MILP #245

The debut of the Reluctant Grownup does not disappoint!

Next up is Magic Cookie... I think.

Thoughts, of the disjointed variety

Went to an event at my law school last night and ran into some old friends... friends who last saw me two pregnancies, one Angelfish and about 40 pounds ago.  It was kind of awesome how floored they were about how good (they say) I look. It was also nice to be the old experienced preggo lady when two of them were pregnant with their first (one first tri, one second tri, and I'm third tri... we really should have gotten a picture.)

My blog is the only place I identify myself as "lawyer" first.  In real life, I hardly ever say "lawyer" at all.  I say I work for [Agency].  I think maybe the reason I identify myself as "lawyer" first on the blog is because, although I am proud that I earned my law degree and I really love my job, I don't "practice" in the traditional sense, and so I don't feel like a "lawyer" in real life.

I think I am motivated to clean and de-clutter today.  I think I'll get to work before I change my mind and realize it is too beautiful outside to spend the day inside.

If this doesn't deserve a punch in the ...

I've spent three hours Googling possible summer camp options from Clownfish.  A week or two will break up his summer a bit, and give me some time with the girls. I'm also looking into some half-day programs, sports and/or science focused.  These tend to be really pretty reasonably priced, and I'm actually going to be home this summer and can accommodate a half-day schedule.  (Camp fees for before and/or after care to extend the day to meet a normal 8-5 work schedule are ridiculous!)  May as well enjoy the luxury of half-day programs while I can, and it'll give Clownfish some real variety in activities.

My adventures with Google have involved me trying to remember fleeting conversations with folks who have said helpful things like "Oh yeah, my kid did [Someplace with Camp In the Name] in [Some Nearby Town] and it was reasonable and he had fun...."  Of course, some people's definition of "reasonable" varies with mine.  $500+ a week, minimum 4 week commitment?  Umm... no thanks.  [Some Nearby Town] is actually over an hour away?  Umm... that's not a daily commute (round trip, twice) that I want to take on with a newborn and toddler in tow, thanks. 

I figure we can swing one week in July and one week in August -- maybe one more if I do the half-day options. I'm trying to coordinate these weeks to coincide with Bullshark's departure for Reserve Stuff.  So, I find a camp or program that seems to meet all of my criteria... except it isn't available for his age group during the weeks that would actually coincide with Bullshark's absence.  And I'm back to square one.

After listening to me navigate various websites, watching me download dozens of pdf files and squint at fine print and hearing me ponder aloud the pros and cons of doing a week at the camp Clownfish didn't love when he was 5 (though, admittedly, those posts don't really reflect that), Bullshark says to me:   

BS:  So, you got the list of summer programs available in [our town] from Clownfish's school bag, right?
Me:  What are you talking about?
BS:  There's a flyer in his school bag... I thought you saw it. It has all the programs available through the town. (BS taking out flyer)
(Me grabbing flyer and realizing its identical to the pdf I just found in hour three of my google search)
(Me giving death stare)
BS:  What? I thought you saw it.


(Needless to say, by the way, the flyer was filled with reasonable options and I am feeling much better about the summer.)

Angelfish words

Clownfish (getting clearer), tiger, doggie, birdie, yah!, more, hi baby! (by far the clearest and cutest), uh oh!

Noticed around March 13: Up (up-ee).

MILP #244

Kate of Today & Tomorrow had the Roundup. 

I am totally impressed with her Irish blessing theme... and a little jealous that I never thought of this myself.

La Fheile Padraig Shona Daoibh!

Need to nest

I have a "to do" list for before baby arrives. You'd think it wouldn't be too bad... after all, I just had a baby 14 months ago.  You'd be wrong.  Also, because I feel like I've basically been pregnant for two years, whatever hormonal urge to "nest" that should kick and give me the energy to accomplish this list is instead revealing itself as a sense of panic, making me think of more things to do, but with no desire to actually do them.

• All the newborn/0-3 clothes are at my sister's house.  
• I have no little diapers.
• I have to find and clean my pump, get supplies, etc. Though as I'm not in a huge rush to get back to work this time, so I'm also not in a huge rush to take care of this. 
• I have not assembled the mini-crib (wonderful gift from my sister & mom!). Nor have I gotten any of the special mini-crib mattress sheets I'll need.
• This is because there is presently no room in my bedroom to put it. Because I have this weird amalgam of maternity clothes and my "fat" clothes and my "skinny" clothes kind of... everywhere, in baskets and piles. I need to fix that.
• I have not rearranged Angelfish's room to accommodate the storage needs of another baby -- the clothes drawers & closet & diaper changing area (which is a changing pad on top of her dresser).
• I need to clean my house.  Like, really clean it. Not just sweep up the most obvious stuff, but scrub the bathrooms and the kitchen floors, get into the corners, get the dust bunnies off the ceiling fans.  I have not one iota of desire to do this but I think I'll feel better once its done.  Part of me really really wants to pay someone to do it for me. 
• To avoid thinking about it, I think about shopping. Like, I'd like to hit Ikea for some better toy storage for Angelfish's stuff, which is starting to take over the living room.  The "toy room" (which is part of the living room behind the couch before you get to the dining room) is devoted to Clownfish toys.  Lots of little chokey pieces -- Legos and such -- we keep well gated off.  Eventually, we'll have to move all that stuff into his room and give that space to the girls.  But that day has not yet arrived.  Ooh! Maybe Ikea can solve my baby clothes storage problems too! 
• Sadly, I can't justify paying someone to clean my house for me, or a trip to Ikea, when I'm about to go out on unpaid leave. First world problems. Whatever.

Well I suppose there are some things that are missing from last time -- no painting, no scrubbing the long-neglected baby stuff we pulled from plastic bags in the basement, no "what the hell? we have to replace the bottles with BPA-free stuff now?"  

Angelfish is sleeping -- she usually doesn't do a morning nap anymore, but she had a rough night (though it could have been worse) -- so I thought it best to put her down. 

And instead of tackling these projects, I enumerated them.  Awesome.

Sickie

Home for the rest of the day because Angelfish spiked a fever at daycare. She coughed a few times last night, but I didn't think much of it then. Kids in daycare get coughs.  But I guess she's sick, poor little buggie.  Doc says its too early to tell if its RSV or croup or just a cold virus.  Do we get a snotty nosed cold? The frightening croupy bark?  Will I be doing midnight nebulizer treatments? Waiting to see...

I was planning to leave work early today anyway because I am single-momming it for the weekend.  Bullshark is running in a 10k out of state tomorrow, so he drove down today with a friend.  This is his first run that we're missing, actually.  But Clownfish has a Cub Scout event tonight (so that will be fun with a sick 14 month old) and a retreat to prepare him for his First Holy Communion tomorrow, so going wasn't an option.

Woo weekend?

Muscles

Clownfish goes to the gym with my husband a few times a week.  When its not crowded, the trainer lets him do some modified workouts.  He climbs things, does monkey bars, throws balls at a wall, jumps on boxes and runs around.  So, its basically like playing to him, and not really "working out."

But he has noticed recently that he has some muscle definition in his arms, and his back.  He is really excited, and keeps taking off his shirt so I can see him do pushups.   He wants me to comment on how strong and healthy he is.  He's really proud of himself.

And though he's a big bad 7 and a half year old, with real muscles, who can run a half mile flat out, all I see my three year old boy saying "Welcome to the Gun Show."

To me, he still looks like that.

MILP #243

was at Attorney Work Product / Proto's blog.

If you were following closely at home & anxiously awaiting the debut by Reluctant Grownup... well, you were following more closely than we were.  Her debut is coming.  Think of the delay as hype building.  Next week, however, will be hosted by the lovely Kate at Today and Tomorrow.

The regular hostesses of the MILP Roundup, currently, are:  Butterflyfish, Ptlawmom, Attorney Work Product, Attorney at Large, Kate (Today & Tomorrow), Magic Cookie (CM), and Reluctant Grownup. 

Also, ladies, I call DIBS on a Monkees theme!!

Belly & Babies! (will self destruct)

Aww... you missed it.

I was cute, too.

Youngest child

I really don't know how to handle the people who ask whether you were planned, or the people who just raise their eyebrows when they realize my daughters are about 15 months apart. I get defensive and make jokes before people even get the chance to raise their eyebrows.  Irish twins.  I feel conflicted because I love Angelfish so much and it makes me sad that my attention to her will become further divided far sooner than I ever imagined that it would be.  I worry about how our family will stretch our resources further to make sure that we "do right" by all three kids.

But just because we hadn't gotten to a place where we could dare hope to add a third child to our family does not mean you aren't wanted. 

You are. 

I spent far more time preoccupied with your name than I ever did with your siblings.  As a result, in some ways, I thought much more about who you are and who you could become.

More than just enjoying my pregnancy, and feeling your frequently aggressive movements, I am starting to anticipate your arrival.  Your aunt and grandma got you a mini-crib we can fit in our bedroom, because Angelfish is too small to move into a toddler bed.  I had returned all the newborn/baby girl clothes to your aunt, but she'll bring them back in plenty of time.  We've made plans for your arrival, and we've made plans for your sibs (through June anyway) so you and I will have long stretches of uninterrupted mommy/daughter time a few days a week. 

Sometimes, I worry its not enough.  For any of us. Mornings, like right now, I get a little overwhelmed.  But I promise to keep doing my best. For all of us.

And maybe that's enough.

Tantrums abating

Ever since I wrote that post, there have been fewer incidents of food tantrums. I wonder if I'll bring them back by writing this one. I hope not.

Also, she is trying to feed herself applesauce with a spoon, with the bowl of applesauce on her high chair, for the first time.  It is really cute so far...

More! NOT THAT WAHHHHHHHHHHHH

Alt title: Holy, tantrums, Batman!

Angelfish has taken to throwing extreme intense inconsolable crying fits in response to her frustration concerning food.  Like, she wants "more" applesauce.  She signs "more."  I tell her its time to have (something else that she likes.)  

She 

Loses

Her

Shit.

She'll then refuse to eat anything else, but also refuse to allow me to remove her from her high chair, and she thrashes around wildly.  I've tried preparing her -- like 5 scoops left, 1 scoop left, "no more all gone."  It hasn't sunk in yet.  I've tried offering alternatives -- sometimes, among the alternatives is the something she wants, so she stops crying and eats.  And asks for "more" appropriately.  Then she's all happy and smiley and back to normal.  Sometimes... not so much.

I know it is frustration -- she just doesn't have the words to express her preferences.  And she has very strong preferences.  Its just really really challenging right now.  I don't want to react "wrong" and make this worse -- I don't want this to be a pattern of escalating behavior.  I don't want to reward the tantrum by just, say, giving her more apple sauce. But I am also committed to understanding what it is she wants, and helping her express it constructively... which means, sometimes, offering her grapes in the middle of a tantrum.

Sunday

Spent the morning watching Bullshark kill yet another 5K run (this one for charity, and warming up for some longer runs he's doing in the coming weeks.) 

Right now, Angelfish and Clownfish are rocking out to Laurie Berkner, I'm baking cookies and cleaning, and Bullshark is visiting his mom, who is in the hospital again.

I was sick this morning (tummy yuck), but I'm finally feeling almost normal.

I'm 33 weeks pregnant -- everyone says I look a lot smaller than that, but the doc says I'm measuring about a week bigger.

MILP #242

Ptlawmom has it this week.

Tell me about yourself

One of my blog heroines, Magic Cookie, bestowed upon me this prestigious award.  She is a classy lady with a bit of a twisted sense of humor, which I totally dig.  She inspires me  -- she's a mom who makes PacMan parties for her kid, a corporate lawyer, and she still manages to find time to be involved in her community.  Oh, and her stories about her oldest son remind me so much of my own Clownfish, minus two years or so, that reading her blog makes me feel all nostalgic.  Thank you for the award CM!

The rules of the award are as follows:

  1. Thank the person who gave you this award.
  2. List seven things people may not know about you.
  3. Pass it on to 1 5 (or so) other bloggers.

Thinking of 7 things people don't know about me at this point... hmm.

1.  I have scuba dived with sharks.  Sure, the territorial 5 foot black tipped reef sharks you encounter occasionally, those that swim just far enough away to make their presence known, are one thing.  Nurse sharks never bothered anyone.  That's not what I mean.  No, I mean I dove in chummed waters off the coast of Fiji, 100 feet deep, serious man-eating sized bullsharks and tiger sharks swirling around just feet away, with my back to a coral reef for my "protection."  No cages or anything.  We had to make sure we weren't wearing anything white or light colored that could be mistaken for fish at depth.  Yeah. 

I have pictures, but none of them are electronically stored. If I ever scan them in, I'll be sure to post some. Or you can come over for some coffee and I'll let you flip through the albums while I tell you harrowing tales of getting "bumped" by a reef shark that came in to feed on the leftovers during my ascent.  

2. Umm...  that may be the only cool thing about me.  Really.  Maybe you should stop here, while you still think I'm a badass.  I don't know any foreign languages, I've never lived overseas, I can't play any musical instruments, I've never played a sport on a high school or college team, I've never bungee jumped or parachuted, I've never killed and skinned an animal with my bare hands, I've never done illegal drugs or run naked through a public place, I've never been arrested, I have no ink and I can't tap dance.  So... the rest of this list promises to be way less awesome.  Like this: I used to do a little theater, before I became randomly crippled by an inability to speak coherently in public. See? Less awesome.

3.  I bake a really pretty good homemade apple pie.  Oh, and chocolate chip cookies.

4.  Bullshark and I used to be big into camping, and we look forward to getting out there again once baby #3 is old enough.  I didn't grow up a "nature girl" -- I am absolutely a product of the suburbs, and I think, if given the choice, I would sooner live in Manhattan than northern Maine -- but I really do love hiking & camping.

Things I Did In College (a/k/a I guess maybe I used to be interesting in the 1990s):

5.  I met my husband while country line dancing.  I can still (probably) boot scoot boogie.

6.  I participated in two archaeology digs in the Bahamas.  One of my projects was to learn/replicate how the islanders made holes in the shell that they used for beads.  I couldn't find anything hard enough that was native to the island that would make the holes.  I tried, among other things, shark's teeth.  Never published the research because I never found the answer.  Frustrating.
  
Thing I did as a kid (a/k/a I guess maybe I used to be interesting the 1980s)

7.  I had incredible freedom as a kid, much more than I expect my own kids will have. Case in point:  I remember visiting family in Ireland when I was 9, and just heading off with my younger cousins to wander through the fields unsupervised, getting chased by mad cows with horns.  I remember visiting the Dublin city relatives and having the same experience -- meeting random kids from the block, heading over to play at the local school yard, and climbing the exterior of buildings and jumping off the roof. I just had to be back by dark.   



All right then... many of my favorite bloggers have already been nominated, but I feel as if SuzieJD could have fun with this... even though she's been blogging under one identity or another for ... well, since before 2006 anyway.