Sicko.

Yesterday afternoon I began to feel it. That little tingly feeling in the glands around your throat and that slightly scratchy feeling when you swallow. When I got home from work I grabbed my trusty Maglite flashlight (handcrafted from a single sheet of aircraft aluminum with a patented self cleaning switch and adjustable beam… but I digress) and peeked in the mirror. Lots of lovely red with white spots. Argh.

This morning was none better. After a sleepless night of not getting comfortable and of drifting in and out of weird sicky-inducted dreams I got up. Same dealio only now the white patches were more plentiful. But I knew I had to go in to work. Not because I had some big project due, but because I had a long-anticipated hair appointment at 10:00. That could not be missed. I was going red for fall and that was a big deal. (Oh don’t act like you didn’t always try to go school sick if it was a field trip or party-day.)

So I continued my Zicam bender I started the night before and headed off to work. I made it through my first couple hours without too much strain and then headed off to my hair appointment. As the time wore on the more worn I felt. By the time she was rinsing out my new red, I mentioned how crappy I felt.

First, she told me that strep was going around. Wonderful. But then, Shelley said something that caught me off guard: “You’re sick a lot aren’t you?” What? “How do you mean?” I asked. She told me that every time I come to see her I’m either sick, or getting over being sick. She reminded me that this time last year Ryan had to take Coco trick-or-treating solo (much to my horrid disappointment) because I was sick. She was right about that.

Then she mentioned how I was sick so often while I was preggers with Cora and how miserable I was since I couldn’t take any cold medicine. To be fair, part of that was actually allergies. But still it got me thinking. She asked if I was taking a multi-vitamin and I said “no” – but I never have save for my prenatal vitamins.

I remember when I started at the company I’m with now, I didn’t take a sick day for almost two years. What has happened? Have I become that much more prone to sickness? Or am I just a bigger weenie now then I was then about feeling under the weather? Is it the months of lack of sleep that are taking their toll? Now that Coco is sleeping through the night regularly that should no longer be an issue. Am I just more lax about missing work now that I’m no longer “new” here?

So as I sit here at my desk and try not to swallow, I ponder the bigger question of mommyhood, getting older, and the changing workplace. What is simply correlation and what is cause and effect? Will I be able to track down a specific reason or will I just have to accept my sniffles as they come. Will it get better or am I doomed to live as a fragile flower one virus away from life in a bubble? Or is Shelley just over-generalizing things? These are all things I plan to ponder tonight while dosing myself with chicken noodle soup and constant infusions of Zicam. I’ll let you know if I find something worthy of disclosure to the CDC.

Around the World and Back Again

Ok, so finally the blog about the trip to VA and back (I’ll save the reunion blog for later). I must admit – it will be a pretty boring entry and that is a very good thing. Bottom line is that Cora wasn’t too bad on the trip and we had NO meltdowns – so at least we weren’t “those people” on the flight.

We knew it was going to be a long day of travel. Basically we had to be at the airport by 9:30 for our 10:30 flight. We then had a two hour flight (ish) to Detroit, followed by a 45 minute lay-over and another 2 hour flight into Roanoake. After getting to Roanoake we would have to get our luggage and then pick up our rental car and then drive two hours to get to Nellysford. Oy vey. Lets just say I did not have very high hopes and imagined an very angry screaming, fed up baby on the drive if not before.

Well I am happy to report that both on the way there and on the way back Coco slept on the 2 hour drive, and the first flight. She was awake both times on the final flight but was still a good girl – we just had to keep her entertained. In fact on the flight back into Des Moines it was another mother’s little one who threw the 40 minute screaming fit. I felt terrible for her (she was traveling alone with her little one) but so relieved that it wasn’t us!

We had a few grump-ifying experiences. One, none of the airline gate attendants would allow us to use Cora’s carseat even when there was an empty seat (or on some flights, many seats) available. Sooo poor Ryan had to lug the carseat carrier around for two days for no good reason. Two, we had a rude family in the row in front of us on the flight back into Des Moines (allowed the kids to listen to DVD’s without headsets thus blaring the movie Garfield to the whole cabin, refused to spend anytime interacting with their own kids – too busy reading books, and once when Coco dropped her paci and it rolled up the aisle in between the husband and wife, they just looked at the paci and turned away causing Ryan to unbelt himself and try to grope up the aisle for it.) Nothing horrible – just bad manners (which are, unfortunately, so prevalent these days).

So all in all a good trip and a huge relief. I don’t think we’ll be making our trip to Paris anytime soon unless we somehow spring for First Class, but at least I wouldn’t be daunted in the slightest to make a short trip to Chicago or Denver with the munchkin now!

Yes, Please

Every time I think that I'm getting a little on the hefty side I start my usual diet-o-the-week. In order to have motivation (and visualization - which my holistic sister will tell you is very important) to stay on task I usually take a picture of what I want to end up like and put it up in prominent places (bathroom mirror, refrigerator door, etc). I've used everything from the Victoria's Secret Swimsuit catalog to a Target Ad. Just whatever I find that motivates me.

A few months ago I was flipping through some magazine or other in some waiting room (can't even remember where!) and I came across an amazing Rolex Ad. I realized that I was going about this all wrong. I had been pulling out ads of airbrushed L.A. beauties half my age and then, when in two weeks I wasn't their mirror image I got discouraged. The ad was of the most amazing silver-haired woman I'd ever seen. I realized that instead of thinking about how I

wanted to look 15 years ago, perhaps it was better to imagine what I want to aspire to years down the road - realizing that if I didn't act now, I'd never get there.

I wanted to pull out the ad, but since it was not my magazine (and since there were witnesses around) I didn't. I tried later to Google it, but not knowing the model's name it was hopeless. There are a bajillion hits for "Rolex watch magazine ad". Bummer. But then, as I sat in my tiny cabin this past weekend with my sister, I was leafing through her Town & Country and there she was! It was a Taryn Rose shoe ad and not only was I free to rip that baby right out, it actually talked about the model so I also had her name.

I've since done some research and found out the woman who, for me, holds the key to beauty in aging is named Carmen Dell'Orefice. She is an American model who holds the title of the longest continually working model in history. While that unfortunately makes her sound like an ancient John Deere, she is far from. As I Googled and Wiki'ed her for more info I was amazed at how beautiful she was (and always had been). So, ladies and gentlemen, THIS is my new aspiration. Not to look like an 18 year old now, but to aspire to look something like this as I age. Now I am quite aware that I don't have ice blue eyes, or cheekbones like knives. That's not the point. The point is that it is not impossible to say trim, fashionable, and beautiful as you age. Oh, and in case you're curious, Ms. Dell'Orefice is currently 77 years old.

The Ad that Inspired me

The Ad I Rediscovered

Some other beautiful photos

Milestone!

Ok so I realize the expected first blog after vacation would be about the dreaded plane ride and the eclectic family reunion.  Normally you would be right, BUT today we hit a major milestone in our household.  It was met with singing, yelling, dancing and laughter.  Was it another pregnancy?  Heck no.  Was it a new pet?  Nope.  Was it potty training?  Yeah right.  No, it was a magical moment I've been waiting for since Cora was born...

Let me just back up for a moment by saying Cora has been going through a major cranky spell.  She got a cold and is getting all 4 canine teeth at one time.  That can make for a pretty cranky baby.  I mean really cranky.  A lot.  A lot a lot. More than you think a lot.  For instance if you so much as look in her direction and she doesn't like it that is major cause for what is commonly known as a hissy fit.  Anytime she wanted anything she would simply point and/or scream.  A co-worker and I were discussing this phenomenon and he said that his son, at this age, went through a six-month phase where he would get himself worked up into a tantrum every time they went to McDonald's.  His son wanted ... something.  But they had no idea what.  Not until, after extended trial and error, did they figure out that what he had wanted for so long that had until then remained nameless, was orange soda.

Today however her cough has lessened significantly, and all but one of the four teeth has broken through her gums and is well on its way to being a contributing member of her mouth.  I came home to find a pretty funny, happy baby who was content to play with us and on her own some.  She's also been on a word bender - we've been learning at least one new word a day.  We now have added words like:  bunny, football, pretty and jewelry to our repertoire.  (We're still working on Love You.  Right now it comes out with the right inflection but sounds more like Daaaa Dooooo).  

So today at dinner, after she had finished with her chicken and was playing "lets see how much fruit juice I can get everywhere by trying to trill my r's with cantaloupe in my mouth", mommy decided I needed dessert.  I grabbed an english toffee Weight Watchers ice cream bar and sat back down next to the little one.  She instantly signaled her desire to try it - which consists of her grabbing for it, opening her mouth like a baby bird, and saying "ah ah ah".  I gave her a lick and once chocolate and vanilla hit her tongue, her eyes lit up.  She reached again repeating her prior behavior.  More out of habit than any expectation I told her "can you say Please".  To my complete and utter shock I heard a little voice say "Peeeeese".  I was stunned.  Perhaps that was a fluke.  We tried again on the next lick - she grabbed for the ice cream and I asked "what do we say".  I got a very distinct "Peeeeease".  HALLELUJAH!  

Needless to say she ended up consuming almost the entire ice cream bar because who am I to refuse such ladylike and appropriate requests??   It was actually a win/win for everyone - she got her ice cream, I got a great diet plan, and we all got something we've been trying to get for many many months.  Of course this has huge potential for abuse, and I'm sure the first time we don't get our way with a Peeeease it will be set aside for a while, but for tonight I choose to bask in the glow of success.  And in the knowledge that after she goes to bed I have another ice cream bar in the freezer....

Leavin on a Jet Plane

Tomorrow is a momentous day for many reasons. First, tomorrow is the day we leave for my annual family reunion in Virginia (we are the only “Yankees” in my family). We didn’t go last year because I was just not ready to travel cross country with a 3 month-old. So not only will I get to be with all my family, eat horribly wonderful food, and talk long into the night – but Cora will get to meet everyone for the first time. She has no idea what’s comin! Our reunions are almost always well over 100 people and have been known on certain years to push 250. And yes, we are almost all related somehow. Cora has more second cousins, great aunts, and other relatives then she could have imagined! Plus, all of this takes place at my uncle’s house down a gravel road nestled in-between two little mountain ranges. All of this will be foreign to Coco so we’ll see how she reacts to it all.

The second reason tomorrow will be a big day is that it is Coco’s first plane ride. This actually has me a bit concerned. I do NOT want to be the family with the screaming baby! I know it can’t be helped and if its going to happen its going to happen. As one mommy told me: if all else fails just remember you’ll most likely never see those people again in your life.

In order to prepare for said trip I actually made a checklist. Seriously. It has categories for “pre flight purchases”, “carry-on”, “checked luggage”, “to do day prior to departure”, “to do day of departure”, etc. You get the idea. Yes, I am neurotic. But to an admirable end I think! I just want to make sure that we have everything we need to try and keep a little one satisfied during 8 hours of travel (1.5 hr flight, 1 hr layover, 2 hr flight, 2 hr car trip). Here is what we’ve figured out so far to take on the flight:

• Lots of snacks including “special occasion” ones she wouldn’t normally get
• 2 “old” toys that she knows and loves
• 4 “new” toys to bring out one at a time that will keep her occupied longer
• 4 books for her to look at and play with
• Multiple pacis to keep her happy and to help on take-off and landing with her ears
• Her favorite blankie
• “Earplanes” earplugs for little ones to relive pressure during flights
• Portable DVD player with movies (although this only works for about 10 minutes at a time for her)
• Lots of diapers/wipes
• Sippy cups with bottled water
• 2 extra outfits “in case”

We also plan to gate check her carseat so we can get to it if we’re lucky enough to get the option.

So – any other suggestions out there, or are we lookin as good as can be expected??