Ladies and Gentlemen, heeeeere's Sunshine!

Since Sunshine was given to us by Jesse, our kindly Schwan's delivery guy, Pumpkin often asks whether Jesse "delivered" Sunshine to us. When Jesse first came by with the dog, Pumpkin even wondered if Jesse'd had the dog in the "back" of the truck (i.e. the freezer section). lol

(There's Sunshine playing with a foam ball bigger than him, and Pumpkin snapping photos of his new puppy.)

Before this dog became "Sunshine," he went through various names, among them "Buttercup" which is actually our cat's name. I believe that in Pumpkin's plan, Buttercup's name would've been changed to Arthur so that the dog could have her name, haha. Sunshine is the cutest little thing, and fortunately for us, he's not a barker like so many pocket dogs are. He is a biter though (Ouch!), but that's just a puppy phase. And, yes, Sunshine is still essentially pocket size, though, to me, he does seem slightly bigger than he was when we got him 2.5 weeks ago...at which time he weighed in at 2 lbs! So this little guy may grow up to be full-size yet (full Chihuahua size that is, which isn't saying much, hehe).

More Pics from France

Eclair du Chocolat

As I mentioned yesterday, QT is in France. He's there for some annual environmental meeting his company's parent company is having for their big wigs. And, no, QT's not a bigwig. He's just a minor wig, who was asked to sub for an actual big wig, who couldn't make it at the last minute. Regardless the route, QT is in Paris! Yay!

He's called home a few times since he arrived, and every time we talk to him, it seems like he's having just a grand old time. He's already strolled the Champs-Elysses, took pictures of the Eiffel Tower (at night), checked out the Louvre, and best of all, he visited this bakery and had an eclair du chocolat in my honor. How sweet is that!?



I do so love eclairs. In fact, that's all I asked QT to bring for me from France, haha. He said he thought the eclair wouldn't survive the trip so he had one in my honor instead even though he's not really a big fan of the eclairs.

Before he left for France, I tried to teach him a few phrases and numbers in French so that he could get by until a truly bilingual person rescued him. He said that his "Merci" and "Bonjour" have served him well so far. He's going to try and send me more pictures soon but hasn't been able to upload them to his computer yet since he doesn't have the correct cable for my camera (which is the one he's using over there).

Hopefully, he'll get that sorted out soon, and I'll have some snazzy new pics to show you. Stay tuned!

It's snowing!

Yes, it's true. The wind was pretty gusty too, and we ended up with a 2-3 ft snowdrift blocking our garage door. Figures this would happen the day after QT left for France, and me with a meeting to go to downtown!

Oh well. I missed my meeting, and when it warmed up outside, I even went out to shovel the driveway so that we're not stuck in here another day.

Right after I finished shoveling, we had a visitor, who brought Pumpkin a surprise. A puppy! I've been thinking of getting him a dog for months now but haven't had the guts to do it (b/c I know it's a lot of work). I guess this basically takes the decision out of my hands, haha. I also know that QT isn't going to like this. :(

We haven't settled on a name yet so Pumpkin's been calling it 'doggie.' I think he actually wants to call him Doggie forever, but I'm trying to convince him that the dog needs a real name. It's a Chihuahua mix puppy, and it's incredibly cute. I brought one of the cat cages up from the basement for the dog to use, and I'll probably take Pumpkin to PetsMart tomorrow to pick out some new dishes and a little sweater for Doggie since he was shivering when we were out earlier today.

QT took my camera with him to Paris so I'm not able to take pictures of Doggie right now, but check back soon for an update. :)

Another Ear Infection!

Yes, you read that right, folks. Less than a week after finishing up his latest round of antibiotics, Pumpkin has developed yet another ear infection. I don't know if it's a new one or the same damn one sticking around, but at least this time, his medicine isn't as yucky. He took his first dose just now and proclaimed it "okay." I'm sure it helps that every dose is immediately followed by a delicious Girl Scout cookie.

After our visit to the pediatrician this morning, I decided to take him out to lunch as a treat, and guess which restaurant he picked. He bypassed all his usual favorites (like McDonald's) and specifically requested we go to Carino's!

What an odd boy, haha.

Hands Off!

My friends, in your daily activities, should you ever come across a shirt for moms that says "Don't touch my tummy" or something along those lines, PLEASE send it to me!

Back in Texas, a shirt like that wasn't necessary because I'd known everyone around me for so long (and everyone knew me) that they all knew better, hehe.

We'll see how things go here in Colorado.

My last book

BTW, I just wanted to tell you unsuspecting readers out there that I do NOT recommend my last read "Dancing naked at the edge of dawn" so if you're looking for an interesting new book to read, pick a different one. I found this one a bit too... frustrating. And verbose. The author seemed to prefer using 4 adjectives where one would've really sufficed...and the characters....good lord! Who the hell really has a friend who lies naked on a beach with her breasts pointing straight up in the air whilst holding a margarita?? (Seriously, regardless of how sensually beautiful she is, what normal 40-50 year-old woman's breasts can even point straight up in the air when she's lying on her back anyway? lol)

Sure, I have my eccentric friends just like everyone else, but get real. I don't have friends like the ones portrayed in this book (who all also smack of latent lesbianism...not that there's anything wrong with that!). Or, maybe, it's a white thing, and I just don't get it (me being Raz and all). Because I recall to mind a scene in a movie I saw a few months ago where a mother and her 3 adult daughters go to a spa and are disrobing together in the locker room, and I clearly remember thinking that would probably NEVER happen in my family. Of course, the movie characters were white and high-strung, haha.

I just started a new book: Portrait of an Unknown Woman by Vanora Bennett, which I am enjoying much more so far and would recommend to those of you, who enjoy historical fiction. Like I said, I've only just begun the book so it may get worse, but the writing is good, the plot interesting, and nothing I've read so far seems to indicate any of that will change.

I did finish Dancing Naked, by the way, and I even appreciated the ending somewhat. I just tired of the whole "men are bad" and "women are not only good but all secretly bisexual" theme that the author seemed to be trying to pound into my head. ;)

It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a....

Because of my (advanced) age, QT & I opted to have an amniocentesis done on Creature in order to rule out certain birth defects. Early results indicate that all is well on those fronts so that's a relief. Besides putting our minds at ease about the scary stuff, another good thing that comes of having an amnio is that we also get to learn Creature's gender...unequivocally.

Ladies & Gents, I am pleased to announce that Creature is officially a Creaturette!



As most of you know, foofy pink butterflies and flowers are absolutely NOT my thing so we'll have to see how it goes for poor Creature. I predict that she will be wearing lots of leftover baby boy clothes and playing with traditional "boy" toys (and I'm not referring to Madonna. I mean real toys like trains, lizards, baseballs, & fire trucks). Truthfully, I don't see why those things can't also be considered "girl" toys. I'm sure that, given the opportunity, girls would enjoy playing with trains and lizards just as much as boys do. Hehe. Well, I guess we'll find out.

Update II

It turned out that Pumpkin's ear infection wasn't resolved with the previous 2 rounds of antibiotics after all...hence the fever. Damn you, Augmentin! I trusted you!

We found out yesterday that the other kids at his babysitter's are all having the same problem with these recurring ear infections. Bizarre and a bit scary too.

Anyway, back in Texas, three days after his final dose of Augmentin, Pumpkin was started on another antibiotic called Cedax, and he finally seems to be showing some improvement on this one. The silver lining on this cloud was that his "Beautiful Grandma" bought him yet another Thomas train set so that he'd feel better (I think it worked too!).

I was worried that Pumpkin wouldn't be ready for our return flight on Easter Sunday, but since all outgoing flights were sold out for Monday, I decided to just stick with the original flight plan and hope for the best. As it turns out, we very nearly were stuck in Texas anyway. The flight coming in from Dallas was delayed, which delayed our outgoing flight to Dallas, which would've made us miss our connection to Denver, which also happened to be the last flight out for the night, which meant we would've been stuck overnight at DFW. No thanks.

Fortunately, our flight was only delayed an hour (as opposed to the 2 hours we were first told when we arrived to check-in) so we had plenty of time in DFW to make our connection.

Funny story here: when we arrived at DFW, we went off in search of food. (BTW, I have to say that I think Terminal D is now my favorite terminal in all DFW! They've got everything there, even a Cantina Laredo (yum!)). Anyway, we strolled around checking out the various restaurants, I picked up some sandwiches and yogurt, and we proceeded to our gate. When we arrived at our gate, the emptiness of the passenger waiting area struck me, and I wondered where everybody else was. Figuring that we'd arrived early, I picked a bench and started to set out our "dinner" when I noticed a woman walk up to the gate counter, hand over her boarding pass, and head down the jetway.! Yikes! We weren't early at all; all the other passengers were already on board the plane! I quickly stuffed our sandwiches into my backpack, and Pumpkin and I hightailed it to the gate counter. Sure enough, they'd already boarded the plane, and even though we were among the last to board, we'd arrived in plenty of time. Whew! Crisis averted. haha

As you could see in my previous post, we made it home safe and sound (except for the puking), and all's well that ends well.

Colorado Makes Me Sick

I mean that literally. I've been puking, gagging, and coughing since I got off the damned plane! What's THAT about?

Well, I suppose now's as good a time as any to tell y'all that I'm pregnant, which might have accounted for the puking etc. IF I hadn't just spent a wonderful puke-free week in Texas. So there! Take that, Colorado!

Anyway, so yeah, I'm pregnant...against all odds, and the creature (as QT & I lovingly refer to it) is apparently alive and kicking--as of my last ultrasound on 03/10/08. Here's a pic. See if you can spot the critter (oh, yeah, that's Creature's other nickname, haha ;)



QT & I think the higher altitude might be affecting me so, naturally, all I want to do now is go back to Texas, where I can eat all I want courtesy of mom and dad's restaurant AND, best of all, not puke. Not puking is always fun.

Sadly, there's no move to Texas in our near future so I've decided that I will simply move to Texas by myself...for the summer. Well, I'll have Pumpkin with me of course, and we won't "move" as in LIVE there forever. It'll be more of a really extended vacation or a reverse "Winter Texan" thing (aka "Summer Texans"). Truth be told, I don't know how long I'll be able to stand the heat, and even if I last, I'll still have to be back a couple of months before my EDD anyway, which sucks because I'd much rather have a Texan baby than a Colorado-born one.



Long live the Republic! Yee-haw! ;)

Update

I meant to get back on here with an update on Pumpkin's sudden fever, but busy with our travel preparations, there was unfortunately no time to post.

Pumpkin's fever spiked again later that night (3am to be more precise. ugh! why is it always at 3-friggin-AM?). So, of course, we were both awake at 3am trying to keep Pumpkin cool. Then, it happened again the following night (same bat time, same bat channel). QT stayed home on Monday to take Pumpkin to the doctor, and it turned out that he'd again developed infections in both his ears. I found it odd since he'd just finished a course of antibiotics for the same thing not a week prior, but I guess it is what it is. It's hard to tell with Pumpkin since the only two times he's had ear infections before this time, he also didn't complain until the infection was fairly advanced. Over Thanksgiving, as some of you may recall, no one was aware that he was sick until he woke up one day listless and with a raging fever that required a shot of penicillin in addition to the regular 10-day course of antibiotics!

So, anyway, he finished this latest course of Augmentin on Wednesday (ahh, Augmentin and I are like old friends now). He's doing better, but he felt a bit feverish last night and again this morning as well as being in a weird (read: whiny) mood, which is not really like him. He was acting more like himself in the afternoon (after a dose of Motrin) so I'm hoping whatever he's fighting off will pass without much complication. He's still game for our pre-Easter party tonight, where he's looking forward to eating cake so I'm hopeful that all's well. :)

Reporting to you LIVE from Texas,
Pine

Happy Easter!!

Happy Birthday QT!

It's QT's birthday today. Yippeee!!!!



Even though I've not been feeling too well lately, I wanted to do something special for QT's birthday b/c, well, gosh-darn-it, he deserves it! I even secured a babysitter weeks ago without even having an idea of where we'd go but knowing only that we'd definitely be going somewhere!

I figured we'd go out to dinner then wing the rest of the evening, but yesterday, by a sheer stroke of luck, I happened to be riding the bus downtown and noticed the marquee at the Paramount announcing that the Gipsy Kings were going to be there in concert on QT's birthday! I jumped off the bus and hightailed it back to the Paramount to get tickets, but the box office was closed. Ok, so no tickets yet, but at least I finally had a plan!

Birthday morning rolls around, and it's nice and easy so far. We have breakfast, sing happy birthday, and eat some cake before heading out for haircuts. We return home afterwards to shower, change, etc then QT & I tidy up the house and prepare lunch while Pumpkin naps. Y'know, typical family weekend stuff. All this time, QT still has no clue where we're going (but he decides to be a Grinch about it anyway ;). It's finally almost time to start getting ready for our big night out. Then, Pumpkin wakes from his nap and comes downstairs looking for us. I notice immediately that something's not quite right. His cheeks are flushed, he's moving sluggishly, and when he crawls up on my lap, I realize that he's a bit warm. One could almost say...feverish. Damn!

I hope against hope that he's just overheated from having been dressed too warmly during his nap while being bundled up in fleece blankets with a warm cat sleeping on top of him so I quickly remove his fuzzy pj's and wait a few minutes. Nope, still feverish, and now he's also shivering a bit. Damn! I quickly put his pants back on and give him a dose of Motrin and a frozen popsicle to see if that'll do the trick. Nope. Fever's actually gone up, and now, he's starting to whine. We rush upstairs to put Pumpkin in the tub while we start getting dressed (in the same room, of course). Pumpkin finally seems a bit cooler so we take him out of the tub and dress him in shorts & a tee. I've only managed to get partially dressed so far, but I'm still hopeful that we'll make it to the Gipsy Kings tonight. We check Pumpkin's temp again, and the fever's still holding steady. Damn.

It's 30 minutes before the babysitter's set to arrive, and we have to make a decision. Our babysitter is 12 years old, and even though I believe the fever will abate without complications like it usually does, I'd hate to leave her alone with a potentially dangerous situation. We concede defeat, and I reluctantly call the babysitter to cancel before truding sadly back to my closet to change back into my frumpy (but comfy) house clothes. Pumpkin's looking more lively, and his temp has gone down a notch to 100 so we at least have our silver lining.

Our big night out down in flames, QT runs to Saltgrass Steakhouse for some takeout, and that at least fulfills the dinner portion of our evening. Here, then, is a taste of what the rest of our evening would've been like:



Happy birthday, QT. Better luck next year.

Go Hillary!

My home state done me proud on Tuesday. :)

Granted, I'll support whichever candidate ultimately wins the nomination, but for now, I'm still rooting for Hillary.



Speaking of the nomination, I would so love to be a part of the Democratic Convention, but I hear that they've already got thousands more volunteers than they need and even have a waiting list! Wow. What they should do, IMO, is fan those excess volunteers out to the little places that often get overlooked like senior centers, homeless shelters, horse rescues, etc....and just tell them it's part of the DNC. ;)

Anyway, my Internet's been down and I've just reconnected it this morning so I'm posting mostly b/c I'm happy. Let's see how long this connection lasts. I'm about ready to toss the modem out the window. May not cause much damage since our office is on the 1st floor, but I'm guessing it would still feel pretty satisfying, hehe.

Gotta run!

This is hilarious!

I just saw this on Busymom.net, and I thought it was hilarious! (CAUTION: Videos not suitable for workplace viewing or for children.)



Brief background for those of you won't aren't aware, Sarah Silverman and Jimmy Kimmel have been "partners" for, I think, many years now, and she's appeared on his show a few times.

If you'd like to see how this began, here's Silverman's video, which aired on Jimmy Kimmel Live on 1-31-08.

BTW, about my reading list...

Even though I have a ton of new novels that I should or could be reading, and even though some of them actually sound really interesting, I have not been in the mood lately to embark on any radical new ideas.

So, I've been reading the same books over and over. Sometimes, I list them on my reading list and sometimes I don't. Partly because I'm going through them too fast and it would be somewhat akin to trying to list the names of every person I speak to on a weekly basis, but mostly it's because I think it's kind of like padding an essay with extra words. For example, in the case of Charlaine Harris' "Sookie Stackhouse" series, there are now, I think, 7 books in that series. To me, these short, funny, and lightweight stories are like Pringles in that I can't ever read just one so if I wanted to list them, I'd have to list all 7 titles each and every time I read them, and that's simply, well..."too many notes."

QT says he doesn't understand how I can reread the same books over and over (and over again). I tell him it's very similar to watching Apollo 13 or Bachelor Party or Moonraker or any other of his favorite movies a gazillion times. In my case, I suppose I enjoy returning to visit the people and places I've come to know and love (or love to hate). Suffice to say that I'm fairly comfortable hanging out with my fictional friends for now, and only the thought of an upcoming book club meeting finally inspired me to open a book I'd never before read. (Love in the Time of Cholera-and I was very upset with the ending!)

So, I just wanted to ask those of you who ever glance at my reading list to please bear with me while I wallow happily in my memories.

Hello Dolly!

Pumpkin and I have lately taken to running around the house doing our best impressions of Louis Armstrong singing Hello Dolly. Pumpkin even named his newest stuffed dog "Dolly." I haven't caught Pumpkin's Louis impression on video yet, but it's only a matter of time (then again, maybe not...remember the great Super Elephant incident of Mardi Gras, hm?).

Christmas and Birthday Parties

Ooops, January just whizzed by, didn't it? Well, let's see then, what did we miss? Christmas in Texas! Ah, yes.

As usual, we spent the holidays in Texas. Pumpkin and I flew home a couple of weeks before Christmas, and QT drove down a week later to meet us there. The kids weren't out of school yet so our first week at home was a quiet one. I did manage to take the girls and Pumpkin to the Children's Museum and to the mall to ride the carousel during the week.













My family celebrates on Christmas Eve. We've tried to start a bit earlier in the past couple of years so that we don't have to keep the littlest ones awake too long past midnight. This year, QT & I took the kids caroling so we were at it by about 6 or 7pm. Our plan was to visit my sisters' homes (the kids' parents) and possibly some of the grandparents if time permitted, but we were a bit disorganized and got off to a late start so we were only able to hit 2 houses. Anne's and Mom's b/c the Man's got tired of waiting for us to arrive and just met us at Mom's. We'd forewarned everyone that carolees would be expected to hand out goodies to the carolers so we got cookies, hot chocolate, and cupcakes. Yum!!! Despite our late start and delays, we had a lot of fun, and the kids looked soooo cute (with the exception of the surly 12-year old punk, of course ;).




Sadly, Christmas Eve was the last day we got on film b/c someone (ahem) misplaced my camera and didn't find it again until it was almost our departure date. So, Pumpkin's Polar Express birthday party almost went undocumented. For shame! Luckily, we were able to use another camera to snap a few photos of the festivities.



MKZ closed down right before the holidays, and so with a dearth of economical places to hold birthday parties, we elected to have Pumpkin's Polar Express party at the local Embassy Suites, where QT & I had booked a room using points he'd accumulated from work travel. We went swimming in the indoor pool while some of the older persons in our party chose instead to take advantage of the free buffet and drinks at the ES, hehe. After swimming, our plan was to have everyone change into pj's and settle in for a screening of the Polar Express movie. What is it they say about plans? As it turns out, suites at the Embassy Suites don't come equipped with DVD players. (we also forgot cutlery and napkins, candles for the cake, and even a knife!!) Wah wah wahhhhh


Instead, the kids made do listening to a recorded reading of the Polar Express, which Chela had lent me from her library. (QT read his own version to the adults in the other room and garnered the rapt attention of at least one listener.) And, thanks to Sebastian's aunts & uncles, who went out for the pizza, ran to the store for cutlery and napkins, and even snagged us a knife from the hotel dining room, we somehow pulled it off. (We owe ya!!!)

So, we went swimming. We had pizza, cake, and hot chocolate. We listened to a reading of the Polar Express. We watched Pumpkin open his gifts. Then, the party was over! It was an interesting experience having a kid's party in a hotel room, hehe. It was fun, but I'm not sure we'll be doing THAT again.

Happy New Year!

My excuse for the new year (for taking so long to update here) is that I got a new computer. Sort of. Actually, I got a docking station for my laptop and relinquished my brand new mega-fast HP desktop to QT. Though the move from my fancypants desktop back to Old Faithful here is bittersweet, hopefully, this new arrangement will allow me to skip the extra step of having to copy files from one computer to another in order to be able to work on them or post them. For you good readers, this means that you will hopefully get more frequent blog updates...or at the very least, that I will finally get all caught up with my online Shutterfly photo album and you will no longer have to get by looking at pictures from Christmas 2006 (hehe).

As it turns out, that won't be happening tonight because, unfortunately, I'm really really sleepy right now (and it's only 9:45 PM!!). For now, I'll leave you with these.

Pictures 1 & 2 below compare QT's hand to Pumpkin's hand & foot a couple of days after we brought him home from the hospital. Picture 3 is my hand with Pumpkin's foot taken when he was about a week old. The final picture, which is of my hand holding Pumpkin's foot, was taken this past December (2y & 11mo later). As we approached his 3rd birthday, I thought it'd be interesting to see what changes have taken place. :)

Blog on the Run

I'm writing from the road.  From mile marker 127 on IH-35, to be exact.  QT's got us listening to the Timex Social Club on his XM radio, and I'm finding it difficult to string 2 thoughts together.  (make that mile marker 128)

 

We left Beautiful Grandma's house about 2 hours ago and are en route to New Braunfels.  Originally, our plans called for us to spend the night in Dallas, but we left Mom's so late that we decided against attempting that drive tonight.  Instead, we'll bunk at my cousin's (or somewhere in the Austin area) tonight then head to Dallas tomorrow to visit the Wiggles Play Center. 

 

We had booked a nonrefundable rate at the Westin in Frisco, but because we're Starpoints Gold Members, they were able to change our reservations to tomorrow.  Whew!  It would've been unfortunate if we'd lost our deposit.  Anyway, my laptop battery's petering out so I must sign off now.  As the Governator would say, "I'll be bock." 

Changes at Hermann Park (Houston Chronicle story)

Dec. 18, 2007, 9:09AM
CHANGES AT HERMANN PARK
All the bells and whistles
A ritzy station, bigger seats, more stops. Wave goodbye until a new, improved train emerges in March.


By ALLAN TURNER
Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle

The little Hermann Park train that chugged and tooted its way into children's hearts for half a century will come to the end of the line Jan. 1 as workers make final preparations for the March opening of an expanded multi-purpose miniature railroad.

The new rail line comes with a host of new bells and whistles — wider carriages capable of seating two adults, cars equipped to accommodate handicapped riders and three mini-stations to service museums and link to Metro's light rail system.

"Its primary role will be entertainment. That's still the number one reason for people getting on," said Doreen Stoller, executive director of Hermann Park Conservancy, which will operate the concession. But in its new incarnation, she said, the train can take riders to the museum district, and, through light rail connections, the Texas Medical Center and other destinations.

About 500,000 people ride the train annually, Stoller said.

Included in $15 million of improvements to the railroad and the plaza from which it departs are almost two miles of new or improved track. A redesigned Lake Plaza will feature a new train station, a restaurant, restrooms and extensive landscape redesigns.

The miniature train will depart from a temporary station near the Miller Outdoor Theatre parking lot until Lake Plaza opens in spring 2009, Stoller said.

The improvements are part of the second phase of the 93-year-old park's upgrades, expected to cost in excess of $45 million.

Phase two also will include new trails in a previously hard-to-reach 80-acre forested section of the park, improvements to the Houston Garden Center and Japanese Gardens, the addition of a dog park and extensive landscaping between Main Street's Mecom Fountain and the park entrance.

The first phase included the expansion of McGovern Lake, a redesign of the park's reflection pool and renovations of the plaza at Miller Outdoor Theatre.

Conservancy chairman Don Short said he believes the improvements, which will include gardens featuring plants reflecting diverse cultural groups in the city, will enhance Houston's image as a "green" city.

Hermann Park, at 455 acres, about half the size of New York's Central Park, could be an "icon to a greener Houston," he said. Many outsiders, he said, now perceive Houston as "a concrete jungle," in part because of its role as an international petroleum center.

Hermann Park's miniature gasoline-powered train has operated as a privately owned concession since 1957. The park conservancy, which oversees park management in conjunction with the city, assumed operation of the railroad in June.

Stoller estimated the railroad will earn $250,000 in profit annually. That sum, she said, will be reinvested into the park.

Train tickets will increase 25 cents to $2.50. Short said naming rights for the railroad's new rolling stock will be sold to raise additional revenue. Naming rights to locomotives will cost $250,000; for carriages, $150,000.