What could have been...

Dannon Yogurt
Originally uploaded by earlegirl.

My Senior year at Biola I had an assignment to create a product and explain my marketing strategy. I decided to create a smoothie for a yogurt company that had a focus on being fast and fit. I designed a really great looking package... it was curvy like a fit woman's body, and the packaging was pretty to appeal to a woman on the go. Last week I bought the product in the picture at the grocery store... looks strangely familiar! I'm wishing I'd gone to the yogurt people and sold my idea! Well, at least I got an A...

And then there were... well, 3 less of those buggers!

Flip-Flop Fly Swatter
Originally uploaded by earlegirl.

I seriously hate crickets. But I almost don't have the energy to hate them after the battle we've had with the ants lately. Granted, I'll take these two pests over cockroaches, moths, and spiders, but I still hate them. As I sat responding to KDH's blog, I see something out of the corner of my eye. And at that moment, I wished I had one of these puppies! I grabbed the nearest Birkenstock (with my husband, there's usually one close by) and that little bugger knew his last. As I went for a napkin to shroud my little enemy, I saw ANOTHER one, who met his end soon after. The THIRD guy I saw on my way to the napkins proved a worthy foe, but still, the whole no central nervous system thing didn't work out so well for him in the end.

By the way, I've seen these fly swatters at Z-Gallerie, and if anyone doesn't know what to get me for Christmas, throw one of these in.

P.S. Sickness update: ferferfly getting better; my two boys are now both sick. Lucky dogs have cooler temperatures forecasted tomorrow.

It begins

It begins
Originally uploaded by earlegirl.

It is so counter-intuitive to start to gain weight and watch my stomach grow... I feel like I'm supposed to start losing weight and kicking up my exercise or something. Instead, I can only do weenie exercize, and I'm eating a ton more.

Updates to come as I get bigger.

Artifacts of my day

ArtifactsofmyDay
Originally uploaded by earlegirl.

I already griped... but thought I'd show it in picture form...

The constant drip

There's almost nothing worse than simply being sick... the fact that it's almost not worth wiping your nose because you'll just have to wipe it again the next second. But compound that with the fact that it's the HOTTEST day of the month, AND the fact that I can take almost nothing for relief because of the pregnancy, AND the fact that daytime television is a disgrace. I've decided to stick a Kleenex in my nose and just leave it there.

Out of the mouths of babes

I am biased, but I just think my nieces are the cutest things ever. They and my sister (and soon my brother-in-law) are staying with my folks between the end of J's dissertation and his new employment, so I'm getting the good stories from my sister, my mom AND my dad.

Yesterday, out of the blue: "Grammy, how did FerFer and Steve falled in love?" (I think this must come from having read "Barbie Gets Married" at the school book fair.)

Papa goes to do his free-weights in the morning. Abby runs and gets the 2 lb weights and does her "exercises" with Papa. It is particularly picturesque with her cute little sagging diaper.

Excerpt of phone conversation:
"Emma, did you meet some new kids?"
"Yes, I have two new best friends!"
"What are their names?"
"Ummmmm.... I don't benumber (remember)!"
By the next day she rememberd: "Her name is Camera!" "You mean Cameron?" "Yeah!"

I gotta get me one of them... =)

The beginning of the end?

I woke up this morning thinking that this really could be the beginning of the end. I finished my last orientation EVER last night. Well, maybe I'll make guest appearances in the future, but it will no longer be my job. My plate will still be full from now until December, but the problems that crop up on the horizon aren't going to be my responsibility. It's a good feeling. I feel like I can do some creative stuff, train people, help set things up for the future, but that this is the very first thing I can start to let go.

In other news, I've discovered that if I don't get back to sleep quickly enough in the middle of the night, I have to eat something or else I'm so hungry I REALLY can't sleep. So it seems that quesadillas are the cuisine du nuit... or the delicacy of the witching hours. Very unromantic, but somehow it's the easiest thing I can stomach at that time. I'm all done with granola bars and crackers.

Hell Week

Everyone has one... the week you dread all year. It used to be the first week of sports when I was out of shape and had to beat my body into submission. Now that I'm out in the "real world" my hell week is "rush week." 3 orientations and registrations in 4 days. Hard to explain, but essentially every single student has about a million questions, and there's only one of me. BUT I get to celebrate big time next week because this is IT for me!! The last one!!! The next time this happens at Biola I could potentially be in labor. Okay, maybe this isn't so bad.

FYI... I'm quitting in January, but will probably take some vacation so that I won't actually be in the office before I go on official maternity leave. I'm grateful for all the sick time I've accumulated, as I'll get to use that when I leave for maternity.

But back to Rush Week... except for the fact that it's a really CRAZY busy time for me and soon I will lose my front row parking, I love watching rush. I love watching all the Dads letting go of their kids, looking awkward and trying to be in charge of everything. The moms are working hard to be supportive. The kids look embarassed that their parents are with them, and try hard to "look like a real college woman/man," which of course makes them look exactly like Freshmen. I like seeing the upperclassmen run into their friends for the first time since May. For the girls lots of hugs, for the guys, the back-whacking thing they do. We can hear them from our house... I love dinner time when they are all headed to the "cafernacle" you can hear them calling back and forth to each other. I love the energy that happens when they come back. So here's to Rush week/Hell week! Maybe next week I'll toast with my permitted 1/4 glass of wine.

Baby picture

Lenny13weeks-hiney!
Originally uploaded by earlegirl.

New ultrasounds today... this is my favorite one. =) It's a little hiney with one leg crossed over the other. Apparently he/she is just sort of kicking back in there. I mean, food just piped in there, I'm exercizing for him/her... what else could you want!?

One week later...

Pool still super gross. Swampy. Former zoo-keeper/friend says pool reminds him of his zoo-keeping days. I SWEAR we're cleaning it! More info to come

Pregnancy update: Feelin' fat. Not looking pregnant, just feeling fat. BUT feeling better (knock on whatever). I had enough energy tonight to work out, cook, clean up, clean the bathroom, make pizza dough, and make chicken salad for sandwiches. I'm lovin' the energy!

Home again, home again

After a wonderful, BEAUTIFUL week in Tahoe, we're home. I won't do the whole detail thing... it's like making someone read your verbal vacation slides... but suffice it to say that I came home with a tan and couldn't get enough of the unbelievably clear Tahoe water. We arrived home Saturday, well actually Sunday after a 9 hour drive that would have been unbearable without Harry Potter. Lo and behold, we arrived home to a green pool. Apparently our pump freaked out when two dead birds got stuck in the filter. Um, ew. It was as if the pool was saying, "Vacation's over!" It was sort of this ironic contrast to the blue Tahoe.

This week begins one of the craziest I've had in some time... moving employees, training 2 new employees, and coming up on our normally busiest time of the year. And to top it off, there has been no miraculous feeling of well-being with the advent of my 2nd trimester... Yuck.