It worked! It worked!!!!

The wonderful, giving, amazing Cali is PREGNANT!!!! Congratulations a million times over!

Merry merry

Ah, I had the best intentions of posting on christmas day, but it clearly didn't happen. We spent a lovely xmas eve with H&M and M's mom. The food was spectacular, the company even better, and Logan was very busy chasing the poor cats around. We forgot his booster seat, so he ate at the table on a bar stool secured by a bike tire tube and some pillows. It actually worked out surprisingly well. Don and I wrapped most of the presents christmas eve, and we were totally wiped out when we went to bed. Luckily, I had assembled L's big present on Sunday, so we didn't have to stay up late doing that. And the tool provided for set up broke practically the second I tried to use it, so we would have been really up a creek if we waited.

The day was good and BOTH of my parents were able to come out! Hooray! My dad has to leave early, but we are so grateful that he is able to join us for the week. Logan is producing enough snot to keep us busy chasing after him to wipe his nose so all the pictures aren't filled with sparkly mustaches (ewwww!). He still has presents under the tree to unwrap, he was totally overwhelmed with the volume. And sidetracked with the playing.

Today at 12 I am coasting into a 5 day weekend. Woot! What a rough life. Tomorrow we will do fun stuff and Saturday night we are headed out for couple time. OVERNIGHT couple time! What? I know, a big step. We are so very excited to see a movie and sleep in together. Hooray for Grammy!

The shrieking no

So we have hit a shrieking stage that has apparently dovetailed nicely (?) with a NO! stage. Wow. It is loud. And aggressive. And if you are within 20 feet he could easily pierce your eardrums. Or at least make you lose your train of thought, and I really don't need any additional help with... wait, what was I talking about? Har har...

We put our tree up last night and it looks cute. I heard the greatest idea for tree decorating with a toddler in the house--to punch holes in all your holiday cards, tie a ribbon though them, and hang them on your tree as ornaments. We tried it and it looks very cute. Logan woke up this morning (while I was at an evil big-box store buying clear storage tubs, an annoying adventure to say the least), ran into the living room, stopped dead in his tracks when he saw the tree and said WOW! I would say the tree is a hit. And, as I suspected, Logan has spent much of the morning pointing at the picture cards saying "baby!"

Here is our tree...



We have a neighborhood grocery store in walking distance that we love. Last night they had an "elf" (aka slightly strange woman) doing balloon hats and face painting for the kids. Logan and I waited in a deceivingly long line to get a snowflake painted on his cheek. This is the best shot I could get...



And last, here he is being silly with my hat. Gosh he just melts my heart.

Sentence

Last night Logan said his first full sentence... "Where is the big dog?" There is a house with a large boxer/mutt that looks very much like my Aunt P's dog Amber. We call her Amber-dog. Original, eh? Anyway, the dog wasn't stalking us around her fence like normal, and Logan missed her. It was cute.

Sorry for the lack of posting. To say that this last week has been a roller coaster just really does not do the emotional swings justice. Please continue to keep my Grampa in your thoughts, he is having a hard time and we love him so very much.

PS--Grammy, Logan will only wear YOUR hat. No other hat will do, thanks so much for knitting it for him!

Well.

Please keep my grandfather in your thoughts. He is having a difficult time adjusting to a new environment and many things are up in the air right now. I think I have mentioned how difficult it is to be so far away from family when things are not going smoothly. Yeah, it sucks.

What the...?

Ok, something is seriously amiss. We moved 6.5 miles east of our condo and now I get ICE on my car??????? I seriously had to scrape ICE off my windshield this morning. (Alright, I wiped it off with a random bag, but still!) I guess it could be considered frost, but regardless, I have NEVER had to do this in the 8+ years I have lived here. ICE people.

In Logan news, he is fine. The cold is almost totally gone and he is being quite cute. If I do something funny or silly to him he laughs and says "mama," like he is developing a real sense of humor. He is also extremely picky about which books I read to him at bedtime. Apparently Don does not get the same literary critique. Go figure. Right now I Love You Stinky Face is #1, followed closely by Bear Snores On and One, Two, Three. I am totally thrilled other books that I am not so fond of are no longer dominating our story times.

Oh, and he has a favorite stuffy now. Kitty. Nana gave it to him last winter when we were in Palm Springs. I think we may have to find another one in case we lose it. That would be a tragedy.

Two dozen?

Eggs for Cali!!!! These are wearing sweaters since it is so cold where she is having her very exciting egg retrieval for her even more exciting IVF. Of course I am sure she will have 7+ times as many as this picture. We are thinking of you lady! *smooch*

Wading back in...

I know it has been a harsh switch to go from every day posting to a whole week (+) off. Sorry about that. I needed a break though, and life seemed too boring to post about. To catch everyone up with the goings-on in the M/B household I shall employ a bulleted list...

• We have colds. Logan had a hacking cough that is starting to sound a *little* bit better. Can't be too bad because his demeanor and appetite are totally unaffected. I am just coming down with it, but so far it is just my nose. I feel fine otherwise. Don is also suffering from the illness. Though I must say, so far he handling it much better than normal. I totally just jinxed it.
• Rain! We have had two weekends of the wet stuff and it is raining and cold again today. While this might not be noteworthy for some geographical regions, it's downright mythic here. (As in, what the heck is that stuff falling from the sky? and Wait, I forgot how to drive!) I honestly can't remember the last time it rained this much. Certainly not since last winter.
• We do not have a leak in our ceiling! Hooray!
• Christmas presents have been sent, cards are mostly out, and stuff is arriving at a furious pace. As I posted before, our outside lights are up, but inside is not decorated. Except for a spectacular rudolph christmas village. It is awesome.
• Hey, let's play the guess what has lead game! Christmas lights? Check. Artificial christmas trees? Check. Random toys from 1,000 recalls? Check. PLLLBBBT! We are getting a brand spanking new lead-free artificial tree (allergies won't tolerate a real one) this year. What a bummer that everything we are used to seems to be toxic.
• Did you know that "hot" is an all-purpose word? If you are hurt, something is an extreme temperature (or even just warm), or you simply feel like blabbering, hot is the word for you. Or Logan. Mostly just Logan.
• I took matters into my own hands and trimmed the boy's hair. It looks good. Ms. T noticed first thing and think he looks very handsome. I don't think it is that much different. Now it can grow out forever, a la Crystal Gail.
• I have a post mulling around my head about exuberant, slightly self-absorbed women who get pregnant the first time they try to conceive. As it so happens, one of these mildly exasperating types got pregnant her first try on a message board where I lurk regularly. I am not even personally trying for another child right now, but my annoyance at her luck and naivety is overwhelming, especially given what other members of this group have endured and/or are currently undergoing. Anyway, many did not acknowledge her good fortune and I don't think I would/could have either. If you can't say anything nice...

Mama!

It started yesterday, this new phase. Daddy is UNACCEPTABLE! Mama only! He will only let me feed him, put him down for a nap, change him, hold him, put his shoes on, and look at him. (That last one is only sort of a joke.) He went through a Daddy phase a little while ago, but it was never this dramatic. Don is taking it in stride, but I must admit, if it were me (and when it is my turn again), I would be hurt. I know it is totally normal, to be expected behavior, but that doesn't make it any less sad when you are the parent on the outs.

Oops

So I missed the last day of NaBloPoMo yesterday. Dang. In my defense, it was a rough day. I was totally overtired and it wasn't going as well as I would have hoped. Oh well.

To make up for my miss, I give you a video! Of body parts! And words! My voice is really loud, sorry about that...

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...

Tip of the day

Long noodles are fun to play with, but short noodles don't make your kid vomit.

Naming

Logan: Scottish; derived from a place name meaning "little hollow" in Gaelic

I am not sure how many of you know why we named our son Logan, but I thought I would record the story for prosperity. It took us months to come up with a list of boy names. Nothing really struck my fancy, and I think Don was in denial that we would eventually have to choose something. Girl name, no problem. We have a very special one that I picked out a long time ago. As we pondered names and threw them out to one another, Don suggested Logan.

When Don and I traveled cross country together two months after we started dating, we took a northern route. We left in September, and it wasn't unbearably cold until we hit Wyoming. We had planned on traveling across Wyoming and Idaho to visit the Pacific Northwest, but the Grand Tetons altered our course. It was cold in Yellowstone, but certainly still camping weather. When we traveled a bit south to the Tetons the temperature fell below freezing. It was so cold that I crawled our tent and went to sleep in the very early evening. It was the only way to block out my misery, and probably the kindest thing I could do for Don. Our sleeping bags had seen better days and mine was held together with safety pins. The cold had invaded our trip like an unwanted companion who needed to be sent packing.

The next day we discussed our trip plans before we left. Seeing how miserable I was (and smartly considering self-preservation I'm sure), Don suggested that we change course and head south to Arizona by way of Utah. I readily agreed and we were off. We stopped for breakfast in Jackson Hole, saw a tiny corner of Idaho, and headed into Utah. Our whole trip was planned that day, based off an old-ish road atlas. According to the map, Logan, Utah had the nearest campground and looked to be a good place to stop for the night.

When we arrived, the city was so urban compared to where we had previously been that it was disconcerting. But the weather! Oh, the weather was beautiful. When we came upon the perfectly manicured, green lawn campground it was over seventy degrees outside. We pitched the tent, tossed the frisbee around and let the cats out on their leashes. We have wonderful memories of cooking hot dogs over a brick fire pit and listening to music late into the evening. Utah continually amazed us, but nothing compared to our perfect night in Logan.

Now our sweet boy bears the name of our most treasured stop. I think Don made the perfect choice.

Perspective

This map shows where we are in relation to the fires. We are safe and not anticipating evacuations. We are the green arrow on the map. The yellow areas represent mandatory evacuations. The red section is the Harris Fire. The yellow area at the top of the map is a mandatory evacuation for the Witch Fire.

The air in Point Loma (where I work) is much worse than home. The Harris Fire ash is headed that way so it is understandable. Luckily home is not getting any major haze. In the Cedar Fire the ash was raining down like snow. I have yet to see that during these fires, but I am sure those who are getting the fallout from the Witch Fire are getting hammered.

Logan is so bored from being inside and Don's school has been canceled for the rest of the week.

Hoagie did start saying please--it comes out as "pea." He said tweet today and it came out as "twee." So dang cute! And when Don was cooking something in the microwave recently he looked up at it and said "beep, beep, beep!" Also so dang cute. *melty heart*

Again.

I can not believe San Diego is burning again. We are fine and not in any danger other than the air quality, which is horrible. It smells like a very strong campfire. No ash falling from the sky yet, but I am sure it is just a matter of time. It is supposed to be hot and windy (Santa Anas this weekend and through this week) so there is no estimation as to when these fires will be contained. There are eight (!) burning in the county right now. Please send some positive thoughts to the Wild Animal Park, a fire is fast approaching and all the animals, keepers, and staff must be terribly worried and scared. There are also countless horse farms that are affected by evacuations.

I have to say that even though we are far away from the fires, I sure didn't like leaving my house this morning and sending my child off to be with someone else. I hate that Sunshine is home alone.

On a lighter note, I was reading the paper yesterday morning and Logan saw a picture of J.ennifer L.opez. He looked at her and said "Mama!" I told him that was quite a compliment. He looked earnestly up at me and said "yeah!"

Ready, set, go

Ah, so many new things in such a short time. Logan has two stools that he likes to carry around the house. The nursing stool is slanted--which makes a nice footstool, but a terrible step stool. However, it light and can be transported easily. The other stool my dad brought with him when we put in the door. It is mine from when I was little (dad made it of course). This is the superior step stool, but is heavier and just a tad too high for him to step up on easily right now. Logan carries the nursing stool into the bathroom to wash his hands and check out the sink, and pushes "my" stool over the tile floor to make mischief in the kitchen or look out the french door windows and fiddle with the door handle and deadbolt. Yesterday he climbed up onto a kitchen chair like he had been doing it his whole life. The stool moving and chair climbing show good thinking skills, but terrify me. He can reach a whole new level of stuff in our house. A VERY unbaby-proofed level I might add. I guess I should have known this was coming, but dang! I was totally caught off guard.

He also has been talking a bunch more, adding balloon (which had gone away, but now is back), backpack, and a few other words I can't think of right now. Overall it is an exciting time for the Hoagie and we are enjoying it immensely.

Here he is at a big-box hardware store, completely mesmerized by the inflatable Christmas display. It was comical how engrossed he was in the blow-up decorations, mostly because one was an airplane. Mind trip! As a side note, did anyone else notice that Christmas stuff appeared in stores last weekend like magic? All of a sudden Christmas exploded everywhere. *sigh* Too early!

Ruined rescue

My morning did not go the way I had planned. On my way to work I saw two little eyes gleaming in my headlights from the middle of a very busy road. Five lanes across, two going north, two south, and one turning lane in the middle. There was a cat (alive) in the middle lane and it was not moving. I made a u-turn and stopped next to the kitty to assess the situation. It appeared to have no external injuries, but it wasn't moving away from me and it was panting heavily. I assume it was hit by a car. I pulled out an old sling, picked up the cat, put it in the back of my car, and headed off to the local emergency vet. I really thought the cat couldn't move its hind legs, as it was pretty limp when I picked it up to transfer it to my vehicle. Can I just state again, for the record, that I thought it couldn't move? Yeah, well, I was wrong.

I pulled into the parking spot right in front of the vet's office and opened the back hatch. Damn if that cat didn't jump out of the car and head into the great unknown. This was bad for several reasons--not the least of which being that the cat was clearly injured--but mostly because the parking lot where it escaped is surrounded by another 5-lane road, an off ramp from a highway, and the highway itself. Ugh. I got a flashlight from the main desk attendant and, with his help, looked for the cat until I had searched everywhere I could access. Even dumpsters. No cat. Turns out this particular emergency vet doesn't even take stray animals, so we would have had to go to a different one, but still. I feel terrible. I can only hope the cat was stunned when I picked it up and recovered on the car ride. I hope it made it's way home. There was no collar or tag, so I don't know if it was a stray or a pet, but it seemed to be in good condition. Please send some positive thoughts to that little grey tabby, who is hopefully somewhere in our neighborhood. *sigh*

Updates

I know, I have been so. very. delinquent. My only excuse is French Doors. They are in people! They work! They look amazing! We also had lots of family in town. Family who told me (ahem, again) that my blogging frequency is, well, pathetic. I think she actually used the word pathetic. Anyway, I am back. So much has happened that I will just do a quick list for now to catch you up...

• Hand, foot, and mouth is gone! It wasn't too bad, as far as illnesses go.
• My Dad is awesome and he installed the doors with our help. We found a problem at the last minute, but Dave the Door Guy solved it last night and we will be stucco-ing soon. Like this weekend.
• We looked into screens for the new doors and one place quoted us $800 installed. Um, I don't think so. Our search continues.
• Oktoberfest was this past weekend and it was so incredibly neat. We are half a block away and it was great to be able to just pop over for a bratwurst or funnel cake (not that we did that, seeing as how those are very bad for you).
• Logan helped me put up a few Halloween decorations. He was very excited to stick stuff on the window.
• New words: done and bum. When he says bum he holds his little toosh. Very cute. He has also been calling Ms. T by her nickname. Go Logan!
• Don and I combined birthday money to buy some patio furniture for the front. We put it together and it looks great.
• My cousin stayed with us last Friday night and we had lots of fun. Logan took to her immediately. We are sad she lives so far away.
• I am going on a kick-ass girls trip in January. Hooray!!! I even booked the tickets.
• My Christmas shopping is almost done. This is a record for me.

Clippity-clop

For some reason hand, foot, and mouth disease (the people kind) makes me think of horses. Why, I don't know. There is nothing horse-like about it. Oh, and did I mention that Logan has it? No? Well that might be because I didn't know until I picked him up from daycare about five hours ago. Another kid there was diagnosed with it earlier in the week and has been out with said horse disease, so it was probably (clearly) only a matter of time before we welcomed the virus into our house too. After an afternoon of lethargy, things are looking up. Mellow even. The real bummer is that we had to bow out of two highly anticipated social events this weekend. Ah well, another time. Neigh!

Chomp

Not sure what is going on, but the Hoagie tried to bite every kid at Ms. T's yesterday. His buddies! His pals! He hit them, took their toys, yelled, and was giant pain in the neck the whole day. Grrreeeaaaat. This is the second biting incident in about a week. I didn't blog about the last one because if you don't talk about it, you know, it didn't really happen. I would much prefer he was bit than be the biter. He never bites at home, so this is a difficult one for us (as parents, not there to witness the wrongdoings) to reinforce. Needless to say, there is lots of "teeth are for chewing food" talk going on in the house right now. I can only point to no nap the day before and an emerging molar as possible causes for the outrageous behavior yesterday. Crap.

He started saying "baby" too. At least that is cute.

More talkin'

New words!

Nanana = Banana
Mum mum mum = Mommy
Reooow = Meow

Shoe is not a new word, but it sure is a new obsession. If he is up, he must have shoes on. Especially his pedi.peds, which, although new, will soon be too small. He runs over to wherever they are normally tossed and follows one of us around chanting "show" until we put them on. He got crocs clogs over the weekend. I can't say he is thrilled with them, but I sure do like the fact that they can get dirty and wet without getting ruined. He picked out purple ones all by himself (which means they were the ones he didn't give back to me over the course of our shopping trip).

He is also obsessed with his baby yogurt. I can't open the fridge without him grabbing one out and totally melting down if he can't have it. One yogurt a day seems about right to me though. He would have ten. I win.

Hatching

Don was watering our ficus this morning and happened upon this wondrous scene...





The tiniest of baby grasshoppers! They were about a quarter of an inch long (if I could find a darn tape measure I could tell you for sure...). So neat.

Since this is a picture post, here are a couple of Hoagie looking cute.

Sick, Hot, and Lazy

Like most people, I really look forward to holidays. I have to say, with much disappointment, that Labor Day this year was horrible. It was 107 degrees outside, and, according to our neat little we*ther ch*nnel pop up, supposedly felt like 109. They might as well have said "and feels like the fiery pits of hell."That might have been more accurate. We could have gone to the beach, but being a holiday weekend, we didn't feel like dealing with the crowds.* Instead we lounged around inside (we are sooooo thankful for our central air) and in our backyard crammed into the four foot diameter swimmy pool. Logan was bored silly with being inside so much during the day and also came down with a small cold. I picked up some sort of nasty stomach thing, but that only lasted a day. We are now on the mend and the temperature has dropped to a pleasing 85.

The boy learned to say "eye" over the weekend, but his language skills are pretty limited overall. He has words, but he doesn't use them much and the rate of learning new ones has slowed. Yeah, I am inwardly (bloggingly) concerned, but not anywhere near freaking out. He has a Pedi appt coming up shortly, so I will discuss this with her. Ok, he is saying "rock" and "clock" once and a while too. I forgot those...

Can you believe Hoagie is a year and a half? A year and a half! I feel like this is not even possible, but it is true. He is really enjoying his books and his dinosaur puzzle (thanks Aunt C and Uncle G!). He broke our alarm clock (luckily a replacement arrived the next day) and is obsessed with looking at himself in our mirrored closet doors. I think he finds himself endlessly fascinating and handsome, just like we do. He has also recently insisted on feeding himself pretty much everything. Very messy, but nice to see.

Last night we were about to run an errand and Logan needed a shirt. We were in our living room and Don asked him to please go get a shirt from his bedroom and bring it back. He looked at us for a second then trotted off to his room. We took guesses as to what he would bring back. I said he would bring some sort of toy and Don guessed a book (optimistic that he would return at all). Instead he brought us a crib sheet. Much closer to a shirt than either of us expected! He had to open a drawer to get it (which he closed behind him), and he was given an impossible task since he can't even see into the drawer that holds his clothes. We thought that was pretty cool.

*The beach is a nightmare on holiday weekends normally, but this one was total madness because of the heat. There was a huge brawl at Pacific Beach where 16 people were arrested, and a co-worker sold his Mission Beach parking spot at 2pm for $150. Yup, that's right folks, $150 for an afternoon parking spot on the street. We are glad we opted to stay home.

Unexpected stillness

We have a weekend routine that is working really well for us. It will have to be altered some when Don starts Saturday classes in a few weeks (don't get me started on how unhappy we are about this, however they can't be avoided), but currently things are great. Don gets up with the boy on Saturday and I sleep in until 8 or so. The responsibilities are reversed on Sunday.

Sometimes I don't want to get up early simply because I love sleeping in. And by sleeping in, I mean getting up after 6:30. It's really hit or miss with the boy as to what time our morning will begin. Don got lucky a few days last week and Hoagie slept until 7:30. This is unheard of. He totally has my morning person personality, and I love him for it. As a girl, I used to turn my clock radio forward (the kind with the flippy numbers) until my allowed wake-up time so I could go get my parents early. I have a feeling he will be the same. As an adult 5:30 really isn't that great. It's dark out, you probably stayed up later than 7:30 pm, and nothing is open. Even the cat is still sleeping. Try telling that to a toddler though and he won't care.

So Saturday night I told Don that he needed to get up on Sunday because of his recent good luck and extra sleep (never mind that it was his birthday and all). I was half kidding and feeling guilty that I wasn't gung-ho about spending time with Logan in the wee morning hours.

Well, I am glad I didn't shirk my duties because Sunday morning my child (yes! my child!) cuddled with me voluntarily. It was glorious and he was mostly still. This is quite a feat for our "always busy" boy. He also brought me two books to read and he sat on my lap for almost all of them. He has no need for endings, I guess he likes a cliffhanger.

Anyway, I thought this wonderful morning should be recorded in history, as who knows when the cuddling will repeat itself. The books are becoming a steady thing, but the snuggles? They are fleeting. And it makes them all the more special. *swoon*

Norther

Ok, before I blog about about Maine, I am instructed to tell you that Don Jr actually won the mini golf game. He was very put out that I would congratulate Don Sr and myself for our holes in one (which in my opinion are way cooler) than his win. Um, someone wins EVERY game. Holes in one are not guarenteed. But I digress...

Maine was so relaxing. I feel like my parents have been there forever, which they haven't. They have only been there three summers now, and NH feels like a world away. The new cottage is superior in so many ways, not the least of which is that it is close to much of my family. We saw cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, more cousins, and longtime friends. We are so lucky that many traveled long distances to see us, and the only dark spot on the visit was that we missed Miss C and her mom B (hope she is long past her stomach bug!).

Not surprisingly, Logan learned the word "boat" while we were there. Despite the annoying life vest, he enjoyed standing on the party boat and had a good time busying himself on it when it was parked.





We were super busy every day socializing and visiting family, but it was all so laid back that it wasn't too much. Most notably we saw a five act play put on for us by my friend S' children that culminated in a kissing scene. Who knew they would stage a romance? We loved it. Another highlight was seeing my grandparents and Logan's immediate love for them. He really took to them instantly. It was lovely to watch, but made me a little sad that he was not able to meet Shirley's mom before she passed last fall.



Logan was introduced to my Uncle K's garage, which holds many little people treasures. I am not sure who had more fun, K or Logan. Either way, they were both entertained leaving Don and I to socialize with the other big people and drink yummy margaritas. Fun for all!



We had a fantastic lobster roll lunch on the coast (where L dipped his hand into the atlantic ocean, making him truly bi-costal) on the last day. I can't believe the woman who took this picture actually got us all smiling as L was acting like a complete grump/monster and my dad was on the verge of a horrible cold.



My cousin M was about to head off to college (And has now since left, good luck M! We are so excited for you!!!) and we were lucky to see him and meet his girlfriend S. I rode on the jetski with my cousin K and we had a great dinner, culminating in birthday pie for Don. He is now 36! 36! Old man. Hee hee!



And because he's cute, here is L in the water.

There and back again

We're home!

We had a wonderful time and miss everyone already. We started our east coast tour in the Poconos at Lake Harmony. The place was perfect (though a bit dated, I think the Poconos heyday was in the 80s) and the weather was good. We even heard/saw a late night electrical storm! Such a treat, as you know SD has very little weather variation. *sigh* Rough life. Don's parents treated us like royalty and we did lots of interesting stuff.

We visited Don's brother and his family in Central PA. We met the girl for the first time. She is SOOOOOOO cute! So cute. Very serious, just like Logan. She even scrunches her nose and gives the same look he does. Logan loved being around another little person and was generous with his hugs. He also loved Katie's toy collection. It was great to see them and their house. They have made many improvements since we were there for the wedding five years ago (gulp!).





We saw Boulder Field, on a rain day no less, and it was so cool. Logan checked it out from the Ergo and gave his stoic gaze of approval.



We played mini golf (the resort had a HARD course on site) where Don Sr. and I both got holes in one. Woo hoo! There was no gloating though...



We went into Jim Thorpe where we rode the railroad that has restored 1920s cars. It was so beautiful and Logan loved it. Unfortunatley, you are going to have to take my word for it since al the pictures were lost. *crying silently* We stopped at the Jim Thorpe memorial on the way back as well, which was the highlight of the trip for my father in law. Many pictures were taken to commemorate the event, and, again, were all lost. Logan cried the whole way home, maybe he knew the pics were going to be lost in advance.

The traveling parts went relatively well, much much much better than I envisioned. I was kind of dreading the trip--not the seeing people part, but the traveling hours on a plane with a toddler part. Logan was great. He slept, ate, and was in general good humor most of the time. Who can ask for more?

I will post the second part in a bit, familial duties call...

Virtually the only way I can do it...

Can I just tell you how much I love the idea of a virtual shower? I think they should all be like that so I (selfishly) would never have to attend another torture-fest in person. But, shockingly, this post is not about me.

To Bri, Wes, and TK...I know I float about the edges of the IVP, but your story and struggles have been a part of my life. I hope you know how many people you have touched with your openness and honesty. I wish you the most emotionally freeing birth, excellent bonding with TK, and a deeper love between the two of you. I know you are scared, and nothing I say is going to make it go away, but it is just a small moment of your relationship. An important one, to be sure, but fleeting really in the scope of things.

Enough of that, bring on the virtual presents! I notice you haven't really gotten any virtual things. Which is the best sort of present for those undergoing major home renovations. So here is a rocker from Modern Tots that I will go out on a limb and say you and Wes might like. Don and I fancy ourselves a little modern too, and happy to see someone living our dream. To TK I present the Olga Rocker...



Happy VS Bri, Wes, and TK!!!!!

Bolts

So much to report:

• We have been doing tons of stuff since Don is out of school. It is much easier to get out with two adults. And we only have one kid! I can't imagine wrangling a bunch, but obviously it can be done. We have been to the zoo, the beach twice, and the pool. Last night we went to a Charger's practice. It was fun (and free!) and we got to see our favorite players up close. The trip was almost foiled by the distance of our parking space to the event, but we persevered. Logan made a couple friends and enjoyed the cheering, which is a nice change from last year



• The boy is starting to really understand simple commands. "Take off your hat," "Get the ball," "Come here," etc. can be followed when he chooses. It is pretty cool that he comprehends this information. Two weeks ago he wouldn't have known what we were talking about.



• "Yeah" This word just started today and it is universal in its usage. Mostly he uses it correctly though. Too cute.



• The pucker. He is going to melt hearts. He has the funniest kissy pucker I have ever seen.



• Teeth. Yes, they are still coming (swear this one has been going on for over a month) and are wreaking havoc with the sleeping. Naps are in flux. Just in time for our big trip!



• I am in denial that we are traveling to the east coast. In just a few days. Gulp!

Evidence of our Bolts love...

Prey

Sunshine is a hunter! When I was pregnant, she got outside right before bedtime and caught a mouse. She dropped it in what was to become Logan's nursery, but at the time was a wasteland of boxes and yet-to-be put together furniture. It took us about an hour to catch the darn thing and we were able to get it outside alive. Sunshine was then banned from going out after dark.

Well, Don and I were enjoying the cool night air last week and she was outside with us. We haven't been quite as rigid with our "no outside after dark" rule since we moved into the new place, and she has been taking advantage. I saw her focus on something in the front and then dart after it. I noted to Don that I thought she might be stalking something, but, silly me, I didn't think she would actually catch it. Wrong. Sunshine ran back toward us and Don yelled, "She caught something! It's in her mouth! Don't let her in!" I was waaaaay too slow, and only served to make her run faster toward our bedroom. We found her under our bed with a small animal under her paw that looked like a bird.

We shooed her out of the room (in retrospect, this might have been a mistake, as she could have helped us catch the thing), and used our broom to get said "bird" out from under the bed. Then Don looked at me and said, "I think it is a lizard." Oh, my heart sunk. Mammals I can handle. Birds? No problem. Reptiles not so much. They really creep me out. I knew Don was going to be even more freaked (he detests snakes, so I figured this was just the same) so it fell to me to catch it. It went behind my magazine carrier so I moved it out and screamed, "It's a SNAKE!!!" Not my finest hour. It really did look like a snake, and a nasty one at that. Don flew around the bed, grabbed the trash can, and trapped the animal. It really was an alligator lizard after all, but it was pretty big. Maybe 7-8 inches long and fat. Ugh. Don totally stepped up and I so didn't. Unfortunately, the reptile didn't survive the encounter, and Sunshine was mighty pissed that we took her toy away. Logan slept through the whole thing.

Here is Don trapping it



Here it is on our back patio. *shudder*

Jibber jabber

Hanging out over the weekend...

Done

I can't believe it. Purchased, read, and over. *sigh* I love Harry Potter. Now off to read the whole series in order...

The day after

The party has come and gone. It went well for the most part and the turnout was good. I wish we would have had more food, which usually isn't a problem for us, but this time we didn't estimate correctly. Oh well. Logan enjoyed playing with the older kids and was totally over stimulated. He slept past 8 the next morning! Unheard of. My sangria turned out pretty good and Don grilled like a champ. We got a bunch of new plants as housewarming presents, hooray! They are all so pretty.

Sunday was a waste. Poor Logan was completely bored as Don and I crashed. He was very happy at daycare yesterday, I am sure he was thrilled to be doing stuff again. I took him to the local community pool for the first time in the afternoon and we had fun. He decided that he didn't want me to hold him after a while, but, alas, he is not ready for that yet. I have to sign him up for swimmy lessons, but all the slots conflicted with our August vacation so I couldn't do it this summer. Hopefully in the fall it will work out.

I turned 32 yesterday and it was pretty low key. We really didn't do much of anything besides the pool and I liked it that way. H is going to babysit next week so we can go out to dinner. That will combine my birthday with Don's "school's out for summer" celebration. Two for one! We have a few plans for the weekend, but are mostly looking forward to doing a whole lot of nothing special. So exciting, eh?

Here are belated pics...

Logan in front of his closet mural



At the car show



And eating blueberries