Random sputterings

-Is anyone else ever amused/puzzled/irritated by people who have conversational diarrhea? You know who I mean....the people who relentlessly talk to you about any and every topic despite your continued body language that gives no indication you're listening. The people you have to creatively concoct an excuse to escape from talking to....the ones who talk and talk just to fill the space.... I work with one of those people. Most days I just tune it out.....today it got on my nerves and those of another victim of her verbal sword.
-One of the surgeons I work with has done 4,996 of the exact same case in a row. No different cases stuck in between.....that many times....the exact same case. We were hoping he'd retire when he hit 5000 but it doesn't look like that's gonna happen. Did I mention that being the RN in his cases is like submitting to slow brain death? There's no variation in the progression of events...hardly anything for me to do...can't listen to any music in the room....and he's slower than molasses. It takes from 8am to 10pm for him to finish 3 cases.
-I work 130pm-10pm.....it really annoys me when they give me my dinner break @ 430. Then I'm always starving at 10 when I leave.
-I think I really want to go back to school for my master's to be a nurse practitioner but that seems like such a huge mountain. Do I have the motivation to do it? And then I probably should take the GRE....oy vey....and it would mean having to do school while still working.... I have the utmost respect for the female residents I work with who are pregnant. I don't think I'd be able to handle that.
-There is nothing more splendid than going to bed between freshly laundered sheets.

A Bum weekend

Chloe and I were supposed to go to Gramma and Grampa's for the weekend....but we got 1/3 of the way there and oil light kept coming on in the car so we figured we'd better turn around. Aaron met up with us and we left the saab at the shop. Then Chloe and I were stuck in the house all weekend without a car while Aaron worked. Guess it wasn't so bad anyway since we got MORE snow. This weather is really getting me down....and I'm trying so hard to stay cheerful! Spent the weekend in our PJs... (well except for meeting this morning) and accomplished very little. We did nap together! I can't wait for Mum and Ben to come out next month for a whole week.....(please let the weather and seat availability on the plane cooperate!)

On another note....any ideas on how to get Chloe to sleep all night? Lately it's been 2 times a night she wakes up and expects to nurse. And here I was hoping I could wean her soon?! At least the 2nd time sometimes coincides with my alarm about to go off at 515 anyway. But weekend nights it sure would be nice to sleep!

Loving the arctic

I just wanna say how much I abhor winter.....if I haven't mentioned that to any of you before. Of course the week we come back from our trip to warm sunny Puerto Rico is the coldest it's been all winter....why couldn't this cold have come LAST week while we were in the warm sunshine?! I know I still need to post about our trip and put some pictures up but this week has been hectic with me settling in to my new job....monday through friday early mornings = UGG. But we've survived. Chloe and I have also had a lovely head cold this week....Aaron narrowly escaped with only a day of a sore throat.
Today Aaron says he and Chloe were at the kitchen table eating lunch and it had started snowing outside. She made a sound that he says sounded like "look" and was pointing out the window to show him it had started snowing. Folks...I think we have a genius in the household!! :) And I'm only slightly biased. I can't believe that on Monday she will be NINE months old!! How come the 9 months of pregnancy didn't go this fast?! This week her new trick is pulling up on everything that's low enough for her to reach with no fear whatsoever of falling down. I'm somewhat afraid she's going to be walking before we blow out the candle on her birthday cake.
I promise to get a Puerto Rico post up this weekend.....I only took 350 pictures....so it should only take a few minutes to sort through and pick out the good ones!
Thank goodness for Starbucks!

midwest fog

The glorious fog....

Chloe having fun with her reflection in the window @ Gramma's

Andrew....doing lots of standing, but no walking yet!

Can I have that?!

Love this picture!!! Andrew is FURIOUS....Keitan is doing his fake cutesy grin which beautifully showcases his dimples.

I told him to go put on his pajamas and he came back in swimtrunks....which he loves because "they have underwear built in so you don't have to put any on!"

So Wednesday morning Chloe and I drove the 3 hours down to Kurt & Melissa's (well I did all the driving)....and apparently the west to east current that usually blows across the US has been sleeping this week or something. The fog on the drive down was WRETCHED.....visibility was only about 2/10ths of a mile....looked like you were driving on the edge of a cliff because it was a wall of white next to you. Anyway.....we finally made it safely. Can't say the same for Gramma and Grampa Colson who usually babysit Keitan and Andrew Wednesday mornings...they ended up in the ditch in the fog....but they're ok! Chloe and I hung out with Keitan and Andrew Wed eve so Kurt and Missy could go out to dinner for their 10 year anniversary (Congrats!)....had a blast. 3 kids isn't all that bad to manage.....especially when one's already asleep by the time the parents leave. :) Then Thursday after lunch Chloe and I drove the 3 hours over to Grampa and Gramma Starlings.....and the fog was still wretched and visibility was still horribly limited. At least it's all highway with wellmarked lanes. Spent the night there....did some shopping with Gramma....got 3 Scrabble games in. We were planning to stay until this afternoon....but decided to come home last night since more bad weather was supposed to hit today (so far nothing's happened).....and the fog last night was STILL wretched. So needless to say I'm sick of driving in the fog.....still have a headache from it! When we go down to Chad & Jill's for New Year's Eve...Aaron is definitely driving whether it's foggy or not!


And tomorrow starts my horrid week at work....so there may not be any posting here for a while. I work Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday.....all 12 hour night shifts. Gotta love the holidays! That's all 72 hours in 1 week instead of 2.....and no I didn't do it to myself....the schedulers did. But Chloe should have fun....Nana's coming to visit all week so I can sleep and work! :)

winter cold

Well Chloe and I have gotten our first winter cold out of the way....wonder how long it'll be until the next one strikes. It's been fun trying to keep the snot wiped off....any time you try to wipe her nose you'd think someone was trying to brand her by the fit she throws!

We've all 3 been seriously contemplating why on earth we thought this would be a fun place to live when we don't really enjoy winter much at all. (Well I spose Chloe isn't quite old enough to contemplate, but it sounds good) It doesn't help that I keep checking the weather back home and see that it's a good 20 degrees warmer there every day. UGH. Good thing we have a tropical trip coming up in just a month. Chloe does NOT like to be bundled up to go out in the cold since it drastically limits her spastic/hyper movement. So we don't go out much which saves money I guess but gives Mum and Dad serious cabin fever!

Last night in meeting was interesting.....sometimes I wonder if it's even worth it to go without Aaron....but then I quickly squash that thought. I don't know if there was extra sugar in her sweet potatoes at supper or what, but it was like holding on to a tornado for the whole hour! Nate was sitting next to me and said he could see this whirlwind of activity in his periphery but was scared to turn and look for fear he might start laughing hysterically. Thanks Nate! Ah well....soon hopefully she'll understand the concept of shhhh and sit still so we can at least correct her for not doing it.

Only 12 shifts left in my current job before I transfer to my new one. Can't wait for that!! It'll be so nice to have a monday-friday job without a pay cut!



Here's a video of Chloe's latest antics......

moan-day

M- Minnesota winter has officially begun- lovely snow/ice storm we had this weekend!
O- Open-mouthed Chloe reveals a tooth broken through and another one on the way!
N- Noble & Barnes- my one hour of indulgence today....coffee and magazine reading.
D- Days of work until my new job=16, Days until Puerto Rico=42
A- Aaron forced me to help him clean house today....just what I wanted to do on my day off....the whip-cracker....
Y- Yellow-brown, AKA "tan" is the color Aaron wants to paint the basement walls...."can't we add something color-full" I ask? "No it won't match the carpet" Which we will be installing after the walls are painted. Hmmmmmm

Check out my tooth!

Laughing at Daddy