I Didn't Know...

...that whales could do this...how fun!

The Search for a Sling...

Baby bear has been a little bit fussier these days. I've been reading all of my books, and they all point to the same thing...she's having a growth spurt. The odd thing is that she's been having this growth spurt on and off for weeks now. Some days, it's great. She eats every three hours, naps well and sleeps well at night. Then a couple days later she'll want to eat every 1.5 to 2.5 hours throughout the day and sleeping is really hard for her. Right now, padawanlee is walking her back and forth throughout the apartment hoping she'll calm down. She just woke up out of a sound nap and we're hoping she'll go down again...but I know that she's hungry...again.

So in the meantime, it makes it really difficult for me to get anything done during the day always having to either feed or carry her. So this week I decided, I need to get a baby sling. So thus began my research.

I first ventured onto the web to search, I came across Zolowear. I like the different fabrics (pretty silk!), but with Carissa's hip harness I don't know if I'll be able to carry her well in it. Plus, some of the slings were kind of pricey.

So then I found this website called Mamma's Milk that has all the different types of slings and even a directory of slings. I started looking into wrap style slings. These are a little bit more complicated to handle, but it seemed that it might work better with her harness. But check out the tying technique for the wrap that I liked here. It seems a little complicated, but it seems like the best style for baby bear.

Then when I was looking at the price, I was astounded. $99 for a piece of cloth! I should try to make my own, if that's the case. So I looked online again. I found this website called mamatoto which has instructions on how to make wrap slings. Ordinarily enough, it's just a long span of cloth and you don't really have to sew the thing at all. $99, what a joke!

So I found my new project. I'm going to make a baby wrap. Uh, I hope this doesn't turn out like the furniture rearrangement. Which perhaps with the help of auntie roachyface we might start this weekend

Easily Amused...

Everyday our baby bear does something that entertains us.

A few days ago, I put her in her play pen to watch her mobile. And she did....for a while. Watch her as she watches her mobile...but notice at the end her attention seems to go elsewhere.


Video Sharing at DropShots.com

Hmmmm, so what is she looking at? Well, let's see...


Video Sharing at DropShots.com

She's so funny...and so easily amused by simple things. That's my baby.

The Crib...

Today, we got a crib (Thanks Tim & Irene!). It's great because baby bear is starting to get a little too big for her bassinet. When I go to pick her up when she wakes, I find her head up against the edge of the basket. With her legs in her hip harness they end up hitting the sides of the bassinet, almost. So needless to say, she's outgrown her first bed.

The crib is great...it's absolutely beautiful...it's just that I didn't realize how big it would be. Or perhaps, I didn't realize how small the space is. So I came up with a solution: We need to rearrange our furniture. Well, if we're not going to be moving just yet, then we need to find a way to fit our child into our small spaces.

Upon meeting me, you probably wouldn't get that I am detailed-oriented, and I'm usually not, unless I really get into a project. I'm really into rearranging. So to start I drew up a layout of our apartment on the computer. Then I measured all the rooms, all the furniture, and I drew in each object. Keeping in mind that I want to make sure everything fits, I put it to scale. Each half inch represents a foot. I color-coded each object. I labelled each object. Then I moved all the representative furniture around and figured out a suitable layout.

In the end, padawanlee just laughed at me. I guess it is a little silly, but I wanted to make sure everything fit...makes sense, right?

Little Prayers...

Sometimes when I'm alone with baby bear I will say little prayers with her to God. I pray that I can be a mommy that listens, supports and encourages. I pray that I can be a better person so that baby bear can learn from my example. I pray that I can help her learn to respect every person as an individual, to never misjudge others, to be genuinely concerned. I pray that her heart will have room for compassion and for passion. I pray that our family will learn to love and forgive one another despite all our flaws and mistakes. I pray for honesty in sharing and the ability to confide amongst us. I pray for strength for padawanlee to lead and to love. I pray for family and friends to grow, to thrive and bloom where they are.

And the best part is that baby bear will sometimes pray with me in her own coos and aahs.

Our First Date...

Last night padawanlee and I had our first date since baby bear was born. Needless to say, by the end of our date, we were feeling rather lame. Here's how the night went:

5:30 pm - Grandma comes over to babysit and we leave.
6:00 pm - Padawanlee and I eat dinner together
7:30 pm - Padawanlee and I take a walk and go for ice cream
8:00 pm - Padawanlee and I sit in the car and decide what to do next
8:05 pm - Still sitting in the car and discussing how lame we feel for (1) not knowing what to do with ourselves and (2) for being so exhausted at 8:00pm.
8:10 pm - Padawanlee ponders taking a nap in the car.
8:15 pm - We get desperate, fight off our yawns, decide we need to do something and drive to a bookstore and walk around for a while
8:45 pm - I get tired and ask to go home.
9:15 pm - Padawanlee and I are back at home.

Lame, huh? So much for our first date. Hopefully our second date will go better or at least we'll plan it out better.

Happy Birthday...

Happy Birthday, padawanlee!

With love from,
Songwriterlee & Baby Bear

Hooked on a TV show?

I'm not much of a prime time tv watcher. I'm more of a rerun type of individual. I find more enjoyment watching the old Cosby show reruns in the middle of the day rather than watching the new shows like "Lost" or "Desperate Housewives." I'm also not much of a reality tv person either. I never got caught up in shows like "Survivor." I did watch a lot of "The Apprentice" only because padawanlee made sure to catch each episode.

So I find it odd that every Wednesday at 10 pm I feel the need to watch a tv show. I am totally caught up in the show "Project Runway" on Bravo. How odd. Now, I'm not so hardcore that I have to watch it on Wednesday, because if I miss it I know I can always catch up on another day. Even still, I like watching the show. I admit it. I'm hooked. This is so unlike me.

Sleep is Relative...

As I've been watching our baby bear, I've been amazed at how she has similar sleeping habits to her mom and dad, and yet, she's been doing this from the start, so I'm thinking it must be "nature" not "nurture."

(1) When she wakes up, she makes a big stretch and makes this long yawning type of noise. Whenever padawanlee wakes up, he does the same thing.

(2) She has to sleep with her arms and hands near her face. Both of us have this habit, although maybe not like this:

(3) When she's tired, she rubs her face into the nearest object (usually mom or dad's shoulder). This is just like her mom, songwriterlee. Her uncle, dylpyl, does the same thing. Padawanlee finds it weird when songwriterlee rubs her face in his shoulder, but when she's tired, that's what happens.

I just thought that was so odd. Then again, she is genetically half me and half padawanlee. So therefore, chances are good that she would have similar habits. Therefore, sleep is relative.

Perhaps it's Time to Move...

Padawanlee and I have been living in this apartment since we got married in '04. When we first moved in it was great (except for a funny smell - which eventually went away). It was the right size for us, it was the right price, and it was a decent area. Plus, we didn't want to be too picky. We were just starting out then, so we figured we would just deal with what comes.

Well, fast forward a year and a half and we're in the present. So far we've dealt with a lot. (1) When we first moved in there was this strange smell (like an animal lived there). Plus in the master bedroom there were spots on the floor (like an animal went there). The building management recleaned our carpets. (2) There was this strange leak in the walls the first winter we were here. It caused our walls to crack and there were spots where it was molding. They came and ended up retiling the bathroom, patching up cracks, and repainting. (3) Our toilet suddenly stopped working. One day, the handle to the toilet broke and it just wouldn't flush anymore. It took a while to get the right part and needless to say the toilet was gross by the time it got fixed. (4) The light switch in our bedroom shorted. I went to turn on the light one day and it sparked a few times, the light blew out, and the switch plate had burn marks all over it. (5) The ceiling fan in the 2nd bedroom just wouldn't turn on anymore. We're not sure what happened, but the switch just broke or something. (6) Last week, padawanlee went to turn on the kitchen light and it did just as our light switch in the bedroom did last year. (7) On Super Bowl Sunday I walked into the guest bathroom and I noticed that it was raining in the bathroom. The ceiling was dripping. Apparently there was a leak from the bathroom above us. I'm afraid that the mold is going to come back. Yuck (I hate fungus).

So needless to say, somedays I feel like that movie, "The Money Pit" that starred Tom Hanks and Shelley Long from the mid 80's.

So perhaps it is time to move. But where to? Any suggestions?

I Must Have Too Much To Say...

So I've been trying to get my husband, padawanlee, to write on this blog. But you know, I don't really think he has much to say. I must have too much to say...perhaps I need to get a hobby.

Super Bowl Sunday...

I have this memory from when I was about 6 or 7 years old and I'm sitting in the LA Coliseum stands, eating peanuts, and rooting for the Los Angeles Raiders (I know, way long ago) with my dad sitting next to me. They were playing Kansas City Chiefs and getting beaten badly, but nonetheless there we were rooting for the "Refrigerator" Perry and the rest of his team. The game was so bad that there was another fan in the row in front of us with his mini television (battery operated of course) watching the Seattle Seahawks and Miami Dolphins game. Apparently it was more exciting because I remember all the fans around us were watching the television instead of the game. Three quarters into the game the stands were starting to clear out as the fairweather LA fans retreated to their cars hoping to beat traffic. By the end of the game, the Raiders were defeated and the true fans left with beer in their stomachs and expletives on their tongues.

These are some things that I hope Baby Bear will get to do with her dad (minus the beer and expletives). I hope there will always be opportunities for the two of them to spend some time together. Perhaps Baby Bear will also be a 7 year old girl who can explain what the purpose of the "line of scrimmage" or meaning of "1st and 10" is.

So in honor of Super Bowl Sunday, bring out your chips and guacamole, pull out your football jerseys, put on your under eye black paint for anti-glare and cheer for your favorite team. Get ready for some football!

Growing up...

Okay, it's only been 6 weeks, but as parents we keep looking at Baby Bear and realizing just how much she's grown since birth. Then we reminisce about things like, "remember when she didn't fit this outfit?" or "remember how tiny she used to be?" It's funny though, because it truly hasn't been that long, and really, she isn't humongous, she's still a tiny baby. We're already starting to feel the nostalgia though. How odd.

It's true though. Every time I go out for a walk in the neighborhood or run a quick errand to the store with Baby Bear, I always run into other moms with babies who are a few months older. The first thing they always ask is how old Baby Bear is, but the second thing they always tell me is "it goes by really fast." Their child isn't even close to graduating and going to college yet, but still I always get the same comment.

Even my mom, the first day in the hospital told me "they grow up fast," but I think she actually has merit to say such things.

Then again, catch me in a few months and ask me how many times I've told someone with a newborn that "they grow up so fast." Then remind me to read this blog entry. That'll teach me.

Baby Bear as a Tomato

It Must Be Normal...

I have a friend who just had a baby girl a week ago. She called me a couple of times this week in order to "compare notes." All those things that I struggled with in the first weeks were the same questions that she was now asking me. I remember all too well the emotional roller coaster I was on that week with my feelings of inadequacy, uncertainty and exhaustion. I listened to her similar feelings of uncertainty and exhaustion.

Those first couple of weeks of parenthood I kept thinking "Am I doing something wrong?" It wasn't until I spoke to a friend of mine who had a baby boy in October and related to her my troubles, did I realize that she had similar issues. It was then that I realized that "it must be normal" and "We are doing okay."

So when my friend called this week, I listened. I encouraged her to "hang in there." I told her what happened to us and how we felt at the time. I hope it helped her. I hope she knows that "it's normal" and she's "doing okay."