thanks!

thanks to all of you who have come by the new blog. it's great to have support of the mommy bloggers!

: )

kate

www.thecleanplateclub.net

on a break.

hiya folks,

so, i'm putting all my attention on my new food blog these days.

visit me here: www.thecleanplateclub.net.

i was working with the Content Quake blog network for a while, but recently left to do my own thing! foodbuzz.com has asked me to be a featured publisher, so that's what i'm up to.

i miss blogging about the kids and the parenting life, but i just can't do both. and honestly, i have so much to say about the new baby that i don't know where i'd begin.

once i get the food blog rolling at a good pace, i'll be back! and i'll continue to check in with you all when i can!

happy new year!

kate

happy new year!

hey everyone....or anyone who still comes to the blog now and again.

happy 2008!

i'm rolling out a new blog soon. . .

i hope all is joyous with you so far this year.

more soon!

kate

holiday hiatus

having hard time finding the spare moments to blog.

see you in 2008--hope you have a warm and wonderful holiday season!

fa la la,

kate

snow!

well, we've got snow. already. we're buckling up for a long winter here in the northeast.

last winter bb wasn't so into the snow. he was all, "I'm cold!" "It's too windy!" "Want to go inside!" this year, so far, at least, he just wants to eat snow. every time we step out he's putting it in his mouth. he's fascinated with the whole thing. i'm not sure why. today we caught snow flakes on our tongues and pretended we were baby birds.

i'm debating whether i should tell him that when we were kids we'd mix snow with kool-aid powder and eat that for a snack. . .

birthday

yesterday was my 36th birthday and my daughters 2 month birthday. 2 of my good friends came to visit. my son and hubby made me a cake. there were many balloons and i got 2 gifts that i was wanting muchly.

:: the first--the new Duran Duran album. album titles and artwork have never been their forte in my opinion. but i'm psyched to have it none-the-less.

:: the second--a book i have borrowed from the library 3 times in the last year, so i'm totally jazzed to finally own it!

the best gift of all? my sweet, 2 month old babe continues to sleep really well. nothing like her brother. thank GOD. if she was, this mommy'd be in serious dire straits.

so, im a pretty happy birthday girl!

we're sleeping!

there is much joy in the house.

the baby sleeps.

she sleeps from 7 or 8pm until 4 or 5 am with only *one* feeding in between.

there are nightly happy dances going on in our living room. hubby and i have actually had time together. we sit on the couch all giddy that our kidS, plural, are asleep AT THE SAME TIME-- UPstairs.

and we're down stairs enjoying a slice of apple pie and watching shows on DVD! it's amazing. it's awesome.

it's going to keep up, right?

last night i told her she'd get a car on her 16th birthday if she keeps it up. yes, i do love my sleep.

prouder than proud.

i know i have mentioned before that BB is in school now. i could write a very long post about how i have NO IDEA how stay-at-home moms do it when #2 comes along before #1 is in school. dude.
i'd be a crazy lady if BB were home all day. but that's another post. . .

there's been 5 or 6 times lately where a parent at BB's school will say to hubby or i (hubby does drop off, i do pick up) something nice about our son. most often it's one or all of these kinds of comments, "your son is SO sweet. he's a really gentle and respectful kid." "he's so articulate." "is he really only 3?" "you should be so proud of him, he's genuinely NICE." and one mom the other day told hubby how her daughter who is 5 is hard-pressed to warm up to boys. she's tough to impress in general, but if you are a boy you have to work even harder to get "in" with her. well, she comes home everyday talking about MY son and how much she likes him and how he is nice to her.

that's my boy.

can you feel me beaming thru the computer?

photo op

time flies.

i can't believe it's been so long since i posted. i think about it everyday. i just either can't find the time or i don't know what to say. . . because there is so much i could say about being a mom to this new baby. there's so many ups and downs.

the ups:

she's a GIRL! and i can dress her in pretty patterns and in pink. she's cute as can be. snuggly. warm. soft. sweet. she reminds me how much i have to look forward to in life. i see her and my heart fills with gratitude for all i have. i watch hubby talk to her and hold her and i feel more in love with him. when bb comes over and says, "hi baby sister!" i melt. when he asks if he can read us a book while i nurse her my heart starts to smile. this is especially necessary when the downs feel really down.

the downs:
baby got gas. big time. it's currently 1pm here and we've been up since THREE last night. she can't sleep. all she can do is try to relieve the gas bubbles. i'm trying everything. homeopathy, baby gas relief drops, squeezing it out of her.
she also is having trouble nursing. shallow latch. more air. more gas. troubled boobs.
the latch was never great, but then i started giving her a binky at night a little and yeah, now it's worse. who doesn't believe in "nipple confusion?"
and i've got bronchitis. i've fractured a rib or pulled a couple muscles from the coughing, we're not sure which.
bb was a terrible sleeper. we were traumatized at our lack of sleep here. he was fussy. hard to put down. but little cm is not that way. she's having trouble with sleep, but i truly think it's gas-induced and not that we're in for more of what we had with bb. but, i could be delusional. i want to believe she's a good sleeper at heart.

that's all the news for now. it looks like she might actually sleep, which means i have to, too.

i tried to upload a picture, but blogger is being stubborn, so . . . next time.

i hope to be back to reading all your blogs soon!

she's here!!

i'm so pleased to tell you all that my daughter has arrived!!!

she came yesterday, monday, september 17th at just before 8 in the morning. it was a smooth 6 hour natural labor. (nice compared to my THIRTY hour labor with bb. oy vey.)

she's lovely and perfect. she was 8lbs., 2 oz. she is nursing well and sleeping tons. so far she's "pretty chill" as hubby would say. it's been a very. . .peaceful experience so far.

bb has been a great older brother. hubby made me agree not to share names, so we'll use her initials, too, which are cm. bb has given cm many'a kiss today. he's been really sweet. he likes lifting my shirt for me when it's time to nurse. what more could i ask for? sure, i know this will not always be the way of things for him, but for right now, it's really nice.

anyway, here's a couple pictures of my cutie-patootie.

thanks for the well-wishes and support!!

waiting.

well, here we are--4 days "late" and it should come as no surprise given bb's lateness, but still, it's sort of disappointing. i so much want to see and meet her!

while i am definitely an "everything works out how it needs to" kind of person, it's hard to be patient. i'm so ready to pop! so tired of being tired. so much wanting to eat with out having indigestion. wanting to NOT be constipated finally. ready to be able to walk the stairs without huffing and puffing. and we're ready to be a family--all of us together.

yesterday we had a big breakfast. i made pancakes, eggs and bacon and hubby and bb set the table and poured drinks. we had joni mitchell on the stereo. it was nice. but it felt like we were missing someone. like she should have been here to join us. my midwife thought i wouldn't see monday as a preggy person. we'll see.

i know the baby will be here soon. and the upside to her not being here yet? bb is in school from 8:30 - 2:30 (started last week), so i get (it's almost too good to say out loud) time to MYSELF. and the baby is moving and by all accounts doing fine. i've stocked the freezer with food to make newborn life a *bit* easier.

we're ready.
i hope to post good news very soon. thanks so much for the good juju and well-wishes!

2 weeks to go!

it's been so busy around here that i haven't had a chance to post much. we had a great vacation at the beach. we're so lucky to be able to do that. BB got to play with his cousins 24/7 which was a big deal. . . although not as big as the ice cream we ate! he'd been waiting all summer for that! since being back it's been all about baby. getting the rooms ready. getting her clothes ready. getting diapers. setting things up. nesting. i'm due in a little over 2 weeks, so she could come anytime. and it'd be FINE with me if she showed a little early or on her due date. i'm praying she's not TWELVE days late like her brother, because, seriously, i don't think i can stretch anymore. i feel like i'm going to bust at the seams! she's gotta come out of there. i feel like i'm more baby than i am me! so, feel free to send your "baby come on time" juju my way. in the meantime, here's a few pics from the vacation.bb went to his first baseball game. it was minor league, but he didn't know the difference! he LOVED it. here he is waving at the "baseball guys."splashing in the water with mom. he climbed up and down that rock like a 100 times. i know this beach like the back of my hand given that i spent ever summer there as a kid, so it was awesome to see him discovering it. it made me all emotional to watch him.

and of course, trucking in the sand with dad. the beach is one big sand box after all!

hiatus.

this weekend we're re-arranging the upstairs and painting the kids' room. baby is due in one month! then, we're off to the shore for a week at the beach cottage, so i won't be posting for a bit.

hope to see you when i get back! i look forward to catching up with my fellow mommy bloggers.

kate

2 is fine, it's 3 you gotta worry about

so far, i can't say i'm a fan of year 3. sheesh. everyone complains about the 2 year old, but man, in the last 3-4 weeks, bb has become a royal pain in the patootie a lot of the time.

he only wants snacks. if i call a meal by it's name, "lunch" he has a break down. "i don't want lunch, i just want a snack!!!!!" food is a toughie. i love food and i love to cook. i already have a completely UNadventurous eater in the house (hubby). i don't need 2. but, of course i understand the toddler palate--not so refined. i am sort of a healthfoodie mom, but not in an extreme way at all. i'll give the kid Spud Puppies and all-natural chicken fingers and you'd think i asked him to eat tofu casserole. what's wrong here? don't most kids beg for things like Spud Puppies (healthy tater-tots)?

am i missing something?

i'm not sure when my kid transitioned into someone who can't hear no. we've never been pushovers with him. but all of a sudden it's like the end of the world if we say no to something. . . even if it's something we can't say yes to. "can i have some juice?" "actually, we're out of juice, want some soy milk or water?" he hits the floor and whines.

mommy cannot handle that.

maybe it's because the baby is coming and he feels it. maybe it's because school is coming and he feels it. there's certainly change in the air around here. so, i do feel for him and i try to be compassionate---but where's the compassion for me? just a quick dose is all i need. i'm nearly 8mos. pregnant, it's hot as blazes around here and i can't bend down anymore!

someone bring me a lemonade and cold fo' i pass out!

i don't wanna hear it

if you have more than one kid, i don't wanna hear how hard it is. i'm not an idiot. i know that the challenges that come with a second kid are wide and varied and i also know that your life is not mine.

when i had my first kid everyone wanted to tell me their war stories--of the birthing, of the first few months of life with newborn, etc. and while i would like to think that people have good intentions it frustrated me because i felt like people were assuming that just because it was a certain way for them, that it would be for me.

i'm an optimist--for the most part and i like to believe in the best outcome in all things. this is true of having my second baby as well. i know we'll struggle. i know it could be really hard for bb to get used to his sister. i know we'll be busy and it will be hard to do laundry and dishes. and i also know it will be wonderful.

i guess i'm just tired of "veteran" moms saying in all-knowing tones, "oh, you'll be busy!" or "oh, you'll SEE!" like they've cornered the market on parenting. well, i have my own way of approaching life and i want to be let to have my own experience, you know?

i don't think that's too much to ask.

a fabulous new site!

the amazing jamie over at All Things Avery has launched a new site/web biz selling her fabulous card designs. go check her out--she's got invitations, announcements, cards. and she does really cute stuff. www.weelittledesigns.com.

she's doing a giveaway for her Grand Opening! join in!

we have a winner!

CONGRATULATIONS to Jen at The Mom Chronicles! She won the onesie or tee of her choice from my shop--www.bubbleandsqueak.biz as part of the Dog Days Giveaway!

Thank you so much to everyone who came by and entered. I was truly surprised by the response! It was wonderful! And thank you for all of your nice comments on my shirts. It really made my day(s) to hear.

I hope to see more of you--i'll be hitting your blogs and I hope you'll come back to mine!

: )

Dog Days GIVEAWAY is Here!

It's too fun to resist! Shannon at rocksinmydryer is doing this fabulous bloggy giveaway carnival. I'm SO in. Here's what I am giving away--a ONESIE or TEE from my own biz; Bubble & Squeak Baby Wear. The winner will be able to specify which size s/he would like, but the design choices are limited to the ones you see below.

Hit my website for size options and info about the clothes. This Friday before noon (EST) I'll randomly choose a winner. How do you win? Just post a comment saying you want in!
Have fun!

reasons to limit TV - they are many.

it's a struggle for me to know what to say to other parents about my son's lack of TV watching. i feel really strongly about it and the older he gets the more i feel it, but given my fear of being judged about it, i get all tongue-tied and rambly when i try to explain why it matters so much.

here's a great resource posted by The Not Quite Crunchy Parent. she gives quick, easy answers--all things i think and feel, but have a hard time saying in the moment. maybe it'll help untie your tongue, too!

The Not Quite Crunchy Parent: Reasons to Limit TV - What to Tell the Relatives!