Two Poops, A Pot of Soup and Some Lost Keys Later...

....and we were out the door. Kind of a gross title, I know, but it sums up my Tuesday. We were headed to a Mom's Club meeting at 10, but had a busy morning before that!!

I swear, something about pregnancy adds this extra wrinkle to your brain that makes a mom more clumsy and forgetful. Maybe not for some, but I know other moms have mentioned the forgetful part. More clumsy for me? Is that possible? Yes. I have been known to close my own arm in the car door. (Yes, that's possible.)

Warning: Long, somewhat boring story ahead. Some may think it's petty, but it was one of those pile-it-on days.



The grin I get when I turn to look at her:)

 Well, this particular morning, I got Lainey up and like I always do, put her in her highchair, fed her and did a few chores while she played with some toys in the highchair. When we have something to do in the morning, we are on a pretty tight schedule. After I fed Lainey, I worked on a pot of soup that Jared would take for lunch for the week. This particular soup should not have been hard. It is a yellow curry shrimp soup. Toss in some curry, saute some veggies, pour in broth, put in shrimp and more veggies and simmer. Well, my newly acquired brain wrinkle prevented this from being an easy task. In the middle of chopping the first batch of veggies, I heard the oh-so-familiar sound of grunting.
Lainey may kill me in a few years for telling you this, so don't tell her I mentioned it! It is not hard to tell when she is...ahem....doing her business. She grunts like a full grown man and her face turns very red. Jared and I find it hilarious and try not to laugh too hard at the risk of giving her a complex. Anyway, I heard the distinctive sound and decided to finish chopping my veggies then change her. Well, I made her wait too long. Just in case you aren't quite familiar with the laws of physics, poop has nowhere to go in a diaper that's being sat in except out the sides. You get the picture....moving on.
Luckily the disaster was contained in her pj's, so I got her cleaned up and went to finish the soup. It was time to add the shrimp and wouldn't you know it, I bought the shrimp that made my life very difficult. I bought the ones that still had the whole shell and the veins in them. Now if you've ever deveined a shrimp, you know that it makes you gag a little just thinking about it. Lucky me, I had to do a whole pound. Got that done and needed to add canned tomatoes. First tomato I pulled out exploded on my shirt (one of my faves). How that happens, I don't know, but it did. I took off the shirt and started a load of laundry. Back to the soup and I finally get that finished.
I was very behind, so I hurridly put an outfit on Lainey and began to pack us up. It took me a good 10 minutes to find my keys. Where were they? In my purse. Really? I had already looked in my purse, but apparently not in the right spot. Ok, soup-check, keys-check, kid-check....walking out the door with Lainey on my hip and what do I hear? Yep, the grunting. Now running five minutes late, I change Lainey again and away we go. We arrive at our destination 20 minutes late, but in one piece (physically).

I know it doesn't sound so bad. Looking back, it's pretty funny. That day, I was flustered, though. It is just a small example of what a mess I have become (a bigger mess anyway).

Yesterday, I forgot to take a shower. WHO FORGETS TO SHOWER??? I do. We swam and then we went grocery shopping and came home. I usually shower after swimming. Nope. Forgot until I woke up this morning. You would think the aroma of chlorine would remind me. I have bumps, bruises and scrapes. I even pinched poor Lainey's leg in the car seat. Maybe it's not a new brain wrinkle, maybe it's a brain function inhibitor.

I think scientists or the medical field should seriously look into this pregnancy/mom condition. I believe that I would be a fine test subject. Anyone else out there need to be considered for the study???

The Schedule Monster

So, Thursday night I went out and had more than one or two beers! I had 3. Yes, people, I'm a VERY cheap date now! My party trick used to be chugging beers faster than a burly man, but now my party trick is not falling asleep before my first beer is gone.



My friend and former coworker, Emily, and me
Thursday night. Miss her!!



Back to the story...I had 3 beers. I am able to do that now because Lainey sleeps through the night and it takes about 2 hours per beer to metabolize out of the system. And, no, contrary to popular belief, I do not serve up my breastmilk 5% alcohol per volume.

I found myself telling everyone at this birthday party that it has been more than a year since I have had more than 1 or 2 beers. I had a FABULOUS time!! I had gone to the party from 5pm to 7pm and then returned about 9:15 to join the party crowd. Jared had gotten home late and I was able to go back to the party. 

Why did I leave the party? Well, I have created a schedule monster. Our night time routine is very stringent and regimented!!
6:30 - feed Lainey veggies
7:30 - bathtime
8:00 - read a story
8:15 - feed Lainey a big bottle
8:40 - Lainey is out for the night (usually until 7ish)

This schedule works for us. She sleeps through the night and knows what comes when. We (meaning us parents) become very antsy and uncomfortable if we get off of our schedule, like our child might morph into a man-eating troll if we deviate by 30 minutes. Understandably, I have also struggled with having a social life. In 2010 BB (before baby), we were very social people!! Jared and I like to go out and sit on a patio, listen to music and have some beers. We haven't done that together since 2010BB. Don't get me wrong....I am not in ANY WAY complaining about how life has changed. My life is so very blessed and I wouldn't change a thing. I would like to find a happy medium so that Jared and I can go out every now and again and enjoy "Grownupland".

I have to find a way to conquer the schedule monster. Am I calling Lainey a schedule monster? Unfortunately, I believe that I am the schedule monster!! So, I am open to ideas on how to conquer my fear of getting off schedule and leaving the house. Do you think they list babysitters under A in the yellow pages, for Anal Retentive Babysitters? That's the kind I would need.

Six Month Doctor Appointment

Well....it's official....Lainey's growing like a weed!!! We went today for her six month checkup. She weighed right at 20 pounds, which is in the 95th percentile of her age group and she measured 27 1/2 inches, which is in the 98th percentile. Are you shocked? No? The doctor asked if she will be tall, like her dad. Looks like it! They're just numbers, but they make me so proud! She's growing and thriving and amazing!! She had to get shots, which always breaks my heart. She has developed quite a set of lungs! We don't have to have shots next time, so at least we are done for a few months.

As I write this, she is log rolling and talking to the dogs.:) Jared and I decided we don't care if she log rolls and squeals for the rest of her life, as long as she stays this happy (because we sure are)!

Can you see her two new teeth? Too cute!!

Swimming Class

Lainey and I have started swimming class this week. We go twice a week for a month. I have to tell you, I have looked forward to this class before she was even here! It just sounded like such a neat and fun thing to do together.

So far, it's lived up to my expectations. Monday, the 4th, we were the only ones in class. This was very nice for many reasons! Mainly, it was nice because as Jared says, sarcastically, that I have the grace and sure-footedness of a mountain goat. It was nice to be able to go over the "moves" with the instructor right there. I'm sure Lainey appreciated that too! We sang and did kicks and strokes to "The Wheels on the Bus". We learned how to roll in the water and how to make it back to the wall. I had to dunk Lainey under water!!!

The instructor called it the dolphin swim. She said, "Ok, now, you will go bounce, bounce, dunk" and I said, "bounce, bounce, WAIT A MINUTE, WHAT!?!?". She said it was to get rid of baby's and mom's nerves. We did it and surprisingly, Lainey did great! She sputtered a little, but didn't grimace or fuss!! I think we have a real water lover on our hands!
My favorite part of the day was floating on our backs. I lean back and she leans back on me. The instructor told me that I was going to have to sing a song to calm her and make her lean back. Yeah, right. As long as Lainey has her fingers to suck on, I think that we could have been backstroking in hot oil. She was so mellow! ***Brag: The instructor said that she was the calmest baby she had seen!!

Today was just as fun and we had 3 other kiddos in our class. They were 12 months and 17 months. Lainey splashed and floated and really enjoyed watching the other kids. I think that is her favorite part of going to things like this-swimming, story hour, etcetera. One mom said that she just keeps signing up for the classes and doing it over and over until her kid is old enough to do individual swim lessons. I think we might do the same. It's nice to talk to adults and get out, but also we both get in some exercise!

I think one thing that bugs me about living here is that I feel like we don't have enough of this kind of stuff to do. I'm going to diligently keep my eye out, though, because even though it's quite a chore to get her ready in the morning, it has been SO worth it! Besides, she needs all the help she can get just in case she gets my athletic ability-or the lack thereof.

BONUS: She takes verrrry long naps afterwards!!