How I Stopped Being a Flake (For Now Anyway)

Yesterday morning it took me an hour to get a diaper on Hannah.  She clung to me like a baby monkey as soon as she realized I was about to lay her on the changing table, and then, before her butt even hit the table, she had flipped herself onto her stomach, thrown her legs over the edge, and was on the floor faster than I could process what was happening.  (I never really let go of her so no, she didn't hurt herself in the giant jump down.)  At first I was sympathetic. I figured that the crazy sores (which are healing) and rash (which is new and covers her whole butt and looks terrible) are painful and so she obviously doesn't want me coming near it and slathering pounds of goo all over it and then trapping it inside the moistness of a diaper. So I laid off and contemplated staying home so she could continue to run around diaper free.  But here's the thing: I NEEDED to get out of the house.  The reality of being a stay-at-home-mom really hit home this week.  Eric went back to work last week, and this week, I decided to let Hannah go down to one nap a day.  This means that I now have to have on my mom face ALL MORNING LONG.  This is quite an adjustment to make.  Two naps (two breaks) was really working for me.  We had stayed home all day on Tuesday and it was mind numbing and also stressful because I couldn't get anything done. I tried to take a few minutes on the computer to look up some dinner recipes she while played independently but nope. The second I flipped open my computer Hannah was right there beside me banging on the keyboard, making windows open and close, freaking out the caps lock button, and wreaking havoc all over my little on-screen world.  I closed the lap top, hid it, and sat down on the floor with her for a bit. The clocked moved slower than it's moved in a really long time, and I flashed back to rainy days as a nanny, hanging out in the basement for hours on end while the older child, who has the world's longest attention span, sat contently and quietly in a box that he was pretending was a canoe and I desperately thought up ways to entertain myself without being a bad nanny. "Ummm...I'll be right back, I'm just going to unload the dishwasher."

So when Wednesday rolled around I was determined to start the schedule I'd planned out last week. Wednesday was story time at the library.  Since that doesn't start until 10:30, I figured we could head to Target first.  At 9:00 I took her upstairs with the intent of diapering and clothing her and getting the heck out of dodge for a couple of hours.  At 9:15, I was rethinking my stance. Maybe she was really that uncomfortable that we should just stay home and diaper free for another day....Pondering....Thinking...Considering...No. Nope. We. Are. Getting. Out. Of. The. House. So I tried again. And again.  And again. The same scenario unfolded a couple more times.  I returned to reconsidering my stance.  What would Super Mom do??  Ahhh, screw it. Who cares. This time I made up my very indecisive mind: we were leaving the house. I'm the mom, and I said so.  I get to say stuff like that now that I'm a mom. I get to make up the rules, and although I try to make them with her best interests in mind, that does not mean I lay down and let her determine the day.

It took me an hour to come to that decision, and my waffling is probably why it took an hour to get the diaper on her.  At 10:00, I snuck the diaper on her while she was walking around.  Yes, I thought to try that sooner, but it didn't work earlier. At 10:00 it worked.  Unfortunately, my ability to gob on pounds of gooey-ness were severely inhibited by our lateral diapering stance so she had to go dry.  It didn't seem to bother her, not even after a giant dookie in the toothpaste aisle.  I rushed her off to the bathroom to change her immediately, and she laid there still and serene and peaceful...

Her wild woman wriggling has cropped up repeatedly since then, but now that I realize that she's not in THAT much pain and now that I know what to expect, I catch her right after her initial flip and flip her back to her back. I'm getting faster. She's realizing I mean business.  She's persistent, but so am I. Patience.  I wasn't born with it, but I'm learning. Diapers are now being changed again in under an hour.  But mostly I just let her run around naked peeing and pooping on everything in the hopes that the air will dry out the rashes and sores. This has amped up the potty training but with no significant progress except that I think that Hannah is starting to understand the action of peeing and the word "pee" in conjunction with it.  She will sit on the potty, but not for long and not at all if she has to pee. I've gotten better at determining when she needs to go, and I sit her down accordingly, but those are the times she's pretty quick to get back up.  Apparently, she prefers to pee while standing.

So, we're working through round 2 of the wiley, wriggling, diaper changing phase, and since we already laid the ground work the first time around, it's easier going this time around.  I wish I could say the same thing about round 2 of sucky sleep, but success has been slower there.  The good news is that I learned (both through reading and through the pediatrician) that the little chimichangas go through developmental surges on their birthday and half-birthday; knowing that has made this last month less frustrating.

Part of the problem is always my indecisiveness. It takes me a very, very long time to make up my mind about something. I like to research it thoroughly, hear testimonials, maybe make a few test runs.  When I do commit, it's on and good luck getting me to change my mind. But until I've decided, I'm flaky and wishy-washy and just plain annoying. I couldn't decide what to do about her sleep. Everything I read said that 15-18 months is the magic number for giving up the morning nap.  I heard mixed testimonials, plenty of friends have taken their baby down to one nap a day way before this magic window.  And as for the test runs, well, Hannah managed, but she didn't thrive.  I could tell she was sleepy and having a hard time getting through an entire day with just one nap, especially if the one nap ended up not being good.  I also read that in the transition period, their one nap a day will be earlier than a regular afternoon nap because they won't be able to make it all the way to 1:00 and that this period will be frustrating and lengthy...Taking into consideration that babies in the 12-15 month age range need about 14 hours of sleep in a 24-hour period and that my baby has been consistently sleeping 11-1/2 to 12 hours a night (though she's been waking up once or twice most nights this past month), she really only needs a 2 hour nap.  Since there have been some days recently where she slept till almost 8:00 a.m., and there is no way I'm getting her to take a morning nap when she sleeps that late, I decided that we are now in the transition phase in which she will take only one nap, but that nap will be midday rather than afternoon.  Nap time is at 12:00, and  the cool thing about that (now on day 3 of this schedule) is that when I lay her down right at 12:00, she pretty much goes right to sleep. I just lay her down and walk out. She screams but not for any more than a minute.

It's still not really enough sleep. She hits a big lull around 3:30 every day, getting fussy and rubbing her eyes. I end up sitting down with her in a quiet spot and nursing her.  After about a half hour she has enough energy to make it to bedtime, but barely.  Which brings me to weaning: that's not happening.  She actually started nursing MORE than before for a while there, and I let her because she had diarrhea and a terrible rash and her sleep was irregular so I felt like she needed it. Also, since I couldn't decide on her sleep schedule, her nursing schedule was out of whack too, and there are only so many problems I can solve in any given moment.  Now that I've got a sleep schedule figured out, I'm working on figuring out a new nursing schedule and work toward weaning.

The really cool thing about this new schedule is that selfishly, it fits my life too. With Eric back at work now, I can't just go gallivanting off to the gym while she takes her morning nap.  If I'm going to the gym, she's gotta come with. Also, I signed her up for a gymnastics/toddler tumbling class on Monday mornings. I was worried about how that was going to work out if she needed a nap.  All problems are solved.  I've got activities planned for every morning of the week to get us out of the house for a couple of hours. On Mondays we'll do gymnastics. Tuesdays I'll take her swimming at the indoor pool. Wednesdays are story time at the library. Thursdays and Fridays are mama gym days because I like those 9:30 classes, and she loves the daycare at the gym anyway.

I don't do well in a state of spontaneous limbo so I'm hugely relieved to be returning to a schedule and a routine, especially one that is so balanced and ensures that both Hannah and I are getting what we need: exercise, stimulation, and socialization.  Funny how my needs are so similar to hers...

Destroying the Pyramid of the Sun

Hannah woke up screaming her butt off at 5:45 this morning.  I was in a very deep sleep and was none too pleased about being shocked out of it.  She usually sleeps till about 6:30, but then plays relatively quietly until I go get her at 7:00.  Yesterday she slept until 7:20....Like I said, life this week has been very unpredictable.  I'm not a fan.  We are taking every effort today to get her back on schedule.  She's taken an hour to fall asleep for each nap, but she has at least taken two naps today.

This morning, after breakfast me and Eric built "an ancient Mayan pyramid of the sun" (Eric's declaration once it was built) and watched Hannah try to tear it apart. (These are the blocks my Aunt Debby bought her.)

Sidewalk Talk

Guess who finally has some pictures??!! I haven't taken many lately because we haven't done anything too exciting, and I figure, really, how many head shots of my beautiful daughter sitting on the couch do you really want to see?  The weather was so amazing yesterday that I started wishing we had a yard so we could go outside and roll around in the grass.  Instead, we went out front and sat on the sidewalk.  It wasn't quite as comfy and we got some funny looks from dog-walkers and joggers passing by, but at least the sun was hitting us.  Speaking of sun: I'm in the market for a good only-made-with-good-stuff baby sunscreen if anybody has any recommendations.....

I'm wishing I hadn't laid that towel down now--it really takes away from the pics....Sigh.

I think we're getting a handle on the sleep thing.  I laid her down asleep last night and she stayed that way so no hour of screaming.  She woke up once, but it was at 9:30 so although I was already in bed (no grandma comments people!! I like sleep!), I wasn't asleep so no biggie. Here's what we changed: we start bath time at 7:00 instead of 6:30 (this is a compromise because Eric wanted to start at 7:30 but I was against changing it that drastically), and I only let her stay on each boob for 12 minutes.  She is still falling asleep nursing, but I've got her in the crib before she wakes up feeling refreshed. I've been downstairs for grown up time by about 7:45/8:00 the past two nights.  Progress is beautiful! And Eric has been off the hook since she's falling asleep nursing.

In what's-new-with-Hannah news, she learned how to whine this week.  I have a feeling this sound will quickly become annoying, but right now I think it's adorable.

And also, I put shoes on her for the first time yesterday when we went outside.  You can kinda see 'em in one of the pics.  Usually I just let her walk around outside in booties and socks, but I felt like giving the shoes a try.

The Magnitude of Multiples...And Identity Crisis

Last night was twice as bad since she woke up twice instead of once, but bedtime was good again...Asleep by 7:45. No screaming.  I guess you can't have it all.....If I have to choose though, I think I'd rather take the hour of screaming than the waking up at night, especially if she's going to wake up more than once.  No, no, I guess I'll take the waking up because at least then I get a little me time at the end of the day, and really, I don't usually stay up too long in the middle of the night. No, wait--interrupted sleep stinks, especially if you get woken up out of a deep sleep, so I'd rather have the screaming.  Sigh. Six in one hand, half a dozen scattered somewhere else...I guess I'll take what I can get and complain about the rest.

I'm loving this book Expectations: 30 Women Talk About Becoming a Mother that I'm reading before bed. All the essays are kinda short so   So far there are two essays that are me all over and totally put words to some of my crazy thoughts much more eloquently than I've been able to do here (I'm saving excerpts from those for later). I've also flagged the heck out of a number of other passages I like and plan on boring you all with said passages, but in small doses, I promise.  I'm starting with the one below because it fits the occasion.  It's by a mother (Debbie Isaacman) of triplets who spent her whole pregnancy worrying about the health of her multiple births and just hoping that all would be alive and healthy at birth, which they were.  I can't imagine life with multiples. When I pass people with twins, and there are a ton in Hampden right now, I want to bow down in front of their double stroller and ask them to bless me with their breastmilk.  Isaacman puts my constant complaining in perspective and confirms my biggest fear: I am a total weenie.

"So I don't get frazzled when they all need their diapers changed at once, or when they've all decided to throw their soup bowls down at the same time, or when one of them has discovered the cat food and has dumped it all over the kitchen floor, because I feel so grateful to have three healthy children. I don't care if they all cry at once, either. I feel lucky because I have three children who can cry at once.

"I hear about women who only have one child but who are frazzled, and sometimes I want to say, "You know, it's not that bad.  Be thankful you have the day to get through." You have to feel fortunate if you have healthy children because there are so many people who have children with disabilities and for who getting through their day is a major accomplishment. A multiple isn't as challenging as that."

That's a little more heartfelt than my usual dose of sarcasm, and I'm getting all itchy and uncomfortable as a result so don't expect more where that came from.  And just to wash it all down and end on a more me-ish note, here's a passage from an essay by Vivien Dai that I relate to a little more (well, I can relate to the second paragraph, less so the first but it seems a necessary intro to the second):

"One of the most vivid memories I have is about a week after he was born. Jay was finally leaving the house for work after staying home and taking care of us all week.  We'd had this wonderful water birth and the whole house felt just like a big, warm womb.  I hadn't even stepped out of the house all week.  So there I was, standing at the door with Brandon in my arms, waving goodbye to Jay.  The screen door was between me and the outside world, and all of a sudden I had a nervous breakdown. I felt like I was waving goodbye to my old self.  I mean, I was a dancer, an artist. I'm supposed to be out there in the world, and all of a sudden I'm here with this little being who'd totally dependent on me, and I didn't know who I was or what I was supposed to do next.

"I guess I never imagined the logistics of motherhood. I didn't think about identity crisis. I didn't think about the crying or the sleepless nights. I thought, 'I'm going to be a great mom. I'm going to love my kid and I'm going to be able to handle it all. And if I can't, I'm going to push myself to the limit to be able to.'"


That's definitely how I went into it. I've pushed myself to the limit to accomplish whatever else I wanted to accomplish and didn't see how motherhood would be any different or how the limits here would feel so unattainable, like trying to bike ride to Mars....

No "I" in Team

Ugh. I'm freakin exhausted.  It's either because of the rain or because I was awake from 2:20 to 4:00 last night....It's possible that pushing her bedtime back by an entire hour was a little extreme.  Fortunately, instead of napping from 1:00ish to 2:30ish yesterday afternoon (the scheduled naptime), she walked around her crib until 2:30 and then slept until 4:00 so if ever we were going to move her bedtime back like that, doing so on a day when she napped late was a fortunate coicidence.  Regardless of sleeping late, she was exhausted before she made it to the bath and screamed the screamiest screams during her super quick scrub down.  That wasn't fun, but it was over and she was quietly nursing within a few minutes.  (He decided that completely turning the routine on its head was a bad idea and that first we should move back her bedtime and then maybe think about moving the nursing.  I agree.) So I had to be very diligent about keeping her awake while nursing which was not easy.  After about 15 minutes on the second side, I pulled her off (which ticked her off but by then she was too tired to scream too much) and handed her to Eric who put her down Eric style.  It was a short ritual given her exhaustion and the fact that she was nearly asleep while nursing so no hour of insanity last night.  Bathtime started at 7:30 and she was asleep by 8:30. Really what that means is that she is back on her pre-Daylight Savings Time schedule.  I don't know how that beditme is going to work though on the days when she only naps until 2:00 in the afternoon.  That seems like a long time for her to be awake.  Either way, I think that keeping her from snoozing while nursing had a huge positive impact. 

To make up for bedtime's easiness, Hannah woke up screaming at 2:20 a.m.....I looked at her in the monitor to see if she'd put herself back to sleep but considering she was halfway to standing and the screams were pretty loud, my guess was no. I went in and picked her up. Once calm I laid her down, and the screaming immediately resumed.  I tried to soothe her Eric style by patting her butt and leaning over the crib but the position hurt my back and made my arm fall asleep so after a few minutes, I gave up and went back to bed.  Eric was awake so I told him that although I could not draw any correlation between his bedtime ritual and the fact that she was awake in the middle of the night (a.k.a: I'm not blaming him for her waking up), I could blame him for the fact that in order to get to sleep, she requires someone being hunched over the crib.  That's not a comfortable sleep crutch and not one I intend to provide. So he went in with her for a while and after 20 minutes or so, he gave up and came back to bed, and we just laid there and listened to her scream and argued until everyone fell asleep.

The thing is, although my way wasn't working, I was at least working toward a worthy goal: for her to be able to put herself to sleep on her own without crying when we lay her down.  Tons of babies I've read about do that.  I was attempting to coach her into being an independent sleeper using a number of methods I had researched, but mostly the Sleep Lady's in the hopes that our future is less stressful than our present.  I'm willing to make sacrifices now to ensure that the problem is remedied sooner than later.  I think Eric's goal is more just to get through the day.  I'm not saying his way is wrong; alcoholics everywhere are taking it one day at a time and that works for them. What I'm saying is that we need to come to come to some compromise and raise her AS A TEAM because nobody benefits from us operating like we're living on an island, least of all Hannah.

Dear Pregnant Readers: My number one recommendation is that you read at least one baby how-to type book prior to giving birth (I recommend the Baby Whisperer since it's pretty comprehensive, but I've heard good things about The Happiest Baby on the Block too) and get your hubby to read it too and then TALK ABOUT IT and come up with a game plan for raising your children as a TEAM.  I wish we'd done that....We're 7 1/2 months in and working less and less like a team (when it comes to parenting) every day.  Once we finally find a way to compromise and get on the same side, how long will it take from there to instill good habits in Hannah??  We have a LONG uphill road before anyone is getting any respite from the screaming.....

6-Month Checkup Stats and other Stories

Hannah had her 6-month checkup today.  Yeah, yeah, we're a month late.  I thought I'd made appointments for the 2-, 4-, and 6-month checkups at the same time and didn't realize there was nothing on my calendar for 6 months until the end of the 5th month.  I guess her pediatrician is super busy and popular because they couldn't fit us in until today.  She got the third round of her vaccines and cried way less than the first two rounds which was nice because her appointment was during her afternoon nap (1:30) which means she was exhausted and then to have poked her little legs all up and THEN stick her in a car to head back down I-83....That was a potential disaster for my car-hating loudmouth of a daughter.  But she sat back there playing with the car seat toy that Sondra and my Dad brought up to her this weekend, cooing contently. Whew!! That thing is a big hit. I still don't think it's enough to get us to Tennessee though--I think we need an RV for that kind of a haul--but at least I can get around town now without ear plugs.

This morning Hannah slept late until 7:30 and upon waking, immediately pulled herself into a standing position. I know she did that after her nap on Sunday, but it was somehow more momentous first thing in the morning....so I had to grab the camera, again.  Her and that tongue....

She did it again this afternoon when I tried to lay her down for a very late afternoon nap. Instead of sleeping, she was standing. I decided she needed to learn how to get back down by herself, and anyway, it was nap time, so I left her like that for a while. Eventually she was kinda slouched over so I went up, rearranged her, and left, but she immediately pulled back up into standing.  She's got it figured out now and can do it in no time.  I told the pediatrician that and she said that Hannah would be walking in no time....I'm sure it'll still be a while (hopefully), and in the meantime, I have my hands full with her constant squirming.  Today we were sitting on the couch and she started pulling stuff off the end table and shoving it into her mouth.  First the sleep log (which she's tried to eat on many occasions), then Eric's magazine, then my yogi figurine. I just kept taking stuff until there was nothing left on the table and then I put some toys there.  Those weren't nearly as interesting though. Paper products are her favorite.  Today in Whole Foods, she screamed throughout the store because I wouldn't let her eat my grocery list. I had a bag full of toys that she had zero interest in.  If I diverted my gaze for a second to look at an item, she was leaned over and shoveling the list into her mouth before I knew what hit me.  Then I'd take it and the screaming would commence.  Is there any healthy paper out there that babies can eat???? I need a paper food product....Side note: Hannah rode in the cart yesterday for the very first time (at Target) and today for the second time (at Whole Foods).  She likes it for a couple minutes but then insists on being picked up.

That was a tangent. Back to squirmy Hannah.  Changing diapers has become an athletic event requiring dexterity, endurance, and quick thinking.  Here's another area that as a pre-mama, I assumed I would have under control.   I remember the days of acrobatic diaper changing from my years and years of babysitting, and I specifically remember thinking about that when pregnant and deciding that my baby would sit still for the 2 minutes it took to change her diaper.  It would be as easy as remaining calm and gently but firmly asking her to sit still for a moment.  I tried that the other day. The results were less than effective.  So I changed tactics and decided to become an expert at putting on diapers upside down (she likes to flip over onto her belly and get on all fours) and dressing her that way as well.  The only thing I can't do from that position is zip or snap her outfit.  Since I took the camera with me when I went to get her this morning, I paused in my attempts at changing her and snapped a few pics. She should sleep late more often--she was full of energy this morning.

Now that I've got you walking through her morning routine...After I change and nurse her, I make the bed and put her on it with her floor toy thingy and a couple of other toys while I get dressed and do my stretches.

I don't know what she's tripping out on in this one...

Before I forget, her stats:

Length: 27 1/2 inches (I think she said that Hannah was in the 90th percentile here)

Weight: 15 pounds, 4 ounces 

Head circumference: 44.2 cm

Her weight was cause for a teeny bit of concern because the charts show it going in a curve and it should always curve up (weight corresponding with growth), but this time the dot she made, if connected to the one before, would show the curve going down.  Her weight is still toward the top of the chart and well above the average in her age group, but it just hasn't accelerated the way that it was accelerating.  So we talked about that briefly and I explained that sometimes Hannah will only nurse for 3-5 minutes at a time (despite me not allowing her to snack), just enough to tide her over so she can get on with her day.  She's eager to get on with playing and exploring and moving, and more so than that, she's eager to play with Daddy.  We've got a new rule now where when it's time for Hannah to nurse, Eric has to leave the room and remain very quiet because otherwise, Hannah won't eat.  She is such a daddy's girl that she would rather starve in his arms than be away from him for one second that he's home.  Don't worry, my feelings aren't hurt by that--I knew when she was in the belly that she was destined to be a daddy's girl, I mean, look at Eric.  He's a big softy.  And their astrological signs fit together waaaaaaay better.  But aside from me having suspected this, another reason I don't mind is that it means that a lot of the times that Eric is home, my hands are free!! Wahoooo! It's totally worth it.  

Why I'm crazy

Lest you all think I've thrown myself from a nonexistent nearby cliff, I'm writing to reassure you that my sanity is still partially intact and also to thank all of you for your kind words and support.  There are a number of issues at play here and although the big trigger is when my dearest is exercising her lungs and vocal cords, my inability to deal with that lately stems from a lot of other stuff.  Here is a list of some of said stuff:

1.) I'm tired.  She's taken to waking up multiple times per night as opposed to the just once that I was getting used to. The past few nights she's woken up just 45 minutes after I've gone to sleep which really hurts. Last night she was up at 11ish, 1ish, 2ish, and then 5ish.  Now, I've learned to function just fine on interrupted sleep, but patience is shortened as is my emotional tether. 

2.) I miss my hubby.  He's been pretty unavailable for the past 2 weeks, some of which is understandable (time with the brothers is a must), and some of which is less understandable (no examples since I have a feeling he wouldn't appreciate me airing dirty laundry).  An unstable relationship was contributing greatly to my stress.  Since he was off today, we've spent the day talking and resolving issues.  (Who knew that having kids could change your relationship THIS much!)

3.)  I'm not into the whole work thing. Yes, I know how spoiled that sounds, but hear me out.  On a super rare and amazing day, Hannah's naps MIGHT total 4 hours.  As a part-time employee, I need 20 hours per week.  That comes out to 4 hours per day.  That might seem like nothing to all you full-timers but for someone who is attempting to also be a full-time stay-at-home mom and work during naps, it's stressful. I have virtually NO down time, especially on those nights when Hannah decides to scream for 2 hours rather than going to sleep. In addition to not having down time, I have no time to clean my house which is incredibly slovenly at the moment (Eric and I have taken to double-teaming it on weekends so I guess it'll get cleaned this weekend) and little time to eat (yesterday I had a smoothie for breakfast and some leftover Christmas ham with mustard for lunch...it's no wonder I was 3/4 of the way to crazy town by mid-afternoon).  Futhermore, I have not had any actual work to do at work since November which means I am struggling to find ways to "professionally develop" myself and am getting bored and feeling useless doing it.  Back when there was work, working was a bit more fun because it provided that feeling of success that you just don't get when mothering a baby who is incapable of giving you a gold star for a job well done.  So yeah, I know there are those of you who are like, "is she crazy?? She's complaining about being paid to do nothing??"  YES I am because there are lots of other things I could be doing with my time not the least of which would be NAPPING to prepare for the potential insanities that each day brings.

4.) When I am winding down each night, you know what I wind down with? Baby books.  Last night I spent about a half an hour analyzing this log I'm now keeping of Hannah's activities and doing the math of how many naps she took, how much time elapsed between her last nap of the day and bedtime, how many fits she had, etc. in an effort to draw some correlation as to WHY.  When I'm not doing that, I'm trying to get through this Sleep Lady book.  This means that I am ALL BABY ALL THE TIME.

5.) Did I mention that my house is a mess?? It is and it's driving me insane!

6.) Did I mention I was tired? I did?  Welllllll....clearly this list is over. Now that I've thoroughly explained myself (as opposed to the psychotic ramblings of the most recent posts--sorry for any worry I've caused. I should probably have a "no blogging when crazy rule"), how about some GOOD NEWS.  Although Hannah has reverted to cat naps (30-45 minutes) these past 2 days and despite her new habit of waking up repeatedly throughout the night, her bedtime has been smoooooooth!  Last night she was down and out by 8:30, tonight by 8:15.  Can I get a woot woot!!!  So I'm blogging and wishing I could put in this cheesy chick flick that has been sitting in it's Netflix envelope for a week now but knowing that I need to take my tired a** to bed ASAP.  But before I do, here are a couple of cute pics I took earlier this evening. I was getting in the shower and Eric was kindly folding/stuffing the diapers and watching Hannah and he decided to bring both into the bathroom so he could hang with me while doing so.  He ended up putting Hannah in the laundry basket (something I constantly want to do but never do). 

The lighting isn't great because I still don't know to work my camera....But you get the idea.  Alright, off to bed with the Sleep Lady!!

....Or not.  While re-reading this prior to posting, the little banana started screaming...I sent Eric up for now since I know her screams aren't hunger related.  So I'm off to help soothe a screaming baby which ideally won't take a terribly long time...Wish me luck!  Actually, wish me patience and sanity instead....