You are now entering a shoe free zone.
July 3rd, 2008
We are shoe-free in our current apartment and have been for many years. We remove our shoes upon entering and most of our guests do the same without us asking because they know the rule. We live in the Tender Nob and the sidewalks near our building aren’t the cleanest–they are downright foul. Because we have carpet and I sit on the floor a lot, I didn’t want the dirt from outside tracked inside so that is why I instituted the No Shoe rule.
Lately, Mitch and I have been a little more lax about no shoes in the house. If we forget something in the living room for Izzy as we’re on our way out, we’ll just dash down the hall and grab it even though we have our shoes on.
After reading this article on Eco Child’s Play, we’re not allowed to be lazy anymore. Shoes come off. I don’t care how long it took to get Isadora ready for an errand.
When we move to the new place, I am going to be hyper-vigilant about no shoes. I’m going to buy house slippers for regular visitors. For less frequent visitors, they can run around in socks that I will have on hand and wash after each use. And for those few who really don’t want to take their shoes off (the cable guy, the plumber, etc), well they’re going to be putting plastic bags on your feet. I don’t care how ridiculous it makes you feel. I would love to get those shoe covers used in hospitals. I wonder if they’re available to the general public. I’ll have to conduct a Google search later.
Oh, and by the way, before you jump the gun and start railing me about how we need exposure to germs to build up our immune systems, blah, blah, blah. I’m totally in agreement. I don’t use antibacterial products. Plain soap and water will do just fine, thank you very much. I use hippy green cleaners when I clean the house, there is no need to use harsh chemicals that strip the environment of all living microbes. It’s just that when I know people use the sidewalk in front of my house as a toilet, and we walk on said sidewalk, I don’t want it tracked in my house where Isadora will no doubt be crawling and dropping and subsequently picking up and eating cheerios in the very near future.
Read the article and tell me if you still refuse to be a shoe free convert.
Art for the new apartment.
June 28th, 2008
A few years ago, Mitch and I were walking down Geary Street and I spotted a painting in one of the gallery windows that I absolutely fell in love with. It was a portrait of a monkey in a lovely party dress that was just about to get beaned in the noggin by an olive by Donald Roller Wilson. We walked by that painting many times, and each time we stopped to admire it. One day, we decided to go in to the gallery an inquire about the price of the painting. We figured if it was at price point we felt we could afford, we’d buy it. At the time, we knew nothing about the artist. When the gallery worker told us the price ($15,000!), we told him we’d think about it and we high-tailed it out of there.
I still think about that painting every now and then because it makes me laugh.
Sometimes, you just gotta love China and their complete disregard for copyrighted material and eBay for making distribution easy. Check these out!
This is the reproduction of the painting I have coveted for many, many years. I just might have to buy it.*
*Still trying to sort through the ethical implications of supporting someone who blatantly stole someone else’s work and whether I can live with it.
Visit with Grandma Judy.
June 19th, 2008
My mom came to town for a visit today. We loaded Izzy up in the stroller and walked down to The Crepe House for breakfast. We both had the Crab Cake Florentine. YUM!
It was a really warm day today, so I didn’t want to stay cooped up in the hot apartment. We took another walk up to the post office to drop off a package. On our way back home, we stopped off at Dolce Gelato for a snack. My mom got the Coconut Macadamia Nut and I got the Peanut Butter Cioccolati. Delicious.
Isadora was great all day long–taking in the sites between naps while we walked around the neighborhood.
It was still too warm to sit in the apartment so we hung out in our courtyard for a little while before my mom had to drive back home.
She’s got mail.
June 18th, 2008
Izzy has already received a couple of letters and cards in the mail. She received an email note (via my email address) too. The notes have been awesome–wonderful sentiments welcoming her in to the world. I thought it might be fun to set up an email account for her so you can write to her whenever the mood strikes. As soon as she’s old enough to read, she’ll be able to go through all of your correspondence and find out what you were thinking about when she was just a few weeks old. If you would like to write an email note to Izzy, please send it to isadora.harris [at] gmail [dot] com.* Of course, you can still send her handwritten notes (which are totally awesome BTW) to our home address.
*I wrote her email address like this in an attempt to thwart spambots. Replace [at] with @ and [dot] with .
We’re moving on up.
June 11th, 2008
Er…more like moving on over since we’re already on the top floor. We finally got word that we can have the two bedroom apartment down the hall. It has been painted, and they’re working on some renovations in the kitchen and bathroom. We’re also going to get a full-sized refrigerator to be placed in the giant pantry (Curses to the mini fridge we’ve been using for years).
Our building caretaker is currently on his annual month-long vacation to St. Petersburg, so most of the work has come to a halt during his absence. As soon as Andrei is back, he’ll finish up the work, and we should be able to move in late this month or early next month.
We’re so excited to have more space! We have fantasized about living in that apartment for years because it is the best two bedroom in our building. It is the only other apartment we ever could have considered living in because we currently live in the best one bedroom apartment in our building.
I would like to get in there and measure the rooms so I can draw the layout and figure out how I’m going to place our current furniture. I have also been doing some browsing online and found a few things that I want to purchase. I am just dying to nest!
I already purchased this Dutailier glider/recliner, but it hasn’t been delivered yet.
I don’t think our kitchen renovations are going to include a dishwasher. If not, I want to get this portable Whirlpool:
I picked this model over the Kenmore because the Whirlpool model has a locking system so it can’t be opened easily once it’s started and it has a food disposal system. It also has a butcher block counter top that will come in so very handy in my kitchen as it lacks counter space. It will be such a relief to not have to do dishes by hand any longer.
I also want to get this pretty awesome couch from Pottery Barn Teen for Izzy’s room:
I like it because it converts into a full sized bed. When we have guests, they can sleep on the fold out couch and Izzy can sleep in our room. It’s on sale right now, and it looks like they’re already out of the brown and black versions, which is fine by me because I did want the colorful striped version. I think the color scheme will go great with the painting that Dan gave us for Izzy’s room. I just can’t order it now since we don’t know when we’re moving in. I can’t have it arrive and try to cram it in to our current place. That just won’t do. I’m keeping my fingers crossed it will still be available when I have a place to put it.
The last piece of furniture I want to get is a dining room table. I am so excited that we’ll have room for a table. We have been eating our meals on the couch or at our desks because those are the only spaces available in our current place. I still haven’t found exactly what I want. I do know that I want something that is expandable, preferably with self contained extensions, but I’ll deal with leaves if I have to. I am looking forward to hosting dinner parties again!
Learning to accept how I have changed.
May 29th, 2008
I am a perpetual list maker. I love lists. I have several different books of lists, each with its own theme. I have a book filled with lists of items to pack for various trips I’ve taken over the years. Another one for craft projects I’d like to work on (and have completed), and most recently my book of lists for things that pertain to Isadora.
I adore my books of lists. Nothing gives me greater satisfaction than crossing off my to-do items. I also love to go back through completed lists and review. It reminds me that I get things done. Until now.
I still make lists, but I no longer complete tasks. I don’t get to cross anything off. I can’t review and reflect on my accomplishments. It’s hard to accept, but accept I must.
I set three goals a day for myself these days, usually in this order:
1) Take a nap
2) Take a shower
3) Complete a household chore or an item from a To-Do list
I almost always complete the first one, occasionally complete the second and almost never get to the last. I know I can only do so much in a given day and I don’t want to delude myself into believing I can be Super Mom. That would just set me up for failure and disappointment. I think I can be Pretty Okay Mom, and I’m fine with that as long as the entire household is well fed, fully clothed when interacting with the general public (clean clothes optional) and happy.
Wendy 3 | Target 0
May 23rd, 2008
Our first big adventure to Target was a success!
1) Isadora slept the entire time we were shopping. Not a single fuss.
2) She didn’t dirty her diaper until we got home. Yay!
3) I got 10% off nearly my entire purchase.
You see, I received a coupon for 10% of anything that was on my baby registry so when we showed up at the store, I got a registration gun and scanned everything that went into the cart–tons of baby items we still needed, underwear and a hat for Mitch, batteries, people food, pet food, etc.
The clerk was having problems entering the coupon in the register and called a manager over for help. The manager got mad and snippy at me because I put “non-baby” items on the baby registry.
She told me that the baby did not need a Fedora. I thought that was a very judgmental statement and replied, “she most certainly does too need a Fedora. She thinks her daddy looks really cute in it.” The manager also argued against the batteries. I told her that a baby swing takes 6 batteries and eats them like candy–they are absolutely baby related. And so the conversation went with each and every item–her judgment and my justification
Eventually she just stopped questioning, but she kept muttering that I was only supposed have baby items on my registry. I told her that was not my problem. I scanned items and the gun accepted them. The coupon clearly stated “Come in to the store and add items to your registry for 10% off your shopping all day.” Notice how baby is no where to be seen before items?
I also explained to her that when I registered for my wedding at Target, I added things I would actually use like toilet paper, cat litter and trash bags. I had I nice set of dishes and cookware already, so I certainly didn’t need more. Not your typical wedding registry fare, but I only put things that we needed on the wedding registry. With that, she gave the go ahead to give 10% off my entire cart.
The funny thing is, she was mad because she had to go line by line for every item I bought to give the 10% discount instead of just giving 10% off the final total. Then she barked at me, “You know, you’re going to end up getting a much bigger discount because I have to do the entries this way.” I looked at Mitch; he looked at me and we both shrugged our shoulders.
Walking out to the car, Mitch started shaking his head and said, “she obviously doesn’t understand the transitive properties of multiplication and addition.”
Ya think?
When I got to the car, I took a closer look at the receipt. The manager cheated me out of about $10 worth of discounts. She flat out refused to give me a discount on the 4 pack of Red Bull. How does she not see that is absolutely baby related!? How else is Mitch going to stay up through the night with the baby so I can get some much needed sleep!
Miscellaneous Updates
May 22nd, 2008
1) I gave birth 8 days ago and I already lost “the baby weight.” I weigh three pound less than my pre-pregnancy weight yet, I still look like I am 5 months pregnant.
2) The Baby Bjorn = Freedom. Why didn’t I think of this before? It took me two hours to sort half the laundry. When I finally put Izzy in the Baby Bjorn, I finished the job in 5 minutes.
3) I’m still having breastfeeding issues. The lactation consultants over at Newborn Connections have been extremely helpful, encouraging and non-judgmental with their advice and guidance. Update: This issue is related to the rapid weight loss I experienced. Thanks for the tip Brian! I’ll be sure to ask the milk ladies about it tomorrow when I talk to them.
Kirby Einstein
May 22nd, 2008
On Dad-ness.
May 22nd, 2008
Everyone told me my whole life was about to change. It’s as if I was about to drop acid or joining the military. How should one prepare for the unexpected?
Although no lightning struck from the heavens (even if it appears it has in the picture of Isadora rising from out of the womb), every day I notice something new and profound.
That said, like most profundity, what makes it so deep is its utter simplicity. What changes, honestly, comes down to priorities.
Before having a child, I followed my whims for the most part. Not to say I was a hedonist, but I followed simple pleasures to the extent it was healthy for me to do so. Once I’d survived my 20’s, I spent the following years resting. Playing ukulele and poker, sleeping in almost every day AND taking a nap in the afternoon.
That has totally changed. I wake up, whether at 10am or 3am, with an entirely new sense of clarity. I know what needs to be done. I know, for the predictable future, exactly what my priorities are, and it’s no longer getting more xBox 360 unlocks in GTA4 than Dan.
