This morning, Steve got up with Gus and he let me sleep in. I probably could have slept longer, but Hobo woke me up at 9:30. I felt well-rested, but my nose was stuffed up and I had a pain in my right knee.
I went downstairs and had breakfast and we watched some television. We watched a bunch of movies today and it was very relaxing!
I had a nail appointment today at 11:30. I asked my nail girl (Sandy) about how much it costs to have the shalack stuff instead of gel... it's like $10 MORE than gel! I was very surprised to hear this, as I expected it to be less... but maybe because it's not as permanent as the gel, that's why it's more. I'm glad I went with gel two weeks ago. I love having my nails back... :D
I'm gearing up to start my classes on August 3rd. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little anxious. Steve calls it my Sally Struthers program (lol)... he's going to make me an Excel spreadsheet that will let me calculate the hours I'm putting in, so I can make sure that I'm getting 25-30 per week. I'm hoping to do more and maybe finish early. The sooner I finish, the more time "off" I have before the second part begins in December. I'll have from August 3rd until November 23rd to finish part I. I'm lucky that Steve is so supportive and understands that I might have to spend weekend time working, and at night I'll try and put in a few hours too. I think I'm most stressed about doing well... I was told that if I do well, I should have no problem finding a job.
I went to Harris Teeter for some milk and other things and got us a sub to share for lunch. I think they're so much better than Subway and less expensive too!
Here are some pictures of Gus at lunch today:
I also have some pictures of the playroom that I took last night:
I'm hoping to get the magnet board and felt board put up TOMORROW (STEVE--- this is your hint)!!!
Sorry that I'm writing this today and not yesterday-- I hit a wall around 8 last night and my eyes were really dry from the fan, and I just decided to go to bed. I probably should have just sucked it up and blogged, but I was too sleepy and wanted to close my eyes.
So... here's a recap of yesterday!!
We got up and had breakfast, and then we played for a bit before we had to leave for our 9:35 15-Month well-child appointment. Here are the pictures of Gus before leaving for the appointment:
Grabbing an ice cube off the floor...
Hee hee hee- trying so hard to grab it!
Giggle monster
Look mama!
CHEESE (ball)
We headed to our appointment and I love that it's just down the road. We were going to Cary Pediatrics (Apex office) and it was a good 20-25 minutes to get there. The new office is across from Wal-Mart (less than five miles away) and took ten minutes to get there.
There are a couple of things that SERIOUSLY impressed me about this new practice. Here they are (in random order):
Before my appointment, I was given instructions on how to go online to their site and use a program that's called CHADIS. This program has all the forms needed before an appointment, and once it's submitted, the forms go directly to the doctor. He was able to read everything BEFORE we came in, and had a better idea of what to expect for our visit.
Their website has all the other forms that I needed (new patient stuff), and I filled it all out before I came in. It minimized the wait and was SO EASY to just walk in, hand them the forms and be done.
Their office is SUPER CUTE!!! It's clean (brand-new) and has a great train table that Gus loved. They have hand-painted murals on every wall of various safari animals. It was very nice.
The girl at the front desk... so awesome. Very friendly, helpful, and kind. I think it's that person that sets the impression for a practice, and if you've got someone nasty at the station that greets people, you can turn people off. I was pleasantly surprised when she thanked me for using CHADIS and gave me a gift as a token of appreciation. I got to pick from a free admission to Monkey Joe's (Gus is too little for that place) or a BOGO coupon to the new ice cream place in town. I took the coupon for ice cream!
The nurse that we had was very thorough and nice. She was EXCELLENT with Gus and made me laugh a lot.
Doctor Artman-- was a guy! We LOVED our nurse practitioner at Apex Pediatrics, but after the nine-month appointment, she left and we were stuck seeing two different doctors. The first was because Gus had a high fever and I was worried. When we went in-- they didn't even take his temperature, and the doctor couldn't even tell me if it was teething related or not. He was of no help at all. The second one, we saw at Gus's 12-month appointment and while she was nice, she wasn't friendly and didn't seem to care too much about getting to know us.
Dr. Artman spent a GREAT deal of time with us. He wanted to know everything about Gus, interacted with him, played with him, and then answered so many questions that I had. We discussed our alternative vaccine schedule, and together we decided that he'd receive two that day. My original plan was for him to get nothing... but Dr. Artman and I talked, he was very honest and said it was my choice to do what we wanted and he'd support it.
While discussing things with Dr. Artman, the thing that I liked the most, and what really impressed me, was when he said that he and I (and Steve) have a mutual relationship and we work together for Gus. Everything we decide is together and the over-all focus is on Gus and what's best for him. He said we were a team and he considered me a partner. I loved it!
So I went in not sure what I'd think, and I walked out so happy. When I checked out, I asked about setting up his next appointment. She said, "Since we have your email, we'll send you a reminder and then you can schedule online with us." HALLELUJAH!!! I love that they're in the 21st century!!!
We came home and Gus took a nap. He slept for two hours and woke up in a great mood. We had lunch and then listened to music and danced.
He took his second nap around 4:00. Here's a picture of the temperature outside:
We had dinner and then it was time for Gus's bath. I decided to take some pictures of him in the tub:
Product placement???
Trying to catch the water (hee hee hee)
"Dude... there's an R on your back..."
Rinsing his head!
Daddy loves bath time!!
The seal is still on this one... so he can't ingest anything (it's safe)!
Post-bath snuggle time
Almost hitting me in the face... ;)
So... a year ago yesterday (Friday)... I remember it like it was yesterday! It's the first time that Wendy and I hung out during the day. Prior to this, I was teaching and would see her every now and then, but we weren't close. I went to her monthly girls' night out, but that was about it. But once we returned from MI, she and I became friends and started spending more time together.
She and I went to Rudino's for lunch (I had never been there). It was a great lunch, and then the best thing ever happened. Kaitlyn, (Wendy's oldest daughter) was playing with Gus and she made him laugh! I had my recorder on (through my phone) and I actually captured Gus's first laugh!! Kaitlyn has always loved Gus, and it was the sweetest thing to see him giggle at her!!! Here are the pics and video:
Before lunch
Kaitlyn (4) Wendy, Gus (2 months) and Ashley (1.5 almost 2)
Kaitlyn and Gus
Gus smiling
Making Gus laugh <3
So sweet!!
Unhappy Gus later that night
Here's the video of Gus's first laugh! Listen at the very beginning... and then Kaitlyn keeps saying, "Give yourself to me..." and that is what made him laugh again. I'm so glad I captured it!
My blog that's specifically about open adoption and how our family came to be complete.
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About Me
I'm Cathy and I'm a former elementary teacher turned SAHM. This blog has grown and evolved through the years to be my sounding board, then a place to share my thoughts, fears, and celebrations, and then where I post pictures and practice my photography skills. I blog about daily happenings. To read more about my family and how we're connected to open adoption, please follow our family blog: A Completed Family.
