My 2 Cents About Health Care Reform

Since graduating from college, I've worked for a hospital, the state health department and now an insurance company. You would think if anyone would know the right answer for health care reform, I'd have it. Of course, if I did, you'd have heard of it by now.

The truth is, I support the idea and the need for change. It is a broken system. But what is even more broken than that is our nation's disregard for our health. People under the age of 50 should not be on 12 different medications. Kids should not be overweight, never mind obese, with diabetes and high blood pressure. It makes me sad. And sick.

When I taught at the high school here, kids were clueless about what is healthy and what is not. I think it's hard for people to decipher some things but there's one unmistakable, undeniable truth: moving more makes you more healthy. As a personal trainer, I heard all kinds of bullshit excuses as to why and they are all just that: bullshit. If you're lazy, at least admit it.

But I digress. This was meant to be a post about reform.

Making insurance more affordable is good. People should have a medical home. Families need to have a family doctor, not the emergency room. But giving more people access to care is not going to reduce health care costs.

We have an aging workforce. People get sick more as they age. 60% of the country is overweight or obese. 30% of kids are now overweight or obese. What's going to happen when those overweight kids grow up and get jobs? Will they all of a sudden be healthy and thin and active? It's not likely. They'll come to college with chronic disease, then go out into the workforce with chronic disease. Things will likely get worse before they get better.

What we need is more PE in schools; trails and fitness options in every community; flexible hours so people can exercise during the work day; safe routes to schools so kids can walk or bike to school again; nutrition education for every age group because even after all this time, people still don't get it. Cafeterias on worksites and in school need to serve healthy food. You know, I grew up on crap like fried chicken and fries just like the rest of you but things are different now. Kids don't play like they did when we were kids. I was outside constantly as a kid, riding my bike or playing basketball or exploring... kids have to eat better at a younger age.

Last but not least, parents need to suck it up and be parents. As in, you are in charge of your kid, not the other way around. You buy the food, you determine the rules, you sit on your butt every night watching reality TV or you get up and walk or play or move.

There are so many things that need to change before things will get better, I just don't think the President's focus is on the right part of reform. It will be interesting to watch it all play out over the next ten years.

This Just In...

Kaia & I just woke up from an almost four-hour nap. I think maybe we needed it...

The job is great, the house hunt is frustrating and Kaia is fabulous.

That's the update. :)

The Best Present Ever

We got her something for xmas and it came in the best thing - a box - and even better, a box with lots of brown paper cushioning it! We might as well save the presents for next year and just let her enjoy the boxes and paper for now. I doubt she'll have half as much fun with the gifts.

2009

What a year. The blog hasn't seen much action, has it? Seems like everyone has kind of abandoned the journal in favor of 2 second posts on fb but I'm going to keep this going even if I'm the only one. Sometimes I feel like writing more than I'm willing to share with fb "friends" that I haven't spoken to in 20 years. lol

So the first two weeks on the job have been superb. I'm very nervous but it's a good thing. The kind of nervous that will make sure I do a good job. As opposed to not ever even making it to OKC on time because I had nothing to do once I got there. ;) Well ok maybe it wasn't quite that bad, but almost. This job will be much more intense and I am so excited and lucky to have this opportunity. I hope this is a place I can stay for a long time.

My office is a big ugly empty space. I've got to find a way to make it "me." I do have a great big window with a view of Boulder which is not all that exciting but hey, it's sunlight.

Kaia is doing so great, she's learning and growing and... eating! I don't want to jinx myself but she has eaten really well the past three days. Right now, she's polishing off some dry cheerios after eating a whole biscuit for breakfast. Then she climbed in my lap and started making faces at me...we were all three laughing so hard our cheeks hurt. I want everyone to go make a baby. Right now. :)

The house hunting has been pretty fun. We are finding neighborhoods in Tulsa that we would really like to live in, beyond what we already knew about. We saw a couple yesterday around TU that were pretty great. Just not quite "it" yet though high on the list of possibilities. The problem we're having really is space. What we can afford in the areas we want = pretty small. But anyway, it's been great and we can't wait to move back home.

Thanksgiving was great, my nephews (12, 10 and 8) were all smitten with Kaia; Stephen and Ben particularly doted on her. She had a great couple of weekends with family. Mark & Candice on weekend, my family the next... she loved chasing the cats and dogs and kids. It's fun to see her experience new things and have fun.

Life is good.

Sweet Ipod gods!

I found it! I found it!

Naked baby wearin' a hat

Bluer Pastures

So, I think everyone knows by now that I have accepted the position with Blue Cross & Blue Shield, aka Health Care Services Corporation. I use the latter term because I will be working with more than just Oklahoma employees and Blue Cross is a subsidiary of HCSC. Four states are under HCSC: New Mexico and Oklahoma, which are both mine, Illinois and Texas. I have three "counterparts" for the other states. My boss, who is in Texas, reports directly to the Chief Medical Officer, who's in Chicago. There will be traveling, mostly to Albuquerque, but soon to Dallas to meet the Good Doctor who is our boss.

I'm really excited about this job, but rest assured, this is a BIG JOB. I don't think I'll have much time for blogging or texting or emailing at work. At least not until I get into a good routine and really understand what all my responsibilities are. He told me on the first phone call, this job is demanding and busy. So I guess I'll be earning my pay for once. I'm totally excited about that. I hate being bored at work, as you guys can probably guess by now.

It's a pretty decent pay raise with decent benefits and good raises. I'll be downtown at 14th & Boulder and close to Riverparks, which I'm also excited about. I hope it doesn't take too long for our house to sell.

What I'm NOT excited about is (once we move) Cory's drive and ... new daycare. :( In fact, I get queasy thinking about it.

Just Shoot Me

Can't find the iPod. Sigh.

Just for fun

Mommy colored my nose with her make-up pencil.



Oh and I really like grandma Cathy's cookies.

:)

Well now...

It is looking like we will be making Tulsa our home in the near future! Details to come.

Fun with Kaia

I know I've said it before but it is so much fun having Kaia around, I can't believe how entertaining she is. :) She is growing (er... developing? changing? learning?) so fast. She's still so tiny... I worry about that off and on but try to focus on the fact that she seems healthy and happy.

It's so funny to ask her a question:

"Kaia, do you want to go outside?"
"Ous! Ous! Outside??? Yeah. Yeah. Ous! Ouside!"

She would stay outside from the time she got home from daycare til dark and probably beyond if we would let her. I hope that doesn't change.

We have some great videos on the camera but I can't seem to get them to upload onto the computer and play. Don't know what the dealio is, but I'm sure Daddy can figure it out.

We finally got new car seats and turned the little bugger around. Oh speaking of ... she picks her nose now and says "buggers?" We officially have to watch our language now, she repeats EVERYTHING.

We took her to a pumpkin patch this past weekend in Arcadia. It was so much fun. I had never been to one before, it was beautiful there.



We had steak & shake afterwards. Burgers and fries are beautiful too. lol

PS

For those of you on fb, please don't comment about the JOB interview on there. There are three co-workers and one associate on my fb list!

so...

I'm glad that is over with...

I was at BCBS for almost three hours today, I think the guy who would be my boss was going to be late for his flight. I did my presentation via teleconference for the other two health promotion specialists (one in Texas, one in Chicago) and for him in the room. It was weird, but it went really well. No one was familiar with the topic so I think they were impressed. I put a powerpoint together but they didn't have a computer set up so I just talked. I feel like I already know these people because technically, this was like the third interview. He said, "I hope that tells you how important it is for us to find the right person for this position..."

The building is on the edge of downtown at 12th & Boulder. The building is ugly as sin on the outside but slightly better on the inside than what I've got now. My office though... HUGE. Huge window, my own fridge, massive old and ugly desk... I'd have a diner's club card for travel so I wouldn't have to pay anything up front like I do now.

I'd be Senior Health Promotion Specialist in charge of employee wellness for oklahoma and new mexico. My boss would reside in Dallas, so I'd be on my own mostly. It's a lot of responsibility, but I don't know that it will be a lot of money. I think it will be more money than I make now, but you have to realize my benefits... I pay for nothing, not even my flex account. I receive a pretty big benefit allowance and have money left over. I have tons of freedom, access to a fitness center on-site and get 3 weeks vacation plus sick leave and holidays. It should be a dream situation. Except that I'm bored out of my mind and ten years older than everyone else in my department making the same money as they do with very, very little chance for a raise. Who knew? Government employees don't get raises, it literally takes an act of the legislature to get a raise.

Anyway, it's all so stressful. Driving back and forth to OKC for the past 9 months; wanting to buy a house and move but not; now, possibly driving back and forth to Tulsa instead; wanting to buy a house and move but making Cory commute... UGH. Too much. I need a serious vacation.

I think I'd like the BCBS job, but I don't know where I would go from there. He was honest with me that it's a senior level position and pretty much "it" as far as their wellness program goes, but the company is big and there are other opportunities within the company. Where I am, all of the management is old as the hills and will retire soon, but I don't think I would be able to beat out any of the people in line behind them for a better paying job. Not any time soon anyway.

Sigh. Drink, anyone??

post

So, here is the latest on the job front: My "in person" interview is Monday at 12:30 p.m. I'll be there for approximately two hours. The man who will be my boss will be there, along with someone from HR, and via teleconference, at least one of the other members of the wellness team. I have to deliver a short presentation on the health/fitness topic of my choosing.

Eeeeee!!!

I Guess It Was Right

So, I got an email back from the BCBS recruiter today...

Good afternoon, I hope all is well.  Thank you for the feedback and I apologize for the delay getting back to you.  The conversation went very well from our perspective as well and we would like to have you come to our Tulsa office the week of the 12th for the final interview.  Please let me know your availability and I will follow up early next week to confirm the details.

Have a great weekend.
I guess we shall see what happens!

BCBS

I had a second phone interview today... I am not at all sure how it went. When I think back on it, it seems like we just chit-chatted and went over some of the same things as last week (it was a different person) but I don't know that I said anything right, or answered any of the questions to the best of my ability.

So, reaching out to some of the people who read this blog who have had these kinds of extensive interviews... how do you usually feel after? Have you ever felt like you blew it but then got an offer anyway? Or the opposite? I'm just not sure what to think. Also, the staffing person asked that I follow up with him via email to "...let me know your thoughts after the conversation." What do I say? ??

I think this would be a really exciting position, but gone would be my days of internet surfing and going in late and leaving early... both good and bad. I mean, I'd like a happy medium. I'd like to leave work feeling like I actually accomplished something but still had time to surf a little. 8 hours a day of surfing though... that wouldn't be missed. I don't hate my current job (well, there are days that I do)... I think I am mostly disappointed that it is not the job I hoped it would be. Benefits are good, my co-workers are good, but man...I am bored.

More Kudos

Just wanted to say congratulations to Laura for finishing her first marathon this past weekend! 4 hours, 10 minutes. I can't even think that fast. ;)

Good job!

Limeades for Learning

OK all you fellow Sonic junkies... next time you go, make sure you save the code from your drink so you can vote for a project to be funded. There are several schools and classrooms in Oklahoma that need some money, so search by state and pick your favorite project. You can vote every time you buy a drink, which for me is quite often. :)

www.limeadesforlearning.com

It's for such a great cause!

Annual March of Dimes Campaign

It's time again friends... the annual March of Dimes prematurity campaign is underway, and since Cory & I did not do a team for this year's walk, I want to be sure and try to get some money raised through my site, which I created last year for Kaia. Every little amount helps the cause. And just for your information, Oklahoma's infant mortality rate has remained higher than the national average for more than ten years. :(

OMG

Kaia actually ate most of her sandwich for dinner, so I told Daddy she could have some C-H-I-P-S. She saw the bag of cheetos, and started screaming and chanting, "cheeto! cheeto! cheeto!"

My MIL created a monster! I wish we would've caught it on video.

Must. Stop. Reading. Mommy Blogs. Snif.

• It’s so easy to try and block out what this symbolizes {kindergarten}— the next phase of life. There they go, independent little beings, off to create their own opinions and judgments and perspectives. When will they not need us anymore? When will they stop putting their little hands in ours when we cross the street? When will they not ask — beg — for another bedtime story or song? It’s all flying by so fast. When you have little infants, your parents and friends all say ‘Try to cherish this, soon they’ll be off to college.’ And suddenly, here we are. Another reason to truly, really, live in the moment. And least for a little bit, today.

and of course, from dooce:

• Drop off on the first day was as difficult as I thought it would be, she clung to my arm as if she were drowning, and even though I stayed for a good twenty-five minutes and watched her climb the princess castle seven hundred times, when it was time for me to leave she was frantic. And I knew exactly how she felt, I remember the panic I experienced when my mother left me in that strange room all those years ago, but I finally knelt down and took the hand I had just used to wipe the tears from my face to wipe the ones on hers. And I handed her off to the teacher.

This sounds like our baby girl

Many 20-month-olds are very affectionate. Yours probably likes to sit on your lap and cuddle because he knows it's a time when she has your undivided attention — something she loves. She continues to want to help you with household chores, everything from folding laundry and unpacking groceries to sweeping the kitchen floor. Of course she really wants to do these "grown-up" things without your help, even though odds are she can't yet. It may slow you down a little, but it's worth the time to find safe ways to let her assist you.

Kaia has been extremely "mommy" oriented these days. She's pretty much stayed attached to me all weekend, hugging at my legs and saying "Mommy" over and over and over. It's awesome. :) And she loves to throw things in the trash or help us with laundry... anything to be like us. It's amazing and I can't believe she is about to turn two years old.

Funny

I have a hard time coming up with things to talk about if they don't involve Kaia or a picture! But I realized I have something to report this week so here I am. I'll try to throw in some Kaia to make everyone happy. :)

So, last year, probably in December, I emailed a former professor and told him I was being laid off. He moved from OSU to somewhere in New Mexico several years back and I've seen his name on the health & wellness lecture circuit a time or two. Anyway, he told me to send my resume to a guy in Dallas who works for Blue Cross & Blue Shield. Said there was a position opening up in Oklahoma and I should check it out. So I did, the guy emailed back that he would notify me once the position was posted. Well, I never heard anything and totally forgot about it.

Tuesday, I see an "unknown" listing on the iphone so I check messages and it's him. The job is now open and posted and he wanted to see if I was still available and interested. The job is senior health promotion manager and I'd be in charge of employee wellness for BCBS employees in Tulsa and Albuquerque, NM. It sounds like a good job. I applied. We'll see what happens, but needless to say, the OKC house hunt is once again on hold.

There are a ton of pros and cons to weigh, believe it or not. Mostly, I have exceptional benefits through the state, and dont' know that they can compete. My fringe is at almost 50% of my total compensation package. At SMC, benefits were like 26%. Then there's the location. We love Tulsa, but there is no "middle ground" for us so Cory would have to drive back and forth to campus and trust me, that drive SUCKS 100X worse than the one to the city. I dunno, I'll have to see what happens but it's kind of exciting.




PS: I posted some new videos to the youtube channel too...

Season Starter

She looks so sweet and innocent...


Cuddling with Uncle Kevin

Tailgatin' with Daddy

Home

Mom Update

Her stress test came back clear so her heart's in good shape. Yay! They are doing some more tests today but we think she'll be discharged tomorrow. She'll be coming to Stillwater to stay for a little while, until we feel good that she is strong enough to be alone again.

They think all this mess was caused by prednisone.

Weekend Recap

Whew! What a weekend!

Let me start with a recap of the past week...

Saturday, Kaia woke up with a fever, which turned out to be swine flu. I found this out after checking text messages during my ride from Stillwater to Lake Hefner. So, not much I can do 70 miles away on a bike. My throat had been hurting but I attributed it to sinuses, and went about my way.

Did the OKC ride in six hours. Had some Mexican food then Cory drove us home. Stilly to OKC is a great ride, but lots of hills. Oy.

Monday we took Kaia to the doctor. She still wasn't eating and had a slight fever, but nothing too bad. She tested positive for the flu, so I stayed home with her Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Figured my sore throat and slight fever was probably the flu too, and figured I'd miss out on HHH but I actually felt fine by Wednesday.

Thursday morning, I got up and drove to Tulsa for a two-day workshop (for work). I stayed in Tulsa Thursday night at the Doubletree, then left the workshop early Friday so we could leave for Wichita Falls. Cory's parents picked up Kaia around 5:30 and Cory & I hit the road.

The morning of the ride, we got up around 4:45 and drove to WF from Lawton... joined up with four friends who were doing the ride and Cory went back to the car to get some sleep. :) (Thank you to my great and supportive husband!!)

Usually, we start the ride ahead of the masses to avoid chaos. This year, they had lots of signs prohibiting it. There were over 14,000 cyclists this year and we got stuck starting smack in there with them all. Less than a mile in, a couple RIGHT IN FRONT OF US went down. The woman swerved, her husband tried to keep her up by grabbing onto her, but he went down and flipped onto his back. OUCH. LB swerved just in time to miss running over the guy, and we kept on pedaling...

A few more miles in, we see a young woman lying on her stomach completely still, her arm and shoulder twisted in such a way that it did not look right. My stomach flipped, I wasn't sure she was even conscious but BW said she was, that she was just lying there crying. The ambulance was there already, I think, and another one coming close behind.

Less than 10 miles into the ride and we've already seen two bad crashes. In all the rides I've done, I've seen one guy flip head first over his bike, but Cory did that once too so it didn't scare me like this did. By the time we hit the half way point, I think we had seen 5 crashes, or the end results of the crash. I was a nervous wreck for about 60 miles.

A couple of times, the masses had slowed so much for whatever the reason may be, that we had to get off our seats and "tip toe" our bikes forward because no one was going anywhere. And of course, that meant plenty of time for the men to stop by a hay bale and pee. If I would have had my camera out, I totally would have taken a picture because it was hilarious to look to your right and see a line of men at a hay-urinal.

---

I felt pretty good, the weather was good, but the wind, inclines and rough road were slowing me down. LB and BW went on ahead and I did the last half solo. I was kind of glad really (no offense LB) because I always try to go faster than I am really capable when riding with my fit young friends! When I do my own ride, my own way, I know I can go any distance. If I had tried to keep up or if they had slowed down for me, I would have stopped. I'm about 30 pounds heavier than when we rode together last, so I tried to cut myself a break about being slow. :)

I was afraid I wasn't going to make it to the cutoff in time ("Hell's Gate") so I texted Cory and Diane and told them that. Then the next thing you know, I see this:



Hell's Gate is actually "guarded" by a giant red inflatable hulk, by the way. I should have taken a picture of that instead but I had already put the camera away (and no, I have no idea who is in the picture but I didn't want to wait until everyone was outta the way).

I talked to lots of interesting people along the way, and saw a kid who was probably between 12 and 14 riding with his parents. Actually, he was ahead of his parents because he told them at a rest stop he was going on because he'd been "waiting forever" at the stop. LOL. It was so inspiring to see, esp. given that most kids these days are overweight or obese. To think a kid that young could stay motivated and focused to ride 100 miles is amazing. Here he is flagging down the 'rents:



I snapped a really quick pic, I didn't want to look like a perv. :) I talked to his parents briefly, I should have asked them how old he was.

At about the 92 mark, there's a Miller Lite rest stop. I forgot about this, and passed by the stop because at this point I was sooooo close to being done, I just wanted to get it over with! But then I decided I needed a little break, so I stopped next to a guy under some shade and said, "mind if I share your shade?" and in a peculiarly stoner voice he says, "naw man, come on in. I'm just finishing my beer. 'Never stop at the bottom of a hill, and always finish your beer. That's my philosophy...'" then he turned and grinned at me like he just ate shit. Creepy. It wasn't until I passed an empty can later on that I remembered the beer stop. I honestly thought some guy was crashing the ride drunk off his arse.

So anyway, I have some weird itchy bite on my foot, I'm sunburned (despite being felt up by a volunteer putting sunscreen on me), and my butt hurts, but I did it. 102 miles.



OK he didn't really feel me up, but I kept thinking, "geez, isn't it rubbed in by now??"

I'm done with HHH because of all the crashes though. That seems to be my method anyway... complete the century, find a new event to do. So next on the list...? Who knows. Something closer to LB and BW. They've come down for HHH three times now. It's our turn to travel. :)

(BTW, if you ever do an event, be sure to thank the volunteers. I don't know how many HHH has, but they are always so nice and gracious. Some farmers just threw out some tables and cut up tons of watermelon for us, they weren't even an "official" rest stop. People are just that nice. Think about being out there all day long, serving or driving or directing traffic or picking up all the trash... it's a lot of work for nothing)

---

So sometime after we leave, we are going to OKC to La Luna with friends to eat when I get a text from my sister. My mom's in CICU in Tulsa at Saint Francis. She had chest and jaw pain on Saturday morning and has been there ever since. She really seems to be doing well but they can't keep her BP elevated enough to do any tests without medication. So until her BP is stable, we really know nothing. I assume she probably had a mild heart attack. Anyway, keep her in your thoughts. Today is the first day I've been home to sleep in my own bed since... Wednesday? Oy. Off to nap.

A Battle of Wills, Part 1 of 12,253

So Kaia is over the flu, she's feeling fine and back to her ornery self. This kid is so stubborn... those of you who have known Cory for a long time will understand what I am dealing with here! For example, we are trying to get her to stop throwing things onto the floor. She understands us and can follow instructions... when she decides to. So she threw her juice bottle on the floor and I told her to pick it up. Repeatedly. She not only wouldn't pick it up, when I mentioned the juice bottle, she would look at it, then walk as far away as possible from it. I sat her down next to it and said, "Kaia, hand Mommy the juice bottle." Nothing. I don't know how long I waited for her to finally give it to me, but the little turd was not going to get away with leaving it on the floor. I saw it as a sign of things to come if I didn't stick with it and make her give it to me.

This is going to be soooo hard.

Sweet

Hi

My name is Stephanie, and I'm sick of driving 70 minutes to work every day. Can someone please just come get my house sold, and find me one to move into while you're at it?

Thanks.

18 month well baby visit

Some details about Kaia's appointment today:

She is now 30 inches long and weighs 18.4 lbs. She's in the whopping 5th percentile for height and off the chart completely for weight, but the doctor is not worried about her weight.

She has 4 new teeth coming in and asks to have them brushed at night by pointing and saying "teef." :)

She still loves Dora.

She knows about 30 words already, and just to be sure we weren't exaggerating, we made a list tonight:

1. rainbow
2. shoes
3. doggie
4. mommy
5. daddy
6. sock
7. swimming pool ("swim po")
8. please
9. bottle
10. juice
11. fish
12. no (quite frequently)
13. apple (bapple)
14. banana (nana)
15. bath
16. Tico (a Dora reference for you non-parentals)
17. Dora
18. Boots
19. teeth
20. nose
21. more
22. toes
23. eyes
24. book
25. hi
26. byebye
27. drop
28. bus
29. ball
30. uh-oh

We are best friends for a reason

Diane completed her first century ride this weekend in Denver. Here is the elevation from the middle section of her ride:



I am so proud, it brings tears to my eyes. And it makes me realize, I am a wimp. :)

Way to go, D!!

Uncle Mark & Kaia

Kaia

I have to explain this one...one night, we all went to the grocery store, but Kaia and I stayed in the car while Daddy ran in. He was taking a little longer than expected so I took Kaia out of her carseat and let her play in the front with me. I knew she was over by the door messing with coins, but since she wasn't trying to eat them, I didn't mind.

The next day, I get in the car and realize that what she had been doing, who knows what inspired her, was taking all the coins and putting them inside the slots for the window controls.

Yeah, my kid is smart. :)

beautiful

Too Deep for a Monday

I was just thinking about Cory and Kaia's relationship... I hope all of the men in my life get to experience life as a dad to a daughter someday. I think it changes a man in a way that having a son doesn't touch. Having a son is just more guys being guys, but having a daughter... I think it makes a man really see the other side of things and maybe even see women differently.

Watching their relationship unfold and seeing her look at him with so much love and adoration... sometimes it breaks my heart and helps me understand who I am so much more, not having that relationship in my own life.

Sad, and happy too that I married someone who can be a great daddy.

The trouble with email

I just sent the following message accidentally to the CDC Physical Activity and Nutrition list-serv:

Oh, bought some organic home grown cheese today. Colby.

This message was intended for my husband.

Can you feel how hot my neck is right now?!?

The End of an Era

I think "dining out" as we know it is about to come to an end. For the past several months, I've been tracking how much money I spend each month at restaurants, Starbucks, Sonic, etc. and it's staggering. We've known for awhile that we do it too much but never really kept track of it like I've been doing. And I'm just accounting for what I spend, not Cory. It's gotta stop, especially if we want to have a nice house to live in!! But we all know not eating out really isn't an option, so we're going to try to cut back the frequency but also share an entree anytime we go out.

Also, it's got to stop because Kaia has officially hit the stage where she does NOT want to sit still in some stupid high chair for more than 2 minutes at a time. We met Tanner and his family at Joe's last night (his dad is being inducted into the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame this weekend--cool!) and she was a little monster! Aside from hyperactivity, she's into being as loud as humanly possible, so between her trying to escape, banging toys on the table and generally being a pain in the butt, she was screaming at the top of her lungs. Not screaming-crying, just screaming, like she is testing out her lungs.

By the end of the evening, I was exhausted. It took me until a little after 10:00 to get her to go to sleep, so I just went to sleep too.

Deep Dora

How cute is that??

Cory tells me that Miss Priss demanded that she wear her brown sandals this morning instead of the shoes he had picked out for her... "I mean, c'mon daddy, the brown sandals go better with my outfit!"

Some photos from Colorado

Diane'll kill me for this but it was cute other than her eyes being closed! :)




Yep, took a picture of myself.


I think we were about 1/3 of the way up here

Just gettin going


Gorgeous



This is a freaky thought...




My gorgeous husband outside our hotel

Greatest Commercials EVER

Don't go here if you don't have my sense of humor, k? Watch the first two commercials for sure.

Hello

I know, I know. I'm a bad blogger. I never did post about how Kaia was doing. I stink. Well, it took about a week, but she finally got over her mouth outbreak. She started to feel better on Saturday and it hit her originally on Sunday so... that's a long time to feel horrible and not eat. Her appetite didn't fully return to normal until a few days later but the inklings of our little happy baby appeared that Saturday. Man, what a crappy week that was.

I have some pictures from our trip to Denver that I will post soon. Right now, I'm blogging from work (gasp) and the photos are on Cory's laptop. Let me just say that Denver is awesome. It's the first big city that I think Cory & I agreed on 100 percent: Yes, let's live here! So, who knows how long it will take but I really am going to start looking and applying for anything I think I have a shot at. And if it ends up that I find something but Cory does not, I told him to get his butt to Univ. of Colorado for a phd program.

So, what does that mean for us right now? Well, I guess it means the move to OKC is off again. We haven't talked about it yet but we will have to come up with a timeline and if we haven't found anything by ______, we move to OKC.

Imagine growing up in a place like Denver or Boulder where you are surrounded by mountains and sunshine? I'm all for raising Kaia in the healthiest environment we can, and either one of those two cities beats raising her in one of the fattest, unhealthiest, poorest states in the nation.

It was great riding and hiking with D again. I miss my workout buddy. :( And my best friend. :(

I'll post details about the riding and hiking when I put up pictures.

New Videos

i added a couple videos tonight!
http://www.youtube.com/user/kaiamadelinesmommy

The Beast Within

Man today was trying. She feels better and actually ate some cereal, but was just well enough to know that she was pissed off that she was still sick. Did that sentence make any sense??

Anyway, this kid has a temper. And is stubborn as hell. A+B = Not a Good Patient.

I've read that it's normal for toddlers to hit, and how to handle it, but that knowledge doesn't make it any more joyful. She must have smacked me ten times today. Swatted my hand away when I tried to give her ice cream. (ICE CREAM!! It's not like I was trying to feed the kid spinach!) Also, she has taken a liking to pouring her gatorade out of her sippy cup. Witness moments before dumping out Mommy's diet coke...



Like I said, trying day.

*

Last night, I did a wal-mart run and like any Mommy with a sick baby, I wanted to get her something to make her feel better. Enter the Dora Chair. Fletcher is trying to claim it as his own. I think there might be war if that happens...

The Past Five Days

Usually she would plot right down across my face. Our whole bodies ache from contorting into strange sleeping positions to accommodate her. Hey, when your kid is miserable, you'll do anything.

Worst Ever

Kaia woke up around midnight hot as hell. Her fever was about 103. She was mumbling and crying and didn't stop until... well, about 10 minutes ago. She did fall asleep from time to time, but for the most part, she was in borderline hysterical mode.

We took her to the doc, anticipating talk of tubes for her ears, assuming it still hadn't cleared up, but it was all good. In fact, she didn't know what was going on, so they took some blood :( and ran a test to see if she needed antibiotics or anything. Turned out to be some weird virus. She seems to be on the mend now.

I can't tell you what a scary 16 hours that was... I had all kinds of horror stories running through my brain.

I've said it before, I'll say it again. This parenting stuff is hard as hell.

UPDATE: She was not on the mend yesterday, I guess the motrin just gave her a reprieve. Last night was even worse than the night before. We are going back to the doctor today. Cory & I look like hell. There is something wrong with her mouth, I'm wondering if it isn't thrush, but her tongue and inside of her mouth is white and everything is swollen, including her ruby red lips. :( Cory called her Angelina Jolie this morning. So she isn't eating anything and barely drinks but at least gets enough to not be dehydrated. She's just crying and drooling non-stop.

In Awe

Every day, I look at Kaia and am in awe of how much she has grown already. The new picture above just seems so... girl-like instead of baby-like. When did this happen? I feel like I am going to blink and miss something, like I'll wake up and she'll be in kindergarten.

Some of my favorite things she is doing now: picking up things and putting them in the trash, helping me unload the dishwasher, saying "mainmow" (rainbow) out of the blue, I guess she just likes the word... singing along with "wheels on the bus" by doing the hand motions, then when you get to "aaaalll through the town" she sings along with the ALL part. Only she gets too excited and starts it too soon. God it's cute. She also grabs onto you and squeezes and gives the best hugs in the world.

When Uncle Jay was here, she spun herself in circles until she was falling down dizzy. She loves him so much. She kept taking him books to read to her. She even ate good while he was here, especially the night we had fried fish, zucchini and Daddy's special fried taters! We found out last night that she likes peas. We had snow peas and I squeezed the peas out of the pod and she ate them like they were candy. YES! A vegetable! Starchy one but hell, it's green I'll take it.

Anyway, I know I haven't posted in awhile so I thought I'd give everyone the update on what she's been up to. I recharged the batteries for the little HD video camera so I should be able to get some more videos soon. She does this thing when Daddy reads her the "Where O Where Has My Little Dog Gone?" book, I've GOT to get it recorded and posted.

Peace out, have a great 4th of July!

Kaia's First BooBoo

Well the weekend was great but the drive home was the big fat suck! We wasted all of our "quiet" asleep in the car time shopping (Ann Taylor at the outlet mall? There is a god of shopping) so on the road she was pretty dang cranky. I pulled out her little lappy to occupy her and it worked great...until she hit herself in the lip with it. :( I looked down and thought she had closed her fingers in it because she started screaming, then saw blood on her hands and realized she had bloodied her little lip. :( It wasn't too bad, and like a real trooper she just screamed a bit then was ok.

Kudos to my husband, who drove the whole way from Mark & Candice's to the outlet mall in Allen, where he sat in the car while Kaia slept (ac on full blast) while Mommy broke the bank shopping. Then drove from Allen to my Mom's, from my Mom's to Sapulpa to pick up the pooch, then Sapulpa home. So he could write his column.

It was a long day. I think we have a New Rule. Traveling with a toddler means taking an extra day off post-travel.

Thanks M&C for being such great hosts, as always!

Food Stuff

Kellogg's owns Kashi. Dannon owns Stoneyfield Farms. It's all smoke & mirrors. I'm going to grow my own damn food and stop paying these people!

Stats

"Of 168 nations, 164 have guaranteed maternity leave, and 4 nations do not: Papua New Guinea, Swaziland, Lesotho, and the United States."

YouTube

I think I finally figured it all out. Here's a few videos.

http://www.youtube.com/user/kaiamadelinesmommy

I love her so much :)

My Mom Rules

We've posted about her gift-giving before... well, she hit it this time! She got me a Kodak HD Pocket Video Camera. I've already taken 8 videos of Kaia. Expect them to be uploaded to YouTube and the link will be readily available for you peoples so you can experience the wonder that is our child. :) I cannot wait!

bibs in a bucket

One of her other new hobbies is to gather up a bunch of her bibs and place them in a bucket, then dump them out onto the floor and start over. I think she thinks she is doing the laundry. It's the cutest thing I've ever seen. i will try to get it on film.

Deep

When I was at target yesterday, I was noticing the (most-likely) stay-at-home-moms that were there and I think it was the beginning of my undoing last night. You’re going to think I’m completely insane but you might already so what the hell.

It hit me like a freight train that I’m just like them. Ordinary. I used to feel like I was different and special… in my 30s doing all these great athletic events, going out, acting like I was still young and hot and fun… so yesterday, as I’m staring down these poor women in their workout clothes, it hits me: I’m not so special. I’m really no different than they are.

I stare at a computer all day and do nothing at a job, I go home and try to squeeze in a workout so I can try to lose weight and get my “old” self back, I take care of/play with/fight with Kaia trying to get her to eat/sleep/etc., eat, sit down for maybe half an hour then give up and go to bed. Rinse, repeat. I am only ever going to be “special” to my daughter (and Cory) and that will not last forever. One day, she will realize that I’m only human and just like everyone else. Bored. And boring. And struggling to find importance in anything that I do.

And that was just the beginning of my meltdown. My 8th anniversary meltdown.

Its the little things

Kaia is sitting in the floor in front of the baby gate taking her goldfish crackers out of the snack bowl and putting them into the silverware basket from the dishwasher. Which she has been carrying around proudly for the past half hour.

:)

I will miss this back yard...

Kaia Visits the Zoo

But first... a little exploration of OKC's dining opportunities. The Iguana Cafe is just outside of bricktown, kind of hidden on NW 8th street. Very chic. It's like Mexican meets the Hideaway. Most of the waitstaff was tattooed and pierced.



Instead of beans and rice, you could choose your sides. I got chicken enchiladas with white beans and seasonal fruit. It was delicious (the fruit and beans) and the main entree was just "OK" but I would go back for the atmosphere and to check out another entree. They are a little pricey though.



"Daddy, what am I sitting on??"




There's some kind of cat asleep there in those rocks.


Mommy, it's too hot for this crap. Let's go look at that house instead...

Freaking Amazing.