Wishing you a rejuvenating resurrection!

Enjoy the new life springing about you!

Because I am up at 2:52 am, I am going to post this.
I am actually in a positive, mood, but I am extremely reflective. Obsessing over strollers, although probably inconsequential and somewhat materialistic, at least passes the time and keeps me from obsessing over whether Nadie will get the last job he interviewed for, or whether everything will go well at C’s birth and 30 years from now Nadie and I will be paying for Z’s wedding while C toasts her magnificence. See – strollers can be helpful.
I have my 33/34 week appt friday. I will see a different doctor than usual, but thats fine because I have seen all of them in this practice. I am going to ask about PPD and perhaps taking an anti-anxiety or anti-depressant after C is born. At least I want to be prepared for what my options are.
It isn’t because I think I will get so depressed that I can’t handle it. I just know that last year our transition with Z was hard, and we made it through fine, and I went to therapy when I needed to. The thing is that I have enough experience to understand when my emotions affecting my actions. I can pull myself out, and I have always relied on therapy in the past. But since I have this grandiose, albeit probably crazy, plan to start school in the fall I don’t see a lot of time slots for therapy sessions in the future. And to be honest, if I could take a little medicine that actually helped cause me NOT to have the feelings rather than just getting through them, then I think I am interested this time.
Nadie just came in to see what I was doing. He can’t sleep either. He can’t blame C! He will probably blame me. I think we are going to grab little Z and snuggle with her while she tries to sleep peacefully and enjoy our singleton in the wee hours.
Good night, y’all!

I am one of those people who obsesses over some item until a decision has made.
Since December I have been contemplating what to do with the whole double stroller issue.
Since Z will still be fairly young, we will need a way to easily transport her and C at the same time. Also, C will be using Z’s Chicco carseat (because I am not going to buy a whole new seat!).
The first problem is that Chicco does not make a tandem or even double stroller that fits with the KeyFit 30.
Second is that there are only three strollers that actually will work with the Keyfit. I don’t know about you guys, but we used the Universal stroller to cart around the bucket for the entire year when Z used the car seat. We carted her into and out of stores and doctors offices, etc. And she isn’t ready to be walking around unassisted. We will need to keep her contained! She would totally be running wild if she could….
Since the Peg Perego Duette is over $700 – that is out of the question.
There are two Kolcraft strollers that could work.

The Universal Express Rider has less bells and whistles, but is $100 bucks less and folds up easier….I think I will try that first…

I went to the Big Baby Store to check out this other Kolcraft. I don’t like that the seats are so small and you have to take the seats off to fold it up – which seems like a pain….still it has more cup holders and the kids can face each other….I don’t know how much that matters. I think it looks cooler, but I think I will wait and try out the simpler one first….

So that is my obsession and my plan – oh know which stroller! Oh my! Hey – it is better than worrying about jobs and unemployment and all that crap.

I sort of feel bad for C, because he really is sort of like ‘the prince of whatever’s left’…(You know – Mary Engelbreit – Princess of Quite A Lot and the Prince of Whatever’s Left – That is totally Z and C….
So since he isn’t getting a brand new carseat – I decided to check out replacement covers…
I found someone on Etsy to make C one, and here are the fabrics that will be used:

Whimsy Criss Cross

And it will be sort of like this:

I also had the lady make a blanket that matched the cover. I think this is princely enough for the kid. Now just to see what double stroller we end up with.
So that is what I do at 3 in the morning when I can’t sleep – pick out fabrics and color schemes that will go with either stroller….

I haven’t done this for a while!

Lori says that ‘Perfect Moment Monday is about noticing a perfect moment rather than creating one.’
Here is mine for this week….
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This weekend’s gospel was that of the Prodigal son. I cantored at the Saturday mass. The hymns that were chosen were very pretty. I kept thinking about how there was an Indigo Girls song that would have been perfect….it is called ‘You and Me of the 10,000 Wars’. A line from it says ‘Still you held your arms open, for the prodigal daughter, I see my eyes in your eyes through my eyes, still waters….’

So on the way home from the store with the Zerker I put the song on because I really wanted to hear it. It has always reminded me of my that time in my life when I felt so out of place at home – felt like I had no home – and how we all seem to go through that as we grow up and move on.

I sang to my heart’s content – and the Zerker crooned with me – with her own style of lala baba lala…babble….and I looked into her eyes through the rear view mirror and I knew it was a perfect moment. I think I understood the actions of the father in the story of the Prodigal son for the first time.

Friday I got an email from the university I applied to….I got accepted to Grad School. I will be starting a Masters in Human Computer Iteraction and Design.

I am completely excited about it. It sort of feels like this culmination of all my years at the same company…like I was spending this time so I could be prepared for this next amazing experience.
I have worked at the same software company for 9 years this June. I am only 32. That is a long time at one place. I am planning on staying working there while I go to school. At this point with Nadie being out of work it isn’t really an option to go to school full-time.
I know many may think I am insane, attempting this beginning when my second child is 3 months old and my first is not even two.
I know there will be sacrifices.
I ask not for judgement. I think we each have our own path. I think valuing education and making sacrifices for our family will set an example for my children. I know it is not the same as having a SAHM – but I am not a SAHM. I am working full-time now and will continue to be full-time into many things. My goal is not to take the time away from the kids. My goal is to better use the other time that I have. I don’t want to watch as much tv. I will post less on facebook. I will be more involved in all that we do. All of my life I have excelled more when I was more involved. I need to be more involved in things. Plus – I will never achieve my goal of becoming a PHd and maybe professor without starting school again.

In my application I had to write a personal statement. While I won’t bore you with the boring details of the various positions I have had during my career so far, I would like to post a portion of what I said….

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A watershed event sets a new course. I experienced one of these events last year when I became a mother. Prior to that I had been going along without much direction but to do my best at my job, cherish my family, and try to be a good person. The birth of my daughter caused me to really step back and assess my goals in life. She reminded me that every day is important, and that there is no time to waste. The creation of life and watching hers unfold each day reminded me that I too am unfolding, and I am a force of creation. All things are possible if I just choose to take part.
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Another interesting turn of events is that I not only got accepted, but was offered a partial financial support. This financial support would require 10 hours of work throughout the week. It would also mean that I would probably have to take at least 2 classes next fall. My plan before was to take just one. I think I need to talk to the department before I accept it. I also need to talk to my boss. Perhaps we can work out a flex plan for my work schedule to accommodate – at least try it for a few months to see if it works. Also, with Nadie being out of work, I can’t really plan on not working full-time because we need the money to keep our house going, so I may not be able to accept it. I hope that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t be considered for future support.

In other news, I started a new blog. I plan on posting more technology and data visualization related projects at technowonderful…I will still post here. I am just segmenting out work/school related items from this personal/family related stuff.

I hope all is well around the interwebs with you.
Here is your moment of Zen…..

Now I hear the little stinker waking up from her nap. Time for lunch and a walk to the playground!