Life Work Balance

I used to think this meant that one could actually achieve a life work balance on a daily basis. I have come to realize that one can not. What this really means is that one week you focus on work and the next on life. Or sometimes a few weeks or months at a time and then a switch. At least for me, it is NOT possible to have it all. Whomever planted that seed into my mind that it was possible (and that may very well have been just myself) wasn't telling the truth! Life is not about finding a balance on a daily basis between life and work. Instead, life is about trying to find a balance that keeps you no more than halfway sane and life one fourth manageable. It seems like such a little goal to get to but in reality it takes all I have to just try and hit those marks some of the time. I don't think it is because I am doing something wrong. Instead, I think it is because this is really all one has time for. You think about all the things that have to be done each week - laundry, kids get to school with clean clothes and a healthy lunch, I get to work with clean clothes (sometimes they were wrinkled), kids get a bath every other day or so, dinner of some variety is eaten each night, teeth brushed and flossed daily, sometimes the dishwasher gets unloaded - and then add in the things that I like to do or need to do for my sanity - exercising, catching up with friends, paying bills, trying to focus on the important things, taking moments for myself - and when you do so you realize that it takes up more time than there are hours in the week IF you also want to sleep! Staying no more than halfway sane and life one fourth manageable is what you are left with. This should be the definition of a Life Work Balance. This is mine and I hope that I am not alone in that feeling. Until later...
-Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night

Motherhood and Society

The whole concept of my blog is the balance of work and family life, of having one hat on by day and wearing another at night. But there are not distinct roles. One doesn't exist for 8 hours and be put aside for the remainder of the day. And motherhood isn't set aside during the 8 or so hours I am a lawyer, either. And lately it seems that the two are intertwining but not in the way one would expect. I haven't had a lot of sick children or daycare issues or bringing kids to work. I haven't had to work on cases that hit to close to home. Instead, lately I've realized more and more that my opinions and views as a mother, wife, and a woman in general do matter more in my life as a lawyer that I would ever have thought during law school. I realize that I am beginning to view the cases I see and the work I'm involved with the eyes of what type of world I want my children to grow up in. Even more than that, I am realizing that there are certain opinions that I hold strongly on a personal level, due to the opinions and beliefs I want my children raised to uphold, that I need to express more openly at work. These are the things you do not learn in law school. Over the last several months, I have realized that I need to become more proactive about trying to impress to the world around me things I feel strongly about. Too long I have become complacent with status quo and not stood firmly in things I believe strongly about. These are not the actions I would want my children to do. And, thus, this is not how I should behave either. These are not large issues, these are small things that mostly go unnoticed to most people. They are not, though, any less important. Perhaps it was the recent boycotting by 300 or so nursing mothers in a Georgia town that somehow tried to outlaw nursing your child over a certain age by County Ordinance that was the jumpstart to my realization to stand up more for what I believe in. Perhaps it was just one of many things. Nevertheless, I feel motivated now to stand up for my opinions much more fervently.Unfortunately, I heard of it too late to to stand beside those women with them. If I had heard of it before, though, I would gladly have taken a vacation day and my own daughter down to show my support. Nursing is something I believe strongly in. Very strongly. As in still nursing a 20 month old strongly. World Health Organization recommends it until 2 years of age. Recently, my daughter has shown indications of possible weaning soon but if she doesn't wean on her own, I don't have a problem with nursing at the 2 year mark. Literally no one else in my life -close friends, family, or work - agrees with me. But that doesn't matter to me. And it shouldn't matter to me, either. I should stand up for what I believe, regardless of the popularity of the opinion. That's what I'd expect of my children. It's not just nursing in public (which by the way is allowed by state-wide Georgia law) that I have strong opinions about. I have some specific strong opinions and stances on other topics/issues/situations that have come up in my professional world lately. It's time to take a stand when something offensive is said/done, whether it is an personal attack or and inadvertent comment. Maybe it is easiest to say all of this here, on a blog that I doubt anyone reads anyway. But maybe, just maybe if I post this on this blog, post a link on facebook and then do what I say I believe when the next situation arises, perhaps then I'll have some hope of at least imparting upon my world severe food for thought, if not an actual change. So be it then! Let this Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night truly show the world that I am giving my children the example in all situations of what I'd want them to say and how I'd want them to act. Until later...

-Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night

Happy Birthday Baby Girl!

Today my daughter turns one year old! I can't believe it. I don't know where the time has gone. I also can't believe how much she has grown. She is just about walking and is eating all kinds of table foods. She doesn't talk much - says bye and mama (but not Mommy) and that is about it. She definitely understands a lot, though. She tries to get herself dressed - especially socks, shoes, and pants. She climbs everywhere - including inside the toilet once! She's tall for her age. She loves her brother very much. I can't believe that one year ago today I was still pregnant with her. I went into labor about 3:30 am and she was born at 1:37 pm. It has been a long year but one I have enjoyed with my daughter very much. I love her smile and how she loves her brother. I love how much she enjoys life to the fullest. She likes to move and explore. She loves to eat (and can eat a lot). She likes to "read" books and listen to music. She can "dance" to music while following the beat. She likes thanking baths. She loves her Daddy and she's pretty fond of her Mommy too (if I do say so myself!). I love watching her grow and learn and explore. I hope she grows up to be a happy person and enjoys life to the fullest and finds happiness in a career, in love, and in all things she does. Love you bunches baby girl. Happy Birthday Paleigh Anne. Until later...
-Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night

Vacation 2010

Our family (the four of us plus my Mom and Dad) are wrapping up our vacation. We rented a condo for 10 days in Daytona Beach Shores and we've had a great time! The condo is beautiful. It is nicely decorated and it's on the 9th floor in a corner unit so we have some great views of both the ocean and the inter-coastal waterway. Basically there is about 270 degree view or so. The kids have had fun here. Paleigh enjoyed the sand and water and Riley likes to dig in the sand and play in the pool and hot tub. We rode bikes down to the end of the island one day, rode bikes short distances other days, and took several walks. We ate at our favorite restaurants a few times. Tony and I even took Riley to lunch at the restaurant on the nearby pier (he called it a bridge). He liked eating up high and seeing out the windows. It has turned out to be a really great trip. Wish we could win the lottery and not have to return to work but that would require playing first at least! I can't believe that when we return it will be about a week and a half until my little girl turns one year old! I don't know where the time went but I do know that she didn't sleep the year away! She is still not a great sleeper - only sleeps through the night every other night or every third night. There hasn't been a single week in her entire life that she's slept through the night every night of the week. You do learn to survive but it is getting really old. I joked with my mother today that I hope she'll sleep through the night soon or else she'll be in kindergarten and we won't be able to go through the carpool line 'cause each day we'll have to walk her into school so we can tell the teacher what mood to expect her in based on how long she slept the night before! She is a great napper - usually at least one long nap a day, at least 3 hours long but it can go longer to 4 or 5 hours. In fact, almost every day on this trip she'll gotten in her 3 hour nap while someone waited in the room on her. She had one almost 5 hour nap this week and at least one 4 hour nap as well. Anyway, I hope everyone else had a great week 'cause we certainly did. Time to go, gotta get up early and finish packing. Until later....
-Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night

Sad Week

Last week was very sad. My friend whose daughter had cancer died on Thursday morning at 2:30 am. My friend's posts on facebook/the caringbridge website were very sad last week. At the beginning of the week she posted that her daughter had been sleeping since the weekend. Then there was a post about her temperature being down to 91, slowed heartbeat and congestion in her lungs. She posted on caringbridge within an hour of the little girl's passing that she died in my friend and her husband's bed. Apparently both parents held her hands as she took her last breaths and the little girl squeezed her daddy's fingers right before she took her last breath as if to let him know everything was okay. This was very, very sad. Though we were not close friends growing up, I went to school with her from kindergarten to high school graduation. I can not imagine what it is like to go through what they went through. I held my own babies tight all week long and cried many, many nights last week. I thought a lot about my friend and prayed for them often. I woke up many times during the night on several nights last week thinking about my friend. My own son came to my bed at 1:30 the night the little girl died and asked to sleep with me. I immediately thought of my friend and prayed for her as I let my son into my bed. In the morning I learned that the little girl died an hour after my own son came to my room. So sad to think that as I was sleeping with and holding my children (the baby was in the bed at that point too due to nursing), my friend was holding her youngest daughter for the last time and was up informing people of her daughter's death - posting on the caringbridge website about the girl's death within an hour of her passing. Her celebration of life service was Saturday. It was a beautiful service with many, many people there. There was a reception afterwards to visit with the family and there were many, many beautiful pictures of her daughter. Such a beautiful little girl. I hope never, ever to have to plan a funeral service for a child. A parent, grandparent, and spouse is something you know that eventually you will have to plan a funeral for. But for a child it should never, ever happen. I hope that faith will sustain my friend and her family through this difficult time. I hope this week will not bring any sad news. It is late and I should get some sleep before the baby wakes up to eat. Until later...
-Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night

Winter Conference 2010

Last week I went the PACGA (prosecuting attorney's council of georgia) Winter Conference 2010. It was at Callaway Gardens. I drove down Wednesday with my boss and a co-worker (Boss drove - explains why we were late). Hubby and the kids joined me Wednesday night and stayed the rest of the conference. Hubby took Thursday and Friday off and took the kids to Callaway while I learned how to be a prosecutor. ***** Callaway is offering free admission to anyone through the end of February************ So it was a nice, inexpensive little trip for all of us. This conference is a perfect example of the struggle to be a lawyer and a mom, especially a nursing mom. I didn't initially have a fridge in my room so being that I have to store valuable milk I had to call and get one delivered. Had to put up the privacy sign at 6 pm while making milk so the fridge delivery guy wouldn't walk in. Co-workers had to wait on me for dinner Wednesday so I could pump since there were no available breaks that afternoon for me to do so. Thursday I pumped at the two 15 minute breaks in the restroom 'cause my room was too far away to walk to and pump there. This meant I was using a manual pump in a stall since no stalls I have found ever have outlets in them! Since my daughter really doesn't like the bottle and thus only drinks the minimum amount (and sometimes refuses a third bottle during the day), I was able to pump more than she drank that day! I used a little bit more than 15 minutes at each break but when you are a lawyer (or any job) by day and mommy by night, you gotta do what you gotta do! The guy that delivered the fridge probably had no idea I was storing milk in it - since so many lawyers were there he probably thought I was buying beer or wine and keeping it in there. After all, when a co-worker went to the local package store, they told her that they had really stocked up when they learned all these attorneys were coming to town! And on Thursday night when everyone else went back to their rooms to take a nap or change into workout clothes and hit the gym, I was calling my husband on his cell to let him know that I was on my way right then since I just got a text asking me when I was coming back or did he need to heat a bottle?! And these are just the stories about me being a Mom to my youngest at the conference. Then there is the oldest one. He is into Thomas the Train A LOT!!!!!!!!!!!! AS IN ALL THE TIME!!!!!!!!!!!! We get it on the ON Demand channel at home. No such channel exist at Callaway. First words out of his mouth when he arrived at the hotel room - I want to watch Thomas on Mommy's TV! So I kept repeating for 2 1/2 days, we will watch Thomas as soon as we get home! Of course, he was asleep when he got home at 9 pm Friday! But we sure did watch it first thing Saturday morning - first words out of his mouth saturday morning as he came to my side of the bed - I need to watch Thomas! Gotta love that little boy!!!!!! I am sure that no one else at the conference (at least from my office) spent their last break on Friday running back to the hotel room to change 2 diapers so hubby could finish loading the car. During the entire conference, I learned about being a prosecutor - how its great, what we should try to accomplish, how to do it, war stories, etc. - but not a single thing about balancing work and family life or work and non-work life. No stories about circuits that have created in house daycare centers. No stories about take your child to work day. No stories about Judges making inappropriate comments about your water breaking on their carpet while you are pregnant. Yes, I enjoy being a prosecutor, I find traffic court very interesting (after all my senior thesis in college was The Evolution of Traffic Management Systems and the Development of Traffic Engineering), I love my profession and I never would want to stop being a lawyer, BUT there is nothing, nothing more enjoyable than seeing your kids face light up with excitement! Sometimes it is because you came home, sometimes it is because they get to watch Thomas, sometimes it is the Christmas tree you decorated for their room, or seeing a picture of their baby sister, whatever it is, there is nothing more enjoyable than seeing your child full of excitement. One day I may retire and stop being a lawyer but I will never, ever stop being a Mommy. It's late and I better get to sleep while I can. Until then...
-Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night

Still Sleepless in Canton!

It's been over 6 weeks since my first post about sleepless in Canton and things have improved a little but not much. She has started to sleep a little longer in her crib at a time but it varies and is not consistent. Friday and Saturday night she slept about 6 hours each night in her crib and we were excited things this was the start of a new trend. But it wasn't! It was a fluke. 'Cause it was only 3 hours the next night and less last night. Sometimes I think she gets cold but mostly I can't pinpoint her lack of sleeping to anything in particular - except her personality! She will still sleep beside us but still wakes up then too and we don't sleep too well when she is there with us. We are about at the point that Riley started sleeping through the night fulltime so we are getting really tired. And Riley didn't have a problem going back to sleep in his crib or cradle after getting up so we were not as tired with him. We can always be hopeful that better sleeping is in store soon but I am not overly hopeful.
On another note, we had a good Christmas and a great New Year. Lots and lots of presents were opened and most were pretty cool. Though we had a 2 year old and a 4 year old that were tired and whiny on Christmas (nephew is the 4 year old), I think everyone had a good time. And New Years was very, very relaxing. I hope everyone else enjoyed the same.
The downside to New Years, though, was more sad news for my friend and her little girl with the cancer. They went in December to St. Judes for a Clinical Trial and arrived back from that right before Christmas. Between Christmas and New Years, they had to be inpatient at Childrens Healthcare in Atlanta for fevers. They were still in the hospital and couldn't return to St. Judes right after the first of the year like they had planned. So they did a catscan here at Childrens and discoverd that the tumor had spread everywhere in 3 weeks. My friend and her husband made the hardest decision that a parent has to make and decided to end treatment for their daughter. They took her home on hospice care the first week of January. The little girl was given 4-6 weeks to live. My friend and her family have been in my thoughts and prayers constantly. Last weekend we had a snowfall here in Canton and some pretty bad icy conditions. We got to play in the snow with Riley - his first real time playing in the snow. I hope my friend did the same with her child. I can not imagine how it feels to know that your child is dying and that there is nothing you can do. She might not make it to her 2nd birthday. I guess you would take one day at a time. You are never, ever prepared as a parent to bury your child. I pray that God gives them the strength to handle this.
Anyway, that is a re-cap for the last 6 weeks or so of our selves. Oh, I am back at work now - been back 2 weeks now. Paleigh is taking bottles of my milk while I am at work but she fights it and is not happy about it. Just another part of having to be a Lawyer (or any type of working person) by Day and Mommy by Night. Until then...
-Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night

Thanksgiving

It was Paleigh's first Thanksgiving today. I have a lot to be thankful for. We had a sorta low key Thanksgiving with just my parents and brother-in-law over for dinner. My brother and nephew joined us after dinner and watched the Tree Lighting at Lenox on TV. Last year, my parents, husband, son, and I all went there in person. It was really neat in person. I hope to take Paleigh there too one day. I have a lot to be thankful for - especially a healthy new baby. My heart was also heavy this Thanksgiving because I found out some really sad news about a friend's baby girl. My friend's youngest daughter was diagnosed with a very rare tumor about 10 months ago that caused her to have a lot of horrible treatment with ill side effects and then eventually a liver transplant followed by additional chemo. They thought everything would be good then. There was a celebration party recently for her recovery. Well, the cancer has returned. Yesterday, she had surgery and the smallest of 4 tumors was removed. Her oncologist has basically said that there is very little, if anything, that he can do for her (my friend's facebook post said that her daughter's chances of living was like 0%). The family is considering going to a speciality cancer center out of state and possibly trying some clinical trials. My thoughts and prayers have constantly been about my friend. I can't imagine what she is thinking and feeling and the decisions they will have to try and make. The little girl was less than a year old when she was first diagnosed 10 months ago. Something so horrible shouldn't ever happen to anyone, let alone someone so young. And you should never have to see your child so sick or face the possibility of burying your own child. So, I was especially thankful for my family this year, and especially thankful for the health of my family. I hope everyone had a great thanksgiving. And, please say a prayer for my friend and her family. I hope and pray that at some time later I can post good news about the situation. Until then...
-Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night

Nursing

A lot of things are different with this second baby. (See below post - Sleepless in Canton). One of them is Nursing. I know that nursing is a much talked about subject on certain sites but you wouldn't necessary expect it on a ordinary blog and you might not want to read about it either! This is certainly how I felt with my first baby - though I nursed for 13 months and I know it was the best for my child - I felt reluctant to discuss it, shy to let people know I was nursing, and certainly afraid almost that something embarrassing would happen because of it. I never nursed in public with my first baby. The closest I came to anything in public regarding nursing with my son was pumping in a closed, locked office at work and pumping in my closed, locked bedroom of the house I shared with co-workers during a conference. I was brave enough, though, to let people know there that I was nursing in order to prevent people from drinking the milk in the blue water bottle I stored the pumped milk in! I am not really sure why I was so reluctant and afraid to discuss it or do it in public. I guess it is because when I started nursing, I knew no one that had done it successfully and no one that continued to do it when they returned to work. None of this is the case with this baby. I know I can do it successfully, and I made it work once I returned to work with my first baby AND once I changed jobs to one requiring me to be in court 4 days a week and leaving me no opportunity to pump during the day. And to date, I have already nursed my child in public this time around! Perhaps it helps that this child has no weight gain issues with nursing that my first child had (she's risen in percentiles on 100% nursing). Perhaps it helps that I am more relaxed. Perhaps she is just a better nurser. It certainly doesn't hurt that I know I have a supportive Boss (his wife loaned me the pump I'll be using at work). Whatever the reason - I want to say that nursing is NOT something I will be embarrassed about this time or afraid to discuss. It is what is best for my child and for me and I will do it for as long as that continues to be the case. Do you know that there is even a Georgia law on breastfeeding??? It basically says that a mother can nurse her child anywhere that the child and mother can otherwise be! Why am I posting this you wonder? Well, it is something I feel strongly about. And I was reminded about that when I took my son, mother, and nephew to the Georgia Aquarium on Friday. There outside the main women's restroom was a sign that said Changing/Nursing station inside! Now, the nursing station was nothing more than a simple room of seating along 2 walls but still it was something! And the advertising made it no secret at all. More places ought to do this! Not even Babies-R-Us, which does have a Mother's room that mothers can use to change or nurse their child in, advertises it as such. With the American Academy of Pediatrics advising to nurse for the first 12 months of a child's life and then for as long as it mutually beneficial to mother and child, there should be more locations in public like this. There should be more resources, more benefits, more incentives, and definitely more support for women who chose to nurse. One local county - Fulton - provides rent-free a hospital grade pump to employees and their spouses (if the employee is male) to use as long as they need it. More government entities should do this. Fulton County also has a room in the government center where employees and members of the public (e.g. people on jury duty) can pump in private cubicles. There should be more of this. More insurance companies should cover the cost of pump and nursing accessories. (I spent $40 a piece recently on 2 nursing bras). Yes, I know that nursing is not for everyone and I don't look down on anyone that chose not to nurse their child. But, the health benefits to both mother and child have been proven scientifically. Society should recognize this and provide support to those that choose to nurse their children. Anyway, that's my position. This time around I am not afraid to let people know that I am a nursing mother. I am not afraid or embarrassed if someone finds out I nurse my child. And I won't be when I return to work. And if you work with me and can't find me for 15 minutes or so during the day (and possibly several times a day), please know that I haven't disappeared off the face of the earth, I'll return shortly and I'll have small containers of a white substance to put in the fridge. And the next time you are out and about and see a women with a blanket draped over one shoulder and half her body (or like I was with her head underneath the blanket for a few seconds), don't wonder what she's doing - she's feeding her child. I didn't mean to be on soap box. It's just an issue I feel strongly about and don't want any other mother to feel embarrassed or afraid about it anymore. Now, off to other hopefully beneficial things...like sleep. Until then...
-Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night

Sleepless in Canton

Sleep less in Canton is the story of our lives right now. Yes, new baby Paleigh does sleep but not always at night and not for any reasonable amount of time. So we are getting less sleep that we would like! With our first baby, everyone said to sleep when the baby sleeps. Great advice! But it doesn't work with the second baby! 'Cause if you sleep when the second baby sleeps it means that the first baby has a chance to get into something! I was really tired on Thursday afternoon when the Nanny left and hubby was working upstairs. I dozed off on the sofa with new baby besides me. The first baby was playing and I kept hearing, Mommy open your eyes! Needless to say I kept opening my eyes to make sure that there wasn't a reason I needed to be opening my eyes! Until then...
- Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night

One Month Old!

I haven't posted since I had my little one - it's been busy around here! I had a girl on October 6th at 1:37 pm - just one day after my due date! Paleigh Anne weighed 8 lbs and 8.5 ounces and she was 21 1/2 inches long. Her head was 36.5 centimeters. She was about 2 ounces heavier than her older brother was, 2 1/2 inches longer, and had a slightly larger head. I can't believe that I didn't have to be induced. Though I had contractions off and on all day on my due date, nothing became of then as they were somewhat irregular and never closer than 10 minutes apart. I fell asleep on the sofa and when I got up it was about 3 am on the 6th. I checked my e-mail and did a couple of things and then I realized between 3:30 and 4:00 am that my contractions had suddenly started again and that they were coming every 5 minutes. I finally called the doctor at almost 5:30 am. We got our things together, dropped our son off with a co-worker, and arrived at the hospital at 7:30. They started pictocin to help my contractions along and broke my water. I ordered an epidural shortly after 1 pm when I was finally 4 cm (I was 3 cm when I arrived). I went to the bathroom while the epidural was set up and then I felt a lot of pressure. Right before they started the epidural, they checked me again and I was 10 cm! 4 to 10 in about 10 minutes! My parents, who were there for the birth, had been set to eat lunch but my husband called them back! The doctor arrived and said he had planned to say hi and then eat lunch but instead he'd deliver the baby! 7 minutes of pushing and she was out! I did get an epidural right before I started pushing - it was put in low and just gave me a shot and not a drip since I was already involuntarily pushing while the epidural was being put in. It was an amazing delivery experience. The doctor was great and explained everything he was doing. I was so happy that she was a girl! She was put on my belly immediately. She had a full head of dark hair. I recovered easily but she had jaundice due to blood incompatability and had to be in NICU until the 10th (I was discharged on the 8th). But she has done fine every since we got home. She doesn't sleep a lot at night, though, so we are pretty tired over here! But we are happy to be home and together and I enjoy seeing her grow everyday! We have her one month check-up later today. I am betting that she will be almost 11 pounds! She doesn't seem much longer, though, so I don't know if she has gotten any taller. Our son Riley is doing well with her - he doesn't like to hear her cry at all! Anyway, that is about all for now. Until then...
-Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night

Due Date!

My due date is today - Monday, October 5th! I can't believe it is here already. Almost seems like has flown by - though I know at multiple times during the pregnancy it felt like it was going really slow. Only time will tell know when my baby will be born. My doctor won't let me go past 41 weeks so within a week I know I'll have a new baby to hold! I can't wait to see if it is a girl or a boy. Though I am tired a lot and have had lots of braxton-hicks contractions off and on, I don't feel as desperate to get this child out as I did with my first one at 40 weeks (I was induced with him at 41 weeks). Perhaps not being on bedrest is the difference. Anyway, I am still excited about knowing that I will meet my child soon. I can't wait! We have trial week this week but I don't have any assigned cases for trial. It will be a long week if I don't deliver until the end of the week but I suppose I'll survive. I better go and get to bed since I have to be in court in a little over 5 hours. Until then...
-Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night.

Almost there!

Since it is after midnight now, I am 20 days from my due date of October 5th. Things have been busy over here. We are trying to finish part of our basement, build a fire engine bunkbed from scratch for our son, and then move the existing office into the basement, the son into his new bed in the old office and re-decorate the office, as well as decorate the existing nursery for the new baby. We hope that we finish everything before the baby gets here. Our son is also having his 2 year old birthday party on Saturday. He'll turn two next Monday, on the 21st. So we have a lot going on. Not to mention that I am tired all the time, and this has not been as easy of a pregnancy as it was with my son. Though I have not had the swelling issues I had with Riley and have not had to go on bedrest (I'd been on bedrest 9 days with Riley as this point), this pregnancy has been more difficult. Nasuea for 16 weeks straight. Severe indigestion since before teh pregnancy test was positive that only stopped for a couple of weeks between 16 and 18 weeks. Braxton-Hicks contractions that started at 18 weeks I believe. Lots of baby movenments, some of which are painful. More exhaustion with this child as well. So between trying to help my husband care for our toddler and being pregnant, it has been a rough 9 months. All of this while working fulltime! It will all be worth it in the end when the baby gets here. We did not find out what we are having this time either (I had to veto my husband's request that we find out this time). SO it will be exciting to see what the baby is. Today Riley refused to wear a pair of shorts that we classified as "baby pants" and said that they were for the "girl in mommy's tummy". Perhaps he knows something that we don't! Only time will tell. I guess that is about all for now. Until later...
-Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night

Big News!

I have big news to announce! Our son will be a big brother in the fall! I am 6 1/2 weeks pregnant. I am due October 5th. We are all very, very excited over here! They will be almost exactly 2 years apart as the baby is due 2 weeks after my son's birthday. So far I am feeling pretty good. I have had a lot of indigestion but that is about it, besides being tired. Hopefully it will continue to be a great pregnancy. With our son, I had to go on bedrest at 36 weeks due to severe swelling from my knees down so I hope that does not happen this time. And I also hope that this spring and summer will be mild and NOT hot. In 2007 when I was pregnant with our son, it began getting hot in March! It was a long, long time from March until September 21st. So a nice cool spring and summer sound great to me! Not much else going on here. It was a long week in court this week as it was trial week but I managed to survive. Next month's trial week doesn't look bad at all. Hopefully we can manage to try some new methods in traffic court which will keep me on my feet less. Until then...
-Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night

Great Weekend!

I surprised my husband on MLK weekend and went away to the Biltmore Estate in Asheville for the weekend. We left on Friday and returned on Monday. We stayed at the Inn on Biltmore Estate. It was very nice and relaxing. We left our son with my parents for the weekend. He had fun there, despite developing a cold/ear infection while he was there (probably had started the day before, though). We toured the Biltmore House, winery and farm and then shopped in the historic Biltmore Village and in downtown Asheville. We also went ice skating at the civic center in downtown Asheville - just happened to be walking past a few minutes before the next ice skating session. It was a lot of fun! We had ate at some great (expensive) restaurants. All in all, it was a lovely weekend. It was a great way to spend a weekend, especially since we just had concluded a trial week at work. Though I didn't have any trials this week, I was in court until 8:45 on Monday night. I am glad that this doesn't happen too much! I still got to spend a few minutes with my son when I got home - but it was only a few minutes as we have instituted a new bedtime of 9:30 for him. He seems to be doing well with it. A couple of days after we returned from the weekend getaway, our son turned 16 months old! I can't believe that he is growing up so fast. He is so smart! He speaks a lot of words and several phrases. His new favorite word is... MOMMY! I am so excited. He says Daddy a lot but he's never said Mommy more than a hand full of times before. It is perhaps one of the sweetest sounds ever! The other one is hearing him say I love you! Not sure that he is doing anything more with that than repeating what we say, but it is still awesome! Well, it is late and I am tired so Until then...
- Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night

Great Christmas!

It is four days after Christmas and our house still looks like Christmas exploded! But it is a good explosion. We had a really good and relaxing Christmas. Everyone got a lot of presents. And we still managed to find time to relax. I was tired at the end but not over tired. Riley had an absolute ball. He got so many things for Christmas and he honestly has enjoyed playing with each item. He is learning and growing so much. We found a fifth tooth coming in on Saturday. He is starting to repeat or try to repeat many words and phrases. "I see you" and "Love you" are two new phrases from this weekend. Total he can say about 35 words and 4 phrases. He goes tomorrow for his 15 month checkup. Anyway, I hope everyone had a great holiday season. Until then...
- Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night

Historic Night!

Although the polls predicted the result, I still sat in amazement tonight as Obama won! I am so proud of my country that we were finally able to move past our racial issues and elect a president of African-American heritage. I am saddened that it took almost 150 years after the Civil War and Reconstruction period. I truly thought that McCain's speech tonight said it all - America has spoken and it is time to move on and accept our new leadership. Unlike in previous elections, it appears that Obama won both the electoral votes as well as the popular vote! I hope that any remaining race issues this country has will go by the waste side. I don't want to raise my son in a racist society and I hope that the election of this new president will resolve remaining issues for our country. Though I live in county that still has a majority of white Americans, though the numbers of non-whites is rapidly growing, I don't want to raise my son in society filled with racial issues. I grew up hardly knowing anyone that wasn't white. I had a African-American roommate in college and I used to work with many African-Americans and have grown to have several close friends that are African-American. I moved onto a street with neighbors that are from a diverse group of ethnic and racial heritage. I hope that my son grows up in a world much more diverse that I have done so. I sat almost stunned tonight as Obama won. I expected it but still it was amazing to watch! My only regret is that I didn't actually vote for Obama. Though I agreed with almost every platform he had, I voted for McCain in order to give a women a shot at getting near the White House. My husband voted for Obama, though! Well I guess I better get back to preparing for a motions hearing tomorrow. I was in court until almost 9 pm Monday night and did not get home before my son went to sleep. And then this morning I had to leave early in order to be back in court by shortly after 8:30 so I didn't see him too much this morning either. Then after work today, which I didn't leave until 6:30, I ran by and picked up my son and husband and went to a local restaurant to wait with a friend that ran for mayor (and lost unfortunately) of a small town up here (app. 1000 residents with about 200 registered voters only 100 or so which voted!) for the results of the local election. My son fell asleep on the way back from the restaurant and didn't wake up when we got home. It is trial week this week so there was been a lot of extra work this week and not much Mommy time so far. In addition to a motion, I will likely also to to trial on a separate case tomorrow. My son's body still hasn't adjusted to the time falling back so he has gone to sleep earlier in the evenings. He grew up a lot this weekend, though. When he got back from Grandmommie and Granddaddy's house on Sunday, he was walking all over the place and he was refusing bottles! No more bottles! He drinks all his milk from a sippy cup. I just posted on Sunday that he wasn't walking very far just yet and was not very willing to take milk from sippy cups yet and then we arrive at my mother's house to pick him up and he walks down the way towards us! And it wasn't a fluke, he is walking everywhere! And all the bottles I sent for him to use on the weekend went unused! He refused to drink from a bottle! Both mornings this week so far I have given him milk in a sippy cup and sat him on the couch and he drank all his milk, gave me the sippy cup when finished, and got down the play! I no longer have a baby - he's a little boy now! Hopefully I'll get more time later in the week to spend with him before he grows up anymore! Until later...
-Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night

13 months old!

My son Riley turned 13 months old on October 21st. I don't know where the time went. He is definitely a toddler now! He can walk but chooses not to as he is still unsteady and would rather crawl and get there faster. But he did walk about 6 feet on his own at a party on Friday night. He can communicate well, just not in understandable words! He points a lot at things he wants and he just keeps pointing until we get it right. If he wants milk, he'll go and sit by the fridge and point at it. If he's hungry, he'll sometimes go and sit by his highchair. He definitely understands a lot of what we say. If we say something that he wants, he'll stop dead in his tracts and look at you. But if he doesn't want it, then he won't respond at all. Yesterday he dropped something on the floor when he was playing and he understood me when I asked him to pick it up and give it to me - he picked it up and gave it to me! If he's mad at you, he'll face you directly and growl at you or make a terrible screeching noise to your face. He babbles all the time, too. He can say dog and Daddy pretty well. He is working on saying ball. He is so cute. He is almost drinking milk out of a sippy cup. He has been drinking water out of a sippy cup since the summer but he just envisons that milk comes in a bottle! We are working on getting him to drink his milk out of sippy cups as well and we are making good progress. He did, though, manage to break the drawer underneath his crib the other day. Apparently while his Daddy was using the restroom, Riley pulled out the drawer underneath his crib and then tried to climb on top of it which bent the metal guide on the drawer! So the drawer is now on the floor waiting to be fixed! What can I say, he's all boy! I certainly miss him everyday when I go to work but I also know that as tired as I am when I get home from work, if I stayed at home with with, I'd be exhausted by noon! Currently Riley is at Grandmommie and Granddaddy's house (my parents). Grandmommie picked up Riley yesterday and he spent the night there. This allowed my husband Tony and I to do some Christmas shopping and to get some much needed cleaning done (or at least we hope to get the cleaning done today!) I can't believe he's old enough to have a sleepover already! From what I can tell, he's having a ball! She had to move a few fall decorations and pull him out of the fireplace! Well, I guess I better go and help my husband finish our cleaning before our little monkey comes back home! Until later...
- Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night.

We can clap!

Riley learned a new trick yesterday. He can clap! He claps a lot now. But he will also clap upon request. Just say Riley can you clap for me and he'll stop doing whatever he's doing and clap! And this is not even something we have worked on! He just started doing it and clearly understands the meaning of the word clap! I think we are working on some more teeth as well as the dentist said that his gums were swollen and he hasn't slept well recently. He got a good report at the one year visit at the doctor on the 25th of September. He weighed almost 22 lbs and was almost 30 inches tall. The doctor did suggest that he drink 24-32 oz of whole milk each day! This seemed like a lot to us. We working on adding more milk into his diet but it is difficult. One day he had 17 oz between what he drank and what we used to make cereals with and that was a record for him! He is still nursing in the mornings and the evenings so he isn't totally on whole milk yet anyway. He usually eats a yogurt each day so he gets other dairy in too. He just so cute but boy is he a handful! I played with him yesterday for about 30-45 minutes outside near the sandbox and I was exhausted! I think we definitely underpay our nanny! Although I miss being at home with my child, I think I am still exhausted after working all day and being in trial than I would be chasing after my little monkey all day long! Well, I better go. My husband just came in from the store (we forget to buy whole milk) and brought both dinner and flowers! What a wonderful husband I have. Well until later...
-Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night

One Year Old!

My son turned one year old on Sunday! I can't believe it has been a year already! I really don't know how that happened. We had a Curious George themed birthday party for him. It turned out really good. We didn't get back from vacation until late the night before but we still managed to get everything together on time - decorations and food. We just had cake, bananas, popcorn, animal crackers, trail mix, and M-n-Ms. It was pretty good. And he got soooo many gifts! We really are going to have to set limits for Christmas or else we'll need a new house just for all the toys! He goes to the doctor on Thursday for his one year check-up so we'll find out how much he weighs and how tall he is. I am sure that he has grown a lot. We were at the beach last week and he got in his fourth tooth! His smile looks so different with four teeth! I definitely need to update the photos I have on here. Well, it is late and I better get to bed. Until later,
- Lawyer by Day and Mommy by Night.