Can this be for REAL?

Moving On

2010-11-21T09:50:00.002-06:00

The time has come to move on to a new project. From now on, you can find me at:

http://www.adventuresinsunshineland.com/

Something New, Coming Soon

2010-10-31T14:20:00.001-05:00

If you have been following my Twitter stream lately, you may have seen this tweet.
http://twitter.com/sunshinejess22/status/28461328203
So, in relation to that, I've been thinking about how Twitter and my blog, among other things, keep me honest and true to myself. I've also been thinking about my brand. Who am I? Where do I want to go, personally and professionally? I've gotten involved in some things that are a little out of my confort zone, which is leading to a learning experience. In the process, I'm meeting some amazing people who make me want to better at all that I do.
I've also purchased my very own domain. It's going to be cool. Working on a website is a first for me and since it's self-hosted, I'm spending lots of time learning in order to get it up and running. Once the new site is up and running, I'll be sure to let you all know, but until then, be sure to find me here, on Twitter, Facebook, via text message or email.
I can't wait. This will be epic.
And yes, I am going to change the world.... Stay tuned!

In the Drive Thru and Five Years

2010-10-15T14:13:00.000-05:00

I don't normally go to the bank, and if I do, I ususally make arrangements to go while I'm already walking around downtown. Today, I decided to go through the drive thru at the downtown US Bank branch. You know the one, at the tower. While I don't go here often, it was on my way to the store. Since we are leaving for vacation tomorrow, I needed to do a few quick errands including the bank, grocery store, gas station, and grabbing lunch. When I pulled underneath the tower, there were 2 cars ahead of me in each line and no one in the business line. It was about 12:15. While I know that 2 cars in each line may take a while, I figured it would go quick. I mean it IS Friday and there is going to be more than just one teller working, right? There was only one teller working. Those 4 cars turned into 5 because one showed up in the business line. And as you know, the business line trumps everyone else. Normally I'm a pretty patient person and waiting like this doesn't bother me. Today, however, was a different story. Not only were there now 5 cars ahead of me, each one of them had major banking business to handle. Not just the normal deposit or withdrawal. As I waited, I was checking in to see what my Twitter friends were up to. Not a big deal until I noticed I had been sitting there for about 10 minutes and hadn't moved forward even an inch. How could it possibly take so long? I realized then, that there was only one teller. She finished up the first car in each line and moved on to the business customer, which by that time I was watching the clock closely. The business customer took 10 minutes. Then, the rocket scientist in front of me was not prepared and took over 5 minutes to just get her information together. When she was finally finished with her transaction and ready to drive away, she sent the carrier back. It was EMPTY! And she sent it back. While I waited for the teller to send it back, she did appologize. She was very fast with my transaction and I was on my way. One half hour later, I was finished at the bank. Now to move on to my other errands - oh wait there is no time for the other errands.... I was able to fill up the gas tank and get back to work in time to warm up some frozen crap I had there. I heated my lunch and calmed down a bit, then placed a call to the branch manager. That's right folks, I called the bank to complain about the snail like service and the manager appologized and thanked me for my patience. Not like I had a choice, if you've even been in that drive through line, once you're in, you're in. There's no getting out. I let her know that I thought that only one teller responsible for three drive through lines was completely unacceptable.

In ~~other~~ better news, Today is the day we celebrate being hitched for 5 years!

Happy Anniversary Baby!

Today she was the one being naughty

2010-10-07T21:59:00.000-05:00

So, last April, I wrote about Sydney getting bit by a kid at daycare. Well, today, she was the one doing the biting... When I picked her up, one of the evening teachers let me know there had been an incident. Sydney went for one of the kids and tried to bite him/her and the teacher caught her and separated the kids. As soon as the teachers turned their back, they heard another kid screaming. Yes, my sweet little Sydney chomped another kid. I don't know the extent of the damage and they won't tell me which kid it was (Daycare policy), but said I'd be able to tell tomorrow. I hate that she was the one doing the damage this time. I'll find out more details tomorrow to see what the circumstances were. And I sure hope this is a one time thing.

Where would you go?

2010-10-07T08:08:00.000-05:00

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I’ve been thinking long and hard about where I would go on the Ultimate Family Vacation. I’ve thought about local places because there are some great places here in the great state of Wisconsin. I’ve thought about the east, west, north and south and finally settled on southwest, Hawaii. If money were no object we would pack up tomorrow, take two weeks off and get the hell out of here. This may not be the type of vacation you would think of being a family vacation, but I think it would be great. We would be able to enjoy the sand, the sun, the surf. Eat amazing food, stay in a beautiful resort. We would find an aquarium and touch the animals. We would take the whole family, both sets of parents, all the siblings and kids. Also, if money were no object, we’d all have awesome health and I’d bring along all three of our Grandma’s. Now, they are all in their eighties and probably unable to fly, so it would never happen, but hey, this is my dream. I can see us now, watching the kids in the sand, sitting in lounge chairs on the beach, drinking pink umbrella drinks. I can picture Sydney in a cute pink swim suit and floppy sun hat playing in the sand. The men would be sitting around a tiki bar doing whatever it is that men do when the ladies are sitting on the beach. The sun setting in the distance, purple sky, warm breeze and the beginning of a fire on the beach.

Doesn’t that sound awesome? It gives me goosebumps just thinking about it.

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Thirteen Months

2010-10-05T20:58:00.000-05:00

Disclaimer: This post is about breastfeeding. Don't read it if you can't handle it. You have been warned.

Birth Day

My girl and I made it two days shy of thirteen months. I officially began breastfeeding August 14, 2009.  I offically quit breastfeeding on September 12, 2010. That Sunday night was the last night. Those thirteen months were a pretty smooth ride. There were some bumps, but for us it was mostly easy.
Sydney latched on with no issue. She was great and knew just what to do. Until her second day of life, when she just wanted to sleep (she is SOOO like her parents). Finally after not eating for many more hours than a newborn should go, we got her out of the warm blankets and clothes and let the cool air hit her. She was pissed. But also awake. I will never forget her screaming in the hospital basinet and Frank and I looking at each other wondering how long we should let her go. It seemed like an eternity but it was probably only two or three minutes. She latched again and went to town. The first few weeks of night feedings, leaking like crazy boobs, soaking wet shirts and sheets and towels were a haze that I don't really remember. After a month or so, I decided that I should start pumping because it was clear I had enough supply. I pumped and Sydney took her first bottle from Daddy. She did great - as usual.
I was lucky to have wireless on my cell phone so for the many hours of nursing and pumping and rocking and holding that sleeping baby, I followed twitter, my favorite bloggers and researched anything and everything regarding breastfeeding, solid feeding, baby poop, and ear infections. It was a little lifeline into the real world even if I was only reading about babies.
I went back to work at eight weeks.  I remember week 7 clearly. I couldn't wait to go back to work and get out of this house. If only I had charished that last week a little more...
When I went back to work, I pumped three times a day and remember thinking "If I can make it four months I'll be happy." At four months, I decided to go six. After we made it six months, the time just flew by and I don't remember couting the months anymore. We got into a routine, and sometimes routine is good. I know that breastfeeding isn't for everyone and had you asked me five years ago if I would do it, I'm not sure my answer would have been yes. I'm lucky because I had good supply, and easy baby, a workplace that supported me and an office where I could shut and lock the door. In the nine or so months I pumped, only one person disobeyed the 'Do Not Disturb' sign.  Not bad.  Because I had such good supply, I think at one point, we had more milk in the freezer than anything else. It was awesome. I also knew that if I missed a pumping session it would be no big deal because of my freezer stock and excess supply.
I had my moments. There were times when I was frustrated and wanted to quit, just so I could go out and have a few beers or just because finding time to pump in the day was hard or for any other bunch of reasons. But I didn't quit. And I'm proud I stayed with it. My strong will to successfully exclusively breastfeed got the best of me and never allowed me to quit.

Mashed Potato

I'm not going to lie. I sort of liked having a rack. When I had it, I couldn't wait for it to go away, but now that it's gone, I already miss it. Thank God for Victoria Secret!
My daugher has never had formula. I'm lucky that I was able to exclusively breastfeed. I'm lucky that I had the supply, support, good health and patience it takes. I also know other Mom's who aren't as lucky or choose not to. Sometimes I think I gave up some freedoms by exclusively breastfeeding, but other times I remembered that I was exactly where I needed to be. I also think that no matter how you feed your kid, the love you have for them is what matters and now how they are fed.

I Raced for the Cure

2010-10-04T21:09:00.003-05:00

I raced. Well, not really raced, but ran. Mostly ran. For the cure.

The Susan G Komen Race for the Cure was last Sunday. My friend's Mom lost her battle to the aweful disease that is Breast Cancer four years ago. Then, late last year, she found out she is a carrier of the breast cancer gene. This year, she had a double mastectemy and reconstruction. That's right, she chopped off her boobs to save her life. That's courage.

I raced with her and for her and her mom. And it was awesome.

Beginning of the race

I was proud to be there. Proud to be a part of something huge. Proud to be part of this team.

And mostly proud to help.

I was also proud because I ran about 2/3 of the race. Maybe even more and I finished in about 39 minutes.

Where Were You?

2010-09-11T20:36:00.000-05:00

09/11/2001
I was working for a company in Mequon as a Billing Clerk. I usually started work around 7:30. I always had the radio on 94.5 WKTI (which is no longer). I heard Miller state the bad news and I immediately was chilled and froze. I don't think I believed my ears. As they kept saying what was happening, I called my parents. They were on vacation in Michigan. I asked my mom if they heard what happened. She said they were stopped on the side of the road listening to the radio. We talked about if we were all ok. I asked about my brother, who at the time was living at home with my parents. He was around somewhere, but I don't remember if I called him or not. It was all very surreal. They guy I happen to be dating worked at the same company. He got in a little later that day and was in one of his moods - he had many. As I approached him, I knew immediately he would not provide the comfort I needed and expected. Many of us sat in the lunch room and watched the footage. We were all in shock. Everyone knew someone in that part of the nation at that time. I did not. I thought I could thank my lucky stars, but I couldn't. Someone attacked the country I hold so dear. I don't remember much of the rest of the day. I'm sure we eventually went about our day. I remember later that night sitting with my roommate and her boyfriend watching the news in disbelief. We waited for the President to speak. We waited for someone to piece it together. Sometimes I think we still don't have it pieced together.

I remember that morning like it was yesterday. It's hard to believe just 2 months later, I would meet the man who became my husband. When I think about that time and how it has passed, I remember how lucky we are to live in this country. Every year, I think about where I was and how it felt then and feels now. As I watched a bit of MSNBC this morning, I realized that the feelings are still raw.

May those who lost their lives that day rest in peace. May those who kept their lives that day live in peace.

Little Miss Muffet

2010-09-07T21:58:00.000-05:00

Clearly, I am just like Little Miss Muffet... except for the fact that I was sitting on my chase lounge in my living room updating Twitter, when the spider crawled up the arm of my chair and I freaked out. However, let me set the scene...
Sunday evening. We were watching that night's episode of Ice Road Truckers on DVR. Frank got up to take something to the kitchen when he saw The Spider on the wall about 3 feet to the left of me. He ran to get something to kill it with, but was too slow and when he came back, it was gone. Not really, though. It was hiding behind the book shelf. Mind you this is a 6 foot tall, 3 foot wide shelf with a back. While we tried to figure out a way to get The Spider out, I decided to stand on the chair and push the shelf back towards the wall - in hopes that I could push it back enough to crush it. That didn't work. Since we didn't think of using hairspray as many of my Tweeps suggested, we did use Lysol. Which, just for the record, doesn't kill a thing. What it did do was drop the spider 5 feet to the floor. Which is where the story usually ends. But not at my house. Frank proceeded to move stuff around on the floor - school bag, his guitar case, a small magazine rack. As he was unable to find the spider, he retreated to the kitchen. Moments later, I screamed like a school girl, hopped out of my chair faster than I have ever moved in my life. Why did I scream? Well, only because that spider was crawling up the arm of my chair, about 3 inches from my arm. This is where I tweeted this. Frank then started scouring the chair and found The spider in the corner of the chair crawling down into the seat of the chair. So, this of course, prompted us to pull the chair out, and everything that is lurking behind it. After moving EVERYTHING, looking with a flashlight. No spider. That night I dreampt (not well but that's a story for a different time) about spiders. It was not awesome. Now, a week later, I am sitting in the chair for the first time with only minor heebeejeebees. Also, still no spider. I am convinced that The Spider laid spider eggs in my house and we'll have a huge mess to deal with.

The First Birthday

2010-08-16T21:58:00.001-05:00

This weekend, we celebrated a milestone. My sweet baby girl is no longer a baby. She has morphed into a toddler and turned one whole year old. In the days leading up to the celebration of her birth, I remembered where we were and what we were doing last year.
Last year on the morning of August 14, I looked like this:

(Yes, I think that was the last shirt I owned that covered my belly.)

I wrote about the last appointment and I also wrote about the labor.

All day on Saturday, Sydney's actual birthday, I was thinking about where we were. My labor went so fast that by the time we were ready for her party, we had missed the actual time she was born.
We had just our immediate family over, even though I would have loved to have a big party for her, we only have about 900 sq ft in our condo so less is definitely enough. We crammed 17 adults plus a rambunctious toddler into the lower level and watched her put on a show.
First, we played outside for a little while before everyone came over to celebrate.

When our guests arrived, she posed for everyone.

Then, we had cake and ice cream.

Next, we opened presents.

And admired outfits.

On Sunday, we spend the day at my parent's house. A friend from high school came to take pictures of Sydney. Sydney was a sweetheart the whole time and Jenny takes some amazing pictures. The one picture I did see from yesterday is awesome. So awesome that I was speechless when I saw it. (Yes, Dad, I had no words!)
We also had her 12 month check up today and she is doing great. 29 inches tall, 20 lb 4.5 oz heavy, and the Doc gave us two thumbs up.
My baby girl is growing up. I'm a little sad and a lot excited.

Have You Missed Me, Blog?

2010-08-05T13:23:00.000-05:00

Well, hello there, Blog. It's me, your writer. I know it's been a while since I've been here to visit and tell you my stories, but I promise I'll be coming back soon. It's been a busy summer. I have a story about a flood. Well a couple stories about a flood. It may take a few posts to get the whole story out. I also have a story about a vacation. And soon I'll have a story about a birthday.

See you soon!

Happy 10 Month Birthday, My Dear Sydney

2010-06-14T22:04:00.000-05:00

I can't believe how fast the time goes. It seems like just yesterday you were in my belly.

And then you were out of my belly - my little peanut.

Over the weekend we spent time with the extended family to celebrate Jeff and Jamie's marriage. Just about this time last year, we were celebrating Breakfast on the Farm and I was about 7 months pregnant with you. I can't believe the difference a year makes.
I am so proud to have you as my baby girl. You are always so happy and you make me forget about all troubles. I mean, really, who can resist someone so cute!

I can't believe you'll be walking soon and then you'll be talking using real words. Don't grow up too fast Baby Girl! I love you!

p.s. I also can't believe I'm still nursing you!

Friday's are Cool

2010-06-04T22:40:00.000-05:00

I love Friday's. They are my day off for the week and my time to hang with Sydney - just the two of us. I am amazed each Friday when I get to spend the day with her how much she has changed since Sunday. Today when she woke up, she was a bear. Just not a happy girl and I'm not sure why. We did our usual Friday routine - played a bit, then had breakfast. She was sassy during her cereal and apples so we finished up fast and put her down for a nap. She screamed a solid 10 minutes and then was silent, like flipping a switch, and slept far more than an hour. Then we went to the library so I could pick up the book I had on hold - yes it's about running (Thanks Diane). This is the first time Sydney has been to our local library and she had a blast. She watched the other kids very intently and we read several books, including one about her favorite Wonder Pets. Once we were done at the library, we watched a teenager driving a Yukon back right into the parked Camry behind her. You can only image what that crunch sounded like and boy am I glad I was parked on the other side of the street. I watched her for a bit to make sure she wouldn't just drive off, which she didn't, then we walked across the street to visit the park and see the flowers and fountain. Sydney sure does love the water and begged for me to let her go in. I did not - silly girl. Our next place to visit was the mall - specifically Barnes and Noble and Lady Foot Locker. Sydney got a new musical book and I got coffee - not the shoes I was hoping for. Not one of the three athletic shoe stores carry the brand of running shoes I was looking for, so the hunt continues. By the time we were done walking all over the mall, Sydney was hungry and tired. She ate, then napped for a long time. Instead of doing anything productive, I stared at Twitter, Facebook, email and my Google Reader. When she finally woke up, she had a snack and we played and sang along to her new book. Pretty soon it was time for Daddy to come home, then supper. She tried noodles for the first time tonight. She wasn't too sure about them, but we'll keep trying. She was out like a light by 7:30 - gotta love it. I decided that I was going to mop the kitchen with the new mop Frank bought last week. Unfortunately mopping the kitchen took about two hours - our kitchen is very small - it should take 20 minutes, tops. The mop he brought totally fell apart when I tried to use it. We use the kind of mop with the sponge on the end that you have to squeeze the water from. Well, when I tried to press the handle down to squeeze out the water, the sponge kept popping off. After this happening several times, I threw the mop out the back door and walked to CVS for a new one. A bag of Doritos, Women's Health, a new mop and $28 later, the floor is finally clean. Dishes are done, floors are vacuumed/mopped and now I'm going to bed.
Friday's are cool, even if I only get some of my to do list done. Hanging with my baby is better than any to do list anyway.

Run

2010-05-31T14:57:00.000-05:00

I've decided to start running. For those of you who know me, when asked if I run, I usually say "Only from the Cops". Frank laughs at this because he calls me a "Gooder" - he knows I've never had to run from the cops, but still, I think I'm funny.

Why run? Why not? It's become one of those things on my bucket list. And seriously, the runner's I know are some of the healthiest people I've ever met. Some people I know recently ran the Cellcom Green Bay Half Marathon. They totally inspired me and I've decided to do it. I'm giving myself a year to train, which I'm sure is more than enough. Since I made my decision, my friend Becky also decided to do it with me. She's running a half in the fall and I'm very excited to join her next spring.

I never before wanted to do any running so the entire idea of it is very new to me. My girl, Diane, over at Anytime Fitness is already helping me out by giving me some tips. It's pretty cool to know people who are willing to help.

I will post my triumphs here and because there won't be any failures, I won't need to post them!

Sick and Tooth

2010-05-28T15:07:00.000-05:00

May has been another sick month around our house. Frank had a horrible ear infection, Sydney has been up several times in the night almost every night over the last few weeks and she, Abby and I ended up with the stomach flu. First, Sydney had a runny nose and goopy eyes and after yet another horrible night, I took her in for a checkup and you guessed it - double ear infection. Again. Poor baby. On another round of antibiotics, which resulted in throwing up day 5. Because it was a similar medication that she got sick on last time, I assumed it was a side effect and immediatly stopped giving her the meds. That was Saturday. Then on Monday, I started throwing up. It was then I realized that it wasn't a medication side effect, it was actually the flu. It was my day off for the week due to child care issues and it sucked. BAD. I was so sick that Frank had to come home from work to take care of us. Turns out Abby also ended up sick that day. Sydney was acting wierd and I was worried - not exactly sure if it was because I was sick or because something was wrong with her, so Frank took her in for another checkup. I was scared that becuase I stopped her meds, her ears weren't healed. Turns out the doc said about her ears, "I couldn't be happier with how they look". What a relief! She was good for about a week, then started to act funny again on Sunday. I took her to daycare on Monday even though I new something was up and she felt a little warm. You guessed it they called me around 2:00 to pick her up becuase she had a fever of 102.4. I immediately called the clinic and got her in . By the time I got her there about an hour later, her fever was 99.9 and her throat was a little red. As we were fighting to hold her still on the table so the doc could check her ears, I noticed a white spot on her upper gums. That's right, my baby girl has her first tooth. Upper right and not center - totally wierd, right? Due to the fever, I had to keep her home on Tuesday, even though she was totally fine, the 24 hour rule was in effect. Have I mentioned how I hate the 24 hour rule? She went back to daycare on Wednesday and I got a call about 2:30 from her teacher. Her eye is a little red, swollen and leaking. Because she had been there all day, they could keep her and I just had to get her drops in a couple times before taking her back. I'm glad because I really needed to be at work that day. Last night, she woke up around 10 with a bloody nose. I'm not sure what that is all about, but I got her fixed up, and back to sleep. She continued to wake up MANY MANY times through the night and this morning she had a runny nose and cough. As the day has gone on, she seems ok so I'm not thinking much of it. Hopefully it's just a little bug that will be in and out of her system fast so we can enjoy our long weekend and get back to sleeping through the night. Momma's tired, yo!

Love The Gulf

2010-05-27T21:20:00.000-05:00

I have never visited the Gulf. It doesn't matter though. My grandparents used so spend months in Gulf Shores, AL. I have always wanted to go there and see what they have seen. It makes me sad to know that things will probably be drastically different by the time I get there.

What BP is not doing to protect the world is enough to piss a person off. The anger, sadness and worry that I feel is nothing compared to the people who live on and near the Gulf. I listen to NPR almost daily and story's like this really break my heart.

When I first heard about the spill and the oil rig workers that were killed and hurt on the rig, I got teary and sad. That's what I do these days. My heard aches for those workers and their families. Then I got teary and sad when I started to think about the animals in the ocean and everything and everyone else who is going to be affected by this horrific incident. I immediately told Frank that we needed to go buy a case of Dawn because that is one way we could help the animals.

The impact to the people of the Gulf, the US and the World is unknown.
The impact to the organisms living in the Gulf is unknown.
The impact to the local economies is unknown.
The impact to the US and World economies are unknown.
Life is always unknown, but this is the most horrible kind of unknown.
I can only hope that those responsible for this receive a punishment that fits the crime.

I hope to someday visit the Gulf. I also hope that it won't be totally destroyed by this collosal mistake.

It's a Love the Gulf blog carnival. Write your story, and share it here or here.

Calm

2010-05-04T21:49:00.000-05:00

I grew up in the country. Not in the middle of nowhere, but a couple miles from town. My parents still live there. In the same house I grew up in. Last Sunday, I took Sydney with me so Dad could work on my car.

Just me and my girl.

We got an early start, and arrived around 9:00. The weather was perfect. The sun was shining, there were just enough clouds in the bright blue sky and it was quiet. I didn't realize how much I truly miss the quiet until I was there this week. At work and there is noise, copier, printer, phones, people, radios. At home, there is noise, buses a block away, the highway 5 blocks away. Since we live in a condo complex, we share a wall with the neighbor, the driveway and garages are right out our back door. The TV is usually on after Sydney is in bed. On the baby monitor I hear the noise machine. When I sleep I hear the noise machine - which is not all bad because it drowns out the other noises.

Sunday was quiet. Dad worked on the car and Sydney hung out in the bed of the truck.

We walked the estate and checked out the grapevine that is getting so big it knocked down the post. Sydney took it all in. There was a slight breeze that she loved. Mom hung up the swing and that was the end. I could have stood there pushing my girl in the swing all day. Sydney loved the sun, the swing and the cows.

Things I love about this pic: Tongue/Smile, Hat, Cows

We talked about how we used to have a rope swing in that tree. We talked about how we used to set up the orange tent under that tree and the neighbor girls used to come over. There were so many memories and I can't wait for Sydney to start creating memories there too. And I can't wait to move to a quieter place someday because on Sunday I felt calm and content for the first time in a while.

We Marched

2010-05-03T21:53:00.000-05:00

This post is a couple weeks late becuase I'm a slacker and didn't get the pictures uploaded sooner.

I am so inspired by the people I have found in the Twitterverse and the Blogosphere. Everyone has a story to tell and they all do the March for Babies for their own reasons. I shared my reasons here.

Our March for Babies was April 24. The whole week before I avoided listening to the weather because I just didn't want to know. They kept forecasting rain and I didn't want to believe it. I wanted our Sydney to walk with us and all the other families. When we woke up on Saturday, it was raining.

And cold. I think the temp was about 50 - maybe even colder. Sydney stayed home with Grammy which was all the better. The rain was sometimes light and sometimes hard during the walk.

I was surprised by the number of people. They were of all kinds, young and old, all sizes, shapes and colors. All walking for their own reason's. There were kids in strollers.

There were those with umbrellas, some with raincoats, some with no rain gear at all. And they walked for babies.
And we walked and I cried. You couldn't see my tears because of the rain, but I cried. I cried because there were so many people walking because they know a baby that was born too soon or with issues and I hate it. It makes me so sad. Mom's and Dad's and babies and sister's and brother's and Grandma's and Grandpa's and Auntie's and Uncle's should never have to go through dealing with what Heather Spohr and Paula Hoitink are going through.
When I decided that we should create a March for Maddie and Jack team, I set a goal of only $250. I know it's not much but I know that every little bit helps. Well, we raised $330 for the March of Dimes!!!! I was very excited we were able to exceed our goal.
It was a rainy dreary day, but it was a good walk.

We were a little wet but not too soaked and I was very happy to be a part of something that is doing good.

And we also had fun splashing in the rain!

End of an Era

2010-04-23T13:16:00.000-05:00

When I was in junior high and high school, I was in the Band. I was inspired by my babysitter to play the clarinet. Since all students were required to play the recorder when we were young, and I loved my babysitter, I thought the clarinet would be a good choice. (Actually I don't think I was that intuitive back then, I probably wanted to be just like my babysitter.) Plus I loved our band teacher, Mr Paulson. He has been teaching band for 43 years, and teaching at Cedar Grove - Belgium High School for 41 years. 43 YEARS! When I was in school, he taught us sixth grade and high school band. I was never a great clarinet player - probably a little better than mediocre but the memories I have that surround Mr. Paulson and band are great. When I was in sixth grade, I started in the band and started playing the clarinet. I remember taking time out of class to go to lessons and having a regular class where our entire band played. I had a different teacher for seventh and eigth grade but had Mr Paulson again in high school. We were a marching band, we were a pep band at the sporting events and we were a concert band. At our school, band was cool - I know, but in our school that's how it happened. There were more kids in band than there weren't. Some kids who weren't in band even skipped class to hang out with Mr. Paulson. I mean, even I skipped class to hang out in the band room. I have many memories of just hanging out in the band room, many of which include Taquila being blasted over the speakers and students dancing on the chairs.

When I was a senior, we packed up our band and rode on several coach buses to Florida to perform at Disney World, Bush Gardens and Epcot Center. We spent a week in Florida with our friends and our band and we performed. We won awards. Mr. Paulson didn't take his band to Florida unless he knew we could win. And you didn't just get to go on the trip, you had to memorize your songs, raise money to pay for it and march your ass off. You see, he is a UW-Madison alumn and if you know anything about the UW Band you'll understand.

There are songs like Hey Jude, Stars and Stripes, Chantilly Lace, The Hey Song, Proud Mary that I hear on the radio, on TV or in movies that remind me of band and the fun times we had. I can only hope my daughter grows up to join the school band and has a teacher half as cool as Mr. Paulson.

Thanks for the memories Mr. Paulson!

I Don't Like Fire

2010-04-15T21:59:00.000-05:00

I don't like hearing about building fires. It always means something important to someone has been lost. I'm beginning to think all the places we used to hang out at are going away and we will never be able to show Sydney.

Several years ago, The Regatta 2 bowling alley burned down. The power's that be said it was caused by faulty electrical and the owner had no insurance. They had duck pin bowling as well as regular bowling. They had a great room in the basement that was rented out for parties. When I was in grade school, the people who owned the alley at that time lived in our area and their daughter went to my school. We spent time there duck pin bowling. I've attended several parties in that basement. Our group of friends spent much time there bowling in the Vegas League (another story for another time) and playing volleyball in the summer league. One night we were there, the next night it was gone. I'm sad. Sad for the family who most recently owned the business. Sad for the people who went there.

In February, a building on the east side with a few well known resturants and bars also burned down. The building held four businesses and several apartments. Frank used to work at the club in that buliding called Cush. He and I spent much time at Cush when we first started dating and many of our friends hung out there with us. We also knew the owner of Grecian Delight, a greek resturant in the same building. In fact, Chris was the best man in our wedding. We spent many after bar hours there stuffing our faces, because really, you can only drive home from a night of drinking after filling your gullet with Gyro's. Pizza Man was a pizza place and wine bar also in the same building. We only at there a handfull of times, but they had great pizza, a great atmosphere and excellent wine. There was another resturant in the building called the Black and White Cafe. I only ate there once and was not impressed. They ruled the fire as arson and so far no one has come forward. I'm so sad for all the establishment owners and the apartment dwellers. They demolished the building the same week and now it's just an empty lot. I've driven past the lot a few times and it just makes me sad. Sad for the people who lost their homes. Sad for the people who lost the businesses they have poored their lives into. Sad for the owner of the building. Sad for the people of the East Side and surrounding areas who loved going to those places.

Easter weekend, a bar and resturant owned by the mother of a good friend was lost in a fire. They had a great fish fry every Friday and Patsy Cline on the jukebox. This place is not only special to us because of our friend who's family owns it but because most of us have had an event there or at least attended a few events there. I had one of my wedding shower's there. I can't count how many wedding or baby shower's I've attended there. There have been many wedding's, including the children of the owner. We've celebrated numerous birthday's there. On Good Friday, the day before the fire, I thought that we should go there for fish. We never did. I'm sad. Sad for the family who owned and ran the bar. Sad for the owners who have poured their life into the business. Sad for the regular customers who had fish every Friday. Sad for those who stopped in occasionaly to have a beer. Sad for the people in the area who loved going to The Keg.

Most importantly, in all these fires, no one was hurt. The posessions are gone but our memories will live on.

I'm sad that we will never be able to take Sydney to these places.

I hope they find the assjacket's that started these fires, then hang them by their toenails in a dark closet and leave them to rot.

Eventful Weekend and a Second Accident Report

2010-04-13T21:31:00.000-05:00

On Friday, Sydney and I stayed home and chilled out. She had her first real banana. I held it for her and she licked it. Then I put it in the baby bag and she mushed it all over everything and loved it!

Saturday, Mommy and Daddy joined Anytime Fitness, because we wan't to stay healthy for our baby girl.

Sunday, we went to brunch with Great Grandma Grace. Sydney dressed up and was very excited.

Also, on Sunday, I installed Sydney's big girl car seat. It is a convertible seat and was super easy to install. When I was done I tested it out by putting her in it. In the process of buckling her in, I pinched her thigh in the bottom buckle. It was horrible.
Frank said "You have her leg."
I said "No, I don't."
"Yes, you do."
"No, I don't."
Then the siren of her scream goes off.
Yes, I did have her inner thigh in the buckle. Even now, two days later, I feel horrible, now there's a kidney bean size welt on her leg. But seriously, it's sort of tough to miss these thighs.

Yes that is a plastic water bottle - why we spend money on toys, I'll never know

I'll tell you this, I am now VERY careful when I buckle her into her seat. So sorry my little baby.

Monday was another ear infection check and all is clear. I think we have officially started teething, which explains some of the off and on whiny-ness (yes that's a word), but no pearly whites have shown through just yet.

Today was another day of daycare. It seemed as though she had a great day, however when I walked into the building I could hear a baby crying. Not just crying, more like a shreaking scream. I thought it was Sydney, but then thought maybe not. When I walked around the corner of the room, Danielle was cuddling Sydney in the rocking chair, you see, she was just on the receiving end of another child's biting. BITING! My baby was biten in the cheek by another child. An almost two year old bit my child. That's two accident reports in three daycare days. Let's hope this doesn't become a trend.

I cannot belive my child has bite marks on her face. She seemed alright once we got home, she even talked to Grammy on speaker phone. Well, ok, actually she tried to eat the phone more than she talked, so I talked to Grammy instead.

The First Bruise

2010-04-07T21:22:00.000-05:00

Today is a day I've been waiting for ever since Sydney started to move around on her own. Today is the day an accident report was sent home from Daycare. Today is the day she has a knot on her head. It's a bump and starting to bruise. You see, the child I gave birth to almost eight months ago, is on the move and not stopping. In the last few days, we have found that we can no longer turn our head, because looking away for just a second means that she is into everything. She has also started standing up in and rocking her crib. In her classroom at Daycare, there are wood shelves about two feet high where toys are stored. My darling daughter was climbing on the shelves, trying to stand up when she lost her balance and landed head first on a toy. I knew the day would come where she came home with a booboo but I didn't think it would be so soon. I guess we really are ready for her to move on to the next room which is a little more equiped for those on the move.

March for Babies

2010-04-06T22:05:00.000-05:00

In 2009 I had my first baby, Sydney Ann Vento.

I was lucky enough to have a healthy and easy pregnancy. In 2009, I also started this blog and started following other people's blogs. There are a few blogs I follow daily and some others I catch up on when I can.
One of the blog's I follow is that of Heather Spohr. She started her blog when she was pregnant with her first daughter, Maddie. She had a hard pregnancy and Maddie was born prematurely. Maddie had complications from her premature birth and was hospitalized several times. The last time she was hospitalized was April 6, 2009. She passed on to heaven on April 7, 2009 from complications of a respiratory infection. I have never met Heather, and to speak the truth, I have no idea where I found her blog. Her strength in the loss of her daughter is an inspriation to me. Maddie is why I'm walking in the March for Babies.
Jack Luigi is another little one I've never met, but I know of him through my Mom and his Grandma. His Mom, Paula, has been keeping a blog of his progress since he was born. From what I know, he was a full term baby that ended up having some issues during his birth. His mom keeps a blog to detail the medical and developmental journey of little Jack. Jack is a cutie pie who has made some awesome progress. Jack Luigi is why I'm walking in the March for Babies.
The March of Dimes March for Babies raises money to support programs to help moms have healthy, full-term pregnancies. I know I'm lucky because I had a healthy pregnancy, but I know there are so many people who do not. Those moms and babies are why I'm walking in the March for Babies.
I hope you join our team and walk with us on April 24. If you can't make it on April 24, please consider donating.

Sick List

2010-04-05T21:40:00.000-05:00

So, we've been sick for quite a while around here, actually almost the entire month of March. It's been so often and so much this month, that I actually had to start keeping track by date.
But first, let's have a picture of the sleeping beauty to start us off!

Here's the sick list:

1 - Monday: The first day of the month, all clear. My joke of the day was that March was in like a lion work wise, but the weather seemed nice. Sydney to the doctor for a follow up.
2 - Call from Daycare about 2:30. Sydney has pinkeye, since she was at the doctor yesterday, no need for her to come in, perscription sent to the pharmacy. How the hell am I to get drops in the eyes of a six and a half month old? She also is getting snotty.
3 - Frank came down with a horrible cold while staying home with Sydney. She couldn't go to daycare because she needed to be on the eye drops for 24 hours before returning. Note: The 24 hour rule SUCKS.
4 - Sydney back to daycare, Frank home sick from work. I started coming down with a sore throat, which is a usual occurance for me, so I didn't think anything of it.
5 - Frank back to work, I'm home with Sydney for my usual Friday off, starting to feel crappy. Sydney also coming down with a cold.
6 - My voice is on its way out, throat is severely sore. Frank is feeling crappy. Sydney is boogery.
7 - Sunday. Something is up with Sydney, during the afternoon I spent 2 hours in the chair rocking her so she would have a nap. Post nap: Fever 102.3. Call to clinic - They say take her to Children's Urgent Care. After a dose of Tylenol, off we go. Thankfully there wasn't a long wait. The doctor said ear infection - the worst kind of bad. Oh Geez, that must make me Mom of the Year for not noticing it sooner. Started Cefdinir for 10 days. This child was in poor shape. Rough night ahead including vomiting on me around 9:30. Since Grandma V watches her on Mondays, she would be able to be home and I would be able to go to work.
8 - My voice was totally gone. My throat was more sore than it had been in a while and around 2:00 my nose started running and it was NEON. Off to Urgent Care I go... The verdict was Sinus Infection with a touch of Bronchitis which meant antibiotics and cough syrup with Codiene. Sydney still has a fever.
9 - Since Sydney still had a fever yesterday, she can't go back to daycare due to the 24 hour rule. She also had a fever today. More Motrin for her and I stayed home with her. Grammy also came down to help out because I was feeling so aweful. By now, Sydney had a horrible cough so we went back to the doctor and she had to have a chest x-ray to rule out pneumonia. No pneumonia, just a bad cold.
10 - Sydney had a fever on the 9th, so no daycare on the 10th. She still had a fever in the morning, but it finally was gone by the afternoon. The fever had broke so the 24 hour rule was in effect, she would not make it back to daycare on the 11th.
11 - Sydney was home with Grandma V and I was back to work, even though I still felt like crap.
*Note - Since Sydney was on this antibiotic, she had given up sleeping through the night and was having blowouts at least once a day - which is the most fun thing. Ever.
12 - Home with Sydney again because it was Friday. We were both not feeling great, but were chilling at home which is always nice.
13 - Saturday was just another day of dealing with the sick. We could tell Sydney wasn't herself yet and that the antibiotic was not agreeing with her system. We went through our normal bedtime routine and she went down very easy. I heard her coughing several times as I was eating dinner and getting ready for bed but since she had been coughing with this cold, I didn't think anything of it. When I went upstairs I had found that she threw up all over herself and her crib. I wrote about those details here.
14 - A better day for all of us. Finally!
15 - Another good day.
16 - Back to daycare for Sydney! We all made it all day!
17 - A call from daycare - more pinkeye, back to the doctor, use the drops again. As long as we were there, another ear check and all was good!
18 - Home with Sydney - no daycare because of the 24 hour rule
19 - Home with Sydney for our usual Friday at home, all is well. I said to Abby "With all the sick around here, I'm surprised you're not sick."
21 - A decent weekend, we were all seemingly healthy.
22 - Another trip to the Doctor for Sydney. This was an ear checkup and time for her flu boosters. She did great, I put her down for a nap when I got home and she got to play with Nana all day. Abby came down with a horrible fever and stayed in bed all day. Frank ended up leaving work early to take Abby to the doctor, her fever was 102 and higher. Doctor said it's just a virus. Sorry for the jinx kiddo.
23 - Sydney made it to daycare and stayed there all day! Abby is still in bed. I feel yukky but since my boss is on vacation, there is no way I can stay home.
24 - Sydney made it to daycare again and stayed all day! YAY! Abby still in bed, finally starting to feel better. I'm feeling horrible and was in bed by 8:00, shortly after Sydney.
25 -Sydney made it to daycare again and stayed all day! She was in her whole week! Abby finally went back to school. I feel horrible, again and have a fever. Keeping up on the Tylenol and Advil, but still going to work.
26 - I feel pretty terrible, but I have to head to physical therapy to fix my Benign Positional Vertigo. Due to the fact that I was also battling a sinusy cold, the therapy didn't help much, so I had to cancel my next couple appointments until the cold was gone. I was so sick that if I didn't know better I would have thought I had Mono again.
27 - My mom came down to help out so I could rest. I did end up going to Urgent Care - I feel like death with a 102 fever. Oh Great. Just a virus - my favorite thing!
28 - Feeling great, like night and day difference from Saturday.
29 - Back to work. Sydney had a little bit of a fever and was fussy all day. Back to the Doctor to get her cough checked out. Just a virus and ears look good.
30 - Since Sydney had a fever the day before the 24 hour rule apply's. Pardon me, but I FUCKING HATE THE 24 HOUR RULE! But I also totally understand it and why it's important.
31 - The last day of March. Sydney back to daycare, all is well. The weather is nice, the sun is out and we are all healthy - but not too soon.... Around 9:30 I got a call from Daycare. "Did you notice any spots on Syd this morning?" NO I DIDN'T!!!! The words "Hand Foot and Mouth" came from her teacher, which basically mean, Get Your Kid Out Of HERE!!! Another trip to the clinic to confirm the illness which also means no more daycare ofr the rest of the week or until the spots have dried up.
April 1 - She was still spotty so she stayed home with my mom so I could go back to work.
Sydney missed 8 full days and a couple half days of daycare in the last 5 weeks. This normally wouldn't be bad but she is only there 3 days a week.

March, I hate you. It's now April 5 and so far everything seems ok. She seemed to have a few fussy moments yesterday and today, but I'm hoping it's just her teeth.

Oh, and Happy Easter!

The First Time

2010-03-14T20:16:00.000-05:00

Since I became pregnant with Sydney WAAAY back in 2008, I often thought of how I would handle cleaning up vomit.

If you have a weary stomach, stop reading here. You have been warned.

Since last Sunday, when Sydney was diagnosed with an ear infection, we have been giving her an antibiotic that smells like a strawberry shake. Why they have to make medicines for children in such a variety of flavors, I'll never understand. So, we have been giving her this medicine, since last Sunday. As expected, when reading the information sheet from the pharmacy, there is quite a list of side effects including nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. All week, she has had an upset stomach and I can’t tell you how many poopie diapers I’ve changed, not to mention poopie clothes. We’ve experienced this before with the other antibiotic’s she has been on, so no surprise. Well, last Sunday night, about 9:00 she woke up, which is unusual as her bedtime is around 7pm. I just figured she was in pain and she had quite a fever which we were fighting with Tylenol and Motrin so I didn’t think much of it. I got her diaper changed and sat down to rock her and then she puked. On herself and on me. Surprisingly, nothing hit the chair, the table or the floor, just me and her. Since that was the 7th, I didn’t think anything of it the rest of the week. On Tuesday, her fever was even higher, so another trip to the doctor found us getting a chest x-ray for her. It was normal, which ruled out pneumonia. Finally on Wednesday, her fever broke and at a checkup on Thursday her ear was much better but still not infection free. Since she was doing much better I didn’t think anything of continuing to give her the meds, counting down the days until we were done. Until last night…. I put her to bed around 6:30 because she was really tired. Went through the whole bedtime routine and she went to sleep just fine. Around 7:20, I heard her cough a few times on the monitor. A little later I heard her cough a few more times. Since she has had this head cold, coughing didn’t phase me and usually didn’t wake her up. Last night was no different. Since I have also been battling a horrible cold, sinus infection and a touch of bronchitis, I decided to go to bed early. At 8:00, I turned the clocks ahead to 9:00 and Frank got ready to go out for a movie. I got ready for bed, went into the bedroom and was shocked by the smell of strawberry shake and vomit. From what I could tell in the dark, only her sleeve was covered. I ran to find Frank and luckily, he didn’t leave yet. We decided to wake her up to get her changed. Now, as you already know, Sydney has a history of acid reflux and spitting up, so to see her sleeve covered didn’t really phase me again. Until Frank went to pick her up from her crib and we realized she.was.covered.in.vomit. Strawberry shake smelling vomit. The clean crib sheet I had put on earlier in the day was also covered. Gross. So, I got her stripped down and was just going to sponge her off. After realizing she was soaked all the way through her sleepbag and pajamas, I decided to give her a quick bath. She was fine the whole time and I could just tell she didn’t feel good, which made me concerned. Once I got her completely clean, and re-dressed, she started fussing and began again. All over herself and her changing table. I was a rockstar and instead of standing there like an idiot watching her, I sat her up, patted her on the back and caught the vomit in my hand. Yes, cupped my hand and caught as much vomit as I could with one hand. Go Mom! Frank got the crib changed up and we called the clinic. She only heaved one more time after that and then slept until 4:00 (post time change). When she woke up, she was sitting up in her crib waiting for me, I changed her, then proceeded to feed her for only 5 minutes, as directed by the nurse. Rocked, bounced, walked and rocked some more until an hour passed, then let her eat 5 more minutes. No more sicky and she fell right back to sleep and proceeded to sleep until about 7am. She was fine all day and you would have never known she was sick last night. I did give her the meds again tonight and am now anxiously waiting to see what will happen. She’s been out for an hour and so far so good.

I think I handled the vomit pretty damn good. I didn’t even freak out!

Lists

2010-03-01T20:27:00.000-06:00

I'm a freak about lists. Ask Frank. He'll tell you that if I don't write it down, I'll forget it. It was bad before, but since I found out I was pregnant and now after Sydney was born, it's even worse. I can no longer blame it on sleep deprivation because said baby is now sleeping all the way through the night, mostly. Which means that so am I. And I'm usally getting at least 8 hours a night.
I digress. Back to lists.
Yes, I am a list maker. I have so many lists, I should really be keeping a list of all my lists. I have several lists of things on my phone, because there I am less likely to misplace the list and get pissed. I have lists saved in Google Documents, in Word, on paper, on the back of an enevelope on the table - which is not my normal place for lists, but I was too lazy to get paper or my phone. I have lists of things to do - sorted by home or work, things to buy - sorted by store, the Bucket List, lists of books I want to read, music I want to check out, places I want to visit, etc. Maybe I really need to work on my memory, then I wouldn't need so many lists.... Or maybe I just need a vacation.

Oh and go check out Aunt Becky today. She needs a little help.

Lucky

2010-02-28T20:20:00.000-06:00

I know that it's rare for somone in their early thirties to have grandparents that are still alive. It's even more rare to have more than one grand parent. Sydney is very lucky to have three great-grandma's. Yeah, that's right, 3. Great Grandma Grace and Great Grandma CC on my side and Great Grandma Helen on Frank's side.

Frank, Great Grandma Helen, Sydney, Grandma

Jess, Great Grandma Grace, Sydney, Grammy

Great Grandma CC, Sydney

Sydney is also very lucky to have all of her Grandparents too! Grammy and Grampy S. and Grandma and Papa V.

Papa, Grandma V, Sydney

Grammy, Sydney (Look at how little she was!)

Grampy, Sydney

Head Examined? Check.

2010-02-27T12:18:00.000-06:00

I went for my first MRI yesterday, not that it's an acomplishment to be proud of, well maybe for some it is. What a wierd experience. I thought about cancelling my appointment again, for the second time...
You see, I started this MRI journey back in October because I was extremely dizzy. I thought being full of The Dizzy was due to a new pair of glasses, sleep deprivation from being back to work and having a 2 month old baby. At the end of October I thought I better get checked out so I saw my GP in early November for The Dizzy. At that same time, I ended up having a sinus infection, so he attributed The Dizzy to The Infection. I knew, however, that The Dizzy was from something more. So after antibiotics and a few weeks, The Dizzy was not gone. I went back to my GP nearing the end of November. Again, I had a lot of post nasal stuff going on which he also attributed The Dizzy to. More antibiotics and a Drug to treat The Dizzy. Another run on antibiotics and still Dizzy. By now it's nearing Christmas, some days I'm so dizzy and lightheaded I feel like I have to catch myself if I move too fast. So After taking The Dizzy Drug with no relief I see my GP one more time, this time for Strepp Throat and The Dizzy. He says "Oh, I guess it's not Vertigo, that usually goes away in about 6 weeks". I mention seeing an ENT, he sort of talks around the topic and tells me to wait it out. At the end of January, I call him for a referral to an ENT. This is OUT OF HAND. So, I go to see the lovely Dr. Lister. And by lovely, I mean dorky young doctor. He sort of reminds me of Steve from Blues Clues. He is, however, super nice. After doing some tests on me, making me sit, stand, lean, with eyes closed and open, he ruled out Vertigo. I also had to have a hearing test, which I passed with flying colors. (Don't tell my hubby ;) ) So now, to rule out any benign tumors, I had to have an MRI. He also thinks it could be some sort of Migraine. I originally had the MRI scheduled the same day as Sydney's 6 months appointment, and since she was sort of freaking out from 4 shots that day, I decided to reschedule. Mostly because I would have to pump and dump for 24 hours, but in my book, taking care of my baby is as good an excuse as any. After contemplating rescheduling the appointment again, I realized I need to go see what the hell is going on with The Dizzy for Sydney. It's amazing how much I do these days is for/because of her. So, yesterday I finally went for my appointment. It was annoying. Half an hour in a small space is not my idea of fun. I got to the appointment and they were running 20 minutes late. Finally I got to the room. Never even looked at the machine, laid down closed my eyes and never opened them until the end. I really did ok until they pulled the table out in order to put the contrast into my blood stream and put me back in. Then I.STARTED.TO.FREAK.OUT. In order not to push the Emergency Button, I counted to 10, then backwards from 99 (Don't ask), thought about Sydney, Abby and Frank, then all the bad thoughts came rushing in. What would happen to Frank if something is really wrong with me and I died? What would happen to our girls, Abby and Sydney? What if it's a tumor, or cancer, or brain cancer or something worse (not sure what's worse than brain cancer)? Then they came in and pulled me out. It was done. I was out and free to go home. Thank God, because at the point I thought brain cancer, I was ready to press the Emergency Button. Now the waiting game.... 2-3 days until we know the results. I think waiting is even more annoying than the test.

What?

2010-02-25T20:28:00.000-06:00

I didn't take this picture and I really don't know what that dear child of mine was doing, but it is full of awesome. She sort of has this look on her face like she was caught doing something she shouldn't have been.

What?

This is how she fell asleep holding on to her little pillow.

Baptism Day - Our little Angel

YUM! Sydney Loves Cereal!

I'm not sure if you all know what a Johnny Jump Up is, but she loves that thing. If you have never seen a child go totally apeshit in one of these, I suggest you high tail it to my house before she grows out of it. It's sort of like a person who has had about six too many latte's and totally hilarious.

Once, I was pierced

2010-02-23T20:48:00.000-06:00

So yes, I was pierced in more places than my ears. No, not there, don't be gross. At one point in my early twenties, I had 7 piercings.
Last weekend, my husband got a call from his ex-wife stating that Miss 16 got her nose pierced. Yes, her nose. Can I just say noses gross me out to begin with not to mention when they are pierced. Ew. Don't get me wrong, if you have your nose pierced and you look cute, then more power to you, but I don't have to like it. The worst part about the whole thing is that her Mother took her and seemingly made it ok because 'She was going to do it anyway'. Really, so that makes it ok for you to take her and NOT CONSULT her Father? If she had been within reach I would have smacked her, well both of them.
The other thing that really bothered me about the piercing is that her Mother said that Miss 16 said that her Father wouldn't mind because I was pierced and it didn't bother him. For the record as mentioned before, I was in my twenties and 5 of the 7 piercings were in my ears. The others were relatively unseen, bellybutton and tongue. Did I mention I was in my twenties? The bellybutton was one of those things I did while on vacation and it was really cute for quite a few years. The tongue, well, that was something I just had to do and it was totally a spur of the moment thing. It hurt like hell and I would never recommend it to ANYONE. I kept it for about a year and when I had to take it out for a hospital stay I never put it back in. No harm no foul, no one can see the little scar and people who didn't know me then are surprised when I tell them I had my tongue pierced.
Again, did I mention I was in my twenties? And noses = EW

So, I used to sell Plastic

2010-02-05T14:49:00.000-06:00

So, a few years ago, I sold plastic. I know what you're thinking....plastic? Yes, I sold Tupperware. For a while, I actually did really well... There was one summer where we partied all summer on my earnings from one month. That was over $3000 worth of summer fun in the sun. So much fun, in fact, that I don't remember most of it.... But that is a blog for another day. Ahhhh to be young again.

Why you ask amd I telling you about my sales of Tupperware? You see, as I was cleaning up for the Baptism party two weeks ago. I found more boxes of Tupperware. This wouldn't normally be an issue but there are already 6 or more HUGE boxes and/or bags packed full of stuff I need to get rid of. And now I found more boxes. Don't tell that dear husband of mine...I'm keeping this little secret to myself *wink wink*. Now that Miss Sydney is getting into a longer napping routine, I plan on stepping away from the computer for part of my day off each week, spending some time sorting through the mess, figuring out what I have and figuring out a way to make a little cash while finding a new home for it all.

I'm really hoping to get this done in a month or two, so I guess I better get going. Leave a comment here or DM me on Twitter if you are interested in any of this Plastic Gold. The sooner I can get this stuff out of the Man Cave, the happier Dear Husband will be!

Sydney, the angel

2010-01-31T21:19:00.001-06:00

So last Sunday, we finally had the baby baptized. Although I felt guilty for waiting so long (5 months), I'm glad I waited as long as I did. She was awesome during mass, and had the hiccups during the first half of mass that were so loud I thought Fr. Tim would be distracted. He wasn't but all of us were. She didn't cry when the water was poured over her head, just looked at him like "Why are you pouring water on my head, that's Mom's job". She smelled like Chrism all week and we're so proud!

Here's a little look at our perfect angel.

Write Through It

2010-01-03T19:16:00.001-06:00

If you would have asked me five years or six months ago if I would become a blogger, I would have laughed in your face and said "Hell No". Little did I know that blogging and writing in general would become an outlet for me. Now that I'm not in school anymore, I still feel the need to put things on paper (or screen) in order to fill a little void I have. I also would have never guessed that I would so religiously follow other people's blogs. (Current favorites: Mommy Wants Vodka, Matt, Liz and Madeline, and The Spohrs Are Multiplying) They all have a story and I wait patiently each day to see if they have posted an update. But I am now a writer and a follower, who would have guessed!
The thing that sucks about being a writer is writer's block. When I sit down to write a blog or journal, so often I find that my mind, which was reeling just an hour ago, ends up blank. I sit here and wonder what to write about. I recently read a note from Stacy over at Indie Ink where she wished everyone a Happy New Year and said "Even if you think you have nothing to say, you do. Write through it." That helped me. I am going to use that as my drive. I will sit down and write through the emptiness that fills my brain. And for inspiration, all I really need to do is look at Sydney.

The End of a Decade

2010-01-01T11:49:00.000-06:00

Once you get to be my age...(I know some of you are snickering at that) you start to remember where you were 10 even 15 or 20 years ago. I remember exactly where I was when Y2K happened. I'll restrict those details because I'm sure NONE of you want to know about it... and I don't think I want to share. HA!
The last 10 years have had many good times (Frank) and some bad (Fights with Frank) and some REALLY bad times (Carrie, Brandon).
One of the BEST times was meeting Frank. That was early in the decade... 2001 to be exact. We started dating in 2002. (That's a great story for another time) Married in 2005 and had Sydney in 2009. When I think about it that way, I can't believe that I've known him and Abby that long!
In the new decade, I plan on being the best Me I can be. I know that sounds corny, but now that I'm leaving many years of schooling behind in the 00's, it is now my time to use my skills and abilities to achieve even more. I also plan on being the best Mom and Stepmom to our two girls. It's crazy to think that in 10 more years, Abby will be 25 and Sydney will be 10.
I also am planning on giving up the 'F' word. (Yes Aunt Kate, you read that right!) I just don't want it to be Sydney's first word! It's going to be hard because when a word is that prominent in your vocabulary for SO.MANY.YEARS it's not something you can do in just one day. I have been working on this for about a week now. You know. To get ready. I figure if I'm aware of it when I'm talking, then I'm more aware of choosing my words and not letting them just FLY out of my mouth.
Wonder what Aunt Becky would have to say about giving up that word.... HA! A friend said she would be taking bets to see how long it takes me to just give up.... We'll see!
Happy New Year!

The hard part about blogging

2009-12-29T21:09:00.000-06:00

So... I've been blogging for a little while now. I know I haven't posted much, but I have posted some. Generally I have a LOT to talk about. Even in my Thirty's, my Dad still tells me to take a breath when I tell a story. But when it comes to writing, sometimes I just can't think about what to write. Ya know, between the breastfeeding, working full time, changing diapers and catching spit up, sometimes I just don't have the brain power or the inspiration. Sometimes it's hard for me. In 2010 I will vow to blog more.
The other hard part about blogging is a direct result of my curiosity. Some of you may have noticed I put a little thing at the bottom of my blog that allows me to watch the traffic. (You'll only see this if you scroll ALL.THE.WAY.TO.THE.BOTTOM.) But get this... the more I write, the more traffic I get. HA! What a Concept! So, now I'm addicted to watching the traffic which makes me want to write more (see 2010 resolution above). And watching said traffic cool. I can count the page loads and see if YOU are new or returning guests. The problem with this is... I'm a very curious person and I want to know WHO is reading little ole me...
So, please tell me who you are....leave me a little comment or find me on Twitter!

Four Christmas's and a Wedding Shower

2009-12-29T09:30:00.000-06:00

Not like Four Wedding's and a Funeral. Not that I would know, because I never saw that movie. I wonder if RedBox has it. Seriously...RedBox. That cracks me up. I mean COME ON... I digress.... We had/have Four Christmas's and a Wedding Shower this season. We are done with all but one Christmas celebration which will take place on this Saturday. I'm so impressed with little Sydney. Through all the staying up late, noise, paper, boxes, presents and general over stimulation, she did great. She only had one minor meltdown and I think that's because she was scared because she woke up in a strange dark room all by herself in someone else's house. I think I'd be scared too.
Here's how it all played out. Thursday Night - the Eve. Ever since I met Frank in 2002, we have ALWAYS spent Christmas Eve with his Grandma and parents. The last two years, his sister and her family joined us. We eat Ham on Rolls, Grandma's Beans, and Potato Salad, then let Grandma open her gifts. We don't get home until after 9, which makes for a late night for baby because she is usually in bed around 7. Christmas Morning, we get up, this year earlier than usual because we are no longer on my schedule but Sydney's. Then we wait. Staring at the tree. with longing eyes. Actually this year, I put the baby down for a nap and did laundry and filled the dishwasher. I know, On Christmas... But hey, it's got to be done! When Frank goes to pick up Abby, we then get to open gifts. Baby did great! She took hold of the paper and tore it up, immediately followed by putting it in her mouth.
Video to follow when I get 5 minutes to upload them....
Then back to Frank's parent's house for more festivities which include Christmas Sausage and baked Pasta and other goodies, followed by gift opening and games. Sydney did great at opening those gifts too! She got an awesome VTech Learn & Discover Driver. It's awesome and she loves it! She got other noisy toys from her Aunt's and Uncle's as well as a sweet pink afghan made by none other than her Uncle John. I might just steal it for myself until she's old enough to really appreciate it. Before we knew it, our day of fun was over and it was time to go home... Another night past baby's bedtime.
On Saturday we spent the day with Grammy's family at Cousin Kevin's AWESOME house. OHMYGODIMSOJEALOUS! That house was awesome. So awesome in fact that you couldn't even tell that almost the entire family was there. Baby did good and all my uncles just loved her. She got some pretty sweet clothes from family too. BUT didn't really nap ALL day. For those of you with babies, you totally get what I'm sayin'. NO NAP = CRABBY BABY! HAHA! Not my baby! She was awesome until she woke up by herself in the DARK in the Master Bedroom. In which case she proceeded to cry until we wrapped her up and took her home. She was back to sleep before we got out of the driveway. Another late night, but she did good.
Sunday we spent the afternoon at my cousin's Wedding Shower, followed by a little shopping at Costco.
Sunday night she slept ALL NIGHT LONG, from 7:30pm to 6:00am! YAY for me! I thought it was a fluke, but she did it again last night... 7:30pm to 5:30am! We'll see how long that lasts!!!!!

The REAL Postpartum

2009-12-20T15:01:00.001-06:00

Now that baby is 4 months old, I think the real postpartum has set in. Well not really, but maybe a little. I've read how the sleep deprivation and the body changes that you go through during the first few weeks can lead to depression, but I think the real depression begins when you go back to work, still haven't had the baby sleeping through the night, and you realize how broke you really are. At least that's how it is for me. When I first went back to work - more than 2 months ago, I was bragging because MY was sleeping through the night. Was is the word of the day here people... She was only waking up once in the night. Now that she's no longer sick, I thought for sure we'd go back to our old ways of one waking per night....NOT SO PEOPLE! The last 2 nights she has been up 3 times. I'm not sure if it's because she has been soothing herself to sleep with the help of the Baby Einstein Sea Dreams Lullaby Soother and wakes up not knowing how to get back to sleep or if it's because she's at the beginning stages of teething. But either way, it SUCKS for me! I'm also not sure if she's really waking up or if I hear her making noise and immediately go to her. That's the downfall to having her crib in our room. But without another bedroom for the baby, what do you do. I'm hoping that this week will be better... because Momma needs some sleep.
And as for being broke... no one really tells you how much it costs to have a baby. Well maybe they do and once again I didn't listen. Note to self: Learn to listen better. Between daycare and diapers, it's a money pit. I think I better find a way to tap into this Billion Dollar Baby Business. And I also better figure out how to use this blog to make money...any suggestions?

The Cat Named Rascal

2009-12-19T20:12:00.001-06:00

So, today my cat went to kitty heaven. RIP 8/1/91 - 12/19/09

She's been my cat since 1991, however has been living at my parents house through college and after I moved out 2002. This cat, named Rascal, was a crazy little bitch. She would bite you and claw at you every chance she got ever since she was a kitten. Even though she was my cat, when I moved out, my Dad sort of took to her. She would sit on the arm of the chair and meow at him when she was hungry until he got up and fed her. Then hours later in the dark of night, as he walked through the dark house, she would jump out and attack. Each of us suffered horrible claw marks to our calves at one time or another due to her attacking. And as much as she pissed us off when she did it, we would still laugh about it. She was the runt of the litter and taken away from the clan about a week earlier than she should have been so I could have her as a gift. The first night I had her she curled up on my pillow next to me. At that time, so small. Even at her biggest, she didn't really weigh much, but she always looked huge because of her long hair. There's a taxidermist that lives down the road from Mom and Dad's so we often joked about getting her stuffed because my Dad would miss her so much. We didn't get her stuffed today, but I might have to go in search of a stuffed toy animal that looks like her to give Dad just in time for Christmas. Dad also always asked me when I was going to pay the back cat support I owed. I always just laughed! Maybe someday I'll pay up!

Rest in Peace little kitty. Have fun playing with Rex, Daisy, Spike and Mooch up there... I'm sure Spike and Mooch are tormenting you and Rex is letting you hide by him. And Daisy is walking on the ceiling.....

Breaking the Silence

2009-12-17T20:22:00.001-06:00

Now that we have a baby and still need to get out the door on time - well actually earlier than we used to, someone has to be the first one up. It's usually always been me, so I guess some things never change. But now that we have a baby and her crib is in our room, since there's nowhere else for it, there's also no more snoozing the alarm. I found that out the hard way twice this week. If I don't get up to shut it off during the first few seconds of it going off, baby wakes up. And if I snooze it so it goes off again in 10 minutes, she most definitely wakes up. And if that happens, she's up almost an hour before I'd like her to be, which usually always makes Dad wake up too. And he is not happy about being up anytime before 7 on most days. I used to think it was totally annoying that I was the first one up in the morning, and I still sort of do, but even though it's the beginning to another rat race day, I sort of like it. I'm the one to break the silence of the night. It's so quiet, everyone in the house still sleeping soundly. Sometimes I even have to check to the baby because she's sleeping so soundly. I hate to turn on the shower or the blow dryer because it's so loud, but when those aren't running I like that I can just enjoy the quiet. It's a different kind of quiet than daytime naptime or after her bedtime. I just can't explain it. It's one thing about the morning and getting up early that I like, even if I am the first one to break the silence.

Mom and Blog

2009-12-13T20:14:00.000-06:00

So, I guess I'm a Mommy Blogger. Since I'm a mom and I blog about my kid and other stuff, that makes me a Mommy Blogger. Ok. I can handle that. I also follow a lot of other bloggers, and it wasn't until I recently read a blog by Jason over at DadCentric that I realized that most of the bloggers I follow have had some detrimental thing happen to their family. His child was sick with Kawasaki Disease when he was a baby. Other bloggers I follow have had horrible things happen to their kids, their spouses or themselves. I'm not sure if these bloggers started their blogs in order to keep family and friends updated to the status of the bad thing or if there was another reason. I haven't done the research, but all I know is that I'm scared that something bad might just happen to us because I follow these other blogs. I know that's stupid, but after reading the horrible things that happen to some people, I can only wonder. One thing I do know is that I'm inspired by how resilient these families are even given the circumstances they have been faced with. I also know that I'm thankful I have a healthy, happy baby and that my family is healthy too!
Speaking of that healthy, happy baby...here she is!

Aquaphor & $100 gift card giveaway!

2009-12-12T19:53:00.000-06:00

So, I follow Kristy and her blog here and she's awesome. Go check her out. NOW! AND if that's not good enough, she also reviews things. Yes, and you can see that here.
Right now she's doing a little giveaway for an Aquaphor gift pack and $100 Visa Gift Card. It wasn't until I read Kristy'r review of Aquaphor that I figured out that we need to be using it in this house. A girl at work said this stuff rocks and baby has some bad dry skin on her chubby little legs and we need to get that handled. Doc said use Aquaphor. Well, OK. Funny how I didn't hear of it before but now I've heard how awesome the stuff is from three different people in a matter of a few days.... I'll go get some tomorrow. Until then I decided that I need to get those entries in for Kristy's giveaway because that $100 gift card would be a great little stocking stuffer for the teenage step child!
Go to check out the site and get a chance to win for yourself!

What's with the Ears?

2009-12-08T16:00:00.005-06:00

In early November, I blogged about the baby being sick. Well, she still is. Yeah, that's right. It's December freaking 11th and she's still sick. We've been to the doctor count it 4 times in the last month and I've been called to pick her up early from Daycare 3 times. So, on Nov 10, I took her to the Doc because the stuffy nose was just hanging on. Doc said she was fine, it was just a virus. If I had only known that was not the worst of it. The next day she was better and I foolishly thought we were home free. Then the day after that (Thursday) she got worse. Then over the weekend she got a little worse and then progressively worse throughout the week. That Thursday, the 19th, they called me from daycare becuase she wouldn't eat. I called the Doc and got her in. They again said it's just a virus and her ears look fine. Little bit of Tylenol here and there and she should be feeling better in no time. Ok, that's easy. By the next Wednesday, which mind you was the 25th, the day before Thanksgiving, Daycare called again, and yes I had to leave early to go get my babe because she wouldn't eat and was VERY fussy. Once we got home, she seemed fine just a little fussy so I didn't worry about it. By Saturday the 28th, she had a cough when she woke up. I made the decision to take her to the Doc again. Spend $10 at the clinic or spend $100 at Childrens ER. That's an easy pick, don't you think? Diagnosis: Ear Infection. Fluid in both sides, left worse than right. They started her on Amoxicillin. She proceded to get a little rash by Monday. Great, allergic, just like me. So I called the clinic after hours and they said NO MORE AMOX. Ok. The next day she started Azythromyacin for 5 days. Her last dose was Saturday the 5th - Yes December 5th. She seemed better but not great. So, I sent her to daycare again Monday. They called me again, just before 5 because she had been screaming and again wouldn't eat. My child is not a screamer. When Miss Madeline (the best first daycare provider a girl could ask for) called again at 4:40 on Monday afternoon, I immediately called the clinic...again. Clinic closes by 5 but the nurse said bring her to Urgent Care. Ok, done. This doc said she STILL has fluid in her ears and the rash is not an allergic reaction. Another anitbiotic started Monday night. Now we are at Friday. She seems to be doing better, but has started to grab at that left ear. I'm not sure if this is something she just learned to do or if her ear hurts her. We see her regular doc tomorrow for her 4 month appointment. Hopefully the ears will look better because I am beginning to approach the end of my rope. Seriously.

Stuff - cheap and free

2009-12-05T19:07:00.000-06:00

So...I'm a sucker for cheap and free stuff. And especially if I have a coupon. So today when I saw this, I thought I better share. Because it's awesome.
Burt's Bee's has a Grab Bag that is an awesome deal. Check it out here. It's over $50 worth of stuff for $20 - including FREE SHIPPING. Which in case you didn't know, I'm also a sucker for.
Check it out. And if you get Burt's Bees from me, you'll know I got it for cheap!
And since I'm also a sucker for bloggers giving stuff away, I'll be posting more soon!

Win a Kindle

2009-11-25T19:49:00.000-06:00

So ya... I'm trying to win a Kindle. You should use this link to enter to win one too.

http://www.noobie.com/kindle-giveaway?ref=1302704832

There's a little ulterior motive here because every time you use this link I get another entry. So enter often!!!!

The First Day

2009-11-21T19:39:00.000-06:00

The first day of the rest of our lives. It was a Tuesday - December 9 to be exact. I finished the last MBA assignment on Friday. Then on the following Monday, I said to Frank "I think I might be pregnant". I was standing in front of the fridge with the door open. I remember it like it was yesterday. His words were, "So take a test". I waited until Tuesday morning - they say the morning is the best time to take one. I didn't want to get my hopes up because we had been disappointed so many times before...but I was actually late this time. So Tuesday, I jumped out of bed - something that I haven't done since I stopped believing in Santa. I had that same feeling of excitement. So I peed. Then I waited. Those few minutes seemed like the longest. moments. ever. Then it happened. My words were "Holy Shit, come look at this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" I took another test that night...just to be sure.
That was the day that changed our lives forever. And now I look at the little bundle almost a year later and can't believe it. Awesome.

Help 4 Anissa

2009-11-19T10:15:00.000-06:00

I never met her, I don't know her, I don't know what she's done for Aiming Low - my new favorite blog site.

She had a stroke. I'm sad. Very sad. For her family and for her friends and for her.

Please pray and send good thoughts for Anissa Mayhew and her family.

From what I've read so far, she seems like a fighter. I hope she is.

I'm new to blogging and I'm touched by the outpouring of support there is for her.

The following on Twitter and on numerous blogs is amazing. She has touched so many.

I hope to meet her some day. Please help if you can.

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/anissamayhew

Fall

2009-11-14T20:13:00.000-06:00

Sydney and I stand outside. It’s mid-November, but overall a nice day. Cloudy and near sixty degrees. The neighborhood is quiet and it’s peaceful. Usually it’s a buzz with traffic since there are a few hundred townhomes where we live. I hear the traffic on the highway. Birds fly south and in the peace I can hear their wings flapping. That’s how quiet it is. The baby takes it all in, the tree, the leaves, the air. There is really no expression on her face but I know she’s just taking it all in. Even the little breeze blowing in her face is a new experience. She’s getting so big, I just can’t believe it’s been three months. To celebrate, we decided to go to the mall for a little fresh air.

We never made it to the mall because Sydney decided to sleep for three hours this afternoon. I decided not to wake her and did laundry instead.

So Many Things

2009-11-10T20:08:00.000-06:00

Sorry NaBloPoMo. I failed.... I didn't attempt to, but I got sick and baby caught a cold so I just couldn't do it. There's always next year...right?

Now that baby is almost three months old, there are a few things that I'm still quite puzzled about. Why don't they tell you that after you are done being pregnant, you body does even crazier things than it did while you were preggo? I can handle the leaky boobs and the night sweats, but seriously, what's with the gas? I didn't have any problems being pregnant. I had a very easy pregnancy, didn't get sick and stayed in relatively decent shape. Now that I'm 12 weeks out, I feel like my body is more out of wack now than it was before the birth. W.T.F?
And seriously, why doesn't anyone tell you about the guilt that comes along with even thinking about quitting breastfeeding. We are having no problems and I have no reason to quit, but a friend recently told me she had to due to low supply. I'm thoroughly jealous. Not because she had to quit, but because there is a different amount of freedom that comes along with formula. Formula = Freedom. No one tells you that you'll feel tied down, no one tells you that you'll feel guilty for pumping a bottle just so you can run to a doctor's appointment or to work. No one tells you just how much you'll miss the baby while you're gone. Maybe it's because every person is different. Or maybe people did tell me and I just didn't listen. Yeah, that's probably right. Note to self: Learn to listen better.
On the bright side:
I'd like to thank Frank for the awesome health insurance. It seems that the birth of our baby cost us just under $700. Without insurance, it would have cost us close to $16,000. For you math geeks, that's about 96% savings. YAY for us!
Baby Update: Sydney has figured out how to stick her index finger and thumb in her mouth at the same time. Usually she chokes herself. Not funny, but I laugh anyway. I guess it will take her a while to figure out how to suck on her fingers with out choking. She has also figured out how to rub her eyes when she gets tired. Too.Freaking.Cute. I have yet to catch her in the act with camera ready, so no pics.Yet.

Failure

2009-11-03T09:49:00.000-06:00

So... It's NaBloPoMo... and I've failed already. I thought yesterday was the 1st of November, but yesterday was the second. At any rate, I'm going to try to continue to post each day all the way through December 1 to make up for my failure. The baby zone I live in has my mind warped and even though I wrote the date all day long I still didn't realize it was the second. Great job.

Baby has a little cold today. She was extremely snotty when I brought her home from daycare last night... and this morning I had to suction boogers out of her nose. Gross and funny. Poor thing, she sneezed about 10 times between 6:30 and 7:00 this morning. I hope it's just a cold and nothing worse. Seriously though... Suctioning boogers has to be one of the funniest things I've done to this baby yet.

NaBloPoMo

2009-11-02T10:44:00.000-06:00

National Blog Posting Month
Like I need another reason to slack off... It seems that I have stumbled across something that will allow me to fail! The tag line is "Post every day for a month. That's all you have to do." Easy...right? yeah, we'll see... What could I possibly have to talk about? I'm sure there's a lot...

Hey baby... What's up with the shivering? When I dropped Sydney off at daycare this morning, she woke up right away... No biggie, I pulled her out of her car seat and handed her to Miss Madeline. She (Sydney, not Madeline) let out a burp (which is what probably woke her), then started to shiver. We looked at each other puzzled. I have never seen the babe do that before. My immediate thought was fever. She didn't seem feverish, just tired, which is normal for the morning. So, I did a little research. Some babies shiver when they pee. Yeah, Ok. I'm hoping this was a one time thing, because it was weird and I don't want to see her shiver anymore, especially when it's 50 degrees out. When it's 2 outside, then fine, but not 50.

And what is up with this Daylight Savings Crap? I'm not on board... Why does it have to be light out before I get up at 5:45am? I really see no reason.

Gee, there's post 1... not too bad...

This is serious. Grateful.

2009-10-30T20:47:00.000-05:00

As I read some of the blogs I’ve come to follow regularly, it has occurred to me that I have a lot to be grateful for. For example, Matt Logelin lost his wife shortly after the birth of their daughter, the Spohrs lost Madeline, and countless others lost a portion of their family unexpectedly.
I started my blog shortly before my daughter was born. At the time it was just for fun, now, just a few months later, it has become a little outlet for me and a way for family and friends to keep up with us even if I don't post as much as I'd like to.
I have seen friends lose their idea of birth and end up with a new plan due to high blood pressure or other pregnancy related issues. I have seen people on bed rest in the hospital for months to keep their twins as inside babies and not become outside babies all too soon. I have also recently seen a friend find out that she carries the breast cancer gene. The gene of the disease that took her mother from her way too soon.
Now, as I read the blogs of others and see what some of my family and friends go through in life, I realize just how lucky I am to have had a normal full term pregnancy, a fast delivery, a healthy baby and family and a speedy recovery. I am grateful that my Mom was able to come help me multiple times a week while I was on maternity leave. I am grateful my husband is as awesome as he is. I am grateful to have found such an awesome daycare where the baby gets to do art projects already. I am grateful my job allows me to work 4 days a week so I can spend Friday's at home with my baby. I am grateful that I got to hold her while she slept for 3 hours today. I am grateful we have a warm place to live, food in our pantry and fridge, and a little extra cash to spend once in a while. There is so much more I am grateful for that can't even begin to list.
I’m so grateful!

Oh Shit!

2009-10-28T10:37:00.000-05:00

Be warned – This post is not for those with a queasy stomach.

Literally….. So, Tuesday. Frank had a half day so he picked up the baby early from his sister’s house. After a few rough days I wasn’t sure how she’d sleep, so early in the day I talked to Nicki and at that time she was sleeping. She continued to take 2 three and a half hour naps during the day only eating once and not pooping at all……. (I know you know where this is going)

At 4:45, Frank called to ask me where the milk was cuz the baby woke up and was hungry. The milk is in the freezer , thaw it in some water and you’ll be good to go.

I got home about 5:20. I don’t even think the screen door was closed and Abby came running downstairs and said “Dad needs you IMMEDIATELY, the baby pooped everywhere”. I laughed – yeah right I was thinking.

Yeah right, ah Yeah, she did. She pooped everywhere. On her onesie, her sleeper, all the way up her back. It ended up on her shoulders, her elbows, the brand new living room pillow, but remarkably, not on Frank who was holding her while the event happened. He said that he didn’t hear anything – mind you, usually my baby does some significant grunting in order to have a BM and usually you can hear the diaper filling up. BUT THEN he smelt it, and lifted her up to make sure she didn’t leak. Moments later she was happy as a clam sitting in her own poo…

So, since Abby was so excitedly telling me that Dad needed me, I RAN upstairs and when I walked into the bedroom, her chubby little naked body was on the changing table with Frank having a little bit of a freak out while mildly gagging and insisted she have her nightly bath immediately. He did a great job cleaning her up, so we waited a bit to see if there was another blow out and then bathed her at her normal pre-bedtime time. No additional blow out and this baby was totally happy, almost laughing in the face of what some would call a disaster.
Thank God, Mom got home in time to clean up the messy clothes, take out the poopy garbage and open the window to get the stink out.

Update: I have been assured that Frank will write his version of the incident. I'll post when complete!

Thursday 10/22

2009-10-22T20:24:00.000-05:00

There's an angel above us - 4 years.

So, we've survived week 2 of work/daycare. Sydney is doing so good at both of her daycare places. I'm very pleased. This week she got to watch a Halloween movie and visit the Grandfriends (seniors in the care center next door). She also has been learning to nap well in the hands of others which is putting my mind at ease. I was so worried that she wouldn't sleep while at daycare... but I guess she knows when she's tired and will sleep then. I hate having to take her out in this stupid cold rain and wind, but I know it's only going to get worse. Guess I better get my shit together and make sure I always have a blanket for her...unlike today. (No Mom of the year quite yet!)
She's also been a very good night sleeper.... sleeping anywhere from 5 - 7 1/2 hours per night! Rock on!
I feel like I'm starting to get back into the swing of things at work, actually accomplishing a fairly big project this week. It was nice to walk out of there today with at least one of the 100 loose ends tied up! I'm getting into the zone of pumping at work too... Just call me Bessy... anxiety is going away about that too!
I'm proud to say that it's been a good week and even though I have to be in 4 different places tomorrow, I'm happy that it's my day off! Hope that babe of mine knows how to sleep on the go!

Thanks for watching over us Carrie!

She's an artist & has a tongue

2009-10-21T12:30:00.000-05:00

So, the first week of Daycare, they have already started doing art work. Seriously, my baby is 9 weeks old and she's an artist.

Yes, she created a ghost with her foot, ok well maybe Miss Madeline did the work, but I'm sure this is the beginning of getting those creative juices flowing. I'm so proud! I can't wait to see what else she gets to do.
Oh an by the way she has found her tongue. She sticks it out at everything and likes to lick her burp cloth. I don't know, but it must taste good. Maybe I'll try it tonight just to see.

2 months, back to work, blogging, thanks

2009-10-20T15:37:00.000-05:00

So... This is week two of my going back to work.

So far it's not too bad and also not too good. But I'll go so far as to say it's more good than bad. Baby is at daycare 3 days a week and with my sister in law 1 day a week. Yes, that's 4 days and I don't work on Fridays...WAHOO!!!! (HUGE Thanks go to my boss for fighting for my 1 day off!!) Can I just say THANK GOD for my sister in law! She is taking such good care of my baby it puts my mind at ease. Not that the daycare isn't taking good care of her, but you know, it's different when it's family.
I really miss my baby when I'm at work, but I know she's in good hands, learning a lot and that I am in NO WAY cut out to be a SAHM. While I was home, I would work very hard to get her to go to sleep, then after she'd be sleeping for an hour and I was showered and fed, I would sit and stare at her just waiting for her to wake up. Now that I'm back to work, I really miss being able to just sit, because there is just so much to do each night and I still need to get to bed early so I can be up with her at least once.... Thanks to Sydney for having mostly good nights and only waking up once between 9 and 6. Another thing I miss is having time to see my husband and time to write and blog. I vow to take a few minutes each day to get some thoughts out on this screen so I can remember what's going on right now and so Sydney can some day know too!
So, back to this work thing... You'd sure think that some things would have gotten accomplished while I was gone for 8 freaking weeks. I had to create a folder for all the to do list notes I have since I've been back. This is totally crazy! I do enjoy being back in the real world and the fact that this week I have more clothes that fit than last week. Another Thanks to Sydney for helping Mommy shed those pregnancy pounds without much work.
During my maternity leave I found this blog... www.mattlogelin.com. Matt lost his wife 27 hours after his daughter was born. Matt is an amazing writer and is doing an amazing job raising his daughter. Check out his blog, you'll be addicted to the daily happenings of Matt and Maddy's life. I started from the beginning and have to force myself to step away from the computer each night so I can get some sleep. It's like a real life book you just can't put down.
Also, huge thanks to my Mom for coming to help us out so much over the last 2 months. She fed us, did our laundry, folded Frank's underwear, built stuff for us and sewed stuff for Sydney. Mom you ROCK!!!
One last thanks to my hubby. He holds me up, keeps me sane, calms me down when I'm freaking out about him being in school 3 nights a week among other things. He is a great dad and an even better hubby! I must say I'm a little jealous of him cuz he gets to stay up later than me on a regular basis... :) You also ROCK!!!
The thing I'm most surprised about during this whole becoming a Mom process is that I'm dealing with the sleep deprivation remarkably well. At least I think I am...I'm sure there are others who will attest to whether that is a true statement.

THE labor

2009-09-30T21:03:00.000-05:00

I was induced on the day of my choosing, August 14. They started pitocin at 6:45...ok, not bad, we watched some TV and talked to the nurse. At 8:20, the Dr came to break my water... then I was about 2 cm. She said "See you this evening" I said "See you at noon". At around 9:15ish I asked for the epidural... they came in at 10:30. Glad I didn't wait until then to ask.... At 10:50, the anesthesiologist said you should feel no pain, and I didn't...until about quarter to noon, when I felt extreme pressure and the need to push.... I just thought I needed to up the epi.... so they checked me and I was complete and +1... Sydney was ready whether I was or not. So, they called my Dr and she said she would come in an hour or so because she was seeing patients at the clinic. Ok, fine, whatever I thought. Denice (the best nurse at Columbia Center) told me to do some practice pushing, and apparently I was so effective they called the Dr again and told her to get here... I started the real pushing at 12:25, Doc walked in at 12:50 and stood in front of me and said "Well I guess I better get my gloves and booties on". If I would have been able to speak...(at this point, I was really in pain because there was a head lodged in my vajayjay)...I would have said "YA THINK! YOUR GOING TO CATCH THIS BABY WITH YOUR BARE HANDS IF YOU DON'T HURRY UP". Baby Sydney was born at 1:05. Happy and healthy 7 lb 1 oz, 19 in. Cute as a button. My exact words to Frank were "Oh my God, that's our baby. Frank, that's our baby" repeated many times. I was in awe, and still am that I grew her in my belly and that we made such a beauty.
The first night home from the hospital was hilarious... Since my milk came in early Sunday morning while we were still in the hospital, I think Sydney's little system was taken by surprise... We were cleaning up poop and spit up and leaking milk not quite as fast as it was coming... And doing laundry at 3 AM Monday morning. Hilarious!

So...the baby is now just about 7 weeks old and I'm finally getting around to blog. It's amazing to me how much life has changed. I love being a Mom! It's also amazing how much time it takes us to get out of the house. I can only imagine how early I'll have to get up starting the 12th when I go back to work.

I'm forcing myself to live on the little sleep I get because I go back to work on the 12th. That sucks. I totally love being home with Sydney. I get to see her grow every day. At the same time, I'm looking forward to adult interaction, even if it is at work....
Oh yeah, and in between my last blog and now, I also had a birthday... the highlight was that I got pooped on, peed on, and puked on all before noon :) That was Sydney's little gift to Mommy.

The last appiontment

2009-08-13T20:53:00.000-05:00

The last appointment

It was a quick one. I was hoping for 3-4 cm but before she even checked me, she asked me how long I wanted to go. What, what? How long for what? Oh, um today. OOHhhh anything but the 19th. You know, the ex-wife’s birthday. Ok, well how’s Friday or Saturday? Well let’s check you first, then we’ll see.

So I got checked. Geez that hurts, that really does hurt. It feels like she’s squeezing my cervix like a melon. Is it ripe? 1-2 cm this week… which is a little more than last week. So, when do you want to do this? Friday or Saturday? I’ll call the hospital and see what works, Friday works.

What just happened? That was a multiple choice question. I didn’t study for that pop quiz. Did she really just give me the choice of when I want to have this baby?

She came back and Friday works. So, we need to be at the hospital 6:30am this Friday. We’ll start pitocin and then I’ll break your water. See you Friday and she was gone.

Wait, what just happened? Holy crap, we are getting induced this Friday. That’s in 2 days. That means I have 1 more day to work and then I’ll be Mom. This wasn’t part of my plan… Again, holy crap, this wasn’t part of my plan. The plan was to labor at home until we were contracting 1-5-1 then we would go to the hospital. So now we are going to the hospital first like it’s any other day and they will make me get to 1-5-1.

Plan has changed and now I’m wondering if they can give me the epidural before they even start the contractions. That wasn’t the plan either, but as long as we’re throwing plans out the window, why not continue…? Ok so the original plan was to tough it out and do this thing naturally. I guess now we just wait and see how tough I feel tomorrow.

It’s Thursday night, and we just had rib eye’s and sweet corn from the grill. Now we’re watching a movie. Today’s there three in our family, tomorrow there will be four. Happy Birthday Sydney! We’re very excited to meet you!

THE beginning...

2009-08-06T13:32:00.000-05:00

So I said to myself and my husband. I'm going to write a blog. We laughed. I said I have things to say and people might actually be interested. We'll see what happens....
What makes me qualified to blog? Well, I'm a recent MBA grad in my early 30's, but really, who needs a reason? I've done lots in life and have lots left to do. That makes anyone qualified. But really I just see this as an outlet to blog and/or vent about whatever is scratching my surface on any particular day.

As of today, I'm just 1 day shy of 39 weeks pregnant with my first child. Hubby's second - He's Daddy 2 times. I'm Mommy 1 time. Counting the days until baby Sydney makes her grand entrance, which according to the Doc could be any time even though most first timer's are born within 4 days of the due date which by the way it August 14, 2009. I think she'll be born on the 12th. So that's the beginning of my official Mom-hood.

Does Step-Mom count in the Mom-hood years?

Speaking of Daddy 2 times, his first time is an AWESOME teenage girl, Abby. She'll be 15 and a half next week. We all know that means it soon will be time for drivers ed and then driving. Yikes! Good thing I just got these highlights done. I wouldn't want to show any gray from all the worry that goes along with having a teeny bopper at home.

THE history...
Daddy 2 times and I have been together for just over 7 years, married for almost 4. WOW, really, has it been that long? let me say it again. WOW! Time flies when you have as much fun as we do!

More to come soon! Hope you all enjoy!