*m*

I keep meaning to update this dang thing but I get either too busy or too lazy. Story of my life. If you consider my daily schedule, it is actually perfectly understandable. Perhaps I lack time management skills… or like I said, I’m just lazy.

An example of my M-F:

Around 5-530 (I tend to hit the snooze button) – get up, get ready for work, feed Gem, pack my lunch and pump bag

Between 6-7 – drive to work (sometimes shorter, sometimes longer, traffic is an unpredictable beast)

Between 7-330 – work (occasionally I have a moment or two to peek at FB or other blogs, sometimes I even attempt a draft for my own blog)

Between 330-430 – leave work, pick up Gem, drive home

From 430 to whenever I finally manage to get to bed (usually 1030-11) consists of nursing Gem, feeding Gem, bathing Gem, playing with Gem, emails, FB (although I have this down to around 5 minutes, it’s not that exciting anymore, except when a certain B-I-L deems it necessary to FB his engagement rather than sending a quick text to his favorite niece’s mom), some sort of cardiovascular activity, dinner for Linc and I, getting my clothes ready for the next day, shower, Jimmy Kimmel’s monologue, “talkies” with Lincoln (and no “talkies” isn’t code for any other than talking), then lights out.

Whew – I’m exhausted just from thinking about it. Not making excuses, just an explanation as to why blogging takes a back burner. Plus somewhere in there I have probably 10 books to read and Netflix to watch.

Anyway – the point of this blog wasn’t to ramble on about my busy schedule (some nights it’s not even that busy). The point was to catch you all up since my last post.

The highlights:

Gemma is 6 months old. She had her 6 month check up about 2 weeks ago. 20lbs and some change, 28.5 inches, over 95% for both height & weight still, noggin is only 70%. She was so happy and playful in the appointment, Dr. Jones (say it like the little kid in Indiana Jones, good for a cheap laugh) said she was a real “treat” after dealing with sick kids. And if he didn’t know better, she was acting like a 9 month old, showing off her new tricks. Tricks like sitting up nice and tall, shredding the exam table paper, flipping over onto her tummy then up on her knees. I swear she will be crawling soon.

1st time in the “pool”. We had a plastic pool in our backyard for the pups to cool off in when temps get above 100. 2 problems – Myla is afraid of it and Pico is too fat/short to get in it. He would love it if he could. So we(Linc) cleaned it out and let Gemma splash around in it. She wasn’t too sure at first. Eventually she seemed to enjoy herself.

RIP Furlough Friday. My work did a little housekeeping and as a result the accounting department is down from 3 and a third to just 2 and a half (we have a part-timer who had to increase her hours to make up for the loss of a full-timer). As a result, my furlough has been cancelled. That is excellent from a money standpoint but I had gotten so used to having every other Friday off. It’s been really hard to adjust. I miss my extra time with Gemma. I may not have done a whole lot on those Friday’s but it has definitely made my weekends seem more hectic. Plus, my work week is more stressful trying to learn the duties* of a senior accountant. But we are getting by.

*side note – I am so immature. I still giggle whenever I see, type, or say duties.

Cousins Camp. Sadly Gemma won’t be old enough for this Hansen family tradition for 4 more years. But we did get to join the entire Hansen side for a fun filled festive Saturday for the end of camp awards ceremony. It was perfect weather up in Globe for an outdoor picnic-style gathering. I just love seeing all the sweet nieces and nephews. They are all getting so big. It seems like not too long ago sweet Talia was just this little girl chasing my mom’s cat and now she will be starting Jr High in the fall.

We also managed to squeeze in a visit with the Navarro grandparents and Uncle Benny and Aunt Shilah and my mom’s “boys”. It was a nice chill visit. They even busted out the semi-old school video camera to document Gemma’s latest and greatest sweetness.

We even saw Nana and Grandpa Mercer. Pushed Gemma up that massive 9th street hill in her little stroller. Geez, no wonder my calves used to be huge! Nana pulled out this Fisher-Price toy that was around when I was little and Gem got a kick out of that. Sadly, I forgot to take pictures of Gemma with Nana.

Well, I think that should do it. I’m good for another few weeks. Although I think tonight might require some documentation. I promised Lincoln as a reward for an extremely crappy work week I would make him whatever he wanted for dinner. I was thinking he would request one of my staples – either an enchilada casserole or perhaps lasagna. These are normally his favorites. But nooo, not tonight. He requested, prepare yourself… meatloaf! Of all things! I despise meatloaf. Meat should not loaf. I’ve decided. And brussel sprouts (???) and mashed sweet potatoes and peach cobbler. I’ve never actually seen a real cooked brussel sprout before. Perhaps I will do a post on this meal. We’ll see. Don’t hold your breath though.