Blah Blog Blah

Oh, my dear neglected blog (readers)(mom)!  I have wanted to blog for so long, as it is rejuvenating and fun for me (should I call it a hobby?), but I have been very tired and overextended this fall.   Let me take you back to pregnancy #1, where I applied for (and got!) several jobs, even going so far as to teach a sample lesson 8 months pregnant while still gainfully employed at my current workplace.  It was absolutely crazy because I was having a baby and going on maternity leave!  What was I thinking?  My friend Jazmin thinks that it is how the nesting instinct presents itself in my psyche—instead of becoming obsessed with nursery décor, I become obsessed with work (work-life balance probably being the biggest concern I have with regard to “making a nice home for a new small child”, as opposed to cute bedding.  Teaching is not a very good profession for W-L balance, even though it seems like it would be).

I am here to tell you that this pregnancy is no different.  Though I have, wisely, abstained from applying for other jobs, I have not abstained from filling up my plate with applications for assorted fun-sounding (to me at least) activities, in addition to workshops and conferences.  I have roughly eight work weeks before maternity leave, and in the next eight weeks I will: attend 3 teacher workshops, present Mars-related curriculum to teachers at AGU, create 2 video guides for the Green Ninja, fly to Seattle for an astronomy conference (while 34 weeks pregnant!) and submit an application to develop curriculum on Jeffersonian architecture (!!).  Fall 2014 is definitely my Max Fischer fall.  It feels a little disjointed, but I’m chalking it up to my strange version of counter-intuitive nesting.  I am still working full time during all of these things, which is just added nutso.  As a result, I am very tired and feel like I never get enough sleep/time to blog/time to stare out the window/read/etc.  The good news, though, is that I only work eight full weeks until a nice 7 month vacation!  (J/K!  Life with a newborn is WAY worse than working at a job).

 I am trying very hard to not buy any new things for the baby, given that we have perfectly good stuff saved from Theo, but it is a constant challenge because I am super excited about the new baby.  We made the mistake of going to Nordstrom rack, where my consumer psychology got totally messed up (“OHHH, this numbers shirt was marked down to $10 from $25!  What a deal”) and I bought a few way-too-expensive items for the new baby.  I think that the second baby is almost more exciting/wanted than the first because, rather than entering a strange and new baby world, I am having a sibling for the existing baby that is loved so much. 

Feeding the ducks at the zoo.

Theo Things:

His speech is a mess—he manages to turn everything he says into some weird-sounding concoction of syllables and consonants (gargon = bacon; bouf = still equals four).   I do not see any evidence, so far, that speech therapy works. 

He loves numbers and letters.  I am proud to say that he has mastered his kindergarten readiness skills at 2.5 (well, except for the talking part)!  He knows many numbers (up to 13 and then multiples of ten), all his letters, many colors and shapes.  We’re working on representing numbers on our fingers, which he absolutely loves.  Why does he like memorization and numbers so much?  This is not something we have tried to get him to do, he just wants to.  Nature, man.

He loves trains and cars, another thing he just as a propensity for. 

He plays with the 5 year-olds at preschool (ever since one of them helped him with his glasses), which, of course, worries me (a peek into my mental state during his high school years, perhaps?). 

He is the hugging kid at his preschool (you know the one!).

He loves jokes, tricks and games, making him the most fun member of our household (I am CLEARLY in second place, with negative Natan in third). 

He enjoys eating outside, where he can watch the trains right across from our house (a perk of our super urban domicile?)

He still signs “more”, rather than articulating it.  It’s the only sign that uses in place of a word. 

Eating his first serving of taco salad!

Children's Discovery Museum Pictures

Media Consumption:

I’ve been really into the Walking Dead, which is fun, but not very good for my secret prepper side.

Have you seen Eastbound and Down?, because it is MUST SEE.   I watched the entire series last winter when I got the flu (DESPITE THE FLU SHOT!), and I’ve returned to it this fall as a go-to for laughs.  Danny McBride is a national treasure.  Sometimes it sort of grosses me out (well, Stevie grosses me out), but I push through because it’s the best.

I watched the HBO documentary “First Comes Love” about a woman who decides to just have a baby on her own when she hits her early forties.  It was actually really touching and a little sad, and more about her (pretty terrible) family and life than the baby.  I also think it was a love letter to her deceased mother, which was the saddest part of all.  Families are so hard sometimes. 

I finally watched the Kathleen Hanna documentary, which was a nice look back at the early 90’s, a period that I will call my nascent brain phase.  As such, I was kind of too young/immature/sheltered/ignorant of the patriarchy to get into the Riot Grrl movement, but faintly aware of its existence and, of course, fully intellectually supportive now, in my elder years. 

No books.

No movies.

Classic rock on the radio.

Horse Belt:
Natan bought Theo a horse belt in Oaxaca, which he asks for nearly every day.  He likes to wear it, regardless of whether or not it is fashion appropriate.

Other updates:

I have resumed my nightly consumption of babycenter.  There are so many weird and crazy people out there who engage in comical conversations, like about their hilarious name choices (the –aydens are still going strong, as is Colt) and cervix length (?). 

Though, I will say, that I also learn about all of the horrible things that can go wrong during pregnancy, like full bedrest the entire duration of pregnancy and bright spots on the ultrasounds of organs (genetic problems). 

In one week, it is NaBloPoMo! Can I do it? (NEVER!) Will I try? (ALWAYS!)