The Official New Mom Thread Part 2

[llij]

Hi everyone! Quick study break here.......

I've got to go back and read up on how everyone is doing! I just want to wish Matthew a HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! Is his birthday this Tuesday? The pictures are great! Matthew looks like he really loved his cake!

Joats - That cake you posted made me do a double take. It looked like a real kitty litter box!

BetsyWDW - Welcome! Your daughter is absolutely adorable!

Bellacam - Happy Anniversary!!!


Things are crazy here as usual. My parents took pity on my awful work space conditions (not sure how to phrase that, but I am currently working on a rickety ole' card table) They purchased me a new office set yesterday. Here is a picture of what they bought me.

It is a million times better than what I am working with now. So, we are now converting a bedroom into an office. My parents are very generous with us and I am so grateful. My dad came over today to paint the room and my mom picked up the house for me so I could study.

I hope you all are doing well! I'm excited to say that I started getting stuff for my exchange buddy! Isn't our deadline coming up in two weeks? I wasn't sure so I am almost done shopping for them.

I'll catch up with everyone tomorrow! Have a wonderful evening!!

 

[joats]

Evenin' Moms.

I'm so exhausted. Thanks to all of your comments about the cake. It was so gross to look at. My niece (6) and nephew (3) refused to eat it...it was so funny. My family got such a kick out of it. I found the idea over on the community board - but here is the recipe link:
http://www.fabulousfoods.com/recipes/dessert/cakes/kittylittercake.html

Our family halloween party was a blast! We had spooky spider punch, bloody toes, pumpkin shaped grilled cheese, etc. The kids had a ball with each other. Here's a few photos from the day and of Disco Jace:

Bellacam: Happy Anniversary. I hope poor Aidan is feeling better soon and that you get your nap tomorrow.

Nucpharm: I love the pictures of Matthew! Looks like everyone had a ball.

Welcome BetsyWDW and Eliza!!

Sorry to cut it short, but I have a million things to do before getting into bed and I just want to crash right now.
Have a great night!

 

[llij]

I must say again, it's so much fun having a girl! I'm sure you moms of 2 girls then a boy (Jill, Diz) can say that about having a boy now. When I wrapped all her Christmas gifts the other day I had a small giggle- 1 Disney princess dress up box, 2 Disney princess Polly Pocket things, 1 baby doll stroller, 1 Ariel purse and some hair doodads for her stocking. SO DIFFERENT than cars, Legos, STAR WARS, Buzz Lightyear that I have done ad nauseum the last 6-7 years.

Robin - That is so funny that you wrote that! I was just telling my husband the other day how much fun it was to buy trucks, trains and toys for boys after buying Polly Pockets, Barbies and dress up stuff for years. While I loved buying all the girlie girl stuff, it is nice to get stuff for a boy. The one thing I really miss is not buying all the cute girl baby clothes but I will get over that.

 

[dizagain]

Hi Guys! Quick post before it's bedtime for Carson. I swear he has slept less than a total 2 hours since 7 this morning and he's not even 3 months old - CRAZY!!! Today, Hannah had a traumatic experience with Carson and I hope she gets over it soon...she picked him up and went to sit in the Lazy-Boy, but she didn't really hold his neck at all and she sort of plopped down really fast and hard. He screamed so sharply and SO LOUD... I ran over and got him and he calmed right down, so he was scared and not hurt. DH sort of went overboard on the whole "You need to be more careful, blah, blah" thing and she felt so bad she just fell to pieces. Now she won't even pick him up and says the baby "hates her". Hopefully that's for attention and she'll forget it soon.

nucpharm - Love the pictures! What a nice family!

jill - what nice parents you have to set you up with such a wonderful work space!!! I know you're excited!!

joats - that cake was GROSS - perfect for Halloween!!! I'm glad your party was fun - cute pictures!

bellacam - hope Aidan's tummy feels better very soon. Happy Anniversary! Hope you enjoy your nap! I know I LOVE my Sunday morning sleeps.

betsywdw - WELCOME! Eliza is such a cutie!!

sl - Lucas is so handsome with his haircut!

robin - I know you're having fun with the girlie stuff - I really love it! I am a little excited about getting into the "boy" things soon - should be alot of fun. I saw your post on the mattress thread...we get to buy a new one on January 14th....we can put in on AMEX and it won't be due until DH's bonus. Can you tell I'm excited about getting rid of my sagging mess of a 15-year-old junk mattress??? That's sad that I know the date I'll go shopping! Anyway, I wrote the link down after I looked at it - sounds like one we'll look at!

fabumouse - I'm wondering about you. Hope everything is going ok while you're flying solo at home for so long.

Well, I need to go get Carson off of Tim's lap...he can't seem to get him into bed and keep him asleep. Hope everyone had a great weekend!!!

 

[tkyes]

diz - Poor Hannah, I bet that scared her. I would just have her hold Carson with you right there a couple of times to show her he doesn't hate her. Poor thing.

nucpharm - Matthew looks so cute! How fun. I LOVE the cake ones. He did get right into it!! You have a beautiful family.

jill - How sweet of your parents! That's a beautiful work space! That's so ncie that they did all that and even painted the room for you! It really is more productive to work in a nice, organized space!

joats - The party looks like a blast. That's too funny that they cake grossed a couple people out! Jace is adorable as always I just want to kiss those cheeks.

bellacam - Sorry Aidan is having tummy issues. I hope he feels better soon. Happy Anniversary! I think your long nap sounds like a perfect gift. What a sweet husband you have.

alice - Glad you had a prett productive trip shopping. I noticed the same thing at the Gap outlet that you did at Gymbo, that some of the stuff is the same or very similar to last years stuff. I'm happy to look for the baby doll for you!

If anyone else needs me to pick them up something from WDW, let me know.

I did finally see the Mickey stuff in the dollar section at Target today. I was a little dissapointed that the cup and bowl were real glass, I was hoping for plastic ones for Tyler. I did get a coloring book and stickers for the plane. They also have some really cute animal books that make noises.

I tried to give Tyler his cough medicine tonight and he coughed so hard that he threw up a tiny bit. I was really hoping to get some medicine in him. I want this to clear up before we leave. Anyone else's child ever done that?

Time to get ready for bed. Night!

 

[Ginamarie]

Gems- When I bought my crocs I was choosing between the bright pink and the bright green. I wound up getting the green ones, but every once in awhile I think I’d like the pink ones better!

DisKim-Glad you enjoyed the Santa Claus 3! My DH has often thought about doing video production work on the side too. We actually did the video for my sister’s old dancing school a couple of years ago. He’s such a perfectionist though, that it took him a long time to complete, and he’d probably make more money doing OT at work than doing the production. We have some good editing software for the computer, but if he wanted to do more of this work he’d need to get a more serious video camera.

SL- I love Lucas’ haircut. He’s such a cute little guy.

Joats- that cake is truly disgusting. Blech! I crack up every time I see a picture of disco Jace.

BetsyWDW- Welcome to the thread!! Eliza is so adorable! She’s actually just a little older than my baby, Olivia, who was born on April 6, 2006.

Alice- I hope the pinkeye finally goes away.

Nucpharm- Looks like Matthew had a great birthday and loved that cake!

Bella- Happy anniversary! DH and I actually have our fourth wedding anniversary on Friday. I can’t believe it’s been four years already.

Jill- What a beautiful desk! Right now I work from home on my laptop on the couch. It’s not the prettiest set-up, but it works in a pinch. Upstairs we have a spare bedroom/office where the desktop is, but we don’t have a real desk.. we just have a small vanity that we’re pretending is a desk.

Dizagain- Olivia refused to nap today too!

Tykes- I hope Tyler feels better! DBro used to do the same thing with cough medicine. Poor little guy!


DH and I had a busy day today. Poor guy, it was his only day off and we were so busy. Olivia slept until 7:45 this morning, which was like heaven! We had an engagement party this afternoon for my friend Samantha. I’m her maid of honor, so it was interesting getting to meet some of the other people in the bridal party. It was a strange set up though. The party was at Dave and Busters. They did a brunch, but put the “make your own omelet” station in the middle of the buffet line, which made no sense. There was a terribly long line to get food the whole time. Then they let the trays of food run out and waiting until the last minute to refill them. So disappointing! Otherwise the party was nice, and everyone was in good spirits. We were sitting at a table with a couple that’s also going to WDW in December, so we got to talk about Disney a lot.

We went to my parents’ house in the evening and DH fixed my mom’s computer, which has refused to connect to the internet for the last few weeks. Dad walked five miles today for the Special Olympics. I was so proud of him for walking that much since he’s not in great shape and needs to exercise. Now I just have to remember to write him the check I promised!

Olivia was awake ALL day. She was smiling and playing at the party and then slept for the ten minute ride to my parents’ house, and then she was awake again as soon as she heard DBro. She loves those kids! My parents took everyone to the diner for some dinner, and Olivia was still cheerful despite the total exhaustion. We got home around 9:15 and she’d just fallen asleep in the car, so hopefully she’ll sleep past 7 am again tomorrow. Wishful thinking, I know!

I hope everyone had a great weekend! Time for me to pump another bottle and get ready for bed.

 

[Strawberry Lemonade]

Good morning!

DH and I cleaned out our closets last night and ended up with 2 huge garbage bags full of clothes to donate to goodwill.

nucpharm - Great pictures! Matthew sure loves that cake!

joats - OMG, that litter box cake looks disgusting! If I brought that anywhere no one would eat it. The poop is what's killing me. I love that last pic of Jace in his costume. He looks like he's strutting his stuff like John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever.

Betsy - Congrats and welcome! Eliza is a cutie!

tkyes - Good luck with the pictures. Have you decided what to wear yet?

Alice28 - Sounds like you did well shopping. I've got a Thanksgiving outfit squared away, but I'm still looking for something for Lucas to wear for our 2 Christmases. I don't think I want a set this year...he did the sweater vest thing last year and it's a little too dressy. All I can find are flannel shirts and Bill Cosby sweaters.

bellacam - Poor Aidan. I hope he feels better soon.

llij - What a gorgeous office set up. I bet you'll get all A's studying on that!

dizagain - Poor Hannah. I hope she can trust herself with Carson again soon.

ginamarie - That was some poor planning on the restaurant's part with that buffet. I love meeting people who share our Disney interests.

 

[vald1977]

I have about 5 minutes before I need to leave for work but I wanted to comment real quick.

Happy Birthday, Matthew !! What a handsome birthday boy !

Welcome Betsy and Eliza !

Robin,
Sounds like Molly will have a princess Christmas this year . I'm loving buying the girl stuff too .

SL,
Bill Cosby sweaters ! You crack me up!

Joats,
I think Jace in that Halloween costume is quite possibly the cutest thing I've seen in a long time .

Bellacam,
Happy anniversary!

Jill,
Enjoy your new dest set - it's beautiful. Your parents sound very kind.

Hi to BnB, Diskim, Hillbeans, GLT, and everybody. I need to run. I'm starting some new duties today at work. I'm now going to be running the slicer - hope I come home with all my digits! Talk to you all later .

 

[T16GEM]

Hey all!

Thanks for the balloon prices - they seem about the same as ours here. I am making some decent profit on the wedding job, but to be honest it is a BIGGIE and the biggest job that we have done so far, DH is coming with me to help so I hope that we can get it all done in the 2 hours 15 minutes that we have!

Joats, I love the pictures of Jace in the Disco outfit! He looks adorable - WTH with the cake! I have never seen anything like it!!
SL - Great on getting rid of the clothes to goodwill. I like to do that once a year too.
bellacam - Sorry that Aidan is sick , and Happy anniversary to you.
Ginamarie - The green crocs are cool! I think I will get those for next summer, lime green and pink are my favourite colours! Not usually together though! I guess I could wear one of each! ha ha!
Jill - That's a great office set up you are very lucky! I am looking forward to buying boys things too! Not long to go now!
Nuchpharm - The pics are wonderful! Matthew looked like he was really enjoying the cake and Emma's face is a picture! She is such a doll!
Betsy - Welcome!! Eliza is so cute I love the costume!

I am off to the hospital now for a check up and a dreaded blood test. Flumpy is kicking the h*ll out of me at the moment though so I know that everything is ok. I just hope that I don't have to wait in there for very long, there are a lot of bugs going around at the moment.

I have just sumbitted my first balloon study exam, hopefully I will pass! Send me some PD if you can!

 

[zalansky]

Good morning Moms!

I popped on to see how you all were doing and to say hi real quick until I can put the baby down for her nap and catch up then. But I saw all the Crocs talk and had to run and take a picture of my pink crocs with the Minnie (fake) Jibbitz on it. I also just ordered some Mickeys because Connor wants them for his Crocs. I have to admit the fact they are bright pink prevents me from wearing them alot because they draw attention but I cannot wait for WDW so I can wear the heck out of them. Anyway I wanted to post with the Jibbitz because I thought maybe you girls might like them and might want them for your Crocs. Yes I am a dork. And I would have never known about these if it were not for the Budget Board. Wink wink Diskim - I have spent lots of money because of the BB too. Good thing these Minnies were cheap! See you all later!

Oh and WELCOME to Betsy and Eliza!!!

 

[Alice28]

I'm so tired and irritated right now....I'm not happy.

Molly and Sam got the barfs last night. My stomach is really hurting but nothing is happening. The kitties both needed to be gathered up and taken to the vets this AM between 7 -9 to get fixed, so last night DH said he would do it. Well he got up mega early this morning and I could tell was irritated that he couldn't go to work right at 6:30. Then at 6:45 he tried to get the cats, and instead of trying to box them up inside the house, he does it on the porch and they run away from him. So he's yelling at me upstairs that he just can't do it and I'm going to have to take all 3 kids with me to do it. I mean, the clinic is less than 5 minutes away, but I was going to let the two sickies sleep as long as possible this AM, and now I need to get them up and in the car? Thanks, hon, appreciate that.

I'm hoping the bug the 3 of us have is what Joshua had on Wednesday, as that only lasted a few hours or so. Otherwise I think we may have gotten food poisoning from the Auntie Annies pretzel place at the outlets, because Sam and Molly each had a pretzel dog, I had 2 bites of it, and Josh only had a plain pretzel. Maybe the hotdogs were bad or something. Yuck.

Z- I love the Minnie Jibbitz! I may have to get some. I wear my Crocs all the time- I'm becoming a freak. I bought light blue the other day, but admired the pink...but they didn't have my size in the pink.

Jill- the desk is just gorgeous! Sounds like our parents were kind of cut from the same mold. That's funny that you just said that to your DH about being excited to buy boy stuff for John.

GM- that is a weird set up they had at the buffet- usually the omelet station is off to the side, isn't it? Glad you got to 'talk Disney' with some other people- I love doing that!

SL- I hope you are successful at finding an outfit for Lucas that you really like, and isn't too Bill Cosby.

Val- Be careful with that slicer! Yikes! Congrats on getting to do new stuff though.

Geez, I don't know what to do....the kitties both just ran in the house- they would be so easy just to round up and take to the vet right now, but the kids.....ugh.........why did my DH do this to me? I understand he was WAY behind at work and needed to get in there and catch up this morning, but of all mornings to do this.

 

[fabumouse]

Today, Hannah had a traumatic experience with Carson and I hope she gets over it soon..

fabumouse - I'm wondering about you. Hope everything is going ok while you're flying solo at home for so long.

I'm so sorry for Hannah - Kailey also gets scolded for a lot of things regarding the baby (like talking loudly in Madeleine's face) and I know it's hard on her. Eventually it will all smooth out.

That is so nice of you gals to be concerned about me! I just got so behind with Halloween and the flood and DH being gone (and then he left early again last night) and then - my 'net card fried. I couldn't log on at all. Couldn't pay bills, couldn't get my e-mails, couldn't see the new Gymboree line!!!!!

I'm now using a cheap Mac that I bought for video editing (perhaps desperation is the mother of invention), but it really struggles with me for control, the typing lags behind, and the Dis pages load up funny.

So I'm going to try to catch up, but I suppose I need to fork out the money to the have the computer tech guy come out and put a new card in. Heck, maybe I'll get DH a wireless connection while I'm at it.

 

[floridafam]

Morning Mommies,

I have no voice. It's gone. DH is home sick (it takes a lot for him to stay home.)

UGH!

I hope everyone is doing well today and I hope everyone has a great day.

 

[lissawynn]

Good morning! I am going to attempt to resize and post a few pics of our construction project.

These pics show the house from the time the roof was torn off (last Thursday) until Saturday.

I stopped home on my break and we now have four walls framed out and about half of the beams for the room in place.

I'll have to take more pictures when I get home so you can see the roof.

 

[betsywdw]

Good Morning Ladies!
I have to say I am having a blast reading this thread! I woke up this morning with a horrible headache and as you all well know, a 7 month old just doesn't care! I guess I could introduce a little about myself. I live in Pittsburgh, PA with DH and DD. I worked since I got out of college doing tech support and network security and once Eliza came along in March, I couldn't bring myself to go back to work so I am now a stay at home Mom. I never thought I would be but I actually reallly like it and would not go back for anything right now! I started my Disney obsession on my first trip in 2003. I had always wanted to go but it was one of those things we just never did. Finally that year I decided to plan a trip, well....once I was on the internet looking at all of the Disney stuff, I was hooked! I couldn't believe there was so much to do and was a bit overwhelmed with all of the info. Ever since that trip, I have been hooked. DH isn't quite as addicted as me but he will at least agree to go and I think he secretly likes it a lot more than he will admit Since then this has been the longest I have gone without a visit but Eliza is well worth it! We are taking her in Februrary for her first trip! She will be almost 11 months old so I think it should be a blast! I just cannot wait! Well, it's almost feeding time so I better run! I look forward to getting to know all of you!

 

[zalansky]

Lissa- WOW I can't believe your house! I can't wait to see the finished product.

Robin - sorry the kids had the barfs. That stinks!

FF - Sorry to hear you're all feeling bad still, we are too. I am on my 2nd round of anti-biotics but I have doubts they are working. This week will be my third in a row sick as a dog. to you all and hope you feel better soon.

 

[Alice28]

OK, I am now sick as a dog. I am going to see how the next hour goes, and if I'm not any better, I'm going to have to call my parents to see if they can come up here and help me. It's not easy to try and take care of the kids between trips to the bathroom. I did manage to get the cats to the vet. And called DH and gave him a major guilt trip.

lissawynn- thanks for sharing the progress- looking good!

Z & FF- sorry you are also feeling so crummy. This stinks.

Fab- good to see you! Sorry your computer went on the fritz.

Betsy- WDW is very addicting, isn't it? But at least it's a fun addiction, and good for the whoel fam....

Back to moaning on the couch......

 

[dizagain]

Just have a minute...

Fab - so glad you're doing ok - we've missed you! Hope the computer mess gets straightened out for you soon!

floridafam - sorry you guys are sick! Hope you feel much better soon!

robin - you guys can't catch a break! Hoping it's one of those very short viruses for all of you. I say - ditch the vet today. Sorry your DH was a pain about it - I mean, he can't manage to catch the cats so too bad, but you're supposed to catch the cats, get two sick kids out of the house, stop yourself from throwing up, and get to the vet? But, hey, he got to work on time, right? Sounds like my DH...wouldn't wanna miss that early train for ANYTHING! But, don't change the locks yet...I've heard enough good stuff about him too!

zalansky - love the Minnie! We just may need to get some of those! Hope you're feeling better too!

lissawynn - wow on the construction! That's so exciting to see!!!

betsywdw - Have fun planning Eliza's first WDW visit! My DH only gets excited about WDW when we get there!

Well, I need to rescue Carson from his bouncey - he's been in there happy as a clam for over 30 minutes but now he's "done". He got me good this morning - as I took his diaper off to get him dressed, he peed all over his face, his hair, and my bed. Then when I got the bath ready and got him in there, he let loose all over himself again. Then I was just about to dress him and he spit up his hour-old breakfast all over his back and neck and my bed again...back into the tub he went so he wouldn't smell like sour milk all day. What a mess...sshhh, don't tell DH - he HATES it when I use our bed for a changing table for just that reason!

Have a great day, guys and hope everyone who's not feeling well gets some rest!

 

[DisKim]

lissawynn - Wow, that is some big job you are doing on the house. It is going to be so great for you to have all that extra space!!

Robin - I'm so sorry to hear that you and the kids are sick. I hope you all feel better soon.

Z - Love the crocs .

Gems - Have a good visit at the doctor today!

fabumouse - I'm glad to see you back!

nucpharm - What great pictures of Matthew. He really seems to like that cake.

joats - I can't believe Jace let you keep they wig on. Thanks for posting those pictures of him. They made me giggle. He's so darn cute!

Emily is home sick today. I looked in her throat and it was so swollen! It looked so painful! I was scraping wallpaper all afternoon yesterday. I swear I will never, ever put up wallpaper in my home. The people who owned the home before us wallpapered the whole darn house and we are trying to get rid of it little by little. I'm going to have to hire someone to do the living/dining rooms. There is no way I can handle that much work.

 

[Ginamarie]

Val- Good luck with the slicer. Those things have always creeped me out (since I’m such a clutz). DBro(26) and I used to run out of the outlets of my uncle’s deli operations. DBro was in charge of anything related to the slicer! I was happy making egg salad and running the cash register.

Gems- DH would kill me if I tried to leave the house with a lime green/hot pink crocs combo on! He thinks I’m in fashion crisis with just one color of crocs on.

Zalansky- I LOVE the Minnie for your crocs! Of course I want some too now! Stupid BB gets the best of me even when I don’t go on there.

Alice, Floridafam, Zalansky- Gosh, I hope you guys start feeling better. There’s too much illness going around lately.

Fab- I hope you come back soon. We miss you!

Lissawynn- Wow, the actually seemed to have had a lot of progress on the house so far. I hope everything keeps moving quickly.

Dizagain- I'm guilty of using the bed as a changing table too!

DisKim- Thank goodness there's no wallpaper in my house. I had some friends that bought this HUGE house, and the previous owners were in love with floral wallpaper. There was floral wallpaper everywhere! The wife spent days with the steam machine trying to get it off.

BetsyWDW- Ah yes, we’re all at least a little hooked on Disney! My family used to go a lot when I was a kid, but I got rehooked with my DH. He started working for Disney in 1999/2000 as part of ABC News. So when it came time to plan our honeymoon we decided to go to WDW and on a Disney cruise, since it was such a great deal with his cast member discount. Since then, we’ve been back to WDW at least once a year. We’re taking Olivia next month for her first trip, and she’ll be 8 months old.


It’s been a weird day today. I had a client come in recently about needed to evict a tenant of hers. She’s going through the process of adopting a child, and can’t have her home-study done while she has other people living in her house, because it will reflect badly. Her tenant was refusing to leave and saying she’d have to sue him, etc etc. So I took a retainer from her estimating what it would cost to do the paperwork and the first couple of court appearances. I started the process out with a letter (like you’re supposed to) formally saying that the tenant had 30 days to move out. Now normally, the tenant will take this letter, throw it in the garbage and wait for you to take him to court. This would be normal. This would be how I make my livelihood. However--- and you have no idea how slim the chances are that what happened actually would have happened--- we served the tenant with the letter on Tuesday, and by Friday he actually up and moved out! No litigation necessary, everybody is happy, and I get to return the bulk of the retainer this woman paid me.

My dad and I were actually laughing about it, because I’m the only attorney I know who NEVER goes into litigation. People walk into my office with problems and we solve them before ever starting a lawsuit. In some ways, this is good, but I’m never going to make any money if I keep solving people’s problems so efficiently!