800,000 Views

Well it has been a while since I did one of theses posts, but I just happened to be looking at my Site Stats and I realized I just passed 800,000 views on January 23, 2012.

# of Views	Date
0	March 3, 2006
100,000	July 16, 2007
200,000	March 5, 2008
300,000	September 26, 2008
400,000	April 12, 2009
500,000	~December 15, 2009
600,000	???
700,000	???
800,000	January 23, 2012

As always, thanks for visiting!

New Appreciation For…The Sparkles Girl (Sad Packer Fan)

Yesterday morning I enjoyed feeling smug and superior to a young lady featured in a YouTube video entitled, “Sad Packer Fan” (Hat Tip, @HokiePhotog). 

In the video, the main character is distraught at Green Bay’s recent playoff loss.  She really, really, really wanted to see them win the Super Bowl and even went to the effort of painting her fingernails with green sparkles to secure a win.  Although she had the best intentions, that gesture backfired and undermined the very team she sought to help. 

Oh I laughed at her silliness, forwarded along the link and laughed some more and then went about my daily business.  On the agenda besides work — our “Solid Food Initiative” with little Sagan.  On Monday, Sagan had been to the pediatrician and when we described how much milk he was eating overnight, the doctor recommended increasing his intake of baby food.  And truth be known, we were being a little lackadaisical with solids thus far.  In the past weeks, he’s tried a variety of vegetables and ingested his fair share of rice cereal, but it wasn’t an every day occurrence. 

So yesterday, we decided to take the initiative seriously.  In addition to his usual breast milk intake, Sagan had two meals of rice cereal and then in the evening he had what we thought was a pretty hearty supper of green beans and breast milk.

Alas, last night he woke up numerous times and all in all ingested roughly 13 ounces of breast milk.  13 ounces!  That was twice as much as he was eating at night when we talked to the pediatrician AND about the same amount he ingests when he is at part-time daycare… you know, during the actual day.

His consumption was so much, I had to do an emergency unplanned pumping session in the middle of the night (I often have planned pumping sessions at night which is a different story).  On the outside, I may have looked stoic, quietly trying to find some kind of comfortable position to hold my head so I could rest my eyes.  But on the inside I was that Packer Fan!!!

Instead of blubbering on about sparkles, however, my thoughts were centered on another item of the same color.

“BUT… BUT… BUT… I FEED HIM GREEN BEANS.  I FEED HIM GREEN BEANS AND HE’S STILL HUNGRY.  I FED HIM GREEEEEEEEEEN *gasp* BEEEEAAAAAANS!!!! GREEEEEN BEEAAAAANS!”

I have no doubt our little family will eventually figure out this whole solid food thing.  In the meantime, though, maybe I shouldn’t laugh so hard at people on the Internet. 

I am just one more sleepless night away from completing my transition into the Sparkles Girl! : )

SPARKLES!!!!  GREEN BEANS!!!!!

Redundancy – Routers, Switches…and Pacifiers

Hardware is not my forte, but I know enough to know the advantages of redundancy. The vendor that hosts all our web applications knows that as well. Every vital component needed to keep our sites going are doubled up. If any one of those components fail, a replacement steps up to the plate. They do this with network switches, routers and even power. They also offer georedundancy. You can have duplicate copies of your servers in multiple cities. If say the Charlotte, North Carolina server goes down, the Chattanooga, Tennessee server can take over.

Illustration of Network Redundancy (Source: Cisco)

Ryan and I waited nine weeks before introducing Sagan to the pacifier. It was well-received. I believe Ryan even used the word “miracle”. Once we introduced the pacifier, some peculiar Sagan behavior suddenly started to make a heck of a lot of sense. He liked to suck for comfort. When you are sucking on a bottle, you are always going to get milk regardless of your hunger level. Sometimes Sagan wanted to suck without milk. Of course, we didn’t know this. Sagan would cry for his bottle and then smack it away…and then cry for the bottle again. We just thought he was an indecisive little dude. Once we saw him with the pacifier we realized– he knew exactly what he wanted all along.

That pacifier has become such a key component (for the time being), we can’t risk having a single failure point… especially considering my mother’s miniature pinscher has developed a taste for them. We practice a mini version of geo-redundancy. We keep pacifiers in our bedroom, our living room and the car. As an added safeguard, each location usually has its own redundant supply.

If one pacifier goes down [on the dirty floor] or is eaten or lost, there is another to take its place.

Redundant Pacifiers

We also have redundant supplies of diapers, wipes, clothes, blankets…and of course, key breast pump components.

We may not have the five nines of uptime, but just like with networks, redundancy helps keep our operations running smoothly.

The Samurai and Spit Up

Whenever we are caught in a rain storm, Ryan walks calmly. His precipitation velocity is equal to his non-precipitation velocity.

“The Samurai doesn’t run in the rain,” Ryan paraphrases Misuyuki’s Five Rings, “He accepts his drenching with dignity.”

I take a similiar approach with Sagan’s spit up. It happens and when it does, I may wipe up Sagan promptly, but I’m really in no hurry to rectify my own garments. I accept the return of my own milk with dignity.

When Sagan spits up on other people, however, the situation is radically different. I snag the nearest towel, bib, blanket, clean diapie, used napkin, crumbled up receipt or whatever else may be handy and hurry to dab up the mess.

Over the holidays, Sagan’s Uncle Jason held the prize of receiving the most spit up. Christmas Eve Eve, Sagan had a big meal followed by a vigorous playing session. Soon enough Sagan’s supper waterfalled out of his mouth right onto Uncle Jason’s lap.

“Oh! Oh!” I stammered as my eyes scanned the immediate area for a blanket. I spied one on the coffee table. I snagged it and rushed over to Jason to help. Now armed with the appropriate equipment, I leaned in.  Suddenly I froze.  I looked at my outstretched arm.  It was just a centimeter or two from its destination.  

“Uh…..Maybe [your girlfriend] should clean this one up.”

So here’s my revised spit-up cleanup policy:

Scenario	Priority
Spit up on yourself	Samurai Mode – Can Wait
Spit up on other people’s shoulders and arms	Top Priority – Clean up ASAP
Spit up on other people’s crotches	Delegate

Drawing above by Kamikasineo

Favorite Tree of 2011, Punctuation Category

On Christmas Day I met a retired park ranger and had a most delightful conversation with him.  I knew we were going to get along when I asked him what his favorite type of tree was and he broke his answer down in categories (Flowering tree, general use tree, shade tree, etc).

He’s a wise man.  I would have a similar issue trying to narrow down my favorite type of tree.  I would even be challenged to pick my single favorite tree of 2011.  But if I were to be asked, “What’s your favorite single tree in 2011 that resembled a punctuation mark?” well, then, that’s a question I could provide a definitive answer to!

Ryan, Sagan and I ran across this “Exclamation Point Tree” (or if you would prefer, “Bang Tree”) on the Bull Run Occoquan Trail between Bull Run Regional Park and Hemlock Overlook.

Bang Tree

So there you go! My Favorite Tree of 2011, Punctuation Category.

Some Things That Did Not Get Blogged About in 2011

Well, goodbye 2011! I’ve seen a number of blogs highlight their favorite posts of the year. I’m going to highlight some of the forgotten posts– the ones I never got around to writing.

Billy Goat Trail – A Return Trip

My Birthday Hike this year was on Maryland’s Billy Goat Trail along the Potomac River. Ryan and I thought it would be fun to do a group hike on that trail. As luck would have it, my friend Greg Z organized a group hike that following month. The weather was sketchy at first and we did have to wait out a storm under a bridge, but after that we had the trail almost all to ourselves.

My favorite part– my friend Greg Z told me when some of the people in the group were struggling on the rocks, he watched me get further and further ahead. Apparently he pointed and said, “THAT’s the one that’s pregnant.”

We walked the trail the opposite direction Ryan and I took in March. It was nice to see the trail from a different perspective. Also since it was a month later, we got to see wildflowers bloom!

A Most Pleasant Day

Mother’s Day Weekend, Ryan and I went down to visit our old neighborhood in Elizabeth City. We shared honeysuckle in our yard with some of the neighborhood kids. When Ryan went to shake Khalif’s hand, Khalif would have none of it.

“Nah, man.” Khalif said, “We hug.” And so they did. I believe that was our first neighborhood kid hug.

I was six months pregnant at the time and some of the kids marveled at how fat I was.

“It’s only temporary,” Ryan chimed in. Then when the subject came up again, “The pounds are going to just melt off.” Although he directed his statements to the kids, I know who his real target audience was! He was making sure his wife kept her self esteem in tact. : )

We went by Earth 383 for Free Comic Book Day. A number of the neighborhood kids joined us and Ryan organized a large game of RoboRally.

One family wasn’t present, so the dogs and I walked over to their new home. When I was still a block away, the youngest kids spotted us and started shouting out my name. They ran inside and their older siblings emerged. The 17-year old son who always seemed somewhat indifferent, came running out with the biggest smile and hugged me in the middle of the street. I spent the remainder of our time in Elizabeth City visiting with that family.

The next stop was Ryan’s parent’s house in Virginia Beach. When we returned home, I went swimming in the lake behind their house with my sister-in-law and her fiance. The water was the perfect temperature and it was so pleasant and relaxing to be swimming by manicured back yards along side of ducks and seagulls.

We finished our day with a big family dinner at a local Vietnamese restaurant. There, I got my very first Mother’s Day card… that Ryan had secretly gotten his relatives to sign. It was a great day from start to finish.

My Relatives Kick Ass…Literally

In May, Ryan and I got to visit the New York Botanical Gardens and the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens. That was just an added bonus though. We were really in New York to watch my sister-in-law test for her black belt in Shao-Lin. All the forms she and her classmates had to remember and execute was simply awe-inspiring. That afternoon also brought me the worst heartburn of my entire pregnancy courtesy of a “Magic Bar” I bought as a concession. I still made it through the entire gestation period Tums-Free.

 

Seattle Bug Safari

In May, Ryan and I visited Seattle. Our outings were blogged about except the Seattle Bug Safari. We very much enjoyed our visit there. The employee working that day was extremely friendly and informative. You could also see that they take their Yelp reviews seriously. One of the reviews indicated that people were getting confused and thinking the Gift Shop was the extent of the business. When we arrived, there were signs making it clear the Bug Zoo was in the back.

Annual Black Friday Cookie Decorating

My family held our annual Black Friday Cookie Decorating again this year. Although we were late on the invites, it was heavily attended. When all the sugar cookies got decorated, some enterprising young girls started to decorate the other variety of cookies. Sagan also decorated his first cookie (with Daddy’s help).

 

Bull Run Occoquan Trail – Bull Run Regional Park to Hemlock Overlook

In December, Ryan started playing Skyrim. The scenery in that game is amazing and Ryan found all the walking in the game made him want to get out and do a real hike. So on December 3rd, our family took on a one way trip along the Bull Run Occoquan Trail. We traveled 7.5 miles from Bull Run Regional Park to Hemlock Overlook. This section may not have been as scenic as Skyrim, but it was still gorgeous in its own right. You walk along the water, get to see some rapids, pass by a memorial pet rock pile and see some neat trees along the way. This outing was Sagan’s longest hike to date (post birth).

New Appreciation For…Double Chins!

I was indifferent to my chin for nearly two and a half decades. As I neared my thirties, however, I started to notice some displeasing qualities. In pictures of my profile, I’m particularly uneasy with the convex nature of my jawline and if I am not careful how I hold my head, a picture from the front can reveal a double chin! I’ve adopted a series of strategies over the years.

Strategy 3B – See that cookie I’m holding? It was placed in that exact position on purpose! (Photo by Aaron Evans)

This unfortunately means I have something in common with a notorious dictator. Joseph Stalin was also self conscious of his double chin and he also tried to diminish it in photographs. Unlike Stalin, however, I don’t have control of the media. Although I get to review and approve my own uploaded photos, I still occassionally cringe when I see what my friends have chosen to upload to Flickr or Facebook. : )

Little Sagan Charles arrived early and weighed only 4 pounds 13 ounces when he was born.  Like a lot of babies, he lost weight his first week and was staving off some jaundice.  His first pediatrician visit, he was down to 4 pounds 5 ounces and in the “< 3" percentile for his weight.  Suddenly my number one goal was to get the little guy to gain some weight.  Every two hours, we fed and pumped.  Fed and pumped, fed and pumped, fed and pumped.  His bilirubin score no longer became a concern.  He put on 7 ounces in one weekend, so his weight was moving in the right direction.

At his one month appointment, he was projected to weigh 6 pounds 8 ounces, but he came in at 7 pounds 11 ounces, moving him up to the 10% percentile.  A month later, he came in at 10 pounds 12 ounces placing him solidly in the 25%.

And as Sagan moved from the "< 3 %" percentile to the "25 %", he outgrew some clothes, he got chubby thighs and chubby cheeks…. and developed the most beautiful, glorious double chin.

Double Chin on September 18, 2011

Suddenly, the phrase “double chin” no longer had the same connotation.  It’s become a source of pride, the souvenir of a job well done– over 33 gallons of pumped breastmilk (as of Dec 14th) and a son whose well pass the fifteen pound mark.

Now when I think of double chins, I smile.

Which is good. I need to differiate myself from Stalin in any way I can.

Hungry Tree – Hemlock Overlook

One of the parks the Bull Run Occoquan Trail passes through is Hemlock Overlook Regional Park which happens to be home to “Adventure Links“, an outdoor adventure program. While in the park, you’ll encounter rope courses and other neat obstacles affiliated with the program.  Adventure Links infrastructure isn’t the only interesting sight, however. Hemlock Overlook is also home to a Hungry Tree.  : )

Tree at Hemlock Overlook Eating a Fence

Geekhiker Sighting – Occoquan, Virginia

To those of you who read my comment feed, the username Geekhiker might look familiar.  He first commented on this blog in May of 2007 (on “Cell Phone…As Versatile As Duct Tape?“) and over the last four years has managed to be the top commenter.  He drew the attention of other commenters.  Ryan was impressed by how consistently Geekhiker could churn out a humourous comment.  And, the very first time I saw my mother use the @username convention, was in a response to Geekhiker (on 200,000 Views). 

My Mother’s First @Username Comment…Sigh, They Grow Up So Fast!

Well you may also have noticed a rapid decline in Geekhiker’s comments this summer.  The day Sagan was born, Geekhiker also experienced a life change.  This summer he embarked on an epic road trip! He’s been traveling around North America, visiting National Parks, hiking, camping and meeting some bloggers along the way.  A few weeks ago, he just happened to be passing through Virginia, so we put him up a few nights!  I had absolutely no idea what he looked like– I didn’t even know his real name! He, on the other hand, was a little more armed with knowledge. He instantly recognized Jimmie and Henry upon arrival! 

If this happened a few years ago, I most certainly would have opted to take him to the Appalachian Trail.  But time is tight nowadays and the mountains (or “hills” as Geekhiker likes to call them) are farther away than I would like.  So Geekhiker got to watch “diapie changes” instead.    Luckily, he is a very laid back houseguest and happy to go with the flow. Along the way, he got to go to Dixie Bones, the Garden Kitchen, Ledo Pizza and…. Taco Bell.  He also got to watch me make broccoli salad for my birth class reunion.  It was riveting.

We did get an opportunity to hike together though!  It was a short hike– between 3-4 miles at the nearby Bull Run Occoquan Trail.  Henry and my Mom’s dog, Willy, were in attendance as was Ryan and little Sagan (his third post-birth hike). The section of trail we did may not have showcased Virginia as much as I would have liked, but we had great conversation and lots of fresh air.

Plus Ryan and I ended up with a great souvenir! I’m usually the one taking pictures, so there are very few shots of Sagan and I together, let alone shots of Ryan, Sagan and I together. Those of you who read Geekhiker’s blog will know that he is a talented photographer. So we ended the day with some top notch photos of our little family!

And for all you Geekhiker fans out there wondering what he looks like… I snagged a picture of my own! 

Geekhiker holds Sagan!

I think the thing that surprised me the most about Geekhiker in real life is his quick wit. I knew he had a smart humor from his comments and posts, but I somewhat expected he had to brainstorm and revise to get the final product. In other words, I thought he had to work for it. But as we shared meals in real life and he rattled off line after line, I realized– it all comes naturally to him!

As his journey winds down, I look forward to seeing how that quick wit of his describes all his adventures.

Thankful for Boobies and Blood

I spent an abnormal amount of time in middle school praying not to get my period or breasts.  You can say I was “change adverse”.

Twenty-five years later, I have my first child and the ability to feed said child.

Today, I am thankful for unanswered prayers.  : )

(Amoung many, many, many other things)

Happy Thanksgiving!  : )