It’s time, once again for Meme Monday.  Anyone can play along, so if you’d like more information about what Meme Monday is you can get that right here.

For the first time in a really long time, no one tagged me or gave me an award this week.  Woo Hoo!  Oh, that’s too bad.

Anyhoo, last week Pam did a couple of Mommy Memes and then said we could play along if we wanted to.  And since no one tagged me I decided I would play along with one of the Mommy Memes that Pam did.

Momma Meme #1

Baby’s Name?
Hailey

Male/Female?
Female

Birthday?
October 7th

Where was he/she born?
Hospital

What time was he/she born?
1:34 pm

Weight/length at birth?
6 lbs. 10 oz. and 21 1/2 inches long

Age as you’re typing this survey:
30

Are you a paranoid mom…?
Most definitely

Do you sterilize everything (like boil nipples or wash every toy)?
I don’t now but I did for the the first several months of her life.

Do you buy “sensitive skin” wipes because they’re “better” for baby’s skin?
Yes, but only because Hailey does have sensitive skin and she gets a rash if I use the regular ones.

Do you worry that your baby will stop breathing in his/her sleep?
Not as much now as I used to.  I used to check on her constantly.  Now that she is older I still check on her but not much as I used to.

Do you freak out if they happen to doze off during tummy time? (SIDS!!)
When she was an infant I did and I would roll her over onto her back.  But, she’s 18 months now, so I don’t anymore.

Do you overdress your baby, whether it’s warm or cold?
I probably did overdress her during her first winter, but I didn’t this year.

Do you wash your baby’s clothing in Dreft or other baby detergent?
I used Dreft up until a few months ago, now I just use our regular detergent.

Do you refuse to dress baby in anything with buttons (choking hazard)?
I used to refuse to put her in anything with buttons but I have relaxed about that.

Do you watch (and critique) when someone else changes baby’s diaper?
Not now, but at first I did watch- not critiquing, but just watching.  Now I am happy to have anyone who will change Hailey’s diaper.

Did you buy all of their furniture (crib, changing table, stroller) NEW?
Yes.  But, my parents bought Hailey’s changing table and my in-laws bought her crib, so we didn’t actually have to buy everything.  But since we didn’t have any baby stuff we had to buy everything else new for her.

Do you have to wash a pacifier that fell on the floor before giving to baby?
Not now, but for probably the first six months I would boil her pacifiers if they fell on the floor.

Do you worry about anyone else holding your baby?
No

When you leave baby with a sitter, is all you do worry about baby?
The only sitter Hailey has ever had has been my parents.  The first time we left her with them I worried.  Since then they have watched her a few other times and I don’t worry about her anymore.

Do you jump out of bed the second baby starts fussing during the night?
Yes- Hailey gets up in the middle of the night and then I bring her to bed with us for the rest of the night.

Do you worry about making baby bleed when clipping his/her fingernails?
Yes, I hate clipping her fingernails.

Do you call your pediatrician at least once a week?
Not now, but at first I called a lot.  I’m sure they made fun of the paranoid new mom when I was calling all of the time.

Do you cancel playdates because your baby has a runny nose and coughed once?
If the playdate was being held at my house I would just let the other parents know if Hailey had a runny nose and tell them I wouldn’t feel bad if they decided not to come. 

Do you refuse to go shopping without a shopping cart cover?
Yes, those carts are so gross- I always use a cover.

If you have a cat, do you worry about toxoplasmosis?
We don’t have a cat, but I would worry if we had one.

Is your baby allowed anywhere near your pets?
Yes, Hailey loves Dottie (a bit too much sometimes).

Do you only feed your baby organic baby foods out of fear of preservatives?
No.

Do you think you are or ever have been a paranoid new mom?
Absolutely!

If you want to play along, feel free- just let me know so I can check out your answers.

If you participated in Meme Monday this week, sign Mr. Linky so the other participants can visit you.

Remember the other day?  My post called It’s Been One Of Those Days?

A couple of my commenters, who have children who are all grown up, told me about how I’m going to miss these days. 

Later that day I was trying to talk on the phone and Hailey kept trying to grab the phone out of my hand to say “Hey-Yo” (Hello).  And I caught myself thinking, “Why can’t I have a moment to talk on the phone in peace?

At dinner time Hailey didn’t want to eat and made a huge mess with her food.  After I got her cleaned up and I sat down to eat my cold food I caught myself thinking, “Why don’t I ever get to eat a warm dinner anymore?”

And all of a sudden- the comments I had gotten and the thoughts I was having- reminded me of this poem.  And it made me cry.  So, I had to share it with you (so you can cry too).

No More Oatmeal Kisses
–January 29, 1969

One of these days, you’ll shout, “Why don’t you kids grow up and act your age!”
And they will.

Or, “You guys get outside and find yourselves something to do . . . and don’t slam the door!”
And they won’t.

You’ll straighten up the boys’ bedroom neat and tidy: bumper stickers discarded, bedspread tucked and smooth, toys displayed on the shelves. Hangers in the closet. Animals caged. And you’ll say out loud, “Now I want it to stay this way.”
And it will.

You’ll prepare a perfect dinner with a salad that hasn’t been picked to death and a cake with no finger traces in the icing, and you’ll say, “Now, there’s a meal for company.”
And you’ll eat it alone.

You’ll say, “I want complete privacy on the phone. No dancing around. No demolition crews. Silence! Do you hear?”
And you’ll have it.

No more plastic tablecloths stained with spaghetti. No more dandelion bouquets. No more bedspreads to protect the sofa from damp bottoms. No more gates to stumble over at the top of the basement steps. No more clothespins under the sofa. No more playpens to arrange a room around.

No more anxious nights under a vaporizer tent. No more sand on the sheets or Popeye movies in the bathroom. No more iron-on patches, rubber bands for ponytails, tight boots or wet knotted shoestrings.
Imagine. A lipstick with a point on it. No baby-sitter for New Year’s Eve. Washing clothes only once a week. Seeing a steak that isn’t ground. Having your teeth cleaned without a baby on your lap.

No PTA meetings or silly school plays where your child is a tree. No car pools. No blaring radios or forgotten lunch money. No one washing her hair at 11 o’clock at night. Having your own roll of Scotch tape.

Think about it. No more Christmas presents out of toothpicks and library paste. No more sloppy oatmeal kisses. No more tooth fairy. No giggles in the dark. No knees to heal, no responsibility.

Only a voice crying, “Why don’t you grow up?”
and the silence echoing, “I did.”

….Erma Bombeck

You know about those days, right? 

It started early this morning right around 12:15am when Hailey woke up.  That in itself is not all that unusual.  Most nights somewhere between 12:15am and 2:00am Hailey wakes up and I bring her to bed with us.  (Yes, I still do that, and it still works just fine for us, thank you very much.)

Anyhoo, last night was a little different than usual in that Hailey didn’t go back to sleep until around 4am.  Yes, indeed I said 4am.  She did sleep in until about 9am, but still- that was not enough sleep for her or for me. 

We were supposed to go to story time at the library this morning, but there was no way that was going to happen.  I’m sure you can imagine how tired Hailey was this morning.  So, after lunch she went right down for her nap.  I thought surely she’d take a nice long nap after last night.  But nope- she didn’t even sleep for an hour.

The whining, crying and tantrums are enough to drive any sane person absolutely crazy.  And since I started out my day a bit on the grouchy side I’m sure you can imagine how I’m feeling right now.

But there’s only a couple more hours until I see this:

Hailey gets excited by the little things in life- a dog going by our house, a car driving down the street, a school bus dropping off or picking up neighborhood kids for school, the mailman putting mail in our mailbox, etc.  So, the other day when the mailman brought a package to our door she was beside herself with joy.  And then when we saw the box was for her she could hardly wait for me to open it.

Once I got it open we saw there were some Crayola toddler markers and some Crayola toddler stampers from Aunt Jayme.  No special reason, she just thought Hailey would enjoy them.  Isn’t that just the nicest thing you’ve heard all day?  So as Hailey screeched with delight (or perhaps impatience) I got the packages open so she could try them out.  And of course- I took pictures.

Hailey loves the stampers- they are little farm animals- and I’m sure you can tell that she was excited.

She also enjoyed writing with the markers…

…stamping farm animals all over her arms…

…and tasting the red marker.

Thank you Aunt Jayme! I know there will be lots more to be had with the markers and the stamps!