01.27.10: Wordless Wednesday: Here We Go Again..

Another trip to the ER for an allergic reaction. Poor little dude.

1.26.10: Ten on Tuesday: Real Quick Like

Not sure I have the energy to come up with 10 things to say, going to give it a go though.

1. Today was one of those emotionally and physically exhausting days that left me wanting to go to bed at like noon.
2. Thinking a lot about how much we take for granted in life. Last night, while at work, a paper reporter I knew of from my time in television collapsed in the newsroom from an apparent brain aneurism. He is on life support until his brain shuts down entirely and they can harvest his organs. I didn't really know Andy, but his story is haunting me today. Nobody knew the last time they talked to him it would be goodbye.
   
3. A.J. and I did some dancing this morning after I heard about Andy. We swayed around the living room, listening to music on my laptop. I sang to him and imagined for a moment what it will feel like when I can no longer pick him up and spin him around with me. How much I will miss this, what we have right now.
4. We are on day 8 of the disgusting diapers. I am trying not to be a worry wart, as the doctor said it could stick around for 10 days. But ugh. I've spent like 30 dollars in disposables in the last two weeks because there's no way I could keep on on cloth laundry right now. Poor little dude is going through a dozen or so diapers a day and still getting nasty rash.
   
5. I have talked about death and poop. This is clearly a happy ten on tuesday, no?
   
6. How about we make this evening more depressing? I have to find a new home for Walker. It's a long story and it involves the dog's anxiety, a bleeding baby, and weeks of nightmares for me since.
   
7. I want to adopt a child from Haiti. As in, I can't stop thinking about the kids who are walking around and have no idea if their parents are alive and may never know for sure. I wish there was a way to be like an emergency home or something. Take in a couple of kids for a few months until everything is all worked out. Except I don't think it will be all worked out in a couple of months for the Haitian people. I don't think it will ever be "all worked out."
8. That picture up there might be the least flattering picture I've ever taken of the little dude but I love it. I caught him mid laugh. He does this thing where he makes noises until you look at him and then he looks away and giggles. It is something I don't want to forget.
9. You can probably tell in that picture that the steroids are out of his system. For almost 2 weeks post wheat allergy ER trip, I had a baby with nice clear soft baby skin. But I knew it was only a matter of time before the itchy and scratchies came back. Poor little dude.
   
10. On the spirit of ending on an up note, Karl and I are going on a double date for fondue on Friday. A.J. has a date with his Auntie Barb. I think we are all looking forward to Friday.
    

1.25.10: Me on Monday Week #4

Technically speaking, that image blows.
And it's pretty unflattering (hello, chins! How nice to see you!)
And I'm not sure I can call it a self potrait if my face is not the primary focus of the image.
But this is me on this particular Monday.
In desperate need of a haircut.
Trying to keep A.J. from stealing my glasses.
Covered in applesauce and rice cereal from an especially messy dinner for the little dude.
Insanely happy.

Happy Monday friends.

1.24.10: Week(end) in Review

1.22.10: After countless trips to every fabric section in town, including an embarassing and smelly incident with A.J. in Hobby Lobby, I found the fabric for our bridal show display. Please note that anyone who visits my house will probably leave with glitter stuck to them somewhere. I think I currently have some up my nose.
1.23.10: All dolled up and ready for brides to visit. Two unforgettable moments from the show. First, when I saw a guy walk up to the bar at the venue (our booth was across from the bar) and order a beer at 10:30 in the morning. Only in Wisconsin. Second, when a bride was looking through our samples, looked at me and said, "Why do you do all this black and white stuff? Do people actually like that?"
I almost laughed.

1.24.10: He is the cutest alarm clock in the world. Even if he's waking me up at 4am.
He must have known that getting up early on Sunday means going to early church.
And at early church the attendees don't care that he makes noise from the back pew.
Actually, since we are a good 50 years younger than the average 8am attendee, they probably can't even hear the noise he is making. Regardless, hooray for a lack of dirty looks!

1.21.10: Simple Things Make it All Better

Here's to today being less crappy than yesterday
(although there was that unfortunate stinky incident in the fabric section of Hobby Lobby).
It's amazing how a diet cherry limeade can improve my mood.
I even got a coupon for a free route 66 size (that's big people!) next time!
It's a good day.

1.20.10: Wordless Wednesday: Crappy Day

Converted to black and white to spare the blog world from seeing mess in all its glory.

1.19.10: Ten on Tuesday (Because I'm a lemming)

Inspired by Laura, who was inspired by Elizabeth, I am jumping on the Ten on Tuesday bandwagon. Heaven knows I need help thinking of things to blog about. And lists are an easy way to brain dump.

1. Hello New Logo! Karl and I are doing a big bridal show this weekend as our way of launching our new name and new branding. The show provides a little black and white banner with the company name on it for signage. I'm sure you would never guess it, but I'm not a black and white banner kind of girl. So I had our logo printed as an 11x14, had it mounted on styrene and then found a cool frame to display it. Now if only those weather dudes would stop forecasting terrible weather for this weekend!

2. Rollin, Rollin, Rollin on the Carpet: It's a good thing we have actively begun the babyproofing process. I left the little dude in the middle of the living room so that I could, um, take care of some business. 2 minutes later I found him hanging out under the end table like it was a perfectly normal thing to do. It is becoming increasingly difficult to contain him. He wants to be *everywhere* except for where I put him.

3. Must See TV: I know Idol is on tonight, but I'm still loyal to Bob and Jillian. P.S. That promotional photo totally looks like an engagement announcement picture, no? Well except for the part where Bob is in a relationship with a man and Jillian is in a relationship with a woman. No matter, I love them both and would have a hard time choosing a trainer if I ever wound up on the BL campus. I think I would *need* Jillian for the butt kicking, but only if I could run to Bob for comfort after Jillian made me puke. Yes, I think about these things. I also eat fat free popcorn while watching so I don't feel guilty when they do the cheesy product placement for sugar free gum.

4. Dear Jake: Speaking of reality t.v., I am very happy that Jake tossed nutcase Michelle. And I'm kind of glad the nanny is gone too. I think I'm pulling for Tenley. Even if I do want to slap her parents for giving her such a bizarre name.


5. My Funny Valentine: I have never wished A.J. was a girl, and I love being a mama to a boy, but I'm pretty sure he would need therapy if I dressed him in bloomers, striped tights and a petticoat. But seriously, I die of cuteness!!

6. A Day to Remember: It's hard to believe that image will be a year old tomorrow. (side note: yes, Barb. There is a picture of President Obama on my blog. Are you still breathing?) But 1.20.09 will always be special to me for an entirely different reason. I watched the inauguration at the hospital while failing my 3 hour gestational diabetes test. And it was during the ceremony that I felt A.J. kick me for the first time. In hindsight, I probably felt him earlier, but that morning was the first time I knew without a doubt that the little monkey growing inside my belly was saying hello.

7. The Countdown: We are less than a month away from our annual Florida vaca. I know A.J. will not remember any of it, but holy cow am I excited to take him to the Magic Kingdom. He won't remember it, but I know he will love it while we're there. Lights, music, and people. All three of those things make my baby really happy. And it is possible that I will be buying him itty bitty mouse ears because I cannot resist the photo op. You're shocked, I'm sure.
8. Paper or Digital: I'm having the great debate in regards to Project Life. I am, as you've probably figured out by now, doing a 365 project, but I'm not sure whether I want to get the paper kit or explore the digital option. Both have their perks. Mainly, I really want to get my hands on those page protectors. At the moment I am considered paper for my 2010 project and the digi template for all of AJs first year. That way I can make multiple copies for gifts if I want to.

9. Bare Walls: I delivered this float wrap to a bride on Saturday and made Karl put it up on the wall so we could take some product shots before it left our possession. And then of course I lamented that we have nothing on our walls. It's totally the cobblers kids have no shoes. We spend all of our time taking pictures of other people, and who wants to put pictures of other people on their walls? But now that we have A.J. the tide is changing a bit. I'm spending a lot of time laying out potential wall gallery arrangements. I will banish the bare walls in 2010!

10. Walker: He's a blog entry all on his own. We are having hard times. It's not something I can talk about yet, but soon.

1.18.10: Me on Monday: Week Three

I am:

• thinking a lot about the impact of my attitude on other people. Going through the drive thru this afternoon, the cashier made a point to thank me for being "so nice." She said that most of the time people are really rude and cold. It made me sad for her. And it made me want to make a point of being nicer. Because you never really know how much a smile can do for a person.
• finding A.J.'s growing independence to be a tad messy. We both were in need of a bath by the time breakfast was over this morning. The monkey man is a great eater, but lately he thinks he can feed himself, which seems to involve grabbing at my hand as the spoon comes near his face. This morning I wound up with pureed peaches on my pants and oatmeal on my sweater. Nice.
• enjoying the fact that I have been in my jammies since 5pm. I made a point of taking a nce long shower when Karl got home from work tonight because I am...
  
• flying solo tomorrow night and Wednesday. Karl is making another Minneapolis trip for work and so the little dude and I will be spending the early part of the evening with Auntie Barb and Uncle Brad. We're bringing a WW friendly dessert, Apple Pear Crisp.
  
• currently watching The Bachelor while I write this. These girls are, um, funny without trying to be funny. As in, I'm laughing at them.
  
• going to be in Florida one month from today. This trip is my key to surviving winters in Wisconsin. Each year we get away for a week to somewhere warm just so I can remind myself winter doesn't last forever.
  

1.17.10: Date Night with Barb

You know, I am fairly certain I have had more dates with Barb since A.J. was born than I have had dates with my own husband. At one point, in the weeks leading up to A.J.'s arrival, I thought I would have to forego this season of Sunday night shows at the Performing Arts Center in order to be more fiscally responsible. I am definitely glad we found the funds in our budget to make it happen. Mama needs her girls night out every couple of months and I am sure A.J. enjoys his guys night with Daddy. Rumor has it they enjoyed some "floor time" and I think they dined on sweet potatoes.

I'm pretty sure this evening was perfect. Amazing food, great company, and Mamma Mia minus Pierce Brosnan.

Here's to a great week ahead!

1.16.10: Saturday Still Life: Operation Grown Up Bedroom

As I mentioned yesterday, the search is on for real grown up bedroom furniture. You know, the kind that doesn't come in a flat box with assembly instructions written in Japanese. Now that we are both in our (gasp) 30s, and responsible for raising a small helpless baby, we figured it would be time to graduate from the Target particle board.

Here are my observations about the furniture search:

• The hunt would be easier if, in addition to having a limitless budget, Karl and I were not actually going to be sharing the bedroom. We have similar styles, but just different enough to make it impossible to find something we both LOVE. And when you're looking at price tags on these pieces, it is imperative that we both LOVE it.
  
• I think furniture stores are where washed up car salesmen go when they're tired of walking the lot. I'm sure I just offended someone. But seriously, I kind of wanted to punch a few over eager sales associates. "No, I do not need your help" should be enough to get you out of my face for a few minutes. And when it is clear that we are making a beeline for the exit with a screaming child who no longer wants to be shopping, it is probably NOT a good time to ask if we need any help AGAIN!
• 549 dollars for a nightstand?? Seriously?
  
• I am still thinking moving into the Pottery Barn catalog is a viable option. Or maybe Laura will let me live in her guest room? I'm sure Charlie would love a playmate.
• Oh and if you are wondering why the photo above is crooked, I have an explanation. I took it at the Amish Home Gallery. And since I know the Amish don't like having their picture taken, I wasn't sure if taking a photo of their craftsmanship was acceptable. So, I shot from the hip. The crooked hip actually.
  

1.15.10: Five on Friday: Things on My Mind

1. Teething sucks: It doesn't help that A.J. is apparently a teething overachiever. Why cut one tooth at a time when you can work on FOUR at once? One broke through this morning, but there are three that are just under the surface. All uppers.
   
2. Once Bitten, Twice Shy: I now live in constant fear of the biting. He has gnawed on my finger on ocassion, but now that the teeth are coming in full force I am just waiting for *the bite*. It doesn't help that more than a few people my life likes to make comments about "Sure you're still breastfeeding now, just wait until he chomps down on you. You'll wean real fast." Thanks for the support, people.
   
3. Pottery Barn for the Poor: Damn you Pottery Barn and your overpriced but absolutely perfect furniture. Actually, you're probably not even overpriced. Just out of our price range. And it makes looking for suitable bedroom furniture that IS in our price range kind of depressing. Wanting what we can't have and all that...
4. Mamma Mia Minus Pierce: Looking forward to my Sunday date with Barb. Our tickets this weekend are for Mamma Mia. It is possible that more than a year after our ill fated trip to the movies, I am still having Pierce Brosnan singing nightmares. That's the kind of stuff that sticks with you. I can only hope that whoever has been cast for the traveling show is better than Bond.
   
5. January Thaw: I have clearly lived "up north" for too long. I almost walked out without a jacket this morning and I'm thrilled about the potential for highs in the *upper* 30s this weekend. Spring is CLEARLY right around the corner. Or not. But you know, I can pretend.
   

1.14.10: Focus on Health and Fitness

Thursdays are weigh in days for me at good ole Weight Watchers. Some Thursdays are good. Other Thursdays, well, not so much.
This Thursday fell in the latter category.

The thing about Weight Watchers is this: it works, when you work at it. Believe it or not, just showing up to weigh in, and having the money withdrawn from my checking account monthly DOES NOT equal automatic weight loss. Bummer.

If I wanted to, I could easily justify the gain this week. I mean, hello, my baby was in the emergency room. I CLEARLY deserved the midnight truffle blizzard from DQ on our way home. I could also blame breastfeeding, since it is known to make it more difficult to lose weight once you get to a certain point. Or I could...well you get the idea. There are many excuses I could throw out there to make me feel better about the number on the scale this week.

But here's the thing: those excuses won't help me lose weight. The truth is I failed to work at it this week. I allowed myself that blizzard, and I didn't bother to figure out the points in the gas station hot cocoa/coffee thing I drank while grocery shopping on Monday night. I skipped out on a couple nights of Wii because I was tired. All of these little things here and there add up to a bad week when it comes time to weigh in.

The good news is today starts a new week. And seeing a gain on the scale this morning is humbling. Now it's time to make a plan so that I don't gain two weeks in a row. A plan that includes a few extra points set aside for a yummo dinner with Barb on Sunday.

1.13.10: Wordless Wednesday: A Worthy Cause

Doing our part to help a worthy cause
(Visit Katrina to find out how you can help)

1.12.10: Motherhood: Not for Wusses

Babies should come with an instruction manual.
One that includes a list of things they will be allergic to.
And while we're at it, it would be nice if calling the nurses line actually yielded you a nurse and not a receptionist who will "have a nurse call you back."
But at least the emergency room is close to our house, and the staff there was amazing.
And now we know that the little monkey man cannot have any more biter biscuits, no matter how much fun he had eating one tonight.

Be back tomorrow with the pictures from the 12 on the 12th challenge for January.
For now, I'm going to bed and hoping not to wake up a million times to check on a certain little man.

1.11.10: Me on Monday Week 2

I am:

• opting for glasses over contact more and more these days. The glasses are easy first thing in the morning. The only downside is that A.J. is fascinated by the glasses and I spend a lot of time prying them out of his hands and cleaning baby fingerprints off the lenses.
• trying every day to FOCUS on what I did get accomplished and not all of the things still to be done. Narrowing my to do list to 7 items each day really seems to help with that.
  
• almost back to the weight I was before Thanksgiving-Christmas-New Years. Hoping to reach my 10% weight loss goal before leaving for Florida on 2/18. Would LOVE to be close to my goal weight by A.J.'s 1st birthday. Only 5 months away.
• craving some creative time. I want to scrap. I want to take pictures. I need to find the time and then FOCUS on making it happen.
  
• the mama of a SEVEN month old. Can't quite wrap my brain around the approaching one year birthday.
  

Sunday Snapshot: Only in Wisconsin...

Your eyes do not deceive you.
That really is an 18 foot tall snowman in our family self portrait.

Some days it is not so fun to live in Wisconsin. Winter is cold and long. There are never enough snow plows on the road and too many drivers wind up in ditches. The lack of sun makes me grumpy.

But today is not one of those bad days. Today is the kind of day that makes me appreciate living somewhere with four seasons. I loved taking A.J. to see the snowman even though I know he won't remember any of it. I love that this family took on such a huge project and is happy to share it with everyone. 4 other families were there taking pictures during the 5 minutes we were there.

A part of me hopes this is the beginning of an annual tradition. How cool would it be if this snowman comes back every winter? How awesome would it be to watch my little guy grow with an 18 foot snowman as his growth chart? But even if it is only for this winter, I am thankful for such a great memory.

Saturday Still Life: Moose

A.J.'s current favorite friend. Plenty of different textures. Legs to pull on, antlers to chew on, and a squeaker in the middle.

Which raises a question...what exactly is the difference between a baby toy and a dog toy?

01.08.10: Focus on Family: Sleep is for the Weak

I'm not quite sure where I first heard this joke, but it is very true. Whoever said "I'm going to sleep like a baby" clearly never had a baby. Sure, some babies sleep. SOMETIMES. But when it comes down to it I don't think I've heard from a single mama who hasn't had some sort of sleep problem with their baby. Sometimes the issue is right in the beginning. Sometimes it comes up later. Sometimes the problem is nighttime sleep. Others have issues with naps. And some people, some very unlucky people, fall into the "all of the above" catagory.

A.J. spoiled us in the beginning. He seemed to come out of the womb with his mama's affinity for sleeping. Pretty much right away we were getting stretches of 3-4 hours of sleep overnight. A.J. would wake up to fill his belly, have his diaper changed and then he would go right back to bed. We felt really lucky to have such an easy newborn. And it got even better. By the time he was about 8 weeks our little monkey man was sleeping ALL NIGHT! He would go to bed with us around 9 and not stir until 6 the next morning.

And then....he started teething. That was back in October. It's now January. We're still not sleeping. It seems like there is always a list of things that could be to blame for A.J.'s poor sleep. His teeth are coming in. He's not swaddled anymore. He's sleeping in his own room and misses having us close. He's going through a growth spurt. His skin is crazy dry because of the weather and his eczema. His stomach is bothering him because he started solid foods.

For each of those potential problems there are five potential solutions and a handful of books that promise they can get your baby back to sleep if only you just read and follow their 10 step program. Some parents swear you have to cry it out. Some swear by the "No Cry" solution. Others claim Ferber solved all of their problems. Healthy Sleep Habits will create a Happy Baby some moms say.

Here's what I say: I think my son lives by the motto "Sleep is for the weak." I guess that means, by default, so do I. We sleep when we can. And while there is always a long list of things for me to do, some days like today, we nap together.

01.07.10: 31 Thursdays Ago

I've been trying to post things other than baby stuff here, but this is worthy of appearing on both my personal blog and the baby blog.
31 Thursdays ago at this very moment I was in a hospital bed, watching The Simpsons with my husband, waiting on the nurses to come and get the room set up for pushing.
2 hours and 25 minutes later I was holding my little monkey man.
One week later, when we brought him home from the hospital the second time, we took a picture of him with his monkey friends:
Unbelievable!

Wordless Wednesday: He Brings Me Flowers

01.06.10
for no reason

Confession is good for the soul

It is January 5th.
It is 2 in the afternoon.
A.J. is wearing a Christmas sleeper.
It's the same Christmas sleeper I put him in after bath last night.

Just in case someone was thinking of nominating me for Mother of the Year, I figured it was best to get this skeleton out of my closet straight away. Sometimes, A.J. wears his jammies all day, just like his mama. And I fully intend to let him wear his first Christmas sleepers until they no longer fit. It seems wasteful not to do so. And I'm pretty sure there is no "What Not to Wear: Baby Edition" on the schedule for TLC.

P.S.- It took 15 shots for me to get that picture up there. Do you know how hard it is to capture baby feet when the baby in question is awake and attempting to roll away from you? This was the only shot remotely in focus, and then I had to do some creative cropping so you wouldn't see the dog hair that is magically attracted to fleece sleepers.

P.P.S- The Biggest Loser starts tonight. I predict I will cry at least once. I also predict I will feel guilty about whatever it is I am snacking on while watching.

Me on Monday: Week One

In honor of the new year, yet another attempt at Project 365, and a new commitment to blogging, I decided I needed a few mini projects to carry me through the year.

So here we are, my first Monday self portrait. Kind of a cop out since you can't really *see* me, but this wasn't exactly a photo friendly kind of day. I was spoiled by two weeks of family time without an alarm clock. 6am came way too early.

Sunday Snapshot: My Guys

Just a little peek into Sunday evening for the Homburg clan. A boy, his Dad and his Moose having a meeting of the minds.

Here's to a weekend with the perfect mix of productivity and relaxing moments.
Back to the real world tomorrow. After two weeks of a loose schedule, that alarm is going to be brutal in the morning.

January 2nd: Focus on Family and Friends

Perk #524 of being a parent: kids toys provide entertainment for grown ups too. Love watching Karl play with the monkey man's new blocks. Can't wait until A.J. is big enough to help in the construction.

Even though Auntie Barb came over to scrap with me, A.J. thinks everyone who walks in the door is here to play with him. Truth: he's often right. Thankful for time to hang out with a friend who knows me and loves me anyway.

In 2010: Focus

I'm sure most of the people who read this (Does anyone still read this? I mean it's not like I've posted anything in...oh 4 months!) know the story of one little word. Inspired by a post on Ali's blog on the eve of 2007, I chose one word to guide me during the upcoming year rather than making a bunch of resolutions.

In 2007, my word was FORWARD. By the end of the year I had given my notice at the television station and committed to working full time in photography. In 2008, I chose the word BLISS, making a promise myself to chase after the things that made me truly happy. That's the year I started this blog. And the year we found another infertility specialist. And the year I got over my fear of needles so that I could inject myself with crazy hormones. But those hormones made me a MAMA! What a blissful year 2008 was! Last year I chose the word BLESSED as a reminder to focus on all of the amazing things happening in my life. Being mama to Anderson James is the most amazing blessing.

Now I'm welcoming 2010 with a new word to guide the first year in a new decade. That word is FOCUS. It seems quite fitting for a photographer to choose the word focus, but my love of photography really didn't play much of a role in my decision. The word "found me" a few weeks ago, while I was having one of many conversations with Barb (this one happened over the most amazing meal I've had in many many months but that's another story). The underlying theme of the conversation was that I was overwhelmed with a feeling that I "sucked at life." That's elloquent, right? What I meant was I had so many balls in the air, and a to do list so long, that just the idea of tackling any one thing was enough to send me over the edge. Barb, being the smart person she is, suggested making a smaller list from my big to do list and trying to tackle 7 things a day. The list is still long, but the portion feels more manageable. That concept helped me make it through my first holiday season as a mama.

So how will FOCUS help me in 2010? Well, I'm hoping that one little word will help me set manageable goals in this new year. To start off with, I plan to:

• Focus on Family: I am not capable of loving anything more than I love the two guys in my life. I want to make sure they know that in 2010.
  
• Focus on Friends and Fun: I am blessed with an amazing network of friends near and far. I want to make more memories with those friends and expand my circle. I would like to manage my time better so I can do creative things without feeling guilty.
  
• Focus on Finances: Nothing says being a grown up like making (and sticking to) a budget. Saving money is not as fun as spending money, but I'm hoping to challenge myself to be thrifty with what I have and find creative ways to save money.
  
• Focus on Fitness: A.J. deserves a healthy mama. that means eating better and getting reaquainted with the gym.
  
• Focus on Photography: so many ideas, so little time to implement them. I need to focus on the baby steps to get things done in our business.

So, bring it on 2010! I am ready for you!

P.S. I am going to try and be here more too!!