Conversations with a 2.5 Year Old

So Baby Pants has been coming up with some doozies lately - her brain is just so creative, but it can be hilarious!

Baby Pants: "Mom, do you want a surprise?"

Me: "Yes!"

BP: (she leans in and whispers) "Do you like snakes?"

Me: "No"

BP: (more whispers) "Do you like presents?"

Me: "Yes!"

BP: (loud) YOU'RE GOING TO GET A PRESENT ON YOUR BIRTHDAY!

Me: "Really? What is it?"

BP: "A RACECAR!!"

Me: "Wow, that's cool."

BP: (now apparently done with that topic) "Fishsticks come out of AJ's nose."

Me: "Uhhh"

BP: "And sometimes I whack you on the head with this book." (WHACK!)

Me: "Ow! That hurts mommy!"

BP: "I'm sorry mommy, I didn't mean to."

Oy vey.

If you think I'm lost

If you think I'm lost...I'm not...I've just been sucked into the vortex that is Facebook.

My Baby is THIRTEEN!

So, I don't have time to write much, but my baby girl is thirteen years old today! I can't believe that much time has passed since she was born!

I'll try and write more later, but I just wanted to wish my SAM a happy birthday!

Daily Commute - Episode 1

Okay, so seriously this is my very FIRST ever attempt at a 'vlog' - so don't be too harsh. ;) I'm sure my editing skillz will get ever so better, the more I do this. I just used what was available in YouTube itself, but I have a better thing called Camtasia - just didn't have time to mess around with it too much.

And yes, I was holding my phone up while driving - not texting, not even really talking on the phone - just had my right elbow rested on the arm rest, with my iPhone in hand - and talking...to myself...sorta. hehe So, don't get all gaspy about how I shouldn't vlog and drive, mmmmk? ;)

So, check it out - I know I have a HUGE right nostril - but I can't really hold my phone up above my head and drive - THAT would be distracting.

Social Media A.D.D.

Okay, so as you have seen, I have not been around my Blog much lately. Why you ask? (This is me assuming you asked...ahem) It's because I have been sucked into the Facebook black hole. I always told myself I would not let that happen, but alas it has happened. And I can only juggle up to two forms of social media at a time, or something. And I've been doing a high concentration of stuff for my sign language business - so my Facebook has been getting updated frequently, as well as my business website. So, there you have it, I have reached my two forms. And here my poor, neglected, blog sits...with nary an update. :(

I have an iPhone and Facebook has an APP, and it's just so handy! I can post pictures, I can check my News Feeds, I can see what Events I have coming up. It really is pretty darn awesome! So I guess I have to find a blogging app so that I can do that from wherever I happen to be that's not in front of my laptop.

So, I apologize for not being more diligent in updating my blog more often.

And I have not taken to Tweeting...although I do have a Twitter account hanging out there somewhere. So maybe that will be my next area of exploration.

Until then, here's a link to my Facebook Album with some very recent pictures of the kiddos from Labor Day weekend!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2081367&id=1482220555&l=d278ec99a2

It's been over a year...but I did it!

My first time back on a bike since I found out I was pregnant with AJ.

I truly can not believe it's been a month since I've posted. What.the.heck?

This month has gone by in a whirlwind. I've accomplished a lot in my career, spent a bunch of time with the kids, watched a lot of dirtbike races, and spent a lot of time in doors (July in AZ stinks for weather).

I seriously can't believe July is over after tomorrow. The kids only have 2 more weeks until school starts. Yes, I know, many kids are either back in school already...or we all reminisce about how we didn't go back to school until after Labor Day. But my kids' district starts somewhere in the middle. SAM will be in 8th grade, Cita in 3rd, and Monkey will be going to elementary for the first time, although I'm not sure if it will be as a Kindergartener or 1st grader. She technically finished a Kindergarten program at a private school, and the district said that they will place her in a 1st grade class for the first 3 weeks of school to see how they think she will do in that grade. If she appears to be on par with the other students, they will keep her in 1st, otherwise they will just put her in a Kindergarten class. The only reason this is even an issue is because her 5th birthday fell after the cut-off date, so she couldn't attend public school Kindergarten last year, so she just completed it at the preschool where I had her enrolled. So, we'll see how that goes.

Baby Pants is in a phase let me tell ya. She has taken to calling people 'stupid' and SCREAMING at the top of her lungs if she doesn't get her way. Oh the butt whoopings that child is going to get over the next few months until she gets her little attitude in check. Yeesh.

Cita is still in California with her dad for the summer, but she'll be coming home on the 8th. I've missed that little stinker! In a bad-but-sort-of-good turn of events, her dad had ruptured his achilles tendon a couple of months ago, and had to be on disability from work. So, he actually got to be off the whole time Morgan was visiting him. So, she got to spend lots of quality time with her dad, and I'm sure she really enjoyed that.

SAM has been coming to work with me a few days a week. It's been a really great bonding experience. We talk a lot on the way to and from work..I get insight on what's going on with her friends, what she's looking forward to this year, what things she's interested in, etc. She gets to bond with me and see what I do at work (the bosses don't mind because she's very well behaved and I am still very productive when she's here). I've gotten to see what a WONDERFUL artist she is...which she does not get from me by the way. We go to lunch together, and it's really nice.

AJ has been growing by leaps and bounds. He's 5 1/2 months now...and rolling over both ways, and inchworm crawling. He is eating rice cereal and making all kinds of fun 'talking' sounds. He's such a sweet little guy, always smiling and playing...only getting fussy when it's time to eat. He is sitting up somewhat on his own now, if he gets too excited he falls over though.

I've been trying to lose this baby weight. It is not going well. I'm not really gaining, but I'm not losing either. I've been working out about 3 days a week on average. And I've made improvements in my diet. But the office is a hard place to be...there are always goodies, snacks, candy, soda, etc. I've gotten a bit more disciplined for not grabbing everything I see, but not 100% eating right. I eat better at home because Aaron is very fit, and we don't keep any sodas, candy, chips, etc at home. But I'm only there for dinner and weekends. Most of my eating happens at work, and snacking and going out to lunch is not helping. I'm having a contest with a co-worker to see if we can get to our goal weights by October 2nd, because that is when he is going back home for a visit. But he's not married, and has no children, so he says he's working out 2x a day. Gee, I wonder who's going to win? Whoever said breastfeeding helps you lose the baby weight is LYING. It was an undercover La Leche League member to get more moms to breastfeed. hehe. Just kidding. It's been a rewarding experience for sure...just did not contribute to my weight loss at all. Oh well, I'll keep you posted on that.

Now, if you've made it this far, please enjoy a video of my cute little AJ playing with a toy. hehe

How Do You Eat an Elephant?

One bite at a time, right? So, we've all heard that phrase in relation to dealing with things that seem too large to accomplish - whether it's a project at work, our to-do list at home, or things that we want to do for our personal growth.

So, it's supposed to be encouraging that you only bite off what you can chew at the time, complete that portion, and then move on to the next thing.

But I find that the problem is that my elephant keeps growing...while I'm eating him. So, I just finish a leg or whatever, and then I'll be darned if that elephant doesn't grow another leg!

Kinda feels like the elephant can't be eaten in its entirety. So, what do you do in that situation, where you know you'll be eating elephant for the rest of your life?

Spiritual Insight from my 2 year old

So, you know what's cuter than a 2 year old screaming "Don't Cut The Cheese!!" :)

A 2 year old coming up to you, sitting in your lap, looking straight in your eyes and saying "Jesus loves you Mommy...and Jesus loves me too."

I often question my ability to lay a strong foundation for my children regarding our relationship with Christ - but I think she's got the most important principle down. As long as she can remember Jesus loves her, no matter what she goes through in life, I know she'll be alright. :)

Don't Cut It!

So, yesterday morning, Baby Pants asked me if she could have some cheese.

I went to the refrigerator to get her some sliced cheese, but Aaron bought provolone this time around, so when Audra saw that, she said "No not THAT cheese...THAT one" - and pointed to the block of cheddar.

So, I say "Ok, let me slice some for you" and took it over to the counter.

Immediately she breaks down and starts screaming "NOOOOO...don't cut it!! Don't cut it!!!!"

I say, "Sweetie, I have to cut it, you can't eat the whole block of cheese."

And then she says....

"DON'T CUT THE CHEESE!!! DON'T CUT THE CHEESE!!"

And then...I lost it. She was truly upset because she didn't want me to cut the cheese, but I couldn't stop laughing because it's hilarious when a little 2 year old, in their 2 year old voice, screams at you to not cut the cheese.

Wordless Monday

AJ & Daddy

Friday Fill-Ins 06/11/2010

So this week was pretty busy. Aaron was working out of town in Tucson for the week - he came home on Tuesday night, but headed back out early Wednesday AM. Today(Friday) I have a 6:55am flight to San Diego for a client meeting. This is my first travel day since AJ was born. But it is a turn around trip, and I'll be home around my usual time in the evening. SAM went to a Teen Camp this week at a junior high near my office. She said it was OK, but I'm not sure if she'll go back in the coming weeks. It's hard because she would like to just go to my grandparents' during the week, but she has responsibilities at home, and she helps me out tremendously. For the first week of her summer break, she did go to my grandparents' and it felt like chaos at home. I mean, just having the extra hand in the morning while I'm trying to get everyone ready is such a relief. So, when she's not here, I can definitely feel the extra stress. So, this week I tried to give her something fun to do with the camp, but then she could still be at home in the mornings/evenings. I'm not sure what she'll do next week - the weekly camps are pretty expensive. Then there is a church youth group mission thing to go build a house for a week - but that costs $400! It's for food and lodging and stuff, but sheesh that's expensive! She's old enough to stay home, but I know it's boring for her, and even though she doesn't want to admit it, she would be a little scared. I was too when I was her age and started staying home alone for the first time. Anyway, I'm sure we'll figure something out. The other kids are doing great - Cita is at her dad's in California for the summer, Monkey is doing the summer program at her preschool, and Baby Pants and AJ go to their in-home daycare. I've just been working, and teaching my sign language classes on the weekends. And also enjoying the fact that we took the summer off from all sports teams - so no practices and no 3 games every Saturday. Phew! But it will all start back up again in the fall. Oh joy.

Now for the fill-ins! Have a great weekend everyone!

1. Salon styled hair feels great.

2. The solution is the problem.

3. The sound of the ocean outside my window is what I wish I heard when I fall asleep.

4. How about letting each person who plays the lottery win at least once?.

5. Doing the Bible Study called 'Balance at the Speed of Life - For Women' is something I highly recommend!

6. Imagine fulfilling your life's purpose - what would it be?.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to getting home to my babies, tomorrow my plans include a welcome home party for my BFFs husband who just came back from Afghanistan and Sunday, I want to go to church and chill out at home!

Friday Fill Ins

OK - since I totally suck and can't seem to find time to blog, I'm committing to at least posting on Friday's with the fill-ins! And then maybe a little blurb or two on how things are going. :) Kids are good - AJ is big as a horse - I'll need to take an updated picture to share. The girls are out of school for the summer and doing their summer frolicky things like swimming, going to the park, and having visits with Nana and Papa. I can't believe my oldest will be in her last year of junior high in the fall - and then...dun dun dunnnnn...high school!!! eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeKKKK! I will have 3 kids in school this fall...and 2 more to go.

Ok on to the fill-ins...oh, and by the way Kierra's Courage (see my previous post) is over the 10K mark on their journey to a handicap-accessible van for little Kierra! YAY! And my company is matching all of our contributions - woot woot!

1. The ocean is my favorite place to travel to.

2. When I think about my childhood, I often remember riding my bike through the golf course and making troll movies (yes the ones with the hair) with my BFF.

3. Cuervo makes for a good friend.

4. The wind in the trees, the rain on my skin, where am I, this sure ain't Arizona??.

5. Being 30 is so exciting!

6. My best friend knows what my barf smells like (ew - sorry first thing that came to mind).

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to Friday Night Dinner, tomorrow my plans include Phoenix Mommies Bday Party and Aaron's motocross race and Sunday, I want to hang out at home!

Help for a Little Girl Named Kierra

Readers...today's post is about a local AZ girl named Kierra. She's a 2 year old little girl, who developed a metabolic disorder as an infant and she is now handicapped. Her family is raising funds for a wheelchair accessible van. And I'm asking all of you if this story touches your heart, if you would to please contribute, and also write a post on your blogs and encourage your readers to contribute if they feel led to.

The family makes hair bows and bracelets that are for sale, and they also have a few different fundraisers on their website. Or you can simply make a donation.

My little girl is 2 years old, and I guess that's why this story affects me so deeply. It makes me think that anything can happen at any time, and if something were to happen to one of my children, I would need help. So, whenever I am in a position to help someone else, I try to do that.

One of the wonders of the internet is its ability to reach so many people in such a small amount of time. I would really appreciate as much help as I can get.

Let's get Kierra her van! :)

Here's some links:

http://kierrascourage.com

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Help-Kierra-buy-a-handicapped-van/113291925352885

Wordless Monday

I know it's supposed to be Wordless Wednesday, but I just don't have time to post anything but a picture. :) hehe

Only 2 More Weeks

Yes, it's sad, but true...only 2 more weeks until I have to return back to work full-time. :( I've come to terms with it over the last week or so, but it definitely still makes me sad. It makes we wish I were independently wealthy. It makes me wish that the economy didn't suck so hard that my husband has to take crappy side jobs because he can't find full-time work right now. But I'm also thankful that he even has those crappy side jobs to take. God has given me peace about returning back to work, maybe even hinted that it might be temporary, so I'm OK with it I suppose. I just put myself into my little son's head and wonder if he will be OK with it. All of my other children were, so I'm sure he will be. But it just makes me sad that he'll be wondering "Who's this strange lady, and where's my mommy?" But his big sister will be there too, and we've been using this in-home daycare for almost 4 years, so I know that he'll be in completely good hands, they just won't be mine. Waah.

You know when 'they' say that you are a servant to your debt...totally true. Shame on me for allowing myself to get into debt to where I don't have the freedom to not have to work full-time if I don't want to. And I'm not even in THAT bad of debt, a car and a few credit cards...but it's enough to tie me to a desk for at least the next few years. Not to mention medical bills. For the last 3 years, I have reached the out-of-pocket limit on my insurance plan. And it seems as soon as I get one year's bills paid off, here come the next round. I know there's light at the end of the tunnel, but sheesh, it's looking pretty faint right now.

Sorry, didn't mean for this post to be a complaining post. There are lots of things I'm grateful for and happy about. But I'm human, and things bother me sometimes, and it feels better to get them out. To hear encouragements from others that have felt the same way. To let others that are struggling know that they aren't alone.

These are some scriptures that came to mind for my current state of mind:

Romans 8:28 - "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose."

Jeremiah 29:11 (my favorite of ALL time) - "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future"

30...Flirty...and Thriving

Did you ever see that movie, '13 going on 30'? With Jennifer Garner? And she's all in her akward teenage years, but then sees an article on the cover of her favorite magazine (Poise), and it says "30, Flirty and Thriving"...and she decides she wants to be 30, and , when she wakes up, she's 30?? Yeeeaahhh...I'm her. Except I look nothing like Jennifer Garner, nor do I feel Flirty and Thriving...but, I AM 30. Yes I am. Today, I am 30. Holy Poop Flakes, I'm 30.

OK, done obsessing about that now. I joked with my BFF today at lunch that I'm 30, Dirty, and Sagging. I'm dirty because I have 5 kids, and I'm lucky if I get to shower every OTHER day...but it's usually more like every other OTHER day. hehe. And I'm sagging because, well, because I have 5 kids. Need I say more?

But it's cool. I have gorgeous kiddos, a wonderful husband, and a Shark Steam Pocket Mop (my bday gift from hubby...which I ASKED for, by the way...that's how you know you're 30 and lame, when you want a MOP for your bday).

So...I'm saying 'So Long' to my 20's, and entering a new decade. I've grown and learned so much from 20 to 30, I'm looking forward to the lessons I'll learn over the next 10 years.

Hooray for Bullet Time

OK, so I tried to post sometime last week, but Blogger was not letting me. It was giving me some sort of "You cant post right now, because Blogger sucks" kind of message. So, I gave up, and now here we are...and all I can do is bullet. Because that's what I do when I haven't blogged in awhile and need to catch up.

And away we go...

• There is a Dollar Tree getting ready to go in by the Target!! Can you say, "YIPPEE!!!"??? I can...and I said it out loud to myself in the car when I was driving by Target and saw the sign that said "Dollar Tree coming soon". YIPPEE!!


• My daughter, Cita, turned 8 on March 30th. WHAT? 8 years has NOT gone by since she was born. That is just ridiculous. She should be 3 or something.


• I started to work part-time last Monday. I'm telecommuting for 4 hours per day...with my infant son at home since I'm still nursing. Yeah...it's going awesome. But seriously, I'm just sort of getting my feet wet again as I prepare to return back full time on May 10th. It's going pretty well.


• My 2 year old's most commonly used phrase at this juncture is "I do it MYTHELF!"


• The craziness of my kids' sports has begun, but it really hasn't been as bad as I initially thought. That's the beauty of building something up to be MUCH worse than it actually is. Then, when it actually comes around, and doesn't quite reach the level of bad that you thought it was going to be, you can pretend that it doesn't suck THAT much.


• I started working out last week...to the program called "Insanity". I'm an infomercial, workout DVD junkie. Seriously. I have a bajillion workout programs on DVD...and am I ripped? Well, I just had a baby 7 weeks ago, so that's not fair to ask right this second. But have I EVER been ripped from using the DVD programs when I wasn't 7 weeks post-partum? Ummmm...nope. So why do I do it? I think it's all of the success stories that they put in the infomercials...I always find a bit of myself in some of those success stories. I just seriously lack the willpower. I've already missed 2 workouts, and this is only the beginning of Week 2. Argh. BUT, on the plus side, just from the workouts I DID do...I've lost 2 pounds and 1% body fat in one week. Maybe if I actually committed to these things, I could be ripped. :)


• We had a nice Easter. I took the girls to the park in the morning, and then we went to my Mother-in-Laws for lunch. She made a YUMMY ham, and salad, mashed potatoes, some creamy cauliflower and broccoli thing and bread rolls. Mmmmmmm. Then we had a custard cake with fresh fruit on top, and mandarin orange sherbet for dessert. Double Mmmmmm.


• Every stray cat in our neighborhood finds our house. Seriously. A new one just showed up this past week. It's white, with a couple black spots on its forehead and it yowls ultra loud. We don't let him in the house, but he has managed to sneak in a couple times and chase our other cats around. They don't like it.


• My knock off version of Spanx does a pretty good job of holding in the post-baby flabberoo. But when I take it off, my fat explodes out of it like it's relieved to have been released from its prison.


• AJ is getting HUGE! He's going to be 7 weeks tomorrow. I can't believe it's been that long.
• My husband's friend said that AJ has my cheeks. I was all "AJ's cheeks are FAT, what are you trying to say?"


• Aaron was in a motocross race this past weekend. He did pretty well. He's up against a lot more experienced dudes because they have more time to practice during the week. (Read: 17 year old kids with no jobs)


• My oldest, SAM, did great in her volleyball games on Saturday. On her last play, she tried to spike the ball, but hit the ball so hard that it flew over the net, and hit the wall behind the bleachers where all the parents were sitting. EEK!


• Why do 2 year olds have to wake up at the sound of the first bird chirp? I can't wait until she learns the concept of sleeping in on weekends.

OK, I think that's about all I can muster up for today. AJ has his 2 month appointment in a couple weeks...so I'll post more pictures then. OH YEAH, I looked at Baby Pants' measurements from her 2 year checkup, and she is 3 feet tall right now. My grandma says that if you measure a child when they are 2, and then double it, that's how tall they will be as an adult. That would make Baby Pants 6 feet tall...hmmmm...not sure about that one. Maybe we should put a basketball in her hand now. ;)

1 Month Pictures

Here's my little AJ at 1 month. :)

Getting Older...The Kids AND Me

AJ had his one month appointment last Friday morning. He's 10 1/2 pounds now! Yikers. My little guy is SOLID. They didn't go over percentiles with me this visit, but I'm pretty sure he's still up there. His circumcision area looks good - when the doctor was poking around down there, he peed on her...and me. hehe It was funny. Then she checked his ears, and guess what, my little guy has an ear infection. I guess all the coughy hacky sneezy that's been going on around here got to him too. Waaah. He's been a good sport though and hasn't been acting fussy at all. But now I have to give him antibiotics twice a day. He doesn't like it, but he tolerates it because he wubs me.

Baby Pants had her 2 yr appointment in conjunction with AJ. She's right on track as well - 36 pounds, and darn, I forget how long she is. I think it was because she started freaking out about getting measured, and we just got through it quickly. I'm not sure why, but for her last couple of doctor's visits, she has been totally freaking out every time. She has never had a traumatic experience at the doctor (we postponed immunizations) - so it's kind of odd. She has an ear infection now too, that she got WHILE on Amoxicillin for her upper respiratory infection - so her pediatrician switched antibiotics to a cephalosporin (sp?) which is once a day for 10 days. Now I have to go BACK to the doctor in 2 weeks for a follow up - seriously I have spent over $200 in the last week on doctor's visits and antibiotics...and that's WITH insurance. argh.

Anywho...hopefully the kids will all be better soon.

So, not only are my kids getting older, but apparently I am too. There was a segment on this Christian radio station that I listen to where the DJs were talking about getting older, and what things make them know they are getting older. So, at first, I had a hard time coming up with some - but then they just started flowing this week. I'm going to be 30 next month, and I know that's not "OLD" per se, but it is 'older' than I was 10 years ago. And for sure some things have changed - and here's what I've come up with so far.

#1 - I can leave the house wearing glasses and no makeup. This would TOTALLY not have happened 10 years ago - I always put my contacts in before leaving the house, and always had a full face of makeup on before I set foot out the door. In fact I used to SLEEP in my makeup, just in case my house caught on fire and some hot firefighters needed to come rescue me. (that never happened by the way...hehe)


#2 - The things that I want for gifts are starting to become WAY practical. Is it sad that what I really want for my birthday this year is a Shark Steam Pocket Mop? It will make mopping my floors SO much easier, and supposedly it disinfects too, which is a good feature. What ever happened to wanting clothes and CDs?


#3 - I drive a freakin' beasty of an SUV. When I was a younger mom, of only one child, I drove a really cute Mitsubishi Eclipse sports car (the cute bubbly model - not the newer boring looking one). I had already graduated to a smaller SUV by the time baby #2 came around, which was a Ford Escape - and that one stuck with me through baby #3, and pregnancy of baby #4 - but, yeah - the Escape only fit 5 people total - so a hubby, wife, and 4 kiddos was NOT going to fit. I am STILL putting off the minivan...so I got an Expedition instead - BUT, I am really starting to see the benefits of the minivan, especially the ones that have the auto-sliding doors. Ugh...I'm destined to a be a minivan mom, I can tell.


#4 - I commented on a friend's blog this week (a younger friend), and mentioned the Vanilla Ice song "Ice, Ice Baby"...and...she had never heard of it. Waaaaaaah. (Sorry Michelle...had to blog about it - it's funny, but also makes me feel super old). Also - if you haven't checked out her blog yet, check it out here.


#5 - My date nights no longer consist of "clubbin" - and if they do, we feel totally dumb and out of place. We usually just hit up casual bars or coffee houses with acoustic music now.


#6 - My older kids think I'm a dork.


#7 - I've been friends with my BFFs for over half my life time...we're talkin like 20+ years yo. I met my BFF in 1988 - we didn't become BFFs till around 90 or 91 - but still....that's a long freakin time.

OK, that's all I can write about now - I'm getting somewhat depressed. hehe. No, it's really OK - in all honesty, I have been looking forward to my 30th birthday since my 20th birthday. When I turned 20, I had already been a mom for almost 3 years - and I was tired of having the 'teen mom' label. I was also working with women who were in their late 20's/early 30's, and they seemed to have life so much more together than I did. So I thought I would have life all figured out by 30, and that things would be awesome and great.

I don't have life figured out..but things are pretty awesome and great I'd have to say. So, I guess getting older isn't all THAT bad. :)

3 Things

I love my mom for giving me blog fodder via email forwards...but don't blame me for the copy/paste format - it didn't turn out pretty.

Three Things About Me

A. Three names I go by:

1. Crystal
2. Chris
3. Mom/Mommy/Momma

B. Three places I’ve lived:

1 California
2 Nevada
3 Arizona


C. Three places I’ve worked:

1 Pomas Ristorante
2 Sierra Health Services
3 360 Vantage

D. Three things I love to watch:

1 Criminal Minds
2 Gilmore Girls
3 Celebrity Apprentice (new season just started!)

E. Three places I have been:

1 San Francisco, CA
2 Rocky Point, Mexico
3 Raleigh, NC

F. Three people that email me regularly: (not including co-workers)

1 Nana
2 Mom
3 Victoria's Secret (darn me for signing up for their emails, not like I can wear any of that crap now)

G. Three things I love to eat:

1 Cheese Enchiladas
2 Fried Ice Cream
3 Fruit

I. Three things I am looking forward to:

1 Getting back in shape
2 Riding my dirtbike again
3 Buying a house someday

Mastitis and Upper Respiratory Infections

Yeah...you can tell right off the bat that this blog is going to be gross. Sorry.

So, Sunday afternoon/early evening, I started running a low grade fever, accompanied by chills. Uh oh...I thought I was getting the flu. I started taking ibuprofen to control the fever, and it helped make me feel better and get rid of the chills as well. It continued on into the next day, and I kept waiting to feel worse...much worse. But, I didn't really. So, what did I do? I googled "postpartum fever and chills" and it brought up some links about people really freaking out about having fever and chills during the post-partum period, but I did not get caught up in the hysteria. I just kept scrolling on down - and then I saw a little blip of 'breast soreness, fever and chills'...and I was like "Hey...now that you mention it, my left breast IS pretty sore"...so I clicked, and read on. The article led me to symptoms for Mastitis, which is pretty common for breastfeeding mamas like myself...and can cause flu-like symptoms...but needs to be treated with antibiotics pretty much ASAP, otherwise you can develop a nasty abscess. (ew...ewwwww). So, I got myself into the doctor yesterday and got started on my antibiotics. In a way, kinda glad it was mastitis and not the flu...the flu usually hangs on for awhile, and not really needing that right now.

Then...today, I had to take 3 of my kiddos to the doctor for their runny nose hacky sneezy thing that has been carrying on in our household for seriously over a month. No fevers...just sniffle sniffle cough hack sneeze hack sniffle...all..day...long. I'd been 'controlling' it with Zyrtec, but honestly it didn't really seem like it was helping all that much. And today I had finally had enough of it - so I took everyone to the doctor's office. I knew what they would say - "Upper Respiratory Infections - Here's some amoxicillin"...and that's what they said. So, now they are on antibiotics too. Gosh I hate pumping my kids full of drugs...but I was seriously at my wits end with dealing with the neverending congestion. So here's to hoping that the antibiotics will do the trick. I'm also sure that the house that we're renting, which is a bajillion years old, has so much caked up dirt and grime in the air ducts that I am thisclose to paying the $55 to get the air ducts cleaned. Hubby thinks that air duct cleaning is a scam - that they come in and then try and upsell you a new A/C unit...maybe they do...but I know how to say "No thank you, just the ducts please." I think I'm gonna do it anyway.

Also, I'm pretty sure I'm insane for signing all 3 of my older kids up for an extracurricular sport. Did I not realize that having 3 children in sports means - 3 different practice days & times and 3 games on Saturdays for the next month and a half??? Plus they have a midweek church event that they participate in. So, pretty much 3 of my weeknights and all day Saturday are spoken for until May. What in the HECK was I thinking? Oh that's right...I was thinking that since my oldest daughter got to play a couple seasons ago, that it was only FAIR that if the other girls wanted to play something that they should get the opportunity to, and that guilted me into signing all of them up. BUT, I also have no qualms about saying "Sorry kids, it's just too much" if it does indeed turn out to be too much - and they'll just have to get over it, because I'm not going to lose my mind over volleyball and tball for little kids.

2 Weeks *Updated with Pics*

So my little AJ is 2 weeks old, as of yesterday. We had his newborn follow-up yesterday afternoon. It should have been the week before, but my little Cita was home sick for 3 days that week, so I didn't take him in.

He has gained 7 oz, so he's now 9 1/2 pounds...and they measured him at 21.5 inches - which is half an inch longer than at birth - but the nurse said that sometimes the hospital measurements are different - and she said most babies appear to "shrink" when they have their first doctor's appointments due to the measurements being 'off'. So, he's above the 90th percentile in both height and weight for now - which I totally believe, cuz the dude eats like he's not going to get fed again. hehe (kinda like his daddy)

And GUESS WHAT? So, I've been a mom for almost 13 years - I've had 5 children now...and I learned something NEW about babies yesterday at the appointment. A little background...for my first few children (1997, 2002, and 2004), the instructions given about umbilical cord treatment was to put alcohol on it every day until it falls off. Fast forward to 2008 when my 4th daughter was born, and the instructions are to not put ANYTHING on it, and just let it fall off on its own. Little AJ's umbilical cord stump has still not fallen off - and it was starting to emit a foul odor...so I'll be darned what "the instructions" say, I put alcohol on the darn thing. So, when I took him to his appt, my pediatrician asked if I had any concerns - and I mentioned that his cord hadn't fallen off and that it was getting stinky. And I told her that I put a bit of alcohol around it, even though technically I wasn't "supposed to". She said that it was OK to put a little alcohol around the edges for odor control. And then she proceeds to tell me what causes the odor..."The way that the umbilical cord falls off, is that bacteria EAT away at the cord causing it to fall off - and the bacteria is what causes the odor." Internal dialogue to myself..."WHAT????!!!! Are you freaking kidding me? That is REALLY gross!". What I actually said out loud, "Wow...I did not know that."

So, the phrase "You learn something new every day" really applied yesterday. Can I just say...ewww.

Sorry For Leaving Everybody Hanging

So, I can tell by some of the comments on my very last post that I've been leaving everybody hanging about this baby! :)

But, right now is actually the first time the kiddo is not attached to my boob, so I'm getting a free moment!

I had a "feeling" on the morning of the Tuesday, the 16th, that something might be happening either that day or the next day. The contractions I was having were stronger than the previous few days, but they were still sporadic throughout the morning. By the afternoon, I was having some bleeding (TMI, I know...but it usually indicates something's going on...hehe). I called my mother-in-law to let her know to be "on alert" just in case. My mom was also on her way here from Texas because my step-dad had an interview on Wednesday, the 17th. They are thinking of moving back to Phoenix, and it just happened to work out that they would be here and the baby still hadn't been born. So, I was excited that my mom might make it here for the baby's birth.

After dinner on Tuesday night, my contractions were definitely coming in a more regular pattern, but still about 20 minutes or so apart. By 8pm they were getting closer to 10-15 minutes apart, so I called my mother-in-law again to let her know she might not want to go to sleep because we might be going to the hospital that night. She decided to come over just in case we had to leave in the middle of the night. The girls had already been put to bed, and we sat around and watched the Olympics and timed my contractions. By 10pm they were still about 8-12 minutes apart, so I decided I should go lay down to get some rest. As soon as I laid down to rest, the contractions started coming about every 4 minutes. I thought "Darn! Just as I get settled down to rest, here they come!" So, I waited until about 10:45 when I was sure they were consistently coming, and told Aaron that we should probably go to the hospital.

We packed up my stuff, and drove to the hospital and got checked in. I think by the time they were able to check my progress it was about 11:15pm or so, and I was dilated to 7 cm. They asked me if I wanted an epidural, and I declined. I had my last two girls completely natural, and I wanted to have this baby natural as well - but I have to admit that the contractions were pretty uncomfortable so I asked if I could have something via IV to "take the edge off"...and you know what they said? "No". I was like "What?" And they said "You are so close to delivering, that if we give you something in an IV, it will make the baby sleepy." OK...so much for that idea. So, I declined the IV altogether, because those things HURT, especially if the nurse isn't skilled enough to get the vein the first time.

At about 11:45pm they checked me again and I was 8 cm, so they called my doctor. She arrived at around midnight and they broke my water. My water NEVER breaks on its own for some reason. Weird. Anywho, I continued my labor standing up - it just felt better than lying in the bed, and I figured using gravity to help the baby make his or her way out would be good. They told me to tell them when I began to feel "pressure". That happened at about 12:10am, they checked me and said I was 9cm. My doctor said to try laying on my left side to see if that would help bring the baby down so I could push - but baby did not like that, and the heartrate went down. So, I had to roll over on to my back. The next contraction I had came with such force that I told the doctor I needed to push...like NOW. She told me to wait...umm...yeah, to wait. She hadn't got on her little paper gown thingie yet, and they hadn't dropped the end off of the bed to prepare for all the messy stuff that comes with babies. So, I "shhhhhhhed" through that one, but the next one came right away, and I pushed.

I didn't care if they were ready or not, I was pushing because this baby wanted out. And you know what happened? That baby's head came right out on my first push, and the doctor said "Well, I guess we are delivering this baby IN the bed". Ya think? On my next push, the baby was out!

And guess what, we had a BOY!! At 12:39am on Wednesday, February 17th, our first son was born. He weighed 9lbs, 1oz, and measured 21 inches long. I couldn't believe we had a boy. My husband cried...I just kept asking him "We made a boy?". hehe

It took us a whole day to name him because we hadn't really discussed names a whole lot since we didn't know if we were having a boy or a girl. We named him Aaron James Edward - and we're calling him "AJ". Aaron is after his daddy, James is my dad's middle name, and it's my husband's dad's first name, and Edward is my grandpa's name.

So, there you have it. Our son finally arrived on his 10th day of being overdue. He's officially one week old today, and we're just trying to adjust to family life with a newborn again. It's been wonderful and challenging all at the same time. Just about every one of my daughters is sick - so NOT what I needed right now, but we're chugging through.

Here's a picture of AJ from the hospital - I'm sure I'll be posting more later. :)

Dude...Seriously??

OK...we are now 6 days past my "due date" - or the estimated, they-really-have-no-idea-what-the-heck-they're-talking-about, due date...aka EDD.

Thursday night I was having contractions about every 15 minutes for 4 hours, but they never got closer and they never got any stronger - and finally when I went to bed at around 11pm, they went away completely.

Friday morning, I had to go in to the hospital for my first monitoring appointment - which consists of a fetal non-stress test, and an amniotic fluid index - NST and AFI for the hospital staff. They listen to the babies heartbeat for 15 minutes, and then they do an ultrasound for the AFI. For the AFI, they are checking to make sure the baby still has enough fluid to swim around in. hehe. The results were that the baby's heartrate sounded great, and my fluid levels were within normal range. The baby is pretty much comfy, cozy, fat and sassy in there. They showed me the baby's face on the ultrasound, and the cheeks were really chubby and the lips were really full. I got a little teary I have to admit - so I told him or her "It's time for you to be out here now...come out of there!" hehe.

I went to lunch Friday afternoon with my mother-in-law, and during the day yesterday, every time I stood up I would have a contraction, and they were pretty decent intensity. But again, no consistency. I was also having some good ones in my sleep last night.

But...this morning, Saturday...not a whole lot going on. I got up with the girls, we ate breakfast - Aaron had to do some work today so he left around 8am. The girls played outside, we had a snack of sliced apples and then my oldest daughter came home from spending the night at a friend's house. She had a school dance last night. Aaron had called and said my mother-in-law was going to come over around noon to give Baby Pants her birthday present. This whole "not knowing when the baby is coming" thing royally screwed up my ability to schedule an actual birthday get-together for her. We usually only do family anyway, instead of trying to have a big production with a bajillion friends - but I still wanted to be able to give her a 'party' of sorts. All she really cared about was cake and ice cream. :) So - after my oldest got home, she babysat while I went to the grocery store to pick up ice cream and a small cake.

After we ate lunch, my mother-in-law got here, and we sang "Happy Birthday" and let Baby Pants blow out her candle and eat her cake and ice cream. Then, she opened her presents - which were two new Signing Time videos! YAY! Baby Pants was VERY excited - she yelled "Signing Time wif Alex an' Leah!" (Alex and Leah are the two main character children on the videos). So that's what we're doing right now - watching the new videos. :)

I also called my Dad, because today is his birthday. We never thought I would make it so far past my due date that it would be a possibility that the baby would be born on his birthday - but we still have 11 hours of today left. Tomorrow is Valentine's Day - and both my grandpa and my best friend were born on Valentine's day. :) Maybe baby would like to be a Valentine's Day baby. I just wish it would be a 'sometime soon, like right now' baby. hehe

Alright, well Baby Pants and I are going to go take a nap now - YAY for naps!! :)

Happy Birthday!

To my Baby Pants. She turned TWO today.

Ha! You thought this was going to be a post on the new baby didn't you? No...that little booger is still in there.

My little Baby Pants is Two...I can't believe it. Two years have gone by already? Really?

This morning after Baby Pants played with her sisters for a few minutes, she came busting into our bedroom and was singing as loud as she possibly could..."Happy BURTDAY to MEEEEEEE!"

Then she kept telling me " 'Ahna burtday cake" (where 'ahna' equals 'I wanna')

I told her I had cookies to take to her babysitter's house. She was excited, but even after she saw them, she kept calling them a 'burtday' cake. I bought a package for the babysitter's house and a package for our house, so that we could celebrate tonight after dinner. We're not going to have her birthday party until after this baby comes, because I knew as soon as I would plan a birthday party, THAT would be the day I would go into labor. So, we didn't schedule it for this past weekend, and I only 'tentatively' scheduled it for this coming weekend - so we'll see when we actually have it.

My Baby Pants is SO much like her daddy, it's not even funny. She comes at life with full force, full of energy, and ready to take on whatever challenges come her way. As soon as she is dressed in the morning, she is ready to be outside doing something - her daddy is definitely an outside dog. It's been an adjustment for me, because I'm not really an outside person - but I'm getting better at it. :) She loves dirtbikes, quads and monster trucks - she watches UFC with her daddy and yells at the fighters - "No BITING boys!" (but her 'biting' means 'fighting'). She's rough and tumble and doesn't mind getting extremely dirty.

But don't get me wrong, she definitely has a girly side too. She likes to dress up like a princess, and if she gets TOO dirty, she tells me she needs to wash her hands.

She's a goldfish addict (the snack, not the actual fish)...she has taken to sleeping with her 7 yr old sister...she goes potty on the toilet...she loves to read...she still pulls on my ears when she needs comforting...she turns everything into a song (kinda like me)...she likes to wear my lipgloss (and when it gets returned it's REALLY gross and slobbery)...her favorite movie at the moment is 'Lilo and Stitch'...she still loves to use the sign language that she knows, and to learn more signs...she thinks its funny to tell me that she "fahted", but then she says "excoos me"...she's obsessed with Sponge Bob Square Pants...when she pretends she is leaving to go somewhere with my keys, she says "I going to church" or "I going to ride da bus"...she has extremely long hair that she tolerates me putting into two ponytails every morning...she loves her sisters...and she calls the new baby her 'baby butter' (butter=brother, even though we don't yet know what we're having).

I'm thoroughly enjoying watching Baby Pants grow up...she does have her moments, as all toddlers do...because she has discovered the use of the word "No", and when I start my warning counting, she just counts along with me and thinks it's hilarious. But every day she does something that makes me smile or laugh - tonight's laughing thing was "teeth kisses". She wanted to see my teeth while she was in the bathtub - so I showed her. Then she showed me her teeth. Then she came in for a kiss with her teeth showing, so I copied her...and we both giggled and gave each other a bunch of teeth kisses.

Seeing her get this big reminds me that my older girls are getting even bigger - I'm trying to focus more on their individual stages as well. It can be easy to let what they are going through get lost in the shuffle because they are "older". And now with the new baby coming, I'm kind of afraid of losing the experiences I'm having with Baby Pants. But all of this is exactly the reason I started my own business last year, and fully intend to make it my full-time work so that I can be with my children more often because it's a business they can be involved in too...and will hopefully require much less working hours away from them. It's time for life to be about them, and making whatever sacrifices are necessary to make that happen. It's just where I am right now, and where I think God wants me to be. Sorry, didn't mean to go off on a tangent. :)

So, Happy Birthday to my Baby Pants - I love you with all my heart. And lucky you, it looks like your brother or sister won't be sharing a birthday with you after all. :)

4 Things (aka 'The Cop Out Post')

So - I don't really have anything cool or noteworthy to post about today, other than complaining that the baby isn't here yet...so instead, I'm totally just using an email that I got from my mom today and posting my answers here. It was one of those "getting to know you" type emails, except it's just 6 questions, where you enter 4 things for each question. Feel free to participate if you wish. :) You can post your four things in my comments, or create your own post. Happy Friday!

1. Four places I shop: Target, Costco, Safeway, Frys

2. Four people who e-mail me: Mom, Nana, Sandie, Gina

3. Four things I like to smell: Ocean, Babies, Cinnamon, Citrus

4. Four places I would rather be: California, Mexico, Getting a massage, Having a baby (hehe)

5. Four people I think will respond: I don't like these questions..hehe

6. Four TV shows I watch most: NCIS, Gilmore Girls, Sponge Bob (not by choice), Ghost Whisperer (just started watching this again)

Update

So, remember a couple weeks ago when I was all shocked and surprised because my OB/GYN bumped my due date up to Feb 1? Yeah, well, when I went in for my appointment this past Tuesday, Dr. S goes "Well, you're measuring about a week behind, but that's OK". So, I casually mention the confusion there had been surrounding my due date. So, she scrutinizes my chart a little bit more in-depth, and finds, that "Oh yes, after the ultrasounds..." (I had to have a couple cuz I had some issues early on) "...it appears that we should have your date at the 7th or the 8th, so I think we're going to go with that." I calmly say "That's kind of what I thought"...and she says "Wow, I don't think I've ever moved a date back this late in the game without the woman crying." But, in all honesty, for about 8 1/2 months, I was thinking it was later in February anyway, and was more in shock when they started saying Feb 1st again than I was when she put me back to the later date. BUT - it was kind of nice to think I would be having a baby closer to now, versus closer to next Sunday - but we shall see what happens. I rarely have early babies -I've only had one come early. Cita (daughter #2) was born 2 days early - she was due on April Fool's Day - but at my last doctor appointment prior to Cita's birth, I had them do a procedure called 'stripping the membranes' - tooooooootally gross sounding, I know - but it's supposed to kick-start labor. My doctor was on call that weekend, and I really wanted her to deliver Cita, so I had her do it, and I delivered her that weekend - two days early on 03/30/02. SAM (#1) was 8 days late, they induced...Monkey (#3) was RIGHT on her due date, and Baby Pants (#4) was 4 days late. So my babies really like to cook until they're completely done. :)

Yesterday, I taught my last baby signing class to my group of 4 families. They did GREAT! It was so funny how all the toddlers that I had in class were pretty shy on the first 3 classes, but then by the last class on Saturday, they were best buddies. Really cute. And one of the little boys kept running around the classroom signing "Grumpy" because we were singing a 'How are you?' song - and one of the lyrics asks "Are you feeling 'Grumpy'?". I made graduation certificates for all of them, and I bought these really cute animal hand puppets when I was at Ikea last weekend as their graduation gift. All the kiddos love the animal signs unit, so I thought it would be fun for them to have an animal to play with while they practice their animal signs.

Then after class, we had lunch at home - and then it was time to do Saturday cleaning. I'm really hoping that the baby comes in the next couple of days while the house is still somewhat clean, because I don't really want to have to do the whole cleaning routine again before the baby comes. hehe. I do have the carpet cleaner guy coming tomorrow at 9am to do the whole house, and my two sofas. So, once that's done, THEN, I'll be ready to have a baby. As far as house preparation goes anyway.

I have a few more things at work that I need to wrap up. The latter end of this week was swallowed up with conference calls, so I didn't get much actual 'work' done. So, hopefully this Monday and Tuesday will be all I need to get everything closed off. Then I can feel comfortable walking away from that for a couple months.

Oh...and how can I forget to mention the Mexican Food I got to have with my BFF last week? I had a cheese enchilada with rice and beans - I think I was "this close" to licking my plate. We followed lunch with the MOST yummy fried ice cream ever made on the planet. OK, if you ever visit the Phoenix Metro area of Arizona - you HAVE to go to Ajo Al's (ajoals.com) - their fried ice cream is SOOOOO good. Most places just roll the ice cream in the oats and put some whip cream on it and call it good. But Ajo Al's rolls the ice cream in the oats, soaks the whole thing in honey, pours strawberries and strawberry sauce over the entire thing, then puts the whip cream on and sprinkles that with cinnamon. It's the B-O-M-B. And now I totally just made myself want some Ajo Al's fried ice cream dang it - and it's 8am on a Sunday morning.

Today consists of going to church in a couple of hours, having lunch, and then probably some laundry. I also have to get some work done today because I have a PowerPoint due tomorrow - but I'm not sure if I'm going to do it during Baby Pants' nap time, or if I'm going to nap with her. I napped with her yesterday from 3:30p to 6:30p - it was lovely...have I mentioned I love naps? Especially with a little toddler that snuggles up all close to you and holds your face while she sleeps? It's way cute and cuddly. I think I'll probably also set up the little bassinet that we have and wash the sheets and stuff for that. We have the Arm's Reach Co-Sleeper, it's a bassinet that you can drop one of the sides down and put it right up against your bed - so it's like your baby is sleeping with you, but they still have their own little space. :)

OK - that's about all - I can hear my two middle children fighting (but trying not to get caught because they shut their door) - so I better go break that up.

Hope everyone has a great week!

O' Labor Where Art Thou?

Sorry for the title, but my brain couldn't really come up with a clever title, and I was just thinking that my hubby was watching O' Brother Where Art Thou? last night, so just a switchy switchy of one word, and there you have it - my title.

I've been working my booty off for the last few days, both at home and work. We got a lot done this weekend as far as the home organization I wanted to do before baby comes. I'm really excited about the furniture we got rid of, moved around, or purchased (just one little cube storage shelf unit thingie - but it hides so many toys in its cute little neutral-colored canvas box thingies). I actually have a desk I can sit at that my laptop will fit on because we got rid of all the junk the other one was storing on top of it. There's still more to do - but I'm content with where we are and wouldn't be upset if the baby came now, like today. hehe

For work I put in a few hours last night, and 10+ hours today. It will probably be the same tomorrow as I'm in the "tie up all the loose ends" mode, since this should be my last week. Hopefully everything will be pretty well wrapped up by Tuesday or Wednesday - but it's not like I'm going to a faraway land, you know? My bosses and co-workers are like all freaked out about the stuff that I cover and I'm like "You can always call me" - and shoot, I might even do a little work whilst on my maternity leave if need be. I'm having a baby, not turning into an invalid. Maybe if it was my first go-round at this thing, it might be a little tougher to juggle newborn baby and work duties - but I think I'm a pretty good multi-tasker now...and I've been sleep deprived for the past 12 years, so nothing new there. hehe

Tomorrow my day is pretty well booked with doctor's appointments, meetings, data analysis, and a fun lunch with my BFF. yay! Mexican food - oh yeah! AND fried ice cream. woo hoo!

I really wanted to get a pedicure some time before the baby comes - my toenails haven't been painted since ummm...May? June? Somewhere in there. I've just never really been the type that keeps my toes up, except for clipping them - because I totally can not STAND long toenails. But for whatever reason, whenever I'm getting ready to go into the hospital to have a baby, I always want my toes painted - you know, for the nursing staff or whatever. But who knows if that will get fit into this week.

Parent-Teacher conferences are this week. I went to SAM's tonight - she's my 7th grader. The teachers were talking to me about how she's shaping up well to have a great start in 8th grade next year. I'm like "What?? 8th Grade? Can you please let me deal with 7th grade, before you start throwing 8th grade in my face for cryin out loud???!!!" Because guess what THAT makes me think? OMG...come this time NEXT year, SAM's 8th grade teachers are going to be talking to me about 9th grade - HIGH SCHOOL - and that is SO not cool. SO not ready to be the mommy of a high schooler - holy cow!

Cita's conference will be on Wednesday - she's in 2nd grade. This conference is "student-led", so Cita will be with me taking me through her schedule and her packet of schoolwork they've collected throughout the year. It should be pretty fun.

Then, Thursday & Friday both SAM & Cita have half-days at school, so they get to come home around lunch time and be with me while I'm telecommuting this week. Should be good times, as long as they don't beat each other up when I'm not looking...but I can HEAR it...I have ears like a rabbit...or whatever other kind of animal has really good hearing. Even if you know I can't SEE you, if you are under 18 yrs old, I can totally HEAR what you're doing from across the house. hehe

OK - I was up until after 2am last night, and it's going on 1230am now - so I better skee-daddle off to bed because I'm sleepy.

Little baby - if you'd like to come out of there soon - that would be just fine by me. ;)

Good Thing

Well...I'm glad I had such a rockin Thursday because from Sunday through today has been kinda "bleh". Friday was OK, I just worked and we had family dinner night out, which did contain a bit of drama but nothing too big. Saturday was extremely busy - I had my baby signing class to teach in the morning, then I met up with two of my best girlfriends and their kiddos at the Phoenix Zoo, and then hurried home to get ready for Supercross at Chase Stadium. Saturday was also my 2 year wedding anniversary. :) We got to go to Supercross as our date. What? We aren't redneck. hehe This is actually our 3rd year in a row attending Supercross - it's really fun! But I realized that I've been pregnant for 2 out of the 3 times we've attended - I hope we're not on a 'every other year' type of schedule. haha!

But then Sunday rolled around...and me and my two oldest girls woke up with the tummy bug that Monkey had earlier in the week. Ugggggh. So, Sunday was spent just kind of being lazy at the house - but I did have one little project we were able to make it through, and that was to tidy up the back patio so that I could turn it into more of a play area for the girls when I wanted to send them out back to play instead of out front. I bought this really big patio set, and it was taking up a ton of room, and we only use it when the weather starts getting warm - so we moved it into the pool area because there is a big unused concrete slab on the other side of the pool that was perfect for putting the patio set on. And now the girls have their little play tables in the area where the patio furniture was, and it just looks a lot nicer out there. I'd like to also make this little dirt area along the back wall into a little garden. I've actually kept a plant alive in my office for the past year, so I might be able to graduate to little garden now. :)

Monday was MLK day...this was another "Ugh" day. So my 3 oldest girls didn't have school, so they were going to stay home with me because I started my telecommuting this week since it's T-minus 2 weeks until baby. And me and SAM were still dealing with the tummy issues. So, I get Baby Pants ready for daycare, and go to drop her off. When my daycare provider asks "Didn't you see this sheet last week? And didn't your husband tell you I needed you to call me and let me know if Baby Pants was going to be here today?". I say "Yes, I saw the sheet - and everyone was just writing their child's name if they weren't going to be here. And no, my hubby didn't tell me I needed to call you." My daycare provider is a licensed in-home daycare provider, so she has limits as to how many children she can care for at one time, and when she has the full capacity of all the kids that come, she has a helper there with her. But, this "list" was supposed to let her know if she needed that helper or not, and of course Baby Pants would put her one child over her limit - so even though I was supposed to try and work yesterday because I didn't have the day off, I had to bring Baby Pants home. I was a little peeved, but I know it's not her fault - but seriously, who has MLK day off besides government employees and schools? Needless to say I didn't get any work done yesterday. AND it was raining, so I couldn't even send the kids outside - so they had to be inside - all.freakin.day.

Today was looking a bit better...SAM and I were still having residual tummy issues, but SAM wanted to go to school. But then Monkey goes to the restroom after she wakes up, and guess what she has? Yep, diarrhea...again...the one who started it all gets it AGAIN. So, I had to keep her home with me. But everyone else went off to school as usual, which was good. Since this tummy thing really appears to just be tummy related, no fevers, aches, chills, or overall yuckies...it was a bit easier to get some work done today. And there was a little break in the rain, so I took Monkey to a nearby park to play. Don't worry, there weren't any other kids there for us to pass the diarrhea germs on to - and when other kids started showing up, we left.

So, now I'm back at home, writing this post - and I'm feeling really tired. I can't believe I have less than 2 weeks before the baby arrives. I still have a mega-long list of things to get done before then, but guess what? I just don't think it's all going to get done...and I guess I'm okay with that.

Hopefully tomorrow will be better. Sheesh.

Good Day

So today I'm having an extremely "feel good" kind of day. I hope I'm not jinxing myself by saying that in this blog post - but I'll think positive! :)

I went to Target on my lunch break today to buy some newborn clothes - I realized a couple week ago that I boxed up and gave all my girl newborn clothes to my best friend about a year and a half ago when she was having her little girl. So, even though I have 4 girls - my 'baby' clothes that I have kept start at about 18 mos. I also picked up a few more boy newborn outfits because I had already bought a couple a few months ago. Baby clothes make me happy. :)

Also, I've been talking to my mom and she's going to be starting a gym membership at Curves pretty soon. I'm really proud of her because she's been putting her health on the backburner for years, and I'm glad that she's taking steps towards healthier living. She's already starting eating better since the start of the year - so I think 2010 holds many positive things for her.

But back to Target...yeah, so I was walking out of Target and it's a beautiful day out here in Phoenix today. Kind of a chill in the air, but not 'cold', and it was all sunshiney. So, I was thinking to myself "Sun in my face, Target bag in my hand, and I'm going to run over to Taco Bell for lunch. What could be better?" hehe

Then I filled up my gas tank and got a car wash - nice sparkly car.

Got back to work and checked the online mommy forum I belong to - and some of the ladies' posts just made me laugh out loud, and almost choke on my Taco Bell (which was a steak taco salad, by the way).

So, as I continue eating my Taco Salad - I'm thinking, "Hmmmm...this is pretty good, but I wonder why they call it a Chipotle Steak Salad, when the only 'dressing' on it is Sour Cream?". So, I keep eating and I'm finally down to pretty much just the taco shell. So, I break off a piece of it to eat it, and guess what's UNDERNEATH the taco shell??? The pouch of Creamy Chipotle Dressing!! I couldn't help it, I just started laughing. I mean seriously, you put the dressing UNDER the salad? That's funny. Maybe on another day that would have ticked me off, but since today is 'feel good' day, it just struck me as hilarious.

So spill it readers...anything have you in a good mood today?

Dude - Part Deux

Yeah, so I was still dealing with some tummy issues from Monkey today. They weren't NEARLY as bad as yesterday, but still bad enough to get her sent home from preschool if I tried to pretend she was all good and drop her off there. So, I didn't even bother.

We went to Target to get some much needed items for my nesting...and THEN....we went to the mall. I dread the mall, but I really wanted to go to the Brookstone store because I looked through the catalog and there were two things I needed in order to complete one of my nesting items.

#1 - A motorized CD/DVD Repair system - To repair all of the DVDs we have that my children have messed up, and now skip during all of their favorite parts, or won't play at all.

#2 - A CD/DVD Disc Storage System - This thing will house 100 DVDs - many of them will have been repaired by the apparatus mentioned in #1 - but the main thing is - this thing will allow me to finally throw away all of the DVD boxes that I have stored in my entertainment center cabinet, and make room for more important stuff (like baby diapers). Most of the cases are empty anyway because the children have taken them out and messed with them - causing them to have scratches, and in turn leading me to need Item #1. And I always thought my project would one day be to match all the boxless DVDs to their appropriate box - but I have now decided we are getting rid of the boxes altogether and streamlining them all into this DVD Disc Storage System.

Here is where the "Dude" comes in. Well, of course when I get to the mall, and go to the Brookstone store - they do not carry these items IN the store. They only have them online - BUT, they can order them if I have the SKU number of the items, and then I can pick them up at the store and avoid the shipping costs. Ummmmm....sure, let me just pull the SKU numbers out of my pocket. So, I ask "Do you have an email address, and when I get home I can look them up and email them to you." And the salesdude is all "No - I mean, there's an email for like the Brookstone headquarters, but not for the store." Uhhhh....OK...how do people communicate without email? Wouldn't you think that headquarters would need a way to communicate certain things to its individual stores - like promos, etc?? I didn't argue, I just left.

And then the "Dude"-ness continued...with...teenagers. Arrrrrrggggghhhh...I really and truly believe that my friends and I never behaved in the manner which teenagers today behave at the mall. They congregate in HUGE packs, right in the middle of the walking aisles of the mall...just mill around, and text each other and talk about "Oh mah gah, did you see Justin today? You should like, totally call him and tell him that you like, like him and stuff." So, everyone has to walk completely AROUND the mob in order to get by. Then, if the huge mob happens to actually be walking through the mall - they have no sense of making walking convenient for other mall-goers. They roll about 10 people wide, and they are so engrossed in their conversations and acting like complete doofuses that I have to totally be a linebacker to protect my small children from getting trampled as they walk by completely oblivious to anything going on around them.

Seriously...my oldest daughter is going to have several lessons in mall etiquette before she is allowed to frequent the malls sans parents...which is going to be like, ummm...never - OK fine, in maybe a year or two. But, if I ever catch her being as rude as most of these teen jerk-faces, her mall-going privileges will be revoked.

End Rant.

Dude

So, today turned out to be kind of ironic in that I was inwardly thinking to myself last night while I was waking up every hour on the hour to either pee, or change position, or go the fridge to take a swig of orange juice straight from the jug...that I really did not want to go to work today. But I couldn't call in sick, because I wasn't sick, and I really don't like to make up stories to get out of going to work. So, at my 5am wakeup, I hear Monkey in the bathroom doing this dry hacking cough thing that she does every once in awhile...but then the dry hacking turns into BLLLLLEAAAAH. Yeah, every mom knows that sound...so I get out of bed, go into the bathroom and see Monkey sitting on the toilet with a puddle of barf on the floor in front of her...that smells and LOOKS like rotten apples. So, I ask her if she's done going potty...she says "Yes"...and I tell her as I have many times before, "Sweetie, if you are hacking so hard like that, please get a drink of water...because I think you just hacked so hard you made yourself throw up." She says "Sorry Mommy" and I get her a glass of water so she can get rid of the "I just barfed" breath. She goes back to bed, and I am left with the mess. I cleaned it all up with a towel which I immediately threw in the washing machine turned to the hot water cycle. Then I grab the Swiffer mop with antibacterial spray juice and mop the bathroom floor. Back to bed by about 5:20 knowing that my alarm is going to go off in about an hour...so I don't think I even bothered trying to fall back to sleep.

So, everyone gets up and starts doing their thing. Monkey is in bed still at 7:30am - so I have to go wake her up and she says her tummy doesn't feel good. Great. So maybe it wasn't just the dry hacky thing. I give her a children's Pepto and make her get up and start getting dressed for preschool. She sits down at the table for her cereal and she doesn't eat it. For some kids, this may be normal...but not for Monkey. She mows through her cereal every morning, and usually asks for seconds...she would probably ask for thirds if I'd let her. But not this morning...she said "Every time I chew, it makes me want to throw up". So, I tell her to go lay down and let the Pepto kick in.

I finish getting Cita out the door for her bus, and then turn my focus to Baby Pants to get her ready. I finally am able to get myself ready, and at about 8:15 when we all start getting ready to go out the door, I hand Monkey a 'barf bowl' for the car, just in case it really wasn't the hacky cough thing. We all go outside without jackets because it was going to be a balmy 70 degrees in Phoenix today - but at 8:20 it's still a tad chilly for us Phoenicians. So, we all go back inside to grab some jackets...as I'm putting the jacket on Baby Pants, I hear it again...BLLLLLEAAAAH. She made it into the barf bowl, bless her heart. This time it was Pepto Pink. She says "My tummy feels better now". I say "I bet it does"...and get her some more water, and rinse out the barf bowl.

OK, definitely not going to school today. So, I drop Baby Pants off at the babysitter's house and ask Monkey if she feels OK enough for me to drive to a couple of places, since I was obviously not going to work today (be careful what you wish for). She says "Yes"...so I go to the Uhaul store to get boxes, because, yes, I absolutely am still nesting. Then I drove through the drive-thru ATM for some cash, and then we head home.

I told Monkey to go lay down so she could start feeling better while I began my household disinfecting process. She slept for a good couple of hours - and I got the house all cleaned up. Aaaah...what a nice feeling.

Then, it was lunch time. I really didn't want to make anything...I really wanted Jack in the Box tacos. What??? I'm pregnant! So, Monkey asks if she can get french fries and a Dr. Pepper. Now, when your child has been throwing up, this is probably the LAST thing they need. But she sounded all sweet, and her beautiful hazel eyes were doing a number on her mommy. So, I said "Yes, but Monkey, Dr. Pepper and curly fries might make your tummy feel worse." She just says "OK Mommy".

We get home, eat our lunch...and then I thought it was nice and warm enough for Monkey to get some fresh air while I start packing up some unwanted stuff in my newly acquired Uhaul boxes. She asks if she can ride her bike, yes...then she asks if she can sweep the patio...yes. My darling Monkey is such a helper, even when she's not feeling well, she wants to help. So, she gets the broom. Then, all of a sudden she whizzes by me and heads straight for the bathroom. I think "Poor thing...she's going to barf again." And I hear, "Mooooommmmmy....I didn't quite make it to the toilet." I think "Great...more barf to clean up". Except No...Not barf...not barf at all, not even from the same place barf comes from. Rather the opposite actually.

So tomorrow...I definitely want to go to work. Definitely Definitely want to go work. (catch my Rainman tone there)

I Lost a Week!!!

Soooo...don't know if I've explained the Due Date confusion I had early on...but when I first found out I was pregnant, I went to an online Due Date calculator, and came up with an EDD of 02/10/10.

When I went to my first doctor's appointment, they wrote 02/01/10 in my chart...a full 9 days earlier than what I had come up with. After my first ultrasound - they said, "Well, you're measuring kind of small, so we're going to bump you back to 02/08/10"...which was closer to what I was originally thinking.

Then I come in today, and the nurse says, "OK, the doctor is going to do your Group B Strep test...that's the test we do at 36 weeks."...and then she walks out of the room. And I'm sitting there confused going, "I'm not 36 weeks, I'm 35 weeks."

My doctor comes in, looks at my chart and says "OK...36 and 2, how are you feeling?" I say, "Fine" And she does the Group B strep thing, and measures my tummy, and says "Yep, you're measuring right on". She did the internal exam to check dilation and stuff...and said I was 1cm and 40-50% effaced. And then said, "OK, see you next week!"

So, I'm sitting there just mulling over everything...and I thought to myself "I just lost a week...here I was thinking I had just about 5 weeks to go, and now I only have about 4 weeks to go???!!!"

Crap, I have to get the rest of my nesting going ASAP.