finis.

I'm fully up and running over at wordpress, so hitch up the ponies and join me there! The water's fine, the layout lovely, the grass greener, and I'll be deleting this blog's address at the end of the week.

Go here.

yer cheatin' heart

I've had lots to blog about this week, but alas - I've been cheating on my blog. I've been spending time over at Wordpress. (sigh. batting eyes. clasped hands.) I have the coolest blog in the works over there (what can I say...I follow Caron's lead), so go check it out! It's pretty rough, but I'm working out the kinks today. Got all my archives over there now. Go to:

www.lionsunderoaks.wordpress.com

Join me there! Leave comments! I'll be leaving this blogspot soon, but don't tell my blog yet. Gonna break its heart. My first blog love.

so tonight, i'm cleanin out my closet

This weekend went way too fast. I think I'm a weekend warrior, so I'm pretty bummed out until 9AM most Monday mornings. However, the coffee's on (Guatemala Antigua, one of my favorites), Reese is occupied, Liam is napping, and I can deal. This weekend was particularly short because we didn't really get going - everyone's in some stage of a nasty cold. I have escaped the worst so far, which makes me the designated hitter. In other words, I was the one who didn't get a weekend! Everyone else got to watch movies, lounge, and generally get away with being cranky. So finally, at 4 AM, I got a little pouty. Okay, full disclosure - I did take an hour nap while watching "The Sands of Iwo Jima" yesterday. While everyone else was napping, of course. How I slept through all that artillery, I don't know. Good news: American forces took the island from Japan. Bad news: John Wayne died.

Two things I did accomplish this weekend that felt good (both to me & my insanely organized husband): mountains of laundry were washed, dried & folded. AND (most important), we sorted through the kids' clothes and mine. Made a big Goodwill pile, put some in storage to give to friends later, handed down some of my t-shirts to Reese for pj's, put a few items away for keepsakes, and straightened up all the dresser drawers. Liam is now 13+ pounds (at 6 weeks! help!), so he's out of his infant clothes....not to panic, though. Thanks to two friends who have boys, the sense to save some of their old clothes and the generosity to share some with me, I got tons of good-fitting and cute clothes for our little man (newly dubbed "Big Business"). He's set til summer! I could not be more grateful. Thanks, Al & Cheryl.

Dare I take a shower? Or a power nap? Tempted to watch "The Aristocats" with Reese again...

growing pains

Michael's mom came over yesterday and offered to take Reese for the night....I'd been putting it off, this whole spending-the-night thing, for no good reason. I think I just wasn't ready, and with Liam on the way, didn't want my little chick far from the nest. I dunno. She ended up spending the night at my parents when Liam didn't arrive 'on time', and with all the flurry I didn't really think about it.

But yesterday I relented, packed her suitcase, and off she went to Granny's for the night and most of the day today. It was great, actually - I got to sleep in and she had the best time. I watched Michael get Reese in the car, and as they drove away, that durn lump sprung up in my throat. Our little girl is growing up, going away from home, venturing out without us....I was surprised at how emotional I got over the whole thing. Today her room was too neat, the duplex too quiet. I missed her! But seeing the look on her ornery face was worth the growing pains - she was so proud, having a night at Granny's all to herself. I am already afraid that the next sixteen years are going to go by lickety-split, leaving me holding the camera, hoping to catch just one more memory.

grounded

We were all set to go play at the Perrys this morning with Isaac, Linus & Ada, but the garage door is frozen shut. Michael took the other car, and so we're stuck. Five days in the house with the kids this week. I am pouting almost as much as Reese is.

big week

It's snowing today- my favorite winter weather. But it's a big week no matter where you live around the ole' U-S-of-A:

1. Super Tuesday: go vote if you've got a primary.

2. Fat Tuesday: that's Mardi Gras, folks! Lent begins tomorrow. Fish-fry season. Love those.

3. The annual Duke/North Carolina game (at Chapel Hill!) tomorrow night. Go 'Heels!

Staying in with the kiddos today and having black bean soup & cornbread for dinner. Cozy Tuesday.

one month

Liam turns one month old today. He gave us the best present last night - only waking up once (at 4 AM) instead of twice, as is his custom. We'll see if this was a one-time deal or the gift that keeps on giving.



Things I love about Liam:

- His name. I hope he loves it as much as I do!

- Reese's nickname for him: Lima. (LEE-ma) So I call him Lima Bean.

- He loves baths. Actually coos while I'm splashing water over him. So I give him one as often as possible. It's so fun.

- He's a good eater. Very focused when he's not sleepy.

- Except for his mouth (he got my big frog lips), he looks just like his daddy. Now we each have a mini-me!

- He can fart & burp as well as any man. You can hear him from the next room, even over Reese. Good for laughs on those days when I am barely keeping it together.

Happy month-a-versary, Little Man!

steppin' out

Tonight I went out by myself for purely social reasons - the first time since Liam's arrival. I had no guilt about leaving the kids home with Michael and going out to celebrate Ranae's birthday. But I got out there, and suddenly, I felt lost. Maybe it was the crowded restaurant, or that I didn't know some of the folks there, or that I'm in a constant state of exhaustion, but I felt out of my element. It was all I could do to carry on a halfway decent conversation. I savored that one glass of wine...the first I've had in over a year. Pinot grigio. I got shy - around my close friends! - and the fact that I was the only mother there seemed to float like a heavy cloud over me. My shirt felt lumpy, accentuated by the maternity support panel sagging around my waist. I had too much makeup on and not enough jewelry. I was sweating. I didn't know what to talk about. There were interesting people all around me, and I couldn't think of a good conversation starter. I was a zombie. All around me were fabulous people exuding confidence and great hair, and I couldn't fully join in. I was out in public and yet not part of the public. I wanted to hide. Getting down to the last sip of wine was like being at the school skating party - the last song, one more earnest lap around the rink, hoping the cute kid will notice you, hoping the night ends on a high note, making it something to remember. It never happens, though. So you go home a little disappointed, ankles throbbing from the ill-fitting skates. And driving home tonight, listening to Dashboard Confessional, I realized that I'll have to work a little harder to get my groove back.