odds and ends

I have no business blogging when I'm this delirious. Please be kind when reading, because I have no idea what I'm about to write, and that always makes for good television.

1. In the park yesterday I met one of Those Women. Now the truth is that the parents I know put heart and soul into raising their kids, so it's no wonder they (we) have such strong opinions about minutia like juice boxes or pacifiers. I try to keep this in mind when I accidentally stumble into a hot spot with a mom I don't know, because goodness knows I have my own. We all love our kids, we all are doing the best we can, and we're all screwing up in ways we don't even know about yet (though we're certainly going to be told when they get older, don't you think?). Even so, this woman was just ... overbearing, moralizing her children's every move, and dominating every adult conversation in a twenty-yard radius. Also, she kept telling her toddler not to be angry. Really? You really want to teach your child she can't get angry? You don't think she might, I don't know, blow up a building or something when she's 30 if she doesn't learn how to handle anger constructively when she's 2? To each his own, though, right? It's like a friend of mine says all the time, "I'm definitely going to owe her for therapy for THAT when she is older." Yeah, me too.

2. I saw Laura today. For those who know her, all is well, or is as good as can be expected for a little while. But when I left I was a mess. We'll blame hormones (they get blamed for everything else). I know nothing about being sick, really for real SICK, during pregnancy, and I know nothing about bed rest. But I know too well the feeling of wanting more than anything just to stay pregnant, and having absolutely no control over whether or not that will happen. The good news is that her babies are fine. And every day she stays pregnant is a day they can grow and get stronger. In that regard, every day of waiting is a blessing, though I doubt it feels that way to Laura at this moment. Anyway, she is good, but I was a little nutty this afternoon. But that hardly feels like news anymore.

3. The weather this week has been great. The humidity broke (someone forgot to tell Alabama it's May already, but I'm not complaining), and we have spent as much time as possible outside. "Out-ide!" Asher says, pointing to the door and signing, "please." Asher has discovered digging (as you can see from the pictures in the side bar and last post), so we spend a good bit of every day at the sand box in the park. I was thinking today about how much he is changing, and how fast, and how I know myself, I won't remember half of this when he is older. But I hope I remember how much fun this spring has been, how much I love seeing him learn. I hope that's what I will keep from this time.

4. 32 weeks now, and I feel like it's April of my senior year. In April you don't really want to quit school, because that would be stupid. But if there was a way to both quit school and have your diploma in May, you would do it. If there was a way to skip the end of the semester and exams and moving and all that comes in between, and just get to the part where now you have what you've been working for all this time, you would. That's how I feel. But! On Friday I'm picking up Silas' baby bed (hooray!) and on Saturday (I hope) we're painting his room the best shade of baby-but-not-too blue EVER, and when that is over I will be 33 weeks. So, you know. We're getting there.

5. Want to hear something weird? I wake up every night at midnight, 3:30, and 6:30 a.m. I've tried explaining to my body that in about 8 weeks I'm going to have no choice but to follow this pattern, but my body seems intent on being in sync with an infant's, already.

Ok. With any luck I'm going to sleep for a while. Happy Wednesday, everyone.