Yargh!!!

Ow. It's so uncomfortable I just handed my yummy biscotti to my nine-month-old. Can't even gum that. I'm a wimp. I'm smiling but that's just because I can't NOT smile at a camera.

Metal Mouth

I'm getting braces tomorrow. Why now? Well, the beginning is a good place to start.

I love my new dentist, who appears to be much more competent and actually has bedside manner-unlike my previous dentist, who shall remain nameless. During my new patient consult he told me to bite down in the typical exam manner. To which I responded, "I am biting down." And he counters with, "No, bite down on your back teeth." To which I responded that I thought I was. And, after a few minutes of him trying to coax me to bite using my molars we discovered that I thought I was biting down but in essence I wasn't. My molars don't touch. (I'd post pictures but they'd probably gross most of ya'll out.)

A "normal" person's bite aligns with the points of teeth locking in a grid rather than tip-to-tip. My front teeth hit tip to tip and my back teeth don't touch. As a result, my new, wise dentist tells me that I'm wearing down my tooth enamel as I am only chewing with the front part of my mouth and, that's a front part that doesn't align properly either. Great.....

So, he recommends I see an orthodontist. And, here I am, going to be a metal mouth in just over twelve hours. I'm opting for the clear top brackets in spite of the options for Invisalign and iBraces. I really don't want to have to remove the Invisalign when I eat in public. Kinda yuck. And, iBraces (which go behind the teeth) were significantly more expensive, and when you're unexpectedly spending over $3000 on mouth metal, you really don't want to spend any more than necessary.

I'm enjoying my "last supper" of popcorn and wishing I had a whole bag of caramels to consume. Perhaps I'll grab some to eat on my way to the orthodontist in the morning. I'm sure it will be worth it in two years when they come off and when I'm fifty and I still have teeth!!!

Woman in Training

I ran for the first time in several months today. I do not know how far I ran...I'll have to use the car to find out tomorrow. But, it was a short leisurely jog. My legs will undoubtedly hurt tomorrow and the day after.

Why am I running? I've decided to do a mini triathlon with one of my very best friends, Heidi, in Baton Rouge, LA, at the end of April. Keep in mind that this is a very MINI triathlon, but it's one nonetheless. It's called Rocketchix and it's an all-women event. The swim is in a pool, only 350M, so it's doable. Now, only if I could actually make any of the times at our community center. I will probably be doing this swim having gone swimming only a handful of times before the race. I hope to make up any deficits in that area with a decent run and bike. We have an exercise bike, so I feel pretty confident I can be well-prepared on the road.

If any of my friends reading this would like to "train" with me, please let me know. The RocketChix website has a recommended training program but I don't think I'll be following it simply because the life of a very busy mom is not conducive to the flexibility that the training regimen demands. I think I'll stick to alternating days running and biking on the stationary bike, and attempting to get to the pool at least a couple of times starting at the beginning of April.

Keep your fingers crossed that I don't crash and burn! At least if I do, I'll have a friend to cheer me on!

Getting Organized--Is it Really Possible?

I try to maintain a decently ordered home. I sweep and vacuum on a daily (okay, sometimes every other day) basis. Between the dog, two cats, and kids there is always a lot of cleanup. I consider it part of my job to make the home front as livable and sanitary as my circumstances allow. There is no denying, however, that this is almost always a thankless job, and there is very little satisfaction gained from it as the work is perpetual. I guess you'd compare it to paper pushing. At the end of the day, no one is going to give you a big pat on the back because you cleaned dog hair out of the corner though you would certainly know it if your crawling, drooling baby started producing hairballs to rival your cats. And, so it must be done.

In October of 2008 we moved into my childhood home, and so there has been some adjusting to make a house that was once my home feel like home again. Of course, this is a joy and a privilege even if it does come with challenges. In our previous house, modest compared to the one we're so fortunate to live in now, everything had a place and it felt like "me." Not so here, at least not yet. And, with kids these things take time--time and money we are reluctant to use.

But, we have made a few minor changes and purchases to help us try to control the clutter, and, hopefully, ease the tediousness of the constant clean-up by providing items with a suitable home. We got this item on a pilgrimage to Ikea.My friend has the exact same shelving unit in her basement, and I had been coveting it for months. It houses all the kid clutter in our family room, provides storage for cookbooks, photos, and our cable modem and wireless router in a clean, hidden, and eye-friendly manner. Well worth the $200, if you ask me.

My husband, bless his hardworking soul, recently received a performance award in the form of gift cards and chose to use them at the Container Store. And, no, I did not suggest that. Our next project is to make our home office (what used to be my parents' formal living room we rarely used) into a friendly, usable space. So, he purchased this little baby to aid in the storage of a mishmash of cords, DVD-R's, CD-R's and various other office paraphernalia. I couldn't be happier with his decision. So, although the dust, the dirt, and the endless piles of laundry are not going away, at least our things are finally finding their niches in this place we call home. I hope one day I'll find my niche here, too.

I Wish I Were So Talented....

One of my friends is a do-it-all kind of girl. She's got both the left brain and right brain going--a talent I covet. She is an engineer and a talented seamstress. Now, she's added entrepreneur to her list of accomplishments and opened her own business called Mia Dolce Originals.

She's made blankets for both of my kids and I love, love, love them. If you are in need of some homemade baby items, please check out her website by clicking HERE. Her blankets are so soft and have held up great through Logan's prolific reflux. And, I'm eagerly awaiting her to make me some bibs as my little man is a perpetual drooler as well as a very messy eater.

If you are not a seamstress, like me, but love the quality and sincerity of homemade items, check out her website or visit her shop on Etsy.

Irony

Logan sleeps through the night (ie. 10pm to 8am) once or twice a week at most. Last night he last ate at 9:30 and didn't awake until 8am this morning.

But did I sleep through the night? Ha!

As much as I appreciate the rapidity with which our city clears the streets they need to seriously reconsider plowing the ends of courts at 3:20 in the morning. I did not enjoy the 25min interlude of "scraaaaape....Beep, beep, beep, beep...BANG! scraaaaape...Beep, beep, beep beep...BANG!" and I'm sure the neighbors (who also have young children) did not enjoy the truck backing into their driveway and dropping the plow either.

Ah, what fun to live in a snowy world.

Return to routine

How can a day not go well with a smile like this:
And harmonious play like this:
And when preschool resumes again tomorrow, I'll be smiling then, too! There's something to be said for structure with small children. I think everyone wins.

I'm understanding why even the end of vacation is something to celebrate.

Good Omens

I opened Anna's bedroom blinds this morning only to see this image jump out at me from some tire tracks in the snow on our driveway. I had to grab the camera to capture this moment. It just reminded me, once again, I have a lot of love in my life and a lot to be thankful for--what a nice way to start the new year.

Happy New Year!