Eddy Spaghetti and his FTM

Day 6-11

2009-03-16T22:48:00.005-04:00

Day 6: March 11, 2009 - We stayed in because Ed and I still seemed sick.

Day 7: March 12, 2009 - Ed was getting better but we skipped out on Mother Goose anyways, don't want to risk getting other little ones ill.

Day 8: March 13, 2009 - We were feeling much much better, went to Dufferin mall with some cool Junction Moms, Ed fell asleep in the car on the way home and I only had like 2hrs before his second doc appointment so we headed over to Cloverdale mall, I fed and changed his bum, we strolled around Kitchen Stuff Plus and then got back on the road to St. Joe's. So crazy because the nurse gave him his shots, but instead of nursing him she wanted me to hold him facing her with his feet between my knees and holding his arms by his side...I was nervous but she was finished before Ed or I even noticed and he barely flinched. We picked up Daddy afterwards and headed to Subway for supper :)

Day 9: March 14, 2009 - We didn't do much, the weather was gorgeous. I did head out and picked up Ed's next car seat, Safety 1st True Fit. It seemed to get good reviews on http://www.car-safety.org/ (comparable to Britax Marathon) and it was on sale at Zellers. Thanks RFD.

Day 10: March 15, 2009 - Playdate with Junction Moms while Dad cleaned up dog poo and maple keys outside. Made homemade rice cereal for Ed, he wasn't too fond until I added pears. We took his socks off because it made him look like a little hillbilly :) He was really enjoying playing with the spoon more than the food and yes I usually strap him in :P

Day 11: March 16, 2009 - Sarah was supposed to come out to Earl Bales park with us for a urban hike with the Urban Hike Group :P but she was sick...boo :( Ed and I went after getting lost because I didn't realize there isn't a Bathurst St exit while going east on the 401, ah duh?!?! It was a beautiful day and I met some more nice moms :)

Day 5: March 10, 2009 - Doc Appointment

2009-03-10T22:49:00.002-04:00

I swear my baby doesn't look sick, his sleep is a little messed up and he's sporadically coughing and sneezing and he still seems a little hot, but otherwise his regular funny self :) I haven't figured out if he got me sick or if I got him sick, my throat feels like sandpaper in the morning and the evening...I hate being sick!

Ed was supposed to get his shots today but because of his fever the doctors didn't want to give them in case he reacts to them, which wouldn't be good on top of his cold. I finally decided to get the blood taken for my thyroid test, I feel like things are probably fine but it'll be interesting to find out for sure since all the women on my side have thyroid issues.

I've cancelled all my playdates this week but am hoping that we miraculously get all better by the end of the week so we can have a good weekend...did I mention I hate being sick!! The calendar is full and I hate missing out on my daily outings, they keep me sane.

Anyways, here's the photo of the day. Ed has recently started sitting up without support fairly well, here he is propped up on his change table and looking in his circle mirrors, he loves them :)

Day 4: March 9, 2009 - Recipe Exchange

2009-03-09T13:41:00.003-04:00

So today our activity was a recipe exchange with the Junction Parents at Cool Hand of a Girl. What a great little shop, I had never been before and tried an avocado sandwich for the first time ever...so good :) Half the ladies ended up cancelling for various family emergencies or last minute notice (with the RSVP/waiting list system) but 5 of us still made it out and enjoyed chatting it up, eating lunch and exchanging recipes.

I almost thought I was going to have to cancel for a while this morning, Ed woke up at 6am this morning -- very unlike him and I noticed that he was boiling in his sleeper. I changed his bum and took him back into bed with just his diaper. It took him about a half hour to get back to sleep just in time for DH to start snoring...by 7am the alarm went off and Ed was still boiling, I took out the thermometer and he had a slight fever. He's never had one before and it bothers me that he's so hot all over. I get DH to call his mom and we give him some Tylenol. Once dad leaves we go back to sleep till 10am!!!!! It seems like his fever is a little better and he's not boiling all over but then he starts wincing his eyes...he's never done that before. He was fairly well behaved while we were out and we didn't actually get back till after 1pm so he's tired and napping. I'll get his 365 pic sometime later this afternoon or tonight. I'm concerned for my little dude but luckily we have a doc appointment tomorrow so that's fairly convenient.

Day 3: March 8, 2009 - Daylight Savings

2009-03-09T13:29:00.003-04:00

So I'm a day late and I realize I'm not gonna because to keep up with a blog a day...there just aren't enough hours in a day...especially since spring daylight savings steals one from us. Ed didn't wake up till 9am on Sunday, which was really 10am. The worse was the night time, he was already staying awake till 10pm before the change...last night was 11:30pm before he finally decided to sleep. I tried the whole night time routine thing but he just doesn't want to sleep at that time. We had previously tried CIO for about a week almost a month or so ago and after a full week we saw no progress so decided to put it off for another month or so. I'm leery about starting it again, it was really hard to deal with. I can't really complain because once Ed does go down he's only up a few times during the night to eat and since he's in bed with us...I'm half asleep and hardly notice.

So Sunday night was eventful but during the day we mostly just hung out around the house, not much going on at all. This is supper time with avocado and banana, me trying a technique in photoshop to isolate the messy puree:

Day 2: March 7, 2009 - Hanging with Aunty Sarah

2009-03-07T23:20:00.004-05:00

Day 2: I had recently got a BabyCenter email:

Many babies are happy and outgoing at this stage. If yours is, then this an ideal time to show her that other people can love her almost as much as you do. Try letting her spend some time getting accustomed to warm, trusted caregivers and babysitters. The experience will help her feel more secure a couple of months down the road, when separation anxiety makes its entrance and your little extrovert becomes more reluctant to leave your side.

With this on my mind I decided to talk to Aunty Sarah about her previous offers to babysit, we had hung out earlier in the week so Ed and her had a chance to reacquaint with each other. He even fell asleep on her in the Ergo while we had walked around the ROM...so cute!! So Saturday came around, DH and I had decided to go see Coraline in 3D downtown (it was great btw). This was Ed's first time being away from Mom and Dad, the entire time leading up to it I didn't think I would freak out but I did a bit, trying to think of everything I could to possibly tell Sarah: his likes, dislikes, toys, food, dogs...yabbber, yabber, yabber...on and on and on :)

Of course Ed decided to take a 1.5hr nap and only woke up as we should have been leaving the house, so I nursed him quickly and we took off...after getting stuck in a few traffic jams we made it into the theatre just as the previews were starting. Aunty Sarah tell us that Ed was great for her...I had suspected that he might be but was still a little nervous. I think I was the most amazed that he had even went down for a nap...something Dad and I even had a hard time with not so long ago :)

Day 1: March 6, 2009 - Balmy Swinging

2009-03-07T22:54:00.004-05:00

I found this great idea about documenting a year in the life of your child with photos, basically taking a picture everyday to see how they grow and change. I went back through Flickr and tried to see if I had any significant consecutive sequence of days but there are huge gaps between picture taking in the past 6mos so I figured I'd start now and get Ed from 6mos to 18mos. It will also give me an opportunity to hone my photography and Photoshop skills.

So since the weather has started getting a little nicer and Ed's gotten better with his neck and upper body strength I've wanted to get him to a swing at a park to see how he likes it. On two separate occasions I've passed parks while on foot but Ed's been sleeping and I never wake my sleeping cutie :) On Friday we went to Ed's first birthday party, we had a great time hanging out and playing with the other babies and moms. The weather was so nice, something around 14 degrees, I decided to walk over to the Junction with the stroller. Barely 15mins into the walk I had to take off my jacket because I was sweating....YES!!!

So after the party, DH wanted me to head over the Blockbuster and see about buying a video game so I took the long way around Keele and the Stockyards. Ed got a little fussy after finishing up in the store so I put him in the Ergo and proceeded to push an empty stroller home. We were passing a park and he was awake and the weather was still great so he went for his first swing...YAY! He was a little apprehensive at first but overall enjoyed himself.

Here's Day 1:

Declutter Challenge Week 1: Desk/Office-Part 2

2009-02-19T17:09:00.003-05:00

So I spent the better part of last night and today going through the papers, so many papers. I had tax stuff from well over 10yrs ago...it was always the folder that I avoided because it was so fat with documents. I've purged the papers now I just have to develop a system to organize it once it comes into the house and then I'll decide if I need to get some more organizing equipment.

I also took the time to sign up for ebilling with the remaining companies I hadn't bothered with before. Surprisingly, Superior Propane is only utility that doesn't provide any sort of online capability.

I still have to look through the insurance and auto papers. Then I'll just have to send off the garbage with DH so he can shred it all. With regards to the desks, I've done a cursory sweep of the desks but there is still quite a bit left to do and it's really not as easy to do this as before Ed came along.

Declutter Challenge Week 1: Desk/Office-Part 1

2009-02-17T23:28:00.009-05:00

kickypants has offered up a decluttering challenge which I have accepted and the first project is the desk and office area. I have two desk/office areas in my house. One is downstairs in our family room and used frequently as it has the only computer in the house atm. We have another "computer closet" as it's been dubbed upstairs but since Christmas it's computer busted and I haven't had an opportunity to fix it. The computer closet has the luxury of having doors so it can be closed off when the desk gets overwhelmed with stuff...let's just say the doors have been closed for a while and it's recently become a major dumping ground.

I've tried several times in the past to get these areas under control but they are #1 on the list of reoccurring offenders. I guess I've yet to come upon a system that works for me on a regular basis. The problem is papers! I am inundated with papers, more and more papers and I only get like 3 paper bills now a days. I took "before" pictures tonight...I can't believe I'm going to post these, it's very embarrassing, lol :)

Main Floor "Computer Closet" - yes those are butternut squash, lol, they need to be kept somewhere cool and this area at the back of the house is a little cooler and they needed to get off the kitchen table :)

Family Room Computer Desk

Pimp my Ride Mom

2009-02-15T23:55:00.004-05:00

I fell in love with babywearing before I even got pregnant. I'm such a nerd by the time Ed arrived I had made my own ring sling, pouch, mei tai and wrap. I've used them all but in all honestly the ones that have gotten the most use are the pouch and wrap. I ended up borrowing a stretchy wrap (like a moby) from a girlfriend and used it for several months exclusively but the messy winter weather puts a hamper on tying those tails, not to mention I was having to re-adjust it more often as Ed has gotten heavier. The pouch was great while he was newborn as it was quick and easy, but he hasn't been cradled in there forever...we've moved onto the hip and sometimes the kangaroo carry. The wrap is good too, nice and comfy and the one I made does not stretch so Ed does not end up near my knees but it's still winter so it's restricted to the house.

I like the mei tai but it still has those long straps and it's still winter, I wanted something faster and easier for DH to deal with so I decided I wanted a soft structured carrier, which has buckles instead of knots. It was a really hard decision between an Ergo and a Beco but in the end I was able to get a cheaper secondhand Ergo from Kijiji. I totally stole an idea from The Baby Wearer and pimped Ed's Ergo...apparently we now have a Pergo :)

Using the stolen idea, I got a snap tool and made an interchangeable panel for over the pocket. I then removed the hood and made it interchangeable as well. The best thing is that a fat quarter is exactly enough for the panel and hood so by the end of this adventure I'm sure I'll have quite a stash of different designs.

Action shots to come :)

Colds and Cooking

2009-02-03T23:13:00.004-05:00

I can't believe it's been a month since I blogged last, it seems like forever ago.

Ed is 5mos now...that is totally insane! I was finally getting back into the swing of things after going away for the holidays when he goes and gets his first cold ever...he was still a fairly happy baby throughout it and luckily never got bad enough that he ever had trouble nursing. The issue is that I had a really full week of activities planned and the weather wasn't that bad, but once he got sick we couldn't playdate or visit other babies so we ended up inside the entire time.

I did do up a meal plan for the first time in a long time and cooked like crazy that week, even a lemon loaf...that I ate all by myself in two days!!! LOL! I had decided to do some decluttering and went through almost 3years of WISH and Chatelaine magazines...ripping out all the recipes that looked good and articles I liked or hadn't read (or don't remember reading). I picked out a week full of meals and made some things I'll definitely make again and others that just looked good but didn't taste as nice. I used leek and savory cabbage for the first time, made a Moroccan braised chicken dish with raisins and apricots and found a faster and better way to make cabbage rolls--which I love so much!

My computer still isn't fixed, I think my mobo is fried and I'm trying to get a cheap second hand one but it's so old they are few and far between. I haven't even been sucessful in getting the other computer to read the old hard drive and IT'S DRIVING ME NUTS not having the stuff on that disk :( and having to go to the basement for computing.

I'm hitting up my local moms' baby food exchange party tomorrow, for my contribution I made organic butternut squash puree. I'd never even bought a squash before, except for Halloween pumpkins for carving. I bought way too much squash...which I believe was probably an issue with my metric to imperial (and vice versa) conversion; I have 2 huge squash left over, luckily they last for up to 3mos--maybe I'll try some soup. I was using my Super Baby Food book to help me prepare it and it was so easy...the most time consuming part was straining all the puree through the only sieve I have which is practically the diameter of a soup can. I'm super excited to get the stash of assorted solids from the other moms, which will include prunes, carrots, apples/pears, sweet potato & cinnamon, banana & quinoa puree, and banana peach oatmeal.

My Computer is Dead :(

2009-01-05T13:09:00.002-05:00

Well I knew it'd be a while before I posted because of holidays, but then I come home to a busted computer. Being the nerd that I am I usually freak out but at least I have a backup in the basement...but I can't move it and am now without the requisite music player upstairs to facilitate easy nap times for Ed.

Oh it's been so long since I built a computer or had to fix a major issue, this sucks...and I have very little time to tinker around with it to boot. I have no POST, but did just find a tutorial to run through...one step at a time when I find the time I guess.

I feel like I was just getting used to being at home with Ed, then Christmas and holidays hit and now I feel like I'm starting all over again.

Distracted by the Holidays

2008-12-20T00:27:00.002-05:00

Well it's been a while since I posted, and it will likely be a little while longer before I do again. We're off on Sunday to our hometown to showoff the monkey and celebrate the holidays. On one hand I'm looking forward to it and the other I'm a little nervous about how it's going to upset the monkey's schedule. Just like he surprised me at the Christmas party, I'm sure he'll be fine but it's going to be 12 days of running around...I'm praying for decent weather.

Mother nature dumped a load of snow on us today, and originally I was taking our two dogs to their kennel 1.5hrs away but called ahead and ended up taking them on Thursday. I could not have imagined driving that long in the storm--just me, the monkey and two whining dogs. Ed was superb during the drive, he fussed a bit before falling asleep on the way there. I nursed and changed his bum after dropping the dogs off and monkey was asleep again before I hit the highway home.

The other bummer is that I'm sick, mainly a head and throat illness and I'm fairly certain Ed has it too. He's been fussier today and coughing more (knock on wood no stuffy nose yet), sleeping like a champ most of the time. I'm really hoping we're fine for the Sunday flight and that nursing through the ascent and descent will be sufficient...I'll be dropping our entire dish of hard candies into my purse.

We aren't having a tree this year because of going away, I'll post last year's because I was and am so proud of it. For those of you who get a real tree, the thing I love the most about them (except the lovely scent) is how you can pick up any ole tree that the lot has left and regardless of how haphazard it looks, string some lights and splash some decorations on it and VOILA!! Amazing!!!

Merry Christmas everyone and Happy Holidays!!!

Breakfast Lasagna

2008-12-07T13:21:00.003-05:00

I cut this recipe outta a magazine and I think it looks scrumptious. I haven't actually made it yet, but figured I'm straightening up and instead of having the recipe laying around I'll post it here to share as well as immortalize it on the internet for future reference.

Ingredients
12 slices of bread, crusts removed
10 slices of Canadian back bacon
10 slices of sharp cheddar cheese
6 eggs
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp dry mustard
1/4 cup minced onion
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
3 cups milk
dash Tabasco
1/2 cup unsalted butter
crushed Corn Flakes

Directions
-Set 4 slices of bread into an 8x8" buttered ovenproof baking dish. Layer with slices of bacon, followed by cheese and finished with 4 more slices of bread.
-Repeat to make another layer and then top with the last slices of bread.
-In a bowl, beat eggs and pepper together. Add mustard, onion, Worcestershire sauce, milk and Tabasco.
-Pour over layers, cover and refrigerate overnight.
-In morning, melt butter and pour over top. Cover with crushed Corn Flakes and bake uncovered for 1 hour at 350F. let rest 10 mins before serving.
-They also say you could serve with Hollandaise sauce (with a dash of lemon and black pepper) for a zesty finish.

Serves 8.

I really hope it's as good as it sounds and that my stomach can handle the eggs. I haven't tried any since being pregnant and they didn't agree with me after just realizing that I like the taste of them since I hated eggs as a kid.

Enjoy!

My Men are Party Animals!

2008-12-06T01:15:00.004-05:00

So I am in disbelief right now, DH's Christmas party was this evening and both of us were prepared for the worse as it was Ed's first time out after dark, let alone his bedtime. We were certain we'd be heading home after an hour or so...but here it was 12:11AM when I pulled outta the driveway to come home. I'm uncertain as to how I am going to pay for keeping him out so late, but we'll wait and see :) Eddy gave a stellar performance, he cranked a few times but nothing unresolvable without a bit of dancing/walking or swaying to the incessant tunes of Madonna blasting over the stereo. He was able to chill out with his friend Joey and Aunty Sarah :P His outfit was a hit, just like Daddy.

Just like in the crowded family washroom at Dufferin Mall on Thursday, it was so loud and crowded at the party Ed had a hard time nursing, in fact, he was so distracted and overstimulated he just wouldn't latch at all for any length of time, I ended up packing him up and moved to the car which I started up for heat and he was finally able to eat in peace to the lovely sounds of his World Lullabies CD. I also got in a diaper change which I'm sure helped ease his mood.

The party was at Tappo, the food was amazing, the decor was fabulous, the servers superb and the night was great...with the exception of the 7 consecutive Maddona songs they blasted after supper finished. Apparently, we were originally supposed to eat around 8:30pm but I think it the end it was closer to 10pm. I'm glad I got DH to make me a grilled cheese earlier in the evening before we left. For appetizer I ended up with:

ANTIPASTO FREDO - trio of cheese, cured meats, marinated olives, roasted peppers and vegetables.
--It looked great, but unfortunetly I only like 2 of the cheeses, lol...I let DH take whatever else he liked :)

BISTECCA AL AMARONE - dry aged "USDA " beef striploin nape with an Amarone wine reduction served with roasted garlic whipped potato and daily vegetables
--Oh man, this was amazing...I really could have eaten two of these plates with twice as many potatoes...so good!

and a super yummy Tiramisu for dessert, which I almost missed because it arrived while I was out in the car with Ed but luckily DH saved it for me when I got back in, what a super guy!

It's 10PM and I'm snacking on oatmeal chocolate chip cookies!

2008-12-03T22:09:00.003-05:00

Yummy!!! We co-sleep and Ed is finally getting into a deep enough sleep that I can actually leave his side, thank goodness considering the swing just isn't cutting it anymore. I had to get outta bed, DH is in there playing Fallout3 on the PS3 and every time he shoots someone I cringe and look at the baby...is he going to wake up? It's better not to put myself through that, so here I am :)

In our family I handle the finances, I'm a saver and DH is a spender. Even though he worked at the bank when we first started dating he has no interest in handling our finances and he doesn't mind that I do. Okay, so I say I'm a saver, but I still like to spend but I make sure that our savings are covered first...you know that whole "Pay yourself first" stuff. Prior to having Ed I was a bit obsessive, we have a budget and I have an Excel spreadsheet I created for tracking the next three months' expenditures (plus a bunch of other finance-related tabs). I used to carry the file around on a USB key on my keyring so I could access it from work or home, now I just need it at home but I've since moved to OpenOffice's Calc program (it's free and it's pretty much exactly like Excel, and i couldn't find my MS Office cds). I even visited a plethora of PF blogs, aka. Personal Finance blogs. My favorite were/are:

http://www.milliondollarjourney.com/
http://www.four-pillars.ca/
http://www.thesimpledollar.com/

The first two are Canadian and both dads (they have baby related finance entries) and were very helpful in teaching me quite a bit about a variety of personal finance issues. Of course, now a days I don't get the chance to visit them and my days are filled with other things or I'm on a baby website or Facebook instead.

Since Ed I've gotten so lazy with keeping up, so much so I paid interest on our Visa for the second time in my entire life because I missed the payment date by like 2 or 3 days...darn!!! And of course prior to Ed we had a card with rewards (that we can't even use anymore - free movies from Scotiabank...movies in a theatre?!, pssshhh, maybe in like 3 years or so) and a high interest rate....but only because we never paid interest. I probably should have called and see if they would have given me a break but I coudn't be bothered, my loss. At least I'm keeping up on the utility bills :D and since my payment lapse I make sure I get online and pay them as soon as they come through the mail slot or to my email inbox now...crying baby or not ;)

The other thing, finance-related, that I have been wondering about and being hounded about by telemarketers, is starting up an RESP for Ed -- even if I was going to start an RESP it wouldn't be from some insistant telemarketer. They threaten me with the likes of "he's going to have to pay $75k for education when it's time for him to go to school". I'm so torn on the issue of starting an RESP and more specifically on entirely funding my child's secondary education. I went to school with so many people who's education was funded by their parents and they basically pissed away several years at university. Myself on the otherhand, worked to get a scholarship and worked throughout university. I think DH and I have agreed that we would definitely offer to help out Ed with school if we were able...but I'm still uncertain as to whether I want to start a fund now. I think I'd rather have the house paid off first. Time to revisit my favorite finance blogs and see how the PF gurus weight in on the issue :)

It's Ed's 3mos Birthday Today!

2008-12-01T12:15:00.003-05:00

We celebrated by hitting up the Junction Parent's Stroller Fit this morning, I was so close to not going, Ed had fallen back asleep and I woke up at 8:30am just in time to finish getting us ready and out the door to get there in time (something I haven't been doing the past couple times we've gone). Mind you, I think every morning "I am so close to not going", lol :)

Ed's sleeping at the moment, not sure how long that will last so I'm using the time to check up on email and the various websites I go to. I know once he wakes up I'm going to try a few of the new leg positions in the Ergo. Lindsay's Urban Hiking for Families meetup is tomorrow afternoon and we're hitting up Yorkville and Rosedale. It would be pretty cool if I could use the Ergo instead of the wrap.

I was supposed to meetup with my friend, Sarah, this afternoon but unfortunetly she's under the weather and we don't want to risk bringing the illness into the family. What am I going to do this afternoon...I have a library book ready for pickup at the library. I assumed it was another sleep book, I've gone through No Cry Sleep Solution, Dr. Sears, Ann Douglas, Baby Whisperer and am waiting for the Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child...but it's not, it's two books on baby signing! So much more fun than sleep books ;)

Juntion Parents are having a Intro to Baby Signing session on Friday this week and even though most people don't start with the signs till 4mos, the lady who runs it is signing people up for the classes in January. I really wish Scott could come though but he'll only be able to make it if it's a weekend thing. It just seems like it would be so much easier for him to attend than me relay all the info back to him...if he doesn't go he won't seem as interested in doing it with Ed at home.

This can't be very interesting for people to read?! I think that's why I hadn't gotten into Blogging before, I had always though of doing it while I was pregnant because I was real bored at work and had lots of time on my hands, but then again we'll see how long this lasts. I'm easily distracted :) Time to try and get some christmas lights out, it was supposed to happen over the weekend but it didn't, the closer I get them to the door the more chances they'll go up :)

first post real quick

2008-11-30T23:50:00.004-05:00

i set this up a while ago but am just getting to it now...my new mom friends have given me some encouragement with their wonderful bloggin endeavors :)

dh is upstairs in bed, i'm in the basement while Ed sleeps on the couch...i really don't want to wake him up before he does on his own. sleep lately has been all over the place, not sure if he's going through his 3mos growth spurt but that's what i'm calling it :)

i like smilies, if you follow this you'll find that out pretty fast :D

anyways, i have lots to say but the most exciting news today is that i got an Ergo from kijiji today, i was thrilled, i've been up in the air over an Ergo or a Beco and actually being able to get to one online before it gets scooped up. i had Ed in it several times today, unfortunately he's still too small and doesn't like his legs in the splits position as i read about on the ErgoLady website...that makes me feel better about him not liking the mei tai i made, but i did get him forward facing (kangaroo style) and have a bunch of new leg positions to try tomorrow

umm....when is he going to wake up...i know, just in time for daddy to start snoring so we can't get back to sleep :)