Busy me

I haven't posted in a while, but unfortunately, daily life tends to intervene in my perfect plans for myself.

My baby is now a year old, which is unbelievable for me. It just seems like yesterday that she was a tiny, 7 pound pooping, drooling machine, and now she's walking (practically running!) and interacting just like a little person! Crazy...

In knitting news, Bridget's sweater is coming along, but I've come to that place in a bigger project where other, new projects look oh so appealing. So, and I'm deeply ashamed to admit it, but I've cast on my first pair of socks--dark, beautiful purple ones. I assuage some of my guilt by telling myself that it's okay because they're for Bridget, but I don't think I'm fooling myself. Oh well. The sweater will be finished, though. I promise that.

Countdown to Deathly Hallows...

The final Harry Potter is here and will be mine at midnight tonight. Very excited. Plus, this time I won't have the ending spoiled for me, because until I finish reading it (which I estimate will take several days owing to the Care and Feeding of Bridget factor) I will be avoiding like the plague all forms of media remotely resembling news of any kind.

We're going to the Midnight Magic release party at Barnes and Noble tonight, and I know Mama would just shudder at the thought of that many people crammed into that small a space. I find it all very exciting, though. Hopefully Kent and Bridget will make it to midnight, but if not, I told Kent he gets to go home and have Bridget duty. I was hoping to have the Gryffindor scarf done before tonight, but I should know better than to set myself deadlines of any kind with a demanding 10-month old. I plan on taking it and knitting on it a little while I'm there, though.

Speaking of knitting....

Remember Bridget's sweater that I was working on? Well, I hadn't gotten very far on it, but then I realized that my stitch gauge was off by 2 stitches, and if I had kept going on it it would have been very not-fitty. So, I ripped it all back and started over. Hopefully I'll have it finished in time for Bridget to actually wear it this year.

That's my exciting life for the moment. Enjoy.

Settling in

Mama asked for more updates, and her wish is my command.

We're getting settled in to the house, slowly but surely. The living room is done, hubby has finished painting the hall ceiling and master bedroom, and he's now ripping up the carpet in the hall and master bedroom. Things are coming along, and I'll be very glad when we're done with the big renovating and can get back to just LIVING.

Until we start redecorating, that is...

*sigh*

So much to do...

I feel guilty even taking time to post, but it'll just be a short break...

We have so much to do still before we can move in to the house, but I think I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. For the first time, I don't think it's the train.

We have 2 rooms ready to paint, and then all that will be left to do in them is pull up the carpet.

Things at the apartment aren't moving quite as fast, mainly because until we can get rid of some of the boxes I've already packed, there's nowhere to put any more. Just waiting on hubby to get home to do that.

All in all, I think we can get it done. Especially since Mama took B. for as long as we need her to so we can get all this crud done. (Thanks, Mama!) I don't know how long I'll be able to deal without her, though. I've already started missing her, and it's only been about 24 hours. I've definitely gotten more done in that time than in the last week, though.

This moving thing was just rotten timing. Of course, when is it ever convenient to move?

Closing!

We close on the house Tuesday! It's so exciting! Of course, we have to go in and scrub everything down before we move in, but our lease on our apartment isn't up till the end of June, so we have time. It's perfect.

We bought our first major purchase the other day--a stove. It's funny how as you get older your priorities change and you get excited about buying appliances and laminate flooring.

Bridget's sweater/cardigan and recent developments

I've started knitting a sweater for Bridget. It's my first foray into knitting clothing, so I figured I'd start small. ;)

So far so good. My gauge seems to be pretty on, so we'll see how it looks in the end. I'll update as I progress. If I stop talking about it completely, please take that as a hint to never mention it again, as I will most likely be trying to forget it ever existed.

Bridget is really starting to get fun now. She's happy more often than not now, and she is so animated and funny. She's starting to "talk" a lot more now, and is making "dddd" sounds. Any day now I'll be hearing "dada". So exciting.

Time is short, and Daddy is walking around with Bridget outside Starbucks, where we have "escaped" for the evening, so this is the end. Not much in the way of earth-shattering news, but such is my existence. 's alright. I'm used to it. :)

What's with this weather?!?

Are we coming to the Apocalypse, or what?

The high tomorrow is only 30-someodd degrees! What the heck is going on here? It's April, for crying out loud! Where are we--Chicago?

Bridget is going to freeze in her baptism dress. Good thing Jeannie bought her that sweater.
Actually, she's a little heat generator, so I'll be the one turning into a popsicle. Hopefully the heat from the candles will keep us warm. ;)

Yeah, I'm starting to think differently about this global warming thing now...how 'bout global cooling?

Maybe we'll have a mild summer...

This is why!

(Note from the author: For the DCF Ladies, this is copied from my "Doctors---GGGRRR" post in FF.)


I now remember with full clarity why I went with a midwife instead of an OB.

I had an appt. with my old OB/GYN for a second opinion about my cervicitis. He was my GYN back 4 years or so ago, but I haven't seen him since Kent and I were dating.

He checks me and says that everything looks fine, he thinks it is "probable columnar eversion" where the normal cells of the inner lining of the cervix "evert" into the outer os. No biggie. Nothing to worry about, and I'm good to go.

So....

The problem comes after he finishes up and is writing his notes. He starts asking me about using a midwife and why I chose to do that. I thought, "Oh, great. Here it comes. Lord, give me patience and guard my lips against saying what I really want to say about the medical profession in general". (Bear in mind, I was already extremely irritated, having sat in the waiting room till 5 after 12 when my appt. was at 10:30 and being the VERY LAST ONE sitting in there even though I was NOT the last to arrive.)

So I explain about wanting an intervention-free, hospital-free delivery where I could move around as I pleased and have more control over things. He's looking at me with barely-contained disdain, and starts in on how he goes to Guatemala every year and how so many of those women have babies that die in childbirth and blah blah blah, and that "that's the risk you take when you choose to go about it that way".

What?!?

I guess he just thinks I picked some women off the street, hauled them to my house and told them to catch the baby when she came out. I don't know.

So after he said that I looked him square in the face and said, "Well, I didn't go into this blindly. I did lots of research and got their statistics for hospital transfers, which is very low, and I knew what I was doing."

He still looked at me like I was a loon, but I really could not have cared less at that point. Whatever.

When I left I was so frustrated and infuriated that I could hardly see straight. I called my mother and vented (loudly, now that I think about it. I must call her and apologize) for about 20 minutes.

And people wonder why I used (and will continue to use, as long as God permits me low-risk pregnancies) a midwife.

So close!

Easter is almost here!

We had a meeting tonight to go over the specifics of the Vigil and what's going to happen, etc. Not too much, though, because apparently Father B. doesn't want us to know everything involved. Just the basics...where we'll be sitting, the order, stuff like that.

I really hope Bridget makes it through the entire Mass. I really don't want to put her in the nursery (and I don't know how she'd react to that, anyway), but the only other option would be for someone to take her out, and then they'd miss the rest. Hopefully she'll be good. We plan on having bottles and pacifiers at the ready.

I'm getting so excited and anxious. This is so huge, and I can hardly believe it's time already. I'm also glad the families seem supportive. Of course, most of them are probably talking behind our backs about how insane we are, but I'm not worried.


Oop, hear Bridget crying. Guess that does it for now.

Life as a mama

It's tough. There are moments, sometimes even days, when I think to myself, "What was I THINKING?!?!?!" She won't stop crying, she won't sleep, on and on and on......

But...

Then she'll look at me and grin. Or I'll leave the room for a minute and when I come back she'll glance at me, and it's as if she's never been happier. She'll kick her legs and squeal, and when I pick her up she'll lean back so she can see me and she touches my face and smiles.

And all the sleeplessness, irritation and loneliness is gone in that one second.

I understand now why my mother can't really remember whether or not we cried a lot or not. All the bad seems to be completely overshadowed.