Booby Juice

Out with the old....

Out with the old -

In with the new -

Fearless Friday

In a show of support of On Becoming Fearless, Arianna Huffington's new book, Mothertalk is hosting a Fearless Friday meme -- a time for women to share their stories of becoming empowered.

While this meme might be an easy task for some, I found it to be rather difficult.  There are plenty of moments in my life when I felt fearless, like when I finally jumped off the high dive or stood up to the school bully when I was in third grade, but I was having a hard time thinking of a time when I truly felt empowered.

As I quickly made a mental scan of all the major moments of my life -- college graduation, grad school graduation, changing careers, having children, nursing, balancing my life at work and home -- trying to determine which one had the greatest impact, I realized I was omitting something. 

Training for the 100-mile bike ride.

There was a time when I thought that pushing a baby out of my body was the hardest thing I ever had to do physically, but that was until I began training for the ride.  Training for this bike ride, when I have not done any physical activity for four years except pick up a remote control, and with two small children at home, is without a doubt, hands down, the hardest thing I have ever done physically.  It is also one of the hardest things I have done emotionally, aside from being a parent.

During labor, a woman knows that when it is all over she will have a beautiful baby to show off as a result of all her hard work.  There is something tangible to look forward to, to work towards.  More importantly, when the going gets too rough during labor, there's always various pain medications that can help get you through. 

But with the bike ride, there is nothing at the 100-mile finish line to show off except pride.  Nothing tangible waiting for me or to work towards.  And there's nothing I can take, no pills to swallow, that will help get me over the climbs or work through the pain -- I must rely on pure determination. 

For someone who has done nothing but doubt herself and her physical abilities every week since training began, what better way to feel empowered than to physically push myself and actually succeed.  And all for charity. 

So after riding 55 miles two consecutive week-ends and living to write about it, there is now no question -- I can, and will, ride the 100-miles, and pride is in fact something I can show off.

Still working on the new look

Had the fabulous web designer soften the banner colors a bit and I changed the sidebar colors.  I seem to be partial to blue.

I found this neat tool that helps you choose colors for your website.  You "spin" a color wheel and it randomizes three colors for you so that you can see colors together that you normally might not have considered.

I think I'll try living with this for a few days and see how I feel!

Big boy wake up

For the first time ever, Justin slept through the night until a respectable 7:00 AM.  And not only did he sleep in, but he didn't cry when he woke up.  I didn't even know he was awake until I heard him playing in his crib.

This is a huge milestone for us, because even though Justin has been sleeping a solid 10 - 11 hours each night, he generally goes to sleep between 7:30/8:00 PM which means he's up by 6:00 AM, and generally crying to boot.  The usual routine is for Husband to groggily retrieve Justin from his crib, bringing him back to our bed where I nurse him back to sleep for another couple of hours. 

This morning when I got Justin from his crib, I nursed him while I put on my make-up.  And I didn't nurse him again until he went to bed tonight.

If this pattern persists, it looks like the weaning process will be gradual and totally on Justin's terms.

New look

Welcome to the new boobyjuice!  After almost 3 years of blogging, I finally decided to treat myself to a professional make-over, compliments of Husband's great web designer.  There's a little kink in the banner alignment that still needs to be worked out, and I'm not sure I like the sidebar colors, but otherwise I am thrilled with the final product -- I feel like I just got a great pedicure.  And don't the boys look adorable?!?!?!

Let me know what you think, especially about the colors. 

And afer a busy week-end, I have much to post about tonight when I get home from work.

Some updates

I think once you read what I've been up to the past 5 days, you'll understand why I haven't had time to sit in front of the computer.

Bulleted for your reading pleasure:

• I can ride 55 - On Saturday, Husband and I rode 55 miles on our bike.  Yup, we peddled our little hearts out for 6 long, difficult hours.  At mile 30, I wanted to give up and was trying to figure out how I could get someone to pick me up without the rest of the team knowing.  I guess the scheming and plotting sufficiently took my mind off the riding, because before I knew it there were only 6 miles to go.
• I can't dance - After Husband and I got home from our 55-mile bike ride, we immediately had to get dressed for my cousin's wedding.  We were barely able to stand for the family pictures, and by the time the reception started our bodies were so sore it was painful to breathe, let alone dance.
• Storm of the century - Sunday the northeast got pounded by a Nor'easter.  The winds were so fierce, it blew a couple shingles off the roof and we had a small leak in our kitchen.  But on the flip side, the boys didn't seem to notice and slept through the night without a peep!
• Commute for the books - As a result of the storm of the century, it took me 3 and a half hours to get to my office due to flooded/closed roads.  That's almost 3 times as long as usual.  If we hadn't lost our internet connection because of the storm and I didn't have a big call, I would've stayed home.  I should've stayed home any way -- less than half of my office made it in.
• Sick babe - At Justin's 1 year check-up, we learned that he was just getting a new ear infection for which he was given a 10-day course of antibiotics that ended this past Sunday.  That was his third double infection in as many months.  While I was trying to find an open road to get to my office yesterday, my mom called to tell me that Justin was rather clingy.  I instructed her to give Justin a dose of Motrin and call me back if anything else changed.  By the time I walked in the door yesterday evening, Justin had a fever of 103.6, and that was by the ear, which means his fever was probably more like 105.  By that point, he wasn't just clingy, he was absolutely listless.  After calling the pediatrician's service, we were told to immediately cool Justin down with cool, wet towels.  His fever did seem to ease, and I was able to get him to sleep but only on my chest, where he stayed for the entire night.  I knew right away it was an ear infection, which the doctor confirmed this morning.  Apparently, the antibiotic Justin was on last week did absolutely nothing, so his double ear infection, which we thought we caught early, continued to fester for 11 days.  We now have to see an ENT as soon as possible to "discuss options" for treating Justin's recurrent infections. 
• Taxes - I'm a procrastinator.  Taxes were due today.  'Nough said.

Who said life wasn't chalk-full of fun?!?!?!?

Blah

After 10 days of wiping snot and tending to sickly babes, I have finally succumb to the cold myself.  I feel so blah, I might actually take a sick day tomorrow. 

Major Milestone

The boys have been battling the ceremonious end-of-winter cold that doesn't seem to want to go away, but all is well because Lucas has reached an unbelievable milestone.  In a matter of 24 hours, Lucas discovered how to blow his own nose.  We'd been trying to teach him, unsuccessfully I might add, all winter, but something somehow clicked.

The only problem is now we're going through a ton of tissues -- Lucas might now grasp the concept of blowing his nose, but he still has a long way to go before he understands the concept of using a tissue more than once!

Happy 1 Year Birthday Justin!

It's been one year now and I still can't believe that I have two children.  TWO CHILDREN!!!  My "baby" is officially one year old.  We had a small party at the house last week-end with family and some close friends -- stayed tuned for pictures.

Justin was born on April 3, 2006 at 12:48pm.  I was at work on April 3rd this year, but I took some time just around noon to stop and remember that special day.  It's amazing to think about how our lives have changed since Justin's birth -- while we are admittedly more tired, Husband and I are happier than ever and are truly grateful every day for all that we have.

And over the past month we have seen some significant changes in Justin.  First and foremost, I am proud to report that Justin is crawling.....finally!  His favorite mode of travel is still toddling along as Mommy or Daddy hold his hands, but he's giving Lucas a run for his money now that he can spontaneously take off!  Justin can take about 6 steps on his own, but when he realizes what he's doing, he invariably stops and falls straight back into waiting arms.

Justin has proven to be more of the "typical" baby than Lucas.  He loves to pull on electrical cords, touch outlets, and put things in his mouth -- all things Lucas showed absolutely no interest in.  I guess we got lucky with Lucas.  Time to baby proof!

Justin is also "talking" and pointing to objects he wants, though we don't understand a single word he is saying.  I'm not too concerned as he clearly understands a lot of what we are saying.  For example, when I ask Justin if he wants to watch Baby Signing Times, he immediately heads over to the DVD player and starts pulling out the loose DVDs.  Speaking of, Justin knows a ton of signs and often does them while he's watching the video, but I can't get him to spontaneously sign as much as I would have hoped.

In other news, Justin still has an amazing appetite.  We have yet to find a food that the kid won't try.  And just when you think he's had enough, he's coming at you with his mouth open, looking for more!  And I thought Lucas had a sweet tooth -- we literally cannot eat ice cream in the same house as Justin without him virtually tackling you for a taste.

The weaning hasn't been going quite as planned.  At 1 year, my goal was to eliminate all nursing sessions except first thing in the morning and at night, but Justin has been resisting.  I stopped pumping during the day a couple weeks ago, and Justin has taken to cow's milk in a sippy very well.  But when I have to go into the office and come home, he is literally tearing at my shirt as soon as I walk in the house.  I almost always give in, too tired and too sad to stand my ground.

I think the most unbelievable change we've seen in Justin in the past month is the fact that he is an actual person!  What I mean by that is when he sees something he wants, he now tries to communicate that want to us.  Or when we take something away from him that he wants to hold on to, you better believe we hear about it!  And boy oh boy is he giving Lucas a run for his money.  Lucas has always been Justin's favorite person, and now Justin wants to do everything Lucas is doing - -if Lucas is singing, Justin will start screeching; if Lucas is playing with a car, Justin also wants to play with that same car; if Lucas is coloring, Justin wants that very crayon.  You see where I'm going with this?  I think Husband and I need to do some reading on sibling rivalry (btw, my parents made my sister and I read that very book when we were teenagers!).

Today, Justin's one year birthday was non-ceremoniously celebrated with his one year check-up.  Justin now has 12 teeth plus a couple more on the way, and both boys have been battling an end-of-season cold, setting up the perfect environment for yet another double ear infection, Justin's 3rd of the season, but nothing a 10-day course of antibiotics won't cure.  I knew in the morning Justin had an ear infection by his uncharacteristically fussy behavior, especially when he was laid down.  Because of the ear infection, he couldn't get his vaccinations, so we have a follow-up appointment in 2 weeks.  Otherwise, Justin is back on track.  He weighs 21.9 pounds, is 31.5 inches long and has a head circumference of 47.5 cm (percentiles of 50%, 95%, and 75%, respectively). 

What a long, wonderful year it's been.  I can't wait to see what happens over the next 12 months.

Drag down and all out

Husband and I had our monthly drag down, all out fight tonight.  You know, the one where you get all of your pent-up frustrations out until you feel lighter, cleansed and ready to say sorry to each other and go about your night.  Tonight's fight was a bit of a doozey, lasting longer than usual and getting a little dirty, but all is well now.

And in case you are wondering where Justin's 1 year post is, it's coming, I promise.