OK, I'm in a bad mood today. You can tell. So I'll throw this out as well:
I'm sooooo sick of changing diapers!!!!
I've been changing at least 5 diapers with at least 2 big duties a day for the past 2 years! I'm so done with it.
Will this era ever end???
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Feelings of a Single Mom
I know this is not a new topic, yet today it hit me again. Maybe even more because I feel sick and I have a bad cold. Which is why I had to cancel a get together with a dear friend whom I don't see too often. Instead I asked Philipp to come over in the afternoon and take care of our girl. So I could have a break and take care of myself.
Lenara is getting all excited when Daddy is coming. When the doorbell rings she's running out in the hallway and I have to stop her from running down the stairs to meet him (she's not able to run downstairs yet that's the only reason...). It's so good to see the two of them happily reunited.
Yet, as soon as he enters our apartment, it seems like I am not existing anymore. He took her out for a walk today. We have a rule to say goodbye properly to each other. So after reminding her, she at least says a quick goodbye to me. When they got back after 2 hours we had dinner together. I could tell that Lenara loved to have him over for dinner. The two of them have their little jokes and giggles. Lenara is full of energy and all happy and excited.
Which I do understand and I really am happy for them. It also shows that my philosophy and my behaviour toward her Dad was worth all the hard times I used to have.
But, when I see them together like that and Lenara doesn't notice me anymore, I start wondering, if we ever have this much fun together. Then it seems like our days are filled with "wait a minute", "let me do this first", "hold on", "one second", "sure we can go to the playground, but we need to stop by the mail office first"... One thing is, I miss times when my head is truely free to only enjoy the playing moment. I know we have those moments too, but it always feels like I have to make room for them. The other thing is, I'm jealous, bc whenever Daddy sees his girl, he doesn't have any obligations (no cooking meals, no cleaning dishes, no doing laundry, no taken the garbage out, no grocery shopping, no paper work, no worrying about if she eats vegetables or not, no worrying about fighting over rules, no official appointments, no working with a sick baby in his arms etc.). He can simply do everything she wants him to do all day long.
Daddy Superstar.
I don't blame him. If I was in his position I would do just the same and enjoy the rare time with my girl.
Yet, I wonder, if I'll ever be Mommy Superstar. I know it's not even about Lenara's perspective. Mommys just are Superstars to the kids (at least I hope so). I just wish I could feel it more often and not let the distant "wait a sec" moments and all the things I'm not getting accomplished like I had imagined in the way.
Which is especially hard with such a dull stuffy head. Argh.
Lenara is getting all excited when Daddy is coming. When the doorbell rings she's running out in the hallway and I have to stop her from running down the stairs to meet him (she's not able to run downstairs yet that's the only reason...). It's so good to see the two of them happily reunited.
Yet, as soon as he enters our apartment, it seems like I am not existing anymore. He took her out for a walk today. We have a rule to say goodbye properly to each other. So after reminding her, she at least says a quick goodbye to me. When they got back after 2 hours we had dinner together. I could tell that Lenara loved to have him over for dinner. The two of them have their little jokes and giggles. Lenara is full of energy and all happy and excited.
Which I do understand and I really am happy for them. It also shows that my philosophy and my behaviour toward her Dad was worth all the hard times I used to have.
But, when I see them together like that and Lenara doesn't notice me anymore, I start wondering, if we ever have this much fun together. Then it seems like our days are filled with "wait a minute", "let me do this first", "hold on", "one second", "sure we can go to the playground, but we need to stop by the mail office first"... One thing is, I miss times when my head is truely free to only enjoy the playing moment. I know we have those moments too, but it always feels like I have to make room for them. The other thing is, I'm jealous, bc whenever Daddy sees his girl, he doesn't have any obligations (no cooking meals, no cleaning dishes, no doing laundry, no taken the garbage out, no grocery shopping, no paper work, no worrying about if she eats vegetables or not, no worrying about fighting over rules, no official appointments, no working with a sick baby in his arms etc.). He can simply do everything she wants him to do all day long.
Daddy Superstar.
I don't blame him. If I was in his position I would do just the same and enjoy the rare time with my girl.
Yet, I wonder, if I'll ever be Mommy Superstar. I know it's not even about Lenara's perspective. Mommys just are Superstars to the kids (at least I hope so). I just wish I could feel it more often and not let the distant "wait a sec" moments and all the things I'm not getting accomplished like I had imagined in the way.
Which is especially hard with such a dull stuffy head. Argh.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Mooncup: The full review
Dear ladies, I have blogged about the Mooncup® (known in the USA as MCUK®) earlier this month. As I have promised I will give you a detailled review now.
When I received the mooncup in the mail, I was surprised of the well designed packaging. It's a very classy design and I like the choice of paper. It totally reflects the spirit of an ecological product and company and keeps in mind the target group: women who are seeking for some extra relief in yuckie times. So thank God, no vagina graphics or medical looks. The mooncup comes with a well designed (ok, most people will skip the design part, but I just am a designer, so I notice such things!) manual in tons of languages. But the "how to" part is really kept short and very encouraging. You want to try it right away because it sounds so easy.
Which was the bad part: I had to wait over a week for my period. I haven't been keeping track of my period in a while. So my guess was just wrong and my worrying for the mooncup to arrive too late for nothing. So I had it sitting in my bathroom - anxiously waiting to be used. (It also caught Lenara's attention and she kept asking me about it and I had to take it out of her mouth at least one time. How do you explain a 2-year-old what these things are good for... ?!)
So finally my period came and YESSSSS I got to use my very own mooncup for the very first time (aren't you excited!?).
PUTTING IN/OUT:
Easier than I had expected. You have to fold the flexible cup twice and put it in basically like a tampon. It folds up right in place. You're supposed to cut the pull-back part to a good length adjusted to your body. It's not supposed to stick out, so you can feel or it hurts. I cut twice, just to be sure. To take it out, you just pull very slowly so some air gets in to break up the vacuum. Very similar to a tampon I would say. '
WEARING EXPERIENCE:
I didn't feel this thing at all!!! Meaning AT ALL! Even now that I write this, I had to think a sec, if I'm still wearing it. A tampon always moves a tiny bit up or down in some moments - i.e. when going to the toilet with a tampon I always had to make sure it's not being sqeezed down. Not with the mooncup though. Unless you pull the little string, it stays right in place.
EMPTYING:
I went hiking the first day, and when I had to pee in the woods, I first realized what a mess this would have meant with a tampon. After 2 hours I would have had to exchange the tampon. But there wasn't any place to dispose it. I would have wrapped it in a tissue and put it back in my backpack. Great! (I hate when I have to take home stinky diapers. Not talking of yuckie tampons.) But with the mooncup I didn't have to pay attention to my period. It can stay in up to 8 hours (depending on how heavy the period is). And if I had to empty it, I could have simple taken my bottle of water into the woods to rinse it a little and put it back in.
I also hate, when people don't have a garbage in their bathrooms (mainly male singles!). You have to wrap the bloody tampon in some toilet paper, try to hide it in your hand (or your pocket) and try to get to some close garbage without attracting any attention. (Not talking about the ones I found a couples of days later in my bag...). So that's a plus for private bathrooms: you only need a sink - no garbage.
But, that's the point. In a public bathroom, what do I do? Lock myself in, take the mooncup out, pull my pants up again, go outside again to rinse it in the sink - with everybody watching... ? I suppose you have to take some water with you then. Which makes it more complicated compared to tampons. Unless you don't rinse it, just empty it and put it back in... which would work as an exception. I personally would prefer to rinse it every time though.
I thought it to be very fascinating to actually see the exact amount of blood I'm losing - for the very first time!! During those past 18 years I have never had a clue how much it is - I simply felt like a slaughtered pig at times. What a revelation! I like to know and explore my body. Being faced with plain blood in a sink, might be a problem for some though. Which could be a minus. But I personally really don't mind. I don't think a bloody tampon is any less nasty. And I just thought about it, there's no odor with the mooncup, whereas a tampon starts smelling, if you leave it in for too long.
OVERLL RESULT:
I personally am VERY fascinated by this product and I'm going to stick with the mooncup. Definitely! It feels much more comfortable, natural and compatible with my body (no matter, if I'm going to safe money by using it and/or safe the rainforests - which is not a bad thing either! great!). Especially the fear of leaking is extremely diminished since a mooncup works like a "plug" and not like a "sponge".
I love it!
Go get yourself a mooncup, Ladies! ;)
When I received the mooncup in the mail, I was surprised of the well designed packaging. It's a very classy design and I like the choice of paper. It totally reflects the spirit of an ecological product and company and keeps in mind the target group: women who are seeking for some extra relief in yuckie times. So thank God, no vagina graphics or medical looks. The mooncup comes with a well designed (ok, most people will skip the design part, but I just am a designer, so I notice such things!) manual in tons of languages. But the "how to" part is really kept short and very encouraging. You want to try it right away because it sounds so easy.
Which was the bad part: I had to wait over a week for my period. I haven't been keeping track of my period in a while. So my guess was just wrong and my worrying for the mooncup to arrive too late for nothing. So I had it sitting in my bathroom - anxiously waiting to be used. (It also caught Lenara's attention and she kept asking me about it and I had to take it out of her mouth at least one time. How do you explain a 2-year-old what these things are good for... ?!)
So finally my period came and YESSSSS I got to use my very own mooncup for the very first time (aren't you excited!?).
PUTTING IN/OUT:
Easier than I had expected. You have to fold the flexible cup twice and put it in basically like a tampon. It folds up right in place. You're supposed to cut the pull-back part to a good length adjusted to your body. It's not supposed to stick out, so you can feel or it hurts. I cut twice, just to be sure. To take it out, you just pull very slowly so some air gets in to break up the vacuum. Very similar to a tampon I would say. '
WEARING EXPERIENCE:
I didn't feel this thing at all!!! Meaning AT ALL! Even now that I write this, I had to think a sec, if I'm still wearing it. A tampon always moves a tiny bit up or down in some moments - i.e. when going to the toilet with a tampon I always had to make sure it's not being sqeezed down. Not with the mooncup though. Unless you pull the little string, it stays right in place.
EMPTYING:
I went hiking the first day, and when I had to pee in the woods, I first realized what a mess this would have meant with a tampon. After 2 hours I would have had to exchange the tampon. But there wasn't any place to dispose it. I would have wrapped it in a tissue and put it back in my backpack. Great! (I hate when I have to take home stinky diapers. Not talking of yuckie tampons.) But with the mooncup I didn't have to pay attention to my period. It can stay in up to 8 hours (depending on how heavy the period is). And if I had to empty it, I could have simple taken my bottle of water into the woods to rinse it a little and put it back in.
I also hate, when people don't have a garbage in their bathrooms (mainly male singles!). You have to wrap the bloody tampon in some toilet paper, try to hide it in your hand (or your pocket) and try to get to some close garbage without attracting any attention. (Not talking about the ones I found a couples of days later in my bag...). So that's a plus for private bathrooms: you only need a sink - no garbage.
But, that's the point. In a public bathroom, what do I do? Lock myself in, take the mooncup out, pull my pants up again, go outside again to rinse it in the sink - with everybody watching... ? I suppose you have to take some water with you then. Which makes it more complicated compared to tampons. Unless you don't rinse it, just empty it and put it back in... which would work as an exception. I personally would prefer to rinse it every time though.
I thought it to be very fascinating to actually see the exact amount of blood I'm losing - for the very first time!! During those past 18 years I have never had a clue how much it is - I simply felt like a slaughtered pig at times. What a revelation! I like to know and explore my body. Being faced with plain blood in a sink, might be a problem for some though. Which could be a minus. But I personally really don't mind. I don't think a bloody tampon is any less nasty. And I just thought about it, there's no odor with the mooncup, whereas a tampon starts smelling, if you leave it in for too long.
OVERLL RESULT:
I personally am VERY fascinated by this product and I'm going to stick with the mooncup. Definitely! It feels much more comfortable, natural and compatible with my body (no matter, if I'm going to safe money by using it and/or safe the rainforests - which is not a bad thing either! great!). Especially the fear of leaking is extremely diminished since a mooncup works like a "plug" and not like a "sponge".
I love it!
Go get yourself a mooncup, Ladies! ;)
Monday, April 25, 2011
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Easter Morning
Today, Olivia turns 20 months old.
This morning, I'd go back to bed, but where?
Art. Olivia loves making art. My only handmade contributions this year are the polka dot leggings and the ribbon wand. I'm so excited for her to see it. The pink eggs have stickers inside and the yellow each have 2 fruit snacks inside.
Olivia giggled at herself last night when she cleverly put her cup up on the shelf. I'm always picking stuff up so we don't kick it. I'm pretty sure she thought it was funny that she beat me to it.
We only dyed 6 eggs. David and I got upset at each other (for no good reason) during it so it was silent egg dye-ing. Ugh.
But, I made a pillow this past week. It's been in project purgatory forever.
This morning, I'd go back to bed, but where?
Art. Olivia loves making art. My only handmade contributions this year are the polka dot leggings and the ribbon wand. I'm so excited for her to see it. The pink eggs have stickers inside and the yellow each have 2 fruit snacks inside.
Olivia giggled at herself last night when she cleverly put her cup up on the shelf. I'm always picking stuff up so we don't kick it. I'm pretty sure she thought it was funny that she beat me to it.
We only dyed 6 eggs. David and I got upset at each other (for no good reason) during it so it was silent egg dye-ing. Ugh.
But, I made a pillow this past week. It's been in project purgatory forever.
Friday, April 22, 2011
Thrift store finds
Also these Elmo socks and orange track shorts...
Because Olivia IS a runner these days!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Because Olivia IS a runner these days!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Thrift store finds
We haven't been in a while (months?) but I made up for it today. Total: $12!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Location:Baltimore Ghetto Thrift Store
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