Go Sarah Palin. This post is entirely NOT about my kids.
I put together a liberal definition of conservatism for those not in the know. It's a conspiracy of a few incredibly stupid people who are out to ruin the country. You'd think the left would get more creative over time. You know, try to think of some other label to pin on conservatives besides "stupid." Reagan was stupid. Clarence Thomas is stupid. Scalia is stupid. Of course all members of the Bush family are ridiculously stupid. McCain, though not a conservative, is stupid because he's running against a Super Liberal. And now Sarah Palin is dumber than a box of rocks, right?
I even saw a blogger on Wonkette call her retarded. And if that doesn't offend the masses, I don't know what would.
Is it actually possible that all of these people are stupid? Did each one hoodwink us into thinking he was smart, only to turn on us with incredible stupidity the moment he gained power? Will we not notice how stupid they are without the very helpful media coming to our aid and pointing this out? (I've been able to figure out how stupid some liberals are without media help). Or was each conservative's success a complete fluke? Maybe it was part of a conspiracy (perhaps a vast right wing one) to take smart liberal people out of power and replace them with Folgers Crystals?
Give me a break, people. My request to liberals is please, move beyond this and have a substantive debate... unless you're just too chicken-shit because you know your ideas suck.
This baseless name-calling smacks of paranoia and stupidity on the part of the libs. And also an utter lack of creativity. Call conservatives what you will, but don't just dismiss us as "stupid" and think we're going to go away.
Can't you just imagine Katie Couric, the cast of The View - sans Elizabeth, John Kerry - pick your favorite libs - standing around in the exclusive social climbing seventh grade click hissing gossipy whispers about how stupid the "nerdy" smart conservatives are who care less about status and more about making the world a better place.
Who does political cartoons? Someone draw this now!
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Stepping Away
As I write this, our twin boy is in the other room, on my bed, crying. He has been crying since 9am this morning. He took a 15 minute break to cat nap during his perpetual crying jag so I could make lunch for Mr. Cubby. He took another 15 minute break while he drank 6 ounces of formula. His sister has been sleeping for three hours and for that I am thankful. My jam level is such that I finally had to put him down and walk away. Holding him doesn't help. Nursing him doesn't help. Talking to him and playing helped briefly but within 5 minutes, he was screaming again. He alternates between sad whimpers and full on battle cries but there is no pleasing him.
He has days like this from time to time where he won't nap until the late afternoon. He's so tired - so overtired - and yet he won't sleep. He just won't sleep.
We're trying not to make the same mistakes we made with Mr. Cubby, whose nighttime bedtime ritual is excruciating - compounded by the fact that he has been known to cry so hard he vomits. The cry it out option is more or less off the table for the Cubby.
And suddenly, the storm has passed. There is silence from my bed. Checking on him reveals a sleeping child, finally, soundly asleep. I'm hoping it's not just another cat nap.
He took his first solid food this morning - rice cereal. We're waiting a little bit longer to start his twin sister on solids. She's not quite ready yet.
Argh, and now, 15 minutes into his nap, the boy is awake and fussing again.
He has days like this from time to time where he won't nap until the late afternoon. He's so tired - so overtired - and yet he won't sleep. He just won't sleep.
We're trying not to make the same mistakes we made with Mr. Cubby, whose nighttime bedtime ritual is excruciating - compounded by the fact that he has been known to cry so hard he vomits. The cry it out option is more or less off the table for the Cubby.
And suddenly, the storm has passed. There is silence from my bed. Checking on him reveals a sleeping child, finally, soundly asleep. I'm hoping it's not just another cat nap.
He took his first solid food this morning - rice cereal. We're waiting a little bit longer to start his twin sister on solids. She's not quite ready yet.
Argh, and now, 15 minutes into his nap, the boy is awake and fussing again.
Friday, September 19, 2008
Sneaking Away
I'm typing one-handed while nursing and supervising the 2 older boys are in the tub so not exactly sneaking away. The most recent news from the tub is, "Mommy, Mr. Cubby is putting a washcloth on me for no reason."
It's been a long time since my last post but I've been busy. Yesterday I got a hicky on my shoulder from our baby girl. So mothers beware. Tank tops and hungry babies are not to be mixed. The thing is, I didn't even realize she had latched to my shoulder. That's how nuts it is around here.
Also of note from yesterday, I was stabbed in the ankle with a fork. True. I got a baby hicky and a stab wound all in the same day. Our toddler, who refuses to use toddler utensils because he wants to be like the rest of us, dropped his "big boy" fork from his high chair. The high chair doesn't look that high, but if I were to judge based on the velocity of the fork when it pierced my skin, I'd say the high chair is approximately 97 feet tall. And yes, there was blood.
The twins are doing great, BTW. Our boy looks more like Pootie-Poot every day - only not evil. And the sun rises and sets around our dear baby girl... literally. She's awake for both events.
Sunday is pancake breakfast at church. Woo hoo. AND we're having dinner at my brother's tommorrow and dinner at my mom-in-law's on Sunday. What a great weekend, right? No cooking!
Oh, and P.S. Today the twins turn 5 months old. Happy birthday, guys!
It's been a long time since my last post but I've been busy. Yesterday I got a hicky on my shoulder from our baby girl. So mothers beware. Tank tops and hungry babies are not to be mixed. The thing is, I didn't even realize she had latched to my shoulder. That's how nuts it is around here.
Also of note from yesterday, I was stabbed in the ankle with a fork. True. I got a baby hicky and a stab wound all in the same day. Our toddler, who refuses to use toddler utensils because he wants to be like the rest of us, dropped his "big boy" fork from his high chair. The high chair doesn't look that high, but if I were to judge based on the velocity of the fork when it pierced my skin, I'd say the high chair is approximately 97 feet tall. And yes, there was blood.
The twins are doing great, BTW. Our boy looks more like Pootie-Poot every day - only not evil. And the sun rises and sets around our dear baby girl... literally. She's awake for both events.
Sunday is pancake breakfast at church. Woo hoo. AND we're having dinner at my brother's tommorrow and dinner at my mom-in-law's on Sunday. What a great weekend, right? No cooking!
Oh, and P.S. Today the twins turn 5 months old. Happy birthday, guys!
Friday, June 6, 2008
Sleep? Who me?
Last night I saw every hour between midnight and now (it's 3pm). On the one hand, sleep deprivation makes me very tired and grouchy. On the other hand, I have seen first hand and now fully understand the importance of having the twins on the same feeding schedule.
Being the mother of twins is so cool. Taking them out in public makes all of the at-home craziness worth it. I took them in to Will's school this morning and you'd have thought I had the Baby Jesus in the stroller. People flocked to the babies, took pictures, stared (in a nice way), congratulated me, told me that I looked fabulous. (It's still all about me which is awesome - a pox on all of you nay sayers who said having a daughter would take away my princess status). The trip totally gave me the boost I needed to stay awake another 12 hours.... as did the Chick Fillet sweet tea.
I'd like to add that iTunes suck and that I can't figure out how to burn a cd. The program crashes continually. However, the nanny just arrived home with a giant bag of M&M's so I think it's time for a break.
TTFN
Being the mother of twins is so cool. Taking them out in public makes all of the at-home craziness worth it. I took them in to Will's school this morning and you'd have thought I had the Baby Jesus in the stroller. People flocked to the babies, took pictures, stared (in a nice way), congratulated me, told me that I looked fabulous. (It's still all about me which is awesome - a pox on all of you nay sayers who said having a daughter would take away my princess status). The trip totally gave me the boost I needed to stay awake another 12 hours.... as did the Chick Fillet sweet tea.
I'd like to add that iTunes suck and that I can't figure out how to burn a cd. The program crashes continually. However, the nanny just arrived home with a giant bag of M&M's so I think it's time for a break.
TTFN
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
No Clever Title Ideas
I never know if I'm spelling "cleaver" or "clever" when I'm writing "clever" so I have to write it both ways to make sure I've picked the right spelling. Don't want to mess that up on this since this is one of the top read blogs by the Pregnant Posse and the Obama Campaign.
Most people tell me that they've either a) always wished they were a twin or b) always wished they had given birth to twins. It's interesting because I've never had anyone tell me that they wish they could have 2 or 3 hours of sleep every night for four weeks straight. And I've also never heard anyone say that they wish they could have shared a Rubbermaid crate with another baby when they too were an infant. The idea of twins is quite romanticized. I give John and Kate Plus Eight a lot of credit from removing those rose-colored multiples glasses from my eyes.
Not that having twins isn't the best thing ever. It totally is. But it's also the hardest thing ever. Not just for the sleep deprivation but also because I find that I have a lot less free time than ever before. However, the cool thing is that I've also gained the grace to deal with it. God is great that way.
So yeah, we have the babies sleeping in a Rubbermaid container. I know it sounds crazy and also cheap and maybe a little irresponsible but I assure you, it really isn't. They slept in plastic containers in the NICU. The containers were called something fancy but let's be real here - they were plastic containers. We priced Moses baskets at Babies R Us the day Patagie came home. $120 on sale. TONS o' MONEY for a basket that you can also buy at Michael's for $10.99 (cheaper if you have the 40% off coupon).
So, by 11pm April 28th (the day our precious baby girl was released from the hospital) John (did I mention that he's a very crafty genius) had made her a Moses basket all by himself out of a true basket that we had been storing diapers in. It's a lovely basket - very soft and sturdy and large.
Unfortunately we had only one. So John bought two identical Rubbermaid containers from Target the next day. He made a mattress out of firm foam. We dropped the mattress into a waterproof pillow cover and then dropped that into a pillow case. Perfection. Our boy settled into that bed nicely. We're waiting until Miss Patagie outgrows her basket and then the plan is to put her into her own Rubbermaid. But for now the cool thing is that during our waking hours, they can sometimes share Pootie's container. It's adorable and what a commercial for Rubbermaid. Anyone know them? We'll be spokespersons.
The babies are growing really fast. Pootie is big now, probably at 8 or 9 lbs and Patagie is between 7 and 8. Pootie has a head the size of a cantaloupe. It's gargantuan. Patagie has Disney-Princess-sized eyes. They're enormous and blue and lovely. We're so blessed.
And can I just say that I love going out in public with them. I love all the attention they (and I) get. I hear a lot of "Ohhhhh are they twins." It's fun.
One last thing that is too funny not to mention. The other day John said to me, "I'm so tired of people asking me if twins run in our family. The next time someone asks me that I'm going to say, 'No they don't. We just had sex twice that night.'"
Most people tell me that they've either a) always wished they were a twin or b) always wished they had given birth to twins. It's interesting because I've never had anyone tell me that they wish they could have 2 or 3 hours of sleep every night for four weeks straight. And I've also never heard anyone say that they wish they could have shared a Rubbermaid crate with another baby when they too were an infant. The idea of twins is quite romanticized. I give John and Kate Plus Eight a lot of credit from removing those rose-colored multiples glasses from my eyes.
Not that having twins isn't the best thing ever. It totally is. But it's also the hardest thing ever. Not just for the sleep deprivation but also because I find that I have a lot less free time than ever before. However, the cool thing is that I've also gained the grace to deal with it. God is great that way.
So yeah, we have the babies sleeping in a Rubbermaid container. I know it sounds crazy and also cheap and maybe a little irresponsible but I assure you, it really isn't. They slept in plastic containers in the NICU. The containers were called something fancy but let's be real here - they were plastic containers. We priced Moses baskets at Babies R Us the day Patagie came home. $120 on sale. TONS o' MONEY for a basket that you can also buy at Michael's for $10.99 (cheaper if you have the 40% off coupon).
So, by 11pm April 28th (the day our precious baby girl was released from the hospital) John (did I mention that he's a very crafty genius) had made her a Moses basket all by himself out of a true basket that we had been storing diapers in. It's a lovely basket - very soft and sturdy and large.
Unfortunately we had only one. So John bought two identical Rubbermaid containers from Target the next day. He made a mattress out of firm foam. We dropped the mattress into a waterproof pillow cover and then dropped that into a pillow case. Perfection. Our boy settled into that bed nicely. We're waiting until Miss Patagie outgrows her basket and then the plan is to put her into her own Rubbermaid. But for now the cool thing is that during our waking hours, they can sometimes share Pootie's container. It's adorable and what a commercial for Rubbermaid. Anyone know them? We'll be spokespersons.
The babies are growing really fast. Pootie is big now, probably at 8 or 9 lbs and Patagie is between 7 and 8. Pootie has a head the size of a cantaloupe. It's gargantuan. Patagie has Disney-Princess-sized eyes. They're enormous and blue and lovely. We're so blessed.
And can I just say that I love going out in public with them. I love all the attention they (and I) get. I hear a lot of "Ohhhhh are they twins." It's fun.
One last thing that is too funny not to mention. The other day John said to me, "I'm so tired of people asking me if twins run in our family. The next time someone asks me that I'm going to say, 'No they don't. We just had sex twice that night.'"
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
6 1/2 weeks later...
Yeah, well the babies came early and wouldn't you know it - we've been just swamped with things to do. Go figure. We were totally unprepared. I started writing a bit about their birth while I was in the hospital because I knew I'd rarely get the chance once I came home. I hope to upload what I wrote when I find it - but who knows when that will be.
To sum up. My water broke at 4am on Saturday, April 19th. I yelled. John shot out of bed, grabbed the phone and hauled me out of the house faster than you can say, "The twins are on the way." I got the epidural - blessed thing that epidural. I'm a huge, huge fan now. Got an IV too - not a fan. Wish they had an epidural for the IV. Babies were born 15 minutes apart around 9am - my memory is fuzzy b/c of the multiple multiples late-night feedings. Pootie-Poot (the boy, who looks just like Vladimir Putin) weighed in at 5.7 and Patagie (the girl) weighed in at 4.1.
They are the smallest little babies I've ever set eyes on. Both spent time in the NICU - 10 days for the girl and 11 for the boy. Now they're home with us and doing quite well. Pootie-Poot is throwing a fit right now as I type... I'm hoping he runs his own battery down and falls asleep but the longer it goes on the more doubtful I become.
It's very odd to read my last entry and know that mere days later the babies were born. The pregnancy was very surreal, not at all like my first. The experience was amazing and I'd do it again in a heartbeat, of course. And I think, once I refund my sleep debt, I'll be ready to try for triplets.... :)
To sum up. My water broke at 4am on Saturday, April 19th. I yelled. John shot out of bed, grabbed the phone and hauled me out of the house faster than you can say, "The twins are on the way." I got the epidural - blessed thing that epidural. I'm a huge, huge fan now. Got an IV too - not a fan. Wish they had an epidural for the IV. Babies were born 15 minutes apart around 9am - my memory is fuzzy b/c of the multiple multiples late-night feedings. Pootie-Poot (the boy, who looks just like Vladimir Putin) weighed in at 5.7 and Patagie (the girl) weighed in at 4.1.
They are the smallest little babies I've ever set eyes on. Both spent time in the NICU - 10 days for the girl and 11 for the boy. Now they're home with us and doing quite well. Pootie-Poot is throwing a fit right now as I type... I'm hoping he runs his own battery down and falls asleep but the longer it goes on the more doubtful I become.
It's very odd to read my last entry and know that mere days later the babies were born. The pregnancy was very surreal, not at all like my first. The experience was amazing and I'd do it again in a heartbeat, of course. And I think, once I refund my sleep debt, I'll be ready to try for triplets.... :)
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
One Down, Two More To Go
My first doctor's appointment of the week is out of the way. Only two more to go.
My big news for the day is that my OB is rescheduling the twins' birthday. I'm very happy about this. I'm sad to lose St. Rita, whose feast day is May 22, as our prayer partner in the birth process but it's for a good cause. Since both babies are head down and have remained head down - as of today - my OB is going to let me try a regular delivery of the non-c-section variety. The catch is, of course, that they have to stay head down. If either switches then I'm screwed and off to surgery I go.
Our tentative date for induction is May 27. I'll be 38 weeks and 3 days (or so - there continues to be a several day discrepancy between my counting, my OB's counting, and the peri-nate's counting). That does mean more days of finger pricking and more days of big belly time. But it also gives the twins a slightly better chance of having mature lungs at birth ... and it gives me a better chance of going into labor naturally so I don't have to be induced - which is part of my master plan.
Today the doctor strongly encouraged me to have the epidural. It's as if she could see the natural child birth books on my dresser. How did she know? I shave my arm pits. I don't look like a woman of nature who shuns epidurals. What she doesn't know is that I'm so woefully unprepared for natural child birth that I sincerely doubt that I could do it again this time around. For starters, I'm too tired. For seconders, I'm getting absolutely no backrubbing from my "birth coach" (which is supposed to be happening every night to ensure that I'm relaxed enough to go to my "special place" when real labor starts).
Also a factor are the labor-like pains I'm experiencing everyday. I get a lot of cramping (which I believe I've mentioned) that radiates around to my back. It's a lot like labor pain. It's pain that makes me angry. No other way to describe it. I just get really angry. That reminds me of real labor and how bad it felt and that makes me think that maybe getting stabbed in the spinal column isn't so bad afterall.
In other news, Will got to see the Pope today. He went with his grandma to D.C. She said he was mature and very well behaved. Huh? My son??? I'm so proud! I wish I could have seen him. He led one decade of the rosary on a bus full of older kids and adults. He said to my mom, "I'm going to volunteer to lead. I have the courage." And then he did. When he finished, the entire bus clapped because he did such a good job. I can totally see him in seminary! He saw the Pope-mobile but got confused and thinks that it's a black stretch limo. Not surprised about that since he's dutifully saving his allowance to buy a limo when he's 16. (as if we're going to let him get his driver's license then).
Mr. Cubby had his first encounter with real sushi today. He likes it. And he loves playing with his chop sticks. It's heartbreaking and hysterical to watch him try to eat with them. He hunches over his tray with a chop stick in either hand. His brow is furrowed and his eyes focused with amazing intensity on the food he wants to pick up. He pushes the chop sticks together and smushes the food between the points and then... the food falls or flies away from his sticks. Poor kid. But so adorable to watch a near-2-year-old try to eat this way.
My big news for the day is that my OB is rescheduling the twins' birthday. I'm very happy about this. I'm sad to lose St. Rita, whose feast day is May 22, as our prayer partner in the birth process but it's for a good cause. Since both babies are head down and have remained head down - as of today - my OB is going to let me try a regular delivery of the non-c-section variety. The catch is, of course, that they have to stay head down. If either switches then I'm screwed and off to surgery I go.
Our tentative date for induction is May 27. I'll be 38 weeks and 3 days (or so - there continues to be a several day discrepancy between my counting, my OB's counting, and the peri-nate's counting). That does mean more days of finger pricking and more days of big belly time. But it also gives the twins a slightly better chance of having mature lungs at birth ... and it gives me a better chance of going into labor naturally so I don't have to be induced - which is part of my master plan.
Today the doctor strongly encouraged me to have the epidural. It's as if she could see the natural child birth books on my dresser. How did she know? I shave my arm pits. I don't look like a woman of nature who shuns epidurals. What she doesn't know is that I'm so woefully unprepared for natural child birth that I sincerely doubt that I could do it again this time around. For starters, I'm too tired. For seconders, I'm getting absolutely no backrubbing from my "birth coach" (which is supposed to be happening every night to ensure that I'm relaxed enough to go to my "special place" when real labor starts).
Also a factor are the labor-like pains I'm experiencing everyday. I get a lot of cramping (which I believe I've mentioned) that radiates around to my back. It's a lot like labor pain. It's pain that makes me angry. No other way to describe it. I just get really angry. That reminds me of real labor and how bad it felt and that makes me think that maybe getting stabbed in the spinal column isn't so bad afterall.
In other news, Will got to see the Pope today. He went with his grandma to D.C. She said he was mature and very well behaved. Huh? My son??? I'm so proud! I wish I could have seen him. He led one decade of the rosary on a bus full of older kids and adults. He said to my mom, "I'm going to volunteer to lead. I have the courage." And then he did. When he finished, the entire bus clapped because he did such a good job. I can totally see him in seminary! He saw the Pope-mobile but got confused and thinks that it's a black stretch limo. Not surprised about that since he's dutifully saving his allowance to buy a limo when he's 16. (as if we're going to let him get his driver's license then).
Mr. Cubby had his first encounter with real sushi today. He likes it. And he loves playing with his chop sticks. It's heartbreaking and hysterical to watch him try to eat with them. He hunches over his tray with a chop stick in either hand. His brow is furrowed and his eyes focused with amazing intensity on the food he wants to pick up. He pushes the chop sticks together and smushes the food between the points and then... the food falls or flies away from his sticks. Poor kid. But so adorable to watch a near-2-year-old try to eat this way.
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