lolabot

ch-ch-changes

2012-01-10T21:22:00.004-07:00

I've gone and moved over to www.erinbeedle.com.

It's basically the same, but with more Sean :)

8 months

2011-05-22T19:26:00.005-06:00

as if we didn't already have our hands full with this wiggle worm, henry's decided recently that asleep or awake doesn't matter anymore. he's kicked his way off the bed in the middle of the night (luckily the bed is only about a foot off the ground), and he's rolled off his changing mat (again, only a few inches, thank goodness). if we leave him for more that 5 seconds he's across the room. and he's not even crawling yet! he rolls, he wriggles, he scoots, and if he's within arms reach of anything sturdy you better believe he's standing up. he has no downtime. no off button. no quiet reflections. just GO GO GO.

his teeth finally quit bothering him (until next time), and with that the fevers and snot fests disappeared.

we've been trying to take the kids on hikes every weekend, but the weather hasn't been cooperating lately. we did have great weather on mother's day and got some good exploring in.

sean and i also attended his last army prom a few weeks ago. the last time he gets to dress up in his fancy pants and drink too much with his army pals. being my first such event, i was a little shocked at how seriously all the army wives take this sort of thing. it really was like prom. big puffy dresses and crazy hair and me in my little black dress that i can still breastfeed in. i was really only there for the cheesecake (god, the cheesecake...). sean tried to steal someone's sword. it didn't work out, unfortunately. oh, army hi-jinks :) only 18 days left!!

easter and things.

2011-04-24T08:50:00.005-06:00

things have been hectic lately. just last night we went to see David Sedaris, and made it home in time for Sean to go back out for a concert. and the weekend before we saw Justin Townes Earle and The Decemberists. on top of that i'm back working full time, which is pretty miserable. the job itself is fine, just being away from home so much is driving me crazy. i feel like i don't have time to do anything.

Sean got a job at a guitar store (Colorado Guitar Emporium...it sounds so fancy!), and is enrolled at UCCS for the summer semester. only 6 more weeks of army! yay!

yesterday we had a pretty good time explaining Easter to Logan (if you're good- easter bunny, if you're bad-zombie jesus eats your brains), and coloring eggs. it was amazing watching him come upstairs this morning with a handful of eggs he'd found in his room. he was SO excited.

Henry is pretty oblivious to the whole thing, and is probably tired of me putting bunny ears on him and taking pictures. he's been sniffly and snotty for a few weeks and has 2 brand new teeth, so he's been pretty crabby lately. we love him just the same :)

6 months!

2011-03-26T12:27:00.002-06:00

making things

2011-03-20T18:49:00.004-06:00

so i got a pretty good deal on some prints this week... trouble was picking out pictures to get printed! our walls are already mostly covered, and we have hard copies of the good shots already, so i decided to do something a little different:

click on image to see larger

sean got home last week, finally! yay! it's been great having him back. he got a new Vonnegut tattoo yesterday. it's so pretty!

henry has been eating like a little piglet. right now it's mostly peas and bananas, and last night we successfully introduced sweet potatoes! i have a lot of fun watching him try things. someone let him try cream cheese last week and it blew his mind.

peas!

2011-02-27T13:48:00.006-07:00

updates

2011-02-25T12:34:00.004-07:00

well, i seem to be seriously falling behind on keeping up here... and there really isn't anything too terribly exciting to mention. work has been great. henry and i managed to get away for a few days and he took his first two airplane rides (one good, one not so good). sean should be home in the next 7-14 days (thank you, army, for killing me with anticipation).

henry is now a whopping 5 months old. he's become VERY interested in real food, and sean was awesome and ordered us a food processor and these little doohickey's to get the ball rolling. i've been reading Feeding Baby Green, and i got a little baby recipe book, and we're going to just go ahead and skip the whole rice cereal/jarred baby food hoopla and get down to business with some good old fashioned organic green veggies! yay! i'm pretty excited about the whole thing, not to mention the money we'll save by just feeding him what we're eating anyway. but i'll stop there before i get preachy...

he's got two tiny teeth that want to come in, but have yet to break through. and he's painfully close to sitting up on his own, though he seems more eager to stand and that frightens me. time to break out the baby gate. he's still not sleeping through the night (and it irritates me to no end that it's the first thing people ask, and look at me like i'm a horrible mother when i have to say "no, he's not"), but he's finally got a more pleasant personality and he's constantly doted on by strangers at the store who comment that he's such a good and/or happy baby! i agree! he likes to try to eat the books when i'm reading to him, and he still likes to give me hickeys (one on the neck the other day... didn't even notice it until i got to work), loves taking baths and just yesterday he graduated to the medium sized gdiapers! woo-hoo! he sings and talks and makes little noises. sometimes big noises too.

in a nutshell, things will be perfect just as soon as sean sets his ridiculously mustachioed face back on colorado soil.

4 months.

2011-02-01T14:08:00.002-07:00

it's been a quiet few weeks around here, but henry and i have been holding down the fort. he turned 4 months old last week, and when we went to the doctor today for his checkup he was officially diagnosed as "perfect and petite." i laughed out loud.

it's cold today. and not, like, colorado cold. it's COLD. the high temp today is still a negative number. the windchill right now is -32˚. in the time it took to walk from my car to the house, my snot froze. COLD.

next week henry and i are heading to oklahoma so he can get better acquainted with his grandparents, aunties, cousins, visiting friends, and perhaps i can spend some time using both hands for a change. i'm anxious for his first airplane ride... i don't want him to be the baby that everyone complains about. maybe he'll sleep through it... fingers crossed.

2011-01-18T12:32:00.002-07:00

he cracks me up.

2011-01-11T13:53:00.003-07:00

today is the day. or, rather, tomorrow is the day. but today is the last day we're all together before sean deploys.

thank goodness it's only for a few months, and then just a short time beyond that and he'll be army-free for good! we're all looking forward to that day, but for now henry and i are on our own for a bit.

holidays!

2010-12-31T09:18:00.009-07:00

christmas, logan's birthday, and all the snow we've gotten on new year's eve (not to mention my obsession with a particular iphone app):

12 weeks.

2010-12-19T14:18:00.003-07:00

we're finally getting snow! yesterday it was snowing while the sun was out- it looked like someone was dumping glitter over the mountains. beautiful.

we're getting prepared to be sans sean for a few months. he's supposed to be deployed around january 11th, but they keep changing it, so we don't know for sure. i'm pretty freaked out at the thought of not having him here. i'll be going back to work, though, so hopefully i'll stay busy.

i've been working at the frame shop a few days this month to help get them through the christmas rush. of course being there just makes me want to frame everything in sight. i made a collage frame for santa photos the other day... i used some of the christmas cards we've gotten as place holders for future photos. i think it's pretty fantastic, plus it was completely free! they gave me the frame, glass, and backing from an old sample at the shop, and i used some scrap mat from the giveaway pile.

i did some clothes organization in henry's room today. he's grown out of most of his 3 month clothes, so i packed it all up for next time around. and between logan's hand-me-downs and our neighbor's 2 little boys, we have a full wardrobe for henry through 3T.

10 weeks

2010-12-08T09:04:00.002-07:00

we found out a few days ago that sean will be heading back to iraq next month. pretty unpleasant news, but he should only be gone around 3 months. bleh.

so very very thankful...

2010-11-25T12:18:00.006-07:00

8 weeks!

2010-11-23T16:24:00.003-07:00

just a few pics from this week, and a video for your entertainment...

7 weeks old...

2010-11-17T21:08:00.004-07:00

we're finally getting more of these:

the youngest beedle has officially outgrown his newborn clothes (including one tiny pair of shoes), and has become slightly less grumpy. we get several smiles a day now, and he's started cooing and making the most lovely noises. also, his head is gigantic.

Henry's first art opening.

2010-11-13T12:08:00.003-07:00

artwork by Troy DeRose.
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2010-11-09T12:10:00.002-07:00

every day his hair gets a bit more red. sean's freaking out at the thought of a red-headed boy, but i love it.

it'll probably all disappear and turn black or something. i'm good with that too.

happy halloween!

2010-10-30T08:41:00.002-06:00

2010-10-25T08:57:00.004-06:00

we had a fantastic weekend with my parents, sisters and nieces! henry got to be social for the first time, i got to take a shower without him screaming through it for the first time, and his belly button cord thing FINALLY fell off!

kimber, henry

dad, mom
@ garden of the gods

sean, mom, keri, catherine, kimber, jill, dad
@ dutch kitchen

i'm counting the minutes!

2010-10-20T10:12:00.003-06:00

woohoo! family invasion tomorrow! of course, i left all the cleaning up and laundry for today... and this is how i plan to get it done:

the little fella doesn't like to be left alone, so he gets to come with me... up and down the stairs :) i also have some etsy orders that HAVE to get out today. hellloooooo procrastination!

2010-10-19T16:31:00.002-06:00

today i got to discover for myself just how much attention tiny babies attract in public. henry and i spent 3 lazy hours in the waiting area of the hospital on base today (nothing serious, just a bad bladder and a timing issue), and on several occasions we were the subject of prying eyes at awkward moments. in particular, the lady in the restroom who was so enthralled while i was changing his diaper that she hovered over me and talked to me the entire time AS IF SHE WERE HENRY. um.. weird.

also, learned in that same bathroom trip that i basically have to give up my right to pee in public if someone's in the handicapped stall. car seats don't fit in regular stalls without some serious maneuvering.

almost perfect.

2010-10-12T19:35:00.003-06:00

snow on the peak. and a crapload of it.
soup on the stove.
a husband that's finally home.
an infant that's been asleep for over 3 hours.
a breast pump that doesn't feel like it's ripping my nipples off.
a package today full of some of the best things on earth.

xoxo

lone weekend.

2010-10-11T09:39:00.002-06:00

so henry and i managed to survive 3 1/2 days all by ourselves while sean went to south dakota for a wedding. i still haven't figured out how to get ANYTHING done without him here, since henry has to be ON us if he's sleeping, and nursing if he's awake. it makes my mandatory bed rest easy to accomplish, but laundry... not so much. or eating. or feeding the dog. or going to the bathroom. i just have an entirely new respect for single moms. no idea how you do it without going insane.

week one: overview.

2010-10-08T08:01:00.003-06:00

my new favorite picture ever:

things have been going.... okay? smoothly? as you might expect? i mean, there's a brand new baby here. one that had to wait 5 super unpleasant days for my milk to come in. one that now seems to be surgically attached to my boobs. i sleep in 2 hour allotments, and i have to time my showers ever so carefully. and even then it seems like as soon as my hand touches the shampoo bottle it sets off some kind of alarm only babies can hear, and it usually turns into feverishly hair washing and guilt ridden showers. because even if i COULD just jump right out and grab the little papoose, the only thing i'd accomplish is getting him wet too. i'm guessing he wouldn't like that so much.

anyway.

i'm also dealing with postpartum hypertension, which is awesome. basically i'm not supposed to get out of bed aside from changing diapers or mixing up a protein shake. we had to make a trip up to the hospital yesterday to try and get our hands on some (really effing important) paperwork that they neglected to give us a copy of (long story short: the 300 year old woman in the records dept had no idea what we were talking about, and ended up giving us a copy of our birth plan. OUR BIRTH PLAN. the one that WE gave to THEM. ugh.), and when we got home my blood pressure was 150/108. not so great. back to bed.

so that's my life. changing diapers. shooting milk out of my boobs. laying in bed watching Intervention. hating the army for keeping sean from being here all the time. anticipating the day i'm allowed to go to the store to pick up milk without having to find someone to drive me there. seriously, i have a whole new outlook on these people who WANT c-sections.... they are mentally handicapped.

luckily, i get lots of little moments like the one pictured. i get secret smiles from henry while he's sleeping, and they're so cute it breaks my heart.

the grand entrance

2010-10-02T19:16:00.003-06:00

our first few days together...

just a thought.

2010-10-01T16:03:00.004-06:00

so, this whole labor and delivery thing has been a little rough on me. yes, it turned out fine, and i have a super fantastic little boy that i get to stare at and make faces with and who makes me almost unbearably happy. however... to get there i had to (quite unwillingly) cave in and do a bunch of things that i was really uncomfortable with. they were not easy decisions to make. i'm incredibly lucky that i had such a strong support system to help me through it.

however.

having a baby is emotional enough, even when things go exactly as planned. the last thing anyone needs is to hear things that make them feel like they've failed. over the last few days, i've had to hold myself back while being told:

"you really just don't have any other options. it would be a waste of energy to keep going"
"home births never really work out anyway"
"that's a really lousy decision, but i can see you've made up your mind"
"i just don't have time to take you [to feed him]"
"all the nurses joke- the longer the birth plan, the more likely you are to have complications"
"you probably won't get your placenta back"

sadly, i could keep going. but i'm not going to, because i also had 2 particularly amazing nurses that made me feel like i could do anything. and thank goodness for them, otherwise i most likely would have been a complete wreck (as opposed to the partial wreck i am right now).

today i got to bring the monkey home. it's taking everything in me to not kiss him raw.

henry is cantankerous.

2010-09-29T14:49:00.003-06:00

we've been through a lot in the last few days. sleeping is not on that list.

51 hours of labor.
2 trips to the hospital.
water that wouldn't break.
cervix that wouldn't dilate.
a baby trying to come out sideways, getting himself stuck.
fever.
and finally, an emergency c section.

not at all how i expected things to go, but it happened, and i ended up with the most lovely little fella. we're all doing fine. logan is scared of him. more, better pictures this weekend when we're allowed to go home.

henry clarence beedle
7lbs, 13oz
21 1/4" long
9/28/10 10:37pm

museum day

2010-09-26T09:05:00.004-06:00

yesterday was museum day! we took the opportunity to go to a couple places that i've been wanting to see since i moved here, since it was free and all...

our first stop was the May Natural History Museum. the name is a bit misleading, because all they really have are bugs. even the road marker to find them is a giant bug. it was a big room full of really old, really dead, and mostly really GIGANTIC bugs- making me decide that i never ever ever want to go to New Guinea. Ever. and the flying foxes? not as cute as it sounds. just scary. the bug museum also included a 12 minute "movie" (national geographic film from 1979), and a "space museum," which i didn't bother to photograph since it was 3 interlocking trailers in the middle of the cheyenne mountain state park filled with posters about space, and a star trek diorama.

i think the strangest thing was how many posters there were of dinosaurs in BOTH the bug and space parts of the museum.

our second stop was the Miramont Castle in Manitou. it was pretty cool, but not as exciting as i had anticipated. it was just full of neat victorian era furnishings, and logan threw a fit because they had lollipops in the gift shop that we weren't going to buy. the basement was a firefighters museum, of sorts, so at least he got to enjoy that :)

we ended the day, of course, at the dutch kitchen. yum yum yum.

i got a ton of walking (and stair climbing) in, and even tried out the birth pool when we got home. i really want to buy one to just have. it's the best.

eat, pee, sleep.

2010-09-25T04:44:00.003-06:00

why am i awake at 4:45am? oh, right... cause i had to eat. again. it's funny how everyone says to get your rest before the baby comes, cause then you'll never get any sleep- but seriously, i haven't slept in months. i get up no less than 5 times each night to either eat, pee, or both. and when i'm in bed there's only one position i'm allowed to lay in. i have to say, it's really not that comfortable anymore. i want to sleep on my right side! or my back! or my stomach! or standing up if i could! sleepwalking would be even better, since then at least i'd be moving around and wouldn't hurt so much.

the only good thing about this middle of the night crap is that ingrid always gets up with me. she waits by the door to follow me into the kitchen and keeps me company while i make my snack. she snuggles and purrs while i eat, and walks me back to the bedroom. it's quite sweet.

and with that, i'll shut up for the day. back to bed for 2 hours, until i wake up with hunger pains so severe that i feel like i'll vomit if i don't get up RIGHT THEN. and by that point everyone else will be up, so i'll feel bad if i go back to bed after.

can hardly wait.

2010-09-23T17:27:00.002-06:00

while i completely accept the fact that i might not have this baby for another week, that doesn't mean i can't wish and hope and jump rope, perhaps... right? i've been trying to tell him all day how perfect today would be to get it done. not only am i READY, but it's the first day of fall. and a full moon. and the weather has been lovely and cool. also, every time sean walks through the door the first thing he says is "are you having a baby?" with this hopeful look, and seems so disappointed when i say "nothing yet."

now... as i type this, he just called me a "gorgeous engorged shit blossom." so i don't feel bad for disappointing him anymore.

2010-09-22T15:19:00.003-06:00

keeping myself busy today with more hat and cowl making, filling the birth pool, and eating my leftover thai. had an appointment this morning where i learned that i've lost 1 pound this week (still, 41 pounds gained...), and i began taking evening primrose oil to help soften things up.

i. am. ready.

(this cowl is my favorite so far)

goodbye due date.

2010-09-21T08:18:00.003-06:00

had some contractions last night- 10 minutes apart for a couple hours, but they slowed and eventually stopped by this morning. back to waiting...

been a little cowl crazy the last few weeks. going to try to get some different things in the shop while i have some time off work. but today... today i need to finish sean's fox bandit hat :)

hello due date.

2010-09-20T13:16:00.003-06:00

and we're still waiting. big and droopy and patient.

i've got a grand total of 5 stretch marks, all in a row at the bottom. it looks like henry's trying to claw his way out :)

zoo!

2010-09-18T16:07:00.001-06:00

feeding the giraffes was the best part.

almost almost...

2010-09-17T19:14:00.003-06:00

i've gone ahead and made some big (yet changeable) plans for the next week, just in case little henry decides to take his sweet time. perhaps one of our adventures will coax him out...

tomorrow we're going to the zoo (it's on cheyenne mountain, so i've got elevation and lots of walking on my side)

monday i have another appointment with my chiropractor.

after that, i have acupressure and super hot thai food on my to-do list.

if all this fails, i guess i'm not too worried about having a little extra free time to get things done around the house before he arrives. get some reading done. hang out with logan before he's officially a big brother. work on my etsy shop. shave the cat.

39 weeks, 4 days.

2010-09-16T17:47:00.002-06:00

at our appointment with the midwife today, she was all excited because she's had 3 births in the last 5 days.

and guess who's next on the list...

MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!

one more day of work. seriously considering a fake water-breaking incident to get out of it.

38/39 weeks

2010-09-11T12:58:00.002-06:00

we went kite flying in lieu of naps today. for those of you familiar with Frog an Toad, we did in fact have to run and jump and say "up, kite, up!"

only one more week of work! i am far too excited about this fact.

38 weeks.

2010-09-06T18:43:00.007-06:00

I went a little nuts today, and after doing some hardcore grocery and hobby lobby shopping (where logan announced to the entire store that his daddy is white...) we came home and i cleaned like a maniac, painted and hung a shelf for the bathroom, potted 5 plants, did 3 loads of laundry, and rearranged henry's room so that we'll have room for the birth pool (arriving this week!). i also attempted to crochet a hat for logan and failed miserably.... you could fit 2 adults in that thing.

i bought some plaster and am going to do my best to make a belly cast tonight. i got enough for a couple of tries, just in case...

i found this book at the thrift store the other day. i've actually been looking for a copy of it for over 10 years... it was a staple at our house when i was little and this is the first time i've ever been able to find it anywhere. i nearly peed myself.

colorado balloon classic

2010-09-04T17:38:00.005-06:00

we got up at 5 this morning to go see the mass ascension of hot air balloons once more. it was amazing, as always. logan loved it.

sean, logan, michael, dakota, michelle, lucas, jessica, robert

logan and dakota are bff

sean and his dream of being on the pikes peak powered paraglider team...

2010-09-01T19:49:00.002-06:00

gained 7 pounds in 14 days. gigantic.

busy busy.

2010-08-28T13:56:00.005-06:00

So i'm officially "full term" now... which is strange. The fact that henry could be born any day is thrilling and a bit scary at the same time. But we're totally ready. Sean even brought home a rocking chair the other day, and i went a little nutso at babies r us yesterday... to say the kid will be well swaddled is definitely an understatement.

We took a little outing to the dog park this morning... i'm not sure who's more worn out- i think logan did as much running as sock did. And i haven't done that much walking at one time in quite a while, but it felt really good. Probably could have stayed longer, but my bladder just couldn't take it :)

One thing i know for sure: i am SO ready for fall.

36 weeks.

2010-08-21T15:53:00.005-06:00

today we bought all the supplies we might possibly need for the home birth. it was an incredibly long list, but i feel better now knowing that if i happen to go early we are completely prepared.

my shingles are just about gone, and the pain is down to that of a minor sunburn. no one has broken out in chicken pox yet, but i'm keeping my fingers crossed that no one will.

in general, i'm just exhausted. my feet look like potatoes with little sausage toes, and sean calls my belly button a "tummy anus." my maternity shirts are too small, none of my maternity pants are comfortable anymore, and my shoes have been stolen and replaced with ones that will never fit my feet. i've taken to wearing dresses and leggings pretty much all the time. if only i could wear sandals to work...

but aside from all that i'm feeling pretty good!

2010-08-17T14:57:00.001-06:00

There's nothing like a shingles breakout to make you forget all your other aches and pains....

8.15.10

2010-08-16T16:05:00.003-06:00

sean and his chickens.

sock, sean, logan. matchy matchy.

michelle and michael

matt, lindsay, nate, leah

sean, lily

complete!

2010-08-08T08:48:00.004-06:00

bigger

in other news: one little monkey jumping on the bed. he fell off and broke his head. but it wasn't anything some cereal and a hug couldn't cure :)

2010-08-07T21:55:00.000-06:00

today we learned that skating is hard.

other things i managed to accomplish today:

12 loads of laundry
mounting new curtain rod and hanging new curtains
assembling a bookshelf
hanging up ALL of henry's clothes (i went through >80 hangers...)
organizing everything
reorganizing everything.
re-reorganizing everything
sewing 2 strips of bunting
hanging bunting
hanging pictures

and now his room is finished! i'll take pictures tomorrow.

oh, henry.

2010-08-04T17:50:00.003-06:00

a raging firestorm of heartburm, a gigantic and cumbersome belly that's growing to the tune of 2.5 lbs/week, feet that smell like dog farts (i should have just let the dog take the blame for that one), rings that don't fit on fingers, ankles that fled weeks ago, hip bones that feel in no way connected to the rest of my body, and a whirlwind of random shooting pains.

luckily, it's for a good cause. less than 2 months to go!

getting things done.

2010-07-25T12:33:00.003-06:00

a few of the projects i've been working on in the last few weeks. unfortunately, the blanket is the only thing that's actually finished at this point.

i got a new camera.

2010-07-24T16:54:00.001-06:00

now you can all see how gigantic i've become :) 32 weeks.

2010-07-19T20:18:00.003-06:00

me: you wanna tell me what happened to the klondike bars?

him: ...there was a home invasion.

2010-07-18T09:06:00.002-06:00

so i finally taught myself how to crochet a hat. i decided to give in yesterday after i found this adorable newsboy hat (size newborn), and couldn't justify paying someone else $40 for it when i knew i was perfectly capable of doing it myself. it took me all of 45 minutes to make. and it's the cutest thing i've ever seen in my life. Henry is going to have a drawer full of hats.

2010-07-17T16:14:00.003-06:00

i just experienced the first professional massage of my life (thank you leah!!!), and while it was wonderful and relaxing and left me feeling wobbly (in a good way), i have to say the very best part was the special pillow with the tummy-hole cut out, allowing me to lay comfortably on my stomach for the first time in 6 months. awe. some.

also, there's this :)

it's going to be simple and small. in fact, the only thing i'm planning for ahead of time is pie from the dutch kitchen. wedding pie. yum!

2010-07-10T09:03:00.005-06:00

i finally put my gift cards to good use last night... made a special trip out to the super target and nearly everything that was on my "must have before henry is born- no exceptions" list was on clearance! hooray! i hesitated on a few items, thinking we still have plenty of time to get some of these things... and then i had to stop and think. because no, i don't have a heap of time left. only 10 weeks until my due date! though, realistically, more like 11+ weeks. but still. that is very very close. close enough that i'm starting to freak out a little, but in a good way. but at least i have about 75% of the must-haves checked off the list, and most of the will-need-eventuallys.... and too much to count of the it's-adorable-and-i-have-to-have-it-right-nows. unfortunately, henry doesn't even have a room of his own for about 4 more weeks, so our living room and basement look like babies-r-us threw up all over them.

i've also been frantically working on bedroom/party decorations; bunting, paper chains, origami cranes, etc...

i would love to post some pictures of all my in-progress projects, but all of the digital cameras in this house are out-of-service at the moment, and i'm running dangerously low on polaroid stock to shoot things willy nilly. it makes me sad, but i knew the day would come :) but hopefully i'll have a new camera soon, and i'll be able to start documenting again!

it's very nice.

2010-07-01T18:38:00.005-06:00

if there's one thing i never tire of, it's kurt vonnegut. and my feelings today (or rather, my feelings of late) can be summed up in this little gem right here:

I urge you to please notice when you are happy, and exclaim or murmur or think at some point, 'If this isn't nice, I don't know what is.'

there's been this bubble of excitement building in my belly (and i'm not just referring to the actual bubble in the belly), and it continues to grow. constantly. and things have never been nicer.

home again

2010-06-25T14:04:00.003-06:00

i am exhausted! i knew that getting re-acclimated to the elevation would be harder than normal this time around, but i didn't expect to be completely worthless. oh well. we had a super fantastic vacation, and it's wonderful to be home... even if i can't get up. to make things even more exciting, since the moment we entered colorado Henry has not stopped wiggling. something gave him a little jump-start and he went from 10-20 movements/day to "hey, i'm gonna see how many cartwheels i can do without throwing up!" he's been cartwheeling for 24 hours.

i have a bazillion photos to post, only a few of which i've managed to get up on flickr so far. i shot a few rolls of 35mm, so i'll have to get off my tush and have them developed at some point...

2010-06-15T06:43:00.003-06:00

sean and i had yesterday off work and were able to get pretty much everything done in preparation for our BIG TRIP. haha. to oklahoma. but, still...

the last few weeks have been a blur of chiropractor appointments and bradley classes and other random activities, and it had felt like forever since we had seen Dotti... but our appointment yesterday was awesome. we had made a lot of pretty big decisions about henry since the last time we saw her, and it was wonderful to tell her and see her face light up. we also got a shit-ton of info to do more research on, and got to hear him hiccuping :)

then i took sean to a little dutch bakery... and pretty much nothing matters after that :)

tonight: the mountain goats in denver!
friday: oklahoma!

2010-06-08T06:50:00.004-06:00

we attended a lovely wedding last weekend!

they had a doughnut cake with polaroid cake toppers...

sean, singing some michael jackson.

2010-06-06T14:03:00.004-06:00

i did my first real bit of exercise today for the first time in about 6 months. we went and got my bike fixed with high hopes of a nice leisurely ride this afternoon. yeah. i lasted about 10 minutes. will try again tomorrow, for sure.

i finally finished the little mobile i've been working on for Henry. pretty pleased with how it turned out. the lightning bolt was sean's contribution :)

we're starting our bradley classes tonight- pretty excited!

2010-05-31T19:26:00.003-06:00

again, this has been a seriously productive weekend! my desktop is full with all the polaroids i've managed to shoot, and i got caught up with henry's baby book, started a mobile for him, filled a few etsy orders, finally bought a swimsuit, and made a new brooch to go with my outfit for a wedding we're attending next weekend. it feels so nice to get things accomplished!

2010-05-30T10:05:00.004-06:00

i have to admit, this holiday weekend is shaping up quite nicely.

yesterday we took sock for a super long walk to get out of the heat of the house. 90˚ with no a/c isn't a heap of fun, but at least it was breezy outside. then we hit up the thrift store and hobby lobby, and came home with arms full of crafty goodness, a polaroid spectra camera (that actually works, finally!), 60 rolls of expired 35mm (at 20¢/roll, i couldn't pass it up), new clock parts for mr. owl clock, and a pile of baby clothes! then spent the evening eating crappy chinese and watching henry poke out of my belly.

today is about sleeping in, gardening, crafting, and hopefully hitting up the photobooth in manitou (and perhaps, while we're there, enjoying a slice of pistachio chocolate pie...)

i think the best part of all is that i still get to sleep in tomorrow, too. hooray for long weekends! now if only we had a pool... and a picnic!

2010-05-28T09:51:00.002-06:00

I got my new external hard drive this week. finally. 1.5TB of bliss.... which led to the exchange:

him: does anyone really need 15 gigs of futurama?

me: I do, obviously.

my computer is all backed up now and I'm ready to start going through stacks and stacks of photo cds. helloooooo holiday weekend!!

also, I'm being featured on a supercool little blog this week!

http://analliteration.blogspot.com/2010/05/133-unofficial-etsy-featured-seller.html

woohoo!

time to switch gears

2010-05-24T19:52:00.004-06:00

extremely healthy. extremely male. fun times!

23 weeks.

ugh.

2010-05-17T17:32:00.002-06:00

my insurance company contracted out someone to investigate my emergency room claim because the hospital listed it as "back pain." they called today to find out who caused the accident that injured my back so that they could file a claim with their insurance.

sorry guys, you can't sue my fetus. i'm the only one allowed to do that.

fancy.

2010-05-15T12:33:00.003-06:00

for the first time in months i feel not only really good, but like i'm productive again.

i re-activated my etsy shop, added some new items (with more to be added soon), changed the header, and already made 2 sales this morning!

i read a book this week, too. The Neon Bible. very highly recommended, if you happen to be interested in what i've been calling a softer version of Catcher in the Rye.

i made myself a new little scarflet, and i finally finished the blanket i've been working on for my niece (since october, or something stupid).

we got a new app on the iphone, finger physics. addictive and infuriating and completely AWESOME.

i started working on the baby book. got all of the sonograms into little plastic sleeves, and since i feel better, i managed to find nice things to write about.

we went and registered for all the fun baby things at target and babies r us, which was pretty exciting.

Logan is back for the weekend, so we've been playing and shopping and now we're off to a birthday party. yay!

2010-05-05T18:17:00.001-06:00

i wasn't trying to look so mean. sock jumped up there at the last second and startled me :)

shemale.

2010-05-03T06:56:00.004-06:00

20 weeks! finally hit the halfway mark, which is a relief. as sean said last night, "it's only downhill from here.... except for that whole labor and delivery part."

i'm feeling a lot better; no pain, less nausea. thank goodness. we did the ultra sound at our appointment this weekend to make sure there was still a girl in there.... but now we're not so sure. could've been a penis, could've been the cord. guess we'll have to wait a few more weeks to know for sure. but the shemale is definitely getting a lot bigger! and stronger! last night we could feel her kicking from the outside. it was pretty cool.

i feel like there really isn't anything else going on in my life right now except this whole baby business...and i'm satisfied with that. i got sean addicted to Bones a couple weeks ago, so that seems to take up all the time we aren't cooing and poking at my belly.

one of these days i'll get my etsy shop back up. i spent some quality crafty time down in the basement last night and it got me all excited to start some new projects.

2010-04-29T06:31:00.002-06:00

the last few days have been a bit rough. spent the weekend not being able to keep down any food or liquid, which morphed into a UTI, which very rapidly turned into the kidney infection that lands a girl in the ER. and just so you know, waiting in the ER for 3 hours with 50 other sick-with-who-knows-what people is scary and gross. in any case, 5 hours after actually arriving, i landed a sweetass room in he women's pavillion (with my own toilet!) and slept for a day and a half while being re-hydrated and treated for the infection and nausea. hospital brand nausea medication is A+. i was sad to see it go.

i'm in a lot less pain now, and my nausea has lessened quite a bit. i'm still having a hard time standing up completely straight because of some kidney weirdness, but now that i'm feeling the little one kick all the time it seems to make everything a little bit better.

18 weeks.

2010-04-19T20:00:00.004-06:00

cold is finally clearing up, but the nausea has returned. with gusto. and all i can think is, what if it never goes away? not, what if it lasts through the entire pregnancy, but rather, what if it lasts forever. and ever. what if i die from being nauseated. cause that should be considered torture.

2010-04-17T18:45:00.003-06:00

it's foggy and rainy and kind of chilly today... perfect weather for grabbing a coffee and taking a drive into the mountains. which is exactly what we did this afternoon, after a long lazy morning. we've both been pretty sick this week with some kind of cold. i even stayed home from work for a few days, and unfortunately ended up passing it along to sean :( we're both feeling a bit better today, but we still have snotty noses and icky coughs and voices that sound more like a frog than a human.

bonuses of getting sick:

1. starting the second day of the cold, i haven't had any nausea. keeping my fingers crossed that it lasts.

2. finally having a legitimate excuse to use my netti pot. it's totally weird, but completely awesome. highly recommended.

2010-04-09T12:21:00.003-06:00

I realize that most of my family and friends think I'm crazy for the way I plan to have this baby... but regardless of my choices, I find it hard to believe when I hear other expectant mothers (especially the over-30 crowd) being surprised (and disgusted) at the graphic nature of birth. I mean, really? you didn't realize the baby was going to have to come out one way or another?

I'm just saying, it helps to be prepared.

bumpers and vaginas.

2010-04-06T20:33:00.002-06:00

yesterday: super excellent appointment with our midwife. amazing ultrasound pictures. and finally (hopefully...) finding out it's a (probably) GIRL! they were like 90% sure. so i'm letting myself get excited. but it's kinda hard not to get excited when you see how excited sean is. i'm still losing weight (because i'm still getting sick, i assume), but the little one is doing marvelously. apparently my uterus feels 18 weeks instead of 16 weeks. i'm hoping this doesn't mean i end up pushing out a 20 pound child.

today, however: i got rear-ended on the highway while driving to work. not so awesome. i'm good, baby's good. everyone's good. my bumper is only still attached by some rope, though. luckily i wasn't at fault, so the other person's insurance will be covering all the expenses. hooray for insurance when you need it.

gag me.

2010-03-22T20:43:00.002-06:00

hm. so the one thing that i'm pretty awful at at this particular juncture in my life is the one and only thing i have to do upwards of 8 times a day.

i'm not a good pill taker. but because i haven't been able to keep much food down, my midwife has put me on a high protein, low sugar diet, with an excruciatingly enormous amount of pills every day. to help the medicine (aka food) go (stay) down. except that taking the pills makes the medicine want to come back up and say hello.

also, why is it that protein bars look so yummy on the package, but taste like ass?

happy spring!

2010-03-20T15:54:00.005-06:00

not a whole lot has been going on around here. i spend most of my day concentrating really hard on not puking, and trying to think of things to eat that don't sound nauseating. it's a blast. really. tummy-wise, not much has happened either. 8 weeks on the left and 14 weeks on the right.

i just look a bit more bloated. hopefully i'll quit losing weight and start filling in soon.

we had another awesome appointment with our midwife this week, and sean finally got to hear the heartbeat. we were able to listen for a few minutes. it was pretty amazing.

also, i can't wait until the day i get to show my grandchildren the end result of the conversation that started with, "i can't wear flip-flops with jeans... i'll look like a douche!"

i guess this is what you wear flip-flops with, then.

sayonara first trimester!

2010-03-13T07:34:00.003-07:00

can't say i'm too sad to see you go.

5 weeks

ultrasound at 8 weeks

i'm still hoping that this general feeling of constant, crushing nausea disappears soon. very very soon.

most exciting decision of the first trimester: ditching my ob/gyn for homebirth with a midwife! also, baby names. but those are still a secret.

2010-02-15T07:25:00.002-07:00

this valentine's day was awesome in the ways of bird flapping in thai restaurants, girl scout cookies, successful potty training, mixtapes at breakfast, and overall laziness.

2010-02-07T15:38:00.003-07:00

i started moving for real this weekend. or rather, i pointed at things that needed to be moved, and fella moved them. and then we hung pictures. which was fun. and now it almost feels like i live here. we're waiting to move all the big stuff until next weekend, when (hopefully) we won't have as much snow to contend with.

it's going to be an exciting week. followed by an exciting year.

2010-01-16T15:26:00.001-07:00

things are getting pretty exciting around here.

wild and crazy NYE

2010-01-05T18:27:00.003-07:00

life lessons on your third birthday.

2009-12-30T08:01:00.002-07:00

youngin': where's my harmonica at?
fella: It's just "where is my harmonica?" don't put a preposition at the end of the sentence.

happy
happy
happy

2009-12-22T07:09:00.004-07:00

i had a proper christmas one week early this year, since the boys are heading to virginia this week. it was lovely and amazing...

he knows me too well...

2009-12-14T17:53:00.001-07:00

5:48 PM me: i just had a disappointing hour, but i'm moving past it :)

5:49 PM Sean: oh, why so disappointing?

5:51 PM me: spent 90% of it in traffic, and 10% looking for something that doesn't exist.

but i'll try again tomorrow :)

Sean: that sounds like most christian's church commute on sunday morning, haha

adventure team!

2009-12-09T20:27:00.002-07:00

so it looks like this is going on our calendar for next year: warriordash.com

anybody up to join us? (keri... i know you totally want to...)

it was a lie.

2009-12-08T17:43:00.002-07:00

we topped out at 3˚

good times.

heeeeeeeey

2009-12-08T07:11:00.002-07:00

looks like there's a chance of double digits today, guys!

thanksgiving.

2009-12-02T01:34:00.008-07:00

since i'm awake at this unkind hour (not of my own free will, but of a partial rebellion from my body and a stupid effing bacteria) ... i'll go ahead and share a few photos from thanksgiving!

it was beyond wonderful.

incline, round five.

2009-11-29T17:40:00.004-07:00

"they said it was supposed to be nice today. no one said anything about it raining douchebags."

incline, round four.

2009-11-21T19:13:00.002-07:00

no pictures. just pain. it was icy and slippery and freezing and dark, and i'm almost too tired to make a lasagna.

almost.

2009-11-18T18:09:00.002-07:00

i'm being a proud-pants tonight after having successfully figured out how to attach my bike to the trainer i got.

also, the xmas rush on etsy is officially underway. sweet!

2009-11-17T22:07:00.005-07:00

the last few days have been more hectic than i generally like to even think about. spent friday and saturday in denver waking up next to my lovely mother, and dropping off hoards of polaroids at a fantastic little gallery.

saturday night and sunday we thoroughly enjoyed the snowstorm. yesterday and today i've been frantically catching up on laundry and general house cleaning, a backlog of etsy orders and polaroid scanning, and trying to pay some overdue attention to a couple of furrballs.

i think i'm finally back on track. whew.

also, this lady is amazing.

incline, round three.

2009-11-01T19:43:00.009-07:00

time up: 1hr, 11min
time down: 45 min

we're convinced that taking sock got us to the top quicker. especially since we had the new obstacle of snow...which was mostly ice. and terrifying.

numbers!

2009-10-31T13:12:00.001-06:00

math is awesome!

movies!

2009-10-28T19:55:00.005-06:00

grey gardens and the beales of grey gardens. so incredibly great.
son of rambow "those earrings make you look like an angel."
objectified like helvetica, but not.

edit: after a bit of apprehension, we also watched the new grey gardens. it was actually really well done. drew barrymore was a perfect little edie.

yesterday =

2009-10-27T07:53:00.001-06:00

best. birthday. ever.

2009-10-25T15:02:00.002-06:00

birthday festivities started a bit early this year. also, it's snowing like CRAZY!

punkin pie as breakfast in bed = yes yes yes.

2009-10-19T20:43:00.003-06:00

weekends keep getting better and better...

where the wild things are
thai take-out
free drinks at secret bars
good bands in tiny spaces
manitou incline (in 1hr 28 min!)
etc.

2009-10-15T07:56:00.002-06:00

me (as quigley): you smell weird.
him: i reek of freedom.

2009-10-12T18:44:00.003-06:00

this weekend was all about eating cake and being cold. all of the lovely fall leaves have frozen and died in the course of the last 3 days.

oh! also twin peaks.
and tiny art shows.
and pajamas all day.

ugh...

2009-10-04T10:10:00.009-06:00

so, yesterday we trudged up the manitou incline. today, i'm fairly certain that someone severely roughed me up from the neck down. however, i am more determined then ever to conquer that thing.... especially after the 70-year-old man with a KNEE BRACE who PASSED US felt the need to give us a little pep talk. so manitou incline, you crazy bitch, you'll be seeing me again. and again.

estes park: tiny boats

2009-09-30T05:35:00.001-06:00

we spent a fair portion of sunday being lazy, making tiny boats, and not wanting to leave.