I don't know how to title this one...

On Friday afternoon I accompanied Man Child to the embroider that he uses to have his work clothes personalized. The shop was very small and the owner very personable. She is Hispanic and her husband is white. They oooh'd and aaah'd over Cayley and to my surprise Cayley did not seem to like them. She came to tears when the women was holding her and I have never seen that before. She usually likes everyone! Well I took her back from the lady and her and Man Child were talking... Next thing I know I feel my shirt moving. The first thing that popped into my head was "I hope this baby is not peeing on me...! I look down and there is a frikken BIRD climbing up my shirt. A BIRD. I wish I was an outsider looking in on the situation because I think I would have been ROTFL at me. I closed my eyes really tight and while handing the baby to Man Child I screeched "there's a fucking bird crawling on me". Then I proceeded to spin around shaking my hands and mumbling incoherently to myself. The shop owners husband took the bird off of me finally after what seemed like forever and put him back into the back part of the shop. I almost shit myself. And I know I must have looked ridiculous. All over this tiny little bird. Everyone kept asking if I was alright, did I want water, did I need to sit down, telling me they are so sorry... Maybe they will learn to say something about having a bird in their shop next time. Over all a very embarrassing situation.

On Saturday night I had a very strange dream. In this dream I get dressed and go out to my living room. I sit down and someone points out that I have a baby in my diaper. I look down there and yup, there's a little baby just hanging out. It was a boy and still had the umbilical cord attached to him. He is breathing and alert and beautiful. I showed Man Child and he started freaking out so I told him to call 911. He did and told me that it would be at least 10 minutes before they could get to our house. I looked down and was amazed how different he looked from Cayley... Then I woke up. WTF? Why was I wearing a diaper? And why was it visible to the person who pointed out the baby? Disturbing...
I spent Sunday doing our grocery shopping and I also made chicken soup. It was damn good. That is what I will be having for lunch today.
This morning I woke up late which seems to be the norm nowadays. Deciding not to rush around I had some cereal and threw in a load of laundry before getting Cayley up and dressed. Well in the process of getting her and I out the door I forgot her diapers. But I hadn't figured that out until I was already knocking on the babysitters door. No, biggie she says, I still have some. So great! Off to work I go. I get to work and reach into the back of the van and there is Cayleys diaper bag. CRAP! No one has called me yet, and anyways, I am sure she has some of Cayleys clothes stashed away in her house... Definitely a typical Monday...

No my love, that right there is balmex. (week 14, I think)

Good Friday to you all out there in blogger land! Things at work have been super busy this week since my co-worker (RB) is on vacation. No, I am not complaining at all. As busy as I have been, my stress level is at a minimum and that is all that I want at this point in my soon to be over career with New Balance. Five hours to go until this week is finished and left behind me.

So this week at La Casa de De Paz...

Cayley is getting a fang tooth in. Her nighttime sleeping has been hit and miss. I have tried a few times to have her CIO, but in the end I always go in and pick her up after maybe 15 minutes of her screaming on the top of her lungs. Of course she passes out in my arms and I get to snuggle my little fatty for a while... I talked to Man Child about my concerns in regards to her bedtime and of course he said that she will know when she gets older... I swear he is frikken clueless. Cayley has also been crashing in the bed with us because I have noticed that she sleeps better that way. She likes to have her head on my face so that is a bit awkward, but I love it anyway.
I asked Man Child on Tuesday if I could punch him. I was totally serious about it. I wanted to punch something (preferably something that wasn't going to break my knuckles like the wall...) to help release some of the frustration that had been building up since Monday, and he got pissy! What is up with that? I can't go have stiff drink at the end of a long day, I can't chain smoke, I can't punch my husband... What is a stressed-crazy in the head-pregnant lady supposed to do?? According to Man Child, I am supposed to go for a drive (um, road rage anyone?) or go to the beach (at 7pm on a cold day by myself) or sleep (while of course taking care of the crying baby in the house). Give me a fucking break! Or better yet your shoulder! So instead of punching him a couple times and getting over my issues, I stood behind the bedroom door and cried. And just how helpful was he the rest of the night? If your thinking "not at all", your correct! I could hear Cayley fussing out in the living room, so I go out there and she is in her excersaucer and he is outside shooting the shit with the neighbors. He continued to do this for the REST OF THE NIGHT. So I cleaned baby bottles and I tried to do the CIO thing with Cayley, and I cried myself to sleep right along with her. He should have just let me punch him.
On Wednesday he and I talked about what happened the night before. He tells me that I hurt his feelings. He said he knew that I wanted to fight and needed to "explode" and that is why he stayed outside in the backyard. LOL. He was staying away from me. I explained to him that that is the total opposite of what I need! When I am in that frame of mind I need him to kinda talk me down, ya know? Try to do something to help me feel better. Even giving me a hug and just being there if I break down crying... Don't tell me to leave the house! That is totally fucked up in my opinion.
On Thursday morning Cayley woke up all smiley and beautiful. After getting dressed and having breakfast we went in the room to give Man Child goodbye kisses and whatever and he was getting his tooth brush ready, running late of course. The next thing I know his face was all scrunched up and he is sniffing his toothbrush. Then he sniffs the toothpaste... He looks so confused i bust out laughing and Cayley looks at me like I just lost my mind. I walk over to the dresser and see a tube of Balmex laying a few inches away from the toothpaste. I go over to the bathroom and there is Man Child hunched over the sink trying (and failing) to get this white cream off of his face and fingers asking if I changed our toothpaste. I am just laughing and laughing and in between my spurts of laughter I tell him, " No my love, that right there is Balmex. You know the baby's butt cream?" Hahahahahahahahaha. And I kindly hand him the tube of toothpaste and wish him a good day. About 10 minutes later my cell phone rings and Man Child can not find his car keys! (he later blamed it on "my" (meaning not his) daughter. LMAO. Karma's a bitch buddy.
So here we are, another Friday and I have no plans for this weekend. I never really do though, do I? I am hoping that Cayley and I have another lazy Saturday tomorrow, but I know that I really need to be getting out of the house on the weekends. I am so boring!!!

So, last night Miss Cayley decided to wake up at 1 am, 4 am, and then for good at 6 am.

I am so tired I think I may pass out at any moment.

Ok, a bit dramatic, but seriously... I need a nap.



Here is a video from this morning:

And here is one where we were trying to get her to give kisses to Man Child this past weekend.

Those who suck, those who don't, and life in general.

As of yesterday afternoon, the Mexicans have lost a great alli.

ME.

They can kiss my ass.
I tried to get some information from the Mexican Consulate in Miami and was hung up.

Twice.

Why?

Because I do not speak Spanish.

I’m sorry, but do we do this to the foreigners in this country?

NO!!!

If you call ANY government agency, you have the option to speak to a Spanish speaking person. The IRS, the County Courthouse, The frikken Post Office.

So you know what?

SCREW YOU.

I will not feel sorry for you that you can not communicate with "us" any longer. Your in America Asshole.

LEARN ENGLISH.

*** I kind of feel bad for this because I didn't feel this way before, but now it is all out of principle. The frikken office was in MIAMI. Not Mexico. And the bitch hung up on me twice***

I was so pissed yesterday I sent this e-mail to man Child:

I tried doing you a favor by calling your Consulate to make an appointment and find out how much money you need and the lady hung up on me. I just want you to know how frustrating it is that YOUR PEOPLE won’t help someone that speaks English, but MY PEOPLE do everything to make it easy for Spanish speaking people.
YOUR PEOPLE SUCK. I am so mad right now.
Call 1.877.639.4835 to make an appointment.
It is a good thing I like Mexican food.

He laughed at my anger, and seeing him laugh made me laugh.

Bastard.

On Tuesday we went to see the Lawyer we met last year after Cayley was born to re-visit the possibility of filing for Man Child to become a Legal Resident. (I just want to throw in here how GOOD Man Child looked in his grown up clothes. If it were up to me we would have been a bit late to our appointment...) We signed a contract and now I just have to get the paperwork in order (hence my call to the Consulate) so we could be making a trip to Mexico in 6-8 months for our Immigration interview. I called the IRS, finally sent the application for Cayleys birth Certificate and printed out the paper work I need to get a passport for me and the kids. Everything else on our checklist was already ready since we began this whole process with a different Lawyer who did nothing but avoid my phone calls. (which reminds me… I have to write a letter to her and try to get my deposit back.)
This whole process is a financial nightmare. This is why we haven’t tackled it yet. We have to pay a lawyer, pay the government fee’s, the airline tickets, save money for the trip, save money for us to pay our rent and bills while we are away… Plus the things that pop up in between , like a zillion passport photos and getting paperwork translated. Oh, and the passports too! We were fortunate to get a check from my mother to help us get started in the amount of 2,500 which paid for the lawyer and the government fees.
Thank you very much. We appreciate it.
We have a long way to go though, and I will be doing everything I can think of to cut costs and save money. We have cut our food budget down and I will be doing all that I can to get our electric bill down. Now I wish Florida wasn't so HOT! my AC usage kills my bank account. O crap, and summer is coming too!?!? And I'll be a hot pregnant lady on top of it?!?! I have a feeling that Cayley, Pita and I will be living in the Kiddie Pool in a couple of months.

What are some other things I can cut? My cell phone bill is only 25.00 and I feel that that is a necessity. Not only for my sanity, but because god forbid I need to call for help or something. Smoke signals are not always reliable. Not with as much as my neighborhood barbeque's.

I could cut my Internet but then my sanity again hangs in the balance... I have basic TV. I do need underwear now that I think about it... Damn. My ass is getting fatter. I don't travel. I really have no one to visit so I only use gas during the week for work and on the weekends to do grocery shopping. Pita will not be going to the groomer....

Suggestions will be appreciated! I am not even started on my goal to save 6,000.00 in the next 6-8 months. That will buy our tickets and pay our rent/bills for two months. We decided that we need that cushion in case our/his/my job does not allow us to travel and we have to quit then look for new employment when we return. (just reading the number out loud... Not realistic at all for a family that will be cut down to one income in two months for an undecided/unforeseen period of time)

Also, on Monday, Man Child ripped out the carpet in the living room! OMG, it looks so different!! I expected there to be huge stains on the tile or something, but it looks so clean! I really love it and appreciate that he finally got it done. I feel so much better about Cayley being on the floor now. And man! That baby can really get around now! I'll have to video her again. We have been trying to get her to give us kisses, and sometimes she does... Baby kisses are sweet. She opens her mouth and puts it on my mouth/face/arm... LOL, she slobbers all over, but I know she is giving kisses. AND... I noticed she will only share her puffs with Man Child. Not that I want any mind you, but if I am walking by her high chair and she has puffs on her tray she'll yell and smack her tray until I have passed. Now if Daddy is near(and he likes the puffs) she holds one out to him. And Smiles. :(

Well, I have rambled on enough for one afternoon....

Busy Mom's -Week 6-

Week 6… Late as usual, but this weekend I seriously had no time to sit down and type any thing up.
Ricky came in on Wednesday night/Thursday morning and I am proud to be able to say that I did not get lost at the airport. I was very nervous about picking him up because I have never parked at the airport and I am not the greatest when it comes to navigating a parking garage. (yeah I know… You go up, then you go back down… For some reason it does not work like that for me) But, it went smoothly and I think I’ll do it again… (hint, hint… Some one come and visit me!!!) He and I went to Denny’s when he arrived in and the milkshake I ordered came in a crooked glass. I was fascinated. It leaned to the right and for a few moments I thought that my tiredness started causing me to be delirious, but Ricky confirmed that the glass had a "gansta lean". When the time came to pay the check the waitress reminded us that we could leave the tip on the receipt since we were paying with a debit card. I was flabbergasted. I wish I had recorded exactly what she said because the lady had balls about it. When she walked away Ricky said "Damn, the cup isn’t the only thing in here with a gansta lean". LOL. I don’t think I have laughed that hard in forever.
I went to work as usual on Thursday and the day pretty much sucked. But it did eventually end and I went and picked up Cayley. Ricky decided that he wanted Papa Johns for dinner so we ordered a couple of pizzas and he introduced me to Guitar Hero. That is a very interesting game if you want to work on your eye/hand coordination. I was so lost just trying to use the three buttons that are on the easy level. Green, red, and yellow. Oh, and the strum bar. Holy hell… I felt like a total ass because it’s only THREE keys and I kept missing them. More so the yellow. Friday morning came around and Cayley and I hung out until Ricky woke up. Then we had coffee and eventually made our way down to Man Childs job so he could feed us. We had shrimp, I had steak and Ricky had ribs. Very very yummy. Cayley had sweet potatoes when she was done making the rounds saying hello to all of Man Childs friends. She is a complete ham. Later that night Man Child went to his second job and Ricky and I played on the play station, computer and just talked about random stuff. At about 11 pm Cayley coughed and scared the shit out of me. It was a crazy sounding cough and she couldn’t stop for a minute and then she struggled to catch her breath. This went on for the rest of the night and at three in the morning she was crying from coughing. And she was feverish. When Ricky got up on Saturday morning Cayley was still coughing and running a fever. I asked him what he thought and he said her cough sounded "croupy" and she might need antibiotics. He felt her lymph nodes too and said they were swollen. I called her doctors office expecting to leave a message for Dr. R. to call me but they were OPEN!!! On a SATURDAY!!! Dr. R. was not in, but the other doctor was so I asked to make an appointment. The girl on the phone asks me what kind of insurance the patient has before she asked my daughters name or what is wrong with her. I told her BCBS and she said "ok, we have an opening at 10:30". That pissed me off. What if I hadn’t said BCBS? Do certain insurances get discriminated against on the weekend? I am going to talk to Dr. R. about that the next time I see her. Well the doctor confirmed that Cayley has viral croup and put her on a steroid to help relieve the swelling in her throat. He told me that I needed to monitor her breathing and temperature closely and bring her to the ER if either got too bad. A little while after the appointment I brought Ricky to the train station so he could go to Tampa and see our father. I would have loved to go, but having no money… It all worked out anyway since Cayley was sick. She wanted to be held and rocked ALL WEEKEND. There was no putting her down. She slept for a few minutes until another awful cough shook her body and she woke up crying… That poor baby… Man Child worked crazy hours this week getting a total of maybe eight hours sleep from Friday night to Monday afternoon. I felt bad for him, but I felt worse for those around me on account that come Sunday night, that last shower I had gotten was Friday morning. I was smelly, hungry and tired. (which means I was a complete bitch) When Man Child came home Sunday, I started crying because I just wanted 5 minutes in the shower before he ran off to his other job. He turned the shower on, took Cayley, and told me to take as much time as I needed. When I got finished scraping baby food and cheetos off my neck and out of my hair, and scrubbed the Infant Motrin off my foot that I had clumsily knocked of my dresser (brand new bottle just about wasted) I found them both sleeping peacefully cuddled up in pillows and comforters on the bed, so I left them there. I made some Ramen Noodles and just sat there and enjoyed my baby free arms. It lasted maybe thirty minutes before Cayley woke herself up coughing and crying, but I certainly felt refreshed at that point. I helped Man Child get ready for work and saw him off. Then Cayley and I settled in the room and watched the movie "Shutter". Monday morning rolled around and Cayley was still running a fever so I stayed home. We snuggled all day and I did laundry in between her short siestas. We picked up Ricky at the train station and went to the diner for dinner. Cayley was such a good girl. She just sat in her car seat eating bits of banana and playing with napkins. Her and Man Child passed out when we got home and Ricky and I hung out in the living room. I dropped him off at my mom’s this morning and Cayley went to the baby sitter and here I am at work… Counting the minutes till I get to see my baby… oooh… Yesterday I had put Cayley in her exersaucer, and when I walked by she put up her arms and whined at me!!! And she now has two teeth.

Here is my baby yesterday...

It's about to bite me in the ass

So about a month ago when I was stressing about our bills being paid outloud to Man Child, the words "you find another job or I will have to" escaped my lips. To that he gave me a very weary look and told me that I would not be working two jobs because of Cayley and the fact that I am pregnant. Well, he came to me yesterday doing a happy dance and told me that he is going back to his night security job. It is for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights. I regret now pushing the issue because he and I have been getting along so much better since he’s been spending more time at home and I worry that things might change. I know the routine we were in before, him always being tired, me feeling under appreciated and overworked… It caused us to fight and we were unable to communicate properly. I *think* I have been showing a brave face for his sake, but I guess some of my worrying may have broken through in bitch form. I must have snapped at him a couple times over nothing but luckily (for both of us) he just rolled with it and let it go. I don’t even feel relieved that it is going to be easier to pay the bills with this extra income. He loves this job and is super excited to be going back, but how can I be supportive when I am terrified that things are going to go down hill?

Weekends end to quickly!

Wow, here we are, another monday. It never ceases to amaze me, just how fast the weekends pass. I leave work friday night, then the next thing I know, I am waking up monday morning. Ok, so maybe that is a bit exagerated... But that is certianly how it feels to me.
Nothing special happened this weekend really... I started reading "Twilight" on friday evening and finished it last night around 10:30 pm. That book was damn good! I will be starting book two, "New Moon" later today. I told Man Child that he needed to give me tonight off, so hopefully he will keep his word. Only time will tell on that one. I made chicken soup on Saturday morning/afternoon and we had it for dinner on saturday and again for lunch on sunday. I was sad to see the pot empty. My chicken soup is the bomb. (Really, it is.) The christmas tree came down on sunday and Man Child spent the day cleaning the kitchen cabinets. I took care of Cayley and did laundry and cleaned our bedroom. Like I said, nothing special...
I missed Desperate Housewives last night thanks to my new reading obbsession... I'll have to catch it online sometime this week.
Poor Pita is out of food again... I have no idea how I manage to hit up three different stores on saturday morning and forget dog food at all three of the stores. Needless to say, Pita loves her some people food, and got to eat chicken soup and rice with us all weekend, and eggs this morning for breakfast. I really do have to remember to stop at the store tonight on my way home though... Poor Pita.
Cayley was a riot this weekend. She must be going through a growth spurt because she woke up numerous times during the nights only to fuss untill she got a bottle. She was very restless when she finally fell asleep, and she was a bit of a wild child while she was up. Here are a few pictures from this weekend.

Going through the sunday coupons:







Watching Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Friends on Noggin:






Playing in her exersaucer and tring to eat MR. Penguin:








And these are from Saturday evening. I asked Man Child to change Cayley's diaper while I was assembeling the soup bowls and what not, and this is how she returned to the kitchen...


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All in all, the weekend was a good one. (and I just realized going through my weekend pictures that my Christmas stockings are sill up... Oops...)

Moday, Monday...

Yeah, so it's Monday. Another one. This past weekend just passed too quickly. It was a great weekend so maybe that is why I am so sad to see that it is already gone.

Man Child, Cayley, Baby 09, our new addition Irving, and I went out to breakfast yesterday. I had eggs, toast, a sausage link, a piece of bacon and a bit of Man Childs home fries. Cayley slept the whole time we were there. After breakfast we went to a uniform store to buy Irving some school uniforms. 2 shirts, 2 shorts, a belt and we ended up buying him socks, a sweater, 2 outfits (to go "out") and 2 pair of sneakers at Ross. Then we stopped at the dollar store to buy some napkins, hand soap, and toilet cleaner. Oh- and I found the ALLI book there! For a dollar!! I also picked up some multiplication flash cards and a grammar workbook.

Well, we decided that we did not really want to spend the day at home, so we trekked to the mall. There were lots of great sales on winter apparel, so Cayley got some pants and long sleeve onesies for out trip to the west coast in March/April. Man Child bought Cayley a pair of Sketchers. They are cute as hell, but wasteful in my opinion. I made him buy them in a size 3 so maybe they will fit her longer than a month. It was a really nice day. The mall was not super crazy and Irving was as well behaved as an 8 year old can be on their second trip to the mall...

I was exhausted by time we got home at 8, as were the rest of the family. Cayley slept from 7:30 last night until 7am when I woke her up this morning. I fell asleep shortly after Desperate Housewives ended.

Things about me and mine.

So...
My name is Caroline. I am 25 years old. I have a husband who I commonly refer to as "man child". I have a beautiful Mexican baby named Cayley who is three months old and am expecting another in July of 2009. We also have a dog and her name is Pita.

Some things you should know about me are... I am a BAD speller. Good thing I see a spell check feature on here. Oh- but don't be surprised if I don't use it. I am lazy too. Lets see... I procrastinate on everything. I like to cook and bake. I have been experimenting lately (poor man child) and it has been a lot of fun. This is my second marriage. I plan on having no more than two children. I am sarcastic, opinionated, and not ashamed to tell it how I see it. I am emotionally needy and super sensitive when it comes to certain people. I am loyal to the end. I will do anything for my friends or family until they cross the line. I wish I was still a kid without the responsibilities that being an adult bring.

Some things that you should know about man child are... He is 32 years old and he really is a good man. We have been together for 5 years (12/6/03) and married for almost 3 years. (7/25/2006). We have been through so many ups and downs, but for some reason stuck it out. I am sure that I will be bashing him here on my blog, but I am ok with that. At the end of the day I know that "this too shall pass"... Man child likes to cook (that is his profession) but does not cook too much at home. He is a native of Mexico.

Not much to report on Cayley other than that now she has learned how to suck on her fingers. She is eating cereal and carrots and bananas and apples. She has a doctors appointment this Friday to get the rest of her 2 month old shots. I might re-schedule though. She is the spitting image of her father. Someone I know looked at her picture and told me that she looks like a baby that I stole from the flea market. She sleeps all night (from 7pm until 4-7am). She has always been a really easy and happy baby.

Nothing to report on the 2009 baby... I found out on 11/26 that I was pregnant again by blood test at my ob/gyn office. I had to pee in the middle of the night the night before, and that had never happened to me until I got pregnant with Cayley. So I knew. I personally am hoping for a boy so that I can have my one of each.

Pita... We have had Pita for almost 2 years. She was given to me as a gift from one of man child's cousins. We got her at 8 weeks and I treated her like my baby right up until Cayley was brought home from the hospital. I am ashamed to say that there have been days that I have forgotten to feed my dog... Luckily, man child has stepped up in the department of taking care of Pita. He actually gave her a bath for the first time this past weekend. She is tan and white and so very smart and playful.

That's us.