Tarring babywearing with a broad brush?

It's recently come to my attention that the CPSC may be using scare tactics and bullying to go after a reputable manufacturer of baby slings.

There was a VALID recall of a certain type of padded "bag" sling, which is NOT safe. I completely agree with this recall; the slings in question did not allow proper positioning of the infant's head (chin should not hit chest), proper airflow, or freedom of movement for the infant to reposition to a safer position if necessary, nor did they allow parents to easily check on baby.

This does not mean that babywearing by other methods-- front or back carriers such as Mei Tais and Ergos, wraps such as Moby Wraps, ring slings (such as Maya Wraps) or pouch slings such as Hotslings, and many others (when properly fitted for the mother/caregiver and properly used with baby) are not safe. It means they should be used properly, and any incidents investigated. The CPSC stepping in to bully without logic or science on their side is tarring all these products with the same brush as one unsafe product-- which could be a detriment to the health of many a baby.

Not only does babywearing promote bonding, help soothe refluxers (when worn upright), allow mom to get work done, it also helps prevent SIDS and positional plagiocephaly. Babies who are left to sleep in a car seat or swing or EVEN A CRIB are at much higher risk for SIDS and other methods of death than babies who are worn in a properly used and fitted carrier, wrap, or sling. Wearing baby allows parent or caregiver to constantly be aware of baby's breathing, sleep pattern, etc. Positional plagiocephaly (flattening of the head due to lying in one position for too long) has been on the rise since the "Back to Sleep" came in, coinciding with the use of multiple baby "devices" in most homes. Babies should be out of "devices" such as swings, infant seats, and bouncers as much as possible; time in them should be limited, and one way to keep baby happy while limiting time in these devices is to wear baby! I modeled a while back for a "do's and don't's" slide presentation for my mom's colleague (she works in craniofacial)-- and one of the "do's" was showing me wearing baby in a sling! Wearing baby can also promote emotional and language development, as babies worn close to mom (or dad, or caregiver) are more likely to be talked and sung to, and feel comfortable and safe.

I urge those of you who would like to read more on what's going on to check out the thread here with more information on what's going on, and what you can do about it.

Babywearing is important, for the health and well-being of babies, and the sanity of parents. The CPSC is not following their own protocols if they are bullying and harassing companies rather than following their mandate to look simply into injuries and prevent more by investigating them and potentially dangerous products. BABY WEARING IS NOT DANGEROUS when done properly. Let's stand up for it!

Fireworks

Fireworks on the 4th of July, or close to it, in a professional show= beautiful.

Fireworks set off at the same time set off by people down the street= illegal and kind of stupid, but whatever.

Fireworks set off by same people, every few hours through the night= make me super angry, especially when they scare my kids into wetting the bed, falling out of bed, nightmares, etc.

Idiots.

Things that irritate me when I'm pregnant (a vent)

1. The cat keeps pooping in the corner of the bathroom instead of the litter box. It is bad enough when it is in the litter box but without any absorption whatsoever it STINKS. I am super smell sensitive when pregnant, moreso even than usual, and that's just not nice.

2. The kids keep changing clothes just for the heck of it. I am so tired I'm not even keeping up with NORMAL amounts of laundry, much less that generated by 3 girls changing clothes 4 times a day.

3. It's awful hard to make dinner when you have severe food aversions all over the place.

4. It is SO HARD to get health coverage for the pregnancy. Especially when you didn't have a period and you don't therefore have an easy-to-calculate due date. They REQUIRE a due date to get coverage. If we don't figure something out I'm just gonna have to make up a "last period" date based on how far along I think I am. I don't like having to do stuff like that.

5. I hate that my migraines get worse when I'm pregnant. Isn't it bad enough being pregnant, without adding migraines into the mix? When not pregnant I get maybe 2-4 a year. When pregnant, I get at least 2 a month. Often more. Gah.

6. Women who tell me, "Oh, I've had 3 kids, and I was never sick more than a day with any of them!" Good for you. Go jump in a lake.

7. People who assume I want a boy. (I actually want a girl. Jeff wants a boy. Of course we'll be happy either way.) We were not "trying for that boy." We were trying for a BABY. So shut up. Along the same lines, "So if it's a girl, are you done, or are you going to KEEP trying for a boy?"

8. People who ask if I'm going to have my tubes tied after this. (This hasn't happened yet. Just wait until I get big and have 3 little kids out with me. It will. It happened last time, and that was only my third! I do get a kick out of asking those rude people if they've heard of the Duggars, though... They usually go into shock and I walk away laughing.)

9. People who find out what I have an aversion to, and keep talking about it on purpose. It's really not funny to make me puke. It hurts.

10. People who touch my tummy. If you're not my husband, and you're not my child, please don't.

It's a darned good thing that I get a baby at the end of this. That's what makes it worth it. But in the mean time some things really suck.

I am counting the days...

...until tax season is over.

It's been much easier this year than last but still, I'm about ready for it to be done! Jeff has started working "real tax season hours" the past few weeks, and it's getting to all of us. Maggie asks for him all the time, wants to hear his voice on the phone (even if he's not talking to her, but to a client, she'll just walk around listening to him for half an hour.) Emma and Bridget are cranky and restless. I am short-tempered (well, more than usual...) Jeff is exhausted and even his infinite patience begins to wear a bit thinner.

Luckily, next week it's over for the year. Yay!

Then, we're going to Disneyland. Because, we're not tired enough. :p

Ugh.

Maggie's been reacting to something. We're reasonably sure at this point it's soy. The store had ONE kind of soy-free bread today, and it was $3/loaf. For a small loaf. Ugh.

I think I'm going to have to get a breadmaker. (I Don't Do baking in the oven for anything more complicated than baking powder biscuits or a cake now and then. If it takes a rise, I don't bake it. Not from scratch anyway. We don't have room to rise anything!)

Anyone got recommendations for a compact, reasonably priced, well-performing, super-idiot-proof bread machine? I'm talking, "dump dry ingredients in. Dump wet ingredients in. Push no more than 2 buttons. Remove bread and eat it." That's what I need.

Life goes on...

...and I am a bit overwhelmed by it sometimes.

I know I haven't posted in a long while. The last day of tax season Jeff (and other employees; like maybe a fifth to a quarter of the total employees) got laid off. So I've been proofreading resumes, etc. as he searches for a new job.

We've been doing all the normal stuff, and trying to catch up on what got left behind during tax season. Tomorrow we are going to drop the kids at my mom's while we go to the laundromat and do scads of laundry.

Bridget has been super-cranky the last few days. I have a sore throat and icky nose, I wonder if she does too?

We are still trying to find a dentist who will work on Emma's teeth. We've been trying for a year. This last open enrollment we switched to a different dental plan, we still can't find someone who will see her sooner than six months from now. One tooth is almost gone it's so decayed (she has very soft teeth. We take good care of them but when her adult teeth come in I'm going to have them sealed. She just has like no enamel for some reason.) We did finally get an appointment for the renal imaging she needs done. I don't know how she's going to do with that, it's a shot and then she has to lay still for at least half an hour while they do multiple five minute series of images. Hmmm. I don't know how they expect a five year old to lie still in a strange place while nervous for that long with no sedation... We'll do our best though.

I did some water aerobics in the spa today. The girls (well Emma and Bridey) were in with me and copied. They thought it was fun. The neighbor kids thought we were insane, but I don't care; they're kind of rude kids a lot of the time anyway...

I got an awesome stroller, carrycot, and European infant seat (which will not be used to transport a child, of course, but is fun for the kids to put their dolls in in the house) last week and it's really nice. And it cost very little-- especially compared to the price I looked up for it!

I am super stoked for my class next week. I think I am just going to have a fantastic time!

We had the girls' birthday party. I'll post an account and pics when I get them off the camera; my mom took the box it was in home with her and we haven't got it yet.

So that's life right now... Hope you reading this are all well. :)

I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!!!

Someone stole one of my Radians! Maggie's! :(

They were drying right outside our door (enclosed, hidden area, behind locked doors in a gated entry building...) I just can't believe that one of my NEIGHBORS did this. :(

I hope they at least find out how to use it correctly. *sigh* (The instructions weren't with it.)

The really sad part is that I have an extra Recaro Como sitting in my living room that I would have given away if a neighbor knocked on my door and asked for a car seat. And instead they violated the trust of our community in this way. It was gone when Jeff got home last night, within about a 2 hour window. I didn't hear anything. I checked all over hoping it got moved but nope.

I also put up a sign (even offering a reward, no questions asked-- also letting them know it was thrown up on...) hoping it would be back this morning. But no. It's gone. :(

This is really upsetting. I think what is most upsetting to me is that it's a seat with a definite learning curve and without the instructions, it's almost certain to be misused.

Tired

Jeff went to Oakland Friday and Saturday. Actually left Thurs. night. Not fun. Went to my mom's and Bridey didn't sleep, so none of us did. Friday night we came home. Kids slept 15 hours. Then we went back to my mom's until Jeff got home. The kids love grandma. She plays Play Doh with them. (I am a jerk and hate Play Doh and won't let them touch it unless someone else is around to play with them and clean up.) Emma wants to go over there and play Play Doh again some time on her day off.

Last night I made the first crockpot meal for Jeff's work-- lasagna. I'm going with fancier stuff first to "wow" them so everyone will want to participate. ;)

I took the girls out today and we went to the post office to mail a package, then the store to pick up a few things I need for tomorrow's dinner, plus milk and tangerines. Then we went to the park, had our snack, and then came home. Bridey screamed and didn't want a nap but she was exhausted and went out. Some movied I bought from someone on a forum came, and Emma is watching Sleeping Beauty. Maggie is out and I'm resting too.

Not much else going on. Bought a new car seat last week, getting another one next week. They're very awesome and 60% off!

I should be doing dishes or laundry but I'm tired and I'm not.

Know I've been MIA...

...sorry 'bout that.

Lots going on;

Ward Christmas party. Fun. Mostly. Emma was a sheep for the Primary songs. Very cute.

Emma has a UTI. Found out on Tue. right before I was going to finish my Christmas wrapping. Upside: she can now take a capsule.

On the 24th I found out the Baby Center Store is closing and scored a half-price Sunshine Kids Monterey booster for my friend's son (glad I acted fast, they sold out quickly.)

Christmas was fun. Stockings, lots of food, nap, more food... Good times. Pictures, maybe someday. ;) (They're on the camera, just don't know when I'll get them on the 'puter...)

Saturday, went to IKEA, then Carmax to put in an alert on our dream minivan (well mine), and Emma bumped her head, hard. Big goose egg, from the side of the car door she ran into. Had to stop at CVS for an instant cold pack (and another to go in the trunk) and got her calmed somewhat. Then the grocery store for brussels sprouts for the next night, then rented WALL-E (had promised Emma could watch it by that weekend even if it didn't come from Netflix, where we've been in the queue since before it came out. They still have a "very long wait" so we coughed up $6 (!) to rent it for 2 days from Blockbuster. Then returned it and promised she can watch it again when it comes in the mail.

Sunday, went to my aunt's for dinner for our family Christmas with them (my grandma and great aunt Reba were in town too) and Jeff's birthday. Dinner was yummy; prime rib, ham, biscuits, boiled peewee potatoes, broccoli, macaroni and cheese, salad, and the brussels sprouts which I totally made unhealthy. Kids had presents and some granddaughters visiting a neighbor came over and did some Irish step dancing for Ems and Bridey, who loved it. The night went downhill fast from there. Drama with my brother. Happy birthday Jeff. Won't be going anywhere where he is again for a while. *sigh*

Today, called my friend Rayann, whom I haven't spoken to lately with all the craziness in both our lives. Going to try to make it a habit to call once a week or so.

Not much else going on. Looking forward to Jeff having the day off for New Year's and the day after-- another 4 day weekend. But, no big plans. *sigh* I used to have such fun NYE but now even being up at midnight is not a big deal, I'm usually up at midnight tending to a cranky baby. Oh well.

Oh, did I mention my cousin Mark's wife Hope had their second baby a week or 2 ago? Silas James. Very cute, and a name to match. (I love the name Silas!) Healthy and happy, mama too. Big brother doing pretty well with it so far, apparently.

So, like I said, just frantic activity lately but doesn't seem to go anywhere, nothing gets done 'cause we're never home! But soon enough it will be tax season, not really looking forward to that. But I am looking forward to it being over so I guess you can't have one without the other, lol.

Busy busy busy.

It's been a hectic week. Last Sunday Jeff and Emma went to church; I stayed home with Maggie and Bridget because we couldn't risk Bridget getting sick (she keeps catching stuff at church.) It worked, she stayed healthy enough that on Tuesday she finally had her broken tooth extracted (and a bunch of other work done.) She'll get her prosthetic put in on Jan. 9 (they took the mold Tue.)

Friday we were supposed to go to Jeff's work Christmas dinner, had my dad lined up to watch the older 2 and anything. We'd been told that we could bring Maggie-- but on Wed. they changed their minds and said no. Okay. Their loss-- I hear with all the people that weren't able to get sitters not there it was rather dull. WE on the other hand had fun; we went out to dinner at Outback instead. After dinner we browsed the Linens and Things going-out-of-business sale and picked up a heated matress pad for half off ($40 for a dual-control, king-size pad.) Oooh, that's gonna be nice with it so cold. Now, to get the apartment complex to fix Bridget's window, which the landscaping people broke last summer and they STILL haven't fixed...

We finally got all our stuff finished for the Hatrack gift exchange (we were running late this year.) Finally got it all together and boxed up and out on Saturday (only one day late...) Yesterday we took those to the P.O. and also got other stuff ready for Christmas (stocking stuffers at Big Lots, using up the $10 coupon we got the Sat. after Thanksgiving, thrift store for the rest. Emma and Bridget are each getting a nap pillow/blanket set; Maggie is getting some new bath towels since our old ones are rather trashed; each girl gets one new dress-- well, Emma and Bridget are getting jumpers with a blouse/shirt under it, and Maggie is getting a dress-- hers is Land's End, quite a find, Bridget's is pink, her favorite, and Emma's has Tinkerbell, she's on a Disney kick. They're all getting books from us and picked out some to give to each other.)

Today we all made it to church (though Maggie had to go home after Sacrament because she was exhausted and cranky but wouldn't nap with all the distractions.) When they got home somehow Emma's dress got ripped at the waist. It's a brand new dress. (It matches her sisters'.) I am Not Pleased. I will have to figure out how to fix it-- I think I'll have to gather it and then tuck it under and sew it under the seam. *sigh*

We were going to assemble the gingerbread house kit Jeff's mom sent but we all took a nap instead. We'll try to get the foundation together tomorrow so we can decorate when Jeff gets home.

I did get some presents wrapped up this weekend (most but not all.) Emma kept coming in and then saying, "I'll try not to look!" LOL! I had to chase her out by saying, "You don't want to spoil your surprise, do you?" She answered, "No, I will not spoil it!" And finally found something else to do.

We still have to get all the out-of-state presents boxed up and sent (I guess we'll visit the UPS store soon) and there's some more present-wrapping to do-- but first I have to find the other wrapping paper, none of what I have left is big enough! And some cookie baking, I am planning Forgotten Cookies sometime soon. I already made Gumdrop Cookies. Mmmm. I think I need to go eat another one now...

Household Tip of the Day

Do not put an unopened (still quality-sealed) plastic-lidded, plastic jar of mayonnaise in the refrigerator. It is shelf-stable until opened and does not require said refrigeration until after you break the seal, and putting it in the fridge before the seal is broken will only cause it to contract and seal even more tightly, making it impossible to open without super-human strength and necessitating running the lid under warm water to warm it up (not the happiest thing to have to do to a jar of mayo) before you can open it for your two year old who is screeching at the top of her lungs, "May-nays! Want may-nays bread kheese!" and getting underfoot as you try to open it to spread it on her bread and make her a cheese sandwich.

(Hear that, Jeff?)

Been busy...

Went trick or treating for Halloween. (May have pics at some point, may not.)

Traded beds with my aunt (her king for our full) and all the attendant cleaning, moving of furniture, and hauling of mattresses to make that happen.

Bridget has a snotty nose and cough; think Maggie may be coming down with it.

Trying to keep the kiddos from going crazy with the candy (which is kept out of reach and rationed out); last night Emma said a prayer before her dinner (they were eating before us) that went, "Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for this day, please bless that I will grow strong and healthy and not eat too much sugar..."

Grumpiness seems to abound anyway. Emma was making upset noises and I asked her what was the matter. She said, "I'm not going to tell you." I asked why not, and she replied, "Because it's JUST MY answer! I'm not going to answer you because it's my answer!" *sigh* Four year olds...

Keep getting annoying political calls. We voted 2 weeks ago (we're permanent absentee voters.) Can't wait for the stupid thing to be done with.

Maggie is crawling (not creeping, up off the ground; crawling, like a Marine.) She also rolls very precisely in the direction she wants to go. This is quite a leap from a few days ago. She seems to enjoy it. Likes to play with anything she can get her hand on, and shred paper like the cats do. Has destroyed 2 books so far ("We READ the books, we don't EAT the books" has become a common refrain.)

Went to the library two or 3 weeks in a row now. Getting to be a tradition now, after dance class on Thursdays. I think I like it. It seems good for me. Just found out that you can now pay your library fines online (for a long time you could view them and pay by phone, but they've added a credit card interface, apparently.) Coolness.

Finally decided what to make for Christmas gifts. Can't wait for Thanksgiving. Jeff is taking time off that week. Not sure if we'll get out of town or not. Hoping so, really want a change of pace.

Feeling very good some days, weepy and frustrated others. Some days I'm upset with myself and disappointed in how little self-control I seem to have, how I sometimes snap too readily at my kids. I think I need to remember that this is a partnership, not just between me and my husband, but between us and Heavenly Father. They're His kids, too, and I can ask Him for help in parenting them the way He wants it done. But it's hard to remember that when you have a migraine and they WON'T stop jumping on you and they're making messes in the room they've been told not to enter and breaking things and life just makes you want to cry and scream in frustration. Other days they are a joy, helpful and kind and loving with each other, and that makes me ashamed I don't treat them all the time the way I want them to treat each other.

I think the election is adding a lot of stress to our household, on top of the rest of it. I'll be REALLY glad when it's over. Did I say that already? Also dealing with multiple insurance companies and agencies trying to get Bridget's tooth covered. We're about ready to pay for it ourselves. Why do we have insurance if we have to pay for it out of pocket or wait eight months to get a potentially life-threatening condition treated? So annoying.

But then the weather is changing and that makes me happy. I try to find happiness in the small things around me that I enjoy. I try to do things that make me happy and help the kids do them too. Bridget likes to be read to and get to sit in a lap. Maggie likes just about any one-on-one playtime. Emma loves to help me cook. I try to let her as much as possible because that is a GOOD habit to develop. Personally, I would love to get away to a little cafe/bookstore, sip a cup of cocoa, eat a yummy sandwich, and read some good secondhand mystery. Very unlikely that will happen, though... Oh, well, at least I can go to the library and snatch a few words here and there from a good old Mary Higgins Clark (whom I have just discovered, after years of rather unintentional avoidance, that I really like.)

Sooooo hoooot...

I can't sleep. Emma is fitful. Maggie is restless. Bridey took a looong time to conk out. Even Jeff didn't go to sleep as easily as he usually does.

It is just way too hot. We ended up turning off the air because the a/c was so hot it wasn't cooling the way it should, and opening the windows (which is just marginally better, heat-wise, but at least doesn't cost us any money on the electric bill.

I just cannot wait for cooler weather tonight. Usually I have no problem with heat; usually I could handle heat better than cold. But for some reason this hot weather seems different. Maybe it's the stillness and heaviness in the air. In any case, I can't sleep, the heat is contributing, and it's bugging the life out of me because I'm tired-- but not sleepy.

Uuuugh.

When life gives you lemons, go to IKEA.

We got a lemon. A lemon of a fridge, that is. We bought it, new (floor model but unused, just out for demonstration) two years ago, and Wed. it broke for the THIRD time since we've had it. The freezer is working but the fridge is not (and our milk is bad.) Each time it's broken before, we have spent around $200 or $250 getting it fixed. This time we said, "Enough."

We don't have it in our budget to buy a really nice fridge just yet; we looked at the Recycler and Craigslist, but we really don't feel like renting a truck, driving a distance, hauling it up to our apartment...

So we shopped around a bit online and decided to get a fridge from IKEA. Their fridges are made by Whirlpool, so a decent brand. We thought before going we'd probably get their $350 model, but when we got there, they're having a promotion; spend $499 or more on a fridge and get a $100 gas card. So we ended up getting the $499 model because for what amounts to $50 more after the value of the gas card, we get a nicer model with better shelves, an ice maker, and better resale value if we decide to sell it and trade up next year (which we probably will. I do want a bigger fridge eventually; this is just a tiny bit smaller than our current fridge, which we got because it fit in the ridiculously small fridge space in our first apartment.) And because we paid for it with a debit card (thank heavens Jeff got his big EA bonus this month) we got a $17 discount toward our next purchase.

All in all I'm quite pleased with the value, this is basically the same fridge that sells for $150 to $300 more at other stores, and it will get here on Saturday, and someone else gets to haul it up the elevator and lug it into our apartment. Now to figure out what we're doing with our old fridge... Freecycle or something, I suppose. I'm just overall pleased with our decision to get a new one instead of pump money into one that I'm afraid would break again in six months.

I guess I don't talk about this much.

But I know you will not mind. (No TMI, I promise!)

I think I may have some PPD.

I've had a great weekend. The music was fun, mostly (don't get me started on my altercation with the lady who works there-- okay, not altercation, that's too strong a word, but I was not happy with our interaction), despite the hotel experience (they told us they'd have a crib and then they didn't; we hadn't brought the port-a-crib after being told they'd have one; Bridey didn't sleep until almost 5 AM-- it was La Quinta Costa Mesa, if you want to know), we had fun at IKEA and a good time at the wedding (though Emma freaked out at the sparklers-- which are illegal, BTW, which I was rather surprised no one seemed to know about, and we were RIGHT across the street from a state park, during fire season), a new nursing dress I bought on eBay was waiting for me when we got home, it was all around a fun few days. But I've been snappish, sad, yelling, crying, when we were driving home I had this crazy urge in the tunnel to just open the door and roll out into traffic. It was kind of scary. Jeff took Maggie to burp her while I was asleep and I woke up in a panic because she was gone. I am extremely anxious when separated from her (though I'm getting better about letting others hold her and not holding her ALL the time.)

Please don't suggest drugs. I'm not going to take them. Please don't suggest counselling either. I don't trust therapists. Both these issues stem from my experience with medication and therapists as a teen, which I don't want to talk about, but I may share privately if you ever really have to know. Suffice it to say, it's not going to happen. It's like my thing with female doctors. Just not going to happen. (Not that I could afford it if I wanted it, with no insurance. But since I don't, it's moot.)

I was like this when I was pregnant with Emma. I got over it as the hormones changed. It never happened with Bridey, at least not that I remember; okay, maybe a few days when she was a few months old. That was it. But this started when I was separated from Maggie and has persisted since then. It doesn't help that my hormones aren't back to normal yet. I've got a good few months to go, judging by past experience.

If you are a praying person, I'd love your prayers. I feel detatched and isolated even as I'm more involved than I've ever been in a host of things. Life goes by so fast and I sometimes just feel like it's passing me by. I hate this. I hope it passes soon.

And I don't know why I'm even writing this. I just am. And it doesn't help. Prayer helps while I'm praying, and for a little while afterward, but not all day. And I feel so tired I don't even want to pray. Ditto everything else that usually makes me feel better. I'm stress eating, which just makes things worse. I should probably watch that. But I don't even care.

I want to escape. I just want to go watch the waves roll into nothing and then sleep and not listen to any whining and screaming and just sleep.

I guess I sound pretty depressed, huh? Sorry. Didn't mean to bring you all down...

I really do have fun. This weekend was fun, lots of it. Next Saturday we're having a poop party because Emma finally pooped in the toilet three times in a row with no accidents. (Who's coming? My mom. Who else? No one, because all she wants is my mom and a pinata, go figure. Well, that's fine, makes things easy...) Everything is fun. But the fun never lasts, and in between I'm just... bleh.

I want to sleep now. I'm tired. But I can't sleep and probably won't. Again. Oh, well. That's okay. It's not like I have anything to do tomorrow...

Tangles and Headache

I have a headache. I've had it since last night. It's a migraine. I am dizzy, in pain, and it's worse with noise (yeah, good luck having quiet in a house with three kids), movement (and Emma keeps kicking the bed), and sitting up (so the kids are fending for themselves, and each other, as much as possible while I lay here.) I am also nauseated. Ick. So low blood sugar is probably a contributing factor since I can't eat anything (and threw up whatever was in my stomach from last night this morning.)

I think this headache has been exacerbated by the hour I spent untangling Emma's hair last night. It was tangled to begin with and swimming just made the tangles worse. It seems that Jeff doesn't understand how to properly comb hair; I've been leaving it to him too much and he just doesn't get the tangles out. I guess that's probably because he's always had short hair, and also his is stick-straight (while the girls have waves, a product of his straight hair and my uber-curly hair.) Emma didn't like it but was remarkably well behaved. She even let me brush it out and braid it when I was done combing out the tangles. This may be because I bribed her (I told her she would get five reward stickers-- she likes to put them on her hand-- and a treat if she sat still and was brave until all the tangles were out. There was a little whining but not too much.) Anyway, hunching over left me with a sore back, which seems to be making my headache much worse.

I guess that's pretty much it; this was just a gripe post. I hope none of my readers feel as cruddy as I do right now!

A Public Service Announcement to All Two Year Olds:

Finger painting is to be done with finger paints (and permission.) Not poop.

I just spent half an hour scrubbing poop off crib and wall (and disinfecting the mattress to boot), while Jeff (who got home just after I found the mess, thankfully) bathed Bridget (the tub is now soaking in hot bleach water so I can drain it in about 10 minutes, scrub it out, and rinse it), and got her shirt soaking (luckily for us, all she had been wearing, other than the training pants she pulled off.)

We threw out the sheet. It was already stained and has seen the births of three kids, and, well, it was such a mess it wasn't worth the work to clean it at this point. We have other sheets.

I almost took a picture but have decided that I really don't want to remember it that vividly.

Thank goodness for Lysol wipes.

Please, two year olds, give your parents a break. Respect the finger painting rules. Poop is for potties and diapers, not for artwork.

That is all. Thank you.

I so wish I could take advantage of this...

All my kids are napping at once. And I can't sleep 'cause I'm in too much pain!

Ems and Bridey fell asleep on my bed watching Sesame Street. Maggie is out here with me, also asleep.

But my cheek still hurts, even though I just took my Tylenol 1/2 an hour ago. See, I got my wisdom teeth on my right side out on Thursday. And my jaw is killing me. I went and got them checked this morning (we went to my dad's, Ems and Bridey stayed with Grandma Sheri and Grandma Ronnie-- their great-grandma, who is in town right now-- while my dad took Maggie and me. Afterward we went to SunThrift and I got cool stuffage (clothes for the older two, Sesame Street play quilt for Maggie, a few things for eBay-- yes I think I'm starting back up there soon unless I can find somewhere better to sell) and then he took us home-- did I mention that I got three carseats in the back of his 1988 Corolla, a Cosco High Back Booster (with harness) for Bridey, Emma in the center in her extra Radian that lives in his car for picking her up from preschool, and Maggie in a SnugRide with no base? Anyway, I digress...) But the check-up re-hurt my jaw, which had been starting to feel so much better. Wah. I get my sutures out on Thursday, hopefully by next week I'll be back to normal. I'm sick of not being able to chew properly! I was conscious for the extraction, btw. Did you know that when they pull a tooth out, it sounds crunchy, like potato chips? Also, another one to add to my list of weird drug reactions: Novacaine gives me tremors. Nothing else, and it didn't impede me getting the work done, just gives me tremors. Also, I metabolize it very rapidly. She used about 3 times as much as she planned to, used all her extra she had out and had to have the assistant go get more, because it kept wearing off. And she didn't take that long, I just metabolize it quickly. I kept my teeth, btw. The assistant thought I am a bit strange. I think they're cool, and fascinating. The roots are all curved, and you can see the flat surface where the impacted one grew into the tooth next to it (and the cavities in it; I had to get a surface fill of the cavities that were forming in the tooth next door, as well.) I'm tempted to do something cool with them. Earrings? Or drop them in Coke and see if they dissolve... I also have to be on penicillin. I hate penicillin. Loathe it. It hurts my tummy; both if I take it on an empty stomach (or if my stomach gets empty while it's in there), and later on in the digestive tract, lower down... Yeah. I despise taking almost all antibiotics for this reason. But better safe than sorry, and at least it's cheap.

(About the not posting the last month-- sorry. I have been super-busy and have photos of most of it, but I have been too tired to edit and post them. I basically have a bunch of photos and stuff written that I'll publish when I feel up to it, hopefully soon. So, yeah...)

P.S.-- Rayann (Boon from Hatrack) is coming next month to see us! w00t! I am so excited! She is like my bestest friend EVER. I can't wait for us to meet each others' babies. And go to Disneyland. And the beach. And shopping at Sun Thrift and IKEA. And... :D

Today's our first "normal" day...

...since Maggie was born.

Meaning, Jeff is back at work (thankfully just from 8 to 6), we are home, and I'm figuring out how to do this with 3 kids instead of two! For instance, Bridey had to wait to get up from her crib, because I was nursing Maggie and I could go in and talk to her, but can't lift her out (she's big!) with Maggie nursing. And Emma didn't get the oatmeal for breakfast that she wanted (she settled for chocolate milk and a granola bar) because I couldn't find clean spoons and bowls, and didn't have enough free hands and space to wash them right then. Oh, well. We'll figure it out! I did with Bridget, and I didn't have nearly as much time with Jeff helping me with her... Although, admittedly, when you have two kids, you have enough hands to attend to each with one... And I'm more tired this time than I remember being the last two times, for some reason. The sling helps, but I still can't do everything while holding Maggie, and if she wants to eat, I'm even more limited-- I can do a lot of things one handed by now but I can't wrangle toddlers while nursing a newborn!

But overall we seem to all be surviving so far. Bridey is more fussy than usual because she hurt her tooth the other day (we're waiting a week to see if it's broken or if it will "settle." She did NOT like the X-rays they took, and they couldn't definitively tell. They said the gum was too swollen to do anything immediately, anyway.) Emma is grumpy because she wants to play outside and I won't take her (I don't feel like getting everyone dressed right now...)

Ah, well. Like I said, we'll adjust. It just takes time.

Doing somewhat better, but still missing my baby.

That's right folks, she didn't come home today. Her bilirubin was a bit lower this morning, down to 10.9 from 11.6, but not low enough to get off the bililights. I went in at 9 and fed her, and my did that feel good. The milk that had come in yesterday but not come HARD in, meaning it was still at pretty low levels all day and night (which was kinda a blessing in disguise last night, I only had to express a few drops once for comfort, so I only have to suffer one real night of engorgement), suddenly let down and soaked through my nightgown at 7:30 in the morning. All of a sudden engorgement came on hard and fast, and I was harassing everyone to get ready NOW because I could not stand much more of this and Maggie REALLY needed to eat!

We went to the hospital, kids' breakfast in hand, and they set us up in LDR 1, which is the labor/delivery/recovery room right next to the nursery. Since it's down a hallway and away from the other rooms it is the last LDR room they fill, for the nurses' convenience, and it also happens to be slightly bigger and nicer than the rest! Since Sunday is a slow day for LDR rooms, it was a convenient empty space, and it was designated "our" room for the day as long as no one else needed it. We weren't allowed to touch the bed or use the bathroom, which have to be kept ready in case a patient needs to use it, but we were allowed to use the chairs and such, and of course since Maggie is still not discharged we could ask at the nursery for anything we needed for her-- they are still providing the diapers, wipes, any formula she needs (now that my milk had come in we'd switched from supplementing every other feeding to offering formula if she is still hungry after emptying both breasts, just to make sure she gets as much fluid to clear that bilirubin as possible.) It's nice not to have to worry about that.

We moved chairs from the table that sits in LDR 1, sat the kids down with cartoons in front of the tv, and that kept them occupied for a while, but they were just way wound up. We decided that staying in the room with Maggie with the kids running wild while patients were trying to rest(and me fretting about what her level would be) was counter-productive, and once I'd seen and held her for a while (she ate for almost an hour-- good baby-holding time) I felt better, not so clingy and anxious, so we told them we were going to take the kids out for a walk and would be back, since all Maggie would be doing was sleeping anyway. They told us that the doctor would be in in about an hour at that point and to call then to find out what was going on. So we went down to the Farmer's Market/Family Fun Fair they hold on Sundays down in Montrose, just a few blocks from the hospital, which normally we would never ever do on Sunday-- but we really needed occupation for the sake of all our sanity while Jeff and I worried about Maggie, and the activity was good for the kids, who were hyper as all get-out. We walked around, and Emma requested "When the Saints Go Marching In" from the Dixieland band that was playing (they are probably heartily sick of that song but I didn't think they would mind a request from a four-year-old-- they didn't-- and she really loves that song, she danced and looked so thrilled to hear it that it made them all grin and smile.)

When that was done we got some drinks and sat in the shade (it was HOT), and Jeff called the hospital just in time to catch the doctor. He explained that her bilirubin was too high still, and that it was still in the high risk zone-- BUT that it was down a bit, not rising, and so that was a good thing. He also explained that even if she had the exact same level tomorrow, she would be out of the high risk zone, and able to go home, because of the older age! So I was almost crying that she would stay another night-- but happy that we were pretty much guaranteed to take her home the next day.

Then we went back, got settled, and I fed her again. Jeff took the kids home for a nap, which they took, and I stayed all day in LDR 1, just nursing Maggie. In between nursing she was able to be in the room with me, in the bilibed (which, btw, is a Medela Bilibed, complete with little sleeper-type cover featuring a duck-- pictures have been taken, of course, and you will see her in it eventually; sorry, not up to that quite yet, probably tomorrow) and I laid back on the recliner (the same type that Jeff napped in while I was in labor, the one intended for the support person, so pretty cushy and comfortable.) I actually got several hours of sleep between feedings that way-- which really, really helped, I have to say. Lack of sleep and food due to anxiety was part of my problem last night, I think. After naps Jeff took the kids over to my mom's, then came to see us at the hospital. I fed Maggie one more time before dinner, and then we went to my mom's house for dinner. She had asked me what I would like and I told her pot roast, so she made me pot roast. I love my mommy. She also made an orange cake because Emma had asked for it, and she made applesauce jell-o (minus apple chunks, with strawberry jell-o and cinnamon applesauce) which we used to bribe Emma to finish ALL of her pot roast, potatoes, carrots, and most of her salad, plus a few bites of biscuit. I was amazed! I had thought she was going to be picky, but the wonders applesauce jell-o will do...

Then all of a sudden my milk came in hard again. Every time that had happened all day it had meant Maggie was about to wake up and be ready to eat. We hustled out but it was ten minutes by the time we left (because the kids unexpectedly wanted to come right then instead of staying with my mom and going home with Jeff after he dropped me), and had been almost half an hour when we got there. Sure enough, she was hungry! Apparently she had NOT been behaving for the nurses, oops! She had cried and cried and only taken 20 ccs of formula despite acting VERY hungry. As soon as I got her in my arms, though, the crying stopped cold! Before I even lifted my shirt she opened her eyes wide and looked contentedly at me! I guess she just wanted her mama-- which made me feel very, very good. I know it's irrational but I had been feeling like a failure because my milk hadn't come in the day before (which had more to do with her being too lethargic from the jaundice to be nursing well than anything I could do) and I think feeling like anyone could take care of her at least as well as I could because she had to be in the nursery all night. It felt really, really good to have that confirmation that I, as her mother, was not only important but ESSENTIAL to her, that she knew me, and that she preferred me to someone else! To make me feel even better, the nurse said that in the last 12 hours she had gained 1/2 an ounce! Yay, all that milk was doing something! And she had just had a VERY green poop (green poop is a good sign in jaundiced babies because it means they're breaking down and passing the bilirubin.) Anyway, she nursed REALLY well, twice in a row, and then settled in. (In the meantime, Jeff and the kids went home after everyone said "goodnight" to Maggie and gave her kisses. I got hugs and kisses, too.) I took one more nap, then nursed her once more (and called my mom), then got her all burped, settled in, and when my mom called to say she was there, I kissed Maggie once more, left her at the nursery, and went down and my mom drove me home. (She also brought us leftovers. Which was nice of her.) And I didn't even cry (although I did a bit later, with Jeff.)

Anyway, the plan is for me to get through tonight as best I can, express some milk as necessary (and maybe get enough to make it worth freezing), hopefully even sleep a couple of hours (although I really don't know if I can manage it without Maggie), and then all get up early, get ready, call the hospital to find out when she ate, and get there in time to give her her next feeding. Then hang around (although again I may stay there and have Jeff take the girls somewhere-- Montrose is right there and the shopping district includes a toy store that allows touching and playing with floor models, and a very cool kids' book store, among other things they might like, or there's even a kids' play area in the ER waiting room they might enjoy), and wait for the doctor to come and tell us it's okay to take our baby home! (It's extremely, extremely unlikely that her level will be even as high as it was today, considering all that green poop, frequent nursing, and the fact that she looks less orange than she did yesterday! But even if it was as high as long as it had not climbed a couple of points we would be good to take her home!) I am just praying that everything works well because we want her with us!