Impressionist

I've always wanted to do one of those wine & painting things. THere's one in my town, about 2 miles from my house. We've lived here for 3 years & I've never gotten around to it. Thankfully, my sister B is awesome and kickstarts things. She invited me to do one where we would attempt to recreate a Monet-ish waterlilly thing. This is what I started with. Blank canvas with some circles. Intimidating.

This is what it was supposed to look like at the end:

We were given aprons, two brushes & 4 colors of paint: red, blue, yellow & white. We mixed our own colors, so there's built-in instant individuallity even if all of our brushstrokes were the same. It was neat to learn a little more about color theory as we mixed up stuff.
Here's my finished product. Not too shabby.

 And seriously, it was a blast! There was Pandora-style radio station playing, and it was a bit like karaoke Russian roulette. Only with no bullets, because I knew all the songs. So that was fun. I didn't bring a bottle of wine (only because I didn't have one handy that I felt like opening) so I was super classy and had Jack & coke. Woot. It was nice to chat & catch up with B, and then, because of the SUPERB location of Let's Art Party, we walked next door and had delicious Austrian food at Jorg's, where I got this teeny tiny beer. Adorable & delicious.

Moy peeze!

We've come to the point in my momming & blogging where I talk about all the cute things my kid says.

I'm still sort of amazed by that. My BAYBEEEEEE says words. That mostly anyone can understand. There also a fair amount of "that means" translations going on. But seeing how fast she picks up words is the best.

So, her "or" sounds like "oy" which means Eleanoy, moy, dooy are said.

Elbow sounds like eyebrow
Hippo sounds like hair bow
She calls us Mama & Daddy, but will run into the room & shout, "Mom! Dad!"
Garrison is Guyson, which sounds like medicine which also sounds a lot like "this one."
She finally got a hard c/k sound, so milk & sock are pretty cute. Also Puca. She's been saying the dog's name for a long time, but before the k sound it was Pupa. (Cup is still pup though)
She's really in to Winnie the Pooh & asks to watch it daily. "Show? Pooh?" This week she's started pointing out Tigger & Piglet. But she can't say Rs, so it's Tigguh & Pigig. Nothing for Eeyore yet.
Purple is just puhpuh for now.

Toddler speak. Endless amusement. Also here's the pantsless wonder with tiara & magic wand refusing to stay still for a picture.

What I can control

I've been thinking about resolutions & goals & what-not. I'm a few weeks late to that party, but I'm going to ride the coattails of my 2 week late baby.

There's stuff that I want out of 2014. I want a whole calendar year where no one I love dies. Eleanor has been to more funerals in her tiny life than I'd been to in my whole life before she was born. I'd rather Garrison take after me in that respect, not her. But other than resolving not to commit murder, I can't control that.

I'd really like to see the people closest to me have true joy & peace in their lives. Other than resolving to be less stressful to them, I can't control that.

I'd like my dad's cancer to stop growing. Forever. But I can't control that.

Here's what I can control & what I do want to do.

I want to have more dinners with my friends. I want to invite my friends to dinner for no reason other than I thought of them. I love when folks call and say, "Hey! It's a day that ends in y, wanna have tacos?" So I'm going to do that too. Come to Dallas. We'll have tacos.

Today I stepped on a scale while holding Garrison. The number I saw was still smaller than what I'd been seeing at this time last year. Right now I'm in the grips of The Nursing Hunger, but I would like to have some more protein/veggie snacks & less cake. Well. No. I never want less cake, but I'd like to continue to fit into my smaller sized clothes.

Oh, speaking of clothes, now that I'm (most likely) done being pregnant, I want to purge my closet. Adjusting my expectations to being a mom & wife as primary job duties comes with a shift in wardrobe. I have plenty of yoga pants. I don't want to look schlubby all the time. I want to be comfy but still feel like my clothes make the most of the shape I am.

Speaking of closets, I'd love to purge towels too. Move the ratty ones to the "dog's bath" cabinet & replace the decades old ones with absorbent & colorful ones. Ditto for sheets.

I want to get each of our cars outfitted with a proper emergency kit.

I didn't quite make my goal of 500 miles for 2012. I made it to 489. Not bad, but 500 this year.

I want to wear my stuff. Jewelry & makeup. I think this means I'll have to get up earlier, which I'm not excited about. For now, I'm going to choose sleep over accessories, but as Garrison sleeps longer at a stretch, that might change.

That's what I can work on. That's what I can control.

And now gratuitous pictures of my kids.

1 month

Time flies, eh?

The Vitals:
12lb 4oz
22.5" long
The time of the newborn sleeper is done, my friends. He is comortably in 0-3 month stuff. He still feels tiny compared to his sister, who is 26 to 28 pounds, depending on how many nuggets she's eaten. But today, I held a baby 2 weeks OLDER (and 2 pounds lighter) than Garrison. Kinda shocking.

Highlights:
Christmas! Which he slept through. Both times. And I currently have ZERO pictures of because...I didn't take any. J did. My mom did. I was too busy opening presents apparently.
New Years Day at the zoo! Which he mostly slept through. And I also have no pictures of. I sense a theme...

First bath. 

Skills:
Spitting up on everything except burp cloths
Charming little old ladies at church and the grocery store
Eating, pooping, sleeping in reasonable chunks (if not always at reasonable times)
Holding his head up
Seeing more than a foot in front of his face

Works in Progress:
Staying awake for more than half an hour
Hand control--the flailing, it is strong with this one.

He likes:
Peeing in the open air like a fountain of a wee cherub
People
Car rides

He dislikes:
The cold

I like:
Falling asleep with him next to me. He's very warm & snuggly
A whole new set of adorable tiny clothes
Watching Eleanor get interested in him. She says his name, though it sounds more like Guy-son & is trying to say something like "brother"

I dislike:
Changing my clothes 2-3 times a day because of various bodily fluids not my own.

All in all, things are going really well. Nursing is so much easier since we got his tongue tie clipped before we left the hospital. He eats quickly, just like his sister did, so I'm getting some sleep. I'm still looking forward to the days when I don't have to choose between sleep & showering. I know it will be soon. These days go much too quickly. He's already so much different than when he was born.

Here's his alligator picture. I did take that one.

Day 2

1 month

 

Coordinating PJs from Aunt B










Christmas in Weatherford. Bonus lazy bones dog

Two weeks (six days)

I've been wanting  post a 2 week update all week, but... well... Nope. So I'll just run down the basics for posterity & get to the pictures.

The Vitals:
11.8 pounds (Seriously?! This kid!)
22 inches

The Highlights:
I survived a whole day with both kids, by myself. I've even managed to do laundry & dishes since my mom left. Some days I feel like a rock star, keeping both of them alive and not burning the house down.

Eleanor is a great big sister. She's interested in holding him & gives him smooches, but her attention span is short. She's definitely into pushing boundaries and figuring out how to effectively discipline her while trapped beneath a baby is... challenging.

Garrison is wonderful. He does all the things he should: eat, sleep, fill diapers, be adorable. He charms everyone he meets. Aside from being much more spitty-uppy than Eleanor was, it's pretty much just like I remembered. Not much sleep, lots of baby snuggles. My mom stayed with us for two weeks, which was wonderful. So many friends brought us food I haven't had to cook a single meal yet. Which may explain why I have time for laundry. Don't quite know what I'll do when I have to do both. Starvation or nudity?

OK, now peektures.

Rockin' the newborn sleeper. 

Sleepyhead

Sweater vest

TOES!

Milk drunk

Blame it on the NaBloPoMo

I wasn't planning on  participating in National Blog Posting Month because I was planning in having a baby. But I thought I'd play along until then. I had a few things to say, and thought it would be a good distraction to keep my mind off the last few weeks of pregnancy, which I thought would be the first two weeks of this month.

Also, I don't get to an actual computer very often, so I've been doing this all from my phone. That has led to some interesting challenges and  realizations. First, I can't choose where the pictures go when posting from my phone. It's end of the post or nothing at all. OK, not a deal breaker. Also, I've had some trouble with the posting date. Things I've kept in my drafts folder are showing as published on the day I started the draft, not the day I actually published them. Or, when I make an edit to a post (fixing a typo or link), it changes the published date to the day I made the edit. None of this would really matter if I weren't going for "a post a day."

Anyway, here it is, the final day of the month, and I'm both still pregnant & still posting. Win some, lose some?

Naked & Chocolate

My desire for eye-shadow is well documented. There are 2 palettes that I've got my eyes on for potential holiday gifts. To myself. For being awesome.

Urban Decay Naked 3 OK, I'm not much into neutrals. I feel like if I'm going to spend the time to do my makeup, I want to see my makeup. I like colors, though after my July experiment, I'm glad to own some matte neutrals for blending and whatnot. Also, what I love best about Urban Decay are the fabulously pigmented wild colors with fun names. I somehow don't own a single UD palette however and this seems like an oversight. I've avoided Naked 1& 2 so far because... well, they're pretty, but I couldn't imagine getting much use out of them. I wasn't too fussed about Naked 3 when I first heard about it because come on! How many neutral palettes do we need? Well, for me the answer is 2. My matte one & this one. Warm pinks & coppery browns are much more my kind of neutral. These are nudes that actually seem like my skin tones.

Too Faced Chocolate Tin
Eye-shadow made with chocolate? OK, do I really have to make a case for this one? Well, again, pretty warm colors. Not just neutrals. Oh, AND THEY SMELL GOOD. That is all.

Blogging changed my life

Ok, that sounds over-dramatic but it's true. I have an internet friend living in my house, so I don't think it's too far of a stretch.

So, the main things about my life would still be the same. I'd still be here in Texas, performing at a renaissance festival, where I met my husband, and we'd still have kids and all that. Though, how I care for those kids is different because of the internet. I never would have attempted cloth diapering if I hadn't read all about it from Temerity Jane & Here We Go AJen. Eleanor has been clothed by the internet her whole life. I don't think I'd ever heard of Baby Led Weaning before reading about it on TJ's blog and hearing Arwen talk about it on Twitter.

And Twitter is a huge part of my blog world, because that's where I really interact with these ladies. Of course that really only happened once I decided to go to The Blathering and that's where things really started to change.

Deciding to write a blog was a whim I had while on vacation. I am notorious for starting things I don't finish so I'm a bit surprised I'm still doing this. But my husband sent me links to a few blogs and I read them--like, all of them. As much of their archives as I could get a hold of because I felt like I needed all the back story. I didn't really understand blogging so much. I approached it like a TV show instead of a comic strip.

So that's how I got to know TJ. And then she mentioned this thing called The Blathering that she was going to. I read that it was an open invitation to all bloggers. I was skeptical because I'd hardly been blogging for any time at all and so they couldn't really mean me, but they said anyone & I took them at their word and signed up. It helped that the gathering was in Austin so I could drive myself & if it was horrible just leave. I knew NO ONE who was going, except TJ, who didn't really know me except as the crazy lady who read her archives. But I started reading the blogs of the women who were attending, trying to make connections. One of my favorite random facts is that Sarah Lena & I were at the same International Thespian Society thingamajig at UNL. I saw her perform Hello Dolly. 15 years ago. Crazy.

Anyway, because of The Blathering, I started making actual friends. I joined a book club. Then TJ hosted a pajama party and I met Bagels. TJ is the reason is found Bagels' blog in the first place, because she linked to it and from the very first post I felt like Bagels was a kindred spirit. Which led to me inviting her to my house. Not to live (that came later), just to visit. At that point I invited a bunch of local-ish folks to come up while Bagels was down and learned that hostessing/hospitality is not my gifting. Still, somewhere in all that Kammah wound up coming over for weekly Doctor Who dates and she's now a permanent fixture in our lives too.

If it weren't for blogs and Twitter I wouldn't have found myself driving Miriel from DFW to Waco through some ridiculous thunder storms while 38w pregnant (the first time, not last week). I also wouldn't have a pile of presents from ladies across the country waiting for the next crappy day. I'd never have discovered R's amazing nursing pads or have tiny crocheted booties for my babies. I wouldn't have gotten fresh, warm, delicious cookies delivered to my door by Nicole.

I've made friends with people who have different political and religious views,  widening my brain space and making me really think about why I think/feel/believe the way that I do. I've learned about Catholicism, self-publishing books, infertility, a crazy genetic thing with an abbreviation that reminds me of a swear word, several different ways of eating to feel better, Adam Ant, the Air Force, teething, gender stuff, makeup... so much stuff. Things I'd likely never be exposed to in my regular life.

My life is fuller and richer because of the wonderful women I've met (face to face and tweet to tweet) through blogging. I highly recommend it. Find your people. Meet their people and their people's people until your world is bigger and better. And sign up for the Crappy Day Present Exchange, because it's wonderful. Do it.

Sniffles

Have I mentioned Eleanor has a cold? Because she does. And that's kinda rotten. It's not stopping her from being pleasant & playful & wanting to go outside. It is, however, stopping her from wanting to sleep. Which is unpleasant on many levels.

The up side is with the colder weather, there are hats & gloves all around and babies in hats are adorable, even ones who are toddlers & sniffly.

Welchling Watch continues

Well, a firm eviction date has been scheduled. If he doesn't get his little butt moving towards the exit by Dec 2nd, this baby will be forcibly removed. That's still 6 days away. Let's all pray for a November baby.

I'm still walking & yoga-ing daily to keep things in as good a position as possible. I will not list all the things I have tried to start labor, but short of acupuncture & communing with elephants, it's a fairly exhaustive list. I still feel fine, just eager to meet this little man. Who, after this much cooking will probably be bigger than some Thanksgiving turkeys by the time he greets the world.

My freezer is stocked with good food. (Some of) My closets are organized. Floors have been cleaned. The pantry & Tupperware cabinet have had an overhaul. My toes are painted. My hair had been cut. My eyebrows are tamed. Baby monitors have been installed to cover the cradle. I've located sheets & towels for my mother's stay with us. I'm ready, is what I'm saying. Everything is ready. Except the baby.

Eleanor was born the day before Easter. Maybe this one is waiting for Thanksgiving? Eleanor was also born the day after Passover, so maybe he's waiting for Hanukkah? Oh, wait, they fall in the same day this year. So, the news is we're fine. Healthy, happy, and given the all clear to wait until the full 42 weeks before they go in after this little dude.

But everybody hopes it won't take that long.

Once this baby is born, I'm probably never wearing this top again. Maybe I'll put together all my growing pictures for this time around. Maybe after I nap.

I hate waiting

You should read the title in the voice of Indigo Montoya. Because that's always how I hear that sentence. t because patience isn't a virtue I have cultivated well, though my opportunities to do so have been numerous.

I was going to put a long, wordy rant here about STILL being pregnant a week after my due date, Eleanor catching a cold, Mom Guilt, Blogger eating my previous post about Eleanor catching a cold, which threw off my non-attempt at National Blog Posting Month that I wasn't really doing anyway because I thought I'd have a baby by now and various other complaints. I had been stock-piling my crappy day presents, hoarding then to help get me through those rough first few weeks home with a newborn and toddler, but there were some specifically designated as "waiting for baby" gifts and I plowed through those and was about to tear into the rest.

Then someone sent me warm cookies from the Internet. (Update: it was SISTER! Not my sister, Bagels' sister) Fresh, warm cookies on a cold, wet day. Pretty much the best thing ever. 

Rough Day

Today was kinda rotten, for no particular reason. I mean, I wrote up at 2 am with a particularly vicious "what if" running around my brain that refused to let me get back to sleep, and we all know that I'm an absolute PEACH when I'm tired.

But J not only got up with Eleanor this morning, he made waffles. Giraffe shaped waffles. Giraffles if you will. And I will. He did all the toddler wrangling while I tried to rest. I took a walk around Northpark & got a new thing to try from Sephora. I talked to my mom & dad. J made dinner & went to the store, where he bright me home a giant salted caramel hot chocolate. Then I got to take a hot bath & relax while watching Korean drama.

None of these things add up to a bad day, and yet I was not at my best or brightest. I'll try again tomorrow.

The colors of fall

Today, Bagels and I took a very cranky, crappy napping baby for a car ride. We got some Starbucks hot chocolate & looked at trees.

People often complain that we don't have a real fall here. We do, it just only lasts a month & is only really pretty for half that time. But that time is now.

So, most of these are blurry because that were taken out the window of my car, with my phone, but here's some of the pretty of my city.

Lip service

For my birthday, a friend gave me a sampler of lip stuff from Sephora. There were many brands that I hadn't had a chance to play with yet and some real gems.

The best of the bunch is the Tarte Lipsurgence crayon thingy. Now, I've known about these for a while. My friend Kathleen has several that she wears at her day job, in fairly unobtrusive, neutral colors, which her job demands. I'm generally a fan of louder lips, and since the brand name Tarte makes me giggle, especially given my Queen Anne's Lace associations, I've always looked at their brighter shades. This one is a lovely pink that on me is just a hint of color. It smells good, feels good, and looks lovely and natural. I don't think I own any matte lip stuff, and only a few matte anything else because I am all about the shine, gloss, glitter & glitz. I'm slowly coming around to the versatility & understated grace of mattes. These crayons do come in a variety of finishes, not just matte.

Anyway, try this stuff. It's rad. Here's a before & after shot of my face.

Compare/Contrast

It's impossible for me not to compare these two pregnancies. In the beginning, everything seemed the same. Same level of queasy, same lack of energy, same lack of any other symptoms. There were differences, too. I didn't have to take progesterone for the first trimester this time. I was more tired chasing a baby/toddler than I'd ever been working a 9-5 job. I also had the ability to nap when my baby did, which wasn't really an option at the office.

I still never noticed my hair getting thick and lush. My nails did get stronger just like last time, and like last time I was cutting them faster than seemed reasonable. I've talked a bit about the changes to my shape, and surprisingly I've added no new stretch marks this time around. I've been waiting to say that because my pink & purple rites of passage didn't show up until around week 38 with Eleanor.

I think I've worried just as much this time around, but about different things. How will Eleanor adjust to the new baby? How will I manage to care for them both? Do I have to have another major surgery? Will this baby be here for Thanksgiving? (Which this year is also Hanukkah because of course it is. Apparently I only have babies on Jewish holidays? Eleanor was born during Passover.)

This time around, I've had next to no heartburn. The rash of doom cleared up after just a few weeks (instead of the 3+ months last time). No carpel tunnel. It's been even easier and last time was still easy.

At this point last time, 2 days past my due date, I was impatient & looking up how to start labor with Castor Oil, which I've since learned is a bad idea. If you take enough to be effective you can wind up dehydrated. I didn't take enough to feel any effects, but I did go into labor, which is my coincidental anecdotal non-scientific link. But this time last time was my last day before labor. 11:30pm on the second day past my due date contractions started. About 30 minutes later my water broke. Conveniently in the shower. I don't think I'll be so lucky this time.

Anyway, I still have no idea when this baby is going to get here. I hope tomorrow. I really do. Or Friday morning. That's good too.

Gratuitous picture of Eleanor being cute.

Bathing beauty

Eleanor loves bath time. OK, honestly she loves water in all forms--even the pets' water dish. She loves to "swim" at my folks place. Tonight she spent over half an hour scrubbing her feet. Just a dribble of water from the faucet and a goldfish sponge. Endless entertainment.

In Due Time

It's my due date. I'm still pregnant, to the surprise of no one. Due dates are rough estimates at the best of times, even if you know date of conception, not just a guess based on cycles. Only 10% of women give birth/go into labor on their due dates. I know all this. I expected to be here.

But I want to meet my baby. I'm not uncomfortably pregnant, I'm just bad at waiting. There's been some kerfuffle over when the final eviction date will be and since I really do want labor to start on its own, I'm willing to wait, but I'm bad at it. Second guessing every twinge and gas bubble is kind of exhausting.

I've gotten all the usual advice for what to do to make this baby come out, from the well-meaning and generic (walk, eggplant Parmesan) to the crazy and somewhat personal (trampolines, adult activities).

Good news is that I'm healthy as can be & everything looks good, so it's just a matter of time. Time to wait.

So, here's what I look like at 40w pregnant, with Eleanor. OK, not pregnant WITH Eleanor, but pregnant and Eleanor is also in the picture.

Church family

So, we joined a new church a while back. A little local church where we sing out of hymnals and stand to greet each other. It's where Eleanor attends her Mother's Day Out program that she loves and I love and they love her. It's both small enough that I feel like we matter and belong but big enough to have resources that make our life easier.

We also joined a Sunday School class, which has been delightful. When we first walked in, there was a table with 3 pregnant ladies, so I fit right in. Actually, my baby might wind up sharing a birthday with one of the other babies if everything goes... I don't want to say "right" but it's a possibility anyway.

So, last week, during the "say hello to your neighbor" part, the folks behind me asked when I was due. This week, they remembered me and said they were surprised to see me. Now, that kind of comment can go all sorts of wrong. Luckily, it struck me as quite sweet that they remembered me. Also, I think it helps that even at 279 days pregnant, I don't look so huge that people are on high alert to run and grab towels and boiling water when I walk by. Round though I may be, my nearly six-footness gives me lots of room to carry a baby.

I've had lots of friends to compare bellies with both times I've been pregnant and I'm happy to say that I am happy with the way this one shaped up. Just in time for him to exit.

Like mother, like daughter

This picture (due to flash) does not accurately portray the joy & wiggling that happened when I busted out my old 96 box of crayons. And I do mean old. I got that box in high school. For the fun of it. And put all 96 in rainbow order. So far (and I'm not holding my breath) she's been her usual determined self and is pretty good at only taking one crayon at a time. They're not in the exact order I put them in anymore, but they're still grouped together well. Coloring is a pretty recent addition to our daily routine and I probably enjoy it WAY more than she does at the moment but her excitement when I get the crayons out makes me so happy.

Little games

I like computer games. I have since I was a wee Bean. Kindercomp was one of my favorite things to play, though I skipped the math sections to spend extra time drawing. We had a fun tank game called Scortched Earth which taught me about trajectory and that "May the fleas of one thousand camels infest your hide" was an appropriate curse.

I am spectacularly bad at video games, however. I stuck to computers. Puzzle games like Tetris & Bejeweled. Oh, and Alchemy. Not the one where you combine whenever elements to make stuff, but the PopCaps version with the astrological symbols. You can see why Candy Crush appeals to me. (I'm currently on level 419. I'm both proud & disturbed.)

My husband introduced me to World of Warcraft and I got to be pretty good at that. The dress up factor speaks to me. So I have to kill some dudes to get a new dress. I'm fine with that in the pixilated world.

All of this to get to Grim Fandango. My brother have me a copy of this game when I was in college. It's set in the afterlife, Day of the Dead style. Our hero, Manny Calavera, is a travel agent whose job is to help souls navigate to the blissful hereafter. If you've been good, you can take a fast train. If not, your options range from cruise ship, bus, car, all the way down to walking stick. It's very clever and puzzle-esque in that you have to gather clues to solve the mystery to figure out what to do next. "Look pigeons, it's Robert Frost!" OK, that's only funny in context but trust me it's a hoot.

Sadly, I never finished the game. It runs on Windows98. But I still have the disc because I can't get rid of anything. And tonight I learned that you can play it in Windows 7. And there was much rejoicing. Now to unearth my copy and get back to Manny & the pigeons.