Seven Quick Takes

A couple weeks ago, I wrote a post that was bit of a downer. Okay, I'll just come right out and say it was whiny. :-P. So to mix things up, I'm going to write about a few things that I'm thankful for!

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1. We have a date for Adam's return! He is planning on leaving Virginia on Monday, and ending up here in Oklahoma by Tuesday-- making it exactly five weeks that he's been gone. (Dramatic pause for your gasp) I have infinitely more appreciation for military moms after this month! Adam's kind of worried that Baby D won't remember him, but I keep saying that even if he doesn't, Adam will be his BFF in like five minutes anyway. That kid is a daddy's boy!

We do what we can with substitute father figures.

2. And he's bringing help! Adam will most likely be bringing his sister to help us move. This is very good news, because I just realized yesterday that I have a week to get everything done (our lease is up on the 31st). Eep!

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3. The beginning of a new life for us. I've noticed that when people stay in one place for too long, they tend to get entrenched in stupid habits or acquiesce to substandard elements in their lives. About a day after Adam landed in D.C., he told me, "Oh Maria, this is where we need to be!" Since we got the ball rolling for the move, many things have happened to infuse some freshness back into my life-- and I'm not even out of Oklahoma yet! I'm very much looking forward to the better things to come- a washing machine in the apartment (!!!), a car that is not a death trap, proximity to relatives... just those things that I gave up on in Oklahoma.

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4. The end of an era for Baby D. In a few days, we will have had seven successful months of exclusive breastfeeding! I meant to delay starting him on solids until we got to Virginia, but Baby D was recently very sneaky. The other day, when I let him taste the banana I was eating, he instantly bit off a big chunk, gummed it up, and swallowed it right there! Looks like someone is raring to go on those solids! ;-) So, to go along with this growing up thing, I've decided to start calling him by his real name on the blog. I realized the other day that he's not going to be a baby forever, and it might get kind of weird when he's twelve and I'm still calling him Baby D! :-P

Evidently, our ghetto playpen is delicious!

5. Diaper providence. I had been squeezing... Oscar into too-small diapers for a month, until two exciting things happened. First, we got a much larger tax refund than we were expecting. Adam allotted me an exorbitant sum to spend on cloth diapers, but being the die-hard penny-pincher, I just bought the bare minimum needed (and they were one-size diapers-- after going through two sets of diapers in six months, I've learned my lesson). Now for the second exciting thing! I have been entering online diaper giveaways for at least eight months without winning a single thing. However, this past month- hold onto your seat!- I won not one... but four diapers!!! Something tells me that a Higher Power was tweaking random.org. :-P

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6. My friend Marie. Marie, whom I've known since freshman year at college, has always been a great friend, but since Adam left, she's been a downright lifesaver! Car rides, meals, Oscar relief, company for some of those lonely days-- she has been a tremendous blessing. Of all the things I'll miss in Oklahoma, she will top the list!

Here's an OLD picture (2004) from a college "Roommate Date" event,
where a person asks someone out on behalf of their roommate.
Marie eventually married some other guy at the event who was
NOT her date, and my date turned out to be extremely creepy.
Just in case you were wondering.

Spring break 2005-- on the train at Disney World
with some of my my favorite ladies!
Marie is on the far left.

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7. Purging. Packing is taking me forever because I'm asking, "Do we really need this?" for every item. It is wonderful to see all the clutter melt away! It is not-so-wonderful to realize that I've been hanging onto some of this stuff for three years, so it has been a good wake-up call about taking inventory of what I allow to take precious square footage in my house. I've thrown out or craigslisted most of the furniture-- including a bookshelf to a Scentsy saleswoman. Why oh why did I not think of asking her to pay in Scentsy products? ;-)


There is a lot of exciting stuff going on around here! To read other's 7QT, head on over to Conversion Diary.