Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Lots more random

Because I'm so sleep-deprived (see random bullet #1 below), I've apparently been stripped of all ability to write in coherent posts or even paragraphs for that matter. So random is what you get.
  • BAD. My child refuses to sleep through the night. And is now getting up every 2-4 hours, just like he's a newborn again. It is killing me and Marty, even though we take turns. We are trying everything we can think of and we are taking suggestions, too. Basically, Will is in the throes of teething (his 2 bottom teeth are almost completely "there" now and he will move his jaw like he's chewing gum at many points during the day, like there's more gum activity going on and it's driving him batty) and I think it's just messing up his sleep cycles and restfulness altogether. New technique to try for tonight: cereal right before bedtime. Puppy refuses to take a bottle at bedtime but I haven't really ever seen him turn down actual food. Also, per my mom's suggestion, a jar of meat (ICK) at dinner. Has anyone else gone through this? Do you have any help to offer two very exhausted parents?
  • GOOD. My amazing husband has insisted that we go ahead and buy the desk I've lusted after for over a year from Pottery Barn. Marty says I've "had to hodge-podge it long enough" and I certainly deserve a "real" desk after all the months of pregnancy I've gone through. He's even hinted at more presents, per the children contribution I have made (hmm...maybe I will have more kids after this!). So we ordered her last night. Here she is:
    I didn't get the hutch/organizer thingey on top, nor the chair. I'm opting instead for a slipcovered Parsons chair from Ballard Designs. Oh yeah, I get to order that, too!
  • INSANELY COOL. My friend Mary won second place for her "Paranormal Romance" novel in the Chicago-North Romance Writers of America 12th Annual Fire and Ice Contest. I am simultaneously ridiculously proud and ridiculously jealous. Mary hopes to get her novel published and I'm certain that this award will open plenty of doors for her; fingers crossed, my friend!!! You rock my world (and give me hope that, like you, I can be a mom of 2 kiddos AND be a writer)!!!
  • GETTING THERE. Once upon a time (in December), this girl and her Hubby and Baby Boy moved from a 3-story townhouse to a loft apartment (downsizing by 1 bedroom and 1.5 baths, and also losing a very large storage room). A lot of things went to a storage unit, but a lot of things (too many things) came to the loft. Just before Moving Day, this girl and her Hubby discovered that Baby Girl was on her way. Ultimately, this girl helped move in some boxes, cleaned a countertop or two, then promptly collapsed into bed with "The Illness" that claimed the next 2 months of her life. During this time, Hubby took over primary care of Baby Boy while this girl attempted to nourish herself and Baby Girl (rather unsuccessfully at many times). Nothing got accomplished and many things went undone. We were in survival mode. Around the beginning of March, this girl began to emerge from "The Illness," looked around at the mess and the unpacked boxes, and almost went BACK to bed in defeat. Instead, this girl somehow managed to find the courage to promise to herself to do at least a little bit each day until it got done and the loft was not only liveable, but decorated and clean and comfortable and cozy -- and ready for its 4th occupant come August! What has transpired in the 2 months since that time has been countless hours of very hard work: lots of purging, lots of organizing, lots re-thinking and re-organizing. And I am proud to say that we are almost there. Almost. I wanted to take a break from the loft last weekend but our plans fell through, so I ended up doing even more, and I'm now within just a few hours of finishing. And because I want to be accountable to a deadline of some kind, I am hereby promising to post pictures when all is complete. My desk needs to be delivered, we need to make a couple more storage unit and Goodwill runs, and a big, final clean needs to happen before then, but I promise, I shall post pictures of the finished product, hopefully in the next month or two. Wait for it.
  • UPDATE. We will be having our follow-up to the follow-up ultrasound on May 13th. Please say a prayer with us that Lucy's heart is perfectly visible to this doctor. We would very much appreciate it.
  • RANT. Why did baby clothing manufacturers decide that if a baby is over 20 pounds, he is no longer entitled to go to bed in sleepers anymore? (Yeah, I'm talking to you, Carter's.) Personally, I think as long as a baby is still in diapers, a onesie-type shirt with pants or what-have-you is more appropriate than 2 pieces, whether it be play clothes or sleeping clothes. We have a few 2-piece pajama sets but I end up using a plain white onesie with the pajama pants because otherwise, Will ends up sleeping with his tee shirt rumpled up under his arms! So I've been on the hunt for larger-sized (12, 18, 24-month) sleepers and have only found moderately expensive and very expensive brands. The former is Hanna Andersson, and we just ordered 2 sleepers at $25 each from there. I choked on the price a bit, but not nearly as much as when I bought sleepers in the latter brand category (very expensive). That would be you, Kissy Kissy. The children's boutique just a few doors down from us sells this line, and I coughed up the money for a couple of these sleepers (starting at $33 apiece!), but then immediately began looking for alternatives. And I'm still not finding anything cheaper than Hanna Andersson. Does anybody know of any other brands that offer sleepers in larger sizes?
  • OTHER. You know, I had other random items floating around in my head but I'm just going to stop here because my brain hurts from the sleeplessness. Please leave a comment if you have any helpful hints to offer on any of the above!

9 comments:

Kate said...

My favorite sleepers come from The Children's Place, which sizes their clothes exactly like my children - long! And Old Navy's go up to size 24 months, at least.
We used to cram Adele full of cereal before bedtime in the 6-9 mo. stage, assuming it was hunger. Dan thinks it worked (I of course have no recollection of that). My only other advice involves earplugs. :)
Wonderful things always happen on May 13! I'll say a prayer for Lucy that day.

Becky said...

Actually I was thinking about that day...you're going to be re-honeymooning with your Hubs, I believe...do you text at all? So I can tell you if Lucy-Loo is okay?

Becky said...

Oh, and that's probably why I haven't discovered Children's Place sleepers -- there's a serious lack of Children's Place STORES in my area. No wonder.

Unknown said...

First--thanks for the shout-out! I've written a full-blown post about the contest win on my blog.

Second--teething is the worst! You think it's bad now, wait until Will starts cutting molars... I think I tried everything short of rubbing liquor on the boys' gums (and, trust me, there were nights it was tempting...).

Ethan didn't like teethers, so we'd wet a clean wash cloth and put it in the freezer for a little while then let him chew on it. He LOVED that.

Rowan liked to chew on the edge of our sofa. No kidding. He was like a puppy. We had to replace the furniture last year because it was so frayed. I wouldn't recommend this remedy... ;)

Hang in there!

Debbie said...

I just followed you over from The Glamorous Life of a House Wife and had to comment when I saw you all were sleep deprived. My 8 month old is still waking 2-3 times during the night and it is seriously killing me. Every day I say the same thing, "I can't do this anymore!!!" I'm so sorry for you guys and I hope you get some rest soon!

As for the sleepers - we love The Children's Place (3/$25) and Old Navy ($12.50 each)

Debbie said...

Oh - if you don't have any stores near you, order them online. If you call a Children's Place store they'll give you a free shipping code that you can plug in at check out. Hope that helps.

Becky said...

Debbie -- it's nice to meet you! I will also visit your blog and catch up with your doings. There is nothing like trying to function in life on very little sleep, especially knowing that OTHER parents are sleeping because THEIR kids magically sleep through the night! :)
Thanks for the tips on sleepers, too. I never go into Old Navy, but I probably will tomorrow since it's right next to my Super Target. Hooray!

ei said...

Here's what I know about sleepers- you can get them at Target up to size 7-8 (boys), which look ridiculous IMHO, but you should be able to find the size you need. Also Old Navy does 24 mo and toddler sizes I think. Samuel just stopped wearing footed sleepers last year b/c they started to annoy him.
As for sleeping through teething, Will might benefit from some solid protein before bed (but "meat" in a jar - ack!... please reconsider!)
But mostly I'm afraid you'll all just have to suffer through. A little Tylenol, nursing, wet rags, "chew-toys" are all good. And I had good luck with the homeopathic drops for one of my three. The other two didn't care for them or were not helped by them.
I wish you luck-- sleep deprivation is my most-feared and hardest-fought battle. Still to this day (and the babies are almost 2!)
Elisabeth

Kristen said...

Oh, Becks! I'm a loyal Place online shopper - you have to sign up for their email list. They'll send you deals all the time! I love Place especially b/c I can coordinate the kids for pics and stuff easy, infant to size 14, I think. Mine are in 3-6mo, 8 and 10...no easy task.

Otherwise, hang in there with the sleep. It goes in cycles. Just when you think you've got it beat as an infant, then comes teething and bad dreams and etc.

Prayers go out to you for sleep, a perfect pic of sweet Lucy and all the peace and energy you need to make it all happen.