Last night, as I was attempting to fall asleep (thank you, heartburn), I got to thinking about our baby girl. I am so excited to meet her in less than 5 weeks! And I was reminded of those final weeks before Nikos was born, which were an entirely different experience. I was definitely excited to meet our little guy, but also terrified. How on earth was I going to take care of this helpless little creature? I began to feel woefully under prepared for the task, and I started to stress out. A LOT. The wildfires only magnified things. As we packed up the car to evacuate, I had to decide which baby items to bring with us in the event that our house did, in fact, burn down. And then it hit me again: I had no idea which items were crucial to taking care of a newborn, other than diapers and wipes! It was all so overwhelming!
Fast forward to now, and I have to admit-- I really don't feel stressed this time. Just excited! People (strangers, even) have repeatedly asked me if I'm nervous about having "two under two" to take care of, and the answer is that I'm not! I know it won't be easy (I'm no idiot), but I just have a totally different perspective this time around. I know what to do in most situations-- or I know that I can figure it out, if need be. I know that the most miserable stages are only fleeting, and that before long, our baby girl will turn into a toddler like her brother. Nikos is a constant reminder of that fact. And, as hard as it is to believe, I still feel like we love him more every day than we did the day before, even though we loved him with all our hearts from the day he was born. Our hearts just get that much bigger every day, I guess! And I just can't wait to feel the same way about another little person.
Long story short, I cannot wait for Nikos' baby sister to get here. I know it will probably be rough at the start, but I love her so much already and I know that we'll be okay. And Nikos will be a wonderful big brother-- another thing I can't wait to see in action. Only four weeks and five days to go! :)
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Saturday, March 28, 2009
This Morning at 7:15
He slept later than usual, so I thought I'd just check in on him to make sure everything was alright...
Ha, Ha! I guess he rolled out of bed last night, right onto the pile of stuffed animals that didn't get picked up yesterday, and went right back to sleep! We didn't hear a peep from him all night. :)
Ha, Ha! I guess he rolled out of bed last night, right onto the pile of stuffed animals that didn't get picked up yesterday, and went right back to sleep! We didn't hear a peep from him all night. :)
Thursday, March 26, 2009
34 Weeks!
I just love getting my weekly emails-- especially now that the end is in sight! :)
"Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (like your average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long. Her fat layers — which she'll need to regulate her body temperature once she's born — are filling her out, making her rounder. Her skin is also smoother than ever. Her central nervous system is maturing and her lungs are continuing to mature as well. If you've been nervous about preterm labor, you'll be happy to know that babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies."
Source: BabyCenter.com
"Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (like your average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long. Her fat layers — which she'll need to regulate her body temperature once she's born — are filling her out, making her rounder. Her skin is also smoother than ever. Her central nervous system is maturing and her lungs are continuing to mature as well. If you've been nervous about preterm labor, you'll be happy to know that babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies."
Source: BabyCenter.com
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
#29
Let's play the numbers game for a minute... From what I understand, 266 pink slips were handed out in my school district two weeks ago. Among those, 144 were for teachers currently placed in elementary school positions. And that number does not include "temporary" teachers (those who have been with the district for 1 or 2 years). Temporary teachers don't have the same rights as probationary and tenured teachers do, so they don't even get pink slips-- more like a hand shake followed by a "don't let the door hit you on the way out." It sucks for them, big time-- they are in a much worse position than I am in, and I always think of that when I start to dwell on the pink slip issue.
This morning, though, the sun broke through the clouds! I received my ranking number-- the number that tells me where I am on the rehiring list (basically, it's a seniority list of all the pink-slipped elementary school teachers). And I'm #29 out of 144! That is NOT BAD! :) I thought I'd have a decent number, but being in the twenties was a nice surprise. Especially when you consider that 20+ teachers have already announced plans to retire at the end of this year. Plus, the budget situation will likely improve enough to hire at least some people back. So, I'm feeling pretty good right now-- pretty optimistic. I'm happy to be #29!
This morning, though, the sun broke through the clouds! I received my ranking number-- the number that tells me where I am on the rehiring list (basically, it's a seniority list of all the pink-slipped elementary school teachers). And I'm #29 out of 144! That is NOT BAD! :) I thought I'd have a decent number, but being in the twenties was a nice surprise. Especially when you consider that 20+ teachers have already announced plans to retire at the end of this year. Plus, the budget situation will likely improve enough to hire at least some people back. So, I'm feeling pretty good right now-- pretty optimistic. I'm happy to be #29!
Monday, March 23, 2009
Friday, March 20, 2009
More Comparing & Contrasting
I know I've probably said it before, but I still can't get over how different these two pregnancies have been. As I enter the final stretch, I keep thinking to myself how hard things are getting. But then I realize that this last little bit was really hard with Nikos, too, but for entirely different reasons. So, just for fun, I thought I'd type out a nice little comparison...
First Trimester: Last time, I was nauseous. A lot. I had serious food aversions, and it would hit me especially hard at around 4pm (and last through bedtime). This time, I had very mild, short-lasting waves of nausea throughout the day. But even that didn't last for more than a couple weeks, and didn't affect my eating-- I was STARVING!
Second Trimester: Both times were pretty smooth sailing for me. I felt good and ate well. This time around, though, the round ligament pain started sooner and was much more painful. Probably because my muscles were still somewhat stretched out from last time.
Third Trimester: Last time, the weather was HOT and I was unbelievably swollen. My feet and ankles were gigantic, and my fingers were swollen to the point that I couldn't get my rings on/off. Because of the swelling, my feet throbbed when I walked. This time around, I haven't had nearly the same swelling (*knock on wood!*), presumably because the weather's been cooler. This time around, though, I feel like everything is just... lower. I'm definitely doing the pregnant-lady waddle, and have this lovely constant feeling like I've been kicked in the nether region. Oh, and she's resting on my bladder, which means I feel the urge to use the restroom almost 24/7. I am a lot more active than I was last time, since I have Nikos around, but it's really very physically painful for me. At the same time, I can still wear my rings without any problems.
And there you have it, folks. I figured I should record it for Rainbow's sake, so she can one day realize what she put me through! :) In the meantime, I am going to go relax on the couch and watch a movie. In exactly 6 weeks, that won't really be an option anymore (at least, not for a while!).
First Trimester: Last time, I was nauseous. A lot. I had serious food aversions, and it would hit me especially hard at around 4pm (and last through bedtime). This time, I had very mild, short-lasting waves of nausea throughout the day. But even that didn't last for more than a couple weeks, and didn't affect my eating-- I was STARVING!
Second Trimester: Both times were pretty smooth sailing for me. I felt good and ate well. This time around, though, the round ligament pain started sooner and was much more painful. Probably because my muscles were still somewhat stretched out from last time.
Third Trimester: Last time, the weather was HOT and I was unbelievably swollen. My feet and ankles were gigantic, and my fingers were swollen to the point that I couldn't get my rings on/off. Because of the swelling, my feet throbbed when I walked. This time around, I haven't had nearly the same swelling (*knock on wood!*), presumably because the weather's been cooler. This time around, though, I feel like everything is just... lower. I'm definitely doing the pregnant-lady waddle, and have this lovely constant feeling like I've been kicked in the nether region. Oh, and she's resting on my bladder, which means I feel the urge to use the restroom almost 24/7. I am a lot more active than I was last time, since I have Nikos around, but it's really very physically painful for me. At the same time, I can still wear my rings without any problems.
And there you have it, folks. I figured I should record it for Rainbow's sake, so she can one day realize what she put me through! :) In the meantime, I am going to go relax on the couch and watch a movie. In exactly 6 weeks, that won't really be an option anymore (at least, not for a while!).
Monday, March 16, 2009
Ewww...
Well, this has nothing to do with either kiddo, but it does make me appreciate my home a lot more!
On Friday afternoon, the teacher in the classroom next door to mine asked me if I had noticed any flying bugs swarming in my classroom. Luckily, the answer was no! As soon as school was out, I went to his room to see what he was talking about and, sure enough, he had tons of bugs all over. Yuck!
Fast forward to this morning... I was in my classroom early, doing some packing (moving day is this Friday!). I noticed what appeared to be a dirt clod on the floor, and wondered if I had somehow tracked it in from outside. It looked dry, though, so I nudged it with my shoe. And EW! It crumbled apart, revealing a bunch of TERMITE MAGGOTS! That's when I realized that there were at least four of these little "dirt clods" on the floor. I grabbed my neighbor (I had to show someone!), then quickly got my little vacuum out and sucked them all up. Basically, they were mini termite mounds. And beneath each one was a hole that they had bored up through the floor. Which I still don't fully understand, since we're on concrete slab (maybe there's a crack in it??).
Anyway, that was just downright gross. After vacuuming it all up, I sprayed 409 down the holes (which I know probably won't do anything, but I wanted to feel proactive!) and then put tape over them so I could remember where they were. I told my principal, and she said that the termite problem will be taken care of when they renovate our wing. I'm just so glad this is happening now, when we're about to move. If those suckers start swarming this week, I am DONE! EW!
On Friday afternoon, the teacher in the classroom next door to mine asked me if I had noticed any flying bugs swarming in my classroom. Luckily, the answer was no! As soon as school was out, I went to his room to see what he was talking about and, sure enough, he had tons of bugs all over. Yuck!
Fast forward to this morning... I was in my classroom early, doing some packing (moving day is this Friday!). I noticed what appeared to be a dirt clod on the floor, and wondered if I had somehow tracked it in from outside. It looked dry, though, so I nudged it with my shoe. And EW! It crumbled apart, revealing a bunch of TERMITE MAGGOTS! That's when I realized that there were at least four of these little "dirt clods" on the floor. I grabbed my neighbor (I had to show someone!), then quickly got my little vacuum out and sucked them all up. Basically, they were mini termite mounds. And beneath each one was a hole that they had bored up through the floor. Which I still don't fully understand, since we're on concrete slab (maybe there's a crack in it??).
Anyway, that was just downright gross. After vacuuming it all up, I sprayed 409 down the holes (which I know probably won't do anything, but I wanted to feel proactive!) and then put tape over them so I could remember where they were. I told my principal, and she said that the termite problem will be taken care of when they renovate our wing. I'm just so glad this is happening now, when we're about to move. If those suckers start swarming this week, I am DONE! EW!
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Happier Thoughts...
Nikos spent the week at my parents' house, mainly because I needed the extra time to get my classroom packed up without having to rush home to get him from daycare. Anyway, here are some pictures from his week-o'-fun with Grandma and Grandpa ("gamma" and "ganpa"):
Thursday, March 12, 2009
I Was Wrong.
Got a pink slip this morning. I don't normally blog from work, but I am so upset that it's kind of hard to focus on the whole teaching thing. They gave them to everyone who was hired my year and later, including some people who were hired the year before. I will probably end up having my job back in the end, but this just sucks. All I want to do is cry, but there are 33 kids who are expecting to learn today. Why can't I just go home?? :(
Oh, and I should have known this was going to happen. I was optimistic, but everyone kept saying "you're going to get one." I really, honestly didn't think it would happen, but now that it did, it's devastating.
UPDATE (7:20pm): I'm feeling a lot better now. I was really caught off-guard this morning, which is what pushed me over the edge. I went into the office, as usual, without realizing that the pink slips had arrived yesterday afternoon (when I was at the doctor's office). The secretary must have thought I already knew about mine, because she just sort of dropped it in conversation. Talk about dropping a bomb! The shock of it all, plus the sympathy of many of my wonderful coworkers, turned me into a blubbering mess. I pulled it together just in time for school to start, but then the kids came in and I fell apart again. I explained to them what had happened, and they were very sweet. They had me laughing again pretty quickly, but my energy was completely sapped. We didn't do a whole lot of learning today-- it was more an exercise of "making it through the day," and they all knew it. It was depressing.
There is a light at the end of the tunnel, though. Truthfully, I stand a decent chance (better than most) of being rehired before all is said and done. I won't know anything until at least June, when the May Revise of the California State Budget is released. Hopefully the voters will approve all the proposed measures in the upcoming Special Election, and the budget situation won't be quite so bleak. My school district has to plan for the worst-case scenario, which is why they handed out so many pink slips. But keep your fingers crossed that the worst-case scenario doesn't become a reality-- for the sake of all us pink-slipped teachers and the many students who will end up in much larger classes.
If you want to read about this whole mess, check out our local paper.
Oh, and I should have known this was going to happen. I was optimistic, but everyone kept saying "you're going to get one." I really, honestly didn't think it would happen, but now that it did, it's devastating.
UPDATE (7:20pm): I'm feeling a lot better now. I was really caught off-guard this morning, which is what pushed me over the edge. I went into the office, as usual, without realizing that the pink slips had arrived yesterday afternoon (when I was at the doctor's office). The secretary must have thought I already knew about mine, because she just sort of dropped it in conversation. Talk about dropping a bomb! The shock of it all, plus the sympathy of many of my wonderful coworkers, turned me into a blubbering mess. I pulled it together just in time for school to start, but then the kids came in and I fell apart again. I explained to them what had happened, and they were very sweet. They had me laughing again pretty quickly, but my energy was completely sapped. We didn't do a whole lot of learning today-- it was more an exercise of "making it through the day," and they all knew it. It was depressing.
There is a light at the end of the tunnel, though. Truthfully, I stand a decent chance (better than most) of being rehired before all is said and done. I won't know anything until at least June, when the May Revise of the California State Budget is released. Hopefully the voters will approve all the proposed measures in the upcoming Special Election, and the budget situation won't be quite so bleak. My school district has to plan for the worst-case scenario, which is why they handed out so many pink slips. But keep your fingers crossed that the worst-case scenario doesn't become a reality-- for the sake of all us pink-slipped teachers and the many students who will end up in much larger classes.
If you want to read about this whole mess, check out our local paper.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Cautiously Optimistic
That's how I'm feeling right now. This week is a pretty big deal for me and a bunch of my friends because, by law, teachers with permanent or probationary status (not temporary) have to be notified by March 15th if they will not have a position for the following year. And with the current financial crisis in California, my school district is facing an unprecedented cut in our funding. Which, of course, translates to bigger class sizes and fewer teachers. It's pretty ugly, to be honest. I just barely managed to avoid a pink slip last year, when the budget situation wasn't quite as bad, but have been told many times that I would not be so lucky this year. Until today, that is! The school board met last night to finalize some numbers, and it looks like they will be laying off 140 elementary school teachers (high school is being hit much harder). This includes all of the temporary (first-year) teachers. I don't know anything for sure, but I think I might be safe. Like I said, I am feeling cautiously optimistic. So please, keep your fingers crossed! Even if I do get a pink slip, I'd probably still have a job in the fall, but I'd rather not have to worry about it. And it really stinks to know that some of my friends with fewer years in the district will definitely get these pink slips-- and definitely not have a job in the fall. It could make for quite a depressing year, that's for sure.
In the meantime, I have been distracting myself by packing up my classroom. While we may have no money for teachers or textbooks, we do have money to continue the renovation of our aging school campus (through a voter-approved measure-- a completely separate source of funding). My wing is up next, which means I have to move out into a temporary classroom for 8 weeks beginning on March 20th. Aack!! Packing boxes while almost 32 weeks pregnant is not an ideal task, I can assure you. Luckily, I have quite a few willing helpers. One student's mom came in and took down all of my posters from the walls, which was a HUGE help... The janitor helped me get all of the boxes down from on top of my cupboards, and the 5th graders are super at helping me label the boxes and move them into stacks. It's just such an overwhelming task, especially since I have to decide what items to take with me for those 8 weeks, and what items to send to the long-term storage facility. My back is killing me! The good news is that Nikos is spending this week with my parents, so that I have time to get this all taken care of. I don't think I could get it all done without the extra time!
In the meantime, I have been distracting myself by packing up my classroom. While we may have no money for teachers or textbooks, we do have money to continue the renovation of our aging school campus (through a voter-approved measure-- a completely separate source of funding). My wing is up next, which means I have to move out into a temporary classroom for 8 weeks beginning on March 20th. Aack!! Packing boxes while almost 32 weeks pregnant is not an ideal task, I can assure you. Luckily, I have quite a few willing helpers. One student's mom came in and took down all of my posters from the walls, which was a HUGE help... The janitor helped me get all of the boxes down from on top of my cupboards, and the 5th graders are super at helping me label the boxes and move them into stacks. It's just such an overwhelming task, especially since I have to decide what items to take with me for those 8 weeks, and what items to send to the long-term storage facility. My back is killing me! The good news is that Nikos is spending this week with my parents, so that I have time to get this all taken care of. I don't think I could get it all done without the extra time!
Thursday, March 5, 2009
These Boots Are Made For Walkin'
I LOVE IT! Grandma and Grandpa gave Nikos these cowboy boots for Christmas, but they were too big and he wasn't really walking at the time. Well, he found them in his closet yesterday, and promptly insisted on wearing them. Then, today, he wanted to wear them around the house all afternoon. Nothing says "fashion icon" like a t-shirt, a diaper, and some cowboy boots. :)
Trade the shirt for a guitar, and the Naked Cowboy might have some competition!
Trade the shirt for a guitar, and the Naked Cowboy might have some competition!
Monday, March 2, 2009
The Big Weigh-In
Great news today! Nikos went from 22 pounds, 2 ounces at his last appointment to 23 pounds, 7 ounces! That bumps him up to the 25th percentile for weight, which the nurse practitioner was happy with. Hooray-- now I can stop stressing about this! Truth be told, we didn't really do anything different this past month, other than constantly offer him food. He still ate at his regular meal/snack times, for the most part, and still ate pretty much the same things (with a few new discoveries). I think that the nurse practitioner was totally overreacting with the whole "failure to thrive" label, and I'm glad it's behind us now. Hallelujah! Way to go, kiddo!
Sunday, March 1, 2009
A Hot March Day...
Nope, that wasn't a typo-- our current temperature is hovering right around 85 degrees, and it feels cooler than it was earlier! We spent the morning at the park, where Nikos made a beeline for the swings. This was the first time we'd taken him there since he officially became a full-time walker-- so there was much to do/see/explore! For my part, I sat on a blanket in the shade because it was just too hot, and I worried that I might pass out. Plus, walking actually hurts me quite a bit these days, so it was better for Gus to chase him around! After playing for a long time, they came back over to relax with me for a few minutes and blow some bubbles (admire the new shoes, by the way-- baby Converse to match mommy's shoes, haha!):
We left not too long after that, and came home for lunch. We were all feeling pretty toasty, still, so Gus and I set up Nikos' old inflatable duck tub in the back yard (it's much easier to fill than the wading pool because it's so small). Nikos played in the water for a bit, but was mostly happy to just run around in his swim trunks and steal sips from Gus' Slurpee:
Toward the end, he walked over to one of our lounge chairs and insisted on lounging for a bit:
Just look at that belly, would you? "Failure to thrive," my butt! We have his follow-up appointment tomorrow morning, by the way, so cross your fingers!
****************
In completely unrelated news, I wanted to share about my almost-find this morning! On a tip, I discovered that our local BigLots store was advertising hand-held video baby monitors for only $49-- the same exact ones that retail for close to $200! With a deal as good as that, I made sure to get to the store right when it opened at 9:00. The ad just came out today, and I was hoping to buy two of them, if I could-- one for each kiddo's room. Well, I found the baby monitors, but not the ones in the ad. I hunted down a sales associate, who assured me that they were near the diapers (which was where I had been looking). Nope, they weren't. She then tried to tell me that this other video monitor was the one in the ad. Um, no, I am not that stupid (the one she was pointing out retails for $70 and was selling for $50... not nearly the same bargain). It turned out that they didn't have them, and neither did another store not too far away (they "never received them"). So why were they advertised?? Sheesh. Anyhow, I then proceeded to ask the associate if they sold kid-sized toy brooms. She said yes, and told me where to look. Guess what? They didn't have any.
I guess it just wasn't my day!
We left not too long after that, and came home for lunch. We were all feeling pretty toasty, still, so Gus and I set up Nikos' old inflatable duck tub in the back yard (it's much easier to fill than the wading pool because it's so small). Nikos played in the water for a bit, but was mostly happy to just run around in his swim trunks and steal sips from Gus' Slurpee:
Toward the end, he walked over to one of our lounge chairs and insisted on lounging for a bit:
Just look at that belly, would you? "Failure to thrive," my butt! We have his follow-up appointment tomorrow morning, by the way, so cross your fingers!
In completely unrelated news, I wanted to share about my almost-find this morning! On a tip, I discovered that our local BigLots store was advertising hand-held video baby monitors for only $49-- the same exact ones that retail for close to $200! With a deal as good as that, I made sure to get to the store right when it opened at 9:00. The ad just came out today, and I was hoping to buy two of them, if I could-- one for each kiddo's room. Well, I found the baby monitors, but not the ones in the ad. I hunted down a sales associate, who assured me that they were near the diapers (which was where I had been looking). Nope, they weren't. She then tried to tell me that this other video monitor was the one in the ad. Um, no, I am not that stupid (the one she was pointing out retails for $70 and was selling for $50... not nearly the same bargain). It turned out that they didn't have them, and neither did another store not too far away (they "never received them"). So why were they advertised?? Sheesh. Anyhow, I then proceeded to ask the associate if they sold kid-sized toy brooms. She said yes, and told me where to look. Guess what? They didn't have any.
I guess it just wasn't my day!
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