Things that are making us happy these days:

Snow on Tuesday that is replaced by 70's and sun on Thursday - FINALLY!

Disney Soundtracks (Little Mermaid, Lion King, Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast) to sing along to in the car - AKA "Pwincess songs!"

The way The Cupcake says "Beauty" as in Sleeping Beauty or Beauty and the Beast - "Pooty!"

Dog-free backyard (RIP Normy, but dang is spring less smelly this year!)

Cheap IKEA closet organizers

"New" (to us - thank you JBF sales) summer clothes for TC

Capri jeans

Scoring like-new Clarks sandals for $6 from the Goodwill

Halloween Morning

While we didn't make it to all of the Halloween events I had wanted to, in hindsight we still did quite a bit. It feels a little anticlimactic that I didn't wear a grand costume for anything, but I had a few minor ones, including one for Halloween Morning.

 

 

We were matching monarch butterflies! I found the wings a while back at Joann's, clearanced out well before October, I think they were $9. They were a glitter nightmare but I just waited till I was out of the house to open them up, and they got a little floppy as the day wore on, but the effect was still cute. We made quite a splash at the nursing home we trick-or-treated at Wednesday morning.

 

 

It was a really cute event, I'm so glad we went. I'm generally uneasy in nursing homes and at mom-group events, and this was both, but it was pretty fun and low stress.

 

The Cupcake loved running up and down the wide hallways and there wasn't too much trouble she could get in along the way. At the end of each hallway were a couple of residents handing out candy, and again TC picked up on how to take it and put it in her bucket pretty quickly.  

 

Afterwards we gathered in a community room for cookies (sugar cookies - the messiest of the cookies, and least toddler-friendly. Oops.). TC sat down to dig through her candy (other than Kit-Kats, I don't think she recognized any of it) and there was one little old lady sitting alone by the TV. TC picked up a little box of pink Nerds and walked over to her slowly, and sheepishly set the candy on the arm of her chair. I melted.

 

Then she mashed a Crunch bar and a whole bag of M&Ms all over my car, so it's not all rainbows and lollipops.

 

But it was pretty darned cute.

The Bright Side

Whew! Sweet relief, home sweet home. I think I shall try not to dwell any longer on the UnexpectedlyTerribleTrip, which has already consumed too much brain space, and instead move on gracefully. I probably will continue to b!@#$ about it later, since I'm definitely one to hold a grudge and dwell and wallow in the devastation of bad decisions, but let's say in theory that I'm working on it.

So instead, let's go back to  the old standby "BROUGHT ME JOY!"

Thank you Hollywood for helping to pass my time away I watched a BUNCH of movies while I was gone:

-Rental movies on iTunes - loaded them on my computer before I left  for the airport, and they occupied most of my flight time! On the way down I watched the last Twilight movie finally, and on the way back I tried 21 Jump Street. I actually really liked them both!

-The cable package at the hotel was pretty weak, but I did get to watch a couple old but good movies, Simon Burch  (Based on a Prayer for Owen Meany) and Funny People (I think that is what it was called? Adam Sandler & Seth Rogan, Sandler is a comedian with cancer). Watched both of these in a king size cushy bed with the AC blasting and room service (which was mediocre, but still feels decadent) and Papa John's (which was better and cheaper than the room service) in my lap.

-Halfway through my trip the hotel added in-room movies, and while they were a ridiculous price ($18.99!?!?) they were cheaper than taking a cab anywhere, and in the end they were NOT ADDED TO MY BILL! I even stopped to bring it to their attention, not wanting to deal with any fallout if the crappy camp was charged for my entertainment, and I was told all was well, gratis! SUPER SCORE!
(I watched Hunger Games, which I had been wanting to see forever, and liked for the most part, and then Friends With Kids which was just okay, but passed the time.)

-At the Florida airport (during my 12 hour stay) I was really excited to have free WiFi, and even more ecstatic it was fast enough to stream video! I don't go to HBOGO that often, I really should do it more - after I'd exhausted my Hulu queue I watched Contaigon which was really good (if not totally creepy and too possible) and In Time which I also quite enjoyed.

I tried to read and work on my scrapbooking, but I was so frustrated and out of whack that I had a hard time relaxing unless I turned my brain over to TV. That happens to me a lot. I'll never be a hipster, because I like TV and movies, and I'm not embarassed to admit it. I need the escapism that media provides me. Thanks for the few hours of peace you helped me achieve, hope to see you again someday movies. You're much harder to spend time with these days, but we'll meet again in another time and find our happy place again.

Brought Me Joy: Date Night!

Hubby and I pulled off an excellent date night earlier this week, despite our sorry economic state, and it was lovely. The best part: we spent less than $20 out of pocket!



For Mothers' Day my adorable little sister sent me "babysitting coupons" that might be one of the nicest gifts I've ever gotten. I hate asking people to babysit. I feel all kinds of awkward about it, and we simply cannot afford to pay a babysitter, so we just rarely go out. Little sis picked up on this, and sent heartfelt and adorable "guilt free" cards for me to cash in :) Thanks so much!

Then we had to decide what to do. And how to pay for it. Luckily, I'd been hoarding a GIFT CARD STASH! My husband likes to spend gift cards IMMEDIATELY, but I like to hide them away for when I really need them. I get joy just from knowing I have the possibility of a dinner or activity squirrelled away almost as much as when I actually use them. My pile is pretty thin these days, but we did have 2 Parasole gift cards we had saved from Christmas, so we decided to have dinner at Muffeletta.

Dinner was wonderful! We got a nice bread basket and popcorn before the meal, so I was full after the beer cheese soup (which was good, but a bit spicy for me & my finicky heartburn) but I appreciated the few bites of my tortellini I could stuff myself with, and hubby polished off the rest for lunch today. I kicked myself for not saving room for the bete noire which would be reason enough to go out! We each had soup, soda, and an entree and we only paid about $16 after our gift cards for the amazing spread, most of which was a generous tip.

Then we headed over to our local AMC, for which I also had a gift card hidden away. I rarely go to movies, and when I do it's almost never a full price showing, but the gift card made it manageable. We saw The Avengers, and liked it quite a bit (you didn't expect that after Battleship, right? The difference: humor. Acknowledging the absurdities somehow made them acceptable. Plus I appreciate the clever way all the individual story lines were woven together :) We even had enough for Reese's Pieces (at absurd movie price) and a large soda to split. Cost out of pocket: nothing!

I stress about money, and if we had decided to do a night like this without the gift cards, I would probably have been uptight and regretful and not enjoyed it at all, so I'm really glad it all worked out so well. Knowing this about myself, it makes sense if we ever do have a little extra float to sometimes pack away some gift cards instead of just cash, since gift cards "have" to be spent on their more indulgent purposes, whereas I'd always come up with something more practical we should be spending cash on. Spending gift cards on entertainment somehow feels more justified :)

Bringing Back "Brought Me Joy"

Now that I'm relaxing a bit, and able to realize and appreciate things around me more, I hope to have more time to share those things that are bringing me joy, such as:

Best Ink - a reality show competition in the vein of Shear Genius (hair cutting/styling competition I also loved), but with TATTOOS! I stumbled on to it on HULU and I'm hooked. Almost makes me want to start adding to my back piece...And then I remember how much it HURT, and how much it COST, and I am just happy to watch :)

 

I could get used to this...

When I daydreamed my life as a stay at home mom, it was days like yesterday that came to mind. What a lovely morning we had! The Cupcake managed to sleep in (aways a good start), I had Taste of Scandinavia turtle torte (a wickedly delicious cake) for breakfast, and then my sister came over and we set out for adventures with TC. The weather was gorgeous so we walked up to Subway and then over to the city zoo. We walked and walked and walked, and when we got back TC was ready for a nap and ACTUALLY WENT DOWN THIS TIME, PRAISE WHATEVER!

Organization wise I was able to pass on a beautiful dress to my sister that fits her perfectly, which is so much better than putting it on the yard sale rack for $1, and I also handed off a bunch of stuff for some of her upcoming craft projects. In between I continued to sort out stuff to get rid of and streamline throughout the rest of the house.

I got a good deal done in the kitchen as far as organizing my utensils - there is a lot of stuff I want to keep for when I do throw parties, but don't need to be digging through on an every day basis, so I packed up all the spare ladles and tongs in Ziploc bags and they will hang out in the attic till I'm in need of them again.

I completely hauled out the linen closet and made it more child friendly (though not exactly child proof) by moving all the poison cleaning stuff and glass vases up above TC's reach, and sorting out the 10,000 bobby pins and hair binders that show up in every corner of the house. I use a garage organizer meant for screws and nals to keep all my hair stuff and cosmetics separated, and it works pretty well if I keep up with putting stuff back, so it was good to reset everything. I also found 3 pillow cases wrongly put away in the closet (I know, we don't really keep linens in the linen closet) so I was able to add back in to the rotation, which really helps!
And in TC's room I started pulling the tags off and washing all her 24 month clothes (from the JBF sale - I don't wash new stuff, but I can't deal with the smells of other people's clothes ). She's still wearing 18 month but some of the shirts and dresses of 24 month would work now too, and I want her to get the most wear out of it all that we can and not miss any great things (which I have done before and learned from!).

As I look ahead I think the best use of my time would really be to price all of the yard sale stuff right now as I box it up, so I should try to do that before I get too much set aside (that's my least favorite part!). I managed to find some masking tape and permanent markers, so I have no more excuses. Then when I can figure out a date, I'm MUCH closer to actually making it happen than just having a pile of stuff to sort through again...so I'll get on that.

Also - guess who got a sunburn today?!?!? Nooooooooo!

(Clarification for Grammy - it was me. Cupcake is still porcelain pale).

Bank on it

My bank is going to start charging me $15 a month so I'm looking for a new bank. And then get to spend hours trying to change all my auto bills and other housekeeping. Who really pays those outrageous fees? We can get it "waived" (oh, what a generous offer!) if we meet a bunch of other circumstances (that generate a bunch of income for them) or if we have a bunch of money to begin with (probably those aren't the people who need the "waiver?") but we don't meet any of them, especially now that I QUIT MY JOB!

Yup, I'm officially a stay-at-home-mom in 1 month. I guess that means I didn't quit, I gave notice, and a really nice extended notice at that. What a great employee.

I shall work hard to observe the Dooce rule on this public forum, but I think I can safely say that I never loved my job, and I have no career path, and I have high hopes that this will be a major positive change in my life.

Primarily this decision comes as our amazing childcare situation comes to an end - The Cupcake might be the luckiest little monkey on the planet as her grandmother generously watched her this past year after I returned to work. And "watched" can hardly be considered accurate, Grandma fawned and doted and chased and sang and dressed up and cooked homemade meals for and otherwise enjoyed the biscuits out of TC 3 days a week while I tried to keep bringing home some bacon. It was never a permanent situation, but it gave me a little more time to think. I couldn't imagine a better environment for TC than what she's had this past year, we are so thankful. As it comes to an end I considered daycare or Montessori programs, but at this point I'd be working JUST to pay the daycare bills, and since I don't love where I'm at, there are few reasons to stay. It's not like this job will eventually lead me somewhere better, in fact, I'm probably hurting my resume in many respects by working so long in a field I have no desire to be in. But with my cautious nature I'd probably never make a leap to something more enjoyable/potentially less reliable at the risk of being irresponsible, so this will be a wonderful catalyst (I hope) that allows me to leave the safe but yucky job and eventually find something much more fulfilling, or at least not quite so deflating.

And in the meantime, I'm going to mom the crap out of this little monkey:


I have a LOT of hopes and dreams, and a "to-do" list a million miles long (find a new bank...find the kitchen table under the piles of crap...find out what I want to do with my life and make a plan for it...teach TC to talk so I can reason with her about SLEEPING THROUGH THE NIGHT FOR THE LOVE OF GOD!) but in my heart I know that this adventure will probably be a lot like my birth process was - I could research and form ideas and even make a "plan" on paper...but I'm not going to really know what it is like, what my limits are, and what will bring me joy until I'm in the thick of it (and then the "plan" will just be hilarious kindling from the naive former life). I'm scared that I'll be MORE tired without my "sitting on my @$$ time" at work. I'm terrified we'll be destitute and that will be NO fun, not to mention probably end up in me getting a worse job at a fraction of the pay. I'm sad I have to leave my copy machine and scanner. I'm excited to go to storytime at the library, and grocery shop during the day, and walk to the zoo whenever we want. I'm not sure if I will be able to handle not having "my own" income for the first time in a long time or if TC will just miss her grandma and wonder when I'm leaving again...

Cheers to new adventures.

Fair Time: Round II! DING!

The kid was in great spirits for her second day at the fair (yes, it's so good we go multiple times. Plus it helps to spread out the walking and overeating). The weather was GORGEOUS - cool, with a light breeze - and it was pretty uncrowded for the fair, we could actually get around okay most of the time even with the stroller.



Food the adults ate this time (less Cupcake-friendly fare, I'm afraid):
teriyaki chicken noodles
blackened Caribbean chicken
a couple of beers in the Bazaar, a milk, and a Sun Drop soda
wild rice cheeseburger
corn on the cob
Sweet Martha's cookies
free sample of sparkling cranberry juice

Stuff I bought:
(much more reserved this time!)



I only spent $6 on "stuff" this time, I couldn't resist these two little sea horses. When she's old enough TC has a few matching mermaid dolls from the same vendor. Maybe next year I'll get the octopus and sting ray :)


Stuff the kid did get to try:
strawberry shake
nitro ice cream sample
sweet corn ice cream
and then there was the chocolate cream puff, clearly the highlight of the evening:




I like to think she was in a state of perfect happiness with her first taste of the creamy chocolate filling:



Holy smokes, those eyes!



She liked it right away, and actually got fussy after a few bites when I stopped sharing!



Yes ma'am, more cream puff filling coming your way...and then the silly kicked in...



She was in QUITE a delightful mood!



She had a fit of the giggles!



I totally understand, chocolate cream puffs make ME happy too...



Then she slowly wound down...



And fell asleep soon after. Another fantastic evening at the fair!

The light at the end of the aisle...

How cool is this?



It's The Cupcake's new nightlight! I fell in love the first day we were at the fair and had to scoop it up (new booth in the grandstand this year!) I had gotten this one at IKEA and was really excited, but it actually puts out too much light, and she stays awake trying to do things, but this one was a softer glow and really fits the watery theme of her mermaids & pirates nursery so well. I haven't decided where to hang it for sure yet, but it makes me super happy:

Better Late than Never (especially in this case)

I started the "30 Days of Joy" posts on July 15th, with the intention of changing my life to make sure there was some bit of joy in every day.

That was too hard.

Some days were just devoid of joy and the idea of forcing some in was just an oxy moron, so it didn't happen. Other days I probably did have bright spots, but couldn't remember them long enough to include them on my blog (I'm still basically a drunken amnesiac, remember?) So it took me an extra 10 days to hit the big 30, rounded out by:

#29 Wednesday - payday is ALWAYS a bright spot, and generally calls for a celebratory lunch, for which I chose Chipotle this week. My boss was gone, so I got much accomplished (particularly for non-work-related tasks), and as I've mentioned before, checking things off my to-do list makes me UBER happy. And I may have spent a significant part of the afternoon googling baby Halloween costumes, and falling in love with this strawberry.

#30 Thursday - The State Fair was clearly a joyful time for all of us, it could not have gone better. The evening was cool, the crowds were on the light side (for the fair), and TC was in a wonderful mood. We spent more than we planned, but we always do, and we got some great things we weren't expecting.

So I guess that means at this point 3/4 of my days are at least somewhat joyful, and 1/4 are completely craptacular. If you would have asked me 6 months ago, we would have been at 95% craptacular and 5% what's my name again? and 15% more "OMG HOW AM I GOING TO SURVIVE THIS?" so we're actually moving in the right direction.

Guess my days are like the little girl with the curl from the nursery rhymes - when they are good, they are very, very good (but when they are bad, they are horrid. Or maybe it's awful. They both work).

When The Cupcake is happy, she is COMPLETELY happy. Her whole face scrunches up in a wild smile:



Here's hoping your days are mostly joyful :)

Effing Joy

#28 - looking back, yesterday was totally FULL OF WIN!
A: Happy Cupcake while we ran all sorts of errands
B: "Book club" night
C: MOST AWESOME PRESENT EVER from the dear sweet Alison....



I'm sure you heard about this book when it first came out and caused a little media stir, but did you actually read it? I assumed it was just a cutesy idea...but the text is SO WITTY! It's all very profane, and not at all aimed at children, but I laughed at EVERY. SINGLE. PAGE. For example, my two favorite pages:

The eagles who soar through the sky are at rest
And the creatures who crawl, run, and creep.
I know you’re not thirsty. That’s bullshit. Stop lying.
Lie the f!@#down, my darling, and sleep

AND

The cubs and the lions are snoring,
Wrapped in a big snuggly heap.
How is it you can do all this other great s!@#
But you can't like the f!@# down and sleep?

Here's a tip: Don't get it for parents-to-be, they have no idea. They'll chuckle and smile, and throw it in the pile with all the other advice books. Get it for parents of a 2 year old, or a mom whose maternity leave just ended - they, (now we), truly get it.

Thanks Al!

Oh, and btw, TC went to bed 2 hours late and woke up 3X last night.

#27 again

Yesterday I wore a fabulous new outfit to work (no pics, sorry), where I got to snag free breakfast and lunch due to a conference we were hosting. Definitely brought me joy :)

Backpedal...

I spoke too soon on day #27, Saturday was devoid of fun. The kid slept none too spiffy the night before, and continued to fight it all day long. I tried to put her down for naps at least half a dozen times, and all told I think she slept less than an hour combined. I slowly got crabbier and crabbier as the day rolled on, and now I'm trying desperately to stay awake until she's definitely under...she has this wicked habit of waking up 100 times in the first hour she goes to sleep, just to mess with me.

Here's hoping tomorrow is more fun...

Babysitters, bookclub, and butts

If I don't write these things down immediately, it's almost impossible to remember what I did from day to day. Maybe I should think of getting a smart phone...but of course, then I'd have to remember to haul it around with me, and somehow not break it...Maybe I should just start hauling around a paper and pen instead...Anyways, we're getting close to the big 3-0 goal here, and not too far behind - here's how this week went after we last left off:

#23 Tuesday - "Book Club!" Always a happy time. This week was dubbed "Cake & Butts" week as there were ubiquitous Nordic vampire @$$ shots, and I brought leftover treats from the bridal shower! Win-Win!

#24 Wednesday - I got a large chunk of a creative project accomplished while TC and the hubs were on a walk, but it's still top secret so no sneak peeks. Move along, nothing to see here...

#25 Thursday - TC and I headed out early to run errands, and I had heard a rumor that Ella's organic babyfood was on sale half price at Toys R Us, so I decided to venture in. It was a bad idea. Or a good idea. All their clearance clothes were $5 or less, so we got some great deals on bright Carter's sets. And I even somehow found restraint and whittled my choices down to four (including a new rock and roll tu-tu dress, originally $29 by itself!) so we made out like bandits.

Also, I got this hilarious email from a fellow book club member:

THEY ARE MAKING A MOVIE ABOUT MALE STRIPPERS AND ALCIDE IS GOING TO BE IN IT!

The article is here, in case you are also a fan.


#26 Friday - Hubby and I took the rare step of hiring a babysitter and going out on a date! We went to see "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" and we both mostly liked it. And then, since we're lame (and kinda broke), we came home early and got to play with TC for a while - almost as "joyful" as going to a movie, she was in a GREAT mood and all smiles for the babysitter. Makes it easier to think about going out again in the future.

#27 Saturday - FREEEEEDOM! TC had a terrible night last night (after a week of pretty good ones, kinda depressing), but it's okay because we have no commitments today. Grandpa is coming over to help hubs clean out the gutters (we seriously could sell seedlings, it looks like "life after people" up there). Grandma specifically told us NOT to drop in on her, as she never gets anything accomplished when TC is around to coo over. So instead, we're free spirits today, allowed to wander and set our own schedules. Sure, there are a million things we *should* do, but nothing that we *have* to, and those days are few and far between. We will definitely enjoy this one.

Joy Update

I'm going to intermingle my "Welcome to the Flock" bridal shower re-cap with some "Brought me Joy!" catch up this week

Day #21: Sunday was a little hectic, but I'm so happy I survived my first big event "Post Cupcake." With my WONDERFUL little sister's help, everything I had hoped to do got done, and from what I hear people had a pretty swell time. I won't lie, I do love hearing people react to the little touches I put into an event, it may be shallow but the praise really makes it all worthwhile :) So thank you everyone who attended, and who fed my ego, I'd say it was a rousing success!

Also, gotta mention here that TC SLEPT THROUGH THE NIGHT Saturday-Sunday, which brings me LOTS of joy...in theory. In practice, I still get freaked out and can't sleep myself. I end up watching - or worse, poking and prodding - her to make sure she is still okay. Someday I'll get over that, right?

Day #22: Monday I was pretty tired from the big weekend, and my back was barking from all the lifting and carrying I did, but it was DEFINITELY fun to have a fridge full of leftovers (power breakfast: cupcake and a coke!), and I got to wear my NEW CLOTHES to work! New clothes make everything better, even work.

#20 - More Melons FTW!

Saturday I had a nice sized to-do list that started with a trip to the St. Paul Farmers' Market, then the grocery store, then home to prepare the fruit platter, bake cupcakes, and pack up the car.

I finished everything!

We got some GORGEOUS mixed bouquets at the Farmers' Market to be the centerpieces for the wedding shower (along with some great sparkly bird floral picks I found, and then forgot to take a photo of). Then at the grocery store I loaded up on fruit, and spent the next few hours slicing and dicing melons of all sorts - watermelon, cantelope, honeydew, and also pineapple. I washed grapes (red and green), strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries, and then rearranged the fridge a few times until everything fit. It actually made a really pretty rainbow that I almost took a photo of. Then I baked and frosted 4 dozen cupcakes, sliced a few loaves of fancy breads, and got all of the serving equipment, favors, and other items packed up into the car.

I just love checking things off my to-do lists! I was a little nervous about getting everything done for a big party around TC's schedule, but I think I'm starting to learn my new normal :)

19 - Who says you can't buy happiness?

Yeeeeee Hawwww!

I definitely had a fun day today! On Fridays I work just 1/2 day (that's not even the fun part) and TC was at Grammy's house (usually she comes to us, but she had some tasks to accomplish at home), so I got to run a few errands after work on my way to pick her up. Since I had actually FINISHED my to-do list for this weekend's wedding shower (with a day to spare?!?! WOW!)I decided to use that time to go SHOPPING!!! The husband, apparently fed up with my whining about the sad state of my wardrobe*, and possibly in celebration of the end of pumping, had given me a big old giftcard to waste all on myself, and boy did I do a good job! I had 2 $10 off coupons in my purse, and found another in the dressing room - and they let me use all 3! I may be en route to completing bucket list #156, Love all the Clothes in my Closet, so stay tuned!

----
*I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before, but I actually LOST weight after having TC, and so far it is staying off. I'm not shy about my weight, so here's the story: I'm 5'7", and pre-pregnancy I was a pretty solid size 14, weighing in around 173. I n my first trimester of pregnancy, I lost 11 lbs. I was pretty nauseous, had a hard time keeping food down, and at the same time switched my eating habits pretty significantly, including giving up caffeine and moving from soda to milk. In the second trimester I started having ridiculous heartburn, so my normal diet of pizza and frozen pasta meals was out...in fact, by the end of 3rd trimester the heartburn was so extreme that I was pretty much living on oatmeal, toast, and a half gallon of milk a day. On the week that The Cupcake was born I weighed in at 189.

And then I never had time to eat again.

Okay, that's not completely true, but I definitely had a drastic increase in activity, not to mention the extra calories I was using pumping breastmilk, and my caloric intake was limited to whatever I could grab off the counter with one hand while holding TC with the other. Despite that all too often being Girl Scout cookies, I actually lost weight pretty quickly, and have been hovering around 150lbs now for around 6 months. I'm a size 12 or occasionally a 10 now, which means all my clothes look a little dumpy and ill fitting. I also wore a lot of them while I was pregnant, so I feel like everything I own looks like maternity, even if it wasn't. SO - this is why I've been complaining, and now am finally taking some action on my closet!

Thanks hubs :)

Day #18: Melons

Tonight was beautiful once again, and it was also pay day, which is generally take-out night (celebration!), so we ate Chinese on the patio. The Cupcake didn't get to partake, but she chomped on a frozen teething ring and was riveted the entire time by the neighbor's barking dog (as nutty as Norm is, he actually doesn't bark much, and he's almost completely deaf right now, so the kid hasn't heard much noise out of him). I've never been one to appreciate the great outdoors, but we ate and talked and enjoyed the evening so much we ran out of time for hubby to take TC on her nightly walk. She got her dinner late which somehow revved her all up, so she's in the Jumperoo bouncing and watching the Twins game (kid loves baseball, sports shows, and semi-naughty cartoons like South Park and Family Guy. I blame the bright colors. And find the cartoons to be the least objectionable of the set), and hopefully she's tiring herself out.

So let's recap briefly - good weather, payday, happy baby, good food, relaxing evening...but none of that is what really made me the happiest today. Doesn't even come close. Because today, after 9 months of pregnancy, 6 months (and one week) of pumping, and three weeks of weaning...

THIS IS THE FIRST DAY MY BOOBS DON'T HURT!

Yeah, I said it. And I meant it.

And it is GLORIOUS.

#17 - progress!

I won't claim that I enjoy cleaning, but I have to say that the end result of just an hour or so organizing like mad up in my craft room did bring me joy. It had gotten almost un-navigable, since nothing had been put back in its proper place since Christmas or possibly Halloween...well I now have a path! And after I had just about given up hope, I found the box of placecard holders I had gone up there to look for in the first place...several weeks ago...

I didn't get it cleaned up by any means, it's still pretty embarassing and not very functional, but I did make enough headway in the small amount of time I had to devote to the task to feel like there may be hope for the future!

Weekend Catch Up

I'm Baaaaack! My sense of time is so confused right now, I actually had to sit down for about 20 minutes to remember what we did this weekend, I knew we had a good time, but my short term memory has yet to right itself. In fact, TC was up about a million and a half times last night, so it's a wonder I even remember my name or how to turn on a computer, but somehow I'm up and at work. And after much thought, I've been able to recall some great moments from the weekend, three more days of fun which gets us slightly over halfway to the goal of 30! :)

#14 - GRAMMY IS BACK! Grammycupcakes, AKA my mother/nanny extraordinaire was on a 2 week vacation, but now she's back and we had a DELIGHTFUL reunion on Friday afternoon, with much oohing and aahing over The Cupcake's new tricks (sitting up, rolling over, technicolor vomit...). I never thought I'd say it, but I kinda enjoy the "relaxing" nature of going to my boring job every other day and not having to do anything all that important (like keeping someone from taking a walker down the stairs). Ahh, sweet relief :) Welcome back GC!

#15 - Saturday dinner fun. I have to admit, I love the OCB. I love having a little bite of 100 different foods, I love the bland midwestern cafeteria palate, and I even love the Jerry Springer feel of the place with all the sweatpants and family angst. I absolutely cannot stand screaming kids in restaurants, so I'm a bit of a wimp about taking TC out places (I will not subject others to what I detest so much) but I never really worry about bothering people at OCB. In general, she's been a peach at most restaurants so far, and Saturday night was no exception. She sat in her first restaurant high chair (gross!) and got to try her first mashed potatoes (she warmed up to them eventually), a little more vanilla ice cream (slightly more interested this time around), and a few spoons of cherry ICEE.



The ICEE bowled her over. It was hilarious. She kept demanding more, and I'm pretty sure this created her first sugar high, as she started laughing and smiling at herself like a drunk, got all excited, and had to bounce in her Jumperoo an extra hour past bedtime to "come down" enough to consider sleep. Hmmm. There is probably an important lesson in there somewhere. And a lot of red dye.

#16 - Sunday night malaise + lack of groceries + GORGEOUS night = pizza on the patio! We hauled TC's new high chair outside and she happily sat for almost 3 hours watching the trees and chewing on Sophie's feet as we enjoyed the first non-humid evening in a long time. It was beautiful and relaxing, and a nice way to wind down before jumping back into a big week.

Speaking of big week...got a lot of irons in the fire, including a bridal shower on Sunday! Wish me luck!