"Better to write for yourself and have no public, than to write for the public and have no self."

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Room Mom

I received an email today from the "room mom" of BigBoy's class.
Now, the room mom coordinates the volunteer schedule, requests needed supplies, and generally spends more time in class than the rest of us mere mortal parents combined.


Well, apparently she takes pictures too.

She takes pictures of the field trips she chaperones, the trips to the nursing home she orchestrates, and the gingerbread-house-making for which I supplied store-brand gumdrops and canned frosting.

Yes, today she invited me to see her album of 534,000 (okay, maybe I exaggerate a bit here) photos of BigBoy's kindergarten class and all their antics.


I'm so glad there is a woman to do all that.
A woman with another child too young for school and yet is still able to volunteer as much as she does.  (There went my excuse...)
A woman who made individual Christmas goodie bags for all the children.
A woman who helps my son open his milk at lunch and always wears perfume.

Really, I am.

Never has she even insinuated that I don't do enough for/with the class.  She has been nothing but gracious and accommodating to me, and talks about how sweet my son is every time I  oh-so-infrequently grace the halls see her.

I bet her blonde hair is even her natural color.


Damn her.

;)

Too Much Perspective


Just when BabyCakes started feeling better, BigBoy woke up with a 104 degree temperature.

Let's hope The Jetsons can buoy his spirits a bit.

I hope the rest of you have a good day.
I think I'll be spending a good portion of mine cuddled up on the couch with my babies. :)  :(

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Perspective

Babycakes has a virus. Her throat is covered in sores and she has had only a few sips to drink all day and a tiny bit of jello. She has barely left my lap.
My prayers go out to those whose children won't get better with time and cuddles...


Friday, January 27, 2012

My question to you

Ultimately, Just a Curl is my blaaaahg.  I know that. 
From day one it has been an outlet for me and my whatever.  It's also a way I keep family and friends out-of-state in on the normal happenings of my life. 
Occasionally I have found myself questioning whether something I want to blog about would be of any interest to others.  I know in the end it is, like I said, my blog, but I still like to keep my few-but-valued readers in mind.
So, here's my question:  What do you like to hear about/see the most around here?


Pics of the kids?
Stories about our life?
Funny stuff? 
Sentimental stuff? 
Pics of my community/vacations?
Stories about going back to school? 
Weight-loss tips or struggles? 
Thrifty decorating ideas?

Any positive feedback is welcome.  :)

Thursday, January 26, 2012

WW Wednesday on Thursday...night.

Yeah yeah, but I'm here now, okay?

I know what you're thinking, "Um, okay crazy lady, nobody really cares what you did this week so you can just slow your roll."

No?  Just me?


Anyway, last week we had sickness hanging around this joint so you would think I didn't eat much.

Haha.

Snort.

Chuckle chuckle

tear...  :(

:) I'm just playing around.  I ate basically whatever I desired but in reasonable portions, I suppose, because I had a baby-sized loss at the scale.  Hey, a loss is a loss, am I right?

So, now moving forward to next Wednesday like always.  Get back to normal with the eating. (aka, Stay away from candy bars.)

Anybody else have anything they would like to contribute to this less-than-interesting edition of WW Wednesday?
(Sorry, my brain is a bit fried from classwork.  I'm consumed with learning about the Peloponnesian war and also how not to hate my instructors--and not necessarily in that order.  How bout we just enjoy a nice happy picture of BigBoy in footed pjs sitting in the sink of our little apartment bathroom?)


Tuesday, January 24, 2012

She's airborne in the last shot.

The other night after baths, the kids were playing in Babycakes' room so I took the opportunity to snap a few photos.  
Some of the their expressions were sweet, if not a little forced.


Some were a little more real.


 And others just said "I'm a kid!  Let's have fun!"


So that's exactly what we did.

Monday, January 23, 2012

On the mend

Thanks to modern medicine and a little time, Babycakes is pretty much back to normal after her bout of pneumonia.


I look at this photo and into her eyes, and all I can think is "Don't worry. I've got you."

Good to know that primal maternal instincts aren't susceptible to viruses.

Friday, January 20, 2012

The Typing Dead

Sorry to be dramatic, but that's how I feel this morning.
My neck is sore, my mouth is dry, and I'm pretty sure it's January.  Friday, right?

BabyCakes had a coughing fit on Wednesday afternoon so I took her back to the pediatrician (who promptly stated that she believed I too had pneumonia instead of my previously-diagnosed bronchitis) for some time with a nebulizer.

She fought and screamed and cried and fought some more, so they didn't send it home with us.
Use 3 humidifiers?  Steam showers? Meds and saline spray?  Check, check, check.

Thursday night she slept soundly.  She coughed some at one point but never woke up.
Whew, glad that's done!

Oh but last night. Last night she woke up around 1:00 -- I think. My secretary was off-duty -- and it was downhill from there.
The previous solution of pushing the ottoman against the couch and me cuddling up with her (uncomfortably) was not cutting it.
This led to more crying and more coughing.

I got up to pee at 4 and she was still awake and now diaper-less when I returned from my 90-second trip to the bathroom.

New diaper, more tears, more coughing.

Why did we move the hamster to the living room bookshelves? Why does she insist on running in that darn "silent" wheel?

Drift off finally.  Hear the poor hubs moving around the bedroom getting ready for work at 4:30...or something. At least he insisted we get to bed early because he had an early day and in case it was a rough night with BabyCakes.  Smart man.
Text him goodbye because I don't want to wake BabyCakes who is burrowed into my armpit.

Drift off and wake up at 5:45 to coughing.

But it's not BabyCakes.

"Mooooom, I feel sick."


-----------------------------

I am not sharing these events to complain.  Times when my kids are sick I am even more aware of how healthy they really are and how lucky we are in that area.
But, if this blaaaahg is going to be even a halfway accurate depiction of my Curly life, I had to remember it.  Hope you all are well!

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

WW Wednesday

Wazzzup!

HI!!!!  How are you today???

Yo, how's it goin?

Greetings and salutations,

Hey dare ho dare (Anyone else remember the dog walker from Mad About You?)

Hey!  I think I'm crashing off my caffeine now, luckily for you.  
First of all, BabyCakes is starting to improve some, thank you all for asking!  She only woke up once last night and I gave her a pedialyte-tylenol cocktail and she miraculously went back to sleep.  
She's still irritable a lot throughout the day, but I don't blame her.  She did, however, behave well during my WW meeting.  We sat over to the side by ourselves.  I wanted to be able to leave easily if she seemed the least bit uncomfortable.  We settled in to the couch and I gave her a wet wipe she used to clean the surrounding tables.  :)  There also may have been some Smarties involved in her distraction... 


Regarding my past week in healthy choices: it really wasn't so bad.  
Because I was sick over the weekend and BabyCakes has been sick this week, I got in a fraction of the activity I did the week before.  
You would think that with all this sickness going around I would not being eating much, but ohhhhhh my friend, if only that were true.  When I am sick and tired is when I am at my weakest; I just want to comfort myself with peanut butter and chocolate chip pancakes I suppose.  (I think I just used that semi-colon correctly.  Kelly?)  Yes, I actually made and ate peanut butter and chocolate pancakes.  I am in fact an 8 year old girl.


So, for the weigh-in:  Oatmeal breakfast, normal/light-weight clothes (not the lightest possible) -- Down at the scale.  I was hoping for/expecting a tiny loss but was pleasantly surprised.  Let's just put it this way: Next week I could be in a different "decade" of numbers and it feels surreal.  

I find myself using the word "surreal" a lot these days.


Thank you to those of you who have shown your support over the last year.  Your comments and emails of support mean a great deal to me!  Please let me know if there are any goals I can help you work toward achieving.  

P.S.  I didn't have any new photos to share today so I decided just to pick some random January 2010, 2011, and 2012 shots of the chitlins.  BabyCakes might hate me for the last one some day, but I'm willing to risk it.  ;) The pic represents her relationship with BigBoy right now very well!

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

BabyCakes' force field must be on the fritz.

Hi, Cayce here just checking in for a moment during the last of BabyCakes' nap.
I thought you fine people might like a little update:

1. My classes are going well...ish.  Nope, let me start over because it could be a lot worse.  My classes are going well.  Everything in life seems to get more complicated than we expect but in the grand scheme of things, these "complications" are merely making the whole going-back-to-school thing more interesting, you could say. 
Anyone have a good idea for a research paper about an event affecting world history?  
Anyone?

2. The weather it bat-crap crazy around here.  Thirty two degrees one day and 64 the next, crazy.  It's making everyone sick. And by "everyone," (is that where that comma goes, kelly?) I mean BabyCakes.
Poor thing has PNEUMONIA.  What the ????  She's going to be fine, but that word sounds scarier to me than the idea of a ban on chocolate. (a situation that would also require medical attention in my case)


3. BigBoy is not sick.  (knock on wood)  He says his "force shield is protecting him from getting sick."  Sometimes he coughs and then says "a plasma cannon hit my force shield but I fixed it so now I can't get sick any more."  LOL.  Skinny little nut.

**Update: When I picked him up from school I told him about BabyCakes and how he needs to make sure not to hug and kiss on her.  He said "Yeah, because my force shield broke again and I don't know how to fix it this time."  I said "Can't you just build a new one?"  He replied, "No, but Teddy can.  I'll tell him to get right on that."

My blaaaahg is worth the time if only to remember that conversation.  :)

4...Ok so that's it.  I only had 10 minutes to spend on the blaaaahg (again, I know you feel so special!) so I'm outtie!
(Yes, I just typed that and I've had enough caffeine today to not care.)
See you people tomorrow!

Friday, January 13, 2012

Forget-me-not Friday

A little bit of my life, not nearly as glamorous as BabyCake's new shoes from Aunt Molly, being worn on the wrong feet. (They light up too!)





 Have a great weekend!

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

WW Wednesday

Hi there!
I was trying to do work for my classes but Blackboard suddenly crapped-out (yes, that is the technical term for what happened) so I decided to mosey over to my blaaaahg for a bit.  Well don't you feel special?  :)

Today I was a bit disappointed at my WW meeting, to be honest.  I got a lot of extra exercise last week and did not see the results at the scale I was hoping for.  I had a loss, but not a loss like I was expecting.
I am still proud of my tracking all week and increase in activity, though,  I think/hope the scale will be a little more accommodating next week.

My goal for this week is to continue tracking everything and keep the increased activity.  Rainy days like this don't exactly inspire me to hit the gym, but some times you have to create your own inspiration.



That is the magnet BigBoy made in Art class.  I think it is beauuutiful and I will possible copy it, enlarge it, and hang it in a frame on my wall.

Ok now, anyone? Motivational anything you would like to share???

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Double Dino Trouble

mentioned recently how much I love the new dino-printed dress we got from Grandma and I promised to try for some pics of BigBoy in his pj's she made.
Here the two of them are together -- one still in pj's and the other already dressed but with hair big and natural, not yet (semi) tamed for the day.

 They get a little nuts together.  As BigBoy would say, "This is how we roll."






I hope everyone has a good day!  This is how I got to start mine, so I'm pretty happy!

Monday, January 9, 2012

Winter White

Hi there, everyone!
We are having a cold, wet, gray Winter day here at our home.  Hopefully that means BabyCakes will take a niiiice long nap for me.

It's too bad today is so dreary because I really wanted to do her 2 -year "Little June" shots today.
Here, let me show you the dress Melissa made her:


Precious, right?  When I mentioned to Melissa that I wanted to do these photos in a pillowcase dress so as to best represent who she is right now (and we all know she sports more than a few pillowcase dresses these days), she quickly offered to make it and I took her up on it.
I had an idea for what I wanted and after some collaboration (and much work on Melissa's part-- thank you!!), the result is beautiful!

The pink trim between the top and the bottom was her idea and the fabrics are so soft and beautiful!
The long pink satin bow is as soft as a baby's butt.


She knew I was looking for something a bit vintage-inspired and when she suggested the detailed fabric on the bottom, it was perfect.  It kind of reminds me of my grandmother white chenille bedspread that she uses in the "girls' room" of their house -- a room I slept quiet country nights of sleep in as a child and even a teen.


I'm more than a little afraid to even let BabyCakes wear it.  She's kind of a female, pigtail-wearing Pigpen.   Don't get me wrong, I love this little lady more than any other "little lady" on earth, but she's just so dirty all the time.  Crusty, sticky, poopy, snotty, slimy... I don't know why but it is always something.
She can have just had a bath and suddenly I find mashed banana on her person... really??
More than once I have said "Where the crap did this come from?" when something that was previously stuck to her got stuck on me.

I found a spaghetti noodle in her bed this morning.

 I don't know, it's a rare talent she has to be so cute and yet so gross at the same time.

Or maybe it's all children.  :)


In the mean time, here is a shot of the now-awake BabyCakes looking at her dress on the computer screen.


Yep, that's right, she's awake already.
Ten minutes into her nap, nature called -- with a bullhorn, if you know what I mean.

Fun times.

I told you she was dirty.  :)

(Love you, BabyCakes!  You know this is all in fun!)

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

WW Wednesday

I had a pretty good week in the "healthy choices department" even with all the cupcakes around.
I got some exercise in.  I would elaborate but I am crunched for time.

I had a nice loss at the scale today.  :D

--------------------------------------------------------------

Almost my entire "work day" has been spent wrangling my online classes for this semester.

I even lugged BabyCakes to the main campus.  It's a long story but all that matters is that I am enrolled for the English class I mentioned last night AND a History class!
Tuition is paid and everything!

Now I just need to buy my books and take a gander at Blackboard.


Wow.  I really did it.  I'm officially back in school even if it is just part-time.
I had to practically waterboard a department head to get here, and at times today I didn't know if it would happen, but here I am.

Wish me luck and be forgiving if/when my blaaaahging suffers!

 ~ Cayce

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Interesting...

The Biology class I was enrolled for was cancelled at the last minute.
It looks like one of the (very few) classes that still has spots remaining AND will fit my degree needs is an English course called "Expository Writing II."  I think I might enjoy this class...

(Of course I'll need to finally learn WHERE THE HECK to put punctuation when quotation marks are involved.)

Unfortunately I can't register for the course tonight because my AP scores aren't showing up on my online transcript.
(Even though I've taken an English course beyond the Freshman level, it still says I don't have my pre-reqs fulfilled because of this one missing course.)

There are magically 9 spots left.

Cross your fingers that one remains open until I can talk to a registrar about lifting the flag for me in the morning!


Pretty please!?!
(This is BigBoy's "but-I'm-cute-so-can't-I-please-have-another-cup-of-hot-chocolate-with-247-mini-marshmallows-on-top?" face. It's the same one I will use on the phone with the school in the morning.  Maybe I should just lug the kids up there with me. ;) )

Monday, January 2, 2012

Baby(Cup)Cakes' 2nd Birthday Party

Yesterday we had a small party for BabyCakes.  Just a few friends, pretty weather, and food.

I used a plate and some ribbon for a last-minute door decoration.


Streamers and Dollar Store mylar balloons are a staple of birthday parties around here.


As are yellow cakes with chocolate frosting.  Yum!


I may have filled the funfetti cupcakes a little too full.  I only got 14 instead of 24 out of the box.    BigBoy said it just made more space to cover with icing, which was from a can like spray-cheese but tasted like buttercream.


 BabyCakes wore the cupcake dress Grandma made her and of course had to rock the pigtails like only a 2-year-old can.


The usual suspects were there for the fun.





After pizza we broke out the cupcakes.






Emma snuck another one when no one was looking.  Atta girl.  :)


It's a shame BigBoy didn't enjoy them. ;)



Happy Birthday, sweet ruffian BabyCakes!

And Happy New Year to you, dear blaaaahg readers!