I finally thought of new things to add to my Christmas list.
BAKING SHEETS.
EVERY time I've gotten a good one specifically for baking, it gets ruined.
K does most of the cooking in the house and I don't like to criticize but we have giant rolls of aluminum foil that he should be using.
I tried using two different cleaners on the most recent effed up sheet. We haven't even had it that long. I tried vinegar + Dawn dish soap, which worked great in my bathroom but barely touched this weird greasy black stuff that was all over the pan. I then tried hydrogen peroxide and baking soda and that did a little more. I wound up using a metal spatula and scraping it but that barely did anything. It has these grooves in the metal and after scraping about a quarter of them, I gave up. I walked out of the room to get something from my office and the pan was gone when I came back. K threw it away.
I reminded him about the aluminum foil as I cleaned up Thursday night's pot pie from my really good cookie sheet.
His mom likes to tell a story about how when our place was being remodeled and we were staying with her, I did the dishes and scrubbed one of her baking sheets. According to her, the baked on stuff is "where the flavor comes from". Ew. I'm sorry but I was not raised that way and I am not going to have greasy, nasty sheets in my cupboards.
The only other things on my Christmas list thus far are gift cards to The Container Store so that I can get the organizing setup (similar to this) for Simon's closet door so all my craft stuff isn't taking up his whole closet. The Container Store does a giant Elfa sale in January so I figure if I get gift cards, I can use those on it then.
I've been talking about getting a Mint robot but I don't know if I really want one or not. I'm scared to plunk down or be gifted an expensive thing like that only for it not to work as I'd like. I vacuum at least once a week if not more and K is starting to vacuum as well but even that isn't completely getting rid of all the pet hair.
I have maybe a half hour before the kid wakes up so I'm going to wander the internet and look at reviews of that thing for a bit.
Friday, October 26, 2012
Thursday, October 18, 2012
Simon's Mom
Yesterday, a friend posted on Facebook asking what honorific title other people preferred they use, specifically asking ladies she knew.
I explained that I have used "Ms." since I could fill out my own forms and that it didn't matter much anyway as pretty soon, I'd just be "Simon's Mom" soon.
I think my tone came across incorrectly though because she posted that I wouldn't just be Simon's Mom and a few people "liked" that comment.
I grew up calling people's parents "[friendsname's Mom]" or "Mrs./Mr. [friendslastname]". Since my last name isn't the same as Simon's, I don't expect little kids to know it or for Simon to explain himself every time someone uses my husband's last name to address me.
I'm okay with being Simon's Mom. Making the commitment to try to have children with my husband made me realize that I'd be committing myself indefinitely to his family, a family that hasn't had a baby in over 18 years. I knew what this meant.
There are jokes made - a lot by one of K's uncles - about making sure that I'm greeted when we come to family functions. It's funny because there is a big ol' grain of truth in it. Simon is the main event and I can sit on the sidelines and watch while he interacts with my in-laws. I've never been much for being the center of attention and I certainly don't feel a need to compete for attention against my own son.
The "Simon's Mom" comment comes from a conversation I had with one of his aunts about how the shitty midwife I had commented on the fact that my last name is different than my husband and that it would cause difficulties with my son while he was growing up. She said that she was called [her kids names] Mom and that it really, really didn't matter.
I was around 6 months pregnant when I met this midwive her as I was doing what they call rotating through the roster. The comment pissed me off. I asked online if I was just being sensitive and I was asked how old she was. I can't imagine she was more than mid-40s so I didn't understand the comment. Maybe she was confused when I said "husband" after looking at my chart?
I kept my last name because I love it. It's not perfect and it doesn't go with many names. It is my mom's maiden name and when I was engaged, I told my husband I didn't want to take his last name and he was fine with it - he said if my last name would have gone better with his first name, he might even consider taking mine. We decided together that Simon would have his last name as it goes much better and I didn't want a hyphenated last name little kid. I don't think having a different last name puts Simon at a disadvantage. I grew up with my mom having a different last name and it was rarely if ever questioned and considering the amount of people who aren't married who have kids now, I'd imagine it is far more common and far less of an issue than shitty midwife wants people to think.
I explained that I have used "Ms." since I could fill out my own forms and that it didn't matter much anyway as pretty soon, I'd just be "Simon's Mom" soon.
I think my tone came across incorrectly though because she posted that I wouldn't just be Simon's Mom and a few people "liked" that comment.
I grew up calling people's parents "[friendsname's Mom]" or "Mrs./Mr. [friendslastname]". Since my last name isn't the same as Simon's, I don't expect little kids to know it or for Simon to explain himself every time someone uses my husband's last name to address me.
I'm okay with being Simon's Mom. Making the commitment to try to have children with my husband made me realize that I'd be committing myself indefinitely to his family, a family that hasn't had a baby in over 18 years. I knew what this meant.
There are jokes made - a lot by one of K's uncles - about making sure that I'm greeted when we come to family functions. It's funny because there is a big ol' grain of truth in it. Simon is the main event and I can sit on the sidelines and watch while he interacts with my in-laws. I've never been much for being the center of attention and I certainly don't feel a need to compete for attention against my own son.
The "Simon's Mom" comment comes from a conversation I had with one of his aunts about how the shitty midwife I had commented on the fact that my last name is different than my husband and that it would cause difficulties with my son while he was growing up. She said that she was called [her kids names] Mom and that it really, really didn't matter.
I was around 6 months pregnant when I met this midwive her as I was doing what they call rotating through the roster. The comment pissed me off. I asked online if I was just being sensitive and I was asked how old she was. I can't imagine she was more than mid-40s so I didn't understand the comment. Maybe she was confused when I said "husband" after looking at my chart?
I kept my last name because I love it. It's not perfect and it doesn't go with many names. It is my mom's maiden name and when I was engaged, I told my husband I didn't want to take his last name and he was fine with it - he said if my last name would have gone better with his first name, he might even consider taking mine. We decided together that Simon would have his last name as it goes much better and I didn't want a hyphenated last name little kid. I don't think having a different last name puts Simon at a disadvantage. I grew up with my mom having a different last name and it was rarely if ever questioned and considering the amount of people who aren't married who have kids now, I'd imagine it is far more common and far less of an issue than shitty midwife wants people to think.
Friday, October 12, 2012
Weekly Chores, Smushed Days and Why I Hate Wet Cat Food
Today I made weekly chore charts. After spending the last couple days looking around at what needs doing on a weekly basis, I think I've figured it out. I'm doing fifteen minutes a day in different areas of the house.
For my week, it will go like this:
Monday - living room
Tuesday - bathroom
Wednesday - kitchen/laundry
Thursday - vacuum / dust
Friday - laundry
Saturday and Sunday - rest!
The living room tends to get a bit trashed over the weekend from use so I figured Monday would be the best day to tackle that. The bathroom was kind of arbitrary as it doesn't really require a TON of work but could use a weekly clean. Wednesday is going to be my not-so-favorite day as I hate hate hate hate hate hate hate hate hate hate hate hate hate doing dishes but I will do them if I have to. When my son came home from the hospital and everything had to be sterilized and what have you, I got contact dermatitis from doing dishes. My hands were peeling for about a month and it was awful.
Before this place was remodeled, we didn't have a dishwasher. My biggest complaint about dishes is how our pots and pans, which I love, can't go in there. We had a big issue with a really nice set - the enamel started coming off and I was so angry. We were gifted a new set from a different brand last Christmas and they've yet to see the inside of the dishwasher.
Our washer and dryer is in a cubby in the kitchen so it makes sense to do laundry on the same day. I was doing laundry basically on demand but that felt like I was constantly doing laundry and I was getting angry about it, so I think having specific days will help. I don't generate a ton - my "mom outfit" for most days is pajama pants, easy access bra for feedings, a tank top and if it is cold like it is today, a hoodie and warm socks. The little man wears a onesie and pants and gets changed out of those daily (or more, if he gets it dirty) and his stuff is so tiny anyhow. My husband is the main laundry generator. One set of work clothes plus pajamas plus towel for his daily shower and boom. I've started separating out the towels a little more diligently so I can use the Downy Unstoppables with them. I get that it's basically perfume but they smell soooooooo good. I've only tried the purple (Lush) and teal (Fresh) but there is a new one called "Shimmer" in a pink top that I might try if I find it on sale. I don't like using anything with fragrance for little man's stuff so we tend to use Method Free and Clear on most of our laundry.
Thursday is my "why did I ever decide to have three cats and a dog" day. My one wish for Christmas this year is a Mint cleaning robot. This one, actually. We have hardwood throughout most of the house, bamboo in the kitchen and tile in the back hallway and bathroom. There are "Roombas" for that but they are darn near double the cost and I don't know if I'm wiling to ask for a $500 vacuum. The kid will be crawling soon and that's my big concern - there is absolutely no way I can keep up with the hair. We are getting the dog groomed soon as she's been shedding like mad but the cats are also getting their winter coats in and it is just hair tumbleweed city.
Dusting is... well, when we moved back in here, there was still a ton of sawdust and I suppose "regular" dust as a result of this place being under construction for about three years. We were both working a ton and never got it completely 100% un-dusted and there's still pockets here or there that I've been working on. We did a big clean before the kid came home from the hospital but this house just really likes its dust. It is over 100 years old so I don't think it will ever be pristine, but I am going to fight the good fight.
Laundry again on Friday and then a free weekend. I don't have a job outside of the home at the moment and I think giving myself a free weekend will make being home seem less crappy. Don't get me wrong, I love spending time with my kid but another reason I'm doing this is because for a while, days were blending together and I'd forget what day it was. Not that great when you are the person responsible for paying bills on time.
He was sleeping decently but after his vaccinations, he slept for almost sixteen hours straight, only waking for feeds and diapers and he turned nocturnal. I would be up until my husband's alarm went off at 7:30AM. On a "good day", I'd be in bed with him by 5AM. It took almost a week and a half for him to adjust back and now he's back to going to bed around 11PM, doing one or two overnight feeds and sleeping until sometime between when his dad's alarm goes off and 9AM. I can live with that.
I did make a weekly chores for my husband but it is significantly different than my own. On Mondays and Wednesdays he needs to empty the cat box - I will do it the rest of the days of the week - and on Tuesdays he needs to take the trash out. We don't have curbside service here so we hired a private company and they come Wednesday mornings. They are a bit dippy when it comes to their "single stream recycling" and general pickup rules but they are a third of the cost of the last place we used and generally tolerable. It works out to $1 a day which is way better than trying to get my husband to wake up on the weekend, load our car with garbage and take it to the transfer station. On Thursdays I'm having him clean his desk off as it is a big problem spot for him. It gets cluttered in dishes, garbage, you name it, it is probably on there. He did a big clean of it last month but it's starting to look horrible again and I just want him to keep up with it.
He gets Fridays and Saturdays off and then on Sunday, I'm requesting he do the dishes. Why? Because he tends to make a huge mess in the kitchen over the weekend and I'm tired of having to clean it up. A week ago I spent hours cleaning the kitchen and he's already trashed it. He has a mental block or something when it comes to taking the recycling down and chose to stack giant boxes on top of the kitchen trash bin, rendering it useless, and he also tends to leave cans in the sink. Not soda cans - mostly cat food cans.
Now for three cats, we flipped them to all Wellness wet food as two were having weight and skin issues. Our places is so small that we can't feed them separately and in trying other foods, the slender kitty would get lose too much weight or one or two of them would barf up the food or they'd just refuse to eat it. They like Wellness a lot.
It's helped immensely with their health issues but wet food grosses me out. I had an incident as a kid where, after a vacation, I came home and was told to feed the cats. I opened up a can of Friskies and there were maggots in it. Even typing this is making my stomach lurch. My husband understood that when we flipped them to wet food, he'd be doing the feeding. If I absolutely must feed them (he forgot and is at work, he's running late, the dog got past the blockade and ate the food, etc.) then I will but I prefer not to.
Hopefully we can stick with this. Obviously if the kid is having a fussy day and I just can't get away for 15 minutes, stuff can wait, or if there is a mess or an overload of laundry for some reason, I'll adjust accordingly. We also have some big and small projects that will require both of us so those will be weekend only things.
The dryer just buzzed and little man is asleep, so I'm going to try and finish up the laundry. I do assure you there is an end to what seems like infinite laundry, it just takes a lot of doing to get there.
For my week, it will go like this:
Monday - living room
Tuesday - bathroom
Wednesday - kitchen/laundry
Thursday - vacuum / dust
Friday - laundry
Saturday and Sunday - rest!
The living room tends to get a bit trashed over the weekend from use so I figured Monday would be the best day to tackle that. The bathroom was kind of arbitrary as it doesn't really require a TON of work but could use a weekly clean. Wednesday is going to be my not-so-favorite day as I hate hate hate hate hate hate hate hate hate hate hate hate hate doing dishes but I will do them if I have to. When my son came home from the hospital and everything had to be sterilized and what have you, I got contact dermatitis from doing dishes. My hands were peeling for about a month and it was awful.
Before this place was remodeled, we didn't have a dishwasher. My biggest complaint about dishes is how our pots and pans, which I love, can't go in there. We had a big issue with a really nice set - the enamel started coming off and I was so angry. We were gifted a new set from a different brand last Christmas and they've yet to see the inside of the dishwasher.
Our washer and dryer is in a cubby in the kitchen so it makes sense to do laundry on the same day. I was doing laundry basically on demand but that felt like I was constantly doing laundry and I was getting angry about it, so I think having specific days will help. I don't generate a ton - my "mom outfit" for most days is pajama pants, easy access bra for feedings, a tank top and if it is cold like it is today, a hoodie and warm socks. The little man wears a onesie and pants and gets changed out of those daily (or more, if he gets it dirty) and his stuff is so tiny anyhow. My husband is the main laundry generator. One set of work clothes plus pajamas plus towel for his daily shower and boom. I've started separating out the towels a little more diligently so I can use the Downy Unstoppables with them. I get that it's basically perfume but they smell soooooooo good. I've only tried the purple (Lush) and teal (Fresh) but there is a new one called "Shimmer" in a pink top that I might try if I find it on sale. I don't like using anything with fragrance for little man's stuff so we tend to use Method Free and Clear on most of our laundry.
Thursday is my "why did I ever decide to have three cats and a dog" day. My one wish for Christmas this year is a Mint cleaning robot. This one, actually. We have hardwood throughout most of the house, bamboo in the kitchen and tile in the back hallway and bathroom. There are "Roombas" for that but they are darn near double the cost and I don't know if I'm wiling to ask for a $500 vacuum. The kid will be crawling soon and that's my big concern - there is absolutely no way I can keep up with the hair. We are getting the dog groomed soon as she's been shedding like mad but the cats are also getting their winter coats in and it is just hair tumbleweed city.
Dusting is... well, when we moved back in here, there was still a ton of sawdust and I suppose "regular" dust as a result of this place being under construction for about three years. We were both working a ton and never got it completely 100% un-dusted and there's still pockets here or there that I've been working on. We did a big clean before the kid came home from the hospital but this house just really likes its dust. It is over 100 years old so I don't think it will ever be pristine, but I am going to fight the good fight.
Laundry again on Friday and then a free weekend. I don't have a job outside of the home at the moment and I think giving myself a free weekend will make being home seem less crappy. Don't get me wrong, I love spending time with my kid but another reason I'm doing this is because for a while, days were blending together and I'd forget what day it was. Not that great when you are the person responsible for paying bills on time.
He was sleeping decently but after his vaccinations, he slept for almost sixteen hours straight, only waking for feeds and diapers and he turned nocturnal. I would be up until my husband's alarm went off at 7:30AM. On a "good day", I'd be in bed with him by 5AM. It took almost a week and a half for him to adjust back and now he's back to going to bed around 11PM, doing one or two overnight feeds and sleeping until sometime between when his dad's alarm goes off and 9AM. I can live with that.
I did make a weekly chores for my husband but it is significantly different than my own. On Mondays and Wednesdays he needs to empty the cat box - I will do it the rest of the days of the week - and on Tuesdays he needs to take the trash out. We don't have curbside service here so we hired a private company and they come Wednesday mornings. They are a bit dippy when it comes to their "single stream recycling" and general pickup rules but they are a third of the cost of the last place we used and generally tolerable. It works out to $1 a day which is way better than trying to get my husband to wake up on the weekend, load our car with garbage and take it to the transfer station. On Thursdays I'm having him clean his desk off as it is a big problem spot for him. It gets cluttered in dishes, garbage, you name it, it is probably on there. He did a big clean of it last month but it's starting to look horrible again and I just want him to keep up with it.
He gets Fridays and Saturdays off and then on Sunday, I'm requesting he do the dishes. Why? Because he tends to make a huge mess in the kitchen over the weekend and I'm tired of having to clean it up. A week ago I spent hours cleaning the kitchen and he's already trashed it. He has a mental block or something when it comes to taking the recycling down and chose to stack giant boxes on top of the kitchen trash bin, rendering it useless, and he also tends to leave cans in the sink. Not soda cans - mostly cat food cans.
Now for three cats, we flipped them to all Wellness wet food as two were having weight and skin issues. Our places is so small that we can't feed them separately and in trying other foods, the slender kitty would get lose too much weight or one or two of them would barf up the food or they'd just refuse to eat it. They like Wellness a lot.
It's helped immensely with their health issues but wet food grosses me out. I had an incident as a kid where, after a vacation, I came home and was told to feed the cats. I opened up a can of Friskies and there were maggots in it. Even typing this is making my stomach lurch. My husband understood that when we flipped them to wet food, he'd be doing the feeding. If I absolutely must feed them (he forgot and is at work, he's running late, the dog got past the blockade and ate the food, etc.) then I will but I prefer not to.
Hopefully we can stick with this. Obviously if the kid is having a fussy day and I just can't get away for 15 minutes, stuff can wait, or if there is a mess or an overload of laundry for some reason, I'll adjust accordingly. We also have some big and small projects that will require both of us so those will be weekend only things.
The dryer just buzzed and little man is asleep, so I'm going to try and finish up the laundry. I do assure you there is an end to what seems like infinite laundry, it just takes a lot of doing to get there.
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