Nostalgia and all that crap

Friday, May 09, 2008 by Bethany

My son's losing his first tooth. It's been loose for over three days. I know this because every morning (and night) he gives me the report.

"Mom" opens mouth, inserts finger, wiggles three times, "Tooth's still there."

"It'll come out when it is good and ready." I nod. Sometimes smile. Sometimes giggle.

I suppose I should be somewhat reminiscent of his impending childhood. The one that with a blink of an eye will be pre-teenhood. Then full blown chaos (called full blown teenhood) and then adulthood.

But somehow this tooth thing, is only making me smile foolishly. He's growing up. I made it this far! I can survive the rest. And being that I have an 8-month-old crawling around, I need that reminder hourly. At least.

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7:31 PM | | 0 comments

If I'd had time to post yesterday

Thursday, May 08, 2008 by Bethany

It was so crazy busy from the time I opened my eyes yesterday--that I barely made it in time to my office for The Meeting. You know, one of those Must Be Present Meetings Or You Look Bad ones. Yeah. Nice way to start your morning. That and the fact that I was worried The Peanut wouldn't have enough pumped milk. So, I sat in my bathroom as my sitter had the baby in the living room and tried to pump a few more ounces before I left. Thus... my lateness.

But the pumping and breast milk thing gets better. Work was so crazy that I didn't have time to pump there (and ongoing problem I am having. And why I was worried about The Peanut above). It gets good beyond this point--so if you don't want to hear how crazy I am or about pumping or breast milk--just skip down to the next paragraph. It'll save you the details. Gone? Okay good. So, here's the real deal. I pumped in the car. Yes. My Handy Dandy Mega pump has a battery adapter. Combine that with my super sports bra, I threw caution to the wind (and my modesty) and pumped in the car. T-shirt covered all areas of concern, but I am sure I turned a few heads. Am I nuts? Sure. It's the least of my worries right now.

Onto other items....

If I would have had time I also would have shared that while I intended on driving to Bed, Bath and Beyond to exchange a few bath towels for the right size, I also landed in Old Navy. I love that place. And true to my previous store experiences, had a cart full of clothes to prove it. Summer clothes. T-shirts, fun ballet shoes, and some drawstring jeans that I am totally in love with. And this fun red/tan/yellow print flowy shirt that will be a must wear for work. So I was feeling pretty good. Especially when I got home, put them on, and they all fit. That is, until I was pumping breast milk in said outfit yesterday as I was leaving my office. Does it get better than this?

Oh and Target diapers! How come no one clued me in on how cute and awesome these are? Not only are the cheaper than the name brand, they feel very good to the touch. Smooth. Light. Comfy. They sure as hell better hold in the waste of my daughter or it just might burst my Target bubble. And we don't want that. Would be as bad as bursting my Old Navy love.

And the book review. Yes, I wrote this lovely book review for THE GAY UNCLE'S GUIDE TO PARENTING by Brett Berk for Poshmama. It's a lovely, fun, snarky, and real book about parenting. You need to register and be a woman to read the review. But let me just say this. It's fun. It's a fun read. Even if you are already in the throws of parenthood.

Speaking of writing, there's chapter 5 of LIFE AS GRETA at Hybrid Mom too. And yeah, by some miracle I've been able to juggle this all together with my daughter who just doesn't want to sleep anymore. And my husband's schedule which is as crazy as mine. In fact, he's gone all weekend again. Fun times in sorta single parenting again. Though, to his credit, he'll be home after 9pm. Which, can mean fun times. If you know what I mean.

Anyway, I could keep ranting. Or sharing. Or whatever it is I do on this blog. But right now my brain has dumped all it has right now. I think I can collect enough thoughts for tomorrow. Or at least that is the plan.

UPDATED: And if I get ONE MORE MESSAGE from someone trying to get me to post some crap review about mother's day gifts... WTF? Seriously. You people can't fool me. Avid reader my ass. You're looking for free advertising. Not. Going. To. Get. It. Here. I only pimp what I know. And I don't know you from Adam.

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2:19 PM | | 0 comments

Patting, patting, and more patting (MB #14)

Tuesday, May 06, 2008 by Bethany

My arm hurts. Wait my hand hurts. Oh wait, my back hurts.

It's all about getting a baby to sleep. And if you must pat their back for say... 20 minutes straight. It's what you do. For a nap. For a blessed, peaceful nap.

Their nap. Not yours. Though--come to think if it--that ain't a bad idea either.

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1:07 PM | | 0 comments

Somewhere between 10am and 10pm I've Lost My Will To Live

Saturday, May 03, 2008 by Bethany

Or write. Or stay awake. I had a ton of things planned today. Parental and domestic things like laundry, dishes, vacuuming, spending quality time reading to my son. Playing withe those damn balls on the floor with my daughter, cooking a decent meal.

Instead I hauled myself and the kids to the soccer game. That turned into a pouring rain-fest that had me so cold my fingers were numb. All the while my husband was away at the dentist getting a tooth fixed. Then after a brief (20 minute) lunch meeting with said husband, I shrugged at his suggestion of heading off to see IRON MAN. Sure. Why would I be the wife that said, "No. Dammit. Stay home and be involved."

An hour later. I would have shot myself in the foot to have him back. I'd been nursing my daughter almost non-stop (she's sick. a growth spurt. Hell, teething. Who really knows). Set my son up in front of the television. And wished again that I'd told my husband no. Or had him at least give me an hour break from the children. And work.

For the record. The last time I went out without a child for something other than work or home related errand--New Year's Eve. Almost five months. And my sanity is on the line. Tomorrow it's a must. What I will do? No one knows. But it damn well better be something fun. Or relaxing. Or hell a nap in the car would suffice. As long as I am alone.

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10:16 PM | | 2 comments

Ketchup and Emergencies

Friday, May 02, 2008 by Bethany

We've been attempting to work with our son--who's 5--about NOT interrupting conversations. Even conversations that are of the telephone variety. But "attempting" this feat might not be strong enough. In fact, I know it's not anywhere near the intensity we need to address the issue.

Case in point: I'm on the phone with a work colleague (an important one of the boss' boss' boss variety) and he is incessantly saying, "Mom. Mom. Mom. Mom. Moooooom!" with such increased urgency I thought there was blood. Somewhere. When in fact- it was ketchup. Ketchup that happened to have dripped out of his hot dog bun. And it was getting on his fingers.

I know. Tragedy.

I'm going to have work on this attempting--not that demanding will do any good. Hell demanding anything from my 34-year-old husband gets me nowhere. Demanding of a 5-year-old is going to yield worse results.

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2:55 PM | | 2 comments

Choose your own adventure- GRETA style!

Thursday, May 01, 2008 by Bethany

LIFE OF GRETA, Chapter 4: A Clue, Now What? is up at Hybrid Mom. Yep, pimpin' the serial fiction column again.

This week it's fun and easy. All you do is read and CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE! Remember those fun books from when we were young. Reading of the clues, adventure, and the mishaps--and at the end you get 3 choices (go downtown to try to solve the clue? Go and talk to Grandma to figure out what Johnny was really doing on Saturday? Or just decide to investigate yourself at the library). Yes, YOU get to decide what Greta does next! Please, go check it out.

And don't fret if you haven't read thus far, read from the beginning here.

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7:55 AM | | 0 comments

Blog Tour: THAT BABY DVD AND CD

Wednesday, April 30, 2008 by Bethany

I'm a sucker for some decent kid's music and television shows. As a work from home parent 3 - 4 days a week, I need more than 15 minutes of work time (and a bit of me time when I can grab it). So, I was delighted when MotherTalk offered up a cool bundle of music and a DVD centered on children (yep, I use the television to babysit every now and again).

Here's the details, right from THAT BABY website:

That Baby DVD and That Baby CD are groundbreaking products full of fun music and visuals for kids age 0-5. Rather than relying on the old nursery rhymes or music box tones of other kids’ videos, these really rock. We’ve taken great songs – songs that you may have sung at camp or put on a mix tape in your youth – and reworked them with fantastic new acoustic and vocal arrangements.

Combining the music of artists like Fleetwood Mac, Natalie Merchant, Joni Mitchell, and The Pretenders with rich, colorful visuals, That Baby DVD is sure to bring a smile to the face of the child in your life. The CD features all the music from the DVD, plus three bonus songs written by Bob Marley, The Beatles, and Paul Simon.
As soon as this package arrived my almost 6 year old boy was chomping at the bit to watch the DVD. It's a movie. With a kid on the cover, how can he NOT be getting a new "show" to watch. And that he did. Even though, it was really centered on a younger audience. A bit older than my 8 month old daughter. Though she found the collages and puppets definitely pleasing. Even after we played it three times.

The CD however, has been an even bigger splash for our frequent car rides to pre-school and back. The Kiddo hums and sings songs as we gander the few miles to his day care. And I know he likes it because he requests the music. Even more than his Alvin and the Chipmunks CD. Which, in my opinion, scores this music set a huge 5 stars. I can almost hear nails on the chalkboard each time Alvin launches into a solo.

So THAT BABY has captured the hearts of my kids. Mostly the boy, since he can at least tell me he likes it. Though The Peanut definitely doesn't fuss as much with it on. But she's like that with any music right now.

My son's only complaint, "Why didn't they put a faster song first. Like Pony Boy."

Yeah, my kid's a Springsteen fan. Gotta love 'em!

And here's some incentive if you want to but this package yourself--Enter the coupon code MotherTalk when purchasing at THAT BABY DVD website and save 20% on your entire order! From now until May 18th, all orders using the coupon code "MotherTalk" will be entered in a drawing to win a new iPod nano.

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12:30 AM | | 4 comments