All week long I’ve been remembering things to write about and snapping a quick cell phone pic when I had a free second.  Let me tell you.  That was rare my friends.  I had been looking forward to writing every day this week and linking up with Melissa at Adventuroo for her annual “Week In My Life.”

But, during this week. That wasn’t going to happen.  I was extremely busy at work and out-of-town for two days.  So, I’m just doing a recap of the week.  Here is this crazy week in my life.  Well, what I can remember, anyway.

Monday:

I didn’t know this was the week until I read a post from Erin about it.  Oops.  I didn’t record much this day.

8:30am-  I was really psyched to get into work to talk to people about the real-life soap opera that is our local school board.  I covered this cluster as a news reporter.   My jaw dropped into my coffee Sunday morning when I read a breaking newspaper article about board members running for statewide office who supposedly had an illicit affair.  Ah politics!  It’s dirty and totally irresistible.

6:00pm- I got to play with my girl because Lord knows I wouldn’t be able to later in the week.  I had to take a picture of this smile in mismatched pajamas pushing Cookie Monster in the doll stroller.

 

Tuesday:

7:30am- I needed to be at work at 7:30am and got stuck at the train tracks.  Not for a train.  For maintainance.  Really?!  Ya’ll couldn’t handle that at 3:00am? You had to wait until I was rushing into work.  Thanks for nothing.  (Side note:  I still lift my feet when I go over the tracks.  Please tell me you know what I’m talking about.)

9:00am- I got to take some cool photos for clients at work.  I loved the setup we had and the chance to stretch my photographic abilities.  Some of the guys in this particular office rushed in about this time and said, “Did you see LeBron?!?”  Now, as far as I know there is only one LeBron in the world.  If there are more, I don’t know who they are.  I looked down to the street from the office window and saw the reflection of the Miami Heat’s bus in the window of the Marriott.  Some people had waited to see LeBron James and company exit the hotel before heading to our local arena.  They had an exhibition game that night.

12:00pm- I grabbed a quick bite with a coworker before spotting an old family friend to chat with. I got a parking ticket.  Little did I know, this would be just the first time I would curse the City of Raleigh’s parking enforcers this week.

5:30pm-After meetings back at the office all afternoon I got to go pick up Charlotte.  She did not care that I was there and was engrossed in a book about a duck and a goose.  I had to bribe her with a pumpkin visit to even get her to come home with me.  She happily greeted the pumpkins at the front of her school.

Wednesday:

6:30am- Let the madness begin!  My coworker, Jen and I headed 1 1/2 hours out-of-town Greensboro for a meeting.  I love her and love working with her.  Thank goodness, because we spent loads of time together this week.  We may or may not have grabbed a quick bite at the IHOP on the way out-of-town and I may or may not have ordered the Pumpkin Pancakes.  Holla!

4:00pm-  Okay, here’s where things get interesting, well, annoying.  I arrived at a huge work event in downtown Raleigh.  I unloaded equipment from my car and went to move my car to our designated parking area.  I turned on one busy street.  Bam!  Battery died in my Jeep.  I frantically coasted into a parking spot on the street.  I tried to crank my engine, but it sounded like someone had put nail polish remover in my gas tank.  Shoot me.

To make things even better, some lady with City of Raleigh parking informed me that I was 6″ over the line, and thus not actually in a spot.  One of her coworkers with a ticket printer made me put money in a meter before the woman informed me I had to move by 6:00pm, or the city would tow me.  Oh, did I not mention that my portion of this company event started at 5:30pm sharp?!?  Thankfully a coworker suggested the ladies in my office wear flats as I rushed down the street, frantically searching my wallet for my AAA card.  Naturally it was stuck between my Dunkin Donuts coffee card and library card.

I informed my very understanding coworkers of my predicament before hopping in the AAA car with Robert.  I apologized for eating my boxed dinner in his car, but I was starving and I knew it was the only time I could eat anything.  We drove down the block to my stranded Jeep.  Robert saved my ass and I would have kissed him if I weren’t a married woman.  I had a corroded battery that he fixed by 5:15pm.  You’re my hero Robert!

8:00pm-  Greyson let Charlotte stay up a little late.  I made it home just in time for a story.  I had 10 precious minutes with her the entire day.  It hurt my heart to have such a brief time, but I soaked up every second.

Thursday:

5:30am-  I hit the road.  I had to drive 3 hours to Charlotte.  I sucked down some coffee and snacked on some dry Cheerios.  I seriously wish I had eaten more.

8:30am-  Meeting #1

11:00am- Meeting #2 after maneuvering through the world’s most annoying parking deck.  Jen and I carrying photo equipment through SUV’s squeezed into compact car parking spots was quite comical.  We got to eat around 1:00pm as I tried to call my sister.  I knew she worked in the building across the street and I would have loved to hug her.

3:00pm-  Meeting #3

4:00pm-  I got back on the road only to sit in terrible traffic!  I called Jen to complain because I knew she too was sitting in her car on I-85.  We decided we were true Raleigh girls who seriously needed to get out of the  Queen City.

7:30pm-  I got another 10 minutes with my child.  ::sigh::

9:30pm- As if Jen and I hadn’t seen enough of each other.  I texted her this pic of me to get her opinion about my outfit.  Girls.

Friday:

8:00am-  I made it!  Poor Greyson had to take Charlotte to school because I forgot I left the car seat at work since I had to load the Jeep with equipment.  I was at a client meeting for a video shoot from 8:00am-11 ish.

Noon-  Friday Mexican Lunch with coworkers!  Ole!

4:00pm-  The office closed early and I had some time to make up with my girl.  Ice cream date!

6:00pm-  The babysitter came.  I had a hot date at our favorite French restaurant.  Oui!

Saturday-  

10:00am- You remember that party I effed up last week?  Yeah, we got to go this week.  Beth Anne threw an adorable and creative construction themed party with Bojangles biscuits as “Bricks and Stone.”  My baby ate the bacon outta that thang like a boss!

Some time in the afternoon:  The Tar Heels won!  They beat NC State after a bit of a losing streak.  The final play was epic and made ESPN’s top play of the day.

9:00pm-  After a day of house showings I stayed up until 1:30am making decorations for Charlotte’s party this coming Saturday.  I think I have a party planning problem.

Sunday:

Happy Birthday Mama!  It’s my mom’s birthday.  We already celebrated my family’s October birthdays a few weeks ago.  It is also the 2nd anniversary of my due date.  

Have a great week, everyone!

 

This was me today. It was the kind of Tuesday where I answered work emails from my phone as the doctor at Urgent Care told me to “Get over yourself and go home. You’re not going to work today. You’re running a fever.” So I sucked down soup and Airborne with no makeup, glasses, and tissues always in tow. Between naps I watched episodes of “Arrested Development” on Netflix. Laughing at the shenanigans of Gob, Buster, and Tobias made me forget about the body aches and runny nose.

This affliction came to be thanks to my daughter. My poor girl had a double ear infection with a virus on top. She had a fever from Thursday through Sunday. I worry she had it before that and we didn’t notice it.

When my fever from the virus started I felt terrible! This had me wondering. Was she starting to feel bad before we noticed it? Could her tantrums be because she didn’t feel well and couldn’t tell us? We can see when she is lethargic. Like any kid, she cries when she bumps her head or smashes her finger, but what about when she’s starting to feel ill? She can tell me when she has a boo-boo, but it’s not like she can say, “Mama, I feel like I might be coming down with something,” or “Daddy, I think my lymph nodes are swollen and my throat hurts.”

I Googled “When can a child tell you they are sick,” but I didn’t get the answers I was looking for. How old will she be when she can say, “I feel sick”? The mothering instinct has served me well so far, but I’m not gonna lie. It would be really nice for her to tell me when something is wrong.

How did you get your child to tell you something is wrong? When were they able to do that? I figure if I get some advance warning of her sickness, I may be able to keep myself healthier too.

You all know I freakin’ love the Olympics. I mean Greyson and I geek out over the games. We love them so much we may or may not have made a baby during the Opening Ceremonies of the Vancouver Winter Games. (Bow chicka bow wow!) Every two years I’m all like, “Aaaahhh! Team USA! I-must-watch-every-event-even-archery-and-curling!!!!!”

Some news I heard today made me even more proud of one of our Olympians. Kerri Walsh Jennings was pregnant when she and Misty May-Treanor won their third consecutive gold medal in beach volleyball. What!? How amazing is that?! She didn’t even know.

The London games marked the first time the US had more women athletes then men. 50, even 20 years ago this would have been unheard of. Now we have a pregnant mother of two winning gold medals. Just a couple of years ago, Natalie Portman accepted her Academy Award when she was pregnant. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Washington) had both of her children as a sitting member of Congress.

I know our politicians are fighting a lot of battles right now for women’s healthcare and the US falls behind other nations in maternity leave time. But, I have to believe more instances of working mothers making achievements like this will help.

So Kerri, congratulations on not just three gold medals, but three children. You are an inspiration for all American mothers. Thank you.

 

Today I rushed to get our abode looking pristine for the open house, and gather the large amount of stuff our little family seems to cart around. In my haste I committed a blogger cardinal sin. I left my camera at home. It got worse. I left my phone in the car during a photo worthy moment.

As cliche as it sounds, I’ll have to use my words to paint this picture for you.

During the open house we went to eat at a local pizza place where we could sit outside. The dog was with us. Afterward, Greyson wanted to sit in the car with Ginger so she could be in the cool air. Charlotte and I walked across the street to an ice cream shop.

My sweet girl wasn’t too squirmy as we waited in line behind two large families. I kissed her face still dotted with cheese, remnants of her lunch. I asked her what kind of ice cream she wanted. She smiled and pointed before leaning down to leave her tiny handprint on the frosty glass. I giggled, cherishing the time I have left to pick the flavor before she decides blue raspberry with gummy bears is a good idea.

She surprisingly stayed nearby and didn’t make her usual run for it when I had to put her down to pay. An ice cream cone in hand added to the awkward fumbling of carrying a diaper bag, my purse, and a toddler. But we made it to the bar stools along the edge of the shop, by the windows. The families took the stools so I sat Charlotte up on the bar and stood with her and our treat.

My babe and I shared sweet cream and cold kisses. I let her hold the cone in her chubby fingers. The scoop was about as big as her head, so I had to take bites from the other side to prevent ice cream catastrophe. She thought it was hilarious when I licked the same time she did. We bumped noses and licked fingers. The fast melting cone left deliciously sticky tracks down her arms. The teenagers behind the counter pumped some bumpin’ Top 40 over the speakers. This led to Charlotte bouncing to the music. Naturally, we had to dance a little. She laughed when I got silly and slurped up drips off her arm to the beat of the song.

A mother nearby looked at her messy face said, “You need to take a picture!”

Yeah. I wanted to. But, I could only take a mental picture. So I did. I locked in the image forever of my beautiful, growing baby with glowing blue eyes, light brown curls tied up in a pink bow, and feet dangling off the counter in toddler sneakers. Oh! And those cheeks! Still soft and round like a baby’s, smeared with melted ice cream, grinning up at me.

We polished off the cone and went to meet Daddy in the car. When we got there he said, “I watched you from the window and fell in love all over again. You two were having fun. You love your girl!” I reminded him how much I love him too.

It seemed I wasn’t the only one taking a mental picture. Remind me to forget the camera more often.

I want to be the kind of mother who is open to different interests of her children, even if they are far from interesting to me. But, at the same time, not over bearing with opinions should a child become involved in something I love too.

I want to be the kind of mother who sometimes makes pancakes for dinner and macaroni and cheese for breakfast.

I want to be the kind of mother who raises voracious readers.

I want to be the kind of mother who wants to run after my child when I drop her off at summer camp. Partly because I’ll miss her, and partly because I want to join in on all the fun I know she’ll have.

I want to be the kind of mother who drops everything to splash in puddles in the rain, even if it’s a weekday evening, and we have things to do.

I want to be the kind of mother who can make a birthday cake but, knows it’s okay to buy a really awesome one from the store.

I want to be the kind of mother who lets my kids lick the beaters if I bake the cake.

I want to be the kind of mother who sometimes lets the kids watch TV on trays in the living room.

I want to be the kind of mother who encourages fruits and vegetables, but understands a little high fructose corn syrup slipping in their diets is okay.

I want to be the kind of mother that one day a year, takes my kids out of school just to go to the zoo.

I want to be the kind of mother who never puts myself down in front of my children.

I want to be the kind of mother who saves artwork, but donates old toys.

I want to be the kind of mother who is best friends with my children’s father and remains on a united front with him. I want to love him wholly and without reservation.

I want to be the kind of mother who still listens to Top 40 and wears bikinis through my 30’s.

I want to be the kind of mother who expects effort, not perfection.

I want to be the kind of mother who volunteers her time to show effort and dedication.

I want to be the kind of mother who can say the only lie I ever told to my children was about Santa Claus.

I want to be the kind of mother who dedicates herself to her children without martyring herself or losing herself.

I want to be the kind of mother who prays with my children and husband.

I want to be the kind of mother who protects and defends, but understands when it’s time to let my children stand up for themselves.

Most of all, I want to be a kind mother.

What kind of mother do you want to be?