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[18 Jul 2009|03:25pm] |
Well, we got back from vacation on Wednesday afternoon.
Our hotel was so very bad. Really, really bad. It was filthy dirty. The bed was as hard as a rock. It smelled bad and was damp all the time. The managers were not friendly or helpful at all. They were extremely irritated if anyone dared to ask them a question about anything. And the food. Ugh. It was so, so, so bad. A couple of times it was so inedible that we had to go buy dinner elsewhere even though we had already paid for it there.
The good news was that the island was amazing and beautiful and everything you would think Greece should be. We had a lot of fun swimming and taking walks. Sean slept a lot during our trip. He grew three new molars and I think between that, the heat, and the amount of swimming he got really exhausted. He took two two-hour naps a day, plus slept all night!
Robert's parents had suprisingly agreed to watch the dogs for us. Robert dropped the dogs off at their apartment late Tuesday night and they stayed there until Saturday morning when they came and stayed the rest of the time at our house. I hate having them stay at our house. Hate it! But it was better for the dogs so I didn't say anything. Well, they didn't do one single thing while they were here. They washed up the dishes they used and that was it. They didn't even run the vaccume to get up the dog hair. No big deal, but I found it kind of weird because I know that my family would not just pick up after themself but would try to be helpful to us as well. Whatever. His dad picked us up at the airport and when we got home I changed Sean's diaper and then went to the bathroom. His parents left while I was on the tiolet, they hollered good-bye to me through the door! We hadn't even been home five minutes. We hadn't told them anything about our trip. They hadn't seen Sean in almost two months. Bye! Later in the evening I went down to the cellar to start some laundry. Our family room with the tv is down in the cellar, evidently they sat down there and felt free to smoke cigarettes!!!!! They know without a doubt that we have never allowed smoking inside the house. A wall of stink hit me when I descended the stairs and I was furious! It's now Saturday and it still stinks down there! I'm so mad about that.
( some pics from our trip )
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| I've created a monster! |
[03 Jul 2009|10:57pm] |
I'm positive that aliens have taken my son and left a foul-tempered look-alike in his place. Seemingly overnight Sean has developed a powerful temper and a very strong sense of what he does and does not like. And what he does not like the most is to be told "no".
I have no doubt about where he got his temper. It wasn't from his placid father. *ahem*
He woke up at 6am this morning. I handed him his water bottle and turned to check the clock. His alphabet book was sitting in front of it so I moved it and that caught his attention. He wanted the book. I told him no, that it was too dark to see it and we would read it later. Then I closed my eyes and was trying to half sleep a little longer. But no, instead I got a bottle slammed down onto my head and a screaming banshee in my bed. I took the bottle away and told him not to do that. Then, stupidly, closed my eyes again only to be double slapped across the face. What the....???!!!!
He scratched the skin off of Robert's nose yesterday. He gave me a titty-twister today because I was changing his diaper and he didn't approve. Pinching is his new greatest joy. ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) carrieb I'm so totally understanding the abuse you've been going through these last years. haha
Although he is still my little angel, he's certainly good at being devlish. I mean, look at the gleam in those eyes. Something painful happened about two seconds after that picture was taken. haha
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[01 Jul 2009|09:35pm] |
It's been hot, hot, hot here over the past week! I'm not complaining though, not much anyway. I do complain at night when I'm trying to sleep and am instead sweating and sticking to the bedding. Ugh. I will be much happier at this time next week when I get to endure hot temperatures with my choice of a sea or a pool to lounge in. haha
Sean is not breastfeeding at all anymore. Last Thursday he was pretty uninterested in the session before bedtime so on Friday night I decided that if he asked for it he could have it but otherwise I wouldn't offer. He didn't ask. And he hasn't asked since. I was a bit sad at first because I really wasn't ready to stop. I enjoyed the closeness with him and that little bit of special time we had together that was unlike anything he had with anyone else. But that's how it goes. And I am super happy that throughout the process of weaning it was fairly painless for him, and me. I only had to pump once for relief. I wanted it to be easy for him and it seems that it was.
He's climbing staircases now. But he doesn't do it on his hands and knees. No, no, my son does it on his hands and feet! haha He definitely has a strong sense of how he wants to do things and there's no persuading him otherwise. He's also very interested in using silverware and feeding Robert and I. He thinks it is especially fun to feed us his bottle of water. And if we forget, he is there to remind us to make the Ahhhhh sound when we're finished. hahaha One time he was sharing his water with me and I told him no thank you and that I was finished and I kind of turned my head away. Well he just leaned forward, grabbed my chin, turned my face back towards him, brushed the hair out of my face, and stuck the bottle in my mouth! Such a crack up!
Today I cleaned up the kiddie pool and filled it with some water. Normally I would just let him get in it naked, but I wanted him to try on his new sun protection swimsuit, plus I didn't want to slather on full-body sunscreen an hour before naptime. And because I'm lazy. Ha! He was a little dubious of the pool at first, he loves taking a bath so maybe it was the red color or the fact that it was outside that threw him off. But it didn't take long for him to enjoy it and then he didn't want to get out.
And look at those curls!!! His hair is actually really long it just coils up into these tight little spiral curls. hehe I think it's soooooo cute!
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[24 Jun 2009|09:23am] |
On Monday Sean had his 15 month healthy baby check-up. And he is healthy. In three months time he has grown 5 centimeters and is now 85cm (33.4") long! And he weighs 0.3 kilos more than he did three months ago, so currently 19.6 kilos (43 lbs). He did weigh over 21 kilos, and probably more, but the near stop on breastfeeding and the increased mobility have done their magic and he is slimming down. Just as I always knew in my little mommy heart. haha
Here he is with his nurse, Sister Karin.
The words that he says right now (that we have caught on to anyway):
juice
cheese
Jessie
goose
blomma (flower in swedish)
hi
bye bye
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[21 Jun 2009|02:12pm] |
We had a lovely midsummer celebration. We spent the day with our neighbors and friends. We ate all the typical foods, sang the songs, danced around the pole, and laughed late into the night. Of course I had to make Sean a flower crown. He was good about keeping it on until it slipped into his eyes and then he didn't want anymore of it, so it made the rounds on other heads and as a table decoration too. haha I made the dessert, it was a raspberry mousse cake. We even got sunshine for much of the afternoon and evening! It was lovely. :)
Today is Father's Day and so the neighbor and I took our husbands to a fabulous cafe for breakfast and then presented them with their "DADDY" photos. :)
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[13 Jun 2009|11:24pm] |
I got my hair cut on Thursday. I went to a new stylist. I didn't know what I wanted so I was a little nervous, but not much. It is just hair, it will grow. I told her I wanted a change, I wanted it shorter, and I didn't want any spiky hair. haha These Swedes, every time the hair is short they think you have to have stiff, gel encrusted spikes everywhere. I wasn't sure about the super short bangs at first but it's grown on me. And the rest of the cut I've loved from the start.
I only nurse Sean for ten minutes at bedtime, and it's been that way for about a month now. He still wants to nurse more often throughout the day but he's more easily distracted from it. Since he nurses so little I've started taking my PCOS medication again. OMG!!! I've been taking it for two weeks now and I cannot believe what a HUGE difference it's made. I am a completely different person in every way possible. Hormones are crazy, powerful little bastards let me tell you.
My SPD pain is still present but has gotten a bit better. I'm seeing a doctor on Monday who told a friend of mine that she was pretty sure she could help me. I'm hopeful, but I'm not going to get too excited yet.
My big news is that in less than a month I'll be laying on a beach on the island of Thassos, Greece! In the nine years Robert and I have been together we have never had a real vacation together anywhere, besides going to the US to see my family. But that's not really the same thing as taking a proper vacation, you know what I mean? We've never even just gone away for a weekend. NEVER. So, I am beyond excited that we get to go and do this.
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[13 Jun 2009|03:23pm] |
Father's Day (the American/British one) is next weekend and so my neighbor and I spent the morning taking photos of our boys again. It was a whole lot trickier this year, they are so much more mobile! haha Here's what I ended up with for Robert:
( And here's last years for comparison: )
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[09 Jun 2009|09:13pm] |
Blah! What a lot of grey and cold we have these days! It's crazy to have to bundle up in a jacket, scarf, and hat just to spend some time outdoors in JUNE!! We are trying to find a good last-minute deal on a vacation somewhere sunny.
On Sunday Sean started walking with his wagon walker toy thing. At first he couldn't get into the standing position on his own but it didn't take long before he figured that out. I have a feeling he's going to be a runner. I don't mean athletically, I mean running to get away from Mommy and Daddy's reach. haha Already he crawls like a maniac "running" away from us and laughing the whole time. We are in for it! I'll be purchasing one of those backpack leashes for sure. haha
He said his first word yesterday. He said "juice". It's SOOOOOOOO cute I can't even stand it. I ask him to say it over and over. haha We don't even say it that much because we only drink juice on Sunday mornings, but I guess it made an impression on him. haha
Jessie is sure noticing Sean's increasing mobility. He chases her around the house non-stop and this is where she usually gives up and just lets him do what he wants:
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[01 Jun 2009|10:13pm] |
Last friday was our six year wedding anniversary. I meant to make a post that day but the time just kept getting away from me. And then the weather turned nice and I've been outside most of the time. We celebrated by me going out with my girlfriends and Robert babysitting Sean for the first time ever! haha It was the best gift he ever could have given me.
Sunday was the Swedish Mother's Day and it was beautiful weather. We went to Robert's parents for cake but otherwise spent most of the day outside. Sean is an expert at standing now and wants to walk more and more, holding our hands of course. He gets too excited though and takes huge steps and tries to go really fast and his balance just doesn't keep up with the rest of his body. hahaha
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[24 May 2009|02:33pm] |
We've had a good weekend. It's just been quiet and spent at home, but nice nonetheless. The neighbor's man has been away so we've had her and her son over for dinner and tea a few times. And Sean and I have gone there to hang out and play as well.
The weaning is still going well. We're down from every three hours all day long to twice at night. He's feeling a bit sad about it this week and is extra clingy during naps and at night. That's okay though, I understand that it's hard for him. It's most difficult when he still decides he doesn't want to eat because he thinks he'll wait it out for the milk. But the milk doesn't happen and he gets cranky and hungry but still won't eat. So twice I've felt his stomach growling in the night and it makes me sad, but I don't give in.
Yesterday Robert gave Sean and the neighbor boy rides on the lawn mower. Once Sean got the ear protectors on he felt like he couldn't move his head, he would just move his eyes around, it was funny. They both really had fun.
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[18 May 2009|06:46pm] |
Sunday was a perfect day, weather-wise, for a trip to the zoo. We spent the whole afternoon there looking at all the animals. Then we came home and grilled steaks for dinner. Sean loved the zoo! He missed both his naps and was still just as happy as could be.
( Click for the pics )
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[16 May 2009|03:53pm] |
I am seriously like a whole new person today. It's crazy and good! The night weaning is going so well with Sean. I got five totally uninterrupted hours of sleep last night! I couldn't even believe it when I looked at the clock. I've not had that much sleep since before Sean was born!
And today he ate an entire jar of food for lunch. He's only ever eaten half the jar before. And then he had a container of yoghurt for "dessert". Can you believe that? It's like feast or famine with him. haha He's going to eat us out of house and home now. Uh-oh.
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[14 May 2009|08:45pm] |
He can't quite get up on his own yet, but Sean is loving standing. He wants to do it all the time. He's so cute, he takes little steps back and forth seemingly trying it out. :) I've been working on cutting down the breastfeeding this week. I've started actually with night time because he nurses more often at night than during the day. So far he's had a few upsets but is doing well. He's also falling asleep without nursing which is something I thought would never happen but which has happened now for naps and night time three days in a row! Yay!
Do you remember that I wrote a formal complaint against the nurse who slapped me? Well, I got her side of the story in the mail today. Hers and two other doctors who felt compelled to write and stick up for their fellow workmate. And it made me physically sick. Sick and so furious. The lies they've conjured up are incredible. Oh and did you know that it's my fault she had to slap me. And she didn't slap me very hard anyway so it was nothing to get upset over, according to them anyway. Robert read over the papers when he got home and he got more angry than I've seen him in a very long time. He's now going to write a letter of his own.
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[10 May 2009|06:34pm] |
Happy Mother's Day to all you lovey Moms out there!
Guess what my day started with?....SUNSHINE!! I cannot tell you how elated I was to open the curtain and see that. :)
Robert even remembered that it was the American Mother's Day and had put together pictures of Sean and I into a video that was playing on the computer when I got up. :)
Then we spent the early part of the day watching the annual "releasing of the cows". It's where they are put out to pasture after spending the winter cooped up in the barn. I think it's so fun because the cows are so frenzied with excitement that they jump and run and push and fight. Pure silliness and I love it. Sean loved it too. :)
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[10 May 2009|12:13am] |
My day has been full of self pity.
I'm so very tired of feeling trapped in a body that won't, or can't, do what I want it to because it's too painful. I wish I was one of those bright, sunny people that face challenges with such a positive attitude it makes others sick. Alas, I am not.
I also wish I had friends. Well I guess I do have friends, but nobody lives nearby and all of them work. I'm tired of my own company. I'm tired of not ever having anyone to visit when I just want to chat for an hour or so. I am aware that this feeling of loneliness is fed by the frustration of being in pain. I wonder also if I am a good friend to others. I can be very selfish. Can't we all be though?
You see, I'm not good company today. Hopefully the sun will, literally, come out for a bit tomorrow and brighten my day. And lighten my load.
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[07 May 2009|08:36pm] |
I haven't really written an update on what is going on around here in awhile, so here goes.
The x-ray of my pelvis didn't show anything unusual. This was good news, but also frustrating. Two weeks ago my pain pills ran out and the nurse was giving me a really hard time about getting another refill. In the end she did but I had to fight for it. Then Sean acted up that evening and I wasn't able to pick up the prescription before they closed on Friday, which meant I had to go all weekend without them.
I've tried to go off them before, several times, and it always ends up with me being in too much pain to walk or even get out of bed on my own. This time I didn't notice any difference at all. So, as I had suspected, they were not working for my pain anymore. This was positive in one way because it shows that at least some healing has happened since I am (now 2 weeks sober) still able to walk. The down side is that it evidently was working on a lot of other pain because after three days without pills I woke up in a world of hurt!
I've got carpel tunnel so bad in my right wrist that I have to wear a brace nearly 24 hours a day. I've got pain in my left wrist and thumb as well. This combined makes it really difficult to lift Sean. Add to it that I have some weird pain in both of my shoulders, not the muscles but like where my arms attach to my body, and it's really, really hard to lift and carry him very far. Then there's the pain in my lower back. And the pain in my left foot.... I am falling apart I tell you!!!
In Sean news, he's over his cold but is still hanging on to the "cold asthma". I've had to give him inhaler treatments for three weeks now. I phoned the hospital yesterday because I was unsure how we should proceed and for how long before a different approach/medicine might be neccessary. They said that yes, three weeks is a long time and a doctor should listen to him. So he and I went there today. After two hours of waiting (joy, joy) we met the doctor and she said right away that she thought Sean should also have cortisone at home to receive in addition to what he has now. I thought that sounded good. But she said they would give him a nebulizer treatment and then she would check him again.
When she came back she had another doctor with her for a second opinion. He was an older man, kind of unkempt looking, and he smelled so bad of smoke. Not just like he'd just had a puff, but like he'd been locked in his car smoking for two weeks and then came in to check Sean. It was a horrible, horrible smell. And he was making the rounds to children with breathing problems. :/ Anyhow...Sean of course sounded much better after the treatment and so they said they weren't going to give us the cortisone after all. Huh? I still don't understand their reasoning. As he had a neb. treatment two weeks ago and look where that got him, right back at the hospital for another check. Arghhhhh!!!
Then the male doctor started in on Sean's weight. This is a sore point with me since it's already been discussed TO DEATH and I'm just sick of it. Yes, he's heavy. Next. Anyhow, I told them that I know the situation and we've been in discussion with our doctor about it and I don't want to talk about it further with them, blah, blah, blah. Well that doctor just wouldn't let it go. He went on and on about how huge Sean is and how we need to get with a dietician and log his calorie intake etc. This is laughable since he still hardly "eats" much of anything. And also, in my mind, ridiculous. I told him I wasn't interested and said again that we have a doctor we are working with blah, blah, blah. But he just wouldn't stop. And so I lost it. Like, really lost it. I screamed, "I am so FUCKING tired of this!! My son is fat, I get it. But you FUCKING stink!".
There wasn't much constructive conversation after that.
Robert is, of course, extremely glad that he didn't have to be there to witness that, but also thinks it's the absolute funniest thing that's happened in a long time. He was nearly choking on his dinner when I told him the story because he was laughing so hard. He said, "you can't tell a doctor they stink". I said, "apparently you can, but they don't take it well".
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[02 May 2009|10:21pm] |
Sean and I met up with our play group buddies on Thursday. I think it's so fun to see how all the children have grown. We've been meeting about once a month since they were all born. They certainly play a lot more and interact with each other more now than previously. It's also good to be reminded that although they may not have the same issues with their babies as we have with Sean, they do all have something they worry over.
Friday was a holiday here and the weather was really fantastic so we went to the beach. We drove to a beach that Robert always went to as a child, called Sandö. It was pretty windy which, despite the sun, caused a chill. So we couldn't sit right on the beach, we had to sit among the rocks for shelter. But it was lovely! I took Sean down to the beach in his stroller so he could see the water and such. I scooped him up some dry sand in his bucket and let him play with it where we were sitting. He found shells in it and was really excited. haha Our plan was to stay for two hours but it was so nice that the time just flew by and we were there for four hours without even realizing it!
Today we stayed around home putzing about in the garden. I cleaned the house a bit. It was sorely needed! Sean got to be outside nearly the whole day. We rigged up a holder for our big umbrella so that he would have shade wherever he sat. He's discovered the flowers. Whenever he'd disturb them Robert would tell him no, no, no and I would laugh and tell him to pinch their heads off! He liked my idea better. haha
Caption: "Awww great....we're rednecks." hahaha
Tonight we grilled for the first time this year. Mmmmmm!! It was so, so good! Even Sean enjoyed some of it. With all the good-ness we've had over the past few days something had to give somewhere. It gave tonight when it took nearly three hours to get Sean to sleep. Ugh.
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[26 Apr 2009|09:47pm] |
Well, I got the herb garden finished today. It was hard work. Mostly because I decided that while I was digging in the area I would alter the entry area to our front walk way. So that mean digging up and lifting up huge, heavy stones. And of course, once I started I couldn't let it be, I HAD to finish it. But I'm so glad I did because it looks a hundred times better. No pictures yet though, you'll have to wait a few weeks until it's all sprouting up.
However I do have some pictures for you. I came across this beetle during my digging. He had been living in our compost dirt. I thought he was quite beautiful in that creepy bug sort of way. I borrowed my neighbor's "Bugs of Sweden" book to try to find out what kind he is, but I couldn't find a match. It was about an inch and a half long. Do any of you know what kind it is?
You can click the pics to see them larger.
eta: I've discovered that it is a carabus violaceus, or violet ground beetle. And who would have thought, but they eat slugs and snails! Welcome to my garden Mr. Beetle, cozy up and make yourself at home. haha
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[25 Apr 2009|09:19pm] |
This is the scene I came upon when I was going to bed last night. I don't know if you can tell, but Jessie is there on the floor behind Robert. All three of them were snoring away. hehe
Today Sean and I visited all the garden centers in the area. Then I spent all afternoon preparing a new spot for my herb garden. It's always been in the back yard and I haven't liked it much because it's not exactly easy to access when you just want to run from the kitchen to get a snip of something. First I just grew the herbs along the outside edges of the greenhouse. They seemed to like that because they all grew really well. The greenhouse was old and much of the glass broke during our first winter here though so we had to tear it down. I moved the herbs to their own little plot nearby the vegetable garden area. I hated having them there and, besides the chives, they didn't seem to thrive there either.
But now I have this whole big plan to move them all to the front of the house. It will much easier to access from the kitchen and it will, hopefully, also be attractive. The place where I'm putting them has been kind of a thorn in my side since we moved here. I can't ever seem to make it look how I envision it. So here's hoping things go better this time. I actually have a plan this time (written down and everything!!) so maybe that will make all the difference. haha In any case I've taken some before pictures so I'll be able to share the whole thrilling transformation with you very soon. Aren't you excited?!
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[24 Apr 2009|10:05pm] |
Sean started saying "uh-oh!" a few days ago. It's really cute. He can also identify his eyes, eyebrows, nose, mouth, teeth, hair, feet, hands, and tummy. :) Makes me happy! hehe He understands so much these days, more than we think. It's interesting. We were in his room playing with toys and I asked him if he wanted to go take a bath. He looked at me, dropped his toys, crawled to the bathroom and sat there waiting for me while pulling at his clothes. hehe
He's been able to crawl properly for some time now, but has chosen not to the majority of the time. He prefers his army crawl position. Just in the past few days though he's been proper crawling more and more for longer distances. He's also pulling himself up into a standing positon and sitting up on his knees without support.
Even so, he was not going to crawl through that tunnel no matter how many times Robert showed him how easy it was. haha He did think it was hilarious to see Daddy that way though.
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