Mamahood

Thanksgiving came and went so quickly. This year was my baby’s first Thanksgiving and at 10 months old he is just starting to eat some solid food. He would not eat anything on the holiday, but he did eat some leftover yams. That’s a start.

I made a Tofurky, mashed potatoes, yams, garlicky greens, biscuits, gravy, cranberry sauce, and stuffing and my son just threw his portion to the dog. Oh, well. Better luck next year.

I love Thanksgiving because I love to eat yummy food and I love leftovers. The problem is now we have odds and ends of the leftovers: the Tofurky is gone; we have mashed potatoes and no gravy. “Ham, no burger.”

I’m just glad we don’t eat turkey. What a revolutionary idea–instead of killing an animal for our holiday, we celebrate a day of compassion. That, and we aren’t up at seven in the morning working on roasting a dead bird.

Just another word about the new Motrin Mom campaign that recently (and rightfully) got torn apart by real moms. I’m a babywearing mom — meaning that I wear my baby in a “schwing” most of the time — and I have never, ever needed Motrin or any other medication to deal with the “pain” of carrying my son. Pretty much any babywearing mom will have only positive things to say about slings, front packs, and wraps.

If you’re not convinced just check out the forum at the Babywearer. These moms can’t get enough talk about wraps, rebozos, and Ergo vs. Baby Beco. Seriously, we love wearing out babies. It makes life easier. If Motrin would have done any research they would have known this. But, no. They go off of stereotypes and proceed to piss off their target market. Not smart.

Here is the crappy ad if anyone is interested in seeing marketing at its worst.

I don’t have any problem with a family bed. I like having my son close to me. I mean, why sleep alone? Especially when he’s just a baby and this is a tiny sliver of our life that will soon be gone forever.

The baby isn’t the problem with the family bed–it’s the other family members who are keeping me up at night; namely my boyfriend and my dog. They snore. Badly. I don’t know who’s louder. I can’t blame the dog–he’s a pug and has breathing problems due to his lack of snout and smooshed-in face. That’s ok. Humans are the ones who made pugs as they are. But, my boyfriend… he has no excuse. Other then snoring, he grinds his teeth, which is the equivalent to nails on a chalkboard.

Yuck.

So, yeah. Let’s toss the boyfriend out of the family bed and he can take the dog with him. Maybe I’ll buy an extra large dog bed to fit the both of them…

I love being home with my LM, but I really wish I had more time to work. My workdays (or nights) begin around 9:30 when my son has finally fallen asleep. I usually have to get a few things done, so the time I conk out at the computer is actually around 10 p.m. It’s hard to get work done at that time of night. Usually I’m exhausted from a day’s work of keeping up with the LM.

I don’t mean to complain–not at all. Especially when you hear moms with three or even six kids squeeze a working lifestyle in their mamahood. I don’t know how they do it. I would like more time during the day to work. Just anytime when the caffiene is flowing and I can sit down and focus.

I’ve applying for some writing and social service positions. I’m not sure where they’ll lead me but wish me luck. I really need to get out of this rut of working for just a few companies. The ones I work for are okay–one is very formulaic and the other has been offering stale titles to write about–but they pay on time. But I want to strive for more.

I have no idea what to do with my (soon to be) ten month-old son now that it’s cold out. We used to spend our days walking around the neighborhood. We used to go everywhere–downtown past the mom and pop shops, to the park, into the Metroparks, down side streets–all by foot and sling or stroller.

But now we can’t go on walks. So I don’t know what to do.

We go to play groups when we can. The one on Mondays is located an awkward distance from my house–too close to drive yet a little chilly to walk. I guess I could take my LM (Little Man) to the library but I’d have to drive there and I don’t always have a car.

This weather is difficult. I like winter days because I can feel toasty and cozy indoors but, come on, we can’t get cabin fever. Not yet at least.

If anyone has any ideas on what to do with babies in the winter, let me know.

Everyone knows this was a monumental election in the U.S. and I’m sure every parent was imaging what life would be like under each candidate for their children. What would the next four (or eight) years hold? Will my child be less with fewer opportunities? Will his family struggle for money and be forced to fight to stay home with their babies as we had to? Or will there be a longer maternity leave in the future? Will he have to scramble for insurance to be taken care of when he’s sick? Will there be anything left of the environment? Will people start “believing in” global warming?

Obviously, the questions are endless. Luckily, I don’t have to answer those questions with McCain as the president-elect. Ugh, McCain. Somewhere on his website I read him trying to attack Obama by saying, “Now’s not the time to experiment with socialism.”

I’m glad the American people have decided to “experiment” and dump that dinosaur of a candidate. We got the right to vote, but our children are left at the mercy of our choices. And I think we’ve made the right–or at least a phenomenally better–choice.

I want to be so DIY. All the DIY chicks are so cool (though some are pretentious, making them totally uncool and very, very LAME).

I’m artsy, but I’m not crafty. I don’t know how to sew, let alone knit or crochet. By the way, how did knitting become so popular all the sudden? I want to learn to knit but I have no clue what I would make. A few knitted things are cute–like a big chunky scarf–but I honestly don’t see the major appeal of knitting. Yet I still want to do it just to say that I can.

I want to think outside the box. It took me months to realize that a baby doesn’t need commerically prepared baby wipes. You can simply use a small cloth and warm water with soap as a baby wipe. Duh. Now I’m using organic, handmade (but not by me) bamboo cloth as baby wipes and I plan to make my own in the future.

I just want to make stuff. Knitting, crocheting, sewing, building, whatever–I wanna do it all. I’m a DIY wannabe.

Now who will teach me this stuff…?

And found out my son has been suffering from an ear infection.

Godammit! Poor guy…

Not only that, but he has pink eye, too. He’s only nine months old and this is the first time he’s gotten sick. The past week has been rough. He hasn’t been his happy, goofy self. He’s been smiling, but barely. Last night he slept okay but then woke up screaming in pain at 5:30 a.m. so we decided to get to the pediatrician ASAP.

And she gave us antibiotics. And my son refuses to take them.

Whatta mess. But hopefully we’re at the end of this sickness. First, I had a cold and then a sinus infection. Now my son has pink eye and an ear infection. October is a sinister month. Even for healthy breastfed babies and vegan mamas.

Viva November.

A zombie. That’s what I feel like–complete with the frizzy hair and tattered clothes. Or maybe I feel more like Rip Van Winkle.

Either way, I feel so awkward. I spend all day talking to a baby, which is nice and all but it does little for my socialization. It’s sad how little I talk to other people anymore, especially now that’s it’s cold outside and we stay in all day. I try to take the little one places–for his sake and mine–but damn, I now feel so socially inept. I haven’t had an adult conversation in months. I’ve lost any shred of socialization I originally had. I’m a wreck–a zombie. I can only respond well to people whose conversations consist of “da da da” and “googie” or “ah-gah!”

I guess I’ll have to slowly reintroduce myself to society before I turn feral.

Feral mama on the loose…

“I never knew what I wanted to do in life until I had kids.”

“My kids gave me purpose. They are my reason to live.”

Ever hear people like that? I have and I’ve always considered their statements to be somewhat tradgic–and pathetic. So many people seem to have kids just so to give their life meaning and purpose. I know the hunt for meaning and higher pupose in your life is the ultimate human activity, but c’mon.

My kid is great and all but I’d like to think I had some purpose to my life before he came along. I don’t think he would want a mama who relied on him to provide her with meaning. I think he’d resent that when he turns 18.

He is my heart and soul, but not my only heart and soul. He gives my life purpose and meaning–a whole new kind I’ve never experienced before–but he is not something I rely on for selfish reasons.

And now that whole purpose-giver is giving my life a whole new meaning: Never before did I hate the teething process so much. He’s crying now.