One small step for us, one giant step for Cameron

I rushed home a bit early yesterday because I had to do some work later in the evening and wasn't about to give up my precious play time with Miss Cameron. DH had already left to pick her up so I puttered around the house for about 15 minutes, changed my clothes, put out my outfit for the next day (totally anal but completely worth it to not be rushed in the morning) and brought in the trash barrels. It's amazing what one can get done in 15 uninterrupted minutes.

I was booting up my computer when I heard Charlie whining, a sure sign that DH and Cameron were pulling into the driveway. As I logged in Cameron and DH walked into the kitchen. I was in the other room but I knew they were in the house because as soon as Cameron sees Charlie she does this adorable screech/giggle. She has definitely warmed up to Charlie a lot over the past month and I'm not sure he likes it.

I walked over and Cameron laughed again at seeing me. I reached out to give her a hug and a kiss. "Guess, what happened today?" DH asked me. "She actually had her morning nap for a change?" I responded. "Nope, Miss Melba told me that she walked on her own for the first time." DH told me proudly.

Of course I made a big deal out of it to Cameron as DH bounded upstairs to check his email. But I did feel a twinge of regret. I wanted us to be the first people that saw Cameron walking. True, she spends a lot more time at daycare during the week than with us but couldn't her teacher have just hinted at it rather than baldly saying she walked? She could have said, "You should try walking with Cameron today, I think she's really close to walking on her own." I would have interpreted that to mean that she had already walked for her teacher but at least I could have lied to myself a little if I got her to walk for me that night.

I immediately put Cameron down to try and make her walk for me. At first she wanted to keep holding on to my hands and the girl has a super strong grip. After walking around the room together a few times I managed to extricate myself and as Cameron stood, swaying slightly, I exhorted her to walk towards me. All by herself. She took one, two, three steps forward before falling forward into my waiting hands. It was so exciting! I will try to get it on film this weekend but considering Cameron only took 3 steps and then wouldn't do it again all night it could take a while to capture it for posterity.

Meanwhile I still have that little twinge that Cameron walked first at daycare but I knew that was the risk we took in putting her in daycare. Plus, I'm a way better mom as a working mom. So it is all for the best. Anyone else have a similar experience with significant milestones for your kids?

Fun in the sun

We had a wonderful weekend and I was able to push most of my work mess out of my mind. A good thing considering how awesome Cameron was all weekend. We loved playing in the great weather. And DH and I had a babysitter so that we could go to dinner with 2 other couples to celebrate my birthday. All in all, a fabulous weekend and one that will hopefully prepare me for a long week work.

Today we picked up a new toy for Cameron. A sand and water play station that we can keep outside. She absolutely loves it as you can see from the pictures below. I will warn you, however, that the installation was a pain in the ass. DH had to drill holes in very confined spaces. So that would be my biggest negative to this toy. Otherwise, Cameron loves playing with the sand and the water. The toy says 2+ years but it is perfect for an almost 13 month old.

Friday Frustrations

Writing a blog is supposed to be cathartic, right? Well, let's give it a shot and see if I feel any better after I lay my current woes out on the blog-o-sphere, shall we?

Work is kicking my ass right now. It's a combination of things but mostly that I'm dealing with an unreasonable set of people that delight in micromanaging and belittling me. Sounds like fun, doesn't it? I routinely walk away from meetings with metaphorical bruises. I can't say I enjoy listening to the diatribes of people who don't understand the processes that BigFinance Technology has in place. They want what they want, and they want it now. And if I say even one thing that doesn't kowtow to their expectations then I get to listen to f-bombs being dropped left and right. Should I read something into it that most of these people are New Yorkers? No one I work with in Charlotte swears like a truck driver. And of course, if it isn't obvious, they are all men.

In general I like my job but lately I am feeling completely worn down and demoralized. I can't fall asleep at night. I lie awake thinking about the shit I'm going to have to deal with the next day and the day after that. I'm fairly low level in BigFinance. How can I not be with 250,000 other associates? I know that there is crap going on at a much higher level than me that I'm not clued in on. But I'm the "face" of this portion of the project. I know it more intimately than anyone else. But when I go to senior management for direction it is of no help. I'm also struggling because I'm a bit of a poseur. I'm not a technologist. I'm not a network engineer. There are a lot of smart people I work with but I never claim I'm a subject matter expert. I've picked up a fair bit but I pull in the engineers when I need to validate or justify a technology decision. I'm excellent at program management and problem resolution. But somehow with this project I feel like I don't have a leg to stand on because I'm not an engineer. The clients that I'm working with are bullies and I'm struggling with how to tame them.

I've been actively looking for a new position but given some major organizational changes there haven't been many openings. I guess I just have to suck it up for a couple of more months. There is always the weekend, right?

Last week a house went up for sale on my street. It's the first time a sale has happened since we bought our house 3 years ago. At the peak of the market. This house is fairly comparable to ours. Same number of bedrooms, baths, and about the same square feet. Unlike our house it doesn't have a garage, it's landscaping sucks and it is much closer to the end of the street, hence close to the busy crossroad. I haven't been inside yet (waiting to be a looky-loo at the open house) but according to the listing it needs TLC. Read: carpets over hardwoods and no updates.

The problem? It is listed for 33% less than what we bought our house for. 33% is such a big number. Even if you account for the factors I listed above, there is no way that we will see an appreciation for our house in the next 10+ years. It's not that we plan on moving anytime soon. It's just that so much of our income goes into the house. I guess we are living the new American dream of an over/under real estate situation. And my dream of house in a few years with an open floor plan is on hold. Can anyone else commiserate?

OK, I do feel a bit better after writing all that. But warm and fuzzy thoughts from my readers would still help!

Thursday Thoughts

If you want cute pictures then you have to wade through my random Thursday thoughts!

We have been having so much fun with Cameron lately and we can see her learning something new almost every day. Words are starting to become slightly clearer but I'm sure we're also loosely interpreting her sounds. Her latest cute thing is when we finish her bedtime routine, Cameron will point (well, gesture with her whole hand) to the bed. I still rock her for a minute or two but I love how happy she is to go to bed. Here's hoping that it continues!

Finger nail clipping has been more challenging for us. I try to make a game out of it but it has come down to me holding her hand tightly and ignoring her squawks and cries as I use tiny clippers. Cameron's daycare has nail clipping hygiene as a requirement and I don't want to be that parent who gets a note asking for it to be done. In the "good" category I have started brushing Cameron's 7 teeth during her bath time. She loves it because she tries to bite down on my finger. That rubber finger tip does not blunt toddler sharp teeth nearly enough! In a couple of weeks we'll introduce toothpaste. DH and I have never really had cavities and so we want to start good teeth routines early.

Because we went right into summer from winter the pollen this year has been unbelievable. My car was so covered that I couldn't even see out of the back window! We also have to hose Cameron's swing down before each use.

Toddler product reviews: 12+ months

Now that Cameron is a year old, I thought it was time for another of my period reviews of "must have" items in our household. I have also reviewed products for 0-6 months and 6-9 months

Board books
We have a good supply of board books in Cameron's play area and up in her room. As anyone with a toddler knows, they like to destroy things. Board books are perfect because they are practically indestructible. Not so the pop up book that barely survived a single "reading" with Cameron. My favorites are the Sandra Boynton ones because they rhyme and don't have too many words. The touch and feel books are still good for this age too.

Swing
We put Cameron in this exactly one time and she immediately started pointing (well, gesturing with her entire hand because she hasn't figured out pointing with an index finger yet) at the swing every time she saw it from her bedroom window or if we were out in the yard. She insists on swinging for at least 15 minutes. If we try to take her out before those 15 minutes are up then she kicks and cries. We've been fortunate that physical development melded nicely with the passage of seasons. It has been perfect swinging weather since we got it. The one we use is Little Tykes and I got it for $15 from a consignment sale. It doesn't swing completely straight but I blame the installation (trees can be tricky). If we had a real swing set I would have gotten a bucket seat swing. We use those at the park and I think that they are much sturdier.

Shoes
I still have some 12-18 month Robeez and that Cameron needs to grow into. Now that she is cruising all over the place, however, those shoes will probably be relegated to "indoor" shoes. Otherwise Cameron is now enjoying "real" shoes. We did go to Stride Rite and spent more than necessary but hey, it was her first pair of real shoes. My recommendation is to go velcro. I have no idea why parents would select ones with laces. Cameron already likes to unlace things. Putting temptation on her feet would be too risky. I was going to get two pairs of shoes for her but I didn't want two girlie pairs and the one boy pair I liked was out of stock. In retrospect I'm glad we only got one pair. We'll definitely add in sandals into the mix for the late spring/summer.

Hair holders
I have bought more hair accessories for Cameron's hair than I have ever had for my own. I finally found the right kind of elastic bands. I swear by the Scunci brand which is carried by most retailers. Don't go plastic. They will fall out in 1 minute. Aside from the tiny elastic bands I also like the clippies and miniature octopus clips Scunci offers. My trick to styling Cameron's hair is to put her in the high chair, give her a handful of Cheerios and go to town.

Suction bowl
Cameron likes to throw her food. A lot. One strategy we have employed to combat her willfulness is to present her food in a bowl. I ordered two of these suction bowls from Amazon and love them! One is not enough...you should definitely get two. The ones I purchased do a great job of "sticking" to the tray.

High chair mat
Continuing with the food theme I also purchased a splat mat. Even though we have a dog he is the biggest wimp on the planet and won't come far enough into the kitchen to eat the dropped (ahem, thrown) food. Weirdo. I'll pull the mat up before the cleaning people come through.

Food storage
Toddlers don't just love playing with Tupperware, parents love how useful it is for storing leftovers. I found the perfect size for us to use for extra canned vegetables or fresh fruit. They also work for the diaper bag with snacks. My local Harris Teeter carried them.

Snack trap
We have two, one is the original Snack Trap and the other is a knock off. Both work fine but I find that the original Snack Trap has a more flexible plastic on its opening. It's easier for Cameron to get her hand in but it is also easier for her to spill the snack all over the floor. Or the car seat. Or the stroller. Do you sense a theme?

Sippy cup leash
I don't have one of these yet but my friend Amanda showed hers off while we were at lunch with our munchkins. I had to keep getting up from my chair and picking up Cameron's sippy cup. So I'm ordering one ASAP. Amanda recommends two: one for traveling and one for the high chair.

Sling
Cameron still isn't walking on her own and even when she is, it will take her a few months to become a really good walker. And even then she's going to want to be carried quite a bit. With the summer heat right around the corner I shuddered to think about using the heavy Moby wrap. Instead I purchased a very inexpensive ring sling from Sleeping Baby Productions. I'm just a few inches over 5 feet and a small works great for us. It can be a bit awkward to get Cameron in and out by myself but if DH is around it's perfect. I can take most of her weight onto my shoulder rather than my arm. It's more comfortable for both of us and I can carry her for 30+ minutes at a time. I've even taken her on errands with it because it is so much faster than hauling out the stroller.

Parents of kids over the age of 1...what else am I missing? Any other must haves that I need to add to this list?

Happy birthday!

For the past 33 years I have shared a birthday with two other amazing women: my sisters, Kristin and Allison. Despite pursuing very different careers and living hundreds of miles apart we are still, and will always be each other's best friends.

Happy birthday, wonderful ladies!

How have I lived without you?

I know that I have been sadly remiss in not posting over the past few days. Tons of errands, hanging out with neighbors and beautiful weather kept me out of the house for most of the weekend. Cameron and I had quality bonding time on Friday since I had to take the day off as daycare was closed. She is absolutely loving the great weather we've been enjoying in Charlotte. I realized that I only had a few short sleeved tops for her so a trip to Target was a must. I ended up getting some shorts too in both 12 and 18 month. I was just going to get 18 month clothing but the 12 month stuff is still roomy. My munchkin has definitely slowed down on her growth.

Also on the docket for this past weekend? Getting my birthday present. I've been toying with the idea of getting an iPad but I am not an early adopter. Plus the price point was a little high for me. Instead DH and I packed up Cameron and went to the AT&T store to get me what I now refer to as "my precious," my kick ass iPhone. I absolutely love it and have no idea how I juggled a cell phone and iPod before. Of course it makes sense to have both together! I got the high end case for it in bright pink. It was worth the extra $60 buck when you have a toddler. And bright pink was so that DH knows as he plays with it that it's all mine.

The iPhone is super intuitive. And I am not an intuitive person when it comes to technology. Ironic considering I work in technology, no? DH has already uploaded his fantasy baseball application and I added the Weight Watchers point tracker. The photo quality isn't as great as my digital camera but I expected that to be the case. Plus Cameron is in full on mobility mode so she never sits still for photos any more.

Any other iPhone lovers out there? Any recommendations for applications that I can download?