Ode to the Van

Wednesday. One week. Five Work days. Till I get to be a Stay at Home Mom. I guess I should correct and say "Work at home Mom." The weather is fabulous here! It's very difficult to concentrate at work. Today at lunch I spent time out on the patio eating lunch and enjoying the sun. This morning when I dropped Ardyn off at daycare, the kids were playing outside. When I took Ardyn out to her teacher, Ava came running up to me from nowhere. I was so impressed that she knew right who we were! I didn't even see her until she was right in front of me. She said "Hi!" and I said "Hi Ava!" and she pointed at Ardyn and smiled and said "Baby!" and I said "yes! What's the baby's name, do you remember?" and I thought for just a second that I would have to remind her, and I could see the wheels turning, and she suddenly looked up at Ardyn and then at me, and said "Ardyn!" and I said "Good job! Her name is Ardyn!" She was so excited to see us. I wanted to scoop her up and give her a hug and kiss but thought that I might freak her out so I just grinned at her. She was so thrilled to be outside when Ardyn was. It was cute!

I am reading Water for Elephants for my online book club, which was started by the group of moms that I belong to (our kids are all the same age.) So far it's a good book. It's intriguing and I can't help but think something big is at the end. Or perhaps that the end explains the beginning. I also have a stack of about 7 parenting and kids magazines that I have to read, and since I keep not having the time, I made myself carry them around in my shoulder tote for three days, as penance. I feel guilty, but keep telling myself that soon I can relax and read up. I thought maybe if I carried them with me that I might have a minute here or there to pick one up, but no such luck. So finally I gave up and left them at home instead. Besides those things are HEAVY!

Last night we signed the paperwork for our new VAN! Can you believe it! After all those posts about how I will NEVER Drive a van, it came down to me begging for a van. Ha. Can I just say first of all that I heart Stow-n-Go? Ohhh Do I ever. So it's a navy blue 2006 Dodge Grand Caravan. We found it at Browning Dodge, locally, which was also nice. We bought it for about $4000 less than it blue books for, which was amazing. It has 25,000 miles and still has factory warranty. They sold it brand new off their lot to their office manager, and she turned around and traded it in for a new vehicle, so it has been taken excellent care of and has had all it's work done right there since she works there. I am thrilled. We looked at 2007 and some 2006 Models in Peru and they wanted OUTRAGEOUS amounts of money for them, and they were so basic with no options, AND they were filthy! Cigarette burn holes in the floor mats and carpet, stains, ACK. Not something I would pay the $20-27 thousand that they were asking! It was insanity. That's like $5-12,000 more than we paid! It has full stow-n-go, captains seats, power drivers seat, power sliding doors, CD and cassette, dual climate control, rear heat/air, read defrost, cruise and radio controls on the steering wheel, the whole deal. It's immaculate and Ardyn's car seat fits so wonderfully! And the stroller. I could actually GET groceries in this thing, and we can all fit! Right now, whoever rides in the passenger seat of my car, has to have their knees touching the dash and their head touching the ceiling/visor. It's crazy. So Saturday we pick up the van. Can't wait! The payments will be less than half what my car payments were. Ahhh. Now I get to sell my car! Today I called my insurance agent to add the van.

I am waiting on two Little Tikes toys for Ardyn. I sold some diapers on diaperswappers and had paypal, so I grabbed up a couple of used Outdoor toys online. Of course they are more indoor/outdoor toys, and I don't anticipate that we will ever leave them outside, because of their value and that we want to keep them clean and free of fading. I got two retired items, which were hard to find. The Little Tikes Peek-A-Boo Tunnel, and the Little Tikes Activity Garden. I remember babysitting for kids who had the Activity Garden and they LOVED that thing. I loved that thing! It's perfect for Ardyn right now, and the Peek-A-Boo Tunnel is great for crawlers and I think she will enjoy it immensely this summer. The Activity Garden I am tracking through FedEx. I feel like if I even SEE A fed-ex or UPS guy on my street I might tackle him. I saw one earlier in the week and it was all I could do to stay in my car. He.

Also new is Ardyn's 2nd tooth. Last weekend and the beginning of this week I made mention that she was really gnawing on my hand, and that the first tooth must be pushing through the rest of the way. Well, last night she smiled at me and there were two bottom teeth instead of one! I know for a fact that there was only one on Sunday night, so it must have came through either Monday or Tuesday. She also has started to make a pig sound in her throat, the first time I heard that was yesterday. It's too cute.

This weekend I am excited to see Carrie, and perhaps Angela if she ever gets her act together and calls me. We are supposed to get together this weekend and go out for supper, since Carrie will be home and Angela will be having the big 30th birthday next Tuesday. I bought her a card back before Valentine's day because I found the PERFECT one. Then I thought that her birthday might be March 28th instead of April 28th so I called her that day and she clarified. I sat right down, filled out the card, addressed and stamped the envelope. Then Evan kept asking me if I wanted to mail it, and I kept saying no because I wanted it to arrive close to her birthday. And now, I can't find it. Ugh! Did I mail it? Did I lose it? Jeez this is insane. I know she will laugh when I tell her this, but really, It's embarrassing.

Today I also grabbed Ardyn's newest shot records from the Dr. Office so that we are ready when we switch to a pediatrician this June. I also got paperwork to fill out for my exit interview at work. Paperwork Paperwork.

I have a new plan. Although I think it's probably too good to be true, I have used a giant wipe off board and tried to schedule certain tasks on certain days. I am hoping that this will keep me on track and doing a bit of things each day, instead of running around too much on one day. If I wake up in the morning and say "all I HAVE to accomplish today is vacuuming and washing diapers" or "All I have to do today is wash jeans and clean out the fridge" or "All I have to do today is get groceries and wash fruits and vegetables." I don't know how it will work. Or if it will work. But I will give it the best try I can. I have it pretty strategically planned. Clean the fridge out one day. Make the grocery list the next day. Get groceries the following day. Wash each type of clothes once a week so that I only have to do a load or two of laundry each day. Wash Diapers every other day. Wash the Dog Bowls once a week. Give them baths every two weeks. Change the bedding every two weeks. That type of stuff. And of course there will be instances when the plan won't work. When I have something going on and won't be home, when Ardyn doesn't allow me to accomplish much. But I think that I feel good about having a plan. Once I feel like the whiteboard plan is finalized, I will transfer it to paper and give it a trial run for a week or two and see if it is feasible or if it needs tweaking or trashing.

Been a while

Hi folks! It's been a while since I have written a substantial post. The internet via Comcast is still very poor and so I really don't turn on the laptop much these days... although they are supposed to be sending ANOTHER person out tomorrow night to assess the situation and fix it. If they don't have it resolved by May, I will probably switch to DirectTV or something like that.

Today I started reading Water for Elephants for a book club that I belong to online. I got really lucky and had an online mom friend who had the book and wanted to swap for a Jodi Piccoult book that I had already read and wanted to get rid of. Since Media Mail shipping isn't half bad, we just mailed them to each other. Water for Elephants arrived today, and I am already thoroughly enjoying the tone of the book, and so I have a feeling I will have it finished before May, although it's supposed to be discussed by the end of May. As long as I can remember it by then! Ha. I had visions of Ardyn and I lying in the hammock in the yard, staring up at the blue sky and reading. Ahhh. Peace and tranquility.

We had a good weekend. I had a gift certificate that I used to purchase a food processor and also some Ball Freezer containers (have you seen those? they are awesome) so that I cn make and freeze some purees and some baby meals. I have been on the search for tiny pasta stars, but have yet to find any. My mom believes there may be some at the store in Sterling where she shops... so in the meantime I will use Couscous. I am hoping to try it out tonight to slice some Strawberries that I bought. I usually would use the Pampered Chef Egg Slicer, but I would love to try out the food processor. I haven't had time to take it out of the box just yet.

Saturday we went to Peru to peek into a few vans, and also to go to Menards to get the hardware to hang Ardyn's swing, and to Target to grab a few things we needed. That night Evan stayed home after Ardyn went to bed, and I went to get groceries. at 10pm. I got home and had everything unloaded by about 11:45, and boy was I Pooped! We desperately needed groceries, but I think I spent too much. It's hard to make food a priority sometimes. Good thing is those groceries will last at least a month I hope. I had to get some things to keep at home for me to eat at lunchtime, seeing as how I will be home soon and need to eat my meals there.

Sunday I pretty much cleaned and played with Ardyn. Last night I cleaned the back porch (FINALLY!) and organized shoes on the shoe shelf. I ran the dishwasher, washed diapers and three other loads of clothes, cleaned Ardyn's room, washed all her 12 month size clothes and hung them up in her room (Evan added the second bar to her armoire yesterday) and I also fed the dogs, cleaned off my bookshelf, and scrubbed Ardyn's Foam playmat in the shower with the hose and some Clorox Green Works cleaner... and then dried it. I cleaned off the dining room table, washed and sanitized all the bottles and pump parts and Ardyn's food bowls and spoons, and unloaded and reloaded the dishwasher. I hung the rugs on the clothesline and put Garters on the sheets to keep the top two corners from popping off. I took a bath and Ardyn tried the Yo Baby Yogurt for the first time (It's crazy but the day Mylie's mommy was posting a comment here about trying the yogurt, I was already out buying some! LOL.) Sunday evening we went over to Evan's parents and cooked out and sat outside and enjoyed the weather. It was just beautiful and today was even BETTER.

I got the money from my nursing swimsuit refunded into my paypal account and was able to turn around and buy 6 more Thirsties AIO's in size Medium, which will bring the total up to 12. Thank God. I am so sick of washing diapers every night. We wear prefolds and MEOS at home, but if she wants to wear shorts this summer, they are wayyy too bulky to get her bum into unless she has the Thirsties on. Plus Thirsties are the diapers that dad can handle well, and babysitters, etc.

So tonight I am going to get a van to keep overnight on a test drive. I am really excited about the van that I have found, so please wish me luck that all goes well. I am really hoping that I can get it... and that everything falls into place. Everything ELSE has fallen into place lately, so I almost feel like it's not possible to have one more thing work out this well.

Random Update

Tomorrow is Friday, but I am more excited for May 1st to arrive. I have given my notice at work and April 30th is my last day. The day after I told my boss I would be leaving, she approached me and asked if I would consider continuing to design and update our website from home, as a contract employee. This, of course, is my every dream come true. I didn't mention it to them because I seriously thought they would never even consider it as an option. It has been approved by the CEO and Human Resources, and they are in the process of determining how to handle the pay scale and things. I will connect via a remote connection and do the web design and updates. Since then, they have decided to have me do some redesigning of the internal website as well. I also have a friend who has closed her own web design business and will be directing some of her clients to me for updates to their current websites. Evan and I will be working to put some more memory and a dvd burner in our home PC. The hospital may be providing me with the software that I will use to do their web design, which is wonderful. I am so excited about this... everything is working out wonderfully!

Ardyn is so amazing! Her babble "da da da da" has turned into a full blown daddy, and we are sure now that she has connected the word with the person. Of course we have been trying to get a "mamma" out of her, but she forms the 'm' with her mouth and then makes fart noises... so I guess we will have to appreciate that her first and only word is "daddy." She is clapping all the time now, and bopping to music. She also tries to snap her fingers, it's the cutest thing. She has really started to become mobile in the last week or so, rolling all over and trying to "get" to things. Evan and I are convinced that she will be crawling very very soon. She has especially shows a real interest in trying to get to me, wherever I am, and of course that's a great feeling. Lately she and I have been reading books before bedtime and then she sits on the couch and nurses and then falls asleep in my lap. She's at a very fun age right now. I can't believe she will be eight months soon, and a year isn't far behind!

We are about to add breakfast to her schedule, with some fruit and cereal, and probably baby yogurt. She enjoys pieces of fresh zucchini, apples, bananas, and the Gerber Puffs in fruit and sweet potato flavors. Last week she had some fun with a pickle when Evan and I took her to Townsend for supper after "school."

Last night was our second swimming lesson, and I got to be in the pool with her, which was fun. Twice I blew in her face to get her to take a big breath, then put her under the water. The first time she popped up and was surprised and giggling. The second time she wasn't as thrilled, Evan said she opened her eyes under the water and the chlorine burned her, and that might have been what made her angry. She wasn't doing as much kicking and paddling this week, but I think it's because it wasn't as new and exciting as it was last week. She did grab the boogie board, and the floating dumbell. They also did a "race" where all the kids tried to blow a piece of foam noodle across the water. She was more interested in getting it INTO her mouth. She can pretty much tolerate about 30 minutes in the water and then she seems to be ready to get out, I think last night she was just plain tired. As soon as I got her home and fed her supper, she was rubbing her eyes and falling asleep. That swimming is hard work!

I am packing up my office this week. This weekend we are planning a trip to Menard's to get a few things we need, especially some hardware to hang Ardyn's new swing (Thanks Grandma Deb and Grandpa Dave!) in the front yard. My dad also had a friend who gave him a rickshaw (a baby bicycle trailer) so I need to get myself a bike so I can pull it! Ardyn and I will really be living green now!

A Friend of mine, Tina (Atkinson) Moore has a boy in her third grade class with cancer. His best friend is also in her class, and he had a fund raiser for his classmate and has been chosen a finalist in Oprah's big give. You can vote once a day from now till Thursday. If he wins, he will get more money for his best friend. Log on to wqad.com

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Vote for Trenton Niemeyer, finalist #3

Pass this on to anyone who will VOTE!

Here is a direct link to the voting page

Singing in the Rain.... and in the Pool!

Well, things are going well. My stomach has been a little icky the past two nights, but I am about 99% sure it's because I have been eating nothing but CRAP for like 5 days straight. Ugh. Tomorrow. Salad. I swear.

Tonight was Ardyn's first swimming lesson and she "dove" right in. She started moving her arms and legs and kicking as soon as she got into the water. She LOVES the water, and everyone (even people I didn't know, and moms in the locker room) were stopping me to comment on how she's "a natural" and how she's "so cute." We had a great time. Evan got into the water this time and I played paparazzi. Next time we will switch. The one thing I can say is that the Metro Center swimming teachers were WONDERFUL and nice. But it was hotter than hell in that pool area. I was freaking dying. Literally sweating in a skirt and t-shirt. My forehead was beaded with sweat and I was not the only parent complaining of the heat. It was unbearable and in fact before we left I was nauseous from just the heat. It was crazy how hot it was in there. It is also difficult because I feel a bit like the pack mule. I had two bags, one with towels, suits, and a spare diaper, and another with my purse, Ardyn's coat and hat, our camera, etc. Plus carrying Ardyn. Evan helped when he could, but going in and out of the locker room and to the pool and back with her, I was like JEEZ! I bought was I THOUGHT was a huge Mesh bag, but I think I need something bigger, or about 5 more arms. Or a rolling cart. LOL.

Rotovirus is going around daycare now. Great. The toddler/2's room has had sickness abounding, but there is also one student from Ardyn's classroom that is hospitalized right now. I can't wait to get out of the daycare "germ" situation. We have been sicker this year than we have ever been in our lives. It's insane. I know it will start once she goes to school, but I would like a few years to ease into that. We are practicing obsessive handwashing, especially when walking out of the daycare facility and when changing diapers and such at home. I have always been pretty good, but now I am downright obsessive.

Rain is on it's way. It rained yesterday quite a bit, but tomorrow is supposed to be icky rain, thunderstorms, etc. Just check out the radar. You know I am in Illinois, so just see what's ahead for us tomorrow. I got to wear my galoshes this week already, and you can count on me wearing them again. Yesterday when leaving work I saw this umbrella in the parking lot next to my car. It cracked me up. I had to take a picture. Apparently it was abandoned when it turned inside out.

I sold all of the small diapers this week, so I was able to use that paypal to grab the inserts for the Motherease Diapers and a Little Tikes Peek-A-Boo Tunnel that is for toddlers to crawl through. I thought Ardyn might enjoy it this summer and it's small and sturdy enough to use indoors or out. I have been looking for one for a while, but they don't sell it anymore, and I couldn't find one locally, so I grabbed one on eBay. I am next in the market for the Little Tikes Activity Garden, another thing that they don't make anymore and is WAY overpriced on eBay. I found one locally but the lady is smoking crack and wants $150 for it, plus I would have to drive 40 minutes to pick it up (locally is a relative term here.) I can get one shipped to me from eBay cheaper than that, which is saying something considering shipping is about $35-40.

Target has free shipping on baby gear right now, so I am thinking that with my next paycheck I will buy our second convertible car seat. I am rapidly getting my list taken care of. Just don't ask me to buy anything that I don't have on my radar right now.

I hate the internet at home. I am trying to upload a few photos to Flickr of the swimming tonight, and I get one photo uploaded (this is on high speed) and the connection drops and I have to start the process all over. What should take a total of less than 5-10 minutes has been taking me HOURS and it frustrates me GREATLY. I need to go to bed and just forget the pictures. So maybe you will get some later in the week, but not tonight! Sorry!

It's a Beautiful Day To Quit Your Job....

Well, it's official! Last Friday I gave my notice at work, and as of May 1st, I will "officially" be a stay-at-home Mom! YAY! I will probably be doing a bit of web design on the side, but my primary goals will be to spend time with Ardyn, keep my house in order, get the laundry done, and keep up with the dishes! I also hope to get in more crafts and gardening, as well as some time outdoors for daily walks and some swimming too! I can not wait! I will miss my job but it was becoming too much to do everything and I just wasn't happy being away from Ardyn all day and not accomplishing anything. I know that moms everywhere work, but I have to say that it's impossible for me to work, take care of Ardyn to the standards that I expect from myself, and also accomplish anything for myself or my family. I can't wait. Let the countdown begin. To celebrate I got my first massage since back when I was pregnant, and probably the last one I will have until someone buys me a gift certificate (Mother's Day?) It was FABULOUS. A full hour long, and boy it's amazing how you can almost forget how refreshing you feel after a good massage. This time Tina used essential oils in my massage and it was just wonderful.So the weekend was great. Saturday the boys were burning the prairie and wildflower plots, and Ardyn and I went to meet some of Evan's family who were in town visiting. Then we went out to see the boys and visited at Grandma and Grandpas with more family. We had supper there and on the way home, Ardyn and I hit a skunk (eeww!) and Evan took my car up to wash it before we put it in the garage. It was pretty stinky. Sunday I washed two loads of diapers, and happily hung them out on the line. I have TONS of pictures on Flickr of pretty and colorful diapers drying in the sun. The sky was so blue with puffy white clouds. If the grass had been green and there were leaves on the trees, you wouldn't have even known that we just had a hellish winter that lasted forever. The diapers are just so fresh and clean when they come in from the line!I got some inspiration to make a clothespin bag, since mine is worn to hell, and I did the applique of a clothespin on the front, which still needs his "face" embroidered (see photos of the clothespin bag on flickr.) I will share photos of the finished product once I add one more snap to the center and embroider his face... It was super cute and slick... the Serger just makes sewing so much fun! I moved between the table to cut my fabric, the serger, and the sewing machine late last night, and finally FORCED myself to go to sleep about 1am. I actually woke Ardyn up and changed her diaper (we are fighting a bit of daycare diaper rash) and then nursed her and let her sleep next to me, because she sleeps longer and better there, and I wanted to get as much sleep as possible since I had been up late cleaning and sewing and had to work on Monday.I am feeling really good about how well I am staying on top of things. I spend pretty much every night after Ardyn goes to bed, picking up, doing laundry, and dishes. One night last week I did just do one load of laundry and wash just one sink of dishes, and then watch the two episodes of CSI Miami with Evan. It was nice to relax. I look forward to the time when I can spend more time relaxing and enjoying my family on weeknights and weekends, instead of trying to cram in all the "housework" into that time instead. I also look forward to writing more in Ardyn's baby book, and starting her scrapbook, which I am ashamed to say I haven't even begun yet.

Ardyn is moving into Size Medium Diapers now, and so I am about halfway through selling the smalls in lots. If they were diapers that I bought used, or that aren't my very favorites, I am selling them, because I don't know how well the elastic will hold up in storage, especially if the person before me used a harsh detergent or dried them in the drier. My favorite pocket diapers, and Especially the Thirsties AIO Pockets, I will keep for the next baby. But the rest I will get rid of and purchase more of what I really like. Today I sent her with Medium Thirsties AIO Pockets to daycare, and if I sell the 9 Drybees and 6 Snap-ez pockets that she is growing out of, I will then buy 6 more Thirsties AIO Pockets in Medium for daycare and convenience sakes this summer and fall. We are using lots of wool over prefolds and fitteds while at home, but I like to have Thirsties on hand to wear under clothes because they are so trim and comfy.
I have slid into my mom wardrobe. I have my two pair of khaki pants, and a pair of white pants that become capris, and three pair of shorts, and two pair of knit capris, and a pair of black gauchos. Pair those with any of my Nine v-neck shirts in a rainbow of colors, and you will see how easy it is to be me. LOL. I have discovered that the Unshrinkable T-Shirt by LLBean is freaking awesome, not only because it doesn't shrink, but because it has this water-repellent thing on it. When I get milk or water or anything on me, I can pretty much brush it off and I don't get stained. Last week I opened a container of sweet potatoes only to have them splash all over my shirt that I JUST put on, and they came right off without even really "touching" the fabric. It was awesome how repellent they are. I will definitely recommend them to other moms! I can't wait till I don't have to work, because then I can also slip into my rainbow of flip flops and sandals. Until then I am pretty much sticking to tennis shoes and slip on shoes, or my black rocket dogs.
Ardyn wore an outfit (That Aunt Liz bought her!) with Capri pants and her sandals to daycare today, she was so excited about it! It was like she couldn't get over the fact that even though she had her shoes on, she could SEE her TOES! She was thrilled. She was being a real ham this morning. She has kinda started to have the "stranger" fear. She knows who I am and wants to be with me. She is sometimes crying when I leave the room, and when we visit relatives and they hold her, she is starting to cry and crane her head around and reach for me. I can see the panic look on her face and I try to reassure her that they are safe and that I am not going anywhere. I think my mom and Evan's parents are the only people she hasn't been afraid of. Perhaps Evan's brother and my sister. She cried at Grandpa Dave at Easter, I think he scared her when she first saw him, and then she warmed right up and played with him all day.... but she was scared of Evan's uncle Dennis at first, and also of Grandma Mona and Grandpa Bob Sr. We just need to spend more time with everyone so that she is more comfortable with them.

Swimming lessons start this week. I can't remember if I already blogged about buying a new swimsuit? I don't think I did. Well, I debated for a long time. I have several suits. Two tankins. One missing the bottom and one missing the top? And the two suits that I wore before I got pregnant, are nowhere to be found (Another reason to stay home.... so I can clean out my closet and get a hold on all these different sizes of clothes!) and now that I have lost 46 pounds, and gone up a cup size from nursing, I decided it's okay to buy a new suit. Especially when I will need to nurse at the pool all summer. I heave heard lots of people say "just pull your suit down" and I want to say "yeah, that's discreet. Just pull down your suit." Obviously none of these people have hauled around a DD cup full of milk. Or nursed the evil genius who loves to "pop off and smile" at people. And honestly, it isn't ME I am worried about. It's other people. They tend to get all itchy and squirmy around boobs. Nursing boobs that is. I should clarify. Because flashing Mardi Gras boobs and classic art boobs and porno boobs and playboy boobs and topless dancer boobs show up and it's all "Whoo-Hoo! Random Shot of Boobs!" But I guess when the boobs are for nursing, it's all about scary. This world is pretty fucked up, isn't it!? So for everyone else's sake, I dropped $70 on a new two piece halter tankini, double layered for nursing, with a matching swim skirt. It's the most expensive swimsuit I have ever bought, considering that I bought my maternity suit on eBay (used) and every other suit pretty much came from Wal-Mart, with the exception of one that my mom bought my from JCPenney before I left home about 10 years ago. I bought it in Basic black, so that it stays in style, stays slimming, and can be worn hopefully through several years and through nursing several children. I did it all for you. Your welcome. The suit arrived from Motherwear today and I haven't had a chance to try it on yet, but I will. And I also got a second travel wet bag (identical to the one I use for dirty diapers but in a different pattern) so that we can put our wet suits and such in it for swim lessons, and for summer at the pool. It will also be nice to just have another wet bag in general, so that if there is one in the wash we have a spare.

I have four more things on my list that I need to get purchased before I cease to have any income. The first is six more Thirsties Diapers. The second is 13 Snap In Bamboo Inserts for the Motherease One Size Diapers that we already have. The Third is another Convertible Car Seat to use in Evan's vehicle. The Fourth is a set of Crib Rail Teethers to put on the crib in Ardyn's room. I would also be thrilled if I could get myself a new pair of New Balance Tennis Shoes, since I bought mine back when I got pregnant, and have been wearing them for over a year now. I would LOVE a new pair but this is not a necessity so much as a wish. And I would also love some new mascara as mine is getting crunchy... and some foundation as I am almost out of the Bare Minerals. I ran out of the color I wear a while ago, but had two containers of a color that didn't work, but I mixed it with some warmth to make it get me by, and now that is almost gone.

I will be switching to Wal-Mart purchased shampoo and conditioner instead of Biolage, and also dyeing my own hair now, to save money. That's cool with me. I will miss my complicated highlights that get me so many compliments, but not as much as I would miss my daughter if I had to work to support my beauty regime.

Oh and Comcast. Saturday morning when I got out of the shower my cable had been "Disconnected for non-payment" because I refuse to pay them for service I am not GETTING and because I have tried to explain to them a bazillion times that I am not paying and that they need to credit my account. So I called Comcast and within 10 minutes had $90 credited to my account for the months of February and March's internet service. And my cable and internet (or what there IS of internet service) reinstated while still on the phone with them. This morning Judy form Corporate called to check in, which was very nice and probably the best customer service I have gotten from Comcast so far. Everything I have heard, both from Technicians and from Customers and through the grapevine, indicates that they should have a handle on the "bigger issue" in our area in 1-2 weeks. Judy told me if it isn't fixed in two weeks to call her back and a supervisor would be sent to my area. I am pleased with the credits to my account. It's about time!

Well, I have exhausted my brainpower for now. Have a great day!

Update on Problems with Comcast, and other things this week.

Made it through another week! The countdown to May 1st Continues. Today I had the pleasure of trying to pay more bills than I have money for, thanks to the past two paychecks of mine being even SHORTER due to Ardyn being sick and us being out a total of 5 whole days and 2 half days from daycare/work, which can take a big chunk out of your income! It wouldn't be a big deal, but I am still trying to pay off the hospital bill, and the $400 a month power bill is still going strong, although I think that was probably our last month. Plus my husband thinks that it's better to pay $10 per garbage can (the penalty for putting out an extra can without a trash sticker) instead of dragging his butt to Casey's to buy $5 of stickers. Ugh. Add in the cost of daycare, a cell phone bill, and a cable bill where we are paying for service that we don't even HAVE.... and it makes for a cranky checkbook.

This week we have had two morning visits from Comcast technicians, both of them resulting in the exact same response, which consists of "There is nothing wrong with your equiptment or the lines to your home" and "The problem is purely Comcast's and they need to take responsibility for it." Then I get to hear about how the repair guys spend all day going to people's houses in this area, when they can do nothing to fix the problem, because the problem is really due to the re-routing of Cable lines so that we are at the end of the chain and all experiencing packet loss. After starting to investigate the problems, I have also learned that an accounting firm in the Peru area has hired lawyers and filed a lawsuit against Comcast for the problems with their internet service, which occurred unexpectedly and without warning, right in the middle of tax season. They are holding Comcast responsible for any and all filing difficulties they have had for their customers.

I have been in contact with Comcast Corporate. I understand that the problems are being worked on, but Comcast has still refused to take responsibility for the issues, and refund or credit customers for service that they are not receiving. My policy has been to refuse to pay my bill until I get a resolution. Their policy has so far been to deny or put off the issue, and to tell me that even though I have been missing service since the beginning of February at $44.95 a month, and now the cable has been glitching for two weeks, they can credit me for $15. Um. No. So I am about at the end of my rope with their inexcusable decision to charge people money that they don't deserve to be paid. I guess if I don't get any satisfaction from Comcast corporate, there is always the better business bureau. If I don't hear back from Corporate with a resolution and a credit on my account, that will be my next step. I have begun to gather names of others in my area who are also having this issue. Basically it is an extreme "packet loss" that gives you connectivity problems abounding.

I will be working in the next couple of months on some new presentations for the Computer User Group. I will be doing (FINALLY!) My Life Doc Presentation, showing the Life Doc Binders and what they can do for you. I will hopefully be also doing a presentation on the Wii, where we will put the Wii games up on the wall with the proxima and show how it works and how great it is to use. This was Dorene's fabulous Idea.

So what else has happened this week? I got all of Ardyn's 6-12 month clothes out and washed, and packed away some 3-6 month clothes that were too small. Ardyn has eaten lots of fun things like Apple slices, Zucchini slices, bananas, and sweet potato puffs. She is doing great with her "chewing" and learning to keep pieces of food to the front of her mouth while she chews. One bottom tooth is barely poking through and the other is right behind it... and I can tell that we will be moving to the Stage 2 foods soon. We probably could be already, but she does still have a few packs of stage 1 left that we would like to get through first. She also has suddenly started eating peas without complaining, and had a whole pack last night followed by an entire pack of bananas. She's a good eater.

We got an interlocking foam puzzle mat that we love. I put part of it in the living room so she can sit up on the hardwood floor without falling over and bumping her head. I plan on putting the other half in the basement sewing room so that I can sew during the day while she plays... and maybe eventually start working on the dollhouse! The best part of the foam mat is that it isn't one of those ABC mats, so the foam tiles are solid, which eliminates the choking hazard that the small pieces in the other mats have. It's so soft and cushy, she loves it.

Yesterday Ardyn turned SEVEN MONTHS OLD! Whoo! Amazing. We took pictures, and I started a new photo album on Flickr as I do each month. I can't believe how big she is! Man. She got a new pair of wool longies in the mail yesterday, to match her Cloth Diaper T-shirt in black- so she wore that last night and it looks awesome. When she wears black she is just so stinking cute. Evan always comments on how she looks like her mom in black because I love to wear black.

I am sad today because Ava has been sick and spent the night in the ER, and has been throwing up since yesterday morning and dehydrated. I hope she feels better soon. Anya said she was throwing up even when just given a tablespoon of water. Ugh. And a friend online whose son is Ardyn's age had to take him to the hospital because she found a lump, and then he stopped eating or drinking for 6 hours and they discovered that he need surgery for what (as of now) they believe is a hernia. That makes me so sad, and it makes me want to take Ardyn to our house and board her up inside, although I know that's just crazy talk. It's a horrible feeling to have a sick child and not be able to "fix everything" as a mom.

Well, this weekend is going to be BEAUTIFUL outside and I am hoping that I can get Evan to hang Ardyn's new swing so we can be outdoors a bit in the fresh air. We have no plans and I can't wait for that. I hope it can stay that way. The sun has surfaced and I am so happy! This should be a fabulous spring and summer!

Another Sick Day for Beebs

Monday. But better than any other Monday. Although stormy and rainy, it IS 60 degrees outside. Pretty good for the end of March. And all the gloom allowed us to get in a 2 hour nap already today, and it's only 2pm. We are once again home, the cough that Ardyn has had all weekend is worse, and last night she literally coughed like every 5 minutes all night. By midnight I just went to get her and she slept with me, which was a good thing considering she coughed enough to spit up all over her pajamas and soak herself. And this morning she had some blood in her nose from the soreness. Poor beeb. She seems to be in great spirits after a nice nap. In all truth she could have gone to daycare but at the same time I knew that rest would help her (and me) and at daycare she doesn't take very long naps, where here I can get 3-4 hours of naps from her each day.

My parents went to Southern Illinois last week and brought her back two pair of shorts and a Prairie bonnet that is to die for. It is so stinkin cute!
I finished all my dyeing on Friday night and took photos on Saturday morning of all the diapers together. They look FABULOUS and I am so pleased. Only thing is, since buying the Motherease Bamboo Fitteds, I have discovered that they are kinda worthless absorbency wise, without the snap in inserts. But you can only use the snap in inserts on the largest setting, and she still isn't to the largest setting. Although she might have to be with extra bulk of an insert. Another mom online mentioned she isn't a fan of the MEOS inserts, so I am a little hesitant to spend the $40 to get 13 of them for my diapers. But $120 of diapers that are not useful to me isn't a good thing either. Right now we have used exclusively prefolds this weekend, and I love them. And Wool. I really lreally love the wool. Today she has on camo shorties. Saturday she got a new wool set, which she wore to Ava's second birthday party. We had a good time and Ardyn wore a princess Tiara party hat. There was so much going on that instead of eating her supper, she pretty much didn't care about vegetables or fruit, and just wanted breastmilk all night. And for some reason she again started to get tired around 7pm, which was unusual considering she took two good naps that day. After I brought her home and put her to bed, my parents came over to stay with her while I picked up Lisa and we went to watch Evan play in the band at a local bar. I took some pictures at his request, which can be found here if you are interested.

I had a good time but I am NOT made to be out until 2am. I drank one bottle of water and I still woke up with eyeballs that felt like pinecones. Of course Ardyn was up from about 1 till 3am, so I didn't get to sleep till 3, and then was up at 8:30, so Sunday was another day we all took a big nap from 11-1 because we were exhausted from our new rock star lifestyle. I think when they play again I will make it a point to only see the first two sets instead of all 4, which should put me home around midnight. Much more respectable for a mom. LOL. I have to admit that even as a one time social smoker, I appreciate smoke free bars because I can go out and come home to the baby without reeking and needing to shower. That's important, especially when I have to breastfeed her in the middle of the night and I don't want to be stinky.

Three little t-shirts arrived today. That was fun. I am washing diapers and doing laundry, and folding, hanging, etc. I have a couple of windows open, which is nice, but people with loud exhausts keep going by and trains keep going through, and waking up the beeb as soon as I get her to sleep for her nap. She's been especially vicious lately with her grabbing and scratching and pinching. I have been working on "be nice" and "No!" But twice now I have had to just lay her in her crib and let her put herself to sleep because she gets meaner when she gets tired and cranky. I have scratches on my hands and a three nail scratch across my arm from yesterday morning. Today she grabbed my breast repeatedly and scratched me while eating and I kept taking her arm away and saying "no" but she kept it up until I gave her a little **Teeny** smack on the hand and she screamed like she was crushed that her mom did that.... and then stopped hurting me for the rest of her nursing session.

The weather says we are looking at a high of 65 degrees today and more thunderstorms this afternoon and tonight. I just hope that I can get some sleep tonight so that tomorrow I am not a zombie like I have been the past two days.

I have a mamma on diaperswappers making me a couple of pairs of custom wool shorties for this summer, to match some shirts that we have. I also just bought two more soakers and another pair of used longies from the FSOT area of the board (For Sale Or Trade) It was especially nice because the mamma who is making the shorties was looking for a couple of nursing bras that I just happened to have and want to trade for something, so It is working out great as a partial trade. She is custom dyeing the wool yarn and then knitting the shorties to Ardyn's measurements. Should be great for summer!

My goal for the week is to get a few household things done. With the addition of band practice for Evan and everything else around here, I have barely gotten to see him it seems, and every time I have a moment, I think "Oh I wanted to ask him to fix that drawer" or "I really need help putting that extra clothes bar in the armoire" and by the time I see him again, I have forgotten. I am going to mount a big whiteboard on the back of the door in the pantry area, so that I can keep a running list of things I want to tell him and things I want to remind myself to do. If I hang it on the back door, then I can hopefully remember things BEFORE I leave the house. Ha.

I sold Seven Small Diapers this past week, so I have them all packaged and ready to go. I am thinking that I also need to sell all the Snap-ez and probably the Drybees sooner than later. But she can still *barely* wear the drybees smalls, although the rise is getting too small... but if I sold them that would eliminate 9 diapers that we use for daycare, and so I am hoping they last for another month (hint hint.) I do have 6 Medium Thirsties AIO Pockets that I bought- they still have the tags on them and I expect them to be grown into sooner than later, but she can still wear the small Thirsties AIO Pockets very comfortably, so I don't see any reason to have two sizes of the exact same diaper going on for the confusion of everyone involved.

Now it's 11:36pm, which will tell you that it took me a total of 9.5 hours to complete this post. Interruptus Maximus. Hopefully I can just go to BED now. Have a great night. I can hear the baby having a coughing fit that has lasted on and off for about an hour. It makes me sad because I don't have anything to stop it!

More Problems with Comcast

Ahhh.... I've missed you all. I have been a busy bee! Ardyn decided that she wanted to do some more teething, and we have a sharp little bottom tooth pressing against her gums and just waiting to break through. Her fevers continue with teething, and we missed out on work/daycare this past Monday due to extreme irritability and a 101.9 temperature.

The weekend was nice, I did some serious dyeing. I got five colors done, which leaves me just green, yellow, and red diapers to dye. Here are the pictures we took while dyeing- Ardyn was my lovely assistant. Inspecting the final product, adjusting the washing machine to the precise settings necessary. We had fun.

Easter was good, we went to my parents and had a late lunch, and opened easter baskets and gifts. We took over 200 pictures of Ardyn, and there are some really cute ones, but I haven't gotten them uploaded yet, so stay tuned for those. I also got the house pretty clean, and that was a plus.

This week has been pretty fabulous. I reorganized the Changing Table and the dresser drawers in Ardyn's room and re-arranged a bit for easier access to things while at the changing table. I found some baskets that fit PERFECTLY into the drawers of the changing table and cause massive orgasmic organization of diapers and pajamas. It's a wonderful life.

Last night we had a delicious supper courtesy of my husband who grilled burgers outside, and Ardyn had a mini-banana and a piece of cantaloupe before she moved onto her regular sweet potatoes. She thought it was awesome to slime and grab onto food, but they got pretty slippery pretty fast, and she was unable to hold onto the pieces much more.

I have an "eBay box" that I keep at home where I throw in stuff that I want to sell, and last night I took some pictures of stuff and put them online and added them to my FSOT (For sale or trade) listing at Diaperswappers, which means that I may be able to swap things that I have for things that someone else has and I want.... pretty cool. I have some pretty good stuff to get rid of...

We also took Ardyn to see the Easter bunny last week, and I have photos of her with the bunny in her easter dress, but I need to scan them in so I can post also.

I haven't been online at home much because Comcast STILL SUCKS and we have very intermittent and sometimes non-existent internet connectivity. Out VOIP Service won't even work- the phone cuts out for 2 minutes at a time throughout your entire phone call, sometimes as soon as the other party answers, and sometimes the calls don't reach us because we have no connectivity. We are also starting to see glitches in our cable TV as well, and I spent another irate Hour on the phone with them last night. I was telling them that I wanted a credit on my account for the TWO MONTHS of internet service that we haven't had working and they told me that they would credit me $15- when the internet costs $44.95 a month. I ended up finally getting transferred to someone who told me that Comcast corporate won't allow them to credit anyone more than $15.... and that they don't give their employees access to contact corporate. They also told me that I "didn't call to complain enough in the month of March so they can only credit me for the month of February" and that even then, corporate would probably not approve the credit so I may never see it on my bill. I have to tell you that I pretty much flipped my lid at that guy. I explained that customer service is not about the customer calling and harassing you until you fix something, and that with a full time job and a 6 month old who is teething, I don't have an hour a night to spend on the phone with them "through the month of March" so that they know I STILL have a problem. I told them that they have a ticket open for me and that as their customer, it is THEIR responsibility to assure that I have service and to fix the issue once I have reported it. I am so frustrated with them right now that I can't even see straight. I am to the point or wanting to get some big petition started by everyone in the area who has had problems. I want a lawyer for the little people. I want to march out front of Comcast's corporate office. What's a consumer to do?

Let's see, what else is new? Well, you know how some people say, during their workday, "is it 5pm yet?" Well, from this point forward, you will find me saying "Is it May 1st yet?" Nuff said. Read into it what you will. Stay tuned.

This weekend should be fun. Saturday night we have Ava's 2nd Birthday party, and afterwards Evan is playing with the band so I may go listen to them play. Besides that it should be an around home kinda weekend. I hope. Quiet and productive. Maybe I can even get the red green and yellow diapers dyed. I also plan on doing some tie-dyeing.... so we will see what I can come up with there. Can't think of anything else exciting to say for the moment. So thanks for visiting. More later.

Just say NO to antibacterial soaps!

In the spirit of yet another headcold, I'd like to discuss my upcoming April "Going Green" resolutions. I have two of them. The first one is to avoid Tricolsan. Anitbacterial Soaps are causing a huge problem.... mainly the advancement of these super-germs that are resistant to antibiotics, and may one day be the death of all of us. From the over-prescribing of antibiotics by physicians to anti-bacterial hand and dish soaps.... it's a scary thing. Here is a bit of info:

The Bite (taken from the Bite daily newsletter.)
Take away the fiction part. While it seems like antibacterial cleansers would be more effective than plain, ol' soap, not-so-mad scientists have proven they aren't, and germs are getting stronger because we use so many antibiotics. Natural alts do the job minus the concerns.

The Benefits

• Getting just as clean. Germophobes rejoice: U of MI researchers reviewed 27 studies conducted between 1980 and 2006, and found that plain soaps are just as effective as those containing the antibacterial triclosan.
• Not encouraging the monsters. Antibacterial soaps with triclosan can reduce the effectiveness of antibiotics; our picks are naturally antibacterial.

Wanna Try?

• EO Products Hand Sanitizer - lavender, lemon, and jojoba oil help disinfect on the go ($4/2 oz).
• Naturally First Foaming Hand Soap - foaming, naturally antibacterial option with coconut and olive oils to keep your hands soft ($10/8.5 oz).
• CleanWell Foaming Hand Soap - uses naturally antibacterial essential oils (such as thyme oil) to kill germs; in three scents, including a spicy Lavender Absolute version ($14/28.5 oz).

Triclosan's in a lot of products, but you can avoid it by quickly glancing at the ingredients list - and yeah, your hands'll still get clean.

C'mon, people: A study by the American Society for Microbiology found 25% of men and 10% of women don't wash their hands after using public bathrooms.

So that's resolution numero uno. I have thus far eliminated all antibacterial soaps in our home, from handwashing to dishwashing. And my hands are still clean!

Resolution number two.... recycle newspapers and magazines. Although I haven't figured out the details, I have started a box. And there are newspapers inside it. Namely the Sunday paper and the Wednesday Focus. I am TRYING to get my husband on board with recycling cardboard, but he is resisting. When will he learn that resistance is futile? In the meantime, I am tentatively naming that my MAY resolution.... with the intention to do it entirely myself if need be. We have enough cardboard in our garage right now to build a city for the homeless. Seriously.

The Goodmama is here! Let there be Wool!

Well, the Goodmama Organic Bamboo Velour Diaper came. And it is the softest, most luxurious diaper I have ever ever ever touched or laid eyes on in my entire life. And I want millions of them. We want to roll around on the floor naked in a pile of goodmamas. If Suzanne had stocked wish boxes, I would have gone right out and bought a dozen of them. But she isn't stocking wish boxes. SO Instead I just put it on Ardyn. It is so soft and stretchy. It fits fabulously. It's like the Lexus of diapers. Maybe it's like the BMW of diapers. It's just fabulous. The hype is real. And Ardyn loved it so much that she pooped in it. Right away. And she smiled at me. And it washed up beautifully.

Since I can't just go get my hands on a dozen goodmamas, I decided to go online and research other one size fitteds. I discovered that a friend who had recommended Motherease diapers several months ago was right on the money. And I also discovered that Loveybums are revered as being VERY similar to Goodmamas.... except that they aren't one size diapers. And they do cost $26-28 a piece, while Motherease One Size dipes cost less than $15 a piece, which makes them less than half the price of a goodmama. But they aren't pretty colored. So I ordered 13 Organic Bamboo Motherease One Size Diapers and then 7 colors of Procion Dyes from the Dharma Company. I will dye the diapers. I will make them beautiful. I will also dye my prefolds and matching t-shirts perhaps.

In the midst of the teething frenzy, we tried wool. And. Addiction happened. Good-Bye Pockets! Wool hath won our hearts. We wore two soakers and the loveybums cover. The Loveybums cover is SO Stretchy and nice. The wool interlock is nice and heavy. The Curly Purly Soaker is so cute, and the daisy Kozy Soaker is fabulous. We found a mamma who had three more pieces of wool for sale in Ardyn's size, so she has a pair of pink and blue shorties, a pair of purple longies with a lovely flower on the bum, and a pair of watermelon pink and green capris all coming, with matching t-shirts. And also two more used loveybums covers in lavender and mint.
Let there be Wool!

I also tried a thirsties fitted. It was very nice, and super trim, but it almost seems silly because I should really buy one size fitteds so they last her for the rest of her diapering career. And also because the thirsties were soaked through very thoroughly in a shorter amount of time, whereas the goodmamas (which have a snap in soaker) were practically able to go coverless because they are so thick with softy goodness. We will try the motherease.

Ardyn is really sitting up well on her own now. She takes a topple now and then, so with the hardwood floors I put floor pillows on side and back of her, so she won't konk her head. Although when she does and has fallen, she doesn't ever cry, just looks at me like "Hmmm.... so that's how this all works!"

While she was teething and we were home with her fevers, I colored a bunch of stuff to put on the walls in her room for decor and entertainment. We did these things for above the changing table.... and these sesame street letters for by her crib.... She LOVES grabbing and staring at them. She loves Sesame Street, and pretty much everything on Sprout, especially Chica and also Fifi and the Flowertots. She also will stop whatever she is doing for the guy on the Oxyclean and Kaboom commercials, when he starts yelling out how great Oxyclean is. It cracks us up.

Last night I pulled out my diaper patterns and started making some recycled fitted diapers. The pattern shown above is called "poo-pockets" by new conceptions.... and has leg gussets- which are my favorites. I saved a pair of pajamas of mine that had a flaw that made them unwearable.... but I didn't want to toss them, so I am making a couple of fitteds out of them. I also grabbed an old Ozzfest 98 Tie Dye t-shirt and got four diapers cut from it. I needed to order inner fabric (Microfleece and Such) and Elastic, so I ordered them through Very Baby last night. Once they get here I can start assembling the pieces of the diapers and serging them. And then I can use my snap press to set the snaps. I can't wait! That reminds me, I need to get new sewing machine needles. I keep forgetting to go down to the sewing room and write down the number of the needles I need.

Evan's parents came over to visit for a while last night. I pretty much did laundry and ran the dishwasher, and Evan and I put clean sheets on the bed and a clean comforter. I realized last night that besides a trip to the post office on Saturday to get the mail, and our walk on Friday, I hadn't been out of the house since Thursday. This week we are taking Ardyn to see the easter bunny at the mall, and also out for supper with Evan's parents another night.... so there is plenty going on. Everyone have a nice week!

Sunday

Well, Ardyn's fever finally went away on Thursday night late. We stayed home Friday just in case, and because she had thrown up twice, and because she was extremely fussy and didn't want a pacifier, nipple, or anything else near her mouth. Friday ended up being especially nice, her attitude wasn't too bad, and as long as we kept her busy, she didn't fuss much unless she was hungry or tired. We went for a walk since it was 54 degrees, and walked to the cafe for a late lunch, but both Evan and I ordered food that wasn't very tasty, so we ended up eating our french fries and leaving the tenderloin and gyro wrap on out plates. We finished our walk and Ardyn napped in the stroller. Saturday I got up and got Ardyn and I dressed, fully intending to take her to see the Easter Bunny at the mall, but then we realized it was pretty cold out again, and windy, and snowing (although not sticking) and so we just took a big nap and messed around at home. I started out showered and dressed and by lunchtime I was wearing a t-shirt, no bra, my unerwear, and covered in applesauce and drool. Just how Saturday should be, eh?

Today looks to be another lazy day. Lazy being an objective word, since I have already washed diapers, jeans, cleaned the kitchen, loaded the dishwasher, let the dogs out twice, and put the baby down for her morning nap. This morning when Ardyn woke up at 6:30 I decided that this was MY day to sleep in. At 7:38am I took her to Evan, said "Here you go, it's my turn to sleep in, she needs her diaper changed, and wake me up at 9:30 when it's time for her to nurse" and then went back to bed, with earplugs in, and ocean waves on my iPod a foot from my bed. That was a nice change of pace. Of course he woke me up at 9 because she was fussy, but even a couple of extra minutes of sleep is fabulous.

AWOL

Sorry I have been a bit AWOL. It's become apparent that my daughter doesn't always teethe gracefully. She started with a low grade fever early Tuesday morning, and has progressed to the 101.3 level several times in the past three days. Tuesday afternoon I got called at work and had to go get her from daycare. Because I am so worried when she has the 101 fever, and feels like she is burning up, I can't even imagine her with 103 fever. Or even worse, something higher. Poor Beeb. Tylenol and Ibuprofen will bring the fever down and improve her spirits some, but it doesn't take away the teething pain, and therefore the Dr. doesn't want me to give it to her. Instead we are supposed to do lukewarm baths, but that's not possible while at daycare, nor is it especially feasible in the middle of the night when you have to work the next day. Ugh. Sunday night and last night were the worse. Yesterday she did get her 6 month shots, and around midnight woke up with a fever again. I did give her a dose of Motrin because of the shots and the teething combo, and she slept for a bit, but at 3am was up again until about 5am when she finally screamed herself into exhaustion. Not much I could do to soothe her, I would get her settled and cozy on my chest or my lap, and she would scream herself awake again in about 10 minutes. Poor Beeb. This morning I can feel that one bottom tooth is up further than it was before, but still under the gums. As much as I would like to avoid teeth for their nipple biting tendencies, I don't want to go through this constantly for the next two years, so I hope that this one just surfaces soon and we can have a break.

So mostly I have just been struggling to stay sane and stop from being exhausted. Carrie and Cara stopped over yesterday for a little visit, and it was so good to see them both. More Diapers arrived today... and my first wool and the wool wash and lanolin.

What frustrates me the most about having a child who is sick or not feeling well, is the varied responses that I get from my husband. He is such a good dad. And he really tries to help, but when the going get especially tough, he is still able to fall asleep while I am up with a screaming child, and then when I am up first thing in the morning and getting ready to go to work almost as if last night didn't happen, he is moaning and groaning and lying in bed or sleeping when I am walking out the door to work. This morning I said "What's wrong with this picture?" Argh. This is another reason that I am tired of working. I have to be the responsible party, and I am the one who calls off work and stays home with a sick child (which is fine) but I still have to be the one who gets up and goes off to work each day and loads up everything for daycare, and pumps breastmilk, and washes diapers. All things that are especially pleasant because I am doing them for my child, but especially unpleasant when faced with the added stress of a workweek and traveling and packing and unpacking, and not being able to spend that quality relaxed time with your child or in your home. I feel like my new life motto is "Something's gotta give" and no one but me can see it. I need a t-shirt and I will wear it everyday. Something's gotta give. I can't be expected to live my life this way AND enjoy myself, right? Whose idea was this, that women be the primary caregivers, the responsible ones, AND work? Honestly, I am feeling more and more every day like that was just a totally retarded idea.

Because I too, am a Goodmama....

So, you know how people go crazy for things? You know, like the year parents fought over the last Tickle Me Elmo, and things like that? Well, in the cloth diaper world, there are also freaky crazes. But sometimes they aren't just "crazes." Current crazes include Crankypants and Goodmamas. Crankypants are knit longies (pants) that are used as covers/soakers over cloth diapers. They are adorable. But they are incredibly difficult to get your hands on, and brand new they sell from $100-200. And used they sell for $75-100. Yeah. And the Goodmama is a fitted One-Size Diaper. It requires a cover, and it comes in several different "colors" which are essentially natural with different serged threading on the edges and matching snaps. They also have limited edition prints. A solid colored Goodmama (if you can get your hands on it) sells for $33 new, and can be even HIGHER used, because people scalp them, and they are so difficult to find. A dozen goodmamas in a box are $365, and require a several week wait (6-8 weeks+) as they are sewn here in the USA, and the demand is so high. Basically you aren't getting a price break by purchasing that dozen, but you are able to secure one in every color without all the hassle. Goodmama has a website, and they do "stocking" on certain days, and then everyone rushes into the store to try to beat everyone else out and grab up a goodmama before they are gone. And they are ALWAYS gone. They are all the rage in the diapering community. The demand is so high that when the store is "stocked" their website often crashes from the traffic. This is intense.

Now from afar, one might say "What's with all the hype, and the insanity?" And I too wonder the same thing. But I can't pretend to be immune to it. While you won't see my buying crankpants, the goodmama thing really is interesting to me. One spends so much time looking for the perfect fitting and performing diaper, and then the little one grows, and another size is needed, or their body shape changes and a whole new diaper is needed altogether. Goodmamas are hailed as being a "true" one size diper, meaning that they truly are usable throughout all your child's sizes. So if you can truly use a Goodmama from newborn to potty training, you are saving yourself from buying Four sizes of diaper, so the price may be worth it. Especially because after trying out two "one-size" pocket diapers, I have learned that one-size does NOT fit all.... and if the Goodmama is truly a one-size diaper, and it truly is what you have been looking for.... $365 will actually be saving you some money in the long run. And the quality and performance must be up to par, or all the fuss wouldn't have started in the first place? Right? One would think.

So last week, I decided to go to the goodmama website and check it out. I thought "it can't hurt to go read, look at pictures, and learn about these things." And wouldn't you know, that while I was on the site, I surfed right on into the middle of a random and unannounced/unscheduled stocking of a red organic bamboo velour Goodmamma? And that there were only 3 left? And that I couldn't resist the urge to buy one and see what all the fuss is about (after all, I can resell it for the same or more if it isn't what it's all cracked up to be.) And when I stopped by diaperswappers shortly afterwards to see that everyone was raving about an unannounced stocking, and was able to say "I got one, and i just surfed on it." I have to admit, it felt pretty cool. And it has shipped. And now, I wait. To see if it's all cracked up to be, and in a way, I hope it's not.... Because I don't need to feel like I should go buy a dozen goodmamas. I will keep you posted.

Another cool thing? She also has a new rule where you can only buy one diaper, per day, and if you break the rule, you will not get any diapers at all- mwahahahah! Awesome.

Blabber

Can I just say, I am SO tired of going to work? Really. I am. It sucks. I want to be home. Badly. Last August was my 5-year anniversary, and just today I received the catalog to pick out my "recognition item." It's really nice that they do that, but at the same time, there was really nothing that I was dying for in the catalog. I don't need a desk clock. I don't wear a watch (and the fact that it was "silver plated" didn't thrill me), and the jewelry was nothing like my tastes. I ended up getting an emergency radio, which I have been eyeballing in LLBean for sometime. But because I have been eyeballing it, I know that it retails for $29.99, and it makes me sad to think that after 5 years I am worth $29.99- I would rather have a gift certificate for somewhere.... But it does help alleviate any guilt that I would have about leaving here, if I ever get the chance.

Okay, moving on. Got some fluffy mail, and there will be tons more arriving probably everyday, as the stash completes itself. (Fluffy mail is code/lingo for diapers in the mail, FYI.) Yesterday I got the 6 Newborn fitteds. These things are teeny tiny. As in the palm of my hand. Seriously. I took a photo with a pack of gum for comparison. I also received the Thirsties Color Prefolds in Preemie Size. Today I received the 5 Drybees Mediums, which is a good thing, because Daycare lost a $17.50 Thirsties Diaper, which is the daycare diaper of choice. It happened on Friday, it appears that instead of putting it into our diaper pail, they put it into the garbage with the other disposable diapers and it was long gone. I am a little upset at the loss, and the $$, but not really at them, because it is an honest mistake. But that makes me short a diaper every day. Argh. I bought 6 so that they could have a whole day's worth of those diapers, and now they only have 5, so I am back to washing every single night, but since the drybees arrived today, that gives me 14 total daycare diapers and means I can send 7 a day and only have to wash every other day. Whew. Should have 2 more thirsties covers in newborn size and 12 Kissaluv size 0's arriving shortly. Then I can put the lid on the tote of newborn diapers and have the whole stash ready.

Ardyn got her first "incident report" at daycare yesterday afternoon, when another child fell on top of her with a toy and the toy smacked her in the head. She has a scratch and some missing skin scraped off, and it's red, but no bruising or bleeding. She seems okay with it all. She's a real champ. This morning she had a low grade fever in response to her massive teething as of late. No more "a little fussy." This seems to be the real deal. So she went to daycare with a dose of Motrin to keep it down and help with her teething pain.

My friend Carrie flew into Chicago this morning with her daughter Cara, and I can't wait to see them. Tonight I hope to get to see them, but I would totally understand if they are exhausted.... as flying by yourself from Alaska with an almost 2-year old can easily be seen as crazy challenging- especially when they are staying for as long as they are and that means lotsa luggage! Haven't seen Carrie since before I was pregnant, and she has never seen Ardyn. Plus Angela brought her home, and haven't seen Angela since Ardyn was like 2 months old.... so that will be awesome that the three of us can be together again.

The weekend was nice. Friday night my mom came over for a while. Saturday I picked up around home and hung out with Ardyn. Evan and I did some re-arranging in the attic, and put all my maternity clothes and the baby clothes and baby gear in one separate corner of the attic. Saturday night Evan and I went to Lou's LaGrotto with Josh and Lisa for Garlic Nuggets and Cheeseburger Pizza with Pickles. Evan was pretty cranky because he had a headache that he had since that morning. We went and saw Semi-Pro with Will Ferrell, and I have to admit it is probably the worst Will Ferrell movie that I have ever seen, and I am a big fan. It wasn't really even all that "stupid funny" and it was SOOOOO SLOW. But bonus, I got out of the house, and also pumped breastmilk in the theater under my coat (ain't Life Grand?) and had a drink on our way home. Sunday Ardyn and I met my family for the Pancake Breakfast at my grandparent's church. I have been almost every year for my entire existence. When I was little, they used to have a church carnival also. It was fun. Ardyn ate green beans. Saw some people I hadn't seen in a while, including Michael Jon. It was good.

Sunday afternoon we did more stuff around the house, and Sunday night Ardyn and I watched TV and she went to sleep SUPER early.... as in 6:30pm, and then woke up at about 10:30 and stayed awake till almost 1am. Then she was up every hour or so until about 6 or 6:30 when she woke up for good. Between teething, staying up too late for her grandparents the night before, going to bed way too early that night, and the time change, Her little world was all rocked. And therefore, mine too. I was so exhausted Monday morning, I ended up calling off and staying home. We finally got her down for a nap at 10am but she woke right back up and was incredibly inconsolable until about 11, when we ALL took an hour long nap which helped us to function.

That afternoon/evening, I took Ardyn to daycare and while the cleaning people came, I ran our braided rugs (we have 3) to the dry cleaners and then stopped quickly at the resale shop and at Wal-Mart for supper ingredients, and then picked up Ardyn. I made Vegetable Beef Stew for supper and we watched the new series "New Amsterdam" on Tivo, and then I washed diapers and went to bed.

My LLBean clothes have shipped, I can't wait for them to arrive, and I hope that there will be an Old Navy Order here soon too. When we were up in the attic I unearthed two totes of clothes and pants that I had stashed up there, which all will fit me now. One small tote of shirts, and two larger totes with pants (all Gap pants, cords and such) and another with skirts and all that. I wanted to bring them all down, but I know that I need time to try them on and go through my closet and pack away or get rid of stuff that is too big.... before I can make room for them.... so they just stayed in the attic.