Thanksgiving

Well, as this Thanksgiving weekend comes to an end (yes, on a Monday, because I didn't work today!), I thought I should post a blog about some things that I am thankful for. Now, this is not the grand ole list I had visions of posting, but it will have to suffice. It is getting late and my eyes want to close, so you'll get what you get.

Besides the obvious "I'm thankful for family and friends," here's what I'm thinking about these days (in no particular order, except for the first one).

I am thankful for...

• Nevaeh -- Not gonna lie, she's the cutest ever 3.5 month old. Who knew that I would burn so many calories just laughing with and at her? The other night in the bathtub, I blew into her face and her eyes widened with a look of surprise as she inhaled sharply, then she burst into giggles. So what did I do? I did it again. Pretty soon, we were both laughing at each other laughing. I love hearing her laugh; it's the most ridiculous thing ever. Sometimes I think she knows exactly what I'm saying. I'll practice my storytelling on her and she will laugh in the right spots. Just the other night, I caught her watching tv and there was a sitcom on (she was supposed to be bouncing in her jumperoo but managed to turn herself around so that she was pretending to be playing with the toys but her eyes were completely on the tv)... and she laughed exactly when the studio audience laughed. Anywho, she is 126% the light of my life and I struggle to remember what life was like before her. What did I do with all that free time??? I would not and could not trade her for anything (except 126 gabillion dollars). It's not easy being a single parent, but in just 4 months' time, God has blessed me with more than I've ever had.
• Food on the table -- OK, well... the food may not always get to the table, but it's at least in the fridge, freezer, or cupboard, and has great potential to be cooked or gathered into what some would call a meal. I think of the nights that I awake at 3 am starving and I traipse to the kitchen for some crackers or applesauce. (Yes, really...applesauce.) It's at those times that I think I'm so hungry that I could not possibly go on living if I don't eat something. There are far too many people in this world who have that feeling on a daily basis, but don't have the means to do anything about it.
• Money in my savings account -- While my teeny-bopper friends were out buying clothes and makeup 15 years ago, I was babysitting and mowing lawns like a madman, saving every penny I could find and trying to convince my parents that I needed a dollar here and there. (I really didn't NEED any money, but if you never ask, the answer's always "no," right?) Brother Joe, remember when we would go to Kenny's mini golf course in the summer and look for change in between the cement cracks under the clubhouse counter? Ahhhh, if life were only so simple still. Anywho, with all the saving I've done over the years, it allowed me to take 6 weeks of unpaid leave from work, without having to worry about a penny, even with the hospital and medical bills rolling in (I think I finally got the last bill just yesterday!).
• Books -- One might successfully prove that, instead of reading, my dad and I spend more time hunting for books at thrift stores, rearranging them on our bookshelves, or updating our book spreadsheets. But without books, we would have one less way to be nerds. Nerdy accountants, at that. I have stayed up way past my bedtime many a night, finishing up that last chapter. Or more likely in recent years, I have awakened at 4 am with the lights still on and my book laying on my chest. Nonetheless, I have been reading to Nevaeh since she was 3 days old and I hope that someday we can share a love for books.
• Traveling -- Thanks to my little peanut, I only made it to the sand dunes in Cali (I promise you that Nevaeh will never remember the bumps and the jumps because she was probably only the size of a walnut at the time), Boston, Scotland, Chicago, and MN a couple of times. In 2008, Nevaeh and I plan to make a noticeable dent in the travel budget!
• Baseball -- From April through September, I watch about 15-20 games per week. It's a tough life, but somebody's gotta help those ratings. I look forward to '08 -- spring training is practically right around the corner.... Nevaeh, get ready, baby -- your baseball wrist rattle and Twins & Cubs outfits are sparkling with new-ness!!!
• Puppies -- What can I say, puppies bring a smile to my face.
• Christmas trees -- When I lived in St. Paul back in the day, my roommate and I kept the tree up for months into the new year. I want to say it was March when we finally took it down. Last year here in Phoenix was practically no different. There's just something about watching tv at night with only the Christmas lights on, curled up in my chair with a blanket. My tree has been up for 3 weeks already and what makes it even more special this year is Nevaeh's first Christmas ornament -- a pink bootie with glitter and ribbon. I plan to buy her an ornament every year until she moves out of the house so that she has something to start her own tree with someday.
• Funny commercials -- Has anyone seen the new McDonalds commercial with the little kid carrying his boombox to the dinner table and dancing to the cha-cha slide? Holy buckets, I laugh so hard every time I see it. It's Super Bowl commercial worthy.

Alright, it should probably be bedtime for me. Back to the grind tomorrow!

Daycare Update

As it turns out, Nevaeh is doing great at daycare! The ladies say that Nevaeh loves to watch the big kids play and she's getting used to napping in the sometimes (or perhaps always) noisy and chaotic atmosphere. But I'm not gonna lie, during her first day of daycare, I was all set to quit my job and open my own daycare so that Nevaeh could be with me. I have absolutely nothing against the ladies at daycare...I would just prefer that Nevaeh spend more time with me, that's all. But having gotten used to her being there, I now look forward to my lunch breaks so that I can run errands without hauling around an infant who thinks that I use the car seat as some type of torturing device.

Nevaeh also picked up her first cold, probably from one of the kids at daycare. She never got a fever, just some congestion and a slight cough. After spending last Friday listening to her wake up about 7 times in the night to cough, I had the brilliant idea of running the humidifier in her room. Since then, no nighttime coughs have been heard. I also give her tylenol at night since I think her ear might still be bothering her.

My challenge now is to get her to back up. Yes, that's right, "back up" in terms of reversing. She will scoot her way forward from one end of the crib to the other and when I hear her start fussing around 6:30 am, I will go in her room and find her stuck in a corner. Not stuck in the slats of the crib or anything, but stuck because she can't move any further forward. I can just see it now. She is going to be the child who falls asleep with her head on the pillow and blankets snuggled around her. Yet she will wake up either on the floor or with her head at the foot of the bed... her blankets in disarray... and perhaps even her pajamas piled in a heap somewhere in her room.

Carpool Spots

There are some carpool parking spots at work. They're considerably closer to the door than the spaces I usually end up in. I'm trying to figure out how to get myself a closer spot. The "being pregnant" thing only scored me a medical parking permit for a few months -- and then I delivered 2 weeks early, so I kind of got jipped there. But as far as a carpool parking spot goes, the odds are probably against me. I live just 6 miles from work, I know of no one I could pick up, I have a daughter to drop off and pick up from daycare on a daily basis, and I'm notorious for wearing out the snooze buttons on alarm clocks. I'll keep working on it, though.

I'm baaaaaa-aaaack!

Well, yesterday was my first day back to work. People seemed surprised to see me, as they thought I was back early. I immediately thought I had done the math wrong and hoped I had another week of leave. But nope, it was indeed time to return. For once, being right kind of sucked. Anyway, it almost felt like my first day of school, except this time, I knew where to find my desk.

Gramma & Grampa were in town taking care of Nevaeh for 2 days. The little lass starts daycare tomorrow. Hopefully she won't catch too many (or any) illnesses and bugs this winter. Ha, tough to type "winter" when we're still in the 90's and my air conditioning is running down here!

Yesterday when I got home from work, I was so excited to see Nevaeh. We sat outside on the balcony and enjoyed the sunset. She took a nap in my arms and when she woke up, she found her thumb! It was so cute! Initially, I decided I was going to fight her when she stuck her hands/fingers in her mouth, but it's probably not worth it. Pick your battles, right? I think I'll wait until she's older to deal with it. Anyway, Gramma gave her a bath and a bottle, then she was off to bed. I followed just 20 minutes later!

Nevaeh has also started reaching for some objects. She can grab onto her Baby Einstein links and she likes her Bright Starts rattle, even though she isn't yet able to hold it. And although she's still a little small for her jumperoo, I put a phone book underneath her feet and she is able to bounce somewhat.

At her last doctor's office weigh-in (at 12 wks old), she was 16 lbs even with her diaper and onesie on! She's gaining good weight, especially in her tummy and legs, haha!

Well, that's about all for today from this household. I am exhausted and need to be up bright and early to get Nevaeh to daycare.

Ear Infection

Nevaeh went to the doctor today because I noticed she had been holding her left hand to her head the last few days and letting out random screams. As it turned out, she has an ear infection in her left ear. Geez louise. So she's on medication now and hopefully it clears up soon without any long-term damage.