There's a Post a Brewin'

I'm curious what other people's writing styles are.  When I write anything (a blog post, a story, a letter, an anything), I mentally write it out in my head several times before I ever commit it to paper (or cyberspace).  Then, I air-type it (much as I air-type dialogue in a movie if I'm bored with it).  Then, I actually sit down and write it out or type it.

This is actually the first post I've written in a long time where I sat down and just started writing.  Hence, it's pretty dull.  Sorry about that.  But I really am curious about other people...do you just sit down and start writing or do you think the wording out beforehand?

It's Contaminated

I have a bad habit of leaving half-finished glasses of water around the kitchen and bathroom.  Bill has a bad habit of putting said glasses into the dishwasher even if I'm actively drinking them ("Clearly this half-finished glass of water is fresh and that half-finished glass of water is from last night!").

I'm thankful that I have a husband who cares about our house and helps clean up on a regular basis.

Bill will be thankful when the hostile aquaphobic aliens invade our house, and we have ammo.

I'm Not Kidding

Took the Pea out for a walk yesterday afternoon (it was blazing hot, so we just walked around the block rather than the planned jaunt down to the lake to see the ducks...I believe my actual thought process was, "Must get out of house with bored, cranky baby.  Ack.  Must must get back to air conditioning.)

So anyhoo, popped open the stroller, strapped the Pea inside, walked around to the front of the house where the stroller closed up on my baby.  Closed. Up. On. My. Baby.

Thankfully, this lazy Mama Pea was walking very slowly.  I realized immediately that the handlebars were moving forward while the wheels were not.  And the Pea thought it was hilarious.

Me, not so much.

Seriously, closed up on my baby.

Jinx Launch Max Into Space

"Movie computer shenanigans" is a frequent topic of discussion with Bill and me.  Last night, we were watching "Eagle Eye" with Shia LeBeaghfff...cough (too lazy to go to IMDB to check the spelling).  About 2/3 of the way through, I turned to Bill and said, "Well, this is just about the most ridiculous thing I've seen in a long time."  It started off with Big Brother watching.  It ended with evil movie computer shenanigans.  I hate evil movie computer shenanigans.

Sometimes, evil movie computer shenanigans can be as simple as "Would you like to fire the conveniently located missiles now?  Yes/No?"  My personal fave is the "Would you like to copy all the files from the computer onto your (2 MB) floppy disk now?  Yes/No? [gentle whirring as the status bar moves just quickly enough to allow the protagonist to make a hairbreadth escape]".  This is not to be confused with the "Would you like to delete all the files on your computer now? Yes/No?" screen shot.  My husband recently had to copy all of our files when switching computers.  If only he'd had a movie computer, it wouldn't have taken him all night.

And we still lost a bunch of songs and pictures.

I think the reason that movie computer shenanigans bug me so much is that often they are stuck into an otherwise semi-plausible movie.  Like Space Camp.  Is a perky computer obsessed with Leaf (Joaquin) Phoenix's emotional well-being really the ONLY thing that the screenwriters could come up with to get the kids into space?  Really, Hollywood?  Really?!

Complete side note:  pic of the Pea (the second picture, he was thi-i-i-s close to tears.

I Can't Believe I'm Actually Saying This...

But I kind of miss the early days of nursing the Pea.  Well, maybe not the very early days, but the pre-solids days.

I'm just terrible with food.  I feel like I've been faking it for the past however-many-years I've been feeding myself.  And then Bill.  And now the Pea.  It was nice to know those first few months that I was providing him the exact nutrition that he needed.  Now, I feel like I'm guessing.

I try to feed him lots of veggies and fruits, whole grains, yada yada yada.  But I find myself slipping into my same old "open up the fridge/cupboard and stare blankly for 5 minutes" pattern that I experience choosing foods for myself.  And there's this lowgrade, constant undercurrent of guilt (much like with  my own eating habits).  Is he eating too many Cheerios?  Am I ruining his speech development by letting him use a sippy cup (not very effectively at that) without a straw?  Should he still be eating this many purees?  Should I make more of my own baby food?

My mom has a refreshingly laissez-faire attitude.  Her opinion?  Keep a baby food grinder at the table and just put whatever I'm eating through that.  If he eats it, great.  If not, shovel some Gerber into him.

Apparently, no one ever told her that if you feed babies anything but homemade organic baby food, they'll explode into a fiery ball of nutritionally deficient pesticides.

Why I Hate Living in the Tornado Belt

Umm, yeah...I was here:

AND I just found out that there was a funnel cloud beginning to rotate above us yesterday--a full day AFTER it happened.  When I saw the picture...on the news.   I knew that there was a vicious storm raging over the oh-so-sturdy Sam's Club tin roof.  Just didn't know it was near tornadic.  To be honest, I'm really thankful that I didn't know about this until after the fact.  Because if I had known how bad it was at the time, I would have been wigging out rather than sifting through the bin of avocados, eating free sample chimichangas, and reading oversized board books to the Pea.

(Thanks, Sam's Club, for the heads up on the near tornado raging above us.  Kudos to the Wal-Mart multi-million dollar weather tracking station...sorry, I don't write sarcasm very well.)

Hey, Mambo!

The Pea has suddenly become very picky discriminating in his tastes.  I've discovered three tricks that seem to usually work for most foods:
1.) the old "chugga-chugga" choo-choo train.  Tedious and not very original but effective in a pinch.
2.) mix it with bananas.  While I consider spinach and bananas to be nasty unappetizing, the Pea loves it.  To each his own.
3.) sprinkle it generously with garlic powder.  Mambo Italiano!

Ahhh...#3.  Therein lies my problem.  The Pea's breath has become unbearable.  I was cuddling with him before bed, and he burped...I thought I was going to pass out.

Any ideas?

Favorite Awkward Family Photo of the Day

Yeah, I'm a little obsessed with Awkward Family Photos.

But this one takes the pink, frosted WHAT ON EARTH cake:

My Plant

I have an atrociously brown thumb.  As in, Bill has asked that I never attempt to grow tomatoes or keep a houseplant alive ever again.  But for purely sentimental reasons, I took a clipping from my Aunt Joy's hoya plant (which was grown from a clipping itself from my grandmother's hoya).  I put it in a glass of water by the window and, well, pretty much forgot about it for 4 months.

Lo and behold, that crazy little clipping survived and thrived.  I went out and bought some soil and a pot for it, then forgot about it for another 2 months.  Bill finally asked that I either toss it or put it in the pot.  Which I did. (put it in the pot).  That crazy little clipping has become a crazy little growing plant.

Now that I think back on it, I seem to remember my grandmother making a comment about how nothing could kill that crazy little hoya.  Apparently, even her granddaughter.

Snerf.

I am sick (like rivalling that nasty bout of mastitis when the Pea was 6 weeks old sick).  Bill is sick.  The magical nanny who was supposed to come and take care of the Pea while we lay in bed and sniffle and cough didn't arrive.  And the Pea didn't get the memo that he was to sleep in past 5:40 a.m. this morning.

Blech.

The Blahs

I've been in a blah mood the past couple of days.  Not a bad mood.  Just kind of blehhh.  I haven't felt super creative or inspired or motivated. It will pass.  Just gotta wait it out and keep reminding myself that this is the only time in my life when I'm going to be someone's favorite singer, dancer, poet, comedian (okay, actually, that one goes to Bill hands down), chef, teacher, cruise director.  All rolled up into one slightly frazzled package.

So on these days when I feel like my son eats too many cereal puffs and not enough cauliflower, I'll just keep that thought in mind.

ETA:  Sorry for all the Pea-centric posts this week.  I promise I have a life and interests outside the bambino that I will write about soon.  :)

It Starts Early

What is it with boys and technology?  The Pea is currently eschewing colorful blocks with boingy things inside, a light up ball with sing-along songs and the always-popular dog's collar in a furious attempt to reach and click the computer mouse.

(FYI:  It took me approximately 5 minutes to type the above two sentences one-handed.  The Pea is now down for a nap....ahhh)

There is going to be one thing I miss this first summer of momhood (okay, other than sleep):  movies.  Bill and I are both big movie buffs.  In years past, we would go to every summer blockbuster, sleeper hit, so-so matinee.  Everything.  Now, our movie schedule is limited to grandparent visits.  It's not even that we won't eventually see all the movies.  It's just that waiting in line at Redbox or Blockbuster isn't quite the same as munching popcorn and Coke in stadium seating.  We each have a list of a few non-negotiables this summer...must be seen in theater, preferrably in the first week of release.  Harry Potter, Star Trek (already pulled that one off), G.I. Joe (for Bill).  If I get really brave, I may attempt Up with the Pea.  Maybe.

 

First 2 of 3 teeth he's cut in the last 48 hours

The Noodle Stops Here

It's interesting to me just exactly where the Pea has decided to draw the line food-wise.

Things that I would be...hesitant to put in my mouth, he loves.  Pureed brussels sprouts?  Faboo.  Mushed up cauliflower?  He sends his compliments to the chef.  Plain yogurt straight off a spoon.  More please.

Pasta with melted ricotta cheese?  Nnnn.  Nnnnnnn.  Nnn. (You'll just have to envision the Pea with his lips pursed, shaking his head from side to side giving me the stink eye.)

Now, I'm not a huge ricotta cheese fan.  I could kind of take it or leave it.  I prefer cottage cheese in my lasagna.  But the Pea acts like it is a foul substance created by evil minions to slowly poison him.

And avocados.  He hates avocadoes.  HOW can he hate avocadoes??

At least I've discovered that if you mix bananas in, he will eat anything.

Encyclopedia Brown Cracks the Case

Fussy?  Check.
Refusing to eat?  Check.
Disturbed sleep?  Check.
Cranky wake-ups?  Check.
All-around plechiness?  Oh...check.

Bugs Meany pinching my son when I'm not looking?  No.  But there is a little razor sharp white something peeking out of his gums...