5 Months Old

Penelope is already 5 months old!
Sitting up like a big girl on the chair.

Smiles

The cats presiding over their domain.

Penelope & I went outside to keep Wayne company while he washed his car....we had a stowaway.

Wayne doing some serious car washing.

Penelope was watching intently.

Penelope in her swing.

I think she thought she was playing peek-a-boo...not too good at it yet.

Finally found her head again.

Wayne and Penelope still read a lot of Harry Potter. Penelope is holding her bottle here. She likes to be bigstuff and hold it, but isn't especially good at it yet.

Penelope has been enthralled with the kitties lately.

Lunch at Subway

I have resigned myself to blogging about the must mundane things. Going to town. Lunch at Subway. Ah, the excitement of life.

When I was little, it was a while before I realized that there were subways that didn't sell sandwiches. There was actually these underground tunnels with trains that were called subways. I learned this from the walls of our local (sandwich) Subway. However, all the pictures were circa 1940s, so it was another learning experience when I found out that cities today have subways! And this country girl has even used them a few times!

Anyway, back to my lunch. Penelope and I ventured out to have lunch at Subway. I sat midway between a group of three 40ish woman and two teenage girls. I had previously thought that females matured into rational, level-headed women. Until I heard this:

40 ish women: "and then I texted her and said blah blah blah....well, I heard they are having financial problems....his daughter told my daughter that blah blah blah" etc

teenagers: "She said WHAT?? Hold on I am going to text her right now. No way, she is not going to push me around like that." etc

40 ish women: "My daughter wants to blah blah blah, and I told her she better not or..."

teenagers: "My mom said I couldn't! She is so mean, and then she said blah blah blah..."

I realized that the only difference between these groups was the fact that the older women had mastered the art of using makeup. I hope when some new mom eavesdrops on my conversation I have more interesting things to say that gab about who said what and the latest gossip!

whoo, whoo, ooww, haha

Talking about clothes not fitting in yesterday's post made me remember something blogworthy. I was getting dressed the other day, and pulling on a skirt that zipped up the side. So, this skirt was a bit tight, and as I was talking to Wayne, I took a breath, held it, and sucked my gut in to zip it all the way up. Well, as luck would have it, it zipped my skin into it. Which is a bit uncomfortable, but not normally a big deal. However, at this point I was still holding my breath and sucking in my stomach. I frantically tried to pull the zipper down, while doing some quick shallow breaths one might learn to do in a Lamaze class. As Wayne was watching my bizarre behavior, I suddenly realized how funny this was. So then, in between sucking, breathing quickly and trying to remove my skin from my zipper, I started laughing wildly. It may have sounded like this: "whoo, whoo, OOww, whoo, whoo, hahaha, OOww!" My skin couldn't take it anymore, and tore out of the zipper, and other than laughing hysterically at myself, started to breathe normally again. Wayne said "WHAT was that all about?" I told him, and he simply shook his head and told Penelope never to learn how to dress from mommy.
Penelope and I out for a walk. It was sunny with snow on the ground, so VERY bright. Good thing we have our super cool sunglasses on.

Penelope does super cool very well.

Playing with her friend Leah.

Why I am still wearing maternity clothes

Maternity clothes....definitely has a different meaning to me than before I was pregnant. When I got pregnant, having to buy and wear huge maternity clothes was something I dreaded. My friend Christina gave me lots of her old maternity clothes, and although thankful for them, I looked at them with dread. Was I really going to need clothes THIS big? I surely would never put any size large clothes on my petite frame. And did anyone actually wear these ones with what looked like panty hose expanding several inches above the waistband?

After doing some shopping I found out that there were some cute maternity clothes out there. And they were comfortable and cool in my third trimester. And I did end up wearing some rather large sizes. Clothes shrink a little, you know.

Now as Penelope nears the 5 month mark, I have a secret. I am still wearing maternity clothes. Not all of them, but I frequently am found sporting them.

The top 4 reasons I am still wearing maternity clothes:

1. Ease of nursing. It takes skill to successfully nurse a baby without exposing yourself. Large, flowing shirts are great!
2. I don't really care. I have officially entered mommyhood and don't care nearly as much how I look. And when I do care, I realize that nothing in my closet is going to look great once saturated with drool and spit-up.
3. Umm, ahem....I don't fit into all of my pre-pregnancy clothes. There. I said it. I am not huge, but I still weigh 10 pounds more than I did pre-pregnancy. And those 10 pounds have redistributed themselves quite differently than before.
4. One word: Elastic. Stretches when you need it to, compresses when you don't.

Valentine's Day

On Valentines day, a strange delivery van drove into our drive and out came a huge vase with a huge arrangement of flowers in it. I had forbid Wayne from getting me flowers, so as I set them down, I mentally planned on calling him, and maybe taking a picture and blogging about it.

But first I looked at the card. It read:

"Love, Eric, Gordon & Mack"

Oh, so they aren't from Wayne. They are from....Eric, Gordon & Mack. I wondered who would send us a huge arrangement of flowers for Valentine's Day. Was this the sort of thing that we were supposed to be sending work associates or long lost relatives?

Finally it dawned on me that Eric, Gordon & Mack where our next door neighbors. The flowers were not for me at all, they were just mis-delivered. They were for Eric's wife, Jill.

So I grabbed a bundled up Penelope in one hand, and the giant vase in another hand and trompsed next door. I saw Jill in the back yard, so walked back there.

"Jill, I have some flowers for you!" I yelled. She came walking over with the most quizical look on her face. "They were delivered to our house by mistake," I said.

"OH!" She said. "I thought YOU had gotten me flowers for Valentine's Day. I didn't think I was THAT good of a neighbor."

I got a small chuckle out of that, and later was recalling a conversation I had with her daughter, Mack. I was showing her one of our kittens last year, when she asked if it was a boy or a girl. I told her I didn't actually know. She looked at the kitten, and then confidently replied, "It's a boy." I asked her how she knew. "The kitty has green eyes. If they have green eyes they are girls, if they have blue eyes they are a boy." I told her that I had blue eyes and I was a girl. She paused and looked into my eyes, as if I might be lying, and then replied, "No, you are a boy." And that was the end of it. It didn't matter that I was six months pregnant with long hair. I was a boy as far as she was concerned.

Early February Pictures

Penelope apparently figured out how to get her feet out of their place so she could play with them.

The diaper bag

You carry it. You dig in it. It is your lifeline, your purse, your brain. You fear losing it, and hope you remembered to put everything in it. It is The Diaper Bag.

My diaper bag has become very valuable to me. Not because it is cute or trendy. Not because of the cost of the diaper bag or its contents, but because of its security.

On a rare occation that I go into a store without it, I am worrying the entire time about needing something in it. On the rare occation that I go into a store without Penelope, I get excited about not toting the enormous bag around, but then realize that I have to hold my billfold, phone, keys and anything else I need in my hands.

Normally my diaper bag is overflowing, unorganized, and brimming with used diapers, dirty burp rags and mail. Wayne detests the diaper bag when it is unorganized...."You need everything to have it's own compartment." OK, captain, but there are ony four different compartments in the bag. Hard to have everything color-coded and distributed into its's specific 'spot'.

So, what's in the bag? Other than a sometimes disillusioned sense of safety and security for mom? I am going to empty it right now and divulge the classified contents.

The main compartment:
1. 3 diapers
2. wipes
3. burp rag
4. billfold
5. toy
6. small plastic bags to properly dispose diapers
7. extra change of clothes, hat & bib for Penelope
8. enough powdered formula and dust at the bottom to make a few ounces of milk in a fix

The small side compartment:
1. infant tylenol
2. infant gas medicine
3. hand sanitizer

The other small side compartment:
1. nothing (but usually contains my phone & keys)

The large side compartment: ( I consider this my 'personal' compartment. See Wayne, it is organized!)
1. gum
2. granola bar
3. pen
4. hair tie & hair clip
5. a mostly used tube of toothpaste (no toothbrush)
6. 2 cough drops
7. 1 Jolly Rancher
8. multipurpose knife
9. small perfume

The other large side compartment: (This I consider the 'papers' side)
1. coupons! Wayne's favorite thing to hear when we are out shopping is, "Oh, I have a coupon for that!" He generally cringes, rolls his eyes, and soon dissapears. But, some of the coupons havn't even expired yet, and the other day I saved over five dollars!
2. diaper cream
3. nursing pads

OK, that wasn't as bad as I had feared. Other things that routinely find themeselves in the diaper bag:
sunglasses
lotion
chapstick
mail
laptop (it almost fits...)
bottles, breastmilk and formula
pacifier(s)
blanket (s)
used tissues, candy wrappers and other trash

It is nice to have a large bag and an excuse to carry it anywhere. Need to stash snacks & drinks so you don't have to pay for them at an event? Got you covered. Need a jackhammer? No problem.

There may come a day when I carry around a cute little purse with only my things in it. But for now I am content to carry around this huge drab bag and use its contents to take care of my wonderful little girl.

A Loved Child Has Many Names

My grandma used to say "A loved child has many names". Apparently an old swedish saying. Anyway, here are some of the nicknames Penelope has aquired:
Peanup
Nuppers
Penelope Peapod
Pippa
P
Penne (like the pasta.....although Cori just calls her "pasta" sometimes:>)
Penelope Jones (No idea where this came from, but my mom is worried that Penelope will grow up thinking her last name is Jones, especially since Wayne and I also call each other "Mommy Jones" and "Daddy Jones". Yes, we are strange, and are already scoping out child phychologists.)
Pen
Big Toe (From Grandpa Ken...)
Penelope Sweet-Pea
And, of course, a plethora of honeybear's, babygirl's, sweetheart's, etc. There is no shortage of nicknames around here.

Penelope sitting in a big chair.

Penelope & Chloe snuggling

Going to Town

This title sounds like it came straight from a chapter of Laura Ingalls Wilder. And sometimes going to town seems like just as big of an event as it did for the little Ingalls girls riding to town in their wagon.

This morning I got my self together (sort-of) and left for town. As I drove, I scanned the vehicle, noting all of the things I had brought. The overstuffed diaper bag. The bag with work-out clothes for me. The pile of Penelope's clothes to lend to Leah. The cooler full of food and bottles. The stroller. The car seemed to be packed, only for a half day trip to town.

So off to town we went. Penelope got to have fun with our friend Jenny while I went to an appointment. Then we had a mommy date with Cori & Leah. It was near 60 degrees out, and we planned to take the strollers and babies out for their first stroll through town. So we proceeded to get ourselves, the strollers, and the babies ready. It is interesting to note that it took us about a half hour to get ready for our 40 minute walk. Actually, it took me that long, Cori was ready long before I was. I can already tell that Cori is going to be one of those organized, with-it moms that is prepared for anything. But anyway, we had a lovely walk, and both babies slept for most of this monumentous event.

Penelope in the stroller.

Penelope and Leah

Penelope: "Look I have a friend!"

Leah:"AAAAAAHHH!"

Penelope: "Don't you want to be my friend?"

Cori: "Leah, you be nice to your friend"

Penelope: "Hurray! I have a friend!"

Then we met Wayne for a picnic lunch. We discovered that our town has the coolest playground that we have ever seen. I can picture us making frequent trips to the park before Penelope is old enough to walk, just so WE can explore all the cool stuff. Basically, it is a huge wood playground thing....bridges, slides, rope ladders, rock climbing wall, a huge tower, and many other things I didn't have time to explore. Other than the gangster teenagers that thought they were super-cool hanging out on a playground meant for 6 year-olds, we were very impressed. Although super-cool teens did have a pleasant word of warning for us, "Ah, dudes, you might wanna make sure no one peed on the slide before you go down." Good to know.

Swinging

Dad, P & the super cool playground tower.

Gizmos & Gadgets

I often hear someone from my mom's generation look at a baby item of mine and say longingly, "They didn't have that when I was raising kids..." And I do sympathize. Swings that sing, vibrate, bounce, and, oh yeah, swing twenty different directions are nice. Breastpumps in a trendy backpack? Teddy bears that recite your baby's name? Stroller's that fold with one hand? Yes, please!

However, some of the latest and gratest inventions for children seem a little over the top. I'm sure many people use them, perhaps even some of you. And maybe after a few more children I would be using them too. But for now, I will get a chuckle out of them and say they are for the birds.

1. A food dispensing spoon: You got to give inventors credit for doing this one. It is a good idea. But really, how does it help us? The idea is to twist a bag of baby food onto this special spoon, and you just squirt a litte out at a time into the spoon and give it to your little eater. Does it really save that much time to squirt food into a spoon? Or have we become so lazy that we just want to save the energy that it takes lifting our arm from the jar of baby food to our children's mouths?

2. Snot sucker: A battery operated unit that you stick in your babies nose and it sucks snot, boogers, and lost legos. I guess it would be handy during a cold, but I don't think I could handle it. You actually see the nose-debris as it is sucked out and stored in a nice, clear plastic compartment. I am a person who gets very grossed out by runny noses. Penelope has needed a tissue about 4 times so far, and it was very tramatic. For me, not her.

3. Wipes: Wipes, you say? What kind? There are now soft & gentle wipes, natural wipes, and chlorine free wipes. There are flushable wipes and travel wipes. Pacifier wipes and boogie wipes. Cream infused wipes and all-over cleansing towelettes. Don't forget about biodegradable and reusable wipes. Who knew wipes would be so complicated. Oh, and once your baby turns into a toddler? Quick! Throw out the wipes, you now need to buy 'toddler wipes.'

4. Problem solvers that create another problem: For instance, Sunglases, sunscreen, sunshades, and spf clothing. Never let your child's skin see the sun! Now....go out and buy Vitamin D suppliments, because your child is probably deficient! I'm not saying I'm never going to use sunscreen, but I think there is a point where it gets excessive.

February 7

Today Penelope rolled over both ways, twice! Hopefully I can capture it on video, as it is more exciting to us than the super bowl, had we watched it. Somehow I missed out on the super bowl for the 27th straight year! How I manage to survive in society is a wonder.

A few pics.....Penne (her nickname of the day, pronounced like the pasta) with 'Grandma Lorraine' Penne discovered the cats about a week ago. She apparently had never noticed them before. But now she watches them intensely and tries to grab fur whenever possible.

Yes, we are bad parents and let the child play on the kitchen counter.

Even though they don't fit well yet, I got the Robeez shoes out today. Big Toe loves her shoes from Bethaney!

Daddy's Girl

Penelope gets lots of daddy time on the weekends.
Lots of piano playing comes from these two.
Penelope has been exploring her sense of touch lately, and loves to feel daddy's beard.

Back from the big city

Penelope and I have been to Salt Lake three times in the past three weeks. At around 230 miles each way, that is an impressive 1500 miles we have driven. You might imagine me to be a bit crazy, which is probably true. However, each trip was enjoyable, thanks to the fact that we live in rural Nevada with little entertainment, shopping, and human contact.

The first trip I have already blogged about here. Then we went to the airport last week to pick up my mom, a fairly uneventful trip. Then early this week we went back to spend time with my aunt & uncle and return mom to the airport. This last trip was a bit more eventful.

Remember how my lovely husband has an obsession with buying cars, and I am the one who gets to register them? Well, it is also my privilege to maintain these cars. Which has become even more enjoyable since Wayne has been interested in BMWs as of late.

So, Wayne decided to make my trip to Salt Lake more productive by making me an appointment to get the car fixed. Luckily he made it at 9:30 AM, so I could just get on the road after Penelope's 4 AM feeding instead of sleeping in. Mom, Penelope, and I went to the dealership where we got a loaner car to use for what I thought would be the day. I grabbed the car seat and two large bags filled with baby paraphernalia. Unfortunately when late afternoon came, the car was not done, all of our overnight things were still in the car. My mom her suitcase and bag in the car, and was to fly out early the next day. Luckily we had diapers. We did have a good day shopping and a nice dinner with the cousins.

Mom was able to get her bags out of the car early the next day before she flew home. I decided to do some furniture shopping. I have been on a quest to find a nice glider rocker. I bought one online, but sent it back due to it being slightly defective and its overall state of cheapness. Wayne said I should just buy a good quality one to last through the next five kids. Interesting....

Anyway, I got to the furniture store, and after looking at a few, I found one that I liked. I had to buy the ottoman separately of course, and the grand total came up to about $350. After hemming and hawing a bit, I finally got up the courage to try to bargain with the salesman. I have NEVER done this before. I finally, although nervously, said "I'll take them both if you can give me them for $300. " And the guy said yes! I was so excited I almost jumped up and down and squealed.

The car was finally done that evening. I decided to stay overnight, and leave the next morning. The next morning, I was almost to the interstate, when the car's service engine light appeared. This was the main reason the car had been worked on. So instead of leaving town, I went back to the dealership where it had been worked on. After a fun two hours in the waiting room with Penelope, we left. The car's problem apparently won't affect it (much) and is too costly to repair, a mere seven grand. A bit much for a car with 230,000 miles on it.

The girls chilling at the BMW dealership. They did have complimentary soda, flavored coffees, trail mix, and a clean restroom.

And then...The exciting trip home! I documented it with several poor phone-camera pictures, just so you could see how exciting it was.
This picture captures my view for about 95% of the drive.
The salt flats west of Salt Lake.
The Oasis exit (no services). A hodge-podge of dilapidated buildings and vehicles.
Passing by the prison... No picking up hitch-hikers!

We are glad to be back home with Wayne and enjoying the weekend together. We are actually staying home!

Overdue Picture Update

Penelope has been getting a lot more sleep lately, thanks to this nice product called the Woombie. It is basically a long sleeve that zips her up tight so our lil' houdini can't get her arms out and wake herself up at night. Wayne claims it is near child abuse, but it seemed like a good alternative to duct tape.

Grandma came to visit, here she and Penelope were playing some piano.

Lots of 'chuckling' and smiles for grandma. We took Pen to her 4 month doctor appointment, where the doctor told us she 'may start to chuckle between now and six months'. If you watched the video's of her laughing you will know that she does a bit more than a little 'chuckle' now and then!

I got out this cool bear, Violet, that Rachel got for Pen. She has been snuggling it a lot.We got to see the lovely Leah Brooks again Sunday. She is 6 weeks old now.
Pen looks like a monster! Leah is pretty adorable, so cuddly and looking around. (And cute hat!)

Pen has been trying to hold her bottle by herself.

Alas, Grandma had to go home Tuesday, but we had a great time!