Life Interupted

March hasn't been the best month.  There have been some nice things;  I turned 39 and I got to travel to Atlanta to see my cousin and God-daughter. But it definitely hasn't been as good a month for me as it has been for the Pittsburgh Penguins. (let's go Pens!)  About 3 weeks ago I got a meeting request from my manager telling me I had to attend a mandatory meeting on Tuesday March 12th.  I confirmed, but asked what the meeting was about so I could prepare. I was told I didn't have to prepare anything and he couldn't say anything until that day. I didn't think anything about it and assumed it was a meeting about setting my yearly goals and any merit increase which always happens at this time of the year.

Instead I found out that I was one of four people in my group of seven who were laid off. I was told this was due to lack of orders and profit in my division, and they were looking for ways to cut costs. To say I was shocked is probably an understatement.  It's taken me a while to deal with the negative emotions that came with that news, so I'm not going to spend any time getting into that. The only thing I can say that is positive is that I'm happy I no longer have to work for the manager I reported to then.  We got along fine, but I guess I'll just say that I won't be friending him on Facebook anytime at all. I'm glad it's behind me.

Being laid off, you'd think one would have a lot more free time than I really do. But working on my resume, trying to network and find jobs has pretty much sucked up all my time.  I would have loved to nap a lot, read some books, work in the garden (thanks for really making that impossible Mother Nature!) and spend hours lost on Ancestry.com  There are some movies On Demand I'd like to check out.  And cleaning and organizing would have been really nice.  Oh well I guess.  I'm hoping I don't have a lot more time in which to do these things and instead I'll be working somewhere soon.  Maybe then I can just say this has been a forced, unpaid vacation.    I have some resumes out there and a few job leads. I also have an interview today at 5.  Fingers and toes and legs are all crossed! Which is hard to do all at once...

On the child front, Ben has been talking a lot more. it's awesome to hear the little dude say things. It reinforces that he obviously does know how to talk, he just doesn't really feel much like it. But he's been saying a ton lately - "thank you" and "all done" and counting to five! He still uses a lot of grunting and finger pointing when he wants something instead of saying the word, but we're not the best at reinforcing that habit.  Overall, I think he is doing great with his speech.  We did find out that he will need tubes put into his ears.  I'm pretty tired of ear infections, and his once awesome sleeping skills have been turned into only sleeping well when in our bed.

We found out that Cori got AM kindergarten at Mars so that a huge relief!  She has been loving her dance classes and is about to start a soccer skills program since we plan to enroll her in fall soccer. She is excited for her upcoming birthday in 2 months and has been great at being a big helper to us.  Aside from a 24 hr stomach bug and some vomiting this past Sunday, her health has been really well! Not even much of a cold this winter.   We got about 3 inches of hair cut off her and it looks adorable!

It wouldn't be a lie or exaggeration to say that I'm really hoping April will be a better month for us all!

Checking in

Just saying hello and posting some pictures so I don't get too far behind.  Things have been super crazy around here; working in Moon Township has been taking its toll.  Physically I know Dave and I both feel even more exhausted. Mentally, I'm totally drained from working so hard on so many projects. Time just flies at work.  This week I took on another project at work and went out to assist on a job site for the week.  Check out my cool new work clothes; I get to count light bulbs and fixtures and note wattage and ballast type and such for a lighting energy audit for UPMC.

It wasn't been all work and no play. This past weekend Dave and I had a date night - the first in months.  We went to BRGR and had some delicious food before going to see Silver Linings Playbook which was good, but personally I think some other movies are more deserving of the Oscar for best movie this year.

Appetizer of grilled cheese bites with a thick tomato dipping sauce. Mmmm!

burger with homemade chips and "crack" dip - named appropriately as it is highly addictive!

an awful shot of me - arm "claiming" Dave and his "ghostly white" hand - but we are thrilled to be out!

Unfortunately, before our date, the washer drained out all over our hard wood floor. The drainage hose had come out of the wall. We cursed a lot, put the hose back in, cleaned up the floor and headed up. The next morning I went to wash the towels used to mop up the floor; the damned hose came out again and flooded the floor a second time.  And "flood" isn't an exaggeration. The water went through the wall and dripped into living room, peeling a lot of plaster & paint off the wall.  Fortunately our basement isn't finished so the wall of water the poured down through there just went onto the cement floor and didn't ruin any ceiling or carpeting. 

The hose is now duct-taped into the wall drain- stylish AND functional.

This was one of Ben's valentines (from his cousin Ben at daycare) and I just thought it was so adorable! I wish I could be this creative!

 I was finally able to get my hair cut 2 weeks late; unfortunately I had to get it cut at 7 PM which means I came home and went to bed and didn't even get to have "one good hair day'" from it.  With short hair, I have the worst bed head in the mornings!

Tiny Dancer

Tonight I'm a super proud mama of my ballerina girl!She recently had a growth spurt and none of the hand-me-down leotards fit anymore. So I splurged and got her a new leotard at All That Jazz today. She LOVED it and danced all around the house before dance class. When did my girl get so big? Sniff sniff!

I love her initial pose - ha! So dramatic!

Little known "6th position" in ballet

Moving

Happy February everyone! I'm glad it is a short month because I've had enough of this cold weather.

Yesterday I had my review; it went well, but the big news is that my boss asked me to work from our HQ building out in Moon Township.  I can't really say no since I'd like to keep my job, and financially, I need to keep my job.

This is Cherrington, our electrical division HQ.  I used to work here for 6 years from 1999-2005. There are some pluses to this move, aside from the change that a new place brings.

• There is a cafeteria which serves only healthy options, and it has a full salad bar. The meals are discounted too.  
• There is a free small gym and locker facility with showers. The gym equipment is older (it's the same now as it was in 1999!) but the treadmills are decent if I am so inclined.
• There are sidewalks & walking group so I can walk during lunch hour when the weather is warmer.
• The 30 minutes extra driving time will allow me time to decompress on the way home.

If it sounds like I'm trying to pump myself up, I am. I am really going to miss where I work now. Some not so good things are:

• Longer commute means more time away from the kids and waking up even earlier to keep my 7-4 schedule
• I have to wear dress clothes; no more jeans to work.  I now have to spend money on dress shoes and clothes
• Bigger office. 600 people as opposed to the 75 max people (more like 35) that I'd see daily. They are friends, not coworkers.
• Gas money, gas money, and more gas money
• No more random (& frequent) working from home. It was good while it lasted. =(
• No more running errands during lunch hour. I like to stay away from the Robinson Township cluster traffic. (I may make an exception for DSW!)

I'm trying to be positive and am just thankful I am still well employed. But this is going to be a change for sure!

Sleepness nights

It's pure irony that my last post was about the song "Slumber My Darling" because that is something that Ben has NOT been doing as of late.  I think it's the age because I seem to recall Cori going through something similar at the same age.  It's a lengthy struggle to put Ben to sleep; he fights it and can't seem to get comfortable when we hold and rock him.  But we can't just leave him in the crib to sort it out on his own.  The one big difference between Cori and Ben is that in 18 months, we've never had to do "sleep training" with Ben yet. I think we had 4 times by this age with Cori. And now I think we're at the stage where we will have to with Ben.

Then there is the middle of the night waking. Like clockwork around 2 AM, Ben wakes up and is up for a while.  The crying only comes if we ignore him or try to put him back into his crib. But otherwise, he is just wide awake. Sometimes he wants to play and laughs (it's like he KNOWS he is cute so he can get away with mocking us). And he only falls back asleep on his own terms - when he wants to and gets tired enough.  The other night it was 5 AM... yes, 3 hrs later.


Like I said, good thing he is cute. Here he is with his favorite food - yogurt.  Which he also knows is a great moisturizer... it's always all over his face!

Slumber My Darling

This is a song written by Stephen Foster in 1862, but if you haven't heard Alison Krauss sing it (with Yo Yo Ma playing cello as part of the melody) then you are missing an incredible piece of music!  Maybe it's because Ben is growing up so fast these days, but I hear this song and can't help but tear up a little bit. I guarantee that if you have a child, this song will move you!

Slumber, my darling, thy mother is near,
Guarding thy dreams from all terror and fear,
Sunlight has pass'd and the twilight has gone,
Slumber, my darling, the night's coming on.
Sweet visions attend thy sleep,
Fondest, dearest to me,
While others their revels keep,
I will watch over thee.

Slumber, my darling, the birds are at rest,
The wandering dews by the flow'rs are caressed,
Slumber, my darling, I'll wrap thee up warm,
And pray that the angels will shield thee from harm.

Slumber, my darling, till morn's blushing ray
Brings to the world the glad tidings of day;
Fill the dark void with thy dreamy delight--
Slumber, thy mother will guard thee tonight,

Thy pillow shall sacred be
From all outward alarms;
Thou, thou are the world to me
In thine innocent charms.

Slumber, my darling, the birds are at rest,
The wandering dews by the flow'rs are caressed,
Slumber, my darling, I'll wrap thee up warm,
And pray that the angels will shield thee from harm

Goodbye December & 2012

The Christmas holiday was nice for us, but I won't be sorry to see December go. This has been the month of illness for us and we're still recovering. Ben had a cold and then an ear infection in one ear and then it switched to the other ear.  Dave had a cold and the stomach flu at the same time.  I caught a cold mid December and had the stomach flu as well. I was finally was forced to see the doctor when I spiked a fever this week; the cause was impacted sinuses. I was exhausted each day and was slowly starting to feel better, but now I"m starting to feel worse again. And I'm still on my antibiotics so I'm not sure what is going on.  My facial bones feel like they are going to explode through my skin or I was on the losing end of a boxing match.


This may really be the Angel of Death during the plague of the firstborn, but I think it's the Angel of Illness marking our door...

Cori seemed like she was escaping everything until she came down with a cold on Christmas Eve. A few days later, she wasn't any better and was really lethargic, not at all herself. That night she got a fever of 103, so I took her to Med Express the next morning. Turns out she had pneumonia! She is getting better with her medicine thank goodness but I'm ready to Lysol bomb our house.

Christmas Morning

With Umma

Adoring Amelia

Ben opening gifts

Cousins

We enjoyed spending time with our extended family during our time off, though we did have to say goodbye to one of my best friends - Angie officially moved to Washington DC with her family. I'm going to miss her so much!

I'd also like to wish my brother a happy 37th birthday since I couldn't do it in person today. Darn illnesses! Love you DJ!

Wishing you all a very happy and healthy and joyful 2013!

Phipps 2012

 It's almost Christmas! We're just about ready - the tree is up and decorated, all the gifts are purchased, the cards are out, we're in the holiday spirit, and lots of baking has commenced (I'm almost through a 25lb bag of flour from Costco - wow!). Because just about everything was taken care of, karma had to swing through town and bestow her gift to our house... illness!

Dave got a disgusting stomach flu, Ben has the return of an ear infection (other ear's turn) and a nasty cold, and because I'm a lucky girl, I both the horrible stomach flu AND the awful phlegm-y cold.  I'm currently laying in bed trying not to cough too hard lest it hurt my sore stomach even more.  Somehow, knock on wood, Cori escaped the evil clutches of illness for now.   On to happier things....

Last weekend we did our annual trip to Phipps for their winter flower show. I was somewhat dreading it because of the crowds, but everyone else must be running behind this year cause the place wasn't very full at all! The flowers didn't disappoint as usual, and the kids were even on their best behavior.

 



The last sentence explains why I can't grow orchids.
Growing orchids is a practice in patience.




This orchid smelled amazing!!! I had to capture the name of it in case I could ever find it in a nursery.

I love orchids - can't grow em or keep them alive, but I sure can appreciate them!

We came to the train set up and Ben was in heaven. I'm sure there were angels singing somewhere in his little mind. He was all smiles!

waving bye-bye to the trains

We always go to Phipps when it is the Saturday with the Sugar Plum Fairy day - the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre puts on an hour long free event for the kids. They read the Nutcracker story and the kids get to dance with some ballerinas. Cori was starting to get very tired by this point, but she still had a great time.


Cori & The Sugar Plum Fairy

neat jump shot of the ballerinas

November slipped away

November slipped away somehow. Whoops! Not really of course, but on this blog. Busy busy around here.  Ben started walking which seemed like it was never going to happen. I'm sure that soon enough he'll be running. He is (and actually already was) climbing on things and being quite the daredevil. So funny how boys are so different than girls!

We flew down to Atlanta for Thanksgiving to see family and my Godchild Katie who is 2 months old. Her mom and dad don't want any pictures of her posted online, so I can't share her sweet adorableness, but she is a real sweetheart! Ben did very well on his first plane ride, and Cori was thrilled to be back on a plane in general. Dave and I had quite a workout schlepping all the car seats and luggage through the airport; it made for a very long day. Add in an awful stomach flu (for me) for 2 days and things were looking not so good. But we had lots of cheer from visiting and telling stories and decorating the Christmas tree.

Cori adds the angel to the tree top

Ben too was enthralled with the tree, even in a more "natural" state

The weather was wonderful. Lots of sunshine and we didn't need a jacket at all! It was in the 60s and 70s while we were there, which allowed the kids to burn some energy off outside while we cooked Thanksgiving dinner.

And even though Katie isn't using her nursery yet, the kids made good use of it by "racing" her rocking animals in there!

Right now Ben is fighting an ear infection, a bad cold and an awful cough around his voice box that makes him sound awful. We're still trying to get him to talk more and use words instead of pointing and grunting. He still has very limited words and though he comprehends everything, his expressive language is lagging. We keep reading to him and talking to him and trying to get him to use words, and we'll see where he ends up.

Cori has been experiencing a lot of school-related anxiety.  Her teachers have noticed it, and we think it's the source of her not doing so well with the multi-step directions. Upon talking to her teachers more, it's like she is so afraid of messing up that she freezes and just sits there.  There is also an aspect that she is scared when it lunch time because her teachers make her (and all the kids) try a bite of everything. And Cori is a very picky eater.  She has said each day that she doesn't want to each lunch as soon as she finds out that it is a school day.  I've asked her how she feels and she said it makes her feel scared and sad. We're trying to reassure her but she just needs to get through it.  We're going to work on confidence building as well, but this is all new territory to us too. 

 In the meantime, we're counting down the days until Christmas. The house is decorated except for the tree which we are getting this weekend.  Hopefully we'll be able to finish the Christmas cards this week and I can wrap up the gift shopping this weekend.  We're enjoying December as a family and looking forward to Christmas!