Monthly Archives: July 2007

Monkey, Moving, Otter
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So many boxes, so little time…

We have too much stuff. Too many boxes littering the garage, the POD, and the house!! Argh! To make things worse, it is hot, hot, HOT. Oh, and did I mention Muggy? That’s right, we are getting closer to the time of year in NJ when the heat and humidity combine to punch you unpleasantly in the face when you leave your house. At least we have AC in the new place.

Unfortunately we are discovering that life on the east coast is a major pain in the a*&. We can’t get rid of the garbage generated from our last move. We are facing a crisis here, as the boro won’t accept the boxes unless they are packed as recyclables, they won’t accept more than three cans worth of thrash on pickup day, and the one hauler we got a hold of wants to charge us $475 to remove our stuff. I HATE IT HERE!!
Back home you can just lug it to the landfill, hand them a 20, and dump it. Not here, no… they have 4000 different municipalities, and ours doesn’t have their own landfill.

Mutter mutter. Shake it off.

On the Oliver front:

This young man needed a new wardrobe, as he has outgrown all the newborn, 3-6, and 6-9 month clothing so lovingly given us by our friends and family. Luckily I caught a bunch of summer clothes on clearance at Target, and managed to secure him some dappper baby attire at minimal cost. Still, 3 months old and heading into 12 month old clothes? My baby is a tall and strong young man, soon he will be moving furniture for us.

Marlena has loved playing with her brother, and had begun to ape me with her own baby doll. For her birthday she got a baby play gym and carrier for her dolly and has been caring for “Alina” while I care for Oliver. It’s pretty cute. She has also been reading bedtim stories to him. Oliver loves to hear her read, and watches her face the whole time with wide, excited eyes. Here she is snuggling her brother.

Well I am off to mom’s thing, and then back to the dreaded house to prepare some boxes for recycling. Sigh.

Monkey
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Oh how the time flies…

Marlena’s 6th birthday party was a splash!

She and her friends spent hours in the splash park playing and running around. She pretended to blow out candles on this very windy day, and delved happily in to cake and Ice cream sandwiches. She opened gifts and laughed and smiled.
At one point, she and her friend Alex were strolling together across the field, and they reached out and held hands. His mom Melissa and I just looked at each other. Our babies first hand holding!!

Somewhere between July 13, 2001 and now, my little baby girl became a delicately beautiful young woman. I was amazed looking at some of the pictures of the party.

Simon helps Marlena with her headband:

Here she is dumping water over her head:

Here Marlena, Alexander, and Hannah play with one of the park’s many water features:
Marlena, Simon, and Alex read a birthday card:

Marlena opens a present from Alexander. (Look at how incredibly lovely she is! She is getting so grown up! Where did all the baby fat in her face go?)

Hannah reads a card to Marlena:

This one breaks my heart. When did her lashes get so long and dark?
Marlena reads Gabriella’s lovely handmade card: (When Gabriella gave it to her, she was so cute, she said “Oh I bet I know who this is from”. Later on, she told me she knew it was from Gabriella because she recognized her style of drawing.)

Morgan, Mason, Alex, Simon, and Gabriella watch as Marlena ooh’s and aah’s over her present from Nama and Da. She has wanted an Aqua Doodle for a long time. Thanks Nama and Da!!

A birthday kiss from Mommy:

After all the presents were opened some of the party guests went home, but Marlena, Alex, and Gabriella went in for another round of splashing.
Marlena and Gabriella:

We had a great time and got lots of lovely pictures. Too many to post here. I will be emailing many of them to the apporpriate parties.

This friday we are taking her to dinner and to see the new Harry Potter. It is a really special birthday this year. Marlena was born on Friday the 13th and this is the first time her birthday has fallen on a friday since she was born. Therefore, since it is a double birthday, we are going to have two celebrations! At least. (She is finangling for one in Denver when we come home in August.)

Motherhood/body image
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Insomnia brings an epiphany.

I haven’t had insomnia since Marlena was born, I suppose because I haven’t slept much at all since she was born. It’s not all her fault, a big part of that is due to the various degree’s of higher education I have obtained since she entered the world.

Tonight’s insomnia came to me like an old friend. I used to suffer from this loathsome and annoying condition often in my youth. When afflicted with the inability to sleep as an adult, I would read or watch t.v. to while away the hours. As a child I would rearrange my furniture in the middle of the night.

Tonight I snuck into Marlena’s room and cleaned it. Then I lay in bed listening to my husband and baby snore and waited for sleep. It didn’t come. So here I am, writing to all of you, and eating some cream of wheat with soymilk. I miss real milk. A lot.

(Marlena’s bday party was successful today, but I will save that post for tomorrow, when I can post all the pictures with it.)

While lying in bed and listening to the rumbles of the men in my life I began to think about my body. Having just had a baby I am squishy and pudgy. I have dark marks down my stomach and I am pretty sure my breasts sag more each day. I look in the mirror while naked and I am a far cry from my supple teenage body of yore.

Tonight I realized something very important. I don’t care. I think I have a beautiful body. I love my body. My body has done the most amazing thing in my life, twice. I have grown two entire human beings. They came from me fully formed, with eyes, and ears, toes and fingers, and great personalities. They think things seperate from me and they have their own ideas. They will grow to have their own seperate lives. Their own children.

My body grew people. Real people. These real people:


I love these people. I love that they came from me, that I made them.

I love that my breasts look like they have nourished and are nourishing children. I love that my nipples are long and dark and my skin is marked with silver streaks. These breasts of mine have made the most amazing babies. They have fed them for hours of the most wonderful snuggly nursing.

I love that my stomach and thighs have stretch marks. My stomach grew two people. My babies came to life inside my stomach and grew to be strong and healthy. They would not be here if it weren’t for those stretch marks.

I don’t care that I don’t look like a young girl anymore, or that I am squishy and pudgy. My body is one that grew and sustained lives, and those lives love to hug and snuggle me as I am.

Thank you body, for everything you have given me. Thank you for being squishy and saggy and floppy. Thank you for being strong and able. Thank you for my life.