Ugh

I feel so violated. I just paid $3.46/gallon for gas. Pretty soon you will see me biking to work down I-8 with Logan's bike trailer on the back. Too bad I would need to leave at 2:30 am to make it to Point Loma on time.

And as an addendum to the last post, I am all for long hair. I am 100% for not cutting it--once it is trimmed to all the same length. This is my only qualifier. You lucky girl moms out there can pull hair back in clips, put it in cute little pony and pig tails, and in general work with the baby mullet to make it so much less offensive. Boys are stuck looking like "Dog the Bounty Hunter" fans (you know, without the racism).

Let's not let it get to this people...

Business in the front

Our kid has a mullet. A serious, hockey fan, Billy Ray Cyrus, lovin' the 80s mullet. The time has come for his first haircut, just to even everything up. Someone in this house is extremely resistant to hair trimming, and it isn't me. Logan doesn't even know what a haircut is, and Sunshine has no fashion sense, so that just leaves one very stubborn male. However, the deed must be done. My hairdresser is on standby, and at the slightest resistance she will swoop in and even the boy out. I am hoping this happens sooner than later. We shall see.

Loss

To our dear friends Hope and Megan, we can not tell you enough how very sorry we are for your devastating loss. You and Q mean so very much to us and I hate that this has happened to your family.

Jazz hands

Today I sang Logan a whole slew of christmas tunes in the car. He was sufficiently placated by my lovely, lovely voice until we got home (despite shushing me while I was singing Mary had a little lamb the other day, a song he usually enjoys). In the spirit of xmas, what with our twinkly lights on and all, I played my holiday iTunes list. Logan loved the songs and even gave us all sorts of jazz hands. Yay! I am so pleased he likes the music as much as me.

Twinkle

We put christmas lights up on our garage today. Well, we kind of did it twice, since the first time they were backwards and we couldn't plug them in. I say we but I mean Don. He switched them around and now they look good. I don't like the "twinkling" effect going on, but oh well. Nothing we can do about that. Getting the lights at our local B.ig L.ots was quite an adventure, as those discount stores can be.

Not a whole lot else going on. Logan was stung by a bee today, but he is fine. Poor baby.

Book PSA

I love to buy books. Especially books for Logan, as I will be reading them over and over and over (and over). But even at 4-8 bucks a pop, they get pricey. I found Sort Floor Books, an online bookseller, and the prices are amazing. The site isn't very user friendly, but it is worth it to look around.

If you are a parent of young children, or like parents of young children, and want to buy a book, I would stay far away from My First Body Board Book. Your child will become obsessed with it and you will go slowly insane. It has no narrative and generally is annoying. While informative, it is also mind-numbingly boring. Not a winning combination. The more you know...

Loooow key

Today was pretty low key. Logan is popping a molar (still! poor kid) and is very Jekyll/Hyde. Especially with meals. Don has figured out some secret of getting him to chill out that I definitely have not mastered. It is not terrible, but it is challenging.

This weekend will pretty much be more of the same. Stucco sealing, spare room cleaning, and shoe returning are in our future. How I love a three day weekend!

Thanksgiving '07

This is a homemade turkey using Logan's hands for the tail and his feet for the body. I obviously cut it out, as it would have looked a lot different if had L done it.

We made a big breakfast, started the sweet potatoes, are thinking about the mashed potatoes and deviled eggs, and are generally hanging out. I love having TG close to home. Later we will be headed out to M & H's house for the feast. Yum!

Logan is really blossoming this week. He has started to use two word combinations (big dog, up please, bye dada, and bite apple) and he learned how to catch a ball! Pretty impressive...

Utensil

Logan used chopsticks today! Hooray! Ok, the sticks were still held together at the top where you break them apart, but still, it was pretty cool.





Sorry for the bad quality pics. While the cell phone does great in the daytime, inside a dark restaurant is another story.

Here is the Snickerdoole biscotti recipe. If you do make it, FYI the dough is really dry when you are working with it.

Jumping bean

Logan has attempted to jump a few times. He scrunches way down and then pops up really fast like he might actually leave the earth, but doesn't. He hasn't quite figured out what role feet play in jumping, other than holding you up straight. I think he is quite close though, and I might have glimpsed 1/4 of a millimeter of air under him last night. I tell you, he always does these neat things when Don is at work. Have no fear though, he has already been "jumping" on the tile floor this morning. Because I know if I were going to try a new trick that involved leaving the ground, and the potential for falling was higher than my normal 40% (and that is just walking people!), I would choose a hard tile floor.

I know I missed another day. This blogging every day thing is HARD! This is where I start to slack off, what with Thanksgiving and all. Tonight I am making no-bake cookies and peeling sweet potatoes. Yum.

In more serious news, please send love to Hope and Megan, who are struggling with limbo that looks to be heartbreak. We wish you the easiest path through this difficult time.

Missed

I missed a day. Crap. Yesterday was filled (literally from 6 am till 6pm) with friends, food, more food, and drinks. Oh yes, lots of drinks. We say it is a cooking club, but sometimes I think the food is just an excuse to drink way too much. We were in bed shortly after Logan last night and I was even an hour late coming to work today. Pathetic!

Logan had a great time playing with G, who is 1 year older than him. She is a super sweet kid who has always been really nice to L, even though he can't do many of the things she can.

Our menu consisted of:

• Snickerdoodle Biscotti
• Spicy Citrus Bloody Mary's
• Buttermilk Oatmeal Pancakes
• Vietnamese Chicken Sandwiches
• Mango Crab Avocado Salad
• Fritatas
• Smashed Potatoes
• Chocolate Zucchini Cake Mini Muffins
• Grilled Fruit

The sandwiches and potatoes were the best I think, but the biscotti turned out really nice too (I made that one prior to everyone showing up so they would have something to snack on while cooking). Logan spent the entire evening play cooking, it was sooooo cute.

Now I just have to make it through 3 days and we have a 4 day weekend! Hooray!

Knowledge

Today Logan learned how to open a beer with a musical Ohio State bottle opener, courtesy of his Uncle M. Woot!

Face.book ruminations

I really don't understand Face.book very well, as my cousin K can attest. It seems kind of like, what do I get out of this? But I am on it nonetheless. I have connected with some Buck's Rock people and a few from high school. In the last two days I have had two people from my past request to be my friend. So. dang. weird. One is a guy I dated for a week during the first semester, Freshman year at Syracuse. The other is a woman who I went to elementary, middle, and high school with.*

The guy I dated turned into a friend who I ran into occasionally on my way to class. Nothing too deep, but he was/is a nice guy (if not a bit troubled). The woman who I went to grade school with could only be called a forced friend. We played sports together and my class was only 70-ish people, so we couldn't really avoid each other. She was "cool" and I, much to everyone's surprise I'm sure, was not. Let's just say she didn't welcome me into the cool crowd with open arms. She was clearly on a self-destructive path from a very early age and it is interesting to see a picture of her now without full goth-esque garb. I will be interested to see what she is up to, if I can discern it without putting in too much effort. The voyeur aspect of face.book is what is most appealing. You can dip in and out of people's lives without having to do much.

Anyway, this is all to say these two people led me down the rabbit hole to other Syracuse and Bow folks who I hadn't thought of in a really long time. So strange. I am starting to see face.book's addictiveness, but it sure would be time consuming and I frankly have way too much to do besides search for people I don't know anymore.

Of course everyone commented on how adorable Logan is. I won't add them to my list if they don't.

Next post for Cali: the brunch menu and cooking club rules. With a side of Hoagie, of course.

*10 points to my parents if they can guess who the Bow person is.

Procrastination

late bedtime + 2 nights in a row = cranky

Poor Logan, I have gotten him to bed much later than usual the last two nights and now we are paying the price. It makes me realize what a happy, sweet kid he normally is when he has these off days. We had one of those, you looked at me funny/the cat won't let me sit on her/I bonked my knee ever so lightly (you see where I am going with this) I will cry/whine/need to be held and kissed to make it better days. I have high hopes for tomorrow though.

In other news, we are hosting our cooking club (11 people total) on Sunday for brunch. We have sooo much to do and organize beforehand, but I am just not feeling it tonight. Tomorrow I am gone, so that just leaves Saturday. I think I am a glutton for punishment.

Still no names, but here they are.

Tonight was family art night at Zamorano. Logan and I had a great time walking around looking at the booths and projects. I so wish I could have gone to school there.

The boy can identify almost all major body parts (bel-bo=elbow), is saying more, down, done, mango (uh oh, without the oopsie inflection),home, and a few others I am forgetting. So neat to watch.

Place holder

Pics of the fish tomorrow.

We delivered a birthday present to Auntie H today, one day late. Logan always loves visiting H and M, especially since they have so many cats. Lots to chase and do.

Please send your love out to Hope and Megan, who are currently in the worst kind of limbo.

Camera phone and fish

Yeah, I love my camera phone. I end up buying more phone than I need every time we upgrade. Usually under the pretense that it is "free" except these few extras. Extras that end up costing the big bucks, but I digress. I have a S.amsung SCHu-540. We got it this summer and the pics do turn out pretty nice. This time it was worth it to purchase the better technology. I must admit though, that I photoshop them before I upload them to flikr. They turn out much darker and with less contrast straight from the phone. That is fine by me because I photoshop pretty much every picture I take.

In other news, we got fish! I walked into our awesome local aquarium store and got sucked in for the bigger tank and goldfish. Only two, and the tank is 4 gallons. Not huge, but still waaaaaay more than I anticipated. I was thinking a two gallon bowl with a betta. Ha! The soft blue glow off the rows and rows of meticulously clean fish tanks sucked me in. So now we have two fancy goldfish in a fancy tank. No names yet, we are still working on Logan to say the word "fish." It is coming out "da." Pictures to come once I get home.

Loganism

Last night Logan was crying out in his sleep before Don and I went to bed. One time Don walked closer to his room to see if he should go in and he heard "miiiiine!" The kid is even possessive in his sleep! We got a good chuckle out of that one.

This morning I heard Don say to Logan "Don't hit sunshine with the potatoes!" Hee hee! Parenting can be so absurd.

Dodging home repairs

Logan and I went out and about today as Don did the stucco repair around the french doors. Long overdue, but now it is finished. No more putting it off. Whew!

I decided to try for SDSU's coi pond by way of the trolley. We have a trolley stop within a 3-4 minute walk of our house but hadn't ridden it yet. It really doesn't go anywhere we travel to often, and frankly it is expensive. $2.25 one way, when we went about 3 miles. Seriously, who would ride it every day? Anyway, we made it to the stop in the nick of time and sat next to a character on the way there. This woman helped me figure out the ticket "system," and proceeded to tell me all about her opinions on public transportation (very strong opinions I might add) and her tenuous relationship with her boyfriend. It has been a while since I have had a character run-in such as the ones that only seem to happen on public transportation. Then Logan and I hung out at SDSU for about an hour and a half. We ate lunch, pretended to be airplanes, counted turtles (9!), and looked at fish. It was so much fun. Logan is really becoming a fun companion. We have run a bunch of errands together this week and it was very successful.

And since all good things must come to an end, now he is being uber naughty. We have heard a lot of "miiiiiiine!" tonight. Bedtime yet? Please?

The pics below are taken with my cell phone (love that thing!) at the coi pond..

Awareness

November 4-10 is Infertility Awareness Week. Today in particular is "ask your employer for coverage" day.

We are infertile. It is not something I would wish on anyone, and the bad feelings infertility brings do not go away with the conception or birth of your child. What really throws a wrench into this medical problem (because it is a medical issue, like cancer or diabeties) is that health insurance usually won't cover it. They may cover the infertility diagnosis, but no treatment. We were lucky enough to have 50% coverage when we were trying for Logan, but we will not have that "luxury" next time around. No, if we want to try for another, we will be paying 100% of our care. Thousands of dollars to try for what others get for free. It is maddening and frustrating and all over unfair. Today I asked for my work to cover it. I will ask Don's work to cover infertility treatment. I will ask California to mandate infertility treatment coverage. I am not holding my breath.

2222

I looked at my site meter today (which I rarely do) and it read 2222. Neat! Yeah, it's the little things.

I think I want to get a fish. In a bowl, not a big fish tank with all the upkeep. But I have had bad luck with fish in San Diego and frankly it will be just one more thing for me to do. And I keep thinking of F.inding N.emo. So wrong to keep a little fish in a bowl. But, on the other hand, it might occupy Logan for a little bit each day. Clearly I am torn. Oh, and I haven't told Don about this new idea yet. I don't think he is going to be a fan. Going to pick up cat food today brought this all on, the pretty, pretty betas looked so fancy in their sad little cups of water. I feel like buying one would be saving it. I am aware it is really going to do the opposite (not only because I stink at fish care taking).

Man, I am boring when I post every day.

Ouch and other random thoughts

Today has been a rough day for the boy. I let him hold my hairbrush this morning and he scraped himself on the cheek with the stiff bristles. I thought it would fade quickly, but no, it was a bright red line till bed tonight. Then, being cute (or so I thought), I let a little wind-up toy go down his torso and burned him just below his belly button. Yes, BURNED him. Mother of the year. Not five minutes later he pinched his finger in a door. *sigh* Poor kid.

There was mouse poop on my desk at work today. I had an ant infestation earlier this year and a flea (from Sunshine, how embarrassing) not too long ago. Now a mouse. Too many pests for my taste. They are going to put traps on my floor, but I don't feel good about it. Not sure I have any choice. Really, it is a wonder that we don't have even more wildlife and vermin living in our ancient work buildings. They are actually temporary housing barracks from WWII. Um, yeah. Not the most solid construction. I will have to post pictures of them this month, you will wonder how our government stays afloat when we keep throwing money into sinkholes like my command.

When I picked the boy up from Ms. T's today he ran over to the window and yelled "mama!" It was so sweet. Made me not completely lose it when he hit, scraped, and pinched me tonight. Good times.

Thumbs down to molars

You know, I understand that molars are essential to eating food and all, but they really stink when coming in. Logan wakes up from his crappy naps a crying mess and is fussy with food. The whole "can't communicate what he wants" thing is just making it worse. At least reading books is a good distraction. Anything that includes a picture of an animal and/or a baby is a hit at this house.

New hair

A haircut...



And Logan with his new favorite toys, cost.co size ketchup and mustard...

Sunday

Well, I have to say that this was not the best weekend ever. Nothing terrible, but I got stuck with the more undesireable kid duties, cleaned up cat puke, discovered dog poop on the bag the Sunday paper comes in (once it was already in the house, being used blockade the cat puke), and didn't really get to sleep in either day. Oh, and if I was hoping for today's football games to be fun and uplifting, well, no such luck. Let's just say I hope you don't like the same teams I do.

We took Logan to the park and he had a great time playing with other kids his age. This park is like a 3 minute walk from our house but we never actually go. Seeing how much he enjoyed it today will hopefully get us out and about more.

In more exciting news, our good friend M did the best he has ever done in his Ironman race this weekend. We are so thrilled for him and he qualified for Kona in '08!

LSU v Bama

So we are watching the LSU vs Bama game and Don's alma mater isn't having a stellar game. LSU just had what looked like a fumble off a good catch (it was since ruled incomplete, a lucky break) and Don was clearly distressed. No swearing, but darn close. Logan looked at the tv, raised both arms joyously, and yelled "touch down!" Hee hee! Am I a bad wife if that was the funniest thing I have seen in a while? So glad the boy is getting "touchdown" though. Oh, and he says "tattoo" too. You know, the important stuff...

Early bird gets the...

What does this early bird get? A very awake Hoagie. At 5 am. On my day to sleep in. Something about this scenario (you know, the one where I am awake and posting to the blog at 5:45 am) doesn't seem very condusive to going back to sleep when it is my turn. Oh, and did I mention that I have to get up earlier than normal on my day so Don can make it to his class and Logan isn't in charge of the house? Hmmm, I thought for sure I would have told you that.

Starting November with a sniffle

Don and Logan are in the midst of a cold right now and I am sure I will be getting it right as they get better. Isn't that the way it works? Our kid sure can produce a lot of snot. And I had just noted (in my head, not out loud so I didn't think it counted toward Murphy's Law) how healthy we have been recently.

Tomorrow Don has a Saturday class and I was going to go on an outing with another child. I think we will pass, as not to infect a baby with his germs. Maybe we will go to the turtle pond at SDSU instead. Wild times.

It's that time again

I am doing NaBloPoMo, where I post once a day for the month of November. I am wishing both you and me luck. Me to come up with new stuff to say every day, and you to make it through my drivel...

Halloween

Halloween was a big hit here yesterday. Don dressed up in his 1970's basketball player costume and I was a devil. Logan was the cutest firefighter eva. He came to my work party with me and was inexcusably overlooked by the costume contest judges. He had a good time nonetheless and spent some quality time with my boss while I ate chili. When we went back to my building to change into regular clothes Hoagie explored my very unbaby-proofed office.



In the evening Auntie H came over to check out Logan in all his cuteness. After she left our neighbors came over to give out candy to the trick-or-treaters while we were out with the boy. I think we got maaaaaybe eight trick-or-treaters all night long. What a sad decline from our last place where we would run out of candy. Oh how the mighty have fallen. Next year we are going to have to do something drastic to attract kids to our street. I am thinking a fog machine and giant spiders. Something spooky...

Anyway, Logan really enjoyed going house to house, though he can't say trick-or-treat and he thought that people opening their front doors meant that he could walk right into their houses. Oops. We did all the participating houses on our block and met quite a few nice neighbors. Then Don and I stayed up much to late chatting with the neighbors who handed out the candy for us and we are certainly paying the price today. Oh well, it was worth it.

Here is Logan dressed up, trick-or-treating, and our pumpkins...