The Burp Rag Chronicles

That Darn Troll!

I would kind of like to beat up that Time Stealing Troll - my sincerest apologies for being so... lame. 

Now that that is out of the way I can get down to business.

Because Sydney drive me batty with her incessant need to be up my butt have continual mental stimulation, I have decided that it's time to put her in a gymnastics class. She's been to the class twice now. Isn't she the cutest thing you ever did see??

The first time, despite our efforts to tell her that she needed to listen to her coach, do as she was told, etc. it seems to have fallen on deaf ears. 

Can you tell which of these children isn't like the others? I wonder whose child that is?? That mom must have zero idea how to steer her child. (That is, without a doubt, mostly true.)

However, after having gone a couple of sessions now, she is listening much better, and the newness of it all has worn off. 

Why, I've even enrolled her in the gymnastic program's Mom's Day Out (hereto referred to as MDO). She attends twice a week for 5 hours and does mostly what they'd do in a preschool setting, along with an hour of gymnastic play. The first class she went into the foam block pool thing, and did not hesitate to tell me that it was the bestest thing evar!

Someone asked me if I cried when I dropped her off. No. No, I didn't. That might sound harsh to some of you all, but you probably haven't met my daughter. She'd make Dr. Laura cry. Seriously, I was happy for the break, I knew she'd have a great time, and I could rest, play with Cameron uninterrupted, and possibly clean house.

And I did just that.

Here are a few pictures to help tide you over until my next update in approximately 7 months, 39 hours, 2 seconds.

The girls enjoying some Sunday morning cartoons, probably Handy Manny. :)

Cameron sporting the outfit my Aunt Virg and Uncle John got her for her birth - it's adorable! :D Unfortunately she was a total crab apple when taking the pictures so, this is about as good as we got. ;-)

A proper lady MUST know how to put her hair in the towel head wrap after a shower - at ANY age and ANY hair length!

Punk princess. ;-) Bathed, lotioned, and ready for bed!

No smiles for you, mom! I'm bathing - privacy please!

Really? Could you put that thing down for a meager ten seconds?

Conversations with Sydney

Tonight, as always, I was getting Sydney ready for bed. I'd already bathed her, which went well, and was trying to get her in her pajamas, which she was resisting. Not actively, just messing around and not getting in her PJ's. Finally, I told her, in my Daddy Voice, "Sydney Elizabeth, get in your pajamas now."

"Okay, okay," she said. "You don't have to be so bossy!"

"I'm not bossy," I replied. "I'm the boss."

"No you're not," she informed me. "Cameron is."

Trying to stifle my laughter, I said, "Well, yes, metaphorically--"

"I even saw her bib that said The Boss on it," she said, cutting me off.

That was it. With one last plea for her to put her PJs on, I had to leave the room to laugh and tell her Mom about it.

Man, we have one seriously funny child!

BumGenius Contest!

So, I get lots of cloth diapering things in my email Inbox. One of them happens to be a BumGenius contest to win 6 of their One Size diapers from ClothDiaperTips (lots of info there, folks!). Cameron seems to do well in those as well as our old school Fuzzi Bunz. So I just wanted to let my loyal reader know that you, too, can enter! But you don't have to - it gives me more of a chance to win. Wink wink, nudge nudge, know what I mean? ;-)

So come visit the site and enter to win (the easiest is to just leave a comment on the site)! If you do win, we kindly accept all Bum Genius Cloth Diaper Donations! *LOL*

In True Form

Here at Casa de Davis, we like to do things on our own terms. Mother Nature be damned, we're going to grow pumpkins so that they are ready to harvest in March. Forget the fall, people.

Yes, we have been training our black thumbs to be a little more green, and it's been a really fun journey, actually. Our most successful plant has been the pumpkin, which was purely accidental. We've been really good at getting the plants started, but they almost never survive the transfer to larger planters or outside. We must have the Fertile Window or something because we've been incredibly blessed at getting plant life started on that kitchen window.

The pumpkin sprouted within about three days of planting. And when I say sprouted, I mean burst out of the dirt like some one had been holding it down all its life. Within weeks it was getting far too large for the window sill and had to be moved outside.

I'll be honest, I was a little scared. I guess it's kind of like sending your kid off to school. You just kind of pray they get fresh water and make it out there in the cold, uncaring world.

But the darn thing survived. It even thrived out there. So much so that the watermelon that it was also planted with - the one I suspected would really take off - was kind of choked out. (I kid! It grows, but at a much, much slower rate than the Squash of Doom).

Today, this is what we found.

Now, we're unsure if non-pollination of the flower means no fruit... I'm not a horticulturist my ANY means. But pumpkin flowers only bloom for one day, and since it was terribly rainy today, I doubt the bees were out doing busy work. But, we might have gotten lucky. :-)

(Sydney is VERY eager to see it every day - fortunately for all of us the pumpkin seems to change relatively quickly so there is something to actually SEE it do.)

We also have a fruiting green bean in the kitchen. That guy probably needs to be moved, but it's got little bean pods and I can't possibly disturb it. It's adorable! But I have no idea how beans grow, when is the best time ti pick them, etc. Do they just continue to fruit throughout the year if you have it indoors? These are the questions I have.

* * * * *

Cameron is seven (yes, SEVEN) months old today. I'm getting older by the minute and yet I don't remember anything that happened. It's a very strange feeling waking up and wondering "How did I get here?"

In Month Seven, the biggest news is that she has sprouted two teeth, her two front bottom ones. And she uses them, too! Yikes. See them below? That's my finger she is gnawing on there, but I put up with it for the sake of science. Enjoy.

She is also Army Crawling like a monster - she's QUICK at it, too. It's kind of this Bear-Crawl-Turned-Lunge thing. But she can cross her bedroom in like four of that move. I suspect crawling isn't that far behind. She is also very close to sitting on her own. She will sit for a little if you sit her down on the floor, but eventually she gets nosy, turns, and then falls over. But she gets close to sitting when she is laying on the floor.

Foods... LOVES them all. She really loved green beans, which wasn't the reaction I was hoping for. Sydney loved food too, until we started beans. Cameron eats them all like she's had them all her life or something. She really loved green beans and peaches. Now that we're all out of peaches, tomorrow we start.... BANANAS. 

Which reminds me, I should get some of those mesh baggy things from Sassy. Syd had them and we adored them. GREAT for starting them on soft fruits like bananas and peaches. Or... avocado. Sydney used to LOVE that stuff!!

Sydney is totally stoked for her first gymnastic class on Saturday. She's been suffering allergies-turned-cold all week (you know, as 95% of Texas has been) so I've been keeping her home to try to get her on the mend. So far, so good.

So that is all that is going on in this neck of the woods.

And Then I Turned

Thirty-One. Thirty-One years old. It doesn't seem like much, until you look back at what was going on in 1978.

The average household income was $16,000.00.

A gallon of gas was $0.63.

Japanese car imports account for half the US import market following the energy crisis and increase in fuel prices that fuels demand for economy cars.

The first Susan B. Anthony coin was minted on December 13th.

The Volkswagen Beetle ceases production after nearly 30 years.

Illinois Bell introduces the first ever cell phone network.

Space Invaders begins a huge video game craze.

"Son of Sam" serial killer David Berkowitz is sentenced to 25 years to life in prison, after terrorizing New York City for a year.

First "test tube" baby, Louise Brown, was born via in vitro fertilization.

Popular movies included Grease, Saturday Night Fever, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.

Popular songs and musicians included "Night Fever" and "Stayin' Alive" by the Bee Gees, "Three Times a Lady" by Commodores, and the Grease soundtrack featuring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John.

Popular TV shows included Happy Days, Little House on the Prairie, Saturday Night Live, CHiPs, The Muppet Show, The Love Boat, Charlie's Angels, and Three's Company.

We've come a long way, baby. Look at that yearly income - that's some serious inflation. In 2007 the average household income was $50,000 according to the US Census Bureau (well, and the Wikipedia).

* * * * *

I went to the eye doctor on Friday to get the old (and I mean that) peepers looked at. Plus, it was time for some new glasses. Well, a few days before my appointment I thought that I would like to give contact lenses a try. Again.

See, every time I try them they are never comfortable, always feels like there is something gritty in my eyes, and they are forever feeling dry. But, every few years I try them again, because someday... someday... they will work for me.

Luckily I think that day was Friday. :-)

I got set up with a trial pair and already, a few days later, I am really excited to wear them. Today I was an idiot and put them in the wrong eyes (no, I didn't put them in Jarrod's eye. I put the left lens in the right eye, etc.) and learned that my prescriptions are close, but not quite the same. The fit was right, at least. LOL

Then today we took Jarrod to his appointment and I told the nurse that I loved them and I wanted to keep them - she told me about them, ordering, care, etc. These are Biofinity Toric lenses - and I am in love. The most comfortable lenses I have worn EVER. They are replaced monthly. They do make daily wear toric lenses but they are a little spendy. ;-) Maybe some day.

So as I said, Jarrod went to his appointment today. His vision changed a little bit so we got him new glasses. Now I remember why we only take him every other year. Our flex plan renewed September 1st, and I think already we are down 60% of it. His bill for new glasses and sunglasses was just about $700.

Pick your jaw up off the floor. I know I had to.

My contacts, for a year's worth were $180-something. AND I get a $55 rebate later! Now I realize that doesn't include the solution and care for them, but I don't think even then I will catch up with that one. ;-)

The Difference

With your first child, we watch as the young parent sterilizes bottles every wash. Measures formula out exactly with each bottle. Never lets a bottle sit out for 30 minutes, let alone an hour. They change baby's diaper every hour, even if it's not been peed in. DON'T TOUCH THAT PACIFIER OH MY GOD IT'S TOUCHED THE FLOOR!! Baby naps at scheduled times, by golly. If they don't go down at 10:00 a.m.then the entire day is shot. Solid foods are given strictly, by the book, vegetables first in order from lightest to darkest to avoid allergies. Baby goes to bed promptly at 7:00 p.m. and has a bath nightly.

Second baby? Bottles go in the dishwasher mostly because it's less of a pain to do that than wash them. Formula is... well, it's measured close enough. Bottle sitting out? Well, it's not yet curdled, is it? Diaper changes happen when there is a break in daily life. Or a blow out. Whichever comes second. Paci on the floor? Well... Thirty Second Rule. Naps happen when there are no appointments, playgroups scheduled, or Lunch Dates with Daddy. Solids... whatever is on sale! Bedtime comes whenever baby rubs their eyes incessantly and complains at every movement they make. Bath? Well, she is smelling rather ripe, isn't she?

I suspect it just kind of get worse with subsequent kids, I'd need further input on that. ;-)

So, I've been job hunting. You'd think I am asking the world, but I just want an evening job so I don't have to put the girls in daycare. I'd like a job that doesn't totally suck, but really, that is optional.

In light of my birthday swiftly approaching, Jarrod asked me what I wanted for a gift. When did I become old? "I don't know, I really haven't thought about it." I honestly haven't. My mom bought me an iPhone as an early present. And then there is the obvious "lottery win" and "debt payoff" responses. I kind of want new gym shoes. My others are getting old, but maybe they just need a really good washing. Hardly seems "birthday present" worthy, ya know?

I am feeling kind of bah humbug about it, and I've never felt that way about my birthday. Usually it's a sort of 'everybody does what I want them to do" sort of day.

Pout.