Visiting The Big Apple

Brace yourself....this post is long!

Last weekend we went to NYC for a quick 3 day visit and stayed with my Uncle Dave. It was kind of our last get-a-way as a family of 3 before the baby comes. Interestingly enough, the last time Walter and I were in NYC was about 2 1/2 years ago. That morning we had found out we were pregnant with X, so it made our trip a little more exciting. Guess it's tradition now that all our kids have to go to NYC in utero!

We had to be up REALLY early to make our 6:45am flight. I thought for sure X would go back to sleep on the flight. Um...nope, 5 minutes was all he slept. We arrived in town and after getting settled at the apartment we grabbed some lunch around the corner and headed back for someones much needed nap. In the afternoon we did some sightseeing on the streets (but got caught in the rain!) and then had dinner at Mimi's. Oh how I love the fettuccine alfredo there. But, apparently Baby D didn't agree and I was sick the next morning.

X slept in his makeshift crib (a bunch of pillows and couch cushions pushed together on the floor) on our trip. I was worried he'd try to climb out and go roaming the apartment. He never did, but what he did manage to do was fall into a crack, face down, at 12:30am. He was half asleep and not too happy about that. I ended up sleeping in the room with him the rest of the night to keep an eye on him.

On day 2 we had tickets to go on a lunch cruise down the Hudson River that left from Chelsea Pier. We decided to take X to the Toddler Adventure Center (at the same pier) to play before we boarded the ship. Being the adventurous (and frugal) family we are, we decided to walk the 45 or so blocks from the apartment to the Pier. We made it, but man was I tired! X loved the toddler center and we spent almost 2 hours playing there. While playing we overheard a very interesting conversation of two other parents about bringing in a counselor for their 1 year old who wasn't a good sleeper. A counselor for a 1 year old - REALLY??!!! Walter and I just laughed.

Our cruise down the Hudson River was beautiful. It was clear sunny skies and about 60 degrees. They served a delicious buffet lunch and an equally delicious cheesecake and chocolate mouse brownie for dessert. After we ate we went outside to the decks to take in the sights of the city. Then there was dancing on the ship. Not many people danced (mostly kids) but X got out there and strutted his stuff for a bit. Mostly he just ran in circles on the dance floor, but hey, it kept him occupied. After the cruise we walked back (another 45 blocks!) to the apartment because we ALL needed a nap by that point. In the evening we had dinner at Parnell's and then tried to go to Serendipity restaurant for dessert. I had heard about their famous "Frozen Hot Chocolate" and really wanted to try it. Unfortunately there was an hour wait (X doesn't do hour waits!) and they didn't allow strollers in the building at all. So we left and decided we'd try again the next day.

We started out day 3 by having a yummy pancake breakfast at Madison's Restaurant with Uncle Dave. This is where we discovered X's love for bacon. Not something I thought he'd really care about, but apparently I was wrong. He couldn't get enough of it! After breakfast we took some pictures on the terrace back at the apartment and then went up and played around on the roof deck. The views were stunning with yet another clear sunny day.

We headed over to Serendipity for "take 2" hoping we would beat the lunch crowd. We got in (leaving the stroller at the apartment) and got our frozen hot chocolate. It was yummy, but the overall experience of the restaurant was a disappointment. Since we had no stroller, X had a good 10 blocks to walk off the sugar high before going down for a nap. The one thing I wish I could have gotten a picture of at Serendipity was the hostess. OH MY! She was a sight. Picture a short 70ish year old lady, somewhat...ahem...hefty, bleach blond hair, tons of makeup, hunch back, black leggings, off the shoulder LOW LOW LOW cut tunic blouse, cigarettes tucked inside her bra strap, and a lighter stuck between "the girls". If only there had been a way I could have gotten my camera out quick enough and discreetly enough......

That afternoon we went to Central Park to ride the carousel. It was a good little walk and gave Walter and I plenty of time to play "Is that your mommy or your nanny" looking at all the strollers we passed by. Apparently the fancy strollers are the ones to have in NYC. I have to admit I had some total stroller envy going on. I also had total fashion envy going on. Seriously, where are all the pregnant people in NYC? I only saw 2 the entire weekend. (Walter said they'd all moved to the suburbs - haha!) All I saw was trendy jackets and cute boots on classy looking (skinny) women. I looked so "Midwestern mom" it was pathetic! Note to self, spice up the wardrobe before our next trip back!

Anyway, after the carousel we walked through Rockefeller Plaza and then headed back to the apartment for a quick dinner and it was off to the airport. Again, I thought for sure X would sleep on our 9pm flight home. Um, nope he was bouncing off the walls the entire flight and only fell asleep as we landed (and for only 10 minutes). So, our boy didn't go to bed until almost midnight once we got back home. You wear me out kid!

While taking in the city with a toddler is a little different, we had a great time! Thank you Uncle Dave sooooo much for letting us come stay with you.

And now for the pictures from our weekend. Click on the picture below, then click on "slideshow" on the top left.

NYC

Is it HOT in Here?

No, it's just me. Yep, I've reached that stage of pregnancy when I'm pretty much always hot. I remember it setting in about this same time when I was pregnant with Xavier. Poor Walter, I made him nearly freeze to death that winter because I couldn't stand the heat being on any higher than 65 degrees in our house. I would sleep in a t-shirt and shorts and he'd be bundled up in long pants and a sweatshirt under copious amounts of blankets.

When X was first born and we were in the hospital I still had the hot thing going on for a few days. My doctor walked in the room one morning and told me I really needed to turn the heat up because the baby was still learning to regulate his temperature. Talk about feeling like a bad mom right out of the gate!

Obviously I can't keep things as cool this time around (although I'd like to!) since we have a toddler that doesn't keep any covers on at night. But don't be surprised if you see me walking around in short sleeves while everyone else has on a sweater.

We went to NYC this weekend (more on that to come!) and I was walking the streets in a long sleeve t-shirt looking at all these people with coats and scarfs on. Occasionally I did put on a light jacket, but that was it. I got hot just looking at those coats.

This hot thing is just one of the many things I miss about my former (non pregnant) self. While walking the streets of NYC I had ample opportunities to catch glimpses of myself in the reflection of store windows. NOT GOOD. When did I get this huge and out of proportion? While Walter has told me I don't "waddle" he was kind enough to point out I've definitely got the "arched back pregnant lady" thing going on. Thanks babe, love you too! It probably didn't help my self image that I was passing all these very trendy new yorkers in their high heeled boots and skinny jeans.

I also miss my lap. It's getting smaller by the day and it's becoming increasingly difficult to snuggle with X. Poor kid's gettin booted out of his spot!

Oh pre-pregnant skinny body (well, at least it seemed skinny looking at myself now) I hope to see you again in 2010!

Taking a Pumpkin to the Pumpkin Patch

Saturday afternoon we headed out to the pumpkin patch with some friends. X was dressed as our own little pumpkin courtesy of this sweatshirt from grandma.

This is the same place we went last year. It was much cooler this year as you can tell by the difference in wardrobe. There was tons to do at this pumpkin patch. X liked the swings, big slide, see saw and the track.









Christine liked the slide too. Gotta love a lady that slides with her purse!

We looked at some turtles. Erin was brave enough to pick them up, but we just admired them from her hand.



Then it was time to stick our heads in some pumpkins.





By far, X's favorite portion of the day was playing in the kettle of wheat. I think he would have stayed in there for days.




He did NOT want to get out to move on to other attractions. This was his response.


Our final stop was to pick out our pumpkins. X liked the wagon.

But he did not like pumpkins in the wagon.


Here mommy, I want this one!!


Me and my little pumpkin head.


Our quick attempt at a family photo. X was still not happy about the pumpkins being in the wagon.
It was neat to see how different X interacted at the pumpkin patch this time being a year older. We each got a pumpkin (even Baby D) so now we need to start thinking about how we are going to carve them.

Frustrated

We went to the pumpkin patch yesterday. Lots of fun. Took lots of pictures. Would love to share them. But....they are all on my desktop computer which is now NOT connecting to the internet.

Stay tuned. If I can find the cable for my camera I may be able to download my pumpkin patch pics to the laptop. But where oh where could that cable be???????????

Why Didn't I Say That in the Beginning?

As mentioned in my last post, X was up for 2 1/2 hours in the middle of the night recently. Since he doesn't wake up that often, it seems like when he does wake up it takes FOREVER to get him to go back to sleep. He's not unhappy, he's just wide awake. On that night I had changed him and rocked him for a bit, then put him back in the crib only to hear him stir around for another 20 minutes before he finally threw his blankie out. He then proceeded to repeat the phrase "uh-oh blankie" until I finally gave in and went back into his room where he greeted me with open arms looking for some snugglin. We came out to the living room and laid on the couch in the dark and listened to his bible songs cd.

I don't remember what else we did but finally after he'd been up for more than 2 hours I looked at him and said in a pitiful tired voice "Ya know buddy, you really need to go nigh-nights." To my surprise he looked up at me, said "Yes I do", gathered his blankie and Skipit, got off the couch, walked back to his room, stood at the crib and repeated "nigh-nigh". I put him in the crib, he laid down, and fell sound asleep by the time I walked back to my bedroom.

Guess I should have said that earlier??!!!

Yes, You Can Wear Your PJ's for 24 Hours Straight

We had a very busy day Wednesday. I had a doctor's appointment at 8am, then we went to Target, stopped by a friend's house to pick up some hand-me downs for X, rushed home to make a lunch to eat in the car, picked up my mom and gma and took them to the airport, then came home for a nap. That was all before 12:30pm. Once X got up from his nap we went to see Walter at work (where X got to take a ride in a forklift), stopped by the grocery store, came home and made dinner, and then I went out to Bunko (first time ever...not sure I'm quite into the game, but the snacks were good!) and the boys hung at home. For some reason when I go out for the evening X decides those are the nights he's going to get up in the middle of the night. I guess he just wants to make sure I came back! Anyway, he was up from 3:15am - 5:45am. Ugggghhhh.....

So, yesterday I declared a stay at home day for me and X. He slept in until 8:30am and it was rainy and gloomy here so it all worked out. Plus, our garage door opener giving us trouble and I didn't feel like dealing with that in order to get my car out to go somewhere(lazy, I know!). I didn't even dress my child yesterday. We were trying to break the record for how long you can stay in your jammies. I have no idea what that record would be, but he made it a full 24 hours (I did take a shower but my outfit for the day was only a 1/2 step from being pj's) before it was time for a bath and a fresh set of jammies to head off to bed for the night.


The day was relaxing. We watched some cartoons, he played in the ball pit while I checked email, we worked on identifying the letters in his name, and he drew on some paper. Then it was time for lunch and nap. I guess you sleep well when you're in your jammies because X slept for over 3 hours. His long nap gave me a chance to catch up on some DVR'd items. We rounded out the afternoon by having hot tea and graham crackers then getting the mail. Exciting, I know. Walter ended up working late so X and I had some random things for dinner and then read books.


I also took a picture of my baby food. I recently came into some coupons for FREE jars of baby food (thank you T&T) so I'm now the proud owner of 61 jars of various fruit combinations that Baby D will get to enjoy later next year. Yeah for free stuff!!!

I Can Do It, Daddy Can Help

Walter took X to the Home Depot kids clinic a few Saturdays ago. They have the clinic once a month with a different project. This was X's first clinic and although he was younger than most of the kids he still had a great time. (And I had a great time at home...by myself...for a whole hour and a half!)

A quick shot of my guys before they headed out for their male bonding time at the hardware store!



I sent the camera with them, but apparently since the clinic was outside, and it was a bit windy, the focus was more on not loosing the project than it was on taking pictures. So what did they make????????? A fabulous Firehouse Bank!! (Can't you see it in my awesome photos??!!)





The bank is proudly displayed on a shelf in X's room now. Guess he has no excuses for not saving his cash now (oh wait, maybe his excuse could be that we don't let him play with money!)

There were firetrucks and ambulances on site for the kids to see as well. How cool! And the entire thing was free! Wonder what they'll build next month??

Six Fabulous Years

Today is our 6 year wedding anniversary. We've had a lot of fun in the past 6 years and I couldn't have picked a better person to spend my days with! Last night we went out to celebrate with our good friends Brian and Christine. Their anniversary is on the 10th so we decided to go out together. The 4 of us went to The Melting Pot. It was amazing. We'd never been there, and, oh my, is it a ton of food. GOOD FOOD! We ate for almost 3 hours straight as we moved through the 4 course "big night out" dinner. Amazing cheese fondues, delicious salads, scrumptious meats, and of course, divine chocolate fondues for dessert. Walter and I practically had to roll ourselves out to the car. It's definitely not something we could do on a regular basis since it's so extensive (and expensive!) but it was a really nice treat to celebrate our anniversary. Plus we had a great time being with friends.



Happy Anniversary Babe -- I love you more than you'll ever know!

Flu Shot Rant

Yesterday I took X to get his flu shot. None of us got one last year, but decided to get it this year because we've got some high risk factors going on with the new baby coming. Anyway, Walter and I already got ours last week, but not many places do kids, so I went to the urgent care that our pediatrician was referring to for pediatric vaccinations.

So, first day of the clinic. Clinic opens at 10am. I arrive at 10:15am and there is already a line. No sweat, that's just what happens I guess. X and I stand in line for 35 minutes. (Luckily I'd come armed with books and snacks!) We get up to the desk and are then informed that they are OUT of the vaccine for kids 3 and under. But, they had called the courier at 10am and doses are being couriered over from the hospital as we speak. They tell us we can pay now and come back later, or stay and wait. To clarify....first day of clinic....clinic opened at 10am....called for courier at 10am. Does anyone else wonder why they didn't know they had NO doses for kids under 3 before 10am at a clinic that pediatricians are referring people to??????? Um, yeah, me too!!!!

I decide to wait because we're already there and I really don't want to make a trip back and stand in line again. So, we wait...in a room with about 20 other people with kids under 3....and because kids under 3 just love to wait around the "attitude" in the room is oh so pleasant...NOT.

One hour and 15 minutes after first arriving X (bless his heart) has now reached his "waiting" limit. I couldn't blame him. I was bored, it was warm in the room with all those people, and you can only entertain yourself with stuff from the diaper bag for so long. Plus, I'd given him a dose of Tylenol when we first arrived thinking it'd kick in just in time when he got the shot. I didn't expect to be waiting so long and my little man was starting to fade. I decided he'd earned some binker time and pulled one out for him. After sitting on my lap for 5 minutes happily sucking away X just decided to check out, and fell sound asleep. This was good for me in the moment because I didn't have to entertain him anymore, but I knew it would come back to bite me because he probably wouldn't take a "real" nap later on. (and I was right!)

One hour and 45 minutes into our wait time the vaccines arrive. Why the heck it took so long to get them from a hospital that is about 30 minutes away is still a mystery to me. Everyone cheers and the nurses start calling names of those who are waiting. Yeah!!! EXCEPT......they must have thrown all the paperwork up in the air first because they starting calling people completely out of the order that they'd arrived in. I noticed people who'd been there for 15 minutes being called ahead of people that had been waiting almost 2 hours! I was silently fuming. I remained silent though because I didn't think it was in my best interest to piss off the people that would be sticking a needle in my son's thigh.

Two hours into our wait time X's name is called, we do our thing (which takes all of 1 minute or so) and are FINALLY headed back to the car. Oh, and they won't submit to insurance, so they have a lady running back and forth into another office making copies of your paperwork and you then have to submit it yourself (and now I have to find out how I even do that which will require a call to the insurance company which is always so much fun anyway!)

I figured X and I deserved a treat after our long ordeal (and since he obviously wasn't going to nap again) and we headed to Wendy's for a burger and fries and then to a playground. X had a blast but I pushed my luck when I decided to stop at Payless to see if I could find him a pair of shoes on the way home. The mini nap at the clinic was clearly not enough as X proceeded to lay on the floor of the shoe store and cry as I tried shoes on him. Lovely! I totally blame the flu shot people for messing with my kid's nap by not having their crap in order and thus creating an unpleasant shoe shopping experience later in the day. Maybe I should send them my Payless receipt and ask for reimbursement??

2:30 AM

My sweet boy caught some kind of stomach bug and it "all came up" starting at about 11pm last night. One bed stripping, 2 loads of laundry, 1 (unhappy) bath, 2 1/2 sets of pj changes, and 3 1/2 hours later I took this. My little man finally conked back out on the couch at 2:30am this morning. I hurried to make a pallet on the floor next to his crib where I would get 2 hours of sleep for the entire night.

Poor Walter didn't do too much better. He only got 4 hours sleep (because I had to wake him up to help me) coming off of a 14 hour work day with another 14 hour work day ahead of him.

X is doing better this afternoon and is taking his second nap of the day. Hopefully we all will sleep better tonight.

Thank you Lord for reminding me in these times how blessed we are to be so healthy 99% of the time. And thank you for allowing me to be home to take care of my little boy.