Thursday, May 28, 2015

The Wonders of a Fast Crawler

When Cordie first began crawling she was hurky jerky about it and it took forever for her to get anywhere.  Now, however, she's pretty much a speed demon and zips wherever.  Here was a brief look into our morning.

8:15-Set Cordie down with Flutterby to play while I pick up
8:16-Realize I can't see Cordie from the living room and move her
8:17-How did Sophie get in the living room?  Did I bring her?  Did Cordie?
8:18-Picking up picture frames, Cordie notices and begins to crawl to "help"
8:18.30-Picking up faster
8:19-Snatching glass from Cordie's chubby fingers
8:20-Go to put clothes away
8:22-Find Cordie trying to climb stairs.  Bemoan the fact that I have a climber, move her, make mental note to get gates at next outing.
8:23-Get frames from another room, come back, where's the baby?
8:23.30-Find Cordie just out of sight.  Restart heart from mild heart attack that just occurred.
8:24-Bring Cordie into kitchen to begin to load dishwasher.
8:24.30-Cordie begins to empty diaper bag.  Decide that's a battle I don't want to fight.
8:26-Cordie begins to lay her head on empty juice container and "strum" it guitar style like a washed up drunk country singer.  I try to take a picture
8:26.30-Cordie notices, crawls over, and begins to hang onto my pants.
8:27-Pry Cordie's fingers off my pants, joint by joint.  She begins to cry.  Tell her to shake it off.  Seriously, Momma ain't got time to cater to every single whim.
8:29-Crying doesn't stop.  Put Cordie in walker.
8:30-Decide it's time for a bottle because someone needs a break.  Is it me?  Is it her?  IS IT ONLY 8:30?????

This was just fifteen minutes.  There are a lot of fifteen minutes in a day.  I didn't realize just how FAST she would get!  She's into everything.  And have I mentioned she is beginning to climb the baby jail?  Guys.  I am not even prepared.  Soon nothing will be able to contain her.  Good thing she's cute.  I Wish I had a picture of her playing the orange juice bottle to add here.  Alas no.

Wednesday, May 20, 2015

The Goings on at La Plage Bébé

La Plage Bébé, that's what I'm now calling our backyard.  It has the beginnings of a baby resort out there.  We have a new-to-us swing, baby pool with pirate ship and squirty dolphin, and pear juice popsicles.  It's a pretty good life!  Next year, when everything doesn't go straight to Cordie's mouth, we'll add a sandbox and it will be like being at the beach all summer long!  Well for her.  Momma likes a hot tub for it to be a true beach experience.


She is throwing some serious shade in her shades.


She's smiling so hard you can't see her eyes at all!




You know how your Mom always told you you could be anything?  Well mine should have said "You can be anything except a videographer."  I was going to post a cute little video of her splashing, but shes barely in the frame and I sound like Minnie Mouse on helium in the background.  Guys, it's rough.  I was going to send a disc of Cordie videos with our next birth parent letter, but now, shudder.  Do I sound like that in real life???  Anyway, imagine her splashing with that green blur that is actually a shovel.


So yeah, maybe invest in actual swim diapers.  Regular ones suck it up like crazy, just look at the size comparison.


That's our week!  Come join us at Baby Beach!

Saturday, May 9, 2015

Birth Mother's Day

Today is National Birth Mother's Day. I am having some mixed feelings about it that I figured I'd share with all of you lovelies.

Well let's try again. I wrote a huge rambling paragraph to try to explain my feelings and it was even more convoluted than my brain. Maybe a list is the trick.

-Cordie's BM is a mother, pure and simple, she has as much right to celebrate on Mother's Day as anyone
-Separate days imply inequality, that there is a different level of "motherness" depending on whether you are parenting or not
-Cordie's mom has other children. What if Cordie wants to celebrate with them one day? I don't want her to feel like she has to celebrate her BM on Saturday while other children celebrate her on Sunday, because her siblings are somehow different.
-It brings an already potentially painful day into the spotlight by declaring "Hey, here is a day all about how you are a BM, but apparently not a mother because you have a different day." Guess what? Everyone is aware of the status of things thanks. We are trying to build a family and relationships with Cordie's birth parents on a basis of equality, not constantly pointing out our different roles. That hurts everyone.
-This seems like yet another Hallmark holiday that has been invented for additional sales.

Here is the one caveat as I see it:
-If Cordie's BM wants to celebrate BM's Day to feel special, by George we will! Hopefully one day I can talk to her about this and see how she feels and what makes her happiest. Until then, I will celebrate her on Mother's Day because I don't want her to feel separate or different.

This is all totally my opinion and every adoption situation is different. This is my disclaimer, so no yelling.

Thursday, May 7, 2015

What's for Supper?

When I was a kid, Mom would sit the three of us down about once a quarter and say "I can't think of anything to cook.  Tell me three things you want to have for supper."  Eli would request meatloaf and pancakes, I would ask for chicken and dumplings, and Dad would ask for something gross like stuffed peppers.  Eli and I would give him a look that clearly said "What the heck, man?  Where's the solidarity?  You could have asked for pizza with peppers and we could have least picked those off, but a whole veggie based meal?  Where's the love?"  It was a very meaningful look.

Well now I'm looking around my pantry and freezer and going, "...."  That's what my brain is suggesting for supper.  I have cooked all the things.  There is no inspiration left.  So of course, I do what Mom did:  I ask Josh for three suggestions for supper.  I have regularly seen him lift a fork with sustenance on it and insert it into his mouth.  He eats. He eats what I cook.  Does he have ANY suggestion for me?  A single meal?  No.


Okay, I refuse to be beaten so easily.  So I try a different tactic, not the same day, oh no I ambush him with it a few days later.  "Babe, if you could eat anything in the world tonight, anything you wanted, what would you want to eat?"  I would have gone to get steak!  I would have attempted a lobster!  Nope, no response.


Sigh.  Let's try ONCE MORE.  
"Love of my life, what would  you like for supper?"  
"I don't care."  
"Okay, then I think we'll just pick around, have a sandwich, or cereal, or something like that."
"I don't want that."
"Then what do you want?"
"I don't know, just not that."


I give up.  I think we're going to Mom's house for supper.  Maybe he'll tell her what he wants to eat!

Tuesday, May 5, 2015

Dear Husband of a SAHM

Dear Husband of a SAHM,

There is bread on the mantlepiece.  That's not a metaphor, though I suppose it could be for the way I feel out of place today.  No, there is literally bread on the mantle.  It's there because when I was unloading the car the baby was screaming like feral hyenas were about to eat her.  This was after the dryer tore up and did I mention the car is making a funny noise?

Did I also mention how glad I am to see you?  It's more than just the fact that I spend my day carrying on a one sided conversation about poop and yummy-in-your-tummy pureed bananas.  It's that you listen and care about the most mundane minutiae.  It's that you are my partner on this voyage and when days have been rough, you help me stay afloat.  I love to hear about your day, even when I struggle to make more than the most basic contribution to the conversation.  Please never stop telling me about the office politics and projects on tap just because I only nod.  My day to day experiences don't give me a parallel.  Well, there are some playground politics I could shock you with.

Mostly I want to say thank you for all you do.  I know there is a lot of stress being the sole financial provided for our little family.  I know it's hard to work all day and come home to a fussy, teething baby and a wife who is wearing a ponytail for 72nd straight hour.  Sometimes I think you must miss the girl who wore shorts to be cute and flirty and applied makeup everyday.  Now I wear them to clean the shower.  Here's a secret, sometimes I miss her too.  Thank you for still seeing me and loving me the same as you did when I was that coiffed, professional girl.

You didn't see, but when you told me that you loved me just now, I was blinking back tears, partly because the beans had just exploded in the previously clean microwave, and partly because I love you so much.  I love how much you love our little one.  It would be easy, and perhaps even justifiable, to come in from a long day eat, watch tv, and leave the baby caring completely up to me.  You don't though.  I so enjoy watching the two of you play.  No one else can make her giggle as loud and long as you can.  You are a great dad and all of us are blessed by your active involvement as a parent.

Thank you for providing me with the opportunity to stay home and the support to not lose my mind doing it.  We talked about this for so long, but I was still sort of amazed when it actually happened.  I suppose I should close this, dear husband, before all this praise goes to your head, but know that we are your biggest cheerleaders and fans.  You may have been in a meeting when she pulled up the first time, but  you being there made it possible for me to be home cheering her on.  I hope her first word is Dada because you deserve it.

Now, if you go get the bread from the mantle, I'll set this supper on the table.

Love,
Harried, but grateful SAHMs

Sunday, May 3, 2015

Six Months Ago Today...

Our lives changed forever! Look how teeny tiny she was.  I can't believe how quickly she's grown.  I tried so hard to keep it together, but when our adoption worker put that little bundle in my arms I just completely lost it.





You can't look at that smile and not smile yourself!  The adoption will be finalized in a few weeks, as soon as we get a court date.  Woo hoo!  I'll be glad for the last step to be signed off on and complete.  I'm glad you came to live with us baby girl!