Our last morning of vacation was pretty relaxing since we did most of our packing the night before. Besides, check out wasn't until 11 and our taxi wouldn't be there until 11:30. That gave us plenty of time to eat breakfast and use up the last few minutes of our Internet time making sure our flight was on-time.
At the airport each bag was opened and checked before you could check in. That line took forever. Or so we thought. The security check fast. Boarding the airplane was fast enough. That was the end of anything fast.
The pilot got on the overhead speaker and told us that there was a small mechanical problem (couldn't get the fuel cap on/off - something minor). It would take a few minutes to repair and then they would have to fill out some paperwork and we would be on our way.
HA!
Mechanics were dispatched and they did their duties and fixed the fuel cap thingy. Paperwork was filled out. The little TV screens came down and the safety video was started. We learned about emergency exits and water "landings" but then the pilot interrupted the riveting safety video.
It turns out that if he flew the plane from Los Cabos, Mexico to San Francisco he would have exceeded the maximum flying time allowed for a pilot in any 24 hour period. Therefore our flight was cancelled.
Cancelled.
Porque?
The Los Cabos airport is tiny. Not just tiny but teeny tiny. There was no way another airline could take us. We were stranded!
OK, we weren't stranded really. Just delayed by a day. United hooked us up with some great accommodations. Accommodations that were just a 15 minute drive from the airport.
Here is where the cultural clash part comes in. I tend to think of myself as more of a type B personality. I found out that in when something goes a little wrong in Mexico I am type A and everyone around me is type B. There should be a rating system for personalities like there is for blood.
A+ An energetic go getter
A- An angry workaholic
B+ A happy go lucky person
B- A lazy sloth of a person
AB+ One who has energy but knows how to chill
AB- eh, I dunno. Can't think of anything for O, either.
So back to my story of frustration.
Unfortunately it would take 3 hours from the time we got off the airplane to get to our nice digs for the evening. Yes, you read that right. It took THREE hours to get our bags and into a taxi and to the hotel 15 minutes away. Time stands still in Mexico. That is a good thing when you are on the beach or swimming in a pool but not when you are waiting for luggage or taxis or flights to leave on time.
At every airport I've ever been to the baggage collection has been the same. Wait at the carousel, look with eager anticipation for each bag birthed through the black rubber flaps to see if it is yours and when, after 20 minutes of let downs, you spy your bag you grab it and figure out the best way to get out of the airport.
That was the procedure the previous Saturday when we arrived in Los Cabos. Our bags were put on the carousel and we took grabbed our respective bags and hopped in waiting taxis to take us to our respective destinations.
On this day however, the fine folks at United wanted to check each of the 153 passengers baggage claim tickets before releasing the luggage to us. While our luggage was being unloaded and lined up against a wall 15 feet away from us they sent out their most soft spoken employee to speak to the masses. The mass of people that was growing grumpier and grumpier with each passing second. They were quick to arrange the accommodations for us, maybe a half hour for that. The soft spoken employee told us, "The first 120 people will stay in hotel X and the rest will stay in hotel Y. The flight tomorrow is at 7 am. We will have buses waiting for you at your hotels at 4:30 am as you will need to be here at 5 am."
She repeated that no less than 50 times and she had the nerve to look annoyed. Could they have not sent out a louder employee? She was not the only one who spoke English. Nerdy.
So... we are standing there waiting for our luggage. The mousy woman is telling everyone to have their baggage claim tickets out. Everyone behind me looks confused because they can't hear her instructions so I hold up my baggage claim tickets and say, "Have these out and ready." Everyone says, "Oh." Then they look confused again because NO ONE EVER USES THEM. So I then hold up the envelope with the tickets where they stapled them. That cleared up confusion about where they were but not about why they wanted us to have them out.
People start getting antsy about an hour into the wait for the luggage that is sitting there, so close yet so far away. People start going to get their bags after 15 minutes of the employees telling us they are going to call names and check tickets without one name being called. United employees balk at the passengers as we storm over to get our bags. We go commando on them and break through the sturdy barrier of red plastic tape and get our bags in a nice and orderly fashion.
With our bags in tow we all go to the front where we are told buses are going to be to take us to our hotels. We go outside and lo and behold there are no buses. We ask, "When will transportation arrive for us?" "Ten to fifteen minutes," we are told.
Ten to fifteen minutes pass, then a few more minutes. We again ask, "Where are the buses?"
Ten to fifteen minutes away.
An hour and a half later we are one of the last of the passengers to get into a taxi van. There are three seats open in front of us. The driver is standing outside the van. Our luggage is loaded in the van. There are other passengers milling about, there are United employees milling about. We are sitting in the taxi waiting to get out of there.
I waive a United employee over. I ask her what our taxi is waiting for. She says, "More passengers." Duh. I say, "Can we just get three more people in here and leave?" She pokes her head in the van and I hear, "uno, dos, tres..." as she takes tally of the people in the van. She turns around and another United employee sticks his head in the van and I hear, "uno, dos, tres..."
(#*%&#@(*&
We only need 3 more people!
It doesn't take 10 minutes to find 3 people to stick in the van. Lame. Finally three more people are loaded up and we are off to the hotel.
The hotel was nice. We check in and try to make a free international call but they were smart enough to not make that a part of our package so Ryan gives the front desk man our credit card information so I can call my friend who is house/dog sitting and let her know what was going on.
By this time it was almost 7 pm. We take advantage of the last bit of warmth and get into our bathing suits and hop in the pool for all of 10 minutes before getting out to eat dinner. Dinner was OK. I had a cold so the food on vacation was at time completely flavorless.
With just a few hours to sleep before our 4 am wake up call we had the lights out at 10 pm. Four am came early especially since Gavin wanted a midnight snack ala Mom at a quarter to 3.
Being the good passengers that we are we were downstairs ready to go by 4:30. We ate a muffin that the hotel provided as our breakfast and I had a cup of coffee.
Other passengers were getting into taxi vans. I was waiting for a big bus to show up. Lots of us were waiting for a big bus to show up. It was nearing 5 am and we realized United lied to us again. There was no bus coming to pick us up. We eventually got into a taxi who told us $25 to go to the airport.
We get to the airport and the taxi driver tries to get $5 a person. There were 9 of us in the van. I don't think so, Mr. Taxi Driver.
We negotiate with him to give him the $25 cab fare between the 9 of us and we see him try to get reimbursed from the airline, too. We let him take it up with the airline but make sure he gets paid. The airline pays him.
At this point we are all really, really grumpy. They stole our day and made us wait at that cursed airport for 3 hours then they don't pick us up like they promised us. To make matters worse for United we had 3 hours to bond with our fellow ticked off passengers the day before, that evening at the hotel, that morning waiting for our transportation, the ride to the airport and finally while waiting in line to have our luggage checked again. We were like a big family all united against United.
At long last we have our bags checked. It was about an hour from the time we arrived at the airport until we had our bags checked. Save our flight the airport was closed. The same crew that helped us the day before was there to help us again. I use the word 'help' very loosely.
Mr. United employee checks us in and gives us our boarding passes. Ryan says, "What about our connecting flight to Seattle?" Mr. United gives us a blank look with a hint of annoyance. "Seattle?"
Ryan, "Yes. Seattle. We were told yesterday that all connecting flights would be taken care of overnight."
Mr. United, "Hmm. No. I don't see anything."
Me: "What?!!! We were told this was going to be taken care of last night. Why wasn't it taken care of? We were promised! Why? Why?" I think I said more but it was incoherent babbling.
Mr. United, "Oh. I see. Seattle. Your connecting flight is at 6:00."
Me and Ryan: "No! 6:00? We have to hang out in the airport all day?!"
Ryan to me: "Don't worry, we'll get an earlier flight when we get in San Francisco."
Mr. United doesn't give us any connecting flight information when Ryan asks for it because he says we will get it in San Francisco.
LIAR.
So we go through security and dump all of our waters even though they allowed us to keep one the day before "for the baby."
7 am comes and goes. All stores are closed. We are growing restless and hungry. The United employees tell us nothing. Our flight was supposed to leave at 7, maybe 7:30. 7:30 comes and goes and still we are waiting in the terminal. We are finally told the pilot is trying to secure food for us on our our less than 3 hour flight.
That nearly brought us to riot stage. Food?! Our flight was delayed another hour for food? It's a nice thought but we just wanted to get out of there.
At 8 am we finally board the plane and the pilot tells us that he thought he had secured food for us the night before by talking to corporate who apparently were less than helpful and really ticked the pilot off. So much so that he has the flight attendants hand out his business card with the CEO's information on it. I think I'm going to send the CEO a link to this post if he wants the full story.
We take off and land in San Francisco. Yipee.
The story is not over yet.
We go to the nearest United counter in hopes of catching an earlier flight. The United employee is very nice but says, "You don't have a connecting flight."
What?
Me to Ryan, "He lied to us! He was just trying to get us out of his hair! Why would he do that? Why? Why?"
Nice United woman looks for another United flight for us. They are all booked so I ask her to check other airlines because Alaska has flights like every hour. They are not only booked the whole rest of the day they are all oversold.
It was at this point I felt tears forming. I tried some self talk, "April, pull it together. Don't cry. Wait, cry! Don't fight it! Cry like there's no tomorrow."
Waterworks ensue with me babbling about my baby (who is crying in my arms), my cats and dog at home with no one to let them out or to feed them. She tells us we can try to fly standby.
If we try standby then our luggage goes to Seattle even if we don't. What do we do then if we don't get on a flight? Besides are we supposed to spend our WHOLE day in the airport in the hopes that we get a flight? I ask for her supervisor. She was very nice but supervisors can do just a little more.
She checked connecting flights and told us there were going to be some close calls and that we had a shot of getting on the 12:41 flight. So we did what any good Christian folk would do and prayed that some people would be a wee bit late for their connecting flight so we could get home since we were already a day late. We were put to the top of the list and we actually made it on that flight!
Now we are trying to go to the website United gave us so we can "select a token of our appreciation for your patience and understanding" (gag) and the site can not be found. Lame.
OK, that's enough for a rant on United. They did get us home safe and with all of our luggage so it could have been worse.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
IN
We are on vacation at an all inclusive resort. It's like a cruise but the alcohol is "free" and they don't try to sell you stuff every time you turn around and you are on land and there is less entertainment BUT the entertainment staff are just as annoying on a ship as on land.
An all inclusive resort is great for us because we don't have to think about anything and if we want a drink of anything other than water we don't have to have a cow over paying $10 for a silly foo-foo drink. However there are some people here who are determined to drink every pennies worth of their time here. Some people just do not appreciate their livers like they should.
The other half who are not liver lovers are skin haters. Why, oh why would you want to subject your skin to so much sun? Really. Do you think you look attractive 4 shades darker than your natural color? Do you not see the other people only 10 years older than you who have wrinkles and sun spots? Are you that dense?
I look around and see the Mexican people. They have lovely brown skin. They were born with it. Don't try to compete, white folk. Your pigment challenged selves are only hastening aging and skin cancer. Collective dumb asses. Dumb assi.
Then there are the people who embrace the drinking the excessive tanning AND the smoking. Well, they are going to have a ball when they have cirrhosis of the liver, skin cancer and lung cancer all while appearing 15 years older than they really are. But let's not forget that they are having fun right now.
Oh, I almost forgot about the food. Sure, it is all you can eat but you don't have to eat all you can. This one is the one that hits the closest to home for me although I have been really good.
I also have a cold and just lost my ability to taste food as of this morning. I've been eating lots of fruit in hopes of kicking this cold a little sooner than I would otherwise. So, having a cold on a vacation where food is every where isn't all bad. It really helps curb the appetite.
Gavin is having a blast. OK, not really. He is having as much fun here as he does at home. Well, he is getting more daddy time where I on the other hand are getting more time to myself. : )
He has been swimming three times now. Each time he seems to enjoy it more and more. We put him in his little swim diaper and green swimsuit that matches his green sunglasses and drop him in the pool. Just kidding. He hasn't cried once in the pool and lemme tell ya, he is oohed and ahhed over like no ones business. We can't go anywhere without drawing scads of attention because of his super duper cuteness. I believe the technical term is hyperacute cute syndrome. I believe the affliction lasts at least through toddler hood. If he is like his dad it will be a lifelong ailment only to be disturbed fashion trends in junior high and high school.
*****
I was going to add this to the bottom of my previous post but I ran out of time getting ready for vacation and laying the groundwork for the cold to take hold by not sleeping well....
So, after I wrote the last post about being a white girl and having maybe just a wee bit of hip hop I realized that while I was driving to a shopping center in West Seattle that, no, I am w-h-i-t-e.
This realization hit me as I was rockin' out to Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Gimme Three Steps" in the car. I really like that song. Ryan, not so much. But then he doesn't seem to appreciate CCR, either. Sheesh. He doesn't like the Eagles or the Stones, either. Ugh. Unbelievable, I know!
Well, time to go tell Ryan that of the hour of Internet time I bought (not part of the all inclusive package) and the half hour I was supposed to use I used 57 minutes and counting. I'm thinking he is going to want to buy and hour for himself.
As for pictures of Gavin in the pool in all his cute glory - it will have to wait until we get home.
An all inclusive resort is great for us because we don't have to think about anything and if we want a drink of anything other than water we don't have to have a cow over paying $10 for a silly foo-foo drink. However there are some people here who are determined to drink every pennies worth of their time here. Some people just do not appreciate their livers like they should.
The other half who are not liver lovers are skin haters. Why, oh why would you want to subject your skin to so much sun? Really. Do you think you look attractive 4 shades darker than your natural color? Do you not see the other people only 10 years older than you who have wrinkles and sun spots? Are you that dense?
I look around and see the Mexican people. They have lovely brown skin. They were born with it. Don't try to compete, white folk. Your pigment challenged selves are only hastening aging and skin cancer. Collective dumb asses. Dumb assi.
Then there are the people who embrace the drinking the excessive tanning AND the smoking. Well, they are going to have a ball when they have cirrhosis of the liver, skin cancer and lung cancer all while appearing 15 years older than they really are. But let's not forget that they are having fun right now.
Oh, I almost forgot about the food. Sure, it is all you can eat but you don't have to eat all you can. This one is the one that hits the closest to home for me although I have been really good.
I also have a cold and just lost my ability to taste food as of this morning. I've been eating lots of fruit in hopes of kicking this cold a little sooner than I would otherwise. So, having a cold on a vacation where food is every where isn't all bad. It really helps curb the appetite.
Gavin is having a blast. OK, not really. He is having as much fun here as he does at home. Well, he is getting more daddy time where I on the other hand are getting more time to myself. : )
He has been swimming three times now. Each time he seems to enjoy it more and more. We put him in his little swim diaper and green swimsuit that matches his green sunglasses and drop him in the pool. Just kidding. He hasn't cried once in the pool and lemme tell ya, he is oohed and ahhed over like no ones business. We can't go anywhere without drawing scads of attention because of his super duper cuteness. I believe the technical term is hyperacute cute syndrome. I believe the affliction lasts at least through toddler hood. If he is like his dad it will be a lifelong ailment only to be disturbed fashion trends in junior high and high school.
*****
I was going to add this to the bottom of my previous post but I ran out of time getting ready for vacation and laying the groundwork for the cold to take hold by not sleeping well....
So, after I wrote the last post about being a white girl and having maybe just a wee bit of hip hop I realized that while I was driving to a shopping center in West Seattle that, no, I am w-h-i-t-e.
This realization hit me as I was rockin' out to Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Gimme Three Steps" in the car. I really like that song. Ryan, not so much. But then he doesn't seem to appreciate CCR, either. Sheesh. He doesn't like the Eagles or the Stones, either. Ugh. Unbelievable, I know!
Well, time to go tell Ryan that of the hour of Internet time I bought (not part of the all inclusive package) and the half hour I was supposed to use I used 57 minutes and counting. I'm thinking he is going to want to buy and hour for himself.
As for pictures of Gavin in the pool in all his cute glory - it will have to wait until we get home.
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
Grill
After seeing an A-board (sandwich board) that advertised "Grill Special ask for details inside" almost every day as I drove past I thought I would inquire but not within. I'm still not brave enough to go into the store because I have no intention of buying anything. The clothing they sell isn't what I would call 'me' as I'm not so hip hop. Not even a wee little bit. Well, maybe a wee, wee little bit. I do like a song by Obie Trice, OB Trice, Ob Trice - I don't know how to spell his name. It's called "Snitch" and was a free download advertised after an episode of CSI that he appeared on. Not a great song lyrically, he basically says it ain't cool to be a snitch. You see something you pretend you don't or else...
Yo.
So, back to the grill. I saw the owner of the store - I recognized him from a neighborhood event last summer when I was enormously pregnant - in front of his store. The G and I were walking home from the grocery store so I seized my opportunity to talk the shop owner without having to go into his store to ask my silly question.
Me: "Hey. What's the grill special? The only grill I know is the teeth thing." (Me pointing at my teeth).
Shop keep man: "Yeah. We don't do the work but we do the moldings. Laugh, laugh, laugh. You want a grill?"
Me (Laughing hysterically): "No, thanks. (Continue laughing hysterically). Just curious."
Shop keep man to friend: "Wow. She cracked up!" Laugh.
I saw shop keep man yesterday as I was coming home and unloading the G and the car. He called from across the street, "When you coming in for the grill?"
I told him I was saving up for it.
Ha. A grill on a girl. A grill on a white girl. I'm 'bout white as they come. I dance like Elaine from Seinfeld and can't pull off slang. I can try out some slang.
Hmmm, I don't know any.
The most current slang I know is from just after high school. You know, digits and dis and that's about it. Oh, Gavin is going to be sooo embarrassed by me in a few years. And his dad.
We are going to have so much fun!
Yo.
So, back to the grill. I saw the owner of the store - I recognized him from a neighborhood event last summer when I was enormously pregnant - in front of his store. The G and I were walking home from the grocery store so I seized my opportunity to talk the shop owner without having to go into his store to ask my silly question.
Me: "Hey. What's the grill special? The only grill I know is the teeth thing." (Me pointing at my teeth).
Shop keep man: "Yeah. We don't do the work but we do the moldings. Laugh, laugh, laugh. You want a grill?"
Me (Laughing hysterically): "No, thanks. (Continue laughing hysterically). Just curious."
Shop keep man to friend: "Wow. She cracked up!" Laugh.
I saw shop keep man yesterday as I was coming home and unloading the G and the car. He called from across the street, "When you coming in for the grill?"
I told him I was saving up for it.
Ha. A grill on a girl. A grill on a white girl. I'm 'bout white as they come. I dance like Elaine from Seinfeld and can't pull off slang. I can try out some slang.
Hmmm, I don't know any.
The most current slang I know is from just after high school. You know, digits and dis and that's about it. Oh, Gavin is going to be sooo embarrassed by me in a few years. And his dad.
We are going to have so much fun!
Friday, March 28, 2008
Snow to Sun
It's almost April and it was snowing in Seattle today. It didn't stick but to a few blades of grass, though. I'm sure school children were disappointed but I was relieved. If the snow sticks then I'm stuck at home since we live on a huge hill and it would be foolish of me to try and drive in the snow with a baby in the car when I don't have to be anywhere in particular.
I have been going to the gym 4 days a week and I've been enjoying it. Gasp. It is shocking, I know. Today I set my bike's workout program to Kilimanjaro and put it at level 3 instead of 2. I think they need to rename the Kilimanjaro workout to Mt. St. Helen's (pretty easy since the top was blown off and you can practically drive to the top).
After I do my half hour on the bike I do 150 crunches. I'm going to have to do crunches for a long, long, long time before any muscle is able to be felt through my layers of mommy belly. At least I will know there is muscle under the flabbiness. There wouldn't be so much flabbiness if I would alter my diet a bit.
Oh how I like me some food. Chocolate and anything with cheese. Not together. No chocolate covered cheese sticks, please. A dinner of cheese sticks followed by a Black Forest milkshake from Burgerville would be heavenly. We don't have Burgerville in Seattle. It's a shame but it is really best for me if they aren't within in easy driving distance.
The Tillamook cheese burger, the black forest shake, the Walla Walla Sweet Onion rings are all so, so, delicious and all so, so bad.
I think I'm hungry. This breastfeeding is a double edged sword. It helps you burn calories quickly but it also makes you really hungry. I'm at equilibrium right now. I eat a lot and burn a lot of calories via breastfeeding and the gym.
Oh, I can eat dairy again! Sweet, sweet dairy. Yum, yum, yum.
I am really looking forward to eating vanilla ice cream in Mexico. And guacamole but that hasn't been forbidden - I'm just looking forward to it. That and a mojito and a lime margarita or two. Mas mojito, por favor. Mas guacamole, por favor. Mas ice creamo, por favor. I hope the resort has a gym so I we don't have to buy an extra seat for me on the way home.
Alright. I am going to go forage in the kitchen for something to eat. There's no Tillamook cheese or black forest shake fixins in the house so I may just have an apple.
I have been going to the gym 4 days a week and I've been enjoying it. Gasp. It is shocking, I know. Today I set my bike's workout program to Kilimanjaro and put it at level 3 instead of 2. I think they need to rename the Kilimanjaro workout to Mt. St. Helen's (pretty easy since the top was blown off and you can practically drive to the top).
After I do my half hour on the bike I do 150 crunches. I'm going to have to do crunches for a long, long, long time before any muscle is able to be felt through my layers of mommy belly. At least I will know there is muscle under the flabbiness. There wouldn't be so much flabbiness if I would alter my diet a bit.
Oh how I like me some food. Chocolate and anything with cheese. Not together. No chocolate covered cheese sticks, please. A dinner of cheese sticks followed by a Black Forest milkshake from Burgerville would be heavenly. We don't have Burgerville in Seattle. It's a shame but it is really best for me if they aren't within in easy driving distance.
The Tillamook cheese burger, the black forest shake, the Walla Walla Sweet Onion rings are all so, so, delicious and all so, so bad.
I think I'm hungry. This breastfeeding is a double edged sword. It helps you burn calories quickly but it also makes you really hungry. I'm at equilibrium right now. I eat a lot and burn a lot of calories via breastfeeding and the gym.
Oh, I can eat dairy again! Sweet, sweet dairy. Yum, yum, yum.
I am really looking forward to eating vanilla ice cream in Mexico. And guacamole but that hasn't been forbidden - I'm just looking forward to it. That and a mojito and a lime margarita or two. Mas mojito, por favor. Mas guacamole, por favor. Mas ice creamo, por favor. I hope the resort has a gym so I we don't have to buy an extra seat for me on the way home.
Alright. I am going to go forage in the kitchen for something to eat. There's no Tillamook cheese or black forest shake fixins in the house so I may just have an apple.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Bye Bye Swing
Last night was Gavin's last night in the swing. Ryan noticed he was listing in the cradle this morning; he tries to sit up then kind of flops over to the side. I'm afraid he will pitch out of it even though he's strapped in. I was kind of afraid of what this evening held for bedtime since he would have to go down in his pack 'n play - a large flat immobile surface without lights or music. At first he smiled and 'talked' in the pack 'n play and kicked his feet and squirmed from side to side but once we turned out the lights he fussed for a few minutes then he fell right to sleep.
Next we will have to buy a crib but I'm not ready for him to sleep in his room. I really like having him with us in our room. So the pack 'n play will have to work for now.
There was another first tonight. Rice cereal! Woo-hoo! I called his doctor to ask if he could start solids because he quit sleeping through the night. At first I thought he was waking up because of the teething but I don't think that's the case since he wakes up, eats and goes right back to sleep without any fuss. Well, that's not completely true. As I lay him down he lets out one half hearted cry but as soon as his body hit the contoured shape of the swings cradle it was lights out.
So the doc said rice cereal and applesauce, nothing else. I had to run to Rite Aid to buy new nipples for the bottles because we only have the slow flow nipples that certainly wouldn't allow rice through. Oh, I just realized we should have moved up in nipple flow size when he turned three months old. Oops.
When I was standing in the baby aisle staring at the bottle and nipples I realized I didn't know which one to buy and which brand would be compatible with our bottles so I called Crina as Alexandra is a couple of months older than Gavin and she would know which one I should buy. Crina wasn't home. I bought the fast flow bottle with the cross cut instead of hole.
After preparing the bottle with the rice I gave it to Gavin. Man, was he ever squirmy and demanding with the bottle. Sheesh! I've never seen him chew on the nipple like that before. Normally he just guzzles the milk.
A couple of minutes went by before I put the bottle right side up and saw that he hadn't swallowed even a drop. The crosscut nipple didn't wasn't big enough for the rice/milk mixture to go through. Thank God for sippy cups. I went and fished out a sippy cup from the bin of future eating utensils for Gavin and he got his first rice cereal and his first sippy cup on the same night.
Now he just needs to sleep until 7:40 am since he went to bed at 9:40 pm. Please, please, please let him sleep until morning. Please.
Next we will have to buy a crib but I'm not ready for him to sleep in his room. I really like having him with us in our room. So the pack 'n play will have to work for now.
There was another first tonight. Rice cereal! Woo-hoo! I called his doctor to ask if he could start solids because he quit sleeping through the night. At first I thought he was waking up because of the teething but I don't think that's the case since he wakes up, eats and goes right back to sleep without any fuss. Well, that's not completely true. As I lay him down he lets out one half hearted cry but as soon as his body hit the contoured shape of the swings cradle it was lights out.
So the doc said rice cereal and applesauce, nothing else. I had to run to Rite Aid to buy new nipples for the bottles because we only have the slow flow nipples that certainly wouldn't allow rice through. Oh, I just realized we should have moved up in nipple flow size when he turned three months old. Oops.
When I was standing in the baby aisle staring at the bottle and nipples I realized I didn't know which one to buy and which brand would be compatible with our bottles so I called Crina as Alexandra is a couple of months older than Gavin and she would know which one I should buy. Crina wasn't home. I bought the fast flow bottle with the cross cut instead of hole.
After preparing the bottle with the rice I gave it to Gavin. Man, was he ever squirmy and demanding with the bottle. Sheesh! I've never seen him chew on the nipple like that before. Normally he just guzzles the milk.
A couple of minutes went by before I put the bottle right side up and saw that he hadn't swallowed even a drop. The crosscut nipple didn't wasn't big enough for the rice/milk mixture to go through. Thank God for sippy cups. I went and fished out a sippy cup from the bin of future eating utensils for Gavin and he got his first rice cereal and his first sippy cup on the same night.
Now he just needs to sleep until 7:40 am since he went to bed at 9:40 pm. Please, please, please let him sleep until morning. Please.
Friday, March 14, 2008
Scary
Quick story.
Yesterday I was playing with Gavin in his exersaucer. I played with the attached toys with his hands hoping that he would start to play with them on his own because right now he will only play with his Sassy rattles that I put directly in front of him. He is only content to be in the exersaucer for 15 minutes before he melts down.
After showing him how to play with the toys and leaving him with his rattles I took the few remaining minutes I had to go and make myself some lunch.
I washed and sliced a Pink Lady apple (yum) and sliced some Parmesan cheese to go with the apple (double yum) when I heard the sound of one of the attached toys! It was the round clear plastic tumbler with colorful beads in it. Baby spins the tumbler and it makes one heck of a noise.
I was so excited to know that Gavin turned it with his hands all on his own whether or not it was intentional but the sound of the tumbling beads was immediately followed by a scream and cry.
Super Mom flew into action and ran into the living room to see what was the matter.
Nothing was the matter.
The sound of the beads scared the living daylights out of him. It was the saddest, cutest thing you could see. Fat tears were welling up in his big beautiful blue eyes then cascading down his equally fat cheeks. He raised his arms slightly when I came over for me to pick him up. It was so precious.
That's all. It was cute. He made a toy make noise then freaked out because it made noise.
Oh. I almost forgot! Gavin rolled over today. I almost missed it, too. He was laying on the floor squirming like babies do and next thing you know he pushed himself up and was suddenly on his back. I need to go put that in the baby book before I forget.
Yesterday I was playing with Gavin in his exersaucer. I played with the attached toys with his hands hoping that he would start to play with them on his own because right now he will only play with his Sassy rattles that I put directly in front of him. He is only content to be in the exersaucer for 15 minutes before he melts down.
After showing him how to play with the toys and leaving him with his rattles I took the few remaining minutes I had to go and make myself some lunch.
I washed and sliced a Pink Lady apple (yum) and sliced some Parmesan cheese to go with the apple (double yum) when I heard the sound of one of the attached toys! It was the round clear plastic tumbler with colorful beads in it. Baby spins the tumbler and it makes one heck of a noise.
I was so excited to know that Gavin turned it with his hands all on his own whether or not it was intentional but the sound of the tumbling beads was immediately followed by a scream and cry.
Super Mom flew into action and ran into the living room to see what was the matter.
Nothing was the matter.
The sound of the beads scared the living daylights out of him. It was the saddest, cutest thing you could see. Fat tears were welling up in his big beautiful blue eyes then cascading down his equally fat cheeks. He raised his arms slightly when I came over for me to pick him up. It was so precious.
That's all. It was cute. He made a toy make noise then freaked out because it made noise.
Oh. I almost forgot! Gavin rolled over today. I almost missed it, too. He was laying on the floor squirming like babies do and next thing you know he pushed himself up and was suddenly on his back. I need to go put that in the baby book before I forget.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Teeth and Feet
Gavin's teeth, my feet.
Gavin has not one, not two but three teeth coming in! His two bottom teeth and one of his upper front teeth. This is naturally making for a grumpy baby with copious amounts of drool. I thought he drooled a lot before but now it is non-stop. There is a drool spigot that is left on - you could probably wring out his bib.
Despite teething and being grumpy for large parts of the day and waking up every 3 or so hours at night he still manages to give some pretty cute smiles and near laughs throughout the day. We've only heard him give a really good belly laugh a few times. We try to get him on video laughing but the second the camera comes out he quits his cute behavior and stares intently at the camera.
Well, I'll have to continue this later. I hear him waking up. He's going to be a hungry boy...
I'm back.
I had bible study tonight with my girls and we actually did our study, too. This week we were discussing reconciliation from chapter 8 from the study, Revival: ... I don't remember the rest of the title. We talked and talked and talked some more; it is what we do best. I don't know what I would do without my girlfriends to talk to every week. I would explode from the build up of words trying to escape my mouth.
So, to make this post even choppier I'm going to dive right into the foot topic.
I think I posted earlier about my feet. It all started because a friend wanted me and another friend to run a half marathon in September. I pushed the decision on to my friend who hates exercise even more than me. When she actually sounded interested I realized I had to do something, anything and fast.
In all seriousness my feet have bothered me for years. I didn't think there was anything seriously wrong with them other than maybe they had a touch of arthritis or something.
The or something turned out to be bunions. I used to think a bunion was a gross old lady growth like a wart or something. Wrong. It is when your foot changes shape because of a loose joint. The big toe drifts out of place and causes pain at various points on the foot.
Mr. Podiatrist x-rayed my foot and said the bunion is moderate to significant and there are a couple ways of fixing it. Orthotics - think old lady/grandma shoes, steroids for inflammation and injections in the toe of cortisone - something like that, or surgery for a permanent fix.
I'm 31 years old. I will NOT wear orthotics. As is I can't wear heels without great, great pain. If I have surgery I will be able to wear heels out to dinner.
Oh, happy day! And I will be able to walk up a hill without pain.
So I've opted to have the bunion fixed surgically. They take out a joint in the foot and fuse the bone and other joint together and the fix is 95% effective. While they are monkeying around in my foot they are going to repair a torn tendon in my ankle, too.
Here's the catch: the recovery time is 6 weeks. Maybe 8 with the additional repair of the ankle.
Here's the added wrinkle: I have a baby who depends on me.
Another dilemma: I will not be able to put any more weight on the affected side than just to tap the floor with my toes.
'Nother problemo: Stairs. I will not be able to leave the house because I would not be able to carry Gavin in his car seat (or not in his car seat for that matter) down the stairs on crutches.
Solution? Mother-in-law. Maybe. I hope. She doesn't know about any of this yet. I am hoping I can go stay with her for the first 2 weeks after surgery because I will be pretty much bed bound for the first two weeks.
The second two weeks I will be able to get around the house but will still be confined to staying inside as I will be unable to get Gavin in and out of the house.
Silver lining on the cloud: help. I can justify hiring someone to help with household chores for 2 solid months. Woo-hoo!!!
Speaking of hiring help, I am so tempted to hire a professional organizer. I know one person who does it and she would be a dream. It would be so nice to just give everything a place and set up systems so those things would stay in their place. Ryan and I are pretty good about sticking with a system but are not so good at implementing the systems.
This organizing feels like something we need to do before Gavin gets any older and acquires more stuff.
And about stuff, how do we teach him to not value 'stuff' when we ourselves have so much of it? His nanas and grandpas, aunts and uncles and our friends are all going to want to buy him stuff. We don't want more stuff, we don't need more stuff. I was thinking about birthday parties and holidays. Is it too extreme to do no gift birthday parties? Or request that if people insist of a gift that it be a book or clothes or a donation to his college fund or a donation to charity? Grandparents are going to shower him with toys that it will be overkill for everyone else to do the same.
Argh. We will be so unpopular. Oh, well.
Gavin has not one, not two but three teeth coming in! His two bottom teeth and one of his upper front teeth. This is naturally making for a grumpy baby with copious amounts of drool. I thought he drooled a lot before but now it is non-stop. There is a drool spigot that is left on - you could probably wring out his bib.
Despite teething and being grumpy for large parts of the day and waking up every 3 or so hours at night he still manages to give some pretty cute smiles and near laughs throughout the day. We've only heard him give a really good belly laugh a few times. We try to get him on video laughing but the second the camera comes out he quits his cute behavior and stares intently at the camera.
Well, I'll have to continue this later. I hear him waking up. He's going to be a hungry boy...
I'm back.
I had bible study tonight with my girls and we actually did our study, too. This week we were discussing reconciliation from chapter 8 from the study, Revival: ... I don't remember the rest of the title. We talked and talked and talked some more; it is what we do best. I don't know what I would do without my girlfriends to talk to every week. I would explode from the build up of words trying to escape my mouth.
So, to make this post even choppier I'm going to dive right into the foot topic.
I think I posted earlier about my feet. It all started because a friend wanted me and another friend to run a half marathon in September. I pushed the decision on to my friend who hates exercise even more than me. When she actually sounded interested I realized I had to do something, anything and fast.
In all seriousness my feet have bothered me for years. I didn't think there was anything seriously wrong with them other than maybe they had a touch of arthritis or something.
The or something turned out to be bunions. I used to think a bunion was a gross old lady growth like a wart or something. Wrong. It is when your foot changes shape because of a loose joint. The big toe drifts out of place and causes pain at various points on the foot.
Mr. Podiatrist x-rayed my foot and said the bunion is moderate to significant and there are a couple ways of fixing it. Orthotics - think old lady/grandma shoes, steroids for inflammation and injections in the toe of cortisone - something like that, or surgery for a permanent fix.
I'm 31 years old. I will NOT wear orthotics. As is I can't wear heels without great, great pain. If I have surgery I will be able to wear heels out to dinner.
Oh, happy day! And I will be able to walk up a hill without pain.
So I've opted to have the bunion fixed surgically. They take out a joint in the foot and fuse the bone and other joint together and the fix is 95% effective. While they are monkeying around in my foot they are going to repair a torn tendon in my ankle, too.
Here's the catch: the recovery time is 6 weeks. Maybe 8 with the additional repair of the ankle.
Here's the added wrinkle: I have a baby who depends on me.
Another dilemma: I will not be able to put any more weight on the affected side than just to tap the floor with my toes.
'Nother problemo: Stairs. I will not be able to leave the house because I would not be able to carry Gavin in his car seat (or not in his car seat for that matter) down the stairs on crutches.
Solution? Mother-in-law. Maybe. I hope. She doesn't know about any of this yet. I am hoping I can go stay with her for the first 2 weeks after surgery because I will be pretty much bed bound for the first two weeks.
The second two weeks I will be able to get around the house but will still be confined to staying inside as I will be unable to get Gavin in and out of the house.
Silver lining on the cloud: help. I can justify hiring someone to help with household chores for 2 solid months. Woo-hoo!!!
Speaking of hiring help, I am so tempted to hire a professional organizer. I know one person who does it and she would be a dream. It would be so nice to just give everything a place and set up systems so those things would stay in their place. Ryan and I are pretty good about sticking with a system but are not so good at implementing the systems.
This organizing feels like something we need to do before Gavin gets any older and acquires more stuff.
And about stuff, how do we teach him to not value 'stuff' when we ourselves have so much of it? His nanas and grandpas, aunts and uncles and our friends are all going to want to buy him stuff. We don't want more stuff, we don't need more stuff. I was thinking about birthday parties and holidays. Is it too extreme to do no gift birthday parties? Or request that if people insist of a gift that it be a book or clothes or a donation to his college fund or a donation to charity? Grandparents are going to shower him with toys that it will be overkill for everyone else to do the same.
Argh. We will be so unpopular. Oh, well.
Friday, March 07, 2008
Erupting
It's not big enough to take a picture of otherwise I would but... Gavin's first tooth is popping up! Woo-hoo. I only knew it was there because I felt it when he was chewing on my finger. It is his bottom right little tooth. He's only 4.5 months so it is a little on the early side for him to be sprouting teeth but it's going to be so cute!
This new addition to his gum line is probably the reason he quit sleeping through the night. Poor little guy - it hurts. I remember how uncomfortable it was when my wisdom teeth tried to push their way up through my gums (I say tried because as soon as they started I went and had them pulled). I didn't find the process painful; everyone told me it was going to be super painful. Of course I did have vicodin to take for the pain which I did take the first day and a half; after that I realized I was taking it pre-emptively and maybe I should stop and see if I actually needed it. Nope. It wasn't so bad.
I sure was loopy, though with the sedatives. I remember the nurse asking me to count to 10 as she gave me the medicine. I think I made it to 3 before everything went black. After what felt like the best rest of my life a strange woman (the nurse) was looming over me all fuzzy like telling me to wake up. Through my slitted eyes I saw her and my mom, also very fuzzy looking and my friend Matt. I didn't care who was in the room. I wanted to go back to sleep. So I just shut my eyes again but that darn nurse wanted me to leave!
At this point I knew I was heavily sedated and wanted to know if there was an elevator we could take down to the parking lot since I knew there was no way I would be able to make it down the stairs that I used to come up to the office earlier in the morning.
I clearly asked the nurse, "Is there an elevator?" What everyone around me heard was, "Ish air vadr?" I could not understand the bland looks I was getting from everyone because I was articulating my words so very clearly. Realizing they were all dense and couldn't understand the spoken word I took to sign language and spelled out elevator - no one knew sign language so I can't confirm I actually spelled the words correctly or not.
Realizing they didn't know ASL (I only know the ABC's) I started gesturing with my hands to show doors opening and closing. I guess Matt figured out what I was asking and told me that we were going to fly down to the parking lot. I don't recall if I glared at him or not.
Getting outside was a blur but the next thing I remember is facing a seemingly insurmountable obstacle: the curb. Standing tall at 8 feet, or so it felt, the curb looked really, really far down there. My mom and Matt each took a side so I could step down. Whew. That was scary.
When we got home mom fed me my pain pills with some milkshake. My face was numb, almost as numb as my brain. I couldn't manage the spoon so mom put the pill on top of the ice cream on the spoon and put it in my mouth. Then she did something that I find HILARIOUS!
When I drooled some of the ice cream on my chin she scooped it up with the next spoonful of ice cream and put it in my mouth. I guess I will always be her baby.
Speaking of mom, she and dad are coming up tomorrow for a brief visit. I am excited to see them and really excited that they can hold Gavin and entertain him so I can fold the 4 baskets, hamper and dryer full of clean clothes. Good times.
This new addition to his gum line is probably the reason he quit sleeping through the night. Poor little guy - it hurts. I remember how uncomfortable it was when my wisdom teeth tried to push their way up through my gums (I say tried because as soon as they started I went and had them pulled). I didn't find the process painful; everyone told me it was going to be super painful. Of course I did have vicodin to take for the pain which I did take the first day and a half; after that I realized I was taking it pre-emptively and maybe I should stop and see if I actually needed it. Nope. It wasn't so bad.
I sure was loopy, though with the sedatives. I remember the nurse asking me to count to 10 as she gave me the medicine. I think I made it to 3 before everything went black. After what felt like the best rest of my life a strange woman (the nurse) was looming over me all fuzzy like telling me to wake up. Through my slitted eyes I saw her and my mom, also very fuzzy looking and my friend Matt. I didn't care who was in the room. I wanted to go back to sleep. So I just shut my eyes again but that darn nurse wanted me to leave!
At this point I knew I was heavily sedated and wanted to know if there was an elevator we could take down to the parking lot since I knew there was no way I would be able to make it down the stairs that I used to come up to the office earlier in the morning.
I clearly asked the nurse, "Is there an elevator?" What everyone around me heard was, "Ish air vadr?" I could not understand the bland looks I was getting from everyone because I was articulating my words so very clearly. Realizing they were all dense and couldn't understand the spoken word I took to sign language and spelled out elevator - no one knew sign language so I can't confirm I actually spelled the words correctly or not.
Realizing they didn't know ASL (I only know the ABC's) I started gesturing with my hands to show doors opening and closing. I guess Matt figured out what I was asking and told me that we were going to fly down to the parking lot. I don't recall if I glared at him or not.
Getting outside was a blur but the next thing I remember is facing a seemingly insurmountable obstacle: the curb. Standing tall at 8 feet, or so it felt, the curb looked really, really far down there. My mom and Matt each took a side so I could step down. Whew. That was scary.
When we got home mom fed me my pain pills with some milkshake. My face was numb, almost as numb as my brain. I couldn't manage the spoon so mom put the pill on top of the ice cream on the spoon and put it in my mouth. Then she did something that I find HILARIOUS!
When I drooled some of the ice cream on my chin she scooped it up with the next spoonful of ice cream and put it in my mouth. I guess I will always be her baby.
Speaking of mom, she and dad are coming up tomorrow for a brief visit. I am excited to see them and really excited that they can hold Gavin and entertain him so I can fold the 4 baskets, hamper and dryer full of clean clothes. Good times.
Monday, March 03, 2008
Found
Gavin 'found his voice' a couple of weeks ago. He started babbling and sputtering. It melts my heart. Within the last few days Gavin found that in addition to making sounds he can regulate the volume with which he expresses himself verbally. It pierces my ears.
Ladies and Gentlemen, we have here a screamer. Screaming is a fun activity that can tell Mom and Dad, "I'm having a blast!" or, "Wow! My hands are fun to suck on!" or, "Wow! I have a cute Buddha belly!". Screaming also indicates, "I'm hungry." "Didn't I tell you I was hungry two seconds ago? Feed me! Feed me NOW." "I'm tired and not happy about it!"
He and Ryan are sleeping right now; I should go to bed now before it gets too late since Gavin has taken to not sleeping through the night again. It's no where near as bad as it was before we had our two weeks of 10 hours of sleep from the tyke. Now he 'only' wakes up somewhere between 2:30 and 4:30 and then again between 6:30 and 7:00. Fortunately he still likes to go back to sleep after eating but he does like to scream really, really loud before he succumbs to the sandman. I had no idea babies scream so much. It is insane!
By the way, a couple of weeks ago I posted about what I thought was a grammatically incorrect question on a Barnes and Noble book display that read, "Whom would you have coffee with?" I asked my friend Tyler who is a technical writer if that statement/question was indeed wrong. It is not incorrect although he did say grammar snobs (my words) would not choose to word it that way. So I'm a grammar snob who is very guilty of poor grammar herself. Would that make me a grammatical hypocrite or guilty of grammar hypocrisy?
Sunday, March 02, 2008
Saturday, March 01, 2008
Broken
My TiVo remote is broken. Ryan disagrees. He thinks it needs new batteries and I think he's wrong. The remote worked fine for well over a year on one set of batteries that we changed out last month when the remote started acting up. Here it is one month later and the remote only works at random which kind of sucks when you try fast-forwarding through commercials and it just keeps fast forwarding long after you hit the play button. Of course I don't just press the play button once or twice I jab it over and over with my thumb each time with a little more force. After many attempts the next logical step is to hold the remote at a different angle, then stand up and move closer to the TiVo box.
Nothing worked.
I just wanted to veg and watch a little TV before I went to bed. I could watch TV live but I don't want to watch just any show that is playing, besides what is playing on a Saturday night that is any good? My real beef is that I would have to endure commercials. Lame-o.
Hm, I'm feeling a tad grumpy so I think I will take this time to vent about some stuff that in the grand scheme of things are really not that important.
A person who buys a TiVo, or any brand of DVR, usually does so because they want to skip commercials. They don't care about the products being pushed. Of course ad agencies and the companies selling their products get concerned that they are spending big bucks to promote their product during a TV show that we would otherwise die without and we the viewer/consumer are just going to see the commercial in a blur as we fast forward past it.
What is their solution? To put advertisements in the TV show folders (kind of like on your computer - if you watch "Lost" and have more than one episode recorded it will have a folder labeled "Lost" and when you go into the folder each episode is labeled and at the end of the list of the episodes will be a star and an invitation to view a cool new product).
TiVo is not a free service. We pay for it. We pay to not watch commercials. Then TiVo, while charging us for its service to have this great technology where we can skip commercials, allows advertisers to sneak their propaganda in anyway. Sure, we don't have to open the advertisement but it is still annoying - like pop up ads on the Internet.
So, if you happen to watch a commercial that is advertising another show you will often see a green thumbs up picture in the corner of the screen that says, "Push (thumbs up picture) to record". Nothing will make that thumbs up picture go away, not even pushing the thumbs down button.
Then, the last in my little list of rants, is the ever irksome pop ups that spring to life at the bottom, or top or side of your screen while you are watching a show. We all encounter the pop ups. I hate the pop ups. They are distracting and if they are big enough they can obscure subtitles at the bottom of the screen.
See, none of the annoyances are life shattering.
Ryan needs to fix the smoke detector in the downstairs bedroom. It keeps chirping. It may need new batteries but I don't know where the batteries are. Besides, I'm afraid if I try to put in new batteries I will set the alarm off and wake up Gavin. I'll just have to live with the incessant chirping until I go to bed and hopefully the sound of the fan will drown out the sound.
Know what else is annoying? Animal fur. Seriously. Do they have to shed so much fur all the time?
We have two cats, Gwen and Bob. Gwen is a beautiful white cat; a beautiful fat white cat with long fur. Bob, Gwen's sister, is a tortoise shell calico with even longer fur than Gwen. Then we have Kea, the yellow lab. She deposits lots and lots of short yellow fur and the fur from her soft white fuzzy undercoat.
I sweep the floors every couple of days and collect enough fur to knit a small sweater. OK, I've never knit a sweater, small or otherwise, but it looks like it would be a sufficient amount. Heaven forbid I neglect to sweep midweek for if that happens we have tumbleweeds of fur floating about the house. It is too much.
One day our pets will die; hopefully not all on one day - that would be very, very sad. We figure Kea will go when Gavin is between 7 and 10 years old and the cats will be a few years behind the dog although Gwen is such a lard bucket that she could go when ever. Anyway, after the pets die and teach Gavin about life and death, he and his siblings will eventually want more pets. They can have more pets but they can not have a long haired cat! They can not have a dog that sheds!
I'm very tempted to shave the cats. Very. Our local PetCo doesn't do cat grooming so I need to find someone who does and take the cats in for a good trimming. I don't want to make them bald. OK, I want to make them bald, save their head and tail, but I won't go all the way to skin. We won't bic the cats.
I just heard a car door; Ryan must be home. He is not going to like the state of the TiVo remote since he is going to want to watch TV after a grueling game of soccer.
Turns out he is also annoyed by the smoke detector. Also a little annoyed at me since I didn't do anything to the smoke detector and that I didn't try new batteries in the remote.
Eh.
Nothing worked.
I just wanted to veg and watch a little TV before I went to bed. I could watch TV live but I don't want to watch just any show that is playing, besides what is playing on a Saturday night that is any good? My real beef is that I would have to endure commercials. Lame-o.
Hm, I'm feeling a tad grumpy so I think I will take this time to vent about some stuff that in the grand scheme of things are really not that important.
A person who buys a TiVo, or any brand of DVR, usually does so because they want to skip commercials. They don't care about the products being pushed. Of course ad agencies and the companies selling their products get concerned that they are spending big bucks to promote their product during a TV show that we would otherwise die without and we the viewer/consumer are just going to see the commercial in a blur as we fast forward past it.
What is their solution? To put advertisements in the TV show folders (kind of like on your computer - if you watch "Lost" and have more than one episode recorded it will have a folder labeled "Lost" and when you go into the folder each episode is labeled and at the end of the list of the episodes will be a star and an invitation to view a cool new product).
TiVo is not a free service. We pay for it. We pay to not watch commercials. Then TiVo, while charging us for its service to have this great technology where we can skip commercials, allows advertisers to sneak their propaganda in anyway. Sure, we don't have to open the advertisement but it is still annoying - like pop up ads on the Internet.
So, if you happen to watch a commercial that is advertising another show you will often see a green thumbs up picture in the corner of the screen that says, "Push (thumbs up picture) to record". Nothing will make that thumbs up picture go away, not even pushing the thumbs down button.
Then, the last in my little list of rants, is the ever irksome pop ups that spring to life at the bottom, or top or side of your screen while you are watching a show. We all encounter the pop ups. I hate the pop ups. They are distracting and if they are big enough they can obscure subtitles at the bottom of the screen.
See, none of the annoyances are life shattering.
Ryan needs to fix the smoke detector in the downstairs bedroom. It keeps chirping. It may need new batteries but I don't know where the batteries are. Besides, I'm afraid if I try to put in new batteries I will set the alarm off and wake up Gavin. I'll just have to live with the incessant chirping until I go to bed and hopefully the sound of the fan will drown out the sound.
Know what else is annoying? Animal fur. Seriously. Do they have to shed so much fur all the time?
We have two cats, Gwen and Bob. Gwen is a beautiful white cat; a beautiful fat white cat with long fur. Bob, Gwen's sister, is a tortoise shell calico with even longer fur than Gwen. Then we have Kea, the yellow lab. She deposits lots and lots of short yellow fur and the fur from her soft white fuzzy undercoat.
I sweep the floors every couple of days and collect enough fur to knit a small sweater. OK, I've never knit a sweater, small or otherwise, but it looks like it would be a sufficient amount. Heaven forbid I neglect to sweep midweek for if that happens we have tumbleweeds of fur floating about the house. It is too much.
One day our pets will die; hopefully not all on one day - that would be very, very sad. We figure Kea will go when Gavin is between 7 and 10 years old and the cats will be a few years behind the dog although Gwen is such a lard bucket that she could go when ever. Anyway, after the pets die and teach Gavin about life and death, he and his siblings will eventually want more pets. They can have more pets but they can not have a long haired cat! They can not have a dog that sheds!
I'm very tempted to shave the cats. Very. Our local PetCo doesn't do cat grooming so I need to find someone who does and take the cats in for a good trimming. I don't want to make them bald. OK, I want to make them bald, save their head and tail, but I won't go all the way to skin. We won't bic the cats.
I just heard a car door; Ryan must be home. He is not going to like the state of the TiVo remote since he is going to want to watch TV after a grueling game of soccer.
Turns out he is also annoyed by the smoke detector. Also a little annoyed at me since I didn't do anything to the smoke detector and that I didn't try new batteries in the remote.
Eh.
Monday, February 25, 2008
10 days and counting
It is 9:31 and Gavin is asleep. Ryan is upstairs watching the boob tube and I'm down here writing this. I originally came downstairs to throw wash a load of diapers and to dredge up a recipe for lemon liqueur. But to do the laundry I have to walk by the office with the computer. I can't just leave after starting the laundry. I have to check my e-mail; then Facebook, then of course see if anyone left a comment on my blog.
Some friends had us over for dinner the other night. Their house was so incredibly clean even in the midst of their remodel that it made Ryan and I realize that we are just messy, messy people. We always have an excuse. First it was the remodel of the kitchen. Then it was the remodel of the basement. Now it is the baby. Actually, the house is cleaner now that we have Gavin than when we didn't have him. The mess we have now is usually baskets of clean laundry in the living room along with the exersaucer, bouncy chair, car seat, basket of diapers and wipes and my breast feeding pillow.
I am holding out hope that the house will soon be clean. Well, it is clean if we are talking about germs. I do clean and dust and wash up. We are not so good with being tidy or getting rid of stuff we don't use/need/want. Since we brought all of our stuff back from storage we have purged a car load of stuff. I even convinced Ryan to get rid of the fake ivy that he had in the kitchen at the old house. A lesser wife would have tossed it when he wasn't looking. I was very tempted to be a lesser wife.
The other day I went through one of the many boxes that I have to go through and found all of our framed pictures and realized I don't really like all of the frames and the pictures are old. I'm going to take all of the pictures out and get rid of the frames. One box down a million boxes to go.
When am I going to find time to go through all of the boxes you ask? Well, how about in the evenings when Gavin is asleep? Yep. The little cutie patootie has decided he should sleep through the night. We are on day 10 of sleeping through the night!
Rest is amazing! It does a body good - and a disposition. Each day as I climb out of my sleep deficit I am less and less grouchy. I am not looking for a fight, not thinking disparaging thoughts of the dolt who cut me off (well, maybe disparaging but not vengeful). Hallelujah!
Back to the dinner with the friends. After dinner we sat around the living room chatting, playing with our uber cute baby and one of the friends piped up and said she didn't get blogging. It was lame. She didn't say it was lame but it was not at all an unrealistic conclusion to draw from her statements about it as they were coupled with her sour-ish facial expressions. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Ryan motioning with his hand across his neck like, "stop" then he pointed at me and made some typing motions. I thought it was funny.
What I thought was even funnier is when she said she could understand blogging because we have a baby. They have friends who have blogs who post pictures of their babies. I could have let it go but I was having fun. I told her I had the blog long before Gavin was born but I didn't tell her that I don't post pictures all that frequently. (You will just have to deal with my lack of picture posting, people).
I don't expect everyone to enjoy blogging nor do I expect everyone to enjoy reading another's blog but how anyone could not enjoy reading mine is beyond me. Ask my husband, he might know. He doesn’t read it (boo). To be fair he knows everything I write about so to him it would be torture to read about something he experienced already or I told him about since he can't stand to hear a story more than once.
That makes me curious about something. How is it that he can not remember a book he read or movie he saw, or some of our dates (or which date he took to which restaurant -that's always fun) but he can remember every story I ever told him?
What's not entertaining about crying babies, infected boobs, homeless people ringing your door bell in the middle of the night and dirty diapers? C'mon! It doesn't get any better than this. Well, I think Swell & Sheepie's blog is the best. (See the link on my home page).
Tomorrow is going to be a fun day. First I go see Dr. Fiala - the best doctor in all of West Seattle. Aw, shucks, the best in all of Seattle. She really is great. My feet have been bothering me for a long time. Since before I was pregnant. But then when I was pregnant a lot of the foot stuff seemed pretty well linked to the weight gain and ever fun water retention.
I'm not going to go into a lot of detail about the feet because it is a boring subject. The reason I bring it up is because the outcome of the visit may be my undoing.
Last week I went to a new restaurant called Shadow Lands in West Seattle with Heidi and Krissy. Heidi is crazy. She is crazy because she runs. Last year she ran the New York marathon. Now she "just" runs half marathons. She looked at Krissy and me and said, "You have time to train for the half marathon in September."
Krissy and my response, "Ha! ha ha ha ha ha ha ha *gasp* ha ha ha ha ha"!
Heidi is not one to give up so easily so I said, "I will if Krissy does." I said that knowing full well Krissy would never in a million years say yes. Krissy is the one person I know who hates exercise more than me.
What do I know? Krissy's 30th birthday is right around the time of the half marathon and she think that it might be a neat thing to do.
Gyar!
Since Krissy caught me off guard I had to think of something fast! "My knees are bad", I said. "My feet have been hurting me", I offered up weakly. So, I'm off to see the doctor about my feet to see what's up with them and to see if running is a safe exercise for me or not.
Having said all of that about exercise and hating it I am trying to convince Ryan we should join the gym. I could pick him up after work and we would plop the G with the gym's babysitter and we could go exercise. And during the day if I needed a break I could go to the gym and swim or hang out in the sauna. I think he likes the idea because he hates the bus he takes to work since it is really crowded and smelly.
Some friends had us over for dinner the other night. Their house was so incredibly clean even in the midst of their remodel that it made Ryan and I realize that we are just messy, messy people. We always have an excuse. First it was the remodel of the kitchen. Then it was the remodel of the basement. Now it is the baby. Actually, the house is cleaner now that we have Gavin than when we didn't have him. The mess we have now is usually baskets of clean laundry in the living room along with the exersaucer, bouncy chair, car seat, basket of diapers and wipes and my breast feeding pillow.
I am holding out hope that the house will soon be clean. Well, it is clean if we are talking about germs. I do clean and dust and wash up. We are not so good with being tidy or getting rid of stuff we don't use/need/want. Since we brought all of our stuff back from storage we have purged a car load of stuff. I even convinced Ryan to get rid of the fake ivy that he had in the kitchen at the old house. A lesser wife would have tossed it when he wasn't looking. I was very tempted to be a lesser wife.
The other day I went through one of the many boxes that I have to go through and found all of our framed pictures and realized I don't really like all of the frames and the pictures are old. I'm going to take all of the pictures out and get rid of the frames. One box down a million boxes to go.
When am I going to find time to go through all of the boxes you ask? Well, how about in the evenings when Gavin is asleep? Yep. The little cutie patootie has decided he should sleep through the night. We are on day 10 of sleeping through the night!
Rest is amazing! It does a body good - and a disposition. Each day as I climb out of my sleep deficit I am less and less grouchy. I am not looking for a fight, not thinking disparaging thoughts of the dolt who cut me off (well, maybe disparaging but not vengeful). Hallelujah!
Back to the dinner with the friends. After dinner we sat around the living room chatting, playing with our uber cute baby and one of the friends piped up and said she didn't get blogging. It was lame. She didn't say it was lame but it was not at all an unrealistic conclusion to draw from her statements about it as they were coupled with her sour-ish facial expressions. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Ryan motioning with his hand across his neck like, "stop" then he pointed at me and made some typing motions. I thought it was funny.
What I thought was even funnier is when she said she could understand blogging because we have a baby. They have friends who have blogs who post pictures of their babies. I could have let it go but I was having fun. I told her I had the blog long before Gavin was born but I didn't tell her that I don't post pictures all that frequently. (You will just have to deal with my lack of picture posting, people).
I don't expect everyone to enjoy blogging nor do I expect everyone to enjoy reading another's blog but how anyone could not enjoy reading mine is beyond me. Ask my husband, he might know. He doesn’t read it (boo). To be fair he knows everything I write about so to him it would be torture to read about something he experienced already or I told him about since he can't stand to hear a story more than once.
That makes me curious about something. How is it that he can not remember a book he read or movie he saw, or some of our dates (or which date he took to which restaurant -that's always fun) but he can remember every story I ever told him?
What's not entertaining about crying babies, infected boobs, homeless people ringing your door bell in the middle of the night and dirty diapers? C'mon! It doesn't get any better than this. Well, I think Swell & Sheepie's blog is the best. (See the link on my home page).
Tomorrow is going to be a fun day. First I go see Dr. Fiala - the best doctor in all of West Seattle. Aw, shucks, the best in all of Seattle. She really is great. My feet have been bothering me for a long time. Since before I was pregnant. But then when I was pregnant a lot of the foot stuff seemed pretty well linked to the weight gain and ever fun water retention.
I'm not going to go into a lot of detail about the feet because it is a boring subject. The reason I bring it up is because the outcome of the visit may be my undoing.
Last week I went to a new restaurant called Shadow Lands in West Seattle with Heidi and Krissy. Heidi is crazy. She is crazy because she runs. Last year she ran the New York marathon. Now she "just" runs half marathons. She looked at Krissy and me and said, "You have time to train for the half marathon in September."
Krissy and my response, "Ha! ha ha ha ha ha ha ha *gasp* ha ha ha ha ha"!
Heidi is not one to give up so easily so I said, "I will if Krissy does." I said that knowing full well Krissy would never in a million years say yes. Krissy is the one person I know who hates exercise more than me.
What do I know? Krissy's 30th birthday is right around the time of the half marathon and she think that it might be a neat thing to do.
Gyar!
Since Krissy caught me off guard I had to think of something fast! "My knees are bad", I said. "My feet have been hurting me", I offered up weakly. So, I'm off to see the doctor about my feet to see what's up with them and to see if running is a safe exercise for me or not.
Having said all of that about exercise and hating it I am trying to convince Ryan we should join the gym. I could pick him up after work and we would plop the G with the gym's babysitter and we could go exercise. And during the day if I needed a break I could go to the gym and swim or hang out in the sauna. I think he likes the idea because he hates the bus he takes to work since it is really crowded and smelly.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
He's Baaack..., Hair Balls & The Deterioration of the English Language
There are three things I've wanted to write about for the last couple of weeks but I don't have enough time, or desire, to write volumes on the subjects so I'm just going to lump them all in one and if my energy level doesn't waver I may write about nutty housecleaning. Oh, boy.
He's baaack...
I think I saw Red Van Man the other day. He was clean shaven so it took a second for it to register that it was Red Van Man. Since he hasn't been living in his van across the street I am going to assume he has a (stationary) roof over his head. Good for him. I hope he is doing well. Another indication of his move up was his newer wheels. He is now driving a nicer version of his old van, this one is blue.
Hair balls
They aren't so much hair balls as they are just loads of hair. My hair. Many people believe that when a woman is pregnant she grows more hair because her hair becomes very thick. I don't think pregnancy causes a woman to grow more hair rather I think that the normal 100 hundred or so strands that a person normally loses in a day are diminished. I almost forgot how much hair I used to pull from my comb after shampooing my hair. Since I was blessed with a thick mane I am not too concerned about the hair loss I am currently experiencing. I think it is just a little more than normal since I am breast feeding and my hormone levels are at a menopausal level.
Exciting stuff, this hair loss.
The Deterioration of the English Language
I am not an English major and do not make any claims to have a superior command of said language nor do I believe that my English is horrendous.
Having said that, can you tell me if this sounds off to you: "Whom would you like to have coffee with?"
If you frequent Barnes and Noble that statement may look familiar to you as it is displayed prominently on a stand promoting books by famous authors.
Should it not read: "With whom would you like to have coffee?"?
One would think the display at the bookstore would not have such a glaring error. English buffs please tell me if I am right.
And, yes, I am a dork for caring. : ) (And for using the archaic smiley face like I do).
He's baaack...
I think I saw Red Van Man the other day. He was clean shaven so it took a second for it to register that it was Red Van Man. Since he hasn't been living in his van across the street I am going to assume he has a (stationary) roof over his head. Good for him. I hope he is doing well. Another indication of his move up was his newer wheels. He is now driving a nicer version of his old van, this one is blue.
Hair balls
They aren't so much hair balls as they are just loads of hair. My hair. Many people believe that when a woman is pregnant she grows more hair because her hair becomes very thick. I don't think pregnancy causes a woman to grow more hair rather I think that the normal 100 hundred or so strands that a person normally loses in a day are diminished. I almost forgot how much hair I used to pull from my comb after shampooing my hair. Since I was blessed with a thick mane I am not too concerned about the hair loss I am currently experiencing. I think it is just a little more than normal since I am breast feeding and my hormone levels are at a menopausal level.
Exciting stuff, this hair loss.
The Deterioration of the English Language
I am not an English major and do not make any claims to have a superior command of said language nor do I believe that my English is horrendous.
Having said that, can you tell me if this sounds off to you: "Whom would you like to have coffee with?"
If you frequent Barnes and Noble that statement may look familiar to you as it is displayed prominently on a stand promoting books by famous authors.
Should it not read: "With whom would you like to have coffee?"?
One would think the display at the bookstore would not have such a glaring error. English buffs please tell me if I am right.
And, yes, I am a dork for caring. : ) (And for using the archaic smiley face like I do).
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Fluke?
Gavin did last night what we thought he would never do. I put him in our room in his swing at 10:30 shortly after Ryan went to bed. Since I had a nap earlier in the day I stayed up and cleaned the kitchen and watched an Oprah show before going to bed shortly after midnight. At 7:30 I woke up feeling kind of refreshed which was an odd sensation so I propped myself up on my elbow and peered over Ryan to squint at his alarm clock. When it registered that Gavin didn't wake up all night long I quickly looked over at him to see if he was alive (most parents do that after their baby sleeps for a long stretch for the first time). He moved his head as if to say, "Hey, Mom."
I fell back asleep for another hour. It was great.
Little G got a bath before church since his diaper was not designed to collect waste for 10 hours. I need to figure out a better nighttime diaper system since we switched to cloth. A disposable diaper would have leaked after that long, too but the cloth diaper just leaked a lot more. There is a diaper called Bum Genius that you launder like normal cloth diapers but it is one size that will grow with the baby from infancy to toddler hood. You have to see it to believe it but a series of snaps allows you to make the diaper smaller or bigger depending on the baby. It has a terry cloth liner that is super absorbent but you have to wash the wrap and the inside liner every time it is used unlike the traditional cloth diaper system.
It is too good to be true. One Bum Genius diaper cost $17. $17 for one diaper! Sure you can use it over and over again but you will want to buy 30 or 60 depending on how frequently you do laundry. The traditional cloth diapers (the kind we were in as babies) are about $1 each plus the cost of the wrap (about $7). I bought 60 cloth diapers and 4 wraps.
Hm, this diaper talk can't be to exciting for the non-parents out there reading this. There are whole websites devoted to cloth diapers. I perused the sites when looking for the best kind of diaper for us. The Bum Genius, G Diaper, Fuzzi Bunz, blah, blah, blah. The choices are overwhelming.
I'm hiding right now. Well, Ryan knows where I am but I had to get away from the incessant crying today. Gavin slept 10 hours and was in a great mood until church let out. It was all downhill from there. I suspect he is going to have a tooth popping out soon. He has been biting me a lot lately. He bites hard. Owie! Last night he wouldn't quit biting so I closed my bra and told him the bar was closed. I almost hope it's a tooth; at least that would explain why he has been in such a foul mood the last couple of days. Even when he is sleeping he wears a perma-scowl. It's cute when he's asleep but man, once he wakes up its "wah, yah, yah, yah".
Time for me to leave hiding. It's been long enough that Ryan probably needs a break.
I fell back asleep for another hour. It was great.
Little G got a bath before church since his diaper was not designed to collect waste for 10 hours. I need to figure out a better nighttime diaper system since we switched to cloth. A disposable diaper would have leaked after that long, too but the cloth diaper just leaked a lot more. There is a diaper called Bum Genius that you launder like normal cloth diapers but it is one size that will grow with the baby from infancy to toddler hood. You have to see it to believe it but a series of snaps allows you to make the diaper smaller or bigger depending on the baby. It has a terry cloth liner that is super absorbent but you have to wash the wrap and the inside liner every time it is used unlike the traditional cloth diaper system.
It is too good to be true. One Bum Genius diaper cost $17. $17 for one diaper! Sure you can use it over and over again but you will want to buy 30 or 60 depending on how frequently you do laundry. The traditional cloth diapers (the kind we were in as babies) are about $1 each plus the cost of the wrap (about $7). I bought 60 cloth diapers and 4 wraps.
Hm, this diaper talk can't be to exciting for the non-parents out there reading this. There are whole websites devoted to cloth diapers. I perused the sites when looking for the best kind of diaper for us. The Bum Genius, G Diaper, Fuzzi Bunz, blah, blah, blah. The choices are overwhelming.
I'm hiding right now. Well, Ryan knows where I am but I had to get away from the incessant crying today. Gavin slept 10 hours and was in a great mood until church let out. It was all downhill from there. I suspect he is going to have a tooth popping out soon. He has been biting me a lot lately. He bites hard. Owie! Last night he wouldn't quit biting so I closed my bra and told him the bar was closed. I almost hope it's a tooth; at least that would explain why he has been in such a foul mood the last couple of days. Even when he is sleeping he wears a perma-scowl. It's cute when he's asleep but man, once he wakes up its "wah, yah, yah, yah".
Time for me to leave hiding. It's been long enough that Ryan probably needs a break.
Monday, February 11, 2008
Trepidation
It seems hard to believe there is a subject matter that I would hesitate to write about. If you read my previous post you understand what I mean. I wrote an entire post on my right boob. Really. Read it. It's all about my boob.
What is it that causes me such inner turmoil that I am nervous as I am sitting here in our office space writing this? I'm fumbling for the right words to use. How do I break this news? I can hardly believe it myself. I tell myself that it is temporary and that I am at the core the same person. But am I?
My friends' husband is in the same boat as am I. We are both shocked by our actions but it seemed like the only answer. I have a sneaking suspicion he is not shouting from the rooftops what he did anymore than I am. This is as close to rooftop shouting as I get.
I'm not completely aware of the issues at hand but I do know that there is one outcome that I would find utterly unacceptable. Once I write about this there is no going back. By putting forth what I have done there is no denying it. I may lose friends over it. Well, I won't lose friends but I have a feeling I may receive a frantic phone call from my brother Joel. Maybe this will be what it takes to actually cause a rift between me and my brothers. I do not want a rift but this is so incredibly huge that...
Well, I'm just going to have to kill the suspense because at the rate I'm going you may think I'm going to prison or something. (If my brother could have his way he would probably lock me up until after November).
Ooh, was that some foreshadowing or what?
Yes, my actions are related to politics.
On this past Saturday, February the 9th, 2008 at 1:00 in the afternoon I caucused. I caucused as a Democrat.
Yes, my Republican readership, I jumped ship if only for a moment. Although I do not have to explain myself to anyone I want to. To my family: do not disown me. Ike, don't turn me into CPS as I'm sure you think I'm unfit to parent if I have any persuasions of a Democrat.
I caucused as a Democrat for Barack Obama because he seems like an agent of change because he is putting forth the word that the agents of change are we the people not the government and he is relatively speaking, new to politics. The other reason I caucused for Obama is because I know a democrat is going to win the election in the Fall and I'll be damned if it is going to be Hilary Clinton. I viewed my actions as much a statement for Barack Obama as a statement against Hilary Clinton.
For those of you who did not caucus I must say you missed out on an incredible event. Everyone I talked to said it was such a great feeling to be so connected to one's community and see the massive turnout. Ryan and I drove to our caucus site only to turn around and drive home and walk back as there was no parking anywhere near the school. People were out in droves walking to the school. From our precinct Barack Obama received 6 of the delegate votes and Hilary Clinton received 1. It sounded like that was the case for the other precincts as well.
I had to bite my tongue as the Democratic Reps talked about the gubernatorial race and how close it was last time and how they didn't want a repeat. If you don't live in Washington are not aware of the race 4 years ago between Governor Christine Gregoire and Dino Rossi it came down to 33 or so votes.
Dino Rossi won the first vote. It was close so a recount was ordered. Gregoire's share of votes increased as ballots were discovered as 'lost'. Dino Rossi won the recount. But Gregoire wanted another count. More ballots were miraculously discovered. She won the third and final count. Best one out of three wins, I guess.
It is time for me to turn my attention to a book I have upstairs on vaccinations as Gavin is due for some shots. I want to be well informed before I have him injected with who-knows-what. I'm reading a book recommended to me by my doctor. When I'm done with that book I may turn my attention back to politics so I can read up and become a better informed voter for this Fall.
What is it that causes me such inner turmoil that I am nervous as I am sitting here in our office space writing this? I'm fumbling for the right words to use. How do I break this news? I can hardly believe it myself. I tell myself that it is temporary and that I am at the core the same person. But am I?
My friends' husband is in the same boat as am I. We are both shocked by our actions but it seemed like the only answer. I have a sneaking suspicion he is not shouting from the rooftops what he did anymore than I am. This is as close to rooftop shouting as I get.
I'm not completely aware of the issues at hand but I do know that there is one outcome that I would find utterly unacceptable. Once I write about this there is no going back. By putting forth what I have done there is no denying it. I may lose friends over it. Well, I won't lose friends but I have a feeling I may receive a frantic phone call from my brother Joel. Maybe this will be what it takes to actually cause a rift between me and my brothers. I do not want a rift but this is so incredibly huge that...
Well, I'm just going to have to kill the suspense because at the rate I'm going you may think I'm going to prison or something. (If my brother could have his way he would probably lock me up until after November).
Ooh, was that some foreshadowing or what?
Yes, my actions are related to politics.
On this past Saturday, February the 9th, 2008 at 1:00 in the afternoon I caucused. I caucused as a Democrat.
Yes, my Republican readership, I jumped ship if only for a moment. Although I do not have to explain myself to anyone I want to. To my family: do not disown me. Ike, don't turn me into CPS as I'm sure you think I'm unfit to parent if I have any persuasions of a Democrat.
I caucused as a Democrat for Barack Obama because he seems like an agent of change because he is putting forth the word that the agents of change are we the people not the government and he is relatively speaking, new to politics. The other reason I caucused for Obama is because I know a democrat is going to win the election in the Fall and I'll be damned if it is going to be Hilary Clinton. I viewed my actions as much a statement for Barack Obama as a statement against Hilary Clinton.
For those of you who did not caucus I must say you missed out on an incredible event. Everyone I talked to said it was such a great feeling to be so connected to one's community and see the massive turnout. Ryan and I drove to our caucus site only to turn around and drive home and walk back as there was no parking anywhere near the school. People were out in droves walking to the school. From our precinct Barack Obama received 6 of the delegate votes and Hilary Clinton received 1. It sounded like that was the case for the other precincts as well.
I had to bite my tongue as the Democratic Reps talked about the gubernatorial race and how close it was last time and how they didn't want a repeat. If you don't live in Washington are not aware of the race 4 years ago between Governor Christine Gregoire and Dino Rossi it came down to 33 or so votes.
Dino Rossi won the first vote. It was close so a recount was ordered. Gregoire's share of votes increased as ballots were discovered as 'lost'. Dino Rossi won the recount. But Gregoire wanted another count. More ballots were miraculously discovered. She won the third and final count. Best one out of three wins, I guess.
It is time for me to turn my attention to a book I have upstairs on vaccinations as Gavin is due for some shots. I want to be well informed before I have him injected with who-knows-what. I'm reading a book recommended to me by my doctor. When I'm done with that book I may turn my attention back to politics so I can read up and become a better informed voter for this Fall.
Thursday, February 07, 2008
On the Mend
WARNING: This post contains information about health issues. Female health issues (visualize one raised eyebrow and pursed lips here, and perhaps a pinkie finger in the corner of my mouth). That was a Dr. Evil reference for you pop culturally challenged folk. Male readers you may not be comfortable reading this although I think you are a wuss if you can't handle reading it.
Not so long ago I wrote a post about a medical problem that I had. After I posted it and a few brave souls read it I decided it was too graphic so I deleted it. Since the problem has not gone away I thought I would write a new post about it as it is kind of an all consuming issue right now.
In the beginning there was a lump. The lump was in my breast, from here on out referred to as 'boob' or 'mammary gland' or 'female accessory' or 'body part that formerly was the object of man's desire' (of course access was granted to only one man) or 'body part whose sole function is to nourish my son'.
I went in for an ultrasound of said lump in said boob. The ultrasound turned into a mammogram, which ladies is a real kick in the pants, which turned into a biopsy.
Good news: the results were negative. The lump is a fibroadenoma which does not increase my chances of developing breast cancer.
Just a few days after the biopsy the site started to look suspiciously infected. I called the Breast Center and spoke to a grumpy on call doctor who prescribed some antibiotics for me to take. The antibiotics appeared to work. Then the steri-strips came off. Then the milk came out.
Yep.
Milk.
Biopsy site.
Out.
Leaky boobs are normal for the lactating woman. Leaking milk out of a hole in the side of your boob is not normal. I repeat: NOT normal.
I went in to see my doctor. She had never seen the leakiness of the boob. She called a surgeon to get his advice. His advice was dermabond (like super glue) or stitches. We opted for dermabond. Just dab on a bit 'o glue and stop the milk.
OR
Seal in the infection.
Apparently milk is a great food for bacteria.
Massive infection ensued that was accompanied by chills and hot flashes and sweating and muscle aches. My doctor said it was the worst she had ever seen. With her help we cleared up the infection with a 17 day course of antibiotics that I had to take 4 times a day.
That is not the end of the story. The infection cleared but my doctor sent me off to see a surgeon whom I saw 3 times in a period of a week. Surgery was not indicated but it was recommended that I quit breast feeding when I had to go back to the surgeon to have him re-open the biopsy site because the exterior wound (exit site) was healing over before the interior damage (perforated milk duct) was healing. So, the milk that was being produced was just accumulating in the breast tissue and had no where to go.
So, I went to a nurse practitioner at the Breast Center where they did the biopsy in the first place. She is going to see me until the whole thing is healed. She had to make the exit wound really big to make sure it didn't heal before the inside healed. After that she cleaned it out and packed it with gauze. Sometime in the middle of the night the gauze and other goodies came out of the new and improved gaping wound that was created. The nurse practitioner was astounded by the goodies and she cultured said goodies. Goodies came back as harmless. The following days visit was much better. There were no more goodies and the rinsing of the wound and stuffing of the gauze didn't hurt.
Now for the good news: I saw the nurse practitioner today and after inspection of the healing site that is NO LONGER LEAKING MILK she said I don't have to go back to see her for one whole month. A whole month without seeing a doctor, surgeon or nurse practitioner! I've had 8 follow up visits (excluding the initial mammogram and biopsy appointments) for the fallout (literally - ha!) of the biopsy that I had 2 days after Christmas.
That is more than you will ever want to know about me I'm sure but it is much, much less graphic than the original post so you can thank me for editing it. : )
Not so long ago I wrote a post about a medical problem that I had. After I posted it and a few brave souls read it I decided it was too graphic so I deleted it. Since the problem has not gone away I thought I would write a new post about it as it is kind of an all consuming issue right now.
In the beginning there was a lump. The lump was in my breast, from here on out referred to as 'boob' or 'mammary gland' or 'female accessory' or 'body part that formerly was the object of man's desire' (of course access was granted to only one man) or 'body part whose sole function is to nourish my son'.
I went in for an ultrasound of said lump in said boob. The ultrasound turned into a mammogram, which ladies is a real kick in the pants, which turned into a biopsy.
Good news: the results were negative. The lump is a fibroadenoma which does not increase my chances of developing breast cancer.
Just a few days after the biopsy the site started to look suspiciously infected. I called the Breast Center and spoke to a grumpy on call doctor who prescribed some antibiotics for me to take. The antibiotics appeared to work. Then the steri-strips came off. Then the milk came out.
Yep.
Milk.
Biopsy site.
Out.
Leaky boobs are normal for the lactating woman. Leaking milk out of a hole in the side of your boob is not normal. I repeat: NOT normal.
I went in to see my doctor. She had never seen the leakiness of the boob. She called a surgeon to get his advice. His advice was dermabond (like super glue) or stitches. We opted for dermabond. Just dab on a bit 'o glue and stop the milk.
OR
Seal in the infection.
Apparently milk is a great food for bacteria.
Massive infection ensued that was accompanied by chills and hot flashes and sweating and muscle aches. My doctor said it was the worst she had ever seen. With her help we cleared up the infection with a 17 day course of antibiotics that I had to take 4 times a day.
That is not the end of the story. The infection cleared but my doctor sent me off to see a surgeon whom I saw 3 times in a period of a week. Surgery was not indicated but it was recommended that I quit breast feeding when I had to go back to the surgeon to have him re-open the biopsy site because the exterior wound (exit site) was healing over before the interior damage (perforated milk duct) was healing. So, the milk that was being produced was just accumulating in the breast tissue and had no where to go.
So, I went to a nurse practitioner at the Breast Center where they did the biopsy in the first place. She is going to see me until the whole thing is healed. She had to make the exit wound really big to make sure it didn't heal before the inside healed. After that she cleaned it out and packed it with gauze. Sometime in the middle of the night the gauze and other goodies came out of the new and improved gaping wound that was created. The nurse practitioner was astounded by the goodies and she cultured said goodies. Goodies came back as harmless. The following days visit was much better. There were no more goodies and the rinsing of the wound and stuffing of the gauze didn't hurt.
Now for the good news: I saw the nurse practitioner today and after inspection of the healing site that is NO LONGER LEAKING MILK she said I don't have to go back to see her for one whole month. A whole month without seeing a doctor, surgeon or nurse practitioner! I've had 8 follow up visits (excluding the initial mammogram and biopsy appointments) for the fallout (literally - ha!) of the biopsy that I had 2 days after Christmas.
That is more than you will ever want to know about me I'm sure but it is much, much less graphic than the original post so you can thank me for editing it. : )
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
World Peace Begins With Me
It's 11:38 pm. Gavin didn't sleep well last night therefore I did not sleep well last night. He took a short nap this morning and I also took a short nap this morning. He slept while I was at the library and at the department of vital statistics getting his birth certificate. He has nodded off a few times this evening but woke up each time I put him back in his swing to go to sleep.
Grr.
He's almost 4 months old and he still does not sleep through the night. I can count on one hand the number of times Gavin slept 6 hours at night since he was born. I can count on the other hand the number of times I have slept over 6 hours because Ryan was able to feed him stored breast milk at night. That totals 10 or less nights of decent sleep since freakin' October!
He won't sleep in his cradle, he won't sleep in his co-sleeper, and he won't sleep in his Pack 'n Play. He will sleep sometimes in his bouncy chair. He will sleep in his car seat if you swing him to sleep. He sleeps every night in his swing.
We are not letting him sleep in bed with us because the mattress is still too soft.
Our next move is to put the swing in our bedroom.
He is in his swing right now. Fussing. Sucking on his hands because he wants something to do. I read him books, I changed his diaper, I fed him. I fed him some more and to make certain I fed him again. The hair dryer is on, a sound that normally lulls him off to sleep. I have tried bouncing the swing by gently pushing the top of it as that adds a nice bit of motion that he craves so much.
NOTHING IS WORKING!!!
We are doing the Attachment Parenting - the kind where you feed on demand, hold the baby a lot, don't let it 'cry it out'. It is not easy. Not at all.
I have to go now. His fussiness is turning especially fussy and is going to turn ugly any minute.
If you pray one prayer today, let it be for me. Forget world peace. We all know it's not going to happen. We do know that Gavin will one day sleep through the night. Just pray that it will be sooner than later. This may seem like a selfish request but a well rested happy April is much better equipped to be nice to the rest of the world so really, a prayer for me is a prayer for the world.
Grr.
He's almost 4 months old and he still does not sleep through the night. I can count on one hand the number of times Gavin slept 6 hours at night since he was born. I can count on the other hand the number of times I have slept over 6 hours because Ryan was able to feed him stored breast milk at night. That totals 10 or less nights of decent sleep since freakin' October!
He won't sleep in his cradle, he won't sleep in his co-sleeper, and he won't sleep in his Pack 'n Play. He will sleep sometimes in his bouncy chair. He will sleep in his car seat if you swing him to sleep. He sleeps every night in his swing.
We are not letting him sleep in bed with us because the mattress is still too soft.
Our next move is to put the swing in our bedroom.
He is in his swing right now. Fussing. Sucking on his hands because he wants something to do. I read him books, I changed his diaper, I fed him. I fed him some more and to make certain I fed him again. The hair dryer is on, a sound that normally lulls him off to sleep. I have tried bouncing the swing by gently pushing the top of it as that adds a nice bit of motion that he craves so much.
NOTHING IS WORKING!!!
We are doing the Attachment Parenting - the kind where you feed on demand, hold the baby a lot, don't let it 'cry it out'. It is not easy. Not at all.
I have to go now. His fussiness is turning especially fussy and is going to turn ugly any minute.
If you pray one prayer today, let it be for me. Forget world peace. We all know it's not going to happen. We do know that Gavin will one day sleep through the night. Just pray that it will be sooner than later. This may seem like a selfish request but a well rested happy April is much better equipped to be nice to the rest of the world so really, a prayer for me is a prayer for the world.
Saturday, February 02, 2008
Kodak Moments
It is time to have some professional pictures of The Gavinator. There are two routes one can take. We can go to the department store and get perfectly good photos and sheets of pictures to hand out to aunts, uncles and grandparents or we can go to a studio and get perfectly good photos that also include a CD from which we can make all the prints we could possibly want.
The major difference is price. The department store studios have all sorts of specials and coupons and after reading the fine print I settled on JC Pennys as you can select the size of the pictures on the sheets that you want and you can purchase a sheet for only $4 or you can get the whole package for $8 (the one that includes all of the wallets and even smaller photos that no one actually uses but to shove in a Christmas card that the occasional aunt will tack to a cork board). Woo-hoo. No minimum purchase and no sitting fee. But you get one pose and only as many pictures as you buy. No CDs here.
If you go the studio route you can get a CD from which you can make all the prints you want either at home or through a professional printing service for just under $200. And when going through the studio you usually get all of the pictures taken not just the one pose that you liked best.
Should we go the economical route and save the studio sessions for milestones like the yearly photos?
There is a local photographer I really like. He came to my former office to take business portraits last summer. Check out his website: alanmartsphotography.com. He does the portraits but also doctors photos and makes some surreal looking images. I e-mailed him to get his package rates aside from his hourly cost. I am hoping a CD is included with the hourly rate. If that's the case it would be less money than the kiddie kandids at Babies 'R Us.
Quick poll: How many of you keep and/or display photos that family and friends send to you? Do any of you keep the Christmas photos that everyone and their dog (or of their dog) sends out? I will not shed tears, not even one, if you throw out our family Christmas photo on December 26th. I may shed a tear if you tossed it immediately after opening it unless it arrived after Christmas, of course. If you would answer the poll question that is to the left of this post I would really appreciate it.
The major difference is price. The department store studios have all sorts of specials and coupons and after reading the fine print I settled on JC Pennys as you can select the size of the pictures on the sheets that you want and you can purchase a sheet for only $4 or you can get the whole package for $8 (the one that includes all of the wallets and even smaller photos that no one actually uses but to shove in a Christmas card that the occasional aunt will tack to a cork board). Woo-hoo. No minimum purchase and no sitting fee. But you get one pose and only as many pictures as you buy. No CDs here.
If you go the studio route you can get a CD from which you can make all the prints you want either at home or through a professional printing service for just under $200. And when going through the studio you usually get all of the pictures taken not just the one pose that you liked best.
Should we go the economical route and save the studio sessions for milestones like the yearly photos?
There is a local photographer I really like. He came to my former office to take business portraits last summer. Check out his website: alanmartsphotography.com. He does the portraits but also doctors photos and makes some surreal looking images. I e-mailed him to get his package rates aside from his hourly cost. I am hoping a CD is included with the hourly rate. If that's the case it would be less money than the kiddie kandids at Babies 'R Us.
Quick poll: How many of you keep and/or display photos that family and friends send to you? Do any of you keep the Christmas photos that everyone and their dog (or of their dog) sends out? I will not shed tears, not even one, if you throw out our family Christmas photo on December 26th. I may shed a tear if you tossed it immediately after opening it unless it arrived after Christmas, of course. If you would answer the poll question that is to the left of this post I would really appreciate it.
Breakthrough!
Gavin and I took a nap this morning. We take a nap most mornings. Today, however we took a nap in my bed. On a flat surface!!! He slept on a flat surface! He slept on a stationary surface! There was no bouncing, no vibrating, no rocking and no swinging.
When nap time was over I slipped out of bed and he slept a few minutes longer all by himself while I got ready for a visit to see my friend Erika and her son Zach. When we got home that afternoon we took another nap on the bed. Gavin fought this one a little more but it just took a tummy full of milk to lull him off to sleep but he didn't last long with out me next to him.
I'm sure there are a few people reading this who shudder at the thought of a baby in bed with an adult. Did you know that societies that practice co-sleeping (baby in bed) have a lower incidence of SIDS? It is rare that an adult smothers the baby and when it does happen the adult is usually under the influence of drugs or alcohol. In preparation for bringing Gavin into our bed I removed the memory foam top we had as it is way too soft. When he is in bed we put him up high but not too close to the head board and we keep the blankets at waist height as to prevent us from pulling them up over him.
Of course as I write this he is sleeping in his swing. It is Friday night and I slept for several hours after Ryan came home. I'm going to go get him soon to come out and take over G duty. Tomorrow night I will try sleeping in our bed and will bring Gavin in with us. I would do it tonight but since I can't know how it will turn out I want to ensure I have at least one good night sleep before starting something new.
When nap time was over I slipped out of bed and he slept a few minutes longer all by himself while I got ready for a visit to see my friend Erika and her son Zach. When we got home that afternoon we took another nap on the bed. Gavin fought this one a little more but it just took a tummy full of milk to lull him off to sleep but he didn't last long with out me next to him.
I'm sure there are a few people reading this who shudder at the thought of a baby in bed with an adult. Did you know that societies that practice co-sleeping (baby in bed) have a lower incidence of SIDS? It is rare that an adult smothers the baby and when it does happen the adult is usually under the influence of drugs or alcohol. In preparation for bringing Gavin into our bed I removed the memory foam top we had as it is way too soft. When he is in bed we put him up high but not too close to the head board and we keep the blankets at waist height as to prevent us from pulling them up over him.
Of course as I write this he is sleeping in his swing. It is Friday night and I slept for several hours after Ryan came home. I'm going to go get him soon to come out and take over G duty. Tomorrow night I will try sleeping in our bed and will bring Gavin in with us. I would do it tonight but since I can't know how it will turn out I want to ensure I have at least one good night sleep before starting something new.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Plagiarizing Myself
I'm plagiarizing myself; I posted this on Keller Williams blog as I am still welcome to post on the site even though I don't write about anything even remotely related to real estate.
This is from yesterday:
I finally made it out to Ikea in Renton to have our baby car seat inspected. In line ahead of me was a responsible pregnant woman making sure her car seat was properly installed before her precious cargo arrived. Ahead of her was another irresponsible couple like me who hadn't gotten around to this important job in a timely fashion since their rear facing pint size passenger was in the dad's arms. In my defense (to make myself feel better and look less flakey) my baby did come nearly 3 weeks early (never mind he's 3 1/2 months old now and I've had 3 1/2 months to get around to this task).
After sitting in my car for about 15 minutes it was my turn for a pat on the back. OK, so I was expecting to be one of the 10% of the genius population who can install a car seat properly. Actually, I was piggybacking on the brains of my engineer husband who is very mechanically inclined. I knew that by myself I would be part of the 90% of the population who have to chant "righty tighty, lefty loosey" when turning a screw driver.
Not only did we:
1) fail to install our car seat in best location (middle seat - which we knew, we just couldn't figure out how to make the seat base secure enough),
2) we attached it incorrectly and
3) had the harness too low on the baby which would have helped facilitate serious damage to his delicate internal organs in the event of a car accident.
Needless to say I was humbled to learn that our efforts to keep our son safe were very flawed and I am very grateful to the people who volunteer to help keep our innocent children safe while they share the roads with distracted drivers.
If you have a baby in a car seat or a toddler or young child in a booster seat you can call the Washington State Safety Restraint Coalition at 1-800-BUCKL-UP or visit their website 800bucklup.org for information on car seat checks like the one I attended today at Ikea.
This is from yesterday:
I finally made it out to Ikea in Renton to have our baby car seat inspected. In line ahead of me was a responsible pregnant woman making sure her car seat was properly installed before her precious cargo arrived. Ahead of her was another irresponsible couple like me who hadn't gotten around to this important job in a timely fashion since their rear facing pint size passenger was in the dad's arms. In my defense (to make myself feel better and look less flakey) my baby did come nearly 3 weeks early (never mind he's 3 1/2 months old now and I've had 3 1/2 months to get around to this task).
After sitting in my car for about 15 minutes it was my turn for a pat on the back. OK, so I was expecting to be one of the 10% of the genius population who can install a car seat properly. Actually, I was piggybacking on the brains of my engineer husband who is very mechanically inclined. I knew that by myself I would be part of the 90% of the population who have to chant "righty tighty, lefty loosey" when turning a screw driver.
Not only did we:
1) fail to install our car seat in best location (middle seat - which we knew, we just couldn't figure out how to make the seat base secure enough),
2) we attached it incorrectly and
3) had the harness too low on the baby which would have helped facilitate serious damage to his delicate internal organs in the event of a car accident.
Needless to say I was humbled to learn that our efforts to keep our son safe were very flawed and I am very grateful to the people who volunteer to help keep our innocent children safe while they share the roads with distracted drivers.
If you have a baby in a car seat or a toddler or young child in a booster seat you can call the Washington State Safety Restraint Coalition at 1-800-BUCKL-UP or visit their website 800bucklup.org for information on car seat checks like the one I attended today at Ikea.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
All Inclusive
Has anyone out there done the all inclusive resort vacation? We are looking for an easy way to vacation this Spring someplace warm where we can cart The Gavinator with us with minimal hassle. Thus far our sights are set on Mexico as it is close and airfare and travel time will be diminished.
I'm hoping to go someplace close to ruins so we can make at least a couple of trips away from the compound of disgusting indulgences (and by disgusting I mean delicious). I'm looking forward to a vacation while breastfeeding because I can go nuts with the guacamole and fear little retribution on the posterior (as in calories going straight to it).
We will need to have the G sleeping in something other than his swing by vacation time. I don't imagine trying to get him to sleep in his co-sleeper while on vacation would do much for our sanity. Not that I have much claim to sanity at this point. He did sleep from midnight to 4 am last night. That was a nice stretch of sleep.
OK, gotta cut this short. Gavin finally fell asleep which gives me time to catalog our Goodwill donations before I load them in the car. Ha. Before I wait for Ryan to come home and load them in the car.
Speaking, er writing, of the car... I had our car seat inspected today at Ikea since our local store sponsors the checks once a month. So glad I made the trek to Renton. We failed on three counts. The seat was not in the safest place (the middle - we couldn't get it snug enough there), it was attached incorrectly and we had the harness too low on his abdomen. I haven't told Ryan how wrong we were with the car seat yet. He isn't going to believe me.
I'm hoping to go someplace close to ruins so we can make at least a couple of trips away from the compound of disgusting indulgences (and by disgusting I mean delicious). I'm looking forward to a vacation while breastfeeding because I can go nuts with the guacamole and fear little retribution on the posterior (as in calories going straight to it).
We will need to have the G sleeping in something other than his swing by vacation time. I don't imagine trying to get him to sleep in his co-sleeper while on vacation would do much for our sanity. Not that I have much claim to sanity at this point. He did sleep from midnight to 4 am last night. That was a nice stretch of sleep.
OK, gotta cut this short. Gavin finally fell asleep which gives me time to catalog our Goodwill donations before I load them in the car. Ha. Before I wait for Ryan to come home and load them in the car.
Speaking, er writing, of the car... I had our car seat inspected today at Ikea since our local store sponsors the checks once a month. So glad I made the trek to Renton. We failed on three counts. The seat was not in the safest place (the middle - we couldn't get it snug enough there), it was attached incorrectly and we had the harness too low on his abdomen. I haven't told Ryan how wrong we were with the car seat yet. He isn't going to believe me.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Unsolicited
I set out to buy some new tops the other day since my proportions have changed drastically since I got pregnant and my upper half is going to remain gargantuan for so long as I breastfeed. I strolled the G in his super deluxe coolio baby ride up and down the aisles of blouses grabbing everything that I thought was a possible match. By time I was ready for the dressing room I had at least 25 shirts hanging from the stroller handle; I'm surprised the stroller didn't tip. The fitting room attendant did not look pleased since there was an 8 item limit for the dressing room. Too bad. I'd be darned if I had to go back out the rows and rows of racks of clothing after I tried on each batch of tops.
Gavin didn't explode in protest to the shopping until I was down to my last 2 shirts to try on. I quickly tried them on all the while telling G I was almost done and that he was going to get to eat really soon as if he understood a word of what I was telling him. After pulling my own sweater back over my head for the last time I took one last look in the dressing room mirror. Oh the horror!
Dry weather + low humidity + dry hair + repeatedly pulling sweaters over ones head = severe static electricity.
My hair was beyond flat on top. It was as if the bottom of the strands were pulling with all their might the roots of the hair. My hair was plastered to my face and I couldn't pull it back, my eyes were watering from the static electricity in my hair and the bottoms of the strands were floating off into space. Just thinking about it is making my eyes water.
I could have fed Gavin in the dressing room but I really didn't want to hang out in the dressing room for 20 more minutes, besides I just had to pay for my shirts and be on my way. Unfortunately a line of customers swelled in front of the cashier lanes and I was at the end with a screaming baby.
A kindly woman behind me gave me a kind look befitting of a kindly woman as I picked up Gavin to calm him down. The woman in front of me smiled but it didn't seem very kindly. She gave me some unsolicited advice. Normally I just smile and nod when people give me lame advice. But since pregnancy changed my disposition (which some were hoping was temporary) I thought to myself, I'm not going to let this woman think I appreciate her advice nor that I think it is correct.
Her suggestion was something that she used to try with her own children for when they were fussy. She would carry around suckers with a spiral handle so the baby could hold it and suck on it.
Really.
I said, "Uh, no. He's way too young for sugar. He's only 3 months."
Not so helpful stranger: "I'm just saying." (that's it. She's just saying).
Next time I'm going to give an answer my friend Heather suggested: tell them that I have a nip of whiskey before I breastfeed him to knock him out. I think I'll take it one level more tell them that when I make his bottle I mix in a bit of cough syrup. That'll make 'em choke. Choke then call CPS.
After I paid for my goods I went to the Starbucks around the corner to give Gavin the goods. I looked around the tiny Starbucks for a cushy chair to sit in for feeding and there was one upholstered chair open - right next to a young man reading a book. Poor guy. The one comfortable chair was next to him. I had no choice.
I plopped my bum down in the chair, threw my bebe au lait (nursing cover) on and fed Gavin while sipping my cocoa and reading the paper. The young man didn't even blink. He stayed still save for turning the pages of his book. Gavin was hungry so he wasn't eating quietly. There was much lip smacking, slurping and grunting going on. The young man reading his book couldn't avoid what was going on under my bebe au lait. I must say the situation made my heart snicker.
Gavin didn't explode in protest to the shopping until I was down to my last 2 shirts to try on. I quickly tried them on all the while telling G I was almost done and that he was going to get to eat really soon as if he understood a word of what I was telling him. After pulling my own sweater back over my head for the last time I took one last look in the dressing room mirror. Oh the horror!
Dry weather + low humidity + dry hair + repeatedly pulling sweaters over ones head = severe static electricity.
My hair was beyond flat on top. It was as if the bottom of the strands were pulling with all their might the roots of the hair. My hair was plastered to my face and I couldn't pull it back, my eyes were watering from the static electricity in my hair and the bottoms of the strands were floating off into space. Just thinking about it is making my eyes water.
I could have fed Gavin in the dressing room but I really didn't want to hang out in the dressing room for 20 more minutes, besides I just had to pay for my shirts and be on my way. Unfortunately a line of customers swelled in front of the cashier lanes and I was at the end with a screaming baby.
A kindly woman behind me gave me a kind look befitting of a kindly woman as I picked up Gavin to calm him down. The woman in front of me smiled but it didn't seem very kindly. She gave me some unsolicited advice. Normally I just smile and nod when people give me lame advice. But since pregnancy changed my disposition (which some were hoping was temporary) I thought to myself, I'm not going to let this woman think I appreciate her advice nor that I think it is correct.
Her suggestion was something that she used to try with her own children for when they were fussy. She would carry around suckers with a spiral handle so the baby could hold it and suck on it.
Really.
I said, "Uh, no. He's way too young for sugar. He's only 3 months."
Not so helpful stranger: "I'm just saying." (that's it. She's just saying).
Next time I'm going to give an answer my friend Heather suggested: tell them that I have a nip of whiskey before I breastfeed him to knock him out. I think I'll take it one level more tell them that when I make his bottle I mix in a bit of cough syrup. That'll make 'em choke. Choke then call CPS.
After I paid for my goods I went to the Starbucks around the corner to give Gavin the goods. I looked around the tiny Starbucks for a cushy chair to sit in for feeding and there was one upholstered chair open - right next to a young man reading a book. Poor guy. The one comfortable chair was next to him. I had no choice.
I plopped my bum down in the chair, threw my bebe au lait (nursing cover) on and fed Gavin while sipping my cocoa and reading the paper. The young man didn't even blink. He stayed still save for turning the pages of his book. Gavin was hungry so he wasn't eating quietly. There was much lip smacking, slurping and grunting going on. The young man reading his book couldn't avoid what was going on under my bebe au lait. I must say the situation made my heart snicker.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Stalking the Parks Dept. Employee
Little G was fussy so I put him in his car seat which I then clicked into the stroller, packed the diaper bag, the laptop, external hard drive and grabbed the essentials from my purse and stuffed them into the laptop bag and headed to the library. The short walk to the library did not put him to sleep so I kept walking. And walking. And walking. No such luck.
I stopped in the baby boutique Buggy and bought some mitts to cover the talon Gavin's talon like finger nails that grow almost fast enough to watch with the naked eye. He still refused to sleep. We headed back in the direction of the library and this time I slowed my pace as we walked through the small triangular park as a Parks Department employee was using a leaf blower. I peaked at Gavin and saw his eyes getting heavy as the leaf blower worked its magic on his noise loving ears.
Sweet sleep! At last!
One more block and we were at the library. I paid my late fees that were very, very, very late (several years late) in the amount of $18.50. As I put my checkbook away I see Gavin's eyes pop open. I roll the stroller back and forth.
His beautiful blue eyes remain open. Then his mouth opens. Then he proceeds to protest at being in a quiet warm environment where his beloved Mommy wanted to do some simple work.
Being the nice person I am I left the tranquility that Gavin was making less tranquil by the second and walked back up the road. This time I stopped on the sidewalk opposite the leaf blowing man. Leaf blowing man turned the blower down. I didn't budge. Leaf blowing man finally turned it back to full power when it became clear I wasn't going anywhere. He moved to the opposite end of the small park. I followed then parked the stroller and waited for Gavin's eyelids to become heavy. It didn't take long. So I stood there rolling the stroller back and forth over a crack in the sidewalk while leaf blowing man blew leaves.
After G fell asleep I gave the noise another couple of minutes to make sure he was going to stay asleep. Unfortunately I couldn't go to the library because the quiet would wake him so I kept walking and am now sitting in Galaxie Espresso. I devoured a delicious turkey sandwich on a baguette. It was a large sandwich but I'm still hungry. Breast feeding requires a lot of energy and since I've been walking a lot the last couple of days I've been expending a lot more energy without replacing it properly.
I suppose I should get to work on sorting photos and such since that is what I set out to do when I left the house.
I stopped in the baby boutique Buggy and bought some mitts to cover the talon Gavin's talon like finger nails that grow almost fast enough to watch with the naked eye. He still refused to sleep. We headed back in the direction of the library and this time I slowed my pace as we walked through the small triangular park as a Parks Department employee was using a leaf blower. I peaked at Gavin and saw his eyes getting heavy as the leaf blower worked its magic on his noise loving ears.
Sweet sleep! At last!
One more block and we were at the library. I paid my late fees that were very, very, very late (several years late) in the amount of $18.50. As I put my checkbook away I see Gavin's eyes pop open. I roll the stroller back and forth.
His beautiful blue eyes remain open. Then his mouth opens. Then he proceeds to protest at being in a quiet warm environment where his beloved Mommy wanted to do some simple work.
Being the nice person I am I left the tranquility that Gavin was making less tranquil by the second and walked back up the road. This time I stopped on the sidewalk opposite the leaf blowing man. Leaf blowing man turned the blower down. I didn't budge. Leaf blowing man finally turned it back to full power when it became clear I wasn't going anywhere. He moved to the opposite end of the small park. I followed then parked the stroller and waited for Gavin's eyelids to become heavy. It didn't take long. So I stood there rolling the stroller back and forth over a crack in the sidewalk while leaf blowing man blew leaves.
After G fell asleep I gave the noise another couple of minutes to make sure he was going to stay asleep. Unfortunately I couldn't go to the library because the quiet would wake him so I kept walking and am now sitting in Galaxie Espresso. I devoured a delicious turkey sandwich on a baguette. It was a large sandwich but I'm still hungry. Breast feeding requires a lot of energy and since I've been walking a lot the last couple of days I've been expending a lot more energy without replacing it properly.
I suppose I should get to work on sorting photos and such since that is what I set out to do when I left the house.
Sorrow
This brief post is for two very special people - you know who you are. I tried to pen special words but I think the lyrics to "It Is Well" are better than any I could write. The author of this hymn, Horatio G. Spafford, wrote it during a time of unfathomable pain and suffering. I pray that his words will provide some measure of comfort.
It Is Well
When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.
It Is Well
When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, with my soul,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.
For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Sorry
I just deleted my most recent post. I prefaced the post with a statement about being an open book. True. I am an open book but just because I am doesn't mean you want to read all it. The only way you could have known you didn't want to read it is if you read it because I gave no indication as to what the subject matter was.
So for those of you who didn't get around to reading the post I can give you the scoop by phone or e-mail.
So for those of you who didn't get around to reading the post I can give you the scoop by phone or e-mail.
Sunday, January 06, 2008
Thursday, December 27, 2007
OMG!
I do not like to take the Lord's name in vain but is it in vain when you say, "Oh my God! Please stop crying."? I'm imploring of my maker to make his other tiny creation with not so tiny lungs to cease the constant wailing.
Gavin has been bestowed with incredible cuteness and incredible lungs. Or mediocre lungs and amazing vocal cords and a great diaphragm. He is quite the eardrum buster.
Tonight is my bible study night but we are not meeting because everyone is still scattered from the holidays but it is still my night off. I drove around Seattle for an hour and a half, visiting the places I used to visit when I first moved to the Emerald City. It was a nice trip down memory lane to see the coffee shops I haunted and the streets I strolled back when I still gasped in awe when I saw the city skyline and wondered if it would ever lose it's magical pull on me. (It has. I do not deny it is gorgeous but I don't pinch myself and think, "I live here!" anymore).
Ryan is upstairs with Gavin as I sit here and check my e-mail and make this post. I just polished off my first Hefeweizen since I became pregnant. If Gavin gets hungry before 10 pm he'll get another bottle of previously frozen mom juice. Yea for pumps!
I should head upstairs and take advantage of my last few minutes of time off and take a bath while I can.
Who knew bathing would be such a treat?
Gavin has been bestowed with incredible cuteness and incredible lungs. Or mediocre lungs and amazing vocal cords and a great diaphragm. He is quite the eardrum buster.
Tonight is my bible study night but we are not meeting because everyone is still scattered from the holidays but it is still my night off. I drove around Seattle for an hour and a half, visiting the places I used to visit when I first moved to the Emerald City. It was a nice trip down memory lane to see the coffee shops I haunted and the streets I strolled back when I still gasped in awe when I saw the city skyline and wondered if it would ever lose it's magical pull on me. (It has. I do not deny it is gorgeous but I don't pinch myself and think, "I live here!" anymore).
Ryan is upstairs with Gavin as I sit here and check my e-mail and make this post. I just polished off my first Hefeweizen since I became pregnant. If Gavin gets hungry before 10 pm he'll get another bottle of previously frozen mom juice. Yea for pumps!
I should head upstairs and take advantage of my last few minutes of time off and take a bath while I can.
Who knew bathing would be such a treat?
Sunday, December 23, 2007
Christmas Came Early (to me)
It is too early to breath a sigh of relief or to make any excited proclamations but I can make excited proclamations about what I have already received. Two nights in a row.
Any guesses as to what I am so thrilled about?
Sleep!
Gavin gave his beloved Mommy 6 hours of sleep two nights in a row!
Woo-hoo!
I am praying it isn't a fluke. There is one wrinkle in his gift of sleep to me, however. It may come at a certain cost. Previous to all of the sleep being had by one uber-cute baby there was much crying, fussing and screaming being belted out for the duration of the evening.
Last night Ryan and Gavin's Nana Monten tested ways to soothe the little Grumpers. Nana walked with him in laps around her house facing outward. Grumpers turned into a docile lamb with eyes wide open staring at all of the lights. Ryan then took the G and made sure it wasn't just the Nana factor.
To further test their hypothesis that walking was the cure to the fussies Ryan would stop and sit on the couch. It only took a moment for Gavin to start wailing. Ryan let him get worked up enough to make sure the walking was the answer.
As soon as they stood up and started walking Gavin baa'd like the good little lamb that he is.
It was then my turn to change a variable in the testing. After walking with him facing outward (to make sure it wasn't the Nana/Daddy factor) and calming him down I sat down and let Gavin work himself up to a good cry before standing up and walking with him facing inward. That worked as well so long as he was able to see the lights.
My thoughts on the light fascination with babies is that lights to babies are like over the top Christmas light displays to adults (or children). It is just so nice to look at all of the twinkly lights against the backdrop of the dark sky.
I used to love staring at the Christmas tree when I was little and let my eyes go out of focus and all of the lights grew fuzzy with halos. Now all I have to do is take off my glasses and I see the pretty fuzzy Christmas tree lights of my youth.
Losing the fuzzy Christmas lights is the only wrinkle in my plan to get laser eye surgery (one of these years). Sorry, Swell & Sheepie. As grateful as I am to have glasses that enable me to see clearly I still HATE them. The lenses fog up in the winter when you walk in doors, they get wet in the rain, a gross film on them at the beach and they are so easy to lose. How do you find your glasses when you need your glasses to see? And don't say to only put them in one spot - if I was that conscientious in the first place I would never lose them and wouldn't ask the question.
Gavin is starting to stir so I should wrap this up before he realizes he is hungry.
Any guesses as to what I am so thrilled about?
Sleep!
Gavin gave his beloved Mommy 6 hours of sleep two nights in a row!
Woo-hoo!
I am praying it isn't a fluke. There is one wrinkle in his gift of sleep to me, however. It may come at a certain cost. Previous to all of the sleep being had by one uber-cute baby there was much crying, fussing and screaming being belted out for the duration of the evening.
Last night Ryan and Gavin's Nana Monten tested ways to soothe the little Grumpers. Nana walked with him in laps around her house facing outward. Grumpers turned into a docile lamb with eyes wide open staring at all of the lights. Ryan then took the G and made sure it wasn't just the Nana factor.
To further test their hypothesis that walking was the cure to the fussies Ryan would stop and sit on the couch. It only took a moment for Gavin to start wailing. Ryan let him get worked up enough to make sure the walking was the answer.
As soon as they stood up and started walking Gavin baa'd like the good little lamb that he is.
It was then my turn to change a variable in the testing. After walking with him facing outward (to make sure it wasn't the Nana/Daddy factor) and calming him down I sat down and let Gavin work himself up to a good cry before standing up and walking with him facing inward. That worked as well so long as he was able to see the lights.
My thoughts on the light fascination with babies is that lights to babies are like over the top Christmas light displays to adults (or children). It is just so nice to look at all of the twinkly lights against the backdrop of the dark sky.
I used to love staring at the Christmas tree when I was little and let my eyes go out of focus and all of the lights grew fuzzy with halos. Now all I have to do is take off my glasses and I see the pretty fuzzy Christmas tree lights of my youth.
Losing the fuzzy Christmas lights is the only wrinkle in my plan to get laser eye surgery (one of these years). Sorry, Swell & Sheepie. As grateful as I am to have glasses that enable me to see clearly I still HATE them. The lenses fog up in the winter when you walk in doors, they get wet in the rain, a gross film on them at the beach and they are so easy to lose. How do you find your glasses when you need your glasses to see? And don't say to only put them in one spot - if I was that conscientious in the first place I would never lose them and wouldn't ask the question.
Gavin is starting to stir so I should wrap this up before he realizes he is hungry.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Normal
Gavin just had his 2 month check up. His growth and strength are all normal, in the 50th & 60th percentiles. His sleep is not normal but not abnormal either. If he's still not sleeping well at 4 months then the Dr. said we should start giving him cereal at night to keep his tiny tummy full longer which will help him sleep.
I pray to the good Lord above that we don't have to resort to that because that means I will be seriously sleep deprived for 2 more months.
There is a church nearby my office (where I am right now) playing a Angels We Have Heard On High with bells. Those are some big bells because the church is almost 2 streets away and I can hear it through a brick wall. I wonder how many bells are in the bell tower.
It's hard to believe Christmas is just a few days away. This week used to be the longest week when I was a kid. Almost every night I would have a dream that it was Christmas and I would wake up in the morning all excited just to be disappointed that it was still 5 days away only to get excited again because we were one day closer to Christmas.
Christmas dinner with my extended family was so much fun. We would open presents at home in the morning with mom then go to Grandma & Grandpa's in the afternoon for a huge feast with all of my aunts and uncles and cousins and everyone who didn't have a place to go. My favorite foods to eat were black olives (somethings haven't changed) and fruit salad (made with whipped cream). When it was dark out the grandkids opened presents from all of the aunts and uncles and at some point in the evening we would go sit on the side walk and watch the boats with Christmas lights sail through the channel in the bay.
Now Christmases are a little more stressful. Alternating families and traveling across the great State of Washington to make sure we see everyone. This year we will go to Belfair on Saturday and drive back to Seattle on Sunday, host on Christmas Eve and go to the 'Couv on Christmas Day and back home the same day.
At least we will get to see everyone!
Merry Christmas!
I pray to the good Lord above that we don't have to resort to that because that means I will be seriously sleep deprived for 2 more months.
There is a church nearby my office (where I am right now) playing a Angels We Have Heard On High with bells. Those are some big bells because the church is almost 2 streets away and I can hear it through a brick wall. I wonder how many bells are in the bell tower.
It's hard to believe Christmas is just a few days away. This week used to be the longest week when I was a kid. Almost every night I would have a dream that it was Christmas and I would wake up in the morning all excited just to be disappointed that it was still 5 days away only to get excited again because we were one day closer to Christmas.
Christmas dinner with my extended family was so much fun. We would open presents at home in the morning with mom then go to Grandma & Grandpa's in the afternoon for a huge feast with all of my aunts and uncles and cousins and everyone who didn't have a place to go. My favorite foods to eat were black olives (somethings haven't changed) and fruit salad (made with whipped cream). When it was dark out the grandkids opened presents from all of the aunts and uncles and at some point in the evening we would go sit on the side walk and watch the boats with Christmas lights sail through the channel in the bay.
Now Christmases are a little more stressful. Alternating families and traveling across the great State of Washington to make sure we see everyone. This year we will go to Belfair on Saturday and drive back to Seattle on Sunday, host on Christmas Eve and go to the 'Couv on Christmas Day and back home the same day.
At least we will get to see everyone!
Merry Christmas!
Monday, December 17, 2007
Snub
I just realized I didn't put mauigirl's blog back on my site after I updated my blogger account. Sorry. It wasn't a purposeful move - I only had enough brain power to add the two then I petered out. I'll add it back soon. Promise.
I have nothing else to post about. Sure I could post about the cutest baby EVER. But that's got to get old. Although he has started to coo a bit. Now if he could just try to sleep a bit at night that would be fan-freakin'-tastic.
Ryan had baby duty on Saturday night. I had pumped so Ryan could feed Mr. Fussers when he woke up frequently demanding food. It was the first time since I got pregnant that I slept 8 hours. Glorious sleep! I could have slept another 8 hours but we ran out of pumped milk and I was going to explode - and I'm not talkin' about my bladder. Ouch. Gavin was needed for some decompression.
Because Ryan had the G-man on Saturday I was able to go to church on Sunday. It was Gavin's first day at church. Ryan slept. I spent most of the service out of the service feeding Gavin but it was still good to get my foot back in the door of the church.
Now I'm going home (I'm at my office in West Seattle as I was running errands). Maybe I'll get a few minutes of sleep. Maybe I will fold one of the 4 or 5 baskets of clean laundry in the dining room. Maybe I'll sweep up the bushels of cat and dog fur billowing around the house. Maybe I'll make dinner.
Most likely I will feed Gavin and change his diaper 3 or 4 times before Ryan gets home and watch a lot of Law and Order while Sweet Pea is happily nursing with his eyes closed.
I have nothing else to post about. Sure I could post about the cutest baby EVER. But that's got to get old. Although he has started to coo a bit. Now if he could just try to sleep a bit at night that would be fan-freakin'-tastic.
Ryan had baby duty on Saturday night. I had pumped so Ryan could feed Mr. Fussers when he woke up frequently demanding food. It was the first time since I got pregnant that I slept 8 hours. Glorious sleep! I could have slept another 8 hours but we ran out of pumped milk and I was going to explode - and I'm not talkin' about my bladder. Ouch. Gavin was needed for some decompression.
Because Ryan had the G-man on Saturday I was able to go to church on Sunday. It was Gavin's first day at church. Ryan slept. I spent most of the service out of the service feeding Gavin but it was still good to get my foot back in the door of the church.
Now I'm going home (I'm at my office in West Seattle as I was running errands). Maybe I'll get a few minutes of sleep. Maybe I will fold one of the 4 or 5 baskets of clean laundry in the dining room. Maybe I'll sweep up the bushels of cat and dog fur billowing around the house. Maybe I'll make dinner.
Most likely I will feed Gavin and change his diaper 3 or 4 times before Ryan gets home and watch a lot of Law and Order while Sweet Pea is happily nursing with his eyes closed.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
C.P.
Poor Gavin. He is not going to know what his name is since Ryan and I call him just about every name under the sun but his given name.
I definetly take the cake as far as variety of names are concerned. Gavin is Sweet Pea, Cutie Pie, Honey and Little Mister when he is cute and alert. Today I came up with C.P. - short for Cute & Precious.
Ryan calls him Buddy, Little Guy, Big Guy, Big Eyes, G., Gavey.
When my Sweet Pea Cutie Pie Honey Little Mister C.P. is less than adorable he becomes, Fussers, Grumpers, Dude, Little Dude and C'mon (as in C'mon already, stop crying and go to sleep please).
This morning after Ryan went to work at about 9:30 or 10 Fussers woke up. I fed him and changed him and C.P. fell asleep on my lap. Making sure he was in a deep sleep I sat on the couch with him gazing at my Sweet Pea before transitioning him into his co-sleeper so I could sleep in my bed (I would have slept on the couch but the dog yacked on the floor next to the couch and I got my sleeping bag in it - gross). I layed Little Mister down and Grumpers woke up.
To get the Dude back to sleep it took a hair dryer, space heater and mini fan with the noise and heat they create to lull him off to sleep. Each time he drifted off to dream of milk filled boobs he would wake up after 15 minutes which is just enough time for me nod off. After 3 of these attempts at sleep he finally stayed in slumber land for about 2 hours.
You think I'm kidding about the milk filled boob dreams. He nurses in his sleep. It is freakin' cute! He did it the entire time I was in the bath tub yesterday (he was in his bouncy chair next to the tub) and when I climbed out of the tub and grabbed the camera he quit. Lame. It's as elusive to the camera as is his smile.
Gavin's 2 month check up is next week. I wonder what percentile he is in as far as his growth is considered and what the doctor will have to say about his sleeping patterns.
I should probably head upstairs soon. Tonight is my night off. I've been meeting with my bible study every Thursday since I moved to Seattle 6 years ago. Now it is a place of refuge. Ryan made a comment tonight before I left that my girlfriends haven't seen Gavin in a while. Nice try! If my girlfriends want to see Gavin they can come over on a night that is not a Thursday. I don't get a day off or even a half of a day. I get 2-3 hours. That's it. It is long enough to make me miss the little guy, though.
Yep. It's time for me to return upstairs and give my C.P. a kiss since I ran down to the basement as soon as I got home effectively telling Ryan I wasn't ready to go back on duty.
I definetly take the cake as far as variety of names are concerned. Gavin is Sweet Pea, Cutie Pie, Honey and Little Mister when he is cute and alert. Today I came up with C.P. - short for Cute & Precious.
Ryan calls him Buddy, Little Guy, Big Guy, Big Eyes, G., Gavey.
When my Sweet Pea Cutie Pie Honey Little Mister C.P. is less than adorable he becomes, Fussers, Grumpers, Dude, Little Dude and C'mon (as in C'mon already, stop crying and go to sleep please).
This morning after Ryan went to work at about 9:30 or 10 Fussers woke up. I fed him and changed him and C.P. fell asleep on my lap. Making sure he was in a deep sleep I sat on the couch with him gazing at my Sweet Pea before transitioning him into his co-sleeper so I could sleep in my bed (I would have slept on the couch but the dog yacked on the floor next to the couch and I got my sleeping bag in it - gross). I layed Little Mister down and Grumpers woke up.
To get the Dude back to sleep it took a hair dryer, space heater and mini fan with the noise and heat they create to lull him off to sleep. Each time he drifted off to dream of milk filled boobs he would wake up after 15 minutes which is just enough time for me nod off. After 3 of these attempts at sleep he finally stayed in slumber land for about 2 hours.
You think I'm kidding about the milk filled boob dreams. He nurses in his sleep. It is freakin' cute! He did it the entire time I was in the bath tub yesterday (he was in his bouncy chair next to the tub) and when I climbed out of the tub and grabbed the camera he quit. Lame. It's as elusive to the camera as is his smile.
Gavin's 2 month check up is next week. I wonder what percentile he is in as far as his growth is considered and what the doctor will have to say about his sleeping patterns.
I should probably head upstairs soon. Tonight is my night off. I've been meeting with my bible study every Thursday since I moved to Seattle 6 years ago. Now it is a place of refuge. Ryan made a comment tonight before I left that my girlfriends haven't seen Gavin in a while. Nice try! If my girlfriends want to see Gavin they can come over on a night that is not a Thursday. I don't get a day off or even a half of a day. I get 2-3 hours. That's it. It is long enough to make me miss the little guy, though.
Yep. It's time for me to return upstairs and give my C.P. a kiss since I ran down to the basement as soon as I got home effectively telling Ryan I wasn't ready to go back on duty.
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Hanging in there
Just checking in here to let everyone know all is well since I haven't been Ms. Social as of late. I don't pick up the phone when it rings because I usually have Gavin physically attached to me and I can't reach the phone. I don't e-mail because as I sit on the couch I have to angle the laptop and type with one hand because I'm feeding Gavin. One handed typing at an angle on a couch while the laptop is perched precariously on the dog kennel gives me back spasms.
I have been told that soon Gavin will sleep through the night. Of course I was also told that when the baby reaches 10 pounds he will sleep better. Gavin is weighing in at over 12 pounds now. I suppose he does sleep better, closer to 3 hours than 2 hours but it is still a struggle to keep him asleep when you go for the super slow motion transfer from your lap or shoulder to the swing/cradle/co-sleeper/bouncy chair/car seat (what ever you think and pray to God he will sleep in).
As I write this it took 4 attempts to get him to go to sleep and stay asleep. I started after he was given a clean diaper and fed. He fell asleep after eating his fill of mom's super food but woke up as soon as I put him in his swing and was none to happy about not being in my arms. I held him again and lulled him off to sleep and tried the car seat. Failed. I lulled him off again and put him back in the swing. Nope. This process took 2 hours. Next thing you know he's hungry again. This time I fed him and put him in his cradle and after mild fussing he fell asleep and is still sleeping. I put the monitor on him and made my way to the basement so I could check e-mail and write this on the desktop since the laptop is having issues staying connected to the Internet.
The little guy is smiling now. OK, he's not smiling right this very second but you know what I mean. His toothless, open mouth smile is so CUTE. It's also very elusive when the camera comes out to capture it. One of these days we will have proof of the adorableness that is my son's smile.
We can't wait for him to laugh. A baby's giggle is just about the most precious thing there is. God knew what he was doing when he made them so darn cute. Even as Gavin cries we laugh at how cute he is with his bottom lip jutting out and at how perfectly he forms the 'W' when he wails. My mother-in-law was saying she has never heard a baby actually make a 'waa' sound when they cry like Gavin does.
Alright. He is starting to stir a bit. That means the clock has started. He should be awake within the hour. I have a few minutes to go eat something since I chose to sleep instead of eat dinner tonight while Ryan was able to watch him before he went to bed.
Hope everyone is enjoying the Christmas season.
I have been told that soon Gavin will sleep through the night. Of course I was also told that when the baby reaches 10 pounds he will sleep better. Gavin is weighing in at over 12 pounds now. I suppose he does sleep better, closer to 3 hours than 2 hours but it is still a struggle to keep him asleep when you go for the super slow motion transfer from your lap or shoulder to the swing/cradle/co-sleeper/bouncy chair/car seat (what ever you think and pray to God he will sleep in).
As I write this it took 4 attempts to get him to go to sleep and stay asleep. I started after he was given a clean diaper and fed. He fell asleep after eating his fill of mom's super food but woke up as soon as I put him in his swing and was none to happy about not being in my arms. I held him again and lulled him off to sleep and tried the car seat. Failed. I lulled him off again and put him back in the swing. Nope. This process took 2 hours. Next thing you know he's hungry again. This time I fed him and put him in his cradle and after mild fussing he fell asleep and is still sleeping. I put the monitor on him and made my way to the basement so I could check e-mail and write this on the desktop since the laptop is having issues staying connected to the Internet.
The little guy is smiling now. OK, he's not smiling right this very second but you know what I mean. His toothless, open mouth smile is so CUTE. It's also very elusive when the camera comes out to capture it. One of these days we will have proof of the adorableness that is my son's smile.
We can't wait for him to laugh. A baby's giggle is just about the most precious thing there is. God knew what he was doing when he made them so darn cute. Even as Gavin cries we laugh at how cute he is with his bottom lip jutting out and at how perfectly he forms the 'W' when he wails. My mother-in-law was saying she has never heard a baby actually make a 'waa' sound when they cry like Gavin does.
Alright. He is starting to stir a bit. That means the clock has started. He should be awake within the hour. I have a few minutes to go eat something since I chose to sleep instead of eat dinner tonight while Ryan was able to watch him before he went to bed.
Hope everyone is enjoying the Christmas season.
Sunday, November 18, 2007
C-U-T-E
Can you believe how cute this little dude is? We didn't take a picture of him during the actual bath. He was still cute but not so happy to be naked and wet. Bath time is very traumatic. As is having a diaper changed, not being fed fast enough, getting dressed, being put in the car seat, being taken out of the car seat, being taken out of the bouncy chair, being taken out of a swaddle, being put in a swaddle, not being swaddled. There is so much drama when you are a month old.Right now he is starting to stir from a nice nap in his bouncy chair. Ryan put Gavin in the bathroom in his bouncy chair while he took a shower. There is nothing more soothing to him than the sound of the fan, running water and bright lights. It puts him out every time.
I'm going to have to pony up some milk any minute now. Our house has turned into a dairy. I'm the cow. Would that make me a heifer?
The little G-man, as Ryan calls him, is one month old today. We can't imagine our lives without him and he's only been here one month. It feels like so much longer but maybe that's because I carried him inside of me for 9 months. He is already holding his head up. He usually holds his head up when I put hold him against my chest. He knows food is nearby.
OK, gotta go. Time to feed my sweet pea.
Sunday, November 04, 2007
6:14 and not ready for bed
It's 6:14 and my thoughts have not turned towards bedtime yet. Wow. This is the time I start to think about going to bed. 7:00 is when I start to get ready and 9:00 is lights out.
It probably helps that my mother-in-law was here today and I got to go back to bed for 2 hours after eating breakfast that she had made for everyone. The in-laws who went straight from our house the Sunday after Gavin was born to Arizona just arrived back in town last night and they came straight from the airport to our house and started working again! Craziness.
Ryan goes back to work tomorrow. Officially back to work. Because Gavin arrived even earlier than anticipated Ryan had to work almost a full work week his first week off (from the dining room table) and make many trips to the office and field office. The second week was a little better and I think this upcoming week his work load will have finally died down - just in time for Gavin's due date.
Gavin is getting some chubby cheeks; at his two week mark he has gained back all of his birth weight plus a half a pound so as of Thursday he was at 8 pounds 1 ounce. : ) Yea for fat babies! I hear they sleep better. Two more pounds to go to see if 10 pounds is the magical weight that will allow his tummy to stay full longer and allow his mommy to sleep longer.
p.s. I am wearing pre-maternity clothes! The jeans are the biggest size I have but still - they aren't maternity! My regular jeans zip up but it's just not very attractive right now.
That is all I have the time and energy to write about for now. I'm glad the first two week are over. It has been quite an emotional roller coaster being new parents, sleep deprived and hormonally imbalanced. Since I don't want to jinx anything (I'm really not superstitious) I'm not going to write that it feels like life is returning to 'normal'.
It probably helps that my mother-in-law was here today and I got to go back to bed for 2 hours after eating breakfast that she had made for everyone. The in-laws who went straight from our house the Sunday after Gavin was born to Arizona just arrived back in town last night and they came straight from the airport to our house and started working again! Craziness.
Ryan goes back to work tomorrow. Officially back to work. Because Gavin arrived even earlier than anticipated Ryan had to work almost a full work week his first week off (from the dining room table) and make many trips to the office and field office. The second week was a little better and I think this upcoming week his work load will have finally died down - just in time for Gavin's due date.
Gavin is getting some chubby cheeks; at his two week mark he has gained back all of his birth weight plus a half a pound so as of Thursday he was at 8 pounds 1 ounce. : ) Yea for fat babies! I hear they sleep better. Two more pounds to go to see if 10 pounds is the magical weight that will allow his tummy to stay full longer and allow his mommy to sleep longer.
p.s. I am wearing pre-maternity clothes! The jeans are the biggest size I have but still - they aren't maternity! My regular jeans zip up but it's just not very attractive right now.
That is all I have the time and energy to write about for now. I'm glad the first two week are over. It has been quite an emotional roller coaster being new parents, sleep deprived and hormonally imbalanced. Since I don't want to jinx anything (I'm really not superstitious) I'm not going to write that it feels like life is returning to 'normal'.
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