Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Thanks For Your Patience
I exist. Just have had a crazy schedule with some doctor and legal stuff. And I know for all you MILP's "legal stuff" is everyday. But not for this stay at home mommy. So prepping for it (aka working myself up over it) sent me into a reclusive tailspin. I hope to be able to post more when I'm past a bit of it.
I'm also having an outpatient procedure done for my lower back as well as bed sore pain, tomorrow, Thursday morning. This means there will be a 50/50 shot I think that while Frenchie is enjoying a nice vacay I can pick up my slack and write a bit. In scenario "A," If I'm feeling good but lying around while Tybalt is at MIL's because of my restrictions, I should have time to write. But if there are any hiccups in the procedure (I've never done this one before) and I feel miserable or horribly doped/high on pain meds, trust me it's best for us all if I don't wrote in that which we call scenario "B."
The first step is admitting you have a problem
Guys, I'm addicted.
Addicted to Emily Maynard's clothes, jewelry, and accessories.
It's embarrassing. But, I'm thinking of cutting myself off from my laptop (whether my work one, or my home one) for the next 10 days in order to detox.
But until then, let me explain myself:
It started with the Bachelorette. Obviously, I like that show a bit too much, as I discovered from the amused/pitying look on Juliet's and our mutual friend D's when I made my best "please watch this show so that I have more people to talk to about it" pitch. I blame the margaritas. (I think I say that phrase a bit too often...)
Emily wears a lot of bracelets. Multiple bracelets, stacked on top of one another. I remember this from when she was on the Bachelor, and that was the first thing I emulated. So, I wanted some pictures of them to see if there were any I could copy. I found this:
Those are simple macrame style bracelets with one single sideways charm. I've perfected the technique using a couple of cheaper sideways charms that I found at a craft store. I think they're pretty, but they're not quite as special. I'm contemplating putting in an order for a few of these special ones, but I'm waiting to get a few more sales before purchasing more materials.
Then, she wore this dress:
And I had to know what it was. It's so beautiful! So, to Google I went. And found this my new best friend, Possessionista. (The dress, while being sold out, is probably also way out of my price range, which at the moment is Ross). Possessionista identifies clothing, jewelry, etc, worn on television. If you're ever wondering whether you can get Rachel Berry's quirky clothes, look to Possessionista for answers. She'll give them to you.
Since so much of what she wears is out of my price range, I've been keeping up with Possessionista to capture the few moments when the pieces are affordable, which, it turns out, is not that rare. Then, came this:
I had to have the ring. Dana id'ed it as an $860 rose gold ring with diamonds, but also gave us an alternative, $29 from Nordstrom.com. So... after reminding B that he had still owed me a push present (yes, 14 months after our daughter was born), two mouse clicks, and it was on its way. I've been browsing Etsy for a similar small gemstone ring to stack on top of it, but until I find the perfect one, I like it on its own just as much.
At Ross the other day, I was picking up a few non-ratty casual tops and other casual clothes, since, you know, I am going to be around adults not at the workplace, and can't very well wear my t-shirts with random oil stains, spilled milk, and whatever else Mia may have thrown on me. As I was perusing the aisles of discount clothes, each time I picked something out, I found myself thinking: "Would Emily wear this?" Yikes!
I've been keeping Possessionista open in my browser ever since I discovered her. I've come close to making a couple of purchases, but a voice of reason is always in the back of my mind, reminding me that although my paychecks are on time now, I'm still mostly at 4 days a week, and we still have a weekly daycare payment to make. Plus, Emily Maynard and I do not exactly have the same body type.
Then, I was at Target yesterday, picking up some trip essentials, I passed the nail polish aisle and remembered that Dana had also id'ed that nail polish she was wearing as Essie's Fiji. They had it, one bottle left. Right next to it, a very similar color. I tried both with a quick swipe on my nails, and opted for NOT Fiji. I went home, painted my nails and although they turned out nice, they are not the same as the above pictured. I am not sure why I thought that picking the one right next to it would create a superior nail polish look -- What was I thinking questioning the exact match??
B suggested I make a new bracelet: WWEMD. What would Emily Maynard do. Seriously, I have a problem. Phew, I feel better already.
Addicted to Emily Maynard's clothes, jewelry, and accessories.
It's embarrassing. But, I'm thinking of cutting myself off from my laptop (whether my work one, or my home one) for the next 10 days in order to detox.
But until then, let me explain myself:
It started with the Bachelorette. Obviously, I like that show a bit too much, as I discovered from the amused/pitying look on Juliet's and our mutual friend D's when I made my best "please watch this show so that I have more people to talk to about it" pitch. I blame the margaritas. (I think I say that phrase a bit too often...)
Emily wears a lot of bracelets. Multiple bracelets, stacked on top of one another. I remember this from when she was on the Bachelor, and that was the first thing I emulated. So, I wanted some pictures of them to see if there were any I could copy. I found this:
Those are simple macrame style bracelets with one single sideways charm. I've perfected the technique using a couple of cheaper sideways charms that I found at a craft store. I think they're pretty, but they're not quite as special. I'm contemplating putting in an order for a few of these special ones, but I'm waiting to get a few more sales before purchasing more materials.
Then, she wore this dress:
And I had to know what it was. It's so beautiful! So, to Google I went. And found this my new best friend, Possessionista. (The dress, while being sold out, is probably also way out of my price range, which at the moment is Ross). Possessionista identifies clothing, jewelry, etc, worn on television. If you're ever wondering whether you can get Rachel Berry's quirky clothes, look to Possessionista for answers. She'll give them to you.
Since so much of what she wears is out of my price range, I've been keeping up with Possessionista to capture the few moments when the pieces are affordable, which, it turns out, is not that rare. Then, came this:
 |
| Let's not pay attention to the fact that she's crying, but instead, look at those rings and nail polish! |
At Ross the other day, I was picking up a few non-ratty casual tops and other casual clothes, since, you know, I am going to be around adults not at the workplace, and can't very well wear my t-shirts with random oil stains, spilled milk, and whatever else Mia may have thrown on me. As I was perusing the aisles of discount clothes, each time I picked something out, I found myself thinking: "Would Emily wear this?" Yikes!
I've been keeping Possessionista open in my browser ever since I discovered her. I've come close to making a couple of purchases, but a voice of reason is always in the back of my mind, reminding me that although my paychecks are on time now, I'm still mostly at 4 days a week, and we still have a weekly daycare payment to make. Plus, Emily Maynard and I do not exactly have the same body type.
Then, I was at Target yesterday, picking up some trip essentials, I passed the nail polish aisle and remembered that Dana had also id'ed that nail polish she was wearing as Essie's Fiji. They had it, one bottle left. Right next to it, a very similar color. I tried both with a quick swipe on my nails, and opted for NOT Fiji. I went home, painted my nails and although they turned out nice, they are not the same as the above pictured. I am not sure why I thought that picking the one right next to it would create a superior nail polish look -- What was I thinking questioning the exact match??
B suggested I make a new bracelet: WWEMD. What would Emily Maynard do. Seriously, I have a problem. Phew, I feel better already.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Summer Vacation Excitement Fail!
I kid you not, until about 2 minutes ago, I thought at this time next week, I would be on a plane LaGuardia bound. It's been a light at the end of the tunnel for me, a tunnel which has now just grown in length by 7 days!! Drat. It's like the opposite of waking up on a weekend morning thinking that you have to get up and get ready to go to work, only to realize that no! you can lay back down and sleeeeep! First world problems, I tell you.
This week is a rare occurrence for me since I my hours were reduced from 40 to 32: I am working all five days this week! We've actually got some legal stuff going on. I was so excited about this. Not only do I have something interesting to do other than figuring out how to remove people from the Company's insurance, but I will also get a higher paycheck! But boy, I did not realize how well-accustomed I had gotten to getting a mid-week break. I usually take my reduced-hours day to coincide with B's weekday off (He almost always works Saturdays, so they give him a weekday off), so it's usually a tuesday, wednesday or thursday. It's now thursday, and I am actually exhausted from my lack of a sitting around day. And, we have no groceries, the house is a mess, and I'm still fishing clean clothes to wear out of the dryer because I have had no time to sit down and fold it. Hmm, I guess I don't really sit around on that day after all, considering the current state of our chores. First world problems, I tell you.
My usually slow Fridays will also be replaced tomorrow by a meeting with our outside counsel who handles the litigation. I usually look forward to these; my brain feels like its exercising, reminding me that yes! you are a lawyer! you remember legal things!
So, my light at the end of the tunnel is T-14 days until my big summer vacation. Mia and I head to Connecticut for a college-roommate reunion; a couple of days with my Aunt and cousins in New Jersey, another flight for 5 days in Chicago to meet B and attend his cousin's wedding.
This week is a rare occurrence for me since I my hours were reduced from 40 to 32: I am working all five days this week! We've actually got some legal stuff going on. I was so excited about this. Not only do I have something interesting to do other than figuring out how to remove people from the Company's insurance, but I will also get a higher paycheck! But boy, I did not realize how well-accustomed I had gotten to getting a mid-week break. I usually take my reduced-hours day to coincide with B's weekday off (He almost always works Saturdays, so they give him a weekday off), so it's usually a tuesday, wednesday or thursday. It's now thursday, and I am actually exhausted from my lack of a sitting around day. And, we have no groceries, the house is a mess, and I'm still fishing clean clothes to wear out of the dryer because I have had no time to sit down and fold it. Hmm, I guess I don't really sit around on that day after all, considering the current state of our chores. First world problems, I tell you.
My usually slow Fridays will also be replaced tomorrow by a meeting with our outside counsel who handles the litigation. I usually look forward to these; my brain feels like its exercising, reminding me that yes! you are a lawyer! you remember legal things!
So, my light at the end of the tunnel is T-14 days until my big summer vacation. Mia and I head to Connecticut for a college-roommate reunion; a couple of days with my Aunt and cousins in New Jersey, another flight for 5 days in Chicago to meet B and attend his cousin's wedding.
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Guilty Pleasure: Team One F Jef
You Guys. Have you been watching the Bachelorette? If so, and you haven't watched last night's Fantasy Suite episode yet, how in the world have you held out this long, stop reading this and go watch it. Well, don't. I won't give anything away from last night's episode, just the final three. If you don't watch it, you do not know the excitement you are missing. I may have been complaining the other day that my life is not exciting, but on Mondays, it's about all that this girl can take.
On Mondays, B picks Mia up from daycare so that I can get dinner started. They get home, we hang out, chat, read books and play. Then, dinner time. We eat, then usually Skype with Mom. Then, at promptly 7:45 (other days, I am flexible on her bedtime and let her tell me when she's getting tired), it's time to start our bedtime routine. Bath, pajamas, bottle, snuggle, and by 8:05, bed. I had straight to the kitchen, salt the rim of my margarita glass, pour myself some Skinny Girl and settle in for 2 hours of indulgence.
I've told you before, I'm obsessed with this show. No matter the quality of the main person, there always seem to be one or two or three awesome "contestants" that I cannot get enough of. In retrospect, I can admit that some seasons are less exciting for me, but in the moment, there is nothing that I could enjoy more than watching an episode, if I was covered in puppies, drinking margaritas and eating sushi rolls with a side of cilantro dipped in chocolate on a beach while getting my feet rubbed.
So, let's talk substance: Emily Maynard. I'll acknowledge that she was slightly boring on Brad's season, but I liked her. She's so pretty, sweet, has an awesome wardrobe that I want to steal/fit into, and is genuinely likeable to the point that viewers (at least me) will want her to be happy. This time, her excitement level hasn't picked up much, but we've gotten to know her a lot more than the others because there weren't as many distractions. Helicopters! Tightropes! Rappelling! Waterfalls! were few and far between. There was mostly a lot of walking around old castles and talking. I'm fine with it, it was still riveting.
Let's talk about the guys: the final three were not surprising. From the very beginning, it was obvious which three guys would be left standing for the overnight dates. They are all three awesome. Sean: incredibly good-looking, admittedly slightly boring. All-American hot! Similar to Emily! Arie: OMG so much charming. European-American hot! Jef: Also charming, but in a weird and quirky way. To me, he's excellent. He's too cool for normal suits, he has skinny pants suits. He probably bought them at Banana Republic when they were selling their Mad Men collection. Weird hot! I vote for Jef, but in the end, any of the three guys who do NOT get picked by Emily could be great as the next Bachelor. [I may have said that about Ben from Ashley's season -- I was totally wrong. He was awful. ABC, don't make another mistake].
What are your guilty pleasure shows?
On Mondays, B picks Mia up from daycare so that I can get dinner started. They get home, we hang out, chat, read books and play. Then, dinner time. We eat, then usually Skype with Mom. Then, at promptly 7:45 (other days, I am flexible on her bedtime and let her tell me when she's getting tired), it's time to start our bedtime routine. Bath, pajamas, bottle, snuggle, and by 8:05, bed. I had straight to the kitchen, salt the rim of my margarita glass, pour myself some Skinny Girl and settle in for 2 hours of indulgence.
I've told you before, I'm obsessed with this show. No matter the quality of the main person, there always seem to be one or two or three awesome "contestants" that I cannot get enough of. In retrospect, I can admit that some seasons are less exciting for me, but in the moment, there is nothing that I could enjoy more than watching an episode, if I was covered in puppies, drinking margaritas and eating sushi rolls with a side of cilantro dipped in chocolate on a beach while getting my feet rubbed.
So, let's talk substance: Emily Maynard. I'll acknowledge that she was slightly boring on Brad's season, but I liked her. She's so pretty, sweet, has an awesome wardrobe that I want to steal/fit into, and is genuinely likeable to the point that viewers (at least me) will want her to be happy. This time, her excitement level hasn't picked up much, but we've gotten to know her a lot more than the others because there weren't as many distractions. Helicopters! Tightropes! Rappelling! Waterfalls! were few and far between. There was mostly a lot of walking around old castles and talking. I'm fine with it, it was still riveting.
Let's talk about the guys: the final three were not surprising. From the very beginning, it was obvious which three guys would be left standing for the overnight dates. They are all three awesome. Sean: incredibly good-looking, admittedly slightly boring. All-American hot! Similar to Emily! Arie: OMG so much charming. European-American hot! Jef: Also charming, but in a weird and quirky way. To me, he's excellent. He's too cool for normal suits, he has skinny pants suits. He probably bought them at Banana Republic when they were selling their Mad Men collection. Weird hot! I vote for Jef, but in the end, any of the three guys who do NOT get picked by Emily could be great as the next Bachelor. [I may have said that about Ben from Ashley's season -- I was totally wrong. He was awful. ABC, don't make another mistake].
What are your guilty pleasure shows?
Saturday, July 7, 2012
Show me some appreciation. PLEASE!
I started to post the following on Facebook and it got way too long and personal. I must say it's late though and my eyes won't stop closing, so we'll see how long I can hold out. Anyway, it's pretty self explanatory, but if you find yourself with any questions, don't hesitate to leave a comment. Thanks! :)
"Have you ever had such a roller coaster day that ended in a plummet, not a fun uphill climb or wacky twist? And you went for support from a particular loved one but they just zoned out in their own little world? Usually its innocent enough, but I just can't take it tonight! So here's what I hope can happen to get me out of my funk:
Who in Vegas and Henderson loves sushi like I do? Join me! I am gonna waste away if I don't get a fix of 808 Sushi and it's owner Dean soon! Hopefully this weekend. Hoping for happy hour when it's cheaper. Any takers? Frenchie? B? DG? JG? (Or girls night out and boys play with the kids?) But sadly happy hour menu is just rolls and apps, and I know how you four love your Nigiri. (And I like some of it there too actually.) You could also to buy that at regular price or choose AYCE. And I mean I'm not opposed to going for regular AYCE time too. Someone just has to volunteer to call Romeo and convince him to take me out. Extol upon him my superb qualities. That I'm a wonderful wife and the best mother ever and I deserve a night out on the town, at least a night with friends and sushi. Still no luck? Let's all hang this weekend but call it a cheepo lazy ass weekend and not do much of anything but let the kids play and order cheap pizza and drink cocktails, wine, and beer, yes? No? If you can twist my hubby's arm, I can even volunteer the house for the gathering. Do you think you could try to convince my man of that? Whatever you do--penalty of death if you reveal to him that I put you up to this! But what are friends for? In my case I need them to convince my husband how f-ing great I am, all I do, and that I deserve a night of raw fish and friends. (Or at the very least board games, movies, and friends. Are we too old for a retro sleep-over? The kids could sleep in Tybalt's room!) Help me get this off the ground with him! Oh, and now that my ramble's over, really, any local LV or Henderson friends who like sushi are welcome to come and make new friends with us and enjoy good food!"
"I probably need to clarify. I love my husband more than life itself. And most times he is a saint. But sometimes he is a saint to everyone else around us and can get too busy and caught up to remember me. Today was a big scary doctor appointment for me. It ended up going better than anyone could have expected, and I thought when I told him he'd jump for joy. (This is a serious issue with my health that we have been battling together for a couple years.) Instead I got a half-ear listen as he had some action movie on the tv, volume raised to a ridiculous level for early evening.
I now expect some flack regarding venting my frustrations. (Possibly here, but a reminder this was originally a fb post and we have hundreds of mutual friends on there. I have edited the entry there but part is still up. So we shall see.. what kid of crap I have to defend on fb after this. :( ) And I could honestly see why one might berate me--He is the best guy ever--no argument there. So while I concede to take your and their comments warmly and will mull them over and not dismiss, please try to give me an equal chance and respect, keeping in mind that being his wife and son's mother is a different skill set and a whole new ride. When you live with someone 24/7 sometimes you just see things others don't. Some of those are awesome and you feel blessed that only you bear witness to the moments, and some are the nitty gritties that you just need to vent and release so that you can start fresh and anew, which of course is healthy. Romeo is a blessing from God to all in his life. I won't discount your fond stories. 99.9% of the time mine are fond as well, I just ask a favor that you don't attack me for feeling tired and vulnerable and having to admit that I wish there are some things he could work on. He is my everything, but sometimes I wish he'd realize that in these last 2 years we are not just a family of 2--Him and Ty, but rather a family of 3 that includes me. (And in that way, sometimes I have needs and desires that mean he better find a sitter so we can spend time fostering the relationship that is just us.)"
"Have you ever had such a roller coaster day that ended in a plummet, not a fun uphill climb or wacky twist? And you went for support from a particular loved one but they just zoned out in their own little world? Usually its innocent enough, but I just can't take it tonight! So here's what I hope can happen to get me out of my funk:
Who in Vegas and Henderson loves sushi like I do? Join me! I am gonna waste away if I don't get a fix of 808 Sushi and it's owner Dean soon! Hopefully this weekend. Hoping for happy hour when it's cheaper. Any takers? Frenchie? B? DG? JG? (Or girls night out and boys play with the kids?) But sadly happy hour menu is just rolls and apps, and I know how you four love your Nigiri. (And I like some of it there too actually.) You could also to buy that at regular price or choose AYCE. And I mean I'm not opposed to going for regular AYCE time too. Someone just has to volunteer to call Romeo and convince him to take me out. Extol upon him my superb qualities. That I'm a wonderful wife and the best mother ever and I deserve a night out on the town, at least a night with friends and sushi. Still no luck? Let's all hang this weekend but call it a cheepo lazy ass weekend and not do much of anything but let the kids play and order cheap pizza and drink cocktails, wine, and beer, yes? No? If you can twist my hubby's arm, I can even volunteer the house for the gathering. Do you think you could try to convince my man of that? Whatever you do--penalty of death if you reveal to him that I put you up to this! But what are friends for? In my case I need them to convince my husband how f-ing great I am, all I do, and that I deserve a night of raw fish and friends. (Or at the very least board games, movies, and friends. Are we too old for a retro sleep-over? The kids could sleep in Tybalt's room!) Help me get this off the ground with him! Oh, and now that my ramble's over, really, any local LV or Henderson friends who like sushi are welcome to come and make new friends with us and enjoy good food!"
"I probably need to clarify. I love my husband more than life itself. And most times he is a saint. But sometimes he is a saint to everyone else around us and can get too busy and caught up to remember me. Today was a big scary doctor appointment for me. It ended up going better than anyone could have expected, and I thought when I told him he'd jump for joy. (This is a serious issue with my health that we have been battling together for a couple years.) Instead I got a half-ear listen as he had some action movie on the tv, volume raised to a ridiculous level for early evening.
I now expect some flack regarding venting my frustrations. (Possibly here, but a reminder this was originally a fb post and we have hundreds of mutual friends on there. I have edited the entry there but part is still up. So we shall see.. what kid of crap I have to defend on fb after this. :( ) And I could honestly see why one might berate me--He is the best guy ever--no argument there. So while I concede to take your and their comments warmly and will mull them over and not dismiss, please try to give me an equal chance and respect, keeping in mind that being his wife and son's mother is a different skill set and a whole new ride. When you live with someone 24/7 sometimes you just see things others don't. Some of those are awesome and you feel blessed that only you bear witness to the moments, and some are the nitty gritties that you just need to vent and release so that you can start fresh and anew, which of course is healthy. Romeo is a blessing from God to all in his life. I won't discount your fond stories. 99.9% of the time mine are fond as well, I just ask a favor that you don't attack me for feeling tired and vulnerable and having to admit that I wish there are some things he could work on. He is my everything, but sometimes I wish he'd realize that in these last 2 years we are not just a family of 2--Him and Ty, but rather a family of 3 that includes me. (And in that way, sometimes I have needs and desires that mean he better find a sitter so we can spend time fostering the relationship that is just us.)"
Friday, July 6, 2012
Blog Baby Boom
There were two births this past week (I believe both were July 4th, actually!) in the blogs-I-follow world. Cristy had Gloria, and Michelle Au over at the Underwear Drawer had Nina. I've been keeping a close eye on their blogs for the past few days, just waiting to hear news. It's funny, because despite having no communication with these two women outside of reading their blogs and occasional comments, I'm genuinely happy for their expanding families.
I know there are have been other births in the blog-world since my own, many many more, actually, but these are the first that have elicited any kind of response from my own uterus. I think I might feel a twinge of baby-fever coming from down there, albeit a low-grade one. It seems easy enough to explain, these two births are perfectly timed with Mia beginning her departure from baby-hood. At a forth of July party we went to on Wednesday, there was a 10 month old baby that we spent a few minutes with. It's amazing what a difference just 4 months make in a baby's development; it made me miss having a little cuddly bundle. It's been 13 months and a few days since my own labor and delivery, and evidently, that's the amount of time it takes for me to think back on my time at the hospital (and the following weeks of difficulties) with any amount of fondness. Actually, it's probably around this time last year that I started being comfortable moving again.
I've said before that I didn't have a complicated pregnancy, labor, or delivery. I had a vaginal delivery, with only about 30 minutes of pushing. But, because Mia's arm was up around her face instead of down alongside her body, I got third degree tears. Mia came out before my Doctor made it into the delivery room, so there was nobody to do an episiotomy. These are not so uncommon, but extremely uncomfortable and slow to heal (for me), so the six weeks after delivery were slow and painful. I blame my difficulty losing weight and exercising now to my 6 weeks of complete inactivity during my maternity leave. It's nothing compared to what a lot of people go through, but hey, it was tough on me.
But now? I'm OK with what happened. And yes, the tearing is likely to happen again, but at least if/when there is a second time around, we'll be ready for it. So far, I have had ZERO desire for a second child, except for not wanting Mia to be an only child. But that hasn't seemed like reason enough. To have a second child, it has to be more than just wanting to give your first child something that you find important. You have to want more people in your family! B and I continued to talk as if there would be a second child, making plans to upsize our car in 2013, buying a new carseat for Mia with the intention of reusing her infant one for #2. But in the back of my mind, it's always been an "if".
There are people close to me who I know want another child, but for one reason or another, are unable to, or have been unable to so far. My sister in law and her husband have been having difficulties conceiving #2, even though #1 was conceived in their first month of trying. It's hard to talk about my own past struggle with whether I want another one since my friends either 1)have no babies, or 2)want more, but can't. And also, because of how difficult her struggle has been, I guess I don't want to put my decision off too long. I don't want to wait the three years that we want between our kids, only to find out that we will have trouble with #2 also. Of course, there are questions. Whether we can afford another daycare bill, whether I can take another, longer maternity leave, whether we think we have enough energy to devote to raising a second baby. But finally, I am starting to feel confident that yes, we'll plan on having more. I can do it. I want to do it.
Just not yet. We'll just have to hope for the best, but our family is not ready for a second addition.
I know there are have been other births in the blog-world since my own, many many more, actually, but these are the first that have elicited any kind of response from my own uterus. I think I might feel a twinge of baby-fever coming from down there, albeit a low-grade one. It seems easy enough to explain, these two births are perfectly timed with Mia beginning her departure from baby-hood. At a forth of July party we went to on Wednesday, there was a 10 month old baby that we spent a few minutes with. It's amazing what a difference just 4 months make in a baby's development; it made me miss having a little cuddly bundle. It's been 13 months and a few days since my own labor and delivery, and evidently, that's the amount of time it takes for me to think back on my time at the hospital (and the following weeks of difficulties) with any amount of fondness. Actually, it's probably around this time last year that I started being comfortable moving again.
I've said before that I didn't have a complicated pregnancy, labor, or delivery. I had a vaginal delivery, with only about 30 minutes of pushing. But, because Mia's arm was up around her face instead of down alongside her body, I got third degree tears. Mia came out before my Doctor made it into the delivery room, so there was nobody to do an episiotomy. These are not so uncommon, but extremely uncomfortable and slow to heal (for me), so the six weeks after delivery were slow and painful. I blame my difficulty losing weight and exercising now to my 6 weeks of complete inactivity during my maternity leave. It's nothing compared to what a lot of people go through, but hey, it was tough on me.
But now? I'm OK with what happened. And yes, the tearing is likely to happen again, but at least if/when there is a second time around, we'll be ready for it. So far, I have had ZERO desire for a second child, except for not wanting Mia to be an only child. But that hasn't seemed like reason enough. To have a second child, it has to be more than just wanting to give your first child something that you find important. You have to want more people in your family! B and I continued to talk as if there would be a second child, making plans to upsize our car in 2013, buying a new carseat for Mia with the intention of reusing her infant one for #2. But in the back of my mind, it's always been an "if".
There are people close to me who I know want another child, but for one reason or another, are unable to, or have been unable to so far. My sister in law and her husband have been having difficulties conceiving #2, even though #1 was conceived in their first month of trying. It's hard to talk about my own past struggle with whether I want another one since my friends either 1)have no babies, or 2)want more, but can't. And also, because of how difficult her struggle has been, I guess I don't want to put my decision off too long. I don't want to wait the three years that we want between our kids, only to find out that we will have trouble with #2 also. Of course, there are questions. Whether we can afford another daycare bill, whether I can take another, longer maternity leave, whether we think we have enough energy to devote to raising a second baby. But finally, I am starting to feel confident that yes, we'll plan on having more. I can do it. I want to do it.
Just not yet. We'll just have to hope for the best, but our family is not ready for a second addition.
Monday, July 2, 2012
Idealized Summer
Between constantly being sick, and the above 100 degree temperatures and scorching sunlight of Las Vegas, I realized that we're in quite a bit of a rut.
I realized this as a I glanced over at my husband, who was doing something on his computer while the Matrix 2 was playing. I was sitting on the couch finishing an epic bracelet. Mia was already asleep. This is the same scene that plays out almost every weeknight in our living room. Something on TV (plus, now that it's summer all the good TV is in reruns), B is on his laptop, while I make jewelry/knit/work on my Etsy Shop. It was Sunday night, we had already done our chores for the day, stocked our refrigerator for the week. I asked what he was up to, and almost dramatically, he said "Just waiting for bedtime, I guess". It hit me how depressing that sounds.
We have big summer plans. We bought a membership to the Springs Preserve, with the full intention of going at least once a month. We haven't gone back since, because... HOT. We are going to take a weekend trip to LA, but don't want to deal with hassle of boarding the dogs now that we've lost our go-to college student dog sitter. We are going to spend a night at a Vegas hotel with a fabulous pool towards the end of the summer when Mia is more steady on her feet, but it seems like the hotel prices aren't dipping below $125 which was our cut off. I still think we'll make all three items happen.
There always seem like so many excuses not to do something out of the ordinary. My husband is a home body. The baby shouldn't be out in the heat for long. The dogs. Gas. Money. We talk about ordinary things: carseats, soy milk, Netflix queues, what our next car should be sometime in 2013.
In reality, we don't sit at home that much on the weekends. We went to Costco (soymilk and baby wipes), Babies R Us (more Playtex Dropins for Daycare), the grocery store, Frys (new mouse). In fact, that afternoon, we had spent an hour or so at our complex's pool. We went out to dinner on Friday, and walked around the mall. I even drank a margarita and bought a skirt! Last week, we had a visitor. We went to a wine tasting. Somehow, in that moment, none of that seemed exciting enough. Because it's not very exciting. It's life! Weekends in a family of two working parents are inevitably going to stuffed full of errands that pile up during the week. Weeknights are about cleaning up after dinner, picking up baby toys, and getting ready for the next morning, and oh yeah, resting.
In about a month, I'll be boarding a plane LaGuardia-bound with Mia for a visit with my college roommates, then spending a few days with my Aunt, and then heading to Chicago for another wedding, where B will meet us.. I'm sure by the time I'm a few days into single parenting Mia, I'll be daydreaming about my rut.
I realized this as a I glanced over at my husband, who was doing something on his computer while the Matrix 2 was playing. I was sitting on the couch finishing an epic bracelet. Mia was already asleep. This is the same scene that plays out almost every weeknight in our living room. Something on TV (plus, now that it's summer all the good TV is in reruns), B is on his laptop, while I make jewelry/knit/work on my Etsy Shop. It was Sunday night, we had already done our chores for the day, stocked our refrigerator for the week. I asked what he was up to, and almost dramatically, he said "Just waiting for bedtime, I guess". It hit me how depressing that sounds.
We have big summer plans. We bought a membership to the Springs Preserve, with the full intention of going at least once a month. We haven't gone back since, because... HOT. We are going to take a weekend trip to LA, but don't want to deal with hassle of boarding the dogs now that we've lost our go-to college student dog sitter. We are going to spend a night at a Vegas hotel with a fabulous pool towards the end of the summer when Mia is more steady on her feet, but it seems like the hotel prices aren't dipping below $125 which was our cut off. I still think we'll make all three items happen.
There always seem like so many excuses not to do something out of the ordinary. My husband is a home body. The baby shouldn't be out in the heat for long. The dogs. Gas. Money. We talk about ordinary things: carseats, soy milk, Netflix queues, what our next car should be sometime in 2013.
In reality, we don't sit at home that much on the weekends. We went to Costco (soymilk and baby wipes), Babies R Us (more Playtex Dropins for Daycare), the grocery store, Frys (new mouse). In fact, that afternoon, we had spent an hour or so at our complex's pool. We went out to dinner on Friday, and walked around the mall. I even drank a margarita and bought a skirt! Last week, we had a visitor. We went to a wine tasting. Somehow, in that moment, none of that seemed exciting enough. Because it's not very exciting. It's life! Weekends in a family of two working parents are inevitably going to stuffed full of errands that pile up during the week. Weeknights are about cleaning up after dinner, picking up baby toys, and getting ready for the next morning, and oh yeah, resting.
In about a month, I'll be boarding a plane LaGuardia-bound with Mia for a visit with my college roommates, then spending a few days with my Aunt, and then heading to Chicago for another wedding, where B will meet us.. I'm sure by the time I'm a few days into single parenting Mia, I'll be daydreaming about my rut.
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Strep o'clock
I feel like my blog posts of late revolve around looking forward to the weekend and the various diseases and infections that Mia brings home from daycare. So, for that reason, I am not going to dwell on the fact that Mia, B and I all three tested positive for Strep, are all three on a total of four different kinds of antibiotics, and all three had to take two sick days following a sick weekend. I won't even get into the story where I had an allergic reaction to the first antibiotic I was prescribed (shortness of breath, hives on my palms), having to catch the Minute Clinic nurse just before she was leaving to please give me something different, don't make me wait until morning THANKS! I'm also not going to dwell on the sinus pressure headache of the ages that I am currently experiencing, since the strep bacteria which gave me the most painful sore throat I've ever experienced has migrated up to my sinuses, despite being back at work because, let's be real, nobody can miss an impromptu 5 days in a row off work. Being back today makes it 4 (2 vacation days for my anticipated long weekend last week, and 2 sick days because of the Strep).
Instead, I'm going to show you a few pictures of how we were able to ignore our symptoms for a day, and entertain my high school friend J for the 36 hours of her visit. (She was supposed to be with u for four days, but she had a family emergency and had to delay her arrival from Thursday to Saturday -- everything is OK now, and it ended up being for the best, disease-wise)
Instead, I'm going to show you a few pictures of how we were able to ignore our symptoms for a day, and entertain my high school friend J for the 36 hours of her visit. (She was supposed to be with u for four days, but she had a family emergency and had to delay her arrival from Thursday to Saturday -- everything is OK now, and it ended up being for the best, disease-wise)
Mia is visibly miserable, although we did not have confirmation that she was also in awful throat pain until Monday at 8am, which is when the pediatrician opens. I was stopping in every restroom between SharkReef at Mandalay Bay and The CocaCola store (not pictured) next to the MGM Grand to spray my throat with Chloraseptic, infinitely more times than the recommended amount of 1 spray every 2-3 hours. It was more like 3 sprays every hour, but you know.
By tuesday evening, Mia had been on her antibiotics for 36 hours (me, day 3, Brian 35 hours) and was feeling well enough to earn her first evern baby time out. 2 minutes on a chair without getting off for deliberately knocking over a speaker after repeatedly being told to leave it alone and understanding perfectly.
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| Time Out, misunderstood as the "Mama won't let me get up game". |
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
The Man Diets
Today is my friday! One of my best high school friends is coming to visit tomorrow through the weekend, and I spent the first two days of the week making sure I wouldn't have to come in Thursday morning as I initially thought I would. The good (and not so good) news is that I did manage to get everything checked off my to-do list. So, with the exception of my 15 remaining hours of CLE to be completed by the 30th, I'm free as a bird (so long as I'm within earshot of my the extremely fascinating gentleman speaking through my computer about the complexities of e-discovery).
Anyway, about three weeks ago, I started diligently logging my food intake using My Fitness Pal (thanks BeeBee!) Evidently, I had turned into a very annoying person, quickly searching my App for the calorie count of quite a few of the things B was putting in his mouth. "Did you just eat that whole bag of popcorn?? That's ---- calories!" I'm down three pounds, which is not a huge accomplishment, but at least shows that my goal of one pound per week is manageable, sustainable, and that so far, it's working. Bonus, it has also been effective at annoying my husband into downloading the app for himself and logging his own food intake!
So, based on B's height and weight and goal (the same as mine, 1 lb per week), he's allowed 2100 calories a day. That seems awfully high to me, seeing as I'm allowed 1400. But, my Fitness Pal is not wrong. Everytime I diet, I am always begging him to follow along. "It'll be so much easier for me to do this if you're doing it with me!". Well, not so when your husband sits down at the end of the day, checks his iPhone and sees that he's got x amount of calories left over after dinner. "OH, let me just eat some of these twizzlers left over from the movies on Saturday!" Great, enjoy those twizzlers while I sip my crystal light. Be careful what you ask for!
Anyway, about three weeks ago, I started diligently logging my food intake using My Fitness Pal (thanks BeeBee!) Evidently, I had turned into a very annoying person, quickly searching my App for the calorie count of quite a few of the things B was putting in his mouth. "Did you just eat that whole bag of popcorn?? That's ---- calories!" I'm down three pounds, which is not a huge accomplishment, but at least shows that my goal of one pound per week is manageable, sustainable, and that so far, it's working. Bonus, it has also been effective at annoying my husband into downloading the app for himself and logging his own food intake!
So, based on B's height and weight and goal (the same as mine, 1 lb per week), he's allowed 2100 calories a day. That seems awfully high to me, seeing as I'm allowed 1400. But, my Fitness Pal is not wrong. Everytime I diet, I am always begging him to follow along. "It'll be so much easier for me to do this if you're doing it with me!". Well, not so when your husband sits down at the end of the day, checks his iPhone and sees that he's got x amount of calories left over after dinner. "OH, let me just eat some of these twizzlers left over from the movies on Saturday!" Great, enjoy those twizzlers while I sip my crystal light. Be careful what you ask for!
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
He's Cute and I Love Him...
Please tell me I'm not alone on this one, I love my son. I would take a bullet for him. I'd lay down my life for him. I adore him with all my heart and soul...but some days...I just don't particularly *like* him.
Today is one of those days. I know he means no harm. Chances are it's more my PMS and upset stomach than his attitude. But *everything* is getting on my nerves! Many days I'd like to just cuddle. In fact, I wish this usually curious and independent toddler would. Today, of all days, he refuses to leave my side, won't let me leave the room (which made throwing up earlier today from some eggs gone wrong difficult), won't listen to anything I say or ask, stares at me with big empty eyes like he isn't comprehending when I know he is, and seems to purposely be doing the opposite of what I ask. Oh, and my darling sleeper usually goes to bed around 11pm, sleeps through the night, wakes groggily for milk around 7 or 8am, and happily falls quickly back asleep for another couple of hours until 9 or 10am. (I should probably quickly explain-- he is put to bed between 9 and 10pm but he chooses to "play" in his crib until later--which is fine with me who has insomnia, his whole sleeping routine and sleepy-head nature is great for me actually--I fall asleep around 4am, drag myself up after a cat nap to give him milk at "first call" and fall back asleep like he does until 10am). Anyway, today he was up for milk and diaper at 2am, which was no biggie because I hadn't fallen asleep yet, but then up and ready to go go go at 6:30am! Which means I got slightly over 2 hours of sleep on which to deal with him today.
I'm staring at the clock counting down the minutes until Romeo will walk in the door from work. Unfortunately, with his job each night is different. Last night he shocked me by arriving home at 5:55 of his own accord! Gasp! Did he really get home before 6pm? And without my prompting because there was something he or we had to do that night? With my luck tonight will be a 7 or 7:30pm evening. Well, when he does get home, Mommy's eating in the bedroom (if eating at all on this still woozy stomach), and Daddy is on full-time duty. I only feel slightly sorry that Daddy doesn't know this yet.
Anyway, a long, long time ago, in a galaxy far far away, I promised you more pictures of Tybalt, this time with his hair short right after his first cut. Well, the cut was months ago, I still haven't blogged about it (Oops! Bad, Juliet, bad!), he actually now needs a new cut, but I do have his cute short hair pictures. So, in order to keep me sane and remind us all how cute he is, and remind me how much I love him, lol, I thought now would be a decent time to put up some cute pics. Even though they are 5 months old (from January when he was 17 months old and he's now coming up 22 months): Enjoy!
AAAAAAAAAaaaaaannnnnnddddd, now he's found a cereal bowl and metal spoon to bang. (Why can't think kid at least choose some quiet tupperware?) Gotta go put an end to "band rehearsal" as he's now moving on to banging the furniture, the cabinet, and the cable box with said spoon...and now scraping the walls in the hallway. Sigh....Romeo? Romeo? Wherefore art thou, Romeo?
Today is one of those days. I know he means no harm. Chances are it's more my PMS and upset stomach than his attitude. But *everything* is getting on my nerves! Many days I'd like to just cuddle. In fact, I wish this usually curious and independent toddler would. Today, of all days, he refuses to leave my side, won't let me leave the room (which made throwing up earlier today from some eggs gone wrong difficult), won't listen to anything I say or ask, stares at me with big empty eyes like he isn't comprehending when I know he is, and seems to purposely be doing the opposite of what I ask. Oh, and my darling sleeper usually goes to bed around 11pm, sleeps through the night, wakes groggily for milk around 7 or 8am, and happily falls quickly back asleep for another couple of hours until 9 or 10am. (I should probably quickly explain-- he is put to bed between 9 and 10pm but he chooses to "play" in his crib until later--which is fine with me who has insomnia, his whole sleeping routine and sleepy-head nature is great for me actually--I fall asleep around 4am, drag myself up after a cat nap to give him milk at "first call" and fall back asleep like he does until 10am). Anyway, today he was up for milk and diaper at 2am, which was no biggie because I hadn't fallen asleep yet, but then up and ready to go go go at 6:30am! Which means I got slightly over 2 hours of sleep on which to deal with him today.
I'm staring at the clock counting down the minutes until Romeo will walk in the door from work. Unfortunately, with his job each night is different. Last night he shocked me by arriving home at 5:55 of his own accord! Gasp! Did he really get home before 6pm? And without my prompting because there was something he or we had to do that night? With my luck tonight will be a 7 or 7:30pm evening. Well, when he does get home, Mommy's eating in the bedroom (if eating at all on this still woozy stomach), and Daddy is on full-time duty. I only feel slightly sorry that Daddy doesn't know this yet.
Anyway, a long, long time ago, in a galaxy far far away, I promised you more pictures of Tybalt, this time with his hair short right after his first cut. Well, the cut was months ago, I still haven't blogged about it (Oops! Bad, Juliet, bad!), he actually now needs a new cut, but I do have his cute short hair pictures. So, in order to keep me sane and remind us all how cute he is, and remind me how much I love him, lol, I thought now would be a decent time to put up some cute pics. Even though they are 5 months old (from January when he was 17 months old and he's now coming up 22 months): Enjoy!
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| "Hi, Mommy! Sure, I'll model for Grandma, but I think you forgot to put my glasses on me this morning!" |
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| "Oh, you were serious about the modeling and smiling thing? What's the big deal, all I did was get a haircut? (And scream bloody murder throughout.)" |
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| "What? Modeling means staying still and smiling nicely? I thought it meant running and giggling!" |
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| So not interested in getting any good shots for his Grandma and Grandpa in Chicago. |
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| "I'm cute." |
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| "In fact, I'm A-D-O-R-A-B-L-E!" |
AAAAAAAAAaaaaaannnnnnddddd, now he's found a cereal bowl and metal spoon to bang. (Why can't think kid at least choose some quiet tupperware?) Gotta go put an end to "band rehearsal" as he's now moving on to banging the furniture, the cabinet, and the cable box with said spoon...and now scraping the walls in the hallway. Sigh....Romeo? Romeo? Wherefore art thou, Romeo?
Monday, June 18, 2012
Father's Weekend Movie Marathon
A brief description of our father's day will give you a nice amount of insight into who my husband is (because you were all wondering). So, let's proceed:
B requested that we do the exact opposite of what we did on Mother's day, which was a jam packed day. So, yesterday, we had breakfast at our favorite breakfast place around the corner (exactly the same thing we did on Mother's day, failing so far), went to a use CD/DVD/Record store, where B combed the DVD aisles for hidden gems. I entertained Mia for the close to an hour we were there, by chasing her up and down the aisles, keeping her from touching the DVDs that she very much wanted to grab, and reading grown-up picture books to her (like the ones they sell at Urban Outfitters -- I didn't show her anything inappropriate, so hold your shocked horses). He came out of it smiling, with a few odd collection of used DVDs: Fever Pitch (Jimmy Fallon, Drew Barrymore), The Hangover (you know the one), and The Island (Ewan McGreggor, Scarlett Johansson). Here is what we can learn from those selections: He likes baseball, he likes to laugh, and he likes to watch ScarJo run around.
We came home and we all parked ourselves in the living room to have a B-requested movie marathon. That was absolutely fine with me, because I had two custom Frills bracelets to make. On the DVD player were: Recently purchased: The Island; Too Big to Fail (HBO docudrama about the collapse of Lehman Brothers and subsequent bank bailout); Total Recall (at this point I was kind of movie'd out and was not paying much attention, to B's chagrin. I was re-taking photos of my bracelets, since I realized a lot of the ones I had posted looked significantly less professional than the ones on other people's Etsy shops); and finally, The Hangover.
Appropriately, the Hangover was the last movie we watched, and I very much have a movie hangover today. B LOVES movies, and I am certain the day did not disappoint since, well... there were movies. Keep in mind, also, that Mia's daycare had a "parents night out", where they were open on Saturday night from 5-9, giving us enough time to grab a bite (B's choice: Falafel) and... you guessed it, a movie (B's choice: Prometheus).
If the Bachelorette wasn't on tonight, I'd say that the TV was staying off. But let's be honest, I can't even wait a day to see what drama happens this week!
B requested that we do the exact opposite of what we did on Mother's day, which was a jam packed day. So, yesterday, we had breakfast at our favorite breakfast place around the corner (exactly the same thing we did on Mother's day, failing so far), went to a use CD/DVD/Record store, where B combed the DVD aisles for hidden gems. I entertained Mia for the close to an hour we were there, by chasing her up and down the aisles, keeping her from touching the DVDs that she very much wanted to grab, and reading grown-up picture books to her (like the ones they sell at Urban Outfitters -- I didn't show her anything inappropriate, so hold your shocked horses). He came out of it smiling, with a few odd collection of used DVDs: Fever Pitch (Jimmy Fallon, Drew Barrymore), The Hangover (you know the one), and The Island (Ewan McGreggor, Scarlett Johansson). Here is what we can learn from those selections: He likes baseball, he likes to laugh, and he likes to watch ScarJo run around.
We came home and we all parked ourselves in the living room to have a B-requested movie marathon. That was absolutely fine with me, because I had two custom Frills bracelets to make. On the DVD player were: Recently purchased: The Island; Too Big to Fail (HBO docudrama about the collapse of Lehman Brothers and subsequent bank bailout); Total Recall (at this point I was kind of movie'd out and was not paying much attention, to B's chagrin. I was re-taking photos of my bracelets, since I realized a lot of the ones I had posted looked significantly less professional than the ones on other people's Etsy shops); and finally, The Hangover.
Appropriately, the Hangover was the last movie we watched, and I very much have a movie hangover today. B LOVES movies, and I am certain the day did not disappoint since, well... there were movies. Keep in mind, also, that Mia's daycare had a "parents night out", where they were open on Saturday night from 5-9, giving us enough time to grab a bite (B's choice: Falafel) and... you guessed it, a movie (B's choice: Prometheus).
If the Bachelorette wasn't on tonight, I'd say that the TV was staying off. But let's be honest, I can't even wait a day to see what drama happens this week!
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
The Crafting Bug
I have found a new craft I want to start making! This is big news because I love using my hands, but I'm not an artist nor great at all things naturally like our Frenchie, so while I like the look of many crafts, I rarely come across one I feel confident I could make and make well. And I found this and just fell in love.
What's even better is that I have not seen anyone sell them at the craft fairs in Vegas. So seeing it's not already out in the local fair and bazaar scene, I'd have a corner on the market of these. For once, I'd be doing something original! Woohoo! Usually I just follow the trends. (Okay, I got the idea from Pinterest, so not completely original, but something new to Vegas and the small community of dedicated crafters here.)
Anyway, my adrenaline is pumping. Hence the blog post at 3:30am!
Only issue-- can any crafters out there-- Frenchie I'm looking right at you, lol, but also any of our readers-- look at the pictures I've included and tell me: How would you attach the ribbon used for hanging? The "trays" are noted in the very basic description as being "fake silver" from the dollar store, so I am assuming that could mean either plastic or tin. I'm also seriously considering thrift store and garage sale shopping for better metal trays (though probably not real silver; depends on what bargains I can find). How would you attach ribbon to either material? If it was tin, I'd be prone to say a metal punch and put a grommet in and thread ribbon through, but there are no "holes" in the photos, so that's obviously not what the original crafter did. What do you think?
(Note: Picture is courtesy of more than one Pinterest.com board, and they credit "signaturestyleblog.com," but she credits back to Pinterest and no one person's specific account, so I don't have the copyright nor know the exact citation.)
What's even better is that I have not seen anyone sell them at the craft fairs in Vegas. So seeing it's not already out in the local fair and bazaar scene, I'd have a corner on the market of these. For once, I'd be doing something original! Woohoo! Usually I just follow the trends. (Okay, I got the idea from Pinterest, so not completely original, but something new to Vegas and the small community of dedicated crafters here.)
Anyway, my adrenaline is pumping. Hence the blog post at 3:30am!
Only issue-- can any crafters out there-- Frenchie I'm looking right at you, lol, but also any of our readers-- look at the pictures I've included and tell me: How would you attach the ribbon used for hanging? The "trays" are noted in the very basic description as being "fake silver" from the dollar store, so I am assuming that could mean either plastic or tin. I'm also seriously considering thrift store and garage sale shopping for better metal trays (though probably not real silver; depends on what bargains I can find). How would you attach ribbon to either material? If it was tin, I'd be prone to say a metal punch and put a grommet in and thread ribbon through, but there are no "holes" in the photos, so that's obviously not what the original crafter did. What do you think?
(Note: Picture is courtesy of more than one Pinterest.com board, and they credit "signaturestyleblog.com," but she credits back to Pinterest and no one person's specific account, so I don't have the copyright nor know the exact citation.)
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Grand Opening!
Guess what I've been up to in the two hours between Mia's bedtime and my bedtime?
Frenchie's Frills Etsy Shop
Here are a few pictures of my start up pieces, but take a look at what I have available.
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| My absolute favorite bracelet, it's teasing me from its jewelry bag, whispering at me to take the listing down and keep it for myself! |
I improved on the design I found at Ten Ten Knits, ordered some nice colored leather, experimented with different bead sizes and leathers, and... I just couldn't stop buying and making these bracelets! My initia idea was just to do area craft fairs, but there don't seem to be many around these parts at the moment. So, an Etsy shop seemed like a good place to start.
No Etsy sales yet, but I do have a couple of custom order requests here and there :)
Monday, June 4, 2012
Crime Spree
I just checked, and it was March 26th that I last posted about police action right outside my apartment. That's only what, like a little more than 2 months ago?! And it had been a Sunday night too. Well, last night it happened again! Not a shooting this time, luckily, and at 9pm, not the middle of the night, and no cops banging on my door this time, so okay, not at all the same thing I guess when I add all that up...but still, come on! What the heck is going on around here? This time I heard a helicopter before anything else, and I could hear it circling around two or three times and saw the spotlight (through my bathroom window, no less). I looked out the bedroom window and there were two cop cars, one of which had lights going, and was blocking my SUV in the carport outside!
Last night I got more bold than before, because at this point it was kind of like, "What the ____?" Plus I could see other residents outside like peeping toms, so I assumed were weren't talking a high danger level here. So yes, I walked outside, in my shorts and pajama top, sports bra underneath, and my Crocs. (I was a sight to behold, I'm sure!) There was police tape at the end of the 10 space carport aligning with the end of the building I live in, so great, it happened next to my farthest neighbor this time, just not my next door one. Insert sarcasm, groan, and slight dread here.
Anyway, I couldn't see much in the dark except police with flashlights and I could tell it was around the corner of the building. I figured it was bad enough for my neighbors to see me dressed like that-- I wasn't going to venture any closer to cops and official business, plus, I wasn't quite *that* bold. But two elderly gentlemen were walking back to their apartments, having finished nosing around (a little further than me) and I was able to ask and get their version of the story.
So, as of now, it goes that apparently the cops came for a resident (or they followed someone driving a truck into the development, that's unclear) and the "person of interest" decided to try to speed away from the cops in their truck. While doing so, they lost control, veered off the roadway, and crashed up onto a grassy area between my apartment building and the one to the east of us. I guess they also fled on foot at that point, hence the police helicopter searching above.
Unlike the last time, I have not taken Tybalt out to "go get the mail" and spy on the leftover evidence myself yet. (Not for lack of curiosity, but rather because it's 100 degrees outside.) So I don't have any follow-up details or anything yet. But, just thought I'd give you the latest episode of the soap opera that apparently resides where I do!
Last night I got more bold than before, because at this point it was kind of like, "What the ____?" Plus I could see other residents outside like peeping toms, so I assumed were weren't talking a high danger level here. So yes, I walked outside, in my shorts and pajama top, sports bra underneath, and my Crocs. (I was a sight to behold, I'm sure!) There was police tape at the end of the 10 space carport aligning with the end of the building I live in, so great, it happened next to my farthest neighbor this time, just not my next door one. Insert sarcasm, groan, and slight dread here.
Anyway, I couldn't see much in the dark except police with flashlights and I could tell it was around the corner of the building. I figured it was bad enough for my neighbors to see me dressed like that-- I wasn't going to venture any closer to cops and official business, plus, I wasn't quite *that* bold. But two elderly gentlemen were walking back to their apartments, having finished nosing around (a little further than me) and I was able to ask and get their version of the story.
So, as of now, it goes that apparently the cops came for a resident (or they followed someone driving a truck into the development, that's unclear) and the "person of interest" decided to try to speed away from the cops in their truck. While doing so, they lost control, veered off the roadway, and crashed up onto a grassy area between my apartment building and the one to the east of us. I guess they also fled on foot at that point, hence the police helicopter searching above.
Unlike the last time, I have not taken Tybalt out to "go get the mail" and spy on the leftover evidence myself yet. (Not for lack of curiosity, but rather because it's 100 degrees outside.) So I don't have any follow-up details or anything yet. But, just thought I'd give you the latest episode of the soap opera that apparently resides where I do!
Frustrating Sunday
Lately, I've been seriously neglecting my apartment. I've been letting clean laundry stack up unfolded, I've been piling things on the guest bed rather than putting them away, I've been letting my dining table get full of jewelry-making and knitting clutter. Sunday, after being surprised by a trail of ants coming from my laundry room and invading my kitchen and Mia's daycare backpack, enough was enough.
Despite having been awoke before 6am by Mia, who refused to go back to sleep, B offered me a 5 hour energy that some reps had dropped off at the Bank. I popped that little bottle (my first 5 hour energy) and seriously felt a burst of energy 10 minutes later. It was kind of impressive, actually. Four hours into my energy burst, and I had vacuumed every corner of my apartment, scrubbed my couch cushions with oxy-clean, killed all the ants I could find with a vinergar and water mixture, put all picture frames that had a hook on the back up onto the wall to declutter our bookshelves and entertainment center, dusted said bookshelves and entertainment center and rearranged a few small pieces of furniture. Our main living area looked awesome, save the remaining jewelry-making tools on the dining table.
I really wanted to move on to our bedroom, but as soon as I glanced around to see what I could get rid of or rearrange, all I could do rule out all the game plans I came up with. I threw my hands up and gave up. Also, my five hours were up. Our bedroom, which should be a serene and restful place for B and I to relax at the end of the day instead became a repository for furniture that has nowhere else to live. In addition to our bed and our two dressers, we also have an enormous dog crate and a desk. The dog crate has to stay around as long as Chloe is around (Did I really just type something so crass?), since she's still likely to urinate all over our carpets when we aren't at home, or when we're sleeping. We will not throw out the desk since it is a nicer piece of IKEA (oximoron?) furniture, which we bought in Chicago back when we had a guestroom that did not double as a nursery. Unfortunately, we do not have any kind of storage where to move said desk, or to put the huge dog crate in favor of a more beagle-size dog crate. Our bedroom has a large walk-in closet, but it is already full of who knows what. We toyed with the idea of getting a garage that our apartment complex rents out, but that is an extra $100 a month that we do not have in the budget.
So, I reach the same conclusion writing this out as I did when I collapsed on the couch on Sunday evening (woozy from the 5 hour energy, by the way): We have to move. I am currently hating our apartment complex manager who somehow sold us on some bullshit that there were no more 6 month leases available, making us sign an 8 month lease. So instead of the end of September, we're stuck here until the end of November.
Let me end on a more positive note. Tomorrow's my Birthday! Because of some AT&T activation stuff, I got my iPhone upgrade a couple of days early (from a very slow 3GS to a 4S -- Siri is mispronouncing my real name, so I just asked her to call me Frenchie!) and it's really pretty. Also, this:
Despite having been awoke before 6am by Mia, who refused to go back to sleep, B offered me a 5 hour energy that some reps had dropped off at the Bank. I popped that little bottle (my first 5 hour energy) and seriously felt a burst of energy 10 minutes later. It was kind of impressive, actually. Four hours into my energy burst, and I had vacuumed every corner of my apartment, scrubbed my couch cushions with oxy-clean, killed all the ants I could find with a vinergar and water mixture, put all picture frames that had a hook on the back up onto the wall to declutter our bookshelves and entertainment center, dusted said bookshelves and entertainment center and rearranged a few small pieces of furniture. Our main living area looked awesome, save the remaining jewelry-making tools on the dining table.
I really wanted to move on to our bedroom, but as soon as I glanced around to see what I could get rid of or rearrange, all I could do rule out all the game plans I came up with. I threw my hands up and gave up. Also, my five hours were up. Our bedroom, which should be a serene and restful place for B and I to relax at the end of the day instead became a repository for furniture that has nowhere else to live. In addition to our bed and our two dressers, we also have an enormous dog crate and a desk. The dog crate has to stay around as long as Chloe is around (Did I really just type something so crass?), since she's still likely to urinate all over our carpets when we aren't at home, or when we're sleeping. We will not throw out the desk since it is a nicer piece of IKEA (oximoron?) furniture, which we bought in Chicago back when we had a guestroom that did not double as a nursery. Unfortunately, we do not have any kind of storage where to move said desk, or to put the huge dog crate in favor of a more beagle-size dog crate. Our bedroom has a large walk-in closet, but it is already full of who knows what. We toyed with the idea of getting a garage that our apartment complex rents out, but that is an extra $100 a month that we do not have in the budget.
So, I reach the same conclusion writing this out as I did when I collapsed on the couch on Sunday evening (woozy from the 5 hour energy, by the way): We have to move. I am currently hating our apartment complex manager who somehow sold us on some bullshit that there were no more 6 month leases available, making us sign an 8 month lease. So instead of the end of September, we're stuck here until the end of November.
Let me end on a more positive note. Tomorrow's my Birthday! Because of some AT&T activation stuff, I got my iPhone upgrade a couple of days early (from a very slow 3GS to a 4S -- Siri is mispronouncing my real name, so I just asked her to call me Frenchie!) and it's really pretty. Also, this:
At least the Bachelorette is on tonight!
Friday, June 1, 2012
Extended Memorial Day
Once in a blue moon, B gets two days off in a row. He works almost every saturday and gets a week day off, since the Bank is open for shortened hours. This weekend, it was more of an eclipse in our house, because B got Sunday, Monday and Tuesday off. Three in a row! I switched my reduction of hours day to Tuesday and, presto! Extended Memorial Day Weekend.
We toyed with the idea of going away for Monday night, thinking that hotel/inn/bed and breakfast rates would be nice and low since most people would be returning to work on Tuesday, but couldn't agree on a location. We had to be in town on Sunday, since that was the day of Mia's birthday pool party at my boss's house. We considered Mount Charleston or San Diego, or even just a night at one of the Strip hotels with a nice pool.
The party was great, we spent the entire day by the pool in beautiful 85 degree and sunny weather and enjoyed the company of only a few guests (a lot of people went out of town, so it turned out to be very low-stress). The few kids (and B) that came enjoyed the heck out of the $5 I spent at the dollar store on inflatable pool toys and water guns, the adults (mostly me) enjoyed the pre-made margaritas from Costco. Next year, we hope to reduce the stress by infinity by hosting at our own (rented) house so that we don't have to transport loads of food and decorations.
Mia and B were both slightly sunburned, so we crossed San Diego and the Hotel Pool off the list for Monday, and then all together decided to save our Mount Charleston visit when the weather in Vegas got too hot to bear (Mount Charleston is about an hour from Vegas and is 10 degrees cooler at all times). Instead, we took another step in embracing our status as Vegas residents and became members of the Las Vegas Springs Preserve. The membership price pays for itself if we visit three times in one year, so we figured it would be worth it.
There are short hiking trails, bike rentals and baths, desert gardens, a playground, a little museum, a little animal show, and another little museum whose theme I am blanking on opening in a few months. Available also for members are grilling classes, gardening classes (not applicable until we move in the winter), a farmer's market every Thursday and a few other things. Mia enjoyed toddling around the little exhibits, and even walked around the gardens on her own with Mama trailing closely behind. I'm excited about taking advantage of the few non-gambling things this little city has to offer. I get to bring a guest for free, and all children under 5 are included. (Juliet, I'm looking at you!)
We toyed with the idea of going away for Monday night, thinking that hotel/inn/bed and breakfast rates would be nice and low since most people would be returning to work on Tuesday, but couldn't agree on a location. We had to be in town on Sunday, since that was the day of Mia's birthday pool party at my boss's house. We considered Mount Charleston or San Diego, or even just a night at one of the Strip hotels with a nice pool.
The party was great, we spent the entire day by the pool in beautiful 85 degree and sunny weather and enjoyed the company of only a few guests (a lot of people went out of town, so it turned out to be very low-stress). The few kids (and B) that came enjoyed the heck out of the $5 I spent at the dollar store on inflatable pool toys and water guns, the adults (mostly me) enjoyed the pre-made margaritas from Costco. Next year, we hope to reduce the stress by infinity by hosting at our own (rented) house so that we don't have to transport loads of food and decorations.
Mia and B were both slightly sunburned, so we crossed San Diego and the Hotel Pool off the list for Monday, and then all together decided to save our Mount Charleston visit when the weather in Vegas got too hot to bear (Mount Charleston is about an hour from Vegas and is 10 degrees cooler at all times). Instead, we took another step in embracing our status as Vegas residents and became members of the Las Vegas Springs Preserve. The membership price pays for itself if we visit three times in one year, so we figured it would be worth it.
There are short hiking trails, bike rentals and baths, desert gardens, a playground, a little museum, a little animal show, and another little museum whose theme I am blanking on opening in a few months. Available also for members are grilling classes, gardening classes (not applicable until we move in the winter), a farmer's market every Thursday and a few other things. Mia enjoyed toddling around the little exhibits, and even walked around the gardens on her own with Mama trailing closely behind. I'm excited about taking advantage of the few non-gambling things this little city has to offer. I get to bring a guest for free, and all children under 5 are included. (Juliet, I'm looking at you!)
Friday, May 25, 2012
One
Mia-rrific is O-N-E! Today!
Mia,
I can't believe it's been a year since you were born. At the same time, I can't believe I've only been holding you in my arms for one year. You are such an important and huge part of our lives, that I can't imagine what Mama and Papa ever did to keep busy before you were around. You have come so far from the little bundle we brought home from the hospital to the little personality-filled girl that you are today. You are so lively, friendly and sweet that you are a hit everywhere you go. You have fans all over the world, from Lola and Papy in China to your to your GrandLola in France, and the whole clan of C--s in Chicago! They love you and think about you everyday, but nobody loves you as much as your Mama and Papa do.
Last weekend, while we were at Costco preparing for your upcoming birthday party, you made tons of friends walking up and down the aisles. You thought Mama and Papa were taking too long shopping, so you demanded to be let out of the cart so that you could stretch your legs and walk around. You pointed at cans of tomato sauce, and cracked up at so many other things that Mama and Papa just didn't get. You play, all day long, sometimes wanting a bit of participation, but mostly, you're happy playing on your own. You are always very busy putting things in and out of your toy box, laughing and cuddling your stuffed animals, and feeding your snacks to Swarley.
You started walking a few days after your turned 11 months, and you have gotten very steady and strong on your legs. You are starting to become consistent with your words, but so far, the only discernible ones are "Mamam", "DaDa" and our very favorite "Hiiii". You like to say "Hiii" to everyone around us, and it especially cracks me up when you greet me "Hiii!" when I come to take you out of your carseat. You've been clapping for a few months now, and you clap everytime someone says "YAY!". You've just started pointing a few weeks ago, and you love to point at everything you find interesting. We're finally starting to get consistent with some baby sign language, and you know how to say "milk", but you do it everytime you want something in our hands, so I think you may be misunderstanding the point a bit. You're starting to do more, but it looks more like clapping than anything else. We'll keep at it, and we know you'll get it soon!
At One, you love: stuffed animals, fruit of all kinds, walking, Swarley & Chloe, pretending to drink out of cups and glasses, Mama's jewelry, sitting in your toy box, skyping with your grandparents, and Papa's Derek Lee bobble-head doll that you are not allowed to play with, and many many more things.
You do not like: vegetables, sippy cups, shoes, hair clips, hats, and sitting still!
We love you so much, Mia. Happy Birthday! Here's to so many more.
Monday, May 21, 2012
Prude?
I didn't post about this immediately, because I've been taking a while to really think about it. I finally decided I'll leave it up to you readers to help me decide. It's not like some big momentous life decision or something, I just need to know if I'm sane or crazy.
It was somewhere between 90 and 100 degrees here in Las Vegas yesterday, so Romeo and I decided to take Tybalt out to the apartment pool for the first time of the season. During last year's pool season, as a 9-month to a 1-year old, we used a large flotation device that had leg holes and a fabric canopy on top and Tybalt would just float and kick and splash in the pool in that. This year, in an attempt to transition to the next "step" we bought him a suit that has flotation pads built into it-- kind of like a life jacket with trunks attached. Anyway, we wanted to see how it works and if it's going to provide enough support or if he still needs his large floating "cabana" this year. (By the way, the answer is no, the suit isn't enough and it looks like yes, we will have to rely on the big float for another year.)
Anyway, sorry, I got distracted. None of the above is the point at all. It was the long way of saying that we took Tybalt to the pool yesterday.
When we got to the pool at about 12noon, there were a handful of other people. It wasn't packed, but it's one of two pools at our apartment complex, and is the larger and more popular one. There were two young-ish ladies chatting and sunning, two older middle-aged women sunning privately, and one other young boy and "his adults." I say "his adults" because I couldn't tell what relation they were to him. I'm guessing one was his father. The other could have been an uncle, the father's friend, or for all I know the boy has two dads. Anyway, this boy and one of the men, let's say "dad" for the sake of this already long and complicated post, were the only other people in the pool besides Romeo, Tybalt, and I. We were at opposite corners of the pool. ("Man #2" was near them but sunning and not in the water.) And all the aforementioned female sunbathers were scattered around. *Just trying to set up the scene for you, folks.*
Now, when we got there, it appeared the other little boy and the gentlemen had just arrived a few minutes earlier, as "dad" was just jumping in and the boy was testing the water. He must have been 3 or 4 years old. Hard to tell because he was small, but he was using complete sentences. And as we arrived I noticed he was wearing inflatable arm floaties and swim trunks. In the 5 to 10 minutes however that it took us to get ourselves situated: claiming a table for our towels, sunscreen, Romeo getting in the pool, and me passing Tybalt over to his care, etc, I looked over and saw that the little boy was no longer wearing his swim trunks! "Dad" and the other gentleman were allowing him to wander around, as well as swim, buck naked, with nothing but his arm floaties on! Romeo doesn't wear his glasses while swimming, so he didn't see it, and I couldn't successfully whisper to him in front of everyone. But to me, sitting on the side of the pool, glasses on, fully aware, it was completely obvious that this kid was naked and his little boy body parts were on full display for the entire apartment complex to see! Okay, in all honesty the entire complex of people were not there, obviously, but you get what I mean. Why would they let their chid do this? Our family of three stayed for about 20 minutes and he was still "streaking" when we left. I mean he was walking back and forth between Man #2's lounge chair and to "dad" in the pool, he would get in the pool with "dad" for a minute, and back out, and climb up onto and lie on a lounge chair next to Man #2. All repeatedly. All nude. It's not like I was trying to stare. It grosses me out to think anyone would, plus my Tybalt was adorable playing in the water with Romeo and my attention was focused there. But at the same time it was like a wreck you can't look away from. And yes, I glanced over a few times, mainly to see if this was real. "Were the men in charge of his care seriously comfortable with this? Or had the kid stripped down out of rebellion, and once they noticed surely they would be embarrassed and re-dress him," I thought to myself. But nope, like I said, at least 20 minutes, and we left first.
So, blogosphere-- am I a prude or am I correct that this behavior is really odd and wrong? I know some toddlers hit a stage where they strip out of rebellion and/or curiosity with their bodies. But I think most parents would re-cover their child. Add to the fact that this child seemed older than a young toddler who might do that. Not paying much attention to them when we arrived, I also don't know why the trunks came off to begin with. Choice? Or did the child have an "accident?" If that was the case wouldn't you take your child back to your apartment as quickly as possible to clean up? So I'm doubting that scenario. I do imagine that some parents let their kids go nude in their own backyard private pool, or maybe it's different in other countries and other cultures. (The boy and both men were very dark olive skinned and dark haired, and Las Vegas is known for being multi-cultural.) But still, this is not your own private pool, and this is not, let's just say, a European beachfront. Beyond that, as I alluded to earlier, I didn't want to look because it makes me feel creepy to even have seen it to begin with. I don't want to get graphic here, but what if all the other pool goers hadn't been 2 young women in their twenties and 2 grandmotherly old ladies? What if they let their son do this in front of a pedophile? I'm not saying we have one living here, but you can never be too sure who your neighbor's are in this society. Why would you even risk who might be at the pool (or the beach, or anywhere else) and let your child go naked?
So, what do you suppose the situation was? And what is your take on it? Am I prude or not? Verdict?
It was somewhere between 90 and 100 degrees here in Las Vegas yesterday, so Romeo and I decided to take Tybalt out to the apartment pool for the first time of the season. During last year's pool season, as a 9-month to a 1-year old, we used a large flotation device that had leg holes and a fabric canopy on top and Tybalt would just float and kick and splash in the pool in that. This year, in an attempt to transition to the next "step" we bought him a suit that has flotation pads built into it-- kind of like a life jacket with trunks attached. Anyway, we wanted to see how it works and if it's going to provide enough support or if he still needs his large floating "cabana" this year. (By the way, the answer is no, the suit isn't enough and it looks like yes, we will have to rely on the big float for another year.)
Anyway, sorry, I got distracted. None of the above is the point at all. It was the long way of saying that we took Tybalt to the pool yesterday.
When we got to the pool at about 12noon, there were a handful of other people. It wasn't packed, but it's one of two pools at our apartment complex, and is the larger and more popular one. There were two young-ish ladies chatting and sunning, two older middle-aged women sunning privately, and one other young boy and "his adults." I say "his adults" because I couldn't tell what relation they were to him. I'm guessing one was his father. The other could have been an uncle, the father's friend, or for all I know the boy has two dads. Anyway, this boy and one of the men, let's say "dad" for the sake of this already long and complicated post, were the only other people in the pool besides Romeo, Tybalt, and I. We were at opposite corners of the pool. ("Man #2" was near them but sunning and not in the water.) And all the aforementioned female sunbathers were scattered around. *Just trying to set up the scene for you, folks.*
Now, when we got there, it appeared the other little boy and the gentlemen had just arrived a few minutes earlier, as "dad" was just jumping in and the boy was testing the water. He must have been 3 or 4 years old. Hard to tell because he was small, but he was using complete sentences. And as we arrived I noticed he was wearing inflatable arm floaties and swim trunks. In the 5 to 10 minutes however that it took us to get ourselves situated: claiming a table for our towels, sunscreen, Romeo getting in the pool, and me passing Tybalt over to his care, etc, I looked over and saw that the little boy was no longer wearing his swim trunks! "Dad" and the other gentleman were allowing him to wander around, as well as swim, buck naked, with nothing but his arm floaties on! Romeo doesn't wear his glasses while swimming, so he didn't see it, and I couldn't successfully whisper to him in front of everyone. But to me, sitting on the side of the pool, glasses on, fully aware, it was completely obvious that this kid was naked and his little boy body parts were on full display for the entire apartment complex to see! Okay, in all honesty the entire complex of people were not there, obviously, but you get what I mean. Why would they let their chid do this? Our family of three stayed for about 20 minutes and he was still "streaking" when we left. I mean he was walking back and forth between Man #2's lounge chair and to "dad" in the pool, he would get in the pool with "dad" for a minute, and back out, and climb up onto and lie on a lounge chair next to Man #2. All repeatedly. All nude. It's not like I was trying to stare. It grosses me out to think anyone would, plus my Tybalt was adorable playing in the water with Romeo and my attention was focused there. But at the same time it was like a wreck you can't look away from. And yes, I glanced over a few times, mainly to see if this was real. "Were the men in charge of his care seriously comfortable with this? Or had the kid stripped down out of rebellion, and once they noticed surely they would be embarrassed and re-dress him," I thought to myself. But nope, like I said, at least 20 minutes, and we left first.
So, blogosphere-- am I a prude or am I correct that this behavior is really odd and wrong? I know some toddlers hit a stage where they strip out of rebellion and/or curiosity with their bodies. But I think most parents would re-cover their child. Add to the fact that this child seemed older than a young toddler who might do that. Not paying much attention to them when we arrived, I also don't know why the trunks came off to begin with. Choice? Or did the child have an "accident?" If that was the case wouldn't you take your child back to your apartment as quickly as possible to clean up? So I'm doubting that scenario. I do imagine that some parents let their kids go nude in their own backyard private pool, or maybe it's different in other countries and other cultures. (The boy and both men were very dark olive skinned and dark haired, and Las Vegas is known for being multi-cultural.) But still, this is not your own private pool, and this is not, let's just say, a European beachfront. Beyond that, as I alluded to earlier, I didn't want to look because it makes me feel creepy to even have seen it to begin with. I don't want to get graphic here, but what if all the other pool goers hadn't been 2 young women in their twenties and 2 grandmotherly old ladies? What if they let their son do this in front of a pedophile? I'm not saying we have one living here, but you can never be too sure who your neighbor's are in this society. Why would you even risk who might be at the pool (or the beach, or anywhere else) and let your child go naked?
So, what do you suppose the situation was? And what is your take on it? Am I prude or not? Verdict?
Crafty Weekend
Next weekend is Mia's Poolside Birthday Bash, so we had a bunch of errands to run for party prep this weekend. We had trips to Hobby Lobby for decorations, Target for supplies, and Costco for food purchases and birthday cake ordering. While at Hobby Lobby, I was perusing the seemingly endless crafts, I was inspired to do a few things.
The other day, while browsing Ravelry for new and exciting knitting patterns, I came across ten ten knits, which is a blog written by this awesome knitter and overall crafty lady. I read through many of her archives, and found a tutorial for Chan Luu style bracelets that retail for $200+ dollars. In the beading section at Hobby Lobby, I picked up some leather cording and decided to experiment with the beads I already had stashed away from my previous dabbling. A few hours and way too many finger stabs, knots and curses later, here is the result:
This did not photograph well at all, the beads are a dark purple faceted "rondelle" (the technical term, for those of you in the know). I love it and I can't wait to take another trip to stock up on leather cording. I really want to make a longer one with colorful threads, just like on the Chan Luu website. But, since it took me 2 hours to make the pictured one, and then three to make a second one with smaller beads (thank you, Mia, for taking extremely long naps this weekend), this might have to wait until... a week that I do not have to throw a party at the end of.
Also, in preparation for the big birthday party, I decided to skip purchasing the thank you notes that matched our very cute cupcake invitation, and make some personalized ones. I bought some plain blank greeting cards and an alphabet stamp pad, grabbed some of my extra yarn scraps and my knitting needles, and here is the result:
I made 8 of them in all different heart shapes, colors and sizes and sent them all out as Thank Yous for the Chicago Birthday party. This week, I'm going to knit up 8 more of these little hearts and sew them onto a new pack of cards once Birthday Party the Second is over.
So many crafts, so little time! I also have a big soft purple cowl in the works, but knitting a cowl in 100 degree weather has been pretty uninspiring. I'm considering putting those needles down for a rest and starting on a cotton blanket, which is much more weather appropriate.
The other day, while browsing Ravelry for new and exciting knitting patterns, I came across ten ten knits, which is a blog written by this awesome knitter and overall crafty lady. I read through many of her archives, and found a tutorial for Chan Luu style bracelets that retail for $200+ dollars. In the beading section at Hobby Lobby, I picked up some leather cording and decided to experiment with the beads I already had stashed away from my previous dabbling. A few hours and way too many finger stabs, knots and curses later, here is the result:
This did not photograph well at all, the beads are a dark purple faceted "rondelle" (the technical term, for those of you in the know). I love it and I can't wait to take another trip to stock up on leather cording. I really want to make a longer one with colorful threads, just like on the Chan Luu website. But, since it took me 2 hours to make the pictured one, and then three to make a second one with smaller beads (thank you, Mia, for taking extremely long naps this weekend), this might have to wait until... a week that I do not have to throw a party at the end of.
Also, in preparation for the big birthday party, I decided to skip purchasing the thank you notes that matched our very cute cupcake invitation, and make some personalized ones. I bought some plain blank greeting cards and an alphabet stamp pad, grabbed some of my extra yarn scraps and my knitting needles, and here is the result:
I made 8 of them in all different heart shapes, colors and sizes and sent them all out as Thank Yous for the Chicago Birthday party. This week, I'm going to knit up 8 more of these little hearts and sew them onto a new pack of cards once Birthday Party the Second is over.
So many crafts, so little time! I also have a big soft purple cowl in the works, but knitting a cowl in 100 degree weather has been pretty uninspiring. I'm considering putting those needles down for a rest and starting on a cotton blanket, which is much more weather appropriate.
Friday, May 18, 2012
Immigration Fun
Mia was up all night on Wednesday through Thursday morning just non-stop coughing. She has had the sniffles basically every day since being enrolled in daycare, but it looks like she got a new string of virus in the past couple of days, because the mucus has multiplied.Needless to say, after a sleep less night for all three members of the Frenchie family, only my courageous husband made it to his regularly scheduled activities. Mia and I went to the pediatrician in the morning, where we were sent on our merry way with nothing but advice to use the humidifier and to prop her mattress up. Thanks so much, but hey, at least it's not strep. Also, upon the fear of it once again being strep, our very nice Pediatrician told me to also say "Ahh" and declared that I had more inflammation than Mia, so not to worry. Great, thanks so much. We spent the rest of the day alternating between the couch and the bed, Mia wanting to sleep on me the whole time, while I strategically try to keep my airways out of hers so as not to, you know, give her more of my inflammation.
This morning, after a full night's sleep on everyone's part, everyone seemed good enough to go in the morning, so here I am, back at work. I always dread coming in after missing more than just one day of work (wednesday was my cut-back day), but here I am at 10:30 already caught up. One of my very least favorite things was sitting in my email waiting for me to read and seethe about: an email from a person whose green card I am currently working on, saying something along the lines of: "My friend's green card was recently denied because a change in the law, so I think we should try a different approach." My somewhat polite answer: "There are a million reasons your friends petition may have been denied, whether her employer explained it to her in full or not. Green card applications are very complicated, and it isn't as simple as checking a different box. I have prepared your petition following the standards, and according to what this company is willing to offer you. I am confident in submitting this petition as we had discussed."
Don't you just love it when Clients listen to their friends, and based on that want to tell you what to do? Immigration practice, in its basic, uncomplicated, "I want to live in the US" form is very different from traditional law practice. There are petitions to prepare, and there are so many avenues to navigate. My very favorite thing about this job is just that: figuring out what the best route is, choosing which visa path to follow, whether people qualify for one over another, etc. It's very logical and diagram-y, and I like it. I started here knowing NOTHING about it, and figuring it out on my own from the USCIS website, handbooks and textbooks and from just doing it. But one of the downsides to this type of practice is that it is so detail oriented, that explaining your choice to your client can be pointless, such as it is in this case. There are so many nuances to employment-based immigration, what a company can do, what goes into a job description, who qualifies for it, what jobs you don't have a prayer of getting a foreigner for, etc. They just don't get it. And in communities that have had so much exposure to immigration, the experience their friend has, and who no doubt explained it to them in very rudimentary and nontechnical terms, is almost always taken as the best advice. No, I didn't learn about Immigration in law school, but I certainly learned how to represent a client to the best of my abilities. So please, stop listening to your friend whose green card was denied. Don't even listen to your friend whose green card was approved! Listen to me.
This morning, after a full night's sleep on everyone's part, everyone seemed good enough to go in the morning, so here I am, back at work. I always dread coming in after missing more than just one day of work (wednesday was my cut-back day), but here I am at 10:30 already caught up. One of my very least favorite things was sitting in my email waiting for me to read and seethe about: an email from a person whose green card I am currently working on, saying something along the lines of: "My friend's green card was recently denied because a change in the law, so I think we should try a different approach." My somewhat polite answer: "There are a million reasons your friends petition may have been denied, whether her employer explained it to her in full or not. Green card applications are very complicated, and it isn't as simple as checking a different box. I have prepared your petition following the standards, and according to what this company is willing to offer you. I am confident in submitting this petition as we had discussed."
Don't you just love it when Clients listen to their friends, and based on that want to tell you what to do? Immigration practice, in its basic, uncomplicated, "I want to live in the US" form is very different from traditional law practice. There are petitions to prepare, and there are so many avenues to navigate. My very favorite thing about this job is just that: figuring out what the best route is, choosing which visa path to follow, whether people qualify for one over another, etc. It's very logical and diagram-y, and I like it. I started here knowing NOTHING about it, and figuring it out on my own from the USCIS website, handbooks and textbooks and from just doing it. But one of the downsides to this type of practice is that it is so detail oriented, that explaining your choice to your client can be pointless, such as it is in this case. There are so many nuances to employment-based immigration, what a company can do, what goes into a job description, who qualifies for it, what jobs you don't have a prayer of getting a foreigner for, etc. They just don't get it. And in communities that have had so much exposure to immigration, the experience their friend has, and who no doubt explained it to them in very rudimentary and nontechnical terms, is almost always taken as the best advice. No, I didn't learn about Immigration in law school, but I certainly learned how to represent a client to the best of my abilities. So please, stop listening to your friend whose green card was denied. Don't even listen to your friend whose green card was approved! Listen to me.
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