Yes, this is technically a post, so yes, it counts toward my NaBloPoMo 2008 goal of posting every day in November.
Today is also Claire’s 3rd Birthday, so stay tuned for more about that!
In the meantime, I’m pretty excited! I did it! Thanks for comin’ along for the ride!
“So, Claire…what do you want for Christmas this year?”
“A Christmas tree!”
And, this has been her answer consistently…and I can’t wait to see what she tells Santa when we see him in a couple of weeks, and I can’t wait to see his reaction.
After her birthday tomorrow, we’ll put the tree up, so maybe she’ll come up with a different gift idea then?
Either way, it looks like she’s going to be easy to please this year! 
Today is Day 29 of 30 in the NaBloPoMo Challenge! One more day to go!
Here is a fun picture I took of Claire on Wednesday.
Click photos to enlarge.
She is modeling one of her favorite sweaters. It fits her perfectly and is not too tight. She loves this sweater.
Only, we have a secret…
It is not a sweater.
It is a tunic that we got for her to wear in our Holiday Photo Card photo from 2006.
YES! November 2006!!
These pictures were taken Thanksgiving Weekend TWO YEARS AGO. Claire wasn’t even a year old yet! I remember choosing the 18- to 24-month size and knowing she would grow into it. I remember wondering how long she’d be able to wear it. It was such a pretty tunic, and little kids grow out of clothes so quickly. Would we get our money’s worth?
Well, I think we did…and then some!
Shhhh. Don’t tell! We didn’t mean for this to happen! The tunic eluded detection and missed out on a couple rounds of sorting. It had been hangin’ out in the sweater drawer for so long, it started to think it was a sweater!
So, what can we learn from all this? Regardless of whether it’s a tunic or a sweater, if it fits, it doesn’t matter what the tag says…
Today is Day 28 of 30 in the NaBloPoMo Challenge! Only two more days to go!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Today is Day 27 of 30 in the NaBloPoMo Challenge! Check it out!
Momma and Daddy are getting Claire a real “big girl bed” for her room for her birthday. We found the one we wanted at a Major Retailer and then decided to peruse Craigslist to see what we could see.
Imagine our surprise at finding the exact bed for not even 1/3 of the cost, AND the sellers were including a bookshelf for free. Sweet!
My hubby went to check it out, and it was perfect. It was in excellent condition and really was the exact one we were looking at buying new. Needless to say, we were happy to take the pieces off their hands for less than we’d budgeted.
To get all the pieces home in his car, he had to dismantle the shelving unit, and the bed barely fit, but he made it! For the last few weeks, he’s been working on getting the bookshelf back together and making a bedrail (from our old crib parts) for the bed.
We found an awesome deal on a brand-new twin mattress, so we’re all set!
This last weekend, I helped him move the bed back out to the garage so that he can put the finishing touches on it. Claire knows that “Daddy’s project” is in the garage, which is why we’ve been parking in the driveway the last couple of days, but she has no idea what’s in store. I can’t wait to see her face.
Just seeing how excited she was about the bookshelf when we brought it up to Momma’s office on Sunday was awesome. She was thrilled.
Click to enlarge.
She likes to rearrange the occupants of the shelves.
And, with some adjustments, she likes to type her blog.
Those are her words. She uses, “I need to type my blog first!” as an excuse to not do things promptly. And, how can you argue with that? I mean, blogging is important…especially during NaBloPoMo!
Today is Day 26 of 30 in the NaBloPoMo Challenge! Check it out!
One of our friends forwarded us a funny email. This makes me laugh, so I decided to share!
Honestly, I haven’t fielded many complaints about our pets, but if we ever have to, here is a handy list.
To All Non-Pet Owners Who Visit & Like to Complain About Our Pets:1. They live here. You don’t.
2. If you don’t want their hair on your clothes, stay off the furniture. (That’s why they call it ‘fur’niture..)
3. I like my pets a lot better than I like most people.
4. To you, they are animals. To me, they are adopted sons who are
short, hairy, walk on all fours and don’t speak clearly.
Thanksgiving? Three! (as in this week!)
Claire’s Third Birthday? Six! (as in less than a week!)
The Holiday Letters go out with a December 1st Postmark? Seven! (as in a week exactly!)
And then the ball starts rolling so fast that it won’t stop until it drops in Times Square on the 31st of December (or a couple hours later…such is life here in the Mountain Time Zone…).
Things are starting to move at a breakneck speed. Every day, we have packages arriving that need to be sorted by elves: Birthday ones in one pile and Christmas ones in another. Mixed in are packages that have final destinations across the country. Those packages need to be undone, wrapped, packaged and shipped. Then, we’ll have guests arriving by land and by air. Meals and activities are being planned. And, I’m in the process of organizing Santa’s schedule so that his visit can be timed like clockwork.
Like everyone else, I’m dealing with all of these things in addition to my other duties. But you know what? I’m not stressed. Not only am I thinking positive thoughts and vibrating with a positive energy, I’ve got my To Do List under control.
All of this excitement energizes me! The power to multitask and get things done intoxicates me! Muuuuu-ah-ah-ah.
*ahem*
But I digress…
Thanksgiving is going to be a breeze this year. This year, it’s just the three of us, and I’m so excited! We’re breaking from tradition a little bit and will be trying out new recipes. We’ll do our signature ham for our guests in December, and in the meantime, I’m finding new recipes to try on Thanksgiving. Speaking of which, The Noble Pig has a pumpkin cake recipe that I’m dying to try!!
The gifts for The Birthday Girl are purchased and need to be assembled. This won’t be too difficult and will just take time. We’re limited to naptime to do this covert operation, but we’re skilled at this maneuver.
The Birthday Girl Party Invites went out, and the cake is ordered, and the goodie bags are waiting to be filled with various Birthday Girlie Items. I just need to pick up the balloons and the cake the day before The Big Day, and we’re set!
After the Thanksgiving Meal is cleared, we can really focus on the decorations for that affair.
The Holiday Letter Photos are shot, printed, and tucked inside Holiday Letters that are composed, printed, prettied-up and stuffed into envelopes that are addressed. We just have to add Claire’s Three Year Photo, and the appointment for that photo shoot is already made! Stamping and sealing should be a quick and fun activity, and we’re right on schedule for my December 1st Deadline!
The Holiday Gift Lists are made and checked twice. As soon as the last package arrives, joining the things we purchased locally, we’ll get them wrapped, boxed up and ready for distribution.
Thanksgiving passes the baton to Birthday who passes the torch to Christmas, and then the Guest Room (aka The Gift Storage Room) will be livable again, just in time for our guests to arrive. After the Birthday Party, we’ll put up the tree, set out the presents, and enjoy the ride.
And then, as soon as January gets here, I can start working on our Valentines.
Just kidding!
Kinda…
This should have been my first clue.
Click photos to enlarge.
A pile of pink pajamas and a half-naked body in the background
“Claire? What are you doing?”
“Look how high I can reach, Momma!”
“Awesome. What are you doing?”
“I’m takin’ a shower, Momma! Look! I took off my clothes, and I push this, and water comes out! I’m takin’ a shower!”
This was actually really funny and way too ingenious to be punished for…you’d think the cold water would be a deterrent enough, but no. She’s immune to freezing cold water. So, instead, I put an end to her impromptu shower; she helped me clean up the water, and I activated a feature that previous to now, I’d never really understood:
Locked
Now, I do.
Today is Day 23 of 30 in the NaBloPoMo Challenge! Check it out!
When I was flipping through my October edition of Parents Magazine, I noticed a picture of our crib! Yay! I loved our crib. Look! A picture of our crib! Only, it wasn’t in the section I’d expected…it was in the Product Recall section!
Oh no!
This isn’t really a cause for panic, because Claire hasn’t slept in her crib since the day we dismantled it and took the parts downstairs. But, we’d been thinking about either selling the crib or putting it in deep storage, and we couldn’t do either one with a crib that had been recalled.
So, I looked at the information, checked out the crib, and sure enough: Ours was included in the recall. The company had detailed instructions on what to do, so I filled out their online form. It wasn’t long before I was sent a whole packet of additional information, including what parts to remove from the crib, and what stickers to peel off the crib, and what form to fill out to send back in the pre-paid envelope.
My husband and brother-in-law had assembled the crib. My husband and I dismantled the crib. My husband hid all the little metal parts.
Awesome.
I looked everywhere for an old Band-Aid™ box labeled “Crib Parts.” Or, maybe he used one of the old powdered Gatorade™ tubs? I even looked for a labeled vitamin container. (Are you sensing a theme here? My hubby likes to use recycled containers to house random parts.) He’s good about labeling them, but I’m not good about finding them. He swears he has a system. Unfortunately, the map is in his head and written in his scribbles.
I looked all afternoon. I muttered under my breath. If we store this, we need the parts. If we sell it, we definitely need the parts.
Parts. Parts. Parts.
Where are the parts??
To get the recall certificate for a new crib, you have to return very specific parts off the crib. This (in theory — **more on that later) ensures that you won’t use or sell the crib after receiving a new one.
I finally gave up. I’d looked everywhere they were supposed to be, and they weren’t there. I’d looked in places they had no place being, and they weren’t there.
When my hubby got home, I told him that I’d been searching for the crib parts. He told me the room where they were, and I told him that I’d looked in that room. All over that room! As I was talking to him, I walked in there, looked up at a container that I’d looked at earlier (and old bolt container, actually), and he said, “There it is!”
I couldn’t believe it. It had been there the whole time. In his defense, he had labeled it. In my defense, I’d seen these weird long pieces through the clear container and immediately dismissed it without looking at the label. I had no idea that some of the bolts were that long! Doh!
So, with the container in hand, I followed the instructions and gathered the proper parts, signed the form, unstuck the stickers, and sealed it all in the pre-paid envelope. The coupon for a brand new crib has since arrived.
We have six months to purchase the new crib. So, now, I’m on the search for the most popular, most sellable crib in our price-range. It’s daunting, but doable.
**Okay, so here’s a little Public Service Announcement that I alluded to earlier:
In my search for the most marketable crib, I took a peek at Craigslist to see what cribs are out there. Do you know how many I found that say, “Great crib! Great condition! Missing a couple of hardware pieces! But, they should be easy to find at the local hardware store!” Ummmmmmmm. RED FLAG. Either those people have misplaced the parts (which, looking back, could be easy to do), OR the crib has been recalled! IF you buy a crib off Craigslist or anywhere else for that matter, do your homework. Make sure the sellers aren’t trying to make an extra buck by selling the remaining parts of a recalled crib.
The thought of selling or giving away or even using our recalled crib again made me sick to my stomach. The ethics involved in that situation make my head spin. But, not everyone sees it the same way, so beware!
Ahem…now that I have that off my chest…back to the story at hand…
In the meantime, my hubby has grandiose plans for the old crib parts. Rather than just toss them out with the trash, I think we’re going to use part of the old rail as a bedrail for Claire’s new bed. Whatever he does, it will look nice and be safe. He’s quite talented and motivated when it comes to using recycled parts.
Plus, I’ve given him a timeline. If it’s not done by the deadline, I’ll haul the pieces to the curb myself.
And, the good thing about a brand new crib already in a box, never opened? (Other than really giving the neighbors something to talk about when they see us unloading a crib!? Ha ha ha!) All of the parts are in one, contained place. There won’t be a random recycled container with a scribbled label anywhere near it. 
Today is Day 22 of 30 in the NaBloPoMo Challenge! Check it out!
Now that the temperatures have dropped a whopping 40-degrees overnight, it looks like we might actually be headed toward winter after all.
I love sweater weather.
I love sweaters.
But, all my sweaters have to be cotton or a synthetic blend, because I can’t handle wool.
And, “can’t handle” is putting it mildly.
I can tell you with a single touch whether or not something has wool in it. Not only does it have a distinct feel, but the wool makes a sound in my head. It’s a jarring, unpleasant noise.
I can tell with a mere touch.
Wool is scratchy to me. “Scratchy” is putting it mildly. It makes me itch with a feeling a thousand times worse than a mosquito bite. It feels as though it’s prickly and rough and has sharp pointy edges. Even the softest looking wondrous wool sweater feels like shards of glass.
Yes, even cashmere and really good-quality wool.
So, imagine that feeling combined with the irritating sound screaming in my ears, and you might be close to understanding my feelings toward wool.
Close.
I don’t think I’m allergic to wool. But, sometimes I say that. It’s easier than trying to explain what really happens in my head. And all over my body. I don’t break out in hives, but I may as well, because the urge to scratch off all my skin is very real. I can wear Lanolin hand-cream, so I guess I’m not really allergic. I’m allergic to my reaction to wool. But, at this point, that’s just a semantically technical detail.
“Would I like to wear that scarf? No thanks. I’m allergic to wool.”
See? That’s much easier and I don’t sound quite so…
What’s the word?
…oh, yeah. Crazy.
I remember when I was a little girl, my grandmother gave me the most beautiful wool blanket for my bed. It was a smoky-bluish color. It was gorgeous. It was such a thoughtful gift, but I had to give it back. It couldn’t be on my bed without causing me to scratch myself into a fit. Even through the sheets I could feel it buzzing, and just touching it with my hands to adjust it was a horrible experience.
I remember wearing one of my mother’s wool skirts. If I had a slip on, I was kind of okay, but I still had troubles with that little tiny part of the hem that would hang down and brush against my leg, and if I didn’t have a shirt tucked in, the waste band would threaten to eat me alive.
Against my better judgment, I do have a wonderful wool coat. If I have my scarf or collar adjusted just right and my sleeves pulled down, I can be out in public without having a panic attack. But, I have to concentrate. This coat is worth the sacrifice. Few things are worth the suffering. It’s lined and gorgeous.
And so warm! I wish I could wear wool! Really, I do!
One of our friends didn’t believe me when I told him I was hyper-sensitive to wool. One day, while shopping with us, he kept asking my husband if the hats on that table over there were a wool blend. My hubby looked at me with a smile.
“You’re asking the wrong person,” he said nodding over to me. “I can’t tell, but she’s the one with the super-power. Ask her.”
“Super-power? What do you mean?”
“She can tell you in a single touch which ones are wool.”
My friend didn’t believe us. So, I showed him. I went through every hat on the table, only touching once.
“Wool, wool, wool, not-wool, wool, not-wool, wool.”
And, so on. He double checked the labels, and I got every one of them right. He thought that was pretty cool…and helpful. He asked how I did it.
“Well, can’t you hear that?” I’d say.
“Hear what?”
“That shrieking noise. Wool makes a horrible noise in my head. It’s kinda like a screeching REEEEEEEEEEEE noise,” I said while curling my fingers into claws and scratching the air.
He just shook his head.
“Plus, can’t you feel how scratchy these are??”
He insisted they were soft. All of them. He honestly couldn’t tell a difference.
My hubby has me find wool socks for him, so he’s familiar with my abilities, but when he’s not bragging about my super-power, he likes to torture me. He likes to give me bear hugs in his beautiful sweaters. His beautiful scratchy horrifying sweaters.
One night, as I was screaming and trying to escape his clutches, Claire asked what was going on. I told her that Daddy was trying to rub his sweater on my face. Not wanting to sway her opinion either way about wool, I didn’t say why I didn’t like it.
“I wanna touch Daddy’s sweater!” she shrieked.
So, she did.
“Claire, was that soft or scratchy,” he asked.
“It’s scratchy!”
Maybe she’s inherited my super-power. For her sake, I hope she hasn’t. I hope she’s been spared. Time will tell, I guess.
In the meantime, I’ll cuddle under my fleece blanket in my nice cotton sweaters and synthetic-blend socks. And, you can have the wool.
Thanks, but no, thanks. I’m allergic.
Today is Day 21 of 30 in the NaBloPoMo Challenge! Check it out and/or join in the fun!
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