Good to Go!

Good news! The Shands dr's have cleared me to resume normal activity. Everything checked out OK at our last visit, so now I'm free to travel and do most everything I want to do. Now I have to focus on getting strong again (my legs are woefully weak). An offshoot of this announcement means that I will be able to see Robin Williams in Tampa, as discussed in a previous blog. Dave and I will be driving down to St. Pete in March to spend some time with family and friends and attend the concert. Most importantly, through, we'll be able to visit with Dave's dad, who is still recovering from his surgery. We're looking foward to having him see my expanding belly, and I'm hoping the baby's kicks will be strong enough for him to feel. I think that will give him extra motivation to work hard at his physical therapy. He'll need to be strong and healthy so that come July, he'll be able to hold his grandchild and tell him/her embarassing stories about Big Dave.

On a side note, Big Dave and I will have to start shopping for baby furniture pretty soon. Any of you who are parents, we're asking that you help us by recommending the products that you liked and worked well for you during your babyhood experience. I'm talking everything from cribs, changing tables, strollers, car seats, etc. If you really liked the product, let us know. If you really hated it, tell us why. We could use all the input we can get.

25 Things

I usually ignore the latest craze/fad because usually once something has gained popularity, it doesn't interest me anymore. But I can't seem to escape this 25 Things list from Facebook. It's everywhere. And it's oddly fascinating. The whole idea is to make a list of 25 things that people don't know about you or would be surprised to learn about you, and post it on your Facebook page. Since I don't have a Facebook page, and will never have a Facebook page, I'm posting it here instead. My hope is that by doing this, I can finally cleanse myself of this Facebook mania.

And so, for your viewing and mocking enjoyment, here's 25 Things About Me, Myself and I.

I’m terrified of snakes and spiders.
I once got locked into a meat freezer. With a boy. For about an hour. And I was never cold.
My first childhood crush was Richard Dean Anderson from MacGyver.
I wanted to be a dolphin trainer when I grew up.
I can wiggle my ears.
My parents nickname for me as a kid was “Petunia”
I have two cousins who were adopted from Korea.
I was on a swim team when I was in middle school. But I had to compete with the younger kids because I was so small for my age that I couldn’t keep up with my age group.
A teacher once measured my mouth (after a long and testy debate over a grade).
I once flushed my mother’s glasses down the toilet, as revenge for making me eat asparagus.
I once tried to save a baby bird that had fallen out of its nest, but I mistakenly put it in reach of my cat, Stinkerbell. RIP, my little chirper.
I once fell out of a boat and sank to the bottom of the ocean (fortunately, it was only about 10 feet deep).
I won a set of steak knives after calling into a radio show with the correct trivia answer.
I got a fat lip three times in a row, due to various altercations with my brother and his friends.
In 8th grade, I was interviewed by the St. Pete Times because of an argument I had with the mayor of Largo.
I want to get my pilot’s license.
I want to be a guest on Inside the Actor’s Studio. But I don’t want to be an actor.
My secret guilty pleasure is watching the show Bridezillas.
I’d love to be a college professor of literature or creative writing.
I sometimes drink milk right from the jug (and Big Dave doesn’t know).
I will spend hours trying to figure out why my checkbook doesn’t balance to the exact penny.
My grandfather’s nickname for me was Katarina.
I once got into a car accident with a sheriff’s deputy (their fault, not mine).
My first live concert was New Kids On The Block.
I collect Scooby Doo paraphernalia.

There ya go. If nothing else, it will provide you with more insight into my psyche. Or it will provide hours of mockable material. Either way, hope you enjoyed.

I Don't Know What I'm Doing... and it's OK.

In the past few months, I've had to learn to let go of a lot of things -- physically, mentally, and spiritually. I can't control much of what happens in life. Stuff happens, and sometimes you just have to learn to roll with the punches. Make all the plans you want, but be prepared to have those plans fly right out the window. If you can't get everything on your list done today, it's OK. There's always tomorrow. And if some things never get done, or take a long time to get done, so be it. Just when you think you have life all figured out, that you know what's important, that you know your place in this world, something will happen to force you to come to terms with the fact that you really don't know what you are doing half the time (or all the time). And I've learned that it's OK. It's perfectly normal to feel lost, scared, confused, maybe even a little depressed -- sometimes all at once. The important thing is to not let these things stop you from living your life. Take risks. Regrets are harder to swallow than apologies.

I am now the first to admit when I'm unsure of something. I ask for help when I need it. I admit when I am wrong (that was a particularly tough one for me, but satisfying for my husband). Here's a shocker -- I don't have all the answers -- how about that?!?

And now my husband and I are entering into a new phase of our lives -- parenthood. And I don't know what I'm doing. And I don't know what to expect. One minute I'm very happy and excited. The next minute I'm in a panic attack, with all the what-if's racing through my mind. Will the baby be healthy? Will I be a good mom? Will I survive the delivery? Will my natural mom instincts kick in, or will I be woefully inadequate in the infant care department? Are we really ready for this responsibility? What if I ask too many "what if" questions, and my mind explodes? You have to remember that I'm the woman who didn't even know she was pregnant -- my husband knew before I did -- before the positive stick test. (That's a whole different blog).

I guess you could say that I'm just feeling a bit overwhelmed. And scared. And elated. And confused, And scared.

And it's all OK. (insert deep breath here).

Ways to Amuse Yourself for Free in a Bad Economy

1. Place laundry basket of clean clothes fresh from the dryer on the floor. Stand back and watch 4 cats fight over who gets to tunnel first. This will last ALL MORNING.

2. Take old Christmas bow and tape it to dog's tail. Watch him get dizzy trying to get it off.

3. Rearrange kitchen pantry. Don't tell your spouse. Lie in wait for him to get something from the kitchen, then watch as he becomes hopelessly confused and lost trying to find anything. Cackle maniacally.

4. Watch your old DVDs over and over again until your spouse begs for mercy.

5. Fill the bird feeders. Allow cats onto porch. Watch as cats "stalk" birds by continually hitting their heads on the glass windows.

6. Go to the library. Ask librarian to look up weird book titles like "How to Dismantle An Atomic Bomb" and "The Fashion Statements of J. Edgar Hoover"and watch their reaction. (Be prepared to herald the arrival of men in dark suits who will ask you a lot of questions about your patriotism).

7. Observe hubby as he/she prepares the tax return. This can lead to some interesting word choices and or gestures. The occasional shout of "Blood Sucking Leeches!" is sure to bring a smile and/or a chuckle. Offer helpful suggestions like "Can't we list the cats as dependents and deduct them?" or "Since the dog barks at everything that comes near the house, couldn't we deduct him as a security expense?"

In case you can't tell, I'm bored. Anyone want to come over and play hide and seek with me? : ) TAG, you're it.