It's been a crazy couple of weeks. Mikki and I had a lovely birthday: we had lunch w/dad and her kids plus Chase and then we got pedis together. It was her first pedi since Brady was born, that made me feel a little pampered and high maintenence given my relatively frequent pedis. I'm over it though.

Brewer was born on Thursday morning at 7:51am weighing 7lbs 13oz and measuring 20in long. Given that each of my children has been exactly a pound larger than hers (Chase was 7lbs 5oz, Hayden was 6lbs 5oz then Brady was 7lbs 2oz and Cass was 8lbs 2oz--it's kind of creepy really) that absolutely rules out a third for us (yeah, just in case the infertility plus birth control pills didn't already do that, snort) because 8lb 13oz is too much baby for this body! Seriously though, he's a cutie but I know my sister is dying that her boys both had headfuls of hair and Hayden was a baldy forever... Jamie and I are sticking to dogs from now on though. I like how you can put them in a cage or the backyard when you can't/don't want to deal w/them. Can't really do that w/human kids.

Chase is visiting his grandparents is Cuba this weekend. The house is ridiculously quiet and calm without him. Jamie and I miss him quite a bit and he hasn't even been gone for 24 hours yet. Crazy. We get him back tomorrow. Amy is coming to Cuba with us. She's bringing Baxter, we're bringing Woody (and Sherm) and we're going to dump their ashes (I first mistyped asses there, which is really kind of sick and funny) together. Jim is DYING that we cremated the dog. But throwing him in a Hefty bag and driving to Cuba to bury him wasn't the most attractive option that day, KWIM?

Dad is coming over for dinner tonight, I'm off to prepare some veggies. The ribs are done already.

There you go--pics of all three munchkins! Jamie is to be home by 3pm today, I'm heading to Fulton to help at recruitment. I'm heading up for the night, coming home crazy late (I'm sure) and heading back for the weekend tomorrow. If the rain continues and Chase's ball game is cancelled, I may get up there earlier than expected tomorrow--we'll just have to see.

Cass still has a wicked diaper rash from the teething diapers she's had for the last few weeks. She's about as crabby as you'd expect--yesterday I got my nails fixed (they were a hot mess) and she pretty much fussed and wailed the entire time. Vincent (my nail guy) was pushing her stroller around the shop while we waited for my nails to dry. Seriously. It was rather horrifying. They wanted to see her though--they kept telling me to bring her in--I suspect they won't be requesting her presence again any time soon...

We walked to school today. Jamie got home crazy late last night, so Sherman missed his walk. It was pouring this morning, so Jamie didn't run w/him either and he was CRAZY by 8:45am. So instead of standing in the rain at the bus stop, I put Cassie in her stroller and used the super cool rain shield it came with, grabbed an umbrella, and we walked. It's only about 1/2-3/4 of a mile. Chase was SO excited, he thought it was the coolest thing ever. That cracked me up. It worked out rather well though, I think we'll make a habit of it. Not of walking to school in the rain, mind you, just of walking to school in general. After we dropped Chase off, Cassie, Shermy and I made a lap around the neighborhood. I suggested Jamie take him on a quick walk this evening w/the kids. Chase is GREAT at pushing Cassie's stroller, which makes life (and walking all three) pretty easy.

I'm hoping to get Cassie's 1 yr pics taken on Monday...

Husband of the Year

I just got this email from Jamie:

I know Sunday is your birthday, but would you care?

Love,

Jamie Tennyson
VP Western Division

Securities and investment advisory services offered through AXA Advisors, LLC (NY, NY 212-314-4600), Member FINRA, SIPC. Annuity and insurance products offered through AXA, LLC and its subsidiaries. James N. Tennyson is licensed to sell insurance in the following states: MO, IL, GA; is registered to offer securities in the following states: MO, IL, AZ, GA, CO, KS, SC; and is registered to offer investment advisory services in the following states: MO, IL, AZ, CO.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: name removed to protect the innocent
Sent: Wed 8/20/08 10:01 AM
To: Tennyson, James
Subject: Mailer.....



Got a mailer yesterday about AXA looking to bring on board some highly motivated professionals........did you give someone my name? Do you think I am a highly motivated professional??

On a side note, I may need a 4th for a tournament this Sunday at Deer Creek 1pm.....65.00 per man.......would you be interested?

My reply was:

Well, I have plans for lunch and a pedi w/my sister that day, in Columbia, but if you want to take the kids to a golf tourney, be my guest. WTF? I mean seriously, WTF?

Insanity

Nothing quite like discovering your kid is sick (well, feverish) WHILE you're volunteering at the school store. I'm going to chalk it up to teething, just like I've chalked up the last few weeks of explosive diarrhea to teething. Oh, and crabbiness. Because Cassie is Captain Crabby right now. I had her in the Mei Tai for a bit this morning and she didn't even try to get out. When she's content just being held--girl doesn't feel good. So she's been sacked out for a while...

Sherman is in canine heaven right now. Yesterday we went to the vet for his 4 mth shots and an impetigo check. Impetigo is better (although we're finishing the meds b/c I'm not contributing to superbugs). He gained 8lbs in 10 days and I weighed him three times b/c I couldn't process what my eyes were seeing on the scale. He's 16 1/2 weeks old and 28 pounds. I'm seriously starting to think we may own the biggest golden retriever in the history of the world. Seriously. At least he's obedient...

Nita brought the girls (Sophie and Bailey, her German and mixed breed, respectively) over for a playdate this morning. Sophie and Sherman are buddies and love to play together. Bailey just kept looking for Woody--Shermy was a bit much for her. He did good though--he even came when called in the backyard--OFF LEASH! He is TOTALLY wiped out now and snoozing next to me. Yesterday we (Cass, Sherm & I) went swimming w/Aga and her girls at Dr. B's pool. Dr. B has a corgi that loves to swim. Shermy didn't love the pool, but he loved the corgi and slept for about 4 hrs after our playdate!

I'm waiting for Cass to wake up. We've got a ton of errands to run between naps. I'm heading up to Fulton tomorrow for the afternoon/evening, going back Friday night (after Chase's baseball game), and then staying through Sunday. On Sunday Mikki and I are getting pedicures. I think this may be the first bday in six years that we've actually seen each other ON our birthday. So yay to that. She called this morning to tell me her c-section had been moved up and I had a mild freak out thinking she was in labor and going today. But nope. Still 8-28, just in the morning instead of noon.

I've got a ton of pics to download, will do it when I get around to it--probably early next week. Chase hit a BOMB at the game yesterday (he was three for three), I wish I'd gotten a pic of his face when he strutted over to us after he'd run the bases--he was so excited. To use his current favorite term it was pretty "sweet!"

I got a few pics of Aunt Amy w/the kids this weekend, but need to download them to the PC. We had a blast! The weather is most unAugust-like for Missouri (80 degrees w/no humidity) and we're taking advantage of it. Cassie and I were just outside playing on the swingset (yes, she can climb the slide and ladder--she's just as fearless as her brother was) and Chase's first baseball game is tonight at six. He's very excited! Almost as excited as I am (nice weather for an outdoor game, woo hoo)!

We had a crazy busy weekend and today is my day to clean house and get caught up on laundry during Cass's naps. I also need to get her 1 yr pics taken this week...

Shermy is sick

So Shermy got to meet Dr. Saranita this morning. He's had a rash on his tummy for a while--it got really angry looking yesterday. Cari, his trainer, pointed it out at school yesterday and I said I had noticed it, but it seemed to be getting worse. She agreed. I gave him a benadryl last night and figured if it didn't help, we'd be at the vet this morning. It didn't help (although he slept very well), so we hit the vet this morning. The reason the benadryl didn't help was b/c it is impetigo. So he got a shot of penicillian, 14 days of oral antibiotics, and another appt. next week for his 16 wk shots and a check to ensure the antibiotics are working. Right now he's resting on the vent in the kitchen, it's like his naptimes coincide w/Cassie's. It's crazy.

He'll be fine, but I feel bad that I didn't take him in sooner.

He goes back for week three of training next week. Jamie is about to kill me (he's already more obedient than any other dog we've ever had), but I think it will be good for him.

The human kids are good, too. Chase is loving first grade and was thrilled when Cass and I came up for lunch yesterday. Cassie is teething and rather cranky these days. She's also going through a HUGE mama stage--she's a total mama's girl.

Aunt Amy is coming over to hang out today--if I'm good I'll get some pics, but don't hold your breath. We're going to hit the pool for a bit and go to Petco to use my 10%off discount (yes, I spend so much that they give me $ off to spend more). Shermy's up to 20lbs (from 15 two weeks ago), so clearly we're doing something right. My guess is that he's going to be in 70-80lbs range as a full-grown dog. Thank God he's a good puppy...

Cassie awakes...

Quiet Week

Sherman is back at school this week, so it's a quiet week for Cass and me. Tomorrow is Chase's first early release day, he'll get home about three hours early. If the weather cooperates, we'll try to hit the pool.

Tonight Dad is coming over for a bday dinner. We were going to go to lunch, but Chase wanted to make sure Dad got his favorite cake (that would be carrot cake), so he's coming over for dinner instead. As Jamie is still working at the kitchen table but swearing he's going into the office today, I suspect he will not be joining us for the par-tay tonight. I hear him clomping around upstairs, my guess is that he's leaving for the office soon. Once we hit noon w/him home, I'd hoped today would be one of those days that he just worked from home all day, but apparently not. Boo.

Cassie was less than cooperative going down for her nap, so I suspect today will be a one nap day (early bedtime for her). Now that my kitchen is empty, I'm going to go do a bit of housework.

Letting Go...

It's probably not a surprise to anyone who knows me to hear me say I'm a control freak. I wholeheartedly admit that I'm a (perfectionist) control freak. It's all part of that whole type-A personality thing. The more stressed I am, the greater my need for control. Feeling in control (of the kids, the house, my life) helps me manage the stress. IDK if it is normal (or sane) or not, it just is. That's my reality.

Last week was a rough week. Going from the very sedate and laid back Woody to our bundle of energy puppy Sherman is quite an adjustment. Not to mention the loss of a cherished companion, family member, and friend--that's a load of stress in and of itself. I'm walking Sherman for 90 minutes a day (two walks daily) and between that and chasing Cassie around and my normal daily chores, I may very well be in the best physical shape of my life. But Thursday night I had an epic meltdown when I got home from a neighbor's Southern Living at Home party and realized that Shermy had been in his crate almost the entire time (2.5 hrs) I'd been gone. The rest of the household (including Jamie) was asleep. My "plan" had not been followed and I was (to put it mildly) not happy.

So I had a meltdown while I walked Sherman around the neighborhood for an hour. And during my meltdown, Amy listened to me and then reminded me where my heart needed to be. She was right. My plan had not been followed. Instead of coming home and playing w/Sherman for a bit before heading to bed, I ended up walking off my anger (and really wearing myself and Shermy out) for an hour. So I lost control of things...the world didn't end. Everyone in my household was fine, including the dog I'd been so worried about. Instead of always trying to control the situation (and failing), I'm trying to just let things happen and learn from them. Walking late at night is great for me and Sherman--I would have never found that out if Jamie had "stuck to my plan."

Things happen outside of my control. Instead of stressing out and worrying, I just need to let go and take care of what I can. The rest will take care of itself.