Andrea's Random Thoughts

Happy Holidays!

2009-12-21T00:48:58Z

I can't believe Christmas is coming up on Friday, it's so strange how this month, or even this year, has flown by so fast. It feels like it should only be the start of December. But it's not. Things are going very well here. Joe is on block leave and doesn't have to be back until the 3rd of January. It'll be nice to have him home and helping out. We'll be switching days on getting up early with Evan. Joe's turn is tomorrow. Evan loves being up by 5:30. He'll wake up at least once at some really early hour and try to roll over, I'll pull him on me and put him back to sleep, then he'll be up at 5:15 or so and start trying to roll over onto his back again. This morning he succeeded. One morning I woke up around 5 and realized I had fallen asleep with Evan on me. He was out of course and seemed to really like sleeping on me. I generally don't allow that.

Evan has cut 2 bottom teeth! I discovered them yesterday. Teething has been very uneventful for us and I swear it's the Amber teething necklace. At 3 months he was teething horribly. He wouldn't sleep long, had a rash, was spitting up a lot, etc. However, about half way into the first day of wearing that necklace he suddenly became happy, slept, and was just so much more calm. I will never take it off him again unless he's in the bath. About the only sign we have of teething now is an occasional mild fuss and excessive drool while chomping down on things.

He has started into another growth spurt so his somewhat loose 9-12 clothing should fit perfectly or even be outgrown in a few weeks. He's such a weed. I can't believe he fits that size at 5 months. I need to get some more long sleeved white onesies in 18 months size because his 12 month clothing is mostly summer clothing and full of short sleeves, same goes with 18 months. But since growth spurts occur at 3,6,9,and 12 months hopefully he'll last longer in 18 month clothing. My friend said that was the size her sons were in the longest. If not 18 months, then in 2T.

We started him on solids today. Yesterday he was bent on stealing food off my plate even after we distracted him. We tried banana a few weeks ago, but he wasn't really interested. Today though, he seemed puzzled over carrots and couldn't decide if he liked them. He'd spit it out, eat it, hold onto the spoon and move it into his mouth with me guiding it, swallow, spit, etc. It was really funny. We'll try again tomorrow. I have blueberries in the freezer for him, banana's ripening on the window sill that I'll cut up and freeze for use later, apples that I'll boil, yams, and peas. That should be enough for awhile. All them I'll prep and then freeze for use. I'll just puree them on demand though so I don't have to buy one of those ice cube trays.

We're cat sitting a couple cats for 2 weeks. One of Joe's platoon buddies is out of state visiting family and we offered to watch them. It's so nice to have pets, I've really missed it. One of them is curled up on me right now. One of the other cats is so tiny and looks proportional so I don't think she'll grow anymore. It's cute! Maybe after Joe returns from deployment we'll look into getting a pet.

It seems that Joe's car is currently just not working and we won't be looking to get it fixed anytime soon. Joe wants to wait until after deployment. We also returned the rented car so right now we are without transportation. My car should be here by New Years though so when he starts work again we'll have one. I'm really not surprised his car broke down, it's old and has broken down before.

We haven't gotten any snow since that minor blizzard. Most of it melted too during a brief warm spell. The parts there are frozen at the moment. We are expecting snow showers next week, but according to a church member it's nothing and once winter really does hit we'll know. He said that 2 feet once fell in one morning and the last white out was nothing. I sort of can't wait to see it, but yet I can...I remember winter in ND and I was so glad to be away from it when we moved. I got sick of all the snow and loved the first snow free winter we had in CA. Snow is fun for a day, but after that it's annoying. Especially when driving in it.

What else...Oh Joe will be deployed to Northern Afghanistan which is apparently safer than other parts of Afghanistan. He said he'd be training troops and that he would most likely be engaged in combat, but yeah, at least it's the safer part of Afghanistan. We still don't have a definitive date, but it will be mid March and I will be packing up the apartment after Christmas.

Otherwise we are all doing very well and hope it's the same for everyone else!

Another Move...NOOO

2009-12-13T14:21:28Z

Joe and I have been talking about this and we have both officially decided that we will pack up our house and store the furniture out here in some storage unit before he deploys. I will then move to CA to be with my family. Originally I was thinking we could just keep our apartment and I'd turn off gas and electricity, but this way we could save a ton of money during that year. I would then come out in February I think, or sometime before he gets back, get another apartment closer to base but not on base (he's bent on not having one on base and I'm fine with that) and move things back in.

Honestly, I'm not thrilled about packing and moving. I hate packing, or just in general moving. I have seriously thought of just staying out here, but I don't have very many friends or any family out here. I'd rather be closer to my family for that, especially since it will be a year long deployment and I would be parenting Evan alone out here. But it will save so much money. But on the good side of all of this, the church offered to help with moving if we need it. I fully plan on taking them up on that offer when it comes to moving everything into the uhaul and into storage.

Outside of that, apparently the Drive Shaft on Joe's car cracked and that's why it's not working. He's thinking of possibly fixing it, but that's not the only thing on his car that has been breaking down. So my car will hopefully be here before Christmas and he can use that. In the mean time we're renting a car. He really likes it too.

So anyways, that's it. Evan is doing good as usual but now throws tantrums before naps because even though he's exhausted he wants to stay up all day. He fully pushes himself up on his arms now (the whole arm is straight) and has even pulled himself forward a little bit. He can sit very well, but would rather be rolling about on the floor. I don't blame him at all. It would be much more fun to be in a position that allows you to move freely, kick your legs like crazy, and roll over!

Finally, Peace of Mind

2009-12-09T23:46:08Z

I've finally made a decision regarding vaxes. At first it was going to be selective and delayed, but after the DTAP and Polio Evan got, I really began to reconsider it. He was fussy, didn't want to eat much, and after a 10 hour sleep he woke up with a dry, or only slightly damp diaper. That was really really unusual. The only time he had diapers like that was when we were trying to breastfeed (that's why I stopped, he wasn't getting much). So I researched it some more and have decided not to vax any more.

Before you challenge me, you have to watch the video series Here. You want the Vaccines: The Risks, The Benefits, The Choices.There are 18 videos that are 10 minutes each that start with a history of vaxes regarding Small Pox. Then they go into all the vaccines children get, what they are, what the disease is, and the history and how it can or is treated as well as how effective they are. This is honestly the most comprehensive and informed research I have seen. If you don't want to watch it from the start, at least watch it from Here, that's where they start the discussion on childhood vaxes. Two of the videos stop working around 6 minutes in. I know one is video 16, the other is somewhere in the beginning.

To clarify, this is not over a fear of Autism. It has to do with the effectiviness of the vaccines, how high the dose is, the side effects that range from just mild to severe, and the diseases current status,which really isn't that high. When was the last time you heard of a major Diptheria break out? How about Tetanus? Or Rueball? Mumps? And no, it's not just because of the vaccines, there are multiple other reasons including improvement in health care and the sanitary measures we now take, like washing hands. So anyways, watch the videos if you're interested but you can't argue with me until you watch them!

Wicked Weather

2009-12-09T14:38:21Z

We woke up this morning to snowy weather. It seemed fine at first and I thought maybe the wind wouldn't hit. But I was wrong, it is now beyond windy outside. I can hear the snow flying against the window and there is snow blowing off roof tops and landing on other roof tops. Drifts are going everywhere and apparently later today it's supposed to turn into a "wintery mix" or in other words sleet. It seems a lot of the schools were delayed today and even a few were closed. This morning it was beyond cold in the house, but it has since warmed up some. I hope Joe is staying warm.

The people across the street from me are moving today and I feel sorry for them with this weather. At least they aren't loading things at the moment and they have movers to help. I wonder if they are moving to a different place in town or were sent to a new base. Lots of people move here and that always makes me wonder what will happen for us. I hope we don't move to the south though, I've never really cared for it. While it would be interesting, I certainly wouldn't want to stay there for long. However when I refer to the south I do not mean Florida, I mean Tennessee, South Carolina, etc. Florida seems to me to be similar to California, only humid with a slightly more eclectic mix of people.

Anyways, Evan rolled on purpose yesterday! Today he was trying to do it again only he couldn't get it quite right so he was making little frustrated cries. It's cute to watch him grow. That's it!

A Mix of Emotions

2009-12-08T15:05:17Z

So on Friday evening Joe got a text and found out he'd be deploying in March. I knew it was coming and suspected it would be around Spring that he deployed. As much as I loved the idea of him possibly not deploying until 2011, it was such a far stretch that I really didn't think it would happen. After hearing Obamas speech on Tuesday I was even more positive it would be really soon. And can I just say, Obama is more like Bush than I had ever thought. I seriously feel that Clinton was perhaps the best president we've had lately, how sad is that? At least the worst thing he did was have an affair. Why would anyone want to impeach a president for that? Who cares? Apparently lots of people do, but why don't they care about other more important things like presidents who mess up the economy and start or continue wars? Please don't argue about politics with me, it's not my strong suit and I'm very aware of the pros and cons of this war.

Anyways back to my topic. While I try to remain optimistic, I can't help but fear injury or death for him. I know lots of soldiers come back alive, but it's still scary. And then there's the fact that he won't be around for Evan's 1st birthday in July. I don't think I'd care so much if it weren't for the fact that he wasn't able to be there when Evan was born. He wasn't allowed to leave until the day after he was born and was only able to be there for 2 days. I'm grateful he was able to come, but it wasn't fair and this isn't fair either. I know that when I agreed to support him in this decision that many things like this would happen, but it still makes me sad and resent any president who supports war. I also resent commercials that glorify signing up with the Military. But that's a side point.

I will be going to staying with my parents while he's deployed. I've set my leave date as March 19 and am glad I can do this. I don't have many friends in the area and it can get lonely. I'll also have my car again! One thing I am looking forward to is the Family Separation bonus, I'm going to use that to pay off my car. Or at least pay off as much as I can with it. I'll put a bit of it in savings.

Otherwise, I'm working on just living in the moment and not thinking ahead to when he leaves. We have this Holiday season together and I'm going to make the most of it! We even have snow so it'll be a nice White Christmas!

Anyways, I should go, Evan is awake now and I think getting hungry. I heard him baby talking in his room and when I got in there he was doing a good tummy time lift! He was pushing himself up from more than just his forearms, but his entire arm, it was amazing! I think he was trying to get a good look at the mobile.

Evan's 4 Month Appointment

2009-12-03T17:07:06Z

Evan had his 4 months appointment and he's really grown. At his 3 month WIC appointment he was either 21 or 22 inches long and weighed 12 pounds. Today he was 26 inches long and weighed 14 pounds! He's doing really well and there were no concerns.

We did go ahead and get 1 and I mean only 1 shot (as in one injection only). The next one will be in January. I chose to do this shot because it included a virus that is found everywhere, pnuemonical I think, because it can cause Meningitis and the doctor had seen babies die from it. So we got the one and only one shot. HIB will be in January. She wanted it in 2 weeks but I don't think I'll rush to that one so fast. I'd rather have Evan heal thoroughly from this one first. This shot did include DTAP in it along with polio. He did really well. He started to cry, but the shot was done really fast so it never built up. After Hib I will delay the rest of the shots until he's 2. I just figured it would be good to get the viral ones out of the way.

The pediatrician was really nice, but said that my son shouldn't be waking to eat during the night at 4 months. She then said it was most likely that he was waking up for me because I hold him or pat his back until he's asleep. Honestly, I think that's strange. My son is right next to me and as many times as I have tried to shush him and pat him back to sleep he just gets angrier and won't calm down until he eats. So clearly she's wrong on that. And even so, what's wrong with him waking up for me? He's a baby and if he needs me there's a reason. She then said I should wake him before I put him down so that he gets used to falling asleep on his own. He does fall asleep on his own most nights. Occasionally he won't because he's set on not going to bed because he wants to stay up. Sometimes he does need to be patted on the back, but it usually doesn't last too long. Besides, he's 4 months, not 4 years old. At that point he should be going to sleep fine. I stopped her and just said I'm doing things differently and am aware of the difficulties it could cause, but am fine with that. So she stopped.

What else...well we're sending our grobaby diapers shells in for a snap conversion because I hate velcro. They go out today and will be back in about 7-10 days or so. In the mean time we're using huggies and I have decided I like them more than pampers. Huggies has a stretchy back so if he were to have a poop blow out (not too common)it would stay in. Pampers leaked on us too. We have a size 3 diaper so it's still a bit big on him, which is good because once we get the diaper shells back we won't be using disposables too often.

That's it!

My First Drive in Snow

2009-12-01T18:05:27Z

I drove in snow for the first time today. In the past I had only ridden in the car, but today I actually drove in it. I opted to drive Joe to work so that I could have the car while he's gone till Thursday. That way I can go to Social Services and see if we qualify for heating subsidy (I really hope so) and Evan has a doctors appointment Thursday morning.

The drive there Joe drove. The main roads were clear until we got to base. Clearly they don't have priority on clearing the roads there. We had to drive under 30 and we passed a car accident. It had overturned to it's side, I don't think anyone was severely injured though. When I drove back his car swerved a bit, but not bad and slid a little at stops. That was on base though where they clearly hadn't cleared the roads. Off base the roads were much better and at one point I went 40, but slowed down till 35. The concept of black ice scares me.

Let me tell you, Joe's car is not very good in snow. I told him he should get chains for his tires today and the person staying with us has made it clear he will give us 300 dollars when he gets paid. Originally I wanted to put it in savings, but today I changed my mind and told Joe it would go to fixing the heating and defrost in his car. I had to keep the windows cracked so that they wouldn't fog up, but even so it was damp and I kept having to dry it, but then it would smear everywhere and leave streaks. I have repeatedly told him to get the defrost fixed, but has he? No, he hasn't. I will personally take him to where ever they sell chains and make him get some. I will supervise the buying. I don't care how many times he tells me he goes slow, I'd rather have him pay extra for chains and use them when needed. However, I doubt he will. Well, if the defrost at least gets fixed I'll be happy. He doesn't crack windows when he drives so he's rubbing the windshield all the time.

So all in all, I survived but I will never drive Joe's car on uncleared roads again. I felt really unsafe. I can't wait till I get my car out here, it should be in 2 to 3 weeks! I think my car will have better traction since it's new and the defrost works! I will buy chains for it though. However, I am never driving him to work again. I somehow ended up leaving at a different exit than I had entered, sort of got lost (turns out I was on the right track, asked someone at a gas station, but then got confused on how to get home once I got back into town), took the long way home, Evan rotated between screaming and crying the whole way back, and since the visibility wasn't so great out the windshield I found it a bit hard. I really hope Joe gets back at a reasonable time on Thursday. Luckily, it won't be snowing either and the snow has all melted today.

Otherwise, things are good. I'm rather tired today from a slight migraine yesterday. But I'm not quite where I can sleep for long. Evan is really developing a personality. I bet he's going to be left handed, very opinionated and out spoken, and probably have ADD, it does run in my family. He's such an active boy! Very talkative too, sometimes I wish he would just be quiet. Currently I think he's between growth spurts because he's not eating as much as he used to. He used to down 7 ounce bottles, but now he'll do one 6 ounce bottle and the rest are 3 or 4 ounces. At least we'll be saving on formula for a bit. I'll ask the pediatrician about it on Thursday, but I hear it's normal.

Just one thing before I end, I really don't get the concept of baby legs (legwarmers for babies). I know a lot of moms use them to show off their cloth diapers because then you don't need to put pants on them. But really, it makes no sense. Maybe if I had a girl I'd be more interested because I could put them under skirts and dressed, but even then, I don't know. I got a pair at a baby shower and the only time we've used them is when we're going for a walk on a day that doesn't require a full snow suit. I put them under his pants so that if they ride up he still has something protecting his skin against the cold.

Anyways, that's it!

Allergies

2009-11-29T02:11:38Z

I sometimes hate having so many food allergies. Today I almost took a bite out of Joe's banana. But just smelling it gave me that feeling I got when I eat bananas (itchy throat and mouth). I wish I could eat wheat/gluten. Not only would I have more varieties in food like really moist chocolate cake, tasty crackers, and other baked goods, but it would be cheaper. Buying good gluten free bread is expensive. A loaf of the bread I like is 6 dollars. I'd do the 2 dollar ones but it tastes like cardboard or styrofoam and doesn't hold a good sandwich very well.

And then, if I weren't allergic to dairy I could get a good cake frosting. I could also eat normal cheese. Goat cheese is good, but that's expensive and I still can't eat too much of it. If I weren't allergic to soy I could have tofu. I miss tofu, it's good. Although I don't miss soy milk. I've decided that Almond and Coconut milk taste much better. Rice milk is just blah after coconut and almond milk. Also, if I would be able to eat more products because soy is in everything, I mean EVERYTHING. I read every label twice just to make sure I didn't miss it like I have with some products.

That's it with the complaint. Someday I will be able to eat whatever I want (if not on this earth, in Heaven) and I will be looking forward to that. I really want to try some good noodle dishes.

Thankful

2009-11-25T18:34:59Z

In light of Thanksgiving, I figured I'd share a few of the things I am thankful for!
1. My family!
2. Being able to stay at home with Evan. Things may be a bit tight, but I wouldn't change that for anything.
3. Having a warm place to stay.
4. Nap time, gotta love nap time.
5. Knowing that Joe will always be here for me and that he will help if I ask.
6. Food, especially since things can be tight.
7. Having a washer and dryer, that makes things so nice.
8. Being able to write

There are so many other things I'm thankful for, but those are the things at the top of my head!

Who Cares

2009-11-21T01:02:27Z

Ok, bare with me during this vent. This is directed at all those dads that work all week long but don't get how hard a mom works. I don't care if you work hard, I work hard too. In fact, I work 24 hours 7 days a week. 24/7. I repeat 24/7 do you get it yet? I work all day all night, even when the babies sleeping I work. I clean the house, do the laundry, wash the dishes, and if I ask you to clean the bathroom it's because I want help. If I ask you to watch the baby 2 hours on a weekend so I can get a break it's because I'm tired and I don't get weekends or nights or evenings. I get tired, I want a break. I'm not here to dispute who works harder because I will fully admit your job is demanding and you get tired too, but for goodness sakes, help out around the house.

Sure I may get an hour during the day in which I refuse to do any cleaning, but really, do you think that's a full break? It's not. You come home, you sit in front of the computer or tv for more than an hour. That's a luxury for me. So help, ok?

Just a side note, we've talked about this repeatedly but I still feel he doesn't fully grasp it and I doubt any husband/father/boyfriend really does.

I Miss

2009-11-20T01:25:41Z

I miss writing. I have been so busy lately that I don't have much time to write. Or when I do have free time I'm unmotivated and don't want to write and would rather nap, read, or surf the internet. Although I have to admit surfing the internet can get boring really fast. But I don't have the energy for writing half the time.

Lately though the urge is growing stronger and I'm getting that writers itch again. I think back to the story I haven't written in since I was in my second trimester and I already know what I need to edit away and an exciting plot. Then there's the second book to Eternity floating about in my head and I have an exciting idea for it, but I don't know how to get to that part just yet. I bet I'll be writing in weird segments and then have to connect them in the end for that series.

Either way, I really want to write again and I NEED to make time for it during the day. I just hope that once I start I don't get so into it that I get mad when Evan wakes from a nap.

The Most Amazing 4 Months

2009-11-11T05:03:21Z

I can't believe Evan is 4 months as of today (really the 11th, but it's almost the 11th to me). He's just growing so fast. He's already growing a little out of his 6 month clothing! He's changing almost every day too. Like just recently he started holding toys more often and moving them to his mouth. He's also really trying to crawl, sit, and loves to be held up to stand so he can bounce or try to walk. I'm already anticipating the fun of introducing solids! I know I will get spit back on and that he may not always like it, but it's going to be a fun time in his life! I plan on making most of his food and only occasionally using the ones in store.

Since he's going to keep me really busy I've decided to wait until he's over a year to try for another. I can just tell by how he is that he's going to be one active little boy. Especially when he's fighting naps because he tries to crawl away while on me! It's adorable but really frustrating. Teething has gotten a little better since we made him an Amber teething necklace. In fact, I'd say it an amazing change. He still chews on his fist a lot and other things, but he's no longer fussy all day. I was really skeptical, but I've become a believer. They really do work.

His cloth diapers still work really really well, they just take forever to dry. I admit, I do have a prefold curiosity still. I look at the Green Mountain Diaper ones and still contemplate buying them. But since he's so wiggly I think they'd be hard to put on. As it is, the gro babies and even disposables are hard to put on sometimes. I love the velcro because I can redo it if I need to. I do want to get some snap shells though because velcro can wear out fast. While traveling we've been using pampers and he broke out in an eczema rash. I was really surprised, apparently he has a sensitive bottom. We used diaper cream though and it got better, I just have to layer his butt with it. I'll have to either use cloth the next time or buy the expensive Huggies Sensitive.

I ordered some Crunchy Clean diaper detergent and can't wait to use it. I've been using Arm and Hammer sensitive and I had to do a whole extra wash cycle just to get them fully rinsed. Even then I occasionally had to add an extra rinse after that. I made sure the wash was clean too, but it was just the detergent. The Crunchy Clean company statest that you won't even have to do an extra rinse, but we'll see. I got the Tulip scent though! The laundry room will smell really good and the diapers, when fully clean, won't smell at all! It will be a good way to know if they are fully rinsed. I think it was the Arm and Hammer that wasn't fully rinsing that caused his mild rash. Once I added the extra wash cycle his rash sent away.

As for things I absolutely adore (I adore all of him, but these pop into my mind): His cooing and talking in sleep, the way his ears look like they stick out when he smiles all big, the way his head rests on my shoulder when he's tired, the new sounds he finds he can do every day (currently it's a fake cough), how he wiggles closer and closer to me at night (although that can be annoying too), his curiousity of the world, and his cheerfulness. I could go on and on though. Most of all though, I love him more than I could have ever imagined. I can barely remember how my life was before him. I vaguely remember having spare time, but I don't know what I'd do with it now and I can do without that time. I'd rather be spending it with Evan. I do admit that I want a little bit of time for myself, but I don't want as much as I had before.

Anyways, I just thought I'd share my amazement with him!

Education

2009-10-27T16:06:40Z

When I found out I was pregnant, even before I was pregnant, I always thought about what I would do when they were ready for school. When I thought of sending them off to whatever school they went to I wondered if they would have the problems I had. I know Joe didn't have many problems and that he skipped a grade, then had to option to skip another but didn't. But I had problems. I have ADHD and that led me to being bored in many classes along with being very distractable. On top of that I had difficulties with math. I never got beyond Algebra in school. When I finally got to geometry it was an independent study class during the summer with a tutor that was perplexed by a lot of my questions. While it was never officially diagnosed, I do believe I have a very mild form of Dyslexia because I still, to this day, get my left and right confused. In fact, I didn't learn the difference between the 2 until middle school. I repetedly got d and b confused and forgot which way the d went in my name multiple times. I also found myself forgetting which way certain letter faced. It's gotten better as I've gotten older though. While I was held back in first grade for being so behind in math and reading (the teacher never told my parents about this), I scored so high on the CAT tests when we moved to California that I was skipped to 7th grade. If you try to get me to talk about Middle School, you will most likely reach a block that doesn't go much further than me stating that I was bullied and that middle school in California is no place for a naive person. After that would be a statement on how it was rumored our science teacher spiked his coffee and once had an angry outburst in one of his classes. In all honesty, I hated Middle School and really don't like to think about it.

Grant it, while much of my educational history is full of boredom and a bit of anger, there were parts I enjoyed. I loved recess and music when in elementary school. Art was occasionally fun when we didn't have a project that was full of instructions. When I was in private school for 11th and 12th grade I really enjoyed it. At MBA our English teacher and Histore teacher were awesome. Although I really didn't like our math teacher. I had a lot of fun with my friends too. At LLA I liked our art teacher and even though Mrs. Deitrich (college prep class) taught with fear, I learned a lot. Although it was amazing if someone got a B and one of our students lost a 4 year scholarship to college because of her. It wasn't uncommon to see someone crying because of her. College was awesome! No need to expand on that. But grad school was a bore. The only good teacher with Mrs. Simpson. I rarely listened in the other classes and usually just played games on my computer or started a paper that needed to be done.

So what's this all leading up to? Since we can't really afford a private school, I'm considering homeschool Evan and our future kids. There are homeschool co-ops in pretty much every town. That is where all the parents of homeschooled kids get together for weekly classes and activities. The parents volunteer to teach a class and then a group of kids will learn from them. I was looking at the Syracuse (an hour from here) co-op and some of the classes being taught included Science, History, Art, and even Yoga! I doubt we'll be here still when he starts school, but I'm sure I'll find co-ops where ever I go. Now this may not be permanent. Maybe we'll find a really god school, or he'll decide he wants to go to one. Or when he's in high school he'll want to take classes at the community college. Once he starts college thought, he'll go off to a good college. Joe and I talked about it and he also agreed it would be a good idea.

So yeah, those are my thoughts!

Things I learned today

2009-10-25T21:03:21Z

1. New York apparently has the Blue laws. That means most stores that follow the law will not open until 11:00. Luckily when I got to the mall it was 5 till 11.

2. Raz Baby Teether pacifiers are apparently not sold in Watertown or probably any near by towns for that matter. If I want one I will have to wait till California or order it. Oddly enough, they sell the non teether pacifiers of that same brand.

3. When tired, it is best to take a nap.

4. The universe was against me finding 9-12 size overalls for Evan. He's a weed and is almost outgrown from his 3-6 overalls. I did get a pair of Osh Kosh jean overalls though in 6-9. I would have gotten a second pair, but they only had 1 pair.

5. Bubble baths are the best!

6. A nice walk with Evan and Joe will make the day even better.

7. It's best to talk about what's going on instead of keeping it in.

Bottle Drama

2009-10-23T14:35:17Z

Evan is turning out to have a dramatic flair to him. Lately, these past couple days when he gets hungry and doesn't get it RIGHT now he will holler and scream and even when I have the bottle in a minute or so he will scream and scream and not take the bottle. I'll try calming him down, but no he's hungry and wants the bottle RIGHT now only he doesn't realize it's right in front him or even in his mouth. When he finally takes it he's tired and won't finish it because he's ready for a nap. I'm laughing as I type this, but very annoyed with him. He does better when I switch it to his Dr. Browns bottles, so for now we are back with Dr. Browns bottles. I really don't get it. Perhaps I need a faster flowing nipple? But they both go at the same rate. I've tested it. I really don't get it. But what Evan wants right now he gets, especially when it comes down to eating. He's only 3 months. If he won't eat from the playtex dropins when he's hungry and just screams because he's hungry I will switch bottles if I need to. Maybe I should look into faster nipples though...I don't know.

I think he's also growing again. He's been sleepier than usual, and clingy as ever. He's gnawing on his hand on both sides of his mouth now, it use to only be the left side. He will sleep good every other night or so, then have a night of frequent wakings and fussiness. Like last night. He woke at 1 for a bit, then again at 5:30 and wouldn't go back to sleep. Until about 7. I followed along and slept for a bit.

Otherwise not much else. He's just Evan really. Next week on Sunday I fly out to California for my cousins wedding. We'll be out there for 2 weeks and fly back on the 14th. Flights from across the states take forever. I'm not looking forward to the long day. Luckily I have my new baby carrier so that part will be much more comfortable. I do plan on putting him in the stroller as well, but the carrier will work when he's at the "hold me now" point. Such a demanding baby...LOL!

He's in the Crib now

2009-10-15T00:03:10Z

I decided to see how it would go if I put him in the crib to sleep at night. I decided to do this because this morning when my hubbys alarm clock went off at 6:40 Evan woke up wide awake and would not go back to sleep. So maybe if he sleeps in his own room I'll get to sleep in a little longer. I'm a little sad about that because I really liked co-sleeping. But there is a time for everything and I think it will work out.

My thyroid levels are back down again. I took my morning body temperature and it was 97.3 yesterday and now today 97.0. That would explain why I'm so tired all the time now. Luckily I have an appointment with my doctor on the 10th of November. In some ways it feels way too far off, but I won't be able to raise my medication dose until then. I'll survive though, I lived with hypothyroid for sometime before it was caught.

I've been really lonely out here. I miss all my friends and being able to get a break from Evan now and again. In some ways I can't wait to be back in So Cal because I have friends and my family. Here I have Joe, which I do love (obviously) and I know that if he didn't work such long hours I wouldn't be lonely, but he does. I love the weekends though! If everyday were like the weekends or yesterday (he got home and 5:30 yesterday!) it would all be good. Although, if I had my car I'd certainly be able to get out and about more. That would be ideal and I wouldn't be as lonely. I could go to story time at the library with Evan and look for play groups in the area. I've heard the base has some. But unfortunately my wonderful and oh so missed car is in So Cal. It won't be coming out either because I'm going back to So Cal in February after Joe deploys in January. I do take walks around the neighborhood and that does really help. But my carrier for Evan is getting too stretched with him in it and he's not a big stroller fan. I plan on getting a new baby carrier really soon though.

Otherwise, not much else is going on. I currently have decided not to switch Evan to a different formula. This one is good and I really don't want to go through more "will it work" trials with him. He is indeed teething. I felt a tooth off to the left side of his mouth. He's drooling more as the week progresses and woke up from one nap crying and then sat there chewing on my finger when I gave it to him. Poor guy, luckily it's just one tooth for now. I'd give him cold cloths, but when I do he gets really mad. So I'll be getting some Highlands Teething Tablets and children's Motrin. I also want to get a Razaberry pacifier because he loves his pacifier and it's very chewable and textured.

That's it for now!

Update and would like opinions

2009-10-12T14:33:11Z

I called WIC and they don't provide Similac Sensitive because they don't have a contract with Similac. I mentioned that in California they provide whatever a doctor prescribes and the lady just said that it was New York and it's different here (very true on that). She suggested Soy formula and I said I have a major allergy to that and don't want it triggered in him. She then mentioned getting a prescription for Enfamil Nutramigen. That formual is a special allergy free formula that from what I've heard stinks big time.

So, what you do think? It would be free, but I'm not sure I want to switch him again. Sure it's an allergy free formula, but seriously is it worth it? Personally I think no, but Joe is semi interested but doesn't really care.

I swear, for the next baby I'm going to start taking Mothers Milk Tea capsuls and whatever else will increase breastmilk supply the moment I'm pregnant and well after they baby is born to make sure I have enough milk so I can breastfeed.

Well it was worth a shot

2009-10-11T13:42:17Z

So today Evan started spitting up a lot after he ate today. We had increased his Enfamil Gentlease dose in the bottle from 1 scoop of Enfamil to 2 scoops of Similac Sensitive to 2 scoops of Enfamil to 1 scoop of Similac Sensitive yesterday. He seemed fine yesterday but today I needed a towel to feed him. Then he was fussy after for a bit. So we're back on Similac Sensitive. WIC won't cover that either, but I'll call tomorrow anyways and see if I got a doctors note saying that is the only formula he does good on and if they'd have to give it to him too. But I'm not optimistic. I was reading the states approved formula and they listed all the formula they do, even ones prescribed by docotors and it wasn't on there. I refuse to do a Soy formula since I'm so allergic to soy and I don't want him to have that allergy or risk it being triggered.

Honestly, Similac smells so much better. Enfamil smelled so gross.

WIC

2009-10-06T16:11:26Z

So I went into WIC today and am all signed up. We almost didn't qualify because of our BAH (basic allowance for housing). But since they don't count that we did qualify that. I don't get any dairy options since I'm allergic to that. Too bad because Joe eats it. But they say the food is only for the mom. But he's more than welcome to eat some. I doubt I can eat 36 ounces of cereal in a month, but then again you never know...I could. I don't think he's a Kix fan though, that's the only gluten free cereal offered. Also, when I make beans or whatever he eats it too.

I decided to give Enfamil Gentlease a chance. I know it has some lactose in it, but it's free and maybe it will work. They won't give give me similac sensitive, even if it was prescribed by a doctor. So I'll try it out on him and see. I feel so bad for considering doing this. Especially after seeing how he did on Goodstart. But that had full lactose in it, this only has 30 percent. If it doesn't work at least I know what to look for (rash on face and major spitup) and I'll have a full canister of Similac Sensitive available to switch him back to in know time. I'm actually afraid to try it, but if it works it will save a ton of money.

This morning, Evan saved Joe by waking up after what I guess was a bad dream. I was putting him back down and looked at Joe's alarm clock and it said 6:45. It was dark for that time, but I woke him up anyways and pointed it out. But we discovered it was only 1:45. If it had been 6:45 he would have been really late for work and would have gotten in trouble. So Evan saved him!

Otherwise things are going good. I've decided to go back to CA when Joe deploys so that I have family and help. I can also work a couple days a week towards my license if I want. I'm glad I made the decision. I was talking with a friend and her mother in law is coming to stay with them during her husbands deployment. She said she couldn't do it otherwise.

Well I'm going to eat lunch now!

It has arrived

2009-09-28T00:01:12Z

My household items have all arrived and it seems like so much, but it isn't. Really, it barely covers 3 bedrooms, however I hate unpacking with a passion. And here I am in the army life and for all I know I'll be moving again in a few years. I think I'll continue to live with the bare minimum just to make it easier. But I'm determined to take it 1 box at a time starting tomorrow. I've unpacked a few today, but didn't do too much. Everything is everywhere. They packed the stuff sort of weird. Like right now, I can't find the swing seat and the plug so I can't put Evan in it yet. It's somewhere though.... I found the directions for how to put the bed together though! Hopefully Joe will do that tomorrow, he's working a 24 hours shift today. Then I'll ask him ever so politely with a hint of flirtiness to please move all the boxes from the garage to the dumpster some weekend soon. He's working a long week so I'll probably ask him to do it in 2 weeks. I bet I'll have everything unpacked by the end of the week. If Evan lets me that is.

Evan has become such a fussy baby lately. I think he's going through a growth spurt because he's eating and sleeping more again. Today he actually took 2 solid 3 to 4 hours naps. The last few weeks he only slept 2 hours for his naps. He's now eating 6 ounces too, before it was only 5. What's really annoying though, is that when I feed him he'll be really good until I burp him. Then when it's time for him to eat again after the burp he'll just fuss and fuss and fuss, it's like he doesn't know the bottle is in his mouth. But when I put the pacifier in there, he's good until he realizes no food is coming out of the pacifier. So we go back and forth between the bottle and the pacifier until he finally starts eating again. I swear, if there were a bottle with a pacifier shaped nipple, he'd be the happiest baby ever. Maybe he has nipple confusion, if so, that was a late onset. He's 2 months and was fine in the past. Maybe he's just that hungry though. Also, what I noticed is that he starts to fall asleep while eating and he hates that. Even before his naps he'll just fuss because he doesn't want to sleep, then falls asleep and takes that long nap. I hate growth spurts, they create cranky babies.

Anyways, despite what the icon is hinting at, I do love being a mom. But when I'm tired I sometimes feel that way (those on facebook will be unable to see icon, here's my website http://bluepolarbear.livejournal.com/). I love spending time with him and actually find his fussiness funny at times. He has a cute fussy face! I'll have to take a picture of it sometime. I want to stay at home with him and am thinking of trying for another one in a year. So yeah, despite everything and how hard it is to unpack with him around, I love him very dearly and this strange fussy phase will pass sooner than later. Maybe he'd do better with a silicon nipple...perhaps I will try the Dr. Browns wide neck bottle when I'm done packing on him again and see how he does. We have the latex nipple that came with the sample playtex drop in bottles. So yeah, that's it!

At Long Last

2009-09-23T16:58:38Z

We finally have internet here. I am so glad. It's not like I have much to do around here either since my car is still in Cali and if I wanted to use Joe's car I'd have to drive him to work at 6 in the morning and then pick him up whenever his day ends (it varies a lot). I hope to have my car here someday soon. In the mean time I've gotten to know Joe's old battle buddies wife and she has a 1.5 year old and offered to give me a ride to the Commissary on days she goes or any other place I may need to go, which is really nice. Joe might also get a 3 day weekend coming up here shortly and that will be nice too.

Watertown seems nice, small and lots of stop lights for such a small town too. It feels like it takes forever just to get across town, especially when Evan is crying. Redlands did not have this many stop lights, I swear. It had some, but not like this. The weather is cool and humid and I love how soft the water is. It tastes good without a filter too. Our apartment is pretty nice too. We live upstaires so no hearing the people above us like we did in the last apartment. It has 3 rooms, a kitchen, dining room, and a living room plus 2 bathrooms.

Evan seems to be adjusting fine. He's back to his old sleep schedule of going to bed at 7:30 and waking up once to eat around 4, then back down again. He smiles at Joe a ton, just won't eat for him. I guess it's because he's so busy staring at him. So I end up feeding him because he only eats about 2 ounces with Joe, he normally eats between 4 to 5 ounces. I need to get him more socks though, his 0-3 sized ones are too small so I'm going to get 6-9 so that he has room to grow into them. He won't sleep in the borrowed pack-n-play so he sleeps on the couch during the day and in our bed at night (like always). But he's now become a little scooter. If he's not close to me, he will somehow move himself right next to me at night. Then if I move him so I have room, he'll be back in no time. It's becoming very clear that he's a mama's boy (LOL!). There are times that Joe is holding him, he'll do great at first smiling and all, but after a bit he'll fuss until he's given to me.

The trip was long, so so long. Evan did great, really really great and didn't get fussy until we got to the ride home. He was tired, I was tired, and yeah, it was so long. I think I was irritable before he was. I wanted to slap every flight attendent that said I had to take Evan out of his carrier when we took off or landed. I don't have any idea as to why the baby needs to be removed from the carrier, in fact I think it would be safer because it acts like a seat belt. But no, I had to pull him out 2 times (1 on take off with one flight, the other on another flight while landing) while he was sleeping. On one flight I acted like I was asleep so they didn't tell me to remove him on landing. It was so inconsistent though, which is what is so annoying. My first flight no one bothered me about it at all. Then on the last one it was while we were taking off I was told to take him out. I had him in there for landing and no one said a thing. Yeah, anyways, that's my vent about the flights, they just never seemed to end.

Otherwise, not much else I can think of right now. I am going to go eat lunch now... I'll post more later. I'm just so happy to be with Joe again!

Only 1 week from tomorrow!

2009-09-09T04:41:23Z

The movers get here next Tuesday and then I fly out on Wednesday! What's really nice is that they army paid for all the travel and moving expenses. I can't wait. Only I won't get to see Joe right away because he'll be at a 3 day Field Training and will be getting back on Friday. There's a chance that he'll be allowed to pick me though, I hope he does! If not, he has arranged with a friend to pick me up. Apparently the movers have a date of October 7 to have the stuff at our place, but they'll most likely be early. I'm glad about that. Although, Joe got the stuff we needed from the Lending Closet, like a Portable Crib. Evan sleeps in a crib for nap, and in our bed at night. Then he also got some cookware, China, and Silverware. He also picked up the Baby Bundle Package today! I wanted to know what size the diapers were, but he hadn't opened it yet. I know Newborn sizes won't fit at all. He wears size 1. I guess I'll find out when I get out there. Evan is in cloth full time now though. Only he'll be in disposables on the 15th so I can wash the cloth and pack them. Then when we get out to NY he'll be put back in cloth. I already ordered a hanging wet bag for them too so that way I have a place to but them when wet and dirty.

We use the Gro-baby diapers. I have some doubts as to whether or not they'll fit when he's 20+ pounds, but a lot of moms have said they do. They are trimmer than other one size cloth diapers too. But the upside of the excess bulk is that his non-overall pants will now fit! Before they just fell off. There's a picture of him below in his lovely green ones! We have them in green and orange and there are enough to only have to wash every other day. I wouldn't want to go longer because then they just smell and there's more in the wash then and it would take awhile to dry. They have a purple and white shells and I've considered getting the white one. I heard they also will be coming out with other designs in September, but so far there aren't any. Personally Green and Orange are pretty good colors, white is just boring sometimes. If we have a girl next I'd consider getting purple. Oh, and his 0-3 onesies still fit! I thought they wouldn't. But he also fits his 6 and 9 month onesies with them on.

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I got to hang out with a friend of mine who has 2 boys and it's so nice to have a friend with kids near me. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy all my friends, even if they don't have kids. But talking with one who does have kids is just nice. We talk about kid related topics and I also got a whole bunch of second hand clothing in 12+ months from him. Included in that stack was also 2 warm winter outfits that will fit him well. We also got a warm car seat cover with room for his head to peak out so he will be a toasty baby in the car when it hits winter. I'm glad about that. There was also a snow hat and mittens in the stack! In total now, I have 3 snow suits that go up to 9 months, although the 0-3 and 3-6 seem like they are larger in size so they should fit for awhile. We also have one thick jacket and pants. 1 pair of large mittens, although the snow suits have them included on them, and a car seat cover. We also got 3 pairs of toddler shoes! I'm so grateful for the hand me downs that included lots of pants and shirts.

Otherwise, what else...Things are going well for me. I really can't wait to see my husband again. I've had some sleepless nighs lately, but I'm not sure if it's weather or a combination of stress over packing and excitement. I really hope he's not deployed until the end January. He thinks it would be good if I return to California in January after he deploys, but I told him I want to try and stick it out since it won't be the only time he's deployed. I do know though that I will be coming out in May for several months. I'll also be out for a week in November.

Anyways, here's a picture of Evan smiling! He was smiling really big before I took the picture so it's a bit of a faded smile, but still adorable! Oh, he said Dada once! I highly doubt he knew what it meant, but still, I can now say he said his first word at 8 weeks!

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It's Official

2009-09-01T17:15:21Z

I'm moving next week. I can't believe it. But since Joe already found a place they won't give him the 9 day TDY leave. But instead will send movers to pack everything and move it over while I'll fly out on Wednesday I think, or Tuesday or Thursday, one of those days. I'm actually rather nervous about this but excited too. My car will stay behind for a bit until someone drives it out for me. I love that car. After all, I bought it.

In some ways I'm glad it worked out like this. I was really not looking forward to the long drive with Evan. However, now we can't go visit his family. It has its up and downs. I can't wait to see Joe though. I wish he'd push for his paternity leave though. But he thinks that since they won't give him 9 days off to move they won't give him toe 10 day paternity leave. I really despise the army at times.

Ah

2009-08-28T01:01:07Z

I just feel like blogging right now. I can't seem to get into the book I'm reading right now, Blue Moon. I may start a different one instead. I bough Impossible, it seems like a really good book. I got it yesterday with some cash I had. Blue Moon is the sequel to Evermore, a pretty decent book. I twist on immortality in that it doesn't involve vampires but alchemy instead. I won't spoil it for others though. It's a good light read though! I just feel like reading a more deep book at this time.

It turns out that Similac Sensitive contains corn syrup and sucrose and those are the first two listed ingredients (I was staring at the ingredients one day). I thought that was strange and decided to switch him to Good Start Gentle Plus since that doesn't have that in it. Enfamil Gentle Ease didn't have the sucrose, but did have the corn syrup. So far he is doing good on the Good Start and hasn't had any complaints or bottle refusals. I'm happy about that. I suppose no formula is ideal, so to speak, and that you have to "choose your poison." So I might as wise choose the "poison" that has no corn syrup or sucrose in it. For all the formula hate out there, people really should consider the fact that when it comes down to it, there really is no difference between those who are and aren't formula fed. I still remember the mom that said her husband was breastfed and had tons of allergies and she was bottle fed and had no allergies.

Evan is becoming really talkative lately! He loves to say Ah, Gah, and a variety of other constants strung together. Yesterday when I took him out of the bath he looked at me and said "Ah" really loud, like he was a little upset about it ending. Then when I was dressing him, he said "Gah" really loudly, then a few seconds later started to cry. I've come to realize that Gah is his precursor to crying. I know when he's crying and upset, gah is always involved. Not so much with Ah. Nah is usually his I want to suck on something sound. I used to just be his hungry cry, but has developed into hungry, I want my paci, I want to be held, I'm tired, I'm wet, etc. It's frustrating decoding that cry. But usually if he's fed it's paci, out side of that it's just experimenting on getting his need met.

He is smiling some and I really want to catch it on film, but it's hard to. It comes at some of the strangest moments. Like when he's over my shoulder on the couch and staring at the back of it. He gets so excited sometimes I wonder what he sees in the material. Or when he's having play time on the floor. He does smile at me too, but I don't always have the camera.

Joe finished his Field Training today! I haven't talked to him yet, but the FRG lady at the base called and read the script about the couple return dates. I really really hope he calls and says he can be out here by next week. I miss him quite a bit and really want him and Evan to spend time together. I know it will be lonely out in New York since I have no family or friends out there, but I'm expecting to meet people. He will be working really late too...I don't know what to expect. But I'm sure I'm going to be having long and lonely days sometimes.

Sometimes I start to brielfely wonder about parenting alone come January when Joe leaves. As it is, it's hard for me to get a break in without my parents helping. I know Evan will be much older and well into his 6 months. But it's not like he won't need my constant supervision and need to be held. I know he also may not be sleeping through the night like he does now. It will also be the dead of winter there and it really snows out there. My dad tells me I should come stay here, but then who would take care of my plants at the apartment? I don't know about leaving it unattended until I return towards the end of August/beginning of September. But when I do start to think about it, I just tell myself I'll make the decision when the time comes. I mean really, I'm positive I can parent alone and maintain my sanity at the same time! I may have days of insanity, but come night, if I can get at least 4 hours in a row I'm sure I'll be fine.

Ouside of that, not much else. Working on staying positive about the future and just taking it day by day.

Life in this Past Week with Random Thoughts

2009-08-23T05:41:31Z

Things have been going pretty well for me. I realized that this coming week will be the last week of Field Training for Joe and I can't wait to talk to him again. I don't think he brought his cell phone and I bet he's been so busy he hasn't had a chance to call. He had lost his wedding band several weeks ago and I finally replaced it with a different one that can be re-sized if needed. He said his previous was too big after all the training, but I couldn't remember what size it was and he apparently forgot to stop by a jewelery store to size his ring finger so I just got him a 10 and the jeweler was really nice and said she would be able to size it down or up before we left for New York if needed. It's a nice ring and I made it clear to him that he could not wear it while physically training at work on a text message. I then mentioned that we could get him a cheap ring to wear while out there. I do hope I get to hear from Joe really soon. I miss him a lot and can't wait to be with him again.

Just recently I found out I can tolerate goat milk products! I'm thrilled about that as I would like a good source of calcium and even some fat. Right, who would ever say they would like some extra fat in their diet? Well I do, especially since I have such a restricted diet. I do find the taste a bit strange, but I'm sure I'll get used to it much like I did with rice milk products. My dad said he was going to buy some lactose free milk for me and I could see if I was ok with it. For some reason I doubt it though because when I had lactose intolerance I reacted in my stomach. But after going Gluten Free the lactose intolerance cleared, but I would still have sinus problems after I ate dairy. So I do think it's an allergy to dairy from cows, but I'll give it a chance. I won't know unless I try.

In the parenting arena, Evan has made it very clear he prefers the playtex drop in bottles over Dr. Browns after our week long camping trip of only Playtex bottles. I think it's because the nipple on it isn't silicone and it is more skin like and wide. Also, the air in the drop in bottles gets pushed out. I wasn't too thrilled about that because the drop ins cost money. But I was at Target yesterday I saw that they had an off brand of the playtex drop ins for only 5.75. I thought the count was 50 like the playtex ones, but it's 100! That is such a deal and they are the same as the playtex brand that runs around 7.97 for only 50. The only thing is they aren't the expandel 10 ounce version, but I didn't like those anyways. I highly doubt I'll ever feed Evan 10 ounces at once. The other preferance he has made clear is that he likes the Nuk pacifiers over the other brand we had.

Evan has also grown even more. He now is almost out stretched of his 0-3 outfits. The only thing is that he isn't wide enough for the pants in that range. So while he's long, he's skinny. I'm going to have to get him overalls to wear because in NY he'll need pants and the only pants that did fit waist wise was his newborn sized ones, but he's got longer legs than the pants have. Next week I'll be going to Carter's to get some 3-6 and 6-9 overalls and sleepers. I'm also going to go through a friends baby clothes and see if there are any I want (I'm sure there will be).

Today I was considering his formula (Similac Sensitive) and wondering if I should switch him to organic, but I don't know if I want to switch him when he's doing fine on this one. I just want him to have the best and this current one has corn syrup as a carb. I know that on the Similac Advanced Early Shield (no corn syrup) he started out fine, but after a week he was having a lot of gas problems, constipation, and would spit up a ton several hours after he ate. I felt so bad for him. Maybe when he gets older, like around 6 months, I'll switch him to it again. But yeah, if I switch him he will have to learn to digest something else and for all I know he'll have problems with it and we'll have to deal with a fussy baby wondering if it will pass after the 2 week initial adjustment period. Typing this out and thinking about it more makes me say No.

There are so many things they say not to do and to do with babies, it's overwhelming and annoying. Like the people that say don't put them to sleep on their belly. Well that was the one position Evan slept the best in and so I put him down that way. He has great head control and turns his head from side to side and lifts it pretty high, especially when searching for his paci at night. Then they say not to bottle feed, not to co-sleep, not to cover them, not to hang toys from the carseat etc. It's just insane. Then you look at the playgrounds they are slowly tearing down due to "safety" issues. I think they are going a little too far. I have no doubt that some of the things they say not to do have helped like seat belts, helments, safer carseats, and safer cribs as well as safety settings on formula. But I think some of those should be on an individual basis after they look at the child first.

I mean really, what playground is fun without swings? And remember teeter totters, I loved those things, especially pretending I'm surfing on them. Sure there were a few accidents on them but I certianly never heard of anyone dying from it. Oh, and merry go rounds! I had fun on those. Metal slides are personally the best slide out there too, you could go fast down those! Those plastic slides are practically nothing and just produce static. Evan is really going to miss out on those if they keep tearing down swings, slides, teeter totters, and you know I bet the next thing will be monkey bars because you could fall (rolls eyes). I fear the day that recess may only consist of walking in laps because anything more excessive could lead to a cut. But wait, even walking can lead to an injury. Maybe we should all live in boxes and never move. I suppose I should end my rant.

Anyways, that's about it. It's getting late and I should go to bed. Evan decided that last night would be the night he wakes up every 4 hours. I hope he doesn't do that tonight. I really liked him sleeping up to 6 hours.