Fear

I wanted to do a quick blog because I am afraid I won't get much of a chance at work for a while! Maybe I will be surprised...and next week might be a bit slow. But we found out yesterday that we will be doing the majority of the work for this job before I go on maternity leave. Yikes. So 7 weeks of busting some butt. Hopefully, I will be able to tie up any loose ends each day before I leave....otherwise my coworkers will have their hands full if I go into labor unexpectedly. Of course, with my luck I will still go late and end up with a week twiddling my thumbs. LOL.

About a year ago, James did a great blog about Evan's great fear, the Vonage Man. At the time, he couldn't talk a whole lot, but he would come and sit on your lap any time the "phone man" would come on. Here was the scary man in question:

That has passed (and I don't think they play that commercial much anymore) and is replaced by a new greater fear. Swiper. Swiper is a crafty fox on Dora who will come and swipe Dora's stuff. The only way to stop him is to say, "Swiper, no swiping," three times fast or something equally stupid. Evan is TERRIFIED of Swiper. They play some music right when Swiper is about to appear and Evan will either come jump in your lap, or will hightail it out of the room. He actually shakes with fear. I am not quite sure what is so scary about the guy... Dora doesn't seem scared. Is it the mask? The music? Poor kid will probably be like me and have to watch scary stuff with his ears plugged.

A Case of Mistaken Identity

Oh geez. I am still giggling over this. Evan has been learning first and last names in his class. I know this because Evan goes on and on about his friends Jake J_____ and Ben N_____. He says it just that way. It isn't just Ben, it is Ben N_____. I thought what I am going to tell you might happen...I even mentioned it to James last night.

Tonight, as I was dressing Evan for bed, we were talking about his friends. I asked Evan what his name is. "Evan Wassel-cow" Oh, no. Teacher has taught him to say his name incorrectly. I tried to correct him. He told me that that was my name, but he was Evan Wassel-cow! He said it with such exuberance and fire, I couldn't help but smile. Which was the wrong thing to do. He said it over and over, yelling it for effect, "I am Evan Wassel-cow!" I started to laugh and couldn't stop. I was laughing so hard I was crying and saying, "Please stop, please stop."

I diverted by starting to read a book to him, but he kept one eye on me the whole time. Anytime he saw a hint of a smile, he would yell, "I am Evan Wassel-cow!" and laugh and laugh.

I have to write his teacher a note to give her the correct pronunciation, I guess. Though, she is going to have a hell of a time convincing him of the more boring way to say it.

You So Proud of Me?

My kid is pretty smart. I think all parents think their kids are geniuses...but he surprises me with his conclusions everyday.

Evan counted his books from 1 to 11 the other day and I said, "Good job, Evan!" He said, "You so proud of me?" I had to laugh. And say, "Yes, of course!"

This morning we were talking about trains. He said, "Thomas pushes coaches and freight cars." (he hasn't figured out the distinction between pushing and pulling, yet.). I asked him which of those do people ride on. He answered "Coaches." I said, "Yes! So we rode in coaches the other day on the train." He said, "There was no engine pushing coaches." And he was absolutely correct. The light rail has no engine. Smart boy.

I am writing at work now. Trying to get a draft of my next report to my boss by the end of the week. We will hopefully get a reprieve that will push out our deadline for a couple of months...otherwise we won't have much to say. The next big thing we are supposed to report on happens in the middle of February and if we have to report before then our report will be sparse. Unfortunately, those decisions have to come from the Hill...and they are pretty busy right now.

Weekend Update

I made a roast tonight! My first. I think it was good. I am not a huge meat eater. Knowing that it used to be a moving animal skeeves me out (especially when Dad tells me, "Oh yeah, that is a shoulder bone. Just leave it in!). Barf! But it tasted great...and so did the potatoes and carrots. I love those carrots...makes me think of home and mama's roasts. I think that the best part was the gravy I made. Yum!

James is back to work tonight; it was nice having him home for the weekend. We had some fun! Yesterday, we took Evan on the light rail downtown. He loves trains...so this was very exciting. Riding a train, watching trains, waiting for trains. The only downside was that it was pretty cold. We ate at Bubba Gump Shrimp Company. Evan had a great time.

Today, was more low-key... Evan and I went grocery shopping, and then to brunch with my friends, Erin and Kelli. Erin brought her 2 year old boy, Drew. Drew and Evan had so much fun, playing with cars, and making a mess of the booth we were seated in. LOL. The rest of the day, I spent doing things that needed to be done. We finally got all of the boxes out of our bedroom (now just 10 rooms to go!). I also built the bassinet. Overdid it though...my back is killing me.

I am watching the SAG awards...more as background noise than anything right now. Evan is excited to go to school tomorrow...I guess we thoroughly bored him. :P Next up, ICECREAM!

It's Called Chocolate.

Evan and I are on our own tonight. I picked him up from school and set to cleaning the house. The cleaning ladies are coming tomorrow and things have to be mostly picked up so that they can even see the floors. It was a big job tonight. We were in Evan's room and I asked him to help me by picking up his little people and putting them in the bucket. He said, "No, you do it!" I asked again, and he said, "Daisy doesn't pick up toys." (He had me there. I told James that the next dog he gets better pick up its own poop.) I told him that if he helped me he could have a surprise. He got motivated then and picked up his little people.

Later on, after dinner, I got a piece of chocolate out and asked Evan if he wanted his surprise. He jumped up and down and said, "A surprise?!" Then he saw what I was holding. He said, "It's called chocolate."

I guess we get the kids we deserve. :)

Dear, Damn Baby

Dear, Damn Baby (If you can name that movie, I will give you a $1. If you can't, research and watch it, because it is cute),

You are making me fat. I know this because I had my 32 week appointment yesterday and my Nurse Practitioner was not happy with my 8 lbs. gain in 4 weeks. She blamed the sweets...but you know better. I don't eat too many sweets. I just eat too many everything else. In particular, granola bars, Breagos (let me tell you about the wonderfulness that is a Breago some other time), and lots and lots of cereal. I am trying to do better today. This morning was cereal at 6:30, a banana at 8:30, a granola bar a little bit ago...and I am starving. Lunch isn't for another two hours so I am not sure what I am going to do.

Baby, I watched the Inauguration yesterday at work. We had a Inaugaration Viewing Party with a wonderful breakfast that was consumed prior to that fateful doctor's appointment. You were kicking away (I think you like donuts, too) while I watched history being made. I am so happy that you are coming into a world where you will never remember what it was like before black people could be president. I hope (and believe) that in your lifetime, you will see a woman president. Anything seems possible. We have such a hole to dig ourselves out of, but I think that this is a great country you are priviledged to be born into. What a proud happy day! We are all back to work here today. The White House has already updated its webpage with the new administration's views on things. I was happy to see good things for all people being equal.

Now, I need to go back to preparing for my meeting and planning my next meal.

Love, Mom

$h!t Jose!

So tonight, James, Evan, and I went out to dinner. After my long weekend, I couldn't bear to cook. As we were driving back, Evan started saying, "Day-mit," over and over. James whispered to me that he thought it was "damn it." So, I said, "what are you saying?" He said "Day-mit" but it sounded a little more clear. So I just said, "Oh we don't say that." He said, "Lucas say it at school." James told me to ignore Evan... but the kid was going on a tirade in the backseat saying, "I do say it. I do say it!" Then it was, "Shit, shit, shit." (So he does equate day-mit with shit...). And then he started hollering, "Shit, Jose, Shit! Shit, Jose!" We were silently dying in the front seat. I don't know where he would have heard those two words in conjunction (*looks at Jen* LOL). He quit after awhile and will hopefully forget it...for a while.

My girls' weekend was really nice. Claire picked me up on Saturday morning. Evan was a little sad that I was leaving, but I gave him a chocolate muffin and he barely glanced my way as I left. We drove down to the Springs and met Nancy and Maricela. Nancy's husband and her baby were there too for a minute until they left to go to his sister's house. We had a late lunch at a Thai restaurant and then walked around Old Colorado City. I can't handle too much time on my feet, so I sat outside a lot of stores while I waited. We got some food supplies and headed back to our vacation rental. It was a nice two bedroom apartment above a hotel in Old Colorado City. We had our little light dinner of cheese, crackers, fruit, etc. I had a leetle bit of wine and it was soooooo good. We talked the evening away and had a great time.

I woke up early and got showered and waited for everyone to catch up with me. We went to a restaurant in Manitou Springs called Adam's Mountain Cafe (at my mom's suggestion). It was wonderful. I got the Huevos Rancheros, but I also got to taste the French Toast. Afterwards we went back to our place and Maricela left. She had to leave early to get to the Inaugaration! Lucky gal! Claire, Nancy, and I went to the Garden of the Gods for a walk...I walked slowly, but for a long distance. And then we went to see Slumdog Millionaire downtown. The movie was so, so, so good. Really well done. Some parts were just so horrific to believe the conditions that some children live in. Really a good movie. Later that night, we had dinner at a greek restaurant. The folks cooking there really really liked garlic. The food was actually spicy with all the garlic. I had a filet and it was really tasty...very tender. We went back to our place and stayed up past midnight chatting.

This morning was packing up and getting ready to go. Claire and I said goodbye to Nancy (and her husband and baby) and headed back home. I spent the rest of the day playing catch up and grocery shopping. I picked up Evan and was geniunely happy to see him. I missed the little turd. Poor James has a cold. He wouldn't stay home tonight though, poor guy.

I am going to watch a bit of tv and head to bed :) Tomorrow is a full day! I have my 32 week doctor's appointment.

Perfect

I am in the office today after two days of teleworking. Teleworking is nice because it is low key and you can get some laundry done while you work, but it is LONELY. I like having some interaction during the day. One of the first things I do when I get to work is to peruse all my news and gossip sites. I came across this clip. Love it. I love Kate Winslet. She is a great actress and finally is getting some recognition (two Golden Globes this week!). Oprah highlights another reason to like Kate Winslet:



This morning, Evan wanted to take a Lightning McQueen car to school ("To show my friends."). He picked out a little one to take and I said, "Ok, but you will have to put it in your cubby, so you don't lose it." He put it in his pocket and said, "See, Mama, it fits perfect." There you have it. He is using adverbs (although...it should have been "perfectly" :P). My child is a genius.

He woke up terribly upset because he wet through his diaper and all over his sheets. He did NOT want me to strip his bed (he is very attached to the sheets); he wanted me to just "wipe it off." But it was on the sheets and the comforter, so it had to be done. I promised to have them dry by tonight. He was still thinking about it when we got to school because the first thing he said to the teacher was "My sheeps dirty." (Sheeps = sheets).

New schedule

I am alone tonight...last night was James' first night on the new schedule. Which will mean we get weekends together, but 3 or 4 nights a week, James has to go to work a 7:00. It has worked out ok so far, but our early evenings are rushed. Last night I just watched the Golden Globes all night. Tonight is Jon and Kate Plus Eight. Which is an absolutely horrifying show on TLC.

The weekend was nice. I am struggling to even remember what we did on Saturday. Ah, yes. Evan and I went out to Target (his favorite), and then to the furniture store. We got Evan a new dresser. It comes tomorrow. He was a little nervous tonight that I was going to make him sleep in the crib in the baby's room (since his old dresser and crib are in there now). I am glad he likes his new bed so much. After that excursion, I asked Evan what he wanted for lunch. He said, "cheese." So, I thought that Sweet Tomatoes (an all you can eat, soup and salad and pasta bar) would be good. He eats free, which is very good, because the kid doesn't eat. He got a tray of shredded cheese, croutons, and pickles. I tried to play up the yumminess of my baked potato. He gave me a face and said, "No, I don't like that food. That food makes me sick." The theatrics were hysterical. I had to laugh. I *think* we went out to dinner that night...but can't remember. Ah, yes. We went out and Evan almost made it necessary to get the food to go. LOL.

Sunday, we had lunch with Kala and then she went with me to Babies R Us. Today, we had a freak snowstorm. It was coming down like crazy this morning. So I dropped Evan off at school and then came back home to work from home. Lucky for me because it took a coworker who lives near me 2.5 hours to get downtown. Today was Evan's first official day in the big kid's class. He is one of the few un-potty trained ones. I am hoping that will help us make that transition. When James and I picked him up, he was thrilled to see James. He had to show James his cubby and all sorts of stuff. I think he enjoys himself there....even if he doesn't want to go all the time.

I may have mentioned the Lightning McQueen socks that Kala got him and we lost one, so I was on a quest to find others. Linda managed to find the motherlode and ordered him a bunch. So what does the kid do? he carries them around in a shopping bag. It broke my heart to see him showing Daisy (even though she was terrified of the bag) his socks. He put it down on the floor and pulled out a couple of socks to show Daisy.

He was upstairs in bed playing just now and told me that his head hurts. And that he needed medicine. I hope he isn't coming down with something. I can't explain what I feel for this boy. I have told James before that I feel like I have known Evan all my life. Not all his life, because that would be obvious. But all my life. I knew him even before he was born. He has been in me always.

And that hormonal thought was brought to you by the Unnamed One...and reminds me of one last story. I started on the baby's room this weekend. I attempted to hang curtains and the m-fers who built this house put metal plates all over near the windows. So I made a lot of holes unnecessarily. This caused a lot of tears and yelling on my part. The curtains are up, but please, don't pull on them. LOL

Tired....

Whew. It feels like I have a parasite or something... Oh, that's right, I do! So at 30 weeks, I am starting to get a lot of "Oh you look like you are ready to have this baby today." And then shocked looks when I say I still have 10 weeks to go. LOL. I am just exhausted. Of course, when you think about it, baby is about 3 lbs right now. In the next 10 weeks, it has to over double its weight. That is a lot of growing. No wonder I feel like eating every 20 minutes.

Emily was a god-send yesterday. I got home from work and played with Evan. James was in court all day (after having been up all night), so he wasn't home yet. Emily helped me by playing with Evan, getting him fed, helping me with dinner, doing dishes, and getting Evan in the bath and bed. It was really nice to have the extra set of hands. I was just too tired.

Am really glad it is Friday. Going with some coworkers to get some yummy Indian food in a few minutes. ....better take my Pepcid. LOL.

I finally won a round!

This morning I walked into Evan's room and he was awake. He said, "No, I sleepy, I sleepy." I already have a teenager on my hands. He did not want to get up. So rather than rush him as I usually (have to) do, I embraced it. I sat down on his bed and made the blue Lightning McQueen happy and mad (he has eyes that you can move around). That got a smile. So then I did it to Evan...pushed the space between his eyebrows up and down saying, "Happy and mad." Then I did it to Daisy. He really liked that. I sweet talked him into a hug and made that the segway to the changing table. We actually got out in a decent amount of time whereas it could have been a battle every step of the way.

He was the first one at school this morning. His choice of the toys. I asked him, "What do you want to play with?" He gestured to this (NEW!) table set up with dinosaurs. And pulled a chair up to sit down to play with them. He has a lot of fun there.

I had a thought last night that maybe I am not being the best supervisor to my staff person that is here in the office. I am used to remotely supervising people who are in DC. And I am used to being remotely supervised. When I started here, I had a supervisor who insisted that I check in with her everyday to tell her what I am working on, etc. I hated that. I will call when I need your help or when it has been long enough to have something to say. And if I haven't told you what i am working on...I am probably still working on what I was working on yesterday. Are we adults? Anyhow, this guy (who is about 10-15 years older than me!!) asked to be supervised locally and was staffed to my team. I had the epiphany that maybe I wasn't giving him what he asked for. So we had a talk today. He very diplomatically told me that he would like more interaction. Always stings a bit when you know you haven't been doing your best. But at least I thought about it. The downside is that things are going to continue to be slow for a while on this job, so what do we talk about?

Anyhow, I am starving today. I can't seem to fill this bottomless pit.

Also, for those who have been telling me that you can't comment. If you click "comment" and then choose the Name/URL option, you can fill in your name and a URL (if you have a webpage) or just a name. :)

I have been a bad little blogger....

It has been too long...but it is hard to find time at home. And I have been knitting again, so I would rather do than be on the computer at night. At work, I have little excuse because it has been dead here. I will try to be better (although no one ever comments....).

I have a fun little story. A month or so ago, my sisters Emily and Madeline came over and we decided to cook a relatively elaborate dinner. We walked over to King Soopers for supplies and I saw this picture of a pie that I *had* to have. Like this:

But we could not find the recipe anywhere. We looked for ready made pies, but none of them had four layers :(. I was very sad. We found a decent substitute and life went on. But today...I was looking through an older People magazine and found it on an ad for CoolWhip. LMAO. So freaking excited. So I am going to make this pie sometime soon. and eat it all. Triple Layer Mud Pie

And on we go. I am going to be 30 weeks pregnant tomorrow. I feel BIG. I don't know how I could get any bigger, but it happens. I had a meeting with my doulas last night. We went over positions to get the baby in an optimal position (so we can hopefully avoid a breech baby, or when labor starts, get this baby facing the right way). We also just chatted a lot. I like them both a lot. I got an email from one of them this morning that said, "I wanted to tell you how much we enjoyed being with you and James tonight. You are going to labor gently and comfortably, you will do beautifully. Karen and I were talking on the way about what a special couple you are and how happy that we are your Doulas. Jessica, we think you have picked a cute Dad for your babies." Isn't that nice? (We are "special" all right.)

I brought up the doula (J) who taught our childbirth class at the hospital last time and how we thought she was a nut. Apparently, there is some doula drama because they don't like J and said she is a liability to the profession. I can agree because that woman said some really strange things.

Evan is a hoot. Yesterday, he ate 4 waffles, 3 tubes of yogurt, 1.5 peanut butter sandwiches, and two little dove icecream bars....and some chips. Growth spurt I guess. Today he will probably eat nothing.