9.30.2009

60 Posts 60 Days: Day 24

Clare and I took a little trip to the hospital today to register for childbirth classes. So, so, so, soooooo disorganized. Oh boy, this birth might be an experience. Good thing I really like and trust my doctor. And perhaps the maternity ward of the hospital is better equipped to handle questions such as, "What time do classes start?" than the front desk. So classes start tomorrow night. Maybe at six? Maybe at seven? We'll see.

9.29.2009

60 Posts 60 Days: Day 23

Positive Happy Thoughts

Please send them Henry's way.

And send any you have left over to Polly, Rob, Lydia, and Liam as well. Wishing you the best of luck and the brightest of outcomes. With much love for you all!

9.28.2009

60 Posts 60 Days: Day 22

Let Me Check My List

Several times today I heard the following: "What do I need to do now? Let me check my list."

It was like hearing a recording of myself, only a bit more pipsqueak-like and likely much cuter!

I loved it even more because each time she said it she would run into her toy room and check her list (one of those fuzzy clown games that hang on the wall that you throw those small, plastic, velcro balls at). Not sure it made us any more productive but it did make the afternoon more fun.

9.27.2009

60 Posts 60 Days: Day 21

A Lovely Morning Song By Clare

As we enjoy our relaxing morning, waiting for the minutes of the day to tick by so Daddy can come home from Denver, this is the song I hear from the couch:

Lolly lolly lolly
My mommy is my mommy
She goes to the store
And I go with she

No particular tune, but definitely a song. If I ask where she learned it I'm sure I would get the normal response, "I learned it at preschool." Well, they must be doing a good job there! Hopefully when she is old enough to actually go to preschool it won't be too much of a disappointment.

9.26.2009

60 Posts 60 Days: Day 20

Day 20. Do you know what that means? Bad math on my part at the start of this project. Seeing as I have 42 days until the due date and wanted this 60 days to end the day before, hmmm..... So, I'll just eat my snap peas and hummus and think about how that might have happened while the pictures upload.

Investigating the road while getting firewood
From the garden. These got roasted and frozen for winter.

Umm, yeah, not quite sure.
Hugs for the baby. By the way, this is what can happen to a clean room in less than five minutes when a certain someone is on the loose. Can't wait until there are two of them!

34 weeks today.

9.25.2009

60 Posts 60 Days: Day 19

Fierce Competition

When there is a wee girl just learning to use the potty and a pregnant lady with a baby's head constantly resting on her bladder, there is bound to be conflict on who gets to use the toilet first. Especially when there is only one in the house. So far, the wee girl has won out every time but one (which resulted in a snotty, blubbery fit), but as this baby gets bigger and my bladder gets more pressure, we'll see. The problem with the wee girl going first is that she is slooooowwww. Not so much the peeing part, but the decision making process that follows: how much toilet paper is enough, which hand to tear it off with, how many wipes, which side of the potty to get off of, which foot to put back into the panty first. Oh my god. I could literally scream in frustration each and every time, but I am trying to make potty training exciting and not terrifying so, for the most part, I have refrained.

And now I understand why some houses have more bathrooms than bedrooms.

9.24.2009

60 Posts 60 Days: Day 18

Happy 30-something-ish Birthday, Jim Mullin! I know it is a number greater than 30 and less than 34. We hope you are having a great one!

The master rearranger and I spent the day moving furniture from room to room and then moving it around within new rooms to make it fit. The big goal was to get the crib from Clare's room into our bedroom, leaving enough room to still fit through the door and let the pregnant lady climb out of bed with relative ease. Our bed was moved to the opposite wall since the new fireplace insert will (hopefully) be installed directly above where it previously rested. Now, I'm sure that the floor is properly reinforced and all that jazz, but to purposefully place one's bed directly under an incredibly heavy, potentially scorching hot piece of iron and firebrick seems to push the envelope a touch too far when dealing with an old (yes, we've seen problems before, haven't we) house.

Clare's room, with all it's new found space, just got the addition of a small bookcase for the books she loves to have downstairs to read at night along with the fifty blankets she loves to drag around and a small portion of her collection of stuffed animals. We will also be bringing down her little table for art as the TV will be moving upstairs (and out of our bedroom) for the cooler fall and frosty winter seasons!

She had some gems today, although my brain is a bit fried, so I'm not sure I'll remember them exactly:

"Do you know why my tongue is always wet? Because I have all this spit in there to help chew up my food."

"Do you think Daddy is sad this morning? He didn't get his hug and kiss before he left."

And this one yesterday:

"My food goes in my mouth and down my esophagus and the throw up comes from my feet."

9.23.2009

60 Posts 60 Days: Day 17

With Neighbors Like These

Our wonderful next door neighbor grows seed crops and we have benefited on more than one occasion. He has brought us corn and onions galore. Yesterday he arrived with beans of the kidney variety. Twenty-seven pounds of them to be exact. He is so generous and kind. I haven't asked him yet, but I consider him my backup ride to the hospital if I end up needing one. He's just that nice!

The beans arrived in a box which peaked the interest of our cats immediately. I put a second box over the top in case there was a mouse or some similar type creature inside. When I took the top box off there was a cricket clinging to it. That also explains the loud chirping I heard last night. Clare and I weighed and bagged the beans today. She scooped them from the box and put them in the yogurt container until we had a pound, then I put them in the Ziploc. She watched the numbers on the scale and kept asking, "Does it say one point zero zero zero yet, Mom?" Not like she understands what that means, but still cute.

9.22.2009

60 Posts 60 Days: Day 16

So, this morning I was thinking that on Saturday there will only be six weeks until this baby's due date. Six weeks. Oh crap, only six weeks. That spurred me into getting into the kitchen and starting the prepping/cooking/freezing portion of getting ready to have absolutely no time to prepare meals. After looking at several recipes, I got tired and took a nap while Clare watched Peter Pan. I did manage to make a double batch of garlic pasta (just the sauce) and froze four dinners worth. And I made extra sweet potato black bean enchiladas tonight and froze those as well. Tomorrow I am aiming to make a freeze Rachel Ray's version of corn and black bean stoup, carrot soup, and if all the stars align, samosas (plus some for dinner). I keep telling myself it is all about organization and time management, two qualities I am seriously lacking in these days. But better now than when there is a squalling infant, a demanding three-year-old, and absolutely no sleep.

Tonight, Clare and Mike made ice cream. They are so cute together in the kitchen.

9.21.2009

60 Posts 60 Days: Day 15

Gel Mats

This is what Costco needs!!! The kind that go in front of industrial sinks where people stand for hours washing dishes. Because pregnant lady + toddler + heavy cart + concrete floors = very sore back. They could maybe even just put them at the checkout area so when you are waiting in line you can enjoy the feeling of soft, relaxing gel under your feet.

And Target 75% off sales are awesome.

Two license plates I saw on our drive to Nampa today:

zooomx3 (guess which type of car)
2 ossom (middle-aged dude, beefed-up American car)

That's it. Maybe pictures tomorrow...

9.20.2009

60 Posts 60 Days: Day 14

Live Wire

The joy of the old house. Cool architecture. Cozy rooms. Bad plumbing. Worse wiring. Luckily, our home inspector was a retired electrician so everything in the wiring department checked out... Peace of mind is such a great thing. Not sure where he got his training, but I think he missed a few things. Yep, a real electrician will need to be coming to our house sometime soon to rewire our attic (old, wood insulation over, well, potentially sketchy wiring) before we can insulate that space. Shredded wood, dust, pollen, tree seeds and the like aren't getting the job done and winter will be here sooner than later.

In the meantime, my wonderful husband has been "cleaning up" the wiring situation in the unfinished portion of the basement. He located the fixture for the mystery switch at the bottom of the stairs (concerning because it was fed with cloth-covered wire) which he then referred to as, "That light by the furnace, you know, the one that looks like Medusa." Oh yeah, I know that one. Now it is just a junction box with wire nuts instead of tape holding wires together inside. Up to code. Safe. And he removed some additional wiring and outlets in order to prepare for jacking up the floor under the kitchen to repair a previous owner's attempt at possibly creating space under the stairs by cutting out all the supports on a load-bearing wall. Genius. One of those wires was live, just sticking out the wall with tape on one wire and nothing on the other. Right now, as I type, he is reading his wiring book, learning new and exciting ways to make our house safer! Did I mention I love him?

9.19.2009

60 Posts 60 Days: Day 13

The Wine Has a Stank

There's a weird odor in our kitchen. It's coming from the bucket by the door. A bucket of plums, sugar, water, yeast and a few mystery (to me) ingredients. Mike's first attempt at wine making is stinky. Like the time he brewed beer with Lager yeast and we both thought someone had just farted in the room where the beer was brewing. This has a bit more of a yeasty smell, but it is still bordering on foul. In defense of the wine, it is turning a beautiful reddish color so even if, on the off chance, it is not tasty, at least it will be pretty!

Three dry nights, three dry days on the potty-training front. It's been lovely. Lovely!

9.18.2009

60 Posts 60 Days: Day 12

PLUMBING

The plumbing issues that are part of an old house are to be expected I suppose. This morning's plumbing project involved a new shut-off valve for the water as the old one leaked even when turned all the way off, then leaked again when turned on. The guys from the water department were super helpful, not only in their willingness to turn off the water at the meter without even 24 hours notice, but also their promptness with the initial turn-off and then again when turning the water back on! I'm not sure how loaded their schedules are but a huge thank-you to them regardless. And no leaks!!!

And on to the bathtub. Clogged. Again. We (well, Mike) tried taking out the clean-out plug in the P-trap but I don't think anyone has removed it in 80 years. So it was back to the plunger, because for some reason completely unknown to me and in defiance of physics, I cannot get the snake to go around the trap. And I've tried. Because I hate plunging and the stuff that comes out of that drain and up into the tub makes me want to vomit. So super disgusting. Today Clare even said, "Don't put your hand in there with that, Mom!" in an alarmed voice as I was trying to scoop it up so it wouldn't go back down the drain. Gross. It's draining again so maybe when my dad comes back for another visit he can bring the big guns (impact drill) and we can get that clean-out out. Until then, cheap rubber plunger, you are my friend.

And a big Happy 30th Birthday to my brother Morgan (yesterday). We love you!!!!

9.17.2009

60 Posts 60 Days: Day 11

No Diapers Changed

There has been one entire day, starting with a dry diaper this morning, that has required not a single change of a dirty diaper, a wet pull-up, or a wet wipe of any sort! Yes, you read correctly, the girl used the potty ALL DAY LONG! That's not to say that it has been less work, mind you. There were the fifty seven trips to the bathroom for wiping, pull-up assisting, and accidental not-quite-to-the-potty puddles, but NO DIAPER CHANGES!!! And, yes, the bribes continue. Two M&Ms, five chocolate chips, and as much chocolate milk as she wanted with every successful drop of urine squeezed from her body at fifteen minute intervals! We love you, chocolate bribes.

9.16.2009

60 Posts 60 Days: Day 10

Sick

It was bound to happen. The little girl has been sick for a couple days. Clingy. Needy. Grumpy. And in my face. Stuffy nose. Sore throat. Sneezing. If she hadn't been sick, I would have blamed it on my seasonal flu shot (yippee to being in the high-risk group for both types of flu this year) that I got yesterday. I did get one hell of a sore arm from that, but I'm pretty sure this crap is just an average cold or whatever supplemental crud is going around. No fever and no cough, so likely not anything terribly exciting like H1N1.

I've been trying to rest, which, at this point, is much easier said than done. There's the non-napper. And the squirmy internal wiggler. And I've had tons of water to compensate for the faucet that is my nose, which means going to the bathroom at least once every fifteen minutes. And the nighttime insomnia that is now my constant companion. As soon as my pregnant brain can remember to get some at the store, Tylenol PM, here I come!!!

And it is already day 10, which can only mean that there are 50 left in the countdown!

9.15.2009

60 Post 60 Days: Day 9

A Daily Dose of Sanity (and Reality)

Every day I read blogs of (mostly) women I don't know. I think this is a bit perplexing to Mike. Today I was reading this blog entry, from a new blog I discovered a few days ago. Um, yeah, life-summed-up. And then I was reading the comments, and there was the answer I was looking for to the question about why I read them. To know that I am not alone. In this house. Day after day. Doing the same things. Again and again. Because that's how I feel sometimes. Mundane. Boring. And yes, when I don't feel as though I have gotten it right, inadequate.

And, no, I don't really care to hear how things were 20, 30, 50 years ago, because that IS NOT now. I want to know how contemporary women feel. Particularly women who have had a successful career outside the home before deciding to stay home with their children. Women who loved getting up in the morning, going out into the world, making a difference, and bringing home a paycheck. Who now sit on the floor and change poopy diapers, refill sippies, and answer, "Why?" too many times to count each and every day. Yes, we scrimp and save and don't buy many (any) luxurious items for the sake of me staying home. Yes, I could go get a job and put the wee one(s) in childcare. But I am CHOOSING not to do that. So I am not complaining about what we don't have. I just want to read about the struggles of women in the current day and age who are doing exactly the same. Thanks, ladies, for posting with honesty, with passion, and with humor. Maybe one day I'll even link you in my sidebar!

9.14.2009

60 post 60 days: Day 8

Little Words, Huge Impact

How does a child understand death? And when? Maybe Mike and I shouldn't be so scientific and fact-facing when it comes to such issues and discussing them (well answering her questions) with our child. Today, while sitting in the bathroom, having told me she loves me for the hundred-gazillionth time, this is what she said to me:

"Mom, if you die, I will never see you again. That makes me sad."

Well, my sweet darling, it makes me sad too. Deep down, heart-wrenching sad. First, for the obvious reasons, like not getting to spend another moment with this precious little being, not seeing her grow into the amazing person I'm pretty sure she will be. But for other reasons too. Like the fact that my not-quite-three-year-old understands that death is a permanent thing. And that I was the one to give the okay to introduce her to that fact. Well, I had some help. Thank you Walt Disney and The Lion King, oh, and Bambi, and let's not forget Snow White. I'm thinking now that we should have held off on the whole TV/movie thing until she was at least eight or so. Freaking hindsight!

9.13.2009

60 posts 60 days: Day 7

The Unloading, Sorting, and Repacking of Baby Clothes

Clare's favorite new pastime is looking at all the tiny clothes. There is half a tub or so of items for the wee one when he comes to our house. Clare knows them all by heart. The suit she came home from the hospital in, the snowsuit that has two, count them please, zippers that you unzip just like so, the tiny hat she wore when she was little and Mom and Dad's bedroom was very cold. The little blankets, the tiny socks, the mittens. She adores them all. She can't wait for this baby.

She wants to let him sleep in the crib, show him how to do things, and help change his diaper. She is going to explain to him that some rocks are small and some are big and crabs and mice live under them to be safe from other animals. She can hardly wait to show him all her tricks (climbing the stairs sideways, hopping like a frog, swinging between the two white chairs, etc.) and she practices them every day so she will be, "very good at my tricks when the baby wants to watch."

That being said, I think she is a bit apprehensive about where she is going to fit in with this big change. She is terribly anxious about me going to the hospital, even though Cheda and Aunt Gee Gee will be here with her. She tells us she loves us about a billion times a day. It has evolved from I love you to I love you very much to Why do you love me? She wants to be held, snuggled, and toted around more than ever.

I'm much more nervous about how we are going to handle her and show her that we love her more than ever than how we are going to put up with sleepless nights and endless diapers!

9.12.2009

60 posts 60 days: Day 6

Just an average weekend day:

A bit later start than anticipated
A stop by the tire and brake shop
Off to Home Depot (GFCI breaker for our bathroom fan and paint for our kitchen!)
The Honey Store ($2/lb local honey)
Kelley Orchards for nectarines, peaches, and plums
Home for a nap, but that didn't happen, for anyone
Mike took Clare to the playground, leaving me time to go to the store BY MYSELF!
Leftovers for dinner, so no cooking...

I think tomorrow is when all the real work is planned. I'm going to try to sleep in and miss some of it!

And just think how boring these posts could be by day, oh, 57....

9.11.2009

Happy Birthday, Eric

To the sweetest No-Talent Ass Clown I know:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! And many, many more to come....

60 posts 60 days: Day 5

Making Teeny Tiny Diapers

When Clare was still small, before I was introduced to the beauty of BumGenius in our own home, I bought some diaper-making materials and made a few diapers for her. We had originally tried traditional cloth diapering with prefolds and flats, but her skin was so sensitive to either having wetness directly on her skin or being in the nylon pants that it was a constant battle to keep up with her diaper rash. And the entire time we were trying to be more environmentally conscious, our baby had this grossly sore butt.

Then I started babysitting Connor and he had these delightful Fuzzi Bunz with a fleece lining between his butt and the absorbent insert, and I thought, AH HA! So I bought the stuff and tried making a few of my own for Clare. They worked out alright, but between babysitting and taking care of an infant, there was little time to make more. I ended up buying BumGenius 3.0 one size diapers which she has been wearing ever since with very few problems.

Now that the wee one is going to be joining us, I plan on using the BG diapers, but many reviews comment on how huge they are on a newborn. I constructed a new pattern, cut up some pieces, and sewed up a teeny tiny diaper. It looks like a winner, but I don't have a teeny, tiny butt to try it on as of yet. I have enough material to make eight more. These should get us through most of a day and, with a quick wash at night, we will be able to seriously cut down on our disposable diaper usage! I mean, I'll be up at night anyway, right? Depending on how these go together and how much time is left when they are complete, I might order up another supply of materials and make a second batch. Wash every two days!!! Even better. Plus, even with shipping, it comes out to less than three bucks each per diaper. At 25 cents a diaper, that's only 12 uses and they have paid for themselves. Less than two weeks! And when we are finished with them, we can pass them along to another cloth diaper user. I'll try to post a picture soon.

Hey, only 55 posts to go...

9.10.2009

60 posts 60 days: Day 4

How I love listening to a really good reader reading a story.

I'd forgotten what a great reader of stories my mom is. I was reminded, many times over, when she read book after book to Clare during her visit. No stumbling over words, no mispronunciations, extra expression during the exciting parts. It brought me back to the days of Little House books and Narnia and many other classics.

There is nothing like a great reader to really bring a book to life!

Thanks, Mom, for all the story reading, both in our youth and now for your grandchild.

9.09.2009

60 posts 60 days: Day 3

"I'm going to play in my toy room."

Translation: "I'm going to take a big poop in my diaper in private."

Today, after MUCH trial and error (months and months of it), I finally either totally lucked out or got the right combination of bribes together. We had a successful poop in the potty! There was much celebrating, a call to tell Cheda, chocolate milk drinking, M & Ms, chocolate chips, and fingernail painting. To those of you who have the easily trained child, who don't believe in bribes, or have some other not so useful commentary, KEEP IT TO YOURSELF! Regardless of the way it happened, there were only positive memories from this experience. Which will hopefully translate into many more experiences just like it!

Happiest DAY 3 ever!!!

9.08.2009

60 posts 60 days: Day 2

I should be counting down, instead of up. I realized this mistake after posting yesterday, but am way too lazy to change it now.

Today was our last firewood trip for the season! September 8! I guess what makes it so exciting to me is that we were getting our last truckload for last year on November 22nd. And this year there is even a nice little stacking shed under our carport to keep it dry and tidy.

We went up a new drainage, one that doesn't see as much action as Mann Creek. Like favorite hunting or fishing spots, I'm leaving it unnamed. The fall colors are starting to come out and it was quite beautiful. Mike (he took the day off) found a dead-down tree about 75 yards above the road. A nice, dry old-growth douglas fir. He cut a few rounds and rolled them down the hill to see what would happen. They FLEW down the mountain, bounded across the road, and immediately disappeared over the other side.

Now, I've been on the receiving end of many a round of wood ripping its way down a mountain and I'm happy to say, pregnant or not, there was NO WAY I was getting in front of those to try to stop them. I looked over the edge and they were about ten feet below the road, tangled in some brush. After a quick discussion, Mike and I decided he would cut some more and we would hope for the best. I climbed over the edge to retrieve them and immediately wished I had not. Steep. Slippery. Grass. Probably in a not so wise fashion, I carefully maneuvered them back up the hill without killing myself in the process. Clare and I then gathered every branch, rock, and large piece of bark we could find and built a "retaining wall" for the remaining pieces of firewood that would soon be hurtling down the hill.

Retaining wall! Hahahaha!!! The first piece that hit our little wall not only barreled through with the force of a freight train but also took one of those difficult to retrieve pieces of wood with it. There was some swearing. Then, piece after piece followed suit. But there was still no way I was going to sacrifice myself to try and stop them. They were that big and that fast. In the end, we had one and a half pieces still on the road and a few stuck in the brush below. The rest are somewhere half a mile down the hillside. Yes. Still there.

Mike cut a couple smaller trees near the road and rolled them in sections about six feet long. I ended up chasing a few which had to look pretty silly since I'm rapidly losing the ability to bend over but I caught them all. Except for the piece that bounced over a smaller round, then rolled down the front of my shin and landed on my foot (pure genius on my part for not GETTING OUT OF THE WAY). But it stayed on the road, so in all fairness it was probably worth the loss of a large section of epidermis.

So, the woodshed is full. On the 8th day of September. Now on to the eight hundred fifty seven other projects that need to be completed before the first snows come!

9.07.2009

60 posts 60 days: Day 1

So this new little baby is due in 60 days. And there's another blog I follow where the blogger is doing 60 posts in 60 days. I thought it would be a nice way to count down to the baby's arrival. Some days they might just be pictures, but it is the thought that really counts these days. Let's see how far we get...

9.04.2009

It's still hot! But, in a couple days it is suppose to cool down with highs in the 70s. I'll just let you know that there is at least one pregnant lady in southwest Idaho who is excited by that news. For one thing, there are lots of projects that need attention and no one really feels like climbing around in the attic when it is 95 degrees outside. Lots of cooking too. We have tons of tomatoes in our garden waiting to be transformed into roasted versions of their sun-ripened selves. There is also a large batch of homemade spaghetti sauce planned, corn to freeze thanks to our generous neighbor, and soups and sauces to be cooked, cooled, and frozen for eating later (like after the baby comes and we need something that requires only one hand and no thought to get on the table). I've started making a list of things to make and freeze and hopefully will be able to make extra servings of most meals and freeze them as well. Plus, the delicious Hale peaches should be ripe soon. I love the U-pick orchard!

Since the last post, my mom came for a visit, Clare rode her first horse, we went camping and firewood cutting, visited the U-pick orchard twice, and my belly has gotten huge. I'll put up 26 and 31 week pictures for comparison. And I'm getting breastfeeding thighs. With Clare, I wasn't sure where those extra seven pounds were added, but there is no doubt this time around. They'll be extra cozy for the new baby to sleep on. In the meantime, they should be super helpful when the waddling commences. I'm pretty sure that is not far off.

Here are some pics from the month, plus a couple from our Bend visit that I didn't pull from the camera in time for the last post.

Clare reading with Cheda

Going to the park with Cheda and the sand toys

A nice zucchini from the garden

Watching steer roping with Mike

Riding a horse for the first time with Kiley

Making Mike do the hard work

Camping trip

Diaper change, Thermarest style

Just relaxing with Tiny Furry at Jim and Jessica's

Hiking with Uncle Jimmy

Look Dad, no eyes!

26 weeks
31 weeks