Cats and GTT

Sue, too funny. I actually don't feel that badly about it, because I have warned every kid around here over and over and over again that he doesn't like kids, is generally cranky and WILL bite or scratch if petted or hugged or picked up. He only tolerates us for the most part.

I talked to my midwife again today in more detail. She has put me on a diet of nothing white - no potatoes, no white flour or pasta, no dairy, no sugar. Soren is happy that now there is someone else in the house who can't eat dairy ;).

I was so depressed by the whole thing. I feel like I've spent this entire pregnancy taking extra good care of my body and diet - even better than the first two times I was pregnant, and what do I get for it? More and more problems! My iron was also very low, so I have to take supplements, but I'm not allowed to take Floridex, because of its sugar content. I do hope I can find something that is not...ahem...constipating.

I'm already jonesing to eat something sugary, like the rebel that I am ;). Thankfully, I don't have any other symptoms, so it will be interesting to see what Tuesday's 3 hour test holds. Meg suspects it may just be my hypoglycemia showing a positive one hour test and that the 3 hour will confirm that. I hope so!

Still hot

It's disgusting outside. Rainy, and muggy enough to swim in to boot.

I got a call from my midwife that my GTT came back with blood sugar of 186. I'm not sure how high that is, since I haven't had time to research GTT and GD yet, but she was not happy and I'm going for the fasting 3 hour GTT on Tuesday morning.

This put me in an incredibly crappy mood after having had a wonderful yoga class. Then when I got home, the mother's helper that was watching Soren had been bitten by our *fucking*, yes I said *fucking* cat, who I am ready to kill. Turns out he got in a fight last night and she touched him on a cut, but still. He just peed on something else important. When do you say enough is enough and get rid of your oldest daughter's beloved pet? I *hate* him. He's grouchy, annoying and pees on things.

Not to mention that the sitter had half the neighborhood kids here, eating my food, drinking all of our organic milk and basically getting out toys and then leaving them everywhere. Like I have the energy to go to the store AGAIN this week? I'm soooo irritated. She and I will be having a long talk before I have her here again, if I do, at this point. I don't like most of the neighbor kids either, and certainly don't trust them in my house while I"m gone. I know that sounds terrible, but it's true.

Hot

It's muggy and I'm feeling incredibly lethargic. Tom is cranky, the kids are happy, and I just want to go back to bed. I have all these boxes ready to go though. Busy day ahead however, with yoga, possible playgroup, and then massage and dinner with Michelle.

Tom's taking the girls over to Landing Road to work on Danielle and Mike's new house, and Danielle is going to help me pack tomorrow and then we're going to take a load of boxes to Melrose, and then a load of their stuff from Melrose to Landing Rd.Ack. I can't wait till this is all over with!

From PA

Stolen from rachel:

Go to Google and search for "you know you're from [insert state here] when..."
Bold the items that you can relate to.

How to tell that you're from Pennsylvania:

1. The first day of Buck season and the first day of Doe season are school holidays.
Nobody else ever knows what I'm talking about when I mention this!

2. You own only three spices "salt, pepper and Heinz ketchup".

3. Driving is always better in winter because the potholes are filled with snow.

4. Words like "hoagie", "crick", "chipped ham", and "pop" actually mean something to you.

5. You can use the phrase "fire hall wedding reception" and not even bat an eye.

6. You constantly refer to Pennsylvania as "PA" (pronounced Pee-ay). How many other states do that?

7. You know that Blue Ball, Intercourse, Climax, Bird-in-Hand, Beaver, Moon, Virginville, Paradise, Mars, and Slippery Rock are PA towns.

8. Your idea of a traffic jam is ten cars waiting to pass a tractor on the highway.
At least it was until I moved to Rochester!

9. You measure distance in hours.
Doesn't everyone do this?

10. You know several people who have hit deer more than once.

11. You often switch from "Heat" to "A/C" in the same day.

12. You carry jumper cables in your car and your girlfriend or wife knows how to use them.
Um, well I don't have a wife, but I know how to use them and so does my husband ;).

13. You can actually eat cold pizza (even for breakfast) and know others who do the same. (Those from NY find this "barbaric".)
Tom insists that NYers invented pizza and that this is NOT barbaric.

14. You not only have heard of Birch Beer, but you know that it comes in several colors: Red, White, Brown, Gold.

15. At least 5 people on your block have electric "candles" in all or most of their windows all year long.

16. You know what a "State Store" is, and your out of state friends find it incredulous that you can't purchase liquor at the mini-mart.

17. You know several places to purchase or that serve Scrapple, Summer Sausage (Lebanon Bologna), and Hot Bacon Dressing.
God, I miss scrapple. And by the way, Karen, I haven't had any chili in a long time either ;).

18. You can't go to a Pennsylvania wedding without hearing the "Chicken Dance" and at least 5 Polkas.

19. You live for summer, when street fairs signal the beginning of funnel cake season.
Hot diggety damn! But Soren doesn't like funnel cakes. Weirdo ;).

20. You ask the waitress for "dippy eggs" for breakfast.

21. Your turkey has "filling," not "stuffing," and most certainly, NOT "dressing."

I'll have to try the NY one after I've lived here for a long time!

And we cried wee, wee, wee, all the way home

Yesterday should not have existed IMO. The vacuum cleaner stopped working and I couldn't unclog it. Then we went to LLL, where I felt weepy and disconnected for the most part, although I loved getting the chance to hold babies :).

Emma and soren both got to hold May, Alice's baby, which they very much enjoyed, although Emma said "Don't leave me here Mom!" when I walked across the room ;).

Then I got to help hold Zela, one of the new twin baby girls, and helped Jenny get out to her car. And Patty showed up with her week old Julian baby, who is beautiful and looks like her husband, Mark! It was great fun :). However, everything went to shit right after that.

I decided to stop for some groceries on the way home and go to the bank so we could have some food for lunch and dinner. I should have gone to the bank first, but saw a Tops grocery on the way, so stopped there first. The girls and I ended up shopping for about an hour and a half, and started checking out, only to discover that my wallet had fallen out of my purse. I had my checkbook but they wouldn't take a check w/o any ID or my Tops card. I started crying right there, sheperded the girls out, and cried the entire way home. I was so pissed and tired, and knew I didn't have it in me to go back for another grocery trip,and we had nothing really to eat in the house. Emma and Soren cried with me, just for company, part of the way home. It was very cathartic though ;).

I came home and napped for about 30 seconds before the girls woke me up. So, I got up and vacuumed, because Tom had fixed the vacuum for me over lunch, and then we had to get ready for work. Work ws the best part of the day actually. I stayed in the gym and helped coach.

Soren got her back walkover after about 10 minutes of help, and all of a sudden, she had it all by herself! She was so funny - she said "I love myself! I got my back walkover!" It was so cute. Watching her vault is hilarious though. At 33 lbs, she can't make the spring board bounce, even with only two springs in it, so we have to break out the preschool board, but w/o help, it's hard for her to do the flatback vault up onto the fat mat. She certainly tries hard though!

Emma got her baby giant and has it without any help, stuck her first cartwheel on the beam, and really worked hard on perfecting her standing back handspring. There were only 3 girls in her group, so they got a lot of individual attention, which was great. They worked on floor for a long time, and then beam, and did conditioning w/o any complaints.

I got to warm up Soren's class and to condition a lower level class too. I came home and watched Capturing the Friedmans which was quite disturbing. Then I crashed, only to toss and turn for yet another night. I looked up some homeopathic remedies for this nerve pain though and am going to try them today and tonight and see if I can get some pain reduction and some rest tonight. I have another massage appointment on Friday, and definitely plan to get this worked on.

Soren said something else funny yesterday, but I've forgotten it. I'll have to ask Tom, because I wanted to write it down.

Sleep

Or the lack thereof. *When* am I going to sleep again? I tossed and turned all night and everything hurts again. The girls haven't been going to sleep before 10 (Soren) and midnight (Emma) for weeks now. I can't figure it out. They're tired during the day but I can't get them down any earlier. It's like having toddlers again! And right before a new baby too. Argh!

I'm feeling weepy and crabby this morning. My house needs to be vacuumed and I need to get the girls ready to go to LLL. Then I have to grocery shop so I can make *something* for dinner. Goddess knows what. Then I have to work tonight, which should be OK. Tomorrow I hope to get boxes and do more packing in my bedroom, the living room, and the basement. Tom is still not talking to his mother (I may not have mentioned this), and all the boxes are at their house. Maybe I"ll stop by today and pick some up. She is upset that we are moving, and I think overall, is jealous of the girls and I and the fact that Tom has much less time to spend over at his parents'. I can understand that. Honestly though, he works so much, I don't see him a lot either sometimes.

Sometimes I get so discouraged. I'm homesick again and I just want to get this move and this pregnancy over with. I haven't done a lick of homeschooling activities in days, unless you count craftwork with the girls last night - we decorated Emma's new bed canopy with stick on stars and moons and got the glue gun out to put on some foam flowers, which in the process, we glued to the carpet in my bedroom . It was hilarious in a fucked up sort of way. The canopy is gorgeous though and she is thrilled to death with it.

What else? Emma got to witness some really bad parenting yesterday. Our neighbor's daughter, who has some mental health issues and IS really difficult, wouldn't listen to her mother yesterday. the mom apparently lost it and came out and dragged the girl into the house by her hair!!! Emma was scared.

OK, the troops are up, and I have to feed them so we can get them.

home again, home again, jiggety jig

We're home. tom and I spent the weekend driving around the mountains of Central PA. Bear Meadows, Colyer Lake, Poe Valley, and finally Shaver's Creek and the Raptor Center. I saw this incredibly cool thing that I want for Solstice. What the heck happened to the URL inserter on blogger?

We got home relatively late last night and got the girls in bed. We all slept in till 10 a.m. except for Tom, who had to be at work at 8 a.m. I was up very late having an emotional breakdown, which I won't go in to here, but I'm feeling very fragile and tired and logy today.

I did most of the laundry so far though, cleaned up the kitchen, watched some Animal Planet while I rested a bit, and packed up a lot more of the girls' room, which is about 95% done now, not counting their clothes and daily usage items. Yay!

I want to go back to bed.

In PA Again

I don't know where the time goes. How is that I can't have posted anything since Tuesday?

I don't think anything of real interest has happened anyway. Mostly me procrastinating packing. we did go to our playdate/hsing talk on Tuesday which was fun. The time flew and it was after lunch by the time I realized it. We came home and ate and took a nap and then went to the gym. Soren is cruising along, learning all sorts of fun things, like front hip circles, handstands on beam, back handsprings. it's kind of scary - she's willing to try anything, and has no fear. She is also really tough when she gets hurt. She just jumps right back on with no tears for the most part. Her hands are all torn up from doing bars for so many hours, but we made her tape grips and she's just doing it despite the blisters.

Emma is tired from the longer workouts. I'm concerned about her. She's chewing on her feet again. she's not sleeping at night. She's getting maybe 7 hours a night, but then works out 4-6 hours at the gym and doesn't seem to be eating all that well. I know she's a little worried about the upcoming birth, but I think there's more to it.

She also is frustrated with herself. She told me this week she always feels like she's causing trouble. I hate that she feels that way. I know I have a tendency to be too hard on her, but all during my pregnancy I've been pretty laid back and we were doing well. All of a sudden though, I feel PMS-y and crabby and I've been hard on both kids and easily frustrated. The thing is, is that Emma is *such* an easy kid. She is helpful, not picky, self reliant and all around just wonderful. I really need to spend some 1:1 time with her, but it's so hard to make it happen.

What else this week. Oh, I got *3* boxes of baby/nursing stuff from Karen. I am so excited! so many cute clothes and some for me too! I can't wait to move and get the baby's room ready. I feel like it will make it seem more real when I have the changing table up and diapers and clothes ready. she sent me a nightgown, which I was jus saying I needed, and I'm wearing it as I blog ;). I'm sure you're happy about that visual. she also sent me a gorgeous nursing sweater and a bunch of other stuff.

My friend Michelle, aka my massage therapist, had a cancellation yesterday afternoon, so I went to see her after my GTT test, which btw, didnt make me throw up, thank goddess.

She worked on my nerve damage, which I didn't think could be worked on, as it's in a rather, um, sensitive spot - where my thigh meets my groin, ouch! When I'm pregnant, the pressure of the baby starts to make it so painful to walk at this point and turning over at night is incredibly painful. the tension was all the way down the tendon in my inner thigh, which I didn't realize, and it actually feels *bruised* where she worked on it yesterday, but it will be worth it, I can tell. It feels looser, and I was able to move more easily last night when trying to get comfy in bed. A couple more sessions should really ease it up, which I think is necessary to have a less painful birth at this point. I'm just so grateful that something can be done about it after all. I suffered through my entired pregnancy with Soren and didn't get anything done to ease it.

I made marinated chicken breasts and patty pan squash before we left last night, and then we headed out around 7 pm. all the neighborhood kids were at my door right up until the time we ate dinner. I don't know why they congregate at my house, other than that I feed them healthy snacks (who says kids don't like carrots?) and I set limits. I kind of scared them off yesterday though, because Soren was being impossible and I lost my temper and yelled at her, but she had left the front door hanging open, so they all witnessed it, and scattered to the winds ;). it was kind of funny, but I felt badly that Soren was embarrassed to be yelled at in front of her friends. It's so nice that kids come and ask my girls to play every day though!

tom got here late last night - apparently the door was locked and he kept calling my cell phone, but it didn't ring, and there are no "missed calls" on it. Really weird. he woke me up by coming to my window and scaring me to death. i couldn't get back to sleep for an hour! he's still asleep, bless his heart. He never gets to sleep in, so I'm glad I could let him sleep. there's even coffee when he wakes up.

I apologize for the lack of caps in this post. Erica's keyboard and I don't get along and I am tired of going back and fixing typos ;).

We have a "date weekend" planned. Some hiking and dinner out. We also are going to get the dishwasher and a fridge from my old house to take back to Rochester.

Oh, I forgot, I spent the morning with my friend jenny yesterday, and got to help by holding babies and changing diapers! I had forgotten how little their little bums are. It was so much fun and didn't feel like helping at all. I'm a bit worried about her - she is rather down and having a difficult postpartum recovery. I wish there was more I could do. Depression has become hard for me to deal with since David.

Soren is doing great on her new bike and cruising all over the place now. She's finally learned how to start and stop, after I got tired of giving her a push every 20 seconds.

I think the baby has gone breech. I've been very uncomfortable and at the very least, he's laying kind of transverse with limbs flailing out all over the place and killing my sacrum. I was having b-h contractions all day yesterday and it was incredibly aggravating.

Today we are going on a playdate/learn about hsing paperwork meeting, and have to go to the gym tonight for classes/work.

Tom and I went to Homebirth Circle on Sunday and it was amazing. We got to hear Vicky, Alyce, Marsha (Alyce's sister) and Jenny tell their birth stories and they were all quite moving. It was good for Tom to be around all those new dads and babies I think too! Hah, ulterior motive ;).

Last night we interviewed and hired a doula, Kirsten. I just don't feel like all the people in our life that were going to be there, will be there when the time comes and I want someone I am paying and trust to be there and cook, clean, calm the kids, or whatever. She has not been to a homebirth before, but is cool with it and very supportive. I told her I just mostly want to be left alone and want her to help out with the kids, and she said that was just fine. Woot!

Other than that, I need to get laundry going. I've been kind of slacking the last couple of days because my back hurt so much again. And I have *no* idea what I'm making for dinner tonight. any suggestions that don't have me stopping at the dreaded grocery store?

bike!

Soren learned how to ride her new bike w/ no training wheels tonight! She still has a bit of trouble getting started and stopping sometimes, but other than that, she's thrilled to be free!

Font

I made the font a big larger - I must be getting old because I could barely read that! If it causes problems for anyone, let me know!

Ahhh TGIT

Yep, Thursday was much calmer. I worked this morning and Soren did gymnastics camp, while Emma did team practice. It was a bit frustrating for her with her finger, but she managed. Even practiced front tucks which looked like fun!

I took a nap when we got home and then threw dinner together so it could cook while we went to the midwife.

Things were pretty good overall. My bp was up a bit to 100/54, but she said that was great for the third trimester and that it should be higher now. Plus I had just carried Soren in from the car, because she has fallen asleep.

I was spilling some glucose (100+ the test read) so she thought we should do the glucose test next week although I'm not showing any other signs of GD. I only gained 2 lbs in 5 weeks, and the baby was measuring 29 cm. Not so much growth as last time (thank goodness!). Only 2 cm. this time.

I was right in that he had flipped over as well, which has been disorienting. Not from anterior to breech but from right to left so all the kicks are on the opposite side now, which is strange. His heartrate was 130 and the placenta is on the left side. He was hiding out behind it a bit, but was kicking for them and stuck his butt up ;). His head is down where it should be!

So overall a good appointment. I take the glucose bloodtest next Friday and then have another appt. two weeks after that. She gave me the homebirth supply list today, so I can start to put that together too.

Now, if I just had a move in date to the new house,I'd feel so much better.

TGIW?

Nope, it was a loooong day! Actually, yesterday was a long day too.

We spent the morning finishing cleaning and doing some minor packing, then we drove across the city to the natural food store, and then back to our suburb to the grocery store, spending a skillion dollars in the process. I had to make dinner today for my friend who had the twins, and wanted to make an awesome vegetarian casserole - but enough for us too.

Emma had requested tacos for dinner, which I don't think I've made in literally years, but it ended up being perfect, since we had about 1/2 hour to get them to gymnastics by the time we got home from the store.

I sent them upstairs to pack their overnight bag for the ILs (last night was the last Bradley class), and then we ate quickly (they both ate 2 tacos - score!) and we ran to the gym. I sat there until 5pm., thinking that Soren had class then, but then realized that it wasn't till 6 pm. which worked out b/c Emma's coach was already planning to take Emma to the ILs (directly behind the gym) after practice anyway, and this way she could take Soren too and my MIL, who is a horrific driver, didn't have to pick Soren up. :::whew::: That was the run-on sentence from hell. My apologies.

Bradley class was good - mostly about newborns and breastfeeding. I am mostly relieved to have the classes over with at this point. My friend Patty is due on the 19th so made it through the whole series! Her mom was here and is staying till after the baby comes, which is very cool.

Today I picked the girls up and they *were still asleep*! Ack! I rushed them out of bed, my MIL got them some fruit and poptarts and we made it the gym just a little late. When I picked them up, Emma informed me that she had injured her pinky finger last night. It looked pretty swollen still, so I put a call into the doctor, not realizing that this would put events into motion that would totally destroy any semblance of normalcy for the rest of the day ;).

I worked till noon and Soren attended the youth gymnastics camp while we were there. Emma was very frustrated and tearful because her finger hurt too much to do much of anything. I felt really badly for her :(. I called the doctor and got in at 2:15 p.m. So we left work early, at noon, and ran home to cook Jenny's dinner (and ours). Of course, I had promised the girls we could make candy apples today because the mix has been on the counter for 2 months and I kept putting them off. So that had to be accomplished first. What a sticky mess on a humid, t-stormy kind of day! But they are appreciated, which made it all worthwhile.

I made this wonderful recipe - a mexican cornbread vegetarian dish, which turned out awesome - we only had one piece left after dinner because we ate so much!

I got it all ready, stuffed us in the car, and we got to the doctor on time. They saw us pretty quickly and determined that she really needed an xray and to see the orthopedist because of how involved in gymnastics she is, and because of where the injury was. She hyperextended her pinky finger by falling down while running (yes, this is a kid who can do 4 back handsprings in a row, but she can't walk in a straight line without falling down and hurting herself. God forbid she ever have to walk a line for a drunk driving test ;)).

They ended up taking 4 xrays, but feel that she injured the growth plate above her bottom knuckle. I really think the PA was considering casting it, because it has to be treated like a fracture, but she eventually decided just to tape it - they couldn't even use the splint they wanted to use because her fingers are so tiny!

She said no tumbling or uneven bars for 2 weeks, egads! Emma is freaking out. On week 3 she can do it with her fingers taped up. We'll see how long she lasts w/o throwing some tumbling in behind our backs. the PA said that the best way to test the healing is to press right above the knuckle and not to tumble on it until it no longer hurts, because there is an increased risk of dislocation if she reinjures it. Good grief. Part of me feels like I should have just taped it up myself and called it a sprain and followed common sense for resting it ;). BUT, I'll do my best to make her rest for the prescribed time. Her coaches are more in line with toughing it out, but I'm her mom this time, not her coach :P.

After the two appointments, we finally got over to Jenny's, saw ONE of the twins (the other was napping) and she is gorgeous - looks just like her older siblings :). I want to try to stop for a longer visit on Friday.

Then we headed home - it was a nightmare! Tons of rush hour traffic, a huge t-storm that left me unable to drive more than 40 mph on the expressway, and a 20 minute drive turned into almost an hour. I was supposed to be at work at 4:30 and didn't get there till 6:30 - what a waste. I was only there for an hour and spent most of that time answering questions about Emma's injury.

Tom took the girls to Danielle and Mike's new house to work on stuff. They should be home by 10 p.m. I came home, cleaned up the dinner from our slapdash dinner - thank goddess I had it ready to stick in the oven so Tom could put it in when he got home from work. I threw in some laundry and have retired for the day.

Tomorrow morning I work again, and Emma gets to suffer through practice and Soren goes to camp again, and then we're coming home and packing for a few hours, because it's supposed to rain. Then I have a midwife appointment, but Tom is going to miss this one (the only one so far!) because he's on call and can't leave the property.

Ahhh, sleep sounds good ;)

I wanted to post a token pregnant picture of me. I actually have gotten a LOT bigger than this in the last 2 weeks or at least it feels like it, but this is at Taughannock Falls near Ithaca, NY. 

I got this cool link to create your own logo from jennifer (like everyone else I know ). I want to make the rest of my family but am getting tired! 

We're still home

I got a lot done today but still have a ton to do tomorrow. Mostly laundry, vacuuming, and starting to pack. I'm starting to freak out about moving.

I got presents! My wonderful friend (actually Tom's friend, who has become my email friend), Jennifer, sent us all packages for Xmas in July! On each package that was wrapped in xmas paper, she printed out photos of us from my website, and the pasted them on as a tag for what box was for whom.

Emma got all sorts of stuff - I think her favorite was a Secret Garden journal and a fancy women's pajama top that she's been wearing all day.

Soren got winnie the pooh stuff (so did Emma) and a fancy shirt of her own, as well as a dress up tutu, hair thingy and fancy light up dress up shoes. I sadly dropped her snow globe winnie the pooh and broke the glass, but the wooden part was salvagable. I felt like such a shit.

Jude got a very cute newborn pooh outfit complete with hat and footies that I just love!

Tom got an amazing hooded sweatshirt that will be fantastic in our Rochester winters. He also got a journal that is gorgeous - I told him he has to start writing about fatherhood now, and some owl stuff.

I, OTOH, made out like the proverbial bandit. I got a Medela Pump In Style breastpump, complete with car adapater and not one, but TWO manual pumps that fit the bottles, plus extra flanges and tubes. I am so excited! I know I won't be working, but I get terribly engorged and HAVE to pump or die. I know, supply and demand and all that, but the first week, pumping is necessary, freqently. Also, I like to have some breastmilk on hand, just in case of emergency.

I got another package from my Sept. 04 list from my secret baby shower buddy - another adorable baby outfit from Carter, sandlewood candle and incense for me, and the cutest personalized onesies and a hat for Jude!

I was literally in tears - I was feeling so overwhelmed by the house, and it was so wonderful to get all this baby stuff and it was so thoughtful and just made me realize how close I'm getting. 2 months exactly till my due date. Goodness!

I went to the chiro this afternoon and got a clean bill of health for the next month. Of course, now my sciatica is acting up ;).

i went to work - I was nervous because I know I made a mistake in the scheduling and that my boss was freaking out last week. He had gotten over it by today and we had a good talk. I do feel badly about the mistake I made. Just a few more weeks till maternity leave...

We're home

We got home at 1 a.m. last night. The girls slept in until around 9:30 a.m. and we haven't had breakfast yet.

I need to balance the checkbook, pay bills, do laundry, unpack and put away the camping gear which is still sitting in the living room for some reason? I don't know why it didn't get put away, considering that Tom was home while I was gone, but ::shrug::.

It's good to be home!

More later.

Vent

Oh my gawd. My mother is driving me right the f&ck out of my mind. I have been with her since yesterday morning and I am ready to pull all my fricking hair out. She has bitched about *everything* under the sun - my parenting, my hair, my kids, my ex-husband, her health - everything. She is sooo negative about everything! (Not that I'm not being negative about her right now, but if I don't vent somewhere I am going to pop.)

She never ever ever shuts up, ever. She talks non-stop about anything, everything and nothing. She has an opinion about everything and knows everything and has more experience than anyone else in the world. She is embarrassing as hell, disrespectful toward my kids, and me.

She fed Soren breakfast with dairy in it this morning and couldn't figure out why I was pissed, and then bitched because soren wouldn't eat it because I told her not to. Hmmm...let's see, let's feed her something that will make her stomach hurt, give her a rash and make her cranky for days. What a great idea!

My only consolation right now is that Emma thinks her nanny is more stupid than I am ;). Although I must say that I had to be quite stern with Emma because she was so disrespectful toward my mom. Ugh! And Emma has been impossible this whole trip too! I was happy to send her to her dad tonight. I'm pretty sure that's why she was so miserable anyway. She wanted to spend mre time with him and was upset that he had to work.

I can't wait till Tom gets here tomorrow morning so I can get away from her! Not to mention that she owns about 2 pillows and I was so uncomfortable last night because I couldn't lay with enough support for my pelvis. I was awake most of the night. Who can live with 2 pillows in their house?!

Anyway, I didn't buy anything yet other than a cool leather keychain for Tom and I got a really cool glass hanging vase for Soren and a pair of handmade sheepskin moccasins that I ordered for Emma, since they were out of her size.

OMG, she followed me in here and is narrating everything she sees in Erica's house to me as if I haven't spent a ton of time here. AUGGGGHHHH!!! Help! LOL!

OK, just a few more hours till bed ;).

Thanks for listening to me vent. On the up side, my back and hips feel great - I've been doing a ton of walking just fine, other than sore feet!

I forgot

We went camping last weekend and got very wet and muddy the second day, but it was great fun anyway. Tom and I finally had a chat, and I made my point, yet again, that I can't stand the silent treatment thing he does. Period. Ugh.

I think it was good to clear the air though.

Anyway, the other piece of news is that I had my first dentist appt. in 3 years yesterday and got a clean bill of health! they said that I had excellent home care. Hmph ;). I'm very happy though!

Arts Festival

We didn't end up getting into State College until 9:30 or so last night, which made for a long trip. I dropped the girls off and headed over to Erica's. She was apparently worried about how late we got in and called just as I was a few blocks away. I felt badly, because she obviously stayed up to wait for us. (note to Erica: We can let ourselves in! Go to sleep if you're tired ).

I got up this morning and picked the girls and David up and we parked back at Erica's and went downtown. We tried to visit Soren's old preschool but they had all walked to the Arts Festival, so onward we went, hoping we'd run into them (we didn't but we'll try again tomorrow or Friday!).

It was a great day. It threatened rain at one point, but then cleared up. It was very hot - probably mid-80's, but i didn't get too puffy, because I drank TONS of water all day long. My feet hurt though, from so much walking!

First we went to the parklet, where they had an instrument petting zoo, where a local music store had instruments out for kids to try, which was pretty cool. We watched, but didn't try any.

Then, we went to this huge thing called Architects of Air, which is this amazing sculpture-like thing that you can walk in and it's supposed to be very peaceful and they play soothing music. I'm sure it is, but even though we went first thing in the morning, it was unbearably hot inside. I actually thought I might faint, between the heat and the disorientation of being inside a totally round atmosphere, but I stuck it out, because the kids were absolutely fascinated. It was really cool. I just wish it was actually cool inside ;).

From there, we decided to walk up to Allen Street to see the kid's exhibits, since it was children's day. We ran into about a thousand people we knew, which was really cool. Soren's friend Kara and her family from Kindermusik and gymnastics; a kid I used to teach in gymnastics, Julia, who is also friends with Emma's friend Katri, who we saw almost first thing too!

Then we ran into a ton of people from the Friends School. We saw Jael and Kelson, and their parents, who are going to take sabbatical this year and RV around the country, homeschooling and studying. I'm so jealous!

We saw Jane and Julie and Violet, our very dear friends, who fed us and we visited with for quite a while. Jane is frighteningly thin. I am anxious to talk with her sans children to make sure there is no health problem going on. I was quite concerned about her.

anyway, the kids spent all my money buying stuff that other kids made. Soren bought a journal that has a strap so you can carry it on your shoulder, body powder that is lavender scented, a straw hat with flowers on it (I have to take pictures of her in it!) and a clay animal. Emma got a straw hat too, with blue flowers; a cat of some sort, it's really hard to describe other than that it's fluffy - I think it's hooked somehow; a little bow and arrow made from a coat hanger, rubber band, and straws with clay soft tips for arrows; and she got a tooth fairy pillow.

Then we ran into more friends and got lunch. emma got potato pancakes and Soren and I shared a plate of Indian food. David got an amazing looking crepe.

We then went in the water stations they have set up - one has buckets that dump on your head and the other is a mister - very cool and calm for those not wanting to get drenched. The girls wore swim suits under their clothes and Emma got good and wet. Apparently it was very cold. Soren and I stuck to the mister and the edge of the bucket station but still enjoyed getting cooled off.

After that, david took them for smoothies while I found a shady spot to wait for the Kid's Wordstock. i wasn't sure quite what to expect but thought the girls would like it since they both love poetry and love to write. it turned out that 2 kids read their own poetry, but they had a bunch of Shel Silverstein and other poetry that kids could choose to get up and read. Emma read about 5 poems and Soren got up and recited two from memory! My little girl - getting up on stage and reciting? who is this kid? It was so cool. She did the Shel Silverstein Baby Bat: The baby bat screamed out in fright: Turn on the dark, I'm afraid of the light!

The other one she did she had learned at school about a green queen. I'm not quite sure of the words.

then we walked up to Old Main, kind of the heart of Penn State, visited the science table, and then the girls got sucked into being in the Processional, which looks much like Chinese New Year. They both could carry stuff or wear costumes. Emma wore a sort of large blue dog head with pink satin skirts and Soren carried a rabbit on a stick. I didn't have my camera but the CDT sponsored it and got pictures, so maybe there will be some in the paper tomorrow. We walked back up to where we started, and watch the sandscapes sculptor work on his sculpture for awhile and then went back to Erica's and made pizza and salad.

Emma and Soren were invited to spend the night at Anne's with their daughter's so David and I took them over there and hung out chatting for a while. My girls hopped in the tub there and got cleaned up, thank goodness!

Tomorrow I pick them up, take Emma to Science camp at katri's and then my mom and Soren and I will hit the People's Choice Festival until emma is done. My mother is feeling quite resentful about the fact that we have other people to see her besides her. Hmph. she is about the only thing to make my blood pressure go up these days.

Friday we plan to go back to the downtown Arts Festival to see the real art. Tom is coming Friday night or Sat. morning to do the Fest with me, so I can't wait! There is all sorts of good music and food to be had over the next 4 days. It is good to be here!

Vacation!

I'm still feeling a bit brain-rumpled, but I'm on vacation! The gym was closed yesterday and Tom has off Monday, so we're going camping finally. He can't come today because he's on call, but the truck is packed and I'm going to go pick up the kids. We check in at 1 p.m., set up the tents and hit the beach! It's supposed to be gorgeous today, thank goodness.

I think I have everything we need except for maybe enough things to do if it rains. But if I pack anything into the already overflowing bags, I"ll have to add another bag ::sigh:::

I think it will be a blast though!

Yesterday the girls and I hung out with Michelle for lunch, Emma and I got a massage, then we went shopping for a bit and I bought china flat shoes (that's what I call them...) that are blue and embroidered for $5.25 each! It was fun.

Then we went over to Mike & Danielle's new house and hung out. The former owners left a TON Of stuff there and are apparently wandering in and out, which makes me pretty nervous on their behalf. I think a lock change is definitely in order first thing Monday afternoon when we get back.

Tuesday night we leave for PA and the Arts Fest! WOOT! I can't wait :)

Rumpled

In Little Women, Jo says that she is rumpled in her mind as she tousles her hair, as if to illustrate the point.

I can definitely relate.

First though, my friend Jessica had her baby today. An *11 pound* boy! It was a transferred homebirth, but no c-section and they're home already :). Congrats Jessica!

The motor home saga continued throughout the day. I wanted to go to the insurance company, pick up the new cards; then to the bank; then to DMV to find out if I had the right forms. Instead, when I got to the bank, there as line a mile long, so I scratched that. I then realized that I didn't have Tom's driver's license, so I couldn't get the MH registered, because the title is in Tom's name and I needed his DL in order to process the paperwork. Argh!

So I decided just to head on to Alyce's, which was delightful. The baby, May, is just gorgeous and easygoing and cute as a bug, and peed on me the second I picked her up :). Initiation I guess! I gave her a sling lesson, the girls played in the creek out back, and we generally had a nice and relaxed visit.

By the time we left though, we were starving, as it was around 2. I realized I couldn't stop at DMV to find out about the forms with all of us starving, so I decided to go home and feed us and call from there. I was soooo tired, but I didn't nap - I stayed up and tried to deal with this crap (which isn't even MY crap, can I remind you?). DMV said there was no reason that I needed to register the vehicle in order to have it towed, as long as it was insured. Yeehaw. That saves us $120, right? Wrong. To be continued...

So, I call Tom to tell him the good news. He is skeptical but hopeful. He tells me though that his father has been diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis. I still haven't had a chance to read anything about it, but will tonight. He's pretty upset, so I offer to stop by his parents to check in on my way to work. I call work and tell them I'll be late.

So I stop in at his parents, get no info about the doctor appointment but an earful about how Tom has a bunch of crap in the garage (including some of mine that I didn't know about from when I moved to NY!) and his former bedroom is still filled with mildewed stuff that needs to be packed and gotten out, since they want to have the house appraised. I offer a few choice opinions about his packrat tendencies, which do drive me over the edge frequently. I don't say anything to him though, because of that whole quiet passive aggressive thing he does ;). It was good to vent a bit.

Then, the kicker. She apparently told Tom this, who never told me, so I was completely blindsided. Apparently, while the girls were there on Tuesday night, she was "stern" (according to Emma) with Emma when she found that E. had climbed up on the sink to use the mirror. She was legitimately afraid that Emma would fall (which I know she wouldn't, but she's not used to kids). Emma apparently got quite upset at being talked to about this, as she is very sensitive and my MIL can come off pretty flip sometimes.

So, Emma journaled about her feelings (that my MIL is crabby and that she doesn't like her, etc.), but seeing as how she didn't have her actual journal, just wrote it on paper and proceeded to forget it and leave it on the bed the next morning when I picked her up.

My MIL found it and read it and was pretty hurt by it. I didn't have any idea what to say, but didn't feel compelled to make excuses for, or apologize for Emma's feelings. I did talk to Emma, and tell her that it was OK to have feelings and to journal about them, but a private journal was a safer bet, and that she had hurt some feelings and she might owe an apology. She had realized she had left them there, but didn't want to say anything to me and was mortified by the whole thing, but agrees that she owes an apology. I don't feel compelled to do anything else I guess.

So, I get the girls to work. I'm overly hormonal, exhausted and grumpy, and on the verge of tears. I realize when I get there that I was supposed to assist in 2 classes and am quite late. Argh! So I go back and help. Tom was supposed to pick the girls up after work, but somehow it took an HOUR to get 2 miles from our house to his parents to pick up the AAA card and to call them and then to drive a block to the gym. Um yeah. OK. So he proceeds to snap at me that the DMV is wrong and that AAA won't tow the damn MH w/o registration and inspection - as if it's MY fault somehow! I told him not to come into work and snap at me and he grabbed the girls and left.

He's not home yet, and I'm glad. Maybe I'll pretend to be asleep when they all get home ;). Where's the margueritas in this joint?

So, perhaps I'll feel less rumpled now that *I've* journaled ;).

Babies

I am finally going to get to go visit my friend Alyce this morning, and her new baby May :). Yay! The girls are going with me and there is a creek out back to play in so they should have lots of fun.

My friend that was pregnant with twins had a successful HBAC! Yay for her! I'm so happy and can't wait to see her. Twin girls, fraternal, both over 7 lbs, or so I've heard. Beautiful names too. It was about an 8 hour labor, one was a water birth. I'm just so thrilled beyond belief. It's really too bad that I have the latest due date in my set of friends. I'm getting so jealous of all these new babies!

Plus, I'm just dead sick of being pregnant ;).

The good news is that my Wednesday hell days are over. I taught my last two classes yesterday, one with Emma's help, and am down to just paperwork and supervision for the rest of my pregnancy.

I've got to go to DMV this morning. Joy. Tom's (former?) best friend is demanding that Tom move his motor home by the 9th. There seems to be some sort of horrible misunderstanding going on between them and I am so worried for the future of their friendship. I have been quite frustrated about it for a long time, but have kept my nose out of it. His friend has seemed to want nothing to do with us since Tom and I married and has politely rebuffed all invitations to dinner and hang out.

He is the one that owns the cabin where we had such an idyllic visit in October, and that is a loss too - tom spent a lot of time there and it was his nature getaway from the city.

Soooo, I get to go to DMV and register this stupid thing, and run to the insurance office to get an insurance certificate :::sigh::: Gotta get a move on so I can hang out with Alyce too! I have to work tonight.