Second Trimester

Well, maybe not EXACTLY the second trimester, I am 11 weeks now and technically I won't be in the second trimester for another two weeks or so. However, obviously, as you can tell from the number of posts, I have felt less like ordering a coffin lately and my humor has started to return. I wondered why I started pregnancy blogging with Oliver at 17 weeks, this is why. It sucks being pregnant in the beginning.

So now, I can actually eat things without feeling like surviving is a horrible mistake! I can get off the couch for long enough to shower! I no longer feel I have to decide which is more important, peeing or sleeping! And the best part, I feel like blogging again.

The thing I am struggling with now is a horrible sciatica (trying to find chiropractor and already go to a masseuse) which cripples me into sorta dragging my right leg behind me. Luckily, I can still just make it to my job in the bell tower. In a related story, I also have been suffering from headaches that are making me pretty miserable. I am hoping a chiropractor can help with both.

Other than that, getting excited about this next part, the fun part of pregnancy. Where the baby starts moving and I start looking pregnant and not just fat, etc. All that good stuff before it all goes down hill in the third trimester.

Pampered Chef

I am hosting a Pampered Chef party for a friend of mine who has started selling it to try to be able to continue staying at home with her daughter and I thought that even though you might not be able to attend the party, maybe you would like to buy a few things either for yourself or for Christmas presents to support a good cause.

If you shop through this link the total goes towards my party and you get to take advantage of the 20% off stoneware and metal bakeware special.

I really appreciate it!!

Adventures in Potty Training

All I have to say is thank goodness he is doing this on his own because I didn't have a clue where to start. About 6 months ago, we got a little potty off Freecycle (gosh I love freecycle!) and for a few months, Oliver just played with it. When he flushed it, it sings, when he touched the "toilet paper" it talked to him about the appropriate amount of paper to use, and when he put blocks in it, well the thing nearly blew up with excitement.

So for several months, that was it, just another toy in the corner. Sometimes we would ask if he needed to go potty, but he would just look at us crazy like and tinkle on the floor when we weren't looking. I made sure to show him each time I went to the bathroom and showed him the signs. Then, one night, during our ritual "naked time" (for him, not us) Oliver decided to sit on the potty. He strained and strained. And finally his product. A toot. It was the proudest toot of our lives! His too! He clapped and clapped and we laughed and clapped!

A few weeks later after having repeated the gas expulsions each night, some pee came out. From the celebration that insued, you would have thought this pee cured cancer. There was dancing, there was clapping and Oliver got to wave bye-bye to his pee as we flushed it down the big toilet. It was cute, but we figured a one time deal, sorta an accident. Afterall, he was only 17 months old and this was supposed to be so difficult! Psychological traumas happen because of incorrect potty training!

One day, at a friend's house, Oliver tapped me on the shoulder before he pooped. He did the sign for it as he was going. This was sorta the wake up call I needed to just make that final step and just DO IT already, he was obviously ready to potty train. So, we got a second potty for downstairs, got some tiny tiny undies (again from freecycle!) and started watching the kid for signs of potty time like a hawk.

We have found that poop is easy, but fast. By the time he has made the sign, he has already started pushing so you better be a fast runner. If we leave him naked, he finds the potty on his own, no prob, but since he is so little, he hasn't learned to take off his shorts himself yet so sometimes we are lucky and sometimes we are not. One day, we were not. We tried to get him to the pot as fast as possible but we ended up with a log on the floor. Or as we would come to know it...a dog treat.

We have accidents, it is still hard for him to remember to go when he is having fun, but that is why we have wood floors I guess! We only use about three diapers a day and the rest of the time he is going in the potty, even the big potty when we aren't at home or when he is being babysat. Not bad for a 19 month old boy. At this rate, it would look like I will only have one in diapers at a time. Please cross your fingers (and legs) for us!

Guest Writer Entry

I feel like crap, and though I have several blog posts coming, I haven't had the time or energy to write. So I have contracted others. This blog post was written by Jessalyn.

We finally made the leap…I babysat Oliver at my house. I’ve sat on him plenty, just never outside his walls. I’m short on toys so the first order of business was to acquire some. The last time I tried to buy something for him it went horribly awry. This time I figured I should let him pick it out himself. I took him to Kohls and let him loose in the toy corner. Thankfully we were alone so he was able to go from toy to toy creating as much racket as he wanted. We also perused the book selection in case there were any gems to be had. I went in with the intention of letting Oliver pick whatever toy he wanted but found myself judging every selection. This toy is stupid, this toy only has 3 buttons, this toy is boring, this toy only spins, this toy is for girls… I was ashamed of myself! I tried to nudge him toward the toys of my choice…the toys that were “good” enough. He was undeterred. He is his mother’s son. We ended up with a wood toolbox with wooden tools, a pack of Nerf balls and a Sponge Bob chair. I will admit the Nerf balls were my idea. I figured my big baby could make use of them after Oliver lost interest. I gave Ols the soccer ball for the ride home and he seemed quite content with the entertainment. It wasn’t until we got home that I realized the little turd took bites out of it. BITES! Not teeth marks, huge missing chunks! Thankfully, the divots did not impair his joy at kicking it around the house. He also mastered the wooden screwdriver which was labeled 3+. (I cannot be limited by age suggestions, so I let him get it) He made the best grunt face while trying to screw the wooden pegs, but I was unable to catch it on film. I did however take a fantastic video of him jamming out on the Rock Band drums. In the end, a good time was had by all and now we have toys for next time!

Born Musician

]Not sure if you know this, but my baby is a way famous musician. Which instrument does he play? Which instrument does he NOT play?? I just wanted to post some video spam of his many instruments.

Guitar
Drum
Piano

Recorder

Say What?

If one more person asks me if he is talking yet, I am going to scream. No. NO NO NO. Okay!? Nope, not even mama, thanks for reminding me. So STOP asking!! Yes, I know sign language counts. Yes, I know boys are usually behind girls. However, knowing these fun facts doesn't help the fact that I am about to lose my mind from all the grunting and squealing he uses to communicate lately. He is 18 MONTHS old! COME ON! Maybe if I had formula fed, and ignored him more he would feel the need to talk to me rather than just wait for me to figure it out. Darn me for being a good mom and anticipating his needs.

Words he says:
Dada
Kitty
Woof
Uh Oh
No
Wow

Words he signs:
Thank you
Please
Mama
Apple
Bird
Awesome (yea thats a new one)
Water/Drink
More
Hat
Brush Teeth
Elephant
Ball

Lately, he has been teasing me with *maybe* words. Like, he says "gall" when making the ball sign. Or he will say choo when he is holding a shoe. But don't expect for him to repeat it. Cause he won't. Case in point:

Back to School

As you might or might not know, I am obsessed with boobies. More specifically, I am obsessed with the function of breasts. I mean, other than being spectacular fun bags, of course. Did you know that they can actually be used to feed (gasp!) children!? I know, I know, traditionally that is what we have cows for, and more recently, rodents, but it is true, a long long time ago, when women had babies, they had to care for them and feed them themselves from their husband's favorite toys, their breasts.

Used to be, women learned how to nurse their babies from their mothers, aunties, grandmothers and sisters. It was a tradition handed down for generations and it was simply a fact of life. It was what babies ate. Now, because of an entire generation of women who were turned off from breastfeeding because of greedy doctors, misinformed "science" and that thing that rules us all, fashion, we have a hole in the tradition. In many families, there is no one a new mother can go to in order to learn the art of feeding a child. Due to this country's obsession with modesty (unless you are a preteen with hot pants or an underaged pop star) and certain very uptight prudes, most women have never even seen a woman feed a child properly.

Sadly, women still have it in their heads that even without this constant learning process we have been deprived of, nursing should come naturally. So when they are pregnant, they don't ask questions, don't seek information. They are told it is a natural process, an easy adaptation to a new baby and it's mother. Well guess what people, it isn't. You can't learn to do something if you never are exposed to it. Now, without the support of family and friends who are breastfeeding around us, there comes a need for a specialized job called a Lactation Consultant. The job of an LC is to teach a woman is to work with new moms and babies to learn how to work with each other and to successfully accomplish a nursing relationship.

I have decided to pursue this career for myself. I can't think of a worthier cause than to help moms and babies be healthier and happier! This is not something I can accomplish in a few weeks, it is a highly specialized certification which will take me 3-4 years to complete. I have the course work, which alone will take two to three years. Then of course, there is the 600 hours of counseling experience (through becoming a La Leche Leader) I have to complete before I finally take the leap that is the final test to become certified.

I am so happy that I have found something that I feel passionate about, and that I can accomplish while having babies in my arms and at my feet. I feel like I am truly coming into my own, and though I know that being a stay at home mom is a very difficult job, I need something more. Sorry. I do. I need to use my brain, and my talents and my creativity. I need PEOPLE, I need to learn! I am so so grateful that I have found a way to have both.