Where's Mine?

We finally got batteries for the bouncy seat. I put it together while Ryan was in California. It helps so much to have an advanced degree in engineering and a solid understanding of snaps.

Here Paddington, our crash test bear, tries out the bouncy. He loves it. Heck, I love it. I want one. It vibrates and makes ocean noises. Jeez! Mostly I love the soft little sheepy! He's my favorite.


Thanks, Aunt Katy (and Uncle Sean!...although if you're like your brother...and every other man I know...you had no idea what you got and had to ask Katy!)

Cribbage

This weekend we put together the world' s "easiest crib to assemble." It actually might have been. I think it took more tools to open the box and get the pieces out than it did to put it together. We wouldn't have needed any tools at all if we'd put the drop-side in the right place the first time around.


Ryan tries out the side rail. I think it'll hold.


Blueberry is going to hang out in our bedroom for a while, at least. Hopefully, it will make those late-night feedings a little bit easier. So, we set the crib up opposite our bed. We'll see how that goes.



I saved some money by not buying one of the cutesy, frou-frou bedding sets...although that one at Babies R Expensive with the lion was pretty cute. I figure I can make a quilt. Not to mention the fact that quilts and such shouldn't be in the crib for the first year or so to help prevent SIDS...no cute lion is worth that.

I did buy a couple of fitted sheets...one with stars, one with stripes, one with cars and trucks. I bought a crib bumper that matches the colors of the sheets and has a striped side and a starry side. I also bought a waterproof sheet, and now that I know it fits well I will be buying another.



Hooray, crib!

Blueberry Waves Hello

Hi, everybody!

Grandmas Gone Wild!

Note: This post is from a while ago...I just didn't have pictures. I still don't have enough...things are stacked everywhere upstairs...makes it hard to take pictures.

My mother has been, for many years now, strong in the conviction that I needn't have any children on her account. She was perfectly happy to have "grandcats."

She has changed her tune. She went crazy in the baby store. Really crazy.



(I promise I will get a picture of Ryan toting this around...it's pretty hot!)

She's not alone, either.

Don't get me wrong, I'm certainly not complaining. We got a lot of great stuff and we definitely appreciate it.

Of course, (great!) Grandma Sitter outdid herself...as usual. If you witnessed Ryan's dowry...it was a comparable haul to that.

Sue, too (with some help from Karen on the wheels!)! Here Paddington reads his new book in the safety and comfort of the a stroller that needs only one more thing...a sound system...to be completely decked out. Not to mention enough clothes to last through at least a couple of rough days of multiple wardrobe changes.



My mom is the funny one, though. She barely made it in the door to the baby store before she went totally crazy. Not only that, but she has since bought a diaper bag, some snap t-shirts and another outfit (she tried to say that Amber bought that one, but I don't know if I believe it!).


Oh, and diapers that have a little cut-out for the cord! How did we ever survive?

Breastfeeding Class

We attended our first St. V's baby class last night. It was the breastfeeding class, or as Ryan referred to it in the car, "boobies and babies."

It was ok...except for the chairs...could you do something about that, Grandpa(I know, not if we keep calling you "grandpa")?

I guess teaching this stuff and looking up everything on the planet has some advantages. I felt like I knew an awful lot of the stuff...even the answers to some of the questions other people asked.

Maybe I'll be ok. I can hold an ugly fake baby in a great cross cradle and football hold.

I did realize that the first of the really long two-day extravaganza that we go to in October starts on the weekend that Ryan goes to California, so he'll miss the fun of that 4-hour day. I'll have to take good notes.

How Many Petticoats Does Your Baby Need?

One of the gifts I received at the baby shower this past weekend (more on that later) was a book called Expectant Motherhood by Nicholson J. Eastman. Apparently, my mom found it at a garage sale and thought I might find it amusing. First published in August of 1940, the second edition was printed in 1947. Huge changes in the field of obstetrics occurred during this time.

Here's some of the little gems of wisdom from Expectant Motherhood:

From page v of the preface, "Childbearing...is the supreme physical function of womanhood." That's a good start. It's nice to know that I have a purpose.

Page 15 describes how to determine pregnancy by the incredible scientific process of injecting urine into a rabbit or mouse...although the rabbit test operated on the same principal as the modern pregnancy test, it's still kinda gross...poor bunny.

Page 15 also list another of the "laboratory tests" available to the woman who thinks she may be with child, X-ray diagnosis (no, I am not making this up)..."The skeleton of the growing baby is usually demonstrable in X-ray pictures of the mother's abdomen from the beginning of the fifth month and when thus seen is, of course (of course!) absolute proof of pregnancy."

Or, you could wait until "the fifth month when the baby's heart sounds become audible." We've come a long way, baby! I saw the heart beat at 10 weeks.

I've come to the conclusion that my favorite phrase in this entire book is "date of confinement," as though a laboring woman is something akin to a violent mental patient that must be locked up for her sake and the sake of others. Interesting. Maybe not far from the truth in some cases.

The section on "Diet and Hygiene in Pregnancy" has a great bit about syphilis if anyone's interested in catching up.

I also like the section about the seven food groups. That's right, seven. The most important of which might be the "Butter and Fortified Margarine" group.

"Tea and coffee may be drunk as usual." Wrong. More than 200 mg a day has been linked to a number of different problems.

"Small amounts of alcohol, let us say a cocktail now and then or a glass of wine, are harmless..." Well, it's good to know that nobody can make up their mind about this one.

Page 68, in regard to clothing..." The most important consideration in regard to the expectant mother's wardrobe is that it should be attractive." Yeah, that's right...attractive. But wait there's more..."This may sound like a superficial observation (you don't say!), but it is profoundly true...More important than knowing the dangers of...high heels is the knowledge that you are well-groomed, because only then will you really enjoy entertaining your friends and meeting your husband's friends, and in turn, visiting their homes." That's definitely my priority, entertaining large crowds of guests. My goals are all screwed up, eh?

"Throughout pregnancy, long "soaks" in a very hot bath are to be avoided since they are more likely to cause fatigue than comfort..." Well, half right.

Parental warning! "Under no circumstances is sexual intercourse permissible during the last six weeks of pregnancy. This is one rule which is extremely important and absolute." Yeah, it'd be a real shame if you got more pregnant. Good luck with that.

Even better..."While most obstetrical authorities, then, disapprove of excessive smoking in pregnancy (twenty-five or more cigarettes daily), there is no reason for believing that a woman who smokes moderately, let us say ten cigarettes or less a day, need change her custom at this time." And on top of that, "by no means try to give them up in pregnancy. There is no surer way of...converting a placid, sweet-tempered girl into an intolerable shrew." Hmmm. Maybe that''s my problem. "With negligible effort...(a) smoker can usually be content with a package a day or somewhat less, and if you can arrange this there is no great cause for concern." Just cut back to a pack a day and you'll be fine.

Step 6 in how to gain the proper amount of weight advises the following easy step which "may well be taken with Step 5, namely, to substitute saccharin for sugar, not only in coffee or tea, but for cereals and fruit."

And last but not least...In case you've ever wondered the proper number of petticoats is 2, the fabric depending on the season, of course.

Closing the Curtain on China '08

Some parting shots from the LATimes and a bit of a counter point from a Denver Post columnist (in the Seattle Post Intelligencer)

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-ed-olympics26-2008aug26,0,4466878.story

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/olympics/376460_voices26.html

...and an interesting "people in glass houses"+"we're in the same boat" (the one Bush built for us) viewpoint

http://www.business-standard.com/india/storypage.php?autono=332686

...and reflections of a Boston Globe reporter...

http://www.boston.com/sports/other_sports/olympics/extras/olympics_blog/2008/08/one_last_lap_ar.html

OK enough is enough. I'm just going to have to muscle through until football starts. It's going to be a long week!
R

Correction

It's been brought to my attention by certain parties (Ryan) that I ought to mention that we ate our omelets around noon, thus making his consumption of beer less odd.

The Triumphant Return of the Sunday Morning Omelet

Once upon a time, in jolly old England, there was a tradition of Sunday morning omelets. These omelets were accompanied by pastries and breads (from the Belgian bakery I wanted to move into) and mimosas. The tradition continued in the U.S. when we were both in it and began to occasionally see some of the best French toast on the planet (if I do say so myself...and I do). It even happened shortly after we moved in to the new apartment. We were the largest consumers of chicken sausage in Erie county (I can't actually substantiate that particular statement...).

It fell apart after I got pregnant. Apparently, my inability to tolerate the smell of cooking chicken extended to cooking eggs. We hadn't had Sunday morning omelets in a very long time until last weekend.

The magic has returned.

My omelet in progress. Yes, I see the shmootz on the stove. Yes, I cleaned it up. I'm great, but I'm not particularly neat...what do you want?


Ryan accused me of loading his omelet with vegetables so that I could put all the sausage and cheese in mine. He seems to forget that he ASKS for jalapeños and onions and such in his omelets.


Ok. Maybe there is a lot of sausage and cheese in mine. Baby wanted chorizo.


Wow. That looks good enough to eat...oh, wait...that's right...we did.


Ryan tears into his omelet like a ravening beast.


Gracie chews on something a little less delicious...her leg.


For those of you who were keen enough to spot it in the above picture of Ryan devouring his omelet...ten points. That is a can of lager from "America's Oldest Brewery." Yes, nothing tops off breakfast like a fine can of Yuengling, brewed right here in beautiful nearby Pottsville, PA (ok, it's not really "nearby," but it's way closer than the Guinness brewery).


So, the Sunday morning omelets have found their way back into the Sitter household...at least as long as I get relatively long periods of uninterrupted sleep, that is. Somehow I think a screaming baby will make the preparation of omelets much less appealing.

Milli Vanilli & the Potemkin Olympics

Lynnsey is handling my addiction with remarkable fortitude. Most of you may not know I've been addicted to the Olypmics since I was a wee lad. I've been glued to NBC since last Friday's opening ceremonies the way I was glued to the Tour de France through most of July (sorry babe :-). Phelps & Co. are amazing and the US mens gymnastics guys rose to the occasion admirably a couple of nights back. I can't get enough!!

When I think of the Olympics the picture in my mind's eye is the ideal of the olympic movement - the expression of humanity that radiates from fair and sportsmanlike competition between the best athletes in the world. The Olympic charter says it best: "The goal of Olympism is to place sport at the service of the harmonious development of man, with a view to promoting a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity."

The embrace of the beach volleyball players from Georgia and Russia before they did battle on the sand court in Beijing yesterday is the latest example of how the Olympics embodies that ideal.

There is, unfortunately, a commercial parasite - also called the Olympics - that feeds on this positive energy. Big Business and Big Government see Big Bucks when they think of the Olympics. That vibe is decidely phony and the synicism it promotes poisons the true Olympic spirit. Yuck!!

Maybe I'm biased (by my naive idealistic tendencies :-)) but it seems like this time around the negative vibe has been even worse than in the past due to the selection of China as the host country. Don't get me wrong, I've got no beef with the Chinese masses but I do with their apparatchik overloards.

The Chinese government has turned Beijing into an enormous Potemkin Village, a sad display of life behind the curtain. I can understand playing good hosts to the world but I think it stinks when you go so far as to pull a Milli Vanilli with an 8-year-old little girl because she is "too ugly" to represent the country. Does that demonstrate China is a "society concerned with the preservation of human dignity"? Do they play the rest of the world for fools? Too bad they couldn't find the courage to respect the diginity of this girl by celebrating her genuine beauty and her wonderful voice...

...and that is just the most emblematic example of countless other phony, oft-publicized measures the government has taken including the attempt to hide China's atrociously polluted air.

The funny thing and one of the unitended consequences - both at home in China and around the world - may be that people see the true face of China. This article in the Washington Post this morning was pretty interesting: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/12/AR2008081203262.html?hpid=topnews... I hope that people celebrate the good vibe of the Olympics - it would be a shame for them not to enjoy the spirit of the games - but I also hope they see the Olympic parasite and its Chinese host for what they really are - a sham. I shudder to imagine these guys as a superpower at the help of world politics.

-R