Puppy magic, no more.

Apparently we didn't pay enough attention to Marjorie's suggestion that we take the dog out every four hours. Well, Big Man didn't. I guess it had been about 6. Big Man went upstairs and was in the bathroom, and the pup was upstairs too. The puppy peed from the bathroom door, down the hall, stairwell, stair landing, to the butler's pantry where he dropped a deuce.

I did the initial round of clean up while Big Man took the dog outside to finish his business.

Big Man is currently mopping and the pup is in time out in the crate until all is dry. Not the pup's fault as I interpreted his pacing and whining and just being annoying, when he was actually tring to let us know he needed OUT.

When I was outside with him this morning, he managed to pee all over his Steelers jersey. Just lifted the ol' leg and I watched the pee stream soak his jersey. Lots of fun to take pee covered shirt off a dog when you are wearing work clothes. Big Man washed it, but we will not be getting the pup dressed until it's time to go home.

I guess this little guy is pretty good practice for a baby, what with all the pee and poop in my house.

Beaglemania!

Our friend Marjorie had a family emergency today and asked us to watch her beagle until Sunday. I checked with Big Man (as he would be doing most of the doggie care/walks) and he said it was fine.

Big Man may never return this dog. It already has a nickname, has been fed some roast, and has a spot on the couch right next to Big Man, where the cats are generally not allowed.

Before I'd even arrived home, Big Man took pictures of said dog. Big. Man. let. the. dog. lick. his. face. Unheard of! Big Man took this one:

The man who generally doesn't let me take too many photos was happy to pose with the pup:

The dog's name is Bettis, as Marjorie's a huge Steelers fan. Big Man is calling the dog Butkus, as he's a Bears fan, and says the pup would look better in a Bears jersey, instead of the Steelers jersey he came over with.

Big Man's "secret project"

When Big Man finishes a work week (of overnights) he tends to not be good about going to sleep (during the day) on his last day. This means, essentially, that on week like this, his last shift was Wednesday from 12:00am to 8am. He arrives home Wednesday morning, and should sleep for the day, but often doesn't, or just naps on the couch. This means he basically loses a day of sleep, and is nodding off on the couch after dinner, which is no fun for me. But he's transitioning to night-sleeping, and it just what he does, but I worry that it really means he goes one day per week with no real sleep. So I always bug him to go to sleep.

I figured he wouldn't sleep yesterday because of the PS3. I thought that it would, understandably, be a distraction from sleep and he'd play Madden all day.

But when I came home from work, the PS3 was still in the box??? And Big Man 'fessed that he'd only napped on the couch?

So over dinner (which he cooked, as he usually does) I asked him what he did all day. He told me he was working on a "secret project". I kept bugging him but he wouldn't tell me what it was. But at the end of dinner he said he would show me. He took me upstairs to the baby's room, to show me that instead of sleeping, he had painted the dresser/changing table to match the paint in the baby's room. (and to think that my hunch was that "secret project was code for "internet porn")

Big Man rules.

John McCain and the womens' health conspiracy.

I was up later than usual last night and actually caught the Daily Show at 11pm instead of the 8pm next day rerun. Samantha Bee rocked with this thought on McCain's abortion stance:

I don't know nothin'

'bout birthin' no babies!

(line made famous by Butterfly McQueen who played Prissy in Gone With The Wind)

So, I signed us up for birthing/baby classes today! It's a 5 week class, every Tuesday starting on 11/11. I will miss the last class as it's the day of my scheduled c-section. It is supposed to get you ready for baby, and is just a few blocks down the street at the conveniently located hospital where I won't be having my baby. Big Man is not thrilled, but agrees to come to the first class for now.

Picked up the PS3 for the Big Man last night in a raging snowstorm. Yes, snow in October, wheee! He was pleased, and generously suggested that I call the local hospital's pediatric unit to see if we could donate his PS2 and games for the kiddies.

B = Fantasy Football Mastermind.

This week fantasy football final score:
B 89
Big Man 88
Whether it's one point or 100 points, I still WON!!!

This makes me the household champion, and league-leader.

As a concession, I will be purchasing a PS3 with Madden 09 for the Big Man on my way home from work tonight. He really wants one, but keeps finding reasons not to spend the money. (sorry baby, no diapers for you!) So, I will surprise him with it, and maybe it will help ease the pain of his crushing defeat.

Clash of the Titans

This week in fantasy football:
Baby Momma, Esq. (league leader with a 6-1 record)
vs.
Mjolnir (record 5-1)
aka
Me v. Big Man (he picked my league name and his is the real name of Thor or something nerdy like that)
Anyway, the battle for household fantasy football supremacy stands like this, but I have a running back tonight:

MJOLNIR 88
BabyMom 76

The pride's on the line, and I need LenDale White to get me 13 to win tonight.
(If I had only started Westbrook, I'd have trounced already...woe is me.)

Stay tuned to see if B reigns supreme!

Interviewing is hard!

I have spent two days interviewing legal assistants/office managers, and damn it's tiring! Each day I have had at least 4 interviews, and by the 3rd one, I can't remember if I have already asked certain questions because they all run together. Not fun.

My friend L is temping for us until we have someone new--today was her first day. It was great to see her, and ultimately to help her family out with some extra holiday cash, and to help her begin a transition into the workforce after about 7 years as a stay at home mom.

Our friend Bill has been like baby Santa Claus this week. He sent us an awesome Pack n Play, and a CHICAGO BEARS cribmobile, which are awesome! Me and Big Man just got his thank you note in the mail, and when I get home tonight there's another big Target box waiting for us with yet more baby goodies--a vibrating baby chair and a really neat mirror! What a nice surprise, and what a generous friend. Thanks Uncle Bill!

Other than that, I'm getting huuuuuuuuuuge. Pics to follow.

Baby doc appt next week where we get the final ultrasound. As I sorted baby clothes this weekend, I remarked to BigMan that we were fu&*ed if it's a boy as we have mostly non-neutral girl clothes. Being the progressive dude he is, Big Man said that it's okay if boy babies wear pink onesies! He rocks!

We've been picking up baby stuff too. Our friends Darren and Ann gave us the dresser/changing table they used for their kids, so I went out and got all the accessories for it this weekend. I love going to Target for baby stuff but it's SO easy to spend a bundle! I picked up bottles, and a sterilizer and a whole bunch of handy stuff.

The baby's room is actually starting to come together.

Palin logic.

Apparently, Sarah Palin doesn't think that bombing an abortion clinic and killing innocent people is an act of terrorism.
Sounds like it to me:
ter·ror·ism
n. The unlawful use or threatened use of force or violence by a person or an organized group against people or property with the intention of intimidating or coercing societies or governments, often for ideological or political reasons.





We CAN NOT elect this duo!

First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes Big Man in the baby carriage!

Shower was great. Mom surprised me by sending a ton of awesome gifts down with my cousin.

My Aunt Renny, cousin Lisa, and friends Tara, Gail, Jackie, and Sharalyn planned a really nice event, and I am most grateful.

Gotta love the diaper champ!

Best hooded towel ever! Love the frog!

Beautiful knit blanket from our "local grandma" Debi!


Baby book!

So many presents from my generous friends and family!

I put my 12 year old cousin in charge of photos, and unfortunately didn't get any group shots with my hostesses. But, to all, a big thank you from the bottom of my heart!

Wedding on Saturday

We went to a lovely wedding on Saturday. It was fun to be out, and cop weddings are, without doubt, the most fun weddings I've ever attended.

I've found a way to post pics of me and the Big Man that comply with the Big Man's privacy policy.

So, here you go:

weekend recap.

Friday--cop wedding (way fun)
Saturday--emergency room (way not fun but baby okay)
Sunday--baby shower (way fun)

I'm down for the count with a strained uterine ligament and it feels like hell. Honestly, like if you told me my appendix was going to burst, that's the relatively constant pain level I've been at since Saturday.

SO, cable is getting installed in the new home office today, so ideally by tomorrow, I'll be able to post pictures, etc.

More later.

Felled by contractions.

Went to a lunch meeting today, and afterwards could barely walk to my car, the abdominal pain was so bad. Went back to the office and called Big Man, then the doc. Doc's office says they'll call back soon. 30 minutes later, no call, I feel the baby kicking, am still in awful pain. Call back and they tell me to come in. Big Man picks me up, and we head to baby doc. Get hooked up to baby monitor thing for ever, get felt up by the nurse, take a pee test and am told it was false labor. Wow, that sucked. Makes me happy I won't actually to have real labor because it freakin' hurt! The only thing that stopped me from panicking was that I knew the baby is far enough along to live if I had to have a c section today.

In any event, c section is scheduled for:
December 9.

Hopefully no more false labor or other annoying pregnant lady stuff.
I had to miss two social/networking events tonight: planned parenthood grand opening and law school alumni reception; and we cancelled the showing we were supposed to have of our house tonight. Big Man was also unable to make any progress on the baby room, etc.

Ultimately, baby's okay and so am I, but my belly still hurts!

Headed to a wedding tomorrow night--cop friend of Big Man's. Cop weddings are notoriously fun; Big Man took the night off and I'm the driver, so hopefully he'll relax and have a few (which is a rare thing for him).

Getting ready for baby.

The nice ladies throwing my shower sent us a crib today. It's still in the box, so I can't post a photo yet. Shower's this Sunday! And, the Target in town just opened last week, and it's full of great baby stuff that I can't wait to buy! And soon the nice people at Target will send me a coupon soon because I registered there. Then, commence baby shopping!!

Big Man has begun to prepare the baby room. He moved all the furniture today, and spackled, and tomorrow will paint. Baby room will be Disney's "winnie the pooh yellow". The cable guy's coming next week to move the cable/internet into what will be my home office.

All these plans, and late in the day our realtor calls to say someone wants to come see the house on Thursday! In this shitty market! By then, we will have a full-fledged baby room. But, hopefully then we will have buyers. At this point I don't care, I just want to buy baby stuff.

Big Man is calling the house delay a sign that we will find a better house next year, but we still have a contract to buy the new one so we will have to wait and see.

Got my car back tonight-- $301 to replace both transmission lines. Fun to spend over $600 on car repairs and $600 in furnace repairs in two weeks! Woo hoo! Not to mention that the dealership we took the car to on Sunday let me know on Monday that they were closing their business THAT DAY and that they couldn't fix my car. Oh, and I had to call them at lunchtime to find out that nugget of info. Did I mention there was not a SINGLE sign near the drop box or anywhere alerting us to the impending closure. The closing dealership tells me that they just bought another dealership a few miles away, and that the new place might be able to fix it. But, apparently in their mind it was my responsibility to call the new place and ask them if they could. Oh, and closing dealership tells me that they don't have tow service so I have to figure out how to get my broken ass car to the new place. So, I have to call AAA and explain the situation and ask them to tow my car from one dealership to another dealership. AAA guy tells me that he's sure I'm telling the truth but it's the least believeable story he's heard in a long time. He calls closing dealership to confirm my story and then they agree to tow my car. Fun times.

I'm just glad to have my car back. No more Mrs. Magoo. I can actually see over the dashboard and sit comfortably!

Sorry earth.

Well, I have done exhaustive research on cloth diapering, and was ready to do it. Sat the Big Man down last night because I had finally decided on a brand and how many we'd need to start. The initial cash outlay would be around $350, but then it should last for at least the first year or so. Big Man asks me if I am sure I really want to cloth diaper; he says he will do it if I want to but he would prefer not to have to worry about laundering, etc.

SO, we're going to add to the landfill waste after all.

Big Man is such an atypical husband inasmuch as he cooks, cleans, shops, etc., much more often than I do. He will be providing at least 50% of the baby care as he will be home during the day, and will be doing nearly everything except breastfeeding because I will be recovering from my c-section. So, making Big Man's life a little easier is going to be the priority for me with this baby.

Sorry earth.

Gotta get to my baby registry and delete all the cloth diaper stuff!

Pregnant lady day out.

I hooked up with my friend Kristen yesterday for lunch and shopping. She's about 4 weeks more pregnant than me:

Just two insanely pregnant women waddling around Panera and Target. And, of course, low ridin' in the Caddy:

This is with the seat all the way up and me sitting on a pillow!

Stimulating the local (mechanic's) economy

Had to have some car maintenance done this week(Tuesday)--about $350 on brakes, etc. Mechanic (who I trust implicitly) tells me I should call the dealership to have my transmission line replaced because it is starting to leak. (Apparently a much easier dealer-fix than small local shop fix.)

So, I figure it can't be that urgent and I'll get to it. THREE days later:

Yesterday, I'm driving home from work, the long way, as I was considering stopping by the brand new Target that opened this week, and the car starts slipping gears and acting all crazy. No check engine light yet so I'm okay. Call the Big Man and tell him that he needs to meet me at the car dealership near our house. I pull up, and they close at 5pm, and their service department doesn't work weekends. What the fuck? It's a CAR DEALERSHIP! Doesn't the very nature of car buying, etc., happen after work and on weekends? So we bring the car home, intending to have it towed somewhere Saturday. Calls to other dealerships fail as NO ONE will look at it today. So, Big Man will take it back to the nearby dealership on Monday.

Walked in the door on Friday after the car debacle to see that we'd received the NYS middle-class STAR tax relief check--$348.00. So, looks like that paid for my brakes, but I am sure that I'm going to be whacked with the transmission work. Usually I like to think of the stimulus type check things as money falling out of the sky to do fun stuff with but it never works that way. When we got the federal one, Big Man's car was in the shop. No lie. But, I guess it's better than nothing, as our furnace repairs ran us $590 this week as well. But it would have been more fun to blow $348 on baby stuff.

Until I get my car back, I'll be low ridin' in Big Man's caddy.
The car is a flippin' boat. I literally sit on a pillow to drive it.
Think Mr. Magoo.
Really.

I'm meeting a friend for lunch today in Schenectady and will have her snap a photo to post.

Who the heck are you, anyway?

I like to joke that the only person who reads this blog is my dad. But, because my little web counter says otherwise, and the stats that are kept are pretty interesting, I know that some other people do too. In fact, last week we had 68 people from the US, 2 from the UK, 2 from Canada and 1 from Ireland stop by for a visit.

Most of them appear to be doing google searches related to John McCain, and end up here because I've been known to rant about him from time to time...some sucker googled "worst crafts" and ended up here to see the yarn/balloon debacle.

I know that there are a few of you out there who I don't really know, so post a comment, and tell me about YOU. Maybe I want to read your blog, too. Really though, tell me something about yourself, and why you're hear reading about my mundane existence. Tell me what you like best--do you want more baby news, or more political rants, or maybe more sports?

Can't wait to meetcha!


In other news, 30 week baby doc visit was yesterday. I've managed to only gain a total of 6 pounds with this little baby! All looks good and they will schedule the delivery at the next visit. Right now, it looks like I can choose between 12/7 or 12/8. I'm leaning toward 12/8 so I don't miss the Bears game.

Four years ago today...

...I said "I do" to the most wonderful man in the world.

Big Man's been one of my best friends for nearly 20 years. This year we'll have our first baby. Life couldn't be any better.

And, at this very moment:
He's slicing onions to saute to go with the steaks he will be charcoal grilling, and there's a cheesecake he made in the fridge!

Love you Big Man, with all my heart.

Christmas in October?

I'm pleased to announce that I have gotten most of my Christmas shopping done.

Obviously I'll be a little distracted in December, so I've been ordering some things here and there for Big Man, my folks and bro and sis in law. Everyone else will basically be neglected this year, as I can't imagine really shopping for anything other than baby stuff. And, that's not because I'm baby crazy, but because so far I have almost nothing with which to diaper, bathe, feed, or clothe my baby; nor does baby have a room, yet. Looks like we are going to be stuck in the 'ol house for the winter and hopefully will make some progress this weekend in room-shifting.

Sitting here watching the debate (and just finished my online Christmas shopping), and I have to say that I don't really like the format. It certainly seems to highlight how very OLD my favorite butternut squash is. I have to confess that I'm not really paying much attention as I already know who I'm voting for, and honestly, would rather watch SNL parodies of the debates.

Amazes me though to hear a 36 year (or is it 26?) veteran of the senate say with a straight face that Washington is broken; what the hell has he been doing all this time? Playing tiddliwinks? And if you listen to McCain, earmarks are the most important thing facing our country, although in actuality it is a miniscule part of the federal budget. I really, really, really hope the American people see through him. Glad to see that Obama's poll numbers are on the rise...here's hoping.

Monday mixed post.

Behold my fantasy football genius--Kyle Orton, baby!

Started new job today; looks to be pretty okay.

Furnace is fixed.

I made linguine with white clam sauce with artichoke hearts, broccoli and sun dried tomatoes for dinner:

Currently have some pistachio chocolate chip cookies in the oven, yum!

Shout out to my power company?

Yes, surprisingly.

Turned the heat on tonight, and no heat.
Called my uncle to come over and show us how to light the pilot, but he couldn't figure it out.
Called my power company (National Grid) and they said they would send someone over, for FREE, to light it.
Thirty minutes later, my doorbell rang (7pm). It was the flippin' power guy. Five minutes later, the pilot light was lit. Rock on National Grid!

Unfortunately, we still have no heat, so have to call the furnace guy tomorrow. :(
But, I can promise you I won't be bitching about my gas/electric bill this winter!

Throwback to my old college days.

Aaah, Checkers.

When I was in NC, I had two checkerburgers. I haven't been to Checkers since college. Ah, college, what fond memories of the south side of Chicago. Of frat parties that went really late, and getting really drunk and finding anyone with a car to drive you to the absolute worst neighborhood because Checkers was open all night. The Checkers we used to frequent in Chicago is located on the map below:
For those of you unfamiliar with Chicago, this is in one of, if not THE worst neighborhoods in Chicago. (at least it was from '91 to '95 when I was in college) The number 1 on the map is the Checkers. It literally abutted the Robert Taylor Homes, which ran along W. Garfield Boulevard. They've since closed down, as the Chicago Housing Authority realized that cramming poor people into a two mile stretch of high rises had terrible consequences, socially, morally, and economically.

Despite the fact that the Taylor homes have come down, the Checkers website confirms that the ol' Checkers still stands. Back in the day, we could always find someone dumb enough to drive us there. And, drunk and naive, we'd pile in the cars and head to Checkers once the booze ran out, and load up on checkerburgers and tasty fries. Yum!

Happy trails.

Yesterday was the last day at the old firm. Big Man came by around 4:45 to pack up the car with my many boxes of books and files, etc.

Headed to the new firm to unload and say hi to Bob who will be my new boss. I'm pretty excited about the prospect. Bob is a hard worker, and a good guy, and has gone out of his way to treat my joining his firm with much excitement and professionalism. He's been a solo practictioner for about 10 years, and having an associate will be new for him. He definitely started off right, as we've picked out a laptop so my office can be mobile, and we are working on getting my office space set up; just waiting for the furniture to arrive. For now, I'll be using the conference table, but once my furniture comes in the former conference room will become my office and we will be adding a new conference room.

Also pleased to announce that I've joined the world of corporate douchebagery, as I just got a blackberry. I'm sure that someday I will love it, and will enjoy rudely ignoring my friends and family while I check my email incessantly instead of paying attention to anything that actually matters. Fun times. I have to say, though, the manual has about 1,000,000 pages, and I have no freakin' idea how to use it. I plugged it in and a light began to blink; "hmm", I thought, "is it fully charged yet?" So, I looked in the manual to see how I would know when it was fully charged, as you aren't supposed to use it until it is. The manual tells me, "plug in until fully charged". THANKS. That clears everything up. After a few hours the blinking light stopped blinking and I decided that was the sign that the 'berry was fully charged. So, I fired the bad boy up, and was ready to go.

First thing I did was try to call it from the house phone. It didn't ring, but the screen said there was a call. After the pushing of approximately 1,000 buttons and lots of swearing, I was able to make the flippin' thing ring. Woo hoo! It has to be the least intuitive device. Ever. In any event, in a little bit, I plan to sit down with the manual and figure out how to program it to get my email and maybe do other cool stuff like sync with the calendar that I have in my laptop that I haven't figured how to use yet either. Ain't technology great?

So, now I'll have not just one, but two cell phones. Because I'm a big, important asshole lawyer, yo! Someone slap me.

F&*K you Chicago Cubs!

Hey Cubs,
WTF?
Are you trying to give your fans perpetual agita? You have such a good season that we finally come to expect that you are going to go all the way, that the 100 year mark will have meaning. Hell, I even agreed to name my kid after one of your players if you won the world series. And you get blown out in the first two playoff games by the Dodgers??? You had better win the final three and get your shizzle together quick-like.
And Lou Piniella, I've loved you since you were a Yankee. I was at your retirement game at Yankee Stadium. Don't turn out to be another Marty Schottenheimer.

Death flu.

I'm sick.
Really sick.
Haven't been this sick in long time.
bah.