This is Halloween...

Or at least, fairly close to it. I'll have pics of Boo at my work once she gets here Friday. Should be a lot of fun... Fred will be bringing her to my work for lunch, where I can show her off and let people fawn all over her. Which she loves.

This last week has been rather harsh for our poor Boo. She had 4 teeth decide to come through pretty much all at once. Three of them are completely broken through, but there's one more that's pushing on a particularly sensitive nerve. She was up all day yesterday (got about an hour or so of a nap, though we tried several times to put her down for one), and finally crashed aroun 7:30 or so last night (we put her in her crib at 6:45 - she was so tired she had bright red eyes, was rubbing them every 3 minutes, but still refused to go to sleep until I got her a dose of children's pain med and some orajel)...

On the up-shot, she slept better last night - woke up for a quick change and new bottle at 11:30, and for about 3 minutes at 4:30, whereupon she found a bottle all on her own and decided she didn't want mama, just the bottle - and went back to sleep. Yay me.

I'm working on final touches to my costume, a German Ren dress. I'll post pics of that, too. I have 1 chemise - the itchy one - that will work for it, so I'm hoping that at some point prior to the new year, I will be able to make another 2-3 of them that will work for everything. One can hope.

Steve is wanting us in for more pro pics... Going to have to find time to do that soon.

~M

Over the Weekend...

Fred, Ronnie and Boo went to the Harvest Festival at the TV Parks and Recreation center where we normally go for belly dance lessons. I would have gone, but for this little fella here:

who decided to make an entrance Saturday evening, after having his mama checked into the hospital at 6 in the morning... Actually, technically speaking, Mama was in hard labor for a good 36 hours prior to Hayden Riley Anderson showing up. And a stubborn boy, too, since he ended up being taken by c-section (head was just a wee bit too big). So, he was born at 9:30pm, weighed exactly at 9 lb, and has feet almost 4 inches long at birth!

As I was mama's birthing coach, I was there for most all of it, except the last 1/2 hour, when she was wheeled into the OR for the c-section and I went home and checked on her the next day.

Welcome to the world, baby boy! You'll soon be terrorizing everyone. :-)

All I want for Christmas...

Well, ok - it's not ALL I want for christmas, but it would make for a great start. LOL...


There's a great synopsis at Powells about the book. I caught a few pages while riding on the bus a few days ago, and have been fascinated about it since... Go figure.

So, there you go - if you can get a hold of a copy, I'd like one.

That is all...

Getting ready for Halloween...

This year being Boo's first Halloween, we had contemplated several different costumes for her. I'd thought perhaps a ladybug, or maybe a little fairy - but Fred had the best idea: to be her accessory as a pirate, and turn her into a Scarlet Macaw:


We also made a hood for her, so that she would be warm that evening, since it's notoriously cool in late October... Daddy put it on, but it was a little more form-fitting than the costume:


Totally adorable!

~M

Quilting taken to new heights...

Compassionate Quilters is a volunteer group that makes lap quilts for the OHSU Palliative Care Program. Four times a year they gather on campus and create beautiful quilts for patients and their families, to assist them with the end-of-life transition. Quilts are also available for patients with difficult, chronic illnesses or challenging medical conditions.

To sustain its efforts, the group needs more help. Not strong at sewing? If you want to learn or improve, this could be the ticket. Help is also needed with ironing fabric, cutting pieces, and tying quilts.

Next time you clean out closets and shelves, keep in mind that Compassionate Quilters also needs donations of 100% cotton fabric and lightweight batting, size 50" x 38". Bring such finds to Laura Topp, OHSU Hospital, Unit 10A, Rm 10A93.

The next compassionate Quilters meeting is Saturday, November 1st, from 9am to 4pm, at OHSU Hospital, 14B20. Drop in anytime, and stay as long as you like. For more information, please contact Paula Huelskamp, at 503 494 8311 (ask for her).

OHSU is located on top of Marquam Hill, in Portland Oregon. Their address is:

3181 SW Sam Jackson Park Rd
Portland, OR 9739

If you would like to send contributions ot the Compassionate Quilters, add Laura Topp's mailcode, which is UHS8EO, to the address, just under the street address line.

Thanks!

~M

An update, and new pics of Boo

Got a care package from my sister and my mother last night – apparently they tried to drop it off Saturday while we were at the Greek Festival (no one was there to take it), so they tried again on Monday, and thankfully J, our fearless babysitter was there to take it. LOL. Tried to put some pink cowgirl boot slippers on Boo, and she wanted none of it, thankyouverymuch – she’s not much on footgear right now, though I think I’m going to have to put her in shoes soon, if only to get her to move toward walking – keeps curling toes to try and hold on, and it just un-balances her more. So, if I get a pair of shoes on her that stay on, she should be going no problem. She is currently taking 1-4 steps at a time while holding onto something, then heading back down onto hands and knees and going like gangbusters after the cat. Poor cat. He isn’t sure what to make of this new-and-improved, mobile “kitten”. Most times he’s able to skitter away, but there have been a few times where he’s not quite fast enough. He bats at her gently (no claws) when she gets too intrusive, and she normally will simply go a different direction. She’s imitating him, now, which also confuses him. LOL.

She is still having night terrors some nights, and others it’s fine. Have no clue, other than perhaps she’s so overly stimulated that her brain refuses to shut off and the dreams are very real – difficult to deal with at her age because she can’t do anything but howl and scream without explanation. Was up until almost 9 last night trying desperately to keep awake and not go back to sleep… Finally conked out and didn’t wake up until 5:45 this morning, soaking wet and grinning. She’s so perky and happy in the morning, it’s disgusting. Changed, fed, and popped back into her crib with a “ok, let mommy go back to sleep for a little while – you be quiet and play”, and she did. She is amazingly smart, I have to say. Kind of a blessing, and at the same time, kind of a curse. LOL.

Have found recently that she likes greek food. *chuckle* We went to the festival, and she was insisting that I give her whatever I was eating. So, I popped a bit of pita bread into her mouth, and she munched on that… then she wanted some more, and more, and more… I ended up giving her small bites of pita, a little bit of ground lamb, and a little bit of chewed up chicken, whatever I was eating, basically. She was in her sling and attached to my front, so it looked like I had a little baby bird on my front. Whenever the hand went anywhere near her face, she’d open her mouth “Ahhh!” and beg for food. VERY funny. Pita has become the new go-to snack food for her. Good for her gums to work against without being horribly hard, very saliva-soluble, and good for her to boot. Can’t beat it. And she can feed herself – mostly… She’s getting the pincer down, which is awesome.

Found out last night that she likes broccoli, too. Had broccoli, carrots and cheese combo, and she mowed down on that for a good 15 minutes. Definitely loves her veggies.

The latest and all that...

So, the test results came back from the 10 (yes TEN) vials of blood that were taken from me on Thursday, and the 24 hr urine collection.

Overall, I'm not in BAD shape, but I'm definitely on the way there. My B12 is low, as is my vitamin D, E, and calcium. So, it's going to be counter-acted with lots and LOTS of supplements, and hopefully in a few weeks I'll be feeling better.

I'm going to be getting a liquid B12 supplement, as well as a once-per-week 50K dose of Vitamin D, a once-per-day dose of Vitamin E, and a calcium with vitamin D daily supplement.

I'm really hoping that, with the increased B12 and D/E vitamins in my system, I'll finally start to feel better, and less like the walking dead.

On the much cooler side, Boo is standing on her own now, for about 10-12 seconds at a time. Since she's now figured out she can do it on her own, she wants nothing to do with anyone "helping" her stand. She'll do it herself, thankyouverymuch... She hasn't moved to the actual walking stage, but I'm figuring in another week or so, she'll be off and running.

Yesterday she had her first "official" run in the baby bucket(tm) swings at the park... LOVES them, and wants to go again and again. Not so sure on the slides, but loves the swings. Giggled through the whole experience, and wanted more - Fred video-taped the whole thing with his camera phone. Slept through from around 6:30pm to 4:30am this morning. Tuckered right out.

I'm starting bellydance lessons again as of this Thursday. I'm so excited! It'll be nice to be able to boogie down and actually get good again - too much belly, not enough dance!

The stitch-and-bitches have been going pretty well so far. Taught how to do a simple chemise yesterday, and both S and Ronnie made their own. I walked them through patterning and cutting it out, and as it got further in, I let them go further on their own until they finished it on their own. Really nifty. We have plans already for the next dress, a viking under-dress, also known as a 10-gore-dress. All the rage at your local Allthyng. If anyone wants a copy of the patterns, I'll post up information on them under the "projects" part of my Myspace info.

~M

My personal opinion on the whole thing...

A long time ago, I learned that discussing politics and religion in the office were definitive no-noes. I started my blog with that same general rule. It's just not something I normally blog about unless I can lock the entry. My personal beliefs are just that - personal. You don't necessarily have to agree with me, and I don't have to agree with you, and that's ok. What's not ok is attacking someone when their beliefs don't lie on the same side of the line as yours.

I don't see a spirited debate, where each side has valid, clear points as attacking. That's debating, and my husband and I do that all the time (we love playing devil's advocate, with the understanding that it really is just playing, and is not anything personal). However, when it starts to go downhill into name-calling, mud-slinging and general nastiness, that's when it is attacking - and that's not right. Each individual has the right to have their own opinion, no matter what it is. It could be that they feel that penguins really *do* enjoy having their feathers dyed purple and spiked... Whatever. I don't care. It's your opinion on a subject, and that's ok. As long as you're ok with me not necessarily agreeing with it (personally, unless one can translate what a penguin is squawking about, it's probably just not a good idea to dye feathers or spike them).

Granted, political and religious opinions drive a LITTLE more emotion than the example above. Why? Because, deep-down, we feel much more passionate about it. Religiously speaking, it's my beliefs that are telling me what is right and wrong, and how best to go about proving that to others. Politically speaking, it's those who would support my beliefs that I will support - because without the political clout, my beliefs might lose their ground and get dug under by those who don't want my beliefs to see the light of day.

Politically- and religiously-speaking, however, things are not black and white (no pun intended regarding the current presidential race). They are, in fact, several (hundred) shades of gray. Humans just aren't simple. Our lives aren't simple, our beliefs aren't simple, and so our politics are not going to be simple - no matter how much we hope and/or pray for it.

So far, I've seen a lot of smear campaigning going on - and oddly enough, it's (mostly) NOT directly from the campaign headquarters of the opposing forces. Instead there's LOTS of nasty statements going back and forth from constituants about how one side should be doing one thing, and the other should be doing this and that, and because they aren't doing it, they're obviously either "Anti-American", or "Anti-Global"...

"Anti-War" means that the person doesn't appreciate what our country has gone through to get to where we are now, and what we're doing to help those nations across the globe... "Pro-War" means we're using our huge political and military might to bully those outside the US into a democratic government, forcing those same countries to put aside thousands of years of their own history to suddenly change gears and follow us, because we're at the forefront of national perfection.

If you're a Republican, you're expected to support the war, be pro-life, possibly even move toward faith healing (if you support Palin), teach and support total abstinance without the benefit of any sex education (because that would be bad), support higher taxes for private citizens but support tax loops for high profile companies and rich folk.

If you're a Democrat, you're expected to be against the war, be pro-choice, possibly move toward herbal healing (even possibly some alternative religions thrown in for good measure), teach all kinds of sex education and support gay rights (because being anything but would be bad), support low (if any) taxes, and boo down large corporations, demanding that they and the rich folk give a large cut of their wealth to the little people because everyone deserves a cut.

Unfortunately, it seems that those of us who realize that the world is not only round, but made of about ten BILLION shades of gray (one for every 20 people or so), are left out in the cold. We aren't exactly Republican, but we aren't exactly Democrat. We don't ride the fence on ANY of our beliefs - it's just that our beliefs tend to go 50% on one side, and 50% on the other (ok, so some people are more on one side than the other, but there you are).

My own personal beliefs? Well, I'll tell you only this once. I am not interested in being personally attacked, and I don't feel the need to support my own beliefs because you think yours are better.

I believe that our troups are in a war that they have no choice but to be in. They have signed up voluntarily, given an oath to follow through with all orders given by their superior officers, and have given up their own freedom because they felt it necessary to do so. I did not support the war when we went over there while Saddam was in power the first time. I did not support the war when we went over again. Both times, however, I understood that our troups had no choice in the matter, and both times I hoped and prayed to any diety that would listen, to bring them home safe to their families.

I believe that, regardless of what (and why) we went over there for in the first place, we don't belong there now. Why? Because their government has asked us to leave. We were requested to be there, now we have been requested to leave. End of story. Very few things can be simplified, but this point can be. We have been requested to leave - their government feels they are now able to take care of things themselves. We should respect their wishes and leave, whether we feel it's the right thing or not.

I believe that we are not the watchdogs of the world, we are not the police force of the world. Honestly, until we get paid back the money that we're owed from France, Germany, Isreal and any other country out there who owes us money from when we lent it to them YEARS ago - with interest - we don't need to be running to save anyone. Our countries deficit is badly in need of that money. We are no longer able to look within our country to make that deficit go away. It must come from outside - and if the United Nations wants us to be the world protectors and/or police force, we should get paid for it - just like every other police force gets paid.

I believe that each family should be responsible for their own reproductive beliefs. That being said - I also believe that each child should get sex education, and be told the truth about how their bodies work. I believe that abstinance should be included and stated to always be the best alternative - but I know, having been a teen at one point in my life, that realistically speaking, sex will happen. Better that it happen safely.

I believe that it doesn't (and should NEVER) matter what sexual orientation someone is. I don't care about which sex you like - only if you can do the job that I request of you, or if you can pay your rent on time if I'm renting to you. Other than that, it doesn't matter to me.

I believe that each person has the right (NOT the privilage) to bear arms. And if they commit a serious crime, they forfeit that right. As part of that right, each person should be given proper and FULL instruction on gun safety and at least 12 weeks of practices, and should qualify for a license every few years, with a practicum exam to show that they still understand and practice good safety.

Same thing goes for driving. It's a right, not a privilage, and people should continually qualify for it - and if they commit a serious crime, they forfeit that right. A car, given the right circumstances, can be just as deadly as a gun - and people should respect that.

As for the have's vs the have not's - yeah, I think there should be a balance between them - there has been a widening gap between them, and we no longer have a "middle class" anymore. We have the working poor, the very poor, the very rich, and the uber-rich. My parents used to be middle class... Now, they'd be considered the working poor. And the separation between the working poor and the very rich is getting larger by the day.

As for how, well, that's another entry for another day. So, there it is. That's where I stand.

~M

New Pics of Boo!

Again?!

What!? They're cute! And addicting... LOL

Save the Dragons!!!

Please click on each of my dragon's view page! They will die otherwise. I need lots of views from different computers to make sure they don't die - two of them only have about 2-3 hours left, and if they don't hatch, they will...

Please help!

~M

Save us!!!

New rule! Diaper covers at bedtime!!

So, our little darling Boo has become an escape artist when it comes to her diapers. Apparently, she's not always willing to wake us up when her diaper gets dirty, so she's decided in the past few days to remove the offending item completely.

This would be fine but for two items. Item 1: The diaper in question last night was poopy. Item 2: The baby in question then slept for 2 hours with it, and sleep-crawls...

So, at 1:45 this morning Fred went in to feed and change her... And let out a "Holy Christ!"... I knew this couldn't be good, so I got out of bed to help, and found him vigorously scrubbing her down with baby wipes.

"She's covered in dried crap! Dammit! Looks like she's been out of her diaper a good 2 hours."

I looked in her crib and found the offending item, squished flat by a rambunctious baby butt and looking rather forlorne in the midst of the crib. It was in the middle of an ocean of pee, which had apparently been provided post-removal...

"Right," I said. "I'll take care of the crib, you take care of the baby."

"Grunt," came the non-committal reply, along with several epithets as he attempted to hold a now-happy, wiggly baby (munching on her bottle while kicking legs in apparent appreciation for all of daddy's hard work) in place whilst still scrubbing her down. There was some muttering of hoses at one point...

I got the crib stripped of sopping bedclothes, and after removing sodden blankies, sheets and mattress pads, had the crib re-made with a new sheet and blankets.

Fred went to lay her down and I stopped him mid-lay: "No - new rule... Diaper cover before we lay her down to sleep."

"It won't stop her," Fred said, sleepy disguist and annoyance in his voice.

"No - but it will slow her down enough to let us get there first - I hope..."

A tired nod of acceptance, and I trundled her into a diaper cover.

We turned on her turtle (it's a music box with a light show and wiggly, dancing fishes in the belly), laid her down, turned off the light, and laid back in bed with a thankful sigh that at least she hadn't found out about finger painting...

~M

Day 3 of the crankypants march...

So, Boo (aka Crankypants), is working on day 3 without a nap. Oh - I beg your pardon... She had a 20 minute nap on Monday just prior to me coming home, and a 20 minute nap yesterday...

On top of this, she has a cold, is teething in her 2nd tooth, and still isn't sleeping through the night... Apparently, the combination of the teething, the cold, and the new babysitter has caused her to convince herself that she doesn't *need* a nap - and won't take one... And Jess is very soft-hearted. Boo cries and she will pick her up to snuggle her - which is fine with Boo, but does mean that Jess leaves looking like she was pulled through a knot-hole backwards by the end of the day. Poor girl.

I finally had to tell her that if Boo wasn't hungry, and wasn't dirty, then it was ok to let her cry for a while in her crib while Jess took a break. It wasn't going to hurt Boo at all... She said she was going to put her in her crib and try a nap again about 20 mins ago... We'll see how that goes.

On to other updates...

Meanwhile, my dragons need daily clickings... So, if you're visiting on a daily basis, please click on my eggs and baby dragon to help them grow up. Yay for baby dragons!

My thyroid thing is apparently doing better. I'm still tired, but not quite so exhausted, so apparently my iron level is better. My thyroid count is down from where we started, so that's good too. My dr is going to continue to watch it and I'll be tested again in 3 months to see where we are. If it doesn't move from where it is currently, she'll up the doseage.

My computer died a horrible death this last weekend... The processor fan had rattled it's last breath about a month ago, and I (in my obliviousness) hadn't noticed... The processor itself is completely fried, so I now have to look into getting another computer. We'll pull what guts we can save from mine, and get rid of the rest of it. It's yet another expense that I wasn't expecting. I'd say that I was underwhelmed with the prospect, but that would imply that somehow, I'd been whelmed in the first place. *sigh* On the other hand, there's a possibility that I get to have a larger hard drive, so there's that...

Haven't heard back on the job over in the other office. I'd really like to get it, but so far it's been silent. I'm not sure how I feel about that, other than desperate to get out of the call center. I've gotten tired of this office's type of politics and cliques. I'm so done with kindergarten drama...

I'm trying to get into bellydance classes again... Again, an expense that I could most likely do without - but on the other hand, it's not as though I'm splurging on that hot lamborghini or the 4-story house in Malibu. So, I suppose one splurge isn't bad - besides, I can justify it by saying it's exersize, which will help me... LOL.

Other than that, not much is going on in my life...

~M

Here there be Dragonses... hopefully...

http://dragcave.net/incubators/incubator_merripan.png

Click on them! Click them, darn it! You know you want to! Actually, in order for them to hatch, you need to click on them. The more you click, the healthier they are, and the better chance they have of hatching.

~M

Scattergories meme

It's harder than it looks! Copy and paste into a new email. When you are done, send it on, including to the person who sent it to you. RULES: Use the 1st letter of your name to answer each of the following...they have to be real places, names, things...nothing made up! Before you answer them, add 1 question to the list, then answer them all.

Try to use different answers if the person in front of you had the same 1st initial. You CANNOT use your name for the boy/girl name question.

Your name? Merripan

4 letter word: More
Vehicle: Mustang
TV Show: Meerkat Manor
City: Mukilteo
Boy Name: Mark
Girl Name: Maria
Drink: Margarita
Occupation: Mandoline Player
Song: Morphine
Something you wear: Mask
Food: Melon
Something found in a bathroom: Massager
country: Madegascar

Update on my brother...

So, Friday afternoon the doctors put in a tube to clear out the blood and fluid in my brother's left lung. 650l later, he was cleared of all fluids in that area, and the tube was left in over the weekend to make sure everything was functioning properly. X-Rays were taken twice per day to make sure nothing shifted, and he was kept relatively sedated through the weekend.

Monday they removed the tube, stitched up the openings, and let him rest without poking and prodding him. The nurse reported he was in fairly good spirits, but resting practically constantly - which I don't blame him for.

Mom reported Tuesday that they had discharged him to a friend's house, where he is to rest for the next 3-4 weeks with an upper chest brace. After that, they'll re-evaluate him for physical therapy and rehab, to get him back up on his feet properly. Nothing physical prior to that, as there are floater chips from his spine that have yet to be re-attached, and 9 ribs that need healed.

So, the upshot is that he's out of the hospital and doing much better, and for that I'm profoundly thankful.

~M

Obession - it's not just a smell...

OK - so I now have an obsession that is a little too close to bordering on insanity - but I can't help it. They're so cute!

~M

Me-Me... One Word...

Only one word
_____ TYPE ONLY 1 WORD. IT'S HARDER THEN YOU THINK!!!

1. Where is your cell phone? Desk
2. Your significant other? Fred
3. Your hair? Red
4. Your mother? Washington
5. Your father? Passed
6. Your favorite thing? Baby
7. Your dream last night? ??
8. Your favorite drink? butterschnapps
9. Your dream/goal? book
10. The room you're in? cube
11. Your fear? drowning
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? married
13. Where were you last night? In bed
14. What you're not? skinny
15. Muffins? raspberry
16. One of your wish list items? farberware
17. Where you grew up ? seattle
18. The last thing you did? breathed
19. What are you wearing? clothing
20. Your TV? large
21. Your pet? cat
22. Your computer? on
23.Your life? good
24. Your mood? ok
25. Missing someone? Dad
26. Your car? Tri-met
27. Something you're not wearing? necklace
28. Favorite Store? fabric
29. Your summer? 1974
30. Your favorite color? blue
31. When is the last time you laughed? today
32. Last time you cried? Tuesday
33. Who will/would re-post this? anyone

Here's what you're supposed to do...and please don't spoil the fun... hit 'forward,' delete my answers, type in your answers and send it to a bunch of people - including me.

On a lighter note...

Boo decided that she needed to be a little more mobile than she had been... So she's taken things into her own hands... er, feet... er, whatever.

She did this all on her own, and repeated the action over and over again yesterday until her little legs got tired and she got frustrated.

~M

Update on Irony...

Well, it's looking better than we expected. Kelly is due to be out of ICU in the next few days. His spleen is punctured, but there doesn't seem to be as big an internal bleeding issue as first expected.

The back breakage was actually 3 spurs off the side of his spine, where the ribs connect - this is better than actual cracked or broken vertebraes, since it doesn't actually affect the spinal chord. There are still 9 cracked or broken ribs, but they all look pretty good, too.

All in all, he's in good spirits. I called today at 10 on my first break, and spoke with both he and Mom. Doc seems to be pretty upbeat about the whole situation, so that's good.

I'm still undecided about whether I should forgo the event, drop off Fred and go up to see the family. Going to talk with Fred about it tonight and see what he says...

~M