Dave returns home…

Dave is home from his business trip to Washington D.C.…Thankfully!
I don’t think I tell that man enough how very much I appreciate him and how damn glad I am glad he’s back. Not only was it strange not having him around since we truly enjoy each others friendship (which I thing is paramount in a marriage) and we tend to spend most of our spare moments together…but he’s a great dad and really does a lot with Alec. I always knew this, but when you have the little munchkin 24 hours a day for days on end…it becomes even more apparent.

I was astonished at how hard it is just having just one person taking care of him. There is no handing him off to someone else while you eat, take a shower or make dinner. Thanks to a couple of great friends who had me over for dinner one night, I had a great meal and it was delightful to have some adult conversation. You guys were wonderful. They filled me up with yummy food and held the tyke for a bit so I could just decompress before going home to begin the nightly routine of putting him down. It made a big difference and was the best meal I had while Dave was gone. Mind you, Alec was great and I could have cooked better meals…but honestly I was too focused on getting through each day and caring for the little man to care too much how much or what I was eating. Healthy…no. Honest…yes.

I think we adjusted remarkably well to it just being the two of us…but damn…I’m tired. I honestly give single parents my whole hearted respect. Raising a kid is tough, raising them alone is REALLY though. I can’t imagine it….because no matter how wacky things got when Dave was gone, I knew he would be coming home in a couple days and all would return to normalcy in our home. Alec seemed to have handled it well, albeit he’s become a bit more clingy and reticent about letting either of us out of his sights for long. I think he feels like he has to keep an eye on us or one of us might slip out on him again. He’s also been a bit more distant to Dave. He’s happy to see him, but not the usual ecstatic joy. I guess 4 days is a long time for a little one. Dave is a bit sad about it I think, but I told him not to worry. Give him a week and he’ll have forgotten all about it and he’ll be laughing and thinking dad is the best party in town again soon!

The damn machine broke!

This weekend was chaotic but fun! The art show went well. Considering we haven’t done this in 3 years, it all came together relatively easily with minimal stress. The show itself wasn’t spectacular but was a good show to do if you’re a local artist. The crowd was ok, but we weren’t expecting too much considering the current economy. We were able to sell a couple bigger pieces and honestly it was just great to be back on the art show “scene.” It was also good to see all of our art up again as well. I haven’t looked at it in awhile and it was good to see it wasn’t all crap, as I had previously felt after burning out doing the Renaissance Fair. There were definitely pieces that I don’t plan on printing anymore, but there were some that I felt had some artistic merit. So all is not lost!

Unfortunately, most of the large sales were on credit card which isn’t surprising… but what was surprising was that when we tried to upload our charges, the machine wouldn’t work. After hours on the phone with technical support, David was told that the machine is too old and isn’t supported by them anymore and we have to replace it for $700. Holy crap! That was not what we wanted to hear. Our original machine was only $250. They are trying to limit the use of the lower end models used by small retailers and sole proprietors and they are moving towards the bigger ones. We haven’t decided what we are going to do yet. We’re hoping that we may be able to buy the machine elsewhere and then have the bank connect to our new machine and upload the appropriate software…but we’ll see. The show was only ok, so we didn’t make enough to cover the cost of a $700 machine and break even. I would hate to have those customers get hundreds of dollars of artwork for free, and yet we’re unsure if we can swing a new machine right now. Considering our new line of art is no where near production and we won’t be doing art shows for awhile I’m sure, we would hate to invest in a machine that might be out-dated again by the time we’re back on the fair circuit. Ah, decisions…decisions…

I’m sitting here wondering where the hell the summer went…

The summer just flew by. People say that once you have kids, your life seems to speed up. Well, with Alec, the house, art, family and everything else we’re trying to cram into our busy days…our life seems to be going at Mach 5! So here is the latest news in our life…

As to the update on Alec: The little man is doing well. He’s still not crawling but last night he did scoot about a foot and a half backwards on his belly! WOWZERS! He hasn’t done it since…but it’s the beginning of crawling…kind of…. He just kept scooting backwards, moving almost like a worm in reverse and then he turned around and gave me the biggest smile. I’m sure you’re all thinking “Big frickin’ whoop!” but all I can think is “Holy crap, that little guy is just amazing!”

Also, we’re coming up on our next photo shoot with our photographer. I know we’re insane. We did the 3 month, and the 6 month (which I regaled you all with the adventures of finding outfits for that one) and now we’re on the 9 month photos. So tonight I will begin my regular journey to the mall in search of some adorable ensemble for the little guy to wear. Am I a glutton for punishment? I think so. But someday when Alec is accepting his Noble Peace Prize, I can show these adorable naked butt photos of him at 6 months and embarrass the crap out of him. Also, since we are just doing this once…I want to capture as many moments as possible, and we might as well make sure the outfits are cute since we’re paying so damn much.

Why do I feel the need to chronicle every moment of his life? I have no clue. It just all seems to be moving so fast and I know in the years to come things will fade in my memory and I guess I just don’t want to forget it. He is just growing so fast and changing a little every day. He is no longer the little baby swaddled in blankets…you can see remnants of that infant, but now he is now becoming a little boy and you can see hints of who he will become as well. So, we’ll pay inordinate sums to document the ever changing little boy. We could do a cheaper route, but the photographer’s photos just look too damn good. He can capture those little moments in time...to be preserved as memories when we have all moved on. Ah, nostalgia.

Onto other news: We’re doing our first art show in almost 3 years this weekend! We are completely unprepared but I’m sure we’ll muddle through and pull it all together in the last moment. We’re doing the show with our printmaking in hopes of clearing up some of our stock, so we can begin our artistic adventure into a new direction. It’s nice to be doing the show, albeit with today’s economy we don’t plan on making a killing. From what I am hearing from many of our artist friends on the fair circuit…it’s been a tough year financially. Many are choosing to get “day jobs” to survive or are taking a break from shows altogether. So, maybe this is a good time for Dave and me to re-group and take time to develop our art? No matter how the show goes, it just feels good to be doing an art show again. Makes us feel like we aren’t just floundering about…it gives us direction and helps us get motivated. Wish us luck and hopefully I’ll have some interesting stories to share after this weekend’s adventures.

My heart goes out to New Orleans

This is just so awful and sad!
I can't imagine the pain, heartache and fear that the people of New Orleans are experiencing right now. I read the stories and just want to cry. I hear of babies starving, and no formula to feed them. The bodies lying about and the animals that are being left because they aren't allowed to be taken on the evacuation buses with their owners. The whole thing is absolutely dreadful! And what the fuck is up with people shooting at the Medics and Cops and that patients in two hospitals have been forced to move to higher floors to escape looters. WTF? Insanity. People are so scared...nothing is rational anymore.

I read an article and I thought this one quote hit the nail on the head.
"This is a national disgrace,” said Terry Ebbert, head of New Orleans’ emergency operations. “FEMA has been here three days, yet there is no command and control, We can send massive amounts of aid to tsunami victims but we can’t bail out the city of New Orleans."

Tonight I want to go home and curl up with my husband, the little one and the cats and appreciate how truly lucky we are....for even with all the construction and chaos that is in our home...we have a home as many people hit by Hurricane Katrina now do not. We have safety, warmpth and food. Many tonight won't.

Torticollis - A.K.A. "The Tilt"

And so the saga continues...
I'm sure you're all tired of hearing about all this wacky health stuff, but since this is what is all consuming lately...this is what I'm blogging about. Alec is doing well. As happy as ever, completely unaware of the angst he's caused mom and dad. After speaking with the Pediatrician, we mutually decided it was time for Physical Therapy for the head tilt. The technical term is Congenital Torticollis...say that 5 times fast!

What is Torticollis you might ask?
Torticollis literally means "twisted neck". It is derived from the Latin terms torta meaning twisted and collum meaning neck. The term "torticollis" actually refers to the positioning of the head. There are many underlying conditions that can cause a head and neck position that would be considered torticollis. Alec's is called Congenital because he was born with it. It has improved greatly since he was born and truly was never that bad compared to some cases. But it was bad enough that we had to do daily neck stretches with him, which he hated. So, now he just has this adorable head tilt which everyone find so endearing...yet we know the truth.

Alec went to the PT on Monday and because of all the stretching we have been doing, he has great mobility and movement. Which is good news. So, the tightness in his neck is almost gone, but since he's spent the entire 8 months of his life favoring his right side, since using his left side was uncomfortable...his left side is weak and continues to have the tilt. So, we now have a daily regimen of strengthening exercises that are subtle but should help him improve his strength.

Other good news is that both the Torticollis Doctor and his Physical Therapist thought the whole right side is bigger than the left side and tumor thing was absurd. They didn't say that outright, but from what they did say and how they said it...you could tell they were shocked the Neurologist even suggested it since it is so minor. They think he's fine. Both said that the enlargement on his right side is minimal, almost undetectable and it is probably because he favors his right side. Whew!

So, we're all feeling much better about pretty much everything. We're still paying the doctor bills from the previous visits, and who knows how much these PT visits will be, but in the end...if the little one is healthy we just don't care. Since the tilt is mild, I'm guessing it will only be a couple months of PT. The older they get, the stiffer everything gets and the longer it takes to rectify. So I'm glad we're doing it sooner rather than later. I got the feeling the PT would have liked to have begun a couple months ago with Alec, but when it's this mild...they sometimes right themselves on their own when they start sitting up.

As to the "Amazing Tomatoe Act", it continues to baffle the doctors but is becoming more and more infrequent. So, we're trying not to worry about it too much. If it comes back again in full force, we'll have to go down that road. But right now, we're just keeping an eye on it and tracking it as it now infrequently shows up.

Take care everyone and hopefully the next blog will be about something fun and entertaining...