Couple o' things

Nattie had her 2nd dentist visit this morning. Jame got very brave and took her to help me out. She did well with the hygienist but apparently was not too excited for the dentist to have a look. I am proud of her for being such a good sport. I'm sure the goody bag that they give you afterward was a powerful incentive.

My basil has sprouted in my starter pots. I am beyond excited and can't wait til I can actually eat some :)

I finally got some stuff put up on Patrick's walls over the weekend. Pictures to come!

Work is the pits BUT I have only got 20 more working days max til I am outta here! Now, if someone could please help me figure out my short term disability paperwork....

More to come about the weekend and my bday and other random stuff ;)

Updates Part II

On Tuesday I had my 35w OB appt. I'm good, BP up a bit but still very healthy. Patricks heartrate was still lovely. He's definitely head down (which I knew but will save the details of how) and I don't have to go back for 2.5 weeks. :) I may have to stop eating like a total glutton and give the last few lbs to Patrick. The jury is still out since I have the rest of my life to diet. Must debate the possibility of too much sugar creating a toddler sized infant to push out vs enjoying hostess for a few remaining weeks!

And preschool drop off seems to have been resolved. Nattie couldn't bring her morning snack into Shema's room (toddler drop off) because someone had an allergy. However, she can bring snacks into Jennifer's room (preschool drop off) due to no allergy. This has apparently made all the difference and she now gets very excited about which snacky thing she will bring into Jennifer's room every morning. On Monday & Tues she chose cheddar bunnies, yesterday was Ritz crackers and today pretzels. Jennifer probably thinks I'm insane but I don't care as long as I don't have to clean boogers & spit off a tantruming child at 6:50am.

Last but not least - the mixed blessing aka the Stimulus Package. In case anyone following this blog wants to know where their money is being spent. Lots and lots is apparently going to NIH. I fully expect the busiest month of my Grants Administration career will be the last before my maternity leave. So, stress will be high...I will be exhausted...and hopefully the jerk PhD's that I work with will get some of this funding and cure cancer once & for all. Job security? Definitely. Insanity? For sure! Guess I'd better get this posted so that I can get back to it!

Updates Part I

The weekend.... On Friday Nattie & Jame made the best trip of the week to pick up Chinese take-out. Nattie loves to go in the truck with Jame & Kaylie and especially that the door at the restaurant goes "BING". She is discovering that she prefers white rice, sweet & sour chicken, and crab rangoons. Saturday I got my seeds started :) Not all of them since most can be direct seeded w/ the long season here. But I did get eggplant, melon & some herbs into the trays. I saved some of the herb seeds to direct seed in another 3 weeks so that the timing will vary. Everything here bolts so quickly that I think this is a good plan to keep the fresh herbs for longer into the season. I may try to do a 3rd direct seed mid summer but with the heat it may fail. We also took a family trip to Lowes and bought stuff that will hopefully make grass grow in our yard. fingers x'd. Sunday Nattie got to play w/ Kayleigh for a few hours and Jame cleaned out the garage. Apparently we had a whole bunch of spider egg sacks out there. EWWWWW! He also got his bicycle tire fixed and took Nattie for a ride. I was jealous - I miss being able to do stuff like that.

Why.... Here is an example of a conversation on Monday morning.

Nattie - Mommy, the moon is small today.
Me - yes it is.
Nattie - why?
Me - Because the moon changes size
Nattie - why?
Me - Because it turns
Nattie - Why?
Me - I'm not sure (seriously...how the hell am I supposed to explain this to her....)
Nattie - Why?
Me - because I don't know
Nattie - Why?
Me - Why do you think?
Nattie - I don't know either.
Me - okay
Nattie - Mommy, you're drinking coffee.
Me - yes.
Nattie - why?
etc etc......

and climbing.... Nothing in the Pantry is safe. Especially the child who is now scaling up the shelves to get anything she thinks she needs. So strange to consider childproofing after so much time.

so grown up.... Yesterday morning Natalie decided she wanted to get herself ready ALONE. She politely asked me to walk away which I did. She got herself 100% dressed with no help. Apparently I can still help her with her hair and tying her sneakers but otherwise I'm out. This happened again this morning. Its definitely not faster but it does make for a much more pleasant time w/ the morning 'creature' who has wild mood swings and tantrums and crying jags. And I have to admit I am extremely impressed with her independence and skill. Must remember some days that she won't be 3 for another month or so.

35 weeks today

And that means I am approximately 88% finished w/ this pregnancy business. Here is a little update on Patrick.

Week 35

Baby: Your baby measures about 20.25 inches from head to toe and weighs more than 5.5 pounds. Lungs are almost fully developed.

More to come when this grant nonsense eases up :) This expectation of work at work is something else. tee hee!

My Poor Neglected Blog....

Happy First Day of Spring!!!!!

Where to begin... I've been working on a Competitve Grant Renewal and they are some complicated Sh!t. There are many parts, take lots of time and come complete w/ massive headaches and stress. So, thats my excuse for my lack of updating and I'm stickin' to it :)

I guess I'll start w/ last weekend.

1) Thank you Kathy Stevens for having twins last year and for being my friend and gaining my admission to the Mom's of Multiples (MOM's) indoor yardsale sneak preview on Friday night. You rock and I had a blast and it was fantastic to save so much money on cute baby clothes for N & P!

2) Thank you Leslie for being you and having Marley and for driving your fabulous selves to VA to spend the weekend with us! I had a great time, Nattie had a great time and it was so good of us to further reduce any potential drought conditions in VA :)

3) Thank you to James for being so fantastic and tolerating all of my excellent girl time for 2 weekends in a row.

Moving on to this week....

Very big stuff! Natalie is officially a preschooler. :) She has had a hard time being dropped off in the new room but has otherwise done very well. She has learned about problem solving, poison prevention and numerous other things. She has made a few new friends and seems to really like her teacher, Jelena. Our evenings have been a little rough when she finally lets her hair down and allows her mind to explode but that is to be expected. And after 1 whole day of being a 'big girl' Jame & I have noticed some crazy new stuff. I need to start writing a few things down because I always forget it soon after I witness it. But she's definitely maturing and it's bittersweet.

I became 34w pregnant and I finally figured out what to decorate Patrick's walls with! (pictures to follow when I get things all set up).

Nattie had her 2nd ear infection this week too. Another doozy. I felt so bad for her and she got to spend a day at home w/ Jame. We didn't feel right tossing her back into a new environment at school when she was clearly in pain.

I am sure there is plenty more that I'm forgetting but I do need to get back to that %$!$#%! grant.

Happy Spring and TGIF!

From the car on Tuesday....

First let me preface this update with a little info to make it easier to understand. I've been trying to explain to Nattie that I'm not planning to feed Patrick with a bottle. Well, explaining something as abstract as breastfeeding to a 2yo is not as easy as it might sound. So, while Amy was visiting last weekend Nattie (aka Miss Nosybritches) got a few concrete demonstrations on what Mommy was trying to explain. And she gets it now....

From the car on Tuesday.... "Mommy, babies suck!" Well, in my adult mind I thought she meant it as a derogatory comment and so I corrected her language and made a mental note to be sure never to say anything sucks again. a little tsk tsk to myself. I hear back...."No Mommy, babies do suck! They suck milk!" So, I adjust my rear view mirror and Nattie has her shirt pulled up and her baby doll attached to her chest and she announces "Look Mommy, baby sucks!"

I did mention to her that baby was eating, and then she corrected me that baby was actually drinking....and since it was Nattie & I the debate went on for awhile :)

Quote of the day....

"A baby will make love stronger, days shorter, nights longer, bankroll smaller, home happier, clothes dirtier, the past forgotten, and the future worth living for."

t-minus 50 days :)

I think the title of this blog just about says it all :)

Great Weekend - tough time change!

It has been a really nice weekend! All around :) Friday I picked Nattie up and she had a great day so off we went to the library. She was excellent as always and I continue to be really proud of her 'library manners'. While I was looking for a book in the stacks for myself she wandered into what must be the Conservative ideology section. I found her 'reading' something and started looking at some of the titles. One, that was especially memorable, was titled "How to Talk to a Liberal if You Absolutely Must". Too funny! Anyway, I was tempted to check on out to see how someone might 'learn' to talk to me if they absolutely had no other choice but decided it would probably just irritate me and left it on the shelf.

Amy & Gianna came on Saturday morning and it was so nice to have them for the weekend. G is an absolutely beautiful baby and she was super easy to have as a guest. Natalie was really well behaved with her. She had a bit of a learning curve but did get better about being gentle and allowing some space as the time passed. She was also extremely interested in being helpful! I think that may wind up being a mixed blessing with Patrick but we'll see. We all went to the park for a kite festival and then to the outlets for a little retail therapy. The weather couldn't have been nicer! I enjoyed every minute of having such a good friend visit and the luxury of actually being able to finish several conversations!

Oh, and Amy took about 1 bazillion pics so as soon as I get some I will load up a few. I look like an oompa loompa but the kiddo's are obviously cute as buttons :)

Due to all the activity and being on the go Nattie barely napped and so was a little rough by the time I put her to bed last night. She slept well but this morning when I tried to wake her she was so deeply asleep I couldn't get her even to crack an eye. I turned on all the lights, I tried talking to her, I banged around in her room, etc....still she was dead asleep. Amy brought G in who squealed and babbled a bit and finally Nattie started to "come to". When she did finally wake it was extra tough but I do understand...I'm not feeling terribly perky this morning myself. Hoping that another day of sunshine & 80* will make everything right w/ the world. That and a nice early bedtime for both of us!

OB appt update

I just had my 32w appt update - which I guess could be my 33w appt update since it falls closer to 33w than 32...but only someone who is 8m preggo really gives a hoot about the difference between 32 & 33w so I guess the random reader can make their own mind up :)

Patrick was awake and bouncin' about. He's measuring just ahead of 33w and was head down for the appt....good boy Patrick! His heart beat sounded nice as always. The results of my glucose test were excellent so I guess I can keep eating my pasta & valentine's candy! My weight is really good (whew!) so I guess I can keep eating whatever I fancy....pasta & candy! My blood pressure was still on the very edge of low/normal. I go back for a recheck on 3/24.

More sarcastic snow commentary from the Yankee!

Seen on the news yesterday....

Sunshine + 32* = melting

Seriously folks???? I had no idea!


News from this morning.... The majority of area schools are still closed. Yes, you heard it here first. 4 days post snowstorm....and with high temps expected in the mid-50's. I suppose since they only get a snow day every 4 years its probably fair to REALLY enjoy it but I just can't stop laughing over how absurd 4 days off for 8" of snow is starting to look. Perhaps they'll call it tomorrow too - what the heck is the point of 1 day of school this week?

Bahahahahahahaahhaaaaa!

Weekend updates and other stuff

Its very quiet at work this morning.....There are only 2 of us in the office. Roads aren't great but the Subaru made short work of them and I had no problems. It was weird to drive in crap on my way to work for the first time in 2 years! Nattie decided to bring her baby along for the ride so that she could show her about snowy roads. Too cute.

Our weekend was okay. Nattie is going thru an aggressive testing phase and trying to shoot holes in our boundaries wherever possible. The weather on Sat and most of Sun did not help the situation since we were trapped inside by a cold rain. Sunday I finally just lost my cool and when I put her down for her nap I sat in the livingroom and cried. Then I decided I was the Mom, I was in charge, I am bigger, I am smart and to hell with that weekend....I was done trying to enjoy it. So, lots of lessons were learned, time-outs administered and extensive and excessive crying bouts ensued. I think by the end of the day yesterday Nattie was starting to get the picture. I doubt we're done with it all but it should get easier from here on out. I am not a spanker...at least not yet...so she's just going to need to learn her lessons the hard way. Meaning, loss of priviledges and plenty of time spent alone, thinking about how awful her parents are ;)

Yesterday afternoon we did get back outside and built a very pathetic snowman. Nattie lost interest right around the time I was putting his head on so he has a half head, no arms and a blank face. I didn't have a chance to get a picture of that!

I was 32 weeks pregnant yesterday so here is another tidbit on Patrick...

Week 32
Baby: Your baby measures about 18.9 inches long from head to toe and weighs almost 4 pounds. It fills almost all the space in your uterus now, either lying with the head up or sometimes still with enough room to do somersaults. A layer of fat is forming underneath the thin, wrinkly skin. Baby's practicing opening his eyes and breathing.

I was supposed to have an OB appt yesterday - the first of my 2 week appointments - but it was cancelled due to snow (weird!) and so I've been rescheduled for Friday. I feel fine so I'm not too worried about it. I had actually hoped just to skip ahead to my 35w appt but apparently these things are just not done. So, I will comply ;)

Southern snow from a Northern Perspective

There are so many things that I hope we remember from this storm. So, maybe if I write them down here I won't forget as quickly.

1) this is my 1st ever snow day as an adult. Yayayayayayayyaaayyyyy!

2) the Cancellation list on the news. Lets begin w/ the fact that its not just schools that run down a list in alphabetical order. Everything here is closed so they need to be more organized than that. You have The Cancellation List....and then subcategories that scroll in alphabetical order. Such as.... Businesses, County Schools, Daycares, Government, Misc., Private Schools, Universities. And there were so many things on the list that it actually takes about 20-25 minutes from start to finish. Waiting to see VCU show up on the Universities list was forever!

3) The cancellation list on the news begins the night before when the snow starts. Not by the time the roads are actually lousy in the morning.

4) People refer to snowplows as 'shovelers'. Jame & I had a good laugh about how that explains everything...it certainly will take a whole bunch of shovels a really long time to clear the roads.

5) Apparently - according to a radio broadcast - when you can see blacktop on the roads you develop a false sense of hope...whatever the hell that means. I assume she actually meant a false sense of security but who the heck knows.

6) Do not, under any circumstances, attempt a grocery trip the day snow is in the forecast.

I'm sure there will be more to come on this topic. For now I'm just going to sit back, relax and enjoy my long weekend. It was actually a pretty intense storm that came thru here. For awhile last night we thought the siding might actually be ripping off our house but it appears to be okay. Around 10pm the power went out and so Nattie slept with us. Its shocking how much space a 3' tall, 26lb child can take up in the middle of a king sized bed. This morning was very cold - about 55* inside - and so we tried to huddle under blankets for awhile. Eventually the 2yo in all of us just couldn't take it anymore so we got dressed and went outside. Its cold here - by any standards - with wind chills in the high teens. I don't even have a winter coat that will zip at this point so we didn't stay out long. Just long enough to have a good time and get some pics. And then, voila, at 11am the power came back. yayayayaayayyyy! Snow days are really a lot nicer when there is heat and lights. Here are a few pictures that I love from this a.m. More updates from the weekend to follow....