Feeling the Blues

I generally consider myself an optimistic person. Most people usually have good intentions, the glass is half full, tomorrow's always another day, etc., etc., blah, blah, blah.... But lately, I've been feeling kinda down. Mostly it has to do with friends. Or rather my lack thereof here in Portland.

I've never had problems making friends. I'm not just saying this to toot my own horn because it has nothing to do with popularity, good looks or sparkling personality. I'm just a laidback kinda gal and people find it easy to talk to me I think. (Of course, this sometimes means I make the wrong kinds of friends also. But that's another ball of wax to tackle another day.)

I just miss having girlfriends around. You know, people I don't have to always be polite around and don't have to worry that your last comment was off-color or potentially offensive.

Sure, it's harder making friends as a mom because everyone has busy schedules. And I know it takes time to get close to people. It's unfair to compare my brand-spanking-new relationships to my tried-and-true friendships.

And I'll admit, I haven't exhausted all my resources. We're still trying to find a church, and I'm sure there will be a vibrant mom's support group there. Also, there are a number of playgroups and mom's group in the community that I have information for, but just haven't contacted. So, I guess I should stop complaining and get out there already!

Rogue Poop
This incident happened last week, but haven't had the chance to post it right away. I'm sure my hubs would not appreciate the fact that I'm broadcasting this out to cyberspace, but... too bad. His pride will be sacrificed to the "good story" gods.

So, I was doing the dishes after dinner, and as usual, ESK had her post-dinner poop. I listened as hubs commented on the size and quantity of ESK's poop. On this particular day, they were six little round nuggets. I don't know why he does this, but on this particular day, it happened to be fortuitous.

When hubs says he's "watching" ESK, it's usually with one eye on her and one eye on the TV. All of a sudden, I hear him shout, "Oh my God". I look over and Elise has a diaper in her mouth. Her DIRTY diaper! She also is gleefully tearing up her dirty wipes that happened to be tucked in her dirty diaper. Hubs had forgotten to wrap up the diaper (you know, burrito style) and discard it, so of course, Elise considered a new play toy.

Hubs was frantically snatching soiled diaper and wipes from ESK. And then he checked around her play area because the little poopie nuggets were no longer in the diaper! Had she eaten her poop? For some reason, hubs thought this was hilarious and giggled as he continued searching for the rogue poop. Meanwhile I was steaming mad standing in front of the sink, picturing a vomiting, crying ESK in our near future.

Luckily, when she grabbed her diaper from off the floor, the nuggets had flown out of the diaper and scattered on the floor. Hubs was able to count for every last nugget. And indeed, ESK did not get sick. Whew!

Autum in the NW

Autumn in the Pacific NW has arrived in full force and yes, so have the dreaded rains. But it's not as bad as I thought it was going to be. (Check back with me in mid-January, month 4 of rainy season.) It's definitely overcast most of the time here, but there are breaks of sun. And then it drizzles. And then sometimes it downpours. And then it stops. And then the sun comes out again. There are seldom days when it just rains all day long.

I've found as long as I'm wearing rain gear or have an umbrella on hand, it's not too bad. And honestly, with E, it's not as if I'm spending all day running around outside anyway.

Last weekend, we had a gorgeous, two days of sunny weather however. We made the most of the sunshine by checking out the colorful trees at Hoyt Arboretum, just a short 15-minute drive away from our apartment.

One of the great things about this city is the proximity of nature. We live downtown, in a very urban setting, but within minutes of driving, there are huge parks with evergreen rain forests and trails. Our short visit that day inspired me to get one of those baby joggers (with protective rain shield of course) and start exploring!

ESK Update


E has been pulling herself up to standing and really is getting into everything. (Both of us still have the sniffles but are feeling better.) Lately, she loves turning through books and magazines, ripping out pages, crinkling them up and then putting them in her mouth... of course. Everything goes in the mouth, including a paper clip she somehow found on the floor last week. Luckily, Dad was around to snatch it out of her chubby little fingers.

Wouldn't it be great if E could just stay in this box? Just kidding. She's getting to be a lot more work, thanks to her newfound mobility and budding curiosity. And I know this is only the beginning! I need to start getting more sleep at night!

Apple Picking

I was inspired by my sister's trip to the apple orchard, so last Saturday, we also took a trip out to Kiyokawa Orchard in the Mount Hood Fruit Loop. It was about an hour away, but well worth the trip. The orchard is right near Mount Hood and has a beautiful view of the snow-capped mountain.

It was the most affordable apple-picking I've ever done. Every place I've gone to on the East Coast cost close to $20 a bag. But after SK and I had picked two large bags of apples (Jonagold & Honey Crisp! Yum) and threw some Bartlett pears into the mix, the total only came out to $12! I was shocked. That means, our fruity bounty was cheaper than our local grocery store!

Still Sick
It was nice to get out of the city and into nature for some apple-picking. But both E and I were sick and slept most of the time in the car. And just when I thought I was getting better, my cold took another turn for the worse yesterday. On top of the congestion, runny nose and headaches, I have a tendency to get cold sores when I am worn down. So, I have the worse sores under my nose. And because I've been blowing my nose so much lately, they have turned into lovely scabs. I look terrible.

E on the other hand is having a hard time eating and sleeping. We are trying to suction those boogers out, but she hates the aspirator and evades us. Any ideas on how to unclog an infant's nose?

Busy-Body Baby
So far, E is enjoying her classes. On Tuesday, we go to Music Together classes, which she really enjoys. She loves the music, but also loves staring at all the other babies and at the instructor. Her favorite part of the class is the synchronized baby dances like baby square dancing. Have you ever tried to Do-Si-Do with your baby? Lots of fun! Thursdays are swim lessons day, which she also seems to enjoy. And recently, I just signed her up for Baby Gym classes.

After I clicked the confirmation button for the online registration, I wondered if I was overloading her schedule. She's only a baby after all. Am I turning into one of those crazy, obsessive mom's already? I want E to be a happy child, not an over-scheduled one.

When I was in grade school, I did all sorts of activities. Swimming, gymnastics, art, piano, violin... Now that I think about it, maybe keeping a busy schedule is just second nature for me? And while, I'm very appreciative of all the efforts my own mother took to stimulate me as a child, after awhile, I felt overburdened and sometimes just was going through the motions.

I know E can't express herself now, but I hope she lets me know what she does or doesn't like to do. And that I'll be perceptive enough to pick up on it if, even if she doesn't.

New Job, First Tooth, First Cold

I've been enjoying being a stay-at-home mom, but in the back of my mind, I've worried that when E is all grown up and going off to school, that I'd start getting bored. I know that's not for several years, but I didn't want such a huge gap in my resume. So, I've taken a job at a PR/marketing firm that allows me to work from home part-time. The firm is also run by three women that are all mothers, so they are more than understanding about the demands of motherhood.

So far, I'm really enjoying it. My boss is very low-key and the work is such that I can still use my skills. On Wednesday, we had a meeting in my apartment, with E in her Pack n' Play right next to us (she was supposed to be napping). It worked out well, and after we were done with business, we played with E! So much fun.

So far E has not shown much signs of stranger anxiety. Sometimes when I'm walking away from her, she'll start to whine, and she shows a preference for being held by me or SK. But otherwise, she goes to other people readily.

Firsts
E has had her share of firsts in the past couple weeks. Her first tooth has finally come in. This coincided with a bout of constipation, so she was cranky and in pain for a few days there.

And now E is experiencing her first cold -- a stuffy/runny nose and a touch of fever. The past couple nights, she's been waking up howling. SK and I both lay in bed hoping that for the first few minutes she'll quiet down. Unfortunately, she usually goes on for awhile, and we are forced to pick her up. Last night I stayed up with her two hours trying to get her to sleep. But when I pick her up at night, she thinks it's playtime. When Daddy picks her up, it's all business and she goes right to bed. E is making me look bad.

Anyway, thanks to sleep deprivation, my immune system must have become vulnerable, and now I've got whatever cold E had. Ugh. Everyone I talk to on the phone says, "Gosh, you sound awful!" I guess I need to go get some cold medication and chicken soup!