Claire turned 6 months old today! I woke up briefly at 3:00 this morning and thought to myself, "six months ago at this time I was in labor on the couch, completely in my own little world while Mark was installing the carseat so we could go to the hospital..."
Claire is finishing up a nap, so I'm clearing off the memory card on the camera and enjoying "mommy time." And laughing because this morning I dressed her in 12 month pants and an 18 month tshirt. And they fit! She prefers to be called "curvy" rather than "large and in charge." A note to moms-to-be: don't buy too many clothes ahead of time, you never know how big (or small) your baby will be.
Some friends of mine have been telling me about a parenting book by Alfie Kohn, called Unconditional Parenting, so I checked it out from the library. Here's what the book jacket says about it: "Most parent guides begin with the question "How can we get kids to do what they're told?" --and then proceed to offer various techniques for controlling them. In this truly groundbreaking book, nationally respected educator Alfie Kohn begins instead by asking "What do kids need-and how can we meet those needs?" What follows from that question are ideas for working with children rather than doing things to them." I'm looking forward to diving in, just as soon as I get a chance.
Lookslike it won't be now - she just woke up. Gotta run!
Friday, May 9, 2008
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Party time
Mark and I are going to a "will party" tonight. And I use the word 'party' loosely.
It's several couples going to somebody's house for a few hours one night so we can share the cost of the lawyer and use our collective motivation to get us to finish this yucky task. Then we reconvene in a few weeks to sign everything and make it official. It's one of those things that has to be done, but nobody ever enjoys doing it - so why not try to make it a little easier/more enjoyable?
We've been struggling with the guardian issue. If something were to happen to both of us, who would take care of Claire and any future kids we'll have? I hate thinking about it, but there's something I would hate even more: my kids being handed over to a stranger because we didn't choose somebody ourselves. Even when we think of people we know and love, it's tough. Some are single and we don't want to tie them down, others are already busy with a big family and maybe don't live the same lifestyle we want our kids to live. And thinking of somebody else raising your child, no matter how much you love them, is a difficult thing to do. But it has to be done. So we'll see how tonight goes and if we learn anything new that might make this an easier process.
In more uplifting news...yesterday Claire and I went on a long walk around the neighborhood and I happened to find a diamond ring along the way. When we got home, I posted a message on our neighborhood website and called the community center to let them know. It was a really nice ring - platinum, about a 1 carat center stone with a few quarter carat diamonds on the sides - and I knew somebody had to be missing it. About an hour after I posted the message, I got a phone call and the girl described the ring perfectly - I was so relieved! So she came over and picked it up and I got my happy ending and went about my business.
This afternoon I took Claire to a co-op to pick up some veggies and when we got home there was a black van sitting in our driveway. Hmmm, I'm not expecting anybody, I thought. When I got closer I saw that it was from a local florist, but it still didn't click until I opened the attached card. It was from Sara, the girl whose ring I found yesterday, thanking me for finding her ring with a gorgeous bouquet of tulips in a vase wrapped with a satin ribbon. How sweet, and totally unexpected!
Ok, better run, time for the will party!
It's several couples going to somebody's house for a few hours one night so we can share the cost of the lawyer and use our collective motivation to get us to finish this yucky task. Then we reconvene in a few weeks to sign everything and make it official. It's one of those things that has to be done, but nobody ever enjoys doing it - so why not try to make it a little easier/more enjoyable?
We've been struggling with the guardian issue. If something were to happen to both of us, who would take care of Claire and any future kids we'll have? I hate thinking about it, but there's something I would hate even more: my kids being handed over to a stranger because we didn't choose somebody ourselves. Even when we think of people we know and love, it's tough. Some are single and we don't want to tie them down, others are already busy with a big family and maybe don't live the same lifestyle we want our kids to live. And thinking of somebody else raising your child, no matter how much you love them, is a difficult thing to do. But it has to be done. So we'll see how tonight goes and if we learn anything new that might make this an easier process.
In more uplifting news...yesterday Claire and I went on a long walk around the neighborhood and I happened to find a diamond ring along the way. When we got home, I posted a message on our neighborhood website and called the community center to let them know. It was a really nice ring - platinum, about a 1 carat center stone with a few quarter carat diamonds on the sides - and I knew somebody had to be missing it. About an hour after I posted the message, I got a phone call and the girl described the ring perfectly - I was so relieved! So she came over and picked it up and I got my happy ending and went about my business.
This afternoon I took Claire to a co-op to pick up some veggies and when we got home there was a black van sitting in our driveway. Hmmm, I'm not expecting anybody, I thought. When I got closer I saw that it was from a local florist, but it still didn't click until I opened the attached card. It was from Sara, the girl whose ring I found yesterday, thanking me for finding her ring with a gorgeous bouquet of tulips in a vase wrapped with a satin ribbon. How sweet, and totally unexpected!
Ok, better run, time for the will party!
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Misc. update
I'm going to go for it. I'm registering for classes so I can become certified to teach Yoga and Bradley Method (natural childbirth) classes. (Yay!) The only problem, in addition to having to wait a year for both to be complete, is the $4245 combined price tag. If this were a Brady Bunch episode, I could open up the newspaper and find a contest with a $4245 cash prize, but no such luck today. (I checked, just in case)
After over 2 months, I finally received the hospital records I ordered for myself and Claire. My midwife suggested I request them, so I'd have the medical version of Claire's birth story to go along with my more personal perspective. I'm so glad I did. They have our arrival time at 9:00 am, fully dilated, and report that I was in the waterbirth tub and pushing by 9:30. They artificially broke my water at 11:20 and she was born at 11:25. I even have a record of the alerts sent out to the nurse's station when my hemaglobin was found to be in the "critical" zone (7.2; normal range is 12-15). The nurses noted that I was accompanied by my "supportive hubby", too. Neat info to have.
A sign you need to evaluate your life: you run an errand and realize that your neighborhood looks somewhat foreign to you because you haven't left the house in 4 days. Wow, I cannot believe I got so wrapped up in work and Claire for 4 days that I became a hermit for that long. It doesn't help that the weather took a turn for the worse, and we were both a little sick for a few days. I was really enjoying the "heat wave" into the 30s and the walks we were taking outside! But I think I saw a forecast for Tuesday to be 40 (above zero, even!) so maybe we can get outside for some sunshine and fresh air then. *sigh* Hurry up, spring!
I scheduled my trip to Atlanta to see my family - I'm so excited!!! I haven't seen my mom since early January, my dad or siblings since Christmas. I'm a little nervous to be flying alone with Claire, as I don't want to be the lady with the crying baby, but I'm hoping I can just get her to nurse the entire time and that will keep her content. We'll see! Carrying her and our luggage will be another adventure in itself.
I planned to mail one of our carseat bases down so my parents could have it ready in their car when we arrive. I couldn't find a box big enough for it at our house, so Mark ran to the UPS store to check things out today. I couldn't help laughing when he came home still in posession of the base. "They were going to charge $10 for a box, $5 for labor, and another $5 materials fee. And shipping would be another $30," he reported. The base itself was only $40 and we haven't even used this one yet! What a pain. I feel bad asking my parents to buy one, especially when we'll only use it for 8 days, but it looks like that's the best option.
Poor baby is crying, gotta run - must be bedtime!
After over 2 months, I finally received the hospital records I ordered for myself and Claire. My midwife suggested I request them, so I'd have the medical version of Claire's birth story to go along with my more personal perspective. I'm so glad I did. They have our arrival time at 9:00 am, fully dilated, and report that I was in the waterbirth tub and pushing by 9:30. They artificially broke my water at 11:20 and she was born at 11:25. I even have a record of the alerts sent out to the nurse's station when my hemaglobin was found to be in the "critical" zone (7.2; normal range is 12-15). The nurses noted that I was accompanied by my "supportive hubby", too. Neat info to have.
A sign you need to evaluate your life: you run an errand and realize that your neighborhood looks somewhat foreign to you because you haven't left the house in 4 days. Wow, I cannot believe I got so wrapped up in work and Claire for 4 days that I became a hermit for that long. It doesn't help that the weather took a turn for the worse, and we were both a little sick for a few days. I was really enjoying the "heat wave" into the 30s and the walks we were taking outside! But I think I saw a forecast for Tuesday to be 40 (above zero, even!) so maybe we can get outside for some sunshine and fresh air then. *sigh* Hurry up, spring!
I scheduled my trip to Atlanta to see my family - I'm so excited!!! I haven't seen my mom since early January, my dad or siblings since Christmas. I'm a little nervous to be flying alone with Claire, as I don't want to be the lady with the crying baby, but I'm hoping I can just get her to nurse the entire time and that will keep her content. We'll see! Carrying her and our luggage will be another adventure in itself.
I planned to mail one of our carseat bases down so my parents could have it ready in their car when we arrive. I couldn't find a box big enough for it at our house, so Mark ran to the UPS store to check things out today. I couldn't help laughing when he came home still in posession of the base. "They were going to charge $10 for a box, $5 for labor, and another $5 materials fee. And shipping would be another $30," he reported. The base itself was only $40 and we haven't even used this one yet! What a pain. I feel bad asking my parents to buy one, especially when we'll only use it for 8 days, but it looks like that's the best option.
Poor baby is crying, gotta run - must be bedtime!
Thursday, February 28, 2008
People smile and tell me I’m the lucky one
When I woke up this morning it took me a moment to realize that the horrible dream I had just dreamt was not real. In it, my arms had been ripped from my body in a terrible accident and it hurt like hell. My shoulders were still burning with a familiar, deep ache when I awoke. Yesterday morning I was greeted with aching hips, but told myself it was just from overdoing it the day before. Damnit, I thought the arthritis was done with me. I haven't been eating the healthiest these last few weeks, maybe working on that will help. Ugh, what a pain. If my body can barely manage being 29, how will it handle aging beyond 30?
If there is a positive spin to put on this, it's that it made me investigate vaccines before Claire was born. I'm not sure I would have thought twice about giving her the recommended schedule otherwise, and she might be the one suffering the side effects instead. I would gladly take this for her, so until I get this under control again I'll remind myself of that. Just call me Pollyanna.
I'm getting better at reading and responding to Claire's sleep cues, so today was a little easier in that regard. I had a 9:30 conference call for work - those always stress me out because I worry about having a loud baby in the background prompting my boss to ask, "don't you have daycare?" To which I would have to respond, "No! I lied to you in my interview. I don't have daycare so my time is split between work and caring for my newborn, who will always come before work."
But today I noticed her getting tired at 8:45 so I nursed her to make sure she would be full for a few hours, and put her in the sling facing me. After turning on the radio (rather loudly, too - she loves music) I began the laps. Just walking a big circle around the staircase on the main floor gets boring, so I switched it up and did figure eights incorporating the couch, the kitchen table, the center island. When plain walking didn't do the trick, I hit the stairs. Luckily (hah!) the house looks like a tornado hit, so I had plenty of clutter to put away; working as inefficiently as possible, I slowly got some things put away while walking up and down the stairs as many times as possible. Have I mentioned that my pre-pregnancy jeans now need a belt to stay up???
Needless to say, she was fast asleep with her face buried in my chest by 9:30, and the meeting went well. She slept for 2 hours so I got a good chunk of work done, too. Later on she had another good nap, falling asleep almost immediately after I got her situated in the sling. And when she woke up a few hours after that, I flipped her around so she was facing out and together we put away the non-perishable groceries I didn't have time to put away when I got home from the store last night. I'm still living life in increments of about 2 hours, and I pushed my (her) limits last night. By the time I got home she was starving so I had to throw the perishables into the fridge and freezer like I was on a game show being timed, then dash to my little baby bird who was impatiently waiting for me with her mouth wide open. She is so darn cute, even after a frantic day of rushing to get things done and giving her every ounce of everything I have, I have to surrender to the grin that spreads across my face every time I see her.
Yes, I am indeed a lucky one.
If there is a positive spin to put on this, it's that it made me investigate vaccines before Claire was born. I'm not sure I would have thought twice about giving her the recommended schedule otherwise, and she might be the one suffering the side effects instead. I would gladly take this for her, so until I get this under control again I'll remind myself of that. Just call me Pollyanna.
I'm getting better at reading and responding to Claire's sleep cues, so today was a little easier in that regard. I had a 9:30 conference call for work - those always stress me out because I worry about having a loud baby in the background prompting my boss to ask, "don't you have daycare?" To which I would have to respond, "No! I lied to you in my interview. I don't have daycare so my time is split between work and caring for my newborn, who will always come before work."
But today I noticed her getting tired at 8:45 so I nursed her to make sure she would be full for a few hours, and put her in the sling facing me. After turning on the radio (rather loudly, too - she loves music) I began the laps. Just walking a big circle around the staircase on the main floor gets boring, so I switched it up and did figure eights incorporating the couch, the kitchen table, the center island. When plain walking didn't do the trick, I hit the stairs. Luckily (hah!) the house looks like a tornado hit, so I had plenty of clutter to put away; working as inefficiently as possible, I slowly got some things put away while walking up and down the stairs as many times as possible. Have I mentioned that my pre-pregnancy jeans now need a belt to stay up???
Needless to say, she was fast asleep with her face buried in my chest by 9:30, and the meeting went well. She slept for 2 hours so I got a good chunk of work done, too. Later on she had another good nap, falling asleep almost immediately after I got her situated in the sling. And when she woke up a few hours after that, I flipped her around so she was facing out and together we put away the non-perishable groceries I didn't have time to put away when I got home from the store last night. I'm still living life in increments of about 2 hours, and I pushed my (her) limits last night. By the time I got home she was starving so I had to throw the perishables into the fridge and freezer like I was on a game show being timed, then dash to my little baby bird who was impatiently waiting for me with her mouth wide open. She is so darn cute, even after a frantic day of rushing to get things done and giving her every ounce of everything I have, I have to surrender to the grin that spreads across my face every time I see her.
Yes, I am indeed a lucky one.
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Does this purse make my butt look big?
Claire and I met a few friends for lunch on Wednesday, one of whom has a girl about Claire's age and the other who just announced she's pregnant. Yay, another mama-to-be in our group! We already knew about the one due in early July, and now this one is due at the end of September. How exciting :)
The newly pregnant friend and I had arrived at the same time, and as she held the door open for me I noticed her "purse". If you could even call it a purse. It was more like a coinpurse or Polly Pocket accessory; cute, but tiny. I mentally compared it to my own purse, roughly the size of a 2-slice toaster, and diaper bag. Maybe she'll be able to use it as a binky holder in the diaper bag once Junior arrives? When we took our coats off, we each revealed similar purple sweaters (we have a way of always showing up in the same color, somehow), only she pointed out that mine had a little dried spitup on one of the shoulders. lol
I remember when I used to leave the house in clean clothes every time, not just on lucky days; I remember when I used to wear accessories without having to worry about them scratching or being yanked on by the babe (heck, I'm so sleep deprived now that I'm lucky if I remember that I even own wedding rings, but it takes noticing them on somebody else when I'm out to spark it). And I'm perfectly happy with all of this; I'm 100% satisfied being plain (if not a little messy at times) for now so I can focus on Claire. Her clothes are a lot cuter than anything I could buy for myself, anyways.
Heh - Claire just woke up, and I decided to weigh myself with and without her - her diapers have been getting a little small and I was having a hard time believing that she was about to graduate to the next size already. Is our scale right? Does she really weigh 16 pounds?! My little baby is growing so fast :)
Speaking of the scale, I have to admit that I once broke it. Yes, I broke a scale, and I wasn't even pregnant (although I did gain a lot of weight with Claire, about 60 lbs)! Before I got pregnant, I was doing a new weight routine when I overdid it a little. I felt great walking out, maybe a little sore, but by the time I got home my legs felt wobbly. I went up to the bathroom to shower, and figured I'd step on the scale since I hadn't weighed myself in a while. When I lifted my right leg to step onto it, I realized just how sore I was because my left leg started collapsing. I grabbed the wall to steady myself, but my foot still landed a little hard and I heard a loud CRACK! I had stepped on and broken the little plastic window. I still prefer the mental image I get when I think of breaking a scale, of springs flying every which way, but the real story wasn't that exciting. It still works (at least I'm pretty sure it does!) and now I have something funny to remember every time I use it. Now if only growing out of clothes could be this amusing to me.
The newly pregnant friend and I had arrived at the same time, and as she held the door open for me I noticed her "purse". If you could even call it a purse. It was more like a coinpurse or Polly Pocket accessory; cute, but tiny. I mentally compared it to my own purse, roughly the size of a 2-slice toaster, and diaper bag. Maybe she'll be able to use it as a binky holder in the diaper bag once Junior arrives? When we took our coats off, we each revealed similar purple sweaters (we have a way of always showing up in the same color, somehow), only she pointed out that mine had a little dried spitup on one of the shoulders. lol
I remember when I used to leave the house in clean clothes every time, not just on lucky days; I remember when I used to wear accessories without having to worry about them scratching or being yanked on by the babe (heck, I'm so sleep deprived now that I'm lucky if I remember that I even own wedding rings, but it takes noticing them on somebody else when I'm out to spark it). And I'm perfectly happy with all of this; I'm 100% satisfied being plain (if not a little messy at times) for now so I can focus on Claire. Her clothes are a lot cuter than anything I could buy for myself, anyways.
Heh - Claire just woke up, and I decided to weigh myself with and without her - her diapers have been getting a little small and I was having a hard time believing that she was about to graduate to the next size already. Is our scale right? Does she really weigh 16 pounds?! My little baby is growing so fast :)
Speaking of the scale, I have to admit that I once broke it. Yes, I broke a scale, and I wasn't even pregnant (although I did gain a lot of weight with Claire, about 60 lbs)! Before I got pregnant, I was doing a new weight routine when I overdid it a little. I felt great walking out, maybe a little sore, but by the time I got home my legs felt wobbly. I went up to the bathroom to shower, and figured I'd step on the scale since I hadn't weighed myself in a while. When I lifted my right leg to step onto it, I realized just how sore I was because my left leg started collapsing. I grabbed the wall to steady myself, but my foot still landed a little hard and I heard a loud CRACK! I had stepped on and broken the little plastic window. I still prefer the mental image I get when I think of breaking a scale, of springs flying every which way, but the real story wasn't that exciting. It still works (at least I'm pretty sure it does!) and now I have something funny to remember every time I use it. Now if only growing out of clothes could be this amusing to me.
70% Cacao, 30% Nerd
Another long day, but it was a fun one. Claire is figuring out how to work her hands, and has been bringing toys up to her mouth - and she loves the sound of her voice, sometimes sounding like she's deflating because she'll make a sound and hold it for a really long time, lowering her voice slightly as it tapers off. What a nerd (I think that's a paternal trait! haha) Still mostly smiley and cheerful, even though I can tell her teeth are hurting her.
Mark went ice fishing with his brother and a buddy today, so Claire and I had a girl's day. We even took a few naps together! That's something for the record books. Then I met some friends for dinner, which was a much needed break. That was the first meal in several weeks that I've eaten warm food and have not had Claire in my lap or over my shoulder. The good news is that I'm getting pretty good at maneuvering with her in one arm, and can even prepare almost an entire meal while holding her (I put her down to use the oven or a sharp knife, but get pretty creative with everything else). I've even learned how to open tightly wrapped chocolate with one hand.
This is a new addiction of mine. I never really used to like chocolate - I put up with it in candy bars if there was caramel, peanut butter or nougat inside, but until Claire was born I'd rarely eat a hunk of pure chocolate. And then she arrived. Within the first hour or two of her birth I was served lunch, and I will never forget the chocolate cake that came with it. It was SO GOOD, I think it was the gateway to this terrible addiction I've acquired. I have to eat chocolate every day now. It doesn't have to be anything fancy, but my favorite is dark chocolate - and I don't want it muddled with those pesky fillers, caramel, peanut butter or nougat. How things change!
On Wednesday I woke up thinking about this new obsession of mine, and told myself that I could quit if I really wanted to. Before hopping out of bed, I decided that I would go the entire day without a bite of chocolate. So I ate oatmeal for breakfast and put in 5 hours of work before heading out to lunch; on the way I found myself thinking "See? I can totally do it - I've gone the whole morning without chocolate. So now that I know I could go a whole day, I can have just a little when I get home." Umm, doesn't that defeat the purpose of going a whole day? Is this how addicts think? I think I'm officially a chocoholic. In case you were wondering, I abstained from the chocolate fudge pie that Kelly ordered and ate in front of me, but I did have a chunk of dark chocolate when I got home. I am firmly in the grip of this new vice.
I told the girls about it, so what does Kelly turn around and do? She told the waitress at dinner tonight that it's my birthday (next week, actually), and suddenly their famous Death by Chocolate cake was sitting in front of me. I suppose things aren't so bad, because I shared it with everybody at the table...if it were a serious problem I would have scarfed it all down myself. Right? (Denial, isn't that an element of addiction?)
Mark went ice fishing with his brother and a buddy today, so Claire and I had a girl's day. We even took a few naps together! That's something for the record books. Then I met some friends for dinner, which was a much needed break. That was the first meal in several weeks that I've eaten warm food and have not had Claire in my lap or over my shoulder. The good news is that I'm getting pretty good at maneuvering with her in one arm, and can even prepare almost an entire meal while holding her (I put her down to use the oven or a sharp knife, but get pretty creative with everything else). I've even learned how to open tightly wrapped chocolate with one hand.
This is a new addiction of mine. I never really used to like chocolate - I put up with it in candy bars if there was caramel, peanut butter or nougat inside, but until Claire was born I'd rarely eat a hunk of pure chocolate. And then she arrived. Within the first hour or two of her birth I was served lunch, and I will never forget the chocolate cake that came with it. It was SO GOOD, I think it was the gateway to this terrible addiction I've acquired. I have to eat chocolate every day now. It doesn't have to be anything fancy, but my favorite is dark chocolate - and I don't want it muddled with those pesky fillers, caramel, peanut butter or nougat. How things change!
On Wednesday I woke up thinking about this new obsession of mine, and told myself that I could quit if I really wanted to. Before hopping out of bed, I decided that I would go the entire day without a bite of chocolate. So I ate oatmeal for breakfast and put in 5 hours of work before heading out to lunch; on the way I found myself thinking "See? I can totally do it - I've gone the whole morning without chocolate. So now that I know I could go a whole day, I can have just a little when I get home." Umm, doesn't that defeat the purpose of going a whole day? Is this how addicts think? I think I'm officially a chocoholic. In case you were wondering, I abstained from the chocolate fudge pie that Kelly ordered and ate in front of me, but I did have a chunk of dark chocolate when I got home. I am firmly in the grip of this new vice.
I told the girls about it, so what does Kelly turn around and do? She told the waitress at dinner tonight that it's my birthday (next week, actually), and suddenly their famous Death by Chocolate cake was sitting in front of me. I suppose things aren't so bad, because I shared it with everybody at the table...if it were a serious problem I would have scarfed it all down myself. Right? (Denial, isn't that an element of addiction?)
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Score!
I was going through my journal to get some info to update Claire's baby book with, when I came across this entry...
My name has been put on all sorts of mailing lists from various sources (mostly home- and baby-related stuff), so I'm usually not surprised when I get a random catalog or pamphlet in the mail.
I was surprised, however, when I checked the mail today and got a catalog from BlackExpressions.com. It showcases books such as Nappily Married, Thug-A-Licious, Thong On Fire, and Gold Diggers. Oh, and don't forget Girls From Da Hood 3. How did they get my name, I wondered? Then a thought hit me, what if it was addressed to Mark? That would be even funnier, seeing as how this company is geared towards women of color.
Apparently there's a woman a few streets down who is missing a catalog. I'll have to thank her - if it weren't for this catalog, I never would have heard of Thug Matrimony (description: An uninvited guest crashes Angel's wedding with a gun. Will she make it to the altar alive?)
My name has been put on all sorts of mailing lists from various sources (mostly home- and baby-related stuff), so I'm usually not surprised when I get a random catalog or pamphlet in the mail.
I was surprised, however, when I checked the mail today and got a catalog from BlackExpressions.com. It showcases books such as Nappily Married, Thug-A-Licious, Thong On Fire, and Gold Diggers. Oh, and don't forget Girls From Da Hood 3. How did they get my name, I wondered? Then a thought hit me, what if it was addressed to Mark? That would be even funnier, seeing as how this company is geared towards women of color.
Apparently there's a woman a few streets down who is missing a catalog. I'll have to thank her - if it weren't for this catalog, I never would have heard of Thug Matrimony (description: An uninvited guest crashes Angel's wedding with a gun. Will she make it to the altar alive?)
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