Today was a great day — not only was it Coraline’s first Easter, but she started crawling today, too. And Rich and I were both lucky enough to be there to witness it. (I’ll try to post video of her crawling later in the week.)
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Dear Coraline: Month 7
Dear Coraline,
As of 1AM this morning, you turned seven months old. It’s hard to believe you are now past the half-year mark. You’re approximately 17 pounds, approaching 18, and are starting to fit into clothes sized nine months. You still wear size 3 diapers, which I expect you’ll be in for some time. You’re still as sweet as ever, smiling readily for everyone, and talking up a storm. One of your poppa and my favorite things to do is listen to you talk to yourself in the morning. You’ll chat to yourself, trying out sounds, even testing out how loud you can be. It’s awesome to listen to. When we picked you up after work the other night, your abuelo even swore you said something that sounded an awful lot like “hello.” We’ll give him the benefit of the doubt since both your poppa and I have heard you say something that sounds an awful lot like “mama,” too.
Your first big milestone this month: solid foods. We introduced you to carrots the day you turned six months old (day 181). And, boy, did you love them. You very quickly got the hang of eating from a spoon (although we’ve fed you cereal that way several times) and eagerly opened your mouth for your next bite. It was messy, messier than I expected, but our dog Troubadour was more than happy to help clean up your high chair when we were done.
After carrots, your poppa and I introduced you to plums (day 192), which you weren’t as crazy about. Seems the tartness was a bit much, although it was funny to hear you sigh loudly and then shudder a full two minutes after you’d had a bite. Next you tried bananas (day 208), which you definitely liked more than you liked plums. Next will be sweet potatoes, so get ready. (We have to wait several days before introducing you to new foods to make sure you’re not allergic to them.)
You’re still very social, not yet exhibiting any signs of stranger or separation anxiety, which is great. When your poppa took a day off work (day 186) to spend with you, the two of you ended up visiting your Gramma Fran and Grandpa Don, and your Auntie Kirsten at her job. At your cousin Stephen’s second birthday party (day 198) you made fast friends with his Grandma Jane and Grandma Debbie, to name a couple. That was also the day your hair started to develop a noticeable curl; your poppa has already apologized to you since it looks like you might have his hair. It’s already the exact same color as his. As if that day wasn’t exciting enough, that’s the day we noticed you were cutting a third tooth, your upper right incisor. Which might explain why you went the entire day without napping. The very next day, Sunday (day 199), I noticed you were cutting a second upper tooth, the left incisor. And then three days after that, you started cutting another tooth, the second left incisor. You now have those three teeth coming in up top and the two on the bottom, giving you a grand total of five teeth. Pretty impressive for a seven-month-old. Soon we’ll have to take you for your first dental checkup.
Here you are mimicking an expression your late great-grandma Tulita used to make.
You’ve had a very social month, enjoying a workout with poppa (day 202), visiting friends with us, giggling at and reaching for your cousin Stephen when saying goodnight (day 208), having lunch with me and a few friends, and essentially seeing everyone in your family. You held your bottle for an entire bedtime feeding (day 187) and FINALLY giggled just for me (day 209), which was wonderful since you usually giggle for everyone but me (you think your poppa is the end-all, be-all clown).
The most amazing milestone you’ve hit this month is that you finally sat on your own (day 204), right there on your poppa’s office floor. We were so proud of you and just awed to see you do that. You’re getting better at it, too, sitting up for longer periods of time and getting really close to righting yourself when you tip over. You’re also rocking on your knees like you’re getting ready to crawl. Which means your poppa and I have to hurry up and childproof.
I usually write your monthly letter early in the day, but today I had an ulterior motive for waiting to do it so late: We took you to see the Easter Bunny at West Town Mall today. It meant a lot to me to get your picture taken with the Easter Bunny since tomorrow is your first Easter. You handled it like a pro, much like when you met Santa in December. You were very obviously unimpressed to be seated in the lap of a six-foot-tall quasi-rodent and didn’t much feel like smiling. Or crying. Or really reacting with anything other than boredom. It was only when the photographer’s assistant worked to get you to smile that you did. And it was worth the wait.
I tell you every day, but I love you so much and am so lucky and proud to be your mommy. Here’s to a great month eight.
love,
Mommy
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Hopping Into Easter Weekend
Song Lyric of the Day:
Ain’t going back to Barton Hollow / Devil gonna follow me e’er I go / Won’t do me no good washing in the river / Can’t no preacher man save my soul
The Civil Wars / “Barton Hollow“
I’m looking forward to the holiday weekend. Work today is a short day to help kick things off, so I’ll be sprinting out the door at 2 o’clock. Lent ends on Saturday, along with my self-imposed Lenten sacrifice of deep-fried food. The last time I ate fried food was dinner on Ash Wednesday, March 8, when I hit Bojangle’s so I could go out with one last fix of fried chicken and seasoned fries. Since then I’ve resisted the temptation to cheat, which has been hard. No donuts. No chimichangas or hard-shell tacos. No regular potato chips. None of my dad’s tostones. No fried French fries (I made oven-baked fries once). No boneless buffalo wings. You get the idea. But I’ve survived and I’m healthier for it. I’ll likely eat deep-fried food again — this is me, after all — but now I know I can survive without it, so I’ll definitely eat it a lot less — I’m even a soft-taco convert now.
What I’m looking forward to most this weekend is Coraline turning 7 months old on Saturday, followed by her first Easter on Sunday. I’m hoping we can squeeze in a visit to the Easter Bunny at the mall for a photo. It’ll be interesting to see if she handles meeting the Easter Bunny even half as well as she handled meeting Santa Claus. And she’ll be getting her first Easter basket from us, too. That’s mostly for me and Rich to enjoy, though. Okay, it’s mostly for me. But Rich will no doubt enjoy it, too.
And heading into this weekend, Coraline’s hit another milestone: Last night she sat up for several minutes on her own. Can’t wait to see what she does next.
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Surviving Duck Duck Goose
Song Lyric of the Day:
So tell me when you hear my heart stop / You’re the only one that knows / Tell me when you hear my silence / There’s a possibility I wouldn’t know
Lykke Li / “Possibility“
Last Wednesday I went to the big, biannual children’s consignment sale, Duck Duck Goose. And good lord — what an experience. Taking place in an old K-Mart location in West Knoxville, I’d heard about how crazy it could be, both from one of my sisters and friends who are moms. Not to mention the packed parking lot whenever I’d pass it. I’d wanted to attend their fall event, but I’d just given birth to Coraline and couldn’t drive; by the time I found out it was going on, it was the last day. So for their spring event, I was determined to see firsthand what the fuss was all about. First, I registered in their First Moms Club; as such, I received a special wristband that got me into the preview sale Wednesday night (it would open to the public the following day). I got in line to be admitted at about 7:10PM; I got in the door right at 7:30. Once inside, I was overwhelmed by the sheer madness of it — so many people and so much STUFF to look through. Basically, if it’s an item for a baby, toddler, or child, they’ve got it. I spent about an hour shopping; I didn’t shop longer since I quickly tired of slogging through the piles and seemingly endless racks of stuff.
Here’s a rundown of what I picked up for Coraline.
Nursery-rhyme stacking blocks, a punching penguin, pop-up animals, a bilingual drum, and an alphabet/number block:
New used toys!
A closeup of the stacking nursery-rhyme blocks:
Nursery rhyme blocks
Some summer outfits, including two with ladybugs (one with a headband):
Summer outfits
A couple more light summer outfits:
More summer outfits
Two pairs of jeans and a Winnie the Pooh two-piece outfit:
Jeans and another outfit
Various onesies:
Onesies
Shoes, glorious shoes, including three with the tags still on and a $3 pair of Robeez:
Shoes!
A beautiful, fancy dress with the tags still on:
Flower dress
And my favorite item, a dress I would so wear if it were in my size, also new with the tags still on:
Polka-dot dress
It took me an hour and 15 minutes to check out from the time I got in line with my items. Was it worth it? Hell yes. Although next time I’ll pay the $10 to charity to “duck out of line” — volunteers hold your place in line until you’re ready to check out. All told, I bought Coraline five like-new toys (my fear of germs kept me from buying ones in slightly more used condition), 11 outfits, two dresses, two pairs of jeans, and eight pairs of shoes. For $94. So you can bet that I’ll be going back to their fall event. And I will most definitely be ducking out of line.
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Scene From a Marriage # 19,353
“Do you think me straightening my hair makes me look older or younger?”
“What, do you think I’m stupid enough to answer that?”
“It’s an honest question. I really want to know. It’s not a trap, I swear.”
Laughing: “I’m not stupid enough to answer that.”
“So you are saying I look older, then.”
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Whirlwind
Song Lyric of the Day:
They watchin I know this / I’m rockin I’m rolling / I’m holding, I know it / You know it
Flo Rida / “Club Can’t Handle Me“
This weekend was another whirlwind filled with visits with friends, errands, and chores (ah, the life of a grownup/parent/homeowner). Friday night was my off night from working out, and lord did I need that night to just veg. The work week kicked my ass (job security!), and on top of that all my free time, lunch breaks, and evenings were used for errands and meetings. The best thing that happened the whole week was when Coraline sat up for a few seconds Friday night. She didn’t sit up for long, but she sat up, right there on Rich’s office floor. Crawling will be just around the corner now, we’re sure.
Saturday we slept wayyy too late. I won’t say exactly how late but it was after what normal people call lunchtime. We got out the door pretty quickly considering, and ran lots of errands in a very short amount of time. I even managed to squeeze in my regularly scheduled workout once we got home. Then that night it was off to our friends Fran and Don’s house to see them and their daughter, Elaine, and son-in-law, Dale. Coraline had a brief crying jag early on, but it turned out she was just hungry. Once she was fed, she was good. Besides, she loves her Grammy Fran and Grandpa Don, who’ve babysat her a few times already. And she warmed up very quickly to Dale and Elaine, who are expecting their own sweet little girl this summer; Coraline looks forward — as do Rich and I — to meeting the baby currently called Clementine. Of course, later Coraline vomited a copious amount of milk and carrots all over my lap, completely soaking my pants. It sucked, but I was relieved she hadn’t barfed on our hosts. That would’ve been downright rude.
Yesterday we got up at a decent hour and set about doing laundry, mowing the lawn, organizing the garage, cleaning around the house, and generally being good little domestics. We ended the day with a visit from our friends Julie and Keith, for whom Rich recently did a commissioned pastel piece. Which, if you’re a friend of his on Facebook, you saw the progress of; it’s a really beautiful piece, and I’m happy it’s going to a good home. Coraline warmed quickly to Julie and Keith, same as with Elaine and Dale the night before. I’m really enjoying this pre-shy phase of hers. I can only hope when she starts to experience some shyness it’s not too bad (I know, I know).
I’m looking forward to this week since it’s not going to be nearly as busy as last week. Hopefully that’ll translate to nice, quiet evenings spent with my two favorite people.
Poppa mugs while holding Coraline
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Bring the Pain
Song Lyric of the Day:
Oh, oh, evacuate the dancefloor / Oh, oh, I’m infected by the sound / Oh, oh, stop, this beat is killing me / Hey Mr. DJ let the music take me underground
Cascada / “Evacuate the Dancefloor“
Rich and I have fallen off the fitness wagon. Hard. Why? The holidays plus laziness are a heady, hard-to-resist cocktail. Add in having a baby with whom we’d rather spend time than not, and there you have it. So now we’re both acting as our mutual support systems and working to get back into exercising regularly and starting to slowly eat better again. (This is where not eating deep-fried food during Lent is helping me. Although it really sucks.)
Honestly, it all really boils down to laziness and a lack of motivation. Why is that? Because we have a home gym. As in right inside our very own house. As in right downstairs from the living room and kitchen. Complete with a treadmill perfectly situated with a view of our big TV. We can’t use bad weather or the late hour as an excuse to not drive to the gym since it’s IN OUR HOUSE. See? Lazzzzzzzzzzzy. We’re now trying to make it somewhat of a family affair: Coraline has her own Exersaucer down there in which she can jump around while Mommy and Poppa exercise. And laugh at our efforts.
It’s essentially a full gym, complete with a Sole treadmill and Powertec tower, a rack full of dumbbells, and a variety of weight plates for the barbells (and a half-deflated balance ball). Every item in our home gym is courtesy of Rich’s research and, more often than not, his personal funds.
- Where the magic happens
My beloved five-pound dumbbells are AWOL. I blame the move from the A-frame.
Our free weights
I’m not a fan of the barbell weightlifting, but I will start doing that again soon with Rich’s supervision. So far I’ve started doing cardio, crunches (my abs are pissed at me), leg lifts, arm curls, tricep overhead extensions, calf raises, lateral pulldowns, leg curls, and leg extensions. Surprisingly, I’m not as sore as I expected. My abs are the worst, which is sad since I used to be able to do crunches without batting an eye. Gotta work back up to that again. My arms aren’t sweating the weights since I’ve been lugging around my almost-17-pound daughter on a regular basis. I’ve got the Mommy biceps going on.
Our barbell weights
Another motivator for me to work out? New music. Or at least new to me. I finally got around to buying “Stronger” by Kanye West since I think that’ll be a great addition to my new workout playlist.
And after a wee bit of detective work, I found out who sings that song I love so much in the XBox Kinect commercial: Cascada. The song’s called “Evacuate the Dancefloor,” and I’ve already bought it in iTunes. It’s a lot of fun to listen to and I know it’ll be great — and a lot of fun — for when I’m booking it on the treadmill.
Anyone have any other recommendations for my new workout playlist? You can check out some of the songs on my old playlist to get an idea of what I like. Basically fun and fast. You know, good ol’ workout music.
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Finally Made the Jump
I did it. I finally made the switch from Blogger to my custom URL here on WordPress. I wasn’t unhappy with Blogger — far from it — but I really wanted to be able to host my own URL on Rich’s server, which wasn’t possible with Blogger. So here we are. Bear with me as I get used to WordPress. In other words, the look of my blog may very well change every other day or so for awhile until I get things figured out. Time to settle in.
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My Bittersweet for the Day: "F***** Perfect"
The first time I heard this song, P!nk‘s latest, I loved it — the lyrics really spoke to me. The first time I saw the video for “F***** Perfect,” it almost broke my heart. The lyrics, the imagery — combined, they took me back to what I felt like growing up, particularly the awful high school years. Never fitting in, not looking like everyone else, feeling so isolated and alone. But I made it through, as will countless other young girls who may feel as hopeless and lost as I did. I promise — as do this song and video — that things will get better. I survived and so will you.
And, as a new mother, the last scene kills me. I hope Coraline never feels as lost as I did when I was a teenager. But if she does, she can count on her mom being there for her every step of the way.
Made a wrong turn, once or twice / Dug my way out, blood and fire / Bad decisions, that’s alright / Welcome to my silly life / Mistreated, misplaced, misunderstood / Miss ‘No way, it’s all good’, it didn’t slow me down / Mistaken, always second guessing, underestimated / Look, I’m still around
Pretty pretty please, don’t you ever ever feel / Like you’re less than f*ckin’ perfect / Pretty pretty please, if you ever ever feel like you’re nothing / You’re f*ckin’ perfect to me!
You’re so mean, when you talk about yourself, you were wrong / Change the voices in your head, make them like you instead / So complicated, look happy, you’ll make it! / Filled with so much hatred…such a tired game / It’s enough! I’ve done all I can think of / Chased down all my demons, I’ve seen you do the same
Oh, pretty pretty please, don’t you ever ever feel / Like you’re less than f*ckin’ perfect / Pretty pretty please, if you ever ever feel like you’re nothing / You’re f*ckin’ perfect to me
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THUNDERCATS ARE GO!
Today’s the big day: Rich and I are off to the hospital now to get induced. Please send positive thoughts and prayers our way. We’ll update later today.
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