DC: A bipolar tale

Day One: We intended to meet a friend of Melydia's at the National Zoo metro stop around 9:30. Cookie has a 3 year old son, and we figured they would have fun playing together. T was a bit of a chore all morning and so we were running late. Then, I couldn't find the elevator entrance to the metro stop. Once we finally made it into the metro station, the handicapped gate was closed and I couldn't get the stroller through the regular ones. I had to alert the attendant, and we ended up missing the train by about 30 seconds. We had to wait another 15 for the next one. We did finally make it to the Zoo about 30 minutes late.

We hooked up with our new friends and wandered around for a while, where I managed to get this one cute picture of T and his new friend, lilgrovers. Aren't they cute? They got along pretty well and it seemed that our day could be salvaged. That is, until T had a total meltdown about riding the wagon, eating his lunch, getting back in the stroller. You name, he cried about it.

We ended up leaving the Zoo less than 2 hours after we got there. I was hot, cranky and tired by the time we finally got back to the hotel. I'm more than a bit embarrassed by T's behavior and can only hope that Cookie can forgive us.

The day ended pretty well, since both boys took a 3 hour nap and we had dinner with an old friend of mine and Ry's. She lives in the DC area, and the last time I traveled with Ry we got together for dinner as well. We finally got to meet her husband, who was sick the last time we were in town. It was a really nice time. In addition to being a really old friend, I feel as though she would be one of my current friends, if only we lived in the same area. As my dad would say, they definitely pass the beer test.

Day Two: I thought it was going to be a deja vu kind of day, when T and I had a little come to before we left the hotel. It seems the corner time did him some good though, because he was good for the rest of the morning.

We headed off for the metro, intending to spend the day wandering the mall, visiting the museums and generally running off some energy.
Look how happy Little Bit is in the stroller! That lasted about 15 minutes, but hey, it's a start. As he's getting heavier, I'm trying to wean him out of the baby wrap. Carting 18 pounds of baby up hills in 88 degree heat is not my idea of a par-tay. F could care less how I want to par-tay. He wants to be slung. Sigh.

We went to the carousel on the mall. We got the first ride of the day. As many times as I've been to DC, I have never ridden the carousel. T got a big kick out of it, since it gets whipping around pretty good. Here he is telling me that his horse is sad. I'm not sure why.

And here's the cutest ever picture of a baby riding a carousel. Well, he wasn't riding so much as being propped up, but look at that face!

Next we went to the Natural History Museum, where T was disappointed that the dinosaurs were "just skeletons." Here he is counting the skeletons, which is kind of how the day went. He was pretty unimpressed by the exhibits unless they had TV or computer components. We had lunch, chatted with some nice folks who were blown away by the food prices in the cafe (which is why I packed a lunch) and headed off for the Air and Space Museum.

T was really excited by this museum until he realized that he didn't get to actually ride the airplanes. After 45 minutes or so, he was done, Little Bit was tired, and I was ready for the boys to nap. We took the metro (perhaps T's favorite part of our adventures the last 2 days) back to our hotel. Mercifully, the boys are once again taking a good nap and I'm surfing the web.

I think Mount Vernon may be on tap for tomorrow if it doesn't rain. We're planning on the Maryland Science Center in Baltimore on our way home Friday. The score so far? 1-1. Here's hoping for a winning record for DC Adventure.

#4 - Old Friends

Old friends. I'm talking OLD FRIENDS. These are the friends who knew what you looked like before puberty, who performed the complete (abridged) Miss Saigon with you during sleepovers, produced countless hours of fake radio and rocked out at the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles concert with you. These are the friends who know how awful those junior high years were, and still like you.

Even when you haven't seen them in years, you can still slip right back into the friendship like the well-worn Garfield nightgown you wore when you were 10.

Old friends: AWESOME!

#3 - The day your baby finally sleeps through the night

So it's been 5 months since you had a full night of sleep. No big deal, most nights you're only up once or twice (or 5 times). Still, that 30 minute feeding means about 45 minutes of awake time and you just never feel caught up.

And then one night you go to sleep, and sleep and sleep and sleep and at 5:30 am your baby awakens. He slept from 8 pm to 5:30 am. Nevermind the fact that you have rock hard boobs (a great name for a band, BTW). Nevermind the fact that instead of going back to sleep after nursing he pokes you in face for an hour. Nevermind the fact that he only nurses on one side, leaving you with one rock hard boob (great name for a politician). None of that matters, because you just got 7 hours of sleep ... in a row!

The day your baby finally sleeps through the night: AWESOME!

#2 - Poopy diapers that almost explode

If you're a parent, you know the diapers I mean. You hear it the moment it happens and know it's going to be bad. Maybe it's the look on their little faces. Maybe it's the volume or duration. You know, this one is going to be huge.

And so you pick them up as gingerly as possible, being careful to hold them by any part other than the bum. Maybe you stand them up on the changing table and carefully peel away their clothing, all the while, holding your breath that you don't see the telltale yellow stain creeping up their backs.

And then you finally open the diaper and see an enormous poo. It's everywhere, but mercifully contained a mere millimeter from the edge. And then you breathe a sigh of relief. Not only don't you have to try and take clothing off without getting poo all over the blessed place but you know that you're safe from explosions for a least a little while.

AWESOME!

The tiniest Easter bunny

We bought the Winnie the Pooh Easter basket for T for his very first Easter. We've taken pictures with it each Easter. This year, it was F's turn for the basket. Cathy reminded me today of how tiny tiny T was for his first Easter. As you can see, he fit completely inside the basket. I think he was around 6 pounds and less than a month old. He made the cutest little Easter bunny.I suppose you really can't compare, since F is 4 times older than T was ... but it makes for a cute compare and contrast.
Happy Easter!

Happy Easter!

We had the best of intentions to go to Easter service this morning, but F decided that 5 was the correct number of times to wake up last night (and the night before). Ry took pity on me and got up with the boys this morning and we didn't quite make it to church. We did, however, have an awesome egg hunt and get some darling pictures of the boys.

Today is also, coincidentally, F's 5 month birthday, so here's his 5 month picture.

Jube's list of Awesome: #1

I've been inspired by this website to make my own list of Awesome Things. Without further ado, here is my 1st awesome thing: my first tulip of the spring!I'm going to try and post one Awesome Thing per day. Don't expect any organization or coherence, they are just going to be whatever strikes me as awesome that day.

Mmmmm, Robin Williams

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Robin Williams
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Reform

I love Robin Williams.

New Jersey Cesarean Rates by Hospital, 2009 - The Unnecesarean -

Sad. The c-section rate in NJ is 40%. The hospital where I gave birth to the boys was 39.1% ... down 2 points from 2007. At least it's trending in the right direction.

New Jersey Cesarean Rates by Hospital, 2009 - The Unnecesarean -

This is why healthcare is broken

T has been running a fever, coughing up a storm and running at the nose since yesterday morning. This morning when he woke up, he had a bright red rash along his groin and under his arms. It wasn't bumpy, looked sort of like a sunburn, and wasn't bothering him. Since it seemed unusual for a cold to have this kind of symptom, I called the "nurse line" for our health insurance. I should have known better.

The woman who answered seemed nice enough. She asked me all the usual questions. She also asked some questions like "Is he turning blue or gasping for air?" Lady, do you think I'd be on the phone with you if he was? Anyhow, we got all done and she said, "You need to take him in to the ER." 'Scuse me? I asked her if I couldn't just call his pediatrician and get an appointment for today. The response? Sigh .... "I suppose if you could get in right away that would be OK, but since I don't know what the rash is, you should really go to the ER."

Dude. Maybe my Mom-o-meter needs serious calibration, because it never once occurred to me to take my child to the ER for a rash that was brand new and not bothering him. If I took T to the emergency room every time he had a rash we'd be bankrupt. And so I didn't. I did call Ry to see if he thought I should (answer: no). Instead, I did what I should've done in the first place and made an appointment with his pediatrician. The verdict? A virus. The rash should go away within a couple of days of his fever breaking.

DC Adventure Ahoy!

Ry is heading to DC next week for an all-week business meeting. Since he gets the government rate for pricey DC area hotels, we were able to get a suite for just a bit over his reimbursement. I'm packing up the boys and hitting DC for the week. Last time we were there, we hit the National Zoo, the Museum of Natural History, and the National Building Museum (super cool playroom). If the weather is nice, we may run around the Mall a bit. I have also heard that Mount Vernon is pretty nifty. Dearest blog-visitors, do you know of any other must-do activities for me and the wrecking crew?

Thanks!

A heartfelt thank you to everyone who is supporting the March for Babies. As you can see from my little box doohickey, you have exceeded my $250 goal! If you feel like making a donation for this important cause, there is still time. The walk isn't until April 25.

I'll reuse just about anything

But I feel like a kid ought to have his own underwear. So I'm throwing out T's as he outgrows them.

I'll be very busy

I just received my pre-nursing school packet today. There's a lot to be done before June 14. I feel like it's a lot more than when I went to college the first time, but that's probably because my parents did most of it for me. Here's the list:

• Register for, and take, a CPR class
• Register for, and take my UAP (Unlicensed Assistive Personnel) course
• Buy scrubs
• Buy a stethoscope
• Buy a blood pressure cuff
• Buy a watch with a second hand
• Buy some good shoes
• Get my immunization records from IL
• Have a physical with my PCP
• Have a health screening with the hospital (have titers drawn)
• Research and purchase malpractice insurance
• Register my car with the hospital
• Get an ID badge for the hospital
• Pay tuition

Whew. I'm not usually a list girl, but I think I'll make an exception in this case. The packet included some pretty scary language about how you'll be kicked out if anything is left undone. Here we go!

At the risk of being preachy ...

http://www.drmomma.org/2010/02/dr-dean-edell-statement-on-circumcision.html

Warning: some graphic pictures.

Om Nom Nom

I finally watched the second installment of the Twilight series: New Moon. The books are all teenage angst and obsession. The movies are more of the same. Ry and I laughed through the first movie. While the second was better, I still spent a lot of the movie being distracted by cliches and unnatural postures. Also, every time Edward and Bella kissed, I couldn't help but think "Om Nom Nom Nom." Ry spent the time doing our taxes and asking "Wait, what just happened?" I was pretty impressed with the CG on the wolves and am looking forward to the next angst-fest. Not our most romantic movie evening.

Photo Friday

My sister got me started thinking about the mental images our society has of various professions. A quick google image search of "nurse" got me a lot of "sexy nurse" and mostly white women. None of my classmates have looked like this. As a matter of fact, there have been more than a few men and a large minority have been women of color. Sorry folks, this is not the nurse who will be at your bedside at 3 am ... unless you're dreaming.

Goodbye Ohio

As we crossed the border of each state during our trip home, Ry would prompt T to say goodbye to the state we were leaving and hello to the new one. Usually, it went something like this:

Ry: Goodbye Indiana!

T: Goodbye Indiana!

Ry: Hello Ohio!

T: Hello Ohio!

And then as we left Ohio ...

Ry: Goodbye Ohio!

T: Goodbye Ohio!

Ry: Hello West Virginia!

T: Hello West Vagina!

Ry & J: *snicker*

Baby Boy's Baptism Bash

We traveled back to the Land of Oz this week to visit family and have Little Bit baptized. Ry's childhood pastor, who also married us and baptized T, performed the ceremony. We absolutely love Pastor R and it was lovely being back in the church.

Little Bit, true to form, was in good spirits as long as I was holding him.

And a crying mess whenever anyone else did. Pastor took it well, and told us that the crying meant that "it worked." I'm sure he's baptized hundreds, if not thousands of babies. At least mine only cried when I wasn't holding him.

And here's the whole happy family.

Little Bit gave out lots of smiles and a few giggles. He and his big brother charmed everyone around.

T also got to continue his birthday celebration for the better part of the week. His Neena got him what may be the coolest raincoat and wellies ever invented. Yes, they are dinosaur themed, and yes, those are dino spikes on the arms. He wanted to wear the wellies everywhere. We had to convince him that sneakers were better for the playground.

Little Bit got to meet his Great Mummu, Great Papa and Great Grandma this trip. He's a lucky guy.

He also got to hang with his newest friend, M.J. She's just 8 weeks younger than him, but he still looks like a giant next to her.

No party is complete without dinosaurs stuck to the ceiling. Lala took it all in stride and didn't once look like she wanted to toss us in the nut house.

Little Bit and Neena, in one of the rare moments when he let someone else hold him.

It was a wonderful trip and I'm already missing my family. As T would say ... "Boo, hoo, hoo."

So sad ... so true

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Perfectly perfect

Our boys had their well visits this week. T had his 3 year and F had his 4 month. They are both in the 75 percentile for both height and weight and developmentally on track. As of Wednesday, T weighed 34.75 pounds and was 38.5 inches tall. F was 16 pounds, 9 ounces and 26 inches long.

Pick a color

After finally getting back to my natural color, my hair is perilously close to needing to be permanently died. Hooray for gray hair! It's this color.I can't afford to have it professionally colored. Box colors usually end up fading red. Anyone have a brilliant solution or a box you've had good luck with?

Things I learned in preschool today

1. This is T's interpretation of a bunny. One of the things I love about his preschool is that I know the artwork is actually his work. A lot of the stuff that came home from the previous school was quite obviously the teacher's work. Super bonus points for anyone who can tell me why the ears are placed thusly.

2. As it turns out, I'm allergic to bunnies. His school has a pet bunny, Dotty. Usually, she's in her cage in the other room. Today I was helping parent, and since the theme for the week is Bunnies, Dotty got to roam the room. About 30 minutes in, I started sneezing, my eyes started running and my head filled up like a plugged bathtub. Mrs. B whisked Dotty away and within 5 minutes I was once again clear as could be. Lesson: don't buy an animal without spending some time around it.

My Big Boy's Birthday Bash

On Saturday we had T's big 3rd birthday extravaganza at his favorite place in all the world: Bounce U. Everyone had a great time.T wasted no time jumping right in.

And sliding right down.

Even F needed a nap from all the excitement.

His cake was an ice cream cake, and we got to bring about half of it home. Tasty.

Anyone who has ever eaten a meal with T knows it can be difficult to get him to sit still and focus on eating. Apparently, all we had to do was get him a throne. He sat in the Bounce U throne and presided over the party for a good 45 minutes. Not a fidget in site.

I'm afraid most of our family pictures are going to look just like this one. At least two of us are smiling and looking at the camera.

Ry helped T put batteries in his new toys.

He totally wasn't playing with them. He was helping set them up. Yeah.

The 3rd birthday celebration continues tomorrow at T's preschool and then again Saturday on his real birthday in Oz.

Very tired

I know posting has been light. Mostly, I'm exhausted and even the 15 minutes spent posting is too much for me. Why am I so tired, you ask? I spent a good portion of this week tracking down and talking to preschools/daycare centers for the boys for the fall. As it turns out, the center on the base isn't such a great idea because there is not much space available. If an active military person decides to start their child there between now and September, our spot goes out the window. Also, trying to figure out childcare on the days Ry travels was turning into a bit of a goat rodeo.

We ended up choosing a delightful little center that's 5 blocks from our house. It's associated with the Methodist church across the street and the folks there seem to really enjoy the kids. They don't have all the bells and whistles of the newer centers, but they do have low turnover (T's teacher has been there for 6 years and the infant room women have been there for more than 15), a seemingly genuine affection for the kids and a great location. The whole learning bit is a bit secondary for me. If I can find a safe, nurturing environment with people who enjoy my children, I'm sold.

I also started my online developmental psychology class this week. It's not going to be difficult, but it's a fair amount of reading that can really only be done when the boys are sleeping. Speaking of which ...

F is still waking up twice a night. It's not so bad really. He's up at 1 and again at 5. Then it takes him an hour to fall back asleep ... which is when T wakes up. He wants nothing to do with being quiet, staying in his room or going back to sleep. He also hasn't been napping this week, which makes him a bear in the evenings and cuts my daytime sanity time down considerably. While I'm requiring a "rest" time, the most I can get out of him is about 90 minutes.

In the rest of my spare time (heh) I'm still trying to get to the gym a few evenings a week and see my husband once in a while. Oh, and last night I had a meeting for T's current preschool. The meeting was over at 9:30, but I stayed and chatted with a few of the other women until 11. Ok, that one is totally my fault. T's teacher started it though, she walked up to me and said "Did you read about the report that shows that the maternal death rate is going up partially because of the increase in C-Sections?" Any of you who have talked to me in the last 3 years know that's all it took to spark an hour-long conversation.

So anyway, I'm tired. And that's why no posting.

Photo Friday

I've been looking for an excuse to post this darling picture of F doing tummy time. And here it is now.

A New Era Dawns

We moved T into his big-boy bed just after all our Christmas company left. It was a seamless transition. T found the new bed and new room to be something of an adventure, and after the first couple days never asked to sleep in his crib again. He also stayed in his bed in the mornings until one of us came down to get him. This was really nice. I could catch another 15 minutes of sleep or finish feeding F or use the restroom before going in to get him. We always knew when he was ready to get up because he'd start yelling "Mommy, open the door. Daddy, open the door. Mommy, open the door. Daddy, open the door."

And then two days ago he (finally) realized that he didn't have to stay in his bed when he awoke. At 6:45 am he poked his cheerful little face in my room and said "Good morning Mommy!" Thankfully, F was already awake and I was changing his diaper. Unfortunately, I didn't realize T was awake. He can be stealthy when he wants to be. Despite telling him to stay in his room in the mornings, he was in my room again bright and early. Given his propensity for escape (he can un-deadbolt and unlock every room in our house and defeat every baby gate we own), we're considering buying a chime for his door, so at least we know when he's up.

Truer words were never spoken

From T, tonight before bed: "He's a good Daddy for wiping my bottom."

What am I? Chopped liver?

Ry is T's favorite person in the whole world. Most days, I just accept this and move on. I get it, Ry can play fun games (crawl up Daddy and touch the ceiling, be flung in the air). He's a novelty, and frankly, T doesn't get in trouble as much with Ry as he does with me.

Some days, however, I start to feel like the hired staff. Almost every morning I get T out of bed, our conversation goes something like this:

Me: Good morning!

T: But ... I want Daddy.

Me: Sorry kiddo.

T: Where's Daddy?

Me: He's at work.

T: He'll come home after my nap though.

Me: Yep, he'll come home after your nap.

And last night at dinner:

T: Thanks for getting me milk, Daddy!

Ry: Mommy got you milk. Thank Mommy.

T: Oh. Thanks Mommy. Thanks for making my dinner, Daddy!

Ry: Mommy made your dinner. Thank Mommy.

T: Oh. Thanks Mommy. Thanks for getting my monkey plate Daddy!

Ry: Mommy got your monkey plate.

T: Oh.

And every night when Ry gets home from work:

T: DADDY'S HOME!!!!!!!!! DADDY!!!!!!!! Mommy, Daddy's home!!!

Moar snow!!?!!**!!!

They're predicting another 6 inches of snow for us on Thursday and Friday. It's been a very wintery kind of winter. I like it. It's certainly better than the ugly 40 degrees and raining that we've had today. Give me snow anytime.

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Sneak Attack

It's funny how things can sneak up on you. The other evening, I was putting Little Bit down for the night. It was dark and warm and as I dozed I started thinking about how much my life was going to change in the fall. One of the requirements for beginning our nursing program is to have your titers checked to make sure you're up to date on all vaccinations. I know there are some vaccines you cannot have if you are pregnant, but I didn't know if breastfeeding was a counter indication for vaccination.I looked down at my baby as he fell asleep and started wondering. What if I had to have a booster vaccine? What if I couldn't have it while I was nursing? Was I ready to quit nursing in September? F would only be 10 months old. Maybe I would be. But what if I wasn't? What if he wasn't?

And before I knew it, I was in tears. I never realized that I had such a strong emotional connection to breastfeeding. I always figured I was nursing my babies because it was the healthiest thing for them, and frankly, a lot more convenient. As it turns out, I take as much out of the experience as they do.

As soon as I got downstairs, I got online, and to my delight, found that vaccines during breastfeeding were OK. Whew. Now F and I can decide when it's time to stop nursing. Thank goodness.

Tightrope walking the clothesline

My Dad (and his brothers) spin quite a yarn about his childhood adventures. He has broken bones tightrope walking a clothesline, falling out of the top of a bunk bed, and falling down the stairs (because he was wearing my Grandma's high heels). Technically when he fell down the stairs he didn't break anything, he just had to have eye surgery. He also broke his little brother's nose by convincing him to run and jump into his bed. Until recently, these stories were quaint tales of yore. I enjoyed imagining my Dad as that adventurous little boy. Until recently.When I realized that I may be in for the real-life version of these quaint old stories. Not only does T look a lot like his Papa, he is showing an early predilection for his behavior. In the past week, he has sustained an impressive bruise on his face from running into a jungle gym, whacked his forehead on the dresser after a "way big jump" from his bed, and gotten in trouble countless times for jumping on couches and jumping from the couch to the (lightly padded) ottoman. My eldest is an ER visit waiting to happen. Thanks a lot, Dad.

One well loved Raffe

T has many animal loves in his life. They are all creatively named (Mouse, Iguana, Bear, Other Bear, and Hibby). Only one animal, however, holds the special lovey place in his heart. Meet Raffe.T received Raffe during his baby shower from his Mummu. We didn't realize until he was about 18 months old, just how important Raffe would become in our little man's life. He is the indispensable bedtime companion.

We actually have 4 Raffes. For a long time, one lived at T's school, one was in his bed, one was in the wash, and the extra was hiding in case we had a spillage incident. I have just put in the order for two more Raffes. As you can see, Raffe The Eldest is starting to look a little loved. I have no problem letting T continue to use him as long as he can. I'm just afraid that one day he's going to come out of the washer without horns. There would be wailing and gnashing of teeth. And so Raffe's cousins are once again making their way across the Atlantic to bring comfort to a little boy.

Whiffless lift?

I have been using the Target brand of dryer sheets for about a year now. All of our laundry paraphernalia is scent-free because T has really sensitive skin and I'm not doing separate laundry just for him. Anyway. Today I tossed a dryer sheet into a load of clothes and did a double take. Did that say "Whiffless lift?" Two things crossed my mind.

1. I don't read labels.

2. What in Sam's hell is Whiffless lift?
Seriously, do you have any idea? I'm calling marketing department prank.

Maybe it's the name

Seriously, who thought this was a good name for a baby doll?

Would you look at that?

It's my baby. And he has hair. Granted, it's just a little tiny bit of hair, but it's more than I'm used to. He looks like a tiny punk rocker.Ok, he's a tiny punk rocker in giraffe jammies.

We're in trouble

T has a tremendous aptitude for all things mechanical. Ry has often regaled me with stories of destruction from his youth. I'm afraid we're in for more of the same in T. Today he helped Ry replace the doorknobs on all the downstairs doors. He's pretty cute, right? Then he systematically locked himself inside each of the rooms. To be fair, Ry did ask him to lock the door (once) so that he could see how easy it was to unlock from the outside. Luckily for us, it's really easy.

He's been able to un-deadbolt doors since he could walk and destroys toys with impressive speed. I can't count how many times I've told him "sorry babe, sometimes you can't fix broken." I just hope that someday he'll use his powers for good and finish the basement or something.

Re: Bawawawawawa

I'm a bad mother, I didn't do a baby book for T, so I was looking through old posts to see when T hit different milestones. I came across this one. It makes me smile.

It's not Wednesday

There is a blog that gives writing prompts every Wednesday. I know it's not Wednesday, but I liked the prompt and a childhood friend of mine wrote a great post that inspired me to write my own about True Love.

I met my husband in June 1997. I was 17 and he was 16. We had both auditioned, separately, for two summer shows. We both received parts in both shows. The part I received in The Mikado was much larger and I decided to take it since it was children's theatre and the last year I could participate. I think Ry decided to take the part not just because it was the lead, but also because he had some friends who were also cast in main parts.

After the first rehearsal, one of his friends asked me if I'd like to go out to grab a bite to eat after we were finished. Since I already had plans that evening, I told him that I would have to go another time. My future husband walked up to me a few minutes later and said "So, I hear you're too good for us." Uh oh. I had to spend all summer with these people. And so I decided to cancel my plans and go out with 3 people who would become lifelong friends.

Ry and I began dating within a few weeks and were nearly inseparable until I left for college in late August. We knew (and admitted to each other) that we met each other too young. That didn't make it any easier for me when we broke up a few months into my freshman year of college.

We stayed in touch through college. We dated other people, made separate friends, and generally lived separate lives. Whenever we got together on breaks though, it was like we had never been apart. Several of my parent's friends remarked on how easy we were around each other. It's true, Ry has always felt like home to me.

I finished college and moved to Florida. Ry broke up with his longtime college girlfriend and I broke up with my Florida boyfriend during his senior year of college. We reconnected through those breakups.

I moved back to Illinois to pursue graduate school a few months before Ry finished college. We once again became inseparable. We came this close to getting back together so many times during those final months, but Ry's head was still all kind of screwed up over his recent breakup. Then he accepted a job in NJ. I'll admit I cried more than a handful of tears after that announcement. Then I put on my big girl panties and told myself that Ry and I were never going to be more than good friends. And in time, that was OK.

Ry moved to NJ and I started grad school. We talked a lot on the phone and maintained a beautiful friendship. I also started dating a clever, charming guy from my graduate program. Ry called late one night after I had been out with a group of friends. "I kissed a boy tonight!" I told him. There was silence on the other end of the phone. "What did you do that for?" he asked. Mostly because I wanted to.

Ry came back to visit a few weeks later. Before he left, we grabbed some custard from our favorite custard spot and walked across the street to a local park, chatting about life. And then he dropped the bombshell. He loved me. He wanted to try and date long distance. I got really angry.

He couldn't have figured this out before he up and moved to NJ? Apparently not. Apparently NJ was what he needed to clear his head. He realized that once he moved I was the person he talked to the most. He missed me. Here I had finally closed the book on having more than a dear friendship. I sent him back to NJ while I thought things through.

I knew that if we started dating again it was going to be really serious, really fast. Or, it was going to be the end of our friendship. I wasn't entirely sure I was willing to risk that friendship. After much soul-searching, I realized that I couldn't not try to make it work. After all, I loved him too. I always had.

The rest of the story isn't really that interesting. We dated long-distance until my grad program was over. We got engaged during that time and married right after. While we were dating I remembered thinking how lucky it was that we both happened to choose that same show during the fateful summer of 1997. At our wedding shower, I realized how wrong I was. You see, we were destined to meet. As people talked about us during the shower, we realized that we each, individually knew most of the people in the room before we knew them together. Somehow, we would have run into each other. We would have met. I feel incredibly blessed and lucky to have this man in my life. He still feels like home.

It's snowpocalyptic

We here on the east coast are in the midst of yet another snowstorm. This is the 3rd major storm we've had this winter, and apparently seasonal snowfall totals are being broken all over the place.Today's brings the possibility of real ugliness tomorrow. We still had about 5 inches on the ground from last weekend's snowfall. Today we got a mixture of rain, sleet, freezing rain and snow, while temperatures hovered around freezing. The temperatures tonight are going to drop, which means that tomorrow the roads should be a sheet of solid ice covered in snow. Awesome.

I really like snowstorms. It's nice to be forced to stay inside, play games, watch movies and drink cocoa. All the area schools (and Ry's work) are closed today and tomorrow, so we have had a bonus weekend.

Perhaps my favorite part of these storms has been the weather channel's coverage of them. I can't remember what they called the first one back in December, but last weekend's was "The Winter Powerhouse" and this one is "February Fury". Perhaps they should start naming them the way they do hurricanes. Otherwise we might end up with "Snowpocalptic Snowtastrophic Snownami Snowstorm of Doom!!" The reporters crack me up too, because they are always in location before anything really starts happening. Then they have to talk about how nothing is happening. Then they talk to bystanders about how nothing is happening ... yet. But of course, pretty soon it's going to be OMG SNOW!!! So stay home.

We intend to do just that.

Lucky me

I get to wake up to this every day.

I hate the smell of wet cat

But not nearly as much as I hate the smell of poopy cat. You may remember that our cat has some hygiene issues. Lately, he's been leaving cat poo smears all over the couches and our shower. Yesterday things came to a head when we saw a giant poo cat print on our white bathroom rug. And so, the cat got a bath. First we (and by we, I mean Ry) brushed him. We apparently freed a much smaller, quieter cat.
And then we bathed him. I'm afraid I don't have any pictures of that because it took both of us to physically restrain him to keep him in the sink. Even then, he nearly escaped a few times.
Here he is, just after his bath. For such a big, fat cat, he has a sad little rat tail, don't you think? Today he smells a whole lot better, but he's still shedding like crazy if you so much as think about petting him. Good times.

And there is more on the way

We got about 12 inches of snow Friday night into Saturday. The stores were insane on Friday morning (morning on a weekday, don't you people work?). I was afraid I wouldn't make it out for our Superbowl shopping if I didn't go then.

All the snow made for a really peaceful Saturday. We stayed in, watched the snow fall and made cookies. We didn't bother trying to dig out until Sunday, as it snowed until late afternoon and the wind would have obliterated our shoveling efforts.

As per usual, T had a blast playing in the snow. You know you got a lot of snow when you can make a tunnel. Sometime Saturday I remarked to Ry that it was a bummer that all of our snow had fallen on the weekends this year. It would be nice for him to get a snow day. Be careful what you wish for, and all that. The national weather service is calling for 18 inches on Wednesday.

Update: The weather service keeps changing the prediction, but we're definitely on for 12+ inches.

The (un)swaddling of a baby

T was never really a baby who liked to be swaddled. Once he reached his original due date, he was pretty much over it. Little Bit, on the other hand, couldn't fall asleep for a very long time unless he was very tightly swaddled.

Over the past few weeks, he's started fighting his swaddle. He gets crazy pissed off and red in the face. Then when I freed his arms, he would furiously try to get his fingers in his mouth. When he couldn't, he'd get crazy pissed off and red in the face. He would finally get over that and jerk himself awake when his arms moved. Then he would get crazy pissed off .... well you know.

So I have slowly started freeing him a little more each night. First, I barely uncovered his hands, so they were still bound up close to his face. This helped him connect fingers and mouth without completely freeing his arms to jerk and wake himself up. The next few nights I would swaddle his shoulders, but leave his arms and hands out. We've eventually worked up to completely swaddle-free arms. He's still sleeping in his wedge, which keeps his arms from flailing about too randomly.

Whoever coined the term "sleeping like a baby" has never actually watched a baby try to sleep. I also never expected to expend so much brain power on how to incrementally free my son from his swaddling. Hey, it's the exciting life I live.

Quarter year baby

Yesterday Little Bit was 3 months old. It seems strange to me that it's only been 3 months, because it feels like he's always been part of our family. This was as close to a smile as I could get out of him for the picture. He's a crazy smiley baby, but as soon as he sees the red focus light on the camera he focuses on that and the smiles go away.

You'll have to excuse his shiny little face. He just got out of the bathtub and his super baby lotion makes him look a little sweaty.

He is really turning into a mellow little man. He's an easy smile and this close to laughing. He is also able to scoot himself forward when he's on his tummy. That, my friends, is scary. I'm not ready for a mobile baby. T didn't start walking until a year, and I'm completely OK if Little Bit follows in his footsteps.

I had to post this picture too. Little Bit often gets this look on his face whenever T is near. T loves his baby brother so much, but he's loud, less than gentle and quite an enthusiastic hugger. I might be a little freaked out if someone 3 times my size appeared out of nowhere to pet my head, kiss my mouth and wrap his arms around me. I look forward seeing their relationship evolve.

Happy 3 months Little Bit! We're so glad you joined us.

Apparently I never hit puberty

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
The Dick Swett Incident
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Crisis

Because this made me laugh really hard.

I suppose it did

T: Mommy, you have a boo boo on your face!

Me: No, honey, it's not a boo boo.

T: What is it?

Me: It's just a pimple.

T: The pimple smacked you in the face?

Come on September

Many days I sit back at the end of the day and think about how blessed I am to be able to stay home with my boys. This was not one of those days.

Little Bit decided that naps were so yesterday and took four 30 minute naps. In between naps, he wanted to eat non stop. While there was surprisingly little crying given the lack of sleep, I'm still exhausted from dragging his butt around and thirsty from, you know, feeding him all day.

T has decided that going pee "a little bit" in his underwear is the correct way of getting my attention. We went through 4 pairs today. We have a couple of really good weeks, and then he gets a wild hair and spends the day having accidents.

I had about 5 minutes to myself today ... including bathroom time.

Today was one of those days that I long for September and nursing school. Sure I'll be working my tail off, but for 3 glorious days every week, I get to interact with adults all day. I get to eat a meal without cleaning milk off the floor, pacing the kitchen with a screaming infant or letting my food go cold while I satisfy yet another request for "more something to eat." Heck, I may even get through the day without spit up or an unidentifiable sticky spot on my shirt.

Don't get me wrong. I love my boys. I love that I get to watch them grow up and I love that I'm the one raising them. I certainly don't want to go back to working 50+ hours a week. But some days, I need a break.

V.2 Upgrading

Check him out! He's smiling in his bucket! I was beginning to wonder if he was ever going to outgrow the colic. As it turns out, the Doc was right, he appears to be outgrowing it just before his 3 month birthday on Thursday.It has been a joy getting to know him over the past week or so. So much of his first two months were spent crying, eating or sleeping that I didn't really get much of a chance to get to know him. As it turns out, he's a lovely little guy. He has the best smile and is a pretty easy going guy most of the time. We're ever so close to a real giggle. I can't wait.