Brotherly Love

So after the earthquake, my oldest brother, Christian calls me:

Christian: So is everyone over there OK?
Caroline: Yeah, we're fine. We're back to work in the office.
Christian: You're not at the hospital? I thought the earthquake was from you giving birth.

What's life without a little razzing from your older brother?

Guess I Misunderstood

Friday was my last day of work. My boss (and step-dad) retired me and told me when my last day was. Said "goodbye" and sent me on my way home. Monday, my official first day of retirement, I was at home and my wonderful mother-in-law was helping me put the baby room together. Imagine my confusion when my boss called me at home letting me know of a new project he needed done and when would I be in???

Hmmm...did I miss something? Guess I'll be giving birth at the office. Perhaps I should have had Aaron set up the crib there? So here I am on Tuesday at work. World's shortest retirement?? I'll be here LATE to get this project done so I don't have to come back anytime soon.

While I was here, we had a kickin' 5.4 earthquake. My mom, aunt and uncle were here remodeling the office. The office I work at (or at least thought I USED to work at) is old and the property owner does not maintain it up to code - not to mention it's on the 2nd floor. It's a literal death trap if there's a big enough earthquake. When the quake hit my aunt, uncle and I all ran for the door while my mom dove under a desk. We all looked at her like she was crazy. This building could go down at any moment, a desk isn't going to save you!! We grabbed her and her purse and headed downstairs to the parking lot. We took off to an up-to-code one story establishment to wait out any major aftershocks - Del Taco! My aunt and uncle just moved here less than 2 weeks ago from Utah - welcome to California! My aunt was understandably shaken and ready to get outta here!

Things have calmed down and it's back to work as usual. My boss has even given me a new assignment for tomorrow. Are you kidding me? I'm trying to figure out how to nicely tell him to kiss my big pregnant butt and figure it out himself, but I don't suppose that would go over well...Guess he meant I get ONE day off until I give birth, then I can retire. Glad we cleared that up.

Puzzle Pieces

I've finally got all the pieces of the nursery puzzle collected. Now it's just a matter of putting them together.

The cabinet has been painted and Aaron assured me he and his friend would get it in the room by this weekend.

My meltdown last week got me my glider put together.

Aaron put the crib together last night.

And it's up to me to arrange and organize this mountain of baby gear I've collected over the last year.

Today is my last official day at work. What's kinda funny about that is the fact that I'll be working harder at home getting things ready than I do at my desk job. I'm excited and looking forward to it!

Strike Out

This weekend I set a goal to have my hospital bag packed and ready to go. Easier said than done. I am having one heck of a time trying to find decent pajamas for the hospital. I do admit that I was going to less expensive stores because I am cheap when it comes to spending money on myself. Maybe that's my problem. I went to several stores and was only given the choice between...


A: Looking like I was going to a slumber party after the Hannah Montana concert.

B: Looking like I had on my favorite Isotoner slippers and had settled in for a long night of watching a Jeopardy.


Is there nowhere that sells "cool mom" pajamas so I don't look like a total dork at the hospital? I finally went to the maternity store and settled for a real "ok" looking nightgown and robe. It still looks very "motherly" but it'll do. I'm still looking for one more, but may have to give up on that idea. I've got a lot to do before this baby gets here!

Did He REALLY Say That?

Aaron and I had just got home from going out to dinner last night. He unlocked and opened the door for me and followed me in the house.

Aaron: "Your butt is getting bigger."

Caroline: "Umm...thanks."

Caroline's thought #1:

Did he REALLY just say that out loud to a pregnant woman who had a meltdown less than 3 days ago?

Caroline's thought # 2:

Thanks for noticing. I'm sure he meant that with love.

Total Meltdown

It happened.

I am having a total pregnant lady, hormonal, mental meltdown.

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Saturday I was completely normal. I had another battle with the ants in the morning, but that evening they were all gone except for a couple of stragglers. Sunday I got Aaron off to work and was having a nice morning until I opened the pantry to get some cereal. Ants everywhere. Then I went to use the hall bathroom. Ants everywhere. I lost my marbles and just started bawling uncontrollably and couldn't stop.

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I had lost an entire week killing and cleaning ants instead of getting my house ready for Baby Haring. That just made me focus even more on everything that was still not done. That sent me farther into meltdown mode. I just sat on the couch hugging Moe, bawling my eyes out. I was a mess. I didn't even go to church for fear I would lose it again.

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My sisters came over later and helped me make the quilt top for the baby and I put the stroller together. I was feeling better because I was at least making progress. Later that evening, I had calmed down and was feeling better...until the sewing machine broke.

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I started feeling like I was going to have another meltdown so I put the sewing project away. Aaron could tell I was upset and was helping me put the folding table away. On our way back down the hall, Aaron pointed out a new ant trail in the hallway. I lost it all over again and started bawling. This completely freaked Aaron out since I'm always so calm and easy going. He's not used to seeing me as a neurotic mess.

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He made me sit on the couch with Moe and watch TV. I had a medical examiner show on, but Aaron said I couldn't watch anything sad or depressing. He put on one of my favorite movies, The Three Amigos and handed me an Otter Pop. I must have looked like something special.

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This morning the ants were in full force again. In the dishwasher, in my cupboards, in the bathroom, and in my iron again even though I dumped all of the water out. I spent another 40 minutes cleaning instead of getting ready for work. Bawling of course, the entire time.

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I thought for sure with only one month left I was going to get out of the total breakdown other ladies talk about experiencing. It's not even like there's any one thing that's a big deal, I'm freaking out over stupid little things that don't even matter. I didn't even see it coming.

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I understand now - I get it.

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To all of my friends who went through this and I wasn't there to help--I am so sorry. I will have to make a conscience effort to help other pregnant ladies when I can. I'm not sure how much longer I will be completely out of my mind, but I'm sure my recovery will begin when the ants are gone.

Lost and Found

Meet Schatzi

I found this cutie pie in my front yard 2 weeks ago. He had no collar, no tags, was dirty and wasn't fixed. He was nervous around me and wouldn't let me pet him. Luckily, I had Moe with me and they were instant friends. He followed Moe right into our back yard.I put posters up, asked around with neighbors and registered him with the Humane Society and Fido Finder.com.

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My mom has a female Daschound named Tootsie. She has been wanting another Daschound so Tootsie would have a friend. I took the lost dog over so my mom could meet him. She said she would keep him in her yard. I warned her not to get attached in case the owners contacted me. So, of course the next day when I went to visit the dog had a collar and a name, Schatzi. That's my mom! My aunt said when she lived in Germany everyone called their dog "schatzi" which means "little treasure".

I took Schatzi to the vet so see if he was chipped. He was, but the chip had not been registered in over a year and there was no way to track the owner. Two weeks have gone by with no phone calls, no "lost dog" posters and no effort on the dog owner's part to find him. Looks like my mom has a new dog! She's already registered him, bathed him and got him a vet appointment.

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Schatzi is a lucky dog and will be very happy at his new home. Welcome to the family!

The Most Helpful Ants I've Ever Met

I got home from work and the ants were gone out of the laundry room! Yeah! I was so happy and thought the invasion was over.....not so much.

This morning I went to iron our clothes for work and this is what I found:

HAVE YOU EVER SEEN THIS????
Yesterday they wanted to help with the laundry, today they wanted to help me iron. Thanks guys! I know I could use the extra help getting my house together before the baby gets here, but this one I think I can handle on my own.
I spent a half hour hunting ants and trying to flush them out of the water tank of the iron. I finally gave up and just ironed our clothes with the ants inside the iron. If they're still there when I get home, guess I'll have to buy a new one. Enough already! I'm so annoyed!

They're HEEERRRRE!!

What summer would be complete without an ant invasion? It seems that the cities of Chino and Eastvale were built on a giant ant hill.

Saturday I found them in the laundry room. So I sprayed and wiped and scrubbed. Sunday morning I found them in the next room over - the bathroom. They were coming up from the sink drains. Gross. So I sprayed and wiped and scrubbed again.

Monday night they were back in the laundry room. Seriously, guys - what are you looking for? At least they weren't looking for my pantry. Once again I sprayed and wiped and scrubbed but this morning they were back. I didn't have time to clean again so I just had to leave them while I'm at work today.

So, to the ants that have free reign over my laundry room today - could you at least throw in a load of towels? Thanks.

The Act of Giving Birth

I am always in awe and admiration at the creativity of others…especially when it makes me laugh. Since I’m in the last month of the home stretch, I’ve been thinking a lot about the actual ACT of giving birth. I’ve watched EVERY birth video on youtube, read as much material as I could get my hands on, and asked friends at length about their experiences. Even though I know how “things work” there’s still a little tape in the back of my head that keeps repeating, “Something the size of WHAT is gonna come out of WHERE???” I always beat the thought back with, “Women have been giving birth since the beginning of time – you’ll be fine.”

From what I gather, it doesn’t matter how much you prepare, you’ll never be 100% ready for the birth experience until you’ve been there yourself. I just can’t help but wonder what the trick is or mental switch (if there is one) that can be flipped on to have a better birth experience. I’ve read a lot of birth stories and wonder how there could be such a difference between the woman who gives birth with no drugs and says she didn’t need them because she wasn’t in pain, versus the woman who takes every drug available and still has a horrific time.

Take for instance, the photos below. How is it that some women give birth and look like they just got back from the mall, while others look like they got ran over by a Mack Truck on the way back from the mall?

Mall Beauty <- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -> Mack Truck

I dunno. Guess I’ll just have to wait and see what category I fall under. I suppose in the end, as long as you’ve got that beautiful healthy baby in the photo next to you, it doesn’t matter.