tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28593484678037504902024-03-13T01:44:20.979-07:00Baby Blog!Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.comBlogger30125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-34893973291561514142011-08-02T08:42:00.000-07:002011-08-02T08:51:56.076-07:00Another summer rolls to an end.I start back at work next week. I am still mostly in denial about this, although I shed two or three tears earlier before I pulled myself together. I just wish everything in the world was free so no one had to work. Who invented this work concept anyway?! I know I am certainly way luckier than most that I even get summers off, so I will try not to sound too ungrateful about the time off work that I've been given.<br /><br />It has been an amazing summer. And to be honest it's seemed like the longest one I've ever had, so that's a great thing, but also makes it harder than ever to return to work. I'm so lucky that Mr. D (who is also a teacher) and I were able to spend 2 months at home with our baby girl and watch her grow and become a toddler.<br /><br />Baby D's 1st birthday was on the 28th, and her party was on the 30th. It was a HUGE success. We ordered our invitations from <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/chickabug?ref=ss_profile">this shop</a> on Etsy. She was AMAZING to work with and I can't rave enough about how fabulous the invitations and other things we got were. Everyone loved them. We went with the Sweet Shoppe them and had an all-pink candy buffet, pink cupcakes, ice cream with yummy toppings, and strawberry cake.<br /><br />I originally had planned on making Baby D's smash cake from scratch. I've never given her more than a small taste of sweet things at a time, and I didn't see the point in starting now. I decided to make her a sugar free carrot cake using ingredients like unsweetened applesauce and apple juice. I'm sure you can imagine how it turned out. Disgusting. I knew I would have to give in and just order one from the store. I'm glad I did, it was super cute and way better tasting. She only gets one first birthday, so why not let her live a little and have some sugar? She didn't eat very much anyway. What she did eat she loved, though!<br /><br />The one thing I am really bummed about this summer is that Baby D hasn't walked yet! I know as soon as we put her back into daycare she'll probably take her first steps there, and it actually makes me a little sick to my stomach to think about missing out on that! But I know she will enjoy being back with her "peers," because she just loves other kids so much and she thrives around them. So it's for the best anyway.<br /><br />I am going to try to be more diligent about posting in this blog. I hate that I always go so long without posts. There's really no excuse aside from utter laziness. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"> </span><a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/chickabug?ref=ss_profile"><span style="display: block;" id="formatbar_Buttons"><span class=" down" style="display: block;" id="formatbar_CreateLink" title="Link" onmouseover="ButtonHoverOn(this);" onmouseout="ButtonHoverOff(this);" onmouseup="" onmousedown="CheckFormatting(event);FormatbarButton('richeditorframe', this, 8);ButtonMouseDown(this);"><img src="img/blank.gif" alt="Link" class="gl_link" border="0" /></span></span></a>Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-15645866376205559502011-05-14T06:02:00.000-07:002011-05-14T06:16:10.362-07:00Summer quickly approaches! I am so excited to have two months off of work. Teaching really sucks sometimes, but I've gotta tell you, the light at the end of the tunnel is summer vacation.<br /><br />I've been battling a myriad of illnesses for the past week. It started last Friday. By Saturday, I had a raging fever. I luckily felt better for Mother's Day (which was amazing, by the way). That night, though, I felt sicker than ever. I took some ibuprofen and felt good enough to go to work. I still felt like my body wasn't healed yet.<br /><br />By Tuesday, I was convinced it was strep throat, but a visit to urgent care revealed that apparently my woes were due to allergies. Wednesday morning, I awoke to discover I had lost my voice. I somehow made it through a day of teaching, but it took a toll on my voice and wiped it out completely. Then I developed pink eye (probably due to Baby D's new obsession with eyelashes).<br /><br />I had to take off Thursday to give it a break, which really stinks because I have no paid time off yet (I used it all up during maternity leave!), so I lost a big chunk of money.<br /><br />After my day off, my voice was still weak and I had developed a horrific cough, but knew we couldn't afford anymore time off. So, back to work on Friday. My voice was way better (now sounding more like a boy entering puberty), but the cough was worse. I had to raise my voice too many times and lost my voice again. I took some Delsym when I got home, and it did nothing for my cough, but it did get me feeling really high, which meant Mr. D had to do the brunt of the baby-rearing once again this week.<br /><br />Here it is, Saturday again, and I still can't stop coughing. It's so frustrating. It is pretty amazing to see Baby D become accustomed to my barking cough, though. That girl sleeps right through it, even when I'm holding her!<br /><br />Which is what I'm doing now (yes, I typed this whole entry using one hand - THAT'S talent!), so I'm going to be a creepy mom and just stare at her now.Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-46280501105989118062011-03-19T07:16:00.000-07:002011-03-19T07:27:41.085-07:00All good things must come to an end...Our spring break is wrapping up.<br /><br />I am never ready to return to work, but I can honestly say I have had a completely fulfilling vacation. Mr. D, Baby D, and I had some fun outings over the past week.<br /><br />The baby and I enjoyed numerous cuddle sessions. We made it to the park during the two nice-weather days (Um, speaking of which, 40 degree weather? You do not belong in spring break.), Baby D got to swing on a real (infant) swing for the first time. She LOVED it.<br /><br />She also went down the slide with Daddy and me, and was thoroughly unimpressed with that.<br /><br />During this break, we also re-discovered our favorite onesies in a big girl size! We are overly excited to re-live these outfits. By "we," naturally I mean the Mister and me. The baby could care less. In fact, she prefers no clothes at all (with the exception of her diaper). While undressed, she regresses back in time to the caveman era, where she grunts and violently kicks her legs and pumps her arms. Clothes just make her cry for the first minute or so. I do think she realizes how darn cute she is in these onesies, so she eventually accepts that she has to wear them in public.<br /><br />Anyway, as our spring break draws to an end, I am satisfied with the time we've had off of work. I'll return knowing that the best break of all - summer vacation! - is right around the corner! Oh, I can't wait.Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-73912668221738258112011-03-16T20:01:00.000-07:002011-03-16T20:17:23.519-07:00Karma!I am a firm believer in Karma. I try to do nice things for people, not only because it just feels good, but because I hope that it will come around to me again in my times of need!<br /><br />For instance, if I'm driving and someone needs to merge in front of me and everyone else is being a jerk and refusing to let them in, my attitude is "By all means, get in front of me!" And I feel like this is good car karma, so perhaps later at the store I will get an awesome parking spot. I know, I am insane.<br /><br />Today, however, Mr. D, Baby D, and myself went on a walk to the local. It was so gorgeous outside! I had just relocated one of our favorite little blankies that Baby D has, and was pumped. I decided she needed to cuddle it in her stroller on our walk. In our neighborhood, we stopped to talk to our neighbor for awhile. Later, on our way back to our house, I noticed someone's ad-chocked junk mail insert was rolling down the street. Papers were everywhere! I knew what it was because one had been in my mailbox earlier, so I gathered all of them up and disposed of them.<br /><br />30 minutes later, we are back in our living room when the doorbell rings. For some reason, any time the doorbell rings, I assume it's a home invasion waiting to happen and it FREAKS ME OUT!<br /><br />This time, it was just the neighbor we had chatted up earlier. He held up the aforementioned blankie and said "Is this yours?" Apparantly we had somehow dropped it on our way to the park. Him and his wife were walking their dog and came across it, and since he knew we were just in that area he was nice enough to pick it up and return it! Karma from the junk mail!<br /><br />I'm so glad he was thoughtful enough to bring it back. I also find it cool that had we not stopped to talk to him, he might've never assumed it was ours, and it would still be laying on the sad lonely street.<br /><br />I'm still not sure how we managed to lose it!Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-50393355991890051202011-03-15T19:43:00.000-07:002011-03-15T19:53:06.762-07:00Flying fast!Life is moving so fast. Every day I promise myself I'm going to start blogging more but it doesn't happen!<br /><br />Baby D has gotten SO big and smart and fabulous. She is playful and silly and, sorry to say, STILL not sleeping through the night. We're talking about waking up every 1-2 hours. She is over 7 months old! I cannot believe I thought babies slept through the night at like 3 weeks. And while pregnant I thought, "Man, three weeks without a full night of sleep? No wonder new parents are cranky!" UM HELLO PAST ME, welcome to the worst wake-up call ever!<br /><br />Speaking of the baby, I smell spit up and cannot locate the source. It's driving me insane. I even just attempted to smell my boob thinking perhaps the stink was radiating from that area. It's not. Oh, mystery baby vomit, where are you?<br /><br />I am on spring break for work. I LOVE IT. This morning we woke up and I realized we had nothing for breakfast. So we loaded up and went to Starbucks, drank delicious coffee (vanilla latte for me, yum) and had yummy scones. Then we went to the store to get some groceries. Afterward, we came home so our girl could nap, then went back out again for lunch and some shopping. It was such a lovely day! We had forgotten to get lunch at the store that day, but I didn't mind because eating out is such a treat.<br /><br />We still forgot to get breakfast food at the store, so we get to have Starbucks again in the morning! I love little vacation treats like that.<br /><br />I can no longer type without locating the resting place of this spit-up.Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-3291792510602769322011-01-20T06:37:00.001-08:002011-01-20T06:45:11.635-08:00It's been awhile, which is typical around here. I need to start blogging every day but it's really hard! Everyone always acts like it's so easy to do stuff while baby sleeps, but when your baby sleeps on you, it's pretty difficult. Baby D rarely takes naps in her crib when she's at home, she's typically held by one of us. Yes, she's spoiled, but she's no worse for the wear.<br /><br />Life around here has been out of routine lately. We keep having snow days! I live in the midwest, where two inches of snow shuts down the city for the day. We got back from Christmas break, had a four-day school week, then it snowed that Sunday so we didn't have school for three days! Thursday & Friday, it was back to work. That following Monday was MLK day, so we were out. Another four day work week. Now, it snowed (actually a lot for us this time - 6-8 inches ) yesterday so the schools are out yet again today. Likely tomorrow, too.<br /><br />While I am enjoying our lazy unexpected vacation days, the fact that I know we'll have to make them up in the springtime, well, sucks. I also feel a little guilty that we keep getting Baby D out of her routine. She's already doesn't go to day care on Wednesdays (her grandma watches her), so now she's been going to day care like once a week. Naturally we still have to pay for it, too! But we just can't get enough of her, so if we're home, there's no way we're sending her to day care! This also means that she was out of day care for two entire weeks during Christmas vacation. Whoops. I know you're supposed to be all about routines for babies, and she hasn't had one for several weeks now.<br /><br />She has SUCH a personality now! Little giggles, lots of smiles, she throws tantrums and throws objects. She hits things, she reaches out for people. We finally had ONE full on belly-laugh the other night, but not since. Yes, she is almost 6 months old and has yet to really laugh. It kills us, but finally getting that one "hahahaha!" out of her was worth the wait. She's also rolling over like crazy now.<br /><br />Ok, off to finish my coffee and snuggle with my family!Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-30559796423063338602010-12-18T07:37:00.000-08:002010-12-18T12:35:28.965-08:00Baby Woes: Surviving colicOnce again, let me preface this edition of "baby woes" with the disclaimer that I AM MADLY IN LOVE WITH MY BABY! I love everything about being a mom. The vent that follows is just to inform people that sometimes parenthood can be rough and if they're going through a similar experience, they are not alone.<br /><br />That being said, colic sucks. Really really sucks. To the point where booting the baby out of the house seems like a really good idea. Baby D had colic. Hers was in the evening. Which was probably hormonal and related to the fact that I had major baby blues in the evening during the first two weeks. But that's another blog post.<br /><br />For the first few weeks of life, Baby D just slept, pooped, and ate. It was pretty great, actually. We just cuddled her, and if she cried, we fed her or changed her diaper and she was content again.<br /><br />But at some point after a few weeks, she started having these horrible screaming fits at night. NOTHING helped. Not swaddling, not feeding, not changing her diaper. We tried rocking her. We tried bouncing her. Putting her in the swing. Re-swaddling her. Singing to her. Trying to change her diaper again. Offering her a pacifier (which I swore I would never do). Trying to see if maybe NOW she was hungry. Holding her silently. Holding her and talking to her. Checking her diaper again. Seeing if she was ready for the pacifier yet. Running the vaccuum... you get the point.<br /><br />NOTHING WORKED.<br /><br />We are not supporters of crying it out, so we would just take turns holding her while she cried. After a few hours, it would stop. We would breathe a sigh of relief and tiptoe around the house in fear of awakening the beast. (Just an expression, I do not think my daughter is a beast. If shw were a beast, however, she would be the cutest flipping beast of all time!)<br /><br />Finally one night it didn't happen any more. Now it seems like it all happened so long ago. It's funny, though. I wished those times away so many times when they were happening. Now, I wish I hadn't done that! She has grown so long, and I am so short, that she barely fits into my lap anymore - and she's only 4 1/2 months old! Back during the screaming fits, I could lean back and just hold her against my chest and try to cuddle the cries out of her. Now she is already too big for "chesty time," as we called it. It's downright sad sometimes.<br /><br />I guess what I'm trying to say is: if you have come across this blog and you are dealing with a colic-y baby, I promise you the tears will stop. Baby D hasn't cried more than 5 minutes at a time for several weeks now. So try (impossible as it might be) to enjoy those times. When you are up in the middle of the night and all you can think is "I wish I could put this baby down without her crying so I can get some sleep!," try to enjoy the time you have holding that little baby! Because you can never get those moments back.<br /><br />The upside to passing those moments by is that you get to trade them in for smiles, coos, babbles and (not for us yet) laughs. While I miss my tiny baby, this big baby is awesome too! Every time I get sad over a stage ending, a new amazing one begins. Let's just remember to cherish them ALL!Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-22874811035257832882010-12-17T15:24:00.000-08:002010-12-17T15:31:45.163-08:00My eye got really watery today at work during my planning period (no students). I kept wiping it, annoyed.<br /><br />When my next class came in, one of my students said "What is wrong with your eye?!" I shrugged and told her it had been watering. "You've got pink eye!" she told me (well, actually she said "You got pink eye!" We're still working on the grammar. Yes, I teach 8th grade). I told her it was just watery.<br /><br />Within half an hour, another student said my eye was swollen. I had no mirror but managed to peek into the metal part of my stapler and sure enough, it was. By the time my next class entered, my eye was pouring goop.<br /><br />I went to see the school nurse after school and her and another staff member confirmed that I had pink eye. Fabulous. I've never had this before, and it's the last day of school before Christmas vacation! Nooooo!<br /><br />I went to one of those pharmacy walk-ins and got some eye drops. The most devastating part of this is throwing away all of my eye makeup. I never buy expensive makeup, but I splurged two weeks ago and bought a $20 eye shadow - trashed.<br /><br />Now my eye won't stop gooping shut. This is gross.Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-56789932252133347942010-12-15T18:43:00.000-08:002010-12-15T19:03:01.868-08:00My embarassing afternoonI'm a teacher at a middle school. One of the substitutes also serves as the girl's basketball coach. Since he's a sub, he doesn't have his own room. He asked me a couple of months ago if he could use my room after school for study hall before basketball practice (woah, say that ten times fast) - something all athletes have to do. I said of course!<br /><br />On Wednesdays, he told me, they would not be using my room. This is good, because Wednesdays in our district are "short days" - the kids get out an hour early so we can have professional development. I pump at work (breast milk, that is). On Wednesdays, I get 20 minutes for lunch, and after several weeks of rushing my students down to the cafeteria, grabbing my lunch, rushing back to my class, setting up my pump, pumping, taking it apart and cleaning it, taking my milk to the fridge, and picking my kids back up - I cracked. I said NO MORE! And stopped pumping at lunch on Wednesdays. Now, I pump after school before our meetings.<br /><br />I hate being late for the meetings though, so I usually pump and then leave my milk in a storage bag and my pump parts out, cleaning them after the meeting. Less rushing that way, you know.<br /><br />So today I went about my routine. Pumped after school, put the milk in a storage bag (this is probably so gross to people who don't have kids, sorry, I swear my entire blog is not about boobs and milk), and left my empty bottles and suction cups sitting on my desk, without washing them.<br /><br />Well, when I got done with my meeting, I went into my classroom to discover not only did this male substitute take the girls' basketball team into my class after all, but he had brought the boys' team as well. I was mortified, knowing my stuff had been sitting out in the open. Then I went to my desk and saw that the substitute had CLEANED IT UP!<br /><br />My nipple shields (the suction cups) and milk-drop covered bottles had been cleared off my desk and put into my pump bag, and my sack of milk had been placed in there as well. I am so completely mortified. I mumbled something like, "Oh, gee, sorry about the mess...." And he didn't say ANYTHING. Which made it way more awkward.<br /><br />Lesson learned: clean up my disgusting used breast pump parts RIGHT AWAY.Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-67811674482260365562010-11-21T12:19:00.000-08:002010-11-21T12:23:57.503-08:00Why is making a baby laugh so hard? Ok, for you, it might be really easy. But Baby D doesn't really laugh. She does an excited coo and smiles really big (which melts my freaking heart every single time), but no laugh-out-louds. If she could text or chat online, she would never be able to say "LOL," but might be able to say "COL (coo out loud, for those not in the know)," and still only sometimes. Don't get me wrong, she talks ALL of the time, but laughing? Nope. We've tried everything. Things that, if they were caught on camera, could be used to blackmail me because I look like such a moron.<br /><br />Still, no laughs. And that's ok, I can be patient. I'm not one of those moms that has to compete with other moms (so what Baby D isn't rolling over? I'm not concerned at all about that), but COME ON, LAUGH ALREADY! I just want it for my own selfish reasons, because I know it's going to kill me with joy every time she does it.<br /><br />Today is a beautiful Fall day - probably the last nice day of the year. We're hanging out in the living room with the shades open & even a window is open as well. The sun is shining in, the wind is blowing through, and Baby D is shaking the rattle on her play gym and talking to the whale hanging above her. It's such a perfect day that I suppose I can do without a laugh and just appreciate that beautiful voice! And so I will.Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-27003999715398027532010-11-13T07:08:00.000-08:002010-11-13T07:14:27.699-08:00Mr. D and I are going on our first date since baby was born today!<br /><br />We were going to make it dinner, but decided we'd rather just go do lunch and a movie or something. Although there really aren't any movies out that we'd like to see, so who knows what we'll do. I do know there will be a steak involved. A bloody steak, since I couldn't have that when Baby D was still incubating.<br /><br />I am very excited for date night. I explained to Baby D that moms and dads sometimes need to leave babies with a sitter (in this case, Grandma) so they can go have time alone and stay in love. I realize she probably has no idea what I'm saying, but it makes me feel less guilty for going out and having a good time without her, haha.<br /><br />Baby D is getting smarter and bigger and more beautiful every day. She is able to reach for things and grab them. She smiles. She's ALMOST laughing. She tries to stick everything in her mouth. I love the face she makes when she sticks something in her mouth that apparently tastes bad. I can't wait until it's time to introduce solids and we get to give her new foods and see the faces she makes when she likes them and hates them! Right now, it's just momma's milk, though, and she still always looks like she's an addict who finally got their fix every time she eats it. And I love that :)<br /><br />I thought I'd be able to type out a long post, since she was working away in her play gym, but she had different plans and is "yelling" at me, so nevermind!Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-82306245090780020572010-11-07T06:54:00.000-08:002010-11-07T07:38:46.090-08:00Three of my students are pregnant.<br /><br />I teach 8th grade.<br /><br />I just wish more school districts would stop teaching abstinence only education and admit that, regardless if you approve or not, teens are going to have sex. Teach them how to protect themselves if they make that choice! I would love for them to let me teach sex ed. I wish 14 year olds weren't choosing to be sexually active, but if they're going to be, give them the knowledge they need and show them that, yes, even 14 year olds can get pregnant.<br /><br />Anyway, it makes me super sad to think about how their lives are forever changed at such a young age. I LOVE Baby D more than everything, but having a baby is HARD. It's so many other positive things, but being easy isn't something parenthood is. And to have to have a baby and still have over 4 years of school left to complete before you graduate high school? I can't even imagine.<br /><br />Anyway, off of that tangent.<br /><br />Baby D is doing great. She has hit a majorly cranky stage, though. We think maybe she's already teething, even though she's only a little over 3 months old. She's irritable, drools a lot, and chews on her hands (which used to mean she was hungry, but refuses to eat when she's chewing on her hands). She was screaming in such a painful manor the other night that we finally broke down a gave her a little baby tylenol, which stopped the crying almost right away, so we think she was definitely in pain. I'm going to miss my girl's gummy smile!!<br /><br />Having a growing baby is definitely bittersweet. I look forward to all of the things she'll be able to do within the next year - rolling over, crawling, walking, talking - but I will desperately miss the infant stage. Even with the unstoppable crying at times. She is just so perfect and beautiful. I will miss her rubberband wrists and her giant elbow dimple, her 14 chins, her perfectly soft baby skin. But at the same time I am looking forward to when she asks me if she can help me cook, or even when she comes padding into our room in the morning to wake us up! (Remind me of that when it annoys me)<br /><br />Right now she's snoozing away on her newborn lounger (which she has almost outgrown), the morning light coming in and lighting up her little porcelain face. I love her!!Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-54507335246960733722010-10-16T08:04:00.000-07:002010-10-16T08:11:27.685-07:00When pregnant or raising a newborn, a lot of people try to warn you about things. Things such as "You will never sleep again!" or "Just wait until they're 2!" Etc. etc.<br /><br />However, people don't warn you about a lot of things I wish I had known.<br /><br />Recently I discovered a new issue no one has ever warned us about - disgusting neck smell.<br /><br />Lately, Baby D's neck has taken on the stench of mummified poop. It's embarrassing. We noticed it the other night after day care, and were mortified that the people looking after Baby D have probably been talking about how gross she smells. She had just been bathed, too! And we specifically got into her neck folds. It wasn't good enough, though, because this disgusting neck smell returns almost immediately.<br /><br />We washed her neck out really well after noticing the stench. Then Mr. D's mom came to babysit the other night and gave Baby D another bath because she said her neck smelled really bad. I couldn't believe it.<br /><br />After some googling, I discovered we are most definitely not alone in this problem and have found some ways to help ease the stench. It's believed to be caused by milk and saliva dribbling down into the deep crevices of a baby's non-existent neck. We're trying to wipe her neck down after every feeding now, and I'm putting baby powder in her cavernous neck folds in an attempt to keep them dry and smell-free. I think it's working so far.<br /><br />We could start giving her more baths, but she already has really really dry skin so I don't want to resort to bathing her every day. But I'm still embarrassed that her day care teachers probably noticed the smell. I'm here to tell you all that if your baby has this horrible stench emanating from their neck, they are not alone.Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-34526426714464787342010-10-09T10:54:00.000-07:002010-10-09T11:12:25.532-07:00Wow, I am really horrible at updating this blog, aren't I?<br /><br />But that's a good thing. I am so busy with life that I don't have time! This coming from an Internet addict.<br /><br />Baby D keeps us so busy. She is getting bigger and cuter and smarter every day. It truly is amazing. She is smiling now, and doing what WE refer to as "laughing," although technically it's more of a happy coo. She'll smile super big and make a noise when she's doing it. That counts as laughing, right?<br /><br />Naturally she can do no wrong in our eyes. She is as perfect as a peach. Even earlier today, when she was so tired but refusing to sleep, instead choosing to scream and scream and SCREAM! I just held her and rocked her and told her there was nothing I'd rather be doing than holding her while she screamed. It's an honor to hold her, even when my eardrums start to bleed - haha!<br /><br />As hard as it is to have her in day care, I really think she enjoys it and it's helped her to get on more of a schedule. I can't wait to get off work at the end of the day and pick her up. I even get a smile sometimes when she sees me! What a big girl.<br /><br />That's all for now, the peach just woke up and wants a late lunch!Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-39919900981107124592010-09-03T16:35:00.001-07:002010-09-03T16:48:32.987-07:00On Tuesday, I go back to work.<br /><br />I have no idea how six weeks passed so quickly!! It's insane. I want to badly to stay home with Baby D, but it's just not possible right now. It makes me sick to think about other people taking care of her. Thinking about how they don't know what makes her stop crying. Thinking about her being confused, wondering where mommy and daddy are and why they've left her! Ugh, I'm going to cry just thinking about it. Again. I've cried a lot about it.<br /><br />She has a hard time taking a bottle, because I've been breast feeding her this entire time. She won't even take a pacifier, hasn't since we left the hospital. She hates plastic in her mouth! So anytime we try to give her a bottle, she makes an awful face and spits it out, even though it's filled with breast milk. She wants it from the source! I know she'll have a hard time taking it at day care. Everyone has said "Oh, if she's hungry, she'll eat!" Then why doesn't she eat now? No matter how hungry she is she won't take the bottle, she'll just scream and cry until her ol' pal the boob comes along. So what makes it different just because she'll be in day care? Nothing. So she'll scream and cry and be hungry and wonder why mom has abandoned her and left her starving. This is what goes through my mind!<br /><br />It's absolutely heart breaking, in fact I just had to stop and cry about it.<br /><br />I wish we were like France and got a year off for maternity leave instead of just 6 weeks. Actually they told me I go back on Tuesday which is only 5 weeks 6 days, but whatever.<br /><br />I actually went to work today to make copies and never got around to doing it because I took the baby with me and everyone wanted to see her :) I loved showing her off. I wish she could just come to work with me every day! It will be nice to get out of the house and have adult interaction, but it's hard leaving your baby. I never knew it until I had her.<br /><br />My students seem nice, but that doesn't mean they will be. I hope they stay that way, and don't revolt when I change the way the sub has been doing things, which is completely different from the way I do things. We'll see...Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-46739383203975933772010-08-26T09:33:00.001-07:002010-08-26T09:44:06.521-07:00Wow, it's been over a month since I've updated this blog.<br /><br />Well, it's for a good reason. 3 days after my last post - July 28 to be specific - Baby D was born!<br /><br />It's a... GIRL! We are absolutely thrilled. Mr. D & I were both convinced it was a boy. We were happy with that, although we really didn't care either way - we just wanted the baby to arrive!!<br /><br />On the evening of the 27th, I thought my water had broken, so we went to the hospital. They told me my water had NOT broken, monitored me just to make sure, and then sent me home. Boo. I went to sleep around 11:30 that night, fully prepared to wake up and go to a training for work at 8 in the morning.<br /><br />Around 1, I started waking up with cramps, but thought they were caused by my exam so I kept going back to sleep. At 2, the cramps were SO intense, and I realized they were coming and going, as opposed to being constant. "Hm," I thought, "Maybe these are contractions..." so I whipped out my handy dandy iPhone application which times contractions. Woah! If these were contractions, they were over a minute long and 3-6 minutes apart!<br /><br />They tell you to go to the hospital if you are having contractions a minute long and 5 minutes apart. I still wasn't convinced this was "it," after all, I had just been to the hospital and I was fine.<br /><br />So I tried to sleep through them. It became clear this was not going to happen. Mr. D asked if I was ok, because by this point I was writhing around and moaning. I told him I might be having contractions, so he got up. I went into the shower to try to put some hot water on my back. I'd been told that if it was Braxton Hicks contractions (the fake kind), a hot shower would make them go away. They just got more intense, though. So I got out and told Mr. D it was time to go back to the hospital!<br /><br />At some point after this I was on all fours trying to relieve the pain as I put some stuff back into the hospital bag and got dressed. It hurt SO badly. We left the house and I called the on-call doctor again, who was clearly sleeping as it was 3:30 by this point and she sounded out of it. She tried to convince me that I was not really in labor, that a lot of first time mothers mistake Braxton hicks for the real thing, blah blah blah. She asked if I was already on the way, and when I said yes, she sighed and told me to go ahead and come in. So, if I hadn't been in the car, she would've suggested I stay at home.<br /><br />Mr. D was listening to my pain-noises and asked if I had just had another contraction. When I told him yes he told me it was only 2 minutes from the last! Yikes! He was driving like a madman to get me to the hospital. I felt so much pain and pressure I really thought I might deliver in the car - but still was thinking maybe this wasn't the real thing, since my doctor didn't think it was.<br /><br />We pull up to the ER and I get out, they wheel me upstairs and check, and sure enough, I was 7 centimeters dilated (10 is when you deliver). Things got chaotic. At one point I was told it was too late for an epidural, which drove me to the brink of insanity, but they were able to get one started. It slowed things down, but at 9 a.m. on the 28th, Baby D arrived.<br /><br />She had some health issues so spent 5 days in the NICU, but we've been home for 3 weeks now. She is 4 weeks, 1 day old. She's beautiful and perfect, and Mr. D and I are absolutely in love.Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-34843114996598695052010-07-25T22:07:00.000-07:002010-07-25T22:25:55.522-07:00Wow, it's been awhile.<br /><br />Not much new to report!<br /><br />I'm just that interesting :)<br /><br />Still no baby.<br /><br />I turned 26 on Thursday! I had the best birthday ever! Each year is better than the last. We had some men out last week staining our basement concrete. The carpet down there was horrendous, and it had some water damage and was starting to smell. Great, huh? So Mr. D ripped it up and we hired someone to come stain the concrete. We had a friend whose family friend did this to her concrete, and it looked AMAZING. Ours? Not so much. But I'll get to that.<br /><br />They were still working on my birthday. This meant Mr. D and I could not leave the house until they did! Boo. However, Mr. D woke up early before they came, and went and got me some DONUTS!! I freaking love donut store donuts, but we never get them. We enjoy sleeping in too much, and by the time we wake up, the stores are all sold out. We walk in and discover half a donut hole and a stale cinnamon roll. Heck, even getting there before 8 on a weekday, Mr. D said they didn't have a lot left!<br /><br />We still gorged on some delicious pastries. I could've eaten a million, but I only had two. Mr. D gave me my gift. He got me an iPad!! I still can't believe it. He always gives the best gifts, and then I majorly fail when I give him things. I love the iPad, and can't recommend it enough if you've been thinking about buying one. Mr. D knows I am a major Internet addict, and thought it would be handy to have something small and light that I can entertain myself with while I'm holding Baby D.<br /><br />Then the concrete guys had some trouble with the staining process. This meant they had to leave early and come back the next day, which was very annoying because it screwed up my Friday plans. But it did mean that Mr. D and I could celebrate my birthday the right way! We drove to this area we used to live in to eat at our old favorite Chinese place. Then we went to the movies. The movie we wanted to see was only available at a "cinema suite" which meant tickets were twice as expensive, but as the overly excited teenage employee told us, "You get food vouchers!!!!" Well, I had just eaten crab wontons, edamame, lots of chicken, and hoards of rice. No thank you. We ended up seeing Despicable Me as a last resort and I loved it! Such a fun movie.<br /><br />Then we came home and I played on my iPad and haven't put it away since.<br /><br />As for the concrete situation. As I said, my friend had this process done and it looked so fabulous that Mr. D and I couldn't stop dreaming of it for the past year. The man who did her floor was a family friend of her husband, and when I looked him up on the Internet, discovered his company only did concrete countertops. I assumed he just did their floor as a favor, so didn't bother to call and ask him if he'd do our floor. I should have.<br /><br />The process was supposed to take 3 days and start on Monday. Sunday night, I got an e-mail from the company saying they were running behind and asking if they could start on Tuesday. This upset me because I knew they would now be here all day on my birthday Thursday.<br /><br />The guy arrives on Tuesday with some college-aged kid and leaves the kid here. The kid starts grinding down our existing concrete and fills the ENTIRE HOUSE with a thick cloud of concrete dust. My God. And I'm pregnant, so I wasn't feeling too enthused about the idea of breathing in this stuff. I locked myself upstairs in our room with a scarf around my face.<br /><br />Mr. D ended up going to the basement doorway and nailing a sheet up. It helped a lot, but dust was still abound.<br /><br />The kid does not talk to us the entire time he's here - and I mean all 3 days. We never knew what he was doing. He came and went as he pleased. We never knew if he was coming back for the day. The next day, the guy who I'd been in contact with explained that our concrete was unexpectedly soft and that's why there was so much dust. They continued working, slinging more dust.<br /><br />Then the 3rd day, they began staining. Apparently our soft concrete sucked up the stain and they would need to do two coats. One on Thursday, and the next on Friday. I was supposed to go into work on Friday and prepare my classroom for the school year before I go into labor. I was unable to do this now. Ugh.<br /><br />Meanwhile, the stain looked awful. I did NOT like the color. It didn't look like the one we'd picked out, or at all like I'd expected. I told myself that after they stained it again and polished it, it would look much better, and more like my friend's basement.<br /><br />They came on Friday and finished up, and I really am not too fond of it. The color is too dark and ruddy, and it's not really glossy at ALL. My friend's looks like marble. The pictures on this company's website looks like marble.<br /><br />Ours looks like an industrial loft floor but we live in the suburbs and needless to say it doesn't go with the house layout or decor. I am SO disappointed. Mostly because I'd built up this floor in my mind to be a masterpiece, and we spent so much money having this done. I should have called the guy who did my friend's floor, even if his website doesn't advertise it.<br /><br />Now we're out all of this money and I feel like we've lowered the value of our house even though it was supposed to raise it.<br /><br />Oh well, you live, you learn.<br /><br />That's all that is new with me. Baby D is still baking away, but I keep telling him or her to feel free to come out ANY TIME.Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-12650323997942107592010-07-13T09:02:00.000-07:002010-07-13T09:06:00.178-07:00It's been awhile!<br /><br />Not much to report, though.<br /><br />I had my baby shower on Sunday, it went so well! We were so lucky to get so many gifts and really appreciate everyone coming and helping us out. Now if only I could get motivated to organize it all!! For now it's scattered across my living room. Oops.<br /><br />I started getting STRETCH MARKS. I was naively thinking I might actually avoid them, it being so late in my pregnancy and all. But no, on Sunday as I got out of the shower and looked in the mirror, I saw one. By the end of the day, there were several. I am devastated. I know it's a small price to pay for this baby, and Mr. D says he thinks I am beautiful no matter what, but it still makes me feel so unattractive. Knowing I can never wear a bikini again kills me. I wanted to be one of those women who come through pregnancy and bounce back and have a beautiful smooth body. Not going to happen.<br /><br />I'm 37 weeks pregnant today - FULL TERM! So I'm encouraging Baby D to come out whenever he/she is ready. Like, RIGHT NOW.<br />Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-83036466310968909452010-07-02T07:49:00.001-07:002010-07-02T07:57:59.859-07:00Massage and HormonesYesterday I had an appointment for a prenatal massage at my chiropractor's office. My appointment card said 1, and I got there around 12:55. I walked up to the doors, was about to go in, when I realized the sign said "CLOSED." Um, what? I looked at the hours and it said they were closed from 12-2! I pulled out my appointment card and confirmed that I did in fact have a 1 o'clock appointment.<br /><br />I decided I would wait in my car until 1 just to make sure. Shortly after 1, a woman comes out of the office. I decided to go in while it was still unlocked (I had seen her struggle to get out and finally unlock it). I go in and NO ONE is around. The door had made a loud "ding dong!" noise, so I knew if someone was around they were aware I was in there. I waited for a few minutes and no one came out, so I started to get paranoid that I wasn't supposed to be in there and went back to my car. I got out my phone and called to leave a nasty message, when I notice a woman inside the building approach the door and look outside. As it turns out, it was my massage therapist. I was about to really have a bitch fest on their answering machine, so I'm glad I didn't have to.<br /><br />The massage was nice, but I was a little irritated that the clock said 1:55 when she was finished, and considering she'd started late I felt like my time was ripped off - I was supposed to get an hour. Oh well. It felt great, but I was really annoyed that she kept saying "Are you ok?" like I was doing something wrong or looked in pain or something. It made me self conscious.<br /><br />I got home and eventually started making dinner. Asian lettuce wraps! Yum. Anyway, I'm chopping the chicken and realize that even though Mr. D e-mailed me the other day asking what groceries I needed (he was going to the store), I had failed to put an onion on the list. For some reason (um, perhaps the baby I'm incubating), this was COMPLETELY NOT OK! I got myself all worked up, mad at myself for failing to put an onion on my list (when I've made this dish a billion times, I know it needs an onion).<br /><br />At this point, I had two options. I could finish chopping the chicken, put it in the fridge, and go get an onion from the store. OR, I could have a complete breakdown.<br /><br />You can guess what happened.<br /><br />I wandered downstairs, where Mr. D was working hard pulling up the basement carpet (that's another story for another day). I stood on the bottom step and waited for him to acknowledge me. He said, "What's wrong?" and BAM, I started hysterically crying. "I forgot to tell you we needed an onionnnnnn!" and it was downhill from there. I cried and cried, and explained to him that I was so mad at myself and didn't want to go to the store to get an onion because I was too hungry. I asked if we could order a pizza instead (even though now that I'm in a rational mindset I realize that would take way longer than just going to get a freaking onion).<br /><br />Mr. D offered to get an onion, I refused to let him go. Eventually he convinced me through my wailing and tears that we didn't even need an onion. I agreed, and he accompanied me upstairs, hugged me for awhile, put an ice pack around my neck because I was hot, gave me a Coke for some caffeine since he thought maybe I was tired, and offered to find me a snack (I'd already had a granola bar while I contemplated my two reaction choices so I declined another snack). I felt way better. Mr. D was able to finish ripping up carpet, and I calmly finished dinner and it was delicious, even without the onion.<br /><br />Hormones are so strange.Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-10341678756319553472010-06-30T06:03:00.000-07:002010-06-30T06:13:41.287-07:00ChiropractorI had enough of the constant rib pain that baby is inflicting upon me, so I decided to try out a chiropractor. I've never been to one before, but my primary physician once adjusted my back because my eye wouldn't stop twitching, and it immediately stopped. I'm hoping chiropractic care helps relieve some pain.<br /><br />I went to my insurance company's website, got a list of potentials, and did a little research. I found a place nearby that has some special knowledge about prenatal chiropractor care, and made an appointment there.<br /><br />It went well. I told them about my rib pain, some back pain I'm having, and this sharp pain I get in my lower back when I walk. However, a couple things made me kind of nervous. They hooked me up to these electrodes, it's called electric modality. It sends electricity pulses through your muscles. I would think they wouldn't do anything to harm me, but it still really freaks me out to have electricity pulsing through my back muscles. Could this stop baby's heart or something?! I figured that they know what they're talking about, so I just let it happen. It did feel really nice. When I got home I researched it, and some websites say things like "We recommend avoiding electric modality during pregnancy." and others say "We would recommend a treatment such as electric modality for pregnant women." So, totally mixed opinions. I have another appointment today, so I suppose I will bring up my concerns.<br /><br />They also adjusted my neck and back. It felt nice, but so far no real relief or anything. I did discover that my insurance completely covers all aspects of chiropractic care, including MASSAGES! Naturally, this means I have a massage appointment tomorrow. I can't freaking wait.<br /><br />Today is Mr. D's last day of summer school, and I am so excited to get to spend the next few weeks with him. I'm sure he'll be fed up with me by the time summer vacation is over, but I for one can't wait, haha.<br /><br />As of yesterday, I am 35 weeks pregnant. Woah! Next week, I will be "full term." Obviously still hoping to make it to 40 weeks, though. It's just weird to think about.<br /><br />In other news, I wish we had a Dunkin' Donuts nearby, because I really want some of their chocolate donut holes.Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-47744087359862400382010-06-25T07:24:00.001-07:002010-06-25T07:30:18.883-07:00Doctor's AppointmentI had my 34 week appointment yesterday! It went well. The standard two-minute in-and-out visit with my OB.<br /><br />I'm measuring "perfectly," (I still don't really know how they tell that just by measuring my stomach on the outside, but that's ok) and had good blood pressure. My pee looks great (when you're pregnant, the nurses and doctors love to analyze your pee).<br /><br />However, you know it's a bad sign when your doctor walks in the room, does a double take when she sees you, and then says "I don't say this very often, but I'm actually concerned you will run out of room in there." She was joking, but seriously - I think I'm running out of room. This baby feels like it's trying to break my ribs. They're in a constant state of pain. I was actually writhing around the bed moaning last night while trying to watch TV. And not because I was having fun with Mr. D. The pain was just that intense.<br /><br />When you're 4'11" and your husband is 6'5", your baby doesn't fit so well.<br /><br />Anyway, I finally ballsed up and made an appointment with a chiropractor on Monday. My doctor just keeps telling me that the pain will go away when the baby is born, so I've been popping Tylenol sometimes and hoping it goes away. I'm tired of doing that, so hopefully the chiropractor can help me. I've been saying for two weeks I should make an appointment, but rationalizing putting it off, thinking "I only have 6 weeks left, I can stick it out!" I'm done with that attitude.<br /><br />I hope the chiropractor helps, but if not, I will just keep in mind that this baby is SO worth any pain I am experiencing. It could break every single rib in my body and I would still love it so freaking much.Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-73936117200315031872010-06-24T05:17:00.000-07:002010-06-24T05:49:15.944-07:00My, how time flies...Here I am at 34 weeks, 2 days, and I cannot believe it. It seems like just yesterday Mr. D and I discovered that we were having a baby, and I was a mere 4 weeks along. That was THIRTY WEEKS AGO. How did time go by so fast? I stayed pretty busy these past 30 weeks so I guess that has something to do with it.<br /><br />When I discovered I was pregnant, I was a teacher's aide in a special ed classroom for emotionally disturbed children. I had been doing that for a couple of years and it was stressful but I enjoyed it. I love the teacher I worked with, and even though my students were so nuts at times (and violent at others), they were pretty hilarious sometimes. But I had the opportunity to take a better paying job (being a teacher's aide pays absolute crap) - a real teaching position of my own!<br /><br />I'm certified to teach middle & high school English/Communication Arts/Language Arts (whatever you want to call it). I'd just never had the chance to interview after I got certified. I knew it was risky taking a new job while I was pregnant, but seeing as we did have a baby on the way, I couldn't pass up the moolah! I had money signs in my eyes, so I was constantly searching for open jobs.<br /><br />A position opened up in my district and I applied, interviewed, and was hired. It pays much more than my paltry teacher's aide paycheck, and I didn't have a lapse in insurance because it was still in my district. Perfect!<br /><br />However, I quickly discovered that regular education middle schoolers are more nuts and sometimes just as violent as special education emotionally disturbed children. I cried and cried and wondered why I had switched jobs. I thought of ways I could get out of my contract, and wondered if maybe I could convince my doctor to put me on medical leave because of stress.<br /><br />But gradually it got better. I told myself I had to take it one day at a time, and before I knew it, the school year was over, and now I am 34 weeks (and 2 days) pregnant. That was fast. So even though I hated coming into a middle school halfway through the year (they'd had a sub the ENTIRE SCHOOL YEAR, and it was second semester!), I think that might have helped the days go by faster. I needed them to go by fast or I would've gone insane.<br /><br />In baby news, I had a dream last night that we had the baby. It was a boy (who oddly enough kind of looked way more ethnic than either Mr. D or I. Cute, but not as shockingly pale white as we are), and he could laugh as soon as he was born. It makes me wonder if it really is a boy in there! Before I knew I was pregnant, I dreamed I had a baby girl, so for awhile I was convinced that was a sign it was a girl. Now, I feel myself leaning more towards boy.<br /><br />In other news, Mr. D and I have been looking for a shelf for this one tiny wall in our nursery. We had always intended on buying the dresser that matched our changing table and crib, but once we got our furniture put together in there we realized, holy cow, that's one small room. A dresser in there was NOT happening. But Mr. D's mom had already bought us this super cute lamp, basket, and bucket that matched our bedding and I HAD TO have them in the room. I set off on a search for a shelf. Shelves are expensive, man.<br /><br />I eventually found one that looked cute for 90 bucks or so on Amazon. I've been toying with the idea of ordering it, but really didn't want to pay 90 bucks. Last night, Mr. D and I took a small outing to Starbucks, Pier 1, and Target. Starbucks for a delicious black tea lemonade, Pier 1 just because we love it, and Target because I needed some cheap plastic storage bins for the hall closet. While perusing the storage options, I saw this cute cube shelf that you put canvas baskets into. It was way too big, though. I said to Mr. D, "Gah, those would be PERFECT for that space in the baby's room if only it were two cubes wide instead of three. And espresso." Then I glanced over, and guess what?<br /><br />They made a shelf that was two cubes wide and three tall. And espresso.<br /><br />Best of all, it was on sale for 35 dollars! The optional canvas storage cubes were on sale for 5.99! After a quick search on my iPhone, I saw it had pretty good reviews, and knew I had to have it. How perfect. All because I had the nesting urge to organize the hall closet.<br /><br />Now the nursery is one step closer to being done. All we need to do now is hang up some floating shelves we've got.<br /><br />We'd better hurry, though, because this pregnancy is flying by.Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-11085372101487650582010-06-21T17:46:00.000-07:002010-06-21T17:52:35.070-07:00UntitledQuick review: Dairy Queen's Strawberry Golden Oreo Blizzard is AMAZING. You all need to go get it ASAP before it's gone for good. My mouth is watering right now thinking about it.<br /><br />In other news, Mr. D and I decided to switch our cable provider. I don't want to post any company names, but let's just say we're part of a UniVERSE now.<br /><br />So, the cable guy was scheduled to come today. My ribs have been in so much pain that I can hardly stand to wear a bra anymore. Sorry, guys. This led me to make the executive decision that I would not put on a bra for the cable guy. I was worried this would lead to some awkward moments, but if he noticed his eyes didn't linger too long. Luckily he didn't appear to be interested in pregnant women :)<br /><br />Now we have new cable and Internet. So far, so good. In fact, our Internet is even FASTER. Which is amazing for an addict like myself.<br /><br />Mr. D's grandmother was sweet and brought me lunch since I was stuck here with the cable guy. It was an extremely unhealthy lunch, complete with delicious sweet tea. I feel slightly guilty, but I've really stepped up the healthy eating lately so I don't feel <span style="font-style: italic;">too</span> bad.<br /><br />Mr. D and I went out of town this weekend for a friend's graduation party. It was a great time and it was fun to get out of town, even if it was just for a day. Although it left me completely paranoid that I was going to go into early labor at any time. I'd already made the decision that we would drive back home if I did. It's only a 3-4 hour drive, and I was banking on a long labor. I didn't have to make an emergency drive home, though. Baby thankfully stayed put and is still baking away. 6 weeks left starting tomorrow. Yikes!Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-55897683813059006382010-06-17T06:51:00.000-07:002010-06-17T06:59:03.803-07:00Pediatrician Follow-UpI was so wrapped up in our daycare drama yesterday that I forgot to talk about how my pre-natal pediatrician consult went.<br /><br />I was pleased to see they had two waiting rooms - one for the sick kids, and one for the kids just there for their check-ups. Luckily they let me sit in the check up room while I waited for my consult. They started to send me in the sick room, but changed their minds. Whew. I don't want to be exposed to all those sick children while I'm pregnant!<br /><br />I go into the waiting room and it was totally empty, but then all of these adorable newborn babies started coming in for their first appointments! They were all so adorable! I wanted to take them all home (I even e-mailed Mr. D from my phone about them! But he told me we'd have our own soon enough, so I refrained from trying to take them).<br /><br />One woman had just had her baby on Saturday, and it was only Tuesday. She told me she wished she was still pregnant. I am sure I will feel like that too, but right now my body gets in so much pain sometimes that I'm ready for Baby D to arrive!... mentally, but not actually prepared at all. We still need to finish the nursery. We have one pack of diapers (and a few one-pack free samples), one container of wipes, and maybe two days worth of clothes. I probably shouldn't have scheduled my baby shower so close to the end of my pregnancy! It's not until July 11, and I'm due August 3. Oops.<br /><br />Anyway, I digress. I was at the doctor. A nurse came to get me and she was so friendly, and seemed really genuine. She took me into a room and spewed out tons of information. I didn't feel any pressure to ask any questions, which was what I was worried about - I didn't know what to ask! She was extremely informative about their practice, and totally sold me on it. You don't just see ONE doctor, you rotate through all of the doctors at the office - I think there are around 10. If you decide you prefer one doctor, of course you can choose to only see them. They're open 7 days a week. They have a room full of nurses whose job it is to only answer phone calls from parents who have questions! I like that. When I am feeling crazy and paranoid I always have advice a phone call away.<br /><br />They gave me some free magazines, bottles, and formula if I choose to supplement. I love free stuff!<br /><br />It was a great experience, I feel very comfortable there. Now we've gotten our daycare AND our pediatrician. I'm making progress :)Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2859348467803750490.post-27830765130444730602010-06-16T15:17:00.000-07:002010-06-16T15:39:24.994-07:00Child careAs I mentioned in my last entry, as soon as I found out I was pregnant we got on the day care waiting list at my husband's school. He works at a high school that provides a day care for the student's children at no cost, and offers teachers a REALLY reasonable rate to enroll their kids. We were so excited that Mr. D would get to take the baby to work with him every day, go visit him/her on lunch, and be right there if any problems arose.<br /><br />Then a couple of weeks ago the school board, for no reason whatsoever, voted to disallow teacher's children from going there. It's especially weird because our district is facing some major budget issues, so you'd think they'd want the hundreds of dollars coming in from teacher's children. I understand that the day care is primarily for the children of the high school students, but teachers are only allowed to enroll their kids there if room is available. No students are turned away because a teacher's kid is enrolled.<br /><br />Anyway, this left us with quite the dilemma. We now needed a day care for Baby D!! Luckily, a woman Mr. D works with told him about this place her grandchild goes. It's right in between where I work and Mr. D's school. The cost is not much more than we would've been paying at the other place! Perfect.<br /><br />Or so we thought.<br /><br />I should've realized something wasn't quite right when I called SEVERAL times to inquire as to whether they had any openings. No one would return my call if I left a message. If I spoke to someone, the director was never in and she wouldn't return my call. I finally spoke to the director, and she said she'd just returned from vacation and "didn't know" if there were any openings as a result of just getting back from said vacation. You'd think this was something they could practically memorize, or had ready for calls like mine. I taught preschool for 3 years, I know how day cares are run. However, I took pity because I know sometimes returning from vacation can throw you for a loop. So she said she'd call me back after a "few days."<br /><br />She did not.<br /><br />I called her again on Monday. She told me right away there were openings when we needed. I asked if I could stop by for a tour or if I needed to make an appointment. She said either way was fine. I decided I'd rather pop in unannounced to get an idea of what it was really like.<br /><br />Mr. D got home from teaching summer school today and we headed over there. We had to be buzzed in, which we liked. But I am still not sure who in the hell buzzed us in, because there was no front desk or anyone to be found. That's not a good sign. It's also not a good sign that we freely wandered around the place for 5 or so minutes and no one asked who we were. Especially because this place is NOT in a good part of town. We could've been killers or crackheads!<br /><br />Anyway, we finally saw a sign that said "NURSERY" so we poked our head in there. Two women were sitting in there on their cell phones, not engaged with the babies at all. The babies were all awake, too. Cell phones and sitting are actually totally ok with me if it's naptime, but it clearly was not nap time for any babies.<br /><br />One asks if she can help us, and I explain that I'd spoken to the director who told me I could pop by any time. She gets flustered and says she doesn't know where the director is and to hold on. Mr. D and I awkwardly hang out and 5 minutes later she appears in the hallway next to us, yelling in her cell phone about the missing director. <span style="font-style: italic;">"This girl is here, said Director told her to come by for a tour, and Director's car ain't even here! I don't know where she is!"</span> First of all, I didn't have an appointment, and she was acting like I did, so I sort of felt stupid. Secondly, she is now in a separate hallway and NOT in the classroom, so I know that the one remaining woman is now very much out of state-mandated ratio. That made me uncomfortable.<br /><br />Meanwhile, the woman still in the classroom is yelling at a baby who is in a cage-like thing (there was no lid on it, but still). She said <span style="font-style: italic;">"You ready to stop biting?!"</span> This kid is like 8 months old. He can't answer you, probably has minimal understanding of the English language still, and he is 8 months old so OF COURSE HE'S GOING TO BITE. Kids bite!<br /><br />Mr. D later told me he saw a newborn in a "hamster cage." I'm not sure exactly what that means but it sounds sad.<br /><br />The lady on the cell phone is still flipping out to someone, I'm pointlessly trying to address her and say that I don't have an appointment, I was just told I could drop by any time. She ignores me and keeps talking on the phone. When she hangs up, she explains that Director is nowhere to be found and if I had questions I could ask her. Mr. D quickly said that we'd call back for an appointment and we left.<br /><br />Yikes.<br /><br />Not to mention the place was run down and dirty anyway. I'm not sure about Mr. D's coworker, but she must have low standards if she thinks this place is great.<br /><br />We left and headed to another day care which I'd seen online advertising an open door, drop by anytime policy. Mr. D actually went to this place when he was in preschool! We stop by and it's miraculously better than the other place. The director immediately took us into the infant room and gave us a tour. If you can take parents into your day care spontaneously, you obviously know your shit is together and you're doing things right. I like that. The teachers that worked there were all engaged with a baby or toddler, depending on what class they were in. The babies seemed so happy! It was clean and organized. The teachers looked like they enjoyed their job.<br /><br />Best of all, they offer a 4 day a week rate, which is fantastic, because Grandma D has said she wants to watch the baby one day a week. No other day care that I'd researched offered any rate other than 5 days a week. Now we'll be saving some money!<br /><br />It all worked out in the end, but was really stressful. I'm glad I stopped by the bad place so I could see for my own eyes how disorganized and unprofessional it was. I'm also glad Mr. D came because I might have been murdered in that part of town.<br /><br />We've found our baby's day care. Whew.Paulahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16771376283433764004noreply@blogger.com0