School Daze.

Reports of my death are, as always, entirely false.

School started again two weeks ago. I have this problem where I keep not graduating from college for one reason or another (and I swear that 75% of the time it is not my fault, either), so I am on year seven of a nine-year Bachelor's degree.

This is how my day plays out:

6:30 AM - Fall out of bed, stagger directly to the kitchen. Stare at coffee maker until I remember how to make it work.

6:40 AM - Having completed vital task #1, turn attention to vital task #2: pee.

6:45 AM - 7:15 AM Make myself lunch--usually pepperoni and cheese on some sort of bread item, a side of celery or carrots, crackers and a piece of soft cheese. Drink coffee. Check the weather, get myself dressed, make sure everything I need for the day is in my bag. Let the dog outside, let the dog inside, feed the dog.

7:15 AM - My husband is now done with his shower and out of the bathroom, so I can do something with my hair and put on some makeup to make it look like I got a full night of sleep.

7:25 AM - One of us gets Paxton, changes his diaper and puts him in the carseat. Then we leave.

7:27 AM - Paxton gets dropped off at grandma's house to be smothered with Chanel-scented, Spanish-speaking, diabetic Methodist* love for the day.

7:45 AM - I get dropped off at the Brookpark Rapid Transit station.

8:10 AM - I board the eastbound train to downtown Cleveland and attempt to attract as little attention as possible in order to avoid ATCs (Awkward Train Conversations) with CTP (Creepy Train People).

8:35 AM - I get off the train and walk through Tower City to get to Public Square, where I wait for the eastbound HealthLine bus.

I get to Cleveland State University sometime around 8:45. Riding the bus is an adventure. It is usually full of... interesting people.

Whenever I get to CSU - 9:30 AM - I sit in the library, making sure that everything is okay on the internet and sometimes talking to my friend Bieler.

9:45 AM - I book it out of the library and across Chester Avenue to the art building, where I sit in a very cold room learning about art since 1968.

10:50 AM - I run from the art building, across Chester, up the stairs and through the main classroom building into the student center and sprint through the campus innerlink to the other side of campus/the business college, where I fall down the stairs and drag my battered body into classroom 127 for German 101.

11:00-12:05 I learn elementary German from a woman with a French name and kick all sorts of ass with the six other female students in the male-dominated subject.

12:15 I make it back to the library, where I either start studying (if I want to stay later) or gather my things and run to catch the HealthLine back to Tower City (if I want my husband to pick me up on his lunch break).

The good news about going home before 4 PM is that the CPT tend not to be there if it isn't rush hour. The bad news is that I have just given you my schedule for three days out of the week. For the other two, this morning routine does not happen, but this afternoon routine does...

1:00 PM - I sit in the back of a lecture hall and pretend to give two shits about math. Actually, I do give at least one shit, because I need to pass the class and math is hard, even if this is the math class for idiots.

2:50 PM - Bieler and I have lunch and try to keep away from other people as much as possible. We are vaguely hermit-like and live in the library.

4:00 PM - I go to the art building, climb the stairs and settle in for two hours of discussion on the Virgin Mary and her place in medieval art and culture. This is more interesting than it sounds, although the sheer amount of reading and writing required for this class is enough to make me cry and want to kill myself.

6:00 PM - Bieler and I gather our things from the library and take the HealthLine to Tower City. She goes east, I go west.

6:45 PM - My husband picks me up from the Rapid station and we go to my parents' house for dinner. My mom offered to cook for us twice a week since my getting home at 7 PM is not really conducive to making healthy food.

********************************************

So... that is my routine lately. It's tiring... and it explains why I haven't been blogging so much. Rest assured, Paxton and I are doing just fine! He just turned four months, and he gets his shots on Tuesday--wish us luck!

*These four things pretty much sum up everything you need to know about my mom.

Frazzle-Dazzle.

To say that I am becoming a bit unraveled would be an understatement.

Tuesday morning, at mom group, I left a note on another mom's car with my phone number. Her son, William, is only a few days younger than Paxton, and when I realized I had to leave suddenly, she was in the restroom, so I did the creepy thing and left a note on her car (I figured the only Saab in the parking lot would have to be the Saab she mentioned at group). She called me maybe... two hours later and left a voicemail.

I haven't called back. I feel horrible about this. You don't leave someone a creepy note asking if they'd like to get together outside of mom group and then not call them back.

The best part is that I did it because I thought school started this week and I wasn't sure I could make it to mom group anymore. Surprise! School starts next week, and I can either call her today and beg forgiveness or I can show up at mom group tomorrow morning looking like a creeper who doesn't call back.

In my defense, I've spent the past week running around, attempting to get all of my loose ends tied up before school... and, in the process, my nerves have become even more frayed.

I learned that I'll have to complete four more semesters of undergraduate study before I can get my BA--thanks to the German language. I am really expected to be fluent in German in four semesters. Hey... whatever (eventually) gets me into the graduate program, right?

I went clothes shopping and tried to find school clothes to cover my (giant) butt. I weigh less than I did before I got pregnant, but am magically two sizes bigger. As you can imagine, it's doing wonders my self esteem--yay, I am so thin, but so large! What?

I did a whole bunch of Avon work, including--gasp--getting off my nervous, antisocial duff to ring some doorbells and meet my neighbors. A feat that I will have to repeat in a couple of hours, actually.

I went to therapy (completely neurotic, remember?), cooked dinners, ran errands, had family visit over the weekend, set up my financial aid package (I think... if I did it correctly), cleaned out my car, fought with my mom (I love my mom) and did a whole bunch of other things that were not calling William's mom.

Sadly, I don't think I'm getting much of a break this week, either... but I will make that phone call.

Avon Calling

My husband and I never have money. This is a fact of life. The couple hundred out of his paycheck left after our rent and bills vanishes after groceries, prescriptions and gasoline.

So I started looking for a job.

I had a number of strikes against me:

1. The economy sucks.

2. I'm a full-time student.

3. I have a baby.

4. My husband and I have one car.

5. I use public transportation to get to school and back.

Try explaining to a potential employer that you need part-time hours worked around classes in the morning and the evening on different days, then add that you might not be able to work sometimes because of you'll need to make different arrangements for childcare every week and then mention that you might be late anyway because you will either be taking the bus/train or you'll need to go pick up your car first. Oh... and you need to go pick your husband with the car at 5 PM, or maybe 5:30 PM, or maybe 6 PM, but you won't actually know until you get there with the car at 5 PM.

Yeah. Small wonder I can't find employment, right?

I'd been thinking about signing up with one of those work-at-home companies. You know, like Scentsy or Pampered Chef or Tupperware or something. I ended up choosing Avon.

Why Avon? Well, when I was little, my mom had an Avon lady who came the house. I liked her. Also, there's a Mary Kay lady around here with one those stupid pink Cadillacs, and she drives like crap. I don't want to associate with someone who drives like crap (and I like Avon's products better, anyway).

I met with my area leadership rep yesterday and officially signed up. My mother immediately bought $80 with of product from me, because she is an Avon addict (that might have also played into my decision to go with Avon). (By the way, my first campaign sales goal was $50. See, I am already a success.)

I'm actually pretty excited to see how this goes. The prospect of being a WAHM is nice--the ability to have a job but not worry about childcare or transportation, the ability to work around when Paxton needs fed/changed/bathed/entertained, and the ability to be able to manage myself (because let's face it, I am not easily ordered around) is very appealing. I'd be nice to make loads of money with it, but I'd be happy with just an extra hundred bucks.

If anyone is interested in buying some Avon, my website is here: http://tbbaughman.avonrepresentative.com ! Avon isn't just makeup, it's also skin care products, perfumes, jewelry, accessories, gifts, clothes, shoes... all sorts of things. Check it out! You get free shipping on your order over $30 right now, and orders ship immediately. :)

Mommy Must-Haves

There are a few things that everyone knows you need to get when you're expecting. A car seat, for example, because hospitals will not let you take your baby home without one (and even if you get around that rule by delivering at home, let's face it--you're probably going to get in a car sometime within the next two years). Diapers--disposable orcloth, it doesn't matter, you will need diapers. I suppose youcould get by without a stroller or bottles if you were really, really dedicated to babywearing and breastfeeding.

I'd like to share a few things that I'd be helpless without, but are not really considered "necessities". In my opinion, every expecting parents should run out and buy these things, because they are just that useful.

The first item I'd like to share is the Bright Starts Comfort & Harmony Cradling Bouncer, pictured above in the "biscotti" color. It's like a little baby-size papasan chair that vibrates and plays music. (Although to be honest, the music is kind of annoying at first.) We originally weren't going to register for a bouncer (the nice ones, like this one, are a bit pricey at $50-60) but I'm glad we did... we actually did get ours as a gift from my husband's older sister. I picked this one because it is a little more plush than the cheaper ones out there, and it comes with a toy bar and a special insert for little babies that supports the head, neck and back. It takes two "C" batteries and the battery life is pretty good--in three months, we've only had to change them once, and the bouncer has gotten near-constant use.

Like I mentioned in my previous post, for a little over a month, this bouncer was the only thing that let my husband and I get any sleep at night. For that reason alone, it's worth the money.

Next on the list: Aden + Anais Swaddleplus Wraps. You can buy these in a four-pack for about $35, and they come in several different colors and patterns.

Now, $35 for four blankets may seem a little extreme. I understand that. But--trust me when I say this--these are the most useful blankets in the entire world. I keep meaning to buy more of them.

These 100% lightweight cotton blankets are slightly stretchy and great for

swaddling (although it will take several attempts before you're any good at it). They are also great for pretty much every other use out there. I use them to wipe drool and formula off of Paxton's chin and I fold them in half to sling over my shoulder when I burp him--since they cover more area than a burp cloth or a receiving blanket, I almost never end up wearing formula. I sling one over the carseat or stroller for shade when we go outside (they are surprisingly large when unfolded) and fold one up to tuck around Pax's legs in his carseat to keep the sun off of him--the blanket is so lightweight that I'm not worried about him overheating. Don't just take my word for it--every mom in my Tuesday-morning mom group has some of these awesome blankets.

I'd like to talk about two very similar toys next.

The first item I'd like to mention is a series of links. Several different companies make these (the ones pictured are by Infantino, but I also know that similar ones are manufactured by Bright Starts and that there are probably even more out there.) They easily attach to the handle of a car seat and can be used by themselves or to attach other toys to a carseat.

Paxton doesn't really care for them hanging off of the carseat handle, but he loves to grip them and try to put them in his mouth when they're all linked up and jumbled together. The links are the perfect size for tiny hands to hold. They help build fine motor skills by giving him a lot of different textures to grip--some of the links are smooth, some are squiggly and others have ridges--and they are brightly colored so he has something to look at and examine.

The other toy is one that is a real no-brainer: First Keys by The First Years. I picked these up at the grocery store (of all places) for two bucks and they were worth the money. Pax loves to pick them up, shake them around and put them in his mouth--and it's way better than having him drool all over my (very real, very metal, and--in the case of my VW keyfob--very expensive) keys.

These keys come with a little red ring (not pictured) for easy attachment to a carseat handle or the strap of a diaper bag.

You can buy all of this lovely stuff at Babies "R" Us (which, for the record, I still loathe). The bouncer retails there for $54.99. I got the Infantino "Ring-a-links" on sale for $2.99, normal retail price at BRU is $3.99. The Aden + Anais blankets are sold at both BRU and Target for $34.99. First Keys by The First Years retail for $1.99.

Now, go, new moms! Buy this stuff!*

*No, I didn't get paid to endorse all this stuff. I really just love it all that much!

New Tricks

I had to go searching for prompts on Twitter because I couldn't think of anything to write on my own--I am obviously the best blogger ever. It worked, though, because (thanks to my friend Jacqui) I am now sitting down to write a entry.

Pax weighed in at just under 13 pounds at his two-month doctor's appointment, and I'm guessing he probably weighs about 14.5 now. He also measured a smidge over 24 inches long. Those stats put him in the 75th percentile for weight and length, and the 25th percentile for the ratio--it's looking like he's going to end up tall and slender like his mommy*.

We all know that I am striving to be Mother of the Year, and in this quest I constantly do things like not give Paxton tummy time for six days of the week. I'd simply forget about it until I'd go to mommy group on Tuesday morning and see another mom flip her baby onto their stomach. I was somewhat afraid that my poor child wasn't going to be able to hold his head up until he was sixteen because his mom was (is) such a winner**.

So when Sandy (our doctor, whose name is actually Sandra and I have no idea if she's ever actually given me permission to call her Sandy, but that's what I keep referring to as) said "let's see your head control" and flipped Pax onto his belly, my blood suddenly ran cold. She was going to figure out my dirty little secret once she witnessed Paxton lying there with his head firmly smooshed against the table, his tiny, undeveloped neck muscles unable to lift it up.

That's not exactly what happened.

What happened was that Pax lifted his head off the table. He then put all of his weight on his legs when she help him in a standing position. Then he kept his head steady, even while turning it to look around, while sitting upright.

According to Sandy, my two-month-old had muscle control typical for a baby twice to three times his age. That's pretty good for a kid who almost never got tummy time.

Since then, Pax has pretty much only been lying down to sleep. He likes being upright. I still don't give him enough tummy time, but I feel much better about it now. He's almost always being held in a way where he needs to hold his head up, anyway, so he is getting the exercise in. My husband likes to make him "fly" through the air now that he can hold his head steady--whether Paxton actually likes it is yet to be determined.

Other new tricks include better hand control, eye tracking/focusing and (my personal favorite) actual reactions to stimuli. Newborns tend to just cry and take up space the first couple of months, but now we're getting to the point where Paxton will "talk", follow you with his eyes, smack things with his hands, kick his feet and smile in response to... well, pretty much anything. He spent about a week being in love with the stuffed giraffe on the toy bar of his bouncer--I could plop him in the bouncer to wash dishes or make dinner and he'd happily coo at and swat that giraffe the entire time. The love affair is, sadly, over... for now. Pax is currently in love with blankets... he's discovered that he can ball up part of a blanket and put it in his mouth, which is (apparently) way better than some stupid giraffe.

I managed to get a giggle out of him a week ago. Sadly, no one else was around to hear it, and he hasn't done it since.

I don't know if I mentioned this before, either, but Pax has been sleeping in his pack-n-play (with a bassinet attachment). He's been doing it for a little over a month, actually--and he's taking a nap in his crib right now. This is a major accomplishment... for the longest time Paxton would not sleep unless he was being held or he was in his bouncer. We had a ridiculous arrangement going where we would get him to sleep in the bouncer and then pick the entire bouncer up and very carefully transport it to the pack-n-play in our bedroom. I am so very, very happy that he's sleeping in the bassinet/crib now. (Also, the vibrate-y bit on the bouncer broke yesterday and it no longer vibrates. Does anyone know if that's fixable?)

So, that's what is new in the world of the geekling. Our next great adventure will probably be starting solids in a couple months--the doctor said we could see about starting cereal at four months, but I think we're going to hold off and do a sort of baby-led-weaning hybrid seat-of-our-pants thing around five or six months. I've still got awhile to think about it.

*Mommy could stand to be a little more slender these days. Dang pregnancy weight--when am I going to fit in pants again???

**Other Mother of the Year accomplishments include constantly forgetting to bring formula along when we go out, smacking the top of Paxton's head against the wall (BY ACCIDENT), and leaving my one-week-old baby with my mother so I could go ogle Chris Helmsworth in Thor.

Oops.

Sometimes I don't post very often.

Oops.

Here is a picture of a baby.

Enjoy.

I'll post soon. I think. I've kept busy. :)

Road Trip Success!

Sigh. I want it to be NADWCon all of the times. I wish there was a big, unending Discworld convention that I could just, y'know, live at.

We had a great time, and Paxton weathered the trip very well. His only real episode of crankiness was on the Illinois tollway around Chicago, when we ran into Rush Hour Traffic From Hell in the Midst of Terrible Construction. We crept along the tollway for hours on our way into Wisconsin and arrived at our motel in Janesville, WI around eleven o'clock at night (EST--it was only ten o'clock local time--hooray for the extra hour of sleep we got, though!).

Also, everyone at every rest stop we visited commented that Paxton was very, very cute. :)

Sir Terry offered to stamp Paxton (his PCA is now advanced enough to make it difficult for him to sign things for an extended period of time, so he was using a specially-made stamp to "sign" convention passports), but my husband didn't let me take him up on the offer. Probably a good thing...

Paxton also made an appearance during the costuming competition--my husband and I took him on-stage with us, to much "aww"ing and applause.

Basically, Pax was a big hit.

The one thing we did wrong was that we brought way too much stuff. My fantastic math skills somehow helped me calculate that we would need three packages of diapers and two cans of formula. At the end of the trip, we had used one package of diapers (total!) and maybe a quarter can of formula. We had clean onesies and blankets left over as well. Oops.

The way home was far less troublesome, as we managed to bypass the tollway and make fairly decent time home.

I'll post about Paxton's doctor appointment (and the dreaded first vaccines!) in a little bit. I want to leave you, dear readers, with two links--other great mommybloggers who have found me on BlogHer that I'd like to recognize. I've started following them, and you should, too! They are Amy, from Toes in the Air, and Emily, from It's MOMbojumbo. Enjoy! :)