Today, Abigail turned two. Or as she would like to have you know, “Monday.”
For the last few weeks we’ve been asking her how old she’s going to be, or how old she is…the answer is always “Monday.”
We don’t understand why, but that’s the way it is.
So to my lovely ladybug, the love of my life, my sunshine on cloudy days…
…I’m so happy to be the mama of a little girl who’s Monday.
So, we made this transition last night.
The toddler rail went on the crib.
Abby had started this new life plan which included waking up anytime between 1 am and 4 am crying, DEMANDING to go into our room and sleep in our bed. I would try to just hold her in her room, or rock her in the chair in the corner, but no good. Hysterical, gag-crying, screaming “GO RIGHT DERRRR!” while pointing to our bedroom. And it’s 2:17 in the morning. And I’m totally fucking tired. So, YES. PLEASE SLEEP IN OUR ROOM IF IT MEANS I CAN SLEEP RIGHT NOW. PLZTHX.
Yeah. That got old. And fast. So during her two year wellness check yesterday**, her doctor recommended we try a toddler bed. Maybe she just doesn’t like the whole ‘behind bars’ thing. I get that. Who wants to sleep while constantly fearing becoming someone’s bitch and making sure you don’t drop the soap? Granted, I don’t think she’s aware of those kinds of fears, but I’m sure there’s some toddler-equivalent to frightening prison situations. Like not being able to watch Mickey Mouse whenever or being forced to use a binkie with “ackies” on it. Or child labor.
When I got home from work yesterday I swapped the crib rail for the toddler rail, and waited for the hubs to get home with Abbers. He had told her we had a surprise for her, and when she got in the room and saw it…it was nothing but smiles and squeals and proclamations that “it’s boootiful!!” “BIG GIRL BED!!!!1!!1!”
It was a huge success. The rest of the evening she sat in her bed demanding we bring her books so she could lay and look at them in her big girl bed. We gladly obliged.
She slept through the night in her new bed.
**Yeah, my kid is going to be two. TOMORROW. What? Like, WTF. She moved into the “Older Toddlers” room today at daycare too. I’m pretty sure tomorrow she’s going to start stealing my makeup and planning trips to the mall with her girlfriends AND MOM PLEASE DON’T EMBARRASS ME LIKE THAT. That’s all happening tomorrow. When she turns two. This is all happening too fast. Someone hand me a bottle of wine.
Last night, the hubs, Abbers and I went to see Yo Gabba Gabba live. It was pretty freaking awesome if I do say so myself.
When it started, Abby didn’t really know what the hell was going on. She started crying and saying, “Go home, Mama! Go outside!” I just kept saying, “Hold on! I swear it’s going to be awesome in like, 10 seconds! Just hang in there!” And then it DID get awesome and then it was total awe and zoned-out staring and OMGTHISISTHECOOLESTTHINGEVER. I finally set her down in the aisle to dance and that’s when she was totally sold.
They took what seemed like the longest intermission EVAR (which in reality was like, 20 minutes) and the whole time, Abby kept asking, “More Gabba Gabba? More?!” And when it finally came back on she was a dancing, smiling lady. I don’t think she’s ever had more fun. In the bath later in the evening, she played with her Yo Gabba Gabba tub toys and yelled “YO GABBA GABBA LIVE!!!” for the duration of her bath.
Highlights of the evening (for me, of course) included seeing LESLIE HALL (love her), Biz Markie & Biz’s beat of the day, realizing I knew the words to EVERY SINGLE SONG, and last but definitely not least, finally meeting my internet friend Melissa. We’ve been web-pals since The Bump and had our chit’lins within days of each other. We live like, 15 miles away from each other? Never ONCE have we met. We got to meet each other’s families and I finally got to meet her adorable daughter Olive (that name was on my list. The hubs said no. LOVE. THAT. NAME). I’m so SO glad we finally met. It’s time for playdates and little girl friendships. STAT. And maybe our kids can hang out together too.
Here’s a few pictures from last night and your pal and mine, Instagram.
Abby & her "DJ Lance" glasses.
Olive & Abby
"MOM. BROBEE IS ON THE STAGE. PAY ATTENTION."
Leslie Hall. In all her glitter glory.
Yay Interwebs!!
(Yeah. I don’t need to tell you that I’m really sucking at this blogging thing right now. But I’m not going to apologize. Sometimes life happens and I just need to go away for a bit and then come back and be like WHAT’S UP BITCHES and it’s like nothing happened. Right? RIGHT.)
Anyway. My post about my BlogHer experience became a casualty of my unannounced blogging break. And now it’s a month later and I don’t really remember all the awesome things I wanted to write about.
Mostly though, it boils down to this. BlogHer is what you make it. I had SO MUCH FUN with my ladies. I love them all. There is no doubt in that. And I miss them terribly. I’m secretly hoping that Florida and Washington state have weird earthquake like-thingys that mysteriously drag them to the midwest. And then I will be complete.
If next year happens for me, I might just be buying an expo & party pass. Because let’s be honest. That’s what I’m good at. (I rocked the expo particularly well this year. Yes, this is foreshadowing for a future post.) Not to mention Mandy and I made the Sparklecorn video for a second year in a row. (Check 1:53 & 2:22 specifically for yours truly.) We defaced the cake this year like the first time. But even better.
Anyway. BlogHer in photos. It was the highlight of my August.
But before I do, I’m offering up this:
OMGIMSOTIREDOFBEINGBUSYBLARGWTFBBQ
Seriously. I have been away from my home for the past three weekends in a row. Two of them without Abby. AND I AM OVER IT. Upon getting home on Sunday I started nesting and it carried through yesterday and will continue this evening, because I just want SO BADLY to be at home, and to have my home be perfect for me to be in for a very long time. Or until we go away for Labor Day weekend. (uuuggghhhhhh.) (But it’s to see Pearl Jam. Yay!)
Anyway, I have a lot of fun stories and pictures to share. I promise. And I’ll try my damnedest to get something up this week.
Until then, enjoy these photos taken professionally (read: not blurry like most of mine) during the Hostess with the Mostess party.
I’m really good at not being sexy.
(clockwise from top left: Amanda, Beth Anne, me, Mae, Mandy and Andrea)
Out of curiosity, I just looked back on my OMGBLOGHER post I made last year, and weirdly enough, I could just copy and paste that post here and it would convey the same thing I feel right now. Except the thing about worrying about being mugged in New York. Or seeing a jumbo sewer rat. Now I’m worrying about drowning in the pool at the hotel in San Diego.
(No seriously. Someone keep an eye on me. Or bring me some water wings.)
Anyway – here I am again, a week away from being in sunny San Diego for BlogHer ’11 and I haven’t done ANYTHING to be prepared for it. Except probably piss off a bunch of my Twitter followers by blabbing about it. What’s worse this year is that I’m heading out of town tomorrow for the weekend (AIR SHOW IN WISCONSIN! FAMILY REUNION! EXCITEMENT! CAPS LOCK!) which essentially leaves me Monday to, you know…shop, pack, figure out which sessions I want to attend, and throw myself into a complete panic attack. With Abbers as my sidekick.
Can I pause for a moment to note that it is NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE to pack a suitcase with a toddler in the room? At least with mine it is. I’ll put like, 10 things in the suitcase, turn around to grab a pair of shoes and suddenly I’ll see Abby run by wearing my just packed underwear as a hat and all contents of my suitcase emptied out on the floor. It’s completely non-productive. Just pack when she’s sleeping, you say? Fat chance. I have one hour of “me time” after she goes down for the night before I personally pass out for the evening. So, I don’t want to start thinking about that shiz before I go to sleep. That’s when I start having panic dreams about forgetting all my party invites and not having a matching pair of shoes for the whole weekend away. (Yes, that can happen. Just ask my mom. Hi Mom!)
In reality, I don’t need to go shopping or panic. I know I’ll be meeting some new people this year, but last year I was so worried about fitting in and whether or not anyone was really even going to like me that new clothes seemed like the solution to all my problems. This year, I am most excited about seeing the friends I made last year. Friends who I KNOW don’t give a shit about what I wear to Sparklecorn or whether or not I re-wear the same pair of jeans the entire weekend. Or if I smell funny. Because I’m pretty sure it was hotter than a two-dollar whore on the 4th of July while we were in NYC and it’s safe to say I was sweaty. And probably a little gamy.
see? sweating. and I haven't worn that dress since then.
Regardless, my plan this year is to relax more, go to more sessions, spend as much time with my bloggy friends as possible and just HAVE FUN. Did I mention the hubs & Abbers are staying behind this year? I’m basically going to summer camp for the weekend, but instead of making friendship bracelets and dreamcatchers, I’ll be drinking wine and gabbing with the ladies of the interwebs that I love. (Seriously, my gal pals from last year? I love you.)
there's some ladies missing from this photo - but look! the bloggess!
All in all, I’m in an excited-panicky state. Which will probably grow more panicky as each day ticks by.
If you’ll be there this year, look for me! I’m really pretty friendly. A sarcastic asshole, but friendly. Unless you’ve got something against people who wear glasses. Then we’ll box.
(Just pretend I got these up five days ago.)
Happy splashes
the tongue out means she's stoked
semi-enthused about patriotism
viewing the (not famous) john phillip sousa band on dada's chest
Last Saturday night, my mother-in-law was kind enough to have Abby stay overnight so I could go out one night for adult beverages and some much needed time with my lady friends. We had so much fun, and I had my first hangover in a REALLY long time the next day. (McDonalds helped.)
We had sushi and then headed to a bar called Cafeteria in Uptown. It was much douchier than I had imagined, but we made the best of it. And then I posed on a diaper station.
This is what 2 glasses of champange and 3 beers will do to me.
Well, the fact that I am posting means I survived our first plane trip with the Abbers. For reals, Internets? She was a muthereffing rock star on that plane.
Blurry walking through the airport photo.
Getting prepared for the flight. With Goldfish.
She totally made that plane her bitch on the way there. Slept through takeoff and EVERYTHING. (Virtual high-fives.) Although, she never really understood that she was ON a plane. When we landed she was all “AIRPLANE! AIRPLANE!” upon seeing all the planes at their gates. I reminded her a couple times that DUDE WE ARE ON A PLANE but it didn’t really register.
Sidenote – you can check a carseat FOR FREE when you fly on Delta. I was not aware of that. Also? Awesome.
Anyway, we had a LOT of fun with the fam and Abby in the Bay Area. We hit up a few wineries on Friday afternoon, then headed to the Armstrong Redwoods State Reserve. All Abby wanted to do was climb the trees like her older cousins, whom she referred to simply as “BOYSSSS!!” Unfortunately, she was a bit too little to do the tree climbing thing.
Abby going for a hike while mom & dad get wasted at the vineyards. (just kidding.) (sort of.)
RedWOODS! (To be shouted like IngleWOOD!) (Like Dr. Dre.) (Duh.)
Saturday we headed into the city for some farmers market action and then a playground for the kiddies, as well as made an attempt to go shopping, but a random downpour ended that quickly. So, in typical Jenna fashion, we went back on Sunday to Haight Street where I bought two adorable new dresses, as well as a shirt for the hubs.
Dont even act like youre offended.
Then Monday morning we headed back to the airport with a toddler unwilling to nap. She did okay on the flight back, but had some ear issues upon landing. And then had some meltdown issues from not sleeping.
All in all though? It went really, really well. Thank you everyone for all the advice and willingness to listen to me freak out about this trip.
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Married since 2007.
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