Friday, January 23, 2009

Long-Winded and Over-Thought-Out Tidbits


  • Something we own-- that is somehow related to Andrew-- is leaving white fuzz all over EVERYTHING. Where is it coming from? A blanket? An outfit? WHAT? My black wool coat is covered in it. The black Ergo baby carrier is covered. Andrew's clothes are covered. WHERE IS IS IT COMING FROM!?


  • I wash my hands ten bajillion times a day these days. After every diaper change, after every time Becca goes potty, every time I come inside from being out and about, etc. I don't know when this obsession started, but I am going to count how many times I wash my hands today. I'll let you know. So far it is 9 a.m. and I've washed them three times. I go through hand cream like water.

  • Becca is currently wearing one of my nightgowns --an ivory color--and some silvery high heeled shoes of mine. She thinks she is wearing my wedding dress. She is practicing her curtsy in it. And she is highly pissed that I got rid of my veil. We have spent the last 30 minutes going over and OVER the reason why I no longer have it. Why did it get dirty? Why did Aunt Susan play with your petticoat (it was her Halloween costume one year)? Why did you throw away your veil? Why? WHY? WHY?????

  • I have always heard that raising boys is so much easier than raising girls. Of course, Andrew is still just in baby form, so I don't have any first hand experience yet. But I do know that the drama associated with girls is just over the top. At least in our house. Oy. I have always been much more in tune with girls. When I was pregnant with Becca I was praying it would be a girl, because I was terrified of the thought of having a son. I'd see boys just being out of control physically--jumping, hitting, throwing, screaming etc. Sweet little girls would be playing quietly in one place. But now? When Becca is having a meltdown over which pair of fucking socks she wants to wear, I pick up Andrew and he just grins and smiles at me and I think....maybe it would be easier to deal with someone jumping around all day instead of someone having continuous meltdowns. I don't know. Physical exhaustion seems easier at this point than emotional exhaustion. Maybe I'm just convincing myself I can handle being the mom of a boy. I guess my point is that I wasn't prepared for the emotional drama of having a girl, just as I'm equally as unprepared for the physicality of having a boy. Bottom line: I'm unprepared all around, I guess.


  • Ever since we moved here in May 2007, I have been craving schedules. I wanted something to pull me out of the day in/day out rut of staying at home in the role of mommy with no friends and on a first year airline salary (read: POOR). Then, Andrew was born, Becca started preschool and gymnastics, we joined a gym, we have made friends, and suddenly, I am craving NOT having all that stuff to do. Today we have NOTHING we have to do, and it is wonderful. Andrew can nap in his crib instead of in his car seat while being dragged all over creation. We can stay in our pajamas until bedtime if we want. I can putz around the house while the kids nap without having to nap myself (because I didn't go bonkers running around all morning.) Then I start thinking about how crazy life is going to get when the kids are both in school and activities. I will really be wishing for the boring part of my life to return. Life is strange.

  • Proof that I am good about doing the laundry, horrible about folding it. Behold the pile of clean laundry that I'm ignoring at the moment.

  • Becca started gymnastics a few weeks ago. She just turned three. And she is by far the most behind in the class. I asked some of the other moms how long their kids have been doing it, and they said they started when they were one year old. I swear, people have lost their damn minds enrolling their kids in every possible activity starting at age one. She will catch up and be fine, but geez. I don't think I started gymnastics until I was seven. I also sucked at it, so maybe that is the problem. It just seems ridiculous that you have to decide so early for your kids what they are going to do. What if she hates gymnastics in a few years and is mad that we didn't put her in dance or soccer instead? Because imagine how far behind she'll be then....I wish kids could just be kids for longer and you could sign them up for stuff when they showed interest on their own. What is wrong with just playing with their friends and enjoying life before being shoved into everything?


  • Also, apparently I am prone to overthinking.


  • If you are undecided about which size Pull-Up to buy, always go smaller. Always. I won't go into details.

  • I love knowing that my family room carpet will be GONE by this time next week. It is such a relief to leave my coffee cup on the floor in there and not worry about it turning over. Becca just ground a chocolate chip into the carpet? Who cares? I never realized how much energy I put into worrying about what spilled on the carpet. How ridiculous. I am going to get a very busy and colorful area rug in there (a cheap one) so that I won't have to worry about it ever again. Once that rug is gross, we trash it! No permanent damage to the house. I don't even know why carpet was invented, honestly. Some person decided they would invent a substance that would cause homeowners to worry about its condition from the moment it was installed.

  • Photos from the last few days:

11 comments:

Peregos said...

Love the post. Love ignoring what's going on here to jump into your day. And I agree with the whole question of why people start kids in activities before they can walk! We started Joshua in soccer right at his 5th birthday. The registration lady looked at me like I was crazy when I said he'd never played on a team before. I guess kids usually start at 3. He's doing fine. And he could play outdoor and indoor, we're just doing summer league. We want to enjoy home days as a family too!!

Anonymous said...

What is wrong with just playing with their friends and enjoying life before being shoved into everything?

NOTHING IS WRONG WITH THAT!!

Becca will either come to enjoy gymnastics in which case she may continue... or not. What's important is that she is active, and running around the neighborhood with friends is terrific!

Jen said...

I am frightened at the prospect of having a boy. I just won't know what to do with him, from changing diapers to playing.

I can't WAIT to see your new floors. I love hardwood! LOVE! All houses should have it! Sadly, real hardwood is not recommended in the SW due to weather concerns. Someday. For now, I will live vicariously through you.

Katie said...

Jen, OMG. Changing diapers on a boy totally TOTALLY grosses me out. It took me a long time to not freak out every time I had to do it. It just seems wrong to wipe poo off of someone's testicles. Just wrong.

And I have NO idea how you play with a boy. Cars? Or something? I am hoping it will become clear as we go....Because right now if it isn't a Disney Princess, it isn't worth playing with...

Anonymous said...

Being mom to a boy is wonderful - you'll enjoy Andrew as he grows up!

David was a great, happy, laid back, good-natured, smart baby and toddler (and kid, adolescent, and adult for that matter)! He LOVED constructing with Legos and Playmobiles and he would play happily with just about anyone. He got his first Legos - the small kind - when he was about three.

Invest in Legos! Maybe you can find Princess Legos for Becca!

Anonymous said...

Boys are soooo much easier then girls to raise.

MaryB said...

Boys are so much easier. i have 3 nieces all same ages as my boys. I love them like they are my own. I love to have girly time with them. I hate that we moved so far aay from them. BUT ZOMG! If I had to be their actual mother I would DIE!

Also, (soapbox alert) yes boys are different from girls, BUT that does not mean that ppl should use that as an excuse to let little boys run amuck! I think lots of ppl do this and it gives boys a bad rap. My boys can be a PIA, but really they are well mannered and know how to behave and know when it is appropriate to roughouse and when it is not. BTW - not AT ALL saying that you would do this - just that those who are guilty scare nice ppl like you about having boys.

Kids start activities TOO DAMN EARLY. I refuse to participate in competitive parenting. and, even as middle schoolers my kids are limited to one extra-curricular at a time. I am a big fan of the book "The Oversheduled Child." Also, husband is gone all he ime and I am the only liscneced driver around here - there are limits to how many places I can get kids to at the same time.

Playing with a boy - so easy! Balls or anything with wheels. Also, it as been my experience that boys are better at self-entertaining than girls. (could just be the girls I know though)

First year airline pay - HA! we thought we were finally NOT poor when he got hired...1 1/2 years at a REGIONAL airline...check out those payscales! Lets just say we spent a lot of time on mil leave!

sorry - late, rambling, lonely (husband STILL on detachment!) all equals MaryB hijacking your comment section....

Carpet sucks!!!! Cant wait to see the new floors!

Angie said...

I actually think that boys have much better toys than girls. Of course, Ashlyn has legos and cars, too, but I like all of the construction stuff.

And, I agree with Mary B on the boys running wild thing. I was terrified of having a boy, because of the boys in our play group who would knock Ashlyn down and were just so rowdy. But, really, yeah boys are rougher, but they certainly didn't need to be allowed to knock younger kids over. Ashlyn is INCREDIBLY dramatic. I think it is as much her personality as being a girl. For that reason, though, I am glad that we had a boy to balance things out.

I also have a problem with constant hand washing (my hands are very rough and cracked.) And laundry, I keep washing, but the folding and putting away are such a pain.

Ashlyn played soccer this past fall. It was a waste of time. I wanted to get her involved with a sport, but it wasn't worth it. I think many of the other 3 year old parents were of the same mindset. I will put her in dance and gymnastics when we get settled in the states, because I think that she would like those activities. And, really, I might put Christopher in gymnastics earlier, because he already seems like he will be more active. A place to expend energy! Any other sport, they can wait.

Hardwood floors are wonderful!

Ok, commenting too much, but there was just so much in your post.

Katie said...

Angie and MaryB, You are SO right about parents just letting boys run wild while saying, "Oh, boys will be boys!" or, "He is just ALL boy!" I think they let them get away with too much, often.

Ugh. Someone please remind me of this at a later date okay?

Tracy said...

Gymnastics at 1 for me was only because Madison was 3 and started and I didn't want to sit there for an hour with Cait. I think sports start TOO early here too. Madison was WAY behind when she did soccer. Seriously, she was 3. THe other kids were way more advanced!

Kristi said...

On the gynmastics front, Kaeli started just after she turned 6. I'm still amazed at the 3 year olds are flipping around the bar. Fortunately, she's in a class with other kids who had parents so horrible that they didn't start them in gymnastics at birth.