STRESS!

I'm so stressed about money! This has been such a difficult year for us, and I think we're both going to need to pick up extra hours at odd jobs to make ends meet for the rest of the year.

Any suggestions? Should I sell my eggs? Sell pies? C'mon, creative readers - any ideas for me?

180

Give more, to get more? I take that back. (For now. Just for this rant. Really.)

I have learned today that a business to whom I have been consistently referring new business has taken on a relationship with my competitor, and pulled potential business away from me and my firm.

I'm not a cut-throat business person. I believe in honesty and integrity. I believe in positive partnerships. I think I have learned a valuable lesson today, but I'm not sure how to articulate it. Basically, I was giving and giving and giving...much more than I was ever going to receive.

It's not personal, it's business. Right? Somehow, this realization still hurts in a very personal way. And, I'm going to have to mourn the loss of a relationship that I had valued more than it was ever worth.

Anyone have a business-smart karma book to suggest? :-)

TLC - check it out!

You'll notice a permanent link in my list of favorites to the left - Turtle Love Committee. Check it out!

Here's what Yahoo! has to say about it:

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/NonDiamond-Engagement-Rings-prnews-14493094.html

On the road again...

Dan has his first truck-day today. Mondays and Tuesdays are classroom time, and Wednesdays-Fridays are half-days for practice. I imagine he's somewhere, tootling around in a parking lot right now. His permit test is on Monday, and Gargamel (that's what we're having Vi call Dan's dad, Greg...he didn't want a real "grandpa" name, so we picked one for him. She says Gro-Gro) has offered to help him study. Very exciting!

I think I'll try to make an iPod playlist for him. What songs are good driving songs? Not just trucking songs - a la "On the Road Again," "Pickup Man," or, as my brother-in-law suggested, the theme from "BJ and The Bear" - but real, good music for road trips. There's a chance that Dan's first job will be an over-the-road, long-haul sort of job, so he'll need podcasts and songs and books-on-tape. Post a comment below with your suggestions!

Potty!

Vi went pee-pee in the potty twice this weekend!

We haven't started potty "training," per se, yet. But she has been using the ASL sign for toilet for months now. She just recently started signing before going in her diaper, and reaching for an adult's hand to go with her to the bathroom, rather than just using the sign to tell us about her current, em, activity. We've been letting her sit on the toilet when she wants to, but not trying to establish any sort of pattern yet.

I got home from work on Friday, and my mother said, "That's so great the Vi is going pee in the potty now!" I was shocked! Sunday afternoon, she "asked" to sit on the potty, with a serious look in her eye. She sat there, stuffing toilet paper in between her legs happily for a minute or two. Then we both heard the same thing - pee! I thought her eyes were going to pop right out of her head. The one thing I've read about potty training is about praise, praise, praise. To sing and cheer and dance and yell "hurray!" a lot. So, I did. Vi did, too. It was super-cute to hear her shouting "Yea-eee! Yea-eee!" and "bye-bye!!!" as we flushed.

I guess I'd better figure out how to do this...! Any suggestions?

15 Week Update

Here is the info from the weekly email about Critter Walsh's development! Below is my blabbing on and on so you know what's actually happening to US.


At around 4 inches long, crown to rump, your baby now weighs about 2 1/2 ounces. He's busy inhaling and exhaling amniotic fluid, which will help the air sacs in his lungs develop. His legs are growing longer than his arms now, and he can move all his joints and limbs. That means his hands are more functional, too. Sweat glands are appearing, and although his eyelids are fused shut, he can sense light. If you were to shine a flashlight at your tummy, he'd be likely to move away from the beam.
If you're scheduled for an ultrasound in the coming weeks (most women have one between 16 and 20 weeks), you may be able to find out whether your baby's a boy or a girl! Don't be disappointed if it remains a mystery, though. Nailing down the gender depends on how clear the picture is and the position of your baby during the ultrasound; he may be curled or turned in such a way as to keep you in suspense.
Your baby's taste buds are beginning to form now, too, and a study at the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia suggests he may be able to taste what you've been eating. Researchers found that flavors from the food pregnant women ate ended up in their amniotic fluid. They also found that eating healthy foods during pregnancy may help your baby develop a preference for those foods that could last a lifetime.

I've gained about 6 pounds, all (or most of it) focused in the belly, so I have a little "pooch" and I've had to get new pants! Dan, on the other hand, has gained about 10 sympathy pounds. :-)

We heard the baby's heartbeat for the first time yesterday! It was very cool. 153 beats per minute - boom, boom, boom. So strong! We're scheduled for an ultrasound on March 5th, when we can find out if Critter is a boy or a girl...but we're still not sure we want to ruin the surprise!

I'm in the process of switching Obstetricians. My current OB is part of a huge group practice, fairly robotic with her answers to my questions, and on a totally different wavelength from me. When I go into labor, with this group practice, whoever is on call will deliver Critter...and there is no way for me to meet any of them before hand. Yuck. I have a preliminary appointment with another group next week - one MD, one DO and a midwife. All women. Small, small, small, which to me means they are able to be more personal. Dan asked me "What are the potential drawbacks to a smaller practice?" I couldn't think of any...do any of you have any answers to that question? Anyway - the doctor I choose at this new practice is the one that will deliver Critter. I will meet all three practicioners at my various appointments, so the entire practice will - get this! - actually KNOW me. Wow.

We moved downstairs last weekend with the help of Mom, George, Mike & Deborah. We took over the back bedroom, which is refreshingly large, cozy, and close to the bathroom! The nursery will be the front bedroom (the old guest room). It's currently green, like a hosptial room or a bowl of pistachio ice cream. It will be painted before Critter arrives!

We are still trying to decide on a name for a boy Critter. Any suggestions? Greg has told us how important it is for a child to have a unique name in this over-populated world...so his current suggestions include Tinsel, Titanium, or any mineral or tree. I asked him if "Salt Walsh" sounded good. :-p What boy names do you like?

I hope you are all well!

Love,
Lindsay,