One of those days…
June 17th, 2011

This has been just one of those days when bedtime (for me, not the kids) can’t come soon enough. Today was a day that I wish my live was dvr’d so I could either rewind and fix or skip over and avoid.  And here’s why:

  • No coffee in the house this morning (this alone would be enough, right?).
  • Finn has a blowout within 2 minutes of being at school (good news: I didn’t have to change it/bad news: I still got the nasty clothes to bring home and wash/confession: I have thrown clothes away before – a 25 cent shirt is not worth the agony…).
  • Busy day at work with an event requiring me to carry stuff and be outside in the southern heat.
  • Get home and realize I’ve left my laptop at work.
  • Mia resists nap.
  • Mia dumps a bag of animal crackers – somehow mostly crumbs – all over the couch (now it’s a gritty mess on, in between, and under the cushions).
  • Finn wakes up early from his nap.
  • Mia’s crying – needs a nap, Finn’s crying – needs a longer nap, Mommy’s really wanting to jump in (in crying and sleeping).
  • Event snags at work, try to solve them remotely.
  • Internet keeps dropping so I’m trying to troubleshoot that throughout the afternoon.
  • Mia gets bored on the potty and unrolls at least 8ft of toilet paper.
  • Nothing much for dinner so mac and cheese it is. Overcook the pasta so now it’s gummy.
  • Finn decides he would like to wear most of his squash and cereal.
  • Mia feels compelled to sit on my lap while I feed Finn, adding to the mess.
  • Mark has to stay at work late.
  • Mia gets her index finger stuck in the hole of the Parmesan cheese lid requiring soapy water intervention (Finn cries in background because had to put him down…)
  • Mark gets home and has a big sonic drink for me from afternoon work break. YES.  My straw has a hole. REALLY?

But hey, no major emergencies, no trips to the doctor (already did that this week), and no vomit on the couch (already did that this week).  It could have been worse.

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Confessions of a Snowed-In Mom
February 3rd, 2011

At the end of day 3 of being snowed in, I realize that:

  • my 2 year old watched a lot of TV
  • I watched a lot of TV
  • my house is not clean like so many other snowed-in folks’.  It’s not dirty per se…just got a healthy “lived-in” look
  • I didn’t take a shower on one of those days
  • I drank a lot of coffee
  • we probably missed a golden opportunity to potty train.  I tried.  Oh, how I tried.  Multiple times a day.  We spent plenty of time in the bathroom but she is clearly not interested in boarding that train quite yet.  “No, I can’t, Mommy”  “I no big girl, I your baby girl”  She can do it and she knows how, she just isn’t ready to take the time to sit on the potty. I so would have loved to have something to show for being stuck at home all these days. But if she’s not ready, she’s not ready.
  • I never took my child outside to play in the snow.  She didn’t ask and I didn’t encourage.  Too cold to be out there with her/Can’t bundle up her younger brother enough/Don’t want all the wet clothes mess/Any other excuse
  • As much as I complain about being snowed-in, I’m actually not looking forward to leaving the house to go to work tomorrow morning.
Posted in weather | Comment
Back to Work Checklist
January 23rd, 2011

Tomorrow is Day 1 of work after 7 weeks of maternity leave.  Here are the things that I have to make sure make it out of the house by 8:15am tomorrow:

  • Child #1
  • Child #2 – I really have TWO to drop off now? Yikes.
  • Purse
  • Laptop
  • Pump
  • Bottles for Child #2 WITH milk in them.  Very important.
  • Bag of supplies since child #2 is newly enrolled: wipes, tissues, burp cloths, wash cloths, soap, etc
  • Bag of child #2’s basic things: diapers, change of clothes, blankets, bib, pacifier, etc – this stays there so I don’t have to pack a diaper bag each day, thank goodness.
  • Daycare check for Child #2
  • Myself, in something other than my maternity leave uniform: yoga pants, tshirt, sweatshirt, slippers, pony tail…well, I may still have a pony tail.  Baby steps, folks.  It’s my first day back.
  • COFFEE.

I’ve put as much of this stuff as I can right in front of the door to the garage so I’d have to trip over it to get to the car.  Surely I won’t forget stuff that way.  Of course, children are tucked in their beds.  There’s also a post-it note right at eye level on the door with the stuff that’s not under my feet at that point.

Have I mentioned I’m not really a morning person?  This should be good.

Posted in events, family | Comment
Pumpkin Fun
October 30th, 2010

Things we’ve done with pumpkins in the last two days:

  • Drawn on them
  • Carved faces out of them
  • Scooped the insides out
  • Put glow sticks in them
  • Eaten them
  • Toasted the seeds
  • Thrown them – not recommended…toddler initiated at the pumpkin patch
  • Taken pictures with them
  • Hugged them and kissed them…again toddler activity…
Posted in food | Comment
30 at 30
October 19th, 2010

I recently turned 30.  Yep.  The big THREE-OH.

And to celebrate, I created a “30 at 30″ list…a list of 30 things I want to do this year.

1.      Learn to knit

2.      Make something on a circle loom

3.      Create something original on a canvas

4.      Learn how to make a balloon animal

5.      Sew something

6.      Paint something at a pottery place

7.      Try something different, fashion-wise

8.      Have a baby

9.      Lose the baby weight

10.  Run a 5k

11.  Make an ice cream bombe

12.  Cook with a new ingredient

13.  Bake a pie with a homemade crust

14.  Make homemade granola

15.  Eat at a new restaurant

16.  Take a road trip with friends to (try to) eat the biggest burger in Arkansas

17.  Ride a segway

18.  Go on a picnic

19.  Surprise Mark with a special date night (either a date in or a date out)

20.  Watch a movie at the theater

21.  Take pictures in a photo booth

22.  Go on a hike as a family

23.  Go blueberry or strawberry picking

24.  Do a puzzle…with more than 10 pieces…

25.  Do a themed dinner night (food, dress, flag, music, cultural tidbits)

26.  Find a perfume I like

27.  Read a book in Portuguese

28.  Watch a foreign film

29.  Sell/donate stuff I no longer need

30.  Make a book of my 30 at 30 experiences

Posted in this and that | Comment
“T” – “Z” Names NOT On The List…
August 10th, 2010

This is it.  The last post on names.  Now I’ll actually have to get working on what we WILL be naming this child.  Oy.

What we will NOT be naming our baby boy (meanings in parentheses)…

All names listed below are from the BOY section of the baby name book I’m going through. Yes, names people would choose. Out of the boy section.

*And I’m sorry if your name or the name of somebody you love dearly or your favorite name is on this list. They’re just not something we will pick. Ever.

  • Taco (thoughful) – mmm, tacos.  Yes, I could definitely eat one right now.
  • Vegas
  • Velvet (smooth)
  • Wheel (important player)
  • Wheelie (big-wig) – worse than Wheel, and I didn’t think that would be possible.
  • Wings (soaring, free)
  • Zappy (jovial)
  • Zero (nothing) – really?  You all know I don’t do numbers, but ZERO?  That’s terrible.
Posted in names | Comment
“S” Names NOT On The List…
August 10th, 2010

What we will NOT be naming our baby boy (meanings in parentheses)…

All names listed below are from the BOY section of the baby name book I’m going through. Yes, names people would choose. Out of the boy section.

*And I’m sorry if your name or the name of somebody you love dearly or your favorite name is on this list. They’re just not something we will pick. Ever.

  • Seven (dramatic, 7th child) – I just don’t do numbers…
  • Six – ditto above
  • Slap (casual)
  • Snake (US river)
  • Spanky (outspoken, stubborn) – wow, pretty sure I wouldn’t want to be named this.  Picture it on a business card.  Yeah, didn’t think so.
  • Sparky (ball of fire, joyful) – good meaning. Horrible name.
  • Speed/Speedy (fast)
Posted in names | Comment
“Q & R” Names NOT On The List…
August 2nd, 2010

What we will NOT be naming our baby boy (meanings in parentheses)…

All names listed below are from the BOY section of the baby name book I’m going through. Yes, names people would choose. Out of the boy section.

*And I’m sorry if your name or the name of somebody you love dearly or your favorite name is on this list. They’re just not something we will pick. Ever.

  • Quick (fast; remarkable) – I guess that’s better than naming your child “Slow”…wonder if that will show up in the Ss?
  • Racey (one who races)
  • Rage (trendsetter) – again, not really something I want to label my child with
  • Rank (top)
  • Rant (to talk foolishly)
  • Riddle (perplexes) – aren’t all children Riddles when you really think about it?
  • Rocket (happy) – this is actually kind of popular….we’ve decided to decorate Baby’s room in rockets, maybe we should just name him that and call it good. Make it a TRUE THEME. Ha.
Posted in names | Comment
“P” Boy Names NOT On The List….
August 2nd, 2010

What we will NOT be naming our baby boy (meanings in parentheses)…

All names listed below are from the BOY section of the baby name book I’m going through. Yes, names people would choose. Out of the boy section.

*And I’m sorry if your name or the name of somebody you love dearly or your favorite name is on this list. They’re just not something we will pick. Ever.

  • Perk (perky)
  • Pinky – all I can think of when I see this name is Pinky and the Brain.  Horrible.
  • Plan (organize) – although this would probably be the perfect child’s name for me to pick.  That and OCD.
  • Pony (dashing) – brother to Cowboy?
  • Poogie (snuggly) – POOGIE?  For a boy?  On his driver’s license?  Oh dear.
  • Powder (cowboy) – not entirely sure how that meaning matches with that name, but then again that’s what all these lists are about.  Pure and utter shock and disbelief.
Posted in names | Comment
“N & O” Boy Names Not On The List…
August 2nd, 2010

What we will NOT be naming our baby boy (meanings in parentheses)…

All names listed below are from the BOY section of the baby name book I’m going through. Yes, names people would choose. Out of the boy section.

*And I’m sorry if your name or the name of somebody you love dearly or your favorite name is on this list. They’re just not something we will pick. Ever.

  • Newbie (novice)
  • North (directional)
  • Oat – I’m starting to think that pregnant women who are notorious for cravings and insatiable appetites should NOT be allowed to name their children without adult supervision.  This is how we get Bacons and Butters and Mayos, folks.
Posted in names | Comment
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