Drool Fuel?

I'm coming the the end of the long journey called graduate school, and I'm learning that it isn't really the end but the beginning. Just when I thought that my life was about to get easier, I now have to find a job. Since having Caleb I've been enjoying a nice part time schedule, and I've really been enjoying the time off with him. Unfortunately, a crappy economy is forcing me into working at least for a while. Ideally, I won't have to take a job in a lab, but if I absolutely have to do more research I've discovered my next project. Drool fuel! That's right, Caleb is producing so much drool these days, that I started thinking about how nice it would be if my car could run on the stuff. I'm sure there are plenty of other mom's of teething infants who feel the same way. Think of how much money we could save if I could just wring out his clothes and put it straight into the car. Caleb even does a nice job of pulling his shirt into his mouth to catch the extra drippings. So, I'm going to get straight to work developing an engine that runs on baby drool. Anyone want to fund my research?

I'm gonna regret this in the morning

Yep, 10:45pm and I'm still up. For a while I was working on my dissertation which is now just one chapter and a lot of revisions away from being complete (WAH HOO!). However, for the past 45 minutes, I've just been surfing the internet. And now what am I doing...oh, updating my blog! I'm definitely going to be kicking myself when Andrew's alarm goes off at 5:00 and I have to get ready for a meeting with my dissertation advisor. Off to sleep finally. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Mommy Group Meetup

So, Caleb and I have joined a mommy group so that we'll have places to go and people to see on our days together. I had been going stir crazy and feeling like we do the same things day after day on my days off. There are only so many times that you can bat toys around on the floor and go for walks around the block before you start to go nuts! So, I was referred to a great website, and there I found the most perfect mommy group just for babies (and mommies) born in Fall 2008. So far there are 17 moms in the group. Today I met up with 5 other moms at the zoo. We walked around and hung out outside for nearly three hours. It was great for me to meet some new people in the area, especially moms who I can bounce ideas off of and share my own experiences. It is great for Caleb because he doesn't get any baby interaction since he's not in daycare. So it works out for us all. I had a blast today, and I'm incredibly excited for our future meetup events. I hope this is the start of some great new friendships for myself and Caleb!

6 Hours

Apparently this is the amount of time that Caleb will sleep before his flailling arms wake him up. 8:30 to 2:30 the past two nights. Fortunately, he falls back to sleep quickly with the comfort of his pacifier. After going back to bed at 2:30, I fully expected to be awoken at least two more times before having to get up for the day; however, I was pleasantly awoken to the sound of Andrew turning off the alarm at 5:00. Of course, all that did is cause me to get out of bed and start to worry about why Caleb hadn't peeped in the last 2.5 hours. As of 5:30...still sleeping. The good news for mom, he made some noise a little bit ago and went right back to sleep!

Go DEVILS!

For the third year in a row, we are season ticket holders to ASU baseball games. Andrew and I have thoroughly enjoyed the past two seasons, and were incredibly excited to introduce Caleb to the tradition. Friday night, we had a date night for the season opener, but today we broght Caleb to his first game outside of the womb. After a nap and lunch, we got decked out in our Sun Devil gear, and Caleb and I met daddy at the game about an inning and a half late. Caleb made it through the entire game without a complaint, and was somehow able to take a short nap before Daddy woke him celebrating a grand slam.

All the "regulars" (other season ticket holders) were excited to meet him as they had learned of my pregnancy last year. And, Caleb did not disappoint. He was such a ham flirting with Phyllis, the older, widowed woman who sits in our section. He also became acquainted with a Cubs scout who was sitting in the row behind us. Unfortunately, the scout didn't notice his amazing arm and skillz at the plate, but rather was very taken by Caleb's beautiful eyes. Ah, well, we'll keep working toward that big baseball contract and signing bonus. If that doesn't work out, maybe those big eyes will get him a modeling contract.

Even though we lost about 90% of our team to last year's draft, the team looks great so far this year thanks to Coach Murphy's uncanny ability to pick up the best junior college transfers year after year. So what if they'll be draft eligible at the end of the season! Next year we'll have another new crop of 'em coming in. Looks like we may be in for another run at the College World Series. Other things I'm looking forward to this season:

1. Not being pregnant! As much as I enjoyed pregnancy, sitting out in 100 degree heat is never enjoyable, especially when you're growing another human being.


2. Related to #1...eating HOT DOGS and drinking soda. I cut these out while I was pregnant, and it was torturous having to watch a baseball game without these staples, not to mention I still had to smell grilled hot dogs as I sat there.


3. More great pictures like these: