Proof you cannot control your cravings

I just ate Top Ramen--its 9:45 p.m. Now that my second child is swimming in a sea of sodium, my work is done. As for the sinus pain, it is almost totally gone, so I won't be needing the antibiotics (thanks for worrying about me Flynn). I sucked it up. And hey, the cold sore is almost gone. Woo hoo. Ethan keeps teasing me about what other illnesses I can pick up during my supressed immunity.

As for healthy food, it seems to be a no go for now. I'm hoping things will change after the first trimester. Right now I'm either 8 or 11 wks. I know, that makes no sense. All I can say is that the 'cycles' were not regular after going off the pill and that seems to make the math more tricky. I have an ultrasound for "uncertain size/date" on September 8 and things will be settled then. My doctor is going with the 8 wks...I feel farther along. The icky feelings and throwing up didn't start with Ryan until 10 wks...and lasted til 19. Oh yes, fun.

But food...wow. I have a constant terrible taste in my mouth, kind of sour. I know a metallic taste is common. I ofcourse cannot be like everyone else. I do not remember this at all from last time. So, lots of things taste gross. Even water. And, I am paying special attention to keeping myself hydrated because I had contractions at 30wks with Ryan and do not want a repat L&D trip early. No freakin thank you. I was there all day, they wouldn't feed me, I had a cathater that hurt more than Ryan's labor and was just scared. The OB on call at my office never even came to see me, I got a shot, and the contractions stopped almost immediately. I had an ultrasound and basically the lady said "well, there's a big head down there" and that my kidneys were a bit enlarged, but nothing to worry about. They couldn't find anything wrong so they blamed it on dehydration because the last thing I remembered drinking was a grape soda that night before. Honestly, I think I bought the grapde soda that day at the store because I was craving it. It wasn't like I was jugging sodas during my pregnancy. I wasn't. But I know I didn't drink enough water. I am trying, but it tastes icky. Even when I add lemon to it. I remembered my OB saying that fluids were important, and she really didn't care what I drank. If I couldn't eat she didn't care, but she wanted me to drink. Gatorade is my new best friend. More calories!!!

Fruit also tastes terrible, except for this really yummy thing I had at Jamba Juice--its new and has no added sugars or high fructose corn syrup. Yay me! I think that will be my treat on the days I take Ryan to school. Not sure why fruit is gross, but all I want is carbs. Again. When I was pregnant with Ryan I was working full time and ate out at lunch most days. I'm hoping not working will help me out this time, but picking Ryan up at 11:30 is so close to lunch...And Ethan is getting on my case for my lack of protein. Oh, I craved popcorn today. Is there protein in that? Crap.

I'm doing the best I can, really I am. Absolutely no alcohol (though today at Olive Garden I really wanted their berry sangria) and hardly any caffeine. I occasionally will have an iced tea or a passion iced tea lemonade from Starbucks (no sweetner). I haven't had any coffee but boy do I need it in the morning. I will make my own decaf iced tea once we get the new fridge and I will have ice! I'll take any beverage suggestions cuz Gatorade is going to get old after a while.

Before someone says it, toothpaste won't help the bad taste in my mouth. I have to use a special toothpaste because I have formed an allergy to most toothpaste. That makes me sound like I"m 100 yrs old. I was getting a weird rash on the side of my mouth. It came and went for almost a year, and my doctor gave me meds that didn't work. Then I went to the dermatologist who scared the crap out of me when he said the other meds could give me stretch marks on my face. Who the hell wants that? He had me switch my toothpaste, and it worked. Calendula toothpaste. No fluoride, mint, color or flavor. It smells like black licorice. Yuck.

That's wonderful, a sinus infection

Sinus infections are not wonderful, but I had to throw that in yesterday because when I made Ryan some chocolate milk (his new fav) he said "that's wonderful mom." I think his teacher says wonderful a lot but it was so cute! And how at almost 3 yrs old had my child never had chocolate milk? We went to Burger King a few days ago and I got it for him in the kid's meal. He loved it! So yesterday when we hit up KFC (do not judge i am pregnant and my fridge is broken) he asked for chocolate milk but they didn't have it. Surprisingly enough I had chocolate syrup and made it myself. Yay mommy!

I went to my primary doctor yesterday and I do have a sinus infection. He said we were at the tricky stage because it had been 10 days since the cold started, and it could go either way. The only issue was that my other cold symptoms were gone, and he expected the sinus pain to be gone by now too. But, with a compromised immune system, who knows how long it could take my body to fight off the infection on its own. And then he threw out the latest studies at me about sinus infections. I know, most times they will clear up on their own, you just have to be miserable in the process. But for someone that used to get several a year, that really wasn't an option. Especially after having several x-rays that kept showing they were still there, and then finally having to go on a 30 day antibiotic regimen. I have my mom's sinuses. Anyway, I told him I could hold out a few more days and deal with the pain if he really thought it would clear up on its own. So, he gave me an antibiotic prescription and said to wait to pick it up. If I wasn't better by the weekend I should take it. They really don't want you taking meds when you are pregnant unless its absolutely necessary, and I understand that. So, I'm waiting. I think I actually feel a little better today.

I still have a raging cold sore though. He couldn't fix that :( And I hope his scale was off because it said I gained 5 lbs and my OB is gonna freak about that. I was wearing jean shorts, they are heavy, right? When she saw me at 5 wks she said I should only gain half a pound before she saw me again. Half a pound? I carry more of that in water. I know gaining 40lbs was too much last time, and I'm starting heavier so I need to be more careful. And my dad is a diabetic. So, I get all that. And I said this time I would be more active and I intend to, but the week after I saw her I got the cold from hell and am still recovering. There has been no activity. I haven't even done my blood test because I was sick. I really have done nothing.

Off to go look at refrigerators. I'm making nice little print outs for Ethan (cuz thats how the engineers like their info....oh, maybe i'll make a graph) so when we go shopping Saturday it will be easier.

Our fridge is trying to kill us and I have no immunity

No doubt on Saturday you will see us at the Labor Day sales buying a new fridge. This has been, oh I don't know, 9 yrs in the making. We have NEVER had a new fridge. The original fridge from the house we rented when we got married was left in the house by the previous tenants, who were our friends. I believe they bought it for $200 at a used appliance store. At some point when we still lived in Sacramento, Ethan decided to switch it with a fridge that was in his building at work. The building was being cleaned out. He thought it was a "better" fridge and switched it. Or as I call it, stealing from the government. Whatever. It was not better. This fridge has traveled with us through all of our moves, and back here to Northern Cali. Best guess is that its early 1980s. I'm talking apartment size fridge, maybe 18 cubic ft. It has been a thorn in my side since we bought our house in Oceanside because it was white and all of our new appliances were black. The horror! Mr. Practical didn't care because hello, it still worked. And yes, technically it did work. But I spent many a night on the couch when I was pregnant with Ryan (hey, its happening again this time too) and had to listen to the humming, thumbing, and clicking noises.

A few months ago, we almost had to buy one. I went and priced them because everything was freezing, no matter what temperature we set. Then, just as I had Ethan worn down, it was fine. I secretly think he has magical fridge powers. I know he doesn't want to spend the money, but we had already agreed to buy a new one once we moved so its going to have to happen eventually. Then, in the last month, it has been popping. It kinda sounds like July 4th. Then the freezer started making stalagtites/mites (i get them confused) and everytime you open the freezer chunks of ice just fall at your feet. Ridiculous.

But the straws that broke the camels back were Tuesday when I was supposed to make the lasagna for my friend and the mozzarella smelled weird. It wasn't supposed to expire til October, and I knew it was the fridge. Then last night, the pork chops....oh god, don't even make me go there. I will gag. The fridge is obviously not keeping the food cold enough and its time to go. Sears is having an appliance sale, Home Depot, and I'm sure Best Buy. So, we'll be there. I have convinced Ethan to pay extra for stainless because it will match whatever is in the house we buy. Match as in close enough, because I would be mad if we bought white and moved into a house with black appliances. At least stainless will look nice no matter what. And the house around the corner that we are waiting on has all stainless.

I've been doing lots of research online about how your immune system is down when you are pregnant. I am living proof of that. The cold I had last week that lasted FOREVER is still lurking in the form of sinus pain. I need to go to the doctor, its probably a sinus infection, except it feels different from the others I've had--and I've had plenty. But, I can't keep popping tylenol so something has to be done. I'll probably call my primary today and see what I can do. Then last night I got a lovely cold sore. I haven't had one in years. Years. Did some research and its another immunity compromise from pregnancy. I'm a walking disease over here, not to mention the terrible taste in my mouth that won't go away, the heartburn, and well...you all know.

Pregnancy brain

Yes, it is true, Ryan is going to be a big brother! We are ofcourse excited and nervous and all of those things, including sick and exhausted (mostly me). My EDD is April 11, though that has some leeway due to some other weird things, but I"ll know more after September 8th and my first ultrasound. If anything it will be earlier...not later. No way. Been there and done that.

The pregnancy brain seems to be alive and kicking this early in the game, which I do not remember with Ryan. Something else I don't remember, or actually I know for a fact, was that at this point (almost 8 wks) I could still wear my normal clothes. I distinctly remember what I wore to my first appointment at 10 wks and there was nothing maternity about it. I made Ethan get the rubbermaid tubs out of the garage so I could have some comfortable shorts/capris. I'm embarassed. At this stage we hadn't even told anybody last time. We wanted to wait to see a heartbeat and were very cautious. Plus, it was easier being 600 miles away. I had to tell my family yesterday because I was feeling sick almost all the time and knew I was going to need their help, didn't want them to think I was a contagious freak, and the fact that I looked heavier. So there it is.

I have been doing some weird things lately that I wanted to blog about, but then realized they would make no sense unless you knew I was pregnant, so I didn't. But now I can share the weirdness of me. Like how last week at 11:30 pm I was up watching the Olympics and eating salsa. Or that I was up at midnight last night watching HGTV and eating potato rosemary bread.

And something I totally screwed up yesterday. I took a nap while Ryan napped, then bolted awake remembering I needed to make a lasagna for a friend that just had a baby. I had already gone to the store earlier in the day and had a salad and french bread. The hamburger was thawed, I had whole wheat noodles. I was ready, though a bit late on the start time for a delivery of 5:00. As I was putting the lasagna together, the mozzarella smelled weird to me. The expiration date was October so I tried to let it go, but I couldn't. I kept telling myself it was just my taste buds/nose from being sick and being pregnant. I even put the completed lasagna in the oven, only to turn it off. I couldn't risk someone getting sick. I had thawed enough meat to make a lasagna for us, and started browing that. I was going to use a different cheese that smelled fine to me. Its a 4 cheese mexican style but it would work. Then I went uptairs...and forgot I was browning hamburger. I came back down to see a a burnt patty of hamburger. I'm awesome. I called the local italian deli and ordered some lasagna and raviolis. I was just a mess.

So, for the 3 of you out there, this is how its gonna be for the next 7 months. Are you ready?

Don't talk to me I'm watching the Olympics!

Day 6 of being sick and I believe I am almost near kinda close to being ok. Sheesh. The bright light in this illness has been the Olympics. I usually don't watch anything but gymnastics because I was in gymnastcs for 8 yrs and I feel a bond with those girls. By no means was I doing flips on the beam (hell no) but still, I get it. I haven't left the house since last Sunday. I had to cancel a "Christmas in August" playdate at my house (i did not pick the theme so ignore it) and a meal I was supposed to take to a friend that just had a baby. In keeping my germ spreading to a minimum, I have been sleeping on the couch and watching Olympics to the ridiculous hours of the morning and getting no sleep--which is great when you are sick cuz you are not tired at all! I have become obsessed with sports I never cared about like swimming, and my mind is just boggled that trampoline is a sport--along with synchronized diving. I am so not sporty and I respect atheletes but wow, BMX is now an olympic sport. Ok. I'll watch. What else is on at 1am? And have you seen the Chinese play table tennis? The serves alone freak me out. I swear they are bouncing the ball off of themselves in some hidden move. Its insane.

I've realized I will watch any sport as long as its fast. I can't watch a whole basketball game...way too long, and I know there is something better on Style or TLC or HGTV. But, a few dives or a quick 100m race and I'm good. Here are a few of my observations thus fur:

1) I hate the new gymnastics scoring system--hate it
2) I do not understand the shape of the new vault...it is kinda creapy looking
3) Running is very hard and I won't be doing it
4) US women's beach volleyball = awesome
5) I saw a country get its first olympic medal ever and that was super cool
6) Even olympic athletes make rookie mistakes (stepping on the white line in track = bad)
7) A US pole vaulter got the silver medal after being in the sport for only 4 yrs and her coach was a total ass to her and that was not right and I hope he sees himself on video and feels BAD
8) BMX was basically a big pile of a crash and whoever doesn't fall basically gets some type of medal at the end
9) Why all the makeup in synchronized swimming?
10) Diving from a handstand is so dangerous looking
11) A lot of times the "favorites" don't even get a medal so pay attention to the under dogs

Well, I've got some cleaning up to do while Ryan and Ethan are at a car show. This is the first day I've felt up to moving around and the play room and family room are a mess. Ryan took out every toy he has and never put it back. Ethan was going to take a picture so I could post what the house looks like when mommy is sick. Maybe that was good for him to see. We don't have a spotless house, but I do a lot of "pick up" throughout the day. After a week without me picking up it was a war zone. Even the dogs were scared.

Can you handle the randomness of me today?

Well, on the sick front, I am feeling better. Apparently this is a 3-4 day cold, but as I said before, it knocked me out. Ryan not so much. I just don't get it. But then again, its kinda interesting (in a way) how viruses affect people differently. Like Ethan, he gets a headache and a runny nose, sometimes a scratchy throat. That is his definition of sick. He doesn't get congested so badly that his head feels like its gonna explode, or feel like he needs to lay down. Nope. He still usually goes to work, just feels kinda out of it. I am like a zombie. I learned a few years ago, after teaching and being exposed to a classroom that should be called a petri dish, that when you get sick you need to just lay on the couch all day. It really does help. I used to go to work because the kids needed me! And because they behaved terrible for subs and I was embarassed. But, after one long virus (2 weeks) where I was trying to hang in because it was the week before finals and we had to review (and they needed me), and Ethan was out of town on business, I just lost it. I couldn't function anymore, went to urgent care because I hadn't even had time to pick a doctor because I had only had "grown up insurance" for 3 months and BAM....I almost had pneumonia. I'm not exactly sure how it was almost, other than, the doctor said it was on its way to pneumonia. Then when you leave teaching and have an office job, there isn't the feeling that the world will end if you don't go to work. So, I used my sick days, stayed home and got better. Ofcourse, this is much harder to do with an almost 3 yr old, but luckily the last two afternoons one of my parents came to pick Ryan up so I could rest. I love it here! I've been laying on the couch, bag of used kleenex at my feet, drinking tea, and letting Ryan watch whatever was on Disney or Noggin or Sprout. I know, but really, it could be worse. And here it is day 3 and I can already breathe out of my nose. I spent more time today sitting up than laying down...and I ate two real meals (and Ryan did too). I'm keeping Ryan out of school tomorrow as a precaution and I'm proud of myself for being so caring of other people's health...but man, I'm paying for this preschool so I hope he is well for a good long stretch!

On to house info, because you will never get bored of that I'm sure. I found out today that we are still the top contender on the house around the corner. There are now a total of 6 bids which was news to me, but, they have asked the other 5 for their "best and final" but not us. I guess they were all way low. The realtor told our realtor for us to hang in there and we should know something in about another week. We were trying to figure out why they didn't "best and final" us and all we could come up with was that, since they already told us we were top bid, they didn't want to scare us away by asking us for more money. It seems we are still in a good place, but YOU JUST NEVER KNOW. Luckily, no new houses have come on the market that we are interested in.

And something that is rubbing me the wrong way. I don't want this to get political or religious or anything like that cuz I'm not like that. I'm friends with lots of different kinds of people and if you are coming from the right place, I'm usually ok with you. Last year when we were in Oregon on our rafting trip I read an article in USA Today because it said it was about someone from Oceanside, CA, where we used to live. I was curious, then bam, the name of the doctor that delivered Ryan was mentioned. I start freaking out thinking she's got a malpractice history but it wasn't that, it had to do with her not wanting to artifically inseminate a lesbian. I read the article, which was small, it bothered me, I told Ethan if I would have known that I wouldn't have selected her as my doctor (the case was very old) but didn't think alot about it. After a few weeks I mentioned it to one of the attorneys I used to work for just to see what he thought and to make sure she wasn't supposed to let me know about any pending cases. She wasn't.

So, fast forward almost exactly a year. I get an e-mail alert today from a San Diego news station (i like to keep up with my old hood) about the case. Apparently the California Supreme Court found in the patient's favor and I got a little more back story which irked me even more. So, the patient came to my doctor and her practice (i think there are 5 docs) for infertility treatment and IVF. She told them she was a lesbian at the beginning. They treated her for 11 months with all the prep stuff that has to be done AND TOOK HER MONEY. Then when it was time for the IVF they said they wouldn't do it because she wasn't married. Um, hello....CA law at the time would not let same sex couples get married. Everyone knew that. Then there was a story switch at some point and one of the two doctor's claimed some statute about religious beliefs and not wanting to treat a lesbian (he was fundamentalist christian). Wow.

Several things bother me, on many levels, but the first is that they took her money for all the prep stuff, and then told her no. I don't care if it was her personal money or her insurance...they should have said no up front. If you're gonna be an ass, be an ass up front. Maybe they wouldn't have gotten sued if they were honest. If it was me, I would have walked out of the office. Hell no I wouldn't want them treating me. Secondly, I didn't think your religion had anything to do with who you treat as a doctor. I know this wasn't a life threatening emergency, but you have to think about that and where this could lead. Someone is dieing in the ER and the doctor won't treat you because you're gay, or catholic, or whatever. NO. That is not ok.

I'm not sure why it bothers me so much, other than, I hate that someone that treated me was so unfair to someone else. I also know there are tons of kids out there that need good homes and everyone is gonna say the lesbians can just adopt, but I also know the desire to have your own biological child. Either way you look at it, the intent of the doctors was wrong. What did they expect her to say after 11 months of infertility treatment and preparation? Oh, ok, never mind. Sorry I'm not married. I guess I"ll just wait around until the courts decide who I am allowed to marry. See ya.

Ok, I usually dont get soapboxish. Sorry. I just expect extra tolerance from certain people, and doctors are included in that group.

Sick kid vs. sick adult

Why is it that a sick kid can still play, and be loud, just like when they are well? Even with a tremendous amount of snot running out of their nose and a cough. It boggles my mind. Ryan had the symptoms of a cold Friday night. Awesome because we had just been playing over a friend's house but I swear, he was fine. Not a drip from his nose or evena sneeze. He had a sneezing marathon in the tub and after that, it was full on cold. It was a matter of minutes. So, he stayed home with Ethan while I went to our playgroup anniversary luau on Saturday. He pretty much acts the same, running around like a maniac, but eats less. Sunday the cough started, but again he was about the same energy level. He woke up once in the night for medicine. I went to bed last night not feeling so hot and BAM, I am walking dead today. He is running circles around me. Its' 4:17....please Ethan come home early. I might be tied to a chair soon, and this poor kid needs some real food.

Great news!

Some good things have been happening to us, and around us, and I thought it was time to let everyone know and be thankful. In no particular order...

1) Nikki's liver values came back NORMAL. She does not have liver cancer!!! Such a relief that our Nikki Sue is ok. I'm so glad we don't have to deal with thinking about losing her right now. We just love her too much and would never let her suffer, so its good to get confirmation she is A-Ok. She did have one elevated level, but the vet said that is from her arthritis. Shelby also got a check up because of some lumps we found on her, and we wanted to weigh her because we knew she had dropped some pounds. 20 lbs! She is actually at her ideal weight right now, the same weight we got her when she was 1 yr old. We did a senior blood panel on her to make sure there wasn't anything bad that is making her lose weight. The vet said 20lbs in a year is fine, but we think it might have been more recent. I remember a difference when she started the prozac. But, some other things changed around that time too. They had their little "episode" where they tried to kill eachother, hence the prozac. We changed a few things around that time, like Ryan not being able to eat at his little table. So, she is definately getting less of Ryan's food, and Nikki all of a sudden decided to finish her food. She has always been a snacker and it is hard to manage a dog who snacks w/ another dog who would eat 100 meals a day. The vet aspirated the lumps and they were just fatty tissue, most likely had them before and we just couldn't see them. Now that she is skinny they are more noticeable. So, as long as her blood works comes back ok then I have myself 2 health, but old dogs :)

2) My friend Liz had her baby. Yay! Gabrielle Rose is a cutie. Everyone that reads this probably knows Liz, so I don't have to say much other than she is super nice, and helpful, and just a good person to have as a friend. I know you are too busy to read this Liz, but congrats to you and the family. I wish I could have gotten to know you even better before I moved, but I enjoy learning about you and the family via the blog.

3) It's our 9 yr anniversary today! Last year I did a superb blog about how great Ethan is. He loved it. Then there was a bit of a mess because he never gave me my card. Supposedly it is still in the glove box of his truck--if it was ever there at all. We're keeping it pretty low key this year. No big rafting trips. Ryan's playgroup has their 2 year anniversary on Saturday and they are having a luau, then we're going to Ruth's Chris for dinner. YUM. All I can say is that we're in for a busy 9th year with some big changes ahead and I can't wait. Thanks for making me laugh and for loving Ryan and I. When we stick together good things happen.

4) Happy Birthday Paisley! I keep meeting more and more people whose birthday is Aug 14th.

First day of preschool

Ryan was very excited to go to preschool. We had been talking about it for a few weeks. But, as you can see from the photo with me (taken right outside the door) he was nervous. When we toured the school we were the only ones there, so I'm not sure he was expecting all the kids. The night we went back for open house we were outside so I think it was a little confusing for him. Plus, on the first day its a bit hectic. They have to teach the kids the routine of hanging up their bag, getting their "color" of the day (its a small clothes pin) and then sitting at the table to do their fine motor skills work (this time it was trying to draw a straight line). This is all done during the drop off phase. It gives the parents time to talk to the teachers if necessary, but still keeps the kids contained. When he is done he puts his paper in the basket and gives his teacher his clothespin. The clothes pin is their way of doing attendance. The teachers attach the pins to their aprons so they know who is there. They spend the next few minutes doing puzzles until all the kids have arrived and parents have left.

I stood in the back watching him and he wasn't looking around for me. I got a bit misty eyed wondering how I was going to walk away. This was the first time he was left with someone other than family or a super close friend. I was glad he wasn't crying or staying by my side, but I just wasn't sure I would be able to say bye without breaking down. Ofcourse he decided he was done with puzzles and took toys out. I knew he wasn't supposed to and went over to tell him no. I got the standard "but i just playin mom." At that time I realized that it was their rules and he was going to have to hear it from his teachers. I told him I loved him, to be good and "do sharing", and that I would be back. There was a bit of a crack in my voice. For the next few minutes I had some paperwork to fill out and I went into another room. Every once in a while I'd hear his voice say something like "thats a starfish." I also heard a gentle reminder of "Ryan, we are finishing our puzzles right now and not playing trucks." What I LOVED was that I heard his teacher ask him to pick a new puzzle and do it with her. I even peeked around the corner and she went over and grabbed his hand, they found a puzzle, then sat on the floor together. He is not a puzzle kid, but I also understand he needs to follow directions. I know the puzzle time yesterday lasted a bit longer than ususal because of the parents still being around and just trying to get everything done.

After my paperwork I caught one of the teacher's eye (2 teachers, 7 kids each) and let her know I was leaving. She looked in his direction and said he looked fine, and that if there was going to be a problem she expected it would have happened already. Then his teacher saw me and I waved, and walked out the door. I'm pretty sure if I would have went straight to my car I would have had a meltdown. Luckily another mom was leaving and we chatted for a bit. Turns out she lives in the court of our "favorite" house that we bid on and didn't get--twice. So, we had a nice talk about the housing market and then I got in the car and felt ok. Its not that I don't want some time alone, cuz I do, and its not like I don't have a million things I need to do. I think it was more of a worried feeling. I knew he was unsure and I wanted to protect him. What if the other kids didn't want to play with him outside? What if he really didn't think I was coming back?

Though I had planned on going to the gym, I decided not to. I felt kind of out of it. I went home, caught up on e-mail, read some blogs, then cleaned out his toy box downstairs. By that time it was time to pick him up. 3 hrs is not that long. When I was driving to pick him up, it felt like something was missing. That is the only way I could describe it. I am so used to being with him, and being in the house and car without him is just weird.

They line the kids up inside and walk them out when its not bad weather. He really was excited to see me, which made me feel good. He ran up to me and hugged me and I told him "I told you I would be back." "I told you" is one of his favorite sayings. I checked in with his teacher to see if there were any major problems and she said he looked sad during their story about an animal that misses his mom on his first day of school, but there was no crying or asking to go home. She said he had a lot of fun playing outside. When we got to the car I asked him questions about what he had for snack, and what letter they worked on. Then as a treat we went to McDonalds. I even let him get a Sprite.

So, the next thing to tackle is poop potty training. We seem to have pee down. But, because of the poop issue, I have to continue to send him in a pull up. I've also noticed that he doesn't really pull down his own pants, etc., so we need to work on that or he'll never be able to do it at school alone.

Oh what the heck, House #3

"Back in the saddle again"...that's gotta be a country song, right? Why did that pop into my head? Well, anyway, we are jumping back into the process of making offers that get ignored. Tomorrow (after I call the realtor) we will be making offer #3. This time its on the house around the corner. This was the house that has been waiting in the wings, and we kinda considered it a sure thing, until today. We were under the impression that the bank had already approved the listed price (its a short sale). That impression came from, oh, I don't know---THE OTHER REALTOR. Then today she told our realtor that wasn't exactly true, but that she is in close contact with the bank, blah blah blah. They have one very low offer that they are not even considering. And we are so over it at this point I basically had our realtor tell the other realtor what our offer would be to see if they would even "consider" it...sounds like they "most likely" would...BUT...the comps in the area show it to be priced low. Therein lies the problem, realtors pricing it low to get interest, then creating a bidding war, except there has been virtually no bidding on this house. You would think they would take our full price offer w/ a good portion of cash down and run run run away. They are losing money on this house every single freakin day, and will continue to dump money into it once they fully take posession and start a foreclosure process. The point of a short sale is accepting to lose money, but getting it sold before having to foreclose. Do I need to explain this to the banks?

So, the positives of this house:
1) pergo flooring all downstairs (i know its not real wood but its a darn good fake and w/ a husband with allergies/asthma, 2 dogs and a 33 month old WE HATE CARPET)
2) stainless appliances
3) corian counters (i hate grout)
4) upgraded cabinets throughout
5) slate entry and fireplace surround
6) wrought iron bannister
7) gigantic master bedroom (though the closet/bathroom are pretty standard)
8) tile floors in bathrooms upstairs w/ double sink in the hall bath
9) laundry upstairs w/ cabinets and a sink (the sink is now a plus since my child refuses to poop in the potty and I've been cleaning lots of underwear)
10) large loft that takes the place of a 4th bedroom to be used as an office (and since there is no door we can spy on Ryan later when he is older and trying to look at bad things on the computer)
11) in our current neighborhood so we keep the lake/pool/tennis courts/parks we love
12) formal living room that we can still use as a play room and hopefully a game room when Ryan gets older (we so need an air hockey table)
13) immaculate! basically move in ready, but we will replace the carpeting upstairs in the bedrooms for Ethan

Negatives

1) only about 200 sq/ft more than we have now. i'm a bit worried we could outgrow it. there are no plans for more than 2 kids so everyone would have a room, plus the loft office which is big
2) lost a true guest room since the futon will have to go in the loft (technically we don't have lots of guests since our family all lives here)
3) gonna need to plant some trees in the backyard for shade and build some type of patio overhang

Obviously the positives outweigh the negatives, so we'll be making a full price offer tomorrow. I don't want to get my hopes up, but this was our back up house. We've been keeping our eye on this house for a few months. After this, we got nothing. I know the market is supposed to slow down at the end of summer, so there should be less competition.

And Ryan starts preschool in 10 hrs...

Well...

Apparently we need to find a house that no one else wants. And if no one else wants it, there is a reason. But, I figure, that is the only way we are going to find a freakin house. Our favorite house and the house across the street where we were the #2, both went pending today. No notice from the other realtors. THANKYOUVERYMUCH. Its like all common courtesy is gone in this damn foreclosure/short sale market. Back to square 1. My parents were looking at a house also, and they found out the bank accepted an offer that was $17,000 more than the asking. I preferred the days when the asking price was the high, and you made an offer under that and after meeting in the middle you got the house. Done deal. Not all this crap.

Next. We had a fun playdate today for a kid in playgroup that turned 5. The sucky part was that 15 people were supposed to come, then most of them changed their RSVP at the last minute and there were only 3 of us. I know things come up, especially sick kids and I don't want sick kids coming to an event, but I'm pretty sure 12 kids didn't get sick over night. Luckily it was a bring your own lunch because if she had made lunch for everyone I would have felt terrible. But this way, there were more chocolate cupcakes for me :)

On a happier note, I'm having dinner tonight with a friend and that is always fun. Ryan will get some daddy time because ahem...he called a while ago and was leaving work before 5:00. I'm pretty sure I can count on one hand how many times that has happened in our entire marriage (9 yrs next week). So, the big decision for the night will be where to eat. I know, rough. I wish our town had more small restaurants because they are the best, but for some reason they have been building chain after chain. The good thing is we both like the chicken ranch sandwich at Chilis.

PAUSE - there is too much giggling in the other room

What did I find? Ryan pulling the dogs tail. He thinks its funny. Lucky for him she tolerates that, but will only tolerate it for so long. We are now having a time out in our crib. Yesterday he didn't take a nap, today he has been all over the dogs. Its just been that kind of a week. So, I hope next week is a little more relaxed. Its also Ryan's first day of preschool.

Still homeless and hating PT

Technically our offered expired yesterday, but no one seems to care about that during this foreclosure craze. They like to get as many offers as they can, and they know that if it expires there are plenty of others who want the house. We, ofcourse, still want it, but it means it is time to start looking--again. One of my biggest obstacles right now is Ethan changing his mind about his "must haves." Once we realized the third car garage added about 30k to the price of a house he backed down, and we had been looking at 2 car houses. But then when the "favorite" house came on the market with a 3 car and long driveway (in our range), he was very excited. Now I'm not sure if he can let that go. He keeps saying there will be more, but I really just want to feel settled. We don't even know what happened with the house across the street where we were the #2 offer. Ethan didn't feel comfortable with making more than one offer at a time, until the time expired. Our realtor said it was fine, and that is what I wanted to do. Throw a bunch out there and see if any stuck. Since we seem to be waiting weeks to get any answers, that might be the only thing that works. California Real Estate contract...3 days...nah.

I still hate potty training. I now its MY problem and I need to deal with it. I know I don't have the patience and I need to get some. Can you buy patience anywhere? I just don't like how things can go so well, then BAM we regress. He even pooped on the potty yesterday-first time. I was so excited, he got a present and all was right with the world. Then he would not sit on the potty. He fought me, he cried. But, after many hrs he was still dry (in a pull up because we had errands). Then he pooped in a pull up, but told me right away to "get it out." Apparently sitting in poop is not as fun as it once was. 5 min after putting him in underwear he peed. Because I was making dinner and not in the mood anymore I put him in a pull up. Good idea since he pooped again!!! And today, I have dealt with poop in underwear and in a pull up, all within an hour. I am so close to throwing in the towel but I know he gets it. We just need more practice, which means, stay home, which is boring.

So, now we will head to the park in a pull up because they don't have a potty (but i imagine it would be nasty if they did).

Do I talk about anything besides houses and poop?

Not lately. Sad. But, that is our life right now, so that is what you get. We made another offer Sunday on our favorite house. We should hear by Wednesday evening. I have a feeling there will be some type of bidding war, and we are not willing to go much higher. We made our offer as attractive as possible and can't do much more than that. There is another house waiting in the wings with Ethan's dream bathroom of totally separate sinks and closets, but it does not have the 3 car garage. A big plus is that its 2 doors down from Ryan's preschool. That would be super convenient and the house is great inside, if you don't care about the garage :)

Ryan is still doing fantastic on the potty when it comes to pee. He even told me for the first time today he had to go. The poop is still an issue and I'm about ready to outlaw underwear until a poop happens because I am tired of cleaning it up. TIRED. We are still working on our "aim" when we pee, so there has been lots of cleaning the floor and washing of bath mats. For some reason, the aim is only an issue when I'm around, because it doesn't happen with daddy, grandma or auntie. Is my kid trying to purposely pee on me? Say it isn't so.

"Say it isn't so" just put that old Hall & Oats song in my head which will annoy me all day, except I think it replaced a song from the kid's show Hi-5 on TLC. Does anyone watch that? I hate it, but realized it does have some educational value, but the songs...oh my. The songs stay in my head forever, which I guess is the point. If you have nothing to watch in the morning, turn on TLC and watch. Ryan loves Paz the penguin, and he is on a few minutes before Hi-5.

I stole a Meme

I stole this Meme from Boo Mama. It was fun and I had nothing else to say. Except, that Ryan has peed in the potty lots of times and we are HAPPY. I did have to clean up poop in the underwear once and I am NOT happy about that. I'm hoping my freak out will have scared him for life and it won't happen again. Oh, and house wise, no decision has been made yet. Ethan was pretty brain dead last night when I showed him the other house I like, plus we toured our "favorite" again, and saw the house around the corner for a second time. He was in San Diego all day Thursday and was just out of it on Friday. So, hopefully we will make a decision by Sunday, then start waiting all over again.

What were you doing 10 years ago?
August, 1998...I was getting ready to start my second phase/semester of my teaching credential. I think I spent that summer working at a YMCA day camp. I was living on my own for the first time or just finishing up living on my own and moved in with a friend. Things are kinda hazy. Ethan and I were almost engaged (Dec 1998) and he was almost through with his BS degree.

Favorite Snacks
cheese stick
cheese its
chips
anything bad for you

To Do List

In general, I/we need to buy a house and deal w/ EVERYTHING that entails. There is also cleaning to be done and potty training to perfect (not for me) and laundry to put away--there is always laundry to put away and getting some exercise in is always a plus. Today, I hope to walk the dogs/take Ryan to the park, shower, and hang out with my boys.

Jobs I Have Had
Popcorn girl at the local pool, intern to a computer programmer, retail, after school program leader, YMCA, tutor, teacher, legal assistant
Places I Have Lived
California - Central (kind of Northern) and Southern
Bad Habits
poor eating choices, lazy cook, sometimes I nag, get frustrated easily
5 Random Things People May Not Know

1)I'm going to the New Kids on the Block concert in October
2) Ethan and I have known eachother since 6th grade because we had lockers by eachother
3) I am obsessed with veggie burritos
4) I am terrible at math and maps
5) I was in gymnastics for 8 yrs

CDs I would want if stranded on an island
Technically I would rather have books than CDs, but I would want Red Hot Chili Peppers Stadium Arcadium; Matchbox Twenty; Erasure; old Reba McEntire; David Grey and Megan Slankard

What I’d Do if I Were a Billionaire
1) Buy Ethan a new corvette, the fast one (i think its called a Z06) and I would even let him get that yucky color yellow w/ the black rims
2) Buy our "favorite" house and redecorate
3) Buy a condo near the beach/lake for vacations
4) Add to Ryan's college fund
5) Donate to charity, specifically cancer research and childhood diseases and animals
6) Let my mom retire
7) Buy more organic
8) Vacations!
9) Buy myself a "non mom" car
10) hire a trainer and go on weight watchers
11) books books books