Saturday, February 13, 2010

Keee-rap.

Week 1 after maternity leave was...anticlimactic. At best. Day one was nice. I was provided with a really nice lactation room, which was an absolutely wonderful surprise. I was seriously considering whether I wanted to quit sooner rather than later over it. It may sound stupid, but I really don't want work dictating how I can feed my baby, and I'm not a huge fan of pumping in public bathrooms. I was planning to buy Whisper Wear so I could just do it in my car, but they went out of business.

Anyway, the lactation room was a huge load off my mind, and the place they set up for me was really nice - two comfy chairs, a desk, a fridge, a bookcase. Much nicer than ESI. Unfortunately, though, that was the best thing about coming back. All my work was waiting for me. How is it possible that someone is gone three months and nothing gets done? I was gone during the single busiest time of the year for my product. Plus, I woke up Tuesday to two flat tires. I only found out they were flat after I realized I'd lost my security badge and got into my car late. So, here I am stomping around, I get in my car, drive about two blocks and pull over, check my tires and drive home. I'm waiting for the tow truck to arrive and searching the whole house for my badge when I decide to just drive on my rims to the tire place down the road. I go to my car door and there, frozen in the ice, is my badge. On the street. So I break the ice with my shoes, pick it up and go on my way.

So that was Tuesday. Now Evelyn has RSV. Well, I guess she's had it for a while - it just took a while to show up. It's not as terrifying as it was with Ragsy. She hasn't stopped breathing, thank God. Though I think she might have yet another ear infection. Anyway, I think the RSV peaked last night and is subsiding. Unfortunately, if she won't nurse on one side tomorrow, I'll probably have to call the doc or go to the pediatric acute care center for an ear infection. And did I mention that I now have RSV, too? I'm sure that being up for nearly 24 hours two days in a row didn't improve my chances for holding out.

I hope this week isn't going to set the tone for things to come in the future.

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Speaking of health insurance...

Ours is going to get a workout this year. Already Evelyn has had conjunctivitis, an infection in each ear and Ragsy has also had a double ear infection. This morning, he woke with a fever of 104, stating that he was really tired, which is always a huge warning flag for us. He's never tired. Ever. Anyway, after a visit to the doctor, he was proclaimed healthy, even though I couldn't get his fever to go down earlier, which figures.

The way his illnesses usually work: he wakes up, burning hot with chills and acting really off - super whiny, exhausted, clingy, not hungry, etc. I take his temperature and find it's some ungodly high number, so I dose with some Tylenol and, if it doesn't got down, call the doctor. They tell me to bring him in. I bring him in and, by the time we get there, the fever is gone, he's happy and well rested (because he slept late that morning since he was feverish), and proclaimed healthy as a horse and I'm advised that he can go to preschool. Then I have a kid bouncing off the walls all day. The next morning rolls around, I'm excited because he can go to preschool, and his fever is back, along with weird behavior. Rinse, repeat until late Friday morning when it all goes away and he makes like the Road Runner in Wile E. Coyote cartoons until Monday when he's out the door. Good times.

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Time.

The more I contemplate going back to work, the more depressed I get. I can't believe maternity leave is almost over. It's as if just a few weeks ago, it was just me, my husband and Ragsy and now we have this other little life enmeshed in ours and it's wonderful and I don't get to spend nearly enough time holding her and watching her play and grow. Dammit.

I'm still going, but I'm not going to like it (not that I did beforehand, but I think I'll like it even less this time around). Unfortunately, between me and my husband, I'm the only one of the two of us whose employer offers reasonably-priced insurance, so quitting is not an option right now since I have a pre-existing medical condition. We've worked it out and found that we save about $700-$800 per month on insurance alone if I work. Then there are the investments we're hoping to build up, education to pay for, bills, etc. I think I need to work harder on a longer-term plan and my own business. What that business will be is so far up in the air. Medicare or writing? If writing, what type? If I do that, who takes on insurance? So far, my husband really likes consulting, and since I freelanced already, I'd like him to have the opportunity to build up his own business.

Yeesh, being a grownup sucks sometimes. I really miss not having to worry about all this crap, but I sure as hell don't miss not having children. I still remember when getting up at 7 a.m. was ungodly early. Now I find I need to get up at 5:30 when I go back to work to make sure I get a workout in, a shower, kids up and dressed and fed and ready to go so I can leave them with my husband with a clean conscience. And bedtime isn't usually before 12 or 1 a.m. because, once we've gotten everyone into bed, it's 9 p.m. Once everyone is actually asleep (I'm looking at you, Ragsy) it's 10 p.m., leaving us precious little time to talk, relax and get ready to do it all over again the next day. Still, it's worth it. I hope working turns out to be worth it, too.

Monday, February 1, 2010

Good grief.

So, I admit it. I was completely irresponsible. While I renewed my license plates in December, I kept one of the old ones on until today. But I had a somewhat good reason: the screw was so stripped I couldn't get it off without a mechanic's help (it needed bolt cutters and a few other specialized tools I don't have and don't want to buy) and, with all the illness in the house, got distracted. Nonetheless, I did have some time in which I could have gone to the dealership and had the offending plate removed and the new plate attached. Anyway, I had attached the front plate and put the rear new plate in my rear window so at least it was visible. But I get it - I didn't meet requirements. So I wasn't terribly surprised when I found a ticket on my windshield last week citing me for failure to display two current plates. Okay, I thought - Evelyn's first day at daycare is Monday, so I can get the rear plate replaced then.

So, today after I dropped her off and made a belated visit to the dentist for a teeth cleaning, I headed to Starbucks (have to have coffee while I wait) and was turning into the dealership when a cop flipped his lights on behind me. I knew exactly why - expired plates. But still, what timing! What...I don't know what. I was lucky he didn't give me a ticket, but I'm sure he stayed in the parking lot to make sure I actually drove into the dealership.

I should've expected it. After all, today was a day for expected unexpecteds. You know, those things you talk about, then say, "That figures." Getting pulled over for the very thing I was on my way to fix was one. The other was how happy Evelyn was when I dropped her at daycare. No, I didn't want her to be upset. But she usually does her scalded cat impression when anyone else but me or my husband holds her. Instead, when Tina pulled her from her car seat, she cuddled up to her, let Tina swaddle her without a peep (I suggested a nap since she'd gotten up early), then lay in her crib grinning and kicking her feet. I called to check in - surely she'd gotten upset when she realized I'd gone. Nope - the only time she'd gotten bent out of shape was when she was hungry and was offered a bottle instead of a breast. I was completely nonplussed. Even now I'm still going, "huh?" When I called she was sleeping, so I decided to give her a little longer before I pick her up. Good grief.