Cupcake Hangover

I wrote on Monday evening that Calleigh was very pleasant despite her late night on Sunday. And that was true. Apparently she was saving up the bad attitude for Tuesday. That actually happens to me. You miss some sleep and the next day you think to yourself "Hey, this isn't so bad." And then the day after that you're like "What the heck happened?" as you try to keep your eyes open. Ron and Elaine came to pick Calleigh up at about 9:30 for a day at Animal Kingdom. I had already noticed a little grouchiness and actually had given in when she found her binky and put it in her mouth - - since she kept telling me "Binky...to feel better." (She has somehow gotten in her head that she's allowed to have binkies if she needs to "feel better"). I had a dentist appointment and then after that I had envisioned a few relaxing hours by the pool (at Ron & Elaine's) or just doing whatever until I had to go to a meeting at work. It didn't quite work out that way...

The dentist went well and good. I'm still on a 3-month schedule because my gums are in such bad shape. Pregnancy and breastfeeding (which I've been one or the other since August 2006) causes your hormones to go bonkers and it wreaks havoc on your gums. During my cleaning, I mentioned to the hygienist that I had some markings on one of my veneers and that my front tooth also has a dark marking on the gum line. These are things that have been bugging me for awhile and I've made no secret how dissatisfied I've been with my dentist and his lack of interest in my complaints. He came in to look at these issues and said some words I have been hoping to hear, "I think we'll just have to replace the veneers." Goodness, I've only had these problems since I got the veneers (which was 2005, I think) and it's nice to FINALLY have him decide to do something that will really solve the problem. The downside is that I need to wait at least three months until after the baby is born to get it done since I need my gums to try and get back to a somewhat normal state. But at least I know a solution is in sight.

After the dentist, I thought about heading over to the pool but my cellphone died and I didn't want to be without it in case I needed to be reached regarding Calleigh. Plus, I thought about all the work emails I had seen in my inbox before the dentist and figured it would be best to head home. I decided to stop and get some pizza at the Taco Bell drive-thru. The line of cars was really long and as I sat there idling, it suddenly occur ed to me, "Hey, I can just go in. I don't have to get Calleigh out of the car!" I stopped for milk too at 7-Eleven and I felt so free! Having a toddler is my favorite thing in the world but there are a few times when it's a real inconvenience - - running in somewhere quickly is one of them.

I ate while going through my email and then got a text from Shannon (who was at Animal Kingdom too) at 1:12 which said "We are leaving now. Calleigh is tired and we think she might have an ear infection (except it was spelled 'infextion.')." So of course, that made me concerned. I called Shannon and she said that the park was super crowded and that Calleigh had been very grouchy and had been pulling on her right ear. I'm sure I would have been grouchy too having to wade through all those people in 80 degree weather (especially if I paid to get in). I then called Elaine and yes, they were on their way back. Calleigh was in better spirits once they got out of the park but she seemed very tired and they didn't think they could keep her awake. Sure enough, she fell asleep and the ended up bringing her into their house in her car seat - - and I'm certain she didn't stay asleep for long with this set up. At any rate, I wasn't surprised to hear about her attitude at the park. I knew this must have been the fatigue from having four less hours of sleep on Sunday night.

I left for my meeting at 2:30 feeling slightly stressed because of Calleigh and a little disappointed that I didn't really get to relax! At the meeting, I had to take minutes so you have to be on the ball the whole time. No mind wandering allowed! I got home around 6:30 and Duncan had picked Calleigh up from Ron & Elaine's. It was SO good to see her but I could tell she still wasn't back to her pleasant self.

After the day that Ron & Elaine had (although Elaine assured me that it was no problem at all), I felt bad having Elaine come back the next morning. But alas, I had my doctor's appointment. Thankfully it was a very quick one and I was back in 45 minutes. Everything checked out well - - my blood work from the last appointment with the blood sugar check came back negative. I measured just right and the baby's heartbeat was beating away at a good pace. My only negative was that I've gained 20 pounds now. That's actually pretty much on target overall but it's the pace of the weight gain that's freaking me out. I've gained much of it over the last six weeks and I'm afraid if I keep up the current pace I'll have gained over 40. Yikes! I don't feel like I'm eating THAT much but apparently I've lost perspective on that. I guess I should be glad I'll have the baby at 39 weeks instead of 41 (like with Calleigh) since there are two less weeks to gain weight. I thought I was going to be on a two week schedule now with my appointments but they said to come back in three weeks so I go next on April 9. My next order of business is to go to the hospital to get pre-registered.

Since I got back at a reasonable time, Calleigh and I headed to the mall as I had a coupon at JC Penney about to expire. She got a new pair of pajamas. As I stood at the register to pay, Calleigh said "Triangle!" Honestly, I have no idea if she actually saw a triangle somewhere but the cashier was impressed and asked how old she was. I said she was twenty-two months. So the cashier asks me "Is she in school?" And of course, I said no. She then said "Wow, then how does she know that?" I told her that I had been going over it with her recently. After I said it, I was thinking to myself that I should have said it with a little more indignation. I mean, isn't that what's wrong with society these days? Shouldn't the MOTHER be the one teaching their child these kinds of things and not some stinking school when the kid is only two years old? As you can probably guess, I'm one of those people who will not be shipping her kid off to school when she turns three or whatever the age is these days for kids to start their 20 years of formal education. I know someone will argue that I'm depriving her of learning socialization skills if she isn't with a bunch of other kids but I'm pretty sure that's what Sabbath School, play groups, playgrounds, friends, and siblings are good for. Okay, I've calmed down now.

After lunch and a nap, she was back up and I could see that the bad attitude was sticking around. We had come downstairs to do a couple of things but then I took her back upstairs so I could fold some laundry. She had a complete meltdown. She started crying hysterically that she wanted to go downstairs - - all this as she stood on the gate at the top of the stairs. At first, I tried talking to her but then just gave up and let her go at it. It lasted a good 10 minutes and then she eventually stopped and calmed down. This was not like her and I blame those darn cupcakes.

This morning when she got up I was feeling very hopeful that today she would be back to her sunny disposition. And for the most part, she has been. We met Kristine and Jonathan at the playground (where we saw a 3-month old that I did NOT let Calleigh touch for fear of a bite on the face) and then went to Walmart for our groceries. After nap time, we took a leisurely walk and sat on our curb as usual. We also spent some of the time just lying on the grass looking up at the sky since she realized that she likes to do this. Before bed time, Duncan and I played with her on the bed just tickling her and making her laugh. Sure, we do this quite a bit but I wanted to say it here since it's really so much fun. Getting her to laugh has to be right up there with just about anything in terms of enjoyment. Sometimes I'll kiss her all over her face and on her neck and she'll say over and over again "More kisses." Ahh, what a lovely thing to hear. It sure beats what she said the other day when she was in her pack-n-play while I was in the shower. She was whining about something and I said "No whining." And she said to me, in a whiny voice, "I'm crying." Shame on me for not being able to tell the difference.

You may have noticed that there aren't any pictures. Well, my battery died and I've been too lazy to get it charged. But I've charged it now and there will be lots of pictures next time!