Brendan still is trying to adjust to Eric not working from home, which means he alternates between being the cutest, sweetest little redhead ever and then turning into whatever the exact opposite of that is.
Liam had soccer after school so I had to wake Aidan and Brendan up from naps to go get him and bring him to soccer. This was not fun.
Aidan is still the best baby ever. He sleeps sometimes 10 hours a night!! I mean a lot of times. Other times he sleeps 8. You don't have to do anything to make him go to sleep. It's the craziest thing. You put him in his crib and he goes to bed. Voila! Insane! And he can talk. Trust me, Eric and my dad didn't believe it either but now they know. Liam and Brendan could actually talk in sentences around 18 months. Aidan can say 3 things since he was only a month and a half. I know it's not possible but ask the former skeptics, it's true.
Somehow after a 40 minute debacle trying to go in the backyard to play on the swings, we were all set to go when I noticed Liam's tongues of his shoes were pushed down. I said, "Liam, what's wrong with your shoes?" and he almost started crying. I said "What's the matter, it's no big deal." And then he told me how he accidentally stepped in the toilet. This was 2 hours ago and I still have no idea how this is possible. The good news is it happened when he was going to wash his hands so the toilet was clean. It was just an accident, that's all. If you understand let me know. I'd appreciate it.
I'm supposed to be in class right now.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Beep Beep Dash Beep Dash
Fantastic day of stress eating, children crying, not getting anything done. Now I have two hours of class and then I have a paper due at midnight. Tomorrow I have work and then class again tomorrow night. Thank God it's Labor Day weekend. Oh yeah, I have to work this weekend. SOS somebody, anybody?!?!
Monday, August 16, 2010
The Little Joke That Couldn't
I started back at work last week. The transition seemed easier than it has before, just as the transition from 2 kids to 3 seems easier to me than from 1 kid to 2. It probably helps a lot that Liam and Brendan have each other to play. And truly the conversations they have with us and each other have to be some of the funniest things that have ever been said on this planet. But alas.
On my first week back I had to give a presentation with a coworker. We had pretty much hashed it all out before I went on leave, so it went rather smoothly, save for a few technical glitches we had no control over. When we broke for lunch all the staff went to a restaurant across the street. I sat with a group of people, including my coworker. I started eating while she was away from table the getting a drink. I bit into my wrap and thought, "Hmm, I ordered the veggie and this tastes like... chicken. Well it must be chicken-like tofu." And happily I continued eating. My coworker came to the table, sat down next to me and started looking at her sandwich. She was surprised it had mushrooms, because she can't eat mushrooms and there weren't supposed to be any mushrooms on her chicken...Ah! Oops! Yes, I am eating your chicken sandwich and I am an idiot. How did I think this obviously chickenly meat was tofu? Fortunately there were plenty more sandwiches left so she could have another. Fast forward to the end of our second presentation. We're packing up our things and I grab my papers and water bottle and leave. Slowly I remember I didn't bring a water bottle, and wonder why I am carrying this one. Hmm. Oh yes, it belongs to... So I go back and give it to her and try to make a little joke of it all, even though it was completely insignificant on every level. "What is the matter with me? hahaha" I say to her and another coworker. "What am I doing? Before you know it I'll be at the airport tomorrow picking up your husband!" I am met by blank stares. "hahaha I'll be shouting, 'Over here Honey, it's me, (stop Donna, stop talking now)...your wife!" Now the stares turn from blank to confusion and mild concern. "Um, hahaha, next thing you know I'll be killing you and completely taking over your life! ahahaha. ha." I am met now with two truly alarmed gazes, but my mouth is going much faster than my completely wrecked brain waves can handle. Stop, I try to tell myself, but the train wreck persists. "You know, hahaha, like what's that movie, or is it a book, no, I think it's a movie," (the alarm in their eyes is becoming much more palpable) "where that guy murders the other guy and tries to pretend he's that person? You know, and that would be like me, like I'm the one, who is it?, the Matt Damon character I think, and I'm trying to take over your life, see because I ate your sandwich and now I took your water..."
Sometimes, going back to work 2 1/2 months postpartum, is just a bad idea.
On my first week back I had to give a presentation with a coworker. We had pretty much hashed it all out before I went on leave, so it went rather smoothly, save for a few technical glitches we had no control over. When we broke for lunch all the staff went to a restaurant across the street. I sat with a group of people, including my coworker. I started eating while she was away from table the getting a drink. I bit into my wrap and thought, "Hmm, I ordered the veggie and this tastes like... chicken. Well it must be chicken-like tofu." And happily I continued eating. My coworker came to the table, sat down next to me and started looking at her sandwich. She was surprised it had mushrooms, because she can't eat mushrooms and there weren't supposed to be any mushrooms on her chicken...Ah! Oops! Yes, I am eating your chicken sandwich and I am an idiot. How did I think this obviously chickenly meat was tofu? Fortunately there were plenty more sandwiches left so she could have another. Fast forward to the end of our second presentation. We're packing up our things and I grab my papers and water bottle and leave. Slowly I remember I didn't bring a water bottle, and wonder why I am carrying this one. Hmm. Oh yes, it belongs to... So I go back and give it to her and try to make a little joke of it all, even though it was completely insignificant on every level. "What is the matter with me? hahaha" I say to her and another coworker. "What am I doing? Before you know it I'll be at the airport tomorrow picking up your husband!" I am met by blank stares. "hahaha I'll be shouting, 'Over here Honey, it's me, (stop Donna, stop talking now)...your wife!" Now the stares turn from blank to confusion and mild concern. "Um, hahaha, next thing you know I'll be killing you and completely taking over your life! ahahaha. ha." I am met now with two truly alarmed gazes, but my mouth is going much faster than my completely wrecked brain waves can handle. Stop, I try to tell myself, but the train wreck persists. "You know, hahaha, like what's that movie, or is it a book, no, I think it's a movie," (the alarm in their eyes is becoming much more palpable) "where that guy murders the other guy and tries to pretend he's that person? You know, and that would be like me, like I'm the one, who is it?, the Matt Damon character I think, and I'm trying to take over your life, see because I ate your sandwich and now I took your water..."
Sometimes, going back to work 2 1/2 months postpartum, is just a bad idea.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Quick Update
(Thanks for the inspiration, Megan)
Today we took the kids to church with my parents. I don't take them to church very often, being a germaphobe and a generally lazy person. The last time we went, there was a parish picnic afterwards, with bouncy houses and train rides and music and a bunch of cute girls, so now anytime the word church is mentioned Brendan's eyes light up and he says how he likes church and the big party afterward. Some outtakes from Mass this morning (good thing we sat up near the front):
- Brendan, shouting (well to me it's shouting, to Brendan it's just the normal volume of his voice) matter-of-factly midway through the priest's homily, "Mom, I'm not having any fun"
- Brendan, looking up at the larger-than-life-sized statue of Jesus hanging above the alter, "What's that womans doing up there, Mommy?" "That's not a woman Brendan, it's Jesus." "Oh. Well how's he going to get down from there?"
- Brendan and Liam singing at the top of their lungs. One, we're Catholic and nobody else sings. Two, they don't know the words to any of the songs, so they're just singing gibberish mostly out of key. Doesn't bother them at all.
- Brendan moving the carseat and my purse away from the woman sitting next to us in the pew, giving her a very stern look and telling me, "I don't want her to steal this. This is ours." Throughout the entire rest of the Mass he kept glancing over at her and squinting his eyes accusatorily.
At one point my Dad tried to have Liam come stand next to him and Liam squirmed away. Later I asked him what he was doing and why he didn't stand near Grandpa. He said he thought Grandpa was trying to make him walk up the path (aisle.)
Fortunately we passed a cemetery on the way home and for the first time ever Liam noticed it and asked me what it was. "So, they bury your whole body except your bones?" "No, they bury your bones too." "Oh, so everything except your skull?" "No, every single thing, including your skull. Just not your soul." "Well how could they not bury your soul?" At one point I told him how my mom's mom and dad died and their souls are in heaven but their bodies are in a cemetery. "What, Great Grandpa M is dead?!" "Yes Liam, that's why you've never met him." "Well I didn't know he was dead, I just thought he lived far away!" Every time the conversation veered toward Heaven or God, Liam would make sure we brought it back to which parts of your body will and will not get buried. After about 35 minutes of this conversation we came to a stalemate. I'm sure Liam's going to have great dreams tonight.
Today we took the kids to church with my parents. I don't take them to church very often, being a germaphobe and a generally lazy person. The last time we went, there was a parish picnic afterwards, with bouncy houses and train rides and music and a bunch of cute girls, so now anytime the word church is mentioned Brendan's eyes light up and he says how he likes church and the big party afterward. Some outtakes from Mass this morning (good thing we sat up near the front):
- Brendan, shouting (well to me it's shouting, to Brendan it's just the normal volume of his voice) matter-of-factly midway through the priest's homily, "Mom, I'm not having any fun"
- Brendan, looking up at the larger-than-life-sized statue of Jesus hanging above the alter, "What's that womans doing up there, Mommy?" "That's not a woman Brendan, it's Jesus." "Oh. Well how's he going to get down from there?"
- Brendan and Liam singing at the top of their lungs. One, we're Catholic and nobody else sings. Two, they don't know the words to any of the songs, so they're just singing gibberish mostly out of key. Doesn't bother them at all.
- Brendan moving the carseat and my purse away from the woman sitting next to us in the pew, giving her a very stern look and telling me, "I don't want her to steal this. This is ours." Throughout the entire rest of the Mass he kept glancing over at her and squinting his eyes accusatorily.
At one point my Dad tried to have Liam come stand next to him and Liam squirmed away. Later I asked him what he was doing and why he didn't stand near Grandpa. He said he thought Grandpa was trying to make him walk up the path (aisle.)
Fortunately we passed a cemetery on the way home and for the first time ever Liam noticed it and asked me what it was. "So, they bury your whole body except your bones?" "No, they bury your bones too." "Oh, so everything except your skull?" "No, every single thing, including your skull. Just not your soul." "Well how could they not bury your soul?" At one point I told him how my mom's mom and dad died and their souls are in heaven but their bodies are in a cemetery. "What, Great Grandpa M is dead?!" "Yes Liam, that's why you've never met him." "Well I didn't know he was dead, I just thought he lived far away!" Every time the conversation veered toward Heaven or God, Liam would make sure we brought it back to which parts of your body will and will not get buried. After about 35 minutes of this conversation we came to a stalemate. I'm sure Liam's going to have great dreams tonight.
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Break on Through
Ah, it's been a long time since I've worked on the computer with a baby sleeping in my arms. I could put Aidan down, because he is the first of my kids who allows you to do that, but I don't want to right now. Eric and Liam and Brendan are at the 4th of July festival and I just want to hang out with this sweet baby.
So, three boys. I had been trying everything I could to coerce Aidan into being born. I reeaalllyy thought he would be a few weeks early. I went for my last checkup on his due date, and we decided to schedule an induction or whatever it's called for the following Tuesday. After I got home I considered calling to make it for Friday instead, but I'm glad I didn't. Saturday I thought I had pulled something in my back because of all the yard work I'd been doing. I stupidly lifted some giganto bags of mulch, and then was worried I'd hurt the baby, but alas around 5:00 it occurred to me I might be in labor, and I was. My Dad and Eic's brother came over to take the kids to the classic car show, and Eric and I got to the hospital around 7. My water didn't break this time, and if I wasn't already overdue I wouldn't have gone in as early as I did because I wasn't 100% sure I was really in labor, but I did and I was and at 11:04pm Aidan was born.
I had no idea what to expect from him. I felt him moving at 14 or 16 weeks, like the earliest time possible to feel movement, and it wasn't "fluttering", it was real moving. He never stopped moving from that point on, and after Brando I knew it really is possible to have a child who is not, shall we say, as Zen as Liam. If I die and have never had to bail Brendan out of jail, I'll consider mine a life well lived. Aidan though, Aidan is calm and pensive and actually will lie down in his crib and sleep. Or even not sleep, but lie there. It seems that Liam and Aidan will alternate between the bass and the guitar, while Brendan's on drums. Liam is, as usual, a doting and responsible big brother, and Brendan has really stepped up to the plate and shown a lot of love for his new brother. I know and appreciate how lucky I am. And I sincerely hope they will let me meet up with them that summer they backpack around Europe, that's all I have to say.
This last month has flown by. A week of it was taken over by us trying to decide if we should move to California to take a really awesome job Eric was offered, but in the end we decided not to do that. That was definitely one of, if not THE hardest decisions we had to make as adults. But I think we made the right choice. Also, though Brendan digs Aidan, the whole new baby situation kind of threw him off his schedule and so he's been having a rough time sleeping and has been melting down daily.
Aidan's doing great all around. At one month he's 12 1/2 pounds, which means he's gained about a pound a week, like his big brothers. He's smiling and starting to coo and has laughed a few times. But mostly he just looks around when he's awake and observes. He loves when Liam and Brendan talk to him.
I cannot believe it's July, but it's been a great summer. Tomorrow our neighbors have a brunch for the whole block and then we all walk down the street for the parade. And at night we'll go to the fireworks, if Brendan can make it that late.
Happy 4th of July!
New kid in town:
So, three boys. I had been trying everything I could to coerce Aidan into being born. I reeaalllyy thought he would be a few weeks early. I went for my last checkup on his due date, and we decided to schedule an induction or whatever it's called for the following Tuesday. After I got home I considered calling to make it for Friday instead, but I'm glad I didn't. Saturday I thought I had pulled something in my back because of all the yard work I'd been doing. I stupidly lifted some giganto bags of mulch, and then was worried I'd hurt the baby, but alas around 5:00 it occurred to me I might be in labor, and I was. My Dad and Eic's brother came over to take the kids to the classic car show, and Eric and I got to the hospital around 7. My water didn't break this time, and if I wasn't already overdue I wouldn't have gone in as early as I did because I wasn't 100% sure I was really in labor, but I did and I was and at 11:04pm Aidan was born.
I had no idea what to expect from him. I felt him moving at 14 or 16 weeks, like the earliest time possible to feel movement, and it wasn't "fluttering", it was real moving. He never stopped moving from that point on, and after Brando I knew it really is possible to have a child who is not, shall we say, as Zen as Liam. If I die and have never had to bail Brendan out of jail, I'll consider mine a life well lived. Aidan though, Aidan is calm and pensive and actually will lie down in his crib and sleep. Or even not sleep, but lie there. It seems that Liam and Aidan will alternate between the bass and the guitar, while Brendan's on drums. Liam is, as usual, a doting and responsible big brother, and Brendan has really stepped up to the plate and shown a lot of love for his new brother. I know and appreciate how lucky I am. And I sincerely hope they will let me meet up with them that summer they backpack around Europe, that's all I have to say.
This last month has flown by. A week of it was taken over by us trying to decide if we should move to California to take a really awesome job Eric was offered, but in the end we decided not to do that. That was definitely one of, if not THE hardest decisions we had to make as adults. But I think we made the right choice. Also, though Brendan digs Aidan, the whole new baby situation kind of threw him off his schedule and so he's been having a rough time sleeping and has been melting down daily.
Aidan's doing great all around. At one month he's 12 1/2 pounds, which means he's gained about a pound a week, like his big brothers. He's smiling and starting to coo and has laughed a few times. But mostly he just looks around when he's awake and observes. He loves when Liam and Brendan talk to him.
I cannot believe it's July, but it's been a great summer. Tomorrow our neighbors have a brunch for the whole block and then we all walk down the street for the parade. And at night we'll go to the fireworks, if Brendan can make it that late.
Happy 4th of July!
New kid in town:
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Like Sands through the Hourglass
Eric and I bought a new car on Monday. It literally took 4 hours, even though we went in knowing the exact car on the lot we wanted to buy. I still can't figure out why it took so long. At one point while we were in the financing office declining all the 4016 extra coverages we could get, I heard the theme song from Days of Our Lives in the waiting room. I think that's what it was anyway. It's been a long time since I watched daytime television. That's a good thing, but I do have sort of fond memories of maternity leave just after Liam was born watching Perry Mason and Eight Is Enough on Me TV. That was a totally different life 1,000 years away from now. For one thing, Eric works from home now. For someone who grew up in a house with not less than 27 other people around at any one time, this is blissful for me. I am not a person who likes "alone time." At all. Also when baby 3.0 comes along I will not just be hanging out nursing in the back room watching television. Because 2 other little people will be needing me too. It's definitely a different ride and it will be interesting to see what it's like if this baby ever decides he wants to be born. At this point I'm pretty sure he's at least 25 pounds, and this is a troubling thought.
Oh, so the new car is pretty cool. It's a dark gray Chevy Traverse with 7 seats and two sun roofs. (We wanted black or blue but we are destined to always live in yellow bricks and have gray cars.) We had a Saturn Vue and we liked it a lot but it couldn't hold 3 car seats so we had to chuck it. At the dealership people kept asking "which of you will be driving this car?" Somehow it blows people's minds that we will both be driving it. We have an old Corolla that we use as a spare, but as it turns out even though we live in the burbs we can pretty much get around walking. Eric doesn't commute and I work 6 blocks away. We live a few blocks from the train and purposely picked our location based on the fact that we can walk to almost anything we want except Trader Joes. (I did suggest to the Village that we get a TJs or Whole Foods as part of the downtown shopping district but so far they have not taken up my brilliant idea.) When we go places we usually go together or one of us is home with the kids. So there you have it. Liam was a little disappointed because he wanted a Saturn Outlook, but since they don't make those anymore we couldn't get one. I have no idea why he cares except that he got his dad's genes and actually notices cars. Brendan does too for that matter. I am mostly clueless about cars and am just happy when I can find my own car in the parking lot. Oh and Liam's ok with the Traverse now and likes it, because it can't be denied that it is pretty dang cool. I'm looking forward to taking it on a road trip this summer if the new baby is good with driving. Time will tell.
Liam will be done with his first year of preschool next week. Wow. I can't really think about that or I will cry and my mind will be totally blown, but wow.
Oh, so the new car is pretty cool. It's a dark gray Chevy Traverse with 7 seats and two sun roofs. (We wanted black or blue but we are destined to always live in yellow bricks and have gray cars.) We had a Saturn Vue and we liked it a lot but it couldn't hold 3 car seats so we had to chuck it. At the dealership people kept asking "which of you will be driving this car?" Somehow it blows people's minds that we will both be driving it. We have an old Corolla that we use as a spare, but as it turns out even though we live in the burbs we can pretty much get around walking. Eric doesn't commute and I work 6 blocks away. We live a few blocks from the train and purposely picked our location based on the fact that we can walk to almost anything we want except Trader Joes. (I did suggest to the Village that we get a TJs or Whole Foods as part of the downtown shopping district but so far they have not taken up my brilliant idea.) When we go places we usually go together or one of us is home with the kids. So there you have it. Liam was a little disappointed because he wanted a Saturn Outlook, but since they don't make those anymore we couldn't get one. I have no idea why he cares except that he got his dad's genes and actually notices cars. Brendan does too for that matter. I am mostly clueless about cars and am just happy when I can find my own car in the parking lot. Oh and Liam's ok with the Traverse now and likes it, because it can't be denied that it is pretty dang cool. I'm looking forward to taking it on a road trip this summer if the new baby is good with driving. Time will tell.
Liam will be done with his first year of preschool next week. Wow. I can't really think about that or I will cry and my mind will be totally blown, but wow.
Sunday, May 16, 2010
10 AM and All Is Well
No baby yet. It's a weird thing because I know he's got to come SOMETIME in the Very Near Future, but still about 95% of the time it doesn't seem real and I can't actually fathom having this new person in our house. That being said we've been having a lot of fun these last few weeks and I am definitely appreciating how easy we have it right now with two pretty self sufficient kids. On Friday we went to the parade for Lee DeWyze, who's from our town, and it started late and required me to hold Brendan for longer than I'm used to, so I was pretty much expecting that to coerce the baby to come out yesterday, but no.
Oh, and I'm not trying to brag but I think this baby could be a good omen for the Cubs, because Liam was born the year the White Sox won the World Series, and Brendan was born when the Red Sox won (for the 2nd time in a couple years, but you know they hadn't won before that for like 65000 years either and I was actually watching either the game when they won or the one before when my water broke) so anyway I like our chances.
Maybe he's waiting to be born until we have a car he'll be able to fit in. We sold our Vue because it can't hold 3 car seats, and now we just have a corolla which REALLY can't hold 3 car seats. So the kid's no fool. We were car shopping yesterday and found two cars we like (Chevy Traverses) but the stupid car places are closed on Sundays and we weren't sure which one we wanted so now it's all up to fate on Monday. Someone else had the audacity to be looking at the one I liked better, so we'll see if he snags it first. I'm pretty sure you should be able to pay your mortgage for the price of a monthly payment on this car. Weren't car companies in trouble or something? You definitely cannot tell from the cost of cars. I guess we won't be installing a backyard patio this year.
I'm pretty sure I was going to write something of some interest, but I forgot. Today is my 2nd to last day of work - yay! And I am officially done with this semester. I think I screwed up my 4.0 but I'm basically too tired to care and at this point there's nothing I can do anyway.
Ok, hopefully I can squeeze in a nap here before work. So excited about there being real sunshine today. This is really cool to have a baby just before summer, versus winter. I'm happy to have had my time burrowing in with Liam and Brendan, but now that they are bigger I am SO happy to be able to go outside with them and have them be able to play instead of bouncing off the walls inside for 6 months. Oh yes, and in other good news I can officially no longer even see the scale. Ignorance is bliss.
Oh, and I'm not trying to brag but I think this baby could be a good omen for the Cubs, because Liam was born the year the White Sox won the World Series, and Brendan was born when the Red Sox won (for the 2nd time in a couple years, but you know they hadn't won before that for like 65000 years either and I was actually watching either the game when they won or the one before when my water broke) so anyway I like our chances.
Maybe he's waiting to be born until we have a car he'll be able to fit in. We sold our Vue because it can't hold 3 car seats, and now we just have a corolla which REALLY can't hold 3 car seats. So the kid's no fool. We were car shopping yesterday and found two cars we like (Chevy Traverses) but the stupid car places are closed on Sundays and we weren't sure which one we wanted so now it's all up to fate on Monday. Someone else had the audacity to be looking at the one I liked better, so we'll see if he snags it first. I'm pretty sure you should be able to pay your mortgage for the price of a monthly payment on this car. Weren't car companies in trouble or something? You definitely cannot tell from the cost of cars. I guess we won't be installing a backyard patio this year.
I'm pretty sure I was going to write something of some interest, but I forgot. Today is my 2nd to last day of work - yay! And I am officially done with this semester. I think I screwed up my 4.0 but I'm basically too tired to care and at this point there's nothing I can do anyway.
Ok, hopefully I can squeeze in a nap here before work. So excited about there being real sunshine today. This is really cool to have a baby just before summer, versus winter. I'm happy to have had my time burrowing in with Liam and Brendan, but now that they are bigger I am SO happy to be able to go outside with them and have them be able to play instead of bouncing off the walls inside for 6 months. Oh yes, and in other good news I can officially no longer even see the scale. Ignorance is bliss.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)