it happened

I started this blog with such good intentions. Intentions of posting. Of running sidebars that I updated. Of reading other blogs and commenting on them. Of taking pictures, witty pictures, that meshed in with the witty things I was posting about.
Here I am, late September, and I've barely posted at all.
Yes, I know, school started (finishing my Masters) and I have some really great and really crappy manuscripts to read at night. Plus we're hosting bible study at our house, and --oh, did I mention that we got addicted to television (well, Netflix) again?
So posting has been a little sparse, recently.
Sorry. I know you all have been missing me.
Right?
Anyway, things will probably stay sparse for a while. I am still in school, and D signed us up for Basic Cable. Not the 100-channel "basic"--the 12-channel basic--but still.
Oh, blog, how I've neglected you.

night weaned

Congratulations, Lucy! You have successfully night-weaned us!
For a few weeks, your parents got full nights of rest! from dusk to dawn! There was no nursing involved! Yes, that's right! full nights of sleep.
You quickly realized that you did not like this situation. You took advantage of the upheaval created by (select one) a) travel to Ojai b) teething c) developmental milestones d) something else? You started insisting on nursing again. To go to sleep. And during the night.
You have successfully weaned us off those full nights of rest. We're not sure how long this night weaning will last. We hope it's short.
Is there something we can do to make it shorter?

control

What I want? I want a control baby. Like in scientific experiments, where they have a control? I want that. A baby that shares my baby's genetic makeup, general environment, temperament, etc, but that I can try a different tactic with, to see if the tactic I'm doing with the regular baby worked or was just the luck of the draw.
This is sounding like I want a twin. I do not. Twins are more work.
Let me clarify.
I want another baby that someone else is responsible for, but that I somehow can experiment on, and that will act like my baby. That Iwon't have to get up with in the middle of the night but that will act in exactly the same way as Lucy.

So. That's what I want.
I really don't think it's a lot to ask, do you?

plagued

I've decided to come out of the closet.
No, not that closet!
This closet is the secret closet of infestation. I haven't fessed up about this because I'm afraid no one will want to come over here again, but I'm just going to suck it up. Because I have to talk about these problems!
We've been having a problem with infestations around here. I will list them in order of grossness. (least gross first)
1. Ants. Have mostly gone away. Were in the trash, dishwasher, and various cabinets. Now mostly just attacking the cat food. Outside.
2. Flies. Still there. Mostly outside. They also attack the cat food. For a while, we had put the kitchen trash (uncovered) outside (to avoid ant infestation). This was a Bad Idea. Flies seized on kitchen trash. And begat and begat and begat, producing, well, "baby flies". You do the math.
3. Rats. (shiver) Ever a problem here. Usually just in the attic. But we had one (please, God, only one!) in the garage. It was also attacking the cat food. But this time, the bin we keep the cat food in. This is how we knew it was there, because there were large chunks gnawed out of the container. It doesn't look like it actually gained access to the food, however. Perhaps the plastic satisfied its hunger. Dyami attacked the garage and we did a thorough cleaning. We think the rat is gone. At the very least, there aren't as many hiding places for it anymore.
4. Mice. (sigh.) Inside the house. (Ewwwwwwwww!) I kind of had a conniption when I found little, well, "mouse pellets" on the kitchen counter. Luckily, I had just learned about organic disinfecting! I attacked the "pellets" with vinegar and H2O2! Dyami set traps! We caught the mouse! End of story!
The major part of the infestations ended a few weeks ago.
Except.
Except I just found some more "pellets" in a drawer. There is a slight chance they were there before, and I just didn't see them but I think they are new. Because there were also some gnawed bits of a silicon muffin cup. Which I would have seen, since they were bright red.
So I spent a good half-hour this morning cleaning all of my kitchen tools (spatulas, measuring cups, etc) and disinfecting the drawers. Yummo!
What's next, locusts?
So now that I've come clean, I understand if no one wants to come over to my house, ever again. Really, we're doing everything we can to eliminate these pestilences. If anyone has any suggestions, feel free.

oh my god

Dateline, last night.
Lucy: nursed at 6:30. asleep by 7:30.
Mom: Asleep by 10:30. Woke up at 3:30 to pee. Fell back asleep.
Dateline: This morning.
Lucy/Mom: nursed at 5:50 am.
Lucy: Back asleep.
Lucy: Still sleeping.
Mom: using the computer, drinking tea. Eating breakfast. Lounging.

Lucy: Still sleeping.

a break

So I started school.
First day went smashingly. No problem putting L to sleep. I stayed the whole calss. She woke up after I got home.
But I have to finish my thesis pronto (revising one story) which isn't a huge deal, but is going to consume all my free time for the next week or so.
So, I'm not going to be posting for a while. Sigh.
Everyone, enjoy the Spice Choir Free Time.

negative

So L had her allergist appointment. They tested wheat, dairy, soy, egg, various nuts. Some other things I can't remember.
All negative.
Part of me is relieved. The doctor still recommended being careful about nuts--I shouldn't indulge, and she shouldn't have any for a year. This is pretty good news. It will be nice not to be horrified if I see nuts around--sure, I'll still be careful, but she's not showing any danger of anaphalactic shock yet, so I won't be so anal about it.
Part of me, though, is a bit disappointed. I still think L has food sensitivities. I still think she'll likely outgrow them. But the allergy thing--it would have been an answer. It would have definitively justified all the food I've given up. It would have cleared murky waters and assured me I wasn't just making things up.
Instead, I just have vague suspicions, nervousness about missing sleep, and decisions to make.
Like, should I start eating bread? Or dairy? Now I know it's unlikely to cause serious allergies in her, which is great. But the question is: do I want to risk more bad sleep? Or is that just a really sadistic coincidence?
It seems weird to complain about this. But I'm glad the tests are over, glad at least not to be so worried about L swelling up like a baloon and wheezing, and glad that I have a healthy baby girl.

dickens

So I'm reading David Copperfield. I haven't been a Long Victorian Novel fan in the past, but after reading The Woman in White and thoroughly enjoying myself, I decided to just jump in. One has to get used to the diction, but after that, it's not too difficult of a read. And it's nice that he alternates between serious chapters (infidelity! heartbreak! death! intrigue!) and comic chapters (foibles! social satire! romatic comedy!)
The thing is, this puppy is long. I'm a fast reader (I got through the last Harry Potter in two days) and I started reading this one---well, long enough ago that I can't remember. Has it been a week yet? I skim some of the more flowery passages and it still is taking me forever.
The good thing is that I always have trouble finding things to read. And since I'm enjoying this one, I might re-read A Tale of Two Cities, which was a favorite in high school, and then go on to other Dickens novels. With the rate I'm going, I'll be in novels through next year.
What warms my heart is that Dyami is reading a novel right now, too: Wicked. I think he likes it because he takes it, well, let's say everyplace with him. There's nothing more romantic than ignoring each other while you read novels. Ahhhh, wedded bliss.
Actually, I'm not really kidding about the romance. Reading is sexy.
So....enough about me. What are you all reading?

am I weird?

So Lucy has started being kind of a Daddy's girl.
Today we were headed into Borders. Dyami and I negotiated about who was going to hold her. I got dibs. I put on the sling and started putting her into it when she started crying, reaching out to Dyami.
"Never mind then,"
I said and handed her off.
Am I weird that it didn't make me feel bad?
Don't get me wrong--I love my daughter, love holding her, but there have been so many times I have felt like having a break from being needed this year--and didn't get one because she wasn't ready for not needing me.
It feels great that she prefers Dyami some times. That I'm not the only one that can hold her! Comfort her! Feed her! Put her to sleep!
My fantasy of Dyami being able to do half the parenting work is coming closer to reality, and it feels pretty darn good.
Maybe I'll feel bad if there's something she does for him that she hasn't done for me yet (like when she started giving me snuggles before him, or saying Momma before Dadda). I'm still first, just not always preferred, so I'm comfortable with losing ground?
Or maybe it just feels good to share this parenting thing more equally.
SO tell me: do you think I'm weird?