Dancing Queen

The munchkin is getting her groove on Fresh Beat Style... LOL!



*To avoid any infringement issues, the song in the background is Twinkle Twinkle from the Fresh Beat Band episode Camping with the Stars that is owned by Nickelodeon.

You know you're losing it when ...

You don't remember changing your blog design. Time to restart this puppy.... tomorrow. Hey, I pretty much lost all my readership on my unscheduled hiatus so it's like starting from scratch so tomorrow is as good as today right? right?

Things I've neglected to do but will... EVENTUALLY!

So out of everything that my husband (*note to self* gotta think of a cool pen name for him) the last thing I expected was him to ask me about whether or not I still blog. I mean seriously he only knows I have one and the one he knows about is one that I haven't written to longer than I've written here. The sad thing is that I really didn't really have an answer for him. I mean I have had times where I wanted to post (and didn't). I have the blogger app on my IPhone (unused since installation) and I have created a much angrier blog (which I will not share) in which I vent in raw fashion (completely out of character for me but it's therapeutic nonetheless).

I meant this blog to be about my trials and tribulations as a new mom but of course time to actually sit down to type something understandable has long since been a fantasy that I have let go of. It's been a year since McNubbin was born and let me tell you for the first few months things like showers became more of a luxury than an everyday occurrence. I honestly think that's why they give us maternity leave... In the first few weeks any dainty femininity is thrown to the wind and replaced with t shirts covered in spit up and *accidents* and alot of not so pretty things nobody wants to witness let alone your employer. Not that I'm complaining... those 3 months with my daughter were awesome. Made me really want to be a SAHM sometimes. I have fantasies of making healthy breakfasts and lunches and being all June Cleaver like but alas bills need to be paid and living in NY a single income family is no longer in existence (well not in my corner of it anyway).

Here I am, long passed the newborn, breastfeeding, cooing lump phase and now the mother of a full fledged walking, talking (she said MAMA on Sunday) 1 year old and all I can think about is all the things Ive wanted to do but didn't.

So here I am making a list of things I want to do (learn) before her next birthday..

1. Cake Decorating: I was bitten by this bug a few years ago (proven by the collection of Wilton emblem bearing kitchen gadgets) but since I now have at least one birthday cake to bake/decorate per year, I want to make it special thus method education is necessary.

2. Quickutz Sillouette: During a particularly lazy Sunday, I was up early (never happens) and realizing that apparently every channel at that time is infomercial central, I was suddenly intrigued by a jolly looking lady saying things like "with just a press of a button" and "how cute is that?!?". As I watched paper being cut into Disney characters and fancy words, I never wanted to be a scrapbooker more in MY LIFE! But previously fallen victim to the infomercial demon, I was able to stand my ground just long enough to google the crap out of the subject. I didn't end up buying the "with just a push of a button" machine (it needs expensive cartridges SOLD SEPARATELY) but I ended up purchasing it's less costly (not by much) PC font friendly cousin. Number of times used: 2 (1 if you're counting successful projects). Now since I am now a mom I may make up have reasons to need titles and pictures cut out of cardstock.

3. Adobe CS4 Suite: Digitally collecting dust on my PC, I think I should really learn to use the program for more than just removing the permanent dark circles from my eyes.

4. Drivers license: Yes I know being 28 with no license is SHOCKING but being a NYer, my mode of transit is controlled by the MTA. Unfortunately now that my friends are getting older, they are moving further from the city where a car is no longer a luxury but a necessity. Also having a lil person makes traveling via public transit more of a chore.

5. My website: Once upon a time I wanted to start a business. A sweet business full of confections on sticks. I paid for the name and various other website fees INCLUDING hosting. Now if you go to the site there is a logo and a long forgotten dream cleverly disguised in the words 'Under Construction'. Truth is construction ended there since I became a bit busy constructing the future *insert super cool yet important world changing profession here*. So now that the lil one is a bit more manageable (yeah I chuckled too) and I received an email confirming my 2 year renewal, I may just want to get that going again. At least I'll have the hope of making some additional money respectfully instead of breaking out the acrylic heels to pay for the lil ones' preschool tuition. Just sayin'!

So that's all I can think of for now. Do you have a Life To Do list?

For the Puppy Monster

The Pricess and The Magic Pillow

Once upon a time, there was a young princess who was sooo beautiful that people came from far and wide just to gaze at the small beauty. She was perfect in every way but as most new arrivals, she could not sleep. The Queen understood that she had to dote over her at all hours of the day and night until the princess gets accustomed to her new surrounding. She doted over her princess day and night and maintained with a few hours of sleep. As a matter of fact, she was so eager to please that actually began sleeping semi-upright in order to get up as quickly as possible to tend to the cranky princess. Small price to pay to keep the princess content.

But alas the lack of sleep began to take it's toll and the usually patient Queen began to behead anyone who would say, do or look at the wrong thing especially the King. This made the King very weary and since he had an entire Kingdom to run and needed his beauty sleep he began to question the Queen's ability to satisfy the needy princess. The kingdom floor was covered in eggshells so the number of kingdom dwellers began diminishing as well.

The Queen sought advice from the Elders to find out if there was anything she can do to put the princess at ease enough to get a few more hours of sleep in order to save the kingdom. Unfortunately, the only words they provided was "Don't worry, it gets better". As much as the Queen had faith in these wise words, the darkening of the circles under her eyes left her unconvinced.

So she visited her local apothecary and picked up some potions that were sure to help her cause. These Little Remedies provided relief for colic and gas and various other ailments that caused the princess discomfort. After just one dose of the gas potion, a noticeable difference in contentment washed over the cranky princess.

Although the princess showed noticeable improvement in mood, her sleep habits left much to still be desired. She slept on a self maintained schedule but the Queen still was left tired. The Queen didn't mind the night watches if only she would be able to catch up during the day.

The Queen decided to take matters into her own hands and sought a happy middle ground with the Princess. After various one sided talks with the Princess, the Queen was struck with a BRILLIANT idea. "Why didn't I think of it before?!?" She exclaimed as she ran to her own bed. After that morning's feeding, the Queen placed the princess on the very pillow that helped her through many a sleepless night. A king sized pillow that was the perfect mix of soft and firm, soothed the cranky princess who slept in the Queen's arms for the extra few hours her majesty needed to function.

Awaking refreshed, she was able to keep her princess happy and maintain the kingdom which satisfied the King greatly. Thanks to the magic pillow, the Royal Family lived ...

HAPPILY EVER AFTER! (for now...)

Tick Tick Tick

My lovely SJP is now officially one month and about a week and as much as I am loving this time with her, I can't help but dread the inevitably. Yup, I mean the evilness that is GOING BACK TO WORK. Not that I am not thankful for having a job to go back to especially in these times but the thought of 8 hours without looking at this face makes me feel queasy. I am trying to enjoy every moment (like everyone tells me) but I can't help but think I'm going to miss something. According to the packet I received in the mail, I will be returning to work roughly a week before her 3-month mark and although I am blessed to have my mom to babysit but I want to be there. Gosh what I wouldn't do to be independently wealthy so I can sit at home and be there every minute of every day and not miss ANYTHING! Of course I'm providing not only the video camera but the still shot one so she can take tons of pictures! LOL! Unfortunately she probably won't get too many since she also has my niece in her charge as well. Oh well. What can one do? I have to make due with the 1000's I take like these...





On a lighter note, yesterday was a major mommy milestone. It was SJP's one month doc's appointment and I survived it on my own. You see I am what they call transportationally challenged. In other words, I am not an owner of a license thus no car. Wouldn't be a problem if her doctor was closer but her doctor is on another borough of NYC. Close but not close enough to not need some sort of mechanical transportation system. Usually I get to my clinic by subway but with no shots and the swine flu run a muck, not chancing public transportation at this point. Last time I had the hubby to do the heavy lifting but this time I was going solo. Was so nervous that I almost forgot to tell the cab where we were going. LOL! But I made it, got through the appointment pretty well except for the part where she peed on me. Why is it that they can't weigh them with a diaper? Can't you just minus an oz like you do for shoes? SHeesh!

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Speaking of the flu, my family FINALLY got over there's, so I was able to take the baby over there this weekend. This was the first official meeting of the cousins and I have to say that there was chemistry between them. I can already see them getting into mischief together. =)

Cha-Cha-Cha-Changes...

Lots of things change when you have a baby. Things like running out to the market for milk or the pharmacy for toiletries become alot more involved especially if you don't have someone to watch the lil one for those few minutes. I find myself currently home bound for the majority of my days since giving birth. Not that I'm complaining because ultimately I am a homebody but sometimes it seems like the world is passing me by. These are the times that I truly miss being pregnant. It's a whole different situation when they stop being carry-ons and are now on the outside.

It's been about a month (wow time flies) and although I do get invitations to go out complete with hubby offering to take care of babykins, I feel like I have grown very comfortable in these 4 walls that I find myself declining. I just feel like I'll miss something. Everyone tells me these days are precious and that I should cherish every minute. I know it's still VERY early but I feel like I'm wrong for not wanting to go gallivanting with my girlfriends.

The hubby does go out occasionally (very seldom) because he needs to unwind since he has stresses at work but I don't necessarily feel that need. I am satisfied with the occasional outing to the market or recently with the short walks we do as a family. When does it stop being housebound by choice and begin being hermit like?

More pics (1-2 Wks old)