Poor Middle Child

I just realized that I wrote a lovely blog about Jack's 1st birthday, and didn't do anything for Maggie's! Poor middle child. When discussing the potential fourth child, Jeff and I kept trying to come up with "a good reason" to have a fourth and making Maggie not be the middle child seemed to be the best we could do!

But I digress...back to Maggie's birthday...

So three years year, nine months ago, I woke up in the middle of the night and I could smell everything in the house, and I knew immediately that I was pregnant. Ellie was just nine months old and we were in the process of trying to move to Wilmington, DE. As a matter of fact, we had been looking at houses just the day before; two bedroom houses in Trolley Square with small yards... well, needless to say, the news that we had another baby coming changed our plans quick! Suddenly, four bedrooms and a yard were imperative. So, we found our house in Pike Creek and moved in December.

Before we moved, I went to see a new OB practice in Columbia that had midwives practicing with them. After my experience with Ellie, I felt that midwives were really the way I wanted to go. In Maryland, midwives can attend births in the hospital and you can have drugs too. Best of both worlds, I thought. After we moved to Delaware, I was confronted with a problem - Delaware does not allow midwives to practice in hospitals. It was a birth center: no drugs, no two day stay, or a hospital and a potential repeat of the aggrevation and fear I experienced with Ellie. So Jeff and I toured The Birth Center in Wilmington, and our decision was made. We'd go with the midwives. I mean, seriously, how hard could it be, right???

I mostly tried not to think about natural child birth. My pregnancy moved along as my pregnancies do, uneventful and slightly boring. I was due July 16th and of course thought I would go early, cause why wouldn't I? The last week of pregnancy came and I got more and more crazy, actually getting angry at Jeff for going to work and leaving me alone with a 18 month old. Thank God Ellie was a pretty easy toddler! I came up with a game called "baby birdie" where I would lay on the couch and make a "nest" and Ellie would be my birdie... and sit there for an hour while I fed her "worms". What a good girl.

Finally, the day arrived... I woke up around 4AM with contractions, but they weren't regular and they weren't bad. I hesitated in telling Jeff, cause he is a well known contraction killer. Every time I tell him I'm having them, they stop. Around 6 we broke down and called grandparents. Everyone arrived around 9AM, just in time for the contractions to stop AGAIN. I was angry, frustrated, irked... we had already had one false alarm, and I wasn't going to do that again. So, Mom, Jeff, Ginny and I packed up and went to the mall. We walked around and eventually contractions started up again. I didn't notice, but according to Jeff, people were looking at me very strangely, as if they were waiting for my water to break in the food court.

We decided to meet the grandpas in Newark for lunch around 2PM. The whole lot of us, including Ellie, went to Klondike Kate's for some lunch. Little did we know we picked the Newark Beer Festival day to be wandering around down there. I was very tempted to partake! Ellie was just thrilled to have balloons and no one was paying much attention to me. Slowly, during lunch the contractions began to build, until we were done and decided to walk to Bing's Bakery. For those of you not from this area, it's maybe a 1/4 mile, but let me tell you, it seemed like the Bataan Death March to me.

While in the bakery, Mom asked me what kind of stuff I would want for breakfast the next morning, but I couldn't answer. I was doubled over with a contraction... suddenly, everything began to move very fast. Jeff ran to get the car, and we were off.

I figured I still had enough time to take a shower, so we stopped at home and I went upstairs to get in the shower. Blammo! Water broken.... now I needed a shower! We left for the Birth Center at 4:00 and Margaret Leigh made her appearance at 6:30! Whew!

Our first months were tough, as I think it's very hard for anyone to go from one to two kids. No one can fully explain to me why it's so hard, but man... it was tough. Now, at age three, my Mags is a lovebug, a little mommy, and a dancing queen who loves to laugh. As much as she makes me crazy, she tickles me every day with her little ways. She loves her brother, a little too much I might say, and she is joy to watch.

Remind me of this later today when I want to duct tape her to the wall! :)

Topsail Island!!!

Woo hoo... Jeff and I got up on Saturday morning and sat around drinking coffee, discussing with Andee and Johna what we were going to do for the day, when we started talking about the fact that my mom and dad were probably halfway to the ocean by then. Jokingly, I suggested that we see if we could find a last minute deal and three hours later, we were packed, and in the car on our way to Topsail Island, NC to do vacation with the family.

Each year, my family, including aunts, uncles, cousins, grandpa, etc. gather at the beach and spend a week together: catching fish, catching rays, drinking beers, and generally having a great time hanging out. This year, it's just the Trimbers and the Morans and Opa, my grandfather.

The trip was LONG. We usually spend the night at my parents house the night before we leave and then take off from there, and I didn't realize how much time that cuts off the trip. We pulled into Topsail at 1AM on Sunday morning and collapsed into bed.

Sunday morning, everyone was up bright and early, as per usual, and we moseyed down to the house were the rest of the family is staying. My little clan is holed up at the St. Regis Resort, and the rest of the fam is staying in the lap of luxury in a fancy schmancy house with a pool and a hot tub. Of course, these fancy houses always have their problems and it seems that this house's problem is that you can't change the air conditioning temperature and it's currently set somewhere around meat locker. Other than that, and the fact that my cousin Jeff and his wife are trying to sleep on bunk beds with their sons, it seems like a really nice house and having a private pool rocks.

The beach here is gorgeous and practically deserted. I remember when I moved to Cumberland, MD and people would tell me that they vacationed at Ocean City, how I thought that vacation automatically meant that you were going to North Carolina and it seemed strange to go on vacation in your own state. For years, we went to a different beach, called Oak Island. It was great, small enough that my parents would let their teenage daughter roam around at night unattended. After my brother went into the military, my parents allowed me to start bringing friends along with me and there were several years where Alissa Maiers and I ruled the beach for one week a year. Ahh... youth!

So, right now, I'm hanging out in the condo with a sleeping baby, Maggie is enjoying a nap at the house with GoGo and Pop Pop and Ellie is out with Daddy buying a birthday present for Maggie's big day tomorrow - and I highly suspect, something for Ellie.

Life is good and I'll post more later!

Well, guess you didn't see that coming

So much has happened since my last post.... I meant to write before this, but didn't know where to start.

Pretty much everyone knows by now, Jeff and I are expecting our fourth child. Never in a million years did I think I'd be the mother of four kids, especially not in a span of 5 years! Well, life is full of these surprises, and we couldn't be more pleased. We're referring to this baby as Bullseye, cause it seems that Jeff has very good aim ;)

On a graver note, my good friends Kristen, Andee,and her 4 year old son Jack were robbed at gunpoint this week at our local Dunkin Donuts. Kristen is my photographer friend and they had just taken some maternity pictures, and decided to get Jeff and me a coffee on the way home. The gunman actually came into the store and pointed the gun in Jack's direction - what a bastard! To make things even more disgusting the Dunkin Donuts employees didn't lift a finger to help, not even after the criminal was gone. They couldn't even give Kristen the address for the DD while she was on the phone with 911. Terrible. I've written to the paper, and the local moms clubs, asking people to boycott the Milltown Dunkin Donuts. I intend on writing to the local franchise and telling them that this behavior is inexcusable. I can't do anything about the criminal, so I'm taking it out on DD. Believe me, it pains me cause I certainly drink my fair share of coffee and this was our local shop. I will drive out of my way to go to another location!

Keep reading for news of "Bullseye" our newest (and last!) addition!

Fourth of July!

Last night we went to the Hebron Fireman's Carnival, in lovely scenic Hebron, MD. I felt like I had walked into a Norman Rockwell painting. Well, except for the too tight short shorts and the huge number of tattoos. Anyway, the girls were vibrating at the thought of going on the the rides. For those of you who know me well, I want to put in here that the carnival rides didn't get started until 7:15 PM, and I decided to throw caution to the wind and let the girls stay up late. I know, I'm a rebel.

We get to the carnival, get the girls their wristbands, and head immediately to the carousel. Cause if Ellie didn't ride the carousel, it may have caused her to have a stroke. Someone please tell me why every single ride started promptly at 7:15, except the ever-lovin' carousel? After a few hairy minutes, a man started the thing up and Ellie and Maggie climbed aboard. I went on to help Maggie onto the horse, and the conductor asked me to please stay with Mags. Not really a problem, but it hadn't been my plan. We start our trip and the girls are loving it. Every time we go around, Maggie is waving and saying "yeehaw!" and generally being cute. Then, disaster... the conductor started the music.

Maggie literally leaps off the horse and into my arms, screaming, "Too Loud!" For the rest of the ride, and let me tell you, the people at the Hebron Carnival want you to get your money's worth so the rides are LONG, Maggie clung to me like a spider monkey. Poor girl!

The ride finally ends and we all get off. Ellie was exhilarated, Maggie crying noisily. In an effort to save the night, I suggest that they try the airplane swings. They appear to be making no noise at all. The girls get on the plane and start swinging. Everything is going great and then.... the clattering roller coaster starts up next door. Maggie begins to scream again, this time with no parent. Just as I was going to ask the operator to stop, Ellie leans over and puts her hands on both of Maggie's ears and pulls her head to her chest. It was hilariously cute! Again, the Hebron carnival people give you a little extra on each ride, so it seemed a long time that this happened.

Believe it or not, after both of these experiences, Maggie wanted to get back on other rides. They did it all, ride upon ride. The only other trauma was when Ellie insisted that she ride the roller coaster by herself. Not a good plan... there was much crying!

All in all, it was one of those rare, golden nights. The kind of night that keeps a parent going through many a tantrum. The kind of night we'll look back on when we're old and looking at our grandkids on rides. A good kind of night!

Why you should never lie to your mother

Since I don't have anything to say about my life as it stands today, I thought I'd relate a story from my past, complete with a moral... why you should never lie to your mother.

Let's go back to summer, the year 2000. I was living with Steve in Boston and had come to Maryland to visit my parents. Before I left, my mom slipped me $40 and told me to take a cab home from the airport, instead of the subway and then the commuter rail. Ha ha!, I thought to myself, I'll pocket the $$ and take the train and then I can have take out a couple times on Mom.

The plane ride was uneventful and I made it from the airport to the commuter rail station without trouble. I had to walk a block or two to make it to the station, and on my way, I saw ahead of me a woman and her two kids. The older child is pulling a suitcase upside down so the wheels are on top and he's more dragging it than anything, and the mom was holding the younger sister's hand and pulling another suitcase. As I approach, I hear the kids are both crying - not screaming, but miserably crying. The mom seemed to be keeping up a steady stream of cursing. Being a generally good girl, I caught up to her and offered to help. Keep in mind here that I also have a suitcase and a bag filled with every piece of sheet music I had at my parents house.

The mother accepted my help without a smile and thrusted her suitcase at me and told me that she has to get on on the green line. Inwardly, I groan. The green line in Boston is the elevated rail, and I knew that it was going to be up at least two flights of stairs. Gamely, I turned to the little boy, set his suitcase on it's wheels and he and I hurried to catch up with his mom, who had started without us. She was still cursing, and I could hear snippets about "your f*$!ing father" and "piece of s$#t". We got to the bottom of the stairs and the little boy looked up the metal steps and let out a wail. I managed to get another stranger to get his bag and up we all travelled. Finally we reached the top of the steps, to find out that we were on the north side and she needed to be on the south side. I talked the stranger into helping us all some more and down we all truck to the other side of the street and back up the other side, the whole time, the kids crying, the mother is cursing, I'm carrying two suitcases and a canvas bag, and another stranger is carrying one suitcase.

We got to south side and I turned to leave and the mom says "Aren't you coming with us?" to which I replied no, that I had to get on the commuter rail. She actually had the balls to huff and then told me that she didn't have enough money to get on the subway. I talked the ticket person into letting the kids on for free and the stranger gave up fare of the mom and we took off without a look back.

I was mulling over how no good deed goes unpunished as I ran to the commuter rail, now cutting my time fine as I had to catch the train. I made it and settled myself into the seat and started reading "A Wrinkle in Time", a childhood favorite that I had taken from my parents house.

I smelled him before I saw him, and I thought, that person is going to sit next to me. On a nearly empty train, the crazy homeless person, ALWAYS finds me. Sure enough, a man wearing a motheaten fur and leather coat, wool hat and gloves sat down next to me. Remember here, I was visiting my parents for the 4th of July. He reeked of beer and BO. I'm liberally minded, but sheesh, really God? You had to send this guy to sit next to me?

Mr. Stinky then opened his mouth and mentions he has read "A Wrinkle in Time" too and that he actually has been to Malden (a town in MA) in the year 2025. I don't know what else he said cause the rest of our time together, I was formulating an escape plan.

We came to the first stop on the rail line, which wasn't my stop, but I told my new friend that I had to get off there and asked if he could please let me out. Of course, he couldn't. So I gently reminded him that if he didn't move, my suitcase would probably hit him in the head. He moved an inch and I scooted by and hurried to the next car.

I spent the rest of my trip afraid that Mr. Stinky would find me and get enraged that I had lied to him about my stop. I jumped off the train with total relief at my stop and finally got home, sweaty, exhausted, and totally bemused at my advenure. Surely that much stuff doesn't happen in one day to everyone. Then suddenly it hit me...

NEVER LIE TO YOUR MOTHER!

If I had taken the money she gave me and taken a cab like she said, I would have made it home way earlier, without aggrevation. I have never lied to her again!!!