Feeling good

I am not sure if I am just getting used to surviving on little to no sleep or if my exhaustion has just morphed into psychosis either way I am feeling pretty good during the day.  I was hopeful that we had turned a corner as our sweet baby girl slept 6 hours the other night, but last night she was fussy and wanted to snuggle with mama and mama did not get much sleep.  We are trying to move into getting Em onto the start of a sleep schedule and perhaps this week we will start to make some changes in our night time routine.  Perhaps it's not that my body has gotten used to being exhausted or psychosis, but perhaps I've just surrendered and accepted that I'll be tired for the next 18 years. 

Em's other fave thing is to be WIDE AWAKE after her early morning feeding...whether that occurs at 5am or 6am...after she eats it is playtime!  Mommy no likey.  I can usually get her to lay back down for an hour and then she's awake and wanting to start her daytime feedings so my solution is to side nurse her so I can snooze while she snacks.  Of course she ends up snoozing, too, and this appals my mom.  She is sure I am going to roll over and smother Em.  I've thought about this, too, but don't sleep deep enough or physically put myself in a position to roll over.  Seems like a lot of women side nurse when they are tired so am trusting God to watch over us and keep us safe. 

Just had the best, although too short, visit with our friend Anne-Marie.  She is an amazing woman and an amazing friend and we had some of the best conversations about God and relationships and friendships that I've had in a long time.  Both of us realize how blessed we are in the friendships we made in Valdosta and how friendships like those don't come along very often.  Em loved AM and took to her like a fish to water. 

We went today and took family portraits.  My fears that Em would scream cry the whole time was for nought as she did really well and we got some very cute pictures.  Am so excited to get them back and hang pics of Em up in our house. 

Hope everyone is having as good of a weekend as we are!

Things You Don't Want to See at Chili's

Paul & I decided to do a family portrait before he deploys.  We had an appointment to go yesterday, but the desire to sleep a little longer and the snow had us canceling our appointment.  Oh, plus we had no clue what we were going to wear (although Emma has the cutest outfit ever). 

So today had us heading to Target to find shirts to wear for our pictures.  On the way we decided to stop for lunch at Chili's.  It was like we had found a Chili's in bizarro world.  First off when 4 people stop by your table to apologize for the wait and promise to be right back to get your drink order it becomes a little redundant.  Just bring me my dang ice tea already.

Secondly the family sitting at the booth behind me had children.  One of the children had a portable DVD player...which she played at an ear splitting volume.  Are you kidding me?  When did children lose the ability to sit quietly in a restaurant and have a family meal?  I'm not saying Paul & I will never give into the temptation of allowing our children to have something to occupy their attention in a restaurant, but at the same time I think video games and portable DVD players in restaurants are just ways for parents to take the easy way out instead of teaching their children how to behave in public.  For sure we were taught from a young age on how to behave in a restaurant and while that may have included coloring or a quiet toy it did not include portable electronics.  Plus if you are going to allow your child to use portable electronics in public then at least be considerate enough to have them use ear phones.  I do not need to eat my meal while listening to the antics of Buzz Lightyear or whatever new movie Disney Fairy Barbie is in. 

Y'all would be proud of me though.  Instead of turning around to yell at ask the family to turn down the movie I just turned around 4 times to glare at them and then said quietly to Paul, "I can't believe they don't have headphones for that DVD player."  Luckily they finished their meals and left before our food came.

As we sat there listening to Buzz cheer on Woodie I noticed 3 women at a table catty corner to use receive their food.  Then I noticed one of the ladies unscrew the lid to the pepper and USE HER FINGERS to get out a pinch of pepper and sprinkle it over her salad.  WTF!!!!!!  Rest assured I did tell our waiter who had a very appropriate appalled reaction (although I did wonder if he actually went and removed the pepper from their table after they left).  As I picked up the salt & pepper at our own table I wondered how many grubby fingers had touched it and then of course how many gross asses who didn't wash their hands touched things on the table.  Gag.  Of course then Paul told me this delightful fact about how the trays at the mall were actually found to be dirtier than public toilets.  Yum.

Before we headed to Target we decided to feed Emma in the car in the Chili's parking lot.  Being a terrible breastfeeder we had brought along a bottle of breastmilk for her.  As we sat while she ate we noticed a car with 2 guys pull up and park across several parking spots near a white mini van.  They got out of their vehicle and 2 guys got out of the van and they all shook hands.  The van guys handed a black box to the other guys.  They examined whatever was in the box and then the car guys handed money to the van guys.  Then they all got in their vehicles and drove away.  Hmmmm....

Probably the biggest thing you didn't want to see at Chili's today was me.  When Paul realized what I was wearing he laughed to the point of tears.  Stacy and Clinton would call me the poster child for bad fashion.  I realized on the way to Chili's that it is time to stop wearing my maternity pants since I weigh 5lbs less than my pre-pregnancy weight (having a baby is the best diet ever).  Of course I only realized this because I, in fact, had maternity pants on.  Granted I would wear maternity pants for the rest of my life if I could.  These things are beyond comfortable and I love not having to worry about my zipper being undone. 

So, my hair was pulled back into a bun, no make up, and in addition to my tan corduroy maternity pants I also had on a eggplant colored nursing bra (which barely contains the flotation devices that are now strapped to my chest), a Rollins College sweatshirt that is in need of a good washing (thanks Emma), pink fur lined crocs, and pink slipper socks.  I'd like to be able to say I got dressed in the dark, but honestly I just didn't care.  If I couldn't get on What Not To Wear in this outfit than there's no hope for me.  No hope at all.

I never thought THIS would happen

People told me it would.  I never believed them.  Paul told me he heard it, too.  I said "That's not going to happen to me."  But, alas, it has and I am too tired to feel bad about it.  What happened?  My dogs and cat have become...my dogs & cat.  They are no longer my babies.

Yesterday Beast, the chihuahua I've had for almost 11 years, got out of the gate.  And by got out I mean burrowed his way under the gate like a dang...well, some kind of animal that burrows.  I was getting ready to get in the shower when I hear Paul yell, "That damn Beast go out and is gone."  I throw on a very questionable outfit, grab the baby, throw her in the swing, and step out the front door.  Paul is walking back into our yard from our neighbors yard and we both are yelling for Beast.  Nothing.  No Beast. 

Now in the past this would've put me into hysterics.  I would've been a MESS until my baby Beast was found.  Yesterday I told Paul, "Go to your lunch.  He's got a tag on.  Someone will find him."  WTF!  Paul looked at me like I had lost my dang mind and got into his truck and took off down the street.  I figured Beast had disappeared into the conservation land behind out house and headed into the backyard to yell for him (after first checking on my real baby of course).  From the backyard I heard Paul yell "Found him."  Beast had gotten onto the access road that runs through the conservation land and Paul chased him home in his truck (Beast ran the whole way).  I thought for sure that Paul would kill him when he got a hold of him, but he just put him in the house (having a baby has mellowed Paul out). 

I always judged questioned people who get pets only to later on give them to an animal shelter.  Oh, how little did I know.  We have this cat.  We tried to give it away once and our friends actually took him which worked out great for a month until the stupid cat started peeing on all their dog beds (I figured he just thought "Well, this was a fun vacation.  I'm ready to go home now."  Foolishly we took the cat back.  Last week I hear Paul on the phone with a shelter.  Apparently I had said we could give the cat to the shelter if it was a no kill shelter and if we paid for his care until he got adopted.  Paul found a shelter like a man on a mission from God. 

This cat...he really is a sweet cat, but he's sooooo needy!  He used to get into this crawl space under our tub until Paul finally put the access panel up (so if I ever get electrocuted in the tub it's probably because the cat chewed through a wire).  Then he'd meow and scratch at the access panel.  His most recent thing is to want to be in the unfinished part of the basement.  Fine, whatever.  Except he comes in the house at night to eat and at 5 o'clock in the morning begins this awful loud screaming because he wants us to let him into the basement.  Are you friggin kidding me with this s**t cat? 

So, the other night the cat runs out the door when I let the dogs outside.  In the past I would've again been hysterical trying to get the cat back inside.  The other night...not so much.  I was in my slippers.  It wasn't that cold out.  I figured the cat would come back if he wanted and sure enough a few minutes later I opened the door and there was the cat. 

I just told Paul "Let's just move all the cats stuff into the unfinished part of the basement."  Paul said, "He can run outside then when we let the dogs out."  I said, "I don't care.  He'll come back when he wants."  Paul "Wow, you're really over the cat."  Me "There is enough crying in this household already without the cat crying to get into the basement." 

Don't get me wrong.  Our house has been like a pet paradise.  Heck ,we've driven 2 hours to take our dogs to a dog park.  They have an entire draw full of clothes and they get Christmas presents.  In the summer I set up a pool for them and buy them ice cream. To say our pets have been spoiled is an understatement.  We'd do anything for them. We just spent $1600 at the vet on Sasha and I had a cat who after a $2000 vet bill was diagnosed with kidney disease resulting in me doing home IV treatments on her for over a year (and she still ended up dying).  We are pet people.  But now we are baby people.   And baby people cannot give enough attention to 4 dogs and a cat. 

So, what I swore wouldn't happen did.  Our "babies" have become our pets. 

How did you incorporate your pet into your household with your baby?