Wednesday, January 23, 2013

the old college try

 
that is what i gave cloth diapers.  i even installed a sprayer/bidet on our toilet
because i thought that would make it less disgusting.  i was wrong.
 
i bought 10 cloth diapers with the goal to use a hybrid of cloth and disposable
diapers - only using the cloth at home.  i know a few who use them and really
like them, so i picked their brains, did some research, and bought a few
to start out.  just to see if it was something we would actually be willing to do
before making a large investment.  i took the plunge when richard went out of
town for work, and after two full days of cd's i came to the realization that no,
i'm actually not willing to do them.  bidet or no, i just won't do it.  i'd rather
add to the landfill than deal with spraying runny, mustard-colored turds into
the john every other minute.  not to mention the leaking.  woof.
 
what it boils down to is that we've got a few cloth diapers in case of an
emergency.  but i can't think of an emergency that would be better solved
by using them than just making a quick trip to the store.
 
this was the first cloth diaper we used, and by the look on his face i think
he knew it was a joke.  by the look of the diaper, and my gag reflex,
i should've known, too. 
 

Thursday, January 17, 2013

here's to us...cheers to us


we spent new year's eve at home.  my parents came over for a little
while, but it wasn't really to hang out with us...it was to hold the boy.
we're not offended.  we can't be, because we understand more than
anyone that holding him is better than hanging out with any adult.

anyway, they packed it in at about 11:00, so after we put marty boy
to bed, it was just the two of us.  we popped the cork on the sparkling
cider, filled our glasses, and rang in the new year toasting all of the things
we are thankful for, and all of our hopes for 2013.  it was perfect.



 i wasn't feeling very thankful on thanksgiving, which sounds terrible, but that's
just the way it was.  but the new year has got me reflecting and feeling pretty
blessed, so here are some of the things i'm grateful for:

a handy husband who aspires to become more handy with every possible
project.  and his handy friends who lend their handy hands when we need them.



a working dishwasher (installed by my handy husband).



a happy, healthy baby.
and a husband who loves making the happy boy smile.

 

 
a family who loves him (almost as much as we do).




 motherhood.  having my little marty boy has opened my heart
more than i ever thought possible.  i may be doing everything wrong,
but when he smiles at me, or snuggles into my neck, or holds on tight
to my finger, i know that we were meant to be together and that
eventually i'll get it right.




i've got a feeling that 2013 is going to be a pretty good year.

 

a merry little christmas

 
 the best christmas gift we got came a little early, in the form of the
most precious baby ever conceived.  but we still celebrated by
showering each other with more gifts on the actual day.

richard's main gift was an electric acoustic guitar, but i/santa still filled his stocking
with groupons and candy.  between the two of us, we ended up with movies in
the double digits and a boat load of candy.  which will make for some good
at-home date nights.


after our first christmas morning as a little family, we headed out to
my parents' house to find that their satanic golden retriever had eaten
the breakfast casserole.  dad saved the day by whipping up some
french toast, and then we got to more presents.

 




i think my favorite gift of the morning was the painting that shae did for us - 
the baby is martin (obviously), the guitar is for richard, and the pink flamingos
are for me.  he is super talented, and we are super lucky he wants to join our
crazy family.




marty got plenty of attention.  as he should, since he's the pretty much the
greatest thing ever.

 





we ended the porter family gathering by taking family photos.



these two are pretty much a family of their own already, but they're making it
legally official this fall - shae proposed to sarah the sunday before christmas, she
said yes, and we couldn't be happier!  not only do we love him, but richard is
pretty stoked that the boys will no longer be outnumbered.  they will, however,
still be outcrazied by a large margin.



 


we opted out of traveling to the grandparents' houses to avoid any sickly family
members that may have infected our little guy, so we headed home.  it was kinda
weird, but pretty fun.  richard made delicious cookies, we watched movies and ate
junk food, played boggle, and then richard remembered that he'd saved one last
gift for me to open....

  

he handed me a bag, and i opened it to find wires, electrical tape, and a few
other "handy" objects that i was sure i'd never be using.  but before i got to the
last thing in the bag the thought popped into my mind: a dishwasher!  i asked if
that's what it was (if i'd waited to see the last object i'd have known for sure because
it said "dishwasher" on it), he said yes, and then i jumped across the room to tackle
him with happy, thankful, and tearful hugs and kisses.  then he took me out to the
garage to show me that it was no joke.

 


i was a pretty happy camper.  how could i not be with an amazing husband,
the best baby known to man (and any other species), and a dishwasher?!


merry christmas.