Mooning

Just now seen:

Baby B. rolled over onto his tummy in his crib. He's so mobile, even when he sleeps, that sometimes I find him on his stomach, head turned to the side, arms splayed out and butt right up in the air. I have to resist the urge to pinch and pat it! I love checking on him when I get home from work, and nights like these when he's in the cutest sleeping position just make me smile. I always stroke his hand or his cheek so in some way, he knows I'm home from work. Tonight, he rewarded me with the slightest sigh. "Thanks, Mom."

Earlier seen:

A CBS 4 News anchor checking his reflection in the back window of a minivan across from the Denver City and County Building. The camera was set up on the lawn at Civic Center park and I got the feeling he was minutes away from an on-air appearance. Can't let those fly-aways show on camera!

Wordless Wednesday

Tagging

I was tagged today by my friend Kelly.

What I was doing 10 years ago: I was in my senior year at Metro State, and I know I had a heavy load of math classes that thoroughly kicked my butt. I was working at the same place I am now, but the jobs were quite different. We also were about four blocks west of our current address. I was living in a little condo with my roommate Michelle. Probably partying like a rock star every chance I got!

5 things on my to-do list today…

• Clean the humidifiers at home.
• Pack my lunch for work.
• Take care of my ill hubby and Big B.
• Pay a parking ticket.
• Get a chair massage.

5 snacks I enjoy…

• Zingers.
• Pumpkin seeds.
• Nuts and berries (trail mix).
• Ice cream.
• Cheese and crackers.

5 things I would do if I were a billionaire

• Pay off my mortgage and my families' mortgages.
• Save lots and lots of money for B.
• Do something fun and extravagant like renting an island in Fiji (I have a resort picked out!) to take my family for a long vacation.
• Since I hate parting with money, I'd probably save, save, save!
• I also always joke that I'm going to buy the parking lot next to my work so I could give my favorite colleagues free parking, sort of thumbing my nose at having to pay 100 bucks a month to park at work.

5 bad habits…

• 
  Too much time on the computer.
• I eat lots of sweets and quite a bit of them.
• I got out of my yoga routine, which I love.
• Staying in my PJs when I stay home. I love PJ days at home though.
• Driving too fast.

5 places I’ve lived…

• Pueblo, Colo.
• Denver, Colo.
• Westminster, Colo.
• Arvada, Colo.
• Lakewood, Colo. (Yes, I get around, not!)

5 jobs I’ve had…

• Restaurant manager
• Dance teacher
• Fireworks store cashier
• Mortgage broker's gopher
• Sportswriter
  

TAG! Now YOU are it…

• Stephanie
• Amy

P-town

B.'s getting his first real trip to Pueblo tomorrow.

We did stop and feed him in the parking lot at Carl's Jr. on the way to New Mexico, but this is a real get-to-know-you kind of trip.

It's also the first time I've really visited in about 2 years. Seems like forever ago that I lived there. One thing I miss tremendously is the loft. Here's a list I thought I'd never make.

Things I miss about P-town:

• Our 1 bedroom, 1 bath loft. Hardwood floors. Granite countertops. Mexican tile in the kitchen. Absolutely no storage space, insulation, efficiency or privacy, but oh, so cozy.
• My yoga school. My yoga teacher. My yoga peeps. Doing newsletters and desktop-publishing-type things in trade for lessons. I used to be so flexible. I can't even do the splits any more.
  
• The newspaper and its free parking lot.
• The bowling alleys.
• Poker Sundays. A group of us would rotate houses each Sunday and get together for a night of dealer-calls-it games. Nickel, dime and quarter antes. Three-raise maximum. Pizza and beer. Good times.
• The riverwalk. The historic district where we lived. All the cute shops and restaurants nearby.
• The library.
  
• The heat!
• Cheap beer at Smitty's Green Light. Red's Alibi (where I met C.). Prime Time. Great sushi and tempura at Suehiro. Pizza at Rosario's and Do Drop Inn. Italian sausage sandwiches at Pass Key. Schooners at Gus' and Eilers. Roasted green chile in the fall. A big, messy slopper (Mexican hamburger).
  
• The Colorado State Fair and the free parking passes and press credentials everyone at the newspaper received.
• The proximity to Taos, N.M. and my family there. It was a 2-hour, 45-minute drive. Heck, it was 4 hours to Albuquerque.
• My phone number. 544-7888. Easy.
• Last but not least, my friends and former colleagues.
  

That's all I can think of on my list for now, but I'm sure I could at least double it if I wanted.

Fingers crossed

After staying late at work for the second extra-innings Rockies game in eight days, I'm beat.

I just got home and promptly set the coffee maker to greet me with a hot cuppa in the morning. I just hope I can enjoy it after 8 a.m.

P.S. I did get spoiled with a nap today (err, Friday). I had showered and was about 90 percent ready for work when the boys left to pick up Nanny Hans from the hospital, where he had scheduled wrist surgery. I ran up to the bathroom to fetch something and decided to lie on the bed for 15 minutes. When that 15 minutes passed, I awoke in a daze, wondering where the baby was, why wasn't the monitor on, why was I in my clothes. I drifted off, and the sound of the door closing stirred me again. It was 82 minutes after I first closed my eyes. Thinking back, it was the first time I'd had some alone time in the house -- without anyone else here -- since Mr. Cheeks was born. Wow.

Edit: After a 5 a.m. feed, B. and I got up at 9:30, he ate and I'm now headed downstairs to pour that first cuppa joe. It's almost 10 a.m.! A triumph!

My new thing

B. now finds great joy in sticking out his tongue at us!

What's up, Doc?

Somebody loves carrots. I mean, really, really loves the carrots!



Surprisingly, we weren't too messy.


Then again, little guy does love the taste of his own tootsies.

Firsts

A few of B.'s firsts this week:

First ...

• visit to the Ellie Caulkins Opera House.
• ride in a golf cart with Dad.
  
• bites of rice cereal. Not sure if he likes it.
• time sitting all on his own. Still a bit Weeble-Wobbly, but independent nonetheless.
  
• time in the book store -- Barnes & Noble -- to pick out some reading materials.
• time meeting Z., a boy across town who is just a month younger.
• mouthful of his own toes. He figured out how to gnaw on his feet.
  

Reinforcement

I am convinced we are doing the right thing.

After making the decision to cloth diaper our little guy, I sometimes wonder if disposables wouldn't be easier. I'm sure they would be, and they are when we're on vacation, but I feel better about our cloth.

Sometimes it's a challenge to stick with it, especially when you look at the basket of diapers and there are only a few clean ones, meanwhile a mound of dirties are staring you down from the laundry room.

But yesterday, I saw a report that showed just how much an average baby (and that's being conservative -- this report averaged only four diapers a day ... FOUR DIAPERS?!) uses in resources. The disposable-diapered baby uses crude oil, trees and landfill space. Don't ask for specifics because as a new mom, my brain sometimes turns to mush.

Some people say using cloth uses other resources like energy and water for washing, but with our high-efficiency and Energy Star rated appliances, I don't worry about that. And water is renewable.

So I feel better about our decision. Remind me of that when I'm complaining about yet another load of diapers to wash.

P.S. The fact that Big B. is rockin' the cloth diapers and looks so darling in them helps!

First time

Check out my new skill. I just started last night, and I'm getting better all the time.

Happenings

Here's what I've been up to since Mommy got our new camera.

I played, got hugs from Mom, found out how small my hands really are,

fell asleep on Daddy's shoulder (he's still talking about this!),

played with my feet, inspected my toe jam, reached for Mommy after a nap,

had giggles with Nanny Hans (AKA Uncle D.) and Daddy,

found out how small my feet really are, got a new pair of shoes and sunglasses,

jumped, selected what I wanted for dinner, goofed off in the tub,

told the paparazzi (Mom) I was spent, and finally, I slept really hard.

Just seen: A formation of F-16s flying over Coors Field. Baseball has arrived in the Mile High City.

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Free tickets

So people always ask if I can get free tickets to sporting events because of my job, and the answer is yes.

But these are the kinds of free tickets I actually get.

The NBA Development League's Colorado 14ers.

The National Lacrosse League's Colorado Mammoth.

The Arena Football League's Colorado Crush.

No Rockies. No Nuggets. Definitely not Broncos or Avalanche.

So there I'll be next week, sitting at the Broomfield Event Center taking in an NBA D-League game against the Austin Toros with my family. For free. Eat your hearts out.

Wordless Wednesday

I know this is supposed to be wordless, but that just looks fun, Mom!