7QT: Life Lately

1. Claire has been skipping naps a lot lately. My first thought was that getting more physical activity in the mornings would solve the problem. But on days that she gets in a full hour of exercise at gymnastics? No nap. She just talks to herself in her crib for an hour. Today we just went to the library for story time and she's been napping for two hours. Weird. I know she still really needs that nap though because on days when it doesn't happen, she's ready for bed at 6:00 pm. When I say ready, I mean full-on exhaustion tantrums. Then she'll sleep for the next thirteen hours....so I suppose it's not that bad because we get about the same amount of toddler-free time either way. But on no-nap days Adam barely gets to see her at all, which is obviously not really ideal.

2. Speaking of weird sleep patterns, let's talk about Maggie. The majority of the time, she only wakes up once during the night now. But she is not a nurse-to-sleep kind of girl, so once she's up, she's wide awake for at least an hour. I think I'd almost prefer her getting up like three times and actually falling back asleep easily. I know we've still got it pretty good as far as sleep deprivation goes; I'm just not sure why Maggie thinks there's a party at 2:00 am every day.

3. Although I definitely love having an excuse to justify my excessive sweet tooth, I am not usually hungrier than normal while pregnant. But while nursing, I am constantly starving. This makes sense, since nourishing a baby on the outside does burn more calories than growing a baby on the inside. I just feel like it's not really socially acceptable, you know? Like as soon as you have a baby you should be immediately focused on dieting to lose the pregnancy weight. Although losing the pregnancy weight and looking like you did before you got pregnant are two very different things, I've come to learn...

4. Maggie wore her first cloth diaper this week! I still need to order some more before she can wear them all the time (we only have twelve right now) but that will happen soon enough. Seeing the girls in matching cloth diapers reminded me that I just really like having two kids in diapers and that I'm happy to let potty training wait for a good long while. Hopefully right around Maggie's first birthday, when Claire is about two and a half. Diapers are easy and easy is definitely what I need right now.

5. Since Adam has three older brothers and one younger sister, so he grew up in a pretty male-dominated household. But, my, how the tables have turned, because he now lives in a house where the only Olympic sport we watch is figure skating. Mostly because our antenna only picks up the Spanish channel so we've just been showing Claire clips online. Adam's parents generously gave us their cable password so we could watch some of the online streaming, but it's been painfully slow for us. It's the only time I wish we had cable. Too bad they don't sell special Olympics coverage subscriptions!

6. I have been trying really hard to use up all the odds and ends in our pantry before we move. So, in honor of Valentine's Day, I made turtle brownies with just a plain box of brownie mix, some sweetened condensed milk I turned into caramel using this method, and some leftover pecans. Super delicious. We're planning to have a fun steak dinner after the girls are in bed tonight and then on Monday we're going on a date! We pretty much only frequent Chipotle, Five Guys, and Potbelly's with kids in tow, so I'm really excited to eat somewhere with actual waiters and menus.

7. Adam gave me pretty much the best Valentine's Day gift ever earlier this week - a ticket to the Edel Gathering! I am equal parts excited and nervous about it. Maggie takes bottles and I don't mind pumping, so I'll be on my own for the whole weekend, which is so crazy to think about. This time last year, we found out we were pregnant with Maggie, though, so I think that will always top the list of amazing Valentine's Day gifts.



Go see Jenn for lots more quick takes. And remember that you are loved today!