Born on the Fourth of July
It’s Baby Mania this summer. Coming in with Birth Number Three - it’s The Family Gal, one of my favorite former coworkers.
Melissa’s very adorable second son, Camden Jack, arrived with a bang on the Fourth of July causing the Blonde and the rest of the voting public (all nine of us) to fold on the “When Will Baby 2.0 Arrive?” pool. This is so why I don’t gamble.
If he’s anything like his Big Brother, he’ll be a total rock star.
Kiddo C. could possibly be my favorite kid ever- you earn big points when you opt not to scream your head off when your Mommy thrusts you into my arms before she even pauses to hear the answer to the most feared question for those of us without child, “Do you wanna’ hold him?” : )
I generally avoid holding infants due to my general awkwardness and overall clumsiness. I prefer to wait until the toddler stage so when I accidentally drop the child, his or her skull is well on its way to fusing together so there’s less chance of actual damage. Plus, I figure by the time the kid’s two, he’ll have figured out that life’s rough and be less likely to suffer any type of emotional trauma for the rest of his life.
Therapy ain’t cheap.
So, it takes a special kind of person to have actually witnessed the kind of damage I can do and still find the inner strength to toss her child on my lap. And, that’s just the kind of friend Melissa is. In fact, if Spider-Husband and I ever get up the courage to breed, you’ll have her in some small way to thank…or blame. : )
Congrats to Mommy, Daddy, and Kiddo C.!
Gone Ashley Gone
My coworkers and I are now officially in mourning. Ashley, one of our two rock star marketing coordinators, not to mention one of my coolest pals, is now on maternity leave, leaving most of our team to wonder how we’ll figure out how anything works, where anything goes, and who we might be able to call to figure it all out, and more importantly, leaving me wondering who will listen to me rant, whine, and throw a tantrum when I’m stunned by the latest drama du jour.
I mean really. Who does she think she is taking time off to have another baby? : )
We threw a baby shower for her and her baby-boy-to-be a couple of weeks ago and celebrated her last day with a trip to Handels. Nothing says “Please don’t leave. We’ll take turns watching your son-to-be at our desks until it’s time for kindergarten. We’ll take up a collection for Pamper Swaddlers and Gerber fruit puffs. We’ll sleep on your couch and take turns getting up with him in the night. Hell, we’ll start a college scholarship fund as long as you’ll stay and remind us what deadline we’ve missed and what meeting we’re ten minutes late for…” quite like an ice cream cone from Handels.
Enjoy your time away from the mayhem and madness, Ashley, and don’t think about work at all.
Lord knows, there’ll be plenty of crazy to go around when you get back.
You Like Me. You Really, Really Like Me.
Very cool things were waiting for me when I returned from my business trip last night. Um, can you say presents?
A birthday card from Gramma’ B.
A birthday card from SpiderHusband and the hounds.
Two new Jodi Picoult books - Nineteen Minutes and Salem Falls - courtesy of my friend Jill and the Zany family.
An Amazon.com gift card from Judi and Glen.
And, the last of several new dresses and skirts that my Mom bought for me, even though we were at the mall to shop for her instead.
Rock on.
You Say It’s Your Birthday…
Well, it’s my birthday, too.
As luck would have it, my birthday happens to fall right in the middle of my company’s annual May Sales Meeting, so I’m spending the big day with a handful of my coworkers in Sarasota. Fortunately, my coworkers are a pretty thoughtful bunch, which made it much easier to be away from home.
SpiderHusband and the Disaster Twins kicked off my day with a “Happy Birthday” phone call - what a lovely way to start the morning.
Throughout the day, I received e-cards from my family and friends, a very amusing rendition of the “Happy Birthday” song on my voice mail from one of my San Francisco colleagues, an “Aloha” greeting from another colleague in Phoenix, a super cool birthday card from the Sybex and Tech Marketing teams (see pic below), another equally kooky “Happy Birthday” song courtesy of my friend Jill, several Facebook birthday wishes, and two delightful Amaretto Sours courtesy of my publisher. And, that was just before dinner.
My team went out to a local Italian restaurant, Mediterraneo, and I spent most of the evening laughing my head off. Dinner was not the same sans my other Tech Marketing partners in crime - Alison, Ashley, and Colleen - but I was glad I got to chat with them online and via phone anyway.
Not a bad way to spend a birthday away from home.
So, thanks guys.
