Things have been really busy, with my 28-hour weeks at my internship, starting a new class, and just trying to keep up with life. But I wanted to update my loyal readers (anyone?) on what's up at our house.
Amelia cut another tooth days after the first one. And I just found another new one tonight. This leads her to believe she can eat anything Ella can. Admittedly, she does. Ella "shares" or Amelia steals it and she has managed to eat pretty much everything so far - crackers, chips, cookies, cereal, fruit, french toast, pbj sandwich. I think fish sticks and chicken nuggets are the only thing she didn't actually swallow. She has more hair now too and it's definitely red. :)
Ella needed a haircut and since our regular stylist moved, I cut it. The ends were getting snarled and she hated it when we'd try to comb them out. So I started cutting. Since she's two and squirmy, I gave her cookies. She stayed relatively still but I had a hard time cutting it straight and evenly. So it's now about chin-length. It's cute but I was so upset that day that I had "ruined her cuteness." It actually resembles my new haircut, which was not intentional.
We found out we have two nieces on the way! Becky found out a couple weeks ago and Tracy found out yesterday. No word on names yet. Becky hasn't decided and Tracy wants to keep it a surprise.
I am down to about 160 hours left of my internship. I'm hoping to be done at the beginning of April so then I can focus on finishing class and my paperwork and then plan Amelia's first birthday party. And then my graduation party. And then I can finally rest. :)
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Old friends and new teeth
After my previous lament about lack of friends, I have made a conscious effort to reconnect a bit more with old friends. I went to a bridal shower for one friend that I haven't seen since my wedding day. We have the kind of relationship where we understand life is busy and it's okay if we don't talk or see each other for a while. Every time we do see each other again, it's like no time has passed and we're still as close as ever. It was wonderful to see her again and I'm so happy for her as she prepares for her upcoming wedding.
I called another friend on my way to the shower after hearing a song on an old CD that made me think of her. She told me some wonderful news and it was so nice to catch up with her again.
I reconnected with a few other friends on Facebook, ones I haven't seen in probably seven years. These were just simple messages sent back and forth, reminding me of a different time and a different version of me.
I spoke to one of my best friends on the phone recently. She's one of the few that doesn't have kids yet that I don't hesitate to invite over. She loves all kids and I get the feeling she views my girls as "bonus" nieces. I know she enjoys seeing them and doesn't mind the interruptions while we sit and chat.
I called yet another friend today. Her life circumstances are simple to mine; age 25, married less than 5 years, and 2 children ages 3 and under. So she understands a lot of what my life is like with the added benefit that we've known each other since at least middle school and have been close friends since college. It was refreshing to talk to her in a way I can't quite explain. And although she lives far away, she visits when she's in town and she's only a phone call away.
I have also talked to my mom and both of my sisters on the phone quite a bit this week. All of these conversations have served as a wonderful reminder that there are different types of friends. Some understand our circumstances, some just understand us, some are a connection to the past and who we used to be. But I know I have a lot of wonderful friends (and family) who care about me no matter what. And that gives me a lot to be thankful for.
As for what's going on at our house, Amelia has a tooth! I discovered it last night when I felt her gums for teeth (I do that every so often). It explains why she's been fussy and congested lately and not sleeping well. As a result, we continued with the humidifier in their bedroom and gave her some teething tablets before bed and we all had the best night of sleep we've had in weeks.
Ella continues to talk more and more. Today she pointed out to me "Amia is SLEEPING." At a different point in the morning she picked up Amelia's bottle, said "Bottle," and then attempted to hand it to Amelia, saying "Here you go." The hand off didn't work and as the bottle fell, Ella said "Never mind." She also calls us each "cute," "silly," or "pretty" depending on what we're doing. To make her laugh (or at least stop crying) we've started putting the clean diaper on our head while taking off the wet diaper. This usually makes Ella stop and call us either silly or pretty. The other night Steve did this while getting her ready for bed. From the living room, I heard Ella stop crying and say "Daddy, you're PRETTY." That kid cracks me up. :)
I called another friend on my way to the shower after hearing a song on an old CD that made me think of her. She told me some wonderful news and it was so nice to catch up with her again.
I reconnected with a few other friends on Facebook, ones I haven't seen in probably seven years. These were just simple messages sent back and forth, reminding me of a different time and a different version of me.
I spoke to one of my best friends on the phone recently. She's one of the few that doesn't have kids yet that I don't hesitate to invite over. She loves all kids and I get the feeling she views my girls as "bonus" nieces. I know she enjoys seeing them and doesn't mind the interruptions while we sit and chat.
I called yet another friend today. Her life circumstances are simple to mine; age 25, married less than 5 years, and 2 children ages 3 and under. So she understands a lot of what my life is like with the added benefit that we've known each other since at least middle school and have been close friends since college. It was refreshing to talk to her in a way I can't quite explain. And although she lives far away, she visits when she's in town and she's only a phone call away.
I have also talked to my mom and both of my sisters on the phone quite a bit this week. All of these conversations have served as a wonderful reminder that there are different types of friends. Some understand our circumstances, some just understand us, some are a connection to the past and who we used to be. But I know I have a lot of wonderful friends (and family) who care about me no matter what. And that gives me a lot to be thankful for.
As for what's going on at our house, Amelia has a tooth! I discovered it last night when I felt her gums for teeth (I do that every so often). It explains why she's been fussy and congested lately and not sleeping well. As a result, we continued with the humidifier in their bedroom and gave her some teething tablets before bed and we all had the best night of sleep we've had in weeks.
Ella continues to talk more and more. Today she pointed out to me "Amia is SLEEPING." At a different point in the morning she picked up Amelia's bottle, said "Bottle," and then attempted to hand it to Amelia, saying "Here you go." The hand off didn't work and as the bottle fell, Ella said "Never mind." She also calls us each "cute," "silly," or "pretty" depending on what we're doing. To make her laugh (or at least stop crying) we've started putting the clean diaper on our head while taking off the wet diaper. This usually makes Ella stop and call us either silly or pretty. The other night Steve did this while getting her ready for bed. From the living room, I heard Ella stop crying and say "Daddy, you're PRETTY." That kid cracks me up. :)
Sunday, February 8, 2009
The evolution of a friend
Tonight was our first night meeting with our new small group. Steve and I both had high hopes for tonight, largely in part because the other couples are parents. We barely had other couple friends when we became parents at 23. Even though Ella is now two, we have very few couple friends and even fewer friends that are parents. This is an emptiness that we both feel. With every additional life change our group of friends seems to shrink. For me, it shrank when I graduated from college. We all seemed to go in separate directions, both literally and figuratively. Then Steve and I got married and we tried to hang out with other couples. Outside of our siblings, I can think of two other couples we spent time with. Then I got pregnant.
I want to say right now that I love my girls and in no way regret having them. I also don't regret when we had them because they have made life fuller and richer than I could have imagined. I can't imagine what life would be like right now without them. But in making life richer, they also make it more complicated. It's hard to spend quality time with friends. If we go somewhere, it either needs to be when Steve is home or I have to bring them or find a babysitter. It's somewhat easier if the friend comes here, but then there are the constant interruptions of questions or kissing a bump or placing something out of reach. If that particular friend doesn't have kids or doesn't like kids, they don't always understand that this is my life now. Since I myself am not a big fan of other kids, I don't always invite friends over for this reason. Of course, even this is not typically a problem since every day life gets in the way of reconnecting with friends so easily. It's difficult enough to talk on the phone with a friend, let alone see her in person. Most of my friends are married now, but very few have kids. The few that do live far away. Steve's friends are single and hard to get on the phone, let alone see. So while having kids has been a joyous, life-altering event, it's also been an isolating one.
So we had very high hopes for tonight. These couples are parents too and all live nearby. Tonight we watched a movie on the lower level of the house while the kids played on the upper level. Despite everyone else being parents, we stayed so busy watching our girls we barely talked to the other adults before we started the movie. Then the movie started. Amelia was sitting with us and was hungry and a bit fussy. She didn't want to sit still, but didn't want to be on the floor either. Ella was in and out of the room. She spent a lot of her time in the dining room. She kept stealing the pizza crusts off plates the older kids had left on the table. Then she was playing with some cups and spilled water, which I cleaned up after I found some napkins in the closet. A little while later (after I checked and there were only empty cups on the table), another kid (whose parents did not check on him) left a full cup of Pepsi on the table and Ella promptly dumped it all over herself and the floor. Steve cleaned that up. We didn't have any clean clothes for Ella so we decided it was time to go. The movie wasn't over yet and so I'm not sure anyone else really noticed we left. So we barely spoke to any of the other parents and repeatedly cleaned up their house. Not the way we had hoped the evening would go. We'll try it again. If the kids are in the lower level without drinks, it should go much better.
We got home and it was just this sweet family time. We played on the floor with the girls with some music playing and we had a great time. But I couldn't help feeling it was bittersweet too. Like somehow this is how it will always be. There will be my friends, Steve's friends, and the girls' friends, but not family friends. Not a family that have kids the same ages that we all get along with. And not another mom who really understands where I am in my life. I love this time with my family, but that thought made me feel a bit sad. And lonely.
I want to say right now that I love my girls and in no way regret having them. I also don't regret when we had them because they have made life fuller and richer than I could have imagined. I can't imagine what life would be like right now without them. But in making life richer, they also make it more complicated. It's hard to spend quality time with friends. If we go somewhere, it either needs to be when Steve is home or I have to bring them or find a babysitter. It's somewhat easier if the friend comes here, but then there are the constant interruptions of questions or kissing a bump or placing something out of reach. If that particular friend doesn't have kids or doesn't like kids, they don't always understand that this is my life now. Since I myself am not a big fan of other kids, I don't always invite friends over for this reason. Of course, even this is not typically a problem since every day life gets in the way of reconnecting with friends so easily. It's difficult enough to talk on the phone with a friend, let alone see her in person. Most of my friends are married now, but very few have kids. The few that do live far away. Steve's friends are single and hard to get on the phone, let alone see. So while having kids has been a joyous, life-altering event, it's also been an isolating one.
So we had very high hopes for tonight. These couples are parents too and all live nearby. Tonight we watched a movie on the lower level of the house while the kids played on the upper level. Despite everyone else being parents, we stayed so busy watching our girls we barely talked to the other adults before we started the movie. Then the movie started. Amelia was sitting with us and was hungry and a bit fussy. She didn't want to sit still, but didn't want to be on the floor either. Ella was in and out of the room. She spent a lot of her time in the dining room. She kept stealing the pizza crusts off plates the older kids had left on the table. Then she was playing with some cups and spilled water, which I cleaned up after I found some napkins in the closet. A little while later (after I checked and there were only empty cups on the table), another kid (whose parents did not check on him) left a full cup of Pepsi on the table and Ella promptly dumped it all over herself and the floor. Steve cleaned that up. We didn't have any clean clothes for Ella so we decided it was time to go. The movie wasn't over yet and so I'm not sure anyone else really noticed we left. So we barely spoke to any of the other parents and repeatedly cleaned up their house. Not the way we had hoped the evening would go. We'll try it again. If the kids are in the lower level without drinks, it should go much better.
We got home and it was just this sweet family time. We played on the floor with the girls with some music playing and we had a great time. But I couldn't help feeling it was bittersweet too. Like somehow this is how it will always be. There will be my friends, Steve's friends, and the girls' friends, but not family friends. Not a family that have kids the same ages that we all get along with. And not another mom who really understands where I am in my life. I love this time with my family, but that thought made me feel a bit sad. And lonely.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)