The Chronicles of M&M

Handsome little monster!

2011-08-29T21:29:00.002-04:00

You remind me of the babe...

2011-08-10T22:32:00.004-04:00

The babe with the power...
What power? Power of voodoo!

Remember the Labyrinth, with David Bowie? Several weeks ago, I was pretty sick of Thomas and Shrek and decided to try out the Labyrinth for Cadiem. I figured he'd like all of the cool puppets. He actually did like it--but mostly because of the baby boy that's in it. Baby! Baby!
Anyway--Bri and I were talking about it the other day...

Me: Seriously, what is up with David Bowie's pants in that movie? What is he trying to say? And why do I find him oddly attractive??

Bri: I know! What are we supposed to think? Is he supposed to be scary? Sexy? Does he want to have sex with me? (yes!)

I think it's the pants... They're sending a message... I'm just not sure what the hell it is! Hahaha. But seriously--David Bowie with the scary hair--and weird outfit--he makes it work! Who, besides David Bowie, could pull of all of that make-up--and is that glitter on his lips?

Moving on... (Pay attention Grandma-this part is for you!) I turned really old last week--for some reason it makes me feel like I need to get out of Blacksburg. I need a damn degree! I am finally going back to school in January. I'm excited to finally be at Tech--I just hope I can get it done quick! Work is going well, I moved into a new position recently--and I've been very busy!

Cadiem is speaking sentences... They're not totally clear--but he's definitely getting a handle on it! He's also starting to remember people's names. Ian is "Ayyn". Bri is "Ahn Bwee", and Nate is "Nat". Haha.
Well, that's it for now... Hopefully I'll be blogging more... If anyone is still reading!!

They're 2, they're 4, they're 6, they're 8...

2011-03-02T22:11:00.005-05:00

Shunting trucks and hauling freight... Red and green and brown and blue... They're the really useful crew!
Yes, I can now sing the Thomas theme song! Cadiem is still very obsessed with Thomas. I am so excited for him to open his birthday presents--all Thomas stuff of course :) He's turning two this Friday. Saturday we're having a huge party at Jeff's house, but Cadiem and I are also going to do a celebration on his actual birthday.
Cadiem has also discovered playdough--which luckily for me, he'll play with for hours! He's trying really hard to talk. He'll repeat a word (he thinks it's a word) over and over. It's actually pretty frustrating for both of us. Tonight after he finished dinner, he was repeating "bah bah" over and over--which he said very seriously--as if I was supposed to understand. Turns out he wanted a popsicle. AHHHHHH!
Cadiem was moved up to the "twos" room at daycare about a month ago. He's doing really well. They do a lot of fun activities everyday--he probably has more fun there than at home with me! In the last week he's also made friends with another little boy in his class--they apparently hang out all day and push each other around--but in a good way. Hahaha.
Work has been pretty busy and I'm taking one class. Public Speaking. AGAIN. So far, I have an A. This is a vast improvement from before! My friend Mary and I are in the same class... It's been really interesting to see how different we are in class. I am deathly afraid of speaking in front of people... Sweaty palms, accelerated heartbeat... But Mary is a natural and has no fear! On the other hand, I don't mind writing outlines--and Mary hates writing. We all have our strengths!
Jenni Allison came to visit a couple weekend ago and we had a fantastic time :) It mostly included a little downtown crawl (after Jeff took Cadiem of course!), and she's coming back this weekend--Yay!!
My mom is coming to visit in about two weeks--mainly for Cadiem's birthday--but for some reason, she didn't want to come to the kegger! Heh heh heh.
I'm joining the softball team at work, if we get enoug people for a team... Haven't played since junior high I think... Hopefully I can still hit the ball. Maybe I'll just pretend that the bat is a tennis racket. I already told them to not expect me to catch. Haha. I'm in it for the beer!
Well, I guess that's it! I've got some new pics up--and I'll post more after Cadiem's birthday :)

New Year's Resolution...

2011-01-15T11:04:00.003-05:00

YELL LESS. Yes, it's late. But I figure it's okay, since I never make them anyway :) It usually seems so pointless. Yes, like everyone else, I'm always striving to lose that five pounds of cookies and wine. But is that really a resolution? More like an ongoing battle.
Anyway, Cadiem is totally obsessed with Thomas the train right now. He watches the show whenever possible--well, he doesn't actually watch it. More like, insists on having it on--and then goes about his business. He's in the business of lining up his cars and then moving them somewhere else, to line them up yet again... and again... and again... You get the idea! He's added a few more words to his repertoire... But it's still hard to know what he's saying most of the time. "More" is his word for "Put Thomas On NOW!" He has NO patience.

Cadiem got a lot of great toys and clothes for Christmas, thank you everyone! Among them were a play kitchen+food and a Thomas train set. And between all of the grandparents he basically has a new wardrobe! I'm pretty excited about my Kindle and Anthropologie stuff (yay!). Thanks parents! I'm always so sad to leave Arizona, it really sucks living so far from family. At least it's a quick trip to Florida... But I'll have to pay for Cadiem soon, damnit!!

Work has been great, I finally got a real email address (rather than "blacksburg support temp"), yay!! My friend Ted is back in town for the semester (I'm considering bringing him into the alliance), I'm excited to see him. Today I'm hunting TJ Maxx for more Thomas trains... Hitting up the wine tasting, and possibly finding a spot downtown to chill with my Kindle :)
Happy weekend! (They're so much better when you have a job!)

"Clearly, Pandora thinks you are a sap."

2010-12-10T19:40:00.002-05:00

Bri said this to me the other day, after I told her that Pandora was playing Phil Collins on my Pete Yorn station. I was excited that Pandora knows me so well! And it was not a sappy eighties love song, it was "In the Air Tonight"... CLEARLY, not a sappy song, BRI!!

2010-12-07T21:35:00.003-05:00

Yeah, I'm grinning at a post, a post in Pittsburgh. No idea why! Perhaps there's something shiny on the ground or something... Hmmm...
I had a wonderful time at the Ivey's for Thanksgiving (and Christmas!). We at a lot of yummy food, I even put on a few pounds. I think it may have been all the crazy cheese we were eating.
Which of course went very well with wine ;) We also had a bunch of other yummy treats like Nina's cocoa. It was also fun to be around Fletcher. It was really interesting to see him signing. He can say please and thank you! He also talks quite a bit. We played a lot of Scrabble and Banana Grams... I didn't win a single game! Bri and I also watched the BBC version of "Pride & Prejudice". Which was pretty terrible, but we still loved it since we're both obsessed with it :)
Nate's nephew Ross was in a trombone concert in Pittsburgh, which luckily turned out to be indoors. It was a stage full of all trombones playing Christmas music. It was really cool!
I did really miss Cadiem, but it was also kind of nice to have a bit of a vacation, without diapers ;)

Cadiem spent his first "overnight visit" with Jeff yesterday. Not that they haven't been spending time together previously, but Jeff now has everything set up and was able to have him overnight. He is also going to have him this Saturday. Weird! Me, alone on Saturday night? I might get into trouble! It's weird to not have Cadiem here, but I guess I have to get used to it! I am really glad that Jeff got his place set up. We are getting along well, but he's been at my house with Cadiem while I wasn't home... I was getting annoyed coming home to a million lights on! Ugh!

I had a bunch of people over Saturday night for dinner and to get help decorating my tree. Luckily, Eric was happy to put the lights on the tree. Which saved me from being a crazy-freaky-perfectionist. I have this thing about the cords not showing--which of course isn't even possible to do... So, it DRIVES ME CRAZY!! Thanks to Nickie and Mary for bringing desserts... Addictive cranberry bliss bars and yummy apple pie (respectively :). And Sean for his beer creations! Which I have not been able to sample yet, but maybe tomorrow :)

Ch-ch-ch-changes! Turn and face the strain?

2010-11-21T10:25:00.003-05:00

So, I always thought that David Bowie was saying "Turn and face the strange"... Turns out it's "strain". I think he may want to re-do that. It makes much more sense my way!

Well, if you haven't heard, Jeff and I decided to part ways. It's for the best. Luckily, it was an amicable "break-up", which makes it a lot easier when dealing with Cadiem issues. I moved into a townhouse a few doors down from our house and Jeff is living in a house a few blocks away. Conveniently close, but not too close! :)

started my new job at Draper Aden Associates a few weeks ago. I'm really liking it there--the people I work with are all really nice. Cadiem started daycare at the same time, and he's doing really well. He cries when I drop him off sometimes, but I've gotten better at making a stealthy exit! He's usually pretty happy when I pick him up--and usually mid-play. I'm sure it's a lot more fun than sitting at home with me all day! Last week we found out that our daycare is going to close due to low enrollment. But luckily they've decided to keep it open for another six months, so hopefully we'll have time to find an alternative.

Cadiem is talking a lot, we just can't understand him! He has gotten pretty good at saying "ball", "car", "dog", "more"(food!)... He constantly says "uh oh!" and makes a pretty hysterical face at the same time. "Bye Bye" and waving are also new.

Jeff has Cadiem over Thangsiving and they're going to visit Jeffery. I haven't been away from Cadiem for more than a day--so I'm going to miss him! But I'm headed to PA to have Thanksgiving with Nate's family--so at least I'll have Bri and Nate to console me :) And probably a lot of Thanksgiving+Christmas cocktails (they're doing Christmas too!). I'm also excited to take my new (new to me!) car (another honda civic) on it's first roadtrip. It was delivered to my work last week, but I don't have the title yet, or plates/registration... So, it's still sitting there :( But, hopefully that will be remedied tomorrow!

Well, I guess that's about it! Pretty sad little blurb considering the amount of news and time since my last post! I'll try to be better ;)

Stupid Election!

2010-11-03T18:58:00.002-04:00

And that's all I have to say... Back to packing!

McDonald's is the Devil!

2010-09-03T12:09:00.006-04:00

Cadiem ate his first happy meal on Wednesday. I dragged him around on several errands and felt like he deserved a treat--so McDonald's it was! As soon as they handed me the little golden arched box--the whining began. How did he know that a weird dehydrated onion and pickle encrusted cheeseburger was inside? And why are those worthless little cheeseburgers so damn tasty? And how do they always get such a perfect balance of mustard and ketchup? Cadiem must agree, because he gobbled it down. He also enjoyed the fries--which he doesn't usually care about. I have to say, the happy meal toys have definitely improved. We got the "boy" toy, which was a Batman-inspired-spider-legged-robot thingy, that shoots a little plastic piece. Pretty awesome!
Cadiem and I went to the gymnastics gym again yesterday with Wally & Marin. They had a giant blow-up slide, which Cadiem was pretty excited about. He loves that place!
I am still on the job hunt... I'm really hoping for a job at Tech. I went to the temp agency yesterday, so maybe something will come out of that. Jeff is still working his three jobs--that sucks! I got a letter from my little brother Austin--who is in Marine bootcamp. Apparently it sucks and the food is terrible. Go figure! Haha.
Mary is coming over tonight for some wine, nintendo and I'm thinking some taco salad would be tasty. Does it get any better than that!

Two Things:

2010-08-26T14:18:00.002-04:00

One: Aren't onesies awesome? I wish I could wander around in a onesie. What if we all did? We'd look like a bunch of big babies... hahaha

Two: Cadiem's new favorite pastime is ripping the keys off of my computer. I have been searching for my control and caps lock keys for the last hour... I was just finishing my coffee--and found them, in the bottom of my coffee mug! Grrrr!

Cadiem is a climbing machine!

2010-08-21T14:11:00.004-04:00

17.5 Months! Cadiem started climbing a few days ago. His new favorite thing is to climb onto the ottoman in the playroom with a book and his sippy cup. As you can see from the above picture, with his favorite book: "If you give a pig a pancake". Which is probably one of my least favorite! Haha. He also has been going up the stairs himself, but hasn't quite figured out the going down part. He has also figured out how to open the pantry (from underneath since he can't reach the handle!) which is full of two of his favorite things, food and cleaning supplies. He's still obsessed with the swiffer! Now if only he'd learn to talk! He does imitate things we say, but you'd never know what he's saying out of context.

Jeff and I have both been on the job hunt. He now has three! Hahaha. Always so ambitious! I've applied to several at tech, so hopefully I'll snag one of them.

We had a visit last week from my grandma plus three of my great aunts and a great uncle. I haven't seen the extended family in several years--so it was great to see them and I'm glad they got to finally meet Cadiem :) My mom also visited prior to that, and Cadiem now recognizes her voice over the phone. After she left, he would hear her on the phone and point to the guest room.

I turned the big 31 a few weeks ago. We had Wally and Mary over (ian you suck!) and grilled up some yummy Spanish brined pork tenderloin followed by lots o wine. Surprised? Haha. Tomorrow it's Mary's turn, so we're having a few people over.

I guess that's about it! I hear a child crying upstairs... :)

check out the video on bri's blog! (i'll be posting soon, i promise!)

2010-07-01T18:15:00.001-04:00

blipity!

2010-05-28T00:25:00.002-04:00

The last week has been crazy! We've been very social lately :) Cadiem and I have had a couple play dates with Wally & Marin, who we saw today. Cadiem was being a bit of a brat--he kept stealing anything Marin had. Meanwhile, Ari was trying to lick and play with her feet the whole time. Welcome to the house of harassment! Haha. We went to pint night a few days ago with Taub and Sean--Jeff decided to make himself unavailable.. ahem ahem... I blame Taub! Yesterday Jeff was off and we had Mary and our old neighbor Mike over for dinner and Yahtzee. I always forget how much I love playing Yahtzee! Well, I love most games :)

We are really excited about our beach trip! Leslie and I met up at Vintage Cellar today to hit up the close-out and stock up for our trip :) Leslie was pretty funny--she's not a big wine drinker, but I got her to try most of the whites. She pretty much shouted "I hate this!" for most of them. Hahahaha. I don't know how we're going to fit everything for the beach in the car. We're even borrowing a clamshell to put on the roof. There's so much baby stuff!

Jeff might have some changes at work happening--for the better. And we find out soon--yay! He's off (again--weird!) on Sunday and we're headed to a bbq at the Crouthamel's and then another one at the Hypes'. I love summer!

2010-05-22T00:16:00.008-04:00

I don't even know where to begin!! I spend so much time chasing Cadiem around that I spend every night playing catch-up... Which basically involves trying to clean up the house, laundry, cooking dinner--all within a couple of hours... Obviously, it does not all get done. Just like tonight, I have two large baskets of laundry to do... A painting I was going to start... I was going to give the dog a bath... Get the guest room ready for Bri & Nate... Meh. Whatever! Here I sit, watching Glee and sipping a glass of wine. Ahhhhhhhh... Sometimes you just need a little ME time!! ;)
Cadiem and I went to TJ Maxx tonight to peruse--and discovered a kiddie/parent hang out. It was a little scary. There were kids everywhere! We made it out alive--and miraculously without buying anything.
We had a great time in Orlando. We went to Epcott and Typhoon Lagoon. Cadiem really liked the water park. At first, he screamed when we tried to put him into the wave pool... But, eventually he was splashing around :) Epcott was having a flower festival--they had flower sculptures everywhere of Disney characters. My mom made us pose in front of several if you check out the pics on Bri's site... Hahaha. Cadiem had a lot of fun being around everyone. Each morning that we were there he would run out of the room looking for them. But we were always the first ones up--haha.
Bri and Nate will be here in two weeks!! Yay!! Jeff is taking a couple of days off while they're here--yay!! And then the week after that we're going to the beach for a week--woohoo! Jeff's plan is to do absolutely nothing. Haha--poor guy! He worked a ton over graduation, and it doesn't seem to have slowed down much. I plan on taking a large stack of books to the beach, and becoming more mexi-skin.
I guess that's it! Here are a few recent pics:
This is before the heat got to us...
Cadiem LOVED the aquarium :)
Bri and I beating the heat with some refreshments :)

The Emperor Strikes Back!

2010-04-20T21:31:00.003-04:00

Cadiem has been an awful whiny-mcwhinerson today... Which in the last hour I've had to strike back with a glass of wine. Whiner + wine = whiner + selective-listening-mommy. Don't judge! Luckily, we were able to leave the house earlier thanks to our new wheels :) Kroger & Target baby, yeah! Does it get more exciting than that? I always seem to run into lots of people at Kroger, which is fun--we all have to eat I guess! :)

Tonight we're having chicken curry, which I haven't made in awhile, so I'm pretty excited about it. Kroger finally started carrying nan--which is more expensive than Oasis, but saves me a trip. Jeff is working in the kitchen today, and even though he'll come home smelling like a chicken wing--at least he'll be home early :)

This weekend Jeff miraculously had a Saturday off, so Sean brought a case of his home brews over. Jeff and I also decided to make grilled shrimp and Napa cabbage slaw at the last minute--which made a gigantic mess of our poor kitchen--but it all turned out pretty tasty :) Then we all headed off for a Thai dinner downtown, which was also tasty :) I had the chicken panang--which was all panang and no chicken... but luckily I like the curry sauce more than anything.

That's it for now... Time to tend to the whiny one... I think it might be bathtime!!

R.I.P. Jeep!

2010-04-16T02:14:00.003-04:00

Yes, the jeep has been put down... It was time... :) It needs about $2500 worth of repairs--so, obviously it's not worth fixing. But we did get our Honda fixed and also found a new car--which we love :) We got a great deal on a 2002 Nissan Xterra. It's a manual which I prefer and it's supercharged--woohoo! It's really high up--which is different for me. I can't believe I forgot to talk about our new car in my last post! Anyway, it is so nice to not be stuck in the house while Jeff's at work--yay!

The Handy Hippie

2010-04-15T19:04:00.004-04:00

Over Easter weekend, while my mom was visiting, our washer decided to stop working. It kept flashing error messages that it couldn't drain. We thought it was the house drain since our tub wasn't draining right either, so maintenance came out and unclogged the drain... And the washer still didn't work... but the tub drains now! Anyway, we read up on the internet about drain issues with our washer--and it turns out there's a tiny little basket inside the rubber "boot" that goes from the washer tub/drum to the pump. A couple weeks prior--I washed Ari's dog bed--and all of the polyester fibers came out... Well, apparently tons of them went through the drain and clogged the stupid little basket! We also found fifty cents and a bobby pin. Anyway, Jeff had to go through the bottom and back panels to get to all of the hoses and clamps. Then we actually had to go buy different clamps because the damn things are impossible to get back on. It's got to be about the worst design EVER. I'm thinking they made it that way so you pretty much have to call a repairman and pay them $200. But, we have the handy hippie to save the day :)

We had a great time while my mom was here. We managed to squeeze quite a bit in. We went shopping, hiking, ate out several times... It always goes too fast! But, Cadiem and I are headed to Orlando at the end of the month while my mom is there (and now Marty too!)--so we'll see her soon :)

We found a little gas grill on craigslist for really cheap--and we're loving it! We're putting our Bobby Flay book to good use :) Jeff made the most amazing grilled shrimp I've ever eaten--which was actually a combination of recipes since we didn't have everything for either recipe. We also had some turkey burgers stuffed with brie and topped with arugula and grilled apples. Tasty-licious!

Cadiem had his first playdate with Marin last night :) We went out to our second home (rivermill!) and hung out with the other Jeff, Taub and Sean. We met up with Wally, Hypes and Marin and then all came back to our house so the babies could play :) It was so cute! Cadiem stole Marin's sippy cup full of apple juice and drained it. She retaliated by taking his sippy full of milk. Hahaha.

In the above pic, Cadiem is busy picking around his macaroni and cheese. He refused to even try it! But at least he ate his peas and carrots :)

How does 2am come so quick? bedtime!

A feast in the land of no wine...

2010-03-29T23:39:00.004-04:00

Cadiem was eating (not really) some red potato fries in the above pic--that he decided to smear all over his head rather than eat. I think they were a little too adult for him since they were flavored with parmesan and garlic... But Jeff and I ate them for lunch today and they were yummy!

We are having a feast tonight, which I just finished "prepping" :) Jeff isn't home yet, but usually I like to pre-prepare when we're having dinner this late. I actually used some recipes (kind of)--usually I just wing it! So, compliments of Bobby Flay, we're having pork chops marinated in Spanish paprika, orange and ginger... Which I tried making last year--but used the wrong paprika--and it wasn't that great. This time, I used the right one--and, I think I forgot to add salt last time (the recipe doesn't call for it) but it definitely needs it! Anyway--I think it's going to be pretty tasty, especially with my additions (mine is HOT!). I also stole Bobby's dill potato salad recipe... Although, mine has extra ingredients, less potatoes, and no smoked salmon (yuck!!), uh, or capers. Mainly the extra ingredients are due to my failing to cut them down according to how many potatoes I used... My 6 compared to his 20... Haha--oops! Wow, my run-on sentences are fantastic! I actually only decided to make it because I thought it just required boiling potatoes and throwing on the sour cream (or... greek yogurt ;) dill sauce... Nope... I also had to throw a bunch of stuff in with the potatoes: parsley, green onions, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, more dill... Pain in the ass! Well, not really, just more time than I wanted to invest. We're also having some lemon asparagus which I may or may not wrap in oh-so-healthy bacon. I've been pretty lazy with my cooking lately, making stuff that's really quick and easy. But something about the nearing warm weather puts me back in the mood :) I was a little sad though tonight, we're wine-less. I like to drink wine while I cook, but I had to settle for a Young's Chocolate Stout that's been in the fridge forever. Not a bad compromise :)

Anyway, tomorrow I will be cleaning ALL DAY LONG in preparation for my mom's visit :) She gets in Wednesday--and Jeff got the day off (YAY!) so we're going to tour around downtown Roanoke and check out the farmer's market and a couple places Nickie suggested.

This past Saturday was Eric's birthday. Happy 28th Eric!! :) A pretty large group of us went to Taaza in Roanoke and it was damn tasty. Unfortunately, I got pulled over on the way home (my lights weren't all the way on--ugh!) and my license happened to be suspended (go figure)... Which I'm guessing is due to an unpaid parking ticket--who knows! But the police officer was really nice and I was rescued by my friends. Thank-you Gene, Nickie, Eric and Nichole!!

Okay, I'm off to the shabath... (It's a bath... but it's a shower... all at the same time... ;)

Cadiem Walking!

2010-03-22T21:20:00.004-04:00

Cadiem has been taking several steps at a time for the past few days--and I finally managed to get some video. He's pretty proud of himself, as you can see :) He has so much personality--it cracks me up! Today we were laying around on the floor playing and he was trying to attack me and jump on my stomach. Haha--he can't really jump so he was basically just falling on me. He is really into nesting is toys right now. And he's obsessed with the pots and pans. I keep finding his sippy cup "nested" in the pots. Haha. Grandpa Shultz was in for a short visit this weekend. He and Cadiem had fun playing together. Marty was pretty appalled at how dirty the baby is--hahaha. Jeff was off on Sunday, so he got to spend a little time with Marty as well. We made a big brunch on Sunday--it was tasty :) Hopefully when Marty comes back in a few weeks, we'll be able to squeeze in a hike.

Today I was perusing in Old Navy and ran into Nichole. I said to her, "What are you doing wearing that scarf?!" She said to me, "What are you doing wearing a tanktop!?" Hahaha. I'm so excited for the warm weather to get here--that I decided to ignore that it got chilly again in the last couple of days. So I went to class today in my "flippy-floppys" (i'm on a boat!! hahaha) and short sleeves. Haha.

Jeff is off again tomorrow--and then working through the weekend (bleh!). I'm hoping that the sun will come out long enough for us to get a walk in... Maybe it will be spontaneously warm and we can go hiking :) (i'm an optimist!)

My mom will be here in about a week and so far we're planning to hit up the farmer's market in Roanoke, a winery or two, and go hiking. (there's a lot of talk of hiking in this blog!)

I love spring!!

2010-03-18T19:31:00.004-04:00

Today was a gorgeous spring day :) The sky was blue, the sun was out--and I think it got pretty close to 70 degrees! Cadiem, Ari and I walked downtown to share some Ben & Jerry's yogurt and enjoy the sunshine. Only to find that there was no ice cream to be had! Ben & Jerry's went out of business! We also lost our downtown Dairy Queen awhile ago, so we had to settle for some Starbucks. No, I didn't get coffee! Cadiem and I "shared" a banana-strawberry smoothie... I didn't get much of it... He is a pig! Anyway, Cadiem was worn out from our walk--and I finally got a picture of him sleeping :)

Yesterday I hung out with Mary for St. Patrick's day... Instead of scary green drinks we tried out some chocolate red wine--which was pretty tasty! Also had yet another cheese plate... I think I have a cheese problem!

Cadiem has started refusing food unless it is not intended for him... And then he wants it. Today I made him a grilled cheese--which he knew was for him--and then refused to eat it. I managed to shove a piece in his mouth when he was turned the other direction. After spitting it out and trying it a few more times, he decided he loved it--and wolfed down the rest of it :) He tried sweet potato fries yesterday and pasta with marinara sauce--both of which he loves as well. Every time I get the cheese out of the fridge--he gets a riled up--he LOVES cheese. He'll even eat my super sharp Vermont cheddar.

Jeff has been working quite a bit in the last few days, but he's off tomorrow afternoon so we're going to walk downtown and have lunch. I love nice weather!

Oh Eddie Vedder...

2010-03-16T10:45:00.003-04:00

Photo by Timothy Norris

I am IN LOVE with the new Pearl Jam song... I am about to download it so I can play it over and over ALL DAY LONG :) It's such a pretty song--and a love song at that! I'm a sucker for music with strings or piano--it can bring on the waterworks (it's the strings in this one). I've always been a fan of Pearl Jam, ever since "Jeremy", one of my all time favorites. "Jeremy" always reminds me of freshman tennis in high school, and riding to games in our crappy school van... Ahhh, memories. But going back to Pearl Jam--I also really did like Vitology. And Pearl Jam is responsible (and you thought it was my bad driving! okay, maybe) for my two-toned del sol. Yup. I was on my way to their concert in Phoenix, in the rain, and rear ended someone on the freeway. Oddly, the person I hit took off and my car was forever maimed. James, if you're reading this, you probably remember wanting to call the cops! Whatever! :)

No scratching, no hitting, no biting!!

2010-03-14T19:53:00.004-04:00

Most mornings, Cadiem drinks his whole milk in our bed while we try to catch a few more Zs... Lately, that hasn't really been working out since he's started torturing us! This kid can scratch! And he pinches at the same time. He's getting two more teeth on the bottom (that will make a total of 6 teeth!) and has been testing them out on my arms and legs. Haha. So, this morning it was a lot of "Don't hit Mommy!", "Don't pinch Daddy!", "Nice touches!". Haha--and he knows very well what "no" means, but doesn't listen very well! Go Figure! He also understands "Let's go change your diaper" because he takes off and makes you catch him. Cadiem has taken more steps in the last few days. Today he held my hand and walked several steps :) He's really excited about it--he grins like a little fiend while he's walking.

Jeff had the day off yesterday (weird!), but we didn't do much. Cadiem didn't sleep much--which means neither did we... So we spent half the day catching up on sleep. We did make it to the wine tasting at Vintage Cellar--which was tasty :) We (or... me) also made a feast for dinner, including a gigantic cheese plate with some bread... One of the cheeses we had was marbled with porter--it was pretty good!

Friday, (CHILD BITING MY LEG RIGHT NOW!!) Ian and I went to the beer tasting (yes, they know us at Vintage Cellar) and then met up with everyone else at the Cellar for dinner. Cadiem had a good time flirting with Sam and throwing his food everywhere.

Grandpa Shultz is coming to visit next weekend since he'll be in DC on business. Cadiem is excited :) My mom will also be visiting over Easter. YAY! We love visitors :)

We've got steps people!! :)

2010-03-11T23:32:00.002-05:00

Cadiem took three unassisted steps on Tuesday, he was pretty proud of himself--he had a really big grin on his face. I haven't seen him do it since then--but he's constantly standing, so I think he'll probably be walking in the next couple of days!

As you probably know, Cadiem turned one year old last Thursday, March 4th :) We had a party for him the following Saturday--and he had a great time. Cadiem got some awesome birthday presents, thank you everyone! We tried to duplicate Anita's (stepmom) shredded beef/pork for the party--and it actually came out pretty good! Although, I forgot to get spicy V8 to throw in, but used some bloody mary mix that we had--which was probably about the same. And I just realized today that I forgot to make the rice that's also Anita's recipe... Crap! I was a total spaz the day of the party. We were so lucky that Jenni could come up from Charlotte for the party--she really helped us out! I had every intention of creating a perfectly decorated cake and cupcake... But, I couldn't really think with all of the people around in the kitchen--and ended up passing the duty to Mike Speer. Haha--but he did a good job. However, I did make some ugly green icing and a monster-like cupcake... Which I think threw the baby off when we gave it to him. He didn't want any part of his cupcake! But after we helped him tear it apart and he saw Jeff and I eating it--he liked it :) We've been eating the leftovers together for the last week. Cadiem is a cake hog! He barely lets me eat any.

Last night we finally got to hang out with Wally and Hypes. The guys actually went out to the Mill to try a limited release Rogue beer--while Wally & I stayed back with some wine and cheese :)

Cadiem had his year check-up yesterday, and he is 25.5 pounds and 31 inches long. He's now slightly above the 50th percentile (whatever!). Cadiem has started to scratch and hit us when he's tired... And I think he's inherited my glare! But normally, he's happy and babbling :) Since we got our new awesome Britax car seat (thanks mom & marty!), Cadiem has been riding in the cart at the grocery rather than his infant seat. He's been gaining fans at Kroger, now that he's better able to flirt with all of the old ladies! Hahaha.

Well, I guess that's it for now! Sorry if this post is a little incoherent--I'm VERY tired... bedtime!

10.1.5... I'm a mom???

2010-01-15T21:47:00.004-05:00

Can you see Cadiem's spikes?? Haha. We went out to a friend's house the other night--and Cadiem wanted to "cool" it up... uh huh. Cadiem is ALL OVER the place. I wish I would have already babyproofed the cabinets and drawers in the kitchen. They're under attack! I think he'll be walking pretty soon. He had a check-up on Wednesday--and our doctor agrees--he's a chunk!! Not in a bad way :) But his growth chart has been vertical for the past few months--haha. He's also 29" long, which is almost half my height. Jeff finds that pretty funny... ;)

We had a great time in Arizona--we were busy busy busy!! We saw all of the family and Jeff and I got to go out on our second date (yup!). Our goal was to go out dancing--which we managed to do, and even hit up my favorite wine bar afterward :)

*Do not ever sit down on the couch pre-dinner with a box of Thin-Crisp Triscuits!!*

Cadiem got a lot of great presents--which really helps us out--thank you family!! It was also great to see my cousin Tara--I think it had been at least two years--and lots of quality time with the gg's, parents plus Bri and Nate :)

*Just got the Triscuits today and there's about 1/3 box left...*

Cadiem's first birthday is coming up quick!! We're planning to have a party for him in combination with a house warming--which we haven't had the opportunity to have yet. (jenni & garrett--come visit!!) After that, I think we're going to have a few visitors... Mom, Marty, Bri and Nate--yay!! And we actually have a place for them to sleep!

Jeff has been working like crazy... What else is new!? He should be getting home at a semi-decent hour tonight though--so at least we'll get to see each other for a bit :) I think that's about it for current news... Seems a little short for a month or more of not blogging!! oh well... I will try to be better!! There are also a few new pics on the pic link... :)

ahhhhh... I almost forgot to explain my title!! "I'm a mom"...

Sometimes, it's shocking to me that I'm a mother! WOW!

Search and destroy...

2009-12-08T02:08:00.004-05:00

Nothing is safe from this kid! Cadiem has now figured out that the coffee table is full of goodies... Yesterday I was distracted by homework, and he managed to pull a box of tissues off and was pulling them out and trying to eat them when I noticed. Haha. My cell phone is especially at risk! He seriously dives for it when he sees it. He's already ruined one, and now Jeff's is being funky--we think from drool. This morning he was saying "da-da" and looking at Jeff. We have got to get it on video! Last night our heat went out around midnight--and it dropped twenty degrees into the fifties by morning... Brrrr! But they came over right after we called them this morning to fix it. It took most of the day to get the house back to a normal temperature. I'm so glad it's fixed!!

We were all bundled up this morning trying to stay warm. Jeff is off tomorrow and Wednesday--yay! Unfortunately I have to spend most of that time catching up on more homework... almost done, almost done! Our new mattress (thank-you mattress fairy!) is coming in a few days, we are SO excited. Our current bed is buckling--and is probably 20 years or more old. I found an excellent deal online--we even got a free mattress pad and a $100 Best Buy gift certificate. Yay! I'm so excited to wake up without a backache!

I'm also very excited to go home for Christmas :) I'm out on the 17th! Woohoo! I wish Jeff could fly at the same time as us, he can't leave until after the weekend, but at least we'll be on the same flight home. I love Christmas! We've been trying to get our Christmas music adjusted on Pandora... Jeff put in Run DMC, holiday... It came up with some weird station called "hollis" something or other... But he's decided to call it, "Christmas in the holler" (or hollas). Hahaha. It's actually not a bad station--it plays Stevie Wonder, Jackson 5 and Otis Redding... Haha. I tried to make a Wham-"Last Christmas" station, in hopes that it would play some modern stuff--but it's like it's stuck on Perry Como and Dean Martin. Sigh. I still haven't heard Wham! Well, the crappy covers. And my Waitresses "Christmas Wrapping", that one either. I love that song! Bri says it's not a real Christmas song--whatever biz! But my all time favorite will always be "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen". Love it! And I don't care what version it is--although, I like the instrumentals from Mannheim Steamroller and Trans Siberian Orchestra. Pandora has also played some scary country version--and there's the exception. No country permitted in my Christmas music!! UGH! Not sure where that Christmas music rant came from... But it's time to sleep!

9 months old!! (well, tomorrow :)

2009-12-03T14:46:00.004-05:00

Hola! Cadiem is 9 months old tomorrow! He's crawling like a fiend--and has started pulling himself up. He hasn't figured out how to get back down (from standing), which is pretty interesting to watch. Haha. His babbling has some added variety :) We both have also heard him say "mom". I swear! He crawls after me and says "mmmoom". I need to try and get it on video!

We had a great Thanksgiving. We went over to Jeff's boss's (Leslie) house and took part in their feast. It was very tasty--even the turkey, which I usually don't care for :) Cadiem had one of his gourmet baby food dinners--turkey & sweet pea--yum! We took his bouncer over there so he could bounce while we ate--but he wasn't having it. He ended up sitting in Jeff's lap and then of course he wanted to take part in the Thanksgiving dinner. So we let him have some sweet potato casserole and some mashed potatoes :)

Jeff went to DC this past weekend to visit Jeffery, and I spent the weekend trying to catch up on homework... We put up our tree the day before Thanksgiving, since Jeff was off. We got some retro-style LED lights that we're pretty proud of :) This is one thirsty tree. I can't remember the last time we had a real tree at my mom's--but I wasn't ever in charge of watering it anyway. Haha. I think it drinks about two quarts/day. Crazy!

Grandma Shultz just sent Cadiem a Leap Frog music table--which he really likes. He also likes using it to pull himself up :) It plays music and teaches colors, numbers, etc. Apparently she got it on some crazy lighting sale on Amazon. Haha--what's up with cyber Monday? When did this start?

Jenni and her boyfriend Garrett were here visiting us the week before Thanksgiving--we had a great time of course :) We got to go to a VT game too.

I made some stroganoff the other day--to prepare for the stroganoff-off... SNEAK ATTACK! I think it's almost perfected... I might have to up the anty and use steak instead of hamburger... Jeff has another idea--but it's a secret... ;)

Jeff has tomorrow off--which is weird, but awesome :) This is really old news--but while we were in Florida--we got a pretty funny video with pooh & tigger--can't remember if I already blogged about it or not. But it's on my pic site--It's pretty funny. Tigger is making fun of Jeff's dreads the whole time. Haha.

I am so excited to go home for Christmas. Two more weeks! YAY!!

Poo Plosion... 2009...

2009-11-13T00:19:00.004-05:00

Yup... Another poo story. Today, Cadiem was having a great time in his bouncer and I picked him up to take him upstairs... and he was wet... and not from pee!! The poop had managed to make it all the way down his leg and into the foot of his jammies. It was SO disgusting! Then I had to basically wash the jammies before I could put them into the washer. Nasty, dirty baby!! Oddly, his poo still doesn't smell that bad. Although--the other day he ate beef--and that was pretty gross. Okay, now that we're all disgusted!! Hahaha...

Cadiem is crawling like a fiend--he looks like he's in the army, on a mission... A mission to find and "destroy" (EAT) every thing he sees :) He's doing really well with his finger foods, and he'll be trying tofu this week :) yum yum!

Grandpa Shultz is coming to visit this weekend! Cadiem is excited--I can tell :) I think we're probably just going to hang out at home, probably make it to Sharkey's, and probably Gene & Nickie's... He's making a pretty quick trip in between business trips.

So, last week, Verizon decided to "accidentally" shut off our internet service. You would think that it would be a pretty easy fix. Flip a switch to turn it back on, right? Wrong! After spending several days/hours on the phone, and both Jeff & I getting disconnected, transferred... blah blah blah... They also told us three times the problem was resolved when nothing had been done. Finally, we got someone who knew what the hell she was doing--and even knocked $10/month off of our bill! Woohoo!

STROGANOFF-OFF... When Bri and I lived together, she would make us beef stroganoff once in awhile. And I've called her a few times to get the recipe or have her list off ingredients to me while I'm at the grocery. Well, a few months ago, I forgot (yes Bri, it is possible) the mushroom soup--and didn't realize it was missing when I made the stroganoff. But I did notice that it didn't taste right, so I added Dijon, wine, flour and worcestershire. And I've made it several times since then without the mushroom soup, still not realizing that it was missing (also started using the fatty sour cream--haha). Well, apparently Bri finds this unacceptable and claims that I have desecrated the "family recipe". Umm... family recipe with CAMPBELL's soup??!!! Maybe if our last name was Campbell... But, it isn't bri... It isn't... Anyway, we're now planning to have a face-off at Christmas while we're both home--and having everyone taste test to see which one is better. Bri thinks mine must suck since it's missing the holy mushroom soup... We shall see BIZ!!

The witching hour draws near...

2009-10-31T12:38:00.003-04:00

In other words, HAPPY HALLOWEEN! I've been running around all morning getting all of our pirate stuff together :) We're going to downtown Blacksburg for Cadiem to trick-or-treat, and then on to Sharkey's. After that Cadiem and I are headed to Gene & Nickie's for dinner :) There's some new pics on the pic link--and I'll post some of all of us in our pirate costumes soon... So, apparently Nickie thinks that the pumpkins look like us... So does that mean that i have an evil grin and Jeff is spookily happy? Hahaha.

He's on the move!

2009-10-26T22:49:00.004-04:00

Cadiem is a crawling machine! He's also a drooling machine :) We have a drool song for him that he loves (he giggles when we sing it):
Baby is a droolin' machine!
Droolin' droolin' droolin' machine
Droolin' baby!
Today he was after Ari's bone again. He crawled from the other room to come and grab it from her. He was smiling and sticking his little tongue out the whole way--haha. It's funny that both Ari and Two seem to know that he's a baby--and they let him do whatever to them.
I was attempting to work on Cadiem's costume today... We're planning to take him trick or treating in both downtown Radford and Blacksburg. I've got it(his costume) planned out--but I went down to the cellar to get some of my sewing stuff, and the most ugly, gigantic bug was sitting right above the container I needed. I was planning a quick grab and dash--when it jumped toward me--I have no idea what that thing was--needless to say, I ran screaming up the stairs... Jeff will have to get it for me!! I will not be returning to the cellar!! Anyway, we're going to be a pirate family. Yup! Haha. Jeff and I both already have pirate costumes--so we figured it would be pretty convenient. I think Nickie & Gene are also having a thing at their house on Halloween--so I'm looking forward to that too :)
Nickie, Gene, Eric and Nichole came over for dinner on Saturday--Cadiem was in a little bit of a mood--but we all had a good time :) The house is also pretty presentable on the bottom floor... The upstairs is another story... Haha. But I'm hoping to make another dent in that tomorrow afternoon while Jeff is still home.
Did I mention that Cadiem has totally switched his schedule?? He's been getting up between 8 and 9am. AHHHH!! So, we're still trying to shift our bedtime earlier, but have been taking naps trying to catch up on sleep. Tomorrow Cadiem is trying cheese--exciting stuff!! In a few days some veggie pasta, and we also got some turkey and chicken baby food :) Well, I guess that's about it for now!

A Week of Firsts :) (7 months 3 weeks)

2009-10-21T00:37:00.006-04:00

Yes, it's been FOREVER since my last post--I suck. On with it! Cadiem has been quite busy in the last week :) He can now sit on his own and crawl. He's also got two teeth showing on the bottom/front. They're so cute!! And he keeps biting his lip with them--which makes him look like he's thinking really hard. In the above pic, he's dragging all of his books off of the bookshelf, pausing to drool on a few of them. Haha. He really likes Ari's dog toys. I got some video of he and Ari trading her bone back and forth--it's pretty funny. Perhaps I'll remember to post it in the near future! His babbling is starting to sound more like words... I could swear he's said "mom" a few times, and we've definitely heard "hi". He also tried his first finger food, apple puffs--and had his first go at the sippy cup :) I showed him twice to tip it back to get the water--and by the end of the day, he had it! We're also trying to eliminate the dream feed--so far he's gone once without it.
We went to Florida at the beginning of the month to visit Nate and Bri plus my mom and Marty. We also got to spend a little time with Jeff's family. We had a great time--we even made it to my favorite, Epcott, for the Food & Wine festival :) Which, by the way, was nothing like I thought it would be. They actually set up little "extra" countries and cities in between the existing countries--and you have to pay for every morsel and sip. I naively thought that since it was a special festival that it would come with the ticket... Nope! Whatever--Jeff and I loved it :) We had several things that were really good--but our favorite was a lamb slider from "Australia". I'm also very impressed with Disney's "baby care center". They have a room for breastfeeding moms/babies that is dark and quiet with several rocking chairs facing in different directions. They also had a room with high chairs. Pretty cool! Cadiem also got to meet Pooh & Tigger. I was a little tentative, I thought he might be afraid of them... Instead he practically jumped out of my arms to grab them! Haha. Tigger also had fun playing with Jeff's dreads and acting like they smelled--hahaha.
Anyway, Florida was great--I wish we could get down there more. And it was great to finally meet Jeff's mom and sister. Thank you Mom & Marty!
Soooo... back in the 'burg... It's freaking freezing Mr. Bigglesworth!! Actually, today was beautiful. Cadiem and I even read a book on the front porch :) But we've had the heat on almost since we moved into our house. Speaking of the house, we love it! I still am trying to get us unpacked, the downstairs is pretty much done, we're just adjusting wall stuff and curtains. Upstairs, ugh... scary! I did actually work on Cadiem's room a little today. I've been scoffing at the vinyl decals that are out everywhere--but I found some really cute ones at Target with owls, birds and a tree. I put them up on a really long wall in Cadiem's room--and it's SO cute!! And cheap!! Yay! Slowly but surely, it's all coming together :)
Last week (i think?), I went to Eric & Nichole's for dinner (plus Nickie, Gene and Sam :) and Nichole made pumpkin and sausage pasta. It was damn tasty. I think I had thirds! Haha. We also got to eat some smores once the fire got going (i think either lighter fluid or gas was involved--IAN! i blame you for not being there!).
Well, I'm sure I have fifty other things to blog about--but, it's shutdown time for my poor brain... Night night!

We found a house! Woohoo! (6 months!)

2009-09-04T02:12:00.006-04:00

That's our front door :) I have some pictures posted on my site--they're "dingy" as Bri put it... But It's covered in dry wall dust right now because they had to replace a piece from the last renters. We had to fight for this place because they were mad that we had so many pets and didn't tell them. It's owned by Jefferson Apartments. So we'll be moving next week--yay! I'm trying to motivate myself to pack. We are so excited about having more space! However, there is a downside... The house does not have a shower! Yeah... I'm not kididng! If you look at the top picture, the top window on the right is the bathroom window. The bathtub is under the slanted part of the roof--so, you can't stand up in it. Haha. I wonder what retard came up with that design. We've don't care though--for the amount of space we're getting--it's super cheap for Blacksburg. I can't wait! We'll even have enough room to have a playroom downstairs and a den upstairs. Yay!

Cadiem is 6 months old today! (Friday) He's making more and more sounds, and this past week he's added pppbbbt! I think he's getting close to crawling. He's definitely scooting around--and he's an expert at the ninja roll :) He's also expanded his food repertoire... We've added more fruits and veggies--and I think I'm probably going to start giving him yogurt as well.

We had a great time while Mom and Bri were here. We got to check out the Valhalla winery, which was a nice change from the usual Chateau Morrisette trip. We also went to dinner at the brewery in Radford... The name of it is escaping me right now... But we liked it--good beer and food :) Bri got some great pictures of Cadiem--which will be posted soon. Jeff and I still need to decide which ones we like so she can edit them. My mom was itching to buy Cadiem something--so she got Cadiem an awesome jumper/entertainer thingy. Do they have an actual name? Anyway, he's not quite tall enough yet--his feet barely touch the ground--but he likes it :)

School is back in... Football is starting tomorrow I think (boo!), and of course that means that Jeff is working like crazy (double boo!). Anyway, that's about all my news... I can't believe it's been so long since I blogged!

IT'S ALIVE!

2009-08-07T19:31:00.003-04:00

Jeff's ipod survived the washing machine! We let it dry out for a week--and it works! Yay!!

Cadiem is 5 months old--where does the time go? He tried winter squash today--and he loves it :) He's a little piggie--cries when the bowl is empty. My mom sent Cadiem his first tool set--it's really cute, there are pictures posted on my pic site.

Jeff surprised me on my birthday by getting my friends together at Sharkey's for dinner and drinks. And I didn't even think he planned anything--haha. It was fun :)

We just started watching "Lost" on Netflix. It's creeptastic! I'm hooked! Tomorrow we're going to Steppin' Out... We're hoping to find the peanut guy--and the woman in the bonnet with the cookies.. hahahha. Sunday, one of Jeff's friends is turning 30 as well--we're going over to their house to hang out since Jeff has the day off :)

three decades old... uh huh...

2009-08-03T01:19:00.003-04:00

Cadiem likes to eat our hair!

So... I'm old. On to the next topic! Hahaha.

The three of us went to Sharkey's in Radford tonight (Sunday) for a server's appreciation night. We had a good time--Cadiem cried a little... But mostly he had a good time as well. All of the girls loved him :) So... When we were leaving, I was holding the baby, and Jeff got all of our stuff. When we got back to Blacksburg, I was unloading Cadiem--and spotted my not-so-cheap purse--sitting on the roof/rack of the Jeep... Uh huh. AND--one of Cadiem's toys, a cute little duck, also survived the trip on the roof. Yeah--30 minute trip from Radford. I am still in awe. And glad that my purse survived so I didn't have to kill Jeff... BUT, I washed his Ipod Nano the other day... Oops!! We're still letting it dry, and hoping that it will work! Cross your fingers! I'm not sure what we're doing for my bday yet, Jeff won't say! punk.

Chatterbox!

2009-07-30T22:55:00.007-04:00

(There is a video I couldn't get to load on my pic site under 4months4weeks)

Cadiem is 4 months and 4 weeks... He'll be 5 months old this Tuesday! Crazy! Several days ago, Cadiem just woke up and started babbling nonstop... I haven't been able to get a good video yet because he stops talking as soon as he sees a camera--and then tries to eat the camera. Along with everything else... He's really loving solid food--especially pears and bananas. He's also getting really talented at rolling over :) Yesterday I was finishing up a test, laying on the floor in his room while he played in his gym. In a matter of seconds when I was looking at the screen he managed to roll almost underneath his crib--haha. I had to put up blankie barricades. He also has a new habit of inching up to the top right corner of his crib on his belly--and then when we come in to get him, he grins, face down.

Side note: Ari is sitting next to me on the couch right now (we're watching Hell's Kitchen ;), and she seriously smells like a dirty, dirty foot. She's definitely getting a bath tomorrow! I can't believe I'm allowing her on my couch!

Summer school is over, hurray! It got a little nuts these past two weeks trying to get everything done... It's so much harder with a baby! Haha. Bri was pretty excited when she got to help me with some "if" statements for Excel... Freak!! Yesterday, I was taking one of many timed-hour-long quizzes, and I was in and out of his room a good 4-5 times while he was napping... It was a little nerve racking. But little by little, I'm slowly becoming a better planner, and less of a procrastinator. Does anyone believe that? Hahahaha.

Nickie's bachelorette party was last Saturday, an overnighter in Roanoke. It was awesome! Jeff stayed home with Cadiem and a freezer full of milk ;) I think we all did our jobs getting Nickie nice and toasty :) Jeff did a day trip (yup) to DC yesterday for Jeffery's 13th birthday--they went to go see Harry Potter--I'm very jealous! Jeff said it was awesome. Anyone else seen it yet?

I guess that's about all...

Mr. Chunk

2009-07-22T03:18:00.004-04:00

Cadiem has been working on his double chin, and he likes it! Haha. He loves his avocados! Today he tried some apple sauce, and it was like I couldn't get the spoon to him fast enough. As you can see from the picture, he's also got a little pot belly. It seems like it happened over night--I barely recognize him! He's also started rolling over in the last week... So far, he does not like being on his belly! Despite the rough day, we've really been having fun :) He's become so much more interactive and he's always smiling! I love his little laugh too :) We need to post more videos...

It was quite a day today--I had to get up early on around 4-5 hours of sleep and go take a test. Then, Cadiem was in an "I can't be pleased" mood ALL DAY LONG... Needless to say, I'm worn out! Sleep can't come fast enough. Luckily, Jeff got off early from work--so, bedtime will be sooner than I thought :) We're about to eat a Dad inspired dinner, Mexican stir-fry. Yeah baby! Last night we had the more traditional Asian stir-fry with Hoisin & brown sugar beef, red pepper, edamame and onion... yum! I could pour Hoisin sauce on anything and eat it... I'm addicted. We seriously go through a jar a week. We tried some frozen salmon a few days ago that was damn good--and SO easy. I'm down with the easy! And minimal clean-up :)

Anyway... The next month is going to be busy busy...

This weekend is Nickie's shower, which is going to be awesome! My first night away from Cadiem--which will be a little weird, but I'm sure I'll survive :) Then I think we're going to have mini-Jeffery visiting for a few days... And then I'll be thirty... (EEK!)

Plus, Nickie & Gene's wedding, Bri & Mom visiting, and Jenni! Yay!

Okay... time to eat...

Avocado = "Stink Eye"

2009-07-14T15:04:00.004-04:00

Bri said this is Cadiem's "stink eye", hahahaha. Okay, so... Cadiem did not appreciate avocados on the first go round... But, try try again! I mixed it with his oatmeal on the next feeding--and then he didn't mind it at all :) Mmmwahahahah! I'm really glad he'll eat it that way, I didn't want him to miss out on all that wonderful nutrition! My spoon skills are coming along--it's much better if I can hold one of his hands down (which he hates), makes less mess as well... We got some cool Munchkin spoons (BPA free of course!)--I like them better then the classic silicon coated metal spoons. I'm also digging the feeding chair--it reclines and should last into toddlerhood--yay! I've been meaning to make a list of all the baby stuff we love so far... I spent a lot of time reading reviews online for most of our stuff--so anyone that wanted to be lazy and trust my judgement could use it (the list--I can't form sentences today! :)

Jeff only has one bar shift this week--which is awesome! The rest are managing shifts--and then he's home by midnight which is just in time for Cadiem's bath.

Anita sent me letters spelling CADIEM to put on his wall--I started painting them yesterday while he was napping. So far, they're all brown :) It's a start!

I also made a strawberry pie yesterday--a recipe from Anita--haha. I really should have made my own crust--but hopefully the trans fat won't kill us... this time... hahaha. I also made a VAT of spaghetti sauce on Sunday. Needless to say, we were both pretty full last night and quickly sank into food coma :)

If you noticed, I'm bored with the way my blog looks... I think I need to enlist Bri's expertise--I don't care for any of the templates available... And I'm too lazy to search for them...

Cadiem and I went for a walk yesterday--and man, I am out of shape. It's sad. I did pick one of the steeper hills to climb back up, but still! I suck! We're definitely going again today. I will get my butt back to an acceptable size!! hahahaa. Apparently I crack myself up--there's a lot of hahaha-ing in this particular blog... hahahaha. Okay, until next time...

He likes it! Hey Cadiem! (remember life?)

2009-07-08T13:52:00.007-04:00

Cadiem moved on to oatmeal today (instead of rice)--and he loves it! He even cried for more this morning, haha. We might have to try out the barley cereal too, if I can find it :) Jeff is much more talented than I am with the spoon. He can feed Cadiem in about 5 minutes or less. It takes me about 20 minutes, ha. For some reason, it's also much messier when I feed him. All over me, the baby, the chair... Not the floor yet, Ari will have to wait for the finger food stage :) Three more days and he gets avocados--yay!

Cadiem has also just moved to a 4 hour eating schedule, which so far has been awesome. And even though he takes fewer naps on this schedule/routine, I've actually been able to get more done since he sleeps for longer blocks of time :)

Bri and my mom are coming to visit in August, possibly at the same time. I'm excited :) Cadiem too! Yesterday I got Ari a dog bed, since she's been coveting Luci's for quite some time. She's so happy now!

Goodbye Sweet Poo....

2009-07-06T21:08:00.003-04:00

Ha ha ha... We went to the doctor today so they could stick Cadiem with needles and check him out :) He's grown three inches taller, but hasn't gained much weight... So our doctor recommended that we start him on solids. We headed straight to Target after the appointment and bought Cadiem a feeding chair and some organic baby cereal :) He tried eating the cereal after breastfeeding--and you can see from his shirt that not much ended up in his mouth... Haha. Everytime I tried to stick the spoon anywhere near his mouth he stuck his hands in there... So, it will definitely be a slow transition :) I think after he gets the hang of the cereal, we'll try some avocados and sweet potatoes. I've already got a spreadsheet planning out our food schedule :)

The bad part about real food--for those of you who don't know--is the stinky poo... Breastmilk poo smells kind of sweet--it's weird, I know. Yucky poo--here we come.

In other news... Cadiem and I spent the 4th of July over at Nickie & Gene's. They made a fantastic feast--as usual! Steak, fries, corn on the cob... yummy salad... Tasty! Jeff and I also had another feast when he got home from work... chili dogs, an American classic... Haha.

Well, it's about time for Cadiem to wake up... Later!

I'm going bald!

2009-06-28T13:51:00.003-04:00

My hair is coming out in handfuls. At this rate, I should be bald in about 3 weeks. Seriously! Not to mention that Cadiem has found a new game--pulling my hair! The kid has a grip--it hurts!! He's really getting good at grabbing :) The other day I was bottle feeding him (for his dream feed) and he was holding the bottle with both hands, I even let go a few times.
(I just lost a couple more hairs, sigh...)
We're still in DC right now, getting ready to leave in a couple hours... And we are stopping by Starbucks to get giant lattes. We haven't had coffee since Friday--and Jeff and I are going through major withdrawal! We were dragging all day yesterday and we both had headaches... Definitely addicted! We took Jeffery to lunch yesterday to a restaurant in Leesburg called "Tuskey's". It actually has a longer name, Tusckamore Mill or something, I definitely have the spelling wrong :) The food was really good--and they have an excellent beer selection. We also made a little stop at Cold Stone after--which I haven't had in a couple years... trans-fatty yumminess! UGH! I'm eating nothing but salad from here on out! (rigggghhht) We also got to have dinner with Debbie & Sean (Jeffery's mom & stepdad) last night, it was nice to hang out with them. I also haven't talked to Bri since Thursday... So, caffeine AND Bri withdrawal... Double whammy!

16 Weeks! :)

2009-06-26T01:35:00.003-04:00

So, you would think that that would equal 4 months... But, apparently not! Haha. It confuses the hell out of me! Cadiem just keeps getting longer... He has a doctor's appointment soon, I'm excited to see how much he's grown :) He's very attached to his hands right now--they're always in his mouth! He prefers them over his pacifier--which is fine with us :) He's also started moving around his crib while he's supposed to be napping. I'll lay him down on one end and come back to find him faced the opposite direction on the other side of the crib.

We're headed to DC tomorrow to visit mini-Jeff :) Hopefully we'll be able to make it quicker this time!

On another note... Bri got me started playing a really stupid game on Facebook, "Sorority Life". I'm addicted. I can't stop playing! I'm lame! Damn you Bri!

Jeff, Cadiem & I had our first lunch out at Cabo today--oh the excitement! Haha. We even took pictures to document :) Cadiem doesn't care what we do, as long as he has his hands!

I guess that's about it... I'm too tired to be interesting! Haha... Okay, I'm off to buy some more stretch limo hummers... ugh!

Happy Birthday Jeff! :)

2009-06-19T17:44:00.003-04:00

Jeff is 34 today :) We celebrated last night when he got home from work since he has to bartend tonight... I made him a "peace and love" cake--since he's always saying that--haha.

Cadiem is 3 months and three weeks old--whew! And--I think he's gotten even longer--the kid is going to be tall. He just started teething--so he's been pretty irritable. Luckily, it comes in and out. So we still get to see plenty of his cute little smile :)

We had a fantastic time in Arizona--we spent a lot of quality family time, Cadiem got to meet lots of family and a few friends... We had dinner with my dad & Anita several nights and got to go swimming. We even made it up to the cabin the weekend before we left... My mom also babysat two nights for us--which was awesome. Jeff and I got to out on a date together. We went to an awesome restaurant in downtown Tempe called "House of Tricks". It's a pretty unique place. The majority of the restaurant is outside--they have a great patio with big trees, candles and misters (so it doesn't get too hot :). They have an eclectic menu--it changes quite a bit. Actually, one time my mom and I went there for dinner and ended up leaving because everything on the menu was a little to weird for us. Hahaha. We tried to find a place to dance after dinner--but everywhere we went was out of business! Anyway, Cadiem did really well on his first plane ride. We did lose about 5 pacifiers between flights. Haha. There are about a million pictures of different family members holding Cadiem on my pic site...

I haven't posted in awhile because I've been busy catching up with school and trying to get the apartment back in order :) We're headed back to DC next weekend to visit Jeffery...

bri's pics

2009-05-30T00:12:00.000-04:00

check out bri's blog--she has an awesome tree pic on there! :)

Frenemies!

2009-05-29T21:50:00.003-04:00

When Two (the cat) first moved in, Ari barked at him nonstop, while he hissed/spat/clawed back at her. It was pretty damn annoying--we wondered if they'd ever get along! Now, they're always next to each other. It probably helps that the cat is no longer allowed on the couch (after barfing on it!) and I think he thinks he's a dog now... He's always laying around on the floor--and sometimes he and Ari are even sleeping on each other... Not that they don't still harass and chase each other around--but I think they like each other! weird!

Cadiem and I have been running errands the past few days, getting stuff together for our trip--it's funny how people are so drawn to babies. Everyone wants to see what he looks like. One lady at Target even asked permission! Hahaha. Today I was in Kroger getting beer for our housesitter, and I kept passing the same woman who just couldn't quit looking at him :)

Anyway--we leave for AZ in a few hours--I'm almost packed, haha. I still have to pack up Jeff and the baby. Our flight leaves at 5am... Jeff is planning on ordering a bloody mary, to start off his vacation. The flight attendant is going to think we're nut jobs!! Hahaha.

I got Cadiem some new feety pj's and a little beanie with airplanes on it for his first plane ride :) Yay! New picture opportunities!

Emperor Stripey Head (3 months tomorrow!)

2009-05-26T19:35:00.004-04:00

Cadiem looks like a tortured child in this pic, but I swear he was grinning two seconds later. Haha. We've spent the past few days teaching Cadiem to teach himself to sleep--and it's working! YAY!! I just put him down for a nap 5 minutes ago--and he's on his way to sleepy land :) Normally, this would involve "patting and shushing" anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour and a half... Which, as you can imagine, got pretty frustrating for both of us! I wish we would have tried this sooner--we just felt guilty leaving him in his room by himself while he's still awake. But he doesn't seem to mind. We just swaddle him and lay him in his crib. If he fusses or cries, we'll stick around and comfort him until he's calm again. Then he moves his head from side to side until he falls asleep. It's actually kind of entertaining to watch, haha. But he's worn a little bald stripe around his head. Hahaha. Poor baby! Hence, Emperor Stripey Head :)
We're counting down the days until we get to Arizona--I can't wait!

Eric & Nichole had another BBQ on Sunday--I probably had a little too much fun... Haha. Jeff had the day off and felt like chillin', so he and Cadiem hung out all day :) I think our Aerogarden tomato plant is going to eat us in our sleep--we had to use a kabob stick to stake the thing up. It's huge! It has a lot of tomatoes already too, I can't wait to try them. Jeff got me an anthurium plant for Mother's Day, "the love plant". Haha, but I can't responsible for the love plant's well being. I kill plants! It's amazing that my little cactus, Senor Spiney, is still alive. I found out the other day that Jeff gives him water now and then. Haha. I wish I had something more exciting to talk about! I'm boring :( Okay, time for homework!

Cadiem is 11 weeks old :)

2009-05-21T15:15:00.002-04:00

I can't believe he'll be three months old next week. It definitely goes by fast! I posted a few cute videos on my pic site if you haven't seen them already. We were trying to get him laughing--but we missed it! Cadiem had a checkup last Monday--he's grown a couple inches longer, and gained two more pounds :) He also is making new noises, the other day it sounded like he said "wow!". Jeff has been helping cover vacations at work--he's basically been gone from 9am to the early morning--ew! So less sleep for both of us--I miss sleep! Someday... ;)
In other news, Ari is changing her evil ways! We've been leaving her out of her crate at night--and she doesn't pee! I'm extremely impressed! However, I think she does a little night exploring... Judging from her poo today (brace yourself!), she somehow managed to find a rogue piece of asparagus from our dinner. HAHAHA. Gross, huh?!
I'm becoming immune to poo/pee messes between Ari and Cadiem. We've already been through three onesies and a couple of blankies today. Haha.
Anyway--I swear I have other things to talk about! Last night I got to go out to dinner with Gene, Nickie and Nichole. The girls and I started out at Cabo for a margarita and then went to see Nickie's wedding dress, which she looks beautiful in :) Then we went to Poor Billy's for a tasty dinner. Jeff got to get out too, he went to Rivermill for a beer when I got back. He happened to run into one of his good friends (also named Jeff) who is going to house/pet sit for us while we're in AZ! That saves us around $500 or more (our dogs need shots on top of boarding fees)! Woohoo! What a relief!
School started again yesterday, I'm taking a couple classes... And a couple more next semester... And then FINALLY I'll be at VT. Yay! Okay, that's all I've got!

Happy Mother's Day! :)

2009-05-10T17:11:00.000-04:00

Baby clothes rant!

2009-05-09T14:53:00.003-04:00

What's up with the snaps? I don't mind them on his normal clothes--but pajamas should make it really easy to change a diaper. It's hard to be stealth during the night when you have 8 snaps to open and then close again. Who thought of this? Maybe I should start designing baby clothes. I think I'd be pretty good at it! Cadiem is a bit too long for his 0-3 month PJs, so we tried some from our "next size up" pile :) And they zip! Brilliant! Except--it zips all the way to his neck... Why couldn't they do a logical mix of snaps and zips? Snap at the top, zip at the bottom. Why is that so hard? The sleep dresses aren't too bad, but you have to watch for the poo-plosion. I think they drag the diaper down or something... I'm sending a letter to Carter's!
On another note... Cadiem's hair is coming in--his old man head is disappearing :) But he has a bald stripe on one side of his head--I'm not sure how that happened! He doesn't sleep on the same side all the time--and most of the time is on his back... Hmmm...

Poor Ari Lynn...

2009-05-08T22:59:00.003-04:00

Ari has gone from curious about Cadiem, to forlorn-depressed-dog... This has taken the form of spiteful peeing. Her favorite spot is right outside the door to the baby's room. Several times after once again getting Cadiem to sleep, I've emerged triumphant, only to step in pee. Evil little dog! When Jeff catches her, he yells at her in jiberish--in a really deep voice. It sounds like the Swedish chef from the muppets, but angry. Haha. It scares the crap out of her! She's also been following me everywhere I go. I'm trying to pay more attention to her--so hopefully she'll stop soon :)
I booked our plane tickets to AZ today--yay! I'm so excited to go home :)

9 WEEKS!

2009-05-05T18:46:00.003-04:00

I can't believe it's been over two months! I've been able to get out more, which has been awesome. Jeff and I both went to the "Fork & Cork" wine festival here in the burg along with several friends. ERIC! Where are the pics!?
As you can see, Cadiem was chillin' in his cool new Maclaren carrier... That is, until he peed on it! Hahaha. At one point we took him back to the car to change his diaper--and not even a minute after we had him changed and back in the carrier--he somehow managed to pee all over the carrier and Jeff. But luckily we had the stroller with us :) There were several wineries I hadn't seen before, always nice to try new ones. We only got to a few, we had to leave pretty early since Jeff had to work--but it was nice to see everyone :)
Cadiem and I also went over to Nickie & Gene's later to hang out with everyone.
My class is finished on Friday--yay! And I think I'm probably going to take one or two classes over summer... Bleh! But, gotta keep going! We have to leave Blacksburg someday! Haha.
On top of that, it's going to be a busy summer! We're planning several trips to take Cadiem to meet the rest of the family. Arizona will be the first stop... And then two trips to Florida to see Jeff's mom and sister--and then Bri & Nate. Plus a little mini-trip to Roanoke for Nickie & Gene's wedding :) Which I still want all the details for Nickie! Wino!! haha.

MOO!! (8 Weeks)

2009-04-30T18:49:00.004-04:00

Moo moo moo. I am a cow!! I want my old clothes to fit damnit!! UGH! I weigh less than I did before--what gives?? Jeff got me a few new things from the Greenhouse though--that are really cute. I think he's trying to convert me to Volcom and Billabong clothes. Hahaha. I have my check up on Tuesday--meh. Cadiem has his appointment soon too, I think he's definitely gotten longer. His jammies with the feet are getting tight :)
Our D.C. trip this past weekend went well. It took us 6.5 hours to get there (usually 4), but that's life with an 8 week old! Next time we're bringing bottles so we can feed him while driving. Mini-Jeff was excited to meet his other new brother (his mom just had a baby too-Ian). We didn't get to do much while we were there--but at least we got to go out there. :)
Cadiem is loving his baby gym. He smiles at the giant smiley sun/flower thing at the top with his little head wobbling from side to side... he loves it!
Saturday I'm hoping the three of us will make it out to the Blacksburg "Fork and Cork". A wine festival in our new shopping center--kinda weird! Then we can try out our new baby carrier, hopefully he'll like it better than the bag style carrier.
Jeff got my car inspected (it passed!) and had the red bumper put on, it looks like a different car! And, we now have more space in our tiny dining room. It's the little things, right?! Haha.
Am I boring anyone? I'm sure boring myself! ugh!

Doritos are a vegetable...

2009-04-20T18:22:00.006-04:00

Everyday as I'm feeding the baby and taking care of chores, etc... I constantly have blog titles running through my head: "There's a fountain in the baby's tub! Oh Wait...", "Zoo creatures strike back", "Let freedom ring", "Sexy? Nate??", CSI has gone astray", "pumpin' for freedom"... But I can barely post once a week.
Anyway, back to the subject at hand... We've gone through a lot of Doritos lately, which I had previously sworn off. But they're made out of corn... Which technically makes them a vegetable... Yes? No? Or are they just in their own group... JUNK. Hmmm... I also bought hotdogs and macaroni salad last week. There is something seriously wrong with me.
Cadiem will be 7 weeks old on Wednesday, he's so old! Haha. He's making new noises, and I think he's really close to laughing :) Our schedule/routine is going well, we're starting to tweak it a little. We've started doing a bottle feed for his "sneak attack" feeding (dream feed). That way he doesn't wake up since it takes less effort than breastfeeding and we know he's getting enough food to make it through several hours... And we all get more sleep! YAY!!
Last week Jeff forced me out of the house since I had/have the fever... Of the cabin variety... haha. Nickie and I went to Poor Billy's and had a yumalicious dinner. I got to eat seared tuna for the first time in almost a year! That's so weird! We also indulged in a little vino as well--guilt free with the on-hand bottles--woohoo!
Saturday we got to "stop in"at Eric & Nichole's BBQ. They had a fantastic spread of food--as usual :) And lots of games set up in their backyard that unfortunately we didn't get to play--maybe next time! It took us FOREVER to get out of the house--but I'm sure we'll get better at that. Cadiem was also getting pretty fussy after about an hour of being there... Also, I'm sure it's weird for all of our friends to hear a baby screaming at a party! Haha. But I'm sure some of them will join the fun soon enough :)

Friends, STAT!!

2009-04-09T18:03:00.003-04:00

Five weeks with Cade, five weeks without friends :( But freedom is on the way! We just started Cadiem on a schedule--which is make life much easier and more predictable. Before, his feeding times were anywhere between 45 min and 2 hours apart. But now we have a routine, thanks to the "Baby Whisperer" book (i'm not joking! haha) and his eating start times are now 3 hours apart. Yay!! And the other night I had 5 hours of continuous sleep!! I haven't had more than 2 at a time since he was born! It was freakin' awesome! Of course, he did wake up during the night while I was sleeping, but Jeff took care of him :)
Also, we're trying to find the time to figure out the breast pump and bottles--and then Jeff will be taking over his latest feeding at 4am (ew!) plus when I want to be out of the house for more than two hours. Yay!!! I'm pretty excited. Not that I want to be away from the baby, but it would be nice to escape the zoo once in awhile! Yesterday I did go get our groceries... Ah, Walmart. Yes Ian, I deigned to shop at Walmart. Don't give me any crap! It's cheap--and Kroger is like 10 miles long now. If you forget to grab a few things you have to walk the length of five football fields to go back and get it! And that's if you can find it! Nickie--have you boycotted yet? Join my wagon! Haha.
Bri and Nate were here this past weekend to see the emperor, I think they were pretty excited to be back in the 'Burg. Too bad we had to stay in so much! We did try venturing out for a walk during one of the emperor's crying fits... At least he slept for part of it! We also did some beer tasting at Vintage Cellar on our way to Target--but then had to run through the store, while throwing things in the cart because the baby was screaming... Oops! Hopefully they'll be back soon and we'll get to venture out more :)

Cadiem is 1 month old!

2009-04-01T18:56:00.003-04:00

I'm dedicating my favorite of Jeff's baby songs to baby Cade... The poo anthem...

Get the poo out the butt
poop poop!
YEAH!
Get the poo out the butt
poop poop!
YEAH!

Haha. The baby really likes music--it actually soothes him sometimes when he's crying. One day I tried putting on some Wilco while rocking and singing to him... Baby likes it! So far, he seems to like the "Being There" album and of course "Sky Blue Sky". Jeff likes to rock out with him to Pandora--gotta start him early! :)
He's definitely starting to be interested in toys--my mom got him a "Whoozit" toy--in the pic above. He really seems to like the check patterns and bulls eye on the back.
Bri and Nate are coming to visit this Friday--yay! Bri has some ideas for cute baby pics--so hopefully get some good ones :)

The Emperor Explodes (3 Weeks, 5 Days :)

2009-03-30T14:12:00.008-04:00

Who is the emperor? Cadiem Rey! Bri has already given him a nickname, which started when he decided to "cluster feed" for 14 hours straight (Jeff & I have another name for it... see if you can guess). I'm not kidding--all I did the entire day was change diapers and feed him, while hoping he would fall asleep somewhere along the way. Needless to say, I was in tears by the time Jeff arrived home from work. I have since learned, like any good bartender (or... breastfeeder? haha) to cut him off! Bri has been calling him the emperor since we do as the baby commands! Haha. I had to explain to her what we've read in about everything concerning newborns... "The baby is not trying to manipulate you, the baby does not have an agenda." Hahaha.
A couple days ago, I was changing the emperor's diaper when he decided to start pooing again. It was quite explosive--I caught most of it in a wipe, but somehow liqui-poo ended up on the wall. Plus all over the changing table and my hands. While the poo-plosion was happening, he started peeing as well! I've already been peed on a few times, but this time the baby peed on himself and managed to get it on his face! I was laughing before I realized it was on his face--then we had to have emergency bath time :) gross!
My mom brought us some baby bath soap and body butter from the Body Shop which smells really fresh and baby-like :) It also says on it, "No Nasties!" Haha.
Anyway, my mom (Grandma Shultz!) was here last week visiting as you can see from the above pic... We had to stay in the house the whole time--but I don't think she was too bored ;) She helped us a lot while she was here with house stuff and we didn't have to worry with the zoo creatures, which was really nice. She didn't want to leave the baby when the time came, but don't worry Mom! We'll be out soon!
Speaking of zoo creatures... We've been keeping the house extra warm for the baby... It's not really a zoo anymore. Throw in the lizard, the sauna-like temperature, plus the scary-intimidatingly-beefy-tomato plant in the kitchen(aerogarden)... It's a damn jungle!
That's about it for now...

Can Opener Rant Update: (i'm not lame! you'll thank me when yours breaks!)
My damn can opener broke again. Seriously. Jeff went to the Gourmet Pantry and bought an OXO opener that takes the top of the can completely off--it's pretty cool. No jagged edges! Thus far, it's still in operation... We'll see how long this one lasts! I think I must be death to can openers. :)

Cadiem's Birthday! March 4, 2009

2009-03-21T00:41:00.005-04:00

After 15 hours of labor (ugh!) and 3 hours of pushing, Cadiem Rey Mangold has arrived! (old news, right? sorry! i've been busy;) Weighing in at 7 lbs 1 ounce and 20.5 inches long--apparently the average weight for a boy is 8 lbs--but I seriously don't know how he would have fit! So he is longer and skinnier than the average... I bet he'll end up being tall and skinny like Jeff :)
We were in the hospital Tuesday night through Friday morning. Needless to say, we were ready to leave come Friday morning! However, our hospital stay was pretty great, considering. We were in a really nice "birthing suite", which we both stayed in and gave birth in. The birth part was not as scary as the seventies video--but it was no cakewalk! We came pretty close to having to get a c-section, but they ended up using a vacuum to help get him out. Fun stuff, but at least it worked! Jeff was an excellent coach. He even sat next to my bed all night while I tried to sleep in between contractions.
Anyway, more posts to come shortly!

We have water breakage!

2009-03-03T14:20:00.002-05:00

and yes... I'm still at home :) I'm about to go pack my hospital bag--because god forbid I do anything ahead of time! Haha. And Jeff is downstairs installing the car seat--at least we're both procrastinators! Wish us luck!

HELLLLLPPPPPP!!!

2009-02-27T00:50:00.004-05:00

We watched THE scariest video of a birth--scary seventies style on Netflix. I thought my mom was exaggerating! EWWWW!!! A c-section is looking pretty good right now! We still have the videos that we borrowed from the hospital to watch... I'm hoping that they'll be a little better... Maybe being newer, without the ugly-scary-seventies haircuts they'll be less traumatic. Haha.
Maybe they could just knock me out, and do the whole labor thing without me "present"... Hmm... Let's get some engineers working on improving this scarier-than-hell process!
Anyway, still no contractions yet...
Ari loves to sleep on Jeff, last night they were both in the same position--so I had to take a picture. Jeff got tattooed yesterday--the tree is pretty close to being done. I think he might be participating in a convention that his artist (Shaun Carroll) is doing. Jeff actually has Sunday off this week, I think we might check out the new art museum in Roanoke--they're supposed to have a pretty cool "pens & needles" exhibit that we're going to check out.

"Go into labor already!"

2009-02-24T14:57:00.019-05:00

Said my doctor at my appointment yesterday... I still haven't felt any contractions yet--but I'm feeling very whale-ish! So next week Cadiem is due, and if he decides to be late (like his parents ;), they'll do a thorough check on his health--and decide whether to induce from those results.
Apparently, the placenta has a life span, which I was not aware of and this is the reason they no longer allow pregnancies to pass 42 weeks. Crazy! That's the first thing that hasn't in the book Bri got me! :)

I finally have more pictures of the nursery to post, even though it's not totally finished... I'm still working on a painting with his name that I'll hang above his dresser. I also still need to label the bins that I used to organize Cadiem's random stuff--I'm a freak, I know. I think it's all of that 5S training :)

Cadiem has been gifted some really cute items, I thought I'd post a couple things--I'll have to take more pics. Anita (my stepmom) is a sewing wiz--she made these really cute burp cloths. It's going to be sad when the baby spits up on them. Haha. Darlene & Terri (Marty's mom and sister) also make afghans, quilts and apparently blankies :) I posted pics of those from the shower.

And thanks to my mom and her friend Jennie (and Bri;), Cadiem's feet will be stylin. The "Robeez" are supposed to be really great because they don't have hard soles which are really bad for developing baby feet. How cute are those booties!? Bri actually had dibs on them from when my mom used to sell baby shoes--but she didn't want Cade's little feet to get cold :)

"Look! I Frankensteined that shit!"

2009-02-19T01:53:00.007-05:00

Said Jeff, after he had torn up our dessert (chocolate, coconut & peanut butter--oh yeah!) and pieced it back together into "perfect bites". Ha ha ha, I told him I would be quoting that on the blog! We had the yummiest dinner at Poor Billy's last night.
I ordered salmon and we both agreed it was the best we've ever had. Jeff has been craving steak for a good week--and their fillet mignon is always awesome. We also had their baked Brie appetizer (Cheddar is never better when Bri's in the cheese! hahaha). Needless to say, we were stuffed!
This morning we finally got to pick up our chair :) Jeff hauled it up our three flights of stairs--luckily it was in two pieces. And now our nursery is about ready for Cadiem! I have a few finishing touches to add, but we've got the major stuff done. We also had our "pre-registration" appointment today--so when I'm in labor and freaking out, I don't have to answer a bunch of questions. Random comment: We got Flava-Flav some crickets yesterday, and I feel like I'm camping in the living room...

37.9 Weeks... And an exciting evening in...

2009-02-16T23:58:00.002-05:00

My evening is encompassed above... Do you have any idea how difficult it is to paint your toenails with a giant baby belly in the way? But, sexy toes are a must when you're a whale (as Ethan likes to call me). Gotta have it goin' on somewhere! While we're on the subject of the whale belly--Jenni gave me some Burt's Bees Belly Butter--it's pretty awesome, and works great on my scaly legs :)
Ari found a long lost bone under the couch tonight--and she and Luci have been stealing it from each other for the last several hours. Somehow, it never gets old (for them that is). Ari likes to camp out under my legs while Luci stalks her, waiting for an opportunity to dive for the bone.
Poor Jeff has been working nonstop since Thursday. I miss him! I told him I'm starting to speak dog--Ah! At least he has Wednesday off, and we're excited to go pick up our new chair in Roanoke.
Last night, I decided to make mushu again--my own recipe. Which I actually liked much better than Emeril's recipe :) However, I couldn't find the Chinese pancakes anywhere (big surprise, right?), so I decided to make my own. Flour, water, and sesame seed oil--how hard could it be, right? WRONG! First off, I haven't used a rolling pin since the last time I made an apple pie, which was about five years ago. No likey the silicon roller! I'd rather use wood. Anyway, I made the pancakes but they were nothing like the ones in the restaurant. I think you definitely need a double sided griddle and some kind of crazy steamer to make them work. Ugh, two hours of work and a kitchen (and belly) full of flour. Never again! Jeff was nice enough to eat the entire tough pancake--and even thanked me for my cooking efforts several times. Isn't he the best!? :)

Snack Attack!

2009-02-12T11:15:00.002-05:00

Last night Jeff and I decided to make a midnight run to Kroger... Bad idea! We ended up coming back with pizza rolls (which always remind me of the days when Bri and I would share a bottle--or two--of wine with pizza rolls:), doritos, ice cream, chips & salsa, refried beans, popcorn, coke and some magic hat for Jeff :) And we ate it ALL! Nutritious and delicious! At least we had a good dinner (lunch for us!) while we were in Roanoke at Carrabbas :) Haha.
We were also watching SNL "shorts"--and if you haven't seen "I'm on a boat"--you should check it out. It's hysterical.
I have a large scale organization planned for today... Which I'm kicking off with about 6 loads of laundry. Oh the excitement... Isn't life grand!? ;)

We have a winner! (the winner being the chair)

2009-02-11T21:23:00.002-05:00

We found a chair! Ironically, it's the first chair we liked a couple weeks ago at Haverty's. But we wanted to check some other places and finally made it to the VA Furniture Market before they closed--which is on the edge of the earth (past Roanoke). But, we did not find love with any chairs there, and returned to Haverty's from the edge of the earth :)

37 Weeks (Tomorrow!) AHHHH!

2009-02-10T14:09:00.003-05:00

We're getting down to the wire people! I think Cadiem is really piling on the fat--my trips to the bathroom are definitely more frequent! I'm also feeling a little stretched. I can't believe I'll be back in normal clothes soon (yay!)--and that whole baby thing too... hahaha. When I went to the doctor's on Thursday, my doctor could feel the baby's head, he's in position! His little heartbeat was around 165 beats/min, since he was moving around, and the doctor said that's a sign of health :) The baby is mooning me as we speak--he likes to push his butt up to either side of my belly.
I am putting the finishing touches on Cadiem's room in the next couple days, I'll be posting pictures to show the final product :) Jeff has tomorrow off, and we're planning to go to Roanoke (yet again) in search of a chair. We will conquer! We got the rest of the furniture put together, along with the stroller (jeff's new love) and the swing. I'm pretty sick of assembling things--but at least it's done! I was pretty frustrated after I put the changer tray together and it didn't fit on the dresser... What the hell!? But I plan to attack it with Jeff's saw. I will make it work!
In non-baby news... ;)
Saturday Eric & Nichole had everyone over for a BBQ since the weather was so nice (and still is--yay!). We had some damn good burgers and Nichole made some tasty bruschetta that even received Jess's stamp of approval. The smoked mac&cheese from Gene & Nickie also made an appearance--yum! Can anyone tell my focus is on food?! Haha. The Crouthamels are also throwing a luau party on Valentine's day (SCAM!). How do you dress for a luau while pregnant? Anyone have ideas?

36 Weeks! You're killin' me smalls!

2009-02-04T13:40:00.006-05:00

Isn't this ugly doll the cutest thing ever!! I love it, and the baby needs one! They have a cute dragon too--I'm torn between the dragon and the ice bat...
Yesterday while I was putting together M&M's dresser, I realized just how limited my range of motion is. It is impossible to be comfortable while pregnant and assembling furniture! Haha. The baby should now be around 6 pounds, he's a little fatty :)

I watched the Superbowl with Nickie & Gene on Sunday, poor Cardinals! I didn't think I cared who won, but it was sad when they lost. At least they finally made it there! Luckily, I had some spectacular smoked Gouda Mac & Cheese to comfort me, made by the future Mr. & Mrs. Matthews (wink wink!). Tasty tasty!
Monday Jeff and I went to the Cellar for dinner and got to catch some of Doc's blues. The harmonica guy from Radford was even there--I wish they were still together. They always remind me of when Bri, both Ians and I would go see them and drink mass quantities of Yuengling. Ah, the good old days ;)

The Dollar Tree is my hero! (35 weeks lego my prego!)

2009-01-29T12:25:00.005-05:00

I had to go to Oasis (international food store) last night to chase down some spicy curry paste (since Kroger bites!) and naan for my chicken curry. The Dollar Tree happens to be next door, and I deigned to go in and check out the can openers. And guess what? That cheap ass can opener GLIDES around the can. I could have saved close to $50 and a lot of hassle by getting that one first! Darn. Oh well, at least I'm now in the know!

So today is Jeff's day off... Take a wild guess of where he is?! I'm going to burn the building down! Ugh. He'll be home soon though :)
Last night we went to see "Gran Turino", it was excellent. That's one of the best movies I've seen in awhile--Clint Eastwood is my hero! (sorry dollar tree!) I highly recommend seeing it!
And our chicken curry dinner was damn tasty! Bri kept saying the house smelled like curry--well now it has good reason! Friday several of us are going to see "Slumdog Millionaire" at the Lyric--and then on to Sharkey's to visit Jeff :) Hopefully I'll get to finish up Cade's room this weekend as well.
Anyway, I think I'm hitting some world records with my blogging! Time to go do something useful!

Belated Congrats to Nickie & Gene!

2009-01-28T11:42:00.002-05:00

I'm still playing catch up!
Nickie & Gene got engaged last month, congratulations you two! It's about damn time! (just kidding, just kidding!) Nickie is designing her own ring--from the drawing it looks pretty awesome. I'll try to get a picture of the final bling. She has temporary bling right now, with the diamond that will be in the final. Confused? Haha. Another awesome wedding to attend, yay!

Jeff has the day off tomorrow! Yay! I think we're going to do a little chillaxin, and possibly hit Barnes & Noble. Maybe a little Bed, Bath & Beyond if there's time.
Today I'm planning to go in search of a can opener that works--damn my life is exciting! I've been through three of them--that all sucked. So, if you happen to be in the market--DO NOT buy Kitchen Aid, Michael Graves or OXO. Hopefully TJ Maxx will have something different.
I'm also going to file taxes today, and I'm hoping for a big fat return! Cross your fingers!
(P.S.--there are 2 more recent posts if you scroll down, three posts in three days--it's a blogtastic miracle!)

Cade's Baby Shower--Compliments of Nickie (and Gene too ;)

2009-01-26T22:51:00.006-05:00

As you can see, Nickie went all out for the baby shower. Even though I'd never been to one before now (don't laugh!), I'm going to have to say, best baby shower ever--hands down! We had blood orange mimosas, punch with bourbon & vodka, goat cheese stuffed figs with prosciutto, several types of paninis, tasty cheese tarts, an array of olives (even though Nickie hates them!), fantastic chocolate cake, the list goes on! Needless to say--we were all stuffed. Nickie told us we weren't allowed to leave until the alcohol was gone--I think we (they!) came pretty close ;)
We ended up staying for quite awhile--and even made it to round two on the food!
We played a couple of fun games too--one of them involving everyone getting cute little blue clothespins. If you said "baby", the person who caught you got to take one of your clothespins. So we were all trying to trick each other into saying the magic word. Mom was probably the worst (sorry Mom!) since she had to keep explaining to all of us about the baby stuff--haha. We also played a baby gift bingo game. Which probably helped entertain people while I SLOWLY opened my gifts ;) I can't help it--I like to prolong the suspense! Jenni, Nichole, Mom, Bri & I ended up staying until around 10pm--longest baby shower in history! I think we can blame the Wii Fit, check out the pic below of my mom:
We had a damn good time :)
I want to thank Nickie (& Gene!) for throwing me such a great baby shower! I can't even imagine how much time went into planning, decorating and creating all of those tasty masterpieces!
Also thanks to my mom and sister for flying in, and Jenni for driving up from Charlotte--even while mid-move :) I'm glad you guys were here!

Yes, I suck! I am a rotten, lazy blogger!

2009-01-26T19:53:00.009-05:00

Okay people, I have TONS to catch up on! Somehow, I've managed to stay pretty busy even with school out and no work! So, first things first:
We're up to 34 weeks! Cade (aka M&M ;), is about 4.75 pounds. His central nervous system and lungs are finishing development. He's mostly adding baby fat--which I'm feeling every time I try to get up! But I just started getting uncomfortable recently--so i can't complain too much--it's been a pretty smooth ride :) He's pretty active, and constantly kicking and moving. He's also gets the hiccups quite often--which Jeff & I get a real kick out of. It's really cool to be able to know what's going on in there!
Last Wednesday, we FINALLY cleaned out the baby's room. Jeff hauled two loads of junk to the Goodwill! And we painted Cade's room "Palm Leaf", which is a very spirited green as you can see in the picture.
Yesterday, Bri & I got the nursery set up. We put the crib together, which I'm very impressed with. It's completely hardwood--looks fantastic and was so easy to assemble!
I'm a walking Da Vinci cribs ad! I also love the bedding set, it's so cute! I think the baby will appreciate the animals and the bright green :) We didn't get his dresser/changer set up since it got damaged during shipping--so I'll be assembling that next week. But we did get a few things on the wall and the valance hung. Bri did all the hard labor and reprimanded me every time I attempted to lift something. Haha, anyway, there are more pictures posted on Bri's SmugMug: http://www.floridaiveys.smugmug.com/gallery/7193029_ZD9sW#461891916_KtqB7

29 Weeks! This tram is definitely in motion!

2008-12-18T19:23:00.003-05:00

I'm starting to get scared! This pic, taken by Bri (of course), is me conquering the Peralta trail after I almost threw up from the heat... Isn't that lovely. Anyway, I'm trying to boost my self confidence by remembering that I can and will conquer! damnit!
Last week Bri asked if I wanted an "umbrella stroller" from the Disney lost and found. I asked Jeff if he wanted one--and he asked me what it was. I replied with, "It's a stroller with a cover over it" in my best "duh" voice. To which Bri replied, "What kind of mother are you?!" Apparently, an umbrella stroller is a stroller that folds up like an umbrella. Oops! Which Jeff remembered after a few minutes--so now he thinks I'm dumb too!

ANYWAY... I'm in Arizona! Yay! My suitcase has yet to arrive though... But at least it's been located. Both of my flights were also delayed, but at least I got to chill in first class. That tiny bit of extra space makes such a difference. Too bad I couldn't drink the free alcohol!

Blacksburg is a tiny tiny dot of normalcy...

2008-12-12T14:30:00.003-05:00

(pic stolen from Bri, taken in Roanoke!)

So, last week I was in Walmart--grabbing a few groceries. I know, I know. Normally I shun all that is Walmart... But I was already in Christiansburg--and Walmart is cheap--and I'm broke! So you see the logic... Despite the inevitable headache that comes with walking into any Walmart. I was making spaghetti for my dinner guests that evening--and I was on the hunt for garlic bread in the long ass rows of freezer food. They have little signs posted for each section of food, like "veggies" and "ice cream". I probably passed the garlic bread about six times because instead of labeling the bread section as "bread", it's labeled "biscuits". That's right, biscuits. I didn't even see any biscuits in the freezer (which according to Nickie, they don't come frozen--she's from VA, so we'll take her word on that). But apparently, on the hick-side of Virginia, "biscuits" encompass the vast world of bread. So now you know what to look for, when you're not only in a Walmart (which is bad enough) but a Walmart in hicksville (obviously worse).
Okay, on to more important topics ;)
M&M is up to 2.25 pounds this week! And I think he's confused about the function of my bladder. He seems to think it's a trampoline. I had to take a second glucose test on Tuesday, for FOUR FREAKING HOURS. I also had to be there at 7am--which is pretty darn close to my bedtime, so I ended up falling dead asleep in the lab which freaked them out since they'd been stealing my blood. Haha.
Anyway, Jeff and I are going to visit his son this weekend in DC. I haven't met Jeffery yet, so I'm a little nervous!
Back to finals... Wish me luck!

27 Weeks--And entering the home stretch!

2008-12-06T00:56:00.002-05:00

Right now, (in the pic) I'm thinking that Austin has a major cootie problem. Ha ha, a rare pic of the Monteverdes from our trip to visit Bri & Nate this past summer :)
What does this pic have to do with M&M's 27th week? Absolutely nothing! But this week he's a 2 lb, 14.5" head of cauliflower, which makes for a really lame picture.
ANYWAY--M&M is busy perfecting his lungs this week, and apparently he could survive on life support at this point. Crazy! Last week his ears developed further--so he can hear us now. I probably just scared the crap out of him by yelling at Ari for chasing the cat. Oops! I'm trying to stop Mom!
Clothes have become an issue! I was laughing at the sweaters I got out of my stored winter stuff--there is no way in hell they're going to fit. Not on this belly! But I found some cute stuff at TJ Maxx in the juniors, believe it or not. And I've been wearing leggings--me. Weird! But they're comfy with the longer sweaters/shirts and look cute with boots :)

In other news... Jenni & I had a great time while she was here a couple weeks ago. We ate at the Cellar, did a little wine tasting, visited Jeff at work and even watched the Tech game. We also got to hang out with Eric & Nichole one night. Jenni got a new car, a mini convertible--it's so cute!
Thanksgiving at the Rivermill was cool--there was a TON of food. I think we only got through about 1/4 of it! Okay, we're almost up to current news :) I will be better about blogging!
Jeff and I have been playing Scrabble recently--and it's really different playing with him. I'm used to being super competitive about points and rules, etc. He's definitely more laid back than others... (NATE!) And doesn't bitch when I take 20 minutes to put a word down :) It will be interesting to play with the Scrabble king and queen at Christmas! (Bri and Nate;)
Nickie, Gene, Eric & Nichole came over for dinner Thursday--and Jeff was actually off work :) Today I got to hang out with Ian & Ethan at Sharkey's in Radford for happy hour, which was fun. And Jeff was bartending, so he kind of got to hang out too. Sharkey's was celebrating 75 years since the end of prohibition today, so they bartenders were dressed in 1930's gear--Jeff was dressed like an old school gangster in a zoot suit :)

I love you Grandaddy

2008-11-17T21:50:00.004-05:00

Nevermore! Nevermore!

2008-11-17T14:02:00.003-05:00

It is a dreary, dreary gray day. This morning (or noon... whatever!) when I took the dogs outside, it was freezing cold (still is) and flurrying. The outside of our building was devoid of people or movement except for one lone raven, chillin in a leafless tree. So, it's easy to see why it reminded of me of good old Edgar Allen Poe. Bri was pretty obsessed with him for awhile when she was a kid. I think it's a bit dark, even for me!

We really seem to be stuck on Cadiem Rey for M&M. But we're going to call him Cade. We're not completely sure on the spelling yet, I guess it's a made up name so it doesn't matter? haha. His kicks are getting strong, I can actually see my belly move at times.

Jeff was in DC all weekend, and gave his son Jeffery the big news about M&M. He's excited to have yet another new sibling (his mom just had a boy, "Ian"). I had dinner with Gene and Nickie on Friday night at Carrabba's, which I hadn't been to in years, and it was tasty :) Saturday I met up with my friend Wade for lunch and a little mall wandering--isn't my life the epitomy of excitement?! Yesterday I had this huge plan to deep clean the apartment, and I got as far as dusting and doing seven loads of laundry before Jeff got home. Oh well, hopefully today!

Jeff and I both are counting down the days until our Arizona trip--I know he's going to love it :) I can't wait to show him all of my favorite spots--and I think we're also making a trip up to the cabin--which will probably be covered in snow. And Ari will be excited to see her cousin Cleo :)

I AM hirable! YAY!

2008-11-07T15:41:00.003-05:00

I finally found a job! YAY! And they said I can work from home when I have M&M! Double YAY! Where is this magical place? Moog :) They make motors--it's all so familiar! I'll be doing basically the same work I did at Danaher--so it should be a pretty easy transition... Teaching 5S, working on layouts, inventory, blah blah blah. YAY!

In other news... :)
Jeff and I got to go hiking yesterday, and it was a beautiful and even warm fall day. We actually didn't end up finding the trailhead we were looking for, "War Spur", but walked around "Wind Rock", which had a fantastic view of the mountains stretching out for miles and miles. There were still some pretty leaves left on the trees too--but enough on the ground for the dogs to have fun running through them :) Ari was scaring me, I thought she was going to leap off of the cliffs!
We also made a kick-ass dinner last night: garlic mashed potatoes, maple dijon pork chops and asparagus :) yum!

23 Weeks = Tropical Fruit

2008-11-05T14:13:00.003-05:00

M&M is 23 weeks old, and the size of a large mango.
Sidenote: Did you know mangoes are the most popular fruit in the world! They are full of vitamins C, A and E--plus niacin, potassium and iron. That's one awesome piece of fruit!
Back to M&M: He weighs a little bit over a pound, and apparently he's turning my uterus into a crazy nightclub. He moves mostly at night, Jeff can feel his kicks now too :)
I definitely have a protruding belly now--but I'm still feeling pretty normal. Although, I'm a little retarded at times, which I'm attributing to my shrinking brain. Yeah, pregnancy causes your brain to shrink! Seriously! And once you pop out the kid, it expands again. Weird. Pregnancy also causes shrinking eyeballs (thank god i don't wear contacts) and gingivitis! I could go on--but the gingivitis scares the crap out of me. I've been a flossing fool! I also started using Jeff's high powered toothbrush--it gets a smiley face on it when you brush for long enough. Haha.

Jeff and I both voted yesterday evening and then headed downtown to Rivermill to hang out with friends and watch the polls on the big screen (we're TV-less losers!). It was pretty exciting because most people in the bar were Obama supporters (go figure) as well, and everyone went nuts when Virginia went democrat. Yay! Now we don't have to leave the country! (We were planning to escape to an warm island or small European country if McCain won)

Tomorrow is Jeff's day off, a real day off! No four hour meetings in the middle of the day--yay! We're going to go hiking with the evil mutts and then do some REALLY late pumpkin carving. Haha. Three pumpkins still await their fate. Scarface XV will live again!!

The Witching Hour Draws Near!

2008-10-31T16:32:00.006-04:00

In other words, Happy Halloween! How do you like Captain Jeff Sparrow's new work uniform? Yes, that's right, Captain Jeff is bartending tonight as a pirate. Hopefully he'll give a healthy "Arghhhh!" with every drink he serves. We even beaded up his goatee and put eyeliner on him.

Did I mention that I went to every store in Christiansburg to find his costume? Seriously--I found one piece at each store. Boots at Walmart, hat at K-mart (yes, i ventured into K-mart and was very afraid), jacket at Joann's, sword at Walgreen's, beads at Michael's... Are you tired yet? Because I certainly was. I had to stop at Starbuck's and Taco Bell to fuel up in-between stores. And I am extremely disappointed in my beloved Target, they were cleaned out. But, they did have a pirate costume for Ari Lynn.

My costume was quite easy to find... I'm using Nickie's idea, and I will be "Under Construction". So I'll be dressed like a cute construction worker with a toolbelt full of baby stuff (bottles, baby powder, stuffed animals, etc.) complete with a hardhat and a sign over my belly that says, of course, Under Construction. So along my search for all things piratey, Home Depot was yet another stop.

I tried dressing up the dogs--but they weren't very good subjects. Especially Luci--she sucks. Totally uncooperative! She took her costume off within a minute.

So, my pet pics suck. Oh well, I guess I should leave it to the photography master, Bri.
Okay, time to go finish up Scarface XV! He'll be evil as ever! Jeff is going to lame out and make a happy pumpkin, what's up with that? It's Halloween damnit!

The alien parasite is a BOY!

2008-10-28T14:34:00.003-04:00

Yup, M&M is a boy :) Now what to name him!? I have like 30 girl names, and 1 boy name... Oops!! So obviously I'm starting a new spreadsheet--and so far have 2 names on it. We need ideas people! And then, I think I'll either post the spreadsheet on google--or take votes over the blog... So far, we've come up with Caden (or Cadiem, haha) Rey Mangold. Which would be my initials and middle name :)
Now I can peruse Target and drool over the cute baby boy stuff. We went straight there after our ultrasound appointment yesterday and got M&M a Classic Pooh "Pram Bag". What the hell is a Pram Bag? We just thought it looked cozy and liked the ears on the little hoodie, but were very confused about the slits on the front and back... Jeff asked a "Target Team Member"--she laughed at us, and said it was for the seatbelt to go through... Ohhhhhh, that makes sense! I'm clueless!
So even though I was hoping for a girl--I'm happy about having a boy--there's pros and cons to both :) And now I can put dinosaur crap everywhere which would have been a little weird for a girl, even though I've always loved them!
In other news... Jeff got a promotion--which will be more responsibility of course, and dealing with stupid employee drama/crap--but in the next month or so should hopefully develop into more bar shifts, and less overall time at work. Yay! He was making spreadsheets this morning to prepare for his meeting today to get training records organized. I keep telling him he's the industrial engineer for bars/restaurants! Yesterday he was talking about cutting down on process steps and walk times... So many parallels!
Anyway--even though he has a meeting which cuts about 4 hours out of the day (i'm not complaining!), it's his day off... We wanted to go hiking today--but it's flurrying outside! Brrr!
If you haven't seen pics of M&M's latest ultrasound, check out the following link:
http://picasaweb.google.com/cassie.monteverde/MMTheBOY#

21 Weeks! Halfway to seeing mini-me/Jeff!

2008-10-23T12:55:00.002-04:00

(Mike, Jeff, duh, Jeff, Ian)

Ah, the days before we were in the know about M&M. That's right--M&M is in this picture too! And I'm looking pissy because it was hotter than hell outside. PA sucks! (Sorry Nate!) Why exactly did I post this picture? Because this week M&M is being compared to a carrot--and I'm tired of posting pics of fruits and veggies damnit! And tomorrow is the big day!! Hopefully I'll be able to post a picture of our ultrasound--and also the big news!! Everyone cross your fingers!! And then, we'll be able to start the name game. I've already got a google spreadsheet started, so I figure we can all pass that around :) I can also pick out a color to paint M&M's room--but I promised Jeff's friend Jason that I would steer clear of pink (not that I would pick it anyway ;)

Jeff took me shopping at the Greenhouse the other night, after they were closed :) It was awesome--the owner, Lee, locked us in while he went to have a beer--and we got to shop. I tried on about everything in there! I think Jeff knew I was feeling like an ugly cow, and we found some really cute shirts and a couple of sweaters with room for the belly to grow :) So now I'm a stylin' cow... Hahaha.

Tuesday was Jeff's day off, and we perused at Target (but we just didn't have time for Bed Bath & Beyond... I know, I'm lame) like normal people. We also got to have dinner with the other Jeff and his girlfriend Laurie--plus her mom and aunt. We went to Poor Billy's which was tasty tasty as usual. Laurie's family owns the Carol Lee Doughnut Shop--so we got to hear some funny doughnut stories. They also ordered every appetizer on the menu--and I recommend a new one that has a baked pastry stuffed with Brie cheese served with candied pecans, apricots and crunchy things--yum! I stuck with the classic melt-in-your-mouth filet mignon. Soooo good.

"Cheddar isn't better when Bri's in the cheese!!" Hahahaha. Bri heard that all through junior high and high school. They either recited that fun little phrase to her, or just called her "cheese". Poor kid. ;) How's that for random!?

19 weeks and M&M is on the move!

2008-10-07T16:49:00.002-04:00

That's right! We're at nineteen weeks! And, if you haven't guessed, M&M is now the size of a large heirloom tomato and weighs about half a pound. Where do they come up with these crazy size comparisons? So this week, M&M's senses are developing and he/she is sprouting hair! Anyone want to bet that it will be wild brown curly hair? (If you haven't met Jeff--he has hair pretty similar to mine :) But there are exceptions of course, Jeff's son Jeffrey has straight white blond hair. Jeff calls him a toe head? I really don't get that expression... Anyway, I've also been feeling the baby move! Mom says I should be feeling little kicks soon as well. Here's the weird part--I got on the scale this morning--and it hasn't moved. Weird!

I have a maternity clothes rant:
Do the people that design maternity clothing think that people having babies are 75 years old? What's up with the baggy legs and shapeless-baggy ass? Maybe they need an anatomy lesson. And what's up with the ugly-plain-high-necked-school-marm shirts? I have new boobs and I want to show them off damnit! Do they think pregnant women are giving up on looking attractive? That we want to look like a shapeless tent? What gives? I searched Ann Taylor, Gap, Motherhood, even by beloved Nordstrom (all online, no shopping around here). And they all SUCK. Ugly ug ug. But, to my great surprise, Old Navy rocks! They were the only store I found that carried cute jeans that weren't $200. I got a pair that has an elastic band built in to the waistband that you can't see, and they actually fit in the butt and legs :) I also got some cute trouser jeans that have an adjustable elastic band on the inside so they can expand with the growing belly. Plus, a denim pencil skirt that also has an adjustable elastic band inside. AND--they were the cheapest! Win win! I also found some cute empire style shirts at TJ Maxx on clearance :)

In other news... Ian and I went to the cellar last night for dinner and blues music. I love the blues! Sunday I had dinner with Nickie & Gene--which was tastylicious as usual :) We also watched some crazy yet entertaining vampire show on HBO, "True Blood". I have two words, "SOOKI SOOKI!" (in an extreme southern accent) Jeff has tomorrow off, because he's getting more work done on his tree tattoo. I'll have to post a picture of it. Okay, I'm done rambling/ranting!

Two Dogs, One Cat and a Lizard! Oh My!

2008-09-30T14:28:00.002-04:00

Okay people, so my apartment is now "our" apartment--which includes a zoo. Jeff and Mike did a switcheroo with apartments on Saturday--which was somewhat convenient. Mike seems pretty happy with his new bachelor pad. Jeff is also excited. The cat (Casey Two) and the lizard (Flava-Flav) have been the only residents at his apartment for the last couple months. And Jeff had been living out of small assortment of clothes at my apt. Anyway--he's happy to finally have everything in one place! Two, the cat, seems especially happy. He's taken up station in a bed filled with catnip. Ari keeps trying to play with him--which he doesn't appreciate--and she's earned a lot of crate time in between trying to get in the cat box and being a shit in general! Luci, who knows better, also tries to double team Two along with Ari. So everyone has been getting into trouble. Flava-Flav has not yet arrived, but she's getting moved this Saturday. And don't worry Nickie! I'm steering clear of the cat poo and the lizard :) No salmonella or brain damaged children for me!

Friday night I had people over for chicken curry--which was pretty tasty :) I was running WAY behind as usual--so we didn't get to actually eat until around 10--but it was a good time anyway! There was a lot of scary talk about twins--some Ukrainian guy had his twin inside him!
Saturday, after moving Jeff's stuff all day, we went to his friend Jeff's to watch the game and chill--I fell asleep in the 4th quarter :)
Last night I spent THREE hours setting up the damn router--a few minutes my ass, Linksys bastards! But, in the end, I have conquered!

M&M! Show yourself!

2008-09-20T14:11:00.002-04:00

We got our first ultrasound on Friday, and got to see M&M, who was moving around like crazy. Jeff said, "M&M is truckin'!" (You can see the outline of M&M's head under the word "dad") We both just stared at the screen with our mouths open--it's so cool! We haven't found out the sex, but will at the next appointment which is next month. Then we get to see the 3D ultrasound which should be unreal. The doctor (who I really like--luckily) measured M&M's thigh bone and head--and M&M is actually a week ahead of schedule! Maybe my procrastination genes didn't pass on... ;) Apparently I have to pee in a cup every time I go in. Why don't they explain why? They also forgot to give me some kind of lab test, and called me to come back. And I asked what kind of lab tests and the answer was, "Oh, you know--just typical lab stuff." HUH?? So is it another pee test, blood test, how many jumping jacks can I do, what the hell kind of test?? Luckily, the book Bri got me explains everything you could possibly want to know.

Today I'm cleaning, doing laundry and homework. I'm trying to make up for yesterday because all I did was lay around and watch movies. Jeff has been gone all weekend visiting his son in D.C., but he gets back tonight :) I'm going to Nickie and Gene's later today, and taking Ari to meet their two Australian Shepherds. Hopefully they'll get along!

I WANT A BEER DAMNIT!

2008-09-14T17:15:00.005-04:00

Cold... Refreshing... Malty, nutty brown goodness... That's right people. Sam Adams Octoberfest beer is out and parading around in front of my pregnant eyes. My ultimate, favorite beer--out ONCE a year for one lousy month! Grrrr. Sam & Ben also share my love of Sam Adams--and have been drinking up my beloved Octoberfest. Taunting-teasing-bastards! But there is a plan in motion... Jeff thinks we should buy some while it's out, and then in about six months--I can partake. Yaaayyyyy!
In other news...
Since I currently don't have a schedule to keep, I've accidentally adapted to Jeff's. Oops! It was pretty easy to slip into considering my history as a night owl. Which really sucked growing up because my mom and sister are morning people. They'd burst into my bedroom chirping about the sun shining, what a beautiful day... blah blah blah! And then they'd rip open the shades and yank off my covers. I was a tortured child.
Anyway... I think the dogs like Jeff better than me! Little beasts. They wouldn't eat without me! Although, they treat Jeff like a Tootsy Roll Pop. As soon as he walks in the door he's attacked by licking from both dogs, they love that Sharkey's chicken goodness. It's rumored (from Jeff's boss) that eventually he'll only be working around 50 hours/week versus the 75ish he's working now. I don't know how he does it--I would one huge pile of evil grouchiness!
Alright--I'm done with my ramblings... Until next time... Go have a tasty Octoberfest for me and M&M!!

"Excuse me. I am a sacred vessel, alright? All you've got in your stomach is Taco Bell." (Juno)

2008-09-09T16:27:00.002-04:00

Mmmhhh... Taco Bell... Pintos and cheese... Taco Supreme...
Okay, I got distracted. So, week 15!! Holy Cow!! (Yes, I will be one soon) M&M is now about the size of an apple... I had one at lunch... Not sure what that has to do with anything. Hmm...
So, M&M's legs are finally catching up to the arms, and the air sacs in the lungs are starting to develop. Sea monkey be gone! I'm really excited to see the ultrasound--hopefully that will happen soon.
I'm struggling to eat healthy... Jeff and I ate pizza rolls for dinner last night. Are you proud Bri?! Haha. Tonight I'm going to make some experimental egg rolls I've been perfecting, but they should be pretty healthy :) I had a job interview on Monday for an assistant accountant position, and I think it went well... Cross your fingers for me! Jeff FINALLY has a day off on Thursday, he's been working for two weeks straight. He's also getting tattooed on Thursday (yeah, he still has some space!), the "tree of life" is getting more work. The roots go all the way down his leg--and the branches with little leaves spread across his chest. It's quite the tattoo!

We've got pee people!

2008-09-03T15:58:00.003-04:00

It's week fourteen, and M&M's kidneys are doing their job! M&M is also busy making faces (maybe he/she is doing the patented Cassie-squint-eyed-glare) and is now about the size of a lemon. I'm growing a lemon, I'm so magical! Haha.

In other news...
Ian, $10 Mike and I checked out Jazz night at the Cellar, which was cool--except when the trumpet guy decided to blast our eardrums. Then we went to visit Jeff at Sharkey's. Jeff talked $10 into drinking a PBR--he was lured by the $1.50 price tag--I'll pay the extra buck for a decent beer anyday! yuck! Jeff is still working like a dog--but we did get to hang out yesterday afternoon, even caught some sun sitting on the deck at TOTS for lunch :)

It's only money, I can get more?

2008-08-28T12:02:00.002-04:00

Does anyone know how to escape Target without spending $50?? I bought ONE frivilous item--a $3 tube of Burt's Bees chapstick. I'm not kidding, the rest was cleaning supplies, toiletries and toilet paper for my new peeing hobby. Jeff, on the other hand, bought some gadgets to use at work which he is very excited about. He rigged up a sharpie on a retractable key chain so he can clip it to his shorts at work and whip out the sharpie with the greatest of ease. Haha. And he got a flashlight that can be seen from 2 miles away. It's all very exciting. ;)

We went to The Cellar last night for dinner with Jeff's friends Jeff and Laurie. We sat at the bar downstairs, so we got to have Nate's buddy Tom as our bartender/waiter. I ordered a pasta special, striped pasta with marscapone cheese and sundried tomatoes--it was pretty tasty. And it really was striped with red! We got to see Obama's suprise attack while we were there--everyone was pretty excited--no Republicans in that room! We also dropped by Rivermill and checked out the new music venue--The Lantern--which used to be a skeezy dance club with really scary booty dancing. The Lantern is definitely an improvement! One of Jeff's friends was drumming in the band that was playing. They played some pretty cool covers.
Okay, time to attack some homework!

Second trimester, here we come!

2008-08-26T16:51:00.003-04:00

Well, almost! We've made it to the thirteenth week :) And still no morning sickness, woohoo! M&M should be around three inches long and now has fingerprints! Pretty cool, huh?

In other news... Doggie-Smack-Down-Week (as Bri so aptly named it) has returned. Luci has been a regular house guest since Jeff has been working so much, and Ari has decided to pee all over the apartment to establish her domain. Marty's advice to me was that I need to re-establish who the real top dog is (that would be me). So Ari is getting alphaed everytime she decides to disobey and they're no longer allowed to wrestle and run all over the house 24-7. So far, it seems to be working, no pee for the last day... Horray!
Also--this past Friday my 2.5 year internship at Danaher finally came to a close. I think I hold the record, haha. I'm actually relieved, I was pretty bored. So, the job search begins :) So far, I've applied for a bank job and a couple of clerical positions. I don't think I'll have any issues since all of my classes are online this semester. And, I should be a shoe-in for Medicaid now. Yay for free medical! One more thing, I have a new hobby--peeing. No kidding, I think it's been around 15 times today. Eek!

To Lime? To Salt?

2008-08-19T10:34:00.004-04:00

We all like to frequent a Mexican restaurant, Cinco de Mayo because of their large margaritas and excellent deals on Dos Equis... Our favorite waiter will ask, "To lime? To salt?" for each drink order. It's pretty comical.
Anyway, if you haven't guessed, M&M is now lime sized and weighing in at half an ounce. This is one fast growing baby! Apparently this is a big week for reflexes.

Mom, Bri and Nate all left yesterday morning. We all had a good time, even with 6 of us squished into my tiny apartment, plus 2 dogs :) Nickie & Gene lent me their awesome air mattress--which is more like a blow up queen size bed--and it took up most of the living room! As predicted--there was much activity centered around eating. Ha ha. But we did make it to the Floyd Jamboree on Friday, the farmer's market in Roanoke on Saturday, Chateau Morrisette on Sunday, and played a few games of Scrabble and Balderdash in between.

On several car rides--Mom, Bri and Nate worked on name suggestions for M&M. They came up short. But maybe this is because they were listing off every street sign in sight--and then moved on to naming characters from movies or trashy romance novels. Such as Atticus, Scout, Trevelyan, Percival, Ginny, Harry, Ariel, Aurora--and they only got more ridiculous. Mom really likes Francesca and Olivia. I like Olivia, but Jeff and I both agree that Francesca is out--we don't like the nick name Fran, or Frannie... Too plain! Anyone have any boy name ideas? Girl names?

Biznatch arrives today!

2008-08-14T11:47:00.001-04:00

Otherwise known as Nate :)

The Mom is arriving in T-10 hours!

2008-08-12T11:09:00.002-04:00

And she's waiting to board her plane right about now! Nine more hours of traveling and she'll arrive in good old Roanoke. Sans Cleo. Don't let the picture confuse you...
Tonight we won't get to do much since she gets in so late--but hopefully tomorrow we'll be able to get some quality mother-daughter time in :) Jeff is going to take her hiking to McAfee's Knob on Thursday--it has a great view, I think she'll enjoy it. Nate is coming in on Thursday (i already have cheese & crackers waiting for you Biznatch!) and Bri on Friday morning. My apartment is going to be packed! Ari will be so excited.
Speaking of Ari--she's been mopey lately, so yesterday I bought her three new toys. Her favorite, of course, is the new nyla-dental bone. She likes to sit on the couch with me and chew her bone--which I'm not crazy about, but tolerate because I'm a sucker! She's also making out in the food department. I cut her new food back too much and her little ribs started showing. So I kind of freaked out and have been feeding her lots of tasty snacks.
Jeff has been working like a dog--yesterday he worked from 9am-midnight. He said he smelled like a chicken wing by the end. Luckily, I didn't have to find out if that was true! I won't even see him until Thursday. But he's off for the weekend after that--so plenty of quality time with Mom, Bri and Nate :)
Side Note: It really annoys me that I haven't gained any weight--but my jeans barely close. WTF??

Eleven weeks and counting!

2008-08-11T12:39:00.004-04:00

M&M has now reached fig status. Are figs any bigger than a kumquat? Well apparently this measures about 1.5" long. M&M is almost fully formed (crazyness!). Bones are hardening and apparently M&M is having a good time kicking and stretching--and could even be hiccupping.
Side Note: Jeff thinks I'm jinxing us by refering to M&M as a "she"... and we can't have that--so no more she talk!

My mom is coming in tomorrow night--so guess what I'm doing tonight?! That's right--crazy cleaning. I've already warned Mike to look out for the scary cleaning machine (me). Alright--time to forage for food... ;)

The Return of $10

2008-08-10T16:56:00.004-04:00

My roomie has returned! And he's sporting a new haircut! I barely recognized him when he took his hat off. He looks so young--he hates that! Ha ha ha.

Yesterday Jeff and I went to visit some of his good friends who had a baby girl yesterday morning. I was afraid to hold her--but Jeff was pretty comfortable with it--at least one of us is!! I just kept looking at her the whole time thinking, how in the HELL am I going to squeeze that out??!

Later we went to Thai with Eric, Nichole, Nickie and Gene. I don't think M&M likes Thai food--which is unfortunate for me :( I hated my dish (Orangy Cashew Beef), but everyone else tried it and liked it. Boo!

And even later, after Mike arrived, we went for a celebratory beer at the Rivermill(don't worry, no beer for me!). Coincidentally it was Jeff's last night working at the Rivermill, which is kind of sad. He's an institution in that place! Rivermill just won't be the same without him.

Another Theory... (just for bri)

2008-08-08T11:17:00.003-04:00

Have you ever sat down to a tasty, steaming stir-fry--and suddenly it hits you... What's the deal with the baby corn? Why is it so tiny? Where does it come from?
I have the answer. Baby corn is the stunted, reject corn from the regular corn crop harvest. Yup--it's not baby corn at all! More like, the outcasts of the corn community. Never to reach the full potential of the regular, normal corn. Forever stuck in stir-frys and pasta salads.
I hope you won't discriminate against baby corn because it's a stunted reject. Personally I'm an equal opportunity corn eater.

In other news...
Mom is coming in to visit the 'Burg on Tuesday night--with Bri & Nate also visiting the following weekend. I'm not sure what we're doing yet, but I've got a feeling it's going to involve copious amounts of eating :) Mom turns into the queen of snack whenever she leaves Phoenix (it's true Mom!) and I'm sure Nate & Bri will be happy to follow her lead!

Possessed Dogs
Last night around midnight, I'd just settled into bed, cozied up with a Janet Evanovich novel. A few minutes later, Ari started growling and barking from her crate, which is right next to my bed. Luci responded with a deafening bark. I didn't hear a thing besides the whir of a/c units from the apartment complex. This barking back and forth continued for about ten minutes, with me yelling at them in-between to shut their traps. Finally I couldn't take it anymore, and shoved both of them in the hallway and slammed the door. It worked! Ahhh, beautiful silence.

I have a theory...

2008-08-07T15:54:00.002-04:00

Have you ever wondered why we have all of these pointless states in the middle? How on earth did they ever come to be? Who exactly would deign to live there? Do we need them? I have a theory that answers all of these questions:
The Oregon Trail!
That's right!! The people who settled in the boring, pointless states such as: Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas(sorry Tara!), Missouri, Idaho... These were the people whose wagons broke down. They over-packed their wagons and broke the axles. You might be thinking, well, what about Arkansas(sorry Ash!) and Oklahoma? How in the hell did they come about? Those states were settled by the people who chose to take the "road less traveled". Yup, they were trying to avoid traffic--and it backfired. The wagons broke down. So not only were they too far from the trail to get help--they were stuck in Arkansas and Oklahoma. So there you have it--the mystery is solved! You're welcome! ;)

158 minutes of my life are forever lost...

2008-08-05T12:05:00.003-04:00

Last night we subjected ourselves to "There Will Be Blood". At first, I thought it was going to be a pretty good movie. There was creepy string music which was apparently composed by a member of Radiohead--it was reminiscent of the "Ravenous" soundtrack. (side note: "ravenous", a civil war movie involving cannibals, had me so freaked out i was afraid to use the movie theater bathroom alone, for fear of being attacked and thrown into a stew!) There was also a crazy religious cult leader and his creepy followers. Sounds promising, right? WRONG!! The movie went on and on and on--without any real change or climax. Or maybe that was the movie magic I missed--perhaps they were just trying to drive home the misery by keeping the same dreary monotony? I just expected more plot-wise I suppose.

On a positive note--this pregnancy stuff isn't so bad thus far! Other than constantly feeling the need to shove food in my face and nap--I'm feeling pretty good :) I don't think I've ever been so food focused. I wake up hungry, which is totally abnormal for me, and I'm pretty much hungry on the hour all day. I'm a bottomless pit!

Drum Roll Please!

2008-08-04T10:57:00.006-04:00

Yes, M&M is now comparable to a kumquat. What a strange little fruit! Apparently you have to chew the sweet skin to counteract the super-tart juice inside. I've never tried one, but I think I'm going to pick one up next time I'm at the grocery.
Back to the subject at hand... M&M is an inch long this week! Her kidneys, intestines and brain are beginning to function--and her liver is even making red blood cells. She has a giant head--it's half the size of her body! I'm amazed that so much action takes place in so little time.

In other news...
I made some blueberry and walnut pancakes yesterday that were yummy--and it was my first pancake attempt without the aid of Bisquick--which is FULL of trans fats FYI!
Jeff & I went to Kabuki for dinner last night to celebrate the closing year of my twenties. Boo! But dinner was tasty, and we were the only two at the table--it was nice to have our own personal chef :) Jeff claims he rented out the place--haha.
I received a new cactus(one of my gifts from Jeff), Seῆor Spiney, who is chillin villain style in my windowsill. So now I have a little bit of my beloved Arizona in this overly green state of VA :) I got a bunch of calls and texts yesterday--it was nice to hear from everyone--thank you!!
We've been watching a lot of movies instead of going out--this weekend we watched Charlie Bartlett, 21 and Death at a Funeral. Bri talked me into renting Enchanted--which was cute, I admit. But it would have been a lot more entertaining twenty years ago! Sorry Bri! :0

Spoils

2008-08-03T00:51:00.003-04:00

The Captain (Captain Peanut) was in! We also found some organic honey and lemon crumb cookies--made by Mennonites. According to Jeff, if someone wearing a bonnet made it--it has to be good. Maybe it's a valid theory, they're pretty tasty :)

Tatatouille

2008-08-02T00:05:00.003-04:00

So, you think the baby's arms will look like Jeff's?
photo: Christina OConnor, 16 Blocks Magazine

"The baby? I don't really know much about it other than, I mean, it has fingernails, allegedly." (Juno)

2008-08-01T14:33:00.004-04:00

M&M may not have fingernails as of yet--but she (my wishful thinking) is starting to grow some microscopic teeth! Her heart is also almost fully formed, and her "tail" is about gone. She's also been compared to several different kinds of foods--which are doubling in size each new week. Last week (week nine), she was a kidney bean. Now, towards the end of week nine, she's a grape or green olive. Stay tuned to find out next week's mystery fruit... ;)

In other news... (those of us who have all of our body parts)
Jeff is starting his new job on Monday. After six years at the Rivermill--he's pretty excited for a change of pace!
My last day of summer school was yesterday and I'm happy for the break. I managed to finish up well, despite the recent distractions! Finally, I can read the pile of books I've been wanting to read, guilt-free :) Bri sent me some new vampire books I'm excited to try out.
Steppin' out is happening this weekend in the 'Burg and Ian's girlfriend Sedef is in town from Turkey for the weekend--so Jeff and I are going to hang out with them at Steppin' Out Saturday and possibly check out the wine tasting at Vintage Cellar. I will be living vicariously through the three of them of course--maybe I'll bring a snack to keep M&M satisfied. Or maybe I'll just camp out at the peanut stand--they have like 10 flavors of roasted peanuts--yum!