winter layers and strollers

well, the hubs will be off again. not to dresden as expected, but to freakin minnesota! its actually not that bad though. he'll be leaving monday morning and get back friday. i think the boogerbear and i can handle that. minnesota is freakin cold! its like TEN degrees there!!! i need to buy ben some more winter layers when i'm out today!

so things are busy around here. i'm working hard to keep the hubby and i on a "weight watchers" friendly meal plan. as for an update on the weight loss, i havent lost any weight and i didnt gain any until i went to houston for a week and came back 3lbs heavier. (hey the 8lb poodle thats laying in bed with me gained a whole pound, so in ratio me gaining 3lbs isnt too shabby!) so, i stopped taking the diet pills for a little over a month due to confusion between my doctor, her nurses, and the pharmacy techs at the local drug store. with that cleared up, i'm back on the meth... i mean phentermine pills and loosing wieght again. down to 222 (a shocking number i know, but i'm being honest here!) so that makes a whole 23.5lbs down! (ah! i cant believe i posted that!!!)

with weight loss in mind, i've been trying to go on fairly serious walks/hikes with a graco jogging stroller that i got off our baby registry before i knew anything about strollers. the boogerbear, a buddy of mine and her baby are all going to right start today in palo alto to pick up a new stroller for the boogerbear and i. now that i've learned about and actually in need of a good outdoor stroller i've decided to go with the bob revolution in orange no less. this is my second stroller purchase in the past year, the 1st being a combi cosmo that i'm starting to have a few issues with (the boogerbear can put his feet on the front wheels! that sucks while i'm trying to push it. 1. it can hurt his little tootsies and 2. it p*sses me the heck off!) while the cosmo was great at the beginging, i wanted something compact when folded (check), something compact when unfolded (check), and something very light weight thats easy to carry (double check). but now the stroller seems a little flimsy and the handle bar while perfect height for me at 5'5" is very not perfect for anyone taller, i.e. anyone else in my family. oh well, i think with today's purchase i'm finally going to get babygear that will be long lasting. i'm sure in time i will decide to buy another lightweight stroller as well. i've been looking at the maclarens and a couple from peg perego. too many choices... too many features...

ok, time to get going. more posting later today. have a good day ladies!

back in black?

thinking of dying my hair back to black. any other imput/suggestions?

home for the holidays

well, we made it back and i've been unpacking/cleaning/laundering/comtemplating dectorating for the past couple days now. i'm in full tweeker overload mode currently. i can hardly sit still, so expect pictures of projects and not so much actual posts for the next couple days. i love the holidays. well, the holidays we get to spend at home. dont get me wrong, we had a nice thanksgiving. it was the most "normal" visit we've had in houston for a very long while. but, its just nice to be home and in the nest i've settled into. i've had a surge of enery since we've been back. hopefully it will last through the next week, so i can get the house in good shape again and everything decorated. i'm guessing we're going to get a christmas tree this weekend (kinda early for a live tree, imo) since it looks like the hubs will be leaving for dresden on the 8th. i dont see him helping me with that task on a weeknight. well, time to scoot. ITS napping and i have christmas cards to finish!!!!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

thats all.

as my husband would say "...and make it snappy."

ok, thats a family joke. when DH was little he hung out at his paternal grandma's a lot. his half-brother (same mother) went to visit one time and claims DH told his grandma to make him some spaghetti-os and "to make it snappy." DH denies it all. i believe he would have said something like that because he still says things like that...

but, i digress. omg. my head is spinning. there is so much going on that i dont even have time to worry about the emotional ramifications of going to houston (i.e. the whole step-dad isssue.) today i started the mad panic towards getting us to houston for thanksgiving/babies-shower2007 (still no RSVPs!!!) and i always forget how much work packing all of us up is. PLUS, i'm trying to get all of my christmas stuff ready for my family back home done so i can put it under the tree at my grandma's house in person (and not pay shipping). so, on that front i'm good. i got everyone's gift bought/ordered (amazon, yaya!!!!). the only person in my family left is another gift for my mom when she comes up here on christmas day. no big deal. i have plenty of time for that. i've also been working on the anual christmas card. they're in assmbly line mode atm. hopefully i can finish the last 10/75 tomorrow so i only have to label/address them when i get home. fyi, next year we're doing the picture people post cards i believe. SPEAKING OF, we did the boogerbear's annual christmas portrait there today and IT WENT SO WELL! it was such a better deal than last year's nonsense. i spent like $400 last year and got a sitting fee, 4 sheets of wallets, 1 sheet of 4*6 and 1 8*10! this year i spent a little over $200 and got one of their 4-opening frame (with photos already mounted), 3 wallet sized frames to use as decoration with this year's and last year's photos inside, 2 sheets of wallets, 1-8*10, and 1 sheet of 4*6. the photos are totally cute and the photographgers worked so well with the boogerbear. i'll scan & take a photo of the framed stuff once i get them up (after houston i presume). so, now its finishing laundry and sorting everything for the suitcase. i swear i wouldnt stress so much if i didnt have to worry so much about the weight restrictions on suitcases. i mean, dont these people know babies are heavy and so is all their crap?!?!1?

this may be the last post before i return. if so, everyone please have a happy thanksgiving! i am very thankful for all my friends/readers out there and wish you a very happy holiday.

XOXO! holly

ITS COMING HOME! ITS COMING HOME!

ok, i'm a bit excited, but i get to pick DH up from the airport tomorrow (this) afternoon!!! YAY!!! must. go. make. brownies...

not a lot going on...

in fact, the past few days have been pretty boring. the boogerbear has chilled out from the self-destruct mode he was in last week and i've come to realize i'm a very clean and frugal person when DH isnt around. weird. he's such a laid back person that he makes me do lazy things too, for instance: sitting on the couch watching tv instead of doing laundry or dishes, sitting on the couch watching tv instead of going for a walk, sitting on the couch watching tv instead of making dinner. but since he's been gone i've quite naturally drifted into the non-lazy actions. hum. figures. even with out the diet pills, the "diet" has been going well with out the husband's influences. i've been eating: fruit for breakfast or sometimes oatmeal, because thats what tyler eats, a sammich for dinner, fruit leather for snacks, and kashi cereal for dinner. its just easier that way. i have made a can of tortilla soup with some spanish rice and i never neglect taco tuesday, but for the most i've been eating like a bachelor and it works (not to mention cheap!) i dont think i can get away eating like this much longer unless i make & freeze more food for the boogerbear. my stockpile of babysized meals is almost depleated. (fyi: when i make soups, pastas, chicken and rice, ect... i stash a couple little glad containers for days i dont cook for the baby. i like to know whats going in him no matter what i'm putting in me)oh, well. it looks like DH might come home as early as wednesday so i think i can hold out on the food front, but i'm so looking forward to him coming home. i seem to be able to handle the day to day of the boogerbear, but the uncharted waters of toddlerhood are pretty dang scary... but, DH has been gone long enough and it looks like the tool they're installing is ahead of schedule so there is very little foreseeable (?) reason for him to stick around those extra couple days. YAY!!! *does little victory dance* who knew that life could be so functional but so vacant with out him? i'de rather gain 5lbs than not have him back at home... tehehe.

anywho, sorry to be so dull, but thats life. anywho, i'm off to start organizing our packing for the upcoming houston trip (we depart this saturday and dont return for a bit over a week). sounds like fun.

oh yea, and keep an eye on my twitter because i plan to do updates via my cell phone while i'm away from the interweb!!?@!#@

yay! i made some stuff! (ooo... and watched ugly betty)

ok, so its not the most challenging thing i have made, but (yes, its more babies shower junk) i made the corsages for the mom-to-be and the grandmas-to-be.

the mom-to-be corsage is perfect in a very over-the-top way in my opinion. i used lots of big, pretty, fairytale-esque flowers with glitter and everything and put two of these abnoxious "fairy tale" rubber duckies (their really the party favors/decoration) right smack in the middle of the whole thing. i absolutely LOVE it!!! i only hope the mom-to-be apreciates me making this crap and maybe it will actually mean something to her. *big smiles* here's some pictures:


YAY! over the top and silly!!!


for the grandmas-to-be's i went really simple (i.e. left over flowers)

so, omg! suprise, suprise! willy didnt get married to bradford, but, NO WAYz!, bradford had a heartkaboom! well, at least betty moved on with her relationship with henry. i really hope he sticks around after his baby is born. or gets custody of the baby and screws that charlie whore. i hope henry didnt get the clap from that yucky. OH and Christina's husband coming back and about to DIE! i wonder if she's going to hop back into willy's pocket to get the cash to save him?!?! ooo! i wonder if the writers for ugly betty are on strike too? i would totally go write for them. cross the picket line and everything. yea, i'm a scab! i just need my weekly dose of the ugly....

the most eventful day of my parenting life....

yesterday was just insane for the boogerbear and his mommy. so, tyler got his "scrape" first thing in the morning and it should have been a sign. a really, really bad one.

ok, so, FIRST i KNOW its not as bad as i am or was feeling or making it seem for that matter, but tyler chipped his right front tooth last night. i didnt even know it happened. (thats the part that really make me feel bad about the whole tooth thing) the events went like this:

i was in bed andjust about to turn out the lights but first i was admiring him as i do nightly and i kiss the little scratch he got on his chin earlier when he was (SUPRISE) climbing on the exercise thing as mommy told him not to and couldnt get him off of it fast enough before he fell. (fyi, after he fell i moved the machine into the wall/corner so he couldnt get onto it as easily or dangerously. i was then and am even more so now sick of that machine and i want it OUT of this house. and it will be soon. i think i have a buyer coming tomorrow for it!!! yay!) it wasnt a big fall. just a little trip. one he's taking more than a million times already. as i was looking at the scratch, his little mouth was open and i could see his toofers EXCEPT the tiny corner of his right front toofer is MISSING!!!!! ah!!! panic!!! he must have done that when he fell on that gdamned machine!!! (HAAAAAAAAAAAAATE!!!) ok, so i immediately pull up the online resources and find this is the most common thing said about a chipped tooth with out any other syptoms (i.e. bleeding, swollen gums, etc..):

"If the tooth is chipped but it doesn't seem to be bothering your toddler, schedule an appointment for the dentist to evaluate whether there are underlying cracks or other damage you can't see. She can also repair the tooth by filing it or patching it with bonding material, if you decide it's important for cosmetic reasons"

well his gums looked fine and he ate with no problems all evening, but his tooth is chipped none the less. so, i first thing this morning i called the pediatrician who said this stuff happens, but he doesnt see kids for it and i should to call our dentist who said this stuff happens, but he doesnt see toddlers and recommended a pediatric dentist who said this stuff happens, but wasnt seeing new patients at this time and gave me the number of a pediatric dentist who says this stuff happends and tyler has an appointment with him tomorrow morning. yea.

something was up yesterday! first his leg and then this. i sat infront of our PC at 1:30am balling, having a total meltdown while i emailed the hubby (i cant get a hold of him directly thanks to samsung policy) and unknowing what to make of the whole thing. all i could think was that he's falling apart and its all my fault. asking myself why cant i even keep our kid's teeth intact for the short time he's had them? this was the first itme i've really doubted myself as a mom and it totally, completely SUCKED! i felt like i couldnt even keep him from hurting himself in our own house! no matter what efforts i've taken by babyproofing to the Xtreme! and watching him like a hawk constantly, none of it seemed good enough at this point to me. i didnt seem good enough.

ok, so all of tyler's "injuries" are minor, but its all still new to me. i've been told so many times that toddlers do this kind of stuff, but, again, its still new to me. i doubt the panic feeling will ever be removed from my core in a situation where my child is potentially hurt to any extent, BUT i dont feel quite so much like these injuries were ALL MY FAULT. he has to learn some how i suppose, but, dangit, cant he learn with less blood and keep all incisors in the condition they arrived in? please? i'll totally give you a dollar...

my husband can, no, cant read.

so, today my child scraped himself. there was blood. it made me sick to my tummy. i emailed my husband, because what else would i do???? (ok, so i emailed my husband AFTER i cleaned the owie and gave him a bandaid, but saying i just emailed the hubby makes things sound so much more dramatic for some reason...)

the emails/phone call went as follows:

ME (email to the hubby):
"so, our son was playing daredevil this moring in the bedroom. He
decided that turning his stepstool by the bed upside down was the best
way to use it. In the process of using it he got hung an fell over
backwards. Ad he did so he got a huge (like 2-1/2in long, 1/4in wide) gash
in his left thigh that totally makes me nausious. I got him in the
bath to clean it with water and saop (and to calm him down a bit) then
i swiped a giant knee and elbow bandaid from that super smart purchase
of a first aid kit(i like my 1st aid kits!). It doesnt seem to be bugging him. It stopped bleeding and its know deep enough for (eep!) stitches, but it freaked
me out none the less!!! I feel like a neglectful mommy... Poo :...( "

PHONE CALL FROM KOREA COMES 4 HOURS AFTER THE INCIDENT (the hubby was sleeping prior):
ME: hello?
HUBBY: did you take him to the hospital?
ME: huh?
HUBBY: i thought he needed stitches?
ME: why? who?
HUBBY: ARHG! that baby!
ME: um. read my email again.
HUBBY: oh. nvm.

THE HUBBY (email sent shortly before call was made):
"What did he hit?? Did you take him to the hospital if he needs stiches??"
[my thoughts: how can such a smart man be so absent sometimes?]

ME(in response to the last email):
"hehe. its only funny because i got an image of me getting out my
sewing machine instead of taking him to the hospital..."

what the heck kind of mom does this man think i am? i can only sigh here, there really is no other response. oh, and, to top it off, the boogerbear got blood on the WHITE duvet I JUST WASHED. oh, what the heck, its just a little more laundry...

yes, i labeled this under "sewing" for good humor.

thinking about other people

good friend of mine lost her father this morning. i believe she is ok, but her family is still going through a lot of pain through the loss. this obviously got me thinking about her and her family. just so we all know that this isnt a bum-me-out post, thinking about her made me think about so many other people i dont have daily contact with but i want them to know their in my thoughts no matter. so, i think at least once a week, if not more, i'm going to let as many of these people i know as possible that i'm thinking about them in a totally non-stalker way, of course.

i still believe that just showing people (strangers or not) you care about them in whatever small and insignificant way will make the world such a nice place.

omg. i'm such a freakin tree huggin hippy.

funny

the internet still confuses me.

stupid internet.

"If men liked shopping, they'd call it research."

today we went researching. nothing like 3 laps around the mall and a few hundred $$ out of the bank account to get your heart pumping. BUT, i did score a super cute monkey chair from baby style as well as the a shirt that the booger will be wearing for this year's holiday photo and some gifties for baby Maceo. last but not least, i found the EXACT xbox360 travel bag that the hubby wanted for my, i mean his, uh xbox360. (it looks like dh will be traveling a lot more this next year and he wants to kidnap the 360 to keep him company...) i know, it seems dumb, but this is the bag HE wanted (i liked the impractical white one) and i havent been able to find it ANYWHERE! there seems to be like two of them in the entire bay area, oh, but i have one now!!! thinking back on today's purchases, i didnt buy a dang thing for ME! hum. what time does the mall close?

so, the diaper rash still rages on, but the poopie mood baby that matched it has subsided for the time being. the boogerbear is pretty happy today. currently he's taking his nap. yea i know, most babies are about to go to bed at this time of day not taking their first nap of the day... what can i say? my booger sleeps in later than all those other earlybird babies. neener neener!

seriously, why is it that laundry can never be DONE? there is always laundry. if its not dirty clothes and towels, then its comforters and sheets. really, when will a day pass that i dont have to run the spin cycle?

oh, and before i scamper off, i wanted to thank the new readers/commenters on their compliments on my evil baby (he's cute, but looks are deceiving) and make sure everyone knows i appreciate when someone else takes the time to bitch with me about how lame other people are, i mean can be... *big smiles!*

***quote Cynthia Nelms

ok, one more rant. just a little one...

WHY DONT PEOPLE FREAKIN RSVP?!?!!?!? i mailed off those babies shower invitations like 2weeks ago and NOT A SINGLE PERSON HAS RSVP'd. talk about a pet peeve. i always RSVP no matter if i'm attending or not. isnt that the point? how am i supposed to plan/buy crap with out knowing how many bodies are there.

buttholes.

late evening babbling

it seems that the proper time for me to get sick is when the hubby is out of the country!!! argh! so now i have some kind of food poisoning/stomach bug. everytime i seem to be getting better and i eat a freaking saltine i puke it right back up!!!! RAGE!!!!

anywho, how are you? we're fine other than vomit overload and yet another firey diaper rash. things are just peachy. i mean, who wouldnt want a kid who screams bloody murder everytime he sees the container of wipes?!?!?

ok, really, no more rants. i just hope tomorrow is better. the boogerbear did go to sleep earlier than usual tonight, which means i should head to bed too ASAP, but i wont. i miss that husband of mine too. he's been gone 1week 1day 11hours 32minutes and 47seconds. (ok, i'm not sure about the seconds, but i'm positive about the rest of the time he's spent away) only 1week 6days 16hours and 15minutes until he comes home. maybe i should post a count down timer. wow. so pathetic....

good news, our friends seth and sonia (sorry no known blogs to link...) had their baby today. 9lb 8oz born via c-section. i dont have any pictures, but i hope to have some soon because i wanted to do their birth announcements for them.

all of that being said, i should hit the hay. i'm pooped. <3!