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May 31, 2006

One for the Baby Book
Not that I've been good at keeping one. But if I were, it would say something like this:

May 31st, 2006
Daniel's very first real diaper dive. Rather disturbingly, the face he made after tasting his hand was not even a tiny fraction as aggrieved as the one he made after trying my wasabi soybeans.
05/31/06 01:45 PM |  Comments


May 25, 2006

Where is the Time Going?
I just checked my Photoshop I grade -- an A! And I was sure I was getting a B, after that final exam. I'm stoked to take Photoshop II in the fall. This summer I'll be taking a short Acrobat course (eh); at least I'll have that out of the way.

I took photos (albeit not great ones) of a little easy "art" project I did last month. Just two el cheapo art canvases joined with a couple of steel mending plates from the hardware store, enough heavyweight fabric to wrap carefully around the frames and attach with a staple gun, and voila! Lightweight art that we can hang over the bed without fear of being crushed by it in case of earthquake. A surprising sense of accomplishment for such an easy bit to put together. And the whole thing cost about ten dollars. In retrospect, I wish I'd used four canvases; I had enough fabric, and it doesn't fill that gargantuan space as well as I'd envisioned.

The bub is showing a sudden intense interest in climbing/perching precariously upon things. Furniture, toys, boxes, baskets. I can't even tell you how many near heart attacks I've had just today.

Tim, I totally ordered it. Photos of my, uh, rack forthcoming.
05/25/06 07:49 PM |  Comments


May 18, 2006

I...
I SAID: I would live near a coast.

I WANT: To find home.

I WISH: I could learn to be twice as assertive.

I HATE: Being out of the loop.

I MISS: Christmas in Michigan.

I FEAR: Watching my child become very ill.

I HEAR: Small planes landing half a mile away.

I WONDER: How I lived through the Eighties without Internet. Seriously.

I REGRET: Forcing myself into college before I was ready.

I AM NOT: High maintenance.

I DANCE: Only in jest.

I SING: In my car, loudly.

I CRY: Very easily.

I AM NOT ALWAYS: Decisive.

I MADE: The toughest decision ever.

I WRITE: Because the medium is there.

I CONFUSE: Everyone who meets me here first.

I NEED: A better bra.

I SHOULD: Eat more spinach.

I START: Lots of projects in my head.

I FINISH: Only half of what I start.

I TAG: Fellow bloggers in need of content.
05/18/06 01:19 PM |  Comments


May 16, 2006

Chatterbub
It seems that he goes through phases with words. Not that he doesn't still know them, I suppose -- he just doesn't care to say them. The newest fun is hearing him put little phrases together. Recent favorites that come to mind:

  • ebow (elbow)
  • noh (nose)
  • no no no no!
  • mo (more)
  • dahnk oo (thank you)
  • wassit? (what's that?)
  • way det go? (where'd it go?)
  • way de bah? (where's the ball?)
  • broom-broom (car)
  • oh noo! oh noo!


    • That last is especially endearing, because he looks so sincere when he says it. Often it's because I play like I'm upset when he runs away from mommy smothering smooches.

    He's always, always "singing" little tunes now, it's adorable. Eating, playing, out in the stroller. ABC's, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and Elmo's World are his favorites. My mom tells me I was the same way. Sometimes the rhythm really gets him, and he dances and claps and we have our own little American Bubstand.

    Unfortunately, a hidden camera is the only way any of this will be recorded.
    05/16/06 02:12 PM |  Comments


    May 15, 2006

    We're Number Three!
    The Santa Rosa-Petaluma area has been ranked the third least-affordable region nationwide, based on percentage of income used for mortgage payments. Hoorah.
    05/15/06 09:07 AM |  Comments


    May 08, 2006

    Board Games
    It wasn't intentional, taking on a parenting board of that magnitude, loaded with the weight of years of history (and drama! Oh, the drama). But when a place becomes such a part of your home-bound social life (even if you don't quite understand exactly how that happened), you do what needs to be done to preserve it.

    Or, what you think needs to be done. Because your decisions will, inevitably, piss people off. And they will stop coming around, or leave. You value your online relationships, but eventually come to the hard-won realization that you shouldn't always expect what you do of the flesh-and-blood variety. You may or may not get over that.

    Some of them just might post thinly-veiled insults against your so-called Best Practices, and open up a whole new place, the apparent intent to balance out that one small rule (which, really, seemed so insignificant to your group at the time, and was levelled with only the best of intentions). Be prepared, for they may act wounded when you and yours notice and watch from the sidelines.

    Then, you begin to wonder if people talk about you behind your back. You know full well that this may just be a product of your own natural apprehensions regarding the true motives of people in general, but, whatever -- you obsess over whether you've given them reason to. Certainly, you've made statements over the years which you wish you could retract, but you're only human. And (you'd like to think) a halfway decent one. Usually.

    But, then, so was she.

    You see that smarter, funnier blogger bashing parenting boards in general. They are, after all, full of nothing but idiocy! and sparkle graphics! You want to add your comment to the hundred that are already there, to say "Hey! Look, over here! See! We're not all complete blathering morons!" But, in the name of not being completely pathetic, you control yourself.

    And you realize -- to your very core! -- that it's all so juvenile, and barely worthy of even this much consideration. In the long run, most people, people that you enjoy, seem genuinely happy with the way things are... and isn't that really the best you can hope for?

    Yes, it would seem that it is.

    But at least it offered up enough impetus for a new entry.
    05/08/06 01:16 PM |  Comments


    May 03, 2006

    Catharsis by Clothesline
    I've been cranky and in pain (sinuses) for a few days, so waking up this morning to a fresh, cool breeze, unclouded by any negativity on my part, was a pleasant change.

    It's also nice not to smell cat pee every time I near a certain corner of the great room. Vodkawater, you are my new chemical hero.

    Obviously the jury is still out on the Xlear nasal wash.

    I finally strung up that clothesline I've been wanting so long. A couple of days ago I hung up a nightgown in the patio doorway, and the resulting smell was so irresistably fresh and home-like, I had to have more. The sun is peeking out in patches this afternoon, making our whites whiter.
    05/03/06 02:00 PM |  Comments