Mrs. Gregorton

Hop on the Hep (redux)

2012-02-06T09:38:00.000-08:00

It was Super Bowl Sunday and, while most people were sitting on the couch with a beer having chips and dip for dinner, I was up on the flying trapeze again. I think we can safely say that, much like natural childbirth, I don't need to experience that a third time. I returned in part for redemption but largely because my trapeze buddy is moving away at the end of the month and well, she went ahead and called the school to sign us up for one last hurrah. I have all the expected muscle pain this morning plus a sore face due to a couple of rough landings in the net (btw, continue to look up as you fall). It was a thrill, I'm not gonna lie, but in the future I'll look for thrills that don't involve nearly putting a tooth through my lip.

Friday afternoon:

2012-02-03T17:03:00.000-08:00

The baby is pulling all the books off the bookshelf while Little G conducts mock marriage equality hearings in her new bathing suit and a tutu.

The couch is my life raft - all I need is my wifi and a packet of Nairn's ginger oat biscuits.

TGIF

Here we go!

2012-01-29T19:55:00.000-08:00

We have an official crawler on our hands, one day shy of his seven month birthday. I foolishly assumed we'd have eight solid months of stationary play but the mobility began a month ago and today he suddenly got fast - right after he ate about a gazillion sweet potato puffs, a serving of baby food and half a banana. So we spent the last half hour before bedtime clearing Playmobil out of the living room, the first of many baby-proofing sessions, I'm sure. Little G is already demanding a gate on the door to her room.

It might be time to pack away the floaty toys

2012-01-20T10:28:00.000-08:00

We've been trapped in the house all week, save for one blessed Spanish lesson, due to the Great Snow Storm of 2012. You might think three inches of powder wouldn't completely shut down an entire region and cause the Governor to declare a state of emergency but we live in an area full of hills and completely devoid of snow plows (okay, to be fair, the outlying towns and suburbs got dumped on but here in the city it was pretty minimal). Entertainment has been hard to come by.

Here is a picture of some ice I shoved off the deck:As it turns out, shoving ice off the deck with my foot was sort of the highlight of my week. It was really crunchy.

This morning we took pictures of geese:
That wasn't quite as much fun because it didn't require me to go outside without the children.

Other than capturing our soggy surroundings on film, we've been keeping busy watching the baby learn to crawl and wringing our hands over the eleventy hundred thousand tiny chokables strewn throughout the house. I fear that the Playmobil community currently residing in the living room may have to pack up its tiny rake, horse grooming implements, dustpan, milk cartons, toilet plunger, badger family, etc. and move to a safer neighborhood.

Good times.

Greens in a Glass

2012-01-13T13:41:00.000-08:00

I had a little trouble finding food I could eat in Maui, probably because we were living in Resortville, which was beautiful and exactly what we needed to survive with the kids but pretty much devoid of vegetables. Lucky for me, my amazing and obliging husband managed to ferret out a restaurant called Choice Health Bar where they served absolutely delicious, locally sourced vegan and raw meals. Now, eating raw all the time it too extreme, time-consuming and expensive for our family (that and we actually like our food cooked) but the food at this place was so good that it inspired me to incorporate some of the elements into our everyday life in Seattle. We started with smoothies because this is about the simplest meal in the world and because I was craving large doses of greens after spending five days eating nothing but noodles and shaved ice. Little G and I worked out the recipe below and it was so yummy that she's asked me to make it again tomorrow.

2 cups frozen, shredded greens (I like to buy the leafy green mix from Whole Foods)
1 cup water
1 cup unsweetened almond milk (obviously you can sub whatever you want for the liquids)
2 bananas
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
3 scoops pumpkin seed protein powder (or some other protein powder)

Paradise glimpsed

2012-01-11T13:26:00.000-08:00

After about ten years of talk, we finally went to Hawaii last week despite many warnings that you should never go on vacation without a few extra adults in tow. For the record, it can be done but it's not exactly relaxing.

If I wasn't typing one-handed, this is were I would give you a bunch of practical advice about a beach vacation with kids. For now I will just say that I highly recommend buying a beach shelter so the whole family can hang out by the water without worrying about getting too much sun (we got ours at the Costco on Maui and the nice people on Hawaiian Airlines even let us bring it home on the plane). Also, staying at a hotel with penguins really helped boost the mood.

In the picture is me, stumbling across a huge expanse of coral so I could do some snorkeling. It was beautiful but I was too scared to stay out for long by myself (water sort of terrifies me). This was one of those times I really wished we had someone to watch the kids.

Resolved:

2012-01-01T19:52:00.001-08:00

A few years ago one of my friends resolved not to go to jail in the new year. Except she called it the pokey, which made us laugh every time. I was talking to that same friend this morning after I received a text message from her announcing that they had returned from their vacation with bed bugs. We discussed the upcoming year and what is in store for both of our families and ultimately came to the conclusion that our best bet for a new year's resolution is to try to lower expectations across the board. This may sound defeatist, depressing or even ungrateful considering how charmed our lives are but for someone like me sometimes lowering expectations is the key to happiness. My grandfather always used to say that we should expect the worst and celebrate when things turned out better than we'd anticipated but that's not exactly what I'm talking about here. I'm talking about expecting the baby to sleep in my bed for at least another six months, not feeling like a bad mom when we eat take-out more than once a week, planning for friends to come over in the evenings to visit with me instead of trying to go out and being disappointed when I can't and coming to terms with the fact that I now like to buy microwave mac and cheese because I can't be bothered to make it from a box anymore (that one alternately makes my wince and smile). And as for the pokey . . . three squares and the promise of solitary confinement . . . I should be so lucky.

Snips and Snails?

2011-12-26T19:05:00.000-08:00

I always figured little boy babies and little girls babies were pretty much the same, just your basic bundle of joy but with different stuff under their diapers. And maybe they are but what I can say for certain is that the way I feel about a boy baby and a girl baby is nearly night and day. Which is hard for me to admit because, before I had a boy, I would have been the first one to rag on other parents for treating their children differently based on sex. Of course I'm still miffed at the people who dismiss bad manners and outrageous behavior with a helpless (and slightly proud I might add), "Boys will be boys!" I've noticed, however, that I am undeniably guilty of looking at my son with a lens I did not use for my daughter. I just can't put my finger on the difference. At least I couldn't until the other night when my mother mentioned how much sweeter a baby boy seems and wondered aloud if it was because, compared to the man we expect him to become, a baby boy is awfully earnest and vulnerable. I'm starting to wonder if I feel differently toward the boy because I know he'll only be a part of my world for a limited time before he leaves the "women and children" and becomes a man. Or perhaps this sort of thing only matters in life boats.

My second first baby

2011-12-10T10:32:00.000-08:00

Everyone said the second kid was going to be easy. The second kid would sleep, the second kid would chill in his crib and coo, the second kid would make us all breakfast. Apparently I have given birth to two first kids because he does not sleep, he does not sit and play by himself and he has yet to even offer to fix so much as a snack. All he can do is cute. And boy is he lucky he's cute.

Look who's questioning!

2011-12-05T19:23:00.000-08:00

I was at Costco on Saturday when I overheard two men discussing which baby outfit they should purchase for an upcoming shower. I burst into way too obvious laughter when I heard one of the guys say, "Well, if we don't know if it's a girl or a boy we should probably get the bisexual outfit." Having accidentally engaged two strangers in a conversation about fetal sexual identity I tried to disentangle painlessly by gently suggesting that the term they were looking for was "gender neutral" and quickly resuming my search for the perfectly striped socks. Except that, this being the most politically correct city in the world, I felt the need to mention that if they were actually buying for a bisexual baby, they should disregard my advice. Which, of course, has led me to spend the last few days contemplating just what a line of clothing for bisexual babies might look like. It certainly wouldn't be anymore ridiculous than the ever-popular "lock up your daughters" or "chick magnet" onesies I've seen. "Lock up your daughters . . . and sons!," "Chick/(insert inappropriate rhyming word here) magnet," "Daddy's Little Switch Hitter" . . .

Grease Monkey

2011-11-21T09:57:00.000-08:00

Mr. G spent eight of the last fourteen days traveling for work. Eight days that felt like an eternity, largely because the kids and I have all been sick. Baby's first cold, complete with the tiniest, saddest cough in the world. It was the sort of week where any extra trouble, no matter how small, felt like a complete catastrophe. Like, for example, when the headlight in the car went out.

I spent three days trying to avoid driving after dark, one evening pissing people off with my brights, and on Saturday my step-dad was kind enough to buy me a new headlight. Then we tried to install it. It was cold, I was a sick lady holding a fussy baby (who was dressed in a white snow suit. Note to everyone: the next time you retain a baby to assist with car repairs, dress him in dark colors), and my step-dad was a little freaked out by all the plastic under the hood of our newfangled type car. There was quite a bit of swearing and even more glorification of the beloved metal screw.

Then I got on the internet and discovered that there is actually a class action law suit against Toyota over headlight replacement. Apparently the lights are so hard to replace that most people end up at the dealer where they remove the entire bumper and charge upwards of five hundred dollars. Highway robbery! Further searches revealed do-it-yourself instructions that required serious equipment like cap ramps (I'm still not totally sure what these are except that you have to drive your car onto them so I'm guessing I don't have any stashed around the boat). I thought we were doomed until I watched Prius HID Headlight Replacement in less than 3 minutes. I briefly considered driving to California and running away with the magic headlight lady from Luscious Garage. Then we called it a day.

On Sunday my mom came by to watch the kids (it turns out babies aren't great mechanics) and I spent another hour with my head under the hood of our car. This is especially fun to do on our street because, while not an arterial, there is a lot of traffic in the form of cars, bikes, runners, dog walkers, speed walkers and even tour buses. Oh, and this guy with no clothes on. So I had quite the audience as I dribbled mucus into our synergistic engine and wiggled random wires in places I couldn't see. But I never forgot the amazing mechanic in San Fransisco and I persevered until I saved that $500. Victory dance! Fist pump! Celebratory cursing!

Who knows what I'll do next?! Watch me while I top off fluids and check pressures! I'm a car repair maniac! I've even been known to pump my own gas.

Because I Said So LLC

2011-11-17T12:05:00.000-08:00

I spent forty-five minutes with a client last night and after the appointment was over he asked me what my specialty is. Normally I avoid this question but this person seemed pleased with my work so I admitted that I don't actually have a practice area and am a stay-at-home mother. He got the most priceless look of horror on his face and said, "But you are lawyer, aren't you?!"

This has got me to thinking that there actually are a lot of people out there who could benefit from consulting with a mom every now and again.

Happy Birthday, Mr. G!

2011-11-09T19:59:00.000-08:00

No, I didn't manage to go grocery shopping or make dinner. That's because by the time I was driving by the grocery store I had a sick five-year-old, our teenage neighbor and a naked baby in the car. Well, he was actually wearing a diaper and my fleece, which was sort of big on him.

But we ran into Mr. G at the corner store and that's when we put back the wilted lettuce and extremely pale tomato and decided to go out for dinner.

Dinner was candles and brick and small plates with figs, pistachios, persimmons, chevre. Dinner was the waiter coming over before we left to say that the staff was talking about what well behaved children we have.

Then home to carrot cake with my mom's famous caramel frosting (gluten and dairy free!).

A difficult day, as predicted by the magic eight ball, followed by the perfect night for my birthday boy.

with the greatest of ease

2011-10-23T15:14:00.000-07:00

I walked into the circus school last week for Little G's lesson and noticed that they were advertising two-for-one flying trapeze classes. Something clicked (snapped?) in me and suddenly I was hellbent on getting into that flying class so I emailed a friend who had recently expressed interest and by Wednesday afternoon we were all signed up. Which is how I came to find myself at the top of a very high platform this morning, all rigged up and ready to (HEP!) hop.

I'm not sure what was more therapeutic, signing up or the actual flying. After I registered for the class I felt like a new woman. Anything and everything was possible, I had a new lease on life. As I sit here on the couch, an hour post-class, I'm feeling a little month-to-month, if you know what I mean.

But the class? The class was amazing. Two straight hours of adrenaline. Climbing the ladder made me slightly woozy, standing on the platform got my stomach churning but jumping off was a breeze. By the end of the session I had mastered a simple trick and, as our penultimate fly, we even did a catch. The key, they taught us, was not to think, just listen for the commands and react. Given that I have to be in charge of two other lives every waking (and sleeping) minute of my life, being ordered to listen and not think was actually a huge relief, though reacting in time was a little bit of a challenge. I succeeded, however, in clearing my mind and following instructions until we got to the final hep of the final trick. I looked down and instantly knew that there was no way I was letting go.

The coaches said it's okay, that when you do flying trapeze you find out what you're really afraid of and that's a good thing. I'm still working out exactly what that means. Is it the falling and not the jumping that scares me most? Or should we just remember never to look down?

Monotony, it's what's for dinner

2011-10-14T12:40:00.000-07:00

"I've been thinking about the things I didn't teach you when you were younger," my mother divulged during a car ride last month. Gulp. A million awkward topics flashed through my mind. It was, after all, too late for that conversation, right? To my great relief, she followed up with,"I never taught you anything about running a household and I was wondering if you wanted me to help you with meal planning." How cute is that?

Pretty darn cute and also sort of funny, given that I was fairly certain I had the capacity to meal plan, I mean I went to college and stuff. So I thanked her and said I was perfectly capable of doing it, I just didn't feel like it. But the topic stayed on my mind because I knew it would make my life easier . . .

Today marks the end of three straight weeks of planning meals on Sundays, shopping ahead and following a set schedule of dinners. I even prepared meals in the mornings while the baby napped, in fact, I got a little compulsive about working on dinner during any spare second when I found myself with two available hands. The result being that every waking moment was devoted to obsessing about the next meal. Which is to say that the experiment was a great success in the dinner department but a gigantic failure when it came to my mental health. Something about devoting my entire existence to getting dinner on the table put me in a really, really bad mood.

I happened to mention to my mother yesterday that meal planning had sucked my will to live, with the hope that she could suggest a cure for my ennui de cuisine. "Well, of course it did," she said, with practiced nonchalance.

Takeout: cheaper than therapy and a whole lot tastier.

Personhood

2011-10-12T19:59:00.000-07:00

The baby has graduated from fourth trimester fetus to real live human being status and can now do all sorts of exciting tricks like putting toys in his mouth and rolling over. Now that he's all grown up, he has also put himself on a new schedule, which goes as follows:

Gulp milk like it's the last drink on earth
Linger at the breast until I can't stand it anymore
Scream about the injustice of it all
Chatter nonstop about his interests for an hour and a half
Make another pass at the breast
Fall asleep whining about how I'm always withholding when he needs it most

Now that I think about it, this reminds me of a lot of dates I went on in my twenties. The baby, however, is irresistibly cute and only requires raspberries or the occasional chicken dance in response to his nonstop babbling.

Given our daughter's personality, I have no business being surprised that our son is intense, never stops talking, and demands constant attention. I just didn't think it would start this young. Like his sister, he's just lucky he's so darn charming.

What it's like with two

2011-10-04T20:39:00.000-07:00

When people see me with the new baby they ask what it's like to "have two." Friends ask, relatives ask, even strangers. Sometimes it feels like they're hoping to hear the worst, that two is twice as hard or that familial disaster is right around the corner. When I say that it's easier than I expected, some people seem disappointed. What can I say, I was raised to prepare for the worst. Little G never slept for more than twenty minutes at a time and screamed like we were killing her every time we tried to set her down. It was rough. This baby is somewhat easier but, like any baby, he presents his own unique and special challenges. Parenting an infant is hard, no matter how many kids you have. And if I recall correctly, preschoolers will get on your nerves with or without a baby in the picture. So, what is it like? The same except now we have a baby and babies are a lot of work.

P.S. The baby looks like a tiny man. He's the best.

Shana Tovah, my friends!

2011-09-28T20:06:00.000-07:00

Drinking leftover honey from ramekins is a mitzvah, right? Good, I thought so too. And eating a piece of challah the size of my head? Check.

I think it's going to be a good year.

We survived!

2011-09-25T19:29:00.000-07:00

But I think you knew we would. I've heard rumors of other mothers solo parenting for longer than five nights and even single parenting for like, a lifetime. (And by solo parenting I mean, even though I'm on my own, I have good reason to believe my partner will return and meanwhile he is still paying all the bills and keeping a roof over our head. I think there must be a big difference.)

I relied heavily on my parents, who fed us two dinners and picked Little G up from school for me one afternoon. Other than that, we tried to keep very busy with urban adventuring and dragging other little friends on some of our favorite outings. The final night we went out with a family who also had a father out of town and that was a blast. Totally crazy but in the best way.

The worst part of the week was probably the night I had to go back to the legal clinic after three months of maternity leave. I think I might be done with legal clinic, although this is sort of a problem since my new status with the bar requires that I do pro bono work. I want to do the pro bono work, I just need to find something that doesn't demand expertise in every subject on earth. More on this later.

That darn Alice, so much funnier than people who never sleep

2011-09-21T15:59:00.000-07:00

This one is for Yoyo and anyone else who spent large parts of a summer internship researching how to amputate their own toe. Maybe it's my lack of sleep but I nearly woke the baby shaking with laughter as I read this latest post from Alice.
(I should also probably mention that this was a legal internship and not, you know, surgical in nature)

Day of Music

2011-09-18T19:13:00.000-07:00

The symphony put on a free day of music today and I decided to take the kids, which felt sort of brave but I figured it was a great chance to try it out without laying down a bunch of cash. I knew we could leave quickly and never look back if somebody got out of line. (Side note: you never realize quite how loud a nursing baby can be until they are sucking it down during the opening bars of Debussy.)

And it turned out to be a huge success! In three and a half hours we saw chamber music, a choir, opera, flamenco, a trio of people playing toy instruments (surprisingly good) and the full symphony played three pieces. Not to mention the coloring and face painting. But far and away the best part was watching Little G listen to the symphony while sitting, literally, on the edge of her seat.

Always Monday and never Christmas

2011-09-16T10:04:00.000-07:00

Today is the first day of what I predict will be a rather long week of mostly parenting alone. In my experience, it's always easier with two adults on hand but definitely doable as long as the adult to child ratio is one to one. Little G and I have had some fun times in the past when her dad is away on business or just working late. I find that if I think of it as a slumber party rather than torture, things turn out great. A slumber party with an infant can even be fun if you also get to nap with them all day. I have a sinking feeling that it might be different with two. Time to stock up on coffe, frozen dinners and patience in bulk. If they sold sleep at Costco we'd probably just work more.

Little G, International Woman of Mystery

2011-09-13T17:58:00.000-07:00

"Bonjour! Konichiwa! Corndog! . . . I was trying to say hello in German."

I'm very interested to see what happens when she starts her Spanish class in two weeks.

Our weekend in the sun

2011-09-11T12:52:00.000-07:00

We spent an absolutely glorious Labor Day weekend at the beach in Oregon. Truly, I don't know what we did to deserve such perfect beach weather. See, if you live in the Pacific Northwest, not only do you have to drive to Oregon to find a sandy beach, you then have to prepare yourself for cloudy, chilly weather. In Washington State, going to the beach is actually considered a winter activity because otherwise you might drive five hours to the coast in July and just die of disappointment.

We, however, celebrated Little G's birthday in eighty degree weather with a beach themed cake that she decorated herself and a day of wave jumping and castle building. She also got to sleep in bunk beds, her on the top and her new 18 inch Madame Alexander doll, Sophia Abby Emma, resting comfortably on the bottom. Aside from the much anticipated bunk beds, the house we rented featured beautiful wood beams and floors, oriental carpets throughout, plenty of comfortable family space and a beautiful wetland for a backyard. I'm really hoping we can make it an annual event.

But here we are now, one week later and facing the start of preschool, cable knit tights and lunchboxes. Things will likely get a bit easier with Little G back in school but I'm going to miss having her around.

Wonder Years

2011-09-01T21:43:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine from college was in town with her family this week, a dear friend who I miss immensely. It was a much anticipated visit that didn't go quite as planned, partly because they were all sick but also because I forgot exactly who we are right now. Not college students, not newlyweds but parents of young children, young children who, let's face it, run the show. We couldn't sit on the patio and enjoy happy hour, we couldn't wander the city visiting our old haunts, we couldn't even really go to a restaurant or have them over to our house. So I had to adjust my expectations and I had to remind myself that this is just one phase of our lives. Tonight I'm still glowing from the few precious hours we had together but also mourning our old selves and dreaming of the days to come when we have just a little more time for us, which we will probably spend lamenting the fact that the kids have grown. Sigh.

But now, onward to the long weekend and the celebration of Little G's fifth birthday! My sweet girl, lover of unicorns, fairies and robots, who can make her own bed, fix me breakfast, put her brother to sleep when he's sad and melt into a shrieking puddle over a lost stone all before lunchtime.

Falling

2011-08-29T19:59:00.000-07:00

The last days of summer are upon us, which is sort of a shock here in the Pacific Northwest given that we've had roughly three and a half hours of weather over seventy-degrees. Not that I'm complaining, our summer has been just the right temperature for a newborn. The truth is that I'm just really bad with change and yes, that includes seasonal change right along with death, divorce and throwing away old shoes. My change processor idles too high. A leaf falls and my heart seizes, I'm just a little depressed on garbage day.

Along with Fall comes Little G's birthday and, though I've dodged the kindergarten bullet this year, I still have the distinct feeling that she's leaving me. I thought having the baby would ease this sort of pain but it turns out that watching two grow up is twice the heartache. duh.

Sibling Love

2011-08-26T11:03:00.000-07:00

I think I've mentioned before that Little G adores her baby brother, which is fantastic because I don't have to worry that she'll shove him overboard when I'm not looking. What's even better though is that the baby appears to adore her right back. He's perfectly content as long as he can see what she's doing and this pleases her to no end because she has finally found a less intelligent being to relay information to. Riding in the car with them is particularly entertaining as I get to hear her explain such things as the speed limit ("Mommy is driving as fast as she can without breaking the law but she is limited by the speed of the car in front of her.") and how to make a guinea pig out of a sock.

As I write this they are happily playing library, a game that will probably keep them busy right up until the littler one trades in that gummy smile for his own unique style of management.

The annual fall scheduling panic, now with recipes!

2011-08-20T15:41:00.001-07:00

As predicted, I'm suffering from a bit of panic over the fact that Little G will not be starting school this fall. I still believe that it is the best choice for her, I'm just not sure how it's going to go for me. As much as I love her preschool, I really wish they offered a full day or at least one more afternoon because I can pack her week full of classes but what I really need is a place to drop her off long-term. Alas, this is not to be and I fear that the coming year is going to be awfully challenging what with the baby, Mr. G's crazy work schedule and a five-year-old who needs constant stimulation. I admire her so much for her energy and curiosity but it's gotten to the point where I literally cannot finish a single sentence without being interrupted by a question. In addition to being a cook, a house cleaner, a scheduler, a chauffeur, a valet, a pack horse and a milk-machine, I am now required to be a walking dictionary/encyclopedia. I'm fairly certain my brain has turned to pudding and could start running out my ears at any moment.

The baby remains the cutest, furriest thing I ever laid eyes on, provided he is fed every 56 minutes, held up-right at all times and kept at room temperature.

Bonus Dinner Idea: I made roasted veggies over soft polenta last night, a recipe from the natural market newsletter. I added balsamic vinegar to the roasting vegetables, subbed green beans for eggplant and left out the cheese. Oh, and our tomatoes, which came out delicious like candy, were from Costco and decidedly not organic or heirloom.

Thumbelina

2011-08-16T17:19:00.000-07:00

I realize now that if I don't blog via text or on the itouch it's just never going to happen. I'm capable of pulling some amazing stunts while breastfeeding, including snow shoeing, but for some reason typing on the laptop eludes me. So here I am sitting on the floor, babe in arms and i thingy in hand. And I had all this stuff I wanted to tell about urgent care. In fact I wanted to apologize to urgent care and thank them for being so awesome when I went in with that awful infection last month. Thanks urgent care! But now I don't have time because everyone wants something at once.

So I'll just briefly mention that I saw an ad for place where you can go do yoga with your horse. Is this more or less outrageous than the Hummer down the street with a whale bumper sticker that says Extinction is Forever?

Week 5

2011-08-07T13:43:00.000-07:00

Little G, the girl who refused every bottle on the market, fed her brother his first today and he guzzled it down like it was the last meal on earth. This, as you might imagine, is a huge relief to me because it means I can leave him with a trusted caregiver and go drink gin and tonics until my face is numb.

And I believe this sort of activity will become increasingly necessary as Mr. G's work ramps up. Did I say ramp? It's more of a butte. Anyway, we dove in head first last week as he started traveling again and working more evenings/weekends. Activities included four straight hours at the zoo, visitors two evenings in a row, a luncheon at the American Girl Doll store, a play in the park and I even hosted a drop off playdate to a museum. I never thought this sort of thing would be possible with a one-month-old but, as it turns out, life just goes on with the second kid because there isn't really an alternative.

Luckily the little guy is easy to please and doesn't complain much if you change his scenery often (quite often actually) and help him get to sleep when he's tired. Of course his likes and dislikes are likely to change every ten to fifteen minutes, which is what is so very charming about babies. And that reminds me of my next business venture . . . Infant Sleepaway Camp! You may have been led to believe that being at home is best for baby but are you really stimulating that little mind the way you should be? Sit back and enjoy your maternity leave while we enrich your baby's life the way only trained experts can.

Next week: the Infant Internship and what it means for your child's preschool application.

because even humor is a form of vigilance

2011-08-03T11:21:00.000-07:00

If you feel like you need to laugh about lice, go read this. The fact that Alice thought of the term "Apocalouse" and I didn't makes me absolutely green with envy.

Not up to much over here except wiping spit-up out of our neck folds.

Zooper

2011-07-26T20:40:00.000-07:00

Little G spent last week at zoo camp, something I signed her up for so I'd have somewhere to drop her off for fifteen hours while I drooled and stared at the baby. As it turns out though, they taught her all this interesting stuff about animals, an outcome that never occurred to me. Now I wish I'd scheduled an entire summer of Zooper Day Camp. She could be, like, a zoologist by September.

Disposing of the evidence (past lives)

2011-07-20T16:44:00.000-07:00

We're still in the process of purging belongings from our home so that there will be room for all four of us and today it was time to let go of some of the books. As much as I love moving our unused stuff along, I had a really hard time letting go of my college textbooks. Our theory has been to keep the sort of books that will make an interesting library for the kids; something they might browse through on a rainy day that could lead to a little self-discovery or, say, a passion for magical realism. I studied international relations (or as I preferred to say at cocktail parties, foreign affairs) so it's not like I've been saving chemistry textbooks all these years but when push came to shove I realized that none of it is light reading and the chances that someone will curl up with Force and Statecraft one day are pretty slim. Still, I got a little panicky as the books were going out the door because I worry that if I erase all the evidence of my former self, the children will grow up thinking I've always been a mom or that I never dreamed of anything bigger than what to have for dinner. In the end though, out it all went, everything I ever knew about managing global chaos and what to do after a cold war. I guess a pile of outdated theories won't mean much to the kids anyway and if I want them to know who I am, I'm going to have to show them myself.

***

Thank you for the parenting encouragement, it really does help. I'm trying not to scare the parents-to-be (Hi Molly!) because it truly is mostly magic. It's just the sleeplessness and bodily fluids combined with a gigantic dose of sass that can get a girl down some days.

some notes on raising the Dumpling

2011-07-19T19:40:00.000-07:00

I saw a bumper sticker today that said, "I make milk, what's your super power?" And I wish I could say I relate but, man, is breastfeeding harder than I remember. Ditto getting up multiple times in the night. Ditto trying not to fall asleep on the baby. Maybe he could sleep less during the day and more at night?

Greetings from Babyland

2011-07-05T17:04:00.000-07:00

As it turns out, blogging is a little harder with a newborn. The kids are nearly five years apart in age and I'm afraid we had forgotten what it's like to parent and infant. He just seems to want something from us all the time.

Plus, what with all my criticism for the hypno-birthing method, I've decided to start writing my own birthing book. Working titles include, Birthing the Banshee Way or perhaps Bloody Murder: The Gregorton guide to labor and delivery.

Actually, it will be more of a pamphlet. Well, to tell the truth, I'm working with a guy in Chinatown who says he can print the whole thing on a fortune cookie. You see, it's not complicated like all those other methods with their breathing and visualizations. You merely scream your head off until the baby finally makes an appearance. There is not a single rainbow involved.

You see, the contractions woke me up Thursday morning around 4:30 and by the time we made it to the hospital at 6:15 a.m. I was at 9 cm and the nurses declared that I would be having a natural birth. It's true that I'd always said I wanted to try a drug free delivery but I know my own limits and by the time we were all fed breakfast and packed into the car I was very clear about my need for an epidural. But life had other plans for me and I spent the next two hours laboring and then pushing out our beautiful baby boy. It was absolutely excruciating and then, when it was all over, exhilarating. I'm crossing natural birth off my list of things to do and thinking it's not something I need to try twice.

2011-07-03T18:49:00.001-07:00

Baby Boy Gregorton arrived Thursday morning! He is healthy and wonderful but I am back in the hospital with a little infection so more details to come . . .

Shark Freak

2011-06-29T19:14:00.000-07:00

Every time I see my stomach I am surprised all over again. It is truly, freakishly large and round, like Drawing Number One from The Little Prince, a boa constrictor digesting an elephant. Except that I am a person who is rather unsuccessfully digesting a beach ball.

This evening I was telling Mr. G that I am starting to feel like a freak of nature and of course Little G was eavesdropping because everything is her business. You'd think she'd be better at this since it's one of her top five hobbies but she never hears quite right and for some reason she thought I said that I felt like a Shark Freak. Now I can't stop imagining that my crazy, round-yet-somehow-pointy belly is sporting a dorsal fin. This is one extremely menacing beach ball.

Blah, said Toad

2011-06-28T19:21:00.000-07:00

Blah indeed. I spent all day cleaning the house but without any of that crazy nesting energy that can be so helpful at times like this. I had to keep taking breaks for water and sitting and just generally mooing around on the couch. Then I just started to feel sick to my stomach and that's when I lost all hope. Clearly the baby is never coming. More acupuncture scheduled for Thursday afternoon. I know, it could be worse.

Pincushion at peace

2011-06-27T15:42:00.000-07:00

Oh how I've missed acupuncture. I went in today and was treated for "balance" and given a little labor induction "nudge." I'd be pleased if either treatment was effective but frankly it's worth every penny just for that thirty minutes of complete and utter relaxation. I think I might even have been drooling. If you've never been, you're missing out.

Happy Birthday to Me!

2011-06-26T18:37:00.000-07:00

Okay, my birthday was yesterday but I just finished another huge piece of cake so it sort of feels like today was my birthday too. My mom made the most amazing dairy and gluten free cake. Really amazing and you would never ever know it was not "normal" cake and it was chocolaty and moist and smooth and it had two different kinds of frosting (creamy and fluffy) and I want to sit and eat it all down at once. Except there is no way I have room for that. Or I would at least have to lie down to do it.

As it turns out, the only thing much worse than being gigantic and hot and waiting for a baby to come is doing all those things with a cold. The cold really has me on the edge, that and preschool being over and camps not starting for another couple of weeks. The upbeat moments, however, outweigh the moments of despair and tomorrow I'm going to acupuncture, which should be relaxing and quiet if nothing else.

They laughed, they cried

2011-06-23T16:11:00.000-07:00

It's Thursday and I'm tired and boring so I'm gifting you some links that perked up my day today.

A video made by GetEQUAL.org about why the President should publicly support gay marriage, entitled Evolve Already.

A blog post about marital retaliation in the form of a giant rooster written by the Bloggess.

Okay so both made me cry but when I read about the rooster I was also trying not to pee my pants.

Enjoy and Happy Weekend!

Last Crazy Wednesday!

2011-06-22T18:23:00.000-07:00

We are officially in summer limbo as school is out and camp doesn't start for another two weeks. It feels good right now but I have the feeling it won't when we get up tomorrow morning.

My doctor cheerfully wondered aloud this afternoon how I am still walking around with a baby so low. Yes, walking is a challenge when you have a small person hanging between your legs. I'm ready, but he's not.

Happy Summer!

2011-06-21T19:33:00.000-07:00

It's a beautiful evening in Seattle - not too hot and not too cold, lake breezes, happy (if slightly drunken) voices coming off the water, sailboats racing by the end of the dock.

I did not manage the full popsicle dinner this year but I honestly think everyone was happier for it. Instead we dined on tofu dogs, corn on the cob, cherries, watermelon and tomato salad. There were creamsicles for the dairy people and Mr. G bought me some amazing chocolate ice-cream bars from Tempt. I've always avoided hemp milk because I once read that it could mess with hormone levels . . . or something, but these things were delicious and had all the creaminess of coconut milk but with a neutral flavor like cow milk. Yum.

More than meets the eye

2011-06-20T19:16:00.000-07:00

I thought I'd heard everything and then I went to the aquarium today and there was a woman there with sons named Optimus and Magnus. Aka Optimus Prime and Ultra Magnus, aka Transformers. She named her kids after Transformers. I wonder if they have the gift set.

The more they stay the same

2011-06-19T19:37:00.000-07:00

We managed to purchase everything on our list at Ikea on Saturday, except for the collapsible laundry basket I wanted - we had to leave that behind because I wasn't bright enough to refold it myself. We are now the proud owners of a linen closet, a mostly assembled free-standing kitchen unit and about two tons of cardboard, most of which has been repurposed into a fort in Little G's room. We also have a lot of homeless books.

This week holds the final days of preschool, swim class and circus practice as well as what I am predicting to be endless signs of pre-labor. I am attempting to be cheery because truly I am happy not to be laboring in a hospital but sometimes the suspense gets the better of me and I weep for no reason and maybe throw something. Meanwhile, we have set up neither the crib or a place to change the baby but the new shelving over the washer and dryer is divine. Maybe I can change him there.

No hysterics today.

2011-06-16T20:39:00.000-07:00

Just a lot of cold packs and hot packs and glasses of water and sorting through the piles around the house. My mother is a saint for basically just letting me lie on the couch while she held stuff up and I told her were it went. That's devotion.

Also today was bike day at preschool and Little G reports that three of the boys did not stop at the red lights even when she reminded them of the rules and held up her stop sign. My daughter the traffic cop.

The first diaper delivery came this afternoon and they are super soft and yummy smelling and so so tiny!!

The Big C

2011-06-15T20:15:00.001-07:00

I woke up this morning completely hysterical over the idea of circumcision. Should we, shouldn't we, how should we, when should we. I spoke with two friends on the phone about it and then, while waiting on the bleachers at Little G's swim class, I managed to get two mothers of sons to engage in a debate over the issue (one had, one hadn't, both were total strangers to me). What I determined is that it really doesn't matter what anyone else has done because this is one of those things we have to figure out on our own. What I learned from our doctor's office this afternoon is that they have a special circumcision clinic with physicians who specialize in the procedure and two of them will be present the whole time. This seems like the next best thing to a mohel, though I'm secretly hoping at least one of these doctors will be Jewish. If we're going to do this, it's going to get done right.

Today, tomorrow and the future of shelving

2011-06-14T18:34:00.000-07:00

Progress was made today: shelving was purchased and assembled, stuff was thrown out, big sister gifts were purchased, free treats were collected from Aveda. My legs may or may not explode later tonight. Why do I have such a hard time following directions?

Tomorrow is Wednesday, aka The Longest Day of the Week. I can't wait until we finish up this schedule and start our summer stuff. Unfortunately, tomorrow night is also when we are going to do the maternity photos so I'm thinking I might not be glowing quite the way I'd hoped.

Mr. G is going to be home this weekend, which is super exciting and means that we can go to Ikea and bring home a bunch of stuff to assemble and fight about. It's a flawless plan: The Varde base cabinet goes in the kitchen (requiring us to rip out an old counter top), the tools and things under the old counter top go on the new shelving over the unstacked washer and dryer and the linens from the old washer/dryer set-up go in the new Leksvik which we will put where the old bookcase sits now. We just have to figure out where to put all those books . . .

Big Sister Class

2011-06-13T19:50:00.000-07:00

Today we went to a big sibling class, which they conveniently held on a weeknight right in the middle of dinner and bedtime (witness the hysterically tired child screaming from her bedroom). Timing aside, I was pretty excited to go because the class was taught by the woman who co-authored our birthing book and she is somewhat of a celebrity in the local birthing world. I have to say though, it was disappointing.

One of the first things the teacher did was ask the kids where the baby is now. Duh. As I often like to say, they're just short, not stupid. Then a birth was demonstrated using an extremely large doll and narrated by the teacher, which was great until she started saying, oh my God! oh my God!, something I found totally inappropriate (not that this phrase doesn't escape my lips on occasion, but still). The best part of the class, in my opinion and Little G's, was the real live baby that someone brought in for all the kids to hold. They even got to see him get his diaper changed.

Little G reports that she really liked the class, which is what matters since it was for her but I have to say I wouldn't recommend it.

Mr. G is finally home and I am so grateful to have another parent in the house.

You were hoping for another post about my legs, right?

2011-06-12T20:13:00.000-07:00

A week ago I was composing something in my head about all the great stuff that made my leg problem go away but then it turned out that what made my leg problem go away was staying off it like the doctors told me to.

I still want to recommend these totally glamorous compression stockings from Futuro because I think they've helped immensely. I even wore one to the ballet last night with a knee length dress because I'm certain it's the only thing between regular me and me with a bunch of veins popping loose from my calf. But, while they seem to be holding in all my parts, they are no longer helping much with the pain. I'm not sure if this is because the baby is getting heavier or if it's because, as much as I'd like to, I just can't lie on the couch all day.

In addition to my new fashion leg-wear, I propped up the end of my bed and have continued to go to the pool for hydro-fit classes every week. I'm sure all these things are making a difference but unfortunately sitting and standing still do me in every time.

As my dad (the M.D. one, not the J.D. one) tells me casually over breakfast, I have phlebitis and it should be fine, unless or until it becomes thrombophlebitis, which is, you know, dangerous. So what can I do but leave the arts and crafts materials from Friday strewn all over the living room floor and go straight to bed?

P.S. Has anyone seen my husband? I miss him.

P.P.S. Mr. G has objected to being labelled "absent" but I told him that you all understand he is just doing his job and it's not like he's out collecting digits at the local watering hole or something.

pomp and circumstance

2011-06-09T17:35:00.000-07:00

Little G's preschool commencement is this evening, made all the more ridiculous by the fact that she has one more year of preschool to complete. It's my personal opinion that kids are given way to many opportunities to "graduate" these days without actually having accomplished much but she is absolutely over the moon about this event. And, to tell you the truth, so am I because they are putting on a play in which she will star as the wind and it promises to be totally adorable in a way that only a parent can appreciate. So, if I can just live through the next twenty-nine minutes of, "Is it time to go yet?!," I'll be the proud mother of a graduate of one year of preschool.

Apologize to your brother

2011-06-08T19:01:00.000-07:00

He's not even born yet and I just had to ask Little G to apologize to her brother for the first time. While I acknowledged that it was an accident, taking a flying leap onto another human being and kneeing them hard in some unidentified yet extremely pokey part of the body is clearly not okay and I figured now was as good a time as any to start making that point. Of course the little guy is just fine but I'm not feeling so hot now. She's just lucky she didn't break my water, that would have been way too traumatic for everyone, especially her. I guess it's true what they say about the second pregnancy being a different experience from the first.

The opposite of imminent

2011-06-07T17:17:00.000-07:00

A visit to the doctor today confirmed that labor is anything but imminent, which is not very exciting but actually good news because I am a big believer in letting those kids cook until the bitter end. I am savoring this last month or so with the littlest one in rather than out as I'm still a bit nervous about what life will look like with a preschooler, a newborn and a mostly absent husband. Also, I have about twenty-seven things I need to purchase and assemble from Ikea.

My new goal is to work on my hypno-relaxation techniques as a means of putting myself to sleep. If I remember correctly, and it is a little hazy, had I been able to grant myself any super power after the birth of Little G it would have been the ability to fall asleep instantly and anywhere. There is nothing worse than lying awake in the middle of the night hours after you've gotten your hungry infant back to sleep. And then, just as you finally begin to nod off . . .

Anyway, I'm thinking that maybe if I start small with the rainbow mist visualizations I can work my way up to using hypnosis for the actual birth. As of today this feels a little far-fetched, although I did manage a very relaxing twenty minute lie-down before lunch.

pigs in a blanket

2011-06-06T16:39:00.000-07:00

Many many months ago, while I still had energy and could stand up for more than a minute at a time, I made a deal with a photographer friend that I would watch her kids in exchange for a maternity photo session. So today, against all my better judgment, we had her two kids over for the afternoon and, as it turns out, the experience was totally painless. What's more, I got to lie on the living room floor and play with an almost two-year-old while the older girls did their own thing. I understand that two-year-olds come with challenges but I think it is my favorite age so far and boy was it refreshing to hang out with a child who's most complicated thought was, "pig sleep in house." She never once asked me to explain about the Syrian Situation, grilled me on band-aid manufacturing processes or berated me for misplacing my keys.

You heard it here first, the simplicity of napping swine makes my brain smile. I always hoped my kids would surpass me in intelligence, I just never thought it would have happened by the age of four.

Hypnobaby

2011-06-05T17:22:00.000-07:00

I picked up a hypno birthing book at the library this weekend, thinking that maybe I should do something to prepare for this birth besides spackle. We took a birthing class last time but this time around it seemed like we had better things to do so I'm taking Little G to a big sibling class later this month and sort of hoping it will double as a refresher course for me. After all, birth isn't rocket science; the baby has to come out one way or another.

Or so I thought until I read the hypno book and discovered that I had done everything wrong the first time and most likely scarred my eldest child for life. For example, I learned last night that pushing is bad for the baby. Instead you should simply "breathe the baby out." Also, having an epidural will cause a permanent disconect between you and your child. Also, you should have your partner massage your perineum for five minutes every day.* Just how he wants to spend his free time.

To be fair, I think there's really something to this method and I plan on incorporating many of the techniques into my upcoming adventure. But why do they have to be so dogmatic about it? And why do hypnosis and relaxation techniques always involve so many balloons and rainbows?

*I'm not saying this sort of thing isn't helpful, I just personally don't really see it as a group activity. Notice also that wheneve they use the word "massage" in the context of birth it's usually one of the most painful things you'll ever experience (See "uterine massage").

I'm still here!

2011-06-02T11:35:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the absence, I know it's a sensitive time to disappear on you. My family went out of town for an extended long weekend and I ended up taking a little vacation right here at home. Just me and my swelling.

Little G and her dad spent five days in Wisconsin and Minnesota, attending a wedding and checking out the sights. It sounded like a blast and, although I was sorry I couldn't go too, I think it was a really nice chance for them to bond and have some much needed father-daughter time. Highlights include three straight days in the hotel pool, dancing on the stage at the wedding reception, playing mini-golf and sifting for gems at the MN science museum and visiting a bookstore with two resident chinchillas. Oh, and the polar bears at the Como Park Zoo. Apparently they are "gi-huge-ic."

My highlight was a prenatal massage, the delicious results of which lasted until about three hours after I picked up my people at the airport.

Last clinic night before maternity leave

2011-05-25T20:59:00.000-07:00

And all I really have to say is that no, the Governor of Washington State cannot pardon a crime committed under federal law. Really. No, really.

P.S. The Governor is SHE and here's a little pointer about asking people for the biggest favor of your life: know their gender.

Mystery Solved

2011-05-24T17:35:00.000-07:00

As it turns out, when you leave your bag outside the tent, small mammals are likely to use it as a hotel. This is especially true if it's unzipped. Now, of the three of us, I know I am the most excited about the little vestibule created by the rain fly on our new tent. In fact, when we went tent shopping, having a covered porch was one of my requirements (I hate having dirty shoes in the tent but not as much as I hate waking to soggy shoes in the morning). However, and I write this with so much love, does one adult camping with one small child in a four person tent really need to leave the bags in the vestibule? Ah well.

Why I don't camp

2011-05-23T19:00:00.001-07:00

I was unpacking Little G's camping stuff this afternoon, blithely pulling things out of the bag and putting them away in her room, when I first saw the tiny black pellets. I hoped it was dirt. I looked more closely. There were a lot of them and they weren't dirt. I hoped they were dirt just one last time.

Leave it to my family to go camping and come home with mouse droppings in their luggage. I can't imagine how it happened, especially given that there was no food in the bag, but I plan on interrogating Mr. G as soon as he has a free moment. Anyway, I'm going to wash the clothes that are still in there, smother the bag in hand sanitizer and try really hard not to think about the stuff that was unpacked yesterday and integrated back into her bedroom. Obviously this was a sweet, clean little wood mouse that was current on all its shots and out to spread nothing but love.

Triumphant return from the wilderness

2011-05-22T17:49:00.001-07:00

The campers have returned from their weekend adventure. They went hiking, attended an oyster festival, saw a deer cross the road, spotted a huge pothole and heard loons. Also, the new tent was a huge success and everyone stayed cozy and dry.

I have to admit, I was lonely while they were gone, despite the fact that my parents were in and out all weekend helping me do projects around the house. Or, to be perfectly honest, they were doing the projects and I was icing my leg and feeling guilty about how much work they were doing.

Then the rest of the family came home and three hours later I was suddenly exhausted again. And not lonely. At all. Actually, what I really want is to hang out with my husband who's been out of town for a week and working every day the two weeks before that.

Bedtime: 62 minutes and counting.

The last few miles

2011-05-19T19:25:00.000-07:00

I try to be good and stay off the feet but there is just way too much to get done. This weekend, after sending off the campers, I will rest. Meanwhile, the car is vacuumed (my car, not the camping car), the shelving is back up in Little G's room, the wash is done, the groceries are bought and the camping stuff is huddled in the living room, anxiously awaiting the moment when I haul it down the dock and pack it lovingly into the car. I just need to crawl over to the dishwasher and push start and then I can collapse on the couch with the latest episode of Top Chef Masters.

Wednesday, you are a lifetime

2011-05-18T19:38:00.000-07:00

Wednesday is the longest day of the week even when I haven't been told to avoid sitting and standing as much as possible and when Little G doesn't fall into a marsh across town forty-five minutes before school is supposed to start and when I don't have to spend over an hour at Target shopping for the upcoming father-daughter camping trip. As it turns out, those doctors were right - sitting and standing are not a good idea. None of them has shown up recently to do the grocery shopping or shuttle my kid to preschool though so I'm facing somewhat of a dilemma.

I did, however, have a wonderful conversation about marshmallows with a young Target employee named Anaib this afternoon. I asked where they were shelved and he ever so sweetly and shyly told me that he didn't exactly understand what I was after but that if it was some kind of platter I needed (indicating an oval plate shape with his hands) I would find it on the first floor in housewares. I almost adopted Anaib and brought him home and fed him s'mores but he disappeared into another aisle like an apparition, most likely gone home to his own family, none of whom try to force feed him jet-puffed corn syrup.

Hydrofit: Not for the faint of heart (or the notoriously uncoordinated)

2011-05-17T12:16:00.000-07:00

Those "old ladies" at hydrofit? Kicked my butt. Apparently water aerobics is a lot harder than it looks.

In fact, about five minutes into the class the instructor looked over at me and indicated that I should just keep my arms at my sides because clearly I was way too uncoordinated to be using all four limbs at once. No doubt she was concerned for the safety of the frailer students who were trying to exercise in my vicinity.

I did, however, excel at "Octopus," "Cossack Kicks" and the cross country skiing move although I never got the hang of something called the "Tire Jack." Surely because I've never changed a tire.

The goal of course, besides picking a few new octogenarian friends, was to help with the nerve issues I'm having in my leg and I think this was a success. I feel less swollen and tender and I can't really see the offending vein anymore. I read someplace that the benefits of water therapy should last about forty-eight hours but I'm seriously wondering if I'll be too sore to get back in the pool on Thursday.

Day 1 aka Monday aka Wish it was a Sunday

2011-05-16T18:22:00.000-07:00

Solo parenting all this week until Mr. G swoops in and takes the little one camping.

Currently experiencing bedtime tantrum number one for the week. Lucky for me, I'm too exhausted to get very angry.

Yesterday Mr. G asked me if there was anything I was looking forward to this week. Old lady water aerobics. I'll tell you how it goes.

Misadventures in Spanish Immersion

2011-05-13T14:10:00.000-07:00

This might surprise you but I've already started worrying about our schedule for next year. Now that I know Little G is not starting kindergarten (and boy was that the right choice), I'm getting slightly concerned about what she will do instead.

We're keeping the same preschool schedule, which is three half-days because that's as much as they offer at her school. This year though, they are starting a bonus pre-k program that meets on the other two afternoons but only for two hours at a time. The current school is not exceptionally far from our house but I'd feel silly driving up there and back twice in the span of two hours, especially when I have to strap and unstrap an extra person. Also, I'm not really sure that these extra four hours will do much to enrich Little G's life, academic, social or otherwise. And thirdly, as long as she's not starting kindergarten I don't see why we would we stick her in some other school all week when it's our last chance to vary the schedule and try new things.

So here was my brilliant plan . . . I recently decided that we would enroll her in two half-days at a nearby Spanish immersion preschool. She's been very interested in learning Spanish (or any second language, really) and she thrives in groups of other children. Thus, I deduced, the best plan would be to kill two birds with one stone and put her in Spanish preschool.

Friday morning we went to visit the immersion preschool, which is not walkable from our house but significantly closer than Little G's current school. I was underwhelmed. The kids were led mercilessly through one activity after another and not once was there any discussion or significant input from any of the students. Also, the classroom was filled to the gills with stuff and totally overstimulating. I decided that the only reason to send Little G there would be for the Spanish and ultimately that this was not a place I wanted my kid spending her last precious year before kindergarten. In other words, I realized that the right decision in English also turns out to be the right decision in Spanish.

Now I'm back on the hunt for regular Spanish lessons and I've decided to go ahead and spend some money on it because surely it won't be more than the two extra days of preschool I was prepared to pay for.

Leg Pain: The inside story

2011-05-11T15:35:00.000-07:00

When I said I was cleaning the house yesterday, it's possible that I was not being entirely truthful. I mean, I was vacuuming, dusting and putting things away but I was also climbing ladders and hoisting heavy boxes over my head into the loft and the attic. I was just afraid that the doctors and nurses wouldn't take the pain seriously if I admitted that it came on as I was crouched in the fetal position moving boxes around the loft. I knew it wasn't muscle pain and I didn't want to be sent home without checking the other possibilities.

This is, in fact, a problem I often have with the health care system. In my mind there are three situations you can be in when it comes to health issues: 1) I know what's wrong with me and I either know how to fix it or understand that nothing can be done, 2) I have a pretty good idea of what's wrong with me and I know that I need a doctor to either write me a prescription, rule something out or tell me nothing can be done, 3) I'm in pain and I'm scared because I have no idea what is causing it.

Yesterday I was dealing with a combo of #2 and #3. I knew enough about the possibilities to be scared and I needed someone to rule out what I was scared of. This is why I was annoyed when the doctor started explaining to me that in pregnancy there is an increased risk of clotting. Or maybe the right word here is not annoyed but embarrassed. I was embarrassed that he thought I might be the sort of person that would come into urgent care with leg pain not knowing about the increased risk of clotting. In other words, I didn't want him thinking I was some crazy hypochondriac who was there to waste his time with an achy calf. (in large part because he was nice and polite and I liked him).

I feel this way a lot at the doctor's office and I haven't been able to determine whether it's me or them. I'd like to be treated as an equal until I prove otherwise, even though I understand I don't have the same specialized knowledge that they do. This is how I treat my legal clients and it seems like the only courteous thing to do. I find that there is always a polite way to ask if someone is familiar with a concept without making them feel stupid. So why does this approach seem to be the exception at the doctor's office?

And just so you don't think I blame the medical professionals for everything, I should tell you that the ultrasound tech was a sweetheart with a great sense of humor who listened gamely while I tried to explain that I felt like I had stepped onto a seriously un-fun carnival ride that I would never be let off of. "I'm an attorney," I said at one point, "so I know why I'm here." "Well," she responded, "I wasn't going to say anything but yeah, it's your profession that keeps mine in business." We're all guilty of something.

You are in room 111, still

2011-05-10T21:07:00.000-07:00

When am I going to wise up and stop going to urgent care? I go once, waste an entire day at the hospital only to be told everything is fine (thankfully), promise myself I'll never do it again and then ten to twelve months later there I am, sitting for hours in a windowless exam room cursing myself for going back. Sort of like binge drinking.

Today, while cleaning the house, I got an inexplicable pain in my calf, right were I know there is a vein and then the pain started to creep upwards and it crossed my mind that it might be some kind of clot. So I looked it up in a pregnancy book and the book said to call my health care provider. And when your OB says to go to urgent care you go, right? I went. And there I stayed from three until nearly 7 o'clock. Here's what the doctor told me, "Make sure your husband does the housecleaning from now on."

The silver lining is that I did not have to finish cleaning the house. Our dinner guests were already at our home when I arrived and the world did not end, despite the fact that I never had a chance to bleach the bathroom sink. Also, ninety-nine percent of the hospital staff was awesome. A special shout-out to the guy who looked in on me at exactly the moment I thought I might faint from hunger and came back almost instantaneously with cheese, crackers and apple juice. I almost ran away with him. I could, however, have done without the triage nurse who I'm guessing was mostly trained at GITMO. No, Nasty McSnarkerson, I don't know if the crouching caused my pain because if I possessed magical diagnostic powers I probably wouldn't be sitting in triage, would I?

Never again. And I really mean it this time.

To sleep, perchance to sleep some more

2011-05-09T16:17:00.000-07:00

I'm noticing a direct relationship between how big/tired I get and Little G's attitude/anxiety. Just when I was beginning to feel incredibly lucky to still be sleeping deliciously through the night, Little G started waking up with nightmares. During the day, she is prone to melting into hysterics and we've noticed a marked decrease in the use of her manners. Of course there is nothing mysterious about this behavior, I get it. My heart goes out to her and I try to be patient and extra loving. But here we are, a couple months out from the baby's arrival, Mr. G won't have any time off between now and the birth, and the Braxton-Hicks have started. Nothing like contractions, false or no, to make one's patience run thin. My mom has offered to do more childcare for me and we're thinking of making another visit to the kid therapist for some professional pointers. Any advice?

Weekend Forecast

2011-05-05T18:17:00.000-07:00

Thursday is my day of rest and I'm glad I took full advantage of it this week because we just found out that Mr. G has to work both days this weekend. There will still be plenty of fun, just different fun. The sort of fun that requires me to get off the couch and change out of my pajamas. We'll go to a birthday party and, if I'm really feeling energetic, meander up to the ship canal and watch the boat parade. Maybe there will be cobbler or a trip to the aquarium. The world is our oyster for as long as I can stay awake.

Bits and Congratulations

2011-05-04T17:33:00.000-07:00

The big news today is that I cooked something for dinner. Perhaps there is a chance that our kid will not grow up thinking we are Thai.

Thank you to everyone who's chimed in with positive feedback about our kindergarten choice, through comments or otherwise. I'm still feeling really good about the choice but slightly nervous about how to schedule next year. She'll go to the same preschool but they are still only offering three half-days a week and that doesn't really feel like enough.

---

Molly, congratulations! What exciting news! Please keep me posted.

Procrastecision

2011-05-03T18:53:00.000-07:00

We finally made a decision about school and, although I did what I know is right for Little G, it was also sort of a passive process. The form for early entrance to kindergarten was due at the end of April and we just never sent it in. I went so far as to look at the form on the internet and I was so offended by the questions ("Can your child use a crayon?") that I didn't even want to print the thing out. Or send in ninety dollars for a test that would surely win her early entrance but not a spot at the school near our home.

There were, of course, other factors we considered: the new sibling, how focused Little G is on play, how little interest she shows in academics (she'll sit and do the Sudoku all morning but has zero patience for learning to write numbers correctly), her deep need to flail, her nervousness around new people and etc.

Oh, and I was reading a Newsweek article at the doctor's office that said people who start formal education after the age of six live longer. So there you go.

Whatever the reasons, I'm relieved that the decision has been made and we won't spend the summer worrying about it. This should free up plenty of time for second guessing.

When to say nothing at all

2011-05-02T19:56:00.000-07:00

I understand from my doctor that during a second pregnancy everything is sort of, lower. Which I guess is a gentle way of reminding me that I'm older and sagging in places I didn't even know I had. I'm telling you this because, why? I want you to feel as disgusted and uncomfortable as I do? Sort of. But also just as an excuse for not writing about our great anniversary getaway or how cool it was to watch the Governor sign my bill. I hurt like I did about a week before Little G was born and yet we have many many weeks to go.

So if you don't hear from me, it's because I have nothing nice to say.

Oh wait, but here's something nice: We spent Sunday afternoon going through all our old baby clothes and all the awesome stuff that people have handed down to us and it's so friggin' cute! I'm getting very excited to meet the little guy.

She signed you, Bill!

2011-04-28T20:48:00.000-07:00

Presentation over! I conveyed information, people clapped. My work is done.

Guess what's even better? The Governor signs my bill tomorrow! It's going to be a law!

And then? I'm going to spend Saturday night in a fancy hotel with my husband celebrating our sixth wedding anniversary.

Awesome.

You won't be sorry you made this dessert

2011-04-27T20:27:00.000-07:00

One more thing about our Seder: the dessert. I found the recipe in a magazine called Living Without (if that's not the most depressing name for a periodical, I don't know what is) and one of the other dinner guests made it and it was the best gluten and dairy free thing I've ever eaten. Hands down. Even the people on normal diets raved about it.

Here is the link, but I also have a few notes to add.

1) Most macaroons for Passover are made with matzoh flour so we decided it would be best to just make a regular coconut macaroon recipe (I used the one from the Joy of Cooking), press it into a springform pan and bake it into a crust. Of course, if you do this, the dessert is no longer egg free.

2) If you make your own crust, use parchment paper.

3) The whipped coconut milk turned out a little more like ice-cream than whipped cream but clearly nobody minded.

4) Don't skip the strawberries.

Nose to the grindstone

2011-04-26T20:09:00.000-07:00

filled up the car
dropped off the dry cleaning
called the credit card company
attended 2 meetings

All between noon and four!

I also finished my PowerPoint presentation for Thursday, but not between noon and four.

American Wedding

2011-04-24T18:55:00.001-07:00

We happened to turn on the television last night just as Joseph Millar was reading his poem, "American Wedding." I was literally crying into my halibut dinner as we listened, it's that good, so I decided to share it with you.

I'm behind

2011-04-24T18:07:00.000-07:00

This is usually the part where I wax poetic about our fabulous Seder. Don't get me wrong, the Seder was fabulous, but I still haven't recovered from spring break and Little G hasn't recovered from eating her weight in chocolate and staying up hours past her bedtime. So I'm not feeling all that poetic this evening.

There were a lot of things I needed to get done last week that didn't happen and I realized just how important Little G's time at preschool is for me. (and I do mean things besides lying on the couch watching television). Thus, this week needs to include both rest time and plenty of buckle down and work time. I'm presenting at a big annual meeting on Thursday and I'm really hoping to hear from the Governor's office about the signing ceremony for our bill. Best case scenario, it gets signed before the meeting.

The very long day

2011-04-21T20:29:00.001-07:00

We took the ferry to the Bainbridge children's museum today. Not only was the boat ride beautiful, but the museum was practically empty all day.

Now I am spent. One more day of spring break to go! But wait, I don't want to give you the wrong impression - I have loved spending this time with Little G. I just miss my naps.

So I guess that's art.

2011-04-20T21:17:00.000-07:00

We went to see the Nick Cave exhibit at the Seattle Art Museum today (there are some good pictures with this article).

What can I say except that it reminded me of why I love sloth bears so much, validated my need to save old felted sweaters for future, inarticulable projects, unearthed some very vivid tactile memories of metal tops from my childhood and made me want to dance like no one was watching.

I highly recommend it.

Visit to the Reptile Zoo

2011-04-19T19:56:00.000-07:00

It's spring break for Little G this week and we are trying to fill the time with, well, anything really. So today we made the trek out to ruralville to visit the Reptile Zoo.

Reptile Man is this really knowledgeable, extremely calm guy who drives around to assemblies with reptiles in gigantic plastic tubs. His presentations are awesome so we thought his zoo would be pretty neat too.

I think our favorite resident of the zoo was the Florida Soft-Shell turtle (pictured here, courtesy of the Reptile Zoo website). How weird is that nose thing? It's a turtle with lips! My second favorite were the baby tortoises, which were absolutely adorable and for sale.

All in all, not the worst way to pass an afternoon.

Passover Good Enough

2011-04-18T16:21:00.000-07:00

That's right, we are eschewing Passover Perfect this year. And by Passover Perfect I mean our regular standards, which weren't exactly perfect to begin with. I even begged off hosting the Seder because I looked around the house last week and nearly fainted at the thought of getting it ready to host three other families for a sit-down dinner. Also, in the interest of the developing fetal-brain, I will be eating soy products this week to keep up the protein intake and we are inviting the ever-controversial quinoa to our Seder table.

I have, however, managed to clean the crumbs out of the toaster oven and we made some gluten-free matzoh today, a process I recommend to no one.

The perfect part comes on Saturday, when we sit down to second Seder with our dear friends, eat the food we've made together and drink wine until we're singing our hearts out.*

*Don't worry, I won't be drinking wine, just singing my heart out . . . which I guess could also be a reason to worry.

Growing Pains

2011-04-14T19:12:00.000-07:00

Little G is starting to show signs of stress over the impending arrival of her brother. I knew this would happen, in fact I thought it would start sooner, but it's still difficult to watch. We've had two bedtime meltdowns in a row and, even though she's been sick, it's not like her to get so upset about little things. This evening she started crying real tears when Mr. G said he wouldn't read another Hanukkah book (he relented) and last night there was complete disintegration over whether or not she'd given me a hug and a kiss before stories. I ended up lying on the floor next to her mattress while she poured her heart out to me. "What if he only breastfeeds?!," she sobbed. It turns out her number one concern is that the baby won't take a bottle and she and I will never get any alone time together. Funny coming from a child who refused every type of bottle on the planet. I don't know if it makes it harder or easier that her worries are totally rational. Maybe if I spend the next few months trying to convince her that everything will be fine, I'll believe it too.

Just Wednesday

2011-04-13T19:26:00.000-07:00

Not much to report except that I started moving things back into Little G's room and I'm happy to say that the paint job has really improved things in there. It's especially nice not to have a bunch of holes in the wall. Amazing what a little spackle can do for the place. As for the clouds I was going to paint on the ceiling, well, I remembered that I don't have an artistic bone in my body and asked my mother if she would do it instead. She's actually talented in this area and I'm excited to see what she comes up with.

Staying Put

2011-04-12T19:29:00.000-07:00

It came to my attention Sunday morning that most of our neighbors think we are moving when the baby comes. I would expect this from uplanders, who don't get what it means to be a houseboater. In fact, during my first pregnancy the most common question I got after, "When are you due?" was "When are you moving?" I figured they just didn't understand about living on the water. But this time around, when we started getting it from neighbors, I began to worry that maybe staying on the house was a little crazy.

Four people, nine hundred square feet, two bedrooms, one bathroom and way, way too much stuff. Have we lost our minds?

Decidedly not. Living in a small space may be more difficult than raising a family somewhere sprawling but it can teach you and your kids a few important things:

1) All space is shared space and everyone is responsible for keeping it livable.
2) It's important to be aware of other people's feelings and to act compassionately.
3) Think carefully before you bring new things into your space - How many uses does it have? Where will you put it? Is it beautiful, well-made, sturdy? What will you do with it when it's no longer of use to you?
4) Patience (See one bathroom).
5) Flexibility.
6) Familiarity with local resources such as community centers and libraries.

And those are just a few. So yes, it may feel crazy around here some of the time, but I know it's worth it because we're living in a place we love and the main side effects happen to be important life lessons for adults and children alike. Well, that and we get a break on the rent.

Big Bird, the accidental missionary

2011-04-11T13:21:00.001-07:00

Little G caught a cold over the weekend so, when we stopped at the library this morning, I let her pick out a Sesame Street DVD. (For some reason, as much as I'm against television, I feel like a good parent when I have a sick kid tucked under a blanket watching Sesame Street.) Sunday night wasn't super restful due to her cough and the fact that she was sleeping in our room to avoid paint fumes, so I decided to go lie down on my bed while she watched the show. When the DVD came to end, she came into my room and we had the following conversation:

LG: "So I guess Big Bird is Christian."

Mrs. G: "Why's that?"

LG: "Because he believes someone came back to life."

Luckily I'd been listening in during my rest and, after making some further inquiries, I deduced that, when confronted with the news of a friend's death, Big Bird assumed that the friend would be coming back and Maria had to gently explain that when a person dies, they never come back. "And people don't actually come back to life," Little G told me, "not even Jesus."

Clearly Easter is coming and we've been talking resurrection. For the record, we have many of these conversations in front of Mr. G but our resident Christian rarely has anything to add to my bare bones explanations. I've tried to tell Little G that she shouldn't make snap decisions on issues of faith. I even tried a new-age twist on the literal pushing away the stone story and proposed that maybe Jesus and his message live on in people's hearts, if not, you know out and about (if there wasn't a Church of Reform Christianity there is now). So far she's not having any of it, but you can't say I didn't give it the old college try. Meanwhile, I could really go for a Cadbury creme egg and perhaps a handful of those mini eggs with crisp sugar shells.

Room Redux

2011-04-10T19:27:00.001-07:00

We were so very close to living in a normal house again. And then we had that window replaced in Little G's room, which led to Mr. G ripping down this tiny, stupid shelf on the adjacent wall (he did it out of love for me), which then led to spackling, sanding and painting, and what does painting ever lead to if not more painting.

I've been hemming and hawing over how to redecorate (or should I say decorate) Little G's room for a couple of months because it's always been way too random for my taste. Too much white, too much trim, old curtains from my mom's house, gigantic holes in the wall where my old roommate used to have shelving - a mess. We had decided on a space theme because Little G is still obsessed with all things planetary but then she wanted stage curtains and it became clear that we needed to go a little less literal or the randomness was going to eat us alive.

We recently bought Little G the Happyville Play Rug from Learning Carpets (that's Happyville on your right) and, after all that hand wringing over design, the carpet inspired me to do a couple sections of her ceiling blue with white clouds. Her bed is under a loft so we'll paint the section over her bed and also the section over the future changing table, which is technically in a large closet so there was another convenient delineation there. My mom is working on the velvet stage curtains, to be hung from the edge of the loft to create a little grotto and give her some privacy from the rest of the family.

I still need new curtains, a couple light fixtures and the ability to channel Bob Ross as I paint happy little clouds all over the ceiling.

Banner Day!

2011-04-07T17:09:00.001-07:00

It's a good day for the Gregorton's (except I just found out that Mr. G tripped down a stair and did something painful to his shoulder, but he's okay!)!

The window/deck/floor joist project is complete. I could really get used to this home improvement thing because, wow, everything looks so much better when those guys are finished. It's like the blue fairy came and turned our wall into a real wall. Of course the wall next to it still has weird random trim and an unexplained hole in the lower right corner but we'll deal with that another day. I should take pictures right now because it's actually sunny but I'll wait until the new parts are painted and we have Little G's books back on the shelves (like, in a year).

Just as the finishing touches were going up on the wall, the houseboat bill was being read on the Senate floor and, thanks to our awesome lobbyist who called me just in time, I got to watch the action live on TVW. The end result was that the bill passed out of the Senate with the amendment we negotiated and everyone ultimately agreed to. Now it will move back to the House and then, if all my dreams come true, to the Governor for her signature. Yay!

Just one more new window before the baby comes . . .

2011-04-05T15:04:00.000-07:00

. . . we said to ourselves. I wasn't looking forward to the noise or the dust or the guys hanging around the house (they could be my best friends and I still wouldn't want them around all day long). But we had a situation that involved mold and a gigantic, floor-to-ceiling piece of glass that I was sure someone would fall through one day. So they came this morning and took out the old window, only to find that the entire wall was being supported but a single two-by-four (I had the distinct pleasure of sticking my hand through the other three and watching them disintegrate before my eyes). And here we are, with four feet of deck torn up, in the midst of some pretty intense drilling, sawing, patching and finger-crossing. I know I'll be pleased when it's all finished but this is exactly why I always hesitate to open walls in this house.

The order of things to come

2011-04-04T17:28:00.001-07:00

Lately I've been planning special activities for Little G and me because I feel like it's our last chance to spend some quality time together before the baby comes. We've seen a play, taken a cooking class, browsed bookstores and visited museums. Today we spent a lovely afternoon at Paint the Town, decorating a seder plate for Passover. We worked for nearly two hours in the studio, her designing and painting and me touching up, doing second and third coats and adding the details with paint pens.

We don't have a special set of dishes for Passover or, until today, really anything for the seder that isn't scrounged from our everyday dishware. Now we can look forward to the unpacking of our frog and tulip seder plate, a keepsake to remind us of our family's modern-day journey out of three and into four.

Best weekend ever!

2011-04-03T18:46:00.000-07:00

It's April, the month of our wedding anniversary, which makes me smile.

Saturday morning yoga (on my new yoga mat!) was awesome and then we went to Costco and later Whole Foods made us dinner. But the absolute highlight had to be when, on his way to vacuum out the car today, Mr. G asked if he needed to make me a snack. This after fixing both breakfast and lunch.

You're not going to catch me turning away jewelry but I think it's safe to say that food is the way to my heart.

Yippee!

2011-04-01T18:27:00.000-07:00

All the government stakeholders agreed to the most recent amendment we proposed for the bill! My faith in law-making is renewed. What a great way to start the weekend.

Hope is on the way

2011-03-31T19:13:00.000-07:00

My dad's coming over for breakfast tomorrow morning (because we are not the sort of people who can be dressed and sitting in a restaurant at 7:30 a.m.), which means I became a highly motivated house cleaner this afternoon. I don't want you to worry, I made time to watch the season finale of Top Chef too but I also got so much done around the house that Mr. G actually noticed. While there is still a pile of stuff in the living room, it has shrunk significantly and looks more like a few things in transition than a small town transfer station. We may dig ourselves out of this after all.

A room of my own

2011-03-29T10:42:00.001-07:00

I've been having a recurring dream lately about finding new rooms in our house. The first time it was just one room, but every time I've had the dream since, there have been more and more rooms revealed to me and last night I even came across a second story. I'm always touring the house with a family member and there's nothing scary about the discoveries; even though the spaces are made entirely of dark wood, the sun is shining outside and we're falling in love with the house all over again. The one downside is that the rooms are always in a state of complete disrepair - I even discovered a homeless man sleeping in one last night.

I started to wonder if my subconscious was worried about fitting the new family into two bedrooms. Or maybe this was beyond worry, maybe it was a sign that we need to move. So I asked my analyst, Dr. Google, and she pointed me to this website about dream symbols.

From the website I learned that, "dreams of new rooms invite us to look at what we thought were our limitations, and to recognize that we can move beyond them . . . We may even have recurring dreams of many new rooms over a series of dreams and different nights, as our new life starts to unfold before us." Unfortunately, the only commentary I found on the state of the rooms was that, "finding rooms grandly embellished and furnished luxuriously can indicate we have come to a very rich and rewarding part of our selves." If the inverse is true, I suppose the dream means I have discovered new skills that need a bit of honing, which is still pretty cool. I just have to figure out what to do with that homeless guy.

Project Comparison

2011-03-28T17:48:00.000-07:00

I don't remember being nearly this tired the last time a made another person. Of course there are many explanations for this: I'm running around after a four year old all day, I'm nearly five years older than last time, I no longer have a memory of anything that happened before right now (see explanations #1 and #2).

I'm lucky though, because Little G sort of lets me take naps and I'm still sleeping well at night. Which means that making people is still way less frustrating than trying to make law and I can safely say that, while I'll miss pregnancy, I won't miss negotiating endlessly over legislation . . . until I forget how annoying it is.

On Demand on thin ice

2011-03-24T19:54:00.000-07:00

Let's live blog as I scroll through On Demand looking for something to watch, shall we? True confessions of truly bad T.V.

I wait all week to watch Top Chef and then they don't even have the old ones up any more? Like the whole season was just a mirage and now I'll never know who can make risotto that clumps properly on when served? Padma, you're killing me.

While we're in the T's why not check in on Teen Mom 2. Yes, I said Teen Mom 2, but please don't tell anybody that I watch this show. I tuned in one night when Mr. G was at work and there was this thing about a baby who's legs didn't work and I had to find out her MIR results but it took about five episodes to get to that part and now they're taking her for a second opinion. I watch because I care.

Now back up to A-F where we discover that there is nothing new listed under Bethenny. I freely admit that even I have become bored with Bethenny and her ridiculous life. But how do you turn away from a train wreck. A train wreck with a potty-mouthed baby nurse.

Next we find that Buddy the Cake Boss hasn't been able to move on from the flushing toilet cake he made way back at the beginning of the month. Just like a man to get hung up on some Freudian dessert and forget all about the people who need him.

D.C. Cupcakes, also a disappointment. What does a girl have to do to watch someone frost something around here?!

This is where we briefly consider watching The Cupcake Girls but remember, just in the nick of time, how annoying and whiny and Canadian they are. (I can think of three different cupcake reality shows off the top of my head. Surely this is what they mean when they say market saturation.)

Hmmm, no new episode of Parenthood either. Not that I was thinking of watching it without Mr. G . . . just checking.

And now is when we have to make the big decision of the night. Hour after hour of the Food Network until I go into a bread and cheese frenzy, try one of those formulaic mystery shows that puts me to sleep or gorge myself on Bravo classics. It's a busy night here on the couch.

Update: Top Chef All-Stars finale in six days!

Half way to perfect

2011-03-23T19:29:00.000-07:00

I found the most awesome maternity jeans today. And I mean the wash is just right and they make my rear look cute and everything. For a mere $11.99. Life is good.

If only we could figure out what to name this baby. I know we have time, it's not an emergency. But with Little G we knew we had it right and it's not coming so easily with this one. You might have guessed that I'm not the sort of person who could just wait and see what he looks like, I need to know ahead of time - a lot ahead of time if at all possible. I realized tonight though that my consternation is not coming as much from the not knowing as from not having that magic, name-made-in-heaven experience. But I'm holding out hope.

Not just a bill

2011-03-22T20:23:00.000-07:00

Major unpleasantness with the legislation stuff today. My thumbs hurt from all the texting. I'm tired of being jerked around (but I'll never give in!). Some stakeholders are being cool and some are decidedly not.

Tomorrow I'll try to find some clothes and then I'm sure everything will be better.

It's possible that I'm heavier than usual

2011-03-21T20:02:00.000-07:00

Lately I've been thinking I need to get more exercise, so today we walked to the library and then later up to the playground. Doing these things used to really wear Little G out but today she stayed perky and I thought I might collapse. On the up side, I'm sure I'll sleep well.

There went Purim

2011-03-20T17:42:00.000-07:00

The socializing sneaked up on me this weekend and now I'm a puddle. A puddle that is really looking forward to eating some Mint Galactica.

My hope for next week is that I'll wrap up the last of the negotiations on the houseboat bill, find some clothes that fit, figure out something new and yummy to cook for dinner and also make sure there is plenty of couch time. Oh, and maybe, just maybe make a dent in the pile of stuff on the living room floor. I decided to forgo the bedroom furniture search for a while since we need room in there for a crib, but now I need more storage in the kitchen . . .

Oh, and can you believe we didn't manage to make the hamantaschen today? Tomorrow, tomorrow for sure. Little G had an awesome time at the carnival though, and she didn't miss the cookies at all.

A little something else about sausage making

2011-03-17T17:36:00.001-07:00

Mr. G told me last night that when he read the title of yesterday's post, he thought it was going to be about the baby boy we're expecting this summer (btw, we're expecting a baby boy this summer). It took me a second and then I was like, oh my god, you're right . . . I made a penis!

Ever since the ultrasound tech told us this baby is a boy, I've been a little stunned but it's been hard to put my finger on why. I suppose it's partly because Little G is a girl and I'm a girl and it just seemed natural that I'd make another girl but there was something else. And now I think I might know what that something else is. Bringing a future man into the world feels like a big responsibility. And, while I understand that a person is more than the sum of his parts, I've had enough unpleasant run-ins with certain aforementioned parts to feel some apprehension about creating one myself.

At his point, I'm less stunned and more elated but I know that I have my work cut out for me. The adventure continues . . .