Summer Fun has kicked off

I just think this photo is adorable.

Sorry for my lack of posts recently.  I have been working on several half finished posts, but none of them are quite ready to be published.

May has become hot and humid, everyone is having end of the year picnics, and its finally nice enough to go to playgrounds without worrying about mud!  This weekend we went to three events that signify the kick off of summer for me.

Apparently the petting zoo is funny.

The first was the Pittsburgh International Children's Festival on Friday with one of my friends.  There were a lot of really neat things to do for free (magic shows, art projects, games, and general noise making!)  C has a great time and I can't wait for next year's since he'll be able to do so much more stuff.  Some of our favorite activities were the hanging sound garden, seeing "Dippy" the dinosaur, petting zoo, spin art on an old record, and When I Grow Up pictures sponsored by PNC.

Look how big Dippy is compared to C!

C & M next to one of the Duquesne
Light truck's drills for telephone poles

Our second event was Saturday morning, Touch-A-Truck sponsored by the Junior League of Pittsburgh.  When I was active in the league this was my favorite event to volunteer at - its just really cool.  They get 30 plus vehicles together in a big parking lot for kids to touch, honk horns, or show off other cool things (like the bomb squad robots!)  C wasn't really interested in touching this year, but he was pretty excited to go and see all the big trucks.  I think the firetruck was his favorite.  We ended the morning with some ice cream, so really a pretty good morning for him!

After nap time we headed over to Sewickley Unleashed which benefits the Western Pennsylvania Humane Society. I wasn't sure how C would do with this, since most of the events are tailored to dogs, and he seems a little unsure about dogs (except Greyhound which he really likes).  He seemed to enjoy seeing all the cats up for adoption, and Grandma is on the committee so seeing her is always a plus.  Also we ended up getting him a stuffed dog, since he picked up one of toy dogs that Grandma was selling and decided it needed a drink of water from a nearby puddle.  It was super cute, and he loves the dog, so I guess it worked out.  We also got some homemade treats for our cats, so there is some benefit for those of us without dogs.

I'm pretty impressed that we were able to do all this fun stuff for under $50 for the whole weekend (including food, new stuffed dogs, and admission).

Other than that life has been pretty slow at our house, M has been busy staining and finishing the floor for the kids room.  Fingers crossed it will be setup this weekend.  The last big project is staining and finishing the dressers from IKEA which he hopes to do over the week, since they will be less work than the floor.  Then its assemble the toddler bed and move furniture.  I can't wait for this, since our hallway and bedroom has been packed with stuff and I can't even open the bottom drawer my dresser without moving 3-4 boxes.  Maybe we just need one of those HGTV shows where we go away for a weekend and everything is magically setup and finished for us?  That being said I don't think I could give away design control to a professional designer...I just want the work crew!

Until next time...

Advice to First Time Moms

There are tons of sites with information for new moms, some of it I found helpful, some of it not so much.  Here's my two cents:

1. Hire a cleaning lady for the first month (and even the last couple months of your pregnancy) if you can.  Its worth every penny.  There is so much going on when you bring a baby home, its nice to have someone else come in and vacuum.  Its also really nice when you're in the final stretch of pregnancy and bending isn't really an option. 
2. Get at least one pregnancy massage.  Its amazing, and the baby likes a relaxed happy mommy.
3. Never say never.  I didn't see a point in baby wearing or cloth diapers.  I didn't think I would have a c-section.  I wasn't going to ever attempt to make my own baby food.  These are all things I ended up doing or at least trying.  I'm sure that there is a lot more.
4. That super amazing baby product you bought that everybody loves?  Your kid will probably hate at least one of these.  C hated the bumbo chair.
5. Don't focus to much on living in the moment or enjoying every second of it.  This is one of the biggest things people say to people with new babies.  I sometimes get into a funk because I know C will only be so little for so long, and I should be enjoying EVERY SECOND of it, but I can't.  Sometimes I'm tired, sometimes I don't want my hair pulled, sometimes I'd really prefer not to be covered in throw up.  I can't imagine that anyone enjoys every second of diaper changing.  C doesn't even like it.  Sometimes I think this is like when I think I want a dog, it would be nice to have a dog to walk or sit on your lap to pet, or play fetch.  Then I remember the downside of having a dog.  They can be very messy, smelly, and destructive.  I think that its similar to people who tell you to enjoy every second, they miss the cuddling and sweet smiles, and have totally forgotten about the tantrums and dealing with sick kids aspect of things.
6. For every crazy mom you meet, there will be 10 more crazier ones on the internet.  You just have to figure out what you're crazy about - organic food, elimination communication, car seats, and find someone to share in the craziness.  I'm sure there is a Facebook group for it.  
7. Don't expect to accomplish anything in the first three months of your baby's life.  If you can take a shower and unload the dishwasher, you have accomplished a lot for that day.  
8. Enjoy all the snuggling you can get.  Even if it means they whack their head into your nose several times.  Who needs a nose anyway?
9. Take advice from your parents, in-laws,  and grandparents.  Assuming they've raised semi-normal adults at this point.  You don't have to always agree with them, but sometimes they have valid points.  We somehow got to this point without the latest and greatest in books and websites. I've noticed the grandpa's are really good at pointing out these things.  Like when I got into a panic because M & I  fell asleep with C in our bed when he was a newborn (on accident) and my dad then pointed out that 100 years ago people always slept with their babies, and that somehow the human race has survived.  They'll also give you great advice for when you suddenly realize that you have no idea how to grocery shop with a baby.
10. Also take advice from your pediatrician, doctor, or pharmacist.  If you're bfing and wondering how your medication will effect things, or you kid has a weird rash.  Its too easy to Google and ask people on Facebook   My guess is the majority of your friends did not spend 6-8 years studying this stuff.  I have friends who are pharmacists or MDs and usually when I ask them a stupid question, they tell me I should really go talk to my doctor since they don't know my medical history.
11. You will not get a lot of the stuff you registered for.  You will get a lot of clothes and copies of Good Night Moon (which I don't even understand why people like that book, I think its creepy).  You will also get a bunch of stuff that is interesting and you're not really sure you need it.  9 out of 10 times that interesting thing ends up being really helpful.  Hopefully you will have some friends who buy you a gift card so you can make sure your baby has things like washcloths.
12. Take a deep breath now, no matter how much you try to declutter, you will never understand how your child has so much stuff or why all their stuff is so big. (My advice is try to break it up between multiple rooms, then it doesn't seem quite so bad.)  Enjoy your nice living room with no big, bright color things, or cars everywhere now.
13. Before your child is born moms will give you advice, and you think I will not do that.  Be realistic, you have no idea what you are getting yourself into.  I felt really prepared that I had a good idea what babies were like (there is a 17 year difference between me and my youngest sibling). But there is a big difference when it is your child and suddenly you have to do it all.  Sometimes you will resort to any type of torture to get that little one to sleep.
14. Try to have a date night every 6 weeks with your spouse.  It can be hard depending on what else is going on in your life and your budget.  But sometimes its really nice to eat a meal and not half to worry about what your little one is currently doing.
15. Take time to care for yourself.  You'll feel better if you can have your hair done or catch up on sleep.
16. Get a Kindle or e-reader.  There may be a period when your little one just wants to lie on you and sleep and you're over Netflix and TV.  You only need one hand to read and if you fall asleep or get interrupted you don't have to worry about losing your page.  And it has a better battery life then a tablet.
17. Find a mommy group to join.  Its nice to connect with others and get out of the house for playdates.  Plus its nice to have people going through the same thing as you to talk to.

Enjoy.  At some point I will write about surviving your second pregnancy.  Anyone have something they would add?