Ready. Almost.
I think that I am very close to being prepared for Claire’s arrival assuming I don’t go into labour today. Or tomorrow. But Thursday is looking good for me. I have a few more items to pick up for my hospital bag (new pair of yoga pants and t-shirt so I can have something clean, not stretched out, and stain-free to wear afterwards), some new sippy cups for Callum’s bag and his toys/blankets, gather my labour music and pick out a coming-home outfit for Claire. I can probably get that all accomplished today if I made an effort. Or I can knit and right now, knitting is looking up.
I’ve given up trying to get Callum into his new bed before Claire arrives. I’ve given up even trying to get his new room livable so he can play in there and become comfortable. I’ve simply given up. I told Steve that I’m officially on maternity leave.
I feel like preparing Callum, and Steve, for the upheaval a new babe will bring has been one of the hardest things I’ve coped with in a ridiculously long time. I don’t know if this is some hormonal flucuation with this pregnancy, if Steve is in some sort of denial or if he’s simply being stubborn on this front just to disagree with me. The last point is what it feels like although that is likely not the truth. Its been this constant struggle to get him to do anything that usually ends in some tirade that I under appreciate what he has done which in turn leads to a tirade of him not appreciating what I’m trying to do. For the record, I DO appreciate what he’s done but a lot of what he’s accomplished got done because of all the pre-prep I did. He laid the laminate in the bedroom, sure, but I ripped up the baseboards, the carpet, the underlay, the carpet strips and staples. I took out the closet doors. I mudded, sanded and painted the trim when it was re-installed. I moved almost everything out of that room (minus the furniture). All while VERY pregnant because it all happened in the last few weeks. I’m just sayin’. I should also say, in the spirit of fairness that Steve did a lot this past weekend, including a run to the dump, installing the closet doors and shelves, putting together random bedrails and beds, as well as a lot of my ‘chores’ because I was in town running errands (laundry, watching Callum, etc, etc) or just plain feel lousy. And he’s got hay fever so he’s not exacty feeling like a trooper either.
Having a well-adjusted toddler is only going to make Steve’s life easier because in the middle of the night when Callum needs us, Steve is going to have to be that person. I’m going to be breastfeeding and healing and sleeping but I will NOT let my little guy become second fiddle, on this I will be a full-fledged bitch. If that means Steve doesn’t get a decent night’s sleep, tough shit. He had 9 months to help Callum adjust and fought me every step of the way, and he has a lot on his plate right now at work, so a good night’s sleep is probably in his best interests but like I said. I gave it my best, I had everyone’s best interest at heart and now I’ve given up. Its no longer my problem. heh.
The room is ‘ready’, the only thing that could still be done is the walls are in need of some serious patching and repainting, but its a room for a toddler so I figure I won’t even bother. I am thinking about moving in the furniture and Callum’s clothes tonight. I can’t decorate the room because Michaels doesn’t have what I need to do so, so that has to wait. He seems to enjoy it in there right now, so that’s a good sign.
Other than that little hiccup, I think I’m good. We have two freezers full to the brim of food I’ve made, and I am hoping to get to Costco this week to stock up the pantry too. The house is relatively clean, I just need to clean our bathroom and keep it clean. Baby stuff is slowly finding new homes in the cupboards and rooms and with the exception of a random TV in the living room, the house is looking good.
Plus, Spring is in the air, the birds are singing and the daffedils are popping up. It feels good.
Birth Control
I used to tell folks that if they were thinking about having children to first spend an afternoon installing a carseat properly. I find very little as irritating as getting a carseat safely installed. Especially using those flippin’ UAS latches.
I’ve changed my mind. Retro-fitting a toddler bed with bedrails? There are no words available to me right now to express the level of annoyance this has caused me. I haven’t been this annoyed since, well, since I attempted to install the new carseat and that ended with me throwing the whole contraption back into the box and walking into Sears and saying “This carseat is fucking stupid, give me one that isn’t so annoying”.
The new carseat was no different in terms of installation, but cost me an additional $100.
Steve is now fully responsible for the bed situation. I’ve given up.
MeMe Continued….
::How Steve and Amber Met, the PG Version::
Steve and I met through mutual friends (Hi! Angela!) in Las Vegas just after Angela and I had graduated from Engineering at the University of Calgary in May 1998. Ange and I were on a road trip through the Western States and we met up with her now husband and his friends in Vegas. I was in a long-term relationship that wasn’t in a very good place, and Steve and I had a lot of chemistry. We, uh, dated. Then we didn’t. Years later we, uh, dated again. Then we didn’t. Then we did but were keeping it kind of low key (I refered to him as my “boy-toy” during this time). Then September 11th happened, and not long after that we stopped the game playing and became serious about each other. Now our, uh, dating, has created two new little souls 
.
Steve and I are very different people with the same soul map. Our approaches to everything in life are different, but being with him has made me a better person and I like to think that he’s a better person as a result of being with me, too. I’m always surprised with how well we get along, and so far, I’m very happy with the life that we’ve made for ourselves and our little family. He’s a good man, and I consider myself lucky to be with him now, even if we did start out a little uh, recklessly.
::What do you do when you are in a boat, on the lake, fishing? I always wondered how the time between fishes is spent?::
well, you fish. Generally speaking when I’m on the boat on the lake we are usually just driving around aimlessly, or floating aimlessly in the middle of lake and just soaking up the scenary and chatting. If we have other folks with us, we’ll water ski or wakeboard. Often we bring the mini grill and pull up in a little spot somewhere and have dinner. On super hot days, we jump over board and just float along side the boat.
And sometimes, if its just me and Steve and no one else is on the lake, we, uh, date.
A Meme
ok, this could get dicey considering I filter, filter, filter on my blog (no, really, I do) but I’ll give this meme a go…
Everyone has things they blog about. Everyone has things they don’t blog about. Challenge me out of my comfort zone by telling me something I don’t blog about, but you’d like to hear about, and I’ll write a post about it. Ask for anything: latest movie watched, last book read, political leanings, thoughts on yaoi, favorite type of underwear, graphic techniques, etc. Repost in your own journal so that we can all learn more about each other.
a little hut
a little sauciness
angry chicken
beauty that moves
blogging for two
burrito west
craftster
creative thursday
disdressed
disney princess recovery
dooce
elephants with wings
eskiegirl
how about orange
imagine childhood
knitty
meadowsweet cottage
mini mak makings
moon stitches
my plum pudding
orange you lucky
paper forest
plants and hogs
potential energy
rosy little things
sew mama sew
smartass
soule mama
suzy says
the mayfly
the stars
The Wilting Quilter
tree hugger
two straight lines