And furthermore,

I can't explain it, but Prejean really bothers me. I'll let Keith Olberman do the talking:

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Carrie Prejean and why she bothers me

Fine, she believes in "traditional marriage." Whatever. My feelings about that should be obvious.

Please tell me, though, how she represents either Christian values or strong women by posing nude, semi-nude, or by getting breast implants???

Lesson learned from this: any time Donald Trump says some one is lovely, they won't get fired.

Mother's Day

We surprised our moms and drove up for the day. Also, the pictures of Katie's cards (out of order).

Taste of Addison

Is it over yet???

Yesterday was the worst day yet of being pregnant- I couldn't keep anything down until last night. My hopes are that it was the final hurrah of all this sickness nonsense, because it did not last much longer with Katie. So far, this morning, I've eaten a bowl of cereal- seriously, that's about quadruple of everything I had total (and then threw up) yesterday. I'm hoping it stays down because I have to get things done today, namely, a load of underwear- I'm just about out!

I can smell my neighbor's laundry dryer sheets this morning, too, and that's gross. But, so far, I feel much, much better today...fingers crossed it stays that way. And- apparently, my friend LaRae's water broke this morning. Here's hoping everything goes perfectly for the Duff family!

Heading into the second trimester

Thanks goodness, tomorrow is the first day of my second trimester- week 14. I have felt like total crap today, so I hope the next couple weeks brings an end to the nausea. Seriously, I'm so over it. I eat, and feel like crap. I don't eat because I feel sick when I do, and I feel like crap then. Some days have been better than others, but the past two have been awful.

Still a good sign, though. That's the bright side, I guess. I just can't wait to eat a meal in peace, especially since Mom, Katie and I are going to Santa Fe in a week- and I can't wait for all the food!

Here's looking forward to the Shed, the Pantry, and tons of other delicious restaurants in Santa Fe. No La Fonda since Katie's with us, but oh, I can't wait...

Right up there with Valentine's day??

Some Valentine's Days are better than others and the magnitude of my expectations for the day has certainly changed over the years. My disenchantment with romance comes despite my sizable skepticism regarding the reality of romance. But now, Mother's Day is right up there as one of those days I set my expectations really, really, reeeeally low.

What you can call my "first" Mother's Day was great, if the gratification I got from my Mom and Eric's parents were all that mattered. From my hubby, however....not so much. I was quite pregnant with Katie at the time, we had both even bought flowers for our mothers, but that Sunday, I got up to cook my own breakfast before Eric even realized what he had completely, entirely forgotten about me: that I, too, was a mother. I'm not gonna lie: I was deeply upset. I walked out the kitchen door to sob because I just didn't want Eric to know how hurt I was that he had completely forgotten about me on Mother's Day.

Last year, Eric redeemed himself. It was rainy that day, but he cooked a delicious meal that we were going to eat al fresco. It was wonderful, plus I bought my kick ass coffee maker with the gift money Mom sent.

This year, I'm carrying that sense of forboding. Katie's day care requested a picture of she and I together for a holiday art project. I actually have very few pictures of the two of us together because I'm the one manning the camera most times.

This morning, as Eric and Katie were headed out the door, I commented that I guess I wasn't getting my mother's day gift from Katie's school because we had never brought a picture in. Yes, I'm bitter about this. Very bitter. And then, Eric first says that he's pretty sure they took a picture of Katie at school.

Okay, fine. But then he implies that I should print out a picture of myself to take to school. I hope it's evident why this ticks me off. I'm not going to help Katie construct the gift intended for me. That's should be his job...or am I crazy?

So, we're back to two years ago when he seems completely clueless. Maybe I expect too much, or maybe I'd just like my husband to take the time to do something as simple as print a picture out and take it to school. Really, that would be perfectly sweet and would totally make my day.

Maybe I'll be surprised Sunday. I'm not getting my hopes up.

Jenny McCarthy, please cut it out

I get that some people are cautious about what vaccines their kids take. I understand that some pick and choose their children's vaccinations. But I think people like Jenny McCarthy are inherently irresponsible re: the relationship between vaccines and autism. A few weeks ago, her boyfriend, Jim Carrey, posted on Huffington Post in support of what I guess is now his cause, too.

I saw her on some tv show for a few minutes (because I had to turn the channel- it was making me angry) this morning. I have to back actress Amanda Peet here who is a part of a campaign to counter the irresponsible campaigning of people like McCarthy. As Peet says, if you want to know physics, you go to a physicist. If you want to understand medicine, go to a doctor before making a judgment on vaccines and autism.

The problem with McCarthy is, her evidence is purely anecdotal. This morning, she and the (quack) pediatrician she's paired up with to, I don't know, "fight" autism cited the successes of the children in his clinic, McCarthy's son a chief success case among them. The pediatrician, when confronted with questions from the show's dubious host, said that no one that questions his claims has come to see what's going on in his clinic. I would say this: there are reasons long term, large-scale studies are used and evidence is painstakingly collected. Anecdotal evidence is not valid, nor is it reliable. And it seems that that's all McCarthy has.

There are NO studies to support her claim, and others like her, that vaccines are to blame for the increased instances of autism in children. There are, however, studies that refute this position. I am the first to say that science can be used for negative things, but in terms of the greater public health, vaccines have gone a long way towards eradicating once-deadly diseases and are crucial to the maintenance of the public well-being.

So Jenny, please cut it out, before too many people listen to you and believe what you say. Please be responsible.

So it's not pinkeye after all

Turns out Katie has an infection in both ears, and all that goo welled over into her eyes. So, no conjunctivitis, but we still have to give her eye drops three times a day and an oral antibiotic. Based on our experience January 2008, I'm gearing up for lots of loose, dirty diapers from the antibiotic.

Seriously, you'd never know she had an ear infection. She's been sleeping perfectly through the night and her temperature went away Friday.

Her little eyes are puffy right now and getting all goopy again. I'll have to clean them off before nap time. Needless to say, I'm on nurse duty the next day or two, but I'm glad it's not bacterial conjunctivitis. That's some nasty stuff.

The pinkeye

Katie's home with the pinkeye. I'm about to dig out the eyebright and make an eyewash for her. We've got a doctor's appointment in the morning. I'm glad I got that chapter to my advisor last night, because she'll be home with me til Wednesday at least.

Katie's first conversation

Katie has been speaking in phrases lately instead of one-word declarative statements. For instance, she'll say things like, "Go away!" complete with hand gestures. One evening, she went into the kitchen where Eric was and a few minutes later, Eric came out laughing. He said she had just chastised him, saying, "No! No! No!" and waving her pointing finger at him.

Today, not only did she walk up to us without the cookie we had just given her, she said, "Fruit bar. All gone." Her hands were up in the air- and I think she had fed that strawberry newton to Lucy.

Then, after pulling the shorts for her pink monkey one of over her shoulders like a purse, she walked into the living room and said, "Bye-bye guys."

I asked where she was going. She said, "Outside."

Hilarious.