Book Signings

Today was a loooooong day where I attended the Invent Your Future Conference for Women, and because I am now fighting a pounding headache, I don't have much energy to write a long post.

But, I will tell you that I attended two book signings at the conference during the day. One was with Cokie Roberts, an amazing woman who I enjoy listening to, but who I know my parents LOVE EVEN MORE (Hi Mom and Dad!) and the other was with Bertice Berry who I had never heard of before the conference, but her stories were so wonderfully touching to me that she ended up being the highlight of the conference for me. In fact, her break-out session was exactly what I was looking for out of that conference, even though I didn't know it when I walked in and registered that morning.

The funny thing is, I also had a planned book signing to attend to this evening, in downtown Mountain View, to support my fave blogger Dooce (LOVE that woman!), whose book just came out recently as well.

That's right. Three book signings in one day.

I don't know what it is, but I've become more and more interested in attending book signings like these. I think I'm becoming a book signing slut! And boy, do these events just take it out of you. I'm now exhausted, nursing a headache and feeling a little grimy from playing musical conference chairs all day.

*sigh*

And, for those that are interested, the signed books now lying on my bedside table are:

• We Are Our Mothers' Daughters: Revised and Expanded Edition by Cokie Roberts
• The Ties That Bind: A Memoir of Race, Memory and Redemption by Bertice Berry
• It Sucked and Then I Cried: How I Had a Baby, a Breakdown, and a Much Needed Margarita by Heather Armstrong (Dooce)

Do I get around or what?

A new president

Today is a big day Logan. I know you won't remember it 20 yrs from now, or 20 days from now, or even tomorrow. But, it impacts your life in more ways than we can even imagine.

Obama has a tough uphill battle ahead of him - he's inheriting a handful of broken pieces left behind by the previous administration. And, the hype and expectations that the people have of him are astounding.

Still, I'm hopeful that he will change a few things in this country. I look forward to it, because I know that he will make a difference. Perhaps not right away, but at least within your life time buddy.

And, it's all your mama could ever ask for.

What a big day indeed.

Full of hope and pride,
Mama

11 months old

Every minute, hour, day and month that passes by with Logan in our lives, I find such joy in getting to know our son. Today, Logan turned 11 months old - and in just one short month he'll have been with us a full year. WOW.













I have caught myself a few times now, already saying things like "when he was little", as if he's no longer a little baby. But, he doesn't feel little to us anymore! We're definitely transitioning into toddler-dom I think. He's extremely active with quite a personality (and such a flirt to all the women). He's also very loud and impatient, reminding me of his Daddy. ;-)

He is a fast little guy - cruising around the furniture like a pro and when that's not quite fast enough, he'll plop down on the floor, crawl cheetah-fast right over to you, and then pull himself up again so he's near you. He hasn't yet walked on his own, but he's doing plenty of it assisted with either his walker toy or pushing kid-height stuff (like his toy box or the ottoman) in front of him.

I can see he really wants to walk - every time we are near "bigger" kids (who are already walking or running) he is keenly interested in watching them play, leaning way out to one side of my arms, looking over my shoulder, studying their every move. And, on several occasions, we've caught him testing his own balance by standing and letting go of things, usually when he's next to me, which my dad thinks is because he feels safer and more confident when he's with me. We'll see. He may be running around the house before we know it.

In general, Logan is a fairly good natured little guy. However, it feels like he's been out of sorts more than usual this past month. I'm pretty sure it's a combination of adjusting back to preschool after our big family vacation, topped with the growing pains of new teeth coming in. His 5th tooth poked through over the last month and the gums around his others are pretty swollen as well. Often times we now find him gnawing on his own fingers. At least he knows how to self soothe?

Another leap into toddler-dom may just be all the new foods we are feeding Logan. No more is the easy brainless world of pick a baby jar off the shelf and spoon it into our son's mouth. Oh no. Now I have to think about what to make for him; breakfast, lunch and dinner. He's eating "real" food - pasta, steamed veggies, sandwiches, mac n' cheese, you name it. It's definitely made meals more challenging for me, but I'm so glad to see his growing interest in food!

Just the other day, Jon walked in the door with Logan chatting away as happy as ever. But, what was different were the sounds and syllables he was making. We hadn't heard him "talk" these words before! The closest thing I can relate it to would be "doggydoggydoggydoggy". ;-) He doesn't yet associate the sounds with any real meaning, that we can tell, but it's definitely apparent he's building his vocabulary day by day. It's also a red flag to us that we need to point out new things we see and do more often, describing them so he can hear, mimic and learn.

Logan celebrates in many ways. He celebrated when Barack Obama was elected the 44th President of the United States, by sleeping soundly through the night. He celebrated when Daddy bought him a baby kilt (of the McDonald clan), by crawling all over the living room rug, collecting as much dog fur on it as possible. And he celebrates the end of each meal, by sharing his leftovers with the dogs, laughing as they lick every last morsel of food off his chubby little fingers.

Speaking of sharing, Logan is learning there is more to life than just himself. He's learning to share! Now, no matter what he finds or picks up to inspect, he MUST offer it to me or Jon as well. If it's his food, he'll put it in our mouths, if it's a toy, he places it in our laps. We of course, return the favor and "share" the item back, which he is so tickled about. In fact, sometimes, perhaps when he is impatient and can't wait for the game of give and take to run its course, he offers to share a toy, but then quickly takes it back before I get a chance to say thank you and take it. Of course, our smart little cookie knows exactly what he's doing - waiting for the surprised confused look on my face with a HUGE grin on his. And that's when I tell him to stop being an Indian giver.

In California, though recommended, apparently Logan's car seat is not required to be rear facing (I had been holding out until he reached age 1, because I thought that was the requirement before we could turn his seat around). So, we recently turned him forward facing so that his little legs and feet wouldn't continue to smoosh up and get cramped against the seat backs of our car.

It's a little weird driving around town now, seeing him RIGHT THERE, staring back at me. But, it's also a lot more fun to talk to him about his day as we drive home from school. Logan seems to like the change too - he's now able to kick his feet more freely and babble loudly direct in my ear, to make sure I'm listening to his stories.

Don't worry kiddo, I'm always listening.

What a wonderful time

I tried to describe as best I could, how important to me electing Obama as the next President of the United States is. Though I blog almost daily, words often fail me. Clear cohesive thoughts, arguments or descriptions do not float to the top of mind. I am often teased by my digressions and lengthy ponderings. :)

Hey, I'm no journalist. No attorney. No fiction, nor non-fiction, writer.

I blog. For fun.

My dad has sent some articles to me over the last few days, all about Obama's election, of course. ;-) I just finished reading this one, and at the end, was a single message that says it all for me.

It's what I was trying to convey the other night.

Rosa Parks sat in 1955.
Martin Luther King walked in 1963.
Barack Obama ran in 2008.
That our children might fly.

A Historic Win

I can't tell you how crazy my day has been today, as I numbingly went through the motions of a "normal" workday, while inside I was exploding with excitement and nervous anticipation.

I'm still in a bit of disbelief, actually, that Obama has won. Tonight, he was named the elected President of the United States.

He made it happen.

We made it happen. Yes we did.


Logan - we're doing all we can to make this world a better place for you and your generation. Tonight, I feel we're finally taking a big step in the right direction.

I have faith this movement of change will continue for many years to come. It has to.

And we won't let you down.

Love,
Mama

Seriously, Go Vote.

Just voted. Damn it feels good. :)



If you don't vote, then you have to shut up.



Me? I'm hoping for change.

Go Vote. Go Now.

Little Truett says it all.

Happy Halloween!!

As most of you know, Halloween is, for some reason, one of my most favorite holidays. I think it's the idea of dressing up as someone, or something, else for a day that turns me on. Although I didn't dress up myself this year (something about now being a jam packed busy career woman with a baby in tow), I made sure Logan was dressed to kill at any and all Halloween costume parties we've attended this year.

Jon even got into the holiday spirit - helping me decorate the front porch, complete with our Obama pumpkins and eery green lights. He also helped tend to our crackling cauldron of dry ice and handed out HUGE bars of candy. Apparently he thinks we can buy our way into the good graces of the neighborhood.

And, he's probably right, as every kid, big and small, tonight skipped away onto the next house exclaiming how COOL our house was, while the parents standing back on the sidewalk waved, and gave us a thumbs up for the political statement our pumpkins expressed (some even took pictures!! hehe). ;-)

Even though the trick or treating ended early due to the rain, we had a great time seeing all the many costumes knocking at our door and greeting each one of the kids in our (still fairly new) neighborhood tonight.

And our stinky skunk even visited a few of the nearby houses to wish everyone a happy Halloween!

Now, what to do....what to do with all the extra candy we have left...

Every Pumpkin Counts

When I was younger, my parents used to host a huge pumpkin carving party where all the neighbors on the block would join us on our deck in the backyard, carving pumpkins and talking and laughing and drinking and generally having a grand ol' time.

I was always so proud - BOTH my parents have always been very creative. In life, and of course, in what they've carved on their pumpkins. And, the QUALITY with which they produced those masterpieces was always top notch. I suppose I could have been a little biased, but I always believed our house had THE BEST pumpkins EVER.

As years past, we continued the carving events, sometimes out on our front porch instead of the back deck, when less folks showed up. But slowly, that tradition faded away as we kids got older and less interested in doing "dorky" stuff like carving pumpkins with our parents.

Recently, my parents turned me onto this awesome site, which I immediately added to my blog reader. And, as I watch the numbers tick upwards into the hundreds day after day, with people all over the WORLD posting to the site, it has made me more and more proud and excited and thrilled (and scared), about the upcoming election.

So does it really surprise you that I caught the fever?

I was up for the challenge. Was everyone else?

Jon had never carved a pumpkin before, so he wasn't so sure. Uncle Kai definitely was - as you can see from the amazing portrait he carved, above!

With only 30 minutes notice, I showed up at my parent's house the other night with several pumpkins to carve - ready to roll up our sleeves and tackle some of the magnificent stencils provided on the Yes We Carve site, so we could contribute to the momentum of this wonderful movement.

Although Logan fell asleep right as we got started, I like to think that this was his first year experiencing the resurrection of a family tradition I hope to keep alive for at least several more years to come.

Barack My World

A few folks have asked about this new necklace I'm now sporting (probably since I never wear jewelry) and which you can see me wearing at Molly's birthday party.

Did I get it from New Zealand? Nope. Is it a coincidence that the design is in the shape of Obama's campaign logo? Why no actually, it's no coincidence at all.

I've started doing some of my online shopping at Etsy, a cool place where you can find a bunch of great handmade items. I love browsing at all the beautiful and creative artwork that folks are now selling out there!

Anyway, Etsy shop Silver Cocoon is selling a few pieces of jewelry in support of the Obama campaign. I originally hopped on the bandwagon to buy a couple of her pins for my parents, avid Obama supporters. But, couldn't help but snag one of the necklaces for myself too (Jon says I've turned into an Obama freak).

WHATEVER.

They are simply gorgeous, wonderfully made, and though a bit pricey, I like the fact that she's offering free shipping and will make a donation to the Obama campaign with every piece sold.

SWEET.

ps. Heather, her shop is located in Minneapolis. So no excuses. I expect the next photos you post up have a few with you wearing a necklace of her's too. ;-)

All choked up

I've noticed since I was pregnant, I've become increasingly emotional during various events. I've always been a pretty emotional person anyway, but boy when those crazy pregnancy hormones kicked in, I found myself weeping at bubble gum commercials for God's sake! And, while I wasn't too interested in babies beforehand, I suddenly had this enormous love and affection for the little one growing inside of me, who I had yet to meet.

So it was no surprise, that once Logan was born, that emotional bond I felt with him increased ten-fold. Suddenly, any little event would trigger a surge of love, pride, affection and happiness.

And, I would get choked up.

Any new development of our little man. A smile, a laugh, sitting up, wearing a brace, then not wearing a brace, rolling over, jumping, kicking, finding his voice, finding his hands, finding his tongue, finding his feet, finding his penis, watching the dogs play, pulling my hair, reaching out to me, laughing uncontrollably as he swiftly crawled to the dogs' water bowl to splash in, pulling up and trying to walk or contemplating how to get back down.

You name it, I get choked up.

But, it's not just those "little" things that Logan does, that gets me choked up.

Seeing a hip-hop popper from Texas break down in tears of joy when he got picked to compete in Vegas, and eventually move his way through to the finals - and actually WIN "So You Think You Can Dance" - was touching, endearing and just made you want to give the kid a big hug. Sappy, I know. Yet I couldn't help but get choked up.

Watching Phelps ROAR when his teammate swam the fastest split in history; I guess you could say my motherly instinct kicked in. I swelled with pride. For Phelps, for Lezak, for the United States of America. For all boys, young and old, who work hard to make their dreams come true. Yes, I got choked up.

And, listening to Michelle talk the other night, both lovingly and respectfully of her parents, her children and of course, her husband. That entire family is nothing but hope and inspiration. And, I got choked up.

Logan and I, together, watched Barack's acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention tonight. I realize he doesn't even have the faintest idea how we were witnessing some of the most powerful history in the making. Still, I looked down at my son, gave him a quick little hug, and told him that man speaking on the screen that he was watching so quietly and intently; that man was going to be the next President of the United States for the next eight years.

The first eight years of Logan's life.

And he was going to make a difference.

And, I got choked up.

Epidural, Take 2

Yesterday I received a second set of injections in my back. I arrived 35 minutes early for my pre-op (which is an hour before my actual injections), so I ended up laying around on a hospital bed, scrunched up on one side half naked trying to cover my entire body with a thin short sheet that wasn't quite long enough to cover my feet, freezing my buns off and reading about Obama Finding His Faith and a disturbing story of a woman who died waiting for help in a mental hospital's emergency room. Though completely starved and dehydrated (I hadn't had anything to eat nor drink since the night before, and it was already 1pm), I was pretty relaxed and ready to roll.

My "roommate" however, a woman who was in the pre-op bed next to mine also getting prepped for injections, was not.

I could not see her (they had those privacy curtains pulled around each bed) but I could hear everything. And boy, was she a jittery, nervous talking machine! It was quite amusing. And, as interesting as the story was on new up and coming company Ning, I couldn't help but put my magazine down and eavesdrop. What can I say, I'm nosy. :)

While two different nurses were sitting poking me three different times to get my IV in (apparently your veins aren't as cooperative when you're dehydrated), this loud and garish New Yorker was going on and on about how she barely trusts her clueless 19-yr old son to drive her home, let alone walk into Starbucks and order her drink correctly (because I'm a "Grande Ice Tea with Two Splendas" kind of gal) and how she's finally given up on coloring her hair to mask the salt and pepper streaks that are coming in around her face and - Nurse!! can she have a look at the results of her MRI because "I'm not really sure if I should be here or not" (seriously, she said that).

During our pre-op, amongst other things, they take your heartbeat, oxygen levels, blood pressure, etc. And, not surprisingly, this woman's blood pressure was through the roof. I mean, 215/165 THROUGH. THE. ROOF. So of course, she goes on about how her blood pressure is usually a little high (she does take meds for it), but not THAT high and it must be her nerves taking a hold of her (no shit!) since she really isn't looking forward to these injections and she's been putting it off for months and have you seen the doctor yet? because really, I'd like to see the MRI scan and maybe I should talk to him first because, are we really doing the right thing and is this really going to take care of this leg pain I've been having?

I couldn't help but giggle as I watched the nurses exchange those big eye rolls at each other behind the curtain and then calmly re-enter, telling her she'd be fine once they put a sedative in her when she's on the table.

Damn straight I'm getting a sedative! was her answer.

A couple hours later, once I was chillin' with my graham crackers and cranberry juice in post-op and shootin' the shit with the nurses, I hear her voice down the hallway getting louder and louder as they wheel her back in, to the area next to mine. She was still pretty chatty, but high as a kite and so much more relaxed. She even asked if she could get a bit more of the drugs before going home.

Most of you know, I've never been one for drugs or alcohol or anything really, that will alter my mental or physical state more than I can trust. It's definitely a control issue, and I whole heartedly admit that can be a problem at times. I refused to take any drugs when delivering Logan, and I refused both times the offer for a sedative while my doctor plucked away at my nerves like a guitar-fiddling maniac. Instead, I take a deep breath, will my blood pressure to drop 10 more points and face it head on.

However, even my own heart skipped a few beats faster the minute this woman rolled back into the room rambling on again about her poor son (...do you know this state requires you to have car insurance for your kid once he starts driving, even if he doesn't own a car! but in my state you are only required to get car insurance if you own a car and that is so much more logical...). No longer as amusing, I noticed myself glancing up at the clock several times after that, wondering when Jon would arrive so I could get the hell out of there.

I hope I'll never ever be - even appear to be - a basket case like that.

Logan, I'm a "Tall Chai Latte with Non-Fat Milk" kind of gal. And I whole-heartedly trust you will get my order right, every single damn time.

And if not, then surprise me. I like surprises anyway.

I love the smell of vomit in the morning

Nothing says "Welcome Home Daddy" quite like projectile vomiting all over us, in bed, at 5am in the morning....volumes of it. I'm still washing all the sheets, blankets, pillows, clothes....

I know folks are wondering where I am, how Logan and I are doing, and where all the frequent blog postings are.... here's a quick update from the week (things are fine, just a little hectic with my hands full while Jon was gone):

Little Logan is still a bit under the weather but we're not quite sure what with. It seems like he's got a little bug with all the throw up (the other morning he spewed a nice puddle of it while half asleep, through his crib railings and onto the floor and rug beneath) and explosive diarrhea I've been cleaning up. Or, maybe it's his way of saying he missed Daddy this week? I know I did.

The upside is, after dousing us with milky puke this morning, he then smiled and laughed and gurgled and coo'd like nothing was wrong at all, so at least he's in his usual charming good mood while being sick. :)

I ended up taking Logan to the dermatologist since the rash on his face got a lot worse - turns out he's got seborrheic dermatitis (they think the heat wave we had this past week set it off). Can't say I'm entirely surprised given he's had skin issues since birth. So we now have a(nother) new lotion to put on his face. I applied some last night and it's already 100% better this morning. Cool.

We had skipped swim class on Tuesday night with all that was going on, but I took Logan on Thursday and we had a great time. We're still practicing getting our faces wet, and now learning how to turn around and grab for the side after falling in (from a sitting position on the edge of the pool). We also just started the motions of turning over from back to tummy to back again (to get them used to turning and floating on their back if they fall in). Great, practical stuff in my opinion, and I'm really glad we have him going to the classes.

I lost 2lbs from my first week on weight watchers. Let's hope the trend continues!

Twyla is still on the roof. I'm getting desperate and about to plead with our neighbor, the fireman, to help get her down since it's going on a week now....!!! We'll try to take another stab at getting her down this weekend, now that Jon's home to help.

Sanka has diabetes. Her sugar levels are through the roof. I visited the vet yesterday and received a tutorial on how to give her insulin shots, which we'll start on Monday. Twice a day. We have special food to give her as well. We have to take her in after a few days to measure her glucose and see if the dosage is right or needs some adjusting.

Feels like life just got a little more complicated. But, I know we can handle it.

Yes we can.

It's Not That Easy Being Green

Disposable diapers are the 3rd largest consumer product in landfills (behind newspapers and beverage/food containers) and require over 500 years to decompose. So, one of the reasons I signed us up for a cloth diaper service was so that we could be a bit more environmentally friendly.

Unfortunately, we haven't used the cloth diapers as much as I had hoped. The first couple months of Logan's life, we weren't able to use them due to his brace (cloth diapers are a lot bulkier and his brace didn't fit right with them on). We also use disposable when we go out, since it's more convenient to chuck the dirty diaper rather than carry around the dirty cloth one.... but, because we are such social animals and out all the time (I guess), there would be entire days in a row where we'd be using only disposable and not the cloth! :( And, now that he's attending preschool, cloth diapers aren't very well supported there...

It's been eating at my conscience that we aren't being as green as we should be, so I started doing some research on biodegradable disposable diapers instead (our lifestyles are such, that we really can't join the camp of parents who don't use any diapers at all).

There seems to be (at least) two different options that get really good reviews. gDiapers (started by an Australian couple) are a flushable option which are kind of a cross between cloth diapers and regular disposables. They seem pretty cool but we still run into the "inconvenience" of carrying a dirty diaper cover while out and about (and talking our preschool into the extra care required to use them).

Logan's cousin Luke is using the other option, a biodegradable diaper made by Nature Babycare (started by a Swedish mom; Isn't it pathetic that none of these are American?!?). And, after talking to Curtis/Renee, and reading reviews online, it seems to be everything we're looking for! :) They are biodegradable, compostable, chlorine free and easy to use. They also make disposable wipes as well which is a plus. :) So, I just ordered a small pack of the wipes and diapers this past weekend to try them out and Mr. Logan wore his first biodegradable disposable last night. They seem to work just fine -- we'll know more with time of course, but my hopes are up!

Yes. We. Can.

We believe in change.