MollyMadonna.com

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kruger weighs in. (day 15)

Kruger here. Mom’s been leaving the computer a little more unattended these days, so I thought I’d speak up while I have the chance. There’s a lot happening around here lately, and to be honest, I’m pretty stressed out. For months, mom and dad were always asking me about this “baby,” sometimes even calling it my baby. They made it sound like being a big brother was going to be great fun, and like I should be excited for said baby to arrive. Well. I’m finally putting two and two together, and I’ve realized that this “baby” they were talking about all along is the tiny, loud, curious being who showed up at home almost two weeks ago, and who has been taking the place by storm.

I really don’t understand it. Mom and dad were pretty fascinated with me at one point. I am, after all, numero uno in the pecking order around here. I figured being the eldest would have its fair share of privileges, but it pretty much stinks. Now people pay attention to me when I have to go outside, or when I get too close to the new guy, but that’s about it. I basically spend whole afternoons just hiding away upstairs while the house buzzes with visitors and the baby makes 101 sounds that are unfamiliar and hard to interpret.

And the evenings? Oh, the evenings! So much for putting myself to bed and sleeping soundly through the night. Not anymore. Nope. These days, I’m up with mom and dad at every cry. If I cried in the middle of the night, maybe I could get some attention, too…but that’s just not how I roll.

So I’ve been trying to stay a little more out of the way and feeling like it could be a while before anything is normal again. I can tell that mom and dad feel badly sometimes, because they’ve been giving me extra treats and inviting me over to see the baby when they can protect him and tell me if my nose gets too nosy for comfort. I think they’re trying to be gentle, but with everything going on, I know it’s hard to find extra patience for a big lug like me. I’m not begging for sympathy here–it just feels good to get it off my chest.

At any rate, I do trust mom and dad when they tell me that I’ll like this “Henry” someday, and that we’re going to be best buds. I really can’t see how at the moment, but they haven’t led me astray before, so why would they now? In the meantime, I just look forward to visits from grandparents and other people who can love a dog like me. A walk around the block every so often is nice, and a rub behind the ears does a lab good. Maybe Henry will be able to help with all of that someday. I mean, if he drops enough Cheerios, I guess I could see myself liking him at some stage…

Here’s the little guy today (c’mon, we know mom will post like a million more photos tomorrow):

Yeah, OK. So he’s cute. Fine.

mildly disgruntled, but hanging in there,

kruger (on behalf of mm)

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take a hike. (6)

Today has been a lovely day. We started out with an easy morning before heading to church for an incredibly beautiful, spirit-filled service. A friend of ours was baptized today, so there was an added significance to an already most-significant celebration. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! It’s hard not to be overwhelmed by Easter and all that it means, but the overwhelmingness of it all is one of the most refreshing, cleansing feelings I know…Christ and his life and death and sacrifice come together and culminate in the Resurrection, and I can’t think of anything more joyful!

After church, we joined dear friends and their family for a wonderful Easter dinner. Not wanting to wander too far from home these days, we were so thankful to have some of our favorite people to celebrate with–even though it’s bittersweet not to be with family on a holiday. After a great meal, we had a few laughs as the little ones took on an outdoor Easter egg hunt. It’s been a long time since we’ve been around kids on a holiday, and there’s truly nothing better than enjoying their excitement with every little toy and each successful discovery. The egg hunt lasted nearly an hour, because every time someone would turn away from their basket, more eggs would magically appear in the yard. “I think the birds keep droppin’ Easter eggs!” was the three year old’s conclusion. And drop they did, until it was time for dessert and everyone had had time to soak in the sheer delight and energy of the hunt.

Not long after, we came home to take Kruger on a pre-promised walk/hike. We know he’s a dog and all, but he never seems to forget when we mention a walk–and besides, I determined a while back that if baby wasn’t here by this weekend, we’d give a hike and some stairs a go, just to see what might happen. So we headed out to a lovely trail with a massive staircase not far from home. The verdict is still out yet on whether stairs do the trick for me, but we had a great time enjoying the weather and watching Kruger sniff every tree trunk and branch along the way. The stairs, I’ll admit, were a challenge, but a good one. There’s nothing quite like a bit of blood-pumping exercise to make you feel accomplished–especially when 39 weeks pregnant. We made sure to capture the moment, just for kicks. The ridiculousness of me climbing a mountain of stairs is below…wouldn’t want you to miss it 🙂

The rest of the evening was spent catching up with family over the phone, taking care of a few things around the house and enjoying the fact that we’ve had such a great weekend together (movie at home Friday night, a relaxing day yesterday, date night out last night, and then a glorious day today). After all of that, it’s hard not to look forward to the days ahead and whatever this week might hold. Here’s hoping!

kruger and i, all set to hike.

stairs!

here goes nothin'!

on our way up.

feelin' fine!

almost to the top.

the last few.

whew we made it! and look at that view!

baby takes a hike.

kruger and dad. SO handsome!

joyful,

mm

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fudge bars. (23)

We used to have them all of the time as kids–a treat on the weekends or in the summertime or after dinner on occasion. I rarely crave ice cream (unless it’s Captain Sundae :), but tonight after getting home from our last birthing class, I sat down to blog and suddenly wanted a fudge bar. I don’t think I’ve had one in years. They might sound good when I pass them in the frozen food aisles at the grocery store, but I never buy them.

Enter Jason. He had just gotten cozy in the living room when I mentioned this random craving (Note: I’ve had very few cravings during pregnancy…citrus fruit, milk and cereal are my top three offenders). Rewind to a few days ago when J shared that he kind of felt like he’d missed out on the chance to get in the car at midnight and run to the store to appease a craving of mine over the past 9ish months. When your wife craves staples like milk, cereal and citrus fruit, there aren’t too many nights where grocery delivery by way of loving husband is wholly necessary at an ungodly hour.

Tonight, though, it’s Jason-the-wonder-husband/dad to the rescue. I didn’t vocalize my craving for any other reason than just to say that fudge bars sounded good, but J was up and at ’em with record speed. Before I knew it, he was in the car and on the way to the store–and I’m feeling pretty spoiled right about now.

In the midst of this post, my phone buzzed with a text from super-husband letting me know that photos of three fudge bar options were waiting in my inbox. Sure enough, store brand, Fudgsicle and Skinny Cow fudge bars were looking back at me when I opened my email. And then J called to make sure to get the right ones. This is one of those moments where I just want to pin him with a “best husband of the year” award. I mean really, fudge bars at my beck and call at 10:30pm, directly following an evening in birthing class supporting me and learning how to best facilitate the healthiest, smoothest birth possible for our little babe? Maybe he could be the April cover guy for New Dad Magazine or something. If it existed, I’d nominate him.

So Kruger and I are just hanging out here, spending time with the blog and awaiting the deliciousness of a hand-delivered fudge bar to round out the night. We’re looking forward to “dad” getting home, as we often do, and I’m melting a little myself over the service coming my almost 37 weeks pregnant way.

feeling quite loved,

mm

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noises. (25)

We are a noisy family…and we’re about to get noisier. I’m realizing this with company over tonight as we enjoy a rousing board game, pie and coffee at the dining room table. Kruger is under the table gnawing on a rubber bone that makes an incessant squeaking sound–lovely. It really adds something to the ambiance of the evening. Honest.

Dinner guests and game nights aside, the noises begin in this household the moment the alarm goes off in the morning. I’ve made a personal commitment not to embarrass anyone too drastically here on the blog, so I won’t go into detail about the kinds of noises that start bright and early, but trust me. They exist. And really, they just keep coming all day long. Barking, coughing, snoring, whimpering, burping, etc. You get the idea. I’m imagining this space with the additional crying and cooing and gurgling that’s coming our way, and as crazy as it may sound (no pun, really), I think that an even more well-rounded cacophony will make this place feel just that much more like home.

A house devoid of noise, for me, would mean a house devoid of my favorite boys–J and the pup. And whether this little one is a girl or boy, the new noises on the horizon will represent my new favorite addition to our growing family. I love that this is a space where everyone feels comfortable enough to “make some noise,” so-to-speak. I’d miss the veritable symphony otherwise.

Tonight, here’s to noise. And more of it. And to great company, and great games and great dinner and pie. Every bit of all of it makes me happy. Life is beautiful, isn’t it?

gurgle, crinkle, swoosh, (and maybe a poof! for good measure:),

mm

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four-legged feature. (50)

Hi. This is Kruger. I’m blogging for my mom tonight. She’s kind of tired and looks like she’s had a long day–plus, I decided it was time that I get to put my two cents in about this whole baby thing. I’m not much of a writer, but I’ve been taking notes. And since mom has decided to be on her computer every night around this time, I think I understand a little more about what this “blogging” ordeal is supposed to look like.

First, a little bit about me. Most days, I wake mom and dad up; they don’t seem to understand how important it is to eat and pee early in the morning (although mom’s been getting better at this throughout the night). I guess you could say I’m the go-getter in this house. Once everyone is up, we do things like brush our teeth and get dressed for work, and I follow mom and dad around for a while. When they leave, the house is quiet. I check on things, watch out the window and mostly, I take naps. It’s a rough life.

When mom and dad get home in the evening, I’m really ready for some good conversation. Sometimes we play with toys or take a walk in the neighborhood. Then, I always eat dinner at 6pm. If I don’t, I get kind of irritable. Punctuality is important, I say. For the rest of the night (at least lately), mom and dad do things to make big changes around the house. Now they keep me out of certain rooms and are always telling me I can’t lay on the plush new carpet. I hate that. What am I chopped liver? Wait. Did someone say “liver?” Yum.

Anyway, the other thing we always do now is talk about this “baby.” I’m not totally sure what all of that means, but I do know that mom’s always saying stuff like, “Kruger, where’s the baby?” and “Are you going to have a little brother or a little sister?” I’m confused about why this matters to me. Apparently there’s something in mom’s tummy (she sure is looking funny these days), but all I know is that I can’t play with said baby or sniff it or run around and have it chase me. I’m hoping this will change. I do think something’s about to happen, because mom is different, and dad seems different, too. I don’t know if I like it, but I’ll weigh in on that later.

So, yeah. I’m the dog of the house, and I used to be pretty convinced that my role was clear to everyone. Now, I’m not so sure. I still have my bed upstairs, and my other bed downstairs, and I still get treats for good behavior and for coming inside when they call me. (With the weather getting nice, though, it’s a tough choice.) I like my family (mostly when they’re scratching my ears or letting me lounge on the couch), but I think I deserve a vacation from all of this baby talk. I dunno. Something tells me it’s here to stay.

It’s time for me to bug the happy couple about going outside again. Don’t they know it’s 10pm?!

on the fence about change,

kruger (for mm)