Well, at least no one pooped on me

So. I neglected to mention this on here, but I traveled down to visit my parents this week. They were missing Jack and I wanted to get one more trip in while I still had the freedom of being a stay at home momma. Since it was a last minute decision, we couldn't get a direct flight like last time. I picked the shortest layovers possible and hoped everything would turn out okay.

And it did! Jack was WONDERFUL. He didn't cry. He didn't pee on himself. He didn't poop on himself or ME. He slept for most of both flights. He charmed the flight attendants and passengers. He was an absolute joy. That baby is such a trooper.

I, on the other hand, did NOT handle everything so well.

I had a little bit of trouble balancing my bulging diaper bag and the lightweight stroller and tipped it over at one point (Don't panic! Jack was NOT in the stroller when it tipped over.) and a kind lady helped me pick it back up. And I smiled and pretended like my face wasn't on fire from embarassment. Look at me! The stupid mom who can't keep her stroller upright!

I also freaked out when I couldn't get it to fold back up when my flight from Atlanta was about to board. (And a lady next to me kept watching Jack and reaching out for him any time he even THOUGHT about leaning forward because she was CONVINCED he was going to go flying off the seat while I wrestled with the stroller. Again! Look at me! Mom of the YEAR!) I panicked and called Alex whose advice ("I just kicked it!") didn't help. I wound up throwing myself on the mercy of the airline employees who were kind enough to close up, bag, and then walk the stroller down to the plane for me. (Thank you wonderful Airtran employees!)

I was so excited when we landed in New Orleans because we! had! made! it! I bent down to grab my diaper bag and laptop and...where is my laptop? It was right here. I put it down there. I KNOW I DID.

I checked everywhere. The seats in front of me. The seats behind me. The baggage area above the seats that I hadn't even touch. I got the flight attendant to help me. NO. LAPTOP. ANYWHERE.

I lost my laptop, y'all. I LOST IT.

It might be in Atlanta? Apparently I hallucinated bringing it on the plane because there is an unclaimed pink laptop in the Atlanta airport's lost and found. But no one was available to actually LOOK at said laptop and confirm that it is mine. So I will wait and see. And continue feeling stupid. Because I LOST my LAPTOP. Me! Internet geek extraordinare.

At least I didn't lose the baby, right?

Seven Quick Takes - 11/6/09

1. I typed the first few of these while wearing a Snuggie. You know you’re jealous. My Maw Maw gave me two for Christmas last year, so no, I did not spend actual money on them. And I can’t make fun of them because my only living grandparent gave them to me. Therefore, YOU cannot make fun of me wearing them either. Anyway, I know you’re curious about it. It’s a nice shade of blue, not a scary leopard print one or anything like that. It is also warm. And well, pretty darn snuggly, so I can’t complain or anything. Alex hates it when I wear it because I look too monk-ish. I guess he doesn’t like the thought of being married to a monk? I don’t know why not. Monks are straight up SEXY.

2. So here’s the thing. Jack cries every time someone laughs loudly. Not just a loud crowd. ANYBODY. Including Alex. Including me. The other day, I was talking to Alex on the phone and I laughed NOT VERY LOUDLY and the tears were flowing before I even realized what happened. It is the most bizarre thing in the entire world. At the Halloween party, everyone laughed out loud at the same time and Jack went NUTS. It took forever to calm him down. This totally sucks because I like to laugh loudly. As does Alex. And we can’t for fear of freaking our son out.

3. I have multiple mysterious bruises on my right leg. Most of them are on my calf. I cannot figure out for the life of me where they are coming from. Do jumping jacks cause bruising? Visible bruising? Is Jillian Michaels finding me in the night and literally beating me? Because I am baffled as to how I am managing to injure myself without KNOWING it. And my calf is SORE. I thought it was from all the exercise at first, but then I realized it’s from all the bruises. And I am the first to admit that I am very, very, very clumsy, but at no point have I violently walked into things without noticing it. So where are the bruises coming from?

4. I hate packing. Still. I should be packing right now. But I’m not. I’m watching 30 Rock and blogging. Which is way more fun than packing, but doesn’t have quite the same result. I’m just so not excited at the prospect of rolling clothes and stuffing a suitcase to the brim. Maybe if I ever learned not to overpack, I’d enjoy the process more. But me not overpacking is like asking Parsnip not to be annoying. It’s IMPOSSIBLE.

5. So two days ago, I said I was on Day 7 of the 30 Day Shred. This was false. I was on Day 9. Today begins Level 2. See? Spark People really is very helpful! Otherwise, I would have been doing the 30 Day Shred for way more days than I ever wanted! And I just measured myself and saw…no difference? Maybe I’m bigger? I think I am not measuring myself in the same places I did before or something. Because seriously, my clothes are getting baggy. It’s really exciting because the t-shirts that used to be too big on me are finally getting to be too big again. And I’ve gone down a belt loop.

6. So it is now Friday. And guess what? I ran a mile today! An ENTIRE mile. WITHOUT STOPPING. I realize this might not seem like much, but it is a HUGE feat for me. When my trainer told me we were going to meet to work on “my first mile” today, I assumed that we would be doing more interval training. So imagine my JOY when she told me that I was going to run two laps around the lake for a mile. And she was all, ‘DON’T STOP. I don’t care how slow you have to run, just keep going and don’t walk.’ And in my head, I was all, “FAT CHANCE, LADY.” But then I did it! Granted, it was the SLOWEST. MILE. EVER. but I still did it. It was a great feeling, even though I was pretty sure I was going to die by the end.

7. Despite the running feat, the real highlight of the session was when my trainer's son tried to eat goose poop. She let him run around while I stretched and I looked over and said, “Um, I am pretty sure that is poop he’s picking up.” I did not realize that pregnant women could run that FAST, y’all. She got to him in time before he ingested anything, so that was great. But at that point, I stopped and said a little prayer thanking God that Jack is not super mobile yet, HALLELUJAH.

Whoops (almost)

I almost forgot to blog today. I remembered while I was shredding earlier, and I was all, "Oh snap! *wheeze* I need to *huff* blog! *puff*" So here I am. Blogging. Hooray!

I have plenty to say, but nothing I can talk about, so....

I miss cookies.

Hugs,
Cora

Fitness-Related Stuff

I tried the gym child care for the first time today.

In other news, I didn't get to work out today.

Jack seemed upset the second I walked away from him in the day care room. I was hoping that he would stay calm and happy and play with my trainer's toddler. I stuck around for a little while and then decided to suck it up and let the baby learn how to live on his own.

I got on the treadmill to warm up and when I got off, the guy at the front desk said, "Uh, she's REALLY struggling back there with your baby. He won't stop screaming."

I walked back to the child care room and lo, the sounds of my child screaming his little red head off were there. It took me quite a while to get him to calm down. I tried sitting him down again and entertain him with a bouncy ball and he was having NONE of it.

I walked him out to reschedule the trainer and she asked if she could hold him. Maybe she could hold him while I exercised! I was all excited that maybe that would work. That excitement lasted for all of 10 seconds before he started screaming again. And the biggest, most impressive snot bubble came out of his nose and we knew it was over.

Jack and I came home and he fell asleep almost immediately. And has not woken up since. So...I guess he was tired? I know, I'm mom of the year for knowing my son so well.

So we're going to try again on Friday. Outside. At a track. Where Jack can sit in a stroller and watch me the whole time. Hopefully it will go a little bit better.

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I've been meaning to mention this on here for a while, but I joined Spark People to help me keep track of my calories and work outs. It's been really great so far and I highly recommend the site as a tool to help you keep track of your fitness. They have recipes, strength routines, articles, and other good stuff.

My favorite part is that they break down the nutrients of your food and then GRAPH it for you. Like, with pie charts and EVERYTHING. It's quite the eye opener to see how many calories, fat grams, carbs, and such that you are consuming every day.

And the best part is that it's all free! Woo!

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I'm still sticking with the 30 Day Shred. I missed Sunday because I was feeling like crap and was pretty sure I was going to puke if I even tried doing 30 seconds of jumping jacks. But I've done it every other day, so I am on Day 7 today. Only three more days until Level 2!

Seven Months

Jack turned seven months old today. Which means he has officially been alive for over half a year. I can't hardly believe it. He is now closer to being a year old than being a newborn. He will be considered a toddler in just five short months. How can this be? Where is my baby boy going?

He certainly isn't interested in merely SITTING by the Easter basket anymore. That's for sure.



I had to stand on the side and physically hold the basket up or he would have pulled it on to him again. He was less than pleased with this development. He likes to show his displeasure by showing his belly. I believe that's a practice everyone should take up. "This is a terrible idea! I show you mah bel-lah!"



Jack has discovered that he enjoys playing with this soft, giant baseball. It's a Reds baseball, which is funny considering neither one of his parents are Reds fans. But that's what happens when Mommy and Daddy are lazy and don't buy the baby their own sports team paraphernalia, other people will do it for them. And so, for now, he will look like a Reds fan. It will certainly make his great-grandpa happy.



Jack is becoming more and more affectionate lately. He wants to be held much more often now. AND he is giving lots more hugs. Today was also filled with several kisses. Now, they could have just been desperate attempts to get his sore gums onto any cool surface, but I'm taking a full, slobbery mouth on my cheek as a kiss.



This past month has flown by. It's been pretty stressful for me as I've tried to make the difficult decision of whether or not to go back to work. And with that decision, I have come to enjoy my time with this sweet little boy even more. I've been trying to be more attentive, more responsive, and more loving. We sing more songs and read more books. We peek-a-boo until we can't laugh anymore. We go on walks when it's warm and cuddle under the covers when it's cold. And even though he can be a big Fussy McFusspants sometimes, I just can't get enough of him. He's adorable. He's so sweet. He's my precious baby boy. I love spending time with him, even when he turns over while I'm trying to change his diaper and I'm desperately afraid he's going to pee all over everything. I just can't stay mad at him for wanting to look around and see things. He's got a lot to see and discover. And I hope I can help him do that every step of the way.

Hi, I'd like a Do Over

Today. Oh my gosh, y'all. TODAY. It has been just a crappy, crappy, crappy day.

-I woke up to the dulcet sounds of Parsnip puking on the bedspread next to me.

-The baby has peed through three outfits so far. It's only 3 pm, so we've still got time to pee through a few more! He also got pee all over his pack and play sheet during Nap #2.

-Nap #3 was undone by a failed bed to crib transition. And I really think I was very gentle. But that little booger woke up and WOULD NOT GO BACK TO SLEEP.

-The baby is on Nap #4 as I type this at 3 pm. NUMBER FOUR. I have officially joined the parent train that hates the time change.

-The baby is also cranky. Could be from the maddeningly short naps, but I am very confident that teething is the real culprit. He won't eat much and is drooling more than usual. But there is NOTHING to show for this. Not a thing. The few times I can get my grubby little finger into his mouth, he SCREAMS. So the best I can tell, there is no imminent tooth break through. Which means we will continue having a cranky baby FOREVER AND EVER. OMG.

-I found hair all over my 2% Colby/Jack cheese square. AFTER I had already eaten half of it.

-In a search for a clean sports bra, I discovered dog poop in between the washer and dryer. In several places. Poop from the big dog.

-I was so mad about the poop, that I just assumed the clothes in the laundry basket were dirty, which included both of my good sports bras. So I angrily shoved it all back in the washing machine. I later complained to Alex about it and he was all...um, those clothes were clean.

-I didn't lose nearly as much weight this week that I thought I would. Could be from lack of sleep and/or lack of calories. Either way, I am frustrated with just bouncing between the same pound or two for over a week now.

Gah! Just...gah! Too many bodily fluids from other creatures. Too! Many! So I'm going to go eat some jello and pray it is hair-free. Sand Palace OUT.

Oh, Alright, FINE

I'm doing it again. NaBloPoMo, I am here.

I wound up dressing up last night...as an Ohio State fan. And Alex was an LSU fan. Inspiration hit me Saturday afternoon amidst all the football watching. It was cheap, easy, and cute. (Well, cute to me. I realize most people wouldn't get it if they didn't know us personally, but whatevs. We went to a party where we knew everyone, so they all got it.)

We had to buy nothing for Alex to look like an LSU fan. I already owned the cap and pajama pants (Which are WAY too big. They were my dad's and he gave them to me for some reason. And dude, they were a LIFESAVER when I was pregnant.). And Alex owned the LSU t-shirt that my parents sent him when they beat Ohio State in the national championship game in 2007.

Not pleased with providing photographic evidence of him wearing LSU gear.

I had to buy a few items. I already owned the jersey, but we had to make a quick stop at Meijer to pick up the face tattoos and baseball cap. Eleven bucks later, I looked like a hard core Ohio State fan.

Obligatory self-portrait.

We had a great time at the party and it was so, so, so nice to be social again. Having a child REALLY messes with your social life, particularly your night-time social life. So I didn't feel super guilty that we kept the kid out WAAAAY past his bedtime. I just miss adult interaction like nothing else and I couldn't bear to leave any earlier than we did because THERE WERE PEOPLE TO TALK TO, OMG. I really like our friends and I have missed them terribly during my past year of sickness/depression/newborn-raising. Sure, I've seen them some, but not nearly as often as I would have liked. And when I did get to see them, it was tough because well, it's difficult to interact socially when you think you're going to either 1) puke on the person you're talking to, 2) feel like shooting yourself or 3) might pass out from exhaustion. So now that I feel like Cora, a real live person, it was EXCELLENT to get to go to a real live party with real live people. I'm definitely chalking this one up as one of the best Halloweens ever.

Not as pleased about his costume as his parents.