Sunday.
10:00am.
I drop the monkey off at my parents’ house for some MUCH-NEEDED me-time. Josh has been away for the weekend, and I’m TIRED OUT from all this single parenting (how do you single parents out there do it? tell me!). So, I gratefully drop the monkey off and head to Starbucks.
My favourite person in the world is there: a random pregnant woman (RPW) strolling her sleeping daughter. We got to chatting as we waited for our drinks:
RPW: So when are you due?
Me: September 30th.
RPW: I’m due a month later.
Me: Oh! oh! I was afraid to say anything, I mean you look pregnant, but you never know….
RPW: I know, sometimes you can’t tell.
Me: Me, you can totally tell — I’m huge!
RPW: Yeah, but you look great!
Me: THANK YOU!!! So do you! Wow! So, what’s your drink? A decaf something? CHAI TEA… decaf something…?
RPW: Nope, I go for the fully caffeinated latte. Can’t help myself. I’m so much more laid back this second pregnancy. Drinking coffee, eating sushi!
Me: Yeah, I know, me, too… heh…. chai tea…. ahem…. Oh, here it is! Great talking to you. See you! Enjoy!
RPW: You too! Bye!
I LOVE her.
11:00am
Off to the grocery store. I forgot what a workout walking up and down the aisles can be. Whoo. I’m, like, sweating. It’s hot in here, I think. Must. Get. Out. Of. Here.
Must remember to go to organic store for raisins and apricots….
12:00pm
Phew. Home. Oh, carp, there’s no room in my fridge for all these groceries. Now, I have to clean out the whole fridge.
It’s amazing how much (very) old stuff can accumulate in the back of one’s fridge. I must be nesting. I’m now officially obsessed with cleaning my fridge.
1:00pm
Off to pick up the monkey and bring her home for her nap (she refuses to nap at it’sgrandma’s house).
1:15pm
Just working away on the blogs, The Business, emailing.
Oh no, the monkey’s calling me — at the BEGINNING of her naptime. Not a good sign.
“Mommy! Mommy! Uppago! Uppago! DOOOORRRRAAA!”
Maybe she’s not saying “mommy,” though. Maybe she’s saying “EdaMAME! EdaMAME!” We did just discover that she loves edamame…. Yeah, must be “edamame.”
Ladeedadada, hohum, just sittin’ here.
Will give her edamame later.
2:00pm
She’s REFUSING to nap. And, I have to PEE. Washroom’s upstairs, though. CAN’T go upstairs: she’ll see me! And, then I’m DOOMED!
You know, alone time is really very fine sometimes. Everyone needs it. Problem is, when it’s gone you miss it BEYOND…….
Ugh. This sucks. Usually she’s, like, the best sleeper. 3-hour naps in the afternoon. But, for some reason, she’s not having it this aft. Know how I know? Because it smells. It smells bad. That cheaty little monkey freaking SPAT UP. (This NEVER happens.) She spat up blueberry, and it’s on her sheets! Fab.
I love changing crib sheets when preggers — best feeling EVAH.
2:20pm
She’s in bed with me. I can’t bear to do anything else with her. Maybe she’ll nap. She NEEDS to nap. And, I need to put my swelling aching legs up for a while.
3:00pm
This freaking SUCKS!!!!! I’m getting jumped on, pinched, scratched, screeched at in ear, ridden on, slapped in the face with books, headbutted, choked, kicked in the belly… and…. and… and… and….
4:00pm
I’ve tried everything now to get her to rest, or to just plain be quiet (or, “be kilet,” as she puts it). Reading. TV. Threats. Bribes. Nothing. She’s a total NIGHTMARE, and I’m frustrated BEYOND.
I think I’ll try to take her for a walk. Clear my own head for a while. But, I can’t move. I’m, like, numb. Tortured. Defeated. Exhausted. Even quite MORNING SICK! Blehhhh!
I’m not doing well. I NEED her afternoon nap. Especially today. I think I might start crying….
AND, my mom’s having us over for turkey and salad and steamed vegetables (‘cuz my dad and my teeny-tiny mom are on Atkins) and all I want is pizza and birthday cake heavy on the icing you know that sweet white icing that melts in your mouth…. WAHHHHHHH!
8:00pm
Dinner with the monkey was a nightmare. My mom and I were giddy with giggles — it was THAT insane. The monkey WOULD NOT STOP BABBLING. And, in between gibberphrases, she’d screech at the top of her lungs. And, while she was intermittently babbling and screeching, she was dancing around with her newborn cousin’s washcloth on her head…. My poor dad had to go outside for relief….
I seemed to have spontaneously developed a head-jerking twitch….
My mom was brave enough to bathe the monkey, who SCREAMED in defiance when bathtime was over, and pretty much screamed all the way home….
I took a long shower after I put the reluctant monkey to bed. And, now, she sleeps. The world is quiet.
I’m winding down.
But, I’m still in that strange state between crying and laughing…. Can’t WAIT to see what tomorrow brings…heh. (There’s that TWITCH again!) At least Josh-O will be here to help….
9:30pm
I want cake.
Want gossip? Check it — at Cheaty’s Celebrity Gossip!
Fenicle said, June 25th, 2007 at 12:41 am
You need a whole cake!!!!!!!
How cute about your RPW friend
Renee said, June 25th, 2007 at 12:42 am
EAT CAKE & a bunch of carbs too…you deserve it sweety. What did your mom give her? Go to bed now to rest up for tomorrow.
Rebecca said, June 25th, 2007 at 8:46 am
Have some cake. It’s good for the baby. Mmm, cake.
Seriously, I have a chocolate beet cake recipe (and no, you don’t notice the beets) that I could send you if you want a healthy one – I’ve made it with a mix of whole wheat flour AND it’s crazy high in iron! So healthy!
Jennie said, June 25th, 2007 at 9:22 am
You are so funny! I know EXACTLY which kind of icing you mean. Yummmmmmmm…
Zoey Castelino said, June 25th, 2007 at 9:39 am
You had me at “must eat cake”.
allie said, June 25th, 2007 at 10:50 am
OMG…you crack me up!!
When all else fails…eat cake! yummers!
Lisa said, June 25th, 2007 at 11:07 am
OMG what a bad day. I’m sorry. Those no-nap days are the WORST.
Today’s monday though, and don’t you get time alone on Mondays? I say, go have cake!
LoriD said, June 25th, 2007 at 11:37 am
I want some cake too… come on over and I’ll make you one! It seems they nap least when you need it the most. Hope Monday is a little better. Shhh.. sleep Monkey, sleep.
LAVENDULA said, June 25th, 2007 at 12:06 pm
sorry monkey was such a stinker today.oh i hate that laughing crying feeling.i wish i could just do one or other.so how was the cake?oh stinkerbell just called me into bathroom and told me she made a carrot(poop)hahaha
lauraldawn said, June 25th, 2007 at 12:59 pm
I constantly crave cake (and I’m not preggers). Yum. I had some last night. And friday night. Don’t worry – I had a piece for you
So, Matt sleeps with me all the time (I know, bad habit), but here’s what works for me. If I roll over and pretend I’m asleep he sometimes follows suit. Maybe worth a try.
erika said, June 25th, 2007 at 1:51 pm
That’s basically what a bad day of single parenting is like. =) But the good days are just as rewarding as the bad ones are tear-provoking. I guess I just get up every morning cause I gotta–just like you! And I’ve never had someone there to help me (except my mom, which is not really the same), so I don’t know any different. I kinda wonder some days if a guy came along and became part of my life if it would annoy me at first that he was cramping mine and punkin’s style.
The no nap is the worst. Even if I have nothing to do or I’m not especially tired myself, it just kills me that he won’t do what he’s supposed to do! And he won’t sleep at grandma’s either. And the co-sleeping thing is just a game now. ARGH!
erika said, June 25th, 2007 at 1:52 pm
p.s. The frosting makes or breaks the cake for me. Won’t touch it if it’s that cool-whip type stuff. Gotta be buttercream. MMMMM. Fat.
AndreAnna said, June 25th, 2007 at 2:37 pm
My husband went away for a month when my baby was 4 months old and I swore I wanted to track down every single parent and give them 5 minutes to take a shower.
Those days are hard, and even harder without a nap. Glad you got through it.
Do they have No Pudge brownies by you? It’s a boxed brownie mix you make with FF yogurt and I swear, they taste just like the regular. And I will not eat crappy FF food. I use the Stonyfield farms Chocolate Underground to make it (never use plain…eck), and it gets that cake craving with no fat.
jenn said, June 25th, 2007 at 3:09 pm
wow, that sounds like a day.
I have them with only one and not being pregnant, can’t imagine how much harder it would be with all the preggo stuff going on.
Good luck, I hope you find the perfect cake to take care of that craving.
Kristen said, June 25th, 2007 at 3:25 pm
O my goodness, laughing and almost crying with you, I can so relate! They really have to nap, when my Baby girl doesn’t nap (she is almost 2)my whole day is out of balance( and it is usually because she needs a diaper change, lol)
My friend Shay and I ate a ton of yummy icing when preggo with 4(her) and 3(me)and that chip mix with doritos and cheetos and pretzels? and drank a lot of full strength coffee, lol. and got fat.
Hope your week is wonderful:)
jasmine said, June 25th, 2007 at 4:03 pm
Good gawd Haley-O… that was exhausting to READ let alone live, I don’t know how you’re not completely crazy after that. Wait a minute….
Tug said, June 25th, 2007 at 4:16 pm
EAT CAKE. It won’t hurt, really.
Is the Monkey napping today?
you’ve been tagged my friend……
Lara said, June 25th, 2007 at 6:30 pm
I heart cake. Send some this way!!
Life sounds exhausting for you. Take it easy as much as you can – and treat yourself every now and then… or all the time.
CS said, June 25th, 2007 at 6:42 pm
Oh my God, I so remember days like that when pregnant. Much worse with a second child becaus eof the demands of the first. And I was also more laid back with the second about what I ate and drank, and later, about parenting.
Karen said, June 25th, 2007 at 10:10 pm
Sorry you had such a toddler-diva day! I guess that was one of the benefits of having my kids a bit further apart, at least my boy was at school half-days and then at daycare while I was working fulltime when I was pregnant. I actually kept him in daycare until the baby was 9 months old to make it manageable!
Having a taste of it every time DH goes away on business, I honestly don’t know how single parents manage it.
Teena said, June 25th, 2007 at 10:41 pm
No offense but … how come every third woman I see these days is pregant?! Is it something in the water?!
blondeblogger said, June 26th, 2007 at 1:08 am
“I want cake” ROFL!!!! I remember those days of so looking forward to a nap only to have one of my kids stay up….so awful!
I hope you get some good sleep tonight…and some cake!
Di said, June 26th, 2007 at 6:58 am
I love RPW! When you are pregnant, MOST other pregnant women know just what to say, “You look great!!!” even if you look like hell. I was much more relaxed about all the “rules” in the second pregnancy and as much as we love my Haley, Rory is the mellower of the two. With Rory I used the polling plan of pregnancy rules. My doc said no Advil, my friend’s said Advil was fine up until the last month. Went with her doc. Mine said no alcohol, hers said a glass of wine a day is fine. Immediately went to Williams Sonoma and found the biggest-ass glass I could and stuck to that!
lisa b said, June 26th, 2007 at 9:11 am
I’d eat the cake.
The whole cake.