::drool::
I think my brain’s shut off today. Since I can’t remember what I was going to write, here are some new pictures 
to fulfill your update craving!
Week-end Wrap-up Dash Dash
This week was crazy-busy. Monday was the only relatively normal day (aside from maybe today…). Tuesday, the boss and I went to a luncheon in Kansas City with the AMA. The speaker was one of the contributing bloggers at Garmin’s corporate blog. It was informative and the food was great. I was slightly disappointed with the speaker’s ability to speak intelligibly about corporate blog policy, but I did get some good ideas on how to generate content for our internal blog. The luncheon was at Figlio’s in Kansas City. Right before the luncheon, the dentist called with an opening for my root canal on Thursday. (Goody.)
On Wednesday, I worked from home in the morning and had a dental cleaning around noon. It’s always a challenge to be productive with Sera at home with me, but it’s nice to have her there. I love spending time with her. She really is the center of my world right now.
Yesterday (Thursday) I went into the dentist again for the root canal. About an hour into the procedure, Dr. Houck stopped and told me that she didn’t see any decay that had made it’s way into my nerve, so the tooth is still viable. She finished clearing out the decay, did the build-up and put a temporary cap on. We will see if the decay continues or if this cleaning out solved the issue. We will recheck at the end of February before putting a permanent cap on. (Whew! Managed to get out of that one!) I still have the second procedure, a root canal on my bottom left molar, to do at the beginning of March.
Then, last night, I had class from 5:30 to 8:15 so I didn’t get home until about 8:30. It’s exhausting getting all of this stuff done, but I’ll be glad when I do. My classes this semester are going to be pretty challenging and time-consuming. I am a little worried, to be honest, about making sure I have time to get everything done. I have done so well up until now, it would be a shame to throw away all my hard work by overburdening myself. Oh well, it gives me something to focus on for this weekend. (Someday I’ll have time to really focus on that scrapbook for Sera…)
Point me to the road
This week I’ve finally been able to catch up on all the things I’ve had to put off for money’s sake, like eye doctor and dentist’s visits. Unfortunately, it looks like the combination of putting off treatment earlier and being pregnant have resulted in a hefty dental bill upcoming. Between several fillings and two root canals, complete with crowns, I will be owing upward of $2000 after insurance. Apparently we only have $1500 total dental coverage per year – a completely asinine arrangement if you ask me. Today, I’ll get to do the fun part and go pick out some frames for some new glasses. Hopefully, my new prescription will be correct. The last two times I went to the eye doctor, I was pretty unhappy with the results. It seemed like maybe my eyes weren’t the problem. I was pretty happy with the optometrist yesterday, though, and feel a lot more confident that this time around I’ll be getting what I’m supposed to. At least I can take solace in the fact that these things are finally being taken care of. Now I just need to get my car’s oil changed and the house cleaned and I’ll feel a bit more together.
Sera’s doing great. We discovered a week or so ago that she is supposed to be sleeping a lot more than she was. We decided to try implementing a more scheduled sleep regimen for her and it seems to be working pretty well, though we’re still in the transition, I think. She now goes to bed around 6:30pm and wakes every 3 hours or so to eat and be changed, then goes back to sleep without much fuss. We also invested in a nice new space heater for her room, as our old one only worked on one setting and was pretty rusty (it IS 24 years old!). In any case, we’re getting along.
I have found an area that I may actually have some interest in pursuing as a career. I am currently working in Knowledge Management, which is basically Information Systems Management. We handle all of the explicit knowledge within the company, including a technical solutions database and intranet portal. Branching from this experience, I may pursue a career in public relations or marketing with a specialization or focus in social media. I also like brand management and marketing strategies. Don’t know what it’s going to take to get into these fields, but my supervisor seems to appreciate and support my new-found interests and is supportive of me attending various AMA (American Marketing Association) events, webinars, and whatnot. We’ll see…something to pursue further. Also, I am taking International Strategic Marketing Management this semester, so I hope that will be interesting.
2 Months!
Sera is already 10 weeks old as of yesterday (1/12)! She is getting so big already. She was 12 and a half pounds at her doctor’s appointment last week. I need to get better about taking video of her although I think I’ve been doing a decent job of keeping up on frequent photos.
I am excited to announce that Sera and I will be flying out to California over Spring Break in March to visit both my grandparents and my parents. We will spend a week and a half visiting and relaxing.
Let it snow let it snow!
Hooray! We had a nice quiet white Christmas this year. We had many inches of snow on Christmas Eve and were able to enjoy the white winter wonderland from the warmth and comfort of home. Sera got lots of wonderful gifts of clothes and toys and with her gift cards and money we were able to get her a new baby swing and a play yard for her to sleep in while we’re downstairs or traveling out to see Grammy Val and Grandpa Pat in March.
Here’s a picture of our snowed-in house:
And here’s the family at John’s company Christmas party:
One Month Already!
Okay this is a little late but I can’t believe she’s 1 month old already! At the last doctor’s visit she was already 9 pounds 8 ounces. She’s growing like a weed!
The world is too big for one little bear.
Sera’s First Check-Up
Today was Sera’s first doctor’s visit. She is now 8 pounds 7 ounces! The doctor says everything looks and sounds great and she’s one healthy baby. (yay!)
Here she is…tired and grumpy after her first vaccine shot:
Our daughter arrives a week early!
Serafina Victoria was born on November 3, 2009 at 5:58 pm. She weighed 7 pounds 8 ounces and was 20 inches long. Delivery was smooth and quick, a mere 11 hours of labor and only 30 minutes of active pushing. Serafina and mama are now at home resting for the next few weeks.
7 pounds, 8 ounces of awesome
Pumpkins!
Yesterday, Liz and I carved our Halloween pumpkins. Here is a picture of the masterpieces lit up outside our house at night:
