February Catch-Up

[Vishenka69]

Re: February Catch-Up

DH is in full blown freak-out over the orals and I got bored enough to start temping (which is turning out to be even more boring than staying at home). We have 2 vacations planned for this spring but nothing is done for either. I tried to book tickets last night but ended up getting a wrong flight and scrambling to cancel before they charge me (it worked out, I love Continental's customer service). I have nothing booked for DH's boards in FL because he won't sit down with me for 5 minutes to do it and I refuse to book without his participation (looking at uberexpensive cars on the web doesn't count as busy).

DH surprised me with Cher tickets for V-day, so we'll be boing to Vegas in September. That pretty much takes care of our vacation plans for the year.

Also looking forward toward spring and being completely and totally done with all exams for the next 10 years or so.

[mommax3]

Re: February Catch-Up

Nothing too new to report here. I am sick of the cold and snow! DH and the boys were off Friday, so when I got home, we headed to Cincinnati (sorry, Kelly!). At the silent auction for the boys' school last fall, we won free tickets to the Newport Aquarium and some free game cards to the Gameworks in the same area. Personally, I don't have too much love for aquariums, but we did those two things, saw the Spiderwick Chronicles, had dinner with my sister (who lives in the area) and headed home on Sunday. Yesterday, the boys and I were off, so I spent my day "off" doing laundry and grading papers. DH was on call yesterday and was home for ONE HOUR, between 8 and 9 last night. I am sick of it, but know it isn't likely to change. I just need a break *by myself*. DH is my favorite person in the world, and I love my kids to pieces, but I am tired! Basketball for the older two is over, finally, but Nathan is in a pee-wee league that practices on Tuesday nights and plays on Saturday mornings for the next six weeks. I am thinking of not signing him up for soccer this spring....I don't have him play in the fall because there is no way I can coordinate his soccer schedule with his older brothers' school soccer schedule, so spring is usually his time to play. But I just don't think I have the endurance to do one more sport.......we'll see.

My Dad is going to be in town this week (tomorrow night) and will be staying here, so that will mean doing some rearranging of kids since we don't have a spare bedroom. My cleaning lady is here right now, so at least I won't have to worry about getting the house clean before my Dad gets here! He doesn't care if it is clean or not, honestly. But I do! I am still working through my aunt's estate stuff..... it is a long process, but I can see the light at the end of the end of the tunnel now. I still really miss her.

This Friday is the end of the second trimester at the school where I teach....hard to believe that the school year is 2/3 over. I am taking about 22 kids to a choral festival this Saturday from 8 to 4. It is always a good experience for them (I have done this festival several times through the years) but I am always glad when it is over! Then my choirs will be competing on March 15th at organizational contest. This week, I am giving singing tests (in groups of three) to my kids. I hear some encouraging things during the tests, but keeping the rest of the kids quiet while a small group is testing is quite the challenge.

There is a house for sale in the neighborhood where we have our lot. It has been on the market for quite awhile, so DH and I are going to look at it next week sometime, and we *may* make an offer (contingent on the sale of our current house) if the floor plan is one the we like. We are thinking that they may come down quite a bit on the price since it has been on the market for awhile, and if so, it would be a cheaper option than building. However, if they don't want to come down, we will move ahead with our building plans. My gut feeling is that we will be building, but DH has to feel like he checked out all the options before he spends big money.....so we'll check it out. I love looking at houses, anyway!

We are getting the first half of spring break this year (DH and his partner usually split that week) and we are going to head to Nashville to visit my sister.....and hopefully my college roommate, too. The boys have three days off at the end of April, and I have saved my personal days (I get three a year) so I can be off then, too. DH has two of the days off as well, so we need to come up with something to do then, too. As for this summer, the older boys are going to camp the same week, so if my mom can take Nathan for that time, DH and I are going to try to get away somehwere together. The whole family will be heading to the Destin area at the end of July for the ILs' 40th anniversary at a beach house.

That's pretty much it from here!

[Auspicious]

Re: February Catch-Up

Enjoying the baby gig more and more over here (seriously, I think I might die from the cuteness), but also suffering from serious cabin fever--especially since she's becoming more and more aware of her surroundings. We could both use more frequent changes of scenery and less time spent in this apartment for sure. C'mon spring!

I've also started back to working, so that's been a bit of juggling and grabbing a half hour anywhere I can. I zipped her up in my big coat with me and we walked up to the UPS store to mail back some finished page proofs, but what with all the drooling and whatnot (seriously, how much fluid can be in this kid?), her chin got all chapped and red. Bad mama! Not that she cared.

We're pretty much leaving behind that fourth-trimester, oh-my-god-I-have-a-newborn stage and moving on to just regular ol' life with a baby, toss-'em-in-the-car-and-go. That was helped a lot by our plane trip out east, and also by her starting to sleep better at night (though now she's napping worse , so such is life). Evidently I still haven't gotten to a point where when I'm asked "what's up with you?" I can talk about anything besides her, though.

Husband is on a busier rotation, and also has a poster in some conference at the beginning of March, we haven't seen much of him lately, and soon he'll be away in Denver for eight days.

Mostly we're still hunkered down waiting for spring, though.

Re: February Catch-Up

Not much new here. We've just been trying to hammer through a long list of projects that we hope to get done before the little peanut arrives in May (and before my belly gets too much bigger!) We're getting ready to transition a very excited DS to his "big boy room." We finished painting this weekend and are in the process of installing beadboard that will run up about 2/3 the height of the wall. (I use the word "we" as if I actually played a role in doing any of the work. ) Hopefully DH will finish the beadboard installation tomorrow and be done painting it by Thurs. Once we get DS moved in to his new room, we'll start work on the nursery.

The weather has been relatively nice lately so we've been spending quite a bit of time outside. Some of the cherry trees are starting to bloom and my daffodils are popping up...spring is almost here!

[SuzySunshine]

Re: February Catch-Up

We're just hanging out, waiting for the snow to melt. (It will melt someday I'm sure. ) DH is still studying for his boards and Adele and I are trying to get out of the house on a regular basis. We just got back from a road trip to KC and are looking forward to our CA trip in 3 weeks, hence the new ticker!

[peggyfromwastate]

Re: February Catch-Up

I feel like we've been sick for most of February. Isabel started on Pink Eye meds today. Luke started last Tuesday, the boys started on antibiotics on Friday, Kate started on Pink Eye meds on Friday, and the dawkter is working wacky ER hours that I totally hate. I can't stand ER. It's not ER's fault. It's from my lack of therapy from a childhood of being victim to over 22 ER shifts a month. (Usually Dad tried for 24 shifts a month... with moonlighting gigs as far away as 250 miles!)

Anyway, my cold/sinus pressure will not go away, and I can't sleep, so boo hoo. I hate February! At least morning sickness seems to be easing off a little, and Lost is back on, so really can I complain!

Of course I can complain...

We have a cross-country trip coming up at the end of March to visit family-- and I'm psyched b/c we are flying on free ticks (all 6 of them!) and DH is flying with us on the outbound trip- so I'm bringing a book and will give the kids a memo that says "ask Daddy to help". Maybe I'll have 15 minutes quiet time on the plane. Seriously, I wanted to assign myself a different area of the plane, but DH wouldn't do it. :huh: I have to take them all on the return flight by myself (6 free ticks all together is a bit hard to pull off...) but that's ok. I'll live! Anyway, should be a good trip and I'm looking forward to seeing my grandparents and my mom's big ol' Easter Egg hunt. Last year Kate got over $12 from that thing! I think that I may have to participate in the hunt this year... My grandparents are celebrating their 66th wedding anniversary 1 week before we arrive! Bad timing for us-- to miss the party, but that's OK. I'm just glad we'll get to see them. Every visit is precious.

[Cumberland]

Re: February Catch-Up

Hello Kris:
I have been out oot the loop!!! My mom arrived in PHX on Sun. for a 23 week stay, and alas she has the flu

Sorry about her flu! That stinks.

Did you mean 23 week stay?

[GreyhoundsRUs]

Re: February Catch-Up

Oh February in Chicago - there is nothing as wonderful...I believe that we've had under an hour of sunlight all month...

It has been so cold that the dogs REFUSE to go to the bathroom...they just go outside and stand and shake!

My 45 mile commute to work is become a huge annoyance, so I am in the process of looking for another job! I swear that whoever told me that math teachers were in high demand was on something

Between the cost of living in the city, the price of gas, and the paltry salary of my private school gig, I am looking for ANYTHING at this point! I will be so glad when June comes...

[alison]

Re: February Catch-Up

It was gorgeous a couple of days ago in Chicago, wasn't it? I forget... This has been a very long winter, indeed.

[samssugarmomma]

Re: February Catch-Up

We're just plugging along here.

DD's birthday is on Friday. She'll be 3. How the heck did that happen?? I'm making her a train cake for her party on Saturday. Today I made the icing and I'll dye it tomorrow. I'm baking the cakes on Thursday. I'm baking three cakes and then cutting them into the right shapes. I'm making five cars - an engine, a coal car, a log car, an animal car, and a caboose. I'll do the construction on Friday afternoon.

On Friday night, DH and I are going on a much needed date. He won tickets to see Sweeney Todd and we're going out to dinner before hand. We need the break from parenting!!!!

I'm in the final nine days of my prednisone taper. I COULD NOT be more excited!!! After being on various doses for the past year I'm looking forward to taking less pills everyday. Once my symptoms are stable my GI doc will give us the go ahead to start up the baby making. We COULD NOT be more excited about that though I'm not sure if we are emotionally ready yet. Will we ever be? :huh:

DH is in the final few days of his ED rotation and has decided that we will be trying for an ED fellowship this summer. Good times. We're getting ready to do three call months in a row. Suck.

We're (more like..... I am) trying to finish up some projects around the house before the weather warms up and we can focus on some outdoor projects. This spring we are putting in a garden and we have to redo our back porch.

[migirl]

Re: February Catch-Up

I've really enjoyed reading what everyone has been up to, especially since I feel like I've been out of the loop lately since baby's arrival ...

So ... I've been busy with the baby lately. Seriously, I can't believe how easy this seems the second time around. I was so completely overwhelmed when Jack was a newborn, and the whole "new mom" thing was really hard for me. Now, I'm like ... what's so hard about this? :huh: He eats, he sleeps, he poops ... repeat. I don't feel like I really enjoyed the newborn phase with Jack, so I'm really glad that I've had this chance to enjoy it with Jamie. So far he's doing really well, since he was such a little peanut when he was born I feel like I'm practically force-feeding him to get him to gain weight. I'm actually getting quite a lot of sleep (we're co-sleeping ... with him on top of my chest ... I know, I know, it's awful), so I'm not exhausted or anything which helps a lot.

My biggest struggle (as a mom) these days has been helping Jack adjust to life with his baby brother. It doesn't help that I'm on a lifting restriction for the next 3 weeks so I can't pick him up or carry him like I used to, and of course I can't explain to him why I can't pick him up. I hate watching him have tantrums and meltdowns over things that he wouldn't ordinarily freak out over, it makes me feel guilty and sad at how we've turned his world upside-down. But then, he has his moments where he seems completely like his normal, happy-go-lucky little self. I know that no permanent damage is being done here (right??), I just feel badly that it's probably so confusing for him.

Since I'm on a lifting restriction we've had our moms rotating in/out to help over these last few days. MIL left today, and I should preface this by saying that while she was extraordinarily helpful (did laundry, changed bed linens, cooked meals, helped with the kids), her style of "parenting" was driving me insane. Her idea of playing with Jack is to plop him in front of the television all day long, and for lunch today she fed him potato chips and vanilla Oreos (that she specifically brought for him )and told me that he "ate a really good lunch today". Seriously? Didn't you have kids once?

Anyway ... what else. DH's chairman invited him to breakfast a couple of weekends ago to talk about his future job plans (we still have two years of training left to go, mind you). He flat-out told DH that they're very pleased with his efforts over the past 6 years and if he wants a job here, they're prepared to make him a very competitive offer and if he wants to stay that he'll make it happen. This would be a top choice for us, so that was nice for DH to hear.

Other than that, we're keeping busy and waiting for spring!

[PrincessFiona]

Re: February Catch-Up

It's so neat to read what everyone is up to....we are a busy, busy group.

Suz, that's terrible about your mom having the flu. You have got to be one stressed out mom right now!

Kate, congrats on the pred. taper.

kris

[Momo]

Re: February Catch-Up

obviously a Type-o

Now if we were talking about the visit he wants to schedule for his folks, later this spring,it would have been about right...yes folks he's still intenet on getting them here for a good 6 mos stay

Hello Kris:
I have been out oot the loop!!! My mom arrived in PHX on Sun. for a 23 DAY stay, and alas she has the flu

Sorry about her flu! That stinks.

Did you mean 23 week stay?

[PrincessFiona]

Re: February Catch-Up

Holy Cow, Lily. I hope you're feeling better soon!!!

Kris

Re: February Catch-Up

The usual busy mom stuff here, school field trips, volunteering at the school, taking care of two kiddos with DH working a lot of hours that keep him from seeing the kids, but that's the name of the game. I'm trying to get outside and continue cleaning out my yard. Before our trip for our anniversary I got a sitter to watch the kids inside as I went ape outside. I have currently something like 30 bags of yard waste (pines, leaves, and about 200+ feet of vine roots that I"m trying to get rid of - stupid me, thought there were only a few vines to rip up, wrong the bad stuff is under the ground...) I want to also get a veggie garden going, but the the bad drought in our state I'm not sure where to start. I need to get a rain barrel and then get some tips from the local garden shop in what to try to plant. Then I've got about 4 sewing projects going on as well. Oh, and I'm trying to plan out my fall classes, which is going painfully slow and is a huge PIA... Over all, all is well, but busy.