relief. somewhat. (cont.)

Back to finish up the post from yesterday. Here comes the “somewhat” part of the post. It is mostly about me, ha ha.

Wednesday I found out I had a bladder infection, which is terrible painful if you’ve ever had one. Today I decided the medicine was not working (it was supposed to be by then), so I ended up borrowing a coworker’s car and spending a couple hours at a quick care, where I got a stronger prescription. Hopefully relief from that will start some time this weekend!

The second “somewhat” concerns work. We’re still struggling with my one coteacher, who hasn’t been helping us lately with curriculum. Now, you may think that curriculum at a daycare with toddlers is easy street. But we actually have to come up with five unique activities every week (centering around any of the following: small motor, gross motor, sensory, science, literary, and dramatic play), we have to come up with five brand new books every week (that preferably relate to the month’s theme), and we have to put up new bulletin boards (there are 8, at least half have to change) every week! It’s a lot of work, and the more hands the better. However, I do love coming up with new ideas for our curriculum. My toddlers love to explore, try new things, and really engage in activities. We have done everything with them from making ‘slime’ to creating color collages, from stamping letters to using pom poms in a color match! We do activities that challenge them, but are also somewhat in their ability. For being 16-20 months, I really think (ha ha, tooting my horn) that we really push them to learn and that they know a lot for their age! I think I might make some posts here about what we’ve been doing, so I can reference them later when I have kids.

On one of the parenting blogs I read, the woman is homeschooling her child. She’s been posting different activities now and again, and I love it! Her daughter is three so though I wouldn’t technically classify it as ‘homeschooling’ I love to see parents educating their children with activities at home WITHOUT using technology. I’ve been keeping my eye on these posts to see if there’s anything I can adapt for my toddlers.

The final “somewhat” is that Husband has been sick for a record two weeks now. We’re going to the quick care tomorrow so that we can see if it’s something somewhat serious. My coteacher was sick for awhile because of the kids, so I think I just passed that on to him, but he swears it’s bronchitis, so we’ll see what happens!

relief. somewhat.

I’m just going to say it.

Husband got a job offer, and accepted.

[cue thunderous applause and screaming]

It is more money, great benefits, and possibility for bonuses plus raises. I am really excited because depending on what job Husband got, there was a possibility we’d have to quickly find a new place to live so his commute would be easier. That is not an issue anymore either. Most importantly, Husband is really excited to start his new job — it’s with a bigger company, so he actually gets to dressed up like a professional and they’re willing to pay for education, even an MBA.

So yes, there is relief. Relief even more than we were expecting, when it comes to his pay.

I have more to say, but I also want to spend some time with Husband, as well as finish reading a book, so another post, another time.

recommend.

TV SHOW

My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic

I know! How old am I, five? But it’s actually funny and kind of crazy and Stepson totally watched it with me and loved it which I love because I’m all about gender equality!

MOVIE

The Lorax

Great voice actors, good plot, cute characters, awesome message, and I LOVED the soundtrack! Surprisingly good music, especially the song ‘How Bad Can I Be?’

BOOK

Jessica Darling series by Megan McCafferty

I know, that name totally evokes thoughts of bodice ripping covers, but it’s actually about a deep thinking, sarcastic teenage girl trying to get more out of life. It’s funny, it’s full of 2000 pop culture references, and I love it. I’m only on book 2 of 5, but there are actually books of her tales in college (unheard of in YA), so I’m excited to keep going.

blur di blur

Husband has a face to face interview on Monday and has had two phone interviews this week.

Everyone he talks to is talking big money, and I love that. Because we fret fret fret and I’m done fretting.

Tomorrow night we’re going out to dinner to celebrate this amazingness. Next weekend, when it’s just us, I see lots of zoo time and brunch at the simply wonderful Big Jones in our future.

Thanks to a cash influx from the selling of my car, this is possible! Love it.

TRying to be positive lately. I think a lot of my posts lately have been crazy down, but real life has been stressful. We’ve been doing a lot of talking about whether this apartment is the place for us anymore, or if we need to branch out. I feel so temporary here, even though we’ve been here over a year, that I’ve barely decorated.

Working things out every day, slowly but surely.

free trial.

My coworker just found out she was pregnant, and decided to tell me and my coteacher. Like, 7 weeks in, she comes to work from the doctor’s appointment that confirmed said pregnancy, and she sat down and told us. There was no hint otherwise that she was pregnant (meaning no morning sickness or anything out of the ordinary going on with her) and she had actually told us that she was taking her dog to the vet, not that she had a doctor’s appointment. I heavily explain all that because SHE WAS ONLY SEVEN WEEKS PREGNANT and she had only known my coteacher for SIX DAYS.

Yeah. So my coteacher and I started a discussion between ourselves on babies.

I have strong feelings on lots of things, and one of those is the business of having babies. Husband and I have a plan. Right now we’re only using condoms because I don’t want to mess up my body or hormones with the Pill. Plus, depending on how long you’re on it, the Pill can actually delay pregnancy because of how long it takes to cycle out of your body. Everyone thinks they can hop off the pill and be pregnant next week, but that’s not the case — sometimes, it can take months. We also talked about it and decided that if we can’t conceive naturally, we’ll adopt or just have Stepson. I’m firm in my belief that I don’t want to use IVF. If insurance doesn’t cover it, it can be costly, and I just don’t like the idea of it. I can’t explain it, I just don’t think it’s right for ME.

My coteacher doesn’t want to use IVF either — mostly because she miscarried at five months. That was obviously very painful on her, and she feels like if she wasn’t meant to have a baby, then she’ll adopt, and that’s that. She and I also talked about how quickly people jump to IVF nowadays — she told me about a recent study where IVF usage has jumped because women can’t get pregnant right away, think they’re infertile, and start up on IVF. She explained how after her miscarriage her doctor talked to her about natural ways her and her husband could up her hormones and his sperm count, and how they could live healthier so when the time is right for them, she has a better chance of holding onto the baby.

That said, I don’t condemn others using IVF. My favorite example of course is my coworker who had been trying for five years, had no medical reason for not being able to get pregnant, and is now carrying twins thanks to IVF. SO happy for her!

The sudden pregnancy of our coworker has others asking my coteacher and myself when we’re having babies. I am thoroughly annoyed by this question. We joke our way through it while giving each other glances because, really?

I don’t think people understand what it takes to raise kids. I read a lot of parenting blogs, especially for stay at home moms, and there are a lot of good times but LOTS of bad times. One of my most favorite, honest blogs is Not Super, Just Mom. She really gets that there are days you will be frustrated and days you will NOT want to be around them, but you have to pull it together. I learn this every day at work and on our weekends with Stepson. There are moments at work when the kids are so hilarious, so cuddly, so smart and eager to learn, that I want to pop out a baby right there and get started. Yesterday we took Stepson to the library and to watch him follow Husband around, a finger through his belt loop so he wouldn’t get lost, awakened the baby fever with a fury. But then there are those moments — it’s been a long day and all the kids want to do is bang and kick the table, or they go limp on the floor anytime I ask them to do something, Stepson changes his mind three times on what he wants to eat for dinner and doesn’t want to lay down for quiet time (even though I have a monster headache).

I GET that eventually, people work it all out. But I like to be prepared. When Husband and I were getting married, I read books on being married. I worried more about our marriage than our wedding. And it’s the same thing for kids. I plan lots — I pin a lot, I read parenting books, and I read my parenting blogs. I see situations and I ask myself how I would handle it. And most importantly, Husband and I use every weekend with Stepson as an example of how life is with kids — and we learn how to plan family visits, sexy time, us moments, and daily errands with them in it.

I don’t want to try for a pregnancy until I’m 28. At that point, I feel we’ll be good financially and secure enough in our marriage that we can be ready for a baby.

P.S. I understand someone is probably wondering WHY I let Stepson choose what’s for dinner — I’m in charge! Not him! Well, actually, when you’re working with a stepkid, you want to keep rules pretty consistent so that the transition from Mom’s to Dad’s and back is smooth and easy. Unfortunately, this means that things Husband and I would never allow (like being short order cooks) happens because Mom does that at home.

back and forth.

I got a new schedule at work, and even though it means waking up at six, I’ve been getting home at decent times and it has given me more time for things like dishes, laundry, hanging out with Husband, reading, etc. I’m really loving it. The times I leave are fluctuating, so I’m trying to figure out how to give myself some time to get some writing in.

Work has been really great as well, with low numbers and fun times. We got our butts kicked on Tuesday because we completely overhauled the room. I was so tired, and was relieved to be able to come home and relax for a few hours before bed.

A coworker had some crazy news, but that is a post for another day.

Finally, I have been out of ordinary upset with the teachers’ strike in Chicago. I really hate to get myself in debates, especially on Facebook, because everyone basically goes la la la la and loves their opinion only. ChickFilA was a great example of this. However, I could not stand it when my cousin posted a status that just … did not even cover what was going in Chicago with the schools.

I can’t even get into here without ranting like a crazy person. Husband has been very supportive of listening to me. My coteacher and I discuss the strike every day, and I think it hits very hard for us because of our husbands. Hers has not found a job yet, and neither has Husband. He also had a very disappointing phone interview on Tuesday. So to hear people striking mostly because of job security and raises, when there are so few in this economy who have that, upsets me. Also the girl I was debating on Facebook was young, recently out of college, and obviously had no idea that she had GREAT benefits as a CPS teacher. She talked to me with the attitude that ONLY CPS teachers dealt with no air conditioning and the ‘travesty’ of having to pay for health insurance. What?!

Moving on. Husband continually applies for jobs, and I try to stay positive. I really don’t know what we’ll do if he can’t find something ….

three day

This weekend was a really great, relaxing weekend for Husband and me. The weather seemed to sense my need for calm and cool, because it was rainy and overcast on Saturday, which I loved. We grabbed coffee at Dunkin Donuts and then headed to the zoo, because when do we not go there.

It was actually a really good zoo day. We talked to two zoo keepers, saw a few animals out and about that normally sleep when we’re there, and experienced a great zoo chat on binturong. That is my favorite part of our constant zoo trips — we never know what’s going to happen each time we visit.

Coming home was rain and mega traffic on Lake Shore due to a college game at Soldier Field. Every time we drive down Lake Shore, I look up and gawk at the skyline. I constantly want to take pictures of it; I love how even in motion, the camera on my phone is capable of amazing photos.

This morning, we woke up and went out to breakfast before coming home and doing a few chores. If I haven’t mentioned it, we’ve begun recycling at home, and it’s lowered our trash contributing by leaps and bounds. The last time we took out the recycle was three weeks ago. Since then we’ve taken the trash out twice and accumulated three and a half trash bags of recyclable materials. I am extra grateful that Husband, who wasn’t keen on recycling at first because he was worried about trips to the bin and organizing the recycle in the meantime, has jumped onboard. Not having to take the trash out twice a week certainly helps a lot!

This afternoon we had the party at my grandma’s house. After our chores, I jumped in the shower and Husband took his next. After, he stood at the sink to shave while I blow dried my hair and absentmindedly watched Grey’s Anatomy. I glance over at him, and my heart skipped. I grabbed my phone and snapped the shot below. I love Husband to infinity, and I love that my phone is my camera, that I can snap quick moments of love like this as they happen. Also, can I just say that this picture, and the moment it comes from, makes me want to have babies with him like, yesterday? His hotness always seems to jumpstart my baby fever …