Test Drive

Today makes 35 weeks.  We're tidying things up, getting ready for the little one.  One of those tasks is finding a new car.  As much as I adored my Echo, it is, sadly, no longer with us.  And, as practical and useful as Brent's Corolla is, it still has the same principle flaw the Echo did--only 5 seats.  So we need something bigger than a sedan, and we'd like to do it without going into debt.  Not having a car payment, ever, has been a huge blessing during those tight times in our life together.  We still want something that drives like a car, though, not a truck, and gets decent gas mileage--going from 32-36 mpg to ~18 mpg was just not going to cut it for us.  We've kept an eye on our options for several years and knew that with our requirements we would get to choose from the astounding total of 1 model.  (Canada and Mexico both have several more options.  I'm still kind of peeved about that.)

Finding a Mazda5 isn't all that hard, considering that the company refuses to market the poor thing, lest at any time the demand go up and they be required to actually make more of them.  Finding one with a manual transmission is a little more difficult, but still doable.  Finding a used one, though, is nigh unto impossible.  My guess would be that the sort of people who enjoy driving a stick are not the sort of people who trade in their cars "just 'cause." 

Anyway, after months of searching we found one.  We've test driven a couple of them, though not one of the older models, and I wanted to go check it out so that I could make sure my legs actually fit into the car.  I have, in my lifetime, had to rule out a car or two simply because my knee was up against the steering column.  What followed is one of those experiences that was horrifying, at the time, but caused us to laugh all the way home.

I wasn't altogether too worried when the sales guys had to make a few calls to figure out where the car was.  It's a large dealer with a patchwork collection of mini-lots.  We walked across a small side street and past a few other cars as everyone chatted.  James was enjoying the sunshine and his bottle of water that we'd grabbed from the cooler while waiting.  Our salesman went and grabbed the key and opened the front door.  He then pushed the button to unlock the rest of the car and muttered something about getting the car jumped so he could get the locks working.  What was that?  Surely I heard wrong.  He left and I figured out the manual locks for the back doors.  James and I hopped in the back and started poking around while Jonathan looked over the console up front.  Sure enough, the sales guy comes back with a battery starter, pops the hood, and gets things cranked up.  I never did figure out how the battery had died in the first place.  I couldn't quiet believe that they'd left the lights on, and yet that's somehow the impression I was given from his explanation.  Everyone piled in, with me in the driver's seat.

As I was pulling out of the lot, the lights on the dials started flickering.  Halfway through my turn, in the middle of the street, the whole thing died.  Jonathan and the salesman had to quickly hop out, wave traffic around us (we didn't have enough power to even flash the hazard lights), and push the car to the side of the road.  We jumped the battery again.  I pulled around the corner, just as the lights flickered again, and watched as it died, again, while I tried to get it in the driveway.  After yet another jump, and having driven maybe 250 ft., they took it into the shop to get a new battery.  I sincerely hope that that's the only thing wrong with it.

I could tell that our salesman was embarrassed by what had happened, but was bravely holding on and pretending that everything was great.  We played along and asked the price.  There wasn't a sticker on the car, nor had there been a price in the online listing.  His answer?  $19,995.  Excuse me?!?  I can buy a new one, for that price.  He tried to explain that that particular portion of the dealership deals with people who have really bad credit, so the price is to cover the risk, or something like that.  We didn't really let him finish.  A car that age with that sort of mileage is only worth $11k.  That's if it's in great condition, too, and this one was slightly worn with use.  We left, shaking our heads at the sheer audacity of that quote, especially after all we'd gone through at their hands.  We giggled at how awful the whole thing was, all the way home.

I did go back later, though, after they'd replaced the battery.  I still needed to know about my knees.

Fear and Shopping

What with needing an entirely new wardrobe for the kids, I made an exhaustive--and exhausting--list and hit the stores with kids and Grandma in tow. I think we're set. I have about two weeks' worth of clothes for each kid (no matter what you say, Joseph can not survive with only 4 pairs of pants/shorts--I'd be doing laundry every day) and while we don't have a full compliment of colors it's a good mix. Once I stare at their closets I might return one or two things, but if I know me at all I probably won't.

We took a break in the middle of shopping and dropped off Grandma so we could go meet our teachers at our new school. Both Ms. B (2nd) and Ms. W (Kinder) are young, attentive and organized. The library isn't quite as big as our old one, but the librarian is cheerful and enthusiastic and we (the parents) will still be able to check out our own books. We each got a popsicle for coming, too. James sported a blue mouth for the rest of the day.

After the school, we visited two other stores and I began to wonder if, between children with wandering attention and stagnant checkout lines, I'd get dinner ready on time. We pulled it off with time to spare, though. Despite the grueling schedule, I would have called the day a triumph but for one thing, a literal pain in the rear.

When I was pregnant with James, three years ago, I somehow twisted my right sacroiliac joint out of alignment. I was in pain for months on end. After birth, things settled down and I've been fine, but the joint never went back together. I can actually feel a good 1/4 inch of elevation change (for lack of a better metaphor) at the top of my pelvis. Then, almost exactly two weeks ago, I turned to look at something as we drove past it and I could feel my tail snap and scream out in pain. I don't think there was actual screaming involved, but it was a close thing. Ever since then, though, I've spent nearly every evening lying on my back and wishing I didn't have to move ever again.

I'm beginning to wonder if I'll survive school. My mornings are pretty good but every step I take grates and jars, and the oddest things can aggravate the problem. I consider the ability to feel and hear your pelvis click and pop to be A Bad Thing. I don't want to drive the three blocks to school, though, and I really don't want to wait in the torturously long pick-up line, wasting gas. But will I be able to walk it? And if I can, will I be able to do anything else, afterward?

Tactical Reassessment

Have you ever realized, years later, that a crucial piece of equipment, which you've happily done without until now, is becoming more and more necessary? I'm there. I have too many full skirts made of cotton. I have too many sewing projects with seams to press. I have too often delayed hanging my husband's dress shirts, even though I carefully fold them after washing. That towel on the bathroom counter just isn't cutting it, anymore. I need an ironing board.

Polls Are Closed

Because the "official" party results results are in! By our oh-so-scientific method of testing every Old Wives Tale we could find, all at once, our conclusion is that BOY wins 9-6. For details, you would have to check with Andrea. **just to muddy the waters, though, this website says it's 67% in favor of girl, and this one is 60% for girl.**

I know at least one of them (which side I sleep on) has changed (though I can't remember which way) since the party, because of this: After more than two years of promising myself that I would get a new mattress, I finally did it. Goodbye 30+ year-old Sealy Posturepedic! You were good to us, but my back says it's time to move on. The picture doesn't actually match the bed, but it's the closest I could get. Ours is a 10-11" Eurotop (like a pillowtop, but with memoryfoam) just like the picture, but ours is made by a family-run company out of Houston so they don't have pictures on the web. Since the mattress is thicker, we got the "low profile" (half-height) foundation, and it comes out just the right height.

We've only had it for one night, so results are not entirely conclusive. Not conclusive for me, at least--Jonathan didn't snore a bit, last night, so we have some success.

Success!!!

Oh, the agony of finding the right car seats! Ah, the sweet thrill of victory when you find some that work!

I stopped at Target to get upholstery cleaner to fully cleanse and scrub the back seat and looked at the passenger side floor only to notice that there was a tape measure there, for some strange reason. I picked it up, turned around, and measured the back seat from door handle to door handle. 50 inches, not 48! I knew that the seats I had picked out added up to 48 inches, and with the extra 2 inches they would definitely fit. It took two stops (they only had one at that location, so I had to get the second at another store) but I got them. Here are all three, fully strapped in and 2/3 in use.


And just to show you that beautiful little space between the seat and the door:


I'm so happy it worked! As to the technical bits, the bottom tethers are fully tightened, but the top one isn't--the top anchors are spaced so close together that tightening that one pulls the the tops of the seats inward and the infant seat won't fit. There's still no forward give, though, so it's still doing it's job, it's just not cranked down. And yes, the infant seat will still snap in and out.

New and Freaky With a Side of Hope

My mouse broke. It actually broke several months ago and I glued the piece back into place, but I really don't want to keep gluing it, now that it's loose again. So I got a new mouse, tonight. It's optical. It's also so much more sensitive than the old one that I can't get my arrow onto anything to click.

The mouse is awesome, but the real reason for going to the store was to test car seats. Again. This was Target, though, and not BabiesRUs. They don't let you test the seats in your car at Target. Even so, I think I might have found a winning combination.

Here's the infant seat we've got our eye on. It's the Baby Trend Flex-Loc and it's only 16" wide.
This is the most promising car seat. It's the Cosco "high-backed booster" and is 17" wide.

The reason the car seat looks so promising is that there is a ~1" overlap where the lip of the infant seat slides over the edge of the car seat's seat, effectively making all of the car seats 16" wide. The back seat of my car is ~48" wide. Follow the math and you'll see the light begin to dawn.

Target also sells this, the Cosco Pronto booster, but it wasn't in our store so I didn't get to test (or measure) it tonight. It's main bonus feature is that it starts at 30lbs and 34" (it fits Elena) but I don't know if the arm rests will flip up to make room for the infant seat.
We're going to see if we can have a discussion with a store manager to test the car seats out. If the manager lets us, and they fit, that's a $200 sale and a very grateful customer. Frances, you know people, right? Can you help?

The Laws of Frustration

We have two car seats. We're about to have three children. There's currently enough room in the car for only two car seats. We can spend $200 to replace both our current car seats with narrower versions and buy a third, or we can spend $15,000 to buy a larger car and a third car seat. We're opting for the first. The second will need to happen eventually but can wait for a year or two.

Here's my dilemma. I don't want to move Elena up to a belt-positioning booster (no harness, just seat belt) yet. She's still ten pounds below where most car seats max out and boosters kick in. All the car seats that include harnesses, though, are at least three inches wider than the plain boosters and I'm not sure that I can fit two of them, plus an infant seat, into my car properly. Every combination of car seat I have tried, so far, will "fit" in the car (the doors will close) only if the LATCH belts are loosened so the outside car seats sit at a slightly off angle. Legally, Elena is tall enough that she is not required to use any car seat at all (don't worry, I wouldn't do that) but if I choose to use a car seat I am required to use it correctly (height, weight, installation).

I want advice. Even from you lurkers and occasionals (this means you, Jess). Do I (a) keep searching for car seats that will sit correctly inside the car? Or do I (b) get a much slimmer booster that I know will fit? I know I should choose A, but I'm running out of time to look, here.

Goings On

Ok, I'm getting a little behind, but I keep forgetting that people are interested in our lives. First of all, I will say that the maternity section at our local Target is awful. Everything they had fit on only four racks, and they weren't the rounders where they could cram stuff in, either. Second, it is absolutely beyond me as to why any pregnant woman would want to show copious amounts of leg when built like a beach ball, but that's all anyone sells for either dresses or shorts. Motherhood has exactly one style of shorts that goes to mid-knee (and on me, too, which is a miracle) and it is, of course, completely sold out in my size at every store, including the warehouse. Sigh...

Anyway, on to the happy stuff. My brother graduated, the day before Mother's Day, and we had a great time celebrating his accomplishments and triumphs. Regan provided yummy food, most of us took a turn at playing Rock Band, we chatted and the kids played. It was wonderful. Way to go, Brent!



The pictures of Jonathan's family came out great. Unfortunately I can't show you how fabulous they are because they haven't sent me the sitting, yet. I think it's because "Lisa" has a Smile Store account, but "Jonathan" does not.

Joseph got his summer haircut. I did it myself (I do everyone's hair, normally) and we had a minimum of wiggling and screaming. What's the trick? Stick him in a Bumbo-thing on the bathroom counter so he can see, then use electric clippers while you hold his chin still. It actually took two passes (in the evening after his bath and again in the morning) since his hair was so long, but he did really well the second time. I can tell that he's way more comfortable, too, with the added ventilation. The second picture is a bonus for Callie. See? Will's not the only one.



We've been going to the pool about once every week or two, and the kids are starting to warm up to it. Last time we went, I'd forgotten how cool it actually was, outside. It's a good thing we only had ~45 minutes to swim because everyone was a bit chilled by the end. The new showers are great, though, and really warmed us back up before we headed home.

The baby is super wiggly. Jonathan's felt it kick, once, but we haven't really tried to get other people to feel, yet. It's still at the Slow-Popping Popcorn stage, instead of real serious kicks or Toes Wedged Under The Ribs (both the other two loved that one) so it's still fun and a little surprising, no matter how active the baby gets.

That's about it. I'll try to be better about this. Not daily (I get too grouchy when I'm trying to post) but still current.

Ups and Downs

I've been meaning to post some stuff, just fun things we've been doing in the last week or so, but by the time I find the free time I'm so moody (grouchy?) that I don't want to talk to people. So, anyway...

Joseph got to go shoe shopping. His boots were getting a bit small and I wanted to see how his feet were growing so we went to Payless, got his feet measured, and looked around at shoes. It' no wonder his shoes are a bit difficult to get on--they're a 4, and Joseph's feet are somewhere between a 4 1/2 and a 5. After trying on bigger shoes, he refused to put his old shoes back on. Payless didn't have any shoes that were quite cute enough even for the $12-15 price tag, so we headed on to Target. They had a bunch of shoes on sale for half off, including a great pair of two-strap velcro sneakers in tan suede with black canvas panels. They look great.

I knit my very first piece of clothing, a bolero style sweater for a friend's baby shower, and it inspired me to make a leap of faith in the knitting world--a sweater for me. I found a pattern I like that suggests recycling yarn from a thrift store sweater (I really wanted wool for a warm sweater, so the other option was to spend $40 for new yarn) so I made a trip to Goodwill. Two trips, actually. The first yielded a moss-green-with-a-turn-toward-yellow chunky yarn that was actually 80% silk (20% nylon), and the second found me a black-with-a-single-strand-of-silver worsted in 100% lambswool (minus the sliver thread, I'm assuming). Both are shapeless, XL turtlenecks. I hate turtlenecks, so I don't feel bad about taking them apart. The green has been unraveled already, but needs to be balled; the black is still in sweater form, until I can find a new pattern for it--I think I like the green better with the cables. Silk won't be as warm, but that's OK.

Elena spent all day, Saturday playing Primary in the living room. I'm not sure if she did any Sharing time lessons, but there were a lot of opening and closing prayers, with singing time in between.

I've visited half of the ladies on my Visiting Teaching route, and we're only half way through the month. I've seen Jeanie and her family at church the last 4 Sundays (her husband's not a member, and they usually only do Easter and Christmas) and Tiffany and I are working on getting rides to church for her kids once Jeanie's soccer league starts in February. We're trying really hard to get the other two before it gets to the last week of the month. I usually give the message, since I'm really lazy and Tiffany make the appointments, and I really like this month's. The first few times I read it, the last bit about motherhood seemed a bit jarring, since the lesson is a bout our purpose on Earth (fall, redemption, Plan of Salvation, all that), but the more I thought about it the more it made sense. As a mom, my job is to see that my kids grow up to be competent, responsible adults. My Heavenly Father's job is exactly the same. Motherhood (or, as Sister Beck put it, "a mothering heart") is about helping people grow and learn and become the best people they can be, and anyone can do it. Everyone should do it, in whatever capacity they can. Anyway, that's my deep thought of the week.

And, very best of all, I got to go shopping with my friend Jess, today. She just started nursing school (one class, but it's 40 hours) and has been so busy it's amazing I caught her at all. Joseph got a Carter's gift card for Christmas, there's a Carter's store up by her, and I hadn't seen her since September, when our buddy Jon got married. Perfect chance to get together for an hour or so. It was so fun!

Well, enjoy!

Shopping Helper

I went to Frederick's the other day to find a bra for the dress for my brother's wedding. As I'm shuffling back into dressing room for the third or fourth time with a stroller and two children, trying to find something that'll actually fit, Elena grabs two bras in a deep red satin off the rack. Once we get inside, she hands me the bras, says "Mena try it" and starts pulling off her shirt. I was trying so hard not to laugh, at this point, but I was cracking up so badly, inside. We got her shirt off and the bra on and she pranced all around the dressing room, so proud of herself. It made me think about the fact that one day we'll be doing this for real. And that she looked really good in that shade of red. So good, if fact, that I decided she needed a dress that color. This is that dress.

The Pursuit of Fabulocity

In my ongoing efforts to look at least a little bit more fabulous, I've discovered a few treasures. I've gotten one of those free makeovers at the Lancome counter that they use to try to sell you a hundred bucks worth of makeup you could get elsewhere for $30, but they always put way too many layers of *stuff* on. I love looking at all the new shades of eyeshadow and lipstick, too, but it's so hard to tell what it would look like once I put it on. Well, these are my treasures. Sure I watch way too much TV, but I like to watch What Not To Wear on TLC just for tips on what works for various body types, and the makeup lady they have uses a tinted moisturizer for the girls that just don't like to wear much makeup. I think couple of the brands you can find at the grocery or pharmacy have tinted moisturizers, and most--if not all--have sunscreen in them. It doesn't work as a concealer but it's still a nice all-in-one for moisturizer, sunscreen and foundation. As for trying stuff on, at the Cover Girl website, you can fill out a profile with your eye color, hair color, skin tone and personality and they will show you the shades and products that work best for you and your lifestyle. The real fun is their Shadow Salon, though. You can play and experiment with every one of their eyeshadows to see what they would look like on you. And if you don't like Cover Girl, you can take the same basic recommendations and apply them to whatever brand you like. I found a fabulous lipgloss at CVS, that way. It perfectly complimented my coloring and only cost $2.