. I tried lying in different positions, coughing, bouncing my belly to the point where I almost puked on the technician but nothing. We DID see the little one wave a few times as if we were pestering him/ her, and at one point he/ she shook his/ her head as if to say “no.” What’s funny is that this happened just as the technician asked it to be nice and roll over. Awesome.

October 8: NT Scan success! It took a bit but the little guy/girl finally agreed and moved into the right position. All looks “perfect.” Woohoo!

What sucked was my boss being all bitchy before I left saying she didn’t understand why I had to schedule an appointment so close to the Gala. I told her that this is the last week to do an NT scan and because tomorrow would be worse and Wednesday was a no go. And the technician is not there on Thursdays and Fridays. I also told her that I tried doing this last week and the baby did not cooperate. I also told her that I made sure I got everything I needed done.

October 10: It’s over! The dreaded event is over and now I feel like sleeping.

October 15: Crap, after three-ish weeks of thinking I was in the clear the nausea comes back with a vengeance. On Saturday I spent most of my afternoon with my head in the toilet. And of course, my face once again looks like I have a bad rash. Some of you might recall from one of my last preggie posts, every time I puke, I get little red spots all over my face, when it's bad enough, it looks like I have red blotches that stick around for a few days. So yes, it is now Monday and I am still rocking enough makeup to make a drag queen proud. What hurts, is that the damn red spots still show through. Sigh...

The New Normal

This has been an interesting week for our little family. Not only have I reinforced some pretty strict rules on house training for the pooch, we were also splashed with a nice, icy dose of a new reality. Our little princess had to start daycare this week. Not biggie, right? Em… Well, not so easy, really. In a few days’ time, I had to reinvent our entire routine and hope the little one can adapt quickly. Because of the addition of daycare, instead of me getting up at 6:00, and letting the little one sleep in, I am now up at 5:20. I walk the dog, feed the dog, hit the shower, get dressed, wake Baby Girl, get her dressed, get her to eat breakfast, take the dog out one last time, and out the door by 7:20. She would normally sleep in till about 8:30 – 9-ish when my parents were with us (the rules were virtually non-existent when she stayed with them). oh yes, to make all of this work, I also prepare her and my meals before going to bed the night before. I even determine what's for breakfast and get as much of it as possible ready at that time, that way I have a few less steps to deal with in the morning. I still don’t have all the steps quite right but it’s getting there. Of course, we also had to get the little one into her daycare routine, which is another challenge altogether. She now has to get used to eating at a particular time but more importantly, get into her crib and go to sleep. And that, ladies and gentlemen is the monster hurdle. See, at one point I used to be able to put the little one in her crib and she would kind of just hang out, get her pacifier and go to sleep. Then my parents insisted on holding her to put her to sleep, and then we were done. My Mom even got offended by my efforts to try to get her to sleep on her own. I was in the room with the baby, mind you, just not holding her. This made the little one wail like a banshee. It got to the point where I had to kick my Mom out of the baby’s room when she stormed in demanding to take the baby to their room till she fell asleep. Awesome. But yes, we were entirely too lenient and took the path of least resistance, and now we find ourselves with a kid who refuses to fall asleep on her own. Note to self, for the future, tough it out. So yes, in daycare, she is put in her pack and play and is expected to sleep. We’re in day three and she is still putting up a good fight. But the woman who runs the daycare is no-nonsense and it shows. The little one has been fussing a touch less about getting into her crib. The one great thing about daycare is that because she is more or less playing for the majority of the day, she has been coming home pooped. I love it, by 8:30 she starts saying, "night night." Don't get me wrong, I love spending time with Baby Girl, but she can make it difficult to do things like clean the house after dinner or even relax before my bed time. The other aspect that we had to deal with is the complete overhaul of our finances. I knew daycare is expensive but damn, it stings. Over the next few months I will have to don my Mr. Scrooge top hat and slash expenses across the board. I’m so not going to enjoy that but ah well. Until I win the Powerball—which by the way, is the kind of frivolous spending that I am cutting out of our budget— this will have to be the new normal. F- me!

Nessie Ho!

Oh my goodness, looky here... Is This Nessie?

A Spot of Light

You know, I suppose there is one good thing about the whole daycare crisis thing. And that’s that I finally get to bust out my bento box stuff. For a few months now, I have been collecting bento box tools. I kinda have a thing for the irresistible cuteness of stylized bento boxes.

I know that a one-and-a-half-year-old, is not likely going to appreciate the work it takes to make these, but darn it, they’re cute and they keep me from being lazy and packing a lunch of leftover stuff. Besides, I'm not far too invested in cutters, egg molds, nori punchers and lunch boxes to not use them.

What The-What?!

File this under, "really?!": Last night my parents told me that they aren’t going to be able to watch Baby Girl— At all. They have a huge construction project going on at their place and they said they can’t keep coming down to watch the baby like they've been doing for months. So now, rather than putting Baby Girl in daycare next month, she’ll be going in next week. Awesome. I can’t even begin to say how this messes us up. But I can’t let this get me stressed out. I really have other things I need to focus on. One of the main things is getting the dog back on track with his training. Until Saturday, we were doing really well with the training. Then Aaron had to come and completely mess things up. I went out on Saturday (late morning to midafternoon) and asked him to make sure to take him out before he goes to bed (noon-ish). What does he do? Ignores what I asked him to do. So the poor dog pooped and peed all over his bed, inside his crate. This pissed me off because now the damn dog thinks doing his business inside his crate is okay. F**K me! Aaron, of course didn’t think that would be the case and wondered why I was so mad. That is, until he started ‘going’ inside his crate again. Hu-f***ing-zah! So now we’re back at square one with having to take him out every three hours till he gets back into the swing of things. Once again, Aaron doesn’t think it’ll be hard. No, of course not. That’s because he’s not the one doing the training. I am. He just comes home, maybe takes him out for like, five minutes. Then tells me, “he didn’t do anything,” or “I can’t get him to ‘go’ outside” and puts him back in his crate. Oh wait, it gets better, he outright doesn’t bother to take the dog out if it’s raining. The jerk actually purposely let him go on his pad inside, rather than once again— adhere to my strict orders on when to take him out— because it was raining outside. WHAT?! Meanwhile, I’m once again getting mad because this sets him back some more. Tell him that the rain isn’t going to mean he won’t have to go to the bathroom. I swear, sometimes it’s like I am living with another child. Oh and don’t even get me started on the behavior. He completely lets the dog get away with anything. I constantly correct behavior and am left wondering why nothing seems to stick. Case in point, he just lets the dog nip at feet and pant legs. This doesn’t fly with me. He also lets the dog take the lead during walks. Nope. I absolutely keep him at my side (side holding the leash) and keep the leash short to keep him from taking over. I know what you’re thinking, I sound a little militant with the training. And you would be dead on. I am strict. I would much rather be strict now than have to train a dog out of bad habits. Sigh... I swear sometimes, I just want to tell people to piss off so that I can cuddle with Baby Girl on the couch and watch Peppa Pig.

So excited! I currently have several things in the works and they are all potentially fantastic. Now if I could only get around to the lingering boxes in the garage and the flower bed. Ah, then that would also make Aaron do a dance of joy, which really just makes me happy because he won’t have to bitch at me about them. Here’s the thing, I am not entirely sure if Aaron as a realistic understanding of how little time I have, even with my parents watching the little one during the day. I mean, I can’t even pee in peace when I get home. I am fairly convinced Baby Girl thinks the room converts to a magical land— along the lines of an amalgam of Narnia and the Wiggles World— once the door closes, and she MUST be in there with me. But back to my original point, I told Aaron that I would gladly take care of the damn boxes and everything else I have to do around the house when he is off and can watch the little one. But every single damn time I go to do something, he brings her right back to me within a half-hour, to an hour of starting anything. His rationale, “she wanted to be with you.” My repeated replies of, “so friggin what?!” aren’t received very well. He interprets that as me being grumpy. And damn yes I’m grumpy. I have to not only deal with him bitching about the stuff I’ve been putting off around the house, AND keeping the little one entertained and/or keeping her from running off into the street or playing with stuff in the garage that she shouldn’t be touching, I also have to then deal with him getting on my case about being grumpy. What the frick?! I can’t win. Anyhoo, I did actually intend to write about things making me happy lately—kinda vented a touch there, sorry. So yes, I started this post hinting that I’m actually in a good mood. And I am. I’ve just gone through two very good meetings. Hopefully one or both result in new possibilities for me. So keep your fingers crossed for me and wish me luck.

Family and More

Holy smokes have we been busy! First, we had some family over. While, yes, we always have family visiting, these particular guests are special. These were the family members from Aaron’s Dad’s side of the family. They came in from around the country and although we actually gathered for a bit of a somber reason, Aunt Nedda’s stone unveiling, we were happy. It was actually the first time in about 14 years that Aaron got to see one of his half-brothers from Texas, and it was the first time a lot of them got to actually meet Baby Girl. As expected. The little one charmed the pants off of everyone she met and she even “asked” her uncle Azzy to hold her hand. I was so proud. It almost made me tear up. :) Of course the weeks leading up to the big family visit was chaotic. Aaron and I did our best to get things in order around the house. We burned through boxes from the move, stained the deck, brought over deck furniture, and gave the entire house a second thorough spring cleaning. We would have liked to have the back yard projects finished but the lawn guy blew us off a few times. But alas the family visit was entirely too short. The good thing is; we made a verbal agreement to try to get together on a yearly basis. I think prior to this visit, some people in the family were kind of hesitant to communicate, let alone get together. But if held to it, I think there’s hope for an honest-to-goodness close family tie. I know Aaron hopes that’s the case anyway. Since the baby was born making sure she knows where she comes from, and making sure she knows who her family is, has become important. Oh and while there are other big and exciting things I will eventually write about, there is one thing I am very happy to share now. Aaron and I have decided it’s time to get another pup. We’ve been looking around—wait, let me rephrase that, Aaron has been looking around at puppies. At first he said he’s just looking to see what’s out there… yadda, yadda, yadda... Next thing I know we’re driving around looking at dogs and yesterday we found an adorable little Pug that we just had to get. He’s a wee little thing but so darn cute! Aaron worked out the details today with the breeder, so in two weeks I will have a photo of the four legged little one.

Is That A Monster in Your Lake Or...

Ha! Two monster stories in one day... I am a happy camper. This one comes out of Alaska.

Out Out Damn Monster

Yet another one to the pile of monster stories. Ha! Poor Thing...

Early Signs of Progress?

Perhaps it's just me but I think I'm making some good progress here. The last time I went running my calf muscle (the one that tore a few months back) only cramped once. granted, I almost passed out twice, but it's still am improvement over the first time out. The other thing I noticed is that I do feel a bit better and more awake now that I have been doing some crunches in my room before getting into the shower in the morning. Sure I'm still tempted to just say F-it and hit the mall for a new wardrobe, but it's still early. Now if I could only get Aaron to come back out with me. The last time I went running his excuse was that he was busy watering the lawn. 'Cause, you know, he has to physically make the water come through the hose. Sigh. And oh yeah, he still hasn't gotten past looking through the materials in the Insanity program. I think I'll create a new running playlist. I discovered something a little odd (but funny) during my last run. "Hey Mickey" by Toni Basil is a really good pace keeper song. Totally true. And I'm sorry if I've accidentally gotten the song stuck in your head. So the new playlist will consist of songs with a similar beat count (Oh Mickey you're so fine, you're so fine, you blow my mind, Hey Mickey!) Oh hell, it's in your head anyway... Might as well...

Hurt So Good

So here I am, hurting all over but feeling damn good. As I mentioned in another post, I go tired of seeing my poor sneakers go unused and unloved. I also came to the realization that my tubby ass needs to slim down a touch. What's a girl to do? I got off the couch and dragged Aaron with me. Actually I came damn near close to having to use brute force to get Aaron out of the house. His excuse this time around was, "But I just woke up." My response to that was, "Well, you have to BE awake to run, so you're in good shape." He grumbled and tried following it up with, "You won't be able to keep up with me," and the "You won't be able to run the whole loop." I told him that I had no expectations to make it around and that seeing as how this is the first time I've gone running since before the pregnancy, I fully expected to run slowly. We ran around our neighborhood. Just one loop. Our neighborhood isn't that large but it is full of hills. I stopped a few times but not because I was tired, I had to stop and stretch. I also realized that this was my first time working out since the calf muscle tear. Overall, yep, I'm out of shape but it's not exactly a surprise. Yesterday, I had a very rare day alone. Aaron went fishing during the day and had to work so he stayed at his brother's. My parents took the little one to their house for the night so I was on my own. Did I sleep? Nope. I decided to break out the Insanity Program DVD and start that bitch up. Day one, fit test. I did fairly well. Some movements were a laugh and I almost fell over, but I actually did better than I anticipated. With the stories Aaron was telling me about his coworkers vomiting after the workout, I was a little concerned. I pushed myself pretty hard and it did take a good hour before I could actually move again, but no vomiting. Then I felt the high and decided, nah, I haven't done enough. So I dropped to the floor and did four sets of 30 scissor crunches while making dinner. I would have attempted pushups too but my arms actually gave out. I went to bed feeling really good. By morning, however, not so much. I planned on going running in the morning but the Advil didn't kick in fast enough. Ah well. Perhaps later.

Goals

My clothes seem to have gotten smaller... again. Don’t you hate it when that happens? So yes, I used some of the free time I had this weekend to swap out some of the fall and winter clothing for some of the spring stuff. I was a touch dismayed by how much more snugly things fit. I then looked over at my neglected running shoes and decided it’s time. The poor things have gone unused for far too long. Great. Now the only problem is finding the time to use them. I have the sinking sensation I may have to become either a night time runner. I mean, after dinner, 8:30 p.m. and later- kind of runner. OR start my runs at about 5:00 a.m. why so early? That’s easy, I have a little one who has gotten into the habit of waking up at 4:00 a.m. and while I can get her back to sleep, it normally takes a bit. But, this also means I could only really do this on the days my parents stay over. OR become a totally irresponsible parent and leave the little one on her own while Mommy goes running (yeah, okay). I am still not sure how well working out inside would go, but it might be worth a shot. Meh. I’ll do a trial run today and tomorrow and see how this all goes. It’s going to kind of suck ass though. That’s usually small window of time when I can actually spend a few minutes with Aaron. I would take him running with me. But he usually comes up with some excuse like, ‘I’ll start the insanity program first, then I’ll go running with you,’ or my personal favorite, 'you don't keep up with me.' Mind you, we have had that thing in our house for almost two months. I think I’ll actually get around to doing the workout before he does. So what’s my ultimate goal? I’m looking to drop about 60. Yep. Big ole goal, but doable. Of course, I’ll have to alter my plans should anything come up, like say, a successful pregnancy, but I’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.

Hope

This is a tough post. I have been mulling it over in my head since last night and even decided not to post this at all. BUT I think, for my own well-being, it might best to just get it out there…. So Monday Aaron and I were treated to some great news. Muchkin number two was officially on his/her way. And of course, we were elated; cautious, of course, but happy nonetheless. I made an appointment for the first prenatal visit and restocked my vitamins. Yesterday, however, it came to a screeching halt. I didn’t feel so hot and I started feeling that tell-tale inkling you get when your period starts (I can’t really explain it better, so if you’re a guy. Sorry, you just have to be a woman to understand). But yeah. I called the doc and they got me in for a sonogram. My doctor, God bless him, said that the symptom my not necessarily be a bad thing. But also let me know that there’s a chance this may not be good. After the sonogram they let me know that it is most likely not a good thing. The technician couldn’t find anything. But said there is a slim chance that it’s still too early to see anything. I should say at this point, I had already come to peace with the fact that we were back at square one. So now where does that leave me? I’m actually okay. A little bummed yes, but that’s mostly because according to the Chinese gender prediction chart, it would have been a boy. But in reality I’m more concerned about what I have to do next and what I should be on the looking out for in terms of my health. But mostly, as a person of faith, I am comforted by the knowledge that this was God’s plan. And although I may not understand it now (or ever), I know that there was a reason—even if it was to make me happy enough to get me through some challenging days at work, and keep me from telling everyone to go screw themselves in the middle of an angry outburst. To some, this may seem like a simple-minded way to deal with something I just don’t understand. And it may well be. But again, I believe that during the times when there are no clear answers, those are the times that the Big guy gives you what you need to get through. For me that came in the form of a bible verse I heard on the radio. It basically said, no matter what is happening, God’s love never changes. And like that, I felt much more comfortable with everything. This was also when I made the decision to go ahead and post my thoughts on the situation Okay, now you’re thinking, um… why is the former Goth queen with the sailor’s potty mouth so preachy? I have no idea. It’s just what happened. But in case you’re concerned that I am about to go run off to start or join a cult out of grief, rest assured, I am actually in a good mood and am looking forward to retro-posting the entries from the first few weeks of the next pregnancy. No. I have no intention of posting things early on until I am sure the little one sticks. So for now, it’s back to my random musings and expressions of awe, over the amount of vomit and or poop one child can produce. And yeah, I ended up wearing vomit again last night. Awesome! I can’t wait for this f**king stomach bug to go away.

A little Green in the Gills.

Oh what a wonderful thing it is to wake up to a puking child, especially when it's three in the morning and she is right next to you, on your bed! Yep, this was the scene on Tuesday morning. The little one wasn't in the mood to eat the previous evening and was feeling a little cranky so I wasn't surprised to get a 3:00 wake-up call from the monitor. Luckily, Aaron is wonderful and answered the call. After unsuccessfully trying to get her to fall back asleep he brought her over to me. She fell asleep within a few minutes. I drifted off too because the next thing I know Aaron is waking me up in a panic. The baby puked. Awesome! We finished cleaning her, the bed, the mattress and ourselves, just in time for my alarm to go off. Sweet! The rest of the day wasn't much better. Baby Girl had exploding diapie issues and more puking! She even managed to get vomit in the vent on the oven door, so that Aaron had to open the thing up and clean inside it. I didn't even know those opened like that. Last night she slept most of the night. I got a 4:00 wake up call. But she seemed okay. I brought her over to our bed (so should have listened to the voice in my head that said, 'don't do it.') and about ten minutes later, ta-dah! The difference was that at least this time around, I was awake. She looked at me, gave me a sad face and blech... I ended up wearing most of it. And the bit that did land on the bed, I scooped up before it got to do any damage. So there I was, child on one arm, a vomit laden hand stretched out, reeking of sour milk (or good cheese), all the while trying to wake Aaron up. Of course the part that made it funnier is that during the cleaning process, she had an explosion in the diapie. Ahhh... fun.

Find Solid Wall. Bang Head Repeatedly. Feel Better.

If you can’t tell, I’m feeling a touch of frustration. Lately it just feels like I can’t get anything right. Whether it’s something as simple as getting dinner to taste just right, to having to put out little fires at work, or having the baby reject something I give her (and having her fling it at me—always a joyous occasion, especially since her aim is remarkable) I just feel like I’m all thumbs.

So what’s one to do? Still not sure. Anyone have suggestions other than a yoga class?

On the up side, it's almost April. You know what that means... Come the April winds you will find me heading out to the biggest open field with a kite/kites in tow! huzzah!

House of the Infirmed

Great. Just great. I have a house full of sickies. It started with my niece and nephew. My brother tried to pass if off as allergies, so my parents thought nothing of bringing Baby Girl to their house the other day when they were in need of a sitter. So fast forward a few days and Baby Girl has a stuffy nose and is pretty cranky. Yeah, perhaps I should remind my brother that allergies are not communicable.

Now both my parents have this mystery "allergy," which means it's only a matter of time before we come down with it too. Fantastic! Needless to say I have been doling out the Zicam and the vitamin c like it's a snack

It wouldn't be so bad if it was just us but we're also playing host of a friend who is going through a tough time. It's bad enough that her situation is going from bad to total shit-storm (so wish I could claim that line as my own... ah well.) I don't think she needs the creeping illness to get her too.

Well, at least we have been able to get her out of the house for a wee bit to think clearly. Last week she joined us for a girl's weekend also, which is always fun. Nothing like retail therapy followed by a night of guzzling wine to make you forget your troubles for a spell.

Hmmm... perhaps that's the reason I haven't come down with anything yet. I've killed off anything in my system with alcohol... meh, just a thought. I'm seriously considering getting a haz-mat suit, but I think it may scare Baby Girl. :) Can you imagine?

With A Little Help from My Friends

And just like that I feel centered. This weekend the girls were over to hang out. We haven’t gotten together in a little bit, but thanks to e-mail we were able to figure out a date fairly quickly. We initially meant to go for a hike at one of the mountains in the area, but we decided to then go for a shopping hike around the outlet mall.

It was a little odd for me. I haven’t gone out and purchased things for myself in a very long time. So I kinda, sorta felt bad because I bought myself a few things. And yeah, they were things I genuinely needed. Well, I did buy Popsicle molds but they will come in handy… okay so they were mostly for the wee one. No worries though. A few bottles of wine and I forgot all about the pesky, mini shopping spree.

I also took this as an opportunity to help out a friend. My friend who has been going through a rough patch needed some time away from home. I think the weekend surrounded by other women who’d be able to just listen and provide some fairly unbiased perspective would do a world of good. I think it helped a lot.

But yes, it was a great weekend, even if a bowl got sacrificed to the party gods. :) Olé!

Royally Messed Up

I’m not sure how I feel. In fact, I haven’t been sure how I feel for almost a week now. Last week Aaron and I got hit with some pretty troubling news and even though I’m trying to get past it (I’m sure he is too); this whole thing is just staying in my head and messing me up.

Aaron and I went out with some friends. We were supposed to do a dinner and a show –a comedy show to be exact, but more on that later. I was running late because of work so we had to skip dinner and meet our friends at the comedy club. We saw Rich Vos; a comedian we all like a lot. Great show. But that wasn’t the part that got me all messed up. That happened immediately after the show.

Basically, this is what happened: The show ended, we milled around while we got ready to head out, bought a cd, got a picture and walked out. Then, there- right in the parking lot in lieu of what should have been your basic, ‘okay, what do we do now’s’ and/or ‘we’ll see you guys later’s’ we got hit with one of our friends saying, “there’s a reason we wanted you guys to come out.” The tone was serious and the next few words lead me to think they were having financial issues and had to sell their house, but nope. It got worse, the friend followed up the selling the house thing with “we’ve been having problems for a while now,” and the doozy… they are going to be getting divorced.

That was the very first time I have ever seen Aaron be entirely unsure of what to say. All I was able to do is fish through my purse for a pack of tissues because our friend’s wife had started crying.

The whole situation was just odd. Particularly because out of all the married couples we know, this is the one that we genuinely love as a couple. The fact that they got married was essentially a given considering how awesome they are together. Granted, no, we’re not there to see the good, the bad, and the ugly of everyday life, but still. They showed absolutely no sign at all that something was amiss. On the contrary, the time before this, they seemed to be more together than ever. So in the days since then, we’ve discovered that this is a one sided thing. She is going along with this because she has already tried everything she can think of and just wants him to be happy.

Again, I have no idea what to say. During the car ride home, all Aaron and I wanted to do is hug Baby Girl. We were both in shock—and pretty much still are—but mostly felt like we were in mourning. We’re not sure what’s going to happen from this point forward. I have a feeling she will stay in the area since she likes it where she is and works in the city. Him, I’m not sure. She was the bigger bread winner so, I suppose he’ll move on somehow.

It’s funny, I thought I’d be able to wrap my head around this a little better once I got it down on “paper,” but in reality, it really hasn’t helped. I am as confused and bummed as before. I just hope we don’t end up losing two great friends in the process. That would be the biggest shame of it all.

A Woolly What?!

Teehee... Yaaaay monster/ Odd creature stories!

This is the latest one I've come across.

Alleged Woolly mammoth (or maybe just a bear) spotted in Siberia

The Walking Drool

Yep. The Baby Girl took her first two unassisted steps on Wednesday afternoon. Of course I’ve only heard about it. My parents called me to tell be about it a moment after it happened. By the time I got home she wasn’t the slightest bit interested in walking. She was in a huggy mood. Normally I look forward to cuddles, but this was big news damn it, I wanted to see her do her impression of a drunken college student but nope. I guess I’ll have to wait.

The other bit of good news is that she’s sprouting more teeth. She now has a top front tooth and its neighbor is on the way. And judging by how far she likes to cram her fingies into her mouth, I’d say there are a few molars threatening to break through- Poor thing.

Exciting as this all is, it’s also fascinating and disgusting at the same time. I’m not a scientist but I think we should really study the make-up of baby drool. I’m willing to bet there’s money to be made with whatever gives baby drool that amazing elasticity. I mean, this stuff hangs, and hangs but never seems to break. I'm also fairly certain that if the mood really struck her, Baby Girl could probably swing the stuff around to get to out-of-reach items around the house. Gross…

New "Phone"

A few weeks ago my phone died. I mean I couldn't even turn the thing on. So We decided to bite the bullet and get new phones. We also decided to switch carriers because we couldn't get reliable signals anywhere in or around our house.

The only problem is, I never bothered to save my contacts online. Mistake. So I have been reentering all my contacts one by one. Not so bad but it's made for some interesting text conversations. For the most part I am familiar with the area codes so I have a good idea of who it is I'm texting. The problem is, in the middle of all this, I accidentally entered the wrong numbers for a few people. Yeah, you can see where this is going. Pain in the ass. So if you're one of the people I normally text and you haven't heard from me in a while. it's not that I'm ignoring you. I may have just been sending messages to someone completely different. Woops.