Monday

Monday set the bar pretty high for the week.  First, we successfully got Wyatt’s pictures taken.  That was a relief after the disastrous first attempt.  Second, we went to lunch.  Which meant I didn’t have to make anything.  And to top it off, when we left the restaurant there was this going on at the adjoining building:

Maybe there was a sale on plus-size capri pants they just got a little too excited for?  Although, I still question how a car crashed into the building and we had no clue.  We were sitting right by the window.  And last, but definitely not least, I saw a man walking around with a baboon on his shoulders.  Just out on the walking path like it was no big deal.  Like everyone takes their pet baboons for walks there or something.  There are no picture because the baboon looked angry and I didn’t want him coming over to try to rip my face off.  I’ve got enough problems without missing a face too.

Tuesday

It was a big day.  I went for a walk and cooked radishes for the first time.  It’s okay to be jealous.

Wednesday

We left Wyatt with a babysitter for the first time.  He’s been left with relatives before, but never an official “babysitter.”  It was scary.  But he did great and I managed not to worry the entire time he was there.  Just like 99% of the time.  Baby steps.

Thursday

My big accomplishment of the day?  Finally organizing my necklaces.  Seriously, I cannot believe I went so long with them just getting tangled up in my jewelry bag.  Especially when organizing them cost six dollars and five minutes of my time.  Come on.

Friday

I got to lay eyes on the pictures from Monday.  And, it’s official.  I have a baby model.  I don’t care if I’m biased.

Saturday

Disaster struck on Saturday when I opened up my May Birchbox and found the tin of blush they included kind of exploded all over everything else.  I know, first world problems.

Sunday

My first official Mother’s Day!  I got some super special gifts and then ordered three appetizers for dinner.  It.Was.Awesome.

I hope you all had a great week!

This year I just want to tell her that I get it now.  I understand the mental, emotional and spiritual toll of motherhood.  I understand that even after the day is through and our babies sleep, we never stop.  Even in our deepest of sleep motherhood stirs in us.  We don’t totally belong to ourselves anymore.  And we just let it happen.  We let motherhood rock our worlds and rip us up and put us back together in a different way, knowing tomorrow it might just happen all over again.  And we happily commit to a lifetime of it.  It defies logic.

I didn’t know.  I didn’t know it would be this terrifying and beautiful at the same time.

How do I properly thank my mom for being willing to go through all of that for me?   There aren’t enough words.  So I’ll just say I love you.

I love you.

I love you.

I just recently finished reading The Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt:

I’d heard good things about it, and when I saw it hanging out on the staff recommendations shelf at the library, I decided to give it a shot.  The book tells the story of the Sisters Brothers, two notorious guns-for-hire in the gold rush era, as they set out on their latest assignment.  From the point of view of Eli, the brother who struggles with his chosen profession, you get a glimpse into their lives and just how tragically hilarious it can be for a hit man in the old west.  Especially when you’re overweight, desperate for a woman to love you, travel on a one-eyed horse and constantly have to deal with your perpetually drunk brother.

I particularly enjoyed the dialogue between the brothers, and much of the book revolves around their contentious and comical  relationship.  But while the book was full of wit and powerful imagery, something in the story still felt lacking by the time I got to the last page.  It was as if the story didn’t feel like it had been fully told.  Even so, I’d still recommend the book for deWitt’s unique literary voice and the entertainment of the story of the Sisters Brothers.  Their story is worth a read even if the ending didn’t quite feel right.

Have you read any good books lately?

Just before Christmas she was diagnosed with lung cancer that spread to her brain and bones.  The outlook was never good, but she was a brave woman who stared a  devastating diagnosis in the face and fought it to the very end.  She passed away peacefully with just her mom by her side after everyone had left to give them a moment alone.

Monica was a wonderful woman, wife, mother, daughter, sister and friend.  She was kind and funny.  I will never forget her laugh.  Nobody laughed quite like Monica.  I am so thankful for all the memories of her I get to carry with me.  And I’m particularly thankful that she and Wyatt were able to be a part of each other’s lives, even if for a brief time.  She was so excited that I was having a baby and when Wyatt finally arrived I think she was just about as happy as my own mom was about it.  I know she would have been like his third grandma.  And I think when I show Wyatt this picture when he’s older, that’s exactly what I’ll call her:

It seems so surreal that just a few months ago we were laughing and she was rubbing my belly at my baby shower.  And now she’s just gone.  It makes you realize that you have to live for right now.  You have to appreciate the time you get with people you love.  You have to tell people you love them.

In the end Monica reported seeing angels in her hospital room.  I believe it.  And I believe they were there when she drew her last breath and I believe they ushered her to her final home.  The pain of losing her is made a bit more bearable knowing that her suffering has ended and that, as my mom puts it, she’s onto her next great adventure.

Monday

I found a new guilty pleasure:  Pretty Little Liars.  Have you seen this show?  It’s ridiculous and no one over the age of 21 should even care about it.  Yet, I.can’t.stop.watching.it.  I should just resign myself to the fact that I’m addicted to trash TV.  Hey, at least it’s not crack.  Right?

Tuesday

I did load after load of laundry.  Self-laundering clothes.  Come on Science.  Let’s do this.

Wednesday

So I went walking around the Mall of America.  Again.  Because it’s easy and they have a Panda Express and sometimes you just need to sit alone and eat a pound of Shanghai Beef while you people watch.  Anyway, I totally saw a lady who looked like King Jafar.

I was going to take her picture, but frankly, I was scared of her.

Thursday

I haven’t really discussed it here because it’s sad and I try to keep things happy, but one of our close family friends has been battling cancer for a few months and things have taken a turn for the worse.  I was able to speak briefly with her on the phone.  She was weak and could only whisper but she knew it was me and I was able to tell her that I love her.  It feels like a great gift to have been able to tell her that and know she understood.  I spent the rest of the day cuddling Wyatt and being so very thankful for life and health and all the other things I tend to take for granted.

Friday

Now, let’s move on to something much happier.  We officially have giggling.  Mostly at the dog:

Saturday

The weather was perfect here this weekend so we did some work outside and took a walk to the library.  Wyatt wasn’t sure what the sun was all about, but he seemed to enjoy it.

Sunday

I cleaned like a crazy person all day and rewarded myself with Rolo chocolate chip cookies.  Perhaps one of the best cookies I’ve ever had.  Make them.

How was your week?

Monday

Wyatt turned 5 months old!

This past month it seems like he’s changed more than all the other months combined.  I mean, he giggles now.  But only when the mood really strikes him.  That doesn’t stop me from constantly making a fool out of myself in attempt to get him to giggle though.

Tuesday

I had quite an eventful Tuesday, which translates into “Trish actually left the house for more than 2 hours.”  I had to take my mom to the airport and since I was already over by the mall I decided we’d just go walk around for a while.  I never thought I’d be a mall walker, but if you’re going to be one I’d say the Mall of America is probably the one to do it at.  I even remembered where I parked, which is a pretty big deal because most of the time I can’t even find my car in a CVS parking lot.

Wednesday

The saga of our crappy rental experience continued on Wednesday when the property manager sent me an e-mail at 8am informing me he’d be there with a furnace inspector at 8:30am (still no mention of when he might send someone out to fix the oven, by the way).  So when they got here I simply opted not to answer the door.  Last I checked they need to give you 24 hours notice.  Maybe he got that confused with 24 minutes?  At any rate, I wasn’t having it.  Well, they just went ahead and let themselves into the house when I didn’t answer the door.  Are you kidding me?  I could have been playing Just Dance naked (not that I’d do such a thing) for all they knew.  Ridiculous.  It’s a pretty uncomfortable feeling knowing this guy respects his tenants so little that he’ll just let himself in like that.  Maybe I should go break into his house and see how he likes it.

Thursday

So, it snowed.  A lot.  In April.  I decided to just stay inside and plot my revenge against Mother Nature.

That was just the beginning of the snow.  Come on.

Friday

I shoveled snow.  The rest of it’s a blur.  I know I must have kept myself fed because I get angry when I’m hungry and I don’t recall hulk-smashing anything that day.  I guess we’ll call that a win.

Saturday

We took Wyatt to his first liquor store.  He was mesmerized by all the Happy Mommy Juice wine.

Sunday

We watched the new Total Recall movie.  I think we could have turned it off after the scene with the three-boobed lady, because that was kind of the highlight of the entire flick.  But at least I know what my Halloween costume is going to be this year.

How was your week?

Monday

We took Wyatt to the doctor for his checkup and he’s 18 pounds 9 ounces.  I can’t imagine why.

Tuesday

Oh, Tuesday.  My mom was flying in so we could drive back to Indiana together the next day and I had to go get her from the airport in the morning.  Only it’s hard to drive to the airport when you have a flat tire.  It’s even harder to drive 500 miles when you have a flat tire.  So now I have all new tires and no more money to buy wine with.

Wednesday

We finished our trip back to Indiana.  It was about the time I got pooped on at a rest stop in Illinois that I realized I have officially lost every ounce of dignity I had been clinging to.  He doesn’t even care.

Thursday

We made our yearly trek to the Vera Bradley outlet sale.  I was going to take a picture of the sea of quilted bags but I was running on 2 hours of sleep so I just zombie walked around the room throwing purses while I made grunting noises.  I totally brought a couple of things back to giveaway though, so keep an eye out for that!

Friday

I decided my massive mop of hair was weighing me down so I got it all chopped off.

Saturday

First we went to Whole Foods.  The brand new Whole Foods.  In South Bend, where the grand opening of a Whole Foods is pretty much the most exciting thing to happen in years.  It was insane.  I’m glad I didn’t take anything sharp with me.  I would have almost certainly cut someone.  After that we had some friends over to eat and talk and play with babies.  I miss having friends.  Maybe if I ever left the house here I’d make some.  It might also help if I didn’t constantly think about cutting people while I’m out.  I’m working on it.

Sunday

The first part of our trip back to Minnesota was awesome.  It was warm(ish) and sunny.  Then it was quite the opposite.  And then there was road construction.  And then there was a baby who decided he’d had quite enough of being stuck in his car seat.  Five large McDonald’s Diet Cokes and a couple of near brain aneurysms later we made it back.  Unless someone is giving out free wine and cake I’m not getting back in that car for days.

Monday

My biggest accomplishment of the day was throwing a bunch of stuff in the crock pot and calling it chili.

Tuesday

We went to get license plates for the cars which was surprisingly easy given how disorganized the DMV was.  But $300 later I was ready for some comfort.  I got it:

Wednesday

You guys, I read an entire magazine.  Front to back.  Practically in one sitting.  Never mind it was from 2 years ago.  I’ve been busy.

Thursday

Taxes. Done. Well, I didn’t do them. But I answered some questions and ate a Snickers while someone else did them. So I feel like I did my fair share.

Friday

I  haven’t really fully decorated Wyatt’s room, which bothered me greatly at first but now that he’s almost 5 months old it hardly seems like a big deal.  I’m pretty sure he’s never going to care that he didn’t have matching nursery furniture.  Hell, the kid doesn’t even have a proper crib. We both seem to sleep fine at night despite my shortcomings.  Anyway, his room was looking a little blah since we can’t paint the walls.  And I’d been hunting around for some stick-on wall circles that I liked and weren’t ridiculously expensive and couldn’t find a thing.  Then, Target came through.  Wall circles, from the clearance shelf:

There are totally more circles than that but if I’d taken a wider shot you would have seen all the trash and clothes I have piled up next to his bed.  That’ll have to remain hidden, just like the picture of me when I had a mullet.

Saturday

I know I was probably supposed to do something really interesting and exciting on Saturday so I could tell you all about it, but instead I spent the whole day wasting time on things I can’t remember.  Except for Louis vs. Rick.  Just a man and his cat instant messaging.  I won’t admit to peeing myself.  But I also haven’t been keeping up with my kegels so you can put two and two together I think.

Sunday

I heard Sears had a ton of clothes on clearance so you know I dragged us all over right when they opened so I could scope out the baby section.  Entire baby outfits for $3.99.  You know what gets me excited, Sears.  Rawwrrr.

Hope you all had a great week!

]]> http://everydaytrish.com/2013/04/week-in-review-2013-14.html/feed 2 http://everydaytrish.com/2013/04/week-in-review-2013-14.html?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=week-in-review-2013-14 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/EverydayTrish/~3/OUy-RSQwL1g/manatee-sized-rant.html http://everydaytrish.com/2013/04/manatee-sized-rant.html#comments Fri, 05 Apr 2013 17:06:57 +0000 admin http://everydaytrish.com/?p=714 Have you seen this story about the manatee gray dress at Target?  On their website the plus-size version of the dress is listed as “manatee gray”, while the same dress in “regular” sizes is listed as “dark heather gray.”

And people have their panties all in a bunch over it.  But if you ask me, they’re upset about the wrong issue.

You’re mad because they called a plus-size dress manatee gray and I’m mad because if you’re above a size 14 or 16 you have to shop in a totally different section.  I’m mad because this almost exclusively applies to women.  Go to Target and try to find the plus size section in the men’s clothing department.

It does not exist.

You’ll find extended sizes mixed right in with the smalls, mediums and larges.  Because, apparently, it’s okay to be a larger man.  But if you’re a larger woman you must be shamed.  You must be called fat.  You must be told you’re not pretty.  You must be forced to shop separate from your “skinny” counterparts.

It’s disgusting.

You want to be outraged about something, then be outraged about that.  Get mad that women are constantly bombarded with false messages about beauty.  Get mad that we aren’t telling women and girls that it’s okay to love themselves just as they are.  Get mad that every day there are women looking in the mirror and hating themselves because society has told them they don’t meet some arbitrary standard of beauty.

We’ve got to stop believing that if we can just lose some weight that things will be different for us.  I’ve seen a lot of beautiful women put themselves down because of five pounds.  Five freaking pounds.  I don’t care if it’s 5, 50 or 150 pounds you think you need to lose.  You cannot let that impede your happiness.  Instead you should be looking in the mirror and smiling back at a strong, confident and beautiful woman.

Losing weight isn’t going to make you beautiful.  You have to decide that you’re beautiful right now and wear that title like a badge of honor.

Look in the mirror and tell that person how beautiful she is.  She deserves to hear it everyday.