12.31.12: Getting Ready to Say Goodbye to 2012

Dear Friends and Family,

It's nice to have time off, not because I hate work because I don't really hate work. But, I do hate my commute. And, not driving for a week has been nice. And, sleeping instead has been great.

We spent a couple of days at home before leaving for the holidays which translated into a little less chaos when we got back. We spent a couple of days with each set of grandparents and P got to spend some time with my brother. By the end of the trip, we were all ready to come home.

And, now, today, we're dropping P off at school today while I get some much needed time at home without P. On the list? Insurance for my new company, clearing out portions of the basement, and finishing another school application.

Yesterday, we took down one of the railings on P's bed converting it from a crib to a daybed. She handled the change fine. I think I'm the only one who got sentimental over it. I know she's closer to four than three, but it was one of the last vestiges of babyhood we still have in the house. I didn't realize when I picked her up out of it yesterday morning that it would be the last time I was picking her up out of her crib. Fortunately, I've been savoring it since I knew the end was near, so I wasn't completely crushed by the change.

I looked at my master "to do" list now vs. two months ago and we've made progress. I look forward to the day when I can convert it into a largely discretionary list of fun to dos instead of the current mundane list of required to dos. Progress.


Cheers!
mouse

12.17.12: Five More Days

Dear Friends and Family,

It's Monday.

We got a ton of stuff done over the weekend. And, like it or not, a ton of stuff will get done over the week. And, by Friday, our list will have whittled down to almost nothing.

Wishful thinking if I ever heard it.

We spent the weekend trying to help P write her Christmas cards. We enjoyed the grey, but warm Sunday to take P out for a bike ride. She's beginning to balance now. We got out our new year's party invitations. I ordered P's gifts. We made a sizable dent in our Christmas card process.

Like it or not, a ton of stuff will get done over the week. And, by Friday, our list will have whittled down.

I'll be glad when it's Friday.


Cheers!
mouse

12.11.12: Busy Weekend

Dear Friends and Family,

Want to hear about our weekend?

We got a haircut. We dropped off dry cleaning. We packed our bags. We went to the symphony. We went for a walk in the rain. We went to lunch. We went to the airport. We went to have dinner with a friends. We went to the hotel to check in.

That was Saturday. Sunday?

We went to the hotel pool. We went to a friends' house for lunch. We went to another friends' house for the afternoon. We went to a third friends' house for dinner. We went to the hotel to crash.

Monday?

We went to the dentist. We went to lunch. We went to the airport. We picked up last minute presents. We unpacked and played.

Exhausted? Yes, it was good sleeping in our bed last night. But, even if it was exhausting, it was absolutely great catching up with all of our friends. I'm not as anxious about school. I'm not as anxious about my thyroid. And, I'm several days closer to 12/21 when, by definition, the holiday rush will be behind us.


Cheers!
mouse

12.03.12: Now Is Your Time to Push

Dear Friends and Family,

Now is your time to push. That's one of our favorite lines from auto racing.

I know it might seem as if drivers are driving as fast as they can for the whole race. After all, isn't that the point of driving in a race? But, it turns out, even if they're going as fast as they can, there's moments where their crew will tell them, now, you should try to go even faster.

Where does that extra come from?

I don't know. But, I do know, Mr. mouse and I need to find it for the next three weeks.

This weekend, we finished off three more school applications for P. I took advantage of the unseasonably warm weather to take P out to the library, brunch, and park to give Mr. mouse time to work on the applications. I swear, if anyone can procrastinate, Mr. mouse can procrastinate.

Sunday, I took a break and let Mr. mouse take P out for bagels and a bike ride.

Now, it's Monday and we have one more application due in a couple of weeks. If you add holidays on top of that, January begins to look like the promised land.

Top Three for December?

• two more school applications, one more school tour, our first parent meeting, and whatever else we need to do for school
• holidays... holidays... holidays... tree, presents, cards, invite for our January party... we need to do our tree this week
• my health, I've got a doctor's appointment tomorrow. Fingers crossed.

Now is your time to push.


Cheers!
mouse

11.26.12: Ugh

Dear Friends and Family,

It's great to have almost a week off. It's nice to relax and sleep and play with P and eat and enjoy the unseasonably warm weather. And, then, reality strikes.

Applications. Holiday prep. Race to the end of the year.

Unfortunately, I need to head out early today so I can't really write. And, I'm sure it's going to be an obnoxious week at work. There are no words.


Cheers!
mouse

11.23.12: Oops

Dear Friends and Family,

It's Friday. Where did the week go?

First, let's start with the weekend. We flew down to see old friends and a new auto race. The weather couldn't have been better. The race was well run. It was fabulous seeing our friends. I ate too much barbecue.

Monday, we spent the morning with our friends. Afterwards, we went to a park to let P play. We went for ice cream. Then, we drove to the airport to fly home.

Tuesday, Mr. mouse dropped P off at school and I spent the day home. What'd I do with my free time? I continued looking for insurance. I cleaned house. I read. I watched a little TV. I got my nails done. Not a stunning day, but nice to not go to work.

Wednesday, I stayed home with P. We made bread. We ate breakfast. We fixed her crown. We bought a microwave. We bought groceries. We ate lunch. We went to the park. We napped. A most excellent day.

Thursday, poor P. Mr. mouse and I tag teamed playing with P and cooking. She didn't have much interest in the food and got a little bored.

Unfortunately, the list of things that need to be done this weekend is long and most of it isn't stuff P's interested in. And, in the mean time, I feel work piling up. I'm afraid of Monday, partly because I didn't finish up stuff that needed finishing up before I left on Friday.

Last, but not least, I'm not feeling well. The stress of work and the stress of cooking and the heat from the oven and eating out over the weekend have all combined to make me feel like I'm hyperthyroid again. I had the shakes on Tuesday. I had the shakes on Wednesday. And, Thursday and Friday, I'm feeling hot again. Phone calls last night for work sitting next to a hot oven probably hasn't helped any.

Time to take a step back and relax. In a simpler world, I would have slept in this morning instead of crawling out of bed for a 3:30 conference call. I just need to remind myself, that, hopefully, by this time next year, I will be living in a simpler world.


Cheers!
mouse

PS: What am I thankful for? P (it goes without saying) and Mr. mouse, the health and happiness of my friends and family, Baby Preston, being able to save for retirement, being able to tread water, President Obama getting reelected, and my trip to Easter Island.

11.12.12: Survival Mode

Dear Friends and Family,

We went on a very quick trip this weekend to celebrate Mr. mouse's birthday. We flew out Saturday morning and flew back Sunday morning. In between, we had a ton of fun seeing old cars, letting the kids run around, doing block puzzles, and eating grilled meat.

All of the kids did a great job sharing their toys. I'll consider it a success.

Now, I just need to survive the next five days. Technically, I'm on vacation all of next week. We'll see if I can get enough done, or if I end up working next week.

Cheers!


mouse

10.29.12: Drained

Dear Friends and Family,

I'm exhausted. P went to bed last night around 11. I went to bed a little later. And, the alarm clock rang this morning at 4. There are no words.

Mr. mouse has been working since sometime last night. P's application, which is due this Wednesday, is not complete because Mr. mouse has been working since sometime last night.

We have a school tour tomorrow. We have trick or treating on Wednesday. We have blood work and flu shots on Saturday. We have an open house on Sunday. We have a birthday weekend with a friend that is still in the planning stages. We have an auto race that's still in the planning stages. We have Thanksgiving which isn't even in the planning stages. We have gifts which aren't even in the planning stages. We have more applications, more school tours, parent interviews, kid interviews, and who knows what else on the horizon.

We have a green box now which is a new holding pen for P's stuff. If she gets fixated on an object and doesn't listen, the consequence is that it goes in the box and she can't play with it. It was comical when she went to trade and put the gourd back in and took the crayon out. I let her do it once, but told her no more trading. The gourd had just come out of the box so I guess she realized she picked the wrong item to liberate. If the box gets full, it gets donated and leaves the house.

We went to vote early voting on Saturday. It took close to two hours. But, it's nice to have that crossed off our list.

P went on a bike ride with Mr. mouse. Yay.

It's Monday. Wish me luck with staying awake today without the caffeine.


Cheers!
mouse

10.22.12: Weekend with Grandma

Dear Friends and Family,

My mom came over on Tuesday night and spent the week with us. P went to school on Wednesday and my mom worked on some stuff she needed to get done. P seemed to enjoy her day home with Grandma on Thursday. But, Friday was a mixed bag. I think P missed Mr. mouse and me from Thursday night and was on pins and needles as a result.

Saturday, we went to watch Harold and the Purple Crayon followed by lunch followed by pictures in the park followed by nap in the car. Sunday, we went to lunch followed by the Planetarium followed by nap in the car. Mr. mouse and I went out Sunday night for a concert and came home to P reading in her crib with my mom.

Overall, I think P enjoyed my mom's visit. I know my mom enjoyed her visit. And, after all the rain we had last weekend and last week, I enjoyed getting out and enjoying the fall. We'll have to make a concerted effort to have some home time this week. Hopefully the traffic works out.

Monday morning rush.


Cheers!
mouse

Collateral Weight Loss

Dear Friends and Family,

Ah. A couple of minutes to write before heading into the shower.

The weekend? It was a mess. It rained. It was cold. It was windy. We stayed inside and built a giant structure of balls and funnels and ramps to play with. We got in fall pictures, barely. We did a little shopping (food, clothes, and shoes). We called it a day.

I'm still waiting on test results from my doctor's appointment last Friday. I hope they come back normal. I've been seafood free, caffeine free, and mostly dairy free for the past three weeks now and I'm beginning to feel better. I can sleep through the night. I've found a solution for the sushi restaurant when we go out that doesn't result in fried tempura and rice. My hands don't tremble as much.

Confession: I still eat an occasional meal of pizza.

The interesting thing is that I've dropped about four pounds in the process. It's concerning since rapid weight loss is a symptom of hyperthyroidism, but it's not concerning yet because it's only four pounds, not twenty, and I don't have any of the other symptoms yet.

So, if you want to lose five pounds, subsist on a diet of cafe au lait, diet coke, Greek yogurt, sushi, and stress. When you can't sleep at night and you get a bad case of the shakes, abruptly remove all of the above from your life. Voila, you'll be five pounds lighter in no time.

I'm sure there are easier ways to lose five pounds. But, hey, who's going to complain about incidental collateral weight loss? Not this mouse.


Cheers!
mouse

10.08.12: Fireworks Going Off In the Sky

Dear Friends and Family,

We flew to New Mexico for the weekend for a quick dip into the balloonist culture at the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.

Friday's flight was long. Saturday's wake up was excruciating. The line at the park and ride was Disneyesque. The cancellation of Saturday morning's activities due to wind was disappointing.

Instead, we spent Saturday morning in Santa Fe, touring Native American pueblos. P and I slept a lot, but Mr. mouse enjoyed himself. We returned to Albuquerque in the afternoon, ate lunch, and headed into the general parking queue for the afternoon activities.

We tagged P so that if we got separated, the police could track us down easily. We set up our seat cushions, and I enjoyed the afternoon sun while Mr. mouse and P went exploring. The evening balloon glow as fun, but not something we hadn't seen before. We had a chance to walk among the balloons and take pictures. The number of balloons was impressive, but the amount of time they stayed lit was shorter than I expected. We later learned they came down early because the wind speeds were getting too high.

We left despite P's declaration that she wanted to see the fireworks. Fortunately, we were able to view them from our car in a parking lot after we left.

Sunday morning we woke up and loaded the car and headed out with our fingers crossed. Mr. mouse sent me ahead to scout a spot for our picnic blanket while P slept in the car. It turns out I couldn't have asked for a better spot.

The Dawn Patrol, which goes out first to gauge wind conditions, inflated their balloons in a row, right in front of us. The first balloon that goes up the US flag with Mass Ascension inflated right next to us. And, we enjoyed a beautiful view of all of the balloons inflating and ascending. When the first balloon launched, I couldn't believe the beauty of it lifting into the sky, the balloon aglow from the burners. It really is a tremendous sight.

At first, they weren't sure how many pilots would choose to launch, but in the end, almost all of them did. There were balloons everywhere you looked. I couldn't take my eyes off them. They were like little jewels hanging in the sky. If you've never gone, it's worth a weekend to go and see the balloons. I highly recommend it.


Cheers!
mouse

10.01.12: One. Two. Three. Jump.

Dear Friends and Family,

Early Monday morning meetings, I will not miss.

Saturday, we went out for breakfast at the diner and books at the library and bread at the bakery. I spent the rest of the day napping while Mr. mouse took P to go look at cars and to go shopping.

Sunday, we marshaled up the forces to go furniture shopping. P's toys had outgrown her bin. Now, we have three large shelves to store all of her stuff.

The funniest part of Sunday was P's new found interest in jumping. She set up her bowling pins (in the morning) and her blanket (in the evening) and jumped. She'd count (very loudly) and jump and we'd clap.

I couldn't stop laughing.


Cheers!
mouse

09.24.12: Peace

Dear Friends and Family,

It's Monday. And, it feels good.

We went to a birthday party on Saturday. And, P enjoyed the Pump It Up experience. She jumped, she ran, she squealed, she laughed, she bounced, and she climbed. She played with the car. She played with the hula hoops. She ate a sandwich and she laughed when they offered her lettuce or tomato or pickles. She ate the cake and said thank you when she left.

On the way home, we stopped at the mall to stock up on pants for P. She napped when we got home while Mr. mouse and I cleaned the house.

Sunday, we went out to brunch with my friends. I love seeing them. It's fun to catch up. It's fun to hear about how they're doing. It's refreshing. After brunch, P went for a bike ride with Mr. mouse while I researched toy storage ideas. We played in the basement before heading out to a local store to look for more clothes. Note to self: not worth going back, still full of over-priced stuff.

P napped while I worked on the baby journal and Mr. mouse packed away the old computer.

We ended the evening with a harvest of all of our peppers and dinner at home.


Cheers!
mouse

09.17.12: Lovely Fall Weekend

Dear Friends and Family,

We've been enjoying the lovely start of fall and the last of what was a really hot summer.

Saturday, we took P for a boat ride since we didn't have time to take the boat to Uruguay when we were in Buenos Aires. And, Sunday, we went to the Arboretum with friends. We had a picnic and let the kids run wild in some tree houses they had set up.

After much reading I've decided I am going to remove all caffeine, dairy and seafood from my diet. According to the nih.gov website I was reading dairy, seafood, and seaweed are the top three sources of iodide.

It's not a cure for hyperthyroidism. But, then again, I don't know if I'm officially hyperthyroid again. I do know when the symptoms surface from time to time, I can make myself feel better by trying to manage diet and stress. I'm not sure if it's all in my head, but as long as it makes me feel better, I can't complain.


Cheers!
mouse

09.10.12: Weekend of Eating

Dear Friends and Family,

The first weekend back from vacation.

Saturday, P and I did our Saturday morning routine while Mr. mouse stayed home with the house cleaners. We went to breakfast. We went to the library. And, for the first time in a long time, we went to the park.

After the house was done, we decided to try and go apple picking. It's a little bit of an apple picking nightmare this year with the early spring, followed by the late winter, followed by the dry summer. The papers had been writing about it, so we figured it was a now or never thing for this fall.

The orchard we went to had tree picking. Some orchards had bin picking only which is comical. Really, pick apples from bins under the tree? How is that any different from going to a farmers' market? And, some orchards had decided to skip on any picking.

The orchard we went to had Jonathan apples only. We bought a half peck of honey crisps from their store. They aren't as amazing as the apples last year. We also bought apple pie bread, apple cider doughnuts, apple pie, and apple cider. Note to self, don't go into an apple orchard store hungry.

To cap off Saturday, we went out to dinner at a new spot by the house. It's actually in the same location as one of our old favorites and Mr. mouse and I both liked it so we may end up patronizing the new spot as well.

Sunday. Sunday. What did we do yesterday?

We went for bagels. Mr. mouse and P went grocery shopping while I napped. I filled out a random insurance claim form while P napped. We went out to dinner with Auntie Janet when P woke up. I think that was the extent of our day.

Oh. There was the logic problem Mr. mouse was working on about three prisoners and five hats. And, I started Game of Thrones.


Cheers!
mouse

09.04.12: Happy Birthday to Me

Dear Friends and Family,

I'm back.

Where'd I go?

We left Saturday morning and arrived Saturday evening in Santiago, Chile. We spent Sunday in Santiago. We left Monday morning and arrived Monday mid-day on Easter Island. We spent Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and a part of Thursday on Easter Island. We left Thursday mid-day and arrived Thursday night in Buenos Aires, Argentina. We spent Friday, Saturday, and most of Sunday in Buenos Aires. We left Sunday night and arrived Monday mid-day at home.

Yes, it was fabulous. Just spending a week off work, staying at a hotel, eating out, and not worrying about chores and stuff is already fabulous. Add to that the travel component and the bucket list destination, and it's bound to be over the top fabulous.

I'll write a little each day about what we did and what I learned. But, for today, the grand reveal.

I had a feeling, going on the trip, that I would learn something worthwhile on this trip. I thought it would be some secret the giant moai (Easter Island's famous statues) would reveal to me. I was wrong. It happened while I was standing at to the side of an ahu (a platform where the moai were erected) and waiting for Mr. mouse and P (she had to go potty) and I was staring at the toppled moai and wondering what it was I was going to learn.

Then, I noticed the absolutely beautiful waves of the Pacific lapping at the shores creating some rather astonishing sprays in the air. That's when I realized, that you can't be focused on one thing and focus so hard on that one thing that you lose sight of the journey and your surroundings because there's beauty in everything around you and you would miss that beauty if you're too focused.

That's my big aha.

Life can be a beautiful journey and it's important to not focus too much on one thing because then you'll miss all of the special moments that could be happening all around you because you're not open to them.


Cheers!
mouse

08.20.12: Battling P Instead of Each Other

Dear Friends and Family,

Well. This weekend was better than last weekend.

We're still not completely happy with each other. But, we're in a better spot than we were last Monday morning so I'll consider that progress. Mr. mouse has been slowly verbalizing his list, but I'm sure there's more than what I've heard so far.

P is still struggling through some habits she's picked up out of nowhere that we're trying to kick. There's whining. There's screaming. There's whispering. There's crying when she doesn't get her way. There's relentless babble. Sometimes she's so precious. Sometimes she's so exasperating.

Last night, she was battling Mr. mouse over dinner. I don't know why the two of them always battle over dinner. But, at some point, I switched seats with Mr. mouse and he left to pick up bread and Diet Coke. And, P and I finished dinner together. Mr. mouse got back just as she was finishing her chicken and we were able to end dinner on a high note.

Later in the evening, she hit a rough patch when I told her she couldn't have a third book. So, I picked her up and carried her to her bed and put her in it. She cried and cried and cried and eventually asked for Mr. mouse. She found center enough to give me hugs and kisses and then read with Mr. mouse for an eternity before going to sleep.

The rest of the weekend? Saturday was a busy day with a haircut, concert, picnic and air show. Sunday was quieter with Target and groceries and pizza and nap. Oh, and we recycled an old printer and bought a 32GB memory card. It holds 3,000+ pictures on one card.


Cheers!
mouse

08.06.12: Overscheduled Mouse

Dear Friends and Family,

We had friends in town. And, I think, both Mr. mouse and I wish we had had more time to spend with them while they were here.

Monday, we came home and had a delicious dinner of ribs and beets. Tuesday, Mr. mouse had a work dinner. I was able to meet our friends for dinner. Wednesday, Mr. mouse had work, and I had bath and bed duty for P. Thursday, P had a birthday party. And, Friday, we had a family picnic at school.

We had time on Saturday for breakfast with our friends. Then, we had to return the rental car. We had lunch on Saturday before P napped and we all headed out to our respective evening activities (music concert and a baseball game). Sunday, we had breakfast together and they headed out for home.

How is that possible? I kid you not. Most weeks, we have zero plans for the weeknights, outside of dinner one night when we get mail.

Well. I hope they enjoyed the trip. And, I'll have to make the extra effort to make more time their next trip here.


Cheers!
mouse

PS: We got P a backpack. She loves it. I think Mr. mouse is tired of watching her play "kid and Mom" with me.

07.30.12: Friends in Town

Dear Friends and Family,

Where to begin?

I picked P up early on Friday and she and I ran a bunch of errands together. It was fun, but by the time we got home, she was dragging. Girlfriend still needs her nap.

We picked up library books, including Bread and Jam for Frances, which P was dying to read. We got a library card for P. She was so happy to get one with her name on it. We went to the toy store to pick up a present for her friend. We also picked up sidewalk chalk for P. We went to the supermarket to get milk and got cookies and chicken as well. We came home and drew on the sidewalk and read the book and then P went down for her nap.

We watched the Olympics when she woke up. We had dinner. Our friends got in. Mr. mouse came home. And, although it was close to eleven when P fell asleep, I think she had a fun day. I had a lot of fun spending time with her.

Saturday, I lost my voice. (I've been sick for close to a week now.) The day was a blur of house cleaning and diner and deck and dinner. I think I napped, too, to try and break the cold.

Sunday, I still had no voice. We watched the F1 race. We watched the Olympics. I napped. We had oysters and salmon for dinner. We had ice cream for dessert. I think I napped. I slept early, to try and break the cold.

Monday, I still have no voice.

Oh. I almost forgot. Saturday night, we tried making soap. It's curing and sometime in October I will know if we were successful. It's all a little freaky with the chemical reactions and everything. But, I'm excited to see how it turns out. Fortunately, outside of some noxious fumes, we didn't blow anything up. Note to everyone out there thinking about this: measure super carefully and remember add lye to water not water to lye.


Cheers!
mouse

07.23.12: Jealous P

Dear Friends and Family,

We went out for a quick trip to see my sister and her husband and their new baby.

P was excited about seeing the baby. She was excited about giving him lots of baby things that she was done with.

It turns out P was not at all excited about having her parents hold the baby or talk to the baby or look at the baby. I can see why. She's used to having her parents somewhat undivided attention. She's used to us looking at her and talking to her. And, with the baby, there's times where you're focused on it and she's watching you not watching her.

Jealous and sad, that was P.

She didn't say anything. I don't think she has the words to describe it all. I gave her tons of hugs to make up for it, and I think it gave me the answer I somewhat needed. There are three in our family.

Sunday, when we got home, I gave P a gummy bear. In the middle of eating it, she said she needed to go potty so I took her to the bathroom. She peed. She wiped. She was leaning over the toilet to watch the toilet paper "get all messy" when I heard a plop followed quickly by a wail. In her distraction, her gummy bear fell out of her mouth and into the toilet.

She cried and cried and cried and sobbed out the words, I dropped my gummy into the potty (or maybe it was my gummy fell into the potty). I tried not to laugh. I held her and let her cry it out and then offered her a fruit jelly which consoled her.

Also on Sunday, we gave P her doll. She was super excited about getting a doll. But, when she got it, there was only one word for it. Disappointed.

She wanted a doll for a three-year-old. I'm not sure what that is. She wanted a bald doll. She wanted a Caucasian doll.

I was having so much trouble not laughing.

We may end up getting a hat. We may end up getting another doll. We'll see.

Friends coming in town this weekend. Deck table assembled. Check. Kitchen island cleared. Check. Basement prep left to do.


Cheers!
mouse