experiment by default.

I am turning my lack of skrilla and time into an experiment.  I had my hair cut super short a couple weeks before I found out I was pregnant. Now I'm 19 weeks pregnant and I haven't cut it since. I realized I could change my unfortunate hair situation into an experiment: Does hair really grow faster when your pregnant?  Let's see...

Happy having nice, short hair that behaves and doesn't bother me...

More short hair smiles :)\

The next day. Just couldn't be happier!

OMGosh, it's worse than I thought. Notice the semi-horrified expression. Now do you see why I wear headscarves?

Okay, I'll smile, but I look like that Danke Schoen guy. Note the tiredness, people! And yes, take the hint!

 

I don't have a back shot of the first doo, but this how it is now...

I have lots of pictures like this. It's hard to take a shot of the back of your head in the mirror!

Last one. 

Looking at these pictures makes me want to take a pair of scissors to my own head, but I've tried that before (in France) to very horrible results.  I guess I'll wait it out.  Let's see how long I last!  Maybe 40 weeks?  I don't know... but that would be interesting if not agonizing.  I'll see if I come into a lucky combination of skrilla, time, and baby-sitters.  If not, I think I'm looking at a continued experiment.

Summer vacation.

We love Pa!

Funny Little Mimi

We were about to get in the car the other day and Mimi goes, "Oh boy, get ready for some achin' and sweatin'!". And I said, "What???". And Meem says, "Every time I get in this hot car all I can do is start achin' and sweatin', especially the sweatin'!".  What a goose. Now every time I'm about to hop in the car, I think of it and start laughing :)

Here's what's happening.

A note on my health: Made some progress with the acupuncture on the third session. I'm glad I didn't throw in the towel too early. I got some relief that third time, and this chiropractor is unbelievable. I did not know my body could twist and pop in such ways, all to my benefit. VERY glad to have found him.  And I like how they all work in tandem down there, I feel very well taken care of.  The pain is still very present, but they really managed to take down the intensity. It's really a huge relief. Thanks to that I was able to enjoy Mimi's Halloween fest in June (in June because we had a total freak show blizzard on Halloween this year and it had to be canceled...)!  So Meem's class got all dressed up and we had a parade, pops, and lunch on the Naugy green. So, so cute. I love watching Mimi with her girlfriends, it is such a riot.  Here's some pics:

Mimi and her BFF's.  This is a pretty solid posse. The little cowgal on the right had super long hair up until this week.  She donated it and now has a cute Posh Spice-5-years-ago doo. Mimi has been saying she wants long hair like hers for months, so we've been growing it. Now that it's short I've been trying to sell it, but Mimi won't budge. Oh well!

Going up to get their pops.

Checking out the nails.

Can you see that Mim has real make-up on? She was very excited about this! It's red lip gloss and blue eye shadow :)

More to be excited about (if you're me):

My hairdresser left her salon and I just don't have the slightest inkling about where to turn. To say the least, my hair has been quite neglected over the past few months, not to mention the lack on funds thanks to the expensive diabetes supplies, acupuncture, chiropractic, etc.  So ya, hair is taking a back seat.  Oh, and since I'm preg, it's been growing fast and I'm really starting to look like a crazy lady. The front is getting really long and heavy and is falling in my eyes. I HATE THAT. I've always hated having hair on my forehead or near my eyes.  Truly, hair can really drive me crazy.  I really need it out of the way or I start to spaz. Right now my hair is a shaggy mess. BUT here's the exciting part :) If you know me then you know I'm no stranger to the head scarf.  I love em.  I found a GREAT tutorial on-line on making and tying head scarves. I made a few and they rock. I'll probably be wearing this or some variation for the rest of my pregnancy (sorry mom...) since I have no motivation or $$$ to find a new, decent hairdresser at the moment. But look, isn't it cute in a way?

Look how happy a head scarf can make me.

Taking pictures in the mirror is harder than it looks. Here's a shot from the top.

Attempting to show you the back. It has a cute little knot on the bottom.

Attempt at the side/knot shot.  Not so easy to snap a good one. This is the best I could do.  Also notice that I am turning my head!!! Such progress from the last two weeks.  This would have been impossible before.

Here's a picture Mimi took in the back yard. It reminds me of Morocco for some reason. I think it's the colors and the chipped paint. Morocco is a very colorful place.  And a very chipped place, in a good way.

Also this weekend Christopher went on a camping trip with his boy scout troop and I was home with the kids.  Today was really grey and icky, so I took them to see Madagascar 3.  I die over the first two Madagascar movies.  But this one was a disappointment :(  Not so great.  But it was good to get out, and the sun was coming out when we were leaving, and the rest of the day was really nice. Pa came home in time for dinner, PIZZA!!!!!  So, so good.  Especially since I'm eating light carbs, the bit of pizza was awesome.  And my numbers were good afterwards too, phew! Oh, and lately Mimi has been doing my blood sugar readings. She loves anything medical.  She loads up the glucose meter and cocks the finger pricker and everything, then she fires it up and catches the blood on the reader.  She's loving it.  She wants to do my insulin shots too, but I have to draw the line.  She loves to watch thou :)

Creative Writing at its finest.

THIS is my second grade niece Gianna's award-winning short story!  She's going to read it to the whole school :)  It's GREAT!!!!  Enjoy :)

The Teacher Catastrophe

By Gianna Routhier

     Ring ring ring ring.  I ran into the kitchen to pick up the phone.  It was Seeds for Needs.  “Hello”, said a man with a big, strong voice.  “Would you like to buy some seeds?  You get four seeds for $5.99 or $6.00 as some people would say.”  I decided to buy them and he asked what kind I wanted.  He said they have carnival seeds, seeds to grow pets, or mystery seeds.  “Wow!  Just surprise me”, I said.  “Okay”, said the man and then he asked for my name and address.

     I was so excited when my seeds arrived the next day.  The name on the small, brown package said “Mystery Seeds”.  I was anxious to see what they would grow into so I got out my watering can, shovel, four flowerpots, and some soil.  I planted each seed in a different pot, I watered them, and I put them out so they could get sun.

     The next week when I went outside, I was shocked to see teachers-second grade teachers!  Miss Slie popped out of one pot and Mrs. Florin popped out from another.  Then Mrs. Freddino popped out and Mrs. McAuliffe came out right after.  It was summer vacation and they all started telling me what to do.  Mrs. Florin said to practice math facts, Mrs. McAuliffe said to start reading, Mrs. Freddino said to keep up with my reading journal, and Miss Slie said to write some good stories.  I said to my mom, “We have to do something about this!  We really, really have to do something about this!”

     My mom invited the teachers inside of our house.  I told them that there was a delicious strawberry cake just for them in the closet.  They love their desserts so they ran right in.  I locked the door and hoped they would leave me alone.  Unfortunately, Mrs. Florin had a bobby pin and picked the lock after they finished the cake.  Since that didn’t work, I grabbed the phone and called Seeds for Needs and asked what to do about these crazy teachers.  The man said, “You get what you get and you don’t get upset!”  Boom!  He hung up the phone.

     The next day, I had a great idea.  I booked a trip for four to Hawaii for Mrs. Florin, Mrs. McAuliffe, Mrs. Freddino, and Miss Slie.  I brought them to the airport and as soon as I got there, I told the flight attendants to get those teachers on the plane right away and make sure they stay in Hawaii for the whole summer.  They can come back for the next school year when I actually need their advice.  Next time I get a call from Seeds for Needs, I will get the carnival seeds and see what happens!

egg update.

Here's what's new with me & the eggs. me first. I'm not feeling great but I'm really trying to improve on that.  I have a blinding pain that won't let up in my neck/upper back/right shoulder that radiates down my right arm. This is fairly new, about one week old.  It's really unbearable.  My OBGYN suggested acupuncture, so I found a place in Middlebury. I had some chiropractic work yesterday and acupuncture today. I really liked both the chiropractor and the acupuncturist. They seemed totally confident and optimistic, which is good since I came in the office (both days) in tears.  The chiropractor spent an hour and 10 minutes with me and was really thorough and cool with my kids (my appointment was for 7:30 in the morning and I had to take them both with me, and Max was late for school, but it couldn't be helped). The acupuncturist was exactly what I wanted him to be. And I feel like maybe a slight shift has occurred. I'm still in a lot of pain, but I have a bit more range of motion in my neck and maybe even a bit of the edge is gone (not all the edge, granted).  I'm going back tomorrow for another round of both.  I so hope this works, because there's not too much available for pregnant women with blinding back and neck pain. I do feel optimistic thou, when I'm not crying. 

In other egg news, we finally got THE letter in the mail, Maxwell and Mimi are going to Maple.  That's the biggest and newest of all the elementary schools in Naugy. My neighbor and I had to fight for it, because we were originally districted to go to another school, which is super old and has no gym and the cafe is really small and in the basement, so lots of kids have to eat in their classrooms.  It has three floors, and the third floor gets too hot in the summer and needs to be evacuated.  I know, crazy.  Pray there's never a fire. Maple is pretty big (I prefer a small school, but what can you do?) and has the most "extras". The principal is known for keeping a tight ship.  I went down there and met her and I liked her, she showed us around the school.  (Huge library, love that). She has the teachers in a dress code: no sweat shirts, jeans, flip flops, opened toed shoes, stuff like that ( I actually like that, I always thought that the Central needed to step in up a bit in that department, they were very relaxed over there).  They do lots of trips and family nights and things like that, which I love. I love being involved in the school. The school itself is pretty nice.  It's definitely the school you'd put in a come-live-in-Naugy brochure.  AND it's our dear friend Nicky's school, which Max is so excited about. Their academics are tougher, homework harder, etc. but we're going to give it a go. I feel pretty good about it. Of course my first choice would have been Central, but we got shot down.  The board of ed is AWFUL in Naugatuck.  Just saying. 

Here are a few pictures from our evening yesterday in the backyard. Ashlee came over to bounce.

Here's my mayonnaise jar of diabetic test strips, finger prickers, and insulin needles. It's illegal to throw them directly into the garbage. You have to collect them in a jar and then throw them out. 

And here's a picture from Maxwell's first grade spring concert. It rocked! Here's Max sitting with his class getting ready to perform.  Notice the diversity of Naugatuck! Such beautiful, colorful faces :)  The 2nd little girl there with the big smile is Maxwell's BFF, they are super cute together.  This is the sweetest bunch of kids ever, seriously.  I love them all!