Claire is going through a phase that already seems to be waning. When talking to us, she addresses us as “My Mommy” or “My Daddy”. Examples: “I want something to eat, My Mommy”; “Pick me up, My Daddy”. It’s really cute and one of those things I don’t want to forget and already miss.

On another note, she is convinced that the new baby is a boy. She has said it is a Baby Dennis and that it’s a black baby. I don’t know what it is she thinks I’ve been up to!

She has also been telling me that she's been sent to "Time Out" when I pick her up from school. She includes a description of her transgression...I was running, or I jumped off something or other. It didn't seem quite right, so I asked her teachers about it and she hasn't been in trouble at all. They can't remember her ever being in "Alone Time" (their word for time out). I guess she just wants to do what the cool kids are doing?? I wonder what her motivation is for ratting herself out, when she hasn't even done anything.

Funny girl.

Update

My dad is doing all right. Sarah said he is acting like himself again and feeling better. I have officially (although as yet unannounced) decided that "adventure" vacations are out, and relaxing vacations are in.

Speaking of vacations, the owner of the nicer place at the beach offered us a slight discount so as it turns out, we won't be staying in the roach motel after all. Phew.

Since voicing my complaints seems to have worked out, I will do it again. Our AC has gone on the fritz and I fear the hundreds it may take to fix, or worse, the thousands it may take to replace. Fortunately, it is a rather mild Texas summer evening, and having the windows open is actually helping, not hurting, the situation. I hope tomorrow isn't a scorcher!

Just saw a nice movie called "Waitress". It made me laugh and cry and long to come home and cuddle my sweet girl. It also made me want to eat pie, but the gross popcorn made me ill enough to not want to seek out pie at 10pm. It wouldn't have been as good as I wanted it to be anyway.

I need to find my camera because I have pictures of Claire to post and I know anyone I share this with will be most interested in those, rather than whatever mundane thoughts I choose to document. It's all about the archive, baby. Claire will want to read this one day, right??

Poor me.

I can’t have wine, so I am going to whine instead. Here are the things troubling me today:

1) My dad just spent 5 hours in an Italian hospital. He was dehydrated and is doing fine now. All I want to do is give him a hug, which I can’t do because he is too far away. Even if he were home, I couldn’t give him a hig because Florida is also too far away.

Every other whine seems insignificant compared to the first one, but I shall persevere:

2) When I was pregnant with Claire I got lots of pampering…foot rubs, concern, things done for me etc. This time around, I am getting jack.

3) My head hurts. It’s been hurting since about when I found out I was pregnant, but it hurts the most right now.

4) I can’t fit into my regular clothes and I am not quite big enough for maternity clothes, especially the shirts. Which, brings me to another point…why do all maternity shirts seem to have little cap sleeves? They only serve to highlight the fattest part of the arm on a regular day; why would I want to put my upper ham hocks on display while pregnant? I bought a man’s shirt because men, apparently, are still allowed to have actual sleeves.

5) All the maternity clothes were much cuter when I was not pregnant. Now that I am, they are all disgusting.

6) After hours and hours of trying to plan a vacation on the beach, the plans, days, number of people (and dogs) kept changing and now our only option is a cheapo place “across the street” (we’ll see what that actually means!) from the beach because the nice place that we could afford and that was big enough and that was on the beach and that allows dogs is booked. If anyone complains when we get there (besides me, I am allowed) I am going to go check myself in to the Hyatt. A simple “thank you” from anyone for the effort I have put into this vacation would be nice at this point.

7) Work is hard. Wah.


OK, so things could be so much worse…perspective and all that…I get it. Generally speaking, I am very lucky.

What I have been reduced to...

(An email sent to my management team at work)

Claire has pink-eye


I took her to school anyway this morning after I cleaned her eyes up. (I know that’s bad, but had little choice.) The jig may be up when she wakes up from nap and says, “My eyes broken” like she did this morning because they were all gummed up and she couldn’t open them.

I am going to go to lunch early because I have some things I have to do and so I can be back for the potential call from daycare. They wake up from nap around 1:30-2ish.

If she has to be out tomorrow, I will split the day with Shane so Jori is only on her own for half the day. Ugh…everything happens at once. Maybe we will skate by and only infect other little kids without actually getting busted.

Dinosaurs!

Claire woke up this morning (5am) crying and wanted to come to our room because “There’s a dinosaur in my bed!”
What could I say? She curled up with us for a couple of hours, safe and sound from bed-dwelling dinosaurs.
Shane told her that we’d get Orkin in to take care of the problem.