My Escape Artist

We all know that kids climb out of their cribs at some point or another. As parents we just hope when it happens, they don't get hurt until we can get them a toddler bed or "big kid" bed. There are videos all over YouTube with parents showing footing of their kid making the big escape. My daughter was one of the few that never succeeded at climbing out on her own. She would put her foot up on the top rail, but never really got the gut to throw herself over the edge.

My son on the other hand took a leap this week, at 9 months old! I was letting him cry it out to go to sleep and about 20 mins. in, he decided he had enough. I heard an unusual noise and went to check on him. I peeked in the door and saw him on the floor trying to get out the door! Little squirt climbed out onto a pile of Tupperware boxed near his crib that are covered by a blanket. There was a pillow on top of that. My guess is...he rolled down the "hill" to the floor. When I found him, he was scared, but not hurt...thank God! I nearly had a heart attack! Eldon has just started really crawling and pulling up on everything and I think he was just not ready to give up practicing his new skills. He had a blast crawling around the room and climbing over the mattress while I lowered the crib at 10pm that night. Not a night I will soon forget.

My Good Sleeper

My good sleeper has stopped being a good sleeper. Eldon was the one who slept through the night when he was an infant, gets up no earlier than 6:30am, and was not a hastle to get to sleep. It is now becoming a hastle to get him to go to sleep. Last week I had to let him cry it out. He was screaming when I held him, he was screaming when I put him down, and he didn't want to eat. A bottle is usually the magic potion for Eldon to go to sleep. No more. So I did everything I could to make myself feel better about letting him cry it out. I changed his diaper, tried to get him to eat a bit more (he didn't), gave him some gas drops and Tylenol (just in case). After none of that did the trick, I put him in the bed and let him wail. For 35 minutes he screamed and carried on. Will was at work, so I was home alone and at about 25 minutes into the crying session, I called in reinforcements. My friend Mandy who is a proponent of the cry it out was all to happy to sit with me on the phone to prevent me from caving into the pressure to go get him. What would I do without those people. Husbands are great, but when you are in a pinch with your kids, its your girlfriends that will get you through it. I am so lucky to have so many that are part of the mommy club and have been there too.

Video Sharing Hits Orlando

I know it is good business sense to consolidate in tough economic times. But still, I am surprised that three TV stations in Orlando are sharing video. Not being an insider at this moment, I am not exactly sure how this works...but here is what I have deduced. The station assignment desks take part in a conference call each morning. The station with the pool camera that day sends the photographer out on the stories the desks agree on. They post up the raw video on an shared FTP site and bam! No work and at least two or three stories to show for it. Here is more information about who is doing this in Orlando. Part of the justification is that it is happening in L.A., D.C., Philadelphia, Chicago and others. If the bigger markets are doing it, why not Orlando?
I had my first encounter with this today. Just about a week into the agreement. We put out a release about an event happening today and it made the list of thing the "pool" camera was supposed to pick up today. We happened to be shooting the event so the station who was assigned the pool asked me if they could have a tape of what we shot. Being the good PR person...I said, of course, are you going to put it on the FTP site. They were. So we worked with them to figure out how we could upload directly to their site so all three stations could have quick and easy access, plus we didn't have to make dubs and drive tapes all over town. I was not able to watch evening news tonight, but the magic of the DVR will tell me tomorrow if this worked (meaning resulted in coverage on three stations with minimal work). WooHoo!
How quickly my years of journalistic ethics get thrown out the window for convenience. But seriously, I worry that might be what is having to TV stations too. I think local TV news should be careful with this. It won't be long before folks are jumping to the conclusion that if the stations can not shoot the news on their own, then maybe there are too many TV stations. Yikes!

Away from work guilt

I know I am not the only one who has away-from-work guilt. Today it is hitting me especially hard. I ended up with two appointments during the work day. One for my eye (after my daughter poked there with her fingernail last week) and with the dentist. The dentist was early in the morning, but I ended up at work an hour later than usual. The eye doctor is later, I will have to leave an hour earlier than usual. I hate that I feel guilty about this, but I do. I am a salaried employee and definitely work more than a 40 hour work week...not to mention the texting, emailing, and calling I do on my hour commute to and from work. In fact, today I did not take a lunch hour, instead I ate at my desk and am posting this just a few minutes after I finished eating...(here I go again...justifying every minute). Why do I do this?! Just to make myself feel better...I am posting a picture of me at work. I really did do something today! I promise!

Today Was A News Day

It is 6:20pm on Friday and I am posting for class at work. What is wrong with this picture. My job is supposed to end at 2:30pm on Fridays. I feel like I am back in news. Today I was, at least my employer was. A busload of patients, some with "flu like symptoms"shows up at one of our facilities. The result...a busy emergency room, but also a media convergence. Most of this blog I have talked about the drama of my kids...today I don't have kid drama to share because I haven't seen my kids yet! Only work drama for now. One other story today didn't quite go our way...I'll leave that one out of this post...good PR professional that I am. I has worn me out. But looking back on my life as a reporter and my life as a PR person, I would pick PR. If I was reporting any of these stories...I would still be at work getting the stories ready for the morning. I guess life isn't too bad after all. At least now...I know I won't be working this weekend!

Happy Independance Weekend

My husband was at work all weekend and my parents and in-laws helped me out with both the kids. But I think I am ready to get back to work and relax! It was a lovely, fairly laid-back Independence day. But the bigger news of the weekend, Eldon finally crawled. He was been working on this for quite some time, sliding around on his belly, but tonight he finally got the legs pushing in the right direction. I don't think he even realized what he has done yet, since he had been getting around fairly well just rolling and scooting. I was more excited about it than he was I think. Maybe he could do it all along and just decided to share it with me. Kids are crafty like that. I'll post a couple of photos of Carlina "enjoying the fireworks" Saturday night. She learned a song about the flag at school so she sang it for us with her "microphone" or telephone as she called it. Too cute!

Ear Infection #532

Ok...my daughter has not had 532 ear infections, but it could actually be an accurate representation of the number of days she has been on antibiotics. We got the diagnosis again today and another prescription for another antibiotic. But I am going to combat this one differently. After the last ear infection in April, I was willing to try anything else. So I went to chiropractic. A chiropractor friend of mine told me that he has had luck in reducing ear infections in kids through massaging the neck and opening some tubes there. Sounds good to me. So my daughter has been going regularly for these "neck massages" as she calls them. But we have another infection.

I am not ready to give up. I am going to use some of the suggestions I found in Parenting Magazine http://www.parenting.com/ChildHealthGuide/childhealthguide.jsp?xmlFile=1-3-4&cid=redirect-parenting-ear. Consequently my daughters doctor suggested some of the same things for home remades. Hopefully we will get through the holiday weekend with the prescription just on paper and no major pain. I am big enough to admit, if this doesn't work...I will be the first to head to Walgreen's.

Check out the ear drum photos...they are on that link as well.

I am typing while sleeping

Please forgive the typos and the incoherent sentences. I am typing an sleeping at the same time. Last night I got about four hours of sleep because my son didn't want to get any. He had a runny nose, which I thought might have been a cold, but now seems like it was on teething. Whatever the reason, it was a reason to stay awake.

When I mentioned he was my easy going baby, I didn't lie, I just neglected to mention all bets are off when he doesn't feel well. Runny noses were a big problem in the past. My secret was to put him to bed in his car seat so he was seated upright and let gravity take control of his sinuses.

Now that he can wriggle out of it if he is not buckled in, this doesn't work as well anymore. On to plan B, and C, and D...etc. This included walking him around outside, walking inside, rocking, vaporizing suctioning, and slathering him in Vick's Baby rub. After all that, my sinuses were clean as a whistle, but I didn't make a dent in his.

About 12:30 a.m. the planets aligned and God smiled on me and the nasal waterworks dried up a bit...enough for him to fall asleep. I started counting the hours till my alarm was scheduled to go off and wake me up for work. 12:30 - 5:30 a.m. I could function on that. Of course this was also the morning my daughter woke up at 4:30 a.m. mumbling something about a bad dream and my husband is now working overnights. Uggh.

I had to apologize to my boss today because in my sleep deprived stupor, I thought she told me one of co-workers had diabetes, instead of that she is working on getting media for our diabetes department. Fortunately, she gets it. She has two little ones at home too. Such is the drama of a working mama.

Mommy I love you!

Hearing those four words from your child are so magical. At least I think they must be. My three year old has never said it before. She does show affection. She loves hugs, and is warming up to kisses...giving them that is. She loves to receive them. But the words I love you are just so powerful to me.

After I read an article in parenting magazine I found out maybe she is saying it without using words. I think the article talks about 8 ways babies show love. Well my daughter is not a baby, but she still shows some of these signs.

But one surprised me a little. It basically says when they act out, they are saying I love you. Check it out at http://www.parenting.com/gallery/Baby/8-Ways-Your-Baby-Says-I-Love-You/9/ But I guess it does make sense. My daughter pretends to bite me at times. This is a behavior that is reserved just for me. She also likes to kick a little harder than she should too. I guess the logic behind all this is, they love you and trust you, so they try out bad behavior on you because they know you won't desert them. I guess that is why the baby-sitter says, "Oh the kids were angels! They went to bed on time and gave me no trouble." I always wonder, why doesn't it work that way when I am putting them to bed? Maybe she loves me so much? Maybe, but I wish she would just say, "Mommy, I love you."

Jon and Kate

Lots of folks are tweeting tonight about Jon and Kate getting a divorce. Some of the posts are saying things like, "I don't care what Jon and Kate do!" But as someone who has watched the show off and on for a few months, I have that yucky feeling in the pit of my stomach as I watch the episode where they make the announcement.

I only have two kids, not eight and every moment of my life is not taped for the nation to see, so I will never really understand that pressure. (I get that they brought much of that pressure on themselves.) But I do feel like I can relate. Today is my 7th anniversary. By no means have we made it to our golden years, but we have had our share of rough spots along that journey. And we have managed to avoid the 7 year itch. My biggest fear during the bumpy patches in the road are exactly what Jon and Kate are going through. Taking a deep breath and admitting that the marriage is not worth saving and all the logistics that go with that. Things like telling your spouse it is over, telling the kids, telling family and friends. Trying to figure out who goes where to live. Where will the kids go? Dealing with your grief and the grief of all those around you who wanted to see the marriage succeed. So many questions and none of the answers are easy.

I understand that everyday marriages end in divorce. I guess seeing a family go through it, even if it is on TV, takes me to a place I have feared before. The only way I can label it is sad.

Poor Baby

I realized as I am blogging about my kids, I am only talking about my daughter, Carlina. She is three and of course has a bit more personality right now than my 8 month old, Eldon. He is in the picture in my profile. I loooooove that photo! But that is one of the few he is in. Eldon definitely suffers from second child syndrome. There are very few photos of him, and if he does make it in a picture, Carlina is in it too. He has never had a professional photo taken. I think Carlina had three paid photo shoots by this same time in her life. Plus he is a hand me down kid. I never do it in public, but at home...he wears purple and pink bibs with flowers. He really is a good sport about it, but I think he does tend to spit up on those more than the ones with trucks and footballs on it.

For now Eldon is OK with his lot in life. He is a very laid back baby. He goes with the flow, goes along for the ride, and seems to be content to let his big sister hog the spotlight. I wonder if that will last? Probably not, but for now it is the only thing that is keeping me sane with two kids and a full time job.

My friends curse me for my luck. They say, "The first one is supposed to be your easy baby, not the second." At least that's how it worked at their house, not mine. Yep, Eldon has been easy ever since he was born. He ate when he was supposed to. He slept when he was supposed to. He rarely cried. He really should re-think this role as the "good kid". If he keeps this up he will be totally forgotten. I am bound to lose him in a shopping mall or leave him behind in the car when I go to the store. These good kids are the ones you hear about on the news that end up in the emergency room, or worse, because their parent left them sleeping buckled up in their car seats. It is pretty impossible to leave behind a kid that screams of the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse DVD for the entire two minute drive to the grocery store. That would be my first born. (I try to explain to her we won't even get past the 10 Disney commercials before we get to the store. She doesn't listen.)

But there is so much that is so sweet about Eldon. He is my snuggler. I nuzzle my head in his baby hair and he falls asleep on my shoulder. If I could bottle a feeling, that one would make me a millionaire. I hope that what makes Eldon memorable is good boy persona. If it sticks he will be his mama's pint size heart breaker.

Sickly Mama

I am a sickly Mama. Being sick as a mom is really different than being sick before parenthood. I remember the days of illness before the kids came along. I could lie around the house, almost enjoying the day of watching endless episodes of Trading Spaces or whatever marathon happened to be playing on TV. It was the ultimate excuse to be lazy and just rest. I miss that. Now with two kids in the picture, even if I stay home from work to recuperate, there is no complete rest for the weary. There are still baths to be given, books to read, lunches to make and all the tasks that kids require that just can't be put off for illness.

Illness used to be a great excuse to jump off the train of life for a few days without really missing much. Now if I jump off the train, it will run me over! As I post this I am surrounded by Kleenex and huddled under the covers trying to re-live those few moments of restfulness now that the kids are asleep.

I should really just be thankful they are not sick too. The only thing worse than a sick kid who can't sleep because of a stuffy nose is when you can breath only slightly better than them because you are sitting up holding the kid with the stuffy nose because that is the only way they can sleep. Of course you are not sleeping, but that is motherhood. Now that I have two children, I wonder what happens when they are equally sick at the same time? I am sure that day will come and it will have its own set of issues requiring a blog post of its own.

I love my children dearly, but this is one of those things that doesn't come in a the manual of things to really enjoy before you reproduce. Sleep is the other, but that is another blog for another day.

I need a Manny

Yes, that is not a typo, I meant Manny. Dictionary.com doesn't have the same definition of Manny that I do. I just learned about it last week. A Manny is a male nanny. When I think of nanny, I picture Supernanny from the TV show. But that is not how I picture a Manny. My Manny would be cute, fantastic with the kids, and able to pick up dry cleaning, take my daughter to dance class, and have dinner ready by 5:30 p.m.

I found out about Mannies from my boss. She has a well-to-do friend that has a Manny at home, which of course means I can't afford one. Apparently, the term Manny was developed by NYC socialites as this blog describes http://julian1st.wordpress.com/2009/03/03/the-mannymale-nannies-the-rage-in-nyc/. It talks about having a Manny to be a male role-model for young boys. It sounds like it is getting easier and easier to do away with husbands all together. (not you honey...just other husbands :-) Just hire a role model!

I thought I was a hip mom to know about Mannies, even though I can't afford one. Clearly I am not. Check out this Post article about them in 2006! Here's the link. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/21/AR2006072101686.html

I guess I am on the cutting edge of the booming metropolis of Daytona Beach, FL. I'll be the first mom on my street to get depressed because she doesn't have a Manny. Boy do I feel good.

My Potty Training Lesson

My daughter Carlina just turned three and we are still struggling with potty training. She is doing great, I am the one with the issues. At the risk of sounding like a three year old...number one is going into the potty most of the time, it is number two that never seems to get there without a brief stop in the underpants first.

As I mentioned, I don't blame her for this deficiency, I have been a poor potty teacher. But when my friends sound shocked that Carlina isn't potty trained, they say, "Girls usually learn so much quicker than boys." I just say I know, I'm not sure why she is having trouble. I know what the problem is, mom and dad are lazy.

Over and over I have heard parents talk about how wonderful it is to get their kids potty trained...no more expensive diapers. And yes, I agree, diapers are expensive, but at the risk of sounding like a bad mom, diapers are convenient. I mean you can run errands and not worry about accidents in the car seat. There is no running to the bathroom every two hours. There is no guess work trying to figure out if the three glasses of apple juice she drank and hour and a half ago are just about to make a much more fragrant exit.

Then there is the mess. Cleaning a poopy diaper is no fun, but trying cleaning poopy underpants...way nastier!

Did you know that diapers have odor killing power? I never realized until I smelled some poop in underpants. It can knock you out! I think the absorbant padding must absorb the smell or something too.

One day when I was cleaning the second poop underpants of the day and it dawned on me, this is what my mother dealt with for my entire diaper era. She used cloth diapers. I felt an unbelieveable sympathy for her and any mom that takes on this kind of mess on a regular basis. I was never so thankful for Huggies in my life. I am all for recycling and reducing the amount of trash in landfills, but the only way I will ever get rid of my disposable diapers is if you pry them out of my cold dead hand. Maybe I could even start a campeign for more landfills for disposable diapers. My slogan could be Working mothers unite agaisnt cloth diapers. Ok maybe that is extreme but you get my point.

I know my daughter is ready for the potty. I know that life will be easier in the long run when she is completly potty trained. Right now we are just at a moment in time where the promise of the future does not look as good as the convenience of the past. I just try to take comfort in what every parenting book seems to say...they will learn in their own time, not in yours. My potty training lesson is that my daughter's quest to use the potty 100% of the time is not my battle, but it will be her success.

Welcome

Welcome to the drama of a working mama. This is my first attempt at blogging and I am a working mom with two kids and a husband at home. My daughter is three and my son is almost 8 months and I find myself walking by a mirror and just glancing at my image wondering how I am a mother to not just one but two kids. I am struck by this awesome responsibility sometimes.

So you would think I would be a stay at home mom to raise my children on my own. Nope. I work 40+ hours per work at a hospital in their media relations department. There are days when I yearn to be home with the kids and there are days when I can't get out the door to the office fast enough. I have convinced myself that means I really want to work part-time instead of full-time, but that is not in the financial cards right now.

So now that you know a few things about me, I hope that I will be able to share some insight for other moms and I would love for moms to be able to comment and share their struggles with the balancing act that working moms perform everyday. Most of these posts will likely come after 9 or 10 p.m. eastern time becuase that is the only time I am "free" after the kids are in bed. Somewhere between blogging and watching "So You Think You Can Dance." See you next time...