First dentist visit, Chick Fil'A and lsot brain cells

Saturday, April 21, 2007

First dentist visit, Chick Fil'A and lsot brain cells Current mood: pleased Well well well, Littleman had his first visit to the dentist today, and he did great! Of course, it's very helpful that the person poking around in his mouth just happens to be his "Grandmuvver". (Actually his great grandmother, who still keeps her job as a dental hygenist part time). Helpful because it's much less intimidating for him, and helpful because it doesn't cost me a cent! (Hooray for relatives with useful professions!) My grandmother has put her degree to very good use, both as her profession and to make sure that all her grandkids and great-grandkids get exemplary dental care. It will be a sad day for me when she finally retires. ;) But in the meantime she is able to start Littleman off on the right foot when it comes to visiting the dentist. I am still very, very tired, but the past couple days have shown improvement (knock on wood) with the nausea. I hope this is a trend. Yesterday I took the boys to Chick Fil'A for lunch and fun on the little playground there. LOL, what a treat! It's very, very seldom I get them fast food of any kind, and usually when we do we are on the move and don't have time for the playground. They were so excited. I have to say that at least the choices in fast food restaurants have improved drastically since I was a kid. The fruit cup is great, and sometimes they'd rather eat the chicken soup or the chicken salad sandwitch rather than nuggets. I never buy them fries, and the lemonade is real. (Not some kool-aid sort of concoction like that Minute Maid stuff every place sells). So, even if it's still fast food it's certainly not as bad as it could be, and I don't mind letting the kids have it once in awhile. And now that I am pregnant, well I just need a milkshake for myself! Yum. :) (Hey, my nurse said it's a good source of calcium and vitamin D, and that a bit of fat here and there is good for my developing baby. So bring on the ice cream! LOL.) You know, as I go through my day I'll often think of something I'd like to write about. I file it in my brain to pull out later when I have time at the computer. Then I either don't find time, or else I can't find my mental file when I need it. I think I will have to start using notebooks again. Here we go- from the time a woman's body starts building the placenta, brain cells start to rapidly disappear. Once she births the placenta the brain cells are gone forever. With luck, time and good neurons the brain can forge new electric pathways to make up for the lost mental capacity, and some semblance of mental acuity can be regained. However some types of memory loss seem to be unfortunately permanent. Anyhow that's my theory. What do you think- is it plausible? Time for bed. I'm at my Grandmother's, and depending on how early the boys wake we may try to do Church tomorrow morning. Grandmother would love to show us off. :)

Mommy Amnesia, and minivans

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Mommy Amnesia, and minivans Current mood: tired OK. Kids in bed, and we ended up with a compromise: washcloth to the important bits, and straight on to brush teeth, story and sleepytime. I think it was the best route for tonight. Not that y'all probably care, come to think of it! LOL, I'm just functioning on a lesser level these days. Pregnancy is Nature's way to prepare mamas for newborns. Usually the second trimester is pretty good for me. I'm hoping the same will be true this time- if so, only about a month to go before I cross that threshold! I'm not sure, since Mommy Amnesia works just as well on me as anyone, but I don't think my other first trimesters were as bad as this one has been. It seems my nausea and fatigue are lasting a lot longer this time. . . but hell if I know, because Nature also makes sure mommies forget how bad pregnancy, childbirth and the first few months of newborn care can be. It's all a rose-colored blur and the details go all fuzzy- Mommy Amnesia. Has happened to every Mom I know. Makes sense, as far as Nature is concerned. If we remembered all the details, would we really put ourselves through it all over again?? (Oh and yes. . . I am thinking pink, though of course we'll be pleased either way- blah blah- LOL, yes a girl sure would be nice. Last chance! Geeez, if it's a boy Billy and I will have to come up with ANOTHER boy name we can agree on. . .) We may have all the baby stuff we could possibly need by now, but the third kid brings a new necessity: bigger car! It is a physical impossibility to have three carseats in the back seat of our Subaru. Sigh. I think carseats are great, but it has occured to me that they have something to do with this American love affair with large vehicles. I would prefer to keep our smaller, good-gas-mileage Forester, but we simply can't fit more than two carseats in. We are forced to go bigger. Granted the extra space will be welcome, and I will still be looking for something reliable and efficient. But If it were not for carseats, I bet many families would be driving something a bit smaller (thus more environmentally-friendly). I'm probably oversimplifying to a ridiculous degree. . . but I bet the carseats are a factor. However I am grateful for good carseats. Well I'm afraid I really must go. . . I'm rambling now, and I need to check on the diapers in the laundry, and get ready for bed. I am exhausted. I'll probably sleep soundly all night, and wake up exhausted. So it goes. It's a damn good thing all this trouble ends up being worth it in the end!! :)

bedtime calculations

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

bedtime calculations Current mood: annoyed It is bedtime, and yet the boys are just finishing dinner. They have not had a bath, nor did they get one last night (nor the night before, since we were at Grandma's). They need a bath, but they (and I) are tired and we are all getting up early tomorrow to have a fun trip to the Childrens' Museum. I am trying to decide whether it will be better to bathe them and get to bed late(r), or skip bath and get them to bed at a more reasonable time. I'll just have to see how they are behaving once dinner is done- whether it's evident they need sleep more than clean. After all, they don't stink (yet). I. Am. Tired. OK, they're done. They seem a bit wired all of a sudden- maybe a bath is the thing. Whew. Here goes!

Ah, glorious nausea

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

Ah, glorious nausea Current mood: nauseated Yes, I've disappeared for awhile- sorry about that! Frankly I've been having trouble keeping up with minor household tasks, let alone find the extra time to blog. You see, (and apparently several of you guessed this based on my final comment in my last blog) I am PREGNANT! Again. Yes, I am completely insane. But happily so- this is a bit of a surprise, but we do want a third child, and I'd always said I wanted them all close in age. Unfortunately however, I have been pretty miserable the past couple weeks with fatigue and nausea. It comes and goes in intensity, but in general has been playing havoc with my ability to function. I did manage to enjoy our second annual big family campout, which was down on Jekyll Island last week. I was the primary coordinator, so it was really cool to see everyone enjoy themselves and really get involved. We had fantastic weather all week, and man did the boys have a blast. Of course Billy and I arrived home more tired than we'd left, but it was worth it! ;) I am sitting in my mother-in-law's van (she and I traded cars for the camping trip, and haven't traded back yet) because Mr. Cheeks is sleeping in his carseat. Littleman is participating in his tumbling class, having a great time. I'm so glad we signed him up for it- especially since I've not been feeling so active! Oh, Sweetcheeks just woke. I think we'll go in now so I can watch the boys. * * * * * Home again, with internet. Now able to post! Trying to have a peaceful bowl of rice while boys play upstairs. Then on to MORE laundry. If the gods are with me, I'll get a nice hot shower tonight. Damn, I'd like that. Now I think I will risk taking my prenatal vitamins- my stomach seems to have settled enough that they won't make me feel too ill. Whew.

Spring Cleaning

Thursday, March 22, 2007

Spring Cleaning Current mood: cheerful Something about Spring tends to make me feel like organizing a bit. I must not be alone in this, considering the "spring cleaning" cliche. It seems a little odd to me that the urge seldom strikes in the Winter- wouldn't that be the best time, when you are holed up inside anyway? Wouldn't it make sense to concentrate on your interior spaces when you are staring at them all the time? But no. . . in the Winter, I feel like hibernating. I feel sluggish and unmotivated much of the time, and staring at the same clutter all the time can easily make one blind to it. No, it's the Spring that starts to awaken my senses- I throw open the windows and breathe fresh air, and suddenly see my rooms in a new light. I get the urge to finally finish storing and labeling the outgrown baby clothes and diapers. I want to overhaul my closet, and banish all that stuff that Billy and I will never wear. I want to turn out the kitchen pantry and cabinets, purge my shelves of ancient specimens and put everything back in some sort of logical order (unlike the current haphazard storage). I still want to finish storing and labeling my art supplies (a project long-since begun, and long-since suspended). I want to sort through the toys and banish some of the junk that's crept into the collection. And I want to scrub the inside of my fridge, wash all the windows, and really clean the floors. In the course of cleaning and organizing, I would like to set up some areas to be more condusive to the Montessori philosophy- so that the boys may have more freedom to do things independantly. I'd like to have an accessible cleaning station in the kitchen for them, with child-size tools (broom, mop, bucket, dustpan, rags, duster and a spray bottle of vinegar-water for cleaning with). I'd like to have the bottom shelf of the fridge organized to be accessible to them, so they may help themselves to healthy snacks when they want them. (Including a small pitcher of milk that they may pour from). I have other ideas in this vein, but you get the general idea. My tidying trend doesn't stop there- I want to trim shrubs outside, fill in the doggie excavations in the backyard, and dig out/level/mulch a path. And of course, I'm preparing the vegetable garden! I let it go sadly over the last couple years, but with a little TLC I think we can have a rockin' veggie garden again. It's a wonderful thing for Littleman to be a part of at this age- I have everything ready for us to start planting seeds tomorrow. Hopefully the garden will be ready to receive them by the time they sprout. Therin lies much of my motivation- any time I start to feel lazy or intimidated by all the work that needs doing, I remember that these things work right in to my preschool "curriculum"- my unwritten, loosely defined set of values and goals that I am using to guide us in our current homeschooling. Organization (to some extent) is important. Fostering independance and responsibility at home is important. A comfortable learning environment is important. Just being outside is important. And learning about plants and growing things is important. So, even in my extremely limited time, I am making time to do these things. (The organization has made minor progress so far, since being outside comes first. . . but there has been progress!) It feels good. I love Spring. P.S.- I know something you don't know. :)

kid fun

Saturday, March 17, 2007

kid fun Current mood: indescribable Rustles, muffled thumps and murmuring voices. "Boys", I call- (sudden quiet) "Boys, go to sleep!" No response, of course. Here in the rocking chair in the next room, Mr Sweetcheeks is nearly asleep. I keep listening until I hear the rustling begin anew. I wait a few moments before calling to them again. Who knows how long it will take them to go to sleep? After all, I guess, isn't that part of the fun of your first sleepover? Littleman is so excited to have his 5 yr old cousin over to spend the night. I set up a little tent in his room for them to sleep in, and when they do finally drop off it's in a mingled heap of blankets, arms and legs. LOL, what fun. * * * (Sweetcheeks says excitedly as I start the yoga DVD) "Gogo! Gogo!" (translation: "Yoga! Yoga!) Speaking of yoga, when we were in Disney's Animal Kingdom Littleman was looking at the flamingos. He turns to me in surprise and says, "They're doing yoga!!" Sweetcheeks likes to say "Bye bye", but (like his brother did at this age) usually waits until you're out of sight. Littleman was looking at a picture in a National Geographic magazine with Billy. It was about tourists who go scuba diving with sharks, and it showed several scuba divers amidst a swarm of swimming sharks. The guide is off to one side, and next to him is a prominent underwater sign with the name of the Cove. Littleman points to the sign and knowingly informs his Daddy: "That sign says, 'Don't Eat Me'." Sweetcheeks will now say "please". It's the most darling little thing ever. Littleman is currently fond of telling anyone who will listen "I'm going to grow up to be a Daddy!" Then again, he also explains that "Daddy will grow up to be a boy".

Breathing room!

Thursday, March 15, 2007

Breathing room! Current mood: cheerful Whew! As usual, my accountant had to e-mail me to remind me that corporate taxes are due March 15 rather than April 15. Dammit! I seem to have a mental block going with that one. It's my true feelings about income taxes asserting themselves in my subconcious. Regardless, as usual I had to scramble to get all the required information together for him in time. Don't get me started on the waste of my precious life that is the income tax. What a ridiculously unwieldy system. . . but I did say don't get me started. So the good(ish) news is that the returns are prepared and postmarked, and I don't have to do that again until I forget about it next year. A bonus (of sorts) is that the personal return is done too, so I have some breathing room again. (Until next year). That's not the only reason I went AWOL- we've been super busy, mostly with fun stuff (just that very large exception of tax preparation). My Uncle got married, and we adore my new Aunt. (Plus we get some cool cousins in the bargain!) The wedding was really nice- for me, the highlight was after I pawned the boys off on their Daddy and other relatives, and I spent a few hours in a loungechair on a sandy beach at the lake, feeling pretty, digging my bare toes in the sand and reading Harry Potter. (again, but who's counting??) THAT was a rare delight. My Uncle works at DisneyWorld, so after the wedding we were able to take the boys down for a day of Disney frolic. We all had a great time, and Littleman is already planning his next trip there! LOL. To top off a great little trip, I snagged 5 letterboxes on the way home. Very nice. Between trips I've been struggling to keep getting the house back in (semi)order, and then along comes taxes. Now that those are done, it's time to prepare for the fast-approaching family campout in Jekyll Island! I'm assuredly not complaining, though- just explaining my blog disappearance. I do prefer to post much more regularly than I've managed lately. I'll try to get back to it! One nice little note: yesterday, the boys and I met up with Aaron and my high school Art teacher at the High museum. It was so wonderful to catch up with my former teacher- she has been a lasting and very special influence in my life. The boys had a blast just playing in the courtyard and in the playroom there, then at closing time we all went to Houlihan's for an early dinner. It was a lovely afternoon. It can be all too easy to lose touch with the meaningful people in our lives. Most of us keep up with our family in some way or another, but think of all the other wonderful people over the years that have had a lasting positive influence in our lives, but whom we just haven't managed to keep up with. Sometimes it's because we do not realize their importance until they've disappeared from our lives, and sometimes it's just that pesky life details keep getting in the way of reconnecting. Or perhaps we just procrastinate, or forget. . . I know I am guilty of all of the above. But when you do reconnect with someone extra special, you wonder "What took me so long??" I really intend to keep in regular contact with my dear Art angel. She's a true gem.