Elise Did Some Cool Stuff Today

Elise is already pitting Husband and me against each other. Or trying to, anyway.

Husband gives Elise anything she asks for. Lately, he's been handing her the cordless house phone to play with. He unplugs the base of the phone and lets her play with the receiver. I don't do that. I encourage her to play with her own toys, or sometimes I just lock the keypad on my cell phone and let her play with that.

This morning Elise kept pointing at the home phone, making her little made up sign for "telephone," and saying, "Hi! Hi! Hi!" to let me know that she wanted the phone. I was pretty much ignoring her. Then she stops. Locks eyes with me. Points at the phone. Locks eyes with me. And says, "Dada." As in, "Daddy lets me play with the phone. Maybe he's my favorite now. You'd better watch it, lady."

Ugh.

Well, Daddy's not here. So no.

After that, Elise did something equally as threatening to my mommy status, but in an entirely different way.

I've been giving her a sippy cup of cow's milk with her meals lately. She'll drink it, and it usually delays her desire to breastfeed a little bit. This morning she asked to breastfeed right after breakfast, despite drinking from her sippy cup. Okay. Minor step backward. No big deal.

She nursed for a little while, but then she cut the breastfeeding short, sat up, and said, "Mill? Mill?" "I'm giving you milk, silly," I said to her. But she turned and pointed to her sippy cup on the table. "Mill? Mill?" So I gave her the sippy cup and she drank that instead.

I was happy and sad. I was so proud of her for realizing that the sippy cup had milk, too, even though it was a different kind of milk. And I was sort of glad that she wanted the cow's milk, because that means that weening is going well. But... but... what about MOMMY? What about OUR special time together?

Yay. My baby is growing up. *Tears!*

Super Soaker

Georgia eats clothes.

If she's wearing a shirt or jacket or jammies with a zipper, button, snap, or collar that she can put in her mouth, her whole front will be soaked within minutes. It's crazy.

This is especially problematic at night because she chew-sucks the crap out of her pajamas. Sometimes in the morning her night clothes are soaked-- LITERALLY-- down to the knees. It must make her cold. How can she stand the way that must feel? Ugh! Just thinking about it grosses me out.

This is bigger than teething. I think it's developing into an oral fixation. Georgia is destined to become one of those chronic gum chewers. Or someone who chews her straw. Or a nail biter. An obsessive chapstick re-applier. Maybe all of the above.

We tell her, "No, no! We don't chew our clothes!" and pull the fabric out of her mouth. Oh, she cries and cries. It's like we've hurt her feelings. Giving her something else to chew hardly ever works. Even other pieces of fabric.

I hope she outgrows this soon. I'm tired of sticking my hand in wetness every time I go to pick her up.

Take It All Off

I got a hair cut yesterday. This is how it played out:

Hairdresser: So! What are we doing with your hair today?

Me: I want you to cut it all off.

(Everyone else in the room stops and looks over at me. My hair was pretty long-ish and very thick.)

H: (nervous laughter, then she grabs my hair at about shoulder-length) So maybe up to here?

M: Nope. All off. Like... I don't know what you call it... a pixie cut?

H: Really?

M: I've got three kids and I'm pregnant. I don't have time for hair. Honestly, there's only a 50% chance that I even brushed my hair this morning. I seriously don't remember. So I want my hair as short as possible.

H: (more nervous laughter) Okay, then! (Messes with my hair for a second.) So where do you think you'll put your part? Right or left side?

M: No, really. I need to be able to roll out of bed, put on some pants, and go. There will be no part.

She cut my hair once, then had to cut it shorter right away again because it was still too long.

H: So when your hair goes from long to short, it can kind of go into shock and it gets poofier than it normally will be. Your hair might be poofy for a week or two. But you can fix that with product-- like, some heavy hair gel or something to weigh it down.

M: I promise you that I will not have time to style my hair with product. If we just cut it a bit shorter, will it look less poofy?

H: Yeah. We can cut it down some more...

So now I look like a 10 year old boy. But a happy, less headache-y 10 year old boy. With a pregnant belly.

My Compliments to the Chef

Elise has started drinking the cow's milk that I offer her. At first she would sip it and spit it out. Literally spit it, or let it dribble down her chin. I just let her do it and figured she would eventually get used to the taste. Sure enough, now she's drinking it.

I think that drinking the cow's milk has only cut back on her breastfeeding the smallest bit at this point. She definitely still wants lots of boobie food at night, to go to sleep by, and every time she gets hurt. If she falls over and it makes her cry, she'll come to me asking, "Mill? Mill? Mill?" She just wants the comfort of feeding for a minute or two.

Elise is big on kisses lately. She kisses everything. Cats, kids, inanimate objects. And with extreme regularity now, when she gets done breastfeeding she gets this happy, appreciative look on her face and kisses my breast 3 or 4 times. Its strange and cute. Her way of saying thank you, I suppose.

I think that weening has officially begun, but I also think that this will be a slow process.

Back Pain

I've been having lower back pain lately. From the pregnancy? Not sure. I remember having back pain with Elise... but in all honesty, lifting any one of these three kids the wrong way could easily mess up my back.

I have this one little spot on my lower right side that just hurts and hurts sometimes. I can't even put hardly any weight on my right leg when it's really going strong. Maybe that spot is the start of my sciatic nerve. I don't know.

I had pains in my sciatic nerve toward the end of my pregnancy with Elise. That sucked. This pain isn't quite as bad. And when I had sciatic nerve pain with Elise, even once I was off my feet the nerve would still tingle and feel weird for a while. With this back pain, the hurt feeling is really intense but as soon as I'm off my feet the pain goes away.

The pain comes and goes. Not sure why.

Oh Husband! I need some back rubbin'!!!

Baby Babble

Elise has a lot of words now. She's a great copycat, but she doesn't always remember those mimics long-term. When she does remember a word over and over again, I'm so proud of her.

Her sign language words are hi/bye, milk, more, food, bath, potty, and brush teeth. She made up her own little sign for "phone"-- everytime (and I do mean EVERY TIME) she hears a phone ring, she pretends she is putting a cell phone to her ear and she says, "Hi!" Also, she blows kisses. And if you say, "How old are you?" she'll hold up one finger.

Elise's spoken words are hi, milk ("mill"), mama, dada, up, no no, banana ("nana") and more. She's working on "baby," "kitty cat," and "gentle gentle" but I think only I would know what she's saying at this point.

If you ask Elise, "What does a ____ say?" she knows cat, cow, snake, monkey, and sometimes she gets dog.

Elise loves to talk. She has lots of cool baby babbles that aren't real words but they sound like they could be. I wonder if they mean anything to her, or if she's just experimenting with sound.

Babies are cool.

The Other Mommy

Husband and I met Henry and Georgia's mom the other day. We arranged it. We figured we should meet her.

She was nice. Pretty. Young.

It was awkward, but not in the way that I thought it would be. I mostly just felt really sorry for her. I expected to meet her and immediately see flaws and little things that I didn't approve of and didn't like. But mostly she just seems too trusting, too naive, too easily taken advantage of. She's not a capable mother right now because she can't protect her kids from bad people in her life. And she can't get those bad people out of her life because she's too nice to really see and understand their flaws.

So I feel sad for her. She's not a bad person. She's a too nice person.

Which in turn makes her an inadequate mother.

The stories that you hear as a foster parent are usually more complicated, more nuanced than you'd expect. I always end up feeling bad for everyone involved, in varying degrees, of course. Here, I feel mostly bad for Henry and then for Georgia, but I also feel bad for their mom. No matter what the outcome of this case is, there's going to be some loss, some people being hurt and feeling displaced.

Right now, I'm just trying to believe that no matter what happens, it will be for the best.

Heels Over Head Off the Bed

Henry sleeps in a toddler bed, which is like a shrunken little version of a regular bed and which is very low to the ground. Elise can climb onto Henry's bed by herself and often does. She stands up on the bed and wobbles around and Husband and I tell her repeatedly "Sit!"-- she now knows that command very well.

On weekday mornings I wake up and take Elise into Henry's room and get Henry dressed for school. Elise plays while I diaper and dress him.

Today, just as I finished velcroing Henry's shoes shut, I turned to see Elise falling over the footboard of Henry's toddler bed. Her head was pointed toward the ground and her feet were directly above her head. What a sight! Then her head hit the ground and her feet flipped along behind it.

Scream. Cry.

Kisses. Cuddles.

And one, "That's why Mommy tells you to sit down on the bed," just for good measure.

Somehow her nose got scraped and a tiny bit bruised in the flip fall. Elise wouldn't even LOOK at the bed all morning and most of the evening.

We're back to standing on the bed now, though.

Zoo

Took the kiddies to a zoo this weekend. In typical fashion, they weren't impressed or unimpressed. Just happy to be out doing something.

Elise was afraid of the birds, of course. She would sit in the stroller and look at them, but she whined most of the time and I had to hold her hand. I guess that when you live with four cats, birds are unexpected and strange.

The Traveling Baby Show

We traveled with the kids again this weekend. My observations:

1. The minivan was such, such, such a worthwhile investment.

2. While leaving late and driving at night might cut down on how much sleep the adults get, it also VASTLY reduces the amount of screaming you hear and the number of stops you have to make.

3. The minute the car begins to slow down, the kids will wake up. There is no such thing as, "Let's just stop real quick so I can pee/get some water/stretch my legs." Every single person in the car will need to be attended to and it will take FOREVER.

Fraidy Baby

Elise is now afraid of things. She makes this awful face and cries and snuggles into me or Husband when she sees:

1. Balloons
2. Birds

Life just got much more stressful for Baby Elise.

Long Day

Tired. Pregnant. Long day.

I'm just really glad that there are no more saber toothed tigers or alligators that drop on people from out of trees. The thought of those drop gators is horrifying. If I had to worry about getting eaten on top of all of this, life would be really miserable.

That Time Again

My boobs are getting big again. I didn't think they'd get bigger since I'm still breastfeeding-- I was wrong.

Teddy Love

Elise sleeps with a teddy bear now. She hugs it to her chest or throws her arm over it. It is so incredibly cute. Good lord.

Pink Eye; Puke Tummy

I woke up this morning with pink eye. It itches like craaaaaaazy. Went to my primary care doctor. All of the nurses remembered when I was first pregnant with Elise and they were excited to get to finally see her. That was nice. Then I saw the doctor and she gave me ointment to put in my eyes.

Why ointment? Why not drops? It's like I'm looking through a fogged window for about 15 minutes after I put the goop on my inner lower eyelids (as directed). And I have to do that 4 times each day!

Ringworm was my first trimester plague when I was pregnant with Elise. Considering that my children seem to go out of their way to cough and sneeze in my face, it looks like pink eye will be my plague with Dinky.

On top of red, watery, itchy, foggy eyes, I have had terrible morning sickness since last night. Awful. Terrible. No puking yet, but several dry heaving sessions.

I'm miserable right now. I'm sick. I messed up dinner last night and tonight and we had to eat other stuff than what I'd planned. Laundry is washed but not folded. My hair hasn't been brushed in days (weeks? I don't know...). My pants are starting not to fit.

I know things will get better. I know I'm just having an emotional pregnant moment. I know that there isn't enough gas in my car to make it to Canada, much less the next major city in my state.

Tomorrow will be better.

Name; Ear Infections

So, it turns out we've been mispronouncing Georgia's name. Her real name isn't Georgia, as you know. It's an uncommon name and we were pronouncing it based on the way it is spelled.

I remember being little and learning that you can pronounce a name however you want. You can spell your name S-M-I-T-H and pronounce it "Jones" if you feel so inclined. Well, this is sort of one of those instances.

The way the name is supposed to be pronounced and the way we've been saying it would be like the difference between saying Meegan and Megan. Close, but not the same name. So, oops. Our mistake. Sort of.

In other news, Elise has two ear infections AGAIN. She came down with a fever last night and I took her to the doctor this morning, thinking I was maybe over reacting. But no. It was a good thing I took her. She's back on antibiotics. Poor Baby Baby.

Preggo Yummies

The food I want ("crave" is too strong a word) this pregnancy is different than when I was pregnant with Elise. With Elise I wanted chocolate and Sour Patch Kids and Jolly Ranchers and oranges and yogurt. I can hardly look at yogurt now. I much prefer salty foods. Chips and pickles and olives. That kind of thing.

Except I do want sweet, sweet tapioca pudding... oh MAN tapioca pudding tastes delicious!!! I've always liked it, but it tastes like heaven now.

Family Ties

Today we met Henry and Georgia's older sister. She didn't seem very interested in us or the kids. Just doing her own thing. But the kids are all young, so it wasn't that out of the ordinary.

Their older sister has speech delays like Henry does. Henry needs tubes in his ears, as you know. Georgia is being referred to a specialist to see if she needs them (probably so). And their sister-- I'll call her Susannah-- apparently needs them as well. That's what Susannah's guardian said today. So I guess it runs in the family. I was also told that their mom has speech problems. I wonder if she has the same ear problem as her kids, but she never got help for it. How sad if that's the case. And how wonderful that the kids are all getting help now.

The Incredible Shrinky Dinky

According to the date of my last period, I should be about 12 weeks along in my pregnancy. At my OBGYN visit 4 weeks ago, I was told that the baby is probably a week younger than we had assumed. That would make me about 11 weeks along.

Then today, I was told that it looks like the baby is about 10 weeks old. 10 weeks, 3 days. What?!

We saw Dinky wiggle its little arms around (precious!) and we saw the heart beating, so I know the baby is alive. But somehow Dinky keeps getting younger.

How are you doing that, Dinky? Put it in a bottle and sell it, please, and make us all rich!

We're going to have to wait a couple of months to find out my real due date. That's when they send me to a specialist where they do the in depth ultrasound and measure everything exactly. We'll be able to tell how old the baby really is then.

Oh, and speaking of measurements, I weighed 115 at the OBGYN's office today. My prepregnancy weight. Still haven't gone over 115. I eat like crazy. Oh, I know I'll start gaining soon, but I am enjoying it while I can.

Family Birthday Party

We celebrated the kids' and Husband's birthdays this weekend with a party at Husband's dad's house. It was nice. Simple.

It was just family and future family. I say "future family" because Elise's baby boyfriend was there.

We blew up a kiddie swimming pool and filled it with ball pit balls. The kids loved that. Then we had strawberry short cake (well, the girls just had strawberries and whipped cream). And afterward we went outside and blew bubbles. So easy.

A word of caution. Don't buy Crayola colored bubbles. They suck.

Husband has read articles and talked for some time about how scientists have been working on making soap bubbles that come out just one color. So pink bubbles or blue bubbles or whatever. When I saw Crayola colored bubbles in the store before the party, I got all excited and bought a bunch of them, all different colors.
Well, the mixture is the consistency of paint and even though it is supposedly washable, it looks BONKERS when you get that mess all over your hands or clothes. Or baby's head. (Oops!) And since the mixture is so thick, it blows really crappy bubbles. Gigantic waste of money.

But the kids had fun. So, yay! First birthday party was a success. :)

11 Weeks?

I must be around 11 weeks along in my pregnancy. I'm still getting queezy, but it seems to be getting less intense. I'm SOOOOOO happy that my morning sickness now isn't like it was with Elise.

I remember with Elise having to eat a few saltine crackers every morning BEFORE I got out of bed, just to settle my tummy enough to sit up and walk to the bathroom. It would drive Husband batty to find cracker crumbs in the bed.

I remember immediately looking for the restroom any time I walked into a public place-- not because I had to go, but just in case I started to throw up.

I remember considering the taste and texture of food, not only for what it would be like going down but also what it would be like coming back up.

Man. This pregnancy has been exponentially easier so far.

Laterz!

My sister, brother-in-law, and baby James moved out of town recently. They moved closer to my parents and Brother-In-Law's parents. Good for them but sucks for us.

Husband and I still want to move, but we need to sell our house first and we have other considerations, too. I kind of want to have Dinky here-- I like my OBGYN practice and I liked the hospital where Elise was born. Plus, we've got the foster kids.

I know we'll move eventually. Before the kids get too old. Just not sure when it will happen.

Multiplying Baby Dream

I dreamt the other night that I had 6 babies to take care of, all so young that they had to be carried in car seats. I would go out with three infant car seats on each arm. And I distinctly remember thinking, "I should get a big stick and balance three car seats on each side, then I can just lift the stick and that will be easier."

Blood and Kisses

I got my first round of pregnancy bloodwork done on Friday. Being pregnant turns you into a human pin cushion, I swear.

I don't even know what they're testing for in this first bit of blood. Other than HIV/AIDS. I had to sign a special sheet consenting to allow the lab to test for HIV/AIDS. Why is that different than any other disease they test for? I don't have to sign a special sheet when they test for diabetes.

Friday and Saturday my arm was sore where the nurse/phlebotomist/whatever took my blood. Then tonight I noticed a gigantic yellow and green bruise up my arm. Ugh! Those people always bruise the crap out of my arms. What are they doing? Poking straight through my veins and out the other side?

Anyhow, let me talk about something nice now. Tonight I got to give Elise cuddles and kisses until she fell asleep. Kisses all over her pretty little face. It's been a while since I've kissed her to sleep and it was so wonderful.

I do love being a mommy.

Baby Belly

My belly is looking all roundish. Even though Dinky in fact lives somewhere deep in my nether regions, my uterus is growing and pushing everything up and out. This is the sucky part of pregnant body, where I just look chubby.

1 Year Old Check Up

Elise had her 1 year old well child visit today. Four shots! Poor baby!

She is 28 inches long (12th percentile) and weighs 18 lbs 5 oz (10th percentile). She's so liiiiiiiiiittle! Except for her noggin. That measures in the 60th percentile.

Elise's ear infections have finally cleared up. So she doesn't have to go see an ear/nose/throat doctor. That's good news.

I think I can still call Elise Baby Baby because she's still a tiny-sized baby. Today a stranger said to me, "How old is she? She looks too little to be walking!" My teensy weensy!

Nice To Be Average

Henry had a doctor's appointment today. The doctor looked at what percentile Henry's weight was at for his age when he came to live with us about three months ago and then looked at what percentile his weight is at now.

"Look at the difference! He was below 15% and now he's right at 50%! You guys are doing very well with him. It's amazing how quickly children can improve when they're in the right environment."

Yay!

Baby's First Birthday

This time last year, I was holding and cuddling my baby for the first time. Amazing.

I want to say something profound to you, Elise. I want to explain how much you've grown in the past year and tell you how much you've changed my life for the better. I just can't find the words that even begin to express how I feel about you.

I'm the luckiest mommy in the world. Thank you for being mine, Elise.

Not A Baby, Baby

This time last year I was in labor. I'd already gone to the hospital and they sent me home telling me it wasn't time yet. But then my water broke a few hours later.

This time last year, I was still waiting to meet the most amazing person ever.

Oh, Elise! I'm so glad you're here!

Baby Birthday Presents

All three of the kids have birthdays coming up soon. Husband and I went shopping for presents this weekend.

The kids have more toys and clothes than they could ever need. They're so young, they won't even really remember their birthdays this year, anyhow. So we decided to get them each something meaningful-- a keepsake that they can enjoy later.

It took us a long time to find the right presents. We looked at gold baby bracelets for the girls, little Precious Moments birthday figurines, piggy banks with engravable plaques. Nothing seemed right.

Finally we picked out a charm for each of the girls at Swarovski. They're sweet and babyish-- little duckies-- and they can be worn on a necklace or put on a charm bracelet. And for Henry we got an i.d. bracelet that won't fit him until he's a bit bigger, and this dogtag-style necklace that he could wear anytime. We need to get Henry's gift engraved but we want to think about what we'll put on it first.

I'm really happy with the gifts we got them. I hope they like them some day, too.

Baby Dreams

I had a dream the other night that I woke up in bed with the baby's head half out of my lady parts, but I couldn't push it out the rest of the way. I kept asking people to help me-- first I asked Husband, then I started calling my family-- and no one took me seriously. No one would bring me to the hospital.

Then I had a dream last night that I was in labor in the hospital and they told me that my son was going to be enormous and I wouldn't be able to push him out. I asked how big he was and they told me some number over 10 pounds and I couldn't believe it.

I don't think that these dreams are rooted in my own anxieties about my current pregnancy. I think that I'm having dreams based on my sister's recent experience with the labor and delivery of her son. James's baby noggin couldn't fit out of her pelvis and after over three hours of pushing, she had a c-section. So I guess my brain is processing that info through the filter of my own pregnancy.

And/or my body is planning on growing a mini sumo wrestler.

A Civil Day

Today we took the kids to a Civil War battle re-enactment. Husband and I had heard about the event on the radio and as neither one of us had ever been to one, we decided to go. It was pretty cool.

We only went for about an hour. We caught some of the last part of the re-enactment, but as the muskets and cannons were pretty loud, we didn't watch for too long. The kids seemed not to mind the noise, but we didn't want to subject them to too much of it.

Then we sat down for a snack and Georgia projectile vomited everywhere. All over herself, all over the stroller, all over my hand, and as Elise had turned in the double stroller to see what was going on, all over Elise's hand. Disgusting. But we came prepared and got everything cleaned up and went on with our day. We watched some medical re-enactment demonstrations before we left.

It was all actually more interesting than Husband or I expected. And the kids were really well behaved. I think that they were just happy to be out of the house and sitting somewhere with lots of unusual stuff to look at.

Going to the re-enactment was a nice part of our day. I don't personally understand the appeal in being a re-enactor, but I'm glad that there are people who are willing to do it.

Headache

My head has hurt for two days now. Sickness? Pregnancy pains? Ponytail too tight? Who knows. Yes. All of the above.

I'm not prone to headaches, but I did get them when I was pregnant with Elise. So maybe this is a Dinky headache.

You kids make my head hurt!

Evil Santa Says "Ear Tubes"

Henry's ear/nose/throat doctor looks like an evil Santa Claus. He's big and round and he has a scraggly white beard and long, scraggly fingernails. He'd be perfectly cast in a holiday-themed slasher film. In fact, if he'd walked into the room today with a bloody axe over his shoulder I'd have said, "Yes, of course," and be as unsurprised as someone can possibly be in a situation like that.

But there was no axe. And he didn't "examine" Henry's ears with ice picks. Instead he said that Henry needs tubes in his ears. It will improve Henry's hearing, his speech, and his balance because it will let the fluid drain from behind his ear drums.

You're probably right, Evil Santa.

So Henry will be having some out-patient ear chopping done soon, courtesy one of the creepiest doctors I've ever met. And Evil Santa will then give Henry the gift of hearing. Maybe you aren't all bad after all, scary man.

Climbing Mt. Everest

Please let me be peaking. Please let me be peaking.

I read that most women experience their worst morning sickness between weeks 8 and 9, then it starts to decline. I'm in the middle of week 8 right now. Please let me be peaking.

With Elise, my morning sickness lasted longer than it does for the typical person. It started around week 7 and lasted until about week 16 instead of week 12, like the books and websites suggest. But every pregnancy is different! I'm not throwing up as much this time! Maybe Dinky will be kinder to me.

Please let me be peaking.

Pregnancy Breaks My Pooper

I'm constipated. It started last night.

Oh man. It sucks.

I thought with Elise that I was constipated mostly because of the anti-nausea medicine that I was on. Nope. Apparently my babies like to grab a hold of my lower intestine and make one normal bowel movement take all day to come out.

Which also makes me feel very queezy.

I threw up tonight, too. On the up side, I'd had a strawberry milkshake a few hours earlier and my puke tasted like strawberries.

That's my silver lining for this evening. At least my vomit tasted like strawberries.

Not Feeling So Great

Blah. I don't want to talk.

The first trimester sucks.

Pick Your Nose

Elise now shows us where her nose is by sticking her right index finger up her right nostril. Every time. "Where is Elise's nose?" Boing! Finger up her nose!

While technically still correct, I think that this is behavior that should probably be corrected.

6th Tooth, 8 Weeks, Kiddie Updates

Elise has toofie #6 now. Four up top and two on the bottom. And I must be about 8 weeks along in my pregnancy. Babies keep growing!

Also, we've gotten a few updates on the situation with the foster kids. There was a non-relative friend-of-the-family type of person who had expressed interest in taking Henry (and Georgia if need be), but Case Manager has decided that the kids won't be moving in with that person. There's a really good reason for coming to that conclusion-- nothing that is the non-relative's fault-- and this is probably best for everyone in the long run.

There was a relative that was interested in taking Georgia, but that person has failed to complete all of the home study information that is required, and so Case Manager thinks at this point that it is unlikely that Georgia will be moved to live with the relative. Of course that isn't an official, final decision so I wouldn't be shocked to hear that things have changed in a week or two.

So, for now, we're still a family of 5, plus Dinky. And 4 cats.

Cutie Patootie

Today Elise grabbed my ears and kissed me on my nose. It was the cutest thing ever and almost made me cry.

Henry's Hearing

Henry has speech delays and balance problems. I suspected it may have something to do with his ears, so I got him a referral to an ear, nose, and throat doctor.

I'm so glad that I followed my intuition. The doctor said that he has fluid behind his ear drums and gave us a referral to another specialist. At this next doctor's office, Henry will do a test to measure how much fluid is behind his tympanic membrane, which will help the doctors decide if he needs tubes in his ears.

I'm really happy about this. Of course, I don't want there to be anything WRONG with Henry... but he does have problems and so I'm glad his problems look like they can be resolved.

I'll let you know how the test goes.

Exhausted

The word for the day is "tired." Oh man. I mean, I can function like this, but given the opportunity I would have slept at least half of the day away.

Let me be the first to tell you that you do not get any less tired with your second pregnancy. In fact, I heard that women are more tired with each successive pregnancy. I wonder if that's true, or if it just seems that way, since you have less time for yourself when you have more kids.

The Inevitable

First vomit. Brushing my teeth before bed. Goddamnit.

I See Med School In Elise's Future

Elise knows where her head is, where her tummy is, she can find her nose and other people's noses, and she can find other people's eyes. She gets "mouth" for herself and other people sometimes, and she can find her own toes sometimes.

Elise likes noses so much now that when she goes up to one of the cats she no longer reaches for its tail, but instead touches her index finger to the tip of its nose. Super cute.

The World According to Barf

Morning sickness was BAD today. No puking yet, but I'm honestly shocked. I feel so awful.

I've been fantasizing about this giant hammocky swing full of pillows and soft blankets where I can sit all day and be cradled in warmth and soothing calm. Then I think "that sounds oddly like a big womb" and I realize that even in my fantasies I can't escape pregnant thoughts.

Another Trip to the ER

This time for Henry. He grabbed at the automatic door on our minivan just as it was closing and his thumb got smashed in the door.

It was scary. We didn't realize that the door had locked and Husband and I were pulling on the door, trying to make it open. Henry was standing there screaming, trying to pull his hand out of the door, and we couldn't figure out why the door was still closed on his finger. I thought that maybe his hand was shoved in there and jamming the door. But then Husband realized what was going on and reached through and unlocked the door. His thumb looked CRAZY, so we went right to the emergency room.

Henry screamed the whole way there.

His hand was bruised and cut, but no broken bones and no stitches needed. I feel so bad. I was standing RIGHT NEXT TO HIM when it happened. Poor little guy.

He's okay. It was a crummy experience, but he'll heal.

I Spy Dinky

Yesterday was a big day for me, not just because James was born but I also got my first glimpse of Dinky.

First ultrasound. I'm definitely pregnant. And my little ball of baby has a heartbeat.

I had to have the kind of ultrasound where they stick a wand up your hooha rather than the one where the rub the device over your belly. Well, the midwife tried the belly one first, but when she couldn't locate the baby she used the up-the-lady-parts wand.

I thought I was almost 8 weeks along, but she thinks that I'm actually about a week earlier. So I'd be 7 weeks now. My period wasn't super predictable yet since I was only just starting to ovulate again since giving birth, so the date of the start of my last menstrual cycle isn't the best indicator for when I got pregnant. Based on the baby's current size, I'm just now 7 weeks along. I'll have another ultrasound at my next OBGYN's visit and they'll compare the new baby measurement to the old one and then give me a more accurate gestational age and due date.

Oh, Dinky! EVERYTHING about you is a suprise!

Welcome, Baby James

James is here! He was born via c-section this morning. He weighed 6 lbs 13 oz. Cute as can be. My sister and new nephew and doing really well.

We're all so happy!

Cousin James

Sister is in labor! So we'll be meeting cousin James within the next 24 hours or so...

First Baby Dream

I had a dream last night that I had the new baby. Husband and I had decided not to find out the baby's sex before it was born, so when the nurse handed me the baby I quickly opened its diaper (it was swaddled in a blanket and wearing a diaper).

A girl!

Valentine's Day Present From Elise

Today Elise signed for "potty," I took her, and she did a big pee with lots of farts. YESSSSSSS!!! SHE told ME it was time to go potty, instead of me just guessing when she needs to go. Potty training, here we come!

She's been using her potty chair for a while now, rather than me holding her over the toilet. She likes the potty chair. She sits right down on it as soon as I take her diaper off. Sometimes I have to make the "pssssss" noise to cue her to pee, and sometimes she just goes on her own.

I can say without a doubt that the E.C. has already helped us with potty training. Elise is sooooo much more aware of her body than, say, Henry is. She's very comfortable with using the potty, she knows just what to do with the right cue, and she's naturally learning to eliminate as soon as she sits on the potty. Potty training with Elise at this stage in the game is super stress free.

I know that if I'd really stuck with E.C. and been very consistent, I could probably have Elise mostly out of diapers by now. But our lives were sort of chaotic because of being foster parents. I'm very happy with the successes we've had and the benefit we continue to enjoy from E.C.

Good pottying, Elise!

Baby Burps

I am burping like CRAZY today!

I keep feeling really nauseated, then I'll burp and feel kinda better for a few minutes. Then it builds back up again. Ugh. I keep telling myself, "It's better than actually puking... It's better than actually puking..."

You Take the Good, You Take the Bad

Henry gave me an early Valentine's Day present tonight. A giant half-formed, half-diarrhea poop in the bath tub.

It was so disgusting. I can't even begin to imagine how the kids will top the overwhelming grossness of this one.

But they will.

They will.

In other news, Elise has gotten her 5th tooth. Her top left side, next to her left front tooth. The right one is about to pop through, too.

Oh! And I still haven't thrown up. Yay! Queezy? Hells yes. But not even a dry heave yet.

I decided that Elise's new "buggah" word might actually be "brother" and I told Husband about my theory. Then a few minutes later Elise shouted something that sounded exactly like "A GIRL!" so now I don't know anymore.

Whatever it is, it better not poop in the tub. Ever.

Feelin' It

Oh yeah. I'm pregnant. I've felt like I'm about to puke all day long. ALL. DAY. LONG. It's made me very cranky.

Go easy on me, Dinky.

Close One

Tonight Elise was breastfeeding as she was getting ready to go to sleep. She would suck, unlatch, suck, unlatch. Her eyes looked heavy. I thought she was fighting off sleep.

Finally, I decided to just lay her in her bed, as the constant sucking and unlatching was getting to be a bit much. I pulled down my shirt and bent over to give her a kiss good night. And just as my lips touched hers...

SHE VOMITED ON MY MOUTH

Then she vomited all over my clothes, herself, and my bed.

Remember that scene in the movie "Stand By Me" where the boys are telling a story and one of them talks about some pie eating contest where one of the contestants pukes into the mouth of another contestant which makes that person throw up and it starts this chain reaction of people puking in each other's mouths? Yeah. I was THIIIIIIIS close to that happening in real life.

Unbelievable.

So Far So Good

7 weeks! And so far, this pregnancy is going SO much smoother than the first. Perhaps I'm counting my chickens before they hatch, but if I recall correctly I was dry heaving by this point with Elise. I'm getting queezy, but I haven't had to make a dash for the bathroom yet. My spotting has been light and only lasted for a few days, whereas it was much heavier with Elise. And all of my other symptoms, like the night sweats, have seemed less intense.

Oh! And my crotch bulge has already started showing! Do you remember the crotch bulge from before? It's the very start of the baby bump. In the first trimester, a little bump starts to show just above my pubic bone as my uterus grows up and out. No one would notice but Husband and me-- it's not like "what happened to that lady's crotch?" or anything.

I started to notice the crotch bulge around week 10 with Elise. But here I am at week 7 and Dinky is already making an appearance!

Also, just like with Elise, the fat from the lower part of my stomach has begun to migrate up my belly toward my rib cage. I guess the baby is just taking over down there and clearing out the unnecessary extras. Putting my belly fat up in the belly attic.

So, if you saw me naked from the side, you would see some milky mommy boobies, a stomach with the curvy womanliness sitting slightly higher than usual, and then a crotch bulge. Sexy.

Buggah, Buggah, Buggah

Elise has been saying "buggah buggah buggah!" all day today. A few times, she shouted, "booger!!!" which is Husband's least favorite word in the world, so it's pretty weird that she's saying it spontaneously.

Buggah, buggah, buggah!

The Origin of Dinky

Okay. Here's how it happened.

Six weeks after Elise was born, I dutifully went on birth control. I took the mini pill, which you can take while breastfeeding. But here's the thing about the mini pill-- you have to take it at the EXACT same time every day, or it doesn't work. And I was really lousy at doing that. Plus, I didn't even get my period until about 7 months after Elise was born. It felt like I was taking the pill for no reason.

I know. I sound like some sort of mental patient trying to justify going off her meds. "I'm fine now! I don't need those pills!" But do you know how HARD it is to actually get pregnant? A LOT of things have to happen just right. And I'm not 18 years old anymore-- my age alone lowers my odds of conceiving.

I decided to stop taking the pills altogether. Here was our logic (yes, Husband was in on it, too): 1) I'm not taking the pills right anyway so they aren't being as effective as they should be; 2) it took us a long time before we got pregnant with Elise so we're clearly not hyper-fertile; 3) we're probably just wasting money on these stupid pills and stressing ourselves out about not taking them at the right time every day; 4) I'm still breastfeeding and even though Elise isn't being breastfed exclusively now, it must offer SOME protection; 5) with three small children in the house, we don't get a whole lot of mommy-daddy time anyhow; 6) even if I did get pregnant, we'd be very surprised but very happy.

Surprise!

We thought that the odds were against us getting pregnant again so soon. But we won the baby lottery! Jackpot! My baby pump was primed, as Husband said. Dinky was meant to be.

Happy 11 Months!

Oh, Elisey! 11 months! You're already walking, signing, saying words, throwing temper tantrums, eating regular food, giving kisses. And now you're going to be a big sister. So much has changed!

Except for one thing. You are still my sweet Beastie and I love you with all my heart.

Minivan Acquired

We bought a minivan today. 2005 Toyota Sienna. 8 passenger. I haven't even seen it yet, but I trust that Husband made a good choice.

We were looking only at Odyessys or Siennas. This Sienna was nearby and in our price range.

I'm sooooo excited to be able to take the whole family out in one vehicle. We can read together in the car again! Husband said that 4 car seats will fit easily in the back. Woo hoo!

Mommy Van

Husband and I are looking at minivans. Because that's where we are in life. We need to haul around lots of kids and all of their crap. Right now, if we want to go out with all of the kids, we have to take two cars because the kids all need car seats and you can't fit three car seats in the back of one car. We need a car and a half. We need a minivan.

Those tiny little people we call "babies" sure take up a LOT of space.

Slight Queeze; Elise Feeding Cheerios; Foster Weirdo

Today I have had some slight queeziness. Morning sickness is right around the corner. If I weren't so tired I would run out and stuff myself with pad thai and dark chocolate, as a fond farewell to delicious food.

Elise, on the other hand, would stuff me full of Cheerios given the opportunity. Husband convinced her to feed him Cheerios the other day, and now she wants to share them at every chance she gets. It's cute.

Good thing I got a big dose of cute this morning, because this afternoon was heavy on the not-cute. I had to take Henry for some shots after lunch today. No fun. And on top of that, I met this super-weird foster mom at Henry's doctor's office. I'll spare you the details, but basically if you think of every negative stereotype of a foster parent that popular culture has provided you with, that was this lady. I truly feel sorry for any kid that gets placed in her house. Husband and I might not be the best parents in the world, but we are a far cry from that nut job. Anyone who justifies yelling obscenities at a kid by saying, "I told her she was ACTING like an asshole, I didn't say she WAS an asshole-- there's a difference, you know?" probably shouldn't be licensed to deal with abused children. And she's telling this to a total stranger, mind you.

Ugh. If she hadn't told me that her licensed might get pulled, I'd have told my licensing agent about her myself.

Glad This Week Is Over

What a crazy week. On Monday I got a call from the day care that Georgia has pink eye and I had to go get her and bring her home. On Tuesday I had a hellacious morning at Georgia's doctor's office and then she was diagnosed with pink eye and two ear infections. On Wednesday I took Elise to her doctor's office and she, too, was diagnosed with two ear infections. Then Wednesday night we had our trip to the ER... during which time, in the waiting room, Elise befriended an old drunk man on crutches who had no teeth. She seriuosly adored him. Thursday was a home visit from the kids' case manager, where we got a whole lot more "we don't really know what's going on yet." Then Friday was back to Georgia's doctor's office for some shots.

Sucky week.

Also, since I found out I'm pregnant I've lost two pounds. Normally I'd be thrilled about the weight loss. But this isn't really the best time for it. I guess that feeding two extra people with my body is taking its toll.

I'm eating like CRAZY though. Three full meals plus two snacks every day. I thought for sure I'd be gaining weight.

It IS kind of nice to be able to eat massive amounts of food and not have to worry about gaining weight.

I'm just afraid that once my morning sickness starts, I won't make enough milk to feed Elise. Or that if I have to go on that medicine again, I'll have to stop breast feeding her. I'm trying not to think about that too much, because it gets me upset.

Oh yeah. I'm getting all emotional. Hormones! Mood swings, slow digestion, and night sweats are all back.

But tomorrow is a new day. And when you're taking care of four babies, all you can do is take life one day at a time.

Getting Veeeeeeery Sleeeeeeepyyyy

The tireds are starting. I've been so tired yesterday and today. So tired. I even got to sleep in a bit today (until 8:00!) and that didn't help at all.

Hello again, first trimester.

6 weeks!

Happy 6 weeks in my belly, Dinky!

Husband and I have given the baby its fetus name-- Dinky. Elise's fetus name was Speck, you'll recall. My dad said that if the baby turns out to be a boy, he might not appreciate the name Dinky. But I think he'll just be glad we didn't call him Teeny Weeny and leave it at that.

When I was 6 weeks pregnant with Elise, I FELT pregnant. Everything about pregnancy was new and I could really focus on my body and the changes it was going through. Now, I have 3 babies to take care of so I can't turn my attention inward as often. Plus, my memories of pregnancy are of feeling very sick and very uncomfortable and awkward. I don't feel those things yet, so I don't really feel like there's a baby inside me.

The only ways that I feel different so far are that I can tell that my digestive system is starting to slow down and my belly button is already starting to pop out. I think my belly button is popping because my digestive system is staying fuller longer and it's popping my hernia out a bit. I'm slightly more gassy with some burps and farts, my body's usual bathroom rhythms are different now, and I feel fuller after I eat. So I guess that there are hormones bopping around in my body, changing the way things work. Nothing dramatic, though.

So far, so good.

Conversations

The other night Husband and I were talking about our family plan for children and he realized that I want more kids than he does.

Husband: I love you. I love you, and I will never divorce you. But I WILL run away.

Me: You'll run away?

H: Probably to Mexico.

M: Well, at least I'll know where to start looking for you.

H: Mexico's really hot. Maybe I won't go to Mexico.

M: Canada, then?

H: I will run away to Canada. I'm serious about that.

Then tonight we were watching episodes of an old tv show called "Freaks and Geeks" and talking about the kid who plays the younger brother.

M: He's so adorable!

H: He really is.

M: He's so cute, I want to breast feed him. That's what I want to do to cute things now. I want to breast feed them. No matter what it is. Like, awww, a cute kitten-- I should breast feed it.

H: Yeah. Or Justin Bieber.

M: Yeah. Or Justin Bieber.

Baby's First Trip to the ER

She's fine.

Elise's little umbilical hernia got all discolored and bulging, so I took her to the emergency room tonight. 4 1/2 hours, one ultrasound, and 2 x-rays later, the diagnosis is that she has some sweet little baby belly fat trapped in front of the hole of her hernia and as the hole is closing, it's killing the fat. The fat is dying, and as it dies it's bleeding and making what looks like a bruise. The doctor said that this isn't common, but that she'll be fine. It will probably hurt her a bit, but she'll heal and her body will take care of the dead fat cells.

I'm insanely tired. Just know that Elise is okay, emergency waiting rooms are full of wacky, wacky people, and Elise made friends tonight with every single person who would make eye contact with her.

A List Detailing Why Today Sucked

1. I am sick. I'm congested, I have a cough, I have a headache. On top of that, Elise got horrible sleep last night, which means I got horrible sleep, which means my body has had no time to heal itself. And since I'm pregnant, there's not really any medicine that I can take to make myself feel better.

2. I had to take Georiga to the doctor this morning as a walk-in. Her doctor's office is soooooo inefficient. I had Georgia and Elise with me, all of us sick. And I was at the doctor's office for nearly 3 1/2 hours. I got up early as could be this morning and we were the FIRST walk-in patients. But we still waited over 3 hours.

We were in the waiting room for two hours. I sang, I danced, I clapped, I tipped the babies upside down-- anything to keep them happy. And as we got called to the back, a man who had been sitting near us said to me, "Good job!" That was nice.

Then we spent another HOUR waiting in the exam room for the doctor. Yep. Georgia has pink eye. And two ear infections, it turns out.

3. Husband has pink eye now, too. It started this morning.

4. Elise will have to go to her doctor tomorrow; she has a fever and a terrible cough and runny nose. Given Georgia's secret ear infections (she doesn't even have a fever), I got concerned for Elise and made her an appointment.

5. I started bleeding today. I had bleeding during my pregnancy with Elise, too, you'll recall. Now that I've been through it once, I didn't freak out. I know that my body can carry a pregnancy full-term. If I'm miscarrying now, it's probably because the baby isn't forming correctly, and there's nothing I can do about that. I just have to wait and see if the baby sticks around or not. That's what's hard about the bleeding-- once it begins you just have to wait and see if it's going to get heavier or stop. So I'm waiting to see.

Tomorrow will be better. It has to be.

So Much

It feels like a million different things are going on right now and I can barely think straight. Brain dump:

1. I have a terrible head cold. Elise and Husband have it too. Georgia and Henry have smaller colds, but I had to go get Georgia from day care today for pink eye. Is it not possible for us to all be healthy at once? Is that asking too much?

2. I'm about 5 1/2 weeks along. No morning sickness yet. Maybe I got it all out of the way with my first pregnancy! Yes. That's it. No morning sickness this time.

3. But just in case, I'm eating all of my favorite foods now. Let the first thing that I throw up taste just as good coming up as it did going down!

4. Georgia and Henry are obviously still with us. For now. So far, none of the relatives or family friends are turning out to be suitable people for the kids to live with. But they are still checking stuff out. So we wait. Or KEEP waiting is more like it.

5. Elise is turning into a little parrot. Last night, as I picked Georgia up off the floor, she puked over our bed and I said-- not particluarly loud or angry-ish-- "God damn it." Then Elise said, "Gah Da Neh!" Husband and I looked at each other and I said, "Did she just say 'god damn it'?" "Yes," Husband said, "Yes she did."

Then today, I FINALLY got both socks on her feet before she could pull one off again and I said, "Ta-DAH!" Then Elise said, "Tah-DAH!" perfectly.

Time to un-potty my mouth for reals. (Damn it!)

6. Now that I have a baby on the way (oh, and the rumor is that Georgia and Henry's mom is pregnant, too, and that baby could get removed from her right after it's born) it is REALLY time to start some potty training. Elise is, like, half potty trained. She'll use the potty if you take her. I just need to get her to tell ME when she needs to go. And Henry isn't potty trained at all.

If by some crazy chance we end up with 5 kids under 3 years old in our house all at once, they will NOT all be wearing diapers. Good lord.

Happiness

I'm pregnant.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Pointing Something Out

Elise started pointing last night and she's been doing it all day today. Its so cute to see her eyes following the direction of her chubby little index finger and hear her say, "Aaaaah?!" as if she's excitedly asking a question. A lot of the stuff she points at seems random, but she did show me one of the cats in the window during lunch today and later she pointed at my nose and her nose in turn so maybe she's learning anatomy.

It's so cool to experience all of the different ways that she's learning to communicate.

Crazy Day

Sick babies. Vomits. Blow out poos.

But I won $500 in a contest.

High highs and low lows. Crazy day.

Sick of Sick

Elise has a fever. Georgia has explosive shit-up-the-back diarrhea (which happened in the middle of dinner, mind you) and lots of vomits. Even my cat Sausage was puking today.

I need to be decontaminated. Somebody please spray me off with a firehose and then scrub my skin with bleach.

And poke my eyes out while you're at it. I'm sick of seeing sick.

Getting Picky

Elise is starting to become a picky eater. Well, I don't know if "picky" is the right word because she hasn't stopped eating any food permanently. What she'll do is taste everything she's being offered and then decide on the one thing that she likes best and eat only that. Last night it was beets. She would only eat beets. Tonight she only wanted her juice.

Elise has figured out that she can easily spit food right out of her mouth and there is no need to swallow anything that she doesn't want to swallow. Tofu? Spit it out. Bread? Spit it out. Green beans? Spit it out. Sometimes I think she spits food out just because she CAN-- she'll eat several bites, spit a few out, then eat several more bites. It's a game. Or she's testing limits. Or exploring her own body. I don't know.

Whatever it is, she's eating noticibly less food lately. She's making up for it in breast milk, but I wish she'd eat more solid food instead. I love breast feeding her, but my body was getting used to making less and less milk, and now she wants to feed all the time again.

I guess she's gearing up for toddlerhood. Temper tantrums and picky eating, here we come. Yikes!

The Pets Get Neglected

When you add a child to your family after you've already had pets, the pets get less attention. Waaaaaaay less attention.

Our four little kitties wait for those babies to go to sleep. Then they swarm me. They used to want to be left alone, but now they beg for attention. And as soon as I look their way now, they melt. They turn into purring machines. The mere possiblilty of attention makes them happy.

Sorry kitties. I still love you. I promise.

Sleep Update

So, we're a couple of weeks into the Elise-sleeps-in-her-own-bed lifestyle change and things are starting to go much better. Last night Elise only woke up one time, and that was to feed. This is ideal. Amazing. Magical, for me.

She's been having good nights and bad nights. For a while there she was waking up over and over and over again. All night long. But I think I've got it figured out now. We've come to an understanding. Elise goes to bed at 8:30, gets up around 2:00 or 2:30 to eat, then wakes up around 6:30 or 7:00 to start the day. I can handle that.

Henry and Georgia sleep though the night. All of the kids wake up around the same time in the morning. I tell you what, with three little bitties in the house, a solid sleeping schedule is a gift from heaven.

Twins

Tonight while our family was out in public someone saw Husband and me with two baby carrier car seats and said, "Oh! Are they twins?!"

This is funny because not only do Elise and Georgia look nothing alike, they aren't even the same race.

Then the lady said, "I guess not!" when she saw into the carriers. It was cute. She was giggly about it.

Mommy Jeans

Conversation with Husband tonight--

Me: Should I keep these new jeans?

Husband: Yeah! They look hot!

M: I'm not going for "hot"-- I'm a mom now.

H: Look. You need to get over this 'I'm a mom now so I can't wear sexy pants' thing.

M: I actually just bought more pants because I don't want to shave my legs. Ever again.

Silence.

H: I'm glad you feel secure in our relationship.

A Little Extra Help

Both of the foster kids were evaluated recently because we suspected that they are behind developmentally. Sure enough, they are. Georgia is behind in her social and cognitive skills and Henry is behind in his social, cognitive, and speech. I suspect that he is behind a little bit in his gross motor skills, too, but I guess it wasn't enough for the therapists to be alarmed.

Anyhow, they'll both be getting weekly therapies to help them catch up. I'm so glad that these services are available to them! Georgia and Henry have both made huge improvements in their skills since they've been with us, and I'm sure that they would keep improving, but now they'll be getting professional help and hopefully they'll reach their developmental milestones even faster.

The Cool New Stuff Elise Does

Elise is learning new stuff nearly every day. She's blowing my mind. Seriously.

She does the sign for "more" now, and she'll even sign "more" and then "food." Baby sign sentences! Holy crap!

Elise says, "no, no, no!" She was making these n sound babbling words that I helped her morph into "no, no, no!" We don't tell her "no" a lot, so I don't think that she has much context. Even still, I'm afraid I'll end up regretting that one.

Her new favorite song is the Itsy Bitsy Spider. She loves the hand motions that go with it and she especially likes holding her hands above her head for "out came the sun." She tries to do the spider part, too, sometimes.

Elise is starting to prefer trying to walk over crawling. She stands up and tries to walk a lot now. She can only take a few steps, but she's very determined.

Oh! And she loves blueberries.

Mismatched

We were récently selected as a potential adoptive family for a little girl and our family was going to be one of the few that her case managers considered at the final matching meeting. But then Husband and I were given some information about her that made us decide to back out.

It seems like we often get really close to getting matched. But no dice. I'm trying not to get discouraged. :(

Tele-phony

My phone rings today.

Me: Hello?

Speaker: Hi, this is So-And-So calling on behalf of Your Case Manager. I was wondering if we could come for a home visit at __ time on __ day this week?

M: Sure! That's fine. Say... I've been trying to get in touch with Case Manager for a couple of weeks now. Is she in the office? Or maybe on vacation?

S: She's in the office. She was out last week but she's back now.

(Uncomfortable silence.)

M: Okay. Well. I'm sure that she'll be in touch with me soon, then. Thanks.

What the friggedy is THAT?! Having some random person in your office call me so you don't have to talk to me? Case Manager! Have a heart, please! I get that you're busy. I get it. But after telling me that Georgia and Henry might move soon, then we don't hear anything for over 2 weeks? Just a quick update would be nice.

Husband said that if they trained case managers to be extra nice to the foster parents and try to see things from our perspective, there would be an even higher turnover rate and nothing would get done. Maybe he's right.

MLK Day!

Happy MLK Day! We began a new family tradition today. Husband and I decided that on MLK Day each year we will have a family outing to a museum and learn about the world around us together as a family.

Originally, I wanted to go to our local black history museum, but it was closed today. I can't figure out if that is weird and ironic or totally appropriate. So we went to a museum dedicated to our state's history instead. It was cool-- good exhibits. My sister and brother-in-law met up with us at the museum, as well.

The kids did a good job of behaving, considering how little they are. I think that their favorite part of the trip was snack time, though. I brought graham crackers for a snack, which Henry loves. And anytime Georgia gets a bottle, she's happy. Elise got to play on some stairs that were near where we sat down to eat. She REALLY loved climbing the stairs. Cried and cried when it was time to go.

Good times.

Kind Words

Today we were observed by a case manager while we played with the kids at a park. Not Henry and Georgia's official case manager, but the one I mentioned has to write up a report on the kids for their case file. No, not the official case manager-- we haven't heard from her in two weeks, despite the fact that she herself said that she would be in touch with us in less than one week. So we have no idea what's going on with their case. No idea about the relatives and whether the kids will be moving soon. Ugh.

But anyway, after the observation was over Report Writer talked to us for a bit and he said some nice things. He said that we're doing a good job with the kids and that he can really tell that we enjoy parenting them. I thought that was nice. Positive feedback. Recognition.

I guess he didn't notice how much dirt Georgia had stuffed in her mouth when I was busy chasing after Elise.

I Dreamt I Held You In My Arms

Elise has been sleeping in her pack-n-play exclusively since this past Monday. It's been rough. Rough on her, rough on me, rough on Husband. I miss having her next to me in bed at night. But I know she's safer in her own bed and we'll all get better sleep eventually.

Eventually. Not now. Elise is not sleeping well at all.

Monday night was hard. Lots of waking up, crying, angriness at not being picked up. Tuesday night was worse. Wednesday night was the worst of all. I said to Husband before we got into bed Wednesday night, "I think this will be the peak. Tonight will be really hard." And it was. CONSTANT crying. Elise barely slept that night.

But things are getting better now. We still have a ways to go before she's sleeping through the night, but there has been definite improvement. Last night Elise slept uninterrupted for two good blocks of time-- from 9:30 to 1:00 and from 3:00 to 7:00. Yay! She didn't even get up for her 4am feeding.

So, here's to hoping tonight is just as good or better! Mommy needs some sleep...

Red Sauce

I have discovered a sure fire way to get Henry to eat something-- pour ketchup on it.

Over Cast

Henry got his cast off today. Yay! He was so excited that his cast was coming off that he wasn't even scared of the saw. You should have seen his face after his arm was freed-- what a happy little boy!

In Case You Didn't Know

If there is one universal truth of parenting, it is this: kids are disgusting.

Kids do disgusting things, and 75% of the time those things will happen at the dinner table before you've finished your own dinner. You'll witness your kid sneeze a huge gob of snot onto his plate. Or slobber half-chewed food down his chin and all over his shirt. Or he'll vomit all over the table. Or have diarrhea out the legs of his shorts.

Yes, you will witness all of those things as a parent. At the dinner table.

You think it won't happen to you. But it will.

And you know what? You'll clean up that disgusting, foul smelling, chunky, slimey mess. And then you will finish every last bite of your dinner. Because you're hungry. And because that's what parents do. They clean up shit in the middle of dinner and then go back to eating as if nothing ever happened.

Running For Office

Sometimes when we go out, Elise takes it upon herself to greet every single person that we pass by. "Hiiiiiiiiii!" Wave, wave, wave. You'd think she was running for office or something.

Smartypants

Elise is in the middle of a learning explosion.

Aside from walking, she's suddenly started learning all kinds of new ways to communicate. She uses the sign language sign for "milk" very consistently now and she started using the sign for "food" today. Elise began clapping her hands two days ago. She makes the kiss sound "mmmm-bwah" when we're giving kisses. And she tries and almost says "uh-oh" when she drops something (it's more like UUUH-mmm right now).

Also, Elise is copying people's words like crazy. She does her best to get the tone and the inflections right, even if the sounds are a little off. For example, tonight I was telling her that a cat says "MEEE-ow" and Elise would say "EEEE-oh." Very close, little copy cat. Very close.

Baby Steppin' At 10 Months

Elise made 5 steps in a row today! It's so amazing to see her walking. She was still in my belly less than a year ago. (Happy 10 month birthday, Baby Elise!) Now, she walks into my open arms. Amazing!

Stomach Virus

Hot on Elise's heels, Henry started throwing up today. A LOT. Couldn't even keep fluids down until the end of the day. Vomit everywhere. We changed his clothes no less than 4 times today.

So long, weekend plans.

These fantastic plans were for nothing more exciting than a trip to Costco, a visit from a case manager, and a couple of walks around the neighborhood, mind you. But my boring mommy weekend was demoted even farther down the fun scale and instead I spent my Saturday dodging explosions of vomit and wishing I could go just 30 minutes without someone wiping their snot covered, tear stained face on my shirt, arm, leg, or the back of my hand.

Happy Saturday!

Barf Bath

Elise took two baths today, neither of which had been planned. Well, really, she took four baths if you count the massive amounts of vomit that poured over her lap.

Guess she has a stomach virus.

Oh, and also, she's worked up to taking two successive steps while keeping her balance. My baby wants to WALK!

New Year's Resolution

I resolve to make sure that Elise will sleep through the night in her own bed.

I have one year to accomplish this goal. I think I can do it.

Barfaroni

Husband and I were watching some Louis C.K. stand-up on Netflix last night when we heard Elise wimper. I paused the movie and started to go help her but then the crying stopped. So I turned the movie back on. A few seconds later, crying again. Pause the movie. Crying stops. Hmmm. That's not like Elise-- when she starts to stir, she usually sits up and thereby wakes herself up all the way. So I went in the bedroom to check on her.

I heard this wimpery gurling noise. Yikes! So I run over to grab her out of the pack-n-play-- the lights are off so I can't see-- and I feel wetness all over her clothes. I scoop her out and as I'm rushing to the light switch and calling for Husband, I hear stuff hitting the carpet.

Vomit. All over. Super nasty.

Poor baby. She puked again today after breakfast, but not as bad. She's mostly just really cranky today.

Maybe she caught an illness. Or maybe it's one of the new foods she's had lately. She's eaten pineapple and pasta recently. Yesterday she had cherries for the first time. Maybe it was the cherries.

Oh! And speaking of new food stuff, Elise likes having a sippy cup of water with dinner now. I think because she sees Henry with his cup and so she wants one, too.

Hopefully the puking is done and she'll feel better tomorrow.

Elise's First Step!

Elise took her first step today! She's been lunging at things for days now, but this evening she took one step and kept her balance. Then I squeaked because I was so happy and it scared her and she fell over.

I had predicted her first step by the new year. I was a few days off. Close, though.

Yay, Baby Baby!!!

Another Week

Looks like Henry and Georgia will be with us for at least another week. No decision yet about whether the relatives are suitable placements for the kids. There are some concerns about the relatives that require more investigating, and no solid decisions can be made until the end of this week at the earliest. So in the meanwhile, they stay with us.

Flashlight

Why are boys obsessed with flashlights? Husband has a massive flashlight collection. So does Brother-In-Law. Bo was obsessed. And now Henry is, too.

I don't get it. I can't imagine needing more than one flashlight at a time. Okay... maybe one big maglite and one small one to carry in your car or on your person. Or in Henry's case, one to chew on and one to throw across the room.

Well, atleast this will make birthday shopping for Henry a piece of cake.

Stink City, Baby Steps, Report

Happy Poo Year! I don't know WHAT it is that these kids have been eating, but GOOD LORD! Stink City! Seriously nasty. Georgia drinks formula and formula poo is always stinky, but there's no excuse for Henry and Elise lately.

Elise is trying to walk now. She lunges at things and has even tried to take a step here and there. Yay! She's so close.

In fact, she tried to take some steps while a case manager was here today gathering information for a report that he has to write about Georgia and Henry so that all the case managers can figure out how to best handle their situation. (Why on a Sunday, by the way? What made him want to do this on a Sunday?)

The case manager came over to observe the kids and ask us a bunch of questions. It wasn't the kids' normal case manager-- I guess they get someone who is not intimately involved in the case to write the report so that it's more impartial. Nice guy. Gave us little bits of information here and there that we hadn't heard yet. Being a foster parent and dealing with all of these foster care workers is like a constant fishing expedition. I literally ask the same questions over and over again to lots of different people until I finally hear something useful. That's the only way to get any real answers, I've discovered.

Still no word on whether they'll be moving soon, by the way.

First Cookies of 2011!

Second annual family photo and cookie bake!

Starting last year, Husband and I began two New Year's Day traditions. We take a family photo and we bake cookies together. At the beginning of 2010 I was pregnant and Bo was with us. This year, Elise is almost 10 months old and we have two more little bitties. Our family is so different now!

I was careful to make cookies that even the babies could eat. They were made with oats and bananas and vanilla and spices. No sugar. Just lots of yumminess. The kids gobbled them up.

Happy 2011!!!