New Blog Design and Header

So...do you like the new blog design? I got a super cute Supermom Mother's Day card this year from my mom and was inspired to use the cute designs (and "S" logo!) on it to make a new blog header and background, and here it is finally! It probably would have been much faster if I actually had the real photoshop, and not just Elements, and if I actually knew what I was doing in it. It has been fun, but I have now stayed up super late and will regret it tomorrow...Anyway, what do you think?

I earned my title today, thank you very much

For a self-proclaimed "supermom," I don't have that many days that demonstrate my supermom-ness. Except for maybe today.

Today I....

• Gave the kids baths
• Cleaned up vomit several times (which is why they got baths)
• Camped in a tent in the back yard with the kids
• Swept and mopped the kitchen and hallway
• Scrubbed and bleached all the garbage cans in the house
• Cleaned the kitchen counters and ran the dishwasher twice
• Washed and put away more than four loads of laundry.
• Organized our bedroom closet, picking out the things to go to DI (and those blue capris that I thought were goners actually fit me instead!)
• Rounded up all the winter gloves and hats and scarves and put them in their own bin. (Okay, I know it's July....)
• Got out the sewing machine and did all the mending that has been on my to-mend list forever, including make Leah a pair of cut-offs (and with a double needle, ooh, la, la!)
• Made cookies (with two preschoolers helping, mind you)
• Cleaned up after the cookies
• Had a steak and potato dinner ready when my husband came home at 6:00

Okay, so I guess if I delivered the cookies to my visiting teachees with a hand made card, I would get a few more points. I did pull one weed tyring to find the garden hose, but theres a lot more I didn't pull. And Samuel is still not potty trained....

Wait, I'm trying to make my case for Supermom.

Well, the night is young, maybe I'll still manage to get to the gym!

Supermom meets Storage Closet

Before

During

After

What this means is that I desperately needed to put away Christmas but didn't have anywhere to put it all!

Description: Installation of wire shelving, including 2 horizontal hangtracks, 5 vertical shelf tracks, 4 shelves 16"wide and 47" long(and room for another), plus a 35" shelf, and 12 shelf brackets. This project essentially doubled the storage capacity of my under-stairs storage closet, and magnified its accessibility immeasurably.

Project planning: 1 hour

Installation: 2 hours (That's it!)

Cost: it's not important (okay, it was twice what I thought it would be, but sooo worth it!)

Tools needed: Stud finder, pencil, drill, level, measuring tape, screws. (I would recommend a stud-finder that is a little better than the $8 kind, especially if you have loathful textured walls)

Helps: a half-dozen guys at Home Depot (not all at once...) and this 5-minute YouTube video.

Difficulty level: This was surprisingly simple! It was very important that I measured and mapped the wall first so that I knew exactly what kind of space I was working with and how many shelves I would get and where they would go. Then once I got the stuff, it was seriously easy to install!

Ta-Da!

Supermoms! Unite for Sunday sanity!

Kids in sacrament meeting. How do you do it? We have a few rules, like no snacks or activities until after the Sacrament, and they must sit on our laps or on the bench quietly during hymns and prayers. Then they can color or play quietly. We downsized from a big bag of Sunday toys to one toy per kid because it was just getting out of hand. One week was so bad, we actually practiced 10 minutes of reverent time and pretended we were waiting for the sacrament at home a couple nights throughout the week--the following Sunday showed marked improvment. But after that, we were back to our old, crazy, impossible Sacrament struggle. (Do you like my alliteration?)

Here is my latest One-Hour project. It is a one player bing0 board and the task will be for Leah to listen in the meeting and put a Sunbeam on the image when she hears the word mentioned: music, Holy Ghost, Missionaries, prieshthood, etc. You get the idea.
If she were older, I would have used more pictures with more complex principles.

The project consisted of sleuthing out some photos that represent concepts simple enough for a three year old to understand and putting them on a grid chart I made in Word. Then I printed it and laminated it and adhered a sticky velcro dot to each square. Then I did the same with sunbeams, and voila! It took me about an hour, so I made two. I even made a little pocket on the back to store all the little sunbeams in. Tomorrow will be the true test of its effectiveness.
Project break down:

• 10' roll of adhesive laminate: $20 (I'm so glad I didn't buy that $60 laminator, because this stuff works just fine for my purposes)
• 75 sets of adhesive velcro dots: $8.
• Of course, it helps that we already have a really good printer.

I have lots of laminate and velcro left, of course, so I want to make one for you! Here's how to get one. I want to hear how you keep your kids occupied during Sacrament Meeting. What are the rules you have? Do you allow snacks and activities? What kinds? If not, why not, and what do you do instead to keep order?

I'll report back after we've tried my new Bing0 game for two Sundays (So, July 12), and then I will pick a random winner among the commentors and I will make you your own bing0 game (and I will even put your family picture on it instead of mine!).

Happy commenting!

And to think, I didn't even use magic

Last week Leah announced that she wanted a Little Mermaid toy. So we made a deal that if she could go a week without having an accident, we'd go to the store and she could pick out whatever new toy she wanted (provided it was under $10). We then started marking a smiley face on her calendar for every day that she went without an accident, and then counted each consecutive smiley to see if we had reached seven yet.

Half way through the week, she decided she wanted a magic ("magzick") wand instead. "Okay--you can pick out whichever toy you want. But only one toy. Are you sure you don't want a Little Mermaid?" I asked.

Then on the way to Target today, she announced that she wanted a Little Mermaid Magic Wand. Okay--that might be harder. "I don't know if they have that. We'll have to look and see."

We went straight to the toy department. As we walked toward the girly aisle, lo and behold, there on the end display I spotted a basket with $4 magic wands. Princess wands.

And so, in less than 10 seconds, we found this:

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, it is a Little Mermaid Magic Wand.

Why I rinse my dishes

I used to be one of those people that just assumed dishwashers were magical and did all the work for you, and I'd pack it full of dishes adorned with all sorts of crusty food particles. I thought it was ridiculous to pre-wash your dishes before putting them into a machine that washes them for you. Isn't that, like, doing it twice? Something has happened that has led me to believe, and whole-heartedly urge you to believe in rinsing your dishes before putting them in the dishwasher, lest you learn the lesson the same way I learned it.

Story: Someone must have loaded the dishwasher wrong (there is a right way and a wrong way, believe it or not, because plastic melts on the hot metal rods at the bottom, and water collects in cups that face up). The dishes weren't getting clean. In fact, the soap wasn't even getting wet. Strange. After trying the same load several times and still having the same load dirty and the same collection of soap turning into a baked, soap cake, I decided to investigate. The water-spraying arm at the top was not really rotating freely, and there was water sploshing out (is that a word?) randomly when I tried to spin it. Strange. Upon further investigation, I noticed that there were little food particles clogging up each of the holes in said spray arm--it looked like the stuff you pick out of your teeth after you've eaten corn on the cob, only bigger. Kinda gross. I employed pliers to get some of the gunk out and gave it another spin. Interesting. This is going to be a little more work that I thought.

Fast forward a few hours, and with the help of Google and an appliance website, this is the picture you would see: I've positioned our coffee table over the door of the dishwasher so I can sit on the table and reach my head inside without removing the dishwasher door (too much work). I've got some trusty tools handy, and I've removed the top spray arm and cleaned the gunk out. I found a piece-by-piece diagram of our particular dishwasher online so that I could carefully take apart the bottom spray arm and the filter pieces below it and subsequently put them all back together correctly. It was kind of addicting to realize that I could take apart the next piece and just go one layer deeper--how rewarding would it be to purge one more layer of gunk?

Supermom tip: Did you know you can Google the model number of an appliance and find diagrams, instructions, and parts? This is very useful. I even found this one appliance parts store that will add the part you need to their directory within a day or two so you can buy it from them (helpful if you only want to pay for shipping from one place).

Did you know there were so many parts involved in a dishwasher? Secondly, do you know what you are supposedly "washing" and "sanitizing" your dishes in regularly? I'll spare you the gruesome details, but there is an awful lot of nasty gunk that accumulates in your dishwasher. Some of it you'd recognize as last week's spinach, a tomato seed, or the sticker from your apple, and the rest you'd rather not know what it used to be, not to mention years' worth of deposits from the water itself. Really gross. Think of it this way: if it could get stuck in your teeth, it's probably stuck somewhere inside your dishwasher.

I've now had the reflux-inducing experience of dissecting my dishwasher in order to un-clog, clean, and repeatedly bleach all the parts I could get to with a simple screwdriver. If this doesn't make me Supermom, I don't know what would.

Yes, I do believe that dishwashers are amazing and terrific and time-saving, but they are not magical. All that food has got to go somewhere!

And that is why I now rinse my dishes.

The stars have aligned over DeKalb, Illinois

When I started college in 2001, my mom made a playful challenge with me regarding which of us would finish our degree first: me my undergraduate, and she her dissertation for her PhD. Well, in the 7 years since then I not only finished my undergraduate degree, but I also got married, had two babies, and moved four times. It's taken mom a few extra years, but not because she hasn't been working hard: she has been doubling as a dutiful daughter for her parents when they have been in need and a dutiful parent to her own children, she has faithfully served in the church and learned college-level Spanish in the process, has married off two children and welcomed 5 grandchildren, gone on countless trips, made two additions to her house, and so much more, all while working full-time.

Over the course of the past year she has truly "put her shoulder to the wheel" and dissertated day and night, hardly stopping to eat and sleep. Dad has been an ever faithful background hero, stepping in to do the laundry, dishes, shopping, cleaning, and so many more unsung duties. The past two months have been up and down with emotion of whether she would finish her dissertation in time, with deadlines, approvals, and revisions, and her committee members summer plans ultimately determining whether she would be able to defend her dissertation in time for August graduation.

And then the stars aligned. Mom has all the paperwork signed and is scheduled to defend her dissertation on June 17, only days after her advisor gets into town and mere hours before she leaves again for Europe. Mom has testified to me again and again that it is truly through the aid of the Lord that she has been able to overcome each obstacle as it has arisen. She is finally seeing the culmination of years of hard work and sacrifice. She truly is Supermom!

This is a shout out to Mom! Congratulations! And to Dad, you are truly a hero to help make this possible! This is the greatest gift that Mom could give Dad for Father's Day: herself!

Supermom Hits China

Watch this video and tell me you would have done the same thing.

*Sigh of Contentment*

Whew.

I just got home from a fantastic trip to Washington; I survived a solo flight with two children in tow; The baby is sleeping through the night; I slept in this morning; Spring is finally here, the buds have blossomed, and it was warm enough for flip-flops and capris, which fit; I had a restful day, stocked the fridge, and we had a great time at a neighbors BBQ; The kids are both bathed and put to bed and its only 9pm; I'm off the clock and have Netflix and Häagen-Dazs wating for me downstairs. Thus, I sigh with relief and exhaustion.

Okay, so tomorrow I have a meeting in the morning, followed by the usual marathon day at church; I haven't unpacked yet; I haven't blogged about my trip yet; I'm getting 3 fillings on Monday; I have to pay the bills, potty train Leah, and catch up on everything I missed in the past week...but for now, I'm sighing that great, albeit temporary sigh of contentment that everyone is fed and clean and happy and I can put my feet up and rest for the evening. These moments don't happen that often, but I am going to embrace this one. I think this is what I'd call a Shining Moment.

Code Green at Checkstand 12

After spending several hours wandering aimlessly at a favorite one-stop shop (should I keep it nameless?), we finally headed toward the exit. Mom was a little frazzled, the baby had a poopy diaper, and Leah was wired to say the least. It was 5:00: time to go home, have dinner, and finally unwind. The checker sensed my exhaustion and gave me kudos for sticking it out, reminding me that his best memories are with little kids in tow. I sighed and responded "by the time we get home, everyone will be crying" (and I fully meant for that to include me).

Oh, what a prophesy. Leah had been happily pushing the cart along with me, being a super trooper after a too-long afternoon, when merely moments later she biffed it and split her chin open on a metal rail of the shopping cart. You'd think that such an amount of blood with such a calibre of crying would warrant a "code red," but to the contrary, such is a "code green." I looked at the same kind checker (because we didn't get very far) and said "What did I tell ya?"

A code green warranted no less than six store personnel (maybe there were more), who converged upon us practically instantaneously and provided alcohol swabs, an ice pack, paper towels, an icee treat for Leah, and lets not forget to mention the incident report form. Why didn't anybody think to bring a bandaid?

Michal came to my rescue and provided moral support and baby-assistance while we went to Instacare. After a $35 copay, five stitches, and a sucker, we were home at 7:00. Leah was a trooper, but there was a significant amount of tears. Oh, and as she walked in the front door to our house, she fell on her face and gave herself a fat, bloody lip. Figures.

Just for the record, the adrenaline of an over-extended, accident-prone afternoon combined with an Icee, a sucker, and cookies in a two hour period before dinner makes a two year old completely unreasonable and literally bounce off the walls. Subsequently, the parents begin to go BONKERS!

Doubly Serendipitous

When my parents visited in January, Dad brought us a double stroller that was donated by a family in their ward who no longer needed it. Upon examination and with a little scrubbing, I realized that it had some pretty neat features. Both seats recline, the front seat converts for quickly snapping in an infant car seat, and the back seat is completely removable, converting into a rear-facing jump seat or a standing platform for a toddler. How cool is that!

After spending several hours investigating the features of this mysterious contraption and trying to realize its true potential, I decided to hunt down the user manual. I went to the BabyTrend website hoping to find a manual based on the product number but had no success. Thinking I had nothing to lose by trying, I filled out the customer service questionnaire on the website asking if they had the instructions for this older-model stroller. Within an hour I had a response, and by 5:00 Chris came home with a 20-page fax of instructions! This is the first time in a long time I've had a good customer service experience. We've already been on an all-family walk with the stroller!

Here's another great find: On Saturday, I was pulling through the drive up DI drop-off with a box of stuff to donate when I saw a lady drive in with a truck-bed full of stuff. In it was a double child bike trailer. I've been anticipating that someday we would get one of these, but seeing as it costs several hundred dollars for a decent one, I knew it wouldn't be any time soon. I sat there idling in my car for 3o seconds debating what I knew I should do. If I didn't do it, I would always wonder and regret. In a decisive instant, I put the car in park, got out and knocked on this woman's window. "Are you getting rid of the bike trailer?" "Yes." "Can I buy it from you?"

I would have given the woman $20, or possibly more for it, but she offered to just give it to me for free...after all, she was going to donate it for free. (Should I feel guilty that DI didn't get it?) I excitedly wheeled it back to my car, only to realize that it was huge and would be a project to fit it into a Honda Civic. We tried and pushed and shoved, with a line of cars waiting and honking behind. I ignored them. After several minutes, the drive-through attendants had me pull out so we could try again in the parking lot where people weren't waiting behind me.

I know its lame to do that at DI, but I knew I would never forgive myself if I didn't try. I guess you have to be gutsy like that and make a fool of yourself if you really want something (and for free nonetheless!) With some instructions, some new tubes in the tires, and a little TLC, this will also be in great working condition. What a find! and definately a Supermom moment!

So with these two new acquisitions, our total number of strollers is now up to five. (Three too many--I think I'll be selling our other ones) Now I just need to figure out where to put them all!

It really is true that one mom's junk is another mom's treasure!

Women of Power

This week the women around here have proven themselves. My mom spent the week taking care of me; she loaded and unloaded dishes repeatedly, changed diaper after diaper for two, tolerated my toddler, cooked delicious and nutritious meals three times a day, cleaned my bathroom, did at least one load of laundry per day, scrubbed the floors, stocked my pantry, provided emotional support, was my personal seamstress, even polished my toaster, and the list goes on. In sum, she was everything but the wet-nurse. (That was my job).

One evening she lamented that my vacuum cleaner wasn't working, otherwise she'd vacuum the rugs and stairs. I had already made several attempts to unclog the hoses, had even attempted flushing them with water, and was at a loss for what else could be wrong with it. My friend Julie was here and volunteered her vacuum-repairing skills. In a matter of 15 minutes, and with the aid of a screwdriver and a long wooden pole, we had removed a large soggy hairball (gross) and a plastic outlet cover from the hose, and thereby had a fully functional vacuum cleaner. That was certainly a women-of-power moment for all of us, even if all the credit goes to Julie.

One of the requests I had made of my mom for this week was for her to make decent curtains for the kids' room. She kept saying that curtains were an easy, single-day project, so I busted out my sewing machine and set her to work. We picked out a fun, colorful plaid decor fabric, and she fairly easily made four panels for the main window. But the architectural half-circle window at the top was a bit of a challenge. This window was the most important of all to cover, since uncovered it causes the room to bake by mid afternoon, and Leah would often complain that the lights were on at nap time. It was obvious that generations of residents have tried tactic after tactic to make some kind of window covering stay in place, as there was evidence of several types of tape and even Velcro adorning the window frame.

After entertaining many theories about possible ways to cover this window, we (or I should say, Mom) settled upon a flexible rod with brackets to hold it in place. The curtain itself is a long rectangle with two casings, gathered at the bottom...simple enough, right? This portion of the project took several days and a return trip to the fabric store, but it is quite a victory as the installation

instructions were completely useless and mom basically invented the curtain on her own. Kudos to you, Mom! You are a woman of power!

So what did I do this week to be a woman of power? Does baking bread count if you make it in an automatic breadmaker? I didn't cook or clean a thing, but I think it's worth something that my body just made a baby and delivered it successfully, and that my body now produces an insane amount of milk for this tiny baby to subsist on for the next year. That makes me a woman of power, thank you very much.

Yes, I take advice from chocolate

I found out I was pregnant with Leah on a Friday. The following Sunday, I snagged a chocolate out of the Bishop's candy jar. This is what the wrapper said:

Celebrate the child within you.

I thought that was really cool. I laminated the candy wrapper and put it in a scrapbook.

So, it's been a busy week. On days when I actually have a car to drive (meaning I drove my husband to work at quarter to 8--before I prefer to grace the world with my crusty presence and morning breath), I have to make the most of my errand-running time, of course working around lunch and nap time. Monday was a doctor's appointment and grocery shopping and car cleaning. Tuesday was filled with Relief Society duties. Yesterday I stayed home and went through paperwork and made piles of things to put away. Cleaning up a mess in and of itself creates an entirely new mess. Well, when I say I did paperwork, I mean I spent several hours preparing documentation for a dozen FLEX account transactions throughout the year. Yes, it was a good thing I kept the receipt for that Pepto-Bismol. Today, I swapped babysitting with my neighbor, and in my hour and a half, I made copies of all the paperwork from yesterday and did some birthday and Christmas shopping. Then, even though my child was now in tow, I went visiting teaching, made a Relief Society drop-in visit, and spent $135 at Sam's Club (and in only 45 minutes!) while my child was sound asleep in the shopping cart. How I wished it could have been me asleep in the shopping cart. I think everyone I passed (and they all ogled that there was a kid sound asleep in the cart) saw the sleepiness in my eyes and the half-speed shuffle in my step.

While at Sam's I gravitated toward the free food samples. One of them was Dove chocolates...irresistible. The lady gave me one of each kind, regular chocolate, dark chocolate, and extra dark. This is what the wrappers said:

You're allowed to do nothing.

Flirting is mandatory.

Celebrate the freedom to indulge.

I was grateful for the validation to indulge, since that was my third chocolate in 90 seconds, and it was the extra dark one. As for the second one, I will remember that when Chris gets home from class.

But do nothing? What a relief! I'm so burned out that I'd love to do nothing! Here's what I could be doing right now: make pies for Sunday dinner, research how to successfully cook a turkey, scrub the kitchen floor, disinfect the kitchen counters, remedy that the kitchen curtains are encrusted with cheerios and toddler face-prints, attack the piles I made yesterday, wrap birthday and Christmas presents, attend the sewing class at church, put Christmas lights in the windows, put up that infernal kitchen cabinet that still adorns my living room, and essentially play SuperMom until I run myself into the ground.

But I'm doing nothing. And I'm allowed to do nothing. In 45 minutes Leah will be in bed and I will put up my feet and commence nothing. I will possibly watch Tuesday's House, flip channels randomly while sipping hot cocoa, read a book, blog, or something equally underproductive, because I have permission! Sorry, but SuperMom is not in tonight!

Evidence

Am I really SuperMom? Here is some evidence for and against my case. I'll let you be the judge.

Evidence for: I'm playing peek-a-boo with my toddler--a game that never seems to get old.
Evidence against: I'm playing peek-a-boo over the screen of the laptop as I attempt to ignore my child to write a blog post.

For: I attempt daring maneuvers such as "lidding" a sippy cup with one hand while looking another direction.
Against: I left the dishwasher and kitchen cabinets open while attempting such a ridiculous maneuver.
Against: I underestimated the splatter potential of a sippy cup full of grape juice.

For: My child repeats really cute phrases that we say.
Against: I said the wrong word when I lost control of the sippy cup.

For: I once cleaned an entire apartment using mainly Pine-sol and Mr. Clean Magic Erasers.
Against: That was 11 months ago.

For: I intuitively put my child to bed wearing fleece pj's for the first time this season mere hours before our furnace stopped working.
Against: I went to the outlet mall anyway to buy fleece pj's.

For: I'm making my child a Halloween costume for the second year in a row.
Against: I don't have time to make my child a Halloween costume and have been grumbling about the commitment the entire time.
Against: I don't have a Holloween costume for myself!

For: Given detailed instructions, I can assemble cabinets and furniture by myself.
Against: Things I assemble by myself usually tend to fall apart by themselves.

Let the judging begin....

True Confessions

1. Although I am 24 years old, I continue to eat macaroni and cheese several times a week.

2. On a semi-annual basis, I take approximately 20 minutes to satisfy my need to fill in on Hollywood gossip. I know, S.A.D.

3. I just finished using a 40 oz. container of shampoo. It took me two years. (And I even rinse and repeat...)

4. It doesn't take much for me to cry: A Baby Story, a sappy movie ending, an AT&T commercial, you name it, I'm sniffly within seconds.

5. I eat food off the floor. (You remember the 10 second rule?)

6. My floors really aren't that clean.

7. I secretly hope to be the next American Idol.

8. I really don't enjoy being pregnant (...not to minimize the miracle that it is), but I'm taking several years off after this one.

9. On a regular basis, I don't change out of my pajamas until afternoon.

10. I still occasionally have (PG-rated) dreams about a guy I had a crush on throughout high school.

11. I'm really quite insecure and require validation for everything I do.

12. I'm really not Supermom. (It's a pathetic attempt to appear to do more than I am actually capable of)

The Residual Hero

I think I must be feeling better, because I spontaneously did another do-it-yourself project today. I was at Home Depot getting Weed & Feed and a fly swatter (owing to the holes in the back screen door) when I decided to pick up a new screen and the tools to replace the screen. A few months ago I happened upon a morning talk show that had a DIY demo (sponsored by Home Depot, no less) for replacing a screen, and I made a mental note of what was required. So tonight I came home and set to work!

While Chris has been at class, I've successfully replaced the screen and even managed to put it on the track. Now we can open the back door and vent our swamp cooler through the house properly, although I have to admit the screen is not very tight. At least it has no holes!

Total time for this project: 70 Minutes

Total number of websites consulted: One

Total cost: $13.35 (will likely be reimbursed by landlord, too!)

Total satisfaction: 80%

I also ran the dishwasher, cleaned the kitchen, trimmed the grass edges, potted and watered plants, put Leah to bed, and am now exhausted, waiting anxiously for when Chris comes home and tells me I deserve a bowl of ice cream. To be honest, I haven't felt like this in 6 months! Why can't I have such motivation and satisfaction from cleaning bathrooms?

Magical Me

One of our favorite assets is a really great street bike that we won in a drawing at the Provo Freedom Festival in 2004. (Never underestimate the power to fill out a million drawing entry forms...you may just win one!) We just wish we had two!

Chris has the luxury of working just 2 miles from home, so he frequently rides the bike to work so that he can get some exercise and I can have the car. Unfortunately, we get pinch flats all the time. We are both kind of clueless about this kind of thing, evidence being that our little tire pump is supremely inadequate and probably only fills our tires to about 20 psi. (If you know anything about bikes, this is not enough) Our good friends David and Michal are seasoned cyclists and gave me the ten minute low-down on how to fix a flat. Then for Chris's birthday I spent $20 at Walmart getting a tube repair kit and a decent floor pump with a pressure gauge.

Today I decided to venture out into the unknown to attempt to repair the tube myself. I have to say, I must have looked pretty goofy as I tried to figure out how to take the tire off the axle and as I puzzled over how to remove the tube from the tire. Picture me on my front porch bending over a tire with my pregnant belly, nicely combed hair, and with unusually dirty fingers scratching my head every 30 seconds. The repair kit came with patches, a metal buffer, and these goofy little hooks that I had no idea what they were for. I would just ignore them until it was absolutely necessary to use them for something. Sure enough, you definatley need the hook-thingy to get the tire off the wheel.

Then, I pumped up the tube a little to see where the air was leaking out. It was not hard to find. I followed the only two instructions on the repair kit, which were to buff the area around the hole and then apply the patch. So far so good. Then I faced the challenge of reinserting the tube into the tire, which I accomplished in only five minutes (half as long as it took me to remove the tube), and easily put the tire back on the bike, pumped it up as much as I could with my weak little arms (about 65 psi...), and rode around my parking lot beaming like a little kid on Christmas. I fixed a flat tire all my myself! I feel like superwoman!

Total time for this project: 30 Minutes
Total number of lifeline calls: Zero!
Total cost: $20
Total satisfaction: 100%

Now as a disclaimer, I will not post on my blog if the tire is somehow flat again tomorrow, and I have no idea what to do about brakes or those annoying chains that sometimes fall off...that's for me to learn in another life, and in this life, we'll have David fix for us. But come on, give me some credit here for getting my hands dirty and doing it by myself, no matter how much you want to laugh at me, oh wise bicycle sage!

Supermom's strategies for the sick

Disclaimer: This post is about vomiting...

I've realized over the course of the past three weeks that I have inadvertently developed strategies for dealing with pregnancy sickness; how to nip the nausea in the bud, how to make it wear off a little faster. Granted, my strategies don't always work, but at least they make me feel like I have some sort of control over my body.

1. The most obvious strategy I've recognized myself doing is that in the kitchen, I inhale deeply before opening the refrigerator, pantry, or garbage can, so that I have a prolonged exhale while said door is open. This way, I don't actually have to smell the fridge or pantry (even though they don't really smell that bad...to a pregnant woman, it's poison). Although, I must admit that there are times when even the thought of what the fridge smells like is enough to make me sick, even though my nose is closed.
2. Diaper changing. I tried using the same inhale/exhale strategy with stinky diapers, and it just took too long. I tried holding my breath or covering my face with my shirt, but then I just threw up in my shirt. So I've resorted to changing in the backyard if its cool enough, otherwise I open windows and sit under the swamp cooler to get the smell to quickly dissipate. So far this seems to be working.
3. Wait it out. Babyproof the room as well as possible, closing the bathroom door upstairs if Leah decides to venture up to her bedroom, and arming myself with the phone, the remote, and a bottle of tums, I lay inverted on the couch wimpering and restlessly drooping. (Just as long as no one rings the doorbell...)
4. I drink a big glass of water with breakfast. That way if it bounces back up, its not as gross.
5. Choice of breakfast foods: M&M's never seem to come back up.
6. Be sick. Get it over with and then promptly eat crackers and sprite and see if it stays down.

*Sigh* None of my techniques are actually fail proof. If only experience yielded improved performance.

My little angel

The baby's crying. It's 2am. Mother's Day. As usual, I respond with that sleepy charm I've managed to master. Baby girl just wants some love. Chris appears in the doorway and tells me to go back to bed--he's got this one. Be the rescuer or the rested? I choose rested. Leah starts bawling again when I hand her over, apparently she's a momma's girl today. I feel loved, but don't turn back.

After our weekly three-hour stint at church, Leah is ready for a loooong nap. She slept from 1-3:30, and played happily in her crib until I rescued her at 4. That's one heck of a Happy Mother's Day!

Well said

I think I'm always Schlub-Woman...