There is nothing better

There is nothing better in the entire world than being Sadie's mommy. I am so happy and feel so blessed every day!!! I love her so much and she's so cute I could just snuggle her to pieces!!!!!!!!!

I would gladly post pictures, but my *P*O*S* camera won't let the pictures go! WTH!?

Lunch?

Starving.

Geeked!

The Wojos are meeting us at Lake Moomaw for Labor Day! Can't wait!!!!!! :)

Would it kill him?!??!

Seriously, I know there are tons and tons and tons of things to do, but seriously, would it kill him to take the baby into the living room, close the door and let me sleep?!?!?!? PLEASE!!!! I need a nap or I will collapse.

John, I love you, but I NEED HELP!

Crying

We're both crying right now. :( I can't do anything to make my baby better. :(

Sadie update...

Sadie went to the pediatrician today. This tummy virus has hit her hard. She's lost 1/2 pound...which is a lot when you only weigh 10! That's 5% of her body weight! (What I wouldn't give!!!) We took her diaper off at the scale and she had filled it so, I had to dash back to the room with her (without getting poop on me!) to get a fresh diaper and get her wiped off. While I was trying to get her wipes and diaper...yup, she enjoyed the fresh air. Peed and pooped (the only difference between them was the color...) all over the table/floor...and me. She nailed my pants. Nice.

Anyway, we did straight Pedialyte for 18 hours and managed to keep her hydrated so we avoided a trip to the hospital for fluids!! YEAY! This evening we've started one ounce of Pedialyte mixed with one ounce of Isomil. Once an hour. One unhappy, hungry baby. :( She's just miserable. :(

I hope this plan has her on the road to recovery. We could both use some sleep.

Lofty goals for the weekend

Goals for the weekend:

Garden planting (tomatoes, cucumbers, onion, peppers)

Tree planted for Sadie (only a few months late)

I'd like to plant some full sun roses along the fence our yard shares with the Hensons.

Hydrangeas to fill in the hydrangea bed on the North side of the house.

Clean out laundry room

Sweep/Wash floors

Dust

De-clutter

Do something about upstairs scariness

Okay, I may need more than one weekend...maybe 6...to start....

We interrupt the regularly scheduled programming....

I will finish the Memorial Day travelogue, but I have to interject this one thing. I AM SO PISSED! I have been trying to download my pictures from my camera onto my computer and it keeps telling me that they are not compatible. Um, excuse me? They're the same damn pictures that I've been downloading onto the computer. In fact, it's the same FRIGGIN' memory card!! What the heck!!! I hate technology. (And I'm fairly certain it hates me.)

Memorial Day Weekend. Day Three: Adventures in Diaperland.

Sunday started out uneventfully. We gathered at Alycia and Richard's camper for morning coffee (yes, even I had a cup of coffee!! Or...really, cream and sugar with a little coffee mixed in), pepperoni rolls and Barb's cherry walnut bars. Yum! Linda was making buckwheat cakes for breakfast which turned into buckwheat cakes for lunch. I'm just assuming she wasn't motivated Sunday morning which is totally fine. Like I mentioned, we had snacked hardcore.

What I really, really wanted at lunchtime was a shower. The problem was the loop we were camping was having plumbing problems. Mostly drainage issues. The waste station was two loops away and apparently there were some problems pumping it all that way. So the closest bathrooms were closed and I headed up to the showers. Now, showering at camp is never my favorite thing. With the exception of the water pressure, I hate, hate, hate camping at camp. People just have no sense of.... cleanliness. Seriously, what do your homes look like, people?!? And this time, there wasn't even water pressure. It was more like a fine mist. Forget conditioner. It was a struggle just getting the soap washed off. Regardless of its downsides, I felt somewhat clean and that really was the primary objective. 

The majority of the family went to the sand beach. Again, we had the dogs and dogs aren't allowed on the sand beach so we opted to go to the little rocky beach across the street from our campsite which is mostly used for people to tie up their boats and to fish from shore. We put Sadie into her bathing suit. Our little watermelon!! SO CUTE! We walked across the street....with the dogs. It was a little too crowded and a little too small for all of us and our dogs so we dipped Sadie's little feet in and headed back to the campsite. Sadie was so fussy and so miserable. I took her into the camper to rest, have a bottle and hopefully take a nap. Again, she was just in her diaper...why did I pack all those clothes!?!? LOL! Then the diaper explosions began. Liquid. Fantastic. Then the vomiting began. Chunky. (How can it be chunky? She's on a liquid diet!) Just ducky. It was a long, long evening/night. Her tummy was just SO upset and so....inconsolable. She went to sleep very early (in her swing and the bed in David's motor home) and slept hard. I even managed to get her from David's motor home to our camper, diaper changed, swaddled and into bed without waking her up. We didn't get to campfire, but it was okay because I was so worried about Sadie that I don't think I could have enjoyed it. I even got up to check on her during the night because she hadn't woken up. I think this was the night I hit my head on the wall while using the bathroom....still, it was worth it to not have to go to the bathhouse!!!!

Memorial Day Weekend. Day Two: Thank goodness for generators!

Saturday Memorial Day weekend started off nicely. It was a brisk, sunny morning...on its way to becoming a humid, scorching afternoon. Linda made buckwheat cakes. I was in heaven. After eating my fill (for 4!), we headed back to the camper to get ready for the day. 

Alycia, Richard, Nicholas, Lois and John H. headed to Cass Railroad for the day. I had hoped we would be able to join them, but we had brought the dogs along on the trip and had no where to leave them. I had look into kenneling them at Cass Railroad, but had read the kennel is only attended on a volunteer basis and could possibly involve just leaving them in a cage and going. I was not comfortable with that and John was more interested in doing as little as possible so we decided we would do Cass Railroad on a dog-less trip. 

Hot + Humid + Infant = Not so fun. Sadie was such a trooper. She lasted as long as she could outside, but once she was down to just her diaper there wasn't anything else I could do for her. She was so miserable.  So Uncle David fired up the generator in the motor home and she snoozed and played in her travel swing (with her Aunt Barb, Aunt Linda and Great-Grandma (and Mommy for a little while...)) until the highest heat of the afternoon passed. Thank goodness for generators and sweet Uncle Davids. :)

The dogs were really, really well behaved and I was so proud of them. I'm always nervous taking them to camp, but as always, they impressed me. And as an added bonus, mine weren't the bad, noisy dogs at camp!

Dinner was fantastic. Aunt Jody grilled veggies that were phenomenal! Green, red and yellow peppers, onions and potatoes sprinkled with oregano and garlic...cooked on the grill. Fantastic. Plus, there were cold salads, pork barbecue and kielbasa. 

The Sadie adventure begins at campfire on Saturday evening. She started SCREAMING. It was a scream I have never heard before. Like she was in pain. Huge tears. My heart was breaking. Her Daddy bounced her and tried and tried. She finally burped, but still continued to cry and cry and cry.... we headed back to the camper. I felt terribly because we were hosting Lois (John's Mom) and here was an inconsolable newborn. Sadie was asleep by the time we got to the camper, but she woke up again and continued to cry. She spit up and then fell fast asleep...all night! Her first full night!!!!!! She slept about 8 hours and I was a happy, happy, happy Mommy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We put a few things away and headed to bed (under John's camper warming gift of Star Wars linens!!) after washing our faces, brushing our teeth and going to the bathroom IN THE CAMPER! Campers ROCK!!

Sunday was bound to be an awesome, restful day.... or would it be?

Memorial Day Weekend. Day One: Lola is a stupid whore.

Travelogue: Stardate -313612.3037480975 (No, seriously, there's a website that will calculate the Stardate based on the actual date...)

Lola is a stupid, stupid, stupid whore. No, Lola isn't the neighborhood hussy, she's my ridiculously stupid GPS. Okay, maybe she's not that ridiculously stupid, seeing as she did deliver me to my intended destination. Maybe, I'm just that stupid for following her. I had received directions well in advance. Two sets, actually. The first set from John courtesy of MapQuest and the second a TripTik courtesy of my boss Judy Ward and her AAA membership. Which did I choose to follow? Neither. I followed Lola. The stupid whore. Sadie, Kaiser, Kizmet, Bogey and I set off from South Boston about 12:15 on Friday May 22, 2009 after having to wait for a prescription to be ready for pick up at Walmart. I headed up 501 toward Lynchburg as all three sets of directions began. This is where they all seemed to deviate and I apparently, chose the road less followed. SERIOUSLY less followed. Lola took us through some delightfully quaint towns including Lynchburg, Bedford and Clifton Forge and right up onto the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Here's where the wheels kinda fell off the wagon. The Blue Ridge Parkway is GORGEOUS. It's is also extremely curvy and tight. So, here's me, the dogs and Sadie ascending the mountain in an overpacked SUV praying we wouldn't fall off the side. My knuckles gripped the steering wheel tightly as I looked out the passenger side window on a few turns and could still see the back end of the Trooper coming around the turn it was so tight. On two occasions I actually had to STOP THE TRUCK so the car/truck coming around the corner could go as we couldn't both fit at the same time. As the Trooper is a manual and I'm nervous driving it anyway, I thought for sure we were going to roll back down the mountain as I tried to get it started back up the incline. I wasn't sure whether I was going to throw up or wet myself. Even Kizmet was dry heaving in the back of the truck from the curviness of the road. The lines coming up on the GPS screen were so on top of each other they were just one big pink blob instead of individual turns in the road.

Then we had to come back down the mountain! YIKES!!! Oh my goodness. I really thought for sure in a few spots we were just going to slide down the road. It was like I couldn't even grip...and it wasn't even wet. Just that steep. The no truck/trailer warning signs should have been my first clue that this drive was going to SUCK. The speed limit on the Blue Ridge Parkway is 45mph. In who's friggin' dreams?!?!? I cannot imagine ANYONE (even the biggest idiot driver on the planet) going 45 mph on that road. I managed 25 at some places, but usually somewhere in the 15-20 range was pushing it. And it wasn't just me...no one was going quickly. It's a leisurely drive. Absolutely gorgeous scenery. And scary as hell.

Eventually we arrived at our destination (in about 5.5 hours...not bad for a 3.5 hour drive) : Bolar Mountain Campground on Lake Moomaw in Warm Springs, VA. A truly lovely place. Woodsy. Lakey. Isolated. Just the refreshing, relaxing setting we needed for a rejuvenating weekend. Which was good, since I had a tension headache from clinching my jaw as visions of Sadie, the dogs and I flying off a mountain.

Dinner was fabulous. Cold salads and hamburgers and hot dogs cooked over the campfire. Is there anything better than food cooked over a campfire? It just has this...taste. So, so yummy. Sadie had formula. There was lots of visiting and passing the baby around. Sadie, John and I took tour of Uncle David's enormous motorhome. It is insanely nice! It really is like a rolling home. It's got a kitchen and master bedroom, big bathroom, living area with a sofa, a dinette and three recliners! SO NICE! Our motorhome warming present was a gallon of fresh apple cider I stopped and bought in the mountains from a little roadside stand.

Our new home away from arrived that evening around 10:00pm. John, David and Scott got the camper set and we pretty much just threw our stuff in that night and then got into bed. Sadie was already asleep and we were struggling to keep our eyes open. I only had enough energy to wash my face, brush my teeth and put linens on the bed.

I will never trust Lola again... or maybe next time I will just follow the directions John gave me since he had already checked out the insane route Lola had chosen for us. :)

I did make one mistake aside from following Lola: I followed Lola. No one knew I was following Lola. Cell signal? HA! These people haven't even discovered banjos to make that scary lost in Deliverence-type music much less a cell tower. What if something had happened? Seriously, I didn't even think about it until Saturday and I was reflecting on the beauty of being alive and not dead at the bottom of a mountain. Stupid, stupid, Sam. Nothing I can do about it now, but I will never do it again. Especially with Sadie in the car.

There's no place like home...

I always love coming home after a vacation (except for the laundry and unpacking). I love snuggling with my cats, I love sleeping in my own bed, I love showering in my own shower. This homecoming is particularly welcome. It was a long weekend and not particularly relaxing.  I am so very happy to be home....even if I have to go to work in the morning. :)

A full weened report and pics of our new home away from home coming tomorrow. For now, I am going to enjoy the snuggles of my kids. Half of them are already snoring. I hope to be soon to follow.

Lilah tov, chalomot paz!

Poor little man.

Um....I suck. I don't know how to apologize enough to my little Bogey. I gave him a haircut after his bath last night. I'm so, so sorry. In an effort to remove the hair from around his eyes (because he always gets hair in his eyes and it makes the dry eye even worse because now the eye boogers are caked in hair), I have made him look like he just wandered out of a camp. He looks like he is in desperate need of a toupee. I feel so guilty. (Though, at least this time I did not almost circumcise him with the scissors while trimming the hair around his little wingus...) Grooming is not my calling.

Pictures of the maiming to follow....poor little guy. 

I did forget something.

So I went to pack my pills. Up, only had one left of one I can't skip. Stupid, stupid Sam. I guess this is the down side of using those week pill organizers. Sometimes, things get forgotten if you're running out because you don't see it every day. Oh well. That pushes departure time back until at least 10am to allow the pharmacy time to fill it.

The End and the Beginning...

I've finally finished packing. I know for a fact I overpacked. In my zeal to remember everything, I think I packed everything. And I do mean EVERYTHING. Could Sadie possible go through all those swaddlers? All those onesies? All those pants? Well, you just never know. The weather is so unpredictable in Virginia...and she could have some wardrobe 'malfunctions' that require changing her clothes. As for the rest, I think I did okay. I probably over did it on the tea, but I actually got all my clothes into one carry-on style bag and all my toiletries and sundries into my toiletry kit (granted, it's the LL Bean Family Sized toiletry kit--in Aloha Blue. Gotta pack a variety of over the counter drugs, shampoo, conditions, toothpaste.......etc.). I also managed to get it all into the Trooper while still leaving the entire back open for the dogs to lay down back there. I'm pretty impressed with me! LOL! I think the only thing that will have to go back there tomorrow is the cooler which will take up space, but I see no other option aside from leaving it here and that's not really an option.

Anyway, I'm headed to bed. No alarm clock set. Though I imagine Sadie will go off at the regularly scheduled time of "whenever she damn well pleases."

Good night. Have a great weekend!!!!!!!!

Lake Moomaw--George Washington National Forest

Our weekend destination!

A Beach at Lake Moomaw

Lake Moomaw
Up in the Alleghany Highlands, nestled into a canyon once called Kincaid Gorge, lies Gathright Dam. This massive earthen structure backs up the Jackson River for over 12 miles, forming Lake Moomaw. A U. S. Army Corps of Engineers project, Lake Moomaw was constructed for downstream flow augmentation (water quality), flood control, and recreation. The idea for a lake above the City of Covington was hatched just after World War II, but the project was not completed until the early 1980's. The backwater of the Jackson River flooded acres of bottomland once owned by Thomas Gathright. The project was pushed forward by Covington businessman Benjamin Moomaw, after which the lake was named.

Lake Moomaw is the second largest impoundment in western Virginia. It covers 2,530 surface acres and has a maximum depth of 152 feet. The impoundment is "drawn down" between 10-15 feet annually, beginning slowly in June and reaching its lowest level usually by September. There are 43 miles of undeveloped, wooded shoreline.

http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/fishing/waterbodies/display.asp?id=88

Cross your fingers for nice, warm weather days and cool campfire nights!!!!

Going out of my mind

So much to do, so little time. In reality, there isn't that much to do and there's plenty of time to do it, but I, for some reason, am really feeling the pressure. Friday morning (that's tomorrow), I will pack up Sadie, Kaiser, Kizmet and Bogey into the Trooper and begin our journey to Bolar Mountain. It's a camping trip. How much stress could a camping trip cause? Apparently, a lot. It has to be because of Sadie. This is her first camping trip. It's not her first long trip as we've been out to John's house in Bluewell, WV twice already. The problems are: (1) I am traveling alone; (2) I also have three dogs to travel with; and (3) it won't be so easy to just run out to the Walmart to get what I forgot. Apparently, there are no Walmarts in George Washington National Forest...thank goodness. Their evil (though evidently necessary) empire's reach only extends so far...

THAT'S the stress. I'm packing up what's left to pack up, alone. John packed up and took a good bit last Sunday, but what's left is my responsibility...including everything we need for Sadie. Gulp. PRESSURE! What if I forget something? Did he tell me to pack something and in my panic, I don't know what it is???? I'm kinda freaking out. Which means, I'm not relaxed which is what a camping trip should be about. Relaxation. Maybe I will calm down once I'm on the road. Though, that's doubtful. When I'm on the road, I'll be viewing every car, truck, RV, and semi as crazy drivers out to run my family off the road. I've noticed a marked increase of idiot drivers since Sadie's arrival. NUTS, I tell you, NUTS! (And I'm pretty sure I used to be one of them...) Seriously, the speed limits aren't a suggestion, turn signals are not optional and headlights are a necessary safety tool! If only I could convince VDOT to clear the road between here and Warm Springs....

Anyway, I'm stressing. I shouldn't be. What's the worse thing that could happen? I forget the formula and the baby starves to death. Oh, shoes. That's not good. Or, I get half way there and realize I've forgotten the directions. Or my wallet so I can't get gas and am stranded on the side of the road for some serial killer to wander by and kidnap us. Yikes. Kaiser would save us, right? I'm gonna go with yes so I can sleep tonight.

So, note to self:
formula
wallet
baby
dogs

Everything else, I guess I can buy....but lets hope I remember more than that.

Flabby

So, my summer clothes are missing. Yes, all of them. I am assuming the box went to my mother's house when she moved. Otherwise, I cannot imagine what would have happened to them.... perhaps a band of roving theives broke in and after placating the dogs with treats (because, seriously, that's all it would take) stole my box of summer clothes thinking, my aren't these stylish.

Anyway, I digress. The problem I face now is the flab. I gained a total of 9 pounds during my pregnancy. (I'd like to thank 16-weeks of violent morning sickness and cravings for oranges and diet A&W root beer.) So, as I gave birth to a 7lb 8oz baby and lost various other fluids and bits and pieces, you would think I'd be a happy camper when it came to going to procure some new shorts. No, no. Show me that in a much smaller size, please! Um, or not. Nothing is where it used to be. I may be smaller, but I can't tell one bit. The flab...it's just hanging there. Shirts, I'm fine with. Though I could give Dolly Parton a run for her money. Pants? Where the heck is all that flab supposed to go?!?!?!?!? Why isn't it gone yet? Oh. That's probably due to my post childbirth diet of coffee cakes and frosted mini-wheats. (I've recently gotten back on track...) What a depressing shopping trip. I eventually found 2 pair of shorts. Yes, they're maternity. I'm so embarassed, but it was the only way to get shorts that weren't really, really big and baggy everywhere else to fit my flabby, nasty belly. The bonus: they still have that fabulous stretchy waistband! So comfy!

I suppose I should step back for a moment and give thanks for my flabby belly. After all, my flabby belly allowed Sadie to grow and be healthy and I suppose I could sort of look at my flabby belly and it's gorgeous streaky marks as battle scars (I fought pregnancy and won!), but...not so much. It's just....flabby. Ick. Good things it's Spring. Time to start walking again.

Paint

I want to paint. Desperately. Where, you ask? The entryway. Some of you may not know this (though any of you who have seen the color of my entryway are probably somewhat aware) but I have some trouble seeing color. I'm not color blind, just color deficient. The lovely LIME green is starting to wear on me a bit. I can't stand it. It's getting more limey by the day. I want to paint it. In fact, I am attributing this green to my bad moods lately. Plus, I don't like to stagnate. Decor cannot remain year after year after year. Change is the key to living in the moment.

So, what color should I paint it? (That is, if I can talk John into letting me (us) paint it...it has been almost 4 years after all!) It's a large, long space and, obviously, the first thing you see when you walk in the door. Perhaps a less GREEN green. I didn't intend for it to be SO green. Or maybe a nice grey-blue? Or go neutral and paint cream? The problem with grey-blue is that is the color I planned to paint the office (which is currently the living room). I plan on decorating with newspapers and John's black and whites with HUGE built-in bookcases... However, I digress. What color for the entry way???

Hmmm...probably have to wait until Sadie's room is finished though. That would be the best idea....

I am also overwhelmed with the yellow in my room, but that I can deal with until we move upstairs and can remodel that room. The walls will have to come down to put in new windows and the outside door anyway so I'll paint then. Perhaps something dramatic as it will be our living room.

Plans, plans, plans, but I have GOT to get rid of that green.

Places I would live if I could and money weren't an object

(1) London. I love, love, love, love London.
(2) Seattle. I'm feeling like perhaps the Pacific Northwest is where I should be.
(3) St. Thomas. Hello?!? It's a tropical island. Do I need any other reason? Oh yeah, High Pockets!!!! But if I lived there, I'd buy my own High Pockets!
(4) Washington DC. There's no shortage of things to do and I kinda know my way around. The downside is the people and the traffic.
(5) Miami or one of the Keys. Inexplicably I am attracted to South Florida. Beach, beach, beach! And easy access to last minute cruise deals!
(6) Savannah. I think I could pull off Southern Belle quite well.
(7) Toronto. I miss it. So much to do. Accessibility.
(8) Jerusalem. I've never been anywhere else where religion and faith was virtually palpable. The downside is the possibility of getting blown up every day.
(9) Colorado somewhere. I like the snow and would like the opportunity to ski whenever possible.
(10) Coastal Oregon. There's something that seems very peaceful about the Pacific Northwest. Perhaps its the trees and the rain.
(11) Isle of Iona, Island off the western coast of Scotland. Isolated. Only accessible by ferry. Gorgeous. Quiet.

Name that Quote

Does anyone know where the line, "By a partial, prejudiced and ignorant historian" comes from? No Google cheating! :) I'll need the author, title and character (those are clues....) :)

Something Clever

Yes, friends, I did in fact name the blog Samantha's Something Clever because I could not actually think of something clever to name it. :)

Melancholy and Infinitely Sad

I'm not quite sure what's going on with me the last few weeks. I am just so.....sad. Could it be the baby blues have just taken their time to show up? In my opinion though it doesn't feel like "that kind" of sad. (Though, really, how would I know...it's not as if I've done this before...) Sadie lights up my day. I am still finding it difficult to comprehend all the ways she has changed my life and ALL for the better. It's feels like a rut. Like I've dug myself a hole I can't get out of. My heart hurts. My brain hurts. I am anxious and lethargic all at once. I am finding it hard to find good and happy beyond Sadie and the furbabies. I just can't get...happy. (It probably doesn't help that I feel like a whale.) You all know me, and for the most part, know my mental health issues. It's not that I'm not seeking help. After all, looking into my medicine cabinet makes me realize I could probably make more money selling my prescription drugs on the street than I do going to work. (Note to "The Man" who may be monitoring this blog (why, I'm not sure...you must have better things to do...), I would never actually do that....unless the money was REALLY good...just kidding...or maybe not...) 

 I just can't get out of this rut. I feel like I should be on top of the world and, to a huge extent, I am. I have never been so happy to have been proven wrong in my life. Sadie is an amazing miracle and I feel so blessed to have the privilege to know her and watch her grow. But what about those other moments? Those other dark, panicked moments where the anxiety seems like it is taking me over and the terrifying moments when I fear Sadie may feel this out of control someday as well. John said something to me today. "How do you feel this way all the time?" He was feeling a bit scattered and overwhelmed and didn't know where to start with his packing. I explained to him that I really didn't know, I just did. The medicine helps balance me, certainly. That's what its designed to do. But then I realized, he's scattered and overwhelmed about packing. For me, it's life. Yes, situational anxiety is a part of life, but what about when it's every moment? It's not just where to start packing. It feels like trying to keep your brain on track when it feels like its flying off the tracks. I feel like that is something he will never understand and I hope he never even comes close, but at the same time I need him to understand. I cannot help this and sometimes I feel guilty because...I feel like I should be able to keep it under control.

Tonight, I am up with Sadie. She isn't sleeping well. Her tummy hurts, I assume. Perhaps she ate too fast, or overate or.... it could be a million things. She can't tell me which of the million, though. That has to be frustrating for her. As frustrating as it is for me because I cannot fix what I do not know is broken. 

I started to think, maybe the sadness is knowing that, regardless of its positive or negative connotations, life will never be the same again. All I have is this moment to live in. I cannot know what the next will hold, but I know they are forever going to be about more than just me. Maybe that's the problem. I have been such a selfish being for so long. Perhaps I am sad because I can no longer be selfish. I now live to make things better for my daughter....

I'll figure it out, I suppose. I'll be back to my old chipper self in no time. (Though, seriously, was I ever chipper?!? Definitely not in the mornings!) 

Hm. I feel better already. Okay, not really, but I didn't want to end the post (which is probably more personal information than you ever wanted to know...) on a sour note. So... um.... PUPPIES! (Always makes me feel better!) :)

Confession of the Day: May 17, 2009

Confession of the day: I wear ladies underwear. :)

Surprising, eh? :)

Already skipping out on service

The Sisterhood Shabbat service was tonight...and Sadie skipped it! She'd start to cry every time John brought her into the sanctuary! Apparently, she was fine at the Oneg and was, of course, the talk of the congregation (who wouldn't want to talk about her!?!?), but she's already skipping out on services and she's only 2 1/2 months old...what will we do when its time to go to Religious School in the mornings!?!?!?!?

Goodnight. Tonight, I hope its tornado free!

Mission: Accomplished!

Apparently, the Australia trip is a matter of money....ya think?! I was very subtle in breaking the vacation news to John. I sent him the link to my blog and let him read about it! Brilliant, right?!?!? I thought so! Anyway, he didn't say no, but he doesn't think Sadie will be ready to snorkel. The best solution would be to take another person along on the trip to watch Sadie while we are doing fun things like SNORKELING ON THE GREAT BARRIER REEF!!!!!!!!!!!! We'll have to see. That's a LOT of money and it'll be an expensive trip even if its just the three of us. I think Sadie will be an awesome traveler because she's an awesome baby, but....he might be right (oh my goodness, that's in print now...) she may not be ready to snorkel at 2 years and change. That makes me sad. :(

In many ways I am so excited to see her grow and discover things and take vacations, but in so many other ways I would keep her a baby forever. She's too perfect!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anyway, there's like many, many hundreds of days before we leave on vacation, but I AM SO GEEKED!

Disaster Preparedness by Samantha Wills

M'kay. I'm all about safety. John wakes me up this morning to a crash of deafening thunder with the word TORNADO. I was calm. Cool. Collected. In order to save us all, I got out of bed to close the bedroom door to the porch. Yup. That'll save us. Apparently in my fog, my brain thought the door might keep the tornado on the other side of it. Durh. So, I grabbed the baby out of her crib (probably fast enough to give her whiplash...OoPs) and proceeded to the Butler's Pantry where I sat with her as we herded what pets we could into the space (all the dogs, none of the cats...you know that saying 'it's like herding cats?' As it turns out, that's hard!) You might be asking yourself, "Sam, where were you bright enough to sit in the butler's pantry?" Up against the stackable washer and dryer. Brilliant. The only thing that holds the dryer on top of the washer is a few brackets with some screws. Friggin' brilliant. 

Then, John deems it safe to run back into the bedroom to get the computer to see the weather advisories. No tornado warning. No tornado watch. Not even a severe thunderstorm warning (though it is thundering and raining something fierce...). We've been had! For nothing happening, that was some FREAKY thunder. 

For a few years during my childhood I lived in Omaha, Nebraska and I can remember my Dad rounding us up and getting us into the basement virtually whenever there was thunder thinking it was a tornado coming (this in turn caused me to be afraid of thunderstorms well into my 20's and then suddenly, around 26 or so, I started to find them soothing...I think this incident may cause a backward slide...) I remember the freaky thunder...I just don't remember what it sounded like! Was our freaky thunder, tornado freaky thunder? I don't know, but for just a few moments I was 6 again and flipping out in the basement....

Next time, I will be more prepared. I will perhaps grab my glasses instead of getting up to close the door.

It's 6am now. We've been up for over an hour and are now headed back to bed. If there was a tornado the NOAA and Weather Channel aren't aware of it. No watches. No warnings. Just panic here at 1211 Washington. (Seriously, aren't there sirens? I vividly remember sirens as a child....or is that just a Midwest thing?) 

The one thing I do so love about hurricanes...unlike tornados, they give you warning.

G'night. Again.

LOL...what am I thinking!?!?

I guess I should start thinking of how to keep a 2 year old busy and happy on flights that will literally take a DAY! I must be out of my mind..... BUT SO GEEKED! And, after all, Sadie *IS* the perfect baby...she'll be the perfect toddler too, right? RIGHT?!?!?!?!

So sweet...

Someone posted this on our March 2009 Playroom Message Board at JustMommies.com

So sweet....Sadie has been worth every lost moment of sleep, every dollar spent and every ounce of labor pain. I have never been so in love with anything in my entire life. She is amazing.


The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 and came up with $160,140.00 for a middle income family. Talk about price shock! That doesn't even touch college tuition.

But $160,140.00 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into:
* $8,896.66 a year,
* $741.38 a month,
* $171.08 a week.
* A mere $24.24 a day!
* Just over a dollar an hour.

Still, you might think the best financial advice is; don't have children if you want to be 'rich.' Actually, it is just the opposite.

What do you get for your $160,140.00?
* Naming rights. First, middle, and last!
* Glimpses of G-d every day.
* Giggles under the covers every night.
* More love than your heart can hold.
* Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs.
* Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies.
* A hand to hold usually covered with jelly or chocolate.
* A partner for blowing bubbles and flying kites.
* Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the Boss said or how your stocks performed that day.

For $160,140.00, you never have to grow up. You get to:
* finger-paint,
* carve pumpkins,
* play hide-and-seek,
* catch lightning bugs,
* never stop believing in Santa Claus.

You have an excuse to:
* keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh,
* watch Saturday morning cartoons,
* go to Disney movies, and
* wish on stars.

You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets and collect spray painted noodle wreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay for Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters for Father's Day.

For a mere $24.24 a day, there is no greater bang for your buck. You get to be a hero just for:
* retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof,
* taking the training wheels off a bike,
* removing a splinter,
* filling a wading pool,
* coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and
* coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream regardless.

You get a front row seat in history to witness the:
* First step,
* First word,
* First bra,
* First date,
* First time behind the wheel.

You get to be immortal. You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren and great grandchildren. You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications, and human sexuality that no college can match..

In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under G-d. You have all the power to heal a boo-boo, scare away the monsters under the bed, patch a broken heart, police a slumber party, ground them forever, and love them without limits, so one day they will, like you, love without counting the cost. That is quite a deal for the price!!!!!!!

Love & enjoy your children & grandchildren & great-grandchildren!!!!!!!

It's the best investment you'll ever make!!!!!!!!

G'day Mates!

So now I am SUPER, SUPER, SUPER GEEKED! I have made the executive decision to determine the location of our 2011 vacation...We're going to the LAND DOWN UNDER! Dave Double Dog Dared us to go with them. How do you say no to that?!?

Wow, is it going to be ridiculously expensive to fly the THREE of us to Australia, BUT we get to go with our dear friends Dave, Shelly and Kyle to celebrate Kyle's high school graduation and acceptance to his college of choice AND *WE* get to SNORKEL the GREAT BARRIER REEF!!!! OH MY GOODNESS AM I GEEKED!!!!!!! I am totally sure that by then Sadie will be a snorkel PRO!

Now...there are big things to do. Are we cruising or land vacationing?

Biggest of all...how do I tell John?!?!? LOL! He'll understand the power of the Double Dog Dare, won't he?!?!? Maybe I'll bribe him by working some extra hours when I can to pay for SCUBA lessons for him...I'll even make sure the boat doesn't leave him stranded on the Reef...

SO EXCITED! :)

www.greatberrierreef.org

HA! The Chinese got it wrong!

I just used the Chinese Gender Predictor to see if it was correct (apparently, it's over 90% accurate...). NOPE! It predicted I would have a boy (age 27 at conception in the month of June) and Sadie is definitely a girl! I would have been happy with a healthy baby of any gender, but I am so in love with my little GIRL!!
Can you tell its a bit slow in class today?!?

Confession of the Day

Confession of the Day : Wednesday May 13, 2009

A tame one: My Mom's chicken was exceptionally dry and flavorless tonight, but I told her it was good anyway because I didn't want to hurt her feelings. (On the upside, the stuffing ROCKED and I ate enough to make up for the chicken yuckiness...she makes it with cranberries and cinnamon spiced apples and it is perhaps the best stuffing ever!!!)

Doesn't everyone do this at one time or another? Nice or doing myself a disservice?  For she is bound to make another flavorless piece of cardboard in the future... 

In the Beginning...

So, wow. Welcome to the 21st century, Sam. My very first blog post. I decided to do this partially because I don't talk much and this is a nice way to keep you up to date on my spiral into madness (from here its unclear as to whether its a downward spiral or a rocketing ascent...) and partially because I feel like there should be a record. I was here. I have imprinted myself in cyberspace.   I am hoping this will prove to be a cathartic exercise. 

Mostly, this will document my curiosities, my confessions, my family, my friends, my travels, my rants on the declining quality of television shows and my inability to wrap by brain around the actions of people and politicians. (And I make the distinction because I'm not entirely certain all politicians ARE people...) You know. Life.

Read or don't read. It's up to you. :)