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Archive for the ‘Juggling it All’ Category

The Holidays.. Our First with the Baby

Posted in Firsts, Juggling it All, Routine and Rituals on December 20, 2011| 1 Comment »

I always look forward to the holidays!  I love this festive time of year!  Everyone seems to be in a happy mood.  Except for the sour-faced bakery lady at Publix who clearly hates me for asking her for the definition of “half and half cake” (but that could be a whole other blog entry).  Christmas on Las Olas and Boat Parade parties bring lots of outdoor fun for everyone, houses are decorated with pretty lights and the frosty adult beverages get more creative, more plentiful and frequent!

Bella and the Guy Whose Beard she Pulled. A Lot.

There are so many facets to the holidays:  a busy time of year at work, schedules to coordinate, grocery shopping/cooking/food to prepare, presents to purchase/wrap, and parties, lots of them.  It’s ALL good stuff, but sometimes hard to juggle such a busy calendar.  Add in a dab of 6-month-old-baby, a year where we will be remembering Bella’s grandmother, Miriam, who left us too soon, and a mixed-religion household… It can definitely get a bit hectic and stressful.  For me, thank goodness I have running as an outlet!

Keith and I decided we were going to expose Bella to both of our holidays and start new holiday traditions at our home for our daughter.  I was brought up in a Jewish family (we lit menorah candles, but also had a Christmas tree) and Keith was raised fairly conservative Catholic.  No reason Bella shouldn’t see it all.  We are treating this year as our practice year.  Our mulligan, in golf terms – a “do-over” if we don’t get it right.  We get to practice the traditions, get our stories straight, purchase our Elf on the Shelf and make sure we know what we are doing for next year when she actually may understand SOME of what is going on.

The day is finally here.  Hanukkah starts tonight at mom’s house and we have a 5-day countdown until Santa arrives.  We are so excited to share this first holiday with our precious little elf.  Can’t wait to see her soaking it all in.  It will be a great, fun-filled 5 days.  There will be tons of yummy food.  There will not be a lot of sleep.  And lots of family time, though there are lots of family members that we miss dearly, who are celebrating around the country.  But, best of all, we will be together with our new addition to the family, at the beginning of some new traditions.  And if there is any drama or stress (or too much food), I’m going running!

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3 Men and a Baby

Posted in Juggling it All, Missing My Baby on December 14, 2011| 2 Comments »

Another business trip. Another few nights away from the family. I feel so bad. Not because I don’t think Keith can handle her, not because I worry about whether or not she will be ok, but because I know handling a 6-month old on your own for THREE DAYS is hard work! Keith is absolutely the BEST father ever. And Bella adores him. So, I feel very comforted to know the two of them are hanging out having fun while I am in Atlanta.

3 Men and a Baby: Pizza, Beer, Football!

I arranged for our nanny to stay a few hours late each day, so daddy could wrap up his work day before being on baby duty. And my father is in town from North Carolina, so he came to sleep over one of the nights to help Keith out. It was so cute… they packed up Bella, picked up my stepfather and the 3 men took Bella out for pizza, beer and Monday Night Football. A girl couldn’t ask for three better dates than that!

I felt like I was with them, at least virtually. I got pictures texted to me of Bella drinking root beer, chewing on an IPhone and then later, in the bathtub. Everyone had an awesome time and the grandfathers got some quality time with their Princess.

Then, the next night, my mom stopped in to make sure all was in order at my house. You never could tell this is an only-grandchild, could you?

It makes me feel very comfortable going away knowing that my precious jewel is in such caring, capable hands. But, I cannot WAIT to get home tomorrow night. I have been craving some slobbery baby kisses!! And a big bear hug and kiss from Keith. Nothing compares to the feeling of either of those!!

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Where Have I Been ?

Posted in Juggling it All, Rookie Behavior on December 9, 2011| 4 Comments »

I thought I could do it all. I’m Wonder Woman, after all. Of course I’m capable of juggling a career, a charity event, the holidays and a family. Big deal, right? Well, yes, Virginia, it IS a big deal. Much harder than I thought it would be to manage my time. It is amazing how little time I can actually carve out to do things like get my nails done, take a nap, write in my blog or even go grocery shopping (yes, I do like to do that)!

For the past few weeks, I kept saying “I’ll write a blog post tomorrow”. Quickly, however, that became a week, then two weeks. I really missed writing. I had so many ideas in my head, but they just had to sit there in DRAFT. I found myself downloading my blog application on our iPad, so I could write more portably. And then when that was a #FAIL, I downloaded the blog application on my iPhone. Sadly, I found that even I am too OLD to write whole paragraphs and edit on that tiny little screen. Not to mention, I have no clue how you would possibly attach a photo with a caption on that sucker.

Time for Family and Turkey

So, what the heck have I been doing with my time? In the past few weeks, we have been to a hockey game, we have been to Pennsylvania for Thanksgiving and a cousin’s wedding, we have had end-to-end meeting-filled days at work, we have attended 2 charity events and a handful of holiday gatherings, we have had a house full of strep throat (everyone but Bella), we had girls-night IN (for Bella and Mommy) when Keith went to Tampa for two days, we went for our 6-month-old visit with Dr. Amy for immunizations and ended up with a low-grade fever afterward, we tried our first food (oatmeal) and we had a marathon sales visit from the hurricane impact window man from hell. All that didn’t leave me with a whole lot of time for bonbons.

But, I vow to write. Because I think the ideas trapped in my head give me a headache. Or it could just be a side-effect of the strep throat. But, also, because I have a new MacBook Air and I’ve downloaded the blog application. I’m Back!

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Airplanes Really ARE Disgusting

Posted in Firsts, Juggling it All, Rookie Behavior on November 27, 2011| 1 Comment »

Keith and I were faced with the challenge of air travel early in Bella’s life.  Sadly, Bella’s paternal grandmother, Miriam, passed away in Pennsylvania last August when Bella was just 2.5 months old.  We didn’t have time to panic about traveling, as we bought our tickets an hour before the flight took off, since we had to get there quickly.  We bought Bella her own seat, because we didn’t know what it would be like to travel with her and also because we wanted the whole row of seats.  I didn’t want any potentially sick strangers sitting next to us and breathing their germs on the girl-Princess.  Yep, germaphobia runs rampant in my head at ALL times.  We got so lucky – she slept the entire flight – in her car seat.  Not a peep from her the entire 3 hours on the plane!  Hardly believable, right?

MY seat!

Fast forward to November.  Bella was almost 6 months old.  We flew to Pennsylvania for Turkey Day.  Once again, she was a trooper on the flight there.  She ate well, she stayed mostly quiet.  All good.  On the way back, however, she decided to POOP as soon as we took off.  Now, mind you, she doesn’t mind sitting around in a dirty diaper one bit.  But, there was no way to hide what had happened.  I think the whole plane could smell Bella, 36 rows back!  I did a reconnaissance mission to the bathroom.  Yuck.  Maybe Double Yuck.  What ARE people thinking that join the Mile High Club?  I didn’t even want to take my daughter’s pants off in there (on paper towels over the diaper pad), so surely you will never catch me taking mine off in there for any reason!  I decided it had to be quick.  No time for the germs to attach.  Bella and I were in and out of there in record time.  All fresh and clean again.  and LOTS of hand sanitizer.  Everywhere.

This past weekend we went to Nassau, Bahamas.  We decided for a 26 minute flight it would be a waste to purchase a ticket/seat for the Princess.  It was kind of cute having her on our laps – for the first 2 minutes. She’s in a very squirmy stage.  She wants to be sitting up on her own, not being held.  Good thing we brought lots of toys and know EVERY animal noise possible for Old MacDonald’s Farm!  Oh, and apparently altitude is what makes her poop – couldn’t be a coincidence!  This time, we were on our descent into Fort Lauderdale, so I wasn’t allowed to get up to change her.  That damn seatbelt sign!  Our friends 10 rows back said they even smelled her!  There was another baby on the flight, so I blamed it on her… Of course.  Bella had to wait until we could get to the “uber-clean” (insert sarcasm) airport bathroom to get her bottom cleaned this time.  Pretty much just as disgusting as in the air.

Next month the three of us head to Las Vegas.  Bella is getting lots of frequent flyer miles!  She is a real pro at the security pat-down by now too, since I don’t want to put her through the X-ray machine (I had a hamster once that lost all its hair after going through one, so I’m not taking the chance with the baby).  I guess for the next trip, we just need to stock up on more diapers.  And LOTS of hand sanitizer!

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Feeling Neglected

Posted in Juggling it All on October 24, 2011| 1 Comment »

Louie is our 9.5 year old Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier.  He is possibly the most loving, soft, gentle dog on this planet!  He sleeps in our bed and is quite a pampered pooch.  Louie is always treated like a family member, he’s our child and my parents’ grand-dog.   For anyone that knows me can attest to the strength of the love that I feel for my furry friend.  Louie has been the object of all our attention, frequent Facebook photos, visits with Santa, days at the doggie spa, sleepovers at my mom’s house and long walks to the beach.  That was BEFORE BELLA.

When I was pregnant, Keith and I talked a lot about how we thought Louie would adjust to the baby and how we could best ease the transition for him.  We decided to try to help him get acquainted with her by bringing one of Bella’s hospital blankets home before her actual arrival.  It was so precious when he curled up and went to sleep on top of it.  When she first came home he would approach her with vague curiosity and try to lick her toes while she was eating, but 4 months later, they mostly ignore each other.  I can’t even get a picture of the two of them together, because I think Louie is somewhat scared of Bella, especially when she cries.  If I even put her on the same couch with him, he runs away.

So I feel awful when I think that my original true love, my pet, would feel anything other than the deepest love that I have always had for him.  But, I have to admit that between Bella, Keith, going back to work, exercise, family and friends, Louie has taken a temporary backseat.  He gets walked less often, he gets less snuggle time and sometimes we even realize we’ve forgotten to feed him.  Don’t go calling the Humane Society just yet.  We do feed him.  It just might be Brunch or Dunch, not exaclty breakfast. 

He, however, is not standing idle and letting this lack of attention go unnoticed.  He has started “acting out.”  He’s been pooping in the house on occasion, he also chews his feet, which is the doggie form of nail-biting.  But, his latest “look at me” definitely got my attention.  While we were having a quiet family dinner together one night, he snuck off and chewed one of my new JCrew ballet flats.  Not both, just one.  JERK.   Does he not know by now that you do NOT mess with a girl’s SHOES !

Dear Louie, mommy got the message.  We do love you with all our hearts!  You are our first child, our son, albeit a fuzzy four-legged one.  We will make a concerted effort to spend more quality time with you and make sure you are included in everything we do.  You will have a best friend in Bella some day, when she is old enough to understand you.  But, stay away from mommy’s shoes or you will be placed on EBay.  XO!

Louie and Bella's Blanket

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Why am I awake ?

Posted in Firsts, Juggling it All, Missing My Baby on October 19, 2011| 1 Comment »

At least someone was able to sleep.

This was my first night away from Bella since the day she was born.  If I thought having her sleep in her own room all the way down the hall was difficult for me, this topped that tenfold!  However, I was somewhat excited for a long, uninterrupted night of sleep, of which I have been deprived for months.

I travelled to Atlanta yesterday afternoon.  I recently took on a new, exciting role at work and I came to meet with my new team.  Part social and teambuilding, but mostly WORK.  Last night, we all went to dinner and then bowling.  I had planned to duck out after dinner and go nitey nite EARLY – hello snorefest!  Plus, I suck at bowling.  But, the “right” thing for me to do was hang with my new team.  So, I bowled.  I scored a whopping 95, but it was a really fun time and good distraction from missing my family. 

Keith, who had Bella on HIS OWN for the first time, gave me periodic progress reports and texted me this picture.  How he was able to text me, hold the baby, hold the remote and eat with just two hands is amazing.  Talented man – That’s why I married him!  He, however, did not marry me for my bowling prowess!  Confirmation of what I already knew:  Keith and Bella are a wonderful team… They ordered pizza, watched hockey, took a bath and went to sleep – all uneventful daddy/daughter time.  Such a good girl!  And at 5:00am, I got another text saying she was still sleeping.  Simply amazing.

So, with the complete and utter quiet in my dark hotel room and “heavenly bed,” why can’t I sleep ?  This is MY opportunity to catch up on that coveted sleep I have needed.  But, I have been awake on and off all night.  I miss my people, that’s why.  I love my little nighttime routine with them.  I love listening to her little noises all night long.  I love the little baby kisses and the daddy kisses before bed.  It soothes me.  Thank goodness I will be home tonight for some SLEEP!

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Mommy Brain

Posted in Juggling it All on October 7, 2011| Leave a Comment »

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People warned me that I would get forgetful during my pregnancy and the first few months of Bella’s life. A term THEY refer to as “mommy brain”. Being the consummate professional, bordering on obsessively organized, I thought there was no way that could happen to me. I mean, is it chemical? Is it exhaustion? Or is it just an excuse?

I can attest it is not urban legend! My personal belief is that it’s caused by a combination of exhaustion and distraction. You have so many new things to focus on and learn that you tend to do strange things or become forgetful. My first experience was when I was walking Louie (the dog) and had the full poop bag in one hand and the cell phone in the other. I’m sure you see where this is going… Of course, I threw away my cell phone in the dumpster !! It was like slow motion playback as I realized I still had the poop bag in my hand and succumbed to the thought of the dumpster dive that was in my near future to save my beloved Blackberry.

If that wasn’t bad enough, I’ve since found myself putting empty Tupperware in the fridge instead of the cabinet, pausing to make sure I’m taking MY thyroid medicine in the morning and not the dog’s (who knew we would end up on the same medicine?) and putting the formula bottle in the warmer and not turning it on. Mostly harmless, but makes me feel like a complete airhead!

My latest Mommy Brain act was just yesterday. I got everyone ready in the morning (dog walked and fed, bottles filled, laundry put into the dryer, Bella changed and fed) and ran out the door for work. When I got there, I looked in the mirror and realized I had forgotten to brush my hair and put makeup on. I give up ! Who needs it anyway? I’m embracing my distraction, I loved being distracted by Bella, Keith and Louie in the mornings!

Hopefully someday I will get my Adult Brain back! If you see me without makeup or doing something silly, please just laugh with me!

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