Weaning Day 1: Yeah, Right.

Yesterday was my baby's 15 month checkup appointment. When she was a tiny baby she had the chubbiest thighs and this booty that her pants wouldn't fit over. I really thought she'd be off the charts in the height and weight department (repeat after me: its not a contest. its not a contest. its not a contest.) but ever since she started walking her clothing started falling off of her and she has turned into this picky eater who only likes raisins, black olives, and edamame!

The doctor did not like what she saw after we had wrestled Autumn on to the scale and gotten an average of the three attempts. She had only gained 4 ounces in three months and had "flat lined" on the growth chart. "Let's see her back here in a month. Meanwhile, what are you feeding her?"

I cringe when people ask me this question. It really depends on where we are and what mood she is in. When we go to my friend's house she seems to be interested in EVERYTHING such as Pop Tarts, Fruit Loops, dill pickles, quick breads, peanut butter, baby bottles, etc. At home she wants one thing and its down my shirt.

I told her that I offer her a variety of foods but it comes down to that she wants crackers. Anything crackery or bready she seems to like, and also cheese. She refuses to let me feed her anything and she won't eat without a fork or spoon. Don't I kick myself for thinking introducing those utensils at 11 months was a good idea.

"What should I do? Give her bacon and donuts???" I asked.

"Yes. Well, donuts are empty calories but stuff like that that has fat, protein, and calories. Oh and give her chocolate milk." The benefits of the milk outweigh the chocolate's tasty badness apparently.

Ah, the milk dilemma. She really does not like milk unless I make it personally. As of late I have been thinking to myself that I really want my body back. I want to be able to eat less if I want to, to drink 3 coffees a day if I want to, and if I want to exercise so hard that a bunch of ketones go into my blood, well, I want that to be my business. I also do not want the cold hand of death going down my shirt everytime I sit down on the couch. I want feeling to return to my....well you know.

The pediatrician yesterday said "You can wean her now. She doesn't need it and it sounds like you are ready." Boy am I ever. The past few nights she has acted like she wants to nurse and then bites the crap out of me. So I was thinking chocolate milk might be the answer to this issue.

Wrong.

She hates chocolate milk. The above picture was taken right before she actually took a gulp. That's why she's smiling. Shortly after she made a face of horror and then chucked the sippy on the floor. So glad I put it in one with a plug in it. Maybe I put too much chocolate in (didn't know there was such a thing...) or maybe she just wasn't thirsty. I will try again today. But as usual when she woke up at the unexpected hour of 6:30am and I had only gotten about 4 hours of sleep and my poor husband had gotten home at 2:00am my first response was to lift shirt and insert baby. Perhaps I can just step it down for the first few days and only do mornings. I'm stronger after my first cup of coffee.

Was That Real or Just a Dream

View of Myrtle Beach at Night

Did I even really leave? You may or may not know that for the first time I left all three kids and my husband home for an entire week to go visit my sister during the week of her son's birth in North Carolina. It was surreal to just get on a plane and not really look back. This is the first time I have ever left my 1 year old for more than a couple of hours and she was not weaned. My husband deserves a medal.

Grand Isle Ferry

We left on Saturday afternoon out of Plattsburgh (I think that has an "H" at the end...) on DirectAir straight to Myrtle Beach. A little background on DirectAir if you have never heard of them like me: They only fly on certain days of the week and only 2 times per day so they load those planes up as tight as possible which allows them to charge less airfare, but then charge you $30 for 1 checked bag and $35 for each bag after. I see it as paying $.99 in an eBay auction and then $35 for shipping.

When we arrived 2 hours early to the Plattsburgh airport we noticed a large mass of black leather jacketed fellows speaking french. Each one had a case with them the size of a small casket. Hoo boy. Canadian golfers are a jolly bunch, and it was our luck (not saying good or bad lol) that there was some kind of golfing expo in South Carolina that week. We were not as amused as we were at the end of the line with about 100+ of them in front of us, each checking at least one of these monstrosities.

Canadians Waiting for the Plane

When we finally got through the baggage line (my Mom just needed to check one measly little suitcase) we then had to go through security. It wasn't so bad I suppose. Then we got on the plane. We were right on schedule when we got seated, but for some reason the plane wasn't moving. Now I have only gone on a few plane rides in my life but I know that usually they let you know if there is a delay right off. After about 10 min we hear over the intercom:

"Ladies and gentlemen, due to the 200 checked items that need to be loaded on to this plane we will have a slight delay in takeoff."

Then another 15 minutes later we hear:

"Ladies and gentlemen the pilot has gone out to help with the baggage loading. We should be ready shortly for takeoff."

Finally another 5-10 minutes after that the pilot comes back on the plane looking a bit sweaty and tired (Oh crap) and the flight attendant says "Everyone let's give the pilot a round of applause for going out there and getting those bags on!"

Seriously?? Wow. That's what happens when you try to cram as many people on one flight as possible, and that's what happens when people try to fly cheaper because of all the new airline fees. Oh and the 'refreshments' are no longer free either. They are $2 each. For a FREAKING BAG OF .50 CRACKERS.

The lady sitting next to me mixed a Bloody Mary as soon as the attendant was walking around. I have recently given up trying to drink alcohol because of the physical effects it gives me. I prayed for no turbulence.

We arrived around 10, I can't remember exactly. Maybe it was 9:30 who cares. Checked into the Breakers hotel on the beach. One thing about parking in Myrtle Beach: IT SUCKS. The hotels have these narrow little lots that if you go down the wrong one you have to BACK out between two rows of cars and not kill anyone if you are lucky. Nothing is marked clearly. We finally figured out which building of this monster hotel it was supposed to be and got out.

The elevator had an open half empty can of Bud Light sitting quietly on the floor:

The room wasn't bad, nice view...

but we were treated to an open dirty cloth diaper with a huge crap in it right next to our car (driver's side hehehe) in the morning.

Classy.

Don't you hate when weeds push up through the concrete?

We drove three hours to Morrisville and checked in to the Four Points Sheraton (the one right near Hooter's and BoJiggly's) and got this gorgeous room with 4 feather pillows on each bed and a comfy down comforter.

Mom sorting out her electronics

It was nice and quiet and parking was way nicer. For the first time in years I slept like a log all the way through the night, and not the kind of log we found in the parking lot of the other place. Unfortunately feather pillows sound good on paper but really screw up your neck :( It was ok though, I dealt.

I left on this trip saying to a few people that I was going to try to lose 10 lb while away from the kids and not nursing and all that.

Those are fat free waffles, right?

Yeah right. There was a gym on site at the hotel but we were on the 6th floor and it was near the lobby where all the drunk people be at. I went down there twice and used the elliptical for a half hour. The first time was ok but the second time there was a very creepy dude in there and it was just him and I so I didn't stay long. Instead I went back to the room and made my Mom watch CSI: NY with me and then the news. I have never seen news so depressing in my life. It was murder, murder, stabbing, robbery, "Child reunited with parents after kidnapping!", murder, robbery, murder, car accident, fire, robbery, etc. The guy was talking so damn fast because he had so much to report that I gave up and just looked at the pictures.

Sarah the day before Luke was born

I won't talk too much about my sister's birth experience as it is her story to tell, but she had a crazy adorable little boy named Luke:

and I got to hold him, change him, rock him to sleep, and give her and her husband little breaks so they could nap. I love newborns. I wish I could have a job where I just go to someone's house that just had a baby and take care of them for a few days until they were rested up and ready.

My mom and I did get to take a couple of walks (I forced her hehehe) and I filled up both camera flash cards.

This is a house near my sister's apt complex. Yeah, I know. I thought it was a federal building also.

NC foliage was just as good as VT foliage was! I got to see foliage for like 3 months straight LOL

We had to leave my sister on Saturday afternoon and drive back to Myrtle Beach for a short stay at another hotel and then an early flight out Sunday.

Random wildfires on the side of I-95 South. I called 911 but the dude didn't seem too excited.

That hotel was called Paradise Resort.

View from the balcony on the 18th floor

We got the 18th floor and figured it would be a nice quiet chance to fall asleep listening to the waves. WRONG. There was one of those suite doors between our room and the next one and clearly it was meant to be shared because we could hear the group of people in there laughing, talking, slamming crap around, and finally leaving at 11:30pm. We had to be up at 4. I shouldn't have drank that Barq's at Burger King on the way down but I did and therefore was up until 12:30am.

I need this sign over my front door.

When we got to the airport we could hear this odd slapping sound coming from the group of black leather jackets waiting at the baggage check line. As we drew closer we could see that the bonding experience of Canadian Golfing must have been intense because they were all hugging, slapping each other on the back (I hope) and doing these odd handshake combos that I only usually see on CSI:Miami. Whatev. Luckily they must have learned from the last time that they need to hussle getting those damn golf bags on the plane and we didn't have a delay.

I was hoping for lots of cool cumulus and stratus clouds to take pics of but dangit, it was a beautiful day. I did get to see some anti-crepuscular rays created by the airplane's shadow which no one was excited about except me:

Anticrepuscular rays are the dark shadow lines to the right of the wing

When I got home there was no one here. I sat in the kitchen feeling my anxiety building. I am not sure why, but I can only imagine that it is as my friend Fran said, "Guilt from enjoying yourself without them" and Nancy also shed some light "It is hard to face a crowd of adoring fans" So hard that I thought I was going to be spending my entire alone time in the bathroom trying not to puke!!!

My expectations were that the kids would run up to the house, hug me, and then go about their business of annoying the crap out of me. I also envisioned my darling baby seeing me, kicking her legs and holding her arms out to me in delight that I was finally back and that she must have missed me to death.

Ah, to dream.

The older kids did exactly what I imagined. However, when my husband brought Autumn in from the car she looked at me like I was a stranger. She buried her face into Kris' shoulder and clung to him. I took her, well I PRIED her off of him and tried to hug her. She pushed me away violently and arched her back, screaming as if someone was trying to steal her! I tried talking to her but she wouldn't even look at me. My heart was breaking. I tried putting her down and then picking her back up but she just reached for her daddy and when he picked her up she buried her face in his shoulder again. Then she looked at me shyly and kept her head on him. I just sat there, not knowing how to react. I could feel tears welling up and started to wonder if I made a horrible mistake leaving her that long. I had these thoughts that I had scarred her for life, that I had created a rift that would not go away. I started to think of every bad thing possible. I mean, I have nursed this baby endlessly for the past 12 months and in 1 week it seemed that the bonding we had done was just...gone.

I thought maybe if I put the camera in front of my face she'd recognize me...

Instead of continuing on that destructive path however, I got down on the floor and had Kris put her down there. I had him go in the other room and tried playing with her. She still looked at me warily like she didn't know who I was. I got her to let me pick her up and brought her to the laundry room. I changed her diaper and then took her into the living room. I lifted my shirt and offered her my breast (it was the only thing I could think of that might bring her around) and she latched on immediately, reaching up for my hair which she always twirls in her fingers while she is feeding. A look of recognition sparked in her eyes as she looked up at me from that angle. She smiled a little out of the corner of her mouth and then closed her eyes, still holding and twirling my hair.

Amazingly I am still producing milk after a week of only pumping twice. Guess I am not done nursing. You know, I am really ok with that.

Ever since that moment when she realized who I was she has wanted me to hold her and now is back to normal, if not a little clingier than before. If I set her down she is constantly checking to make sure I am still there. Its a good feeling if not a bit selfish but I'm glad I have my baby back. And I wouldn't trade my experience with my sister and her family for anything either.

Alex was psyched I was home...Kris had been actually disciplining him all week!

A Rash Decision

Don't you just love my pun titles. I get that from my mother ;)

My little darling is all growed up...she is getting her first teeth! At almost 8 months old she is the first of my three to get a tooth before 1 year! Her bottom two are coming up and out. So far the worst symptom is a horrible rash on her patootie!! At first I thought it was the solid food she has been hogging down (mostly carrots, sweet potatoes, and mixed veggies) but then I talked to someone who takes care of a baby almost her exact age getting the same exact teeth and they had the same problem!

After going through several days with minimal naptimes, an entire tube of Desitin, and seeing no improvement I decided to try a different cream. I feel that Desitin works well if you use it at the first signs of a rash (before it gets angry and bloody) but once it is really bad it doesn't seem to be able to heal it. So after standing in the grocery store for a good 10 minutes in the butt cream aisle I decided to give ol' A&D a try. Wow what a difference! Within the first use her rash was much less ugly, and this morning when I changed her she looked almost normal! You don't use as much of it either as its very creamy and not greasy at all. I combined using the A&D cream with a dose of infant's Ibuprofen every 6 hours and my angry, screaming baby turned back into my giggling goofball again. Phew!! I thought I lost her!

What I take away from this experience is: Don't be afraid to try new things if the standbys don't work. Imagine if your butt looked like you played slip n slide in the driveway without the slip n slide and you had to rely on someone who can't understand you to make it all better!! You would want them to try everything!!! ;-)

Straying From the Norm---Smart or Just Plain Crazy?

Since I am plugged into Facebook/Internet for the better part of my waking moments due to marathon nursing sessions I came across a "fan page" or "group" called "Pampers: Bring back the old Cruisers/Swaddlers!!!"

This piqued my interest since I LOVED the box of Swaddlers that one of my husband's relatives sent us a few months ago. So soft, absorbent, felt like a blankie on both inside and out, and didn't give her red marks. As I read some of the posts and looked at some of the pictures of burned baby booty I started to get a little freaked out. I read more on this subject of Pampers switching how they make these diapers (now with an added feature called Dry Max) which seems to be causing much discomfort to many babies. They are made by Proctor and Gamble, who also make the cheaper version called Luvs.

I use Luvs, as I am cheap. I had noticed that her little butt crack would get red for no good reason. I am exclusively breastfeeding her as she HATES baby food right now so its not a new food (except maybe for Dill Pickles but that's another blog). The only new thing lately is she has been on antibiotics for an ear infection. But this redness (its not even a rash really) has been going on longer.

After doing quite a lot of reading something in me snapped and I ordered a set of cloth diapers, wipes, and covers. They shipped that same day (Saturday) and arrived on Monday! I set them up around me and looked at them. Now what?? When I first had kids, the thought of cloth diapering turned me OFF! All I could think was GROSS! I just pictured having to fight the kid to pin on some odd shaped piece of cloth and then everytime they peed I figured it would get all over and be nasty!

Let me just say, THANK YOU GOD FOR YOUTUBE!!! I usually don't have much use for YouTube anymore but wow you can seriously find an educational video on ANYTHING!!! Here's the link for how to fold a cloth diaper just like the kind I bought!!

My stash^

What I bought is:

• Organic cotton prefold cloth diapers
• Bummi Whisper White Covers
• SposoEasy All in One Diaper (for those occasions where we may be out or someone else may have to change her)
• Snappi Diaper Clip (No pins needed!!)

Where I bought it from is Green Mountain Diapers

I am not so hardcore, however, that I will never use disposables. Until I am more used to it and she is eating solids more she will be wearing either Huggies Naturals or Seventh Generations for bedtime and when we go out.

First attempt at using the Prefold with the Snappi

With the Bummi cover on

Wearing a Seventh Generation Diaper. You can see the redness on her thigh (left in the picture) from wearing the other diapers (Luvs).

So far she has only peed in them...

Breastfeeding News--Metabolic Syndrome

Breastfeeding Protects Women from Metabolic Syndrome, a Diabetes and Heart Disease Predictor

ScienceDaily (Dec. 3, 2009) — Breastfeeding a child may lower a woman's risk of developing metabolic syndrome, a condition linked to heart disease and diabetes in women, according to a Kaiser Permanente study that was published today online ahead of print and will appear in the February issue of Diabetes, a journal of the American Diabetes Association.

Breastfeeding a child lowers risk by 39 to 56 percent (depending on the duration of breastfeeding) for women without gestational diabetes, and 44 to 86 percent (depending on the duration of breastfeeding) for women with gestational diabetes, researchers said. Investigators looked at durations that included 0-1 month of lactation up to greater than 9 months of lactation.

Previous research has shown that lactating women have more favorable blood levels of glucose and lipids within several weeks after delivery than women who were not lactating. Other studies have reported much weaker protective associations of breastfeeding with the presence of metabolic syndrome and diabetes in middle-aged and older women.

Read the entire article here!

My PostPartum Wishlist

So I spend a lot of time watching TV as my 8 week old likes to nurse constantly, and also doesn't get good naps anywhere else but my lap. I see a lot of commercials and shows that recommend a lot of exercise equipment for in-home workouts. My compiled list of things I want to try:

Sketchers Shape Ups

Mini Trampoline

SAM-e supplements

Bender Ball

Five Fingers Shoes

I hope my husband gets a job soon lol

Sling Me!

Autumn sleeping in the Star Sling

Because I seem to have a very cuddly baby who loves to be swaddled I have been looking for a few good slings.

My friend Astrid let me borrow the Peanut Shell (www.thepeanutshell.com). It is not like any I had ever tried before. It is made of fleece and basically reminds me of one of those Turtle Fur neck bands only way bigger. You put it over one shoulder (almost fits like a shawl) and there is some extra fabric up front to make space for the baby. I was able to nurse her in it while walking around TJ Maxx and also had dinner at Moe's when she was 9 days old very peacefully! She's getting a bit too heavy for it already though, at least to lay in it the traditional cradle way. I think when she can hold her head up firmly and is more stable over all she'll be able to ride in different positions in it.

My friend Jamie's friend Rachel (hehe) gave me a sling from Star Slings (www.starslings.com) that is made of a denim type material. Its stronger, not flexible like the fleece one, and is shaped more like a regular sling. This one hurts my back less but it was hard for me to get Autumn in there in a position that she was comfortable in as well. There are no adjustable parts on this one either, so it was a matter of spinning it around my torso until it was just the right angle. She is now sleeping happily in it as I type. I can see this one being one I will reach for while doing housework and doing anything that requires 2 hands! I don't think I can nurse her easily in this one just yet. She is 5 weeks old today and I would estimate weighs about 11-12 lbs or more. She is growing fast!

I also have a Baby Bjorn that is on its 4th kid and a Snugli which I really wish I could use more often but they KILL my back. The Bjorn is best, and perhaps when Autumn is ready to face forward I will find it more comfortable but for now it has to be so high up on my chest that I need a massage after wearing it for more than 15 min or so!

Best Invention Ever (For New Moms)

Even though I'm 30 and on my 3rd kid I do still have some vanity issues. I do still care what I look like to some extent (although lately I'm starting to feel that fade a bit ha ha) and I don't want to be a mom with a FUPA (if you don't know what that means go HERE).

On the back of a Fit Pregnancy magazine...now THERE'S an oxymoron! I saw an advertisement for something called the Belly Bandit. I should have ordered it right then and there but it was a little "pricey" for my cheap arse so I hesitated. The cheapest one is $40-$45 depending what website you buy it from. The Belly Bandit website of course is more expensive. I got mine from Best Baby Organics website for $40. Free shipping too!!

Here is a before picture of me...shudder and apologies for my gross body!!!! But its beautiful, right hahahaha!This is me about 4 days after giving birth. Floppy!!! And my insides ached like crazy this time.

This is me wearing the Belly Bandit (also known as a compression wrap):

And this is my stomach after wearing it for TWO DAYS and nights!!!!!!:


Unbelievable!! The After pictures are me 7 days after having the baby! I was so excited to see that it actually is working and I didn't waste my money. The only cons so far are that once you start to make it tighter it starts to buckle in a few places and it rides up under my boobs, and if I get sweaty at all it starts to itch where my stretch marks are. I remedied the itch by putting a couple of kleenex between my skin and the wrap. I think that the more expensive versions probably don't have this problem because they have covers on them or are made of bamboo which breathes easier.

The other part that is hard is it takes commitment because you have to wear it day AND night for 6 weeks. If you take it off, you look great but then you start to sag again because you need to give your muscles time to get used to being hard again and not floppy. Also I notice that when I take it off to shower I can feel the achiness coming back. Its probably not so bad if you haven't had other children before or if you were in excellent shape and exercised through your entire pregnancy. However I was not and did not because of the type of job I have which was me sitting on my butt for 8 hours a day answering phones. Ugh.

I have been wearing it for a week now so I will post some more pics after its been a couple of more weeks to show the progress.

Oh and here is a pre-third baby pic of me so you can see what I am going to have to try to come close to attaining again:

This picture was taken after the first 2 were born so I know I can lose the weight. I don't think I will ever be that skinny again but that's ok. I just want to be able to wear jeans again instead of sweatpants all the time!!

Will I Ever Get to Be a Happy Housewife?

Image Source cause I don't like skankin'

I find myself at 30 years old on my second marriage with 2 white cats named Fluffy (#1 and #2 respective to their adoptions), 2 school age kids, a newborn, and unfortunately the better paying job. How many ladies out there have a similar situation? My first marriage was to someone who had a decent enough job so that I only had to work part time for the first 2 years of my eldest child's life, and I chose to go back to work after my 2nd child was born since we had to upgrade to a bigger house than a 2 bedroom flat. After a work related divorce (ironic eh?) 2 years later, a quickie marriage to my current husband, and 4 1/2 years after #2 was born I became pregnant. I lost the baby at 11 weeks, and even though it was horrible timing and had been unplanned, I felt desperate to regain the child I had lost and became pregnant again 8 weeks later, due October 15th.

My husband was a grad student at the University and was set to complete his Master's in June of this year. Then it got pushed to August, then September, and finally October 1. We had hypothesized that he would have been done in June, and would have had plenty of time to get a real job that paid enough for me to stay home and care for our growing brood (I even wouldn't mind adding a 4th at sometime in the not too near future...) and that we would have plenty of time to figure out ourselves by October 15th for sure.

Well, life happens, as my wise boss says. First, my darling newborn decided to wait to be born 12 days late. Despite getting the medieval torture method of stripping the membranes 3 separate times. Yes, that DOES hurt by the way. A lot. Anyway, I tried to continue working up to the bitter end, but my third grader apparently picked his nose at the wrong time and came down with the dreaded Swine Flu when I was 41 weeks pregnant. I began to exhibit symptoms so I called and got on Tamiflu immediately in hopes to stave off the dreaded deadly preggo killer. I walked away from the battle with a nasty sinus inflammation and a bad headache but never had a fever or any coughing/pneumonia symptoms.

I even got vaccinated for H1N1 (or Influenza A as they are keen to call it this week) the day before she was born so its at the bottom of my Stress List. I was one of the "lucky" ones to get the liquid gold. Of course, I felt like a governmental guinea pig and every fiber of my being said not to get it as it hasn't been thoroughly tested and if I'm only supposed to take Claritin sparingly while pregnant and can't even take Advil why would I submit to injecting myself with something that could cause who knows what harm. BUT everyone and their mother are storming the castle trying to get a dose so I felt compelled and left it up to God.

I went into labor at 1:00 AM on Oct 27th and delivered my beautiful perfect little girl baby at 6:37 AM.
"Any special requests?" my doctor asked.
"Epidural now please." I replied.
And after 4ish hours of drugged bliss they gave the A-OK to begin pushing. And, I swear, turned off the drugs. That's a new one for me.

I pushed her out in 5 minutes as it was horribly uncomfortable to feel a baby head lodged in my nether regions and I wasn't keen on letting her hang out there for very long. She had the cord wrapped around her neck 1 time and was a little Smurf-like, but once they unwrapped it and sucked out the goo she pinked right up and was a fine little turkey.

"What is her name?" my doctor asked.
"Fluffy #3" I said. I couldn't decide on a real name at that moment! I was just so happy to finally be able to sit up without feeling like Gumby!

My husband is still lacking in the job department, although to his defense he only graduated a month ago, but it is a frightening thought that after 6 weeks of being my children's mother again that I will have to go back to working all day every day to support our household. My husband gets a little bit for continuing to work for the college for the next couple of months, but he came to the marriage with baggage as many people do, and has his own bills to pay on top of contributing to our combined ones.

What do I do, quit and go on Welfare? It is tempting to say the least. I don't know if I want to work anymore. Not because I am lazy, or because I don't like my job, but because I'm sick of reading about all the troubled children who are committing crimes at younger and younger ages with their parents being totally blindsided because they had no idea what their kids were up to. Why? Because they were both full time at work, sometimes working 2 jobs each!! And why does this country only allow for 12 weeks of maternity leave, when day care costs so much you have to work 2 jobs to pay for it additionally? How can Europeans get away with a year of PAID leave and here we are lucky to get 6 weeks of it paid? I want to actually raise my children, not just pop them out and leave it up to them!

I'm starting to think Women's Lib is backfiring on those of us who want our husbands to take care of us. I think that part of the reason that the divorce rate has skyrocketed is because we wives don't have the respect we used to for our husbands. We can do it all ourselves, so if they piss us off we can just shed them and move on looking for the next unfulfilling relationship.

There isn't that sense of the unbreakable bond of family that there used to be. Dad is no longer the "Head of Household" by default, and Mom is no longer "always there for you".

I know there are some success stories of Supermoms who can juggle it all and have their kids turn out just fine. But I don't feel like I'm Supermom material. I'm mostly regular Mom material. I think I would have a nervous breakdown trying to make everyone happy and hold it all together. I just want to put on a polka dot dress with an apron, learn how to cook beyond Peanut Butter and Fluff sandwiches, and wear high heels and pearls while vacuuming. Is that too much to ask?

Fluffy #1

Fluffy #2

Fluffy #3