Graduate school and our baby

3 year old logic

2011-04-18T10:04:00.002-05:00

S has taken to using a spray bottle to clean parts of the house. Yesterday he sprayed down both bathrooms and was very proud of himself for helping out. We got home last night and I was sitting in my room.
*spraying sound from kitchen*
Me: what are you doing?
S: nothing!
Me: I don't believe that
S: me either!

I stopped yelling, I was laughing too hard.

Notes on a bike ride

2011-02-21T12:11:00.003-06:00

A 25 mile ride is much easier at the end of the season than the beginning.
It's fascinating how a head-wind can be there in every. single. direction.
You can swallow a bug quickly and tastelessly.
Most drivers are very courteous.
Radnor lake is no longer frozen over (it was last time I ran there).

Rooms

2011-01-11T21:16:00.001-06:00

While visiting Ric's house the following exchange took place:

Nana: S, do you need to go to your room to calm down?

S looks around house.

S: But Nana, they all yous room. They not my rooms.

Nana: (Laughing) Okay, I guess not.

Eeny-Meeny

2010-12-19T12:09:00.002-06:00

S's version:

Eenie meanie miney moe

Catch a tiger, bite his toe

when he hollers

Let me go!

Eenie meanie miney moe.

Logical Associations

2010-12-14T13:06:00.000-06:00

It snowed here. I stayed home in the morning to miss most of the traffic, ice, whatever crazy drivers are out there. I went in that afternoon.

S: Where Mommy go?

Daddy: She went to work. I think she'll be home pretty soon, she wanted to get here before dark.

S: Okay. That way her not freeze

Why?

2010-12-07T15:43:00.001-06:00

We have just started the dreaded why phase. Last night we went out and got a Christmas tree.

S: "Mommy, what that man doing my Christmas tree?"

Me: "Cutting off the bottom so it can get water."

S: "Why?"

Me: "So the needles don't fall off."

S: "Why?"

Me: "Because I don't want needles all over the floor."

S: "Why?"

Me: .....

Conversations with 2 year olds

2010-08-01T11:15:00.001-05:00

"Mommy, I no like my diaper."

"Well, you need to be potty trained to not wear a diaper."

"I not potty trained."

"Yes, so, you wear a diaper."

"But Mommy, I no like my diaper."

Repeat.

"Hoss"

2010-06-30T08:54:00.003-05:00

Stephen runs down the driveway at full-tilt. Nana says "Whoa Hoss! Slow down!" Stephen stops, turns around and says "I no hoss, I just Stephen."

Animal Names

2010-06-25T10:40:00.003-05:00

Elephant = Eff-eff

Lion, Tiger, etc = Roar

Koala bear = Plalalala bear

Gorilla = Plalalala

Horse = Neigh

Alligator = Na

Pig = Wee-wee (now a pig)

Dolphin = Dolf-olf

Fish = Sif

Whale = Whale

Bear = Bear

Dog = Dog

Cat = Cat

Bat = Bat

Cow = Cow

Cute phrases

2010-06-24T10:12:00.001-05:00

Phil takes out his computer and starts to work

"Daddy, why you type Nana Ric?"

"I'm not"

Long pause.

"Oh, why you type Aunt Martha?"

Learning to talk continued

2010-05-27T10:16:00.000-05:00

"Mommy, who are you?"

(This is instead of where are you)

Morning Commute

2010-05-25T09:38:00.000-05:00

"WHOA! Big Truck!

I see big truck.

I see big bus!

I see car."

Country Music Marathon

2010-04-26T17:03:00.002-05:00

I have a lot more to say about this race, but how can I not post this video that my friend Kim took of me running on the course.

I have the best friends ever.

Visit Kim's flickr photos here.

I ride choo choo

2010-03-22T15:45:00.002-05:00

It's been awhile since I've updated. We have had a lot of developments in the land of toddlerhood. We went to Disney World this year. Needless to say I think S had a good time and LOVED riding the train around the Magic Kingdom.

His development of language skills is speeding along. I'm constantly amazed at the different words he knows. We've been working on the letters and he has most of them down with a few problems (T and I are pretty similar when you think about it).

Boxes

2009-11-04T11:12:00.001-06:00

I think I know what S is getting for Christmas this year. It turns out a box is the best toy ever!

Pole: 1, My car: 0

2009-11-03T16:06:00.002-06:00

There was an incident. It involved a pole. I won't name the guilty party, but now my car is in the shop. I hope it takes less than a month to fix (which is how long it took last time).

Happy Halloween!!!

2009-10-30T10:58:00.001-05:00

From the monkey boy.

vibram fivefingers shoes

2009-10-06T14:47:00.005-05:00

Here's me at the top (if you look closely you can see my little nerdy feet).Here are my shoes on the trail.

I bought a pair of vibram fivefingers shoes to run barefoot in. I wore them climbing Mt LeConte this weekend. The Alum Caves Trail is 5.2 miles to the peak and then back. The best way to describe wearing the shoes is really, being barefoot. I found them mostly fun. I probably should have picked a shorter hike for their first long use though.

I've only run a few miles in them. I'll update when I've run more.

Pros:

Comfortable.

The full-coverage did keep the rocks out.

Very light (compared to hiking boots).

I usually felt like I was just strolling along, that was fun.

Cons:

You can't wear socks, my feet were cold when we started.

I slid on some of the rocks going downhill.

I really had to be careful on some of the rocks, one wrong step can really hurt.

They really, really smell right now. I need to put them in the washer. I don't know if this is the shoes or me.

My calves are so sore it's crazy. I think it's from using them to stabilize my ankles (instead of letting my shoes help) and from just walking differently during a climb.

Calories by Day

2009-08-05T13:44:00.001-05:00

Here are the past 30 days of my eating. That huge peak is the hamburger, etc that I ate right after the Chattanooga Triathlon. I have another race on Saturday, I'm looking forward to another hamburger peak.

Food Lessons

2009-07-06T21:16:00.001-05:00

Not good: Glenny's Low Fat Soy Crisps.

Here's some warning signs I should have seen (while in the grocery store):
an entire bag has 140 calories.
It says "Tastes great" in more than one place
Low fat soy? What was I thinking?

Good: Ben and Jerry's single-serve containers.

These aren't exactly environmentally friendly, but I lack the self control to stop at exactly one serving. That makes these a godsend.

Clinical Informatics Programs in North America

2009-06-24T12:52:00.001-05:00

View Clinical Informatics Programs in a larger map

Locations from AMIA

Smokey Mountains

2009-06-16T09:59:00.004-05:00

We went hiking in the Smokey Mountains this past weekend. We hiked the Clingman's Dome to Siler's Bald and back. It's a distance of about 10 miles total. One of our hiking books (at which I am very angry) said the hike was "easy" and the other said it was "moderate." I would call it moderate to difficult. However, it was enjoyable. Most of the trail was a portion of the Appalachian trail (AT). I will just mention that a 25 pound baby gets very heavy during a hike. Phil carried him 7 miles and I carried him 3. It's not really a fair split of distance, but man am I glad we didn't have to do a fair split.

S had a really great time though. In the parking lot he stamped his little feet and cried so we would put him in the backpack for hiking. Here's a picture of him and Phil at the AT shelter (which I thought was pretty fancy).

And here is one of our views.

And here's part of the trail.

Finally, here's my favorite picture from the hike. I used my zoom lens.

15 month check-up

2009-06-05T12:01:00.002-05:00

S had the 15 month well-baby visit this morning. He had a great time playing with his robe. Here are his stats:

31 inches long (50th percentile).
weighs 25 pounds (56th percentile)
head circumference is 48cm (74th percentile)

Perfectly normal and growing happily. When the nurse asked if he could run, he ran across the room. When she asked if he said "hi" to strangers, he said "hi." Way to go S.

Muddy Buddy

2009-06-02T13:47:00.002-05:00

This past weekend Sarah and I competed in the Nashville Muddy Buddy. We had a great time. The race was fun. The course is divided into five sections, each just over a mile long. You and your buddy takes turns biking and running. You switch biking/running at each obstacle. So we put a camera in the bike bag and took off!

Here's us (and Heather and Kathy - our competition) before the race.

Okay, I ran the first section and Sarah biked. There was a lot of big gravel but it was okay. The first obstacle was a balance beam. Then I biked the second section (and therefore Sarah ran). It was another section on gravel.

This is me going over the second obstacle.

Okay the next section (the third) of the race was much harder. This had a steep, steep downhill grade. I'm pleased that Sarah rode the bike, I'm well-versed at running on trails, but not biking on them. She did awesome. Then, we had to go up a really steep hill. It kind of sucked, but we made it up. And now we get to the third obstacle.

This is a picture of Sarah climbing under it.

Okay, the next section was back to just normal trails (me biking, Sarah running). And the fourth obstacle was awesome. It was a 1-2 story high inflatable slide. You climbed up the back on a rope ladder and then slid down the front. I loved it.

This is Sarah getting ready to climb, look at her snazzy socks. That was our "uniform."

Finally, this is the last obstacle of the race. Sarah biked off and I ran behind her to finish the last leg. When you get to the end you have to wait for your buddy and go through the mud pit together. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of us after the mud pit, I couldn't really get the camera out. But it was fun. We'll be back next year.

The mud pit.

Sugar

2009-05-14T13:35:00.001-05:00

Holy crap, that's a lot of sugar. More here.

Flying Pig Marathon

2009-05-06T15:53:00.004-05:00

Here's a picture of me and S before the race.

Another marathon come and gone.

It was in the 60s and a little drizzly. The course was nice, and as an aside, I've never seen so many people handing things out along a course. There were people with oranges, jelly beans, water, and I saw a lady with an entire fruit salad (really!). Unfortunately, I was taught not to take food from strangers :). The downer was that I was sick. I woke up feeling kind of crappy Friday and by Saturday I had a fever and chills. This didn't really stop me from going to the zoo that afternoon (I did take a nap in the middle of the day, I rested, really). I felt okay on Sunday morning (not great, but I was also really nervous). I started the race and I only made it 22 miles. It sucked. I finally stopped when it hurt to walk and I could feel the fever.

However, my trainer (Stephanie) had really trained me well for the race. I was going to PR but I didn't. Next year.

Flying Pig Marathon

2009-04-28T21:29:00.002-05:00

On Sunday May 3rd I'm running the Flying Pig Marathon in Cincinnati, Ohio. My goal is to finish in 4:30 or under.

And today's good news is:

You can set up your email or phone to track me during the flying pig marathon!

Go to www.flyingpigmarathon.com and then click under "swine line"

If you need my last name (if there's a chance that someone doesn't know me that reads my blog, leave a comment with an email address)

A day in the life of Stephen

2009-04-06T13:29:00.002-05:00

Since I did this once before, I thought I'd update to what life is like now. It's been almost a year since my last one of these.

6:30 am - wake up, nurse (I'm weaning him now, so this isn't quite every day)

8:00 am - eat breakfast

8:30 am - fight getting dressed

9:00 am - daycare

11:30 am - lunch!

12:30-2:30 - nap (only if he's at daycare, he doesn't nap well at home)

3:30 pm - snack

5:30 pm - go home

6:00 pm - supper!

7:00 pm - bath (most nights, not all)

8:30 pm - start reading books in his room to get ready for bed

9:00 pm - sleep

It's really a good day when you think about it. All unmentioned times are pretty much running around and playing. He's a good boy.

Yarn

2009-03-26T15:53:00.002-05:00

I have been neglecting my blog lately, too much to do. I'm pleased to be outside again in the spring weather and S can run around with the best of them (he plays with the big kids* outside at daycare!).

Either way, today I decided to update with what time of yarn I am. I took an online quiz (it's easy that way). Here's the link, and here's my yarn description:

You are Mercerized Cotton.
You are always very crisp and neat. You are very playful and are happiest while outdoors in the sunshine. You are sometimes accused of splitting hairs, but in the end people find you pretty easy to live with.

Huh.

*big kids = toddlers

S's 1 year stats

2009-03-04T11:53:00.000-06:00

S had his 12 month check-up this morning. Here are his stats from the visit.

Height: 29.5" (42nd percentile)
Weight: 21 lbs (33rd percentile)
Head circumference: 47cm (69th percentile)

I like lemons?

2009-02-19T15:08:00.002-06:00

This wasn't his first lemon (the last ones he just devoured), but it was fun to watch him put it in his mouth, make a face, then go back again. I guess he loves them?

The Monkey Story

2009-02-04T16:41:00.002-06:00

Marmie was watching S yesterday while Phil and I went to pick up a vanity from the Home Depot Expo (that has a long and boring story behind it). We have two books right now that S seems to love, "Where's Spot?" and "Dear Zoo" both "lift-the flap" books (pictured here from penguin.com.au and from overstock.com in case you need childhood reminders).

After going through the spot book (where you open a clock, a piano, etc and look for Spot but instead find other animals), Marmie and S read the zoo book. One of the animals the zoo sends is a monkey. When Marmie and S got to the monkey, he paused, reached for the spot book and opened the up the page with the monkey on it (I don't remember what it's hiding behind). He then compared the two images. He recognized that they were both monkeys! He is so smart!

(And if you have a 10 month old, maybe even as young as 9 months old, I highly recommend flap books. These two are cardboard and have flaps, ideal for chewing and "reading.")

Short Walking Video

2009-01-23T10:27:00.000-06:00

I have better ones, I'm trying to upload them to flickr right now. But here's a short one of a few steps S took this morning.

Swimming Lessons

2009-01-20T13:09:00.002-06:00

On Sunday we had S's first swimming lesson. The lesson consisted of him going underwater a handful of times (slowly) and him "floating" around on his back. He wasn't really happy, but he was never scared. He cried after his first dunk, but after that he just stared around and watched other people swim by (there was someone swimming laps near us).

We go back next week for the second lesson (more of the same). The goal here isn't really to teach him strokes now, but to keep him from being scared of the water and learn how to hold his breath. We will work on blowing bubbles in a few weeks.

ENT

2009-01-14T13:29:00.002-06:00

Yesterday we went to see the ENT (ear nose and throat) physician for a consult for Stephen's ears. We talked to him about the benefits and risks of getting tubes placed in Stephen's ears. I now have a lot of information on the subject (if anyone is actually interested). But the
short answer is that Stephen is now eligible because he's had four ear infections in less than a year and he's been through 5 different antibiotics.

The tubes are actually little grommets. They provide a little opening for the fluid to drain out of his ears (and therefore not get infected). Basically, it gives him the chance to grow some more and have his eustachian tubes angle (adult's tubes angle, kids are horizontal - this is why kids get more ear infections than adults).

The tubes would be in his ears from about 8-18 months or so. They would most likely fall out on their own, but if they didn't, they would require surgical intervention to take them out. It's a common procedure although he would need to undergo anesthesia. However the whole process should only take about 10 minutes. He would need to wear ear plugs in the bath and in non-chlorinated water (like a lake), but he could still learn to swim (that's what I took from it anyway).

The main reasons I've read for putting in the tubes are:

-Stephen's comfort (ear infections hurt)
-concerns about hearing loss (this could delay his speech and language development, although it's not permanent)
- balance (the doctor told us sometimes older kids had trouble walking because of the fluid)

I must admit, I just don't really want to unless I have to.

And there's my ear update.

New Year's Resolutions

2008-12-31T16:08:00.003-06:00

Go on a yarn diet. I have been one some kind of yarn binge since Stephen was born, I need to quit.
Make one pair of socks per month (I think this is reasonable).
Get back in shape (this is a post-Stephen thing).
Run a 4:30 marathon (try at least).
Submit my literature review for publication (maybe it will be published by the end of the year, but I can't control that, just the submission).
Submit my Pneumovax manuscript for publication.
Submit my phase I study for publication (these things help me move towards graduation).
Try to be calmer (about the house, about life, etc. I've been a little high-strung lately)

That's it. Here's hoping. I want my house to be cleaner, things to be more organized, but I'm not Wonder Woman, I need to start small :)

(I wonder how many blog posts have this title today and tomorrow?)

I need to travel more

2008-12-18T15:10:00.001-06:00

My travels

Make yours @ BigHugeLabs.com

Possum Town Christmas Parade

2008-12-16T11:20:00.003-06:00

What did you do with your Sunday? We went to Stephen's first Christmas parade. It was a blast. Here are some of the highlights:

The Possum Stang:

The kids in the cage:

The outhouse-tractor-plane:

And it's owner:

Too many tractors to count:

And finally, Santa's lawn chair:

There are a lot more pictures of tractors in my flickr photoset (if you're so inclined).

Who wouldn't want this on their toilet?

2008-12-04T11:02:00.004-06:00

From toilet-tattoos.com.

Lori Schory is a painter with more than 20 years experience and a master's degree in fine arts. Her artistic talents aren't limited to canvas. Her creative work has been expressed on movie sets, in theme parks, on signs, and interior graphics for restaurants and wall murals. Her lovely art can now beautify your bathroom.

Frogs in the Moonlight Toilet Tattoo

9 month well-baby check

2008-12-04T10:59:00.001-06:00

Here are Stephen's stats:

Height: 28" (39th percentile)
Weight: 19 lbs 12 oz (38th percentile)
Head circumference: 45.6cm (59th percentile)

Raspberries

2008-12-02T09:47:00.002-06:00

My first attempt at putting a video into my post. Of course, this was easy to embed since Flickr did all the work, and I just copied and pasted.

I was the victim of a Monkey Attack

2008-11-24T09:37:00.003-06:00

This weekend I unsuccessfully ran the Flying Monkey Marathon.

The monkeys left me alone the first half of the race (or perhaps they were stalking me). At about mile 14 they began to glom onto my legs and slow me down. I thought I could shake them off, but they were relentless. By mile 17 the extra weight had slowed me to a painful walk (but not a crawl, so there's something to be said for that). At mile 18, right before a 1 mile hill (it's steep). I had to stop. Perhaps more training would have helped me fight off the monkeys. Next year, I will conquer the monkeys.

And Nike claims I ran 19 miles, but I didn't. I ran 18. Here's their chart of my run (which is actually pretty hilarious looking). I don't know what that dip is (or why it looks like I picked it back up and started to run again). But I was out there 4:14'20"

Things I learned while cleaning my desk

2008-11-21T11:33:00.003-06:00

My desk really needed to be cleaned (this must have been obvious to everyone but me).
Gum expires, mine expired January 2006.
Post-it notes are really only a good temporary solution (when they fade, you've had them too long).
My filing drawer is cleaner, but not my desk space or my shelves.
I keep a surprising array of things (starting with 2003 when I started).
You can keep some of these odd items (Russian house receipt from 2004?) when you're throwing away so much other strange stuff.

Nike + iPod

2008-11-18T15:30:00.003-06:00

For my birthday this year Phil gave me the Nike + iPod for my new iPod (his old iPod). Right after I bought my iPod shuffle the Nike + iPod stuff came out and I didn't feel I could really justify another new iPod. So, I waited. When Phil got a new one, he gave me his old Nano and here I am!

Since I don't wear Nike shoes to run in, I had to make-do with the sensor in my shoe. It's not bad (I have very high arches). Okay, so I started downloading my training data to nikeplus.com

above is my Nike summary for my runs so far, I'm slow, but I'm not that slow!

Here's a screen-shot of my workout last night. It looks like I need to reset my distance. I ran 3 miles, and Nike says I ran 2.56 miles. However, I love the little graph with my pace!

Washington D.C.

2008-11-15T14:08:00.003-06:00

We went to Washington D.C. for a conference last week. It was Stephen's second trip and his first trip to the Smithsonian. I think he and Phil had a good time playing while I was in sessions. He was a little angel on the plane there and back. He's such a good baby.

We had a lot of food firsts during the trip. He tried rice, french fry (only a small piece, I swear), chicken, peas, and it turns out he *loves* cheerios. They're the best food ever.

Tag! I'm it!

2008-11-05T12:55:00.008-06:00

I was tagged by craftlover:

Here are the rules: Link to the person who tagged you. Post the rules on your blog. Write six random things about yourself. Tag six people at the end of your post. Let each person know he or she has been tagged. Let the tagger know when your entry is up.
**Random Facts About Me**

Despite being from Florida, I'm more comfortable in long sleeves than short sleeves.
I once ate a hot dog with peanut butter and jelly on it (it really seemed like a good idea).
Not long ago I ate a deep-friend twinkie (I took pictures, I'll post them on the blog eventually).
I like to get up early and run while the world is quiet, but I haven't been able to do it since I had a baby.
I can only plan an organize for things that aren't important (my knitting list is organized, my research is not).
I am ridiculously unprepared for the Flying Monkey Marathon, but I will run it anyway.

I tag: Martha, Kim, Dr F, and I don't think I read 3 other blogs!

I voted

2008-11-04T10:03:00.002-06:00

Cleaning

2008-10-24T10:55:00.003-05:00

Today I am cleaning out inboxes: work, gmail, and ravelry.

I also have a glut of videos of Stephen to upload. It looks like I haven't dumped the video camera since June 20th. He's done a lot since then.

Yarns I would like to try

2008-10-21T16:10:00.004-05:00

I decided to make a list (I'm sure this will change):

Qiviut
Yak
Camel
Llama
Possum (really, can you believe this exists?)
Beaver (today I discovered this exists)

Fall Swap Package 1

2008-10-21T12:37:00.000-05:00

It's taken me awhile to get to posting about my fall swap package. I'm hoping to finally get up my post today. I got a wonderful package from my partner. She sent me a book I want (now I need to go buy needles for 2-at-a-time socks!), some chocolate, some lovely notecards, adorable little spreaders, and some beautiful yarn! I love the yarn. The colors are gorgeous (you can see it below). Now I need to decide on a sock pattern.

Finger Food

2008-10-16T09:57:00.002-05:00

S is ready to start some finger foods. I've been reading the books to find what's best and what he should try. Lots of places suggested grapes, but you have to quarter and peel them. So I did. I can't say that was an entirely enjoyable experience, and he liked them, but they were too slippery for him to eat. When he's older I suppose. Until then we'll try some other things.

He has liked:

Bananas
Grapes (but problems mentioned above)
Sweet potatoes (he liked to feed them to himself)

More to come!

LolDogs

2008-10-10T09:41:00.002-05:00

How could I not add this?

see more puppies

Passive Aggressive Notes

2008-10-09T10:59:00.003-05:00

If you haven't discovered the blog "Passive Aggressive Notes.com" I highly suggest it. I found this note this morning and I haven't stopped laughing yet.

Here's a link to the original post.

I love the "Swiffer"

2008-10-06T16:55:00.002-05:00

Who knew a "Swiffer" could be so much fun. S is learning to crawl and he'll crawl across the room to get to the swiffer to play with it and chew on it.

Baby Development Quiz: Test Your Baby's Cognitive Development

2008-09-29T12:51:00.003-05:00

Here's the quiz link: View >>

This question (and answers) totally cracks me up:
Is there nothing that a kid won't stick in her mouth? Once Baby passes her first half-birthday, everything ends up soaked in saliva. Why?

As taste buds are developing, your baby's natural hunger takes over
Your child marks her territory with spit; this is her way of making her presence in your household known
She is orally fixated and needs infant counseling
This is how she explores the world around her; using her senses helps her learn about herself and her environment

Hat attack (hat 2)

2008-09-29T10:14:00.003-05:00

I finished my second hat last night (here's the previous post) and mailed it off this morning. I still can't believe I'm not dead nor have I heard from my assassin (I suppose potential assassin at this point).

Here's the finished hat:

And here's S modeling the hat for me:

September Procrastination Challenge

2008-09-22T12:46:00.003-05:00

Does anyone else think it's nice that I didn't join this until near the end of September?
All the same, here are the goals I'd like to accomplish this month that will help in organizing everything:

Baby-proof the house (well, a first pass, surely he'll quickly learn to get through all my careful proofing).
Organize the downstairs yarn stash.
Clean and organize the nursery so I can finally find onesies in the morning for S.

Edited to add where I found the contest (I forgot to do that). I found it here.

Velociraptor

2008-09-19T09:49:00.002-05:00

38 seconds

I am a little unclear on how I could not click on this link, take this quiz, and then post it to the blog (and then misspell velociraptor even though it's in the link and have to edit my post). Also, I am a wimp.

Hat Attack

2008-09-18T10:36:00.002-05:00

I joined hat attack.

Let me start by kind of explaining the rules. It's a round-robin game. Everyone knits the same hat and mails it do their downstream partner. The person downstream from you is your victim and the upstream person is your assassin. If you're killed (you receive a finished hat in the mail), you mail your unfinished hat to your assassin and your previous victim becomes their victim.

So I mailed off my hat this morning (I made us stop at the post office on the way to work). I'm ridiculously proud of myself for finishing the hat. Now I just have to wait and see if I get a hat in the mail. (or rather, when I get a hat in the mail, maybe I can take someone else out first).

Here's a picture of the hat (plus the weapons used to build said hat):

And, I learned a valuable lesson. No matter how proud you are that you completed your hat, if it's late, your husband does not want to get up to take a picture of you in said hat. So, here's a picture of me looking like a dork (in my pajamas) modeling the hat.

Fall Swap Question #2

2008-09-17T15:15:00.001-05:00

What ‘cold weather’ project are you looking forward to making the most the autumn?

I want to make some sweaters for my son. And, of course, his first Christmas stocking.

This American Life

2008-09-08T11:48:00.006-05:00

Each time I hear "This American Life" I wish I was interesting enough to be on it. My sister and I had this discussion once, imagine what the writers could do with some of the events our lives like:

"Remember when we had a toilet in our front yard?"

"Or the vacation I ruined by not being allowed to bring that brown dress?" (really, and I don't remember the dress)

(or Martha's favorite): "The whole year you wore spandex."

Falling For Ewe Question of the Week

2008-09-07T16:36:00.002-05:00

What is your favorite thing about Autumn?

I guess my favorite part of autumn is the weather. I love the colors (I'm from Florida so I'm not used to seasons yet!) and I can leave my windows open at home to let in cool air.

Six-month visit

2008-09-05T10:27:00.002-05:00

Stephen had his 6-month well-baby check-up and shots yesterday. Here are his stats:

17 lbs 12 oz (50th percentile)

44 cm head (56th percentile)

27 inches long (74th percentile)

Yarn Stash

2008-09-02T10:52:00.003-05:00

I started organizing my yarn stash. I started with the upstairs stash. Pictured above are three of the plastic boxes that the organization went into (there's only one more box and it's unsorted yarn - things I didn't bother to put on ravelry, scraps, etc). So far I've stashed about 80 different skeins of yarn and that totals approximately 22,700 yards of yarn.

Unfortunately I haven't done any of the downstairs yarn. My goal is to convince myself to use up some of the stashed yarn instead of buying more. Or maybe I'll just be embarrassed by the total yardage in the end.

Pictures at Sears

2008-08-25T10:29:00.004-05:00

I took Stephen to Sears this weekend for his first professional pictures. I'll admit that I did this because I had a $5 coupon. I got one set of prints in one pose. This was easier than I thought because about the time he sat down on the background, he discovered his tongue. I've never seen him do this before but he just sat around with his tongue out the entire time. Except of course when he rolled over and started to suck on the background. I must look like the mother of the year.

I managed to avoid the sales pitches about the additional pictures to order...but they gave me an online link. And this link lets me buy sheets of his adorable pictures for as cheap as $15, damn you Sears.

Anyway, I took a screen shot of his pictures so I could share how adorable he is. By the way, I bought the second one, him sitting up and kind of smiling.

Who am I, now?

2008-08-21T10:59:00.008-05:00

Questions from my Publix baby club mail :)

Three adjectives that describe me are... tired, happy, stressed.
My greatest strengths are... perseverance? Odd that I can't think of any.
My most obvious weaknesses are... self-confidence and focus(or lack thereof).
What I want most in the world is... to stay home with Stephen AND be able to work.
If given the gift of a day with no responsibilities, I would... bike on the trace, knit.
If I received an "outstanding award" in 10 years, it would be for... I don't know, there's a lot I'd like to accomplish. I sure would like to have my PhD by then :)
The one thing I can do this week that will help e to get that award is... Get my research done!

Yarn Swap Package #3

2008-08-18T15:43:00.003-05:00

I don't think I wrote about my second package but it was wonderful. I received my third package (and remembered to take pictures of it) just the other day. It was full of wonderful things and beautiful yarn! I got some great patterns, wonderful notions and some other cute/adorable/useful things.
I love the colors of the yarn. I'm hoping to make wonderful socks out of the blue skein on the right and I want to make the vest (you can see the pattern in the top picture) out of the blue yarn on the left. We'll see if that works out :).

Falling For Ewe Autumn Swap Questions

2008-08-15T14:11:00.009-05:00

Do you knit or crochet? How long have you been at your craft?
I knit more than I crochet. I prefer the knitting.
Do you spin? What type of spinning do you do?
No spinning.
Are there any other crafts that you participate in?
Hmm, not really. I run.
What are your favorite yarns/fibers?
Probably natural fibers, wool, alpaca.
What are your LEAST favorite yarns/fibers?
I don't really have a least-favorite. Fun fur has it's place
Are there any types/brands of yarn that you are dying to work with but haven’t gotten a chance?
Ooh, I'd like to try some hand-dyed sock yarn.
What are your favorite types of projects to knit/crochet?
Right now I'm on a sock kick and I have some thing I want to make for my son
What are you currently working on? Anything you plan to start this autumn?
I'm making socks for Christmas gifts and sweaters for my baby.
What is your favorite FO? (Please, post a picture if you would like.)
I don't know...I'll think about it
What is your oldest UFO?
Some projects my grandmother started and passed on to me :)
Are their any knitting/crochet techniques that you would like to learn?
Maybe toe-up socks or the two at a time socks
Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?
Yes, I wear a size 5.
Do you have a yarn winder and/or a swift?
Yes
Where/how to you keep you needles/hooks?
Everywhere
Do you collect anything?
Maybe frogs, not that I can really think of
What is your favorite type of music? Are you MP3 ready?
They Might Be Giants is my favorite band. I am MP3 ready
Do you like sweets? What are your favorites?
Swiss chocolate.
What is your living situation like? Any pets? Children?
2 dogs, 2 cats, 1 baby, some fish
Are you allergic to anything?
Dust :)
Do you have an online wish list (Amazon, Etsy, Loopy Ewe, etc.)? Please include links for your swap pal.
I do have an amazon list and an etsy list.
Are you having a birthday during this swap?
Yes, 11/02.
What is your Ravelry ID?
jdexheimer

Severe Weather Alert in Nashville

2008-08-15T11:56:00.002-05:00

Seriously, who writes these? Skimpy?

...RAINLESS AUGUST THUS FAR IN NASHVILLE...

THE FIRST 14 DAYS OF AUGUST HAVE BEEN RAINLESS IN NASHVILLE...MAKING THIS THE DRIEST START OF ANY AUGUST IN AT LEAST 60 YEARS.

THE DRIEST AUGUST ON RECORD WAS BACK IN 1929 WHEN ONLY 0.51 INCHES OF RAIN FELL. IN CONTRAST THE WETTEST AUGUST... WAS IN 1923 WHEN 9.60 INCHES OF RAIN FELL.

LAST YEAR NASHVILLE MEASURED 1.38 INCHES OF RAIN DURING THE MONTH OF AUGUST...MUCH OF WHICH FELL LATE IN THE MONTH.

THERE IS A SLIGHT CHANCE FOR A SHOWER OR THUNDERSTORM TODAY IN NASHVILLE... BUT OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS THE RAIN CHANCES LOOK PRETTY SKIMPY.

Baby's First Internet

2008-08-04T11:17:00.004-05:00

Sent to me by Kim.

Juggling for Jugs

2008-08-02T20:35:00.005-05:00

This year Stephen and I will participate in the Susan G Komen Race for the Cure in Nashville. It's a 5k. We are part of the the team (actually, I'm a co-captain, the one with jugs) Juggling for Jugs. The team captain, Jacob, is an avid juggler and will joggle the race (juggling + running). You don't have to joggle if you want to be on our team, I don't. We're hoping to get some shirts made too! If you would like to join our team or donate to the cause, go here.

Spit up

2008-07-24T10:05:00.001-05:00

Yesterday afternoon, Stephen and I were sitting outside. Baley jumped on my lap to get pet. I pet her, I let Stephen pet her. He was doing a good job ruffling her fur and sometimes grabbing her legs (she's a very patient cat). And then, with no warning, Stephen spit up all over Baley and me. It was hilarious. I wish I could have captured the look on Baley's face. I couldn't stop laughing about it. Miraculously none of it got on Stephen, he has excellent aim.

I couldn't resist this

2008-07-23T16:42:00.001-05:00

MyHeritage: Family trees - Genealogy

I guess we'll try again in a few months.

I disagree with Dear Abby

2008-07-18T13:56:00.002-05:00

Not that this is exactly news, but still I thought I'd mention it. Here's her advice:

DEAR ABBY: Is it rude or inconsiderate for a person to knit, crochet or piece a quilt while attending a meeting or other gathering? -- CURIOUS IN THE SUNBELT
DEAR CURIOUS: Although I may get some argument about this, I do think it's rude. When someone is attending a meeting or a social gathering, it is considered good manners to give the speaker or other attendees your full attention. And while I expect to hear from readers who say they can "multi-task," to do so sends the wrong message. (from 7/16/08)

I guess she's not a knitter.

Travel

2008-07-14T10:04:00.001-05:00

This past week Stephen and I went to Washington DC for a conference and then Pascagoula, MS for my grandmother's birthday. He was an angel to travel with.

On the way back from DC we spent roughly 13 hours in the airport and on planes (it was a huge mess, we had to change airlines and everything), he never really made a peep. He kicked around and giggled and slept. What a wonderful baby.

Then we drove the roughly 8 hours to Mississippi. He slept most of the way, but still slept at night. I couldn't ask for a better baby.

Stephen rolled over!

2008-07-06T18:24:00.000-05:00

Stephen rolled from his back to his tummy today. I can't believe it. He had no idea how he got there, but he did :)

4 month visit

2008-07-05T21:49:00.002-05:00

We had the four month well-baby visit on Thursday. So here are Stephen's vitals:

14 lbs 14 oz - 50th percentile

42cm head - 45th percentile (or so, I can't remember)

26 inches long - 87th percentile

I would have never said my son would be tall. This must be a temporary growth-spurt fluke :)

Traveling Scarf #2

2008-06-27T13:07:00.001-05:00

I joined a second traveling scarf group. I'm sending my scarf out today. I used more of the pink Cascade 220 to start it and another pattern from Knitting on the net. This time I used the Chevron pattern. Godspeed little scarf.

Stephen said "Mom"

2008-06-26T09:51:00.002-05:00

He was babbling and cooing happily on the bed and instead of just vowel sounds, he said mom! In fact, he did it twice. Sure, he may not have known what he said, it was an accident, whatever. I'll take what I can get. Besides, he got such a good reaction, he'll probably try to make that noise again :)

Babies = Laundry

2008-06-24T13:08:00.002-05:00

I knew when I had a baby I would have more laundry to do. What I didn't count on, was how much more laundry I would need to do. I guess I thought about a load a week. I can already hear other the mothers laughing. How can someone so small produce so much laundry? This is a mystery to me. His clothes are so small.

For future advice I would suggest (at least):

3 crib sheets
2 mattress pads (this will be important if you want to put your baby back to sleep quickly)
3 changing table covers
2 boppy covers (I do love my boppy)
Many blankets
Many clothes (for him to grow out of as quick as he can)
Lots of socks (which is also a mystery because he can't even walk)

Yarn Swap Package #1

2008-06-16T09:43:00.006-05:00

I received my first yarn swap package and it was wonderful! I got a great pattern book with an adorable pattern for Stephen. I'll have to add it to my queue :). And you can never go wrong with jelly beans.

My swap partner sent me some heavenly yarn called "Heather" by Schaefer that's really soft.

And finally, some beautiful sock yarn from Noro. All these yarns (and even the pattern) are in one of my favorite colors, brown :)

I hope my swap partner likes the presents I sent as much as I like mine.

Traveling Scarf

2008-06-16T09:35:00.003-05:00

I started my traveling scarf this weekend. It's a ravelry group where we mail the scarf pieces to the next person in our group and each person knits (or crochets) on the scarf and then passes it on to the next on the list. In the end about 12 other people should work on my scarf (and me on theirs) so the end-result should be very nice.

Here's the start to my scarf. I used the Little Pyramids stitch from Knitting on the Net in Cascade 220 on size 8 needles. Let's see how it goes :)

Baths

2008-06-09T09:47:00.005-05:00

How often should you bathe your baby? I'm at constant odds with this. He gets a bath between 1 and 2 times a week, but now that he's in daycare I'm paranoid they'll tell me my baby is dirty. You'd think I'd have better things to worry about.

But baths are usually pretty good now. He cried through his first few, but now he sits happily and smiles. I don't think he really likes them, but he doesn't hate them either. Baths should be morning activities though (or anytime you want your baby to stay awake). They don't put him to sleep (at least not yet).

Baby Pattern Baldness

2008-06-03T09:51:00.002-05:00

Stephen has started losing hair. It's sad, I held on for weeks that he was keeping his hair and his head was growing, but I've been defeated...he's losing it. Oh well, we'll see how it comes back.

Summer of Yarn Love Swap Questions

2008-05-28T14:29:00.005-05:00

I joined my first yarn swap. I'm so excited! I have my first assignment, to answer the following questions:

I knit much more than I crochet. I've been taught to knit several times but the time that stuck was probably in 2000.
No spinning for me, although it seems cool.
I love natural fibers and hand-dyed yarns. I probably have expensive taste in yarn. Although I'm always swayed by "fun" yarns and sale yarns and nice-fiber yarn... I'm not sure what my least favorite yarns are, maybe acrylic, or anything from the 70s.
I tend to like blues, greens, and browns for color. I don't really have a least-favorite color, everything is fine.
I'd love to work with Schaefer Judith, but that's only because of the name :)
I just learned to knit socks, so they're my new favorite. I seem to make a lot of blankets, but hats and scarves are nice because they're quick.
I'm currently working on some socks, my first pair of baby socks, and a baby blanket.
Hmm, I'm not sure what my favorite FO is. I made an adorable baby cardigan for a friend a few years ago, it had the cutest frog buttons.
My oldest UFO came from my grandmother. I have all of her UFOs as well as my own. I have plans to finish her baby blankets one day.
I can't think of any techniques I want to learn since I just did my sock class, there will be more in the future.
I am on Ravlery.
I am currently a sock knitter, but a new one. I'm not sure what foot measurements I need to provide, I have a tiny foot, I wear a size 5.
I appear to collect yarn :).
I have a yarn winder and a swift.
I love sweets and I have a real weakness for Swiss chocolate.
Hmm, my favorite scents, gardenia and honeysuckle.
Oh, I keep my needles everywhere. Most of them are in a drawer, some are in a bag, and many have projects cast on.
I have an Amazon wishlist, but I doubt it's that interesting.
No summer birthday for me.
I'm allergic to dust, but that's it.

Yarn confessions

2008-05-26T19:40:00.004-05:00

1. I hoard yarn. Each skein has a project it belongs to, but I can't pass up a texture or color that I adore. At least I'm migrating to socks so it'll only be one skein per project.

2. I work on too many projects at a time. This goes with the too much yarn thing, I cast on a fun project, and then get side-tracked a few weeks into it.

3. I am reading knitting mysteries, how nerdy is that?

4. I am scared of making complicated projects. I don't know why, when I start one, it goes fine, but I seem to worry about them an excessive amount (seriously I just made an entire garter-stitch sweater and blanket, boring).

5. My ravelry projects rarely go up before they're done. I'm trying to plan some out now, but we'll see.

6. Finally, I love kitchener's stitch! The toe of my first sock looks a little stupid (I think it should be round), but I really wanted to do kitchener's.

Our first plane trip

2008-05-19T15:45:00.002-05:00

This past weekend we went to Austin for my grandmother's 90th birthday. A trip to Austin required either a 2 hour plane trip (straight thank-goodness) or many, many hours in the car. We decided to go for the plane trip.

The trip out was great. Stephen cried a little, but not much. Mom, Dad, and I all sat in one row so I had people to help me hold him. He ate, he looked around, he napped.

The trip home was not so great. As I said "some damn baby cried the whole flight." Unfortunately, that baby was mine. He slept through take-off and then pretty much cried the rest of the flight. I still don't know what was bothering him: ears, gas, bored? Whew, I will never, ever get mad at anyone with a crying baby again. And to all the other passengers, I'm sorry, I really am, and if it helps, I was probably more upset by it than you.

More infant life

2008-05-13T20:50:00.001-05:00

Phil (giving me a kiss): You smell nice, are you wearing perfume?

Me: I took a shower.

Phil: silence

Mother's Day

2008-05-11T19:56:00.006-05:00

Flowers

Mobile

Today was my first Mother's day. My family sent me some books about Stephen including the Rookie Moms book and . My sister sent me some beautiful flowers (irises and lilies), my mom bought me a mobile that Stephen and I could share, and my husband (and son) got me a sock-knitting class (I started my first pair of socks and Stephen can wear them when he's about 4). Woo presents! :)

Rug shopping with a 2 month old

2008-05-11T19:33:00.003-05:00

In honor of the Rookie Moms contest, I thought I'd write about Stephen and I rug shopping. I decided (while pregnant) that we needed a new living room rug, but I didn't actually start searching until Stephen was born.

The first step was measuring the current living room rug (long-since destroyed by the two cats and house-breaking two dogs). Then we went to several stores to look at rugs, see which ones we liked, and how much we could plan on spending. This activity took up many days and required a spiral search pattern starting at our house so quick trips could be made home for extra-fussiness, feeding, whatever Stephen wanted, etc. We narrowed it down to three stores and visited them more times than I'd like to admit to compare rugs, colors, and prices. Each time I got to a new store, I'd curse and realize I had just taken my camera out of the diaper bag (and my phone camera doesn't really take good pictures of 8' x 10' rugs). The inherent problem is my pickiness. I want the rug to be light enough that you can't see the dog hair (a major problem with the old one), colorful enough that it looks good, and still match the rest of the room. Stephen was consulted on each rug we saw what he thought of all these qualities. Needless to say, some crying was involved on both sides.

Rug-testing is kind of an embarrassing thing to do in a store. I stopped short of putting Stephen on it to kick around to see if he'd like them, but I feel you need to sit on the rug, walk on it shod and unshod, feel it, and be able to jump from one to the next to compare them. It's best to do this in the middle of the day when the least amount of people are at the store.

Then my mother-in-law got involved and sent me some rug suggestions she found as well (now the search spanned two states). Despite the temptation just to tell her to buy what she wanted and we'd make do, she did send me pictures. The pictures spurred yet another round of looking at rugs and deciding what we wanted, and a complete reevaluation of size (we did go with the smaller ones she suggested).

Finally, I picked on out I loved, it was light but not white. It was affordable (I fell in love with one that was small and $600, this clearly wasn't a good investment in the land of pets and babies). It had a lot of color in it, and when I went to buy it, they only had the size hanging up. This was larger than 8' x 10' and reflected accurately in the price. So, I feel back on my second choice and ended up withe a runner that goes outside the nursery too. The picture is the new rug with Tucker sleeping on it, and Seismic (one of the cats) has already begun to claw the runner.

2 month visit

2008-05-05T13:44:00.001-05:00

Friday was Stephen's 2 month check-up. He was 23" long, 12 lbs 6 oz, and had a head circumference of 36.5cm. He got his first round of vaccinations (and did not enjoy them). He looks great and he's growing nicely :)

Bug Porn

2008-05-01T20:26:00.004-05:00

Our local newspaper had a picture of bug porn on the front of the local section. It's two crane flies mating. The article is about how they aren't mosquitoes, don't bite, and what people think of them. I'm a little bit embarrassed this is "news" in our paper, but I'm also very fond of the phrase "bug porn" so I posted it.

The picture is from the Tennessean and here's a link to the story.

My son has monkey toes

2008-04-27T19:48:00.001-05:00

Look how long they are!

Netflix

2008-04-25T19:23:00.002-05:00

For people thinking about having children, I highly suggest Netflix.

While I'm offering unsolicited advice, I also have a few movie guidelines I've learned:

Don't watch anything with a complicated plot (you won't have the brain power to figure it out).

Watch things that you can understand in 5 minute intervals.

If you can watch a movie for two hours straight, you should have been napping.

TiVo or DVR is a good second choice (or if you like watching recent shows).

Running

2008-04-24T20:33:00.002-05:00

There's something I enjoy about running (or biking) for each season. I ran my 2 mile loop with no walking today (hooray) so I'm feeling more confident about getting in shape. However, while I ran, I was thinking about the things I liked (and missed while pregnant):

Spring: Flowers (I know a lot of my neighbors yards by their flowers), getting back on my bike (I'm too wimpy to bike in the winter), and weather.

Summer: Triathlon season (I'm not fast, but I love to race, it's fun), biking (I bike the most in summer), and rain (I've always loved running in the rain).

Fall: Weather, then changing leaves (I've never lived anywhere with actual seasons until now), biking (I like to see the turkeys and pileated woodpeckers on the trace).

Winter: Christmas lights (I love to look at them while I run), the occasional snow, Marathon season (but I haven't been up to a big race in awhile).

A day in the life of Stephen

2008-04-20T09:06:00.003-05:00

2:40am - wake up, eat, go back to sleep.

5:50am - wake up, eat, go back to sleep.

7:30am - wake up, play with Daddy.

9:10am - wake up from a short nap, eat, play and kick.

11:10am - eat, play and nap (fitfully)

1:10pm - eat, leave to run errands, fall asleep in the car, wake up in the store.

3:05pm - eat, sleep through Costco, and the library.

5:15pm - return home, eat.

6:30pm - realize you didn't really nap lately, be angry and hungry, eat. After eating, be fussy for a couple of hours (gassy I think).

8:30pm - eat again, nap some, be fussy some more.

10:45 - eat, sleep and off to bed for the night.

Clothes

2008-04-17T10:56:00.001-05:00

Today we moved up from 0-3 month clothes to 3-6 months. A few of the 0-3s still fit so they're hanging around until they're too small. But we made it 6.5 weeks on the first size. Sheesh.

More Running

2008-04-11T12:59:00.001-05:00

My second run went much better than the first. Hopefully the third will follow soon. It's nice to feel kind of normal again :)

Peeing

2008-04-08T19:34:00.005-05:00

Baby boys (unlike baby girls) can pee on many, many things while you're changing them. If you didn't know that, it's valuable information to have in your repertoire of knowledge. You can stay dry by purchasing these, which I am totally smitten with. However, if this is one of your major concerns you might want think about having a baby (pee, by far, is one of the cleaner fluids to hit you).

Who could not love something named Pee-pee Teepee?

Running

2008-04-06T19:16:00.001-05:00

I went on my first run today. I ran 2 miles, or rather I ran/walked 2 miles. It felt good to be out, but I sure am out of shape.