Just a quick complaint:

Having a toddler with a cold sucks.

Inspirational messages on Facebook are super lame, unless your child is battling a major illness or you have come back from the dead.  I find it interesting that most folks who post such messages have SEVERAL hours of time to think/paste/pin said messages.  Why aren't they working?  Oh right, because they feel bad about themselves and they need that PERFECT message to lift them from their doldrums.  Um, nope.  It isn't a life coach---it is a great Rx for Zoloft, a fabulous therapist, and no candy. 

And to end things on a good note, Greta is full on speaking Hobbit lately.  I mean, I'm pretty good at deciphering what she is saying, but lately, I don't even think Smegel could help her. 

Oh how I very much dislike Wednesdays.  Let's start with my house being an absolute disaster....paint/DIY stuff everywhere.  Secondly, and my favorite, my car was broken into last night.  Luckily, they only took the car safety travel bag and my health savings credit card.  I am very lucky----I just feel dooped because I swore I locked the car.  On a brighter note, they ignored my $400 car seat and $375 jogging stroller.  Again, morons. 

In light of several friends blogging/posting/discussing fertility issues and having babies, I suppose I should bring my readers to light on G's case and my current state of non-pregnancy.

It has been 19 months since Greta's delivery and I am content with the status of my body (i.e. not peeing on myself).  While I have not attempted REAL exercise---going to the gym, running, doing a step tape, mountain biking, I am much more active that I was a year ago.  I still have more moments than none, where I am worried about the strength of my lower half and what is going on down there.  More often, I have serious anxiety about what will happen when the time comes to really try to get pregnant again.  I worry about the latter stages of pregnancy when the baby is sitting atop your bladder and you have to pee every 20 minutes.  I worry about my hips moving to facilitate a baby and how that will affect my nerves.  Thankfully, I have it on record from two of my doctors and one physical therapist that my next pregnancy will end in a c-section.  Thank the Lord.  While I am all about going about the ol' V way, it is clearly no  longer for me.  Dave and I have been discussing much more how many kids our future holds----To be honest, I have much more fear about actually carrying a baby than raising one---I am also very worried about Greta's future.  Now that she is 19 months old, we have pretty much nailed down the issues related to her birth.  While the future is always up in the air for any human, all the things that could have happened, have happened----balance issues, strength issues, seizures, coordination issues, muscular issues in her hands and feet.  She is still developing her cognitive and speech skills, which don't seem to be too much of an issue now.  I like to think better that birthdays are better milestones.  When she hits two, it is time to go back to the drawing board and compare her to her peers.  She is finally gross motor appropriate for her age, though she still struggles with her fine motor, balance, and coordination.  She also drags her right foot ever so slightly, which may be a result of her toe positioning.  Regardless, she is doing well.  I was instructed to wait TWO YEARS before another pregnancy.  At first I thought this was not enough, but at 24 months, hopefully G will be potty trained and easier to communicate with.  She'll be acting more like a real person instead of one that needs CONSTANT supervision and assistance.  I can't imagine having kids less than 2 years a part.  NUTS. 

I am also very interested to find out if G's delivery will affect my fertility---it is hard to actually get a scope of damage that accompanies any V delivery, let alone a complicated one.  While we were blessed with no problems getting pregnant with G, again, I am interested to see if my parts are still in working order.  Again, a conversation that isn't normal for most women under 40. 

I am thankful for my amazing Mommy friends, who have always been supportive of my anxiety and frustration with my birth experience.  I am more thankful for my friends who have been open about their struggles with pregnancy, parenting, and body issues and decided to write/blog/talk/post about them. It  is nice to know you can be honest about real issues and not try and hide them or feel embarrassed about them. 

We are actually starting to make SOME progress on the house:

Dave installed 4 (of 8) can lights in the kitchen.  It makes such a huge difference!  No more fluorescent lighting!

The television room, upstairs hallway, downstairs bathroom, all the bedrooms, and the kitchen are painted.  We still have to finish the trim and cabinets in the kitchen.  It looks a ton better than before!

I am slowly beginning to organize/sort through "basement" type items---Christmas decorations, Greta's baby clothes, picture frames, etc.  This will be an ongoing process through the winter.

I am still hung up on colors for the dining room and the front room (play room).  Any ideas?  We are sticking to COOL colors. Again, suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Again, we are going for a coastal-pottery-barn-traditional vibe.  Please refer to my Pinterest boards for my inspiration.

And the looming piece of anxiety for me has been the idea of going back to work.......I'm sure every woman goes through this after she has a baby.  I've been incredibly blessed with unemployment for over a year (which ended last month), making it somewhat possible for me to "stay home."  While this idea is absolutely ravishing to me, I might be dreaming soon.  I still have a valid teaching license, though I have NO plans to return to a classroom.  Honestly, I want to be a formula rep for Abbott.  OR, a rep for a wholesome dog food company.  Yep, babies and puppies.  Two of my favorite things.  While this is somewhat of a wish at this point, it seems like tutoring (yuck!) might be my best option.  I have also thought about going back to cleaning houses.  It is great money in not a lot of time, HOWEVER, commodes are absolutely disgusting and I HATE cleaning showers.  Nast-eeee.

And my parting note....my psychiatric nurse practitioner finally had her 'come to Jesus' moment with me, diagnosing me with yet another ailment:  OCD.  I no longer have to attempt to explain my ridiculous obsessive thoughts about people dying, people staring at me, running into my ex-OB, and the roof falling down.  Yep, tack on another 30 mg's of Effexor, because that is what the Candyman ordered.  Boom.

Oooohhh.....I LERV me some white appliances and wallpaper.  HAWT.

After pics tomorrow....my computer isn't cooperating.

Some minor complaints for the day:

Getting 4 new tires for a car with less than 100K miles sucks.

Home repairs certainly add up.

The clearance rack at Kohl's with an additional 25% off is up my alley.

Snow is and will always be awesome.

Greta's fanny will never not be squeezable.

H&M has the cutest kids clothes.

I feel like our new house will NEVER, EVER look normal.

Yuck.  Stuck in a 1985 time warp.