oh hey ava's mom, er, what's your name again

one thing i have noticed as i try to infiltrate this weird "mom" world (me = still feel like a poser.) is that everybody is "so and so's" mommy or "so and so's daddy" and nobody is addressed by their first name - nobody is just Kat or Karl.

honestly, it can be disturbing. I even refer to them as "so and so's mom" when i am describing them/their child/our activity to Karl. (I am guessing this trend will continue, well, forever... I am imagining it will peak while they are in school, huh?) (And I'm guessing it's WAY better than being described as the woman with the large ass or the lady who wears too tight/short/busty outfits!) (because, you know, i do. with the outfits.) so maybe it's not that disturbing. maybe it's one more way parenting makes me less snarky/judgemental. (you can wear your mom jeans around me!)

today, we were at a gymnastics class. this woman and her daughter, whom we see regularly at the class and at the library, and whose daughter i have picked up when she has fallen and who i have given many a "yea!" ::insert happy, smiley face:: when the little girl does whatever activity we are working on (you know, extremely exciting things like popping a bubble on a gym mat.) (YEA!! clap clap clap.) (HAHAHA; sometimes positive reinforcement just seems ridiculous.)

I know a lot about this women - I know she and her husband just moved here and this is her first child and what she does for a living and where she likes to shop and the few restaurants she and her husband have tried in little rock and that her mom is coming to stay with her for a few weeks this summer.

She knows that I am new(ish) to the whole stay at home gig, what I did in my prior work-life, where I'm from, how many siblings i have.... (additionally i gave her my social security #, drivers license #, and how i like my eggs. you know. just in case.)

ANYWAY, the point is. We chat. We talk. She's nice. I'm nice. It's nice to have someone to stand by while the children totter around recklessly poking each other in the eyes. (BE GENTLE, GENTLE!!!!)

BUT we didn't know each others' names.

Until today.

i mean, how hard was that? It took us WEEKS to get there. WEEKS.

Her name is Meredith. AND SHE TOTALLY LOOKS JUST LIKE A MEREDITH. But clearly not in the dark, twisty, annoying Meredith Grey kind of way. More in the all my friends named Meredith are awesome kind of way.

i'm not saying we are going to be BFFs or even friends. (i am a firm subscriber to the make new friends, but keep the old theory.) (me and the girl scouts of america.), but she makes me feel like more in the circle. (the mom circle, not necessarily the one that never ends as the song suggests.)

(for the record her daughter is not named Ava as the post title might suggest.)

chalk it up

struggle:
1 : to make strenuous or violent efforts in the face of difficulties or opposition
2 : to proceed with difficulty or with great effort

will YOU please not touch the outlet/eat the chalk/grab the dogs tails/poke your friends eyes/throw your sippy/touch the toilet/pull mommy's shirt down/run away from me in public?

happy tuesday friends!

i'm hot and you woke me up

i shot these images upon returning from a run this afternoon. nate passed out in the stroller... it was h.o.t. we were both sweaty and cranky and he did NOT want to be awakened. i didn't feel that bad for him as i was heaving and sweating and generally looking disgusting pushing 23 pounds of baby plus 22.5 pounds of stroller (i looked that fact up. my f-ing stroller weighs 22.5 pounds. no wonder it is so difficult to run up a hill.) (for the love. that is almost 50 pounds of stroller/baby PLUS the twenty extra pounds my, um, body below my neck is carting around!)

i must say i am officially ON THE WORKOUT TRAIN. it's nice. i forgot that i do enjoy working out. i also forgot how hard it is to get back in shape and how easy it is to fall out of it. Jenny and I are doing the Couch to the 5K program (tracking eachother through google docs; oh this wonderful world wide web) and Sarah and I are doing a Body after Baby challenge. i am also thinking about rejoining my old gym that i adore. i haven't been there since i was about 26 weeks pregnant (my last step class!)

Wish me luck BECAUSE when i get back in shape this girl is contemplating getting all knocked up again. CONTEMPLATING. and in no rush.

(and that is a secret. so don't tell.)

(and honestly i think it might just be all the new babies around with their delicious smelling heads.)

(AND i just want to know what the next one is going to look like.)

(and how he or she will be different from the adorable monster that we call nate.)

i know, i am officially bananas with all the ()()()()().

it's all the freaking ENDORPHINS.

i put the butt shot in there to change it up a bit

i know you have been dying to see some haircut pictures, right? OF COURSE YOU HAVE. (gawd... am i THAT mom? that LOOKATMYKID mom? well, so what if i am!? you know you like it.)

so, yea, the hair was cut at home and it looks okaaaay. i guess i did NOT realize how completely straight and BLONDE his hair really is and how every SINGLE snip shows up in super straight, super blonde hair. so there are a few snips that got a little too snippy and a few spots around the ear that maybe weren't snipped enough. eh, well, he's one... what does he care? it's not so horrible that i am embarrassed to take him in public. (or is it? should i be?) i will admit that it does look much better in the back - mullet be gone!

i am a bit tired today because karl and nate had a boys night last night (shockingly the majority of it was spent at Chic-Fil-A. i know you are surprised. karl's affinity for CFA knows no bounds.) i put on my big girl clothes (i am ashamed to admit the top was maternity and the jeans are WAY bigger than the ones i bought 2 months post partum. DEPRESSING but whatever... I am working on it.) anway, i hit the town last night and got home at the late, late hour of MIDNIGHT. i then proceeded to eat an entire bag of doritos (ensuring another few weeks in maternity tops!) and turned back into a pumpkin. it was a fun night but i won't be doing a repeater any time soon. i mean i BAR HOPPED people. and one of those places was a PIANO BAR. i have never liked bar hopping, well, ever. honestly, it wasn't wild or crazy at all...just a little bit of laid back, necessary fun after having nate attached to my ass for the past 6 days with me in St. Louis.

sno cones and slacking

nate and i are back in little rock THANK GOD. we were ready to get home. i don't believe we will be traveling again until september. i am ready for a break from planes, and trains, and automobiles. and packing. (chronic underpacker + child = many aw crap moments and runs to this store or that.)

our trip started - before we even pulled up to our destination - with getting PULLED OVER. like by the PO-leeeece. so that was exciting! St. Louis is infamous for it's sheer # of cops - each neighborhood has its own precinct and some areas/precincts are more famous than others for handing out the tickets. i was LESS THAN A MILE from the house when this particular officer pulled me over - for running a red light... which was clearly yellow. i was tempted to invite him to little rock to observe and report the running of the red lights there. it is BAD. let the record show that i am very anti-running-red-lights, so i am still not sure why he really did pull me over BUT whatever. he was very nice (we could have stopped for a drink!) and had just had his first baby (a boy named Gage) four weeks ago. we swapped some delivery stories (she had a c-section) and sleeping habits (he and his wife are both struggling with the sleep deprivation) and off nate and i went.... completing our 7 HOURS in the car together.

mid-trip, i lost my wallet on a jog. yea, it's gone. forever. i felt ridiculous. nothing says i'm-a-grown-up like losing your wallet while staying with your parents... who then proceed to make sure you have locked the door/have your cell phone/set the alarm like you haven't been doing these things on your own for the last couple of decades.

the trip wrapped with a wonderful 21st birthday party for my cousin max (complete with sno cone machine and money-blowing pit):
the trip home was LONG but the weather was clear and we made it safely, so i can't complain too much.

things i love about mom and dads

in no particular order (some of the pics are blurry; they are all with my phone and, well, i am not exactly what you would call a steady hand.) and with no particular regard for tense, punctuation, or full sentences, i present: things i love about mom and dads.

my old fisher price peoples are available for playing. Silo included.
there is free beer within jogging distance of the house. Nate and I took a morning jaunt over to Grants Farm...took a train ride, saw some buffalo and swimming deer...I didn't indulge in a beer at 10 am, but it's nice to know it's there. (plus, i didn't have my id on me and i look approximately 13 years old so they probably would have denied me the freshly brewed yummies anyway.)

mom's collection of, um, decorative ducks for her bathroom. seriously, there are ducks in here wearing easter bunny ears, holding sparklers, wearing pilgrim hats, and in summer swimsuits. yea. nate loves them. (where does one buy these ducks?)

you can buy gooey butter cake in the grocery store. i make gooey butter cake down south... generally no one knows what it is. Yumtown. Good thing I can't buy it at the grocery store at home.

dad buys me things like this - a decorative fan owl. isn't it amazing? it will be perfect in my owl sanctuary kitchen.

my parents still keep things like this with their other VHS tapes by the TV. (Oh YES that is MTV's The Grind workout video.)

Proof that we didn't just find a picture of the Grind video from the internets:

well that was hilarious

thanks for the input... special thanks to the comment-ers. ;)

sigh. all polls aside, i think it's probably time to cut it. (maybe not too drastically.)

(do i cut it myself? have someone do it?)

(also - are you really supposed to keep some of it? that seems strange to me.)

nate and i are headed to STL to see my mom and dad and sister for the rest of the week. which is super because i am NOT (repeat not!) having the greatest week thus far with the naterade. it's fine. just a parenting-is-hard kind of week. limits are being pushed/tested. ears are hurting. teeth are coming. naps are being skipped. tables are being climbed. outlets are being, um, touched. (yikes.) (no worries; the outlets are covered.) (but still.) it's also been a bit gloomy doomy (we had an amazing lightning storm around 2:30am this morning!) so we haven't been out and about as much as the past few weeks.

to cut or not to cut: that is the question (part II)

ok - sorry for the plethora of pictures (i just wanted to cover all angles, ya know, so your eyes were FULLY informed) i also apologize for the ridiculousness of this post.

HOWEVER, i just. can't. put. the. scissors. to. the. hair. i may need some additional input. i told myself at one year i would cut. one year has come and gone.

so, yea, you are anonymous... it won't hurt my feelings. VOTE. (i'll do what i want anyway. you know that.)

Scissors??

• 
  
  FRONT & BACK - your child looks a little redneck; we already make fun of you for living in the South.


• 
  
  Trim up the back - it's a baby mullet and you know it. Quit lying to yourself. It won't grow out cute.


• 
  
  Trim up the front - the half emo/half hipster look just isn't working.


• 
  
  DON'T TOUCH A SINGLE HAIR ON HIS PRECIOUS HEAD.

view results
Free vote poll

(also small disclaimer about the making fun of the South bit - it's only because there are many-o mullets around town.)

to cut or not to cut: that is the question

i am going to put up some images. then i am going to put up an anonymous poll. i am starting to think i am blinded by love when it comes to Nate and The Haircut Department.

stay tuned...

::grabs camera::

the comfort of the kitchen

when we first looked at our house (four long years ago!) i was immediately impressed by the BIG KITCHEN. It always seems like people end up in the kitchen. karl and i entertain quite a bit so we spend some time in it. it's the one thing we have completely redone in our house. (i would recommend timing housing remodels better than this.)

anyway, when my parents were in town for nate's birthday weekend, we were in the kitchen a lot...you know, making dirt cake and cutting fruits and veggies. i had been telling karl i wanted to put this couch in there for a week or so... and then i did. by myself. (thankyouverymuch!) (karl was at work.)

i have to tell you - this couch (that we bought at urban outfitters 2 or so years ago) has gotten more use in it's two weeks of living in the kitchen than the entire time we have owned it. it took me a few days to truly love it. but then it became not only a couch but also a laundry sorting station, hub for plugging things in to charge, and oh so much more....

teeth: small whitish structures found in the jaws

so i know i just posted about time flying by but today TODAY was slow. very, very slow. at 2:20 p.m. i felt like DAYS and WEEKS and MONTHS had passed. nate has gotten up at 5:30 in the AM the last two days and has refused to nap like a normal baby. seriously, sometimes i believe he can function on less sleep than me. he is sleeping around 10 hours at night (sorry new mommies) (and shut the H up 12 hour sleeper mommies) so i can't complain too much but this napping business is getting ridiculous. no one year old can function a full day on a single 45 minute nap. he is drooling like crazy and won't let me too far away from him (unless of course he is making another Great Escape... you know to attempt some playtime in the toilet or to speed toward anything breakable or the dog food)...so i think there may be some new teeth on the way.

we took three walks today. three. maybe this "phase" is good for my waistline.

in honor of teeth... which seriously have to be the strangest part of being a human...i would like to post a video. please note: i just don't understand TEETH. you don't have them! now you do! (and they hurt like hell to break through) no, now, no, wait there they go (insert tooth under pillow... don't get me started on the tooth fairy - what is that? who invented that?) wait, here they come again! (insert thousands of dollars spent on dental insurance and dental work and braces and teeth cleaning products forevermore)... oh but then...wait, wait, there they go again! (insert dentures.) (do they fall out one by one?) (do you think karl will put money under my pillow when i am an old half-toothed lady?)

ANYWAY, here!

self-indulgent sunday

another week begins...

things on my mind this sunday (well, things on my mind right now anyway):

1. i am REALLY sore from the slip and slide. particularly in the abdomen area. sliding headfirst down a tarp covered in dish soap and water may not be an appropriate activity for a 28 year old.

2. my mom arms are kind of hot.

3. my mom belly is not.

4. i hate flossing my teeth. it feels like such a burden. (my life is rough.)

5. i wish i had some sunflower seeds. and a coke.

6. i am excited about the upcoming MLB all star game.

7. i wish i had corn dip left over from the party yesterday. and a coke.

8. maybe i will take my morning walk up to a jog tomorrow. (ha.)

9. i am going to restart my 30 day shred (with jillian micheals!) that i did for 9 days and then discontinued (never making it past level one.)

10. clearly as i am writing these little tidbits i am both STARVING and feeling guilty about eating this late and needing to work it off.

11. i am really self-involved this sunday evening as only one of these items (#6) was not about ME. sorry.

(let's go National League!)

firecracker firecraker boom boom BOOM!

it's july.

say it again, with me this time, IT'S JULY!

now put the brown paper bag over your mouth and continue hyperventilating.

i can not wrap my mind around the fact that i haven't worked since May, what, 3rd... sometime in the first week of may? that is TWO months. TWO MONTHS of unemployment. by choice. I have not NOT worked since i was 15 and a half. i started in the catering business before i could even drive legally. the summer karl and i met (whilst in college)? he drank margaritas by the pool all day and worked on his tan and running up his credit card debt; i had two jobs (one full time 8-5 office job and one hostessing job at a restaurant three nights a week). i think i slept a total of 12 hours that entire summer. seriously. unemployment is not in my bones.

i am still struggling with this new stay at home identity. mostly, i love it with my whole heart and if i think too much about how much work karl does to make it possible i get a little emotional about the whole thing (and i do admit to still feeling a little guilt for not contributing in a monetary kind of way at the moment.). i also somedays freak out that i won't be able to find a job when i am ready to go back - part time or otherwise.

but i am making the most of it and trying desperately to enjoy these fleeting baby moments. last week we went to story hour at the library, free movies at our local theater, the pool, playtime in the park.... next week we are doing some more swimming and a puppet show... it is definately more difficult than i anticipated to simply GET OUT OF THE HOUSE. somedays i have to force myself to do it. it makes for a happier mama and a happier child. (i am not a homebody; i like PEOPLE AND PLACES, but not, um, spending money.) i won't tell you my child is an angel as that would be a lie. somedays i just want him to nap an extra hour... hell, an extra minute. he can be whiney and clingy and he tries to kiss/eat the dogs every five minutes (we PET the dogs, PET the dogs. no, don't pull on his face.) (the dogs have taken to running away and holeing up in the bedroom.) this whole thing - this whole forming and influencing and teaching another person is completely bizarre.

somedays i can not wrap my mind around the fact that i have a one year old.

today, for the fourth of july we are truly celebrating like a hallmark card (hot dogs on the grill, watermelon, a slip n slide and sprinkler, brownies, and some sparklers!) (oh, and, maybe some budweiser product... though arguably not quite as american of a beer as it used to be.) appropriately, our neighbors kids will be here with their fireworks - they think we are the COOLEST to hang around. i anticipate an entertaining and happy evening.

i can not wrap my mind around the fact that 2009 is more than halfway over. i know people say that time goes faster the older you get but i have never been more aware (or unaware?) of that FACT as this year.

really, how did it get to be july?