Won't you be my baby?

Updated to add: In the 2nd to last picture I just noticed a BLUEBERRY skulking in the background. WTF? Do they have legs???? Argh.

Too lazy to deal with paragraphs, topics and indentedness today. Instead, I'll demonstrate how bullets can used to make friends, not enemies.......

• Hey - this De-lurking thingie is FUN. It's not only cool to be getting comments, but also, I am really enjoying visiting new sites! Keep the comments coming because it is awesome to be adding new spots to my Bloglines. Also, I realize that I am behind on my own replies to your comments from yesterday - will get on those after I publish this.
• I've discovered there is a direct correlation between my kid's Snuggle Factor and his diaper's Stink Factor. For sure, the higher the Stink, the higher the probability he will want to crawl into my lap. Unfortunately, this does not translate into an actual request for a diaper change. HELL NO.
• Someone made the very valid comment that sushi being a Forbidden Food during pregnancy seems silly to those folks of the Japanese persuasion. I would agree that much of the Forbidden Food seems silly and I freely confess that I enjoyed a glass of wine here and there while pregnant with Arun (my doctor has said that Americans are puritanical when it comes to alcohol - we discussed portion sizes, but she did admit she usually tells her patients "no alcohol at all" for liability reasons.) Anyway, with Arun, I even had soft cheese, but I just can't seem to make the leap to sushi. I have been craving some home-made paneer, but am wondering where that falls. I think it's a soft cheese, but what if I am making it myself?
• I am not a big fan of Starbucks. It's nothing personal, I just don't care for their coffee. I do like the Cinnamon Dolce with HALF the pumps of the sugary crap, but overall, I think their coffee is meh. However, they are conveniently located near to my house and they offer a cozy place to sit and relax. Lately, I've been spending more time there because Cousin J is back babysitting (it's been well over a month - we were sick, she was sick - everyone was freakin' sick.) So. Ahem. I am starting to have a little "problem" with their Iced Green Tea Lemonade. I can't tell you how much I have been craving this thing since I discovered it last week. I am even trying to scheme how I can make it at home. It is SO yummy and refreshing. I had some left in a cup tonight and X was letting Arun have some and I may have snapped at X. I may have even said something about "needing something JUST FOR ME, that I didn't have to share". Well, I may have said something to that effect, but there's no proof and besides, no jury would convict me.
• Everyone is all abuzz about the Consumer Reports thingie about carseats - I'd like to make something clear. They were talking about INFANT CARRIERS - you know, the Baby Bucket that you put into a base that is belted/LATCHed into your car. There's a lot of misinformation out there that I think is muddling the issue and just plain causing confusion - some folks aren't making the clarification that it was only referring to infant carriers - CR was not referring to convertible carseats or booster seats. I do highly recommend buying this month's issue of Consumer Reports if you are shopping for an infant carrier or carseat in general - the article overall was very educational. We lucked out and just happened to have one of the two they recommended - the Graco Snugride. I wish I could claim some superior knowledge related to my sMothering Skillz, but nope, just pure dumb luck on my part. Obviously, since we will be filling our Baby Bucket again this summer, this issue has been on my mind. I think carseats in particular really set off fever pitch emotions for parents because unlike most Things Baby Safetyish, there is NOTHING you can do about car wrecks. Conversely, you can put up gates, lock up your knives, clamp down your toilet seats, but when it comes to carseats, you have to put your faith into it and hope some dumb ass doesn't run a red light.
• Ugh. Speaking of little fleshblobs, I really don't like the term "the baby". I think it's the "the" part of that whole thing and it's particularly irksome when you hear people say things like "Oh, The Baby started Kindergarten today". WTF? And yes, I still hear people call Arun "the baby". Um, he's a little boy - I've even lost count of the haircuts. Oh SURE, he'll always be "MY baby", but he's never been "THE baby". Speaking of babies, I had hoped to come up with a stellar moniker for NewKid since I referred to Arun as the Freeloader throughout my pregnancy. I haven't really came up with anything I like and seriously, X and I call HimHer the NewKid. ...........New Kid on the Blog, I guess........

New Blood for the Marketing Industry


They say a sucker is born every minute - how about October 16, 2005? The Great Red One is hawking crackers and Arun TOTALLY fell for it. There is nothing special about these crackers, yet Arun will devour them and not the perfectly good store brand crackers that taste virtually the same. I was so desperate to get him to eat something, ANYTHING. So, I caved and bought these crackers when Arun saw them and began excitedly gesturing. Which of course, makes ME the ultimate sucker for marketing.


The Nose Knows

A 3rd Generation Oliver Nose, at your service. However, you should see his DADDY's big ole honker. Arun got off easy!


Charm School Dropout

Cuz Drool Ain't Cool.

The Evolution of a Snot Bubble

They have to begin somewhere.