Friday, August 31, 2007

Do you miss me?

Katherine does. And I can see her house right now. But she insists I update, so she'll have something to read.

Scarlett is having a wonderful time with her cousins, who are the Larry, Moe and Curly of the Westport set. Apparently, she loves slapstick.

Kevin joins us tonight and wedding fun begins!

[Are you all dying to hear what happened at 10022-Shoe? Sorry. Kevin has access to this blog, and there are some things that best remain a mystery. I will say that is begins with a P, and rhymes with "Prada".]

Pictures being saved up. Baby still very cute.

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Just like the prom dress.

Off to visit the city mouse cousins tomorrow.

We'll be back on Labor day. Hopefully with all organs intact.

I'll leave you with a brief story and a link. Our friends Rick and Kevin Finn seem to be under the impression that running 26 odd miles on a Sunday morning is not only a good idea, but also fun! And exciting! The rest of us nod and smile and pretend we understand.

However, right now they, along with our friend Todd Koch, are running to raise money for a memorial scholarship to St. Xavier High School, where they attended, and where Kevin worked after college. The scholarship was the wish of a graduate named Michael Cifuentes who was killed in the line of duty while stationed in Iraq, on August 5, 2005.

After having met his father, Kevin learned of Michael's plan that if he didn't return home, some of his life insurance policy should be used to set up a scholarship for low income students to attend St. X. Kevin had worked with Michael when he was a student volunteer, and the Finn boys decided to get involved. Which they do, quite a bit. Ask my Kevin about the first time he met them. Involved. Poor guy was terrified. He has since realized they are harmless enough, and they throw a damn fine "Oktoberfest in June" party.

I hope you all don't mind my pimping some friends. I can vouch for their big hearts and sore feet.

Kevin is keeping a training journal on the St. X website. All information can be found there. The first of the two marathons is the Air Force Marathon in Dayton, Ohio, on September 15.

http://www.stxavier.org/s/106/stxavier.aspx?sid=106&gid=1&pgid=1101

Wish them luck! But of course, they don't need luck. They have mad running skillz.

Monday, August 27, 2007

Note the complete lack of "who" in the title of this post.




Why yes, Tom Duvall. They are baby legwarmers. You are jealous you didn't invent them. But I bet you could make them better.

I wish the ones I wore in the 7th grade had flames. How much cooler would I have been?

[Answer: Much cooler. Simply because it would actually be impossible to get less cool. You don't get lower than 'perm'.]

Saturday, August 25, 2007

Who doesn't love a good splash?




As my sister put it, I'm sort of 'sucking the life out of Kevin' this weekend. Lifting, carrying and bathing has all fallen on daddy. Luckily, the camera weighs significantly less than 10 pounds. Tomorrow when he escapes my clutches...I mean, goes back to work, I'll hopefully be back up to scratch.

Wednesday the baby and I head up east. A few days in Connecticut with my sister's gang, then joined by my husband to attend his cousin Michelle's wedding in White Plains. I am very excited, for two reasons. The first is that my sister is keeping her niece overnight for the wedding. The second is that on Thursday we are going into the city so I can see One Double O Double 2 -Shoe. The shoe department with it's very own zip code. 10,000 square feet of unaffordable bliss. Prada and Choo and Louboutin, oh my. Hello, lovers.

Who needs a dining room, really?



So, once the climbing gym/wine rack are gone, and the bar knick knacks have been put away, it will make quite a nice little play area, no? And let me tell you, the only thing that kept my childhood basement from being all it could be was the lack of toile drapes. She's so lucky.

There's always a silver lining.


Maybe my appendix should burst more often.

Thursday, August 23, 2007

I have pictures. I just don't think you really want to see them.

I'm back. An ounce and a half lighter.

48 hours ago I was feeding my daughter lunch and complaining that I didn't feel very well. My stomach hurt. I was gassy. I was icky. Waaaah. Poor me.

6pm Tuesday: Kevin brings me home Gas-X and Beano. Tell me he is owed big time for having to go to the store and buy Gas-X and Beano.

6:30pm: First call to Dr. Lippert. He suggests milk of magnesia. We all still think it's intestinal.

8ish: Low grade fever and severe pain is now localized in lower right quadrant. Second call to Dr. Lippert. Off to the ER. Can you see where this is going?

9ish: In ER. Trying to get pain meds without sounding like a junkie.

10ish: Next person to push on my stomach and ask "Does that hurt?" is going to lose an arm.

10:10pm : Angel in scrubs finally gets an IV started and gives me morphine. Am planning on leaving Kevin for her.

11:45pm CAT Scan. Cheaper than a Dog Scan. Suspicions confirmed. Angry little appendix.

12:45am: Off to surgery. Incredibly nervous, and partially stoned on morphine, I start cracking inappropriate jokes. No one in the operating room laughs. At least not while I'm awake.

2am : In recovery. You'll have to ask Kevin about this, the next thing I know it's...

6:05am: In hospital room. In incredible pain and informed that I can't have anything else until...

7:05am: Aaaaaaahhhhhhh.....

1pm: Dr. comes and checks me out and releases me. Tells me not to pick up anything over 10 pounds for 3 weeks. I laugh. Sure. I will try to not pick up my non-mobile 18 pound ten month old when she cries and holds up her arms. Right.

Released, sans appendix, yesterday at 2pm. Feeling like George Foreman. After Holyfield, before the grill.

As for the pictures, they did indeed take some snaps for me with the laproscopic camera. I have quite a nice looking lower intestinal track, if I do say so myself. I'm thinking of having copies made, and handing them out with Scarlett's one year pictures.

I would love to have had the actual appendix, but unfortunately, that's off to pathology. Those pathologists get all the fun stuff.

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Libby Frank: Postponing haircuts one day at a time.




A solution. And one that matches, natch.

We are in the middle of reclaiming our family room, at the expense of our dining room. When Kevin and I began house hunting, we chose to stay in the city. We knew this was at the expense of things like square footage and a functional garage, but we feel at home in an urban setting. We love our neighborhood. Close to Ault Park, shops and restaurants, and chock full of young families like ourselves, it's a great fit.

But man, is it small.

I made a unilateral decision that the dining room must go. Our basement, while good for Play Station and laundry, really isn't baby friendly. Too many shelves with heavy objects, and lots of exposed equipment. I'm not adverse to children who use their imagination to create toys out of nothing, but sailing little boats in the toilet under the stairs might raise a few eyebrows. Not mine, of course, because I'm all for baby-led rearing. Catch a few communicable diseases, and you'll learn.

So, the dining room. We do use it. But it has valuable floor space. Floor space that my almost crawler can use. And it's an easy space to childproof. Square. No cords. Plugs and vents covered. Go baby, go!

If you are invited to dinner anytime soon, know that the table will be shoved back into position minutes before you arrive, and that you might have to step over an exersaucer and shimmy past the pack-n-play to get to your seat.

And the wine rack can be used as a climbing gym! When one lives in a small space, one needs objects to do double duty. Common sense, really.







Monday, August 20, 2007

I can't even paint by numbers.

Wow. I mean, that's freehand, people.

T-Rex has teeth! And an eye!


Portrait of the artist and her creation.

By the way, we decided that working with this stuff is like making sculptures with rice crispy treats. Same texture.

Friday, August 17, 2007

We are in a bit of a rut.

I have no new pictures. We've been doing a lot of the same things lately, and short of a snapshot of Scarlett's diaper rash, they'd be pretty repetitive.

Instead, I will update on other milestones less visible in pictures.

1] She still weighs less than the dog. I don't know why I'm obsessed with her gaining on Alice, but I am. Alice still has her by about half a pound. My picky little eater will probably be stuck backwards in her car seat long past that 1 year mark.

2] Still not crawling. We put her on her stomach and say "Now crawl!" I don't know what she's waiting for. She loves to lunge forward, but once she's down there, she flails like a baby seal. I have to be on the lookout for men with clubs.

3] 6 teeth. 6. The last 4 were pretty hairy. As far as I'm concerned, she can stick with 6 until she's old enough for Valium, because that got old fast.

4] She claps and waves. And the doctor said she's ahead verbally. Which is weird, because no one in this house is very verbal.

5] Two words: Atti Tude. When she's done with a bottle, she shoves it away. When she's done with a toy, she throws it as far as she can. This morning she hit me over the head with a remote control. Apparently, she'd rather watch Good Morning, America. The Today Show is for suckers.

So there you have it. She's 10 months old tomorrow, which means we are closing in on her first birthday, and the traditional baby covered in cake pictures. Which is way better than photos of diaper rash.

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Well, of course you do.


Halfway through oatmeal this morning I got a text from my sister. It simply said "I miss the baby."

I actually feel the same way. Any day now I expect her to turn to me and tell me what her major is.

I'm glad we take so many pictures.

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

The camera is in my bag in the kitchen.

Which explains why there are no pictures of what is going on right now. I had to write a VERY IMPORTANT EMAIL [so there is no squawking about why my kid is in the exersaucer when I'm on the computer - you know, instead of having one on one Spanish lessons, or teaching her how to knit, or just gazing lovingly into her eyes.] but anyway, I put her in her saucer, filled her little snack cup with Gerber puffs, and sat down at the computer.

Some of the little cereal puffs have fallen through the seat and are in the bottom of the saucer. The reason I know this is because I'm watching my dog circle the toy. Slowly. Eyes glued to Scarlett's feet.

Every time the little pug head goes in for the kill, Scarlett starts bouncing. And Alice jumps back. And circles some more. It's like poking a great white in the eye.

Circle. Approach. Bounce. Retreat.

It's killing me. Of course, it's killing Alice more. She can see the puff. She wants the puff. And she cannot. get. the. puff.

What's going to happen is as inevitable as the sunrise. Any second, Scarlett is going to bounce onto the puff, and it's going to disintegrate. Puff dust.

Forgive me, but I sort of can't wait.

Monday, August 13, 2007

Dooce's peeps.


Today Show teaser while I was making Scarlett's breakfast:

"The Osmonds. Celebrating 50 years of great music!"

Response from disgruntled attorney behind me.

"How many years have they been making crappy music?"

The time may have come for Scarlett's first haircut. It was fun torturing my mom, but this morning she found her own hair and was tugging on it. While I prefer this to her yanking on MY hair, it is probably time to trim the Flock of Seagulls lock. She really does rock the look, but maybe she'd actually start crawling if she could see better.

I'm sad to think of Scarlett looking like a big girl, but blinding her is probably not the answer. I had hoped to hold off until her 1st birthday, but by then she may look less like an 80's rocker, and more like Cousin It.

Sunday, August 12, 2007

One more reason Kevin thinks I'm nuts.






"I can't believe I bothered to seal the card."
"I can't believe you bought her a card."

So, not everyone throws a small, tasteful dinner party for their dog's 2nd birthday?

Apologies to everyone who ate the refried bolognese. Next time I'll try to make it less gray.

Cleaning off the camera.






A few more of my favorite pictures from the past week.

Friday, August 10, 2007

It has been brought to my attention...


I have neglected a certain 9 year old. A very important 9 year old, who on the phone tonight pointed out that there was a blog entry about his sister, and his brother. But none about himself.


Well, I think we have to remedy that, don't we?

I will remind Jake that of all my birthday presents, he remains my favorite. Jake was born on my 27th birthday. He's old enough now, and good enough at math that I will never be able to lie about my age. It is a bummer when someone with information like that roams the earth.

Thursday, August 9, 2007

A Puppet Show: In Three Parts.




Once upon a time, there was a cow. Apparently, the cow walked back and forth to the barn a lot. And ate ice cream, and HEYAREYOUWATCHINGBECAUSETHEPUPPETSHOWHASSTARTEDDIDYOUHEARAUNTLIBBY THEPUPPETSHOW and the cow walked back to the house. The End.

That last picture shows what happens when a little cow from the country makes it big a little too young. Particularly when the cow doesn't have good role models. It's a shame, really.

I think 4 might be my favorite age. Hands down, the best story of the week comes courtesy of the current 4 year old [the same one responsible for that riveting theatrical portrayal of a troubled young cow on the brink of stardom and ice cream] and a certain part of his anatomy, and how he decided that it is so spectacular that it needed a name. He said, "It's so cute, I think I have to name it 'Maltesers'." [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maltesers]

I have suggested that Kevin adopt "Cadbury Creme Eggs".

I'm not kidding. I'm keeping Zoe.

My life would be a peice of cake if I had a 6 year old for my daughter, and a 4 year old for my dog. It must be why people have more than one kid. That Duggar mom must have loads of time on her hands.

The rest of the clan is still in town, so I'm holding off on photos until I can do a good job of editing my photo-journalistic endeavors. And perhaps get some pictures that are not at a restaurant. We eat a lot.

Tuesday, August 7, 2007

Scarlett squared.


I think I'll take a 6 year old to dinner every night. Despite it being an hour past her bedtime, Scarlett was fascinated with her cousin Zoe all through dinner. I got to chew. Heaven.

Scarlett [The Nanny] got to meet Scarlett [The Baby] today. We really have to come up with something other than "Big Scarlett" and "Little Scarlett" - because I don't care how enlightened you are, no one wants to be referred to as "Big" anything.

Sunday, August 5, 2007

Now he's Southside. Waaaaaay Southside. Ya'll.


Westsider Classic. Cornering the market on God since 1996.

Truer words have never been [not] spoken.


She's also got one that says "If you think MY left foot is cute, you should see my Mom's!"

Well, duh.



Kevin came into the kitchen to find his daughter in a tote bag. The first thing he said was "I assume you have already taken pictures."

At least she's properly labeled.

Friday, August 3, 2007

Early Friday Morning.




She is going through the "gimme" stage now. I understand it lasts until the mid-late 30's.

It's working! It's working!

And all I had to do was completely dump the memory, and the computer now travels at the speed of backward, but at least they speak to each other.

Speaking of slow, my father and I are now collecting jokes about snails and turtles. Marty told me this one a couple weeks ago. I'm still laughing.

What did the snail say, while riding on the back of the turtle?

"Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!"

If you have any snail/turtle jokes [clean, please. It's a family show.], feel free to share.

Of couse, having typed this, I now find myself wondering if there are any dirty snail/turtle jokes. Huh.

Thursday, August 2, 2007

I guess it's good to cover them while barbequeing.

So, it's national Breast Feeding week. If you are reading my journal, then there's a good chance you didn't know that. Because you are more interested in things like where the heck Lindsay Lohan's alcohol anklet was that night, and how on earth you'll get out to Steve and Barry's this afternoon to meet SJP, who is promoting her new low cost clothing line "Bitten", and giving autographs, even though your precious pumpkin is supposed to be sleeping...

But regardless. It is.

And New York Mayor Michael Bloomburg [who apparently can lactate, or he would feel pretty silly weighing in on this] has announced that New York public hospitals will no longer be supplying free samples of formula in the area's famed Swag Bags. Instead, new moms will be sent home with literature, and a tiny tee that reads "I Eat At Mom's."

I'm going to completely avoid any and all debate on this hot topic. Because everyone I know, including those like myself who bottle fed, agrees that Breast is Best, but that sometimes it doesn't work out that way, and you can't beat yourself up about it. Blah blah blah.

But I am, however, intrigued by that tiny t-shirt. It is, how should I put this to not sound immature, ICKY. Gross. Oedipal even. Blech. I'm all for funny onsies - for crying out loud, my kid looks like a communist half the time - but seriously. It's like every bad 7th grade boobie joke.

So I sort of found myself googling "I eat at mom's", and was directed to cafe press and their large selection of breastfeeding advocacy gear. OK, I get the tee's, and the buttons, and I can even sort of justify the baseball cap. But there was one item that sort of confused me.

http://www.cafepress.com/bfingadvocacy.3433615

Hmm. Most of the women I know who breastfeed usually wear a shirt while standing at the grill, but I guess if you have a really hungry demanding baby, it might be best to be mostly topless.

Earlier today I was standing at the Target Electronics counter playing around with the Olympus [anyone? anyone?] something letter number something, and a woman came up to me and told me that Scarlett was simply beautiful, and how lucky I was to get to see her every day. Which made me want to either give the woman 300 dollars, or SPEND IT ON A CAMERA THAT MY COMPUTER WILL RECOGNIZE.

Anyone know why my computer stopped reading the photos on my camera? I can only drag them one at a time while using it as "removable drive E". I'm ready to rip my hair out. It takes 4 times as long.

Wednesday, August 1, 2007

AHA!!!



Look! Her fourth toe curls in, just like mine! And although it's hard to see from this photo, her second toe is slightly longer than her big toe!

So the next person who looks at her, looks at me, and then ask who she looks like, I will proudly rip her left robeez and say "Me!"

[Camera is sort of working again. I'm not giving up. Losers give up. In unrelated news, I can't afford a new digital camera right now.]

Good thing the camera is still broken.

We got back from California Sunday night, then Monday night I was felled by the Gastro-Crud. 24 hours of misery. The first time my daughter has shared a disease. I'm so proud.

I'm on the mend, but holding my breath to see if Kevin is next.

So it's probably a good thing that the camera is not working properly. I'm still trying to fix it. Which consists of me looking at it occasionally saying "What do you WANT from me ALREADY??"

I can't imagine why that's not working.