Teddy bears

I was lying here in bed tonight with dell the mini laptop thinking thinking thinking and not coming up with much to blog about.  Then Lazyboo gave me a lovely frivolous idea when she said,

“This bear is always attacking me!”

I love teddy bears and still sleep with one.  This all started when my very first girlfriend gave me a little bear with a hard rock cafe tshirt that she had got in florida when we were first separated.  That was Freddy.  I slept with him for over 15 years and he still sits proudly on a shelf in our hall.  Lazyboo now tells me that I had stopped sleeping with him except for when I was pissed at her or upset about something…

In any case, he was only replaced when Lazyboo and FenFox gave me my current bear for Mother’s day last year.  The theory was to give me some incentive to keep my arms down and not sleep with them above my head which was causing all sorts of problems with my shoulders and neck.  FenFox dubbed him Scruff  ’cos i couldn’t think of anything else Mama!’.  He’s bigger and fluffier and softer than Freddy and I find it oh so relaxing to snuggle him tight and feel his soft fur on my face.   This is how I go to sleep most nights.  Lazyboo is not such a fan and claims that once I’m asleep I just throw him at her and sleep with my arms up anyway.  And then wake her up searching for him.

With this love of the sleep bear, it is no surprise that both of our children also have their bears. I have blogged about McBean’s Leo with the disgusting tail before.  FenFox has also always had a bear.  When she was just a tiny baby, it felt like one thing after another was happening with her, and it was while she was in the hospital yet again (that time for unexplained seizures) that I found her very first bear.  She was a cute little black bear with a maroon bow.  We called her ‘Courtney’ after the little baby in the next cot (who was suffering from a congenital illness that had just taken her twin sister, and who would lose her fight about a week later).  This was shortened to Cordy bear when FenFox couldn’t say the whole name.  This bear was loved so.  FenFox couldn’t sleep without her and would go to sleep rubbing the bear’s nose on her mouth.  I’ve just recently unearthed a video of 8 month old FenFox doing just that and I’m so glad to have recorded that.

Over the years, Cordy bear was repeatedly lost (usually when FenFox was with her dad but that’s another story) and each time I would return to the children’s hospital gift shop to get a replacement.  And each time I would remember baby Courtney and feel so very grateful for my healthy growing girl.  This happened so often that the bear became known as ‘New Bear’.  That bear is a part of so many memories of FenFox’s life.  A good memory is that my mother made a replica of the bear for Fenfox’s first birthday cake (the black icing was awesome as was the mess it created!) and a bad one was that the only ever toddler tantrum that she had was one day at the age of 4 when we asked her to leave the bear in the car on a road trip.  I was philosophical the day that R1 brought 5 year old FenFox home with the news that the latest New Bear had been lost. But I was so very sad when I traipsed back to the hospital to get another one to find that the company had stopped making them.  Despite much searching, I’ve never been able to find another one.

Since then, FenFox has adopted various sleep toys, from Charla the big pink cat to an old pound puppy to Aqua the penguin.  Lazyboo says that she has periodically slept with a whole zoo of animals.  Right now, it’s all about Rani the tiger cub that we got for her on our trip to Qld just before McBean.  I wonder if she’ll ever get too old for a bear?  Or will she be like me and never grow out of it?

Food for thought

McBean and I set off intrepidly this morning for a big shop at Footscray Market.  I had our trusty old nanna trolley and McBean in the backpack and off we went.  It’s always fun but tiring at the market.

All the old Asian and Mediterranean women smile and coo at McBean, and he flirts madly with everyone, especially the young Asian girls who serve us at the butchers.

Our monthly meat shop was a little challenging today.  I normally get a similar selection of stuff each month, because I cook a similar range of things – not the same, but similar.  A lot of stuff in the slow cooker, a lot of casseroles (that way they can be cooked in advance and then reheated if things are going crazy, which they frequently are at dinner time) – I try to experiment with a few new recipes every few weeks.  But now that it’s coming into summer, it’s too damn hot for casseroles.  So the meat shop had to be modified to include things to stir fry, and things to grill.

Don’t know how McBean is going to go with the changing menu.  He likes the casseroles, the veges go soft and are easy for him to chew with his few teeth.  Not that he’s eating much in this heat.  He wouldn’t eat dinner tonight at all.

Mind you, in this heat he is napping a lot better.  3 hours yesterday, over 2 hours today.  So at least he’ll be well rested even if he’s skinny.

I confess…

Today:

I slept while Lazyboo was getting dressed and McBean played on the bed, only to be scarily woken by a thud and a wail – McBean had somehow flipped himself off the bed and landed hard on his nose.  Now he looks like rudolph.

I didn’t get out of my pjs

I tried hard to not think about the job interview yesterday (that seemed to go ok) or that I’ll find out if I got the job either friday or monday.

McBean only got to go outside when I hung the washing out, much to his disgust.

McBean watched TV properly for the first time – In the Nig.ht Gar.den (which he seemed to enjoy and actually stayed still to watch) and then Play School

I had a nap when McBean did

I did not make use of the 3 whole hours that he was asleep to clean the house even though it really needed it

I let FenFox watch TV even though it wasn’t a screen day

I let McBean wander around the house eating his snacks, and FenFox choose her own without any limits, then let her eat on the couch.

I only half heartedly suggested that we go ride our bikes then conceded very quickly when FenFox said she wanted to just stay in and read.

I did not walk the dog

I only remembered to water the vegie garden at the end of the day

I selfishly let Lazyboo do the getting McBean to bed routine, the clean up after dinner and the making of FenFox’s lunch for tomorrow

I went out to get petrol and came home with yummy hot chips.  But no chocolate.

And after all that, I feel relaxed and content.  And not guilty at all (except  for the sore little red nose).

Sometimes you’ve gotta whinge

Says Clark.

McBean had a bad night last night.  He was awake three times, little bugger.  It’s just getting harder and harder to deal with his night time waking.  Over 12 months of interrupted sleep is killer.  He went for about a week there of sleeping through and it was bliss.  Shame it didn’t last.

He’s really out of sorts the last few days.  He’s grumpy and uber frustrated at everything.  If he can’t do something he wants to do he gets so angry.  And food is a bit of a drama.  He’s more likely to throw the food on the floor than eat it.  And the hysterics on the change table are a sight (and sound) to behold.

Clark and I are finding it all very tiring.

Two cute boys

McBean and Squeak

Then (18 February 2009):

Now (16 November 2009):

What a difference 9 months makes!

In other news, exciting job interview tomorrow.  Am being determinedly optimistic but I don’t think I’m convincing even myself.