A litte weed!

It has been a while, and SO much has changed on about every front imaginable!

Let's put it in bullet points:

-Food- Little man is doing WONDERFUL on this front. The goober eats so well and is gaining weight and we haven't used the tube in a good month. My goal is that for his first birthday his doctor removes it!! He eats little fingers foods, push-pops, baby food and I have even ventured into puree-ing some of our food for him as well. He is as curious as ever to get everything in his mouth for a taste. This includes the dog food, which I am pretty sure he hasn't quite eaten yet, but I know that someday my ninja mommy senses will be lagging and he will out-wit me.

- Mr. Caterpillar- he is a mover! He is quick, and he is fearless! He pulls himself up to stand and could beat any grown man in a bar crawl. It is so odd for me to sit back and think to the days that I wondered when he would be mobile, I still don't regret his new-found activity but he certainly keeps me on my feet. He gets into everything and anything. He loves the kitchen, the dog toys and paper. After some discussion, I managed to acquire a gate for the top of our stairs and we are nearing the point of having to replace it already since he has learned to try and pull himself up and therefore push the gate down... kid is too smart for his own good. 


I have seen with my own eyes the elasticity of babies. In just one day he managed to take a trip off of the bed, then down the stairs and then he whacked his head on the corner of a door in the kitchen. A few whimpers, a quick hug and Captain Destructo was back at it again as fearless as ever. I wish I had that energy!


Sometimes I sit and wonder at what point in our lives do we lose that sense of empowerment? He has no fears, no hesitations- we were all like that once. When is growling and responding with a giggle inappropriate? I wish I could keep him a baby forever! A potty trained sleeping through the night baby that is =)

-Daddy- He is spending more time with Caden when he is home, which makes me feel better. The catch there still being "when he is home." I never had the false impression that marriage was easy or effortless, maybe it is for some people that don't have lives or jobs and live in bubbles- but for those living in the real world, it takes work, I have never been reminded of this more than after Caden was born. In my own female mommy opinion, men just don't/ CAN'T understand. The amount of hours a person spends at a job does not directly correlate to the amount of work or the amount of effort put into said job. Also, just because mommy takes charge of all things baby does not mean that she doesn't need a break! I work and take care of all doctor appointments, ready-ing him for bed and for the next day as well as keep up on the household- but when it is time for me to sit or take a break I get an attitude or a comment about how tired HE is. I am struggling to find ways to communicate better and make him see my side of things. It is a daily challenge and I am nearing the point that I am pretty sure we need a neutral third party to mediate before things get too far off course. 

- Work- I go a new job! I put in my notice and will start beginning September, the pay will be better, the hours, flexible and the location closer to home! I got ZERO input from the husband on the move and am frustrated that he doesn't give me more feedback but I pulled the cord and jumped out of the plane regardless. I warned my current employer ahead of time, I asked them to be understanding and gave them a chance to counter or make me an offer to stay... and they didn't. They justified my pay by including the cash value of all contributions as my "base pay" (401k, profit sharing, etc), and then gave me an outline of where they wanted me in the next 5-15 years, all while only accounting for the experience I had at THIS company and ignoring my three years prior. I was nothing short of pissed when I saw just how much they *valued* me. 


In hindsight, I would like them to know that for a mere $2-5k increase and a comment from my own boss that I had done a good job I would have stayed. I am aware of the pool of funds available and that amount would make less than a ripple in their pockets and be a huge help to me and many others at my level- such a simple concept that so few companies understand. 

- In-Law- There is no change, or no positive change on this front. I am avoiding any sort of contact right now because after a wedding this weekend I am so fumed that if I utter a word I will experience word diarrhea that bulk amounts of Pepto couldn't stop. At the wedding I was informed by two people of her confronting them about me "hating her" and why they don't talk to her any more and it must be because "I had gotten to them , too." The bride told me that she made her feel bad for getting her invite later than others (it was the groom-to-be's fault that he kept forgetting it in his truck), and she told my friend that her jewelry looked nice and when my friend explained that she had borrowed it from me she said "well I asked her to borrow jewelry and she said she didn't have any." I am so beyond fed up with it all! Every function we go to that she attends I end up getting earfuls of comments like this. You wonder why we don't get along- THIS IS WHY! Even worse is that I can bring this up to my husband and I get no response, only "you need to be nice to my mom."

I have tried over the years, but after the fiasco that ensued when Caden was born- I cut ties, I am done and will endure her presence as long as is required to keep the peace and for my husband and sons sake. I have a reputation as the wife of my husband to uphold, he is a prominent member of the community and carries a great deal of respect at work as well- the last thing I need is a rogue in law spreading lies about me and chatting to anyone that will listen to her that I am a hateful person. This behavior has made me this way. 

So until my husband and I have a blow out (again) about her, I will keep it bottled in. Any argument we have seems to end in or involve her, it disturbs me that this woman has such an effect on  OUR relationship. My parents are not involved, they don't have keys to our house, they don't invite themselves over, enter without knocking or just stop by for hours. They don't call my son funny names like KAY-KAY, or play with the dog while he is trying to nap. But none of these things matter to my husband because I should be best friends with his mom and we should be getting matching tattoos and manicures in his mind. But the effort he puts forth with my family is zilch... seems to be a double standard in my book... <end vent>

In other news, the weather currently is wrecking havoc on my allergies, and it seems that little man inherited the wonderful trait from me. I came home to a lethargic, runny nosed, upset little boy yesterday. I concluded (not from any update which would have been nice) that he didn't eat or drink much and he was not his normal bouncy self. The night wasn't much better, stuffy coughing, snoring and constantly waking up to cry and need mommy or daddy- add in the teething and we are having all sorts of fun!  BUT... I still wouldn't trade him for anything.