He's Here!!!

Tai
born December 27, 2006 at 9:08pm (22 days early)
5lbs 10oz
19 inches long

Well, At Least We Got Pizza...

12.15.06 --
K: "What's that weird dark spot between the dog's shoulder blades?"
M: "I noticed that too -- she's losing a ton of hair there and the fur is really thinning out." (he demonstrates by gently tugging her fur and coming up with a big chunk in his hand.)
K: "Well, let's watch it and if it gets worse we'll call the vet."

12.17.06 --
K: "She's still shedding a ton and that spot is getting worse. I think it's stress."
M: "Stress?"
K: "Yeah, she can pick up on all the changes around here, with getting ready for the baby."
M: "You give her too much credit. She probably has a rash or something."

12.18.06 --
K: "It's not any better. Should I call the vet tomorrow?"
M: "Yes."

12.19.06 --
K (on phone with vet's receptionist): "Hi, this is weird, but I'm worried about my dog because she's shedding alot. She's got this one spot that's really thinning out. Can you ask the vet about that and see what I should do?"
Receptionist: "Oh, the doctor will want to see her. Why don't you bring her in on Thursday."

12.21.06 --
Vet: "Has she been scratching at it?"
K: "No."
Vet: "Is her appetite the same?"
K : "Yes."
Vet: "Anything else unusual?"
K "No."
Vet: "Well, it could be stress, due to the pregnancy. Dogs are very perceptive. But just to be safe, I'll test her skin to see if it's a fungal infection."

Vet receptionist: "That will be $75.00, please."

It seems to me that the vet and I could have had that conversation on the phone for free. But then he wouldn't get my $75.00 and I wouldn't have an excuse to pick up dinner from our favorite pizza place that is too far from home to justify without a vet visit.

You Learn Something New Every Day

So I've known Minh for, what, close to 20 years? And I've been living with him for the past 9 or so. Yet I'm still learning new things about him on occasion. Example:

Last week I was talking with a friend who was going to make a gingerbread house and I suggested Necco Wafers for the shingles. She said she indeed planned to use those, but she had to go find a place that still sold them because, after all, who on Earth actually eats Necco Wafers as candy? I whole-heartedly agreed that they are only good for gingerbread roofs.

I can remember eating Necco Wafers when I was quite young...maybe 5 or 6 years old. But that was before the invention of so many better candies. We just didn't have as many options back then--it was basically Mentos, Necco Wafers, or Mary Janes.

Anyway, Minh had no idea that I'd had this conversation. But the very next day we were in the supermarket and found ourselves strolling the candy aisle when he spotted the Necco Wafers (no doubt prominently displayed because it is gingerbread roofing season). He said something along the lines of "Hey, look Necco Wafers. I haven't had these in forever," and put them in the cart. He actually likes to eat Necco Wafers -- just as they are! I swear, he must be the only one.

So I've been living with a Necco Wafer eater all these years and had no idea. I wonder what other bizarre personality traits he has that I simply have not discovered yet...


PS -- I also know someone who eats Good n Plenty, and I think he's the only one keeping them in business. He used to eat them out of the candy machine at work and I just knew they'd been sitting in there for 10-15 years until he came along. Yuck.

Boys Nest Too

Now that the bulbs are all in the ground and I'm officially 35 weeks pregnant, Minh is starting to nest in new and different ways.

Last Saturday we went to Costco, as we do quite often. But then Sunday he woke up in a near panic and insisted that we go activate our 60-day free membership to BJ's because there was not enough frozen food in the house for easy meals after the baby arrives. I tried and tried to dissuade him....to explain that we did not need to go buy the frozen food that day. But it soon became clear that the only way for him to relax was to stock the freezer. So, I put down my book and my cup of decaf, pried myself out of my comfy glider-rocker, and we headed to BJ's for frozen lasagna, stuffed pork chops, and other assorted "easy meals." He also bought enough flounder filets to feed an army. Last night he made a vat of seafood stuffing, stuffed all those flounder filets, and froze them in packs of two. But I'm not complaining, at least we'll have plenty of yummy stuff to heat-and-eat this winter.

He's also taken to buying the baby stuff. We both have, actually. The other day Minh went to Target to buy some stocking stuffers, and just happened to come back with some adorable baby t-shirts, socks, and mittens as well. And I thought it was only women who couldn't pass by all that cute baby stuff in the stores ;)

When It Rains It Pours

The holiday party I attended last night was not a holiday party after all, but another (surprise)baby shower. Our neighbor Vinnie had asked that Minh and I show up early to help set up. But when we arrived, everything was all set and they had no tasks to delegate. I thought that was a tad weird.

So, Vinnie and Minh and I sat in the living room and Vinnie asked me about my shower, last weekend. Just as I finished the sentence, "Even though I don't really like being the center of attention at that kind of event, it went well," about 10 people walked into Vinnie's living room all at once, at least a few of whom had no business being at Vinnie and Priscilla's holiday party. After a brief moment of utter confusion, I concluded that this was not, indeed, a holiday party.

It was great to spend time with friend and neighbors. And once again we went home with lots of good baby loot. Many thanks to all who attended.

Two Sundays, two showers. I can't wait to see what next weekend has in store for me! ;)

Keep 'Em Comin'

Some conversation excerpts from my (surprise) baby shower yesterday.

"You're only big in the belly - why haven't your hips spread?"
"You are the most athletic-looking pregnant person I've ever seen."
"You look great!"
"You're weight gain is all baby!"

Then there's my father....who raps his knuckles on my belly and says "you're getting fat". But that's OK, I was able to do the same right back to him ;)

I don't really care if all the compliments are true or if it's just what you say to pregnant people to make them feel good. Either way, I like it so keep 'em coming.

The Big Three-Oh

I turn 30 on Saturday.

Unfortunately, this weekend is action-packed with non-birthday activities: childbirth class, lunch with childbirth class alumni, a baby's first birthday party, and a day trip to Boston/Norwood. So I think I may decide that tomorrow is my day and play hookie from work, sleep late, sit in my glider and read, and maybe do some Christmas shopping.

Life has been so hectic lately it's been hard to keep up. Between the visits to day care centers that don't have any open spots, attending two childbirth classes, and meeting with our doula, we seem to have an appointment to keep every day. Not to mention the recent Thanksgiving festivities and all the running around insuring and registering our new hand-me-down car. Oh, and work.

But after the baby arrives, life will be simple and calm again, right? ;)

He's a Man With a Vision...

So this is what we came home to yesterday.

And yes, this was done on purpose, with our knowledge. In fact, we PAID someone to do it.

I have no "before" pictures to share, but just imagine that all those logs on the ground used to be upright, and used to be called trees.

I have to admit that it gives me a yucky feeling to see all the murdered trees. Especially because it's almost winter and the yard already looks so bare with all the foliage gone. Now it just looks so naked to me.

In fact, the day Minh marked them all for death, with orange survey tape, I think I required a lengthy oral argument for why each one needed to be killed. I tried to save as many as I could, but the man had a plan. And when my man has a plan, he's hard to dissuade.

Minh assures me that he spent long nights plotting and planning and carefully deciding which trees should go and which should stay. He's got a master plan and promises me it's all going to be worth it in the end.

He's calming me down with promises of better views of the starry nights from the hot tub, fewer oak leaves littering the deck and yard, beautiful flowers bordering the lawn, abundant sun for our herb gardens and (probably sometime around May 2008) a kick-ass swing set for the nugget.

Knowing Minh and the fact that he does not generally jump into things without thinking them through, I'm sure he's right and in the end I'll be thanking him for his vision. But for now it just looks like a graveyard to me.

As Requested...

Here are a couple pictures of me and my fat belly. Also, for your enjoyment, some pregnancy stats.

Countdown Status: At 31.5 weeks pregnant, I have 8.5 weeks left until the estimated due date...so we're expecting this little guy to arrive sometime in the next 6 to 10 weeks.

Weight gain to date: 23 lbs

Recent cravings: fruit, chocolate, and ice cream


Unpleasant symptoms: heartburn, gas (most unpleasant for Minh), and back pain.


Really cool things: Not only can you feel the baby move, but you can now also see it. The other day he was perfectly still and Minh started singing to him and he woke up and started squirming around--my belly was all sorts of shapes.

At the last doctor's appointment, the doctor was pretty sure the little guy had already turned to face head down, ready for his big exit.

My Lovely Daughter

Buttons and I have returned to enjoying long morning walks around the lake at MHC, now that the clocks have been turned back and it's light out by 6:15am. And she's been extra...shall we say..."lively" this past week.

I'm not sure if it's that she's been getting less exercise and therefore has more pent-up energy. Or maybe it's the freakishly warm weather we've been having. In any case, something has gotten into her.

Her antics this week include:

1. Falling way behind me as we circle the lake and neglecting to obey me when I tell her to "come."
2. Eating poop.
3. Rolling in smelly "stuff" (generally unidentifiable substances, and I'm sure it's better that way).
4. Racing around at top speed like a maniac for a full 5 minutes when it's time to put her leash back on and head home.

But this morning she really out-did herself. Halfway around the lake she picked up this thing. It was dark in color and possibly furry. It was maybe 6-8 inches long and thin and dangled out of her mouth as she trotted along. I attempted the "drop it" and "leave it" commands, but she just laughed at me. Before long, she had slurped the entire thing into her mouth (and then just held it there, like a squirrel storing nuts).

I somehow managed to get her leash back on and get her home, all the while with her drooling from holding this thing in her cheek, like a wad of chewing tobacco. I tried a couple more times to get her to drop it, both with verbal commands and by poking a stick in her mouth and trying to dislodge the thing from her jaw. No luck.

When we arrived home, I locked her on the deck and went inside. I figured she'd either eat the damn thing or get bored of it and spit it out. As soon as I had my shoes off I heard her crunch it a couple times and drop it on the deck. Then she suddenly decided to start listening to me. I told her to "leave it" and come in the house and she did, very obediently.

Now I was left with the task of disposing of this thing. Care to know what it was? My daughter, with her impeccable taste, had been sucking on a squirrel head (and neck and a few stringy entrails). Clearly not a whole squirrel--just what some other animal left behind. How delightful.

Yet I love her anyway. I can't help it.

DONE!!

This past Friday we planted all the rest of our bulbs. That makes a grand total of 1,116. (OK, so it wasn't quite the 1,200 I had been saying it was, but it was pretty close).

I'm just so glad it's all done. I have to admit, though, that I got the easy end of the task. Minh dug all the holes (yay for being pregnant!) I just had to kneel down (on my foam pad) place the bulbs in the hole, fertilize them, cover them back up, and water them. It really wasn't too bad--certainly not as back-breaking as raking.

Our yard should really be something to see next March/April/May.

Circles and Stripes, Oh My!

As promised, here are some pictures of the baby's room now that it's all painted, the rug is in, and the furniture is set up.

Last Thursday night Minh was supposed to be preparing a presentation for work on Friday, so naturally he was eager to procrastinate by putting together a crib, glider, ottoman, and end table. We were up until about midnight, arranging and re-arranging furniture. We think we finally agreed on a pleasing configuration that does not make the very small (9' x 11') room feel even smaller.

Needless to say, the furniture had only been assembled for about 4 minutes before the cats claimed it as their own. They must think they are the luckiest cats in the world, to have parents who are setting up this room just for them. Nibbles just adores the oh-so-expensive glider and ottoman, and Smudge is a huge fan of long naps on the changing table.

I think the stripes on the walls and circles on the floor are fun, but maybe just a tiny bit over the top. But there's no way we're changing anything at this point, so the little dude will just have to get used to visual over-stimulation.

Overheard on My Doorstep Last Night....

"Play-Dough, Yeah!"

"Gummy Eyeballs? Cool!"

"That was awesome!"

"You guys really have the best treats!"

"Play-Dough, how inventive!"

"Gummy eyeballs? I love gummy eyeballs!"

"Your pumpkin is exceptional." (props to Minh for his pumpkin carving skills.)

Pregnancy Update

Yes, I'm still pregnant. And getting bigger every day. Total weight gain to date is about 17 lbs; I've finally outpaced Minh. I'm officially 27.5 weeks along (out of 40). The start of the third trimester is here -- how did that happen already?

I'm feeling fine (thanks for asking) but am finally starting to feel "pregnant". My physical energy is now trailing behind my mental ambition. Each weekend I bite off more projects than I can chew and each Monday morning I am tired, sore, and grumpy. Otherwise, I'm feeling very healthy. The only thing even remotely medically "interesting" about this pregnancy is that next week I have to go get a shot of something in my ass because I am Rh negative. Thanks, to the 'rents for passing that on to me.

The good news about all my frantic project tackling is that both the baby's room and study are now painted. (Yes, the frickin' stripes are done!) And the new rug is in too. I'll post a pic or two of the kid's room once we get the crib in there (should be sometime next week).

Speaking of furniture, my father delivered the cradle he and his friend made, by hand, for the little guy to sleep in for the first few months. It's quite a fine piece--much better made than the crib Minh and I bought him at Babies R Us. Surely the crib was made by 7-year-olds in Indonesia, not by 70-year-old men in Nahwood.



In related news, Minh and I have joined a cult. Well, not a cult exactly, but we're taking a Bradley Method natural childbirth class. We signed up because a very friendly co-worker of ours is teaching it. And we're genuinely interested in learning the natural childbirth techniques and I think we'd both agree that a natural birth is our first choice. However, I am not about to declare a distaste for all things medical, including epidurals. The only other couple in the class surely has. That woman is so anti-medicine she won't even keep aspirin in the house.

After only two sessions I think I can say that the class is really interesting and will give us lots of good techniques for "managing the pain" of labor. Whether we make it all the way through without modern drugs remains to be seen. Actually, the really best part of class is that I have to practice relaxing and Minh has to massage me. :)

For me, the biggest problem with the class is that it seems to set you up to have an adversarial relationship with your OB (that's right, I'm using an OB not a midwife -- oh, the horror!). There's alot of talk of what the doctors will try to get you to agree to in the heat of the moment and what you need to know to be able to effectively resist them. That doesn't sound very nice and I'm not sure how much of it to believe. On the positive side, I now know what types of questions to ask my OB ahead of time so I know where he stands on things like episiotomies and such. (You didn't think we'd get all the way through my pregnancy without the word episiotomy showing up at least once in this blog, did you?)

Long story short, we're moving right along getting ready for this baby. So, what's still left on the now-infamous baby To Do Spreadsheet? The major ones are:

(1) Figuring out the whole day care thing. We've visited four family-based places and one has real potential (and a spot open!). But we want to visit a couple centers first and then we have to decide if it's worth it to spend $500 between now and April just to hold the spot at the family place.
(2) Picking a pediatrician. Any advice is welcome. I know several folks use and enjoy NAPs.
(3) Plant the rest of those damn bulbs, of course! (according to Minh we are at 55% completion)

300 Down, 900 To Go...

Minh has purchased 1,200 (yes, that's twelve-hundred) bulbs to be put in the ground this fall. The rationale behind the plan is sound -- next spring we'll be too busy with little what's-his-name Ly to be planting in the garden. So getting bulbs in the ground now will ensure a beautiful yet maintenance-free garden when the snow melts. However, he may have gotten just a tad carried away. Sometimes I catch him awake in the middle of the night reading books about flowers or ordering more bulbs on the internet. Is there a support group for this kind of thing?

The good news is, some of my obsessive list-and-spreadsheet-making-personality has rubbed off on him. He has a hand-drawn map of the yard and a spreadsheet of all the bulbs he has. The spreadsheet lists the quantity, color, height, and bloom time of each type of bulb. And, of course, where in the yard they should be planted.

And he's so darned romantic. He realizes that 1,200 bulbs is alot of planting and that I am, indeed, quite pregnant. So he went out and bought me a 1.5" foam pad to kneel on while I plant. Isn't that just the sweetest thing ever?

This past weekend, in and around childbirth class, a trip to Costco, and a parental visit, we managed to get 300 in the ground. So only 900 more to go. It's actually not quite as daunting as it sounds. We don't have to drill 1,200 separate holes in the ground. Generally, we dig a shallow grave and throw several bulbs in together. That way they come up in clumps, which looks more natural anyway.

So this spring, I should be able to take the little dude out in the yard to see our crocuses, daffodils, tulips, hyacinth, anemonies, and about 5 other things I can't remember the names of. It should be quite a site to see.

We're Either Really Cool or Total Losers

It's October and that means it's time to buy Halloween Candy. So Minh and I recently hit Costco with the intention of buying a huge bag of assorted chocolate bars, like we always do. (We also always way over-buy so that we get to eat at least half ourselves).

But this year, as we were browsing the various assortments and trying to decide which to buy, we spotted something totally different--tiny little containers of Play-Dough to be handed out for Halloween. Having been a huge fan of Play-Dough myself, I thought this was really fun. But it never occurred to me that we would actually buy that instead of chocolate. Until Minh said "If we buy all that candy, we'll only eat it." How true. This sudden and unprecedented concern of his for our candy consumption is undoubtedly rooted in the fact that Minh is keeping pace with my pregnancy weight-gain.

So, we bought the Play-Dough. And no chocolate at all. There are 80 containers of dough, in assorted colors. And since we only get about 30 kids each year, they can each take a few.

But we couldn't send the neighborhood kids away from our front door with nothing edible, so we also bought a small bag of gummy eyeballs. Yes, gummy eyeballs. They are the size of large jaw breakers and each is contained in a clear plastic sphere. They are, of course, all blood shot and Halloweeny. I think the point is really that they just look cool. Minh tried to eat one and ended up spitting it out in the garbage--he said all he could taste was plastic. Yum. That's one way to lose weight - buy shitty Halloween candy!

So, this is our little experiment. We'll either be the coolest house in the neighborhood for giving out something different....or we'll go down in history as the house that once handed out "stupid Play Dough and gummy candy that tasted like plastic". We'll see how it goes.

Those Frickin' Yellow Stripes

OK, lots of you have heard that I somehow got the crazy idea to paint the baby's room in vertical stripes, 12 inches wide, in two shades of yellow. I must be watching too many interior decorating shows and Home Depot commercials, to think that this would be "fun and easy." Anyway, my intention with the yellow stripes was to make the room:

lighter and brighter
fun
gender neutral
kid-friendly, but not baby-ish

Minh (foolishly) agreed to go along with my plan. So, about a week and a half ago I gave the room a coat of primer and two coats of the lighter yellow. Minh spent a few minutes standing in the doorway shaking his head and asking "Are you sure that's the lighter yellow?....That's awfully yellow." And it is, really, quite yellow.

This past Sunday night we spent a good two hours measuring out and taping off the stripes. There was math involved and the math got even more complicated when we realized (after we had already taped off one whole wall) that I had measured the room inaccurately. So, Minh did some fudging--some of the stripes are actually 12.5" wide, and one or two are 11.75" wide. Here's how the room looked all taped off:


Kind of retro and 70's looking with the brown and yellow, eh? It's actually a brighter yellow than it looks here - the flash washed it out a bit.

Anyway, last night was the big night. We painted on the brighter shade of yellow, with zero technical difficulties. No problems with painting the wrong stripes or with pulling the tape neatly off afterward. All went well. EXCEPT for the fact that the two shades of yellow are so similar you can barely see the stripes.

It really depends on the light, actually. Without the bright worklight on, it all looks like one shade of yellow. And with the usual halogen lamp on, it's pretty much a blur of yellow too. Oddly enough, when I take pictures of the walls the camera's flash lights it up just perfectly and it comes out looking like this:

But it does not actually look like this to the naked eye. This is unfortunate, because this is exactly what I want it to look like. So now we are trying to decide what action to take. The brighter stripes actually look great, so we are thinking about re-painting the lighter stripes even lighter. A very pale yellow? Or perhaps a shade of cream?

Anyone have any thoughts? If you want to make suggestions, you should know that the rug we've ordered for the room is a light slivery blue with circles all over it. The circles are darker blue, pale green, and cream. So we need something that will compliment those colors. And don't even try to talk me out of the combination of stripes on the walls and circles on the floor -- the rug has already been ordered. (And yes, I'm a tad worried all this mixing of patterns may cause seizures later in life).

Family Reunion, of Sorts

This past weekend I had the unfortunate task of going to my grandmother's wake and funeral. But, that meant I got to see lots of family I hadn't seen in a while. Like my sister, the infamous Taylor Hicks stalker. And my other sister, who is the "do my gold metallic shoes match my handbag?" type. I also got to see my nephew, the self-proclaimed Beer Pong champion, who had to celebrate his 24th birthday the day of the wake. Others I hadn't seen since I was little also showed up--I met my mothers cousins who, apparently, I had already "met" when I was two.

As with all family gatherings, there was a bit of drama. But that's what makes it family--endless discussions over who should (and shouldn't) get to ride in the limo...tension over who will and won't attend the services...and my father (the loudest man on earth) telling my sister she was talking too loudly at the wake. All that good stuff.

We were loud and boisterous at the wake, laughing and sharing stories about my often-racy, always-trouble-making grandmother. Until the Mormons showed up. Although she was a bit "spicy," my grandmother somehow also managed to be Mormon. Unfortunately, all of our best stories about her were therefore inappropriate for the Mormon funeral service. The man from her church did a great job making the service personal, but it was painfully clear to most of us that he didn't know her that well when he announced that she never gossiped about anyone. I mean, c'mon, who would gossip in front of a Mormon Bishop?

Overall, it was a pretty typical family gathering, which would have pleased my grandmother. I do hope, however, that the next family reunion is under different circumstances.

Androgynous Cats and Slutty Cats

Even though Minh always tells me that no one wants to hear stories about other people's pets.......

I think many of you already know the story of Nibbles and how we drove across state lines on a Sunday afternoon to pay lots and lots of money to get his penis removed (to save his life, not just so we'd have an excellent story to tell). If you don't know that story yet, buy me a cup of coffee (decaf) sometime and I'll tell you all about it.

Anyway, some of you may also know that Nibbles was born with a heart murmur. Over the years our vet (whom we love and highly recommend) has suggested that we spring for a cardiac ultrasound to further investigate the nature and intensity of said murmur. Apparently, some of them can be helped with drugs, while others cannot. We've always put off spending the $250.00 since he seemed quite healthy.

Well, last week at his regular appointment his heart actually skipped a beat while the doctor was listening to it. In addition, his heart rate was unusually low (98 bpm instead of the usual 125 bpm) . This actually seemed to baffle our vet, which is never a good sign. So she suggested the ultrasound again. And, having already invested mucho bucks into keeping Nibs alive, we figured another couple hundred is no big deal. So, today, Nibbles is getting his very first ultrasound. Pessimist that I am, I'm expecting to hear that it's the kind of murmur that can't be helped and will just get worse until he dies. "That will be $250.00, please." But maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised.

In other cat news, our neighbors are long-term cat sitting for a lovely tiger cat who can't seem to keep her legs together. She came to them several months ago, with a new litter of kittens. But practically as soon as they found homes for all of those little furry friends, she came home knocked up again. According to my neighbor, she's been "whoring around the neighborhood." She gave birth last week. I understand they are mostly black, but one or two are tigers. They'll be needing homes in about 8-9 weeks. If anyone is interested, let me know. (Kevin, don't you owe Drey a Christmas kitten from about 5 years ago?....Mom, doesn't KK want a new friend?)

I Guess We've All Got Our Obsessions...

My sister, who is...shall we say...a tad older than me, has recently developed an obsession with Taylor Hicks. Apparently, after watching American Idol, she fell in love with him and his music and has even been posting on some TH fanclub messageboard and "meeting" new friends that way. She assured me that these new friends were older women, but I suspected they might be fat, smelly, hairy men cruising the internet for chicks.

So, this past weekend, she met (in person) several of these fellow TH-addicts at an American Idol concert. Apparently, my sister was the youngest one of the bunch (none of whom turned to to be big sweaty men...how boring) and they all had a rocking good time stalking TH and the other Idols.

Prior to the concert, they hunted down the tour bus and waited patiently for the Idols to emerge. Can't you just picture it? There they were, a group of "mature" women, probably knocking the 15-year-olds aside so they could get closer to the Idols. My sister got a CD autographed and had her picture taken with TH.

They left the actual concert early to get a good spot at the after-show, where TH performed with his old pre-American-Idol band. According to my sister, this is really where TH's personality and musical talent really come through. I guess the American Idol stuff just pays the bills. After standing mere feet away from TH as he performed at the after-show concert, and eating greasy diner food for "breakfast," they strolled back into their hotel around 3:30am. I honestly cannot remember the last time I was awake past 1am, and (did I mention?) I'm a good deal younger than said sister ;)

Of course, my sister is not the only one to ever have a celebrity obsession. I know a certain someone who is a tad star-struck by a local author and who recently asked the staff at a local coffee shop if they ever see him in there. Can you say "stalker?"

And then there's this friend of mine who's still holding a torch for Kelly Kapowski, and she's fictional! (You know who you are).

If I have a celebrity obsession, I can't think of who it is at the moment. I can say that I'm not a member of any fan clubs or message boards. But back in my younger days, I did have that entire scrap book devoted to Michael J Fox.....

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

This morning on the way to work, it happened. It happens every year, but I still can't get over how exciting it is, every time.

I saw the first pumpkins of the season sitting out on a farm stand. And it makes me truly happy. Autumn is almost here! :)

Nesting

Those of you who know my husband undoubtedly know of his addiction to taking advantage of a good deal when one comes along. Hence the monthly trips to the Holy Land, the clipping of coupons, and the spur-of-the-moment dash to Home Depot because they are offering 10% off and we “must need something.” So, of course, we took full advantage of the recent tax free weekend. Long story short, yesterday we took delivery of four new kitchen appliances – refrigerator, dishwasher, stove, and an over-the-stove microwave-hood.

The nice men from Sears hauled away our old stove and dishwasher, and even moved our old fridge into the basement for us. We made sure that I was the one who asked them to do that, and I wore a tight shirt to accentuate my pregnant belly so they’d take pity on me and move the big heavy fridge for us. :)

Now the old fridge is down in the basement, currently housing soda and the top of our wedding cake (which we are actually supposed to eat soon? yuck). Before long I’m sure that fridge will also hold some beer. And, since we plan to move an extra TV and the Play station (and DDR pads) down to the basement, there is a possibility that I may never see Minh on the main floor of the house again.

Moving the old fridge also provided the rare opportunity to sweep up the scattered cat food pellets that gather under there. And to rescue three of Smudge’s cat toys. Smudge enjoys fetching these “sticks” as we call them. They are just two pipe cleaners twisted together and folded in half. Boy, does he love them. And now that he has a variety of them scattered throughout the house, he’s in kitty heaven.

This morning, as Minh was working at the computer in the study, Smudge came and dropped one at Minh’s feet and then proceeded to wind himself in and around Minh’s legs (which, we’ve learned, mean’s “throw the stick for me!”). But Minh was far too absorbed in his work to throw the stick. So Smudge left the room and came back a minute later with a second stick, dropped it at Minh’s feet, and begged for it to be thrown. Minh again ignored the request. Minutes later Minh found himself with three sticks at his feet and a kitty begging for someone to play with him. How cute is that?

The new refrigerator is by far the most exciting appliance, thus far anyway. It has the drawer-style freezer on the bottom and the eye-level fridge. Packing all our food, drinks, and condiments into the new fridge was just as fun as loading all your crap into a new purse (and all along I thought there was nothing better than that!)

Think Before You Speak

Overheard last night at my favorite take-out spot:

Frat-boy to Cashier: "Is there a lot of beef in the beef chili?"

End of an Era

Well, we just discovered that the Taco Bell in the Hampshire Mall is gone. Since we rarely go to that mall, we have no idea when this occured (could have been many months ago, I suppose).

But that was our date spot -- for dinner and a movie. True, we only did that about once a year, but it was nice to know that we could go have some scary-cheap Tex-Mex before catching a flick. Apparently, we were the only ones eating there, and our annual patronage was not enough to keep them in business. Or was it that we stole so many packets of Fire Sauce that we bankrupt the whole operation? I'm not sure which it was, but surely it is our fault that they closed.

Now I guess we'll have to run to down to Chicopee when we crave those salty, greasy nachos smothered in orange cheeselike-sauce and topped with sour-cream-product. Sad.

Welcome to Blarney Two

Here we are, a new blog with (hopefully) no ads embedded in my text. It may take me a little while to learn all the features on this new site, but soon enough I will be once again showering my readers with dog-walking stories, pregnancy tid-bits, and pictures from future camping trips. I just know you can't wait.

For now, I'll leave you with this.....I have become hooked on Project Runway and can't wait for tonight's episode. Who's with me?