UPDATE to previous post, where I hoped I would have a good weekend

Ha. Yeah. Right. Anyway, Jane had a great doctor's appointment, except for the fact that she has an ear infection. Thankfully we happened to have an appointment today, and they caught it really early, so hopefully the antibiotics will kick in soon. She's all full of the drugs today, considering she also had some vaccinations (yeah, we are the horrible parents who get their kid vaccinated) and infant's Tylenol. THEN, I realized I had a huge 'ol patch of hives on my legs, so I went to my doctor, just to have someone else check it out. She was not very impressed - her thought was that it may be allergies or stress. She wants me to go for blood tests for allergies, but who has time? Because I had to rush back so Greg could go off to the walk-in clinic, because he thinks he may have a sinus infection.

Is it OK if I bathe in Purell? Is that harmful in some way?

Oh, the stats on Jane are these: she weighs 14 lbs and she's 25 inches long. She's a growing little monkey!

UPDATE to my update: Greg does have a sinus infection. Get your Hazmat suit if you're coming to my house!

Purell, take me away

Well, this has been a particularly disgusting week at my house. Greg is really sick, Jane has her first cold, I broke out in a mysterious case of hives, and Junior had to take a trip to the emergency vet. I know - the first thing you are thinking is "Is Junior OK?" - and he is. He had a bad run-in with some butternut squash and french fries. Yeah, yeah, we'll never learn. No more people food for Junior! At least for a while.

Since I've returned to work, I've had a stomach bug and two colds, and either I passed one of those colds on to Jane, or she picked up another one at daycare (which is my suspicion). I have been super-careful about not coughing or getting germs on her, which has resulted in me washing my hands so much I think they are about to fall off. Nevertheless, she is very boogery and whiney this week, which of course resulted in no sleep, which of course coincided with a very busy work week. In addition, Greg is really sick, all hacky and wheezy and nasty and whatnot, so that's no good, especially because I can't really pass Jane off to him, because I don't want her to catch what he has. Oh yeah - and I got a weird case of hives on my legs and arms this week, and I still don't know what is causing it. They come and go, but I want them to just GO!

Being a major germaphobe, this has definitely not been my best week. I find myself stretched very far (I almost said "stretched to my limit" - but I don't want the fates testing my limit anymore this week!) and I am praying that I don't get sick this weekend, that Greg and Jane feel better, that nothing happens to the dogs, that I manage to sleep more than four hours a night, that I actually have fun, and that I get a bunch of chores done. Oh yeah, and world peace. I want that too.

four monthiversary

thanks

The other day, I said to Greg, "Why don't we stop complaining all the time and start acting like this has been the best year of our lives - which it has been?" He agreed. It's easy to get caught up in the everyday nonsense of our lives - and, frankly, no one loves complaining more than me - but we would be remiss if we didn't step back and understand how lucky we are. So here are some things I'm thankful for this Thanksgiving:

1) Well, duh. I mean, I'm not even going to get into it. OK, I will, a little - Jane has profoundly changed my life in every good way. When I am up at 4 a.m. feeding her or being covered in her poop (why does she kick at her diaper when I'm changing it? WHY?), I remind myself that she truly is the best baby in the world. I think we are biologically programmed to think that about our children - why else would we subject ourselves to all of the indignities of parenthood, of which there are many more than I ever could have imagined? - but, seriously, Jane is the best baby in the world.

2) More "duh" - my family and friends. Let's start it off with Greg, because I'll tell ya, having a baby upends a marriage like nobody's business. It's hard stuff, going from two to three. All of the sudden, you have no social life to speak of, and an endless amount of chores (dropping off the baby, picking up the baby, going to the doctor's office, buying diapers, formula, clothes, medicine, blah blah blah to infinity), not to mention the fact that someone is going to have to incessently entertain the baby during the witching hour(s) in the evening. I have gone hoarse singing my trademark songs "Monkeys Don't Wear Sweaters" and "There's a Man on the Moon and He Likes to Eat the Junebugs." Greg and I, through many very stupid inside jokes, have managed to keep a sense of humor in our house during a very stressful time.

And, hello, the rest of my family and all of my friends have been so incredibly nice and generous this year, not only materialistically with many nice treats for Jane, but more importantly, with well wishes and prayers and good vibes for her and my health during the numerous pregnancy debacles. I have said this before and I'll say it again - millions of people have babies every day, and it doesn't feel like a big deal until it's happening to you. And the people in my life absolutely encouraged the idea that bringing Jane into the world was very special indeed.

3) Let's lighten it up around here - I am thankful for the (and this one's for you, Lisa) internets. No, seriously! I think I would have gone completely mad this summer if I didn't have my computer to keep me updated on the news (entertainment and otherwise) and my email to keep in contact with those out there in the real world. It helped alleviate a lot of the isolation of 13 weeks home with a newborn whose only communication skills are through wailing.

4) The roof over my head, the food on my plate, the things I take for granted every day but shouldn't. Maybe it sounds trite, but I'm going to try to remember to be grateful for that stuff more. And thanks to all of you out in blogland who read this (yeah, all five of you). Happy Thanksgiving!

whatever.

So, like, I don't plan on being one of those moms who enter their daughters into weird beauty contents, all JonBenet Ramsey-style, or anything, but in a weak moment this summer, I did enter Jane in the Gap's annual casting call, in the baby girl category. Because, HELLO, obviously she should win. It was that really cute pic I posted here earlier in her purple hooded sweatshirt. FROM THE GAP. Well, in her first of many, many disappointments in her life, she did not make the cut to be a finalist. Sure, those kids are cute and whatever, but come on.

Their loss.

Dear Alan, are you there? It's me, Amanda

I was just driving in my car and realizing that I haven't heard from my friend and top e-mail buddy Alan in a couple of days. So here is a public shout-out, wondering if he's alive, or if one of his potions revolted on him. Also, Alan, if you are alive, I want you to know that I also think water is precious, but I want to hear some of your other thoughts now.

**picture is courtesy of Alan's blog. I am 3o lbs lighter than that now, and with one less baby inside me.

rollin' part deux (or: seriously, I'm rollin'!)

So, remember how a couple of hours ago I was wondering if Jane's roll counted, since it was on a soft surface? Well, she did it for real this time, on her activity mat on the floor. She's on the move, people! Hide your valuables!

rollin' rollin' rollin', keep those babies rollin'

We interrupt our regularly scheduled complaining to announce that Jane rolled over this morning for the first time! It was on our bed, so I'm not sure if it counts, since it's a cushy surface. But still! Yeah!

This picture is titled, "How in the hells did I get here?"

weekend update

Hey, remember when I used to post things about my weekends? Because back then, it seemed like my weekends were different from, you know, the rest of the week. But then maternity leave came, and I never knew which end was up, never mind whether it was Friday or Wednesday or Monday. It was all the same - one long run-on day with no end in sight. Well, it's still kind of the same thing now, except during my days, I have to go to work - so I have more of an idea of when the weekend actually is.

These days, the weekend symbolizes great relief. It is so great not to have to do the dance I have to do during the work week, in terms of getting everyone ready and out the door, and at the same time, it's great not to have to do the end of the day dance as well. The days seem (and are) far less rushed and usually more enjoyable.

That said, I put a lot more stock in my weekends. I really need them to be peaceful, and fun, and relaxing, or there is no way I can even slightly recharge for the next week. But so far, since I've been back to work, my weekends have not really been like that at all. Here's hoping this weekend is.

Tomorrow night, I'm working house at SCT's 50th anniversary show. I have never been more out-of-the-loop on an SCT show in over 10 years. In fact, as the curtain goes up right about now for tonight's performance, all I can think about is going to bed. So Greg and Jane will be on their own tomorrow evening - my first weekend night out without the baby ever.

Sunday we are going to my friend Cathy's house to see her new baby. I'm sure Jane will seem ginormous in comparison.

Those are my official plans for the weekend. Who knows what else will crop up. Hope you all are doing something much more exciting!

(P.S. No news on the poop front. After her command pooping performance in the doctor's office, she hasn't gone since. Whatever. Just goes to show you that she'll never listen to her mommy.)

TMI: Poop Edition

If you don't want to hear about Jane's poop issues, stop reading now.

OK, if you're still reading, here's the scoop on the poop: I noticed this week that Jane has been pooping more than normal. Usually she's a once a day kinda gal; this week, she's been going three or four times a day. One time on Tuesday it was bright green. And then last night, I noticed a tiny amount of blood in her diaper with the poop. As you can imagine, I freaked. We called the doctor's office, and the doctor on call said that it was probably one of two things - a little tear in her bum, or a milk protein allergy. Some babies are allergic to cow's milk, and blood in the poop is one way they show it. Jane was exclusively breastfed for 7 1/2 weeks. We introduced formula at that point, and until daycare, she had one or two bottles of formula a day. Now that she's in daycare, she's having three or four bottles a day. I'm not sure what that means or how that affects anything, but suffice to say, her diet has been changed. Anyway, the doctor said to watch her overnight and make an appointment in the morning. Last night she had one more little poop that had some blood in it, and then this morning, her poop seemed clear (not literally clear - that would be even more alarming!).

So we went to the doctor's office this morning, used diapers in tow as examples of what was going on. The doctor checked Jane out, and said she didn't see anything, but that didn't mean there wasn't a microscopic tear somewhere, especially since she had been pooping so much lately. Jane conveniently pooped at the doctor's office, so they took a sample and checked it for blood. In fact, there were tiny traces of blood (we couldn't see it). So now, over the weekend, I have to swab these little cards she gave me with samples of Jane's poop, to see if the blood gradually goes away. Fun.

The doctor is not alarmed. She thinks everything is most likely OK. If there is blood continuing, we will probably have to do some allergy testing. This would mean I would have to go on a very restrictive diet, most likely eliminating all dairy, and possibly wheat and beef. This is not my year of fun diets, obviously (see: gestational diabetes). Her formula would have to be changed to a much more expensive kind. But I'm jumping ahead of myself. If anything else weird goes on - black poop, very fussy behavior, seeming in pain - we have to call them immediately. The doctor said they see Jane's situation all the time. So why don't I feel better?

Tell me to calm down. Tell me this isn't a big deal. Tell me to listen to the doctor, who isn't really concerned. Tell me I will somehow survive all of the sicknesses and bumps and bruises and messes Jane gets herself into. Being a hypochondriac, I never thought I could worry about someone's health more than my own. But then I had Jane.

what's old is new again

So they recently changed to the format of 104.1 FM from rap/r&b back to alt-rock in the form of the new fm 104one. I have to say, I'm really psyched about this "new" radio station, which, right now, is very much like WMRQ Radio 104 was back when it first went on the air in the mid-1990s. I will never forget the day I first heard Radio 104 - I was in college, and my friends were buzzing about this new radio station that played bands like REM, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and the like, and had no DJs, and few commercials, and it was just....awesome. I remember getting in my friend Rich's car after our Ecology lab and listening. And loving. And for many years after that, I was a huge supporter of that radio station. I loved it when Dee Snyder had his morning show. I loved all of the Radio 104 Big Days Off and other day-long multi-band concerts. Hell, I still have the t-shirt I got from one of their promotional events at Foxwoods, way back at the beginning.

I was sad when it went away, obviously. And now I'm happy, so happy that it's back. Sure, it's not officially Radio 104 anymore, but right now, there are no DJs, limited commercials, and the first song I heard when I turned it on was by Nirvana. A lot of the music makes me nostalgic for a time when hanging out with my friends, drinking and going to bars, and being up on the latest and greatest in music were some of my top priorities. When homework was my biggest problem. When the idea of a husband, a kid, a house, two dogs and life in suburbia seemed like a million light years away.

I guess now I have the best of both worlds (plus, no homework!).

getting there

So I've been rolling with my new schedule for just over a week now. It's hard, I must say. The part about missing Jane aside (and really, let's set it aside for now. This is my life now, and let's all just assume that I miss Jane all the time, and I really really do, but if I think about it too much, I'll just be depressed, and that's not how I want to live all the time), it's hard logistically to get out the door every day. I have to make sure I have all of her stuff packed for daycare, my stuff packed for work, my pump (don't even get me started) and of course get myself and Jane ready for the day, usually on not-even-close-enough sleep. Then I drop her off, go to work, have to think and work like an adult, rush to daycare, pick her up, come home, clean her bottles, pack her stuff for the next day, feed her a couple of times, listen to her cry for a couple of hours (lo, how I can't wait for the witching hours phase of her life to be over) and then put her to bed. After that, I collapse in bed myself, exhausted, until I have to get up and feed her in the middle of the night.

I can't wait to see what the time change does to her schedule. Fun!

I really, honestly, truly don't know how people do this with more than one kid. I think it takes a level of organization I'm not capable of.

In other news, my friend Cathy had her baby yesterday, and thus concludes the end of the 2007 pregnancies, among my friends. She had a girl, and I can't wait to see her, although I don't think I'm going to be able to until next week.

Happy weekend, everyone!