Extra Love

My Mother is an artist. She makes beautiful things. By things, I mean quilts, baby stuff, my wedding dress. In fact, she can make anything she wants and I frequently ask her to make things for Stella so that I don't have to buy it. Crib sheets, receiving blankets, sleep sacks - it doesn't matter, she can make it. She's literally saved us hundreds of dollars. Maybe even a thousand or two.

When Stella was born, my Mom showed up with a car full of boxes of things she made for Stella. One of these things was a youngster size quilt. Stella loves it. She loves the colors in it and often stares at it hanging on the back of my chair. I've told Stella that anything from any Grandma comes with extra love; so Grandma's quilts will always keep her warm and make her feel better by wrapping her with love.

Right now, my girl is cutting her first tooth and has a runny nose that is upsetting her tummy. She's just uncomfortable. Nothing Matt and I have tried has helped her settle into sleep. We've rocked and sang; walked and talked. I finally brought her back downstairs, wrapped her in Grandma's quilt, rocked her and sang a song about how teething sucks. Apparently, Grandma's quilt was exactly what she needed because she finally drifted off to sleep in my arms and is now snoozing away in her crib.

(These pictures are from a particularly chilly day last month however they show a very similar scene - cranky baby, nap needed, Grandma's quilt was the only thing that did the trick).

Thanks Mom. You're the best.

Tastes Like Chicken

Holy! Could it be? I caught it? I caught it! Mama! Look! I caught the elusive foot!I should promptly give it a proper chewing.What?
It tastes like chicken.

Mama Drama

I am having the first of what I assume will be many "Mama Dramas". Not guilt mind you, just a moment when things are changing and as a Mom, you are not quite ready. It wouldn't be so bad if it was just one "drama", but in the span of just two weeks, I am experiencing two.

Drama 1: I have decided to stop nursing my daughter. Let me rephrase this, my body decided to stop nursing my daughter. Despite my best efforts to keep it up, my production has been decreasing steadily over the past month. It finally became clear that there was nothing I could do to stop it. I held out to the very end but, last week, there was nothing left. Even though it was obvious that this was coming. I was SO not ready. It's been a week now and as liberating as it is to not have to drag my pump around to work and such, it bugs me that somewhere deep in my subconcious, I thought this was the right decision. Obviously, the subconcious and the concious me are not on speaking terms. I miss the closeness and quiet time with my baby.

Drama 2: Matt has a few editing jobs coming his way over the course of the next few months. The money these will bring will be a big help and I'm sure, after 2 months of playing Mr. Mom full-time, he is ready for a change of pace. So on Tuesday, I will be dropping Stella off at daycare for the first tme. Daycare. Strangers taking care of my girl. Strangers! AAAaaahhhhhhhhh.

I've visited this place and met/talked with the owner several times. She has come highly recommended and is willing to be very flexible when it come to our sporatic scheduling needs. I have been perfectly fine with this decision until now.

Stella is at the age where separation anxiety is just beginning. It will absolutely break my heart to walk away from her while she is crying because a stranger has her. I plan on melting into a puddle of tears the second I get in my car.

Strangers. Watching my girl. Nope. I'm not ready for this. Not ready at all.

No Need to Buy Toys

I'll entertain myself with this empty milk jug.
Just because the parents and Grandparents have bought me plenty of toys doesn't mean they are nearly as fun as as empty jug. Even better is to throw it on the ground then look up at Daddy with my sweet eyes and watch him pick it up for me. Every. Single. Time.

Bend to my will old man! (bwahahahah...oh...ahem)

Just wait until I learn to pull the cats tail!

Is it bad?

Is it bad when 1 snow plow is stuck behind your house?
How about 2 snow plows stuck behind your house?

It can't be good when 3 are stuck!

This does not bode well for the street in front of my house where there is 2 plus feet of snow and the cars are just mounds of white with antenna (windshield wipers) sticking out. According to the weatherman, we have approximately 6 more hours of this mess.

And, to make it worse, there is another snow storm expected Tuesday and Wednesday.

FANTASTIC!!! (rolling of eyes)