December 28, 2006 by veronica.

The week bewteen Christmas and New Years always strikes me as…odd.  I find it especially odd now that I am out of school and have to work during this week, as I have the past 5 years.  Half of the world is on vacation and the other half (like me) wishes we were.  There is so much out there to do, too.  I have pople I’d like to see, places I’d like to go, and stores that I want to shop at.  One perk this year is having the day after Christmas off so i could do some shopping.  But otherwise, the office is quiet, and once I have year end things done, there’s not much else to do.  But oh, that year end push is always brutal.  The strings I have to pull to get all of that business processed before year end!  My boss is in position to lead the area for production, so I have spent most of the past 2 days on the phone, pleading with all of the companies we deal with to HURRY IT UP, please.  It’ll come down to the wire, but we should be good.  And to think they wanted to give me this week off… Ha.

I started studying for my Series 7 exam.  Right now I am scheduled to take the test in February, but that’s only of my client who is due that month delivers on time.  I know my last post was confusing.  That’s because my former boss kept telling me to start studying, and then would come back to me a few weeks later to tell me that I should wait.  God, I do not miss that job.  It’s a pass/fail exam, so if I pass that, the next step will be getting my life/health insurance license.  So it seems that, while I was getting frustrated by the lack of opportunity to get my childbirth educator certification, I have plenty to keep me busy.

Also on the doula front, I have an interview to volunteer at Woodwinds Hospital in their doula program.  I was getting worried that I was too far away, but I just had a very nice talk with the director and I think (hope) this will work out well.  The program is set up so that I would be on call for 24 hours one day a month for one year.  This would enable me to get my certifying births faster than if I tried to get them on my own.  I don’t interview until the end of Jnauary, but I have my fingers crossed. 

Christmas was pretty good, all things considered.  With the Divorce, we had to make do in some ways, but it was super nice not having to go between 2 different houses.  The tummy bug did strike the Jacobsen household, but Anna, Lily, and I have been fine.  I have pictures from various events, and I’m hoping Chris will put one of the pictures up as the main picture on our webpage.  I will get those posted as soon as I have a minute.  Lily had a blast this year–and she was really well behaved.  It was pretty fun.  As far as gifts go, 2 are worth a special blog mention.  Chris paid for us to do a special introduction to ballroom dancing with 2 private classes and 2 “dance parties” at the Fred Astaire Dance Studio in town.  I kept begging Chris to learn how to dance with me, but I never expected him to actually do it.  Then my wonderful sister gave me a gift certificate for a half day at the City Looks spa in town.  I go for that tomorrow, and I can hardly wait!  They say it’s 3 and 1/2 or 4 hours… YAY!

I think that’s a pretty good mishmash of what’s going on.  I have another blog post I need to write of all the strange things Lily has learned in the past 2 weeks…she’s so funny.  She’s picked up some of the wierdest skills lately.  Like what, you ask?  Like recycling cardboard…on her own!  Some days I just don’t know about her.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and have a good New Years.  Oh, and please visit my doula website!  It’s done and I’ve been told very good things about it.  Let me know what you think and refer friends and family to it.  Any doula awareness helps!

Posted in The doula journey, Life, Raising baby | 1 Comment »

December 13, 2006 by veronica.

It’s done!

Just in time to start studying for my Series 7, this time for keeps.  What, I didn’t tell you?  Oh, goodness.

I guess I just don’t want to jinx it.

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

December 13, 2006 by veronica.

It is with great pleasure that I announce the unveiling of my almost-finished doula webpage.  It can be viewed at www.byyoursidels.net.  It would be finished, but due to a technical glitch last night, the site published did not have all of the pages finished.  I then lost 2 1/2 hours of work.  So I will get the rest of it up today, and please feel free to give me any feedback, but be gentle…it’s not done yet.  I’ll let you know when it’s done.

Posted in The doula journey | 2 Comments »

December 5, 2006 by veronica.

I realize it’s been such a long time since my last post…almost 2 weeks! Chris has been ripping apart our computer for…some…reason. Something about reloading and making images and automatic backups. So he spends the time I usually post tinkering with the computer, and I’ve finally found a spare minute to write an update.
Since my last post, we had Thanksgiving. I made the most beautiful turkey ever, but my methods can not be replicated. See, while trying to time everything else right, the turkey got a little…break in the middle of cooking. I’m sure it had to do with redistributing the juices, but the little bird came out of the oven perfectly browned, juice, and flavorful. Lily had a blast, too. Chris and her Uncle Lenny taught her the finer art of house construction using Duplos. She tried to help, but she broke more than she built.

It was a pretty good day. We did brave the sales at 6:45 the next morning; if nothing else, it was one of the few days we’ve had to spend just as a family in a very, very long time.

This past Friday, Lily finally began calling me “Mommy.” Up to that point, she didn’t call me anything; if she did, it was “Daddy.” I’ve decided that makes me a real mommy. It doesn’t change anything I do, it just means that now a little person can run out into the world and call me her mommy. I have to pay attention now to any and all shouts of “mommy!” in public, for they may be coming from my child. I celebrated by sitting on the couch during her afternoon nap and watching a Lifetime made for TV movie.

We started potty training on Sunday, and Lily has been successsful quite a few times. The chair is a little too big for her and her feet barely touch the floor (if at all), but she still does a pretty good job. I’m now in the process of trying to figure out what to give her as a reward. The potty came with stickers, but Lily doesn’t understand them yet. Usually when she gets a sticker, she rips it into tiny pieces and sometimes eats a piece or two. I was thinking of using an edible reward, but she’s too small for candy, so I have to think about this for awhile.

And as I finish writing, Lily is waking up from her nap. I think she wants her mommy.

Posted in Life, Raising baby | 14 Comments »