Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

Forget Me Knot by Sue Margolis

My rating: 1 of 5 stars

We stopped by Borders on Saturday so I could pick up a birthday present for one of the other August 2008 babies. Right in front of the door was the “Buy One, Get One 50% Off” table. There on the table was Anthony Bourdain’s Kitchen Confidential. “Hurray!” I exclaimed (in my head). I quickly grabbed another book that looked cute and would be fluffy entertainment. “Hmm,” thought I, “This looks appropriately light yet not stupid for a ‘ChickLit’ book.” Fast forward to last night, when I needed a new book for my read-to-sleep ritual.

Oh my STARS. What an awful jumble of chicklit clichés and shallow characters. The main character was the too-good-to-be-true Abby, who reads like a Mary Sue from schlocky fan fiction. Every single character is predictable, boring, and shallow. Most of the book describes events, backstory, and character “insights” instead of using dialogue or action to let the characters live, breathe, and develop.

As for the clichés, let’s see:

• meet “cute” with devastatingly handsome and charming man while engaged to another man
• get dumped; surprise meet “cute” again with DH&C man
• gay best friend/co-worker
• forthright female best friend who thinks so main character doesn’t have to
• cutesy occupation for protagonist
• rich boyfriend turns out to be a jerk
• protag’s mother shocks the world and becomes world-famous
• protag almost ruins new relationship with DH&C man because of Secrets
• DH&C man turns out to be rich so we can all be happy while still being socially aware and righteously middle class.

Did I miss any?

Extra non-bonus: sudden appearance of graphic sex scenes in the latter third of the book. Where did that come from?

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

I just could not face going out into the Houston humidity this morning (typically 82 degrees and 97% humidity) for a run. I did a quick check on the Y’s hours and decided to go run inside. My poor dog was so disappointed; she’s already adapted to the early morning run schedule! She was so excited to see me out in the living room at 5:30, and the poor girl had to stay home!

I may be one of the very few who actually prefers running on a treadmill. That might change as I get more experienced, but I really do love it! I can completely zone out, keep an eye on my heart rate, and just pace along with whatever music comes on the iPod. Street running can be nice in the quiet, dark hours. I do love having Josie with me in the early mornings or Seth, Will, and Josie with me when we go out in the evenings. But it just takes a lot more concentration, and I like to turn off most of my brain and relax through the exercise.

Regardless of method, I did get up and get out there today. I’m still very much a baby in this whole running thing, but I was proud of my 2.22 miles in 35 minutes. I’ll do my best to keep going!

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

Destined for Mission Control, originally uploaded by dormousie.

I guess someone has already absorbed a lot from where Mommy works …

While our Finnish and French friends were here, we went to Space Center Houston a couple of times. Well, Will went a couple of times. I went once since it was a Saturday when the Frenchies went. Will bought a season pass and I, well, I get in free. Woo!

If you haven’t been to Space Center Houston recently, it’s pretty darn cool right now. In addition to the NASA stuff – films, rides, T-38 “pilot” simulations, and a huge model of the Shuttle Orbiter that you can climb in around through – they have a George Lucas Films exhibit. There’s a ropes course for the truly adventurous to experience, Star Wars “training” exercises, and some other stuff I forgot because it’s not really baby friendly. There were props exhibited, too, and there are character sightings at certain days.

So while Seth and I waited for the Frenchies to get back from the long, hot tour through JSC (take a lot of water), I tried to find ways to amuse the littlest man. We looked at some Droids, marveled at Orbiter scale, and wandered around. I knew there had to be something with lots of buttons for him, so …

… we went to the Mission Control area in the Kids Zone. Really, there’s not a whole lot for babies to do at SCH. Toddlers and bigger kids can have fun in the play zone, but these little ones are too overwhelmed. But! Seth LOVES to push buttons. He had a fabulous time clambering over the Mission Control set-up (which has remote cameras in the play tower/slide thingie for interactive fun), and pushing every button he could find. I wish I could have taken a picture of him standing on the counter, hitting every button in site, but I thought it better to be safe and hold on to him while he whacked the buttons.

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

… I get the chance to sit down at a non-government computer without more pressing distractions like a fascinating baby, a wonderful husband, knitting projects that have taken six months or more to get halfway done, cleaning I’ve avoided, dishes that I try to do sometimes so Will doesn’t, and food that needs to be prepared. Oh, and general fun I’d rather have instead of typing at a computer yet again. It gets really old after eight or more hours a day.

So here I am, and ready to at least do a “Here’s what’s going on with us!” update! Wow. The last time I updated really was almost exactly three months ago. Oops.

I’m still working for the government (thus the not typing things while I’m at work), and it’s okay. Basically, I’m conflicted every day. I love who I work for, I love (for the most part) who I work with, and it’s just a good place to be. There are two issues, one sort of minor and one bigger: I’m burned out on what I do, and I hate being away from Seth. “They” tell you it will get easier to be at work while your baby is with someone else during the day. I think that’s true for a lot of mothers and fathers, but it is killing me. I am so grateful that Will is the one taking care of Seth, because I don’t think I could handle it if it were anyone else. We’ve even discussed postponing having another kid until our circumstances change and I can be the one who stays home. That’s not the ideal solution (because who knows when the circumstances will change) but neither is me crying everyday at work. So, until Will finds a fabulous job that he loves and can support us, I go to work and try to enjoy myself. I’m looking into ways to make it a better fit at work, so we shall see.

Will does get to be home with Seth, and he’s absolutely amazing. I love that Seth gets his daddy, and I love that Will is willing to do so much with Seth. Sorry, everyone, but I really do have the best husband in the world. Right now he’s rehanging our door because the house shifted and it won’t open/close easily. His “rehanging” means taking the doorframe completely apart, taking out the crap other people (read: “lazy builders”) put in, and making it work for now and the future. He knows so many things that are WAY beyond my comprehension. Plus, he’s hot. YAY! I WIN!

Now for the most important person in the family (or so I’ve been told): Clive. Just kidding. Although, Clive does tell me that every day. Clive, Bonnie, and Josie are all fine and dandy. Clive almost went to live with some neighbors or random passer-by after we came home from Alabama and found that he’d peed all over our bed, including the brand-new comforter, the quilt my grandmother made, and our seven month-old mattress. Fortunately, we got over it and got just about everything de-catted. The jury is still out on the comforter.

Back to the important person (who sounds like he might be waking up from a nap right now): Mr. Seth is just wonderful. He continues to be long and skinny. His five-month-old cousin passed him in weight about a month ago. Seth pulls up on everything, climbs everything, and cruises around the room, holding on to whatever (or whomever) is available. We missed uncle Logan’s $5000 bet that he’d walk at nine months, but oh well. We weren’t holding our breath on either part.

Seth is pretty much done with “baby” food now. He likes to feed himself, so we go for small bites of things that he can pick up. Today’s breakfast was half a banana (in pieces) and some oatmeal. Last night he ate banana, blueberry yogurt with shredded mozzarella on top (weirdo), and some Goldfish crackers. It was an odd combination, but since he’s refused to eat solid food for two days (teething), we let him eat whatever he would put in his mouth. He’s usually pretty good about eating what we eat, at least to some extent. We also think (as you can see) that the dairy issues are DONE! HURRAY! Mommy can have cheese and real butter again!! I still think I’ll avoid the real milk, though … I like coconut milk beverage so much. Anyway, Seth has five teeth already (two top middle, two bottom middle, one side bottom) and we think he’s working on the fourth bottom tooth and two more up top. Poor kid … poor parents!
The little baby is officially ten months old and almost close to his first birthday. I can hardly believe that!

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

Can you tell what Seth listens to in order to get to sleep?

Baby Einstein Lullabies

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

Erin:  My email is down AGAIN. Every single Monday!!!

Adelle: OMG. I cannot believe they allow it

Erin: Seriously!!

Adelle: Why do my meetings start in the middle of good songs?

Erin: I hope Obama puts this on his list of things to change about the government. Because meetings are evil.

Adelle: HAHAHAHAHA!!!!!! You should email him. Put in the subject: CHANGE ([Agency] Email)

Erin: HAHAHA!!!  If I could email, I would!

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

Monday was a federal holiday, and our friend Julien was visiting from Australia. We decided to head down to Galveston to see Moody Gardens and whatever else we could find.

Will and I had been to Moody Gardens before, with Kristin, Nolan, and the girls, and we visited the Rainforest Pyramid. Unfortunately, the Rainforest Pyramid was badly damaged by Hurricane Ike. About 80% of the animals were lost and the 10-story pyramid is still broken and undergoing repairs. So on Monday we went to the Aquarium Pyramid to check out the fish and other marine-related animals.

Seth was more interested than I thought he would be! He did really well in the carrier and slept on the way down to Moody and the way home. (It’s about 40 minutes from our house.) I can definitely see us getting some sort of season pass to Moody Gardens!

After we left Moody Gardens, we drove along the Seawall to look at the beaches and the Gulf. Yes, Galveston still has a lot of recovering to do, but it’s prettier than I thought it would be down there!

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

I forget who tagged me for this one, but I just saw the text file on my computer where I started writing my answers.

This was some meme/survey that went around on Livejournal. Man … I missed a few days of reading LJ posts, and apparently the world went to hell and there was another viral meme! (I still need to do that “X Things About You” one, but it keeps growing, first from 16 then to 25 then to 30.)

Anyway, this one was to answer the questions that the previous person answered. If you didn’t like the question, you could replace it with one of your own. Then you tagged everyone you could think of to do it. Obviously I am on guinea-pig-powered internet time, so I am late and you’re all sick of this one by now. Could you move on the next meme and tag me so I can be behind on that one?

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

The other day, a mom on one of the August 2008 mommy boards asked if she was crazy for already wanting another baby. I’ve wondered if a lot of us get that urge, especially around the anniversary of when we found out we were pregnant this time around.

My clock has been ticking too, but I think it’s mainly due to other things. My maternity leave is really and truly over, my baby is getting so big and active, and I miss the joy and anticipation of pregnancy. I am so jealous of the girls I know who are pregnant now, and I want another baby right now.

But … I finally clued in that, for me, it’s mostly because I miss the things I’ve already had with Seth, not because I actually want another kid right now. I want to spend more time with my baby because it’s going by so quickly. Pregnancy and early infancy were the times where he was almost all “mine”, and I miss that, especially now that I’m back at work.

All that said, we want three kids and I want them before I’m 35 if everything else (money, jobs, etc.) stay okay.  I’d love them to be about two years apart (at least the first two). I joked about having one for each Olympics of the next four years, but I don’t think we’ll actually try for that!

We also have to be smart about money and future plans, too. If I want to be the stay-home caregiver, we have to think carefully about adjusting our budgets and where we’re going to live. I don’t mean “house or cheaper house” or even “house or apartment”, but rather “U.S. or France.”  It would be much easier for Will to get started in the sort of business he wants to have if we lived in France. We would also not have to worry about health care since the government would pay for all of that. Will has dual citizenship, so it shouldn’t be a problem for Seth and me to be covered. I’m just not ready to move yet, and I’d like at least one more pregnancy with my Houston OB. I’m worried about having the asthma issues again in a country I don’t know, with doctors I don’t know, and a language I don’t speak yet.

We shall see …

Edit: I keep meaning to clarify: Seth is all joy and anticipation himself. Every day is so new and he does so many things quickly, it’s exciting to just be with him. The pregnancy joy and anticipation is another variation of what I feel. In a way, it’s only because of Seth and who he is now that I want to have other children. I know how wonderful everything was with him (seriously, aside from the asthma), and part of me can’t wait to meet our other kids, should we have them!

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

This week has been … something. Every day, I’ll think, “Oh, I could totally write about this!” and I’ll even take a picture of something to go with it and then I fall asleep because I’m exhausted, physically and mentally. The end of 2008 has come and gone, and I didn’t even do a quick-and-easy look at it, because that’s how out of it I’ve been.

So, better late than never: the ubiquitous 2008 review meme. I know 2008 was an awful year for many people, but there were so many shining high points for me, mostly related to one tiny boy who made his debut in August.

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

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Seth’s baby dedication at church

Originally uploaded by dormousie

Sunday morning was crazy-busy for our family. We were bringing breakfast for our grown-up class at church (I still call it Sunday School, no matter what name it has). I volunteered to take over the 2-year-old Sunday School class during the first hour of church services, which means we’ll have to be there on time every week. (Ack!)

This Sunday, we all needed to be at church on time and looking more presentable than usual. Since Mom and Phillip were in town, we scheduled Seth’s baby dedication for December 28 during our church’s second service.

This baby dedication, if you’re not familiar with it, is loosely related to a christening or baptism. There are no godparents and there is no baptism, but the parents stand in front of the church body and publicly commit to teaching their child about God as the child grows up. The congregation is not there to give approval or confirmation, but to serve as witnesses and agree to help the parents as part of a supportive community.

Seth will make his own decisions about faith and God when he’s older. Nothing that we do can change that, and I would rather that he come to his own conclusions. Of course I have my own beliefs, but what Will and I want to do is provide him with a childhood steeped in love and teach Seth how we perceive God and what that means for our lives. (I did not say “religion” on purpose.)

Our friend Jason is one of the pastors at our church, and we were lucky that he was “in charge” that Sunday. It really meant a lot to have him do this dedication.

It’s a quick little commemoration, but it was important to me to do this while my family was here … and to do it at all. I’m not going to be perfect at anything, and I can use the support and encouragement when parenting gets rough. It will also be a reminder to me of how precious a gift Seth is to us, and how I publicly stood up and said I’d raise him the best way I know how.

We’ll see what happens when he gets into the two-year-old class in a couple of years … I may need all the support I can get!

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

</p>

326: Toddler cardigan progress

Originally uploaded by dormousie

I’m finally making progress on this sweater! I’m still messing a few things up, but they were fixable. We (Mom and I) watched The Sound of Music tonight and I knit while we sang along. Now I’m tired and headed to bed, thus the late cop-out shot with the cameraphone.

I’m knitting this for one of my three nieces, and it’s hopefully going to (a) be a surprise and (b) actually fit her. I’ve knit one sweater for one niece out of the three, and that’s before she was officially my niece.

My plan is to do more of these or a similar cardigan for the other two girls, and to do something for the boys. The problem with that many nieces and nephews is that they grow too quickly for me to keep up. If I wanted them to have matching sweaters, I’d have to do nothing but knit for a month so they could have them all at the same time! I have finally been getting my desire to knit again, so that’s an improvement. Since this time last year I just haven’t wanted to knit much at all. (Gee, what happened this time last year … ?)

Still, I’ll keep trying. I love this pattern, even though I have messed up so many tiny things on this cardigan. That top set of eyelets should be one stitch over. I only realized my miscount at the end of the first row of those eyelets, so I just compensated at the end and kept going with my mistake. If I’ve learned one thing from my cat, it’s to make it look like I meant to make my mistakes.

Ravelry link here.

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

We went to a friend’s birthday party tonight. It was the first time we visited her home, so I got to do the “tour”. I love when people will let me tour their homes. The decor and set-up of a home says so much about the people who live there.

The friend we visited tonight is always so put together, so meticulously groomed, and has a touch of “fancy” about her. Her home is the same: inviting, yet special and pretty enough that you’re afraid to put your glass down in case it leaves a mark. But, true to herself, she doesn’t care and says that marks can be wiped off.

I wonder what our home says about us. It’s usually barely contained from being cluttered, and there are piles of books and papers around the house. We do at least organize our stacks, but there are stacks.

I hope that what people feel from our house is a sense of welcome and friendliness. We love having people over to our house, and we love that we actually use our guest room for more than a knitting supply and yarn storage area.

The furniture is over-sized and comfy. It may be a little crowded, but it will be comfortable. We have blanket all around in case someone catches a chill; you just never know if it will be the air conditioning or the cool weather. (Welcome to December in Houston.)

There are photographs everywhere: not art photographs, mostly travel and family photos. Someone visiting us for the first time remarked, “It’s a little strange for me to have photos of myself around,” and that was the first I noticed that we were in most of the pictures. It hadn’t occured to me that this could be a sign of ego; I like looking at the images for the memories of the things we’ve done.

The walls are mostly muted blues and greens; I like calm colors. There’s not so much decorating, but I like pretty things to be around. I like useful things, though, so I try to not keep too many knick-knacks around. Most of our recent decoration is baby gear, though.

I’ll just consider the overflowing book shelves as decoration. Their colors can be my wall art, right?

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

Having a baby son at Christmas gives me an entirely new perspective on the holiday.

To think of Mary, surprised with a pregnancy and burdened with what she knew about her future child … just think, she knew she was having a boy before sonograms were invented!

To think of Joseph, becoming a father to a son who was not his own, yet taking him in and caring for that son and his mother, even to believing in dreams and fleeing for their protection.

To think of Christ, on equal with God, becoming a helpless infant and subject to this world … it’s just amazing to me.

To think of God, loving people on earth enough to send his own son, fully understanding his plan to redeem those people through that son … well.

The joy of Santa Claus will come in a few years, but this year is a special reflection on Christmas for me.

Whatever you believe, I hope you have a very happy and joyful Christmas. Enjoy your loved ones today and every day!

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

I haven’t done a general Seth update lately, so here goes.

• Early on, his favorite noise to make was “Boooo” or “Goooo,” so he is frequently called Mr. Boo or Mr. Goo. The “Mr.” is optional, and can also be used to call him Mr. Fuzz.
• Seth “talks” a lot these days, everything from coos and babbling to shrieks and “songs.” His voice fascinates him, and he loves to hold conversations with us. He’ll wake up talking from most of his naps.
• He typically sleeps through the night, going to bed around 8 or 8:30 pm and waking around 7 am. He naps every two hours, and those range from 40 minutes to 3 hours.  In the last couple of days, however, he’s been waking up several times a night. I think we’re in the middle of his 4 month growth spurt.
• Raspberries are the order of the day - blowing them, that is. Nothing on earth is more fun than playing with your spit while making mouth noises.
• Today was the first day he deliberately turned over from back to tummy, and did so repeatedly. He gets annoyed when his arm or a toy gets stuck under him and he can’t get all the way over.
• Seth still loves his bouncy seat and his jumperoo. He’ll jump for a while, play on the playmat for a while, then sit in the bouncy seat to watch Mommy and Daddy cook, work, or fold laundry. For an extra special treat, we sometimes let him watch Baby Wordsworth* on the portable DVD player. We also set the bouncy seat next to the mirrored closet doors so he can visit with Baby in the Mirror.
• Baby in the Mirror is, like, the coolest kid ever. Mommy in the Mirror and Daddy in the Mirror are pretty cool too.

At his last check-up, we were given the go-ahead to do solids whenver we feel like it. Our ped. did recommend waiting until six months if possible. She said that not only is it better for him, once we start we have to keep messing with it! I think we’ll stay with our highly portable mommy milk for a little longer.

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

Some days, it’s just time to cuddle up under a blanket and relax on the couch for a while.

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

One of the early Holidailies writing prompts asked if you still live where you grew up. My short answer: no. My longer answer: I grew up in so many places, how could I know which one qualifies?

I guess I would choose the place I remember the most, and the place that affected my life the most. I was born in South Carolina, but left the state when I was three years old. I lived in Tennessee for nine years, and it definitely shaped me. How could it not? Most of my family is from Tennessee and still lives there. It’s a beautiful state, and I love going back there. I like the soft hills, the azaleas and dogwoods and changes in the weather. I like my grandmother’s fried chicken and mashed potatoes, and being in a place where the gravy is brown and only goes on the potatoes. Seriously, Texas: what is up with that nasty white gravy? You might as well put pepper on wallpaper paste and plop it on your biscuits … and chicken … and chicken-fried steak … and anything else you can think of.

Then we moved to south Florida, land of humidity, ocean breezes, and palm trees. I loved Florida, and I was not happy when we moved away. Florida had an impact, as well. I don’t know that I would have started language studies with such a love of the Spanish language if it weren’t for Florida. But we left after my freshman year of high school. I still miss the beach; Galveston is not a “real” beach for me.

That brings us to Texas, where I have - I can scarcely believe it - lived for 16 years. I’ve lived here over half my life! Most of that time was in Dallas; only the last three years have been in Houston. I didn’t think I would like Texas - wasn’t it all supposed to be cowboys and cattle here? - and I didn’t think I’d stay here very long. I thought I would move back toward the coast. I suppose I did, but the wrong direction. Instead of the east coast I ended up on the Gulf Coast.

I guess that living half your life someplace means you probably grew up there. So, Texas - you are officially my home state. Dallas, you’re my hometown. I graduated from high school, spent most of my college years, and found a second family there. I spent almost 10 years at a church that I loved, and I spent almost eight years playing with babies in the church nursery on Sunday mornings. My first “class” is now in second or third grade. I made the friends who became my brothers and sisters, I found the career that I didn’t know I wanted, and I fell in love with a country I’d never thought about before. (No, Will, it is not Finland. Go Sweden!) I met the friend who would become my sister, because she set me up with her brother who became my husband. I came to Dallas as a fourteen year old with a year-round tan and hair bleached by the sun. Now I live in Houston, brunette, pale, and officially past the 30 year-mark.

For all the people who make fun of you, Texas, you’re a great place to live. You’re big enough to have landscapes that suit almost everyone. You’re wide enough to have people of every shape, size, and persuasion. Wherever you go in Texas, there is someone who will be your friend. There will be people who are your enemies, too, but with this many people you can always find a friend if you look for one.

So I guess I still live where I grew up. The town may have changed, and I might have had many places leading up to Texas, but the Lone Star State officially shaped me. Growing up — that’s another matter.

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

Someone on the Ravelry pregnancy/new parent boards asked what she really, really needs for her baby. To paraphrase one poster’s reply, you just need to take care of boobies, butt, body, and bed.   Everything else is just personal preference.  It depends on the parents and the baby’s preferences, and you just don’t know until you get there.

After four months, this is what we’ve found worked or didn’t work for us.

Essential:

• Infant Carrier Car seat  - Sounds obvious, but some don’t have cars. I would also recommend lifting weights or finding a companion who can actually lift the thing. Get two bases if you have two cars.
• Pack and Play with bassinet, changing table, and changing table accessory doohickey - It was perfect for the first couple of months before he settled into his own room and while we were displaced for three weeks.
• Waterproof lap pads - We put one on the crib mattress, floor, or bed for diaper changes because we don’t have a changing table. (Don’t want one either. We use our coffee table in Seth’s room as the stuff holder. It’s an Ikea table with cubbies, and it will be perfect for his room. Hmm. Parenthetical abuse, right here!)
• Breast pump - I was an overproducer and needed this from the start. Since I’m returning to work full-time, I have a double-electric. Get extra accessories and collection bottles!
• Lanolin pre-treated nursing pads - They’re less bother and made me feel so much better.
• Onesies, sleep gowns, and other SOFT baby clothes - Carter’s are my hands-down favorite.
• Swaddling blankets - get the biggest ones, and get the SQUARE ones. They’re also great for making a playspot on the floor.
• The Baby 411 book - saved my sanity. Read the first parts before the baby arrives so you can already have the knowledge when you’re sleep-deprived.
• Bouncer seat
• Exersaucer/Jumperoo - Seth loves, loves, loves this already.
• Extra sheets for the crib and the pack-n-play, and extra large waterproof pads for the crib. I make up the crib with two sheets at a time (mattress, waterproof cover, sheet, waterproof pad, sheet) to save time for midnight leaks.
• Teething links/ring toys

Nice to have

• Wipe warmer - Yes, I actually use one. We use cloth wipes/washcloths, and I use the wipe warmer to keep a wipe solution ready and warm. I clean it out regularly, too.
• Boppy
• Carrier/sling - See if you can borrow and try one before you buy. I found out that Seth hates slings with a passion.  He kind of likes the front-style carriers or wraps.
• Swing
• Baby bathtub - My knees won’t let me bend well at the big tub, and I’m too germ-phobic about the kitchen sink, even when it’s clean. It’s much easier to hold on to him when he’s in the baby bathtub at the kitchen sink.
• Bumbo - Seth liked it at first and now tries to pop himself out by arching his back. I can see us maybe getting more use later.
• Robeez soft shoes - they help keep his socks on and his toes warm.

Useless for us

• Soft/Plushie rattles - Seth can’t hold on to them and they aren’t as fun to chew on
• Rocking chair - I used it at first, but I feed Seth while on the couch, in the bed, wherever.
• A lot of the clothes. Too many for the wrong season or size. He just grows and grows, that kid!

The biggest tip I’d give is that for any item that comes in multiple varieties (and you receive multiple varieties), hold on to your gift receipts and only open one small unit package at a time. This could be bottles, pacifiers, diapers, etc. It was especially true for us with bottles. We had so many of the wide-mouth type, only to find that Seth prefers narrow nippled-ones. I could have returned all of the non-preferred kind and saved a lot of money, but live and learn.

You really just need things to fill their stomachs, clean and dry their bottoms, clothe and warm their bodies, and rest their little heads. Or, you know, boobies, butts, bodies, and bed.

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

I like soups. I like simple recipes that can quickly become supper without too much thought. Therefore, I love simple soup recipes.

I call this Taco Soup because of the seasoned ground beef and the picante flavors from the salsa. I’m just an amateur who likes to throw things together at home, so my technique may not be perfect. Adjust to suit your taste.

• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon chili powder or taco seasoning
• 1 cup salsa
• 1 - 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes
• 1 - 15.5 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 - 15 ounce can tomato sauce
• Tortilla chips (optional)
• Shredded Cheddar cheese (optional)

1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sautée for a couple of minutes. Add garlic, and sautée for a few more minutes.
2. Add ground beef; break into largish chunks (about 1/2 to 1 inch, depending on preference). Sprinkle chili powder or taco seasoning over beef; mix well. Cover and brown beef. Drain fats and liquids.*
3. In a separate, medium-sized pot (at least 3 1/2 quarts), combine all other ingredients and bring to a slow boil.
4. Add drained beef mixture. Return to a slow boil, then reduce heat to a simmer.
5. Simmer until ready to eat!
6. Serve with shredded cheddar cheese and broken tortilla chips as garnish.

Serves six. (Translation: Will and I ate this for three meals.)

(Edited to add this where it was supposed to go) *I keep around an old vegetable can (usually tomato sauce) that’s had the lid completely removed and been rinsed. I use it just for this purpose: draining the fat off ground beef or other meats. You can store in the fridge if concerned, but I just keep mine on the window sill over the kitchen sink.

This was some seriously tasty soup. You can control your spice level by the type of salsa you buy and add to the soup.

Two last notes: when you reheat the soup, you may need to add a little water to get the broth going again. Also, I added some cooked elbow pasta on the last day, and it made a nice little casserole type thing. Still yummy!

Originally published at well.notes. You can comment here or there.

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312: Getting ready to go!

Originally uploaded by dormousie

I’ve been doing what amounts to busting my butt, trying to get in shape after Seth’s birth. I say “what amounts to” because it’s really not a lot compared to what a lot of women I know are doing, but it’s a lot for me. I have always preferred sitting on the couch with a good book to getting outside, playing sports, or anything that involves exercise. (Dance was the one exception.)

When I got pregnant, I had great intentions of exercising and eating well so that I could monitor my weight gain and stay healthy for the growing baby. “Eating well” during pregnancy translates into getting the good nutrients, getting the extra calories, and just being sensible about balancing junk food cravings with healthy foods. The exercise was to get me ready for the work of labor, hoping that the preparation would make the big day that much easier.

All those exercise plans went out the window when I developed pregnancy-worsened asthma. I couldn’t breathe at all, which was a shocker since I’ve never had more than seasonal allergies and slight bouts of asthma in all my life. I ended up in the hospital twice, I pushed the moderate to severe uncontrolled line, and it just sucked. At the end I got out of breath just getting up and walking across the room. My resting heart rate hovered above 100, and even my blood pressure started creeping up at the end.

I’m determined to do what I can to make the next pregnancy (when it happens) better for my lungs and heart. The asthma may come back, but if I can get my lungs and heart in better condition, I want to do it. Any little bit helps, is my thinking. I also want to be able to go run and play with my husband and our little boy. I just know I’ll end up with all boys, so this girlie-girl needs to get ready.

I’ve been doing combinations of walking and running, and today I did something I didn’t think I’d ever do. Will, Seth, and I went to the Houston Jingle Bell Run and walked the three mile course. It felt good, and I felt good that I wasn’t winded and wanting to give up.

Next year, I might run it.