I.am.exhausted

The movers brought all our stuff that's been in storage since July. They were due to arrive around 9, so I knew I had to get S up early, which meant me getting up even earlier. We spent the entire day until 5:30pm "supervising" the 3 guys who kept asking "where does this go?" and hearing me say, once again, "um, the basement".

The kitchen looks like a moving van exploded. And of course, no new house is just like the old one, so we have a lot of orphan boxes for the time being. But at least a few rooms are coming together.

S is holding up like a champ. She *hates* to nap at the new house, because she doesn't want to miss out on anything. And she only naps for half her normal time. But she has a wonderful time while she's up. She'll head out and check on the moving truck, or accompany me to the mailbox, or wander the rooms checking out what's new since she was there last. And finally, after a few days, she doesn't cry hysterically when we put her in her bedroom. I think more and more familiar things are showing up there, so she knows it belongs to her.

More pictures once I have some time to take any.

Random toddler pictures, and house teaser pictures

In her new panda pajamas. Love the feet!

S, desperate to go outside, in Daddy's Under Armor skullcap. She HAD to wear it the whole time she was outside.

Loving her Snoopy sweatshirt and red sneakers

Snacking in the new kitchen. We make do with camp chairs and a camp table. That brown stuff is the wallpaper border that must.go...

Before shot of the dining room. We still can't agree on a new paint color

I have no idea who thought lemon yellow was a good color for a hallway. It's all the way up the stairs, and upstairs.

S's bedroom, before

S's bedroom, after

S's playroom, before (after pictures to come)

Parent of the Year award goes to us...

Well, look at that

JHFCU commented on my rant.

I find it hysterical that a fourth person wants me to e-mail my information to them.

Thanks Lynn for your response.

An open letter to Johns Hopkins Federal Credit Union

You and I are done.

You've served me well over the last 15 years. I used you the whole time I lived in Baltimore. You helped me find a good deal on a car. I was able to direct deposit into my account, even when I moved to PA. But now we're done.

It all started with accessing my online account. I thought I knew my password, but I was wrong. Unlike any other financial institution I deal with, you won't give me a new one after I answer security questions, or call to verify personal information. No, I need to have you mail it to me. But see, that's a problem. Because I just moved to this apartment. So I'm in a Catch .22--I can't access my account without a change of address, and I can't change my address without accessing my account. Or so your rep tells me on the phone.

So I have a change of address mailed to me (God forbid you can e-mail it). Send it in. Wait 8 weeks. Nothing.

When I called last week, oops, that tiny font at the bottom said I needed to send a copy of my driver's license. But it has to be mailed. Or faxed. Oh wait, no it doesn't. I can scan and e-mail. Fabulous. I do so, and I wait.

I call a few days later. Nope, no one has seen the e-mail. But the helpful woman (first time that happened) said I can send it directly to her, and she'll call when it gets there. I do so, and hear nothing.

I call the next day. The no-so-helpful woman says I can't e-mail it. I tell her that 2 people have said I could. She said her supervisor says no. I get the supervisor on the phone. She promises to talk to the Assistant Branch Manager and she'll call me back. Calls back and decides yes, I can e-mail it. So I sent it to a THIRD person!!!

At this point I give up, print out a new form (because now they can e-mail it to me, when before it had to be mailed) with yet another new address (since we're moving on Thursday) and a photocopy of my ID.

Today I get a call from someone at JHFCU. "We just need you to e-mail me a copy of your driver's license."

Are you freaking kidding me????????

I told whomever was on the phone that he can just rip up that change of address, I'm sending a new one, and they had better get their act together. Because J and I have decided they do their banking the abacus way with how this has been handled.

Oh, apparently I can close my account without going to a branch. Or so they tell me today. God knows what their answer will be next week.

Rounding out a lovely weekend

It was a gorgeous Sunday here, and we wanted to spend some time together as a family. So we went to the tot lot in the swanky neighborhood near our apartment. Oh, the differences between that one and the one behind our apartment building.

Digresion:

I've had a love/hate relationship with our apartment complex since we moved in. On the plus side, there's a pool across the parking lot, and a playground behind our place. It's amazingly close to J's work, and conveniently located for S and I to get out and do our thing. On the minus side, it's just so...temporary. And the electrical is wacky. Where else could the dishwasher run off of a light switch? And the playground? Well, a lot of parents let their chidren run wild back there, and they like to run over S, or yank her arm while she's on a platform 6 feet off the ground. Good times.

Digression over

At the swanky tot lot, parents have to stay with their kids (it's near a fairly major road). And it's huge, with lot of different things to play on. Some of them are specifically designed for the really little ones. I let J spend some quality time with his daughter, and I sat on a bench and took pictures.

Making a beeline for something interesting

Checking out the tubes. She didn't like these, because they wobble when she crawls through them. This girl is all about stability.

With Daddy on the Jeep with 4(!) steering wheels

Checking out the alphabet and the pipes

S cried when we left :(

But we "rewarded" her with visits to 3 open houses. The first was a home built (and last decorated) in 1950. It's basically a tear-down. For half a million dollars. Then we saw a million-dollar house that was gorgeous and worth the money (if we had anything close to that ;) And a Victorian we've driven by dozens of times. For an old house it had a ton of storage and high ceilings. Along with a high price tag. But it was fun to look at!

Between today and our afternoon at Boston Common yesterday, it was a good weekend :)

Let me 'splain

Why are S and J looking up when the squirrel is right there? And where the heck are they anyway???



Today I told J I wanted to go into Boston and visit Boston Common. You know, just walk around on a beautiful Saturday afternoon and see what there was to see. I knew it would be a quick trip since we were going after S's nap, and she's a great sleeper.

After said nap, a late lunch, and a change of clothes, we loaded up and headed north. Found a decent parking lot and headed into the Common. Oh, the things to see. There were dogs galore for S to squeal at, and a giant (and crowded) playground. We found the Frog Pond, and--a merry go round! I played photographer while J took S on her first ride:

She loved it. She spent most of the ride deep in concentration, likely taking it all in. But it didn't scare her in the least (no surprise there) and she seemed to want to go again.

Instead, she saw squirrels. Lots, and lots, of squirrels.

This is her "OMG there's a squirrel, and if I run and scream I can get it!" look.

She would run over to them as they scurried up a tree. Then she'd "chase" them around said tree while they climbed higher and higher. Daddy had to help her

Needless to say, it didn't always work out. As the picture at the top of this post attests. But man, they had a great time.

18 month doctor appointment!

S had her 18 month checkup at her new pediatrician's office today.

She weighed in at 22 lb 12 oz. Up almost 3 pounds from her last appointment
She's now 31.5" tall, up 1/4 inch since her last appoinment

Disclaimer: The scale/measuring thingy looked like it was acquired at a yard sale in 1947, so I'm not sure how accurate those numbers were.

They took her head circumference, but I don't recall the number.

Everything else surrounding the appointment was a disaster. We arrived at 1:50pm for a 2pm appointment, and were seen at 2:45. Yep, that's right. We waited almost an hour while patient after patient arrived and was called in. This on top of S already missing out on her nap. When the doctor arrived, she was all over the place. She never had a thought continue uninterrupted for more than a few seconds. She stated several times that she typically went over growth charts, yet she simply flashed up the height chart and never addressed where S fell in it. She was obsessed with the fact that S wasn't talking, and is insisting on another appointment in 3 months. This despite the fact that S can say "uh-oh" and is on the verge of at least a couple other words. She also has to see her in 3 months because the office staff improperly recorded her vaccinations, so no one had any idea what she was supposed to get this time.

Oh, and as we were leaving, the doctor also said we'd discuss potty training in 3 months. Potty training. I said I was planning to wing it and see how she's doing if/when we send S to Montessori (in a YEAR). She said, "We'll discuss Montessori once we get the language stuff figured out." Ugh.

I tried to make a follow-up appointment, but the office doesn't schedule out more than 2 months in advance.

*sigh*

So I was left feeling tired, angry, and extremely disappointed. Now we have to start the doctor search. Again.

S passed out in the back seat on the way home (at 3:45), and slept for a while when we got back to the apartment. Let's hope this doesn't mess up her sleep schedule tonight.

Let's add some more pictures, shall we?

S is all about accessorizing these days. It started with the insistence on carrying a bag, any bag, every time she went outside. It has exploded from there:

With every.single.grocery bag from Whole Foods. This entertained her for an entire afternoon.



Of course we have to add jewelry to the ensemble. This time it's her baby Rosary.

And it wouldn't be complete without a hair clip. I'm pretty sure she begged me to take it out of my hair to put it in hers.

Carrying not one, but 2, "purses" outside. The one on the left is from Grania. The one on the right is a bin that holds her blocks.

So very proud of herself

Ready for the links

She saw a dog on TV and had to get Gus

Mommy added Bernie to the mix

24 pounds! I just love this shot.

Her new sweater! I might have actually made the neck opening big enough this time. Action shot to come...

Crafty (and toddler) update

I got some yarn in a colorway named after S, and I made her a skirted diaper cover with it

Don't you love it? It looks like the ocean.

S liked it too.

Since I finished this I had some freelance work that kept me away from my needles, but things are settling down again. I just finished a sweater for S that should be ready to show off in a couple of days.

And some friends of J's just had a baby girl. I found some yarn and an adorable hat pattern for her, so I'm getting busy on that. Pictures when it's all done :)