365

Jan 24th- Adam's dad was in town over the weekend and stopped by to visit Monday morning. We can't wait until he lives here again.



Jan 25th- State of the Union address, of course




Jan 26th- My parents with Jackson, Sophie and Brayden after having a birthday lunch for my dad at Sampan



Jan 27th- It's hard to tell in the picture, but I got my hair cut (4+ inches) and bangs too. And the cute boy, of course.



Jan 28th- His hair is getting super long. I'm almost ready for his first real haircut, but Adam surprisingly isn't.



Jan 29th- What can I say? I only took two pictures today. We had a family dinner for my dad, and Brayden just loved playing with his older cousins.



Jan 30th- I don't do it every day, but sometimes if we are getting bored I empty his piggy bank and let him drop the coinc in again. He loves it, and it's developing his hand-eye coordination right?

Need some laughs?

If you do, I've got you covered. Head on over to Dear blank, please blank and Damn You Auto Correct.

Dear college student, You haven't done me in so long, and I'm feeling dirty... Sincerely, laundry.

Dear Stephanie Meyer, Please note that when the love of Hermione's life left her, she continued to search for the keys to destroying the world's most powerful dark wizard. When the love of Bella's life left her, she curled up in the fetal position, went numb for months then jumped off a cliff. Sincerely, J. K. Rowling.

Dear douche bag, Please refrain from breaking up with your girlfriend through me. It's getting awkward. Sincerely, text message

Dear french fry, I know our love is unusual, but it works. Sincerely, frosty.

As for the Auto Correct site, you'll have to work your way thru that one on your own... I can't copy and paste easily and it's someone's bedtime.

Book Review: Room by Emma Donoghue

This book has been on my to-read list since it came out. I knew it was a story of a long-term kidnapping with a child born into the situation, and that the book was written from his 5 year old perspective. Can you even imagine? I definitely couldn't and so this book was so much more than I thought. The story of Ma's kidnapping, captivity and their escape is all interesting. I got so much more than an entertaining reading session or two.

I got a look at what solo-parenting would really look like. Not just single parenting, but full on solo-parenting. No one to help you, no parenting books, nothing. I'm so glad I'll never have to do that. Before the escape, I thought to myself while reading about how hard it must have been for Ma. After the escape, I realized just how abnormal it is and how important it is to have a supportive family or community behind you as a parent.

Along those lines, Ma does some things as a parent that society doesn't agree with once they hear about it. For one, she never cuts his hair. People call him a girl as they start to venture out. The biggest things, though, were co-sleeping (except when the kidnapper came at night) and extended breastfeeding. They just can't believe he is still breastfed. Yes, he is 5. It made sense to me, though. All of these things change, slowly, after the escape. His adjustment to the world was actually heart-breaking to read. It's so hard for him that he at first just wants to go back to Room.

I read a lot. Many books are interesting while I am reading, but soon forgotten. I already know that Room will stay with me for a long time. It made me think about my parenting style and it's helping me have more empathy for Brayden and all other children.

365 week 3

Jan 19th: This picture is at Murray Library's storytime. They bring out a parachute at the end, and he loves it!



Jan 20th: I love how babies and toddlers can just fall asleep anywhere.



Jan 21st: He gets so happy to be outside.



Jan 22nd: My little diaper model



Jan 23rd: We may complain about condo living, but Brayden doesn't mind yet. In fact, he loves it. He runs up and down the clubhouse deck ramp, he likes seeing the ducks and geese, and he loves running around the tennis court kicking balls.

911

I'll start out simply: I joined the 911 club last weekend. Everyone is fine, but I feel like I have to get my feelings about it sorted out.

I was doing laundry and went out to switch the loads. Our laundry is in a storage room right off our main entrance. Ever since Brayden learned to go down the stairs, he would make a run for it if I left the door open while I switched it. I came back in and B wasn't in the front room where he had been. I walked thru the condo and didn't see or hear him. Our condo is small, so that took less than a minute. I immediately started worrying that either I haf left the door open or he had opened it himself and headed down the stairs without me noticing. We are really close to the stream that runs thru Millcreek and Murray, so I got really nervous. I ran out the door and down the stairs over to the stream in just my socks. I couldn't see him, so I ran back up to check again. I was frantic by this point. I looked thru the condo again, deeper, calling him the whole time. Nothing. I grabbed the phone, stopped by the door and threw my shoes on as fast as I could. It felt like it had been longer, but it really had only been 3-4 minutes. I dialed the numbers I have never had to dial as I ran back outside to look again. It was definitely not like in the movies. It took forever (at least it felt like it did). I had to repeat my address twice I was so out-of-breath from running back and forth, up and down. After looking around again, I headed back upstairs for the second time. They dispatched me to the Unified Police Department and the call connected right as I opened the door to see Brayden. He was right by the door coming out from behind a coat rack and chair. I told the officer it was fine and that I had found him.

And now for the complicated stuff: my feelings about the whole ordeal. When I told Adam about it, he basically thought I had called too soon. That I should have known he can't open the door on his own yet and that he must have just been hiding from me. Well, yes, he has never opened the door on his own, but he has also never hid from me for more than 5 seconds without peeking out and saying "boo." All I knew is that there was a chance he was outside and I wasn't going to risk it. Yes, it was more logical he was hiding, but sometimes logic is thrown out the window in parenting. I would do it again in a heartbeat.

From now on, I'll be taking my key with me and locking the door when I go to switch the laundry. He hasn't hid from me again. thank goodness, but I don't want to risk that worry again.

18/365

We made our first trip to the park in 2011. Sure, it was cold and Brayden's nose was a touch red by the time we left, but he LOVED it. I thought he might not remember. I have no idea how good a toddler's memory is, but it's like he was greeting a long-lost friend.

17/365

16/365

I love awards shows. I know it's superficial, but it is so true.

15/365

Smashburger + Love and Other Drugs = awesome date

14/365

I love his bedhead! I love his hair, and I'm dreading whem we'll cut it. A few people have mentioned he could use a cut, and the dreaded "m" word (mullet) has even been used, but I'm still not quite ready.

13/365

12/365

Daddy and toddler exercise!

Weigh-in Wednesday: Down 1 lb. I was short of my goal from last week, but I'm still down 10 lbs overall in 5 weeks. I wasn't able to exercise this week (chronic flare-up). I also didn't always make the best choices for eating. Adam was sick from Saturday on (and when he's sick it's the end of the world) and then Brayden was sick for a few days too.

11/365

1/11/11 sounds like it has so much potential, doesn't it? I wish- it was a sick day for us. Adam has been sick for 3-4 days now and passed it to Brayden yesterday. This is the first time that's happened. I know it will happen again and again. I know it's not anything I can blame Adam for, but I was still irrationally annoyed at him yesterday. It just hurt my heart to hear my boy hacking. So far I don't have it...

10/365

I did my first creative writing exercise in who knows how long today. Personally, I think it sucks... but it's a start. It's a big start for me.

crock pot lovin'

This came up in my google reader last week. It reminded me that I've been neglecting my dear friend the crock pot. Here's what I LOVE about the crock pot:

-Prep is usually easier. Even if it isn't, I'm doing it in the morning when I have more energy.
-Yes, I just said in the morning. How awesome is it to basically have dinner done in the morning?
-I love using the crock pot in the summer simply because it doesn't heat up the house like the oven does.
-When I'm making a recipe with chicken in it, like I did last night, I don't have to deal with the meat much. I hate touching raw chicken!
-It's dependable. I've had my corck pot for 7 1/2 years. I got it for a wedding present. In that time, it's only burned 1 meal (and that was my fault for not realizing the recipe was meant for a smaller size). Also in that time, it's turned out many amazing meals! Here's one of them:

Tortilla Soup

3-4 chicken breasts
1 4 oz can of green chiles
2 8 oz cans tomato sauce
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
2 cans chicken broth (4 cups)
2 cloves minced garlic
2 TBSP sugar
3 tsp chili powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp oregano

Put frozen chicken breasts in the crock pot. Add all other ingredients. Cook on high for 4 hours or on low for 8 hours. I prefer 8 because then the chicken will shred itself.

Optional toppings: cheese, sour cream, tortilla chips, avocado

9/365 (and a video!)

Please ignore the mess, especially in the video. We are in the midst of rearranging his room and it shows.

We have spent hours building and knocking this tower down. A bit repetitive, you might say. Actually, though, I love it. I especially love his gleeful smile as he's about to kick it and his hilarious laugh afterwards.

Brayden's tower from Megan Bishop on Vimeo.

8/365

This picture reveals two of my guilty pleasures- Entertainment Weekly and Diet Coke! (Really, I like Diet Dr. Pepper better, but Adam brought the Coke home.)

And I just wanted to add this for documentation's sake: Brayden ate more pizza than me at dinner! I ate the slice in the picture and had another 1/2 a slice, but Brayden ate 2 whole slices. I guess this is what people talk about when they talk about feeding growing boys. I might not always love it, but I do now! He took so long to want to eat solids, so I'm so happy he's doing so well now.

7/365

We got cupcakes from So Cupcake today using a gift card I had. Brayden loved his blue frosting , but didn't eat much of the cake. It made me think of growing up, because I know I used to love the frosting more too but now I definitely prefer the cake.

I meant to have my picture of the day be one of the cupcakes I got for myself (yes, I had more than one- they're mini cupcakes) but it was gone too fast. It was so good, but the kicker is that some of you might think it sounds gross. I tried and loved a maple bacon cupcake today. Oh my goodness, it was so good!

6/365

My 365 goal is all about capturing real life. Well, this is a picture of a movie that allows me some free time to clean or especially to make dinner without Brayden underfoot. Any guesses what it is?

5/365

He's only the cutest boy in the whole entire world, in my oh-so-humble opinion.

4/365

Brayden hasn't quite mastered the spoon yet. He always starts the meal using utensils, but usually gives up and starts using his hands. I've learned to not worry about mealtime messes- he's learning and eating (he was late to the "enjoying anything other than milk" game). Tonight it was black bean soup- at least it was chunky enough he could get it from the bowl to his mouth!

3/365

My current library stash shows where my reading focus has been lately: a;; over the place. A bit of parenting advice, a dash of feminism, a whole bunch of politics, with some young adult fiction to round it out.

From the top: the movie The Ghost Writer, Give Me Liberty by Naomi Wolf, Shelf Discovery: The Teen Classics We Never Stopped Reading by Lizzie Skurnick, Notes from the Cracked Ceiling by Anne E. Kornblut, The Wet Nurse's Tale by Erica Eisdorfer, The Essential Feminist Reader edited by Estelle B. Freedman, A Family of Readers: The Book Lover's Guide to Children's and Young Adult Literature by Roger Sutton and Martha V. Parravano, and The Successful Child by Dr. William and Martha Sears

18 months

I know I begin these all the same way, but I still cannot believe how fast you are growing up. You won't understand this until you have a child of your own. My favorite thing about you this month is your expressive face. The gamut runs from exaggerated smiles to furrowed brows and everything in between. Your language and signing are picking up speed. I'm so glad I didn't give up on signing. It's so cute- you can sign milk, more, please, thanks, and you're learning "I love you" and help. Your vocabulary is at least 23 words, and I'm sure I am missing some.


You're hitting all of the other milestones too- stacking blocks, identifying body parts (head, hair, ears, eyes, mouth, teeth, nose, neck, belly button, back, and toes so far), running, kicking a ball, etc. You're still hitting some physical ones early- for over a month you've been going up and down the stairs without holding our hands and sometimes you don't even hold the railing! The doctor said that you're early on that and on walking backwards.

Speaking of the doctor- until a few weeks ago you had only seen him for well child visits. You got a bad rash that wasn't going away so we took you in before Christmas. He said it was a virus. It went away, but is back again so we might be giving him another call.

I really love spending my days with you. I know I don't always show it, but you are my favorite person. Believe me, no one else could leave me so happy yet still being so sleep-deprived. No, you're not sleeping through the night yet. Please start! Our bed is getting too crowded, and you still hate the crib, so we're trying just putting your crib mattress on the floor in your room. I really hope it works! Seriously, though, I love you so much Brayden. I am so blessed to be your mommy.

2/365

It still melts my heart to see my baby (yes, I'm still going to call him my baby even though he is 18 months today!) and his daddy taking a nap together.

1/365

Just some light reading, you know?

2011 goals

I did okay on my 2010 goals. I read 40 of the 50 books I wanted too, but since I read 124 books altogether I'm going to call that one good. On the health one, it's a toss-up. I'm at about the same place I was last year (weight-wise), but I got back on the WW bandwagon last month. I didn't even talk myself into waiting until the new year so that's a start right? I've lost 11 lbs so far (probably less now since I haven't officially weighed in since before Christmas). And I decided my last goal about "creating" was stupid. I know I tried a lot of new recipes and I did some crafts, but definitely not one a week. I'm also calling it good because I created something I (and hopefully Brayden) will treasure forever. In May I bought my sister the coolest journal to use as a baby journal, and decided to do the same for Brayden, even though it meant I had 6 months to catch up on. I really love it though, and I hope he appreciates it in the future.

Here are my goals for 2011:

1- Go on a vacation (all 3 of us).
2- Help Adam paint/finish the cupboards and backsplash in the kitchen.
3- Lose at least 25 lbs to be at a healthier pre-pregnancy weight.
4- Take a picture every day.
5- Increase and vary my writing. I've got the blog, goodreads, and B's journal (and I want to increase what I do with all of those), but I feel the need to start a personal journal again. And as for the variation? I hope to maybe tackle anything from poetry to op-ed pieces to creative writing.