First Dental Appointment

on Thursday, June 3, 2010

O had her first dental appointment today.  I'm shocked at how well she did and kicking myself for not getting any pictures.  I scheduled an appointment for myself first and O second.  Apparently, there was a mix up and I didn't need to be there because insurance won't cover a cleaning for me just yet.  That's a different story.  We brought Chicka Chicka Boom Boom to read in the waiting room as it is her favorite book.  I think this is the first time she's ever not been entirely interested. 

Anyway, they called me in, sat me in the chair, found out I couldn't get  my cleaning and so they called O in.  I loved that she was able to sit on my lap and I think that made her feel more comfortable too.  The dentist came in first which is unusual and said that she just wanted to see how pretty O's teeth were and to count them.  She let O touch all of the instruments including the mirror and the pointy stick thing (I have no idea what the technical name is).  O did not like the light at all but the dentist called it Mr. Sunshine and she warmed up to it a little.  She said her teeth look great!  The dentist has a bit of trouble checking the bottoms because O loves to stick her tongue out when you tell her to say "ahhh".  She's such a cutie but had to say "cheese" so they could be counted.  Next was the part I was unsure she'd like, cleaning.  She let them use the electric cleaner and didn't start to cry.  I think it was because she already had her brand new dinosaur cup, brush and timer.

We ended our morning out to breakfast where we enjoyed french toast and strawberries.  I had the most massive latte ever complete with whipped cream.  What a pleasant first experience!

Welcome to June

on Wednesday, June 2, 2010

June is a busy month for our family.  We have two birthdays (my 25th and O's 2nd), Father's Day, numerous friends' birthdays and a multitude of other weekend summer events. 

We have been fumbling around with Tot school for a few months now but starting Monday (I know not June but close enough) we have a plan and are actually doing schoolish activities.  This week we are working on upper case A.  In all honesty, she can identify most of her upper case letters.  I feel it will be a good review for her to work through them one at a time before moving on to more challenging subjects as she's still very young.  We are throwing in some color and shape work as well but not primarily working on those.  A lot of the activities are based on improving her fine motor skills.  Updates will be coming soon!

June also signifies the growing season here in New York.  We planted two tomato plants and two pepper plants in containers and  we have one strawberry plant over at S's parents' house.  So far, our harvest is one strawberry.  Our biggest tomato plant has at least seven flowers and the smaller one has about five.  Our peppers look like they are about to flower.  My parents have a large garden with many different types of veggies.  We are looking forward to jarring some of them.  Also, we are hoping to repeat our apple and raspberry picking experience last year and make jams with those too  Yummy!  We are going to try to look for other farms to pick from too so we can get more variety.  This may turn out to be a very productive summer.

-M

Turning 25

on Thursday, May 27, 2010

I'm closing in on the big 25 very quickly now. I'm not really sure how I'm handling it. Some days it doesn't seem to matter and it is just an age but then other days it feels more like a rite of passage. I'm married, I have a child, I have a career and we have an apartment. What more should I want from 25?

Turning 25 to me means that you can no longer act childish or like a young adult.  Then again, I never really did.  I didn't party too much in high school or college.  I never dressed provocatively or tried drugs.  I'm not really sure what behaviors I have that are childish and I need to stop.  My appearance does have a bit of a childish way about it.  I usually dress like a little kid in t's and jeans all the time with some worn sneakers.  Perhaps, I could add some more blouses.  It means I need to be come a healthier mommy so my daughter has a good role model. While those two things should not happen because I'm turning 25 but to me 25 can be a beginning of a whole new chapter.  A new stage in the journey of life.

When I was younger, I had this time line planned out for my life.  I'm coming to realize in the past year that things do not always turn out as planned and although my life is not what I had wished for when I was younger, it's a damn good life.  With the exception of home ownership and becoming a doctor, I have accomplished most everything on the time line just not in the order it was planned.

Here's to 25 and all the possibilities it will bring!

And, we're back...

on Tuesday, May 25, 2010

First, I'd like to point out that GERMANY was my 100th post!  Everyone reaches this milestone at their own pace but I have to admit I'm a little disappointed that it took me so long to reach.  I'm unsure of the direction this blog is taking at the moment but I do know that I want it to be more family oriented as the title is focused directly on my relationship with my husband.

Second, other than the sights in that post our trip was less than stellar due to uncontrollable circumstances on our part but very controllable on our hosts' part.  We loved the sights, sounds, smells and all the beauty that is Europe but did not enjoy our "friend"'s constant remarks about everything we suggested or said not only to her but to our child and each other as well.  Through this experience I can honestly say that my husband and I have grown closer than we have in months.  Even with the amount of sorrow we experienced from the trip not meeting expectations we realized that we are for each other the person to turn to in a crisis. With that said, we will not be visiting or conversing with her again.  Germany is not the place you intend on losing friends but it can happen anywhere even on a once in a lifetime vacation.

Finally, speaking of lifetime... to be continued

GERMANY

on Thursday, May 20, 2010

Back but only for a moment

on Monday, May 10, 2010

When I last posted back in February things with my marriage were up in the air.  I'm happy to report that with a lot of soul searching, crying, long talks, some screaming, counseling and cold shoulder cool downs we are doing well together.  Every day is not always good but we are having more good days than bad.

At my physical exam,some medical issues came up that I was not expecting.  No one expects a routine physical to end with a massive headache, vomiting bile and news of a miscarriage.  The worst news of all  when the doctor said he found a lump in my breast.  It turned out to be a cyst but it certainly added some prospective to life.  When you believe everything you ever hoped for would end it makes you take less for granted.  This probably also helped me to realize I didn't want my marriage to end and needed to put forth more effort in making it work.

Also because of this health scare I have been contemplating what I really want from life. I am recommitting to my 101 things goals.  I'm going to review them and determine which are able to be accomplished and which I need to realize won't happen by goal date.  This will have to wait until after the 20th, however; because WE'RE GOING TO GERMANY

Rough Month

on Friday, February 12, 2010

There are a few different things going on in our house right now. Along with our marital problems which have continued with minimal improvements, we are trying to wean our daughter off of her nippy (boppy, paci, whatever it's supposed to be called). Tonight was the first night and she was up til about 10pm which is very late for her. Luckily, she didn't cry. She sang "Twinkle Twinkle" over and over. She doesn't know all the words so she just sings twinkle about eight times and then says star and repeat. I fear that nap time will be far worse as she won't be as sleepy.

I have a knitting project I want to start but need to admit I'm scared. I've never knitted a sweater before and am so afraid of messing it up that I haven't even cast on yet. In fact, I haven't even swatched for it yet. I also have a damn blanket that I hate so much that is just not wide enough for our liking. I need to add some side panels but I just don't really want to work on those either as they are going to be BORING! They are black garter stitch for about seven feet.

We had our taxes done today and all I can say about that is WOW!

That's all for now.

-M

Progress

on Monday, February 1, 2010

I've been making a lot of progress with my knitting projects. I finished up the blanket for a coworker that is currently on maternity leave. I gave it to her last Tuesday along with a few other gifts that we picked out from her registry. At first I loved this project but as I was nearing the end with little time to spare I began to dread it. Overall, it was a quick knit as far as blankets go and I do love the way it turned out.
This weekend I knit up this quick little hat for my younger brother. I LOVED this project. I have to say it is the first hat that I think turned out really well. I've tried it on numerous times and love it more and more each time. I might have to make one for myself.


-M

Some difficulties

on Wednesday, January 27, 2010

S and I are very much novices at this marriage thing seeing how we've only been married about 10 months. We dated for some time before but also threw a child into the mix before getting married as well. Right now, we are experiencing some difficulties. I feel I am mostly to blame for them and have been coming down rather hard on myself about them. I am really bad at telling S my feelings when things bother me and just let them fester to the point I blow up. I also don't let things go as I should. This morning, he asked me to put the dishes away three times before I finally blew up and started yelling about the dishes but also a few other things he had said throughout the week that shouldn't have been festering in my mind for so long. I'm beginning to wonder if I'll ever be able to change my behaviors and the way I deal with things that bother me or we'll end up divorced? I certainly don't want to end up that way but there is only so much a man can take.

-M

This pantry challenge...

on Sunday, January 24, 2010

did not work out so well for us. Instead of using up older things that we needed to get rid of we ended up using mostly everything. By this past week we were down to not much of anything. We went shopping on Friday and spent $200. So, we will end up over budget on the month we were determined to not spend more than $100. I'd like to chalk this up to a learning experience rather than an epic fail. Much to our defense our local store was having one heck of a killer meat sale so we did stock up for at least all of February and some of March. With this pantry challenge I did realized maybe it is not me overspending every single week but perhaps we do need to reevaluate our food budget.

-M

Some reflection...

on Tuesday, January 19, 2010

I went to visit some of my college friends in NYC this past weekend. We try to do this every few months. I love going and I love getting together with everyone again but one of our friends was missing. While she is not one of my best friends like the other ladies, she is one I met during my last year of college and had a shared social group. I knew she wasn't coming because I got a message from her two days before our outing. Through the glorious world of Facebook I could gather that she had been in the hospital at one point during the week but there was no mention of how long she was at the hospital, if she was admitted or if she simply wasn't coming due to a sprained ankle.

As we are women (and gossip is in our nature), the first thing I did when I saw one of ladies in our group was to ask about the "missing one". She had no idea. This got us both to wondering how much we all knew about why she didn't come. We asked the next friend that showed up and was relieved to find out she was all knowing or at least partly knowing. We then got almost the most devastating news I've ever heard. She had a stroke. "A stroke?" we asked baffled and yes we had heard correctly. She had no other information to offer to us. We all stood there for a minute trying to process the information we were just handed. Again, I asked, "A stroke? She's only 21." Again, I was told, "Yes, a stroke. They can happen at any age." At this time, we still do not have any more information other than she's still in the hospital.

Since finding out this news, I have been questioning a lot more things in my life. It makes you realized that life can change in an instant. It made me want to spend as much time with my family as possible because you never know when they'll be gone.

-M

Long Day

on Wednesday, January 13, 2010

At work, we've been waiting for this day for a long time. It was Judgement Day better know as the day officals from the government come to inspect. All I can say is I'm glad it's over and I think we did ok. Hopefully, everyone will ease up a bit in the office because this type of stress won't be back for at least two and a half years.

This is not the reason it will be a long day but it does make it seem so much longer. I decided last week that a double shift today would be a good idea. I work a 10 hour shift as does the person that comes in for the shift after me. This will make a 20 hour work day. When I choose to take the shift before mine as a double it is only a 16 hour day because she works an 8 hour day and our shifts overlap for two hours. I prefer the shift before mine but the money that comes from the shift after mine. There is no real winner here though because even though we will use the extra money to save for Germany I only have four hours off in the morning before coming back for my regular shift tomorrow afternoon. During that four hours I need to sleep and prepare for tomorrow's work day. I miss another whole day of O's life as well as a quality night sleep with my husband. This then makes me think... is it worth it?

-M

Grocery Shopping!

on Monday, January 11, 2010

We're on a challenge! While we aren't going as drastic as Crystal, Jessica and Erin among others but we are attempting to clear out some of our older pantry items and cut our current spending by about 1/2 for the month of January. We have noticed that we haven't stuck to our $50 to $60 food/household budget yet since moving. We are closer to the $90-$100 range. Some might consider the amount we are budgeting is too low if we keep going over but I know that's not the case. I know I keep throwing things in the cart that we don't need (soft drinks) and probably won't eat before they go bad (broccoli).

So, I have set a goal of 1/2 our alloted food budget for the month of January ($100) and then ease us back up to the whole food budget for February ($200) in the hopes that I won't go back to my old ways (almost $400).

Thus far, we've done well. The first week we spent $18 which was mostly on yogurt and a few fresh items. Today, I spent just over $30. I also bought a lamp and a swiffer today which are not included in that but all other household products have been included this month (soap, shampoo etc.). Next week is going to be tough, I think we'll need yogurt and diapers. If anyone knows us they know that yogurt should have it's own line in the budget.

Hopefully, this trend will continue through the month and on into the rest of the year!

-M

Knitting!

on Thursday, January 7, 2010

Oh how I love knitting! I have a massive collection of cheapy yarn and would really like to start buying some fancier stuff. If money was not an issue I'd have so much more neat stuff for my hobby. I have three works in progress (WIP) which is something I normally hate because I can't seem to finish any of them in a timely manner. I'm a very slow knitter and when I have more than one project going I tend to get a little overwhelmed. I'm working on two patterns from Lion Brand both using Homespun yarn. I'm also working on a suprise project which is half Lion Brand and half Sensations but not in those colors.

I taught myself how to knit when I was in high school I believe. It was either high school or my early years of college, either way about five or so years ago. I know I have written about it before but I'd like to start keeping better track of my projects and if I post on here hopefully I'll be able to post more finished items.

-M

We don't live in San Fran but

on Tuesday, January 5, 2010


SFFD Ambulance
Originally uploaded by So Cal Metro

O had her first emergency room visit today. My poor little pumpkin got a cut on the top of her head and in true daddy fashion my husband freaked out. He wanted to call an ambulance but I just laughed a little and agreed to drive her to the ER after looking at her head. It was a very tiny cut but if you've seen a head cut you'd know they bleed a ridiculous amount.

I have never been more impressed with an ER staff or visit before. We have a Peds ER as well as a grown up ER, in the same building, but because the Peds ER wasn't open (yes, the ER closes) the intake nurse called the grown up doctor and we were taken in immediately even after the nurse said the cut wasn't anything we should be worried about. She was checked out by a student doctor and then the overseeing doctor. Another nurse came and gave her all the juice she could ever want. (Little did that nurse know, such a great amount of juice in my toddler causes massive explosions) The registration clerk came to visit us while we were in our curtained room to take our insurance information so we didn't have to wait when we were finished. Within 10 minutes the discharge nurse came and we were on our way home. The whole experience from walking into the ER to walking out was about 50 minutes.

-M

PS: The cut was not even a cm and didn't require any staples or stitches. She never lost consciousness or even showed any signs of a concussion. The doctor advised against a CT scan.

My Goals for the New Year

on Sunday, January 3, 2010

Everyone needs to set some sort of goals for themselves, I am convinced of this. From working in a field I do I know how important believing you will reach your goals is. Last year, as I have pointed out earlier we (S and I) failed on many of our financial goals. We are recommitted to achieve our revised goals financially but I also set some personal goals that I didn't reach last year.

Goal #1 - Learn to make at least three types of yeast breads. I attempted this on Friday night. I figured it was the start of the new year why not get going on one of my goals. My first attempt was a total fail. I probably could have saved it if I just added more water but threw my floury mess into the trash. My second attempt while not a fail was not exactly success either. I was attempting to make a loaf of white sandwich bread but ended up with something closely resembling ciabatta bread. So, it was edible but not the results I was looking for. I will be trying this again soon. I am probably most excited about this goal because it is something I've never attempted before.

Goal #2 - Gift at least five knitted items. Last year, for Christmas, I made my brother's girlfriend a knitted bag and back in my early years of college I gifted some scarves to my cousins. Other than that, I've never gifted any of my knitted items because I have been afraid to do so. I never thought they were good enough to gift to friends or family but after the knitted bag I have a renewed confidence in my knitting abilities and want to start using my stash and give away some items. I have yarn picked out for a baby blanket for one of my friends. I don't know if I'll have enough time to finish it before the baby is born but I'm up for the challenge.

Goal #3 - Lose 15 pounds. This is pretty straight forward. S is also going to try to lose a little weight. We weighed in last Monday and will continue to do so each Monday until we reach our goals. Tomorrow is our first official weigh in since our initial weigh in. I'm a little nervous!

Goal #4 - Get a promotion or a new job. I could have obtained this one last year but did not take the promotion I was offered. We'll see where this one goes this year. I'm hoping to have it obtained by June.

Goal #5 - Blog more. My plan is for at least three posts a week or approximately every other day. Topics will continue to include my finances and tot school and some new content will be tracking the above goals, meal planning and anything else I feel like blogging about.

There you have it! Those are my New Year, New Me goals. We are also starting a new decade this year. I can't wait to see all the changes it brings along with it.

-M

Happy New Year!

on Friday, January 1, 2010


happy new year 2010 #2
Originally uploaded by yaman ibrahim

Happy New Year! With the new year comes reflection and creating of new goals. In looking at the goals in the sidebar we have failed and it was a big time fail. We have failed on almost all of the goals posted there. A lot has happened in 2009, including getting married, our baby turning one, S dropping out of college, gifting an awesome knitted bag among others. I have created some new goals and hopefully 2010 will be a more successful year. We are looking forward to a lot of big events this year. We are going to Germany in May, we'll be turning 25 this summer, our baby will be turning 2 and hopefully we'll find new/better jobs.

S has decided not to set any resolutions for himself this year and just go with the flow. He is actively looking for a new job and is hopeful that he'll find one early this year. He is currently working nights and wants to switch to days with similar pay which will require switching companies.

I on the other hand have few personal goals that I want to achieve. I want to learn to make different types of bread using yeast, gift more knitted items, lose at least 15 pounds, use the Wii more often, find a new job or obtain a promotion and blog much much more. I know these are not concrete obtainable goals but I will flesh them out more this upcoming week.

Financially, we're still going over our budgeting fails and successes from the past year. We are creating a plan that will have 2010 be much more successful than 2009 was for us money wise.

-M