My Little Cupcake

Comments I Received Yesterday

Whoa! I had to delete this one comment I got on my last post. It wasn't really a comment, it was just a list of all these kinky links--if you're into that sort of thing, some of the funnier ones listed were:

Big Tits Patrol
Black Meat White Treat
I Spy Camel Toe
Mr. Chews Asian Beaver
Please Bang My Wife
Teeny Bopper Club
The Big Swallow

Anyway, what I think is so hysterically funny about this--I think this was somehow my mother trying to post a comment! She was asking me about posting comments on my blog just this morning on the phone, and she's not too computer-savvy (sorry, mom!) . Plus the username was "your" so I think she was trying to type "your mom."

I mean, I could be wrong--I, myself, am not terribly computer-savvy and I am also very new to the whole blogging scene. For example, I also received a very nice comment yesterday from someone named Nicole who says she really likes my blog. And first of all I thought, is she for real? I mean, all I talk about are my babies and how in love I am--how lame is that? And then I'm like, do I thank her? And how would I even do that? (I guess I just did.)

And as for that other, pervy comment--if it's not from my mother, then all I can say is "Sorry I ever doubted you, Mom, and whoever you really are, go pick on some other blogger!"

Man-on-Man Defense

Wow! We took Blue and the Lion to the doctor's today (Blue was due for her 18-month well-baby check-up and the Lion was due for his 2-week check-up). I didn't think we would ever get out the door! It must just drive Jonathan crazy--he is always sooo punctual.

We have been employing a sort-of Man-on-Man defensive strategy so far and it seems to be working. Basically, Jonathan takes care of Blue and I handle the Lion. Anyway, this technique will have to end on Monday when Jonathan returns to work, and then it will be all up to me, and if you are any good at math you will have noticed that I will be outnumbered 2 to 1. I have no idea how I will swing this, but so many women have done it before me, that I guess I will just figure it out as I go along! It can't be that hard, right?! And I actually picked Blue up just now despite my doctor's order to wait 6 weeks--and I survived. So, we'll see...

Anyway, today's doctor visit went well. The Lion's eyes look a lot better--thank you, Christina, for the tip about the baby shampoo! Both babies are very tall for their ages. They must take after their Daddy. And we were very proud of Blue. She was very well-behaved.

When we got home, we all decided the driveway looked a little boring, so Blue and I spruced it up a bit with some sidewalk chalk. Then as we were heading back inside, I asked her "Do you want some milk?" and she said "No" and shook her head. Jonathan and I are just amazed. I guess we should have figured she would eventually answer us at some point, but it has become so routine to just ask her rhetorical questions and keep up a one-sided dialogue. It's as if the dog answered us, we were that startled. Does this count, then, as my first conversation with my daughter? I'm counting it. I think my previous running commentary with her occasionally replying "Balloon" somehow just isn't quite on par with this.

Uh-oh, I've gotta run. Jonathan is upstairs playing with Blue and my Little Lion Man is waking up--hungry, from the sound of it!

Namaste

tonight,
as every night,
i stand over you.

i place a cupped
hand on your chest to
feel your body fill with air.

reassured,
for now you are fine,
for now.

emotion burbles
in my head,
leaks into my ears
and out of my eyes.

i want everything for
you

everything good

marshmallows, a lemonade
stand, white sand, green corn
tamales, sidewalks and marine
layer mornings

newsprint on your fingers,
bubble baths, earthworms in
black dirt, satellite t.v. and
and at least one big win

grilled tomatoes, a dog with
yawning eyes, a place to hide,
hammocks in the summertime

a moment like this

Rachel Iverson

Nasty Little Lion

Whew! We went out for the first time today as a family of four to take Little Lion Man to the doctor's office. He has been having some trouble with his right eye getting all crusty. So we brought him to see the doctor again. It's nothing major. Apparently, one of his tear ducts is a little small, so he may have this happen from time to time. It's fairly common, and it should be fine by his first birthday. We have a prescription for eye drops for him--so no big deal, thank God! I just imagine it getting all nasty again around every holiday or photo shoot for the first year... Maybe I'll get him a little pirate eye patch just to be prepared!

Which reminds me, the Oscars are this Sunday and I am so excited! I just love the Oscars. Aunt Lizzie sent a billion little outfits for the baby before he was born and there's one that's cowboy-themed. It has horses and cowboys and lassoes on it and says "Giddy-up" and "Yippee-Kai-Yay" all over it. It is super cute. I've already put it on him twice, and he's only been home for 5 days! Anyway, I may have Lion wear it on Sunday, in honor of "Brokeback Mountain" being nominated so many times. Now I need to think of an outfit equally Oscar-worthy for Blue. What else is even nominated? I could always dress her in black like Johnny Cash, but that's just not as cute... If anyone has any suggestions, I'd be happy to hear them...

Sad Baby, Sick Baby

Wow! What a week... I am recuperating from my c-section. Slowly. It's hard because I feel like I am constantly asking Jonathan to do things for me. And it's very, very hard to not hold Blue. I am not allowed to lift her for 6 weeks, and she can't sit on my lap yet because of my incision.

She has been having a little trouble adjusting. And it's not the new baby that is the problem--it's me. Which is something I didn't really consider before. I thought she would have issues with jealousy, but so far she just points at Lion and says "baby."

I knew she would miss me while I was in the hospital, but I didn't really think it would have such an effect on her. When we first came home, she ignored me. She wouldn't look at me or talk to me or anything. That broke my heart. She is my little buddy. We are together almost all day every day. It must have been very confusing for her to not have me around. I know she loves her grandparents and her Aunt Mary, but still... I'm sure she wondered where on earth I was. I have just always been around.

She is starting to come around, though. She is looking at me, and she is talking to me now, but she is still much quieter than before and she is not eating as much, and she is verrrrry crabby. I think it is upsetting her that I haven't held her, and yet she sees me holding the baby.

Jonathan has been amazing with her. He is so tired--not just from a general lack of sleep, but from helping me get around and from getting up in the night with the Lion and from taking care of Blue without any real help from me. And Blue has been a real pill sometimes! But he is so patient with her--really wonderful. I know he is not always the most patient man (what an understatement!) but he has not lost his cool with her yet. He plays with her and makes her laugh, gently admonishes her when she misbehaves, reads with her, fixes all of her meals for her, gives her baths (and gets completely soaked!), holds her up to my face to "give Mommy a kiss." And these are things he does all the time, but normally I take care of her for the majority of the day. I mean, since we came home with Lion, she has been hitting a lot--she even hit him in the face earlier today--and he still hasn't lost his cool! I am so impressed. I don't know if I could be as patient.

He says he just feels sorry for her, and that he understands how she feels because he must have felt the same way when Mary was born. My poor girl... it kills me that I can't pick her up! She fell and hit her head yesterday, and I could hug her, but I'm sure it hurt her feelings that I didn't pick her up and comfort her like I usually do.

Tomorrow I am going to really make an effort to spend time with her, just the two of us. No matter how tired I am, and no matter how swollen my feet and legs are. And I am going to be the one to read her her Goodnight Moon book at bedtime even though I can't lift her to help brush her teeth or put her in her crib.

The Lion is doing much better, on the other hand. He had jaundice. I've never thought jaundice was a big deal--Blue had it and my niece and nephew both had it, too. But his number was pretty high. I never knew how serious that is. (Severe jaundice can cause hearing loss and brain damage!) At first we were afraid he would have to stay in the hospital. But he was allowed to come home--we just had to keep him wrapped up in this special "bilirubin blanket" that glowed bright blue with ultra violet light. It was such a pain, keeping him next to the electrical outlet, plugging and unplugging him every time we took him out of his crib to change his diaper, but he had to be on it for at least 20 hours a day. It was very scary, though, because he was so yellow and the whites of his eyes were even bright yellow. He had lost almost a pound at the hospital and he wouldn't eat. We had to set the alarm for every 2 hours and force-feed him. But he looks much better now, and he doesn't have to be wrapped in the blanket anymore. And the best part is he has gained back almost all of the weight he lost. He wakes us up now at night, every 3 hours or so, and he eats 2 ounces at each feeding. It's funny, I used to pray he would sleep through the night very early on like Blue did, but now I'm just so happy to see him alert and eating, that I really don't mind being up in the night. And Jonathan and I have some really awesome conversations around 4 in the morning! It's nice.

We have been getting along so well. Man! Last time around, we fought all the time--I think I even threatened to go stay with my mom for a while! And I was being so horrible I'm surprised he didn't pack my bags for me! But this time has been great. He even told me, "This may sound crazy, but this has been one of the best weeks of my life."

He has been so amazing with the Lion. He was the one who decided we should set the alarm to feed him, and he calculated just how much we should try to get him to eat at each feeding. He kept track of how much Lion ate and when, and how many wet and dirty diapers he had and when--the pediatrician was very impressed. And now Lion is doing so well! Someday he'll be eating us out of house and home, and I'll tell him all about how he wouldn't eat when he was a baby, and how his father nursed him back to health. And he'll probably say, "yeah, yeah, I know. You've told me this story a thousand times!"

List of Four

stolen from Amy's blog ...

Four jobs I have had in my life:

1. office supervisor
2. bookseller
3. barista
4. waitress

Four movies I could watch over and over:

1. "Amelie"
2. "Persuasion"
3. "Sliding Doors"
4. "Napoleon Dynamite"

Four books I could read over & over:

1. Persuasion
2. Pride & Prejudice
3. anything by Agatha Christie
4. Little Women

Four places I have lived:

1. Fredericksburg, Virginia
2. Richmond, Virginia
3. Stafford, Virginia
4. East Hartford, Connecticut

Four TV shows I like to watch:

1. "Lost"
2. "Jeopardy!"
3. "Oprah"
4. "The Waltons"

Four places I have been on vacation:

1. the Caribbean
2. Germany
3. Rome
4. New York

Four web sites I visit daily:

1. Griddlers
2. Amazon
3. ebay
4. Loganberry Books

Four of my favorite foods:

1. Jonathan's Banana Pancakes
2. coffee
3. General Tso's Chicken
4. chips and dip

Four places I would rather be right now:

1. Rome
2. the beach
3. the bathtub
4. in bed