Cakerwakers

Good and bad

2012-01-31T12:01:00.003-05:00

The good news is that my baby boy can now sit unassisted for long periods of time. The bad news is that he has taken shitting-up-his-back to a whole new level...

Habits

2012-01-26T22:10:00.001-05:00

When Porgie was a newborn, I tried in vain to give her a pacifier (she was a chronically fussy newborn). My baby girl adamantly refused to keep that thing in her mouth. By the time she was six months old, she was sucking her thumb (which John and I thought was adorable and sweet). Fast forward 5 years, and she is STILL sucking her thumb. But how do I make her stop? It is her thumb and there is very little I can do about it.

When Porgie was about 7 months old, I strongly encouraged her to take a lovie to bed with her. I thought this would help ease the transition from co-sleeping to crib sleeping. We started out with one blanket, but every time someone gave us a soft stuffed animal, Porgie added it to her collection. Fast forward 5 years, and she is carrying FIVE lovies around the house with her. Porgie has two blankets, a stuffed elephant, a stuffed brown dog, and a stuffed polka-dot dog. She rubs one of the lovies on her face while she is sucking her thumb, so these two problems are definitely interconnected. My big girl still sleeps with her lovies. She still carries them everywhere. She still cries when we can't find one of them. When is she going to outgrow the need for all these lovies?

Over the past 5 years, the thumb sucking has given my baby girl an open bite. Porgie has several loose teeth (OH MY GOD, my baby is getting adult teeth!), and she is currently getting her six-year molars. I don't want her thumb sucking to ruin the alignment of her adult teeth. Unfortunately, my big girl (with her new big teeth) seems to be under the impression that she is still a little baby.

Where have I been?

2012-01-24T12:19:00.003-05:00

My great aunt died last week, so we drove back to Kentucky for the funeral. We left so quickly that I didn't have time to fret and worry about all the details. The 11 hour drive was surprising easy. I was confident that Guppy would scream for hours on end, but he was really good.

It was definitely a sad trip home, but I am so glad we went. I got to pay my respects to my aunt, and I also got to visit with my grandma. Granny was a mess. She can barely walk, she just had a heart attack, and now her sister died. She cried frequently, but I think my children were the perfect distraction. She couldn't help but smile at the baby and laugh at Porgie & Izzy's antics.

I am glad to be home though. No matter how nice the accommodations were, no matter how well-behaved the children were, there is no place like home.

Developments in Cakerwakerville

2012-01-09T22:30:00.000-05:00

Granny is doing well. She is home resting, which is definitely a good thing. I couldn't find a flight for less than $800 (per person), so I couldn't afford to go back to Kentucky this week. In addition to the cost of the flight, I am going to have to rent a minivan and pay for a hotel room. Needless to say, this trip isn't going to be cheap. Anyways, I have been searching for tickets, and I am planning on going home at the beginning of February. I have got to see my granny!
___________

Guppy has been sleeping horribly lately. In addition to his 30 minute nap routine, he has been waking every two hours ALL NIGHT LONG. I have been running on empty for weeks. I know that it is a phase and that it will pass, but it is so hard when you are in the thick of it. I am crabby and cranky and just no fun to be around.

A few days ago Izzy was playing on the floor with Guppy. He excitedly announced that Guppy had a tooth. I thought he was crazy, but I came over to look anyways. I was shocked to see a little white tooth beginning to poke through on my baby's lower gum. At the ripe old age of 4 months, Guppy is getting his first tooth! He is so young that I didn't even consider teething as a possible cause for all of his night wakings. Yes, I have three kids and I am still clueless.

Between the teeth, Guppy's new rolling skills, and that pesky 4 month sleep regression, it is no wonder he hasn't been able to settle down at night and sleep. Poor little guy.

Getting old sucks

2012-01-04T12:29:00.001-05:00

My granny had a heart attack on New Year's Eve. Of course she didn't go to the hospital, because that would be the logical and sane thing to do. Instead, she sat home for 3 days feeling like crap. Then disaster struck. She woke up in the middle of the night, tried to get out of the bed to go pee, and ended up falling on the floor. She was basically paralyzed (remember that she just broke her hip last winter), and was unable to get up off the floor. FOR HOURS. She laid on the cold floor from 2am to 5am, because she didn't want to wake anybody up. Isn't that insane?

My grandma lives with her sister (let's call her N), who has Down Syndrome. My grandma called for N to bring her the telephone at 5am, but she didn't call 911. No, she called my cousin (let's call her C). C and her husband came over, picked Granny up off the floor, and took her back to their house. Everyone was hoping that it was just a little tumble, but after a few hours it was apparent that something was wrong. My grandma couldn't move her legs, her chest continued to hurt, and she felt like utter crap. So, they took her to the ER, where it was confirmed that she had had a heart attack.

The hospital ran a bunch of tests on her today, but we don't know the results yet. From what I've heard from several family members, Granny will likely need a stent placed in her heart. I have been a nervous wreck, full of worry and fear. My grandma is the strongest woman I know. I love her dearly, and it is breaking my heart that I am so far away right now. I haven't seen her since Christmas of 2010, and I just have this overwhelming urge to go home. To be with my family. To see my grandma. Of course it isn't that easy. I have a little baby. It takes 12 hours to get there. John has to work. There are a million reason not to go, but my heart keeps insisting that I should be there.

Porgie's Dental Ordeal

2012-01-03T11:48:00.001-05:00

I am not sure how much of this story I have told, so I am going to recap. Last year we took Porgie to the dentist for a cleaning and discovered that she had cavities between her molars, on both sides. We had the cavities filled. Six months later (at her next cleaning), the dentist noticed that one of her fillings had fallen out. I was annoyed, but figured it was a fluke, and I let him refill the cavity. This was a mistake.

In November Porgie went in to have her teeth cleaned again. The dentist revealed that the fillings on both sides had now fallen out. He also mentioned that she had more decay in those teeth, which meant that she would need crowns placed on those teeth. I was livid. This fucking dentist and his inability to correctly place a filling was ruining my daughter's teeth.

Since the fillings he placed in her teeth kept falling out, I asked if he would place the crowns for free. He refused, and acted as if the missing fillings were my fault. He kept asking if I fed her gummy foods. Umm...no. She eats like a normal person, fuckface.

So, I asked for Porgie's records and we left. I called my dentist and got a referral for another pediatric dentist. In December we went in for a consultation with the new dentist. He confirmed that she needed crowns because of the extensive decay. He said recurrent decay under the fillings was likely making the fillings repeatedly fall out (implying that the other dentist had never put the fillings in correctly to begin with. GRRR). He assured me that if his crowns fell off, he would stand behind his work and correct the problem free of charge. So, we made an appointment to have the crowns placed in January.

Yesterday was the big day. Porgie had the left side done first. John took her, and he assured me that it was the most horrible thing he has ever seen. But Porgie? She said the new dentist was nicer and that it didn't hurt as much as it did at the crappy dentist's office. I am keeping my fingers crossed that this dentist will be competent and that we can finally stop traumatizing my daughter with all this dental work.

Christmas cookies

2012-01-02T07:00:00.000-05:00

At the last minute I decided to bake my neighbors cookies for Christmas. This year I made chocolate thumbprint cookies w/strawberry jelly, caramel pecan bars, shortbread cookies w/ chocolate centers, chocolate chip cookies, and Santa whiskers. I surely hope my neighbors enjoyed these yummy treats, because it was extremely hard getting everything done with Guppy on my hip.

Also, here is a picture of my latest pie creation - a chocolate hazelnut tart...

I am bound and determined to gain 20 pounds (which is odd, since I really need to lose about 20 pounds).

Grateful

2011-12-30T22:15:00.000-05:00

This was a good year. I have three amazing, beautiful, healthy, and adorable children. What more could I ask for?

I love my babies. I love my life. I am eagerly looking forward to spending 2012 in the company of my wonderful family. I am a very lucky girl.

Jumperoo? Jumperiffic!

2011-12-29T11:47:00.000-05:00

Guppy is loving his jumperoo (yes, Santa gave him a toy perviously used by his siblings - cheap old bastard). Porgie and Izzy also love the jumperoo. I am fairly convinced that they would climb in and give it a try if I wasn't such a mean mom.

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

2011-12-22T06:00:00.000-05:00

This is a strawberry rhubarb pie. OH MY GOD - I love this pie. I am not good with a camera, so my picture really doesn't do it justice. But trust me, this pie tastes like a little slice of heaven right here on earth. Here is a link to the the recipe, because you'll definitely want to make one pronto.

Loving Guppy

2011-12-20T14:30:00.000-05:00

My baby is growing! At Guppy's 4 month check-up, he weighed in at 16lbs 14oz. My big, healthy boy! His little personality has changed so much in the last month. Guppy is a happy, smiley, giggly little guy. I love kissing his chubby cheeks, rubbing his fuzzy little head, and staring into his beautiful blue eyes. I am so glad that Guppy is a part of our lives. I love him to pieces.

Santa. FINALLY.

2011-12-19T12:26:00.000-05:00

I took the kids to the mall to see Santa this morning. My lack luster parenting skills are very evident in the picture. Porgie insisted on wearing her Christmas dress. Izzy insisted on wearing regular clothes. The baby insisted on wearing 3 month clothes that are clearly getting too small. My daughter's hair looked wild and disheveled (by the way, it always looks wild and disheveled). She also has several half washed off tattoos on both arms. And Izzy was desperately holding on to my hand, because Santa Claus is some scary shit. BUT, we did it! We got to tell Santa what we wanted for Christmas! Go me!

P.S. This is a picture of a picture, because I am much too lazy to scan in a copy of the actual photo.

Mmmmm...pie

2011-12-15T20:41:00.000-05:00

Okay, so my children look nothing alike. Every single person guessed correctly. I think Guppy and Porgie both look like John. Izzy resembles my side of the family. None of my children actually look like me, although they all have my nose, which is kind of fun. It is the one feature that unites all three of them - cute little pudgy noses!

Guppy and Izzy have a doctor appointment in the morning (4 month and 4 year check-up). I am not looking forward it. I am always convinced that my kids are going to get sick whenever we enter the doctor's office. That place is germ central. Ugh.

I bought a new cookbook! I am super excited about making new pies! So, be expecting lots of fun pie pictures. To get the party started, here is my first pie...


Pumpkin Pie Brownies

Name that baby!

2011-12-14T17:04:00.000-05:00

Tired, sick, stupid, etc.

2011-12-08T09:30:00.000-05:00

I finally got my braces off. I know I should be more excited, but I am not. Everything was fine until I got my retainers on Monday. OH MY GOD, retainers are horrible. I cannot speak. I literally sound like I am mentally retarded. Why didn't anyone tell me that retainers are way worse than braces? Ugh.
__________

My baby boy is sick. He has a fever, and his tummy is very upset. He vomited three times yesterday. It is incredibly sad to see his tired little eyes and to hear his desperate little cry. Poor baby boy.
__________

My husband has been working tons of overtime. I am trying to be thankful for all the extra money we'll have this Christmas, but usually I am just mad that John is never here to help out with the kids. I love my children to death, but sometimes I need a break.
__________

My cousin flew to New Jersey last weekend to visit. It was fun getting to chat and catch-up, but houseguests are hardwork when you have a newborn. I felt like I ran my baby ragged, yet my cousin still seemed bored with all of the down time spent in the house while the baby napped and whatnot. But I am still glad she came to visit. I really miss seeing her.
__________

My brain is officially useless. I guess it is all the sleep deprivation catching up with me. I can't remember ANYTHING. I forgot to take the kids to see Santa at the library last Friday. We have gone every year since Porgie was born. I was heartbroken when I realized that we had missed the whole event.
__________

I have been trying to send out Christmas cards for about a week now. Since Guppy only naps in 30 minute increments, it is really hard to get anything done. So, my Christmas cards should probably make it out by Valentine's day.

A gift

2011-12-02T15:22:00.001-05:00

Some anonymous asshole left this comment...
"So, I'm curious...why do you exploit your kids by posting pictures of them, but you won't post pictures of you or your husband?! Seems kind of off, doesn't it??"

How in the hell am I exploiting my kids? I don't make a profit off of my blog. I thought I was just writing and communicating and connecting with other moms. I post pictures of my kids because they are lovely and adorable, and I wanted to share their cuteness with you.

So anonymous commenter, here is a picture of me...

And here is a picture of John...

You're welcome!

Confessions of a cosleeping mama

2011-12-01T14:00:00.000-05:00

Co-sleeping can be great. Some nights Guppy and I snuggle up together in bed and happily drift off to sleep. It is lovely and cozy and so incredibly sweet. I love to brush my lips across his fuzzy little head. I love to listen to his little sleep noises. I love knowing that he is safe. There is comfort in having my baby sleeping in my bed. I know that Guppy won't be this little for long, and I just want to savor these precious moments with him.

But sometimes, co-sleeping is a real bitch. Sometimes I just can't get comfortable with Guppy sleeping so close to me. Where is my arm supposed to go? It feels oddly out of place no matter how I position it around him. Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night, and I just really REALLY want to roll over. But the baby is in a light stage of sleep, and I fear that my movement will wake him up. I will literally stay awake for 30 minutes debating whether or not I should roll over.

Last week I was finally going to move Guppy to his own room. John was taking a week off of work, so I knew that he could help me rock the baby back to sleep if he woke excessively during the night. I had the whole process planned out in my head. I was going to have my bed back! But then, out of nowhere, my baby boy started sleeping for long stretches. He was only waking once at night. He was going to bed at 8:30 and not waking up to eat until 4am or 5am. I was absolutely amazed! I didn't want to rock the boat, so I pushed off the move to the crib until next month (when John is taking another week of vacation time).

Tune back in three weeks when I write a duplicate of this post. Who am I kidding? My baby boy is going to be in my bed until he is 23.

Birthday Boy

2011-11-23T11:46:00.001-05:00

My little man is 4 years old today. He just suddenly started looking like a big kid, which is fitting since he is a big kid now. He is suddenly so tall! And handsome.

Izzy wanted a pogo stick for his birthday. John and I thought he would be too little to play with it, but he has been proving us wrong. He has been bouncing all morning...
It is a cliche, but they grow so fast. I can't believe my baby is so darn BIG.

I hate naps

2011-11-15T07:27:00.000-05:00

Life with three really isn't too hard. I am not trying to sound like I am super mom or anything, because I am not. But I feel like I manage day to day life fairly well. The only real problem I face is trying to get the baby to nap for longer than 45 minutes. Porgie rarely napped at this age and Izzy was also a cat-napper, so maybe it is a genetic thing?

I know it will get better with time, but it is hard to ever get out of the house with this current schedule. Our day goes like this: baby wakes up, nurses for 10-15 minutes, plays for about an hour, and then I nurse or rock him to sleep. Sometimes I put him in his swing and sometimes I put him in his crib. Despite where I put him to sleep, he usually wakes up 30 to 45 minutes later. If I put him in the swing, he will sometimes sleep for an hour or two, but this is rare (it happens maybe once a week). This loop continues all day, which means that my baby is going down for FIVE naps every day. It feels like I am constantly putting my baby to bed, which means that I am spending a large portion of my day in the baby's bedroom, which means my other children are spending a large portion of their day watching television. GAH.

I have tried going in quickly when the baby wakes and rocking him back to sleep. It doesn't work very well, and just ends up frustrating me and Guppy. After that 30 minute nap, he really struggles to go back to sleep. Last Monday John was off work, so I really tried to extend his nap. For his first nap, I spent 20 minutes getting him to sleep. He slept for 35 minutes and woke up. I rushed in and tried to rock him back to sleep. I spent 40 minutes rocking him! He finally fell back asleep and slept for 30 more minutes. So, I spent an hour of my time trying to get him to sleep for an hour. It hardly seems worth all the effort.

Sleeping arrangements

2011-11-04T15:57:00.000-04:00

Guppy and I started co-sleeping on the day he was born. When we brought him home, he slept curdled up right beside me in bed. After he was about 2 weeks old, he started grunting and straining all night long. It was really disturbing my sleep, but we muddled through a few more weeks of co-sleeping.

When Guppy was about a month and half old, I decided to put him to sleep for the night in his car seat (I thought maybe the gruntiness was due to reflux). I kicked John out of the bedroom, put the car seat on his side of the bed, and put my swaddled baby in the seat. The first few nights he slept great, only waking about 2 times. And because he was on my husband's side of the bed, the constant grunting and straining didn't seem to bother me as much. AWESOME! I thought our problems were solved.

But then about 2 week ago Guppy started having trouble at bedtime. He would go right to sleep, and I would transfer him to the car seat. But 20 minutes later he was screaming and crying. The only thing that would calm him was putting him into bed with me and letting him stare at a side table lamp. Over the past week, I stopped putting him in the car seat and just started letting him co-sleep with me again. But he is still waking 20 minutes later, and he is still grunty at night, which is still very disturbing to my sleep. He is better than he used to be, but between the hours of 4am and 7am he is the loudest sleeping baby in world. This basically means that I am awake from 4am almost everyday. UGH.

Now, the ultimate goal is to get Guppy into his crib (in his own room) within the next month or two. I waited until Porgie was 8 months old, and I was utterly exhausted by that time. With Izzy, we used the car seat for sleeping almost exclusively until he was 5 or 6 months old because of all his tummy troubles. He never really slept well in my bed (or in the car seat for that matter), so the transition to his room wasn't hard at all. I have started letting Guppy take a few naps in his crib during the day, but he never sleeps for more than 45 minutes. And he wakes up pissed off. UGH.

So, I am working towards a goal and it is not going to be easy.

Halloween

2011-11-01T09:27:00.004-04:00

Apparently I can sum up any entire life in pictures alone.

Pumpkin Picking: A Day in Pictures

2011-10-25T14:21:00.003-04:00

BIG boy

2011-10-21T07:53:00.005-04:00

I took my littlest babe to the pediatrician on Wednesday for his 2 month check-up. 2 months already! That sounds so big, like he isn't a teeny tiny baby anymore. Anyways, the pediatrician we seen was an older gentlemen. And by older, I mean older than dirt. He was probably closing in on 80. He gave me lots of outdated advice, like to retract my son's foreskin, to feed my 8 week old cereal, and to drink some wine before bed (in the hopes that it will sedate my wakeful babe). Old people! They are so crazy.

So, the wee little babe is 14 pounds! I knew he was starting to look like the classic chubby baby, but I had no idea that he had basically doubled his birth weight! My boobs are amazing, milk making machines. I think my overabundant milk supply is the source of my mastitis problems. I often wake up so engorged that I HAVE to pump. I know that this is only making the milk problem worse, but I can't walk around with bowling balls on my chest all day.

Guppy is doing great. In the past few weeks, I have noticed a definite increase in his awareness. He stares at people. He coos. He smiles (but very rarely). His little personality is already forming, and it is amazing to watch him change and grow. I just love that little babe so freaking much. I want to cuddle him and kiss him and nibble his chubby cheeks all day.

My son is such a boy

2011-10-15T14:11:00.002-04:00

Izzy drew a picture for me...
It is kind of hard to see (he used Colorwonder markers on regular paper), but note the huge boobs. Lovely.

Home is the funnest place on earth

2011-10-13T07:17:00.002-04:00

Remember when I told you about feeling guilty for never doing anything fun with the kids? Well Tuesday night the library was having story time from 6:30 - 7:30. Since we haven't been since mid-summer, I asked John to take the kids. It was a "fall" themed story hour and the kids were supposed to bring in 3-4 different leaves.

At about 4pm, I took the kids outside and collected leaves. When we got back inside, I noticed there was a message on the phone. I checked it, and of course it was my husband telling me that he had to work late and wouldn't be home to take the kids to the library. Because I wanted to have fun with the kids, I decided that I would take all three kids to story time, even though the baby can be SUPER fussy in the evenings.

Long story short, story time sucked ass. I left early with 2 of my 3 kids screaming and crying. I learned my lesson. It is more fun to just stay home.

Mommy guilt

2011-10-11T10:55:00.000-04:00

A list of things I currently feel guilty about...

* Ignoring my older children while attending to the younger one.
* Putting the baby in the swing for all his naps.
* Kicking my husband out of our bedroom.
* Letting my newborn scream every time we get in the car.
* Never taking Porgie and Izzy anywhere fun.
* Getting frustrated with my son constantly. Have I mentioned that he sticks his hands in his butt?
* Letting Porgie and Izzy watch entirely too much television.

It is so hard being the mom. Being responsible for everyone. Worrying about everyone. Making sure everyone is getting everything they need to grow and thrive. It is exhausting and overwhelming. If I could just turn off my brain and stop over analyzing everything, we would be fine. But instead, I fret and worry about all the little stuff that doesn't really matter. And I sit around feeling guilty.

This is my life?

2011-10-07T09:55:00.000-04:00

So, I suffered through mastitis again. Admittedly, this bout was not nearly as bad as the first, but it still sucked. I think I am allergic to my baby! My boobs do not like him.

Things have been relatively good over here. The kids are still alive, I manage to make dinner every night, and sometimes I even clean the house! I often feel like I have nothing to say on the old blog anymore. Maybe this stems from the fact that I rarely ever leave the house.

Guppy is going through this horrible phase where he just can't seem to figure out how to sleep anymore. He takes all these crappy little catnaps and refuses to go back to sleep. And then he starts with the fussing. OH MY GOD newborns are annoying!

Izzy is going through a horrible phase where he sticks his finger in his butt all the time. The kid's hands ALWAYS smell like shit. "WASH YOUR HANDS!" is basically the only thing I say to him anymore. I am sure there are butt germs all over my entire house.

Porgie and John are not currently annoying me.

So, that sums up life over here in Cakerwakerville. I think I might mix things up today and go to Target. EXCITING! Could I be any more boring?

Round 2

2011-10-02T10:08:00.002-04:00

I have mastitis again. Seriously, I just want to curl up on the couch and cry. Will this ever end?

Infection

2011-09-24T14:59:00.000-04:00

Sorry for the silence, but I am just getting over a bout of mastitis. OH MY GOD, I had no idea how horrible a breast infection could be. I am not exaggerating when I say that it was one of the worst experiences of my life.

Last Sunday started out like any other day, but by noon my right boob was very tender to the touch. It didn't hurt to latch the baby on, but let-down was soooo painful. There is really no way to describe this pain. It was just awful. Being the naive girl that I am, I thought I merely had a clogged duct (even though I couldn't feel any lumps). I put the baby down for a nap around noon, and decided to pump. When I got done, I felt like I was about to pass out. I laid down on the couch and covered up with a quilt, because my hands and feet felt really cold (even though it was 75 in our house). John took Porgie and Izzy to the park. While he was gone things got worse. I was so cold my teeth were chattering, and my head felt like it was about to explode. Also, my breast was so painful that it hurt to even move my right arm. I literally laid on the couch and cried because I felt so miserable. After about an hour of this agony, I took my temperature. It was 103. Ugh.

I never go to/call the doctor unless I am fairly convinced that I am going to die. That afternoon, I called my OB. Through chattering teeth, I described my symptoms. The doctor diagnosed me with Mastitis and called in a prescription for an antibiotic. When John got home, I immediately sent him back out to pick up my prescription. I read in my breastfeeding book that after antibiotics are started, symptoms improve in 24 hours. I was really counting on this.

That night was awful. I would alternate between chills and sweating profusely. I also had the world's worst headache. It was so bad that I was taking the prescription strength Motrin they had given me after my c-section. The headache still wouldn't go away. My boob also took a turn for the worse. The side turned bright red, and it was visibly swollen. It was very tender and painful. Needless to say, it was a long night, but the next morning I felt a little better. And then I felt worse. Although the morning seemed promising, Monday was basically a repeat of Sunday. Monday night my temperature actually reached 105 degrees. My body felt like it was on fire.

On Tuesday I felt like I had been hit by a truck, but my fever and chills finally subsided. Wednesday and Thursday were much of the same. Friday is when I finally felt like myself again. I still have some slight pain in my right breast, but the redness has disappeared.

The moral of this story is that Mastitis is awful. I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy.

4 weeks!

2011-09-15T06:57:00.002-04:00

Somebody is 4 weeks old today! He eats! He sleeps! He poops (a lot)!

I was looking through my pictures, and I realized that I didn't have any pictures of Guppy with his eyes open. So, I decided to take a picture of him with his precious little eyes open. Upon trying to take this picture, I realized why I don't have any pictures of him with his eyes open. Newborns don't follow directions very well.

Take # 1

Take # 2

Take # 3

Take # 4

Please excuse the blurry pictures. It was night and my crappy camera sucks in low lighting.

Anyways, Guppy is doing great. We are so happy that he is a part of our lives. Can't wait to see what the next month will bring!

My grunty boy

2011-09-09T06:19:00.002-04:00

The grunting and straining all night routine continues. My little guy is so gassy at night. I know that I am incredibly lucky, because he doesn't really cry. He just fusses and squirms and makes lots of strange noises. We have been going to bed really early (sometime between 8pm and 9pm), so that even though he wakes me up 549 times per night, at least I am in bed for a solid 10 hours. That helps (a little). For a few days, I kind of went off the deep end and was obsessed with this issue. But then I read my dear friend Eva's blog post about her new baby. She commented that she was going to go cuddle her son, because "he'll never be four days old ago." That made me reevaluate the situation. This gassiness is temporary. Guppy will never be 3 weeks old again. I just need to enjoy him - grunty noises and all.

Pictures of our little Guppy

2011-09-08T06:36:00.001-04:00

My baby boy is so cute and little. I could just eat him up! Porgie is also smitten with our newest creation. She plays with him on his mat every morning. She begs me to wake him up from his naps. She kisses and hugs him endlessly. Izzy is also obsessed with Guppy. He is very touchy feely with him, which freaks me out. He loves to rub Guppy's little head. Honestly, I was worried about how the kids would respond to the new baby. So far, so good!

Rambling

2011-09-06T14:01:00.000-04:00

For the first time since I had Guppy, I weighed myself. To my amazement, I have lost 20 pounds. Too bad that I gained too much and still have 23 more pounds to lose. BOO! I originally was shooting for a 30 pound weight gain. But I just couldn't seem to control my weight gain at various times in my pregnancy. Some months I would gain 2 pounds and others I would gain 12 pounds. I felt like I had very little control over it. So, this week I am going to try to start eating healthy again. Actually, I already eat fairly healthy, I really just need to watch my portion size. And stop eating Ben & Jerry's.

Guppy is doing great, but he is killing me with sleep deprivation. I had high hopes for this baby. I was sure that he was going to be my good sleeping baby. He was so calm and peaceful in the hospital. But he has been so freaking wakeful at night. He sleeps great during the day, but nighttime is a nightmare! He does this weird grunting, straining, and crying routine every hour or so all night long. And he is constantly rooting around and trying to nurse all freaking night. I am about to kick him out of my bed. I want to be a co-sleeping mama, but I can't handle this up all night nursing shit. I think I'll give him another week to get more settled at night, and if he is still nursing all damn night, we are going to make some changes in our sleep routine. I wouldn't mind getting up every two or three hours, but I am barely able to function on our current schedule.

John returned to work today. I have mixed emotions about this. I am excited to get back to our normal routine. I have felt a little off lately, and being more independent might help me feel normal again. But damn, I am going to miss having someone home to cook all my meals and change all the shitty diapers.

The newest babe

2011-08-26T10:27:00.000-04:00

Guppy arrived Friday (8/18/2011) at 8am via c-section. He weighed 7lbs 8oz and he was 19 inches long. My smallest babe. My little runt:) The surgery went smoothly, and the baby was perfectly healthy. The whole affair was largely uneventful, and everything went according to plan. We were discharged from the hospital on Sunday afternoon and have been home resting and recuperating ever since.

My little guy is perfect in every way, and we love him to pieces! Guppy is now 8 days old, and we are both doing great. He had his first doctor's appointment yesterday. He looks teeny tiny to me, so I was a little worried that he might not have regained his birth weight. But he did! He weighed in at 8lbs 2oz. Yippee!

Nursing has been going great. Actually, it has been going a little too great at night. My baby boy woke up 4 times to nurse last night. It felt like every time I laid my head down on the pillow, Guppy was fussing and rooting around. Otherwise, he has been pretty mellow. He sleeps a lot. He also poops a lot. He likes to be held and touched and kissed, so we oblige and give him lots of love.

I couldn't be happier. Seriously! I am so in love with this little guy...

In other news, we had an Earthquake on Tuesday. What the fuck? It was so bizarre and kind of scary. And now we have a hurricane bearing down on us. AWESOME. My husband is busy storing water and food in the basement. He seems to be convinced that something bad is going to happen. I hope he is wrong.

Well, I seem to have very little time for blogging lately. I just want to soak up every minute with my little family. I know things will change when John goes back to work, and I'll be eager to chat with my internet buddies. Until then, blogging will be light over here in Cakerwakerville.

39 weeks 6 days

2011-08-17T21:26:00.000-04:00

Nesting is for the birds

2011-08-12T14:33:00.002-04:00

Since this is my third time around, very little has surprised me with this pregnancy. Severe constipation? Totally expected. Excruciating hip pain? Not surprised. Leaking urine? Happens every time. The thing that has caught me off guard is "nesting." I have never experienced this phenomenon before. I kind of thought it was just a made-up problem that pregnant women liked to complain about. Although I had heard other people talk about it, I had never actually felt any overwhelming urge to clean or organize my house during pregnancy - until now. And I have to say, it kind of sucks.

For the past few weeks, I have felt this constant nagging urge to get my house in near perfect condition. Everything I have been putting off for years, is suddenly very important to me. Every closet in my house is organized. My windows have been windexed. My bedroom (clutter central in my house) is spotless and clutter free. The food cupboard is organized, with all of my spices neatly lined up. I have dusted every ceiling fan and every picture frame. I have donated bags of clothes, purses, toys, and housewares.

All of this cleaning is exhausting, and that damn nagging urge NEVER GOES AWAY. Every time I finish a task, I think of something else that needs to be done. And I keep thinking of new tasks for John too. Last night, right after he arrived home from work, I made him hang new hooks in our coat closet. Why? Because I want Porgie and Izzy to be able to hang up their own coats this fall. Yes, jacket weather is months away, but this task must be completed before the baby arrives! It is urgent! I realize that I am being insane, but I can't stop these crazy impulses, so John has to suffer with me.

This is our last weekend has a family of four, and although I would love to spend it with my lovely little family, I know that this isn't going to happen. I already have an insanely long list of chores for John and myself to complete. Maybe I'll be able to rest at the beginning of next week? Fat chance.

Monday's appointment

2011-08-10T08:51:00.002-04:00

Monday's appointment with the OB went much smoother. We were stuck in the waiting room FOREVER, but the doctor made no mention of my small measurement. He simply listened to the baby's heartbeat, asked if I had any questions, and then sent us off. It was glorious! I only have one more appointment before the BIG day, which is just mind blowing. At the most, we are only 8 days away from meeting this baby. EIGHT DAYS! WOW!

I am not sure if I mentioned this before, but we are having a scheduled c-section. After like 20 hours of labor, I had an emergency c-section with Porgie. The OB convinced me to have another c-section with Izzy, which probably would have happened even if I tried a VBAC. Izzy was born 9lbs 8oz at 39 weeks. Can you imagine how big he would have been if I have gone 40+ weeks? At my first visit, I inquired about a VBAC with this baby, but they said it was policy that after 2 c-sections, you are always a c-section. I thought I would be upset, but honestly, I don't really care. I just want a healthy little baby in my arms. How he/she gets here really doesn't matter to me anymore. Yes, the recovery is harder, but I know what to expect. There is comfort in that, and it gives me a sense of peace regarding the whole process.

The only thing that has been bothering me is my time in the recovery area. When I had Porgie, they gave her to us immediately. My first attempts at breastfeeding were in the recovery area right after my c-section. I thought they would do the same with Izzy, but instead they rushed him off to the nursery. I didn't get to see him for an hour or two after his birth, and when they finally brought him to my room, they informed me that they had given him a bottle of formula - WITHOUT PERMISSION. Instead of being overjoyed with my new baby, I was angry with the hospital staff. I don't want that to happen this time. I have told John that if they take this baby away right after delivery, that he has to stay with the baby the entire time. He cannot, under any circumstances, come back to visit with me. He has also been told to refuse all bottles and to constantly harass the nurses to bring me my baby! I intend to talk to the doctors and nurses before my surgery, because I have a few other requests too. Basically, I plan on being the biggest pain in the ass.

So, I am still pregnant and hope to stay that way for a little while longer. Since I scheduled the c-section for my actual due date, I REALLY need to make it to 40 weeks. Keep your fingers crossed that I can make it 8 more days.

Doctors worry too much!

2011-08-05T07:06:00.000-04:00

Monday I had my 37 week check-up. I decided to schedule the appointment in the morning and to take both kids with me. I thought we would go in, listen to the heartbeat, and be on our merry way. Instead, we spent nearly 2 hours at my doctor's office.

Remember when I told you that my belly has measured small throughout this pregnancy? Well, the people around me kept mentioning that I was "so small!" at 20 weeks, yet the baby measured completely normal. By 24 weeks my doctor also joined in on the fun, declaring that I was several weeks behind on my belly measurements. The doctor continued to fret when my measurements stayed behind week after week. I was scheduled for a growth scan at 32 weeks to check on the baby. Once again, the baby's measurements were perfectly normal. At 36 weeks, the doctor tried to convince me to do another growth scan, but I declined her offer. Why is everyone so obsessed with the size of my belly? The baby appears to be completely fine. I just felt like it would be a waste of everyone's time.

At 36 weeks, I measured 34 weeks. I've been 2 to 3 weeks behind for a while now, so I was largely unconcerned. On Monday (at 37 weeks 4 days), I measured 32 weeks. What the hell? How did I get smaller? I was baffled. My doctor looked panicked. She told me that I needed an ultrasound right away. She was afraid that my amniotic fluid was dangerously low. They rushed me (and my two children) back to the ultrasound room. I felt sorry for the poor girl who was supposed to go next, but they insisted that I didn't have time to make an appointment for another day. Although the doctor seemed very concerned, I still felt like they were making a big deal out of nothing.

30 minutes later we learned that the baby appears to be in the 70th percentile (!) for growth and that my amniotic fluid was on the low end of normal. Not dangerously low, but also not abundant. But because my amniotic fluid was on the low end of normal, I am afraid they are going to want to do another ultrasound next week to recheck the fluid levels. Ugh. Don't get me wrong, I want to make sure the baby is healthy, but I feel like the doctors are trying to find a problem to justify my small measurements. I honestly don't think there is a problem. My belly has consistently measured small, yet the baby has always measured normal. That is just the way this pregnancy has progressed and there is nothing anyone can do to change it. I feel like if they go searching for problems, they are eventually going to find some reason to make me go to the hospital early. And I don't want to have this baby early.

It is all very frustrating and overwhelming. I want the baby to be healthy, but I also want him/her to be fully cooked and ready for life on the outside. I would also like for my mother to be here to watch Porgie and Izzy, so that I can have a less stressful hospital stay. So, this baby needs to stay put for a few more weeks. I've been drinking water like it is going out of style, hoping that my amniotic fluid levels will be higher next week. I am seeing a different doctor on Monday, and I have my fingers crossed that he will have a more laid back approach to this problem.

I know I am not HUGE, but I don't think I look tiny either. I am actually pretty happy with my cute little baby belly. Here is me at 38 weeks...

Because I don't have enough shit to stress about

2011-07-31T20:42:00.001-04:00

I am having a toenail crisis. I know that sounds trivial, but it is consuming my life! I probably have some weird toe fungus or something, which is just disgusting and embarrassing. Ugh. Since I am 9 months pregnant, I have decided to wait until I have this baby before I go to the doctor. But I'll tell you the story, just in case someone out there has some helpful advice.

Right after I found out I was pregnant, the nail on my right big toe developed a red crescent shape at the bottom. It looked like blood had pooled under the nail. I wasn't sure if I should make a big deal out of it, so I showed it to my OB and asked for her opinion. She assured me that I had just caused trauma to the nail and that the bloody part would eventually grow out. Even though I didn't remember hurting my toe, I decided to let it go. It was just a red spot on my nail. And besides, it was winter and my feet were always covered with socks and shoes anyways.

But then the weather got warm, and I started wearing flip flops everyday. The red part was no longer on the bottom of my nail. Now it was about mid-way up the nail and stretched across the entire surface. It was ugly, but I don't think anyone really noticed. Then a few weeks ago the nail REALLY started to hurt. It would just throb for no reason whatsoever. I thought maybe I was getting an ingrown toenail (I've never had an ingrown toenail before, so I am kind of clueless about these things). In an effort to stop the throbbing pain, I decided to clip the nail as short as I could. Except, I am insanely big and pregnant and clipping toenails is really hard. I ended up butchering one side of the nail on accident. I cut that side entirely way too short (like it hurts because I cut it so damn short on that side). Now my nail is super duper funky looking and painful. The nail is all lopsided and discolored and just gross looking. WHAT DID I DO?!?

I literally cannot stop looking at my funky toenail. And I worry excessively about what other people will think of my nasty feet. So even though I hate nail polish, I thought I would feel better about my gross toenail if I used a little paint. Since I don't own nail polish, I had to go to the store and waste money on the stupid crap. First, I tried a plum color. It looked AWFUL. Then I went with a shimmery white. STUPIDEST NAIL POLISH COLOR EVER. I guess I am going to head back to Rite Aid and try pink? Ugh. I don't like nail polish. I hate wasting money on this crap, but I also hate looking at my nasty toenail. John thinks I am just drawing more attention to my funky misshapen toenail, but I think the polish will help my funky toenail blend in with the rest of my normal toenails. Obviously I am clueless. HELP ME!

Being Artistic

2011-07-29T14:10:00.001-04:00

When we bought the new bunk beds for Porgie and Izzy's room, I decided to change the room's theme. Both of my kids are currently obsessed with dinosaurs, so naturally I decided to head in that direction. I bought these adorable quilts from Bed, Bath, and Beyond...
I know the bedding seems a little boyish, but Porgie loved the design. Then I started looking at art for the walls. Although they had matching dinosaur pictures, the prints were over $20 a piece (and the were really small). Since I spent more on the bedding than I care to admit, I didn't want to spend hundreds of dollars on some goofy pictures of dinosaurs. So, being the determined pregnant woman that I am, I decided to make my own, frugal artwork...

I spent less than $20 on the entire project! Although I am usually super critical of my artwork, I actually really like these paintings. They are simple, cute, and they match the bedding. I was so impressed with my handiwork, that I decided to paint some new canvases for the baby's fishy themed room too...

Both bedrooms look great. I am awesome!

I think I broke my hip.

2011-07-27T06:50:00.000-04:00

I love being pregnant. Honestly and truly, I do. But I am going to complain about something pregnancy related. For me, it is by far the WORST part of being pregnant. I am talking about pelvic/hip pain. I have entered the phase where all movement of my hips is excruciatingly painful. And hips are kind of important for things like WALKING and SITTING.

This is a problem I experienced with all three of my pregnancies. My hips hurt at the very end of my pregnancy with Porgie, nothing overly painful - just an annoyance. With Izzy, the pain started early (like around 20 weeks). By the end, the pain was pretty bad. I remember having trouble lifting my leg to get into my van. I was overweight when I got pregnant with him, so I accredited my wacky hip problems to being fat. But this time? Well, I was completely fine until about 2 weeks ago. Then suddenly my hip/pelvic area ached a lot at night. I found myself waking up in pain every few hours and having to find a new position to sleep in. This past week, the pain has been overwhelming. It hurts to walk. It hurts to sit. It hurts to get dressed. It hurts to get in my van. It hurts to roll over in bed. I am in pain pretty much ALL THE FUCKING TIME. I have to waddle at a snail's pace to keep my pelvis happy. And even then, I am always aware of a soreness in that region. It kind of feels like someone has kicked me in the pelvic area about 100 times. The really bizarre part is that I often hear a popping sound when I attempt to move my hips. It is almost like my bone is popping back into place. And I am not fat this time, so I know that I didn't inadvertently create the problem.

I complained to the OB, but she wasn't very helpful. She just told me how my joints are loosening up in preparation for delivery. I know the physical reason behind this problem, I just don't understand why the pain is so intense with this baby. I have been sleeping with a pillow between my legs, but it isn't helping at all. At this rate, I am fairly confident that I won't be able to walk by the time I reach 40 weeks.

Any advice or suggestions?

Getting stuff done, so I can enjoy other stuff

2011-07-24T07:01:00.003-04:00

I did it! I have a freezer nearly packed with frozen meals. I still haven't made the trays of lasagna, but everything else is prepared and in the freezer. I am feeling really good about this accomplishment. Actually, I feel like I have gotten lots of crap done lately - just little things that make me feel better and more prepared for the upcoming birth of our baby.

1. I finally bought some newborn diapers and wipes. And I had coupons!
2. I threw out all the plastic BPA bottles I had stashed away in the closet and bought 3 glass bottles to replace them. I intend to breastfeed again, so I think 3 bottles is more than enough. I do plan on pumping and freezing some milk because I will most likely be having oral surgery at the end of the year.
3. Izzy broke our umbrella stroller last weekend. I went on Craigslist and found an $80 Chicco stroller for $30. We picked it up last night, and I REALLY like it. Much nicer than my $5 Kolcraft umbrella stroller.
4. John cleaned up the basement, and now we have easy access to all our baby gear.
5. I purchased two homecoming outfits - one for a girl and one for a boy. SO STINKING CUTE!
6. I am planning a special "kid's day" celebration for the first weekend in August. This day is going to be devoted entirely to Porgie and Izzy. There is going to be presents, candy, a trip to the natural history museum, and dinner at their favorite restaurant. One last hoorah with my babies before the new baby is born.

Sure, I still have lots more to do, but I feel prepared and ready. This baby will be born in less than a month! It is mind blowing how quickly this pregnancy has passed. It is summer time and unbearably hot here in NJ, but I still love being pregnant. I wish I could freeze time, so that I could enjoy this stage a little longer. I know this last month is going to zip by in the blink of an eye. I plan to spend the last few weeks cherishing these moments with my unborn baby and my family. Because this time next month, we will have a completely different life - a new person to love, new routines to adjust to, and new sleep habits to complain about (AKA no sleep for mommy). I just want to soak up every last moment of this pregnancy.

Complaints

2011-07-20T06:56:00.003-04:00

I used to love going to the doctor when I was pregnant with Porgie. It was so exciting to hear the baby's heartbeat. And more importantly, it put my mind at ease knowing that she was growing and thriving in my womb. With Izzy, the appointments were more of a hassle, but I still looked forward to hearing my baby boy. But this time? Doctor appointments are such a pain in the ass. Seriously, do I really need to come in EVERY WEEK? Geez! I understand that the doctors just want to make sure everything is fine, but I wouldn't hesitate to make an appointment if I suspected that something was wrong. It is just a lot of work to make it to all these appointments.
__________

Summer, oh how I hate you. Why is it so freaking hot outside? Is a 100 degrees really necessary?
__________

My children keep getting sick, and it is beyond annoying. It is summer time dammit! I thought kids only got sick every other week in the winter. But every time I turn around, someone has a runny nose or a cough. Ugh.
__________

I am currently trying to teach my daughter to tie her shoe laces. It all started because Porgie wanted me to teach her to crochet. I told her that after she learned to tie her shoes, I would teach her to crochet. She promptly ran to the closet and got a pair of shoes. I showed her how to tie them a few times, and then she decided that she no longer needed my help. So, she spends large portions of her day trying to tie her shoes, while crying in frustration. She gets it right 1 out of every 10 attempts. It must be tough to be five. I can assure that it is extremely tough being the mother of a five year old.
__________

My husband has informed me that he will be out of town the first week of August. I will be 38 weeks pregnant. Is he trying to make me have a nervous breakdown? What if I go into labor while he is gone? I don't even have any family in NJ to rely on in his absence. I would be completely alone. John also has some big week long work conference thing in Atlanta, GA in September. I will have a ONE MONTH OLD. Just thinking about it pisses me off. I know that he has to fulfill his work obligations, but I can't help but be a little disappointed.
__________

The muffler on my van is hanging down at an odd angle. We have a million speed bumps in our neighborhood and every time I go over one, I can hear the muffler scrap the blacktop. So now, in addition to all the other insane expenses that keep popping up, we have to have my muffler fixed. AWESOME.
__________

I have more to bitch about, but I think I'll end this post before you become bored with my pity party.

Getting ready

2011-07-17T13:33:00.002-04:00

During the first three month after I gave birth to both Porgie and Izzy, John and I were completely unable to cook dinner. I was tired and stressed and overwhelmed, so I didn't even really consider cooking. I eagerly gave that responsibility over to John. Of course, he was tired and stress and overwhelmed too, so we just ended up eating out ALL THE TIME. That my friends, is a very expensive habit.

With this baby, I would prefer not to throw money away on fast food every single night. So, I am going to attempt to prepare a few weeks worth of meals and freeze them. I have some dishes in mind, but I am not sure if they all freeze well (like the mac n' cheese). If you have any advice or suggestions, I would love to hear them. Here is my list of meals so far...

Chili (x2)
Gumbo
Lasagna (x2)
Cincinnati style chili (x2)
Marconi and cheese
Broccoli casserole
Tamale Pie
Gnocchi (x2)
Pizza dough (x2)

If I can successfully make all of these meals before the big day, we should have at least two weeks worth of meals. By that point the baby will be about a month old (because John will be home to cook during the first 2 weeks). Then (hopefully) I'll be able to resume my normal cooking duties without too much fuss. I also want to have at least 6 loaves of bread baked and in the freezer.

Wish me luck. I have lots to do before the big day!

I am stressed out

2011-07-12T21:12:00.001-04:00

Picking a new health insurance plan the month before your due date is extremely hard. The new plan goes into effect two weeks before I will deliver, so it is extremely important that we pick the right plan. I have been researching and stressing out about every detail of the new plan options. My husband, on the other hand, seems to have completely forgotten about the health insurance. He just wants to go with the cheapest plan and forget about it. I wish I was so naive and carefree.

John's employer hasn't given us much of an option. We basically have two plans to choose from - a PPO with incredibly high premiums or a cheap HSA plan with an incredibly high deductible. Financially, we are going to get screwed either way we go, so I guess I shouldn't be so stressed about it. The part that has me all worked up is that maternity benefits aren't listed in the description of the plans. I am confident that the PPO covers maternity, but I am not so sure about the high deductible plan. I have made my husband email the woman who is in charge of insurance for his company, but she can't seem to comprehend my request. It is actually very simple - I just want something from the insurance company stating the maternity benefits for each plan. But instead, she just keeps emailing my husband to say that maternity benefits are covered. She seems like a nice lady and all, but I want something from the INSURANCE COMPANY. I have been screwed over by health insurance companies too many time to accept a generic statement from a woman in the HR department.

In other news, I am growing! Holy crap, I gained 8 pounds in the last two weeks! I don't know how that is even possible, but my scale keeps insisting that I have gained all that weight. Ugh. I am trying not to stress about it too much, but I really don't understand how I gained that much. I have been eating the same as every other week. I know I have some swelling issues, but I hardly think I am retaining that much water.

I hate hate HATE that I am stressing about my weight. This is my last pregnancy, and I want to enjoy it. My weight has always gone up and down, so if I gain too much with this baby, it is not the end of the world for me. I can lose it. I know that I can. But for some reason, I wake up and weigh myself every morning. It is a sickness, but I can't stop.

Here is a picture of me at 34 weeks 5 days...And just for fun, here is a picture of my lopsided legs. I have lots of swelling on the right side of my body ONLY. Isn't that weird?

Bunk beds are hard

2011-07-08T07:51:00.002-04:00

The bunk beds continue to wreak havoc on bedtime, but things are getting better. My children will not go straight to sleep, despite their level of exhaustion. They have to laugh and yell and play for at least 30 minutes. I have come to accept this as part of the bunk bed arrangement.

For the past several weeks, I would let them play for about 30 minutes and then I would go in and try to convince them to go to sleep. Of course, this rarely worked. Most nights, I would have to go back in (usually around 10pm by this time) and yell at them. Then, finally, they would settle down and go to sleep.

This week has been different though. I changed my tactics. I have been ignoring them completely, regardless of whether they have been playing for 45 minutes or 2 hours. And surprisingly, they seem to be falling asleep sooner (sometimes). The first few nights they fell asleep around 10pm. Then Porgie started falling asleep around 9:30 and Izzy reluctantly went to sleep around 10pm. But then on Wednesday night, they were both sound asleep by 9pm! I thought we had passed some sort of bunk bed milestone, and I went to bed happy on Wednesday night. Of course, they were completely out-of-control on Thursday night and didn't go to sleep until well after 10pm. Ugh.

Fingers crossed that we can get this problem fixed before the new baby arrives. I don't expect them to be perfect, but if they could just tone it down and go to sleep before I do, that would be great.

When did my kid get so smart?

2011-07-06T13:37:00.000-04:00

Porgie is five, and she is absolutely amazing. My daughter loves learning. She remembers EVERYTHING. She is so self motivated that doing school work with her is incredibly fun.

Last year I went to a homeschooling used curriculum sale. I didn't end up buy any curriculum material, however I did buy some games and puzzles. One of the puzzles I bought was a map of the United States. The pieces are the shapes of the 50 states, so it is somewhat challenging. My daughter has mastered this puzzle, and she is getting really good at reading all of the state names. She is so awesome, and I am so lucky to be her mommy...

Dance rectial 2011

2011-07-04T07:09:00.003-04:00

Porgie's big dance recital was last Friday. This year's performance was so much fun. She tap danced to Little Shop of Horrors, and she did an amazing job. I was so proud of her!

It is amazing how much she has matured over the past several months. She took her dance routine VERY seriously this year. And she was super duper excited about performing on stage. After the show, she told me that next year she wants to dance onstage by herself. A solo performance at age five - she is ambitious!

Could they be any cuter?

The third child

2011-07-01T14:40:00.001-04:00

My mother had three children. I was the oldest, and I was also the only one with a completed baby book. I understand, because the more kids you have, the less time you have. Even though time is tight, I want all of my kids to have a scrapbook dedicated to their first year.

Yesterday I went to the craft store to purchase an album for the new baby. I picked out the perfect scrapbook. Then I came home and tried to find my 20 week ultrasound pictures. I have no freaking idea where I put those pictures. I have searched every possible place I can think of. They are lost, and who knows when or where they'll turn up.

Poor third baby.

Something I've been fretting over

2011-06-29T20:56:00.002-04:00

If you've followed my blog from the beginning, you know that John and I make big babies. Porgie was 8 lb 4oz at 40 weeks. Izzy was 9lb 6oz at 39 weeks. With both pregnancies, I had pregnancy induced hypertension, but thankfully it never developed into anything more serious. Because of my high blood pressure, I had extra growth scans. According to my doctor, my babies were at a higher risk for growth restriction. Obviously my ginormous children never suffered any ill effects from my wacky blood pressure.

Before getting pregnant with this baby, I lost about 40 pounds. I started out at a fantastic weight. My blood pressure has been perfect the entire pregnancy. But oddly enough, my doctor seemed to think that my baby might be small. At my 24 week visit, my belly was measuring a week behind. At my 28 week visit, my belly was measuring a full 3 weeks behind. So, they scheduled me for another growth scan.

At first, I didn't really think much of it. I mentioned it to a few good friends, but I tried not to make the information into a big deal. But everyone I encountered seemed to mention that my stomach was "SO TINY!!!" I guess people thought I'd appreciate their comments on my small size, but instead they just made me nervous. Honestly, I haven't felt "tiny" in a long time. At this point, I feel large and cumbersome (like all third trimester mommies). Also, the baby gives me nice big kicks, which also don't feel like they are being made by a tiny creature. But regardless, all of these outside comments on the size of my belly slowly crept into my neurotic brain. I often found myself lying awake at night thinking about it.

My growth scan was this afternoon, and honestly, I was more than a little scared. But all that worrying was for NOTHING, because my baby is in the 54th percentile for growth. Totally and completely normal. Not too big, not too small, but just right. I am thinking that instead of having another large baby, I am going to have a nice average-sized bundle of joy. And I am completely fine with that.

Now maybe I can get a little sleep.

P.S. The ultrasound was painful. PAINFUL. Apparently the baby's head was at a weird angle, so the tech decided to apply a ton of pressure to her little wand. I am fairly certain that she fucked up some of my ligaments or something, because since leaving the office, every time the baby moves my lower abdomen hurts. And for all my pain and suffering, I received two completely vague and unrecognizable photos. Awesome.

Baby!

2011-06-24T15:47:00.002-04:00

I went to visit my friend C and her new baby. OH MY GOD, newborn babies are so small! He was just the tiniest, cutest little thing in the whole world. His skin was so soft! And his feet were so teeny! I just wanted to eat him up. I held him for almost an entire hour, and honestly, I could have cuddled him for much longer. Then I came home to my HUGE children. I swear Porgie grew 3 inches while I was visiting with the new little one. My daughter has been really into babies lately, so she was a little disappointed that she didn't get to visit the baby too. I hope this love of babies continues after our baby arrives in August, because I could use the help!

I wanted to bake something delicious for C and her husband. You see, I often have really good intentions, but my plans rarely ever work out. I wanted to make this yummy strawberry pie that I have been making every week since we went strawberry picking nearly a month ago. I currently have a half eaten strawberry pie in my fridge, but I thought I had another pie pan stored away somewhere. I searched high and low, but the pie pan was nowhere to be found. Since the pie was out, I found a recipe for strawberry shortcake cookies. I procrastinated and ended up making them right before Porgie's dance class, and we were nearly late for class as a result. To top everything off, the cookies came out flat and mushy. I seem to be completely unable to make cookies lately. Every recipe (even my tried and true recipes), turn out too hard or too soft or too flat. UGH. So, the new mother did not receive a delicious treat from me. However I did crochet her baby a beautiful afghan, so I think she'll forgive me.

My nightgown dress

2011-06-22T22:00:00.001-04:00

I have fretted over it for several days, but I have officially decided that it is a dress.

Is it okay to wear a nightgown in public?

2011-06-21T22:03:00.004-04:00

I was at Babies R Us this morning looking for some new nursing bras. While browsing around, I found this really cute dress...Except the the dress I bought is even cuter, because it is in a coral color. After I got home, I realized that the tag said it was a nightgown. But it doesn't look like a nightgown to me. I honestly and sincerely thought it looked like a maternity dress. So what do you think? If I wear it around town, will people constantly be thinking, Why is that woman wearing a nightgown to the grocery store?

In this post, I act like my life is really hard. Woe is me.

2011-06-20T08:13:00.000-04:00

I've had this insane roller coaster of emotion weekend. I wrote this overly dramatic post about my health insurance on Friday, but then I decided not to post it. Long story short, my husband's company is switching insurance companies 2 weeks before my due date. When I realized that my doctor and hospital might not be covered by the new company, I had an emotional breakdown. I fought back tears all evening.

The next morning I found out that my good friend C had her baby! I am so excited for her, but it really drove home the fact that I only have 2 months left until I deliver this baby. On a certain level, I feel ready. I mean, I already have 2 crazy little monkeys to care for. How much harder could 3 kids really be? But on the other hands, I feel completely overwhelmed by the concept. I haven't cared for a baby in years.

Saturday night we watched my friend C's daughter. It was our first official sleepover. The kids were beyond excited. They went to bed a little late (as I expected), but they were actually really good. However, Porgie is just getting over a cold and she is still coughing at night. I guess my paranoia that Porgie would wake her little friend got the best of me, because I woke up at every little cough and clearing of the throat. I got up exhausted.

Sunday was Father's day, and my husband seemed to be in a bad mood. Couple that with the fact that I was feeling all hormonal about nothing, and you have a recipe for a bad day. I tried to keep it together for John, but I felt like I was on the verge of tears for most of the day.

Today I plan on sticking close to home and getting some stuff done on my "to-do list." I think that might make me feel a little better. I need to kick this funky feeling in the ass.

Busy little bee

2011-06-16T13:40:00.000-04:00

I have been in overdrive lately. It is not nesting per se, but just a lot of crap I have been putting off for months. Everything is catching up with me, and I really need to start making some progress before the new baby arrives. I have complied a list of chores for myself and for John. The amount of stuff we need to do is overwhelming.

Tuesday I got a wild hair up my ass and decided that I was going to get shit done. And in true Christy fashion, I completely overdid it. I ran myself to the point of exhaustion. I was on my feet all day. By 4:00pm, while making dinner, I got dizzy. So dizzy that I thought I was going to pass out. My body was screaming for rest. After laying down for about 30 minutes, I felt much better. Then John came home from work and took the kids to the library while I lounged on the couch eating chocolate covered raisins. WHAT? Developing babies needs chocolate. It is a scientific fact!

Yesterday was another busy day, but I made sure to sit down occasionally. It is amazing how a little thing like taking 30 minutes to sit on the couch, can completely change how I feel. Today I have been working on "organizing" Porgie and Izzy's closet. I use the term "organize" loosely, because really I have just been stacking crap on the top shelf. But that is better than having all of the crap (blankets, Halloween costumes, stuffed animals, etc.) stacked on top of the dressers. I am truly amazed by how much stuff we have crammed into this tiny house. I give bags of stuff to the Goodwill monthly, but I still can't seem to stay on top of it.

Tomorrow I have to go pick out a Father's Day present for John, so it should be an easy morning. But this weekend? So much crap to do!

The transition

2011-06-14T13:49:00.000-04:00

We have a small house. A very small house. I would love to move, but unfortunately we would never be able to make a profit off of this house in the current market. More specifically, we would have to take a loss. Needless to say, we aren't moving any time soon. With baby number three on the way, we decided to buy bunk beds for Porgie and Izzy. The big kids will share a room (for now) and the new baby will get his/her own room. This plan seems fine and dandy, except for the fact that my children have never shared a room in their lives.

Our brand spanking new bunk beds were delivered on Saturday. You have no idea how much my children LOVE their new beds. Porgie is on the top bunk and Izzy is on the bottom. They spent most of the weekend climbing all over their awesome new beds. In fact, they love their new beds and sleeping arrangement so much, that it is virtually impossible for them to fall asleep at night. There is lots of screaming, laughing, and talking going on. But unfortunately, there is very little sleeping.

To my horror, my children are going to sleep extremely late (like around 10pm). And then they are waking up at the butt crack of dawn (around 6:30 am). I am a creature who likes routine, and this deviation in our routine is KILLING me. It is extra bad, because these last few months before the new baby arrives are my final chance for any decent amount of sleep. And my 3 year old and 5 year old are ruining it! It is not fair!

Here is a stock photo of our fabulous new furniture. It cost a pretty penny, but we all love it...

My first cherry pie

2011-06-13T07:37:00.001-04:00

I bought a bag of cherries for my son last week. Cherries are EXPENSIVE, so I was reluctant to purchase them. But Izzy insisted that he would eat them, so I relented. As expected, after a week in our fridge, he had only eaten a handful of cherries. My suzie homemaker attitude kicked in, and I decided to make a cherry pie...This was my first attempt at cherry pie, and it turned out perfect. We sliced it up, and placed a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top. DELICIOUS!

FIVE!

2011-06-12T07:12:00.001-04:00

We had Porgie's 5th birthday party last weekend. She is really into dinosaurs right now, so we had fish cupcakes for the carnivores and leaf cupcakes for the herbivores. Look at my awesome baking skills...

Now that everyone has seen my fabulous cupcakes, we can move on to the actual party. We started out in the backyard, digging for dinosaur bones in the sandbox. It was a little overcrowded, but the kids didn't seem to mind...

Then we played "pin the head on the dinosaur skeleton," which no-one seemed to care about. Porgie liked it though...

Next we had to "hatch" dinosaur eggs. Here is a pictures of my son "hatching" his egg. I put candy inside the balloons, so the kids LOVED this activity...

Then it was lunchtime, so we went inside for some yummy pizza and cake...
And last, but certainly not least, Porgie opened her presents...

And a good time was had by all.

Details

2011-06-09T21:54:00.001-04:00

For the past year, John and I have debated whether or not to have more children. Although I acted indifferent about the whole subject, I really REALLY wanted another baby. But I tend to worry about stupid things, like the size of our dinning room table and sleeping arrangements. I somehow turn all of these goofy little issues into BIG HUGE problems, which prevent me from taking action and making decisions. I am insane.

After talking about it for months, John and I started trying for baby # 3 in late October. I found out I was pregnant in December (right before our trip to Kentucky). I went to the OB and had every thing confirmed mid-January. Then the first trimester woes really kicked in, and I wasn't feeling too great. I wasn't nauseous this time around, but I was moody and tired 99% of the time. Everything felt overwhelming and exhausting - cooking dinner, playing with my children, blogging, getting dressed. I was pathetic, hence the reason for my writing hiatus.

I am due mid-August, so that makes me 30 weeks pregnant. This pregnancy has flown by at lightning quick speed, and I can hardly believe that I am so close to the end already. I am trying to savor the whole experience, because this will most likely be our last baby. Some days I sit on the couch for hours with my hands on my belly, feeling my little one kick and squirm around. Knowing that I might never experience it again is heartbreaking.

This time around we decided not to find out the sex of the baby. We have everything for a girl and everything for a boy, so we are well prepared in the clothes department. I didn't give away any of my baby stuff (exersaucer, swing, bouncy seat, etc), so we don't really have to invest any money in baby gear. The main thing I needed was a stroller (I sold my single stroller and bought a double stroller when Izzy was born). But my mother came to the rescue and bought me a Graco snap-n-go stroller. Really, I just need to buy some diapers and wipes, and we should be set!

I am, without a doubt, one of the luckiest people in the world. I feel so blessed to be able to have another baby. I can't wait to hold my sweet little babe in my arms. I can't wait to nurse my little one to sleep. I can't wait to experience the miracle of meeting this new little person that John and I created.

Birthday girl

2011-06-07T15:37:00.000-04:00

She is five today. My baby girl is five.

Hello world

2011-06-03T08:11:00.001-04:00

Remember me? I am that crazy woman who blogged constantly and then just fell off the face of the earth. I almost gave up blogging completely. My heart just wasn't in it anymore. Instead of being a calm and peaceful retreat, this online journal became an annoying and tedious chore. But try as I might, I just can't seem to say goodbye.

For months now, I have felt guilty about my lack of blogging. Honestly, I consider many of my readers friends. I know that some of you were worried about me and my family, so I just wanted to let everyone know that we are fine. Actually, we're better than fine. We're GREAT!

Lots has happened since we last talked. It is hard to put it all into words, so instead I'll let you take a sneak peek...

SERENITY NOW!

2011-02-23T22:02:00.000-05:00

I had pretty much the worst day EVER here in Cakerwakerville. My children decided to have a water fight in my daughter's carpeted bedroom at 7am while I was asleep. I woke up to this...

Porgie's floor was soaked from one end of the room to the other. I wanted to kill them. Water cups have officially been banned.

Random things

2011-02-21T22:23:00.000-05:00

My son keeps shitting in his underwear. I have no idea why he is has suddenly decided to be an ass. Actually, I do have a theory as to why he is pooping his pants. If my hunch is correct, he wants to wipe his own butt. After the THIRD pooping incident, I explained that he could wipe his own butt ONLY IF he pooped on the potty. Sometimes I think my son's sole mission in life is to drive me INSANE.
__________

It was sunny and beautiful last week. All of the snow melted, we played outside, and I started thinking about what I want to plant in our garden this year. And then mother nature bitch slapped me with snow. That is right, it is fucking snowing right now. I want to cry.
__________

My daughter is currently obsessed with the PBS show Super Why! She just can't seem to get enough. She calls herself Princess Pea, and she calls her brother Whyatt. She begs me to turn the show on every afternoon. Then she begs me to let her watch it on Netflix. It is a sickness.
__________

I have been eating way too much junk lately. Ugh. It started with my birthday. John got me one of those HUGE cookie cakes. Then I got a pound of butter creams for Valentine's day. Then I made those delicious lemon bars I posted about last week (in my defense, we had a bunch of lemons that were getting ready to go bad). And last Friday a good friend of mine baked me peanut butter brownies (a belated birthday gift). I have be eating all of this junk on a daily basis, and I can't stop. I have no will power when it comes to sweets.
__________

To balance my gorging on sugar, I bought the ingredients to make salad this week. Surprisingly I am looking forward to munching on veggies. Lets see how long that attitude lasts.

Defeated and depleted

2011-02-20T16:58:00.005-05:00

I couldn't believe it. This has never happened to me before. NEVER. My children don't need sleep...

There is actually a really long story that goes with this picture, but I'll shorten it for you. Izzy stayed up until 10pm, then got up at 6:30am (because he likes to torture me), and then refused his afternoon nap (once again, because he likes to torture me). I found him this way at 4pm, when he had completely run out of steam. The nap was short lived, and he was running around like a maniac by 5pm. But it was still sweet to find him unexpectedly conked out on the couch.

Vegan Lemon Bars and whatnot

2011-02-17T08:02:00.002-05:00

These lemon bars are sooooo delicious. They are time consuming and a pain in the ass to make, but they taste like little pieces of heaven right here on Earth.
__________

The weather has been amazing lately. The temperature has been slowly creeping up the thermometer, melting all this nasty snow. AND it is supposed to be 65 degrees on Friday. You have no idea how excited I am . We are going to play outside ALL day.
__________

I think I may have talked my husband into doing a little renovation project in the kitchen. Last night while bitching about doing the dishes, I proposed that we replace our counter top, purchase a smaller sink, and add a dishwasher. With the way our kitchen is currently arranged, the large double sink hinders our ability to add a dishwasher. The amazing part is that John actually wants to go to Lowes to price the supplies.
__________

I watched the documentary Waiting for "Superman" last night. It was a depressing film on the state of education in America. I actually grew up in a crappy neighborhood, with "failing" schools (according to the state test scores). And despite what many people on the film stated, I didn't feel cheated or robbed of my education. I graduated from a school in the ghetto, and I feel like I received a great education. I am just as smart as you. But I can also see how the system has failed others. Both of my brothers went to the same schools that I attended and both dropped out. My brothers are currently unemployed and living with my mother. Obviously something went wrong. Or maybe we place too much emphasis on the schools and not enough emphasis on the parents. I definitely think my mother's behavior directly impacted my brothers' education.
__________

I got Izzy's hair cut yesterday. He always looks so handsome right after a haircut. The best part was that I had a coupon for $4.99. Is that a cheap haircut or what?

Since when did toilet paper become fascinating?

2011-02-16T07:51:00.002-05:00

I was making dinner. My kids were being eerily quiet. This should have been my clue. Suddenly Izzy ran into the kitchen buck naked and asked for more flushable wipes. Since my son does not wipe his own ass, I knew this meant trouble. We walked back to the bathroom together, where I was greeted with an overflowing toilet and an empty container of flushable wipes.

Trying to remain calm, I took Izzy to the changing table to finish wiping him (obviously I couldn't put anything in the toilet). But his butt was clean. I said, "Izzy, did you poop in the toliet?" He responded with, "No." WHAT? I wanted to scream. I said, "Then why did you put all those wipes in the toilet?" My child stared at me with a blank expression.

I returned to the stove and turned the food off, and then I made my way back to the bathroom. I plunged the damn toilet for nearly 30 minutes. NOTHING HAPPENED. I don't know if you remember, but we only have one bathroom. I started to panic. I called John at work to ask if he wanted me to call a plumber. John said no and that he would be home soon.

Thirty minutes later my husband arrived home to snake the toilet. He retrieve a HUGE wad of flushable wipes. We both scolded Izzy and told him how upset we were. However within the hour, my little boy was in the bathroom playing with the roll of toilet paper. According to him, he was merely blowing his nose. Yeah right!

So, we had to lock Izzy out of the bathroom. That is right - my son now has to ask for permission to get into the bathroom. There is never a dull moment around here. NEVER.

Bread woes

2011-02-14T07:57:00.002-05:00

As I mentioned several weeks ago, I bought a bread machine off of Craigslist. A very nice woman sold me the machine for a mere $20. And she even gave me the instruction manual, which was packed full of yummy bread recipes. I was super duper excited. I raced home and promptly started baking some bread.

My first loaf turned out okay. It was a little burnt on the sides and was slightly too tall for our sandwiches, but I thought the bread tasted okay. John, on the other hand, was disappointed. He lamented that it didn't taste as good as my regular bread. I rolled my eyes. WHATEVER.

So, I made another batch of bread last night. I decided to use a recipe from the instruction manual, hoping for better results. Unfortunately, the bread was a disaster. For some reason, the entire center caved in. I was pretty pissed.

I am giving the bread machine one more chance. I have printed out a new recipe, which I am going to try this afternoon. If the recipe flops, I think I'll just resale the damn machine on Craigslist.

Update on the family

2011-02-12T12:56:00.001-05:00

So I thought I would update you on the family. My mother seems to be back to her old self again, which is great. However, she wouldn't tell me if she was on death's door. My grandmother was released from the hospital last week. She is currently staying with my cousin. I've only talked to her once, but from what I can gather, she hates the physical therapist who has been visiting her at home. So, things are headed in the right direction.

Now, lets talk about me. I am not really sure what the deal is, but I have been getting some HORRIBLE stomach pains. It started last week after lunch. It was almost like a churning sensation, that went from my bellybutton to my ribcage. It was unbearable and agonizing. Last night I woke up at 2am, with that same horrible pain. The only thing that helped alleviate the pain was sitting upright. I googled my symptoms this morning and according the internet, I either have a stomach ulcer or acid reflux. I've had heartburn before, I was was quick to dismiss the acid reflux. However, I do find it strange that the pain went away when I sat upright in bed.

Anyways, I guess I need to make an appointment to see my doctor. Any guesses as to what you think it could be? And just so you know, I've already had my gallbladder removed, so I know that is not the problem.

In my closet

2011-02-10T07:32:00.002-05:00

Do you ever look around your house, and wonder how in the hell you have accumulated so many material possessions? My house is so small and so cluttered. I opened up my linen closet today and took a step back. The top shelf held toilet paper. The next 3 shelves housed towels and rags. The last shelf was a hodgepodge of cleaners, soaps, shampoos, etc. But the floor? HOLY CRAP. I have no idea what happened. The floor was covered in junk. I spotted a toaster oven, a fancy pasta container, 2 watering cans, a shit load of batteries, numerous light-bulbs, and 500 plastic grocery store bags. WHAT THE FUCK?

I tried to sort through the junk, but it was so hard. All of that crap ended up on the floor of the linen closet for a reason - there is just no place to put it! So, I gave the toaster oven away and donated the pasta container to the Goodwill. Then I went to target and bought some cute little green baskets. It is my hope that I can organize all of my stuff into these cute little green baskets, thus eliminating this mess in my life. Now I just need to sit down and actually DO IT.

Next up is my bedroom. Whenever I can't find a spot for something useless (probably an indication that I should just throw it away), I toss it into my bedroom. It is clutter central in my house. Ugh.

STOP CALLING ME MOMMY!

2011-02-08T08:16:00.004-05:00

We were driving down the road, and my daughter started her usual chatter. Except she has introduced a new element lately, which entails her saying my name A LOT, but never actually asking me anything. OH MY GOD, it is so frustrating. And annoying.

Porgie - "Mommy? Mommy? Mommy?"
Me - "What?"
Porgie - "Ummm...Ummm...Mommy?"
Me- "What?"
Porgie - "Ummm..."

We drive in silence for 30 seconds.

Porgie - "Mommy?"
Me - "WHAT?"
Porgie - "Ummm...Mommy?"
Me - "STOP CALLING ME MOMMY! IF YOU HAVE A QUESTION, JUST ASK ME! DO NOT SAY MOMMY!"

We drive in silence for 20 seconds.

Porgie - "Mommy?"

AHHHHHHH! Kids drive me insane!

Breaking out of my trance

2011-02-07T08:04:00.003-05:00

I go through periods where I sit around the house, doing nothing productive for months on end. Then one morning I wake up and want to get something done. I have entered a "let's get some shit done around here" phase.

My birthday is this weekend, and I have decreed that I would like John to paint Porgie's room as my present. I painted all the interior doors, the livingroom, the dinning room, the hallway, and the bathroom within the last two year. It is John's turn. Actually, he was the one who originally painted Porgie's room (and he didn't do a very good job). There are thin spots EVERYWHERE, because apparently my husband does not believe in second coats. I am actually making this really easy on him, because I want her room to be painted the same exact color. However, I want an eggshell finish (it is currently a flat paint - which has greasy finger prints everywhere) and I don't want any thin spots. Since this is my gift, I intend to inspect his work and give feedback where needed. It should be fun (NOT).

I am also sick and tired of our coat closet. Shoes are everywhere. We have a shoe hanger thingie, but it filled up so fast, that the rest of the shoes just got thrown on the closet floor. I am investing in shoe hangers for Porgie and Izzy's closets. I am going to get this shoe situation under control if it is the last thing I do!

And the final item on my list is light fixtures. I want ceiling fans installed in both kids rooms. Then, I want the light fixture from Porgie's room to replace our current bathroom light fixture. And finally, I want vanity lights install over our bathroom mirror.

Every single item on my list is going to cost money, which really sucks for a family trying to pay down debt and live frugally. But I am forging ahead with my plans anyways. I want to see some changes around this place!

Things in my world

2011-02-04T08:00:00.000-05:00

I had my teeth cleaned yesterday. I thought I was doing a really good job caring for my teeth, but apparently I am lacking in my brushing skills. It felt like the hygienist lady was tearing my gums apart. AWFUL. The worst part is that I had my last Ortho appintment on Tuesday, so my teeth were super sore and sensitive. It was just an all around bad experience. Note to self: Do not schedule two dental appointments in the same week.
__________

I have been working on a blanket for one of my pregnant friends for about 3-4 months. For some reason, this project is taking me FOREVER to complete. Even John has commented on how he never wants to look at the blanket again. I couldn't agree more. After I finish this project, I am hanging up my crocheting needles for a while. Several people I know are currently pregnant, so technically I should be crocheting more than ever. But I think I am going to take the easy route and just buy them something from the store.
__________

My daughter is going through a super annoying phase right now. For some reason, she keeps getting up between 5am and 6 am. WHY? No one knows. I think John is waking her up while he getting ready for work. And instead of going back to sleep (like she has done for the past 4 years), she is just starting the day really really really early. It wouldn't be so bad if she just played quietly in her room. But noooooo - she has to be an ass. She keeps opening and closing her bedroom door repeatedly. She doesn't actually go out of her room. She just opens the fucking door 200 times per minute. Yesterday I lost my cool and ended up yelling at her at 5:45am. Not fun. I am thinking about buying her a digital clock, and telling her that if the first number is a 4, 5 or 6 she has to stay in bed. She can only get up if the number is a 7 or 8. It probably won't work, but I've got to try something.
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John and I have been talking more and more about refinishing our basement. We don't really have the money right now, but after we pay off our home equity loan I think we'll be able to swing it. Honestly, I don't really care about the extra space. I really just want a second bathroom. We have one bathroom. ONE! I can't take it anymore. I need another bathroom.
___________

We finally got rid of cable. It is strange, because we never watched TV when we had cable. But ever since it was turned off, I have become obsessed with Television. Now I find myself watching cooking shows on PBS and reruns of All in the Family. Why do we always want what we can't have?

Igloo

2011-02-02T08:01:00.001-05:00

We have gotten a lot of snow this winter. A LOT OF SNOW. So, my husband built the kids an igloo...He spent about 2 hours constructing the igloo, and then about 30 minutes yelling at the kids to play in the damn thing. Fun times, fun times.

Lately

2011-02-01T07:54:00.000-05:00

Lately, I have been eating too much. Ice cream anyone?

Lately, I never feel like cleaning or cooking or tending to my children. The laundry is overwhelming.

Lately, I have been having trouble falling asleep at night. Bedtime is just an excuse to stare at the ceiling for 2 hours.

Lately, I have been avoiding my friends. There is no real reason for this. I just don't want to talk to anyone.

I can't wait until this month, this weather, this feeling passes. I am longing for change. Especially change in the form of sunshine and grass. That damn groundhog better have good news tomorrow.

2011 isn't panning out the way I had hoped

2011-01-31T08:05:00.001-05:00

You are never going to believe this, but my mother was admitted to the hospital on Saturday. The same hospital where my grandmother is currently residing. What is up with my family?

Apparently my mother has been sick for the past week. On top of that, she kept having sharp pains in her left ribcage. When the pain became too much, she went to the ER. After an EKG and some blood work, she was admitted to the hospital. I called and talked to her, but it was hard to get any solid facts out of her. She keep downplaying the entire episode, acting like the doctors were crazy. I think she just didn't want me to worry. But, of course, I am worried. My mom has had a hard life. She has never taken care of herself, and it is definitely showing as she ages. The thing that worries me the most is that her father died at age 50 from a heart attack. When you point this out to her, my mother acts like you are being ridiculous. This fact terrifies me. I wish it had the same effect on my mother (because then maybe she would take better care of herself).

Now I am feeling doubly guilty about not being in Kentucky. But I can't go. I just can't. We have several doctor appointments coming up, I don't have the money to travel right now, and on top of that, I am fucking sick again. Can you believe that shit? I started feeling better on Friday. I felt pretty good on Saturday. Sunday morning I was back to my old self again. But by Sunday evening I was miserable. I currently have a nasty sore throat, and my head feels like it weighs about 400 pounds. I am so over winter.

So, I am worried about my mom, I am worried about my grandma, and I am tired of being sick.

Getting back to life

2011-01-28T08:02:00.000-05:00

I have just suffered through one of the worst colds I have had in years. I felt like crap for days and days and days. I had a sore throat, a runny nose, the worst throbbing heachache, and the leakiest eyes EVER. My whole body hurt, and I was overwhelming tired during the majority of the day. This resulted in lots of "resting" on the couch, while my children tortured me. I wish I could have convinced Porgie and Izzy of how horrible I felt, because they had no sympathy for me. It was a rough couple of days. The good news is that I feel slightly better today.

I was a complete slacker this week. John had to do the laundry. I canceled EVERY SINGLE outing we had planned. I avoided the phone. I didn't clean the living room or play room. I am usually the type of person who will trudge forward, regardless of how shitty I feel. But this time, I took some much needed time off from my regular duties. It also helped that we had another HUGE snow storm (we got 14.9 inches on Wednesday night). It was the perfect excuse to stay at home in my jammies.

This weekend we have a birthday party to attend, I am buying a bread machine from a lady on Craig's list (get ready for lots of bread related blogging!), and I am going to clean my nasty house. And we now return to our regularly scheduled programs.

Things

2011-01-24T14:11:00.002-05:00

* Grandma has agreed to a three week stay in the hospital for rehabilitation. At first she was refusing physical therapy. Why are old people so stubborn and ridiculous?

* I have a cold. My throat hurts, and I have a runny nose.

* John and I celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary on Friday. We went out to dinner and ordered an appetizer and dessert! We haven't done that in FOREVER. It felt frivolous and wasteful to spend so much money on food, but it also felt really good to order whatever we wanted.

* I took the kids to the Please Touch Museum last week. SO MUCH FUN!

* Our washing machine was repaired today - to the tune of $200. So in case you are wondering, over the past week we have spent nearly $700 repairing broken crap around here. Our budget has been shot to hell.

* It is cold as a bitch in NJ. The high today is 19 degrees. Brrrrr!

* I skipped storytime this week. I just could not muster the strength to bundle up both kids on a frigid Monday morning to listen to a story. Instead, I baked some bread, folded some laundry, and cleaned the bathroom. It was surprisingly refreshing to just stay home.

* I baked some pumpkin cookies. They turned out very cake-like, but they were still yummy. I also made vanilla cupcakes with chocolate icing. And then John bought me some butter-creams for our anniversary. I can feel myself getting fatter right this very instant.

I want to kick someone in the head and scream at the top of my lungs

2011-01-21T19:50:00.003-05:00

This week has been a NIGHTMARE. My grandma broke her hip, our internet router died, I had to have the brakes replaced on my van, and now my fucking washing machine is full of water and refuses to spin/drain/stop buzzing. What the fuck world? WHAT THE FUCK?

Granny update

2011-01-19T07:55:00.001-05:00

My grandma's surgery went well. What a huge relief! I get unusually nervous about general anesthesia, and I am not really sure why. But anyways, everything looks great for my granny. The doctor thinks that she will be up on her legs (for short periods of time) by Thursday or Friday! I had no idea that she would be attempting to walk so soon after surgery. Needless to say, I am happy and relieved.

This has been a crazy week, and I have been feeling exceptionally drained. I actually fell asleep while the kids were napping on Tuesday afternoon. I haven't done that in YEARS. I thought I would be wide awake all night as a result, but surprisingly, I went right to sleep. I guess I have been stressing myself out, and my body just needed to recover. Anyways, I am feeling better today, which is good because I have million things to do.

On a completely unrelated topic, today marks 4 full years of blogging. I honestly can't believe I have been writing in this little space for so damn long! It is oddly therapeutic. Usually I devote a whole post to my anniversary, but this year I am just not feeling it. I am still writing, hope you're still reading, yadda yadda yadda.

Peace out homies!

Grandma

2011-01-18T06:10:00.003-05:00

My grandma fell and broke her hip yesterday morning. She was walking out of the local bakery and just fell. There was no ice or snow, and she didn't trip over anything. She hit the concrete hard and was in a lot of pain. Despite her complete inability to get back up, she begged my aunt not to call an ambulance (because my grandmother has never willingly gone to the hospital in her life). Thankfully, my aunt called 911 anyways. At the ER they confirmed that she had broke her hip. She was admitted to the hospital and is now awaiting surgery. Oddly enough, they do not think that the fall broke her hip. Instead, they said that her hip most likely broke while she was walking, which caused her to fall.

This is pretty much the worst thing that could have happened to my granny. She is fiercely independent, so requiring help from others will be extremely hard for her. My mother is already talking about putting her in a convalescent home while she recovers, and I can't even bear the thought. My grandma will be completely and totally devastated in that environment.

I feel so helpless and so far away. There would not be much I could do even if I still lived in Kentucky. But I could be physically present, offering her a helping hand. And I am not. The whole situation makes me overwhelmingly sad.

Target Chronicles

2011-01-17T08:10:00.000-05:00

Relationships are hard. John and I have been together as a couple for 13 years. We have been married for 6 years. Yet somehow, we still find ways to completely annoy each other.

John and I had a huge fight at Target on Sunday. You see, my husband is an asshole. Of course you're only getting my version of events, but trust me - he is an asshole. When I go shopping with the kids, I have rules. Rule # 1 is that the children must stay in the cart. This story starts out with a complete disregard for rule # 1, and therefore, the trip to Target was horrible. Thanks to my husband.

We walked in the door, grabbed one of those HUGE carts that can accommodate about 4 children, and then walked up the isle. Porgie's harness was broken, so John mindlessly told her she didn't have to ride in the cart. Before she hopped down, I told her that daddy was wrong and that she needed to stay in the cart. She told me, "NO!" (with lots of attitude) and got down. This blatant disregard for my opinion really pissed me off. When I tried to correct her behavior, John kept interrupting me, pointlessly explaining why Porgie could get out of the cart. By this point, it was no longer about breaking rule # 1 (although is does annoy me, because when John doesn't make them follow the rules, then our next trip to the store is HORRIBLE because no one wants to follow the rules!). I was now pissed about my daughter's attitude and my husband defense of her attitude.

After making asses out of ourselves (i.e. yelling at one another in the middle of the store), we angrily stormed off in different directions. I took Izzy, who was still strapped into the cart, and John took Porgie. We met up later in the shopping trip, and I am happy to report that Izzy was doing an excellent job. Porgie, on the other hand, was running around like a demented monkey. I felt justified for being a bitch about this whole issue. Kid in the cart = good. Kid running around = very, very bad.

Eventually, I had to put my daughter back in the cart to regain control of the situation, because my husband is a stubborn jerk who refuses to admit when he is wrong. The rest of the day was spent being angry with one another. Let me just say that Monday has never been so anticipated in all of my life.

Mood: Blah

2011-01-14T06:04:00.000-05:00

Gosh, I suck at this whole blogging thing. I promised myself that I would blog M-F this week, yet somehow I completely missed Wednesday. Darn! I blame the weather. I have been in a mood lately. Not a mean, nasty mood or a depressed, melancholy mood - just a general feeling of BLAH. It is infecting every area of my life. Do you want to go to the Target? Blah. Do you want to talk to you mother on the phone? Blah. Do you want to play in the snow with your children? Blah. You get the idea. Nothing sounds fun or interesting or even remotely engaging.

To break up all this blahness, here are some random facts for little old you...

* My children won't nap anymore. Ever since our trip to Kentucky, they just party during nap time. I have mixed feelings about this.

* For the life of me, I cannot stay on top of the fucking laundry. It has gotten to the point where I am considering buying new clothes instead of washing the ones we currently own.

* I ate an entire pint of Ben & Jerry's the other night. THE WHOLE PINT! I thought it would make me happy, but instead I just felt horrible about lack of willpower.

* My husband had to work late on the one night he is responsible for cooking dinner. You have no idea how much this annoyed me. What are the odds? Why does the world always conspire against me?

Shitty morning

2011-01-12T07:41:00.000-05:00

You know, you can never win a battle with children. They are evil little creatures, who know exactly how to make your life miserable. I think I mentioned a few weeks ago that I stopped buying nighttime diapers, only to find myself changing wet sheet EVERY SINGLE MORNING. Izzy just wasn't ready. So we switched to pull-ups at night and life has been fairly peaceful ever since.

This morning I went into Izzy's room to inform him that it was time to get up. Just so you fully understand, he wasn't asleep. He was just playing in his room because I had not given him permission to open his bedroom door yet. You read that correctly. My children are not allowed out of their rooms until I say so. The last thing I need is children running around my house at six o'clock in the morning.

When I opened his door, he said, "Me pooped."

I said, "WHAT?!?"

He said, "Me pooped."

I picked him up and put him on the changing table. Holy crap! He had taken the world's largest poop in his pull-up (which he has never done before. NEVER.) It was everywhere - in his diaper, up his back, and down his legs. It was, without a doubt, one of the grossest things I have ever experienced. He is way too big to be pooping in his pull-up.

Now I am left reconsidering my entire routine. Maybe the kids should be allowed out of their rooms in the mornings? All I know is that I don't want to start my morning with shit again. EVER.

Burrito Memories

2011-01-11T07:07:00.000-05:00

When Izzy was a baby, he had lots of GI problems. As a result, I was on a severely restricted diet (because of breastfeeding). There was very little that I could eat, and the few things that I could eat were bland and boring. But then I discovered Amy's burritos. I fell in love. So tasty! So healthy! So easy! I ate them weekly for the next YEAR that I nursed Izzy.

After Izzy's tummy troubles subsided, I started eating normal food again. Amy's burritos were too expensive, and I stopped buying them. Yesterday I was at the grocery store, and I seen a black bean burrito. I couldn't resist. I plunked two of those bad boys in my cart. While we were paying for our groceries, Izzy started crying for a burrito. Although he had never eaten an Amy's burrito before, I decided that I would share my lunch with him.

When we got home, Izzy asked me to make the burritos. And then my son proceeded to eat an entire burritos by himself! He kept telling me how yummy it was, while licking his chubby little fingers. Could be possibly remember the taste from my breast milk? You have no idea how much he delighted in those burritos. It was bizarre and adorable, all at the same time.

The bird

2011-01-10T07:46:00.000-05:00

So, it snowed again. Gah! I used to freaking love the snow, but now? Not so much. Snow means we have to stay home. Snow means that my kids want to go outside in the freezing weather every 20 minutes. Snow means too much clothing - boots, coats, gloves, scarves, hats, etc. I think it is official. I am no longer a winter person. I prefer the fall now. Isn't it strange how kids change your entire way of thinking - even your likes and dislikes? So, this weekend was boring. And this week is probably going to be boring too. Fucking stupid winter.

Now lets get to the real reason for this post...
Is it just me, or is Hello Kitty flipping me off?

FREE

2011-01-07T14:55:00.003-05:00

The Please Touch Museum of Philadelphia is hosting another free blogger day. If you live in the area, it is a great (FREE) opportunity to go explore the museum.

Please Join Us for Bloggers Day at Please Touch Museum!

Friday, January 21, at 10 a.m.

Bring the kids and join us for Bloggers Day at Please Touch Museum! You’re invited to a sneak preview of our newest traveling exhibit, Access/ABILITY, a disability awareness exhibit developed by Boston Children’s Museum. We’ll also have information about our slate of 2011 programming, including our new Wellness Mamma program for new moms, the next season of You & Me Playdates, April’s Celebrate Stories month, and the return of the Junior Jazz Festival in May!

Please RSVP by Wednesday, January 19 to fluzi@pleasetouchmuseum.org or call 215-581-3171

Reward Chart

2011-01-05T07:53:00.003-05:00

Kids are tough. Especially little boys named Izzy who happen to live in my house. My son is a willful child. And when he decides that he doesn't like something, well, you better watch out. He recently decided that bedtime was for losers. In a matter of weeks, he turned our fabulous night-time routine into a horrible nightmare. The kid has a knack for pushing my buttons (especially at bedtime).

Basically, Izzy started dragging out the entire bedtime routine. I would have to ask him 200 times to use the potty. He would fight me while I attempted to brush his teeth (I say attempted, because I am not sure the toothbrush ever touched his teeth). It would take him approximately 2 hours to put on his pajamas. When asked to climb into bed, he would scream and cry for "1 more minute!" This whole routine was beyond frustrating.

I decided to introduce a reward chart into the scenario, in the hopes that Izzy would stop his ridiculous behavior. The rules were simple. If the kids did everything (pee on the potty, brush their teeth, and get into their pajamas) the first time they were asked, then they would get a sticker. When they get 10 stickers, we will go out for ice cream.

The first nap-time was a dream. Both of the kids were sooooo good. I was impressed and super proud of myself for being such an awesome mom. But then bedtime rolled around. Holy crap. Izzy was awful. I had to ask him 5 times to pee on the potty, threatening to not give him a sticker the entire time (I don't know why I gave him so many chances. I guess I just wanted him to be successful.). Then he was being difficult while I was brushing his teeth. And finally, he refused to put on his pajamas. The sticker was gone. But the truly horrible part (for Izzy), was that Porgie got her sticker. Oh the torture! He apologized. He screamed. He threw his body on the floor, kicked his feet, and sobbed. He was so hysterical that John had to take him to his room for a time-out.

I am not entirely sure that Izzy understands the reward chart, but I know, without a doubt, that he regrets not getting that sticker. I have my fingers crossed that he will earn that sticker tonight:)

Christmas Cookies

2011-01-04T07:53:00.002-05:00

Because I have assumed the role of Suzie Homemaker, I decided to bake all of my neighbors cookies this year. I baked everything one Saturday morning, and I delivered them that evening. Honestly, it felt good to do something nice and unexpected for other people. And almost everyone invited us inside, so it was fun chatting and getting up-to-date on all the neighborhood gossip:)

Below is the cookie line-up. Everything turned out GREAT. Seriously, almost every batch was perfect. I was super proud of my awesome baking skills...

Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies

Santa Whiskers

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies

Cherry Almond Cookies

Magical Coconut Bars

I divided the cookies up onto 9 plates...

Then I wrapped them in plastic wrap and tied them with a ribbon. Easy peezy...

Breaking Routine

2011-01-03T07:32:00.001-05:00

I like routine. I like things to be the same. So big events, like traveling to Kentucky, can really throw me for a loop. Last week, even after we unpacked all of our stuff, I still felt completely off-kilter. John was on vacation, the house was a wreck, and my children seemed to be in the worst moods EVER. By Sunday evening, I couldn't wait for Monday morning to arrive.

Monday morning meant that life would finally return to a normal state of affairs. Don't get me wrong, I love spending time with my family and having lazy days at home with my husabnd. But I also love my routine. Although I would like to tell you that we are sticking close to home today, we are starting a new class at the local nature center. I was thinking of skipping this first class, but I know that the kids will love it, so we are going.

However, on Tuesday, we are totally getting back to our routine. AND I CAN'T WAIT!

Reviewing stuff

2011-01-02T20:44:00.004-05:00

CSN has once again contacted me to review a product from their website. I was so happy with my cast iron bread pan, how could I refuse? In case you haven't heard, CSN is an online store where you can find lots of cool stuff. Whether you need a cute leather briefcase or a fabulous new diaper bag, CSN has it. I have been browsing their site, and I am leaning heavily toward purchasing a cast iron muffin tin. But I am the indecisive type, so you never know. Check back soon to see what I choose and how it measures up:)

2010 can take a hike

2010-12-31T07:40:00.002-05:00

I have mixed feelings about 2010. Nothing horribly tragic happened, but the year wasn't all that great either.

Bad things included:
* I was forced to live like a poor person to pay off debt.
* I had 4 teeth pulled (ouch!).
* I was plagued with multiple yeast infections (yuck).
* A tree fell over in my front yard (thanks mother nature).
* Our cat died.
* I was in a car accident.

Good things included:
* No-one died (except the cat).
* My house didn't burn down.
* We had food to eat.

Needless to say, I am ready to say goodbye to 2010, and I am eagerly looking forward to 2011.

Did you miss me?

2010-12-30T18:43:00.001-05:00

Damn, I feel like I haven't blogged in FOREVER. Well, Christmas was good. No one got sick, the children slept through the night, we got to visit family, yadda, yadda, yadda. But I am soooo glad to be home. Nothing fills my heart with more joy than sitting on my own couch, eating my own food, and watching my own television.

John is on vacation for the remainder of the week, so he will be doing lots of work around the house. I am working hard to get the kids back on a regular schedule. I am also trying to stop eating like a pig. Being around my family brings out my worst eating habits, and it is hard to rein myself back in. I literally gained 7 pounds during our trip! That is a fucking pound a day! Ugh. Now I just feel bloated and fat and disgusting.

Thanks to my lovely family, our house is now overflowing with brightly colored plastic crap. We have toys coming out the wazoo! It is ridiculous. I have an overwhelming urge to throw half of the objects in our house away. Everything feels so cluttered and messy.

Anyways, I hope to get back into the swing of things over the next few days. I am glad to be back!

To: You From: Me

2010-12-17T08:16:00.001-05:00

Dear Internets,
I seem to have too much stuff to do lately, and I have been neglecting my beloved blog. Sorry friends. I am baking my neighbors cookies this weekend. We have a Christmas party to attend on Saturday. I have a million last minute errands to run for our upcoming road trip. I need to wrap all of our gifts. I really want to clean the house thoroughly before we go to Kentucky. And we are leaving in less than 5 days. So, I think this will be my last post for a while. I hope you have a very merry Christmas. I will miss you and think about you constantly.
Love,
Christy

Just in time for the holidays!

2010-12-15T06:10:00.001-05:00

Things that have been pissing me off lately...

1. Insomnia. For the love of God, why can't I turn my fucking brain off?
2. Children. Why are they so whiny and needy and demanding?
3. Cold weather. I usually like the winter, but I have to admit, the cold weather has been kicking my ass lately. I sleep covered with two or three quilts every night, and it isn't even officially winter yet. What the fuck mother nature?
4. Domesticated animals. Why did I ever think it was a good idea to bring cats and dogs into my home? Never again internet. Never again.
5. Food. Why do I love food so damn much? I think about cookies and brownies and cupcakes ALL DAY long.

What is pissing you off?

The accident from HELL

2010-12-13T20:39:00.003-05:00

I have really bad luck. My car was in the auto body shop for a month. A FREAKING MONTH. The damage to my car was pretty extensive, but I never thought it would take 29 whole days to fix it. I am lucky that the insurance company paid for my rental, otherwise, we would have been screwed. There is no way we could afford to pay for a rental van for an entire month.

Last Thursday, the body shop called to let me know that my van would FINALLY be ready for pick-up on Friday. I honestly felt relieved. Although I love driving the new minivan, I just wanted to get my life back to normal, and have this whole accident fiasco behind me. On Friday, I waited and waited and waited for the shop to call. They never did. Finally, at 5:30pm I called them. No-one answered, so I left a message for them to call me back. About an hour later, the manager of the shop called to tell me that my van's exterior was completely fixed, but for some unknown reason, it wouldn't start.

Honestly, I felt like crying. WHY? Why can't anything ever be easy? He went on to tell me that it sounds like my van's "smart box" went bad, which is apparently the van's computer system. The auto body guy told me that he would call be back in the morning with more information.

On Saturday morning, the auto body guy called again. He wanted to let me know that my van still wouldn't start, but that it might just be my battery. They wanted to unplug it for a full 24 hours, because apparently that would solve the problem? Honestly, I had no idea what the dude was talking about. He told me he would call me back on Monday.

Monday rolled around, and once again I waited and waited and waited for a call. Finally, at almost 5pm, the manager called to tell me that my van was up and running again. AWESOME. I went over to pick up my van (it was pitch black outside, so I couldn't inspect the work that was performed) and returned the rental. When I got home, I parked under the security lights on the side of our house and looked at the finished product. Something caught my eye. The paint was scratched on the back (near where you fill the car with gas). I went inside and got John. We were both pretty pissed. I took the van back to the body shop. The manager was baffled. He kept trying to blame it on the gas attendant who had filled up my tank right after I left the shop. I assured him that there was no way in hell that the gas guy fucked up my van.

They took the van back and then happily called me back to look at the damage. It was gone! WHAT THE FUCK? It turns out that is wasn't a scratch after all. It was just a large portion of wax that had frozen while I was driving it home. Apparently it wiped right off. I felt like an ass, but was glad that it could be so easily fixed.

I am eager to see my van in the daylight tomorrow. Hopefully it will look fabulous. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

A weekend filled with baking...

2010-12-13T06:58:00.000-05:00

Peanut Butter Crisscross Cookies...

Banana Bread...

Eggnog Muffins with Boozy Raisins...

Next up, Cowboy Cookies!

Cast Iron Bread Pan!

2010-12-11T08:03:00.004-05:00

After CSN contacted me to review a product, I decided that I wanted to purchase a cast iron bread pan. BUT, they were sold out of their cast iron bread pans. I had to wait several weeks before they restocked. A few days ago, my lovely pan finally arrived...

I know you'll probably think I am a little crazy, but I really don't like to use non-stick cookware. The coating can flake off and get into your food. I don’t like the idea of my family eating chemicals that have rubbed off of a pan. I have also read that nonstick coatings emit toxic fumes when they are overheated. And who really knows the long-term effects of breathing in these gases? So, I like to play it safe with my family and only use cast iron cookware. Well, that isn't entirely true. I have a few nonstick items left in my kitchen - my bread pan, cake pans, and cookie sheets.

For a few months, I was searching high and low for a cast iron bread pan. My search would have been much easier if I had looked online, but cast iron is heavy, and I didn't want to pay for the shipping cost. Although I didn't find a cast iron bread pan at a local store, I did find a few very nice glass bread pans. But before I could make a purchase, CSN invited me to select a product from their store. So, now I have my coveted cast iron bread pan (and I didn't pay a penny for it!).

Basically, this pan baked my bread EXACTLY like my non-stick pan. The bread tasted fabulous. And the best part is that this pan will last a lifetime. I'll never have to replace it because of a damaged nonstick coating.

So, if you are looking for a quality bread pan, look no further.

P.S. Marni is hosting a $75 CSN giveaway right now. You could buy so much stuff with $75! Go enter NOW!

Homemade ornaments!

2010-12-10T06:47:00.003-05:00

I baked some Christmas ornaments! It was super easy and the kids had a blast painting them. We put some of them on our tree, but most will be given to family members this Christmas...
Craft Salt Dough Recipe

1 cup salt
2 cups flour
1 cup water
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

* Mix the flour and salt in a large bowl. Then add the water and oil to the mixture. Mix together until it forms a ball. Knead dough (like you're making bread) before rolling.
* Roll out the dough and press into shapes (I used Christmas cookie cutters), keeping the dough thick enough to be sturdy (slightly thicker than an actual cookie).
* Before baking the ornaments, be sure to poke a hole in the top of each ornament with a toothpick.
* Bake @ 250 degrees for about 2 hours (check occasionally).
* Cool baked dough ornaments. Paint or decorate as desired.

Cookies!!!

2010-12-09T06:56:00.004-05:00

When I was ordering Christmas presents from Amazon last week, I bought myself a little treat too. Since I earned nearly all of the Swagbucks money, I felt completely justified in giving myself an early Christmas gift...
The book arrived yesterday afternoon, and I nearly peed my pants from the excitement. Isa Chandra Moskowitz is my most favorite cookbook author. Some vegan cookbooks feel the need to make everything (even desserts) super healthy. That is great and everything, but sometimes I just want a delicious, rich, loaded with calories and fat type of dessert. And Moskowitz completely understands this. She NEVER compromises the flavor or texture of her recipes. They may not be healthy, but they sure do taste scrumptious! I am not exaggerating when I say that I love nearly every cake, cookie, and muffin recipe she has ever published.

So, needless to say, I baked a patch of cookies last night. These are called Banana Everything Cookies. They have bananas, rolled oats, walnuts, and chocolate chips. And in true fashion, they were delicious...

Because I am addicted to sugar (and baking!), I am planning on making a special trip to Whole Foods for some key ingredients I am missing. Be expecting lots of new cookie posts in the near future!

Small vs Big

2010-12-08T06:53:00.004-05:00

My neighbors have a brand spanking new baby. I stopped over to drop off a gift on Saturday, and the baby was awake, so I got to see him. Oh my goodness, he was the cutest little thing I have seen in ages. I always forget how small babies are. He was a big, healthy 8 pound baby, but he looked itty bitty to me. His little feet were so tiny!

Then I came back home to my ginormous, talkative, super excited children. That really drove home how far we've come from the newborns days. And honestly, I am not sure I miss those days. Of course, a precious little baby is amazing. Truly, they are so beautiful and perfect and small. I love that! But new babies also cry a lot. And poop in their pants. And nurse approximately every 20 minutes. Older kids are definitely easier to manage. My kids can poop on the potty. They can dress themselves. They can feed themselves. They can express their needs without crying. It is really quite nice.

So although I have an overwhelming urge to cuddle my neighbors' new baby, I am also thankful for my big kids and all of their amazing self-help skills.