RakStar Librarian

happy halloween!

2009-10-31T18:01:20Z

Behold the coolest baby in the world!

2009-10-25T20:18:44Z

Rockin' the binky-n-shades look in French Lick, Indiana, during his first road trip!

Sprog charmed all the ladies with his bald head & toothless grin. Mom, Dad & Grandma Nancy got to relax in the spa and explore the recently restored West Baden Springs Resort

Ze official 3-month portraits

2009-09-09T14:14:27Z

by Jeff at Ebert's in the OP.

The Sprog has started babbling in the past week. It is so adorable! He also got his first cold, but was surprisingly chipper anyway, even when I was aspirating the boogers from his nose. He's just a happy little guy I guess.

My dad visited over the weekend and my mom will be flying up this weekend. When family visits our job is to feed or diaper the Sprog, then hand him over. I hardly know what to do when I have both hands free.

chats_noirs @ 2009-08-18T16:21:00

2009-08-18T21:23:57Z

Brett Favre is dead to me.

Three months

2009-08-15T22:07:52Z

The Sprog turned 3 months old on Thursday, and I just finished up my second week back at work. It's getting easier to leave him on workdays. At least I'm not fighting back tears all the way to the office like I was the first 2 days. I'm glad I work part-time and that eeknight works from home & can be with the boy on my work days. We have a friend coming in for a few hours a week to babysit so EEK get some solid writing time in too.

The Sprog survived his first day care experience this week. EEK & I returned to our health club (finally) and the boy went to the kids' club while we worked out. Basically, he had a baba and went to sleep. I think we were more stressed out than he was about the whole experience. Round two is tomorrow morning while we go to yoga.

In other news, I'm on hiatus from the Gypsy Queens. I tried to resign outright, but Piper wants to keep the door open. Fine with me. I'd been trying to make a decision about the GQs for years and the Sprog finally forced the issue. Oriental is my true dance love anyway. I'm going to start doing private lessons, which will be easier to fit in. As for performing, who knows. I suppose that'll be on hiatus for a while too. I'm simply not one of those women who has to do it all. I just want to enjoy my family & my life and be happy.

Speaking of happy, check out the new baby pics!

7 years, no itch

2009-07-28T15:49:22Z

Happy seventh wedding anniversary eeknight! I love you, I've loved you for the last 8 years, and every day we've been married has been better than the last.

Eight weeks

2009-07-09T02:43:11Z

We finally captured a smile on camera!

Little riffer

2009-07-06T01:07:47Z

eeknight & I are very amused that our Little Man yelled back at Charlton Heston at the end of Planet of the Apes. 7 weeks old and already he's a critic!

One month old

2009-06-11T17:49:50Z

The boy is an eating machine. He's been chowing since 9, with only a couple 20-minute breaks between feedings. I hope this means he's getting ready for another growth spurt and not that he's a changeling.

Baby is asleep, but I'm awake. Not fair!

2009-06-06T06:55:58Z

Baby pictures

2009-05-25T01:35:26Z

My Little Man was born on May 13 at 10:02 am. He weighed 8lbs, 6oz and was 20 inches long. Pictures below the cut (if you peeked at eeknight's LJ you've seen these already).

Seeing Mommy for the first time:

Minutes old and not happy:

One week old and these shoes are already too small:

Ready for his closeup:

Big day

2009-05-13T09:28:44Z

Yeah, yeah. Long time, no post. What can I say? My creative energies have been diverted elsewhere, and he will be born via c-section later this morning. You didn't miss much. My LJ posts would mostly have been complaining about such things as shopping for maternity formalwear, walking like a sumo wrestler, and the dietary horrors of being a vegetarian with gestational diabetes.

OK, there was my belly portrait sitting.

Actually, aside from the GD, this pregnancy has been pretty easy. No morning sickness to speak of. Lots of fatigue & insomnia, but those were easily treated with naps. eeknight has been excellent at pampering me and getting the condo ready for baby. I'm looking forward to introducing him to our son (the boy's been kicking my organs for months, so I feel we already have an intimate connection).

Trying not to think about the surgery and recovery too much, but I'm pretty sure this will be me returning chez EEK-Chats on Saturday:

Happy birthday to eeknight

2009-03-07T15:18:00Z

It's a boy!

2009-01-20T21:32:34Z

I had planned to post a scan of the ultrasound, but apparently eeknight doesn't want a pic of his son's wanger all over the intarweb.

No, we haven't picked a name yet.

Satanic noms

2009-01-07T17:35:30Z

My lunch cost exactly $6.66.

Maybe I shouldn't have gotten the jalapeno cornbread.

I should have known it was too good to last.

2008-12-18T23:37:25Z

I almost made it through the holidays this year without hearing my most hated version of a Christmas carol. Thanks to a quick pre-storm trip to the grocery store, I was subjected the Barbra Streisand singing "Jingle Bells." Gah! I just want to shake her every time I hear it. Stop ruining Christmas Babs!

I recovered from my aural trauma enough to spend the afternoon making xmas cookies, which always makes me happy. I mean, didn't even flinch when Manheim Steamroller came on the radio! Or that guilt-ridden one my John Lennon either.

One of the things I found in the box from my grandparents' house was my grandmother's cookie press. Thanks to that gem, I was able to introduce eeknight to spritz cookies--a holiday staple in my family, but not in his (ancestors from different parts of Germany, I guess).

This recipe comes the closest, but mine doesn't have any new-fangled electric mixer directions (I had to figure that out for myself--why have a Kitchen Aid if you're not going to use it). Also no currants or other decor. Spritz come out of the oven perfect.

I made a double batch, so hopefully there will be some left to bring into work on Monday.

preggo hormones + xmas = weepy chats

2008-12-15T18:09:11Z

EEK & I started cleaning out the dining room in anticipation of turning it into office/library. (The current office will become the baby's room.) I went through a box of stuff I inherited from Grandma & Grandpa S that I had never opened. I found an xmas card my grandmother bought for me & never sent; a bag of ornaments that used to hang on their tree; an angel figurine bought at my birth; and a turtle finger puppet suitable for a baby.

I really didn't expect to need a cry break while cleaning, but there you go. The card is now on the mantle, the ornaments are on our tree, the angel is in the china cabinet, and the toy is set aside for Baby EEK-Chats.

Illinois Politics

2008-12-09T16:50:46Z

Another IL governor in trouble with the Feds. Quelle surprise. Maybe Blagojevich can be cellmates with former gov Ryan. Of course everything Blago did is politics as usual around here.

I wonder what it would take to clean up state government? And, dare I hope, Chicago as well? Maybe instead of closing the prison in Joliet, we can turn it into a federal pen for IL politicians. Let's toss them all in on principle, then start over from scratch.

My rockin' salad bar

2008-12-02T18:12:29Z

This time of year, holiday songs are ubiquitous. It's like they stalk you: there is no escape! Except, apparently, at the deli in my office building. I was making a salad when suddenly I realized the song on the PA was not the expected classic carol slaughtered by the poptart of the moment. It was, in fact, Ironman. And not some bland Muzak version, but Black Sabbath in all it's hard rocking glory. I heart my deli.

Happy Birthday to my Lil Sis!

2008-11-29T11:46:31Z

My life has improved already

2008-11-04T16:38:39Z

Thanks to the Obama rally in Grant Park (two blocks from my office) and the surrounding security forces & media circus, I get to leave the office 1.5 hours early. Thanks 'Bama!

And since I took advantage of early voting this year, I get enjoy extra playtime instead of standing in long poll lines. Yays!

eeknight & chats_noirs version 2.0

2008-10-31T15:03:31Z

Attention Roo, Luna & Spooker:

2008-10-29T20:35:24Z

Time for you to get off your lazy arses and start bringing in some $$$. Here's some inspiration from Japan.

I heart garfieldminus

2008-10-22T20:56:33Z

Unlike in Jon Arbuckle's pathetic life, lots of things have been happening in mine. I am just unmotivated to journal about them. Let's call it early onset seasonal affective disorder. Maybe one of these days i'll get around to it. Who knows.

Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday!

2008-10-15T20:54:53Z

The ultimate showdown: hedgie v. rubber duckie!