Just a Boring Saturday...

Ben's still coughing, but on the mend. The ratio of "owees" to hours in the day has greatly decreased.

Tom's parents stopped by for a little while this morning to give us some advice on our hallway bathroom. Personally? I'd like to take a sledgehammer to it, but they suggested a more conservative approach. So hopefully we'll be getting that underway soon and I can stop be annoyed by its 80's grossness every. single. day.

Preparing for a trip to the grocery store... that's always fun. Yeehaw.

Greetings from the Land of the Sick...

The boy slept a little better last night. That is, after the effects of the cough syrup wore off. We discovered the Children's Robotussin turns him into a whirling dervish. No kidding, he ran laps around the living room, dove off chairs and rolled around on the floor from 4-7 last night. He wouldn't even talk or make eye contact, he just kept RUNNING. It was weird and now I'm deathly afraid of the cough syrup.

He's still a miserable mess of snot and has a cough that rivals that of a 90-year-old chain smoker with pneumonia. I'd be shocked if we did not end up back in the doctor's office by Monday morning.

Wish us luck for the weekend. Gah.

On the bright side, I got an hour off yesterday to go lay in the dentist's chair and have my teeth cleaned. When I told the hygenist how wonderful it was, she told me I *really* need to go on vacation.

Update...

Thanks for the all the feel better wishes! It's kind of hard to gauge how much better he's doing because I have heard these things are so much worse at night. He was saying "owee" on and off this morning but pointing to his throat and chewing on his fingers. I half think the pain he has right now is from his two-year molars. I even took him to Gymboree this morning... he wasn't quite as active, but otherwise, he seemed to enjoy getting out of the house.

The pediatrician called in the anesthetic eardrops, so we'll have those for later if things go downhill... She said if he's not a little better by tomorrow, we'll try another antibiotic.

:: sigh ::

Helpless...

Last night was hands down the hardest experience I have ever had in my 22 months as a parent. Yes, I'm counting the 16-hour labor, the first horrific night home and the time I had to help hold my child down in the ER while they shot needles into his head and sewed him up and he screamed like they were killing him.

Sometime around 5p.m., this whole "mild ear infection" thing started getting more dramatic. He got really subdued, I felt his temperature climb (it was almost 102) and he didn't want anything to do with dinner. He started grabbing at BOTH ears and saying "owee!" while looking at me like, "Fix it!"

He had already had the antibiotic, so I gave him a dose of baby Motrin, which, looking back, appeared to have the same effect as giving him say, apple juice.

He was still MOSTLY himself by bedtime... but at 9, he started calling us from the crib. "Mommy! Daddy! Mommy! Daddy!"
He wasn't upset, in fact, he was downright WIRED. I figured his ears were feeling better, but he just needed a little extra attention, so we brought him to bed with us to watch Lost.

Sometime during the scene where Michael was pointing guns at John Locke and the doctor (yeah, so like 5.5 seconds into it), he started saying "owee" over and over and over again.... that turned into him crying "owee" and then the full blown screaming began. I called the pediatrician, who said I could give him Tylenol on top of the Motrin and then a double dose of Motrin at 11:30 .Tom ran to the store for more Tylenol... Ben and I watched various episodes of Sesame Street and he screamed pretty much constantly. This continued until 4a.m.

FOUR A.M.

And there was NOTHING we could do about . NOTHING. It was the saddest thing I have ever seen. All he wanted was to go to sleep and he couldn't even lay his head down because it hurt so badly. Poor little guy. :(

Luckily, something seems to have kicked in (extreme fatigue? the Motrin? the antibiotic? Who knows!) beacuse he has been sleeping since four. I did just get him up for his next dose of meds but he passed right back out.

Please, someone with ear infection experience tell me tonight is NOT going to be a repeat... :( :(

Ben's First....

... ear infection!

I can't believe it. This child has never in his 22 months had more than a sniffle (with the exception of the roseola saga). I took him to the pediatrician this afternoon to have his cough listened to because it seemed to be getting worse and he is not a happy camper. She checked his ears and voila, ear infection in the left one.

Good times.

It's mild, but she sent us for an antibiotic to clear it up. I'm just glad we didn't discover this over the weekend!

Home Sounds Like a Good Place to Stay Today...

It's pouring outside.

Ben is sick. (gross cough/cold thing)

We were up all night with him because he couldn't breathe.

Yes, I think I'll stay in my pajamas today, thank you very much. I also think we'll watch a lot of the Disney Channel.

**update**
Oh drat. The rain stopped. Now I'm not feeling so good about staying in my pajamas. Argh.
Ben is down for an early nap... he's feeling pretty icky, I think and feels a little warm. :(

Plugging Along on the Room...

The painting is MOSTLY finished... The last wall is probably going to need a second coat. There is some white showing through that's going to bug the heck out of me unless I fix it. I'm also still working on the outlet covers. The "paintable" ones I got from Home Depot didn't really work out so I'm going back and just painting over the white ones that are already in the room. I don't normally paint those things (to address a question in the comments from yesterday), but I'm kind of going all out with the coordinating decor in this "big boy" room, so I'm painting them the same navy blue that is in the bedding. (different from the walls).

I accidentally got a smudge of blue on the ceiling in one corner which is also bothering me... I have some ceiling paint downstairs and I'm hoping to be able to kind of cover it up just enough without having to paint the whole darn ceiling; because I now know from experience that ceiling painting really isn't so much fun.

I hung up some of the wall stuff this morning and it looks adorable. Still trying to decide where to put the airplane shelf (which Ben won't let out of his sight because it has a propellor on it he can spin) and the print I have.

I'll post some pictures later... I think I'll sneak in while Ben's napping and try to get a few. :)

**update**
A few pictures of the progress...
View from the bedroom door


Other side -- changing table not staying, armoire moving, toy shelf going where changing table is and the airplane shelf is going on the wall


Closet/book corner - airplane print still needs to be hung up over here

And Then the Post Went *poof*!

Anyone else notice the disappearing post? I have no idea why Blogger chose to eat my post from yesterday... it's right there on my list of posts, but then doesn't show up here on the blog. Maybe it will come back when I publish this time. Hrm.

Still plugging away at the boy's room. Three walls done, one to go. While he is napping, I'm painting the outlet covers. Waaaaaaaaaaaahooey.

One Wall Down, Three to Go...

(plus trim)... right, I remember now. I hate painting! My hands are blue. There is blue in my hair. There is blue paint all over the sink in the bathroom that's next to Ben's room. And I'm going to be dealing with it for awhile because I can't do his whole room in one day, both because of lack of TIME and because he has to sleep in there.
**update**
TWO walls done. (AND I learned how to clean the trap under the bathroom sink. Go me.)
Here's an attempt to take a picture of the color... the crib will get moved out when the bed comes and I'm taking down those shelves behind the crib too.

Once Upon a Potty...

So we got this DVD for Ben... Once Upon a Potty. Maybe you've heard of it?
No one told me it was going to be the most annoying movie on the planet.

It's also very short, and Ben likes it A LOT, which means we have watched it about 32 times today. It ends with this lovely little diddy that worms its way into your brain so that you can't go anywhere without humming it or worse, singing it.
I could not find the mp3 to share with you, but here are the lyrics. You'll quickly see my problem.

Oh, but on the bright side? Ben can now say "poo poo". Oh joy!

Project: Toddler Room

One step at a time...

Found an area rug:


Found a shelf:


Today I spackled the holes and then sanded. I also put up the new window treatments and bought paint for the walls and the trim. (I decided to start with the blue and try one wall to see how it looks, the trim is just getting a fresh coat of bright white)

Tomorrow, I'll tape off and do the trim and maybe trim out my test wall.

Here's the challenge that makes this project particularly interesting:
I can't work on it during naptime beacuse it's in THE nap room.
And working on it while the kid is awake? Toddler + paint + power tools = mess + trip to ER.

Hrm...

Redecorating Blues...

Ben and I went out to Home Depot this morning to pick up some paint swatches for his room. I can't decide whether to paint it blue to match the new airplane stuff, or just give it a fresh coat of the neutral cream color it already is. Argh. Can't decide, can't decide. I might put all the new stuff up first and see if that makes the decision any easier.

I also have to repair two big issues with his walls, one of which is going to be REALLY annoying to fix. One of the seams in the drywall is cracked and is pulling away from floor to ceiling. It's up to me to fix it, unfortunately, because I did not marry a handyman.

And speaking of handymen, I've been waiting THREE months on mine to come and install my attic stairs so I can start loading the attic full of baby paraphernalia and clothes. It sucks when you find a good handyman, because he inevitably gets too busy to help you in a timely fashion.

The Nanny...

You guys, the Gymboree teacher confessed to me today that the first time I came there with Benjamin, she thought I was the nanny because I was obviously not old enough to be his mother.

THE NANNY, people.

Again, I really REALLY need to start wearing some makeup or a shirt that says, "I'm almost 30!" or something.

Please note that this post is not intended to be a backhanded brag about how wonderfully young and vivacious I look. (and I SO do not look vivacious, I look a a tired teen mom) Frankly, it's creepy to be almost 29 and mistaken for 14,15,16. It's a real and true complaint about how hard it is to be taken seriously at first glance because everyone thinks you're just some kid.

Seven in Seven.

(all the rage in the blogosphere right now!)

Seven things I want to do before I die:
1. Have at least two more children
2. Have one of them be a little girl
3. See Disneyland
4. Travel to the UK and go to France for a day
5. Live in a pretty victorian-style house (minus the victorian decor)
6. Tour the set of Sesame Street
7. Sing in a choir again

Seven things I cannot do:
1. Dance
2. Anything that involves math that is more complex than adding and subtracting
3. Jog (I have ZERO endurance)
4. Give birth with no epidural (I'm fairly sure... unless of course, I'm given no choice, in which case, we'll see)
5. Stop biting my nails
6. Match shoes to outfits
7. Jump out of an airplane

Seven things that attract me to my husband:

1. His sense of humor
2. His smile
3. His love of all things childish, including Disneyworld and Sesame Street
4. His daddy abilities
5. His intelligence
6. His jeans and t-shirt dress code
7. His morning coffee-making abilities

Seven things I say most often:

1. Get that OUT of your mouth!
2. Did you make the coffee yet?
3. Did you poop?!
4. I HATE that cat.
5. OH Pickles! (thank you, Higglytown Heros for this one)
6. No! no no no no no!
7. Can I have a Ben kiss?

Seven favorite series/books/authors:

1. Anna Quindlen
2. Anne Lamott
3. Madeline L'Engle
4. The Girlfriend's Guides (to pregnancy, to the first year, to toddlers)
5. ?
6. ?
7. ?

Seven movies I watch over and over:
1. Muppet Movie
2. Sleepless in Seattle
3. Finding Nemo
4. Aladdin
5. Princess Bride
6. Sesame Street "Let's Make Music" with Stomp
7. Indiana Jones (and of the three)

Benjamin Graduated...

... to the next level of Gymboree. LOL. ;)

I'm not really sure what that means except that we now go at 11:10 instead of 9:20.

Even the Gymboree website is sort of vague about it.

Level 4:
At this stage, toddlers use all their skills to become good problem solvers. They begin to understand the patterns and actions they need to perform, and in what order, to reach a goal--this is known as "motor planning." Through imitation, they come to understand the functional use of objects and use that knowledge to be effective in the world. They learn some behaviors lead to certain reactions. For example, putting away toys will earn a hug from Mom or Dad.

Level 5:
Children at this stage use words and symbols such as pictures and objects to communicate and develop their own ideas. They can form mental images of their desires. For instance, they picture the cookie they are craving-what it looks and tastes like-then use their words to demand, "Cookie!" They enjoy make-believe play, such as using a spoon to "feed" a stuffed bear. Blocks that previously were simply for stacking now can be arranged to become a house for their toy animals.

Eh. Who cares. He gets to go burn off a ton of toddler energy. Woohoo! ;)

New Word...

As I'm sure many of you do also, when I walk through a store I have a constant (mostly one-sided) dialogue with my toddler. Today, I was in Target and we wandered past some towels that had Nemo (of Finding Nemo fame) on them. I pointed them out to Ben, saying, "Oooh! Look Ben! Nemo!"

He looked up from whatever random item I had given him to keep him busy and said, "Nemo?"

I said, "Excuse me?"

"Nemo! Nemo Nemo Nemo!"

Why is it that words that he hears every day of his like like, I dunno, his NAME, elude him. But "Nemo" he hears ONCE and there it is part of his vocabulary?

I tested it again when we walked by the DVD's. "Ben, who is that?" I said, pointing to the Finding Nemo box.

"NEMO!"

Then he proceeded to babble on about Nemo this and Nemo that all through Target, causing little old ladies and other mommies to melt into little puddles with his adorable utterances.

There is no rhyme or reason to the language acquisition thing, is there?

Pluggin' My Party...

Actually... I'm plugging my friend Mandy, who just became a Pampered Chef consultant. I get to be one of her first parties! Woohoo! Anyway, I'm having it on January 29th (a Sunday) at 2p.m.

If you'd like to come, please let me know. I'm so self conscious about inviting people to these kinds of parties because I don't want my friends to think I'm just hitting them up to buy stuff. I really REALLY like Pampered Chef stuff though and the parties are fun (and yummy). And you'll be helping out my wonderful friend Mandy who is trying to get this side business of hers going.

SO, if you want to come and think I might not have you on my standard list of "people who I invite to everything" please leave me a comment or drop me an email. Apparently, I can take orders even if you don't come to the party. So check out the Pampered Chef website and let me know if you have a sudden need for any cooking utensils. As for me, I'll be ordering a new set of bamboo tongs since Ben broke mine, I also need a new pastry brush, a dough roller and a rectangular baking stone. My needs are simple, really. ;)

Oh, and if you don't want to come to my party, but you'd like to have your own, you suck email me because I have a great consultant for you. :)

Binky Biter!

I discovered when I was changing Ben's sheets yesterday that he has been biting holes in his binkies. This is not good. I had to throw all but one of them out. If he keeps doing it (I got four new ones), we're going to have to go cold turkey with them because I'm scared he'll bite the end right off and choke. I'm sort of hoping he just won't take to the new ones and it will be an easy end to the binky saga.

I read on some message board recently that this mom was cutting the tips off of the binkies and that made her little girl just not want them. I may do that with the "holey" ones and see how that works out...

Big Boy Room is On Its Way...

Well, my friends. I did it. I ordered the teeny tiny bed.


I also ordered new big boy room decor to go with it.


Looks like airplanes it is!

I've been wanting to move the changing table and rocking chair out of Ben's room anyway, since we don't use them much anymore and it would free up some room for another bookshelf/toyshelf. So I figured now's as good a time as any to move out take apart the crib and get that out of there too. His crib actually turns into a toddler bed, but if we used it like that then when another baby comes along, we'd need to buy a new crib and trust me, that is WAY more expensive than the $100 toddler bed.

Little Drummer Boy...

A new video. This is of Benjamin's own personal dance party he had last night in the basement. In case you're wondering, the cd playing is some ESPN soundtrack.

It's a little over two minutes long.

Ack! Did I Really Not Update?!

I can't believe I didn't update yesterday! That is probably the first weekday EVER that I haven't posted SOMEthing. Wow.
I guess I just got busy... I took Benjamin to Cartoon Cuts yesterday afternoon because I had just HAD it with his hippie locks. He was starting to get the mullet look of which I am SO not a fan. He cried and tried to get away, but the woman there was great with him. She let him watch The Wiggles and eat a lollipop, so there were periods of NO tears, until he'd remember she was there. All in all, not SO bad. And his hair looks adorable. I'll post a picture later.

I WAS going to post a cute video yesterday that I took but my camera is not playing nice with ANY of the computers in our house right now. For some reason, the software that came with it just randomly deletes itself from whatever computer you install it on, so the camera isn't recognized. I'll try reinstalling and posting the video again later. It's a good one. ;)

Thanks to all who have linked to my store over the last few days! I'm getting tons of hits on those Valentine's shirts! They are some of my favorite ones up there right now, and yes, my own child will be sporting one or two of them in the coming weeks. ;)

Speaking of baby clothes, I caved and ordered some of the Gymboree froggy stuff yesterday. Ah! Couldn't help it. It's just too darn cute. I restrained myself though and only got the hat, the socks and a tshirt.

Okay, the freshly shorn toddler is now awake, so I need to go. But I promise a DOUBLE update today to make up for yesterday!! :)

Four Real...

Four jobs you’ve had in your life: Junior counselor at a daycamp (for the 3-5 year olds), Birthday party hostess at a place called FunJungle that was like Chuck E. Cheese. There, I also doubled as the monkey who came to see the kids at the parties, cashier at MJDesigns and Michaels, advertising copywriter

Four movies you could watch over and over: Aladdin, The Muppet Movie, Sleepless in Seattle, American Beauty

Four TV shows you love to watch: Gilmore Girls, Flip That House, Moving Up, Lost

Four places you’ve been on vacation: Disney World, Bethany Beach, Williamsburg, Vero Beach

Four websites you visit daily: obscurestore.com, cnn.com, mail.yahoo.com, cafepress.com/tobh ;)

Four of your favorite foods: garlic mashed potatoes, chocolate chip cookies, sweet potatoes, brownies

Four places you’d rather be: nowhere... I'm home and home is my happy place.

Four albums you can’t live without: Sleepless in Seattle soundtrack, Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack, and also right now The VeggieTales Toddler Tunes and Backyard Party cd's

I'm Not Catholic, But I Have to Know...

... who do you have to know to get your kid baptized by the POPE at the SISTINE CHAPEL?

Just wondering.

Nothin' Much...

Benjamin's Nanee and Pap wanted to take him to the B&O Train Museum downtown today, so Tom and I jumped at the chance to run a few errands by ourselves. Apparently Ben enjoyed the museum, but not as much as he enjoyed the ceiling fans IN the museum. Hee hee... seriously, if anyone knows of a fan museum, please let us know, we're there! ;) Of course, they made fun of us because we beat them back to their house which makes us LAME LAME LAME. ;)

During our baby-free time, we went to Wegman's, Kohl's and the mall and had lunch at Cheeburger Cheeburger. YUM. Milkshake, frings... the whole nine yards. Then we just kinda ran out of places to go!

Came home and Ben and I BOTH took naps while Tom played on his laptop. Aren't we exciting?

Early Morning...

For some reason, I was WIDE awake this morning at 5:30a.m. I HATE when that happens and it has happened to me three mornings in a row now. Of course, being up that early, I got hungry early, so I went looking for breakfast and we had NOTHING. I managed to scavenge a stale English muffin to hold me but as SOON as Ben was up (7:00), we headed out to the grocery store. It is very strange to have been up and out and then back again by 8a.m. Very VERY strange. And now I am tired and it feels like late afternoon. I feel so jipped.

STOMP...

Benjamin has this Sesame Street DVD called Let's Make Music. It features STOMP. (the music group that makes music without using intruments. To say he loves it would be an understatement. We had to watch it SIX times yesterday.
And after the last time he watched it? He came into the kitchen where I was making dinner, pulled a pot out of the cabinet, asked for a wooden spoon and started marching through the living room beating the pot with the spoon in perfect rhythm. Quite the sight to see. Anyway, this one gets two thumbs up from our little music maker!

Just When I Think I Have My Addiction Under Control...

... Gymboree comes out with their first spring line.
I am in love with this Puddle Jumping stuff. I'll hold off until some of it goes on sale. But that little baseball hat with the leapfrog on it? I'm not sure I can wait for that.

Obviously, I Needed to Make it Sound More Urgent...

...perhaps hacking a lung into the phone would do. That doctor never did call back. So I coughed and coughed again last night. I did have the humidifier on, so that helped a little. Why is it only at night? I don't know. Maybe it just my house and its dry Arizona air.*

Nothing new in BabyHuman-land, really. Hence, no interesting updates. It rained yesterday. We played. Ben napped. (hey, THAT'S news!). He was cute and adorable most of the day but got cranky around 4. Then after he went to bed and he looked very sweet again, I felt bad for being impatient with him all evening. (especially during dinner when he spit three mouthfuls of spaghetti and meatballs onto his lap and the floor.)

On that note, I hear the familiar calls of morning wakeup through the baby monitor. Time to go start the day! Yahooey! :)








*we do not live in Arizona! We live in Maryland! It's not supposed to be dry here!

Don't You Hate It...

... when you call a doctor and they are supposed to call you back, and you KNOW that the minute you decide to pee/change the baby's diaper/run out to the store for five and a half seconds/go out to check the mail that THAT is the moment they will choose to call you back?

(I've had a nagging cough and dry throat issues for the last few days and I'm hoping to get a prescription or SOMEthing to make it stop.)

So I've been sitting around twiddling my thumbs for the last five hours waiting for the phone to ring. I have carried the phone with me from room to room. I REALLY need to run to the store after Ben's nap but do I dare? Not till the doctor calls!! (which according to the other half of the Doctor Phone Call rule means she won't call until it's WAY too late for me to go to the store.

Lame lame LAME, I tell you.

I did however, get my house De-Christmased and that makes me happy.


update:
It's almost 5 and STILL no phone call. Ugh. Great. Another night of hacking my brains out. (that's really when it gets going... it actually doesn't bother me much during the day!)

Drama King...

Ben got a paper cut this morning and OHMAHGAH we are still hearing about it. Yes, I'm sure it hurt when he did it. And I'm sure it has been irritated on and off throughout the day but geez; whenever he notices it he starts to cry and talks about his ow-ee. We tried putting a bandaid on it and telling him that made it all better, but it only served to make him notice it more. And now he wants new bandaids constantly. :: sigh ::

He's also cranky because he woke up late this morning, which led to a late nap, which led to me having to wake him up to ensure uninterrupted 7:00 bedtime.

And now it is 6:53 and I'm counting down the minutes because when he goes to bed? I'M going to bed. It feels like it's ten o'clock at night!

---
edited to add: upon rereading this, I realized it sounded heartless and cold. Rest assured, I kissed the boo boo and hugged him a hundred thousand times and gave him tons of sympathy and attention because I do know paper cuts hurt. ;) I just wish I could have kept him distracted from it for longer than 10 minutes!

Toddler New Year's Eve!

Last night the toddlers partied hard... there was much playing. The mommies and daddies enjoyed food and games. And one older brother was a good sport about the whole thing and played with the little ones, watched a movie and played his gameboy.

Here are a few pictures. The boys really played well together!

Here they are hugging, which was just the most adorable thing ever.


Here's Ryan playing while Ben steals some Chex Mix, which turned out to be his dinner.


This doesn't capture what was going on all that well but they were both dancing to a Sesame Street cd, which was almost as adorable as the hugging.


All in all, good times. Ben crashed at 7:30. Ryan hung in for another 45 minutes or so (maybe longer, I don't know). And we all toasted with some sparkling cider at 8, figuring it was midnight somewhere, right? ;)