Here we go again

So, tomorrow I start another lonely two weeks as Taran will be returning to work tomorrow morning. The past couple of weeks with him here have been all too short. While he was here, he had classes for 5 of the 14 days he was home so I didn't get to see him during that time and it made it seem as if he was here even shorter.

Taran's parents came to visit last weekend and it was nice to have them here. Taran and I got to go to dinner while they watched the baby. We were going to make it a whole date evening, but the movie theaters and bowling alley were packed and so we ended up going home after eating. That's ok. We picked up a movie on the way home and watched that with his parents and had a pleasant evening at home.

This week I made two diaper cakes. One for my neighbor who had her baby in December and one for my friend Brandi who is expecting in March.

The one for my neighbor was a two tier boy cake:

 

The one for my friend Brandi was a three tier girl cake:

 

 

I have also found some online that I will study for different ideas to improve what I have been doing to make them better. I hope that they will become good enough to sell. They may be at that point now, but I also need to pay more attention to what I'm spending on each of them so I can figure out pricing. For now though, I can't wait to find out who is having a baby next so I can make my next one!

Brandi's shower was today in College Station, so Noah and I took the two hour trip. It was a fun shower. Seriously themed out with zebra stripes and pink. Everything was decorated to match down to the plates, napkins, punch, etc. It was so cool. We played a game I had never played before called Baby Bingo. Everyone gets a bingo card and as the mom-to-be opens presents, you mark off squares that have various baby items listed on them to match what she gets. Everyone had a different card and it is especially a challenge if you have something listed on your card that isn't in one of the gifts! It really makes you pay attention to what she receives! They had five or six prizes for those that got bingo first. Noah did great at the shower and on the car trip there and back, so yay!

Now it is back to the daily grind. Tomorrow I will go to yoga, work on my Purina project, and hopefully get to dedicate some time to my pet nutrition counseling business that I'm pursuing. Here we go again...

There's a muscle there?

So, I've completed my fourth day of yoga. Owie. I'm sore in places I didn't even know I had muscles. I really hope the day comes soon when it no longer hurts and I can just enjoy the stretch.

Taran came home on Monday and it has been so nice to have him here. The house just doesn't seem as lonely and it is nice to have someone to snuggle with at night. Unfortunately, while he is here at home, there is a significant amount of time where he has classes to attend for work so that is sad, but I can't really complain as it is his job that pays the bills. I know that he wishes he could relax more and just be away from work entirely for the two weeks he is off.

Noah had his six month visit on Monday. He weighed just over 20 lbs and was 28 in long. That puts him in the 90th percentile for height and 80th percentile for weight. He's a big healthy boy. I'm assured that he'll actually start losing weight when he starts crawling around. For now though, it is just rocking back and forth on hands and knees. He has also started straightening up on his feet while keeping his hands down. I call it baby yoga because he looks like he is in the downward dog position from yoga. It could just be because I'm taking the classes and I'm seeing it everywhere.

In other news,  Taran's parents should be visiting this weekend and Taran and I will get to go on a date. I just have to figure out what that date is going to be. We'll see if I actually figure out how to be creative or if we will just go with the good ol' standby of dinner and a movie. Either way, it will be nice to get out of the house for fun with the hubby and know that Noah is being well cared for.

Until next time...

Slipping...

Wow, I'm slipping. It has been eight days since my last post. Yikes!

Ok, so what has happened since then? I feel like I did stuff early last week, but now I can't for the life of me remember what.

Wednesday, I signed us up for a membership at the YMCA. Fun. Not really, but it'll be good for me. And since we are spending the money on it, that adds extra incentive to go. Thursday and Friday I attended yoga classes. Not easy. I've done some yoga before, but it's been a while. On Thursday, it was tough. My body would not do what I wanted it to do and halfway through the class I was silently screaming to myself and wimping out entirely. And then I attended class on Friday. Friday was insane!!! The instructor on Friday has a completely different class. It was hard! She didn't have us hold positions for a terribly long time, but she had us go through a crazy series of movements and Thursday was a cake walk compared to Friday.

Over this weekend I was sore! I stretched out really well on Saturday to help me recover from the previous days. I did some grocery shopping on Saturday with our new "eat healthy" plan in mind and I felt as though I wasn't picking up very much since some typical items were missing, but I managed to find a good selection of food to eat. Some of which I may introduce to Noah now that he's old enough.

I have tried to offer him some carrot and banana bits and he'll look at them and bat at them in my hand or mush them, but he doesn't grab them. We'll see how he develops his interest in foods.

Today we went to The Dump to check out some furniture. Taran got paid for his vacation time since he didn't use it in 2009 so we are looking at adding more furniture to our house. I was initially really wanting to go for some office furniture, but now I'm leaning towards a dining set. It'll make our house look much more complete. And if we go for that, we may be able to get another bookshelf, one we can put in our room for some of my other books that won't fit on the others shelves we got after Christmas. I'm keeping a mental list of furniture I want to get so far we need a dining set, an office set, guest bedroom set, video/DVD storage shelves, toy box, and some bookshelves for our room. And that is what I can think of right now!

Tomorrow Noah has his six month visit. I have a busy morning as I have an appointment at the YMCA for an orientation to using the fitness equipment. They have a fancy computer program that they have hooked up to the machines so you can monitor your workouts, set goals, create a plan, etc. It's like having a computerized personal trainer which is awesome! Then I have to rush home and quickly get ready for Noah's appointment.

Taran is also supposed to return tomorrow around lunch time. So we'll get to go to lunch. I need to figure out what I'm going to do for the rest of the day. I need to do a better job of keeping busy.

Anyway, I need to finish cleaning up after making Taran some cookies and get to bed. Early morning is looming ahead.

The ball has been dropped...

I can't believe that my last post was three days ago. I guess I dropped the ball on that one. What are my followers to do without updates from me? Ok, at this point, I have one follower and something tells me she'll survive. I may get one tear (in my wildest dreams).

So, what have the past several days been like? Well, some have been more interesting than others.

I've been working on my print project for Purina, but it has come to a bit of a stand still because I need to get some more supplies. I've also been making some serious headway on chores like laundry and dishes. For some reason though, whenever I feel like I'm getting somewhere on those, there always seems to be more building up. I think I've said this before...

Yesterday turned out to be an interesting day. It started out pretty typically. I started on laundry pretty early because it had been building up on me. When I started on my second load I noticed that the water pressure in the washer seemed to be a bit low. I wanted to know what was going on. I checked some of the other faucets and verified that it was not just the washer, the pressure was low everywhere around the house. I was about to get upset about workers in the neighborhood shutting off the water and not telling me. I went to look outside to see if there was a truck or something and discovered water shooting out of a pipe by my house! I started to panic. Water was going everywhere. I tried to turn some of the valves that looked like they might shut off the water but I couldn't turn them and made myself soaked in the process (which sucks when it is cold by the way). I called the water company who had someone in the area that would come to check on it.

While I waited, a neighbor came by to check on things and make sure I was aware of the problem, which of course, I was. It is nice to know that I have neighbors looking out for me (us). Soon after that, the guy came and in about two seconds managed to turn the valve to shut off the water to that pipe. It turns out that the pressure valve in the irrigation system (aka sprinkler system) had some water at the top that froze and blew the top off when it started melting, or something. So, no sprinkler until we get it fixed. I'm just glad that it was an easy fix and didn't really affect the water in the house. We can fix the sprinkler system before we need to start watering again. The guy told me that was the second one like that he'd seen bust that day. Yippee.

Noah spend quite a bit of time napping which I'm not complaining about by any means. He's been staying awake quite a bit over the past week and so he must have been catching up because he had about a 2 1/2 hour nap yesterday afternoon (which is freakishly unheard of for him). I had hoped that I'd get some shopping done, but I was glad to put it off so my little man could get some much needed rest. We finally got out and about in the evening.

Last night I made my third diaper cake for a baby shower I had today. It was made for a boy. I call it a Bath Time Cake. It includes about 45 diapers, 2 hooded towels, 8 wash cloths, baby wash, lotion, oil, and powder, and a teether. I used 3 of the wash cloths and a teether to make a "flower" topper. I think it turned out quite well.

So, today we had to run and get the shrink wrap for me to wrap up and finish the diaper cake and then it was off to the shower. The shower was fun, laid back with a few games and tons of people. I was happy to see some friends that I hadn't seen in a while and catch up with them. Socializing is good, even if I have to drive an hour to do so from time to time.

Noah did great as he usually does in public. He had no fear of big crowds even though we spend most of our time by ourselves at home. He likes activity and lots of sights to see. He did get a bit worn out by the end of the shower and I decided it was time to leave when he started showing signs of sleepiness. I figured he'd take a nap on the way home. He did, but he woke up as soon as we got home which I didn't expect, but oh well.

It's been a busy day, so I'll probably head to bed early. Until next time...

Had the ball rolling and then hit a wall...

I forgot about my blog last night. I was doing so well, writing up a blog every night and then nothing. It really isn't a good habit to start and make myself look all impressive and then just stop. Although, seriously, it's a blog. I should get over it. In the grand scheme of things it really isn't that important.

In any case, yesterday wasn't too interesting. I got some chores done. They don't go away though, it is sad.

I'm thinking it is a crazy phenomenon. I can write and write and write (well, type and type and type) when I am summing up the day, but apparently it doesn't come spilling out the next day. My brains are getting sucked out by a nursing baby. Apparently, that includes my memory. Ugh... mommy brain.

Problems with Doors

Today we had a relatively relaxing morning. And by that I mean I was a complete slacker. I attempted to stay in bed which Noah would not have. So, we got up. I think sometimes this must be the dog and cat's favorite time of day because they can't wait to be let out the door. It might have something to do with the impending breakfast they have coming to them.

After wasting away enough of the day, we headed out on errands. The first stop was to see how much binding books and booklets would be and then to Office Depot where I managed to get out of quicker than usual. I really like office supplies, so Office Depot and similar stores are like candy stores (which I also could spend a long time in). They are not quite to the same caliber as book stores, for me though. In any case, I picked up some materials for my Purina project. I then went on to the local YMCA to check out what they had to offer in the way of exercise facilities, classes, and programs for Taran and me (and Noah). This proved to be more difficult than I thought.

I pulled into the YMCA parking lot passing the sign that said they had discounts on membership sign-ups and to just stop on in. So, I'm driving in and they have construction going on so the main entrance is blocked off. There are signs up leading to the member entrance so I drove to the end of the parking lot closer to that entrance since it appeared to be the only one available. I wake Noah from his nap to pull him out of the car (I put him in the sling because I figure it'll be easier if I get a tour of the facility). I follow the signs that indicate where the member entrance is located. Around to the back of the building we go between construction fences to a door. This door looks menacing. It is a solid black door with a keypad next to it and a large sign that read in large red print, "Must have membership card to enter." Um, ok. I don' t have one of those. So, you are encouraging new memberships, but I can't come in if I don't have one? I'm confused...

Turns out, you didn't need a card to get into the door. I found this out when I called. It looked to me like one of those back hotel entrances where you have to swipe your room key to get in, but apparently, the key pad was not as sophisticated as it appeared. I found this out when I called them. I'll probably go back tomorrow. They should have signs up that just points to this as an entrance, not just a member entrance, or at least an additional sign on the door that says, "visitors welcome."

When we returned home I proceeded to start on some household chores, laundry, dishes, taking out the trash... boring, boring, boring. I hate chores. I always have. You can ask my mom. Chores are the very reason I tell people I was a horrible brat when I was a child. I remember throwing tantrums about doing dishes. I tried to complain or procrastinate my way out of dusting or vacuuming. My other tactic was forgetting on purpose to wash the windows. I think the few things I didn't complain (a ton) about were laundry and setting the table. I also don't think I complained too much about making school lunches for us, but that is probably because if I didn't do that I wouldn't eat lunch, so that just couldn't happen.

So, I said I had problems with doors - multiple. What other door other than the YMCA door? That would be my refrigerator door. Yesterday, I set up the Ssscat. This is a motion detector that sits on the counter and spits out a noisy spray of air when anything crosses its path. The idea is to keep the cat off of the counters. I have a constant problem with this and I'm just so sick and tired of trying to watch the cat 24/7. I had resorted to putting the cat in the crate when I couldn't watch him which was virtually always. I can't keep him from jumping up even when I'm nearby because I'm often stuck on the couch nursing the baby. I think the cat plans this. So, I figured I'd get a more reliable way to keep him off that didn't include me setting up shop in the middle of the kitchen. So, what does that have to do with the refrigerator? Apparently the motion detector doesn't like it when I open the fridge. It goes off every time. I don't understand it, because I positioned it to line up along the counter, across the kitchen, but somehow, the door sets it off. It may be because of the shiny stainless steel, but either way, it startles me every time it happens. I guess I should keep out of the fridge then, huh?

Oh well. Another day done. Bed is calling soon. Tomorrow, off to the YMCA, again. Maybe this time I'll actually get in.

A Good Day to Nap

Today was relatively slow. Ah, Sunday, the day of rest...

Noah took the Sabbath to heart though. He took two really good naps. Well, good for him anyway. Usually, I'm lucky if he sleeps for twenty minutes at a time, but today he had two naps, one after church this morning and one late this afternoon. Both naps lasted for over an hour. Yay! Good naps make for happy babies.

After church we headed over to see how the Y measured up to the local athletic club. Noah apparently wasn't that interested since he fell asleep. Turns out it was a total snooze because they weren't even open. Smart kid. Taran suggested it may be because it is the Young Mens' Christian Association and they probably are closed on Sunday or at least Sunday morning. Just like Chick-Fil-A is what I'm thinking. Closed when you are craving it the most. But I digress.

I'll go tomorrow to check it out. I also need to go by FedEx Office (Did they really have to kill the Kinko's name?) tomorrow to check up on some prices for a printing project I have been assigned for Purina stuff. I can also check to see what it would cost to print out my booklet.

Anyway, I guess that tomorrow everyone returns to the real world. I do too apparently. Yay for work. If only it was a fun and interesting project, but oh well.

Drama Queen

So apparently, I can cause drama. That crazy mom site! I was reading a post today about a mom that has two kids at the age of 19. Can you imagine? She had her first when she was 13! Ack! I thought kissing was gross at that age. Ok, not related to the topic to which I'm leading. So, as I read through all of the comments and questions about teenage pregnancy I'm noticing that a great number of people, including the original poster, do not appear to be able to communicate properly. I'm talking about the worst case of text style typing mixed with incorrect word usage, poor grammar, horrible spelling, lack of punctuation use, etc. It was to the point where I had difficulty understanding what some of the women were even typing which made it difficult to understand the conversation and where it was going.

In response, I wrote a separate post about how I wish that people would proofread their posts before they add them to the thread. I mentioned how I know mistakes happen and I don't care if their commentary is perfectly correct, but it should at least be understandable. Apparently, this upset a number of the women on the site because I got a whole slew of responses about how ridiculous it was that I even care about such a thing. Now, there were several comments from moms that agree with me, but more of them were from those that did not. I don't care if the website is a way to escape and relax. Do people honestly discontinue caring if they are able to communicate just because the are relaxing at home? Apparently. I guess I should know better than to expect to carry on a discussion where I can understand the people with whom I'm conversing. Silly me.

So, the drama kept me occupied and entertained for the greater part of the day. I did run some errands, so that was productive. I was able to get my grocery shopping done. I also stopped by the athletic club that Taran requested I go and see. I got a tour from a girl that could have given a better tour. She wasn't very adept at talking up the facility, it made me sad. Luckily, I could gather information form my observations as we walked around and I asked questions concerning things she did not mention. I like the place and it is very conveniently located. I'm going to check out the local YMCA tomorrow to see what sort of things they offer. They are a bit further away, but if they can offer the same or more for a lower price, we may end up joining there instead.

I noticed something new with Noah today. I can see his top middle incisors just under the gum-line. I can't feel them when I run my finger along it, but I can see the edge of the left one and a small speck of the right one. It shouldn't be too much longer before they erupt. Our baby is growing so fast. They do that, so I'm told.

Well, tomorrow is another day. Perhaps I'll find another way to cause more drama. Should be fun.

Starting the New Year

I suppose today was a good start to the new year. I was productive. I haven't been productive the past couple of days so I suppose it is an improvement.

I've done a ton of laundry today. I also decided that since I was once again to the point where I might have to lint roll the baby to get the dog hair off of him that he picked up rolling around the floor that I should vacuum. I vacuumed the living room four times and our bedroom three times and was still pulling up hair. Yipes! I really need to vacuum more. Oh well. I also got dishes done and *gasp* emptied the dishwasher. Anyone in my family knows, I can't stand doing dishes, especially drying them! I leave them in the dishwasher until they dry on their own. I'm so lazy. But today I did well!

I was rather entertained when vacuuming though. Noah followed the vacuum, visually, as it passed in front of him. I videoed some of it because it made me laugh. It's up on my Facebook page so people could enjoy it too. Although, in all reality, I get more joy from these things than others. Silly Mama.

We had a nice evening though. Lavender bath and then feeding and putting the baby down. It was the second night in a row I put him down awake. He does well drifting off to sleep on his own. I was a bit concerned since he usually falls asleep nursing, but he does ok. Such a good baby.

Taran called me this evening (called earlier today too). He's so sweet to steal time here and there to call when he can. I know what it's like to be working, working , working and not really be able to make calls. I'm pleasantly surprised at how often he does call. He tries to call at least once a day. Sometimes he's unable to, and other days he can call a few times. I'll take what I can get.

In any case, he wants me to check out the local athletic club to see what kind of services they provide. He wants to start working out more and wants to see what their membership fees and classes are like, as well as child care options. So, hopefully I'll remember to do that tomorrow. I also need to do some shopping. I'm running out of food.

Oh well, time for me to go to bed. I hope everyone has had a good start to the New Year.