Shave and a Haircut

Well, a haircut, at least. We did it, we finally got the boy a haircut. Now maybe people will know he is a boy. Though, thankfully, he still has his curls. They just aren't as unruly. I held it together well. I thought I might cry. Here are some pictures:

"You're doing what?!"

He wasn't too thrilled with the process.

On the other hand, he was very thrilled with the lollipop.

5 Foods To Eat Before You Die

I saw this "meme"* on another blog and for some reason I find myself thinking about it at night when I should be sleeping. (Although, lately, I am not allowed to sleep, apparently...) I guess it stems from my obsesson with food. I do love to eat. I don't think I have "food issues" though. Anyway, I digress...

1. Lobster - preferably eaten with melted butter, in NewEngland, outside, in the summer. The deliciousness is the reward for the hard work and messiness. Oh, that's another thing, you must be responsible for getting the meat out yourself, none of this sissy pre-shelled crap.

2. Lobster Tail Pastry - not related at all to the lobster in #1. This is a pastry from Mike's Pastry shop in the North End. I don't know, they might be made in other places, too, but as far as I am concerned, Mike's is the only place. Here's a description if you are interested. How wonderful, indeed! Basically, it is a light, crusty shell in the shape of a lobster tail, filled with a little bit of heaven. If you want to score points with me, buy me a lobster tail.

3. Cheese Pizza from Pizzeria Regina - Also in the North End. (The mall versions are NOT the same). Thin crust, yummy sauce, perfect amount of cheese. Get some!

4. Mama's Meat Sauce - I need to have something homemade on here. My mom makes the best spaghetti sauce. (Don't ask Joel, though. He disagrees!) Preferably served on ziti with lines.

Only one more! How do I choose?!

5. Ben and Jerry's Mint Chocolate Cookie - There are whole Oreos in this ice cream! Love it!

So, those are my five. I'm sure I could come up with a new five every week. I showed you mine, now you show me yours!

* What exactly is a meme? I looked it up, but the definition didn't help.

S.O.S

Save Our Sleep!! Please, we are desperate!

For the past two nights, Oliver has been unable to stay asleep. Saturday night he was awake (and screaming) from midnight to 4 am. Lastnight, he was up from 11:00 to probably 1:30 or 2:00. I stopped looking at the clock. I can't figure it out - he seems like he is afraid of something. He also seems to be getting a stuffy nose. Maybe that wakes him up and then he is afraid to be alone. I ended up camping out on his floor lastnight until he was asleep. Not fun. What is also not fun is trying to be civil to my husband when we are operating on no sleep. I'm pretty sure it is just separation anxiety and the cure is a good dose of tough love, but that's not as easy as it sounds. At the moment he is in his room crying because I left. It breaks my heart, but he's got to learn to go to sleep. Hear me, Oliver? Go. To. Sleep.

Morgan, You Need These

Oliver had a mission the other day. He decided to pick up the pile of stuff on the floor in his room...

and deposit it on his baby sister. He was so serious and determined about it.

Poor Morgan wasn't too thrilled. I wonder what Oliver was thinking.

Disappointment

WARNING: This blog contains massive amounts of complaining, whining and self-pity. Read at your own risk!

Well, I did not get the job at the library. I am really bummed out. It seemed like the perfect job for me. I think I would have loved it. I also think I put too much weight on the importance of getting it. There were so many possibilities that came with it: the possibility of an extra paycheck, the possibility of better health insurance, the possibilty of getting out of the house for a little bit, the possibility of making new friends, did I mention the paycheck... Anyway, it is back to the drawing board now. This really sucks. My original plan was to call the library back and see if there are any other openings there, but now I don't even want to go there again. I think I'll get over that, though. I do need to find something else FAST. Our finances are crashing down on us now. Everything is catching up with us...if we don't do something soon many cancellations will be upon us. I just feel so useless not having a job right now when that is really what my family needs. UGH!

Blame It On The Moon

Full moon lastnight. It wreaked havoc on our evening. I do think it affects people somehow. I should research that... Anyway, Oliver went down without incident, but Morgan was rotten! I woke her (BIG mistake) at 8:15 to give her a final feeding and change her and put her jammies on hoping that she would fall right back to sleep. She seemed droopy while I was feeding her so I held her a bit and then put her in her bed. She has been trying to roll and was getting all of her practice in, it seems. Then she would pull out her binky and cry. It was so frustrating! Finally after an hour or so of trying to get her to go to sleep on her own, I realized that something was wrong, this was not normal going to sleep troubles. She didn't even fall asleep in our bed! So, I moved her legs, trying to get out any gas, patted her back trying to get out any burps, rocked her, snuggled her...nothing. Finally, she pooped. So, on goes the light, change the diaper, try again in the cradle. Still no sleep, much crying. Now, I am getting super tired. So, I brought her out to the living room and put her in her bouncy seat and bounced her to sleep.
10:30 pm - Morgan asleep.
12:00 am - Oliver wakes up screaming. Scared the poop outta me and I flew into his room. Nothing was obviously wrong, no injuries or scary men in the shadows. I think he must have been dreaming because he kept pointing and grunting. (I can't wait for him to talk!) We rocked a bit, walked into the living room and got his stuffed dog, rocked some more, I put him in the crib and he rolled over and waved to me and back to sleep he went. My heart was still racing from being startled out of my sleep and it took me a few hours to finally fall back asleep. (Funny side note, when Oliver woke up, Joel came into his room to see if he was ok. This morning I mentioned it to Joel and he had no idea what I was talking about. Must be nice...)
2:30 am - Mommy goes back to sleep
4:00 am - Morgan wakes up to eat. Thankfully she goes right back to sleep.
5:30 am - Joel's alarm goes off and I am in charge of hitting the snooze button a bazillion times until he decides to get up.
6:00 am - Mommy goes back to sleep.
6:10am - Joel comes back in to the house and reports that our debit card has been deactivated. Money sucks! So, I am up for the day. Trying to figure out what to do. Willing the library to call me and tell me I have a job and I start NOW and get paid tomorrow. Waiting sucks, too.
So, now both babies are napping and I suppose I should be too. I'm afraid I won't want to wake up when they are ready, so I will stay awake hoping that tonight will go a bit smoother.

Heavenly

The past few days with my babes have been so much fun. My parents are away so I have their car for the week. (Mine has been broken all summer with no fundage to fix it...) It has been so nice to pack them up and go wherever we want, whenever we want, without feeling like we are imposing on Grammie to give us a ride. Not that Grammie minds seeing her babies every day! On Wednesday we went to the play ground. Oliver had fun in the sandbox while some little girls gazed at and patted Morgan. They were enthralled by her. Then, I made a really healthy dinner which Oliver and Joel both ate and liked! I felt like SuperMom. Then yesterday, we went to a Farmers' Market in Cohasset. What fun! It was a perfect late summer day. Warm, with a teeny little nip in the air - not enough to make you uncomfortable though. The large common was teeming with people and fresh fruits and veggies. We bought corn, zucchini, green beans, strawberries, carrots and raspberries. We sat on the grass eating the raspberries and listening to the live music. Oliver layed down and pointed at all the airplanes that flew by. He would try to run away so I would catch him and tickle him. Morgan cooed happily from her little seat. It was just one of those times that I wish I could bottle and open up again and again. I'm sure it will be one of my favorite memories when I am old and lonely for my baby days again.

Big Hug

So Precious!

You Want Me To Do What?!

Part One
Our dishwasher broke the other morning. This is a tragedy. No one else seems that disturbed by it. Probably because no one else washes our dishes. I am very depressed because not only do I have to hand wash all of our dishes now, but I have to take out all the dishes that were loaded into the dishwasher and wash them. Nothing could be worse. They are sitting there mocking me now. What do I do with a broken dishwasher that has a few inches of water sitting in it? Unfortunatly, it will probably end up sitting in the kitchen mocking me for months. Send gloves!

Part Two
My mother, being convinced that Oliver is the most smartest boy on the block, decided that it is time for a potty chair. So, yesterday Oliver was introduced to The Royal Potty. It plays a royal fanfare when he goes. When he awoke from his nap dry I thought that would be a perfect time to try the potty out. He is pretty skilled at peeing on demand. (Daddy jokingly told him to go and pee on Mommy a while ago before bathtime. He marched his little naked self into the living room, aimed and fired. Missed me and the couch thankfully... Now Daddy knows that Oliver understands and obeys everything!) So, I let him check it out with his diaper on first and then we took off the diaper and tried sitting on the potty. No pee pee. That's ok, we're not pressuring at all, he's still so young. So, I went to get the videocamera to document the first potty experience and he is crouching on the floor in front of the potty facing it. I turn on the camera and tell Oliver to sit on the potty and go pee pee. Next thing I know, Oliver is sitting in a puddle on the floor. So, he gets the peeing part, just not the potty part. We're getting there. I'm afraid that he is going to want to try the potty all the time now which means that there will be puddles everywhere!!

Vacation All I Ever Wanted...

We went to Maine this week with my parents and Joel's sister. Stayed in a beautiful log home in the mountains. It was wonderful! This was our first vacation with kids...not the same at all. There was no lounging around and sleeping until ten, no spontaneous outings, no quiet. It was work!! (Though I did get to shower and go to the bathroom ALONE and witht he door closed. Every time.) Especially staying in someone else's house that is not baby proof. Poor Oliver heard more no's than he has heard ever. But, we had a great time and all of us loved being outside so much. We also took a little day trip to StoryLand. What a great place to go with little kids. I highly recommend it. They had rides geared towards little ones and big ones. Oliver went on the Teacups, the Tilt-A-Whirl and the Log Flume! He's such a little stoic though. Not a smile, laugh or even a cry during the rides. Just a strait, serious face! The best part about the place for me was the Mama's House that they had connected to each bathroom. This was a little room especially for nursing mothers. They had a few rocking chairs and some changing tables. How nice to be able to sit comfortably and nurse without having to find a shady bench outside and worry the whole time about who you were going to offend.
It was a good vacation and today it is back to life. Joel is working, I am unpacking and cleaning and tomorrow I have a job interview. I'll keep you posted!

Hair Today...Gone Tomorrow ?

Why is deciding to get my son's haircut such a big deal? He very clearly needs it cut. He has gotten so many girl comments and the curls are getting a bit unruly. But, the curls, oh the curls. They are so beautiful...so baby-like. I feel like I am saying goodbye to his babyness if I cut those golden curls. My mom thinks we should wait until he is two, I can't imagine another year of growth. Joel thinks we should get it done ASAP. I don't know. I think he will look so handsome with a big boy haircut, but I do love those curls. I get sad just thinking about it. Advice? Encouragement? Opinions?

Second Child Syndrome

Most second children complain that there are not as many pictures of them as there are of the first. I guess that is true in our case, too. We have a bazillion pictures of Oliver and only a million of Morgan. I realized this morning that there are no Morgan pictures on this blog. So she can't accuse me of loving Oliver more than her, I give you a Morgan Montage:

Shirts

Now these are great. I think I should get Oliver the "I'm not a girl!" shirt.
Either that or I could get his hair cut.

Hiccup

So, I've had the hiccups for over an hour now. They are starting to hurt. Nursing was a challenge. I kept startling Morgan and she would cry. Maybe I should try a remedy. Here are some hiccup remedies I have heard of:
Eat some sugar.
Drink water.
Drink water upside down.
Hold your breath.
I just tried this and it worked!!! Now Morgan has them...

Blueberries for Oliver

We went blueberry picking yesterday. It was really fun! Oliver ate so many berries, and still will eat them when I offer them. He is sure to be pooping blue for a while. Anyone have any good blueberry recipes?

Lastnight

Crying in the night.

Frustration.

They are both awake.

We are both asleep.

Tiptoe in.

Lift him up.

It's okay, Mommy's here.

Frustration melts away.

Chubby fingers caress my neck.

Long lashes flutter against my cheek.

Peace.

I savor the moment.

You Better Sit Down

Two posts in one day, people, this is nothing short of miraculous. Babies are sleeping. Hubby is otherwise occupied. Mommy is ALONE (yes, I said ALONE). Amazing.
I got my new issue of Parents magazine the other day. I went through my usual routine. Thumb through the magazine and read the really short stuff. Browse at the rest of it and put it in the bathroom which is the only place I can get any real reading done. Today while I was umm...reading...I came across an article about how to look better in a bikini. There were pictures of all these skinny, tanned, flat-stomached women in bikinis. Hello, is this not Parents magazine? Does that not imply stretch marks, a saggy stomach and boobs? This article was wrong in so many ways. Most mothers are not skinny and flat stomached (and if you are, I don't want to talk about it) due to the lack of time to go to the gym and the diet of baby's food leftovers. Also, who has time to get a tan?? Two summers in a row of no beach for me - two summers, people. (Ok, so that is sort of my fault). In my opinion, there was no need for ten ways to look good in a bikini. There is only one - "Don't have kids!"

ps. I'd much rather have kids than a bikini body anyday!!

Checking In

Ahh, a moment to Blog. We have been super busy lately and the babies have not been napping at the same time. Right now they are both asleep so I thought I'd take some time to Blog. I had written an entry about the 4th of July parade, but for some reason it got lost in Blogger space. It was fun and Oliver enjoyed it. He wasn't as excited as I thought he would be though. He just stared at everything going by wondering what the heck was happening. (Darn it, Morgan's awake!) He had more fun back at my parents' house running from pool to sand box and back all afternoon.
So, I have been surfing around checking out some other Blogs lately - mostly Mom blogs - and I have discovered that there is a term for people like me and most people who read my Blog. "Lurkers". Doesn't that sound creepy? Apparently that is what people are called who read other's blogs but don't comment on them. I understand that people want comments on their blogs (hint, hint) because it makes you feel like people are actually enjoying what you write and that you aren't wasting your time by writing. But, is it so bad for someone to just read it for the sake of reading? I don't know. I guess I do want to know who is reading my blog. But there are some people who have like 32 comments on each entry - does it really matter to them who else is reading? I will admit there are some blogs that I would NEVER comment on because they are people who I knew through other people at Wheaton and they would probably find it strange that I am reading about their daily lives. But it is so stinking interesting and now I am hooked. I don't like being called a "lurker" though. Makes me feel icky.
How about you? Are there blogs you read that you don't want to the writer to know about? Let's discuss...

Twitchy-Eyed

I have been so tired lately. So tired that my eyes twitch when I look at something too long. Maybe the middle of the night feedings and lack of napping for the past few weeks have finally caught up with me. Maybe it's the fact the Morgan cries all evening and once she is done crying, THEN I have to go and clean up from the day: toys, dinner dishes, the bathtub that is still full of water... Maybe I'm coming down with something or I have allergies. Maybe I am just lazy because I have been stuck in the house with no car. I don't know what it is, and NO I AM NOT PREGNANT!!!
Speaking of which, I made an appointment to get my desired method of birth control and it is not until the end of the month. The doctor said I should not have to worry about getting pregnant in that time. But, she is still going to do a pregnancy test first. OK, that sounds a little risky to me. Do I trust her or do I insist that Joel heads on down to CVS for some protection? I'm scared.
So excited for the 4th of July next week. I cannot wait to see Oliver's reaction to the parade. It is everything he loves - sirens, waving, music... oh the joy! I hope little Morgan cooperates so that I am able to enjoy Oliver's reaction. We may have to ice down Oliver's arm afterwards, what with all the waving he is going to be doing. He does love to wave. He even waves at the mannequins in Kohl's! The best is when the Today show is on at my parents' and they show the crowd waving outside, he waves and waves at them all like they are waving at him. My funny, friendly boy... I wonder what Morgan will be like at that age. She'll probably cry at every stranger and mannequin that looks her way.

Tantrums, Teething and Tushies

Sorry for the lack of blogging these days. I'm lucky if I have a chance to go to the bathroom lately. Things have been pretty hectic with two babies. We're getting the hang of it though. Now that I have pretty much recovered from the whole giving birth thing, it is time to clean this house. I have been taking one room a day - which is all I have time for - and giving it a good cleaning. So far the bedroom and bathroom are done. Today is kitchen day. That's why I am sitting here at the computer instead of cleaning right now. I hate cleaning the kitchen. But, it must be done. Tomorrow will be the living room and the babies' room and then I'll start it all again on Monday. Ahh, the joys of being a housewife. Which, as it happens, it looks like I won't be much longer. Joel and I have decided that I must get a job. Any suggestions? Kohl's is hiring and my sister has suggested tutoring. I don't think I could handle babysitting. I'm really sad about leaving my babies, but we have to eat and pay the rent...
Oliver's molars have been trying to come in for weeks now. This makes for a very cranky and drooly little toddler. He has been having these little tantrums lately and they're actually kind of funny. He has them over the littlest things too. Like, today I wouldn't let him hold his cup of cheerios so he crumpled up into tears, leaned down and rested his head on the floor and cried it out. Once he realizes I cannot be swayed, he gets up and goes on his merry way. He also has a terrible diaper rash, the worst I've seen - which makes changing time almost impossible. Last night he couldn't even sit in the tub. Poor guy! I'm tempted to let him run around naked all day, except the reason for the rash is frequent pooping and I don't want to be frequently cleaning. Any rash advice out there?
Morgan is doing well - screaming at the moment, but that seems to be what she does. Alot. She is growing fast and is more and more beautiful each day. Even though it has been only a month, I feel like she has been part of our family forever. Just think, in a few short months, she'll be teething and tantrumming, too...