Things I Love Today

Book Babies at the library: This was our first trip to the library for their story time geared towards babies under 12 months old. Goobie and I had such a fun time singing songs, clapping our hands, and hearing stories. I don't think that she quite got it all, but she loved seeing all the other babies and seeing a new place. I loved seeing other moms and catching up with some friends! We will definitely be doing this every week!

Goober's new friend -- my in-law's dog Ivan: He's been pretty jealous of our sweet baby since she was born -- he wines and tries to get everyone's attention when we're over. But yesterday during our weekly trip to do laundry I put the Goob on a play blanket on the floor. This blanket it pretty fun because it has flaps, shiny objects, and squeaky things to play with sewn right into the fabric. Ivan believes that anything squeaky is his, so he came over and tried to play with it. While he smelled the squeaky part of the blanket, Goobie reached up and touched his nose. Ivan was so patient and let her touch him for a while. After that, they are now great pals!

It's almost 3:00 and Goober is having her 2nd nap!!! Yes!!!

That my daughter is not scared when I practice singing: I have had this little fear since I found out that I was pregnant that my children would think my singing was scary. This may sound ridiculous, but other opera singers even scare me sometimes, so how would my sweet, innocent children handle it?!? But now, every time I practice, Goobie gets a big smile on her face. She loves my warm-ups especially -- lip buzzes, funny tongue stretches -- she thinks they are great! I think her favorite songs are the ones with runs -- "Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion" from the Messiah is always a hit. Even recordings of opera singers make her smile. I put her in her bouncer chair today while I listened to a recording and she bounced and smiled. Too cute.

Nutella: I love the commercial where a Mom talks about how it's a "great way to get my kids to eat a healthy breakfast". Umm, sure... chocolate hazelnut spread is healthy... That's what I think every time I slather it on my toast in the morning.

My husband: Big Papa decided to officially accept a law school this week (We'll do a full post about that later). I am so proud of him. He has worked hard to be successful in college and because of that is going to a top notch school with a full scholarship. He knows that getting a law degree is hard work but cannot wait to get started. I also love how much he enjoys his internship. The lawyers he is working for are fantastic and are giving him so many opportunities to learn. He comes home so excited to tell me what he did that day. Who knew doing legal research was so thrilling!?!

Trying to sell our apartment contract: This normally would stress me out, but we have a lot of people coming to see it and so it forces us to keep the apartment clean. I love having a clean apartment. It makes me happy. Really happy :-)

Fitting into another pre-baby shirt: VICTORY!!!

And finally, that it is FRIDAY!!!

The Perils of Pushing a Stroller

When Big Papa and I were trying to decide what type of stroller to get, we had some specific things we wanted: a travel system, real wheels, a nice size storage basket, and preferably a jogger. We asked a lot of people and even "test drove" a few strollers (aka driving strollers around campus), before settling on the Baby Trend Expedition Travel System. After using it with our little Goob, it has definitely fulfilled our expectations and requirements. But even getting the stroller with all the bells and whistles I wanted did nothing to prepare me for the frustrations that come from pushing a stroller on campus.

When walking up to campus, the Goob and I go along some bumpy sidewalks. This isn't really a problem thanks to the stroller's fabulous wheels, but when it snows, nothing can help us. Many of the property owners on our street do not shovel their walks, and with no shovel attachment on our stroller, we easily get stuck. The people who do shovel their walks only shovel a path about a foot wide, making our peaceful walk to school very turbulent. Poor Goobie's head bounces up and down, and side to side. No naps for her on the way to school!

Once on campus the paths are clear of snow, but more perils await us -- perils lovingly referred to as "bludgers". Bludgers are students who get their kicks from darting in front of strollers, forcing me to pull my stroller to a violent stop. I always thought that you yielded to the larger person when walking around -- definitely me with the stroller -- but apparently not. I guess I could always run into the bludgers, but that probably wouldn't be very courteous...

Getting into buildings on campus is another tricky maneuver. First you have to find a ramp to get up the stairs (some buildings only have one), and then you have to get in the door. I've made good use of the buttons that open the doors automatically, but even that hasn't been perfect. I'll press the button and then another person, with no stroller, no wheelchair, crutches, or anything, will walk through it, giving me a "thanks for opening the door for me" smile. Hmm... well... your welcome... I guess... except now I have to push the button again so my baby and I can get inside.

But the worst thing about getting through doors are getting into the bathrooms. I breast-feed, so to feed the Goober I need to go to bathrooms that have a seat or couch. Most of these bathrooms will have double doors to go through or small hallways that are very inconvenient for strollers. To get the stroller in I push it in halfway, squeeze around it, keeping the first door open with my foot and opening the other with one hand so I can push it into the room with my other hand. My Twister skills have improved greatly since figuring out this maneuver.

Even with all the frustrations that come with having a stroller, I sure am glad to have it, and the Goob doesn't seem to mind it so much. In fact, it looks pretty comfy.

And now for some cute pictures...

Yum!

Wanna Taste Mommy?

Look! I turned around and moved myself off my play mat! I'm so tricky!

A Day in the Life

As another little intro into this blog, I thought I would post what happens on a pretty normal day for us. Part of our survival plan for law school is prioritizing and trying to find balance, so it will be fun/interesting/revealing to see what I really do all day. Here we go!

5:28 am -- Our little Goob wakes up. I go in to see if she wants to eat and find her sucking her thumb. I go back to sleep

5:32 am -- Goob really cries this time. Time to feed her. I watch "Chic Cooking" on the food network. I can see why it's programmed for 5:30 am.

6:00 am -- I put Goob back in her crib and try to go back to sleep

7:30 am -- Alarm goes off

7:42 am -- I get out of bed. Read my scriptures. Big Papa gets ready for the day.

8:01 am -- Big Papa and I rejoice that our loan/grant money has finally come in! We can by groceries now!!!

8:20 am -- I make myself some oatmeal and get Big Papa some cereal.

8:30 am -- Kiss Big Papa goodbye as he leaves for his first class.

9:00 am -- Goob wakes up. Diaper change. We look at the baby in the mirror then eat again. 

9:15 am -- Time to pump a little so I can go to a workshop in the city tomorrow.

9:45-10:20 am -- I buy diapers with a great coupon and start pricing out our future move. Didn't realize how much gas moving trucks take. Ouch. Goob plays in her jumper and on her play mat, turning herself around a lot.

10:28 am -- Bath time! I wish I had brought my camera today. She's being so cute with her rubber ducky.

11:00 am -- Goob eats again

11:30 am -- Goob gets cuddly. Nap time? Do I do my yoga tape now or shower? Decisions, decisions.

12:15 pm -- no nap for the Goob, but she plays happily on a blanket while I get ready
12:20 pm -- Big Papa gets home for a quick lunch.
12:45 pm -- Big Papa leaves for his internship.
12:50 pm -- Put a piece of fish in the oven for my lunch. Get the little Goob comfy on the bed with her Sophie so I can practice
1:10 pm -- Talk to a guy trying to get my business at his auto shop. Tell him no thank you.
1:20 pm -- lunch for me!

1:30 pm -- lunch for Goobie!

Ready for our trip to the mailbox!

2:45 pm -- Goobie and I read/eat a story book.
2:59 pm -- I try and suck out some boogers from her nose with the bulb syringe. She gets mad.
3:00 pm -- we play on her play mat and look at pictures of her daddy on the computer. She smiles again!
4:00 pm -- I get a craving a make a small batch of poppy chow. Probably should have exercised...
4:45 pm -- Goobie and I go check the mail. Just bill = Boring!
5:00 pm -- Ok, confession time. I've been watching "Gilmore Girls" since 3. I was just going to watch one episode when I fed Goobie but it escalated into more. I think I'd better do something more productive so when Big Papa gets home he will be impressed.... ;-)
5:20 pm -- Big Papa gets home!!! Hooray!!!
6:00 pm -- We go out as a family for dinner at a new pizza place. We get the chicken pesto and the Hawaiian with caramelized pineapple (very yummy).
7:00 pm -- We go on a search for some slacks so Big Papa will look presentable at his internship (both pairs he had got stained/ripped in the past week). We end up going to two different malls but are successful at JCPenneys.
9:00 pm -- Home in time to feed the Goob one more time before bed. We watched the chefs on "Chopped" use brains and fish heads... very interesting.
9:30 pm -- Bed time for the Goobie girl!

Diaper stats: 5 poopy diapers today but NO blowouts!!! Victory!

It wasn't a terrible day, but it wasn't amazing either. I'd really like to get a work out in and read my scriptures, but sometimes it just doesn't happen. By the end of the day I got really stir crazy; going to check the mail got me excited. I need to plan some more outings -- a morning walk, weekly trips to the library, trips to the park when there is good weather. It is way too easy to stay cooped up in our apartment all day and watch Hulu. But doing that makes me cranky, so I've got to make an effort.

Law School Widow

Whenever I tell someone about our plans to go to law school, I usually get two reactions: mild congratulations and pity. They tell me to kiss my husband goodbye for three years and to get comfy being a "single parent" or a "law school widow". While we are becoming increasingly aware of the demands law school requires, we can't help but hope to find a balance between school and family life that will keep us close.

This blog will chronicle our life during the next three years. We want to share what we do to keep ourselves healthy, happy, and connected. Now, we aren't studying torts, making tortes, or playing with a toddler yet, but we will very soon. For these first few months we will be posting about our path to get to law school -- creating those habits that we want to keep once we get in the thick of it. Then, come fall we will begin our new adventure!