Cracking

I hate to do it, but perhaps some whining will help me feel better...

• Freddie averages 6 poops a day lately. 1 before breakfast, 1 after breakfast, 1 after our walk, 1 after lunch, 1 after dinner, 1 before bath. Yuck. Who are these kids that don't poop for days? I got two slices of cheese down him today. Let's hope this gives me a diaper changing reprieve.
• We're trying to transition back into cloth diapers. This always takes a toll on his bottom. Having 6 yucky diapers a day ain't helping either.
• I am dealing with the US Post Office. Our requests that our mail be forwarded are "not in the system." I don't think much detail is needed here. You all know what I'm up against.
• I dyed my hair. I dyed my hair by myself. I dyed my hair by myself using some box of Clairol. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.
• Gammie's house has lots and lots of cabinets with lots and lots of interesting stuff in them. Just about all of the cabinet contents are now on top of the counter. Wondering what the cleaning lady will think when she sees it.
• Freddie has discovered the bar and the bar glasses. Every time I turn around he looks like he's doing a shot.
• I miss my Charlie. Morning snuggles just aren't the same with just Freddie and me.

I'll stop there. And to be fair, there is a bright side:

• I haven't broken a sweat since crossing the Colorado state line even though we're experiencing temperatures in the 90s.
• I say "March!" and Freddie follows me around the house with his knees popping high in the air and arms waving at his side.
• Freddie is back to going to bed on his own, in his own room.
• I haven't cooked anything. That means hardly any dishes!
• Freddie and the dogs enjoy being out in the yard all day. Freddie's filthy at the end of the day. He plays hard.
• The beer in the refrigerator isn't disappearing when I'm not looking.

Love me, love me

After lunch is playtime in the yard...without a shirt!

Hi, Muppey Dog.

How are you today? You want some love?

Ok, your turn to give me some love.

Offering his head for a kiss.

Lovin'

• Utensils
• Swinging
• Playing in the yard
• Chips for supper
• Bedtime routines
• Words with Friends
• Hot and dry
• Pandora on my iphone
• Watermelon every day
• Buttered corn on the cob
• Planned visits

16 months

Gammie's chair

Motor Skills:

• You are working on stairs.  i wonder if your little muscles are soar from all the working you do.  You are taking chances when it is just one step and going for it.  Your legs aren't quite long enough to push up the stairs without help unless you're on your knees.
• You are really into climbing.  You try to pull yourself into my lap and when you need some extra umph you've been grabbing on to me with your teeth.  OUCH!  You always seem so surprised when I yelp.
• You blow kisses.  You'll put your hand to your mouth and make kiss noises but you haven't quite got the blow part yet. You even blew your shadow a kiss the other day.
• You'll indicate that you want your daddy to come over with your index finger, imitating how he calls you over, but you put your tiny finger right up by your nose.  So cute!
• You'll walk backwards to get yourself into a tight spot or corner.  You do this a lot to wiggle in between my legs and sit down.

Vocabulary:

• You've been saying "ba." (ball)  You sure like to throw balls and especially give Muppey his ball.
• You've been waving goodbye, but now you're saying it.  Just this week when you decided you were finished playing in the living room you waved and said "bye".
• You did learn how to growl from Papi.  He gives a growl when you reach for the wine bottles.  The other day you looked at him, reached for the bottles, and gave a growl before he could.

Spaghetti Sauce!

All done

Diet:

• You've expanded your diet!  This week we've added:

• Cashews
• Pistachios
• Watermelon
• Cheese pizza, cold!
• You've been  enjoying meatsauce on top of a piece of toast.  Sloppy joe?
• On our walks I've been giving you a "trail mix" in your snack cup.  It has grahm cracker goldfish, goldfish, raisins, cashews, and pistachios.
• You're still drinking about 20 oz of whole milk per day.  Sometimes you prefer water and that's fine.  You seem to be quite attached to your sip cup at night in your crib with water in it.  I can here you sipping in the middle of the night.  This may prove to be problematic when potty training comes!
• You want to drink whatever I have in a cup.  It's more about the cup.  Straws are fun, but straight from the cup is better.  I need to have two glasses at the table so I can keep one floatie free.  I know I am going to have to eventually give you the dang cup and let you drink by yourself.  Oh what a mess.  The other day at the playground I let you have my water bottle.  You did ok on the first sip, but the second sip was a bit much and water ended up coming out of your nose.  You shrugged it off and went for another swig.

Appearance:

• You are up to 16 teeth.  I hope this is it for a while. 
• You've been in disposable diapers since the move so your pants are much to big (12-18 months).  I have to roll the tops and even then some of them end up around your ankles.  When a patch of diaper rash clears we'll be back to cloth.

Likes:

• You really love teh dogs right not.  It tickles you to chase BooDog and you will sit next to Muppey and pat his head very gently.
• You are also very fond of the dog food bowls and water bowl.  You discovered that banging them gets a different tone because one has water in it.  You were mighty tickled by that.
• Planes!  As soon as you hear one you point to the sky and then begin searching for it.  You'll point until I acknowledge it as well.  "Yes, I see.  An airplane."
• You like to sit down but your legs must be dangling like the rest of us.  You like sitting on stoops and chairs and laps, but always on the edge.

Plane!

Personality:

• You've become pretty independent, and wander off without even worrying about where I am.  I think I could maybe leave you at a daycare or with friends and you wouldn't mind.
• Still so very lovey.  You will offer your head when you want a kiss on top.  The other morning you offered Daddy your head and made the kiss noise so there was no guessing what you wanted.
• Obedient.  It amazes me that I can say "go get your milk" and you go over to your bike and grab your cup from the basket.  I now know that you understand and my expectation has been set, my dear.

Dislikes:

• Still not liking diaper changes.  Me neither.  You seem to have no less than 4 poops a day.  Who are these babies that go days without pooping?
• You aren't fond of getting dressed either although it is not like it used to be.  you'll tolerate it if it's quick.

Wiggled in between Mama's legs for a rest

Sleep:

• You are sleeping 7-6, if the dogs don't wake you in the morning.
• You nap 2 or 3 hours usually from 12-3.
• You are in the travel crib right now.  You're slowly adjusting.  You're finally in a room separate from me.  You did get into the habit of having someone in the room while you fell asleep though so we're breaking that habit this week.  We have our bedtime routine, reading and singing.  you'll give me lots of those open mouthed kisses while I am singing to you.  You even wave goodbye or blow kisses when I put you down.  And then when I walk out you fall apart.  Sigh.

Since you asked

Yes, we want another baby.
Yes, we are trying.
No, I am not pregnant.
Yes, I'm sure.
Yes, I just took a pregnancy test.
No, I don't have 50 of them.  Only 49.
No, I am not seeing a reproductive endocrinologist.
Yes, this is the sixth cycle of trying.
Yes, I am charting.
Yes, I am using a fertility monitor.
Yes, I am standing on my head.  Just kidding.
No, I am not getting any younger.
Yes, I know about advanced maternal age.
Yes, I know I we have to be in the same state in order to conceive.
No,we haven't planned a trip to Maine. Yet.

Transition

On the Road

Skipped a step.  Sorry about that.  I forget about my readers sometimes, those who don't know me in real life and get the gaps filled in outside of the blog.

We sold our house.  It was under contract after just over a week on the market.  We were very surprised and very thankful.  Big relief.  Charlie isn't set to begin his job in NYC until the fall.  Big problem.  Ok, not a big problem.  I know there are few really big problems in our life.  This was just a major inconvenience that caused a lot of stress.

So, Freddie and I and the dogs are in Denver, at Charlie's parents' house.  Charlie is in NOLA, living at the lab.  This is the way things will be until we move to NYC in the fall.

Enough stuff to fill a tiny NYC apartment was loaded into a POD and that left Bordeaux Street last Friday. It will show up in Manhattan when we get there.  Furniture and other things we could not part with (Jazzfest chairs, Mardi Gras ladder, costume box, power tools, and large pieces of furniture) but will have no room for in NYC were moved into a storage unit in NOLA.  Living essentials for the next 10-12 weeks were packed in suitcases and a few boxes.

We looked for a furnished short term lease that allowed big bad dogs, and while there were some available they were pricey.  We had friends and family offer up their guest rooms, kids' rooms, offices to accommodate us, but we really couldn't see ourselves descending on anyone's space with our dogs and kid.  We've lived in tight quarters, double bunked, over our Katrina evacuation.  Not something we want to do or subject those we love to again.

So Charlie made the drive with us and the dogs to Denver and flew back to NOLA on Monday.  Charlie's folks are out of town for most of the summer, so it is just me and Freddie and the dogs.  It's probably working out best for the dogs, having me here with them helping them transition into life here for the next several weeks.  This will be home for them for quite some time.

I'm ok for right now.  I haven't done anything yet, and quite frankly I kinda like that.  I am trying to get into a routine, break some bad habits that Freddie has picked up amidst the moving craziness, rest, and just generally regroup.  I'm feeling sad, missing NOLA, and need the time to just be. 

I know in a few days I'll feel restless, and be searching for things to add to our routine. Something other than sitting outside wondering if I should save any watermelon for Freddie.  I've got a few books and a few projects, but I'll need some other things to do.

Things are in limbo.  I know we'll be in NYC in the fall, but I don't know when.  I don't know what building we'll live in, but I have 4 potential addresses.  I know we'll be travelling to the city, but I don't know how we'll get there.


So that's it.  That's our summer. 

Making myself happy

Charlie's message to me the first night he was gone was "do things that make you happy."

So today I ate the entire watermelon. And yes, I smiled with every bite and am pretty darn content. I wonder if I'll feel differently when I am up all night having to pee.

Shrug.

Anyway, I've been trying to come up with some things that make me happy, that are not NOLA dependent.

• Sitting in the sunshine
• Reading in bed
• Long walks
• Baking
• Painted toenails
• Sliding with the Buggers
• Microwaved popcorn and bad TV
• Sending mail
• Blog reading (get posting folks or leave me some new links)
• Dance party with the Bug (and the Jackson 5)

Any suggestions?

The move, thus far

Getting ready for customers!

1 POD with room to spare!
43 Craigslist sales
5 hours of garage sale costumers
$3000 made off 75% of our home's contents
$1400 for a the first of three years of storage
$3100 for POD moving and storage
1 10x10x15 storage unit
12 boxes to my Daddy's
1 crawfish pot to Ford's for useful storage
2 boxes of of china stored at Charlie's parents
30 minutes at closing
1 packed truck, trailer attached (cue Sanford and Son theme song)
 2 barking dogs in kennels
1280 Miles driven
24 hours in the truck
2 Disney DVDs
2 of 3 in Denver
1 flight to NOLA
1 of 3 in NOLA
1 long summer

Room to spare!

His Birthday

• Cake for breakfast
• Walk along the High Line Canal

• Royal Red Robin Burger
• Cheesy grins

• GPS lessons
• Playground exploring

• A family picture
  
• A teary goodbye

Daddy's Day

Happy Father's Day, Charlie. Thank you for loving us with all your heart. I am so happy to be your partner in this adventure, and you make this parenting part of the adventure so much fun.

And to my Daddy, who feels like he is a million miles away right now, I am forever your little girl. Thank you for the reminder that parenting is forever and ever.

Around the bend

There's something about turning this bend in the park that I like. It's something about it aligning with a bend in the river and the breeze coming from the riverbend that changes the air here. There's a similar bend a bit further down the river along the levee as well.

I'm taking notes this week.

I am so thankful for this life and really try to be present for all of it each and every day. But change has its way making me pause and notice things a little more. I've been trying not to think of it as our last Sunday morning at the bakery or my last walk to the park really because there will certainly be more. Things won't be the same. But I know same-ness isn't a prerequisite to contentedness.

Everything has a price

Attn: The price of oysters has increased

I am not sure where they are getting oysters from to satiate us. I didn't want to even ask at R&Os tonight. The entire situation makes my heart heavy. South Louisiana is suffering, and most of us continue on without any change in our way of life. I wonder if it even crosses folks' mind longer than glancing at newspaper headlines. I sure hope it is the headline in every city in the US.

Still filling up

Don't ask about my weight.  I'm working all week, 10 hour days, so exercise ain't happeing.  Lots of yummy dinners are.

We had some oysters.  I think it'll be a long time before any of us are getting good gulf oysters.

Getting my fill

Crawfish!

The best south Louisiana meals are those served on newspaper with iced cold Abita Amber.

I am one happy girl.

This and That

Clowning around on one of our last few walks from Bordeaux Street

• Closing is 12 days away.
• I am working the 7 week days prior to closing.
• I'm not sleeping.
• Can I just throw away all of the spices?
• I hate how much trash we're making without recycling, eating off paper plates, and throwing away so much junk.
• I think I threw away our stamps.
• I still need to pack my closet.
• I'm getting rid of more shoes than I am keeping.
• My daddy is storing all of our infant supplies.
  
• Our dogs have a home with Charlie's parents in Denver.
• One POD isn't going to be enough.
• Damn, moving is expensive.
  
• Charlie should do a blog on Craigslist shoppers.
• Oh my god, this is really happening!
  

Freddie and his Papi

Sitting in the driveway with nothing to do other than watch the rain, learn to "drive", and be together.

That's what I'll miss in NYC.

Lovin'

He ate the entire cinnamon roll!

• Early morning walks to the bakery
• Afternoon thunderstorms
• Neighborhood playgrounds
  
• Progress
• Packed boxes
• Craigslist ads
• Garage sale plans
• A potential address
• A falafel filled mouth
• "Touchdown"
• Counting down to Saints Season!
  

We love this bakery.

15 month well visit

Freddie's Stats:

Weight: 18 lbs 12 oz. (Below the charts)
Length: 28.5 inches (Below the charts)
Head Circumference: 47.5 cm (60th percentile)

Vaccinations:

• DTaP/DTP/Td, 4th dose
• Hib, 4th dose
• Hep A
• PCV, 5th dose

My concerns:

• None!

Her concerns:

• None!

Dr, J said we've got a perfect toddler on our hands. His language, social, and motor development are all right on. She suggested substituting 8 oz of PediaSure for 8 oz of milk because it has about 30 calories per ounce as compared to 20 calories per ounce in whole milk, and continue to offer high calorie foods.

We hope to see her in August for his 18 month well visit before the big move.