Nicole's Big Girl Room Presented!

Well, the room is pretty much done. I have some final details but was eager to show it off to Nicole so we presented it today. Below are some before and after shots (you can click on the pictures to make them larger)

Can you see Abby's fairy dust (glitter)?

And here's a minute and a half movie of Nicole seeing it for the second time. Note that she wasn't real happy to see me dash behind a closed door so she was whiney at the start of this movie....

Making herself right at home....

Some "cute" pictures and a memory

The new fashion craze - wearing lunch coolers on your head and carrying a fab-u-lous purse (5/15/09)

Painting Care Bears with water (remember those pages with the paint dots that "melt" when water's added?) for her Great Grandmas (5/16/09)

The water sink's second appearance of the year (5/24/09)


An ice cream cone because she was a good girl (and yes, she did brush after) (5/24/09)

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On the radio today I spent some time listening to a new station, Rewind 94.9, which plays songs from the 80’s “and more” (whatever that means). Anyway, after singing along to Kiss From a Rose by Seal Kokomo by the Beach Boys came on. I remember clearly when this song first came out because it was a song by one of "my dad’s" groups but was actually really cool. One afternoon my brother Mike and I sat in my bedroom calling Q102 again and again about 30 times, each with a “disguised” voice requesting this song. I'm sure the DJ was going crazy and rolling his eyes at our obvious antics but at 3:00 on a Saturday afternoon the phone lines weren’t jammed with anything else to block our calls from all getting through.

And he did play it.

Long Weekend of 5/22/09

• I know I’m ruining it if she really wants this, but this seems like the perfect gift for Lindsay. Saw it advertised on my Facebook page: http://www.vat19.com/dvds/giant-gummy-bear-on-a-stick.cfm?adid=FBKgummi2 .
• Even after 22 months we’re still sometimes novices at this parenting thing. Nicole went to daycare today with no shoes. She does have her milk and yogurt though….
• Happy belated birthday, Jenna! We had a great time at Vinoklet and last night at the parents’. The big 2-4!
• Between Friday at the winery and last night at my mom and dad’s I got to see every member of my immediate family 2X this weekend except for Mike who I only saw once. We define “West Siders”.
• True to Alissa’s warning about time for relaxation dwindling, we saw two movies this weekend – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button which made me cry on too many occasions (A) and Valkyrie which was interesting from a historical standpoint but overall not that engaging (B-).
• Making tremendous progress on Angels & Demons, which I’ve read before but am reading again in preparation for the movie, and borrowed Caitlin’s first two copies of the Twilight series. Having a good book in hand and a highly recommended one on deck and in the hole makes me excited for 10:00 when we read every night. I actually look forward to it throughout the day.
• Now that the deck is signed off on and the deposit paid I'm suffering not from buyer’s remorse but designers doubt – I keep thinking about how we have things set up and whether or not there’s a better/more aesthetic way of doing it. We went patio furniture shopping and were astounded by the quality and respective price difference, each 2X, of “big box” offerings from places like Sears and Lowes versus a specialty retailer like Watson’s. The Watson’s stuff is fantastic but the thought of writing a check for $3K+ for a dining table and sitting furniture is horrific.
• So much visible progress was made on Nicole’s room. Depending on Jim’s softball schedule this week I might finish the project ahead of schedule!
  
  

Nicole

Hanging out watching Zoe.

Nicole has gotten hand-me-downs from several friends/family members and that’s helped out quite a bit as far as wardrobe diversity and keeping spend on clothes to a reasonable level. The outfit you see above is one such ensemble but this is the only time you’ll ever see her in it again… at least the shirt portion- it’s being retired.

Why box a shirt after one wear?

Because she doesn’t have the boobs to fill it for one. Why in God’s name would you make a 2T size shirt with puffs for boobs?! Second, the skirt’s fit around her hips and won’t go higher due to the built-in bloomers so her belly inevitably sticks out which Jim doesn't like.

She looks like a hootchie. ; )

On a positive note, in addition to regular singing, Nicole and I have been working on categorizing things. For example, today on the way home I asked her what a doggie says, which she knows, then “Nicole, what doggies do you know?” Immediately she comes up with Piper (my parents dog) and then Laila (the babysitter’s dog). Today she got a third, Sunny, the babysitter’s former dog that they got rid of last weekend. With some reminding she’ll repeat Rambo (Ryann’s dog), Lincoln & Jasper (Uncle Tom’s dogs) and Sydney & Bailey (Jenna’s dogs).

I want her to understand that things go together, even if they’re not all exactly the same (every dog above is a different breed).

I asked her about who’s in her family but I don’t know that she understands the word “family" yet because she gave me a bewildered look and couldn’t come up with a single person.

She did get 5 colors before I had to prompt her for more – blue, yellow, blue, black, and blue.

Naming

I really liked the name Nicole in general but it specifically has one attribute that stands out – it’s ability to be shortened. Growing up I was Karen. In college I was Karen. As an adult I'm Karen. I always wanted a nickname (other than Karebear) that people in my tight circle could call me. Nicole is most often referred to as “Nic” when Jim and I talk about her between ourselves. I probably split equally between Nicky and Nicole when speaking directly to her with a healthy dose of “Nic” thrown in. The sitter and the kids at daycare call her Nicky most of the time, probably because that’s the easiest thing to say of the three. My grandparents always refer to her as Nicole because it’s “prettier” and Ryann calls her Ni-Cole is this super-cute voice.

Even shortening her name it has variety. Sarah spells it Nikki as does the sitter. Doesn’t matter to me. She’s gotten cards from people who put an H in Nicole (Nichole) which also doesn’t bother me. Maybe someday the variety will annoy her but it reinforces that her name has versatility and that’s what I was going for.

Now, saying all this you’d think then that I’d be adaptive to my friends changing names. Not so. Jenny J. will always be Jenny first in my mind even though she prefers Jen and goes by that in “real life”. I saw a facebook comment by Elizabeth P.; I don’t’ think I’ll ever be able to call her anything other than Betsy which is what she went by in college. If Viki insisted I call her Viktoria I think I’d reduce using her name by 80% - I just can’t imagine it.

If Nicole ends up gravitating to an abbreviated version of her name in her youth I wonder if her friends will have a hard time converting to Nicole when she becomes a professional.

Nothing Special

• The water bottle I have is just a little too phallic as its texture reminds me of some dildos I’ve seen at sex toy parties. I feel a little dirty drinking from it.
• Nicole figured out how to turn door handles yesterday morning and let herself into her big girl room which I’ve been keeping her out of since I started painting as to surprise her. Unfortunately she saw Elmo on the wall and went wild with excitement then wild in a bad way when I carried her out and closed the door. We bargained that if she calmed down and got dressed I’d let her back in to look around which worked. I wish the whole thing had been a complete surprise but she’s 22 months – everything is exciting, even the second time around.
• Steps for Monday (slightly screwed up as my sensitivity level moved mid-way through the day and changed my step count): 6946. Steps for Tuesday 4902.
• I know this is pretty random but it’s getting to be summer and I saw an ICEE truck on the highway and it got me thinking. In terms of icy drinks/snacks my preference is:
  1. traditional SnowCone – you know the cone shaped, wax-lined cup with a ball of shaved ice and liquid sugar flavor squirted on top. Rainbow is best followed by Blue Raspberry.
  2. Lemon Ice – these are most often found at the zoo, amusement park, ball park, carnival, etc. They’re often overpriced, I think, at $3 each, but man they are so lemony and delicious
  3. Slush Puppie – this is the drink version of a SnowCone in my opinion. I like the ice crystals in it. Blue Raspberry is best but it definitely stains your tongue. When I was in grade school you could get a Vita Pup for 30 cents for a 4oz. cup. MMMmmmm!
  4. Icee – this reminds me of summer and begging for an impromptu treat at the gas station. While several flavors (Blue Raspberry, Cherry, Cola) are available and it is very smooth to drink, I don’t particularly like the taste of any of them.

Weekend of 5/15/09

Went to the doctor’s office this morning for my ultrasound. Chris appears to be doing fine – he has enough amniotic fluid, is roughly 5lbs. 2 oz, and is only 3 days behind from the technician’s viewpoint, not 3.5 weeks as initially suspected. Hooray!

I started painting Nicole’s room murals this weekend – it’s going well so far. I'm roughly 40% done and expect to continue to make good progress this week and weekend. I haven’t painted hardly anything on Abby (see left) because she’ll be rather color/time intensive. I did take “before” pictures so I’ll post the after when I'm finished.

We had a MAJOR mess at Meijer on Sunday when Nicole got bad bad bad diarrhea and it started leaking out of her diaper, on her dress, down her legs and into her socks. I had to buy diapers/wipes at the store and was disappointed when we finally made it to the “Family Bathroom” that it didn’t have a changing table. I had to lay her on the floor and clean up probably the worst mess I’ve ever seen (she basically got bathed in wet wipes) all the while getting dirty with black water on the floor myself. Amazingly, I can tune out what it is I'm actually cleaning and tend to the job at hand which makes it go faster.

The deck contract has been awarded and the project will be completed in time for Nicole’s birthday party (July 11). Hooray! Before, during, and after pictures will be posted when progress starts. I’ve discovered there are too many nice patio sets and buying online will be difficult without actually seeing them. Looks like lots of running around over the next 2 months…

My pedometer is on and today starts the base week. I’ll be happy if I get 4000 steps in today and am disappointed that the goal is 10,000 and I'm so far away…. Many of my co-workers are starting to take the steps versus the elevator. As my office is on the 7th floor and I'm 7.5 months pregnant that’s not going to happen….

Kiddie Update

• This morning Nicole looked very cute – she had on a little orange skirt that showed off her chubby legs and a t-shirt that read “I can always play the cute card”. :) She also said the word “another” for the first time today in reference to having “another bite” of my cheerios.
• Nic is real big into eating “big girl cereal” now – basically cereal with milk in a bowl. I eat this every morning while her breakfast is varied (eggs, yogurt, fruit, granola bar, etc.) but the past two weeks we’ve shared the last several bites of my breakfast. Yesterday we were in the middle of doing so and I had to use the bathroom suddenly and urgently. I debated taking the bowl away from her but figured neither Jim nor I wanted to hear her whine until I returned so I left it on her tray and dashed down the hall. I wasn’t surprised (but did groan) to return 45 seconds later to see the bowl empty and milk running down her cheeks and all over the high chair tray – she tried to drink the milk out of the bowl like I do and was quite proud of herself. “Mommy, I drink!” she announced. “Oh I see you did,” I replied.
• I had a doctor’s appointment for Chris this morning. Had bloodwork done for my thyroid (which has been stable throughout the last 33.5 weeks) but Chris measured at only 30 weeks in length which had the doctor a bit concerned. I have to go in for a second ultrasound next Monday. While I'm excited to have another one, I am a little worried about what this could mean. Not that I can do anything about it, and I'm assuming it’s nothing, but still….. I’ll keep you posted.
• Chris is incredibly active and kicks so hard you can feel individual parts of him. I made Jim touch me last night when a lone foot was pushing out and you could feel the whole shape of it. I'm suffering from some bad acid reflux/heartburn in the last two weeks which comes and goes all day whether I’ve eaten or not. I'm also having periodic Braxton Hicks contractions which can be painful for the short duration they last.
  

Various Observations/Happenings

• Jim’s softball game is on it’s way to being rained out tonight. If this happens that means that only 1 out of the last 4 have actually happed and the other 3 rained out.
• I don’t know the appropriate response when someone, especially a co-worker, answers the question “how are you doing today” with a reply of “I'm constipated”.
• Nicole is a good eater and I'm glad for it. Many people comment after dining with her that her palate is wide and varied and she rarely turns down an opportunity to eat. Just like her mother. :)
• The guilt of having a second brownie never outweighs the joy of actually eating it.
• My office is sponsoring a fitness challenge –tomorrow they’re handing out pedometers and I'm excited to get one! I told the coordinator that I fully expect to be the biggest weight loser this calendar year… of course I'm cheating.
• I'm calling the deck builder today to negotiate out the final price and deliverable. Perhaps construction will actually begin *gasp* in June!
• I'm changing the theme of Nicole’s bedroom to Sesame Street as she’s a little more than obsessed with muppets. Progress on this starts this weekend!
  

Weekend of 5/8/09

Friday- we relaxed and watched the end of Sideways which my former boss leant me. It had a really funny scene where a guy who had an affair left his wallet at the other woman’s house and needs his buddy’s help to get it back. This was a 2004 Best Picture nominee and was overall enjoyable – B+..

Saturday – I was a dumbass and after only being in the car for less than 20 seconds scratched up my front bumper making a too-wide turn into the garage (I was moving the car in from the driveway). It’ll probably be about $400 in damage. Pissed me off. Jim was cool though and didn’t rub it in or make me feel worse.

We drove up to Columbus to see his step-sister Laci and her daughter Nicole. Laci is due 2 weeks after me and we had some boxes of clothes to return. Even though we drove ~2X longer than we stayed it was a nice trip and worth the time/effort.

Mark and Caitlin joined us that night for a movie, Mall Cop, which is as good as you’d expect a movie called Mall Cop to be.

Sunday - Nicole brought me a card and a rose while I was drying my hair with a “here you go, mommy” before she darted off again to watch Sesame Street. Jim brought me flowers, we all went to church, checked out a deck our front-runner contractor built as a reference, and had Chipotle for lunch. That night we went to Mom’s for a casual celebration and were in bed, on time that night. We worked out a plan for how we’re going to negotiate the deck and I'm eager to see if maybe it could be done in time for Nicole’s birthday (July 11).

My mom and her 3 kids (Greg, Mom, Mike & Me)

The little girl who gave me the right to celebrate Mother's Day

I'm getting BIG I think but Jenna made me smile when she sincerely and insistently told me I look good. Caitlin and I worked out a plan so she can be my delivery nurse…. If the kid and doctor will cooperate we’ll be in business!

Expiration Dates

Jim and I are very aware of expiration dates; he more so than I. I pitch the “essentials” (milk, eggs, yogurt cheese, etc.) within one day of the date printed on the carton, even if that’s just a “sell by”, versus consume by, date. Jim will go to the extent of purging cabinets of all expired things- dried spices, medicine, canned goods… stuff that I don’t even think about checking the dates of. Our tolerance for dates on these type items is more liberal (ie I’d take 2 month old Aspirin) but maybe it shouldn’t be?

Jamie once told us that toothpaste has an expiration date of 2 years from packaging but really Crest is good for 3 years. I feel okay with my one day after policy on most things because I assume that the FDA says X number of days when really it’d be okay for X + n (where n is some quantity of additional days relative to the item at hand).

When I looked online at HowStuffWorks.com about this it suggested that eggs, for example, be bought within 4 days of the date printed on the carton and used within a week. That tells me that three days after the date is still safe to eat. That would make me too nervous to actually do though.

My father is bad about watching dates and the kids get all riled up when he presents us with 2 month old salad dressing and the like. His issue is that he shops so much he keeps bottles of perishables with back-ups to those so that the back-ups expire before the primary bottle is finished.

I'm not sure if there is a politically correct way to refuse to eat/drink expired food at other’s houses when served. Recently Jim and I had breakfast with some people and Jim noticed that the butter used on his week old bread expired in January. Is he suddenly supposed to just not want the item he asked for any more once he realizes the dates? Do you say something? He kept his mouth shut from speaking but open for eating as not to be rude. He’s not dead yet so I guess that worked out okay.

More weirdness...

Some other weird things about me…

• I prefer to chew food on the left side of my mouth.
• I don’t know how to spit (how do you say… “hock a luegy”)
• My favorite color specifically is midnight blue (color of my bridesmaid dresses).
• I like being the youngest in my group of friends.
• My fingernails often bend as they grow.
• I think my handwriting is pretty.
• People with asymmetric nostrils distract me especially when I'm looking up at them (like if I'm in a chair and they're standing)
• When I have a list of things to do I always do the short and the easy stuff first and groan when the long boring stuff piles up. I know it’s my own fault but I really like crossing things off lists.

I know I can be a little weird...

1) The best dipping condiment for French fries is honey.

2) I always look in my tissue when I'm done blowing to see if I was effective.

3) Having a plan for every aspect of my life, even if it changes, makes me happy.

4) My preferred drink with Skyline chili is orange juice

5) I feel generic and disappointed that my favorite color is blue but it is.

6) I still really like Wilson Phillips’s music

7) I still don't know what Twitter is.