babytron

potty queen

2012-02-03T07:17:00.000-08:00

Our wee babytron has finally mastered the art of the potty. In desperation, after cleaning up one more mess, (and consulting with our supernanny back in Seattle - thank goodness for SMS) I finally figured out that the whole potty training thing had become a power struggle between us and our wee, stubborn thing.

With that in mind, I made a conscious effort to stop worrying about her going to the potty & told her that it was now her job to take care of all things potty-related. I promised to no longer remind her to go potty in exchange for her taking care of the whole potty thing herself. From that second on, there hasn't been a single accident. She is even napping (when she naps) in big girl panties! We have even been on a few car /shopping trips with no problems. Who would have known that something we've had so many difficulties with could be so easily solved?

Next steps, have the courage to get rid of the diaper at night & she'll be golden. I don't think we're far from that now, as she has been waking up in the morning & going to the bathroom by herself, instead of just going in her diaper. This is a very exciting time indeed.

Here's a quick snap of babytron talking with her new fish that she received as a reward for doing so well with the whole potty training thing. She LOVES her new fish. She talks to them, kisses & hugs them (in the bowl, of course), has dance parties with them, etc. I'm glad something so simple could make her feel like such a big girl.

closet party

2012-01-27T23:04:00.001-08:00

Nothing says awesome like building a wee fort in the walk-in closet. Currently, we're listening to Wallace & Gromit on headphones while we wait for our soup to cool. Idyllic.

sleeeeeep!

2012-01-19T07:19:00.000-08:00

After visiting our family in the UK over the holidays, and seeing first-hand how easily my brother & sister-in-law put their similarly-aged child to bed. I realized how incredibly difficult our bedtime routine had become over these last two and a half years. A typical evening bedtime routine would consist of dinner, playtime, a favorite show, several books, quiet music and about an hour of snuggling & rocking in her chair until you pray she has *really* gone to sleep, followed by gently trying to get her in bed without waking her up.

If you managed to get that far, then the evening consisted of the both of us trying to be as quiet as possible, so as not to incur the wrath of our offspring & have to start the process all over again.

Oftentimes, after a particularly difficult bedtime, she would wake up at 1, 2, 3 or 4am, when we would start the process all over again. The worst part is, being a person who tends toward the insomnia end of the spectrum anyway, babytron would wake up for a while... then I wouldn't get back to sleep until about a half hour before the alarm went off. Imagine this for weeks on end, night after night after night.

Yeah, it sucks. But we did it. For about 3 months shy of 3 years. *facepalm*

After a bleary-eyed 5am iPhone search for sleep solutions (as I have done countless nights before), enter the supernanny. Oh sweet, sweet, supernanny - thank goodness for your website (and particularly, the article on getting toddlers to stay in bed). Not being a fan of television, I never saw the show; let alone put stock in any solutions anyone 'as seen on tv' could possibly have to offer me. But I was desperate, exhausted, and determined to find a solution to these daily bedtime and naptime fights.

It has been two weeks, and our wee babytron has been going to bed like a champ! One story, a quick snuggle & it's off to bed. Not only that, but she's been sleeping through the night as well. The first few nights, neither one of us really knew what to do with all of the free time that has been suddenly given to us. Thank you, supernanny. Truly.

This is how the other half lives, and it is good.

This photo was taken before we left for India, at daycare... back when we had our very own supernanny.

sick day

2012-01-19T06:27:00.000-08:00

This morning, our wee Babytron seems to have developed a touch of the stomach flu. So, like all proper sick days, we've spent the morning watching Shaun the Sheep and Kipper. I feel terrible for thinking this, but she's even more adorable when she's sick... When her stomach was feeling particularly queasy, she said 'oh no, my tummy's going to rumble' - I suppose you have to be a parent of small children to think that something so closely tied to vomiting was so cute.

Yep, this is me, signing off... vomit jokes and all.

mealtime dramatics

2011-12-15T22:16:00.000-08:00

Another typical mealtime for babytron at the flat. At this rate, she will be as skinny as her father... *sigh*

wiped out

2011-11-23T01:02:00.001-08:00

Our wee babytron is completely wiped out after a busy morning at school - now for a cup of tea & the most peaceful part of the day - phew!

practicing...

2011-11-23T00:46:00.001-08:00

Here is our wee babytron practicing her 'stern mom look' while eating a post-lunch brownie. Keep practicing babytron :)

stop thief!

2011-10-24T09:38:00.000-07:00

Our cheeky monkey and her early morning brownie-theft antics. Our wee babytron is a sly one... This is a snap of her hiding under the table with the spoils of her brownie-raid already half eaten.

naptime!

2011-10-06T00:27:00.001-07:00

After a busy morning of tea parties, hide and seek, coloring, stickers, an oatmeal picnic, several dance parties and a walk around the neighborhood to check out the Dussera celebrations... babytron is off to never-never land... Now to recharge before we hit the pool this afternoon :)

potty training, and other such adventures...

2011-10-02T21:14:00.000-07:00

This morning, our wee babytron had managed to leave a special present for me in her diaper. Since we've been potty training, she now only uses a diaper for when she's sleeping and if we're out in the world for extended periods of time. I'm SO not ready to try to find a clean public restroom for a two year old here in India.

Anyway, as I was saying... This morning I was blessed with a special present (of the VERY stinky variety). When I asked our wee babytron why she went in her pants instead of using the potty, she matter-of-factly stated that the reason she went in her pants, was to make sure there were no spiders in any awkward places. Specifically, she said: 'I go poo-poo in my pants, so no spiders go inna my bum'

Uhhh, I *think* that deserves the honorary title of 'Quote of the Day'. What do you think?

kid tested, AND approved ;)

2011-10-01T22:17:00.001-07:00

According to our wee babytron, the cookies I made with the local versions of ingredients are 'very, very, nice'. Although my famous cookies may need a little tweaking to adjust for local ingredients, I'm glad I got approval from someone with such a discerning palate.

Here is a picture of our wee babytron showing that the cookies are 'making me smile'. Which is always nice ;)

rockin' the ABCs

2011-09-22T23:22:00.000-07:00

Here's our wee babytron, rockin' the ABC's for the first time on camera. And no, our container has NOT arrived yet (as you can plainly see).

three cheers for technology!

2011-09-19T20:50:00.001-07:00

This morning we have discovered the iPod equivalent of books on tape... Our wee babytron is currently completely involved with listening to Toy Story on the little iPod I found on craigslist a while back. Technology wins again!

tea party

2011-09-19T04:55:00.001-07:00

Nothing makes a wonderful afternoon better than a tea party with friends :)

Feeling craftastic!

2011-09-16T07:59:00.001-07:00

Our wee babytron isn't feeling the effects of our late container shipment in the slightest... we have craft supplies coming out our ears! She is especially fond of gluing things & sticking them to other things, like her face :)

monsoon playtime <3

2011-09-15T04:24:00.001-07:00

It seems that monsoon season agrees with our wee babytron. Here she is, sporting her potty-training, puddle-splashing best...

And yes, now that they've finally made a decent blogger app for the iPhone, I will be posting here more frequently than in the past :)

lovely day in the garden

2011-05-15T10:49:00.000-07:00

view the full photoset here

The weather was lovely yesterday, so we took full advantage of the fact by not accomplishing a single one of our chores we had slated for Saturday. We had a lovely time playing in the garden & look forward to more consistent warm weather so we can start doing this on a regular basis.

Sadly, today is rainy and miserable... so that means I have to finish putting away that mountain of laundry we brought back from India. No rest for the wicked, but I bet you already knew that :)

happy 2nd birthday babytron!

2011-04-21T10:48:00.000-07:00

This was from our wee babytron's second birthday party... She had an absolute blast when she saw all of her friends arriving - she got so excited about inviting people into the house. Saying 'COME IN! COME IN! THIS WAY! COME IN!" As you can see, she is a fan of Cupcake Royale. I'm sure she gets her good taste from me ;)

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T22:00:00.000-07:00

Today our wee babytron has gone on her first trick-or-treating sojourn. Quite frankly, I think she's a natural... She handled the neighbor-wooing like an old pro, and put candy in her basket as if it were her life's calling. Luckily, she still hasn't clued in to the fact that one can, given the opportunity, actually EAT the candy. Heh. Like that'll last...

I've uploaded some snaps of our wee babytron in action this evening... You can find the link here. Now that the young lady is in bed & the trick-or-treaters have settled down for the night, we will commence with our zombie film festival. Fresh roasted pumpkin seeds are ready to be pulled out of the oven as I type this... Goodnight all, and happy halloween!

Stop! You must not hop on pop!

2010-09-23T21:58:00.000-07:00

Our wee babytron, testing the effects of gravity...

funny things

2010-08-25T09:58:00.001-07:00

Recently, our little babytron has been up to some rather clever and amusing things on the communication front. We've been really enjoying her new found communication skills. Here are a few tidbits to keep everyone in the loop...

Sometimes a girl just needs a refreshing drink...
On a particularly hot afternoon this summer when I brought our little babytron home after work, she promptly walked over to the cabinet where we keep the plastic items, got a sippy cup and lid & proceeded to head toward the fridge where she handed me the cup & said 'mo' (which in baby speak means: more... specifically: hurry up and give me some of whatever it is that I want, and make it snappy).

This is so much nicer than having a meltdown over the fact that she has less-than-clever parents who can't read her mind. Crisis averted!

eew eew, I have a poo...
In addition to this bit of communication-genius, our little babytron has also taken to announcing when she has a particularly stinky present in her pants. This immediately led us to believe that she was ready to just ease right into toilet training like the little brainbox that she is. Being wise and dutiful parents (and frankly, over the whole diaper thing), we rushed right out to buy a potty for our wee babytron.

HA-HA! FOOLED YOU!

Apparently, poo-poo is a rather scintillating topic of conversation with the kids these days. Who knew? In the mean time, her new potty sits in the bathroom waiting for it's full potential to be realized. *sigh*

the choo debate...
Oftentimes, when our wee babytron sees a pair of shoes, she gets extremely excited & starts dancing around saying 'choos-choos-choos-choos!' Now, to the untrained ear, it's easy to mistake this exclamation for a basic love of shoes. Considering the family she was born into, this would probably not come as much of a surprise...

I, however, have a different theory... I believe what she is *actually* trying to say is: mommy needs a pair of jimmy choo's (or choos). Now, I'm no speech-language pathologist, but I think I may be onto something here... What do you think?

Maddie getting her spaghetti on...

2010-08-01T20:56:00.000-07:00

More pictures are here

It seems that our little babytron is QUITE the fan of spaghetti... Who knew that something Matt quickly threw together for dinner would be such a favorite? She ate three bowls of the stuff, and only stopped eating because we ran out.

walking walking walking!

2010-06-13T21:23:00.001-07:00

Here's a quickie of our little babytron walking... She seems to be picking it up rather quickly - so quickly in fact, that I couldn't resist the urge to run out & got her some new shoes. I'm such a sucker for adorable little shoes :)

wonder where she gets it...

2010-06-13T20:42:00.000-07:00

Here's a funny little video we took awhile ago just before our little babytron started walking. As you may have noticed, she has a firm grip on the word no. :)

too cool for school

2010-05-25T11:04:00.000-07:00

Last night, our little babytron decided that suction-cup bowls are for newbs. After much fit-throwing, we finally discovered that Madeline couldn't possibly bear to eat out of the offending spill-stopping bowl.

Conclusion: Suction-cup bowls are for amateurs. Which, apparently... our babytron is NOT. Gosh, I can't wait for the day when her ability to communicate displeasure will be less guessing-game and more rational-communication.

In other, more-positive news... Yogurt fixes everything!

iphone love

2010-05-18T11:15:00.000-07:00

This morning our little babytron figured out the basic use of my iphone in order to get to her baby app (bab bab lite). Currently, she can:

turn it on
unlock the screen
scroll through all my apps to find her specific baby-app
start her app
play with her app

Although, she is still a bit perplexed about the idea of not seeing the app behind the phone. It's interesting to watch her brain in motion. I wonder what's next, world domination?

here's a sample of the app in action, in case you're curious.

dancing queen...

2010-05-17T12:41:00.001-07:00

Here's a quickie I took with my iphone of Madeline getting her groove on when she thought we weren't watching. My favorite part is where she lifts her glow worm in order to give it a quick kiss. Go girl :)

attack!

2010-04-07T22:28:00.000-07:00

It seems that we have trained our little babytron to attack... This will come in handy when trying to fend off people trying to sell us magazine subscriptions. Well done Madeline!

pictures of you...

2010-03-02T22:21:00.000-08:00

We had a lovely 3-day weekend, and even managed to get a day off for the grownups on Monday. We went shopping in the morning & then off to the Edgewater for lunch, where I had the most fantastic salad with apple slices, cranberries & macadamia nuts (not to mention the sumptuous grilled cheese sandwich!).

Not only did we have time to be grownups, but we also managed to get some pictures taken of our little babytron just before her bath. The rest of the pictures can be found here. Enjoy!

an apple a day...

2010-03-02T22:09:00.000-08:00

This evening, Madeline has been munching on pieces of apple. Boy oh boy! I bet she had no idea that it tasted even BETTER when it wasn't in mush-form. She even crawled all the way across the room when she saw *me* eating a slice & reached up for more. I think I may have discovered a favorite :)

a quickie for today...

2010-02-19T16:08:00.000-08:00

Here's a quickie video of our babytron 'reorganizing' her cabinet in the kitchen. I'm looking forward to having a low-key weekend to update babytron before the next big batch of deadlines takes hold...

whew... so much has happened!

2010-01-24T17:19:00.000-08:00

So much has happened over the last week! As far as modes of transportation go, Madeline has dispensed with her pivot-move & graduated on to full-scale, real, crawling. This of course means that it's about time for us to get on the ball concerning baby proofing, as she is now able to get into just about everything. She had a merry old time with the trash bin in the office earlier today - I'm sure you can see where this is going...

So, like any good parent (using our little babytron as an excuse), I ran right out & bought the vacuum that we have been coveting for years now. It's amazing, to say the least. And this afternoon, I merrily went around the house vacuuming everything I could find. Of course, being such a perfect parent, I did all of this for Madeline. Riiiiight, for Madeline...

Moving on!

As if crawling weren't enough, our babytron has also started eating small pieces of food from her high-chair tray! This brings her one step closer to actually eating the same foods as we do (we like it when there's less work for us). So it's all very exciting, to say the least.

So exciting, perhaps, as to sometimes be a bit overwhelming. Here's a quick video I shot of our herione at lunch... It seems the pears and rice proved too much for her to bear.

early morning yoga...

2010-01-14T19:38:00.000-08:00

Yoga practice on Christmas morning... What a lovely way to start the day!

christmas eve at the beach...

2009-12-24T13:26:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas all! We have had the most lovely couple of days, now that the rain has finally stopped (for a while there, I was beginning to wonder if we had perhaps bought our tickets in error). It seems the vacation gods are once again smiling on us, as we are having a simply wonderful time!

Today we started the day properly with a morning swim out to the reef. We saw loads of lovely fish, as well as a rather cranky barracuda that escorted us both to AND FROM the reef. It must have been a special service since it's Christmas Eve, as I couldn't see how we could possibly be any more interesting to a barracuda than the scads of fish below us.

Barracudas aside, we spent a lovely day at the beach with Madeline. She is especially fond of the turtle grass that washes up on the beach. I think she was determined to collect each individual piece as it washed ashore. Yes, a big job, I know... but our babytron doesn't do anything by halves ;)

oh babytron, it's been awhile...

2009-12-21T18:08:00.000-08:00

Boy oh boy, where does the time go? It seems I'm starting quite a few of my posts with a similar sentiment lately. But really, WHERE DOES IT GO? It has been so lovely to have these last few days off, it makes me think that perhaps it's time to reevaluate our hectic schedule.

First step... Wait, hold on... I'm on vacation! I'm not reevaluating anything right now. So I guess I can check off the first step as complete. Hooray!

Here's a shot of Madeline and her first experience playing in the sand... That's your queue to make with all of the oohing and ahhing. :)

what a day!

2009-11-18T21:19:00.000-08:00

Today, Madeline had another go at eating peas. Unlike her first several attempts at the beloved green gloop, this evening she gobbled it all down (instead of pretending she was entirely too exhausted to manage another bite). Hooray for pea-progress!

In other news... Our young heroine has mastered the rolling from front to back technique! She had already mastered rolling from back to front, but it seems to have taken her awhile to get the knack of rolling in the opposite direction. Now that she has added this new skill to her bag of tricks, there's no stopping her! As a matter of fact, this evening she rolled all the way across the room!

She now comes equipped with her very own mode of transportation! Now we need to finally get that baby proofing started, before she gets a little bit *too* mobile.

No rest for the wicked, I guess... But I bet you already knew that ;)
:: edited to add the obligatory messy peas shot ::

weekend giggles

2009-11-08T16:29:00.001-08:00

Just a quickie of Madeline giggling & making weirdie mouth movements yesterday morning :)

halloween pictures!

2009-11-08T15:16:00.000-08:00

Since I have finally succumbed to the virus going around the office, I am forced to take it a bit easy today. Fortunatley, this means I have had the time to finish folding the laundry & upload the photos from Madeline's first Halloween.

Since she has already been making the noise, we were thinking that she should be Godzilla... Unfortunately, we got so busy with work & preparing for our Halloween party, we weren't able to purchase a costume in time for Madeline. Luckily, her super-nanny saved the day one afternoon and arrived with an outfit at the last minute - Hooray for super-nannies!

Click here for the rest of the pics

just so we're clear...

2009-10-28T21:47:00.000-07:00

Dear Universe,

I am so looking forward to shoe shopping for our little babytron... Please, please, please help me to resist temptation until she actually NEEDS shoes.

This is going to be more difficult than it may seem...

first foods!

2009-10-27T21:05:00.001-07:00

Tonight Madeline had her first vegetable. I decided to go with carrots, since we had an entire bagful of mini carrots I had harvested from our veggie garden. So, as soon as I got home from work, I boiled them & ground them up in our food processor to make fresh, wonderful baby food.

Perfect, fresh, local, organic, highly-nutritious baby food...
Apparently, Maddie didn't agree.

Maddie playing with her feet.

2009-10-05T22:04:00.000-07:00

Here is some footage of Maddie entertaining herself after a bath.

Maddie is eating!

2009-10-04T21:36:00.000-07:00

This was Maddie's second real meal, I'm not sure she was too impressed by rice cereal (I don't think I would be either) BUT there are tastier (and messier) foods to come.

obligatory bath photo

2009-09-29T09:12:00.000-07:00

We wouldn't be proper parents if we didn't have naked baby pictures to use as blackmail material later in life. I like to call it 'our little insurance policy.' Looking at the pic though, there may be a glaring error in my logic...

Maddie is sitting

2009-09-28T21:43:00.000-07:00

Well just as we were thinking that Maddie wasn't really ready to sit up...... here she is showing us that we don't have a clue.....admittedly she is a bit wobbly and has a tendency to slowly "melt" and end up with her nose touching the floor, BUT she is sitting, so well done Maddie!

captain bouncy pants

2009-09-12T22:05:00.000-07:00

I have been sick for the last three weeks, and at the tail end of my cold I suddenly developed the stomach flu. Yeah, no rest for the wicked, eh? Before you start worrying, Madeline is healthy as a horse. She's been merrily stealing all of my antibodies ;)

I suppose my illness is the only excuse we have for purchasing the horrible abomination of a baby toy you see below. It's hideous, and an affront to any and all design sensibilities. To make things worse... Madeline absolutely loves it.

Yes, we have officially lost the war against ugly baby clutter. But boy am I grateful to have that horrible contraption, at least for the time being...

zowie!

2009-08-24T21:55:00.000-07:00

Boy does time fly - Madeline is almost five months old now (at least, she *will* be five months old on this coming Thrursday)... Hooboy, where does the time go?

Took our lady to the doctor the other day and wow, is she a biggie! As of last Wednesday (the 19th), she is weighing in at 16.7 pounds. She is such a happy little girl that she managed to giggle through BOTH vaccinations. Nice.

Gloat moment: The nurse said that she wished all of her patients were as happy as our little babytron. Heh. Awesome. We WIN!

milestone weekend...

2009-08-11T13:40:00.000-07:00

What a weekend - phew! It seems that Matt & I weren't the only ones working hard on our respective to-do lists... Maddie has also been working on her own little list of milestones!

First of all, last week she turned four months old. I suppose her four month birthday was just the kind of kick in the pants she needed to get some new milestones checked off her list.

On Friday night, she slept through the night without the aid of a swaddle (which is a relief, as we only have one light swaddle blanket & it has been through the washer so many times that I often found myself wondering if it would hold up for much longer).
On Saturday, she rolled over from her back to her front. Normally at this age, generally babies start rolling from front to back (with back to front following right around the 6 month mark). Leave it to Maddie to sort out the tricky bits first ;)
And as if that weren't enough, Maddie has also started going to bed without needing to be fed into a stupor. We can just plop her down in her crib & she gabs for awhile before going off to sleep on her own -- yay!

We shot some quick video of Madeline working on her technique this morning before she was whisked off to care by her super nanny - check it out...

I especially love Matt's narration of events as they happen... ;)

lovely, lovely day...

2009-08-09T14:51:00.000-07:00

Today, we have been working in the garden - what a lovely day it has been. We have been working very hard getting the garden back to it's former (more tidy) state. Right now, Madeline is asleep in her swing under the shade of the umbrella & I am taking a much needed break until Matt gets back with new bark for the beds (something that is LONG overdue).

During his week off, Matt will be laying a new patio with 24" concrete pavers (near the guest bedroom window), so that we can finally move our patio set away from the sliding glass door. I can't wait until it's finished... It's the first step towards the realization of our total garden plan that we have been dreaming about for years. I think it's about time we get this finished so we can move on to steps 2 & 3 (which includes a deck, a modern looking support for grapes & wisteria over the current patio & an outdoor firepit!). Then again... I will be sitting on my bum, working on the computer while Matt is slaving away in the garden... so I don't really have the right to get imatient about it. I just wish it could all be done now so we can move on (and have lots of garden parties)!

Oops, sounds like Matthew is back... better go help carry bags of bark!
Have a great weekend all - will try to get some pics uploaded tonight :)

first day at care...

2009-08-03T19:22:00.000-07:00

Madeline's first day at care was a rousing success! She was so happy all day & wasn't affected in the slightest by any of the other boisterous children. When she came home, she was even happier than normal & started giggling at anything and everything. Including the lights on the ceiling. :)

Now we are about to give her a bath & get her to bed soon(ish). If she sleeps through the night, then we will know it was a complete success. Though, I'm not holding my breath...

Update: She slept almost all the way through the night! Considering that she went to bed early (she was completely wiped out from a full day of being cute), I think she's doing pretty well :D

lovely weekend

2009-08-01T17:17:00.000-07:00

We have been having a fantastic relaxing weekend, getting everything ready for Madeline to go into full-day care on Monday. I have been busily packing her diaper bag, doing laundry and organizing all of the gear (extra car seat, diapers, milk, bottles, extra clothes, the kitchen sink) to be picked up with her on Monday morning.

Madeline has been ever so patient with me while I flit around the house doing all of the prep-for-care chores. She was happily sitting on the floor & playing with her toys all morning. Here's a quick snap I took with my iphone during her tummy time. Madeline is such a joy to be with, I hope she stays this happy and contented forever. :)

Back to work...

2009-07-20T21:51:00.000-07:00

Today was the first day back to work, and what a fantastic day it was! Gosh, for me, it seems like working and having a little one is the perfect mix of susie homemaker and career woman. Maddie seemed to sense that all the planets were in perfect alignment, and was a complete angel today. It was almost as if she knew that my perfect work/life balance has finally been achieved. Although, it helps when you're working from home with Madeline on her activity mat on the office floor.

Heh. Having a completely awesome computer setup doesn't hurt either ;)

Speaking of the activity mat... Here's some footage we took over the weekend of her giggling at her reflection. It's a long one, so if you're just after the giggly parts, you can shut it off after the first set of giggles. But if you're patient, you get to see big juicy BABY THIGHS!

Yes, I am completely thrilled to be back at work!

awwwww

2009-07-02T18:38:00.000-07:00

more pics are here - courtesy of my super awesome iphone!

iphone love...

2009-07-02T18:02:00.000-07:00

Matt recently found a new app for our iphones called looptastic. OMG. I can't stop playing with it! I was awake entirely too late last night laying down new tracks. I even ran into James on Skype from my phone - thinking it was Kirsten, I accidentally called him a foxy lady (oops).

Whooboy, was I tired this morning though. When our babytron woke up, I could barely muster the strength to go get her out of her bed. Honestly, I can't even remember if it was me that even went to get her. It was like having a killer hangover without the fun of the wild night out beforehand. Blergh.

Here's a clip of looptastic in action. Perhaps then you'll understand...

One really cool thing about it is that we can hook up our phones to the stereo system for a live dj set (which comes in rather handy for the next time we have a party). You should hear it on real speakers - WOW!

I guess looptastic is just one more reason to love love LOVE our iphones. How on earth did we ever live without them? I'm totally looking forward to going back to work so I can once again justify my technology purchases. That, and have a bit of free time to build my own shiny new app.

I'm such a nerd ;)

Maybe it's something in the water...

2009-06-17T16:24:00.001-07:00

It seems that everyone I know is either pregnant or has very recently had a new baby. Maybe it's something in the water... Since the whole baby gear purchasing ordeal can be a bit overwhelming, here's a list of the most useful baby items we have. Here you go ladies, I hope it helps to narrow down the choices a bit ;)

So, the most useful (as in, can't live without) items we have are:

our carseat, which goes without saying

our stroller, because it folds up the smallest out of any stroller currently on the market, and the carseat we have also snaps into the top of the stroller. This means that it will last for Maddie's entire childhood, not just a portion of it

our knockoff changing station that Matt made, it's nice to not have to dedicate an entire piece of furniture to changing diapers, AND it's at a much better height than most changing tables (which is nice for your back), AND it was a bargain! Way to go with your handiwork, Matt!

our rocking chair & ottoman, which with a messed up tailbone, is the only chair that I can comfortably sit in for extended periods of time. This comes in especially handy when stuck in a feeding loop.

our moses basket that we got from Tony & Nadine... Madeline has practically lived in it until recently. It has been great to have her next to the bed for night feedings & I can carry her around from room to room without disturbing her sleep (which is a fantastic feature).

our boppy, most likely the most useful thing I didn't think I needed. I can't live without it. So much so, that with my tailbone scenario, I am currently practicing a two-boppy solution. You know, like the two-state solution... but cushier ;)

my iphone. Seriously. Hands down, best piece of technology EVER. When you're stuck in a feeding loop, or awake in the middle of the night, it's SO fantastic to have any and all information and contacts at your fingertips. I really have no idea how I managed to raise Victoria without one. I can't live without it. Period.

Oops, our little lady is waking up. She has had a hard day today (vaccinations @ the doctor's office), so I had better make with the snuggling... and fast! ;)

2009-06-17T16:20:00.001-07:00

Hello blogosphere, I am finally here!

Let's get vocal!

2009-06-09T17:47:00.000-07:00

Today, Madeline has provided us with a running commentary on the state of our nation today... Too bad we can't understand a word of it :)

Reason number eight-hundred-bazillion why I love my hubby

2009-06-08T22:45:00.000-07:00

This evening, as has become our custom lately, Matt arrived home from work & took over the baby so that I could assemble dinner. This, of course, is in the hope that we might get a chance to all eat at the table like normal humans. HA!

So, when doing the baby-handoff, I also give him the burp cloth, as I had just finished feeding our little babytron & she has a special talent of getting your favorite shirts all puke-stinky. Bear in mind... These aren't your run of the mill, throw a diaper over your shoulder, kind of burp cloths. No sir-eee! We have fancy burp cloths... with the contoured neck thing. Ooooooh, fanceeeey!

Anywho... Matt toddles off with Maddie & I hear from the other room "I look like Mad Max!" I kind of giggle to myself & decide right then & there that any man that can suspend his disbelief enough to make the leap from pink frou-frou burp cloth to Mad Max has GOT to be the man for me!

Yeah, me & Mad Max... We're a pretty good team.

wooohoo!

2009-06-06T22:19:00.001-07:00

Well aren't *I* posty mcposterson today! I just had to drop a quick line... Madeline is currently sleeping in HER OWN ROOM! Granted, it has only been about half an hour since I got her off to sleep... But hey, it seems noteworthy to me at least.

It's funny how something so simple has suddenly become 'breaking news'. Oh dear, I must really get out more.

hearty eating... or captain complainey pants

2009-06-06T15:23:00.000-07:00

This weekend, Matt & I are trying to space out Madeline's feedings so that she doesn't graze nonstop throughout the day. We're trying to arrange it so that she has about 3 hours between feeds, instead of 40 minutes to an hour (or 2 hours, if I'm lucky). We're hoping that spacing out Madeline's feeds will then lead to more hours slept at night, as I need to get her sorted & hopefully even sleeping in her own room before I go back to work. I'm grateful to have Matt here to help distract her & keep her on track (feedings-wise). I even have a few minutes to myself to blog a bit more in babytron (WHOA, decadence!) Yeah, the party never stops here in west seattle.

And here comes the complainey part...
Ok, so I may have been a BIT misguided about what my maternity leave was going to be like... It seems that my 'mommy vacation' is turning out to be a lot more work than I had imagined (or scheduled for, for that matter). It's not really the high-fashion, Brangelina* brand, trophy-wife role that I had pictured myself starring in. I even completely forgot about my hair appointment... and as you know, when it takes six weeks to get in, missing a hair appointment SIMPLY ISN'T DONE. What an idiot I am. Grr.

Oh well, at least I managed to pick up some cute summer shoes for those precious moments when I *do* get to pretend to be fabulous... That is, until Maddie decides I'm getting a bit too full of myself & knocks me down a few notches by pooping on me in public.

*sigh*

In other news...
It was great having Jean & John here - they were a fantastic help - it was so wonderful to have an extra pair of hands to distract Maddie while I made dinner or a bathroom run. I even got to put on makeup (several times!) That and the endless supply of tea was wonderful - what a treat!

Next time they visit, I am hoping to have a bit more of a schedule worked out so that we can have some grown up entertainment worked into the trip (and when I say excitement, I'm not referring to the car-accident variety, either). More on that in another post...

For now, I am off to become the human milk machine...

*From Urban Dictionary - Brangelina: A baby-adopting, high fashion, chateau-dwelling force of nature that has starred in hundreds of films and dated/been married to approximately half the population of Hollywood.

Off in dreamland...

2009-06-05T19:47:00.000-07:00

Well I finally got Maddie off to sleep after many hours of feeding, changing and entertaining (wash. rinse. repeat) I have been doing this since I got home today around 4 (it's now almost 8pm), & I thought I would finally get a chance to update babytron. Of course now, as I type this, she is starting to stir (hrm).

Well, here's a short clip of video that I took when Maddie was 6 weeks and one day old. It seems that she isn't really into being a performing monkey, but we'll soon remedy that ;)

Now she's 7 weeks old, and boy oh boy is she starting to vocalize! I will try to shoot some video this weekend while I have an extra pair of hands to help out. Ooops! Speaking of vocalizing... She's now making it remarkably clear that it's time for her to eat again.

No rest for the wicked, I guess...

Happy 3 week birthday Maddie!

2009-05-07T11:53:00.000-07:00

Today Madeline is 3 weeks old. It's strange to believe that she hasn't been around for longer than that - it seems like she has always been here. So, in celebration... she and I are having our own little picnic downstairs while watching back to back episodes of Dr Who.

Last night Matt brought home a video camera, so of course... we had to try it out. So today, with our new toy, I managed to film the most uneventful baby video in all of existence. The funny bit is, I could watch her being uneventful all day :)

Gosh I love technology!

Maddie goes cordless!

2009-04-27T10:27:00.000-07:00

So, finally she is rid of that nasty bit of cord that gives me the shivers every time I change her diaper - hooray! I'm so glad it came off when Matt was changing her, I think I may have lost my lunch had it happened to me (eew!).

Now of course, with the cord gone... Let the baby bath (aka: blackmail) pictures commence!

News from the incredible shrinking belly...
Boy oh boy is postpartum weight loss exciting! I have lost about 30 pounds in the last 10 days! Yes of COURSE I know that a lot of that weight was our little babytron, but hey... don't burst my bubble, ok?

I was SO disappointed in the hospital after Madeline was born to look down and see this huge belly still there... At that point, I looked about 6-7 months pregnant (UGH!). But every day it has gotten miraculously smaller... It's now to the point where I just look like I might have pigged out over the last week or two - I am looking forward to getting the go ahead to go back to the gym to keep this momentum going - whoohoo!

Ooops, Maddie is waking up again... Man that girl can EAT! I'll try to catch up a bit more later. Right now I'm quite pleased that I am able to sit for a bit & type this, instead of doing it while laying down.

2009-04-22T20:50:00.000-07:00

Day six after Madeline's arrival, and things are going extremely well. We took her for her first doctor's appointment yesterday, and all is going well. Her pediatrician is completely and utterly fantastic - little did we know that he has been voted best pediatrician by Seattle Metropolitan several years in a row (huh. who knew?).

It was a strange experience in the waiting room... They have a special area for newborns - all of the other babies were so very tiny and strange looking, while Madeline is so lovely and plump. I know how terrible this may seem, but I was secretly pleased that our little one is so lovely & contented while the others were so scrawny & strange looking. All of the tailbone damage and stitches were completely worth our perfect little end result. Perhaps I could be a bit biased though...

After the doctor's appointment we had lunch & went on a little outing to babies r us to pick up some stuff that we needed (I was looking for some sort of tailbone support pillow, as sitting is quite painful & I'd like to take as little of the pain medication as possible while nursing). While at babies r us, we got stuck in the clothing section. Boy oh boy is it difficult to shop for baby clothes! Everything is so ridiculously CUTE! We found it rather daunting just to narrow it down to a few items. I was glad that we both were there, so that we could help each other finally come to a decision. Of course, through all of this Maddie was perfectly content to just hang out in her carrier while we shopped. As it stands, we couldn't ask for a happier little one :)

Matthew is completely smitten with Madeline and has been nothing but helpful. He has taken to baby care like a duck to water and is also handling a lot of the house duties right now. It will be a shame when he has to go back to work, I am rather enjoying all of us having so much time together :)

oops... I am being hailed, more later...

Madeline Sinclaire Rielly makes her debut!

2009-04-18T16:59:00.000-07:00

It's day 2 of our little one's existence & already she has managed to wrap all of us around her little finger. I'll post more later about the whole adventure. Right now, suffice to say, she is absolutely beautiful & stealing our hearts one second at a time. Click the picture below to see more :)

From Madeline Sinclaire Rielly

Ack!

2009-04-14T10:41:00.001-07:00

I haven't posted in awhile, as I really haven't had anything to report lately. Let me warn you now that this will be a rather whiney post... I am at my wit's end. Run away while you can :)

I have been having timeable, painful contractions off and on for the past month. I quit my Microsoft contract two weeks early as our little one's arrival was supposed to happen 'any day now' - this has been going on for the past four weeks. Ugh. I am exhausted, frustrated, and losing faith in the concept of this pregnancy ever reaching an end point. At this point, I wonder if I will even believe when I actually AM in labor. I'm not really keen on having our little one at home - it has the potential to be awfully messy. Eeew.

We had another frustrating evening last night. I had spent the day feeling... incorrect. I had been having pretty constant menstrual-like pain and contractions off and on throughout the day, but chose to ignore it, as they weren't unbearable or anything worth getting everyone up in arms about. I knew that if this was real there would be a point where I couldn't ignore them any longer.

Well, that point came last night when I finally allowed Matt to start timing them. As you may have guessed... I am getting REALLY sick of timing contractions. At that point, they were coming about 2-3 minutes apart, lasting between 1 to 1:30 minutes for more than an hour, and were too painful to speak through. I realize that this is further along than I am suppposed to wait, but I am having a rather difficult time believing when labor is truly happening these days.

Just as I had started to give in to the idea that maybe we should go to the hospital again, the last few contractions before we left seemed less intense. I asked Matt to wait just a bit longer & once again, as I figured... the whole process slowed down. Again. Ugh. To be honest though, I was so tired by that point that I welcomed the rest.

Right now, I'm feeling like the boy who cried wolf. When labor decides to ACTUALLY progress, either myself or Matt won't believe that it's really happening. Hrm. Poor Matt - I bet he's having a difficult time staying positive through all of these false alarms (though he would never admit it).

On the plus side... I spoke to the doctor this morning & she is as stumped by my situation as I am. So, at least I'm not going completely mental. I have another appointment tomorrow, and will report on status if anything changes... Until then, I remain all dressed up with nowhere to go. Grr.

whoohoo - getting things done!

2009-03-21T17:03:00.000-07:00

Well, we are certainly getting loads of things done lately. I guess it just takes a scare like the other night to encourage us to get everything finished, eh? So far, we have done the following:

Finished replacing the doorhandles in the upstairs hall (whoohoo - finally!)
Replaced the rest of the bronze railing brackets in the downstairs stairwell, I will do them in the upstairs stairwell as soon as our screwdriver finishes charging back up (hrm)
Replaced the lights in the downstairs stairwell
Ordered new lights for the upstairs stairwell
Hung the mobile in the baby's room... and finished arranging the rest of the baby parephenalia in our babytron's room
Ordered the rest of the most essential baby gear, so now all we're waiting for is diapers to arrive via UPS
Assembled our pod bouncer (it arrived today - squee!)
Made arrangements to cook a bunch of meals ahead of time in an industrial kitchen here in West Seattle on Thursday. Since all the veggies are chopped & ready to go, I should be able to bang them all out in a few hours (whoopie!)
It's a beautiful day, so Matt is currently tidying up the garden. He mowed and fertilized the grass, as well as treated if for moss
Currently, he's digging up bushes that didn't survive snowpocalypse 2008 and trimming any other bushes that grew a bit out of control last year. Ooh, I am SO excited about getting the garden back in order!

Now for tomorrow...

Finish painting the downstairs
Do the final coat of stain on the changing station

and really, after that... I think that's it... it's looking like we're going to make it after all! Hooray!

What a lovely hubby I have!

2009-03-14T16:43:00.000-07:00

Today, Matt has spent the majority of the day working on finishing up our various house projects. In my current invalid state, I have been no help whatsoever. I feel rather guilty about not being able to help, but I have to say... Matt has been lovely about doing everything himself :)

First thing this morning, he made us some tea & then got started on the wall graphics for the upstairs hallway. The graphics had arrived on Friday, so we have been itching to get them up on the wall... oh. my. GOD. They look amazing! And are the perfect shade of magenta to tie all of the other magenta stuff together on the main level of the house. It's (the magenta) really starting to look like a complete idea, instead of a crazy whim. Hooray!

I can't wait until everyone gets to see them, they're perfect! Now I just need to find the correct hallway lights and that section of the house can be checked off the list as done. It's making me inspired to finally do the fireplace wall as well... :D

Not only did Matt do the wall graphics (which were way more difficult than one would expect), but he also finished assembling our knockoff oeuf changing station & might even get to staining it a bit later this evening... That is, if we make it to Home Depot for wood putty today.

Right now, Matt is taking a well-deserved rest & watching a soccer game that he recorded earlier this morning. I think he deserves some tea - Gooooo, Matt! :)

uh, schedule?

2009-03-13T13:16:00.000-07:00

It's been a crazy couple of days, that's for sure! On Wednesday, I kept having contractions at work, but they weren't really painful and I had a lot of meetings (and work to do) that day, so I decided not to pay attention to them until I had the time to deal with them. I assumed that it was just pre-labor and didn't really give it another thought.

As the evening wore on, the contractions kept getting closer together and more painful. Which obviously is what I should be watching out for. The tricky part was, I remember contractions being MUCH more painful than these were... So the timing was right, but the pain level was all wrong. Hrm. Confusing.

So, we spent the entire night on Wednesday timing contractions, speaking to the doctor, and trying to get the whole labor process to stop. I spent the evening drinking a ton of water, laying on my left side, and taking a bath in order to relax everything enough so this fakie labor didn't turn into real labor. The last thing we wanted was to have our babytron make her debut early (eek). Doesn't she know that it's WAY more fashionable to show up late than early? Sheesh!

Even though everything had slowed down drastically, we still went to the doc on Thursday morning in order to check to make sure everything was ok. It seems that as of Thursday morning, I was 2cm dilated and am now on bed rest until next week. It seems that after next week, if our babytron makes her debut, everything should be fine. Heh. I still plan on working from home next week... I do NOT plan on being stuck in traffic on my way home from work when our babytron decides it's time for her to announce her arrival.

I guess we never thought of our babytron ever arriving EARLY. We have been doing all we can to get everything ready (just in case). And I have to say, thank goodness for the internet! Yesterday, while in bed, I ordered the rest of the missing baby gear online and had groceries for the week delivered. We are indeed very lucky to have access to so many services.

In other news...

I wanted to thank James & Kirsten for my birthday pressies - I LOVE the tingtings! They arrived the other day, and I haven't had the time to stop and say thank you. So, thank you! :D

The mobile arrived today, and it's amazing! I can't wait for everyone to see it in real life. I hope to hang it this evening when Matt gets home - Thank you Jean & John!
I think we may have nailed the name game for our little babytron. I think we'll just wait until she is born & we see her before we make a final judgment call on that.

Oh, and Victoria got a job! She starts on Monday... She is SO excited to be earning her own pocket money - hooray for her!

Now, back to watching back-to-back Heroes episodes... I'm really getting into it, and am LOVING this forced relaxation that is allowing me to take the time to do so :)

Whew...

2009-03-07T21:37:00.000-08:00

Been busy, as ever. On Friday, after my doc appt, I managed to secure a spot for us in a 2-day fast-track birthing class. Since we had been waitlisted until the end of March, it was nice to be able to squeak into a class so easily (another couple had canceled).

So, today (Saturday) we spent the better part of this morning and afternoon doing the birthing class. It's amazing how much you forget in 16 years (and how much is different). It also made me realize how serious my labor after the car accident actually was - it was quite unnerving, actually. Glad I was in too much shock to realize what was going on at the time. :|

After our class we had a lovely late lunch at Chutney's where they have the BEST tofu & peas curry on the planet. I've already decided to check to see if they deliver to the hospital - whoohoo!

When we got home, we started building the changing station, and should be able to have it finished most certainly by next weekend. Hooray, one less thing to do!

Tomorrow brings one more fast-track class & then we can knock THAT off our to-do list as well. Whew, it's good to get things closer to finished. I realized today that we only have 5 weeks left until babytron is born...

We had better hurry up and think of a name (eek!).

cripes... deadline is looming!

2009-03-03T19:51:00.000-08:00

Only 6 weeks left - and STILL so much to do! This whole car crash thing has really put a kink in our plans for getting everything done in time. Hrm.

Ok, mental to-do list...

Make slipcover for footstool in the nursery

Make knockoff changing station (this weekend?)

Finish painting downstairs

Get wall graphics ordered & placed for upstairs stairwell

Finish replacing door handles in upstairs hallway

Get mobile ordered - I found THE mobile... I just need to get it soon... Before it's sold!!

Start making up the difference in the baby registry, so we're not hit with a big bill right after babytron is born

Get taxes sorted & finished

Stock freezer with a month's worth of meals

Maybe even get garden plans finalized & materials priced out, if there's still time

Oh yeah, and sign up for those pesky childbirth classes - if I can still get in at this point - ugh

No rest for the wicked. Hrm.

a quickie...

2009-02-10T11:50:00.000-08:00

Here are some quick snaps I took of the nursery this morning before leaving for work. As you can see, it's a work in progress... but at least it's starting to look like a room, instead of a baby-gear dumping ground. Funnily enough, upon completion... I realized that it looks alot like our wedding cake :)

Be aware that I took these pics with my phone, so the quality isn't spectacular. But hey... It's fast and convenient :)

in other, more birthday-related news...

2009-02-08T19:31:00.000-08:00

Thank you everyone for all of the lovely flowers that were sent - the house is full of flowers, and it all looks so lovely!

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

whew, busy weekend...

2009-02-08T17:53:00.001-08:00

Boy oh boy, am I TIRED! We just finished painting most of the downstairs - there's one wall left to finish, but we decided to leave it for this weekend, as we would have had to take the curtains down :|

So far, it's looking really good - our paintings look excellent on the green, the whole room seems much more cozy now that it's no longer builder's-beige. HOORAY, one more thing to (almost) cross off our to-do list!

Although, phew... it's good to sit down & be done for the evening.

Speaking of our to-do list... I finally got the baby's room together! On Friday, between doctor's appointments, I went to IKEA as well as other stores around town to finish picking up the remaining bits that I needed in order to get everything together on Saturday...

Starting first thing in the morning... I installed a new light, put up some curtains, put up more paper lanterns, framed the robot art I got off etsy, organized and put away all of the miscellaneous baby gear that has accumulated, and placed some multi-sized circles on the walls. It's looking really fantastic - and it's such a relief to not have to stress about getting the room finished anymore.

Now, all there is left to do on the nursery is:

find the perfect rug, which is trickier than it sounds

find the perfect mobile, which is also proving more difficult than I think it needs to be

make our own knock off of the oeuf changing station (image below). I guess I just can't bring myself to spend close to $300 on what is essentially a poop tray - I am a bargain shopper after all.

find or make a simple diaper organizer that I can hang off the back side of the crib, next to our knockoff oeuf changing station

sew a slipcover for the rocking chair's footstool

I should be able to get the slipcover finished on the weekend after next, while Matt is in Las Vegas... I'll have the house to myself, and will be able to focus primarily on things that I want to get finished.

scan today...

2009-02-06T20:21:00.000-08:00

Had another fancy 3D scan today @ Philips & got some good pictures of our little babytron. She's absolutely lovely! Or maybe I'm just biased... see for yourselves.

whoowee - whirlwind...

2009-02-03T19:56:00.001-08:00

As if you haven't heard it all before, we've been busy... what's new? Well I managed to throw a smashing bridal shower for my friend Andrea who will be leaving for her wedding in India in less than two weeks. Since we aren't able to travel to India for the wedding, I decided to throw Andrea a little party on the west coast instead... We had the shower at Poco Wine Room in a tiny, lovely little space upstairs. I look forward to going back in the not too distant future. You know... one day when I don't have to worry about making sure everyone is having a good time.

About making sure everyone is having a good time... It seems that ever since I have been pregnant, such a simple task as being the life of the party seems so... exhausting. I'm looking forward to having enough energy for everyone again in the near future. I feel like I'm letting people down by not being a bubbling ball of fun.

Ok, so I'm pretty much over it. ;)

With that in mind, my pal Wendy & I planned the best baby shower ever! Loads of fun, without being too typical, average, or boring. It was definately not your everyday baby shower - THAT'S for sure. Not only that... But there was so much going on, I didn't feel the need to entertain ANYONE - there was enough glam and glitter for even the most subdued of the group to stand up & clap, dance or sing along :)

We started the evening with dinner at Julia's on Broadway, and then headed to the bar while they set up for the show. The show, BTW was a cabaret/drag show with more female impersonators than you could shake a stick at. It was FANTASTIC! And our seats were amazing! Here's a video of some of the goings on at Julia's... We will most certainly have to bring you next time you're in town. It's an absolute blast!

Garden Of Allah Featuring LeFauX

On Saturday, I spent the day tidying the garden as best I could after snopocalypse 2008 - I have been dreaming again about what I should plant where for this summer's garden. I commenced cleaning out the veggie beds & put a layer of compost on top to ready the soil for spring. With that taken care of, I made considerable headway on all the other planting beds, as well as readying the lawn for spring. I pulled weeds, pruned hedges, mowed, edged and fertilized pretty much everything that I could in the back yard. This weekend, I plan to treat the lawn for moss, and see if I can get some rhubarb planted while I'm at it.

On Sunday, along with being tired from the wild night out on Saturday night, we got started on painting the downstairs. It's a lovely mossy green, and is sure to make the downstairs tv area, as well as the downstairs stairwell look like much more of a finished room. I think we will finish it up this coming weekend. Hooray!

aaaaand, as if that's not enough... I plan on going to IKEA to get some small bits and bobs (namely, frames, ande maybe a rug) for our little babytron's room. I plan on getting our babytron's much closer to finished relatively soon... I promise to post pics when it no longer looks like a dumping ground of baby parephenalia.

So much to do, so little time... No rest for the wicked, I guess :)

hooray!

2009-01-26T20:01:00.000-08:00

Mischka is back (much to Sascha's chagrin)! He arrived at the back door this evening, and looks terribly thin... Thin or not, he's back - and we are THRILLED!

Hooray!

OMG awesome

2009-01-23T17:27:00.000-08:00

Speaking of self control... I'm pretty pleased with myself over the fact that I have NOT purchased the following item. Goooo ME!

self control? what's that?

2009-01-23T16:53:00.000-08:00

Oh dear dear dear... Look what I just did. It seems that me & self-control no longer hang.

I'm such a sucker...

2009-01-23T14:28:00.001-08:00

Have been having difficulty focusing on work today... So, like a good worker, I have decided to look online for babytron bedding instead. And of course, as always, Etsy didn't disappoint... Look what I just got!!

and the verdict is...

2009-01-23T12:07:00.000-08:00

It's a GIRL! We finally have official, official word! I have to get back to work... but I thought I would post a quickie-update to let those on the continent know the score.

More later tonight, after I have met the most recent design deadline. In the mean time, have a bit of off-color humor. ;)

holy robots, batman!

2009-01-10T12:12:00.001-08:00

Starting to really take this nursery decorating thing rather seriously today, I'm feeling the looming deadline... I have been on the hunt for robot-related paraphenalia all morning. Obviously, the first stop was Etsy, and boy-howdy... Etsy didn't let me down. Now the hardest part will be which items to choose & learning to restrain myself enough so I don't just get them all - squeeee! :D

Starting off the OHMYGOD I SO NEED THIS category, is the most fabulous little robot made entirely of reclaimed items. You should check out this person's Etsy shop, it's full of endless wonder and excitement (at least, it was for me).

And here's another amazing find from the same artist...

and of course, let's not forget Julius, another fantastic little robot I found in my Etsy searches today. Check him out!

and the verdict is...

2009-01-09T18:43:00.000-08:00

Boy, what a day! It seems that the receptionist failed to tell the ultrasound technician that I was had checked in and in the waiting room. So, after waiting there for about 45 minutes, Matt asked when we were going to be seen...

So, we were sent back to one of the rooms where I *thought* I was supposed to have an ultrasound, the doctor came in to inform us that there had been a terrible mix up and I wasn't going to be able to have an ultrasound today.

I just about started bawling right then & there. I suppose there is *one* benefit to having all of these crazy hormones going on... I think the doctor felt very sorry for us at this point.

So, even though it was against the rules (officially, only the ultrasound technicians are allowed to perform ultrasounds), our doctor pulled a mini ultrasound machine into the room & did a quick secret scan to help us determine the sex of our little babytron.

And the final word is... It's a girl... maybe. At least, according to the tiny Fisher Price ultrasound machine today. It's really hard to see anything on that miniscule, grainy screen. In all honesty, I couldn't really see much at all.

We have ANOTHER ultrasound scheduled for two weeks from now, so hopefully then we will get the OFFICIAL official word from the ultrasound technician. Cripes.

big day tomorrow...

2009-01-08T22:04:00.000-08:00

This evening Matt brought home a TON of baby gear that was given to us by some co-workers of his. It's awesome to be able to cross some of those things off the to-be-purchased list... Boy, do all of these things add up! It's nice to be able to save a bit of money wherever we can. Woohoo! Thanks Tony & Nadine!

Tomorrow is the day where (hopefully) all will be revealed as far as our little babytron's sex is concerned. After we find out, I am hoping to spend the rest of the afternoon sorting out the nursery a bit.

Speaking of the nursery... It seems that someone left the door open the other day and Mischka has discovered the rocking chair...

Note to self: Finish making squarey's arms before getting distracted with the next project.

quote of the day...

2009-01-06T10:49:00.001-08:00

I belong to a 'used baby stuff for sale' mailing list here @ Microsoft. On the whole it's pretty good. I have seen lots of good deals on baby gear that I think will save us money in the long run. With the recent weather, there has been a run of winter baby gear such as skis, goggles, snow suits, etc. One of today's posts takes the cake though.

"I need two pair of four year olds. If you have a pair you want to unload, I’d love to hear from you. Thanks."

heee!

ode to joy...

2009-01-02T22:33:00.001-08:00

Just got back from Beethoven's 9th at Benaroya Hall. What a lovely treat! I don't think there is a bad seat in that entire place, and the chorus was fantastic! According to the activity level, I think our Babytron might just be a Beethoven fan. Fair enough, I am too :)

Ooh, I just uploaded some pics from the Ghostland Observatory show on New Year's eve. What a fantastic show, the laser display was AMAZING!! I'm sure everyone there had quite a laugh over the pregnant lady rocking out with the best of them. Big belly be damned ;)

HA! It seems that people have already posted video from New Year's show on youtube... Check it out below!

whoa, discovery!

2009-01-02T13:30:00.000-08:00

I have just discovered the brilliance that is Amazon Fresh! Imagine almost never having to go to the grocery store again... What a DREAM! I had used other grocery delivery services before, but it was often expensive and more hassle than it was worth, as they didn't have alot of the items one would buy, and you had to be home in order to receive the groceries. As far as I'm concerned, if you have to be *home* to receive the groceries, then you may as well go to the store (blech!).

Not so with Amazon Fresh! They deliver next day (even if you make your order at midnight the night before), and if there's anything else you need from Amazon (you know... books, dvds, diapers, baby bottles), they will add it to your order for free! whoohoo!

Ok, so maybe I'm getting perhaps a bit overly-excited about something as simple as grocery delivery... But hey, at least I'm easily amused! I'm thinking that this service is going to be a life-saver when our babytron has arrived.

Oh, modern world... you are so good to us!

shame on me...

2009-01-01T22:10:00.000-08:00

I just realized that, yes of course I have been too busy to post in babytron... But I didn't realize exactly *how* neglectful I had been of this blog until this evening. Last post on December 6th? Oh dear dear dear. Shameful.

Not much to update in the news department, except that our little babytron is QUITE active. It's strange how different one pregnancy can be from another. With Victoria, there were just slow strange rolling movements; while with our little babytron, it feels more like someone is going to punch a hole in my belly... Almost as if our little babytron is trying to get out.

So, with this complete lack of baby news... Here's what *we've* been up to. As you know, we had quite a bit of snow. So much in fact, that most of Seattle ended up shutting down for about a week (and everyone was able to work from home). Here's a link to some pics we snapped @ Lincolin Park during the big snow storm.

What else? I seem to have taken up quite a bit of knitting. I have finally finished squarey, and he is sitting happily in the nursery rocking chair. I have also come close to finishing a robot that I have been wanting to make for years (just arms & legs to knit), as well as a baby hat I finished while waiting for my car to be serviced. I'm quite pleased with the progress I have made with learning how to follow a knitting pattern and the different stitches I have learned so far. Right now, I am completely in love with seed stitch, although it's still rather slow going.

Can't think of much else to update at this point... Will post more tomorrow.

aaaaaaannnnd, in the covet-worthy department...

2008-12-06T11:21:00.000-08:00

I have found some more things that I think are rather covet-worthy. For example, these receiving blankets are fantastically simple and modern. It's such a nice thing to see that they have created baby items with modern sensibilities in mind.

I am SO in love with baby gear now... When Victoria was little, the baby gear was HORRIBLE. Imagine having to tote around a mint green and white plastickey diaper bag with small cartoon lambs on it. I think I am still suffering from fashion-induced trauma *shudder*

But hey! Look what they have now! Something I would actually not be ashamed of carrying around in public (!!). Now is a good time to be having a little one.

Thank you, style gods... You have answered my prayers!

whew... whirlwind!

2008-12-05T23:48:00.000-08:00

So, we finally got the ultrasound done @ Philips. This is something that we have been waiting to do for AGES now. Between switching doctors, scheduling conflicts, work and everything else, we have had one heck of a time getting in for an ultrasound appointment. So this was finally the day we were going to figure out the sex of our little babytron. More importantly, this was the day where we find out how to theme our little one's room (!!)

Not so much.

We spent an HOUR messing around with that ultrasound machine, and all we found out was that our future progeny is extremely active. Apparently, it's rather good fun to go spelunking around my insides. Who knew?

Here's a quick snap of our little mystery person doing a somersault - or a forward roll for those at home :)

And as far as the room theme thing goes... I'm tired of waiting to find out the sex of our little one only to decorate a room based on other people's gender stereotypes! It's rocketships and robots, dang it! I don't care what sex it is, I'm just happy our little one is happily bopping around my insides...

See 'ya in April, little mystery person. :D

slowly but surely...

2008-11-16T11:10:00.000-08:00

I have put the rocking chair together this morning, and it's looking fantastic! Who says you have to spend a fortune on a rocking chair? Wheeee - I'm feeling rather pleased with myself & my superior bargain-hunting skills. :)

I will post pics later (when the room is looking a bit more assembled - the chair's slipcover hasn't arrived yet, so it still looks rather unfinished).

Off to tackle the weekly mountain of laundry & cook ahead for the week...

quick post for today...

2008-11-13T21:14:00.000-08:00

Only a quickie for today, as I have the plague & will be going to bed soon. Hoo-boy! Not being able to take any medicine SURE makes you realize how well over the counter cold remedies really do work. ugh.

In happier news... I went to Metropolitan Market on my way home from work today to pick up some of their lovely ready-made soup for dinner... On my way back to the parking lot, there was a woman with her trunk (or boot, as you would say) open in the parking stall next to mine. In the back of her car, there was the most compact stroller I have ever seen, so, being a proper American... I asked her about it.

The woman gave me a full demonstration of features in the grocery store parking lot. Not only that, but it fits in the back of the mini!

A stroller that fits in the back of the mini may not seem newsworthy to those of you with cargo-space, but believe me. It's a BIG DEAL. I have spent many evenings (and many nights awake) scouring the internet for just such a stroller solution.

Yes, we have found it. The dream stroller. And we don't have to forsake our lovely mini - whoohooooooo!

Here it is, in all it's glory... We are SO getting this!

more like a deformed jellybean than anything, really...

2008-11-09T11:23:00.000-08:00

After much coaxing from the family... Here's our alien lifeform @ 11 weeks. Honesly, I think it looks a bit more like a misshapen jelly bean, than something human...

phew...

2008-11-03T21:30:00.000-08:00

The new job is going really well - and I have been able to hit the ground running. It's funny being excited about meetings at work, but we're making some cool stuff & it's difficult not to get caught up in it all. It's all very exciting!

Yes, as a matter of fact I *am* a nerd. Go figure.

So, with this news, obviously I rescheduled my Doctor's appointment, as it conflicted with a meeting I have tomorrow. Sorry folks... you won't be able to find out the sex for another little while or so. If it's any consolation, I am dying to find out as well :)

In other news:

We have assembled the crib last weekend... and things are coming together nicely (pics to come one of these days when I have a spare moment - HA!)

I think when I get my first paycheck, I will purchase that rocking chair... and then I think that takes care of the most expensive bits of the nursery (will see what bills have to be paid @ that point)

I have decided to sew my own dust ruffle (and matching quilt, if I'm feeling inspired), as I think I would like to switch looks on a whim... Which it seems, is not something that can be done on a small budget. I will keep you updated as things progress - right now, I think it's wise to wait to find out the sex of our babytron.

more later when I have something of substance to write :)

oh yes, we have found it!

2008-10-27T22:44:00.000-07:00

Here it is, the ultimate in crib bedding (says I):

just had to post it before I lost the link forever... :)

in the beginning...

2008-10-27T22:00:00.000-07:00

Welcome to babytron. This is basically functioning as an organizational tool while simultaneously letting out of town family in on the daily boring bits of getting ready for the little one. Now, on to the good stuff!

We just finished painting the nursery last weekend, and it looks fantastic! Think tiffany blue, but lighter. And no... this isn't some secret agenda to hint at the sex of the baby (really, we have no idea yet). We just thought that the color works well no matter what the sex turns out to be.

Now after all that work, it's time to accessorize! This is the crib we purchased (although I am seriously considering removing the wheels), we already have a dresser that we are planning on using - so that's covered as well. Now it's down to the details - my favorite bit!

recent covet-worthy items I have found:

for starters, this mobile is to die for

I have finally found a rocking chair solution that isn't eyesore AND still meets the criteria of not needing a second mortgage to pay for it (this is much more difficult than one would think - don't believe me, check these out).

Will keep searching for the good finds... right now we're contemplating vinyl wall graphics vs wooden ones vs painting something ourselves. I think we will have a better idea of what to do once we have some furniture in there.

off to hit up etsy