Ok, I was so excited to post my "after" photo last night (mostly so that I could cleanse all of your eyeballs from the horror that was my "before" photo) that I did not say what I had gone and done to myself. Well, I had it permanently straightened (it's called Bio Ionic straightening). My hair is naturally coarse and wavy and very thick and it has always been a blessing and a curse. People have told me that they envy my thick hair, but truthfully it has always been a struggle to make it look nice. It is straight in the front and on the top all around, but wavy underneath. I used to be able to deal with it somewhat using a hairdryer, a round brush, and about 45 minutes of effort. But pregnancy really made my hair much, much harder to deal with. Starting with my pregnancy with Lucy, it started to grow in very tightly curled from the roots. But it is far too thick to wear it curly -- it would just end up looking like a frazzled, crazy mess. And it became basically impossible to straighten it, even with a great deal of effort. So I would wear it up, every day, mostly in a style that Jeff refers to as "the bun." But I finally got sick of the bun...I am going to be 35 next month (gulp!) and wanted something more sleek and sophisticated. So, after much thought and research, I decided to go for it and have it straightened. I spent about 4 1/2 hours at the salon yesterday, which I can't complain about because it was a great break and the stylist was really nice and fun to chat with. Until Wednesday, I can't wash it or put it up...I'm not even supposed tuck it behind my ear...so right now it is a tad bit annoying/in my face. I am just hoping that after I wash it on Wednesday it looks as straight and controlled as it does now! So there's the story :)
Saturday, July 12, 2008
What have I done?
Wednesday, July 09, 2008
The reason you ALWAYS see me with my hair up
I can't believe I am posting these. All I have to say is...
BEFORE!
Stay tuned...
Today I noticed your birthmark...
{there it is, just above your ankle...the two spots above it are just little healing bug bites}Dear Phoebe,
Today, I noticed a little birthmark on you for the very first time. It is on the back of your left leg, just above your ankle. It is light tan and shaped like a little oval. I noticed it when I was patting your back, trying to settle you down for your morning nap. It took a little while to settle you this morning, so I lay down in the bed and patted your back (you still sleep in the bassinet right next to the bed!) and you finally fell asleep. When you did, I kissed the bottom of your little foot, which is so soft and delicious. I love you so much, my little baby girl!
Love,
Mommy
xo
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
Hello out there!
After my cloth diapering and BPA posts, I got some comments from avid blog readers that I didn't even know were out there (hi, Melissa!). I think this is fun and, of course, I have blogs that I read regularly that belong to people who don't know me from Adam. My curiosity peaked, I installed an application from feedjit.com that shows where I get blog hits from -- and I have been having fun seeing that I get hits from all over the world! So, Lucy and Phoebe fans...who are you? Do you have a blog I can read? Feel free to leave a comment or, better yet, drop me an e-mail at sarabrookline@yahoo.com (for loonies out there, I will just tell you straight up that this is NOT my real e-mail address!).
Monday, July 07, 2008
Cloth diapering update
So I have been using cloth diapers on Phoebe almost exclusively and it is going really well. As I mentioned in a previous post, I use the Bum Genius brand and although I have not tried others and thus can't do a proper comparison, I have to say that I think they are great. They are the new "3.0" version, which I think means they have some improvements over past versions. The closures are Velcro, which really helps when I am trying to diaper a squirmy baby. And they are one-size-fits all, so I can adjust them as she gets bigger. I wash them every night and they are ready to go the next day. I have experimented around with a lot of different wash cycles and have found the best system is to wash them in cold with a small amount of natural detergent and some oxi clean, and then run them again in warm with no additional soap but with another small oxi clean scoop, and then a final extra rinse in cold just to make sure all the soap is out. I then dry them on low in the dryer. I don't know why I am writing any of this in my blog...I am sure that everyone must just find this SO fascinating...but maybe it's helpful to those readers out there who are considering cloth diapers! Feel free to send any questions my way and I'll do my best to answer based on my very limited experiment.
Sunday, July 06, 2008
Fantastic Fourth
{huck finn?}We had a great time visiting my parents on Cape Cod over Fourth of July. Thankfully, the traffic was light and both girls slept all the way there. That was such a gift, given Phoebe's recent car behavior (the behavior did show its ugly head on the trip back home, but let's not spoil a good post with that!). The weather kept threatening rain but in the end it was really nice out and we got in visits to the pool on both Thursday and Friday. Lucy loved it in there...she is a real fish, just like her mama (and her nonni and her greatnana, etc.). I bought her a flotation suit and with it on she was able to hold her head above the water and actually "swim." I know there are mixed opinions about things like this, like that they give kids a false sense of security, etc. -- but for now, I think it's a good way to get her comfortable in the water and used to the concept of kicking her feet and paddling her arms. I took the suit off of her plenty of times to have her test her swimming skills. She's not there yet, but she is willing to try and she doesn't get freaked out if she dunks under...all good things, I think!
{playing on the lawn}
{jumping}
{swimming}On the 4th, we played it fairly low-key during the day, starting with getting the girls dressed up in their finest red-white-and-blue:
{yes, she is made out of pudding}
We grilled up some food for dinner at my parents' house (enjoying the lovely view of the pond), then the four of us headed to Chatham to see the band concert on the town green. I always loved these concerts but haven't been able to go to one in years (and I do mean years!) because they are on Friday nights in the summer and thus not really possible to get to in time. But this year, the 4th of July fell on a Friday so the band concert proceeded as normal and we were able to go. It was so much fun, amazing really, to be able to take my own child down to the bandstand for the kids' song portion of the concert -- I mean, really, the last time I went to a band concert in Chatham I was just a kid myself (13, I think). Lucy was a bit sleepy but I think she enjoyed it, especially the two glow sticks that Jeff bought her to wear around her neck. Phoebe tagged along and was a great little baby, staying up and alert far past her bedtime!
{at the band concert...brown eyes, blue eyes, green eyes}Almost forgot to mention the best part of the weekend...my parents watched the girls on Thursday night while Jeff and I went to a much needed dinner out at Gracie's Table. A blood orange martini has never tasted so good. Thanks, mom and dad! And thanks to my girls for being little angels (or so we're told) while we were out :)
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Grammy's birthday
{"two glasses of champagne, please."}
The weekend before last (I am a bit behind in my blogging!) we went to a lovely brunch at the Long Wharf Marriott to celebrate Grammy's birthday. The girls looked adorable in their little dresses (if I should say so myself) and, best of all, they were both very well-behaved! It was a fun outing and a happy birthday for Grammy.
The best picture I could get of them together...it is so tough to do!
Baby and mama
Baby and dada
Lulu twirling in her dress
Grammy and Phoebe Bear
Me, Grammy and Fifi
Poppy shows Lucy Boston Harbor
All the excitement wore out Phoebe...
...but not Lucy!Saturday, June 28, 2008
Birthday party action
Today we went to a first birthday party for Sophie, who is the daughter of Jeff's friend Josh from high school. Lucy loves birthday parties (cake, balloons...) and she had a great time. They had a trampoline in the yard and she had a blast bouncing on it. I am really happy that she liked it because it seems that I can never really predict what she will love and what she will be scared of. She is pretty bold but can also be scared of her own shadow. We've figured out that it is a control issue -- so she is totally unafraid of anything within her control, but anything that is not, something as small as a tiny ant crawling in the car, can be enough to send her over the edge. Anyway the trampoline was clearly "in her control" and boy did she love it. I was just wondering the other day whether she would love the trampolines on the Cape that I grew up bouncing on -- next time we are down there, we will have to go!
The only bad part of the day was Phoebe in the car. She cried almost the entire way home, and it was a long drive. She cries in the car all the time and it is a real issue. Nothing seems to help -- not singing, not a mirror, not toys. Sometimes it helps if I go back there with her (if Jeff is driving) and make googy sounds and smile at her, but lately even that doesn't help all the time. It is heartbreaking to hear her cry and, of course, not pleasant for us to listen to. Could she be carsick? I just don't know what to do. If anyone has any suggestions, PLEASE let me know!
{matchies...thanks, nonni & nonno!}
{why won't they just pose nicely for me?}
{check out the gams on phoebe}
{the phoebster's first boyfriend}
{the cake. yes, she tried to boop it before it was served.}
{jumping...many more below...}
