Why doesn't "onomatopoeia" sound like what it is?

A bunch of randomness for you today. I'm not going to even bother with bullets and instead will meander with careless abandon from topic to topic. It's not like this blog is gunning for a Pulitzer.

Well, the 13 Week Mark has passed and yep, I'm feeling like a champ now. So far, this pregnancy is following the last pregnancy to the Tee - same timelines, same cravings (I would totally trade one of my cats for a Waldorf Salad these days). If it continues that way, I would have no complaints because far away, the worst parts of the last pregnancy were the 1st Trimester and the Last Week. I'm not holding my breath but I AM keeping my fingers crossed.

I haven't posted much about Arun lately - he's doing pretty much what most 14 months olds are doing - playing with anything that can be pushed around the house (it doesn't even need wheels), stacking blocks, sorting cups, babbling a storm and in general, exploring his world. He LIVES for going outside - when we are going "bye-bye" and I open the garage door, he grabs the nearest thing with wheels and heads on out to the garage. His favorite thing is to push his toy truck up and down the driveway and sidewalk. We've been SO lucky with this mild weather so far - if it's in the 40s or above, we go outside. He doesn't have any words yet, but what he understands is getting out of control - I've already had to start spelling things. He is becoming very adept at letting us know what HE wants by pointing and saying "Eh". He's started making choices, which is convenient because I can just SHOW him the water, milk or juice BEFORE pouring it. Lately, I've noticed that his tolerance for spice has picked WAY up. We were at Oklahoma Joe's the other night and he dunked his fry in X's "Night of the Living BBQ Sauce" before we could stop him. We waited for his reaction but he didn't blink an eye. He still fusses when he hits a jalapeno, but he's pretty much up to where I eat spice-wise now - he has a ways to go before reaching X's level, though. Also, I worried and fretted that he wouldn't like books - all for naught. He frequently brings books to us to read to him. Oh, he has finally started watching TV - a whole 5 minutes at a time. I still love the irony that he won't watch Elmo on TV, but loves to play with his various Elmo books and dolls. Overall, right now is just HEAVEN. There are no tantrums, no fussing. It's lovely - that calm before a HURRICANE (FYI, the Terrible Twos actually start around 18 months). He eats like a champ with no complaints, lets me dress him sans opinion and allows me to change his course of action with impunity.

With all that about Arun just posted, let me say that I am so glad that I did document so much of his first year. I am getting ready to update his baby book and perusing my archives will be convenient AND fun.

I mentioned during my last pregnancy that I came out with no stretch marks - I don't know if I updated that claim, but I did discover after Arun's birth a one-inch mark under my belly button, I can't find that mark now, but it was definitely there in those weeks after he was born. The thing is, everywhere you read about stretch marks, they always say you can't do anything about them and that they are hereditary. Well, both my mother and my sister got them, but I did not. A few weeks ago, I was reading about stretch marks and the book mentioned that flaxseed oil can help improve your skin's elasticity. Not only does the soymilk I drink have flaxseed oil in it, I take flaxseed oil every day - this was part of my routine even before I got pregnant. So, does flaxseed oil prevent stretch marks? I can't say for sure, but I DID get a few smallish, minor stretch marks on my hips when I gained weight after quitting cigarettes. That was years back before I "discovered" soymilk and flaxseed oil. Anyway, I will definitely report back after this 2nd pregnancy.

I generally don't make New Year's resolutions, but I do like to think about the past year and ponder the one coming. This year, I did make one resolution - to send or give a birthday card to every birthday on my Palm. Normally, I resist the nefarious greeting card industry, but this year, I am going to embrace it.

Folks, anti-bacterial soaps, Purell, and the like only kill bacteria. Despite slathering yourself in a glaze of Purell, you can still catch a cold because a cold is caused by a virus. Bonus Fact? Just because you get a flu shot, doesn't mean you won't get the flu. There are many, many diffrent flu viruses - the yearly flu shot targets only one of them for that particularly year based on a prediction of what will be the one mostly likely to hit in a given year. Sure, it's a numbers game, but it is still worth it to get your flu shot. Nope, I am not a doctor, but I play one on my blog.

A Kansas City Stitch n' Bitch Update: We are still meeting the 1st and 3rd Sundays of the month from 2-4pm. We have changed the venue from Coffee Girls to the Cafe Roasterie. In short, Coffee Girls did not provide a good location for knitting, it was just too dark in there. Also, Feb 4th is Superbowl Sunday and that is basically a Holy Day around le Rancid Manse, so we will be meeting early on that day from Noon-2pm. And, AND, we are doing a Stash Swap on Feb. 18th. Bring your skeins of yarn you don't want any longer and we will do trades. One person's trash just might be ANOTHER person's stash, right? I will update the Stitch n' Bitch entry today........


Suburban Barn Cat, Rarely Seen in the Wild
I love how the cats just hang out amongst Arun's toys.

Tunnel Vision
I admit it. I bought Arun's Christmas gift #3 primarily FOR ME with the goal of hanging out in the basement or backyard - dependent upon the weather and my burgeoning belly. This Ryan's Room tunnel thingie is AWESOME - it goes indoors and outdoors. The one thing I did NOT count on was how much the cats love it, too. The cats play with each other, they even play with Arun and I'll be damned if EVERYONE isn't happy with this $25 Costco purchase (Note: Pictures only show one of the pieces of the set).

Shameless Mugging for the Camara, Patent Pending
In his continuing quest to become more human-like, Arun does little things that indicate "Hey! There's a brain in this here noggin! And the gears are crankin', yo!" The other night, he brought the camara to me and I started snapping away while he granted me goofy grins. Here is a sampling....