Noteworthy Thursday #32

Dear Megan,

Wow, you have really been a downer lately. Go pour yourself some wine, put on your comfiest pants, and go watch three straight hours of TV. Or maybe go to bed early instead. But definitely start with the wine and comfy pants. You're going to be just fine. Things are already looking up.

After posting your List Of Sad yesterday, you got such an outpouring of support. And that made you feel super good. You are not alone, and other people have been there. And they have come out on the other side, and you will too. So what if you dropped your pump after your blog post went up yesterday and now it is making a funny noise? You laugh in the face of disaster! If the pump breaks today, it just gives you a good reason to go home and snuggle with your adorable baby.

He is extra adorable, you know. This morning he was so cuddly and sweet and let you just rock him for a few minutes. You weren't even thinking about how he wouldn't eat his peas last night or how you will have to attempt to feed him more peas tonight. No, you were just smelling his sweet head and hugging him close. It was a lovely moment.

And another good thing: the ladies at daycare said that Milo took a nice long nap yesterday and even fell asleep on his own! Of course, you didn't realize he hadn't been falling asleep on his own, and now you wonder just how exactly he has been falling asleep for the last few weeks, but no matter. The point is, Milo was happier last night because he had a good nap. And that meant you were happier, too.

It's a beautiful October day. Go make the most of it. Take five or ten minutes at lunchtime to go outside and soak up some sun. Then when you get home, I believe there is a bottle of red calling your name.

Love,
Megan

Noteworthy Thursday #31/One month (and a few hours) already? No way.

Happy one-month birthday, Milo!

Dear Milo,

So much has changed since you were born. For instance, I thought I'd get this entry written and posted before midnight when you woke up to be fed. But then you surprised us and slept nearly eight hours in a row. And don't get me wrong, I am not complaining about that. Every day is a little different.

You are more alert and seem to recognize us more. We swear, you are *this close* to smiling. I thought you hated baths, due to the screaming and whatnot, but last night you were actually calm the entire duration you were in the tub. You had this look on your face, like, "I'm not sure what's going on, but, eh, this isn't so bad, I guess. Yes, Dad, keep on scrubbing. I shall tolerate it like a man." And you looked about as cute as you ever have (and as your mother, I can verify that you have looked VERY cute many times).

You continue to amaze me. Every. Single. Day. And I love you more and more. Every. Single. Day. Happy one-month, Milo.

Love,
Mommy

Noteworthy Thursday #30

Dear Baby,

Oh, I so want to call you by your name. It fits you so well, I think. Even when it's just your daddy and me talking, I still only call you by your name about half the time. I'm afraid that if I get too used to it, I'll let it slip when I'm talking to someone else. And we want it to be a surprise. Since everyone already knows you are a boy (and thanks for showing us your bits, by the way. Aunt Courtney had some trouble with your future cousin and still isn't sure whether she can expect a daughter or another son), we want to have something fun to anticipate. As if the date you show up isn't enough.

Which brings me to my main point. When do you plan to arrive, Baby? While I'm sure my womb is nice and cozy, winter is pretty much over, and the world is a lovely place. Daddy even told me that the tulips I planted last year are coming up. You don't want to miss seeing the tulips, do you? I'm pretty sure the deer will eat them in a matter of days, so better hurry! But you're too smart for that, aren't you? It isn't really about the tulips at all. I just want to meet you. (Okay, okay, I am also ready to not be pregnant anymore.)

A few days ago I had a little breakdown. "How am I going to do this?" I cried. "I have no idea how to take care of a baby." As the tears ran down my cheeks, Daddy said all the right things. He told me that of course I could do this, that I would be a great mom. He said that we have everything ready, and that we'll figure it out. And of course we will. I still feel totally and completely unprepared, but somehow that doesn't matter. I don't think I ever will be ready. You might show up tonight or tomorrow or the next day. Whenever you get here, I'll hold you and kiss you and keep you warm. It'll be like my arms were made for holding you. And nothing could possibly be any better than that.

"Ugh, Mom," I can already hear future you saying. I know, I know. I was about to get a little mushy there. Even now, as I sit here at my desk at work, I feel a little choked up just thinking about you. My whole life is about to change because of you, one tiny little seven-ish pound person. And right now, I still have no idea just how much.

I'd like to go ahead and find out, though, so if you wouldn't mind hurrying it up a bit, that would be great. Thanks.

See you soon.

Love,
Momma

Noteworthy Thursday #29

Dear Baby,

Well, you've been in there 26 weeks now (Okay, okay, fine. The first two weeks don't really count. Pregnancy math is hard. As is all math, if you ask me. But don't ask me. Ask your father. Or your Uncle Jeff.). I just wanted to remind you to stay put for a few more months. I just read about a somewhat infamous reality show star (for lack of a better term) who developed preeclampsia and had to deliver her 19th child (I know! That's a lot of kids!) at only 25 weeks. 25 weeks! That's way too early! That baby only weighed 1 pound, 6 ounces. Baby, you probably are already bigger than that, and even though you are already making my back hurt sometimes, I want you to grow and grow and grow, until you're nice and chubby and squishy and chompable. Then you can come out into the world and I will give you kisses.

Do we have a deal? I will keep you warm and safe (and I will stay away from the extra-spicy foods), and you will keep growing until you are nice and ripe. Okay, it's settled. See you in March!

Love,
Momma

Momma at 26 Weeks

Noteworthy Thursday #28

Dear Baby,

Hi. I’m your mom. Since we’ve been spending so much time together, I thought I ought to introduce myself. I suppose some might say that we’ve already been getting to know each other for the last few months, but I still can’t wait to meet you.

I’m fairly certain that you’re going to be amazing. But don’t just take it from me. Your daddy thinks so, too. You know him? That guy that talks and sings to you sometimes? He loves you a lot. A whole lot. I know your daddy pretty well, so trust me when I tell you that he is so happy and excited to get to know you. It makes me happy to see him so happy. But back to my point—you’re going to be amazing. You’re already pretty amazing.

I don’t even know your name, but I already know that I love you. And I know when you’re hungry. And I know when you’re sleepy. And I know that you have an incredible future in front of you. Maybe you’ll play the guitar like Daddy. Maybe you’ll love to write stories like me. You might be an excellent dancer or you might love to sing. Maybe you’ll be a scientist or an actor or a poet or a zookeeper. Maybe you’ll be the kid who eats paste. The possibilities are endless. I love imagining who you will become.

I can hardly believe that it is only a few more months until I will hold you in my arms. I will snuggle you and kiss you and rock you back and forth. I will sing to you and tell you stories. I will even let you in on all my secrets because I know you won’t tell anybody. (I know this all must sound very enticing, but please don’t try to show up to the party early. You need to stay in there and cook a little bit longer.)

I love you, Baby. I’m so glad I get to be your momma.

Love,
Momma

Noteworthy Thursday #27

Dear Time Warner,

Sigh . . .

Please fix our internet. Once again, it fails us.

Kthxbai.

Sincerely,

Megan

Noteworthy Thursday #26

This note is very near and dear to my heart. This is something from my late grandfather, and it's just a perfect example of how kind, sweet, loving, and hilarious he was.

The date on the sheet was February, 1994--I would have been 12. (Incidentally, my grandma would have passed away just eight months earlier, I think, if I have my dates straight.) I don't remember why my sister and I stayed overnight with Grandpa, but I love that we were greeted with such kindness and such a sense of fun.

Noteworthy Thursday #25

This is a thank-you note from my sixth-grade teacher, Mrs. Cox. (tangent: My school had three sixth-grade teachers, and two of them had the name Cox. So we had A. Cox and P. Cox. I had P. Cox; she was the favorite.) Anyway, I apparently gave her a pin and earring set for Christmas. The strange thing about this is the revelation that my teacher worked somewhere on a Saturday.

Um. What? School is only in session Monday through Friday. I still don't know where she was working.

Noteworthy Thursday #24

Seventh graders can be really harsh, can't they? I mean, come on . . . making fun of a guy for knowing a lot about a computer game? I don't recall the possessive part of this guy's personality, but he did have a really big head.*

*last name has been blurred out to protect the innocent (though if Matt was really as possessive as this drawing makes him out to be, I'm not so sure he's innocent).

Noteworthy Thursday #23

Okay, this is sort of amazing. And when I say that, keep in mind that my amazement standards are quite low. Last week in Noteworthy Thursday, we saw that Ginger had run out of paper. This week, she apparently had too much paper. (How does one really have too much paper, anyway? It boggles the mind.) Isn't that crazy?!

My favorite part is the summary. You'll love it, too, if you make it that far.

Noteworthy Thursday #22

1. I'm not going to explain the diapers reference.
2. We should totally bring back the phrase "who gives?"
3. What does "Eu-beri-boo" mean?

Noteworthy Thursday #21

This is yet another stream-of-consciousness sort of thing. Only two things to mention:

1. My favorite phrase is this note is "Ready set sew."
2. The daughter reference is too hard to explain, so I'll just say that it had something to do with a class project. The writer of the note was my mother and she was lucky enough to be married to the boy I had a big crush on and couldn't stop staring at on the school bus. And our friendship was never quite the same again.
   

Noteworthy Thursday #20

Things to note about this note:

1. It's written on pink paper! Pink recycled and/or recyclable paper!
2. This was sent to me while I was at camp. I still think it was fairly awesome that my friends sent me letters--nay, mailed me letters--when I was gone for a week.
3. Molly only passed along two main pieces of information, and one was that Claire's was having a "10 pairs of earrings for $5" sale and THAT is what she wished I were there for.
4. We really loved the phrase "have your people call my people." Also, "we'll do lunch."

Noteworthy Thursday #19

Dear Megan,

Do you know what day it is? That's right, it's Thursday. So where is my Noteworthy Thursday column? This isn't called Noteworthy Bi-Weekly Thursday. I don't want to hear any excuses. So what if you have been busy at work? So what if you chose to "eat dinner" and "take a shower" instead of blog? So what if you preferred to watch a little TV? You have readers to entertain. At least three of them, I think.

It's a sad day when the one thing you thought you could maintain on your blog turns out to be the one thing you can't, even after scanning all those notes in an attempt to "get ahead of the game." Sigh. What am I going to do with you?

So let this be a warning to you: Next time a Thursday goes by and no note is posted, there's gonna be trouble. I won't say what, but know that you're gonna need a whole lot of Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day Lemon Verbena All Purpose Cleaner to wipe up that mess.

Sincerely,
Your Blog

Noteworthy Thursday #18

Semi-creepy stalking + cute guy + stream-of-consciousness writing + code names + spitwads = typical day in the life of a seventh grader.

Noteworthy Thursday #17

This is a combo note from Ginger and Judy (who mysteriously became Grace Kelly for awhile). My favorite part is the fonetik spelling. Please to enjoy.

Noteworthy Thursday #16

Random thoughts from Ginger. I really don't understand anything about this note. Why is the heading in all caps? Why mongoose? Who is Rainy? And that's not how you spell English!

Noteworthy Thursday #15

I love this note. I love how Judy took the time to write it, then give it to me, to pass it to me in the hallway or to stick it in between the slats of my locker, even though she had absolutely nothing to say. That is true friendship.

Noteworthy Thursday #14

Happy Birthday, Emo! (Does this count as a present? No? Then sorry about not getting you anything.)

Noteworthy Thursday #13

This note was from my old high school boyfriend (I’ve got a whole box of these gems, people). Clearly with musical skillz like that, you can see why I was drawn to him. And speaking of drawing, what do you think his sixth block class was?

As always, click to embiggen. (that is word, yes?)