Category: Wendy

I used to have a lot of anxiety about insects and spiders. Spiders especially. I consider myself brave about most things, but for some reason, those creepy crawly things kinda get to me. There’s that whole Indiana Jones thing where he goes through all those horrible places including caves full of snakes and bugs. I’d take those snakes any day. Hands down.

But parenthood has softened me. I would love to say I have become a kinder, gentler spirit who is learning to love nature through my child’s eyes, but that’s not it. Instead, it is that I am totally, completely surrounded by plastic insects.

It all started when we bought a tube of plastic insects for Neko. But then Shep wanted them, too, but they both wanted that big black spider at the same time, so, fine, They were about two bucks at Target, so we bought duplicates. I bet if Srgjan Kerim could buy world peace for $2, he would totally do it.

So then we had two tubes, and then I think someone else gave us some, and then there was the whole tube of butterflies, and then, omigod it became a virtual plastic infestation.

So now I don’t even flinch when I encounter that massive brown (plastic) spider in the shower or the (plastic) grasshopper with the drying dishes. Desensitization or sleep-deprivation, I’m not quite sure, but it seems to be working.

In the last two weeks both my sister and I totally spaced out on doctor’s appointments. If we didn’t like our pediatrician, and he always ran late, we might feel badly, but not lose too much sleep over it.

But we really like our pediatrician. He’s always accommodating, respects our opinions as parents, and allows us to be a major voice in the care of our children. So, um, we both felt pretty rotten about missing these appointments.

So I made cookies. I know it’s not much, but it’s a gesture, and I hope they know how stupid we feel about screwing up. That, and I hope they can appreciate a little testicle humor at 9 o’clock in the morning.

When I was a teenager, I had braces. My mouth is small, so they pulled a bunch of teeth and shoved them all together in a nice, straight line.

When I was in my late twenties, I got braces again. (The teeth had started to move, healthier bite, TMJ, blahblahblah.) They put in this contraption and stretched my jaw apart, because that’s what they do now. So then I got these big gaps where my teeth used to be. The plan was to get implants (teeth, that is) shortly after the braces came off.

But then I got pregnant. And then I was breast-feeding. This made the implants impossible because it’s a several month process and involves several rounds of anesthesia. There’s a much longer story about incorrectly made retainers and opening up spaces, but, essentially, this cycle repeated from Neko on down to Ellery.

So I finally went for my consultation to get my implants, only to discover that, although the teeth have remained properly spaced apart, the roots have crept over into the gums above the gap. Bottom line…no implants unless the roots are moved. My choices? Destroy four perfectly good teeth to accommodate two bridges or go back into braces.

So on December 19th I get braces again. Feel free to consider it a day of mourning.

Today was my Maintenance Day, the day I take every now and then to get my hair cut and pack about 12 hours worth of errands into about three.

I also met my friend, Anne, who’s 37 weeks pregnant, for lunch. When I was 37 weeks pregnant with Neko, I had a lunch date with Anne. But I had to cancel when my water broke, and I delivered Neko later that day. When I touched base with her early this morning, I was hoping (for her sake) she would have to break our lunch date. Although a bit dilated and effaced, she still made it, and we enjoyed sushi, thai, and good conversation.

During my day, I stopped by Target and picked up these faboo plastic popcorn cups in the dollar bins. After an early dinner, I hurried the kids through bath and then cracked out a new movie and filled the our cups. For the cost of $1 per person (plus the price of popcorn), we had a spectacular evening.

This is our 13th year of the same group of friends getting together for an annual visit. It usually happens in the summer, poolside. But this year, October was the closest date we could find where we could all make it. Despite all our planning, a last minute work schedule made Marilyn absent, and her tee-hee-hees were sorely missed.

What used to be a rowdy weekend of staying out all night has turned into one of a day at the spa and evenings on the couch. Nearly half of us are pregnant or nursing, so it’s to be expected.

We met at a central location, which turned out to be Beth’s house this year. She and Dave opened up their home, and we all settled in for good conversation and a whole lot of laughing. It’s so good to fold right back into old friendships after all these years. You kinda pick up where you left off, as if no time had passed.

The Bodies Exhibition set the tone for the weekend, prompting much discussion about certain anatomical structures. Someday Beth and I will take everyone else to the exhibit and show them what we mean, since diagrams and illustrations were clearly not enough. Then all conversation naturally went downhill from there.

I’m also beginning to think I’m the only person in these parts who has never heard of a Pumpkin Roll. I feel as though I fell asleep in Americana 101.