COVID Quarantine Week 38
So I’ve started working on my Sunday Post every night. On one hand, it’s easier to remember the day rather than the week. On the other hand, I feel like this post is super long now. So I’m giving you a quick synopsis first and you can read the full story if you want by reading the full under each day. I’ll bold the items that make the synopsis.
News at Home
The short – Dante was really fussy this week (#TEETHING), work was good, I was lazy, tried to die my hair (#FAIL) and sliced my finger (#BLOOD #STITCHES?), lost an elephant and had a holiday party. Read below for the long.
Sunday
I had to accept the grim reality that I’m going back to work tomorrow and get ready for the week. I did grocery shopping today and some meal prep. My new Rocketbook Panda Planner came today too and I’m super excited to see how that helps me streamline my morning routine. I did some blog visiting and I’m getting into my new blogging routine today. I really hope it helps me be more consistent on the blog. We also had COYER book club today and it was great – we had more people than we’ve ever had and I enjoyed chatting with everyone for a couple hours. Always a highlight of my month.
Monday
Considering that it was my first day back after 9 days off, today wasn’t bad. I guess my break left me refreshed and ready. I woke up with no problems – ahead of my alarm by 5 minutes! – worked out, did my miracle morning routine and was ready for work exactly on time. Dante slept in til 8:30, which made the morning easier. He did well, though he did get fussy around 12, tired of me not playing with him I think. Work was super busy – a week’s worth of work had piled up – but productive. Dante napped well and when he woke I had had time for a little break. We played and danced until Kiko got home. Then I started my new evening routine (complete with blogging) … I think it’s going to work out well. Dante through us for a loop with dinner though! He’s usually such a good eater. But tonight he cried at the top of his lungs and I thought for sure something was hurting him. It seems that he just was hungry and didn’t like what he’d been given. He gobbled up some rice and scrambled eggs – two favorites. But damn, I was not going to be that mom who let’s be kid dictate what they eat. 😂 🙄
Tuesday
Today was another pretty good day, but cold! I do my workouts on the balcony in the morning at 5:30 / 5:45 so that I won’t wake Dante or rudely bounce around on my neighbors (we’re 3rd floor). This morning, even with my weight lifting gloves, my hands were so cold it hurt. Thankfully a little bouncing around fixes it quick. Dante slept until almost 9 and took a 2 hour nap, so that’s a win for me! He did get fussy and have to come work on my lap for about 30 minutes. I’m starting to think that may just become a standard as lunch and nap time approach. Work was steady – not too crazy. This evening we’re doing our first ever advent calendar with Dante. I’m excited to start this tradition. We got one with a felt tree and pockets at the bottom for the ornaments that you stick on the tree – 1 ornament per day.
Wednesday
I did not sleep well last night. Kiko insists on still using the Owlet monitor for Dante even though he’s too big for it. The result is that the alarms go off all the time – either from the sock falling off or it saying low oxygen.Without going into tons of explanation, I woke up VERY tired. I ordered a different breathing monitor that isn’t dependent on size. Hopefully it will solve our problem. It doesn’t come until next week though 🙁
Then, today at lunch Dante had a complete melt down – eating some of his favorite food! He stuffed some rice in his mouth and then starting screaming inconsolably. Since he happily sucked on ice after that, I’ve come to the conclusion that he’s teething. He did much better after some Motrin. So I’m going to keep it in him for the next couple days while I watch for a tooth to emerge.
I had such a headache, with all things considered that I was very lazy after work. And I ate like shit – just snacking and even a soda instead of lunch. Oh well, hoping for a better tomorrow.
Thursday
Today was good, for the most part. Dante is still teething (of course), but since I’m aware I’ve been able to stay ahead of the fussiness. I have been giving him ice to chew on, which helps a lot. I have to cut the ice so that it will fit in this little silcone chewy he has. Well today I was rushing to cut the ice and cut myself really bad with the knife. As in their was blood all over the table. I was worried I needed stitches at first – I bled through 1 band-aid. But I seem to be okay now. Whoops. I ordered him a couple that will hopefully hold the ice without cutting lol!
He’s climbing everything these days, making everything a hazard. I turned around to see him standing ON the table today… He had pushed his ride on train to the table and used it to climb on up. And he climbs on the bench outside now too. So I’ve moved everything that could possibly be climbed away from tables. And I use tape to attach an extra baby cam onto my desk so that I can see on the balcony in my blind spot where he likes to climb. If I could only also get eyes in the back of my head that would help!
Friday
Dante put on some more food melodramatics today, but besides that, it was a good day. Work went smoothly and I feel like I finally caught up on some tasks that had been piling up. I did some blogging and had a nice chat with some friends – we try to “meet up” every Friday for a phone chat. I continued working on my Goodreads organization – adding books from Amazon. Then I got in a Tantor Audio and when I was setting it up for download on my phone I rediscovered all these books I had forgotten about. Ya’ll I have so many more books than I thought I did… which is bad, because I already knew I had too many. You know it’s too many when you can forget about an entire folder full of read & unread audios. Like almost 200 books y’all!
Saturday
Whoa what a day! I’m going to try to not make this super long… but so much happened! My stepson’s family is moving and Kiko was supposed to be going over for a few hours to help move furniture. Long story short they were way behind and he’s been gone since 9 a.m. as I write this at 7:30 p.m. Last I checked, he was still helping them load. They have to b done by tomorrow, so who knows when he’ll be home.
So it was just me and Dante all day. Which is fine – but makes it hard to take care of weekend chores. And he’s been fussy this week – today was no exception. And then I got this brilliant idea to dye my hair. Today was probably not the right day, but I”m so sick of my hair. So I tried to dye it. Long story short, my hair has a few red highlights in the areas that were previously bleached, but otherwise it looks exactly the same. My scalp and ears, on the other hand, are red. Rubbing alcohol didn’t want to get it out.
Then it was time to put Dante down for nap and I couldn’t find elephant. Elephant is his stuffie that he always sleeps with. Looked everywhere and still cannot find elephant. He napped with sloth and it seemed to b fine. I’m hoping sloth will work tonight too because I don’t see elephant anywhere. Tomorrow I will buy a new one from Target, I already checked they have them in stock. I might buy two.
And my book club had their Christmas party (while Dante as napping thankfully) – some met in person, I joined virtually. It was nice to “see” everyone. We do a white elephant book exchange and someone nicely dropped a book off for me (see below).
Blog News
Don’t forget to sign up for our Holiday Hop! With the way this year has been, we want to spread some cheer and we hope you’ll join us!
And COYER 2021 sign-ups are live! It’s our biggest COYER to date and I’m so excited. I think it’s going to be so much fun. Be sure to join us today at 12pm CST / 1 PM EST for a Facebook Live Preview and Q&A.
Challenge update
I decided that, in addition to COYER, in 2021 I’m going to participate in two more challenges. We’ll see how it goes. I’ve made Goodreads shelves to track the reads and will update my progress here.
I’m participating in the Library Love Challenge, hosted by Angel’s Guilty Pleasures & Books of My Heart. Since I tend to read a decent number of library books, I’m going for Thrifty Reader Level – with the goal of reading 24 books.
I’m also participating in the New Release Challenge hosted by (un)Conventional Bookworms. I’ve signed up for this one in the past and utterly failed to keep track. I don’t tend to read very many new releases so I’m going for New Release Newbie Level – reading between 1 and 30 books.
Added to My Shelf
I’m trying to be more responsible about keeping track of the books I acquire, so I’m going to start sharing them again. If I share them here, surely I’ll remember to add them to Goodreads, right?
Oof… teething, HUGS! You are a champ working from home with a baby in the house. I applaud you. 👏👏👏✨
Happy holidays! The holidays are so much more fun and meaningful with little ones in the hose. 🎄
Oh teething is the worst! And there’s really no good fix except for time. My son is stubborn on food and if he didn’t want to eat it he just wouldn’t. My husband apparently was the same way as a kid and they will wait you out. It can be a bit exhausting! Hope you find elephant or a decent replacement or that he stays good with sloth! Hope you’re having a good week.
Those days of teething. Remember them well. I also remember being sad when my son got his first tooth. I loved his gummy smile. LOL Sorry about your finger. Hope it heals quickly.
LOL getting teeth does change their appearance, but I do love the little toothy grin too <3 My finger is already mostly healed thankfully. I think it was just a lot of blood, which freaked me out. Hope your week is off to a good start!
I love the longer posts! It still only takes a few minutes to read. Oooohhhh! Let me know how that Rocketbook works for you! I almost bought a notebook on Black Friday. Blogging everyday is definitely helping me out. Makes keeping up with it so much easier.
I really wish I could be an early riser! I feel like I would be so much more productive. Poor Dante! Glad you were able to get him taken care of. How’s he liking the advent calendar?
Uhoh! How’s that finger feeling? I hope Kiko didn’t have to stay out too much longer last night. I’m so looking forward to the hop and COYER. I may join the library challenge too.
I like the Rocketbook – I have a notebook already that I’ve used for a while and now adding the Panda Planner means a lot of what I was using it for is freed up and I’m starting to use it for other things. I like that I can write but have digital notes. I love pen to paper, but I want to keep things… If that makes sense.
I think he’s finally getting the hang of it. At first he was confused and not interested, but tonight he actually put the piece on the tree mostly by himself 🙂
Finger is almost healed! Yay! I was worried – all the blood spooked me. Anyway… I hope your week is off to a good start!
Wow! What a week. I am glad you were refreshed to tackle back to work. And *hugs* about Dante and not wanted to be “the mom that…” bottom line is you have to do what you have to do to keep him healthy and you stay sane! Good luck in the week ahead.
Thanks Jen! I feel like at this point, it’s just about doing the best I can for all of us to survive. This year is hard, but we will get through it!
I hope your week is off to a great start !
Sounds like a busy week! Teething- oh my I still remember those days! lol. And sorry you cut yourself- ouch! Some days it’s one thing after another, right? Anyway hope your new week is a good one. 🙂
It really is! Everyone seems to remember teething… why oh why does it have to be so hard? I cannot wait for this tooth to make it’s way through. Thanks Greg, I hope you have a great week too!
Ah… The days of fussy babies/teething. To be fair, my son is almost 10 and he can be just as fussy and dramatic when something is wrong! 😂 Fingers crossed the new tooth comes quickly and you can all get some happy baby chill back.
I’m glad your return to work went well… It’s always hard after a holiday. I’ve got just under two weeks left before Christmas break (where I’m taking 2.5 weeks off) and it cannot come soon enough! I’m so fed up with it all at the moment. 🙁
Good luck with settling into the new routine!
I know, I just had a week off and I’m already contemplating taking an extended Christmas break as well lol! My husband – 46 – can get pretty fussy too, to be honest. I think it’s just a male trait 😛 I’m praying for the tooth to hurry up already, today was brutal. Have a great week!!
Poor guy and poor mama! Hopefully soon it’s done. I remember the tedious task of setting up my GR shelves long after I had piled up a bunch of books that were untracked. Worth it in the end. Glad you had a good time for your friends chat and book club.
Have a good week, Berls!
I really hope so too Sophia! I’m at about my wit’s end. I feel like it will be worth it once my GR shelves are all setup. Already it’s so much easier to use and I’m not fully setup yet. Have a great week!
Lol, we all said a lot of things before we actually became mothers! Teething is tough but it sounds like you are doing everything you can for Dante. I hope Stuffy turns up.
I’m glad your system is working for you.
Wishing you a great reading week
LOL Isn’t that the truth! Teething is so much worse than I ever imagined. We will survive it though. Especially after I buy a new stuffie and convince him it’s the same one 🙂
Have a great week!
Okay, well this is super embarrassing, somehow I made it to an old Sunday Post and commented there?!
Ack, teething is the worst! Hopefully, he will be over soon. Poor little guy.
For the hair dye on skin, if it hasn’t worn off yet, salicylic acid face wash gets it off really well. I have actually banned myself from dying my hair for a while because it always ends disastrously.
I started doing a little bit of a morning routine. Not very successfully, but it is nice to see other people out there going for it as well. I also need an evening routine, but right now I need to get that morning routine more steady!
So excited for COYER 2021 and now I have a few more challenges to look at. Have a great week!
It’s hard when you have a bunch to add but when you do the few you get daily it’s much easier and worth it in the end. Dante is growing so there will be changes and adjustments. You just do the best you can and it seems like you do so well. Maybe he just needed his favorites because he was having a bad day. Not every day but if it’s a rough day. I’m glad you felt rested going back to work and hope this week is a good one!
Yep! And it might keep me from over buying lol
I feel like every single time I figure out Dante he changes a bit. He’s just growing so fast. But even with the fussiness it was a good week. Have a great week next week Anne!
Poor Dante…and poor you. That was an eventful week for sure! Now this climbing habit sounds dangerous 😶.
Roberta he gave me a heart attack when he got on the table. He doesn’t know what is safe and what could hurt him. So I’m adapting my baby proofing for a climber now. Thank you – I’m very much hoping next week will be easier! Have a great week 🙂
No elephant!!! Ohmygosh. Yes. That is traumatic for sure.
I love, love the long, daily update post. Hope those teeth stop hurting the poor babe soon and the new sleep monitor arrives quickly so that YOU can get some sleep! Hang in there!
Aww thansk! I saw it last night and worried it was too long.
Yesp, the elelphant is STILL missing. Where do things go when they disappear? He has some blocks missing too. Miraculously he’s slept fine, but I’m getting a new one (or two) Don’t want to chance it.
Yes, please let these teeth come! I think we’ll go back to baby bliss then 🙂 The monitor should arrive Tuesday *fingers crossed*
Have a great week!
Poor Dante! When we were kids my grandparents would put whisky on our gums….probably make us sleep and me like whisky so much.
I am glad you found your blogging grove….now I need to find mine!
Have a great week, Looking forward to the chat later! 🙂
LOL I get the impulse to use whiskey – this week was brutal. I really have found my groove. If you find yours and I keep mine (because we never seem to be able to maintain at the SAME time) think of what we could do!! !
Have a great week!
What a busy week! Hopefully Dante cuts the tooth quickly. Glad your finger is okay-cutting ice sounds impossible and dangerous!!
LOL it probably wasn’t the smartest thing I ever did. Man, I sure hope that tooth hurries up, it’s causing mass havoc! LOL Have a great week!
I’m glad work has been good so far! And as someone who’s been dying their hair red forever, you just gotta wait it out. It’s not coming all the way off of anything until it’s good and ready!
LOL yeah, I have a feeling it’ll be around for a bit. If my hair were also red I wouldn’t so much. I’m contemplating picking up some bleach today and giving it another go. But will all my hair just fall out with me doing so much coloring?
I wouldn’t recommend it! I’ve never bleached my hair, but that seems like a lot of chemicals too close together!
You’re probably right. I’ll wait a few weeks – plus do some research so the end result makes me happier.
Oh wow. What a week! Sounds crazy. I hope this coming week will be a little less hectic and dare I say, uneventful?
Nice new reads though! Totally new to me ones but I hope you enjoy them all!
Here’s my StS
Have a GREAT day!
Old Follower 🙂
Oh yes, less eventful would be FANTASTIC! LOL! I seriously wonder sometimes why I seem to have so much happening in my life? Toddler probably answers the question lol.
Thanks, have a great week!
I love this idea of writing a bit each day for the Sunday post. It probably won’t work for me, because the days are pretty much the same. But I loved reading your days through the week. Have a good one ahead and stay safe!
I think that was my life pre-toddler… pretty much the same from day-to-day. Sometimes I miss it, but he’s worth the stress for sure <3.
Have a great week and stay safe as well!
Oh man! I’m sorry you’ve had to deal with fuzzy Dante this week -teething is hard! Both for the children and the parents, that’s for sure.
And it must be a bit scary that he likes to climb so much! Is there a baby-climb (you know, like indoors rock climbing?) you can take him to in the future? That way, he’d be safe, and he’d be able to climb, so maybe he wouldn’t want to climb at home? That could backfire, too, though – with him figuring out better ways to climb at home…
I’m glad your work week was good. I’m counting down the days to our Christmas break (I have my last day on December 23rd, and we don’t start school again until January 11th!)
Have a wonderful week ahead, Berls. I miss you so much! Big hugs.
Sometimes I really wonder at the plan of making everyone suffer so much through things – like teeth. Why couldn’t there be any easier way? LOL!
IDK once COVID is past maybe. I want to get him some climbing mats but I don’t think we can fit them in our tiny apartment. We really NEED a house.
Christmas break will be here before you know it! MISS YOU TOO!! <3