I'm in a LOVE mood...

The jazz music playing on the blog, Harry Conick, Jr's smooooooooooooooth voice, visions of puppy and kitty Valentine's cards dancing in my head and sickly sweet conversation hearts...*sigh*

Actually I should be in a 'get your butt out of the chair and go to the store for milk and batteries' kind of mood since we're about to be hit with a huge snow storm. Bah! But who wants to be in that mood over the looooooooooooooooooooooove mood??? (insert swooning women and cupid here please) Certainly not me!

Ah, but I jest. Actually I kind of like the thought of being snowed in with my family (save the fact that our house is a shambles....ok so I get a little overzealous with things and then run out of steam. Such is life). But I really do. We're snowed in. We're forced to be together. We're cozy, generally happy and tonight we're having homemade Chinese food (as our menu got pushed around a little bit!) and watching movies. How much fun is that?

I love this time with my family! Who knows? Maybe I'll pull out the pink and red heart covered paper plates and red napkins for tonight. Wouldn't that just set the perfect tone ;)

At any rate, Reagan's nap should be ending soon and I really should get to the store...why is it people always buy milk when there's almost a 100% chance of the power going out? Who knows? But if it does...at least I'll have snow to bury it in!

First Love...

Today I actually attempted to google my very first boyfriend (note: I was unsuccessful, because apparently there's quite a famous basketball player with the same name!) But, HIS name was Jeremy. And he popped into my head today out of the blue...actually that's not quite true. Yesterday I saw someone that looked like his best friend, Marcus....and, well you know how the mind works....

Now, you're probably waggling your finger, saying "Leah!" But hear me out...he was my first boyfriend ever...in kindergarten! That's right. And wow, was he a dream. Actually he kind of looks like my husband. He had dark, thick black hair, dark complexion and he was the shyest boy I knew..and when he smiled, a lock of that wavy thick black hair would fall over his eye. Sigh...he was VERY handsome :) And I remember he gave me a Pink Panther Valentines that year that said simply "I like you".

Strange how things stick with you, even after so many years. I wish I still had that Valentine's card...man, what a keepsake!

And to think, this year Reagan will be old enough to pass out her very first Valentine's Day cards to her little friends. We've already picked them out. She had a choice between Mickey Mouse Clubhouse cards and Puppies and Kittens...she went with the Puppies and Kittens. Good choice ;). She'll get to hand them out to all her little friends at the Valentine's Day Party at Storytime and I'm sure she'll save one for Ethan and one for Reese--two little boys that just love her to death!

Time flies, doesn't it?

I'm just too tired....

Too tired to be witty or amusing. But I did want to say this...God help our Country. Have you guys been watching the primaries? They're enough to make me want to pack up and move to Canada. *sigh* I have a feeling this year's election is going to be bad, very bad indeed.

And if you're a conservative, I hope you're praying Hillary gets the nomination. Because while she's digging her own grave, Obama is getting stronger and stronger and that means our candidates are going to have a tough time beating him.

Remember folks, when voting for the leader of the free world, the Commander in Chief of our troops, it's important to remember that this is NOT a vote for sex or race...it's a vote for who can help lead our Country back to it's roots, who can protect us, who can stand for Freedom and not censorship, capitalism and not socialism.

With that, I'm off to clean up the house...

Menu Plan Monday

Is it Monday again already??? Goodness!

At any rate, here is my menu for the week! (Hopefully it all turns out well since my cookbooks are officially packed away!)

Monday: BBQ Chicken, baked potato, veggie

Tuesday: Homemade Egg Drop Soup, Chicken stir-fried rice

Wednesday: Big pot of veggie soup and homemade biscuits

Thursday: Tuna Noodle Casserole and veggies

Friday: Grilled cheese and tomato soup (this should be fun watching Reagan plaster the room)

Saturday: Roast, veggies, rolls

Sunday: Shredded bbq roast sandwiches, carrot and raisin salad (maybe something slightly softer for Reagan to chomp on..like cheesy peasy!)

Recipes:

Egg Drop Soup

2 cans of reduced sodium chicken broth

Soy sauce to taste

2 eggs

Bring chicken broth almost to a boil. Add soy sauce and then crack eggs into the broth. Stir. Serve immediately with diced green onions.

Chicken Stir-Fried Rice

2-3 breasts of chicken, diced

4 servings of rice (I use brown), already cooked

Soy Sauce

Teriyaki Sauce

Diced veggies-carrots, onions, snow peas, etc.

Brown the diced chicken in a pan. Add soy and teriyaki sauce to taste, along with veggies. Cook for approximately 5-10 minutes until veggies are heated through, but still crisp. Toss with rice. Serve immediately.

Oh, and by the way, if you make the Sweet Potato Chicken Quesadillas from last week, be warned..it makes a lot of food! But it's very yummy (although it needs a little heat added to it!)

Ahhhh...the joys of preparing to move...

Josh and I have decided to put our house on the market! Yah! We are just too cramped! It was a wonderful house to start out in, but we knew we couldn't stay here forever, especially once a baby was added to the mix!

So begins our journey. Right now we're freshening up paint, packing away a ton of stuff to make our house look larger (staging, folks, staging). We'll be replacing carpet in the guest room since someone (who shall remain nameless..insert embarrassed face here) spilled paint all over the carpet during one of her frenzied 'let's repaint the house moments'. The bathroom is getting new paint, a new sink, new mirror and all the doors are being upgraded to six panels. Not to mention the new fence and some cheap, um, er, inexpensive, but very cute looking landscaping--that is, once the ground is thawed enough to do anything and we un-bury ourselves out from under all the snow!

Currently we've narrowed our selection of a new house down to an older neighborhood here in town...I LOOOOOOOOOOOOVE the neighborhood and have been pining away waiting to move to a house there. There are a couple up for sale but the prices are still a little steep..here's hoping they come down soon! We're even willing to give up a basement to get into this neighborhood..it's perfect! Tons of families, Churches and a little park right in the neighborhood and our hospital is literally 2 minutes away, not to mention a coffee shop, a cute little Italian restaurant and a Subway..here's to eating healthy! (Mmmm....marinara sauce and bread or lite turkey and veggies.....???)

At any rate, I'm very excited! So anyone who has any suggestions for selling, moving or buying in today's market, feel free to leave some suggestions!

Headlines from the Year 2029

My friend Steve shared these with me and so I'm passing them along to you...they're great :)

HEADLINES FROM THE YEAR: 2029

Ozone created by electric cars now killing millions in the seventh largest country in the world, Mexifornia, formerly known as California . White minorities still trying to have English recognized as Mexifornia's third language.

Spotted Owl plague threatens northwestern United States crops and livestock.

Baby conceived naturally. Scientists stumped.

Couple petitions court to reinstate heterosexual marriage.

Last remaining Fundamentalist Muslim dies in the AmericanTerritory of the Middle East (formerly known as Iraq , Afghanistan , Syria and Lebanon ).

Iran still closed off; physicists estimate it will take at least 10 more years before radioactivity decreases to safe levels.

France pleads for global help after being taken over by Jamaica .

Castro finally dies at age 112; Cuban cigars can now be imported legally, but President Chelsea Clinton has banned all smoking.

George Z. Bush says he will run for President in 2036.

Postal Service raises price of first class stamp to $17.89 and reduces mail delivery to Wednesdays only.

85-year $75.8 billion study: Diet and Exercise is the key to weight loss.
Average weight of Americans drops to 250 lbs.

Japanese scientists have created a camera with such a fast shutter speed, they now can photograph a woman with her mouth shut. mmm, I didn't particularly care for this one.....

Massachusetts executes last remaining conservative. somehow I didn't think we conservatives would last THAT long....

Supreme Court rules punishment of criminals, violates their civil rights.

Average height of NBA players is now nine feet, seven inches.

New federal law requires that all nail clippers, screwdrivers, fly swatters and rolled-up newspapers must be registered by January 2036.

Congress authorizes direct deposit of formerly illegal political contributions to campaign accounts.

IRS sets lowest tax rate at 75 percent.

Florida voters still having trouble with voting machines.

Show & Tell Friday!

Ok, I have a confession to make. This show and tell item is really not 'mine'...ok, well it sort of is. Let me explain. I had them made for my daughter's room, but since she isn't really old enough to declare that they're 'HERS' yet, I get to claim them ;) And I adore them! The paintings were done by a local artist and were renditions from the book "If You Give A Mouse A Cookie".


If you look closely, you can see the blocks in one of the paintings actually spell out Reagan's name. The three mice symbolize myself, Josh and Reagan and the picture of the little girl is supposed to be Reagan all 'grown up' in her little wooden rocking chair! Every time I look at these paintings they make me smile and I hope it's something Reagan can pass down to her children!

I'm so nervous....

Today has been a roller coaster of emotions for me. First, we received our requested adoption packet from a local agency today. We met all requirements except one: You must be infertile, unable to carry a child to term or advised by your doctor to not get pregnant. How about: my child and I both almost died during delivery? Does that count??? I was absolutely appalled that they would reject us for that reason. But I'm not backing down...I'm calling my OBGYN and asking for a statement to be filed in my medical records that she advises I do not get pregnant again.

HOWEVER, in case that doesn't work out, I contacted the only other adoption agency in our area today...and speaking to them was WONDERFUL. It just felt 'right'. They're more expensive, but I think it might be well worth it to go with someone we feel comfortable with.

We talked about what we would like...a little boy, most races are acceptable, anywhere from newborn to 1.5 years in age. And she told me what to expect, that we'd probably get an African American boy, a newborn, and spend approximately $20,000.00 and it would take about 2 years. I had expected all of that and with the exception of the expenses, that works perfectly fine for us.

Luckily Josh's insurance company is giving us a $6,000.00 credit towards adoption, so that leaves about $14,000.00--luckily there is a tax credit of $12,000.00, so we'll be reimbursed (HOPEFULLY) for all but about $2,000.00--however we have to come up with all initial expenses!

You would think the insurance company would be willing to foot the bill entirely since $20,000.00 is a drop in the bucket compared to my prenatal care (towards the end I was going in twice a week and having all kinds of tests run every visit, so it was about $2-$3k each week!), my hospital stay, my C-Section, Reagan's initial hospital stay (NICU), Reagan's second hospital stay (PICU), er visits for both of us, her aftercare and my aftercare! If I were them I'd be begging us to adopt!

Ugh. So much to consider. Keep us in your prayers...

Ramblings...

Today is a perfect day. One of those crisp, cold days that makes your lungs hurt and your eyes dazzle at the brightness. The sun is shining in it's full glory, the sky is a bright Robin's egg blue that reminds me of the skies of North Carolina, with the barest hints of white cotton candy clouds--a rare day for an Indiana winter!

And to top it all off, today Reagan did two amazing things! First of all, she signed to me that she wanted something to drink! This is particularly amazing because we don't really do signs in this house...she either tells us what she wants or motions to it. However, she can't say 'drink', so the last two months I've been pantomiming raising a glass to my lips to drink when I ask her if she would like something. I was so shocked when she did it back to me today! She is so smart!

Then, while I was reading my book (bad mommy!), she CLIMBED on top of her rocking chair and stood up. While it nearly scared me to death, I was incredibly proud of her! Gosh, I have such a 'biggie' girl.

You know, before I became a mom, I used to marvel at mothers I knew and how they would get so excited over the tiniest little accomplishments of their children. And when they said 'oh, you have never known love until you have your own child', I really didn't believe them. After all, I had been in love before, I loved my friends, my family.

But it is just so amazing (for lack of a better word!) to be a Mom. Every day your heart literally grows and you love your child more each and every single day...I didn't think that was possible. It almost feels like your heart would burst out of you. And even their smallest accomplishment means more to you than the biggest thing you've ever done. When Reagan rolled a ball to me for the first time, it was like someone had just announced she'd won the gold medal at the Olympics! I was ecstatic! And when they're sick, you're almost irrationally scared--please God, let my child be ok. Because if she isn't, then you yourself will never be ok.

I came across this quote before I ever even became pregnant with Reagan, and I think of it all the time when I look at her. "To have a child, is to have your own heart forever reside outside of your body." How true.

I'm married to a pretty nice guy!

Tonight when Josh came home we were in the middle of a conversation about our daughter's sleep habits (or lack there of), when suddenly he stopped and said "Hey! Did you do something different with your hair?"

It took me a minute to remember that, yes, indeed, I did do something new with my hair! I had a good couple of inches chopped off today so it's a bob right below my cheeks. I'm so lucky to be married to someone who notices my new haircut even when I forget!

Tackle It Tuesday and other wonderful stuff!

Alright...on to business folks. This week I'm tackling wiping down the kitchen cabinets...They are disgusting! Somehow splatters of milk and juice seem to be attracted to them like Brittany Spears to Frito Lay chips (thank you, thank you, I'll be here all week...). Ahem.

Annnnnnnnwaaaaay,

I'm also tackling my household book and recipe book this week too. Hopefully they both get finished so I can move on to my other 8 million notebooks! And once I finish them, I promise to show them off! (I know you really want to see them ;)!)

Alright, on a topic of great interest to me and completely OFF topic from Tackle It Tuesday, you have to check out this absolutely hilarious video of Bill Clinton falling asleep during a tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr. Folks, this had me rolling in the floor.

http://www.breitbart.tv/html/33364.html

By the way, my source for that was http://www.drudgereport.com/, which is a fantastic site that everyone should check out. I won't go into my spiel on the mainstream media today, but it's coming, people, it's coming.

A conversation over dinner at our house...

I actually got up from dinner to blog this. At dinner tonight, Josh and Reagan decided to have an orange. He got up, retrieved a knife and scored the orange in four sections. I proceeded to explain to impatient Miss Reagan that she could have some as soon as Daddy cut the orange, and that Mommy wasn't sure exactly why Daddy was cutting the orange. Here was the conversation that followed:

Leah: Why do you cut your orange with a knife instead of just peeling it?
Josh: Because it gives me a definied surface area in which to peel, thereby lessening the amount of time I can peel that area and thereby lessening the time it takes to peel the orange as a whole.

At this point I just stared at him and asked "Who ARE you?" Yes. He really does talk like this. All the time.

I like to make lists.....

There is just something comforting and warm about making a list. To-do lists, grocery lists, lists of places I'd like to visit, lists of decorating ideas, lists of gifts to give, lists of favorite dinners.....you name it, I'll make a list for it. I even have lists of romantic ideas and how to not take advantage of my spouse...*ahem* Josh, if you're reading this, please note I will never laugh at you again for "taking time to schedule spontaneity". Um, yes, alright where was I? Oh yes, lists.

I discovered this about myself today while I was making yet another book. My books consist of lists. I have "Leah's Book of House Stuff", which is basically a list of projects and decorating ideas, lists of house plans, lists of ideas for each room, lists of lists...you get the idea. My second book is "Leah's Mommy Go-To Book" with lists of food ideas for children, playtime ideas, discipline ideas.....so forth and so on. Then there's the Christmas Book which is still under construction--lists of gifts, lists of cards to send, lists of cards received, lists of decorating items in certain containers, lists of ideas for next year....etc., etc., etc. Then there's the book of Msc. Holidays (also still under construction) with lists of recipes sorted by relevant holiday or season, lists of tablecloths, lists of centerpieces......you get the point.

I'm beginning to think the fact that I have Obsessive Compulsive Disorder should have been obvious a loooooooooooooooooooooooooooong time ago.

But I digress. I guess the point I'm trying to make was in the title after all. I like lists. No, I LOVE lists. They are my comfort. My sanity in a crazy world.

Try it...just sit down with a pen and paper and a nice cup of hot tea. Now, start making a list of the first thing that comes to your mind..movies, books, favorite teas even....ahhhhhhhhhhhh, see? Doesn't that feel nice? Yep, I thought it would...I'm off to make a list of my favorite lists.....

Menu Plan Monday

Ok, so last week's menu planning didn't go so hot due to doctor's appointments and whatnot. This week I resolve to do better! Here's the menu folks!

Monday-sweet potato and chicken quesadillas (Rachel Ray recipe!), salad (green beans for Reagan)

Tuesday-Salmon patties, veggie

Wednesday-meatloaf, mashed potatoes, broccoli

Thursday-Whole Wheat Spaghetti, green beans

Friday-Chicken pot pie (homemade), salad

Saturday-chili and corn muffins (veggies in the chili!)

Sunday-roast and veggies

Recipes:

Salmon Patties

Ingredients:

16 ounces pink salmon, canned

1 egg

1/3 cup onion, minced

1/2 cup flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 cups vegetable oil, for frying

Drain salmon. Set aside 2 Tablespoons juice in mixing bowl. Mix together salmon, egg, and onions until sticky. Stir in flour. Add baking powder to juice, then stir into salmon mixture. Form into small patties. Fry until golden brown (about 5 minutes).
Serving Size: 4

Meatloaf

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef, turkey or chicken

BBQ sauce to taste or use ketchup, mustard, brown sugar mix

1/2 chopped onion

1 egg

oatmeal, old fashioned (can use cracker or bread crumbs)

*optional: cheese

Mix all ingredients together. Press into greased (I use non-stick spray) loaf pan. Cook at 350 for 45 minutes.

Chicken Pot Pie

Ingredients:

Cooked, shredded chicken (about 2.5-3 breasts)

1 can cream of chicken soup, reduced sodium

3 boiled eggs, chopped

chicken broth, either reserved from boiling the chicken or 1 can, reduced sodium

*optional: veggies-mixed, broccoli, peas

1 c. flour

2 tsp baking powder

salt

pepper

1 stick of butter, melted

1 c. milk.

Layer shredded chicken in a casserole dish. Add chicken broth and soup. Mix. Add in veggies if you so choose. Layer chopped boiled eggs over dish. Mix remaining ingredients together and pour over casserole. Bake at 400 for 35-45 minutes til crust is browned.

Chili

For a great chili recipe see my News Years Eve Post!

Show & Tell Friday

I've decided to participate in Show & Tell Friday! Yah! I know you're excited ;) Here is what I'm showing:

And here is what I'm telling! These cones are some of my favorite household items! I picked them up a few years ago at JoAnn's during one of their summer clearance sales... 10 cents for each of the two smaller ones and 30 cents for the larger one! Needless to say, I couldn't pass that up! I adore them..first of all, they're the exact colors of most of the decor in my home...dusty blue, off white and rusty red; secondly, they have glitter!! WOOHOOO!!; third, they were cheap!; and finally, they're really patriotic and therefore, special to me!

They have a place of honor on the side of the fireplace! Oh, on a side note, they were originally designed to hold candles inside, but I've never been able to quite figure out how to do that! And on a decor note, always try to group things in odd numbers..it just looks better. Thank you for allowing me that Martha moment!

SHE WALKED!

I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!! She walked!!! Her inspiration: the cell phone of all things..the kid is going to be a talker..what am I saying? She already is!! I told Josh she would be 13 months before she walked..and did I call it or what? She's 13 months tomorrow! I'm so proud of her!! Video to be posted later! (You'll probably hear me screaming in the background!) I also promise an update on the sickies--Reagan and Pritsha!

**UPDATE**

Ok, so I didn't get the best video ever, so I'll try to refilm and post tomorrow! However, here is the update on Reagan. Today yielded another trip to the doctor's office after Reagan woke up like this:

I completely freaked out, thinking that she had a reaction to her medication or had Fifth's Disease (parvovirus, no not like dogs and cats get), which is one of the problems she had when she was born. Long story short, the nurse believed it to be an eczema flare up, but after speaking with my wonderful friends on Fertility Friend, I actually think it was simply a normal reaction to the medication (she's on two steroids, an antibiotic and another medication for coughing). Steroids can apparently make you very hot and cause you to get extremely red. Go figure. When I was on steroids, I just yelled at my then boyfriend and pushed my best friend into a grocery cart (thank you Stacy for not beating the crap out of me and understanding I was merely in a drug induced stupor!---oh and for the rest of you out there I do not routinely take steroids...it happened to be a treatment for headaches....don't ask, I don't know...)

At any rate, her ear infection is getting a little better and we're still working on the sore throat and broncholitis. *Sigh* This poor baby!

As for Pritsha, the little freak keeps ripping her stitches out with her teeth. Ugh...what am I going to do with that cat? Isn't this what we pay the vet for?? Perhaps I should have just given her a scalpel and let HER do the procedure too! Besides that, she completely scared me by jumping around the house yesterday, hissing at the air and sulking away. Yes, very disturbing.

Josh, the ever so practical guy that he is, figured out she was actually hissing because she was angry at herself because she kept jumping around and hurting her leg again (rolling my eyes here). HELLO..she just had surgery and she decides that she's fine and dandy enough to jump up and down off of couches and beds. Sadly, I'm afraid, although she is the prettiest cat I've ever seen, she isn't quite the brightest. Royalty doesn't have to be you know!

By the way, here is a picture of her incision:

Nice hair cut, huh?

And while I'm just a picture posting fiend today, here is another for good measure!

Don't you just love how babies sleep with their little butts in the air??

One sick baby...

Just a note to keep Reagan in your thoughts and prayers...she's been sick since before Christmas and although she's been on a ton of medication, including a 20 day regimen of antibiotics, she is still not better.

She now has a nasty ear infection, a sore throat that may or may not be Strep and Bronchiolitis, which is basically bronchitis for babies. She is NOW on a steroid for the ear infection, an antibiotic for the throat and breathing treatments several times a day that include a steroid and another medication for the bronchiolitis.

If she doesn't get better with the breathing treatments, she may have to go to the hospital. So please pray for her to get better. As you know, she's one tough cookie (and is, even though sick, in very high spirits and cheerful as always!) but has had a very, very rough first year of life.

Oh and to the idiotic parent out there that brought your sick, hacking, runny nose dripping child to storytime that got my child sick......be soooo glad I don't know where you live!!!!

Tackle It Tuesday

Ah, this week you can see I've given in to others' themes for my blog. Alas, my sleep deprived brain has no other alternative. Anyway, happy people, today's fist tackle-it-job is ....dun dunna dun dun dun (that was my internet version of a fanfare, in case you were wondering): finishing thank you notes for Reagan's birthday and Christmas. I'm actually writing them as though they're from her and she's signing them in her cute, barely legible, you can tell mommy is holding the pen so I'm not chewing on it, hand. My plan is to get these suckers finished and out in the mail by tonight.

My second tackle it job of the day is to finish my grocery list and coupons for the week. Let me just say, today is going to be a fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuun day!

And finally, my third tackle it job is to actually get off my behind and get out in the snow and pay the mortgage at the bank. I would pay it online but every time I do they mess something up. GRRR. Technology, sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn't.

Seriously though, Reagan and I are planning a much better afternoon than this morning has been. So far it has been one of those mornings....I've yelled at Reagan for not taking a nap (after being up before dawn and waking me up all night--not that that's an excuse, I'm just saying!), I've stepped on Porthos and I have a splitting headache!

BUT this afternoon holds promise as two of Reagan's play buddies are coming over at lunch while their mommy goes to a dental appointment. Then Reagan and I are going to track down to Fort Wayne for Nurse Amy to examine Reagan's continued chest congestion. Then Reagan and I are going to hit the school supply store to look for some banners and flash cards to help her with her colors and animals and numbers. We're not going to attempt letters at this moment. She's only one after all ;)

So that is our day in a nutshell!

Menu Plan Monday

I'm taking a cue from several of you wonderful people whom I've been spying on (via your blogs), and am participating in Menu Plan Monday! Hopefully most of these dishes I can make low in fat and high in veggies, whole grains and proteins...which will fit in perfectly with my Weight Watchers plan! Enjoy!

Monday-BBQ Beef Bowl and a green side veggie (courtesy of Kraft Magazine Holiday 2007 edition)

Tuesday-Tomato and Spinach Pasta Toss (courtesy of Kraft Magazine Winter 2007 edition)

Wednesday-leftovers or chicken salad sandwiches and soup

Thursday-Salmon patties, veggies, whole wheat rolls

Friday-Taco Bake and a side veggie (courtesy of Kraft Magazine Winter 2007 edition)

Saturday-leftovers or the old standby-soup and sandwich

Sunday-Roast with potatoes and veggies

Can you tell Wednesday and Saturday are my days in the office??

Weight Watchers, my friends...Weight Watchers

So as part of my "Get Fit in 2008" strategy, I'm joining Weight Watchers and the Y as of next week..Tuesday to be exact (I already have plans for Monday in case you were prosaically wondering why I was waiting til Tuesday of all days). But that's right, I said it--Weight Watchers. I am no longer proud, folks. See my pride..yep, there it is running out of the door and I'm too out of shape to catch it!

Seriously, I'm actually really excited because I just previewed a fantastic new cookbook that WW has and it looks absolutely delicious!! Now, if only I can learn to eat one cookie and not a dozen ;) Sigh...if only I could be pregnant again! LOL..most of you are wondering where that came from...well if you recall, I was deathly sick during almost my entire pregnancy and couldn't force anything down my throat. Josh would try to entice me with all sorts of things. Once he brought home four of the massive family size buckets of mashed potatoes from KFC because I thought I might be able to eat a little of those. I took five small bites and couldn't eat any more. He brought home three packages of sweet little chocolate covered graham crackers...I ate three cookies TOTAL over the course of several weeks! The mere sight or smell or even suggestion of food would send me running to the bathroom and have me heaving there most of the night...I didn't even look pregnant til I was way past six months! That's right! Ah, to be pregnant. Bulimic bliss.......

Back to the present. I have packed away, in my closet, a cute little sundress that I used to be able to wear when I was 19. Folks, that sundress will be worn by the end of December this year. I don't care if it's -30, I'm wearing the sundress out in December....with cute little black sandals to boot. And if I even have a certain little mini skirt leftover from when I was 19, guess what? I'm wearing it too! (Probably not in public mind you---I'm not THAT daring any more! But I'm sure Josh will get a kick out of it!)

So, here I am, laying this out for all of you to see. 30 lbs by June 30th and then more to follow....the sundress...the miniskirt...it WILL happen people....(even if I have to zip it up with a pair of pliers....)

The Flag..

Mmm...I just noticed my flag blanket is upside down in Reagan's picture..interesting...I'm sure that happened when I had to rehang it after Reagan decided to play Tarzan with it.......

A few new pictures of our monkey

Here she is wondering why Mommy has her bundled up like the child from "A Christmas Story"...

Here she is wondering what in the heck is this white stuff??

Mmmmmmm...yum! Spinach!

Why is everyone looking at me?? I said stop looking at me!!! Wait, no come back....

Is there anything I ask you, anything, cuter than a baby butt? Well, maybe baby toes or chunky baby legs or baby earlobes....

Top 10 Thoughts of 2007.....

This was too good not to post! I didn't think of this on my own; my wonderful friend Karen emailed it to me! But #2 and #1 are my favorites! Enjoy!

TOP TEN THOUGHTS FOR 2007
Number 10 Life is sexually transmitted.
Number 9 Good health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die.
Number 8 I can't in good conscious post this since my Granny may read it!!
Number 7 Give a person a fish and you feed them for a day; teach a person to use the Internet and they won't bother you for weeks.
Number 6 Some people are like a Slinky ... not really good for anything, but you still can't help but smile when you shove them down the stairs.
Number 5 Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in hospitals dying of nothing.
Number 4 All of us could take a lesson from the weather. It pays no attention to criticism.
Number 3 Why does a slight tax increase cost you $200.00 and a substantial tax cut saves you $0.30?
Number 2 In the '60's, people took acid to make the world weird. Now the world is weird and people take Prozac to make it normal.
AND THE NUMBER 1 THOUGHT FOR 2007: We know exactly where one cow with Mad-cow-disease is located among the millions and millions of cows in America, but we haven't got a clue as to where thousands of illegal immigrants and terrorists are located. Maybe we should put the Department of Agriculture in charge of immigration.

A word on Post Partum Depression...

Just wanted to let everyone know there is some interesting legislation being brought up regarding Post Partum Depression. While I'm not usually one for politicians being involved in my healthcare (please pass the socialism....), you may want to take a look at the information being offered up if you're interested in women's health care...and that should be everybody...yes, even men...even single men who might possibly get married one day and have a wife that has to, God forbid, deal with this horrible disease.

Now, I'm not saying I support this legislation, but this is a subject that is very near and dear to my heart. So, in that light...if you have moms, sisters, aunts, cousins, friends or whatever! that have children and have had to deal with this or might have to deal with this in the future (or if you happen to be someone going through it right now), here are some great sites to offer some additional help.

I really encourage everyone to make themselves as aware of this horrible condition as possible--women need help and spreading education and letting them know they are not alone is the best way to do it!

http://www.postpartum.net/

http://postpartumprogress.typepad.com/weblog/

http://ppdhope.com/

Update on Pritsha

For those of you who asked (and thank you for being concerned about our furbaby!), Pritsha's surgery went well and we should be able to pick her up tomorrow. She'll have a bandage for about a week and stitches for about two weeks--but curiously no cast.

This was our vet's first time ever repairing an ACL on a cat, although he does them routinely on dogs....go figure that we would be the first..it never fails (*wry smile here*), so I was a little hesitant---that, and she's older now and going 'under' is always risky for an older cat, but she actually is in pretty amazing health for her age and as I said before, all went well!

The only fluke came when I took her in and they asked if she had eaten anything since the cut-off time the night before....I had to confess *shamefaced might I add* that the little devil had eaten a ribbon before we brought her in. Katey, our lovely veterinary assistant, with a puckered frown asked, "A ribbon?" "Yes, a ribbon. We have a very strange cat."

Grrrrrrr. And with that, I bid you all goodnight.

Do YOU have a fantasy?

I do....*wistful sigh here* Every chance I get I return to my fantasy. Sometimes I return to where I last left off, sometimes I start completely over. And when I get a chance.....I slip into a nice warm bubble bath. Sliding down into thousands of sudsy bubbles, sipping a nice cup of hot tea (you thought I was going to say chilled wine didn't you?) and my mind just floats away....

There I am, standing, waiting. He turns to me, walks slowly over with his hulking muscular shoulders, opens his arms..smiles, and.............



(you're waiting aren't you...I know you are......)




hands me a key....to my beautiful new dream house. *sighhhhhhhhhhhhh* Gleaming walls of custom built, floor to ceiling cabinets, a kitchen filled with all the latest gadgets and a new KitchenAid mixer, and a warming tray..wait..make that TWO warming trays, refrigerators and dishwashers that seamlessly blend into the woodwork, gorgeous stone floors...a sunken family room ....a large formal dining room with creamy stone platters lining a rustic hutch...

Oh, hi, you guys are still there, huh? Sigh. Ok back to the real world. So that's it. My fantasy. I spend hours and hours staring into space daydreaming about where I'm going to put this room and what we'll do with this area and how many square feet should it be and do I really think we should only have 3.5 bathrooms, better make that 4.

Now recently I have been convinced that I should have a basement as a devoted family room...complete with walls of built-ins, cushy leather sofas and chairs, tables that let down for an art area, an office, a bar and an ingenious (if I do say so myself, thank you very much) little curtained area for stage productions courtesy of Reagan.

But today I was thinking, why have the family room there? I love spending time in my kitchen so why not make the family room open to that part of the house? So then, what do I with the basement? I can't get rid of it....it's as close to a bomb shelter as Josh is going to let me have!

[Yes, I'm completely paranoid and am seriously considering living on a farm raising free range chickens and cutting off all communication with the outside world...except ebay...must have ebay....(maniacal laugh here)]

Wait. Where was I? Oh yes, the basement. So I thought about putting the children's bedrooms there (Yes, as in plural. No, as in I'm not pregnant, nor will I ever be again.) But then there's radon gas. So then I thought of putting the master bedroom there, but what if someone breaks in and I can't get to the kids fast enough.

Yes, I seriously am this OCD.

So then I thought about putting the kids bedrooms on the upper floor (like a loft area) but what about a fire??? No, must have them on the first floor with me.

Ok, that STILL leaves the basement................

My poor poor furbaby!

On New Years Day, Pritsha thought it would be incredibly fun to play in the Christmas decorations while we were having dinner (less chance of her getting into trouble I suppose). Somehow she managed to get a bag stuck around her neck and then proceeded to tear through the house in a flurry of flying hair and screams because the bag was 'chasing her'. She ended up in our room, under our bed and refused to come out---bag still wound around her neck.

Of course, at this point, mommy was freaking out because I was absolutely convinced she was going to strangle herself to death. She REFUSED to come out from underneath the bed so I began tugging at her leg...eventually I pulled her out and the bag came off.

Then a whole new set of problems emerged.

Pritsha began limping and hiding in small warm places and crying. I felt the leg..not broken. But after two days of this, I began to worry it might be dislocated and today, off to the doctor Pritsha, Reagan and I went.

The diagnosis: torn ACL. Great. Our vet says the only thing we can do is surgery. Expensive surgery...and even with surgery, she is still going to develop arthritis.

So either way we go, Pritsha will be in pain eventually. But surgery will hold it off for a few more years.

I feel so guilty and so upset. My poor baby. We will probably end up doing the surgery next week. I'll update everyone when we know more.

Just a random thought...

So I'm trying to be healthier this year and eat less processed, more natural whole foods (this after the chili from last night..oh well, one last hurrah)....but why oh why does every health food store have to be 'hug-a-tree, I'm a hippie, welcome to the 60s-protest the war'??? Seriously people. Ugh.

Can I not just buy some food without getting into a huge political debacle? I guess not. And with that..I'll leave you with this:

Screw the caribou...drill Alaska! (see, I really am an evil conservative *insert maniacal laugh here*)

New Years? BAH HUMBUG!

Can you tell my night did not go so well? It couldn't be because a certain little girl got up SEVEN times during the night and it couldn't be because between the hours of 1:30 am and 3:00 am, I was punched, kicked, tackled, had my hair pulled, had to endure listening to non-stop chatter and constant giggling and basically used as a human jungle gym. No, it couldn't be that...must have been something else. Grrrrr.

*Sigh* Reagan has GOT to stop waking up at night. I cannot go on without sleep. That's it, we're back to Cry It Out.

I love my little girl to death but enough is enough already. Mommy needs sleep in order to be an even somewhat effective member of the human race. Wish us luck. The war begins tonight.

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Aha! So, today during lunch I happened to see this little hole in Reagan's gum and a teeny tiny sliver of grayish-white tooth peeking out. So I guess we know what last night's problem was...her 9th tooth! Poor baby has been chewing like a rabid dog on anything she can get her mouth on! Needless to say, tonight she is going to bed with Tylenol!

Speaking of which, I hear her fussing around in there now.............