Someone in the blogosphere just got a big surprise (pregnancy), so in honor, I thought I'd finally post about the biggest and best surprise of my life.
December 2004 We had two little girls. N was almost 3, and K turned 7 months. I had been very busy at work all of November and December. We had just sent off a big report. I had worked on it almost non-stop from 12/17-12/23. I stopped working on it when I had a migraine aura at about 7:30 on 12/23.
I was getting a little worried about me. My husband was worried about me too. I had felt a little "off" for a couple of weeks, but I'd attributed feeling off to how much I was working. In addition, I had another reason to account for the off feeling...
N had thrown up on 12/7 and our nanny had also been sick the next week with the stomach flu or food poisoning. I had been surrounded by throw-up for a couple of weeks. If I think about throw-up, even when I'm not pregnant, I feel sick. In my mind, the fact that there was actual throw-up in my life was enough to make me feel funny.
There were a whole bunch of things that were going on, and if I hadn't been working so much, I might not have been too busy to correlate all the weird stuff that was going on with me and I might have realized sooner...
The weird things...
-Tea didn't tasted good (I love tea)
-I felt cold... it felt the same as when I was pregnant early on with K and I was COLD
-I kept thinking it's so good I'm not pregnant now (because I was working so hard and not taking good care of myself)
-I'd been craving protein and feeling really low blood sugary when I didn't eat enough
-I had been having a harder and harder time pumping
-It had been hurting when K was latched on
-I had this crying fit... I couldn't stop crying... I attributed it to feeling overwhelmed by work (I never have crying fits)
-The aura thingy (like a migraine aura)... It felt like an aura, but instead of flashing lights I got dizzy
-I felt like my stomach was really out of shape even though I hadn't gained weight. I looked at it and thought, "I NEED TO GO TO THE GYM!"
-Friday night (Christmas eve) I ate a tangerine and immediately felt totally ill
After eating the tangerine and then laying around clutching my stomach for 1/2 an hour, I thought, citrus doesn't usually bother me, unless I'm pregnant.
I decided that the next day (Christmas day) I'd pee on a stick. I decided I would be doing it to confirm the null hypothesis... Null=Not pregnant. Alternative=Pregnant. Once we knew I wasn't pregnant, I'd go to the doctor and figure out what was wrong with me, though I figured it was probably just stress.
Sol, I pee'd... and almost instantly the test turned positive... Wait. I'm supposed to be confirming the null. This is wrong.
It was super-duper positive... The test line was about 10 times darker than the control. I showed my husband and he decided that it must be a defective test. He ran out and bought two other brands. I pee'd. Both of the other brands were also instantly positive. We wondered if the whole city was full of defective tests?????!
I was shocked and overwhelmed. I had had problems getting pregnant. I had taken drugs to get pregnant. Getting pregnant on my own did NOT COMPUTE. I couldn't get pregnant on my own. I needed progesterone suppositories to make a pregnancy stick. When I was pregnant with K my progesterone was really low... 8... They like it to be 20. What was happening? How could I possibly be pregnant??? How could I possibly be pregnant enough to make the test turn dark so instantly?
My mind was also racing because I had a 7.5 month old baby. How on earth would we manage? I was so enjoying getting back into a routine. I was starting to feel like me again. How could I continue my career? I was just getting back into the swing of everything. I had taken on new responsibilities at work.
I started trying to calculate how far along I could possibly be. If I had ovulated when I thought, then I'd be about 7 weeks. (After K, my cycles returned when she was 2.5 months old so I thought things were kind of normal.) I figured there was a chance that everything was still all wanky, and that I could be as much as 9 weeks, but I didn't really think so.
...
To be continued.
Friday, June 30, 2006
Thursday, June 29, 2006
Sleep...
I've been meaning to post about my favorite subject for a while. Sit back and relax... this may be a long one.
K (2) doesn't need a lot of sleep. Her older sister N (4) has always been a champion sleeper. When N was 2, she would sleep from about 9 pm until 9 am or 12 hours after she went to bed... She often didn't go to bed until 10 pm (ish) so then she would sleep until 10 am. My husband and I knew we had a great sleeper.
In addition, N would usually take 3-hour long naps when she was 2. We were lucky. We rejoiced. Enter Miss K. From the time she was born, she slept less than N did and she was 2 years 4 months younger. At age 2, Miss K is going to bed around 10 or 11 and then waking up around 8 am. She'll take a nap that is about 2 hours long. We can't believe it. At age 2, Miss N was sleeping about 15 hours a day and Miss K is only sleeping 12 hours.
Miss T seems to be a fairly good sleeper... Not as good as N, but better than K. T goes to sleep around 8:30 or 9 and wakes up once to nurse at night (either 1 am ish or 4 am ish) and then sleeps until at least 7:45, but sometimes until 9 am. Miss N currently goes to bed between 9 and 10 and gets up between 8:30 and 10 am depending. No more naps for her. She outgrew them last fall. (I thought I'd be more sad when it happened than I was. She really was done with them. When she would nap she'd stay up until midnight. When she wouldn't nap she'd be out at 9 pm on the dot! It made things easier not to have to juggle nap schedules of 3 kids too.)
The newest development on the sleep front with Miss K is that she won't sleep in her crib any more. She learned how to climb out of her crib at the beginning of May. Since then she's been sleeping with me. A lot. She used to just wake up in the middle of the night and come in bed. Then she stopped wanting to go to sleep in her crib. I started snuggling with her in my bed, to help her fall asleep, then moving her to her crib after she fell asleep. Sometimes she comes back to sleep with me in the middle of the night. When she comes back, I have to do "baby juggling." I have to get K to sleep again and then in the portable crib before T (10 months) wakes up to nurse. Then T comes in for either a quick nursing session, or for nursing and a couple of hours of cuddling too. Then I have to get T back to her crib before K demands to be back in bed with me.
When it's bed time, K will say, "Put on your pjamamas and snuggle Mommy." Or "Go Mommy's bed. You come too?!" She won't snuggle with her Dad, it has to be me. She'll fall asleep as I'm doing work on my laptop and sitting on the bed beside her.
It's a little crazy at night. Most nights, I'm up and down 3 or 4 times a night. In the last month, I've had a few nights of uninterrupted sleep and they were the nights when I didn't notice the monitor was down. I guess I got a couple of other nights a couple of weeks ago, but in general, I'm up a lot at night. I'm functioning pretty well considering how little sleep (for me) I'm getting.
To close, I thought I'd share some pictures from when K was a newborn. (You deserve the pictures if you've read this whole post!) It seemed like she hardly slept. I remember big blue eyes wide open a lot. She'd stay awake for hours and hours at a stretch. We were all shocked. Here are a few pictures that show those eyes, her big blue eyes, wide open. This one was taken when she was one-day old and ready to leave the hospital.
Here she is10-days old. Note the big wide eyes. 18-days old and wide eyed! And here's a rare, sweet one of her sleeping. (I just love those little puckered up lips!)
(N slept a lot as a baby, K hardly at all, and T perhaps even more than N. Go figure this sleep thing! I just want a little more on a slightly regular basis.)
K (2) doesn't need a lot of sleep. Her older sister N (4) has always been a champion sleeper. When N was 2, she would sleep from about 9 pm until 9 am or 12 hours after she went to bed... She often didn't go to bed until 10 pm (ish) so then she would sleep until 10 am. My husband and I knew we had a great sleeper.
In addition, N would usually take 3-hour long naps when she was 2. We were lucky. We rejoiced. Enter Miss K. From the time she was born, she slept less than N did and she was 2 years 4 months younger. At age 2, Miss K is going to bed around 10 or 11 and then waking up around 8 am. She'll take a nap that is about 2 hours long. We can't believe it. At age 2, Miss N was sleeping about 15 hours a day and Miss K is only sleeping 12 hours.
Miss T seems to be a fairly good sleeper... Not as good as N, but better than K. T goes to sleep around 8:30 or 9 and wakes up once to nurse at night (either 1 am ish or 4 am ish) and then sleeps until at least 7:45, but sometimes until 9 am. Miss N currently goes to bed between 9 and 10 and gets up between 8:30 and 10 am depending. No more naps for her. She outgrew them last fall. (I thought I'd be more sad when it happened than I was. She really was done with them. When she would nap she'd stay up until midnight. When she wouldn't nap she'd be out at 9 pm on the dot! It made things easier not to have to juggle nap schedules of 3 kids too.)
The newest development on the sleep front with Miss K is that she won't sleep in her crib any more. She learned how to climb out of her crib at the beginning of May. Since then she's been sleeping with me. A lot. She used to just wake up in the middle of the night and come in bed. Then she stopped wanting to go to sleep in her crib. I started snuggling with her in my bed, to help her fall asleep, then moving her to her crib after she fell asleep. Sometimes she comes back to sleep with me in the middle of the night. When she comes back, I have to do "baby juggling." I have to get K to sleep again and then in the portable crib before T (10 months) wakes up to nurse. Then T comes in for either a quick nursing session, or for nursing and a couple of hours of cuddling too. Then I have to get T back to her crib before K demands to be back in bed with me.
When it's bed time, K will say, "Put on your pjamamas and snuggle Mommy." Or "Go Mommy's bed. You come too?!" She won't snuggle with her Dad, it has to be me. She'll fall asleep as I'm doing work on my laptop and sitting on the bed beside her.
It's a little crazy at night. Most nights, I'm up and down 3 or 4 times a night. In the last month, I've had a few nights of uninterrupted sleep and they were the nights when I didn't notice the monitor was down. I guess I got a couple of other nights a couple of weeks ago, but in general, I'm up a lot at night. I'm functioning pretty well considering how little sleep (for me) I'm getting.
To close, I thought I'd share some pictures from when K was a newborn. (You deserve the pictures if you've read this whole post!) It seemed like she hardly slept. I remember big blue eyes wide open a lot. She'd stay awake for hours and hours at a stretch. We were all shocked. Here are a few pictures that show those eyes, her big blue eyes, wide open. This one was taken when she was one-day old and ready to leave the hospital.
Here she is10-days old. Note the big wide eyes. 18-days old and wide eyed! And here's a rare, sweet one of her sleeping. (I just love those little puckered up lips!)
(N slept a lot as a baby, K hardly at all, and T perhaps even more than N. Go figure this sleep thing! I just want a little more on a slightly regular basis.)
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
He didn't tell me...
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Park
We live fairly close to a park and the girls love going. Since it's been light later (but now the days are getting shorter again...) we go a lot. Miss K (2) asks, "Go to the park? You and me and you and me and you?"
You know you're tired when...
You fall asleep while the dentist is drilling and messing around in your mouth. Yup. Me. I was exhausted today. I laughed when my aerobics teacher said she had done it, and thought that falling asleep in the dentist chair was the definition of sleep deprivation.
I just looked up sleep deprivation in the dictionary and found my picture.
I just looked up sleep deprivation in the dictionary and found my picture.
Long-Sleeve Shirts
N (4) loves to wear long-sleeve shirts.
Last summer, I couldn't get her to wear short-sleeve shirts unless it was really hot. Like, over 100 degrees, hot. I bought a bunch of long-sleeve, light-weight, white t-shirts and she wore them all the time.
At night, she'd insist on wearing pjs with long-sleeves, long-pants and socks. IT WAS FREAKIN' HOT and this was her outfit of choice. We really didn't understand how she could possibly sleep like that.
This summer, she's a bit better about being willing to wear short-sleeves on hot days, but she still prefers long-sleeves. Yesterday she wore a long-sleeve, white t-shirt to camp. Today she wore another long-sleeve, white t-shirt to camp. We have 3 long-sleeve, white ones. I think I need to go buy some more.
She is still sleeping in long-sleeve and long-pants pjs; and socks.
Last summer, I couldn't get her to wear short-sleeve shirts unless it was really hot. Like, over 100 degrees, hot. I bought a bunch of long-sleeve, light-weight, white t-shirts and she wore them all the time.
At night, she'd insist on wearing pjs with long-sleeves, long-pants and socks. IT WAS FREAKIN' HOT and this was her outfit of choice. We really didn't understand how she could possibly sleep like that.
This summer, she's a bit better about being willing to wear short-sleeves on hot days, but she still prefers long-sleeves. Yesterday she wore a long-sleeve, white t-shirt to camp. Today she wore another long-sleeve, white t-shirt to camp. We have 3 long-sleeve, white ones. I think I need to go buy some more.
She is still sleeping in long-sleeve and long-pants pjs; and socks.
Monday, June 26, 2006
Tip o' the day
If you ever can't get a vending machine to take your dollar, no matter what you do, try this. Get some spit on your dollar and rub it in. I don't know why it works, but it has always worked for me.
I have gotten the most stubborn vending machines to take my dollar using the old "saliva on the dollar trick". I can't remember who taught me this, but in an emergency it's a good trick to know! (Note, I'm not saying lick the dollar. I'm saying to somehow get some saliva, in the most non-gross way possible, on the dollar.)
File under useless information until you need it!
I have gotten the most stubborn vending machines to take my dollar using the old "saliva on the dollar trick". I can't remember who taught me this, but in an emergency it's a good trick to know! (Note, I'm not saying lick the dollar. I'm saying to somehow get some saliva, in the most non-gross way possible, on the dollar.)
File under useless information until you need it!
It's always the little things
A person I work with is taking great delight in a grammatical mistake I made. I'm not sure why he's taking such delight in my mistake, but he's now pointed it out to 4 people.
I'm fallible. I'm not perfect. I'm the first to admit it. Though I made the mistake, it also slipped past the eyes of THREE OTHER SMART PEOPLE. It was proofed and accepted by all three of them.
And yet this person that I work with continues to chuckle and snort under his breath about MY MISTAKE.
It's alittle lot annoying.
I'm fallible. I'm not perfect. I'm the first to admit it. Though I made the mistake, it also slipped past the eyes of THREE OTHER SMART PEOPLE. It was proofed and accepted by all three of them.
And yet this person that I work with continues to chuckle and snort under his breath about MY MISTAKE.
It's a
Sunday, June 25, 2006
Always something... (brief version)
The other day I made the mistake of wondering what I was forgetting and saying that life was getting calmer. I take it all back. Life is not calm. It will never be calm. It will always be completely insane. I must learn to accept it.
The short story. T (10 months) caught the cold that NB had last week. Then my husband got sick on Saturday. N (4) and K (2) are sniffling, but the cold hasn't slowed them down. T is still coughing but the cold barely slowed her down, just one day on Friday when she couldn't sleep. CSWL (college student we love) is sniffling and sounding terrible but being a trouper. I have a teeny bit of sniffling going on, but not a lot. I'm hoping I don't get much worse.
We went ahead and went to our two parties this weekend spreading germs as we went. Both affairs were full of kids so I figured the germ factor would be high. I was right. Three of the parents I spoke to last night sounded sick. Bleh.
The short story. T (10 months) caught the cold that NB had last week. Then my husband got sick on Saturday. N (4) and K (2) are sniffling, but the cold hasn't slowed them down. T is still coughing but the cold barely slowed her down, just one day on Friday when she couldn't sleep. CSWL (college student we love) is sniffling and sounding terrible but being a trouper. I have a teeny bit of sniffling going on, but not a lot. I'm hoping I don't get much worse.
We went ahead and went to our two parties this weekend spreading germs as we went. Both affairs were full of kids so I figured the germ factor would be high. I was right. Three of the parents I spoke to last night sounded sick. Bleh.
Saturday, June 24, 2006
Egocentric Baby
For the longest time K (2) has been saying, "K is for K_____!" I've been pleased that she was getting the concept that letters start words and also what sounds go with what letters at such a young age.
Today we were talking and I pointed to a "Y." I asked what "Y" is for... She replied "K______!" After saying, "No silly, Y is for Yogurt," I then asked her what "W" is for. She replied "K_____!" Apparently all letters are for K_____!
So much for my theory that she was getting this letter concept early. We are now working on letter sounds officially with K_____. Not in an over achieving way, just in a fun way.
Today we were talking and I pointed to a "Y." I asked what "Y" is for... She replied "K______!" After saying, "No silly, Y is for Yogurt," I then asked her what "W" is for. She replied "K_____!" Apparently all letters are for K_____!
So much for my theory that she was getting this letter concept early. We are now working on letter sounds officially with K_____. Not in an over achieving way, just in a fun way.
Friday, June 23, 2006
Reason #357 why I'm not sure if I like the new babysitter.
New babysitter (NB) gave T a cold. Okay, I can't be 100% sure, it's NB's fault, but NB has a snuffly one. T is sitting beside me with her nose running down her face. T's also awake. It's before 7 am. T is so stuffy-nosed that she can't sleep well. NB tried to blame the cold on my children. NB said, "I probably got it here." I think we now have evidence that it wasn't from us. T wouldn't be sick now if it was.
Other reasons include...
Her pants... NB wears those pants that show her butt when she bends over. She's been here about 10 times now and 9 of the times she's worn those pants. I think she might actually have 2 or 3 pairs of the same jeans that just don't fit her well.
The second time she was here, I came home and she hadn't wiped K's (2) bottom after K had pooped. When I went to change K's diaper I found gross old poop smeared in her diaper ... YUK. The next time NB came I was home and K was sitting on the potty doing her business... K was getting up and the new person was helping and she handed K a wipe. I gave NB a funny look and she asked, "Can she wipe herself?" I replied, "No, she's still learning about the potty. She doesn't know how to wipe. She's only 2." At least now NB wipes K.
After baths, the NB leaves the girls towels on the floor. (Yuk!)
The house gets totally trashed when NB is here. I came home to crayons in the living room. And pretty much every other toy strewn about all the entire downstairs. I have a high tolerance for mess, but I nearly lost it when I saw that mess. I calmly said, "Oh my, I think we need to dig out. This place looks like the toy box exploded." I've never left NB alone with all 3. NB should be able to clean up a bit especially on days when both T (10 months) and K (2) nap at the same time. Even I can manage that. And get a little work done too.
NB says things, like, "Don't worry, I'll clean up in here and then doesn't." She said this to me yesterday as I was starting to clean up in the kitchen and she was sitting on the floor while N (4) was completely engaged in another task. She could have done it right then. But she didn't. When I came back from an errand the place was still trashed.
NB always asks, "Is there anything else I can do?" What I want to say... Ummm, look around? There are toys everywhere and the kitchen hasn't yet been cleaned since you fed the girls lunch 2 hours ago. Instead, I take a deep breath and say, "Maybe you could straighten up in here a bit?"
She says she has baby sat for 5 kids at once. I don't know how.
The good: She does play with the girls and they seem to like her.
5 more working days until our regular super-nanny is back.
(We are having the college student we love (CSWL) help too while Super-nanny is gone, and we still love that college student. CSWL even been recruited to help train NB, because CSWL sees what NB is like. So far, the NB just isn't getting it.) Oh, what to do... Should I talk with her ... Maybe I should leave specific instructions written out. That might help.
Other reasons include...
Her pants... NB wears those pants that show her butt when she bends over. She's been here about 10 times now and 9 of the times she's worn those pants. I think she might actually have 2 or 3 pairs of the same jeans that just don't fit her well.
The second time she was here, I came home and she hadn't wiped K's (2) bottom after K had pooped. When I went to change K's diaper I found gross old poop smeared in her diaper ... YUK. The next time NB came I was home and K was sitting on the potty doing her business... K was getting up and the new person was helping and she handed K a wipe. I gave NB a funny look and she asked, "Can she wipe herself?" I replied, "No, she's still learning about the potty. She doesn't know how to wipe. She's only 2." At least now NB wipes K.
After baths, the NB leaves the girls towels on the floor. (Yuk!)
The house gets totally trashed when NB is here. I came home to crayons in the living room. And pretty much every other toy strewn about all the entire downstairs. I have a high tolerance for mess, but I nearly lost it when I saw that mess. I calmly said, "Oh my, I think we need to dig out. This place looks like the toy box exploded." I've never left NB alone with all 3. NB should be able to clean up a bit especially on days when both T (10 months) and K (2) nap at the same time. Even I can manage that. And get a little work done too.
NB says things, like, "Don't worry, I'll clean up in here and then doesn't." She said this to me yesterday as I was starting to clean up in the kitchen and she was sitting on the floor while N (4) was completely engaged in another task. She could have done it right then. But she didn't. When I came back from an errand the place was still trashed.
NB always asks, "Is there anything else I can do?" What I want to say... Ummm, look around? There are toys everywhere and the kitchen hasn't yet been cleaned since you fed the girls lunch 2 hours ago. Instead, I take a deep breath and say, "Maybe you could straighten up in here a bit?"
She says she has baby sat for 5 kids at once. I don't know how.
The good: She does play with the girls and they seem to like her.
5 more working days until our regular super-nanny is back.
(We are having the college student we love (CSWL) help too while Super-nanny is gone, and we still love that college student. CSWL even been recruited to help train NB, because CSWL sees what NB is like. So far, the NB just isn't getting it.) Oh, what to do... Should I talk with her ... Maybe I should leave specific instructions written out. That might help.
Thursday, June 22, 2006
This week so far
I can't believe it's Thursday...
So far, I've finished 2 things that needed to be done at work. Two MAJOR things. I am so excited. I am also so exhausted.
Last night I cleaned my kitchen floor too. (This is always a big accomplishment for me. It makes me happy when it is clean! And just for the record, it's not the first time I've done it since I last blogged about cleaning it. It's the 3rd time, but I was also gone for a week on vacation in May. (I consider 3 times in a little over a month "pretty good" especially since I was gone for a week!)
What else... I need to make more progress on some other things at work. I need to work out more! I have only gotten to go to the gym one time (last night) since I've been back from vacation. I had the dance show, and that's a work out, but not as much as the gym is. I'm not sure if I've lost any weight since the last time I wrote about losing weight, but since I haven't worked out, I'm not surprised.
Coming up... Two parties this weekend. Fortunately they are on different days and both low-key! I don't feel terribly stressed right now. I'm wondering what I forgot.
So far, I've finished 2 things that needed to be done at work. Two MAJOR things. I am so excited. I am also so exhausted.
Last night I cleaned my kitchen floor too. (This is always a big accomplishment for me. It makes me happy when it is clean! And just for the record, it's not the first time I've done it since I last blogged about cleaning it. It's the 3rd time, but I was also gone for a week on vacation in May. (I consider 3 times in a little over a month "pretty good" especially since I was gone for a week!)
What else... I need to make more progress on some other things at work. I need to work out more! I have only gotten to go to the gym one time (last night) since I've been back from vacation. I had the dance show, and that's a work out, but not as much as the gym is. I'm not sure if I've lost any weight since the last time I wrote about losing weight, but since I haven't worked out, I'm not surprised.
Coming up... Two parties this weekend. Fortunately they are on different days and both low-key! I don't feel terribly stressed right now. I'm wondering what I forgot.
Girly-girl
K (2) is our girly-girl. I present exhibit A. 
She is wearing my shoes, carrying her purse and wearing pink pajamas (love the diaper sticking out too!). (This photo was taken in a hotel room, hence the generic look of everything on and around the bed.) The purse is full of stuff. She has a toy cell phone, two bracelets (one pearl (fake) and one made of colorful plastic stars), and keys (a set of old car keys that belong to a car I drove in high school).
She carries her purse a lot of places. She holds it on her left arm usually, and then she holds her arm out. She twitches her little bottom when she walks while carrying her purse. (Probably because her arm is out.)
Recently when we were getting her dressed in a little unitard for gymnastics (it's black and pink and has little rhinestones in the shape of a heart on the chest) she hugged it and said, "nastics dress beeeeeeyooooooutiful!"
Whenever we put a dress on her she says, "I'm a princess and begins to spin around."
She takes notes when she watches me put on make-up. She saw me put on mascara for the first time the other day (I don't wear it very often) and she was completely intrigued.
I just bought her a new pair of pink sandals for the summer and she was so happy. She said, "You bought me NEW SHOES. I'm so excited."
This morning she was snuggling with me and she looked at me and said, "You're pretty."
She is wearing my shoes, carrying her purse and wearing pink pajamas (love the diaper sticking out too!). (This photo was taken in a hotel room, hence the generic look of everything on and around the bed.) The purse is full of stuff. She has a toy cell phone, two bracelets (one pearl (fake) and one made of colorful plastic stars), and keys (a set of old car keys that belong to a car I drove in high school).
She carries her purse a lot of places. She holds it on her left arm usually, and then she holds her arm out. She twitches her little bottom when she walks while carrying her purse. (Probably because her arm is out.)
Recently when we were getting her dressed in a little unitard for gymnastics (it's black and pink and has little rhinestones in the shape of a heart on the chest) she hugged it and said, "nastics dress beeeeeeyooooooutiful!"
Whenever we put a dress on her she says, "I'm a princess and begins to spin around."
She takes notes when she watches me put on make-up. She saw me put on mascara for the first time the other day (I don't wear it very often) and she was completely intrigued.
I just bought her a new pair of pink sandals for the summer and she was so happy. She said, "You bought me NEW SHOES. I'm so excited."
This morning she was snuggling with me and she looked at me and said, "You're pretty."
Summer Time....
It's officially summer now. I'm officially HOT.
I told you about my numbness. When it is hot, I am numb. My hands and legs are so numb right now. It's been really hot for a few days and I'm really feeling it.
On another note...
N (4) seems to be enjoying Science Camp a lot. They got to go the Children's Museum yesterday. It was her FIRST field trip. I was nervous that she'd get lost. When she was two, we were at that Children's Museum and she ran off. I turned my head for 1/10th of a second and she disappeared. I "lost" her for about 5 minutes. Scariest 5 minutes of my life. We found her playing in one of the displays, but it was scary. I was very happy with the Museum's response. They shut down all the doors so no one could leave until N was found.
Anyway, I was nervous yesterday. She went and came home. I was relieved. I always think about something a speaker told my Mother's Group when N was first born. She said something like this... (and I know that I've morphed it into a lot of what I believe over the years too so it's not exactly what she said, but it is in the spirit)
When you first have a child you are nervous because you haven't yet learned to trust them. You first learn to trust that they will eat enough, and that they will keep breathing when they are asleep. Later you learn to trust that they will not hurt themselves when they are sitting, crawling and walking. And then you learn to trust them as they go off on their own.
You are raising children who will constantly be moving away from you. You have to trust them. You can't teach them, you have to show them what you want them to know. What you believe is right. Living like you want them to live is the best teacher. You will most likely trust your second child more than your first child on most things in the beginning and you'll wonder why you were so nervous with your first.
I told you about my numbness. When it is hot, I am numb. My hands and legs are so numb right now. It's been really hot for a few days and I'm really feeling it.
On another note...
N (4) seems to be enjoying Science Camp a lot. They got to go the Children's Museum yesterday. It was her FIRST field trip. I was nervous that she'd get lost. When she was two, we were at that Children's Museum and she ran off. I turned my head for 1/10th of a second and she disappeared. I "lost" her for about 5 minutes. Scariest 5 minutes of my life. We found her playing in one of the displays, but it was scary. I was very happy with the Museum's response. They shut down all the doors so no one could leave until N was found.
Anyway, I was nervous yesterday. She went and came home. I was relieved. I always think about something a speaker told my Mother's Group when N was first born. She said something like this... (and I know that I've morphed it into a lot of what I believe over the years too so it's not exactly what she said, but it is in the spirit)
When you first have a child you are nervous because you haven't yet learned to trust them. You first learn to trust that they will eat enough, and that they will keep breathing when they are asleep. Later you learn to trust that they will not hurt themselves when they are sitting, crawling and walking. And then you learn to trust them as they go off on their own.
You are raising children who will constantly be moving away from you. You have to trust them. You can't teach them, you have to show them what you want them to know. What you believe is right. Living like you want them to live is the best teacher. You will most likely trust your second child more than your first child on most things in the beginning and you'll wonder why you were so nervous with your first.
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
Language!
T (10 months!) now says a few words. Today she started saying, "oodat?" Translated it's "who's that?" I would be shocked, because it's two words, but one of K's first words was, "wasat?" (What's that?) Today T also started saying, "uh-oh!" as she dropped things.
&&&&&&&
Today K (2) said, "I love you too, much." She often says, "I love you much." But I had just said, "I love you." So she replied, "I love you too, much." (I love you also much.) I melted!
Did I tell you about the other day when I looked at K and said, "My goodness you're tall! I think you've grown 3 feet!" She looked down at her feet and said, "No Mommy. Two feet." Priceless!
There was also the time recently when I was searching frantically for my sports bra before I went to my dance class. I said, "I don't have a clue where my sports bra is!" ... K, being helpful, ran and got me the Blue's Clue Video that we have and said, "Mommy, here clue!"
&&&&&&&
Then there's N (4). She's very curious about babies and where they come from. A while ago she asked about how you get a baby. I wasn't ready to have the talk so I told her that you get married and then you can have a baby. This satisfied her.
She was recently a flower girl in a wedding. About 2 weeks before the wedding she stated that she didn't want to go to the wedding. When I finally asked her why she didn't want to go, she replied that she didn't want to see a baby come out of [bride's] belly. I asked why she thought that [bride] was going to have a baby. She parroted back to me... "First you get married and then you have a baby."
Today K (2) said, "I love you too, much." She often says, "I love you much." But I had just said, "I love you." So she replied, "I love you too, much." (I love you also much.) I melted!
Did I tell you about the other day when I looked at K and said, "My goodness you're tall! I think you've grown 3 feet!" She looked down at her feet and said, "No Mommy. Two feet." Priceless!
There was also the time recently when I was searching frantically for my sports bra before I went to my dance class. I said, "I don't have a clue where my sports bra is!" ... K, being helpful, ran and got me the Blue's Clue Video that we have and said, "Mommy, here clue!"
Then there's N (4). She's very curious about babies and where they come from. A while ago she asked about how you get a baby. I wasn't ready to have the talk so I told her that you get married and then you can have a baby. This satisfied her.
She was recently a flower girl in a wedding. About 2 weeks before the wedding she stated that she didn't want to go to the wedding. When I finally asked her why she didn't want to go, she replied that she didn't want to see a baby come out of [bride's] belly. I asked why she thought that [bride] was going to have a baby. She parroted back to me... "First you get married and then you have a baby."
Monday, June 19, 2006
The good, the bad, the ugly
The good
N (4) started science camp today. Preschool ended on Friday. I enrolled her in science camp for the two-week break she gets before summer preschool starts. I wanted to keep her from getting too bored.
She said didn't want to go to camp, and she clung to me when I took her this morning, but when I picked her up she greeted me with, "I LOVED IT!" Now, tonight, she's saying she doesn't want to go again. I think she's just doing it to get attention.
The best is that I got the coolest necklace. She made it for me with bright beads at camp. I love it!
One more good...
Remember when I felt opressed? Well, I ran into a sympathetic big authority person tonight on the way out of work. He asked what was happening with that project idea. I told him we'd talked with big authority figure and that she felt we needed to do more work, and that we needed a senior level person to lead us.
He said, "Huh?" He asked why I wasn't leading the project. I said I wasn't senior level. He said, "You have plenty of experience and the qualifications. Let's talk to the leadership team." I felt so much better. When big authority figure said we didn't have the qualifications both my colleague and I felt stupid and childish. Getting some positive reinforcement from sympathetic big authority person was nice.
It also turns out another nice important person where I work is interested in our idea and will talk with us in a couple of weeks.
The Bad
I never had time to call my father yesterday on Father's Day. I feel so bad.
My Dad is a great guy. He's a big tough kind of guy. All the boys I ever brought home in high school were scared of him. But he used to iron my shirts when I was in junior high and high school. Is that sweet or what? He also would make me breakfast in the morning. He loves to cook and loves to feed people. He also loves to complain.
The Ugly
Life is just so incredibly crazy and chaotic. I am working on trying to calm it down, and it's probably getting a teeny bit better slowly. The problem is that I'm running out of steam from all the craziness that has been occurring in the last two months.
My new personal motto is, "If it doesn't have caffeine in it, it's not worth drinking." Yea. It's ugly like that.
A colleague and friend is trying to teach me to ask, "How can I help YOU do that?" I usually mess up and ask, "What can I do to help you?"
I've gotta get those two straight!
N (4) started science camp today. Preschool ended on Friday. I enrolled her in science camp for the two-week break she gets before summer preschool starts. I wanted to keep her from getting too bored.
She said didn't want to go to camp, and she clung to me when I took her this morning, but when I picked her up she greeted me with, "I LOVED IT!" Now, tonight, she's saying she doesn't want to go again. I think she's just doing it to get attention.
The best is that I got the coolest necklace. She made it for me with bright beads at camp. I love it!
One more good...
Remember when I felt opressed? Well, I ran into a sympathetic big authority person tonight on the way out of work. He asked what was happening with that project idea. I told him we'd talked with big authority figure and that she felt we needed to do more work, and that we needed a senior level person to lead us.
He said, "Huh?" He asked why I wasn't leading the project. I said I wasn't senior level. He said, "You have plenty of experience and the qualifications. Let's talk to the leadership team." I felt so much better. When big authority figure said we didn't have the qualifications both my colleague and I felt stupid and childish. Getting some positive reinforcement from sympathetic big authority person was nice.
It also turns out another nice important person where I work is interested in our idea and will talk with us in a couple of weeks.
The Bad
I never had time to call my father yesterday on Father's Day. I feel so bad.
My Dad is a great guy. He's a big tough kind of guy. All the boys I ever brought home in high school were scared of him. But he used to iron my shirts when I was in junior high and high school. Is that sweet or what? He also would make me breakfast in the morning. He loves to cook and loves to feed people. He also loves to complain.
The Ugly
Life is just so incredibly crazy and chaotic. I am working on trying to calm it down, and it's probably getting a teeny bit better slowly. The problem is that I'm running out of steam from all the craziness that has been occurring in the last two months.
My new personal motto is, "If it doesn't have caffeine in it, it's not worth drinking." Yea. It's ugly like that.
A colleague and friend is trying to teach me to ask, "How can I help YOU do that?" I usually mess up and ask, "What can I do to help you?"
I've gotta get those two straight!
Saturday, June 17, 2006
Happy Father's Day
My husband is an amazing father and man. For us, the best Dad and the best husband. On Friday, he got Miss N dressed for the wedding she was in (as a flower girl). I have a picture of him putting the dress on her, and doing the bow in the back. His little girls are going to teach him things about the female that no one else ever could (not even me).
My husband is incredibly patient. He toliet-trained his cat. He puts up with me and all of my crazy ideas. He loves his little girls. They love him. They get so excited when they get to play "chase-chase" or "Daddy Monster."
I just asked N (4) what her favorite thing to do with Daddy was, her eyes lit up, and she immediately said, "Play chase-chase!"
N and K also love the songs Daddy sings to them at night before bed. Once you've heard "Short little Alfred cleans our house" (to the tune of Old MacDonald) you understand! K loves Daddy to dance with her before bed.
He got to cut the cord at the births of all 3 little girls. Right after N was born, he went with her to do the first bath and the first check-up like the daddies do. They put her on a table that had warming lights above it and N just looked incredibly content. He thought she might have sighed even. When we got out of the hospital, he went out and got her a warming light to go over her changing table at our house. That's the kind of guy he is.
When we found out we were pregnant with T (a big surprise), his reaction was to take a picture of the pregnancy test in front of our Christmas tree (since it was Christmas Day). It's one of my favorite pictures. I was in too much shock to have thought of something like that. He was level-headed and cool.
Each time one of our little girls is born, people are suprised that there is an increasing trend in how much they look like him. N looked just like him, then K looked even more just like him, and now T is his little clone.
Whenever I hear the Paul Simon song, Father and Daughter, I think of him and our little girls...
I'm gonna watch you shine
Gonna watch you grow
Gonna paint a sign
So you'll always know
As long as one and one is two
There could never be a father
Who loved his daughter more than I love you
And then he gets to multiply by 3. It's a good thing he's good at math.
My husband is incredibly patient. He toliet-trained his cat. He puts up with me and all of my crazy ideas. He loves his little girls. They love him. They get so excited when they get to play "chase-chase" or "Daddy Monster."
I just asked N (4) what her favorite thing to do with Daddy was, her eyes lit up, and she immediately said, "Play chase-chase!"
N and K also love the songs Daddy sings to them at night before bed. Once you've heard "Short little Alfred cleans our house" (to the tune of Old MacDonald) you understand! K loves Daddy to dance with her before bed.
He got to cut the cord at the births of all 3 little girls. Right after N was born, he went with her to do the first bath and the first check-up like the daddies do. They put her on a table that had warming lights above it and N just looked incredibly content. He thought she might have sighed even. When we got out of the hospital, he went out and got her a warming light to go over her changing table at our house. That's the kind of guy he is.
When we found out we were pregnant with T (a big surprise), his reaction was to take a picture of the pregnancy test in front of our Christmas tree (since it was Christmas Day). It's one of my favorite pictures. I was in too much shock to have thought of something like that. He was level-headed and cool.
Each time one of our little girls is born, people are suprised that there is an increasing trend in how much they look like him. N looked just like him, then K looked even more just like him, and now T is his little clone.
Whenever I hear the Paul Simon song, Father and Daughter, I think of him and our little girls...
I'm gonna watch you shine
Gonna watch you grow
Gonna paint a sign
So you'll always know
As long as one and one is two
There could never be a father
Who loved his daughter more than I love you
And then he gets to multiply by 3. It's a good thing he's good at math.
Thursday, June 15, 2006
T-Talk (Edited)
T's almost 10 months old and these are the things she's saying (in addition to tickle...)
When you make a shhhh sound, she'll make it back. I don't think she knows what it means, but she can make it.
She'll make a k sound when we say kitty... She loves our cat. One morning she woke up saw our kitty and began crawling towards him saying "tickle tickle." Very fun. This morning she and I were looking at a book about kitties and I swear she said "ki-cat."
She kind of makes a meowing sound sometimes when you show her a stuffed kitty or a picture of a kitty. It doesn't have a "m" in it but it's sort of a high pitched "ow" sound which is how K used to meow when she was young.
She isn't quite clapping, but it's getting closer. Today she was clapping puzzle pieces together. She's really good at banging objects on the floor.
Yesterday, in the grocery store, she was very intrigued by the picture of the cow on the Parmesan Cheese. I entertained her by saying, "The cow says, MOOOOOOO," and showing her the cheese bag for a very long time. We talked about cows again at home before bed looking at all the stuffed cows that N (4) has and pictures in books. Based on her reaction to "MOOOOOO," I wouldn't be surprised if she said it soon.
I swear she's said "yellow." (Other people have heard this too. It's not just me.) (And the older two girls love their yellow blankets so it could be that T is expressing a desire for a "yellow" too.) (She currently has a "pink" blanket.)
She plays peek-a-boo and the nanny swears she said "pee-boo" the other day when she was playing peek-a-boo.
We're trying to teach her the sign for "all done" and the one for "more" so that she'll be able to communicate with us at mealtime. Right now, when she's done eating she does a pterodactyl screach. Did I tell you that that's her nickname? (Actually it's her name combined with pterodactyl... ) We used to call K "banshee babe" when she'd scream. T is not a banshee she's a T__dactyl. The screams of a banshee and a T__dactyl are different.
The screams of a T--dactyl are close to the sound of metal scraping metal and sometimes when she shrieks when I'm driving I think I've hit something. I especially get freaked when I'm backing up and she shrieks.
She just loves to laugh. She's really a little ham.
T-Walk
She's totally cruising while holding on to objects. She'll pull up on something and let go and she can bend down too. If she's on the same schedule for walking as her sisters she'll walk right around 11 months. She's been on the same schedule for other physical developments so far so we will see. She pushes the pink toy doll stroller by "walking" on her knees and holding on to it--hilarious.
I just love watching all the new developments. I try to record them, but it's so hard to catch them sometimes.
Edited to add:
NOT EVEN 10 minutes after I pushed publish on this post T walked behind the little doll stroller. Honest -to-gosh walking. She took about 8-10 steps and didn't falter or stumble at all. When her daddy got home she re-created it by taking 4 steps behind the stroller. My baby is almost walking!
When you make a shhhh sound, she'll make it back. I don't think she knows what it means, but she can make it.
She'll make a k sound when we say kitty... She loves our cat. One morning she woke up saw our kitty and began crawling towards him saying "tickle tickle." Very fun. This morning she and I were looking at a book about kitties and I swear she said "ki-cat."
She kind of makes a meowing sound sometimes when you show her a stuffed kitty or a picture of a kitty. It doesn't have a "m" in it but it's sort of a high pitched "ow" sound which is how K used to meow when she was young.
She isn't quite clapping, but it's getting closer. Today she was clapping puzzle pieces together. She's really good at banging objects on the floor.
Yesterday, in the grocery store, she was very intrigued by the picture of the cow on the Parmesan Cheese. I entertained her by saying, "The cow says, MOOOOOOO," and showing her the cheese bag for a very long time. We talked about cows again at home before bed looking at all the stuffed cows that N (4) has and pictures in books. Based on her reaction to "MOOOOOO," I wouldn't be surprised if she said it soon.
I swear she's said "yellow." (Other people have heard this too. It's not just me.) (And the older two girls love their yellow blankets so it could be that T is expressing a desire for a "yellow" too.) (She currently has a "pink" blanket.)
She plays peek-a-boo and the nanny swears she said "pee-boo" the other day when she was playing peek-a-boo.
We're trying to teach her the sign for "all done" and the one for "more" so that she'll be able to communicate with us at mealtime. Right now, when she's done eating she does a pterodactyl screach. Did I tell you that that's her nickname? (Actually it's her name combined with pterodactyl... ) We used to call K "banshee babe" when she'd scream. T is not a banshee she's a T__dactyl. The screams of a banshee and a T__dactyl are different.
The screams of a T--dactyl are close to the sound of metal scraping metal and sometimes when she shrieks when I'm driving I think I've hit something. I especially get freaked when I'm backing up and she shrieks.
She just loves to laugh. She's really a little ham.
T-Walk
She's totally cruising while holding on to objects. She'll pull up on something and let go and she can bend down too. If she's on the same schedule for walking as her sisters she'll walk right around 11 months. She's been on the same schedule for other physical developments so far so we will see. She pushes the pink toy doll stroller by "walking" on her knees and holding on to it--hilarious.
I just love watching all the new developments. I try to record them, but it's so hard to catch them sometimes.
Edited to add:
NOT EVEN 10 minutes after I pushed publish on this post T walked behind the little doll stroller. Honest -to-gosh walking. She took about 8-10 steps and didn't falter or stumble at all. When her daddy got home she re-created it by taking 4 steps behind the stroller. My baby is almost walking!
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Observations (pretty random stuff here)
At nearly 10 months of age, T's hair is almost as long as N's hair was at birth.
*******
K is 2 years and one month old. K was born when N (now 4) was 2 years and four months old. It is totally beyond my comprehension that when T turns 1, K will still be younger than N was when K was born. (Did you follow that? The bottom line, K and T are so close in age it's [insert colorful adjective] insane!)
*******
I have a cousin (on my Mom's side) who doesn't interact much with his family (siblings or any one else). No one knows why exactly. My Dad has a brother who stopped talking with his siblings. No one really knew why he stopped talking with them either. It's always strange to me when that happens. Is it common? I really like my brothers. I can't imagine not talking with them. Granted, I don't see them very much, but that's because I live 1/2 a continent away from them. I get very excited to see them. I will always talk with them on the phone.
*******
All my girls have been great newborns. Hardly ever cried. Slept pretty well. Smiled a lot. Everyone always told me how lucky I was. I knew I was lucky, but I learned that they are harder as they get older. They have sooooooooooo much energy. I had hopes that T (almost 10 months) was going to be mellow. I have seen much evidence recently that she's got at least as much spunk as K, if not more. N is the most energetic kid and I'd be surprised if K and T make it up to her level.
*******
K is 2 years and one month old. K was born when N (now 4) was 2 years and four months old. It is totally beyond my comprehension that when T turns 1, K will still be younger than N was when K was born. (Did you follow that? The bottom line, K and T are so close in age it's [insert colorful adjective] insane!)
*******
I have a cousin (on my Mom's side) who doesn't interact much with his family (siblings or any one else). No one knows why exactly. My Dad has a brother who stopped talking with his siblings. No one really knew why he stopped talking with them either. It's always strange to me when that happens. Is it common? I really like my brothers. I can't imagine not talking with them. Granted, I don't see them very much, but that's because I live 1/2 a continent away from them. I get very excited to see them. I will always talk with them on the phone.
*******
All my girls have been great newborns. Hardly ever cried. Slept pretty well. Smiled a lot. Everyone always told me how lucky I was. I knew I was lucky, but I learned that they are harder as they get older. They have sooooooooooo much energy. I had hopes that T (almost 10 months) was going to be mellow. I have seen much evidence recently that she's got at least as much spunk as K, if not more. N is the most energetic kid and I'd be surprised if K and T make it up to her level.
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
Insight
N (4) said,
"The days turn into another day--they go so fast."
Yup, they do. Even she feels how crazy life is. Must. slow. down.
"The days turn into another day--they go so fast."
Yup, they do. Even she feels how crazy life is. Must. slow. down.
D'oh! (again!)
Last night, the monitor for T's (9.5 months) room was turned down again. (Am I a loser or what????)
Again, T slept through the night, or maybe she just didn't cry loud enough to wake me (not sure which).
This time, I noticed the monitor was turned down at 5 am when K (2) came in for snuggling and to sleep with me. The good news is that T wasn't crying at 5 am when I noticed the monitor was down. T woke up around 6:30 ish, came into bed, nursed and slept in until about 9. (I had to get up at 7:45.)
I'm hoping T isn't mad at me for having the monitor down and that she doesn't get up constantly tonight. I'm hoping that she's learning to sleep all the way through the night. I think she just sort of fusses at 2 or 3 am and I hear her and grab her prematurely. I don't think she actually needs me.
Okay ... should I turn off the monitor completely now or should I leave it on? I'm taking votes. Leave your vote in a comment. Our rooms are close and if she needs me she will wake me.... Oh, what should I do?
Again, T slept through the night, or maybe she just didn't cry loud enough to wake me (not sure which).
This time, I noticed the monitor was turned down at 5 am when K (2) came in for snuggling and to sleep with me. The good news is that T wasn't crying at 5 am when I noticed the monitor was down. T woke up around 6:30 ish, came into bed, nursed and slept in until about 9. (I had to get up at 7:45.)
I'm hoping T isn't mad at me for having the monitor down and that she doesn't get up constantly tonight. I'm hoping that she's learning to sleep all the way through the night. I think she just sort of fusses at 2 or 3 am and I hear her and grab her prematurely. I don't think she actually needs me.
Okay ... should I turn off the monitor completely now or should I leave it on? I'm taking votes. Leave your vote in a comment. Our rooms are close and if she needs me she will wake me.... Oh, what should I do?
Monday, June 12, 2006
Will I ever be able to catch up?
First, a Sleep Update
Last night, K (2) and T (9.5) both slept better and I'm somewhat rested. Tonight T went down without screaming and K is laying beside me almost asleep. I'll put her in her crib when she falls asleep. K took a nap for 2 hours today. I've decided to let her take naps up to 2 hours in length, but not longer.
Now, the real post...
Every time I think I'm going to finally get a chance to catch up... the universe says, "HAH! Haaa ... heee... hoooo, oh, that's funny!"
Did I tell you that I have always had 2 part-time nannies instead of one full-time one? I chose to do this because I work and because it always made sense to me to have two part-time ones so if one got sick or went on vacation I'd still have one and not be totally screwed. Has it ever worked that way? NO.
Everytime, they've always needed off at the same time because something major has/was happened/happening and they've needed to be gone at the same time. And then I'm screwed. It's happening now.
Right now, one nanny is on a trip to see her daughter who is having her first baby (our nanny is about to become a Grandma). Can't say no to that trip. The other one is getting married Friday. Can't say no to that either. So me=screwed. I am happy for both of our nannies, but I just wish I had a 3rd one! I have a lot of stuff going on at work. (But I always do.)
I have a college student helping. She's not worked with us before. She came with a fabulous recommendations, but ummmm... I'm not wanting to leave her alone with the kids for more than a couple of hours at a time. She's a preschool teacher, and I don't think she's very good with kids under three. She's trying. I'll fill you in more later about that. Next week, another college student, who we LOVE, will be staying with us and helping sort of like an au pair.
Just 4 more days until the excellent college student comes.
Okay... Blog entry short tonight because I have to go write up some stuff for work. Crazy busy. Crazy, crazy, crazy. (And yes, I wrote the word crazy 3 times for a reason, or rather 3 reasons.)
Last night, K (2) and T (9.5) both slept better and I'm somewhat rested. Tonight T went down without screaming and K is laying beside me almost asleep. I'll put her in her crib when she falls asleep. K took a nap for 2 hours today. I've decided to let her take naps up to 2 hours in length, but not longer.
Now, the real post...
Every time I think I'm going to finally get a chance to catch up... the universe says, "HAH! Haaa ... heee... hoooo, oh, that's funny!"
Did I tell you that I have always had 2 part-time nannies instead of one full-time one? I chose to do this because I work and because it always made sense to me to have two part-time ones so if one got sick or went on vacation I'd still have one and not be totally screwed. Has it ever worked that way? NO.
Everytime, they've always needed off at the same time because something major has/was happened/happening and they've needed to be gone at the same time. And then I'm screwed. It's happening now.
Right now, one nanny is on a trip to see her daughter who is having her first baby (our nanny is about to become a Grandma). Can't say no to that trip. The other one is getting married Friday. Can't say no to that either. So me=screwed. I am happy for both of our nannies, but I just wish I had a 3rd one! I have a lot of stuff going on at work. (But I always do.)
I have a college student helping. She's not worked with us before. She came with a fabulous recommendations, but ummmm... I'm not wanting to leave her alone with the kids for more than a couple of hours at a time. She's a preschool teacher, and I don't think she's very good with kids under three. She's trying. I'll fill you in more later about that. Next week, another college student, who we LOVE, will be staying with us and helping sort of like an au pair.
Just 4 more days until the excellent college student comes.
Okay... Blog entry short tonight because I have to go write up some stuff for work. Crazy busy. Crazy, crazy, crazy. (And yes, I wrote the word crazy 3 times for a reason, or rather 3 reasons.)
Sunday, June 11, 2006
Sleep
Posts about sleep are everywhere in the blogosphere.
K (2) and T (9.5 months) are really doing us in. T is up in her crib right nowcrying screaming. It's killing me, but if I give in and go get her I will only be teaching her to scream longer. She's only been screaming for about 2 minutes.
Well, actually she screamed for about 2 minutes, then settled for 5 and then started up again. I'm giving her another 10 to settle. When she stopped before I reset the clock. I said 12 minutes originally. I was delighted when she stopped after two. I was very sad when she started again. Oh, this is hard.
Last night was harder though. I think I went to sleep around 12:30-ish. At 1 am, K woke up and asked mem to put her in the portable crib in our room. She likes to sleep near us. At 2:30 T woke up to nurse. At 3:15, K climbed out of the portable crib and crawled up in bed with us so I got up to put T back in her crib.
We interupt this story to tell you that T has stopped screaming 5 minutes after she started. That's a grand total of 7 minutes so far. We'll see if she falls asleep now. And now back to the story of last night....
K slept in the middle of our bed from 3:30 - 7. T woke up and wanted to nurse at 6-ish. I brought her in and nursed her and then took her back to her room right after. She went back to sleep. K woke up at 7 and wanted to nurse. I did in the hope that I could get a little more sleep.
10:04 pm T's whimpering again. (At least she's not screaming.)
After 20 or so minutes K begged for the "other side." I was so tired and so hopeful that she'd fall back asleep that I gave it to her. I never do. (And I shouldn't. T was not happy when I got up and was empty on both sides. K just DRAINS me.) At 8 am, despite my nursing efforts, K decided it was time to get up. I poked my husband and told him it was his turn.
10:07 pm It's quiet in T's room.
K and he got up. A little bit later I heard T. I wasn't sure I'd get back to sleep. I must have because the next thing I knew, it was almost 10 am. I slept late the other day (Wednesday I think) and I felt miserable. I felt crappy again this morning and all day until about 6 pm.
Anyway, all this boring sleep talk. I don't know what to do about K. She just doesn't need that much sleep. She didn't get a nap today. She fell asleep in the car for 10 minutes and thought she was done. At 7:30 pm she was losing it. She was out cold at 9 pm (usual bed time). (We usually get her to bed at 9, but she usually doesn't fall asleep until 10.)
I don't know if we just need to only let her nap about an hour or so (and not longer) in the afternoon. She's so young. Just 2. She should still be sleeping a lot. She's just not a sleeper.
I remember how little she slept as a newborn. She'd lay peacefully in your arms with her big blue eyes wide open. She was taking everything in, but she would NOT sleep.
My N (4), now she was a sleeper. She still is. Champion Sleeper!
Once when N was sick, first time she threw up, I asked her if I could do anything for her...Sit with her, keep her company... read to her.
"No," she replied. "My tummy has a fever and I just need to sleep."
N is why we are having sleep issues with K and T. We have to have some sleep issues to keep balance in the universe. N was and still is too good of a sleeper.
Neither T or K are horrible sleepers, but they tag-team us. One won't go to sleep at night and then the other will get up early. That makes it so hard.
That's the answer. I'm just going to have to get everyone on the same schedule. Yikes. Schedules are so hard for me. I'll let you know how it goes.
K (2) and T (9.5 months) are really doing us in. T is up in her crib right now
Well, actually she screamed for about 2 minutes, then settled for 5 and then started up again. I'm giving her another 10 to settle. When she stopped before I reset the clock. I said 12 minutes originally. I was delighted when she stopped after two. I was very sad when she started again. Oh, this is hard.
Last night was harder though. I think I went to sleep around 12:30-ish. At 1 am, K woke up and asked mem to put her in the portable crib in our room. She likes to sleep near us. At 2:30 T woke up to nurse. At 3:15, K climbed out of the portable crib and crawled up in bed with us so I got up to put T back in her crib.
We interupt this story to tell you that T has stopped screaming 5 minutes after she started. That's a grand total of 7 minutes so far. We'll see if she falls asleep now. And now back to the story of last night....
K slept in the middle of our bed from 3:30 - 7. T woke up and wanted to nurse at 6-ish. I brought her in and nursed her and then took her back to her room right after. She went back to sleep. K woke up at 7 and wanted to nurse. I did in the hope that I could get a little more sleep.
10:04 pm T's whimpering again. (At least she's not screaming.)
After 20 or so minutes K begged for the "other side." I was so tired and so hopeful that she'd fall back asleep that I gave it to her. I never do. (And I shouldn't. T was not happy when I got up and was empty on both sides. K just DRAINS me.) At 8 am, despite my nursing efforts, K decided it was time to get up. I poked my husband and told him it was his turn.
10:07 pm It's quiet in T's room.
K and he got up. A little bit later I heard T. I wasn't sure I'd get back to sleep. I must have because the next thing I knew, it was almost 10 am. I slept late the other day (Wednesday I think) and I felt miserable. I felt crappy again this morning and all day until about 6 pm.
Anyway, all this boring sleep talk. I don't know what to do about K. She just doesn't need that much sleep. She didn't get a nap today. She fell asleep in the car for 10 minutes and thought she was done. At 7:30 pm she was losing it. She was out cold at 9 pm (usual bed time). (We usually get her to bed at 9, but she usually doesn't fall asleep until 10.)
I don't know if we just need to only let her nap about an hour or so (and not longer) in the afternoon. She's so young. Just 2. She should still be sleeping a lot. She's just not a sleeper.
I remember how little she slept as a newborn. She'd lay peacefully in your arms with her big blue eyes wide open. She was taking everything in, but she would NOT sleep.
My N (4), now she was a sleeper. She still is. Champion Sleeper!
Once when N was sick, first time she threw up, I asked her if I could do anything for her...Sit with her, keep her company... read to her.
"No," she replied. "My tummy has a fever and I just need to sleep."
N is why we are having sleep issues with K and T. We have to have some sleep issues to keep balance in the universe. N was and still is too good of a sleeper.
Neither T or K are horrible sleepers, but they tag-team us. One won't go to sleep at night and then the other will get up early. That makes it so hard.
That's the answer. I'm just going to have to get everyone on the same schedule. Yikes. Schedules are so hard for me. I'll let you know how it goes.
It's over
The dance show is over. It went pretty well. There were two shows yesterday. I did better in the afternoon show, but I think, on whole, the evening one was better.
I'm glad it's over. It was eating up some of my time and causing extra stress. I'm not sure why I decided to do it. Maybe I did the show so I could know that I could manage to do it. I love my little girls, but I think that I want to make sure not to lose myself in the craziness that is three. That's the only explanation I reach that makes any sense at all.
Anyway, I did it. Will I do it again? I don't know. It depends on the dance. If it's a good dance, yes. There were moments when it was very fun.
I'm glad it's over. It was eating up some of my time and causing extra stress. I'm not sure why I decided to do it. Maybe I did the show so I could know that I could manage to do it. I love my little girls, but I think that I want to make sure not to lose myself in the craziness that is three. That's the only explanation I reach that makes any sense at all.
Anyway, I did it. Will I do it again? I don't know. It depends on the dance. If it's a good dance, yes. There were moments when it was very fun.
I'm hopeful
I'm hopeful that this will help. I love the challenge of a good stain, but chocolate is always tough unless you can cold water rinse it immediately. I have some Zout on some that was accidentally washed and put in the dryer. We'll see what happens.
Saturday, June 10, 2006
Parallel Lives
This happened to my friend yesterday.
This happened to us.
Yesterday, I gave T (9.5 months) my keys to play with (she was in her car seat) to entertain her as I loaded K (2) & N (4) into their car/car seats...
Just after I got them all loaded in and shut the door, T somehow clicked the lock button on my keys, and N, K & T were all locked in the car. Oops.
I was surprisingly calm and just asked if N could take the keys from T. She did. I told her which button to push and she opened the car. It took about 5 seconds to resolve. Yay N!!!!!!
Note to self, don't let T play with the keys when the car doors are shut!
This happened to us.
Yesterday, I gave T (9.5 months) my keys to play with (she was in her car seat) to entertain her as I loaded K (2) & N (4) into their car/car seats...
Just after I got them all loaded in and shut the door, T somehow clicked the lock button on my keys, and N, K & T were all locked in the car. Oops.
I was surprisingly calm and just asked if N could take the keys from T. She did. I told her which button to push and she opened the car. It took about 5 seconds to resolve. Yay N!!!!!!
Note to self, don't let T play with the keys when the car doors are shut!
Friday, June 09, 2006
Weigh - Feed - Weigh
The lactation center at the hospital where all 3 girls were born was very into doing weigh-feed-weighs if you were at all concerned about how much milk your baby was getting in a nursing session. What you do... you weigh the baby, then you nurse the baby, then you weigh the baby immediately after feeding and that difference between the weight at the end minus the weight before feeding is approximate to what the baby just ate.
For a first-time Mom who is breastfeeding this can be very reassuring. You have a way to figure out how much your baby gets in a nursing session! You are empowered!
I decided to recreate this, but to weigh me to see what gets sucked out of me in the morning... I'm nursing two little ones right now K (2), and T (9.5 months). I've always guessed that in the morning K takes about 8-10 ounces and now T does too.
Yesterday morning, I weighed myself before they nursed and then right after they nursed. I was 1 pound lighter when they were done with me.
I'm estimating that I'm making (on heavy nursing days) about 70 ounces of milk a day. T still mostly just nurses. She sometimes eats a little food, and is getting more into the idea of food, but most of her calories do come from me. (70-80 ounces of milk = about 1500 calories of food... That's why I eat so much and still lose weight. It's all getting sucked out of me.) (I'm guessing T takes in about 40-50 ounces a day and K takes in 10-20 ounces.)
Pretty crazy!
So the official weight loss record since our trip in mid February is 8 pounds. I've lost ~18 (including that 8) since November-ish. I've lost all the weight (plus 3 pounds) I gained when I was pregnant with T. (I also lost ~16-ish after her birth and before November). I gained right around 30 with T, but I was still up 10 pounds from K's pregnancy ('cause I was only 6 months post-partum when I got pregnant with T).
I'm closing in on those last 5 pounds that are so hard to lose. We'll see what happens since I'm still nursing two though.
For a first-time Mom who is breastfeeding this can be very reassuring. You have a way to figure out how much your baby gets in a nursing session! You are empowered!
I decided to recreate this, but to weigh me to see what gets sucked out of me in the morning... I'm nursing two little ones right now K (2), and T (9.5 months). I've always guessed that in the morning K takes about 8-10 ounces and now T does too.
Yesterday morning, I weighed myself before they nursed and then right after they nursed. I was 1 pound lighter when they were done with me.
I'm estimating that I'm making (on heavy nursing days) about 70 ounces of milk a day. T still mostly just nurses. She sometimes eats a little food, and is getting more into the idea of food, but most of her calories do come from me. (70-80 ounces of milk = about 1500 calories of food... That's why I eat so much and still lose weight. It's all getting sucked out of me.) (I'm guessing T takes in about 40-50 ounces a day and K takes in 10-20 ounces.)
Pretty crazy!
So the official weight loss record since our trip in mid February is 8 pounds. I've lost ~18 (including that 8) since November-ish. I've lost all the weight (plus 3 pounds) I gained when I was pregnant with T. (I also lost ~16-ish after her birth and before November). I gained right around 30 with T, but I was still up 10 pounds from K's pregnancy ('cause I was only 6 months post-partum when I got pregnant with T).
I'm closing in on those last 5 pounds that are so hard to lose. We'll see what happens since I'm still nursing two though.
D'Oh!
This morning when T (9.5 months) was taking her morning nap, I noticed that the monitor in our bedroom, for hearing her, was turned all the way down. She may have woken last night. Oops. Bad Mommy!
I guess the good news is that she didn't scream loud enough to wake me. Our bedrooms are close, so even if she screamed she couldn't have screamed that loud or I would have heard. I guess the other good news is that this probably helped her learn to sleep a little better on her own. But still I feel like a bad Mommy even though I know she's fine. Oh, the guilt.
I guess the good news is that she didn't scream loud enough to wake me. Our bedrooms are close, so even if she screamed she couldn't have screamed that loud or I would have heard. I guess the other good news is that this probably helped her learn to sleep a little better on her own. But still I feel like a bad Mommy even though I know she's fine. Oh, the guilt.
Happy, well-rested dance
T (9.5 months) slept through the night. She hasn't done that since before our trip (5/24 - 5/31). K woke up and came and snuggled with me (but not until 5:30). She went back and I put her back in her crib and she stayed asleep and is still asleep.
Last night, I got to watch a TV show for the first time since... Not sure. It's been a long time probably since the end of April. Even with watching a show, I got to bed at 11:15. I even managed to do a loud of laundry.
Life is crazy busy, but I keep hoping I can get it to slow down a bit. (Hopefully after the dance show.)
Last night, I got to watch a TV show for the first time since... Not sure. It's been a long time probably since the end of April. Even with watching a show, I got to bed at 11:15. I even managed to do a loud of laundry.
Life is crazy busy, but I keep hoping I can get it to slow down a bit. (Hopefully after the dance show.)
Thursday, June 08, 2006
The mostly fun evening
I called my husband around 6 and suggested that we go out to dinner. Around 6:15 Miss K (2) drank some water, swallowed the wrong way, and threw up. Fun fun. At the same moment, T (9.5 months) was screaming because N (4) had bonked her on the head. T had taken one of N's toys. N got in a lot of trouble for hitting the baby. Everyone was screaming except me. I was proud. I was calling my husband and begging him to come home. (I felt like a loser because I couldn't handle it, but I was really worried about K. When I'm worried I don't cope well.)
By the time my husband got home I had pretty much determined that K wasn't sick she just gagged... I also had pretty much everything under control and I felt silly for having asked him to come home. K has a very sensitive gag reflex.
The N hitting thing.... N (4) has been very aggressive and easily frustrated with her sisters lately. You can just see how frustrated she is. So she gets mad and hits them. I imagine this is just one of those 4-year old things, but I really don't like it.
If she hits, she gets a time out. It hasn't done any good. Any suggestions? In the heat of the moment, I told her that the next time she hits either sister instead of telling me that they have taken one of her toys, she LOSES the toy forever. That I will take it and toss it. I am really hoping it doesn't come to that, but I made my threat and now I have to stand by it.
(Help... any suggestions? I figure that I can take the toy away for a while and not toss it and that should work... Or if it's a toy I don't like, maybe it will get tossed. Is that awful to toss a toy?)
Anyway, despite those 15 mintues, and the throw up, we decided to go to dinner still. We went to our favorite little sandwich shop with the fountains outside of it. (Heh, by coincidence that post (linked above) also mentions K's throwing up ability... I linked to that post because it talks about the fountains. Apparently throwing up is also a part of my life a lot. Heh.) We ate and the girls ran around. For the most part they were pretty good girls. I am so glad we didn't stay home. We were all a little stir crazy and we needed the change of scenery.
All 3 girls are in bed now and asleep... It's a record. (They arenever rarely all asleep by 9:30. I think I'm going to watch Buffy.)
By the time my husband got home I had pretty much determined that K wasn't sick she just gagged... I also had pretty much everything under control and I felt silly for having asked him to come home. K has a very sensitive gag reflex.
The N hitting thing.... N (4) has been very aggressive and easily frustrated with her sisters lately. You can just see how frustrated she is. So she gets mad and hits them. I imagine this is just one of those 4-year old things, but I really don't like it.
If she hits, she gets a time out. It hasn't done any good. Any suggestions? In the heat of the moment, I told her that the next time she hits either sister instead of telling me that they have taken one of her toys, she LOSES the toy forever. That I will take it and toss it. I am really hoping it doesn't come to that, but I made my threat and now I have to stand by it.
(Help... any suggestions? I figure that I can take the toy away for a while and not toss it and that should work... Or if it's a toy I don't like, maybe it will get tossed. Is that awful to toss a toy?)
Anyway, despite those 15 mintues, and the throw up, we decided to go to dinner still. We went to our favorite little sandwich shop with the fountains outside of it. (Heh, by coincidence that post (linked above) also mentions K's throwing up ability... I linked to that post because it talks about the fountains. Apparently throwing up is also a part of my life a lot. Heh.) We ate and the girls ran around. For the most part they were pretty good girls. I am so glad we didn't stay home. We were all a little stir crazy and we needed the change of scenery.
All 3 girls are in bed now and asleep... It's a record. (They are
Bad technology day...
Last night, my computer crashed in a strange way. Didn't think much of it, and restarted. A little while later it did it again. I mentioned it to my husband and he said it sounded like it might be a hardware problem. I ran some diagnostic software that showed the hard drive as "fine.' I worked on it a bit more and it crashed a couple more times. I stopped running some of the software I was running and it seemed fine.
This morning it crashed about 3 minutes after I started using it. It did this about 3 times. I called the tech guy at work. He thought it sounded bad. Maybe the motherboard is going, he suggested. I packed it up and all 3 girls and took my computer back to work. No news. He's backing up my hard drive and then running diagnostics.
It'll probably be a few days before I'm fully back in business. I've got another computer from work, but nothing is set up on it for me. I have a LOT of work to do. I'm used to all just working on my computer. My computer and I are usually LIKE ONE. This is hard for me!
The other bad technology part of today was that blogger has been down for me to edit or create posts since yesterday at 6. This is the first time I got in and could see my posts. I could see the blog, but not do anything with it. Frustrating too.
I'm hopeful that tomorrow will be a better day technologically.
Despite all the technolgy issues we had a lot of fun tonight (minus the throwing up from our sensitive gag reflex girl K).
This morning it crashed about 3 minutes after I started using it. It did this about 3 times. I called the tech guy at work. He thought it sounded bad. Maybe the motherboard is going, he suggested. I packed it up and all 3 girls and took my computer back to work. No news. He's backing up my hard drive and then running diagnostics.
It'll probably be a few days before I'm fully back in business. I've got another computer from work, but nothing is set up on it for me. I have a LOT of work to do. I'm used to all just working on my computer. My computer and I are usually LIKE ONE. This is hard for me!
The other bad technology part of today was that blogger has been down for me to edit or create posts since yesterday at 6. This is the first time I got in and could see my posts. I could see the blog, but not do anything with it. Frustrating too.
I'm hopeful that tomorrow will be a better day technologically.
Despite all the technolgy issues we had a lot of fun tonight (minus the throwing up from our sensitive gag reflex girl K).
Tuesday, June 06, 2006
My little artist
I haven't shared any of N's (4) art for a while....
Here is my favorite picture from preschool (done in the month of May).
It's a stegosaurus. You can learn more about them here. They studied dinosaurs in preschool. First they drew the stegosaurus and then painted the pictures. Pretty cool, eh?
Here is the picture that she drew for her Grandma.
She got up the morning of our trip and drew this. She carried it the entire trip (~7 hours and through 2 airports) in her little hands. It was alittle lot wrinkled when we got there, but she was so proud and couldn't wait to give it to Grandma. I thought it was very sweet.
Here is my favorite picture from preschool (done in the month of May).
It's a stegosaurus. You can learn more about them here. They studied dinosaurs in preschool. First they drew the stegosaurus and then painted the pictures. Pretty cool, eh?
Here is the picture that she drew for her Grandma.
She got up the morning of our trip and drew this. She carried it the entire trip (~7 hours and through 2 airports) in her little hands. It was a
Locator Device
I used it on Saturday. It really is wonderful. It saves me time and a lot of frustration... It uses a sound to locate the keys. My husband heard the sound and didn't know what it was (he couldn't see me) and he asked N (4) what it was. She said, "Oh Mommy is just looking for her keys." He laughed because she KNEW what the strange sound was. She knew because I've been using it. He later asked me how often I use it.
Him: "Every day?"
Me: "Not every day, but often. It's just easier than looking for them and getting frustrated."
Him: "Have you ever used it when you had your keys on you?" (They often end up around my wrist with my wrist strap or in my pocket.)
Me: Sheepish laughter.
Me: "Not yet. But I imagine I will some day."
Him: Hysterical laughter
Fast Forward to today
Background info: I had to leave this morning to walk K (2) to her gymnastics class and my husband needed my drivers license number. I had no idea where my purse was so I left him with the task of finding my purse. I'm now ready to leave for work and I can't find my purse. I call my husband to ask if he found my purse.
He said, "Yes, I left it on the bed."
Me: "hmmm, it's not there now."
Me: Hysterical Laughter.
Him: Confused silence
Me: "I already picked it up and put it on my arm. That's why it's not on the bed. Never mind!"
Him: Hysterical Laughter.
(I provide this as evidence that I am completely losing it. But I'm having fun losing it. What can I say? If life weren't so crazy, I'd probably be bored. I do have fun the majority of time. I think that's important.)
Him: "Every day?"
Me: "Not every day, but often. It's just easier than looking for them and getting frustrated."
Him: "Have you ever used it when you had your keys on you?" (They often end up around my wrist with my wrist strap or in my pocket.)
Me: Sheepish laughter.
Me: "Not yet. But I imagine I will some day."
Him: Hysterical laughter
Fast Forward to today
Background info: I had to leave this morning to walk K (2) to her gymnastics class and my husband needed my drivers license number. I had no idea where my purse was so I left him with the task of finding my purse. I'm now ready to leave for work and I can't find my purse. I call my husband to ask if he found my purse.
He said, "Yes, I left it on the bed."
Me: "hmmm, it's not there now."
Me: Hysterical Laughter.
Him: Confused silence
Me: "I already picked it up and put it on my arm. That's why it's not on the bed. Never mind!"
Him: Hysterical Laughter.
(I provide this as evidence that I am completely losing it. But I'm having fun losing it. What can I say? If life weren't so crazy, I'd probably be bored. I do have fun the majority of time. I think that's important.)
Sometimes....
Sometimes I get so many things going at once I feel my head will explode. This is one of those times.
Here are things I need to do for work.
Here are things I need to do for home.
There is more, but this is all I can think of now. If my head explodes, I think it will make a big mess because it's so full of stuff.
Here are things I need to do for work.
TR project: Contact Marketing person- T project: TN training 6/13 make it happen (4 phone calls 1 W, 2 M, 1 TBD); C stuff minor things; TL trip and call, M stats
- C project: Get the seminar all in order contact S and CMS people... Get L to respond... Write thing for newsletter
- E project: Write up notes and send and do Lit Review (C stuff happening too)
- K&M project: Read articles and think
Here are things I need to do for home.
- Get N shoes for the wedding next weekend
- Get ready for my dance show:
Pictures tonight, practice Wednesday, Dress Rehearsal Friday and show Saturday - N's preschool party
- Make sure all nanny shifts are covered (Nanny is on vacation as of Wednesday)
- Make my dentist appointment
There is more, but this is all I can think of now. If my head explodes, I think it will make a big mess because it's so full of stuff.
Monday, June 05, 2006
So many things
There are so many things I want to write about, but I'm tired. K (2) and T (9.5 months) are tag teaming us with bad sleeping nights. I know they are trying to break us. I'll start writing random stuff and see how far I get.
Rude Sales People
This weekend, I encountered two sales people that both said rude things. One implied that the shoes I was wearing weren't stylish and that I should buy the ones I was trying. In my opinion, it's not a good tactic to insult your customers.
I tried on the shoes and then said they didn't fit my foot (they really didn't) and didn't buy them. He really made me mad, and even if they had fit, I would not have bought them from him. My shoes are not "this year's shoe" but a lot of people wear them, and they aren't terrible.
The other salesperson was just downright b*tchy-rude. I had to go buy pants for the dance show I'm in this weekend. (Did I tell you about that???) (I haven't done a show since college. That's been ummmm... well, more than 10 and less than 20 years.) I went to the dance store my teacher recommended and asked about the kind of pants we need. The salesperson, who was about 17, wrinkled her nose and said, "We don't carry those pants any more. They are just not in anymore."
I asked if they had any thing similar to the pant I needed. She said, "No." She didn't ask if she could help in other way, or try to be creative, but she was very young. I actually found pants that will work (and if she'd asked any questions she might have been able to direct me to them). I told someone about the experience in my class tonight and she said that she had never encountered any rude at the store. I guess the people who work on Sunday aren't the best people.
What else...
Oh yea... I'm in a dance show. Me and my extra 5-7 pounds of me. I'm okay with it. We're not wearing skimpy costumes and it's a number with about 30-ish people in it, so no one will really be looking at just me. I'm hoping to be positioned in the back. (We haven't staged the number yet because we haven't yet had a rehearsal with everyone in the number.) It's a fun-fun fast-paced number.
Work Stuff
Oh, here's something I've been meaning to tell you about... It's an update. Remember when I told you my colleague and I were told we couldn't start up the new project yet, and I was so upset, and I cried?? Well, the woman who made me cry really didn't understand our idea because she hadn't actually read our proposal before she met with us.
How lame is that?
Despite evil woman who is gatekeeper and doesn't actually understand things because she doesn't read them, we're continuing to work on things and we are frustrated but feel we will get things going by January/February. We understand the process that our group goes through, and it is a process that will make us more likely to be successful, but it's no fun going through it.
There's more, but I'm tired. Remind me I want to tell you a story about a young professor who was on the "fast track" to big time career success, and his type was one of the reasons I left the university world, and then he gets mired down in a soap-opera-like story. The guy who this happened to was a nice enough guy, and I am sorry that his career is kind of down the tube now, but he did it to himself. I'll fill you in on the details soon.
My little girls are all very cute--even if they don't let me sleep as late as I want to sleep. I must go and sleep now because either K or T will be up at 6 am and expect that I should also get up to entertain them.
Rude Sales People
This weekend, I encountered two sales people that both said rude things. One implied that the shoes I was wearing weren't stylish and that I should buy the ones I was trying. In my opinion, it's not a good tactic to insult your customers.
I tried on the shoes and then said they didn't fit my foot (they really didn't) and didn't buy them. He really made me mad, and even if they had fit, I would not have bought them from him. My shoes are not "this year's shoe" but a lot of people wear them, and they aren't terrible.
The other salesperson was just downright b*tchy-rude. I had to go buy pants for the dance show I'm in this weekend. (Did I tell you about that???) (I haven't done a show since college. That's been ummmm... well, more than 10 and less than 20 years.) I went to the dance store my teacher recommended and asked about the kind of pants we need. The salesperson, who was about 17, wrinkled her nose and said, "We don't carry those pants any more. They are just not in anymore."
I asked if they had any thing similar to the pant I needed. She said, "No." She didn't ask if she could help in other way, or try to be creative, but she was very young. I actually found pants that will work (and if she'd asked any questions she might have been able to direct me to them). I told someone about the experience in my class tonight and she said that she had never encountered any rude at the store. I guess the people who work on Sunday aren't the best people.
What else...
Oh yea... I'm in a dance show. Me and my extra 5-7 pounds of me. I'm okay with it. We're not wearing skimpy costumes and it's a number with about 30-ish people in it, so no one will really be looking at just me. I'm hoping to be positioned in the back. (We haven't staged the number yet because we haven't yet had a rehearsal with everyone in the number.) It's a fun-fun fast-paced number.
Work Stuff
Oh, here's something I've been meaning to tell you about... It's an update. Remember when I told you my colleague and I were told we couldn't start up the new project yet, and I was so upset, and I cried?? Well, the woman who made me cry really didn't understand our idea because she hadn't actually read our proposal before she met with us.
How lame is that?
Despite evil woman who is gatekeeper and doesn't actually understand things because she doesn't read them, we're continuing to work on things and we are frustrated but feel we will get things going by January/February. We understand the process that our group goes through, and it is a process that will make us more likely to be successful, but it's no fun going through it.
There's more, but I'm tired. Remind me I want to tell you a story about a young professor who was on the "fast track" to big time career success, and his type was one of the reasons I left the university world, and then he gets mired down in a soap-opera-like story. The guy who this happened to was a nice enough guy, and I am sorry that his career is kind of down the tube now, but he did it to himself. I'll fill you in on the details soon.
My little girls are all very cute--even if they don't let me sleep as late as I want to sleep. I must go and sleep now because either K or T will be up at 6 am and expect that I should also get up to entertain them.
Sunday, June 04, 2006
Late Breaking News
... This just in ...
Miss T (9.5 months) just said her first word today!!! (Or the first word we understood.) Her first word was...
Wait for it...
.....
Tickle. It comes out more like "ickle," but she's definitely trying to say tickle.
She says it and then tries to tickle herself. And then she giggles.
I don't honestly think she could get any cuter, but chances are she'll soon do something else that will just makes me melt all over again.
Edited to add... And then there was all the cruising around the furniture and standing and letting go of things and balancing for more than 10 seconds at a time tonight. It's like a developmental milestone party over here tonight. It's so much fun to watch, but my baby is growing up so fast. She's closing in on a year and she's much more like a toddler than a new baby now. And I won't have any more babies... I am so glad we got a third baby.
Miss T (9.5 months) just said her first word today!!! (Or the first word we understood.) Her first word was...
Wait for it...
.....
Tickle. It comes out more like "ickle," but she's definitely trying to say tickle.
She says it and then tries to tickle herself. And then she giggles.
I don't honestly think she could get any cuter, but chances are she'll soon do something else that will just makes me melt all over again.
Edited to add... And then there was all the cruising around the furniture and standing and letting go of things and balancing for more than 10 seconds at a time tonight. It's like a developmental milestone party over here tonight. It's so much fun to watch, but my baby is growing up so fast. She's closing in on a year and she's much more like a toddler than a new baby now. And I won't have any more babies... I am so glad we got a third baby.
Friday Fun
For approximately 2 minutes on Friday I thought, "I don't feel like my life is out of control crazy right now."
Then I called my neighbor.
She said, "So will we see you tomorrow?"
I reply, "Oh, yes, I'm very excited."
What I'm thinking is, "Crap! What did I forget now? Oh, yea the bridal shower for her daughter. Crap! Now I have to figure out how to get a present before noon tomorrow. Double, triple, quadruple crap!"
*******
I was driving home from work and I accidentally hit the steering wheel and honked my horn. I jumped. I really scared myself. Then I started laughing and I couldn't stop. Is this a sign that I'm losing it? First I scare myself and then I can't stop laughing. I laugh because if I didn't, I'd cry.
*******
I was in another video conference and I'm happy to report that my hair is now back in balance. I thought my hair was looking better in general. The video conference confirmed this. (No, my hair was not the subject of the video conference, but I could see it on our monitor. See the previous post I linked to if you want more explanation.)
Back in March, I was hopeful that my hair was still growing out those issues that my previous stylist cut into it. It just needed a little more time for growing. This new hair dresser I go to, so far, he's wonderful. The cuts have been fabulous. They grow out great. We'll see how long I let it grow now.
I can't believe that it's been almost 3 months since I wrote that previous post about my hair. Where does the time go? Oh yea, it gets eaten by little girls.
Then I called my neighbor.
She said, "So will we see you tomorrow?"
I reply, "Oh, yes, I'm very excited."
What I'm thinking is, "Crap! What did I forget now? Oh, yea the bridal shower for her daughter. Crap! Now I have to figure out how to get a present before noon tomorrow. Double, triple, quadruple crap!"
I was driving home from work and I accidentally hit the steering wheel and honked my horn. I jumped. I really scared myself. Then I started laughing and I couldn't stop. Is this a sign that I'm losing it? First I scare myself and then I can't stop laughing. I laugh because if I didn't, I'd cry.
I was in another video conference and I'm happy to report that my hair is now back in balance. I thought my hair was looking better in general. The video conference confirmed this. (No, my hair was not the subject of the video conference, but I could see it on our monitor. See the previous post I linked to if you want more explanation.)
Back in March, I was hopeful that my hair was still growing out those issues that my previous stylist cut into it. It just needed a little more time for growing. This new hair dresser I go to, so far, he's wonderful. The cuts have been fabulous. They grow out great. We'll see how long I let it grow now.
I can't believe that it's been almost 3 months since I wrote that previous post about my hair. Where does the time go? Oh yea, it gets eaten by little girls.
Friday, June 02, 2006
Cute K says...
I just love the learning to talk phase... I love it when you can see a child's personality emerging and when they begin to communicate their understanding of the world. Here are some of K's (2) latest cute sayings that show her conceptualization of the world and what she's like.
*******
I was taking off her pjs this morning and K said, "Cloud jammies Mommy. Don't eat them."
I laughed.
I said, "Wait, I'm not supposed to eat them?"
She said, "Noooooooo Mommy. You don't eat jammies! You eat chocoloate."
I am so busted. I didn't think she saw me eating all that chocolate. Can't pull the wool over her eyes. Smart girl.
*******
K was trying to climb into T's (9.5 months) exersaucer. Her daddy said, "K you're not a baby. Only babies go in the exersaucer."
She replied, " I AM a baby. Daddy, I AM a baby."
Baby when you talk like that it, your argument is not very convincing!
*******
On our trip, K didn't want to swim in the pool because it was "too wet."
*******
When I'm talking to N (4) firmly because she's doing something she's not supposed to be doing, K will look at me and ask, "What did N-N (her nickname for N) do?"
I'll tell K what ever N did and why I'm not happy and then K will look at N and say, "Not good N-N. Not good." K does this with such a serious face it's all I can do not to laugh.
*******
K will often say, "No T___, No! Don't do XXXX." It's pretty cute to see a 2 year old scolding her little sister who is 15 months younger. She's such a good big sister.
I was taking off her pjs this morning and K said, "Cloud jammies Mommy. Don't eat them."
I laughed.
I said, "Wait, I'm not supposed to eat them?"
She said, "Noooooooo Mommy. You don't eat jammies! You eat chocoloate."
I am so busted. I didn't think she saw me eating all that chocolate. Can't pull the wool over her eyes. Smart girl.
K was trying to climb into T's (9.5 months) exersaucer. Her daddy said, "K you're not a baby. Only babies go in the exersaucer."
She replied, " I AM a baby. Daddy, I AM a baby."
Baby when you talk like that it, your argument is not very convincing!
On our trip, K didn't want to swim in the pool because it was "too wet."
When I'm talking to N (4) firmly because she's doing something she's not supposed to be doing, K will look at me and ask, "What did N-N (her nickname for N) do?"
I'll tell K what ever N did and why I'm not happy and then K will look at N and say, "Not good N-N. Not good." K does this with such a serious face it's all I can do not to laugh.
K will often say, "No T___, No! Don't do XXXX." It's pretty cute to see a 2 year old scolding her little sister who is 15 months younger. She's such a good big sister.
Finally...
Around 4 pm yesterday I finally consumed enough caffeine and became a human again. I was a mess until then. I actually got a lot accomplished between 4:30 and 6:30 and then again between 9:30 and 11 pm for my work. I sent 42 emails. I am almost caught up on all the things that happened in the week I was gone. Instead of having no plan for this new thing I'm doing, I now have sketched a plan. Yay me.
T (9.5 months) slept until 7:10 this morning and I didn't have to get up 3 times last night so I still feel like a human being this morning. So this sleep thing...
Miss K (2) has started wanting to come into our bed to fall asleep at night. She'll lay beside me while I work on my powerbook and say things like, "Best Friend Mommy," or "Love you so much Mommy." (You can see why I let her come into bed.) She falls asleep pretty quickly and then we move her to her crib. If I don't let her come lay beside me she'll just get in and out of her crib or N's bed until I finally let her under duress. No real problem with her in our bed for 1/2 hour or so except now Miss N (4) who has never slept with us in her whole life has decided she too must be in our bed to fall asleep.
Last night I let Miss N come into our bed for the falling asleep portion. I was very firm and told them both that if they didn't lay still and keep their eyes shut they would be back in their own bed instantly. I was wondering how it would work, but they both feel asleep pretty quickly. I'm not sure I like this, but I also don't want to have to deal with 2 of the 3 little girls popping in and out of their beds and us getting more and more mad. Path of least resistance to sleep. I'm hoping when we get K a new bed she'll sleep in it and this will all magically go away. Am I being delusional again?
T (9.5 months) slept until 7:10 this morning and I didn't have to get up 3 times last night so I still feel like a human being this morning. So this sleep thing...
Miss K (2) has started wanting to come into our bed to fall asleep at night. She'll lay beside me while I work on my powerbook and say things like, "Best Friend Mommy," or "Love you so much Mommy." (You can see why I let her come into bed.) She falls asleep pretty quickly and then we move her to her crib. If I don't let her come lay beside me she'll just get in and out of her crib or N's bed until I finally let her under duress. No real problem with her in our bed for 1/2 hour or so except now Miss N (4) who has never slept with us in her whole life has decided she too must be in our bed to fall asleep.
Last night I let Miss N come into our bed for the falling asleep portion. I was very firm and told them both that if they didn't lay still and keep their eyes shut they would be back in their own bed instantly. I was wondering how it would work, but they both feel asleep pretty quickly. I'm not sure I like this, but I also don't want to have to deal with 2 of the 3 little girls popping in and out of their beds and us getting more and more mad. Path of least resistance to sleep. I'm hoping when we get K a new bed she'll sleep in it and this will all magically go away. Am I being delusional again?
Thursday, June 01, 2006
Oh my aching head
This is a MAJOR WHINE...
I'm recovering from the trip... I feel like I have been hit by a large truck. That trip really knocked me down. You know how when you're in the midst of the stress you don't notice all the effects. Now that the stress is gone and I'm home, I'm really feeling it.
Knocked down and burned out is how I feel right now. And I have a ton of work to do for work. I'm going through my email and I just keep coming up with more and more stuff I have to do. YIKES. And I have a ton of laundry.
I'm recovering from the trip... I feel like I have been hit by a large truck. That trip really knocked me down. You know how when you're in the midst of the stress you don't notice all the effects. Now that the stress is gone and I'm home, I'm really feeling it.
Knocked down and burned out is how I feel right now. And I have a ton of work to do for work. I'm going through my email and I just keep coming up with more and more stuff I have to do. YIKES. And I have a ton of laundry.
T's dinner
T is really starting to like food now. I mentioned this about 2 weeks ago, and I mention it again because it is so much fun to see her try new foods and like them!
Last night she ate pasta with butter and parmesan cheese; peas (first time she tried them and she LOVED them); and blueberries. She ate like a little piggy. She never liked baby food. (The peas tonight were just frozen peas that I cooked well for her.) The first food she ate decently was yogurt and then we moved on to cheerios, bread, and pasta. She doesn't like turkey or chicken (we tried these on the trip).
She didn't start off liking food at 6 months but I didn't worry or push. Now at 9.5 months I think she's really eating pretty well.
The approach for foods has been different with each girl. I am amazed at how different their attitudes have been towards food.
Last night she ate pasta with butter and parmesan cheese; peas (first time she tried them and she LOVED them); and blueberries. She ate like a little piggy. She never liked baby food. (The peas tonight were just frozen peas that I cooked well for her.) The first food she ate decently was yogurt and then we moved on to cheerios, bread, and pasta. She doesn't like turkey or chicken (we tried these on the trip).
She didn't start off liking food at 6 months but I didn't worry or push. Now at 9.5 months I think she's really eating pretty well.
The approach for foods has been different with each girl. I am amazed at how different their attitudes have been towards food.
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