I Suck

So last night I slipped on the stairs while carrying AK. LP was behind us. On impact both girls began crying immediately. The Hoos took AK, I ignored any minor aches or scrapes and scooped up LP (who was just scared), "I didn't like that!" Me neither, kid.

After an hour AK calmed down but anytime we touched her left leg her eyes would well up. based on how I was carrying her - on my right hip - we think her leg might have gotten smooshed under me when I went down. Fortunately our pediatrician has an after-hours "Urgi-Kids" program until 9. At 8:30 I packed AK up and rushed off to the doctor. Unfortunately, the X-ray techs leaves at 6:30.

At 9:15 we were on our way to the ER at Norwalk hospital for some x-rays. We saw a nurse to take AK's vitals pretty quickly and then settled in to wait our turn for a doctor. Oddly enough, AK had slept much of the day at day care so she remained awake this entire time and only got a bit restless around 10:15 when thy finally brought us into a room. I was able to nurse her to keep her calm while the x-ray room was prepped. Good thing they prepped it, because the tech had me remove AK's diaper (I have no idea why) and she promptly peed all over the place.

Three x-rays and way too many minutes later , around 11:15 AK's leg was splinted and we were trying to figure out how to get our car (since the valet was now off duty). We were home at 11:30 and I can't really say I ever went to bed. AK slept with us most of the night and I was afraid to jostle her and hurt her.

This morning we went to the orthopedist and he confirmed that AK has a torque fracture. He explained it as being similar to bending a paper towel roll. Babies bones are flexible and they don't break, but they bend. He said she really shouldn't be feeling much pain. The splint is immobilizing the injury and she can resume any normal activities - like sitting and attempting to crawl. He thought it should take about two weeks to heal ; I have no idea how long it will take me to heal.

This post is closed to comments. I feel bad enough and likely won't be talking about this again.

You Know You're a Mom When...

• searching through your purse for your work ID badge you have to sift through random detritus, like diapers and wipes
• your own snot is the least disgusting thing on a used tissue in your pocket
• you realize it is just easier to catch throw up in your hand rather than clean it up off the furniture after the fact
• making three different meals is "just easier"
• you start downloading StoryNory and Sesame Street podcasts to your iPod
• the last CD you bought contains the song "No more monkeys jumping on the bed"
• you don't mind waiting for the cable technician to show up as long as he makes Nick Jr. onDemand stop freezing
• you hate specific toys with a vehemence you didn't know you had

Following Her Lead

You know, being a follower is so underrated.

For instance, I learned too late in the game that you can not really lead a child to potty training.
I think the Hoos and I put in too much effort trying to get LP to use the toilet. We probably wasted a lot of energy cajoling her to sit her cute little tush on the pot. Because, all of a sudden, on December 19th, she just did it. She stopped whining, complaining and squirming and just stopped using diapers. Yesterday we had the potty party with some of her friends to celebrate and a good time was had by all. She still wears pull-ups at night, but I am not going to worry about that. We talk to her about staying dray over night, but beyond that, I am finally just going to follow her lead.

I also followed my friend Amy's lead last night. One of the mom's that attended the party, her kids are the same age as AK and LP. In fact, we consider her little boy AK's boyfriend. She told me that the night before she just stopped feeding Boyfriend at night. Instead of worrying about him waking up his sister, they put her in their room and let Boyfriend cry it out.

With a new found resolve, I did the same thing last night (except LP has her own room and I just didn't worry about AK waking her up). When AK woke up at 3:30 instead of being thankful we made it that long and just feeding her, I went in, put the paci in her mouth and ignored her pleading look and bobbing head as I scurried back out of her room. After less than 5 minutes her faint cries stopped. She made some sounds a few other times during the night after that, but since they stopped after less than 5 minutes, I didn't even have to get out of bed.

I didn't even mind when she called for me at 7. I (thanks to my engorged girls) was more than happy to feed her and play with her. And so far today her schedule has been great. She took a short nap in the grocery store and has been cheery and happy and cute the rest of the time.

This type-A girl might start taking the back seat more often...

Aaaaaaaaaaiiiiiiiiiiiii!!!!!!!!!

Last night AK started playing a new game. As far as I can tell the main objective is to rip my nipples off. I guess when she is done eating she figures it would be a good time to latch onto my boob with her hard little gums and pull back hard and fast. As I cringe and try to pull her toward me she laughs hysterically as if this is the best game ever as opposed to an incredibly cruel and painful way to beat mommy down.

For the last few nights she has only been waking up once so I figure she has moved on from sleep deprivation to this new form of torture. After surviving these attacks a few times in a row last night I finally giving up on trying to feed her. Fortunately when I fed her at 2 she just ate and went back to sleep. Same thing with when I fed her before leaving for work. Which is good, because I had already started contemplating giving up nursing.

As the Dude said, this will not abide. Not for long at least.

So Much Pressure

Now that I have more then two people reading my blog - thanks Mom and Dad! - I feel an obligation to attempt to post every day.

Therefore, because some of you love me so much that you check back at ctworkingmom.blogspot.com several times a day - again, thanks, Mom and Dad! - all of you have to suffer through not-so-interesting posts.

Here goes:

Food Bites. Yesterday I learned that AK loves peas and is an expert at picking them up in her little fists and squeezing them into her mouth. The day before I also determined that LP is not the only member of the family that absolutely loves Magic Pop rice cakes. If you haven't had them, they are awesome; larger, lighter, sweeter versions of those dense styrofoam hockey pucks that were all the rage in the 80s. They are great for infants because they literally melt in your mouth.

Potty Time. I spent part of last night free-handing a drawing of a toilet onto a large piece of cardboard. The Hoos will be cutting a hole in it and it will be a star attraction at our upcoming potty party to celebrate LP's potty-training success. She is still a superstar, wearing diapers only to sleep, and we are very proud of her. I love not having to carry around multiple sizes of diapers during the day so much that we will start training AK tomorrow.

Your Turn. Dudes, you all make me feel guilty for not posting daily, and yet when I offer up enticing prizes for posting a comment, only Di and Lori respond (love you girls! gifts will be forthcoming). I know that I have other readers lurking out there - and not just the ones that stumble here looking for the translation of Les Zombies Et Les Loup-Garous (the zombies and the werewolves if you must know). In fact, almost 30 of you actually have me on your feeds. I feel super cool, but would feel so much cooler if I knew WHO YOU WERE.

Tissue? I Don't Even Know You!

Man, do I hate the snots. Oh, the wonderful winter!

According to the Hoos, AK's entire day care class seems to be dripping from the nose. I can't imagine the situation in LP's class being much different. Despite both girls being on antibiotics and abundant use of Purell and Lysol, I don't see life being less booger-ific anytime in the near future.

Before having AK I remember hearing that two kids means more than twice the work, but I don't remember hearing that the number of doctor visits grows exponentially as well. If one isn't sick, the other is; and if one is sick, the other is shortly thereafter. And then you need to go back for a re-check...

Literally, we have been to the pediatrician at least once a week every week since early December. At this rate by Flex Spending Account dollars will be used up by March!

A New Woman

Last night, despite all of the ladies in our house having colds, I had a great night of sleep. Definitely in the top three of the last 7.5 months. AK slept until 4am and then until 8!! I still have a cold, but I definitely feel that my immunity is boosted by me being a bit less exhausted than usual.

This weekend also had some other highlights:

1. My new washer and dryer were delivered! I never thought I would be one of those people that was excited by new appliances, but I also never thought I would never be one of those people that had mountains of laundry that seem to procreate. My new Kenmore 800s are cavernous, efficient, and way younger than the 23 year old washer and 18 year old dryer we got rid of. Woo-hoo!
2. We sold my Escape! In 2001 I bought my first new car, a red Ford Escape, nicknamed "My Pretty Baby". She replaced a 91 Buick Regal my grandparents gave to me as a graduation gift. I loved My Pretty Baby. She was pretty, new, fit my personality...but in October 08 we needed more interior space (two car seats will for that to you) and I was jonesing for a fresh ride that wasn't going to be needing serious replacement parts in the coming years. Enter My Trusty Steed, my new CRV. I felt guilty when we couldn't sell the Escape and she hung around way longer than anticipated. I was thrilled when she was finally snapped up this weekend. YAY!!! We are back to being a two (Honda) car family.
3. My blog hit its second birthday! Leave me a comment with some good karma that hit you recently and you are eligible to win some of the cool prizes I have accrued since starting this blog:

• Carmen Electra Strip Tease Work-out DVDs (unopened - shocking, I know),
• Margarita Mama: Mocktails for Moms-to-Be. A book of cocktail recipes for those that can't partake in alcohol
• daysago digital day counters. When you want to know how long something really has been in your fridge.

Here's hoping this is just the start of an awesome week!

The Longest Day Ever

Actually, it all started yesterday at 4:15 when day care called to tell me to pick up LP -they thought she had pink eye.

I secured a 5:15 doctor's appointment and high-tailed in out of work. Sure enough, LP's eye looked gross - lovely green discharge. The Hoos says she didn't have it when he dropped her off (he wouldn't have left her) and I find it hard to believe no one noticed until 4:15. But I digress.

AK, LP and I get to the doctor at 5:10. They call us in at 5:50. The PA sees us at 6:15 (both girls were grumpy at this point and AK was starving, plus she hadn't had an afternoon nap - sweetness!) and is done with us by 6:17.

We finally get everyone to bed around 9 - after much screaming by LP about how much she hates the eye drops, "it stings! it stings!"

AK was up at 12:30. I tried to barely feed her and get her to go back to sleep. That didn't work. I was totally zonked. Fortunately, the Hoos goes and gets her and somehow manages to get her to sleep by 1:30.

And then LP calls for water. And tissues.

I think at 4 I got up and fed AK again. This time fortunately she went right back to sleep.

Everyone was up around 8. My day has been a whirlwind of Lysol, toy cleaning, hand washing, temperature taking and other like fun. So far AK has taken one 45 minute nap and LP denies needing one. Mommy needs one.

Good news is that tonight I have mom date night. The Hoos is on his own with the girls for bedtime. Hopefully I won't fall asleep at the table with the other moms. That would be embarrassing...but understandable, no?

To Tell the Truth

Monday on the way home from school, I had an interesting conversation with LP.

Me: "What did you do at school today?"

LP: "I pushed Jacob."

Me: "That isn't nice, why would you do that?"

LP: "I wasn't very nice to my friends today and I had to sit in the chair."

After explaining to LP that it is not nice to push or hit our friends and telling her not to do it again, I let it go. At some point later in the evening she recounts the day's events to the Hoos and then asks him to tell her about his day (very cute).

While I didn't get an incident report from the teachers, I have no reason not to believe LP. I mean what kid would lie about being mean to a friend. I also figure that the teachers handle minor (at least I hope this is considered minor) transgressions like this every day and it doesn't necessarily warrant an official report.

Tuesday I email Jacob's mother to see if the poor kid is emotionally (or, I guess, physically) scarred. She tells me she knows nothing about it, Jacob never mentioned it.

Later in the day I get a call from LP's teachers to let me know that the aforementioned incident never happened. Jacob's mom asked about it (she picks up earlier than I do) and was greeted with blank stares. I think the teachers were worried that I was upset with them for not telling me about the incident and were calling to assure me that if something did happen I would know about it. She also wanted to let me know that if I had a problem I should contact the teachers directly.

Sigh.

This turned it into a big deal with the teachers being annoyed with me. I wasn't upset. I actually thought it was kind of funny that 1. LP was so open about it (or so I thought) and 2. that she has this other life that I know nothing about (beyond what she tells me and her daily sheet, which isn't really helpful - "LP enjoyed painting today. She also enjoyed gym. LP enjoyed circle time with Miss Keica. LP enjoyed playdough.").

So Not Cool

Sunday I woke up with a rash running all the way up my arms from my wrists to my neck. It itches like a mother and the more I scratch the worse it gets. The doctor thinks it is hormonal since the last time this happened was about 24 hours after having LP. Total awesomeness.

Last night AK decided that sleeping from 8:30pm-12:30am was enough. She was awake until 2. She even refused to fall asleep in bed with the Hoos and me, instead she just craned her neck, kicked my belly, and tried to tear my nose off. It doesn't make much sense since she didn't have an afternoon nap and ate a nice big dinner of finger foods. We tried all of the usual remedies - from Orajel to Mylicone to letting her cry it out. At one point we tried to put her down in her crib and she screamed so loud and for so long I swear I heard sirens from the CPS truck (kidding!).

LP is also getting smarter by the second. One of her tricks to staying up a little longer is calling out from her room that she has to go potty. She will then sit on the pot for 15 minutes and try to talk and hang out. Last night as I carried her back into bed after spending some quality time in the bathroom, she told me not to lay next to her in bed (like I was going to anyway, it was 9:30 - she was supposed to be SLEEPING). She then moved her dolls away and said, "Okay, now there is room."

Grocery Store Geek

I am a grocery store geek.

There, I admit it.

What does this mean? I actually enjoy grocery shopping. I like walking down each aisle, selecting items based on price and need, and doing my best to be a good home economist. When the Hoos was in law school and I was left to my own devices on nights and weekends while he studied I would review the circulars for all of the local grocery stores and plan a whirlwind tour that would assure me the best deals and the best stocked pantry.

I come by it honestly, as both my parents also enjoy going food shopping as well.

Today I think I achieved grocery store geek nirvana. I checked myself out at our Stop & Shop. This is not just your regular self check out, this is where you carry around a scanner and scan and bag your groceries as you go. IT WAS AWESOME.

For those of you out there who are always looking for the best deal, it was so sweet to be able to scan items to find out their sale price without hunting down an inept sales clerk.

Also, because they are trying to entice people to use the funky mechanism, they provide on the spot discounts outside of the usual deals and coupons. I saved $1.25 this way (not much, but when you consider my bill went from $94 to $74 thanks to coupons, discounts, etc. you can see how every little bit counts).

I can already see AK and LP loving using the scanner. I will make grocery store geeks out of them yet!

Speaking of Two Little Buggers

Playing in the snow today. Who was having more fun?

Eating breakfast.

LP actually took this one - she is getting better, I think.

Amazing

What is amazing?

1. AK only getting up once last night - at 2:30 and not again until 7:30
2. Us leaving the house despite the snow
3. The stay-at-home mom and her cute family that we visited today. I continue to be in awe of SAHMs. How do they do it and maintain their energy levels? And keep their homes from caving in? RTC - you are awesome.
4. The Hoos. I was explaning to him how on Monday he has to take both girls to day care because I have a doctor's appointment. "It will be weird to be at home without either one of them." His response? "Yeah, if by weird you mean awesome."

Oh, yeah, and my two little buggers.

AK During Nap Time

You may notice that she does not appear to be actually NAPPING.

So Predictable

My life has become predictable. No, I can't tell you exactly what LP will say (recently it will likely involve her trying out a new curse word) or AK will do at any given moment (likely try to get to a piece of paper that she can tear apart and eat), but I can, with some degree of accuracy, fill in the basic outlines.

For instance:

1. On the days I am in the office I pump around 9, 12, and 3 and I know that I will produce 5, 3, and 4 ounces respectively. This is amazingly awesome - with LP there was no rhyme or reason to my production. Let's hope it keeps up until I am ready for it to not keep up.
2. AK requires solids at 9, 12, and 6. If you try to feed her before any of these times she will refuse to eat. If she goes for too long after she will freak out and remind you of her needs.
3. At 8pm AK needs to be in the bath. If she is not in the bath and therefore moving closer to going to bed, she will once again remind you of your duty.
4. LP will insist on drinking from the water fountain before exiting the building when I pick her up from school.
5. She will also request - every day - that we go to Stew's before heading home. Some days this is feasible (I am early, she drinks really quickly) and on other days it is not (it is raining, it is snowing, it is perilously close to AK's 6pm feeding).
6. LP will likely want pasta for dinner, require a trip to the potty when mommy and daddy are eating, and ask for "another song" at least three times before finally going to sleep.

I can also assure you that I will be tired. Every day.

Rewarding Success

The Hoos and I have a theory that LP was totally able to be potty trained for quite some time, but she just held out until we sweetened the pot enough (no pun intended). Here is the evolution:

1. Marshmallow
2. Marshmallow + chocolate
3. Marshmallow + chocolate + sticker for potty chart
4. Marshmallow + chocolate + sticker for potty chart + sticker for her
5. Marshmallow + chocolate + stickers + party with her friends & cupcakes

About a month after offering #5 she decided (cue Howie Mandel) to take the deal. Fortunately, she didn't really expect to get everything. And, even better, at this point it has become so routine that she only occasionally asks for a treat. Of course, plans for the "potty party" are in the works. Any ideas for non-offensive party games (no 'pin the poop in the potty', thank you very much) appreciated.


Speaking of treats, my good friend Kiki bought LP a little present, recognizing her for her accomplishment. LP was over the moon about it and can't wait to hang it up in her bedroom. Which, as you can see, is a better place for it than in my bathroom.

He's Going to Kill Me

I don't usually write about the Hoos, but this post is really more about me than him.

For anyone that knows me and the Hoos personally, this isn't going to come as much of a shock - the Hoos is a slim guy. He comes from slim stock - his parents both have slight builds and good metabolisms. Many people aren't so lucky.

Recently some folks have commented to the Hoos about his weight. When he tells me and checks to see if I notice him looking different, my immediate reaction is to be defensive, "You tell them I feed you, don't you?!" Horribly, my concern is more that people will think I am a bad wife and don't take care of him.

I swear I cook dinner five or six nights a week. And lately we always have some sort of baked good in the house that LP and I whip up. Okay, maybe some nights we only have a starch. Or, like last night, I only make soup (homemade vegetable) and cheesy bread to accompany leftovers (lemon chicken from Sunday and baked ziti from Saturday) which likely isn't as filling. Okay, and we eat a lot of chicken, turkey and fish because I don't eat red meat (although I do buy the Hoos and LP steak a couple of times a month)...

You know you have mental problems when you start thinking of ways to make meals more fattening. Not that I would do it because the only one that would gain weight is me!

Speaking of eating - AK is on finger foods. She loves Cheerios and last night downed the pastina I mixed in with her mooshed up veggies!

Improvement

LP's skills as a photographer seem to be improving - at least the subject is actually in the photos:

All Good Things

All good things, like vacation must come to an end. And I think many parents out there will agree with me when I say HALLELUJAH! I like some time off as much as the next gal, but I am ready for some sense of routine and normalcy, even if it means forgoing some quality time in PJs with my munchkins.

Although, if last night was any indication, I will be spending as much time in sleepwear with them as ever. AK was up twice, as usual, and LP was awake, or in some state of unrest from 3-4. Not that she remembers it, because this morning she told me she had good dreams. When I asked if they had anything to do with Mommy or Daddy laying in bed with her she looked at me quizzically and asked, "When Daddy brought me up to bed?" Stinker.