Thursday, December 28, 2006

To Lower Your Stress, Get a Cat

Yes, this is the fortune I received while sitting in the 7th ring of Hell with my two children tearing up a Chinese restaurant like they were on a mission. All I could do was look at Daniel and laugh...

Another Day, Another Phone Call to Poison Control...


Griffin is certainly getting a reputation. In under 1 minute last night he got into the kitchen, opened the dishwasher, unscrewed the rinse agent dispenser and starting sucking on the insert! I saw Jet Dry Green Apple dribbled to and fro on the dishwasher lid and FREAKED out. We called our friends at the Mr. Yuk number (1-800-336-6997 for those in the Hudson Valley Area) and they assured us it was just detergent and that he should be fine, give him some water and keep him up for at least 30 minutes. Well, now you know.

Wednesday, May 10, 2006

How big is Griffin? SO BIG!!!!!!!


Man, that first birthday is coming right at me like a ..... I don't know what. One of the famous man-goring bulls of Pamplona? An Amtrak train ready to derail? Giant boulder rolling down large hill? Anway you slice it, it's coming and nothing is going to stop it. I can't belive my sweet babu is a whole year old! Things have gotten much better since my last recorded rant - he is sleeping for longer stretches in his crib, but I do tend to cave when he wakes up around 4:30 AM - I just don't have the alertness required to get him back to sleep at that hour.

He has 7 teeth (number 8 is right around the corner) and does all sorts of cute parlor tricks, like waving, clapping hands, shaking his head "no" when you nod "yes" and as of today, had added "so big!" to his repetoire.

Can I just press pause on this age for a little while? Pretty please??

Monday, February 20, 2006

The Crying Game - no, not THAT one!



I have a child who refuses to sleep.

I guess it's karma, payback or whatever they call it. I was a little insomniac, up to all hours of the night, but I sure as heck wasn't wailing like someone was sticking me with a pin.

I can honestly say I have been a pushover with Griffin, much more than with Hudson. I think this time it's all about the fact that they share a room and I don't want him to wake Hudson up. So I really don't let him cry too much, I run in there and rescue him and bring him into our bed - and now he expects it. I guess I made my own monster here - and I really don't have a terrible problem with it, most of the time. But when I want to be on the computer or just doing my own thing once I've finally got both kids in bed, I am just fed up to here with the crying!! As a matter of fact, he's screaming right now as I write this. I've been upstairs about 5 times in the last half hour and all he will do is writhe around in his crib and hold my hand/push it away/ hold it close / push it away - you get the picture. And is he tenacious - oh yes, that is a good word to describe my little Gemini with the lungs of steel. He can - and will - cry for what he wants. He WANTS to be in my bed, laying on the body pillow down the middle with my boob in his mouth. I am trying to convince him otherwise - anybody want to bet on what time I will cave?
12 AM?
1 AM?

ugh - I feel like such a freakin' pushover. I want to let him "cry it out" but it breaks my heart to hear him cry. On the other hand, I am with him 24-7 - I get about 30 minutes of "me" time a day it feels like, and now he's decided to cry hysterically through it because I am not holding him in my arms and wrapping my body around him - I feel like John Lennon in that famous Annie Lebovitz photo. I've developed carpal tunnel from holding/nursing/feeding him and wake up with numb hands every morning. I can't wear my braces when he's in bed with me, as I fear I'll clock him good in my sleep. So, I spoon with him and wake up stiff and with club-like hands that I whack against the bed to get a bit of feelig back again.

It's amazing how the words flow when you are sleep deprived...

What a difference 18 months can make...



Fast forward to February 2006.

Add one more child to the mix (Griffin, born June 2005) and make me a now stay at home mom.
It's a different life, for sure, but a great one. I love being home with my kids - I think I knew I needed a break from corporate America, and it sure was true. Don't get me wrong, it's not all bon bons and champagne - the house looks like a cyclone has blown through, the laundry and dishes are my constant companions, but I wouldn't trade this right now. Hudson is at a great age (5 years) and Griffin is now 8 months. I am enjoying both of them for exactly who they are at the moment - and trying to occasionally enjoy being *me* (Fridays only from 8:30 - 9:00 PM).

Bottom line - the pay stinks, but the benefits are amazing!!