Saturday, March 27, 2010

Really hoping I don't regret this...

...because this post is almost THE post.

The one we--and perhaps at least some of you, who have had to continually listen to (well, read) my complaints about being jobless and stuck with parents--have been waiting for.

Almost. This is the 95%-there post.

And now that I'm here, I've changed my mind; I just can't bring myself to give all the details. Not until it's 100%. I'm just gonna have to hold myself back for a little longer.

We should know by Thursday.






P.S. My exercise habits are improving. I've taken a walk/jog (I just go back and forth between the two, but I'm working on it!) every day this week except yesterday, and only missed yesterday because we were out of town! I'm really hoping that is reflected on the scale tomorrow morning. I'm sick of vacillating around the same pound. My goals are to get back to pre-Jamie weight, which I'm 2-3ish pounds away from, then lose 5 more--before I get pregnant again and it starts all over, whenever that happens.

Friday, March 12, 2010

A few tidbits of news, what I've been thinking, and other hogwash (isn't that a fun word?)

Just took a bathroom break and I have to say it’s hard not to laugh when you have to sit sideways on the toilet to block your nosy little companion’s way to the plunger. (He insists on coming with me wherever I go and gets very upset if a door is shut on him.) He gets involved in something else, you go to wash your hands, and as soon as they’re wet and soapy, guess where he heads? Lol. My baby is no dummy, I’ll tell ya.

Well, this should be amusing for any Cox relatives who read this, if my mom hasn’t already spread the word: about a week after my grandma’s funeral, the bishop called us in to give us new callings. Guess what they were?

Cub Master and Den Leader for the Bears.

I shook my head, laughed, and when the bishop looked at me quizzically, said, “My grandma has been busy up there!”

Nadine Cox was SOOOO into Cub Scouts.  She LOVED it, and got a certificate for forty years of service.  We heard and talked a lot about this after her passing and at the funeral.  I really wonder if once she settled in on the other side, she found whoever is in charge of callings and started making suggestions.

When I first thought that, I then said to myself, but then again, what makes me so special out of all the relatives? So maybe not. Then I thought that if all the LDS members of the family suddenly started getting Cubs-related callings, we might decide something weird was going on. :)

I’ve been walking over two miles nearly day.  Tuesday I didn’t get to because of Jason’s schedule, and I was irritable and anxious until I did a Pilates video to make up for it.  How long do you have to keep doing stuff before it gets easier? I need to keep revamping my diet a little at a time until it’s where it needs to be, and add more exercise.  My abs are what needs the most work, yet I HATE doing those workouts.

We had an okay anniversary on Tuesday, but since it was a weekday, we’re actually going out tonight.  I’ll post a few pictures soon.  Jason got me tulips (I picked them out at Wal-Mart, but at least he tries), and I’ve been enjoying them immensely.  Every time I see fresh flowers, I miss working at a florist’s so much!

The last couple of days, Jamie started new babbles and new sounds.  He really still doesn’t say anything except “ma ma ma,” so maybe we’ll hear more words soon.  He also is still not into walking, and as a result, he’s a ridiculously fast crawler.  He’s all over the place, all the time. 

When you go to put him to bed, if he’s okay with it, he’ll lean toward the crib. When you put him in it, he’ll grab his blanket and roll over to pull it over himself, sometimes pulling it all the way over his head, quietly sucking on his binky the whole time. So precious.

I think it was last week that we gave him small pieces of Wheat Thins for the first time. Later, Jason and I were snacking on them and left the closed box on the living room floor. Jamie woke up from his nap and I let him roam and play while I made dinner. It got too quiet, I looked around, and guess who I found sitting with his hand in the now-open box, his mouth already full?

It was so funny. I just stared with my mouth open for a few seconds, speechless. He had frozen mid-munch, too, waiting for my reaction, with a kind of “Wuh-oh” expression on his face.

Later, when I went to give Jamie a few more Wheat Thins properly, in his high chair, guess what I first pulled out of the box? A binky. Lol.

These little things are what I mean to blog about more often and don’t.

I’ve made it a goal to learn to play “Baptism” in the Children’s Songbook.  I think a lot of Primary pianists have silently cursed Crawford Gates for making the music so difficult—I know my mom most likely has.  I’m slow and awkward, but I can get through the whole thing, which is more than I thought possible a few days ago.

 

Friday, March 5, 2010

Pictures and non-neck-pain-inducing video



We've found that Jamie doesn't like chewing. For instance, he will stuff Goldfish crackers into his mouth until there is absolutely no more room left and his mouth will no longer close. Then he'll suck on the mound until it's saturated and little bits at a time slide down his throat.


Gross, huh?


A good angle of his baby blues.




Video from early Feb

It worked!! Thank you, Rob and Windows Movie Maker (for the one coming next)! And thank you Jamie T for your suggestion. I might go embedding crazy after this! I just love learning new things...especially when they're easy...

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Updates

I just noticed some unidentifiable sludge on the side of Jamie's high chair. Ew.

Anyway, Jason's first three days of teaching have gone well. He caught a girl cheating on a test, had a bunch of kids who were ditching hanging out in his classroom today, and has dealt with some kids who wouldn't stop bugging each other, but has handled it all really well. I think being a sub would be torture for me, but he likes kids and teaching. And he already has a job lined up for tomorrow. Guess what he's teaching?

Bilingual Kindergarten.

How cute is that?!

So not only will Jason be speaking Spanish, which is SO sexy when he's actually using it with other Spanish-speakers, but he'll be speaking Spanish with little kids!! I wish I could be a fly on the wall, as my mom puts it, and see that.

I can't tell you how grateful I am that we've finally found a way to pay our bills and feel like adults again.

Oh, and we got two free, new (used) armchairs for whenever we have our own place again! Our friends Joey and Kaylea are working at this fancy tennis tournament in town, and the swanky hotel where the athletes stay was, I guess, redoing their suites. So they just gave away all the old stuff, and Joey called Jason to ask if we wanted a couple of armchairs! We were too late for the couches and tables and whatnot, unfortunately, but they said they'd call us if anything else became available. The chairs are in really good shape, too, and look nice. Nothing like friends who hook you up!

Monday, March 1, 2010

Good news and some thoughts

First, the really good news: after months of roadblocks, we were finally, finally able to get stuff finalized for Jason to substitute teach today, and


he already has jobs lined up for tomorrow and Wednesday!

The secretary told us that there should be tons of jobs for him. So it's not a career, but it's SOMETHING! It's a little bit of MONEY! It's a MIRACLE, pretty much, for how things have been going! Thing after thing has popped up or gone wrong, so to finally be thrown even a small line is...unreal, actually. I told Jason I don't think I'll be able to take a breath until I see the money in our account.

Now, my thoughts. First, we went to a couples' Valentine's party for our ward a couple weeks ago, and they were taking pictures of each couple. Since we were among all married people, when the photographer encouraged us to have fun with our poses, we got snuggly. It was fun, like taking wedding pictures again. Everyone walking by started saying how cute we were, and one older couple (since they all were, actually--we were the youngest ones there) said jokingly, "Sheesh, you guys need a room!"

This STILL bothers Jason especially. We weren't offended, just suprised and a little worried about the couple. It's not like we were making out or anything. We both feel that if we ever DON'T have a desire to cuddle with each other when an opportunity presents itself, barring sickness or something, we need to step back and work on our marriage!

Today, the secretary at the district office who helped Jason was a very nice, personable girl. I brought Jamie in because he was going crazy in his car seat waiting, and the secretary fussed over him and told us about her two boys. She asked if we wanted to have more kids and how many, and when I said 4-5 kids total was my limit, she exclaimed, "SERIOUSLY? Dang! ...Really? Did you have a really easy pregnancy or something?"

Now, I did. My pregnancy wasn't fun, but I've heard of SO much worse. So maybe I'd be singing a different tune was I in that boat, and I'm not presuming to tell ANYONE how they should live. That's between each person and the Lord, and it's absolutely none of my business. But I do think that a pregnancy lasts nine months, and a soul lives on forever. I don't think four or five kids is that many...at least once they're all grown. :) It's just sad to me how people limit the joy children can bring them for the wrong reasons sometimes. I'm thinking of people who say things like, "Oh no, children are too much trouble. We're happy with our dogs." (A couple really said that to me once.) Or they just want to have one kid so they can buy that kid everything their heart desires and not be spread thin.

Anyway, as you all know, I still have a lot to work on. I know I can be too judgmental, and again, I promise I am not trying to condemn someone just because of the number of kids they have. It's only the people who do or don't do things for selfish reasons that make me sad.

P.S. I know you're all busy and I have no life, and Sam has no internet, but I know the rest of you have more awesome recipes to share--please, put 'em on the recipe blog! And any other friends who read my blog, if you have a recipe you'd like to contribute, or you'd like to be a regular contributor, just let me know. Living at my in-laws' house, using somebody else's kitchen and untensils, not having any of my cookbooks, and having responsibility to cook for myself, a baby, and two grown men with healthy appetites--yeah. No wonder I sound desperate. PLEASE post!! :)