Have I mentioned my supreme love of lists? I rock a to-do list like I am Slash on tour. In my former life as an over-worked Hollywood assistant I had to keep a bajillion things organized and in check. I also worked for a person that demanded hourly updates on EVERYTHING. This person was dreadfully afraid that the “ball would drop” and something would not get done and then robots would take over the world and bad yogurt would kill us all. (and I know that sentence will not make sense to 98% of you, but trust me, it was a crazy job)
So I developed a system of charting that relied heavily on a spiral notebook, a black ball point pen and three highlighters (pink, yellow, and green). Every day gets a page in the notebook and every task gets a line on the page. Tasks are either done (yellow), begun (pink) or need to do (green). At the end of the day every item on the list would get addressed and things that were not coded yellow were carried over to the next day.
And I fucking LOVE doing this. Because I am a Capricorn. Or a list maker. Or some sort of awesome combination. Here is a glimpse into my list from yesterday. Exciting, right?? (& yes I put “shower” on my to-do list and as you can tell by the color coding it got done!)
But blogging about things that I want to blog about has not been something I have been able to do for a few days. And I don’t want to not put this stuff down because some of it is kind of huge and I don’t want to suddenly find the time to write about it and some of you be all, “WHAT???”
1) I wanted to wait until I knew it was totally fine with her before I said who the blogger is that I want to help. But I am now told that I can (yay!) so you guys get to know that Michell is who we will be helping out. For those of you not familiar with Michell I will simply say that she is one of the sweetest and most dear people in our community. Always there with support and affection and enthusiasm for others- even as she has dealt with setback after setback of her own. If you want to get involved with the brainstorming for fundraising drop me an e-mail or leave a comment here. Otherwise just wait for me to shine the “NOW!!” signal when we have our act in gear.
2) So my sister sent me an e-mail. I have not written back yet. I am processing. More on this later.
3) W is a crawler. He will not admit this to you, but I have seen it. He is a secret crawler.
4) Since he is keeping his crawling a secret I will tell you one of MY secrets about W. He wears tights. Except we don’t call them that. Oh no. They are his long johns. He wears them and a onesie under everything because it is COLD up here. He looks like a baby Billy Elliot.
5) A baby was born yesterday to a dear friend. I get the weeps just thinking about how wonderful this is.
6) I opened a checking account yesterday and burst into tears when the woman at the bank asked me simple questions like, “what is your permanent address” and “where is your place of employment”.
7) One of W’s Godparents just got accepted into the Philadelphia Gay Men’s Chorus and just thinking about taking W up there to see him perform makes me SO proud and excited.
8 ) I got my Mother her own url and blog for her holiday gift and before she has written anything in her new blog she has spent hours and hours working on just the perfect header. I am not allowed to help her as she wants her header to TWINKLE! My Mother is also on facebook and yes I have friended her.
9) Peppermint mocha coffee creamer will now be available all year ’round.
10) A certain someone has been getting up at 4am to nurse and I usually bring him back to bed with me. I am then forced to watch tv. And for the last several days the infomercial for Your Baby Can Read has been on and it totally freaks me out. And yet I am fascinated. And wonder if any of you guys have seen the infomercial. And I wonder if I teach W to read if I can then just put a couple of books in his pack and play and he can read instead of waking me up at 4am.
11) I still have no word from the state of Maryland about W’s health insurance. I applied on 11/29 and was called in for an interview and for document review on 12/10. When I called I was told that “they” have 30 days to process and that if I don’t hear back by 1/10 that I should call and the head case worker will get involved. Tomorrow W will be 9 months and I just sag under the weight of stress about him not even having a local doctor.
{ 23 comments… read them below or add one }
I can speak to “Your Baby Can Read”. Can they read? Sure, but can they comprehend? Probably not. And do I really want my 3 year old to read right now? NO! I must keep up the lying that such and such a show isn’t on right now on the TV.
And if you come up to Philly I will take you out for a coffee – or delicious gelato!
I so totally understand what you were in a past life. I do know EXACTLY what you mean.
Then I read the *list* paragraph and about spit the water I was drinking on my monitor cuz I do the EXACT.SAME.LIST.THING! My hanging file folders are color coordinated and I make LISTS for everything!! *oh how grand to know another list maker* My friends poke fun at me and ask me about *MY* lists. But the help me deal with shit… every day shit.
Now freaking imagine the excitement that filled my sole when I read you were a Capricorn the same as ME that explains why you intrigue me so…
Your list reminds me of a friend I had in law school who’d made a to-do list that included things like: pick up dry cleaning, make dentist appt., finish PhD. dissertation…
That Your Baby Can Read stuff freaks me out too. Your baby can’t read any ore than your baby can take himself to the potty. Stop pressuring and just read to your baby. It’s way more fun anyway.
You know I love a good list!
I can’t wait for the updates on the things you said needed more words later. *muah*
How is it possible that I love you even more? Lists! Color coding! I’m totally blissed out!
Ooooh, I love your listing! I may have to steal your coloring coding. I love it! I like making lists, I need to, but my problem is getting things done on those lists.
I say try giving W a toy to play with in his bed. Do you have a musical light soother for him? The twins got a new one for Xmas (it is a star thing). It plays music for 12 minutes and puts an image on the ceiling for them to look at. Just a thought.
Manly told me (unprompted, several weeks ago) that he knows a guy who tried the reading thing with his kid and it worked. So apparently we’re going to try it eventually.
I have a list for everything – but mine are on sticky notes all over the house – not so organized. But i get made fun of because I plan a months worth of menus at a time, and then do ll my shopping once a month…. worth it to me!!!! Love you so much and HAPPY NEW YEAR!!
Congrats to W’s godparent on making the choir.
Huge congrats to W on his secret crawling.
{{{Hugs}}} and love coming to you. I KNOW everything will work out for you soon.
Oh hell yes I want to help BattyNurse!! I luffers her!
You’ve read my post on peppermint. You know my undying love. Is it going to be available EVERYWHERE?! or just in the blessed north where things like Sierra Mist cranberry splash is year round, too. You made my heart sieze with joy, don’t destroy it now!
your to-do list rocks. I think I will now add color coding to mine! I’ll start with my home list, don’t want to go too wild at work.
I know you probably know this, but W doesn’t need to go to the Dr. immediately on his 9 month bday. He can wait since he seems to perfectly and beautifully and wonderfully healthy! I paid out of pocket for my baby’s last appointment and it was $125 which is a lot but less than I thought it would be.
Hi, yep it really IS me…..I know I’ve been missing from replies for a while now, my RL has been crazy and I don’t get but a minute of computer time these days. I do manage to at least read your blog, just making sure you, W and mom are doing okay. Anyway, wanted to say you’ve inspired me with your lists. I’m starting one today and using the same color coding too! I laughed about listing “shower” I soooo remember those days when Mason was younger, when even a shower was a luxury. I now take one every day….although I don’t get any privacy with my son often stripping off and insisting on joining me (which makes for a very unsatisfactory cleansing for mum so I usually get forced out and he stays in for a play!).
Lists are great, mine are on a spread sheet and color coded along with the budget that I do two months ahead. Linear, that’s what we are (as opposed to anal). Lu crawls when she feels like it, especially when she sees the remote control of if the fireplace catches her fancy. I’ve started baby-proofing.
If he’s a stealth crawler, he might end up being a stealth reader too, so you wouldn’t get to entertain him that easily.
(says the person whose mom figured out when she was three that she’d been able to read for many months already)
I’ve never been any good at coming up with fundraising ideas and I’m broke right now, but I do want to help if I can, so please keep us posted!
Return your sister’s email. Something wonderful may come from it, be open. Totally open.
I love lists too. LOVE lists! I also have icons to help prioritize my list because the items are not always written in order of priority. My personal favorite is an exclamation in a circle: must get done. a carrot >: today’s action items. Lists = yummy.
Oh, I am a list-lovin’ Leo.
And I went to see that baby today and I actually cried standing in the hospital lobby and on my way home. And now.
on #4, I have been thinking of putting “long johns” on Adam, but can’t find any here in the ATL, they just put all the spring shit out and it is f***ing freezing here. Adam DOES NOT LIKE TO KEEP HIS SOCKS ON!!!! AArgh. I go out in public and people give me that look like “your babies toes must be freezing, it’s cold out” Well no shit, you don’t think I know that? I just really don’t have extra hours or money to be chasing down missing socks or buying new ones, so he doesn’t wear any!
Awwwww W! And awwww Michell. And also? HAHAHAHAHA my youngest was a “secret crawler.” His caregiver (and let it be known that it RIPPED MY HEART OUT to have someone else care for him and if I hadn’t had my desk 20 ft. away I wouldn’t have survived it) would report that she’d set him down and found him 10 ft. away for WEEKS before anyone witnessed teh crawling action. He was like a NINJA!
I try to do lists but then get totally side tracked, lose my lists etc. Of course my cat Luna doesn’t help since most of my lists are on post it notes and she steals them. I should be better at lists too because I can’t freaking remember anything.
I will second Paz’s comment to e-mail your sister. Process as needed but e-mail her back.
So cute about the crawling and wow on the accomplishment of the Godparent and the Choir. That sounds amazing.
Thank you for the help too. I heart you.
Long time lurker, first time commenting. I am a list-making capricorn as well! Someone recently told me that lists are the worst way to get organized. I think it went something like this – we put too many things on the list, don’t get them done, feel awful about ourselves, repeat. The alternative was something around goal setting but I didn’t get the whole story. It gave me a small tug to get away from my lists. Have you heard about this? Thoughts?
Your family dynamics stuck a cord with me. I too have an estranged sister and am in periodic contact. It is very difficult to maintain healthy vulnerability in those circumstances. I am looking forward to hearing the next steps.