HELP by the Beatles

April 27th - May 2nd

WORST

If you are wondering if saying the term "knock on wood" actually spares you from the topic you are talking about, I would say yes...for about 13 1/2 months.  This is exactly how long Tavian has lived without getting sick. And getting me sick for that matter.  For the last few days we have battled through congestion and runny noses.  Momma is lucky and can take as many drugs as she can think of to feel better, but poor Babyhead has to just "let itself work out" a la our pediatrician.  Although we are on the path to wellness it is a road I hope we do not travel again anytime soon.

BEST FRIEND

Even though the Beatles wrote a  song about it, asking for "help" is one of the hardest things for me to do. It has become  a personal goal to work on this challenge and when you are sick you need a lot of help. Especially if you have a sick baby too. Especially if you have husband who gags every time you blow your very congested nose. Especially if your entire house is a disaterous, germ zone.

Natalie Robuck is a cornerstone in the foundation of my sanity.  I wouldn't know what I would do without her freindship... not laugh as much and be very sad.  We have the best conversations about every-aspect of life.  We offer loving, but honest truth when faced with problems. Understanding. Support. And delicious meals to get our selves through hard times and to feel alive again.

I feel very lucky to have someone like this in my life. Someone I can pick up the phone and in a very congested voice babble though an awkward sentence of needing Help...help me if you can I'm feeling down, Help me get my feet back on the ground.

Without hesitation and a tall non fat latte in hand for me Natalie appears at my front door. She choose to spend her Sunday morning helping me fold laundry, vacuum, and sanitize every inch of our bedrooms. All of a sudden my overwhelming task is brought to life with fun and meaningful conversation because Natalie is there helping.  We worked our butts of for two hours and demolished any lurking germs in our house or around Babyhead.

Dearest Auntie Natalie we do appreciate you being around! THANK YOU for being my Help, not just anybody.

Here are some of my favorite shots of my favorite person a la Cost Rica

BEST TRADER JOES'S PRODUCT

Rice pasta and cheddar? I am sorry please don't try to out cheese my regular mac and cheese. It would get messy...spilled milk, burnt cheese,...just ugly.  But then gracefully the box with a noodle smile said "do not worry my child, I am Gluten Free." The forks  were peacefully lowered. Let's just see how it tasters.  So the water boiled on with the delicate noodles bouncing around. Then drained and swirled together with milk and the cheese packet.

Don't worry MnC the RP &C are apart of the family now. Creamy , hearty, cheesy. Tonight I felt a little crazy for the RP&C and it was mixed with tuna, sour cream, spread in a baking dish and topped with Organic bread crumbs and mozzarella cheese.  FAB comfort cooking.  RP&C you have made the cut!

BEST QUOTATION

"If there's no chocolate in heaven, then I'm not going."

Thanks to Aunt Nancy for that gem of an email forward, simple, but frighteningly true.

I'll have an order of life and the blog on the side...

I tend to over think things. Blend this with perfectionist tendencies and you have a delicious "I Make Too Big of Deal of Things" Martini that will drown your sorrows with anxiety.  This is exactly what happened to my little blog here.  I started to take it too seriously.  I started to add it to my ever growing To Do List. And if I missed an entry I felt like I was going to class without doing my homework.

This is also why I have never really started a journal because I would feel guilty if I didn't write in it on a regular basis. The good news is that I recognized how this simply just adds more stress to my life than I need, or anyone for that matter. A blog is a journal, just put on the web for everyone to see...so there you go.

I recently read (all the way to the end!) a book called "It Sucked and Then I Cried. How I Had a Baby, a Meltdown, and a Much Needed Margarita" by Heather Armstrong who is also the author of a very famous blog called Dooce.  There were nights when I had to shove my face in the pillow I was laughing so hard and didn't want to wake up Eli who was sleeping next to me in the glow of my clip on book light. The book follows Heather through her struggles of becoming a new mom, the good, bad and ugly sides. It was exactly what I needed to read.  At the end of her chapters she would write a tear jerking, heart warming, and giggle inducing letter to her daughter. After each one I really, really wished I would have done something similar for Babyhead.  

But considering my history with journal writing and a blog that has sat lifeless for the last 4 months I instantly worried if this was just going to be another thing I was adding to my list and going to guilt trip myself about not doing.  But I have turned over a new leaf dearest Blog and promised myself to just let things happen and not make such a big deal about everything. So I took an empty sketch book that has been laying around for years and wrote on the first page "One Liners."  This is my book to Babyhead, only doing an entry when I feel like it and each entry can only be one (or a few) lines. And now that I have my little fingers typing away on you Blog I am going to incorporate that same style.  Short entries, not so heavy topics, and when I get around to it.  Except for this one...it is getting pretty long...the next one I promise.

In general, my "One Liners" concept is something I am going to try and incorporate to many aspects of my life.  Just see everything on the lighter side.

WORST

Neglecting my blog for 4 months, but thinking about it almost everyday, and feeling like a loser that I wasn't doing it.  Lame.

BEST

Starting the blog again

BEST BRENTWOOD GEM

We would pass this odd Chinese restaurant on a daily basis during our walks.  Eli and I would always make snobby comments like "Who would eat there?"  The simple sign "Chang's"reflected the very simple and outdated decor of this eatery located in the bottom of an office building.  But our curiosity grew. And one night right before we ordered Orange Chicken from our regular spot Eli said "Let's try Chang's."  I went in and took a gamble on Sweet and Sour Chicken, Pan Fried Chicken Dumplings, and BBQ Pork Fried Rice.  As the hostess wrote our order down in Chinese, my stomach got a little excited. It has to be pretty authentic right? Let's just say that from that moment on we have had Chang's almost every week.  Tonight I fell in love with the Vegetable Chow Main...I want to marry it.

BEST BABYHEAD MOMENT

After over 6 months of trying to teach Tavian sign language for "more" and "eat" he has finally got the hang of it.  He can also sign for "all done" after we ask him. It is so fun to see him understand and communicate with him!

WORST BABYHEAD MOMENT

It finally happened.  We have had lots of spills, trips, falls, and bumps, but the one on Saturday night beat them all to pulp. Babyhead was practicing his running back and forth across the family room floor, he tripped on a toy and went flying into the rail of the ottoman.  He was crying so hard no sound was coming out until he threw up on me...twice.  His right cheek swelled up and instantly turned purple.  There is no worse feeling in the world than to see your Babyhead in that much pain I can tell you right now.  We finally got him calmed down and laughing again, but I wanted to run screaming from the house.  Eli said to get used to it, he is a boy. I know he's right, but every time I look at Tavian and see his purple cheek my heart breaks in half.