No worries…we are not moving!)
So much for a relaxing weekend. It wasn’t that bad, (at least I didn’t have to clean or do laundry), but it was far from relaxing. Roger worked late on Friday…finishing up a job before he started a new one today. Kaelyn and I spent a few hours together, eating dinner and playing. It was nice, but she’s gotten to be quite a handful in the last few days. She’s climbing now and into everything. She also craves constant attention. I’m not sure if she’s just bored with the toys we have in our family room for her to play with or not…she used to be so content just sitting on the floor playing with her toys and stacking her blocks. She loves it when we play with her, but never demanded it. Now, she won’t play by herself for longer than five minutes (and that’s stretching it). I can’t make a phone call, check email, or cook dinner without her whining for me to play with her or getting into something she shouldn’t. I think I’m going to try to switch out her toys to ones she hasn’t played with yet and see if that keeps her more engaged…at least for the times that I’m not able to devote all my attention to her. Also, she’s teething…which is not helping her mood…or mine.
Anyway, Roger got home after Kaelyn was in bed, and he and I got a chance to hang out a little bit before I fell asleep on the couch. We were up early on Saturday and where we normally sit around and do nothing until close to lunchtime, had to leave shortly after breakfast to go help L and E (newlyweds) move. I had briefly considered staying home with Kaelyn since she’s so energetic. I was sure that she would want to be into everything…and I was right. I let Roger talk me into going. We brought over Kaelyn’s pack-n-play and since it was close to her morning nap, I had attempted to just get her to sleep. No such luck. She was content to sit and play for a little while, but didn’t appreciate the fact that there was a house full of people and no one was paying attention solely to her. I managed to get her to sleep once the guys had left to get more furniture and E and I were alone…we were somewhat productive but it didn’t last long. Once the guys got back and we settled down for lunch, Roger let Kaelyn crawl around. That was the end of her being good. She took another pretty long nap in the afternoon, but that was after at least two hours of me chasing her around (or listening to her cry in the pack-n-play) while I was trying to help E get things organized.
Sunday wasn’t much better as far as Kaelyn’s behavior went…or my ability to relax. We went shopping and I’m happy to say that not only did I get the earliest start I’ve ever had on Christmas shopping (knocking quite a few off my list yesterday), but we got some amazing deals. Kaelyn had one episode where sitting in the stroller just wasn’t cutting it for her. And I guess I can understand that sitting still for several hours is hard when you’re so full of energy. We took a short break and let her run around the play area for a bit and that did enough to sufficiently wear her out and get her to nap. She woke up, still in her stroller, but in a much better mood than before. Back at home, she just wouldn’t sit still and while I know I can’t expect too much from a 13 month old who just learned to climb, I so wish she would have given us just 10 minutes of peace! Instead, she would cruise up to me and Roger and cry until we paid attention to her. I did eventually give up on relaxing and got down on the floor and played, which was so rewarding. She’s so engaging and fun! I just wish I could find a way to keep her content during the times that I can’t play with her! By the time she went to bed, I could barely stay awake…I think I lasted another hour tops!
………………..
It has occurred to me that I didn’t cook this weekend (except for breakfast on Sunday morning). This is odd for me and may be the reason why I didn’t feel very relaxed and rested (aside from Kaelyn). Cooking is therapeutic for me. I get lost in it and it definitely de-stresses me. I wonder why I let a whole weekend pass without making anything? That is so unlike me…
……………………
The alarm went off at 3:30 this morning and I was out of bed by 4. Roger was already awake…for at least an hour before me. He was not in bed when I had the pleasure of waking up to our cat, Itty Bitty, sneezing all over my face. (I really need to get her to the vet). Roger had to be at work by 6:30 this morning and since my car is STILL in the shop, he’s also stuck driving me to work. We had to leave home by 5:15 to get Kaelyn to the sitter…which is about a 40 minute drive from our house….then get back across town to go to our respective work places. I did not like the early morning. Not because I didn’t like getting up that early or leaving home that early, but because for the first time ever, Kaelyn wasn’t awake while I was getting ready for work. Even though I could be so much more efficient with her sleeping, our mornings are so joyful as we get ready and play and interact with her. I missed her this morning and was sad that I got to spend very little time with her (just a quick kiss goodbye after we dropped her off). If it turns out that Roger needs to be at work by 6: 30 every morning, then I will change my schedule to allow me to be at work a little bit later, so that I can leave at my normal time to drop her off and still get my morning time with her (I currently never drop her off..though sometimes have to pick her up). Our other option is to find child care closer to home, which will be tough since our current sitter is so awesome and totally worth the drive.
I really need my car back.
We are helping another friend move this weekend. Just to a different place in our city. She has mixed emotions about the move…it’s both for good and not so good reasons. I hope I can be the friend she needs through this transition.
Monday, November 15, 2010
Friday, November 12, 2010
Veterans' Day
It's nice having a day off in the middle of the week. I was able to get all the errand-y type things I usually have to do on the weekend done and now feel like I can fully relax this weekend. To make it better, most people decided to take today off work and have a four day weekend. As nice as that would have been, coming in to work for just half a day meant that I could get more done in four hours than I usually do all week. Why? Because no one was there to bother me. This means that come Monday, I'm better positioned to get through the week than I normally am. I can relax even more! Amazingly, I've also done all these things sans car since mine is still in the shop (I don't even want to go there).
I finally cashed in my birthday present and had the house cleaners come in yesterday. The house is so clean and smells so great. How wonderful! There's nothing like that "clean house" smell.
In other news, Roger has accepted a new position with a well established company that is starting an HVAC section here in Sacramento. The company is known for it's solar power and while they are getting the HVAC thing set up, have offered to have Roger start early and learn the solar part of the business. This means several things. One, he will temporarily have to give up on the business, since it could cause some conflict. This is sad in some ways because his business was taking off...but the unsteady income did make us uneasy. Things were working well for us and the extra time he got to spend with Kaelyn was awesome, but I think he missed the daily grind of a regular job and with the economy being the way it is, it was scary for us to invest in something new. Still, he did well for his first year and it seems that now that he's wrapping things up, people are calling left and right wanting service! It was hard to pass up the additional income though. It will be a great cushion for us and it makes us both feel so much better knowing that it's there. The not so great part is obviously he will have less time with Kaelyn and I know he'll miss that. We have great care for her and she's happy with our caregiver, so we are good there, but I know that Roger enjoyed the extra time with her, especially now that she's so little and so in love with her daddy!
For me, I think this move is all positive. The opportunity for him to start something from the ground floor is amazing...and to be backed by such a well respected, well established company is even better. Plus, learning about solar power can only be good. Even though we live fine off my income alone and have been able to fund all our fun stuff with Roger's business, it's nice to know that we'll have the second steady income guaranteed to us. We'll be able to save even more and have a fall back for times like when we don't have a renter and need to pay two mortgages (I did not enjoy that last month!) We were not expecting this development in his career and I won't go into how it came about, but suffice to say, we were not looking for this. The stars just aligned perfectly and we felt like we had to jump on it.
We'll be getting used to a new schedule over the next couple of months and I have a feeling that the adjustment might be hard for all of us. With both of us going into work early now (6:30 am), we'll have to work out how to get Kaelyn to our sitter. It's a long drive, which means earlier mornings for both of us. I just hope I have my car back soon so we can take turns. As it stands now, Roger drives me to and from work...which is just extra driving and time for him. Still, we are going into this holiday season with new hope for our future. We're excited...even if cautiously so. We'll be working hard, the days will be tiring, but the peace of mind will be nice. We'll make that much more of an effort to maximize the time we do have together on the weekends. I'll be looking into changing my schedule so that I can have a flex day every other Friday and Roger may be put on a 4-10 schedule that will give him three day weekends as well...so, we should be good there.
I'm ready for the weekend and plan to fully enjoy it. We'll be helping friends move tomorrow and may go shopping on Sunday. Nothing big. Just time together as a family. Always good.
To end: Thank you to all who have served past and present. Thank you to the families that sacrifice your loved ones. And to all those who I've known that have lost their lives fighting for our freedom (and to everyone that I don't know)...THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!
I finally cashed in my birthday present and had the house cleaners come in yesterday. The house is so clean and smells so great. How wonderful! There's nothing like that "clean house" smell.
In other news, Roger has accepted a new position with a well established company that is starting an HVAC section here in Sacramento. The company is known for it's solar power and while they are getting the HVAC thing set up, have offered to have Roger start early and learn the solar part of the business. This means several things. One, he will temporarily have to give up on the business, since it could cause some conflict. This is sad in some ways because his business was taking off...but the unsteady income did make us uneasy. Things were working well for us and the extra time he got to spend with Kaelyn was awesome, but I think he missed the daily grind of a regular job and with the economy being the way it is, it was scary for us to invest in something new. Still, he did well for his first year and it seems that now that he's wrapping things up, people are calling left and right wanting service! It was hard to pass up the additional income though. It will be a great cushion for us and it makes us both feel so much better knowing that it's there. The not so great part is obviously he will have less time with Kaelyn and I know he'll miss that. We have great care for her and she's happy with our caregiver, so we are good there, but I know that Roger enjoyed the extra time with her, especially now that she's so little and so in love with her daddy!
For me, I think this move is all positive. The opportunity for him to start something from the ground floor is amazing...and to be backed by such a well respected, well established company is even better. Plus, learning about solar power can only be good. Even though we live fine off my income alone and have been able to fund all our fun stuff with Roger's business, it's nice to know that we'll have the second steady income guaranteed to us. We'll be able to save even more and have a fall back for times like when we don't have a renter and need to pay two mortgages (I did not enjoy that last month!) We were not expecting this development in his career and I won't go into how it came about, but suffice to say, we were not looking for this. The stars just aligned perfectly and we felt like we had to jump on it.
We'll be getting used to a new schedule over the next couple of months and I have a feeling that the adjustment might be hard for all of us. With both of us going into work early now (6:30 am), we'll have to work out how to get Kaelyn to our sitter. It's a long drive, which means earlier mornings for both of us. I just hope I have my car back soon so we can take turns. As it stands now, Roger drives me to and from work...which is just extra driving and time for him. Still, we are going into this holiday season with new hope for our future. We're excited...even if cautiously so. We'll be working hard, the days will be tiring, but the peace of mind will be nice. We'll make that much more of an effort to maximize the time we do have together on the weekends. I'll be looking into changing my schedule so that I can have a flex day every other Friday and Roger may be put on a 4-10 schedule that will give him three day weekends as well...so, we should be good there.
I'm ready for the weekend and plan to fully enjoy it. We'll be helping friends move tomorrow and may go shopping on Sunday. Nothing big. Just time together as a family. Always good.
To end: Thank you to all who have served past and present. Thank you to the families that sacrifice your loved ones. And to all those who I've known that have lost their lives fighting for our freedom (and to everyone that I don't know)...THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!
Thursday, November 4, 2010
(Un)Awarness
It amazes me that, when my life gets crazy busy (at it often does), how completely unaware I can be of what is happening outside my own little world.
For example, just a few weeks ago, we had a huge fire at our local mall. The story was complete with the mall closing down just before the holidays, the extensive damage, and a crazed guy that may or may not have had a bomb that started the whole thing. This happened to occur the week after our vacation, and just before my now infamous trip to DC. I worked late that day, came home thinking about dinner and Kaelyn and worrying about everything I still had left to do before I left that weekend. Roger asked me what I heard about the fire and my answer was “absolutely nothing”. To make it worse, until yesterday, it never even occurred to me that if the trip to DC hadn’t come up, I would have been with my coworkers in a class in that very location…as it was happening…and that they all pretty much had witnessed the drama unfold. As a matter of fact, until yesterday, I had forgotten that it even happened, as I had quickly melted back into my own world soon after hearing about it.
During this same period of time, the San Francisco Giants got into the World Series. I sort of remember Roger telling me something about it, but I really didn’t clue in. The first game was during my plane ride back to Sacramento. I was annoyed that the pilot kept waking me up with updates on the score. The other day, they won the championship. That, at least, I was mentally conscious enough to catch wind of. What I didn’t realize, was the outcomes or the existence of the other four games.
One thing that I do try to keep track of, regardless of what is happening to me personally, is local and national elections. I don’t love talking about politics. I despise getting into debates or sharing/knowing what others’ political leanings are. The endless phone calls, the misleading propaganda, and downright false advertising sickens me. Still, this is our system and I fully support it. I do my research, learn the issues, and sometimes even talk to my husband about what I’m thinking and ask for his opinion. I vote. Yesterday’s elections were both the most annoying and most interesting I have ever witnessed and I was interested in so much more than just what was happening here in California. I don’t want to get into details, but my job, and particularly my project, is highly political…so the Nevada Senate races were crucial to how we proceed (not if…that was a given…just how).
Now, happily, it’s over. I have my marching orders. My phone will stop ringing. The commercials will end. I can slip back into worldly oblivion and into my own comfortable little cocoon of a life.
For example, just a few weeks ago, we had a huge fire at our local mall. The story was complete with the mall closing down just before the holidays, the extensive damage, and a crazed guy that may or may not have had a bomb that started the whole thing. This happened to occur the week after our vacation, and just before my now infamous trip to DC. I worked late that day, came home thinking about dinner and Kaelyn and worrying about everything I still had left to do before I left that weekend. Roger asked me what I heard about the fire and my answer was “absolutely nothing”. To make it worse, until yesterday, it never even occurred to me that if the trip to DC hadn’t come up, I would have been with my coworkers in a class in that very location…as it was happening…and that they all pretty much had witnessed the drama unfold. As a matter of fact, until yesterday, I had forgotten that it even happened, as I had quickly melted back into my own world soon after hearing about it.
During this same period of time, the San Francisco Giants got into the World Series. I sort of remember Roger telling me something about it, but I really didn’t clue in. The first game was during my plane ride back to Sacramento. I was annoyed that the pilot kept waking me up with updates on the score. The other day, they won the championship. That, at least, I was mentally conscious enough to catch wind of. What I didn’t realize, was the outcomes or the existence of the other four games.
One thing that I do try to keep track of, regardless of what is happening to me personally, is local and national elections. I don’t love talking about politics. I despise getting into debates or sharing/knowing what others’ political leanings are. The endless phone calls, the misleading propaganda, and downright false advertising sickens me. Still, this is our system and I fully support it. I do my research, learn the issues, and sometimes even talk to my husband about what I’m thinking and ask for his opinion. I vote. Yesterday’s elections were both the most annoying and most interesting I have ever witnessed and I was interested in so much more than just what was happening here in California. I don’t want to get into details, but my job, and particularly my project, is highly political…so the Nevada Senate races were crucial to how we proceed (not if…that was a given…just how).
Now, happily, it’s over. I have my marching orders. My phone will stop ringing. The commercials will end. I can slip back into worldly oblivion and into my own comfortable little cocoon of a life.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Halloween
We spent most of the weekend waiting for the rain that was promised us…happily, it never showed up and the fall weather, though a little chilly on Saturday felt, refreshing and sweet.
By the time I left work on Friday, I was both physically and mentally exhausted. The trip to DC earlier in the week, coupled with the fact that my project schedule has been accelerated by a year pretty much had me beat (I’m better now). Roger picked me up from work a little after 4 (my car is in the shop with a bad clutch) and he, Kaelyn and I went to pick out our pumpkins for carving and get something for dinner since neither of us felt like cooking. We were late with the pumpkins this year, mainly because of all the traveling we did this month, but at least we got them and were able to carve them.
After dinner, the plan was to carve our pumpkins, but I just couldn’t muster up enough energy to do it. Instead, we settled on picking out our patterns (witch brewing in the moonlight for me, and really freaky skull for Roger) and cleaning the pumpkins out so they would be ready in the morning. After Kaelyn went to bed, we put in a scary movie, got out the tequila, and relaxed the rest of the night. I never even got a shot in…I was so tired, that I fell asleep during the movie and didn’t wake up until Saturday morning! Roger, bless him, slept on the couch, sitting up, next to me, because he didn’t want to wake me up to go to bed.
Saturday was relaxing as well. We were expecting it to rain so just sat around at home waiting for it to come. We did take a walk to the park next door and went to a deli to get some meats and cheeses for sandwiches that night, but that was pretty much it. We carved our pumpkins, roasted the seeds, and just hung out at home.
Halloween was as good as I hoped it would be. OMG! Kaelyn was so adorable in her strawberry shortcake costume. We were even able to get some pictures of her with her hat on…which was a feat in and of itself! She had no idea what was going on, but loved all the attention she got. Klara and Forrest came over and handed out candy with us. I made some apple turnovers just before trick or treating started and they were still hot when we came back. We enjoyed eating and sharing them with the parents that brought their kids around.
Around 9pm Halloween was over. The first major holiday of the fall season is behind us…now the rush begins. Thanksgiving is just around the corner!
By the time I left work on Friday, I was both physically and mentally exhausted. The trip to DC earlier in the week, coupled with the fact that my project schedule has been accelerated by a year pretty much had me beat (I’m better now). Roger picked me up from work a little after 4 (my car is in the shop with a bad clutch) and he, Kaelyn and I went to pick out our pumpkins for carving and get something for dinner since neither of us felt like cooking. We were late with the pumpkins this year, mainly because of all the traveling we did this month, but at least we got them and were able to carve them.
After dinner, the plan was to carve our pumpkins, but I just couldn’t muster up enough energy to do it. Instead, we settled on picking out our patterns (witch brewing in the moonlight for me, and really freaky skull for Roger) and cleaning the pumpkins out so they would be ready in the morning. After Kaelyn went to bed, we put in a scary movie, got out the tequila, and relaxed the rest of the night. I never even got a shot in…I was so tired, that I fell asleep during the movie and didn’t wake up until Saturday morning! Roger, bless him, slept on the couch, sitting up, next to me, because he didn’t want to wake me up to go to bed.
Saturday was relaxing as well. We were expecting it to rain so just sat around at home waiting for it to come. We did take a walk to the park next door and went to a deli to get some meats and cheeses for sandwiches that night, but that was pretty much it. We carved our pumpkins, roasted the seeds, and just hung out at home.
Halloween was as good as I hoped it would be. OMG! Kaelyn was so adorable in her strawberry shortcake costume. We were even able to get some pictures of her with her hat on…which was a feat in and of itself! She had no idea what was going on, but loved all the attention she got. Klara and Forrest came over and handed out candy with us. I made some apple turnovers just before trick or treating started and they were still hot when we came back. We enjoyed eating and sharing them with the parents that brought their kids around.
Around 9pm Halloween was over. The first major holiday of the fall season is behind us…now the rush begins. Thanksgiving is just around the corner!
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Uninspired
I’ve been pretty uninspired to write anything lately. I don’t know why. We’ve had a lot going on and it seems that the more that happens, the less I feel like writing.
I just got back from a three day business trip to Washington DC. It was a whirlwind and I’m not sure completely worth my time. I missed Roger and Kaelyn like crazy, as I always do when I’m away from them. I finally got home at midnight last night and was never so happy to be sleeping in my bed next to my husband. It truly felt like I had been gone a lifetime. Kaelyn cut another tooth while I was gone and seems to have grown another inch!
This last week since being back from our family vacation has been extremely busy for all of us, but we still managed to spend time doing the things we enjoyed. The biggest thing that happened is that we found a renter for our other house, which is a huge relief. It seemed like forever, but it was only empty for three weeks. I can handle that! We were busy making sure the house was ready and our renters moved in a couple of days ago. I had wanted to go to Apple Hill last weekend to visit the pumpkin patch, walk around and enjoy the fall weather. Unfortunately, it rained the whole time. Instead, we stayed home while I made some homemade noodles and chicken soup. Vickie spent the day with us on Sunday and made over 100 chocolate chip cookies. To my surprise, there were still some left when I got home last night…not what I expected nor what I needed!
Kaelyn is also pretty much back to normal. She listens to us again and doesn’t whine and complain as much as she did when we first returned from our trip. So, it seems that it takes an average of one day of “retraining” to undo the damage of each day of spending time with grandparents. That will be good to know for future visits!
I’m really looking forward to this holiday season…it will be busy, but so much fun at the same time. Halloween is already this weekend. Kaelyn will be Strawberry Shortcake and is wearing a handmade dress and hat that Klara made for her for her birthday. I can’t wait to get the pictures of her. With her red curly hair, she will look like the cutest little doll! We should have good weather too…which is nice.
We’re still trying to decide what to do for Thanksgiving. We have been invited to spend the holiday with Vickie’s family, but really want to spend time at home and I love cooking the meal. We just don’t know who we’d invite to join us, if anyone…although we would like it to be more than just us.
Other than that, I don’t have much to say….like I said, I’m just not feeling very inspired….
I just got back from a three day business trip to Washington DC. It was a whirlwind and I’m not sure completely worth my time. I missed Roger and Kaelyn like crazy, as I always do when I’m away from them. I finally got home at midnight last night and was never so happy to be sleeping in my bed next to my husband. It truly felt like I had been gone a lifetime. Kaelyn cut another tooth while I was gone and seems to have grown another inch!
This last week since being back from our family vacation has been extremely busy for all of us, but we still managed to spend time doing the things we enjoyed. The biggest thing that happened is that we found a renter for our other house, which is a huge relief. It seemed like forever, but it was only empty for three weeks. I can handle that! We were busy making sure the house was ready and our renters moved in a couple of days ago. I had wanted to go to Apple Hill last weekend to visit the pumpkin patch, walk around and enjoy the fall weather. Unfortunately, it rained the whole time. Instead, we stayed home while I made some homemade noodles and chicken soup. Vickie spent the day with us on Sunday and made over 100 chocolate chip cookies. To my surprise, there were still some left when I got home last night…not what I expected nor what I needed!
Kaelyn is also pretty much back to normal. She listens to us again and doesn’t whine and complain as much as she did when we first returned from our trip. So, it seems that it takes an average of one day of “retraining” to undo the damage of each day of spending time with grandparents. That will be good to know for future visits!
I’m really looking forward to this holiday season…it will be busy, but so much fun at the same time. Halloween is already this weekend. Kaelyn will be Strawberry Shortcake and is wearing a handmade dress and hat that Klara made for her for her birthday. I can’t wait to get the pictures of her. With her red curly hair, she will look like the cutest little doll! We should have good weather too…which is nice.
We’re still trying to decide what to do for Thanksgiving. We have been invited to spend the holiday with Vickie’s family, but really want to spend time at home and I love cooking the meal. We just don’t know who we’d invite to join us, if anyone…although we would like it to be more than just us.
Other than that, I don’t have much to say….like I said, I’m just not feeling very inspired….
Monday, October 18, 2010
Our Vacation and the Haunted Hoochie
We got back from our “vacation” yesterday afternoon and are all trying to get back to our normal routines. It’s hard for all of us. I’m back at work and that somewhat has me on a normal schedule, but work is anything but normal right now. There’s just so much going on…a last minute trip to DC next week, right after I took a week off…not great timing. Roger has a lot of work to catch up on too, and don’t even get me started on Kaelyn! I now know why the word is called “spoiled”. Our relatives ruined our child…but more on that later.
We spent last week in Florida and Ohio visiting both sides of the family. There were so many people who hadn’t met Kaelyn yet, and we really didn’t want to wait too much longer to have her meet them. I started out both trips (Florida and then Ohio), thinking it would be nice to live near family again. There are so many advantages to it…the time for them to bond with Kae, spending holidays together without traveling, being close enough to visit without having to take time off work, etc. But, by the time we got back on a plane Saturday morning, Roger and I were cemented in our opinion that Sacramento is right where we want to be. With all the advantages of being near family, the distance is also…well, healthy. First, it’s impossible for us to live near all our family since they are split between Florida/Alabama, Ohio, and Greece. To pick one set to be near is torture and no matter what we decide, we would still have to travel somewhere to see someone. It’s much nicer to say, “We live here. Near no one” than to choose and have to deal with the consequences of what the other families would think and feel.
Secondly, our families spoiled Kae rotten! Sure, if they saw her more often, they probably wouldn’t be so bad, but still…
Every time Kae made a sound, someone was there to pick her up, give her a cookie or a cracker, or do whatever they could to make her smile again. And while I think the love and consolation of a crying baby is good, the truth is Kaelyn is a faker. She’s one year old. She’s testing us. She recently learned the meaning of “no” and while she listens to Roger and me when we say it, she will whine about it…to get us to give in. We don’t. But my mom totally does. She’s also teething (managed to cut two more teeth while we were away) and sometimes that pain will make her cranky. Roger and I try to distract her with teething rings or carrots to make her feel better. We give her medicine only if she absolutely needs it…and so far has only been that bad once. Sometimes she cries out while she’s sleeping. Only once, maybe twice, and she does this in her sleep. We have learned after that initial cry to wait. Most of the time, she doesn’t make another sound and is fast asleep when we check on her. I think this is from the pain of teething, or maybe she’s dreaming, but the fact remains, she cries and we wait to see if it’s “real” before doing anything. Our families were the complete opposite. If she so much as breathed heavily, someone was in there picking her up (waking her up) and giving her something to eat, drink or play with. Not good.
Kae may complain a little bit when I first put her down for a nap or at bedtime, but normally, after she voices her initial frustration, she lies there quietly and is asleep by the time the second song on the music CD I play for her is over. After we got back yesterday, she threw a mini tantrum when I put her down for the night. For the last week, that bought her more time to play. Now, I feel like I have to re-train her.
For all the complaining I’m doing, I do love our families and love how much they love and adore Kae. I think it’s great for her to have people in her life that will spoil her and I want her to be excited about these trips in the future. And while I’ll spend the next few days/week getting her back on our routine, I’m truly happy that she got time with grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. She loved the attention and they loved her. This is why I think it would be good to be near them again…and the result of her “spoiling” is why I’m happy that we are a little further away most of time.
Overall, the trip was really good. We left early on Saturday morning, spend a four hour layover in Dallas, which wasn’t nearly as bad as it sounds, and was in Florida in time for dinner. Kaelyn got to meet my Grandmother for the first time, we visited my Dad’s farm and ate A LOT of food! We left for Ohio Wednesday afternoon, got there extremely late and welcomed sleep when it finally came to us. We had a Thanksgiving dinner on Friday, followed by the Haunted Hoochie (the world’s best haunts). We had another birthday party for Kaelyn on Saturday, and visited many many friends and family of Roger. It was a great time. We had little sleep in Ohio and when we got home all we wanted was to relax. We were in bed by 8pm!
In one week, we had a total of 6 flights. Kaelyn was good on all but two of them. And those were the two in between Dallas and Columbus. For some reason, she wouldn’t sleep on this leg and that was pretty miserable, but overall, she did great. The plane put her to sleep and when she was awake, she was in a good mood. Her ears didn’t seem to bother her that much. She tugged on them a little during the decent, but luckily for all of us, seemed to equalize them easily. Funny enough, I’ve been pretty congested lately and my ears killed me on the decent. I haven’t felt that bad since I was a little kid…but if I had to choose between me and Kaelyn to be in pain, I would pick me any day.
Only one flight was delayed and that happened to be the very last one. We boarded on time, Kaelyn took her bottle, and was nearly asleep when we were told the plane was being taken out of service and we had to de-board. We were told that they wouldn’t be giving us the stroller back and we had to change concourses (coincidentally, the same gate we had arrived at earlier that day). Luckily, we ran into good friends of ours at the airport, that were also on our flight. Thank God they were there! There was no way we could have carried Kaelyn, our two roller suitcases, her diaper bag, our drinks, and jackets without the stroller, without them. (And yes, we did do the entire trip with only carry-on’s…American Airlines charges $25 to check a bag and I just couldn’t bring myself to pay that fee.)
Being home is nice. Our bed, our couch, our routine, our rules. Fall seems to have shown up while we were away too. We left with weather in the upper 90’s and returned to highs in the low 70’s and a little bit of rain. I’m welcoming the changing of the season. The crispness of fall, the comfort foods, and the holidays. Halloween is just around the corner. I can’t believe it…
We spent last week in Florida and Ohio visiting both sides of the family. There were so many people who hadn’t met Kaelyn yet, and we really didn’t want to wait too much longer to have her meet them. I started out both trips (Florida and then Ohio), thinking it would be nice to live near family again. There are so many advantages to it…the time for them to bond with Kae, spending holidays together without traveling, being close enough to visit without having to take time off work, etc. But, by the time we got back on a plane Saturday morning, Roger and I were cemented in our opinion that Sacramento is right where we want to be. With all the advantages of being near family, the distance is also…well, healthy. First, it’s impossible for us to live near all our family since they are split between Florida/Alabama, Ohio, and Greece. To pick one set to be near is torture and no matter what we decide, we would still have to travel somewhere to see someone. It’s much nicer to say, “We live here. Near no one” than to choose and have to deal with the consequences of what the other families would think and feel.
Secondly, our families spoiled Kae rotten! Sure, if they saw her more often, they probably wouldn’t be so bad, but still…
Every time Kae made a sound, someone was there to pick her up, give her a cookie or a cracker, or do whatever they could to make her smile again. And while I think the love and consolation of a crying baby is good, the truth is Kaelyn is a faker. She’s one year old. She’s testing us. She recently learned the meaning of “no” and while she listens to Roger and me when we say it, she will whine about it…to get us to give in. We don’t. But my mom totally does. She’s also teething (managed to cut two more teeth while we were away) and sometimes that pain will make her cranky. Roger and I try to distract her with teething rings or carrots to make her feel better. We give her medicine only if she absolutely needs it…and so far has only been that bad once. Sometimes she cries out while she’s sleeping. Only once, maybe twice, and she does this in her sleep. We have learned after that initial cry to wait. Most of the time, she doesn’t make another sound and is fast asleep when we check on her. I think this is from the pain of teething, or maybe she’s dreaming, but the fact remains, she cries and we wait to see if it’s “real” before doing anything. Our families were the complete opposite. If she so much as breathed heavily, someone was in there picking her up (waking her up) and giving her something to eat, drink or play with. Not good.
Kae may complain a little bit when I first put her down for a nap or at bedtime, but normally, after she voices her initial frustration, she lies there quietly and is asleep by the time the second song on the music CD I play for her is over. After we got back yesterday, she threw a mini tantrum when I put her down for the night. For the last week, that bought her more time to play. Now, I feel like I have to re-train her.
For all the complaining I’m doing, I do love our families and love how much they love and adore Kae. I think it’s great for her to have people in her life that will spoil her and I want her to be excited about these trips in the future. And while I’ll spend the next few days/week getting her back on our routine, I’m truly happy that she got time with grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. She loved the attention and they loved her. This is why I think it would be good to be near them again…and the result of her “spoiling” is why I’m happy that we are a little further away most of time.
Overall, the trip was really good. We left early on Saturday morning, spend a four hour layover in Dallas, which wasn’t nearly as bad as it sounds, and was in Florida in time for dinner. Kaelyn got to meet my Grandmother for the first time, we visited my Dad’s farm and ate A LOT of food! We left for Ohio Wednesday afternoon, got there extremely late and welcomed sleep when it finally came to us. We had a Thanksgiving dinner on Friday, followed by the Haunted Hoochie (the world’s best haunts). We had another birthday party for Kaelyn on Saturday, and visited many many friends and family of Roger. It was a great time. We had little sleep in Ohio and when we got home all we wanted was to relax. We were in bed by 8pm!
In one week, we had a total of 6 flights. Kaelyn was good on all but two of them. And those were the two in between Dallas and Columbus. For some reason, she wouldn’t sleep on this leg and that was pretty miserable, but overall, she did great. The plane put her to sleep and when she was awake, she was in a good mood. Her ears didn’t seem to bother her that much. She tugged on them a little during the decent, but luckily for all of us, seemed to equalize them easily. Funny enough, I’ve been pretty congested lately and my ears killed me on the decent. I haven’t felt that bad since I was a little kid…but if I had to choose between me and Kaelyn to be in pain, I would pick me any day.
Only one flight was delayed and that happened to be the very last one. We boarded on time, Kaelyn took her bottle, and was nearly asleep when we were told the plane was being taken out of service and we had to de-board. We were told that they wouldn’t be giving us the stroller back and we had to change concourses (coincidentally, the same gate we had arrived at earlier that day). Luckily, we ran into good friends of ours at the airport, that were also on our flight. Thank God they were there! There was no way we could have carried Kaelyn, our two roller suitcases, her diaper bag, our drinks, and jackets without the stroller, without them. (And yes, we did do the entire trip with only carry-on’s…American Airlines charges $25 to check a bag and I just couldn’t bring myself to pay that fee.)
Being home is nice. Our bed, our couch, our routine, our rules. Fall seems to have shown up while we were away too. We left with weather in the upper 90’s and returned to highs in the low 70’s and a little bit of rain. I’m welcoming the changing of the season. The crispness of fall, the comfort foods, and the holidays. Halloween is just around the corner. I can’t believe it…
Monday, October 4, 2010
New Toys
I have never been quick to jump on the technology bandwagon. I didn't have a DVD player for years after DVDs were pretty much the only thing you could rent or buy and the only reason why I finally switched over is because my VCR broke and I won a new DVD player at a Christmas party I attended. I've never had a iPod, iPhone, or i-anything. I'm not even sure what an MP3 is. The TV I had when I got married was archaic. Before Roger brought in the flat screens, I happily watched TV on a 29" box tv I bought while I was in college.
When I was in the AF, I was given a palm pilot (I think). When I left the AF, I opened my desk drawer and gave it to my replacement...brand new, still in the box.
Cell phones are just another thing that I'm not fast on. I didn't even own one until I was in Japan, and then only got it because Stacy did and I went with her to pick it up. It only made phone calls. I started texting regularly about two years ago. Roger and I signed up for a family plan and we got phones with full keyboards. Before then, I refused to write anything with numbers on a phone...and I mean, seriously, texts seem like a step back from actually talking to someone and hearing their voices live!
Anyway, it's safe to say that I'm a little behind the power curve when it comes to technology.
At our garage sale last weekend, I lost my cell phone. I'm pretty sure it was stolen, but I did give it to Kaelyn to play with just before it disappeared for good. I wasn't that heartbroken about it. The phone was starting to be a very big source of anger for me. Shutting off at random times, not holding a charge, dropping calls, etc. It had some features to allow me Internet access that I never used. I wanted a new one...a simple one that just made phone calls. That's it.
Saturday, after a full day of hanging out with Vickie (me an Kaelyn) and working on getting the rental cleaned up (Roger), we finally made a trip to Verizon to get me a replacement. Truthfully, I kind of enjoyed my week without a cell phone, but with the world revolving around them, it was inconvenient at times...so, a new cell phone it was.
Roger and I were both eligible for upgrades, so we decided to each get a new phone. I told the guy. "Calls only." He did his job. By the time we were done, our new phones (the Droid) has Internet access, apps (a new slang word for me), navigation, full keyboard text, touch screen, talks to me, and yes, even makes phone calls!
Yesterday, I downloaded applications that count my calories, WW points, give me weather updates all around the world, GPS navigation system, and a bar code reader (that was really fun to play with). We went shopping to buy some baby gates and a highchair for Kaelyn. I scanned the high chair to read instant reviews and get coupons. I checked my email, thought about updating the blog, and got turn by turn directions to get a different store than the one we normally go to. All from my phone! The only thing I didn't do was make a phone call.
I'm still not super excited about the latest and greatest technology, but I will admit that I love my new phone. I'm pretty sure once the novelty of it wears off for me, I won't use the features as much...will probably be back to just calling and texting, but it is fun to play with right now.
In other news, Kaelyn is very close to walking...she also decided that in the meantime, she will do a real crawl (before it was army crawls and rolls). She's super speedy and hard to keep up with.
Friday night, Roger and I went to Esther and Lester's wedding. It was beautiful....and sort of a date night for us since we didn't bring Kaelyn. She and Vickie and the dogs had a great time though...and so did we. It was wonderful, exhausting, and exciting all at the same time.
Here's to the start of another busy week!
When I was in the AF, I was given a palm pilot (I think). When I left the AF, I opened my desk drawer and gave it to my replacement...brand new, still in the box.
Cell phones are just another thing that I'm not fast on. I didn't even own one until I was in Japan, and then only got it because Stacy did and I went with her to pick it up. It only made phone calls. I started texting regularly about two years ago. Roger and I signed up for a family plan and we got phones with full keyboards. Before then, I refused to write anything with numbers on a phone...and I mean, seriously, texts seem like a step back from actually talking to someone and hearing their voices live!
Anyway, it's safe to say that I'm a little behind the power curve when it comes to technology.
At our garage sale last weekend, I lost my cell phone. I'm pretty sure it was stolen, but I did give it to Kaelyn to play with just before it disappeared for good. I wasn't that heartbroken about it. The phone was starting to be a very big source of anger for me. Shutting off at random times, not holding a charge, dropping calls, etc. It had some features to allow me Internet access that I never used. I wanted a new one...a simple one that just made phone calls. That's it.
Saturday, after a full day of hanging out with Vickie (me an Kaelyn) and working on getting the rental cleaned up (Roger), we finally made a trip to Verizon to get me a replacement. Truthfully, I kind of enjoyed my week without a cell phone, but with the world revolving around them, it was inconvenient at times...so, a new cell phone it was.
Roger and I were both eligible for upgrades, so we decided to each get a new phone. I told the guy. "Calls only." He did his job. By the time we were done, our new phones (the Droid) has Internet access, apps (a new slang word for me), navigation, full keyboard text, touch screen, talks to me, and yes, even makes phone calls!
Yesterday, I downloaded applications that count my calories, WW points, give me weather updates all around the world, GPS navigation system, and a bar code reader (that was really fun to play with). We went shopping to buy some baby gates and a highchair for Kaelyn. I scanned the high chair to read instant reviews and get coupons. I checked my email, thought about updating the blog, and got turn by turn directions to get a different store than the one we normally go to. All from my phone! The only thing I didn't do was make a phone call.
I'm still not super excited about the latest and greatest technology, but I will admit that I love my new phone. I'm pretty sure once the novelty of it wears off for me, I won't use the features as much...will probably be back to just calling and texting, but it is fun to play with right now.
In other news, Kaelyn is very close to walking...she also decided that in the meantime, she will do a real crawl (before it was army crawls and rolls). She's super speedy and hard to keep up with.
Friday night, Roger and I went to Esther and Lester's wedding. It was beautiful....and sort of a date night for us since we didn't bring Kaelyn. She and Vickie and the dogs had a great time though...and so did we. It was wonderful, exhausting, and exciting all at the same time.
Here's to the start of another busy week!
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