Just a Bit OCD

Let me first say that I'm in no way making a value judgment about Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and whether it is or isn't a legitimate problem that some people suffer from. But, I do think that everyone has a few items that might go on their own personal OCD list. I know I have a few.

For a while I've been obsessing about the formatting of this blog. I like the last template I used. It had colors I enjoyed and the layout was nice, but it had a little style problem that drove me up the wall. For some reason, there was no space or dividing line between each post, and it made everything run together and look totally haphazzard. Every time I looked at my blog it made me crazy. So, I switched back to my original template.

Do I need help? Maybe. But at least my blog looks better, at least to me.

The First 1000 Days

I just bought this journal, which I love. I've been looking at it over and over online and considering purchasing it for about a year, and I'm so glad I finally did. It has absolutely beautiful woodcut images of mothers and babies throughout the pages, and prompts to inspire writing about the first couple of years and experiences of your child's life. Although I know it's going to be challenging to look back, especially at the earliest months, and recall some things, I think it will be a great experience to re-live some of those moments again and capture them in writing for Freyja to read someday...

I already began the journaling process today, and put down many of the details of Freyja's birth.

It brought back some wonderful memories and overwhelming emotions...

Perhaps, as I go, I'll share some of those memories here. Or, maybe I'll just keep them for myself. We'll have to see...

A Great Trip

Freyja and I are back from our awesome vacation with best friend/aunt Heidi, which was fun and action-packed.

We've been doing this little summer visit every year since 2002, with other random visits in between, which means that since Heidi graduated from Beloit in 2000, we've had a chance to see each other at least twice a year, which is so awesome.

It's hard to recall all the individual times, but there have been many. We went back-packing in France and Holland before I studied in Italy in 1999, we met up in Beloit for homecomings and reunions at least three times, and we also saw each other at a mutual friends wedding. She came to visit me in Chicago, and I went to visit her in Williamsburg, VA three times. These are just a few of the trips I can remember off-hand. This past year I saw Heidi four times! I went to visit her, and then two months later she came to visit me in Kansas and helped me move back to Illinois. A month later she came to visit me again for my baby shower, and then she came again when Freyja was two months old!

I should really post some pictures from some of our previous visits!

But, back to this year's trip. I'm struggling to determine what I should mention first, because there's just so much to say.

Despite some of the usual airline insanity, the trip to VA wasn't too bad. Freyja did quite well, with only one minor melt-down on each of the two flights. It had nothing to do with the air travel, which I think she actually enjoyed, and everything to do with the effects of feeding her some spinach the evening before, which I don't think made her feel too well. This food apparently goes on the "only in tiny quantities" list. Ha! Of course, I just wouldn't be your typical mom if I didn't take the obligatory "first time on an airplane" photos, would I? She looks so cute, immersed in her reading!

The first couple of days on our visit were filled with cooking (one night we had hand-made pasta and meatballs, which was super fun...and another night we had Heidi's rockin' risotto, which I love), swimming at the pool, shopping, watching movies, and just general hanging out. Some highlights for Freyja were the crazy new pool float, sleeping in a much bigger and softer bed, playing with Heidi and Justin's much bigger cats, taking baths in the sink, and making big messes (um, I mean...exploring the new house). Yes, Freyja is wearing her swimsuit bottoms on her head in the last photo. Why? Because it's hilarious.


One night we also ate at the restaurant that's Heidi's really nice friend Herb manages. The food was wonderful, and Heidi ordered a hilarious drink, the "Shady Lady", which makes me laugh every time I think of it. I suppose it goes back to some fond memories of college...or something. Ha!

The three of us headed off to the outer banks of North Carolina when Freyja and I were five days into our trip. We stayed in the little town of Avon on Hatteras Island for three nights, went to the beach, and saw the beautiful Cape Hatteras lighthouse, which was really cool to me because I've never seen a lighthouse up close!

Freyja really seemed to enjoy her first time at the beach. She played in the sand (every square inch of her body was absolutely covered in it by the time we left the beach each day!), and I held her in my arms or in my lap and let her feel the tide wash over her legs. I could tell that she was awe-struck by the ocean and the rush of the tide every time she watched or felt it come in. The waves were pretty strong (there were quite a few surfers out there), and it seemed to scare her when I walked her out in the ocean so that the water was waist high, so we just played it safe and stayed back at the edge of the surf.

It was interesting being at the beach with a baby! I spent a lot of time lathering her skin with sunblock because she's just so fair, putting her hat back on after she'd thrown it off, trying to convince her that putting sand in her mouth was not the best idea, keeping her from jamming shells into her mouth, etc. But, it was actually pretty hilarious. Walking on the beach was also more of an effort with a toddler at the hip, but having my sling with me was a life-saver. Freyja slept in it the whole time Heidi and I combed the sand for shells...

We only had two major shenanigans while at the beach.

The first one began with Heidi telling me that she'd driven her four-wheel-drive car on the beach the last time she'd been to the outer banks...and it was really cool...so we should do it again...and ended in us being dragged off the beach by a nice man with a tow-truck. Yay! I guess we won't be doing that next year. I think we both wish we'd taken a picture of that...

The second one involved Freyja smashing her face into the scratchy carpet at the hotel on the first night, which explains the big red strawberry burn on her nose in every photo from the beach. She is totally fine and the scab is almost completely gone already, but there was a lot of crying (by both of us) at first, and a lot of bleeding. I'm sure a variety of wounds are in our future as Freyja masters walking...and then running...and then jumping...and bike-riding, etc. So, basically from here on out.

Well, that about covers it for our summer trip. We had a lot of fun, and I'm already looking forward to next year!

Close...But Not Close Enough!

This is an airplane, much like the one that Freyja and I are supposed to be sitting on right this very minute, flying to the Atlanta, GA airport with a short lay-over and then connecting to a second plane which arrives in Newport News, VA.

But, we're not on it.

This morning, despite the fact that I had set my cell phone alarm clock, checked it to make sure it was on, and re-checked it just to make sure...it didn't go off. How does that happen???

Thus, when mom yelled up the stairs at 5am, wanting to know why I wasn't awake...I jolted out of bed and the insanity and pandemonium began. I thought I was going to have a !@#$ing heart attack.

It literally felt like that scene in "Home Alone" where the family has a power failure in the middle of the night and their alarm clock gets reset, therefore not waking them up. They jolt out of bed one hour before their entire 20 member extended family's flight is supposed to take off from New York to Paris on Christmas, and scream "We slept in!". Everyone in the house immediately starts haphazardly running all over the place, throwing luggage, tripping on things, etc. until they all pile in the car and get to the airport and then to their gate, just in time.

The good thing, or at least I thought so as we were on our way to the airport, was that last night I got everything ready, down to the last detail, so that this morning would run flawlessly (obviously not). As soon as I jumped out of bed, even though we were running very behind, all I had to do was dress Freyja and I in the clothes that I had already laid out, drag the luggage downstairs, get some things out of the fridge and throw them in my carry-on, and strap ourselves and our luggage into the car, and we were off. We still had a chance of making it!

With speed-demon superwoman grandma at the wheel, we were at the airport with more than 30 minutes to spare. While I went inside with the checked luggage, mom took Freyja out of her car-seat and strapped her into the stroller. It was going to be fine!

I got up to the counter with our luggage, holding the boarding passes and check-in information I had already printed out from the Internet, hopeful that we'd beat the clock...and the guy wouldn't check the luggage. He was condescending and sarcastic. I look at the clock...and it says I have 30 minutes until take-off. He tells me that they have already taken the luggage carts to the plane a couple of minutes ago, but that if I want to take our luggage onto the plane, I can do that.

Right. I'm going to single-handedly carry two suitcases, a carseat, an umbrella stroller, a diaper bag, and a child through airport security and through the jet-way onto the airplane. Not going to happen. I am awesome, but not that awesome. Sorry.

He tells me we'll have to fly stand-by on the next two flights, which are completely booked (what? why bother?), or our tickets won't be any good. The ticketing agent then disappears and never comes back. So, I called superwoman Heidi and she arranged a later flight by phone. Evidently there were open seats on the next two flights, and we didn't have to fly stand-by. This dude was obviously clueless about his own airlines policies, or else he was just hostile about his job and wanted someone to take out his anger on. Who knows?

So, we're home again. Freyja is back in bed, I'm back in my pajamas, the luggage is still in the car, and I didn't have a heart attack.

But, almost.

Sand and Sun

Freyja and I are off to see my best friend and her godmother Heidi in Virginia from the 8th to the 18th. Yay! We're going to do some hanging out, swimming in the pool, cooking, watching movies, and general Heidi and Adrienne shenanigans, except this time we'll have my new little sidekick along too. We'll also, at some point, be spending some time at the beach. I'm so excited! I haven't been to the beach in what seems like forever, and it will be Freyja's first time. I love "first time" things. It's so fun to see her experience something new. This will also be her first time in an airplane, first time away from home for more than a weekend...lots of "firsts."

So, I'll be away from my blog and my e-mail, virtually shunning the online world, until we get back. In fact, this will be the first time in years that I've gone anywhere without my laptop. Will I be okay? I hope so. Will I go through some sort of Internet/laptop withdrawal? I hope not. I think it will be nice to just forget about all that technology for a few days. But, when I get home I'll make sure to post some stuff here about our trip.

Bon Voyage to us! See you soon!

Stars and Stripes

Happy 4th of July!

We had a picnic dinner in the park today (along with thousands of other people!) and watched the fireworks at dusk.

Freyja's first experience with fireworks was iffy. Since all children react to things differently, I really wasn't sure what to expect. The show didn't start until around 9:30pm, and she was starting to give off the "I need to go to bed" vibe just 10 minutes before that. Initially, once the everything began, she seemed scared by the sounds and jumped back in my arms, but I was holding her close and reassuring her....and then she eventually became curious and amazed with those big blue eyes as wide as can be...and then things moved to whimpering and a few tears...more tired noises...and then she fell asleep! I can't believe she actually snoozed through the second half of a fireworks show. Crazy.

I think she'll do better next year.