My kids have some very cute clothes. However if you look at pictures of Brandon you would never know. Know why? I was always "saving" clothes for special occasions. I would say oh I don't want him to wear this, we are just going to work and no one will see it. I'll save it till we go to dinner or go see family. The next thing I knew he grew out of it and the cute stuff was never worn. This time around I found myself doing the same thing. Then one day I realized I was putting away super cute newborn stuff that again wasn't worn. So this time Codi is wearing everything every day. Even if no one sees him in the clothes I can take a picture and send it out to family so they can see how cute my kids dress. So to my friends with new babies, don't do the same thing as me. You might not be lucky enough to have a baby of the same sex the second time around to use it all.
1.03.2008
My dad is a damn genius.
So recently I was whining about how long it took my water to warm up and stuff like that. Well my mom mentioned it to my dad who happens to own a heating and air conditioning company. So when I went to San Francisco he came over to surprise me and install some kind of recirculating pump thingy magigy (yeah yeah technical terms..not so good at them). Anyway Rob ended up helping him finish it and the thing is fricking magical. I turn on a faucet and BAM hot water. It is so freaking awesome. When I need to defrost breastmilk BAM its done in the time it used to take just for my water to heat up. If I want to shower I'm already done shaving by the time the water would have warmed up. When I need to wash my breast pump parts the water is hot and I'm done washing in the time it would have taken to stand there wasting water waiting for it to heat. I'm going to save so much money on my water bill not standing there waiting for it to heat up. I think this is my favorite thing my dad has given me.
PS I whined about my duct work and stuff too (I live in a track house = shitty HVAC job) and now I'm getting a super 90% modulating holy shit batman kind of furnace with a super mega 13 SEER A/C and a whole new duct job. It's okay if you want to hate me. I won't mention how I already have a pimp electronic air cleaner and humidifier.
And yes I'm bragging and whatever but I don't care I can! It's nice to have a dad in this kind of trade considering I CAN NOT be cold and my husband CAN NOT be hot. He he I love my new water. I keep thinking of things to do with it, or getting excited to wash bottle parts.
And I won't admit it if I really do say BAM every time I turn on my water.
Look further then your nose
About 2 months ago Rob and I cleaned out the pantry. I had all these stupid tupperware lids and I got pissed cuz they didn't go to anything. I also had some little Christmas cake molds and cookie cutters that I knew I wouldn't use. I threw those in a bag too. Finally I had some drawer organizers that I didn't want any more so I tossed em in the bag with the lids. The night that Ginger and I were going to bake I got pissed because I wanted the cookie cutters. I kept asking Rob where he put em. He said where did you tell me to put em. I said I dunno I think I told you to put em above the garage for garage sale stuff. We looked and looked and searched the pantry and I finally got pissed and gave up. The other day I walked into the pantry and grabbed this paper bag that was sitting on the floor and would you believe it had all three of the things I had lost. Sitting right there in plain sight. I mean RIGHT THERE IN YOUR FACE LIKE THIS. I couldn't help but laugh because I searched high and low for that stuff. In fact I even got out my stool and looked on the top shelves, and got on my hands and knees and looked behind the bag that the stuff was in and next to it and around it but I guess I didn't look in it. I'm still laughing at my dumb ass because every single time I walk into that pantry I see that fucking bag and I clearly see what is in it and I just don't understand how in the fuck I missed it all that time before. So like my mom always told me.....LOOK FURTHER THEN YOUR NOSE SHANNON!
1.02.2008
Chunky monkey
Is it odd that my child is 6 weeks old and already in size 2 diapers? Brandon wasn't in size two until he was almost a year old....wait maybe that is whats odd.
New addition
My husband reads this blog now. And after reading my post about how much I love him he has decided he wants me to write more about our fights so that my readers can get a full monty look at our relationship. I haven't written about our fights much for two reasons...
1. I thought he would be mad because he always says I tell people too much.
2. My parents read this, and even though every couple fights they always think the worst if they hear Rob and I so much as fought over a paint color.
So while I've always told you Rob and I argue, because we so do and we are so normal and fighting is one of the most important part of a relationship, I've never actually discussed it. So watch out for my new addition to the blog. Shannon and Rob actually fight!
12.31.2007
Being me
(We met Nemo & Dori)
This sounds fun, it sounds like a wonderful time. To me it sounds terrifying. I am afraid that while visiting the sea lions at the end of the pier that Brandon will somehow climb the rail and jump over into the ocean. I have visions of seeing him drown or someone not jumping in fast enough to catch him or that he will just sink like a log to the bottom. I’m afraid that his body would never be found. This fear is real. It is also irrational but it grabs a hold of me and won’t let go. Then I am afraid that while we are visiting the underwater aquarium it will shatter and engulf my family into the water and I will have to see my child drown. Oddly enough my biggest fear about bridges is watching my children drown if we somehow drive off the bridge. Hmmm I sense a drowning theme here.
(I was afraid to let him pet the shark. We went to pet the stingrays and Brandon somehow found a penny and threw it in the water, all the employees started freaking out and got on their radios screaming we have a code 87 6er roger doger penny in the ray pool send the infantry..everyone started giving us dirty looks so we ran to the safety of the starfish)
(Creating a sea animal)
The thing is, while these activities seem so fun to me they seem about as appealing as lining up in front of a firing squad. However my strong desire to show my kids a great life overrides my fears and I go along for the fun. I watch as my family has this wonderful time. As my kids laugh and play all the while I am sitting there suffocating in my fear. It wraps around my whole body and makes me tense and feel as though I’ve lost control of the world. Everything seems to spin around me and it feels like at any second the universe is going to come to a halt, however at the same time everything is also in slow motion.
Codi didn't see much of the trip
I have been this way since the instant my first son was born. Everything is now terrifying for me. A simple trip to the swimming pool takes encouragement and pep talks for me to even get in the car to drive there. I am afraid of going to the lake for fear that Brandon will drown. I’m afraid of the big slides at the park, what if he falls off the top.
I’m afraid of a walk around the neighborhood, what if he is kidnapped. I am afraid no TERRIFIED of day care for the fear that someone will hit/slap/or molest my child. I have a panic attack if any man looks at my kids to long because I just know in my mind he is thinking of doing awful things to him.
(I was having a nervous breakdown at this point)
It isn’t just those fears either. There are fears like how I will ever send my kid to summer camp, or to his grandparents out of town. It scares me to think that someone else will be raising my child even if its just for a week. What if they yell at him or spank him or the counselor is a pervert or they don’t make him feel special enough. Things like the Play place at McDonalds scares me. What if it collapsed and my son fell. I am afraid to go out on someones second story deck because what if we fall off. What if Brandon jumps over. I’m afraid to let him play outside because what if he picks up a black widow or a neighbors dog attacks.
(hello, hello can you hear me, my mom is crazy I tell you)
These fears consume me all day every day. Letting him sleep in his room at night is scary. What if someone breaks into his room and kidnaps him. What if he dies in his sleep and I don’t know until morning. What if he learns to open his bedroom window an the fall from his window kills him.
He's amazingThere are so many things I fear. One of the things I fear most though is peoples reaction to this. I hate the look on someones face when I ask them for the 5th time if Brandon has a life jacket on. I hate hearing, "Oh Shannon stop it your being stupid," when I tell them I really don't want him up on that slide. I hate hearing I'm a party pooper or I'm lame because I'm terrified if he goes 7 feet from the street in my front yard. It is hard being in my head but it is harder when people rush judgment on me rather then try and understand or at least respect how I feel.
Trying to pick a winner
We are home now. We had an amazing weekend. Brandon got to go to the pier. We got to walk down the road and let the Bush Man scare the shit out of him. He got to visit Joes Crab Shack and see the sea lions up close and personal. We got to walk through all the shops and see the carosel and go to the aquarium and walk right beneath the sharks and pet the starfish (he did not get to pet the sting rays because somehow he managed to find a penny and throw it in there and we got in huge trouble, they were all on their walkie talkies calling a code 79er roger doger so we ran). He got to play at the park on the pier and look out into the ocean at all the BIG BOATS! We then drove home over the Bay Bridge and saw it all decorated with Christmas lights. Brandon had an amazing trip. He won't remember it but I will. I will remember that even though my chest was tight the whole time and I was wishing for a Valium my son was having the best day ever!
12.29.2007
Monster Christmas
Some of the things he got from my parents:
2 Giant dinosaurs that make noise and stuff and Brandon just loves them
Some clothes
A ton of paint with water paint books
Coloring books
Regular books
An antique dump truck
A cute table and chairs (also antique)
A play mat thingy magigy
A plate and bowl
I think I'm forgetting stuff but there was just so much. Anyway the biggest most super exciting present of all was the one my dad got him. My dad hand picked this out at the hardware store. It is a monster trike. Brandon already has a small trike and this thing puts that one to shame. This trike could roll over the other one. I know, I know I bet your thinking, monster trike, how big could it be. Well just scroll down.
The store actually calls this an ALL TERRAIN TRICYCLE. It is made out of steel and has a 13" front tire and 10" rear tires and they are actually rubber. Here is what else they say.
Includes safety reflectors and no-slip traction pedals, front tire guard, ball bearing wheels, hardened steel ''T'' frame base and adjustable chrome plated handle bars. Rear tow hitch for pulling wagons or trailers. Adjustable frame for kids ages 3 to 7.
Brandons is way cooler though because my dad put flame stickers on it and got him a honker horn AND A BELL horn. Its so rad. He also hand painted LETS ROLL (pronounced lets wowle) because that is what him and papa say all the time. Its really neat.
Anyway. It was a little too big so my dad spent Christmas day cutting wooden blocks to make the peddles taller. He affixed those to the peddles and then put little leather straps on those so he could put his feet in them and they wouldn't fall out. It is funny shit to see him riding it. I will take a picture of it as soon as we get back from San Francisco and show you all.
We tricked him into finding it too. They put it in the room with the stockings instead of the room with the tree. He opened all his presents under the tree and he thought he was done and they called him in to open his stocking and there was the monster trike. It was pretty funny because he just assumed it was his and hopped right on and forgot all about his stocking full of more presents.
Brandon had an even better Christmas then all of us put together I think!
