Quick Update

At least I'm going to TRY to make this quick! :-)

Happy 1st day of school for most everyone except me!  My kids start next Tuesday!  Woo hoo!  That means more meetings for me.  :-)  We have been having online meetings each day after I got back from my training.  How do we do online meetings, you ask?  Someone sends us a link to a "Blackboard" room, which is what we use to teach our lessons, and we log in and we can chat, talk, write on the white board, etc.  We meet as one big middle school group, then usually we go to "breakout rooms" as departments and talk about whatever we're supposed to talk about. 
I still don't have access to my curriculum (they haven't loaded it into my "Online School" website)...so that's fun.  But I finished all my online trainings except for the live sessions that are scheduled for today and Wednesday.  Now I'm trying to figure out how to get myself organized.  I have lots of folders made on my computer, but I'm trying to decide what I need to print for quick reference...I have a few ideas and once school starts and I get asked questions by parents and students that I don't know the answers to, I will probably start printing like crazy! :-)  I will eventually, whenever I make lesson plans, print those out to have while I teach.

Gabe had his 9-month appointment on Friday.  He was 21 lbs. 10oz and 29 inches long.  So since his last appointment, 3 months ago, he grew less than 2 inches, but gained 5 lbs. 10 oz!  He is now in the 35 percentile for weight and 85th for height.  :-)  The doctor said he is in perfect health and was very happy with how he is developing.  He said we can start giving him table food and he can pretty much eat anything, with a few exceptions.  And he said that since he still doesn't have any teeth, it is possible that he'll cut several at a time, whenever they decide to come.  I want to start giving him more foods that he can pick up himself, because he needs practice!  He actually got a puff in his mouth the other day!  And we let him sample our mashed potatoes at dinner last night.  He liked those!
Well, I should keep getting ready for work.  Hope everyone has a GREAT day!! :-) 

Let the Insane Busy-ness Begin!

Well, I'm home from my new hire training.  My head is not spinning quite as fast as it has been the past three days, but I still feel like I don't really know what I'm doing.  I DO know that I'm teaching 8th grade math (the course is called Math 8 and it's basically Pre-Algebra-ish), I will teach two 45-minute live classes a day, 75 kids in each class. Yes, 75!  I will have one section a week of a smaller group out of the 150 who need re-teaching or other remediation.  I have a live online orientation tomorrow morning and the other time as well as all day Friday is for me to start on the long list of online trainings I have assigned to me by K12.  I met my mentor today (part of the induction program) whose name is Mark and he is another 8th grade math teacher and is also the department chair.  He has a very goofy sense of humor, but very knowledgeable and helpful, and I'm sure I will be in close contact with him all year!  We are actually required to talk once a month, and he is supposed to come visit my "home office" after our staff development next week, and I'm supposed to go to him one day and "shadow" him during a class.  I have to do a self-evaluation and set goals for myself.  I have to enter and submit an expense report for the mileage and dinner I paid for while on this trip (everything gets reimbursed, which is nice!), and I have a list of other housekeeping things I have to do before I will feel like I'm "caught up".  I have that "trying to keep your head above water" feeling again like every new teacher feels, and notice I haven't even mentioned lesson planning.  As of earlier this afternoon, I didn't have access to the Math 8 curriculum, and even if I did, Mark told me that they don't really use K12's lessons that are pre-made.  They use them to know what to teach, but they create their own lessons in PowerPoint.  Lucky for me, in the past, the math teachers have already worked together to make PowerPoint lessons for each unit, and I will be getting access to those lessons.  I will probably be relying on them pretty heavily at first at least, adding my own personal touches and making sure it's how I would be comfortable teaching them, but why reinvent the wheel if I don't have to?  Plus, there are about 7 or so websites that I have to remember usernames/passwords for and how to use them and what they are for.  (I guess that comes with the "online" school territory)  And I have to remember to run my malware scan every week and to back up all my files (once I have them) on a regular basis.

So, I'm treading water pretty well right now.  It's a lot to remember and digest, but I keep telling myself that it will come...I will get the hang of it...if I forget something or need to know something, they will tell me (hopefully!). 
When I got home today Gabe was sleeping.  When he woke up I went in to get him, and at first he was frowning and fussing, but once he really looked at me, he started smiling and as I was changing his diaper he was just laughing and laughing.  I missed him (and Tim) so much!  The first night as I was going to bed, I was thinking about him and realized that before I left I thought I wanted a break from him, but being away from him, I realized I didn't want a break!  Yes, it's tiring, and yes, it was nice to do what I wanted, when I wanted but I missed seeing my baby!  His spit-up, by the way, has gotten WAY better!  He hardly does it anymore.  He's eating more solids, and his insides are maturing, which of course helps. 

Tim is at an elder's meeting right now, and Gabe is in bed, so I think I'll do a little work and try to get myself organized and get a good night's sleep for my full day of online training tomorrow!

Word of the Day: Exhausted!

I am in Mechanicsburg, PA for my new hire training for Agora.  It's been a long day, and my brain is exhausted!  I got here at 9 this morning after an hour's drive.  It didn't start till 10 but I left early because I didn't know how traffic was going to be.  So I put gas in my car and by the time I went back, it was 9:30 and lots of people were going in.  I was pretty nervous, because I had received so many emails from the HR person about paperwork to bring and they all said, "If you don't have this paperwork, we will not be able to hire you."  Then on Friday afternoon, I got another email from him with a letter attached from the "head of school" which I guess is like the superintendent, that included my [vague] job description and responsibilities, and I had to sign saying I got it, and as I was reading the first part of the letter again, it listed a bunch of things they needed like copies of my clearances and certification, which I already emailed to them, and then as almost an after-thought, it said, "You will also need a physical form."  And it said that this letter super ceded any verbal or written agreement that has been made prior to this.  Well, no one had mentioned anything about a physical, and now it is too late to get one by Monday morning so I emailed the HR guy and asked if that was needed by Monday and never got a response, so instead of being calm and excited, I was scared they weren't going to hire me and turn me away or at the very least that I was going to be embarrassed that I didn't have all my paperwork.  Well, I go into the room where we are going to have our general session and I'm sitting with a few other people and a lady from Insperity (the company that handles our paychecks and benefits) comes by asking for the new hire paperwork.  As we are getting out the packets, the lady next to me asked if she needed "this" which was a "Standard Teacher Application" for Pennsylvania and she was told no, that was something from Agora, and she didn't need that.  So, now I'm freaking out MORE because I didn't print out an application. (I had to fill it out to apply for other jobs and I have a copy saved on my computer, but didn't remember being told I needed one for Agora).  So I look at my letter again from the head of school, and sure enough, in the middle of the list of copies of stuff that they need, is "Standard Application" blah blah blah.  I just missed it because I was reading too quickly!  So I say to myself, "AHHH!"  Now I really AM missing paperwork...great!  Well, my first session is about benefits and paperwork, and the HR guy who had been sending all the emails was there, so at the end, I went over to him and handed him my letter and said I didn't notice about the Application (and didn't even get to the physical) when he said, "Don't worry about it."  Whew!!!  Talk about a load being lifted!  I could finally relax! I had my picture taken for my ID right before lunch, then after lunch I had a session where I got my laptop and set up my email, then the last session was information about the induction program and virtual training.  Every new employee at Agora is required to go through a 10-month induction program, which means we have a mentor, create a portfolio, and are required to answer a journal reflection question once a month.  In June we "graduate" and get a certificate.  This is actually a requirement to get my Instructional II certificate, which is my permanent certificate.  And then she showed us the website where we will have all our online trainings for K12.  It was a long day and tomorrow will be even longer because we start earlier!  (8:30-4) Wednesday is 8:30-3.  Tomorrow is more general info and Wednesday we will be in our departments, and hopefully I'll find out what exactly I'm teaching!  Apparently nobody knows any specifics.  One person was told what grade she was teaching because she's not going to be here on Wednesday, so I'm assuming that is when we'll find out!

We have a full-time crawler now!  Up until today, Gabe would switch between army crawling and hands-and-knees crawling, and when I was talking to Tim this afternoon, he said he is staying up all the time now.  We got a play yard gate that is a hexagonal shape and gives him 18 sq. ft of play space.  Sometimes he fusses because he wants out and we do play with him outside of it, but it is nice to have a place to put him and all his toys where we know he can't get in to anything.  Sometimes, if he's just sitting by gate, looking out, Tim will sing, "Nobody knows..." You know from the etrade commercials with the talking baby who is being punished in his crib for riding the dog?  He says that's what it reminds him of...haha.  Only 10 days until his 9-month appointment!  I can't believe it!  Still no teeth yet...but I have given him Cheerios, which he still doesn't know how to put in his mouth, but he likes them.  He makes a very serious, questioning face while he's working on gumming it or figuring out what to do with it, and sometimes he looks like he gags as he swallows it, but then he just smiles, and gurgles like he's so happy.  I will have to try to video him when I get back. 

Well, I think it's time for me to relax now.  I have a couple of things that I was told to make sure I have on my work computer, then it's time to do nothing!  I can't wait! :-)

Strange Things Are Happening

Sometime last week, I put a load of Gabe's laundry in the washing machine, and later when Tim was putting the clothes into the dryer, he stopped, looked at me and said, "What is this doing in here?" I looked at him and he was holding a diaper.  Not sure if it was dirty or not...haha.  I have no idea how it got in there!  The dirty clothes hamper is in between the storage shelf next to his changing table and the chest of drawers.  Sometimes I put the diaper I'm about to put on him on top of the shelf until I need it, and maybe I did that and it got knocked down into the hamper and I just didn't realize it? 

Well, today when I was doing Gabe's laundry again, when I got to the bottom of the hamper, there was a dirty diaper!  What is going on?!?  I am baffled by how that got in there.  I was just glad I saw it before I washed it!  Once they were done, I opened the washing machine, and find something very odd on top of the clothes: the hand sanitizer pump bottle from his shelf!  What??  It didn't look like any had come out and his clothes didn't smell like hand sanitizer, so I threw the clothes in the dryer.  Obviously, it got knocked into the hamper, but it is sooo weird!

Another new thing that has happened is Gabe started crawling on his hands and knees today!  He doesn't do it all the time, but he did it several times this evening, and I'm guessing we'll see more of that in the days to come. 

He moves so much, I put up our gate to block him from going down the hallway because he likes to go down and check out the door stop and take the rubber cap off the end of it.  He didn't really like the gate.

Gabe woke up at 7 this morning and I gave him a bottle and put him right back down and he slept until almost 10.  It was nice to sleep in!!  Time to go to bed because I don't think we'll get that luxury again tomorrow!  :-)

On Tuesday I went back to my chiropractor friend for her to make sure the swelling went down on my wrist, which it did, and she said she wanted me to come back on Friday, so I did and it still looked good.  But I still have a bump from what she thinks is a cyst, so she put a piece of medical tape on it to hopefully send a message to my brain to pay attention to that spot and hopefully get rid of the fluid.  I'm supposed to wear it for 5 days in hopes my brain gets the message.  The tape itself actually does nothing besides brings attention to the spot.  It hasn't been hurting so that is good.

Well, Gabe is as active and cute as ever.  He really likes the dragon rider/walker that his Uncle John and Aunt Melissa sent us. (A hand-me-down from cousin Rachael)  He was bouncing on it yesterday and I took a video just because his face was so serious.

His naps have been really off recently.  I think yesterday he only had one kind-of-long nap in the afternoon because he never got fussy for a morning nap, and then once he did sleep, when he woke up, it was too close to bedtime for another nap.  The day before that he only slept 30 minutes for his morning nap and fought Tim for an hour while I was out with Patty for his afternoon nap, but eventually went to sleep for a couple of hours.  I'm not sure what's up with him.  His schedule was a little off today, of course, because it is Sunday, and he actually got up earlier than normal so I put him back down right after his first bottle and he slept for about an hour.  Then again for about 35 minutes on the way home from church, with a stop at Wal-Mart.  Then maybe 30-40 minutes after we ate lunch.  But he got to bed a good time, a little after 7:30. He's also been waking up again around 3ish in the morning.  Friday I knew it was because he was hungry because he didn't get his last bottle before he went to bed, but last night he got all his feedings and he still woke up.  But as I entered the room I smelled the reason for him waking up.  I changed his dirty diaper and rocked him a little and put him back down.  I think he may have cried a little, but went back to sleep pretty quickly. Unfortunately, I don't go back to sleep as quickly.  I was up for over an hour both times, almost 2 hours the first time, worrying about if he was going to cry again, and just not able to relax.  So needless to say, I've been pretty tired these last few days.  This past week he has started looking at us after we put him down and crying.  He used to do this but a couple of weeks ago he changed and would just roll to his side as I walked out and never cried, but just went to sleep.  I guess I shouldn't say "never".  There were times I would have to go in a few minutes after putting him down and "re-set" him as Tim calls it and put his paci back in and then he'd be fine.  Now he's back to rolling over and looking at us and crying as we walk out of the room, especially during naps.  Bedtime is easy, but daytime is getting harder again.

 We ate at Texas Road House today and he sat in a high chair, which was really just a booster seat they put in the booth, but it had a rail all the way around so he wouldn't fall out.  He loved it.  Since they keep the menus on the table, those kept him occupied the whole time.  He had lots of fun.

I'm half-way through the last Hunger Games book!  I can't wait until the movie is out on Netflix on the 18th!  I have it saved in our Queue so I can get it the first day! :-)  On a totally different note, the women's group this fall at church is going to be doing Beth Moore's Daniel study.  I heard it is really good, and I really enjoyed the last one we did, so I am looking forward to it.  Apparently some of the ladies had said that they had a hard time getting the homework done every week last time, so the two women who are leading it decided that we'll meet every other week to give everyone more time to do the homework.  On one hand I don't really like that because it's not that hard to do the homework, and I feel like I'm going to forget what I did and it won't be as fresh on my mind each time so it will take away the impact, but on the other hand, I will be teaching full time so I may need the extra time to get the work done.  However, I plan on doing what I did last time, which is do it in the morning before everything gets started for the day so I don't have the "too busy" or "too tired" excuses to use at the end of the day.  

I'm getting pretty excited about my training next week.  I'm ready to learn about what I'm going to be doing and how it works.  They have reserved hotel rooms for us if we want them, so I took one.  I'm not sure if I'll have a roommate or not.  They didn't ask me if I wanted one or not.  I don't really care if I have one.  It would be good to get to know another new teacher and maybe make a friend that I can keep in contact with.  I'm also looking forward to having a little break from Gabe.  I hope that doesn't make me sound like a horrible mother.  But I haven't had a break ever.  Yes, I was away from him during the day when I was working, but I haven't had a day where he didn't dictate when I got out of bed.  Not that I'll get to sleep in at my training, but at least I'll get to go to bed when I want and sleep ALL night with no interruptions and get up with my alarm, not a crying baby.  I love him so much, but after Tim being gone, and him not napping well lately, I could use the time off.  Hopefully it will refresh me and give me back some energy. 

Time to read and go to bed!  Good night!

Happy August!

Or should I say, "Happy Chick-Fil-A Day!"  Tim and I went and proudly ate at Chick-Fil-A today. When we got in line, we started right outside the door, but it moved quickly, and we got our food to go.  The drive thru was really crowded, and there was a police officer directing traffic.  I happened to be wearing my Oklahoma Christian University shirt Jason gave me, and the man in front of us in line asked if I went to "OCC" or just have the shirt.  I had to look down at my shirt because I forgot what I was wearing, and told him I went to Lubbock Christian, and my brother went to OC.  It turns out the man was the preacher of a local church of Christ and once they asked what Tim did, we found out that the guy's friend was baptized at Hillside back in the 80's and knows Shelley.  Small world!  :-)

When I went in to get Gabe up from one of his naps, this is what I found:

Time to lower the crib mattress?  I think so!  He is on his knees, not standing, thank goodness.  During his next nap, his monitor started going crazy (or so I thought) by giving off annoying static noise.  When I turn his sensor off after each nap, it does the same thing if it's on, so I went into his room, and he's up on his knees again, hanging his arms over the side of his crib and his monitor, which sits on the top of his crib has been knocked down, and the switch is off.  Stinker!  Now his mattress is lowered, and hopefully that will not be happening again any time soon!  This guy is so cute, but he is soooo active!  No sitting still for him! (Or his parents!)  He will sit and play with a toy for a few minutes, but it's not long before he is off, trying to get to something he's probably not supposed to have: his car seat, his swing, his diaper bag, computer cords, Wii remotes, or the white shelf on the floor.  He likes playing with the swing, but does not like sitting in it anymore.  He will be learning the meaning of the word "No" real quick!  Today when he started crawling toward the entertainment center with his eye on the Wii remote cords that were so enticingly dangling from the shelf, I said his name, and he stopped and looked at me.  Then continued.  I said his name again and he stopped and looked at me.  Then kept going.  We did this probably 3 or 4 times, but I could see he was determined, so I had to pick him up and move him back to his blanket.  I can't wait till he starts walking! :-/

Well, I have to vent a little.  As you know, I was "furloughed" on June 8th from the Reading School District.  I got a letter that day stating June 8th was my last day of employment, and that my insurance will end on June 30th.  All the assistants that were laid off got the same letter.  At the meeting, we were told by someone in payroll that we would not be getting paid through August; we would be cashed out of our contract, meaning we were able to apply for unemployment, and eligible to receive compensation starting July 1st.  I went home that day and filed, a couple of weeks later, received my letter telling me how much I am eligible to receive.  But at the end of June, I received a normal paycheck.  I called payroll and was told that I AM getting paid through August.  That means I cannot file for unemployment.  So I had to call the unemployment people to cancel my claim, which is such a hassle because they are so busy, you're lucky to get through at all, and once I did get through, I was on hold for an hour.  But that was done, and I thought my worries were over.  Because COBRA is so expensive, Tim bought some temporary insurance for July and August, and luckily Hillside's leadership team was committed to help pay for our premiums.  But two days ago I get a letter from Loomis, my insurance company I had through the school district letting me know about COBRA because my insurance runs out August 31st.  What??  I call the insurance company and the lady told me that they received a bunch of paperwork from Reading saying everyone's last date of employment was 8/31.  She said to call the insurance lady at Reading to make sure this is correct.  GRRRR.  If this is true, I've had insurance this whole time, and we wasted over $200 for insurance we didn't need.  I call Denise, the insurance person, but it goes straight to voice mail.  I leave a message but she never calls me back.  The next morning, I call back but get her voice mail again, so just call HR.  When I explain my issue to the secretary, she transfers me to the insurance department....duh.  But she transferred me to the Loomis person who apparently works in the Admin building.  But that went to voice mail too.  I left a message.  No return.  Tim called our temporary insurance company to tell them what happened and to cancel our insurance for August.  We just decided to believe what Loomis said, and assume we still have insurance.  Today I decide to try one more time, and call Denise, and she actually answers.  I tell her about the letter from Reading that said June 30th and the letter from Loomis that said August 31st, and she said that August is the correct date.  HR put the wrong date on the letter.  Perfect.  I really wanted to call HR and complain and tell them how incompetent they are, but I know there is nothing they can do, and I knew I wouldn't be able to be as mean as I wanted, so then I thought about sending a nasty email, because I really want them to know they messed up and that it cost us money.  And that I will never work for the Reading School District ever again.  But that won't do any good either, so I probably won't do anything....but it's nice to think about what I would say if I were bold enough.  Hopefully other people will complain for me.

I finished the second book in the Hunger Games series today!  I am a little addicted to these books.  It's not the nicest subject matter (people being forced to kill other people) but it is so interesting!  I think it's because it's so unpredictable.  The story moves quickly and there are so many surprises, I never know what's going to happen.  I started the third and final book today and I'm anxious to see how it all ends!

And lastly, I entered Gabe's picture in Gerber's photo contest.  Voting doesn't start until September 4th, so when it is time, I will post the link to his page so you can vote for him.  :-)  There are two prizes: the grand prize is $50,000 cash and a Gerber photo shoot, but that is not decided by the voting.  "Expert judges" pick that winner.  The other prize is for their $10,000 college fund program.  Gerber has different "stages" to label their food so you know which food is appropriate for your child (i.e. Supported Sitter, Sitter, Crawler, etc.) and they are giving away a college fund for each stage.  That is what the voting determines.  So, starting September 4th, vote for Gabriel!!

Well, I have to get back to my book, so good night everyone!! :-) 

 

Daddy's Home!

Tim and the mission team got back at about 4:15 yesterday.  Gabe was very happy to see his daddy.  I got pictures, but don't know what I did with the camera at the moment.  So when I find it, I will post the pictures.

Yesterday was pretty crazy.  Gabe woke up around 7:45 so I fed him his cereal and fruit, and put him back down and I had to wake him up to leave for church.  He was very fidgety during church so after the singing, I took him to the nursery.  I knew part of his problem was he was tired, but I also knew he'd be distracted in the nursery and would probably be fine.  I told the nursery worker that he would probably start fussing a little after 11 because he was hungry, and she did tell me she gave him his bottle when I went to pick him up after the service.  And then guess what she said.  No spit up!!  I was shocked but so proud of him.  Of course that did not become the norm for the rest of the day.  He actually did very well with not spitting up the rest of the afternoon until his next feeding.  We went out to eat with Shelley and his family and a couple other people and I put Gabe in a high chair.  He loved it!  He liked being at the table and was so interested in everything that was on the table.  I let him play with a menu until we ordered our food, and then one of the ladies that was with us let him play with her fanny pack, which kept him occupied for a really long time because you know how much he loves straps! :-)  Lunch took FOREVER just because the service was slow, and he started to get pretty fussy because he was getting really tired.  We left and he fell asleep on the way home, but didn't stay asleep once we got home.  It was time for him to eat again anyway, and shortly after he ate it was time to go back to the church to meet Tim.  So Gabriel was VERY sleepy by the time we got home that evening.  So I bathed him, Tim fed him, and I put him to bed.

I'm glad our family is all together again, and we'll have time to relax together before school starts back up!  

And don't forget to appreciate Chick-fil-A on Wednesday and eat there!! :-)

Day 11...what rhymes with 11?

Warning: This post contains some mildly gross content, so if you are eating while reading, I suggest you finish your food before continuing.

So I had mentioned how incredibly annoying Max is being at night (I didn't mention what I was thinking of doing to him because I didn't want to risk an animal rights activist randomly seeing this blog and trying to get me arrested for animal cruelty...)  However, I did risk waking up Gabe and locked him out of my room.  He meowed and banged on the door some, but I waited him out and he gave up.  For a while.  Gabe actually woke up at 3 and Max was banging on my door at the same time (I don't know if it was just a coincidence or not), but I went in to check on Gabe, and he wasn't just crying in his sleep...he was awake, so I walked quickly to the kitchen to get him some Tylenol and I flipped on the light as I entered the living room and luckily was looking down because I had to side step in order to miss the cat puke that was on the carpet!  (I warned you!)  Yesterday, for our Bunco game, I had bought a set of three curled ribbon bows to put on the Bunco hat.  I had them on the island in the kitchen, where I was going to glue them on the hat.  Well, I had to walk away a few times for Gabe and other things, and every time, Max would jump up and start eating the ribbons!  He loves ribbons and anything plasticky.  But he doesn't just chew them, he actually eats and swallows them!  And EVERY time he will puke them out (this has happened before, can ya tell?).  I ended up throwing all three ribbon bows away because Max ruined them, and they weren't sticking anyway.  I knew the puke would come, I was just hoping he could hold it in until Tim got back.  That was the ONE thing I thought about that I really really really didn't want to happen while I'm here alone.  I can't stand vomit of any kind, and it makes me gag if I look at it and it's even worse if I have to clean it up.  (And on a side note: Mitzi, your dogs seemed to puke EVERY time I dog-sat for you back when you were living in your old house)  I digress.  I decided to leave Max's mess for the night because I didn't feel like dealing with it, gave Gabriel his meds, and went back to bed.  Gabe went back to sleep quickly, but not before making me feel bad.  Once we put him down to sleep, we really try not to pick him up unless he has a dirty diaper or something.  And last night, he reached his arms up like he wanted me to pick him up.  :-(  I gave him a kiss, told him I loved him and walked out of the room.  I don't remember him crying after that, though.  When I went back to bed, I let Max in, but not for long because he started annoying me again with pawing at the night stand.  He'd walk over to it, meow, and then try to paw it, and I would hit him with my pillow, and he'd run away.  This occurred several times, and I would get up to try to get him out of the room, but he would run under the bed.  It's just a game for him.  Grrrrrr!  I eventually got him out and he stayed out until I was ready to get up.  I am so glad this is the last night I have to deal with that!! 

I did clean up the yucky stuff this morning, and luckily had an empty stomach, or else I may have been cleaning up my own mess too!  It was bad....

Because Gabe got to bed late last night, I didn't wake him up early to go garage sale-ing.  He didn't sleep extremely late, so after he ate, we went by a neighborhood sale, which did not impress me.  I did get an Infantino baby carrier for $3 (score!) that can hold the baby facing in or out and on your back, which is the only way Tim said he would wear one.  The weight limit is 22 lbs, so it probably won't work for Gabe anymore, but it will be good for the next baby.  Not that we're having another one any time soon! (At least not planning to!)  It's just that those carriers are so expensive, so this was a really good deal!  I also found one stuffed animal for my Sunday School class.  I really need wind up toys, but I don't know where to find them.  I looked on ebay and they had some, but they were weird colors.  But I may have to just get them.  

After that, we went to get the oil changed in my car, which didn't take nearly as long as I thought it would.  Plus, a man that was waiting on his car, gave me an extra coupon he had for $5 off!  So that was awesome.  

When we got home, I fed Gabe, and he went down for a nap.  This afternoon Gabe and I played, but he actually entertained himself for the most part.  He crawled off his blanket to try to get to the laptop and cord that was on the floor and so I decided to record him doing it again.  

Did you see him sit himself up???  That was a first!  So glad I got it on camera for Tim to see!  I don't know if it was a fluke because he hasn't done it again, but I thought it was pretty cool!  And, yes, the thud was him hitting his head on the laptop, but he's FINE. :-)  It didn't even leave a mark like his kitchen set did, when he pulled it down on his face yesterday... :-)

I am soooo glad Tim will be back tomorrow!  I can't wait to see Gabe's reaction when he sees his daddy.  I don't know if he is still at a point where it's "out of sight, out of mind" or if he is wondering where Tim is, but I know when he sees him tomorrow, he will be very happy!  Hopefully I'll get a good picture out of it.  And I am definitely glad I am not a single mother!  This is hard work!  I mean, it's not that HARD, but it's tiring, and it's very difficult to do other things when Gabe is awake, and when he's sleeping you just want to relax!  I am very thankful for Tim and all the help he is.  He has been very hands on since the day Gabe was born and I am really looking forward to seeing how this school year goes with all three of us being home together!  I'm so excited about being a "stay-at-home teacher"!  That's what I'm calling myself.  Every time I go to Wal-mart I am tempted to buy some school supplies like binders and folders and spiral notebooks, but I don't know what I am going to need.  I don't even know how many classes I'll be teaching and how to get organized, or what kind of paperwork I'm going to have.  If I was in a traditional classroom, I'd know what to do before school started, but I have no idea how similar or different the organization is for cyber school.  I guess I'll find out at training, so hopefully all the school supplies will still be around by then! :-)

Well, it's been fun!  (I don't know if I'll write a blog tomorrow, since Tim will be back)  I will try my best to keep this more up-to-date.  Maybe weekly?  Monthly?  Whenever I think about it and have something to write about?  Haha.

For now, enjoy some more of the pictures I took with Gabe on my laptop today:

Day 10...Late Night Again

This post will probably be pretty short tonight because I'm tired!  I had set my alarm to wake Gabe up early today so his feeding schedule would coincide with my doctor's appointment, but he actually woke up on his own right after my alarm went off!  Fancy that!  Since it was earlier than normal (7:30) he went right back down after his bottle and woke up in time to eat again and then we were off to the chiropractor!  My wrist was hurting REALLY bad yesterday (I think I mentioned that) and I can't move it very well anymore because it's swollen, but good news is my spine was perfect!  Patty said to put ice on it and wrap it if I want to push the fluid out and she wants to see me AGAIN on Tuesday to make sure the swelling went down.  If it doesn't I may need an X-ray to see what is going on in there.
After lunch with Patty, I had to swing by the dollar store to pick up a few things for our Bunco party tonight so Gabe missed his early afternoon nap, and when we got home I fed him and put him to bed, but he didn't sleep very long.  About 45 minutes, but I could tell he wasn't ready to get up so I put him back down and he slept for a little bit more I think, but not much and by that time it was time to leave anyway because I had to stop by Walmart for something I forgot to get when I was out the first time.  I put him in the cart again, and this time I got a picture.  I wanted to take a picture the first time but I felt weird, but this time I didn't care.  He looks so cute!  When we were moving, he would hold on to the back rest most of the time, I think because he was trying to turn around to see where we were going.  He likes to face forward now, not so much backwards anymore.

Bunco was fun.  We played with slightly different rules than what I'm used to, but all the ladies had a good time.  Gabe even had fun even though he was VERY sleepy.  But of course he didn't cry until we were almost home and he was getting hungry. Tomorrow I plan on checking out a few garage sales and getting the oil changed in my car.  

Tim called this morning and said that the temperature there today was only supposed to get up to 80, which is the coolest/nicest day they've had all week, and they were inside all day at Mall of America.  Go figure.  But he said the group has really bonded and it was a good trip.  His goal is to be back between 4 and 5 on Sunday.  I'm ready to have him back!!  And I'm ready for bed, so good night everyone!!

Day 9...Doin' Fine

Today was pretty much a lazy day.  We didn't go anywhere but to check the mail.  Gabe had three naps today and the first two were relatively short, but still around an hour.  But the third one was better and I napped then too.  However, it was interrupted by my stupid cat.  I haven't mentioned "Evil Cat Max" yet, but he has been a source of much frustration every night...or should I say morning.  He sleeps on the bed with me, but every night at around 2 in the morning he wakes up and wants to play or prowl and it's REALLY annoying because he does it in my room.  He gets up and wants to paw at my bedside table or jump up on the windowsill and attack the blinds.  He'll do that every once in a while when Tim is here, but all it takes is Tim acting like he's going to throw something at him (a pillow...relax) and he stops and leaves for a while until he's ready to come back and sleep.  However, I guess I'm not as intimidating because I have to do that for usually at least an hour to get him to stop and it usually results in me throwing him out of the bedroom and closing the door.  But this is only a temporary solution because he just meows really loud and stands up and bangs on the door (literally).  Because our bedroom door is right next to Gabe's, I'm scared it will wake him up so I have to open the door and let him back in and the cycle begins again.  I would just ignore him, but when he paws my night stand, he almost knocks it over because it's not very stable, and he's knocked the lamp off before and I don't want him to ruin the blinds by jumping at them.  Then he'll come back on the bed and walk on my head or try to curl up next to me but it takes him forever to get comfortable so I usually end up pushing him away.  Eventually, around 4ish, he settles down and goes back to sleep.  Annoying!!!  He also tries to attack me at night.  Tim is the alpha in the house, and Max respects him so when Tim's around he doesn't try to attack me, but with Tim gone, Max thinks he's in charge, and just about every night right before bed, when I'm walking around, turning out the lights etc., Max gets that crazy look in his eye and I know he wants to bite me.  He's only bitten me once this week, when he leaped at me as I walked away from him and grabbed the back of my shin and bit me.  Mostly, he just jumps at me and acts like he's going to bite me.  He's done this ever since he was a kitten, except back then, he would dig his teeth into my arms.  And so he earned the nickname "Evil Cat Max".  It is well-deserved.

On a lighter note, I got the official call from Agora's HR department and was offered the teaching position.  Still don't know what grade/subject specifically, but I am officially hired!  I have new teacher training August 13-15 and Staff Development August 20-22.  I'm glad the trainings are not a week long, like I assumed they would be.  I was thinking about it today though...I won't have much time to prepare before school starts because I won't get any of my materials until training.  But for some reason I'm not stressed out.  I guess because there's nothing to do right now and I have a baby taking up all of my time which leaves no time to really worry about it.  I was told that all the lessons are actually done for you already, all you have to do is tweak them how you want.  If that is the case, this may be easier than I thought. :-)

Here is Mr. Gabe sitting with his teether.  This is where he played most of the day, and proved my and everyone's prediction right that he is going to be into everything!  (As most babies are, I hear). 

                                     
We use a small, white shelf to store his bibs and burp cloths for easy access, which was not an issue when he was littler and didn't move around.  But today, for the second time, he dragged himself over to it, and started pulling his bibs out and making a mess.  The shelf is not baby proof, as it is not attached to the wall, and could easily be pulled over, so we may have to come up with a different plan for it if this keeps up. :-)

Well, off to bed.  Tomorrow is my doctor's appointment with my friend Patty again to check my alignment and my wrist, which is hurting a lot more today.  And then Bunco tomorrow night!  Fun times ahead!
Good night!

Day 8...Today was Great!!

Today was a fabulous day!  It started off a little rough.  Not that rough, it's just I was trying to take Gabe's 8 month picture (can't believe he's 8 months old already!) and he was NOT cooperating.  He doesn't just sit still in the position I put him in anymore.  I put him on the couch because that is where I always have him for his monthly pictures, but he kept leaning forward, and would almost fall off!  So I put him on the ground, on a blanket in case he spit up, and he kept leaning down to grab the blanket.  He would look up at me and I'd try to take the picture but it only lasted a second and he'd get distracted by something and turn his head.  I don't really think I got a "good" one, like I would have liked but I got several weird ones.  Here they are so you can see what I had to deal with:

 Almost falling off the couch...

Not happy...

 Getting distracted by monkey...

 Trying to leave...

 Trying to make monkey leave...

 Not looking at Mommy....

 Getting bored...

This is pretty good, but still not looking at the camera. One more try I thought...

After this shot he spit up all over the monkey. Time to give up...

Now do you feel my pain???  I'm lucky I got one semi-decent picture!

 Gabe napped really well, though, including during my phone interview.  And I got the teaching job!  The interview was really easy; all of the questions he asked were ones I already answered at my last interview.  He said if I email him my clearances and certificate he'll forward them to the head of HR and he would be contacting me within the next week to make an offer.  John, my interviewer, said he wasn't sure which subject exactly I'll be teaching because they have to look at the numbers, but it will probably be Pre-Algebra or Algebra 1, which is perfect because I have experience teaching both, and that is my favorite!  I will be middle school, which is 7th and 8th grade and I don't know if I will have both grades or just one.  New teacher training is the week of August 13th and it will probably be in Mechanicsburg, which is an hour away.  I get reimbursed for any traveling, plus they provide a laptop, money for setting up my home office, an internet phone, and reimbursement for our internet service.  A friend of mine from the school I worked at this past year who got laid off applied and is starting the process with Agora too, so that would be cool if she worked there too.  She teaches English, so we probably wouldn't cross paths too much, but I'd probably see her at trainings and staff development.  :-)  I think I'm required to travel once or twice a year to meet with small groups of students, and will travel a few times a year for two-day trainings.  The school pays for half of the hotel room, and if you choose to have a roommate, it's free.

God is very good!  And His timing is perfect.  Of course, I interviewed with Agora last year at the beginning of the school year, but after the first face-to-face interview I got an email saying they were going with someone else.  I was about 6 months pregnant at the time and I'm pretty sure that is why they didn't hire me (which of course is illegal, and they could never admit to that), but now looking back I can see why it wasn't the right time.  I was trying really hard to get a teaching job because we really needed the money, but if I had actually gotten one, I probably would have had too much on my plate with the new baby, and God took care of us financially (as always).  Now, Gabe is older, has a routine, sleeps through the night, and I am in a good state emotionally to start teaching again.  I have learned my lesson from my last two teaching jobs to take it one day at a time, and even if I do end up hating it (which I'm not anticipating), I WILL stick it out till the end of the year.  There is no way I'm quitting mid-way through again.  I'm not sure what my salary will be exactly yet, because they pay based on experience, but I know it is on the lower end of what public school teachers get.  Tim has been saying that if I taught for 3 years, we could be out of debt and I could stay home!  That would be awesome.  If I like it though, I will keep teaching until I don't want to anymore.  The extra income would really help us save up for a house and for other fun things we want to do.  It would be nice to not work once Gabe starts school so I can be involved in that and maybe even home school him.  That is definitely an option Tim and I are looking at because the public schools are getting so bad.  Hey, he could go to Agora! :-)  I could be his math teacher! Haha!

We had a nice walk this afternoon before his nap and I noticed Gabe loves watching the cars go by.  He would follow every single one!  Here he is ready for our walk!

Tonight I met up with some ladies from church for ice cream, and that was really fun.  Gabriel got a finger in my ice cream as I was walking to the table, but luckily he doesn't know how to bring his fingers to his mouth to get the food, so he didn't actually eat it.  (Not that a tiny bit like that would have hurt him, but still...) Gabe was pretty tired because he slept from 1 to about 3 (Halelujah!) and didn't get a chance to sleep again before we left, but he stayed in a good mood the whole time.  He always enjoys being in new places.  He's still up and playing and I will feed him again soon and put him down for the night.
Tim called and said they got their work done early today, which was good because they were painting a house all day and it is in the 90's there so I'm glad they got done early.

Oh, and since I have been told twice now that I should pursue my thought of wanting to write a children's book, I have.  Actually, the book has been written for a while, I just got busier and didn't look into how to get it published.  I found a "subsidy" publisher today that will review my manuscript for free and then let me know how much I have to pay them to publish it.  They also offer illustration service and marketing to help it sell.  Depending on how much it costs I may use them or I may shop around some more.  To get it published by a big publisher, I have to have a literary agent.  But getting them to look at my manuscript and give me notes on it, is a huge plus.  So we'll see where that leads...

And this is how I got to end my day...no better way!

Day 7...We're in Heaven!

Gabe is doing such a good job at sleeping at night!  I didn't hear him until after 6 this morning but I didn't go in and I would hear him every once in a while, but he didn't get up till about 8.  Then he got two good naps.  We skipped the early afternoon nap because we were out and about, so when we got home, we played some until it was time for him to eat again, and then he went down for an hour and a half!!
I would like to start a Sunday School class for babies around Gabe's age in the fall at church, so I went today to the dollar store to see if I could find some things for the songs.  I found a few things, and there are a few garage sales this weekend that I'm going to check out that advertised on Craigslist that they have a bunch of baby and kid toys.  Our church currently offers no Sunday School for children or babies because no one was bringing their kids during that time, but this past year we've had several babies born, and some new people come that have babies, so I think it would be a good time to start a cradle roll of sorts.  Since our "nursery" has always been geared toward older children, we don't really have anything for babies.  Tim went out and bought a pack 'n play, a changing pad and a play mat, but we don't have anywhere for the babies to sit, so I'm thinking of getting used baby seats/bumbos for them to sit in.  So hopefully I can get everything I need in order to start the class at the end of the summer.
So Gabe has an obsession with straps and buckles.  Yesterday he was playing with the car seat straps, and every time I put him in the seat, he leans forward to try to get to the buckle.  He likes to chew on his high chair strap, and today he wanted to climb on and play with his swing straps.  The swing has a lock on the bottom to make it a stable seat, so I locked it and let him sit and play with the straps.  He's so silly. :-)
In other news, I have another job interview with the cyber school tomorrow!  It's a phone interview with a middle school math support teacher, which I think is like a department head, for a middle school math position.  He's going to call me around 10 in the morning, so hopefully Gabe will be taking his morning nap at that time.  If he wakes up at the time he's been waking up, it should work out.  If not, he'll just have to entertain himself for a little bit. :-)
Today wasn't too exciting...Gabe was better at entertaining himself without me having to be RIGHT there.  Right now he's enjoying moving his teether around on the blanket.  I wonder what's going through his head sometimes.
Tonight will be an early night for me since I have the interview tomorrow.  Another friend from church called and we'll be hanging out tomorrow afternoon, so that will be fun.  It's nice to know people care about me. :-)
TTFN!
P.S. I will post pics later!  I have to put them on my other laptop and I'm too lazy to go get it. :-)

Here he is in his cute overalls :-)

And here he is playing with the super fun straps on his seat!

Day 6...We Got This!

Today Gabe started his day at around 7:30.  He watched a little of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on TV but got bored pretty quick and wanted to play.  I pulled out the box of toys that I usually keep in the corner of the living room and pull random toys for him.  This time I decided to give him the whole box and see what happened.  I went into the kitchen (which is just behind the couch) for 2 seconds, turn around to see what he's doing, and I find this:

 He managed to dump ALL the toys onto the floor, plus take out the bottom of the cloth box (that is what his foot is on.  And he chose to play with the ball to the right, which was not in the box...
This was another bit of a cranky day.  I wish those darn teeth would just come so I can have my happy baby back!  I can see them at the surface on the top and bottom, and he is chewing and drooling more than ever so they are close, but they are making for a fussy baby, and I'm not used to that!  He only slept for 37 minutes for his first nap today, but his afternoon nap was much better: almost 2 hours.
A friend came over during his second nap and we were planning on having lunch at a park near my house, but it was really hot, so we ate inside and when Gabe woke up we went for ice cream, and then we hung out for a while at the house.  We enjoyed watching Gabe be his goofy self.  :-)  When she left I tried putting him down for another nap.  He was tired so he didn't fight it too much, but he also didn't sleep long.  I wasn't expecting him to, though, so I got him up and we played for a little bit. I was sitting on the couch and he was standing on my lap, and he looked over my shoulder and something caught his eye: his car seat!  He recently started liking to play with his car seat.  He really likes the straps, so I put him in front of it and he had a grand old time trying to climb in and chew on the straps.

 I needed to fix myself some dinner, so I put him on the floor to play with his little kitchen that his Uncle John and Aunt Melissa gave him (which he loves), and he would be fine until I'd peak over the couch to check on him and he'd look at me and cry.  Usually, he'll do that if I leave the room, but this time he just cried when he saw me...how nice.  He would look at me, cry and throw himself back on the boppy pillow.  But as soon as he got back to his toy, he was fine.  So I would have this:

 And then two seconds later, this:

He is so crazy, but I love him so much!  After he had his dinner, we went to Wal-mart and I put him in the front of the cart like a big boy!  He wasn't too sure about it at first, especially riding on the bumpy parking lot up to the entrance, but once we were inside he started to enjoy himself.  He was a little wobbly, and I had a hand on him as long as we were moving, but he would hang on to the bar, and he had fun.  I'm looking forward to going out to eat when Tim gets back and trying him in a high chair.  It's just such a habit to keep him in his car seat, but he's actually about to grow out of it (the weight limit is 22 lbs) and he's big enough to sit in a high chair.  He's growing up so fast, but it's exciting!

He is a handful, like I knew he would be when he became mobile, but he usually stays in one general area.  He can belly crawl but he doesn't go for very long.  I tried to see if he would follow me down the hall, but he just got frustrated.  He almost "real crawled."  He would put one knee forward and one arm and then fall down.  It won't be long at all until we're chasing him around!

I haven't heard from Tim today.  They started their actual work today so I'm sure they were very busy.

At some point I need to get the oil changed in my car.  I don't want to.  I hate getting things done on my car.  Tim is so good and usually does it for me, but he told me "it would be nice" if I could do it before the end of the month because we budgeted for it this month.  So I guess I'll do that probably Wednesday or Thursday morning.  I go back to see Dr. Patty on Friday and we're having lunch again, and then Friday night is Bunco Night at the church!  Angie and I are planning it and she's supposed to call me this week so we can iron out the details.
So stay tuned for all the fun ahead for the rest of the week! :-)

Day 5...Still Alive! :-)

Oh the joys of Sundays...Gabe's schedule always gets messed up on Sundays.  He got up at 8-something and so I decided to switch his first two feedings again and gave him cereal and fruit with a bottle so I could just give him a bottle at church, since that is easier.  I had to wake him from his morning nap to go to church, and he was tired but unable to sleep at church because it's just so uncomfortable in my arms. ;-)  I was planning on sitting towards the middle where Tim and I usually sit or even more towards the back because I knew I'd have to take him out eventually to feed him, but when I got there and was headed to my row, Angie's daughter, Tia, who has an almost two-month-old motioned for me to sit next to them on the SECOND row.  I did, and Gabe was fine during the singing (he always is..he loves the music) and during announcements, prayer time and communion he was a bit squirmy, and got a little upset when he saw Tia feeding her baby a bottle that is exactly like his.  He actually tried to grab it a couple of times.  During the sermon he started to get tired and fussy and it was almost time for him to eat so I took him out.  But there were lots of noisy kids in the nursery, and a family in the cry room trying to get their daughter to sleep, so I fed him in Tim's office and he wouldn't let me hold him so I put him on the floor for a little bit and then went out to the lobby and the people in the cry room weren't there any more so we sat in there for the remainder of the time and listened to the speaker.  Shelley wasn't preaching, it was a man who the church supports in Russia giving an update about the work there.  Gabe and I are used to the cry room. :-)  We go there every week.  One of his feedings almost always falls during service, and he's not a quiet calm baby anymore who will take his bottle and just fall asleep in your arms.  He is so active and now getting more vocal I feel bad keeping him in the service, and for some reason have a really hard time leaving him in the nursery.  If there aren't any other kids there I will sometimes leave him, but like today I could tell it was pretty busy and I just don't feel comfortable leaving him there when the nursery worker has her hands full.
After church he had a nice nap and then ate some yummy green beans and played.  I posted a video of him trying to stack his cups but getting very distracted and silly.  I used my laptop to record it and the camera is in the front so he could see himself on the screen and was totally not paying attention to me.  But it made for an entertaining video!  Next time I think I'll tape a piece of paper over the screen and maybe get a good video of his talent.  He had just done it very well right before I decided to record him.  The little stinker...
Later we skyped with Mimi, and she got to witness a temper tantrum.  He had got a hold of my camera, and was just looking at it, but then he put the string in his mouth and spit up at the same time, so I cleaned it off and said he couldn't have it any more and put it on the table, and he got really mad!  There was crying and flailing about and it was just so attractive.  He didn't get the camera back though!  He was doing it more because he was tired, so after a few minutes we hung up with Mimi and tried to go to bed.  I knew it was too late really for a nap because it was already 5ish and he still had two feedings to go.  He refused to sleep and wouldn't stop screaming so I fed him a bottle early, and tried putting him back down but that didn't work so I got him up and he played until GG saw me on Skype, so we Skyped with her (well, she saw and heard us, but her camera and microphone weren't working) until he got fussy again and I gave him a bath, fed him his last meal of Pears and Oatmeal and a bottle, and he went to bed with no problem.
I have been taking notes about when he eats and when he naps and for how long to see if I can figure out a pattern, but so far there hasn't been one because we keep having interruptions.  I wonder if this not waking up till after 8 thing is going to be a normal thing.  He actually wakes up a little after 6 but I go in and put the pacifier back in and he's asleep again.  He does definitely need a morning nap and afternoon nap, but it's after the 3rd feeding that's hard because it's really too late to be napping because it's so close to bed time, but he gets tired, so I have to try to keep him busy so he doesn't get cranky.  And he fights the nap if I try to put him down anyway.
Tomorrow I'm having lunch with a friend at a park, but I'm making sure it's at a good time for Gabe when he'll be awake and will make sure we're home for his nap.  Oh, and I gave him mangoes for the first time yesterday and he seemed to like them. 
Time for bed for this tired mommy so she can rest up for another fun day with her crazy boy!

Day 4...How Many More??

Today was good but a little tiring.  Gabe woke up at 6:30 and was ready to eat, so I fed him and he went back to bed pretty quickly, and slept till after 9!  So that was nice since I didn't get to sleep till midnight-ish.  But he was back to his normal 45-minute naps and refusing to sleep any longer than that, and he was Mr. Cranky Pants a few times today for no reason.  He also wanted me to be with him pretty much all the time.  Right now he's in his swing and is content with his pig toy, but pretty much all day if he was awake, I was holding him or playing with him, cleaning up spit up every few minutes because he does NOT sit still!  I am honored that he enjoys me so much, and I enjoy him, but being the ONLY one around to entertain him gets pretty exhausting.  Plus, my wrist has been hurting more today.  I've been trying not to use it as much, but I have to use both hands to pick up Gabe, and there's not many tasks that I can do with only one hand.
We went for a walk this afternoon and that was nice.  Gabe had fun looking at everything.  I put him in the big stroller without his car seat so he could sit up and face forward.  He enjoyed watching cars go by and just took everything in. 
Oh, and we had a couple of "fun" changing sessions.  When I was trying to change his clothes because he had spit up all over his first outfit, he kept trying to flip over to his stomach.  It was pretty annoying.  He succeeded a couple of times and would just sit there on his hands and knees and I'd flip him back over and fight to keep him on his back while I finished clothing him.  And then the last time I changed his diaper he did the same thing.  You know, it's really difficult to fasten a diaper when the child has his butt up in the air.  I actually raised my voice a little and he didn't like that, but it didn't stop him from trying to flip himself.  I eventually won, and stood him up and he was as happy as could be...weird child.
We have about an hour before bath time and bed time, and I think he's getting tired of his swing so I'm off to see how I can please him. :-) 
Oh, and nothing got done about my room...I just looked at all the stuff and thought, "There's no where else to put it!"  So I just left it and maybe will try again another day. :-)

 

And here's a fun video of Gabe practicing his tongue trick. :-)

                                   

Day 3

It is incredibly too late for me to be up writing this blog, but if I don't do it now it may never get written!  ;-)
Today was a fun day.  Gabe slept in!  He never sleeps past 7-ish and I heard him crying a little around 6:15 so I went in and gave him his pacifier and he was out until 8:30!  I couldn't believe it!  So the down side was that his feeding schedule was shifted, so I gave him cereal and fruit with a bottle first (normally I just give a bottle), and he was fine with that, and he actually went down for a nap around 10.  I was thinking he would wake up in plenty of time for us to leave  at 11:30 for an appointment.  But I had to wake him up. I had gone to see my friend who is a chiropractor on Monday for a weird bump on my wrist that sometimes hurts, and she said it's probably a harmless cyst that is apparently common in women between 20 and 40, and it will probably go away on its own.  But she had to check my spine and found that I was out of alignment in several places, so she adjusted me and wanted me to come back today to check everything, and then we went to lunch.  So that was fun.
And then tonight my crazy friend Angie came over and we experimented with cake pops.  My aunt Mitzi and Grandma bought some silicon cake pop trays while we were at Hilton Head and they were really cute, so they gave me one of the trays and I found a great website that had an awesome recipe for beach ball cake pops.  So with these pops, the directions said to dip the pops in white coating and stick in a styrofoam block to let them dry.  Well, of course I didn't have styrofoam, and hadn't bought any, so we were trying to think of another way to stand them up, and we got a shoe box, which ended up working well.  But I was telling Angie about how on the website they put the finished pops in brown sugar to make it look like sand, and that sparked all these other ideas in her: We should make a whole beach scene!  We should make stick figure people and blankets for the sand!  No, we should put OUR heads on other people's bodies and have us swimming in the ocean!  We decided on cute beach clip art people and here is how they came out:

 Since Angie is a brunette, she said I was the one in the bikini...it's sooo me! :-)  We sure did have fun making these, but I think I've had my fill of cake pops for a while...they are cute, but the perfectionist in me says they're too hard to get just right. 
Gabe missed out on all the cake pop fun because he had to go to bed, but it was a good day.  He got one less feeding than normal because he started so late, so I'm going to see if he wakes up for a bottle or if he is able to go without.  His eating/sleeping habits seem to be shifting and changing, and it's a huge guessing game trying to keep up with him and figure him out, but I'm trying to just go with it.  I have nothing planned for tomorrow so there should be no reason to wake him up from any naps or interrupt his schedule in any way.  What I should do is clean my room...what are the odds of that happening??? Haha...my goal is to declutter our room some time before Tim gets back.
Speaking of the hubby, he called this morning and said they're doing well, and their training started today.  He said he should be able to call in the mornings and give me updates, so I will report anything of importance that he tells me. :-)
And now it is off to sleepy land for me!  I will leave you with a super cute picture of my little dude. :-)