this week's randomness

1. I took the day off work yesterday and spent the entire day running errands - Payton to the vet, drop offs and pickups at the library, returns at Kohls (love their return policy btw) and Joann Fabrics, groceries at Target, bedding shopping at the Land of Nod outlet, etc. I went to 11 places. Whew! By the end of the day, the bottoms of my feet were burning and I was exhausted and sore. You'd think I'd run a marathon. And this is someone who usually is able to shop all day. This pregnancy is definitely starting to wear me down a lot more. I came home and slept from 4-5:30pm. I woke up panicked that I slept so long, threw together dinner and was nervous about tossing and turning that night from such a long, late nap. Nope, didn't have a hint of trouble, I fell asleep very easily that night!

2. I bought Barrett a potty chair. I know he's not even remotely close to being ready, but I figured I should have one on hand for when he is. It's very strange to acknowledge that he could possibly be getting to that point in the next few months and isn't such a baby anymore! The other little girl in his daycare his age is already showing a lot of interest in it and is starting. I know boys take a lot longer, but hopefully the peer pressure of daycare helps the process go a little smoother when we start.

3. I made a pasta dinner on Thurs night using cilantro, zucchini and squash from the garden. I got the recipe from Better Homes and Gardens magazine. It was kind of a disappointment. Bummer. Their recipes have been kind of hit-or-miss for me. I like cilantro in small doses but it leaves my hands smelling cilantro-y the rest of the day - yuck. And no, Barrett still won't have anything to do with 90% of what I make. Picky child, that one. Because I've heard that babies can taste everything that their moms eat while pregnant, I wonder if I was too limited in my diet while I was pregnant. He did inherit my sweet tooth. He likes to point at the pantry while eating breakfast and say "cookie," as if he thinks we'll fall for that.

4. I have been scouring craigslist to find fun and cheap toys that we can use in a basement playroom. This week, I bought this one:It's the Fisher Price Laugh & Learn kitchen. I was a little disappointed when I picked it up to find that the shapes/balls that went with it were missing. I went ahead and got it, but that bummed me out. I guess that's the risk you take when buying used. Fortunately we have the Laugh & Learn House so we can use the same shapes with the kitchen. B made an immediate beeline for it and spent the rest of the night playing with it. These toy manufacturers really know how to suck kids in. The coolest thing is that when the kids crawl through the doorway, it somehow senses it and plays music. High tech toys the kids have these days, huh?

Well imagine my surprise when I made a quick trip to Goodwill during my Thursday marathon errand-running and found this:It's the Laugh & Learn farm. And for the low price of $0.99, it made its way home with me. That's right, a dollar. It worked, had all the pieces and is pretty darn cute so I'm pretty impressed with the deal I got on it. These aren't small toys though, so definitely will need to find their way to the basement to be played with. Yes, our house has become a plastic, garishly colored wonderland of musical noise. What can ya do?

I'm not sure yet what the plans are for Barrett while I'm on maternity leave, so I want to have plenty of things to keep him entertained in case he's home much more with me during the winter. Bored Barrett= unhappiness for everyone so I'm trying to prepare with fun things to play with just in case!