Decorated

Our house is officially ready for Halloween tomorrow! Now let's hope we get some actual trick-or-treaters...

Overheard

Logan's language seems to be getting a lot more sophisticated. He has had a few things lately that have had me in stitches...

Before we started eating dinner last night I filled up our empty soy sauce bottle. We had Cost.co sushi (what a delicacy!), which Logan really likes. About halfway though the meal Logan says:

L: Hey guys, do you remember when that soy bottle was empty?

This is notable only because he has never addressed Don and I together as "hey guys" and he has never referred back to something in the past with a "do you remember" type statement. We were totally rolling!

~~~~~~

L and I were outside and he came over to me with chalk in his hand...

L: Does drawing make your belly hurt?
Me: No. Drawing doesn't make my belly hurt. My belly is fine right now.
L: Drawing makes you feel my better?
Me: Yes, sometimes drawing makes me feel all better.
L: Good. Mommy draws a shark. NOW.

I love how he was just testing the waters...

Overheard

Logan: I have a superfast watch.

C: Oh, you have a superfast watch?

L: Yes, it gives you time outs. Get in the chair. Three minutes.

Things of note

We have procured the services of two very interesting and (hopefully) great women in the last 24 hours. A doula and a babysitter, hooray! Our doula from Logan's birth is pregnant and suffering from hyperemesis gravidarum, which is like the worst morning sickness you can possibly imagine x 100. So obviously she isn't available to attend a December birth. I thought I had someone else, but she turned out to be not quite as upfront as she should have been and took another client. Clearly it wasn't meant to be. Instead we found a woman who is perfect in so many ways. To say I am both excited and relieved is a total understatement!

Then last night I went to this "speed interviewing" thing for local babysitters called Sitter Socials where I met a great woman right away. Of course then I had to interview another 15 people, but that was ok. It gave me practise and showed me viable alternatives. Anyway, I am thrilled that we can actually go out and have a standing date 2x a month. Hooray! Only 2.5 years into this parenting thing...

Also, we are having an Oktoberfest party tomorrow with our lovely, lovely neighbors. We are providing the beer, snacks, and a backyard. They are making (from scratch, because they are, you know, crazy) sausages, sides, and other yummy goodies. Should be a good time, though we didn't really send out the invite with tons of notice so who knows how many people will actually show up. Last night the set-up for the huge Oktoberfest fair was in full swing, it was amazing to see the Blvd getting transformed into a giant, tacky street fair. Just this time last year the lovely S family was visiting. We miss you!

In other very exciting news, my wonderful college girlfriend B had her second girl yesterday!!! She has certainly not had an easy go of it recently, so this joyous occasion is more special than ever. Congrats B! We love you so much.

28 weeks

Here I am at 28 weeks...

Unexpected rain

Any day that starts out with unexpected rain is a happy one for me. September is dry here, as in I can't actually recall the last time we had any sort of precipitation fall at our house, so free watering is delightful. In fact, I thought Don was rolling a trash can or something down our the side of our house the sound was so unfamiliar. A far cry from our roots.

All is well here. Logan and I got sick last week and he was better within a day or two. I am still battling a nasty cough, but feeling 100% better. Not to be a total complainer, but the pregnant + parent + sick combination really stinks. And Don was gone 3 nights last week instead of his normal 2, so it was not easy. But, things are looking up and I have my fingers crossed that we don't get anything too terrible in the next 10-12 weeks. And beyond really. Ha! Not likely.

Logan had a great weekend with some recently acquired craigslist goodies. I found a playhouse and 4-5 big toy trucks for insanely cheap. All he wanted to do during the day was play with the trucks. We washed them, filled them up with mulch, and drove them all over. He also "grilled" lots of "hot dogs" in his new house.

Sunday we went to breakfast and he was feeling a little antsy at the end of the meal. He looked at me and said "OJ will my all feel better" which translates to OJ will make me feel all better. *so cute*

Baby Sharkey

So a few weeks ago Logan nicknamed the unborn one "Baby Sharkey." I am not sure if he thinks I am going to give birth to an actual shark or if he understands it will be a human. Either way, he is pretty interested. So far he has told me that we are going to hug Baby Sharkey (true!) and that it is going to lay down a lot (true again!). Oh, and that it is going to have a tail. Ummm, well, we hope not. He tried to look in my belly button to see the baby, but, despite my having the deepest belly button ever, he couldn't catch a glimpse. Very cute.

In other news, I have banned myself from buying those cinnamon rolls that come 8 to a can. We got them to have for breakfast yesterday and I ate 7 of them within 24 hours. I feel so gross. Yet I could still eat more of them if they were around. I think I have gained more weight already with this baby than I did the whole time when I was pg with Logan. Oh well...

Overheard

On the way to T.arget...

L: There's a yellow truck over there! There's a yellow truck mommy!
Me: Yes there is Logan, you have very good eyes.
L: I have special eyes.
Me: Yes, you are able to see lots of things that I don't. Your eyes are very sharp. My eyes are not special like yours.

*long pause*

L: Mommy, you have pretty eyes.

And then my heart melted onto the floor.

I love J.on S.tewart

Trip recap--NH and Maine

We went to NH to meet up with several of my college friends. One couldn't make it, and we missed her very much. I was hoping to see her pregnant self, but pictures will have to do... So we got to stay in a family condo up in Waterville Valley. It was heaven! Pretty rainy, but there were lots of breaks to get out and about. Frankly we went out in the rain a bunch too. All the kids got along well and Logan is still talking about them. Especially a show that S put on that involved spooky stories, a flashlight, and lots of physical comedy. It was something to behold! It is weird being in NH and not having a home or cottage there. So much of my life involves that state, but now there is nothing left tying me there. It feels a little empty or maybe just disassociated. It is strange for sure.

Maine was more rain, but so relaxing. I spent much of my free time on the trip reading, and totally got into the T.wilight series. I only have the last book to go, but I can't say I am actually going to read it, the reviews are pretty bad. I digress...

My parent's new place is amazing. I am so happy that they are settled into a home where they will make everything just the way they want it. My dad can fish to his heart's content, my mom can get to the ocean in 15 minutes, and family on both sides is close by. Other than the fact that Maine winters totally SUCK, it is they perfect spot for them. And it doesn't hurt that we get to visit in the summers.

Monday we spent laying around and taking advantage of the good weather when it broke through the showers. We took a boat ride (Logan drove the boat for the first time), got in the water a bit, and played around. We visited Logan's Meme (my grandmother) at her apartment for a little bit too. On Tuesday we hung around some more and had dinner at my aunt's house with my cousin and her two kids. It was so great for Logan to spend time with them, they had a ball "fishing" in the pool and not sharing toys (well, that would be Logan not sharing toys--W and K did just fine).

Wednesday we decided to venture out and brave the mob at the ME Children's Museum. Logan was reserved at first, but ended up having a great time. He still talks about the stuffed beaver he saw there. They also had a little veterinary/grooming area where we "washed" a toy cat.He loves to rehash that experience as well. Let's just say that the 2 hours we spent there was more than enough to make us all overwhelmed and cranky. It was still nice to be out of the house though. Don and I had a date night and saw Bat.man. It was everything I hoped it would be. We loved the first one, and the second didn't disappoint. We almost didn't get to eat our dinner due to bad planning on my part, but it all worked out in the end.

Thursday we spent the morning at the Maine Wild Animal Park. My aunt brought W and K so the kids had a good time running and feeding all sorts of animals. They all pet a baby deer, so that was a big hit. Friday we had lunch with Meme at her place and Logan was introduced to tons of her friends. He was incredibly well behaved and loved sitting on Meme's lap. We had such a nice time and enjoyed the fabulous company! Friday night was dinner with another aunt and uncle and cousin K. We kept them up way too late and thoroughly enjoyed the conversations.

Saturday was actually nice so we did all the things we wanted to do all week in one day. Hooray! Fishing, boating, relaxing in the sun, biking,and lunching outdoors--it was great!

Overheard

D: Logan, who's the boss?
L: Logan!

How right he is...

----

Three hours later:

D: Logan, who is the boss?
L: Mommy!

I love that kid!

Trip recap: Philly

Why yes, we did go on a trip. I didn't mention it? Really? Oh. Right. That is because I have been a bad poster... Anyhow, we went on a two week tour of the northeast starting in PA. We went to see Nana and PopPop at their home for the first time in a while. We ended up invading their sunroom, and sleeping at the house was fantastic. I was sure would be required because of allergy issues, but it all worked out great. It was L's time at their house and he had lots of fun. I think the highlight of the trip for Logan was the gift of L.ightening Mc.Queen shoes from Nana. He is still totally attached to them.

We were able to see Uncle Chris and had a family party on Sunday. Five running kids, ten adults, and a newborn made for a busy night. We met up with friends on Monday and Tuesday which was really fun. Logan really liked riding on a city bus. We headed to Winterthur one afternoon and checked out the Enchanted Woods. Next day we drove to Strausberg to ride the railroad. It was HOT and close. Logan was thrilled and I got to see Amish country, which I had never done before.

We ended the trip with a trip to the Brandywine Museum where I got to see some of A. Wyeth's Helga paintings in person. The whole collection was spectacular. The Wyeth family is beyond talented and it was interesting to see the generations all together.

Random updates

I came into work this morning and there was a GIANT moth in my office. And by giant, I mean I thought it might be a small bat. Seriously. Luckily I was able to trap it in a garbage can and let it free outside. Not the way I expected to start my day!

Last night we went to the car show for the first time in weeks. Logan was so enamored with all the cars that he told us to "look at that one!" for every single old car. And there are a lot of cars - it was very cute. Last year he just soaked it all in very serious-like. No smiles, just looking. This year he loves going and talks about it all week. I am going to be so sad when they end. What will we do with our Thursday nights?

Don is heavily involved in fantasy football (well fantasy baseball too, but I won't get into that here) and his group is getting together for a "live draft" next week. *rolls eyes* His level of excitement over picking players for his imaginary team is quite high. I think he is mostly looking forward to drinking with his friends and being able to talk about sports with people who care as much as him. Can't fault him for that, but it still is kind of funny. I will mini rant here about how I hate that the fantasy team supersedes real teams that we love, leading Don to route against (against!) teams he would ordinarily support. It takes the fun out of watching together, which is half of why I like football. Last year he promised to be better, but it didn’t change. I don't hold out much hope for this year either. *pity party over*

We had our "big" ultrasound on Monday and all seems well. Our tech wasn't very chatty, but she did say everything looked good. We are happy with that and I am sure I will find out more at my midwife appt next week. Logan's big u/s didn't go as smoothly so I am happy that this one was a breeze. Except that we had to bring Logan because it was in the middle of the day. He was well behaved, but I was glad when he and Don left to go outside. You can only expect so much from a two year old in a dark boring room.

Why, good morning

So how's your Sunday?

Mine started out with both dropping an egg on the floor, then spilling a full glass of orange juice all over the kitchen not 20 minutes later. Oops.

On the up side, Logan and I watched the W.all-e trailer and built a robot so that was good.

Here's hoping the clumsiness doesn't last all day..

Thwarted

We tried to go camping this weekend, but it was a comedy of errors instead. It started out innocently enough, just a small schedule change. Don forgot the tickets to the D.el M.ar fair at school, and we had tons to run around and procure, so we decided we would skip the fair and go straight to the campground. We left at L's nap time and headed to the Palomar Mountain area to camp at the La Jolla Indian Reservation Campground. This campground is a real gem, it has a stream running through it and has TONS of tent spots. You can rent tubes and float down the stream over and over. Heaven! I mean, there is practically no available fresh water around here (everything is a reservoir) so swimming in a stream is a real treat.

Well, first we took a wrong turn (further justifying my desire for a gps system) and ended up going almost to the top of Palomar Mtn before we decided we went the wrong way. It was so incredibly a) hot, and b) twisty, that by the time we got back to the bottom I felt pretty green. L woke up on the way down but that was to be expected, and, hey, we were almost there! Ha. We checked in to the campground where they politely took our cash. Then we went on the monumental journey of finding a spot. To say it was insanely busy does not do it justice. The stream was crawling with people and both Don and I could only mutter e. coli under our breath. I was happily anticipating our tent site and Don was freaking out. He was never keen on camping in the first place and the atmosphere was frantic with people. When we got to the end of the grounds it was clear that there were no spots left. And our little receipt had a bold "NO REFUNDS" policy outlined. So we left. We figure we will go back on an off-weekend in September. Other campgrounds will suffice during the summer. I was bummed, but what could we do?

On the way in we passed a casino in the middle of nowhere. We figured we could salvage the trip, stay there overnight, and use their pool. Good plan! Logan was being super patient and we headed back toward "town." We pulled up outside the casino, I went in and inquired about a room for the night. Yeah, they were sold out. SOLD OUT?!?! I still don't understand how this is possible. The hotel is huge and there is nothing in that area. So we were thwarted again.

We decided to salvage the day by using our zoo passes by visiting the wild animal park. Logan had fun and at least we got out of the car. It was a long day, with relatively little to show for it. Ah well. We are camping in our backyard this weekend. At least we won't need to pack...

Overheard

Overheard in our house tonight:

"I poopin' in the tub Mommy!"

I have never been so glad Don does bath time.

News

We have got some big news we have been sitting on for a little while now--we are pregnant again! I just started my 2nd trimester and so far everything looks good. We are very excited. Logan is still in the dark, we will tell him in a few weeks. No need to burst his bubble yet...

Yeah, so my due date is Christmas Eve. Not exactly what I would have chosen willingly, but an excellent holiday present. We have everything crossed that this baby decides to stay in longer than Logan, but unfortunately I have very little control over that. Now that I have made it through the 1st trimester I have lots of time to fret over early delivery. It is always something, right?

So that is why the blog has been s l o w lately, I was tired, nervous, and preoccupied. I promise it will pick up again.

In Logan news, he pretends his rocking horse is a motorcycle and today he told me that it has a loud engine. True enough! Our neighbor details motorcycles and she is always out and about on her own so we hear them quite a bit. She is one rocking lady, we love having her in the neighborhood. Her dog Freckles is super sweet too.

He has recently begun getting scared of monsters. We have a few books with monsters that he likes, nothing scary, but he needs reassurance that they are nice. Cookie monster is also a character he enjoys, but again, he is kind of freaked out by him too. I read him a book the other day and it spooked him enough to cry. Poor kid! Also "Fi.nding N.emo" is out, he cried at that too.

L and I made our first batch of chocolate chip cookies together last weekend and they turned out great. I forgot how many cookies come out of that Ne.stle recipe--a lot! I ate them all. Don helped, but only a little. Logan was completely disinterested. Weird kid.

Decided

Well, on the job front, it looks like things are decided. Don interviewed for a position at a Fine Arts/technology high school in a smaller district and was convinced that he totally blew the interview.He obsessed about it for days, and I lovingly tried to tell him that I was sure he did fine. Even if he didn't there was nothing he could do about it now. See? I was so sweet. Ahem. Lo and behold, he was offered the job. Guess he did ok after all! He accepted, and told Zamorano he would be leaving. Both our reactions are mixed sadness and relief. It means a longer commute, but more money. And relative stability. So, we will see how it goes. Mostly we are just really glad he will be working(with benefits) in the fall.

Logan has been a joy to be around, except when he is having a monumental meltdown. He does not do tantrums half-assed, no sir. I got hit in the head twice with a toy a couple days ago, and that was both humiliating because it occurred on Ms. T's lawn, and ouchy because I got a killer headache from the blows and the crying (his, not mine). I figure I should document these times too, so I won't be able to say to anyone later on "Oh Logan? He never gave me trouble, such an angel that boy..."

In happier news he is talking like crazy and is the best companion on just about any outing. We went grocery shopping yesterday and I have never had so much fun. He is silly and cute and pretty happy when out and about. A few things he has said lately are:

• Come on dude! (when he was frustrated with a toy)
• Gross (he learned that directly from me)
• Excuse me, pardon me (we say this to him all the time, he is such a parrot)
• Night night buddy (to Don as he ran down the hall to his room)
• One more time! (for anything he wants to do again)

Oh dang it!

My child is running around the house, starting with "Get set, go!" and then "falling" and yelling out "Oh dang it!" Yeah, that was not really a phrase I was planning on teaching him, but I suppose it is better than many alternatives I have said in front of him.

New things about Logan:

• He loves the movie Cars. We discourage TV watching, but he was sick last week and we spent a day with the boob tube on. Cars was viewed twice. I am ready to put it away for a while, but I doubt I will be allowed.
• He is taking temper tantrums to a whole new level, with an epic one lasting over 45 minutes last week. It was not. fun. This week has been so much better.
• He sings Ms T's daughter's name like a song. He has such a crush on her.
• He got another haircut, and Don didn't even notice until Ms. T pointed it out. This after not letting me do it when he was around because he didn't want to see the curls go.
• He has new "yellow shoes" that he is obsessed with. They are actually sandals, and they are the first thing he asks for when he wakes up in the morning.
• He is so helpful. He sweeps, does laundry, wipes up, and washes dishes. Heaven!

So other than that, we have been preoccupied with Don's job stability and our general lives. We have tickets for our summer vacation, and will be in PA and ME this summer at the end of July, beginning of August. So looking forward to it!

Ouchie

Logan has an ouchie on his arm that he got a daycare today. I pointed it out to him and asked him how he got it and he told me his arm is "broken," and vaguely referenced a toy. I asked him if he wanted me to kiss it and he emphatically said "NO!"

He didn't even notice this gem below, yet a little scrape and his arm is broken...