Photo-A-Day Challenge | Feb 22 - 28

I really enjoyed doing my picture-a-day project last year and decided to do it again... this time with a little twist. The #FMSPhotoADay challenge was created by Fat Mum Slim and each day presents its own topic/theme. Below are my photos from February 22 - 28:

FEB 22: Brody's cute face can always make me smile. FEB 23: B-R-O-D-Y. FEB 24: Of course with all the snow and rain we've had this winter, not a cloud in the sky today. FEB 25: Nightstand essentials. FEB 26: He's the strong silent type... sometimes. FEB 27: Brody's really starting to enjoy playtime in his saucer. FEB 28: Bath time in the kitchen sink.

Wanna do the #FMSPhotoADay challenge with me? Comment with your blog URL or Instagram/Twitter handle... however you're going to post.

Mommyhood: Week 12

What a week.

Since Brody is currently daycare-less, my super wonderful family has really gone above and beyond to bail me out. Grandma and Grandpa drove out to Holland from Muskegon at 5 AM on Tuesday morning. Remember solid ice-can't exceed 5 MPH-will probably slide off the road-Tuesday morning? Yeah, that one. They eventually made it and decided to have a sleepover at our house that night since they planned on babysitting Wednesday as well. Thank God they made it back and forth safely and I'm so appreciative of their help with Brody and things around the house.

Miss Peanut is back over at my house. My sister watched Brody today and will again tomorrow... so her and Nutters are camping over. I kinda feel like I run a B&B this week. A big thank you to her as well for spending her days off at work over here watching a billion episodes of White Collar with the pups and Brody.

I've gone to meet with potential daycare people every day this week so far during my lunch hour and after work. I've called over 25 places that were full and other than one lady last night, I have been pretty disgusted that some of these people have a license. One more meeting tomorrow at lunch, so fingers crossed. I'm ready to reach my breaking point. Thank God Mama Z is back home from vacation tomorrow.

Side note... happy 12 weeks to my little tank! xoxo

In puppy news, Miss Zora has had a really rough couple weeks. Has anyone else had their dog's paw pads rip/peel/flake off? Other than the licking after her pads came off, Zora didn't touch her feet. I know she didn't do this to herself. My only guess is that they got really dry from the winter air and maybe she caught them on something... or they just cracked and peeled off. However it happened, they are RAW. I feel horrible for her and I can tell they really hurt her when she walks in the snow.

I've kept them clean, dry, Neosporin, this medicated cream the vet gave me from Zora's last foot injury... more and more of the pad keeps coming off and it takes FOREVER to heal. My poor baby. We're for sure going to the vet tomorrow. Any suggestions to heal and/or prevent this? Anyone ever used Pad Heal?

In dirty mom news, I wore a sweater to work today that I had forgotten was covered in Brody urp. Yeah, super awesome. I had formula puke caked all down the underside of the sleeve and on one collar. Yum.

Photo-A-Day Challenge | Feb 15 - 21

I really enjoyed doing my picture-a-day project last year and decided to do it again... this time with a little twist. The #FMSPhotoADay challenge was created by Fat Mum Slim and each day presents its own topic/theme. Below are my photos from February 15 - 21:

FEB 15: Chocolate coffee creamers make coffee go from super good to rock my socks off awesome. FEB 16: My son is the most perfect thing in my entire life. FEB 17: Cool typewriter keys flannel for making reusable baby wipes... stay tuned! FEB 18: I loathe driving thru Grand Haven during weekday rush hour. FEB 19: I am a mommy. FEB 20: Standing in the $#%&*! snow. FEB 21: "Full" is the story of my daycare finding efforts this week.

Wanna do the #FMSPhotoADay challenge with me? Comment with your blog URL or Instagram/Twitter handle... however you're going to post.

Make Any Website Do The Harlem Shake

I'm ashamed of how many Harlem Shake videos I've watched on YouTube this week. Fellow co-worker and Internet-awesome-crap-finder-extraordinaire Josh got me hooked and now I can't stop watching groups of people thrusting and humping each other and anything within arms length away. Good god... how is this so entertaining?!

When it comes to making fantastic garbage even more fantastic-er, today's find takes the cake. Make any website do the Harlem Shake. Just do it. It's awesome.

In Google Chrome...

• Go to any website
• Right click/control click on any image
• Select "Inspect Element"

• In the new window, select "Console"
• Paste in the code 
• Hit enter
• Have mind blown

Code for Harlem Shake

javascript:(function(){function c(){var e=document.createElement("link");e.setAttribute("type","text/css");e.setAttribute("rel","stylesheet");e.setAttribute("href",f);e.setAttribute("class",l);document.body.appendChild(e)}function h(){var e=document.getElementsByClassName(l);for(var t=0;t<e.length;t++){document.body.removeChild(e[t])}}function p(){var e=document.createElement("div");e.setAttribute("class",a);document.body.appendChild(e);setTimeout(function(){document.body.removeChild(e)},100)}function d(e){return{height:e.offsetHeight,width:e.offsetWidth}}function v(i){var s=d(i);return s.height>e&&s.height<n&&s.width>t&&s.width<r}function m(e){var t=e;var n=0;while(!!t){n+=t.offsetTop;t=t.offsetParent}return n}function g(){var e=document.documentElement;if(!!window.innerWidth){return window.innerHeight}else if(e&&!isNaN(e.clientHeight)){return e.clientHeight}return 0}function y(){if(window.pageYOffset){return window.pageYOffset}return Math.max(document.documentElement.scrollTop,document.body.scrollTop)}function E(e){var t=m(e);return t>=w&&t<=b+w}function S(){var e=document.createElement("audio");e.setAttribute("class",l);e.src=i;e.loop=false;e.addEventListener("canplay",function(){setTimeout(function(){x(k)},500);setTimeout(function(){N();p();for(var e=0;e<O.length;e++){T(O[e])}},15500)},true);e.addEventListener("ended",function(){N();h()},true);e.innerHTML=" <p>If you are reading this, it is because your browser does not support the audio element. We recommend that you get a new browser.</p> <p>";document.body.appendChild(e);e.play()}function x(e){e.className+=" "+s+" "+o}function T(e){e.className+=" "+s+" "+u[Math.floor(Math.random()*u.length)]}function N(){var e=document.getElementsByClassName(s);var t=new RegExp("\\b"+s+"\\b");for(var n=0;n<e.length;){e[n].className=e[n].className.replace(t,"")}}var e=30;var t=30;var n=350;var r=350;var i="//s3.amazonaws.com/moovweb-marketing/playground/harlem-shake.mp3";var s="mw-harlem_shake_me";var o="im_first";var u=["im_drunk","im_baked","im_trippin","im_blown"];var a="mw-strobe_light";var f="//s3.amazonaws.com/moovweb-marketing/playground/harlem-shake-style.css";var l="mw_added_css";var b=g();var w=y();var C=document.getElementsByTagName("*");var k=null;for(var L=0;L<C.length;L++){var A=C[L];if(v(A)){if(E(A)){k=A;break}}}if(A===null){console.warn("Could not find a node of the right size. Please try a different page.");return}c();S();var O=[];for(var L=0;L<C.length;L++){var A=C[L];if(v(A)){O.push(A)}}})()

...and then there's this gem. Oh, and this one too.

My Weekend with the Pirate

Yeah, that's right... I spent my weekend with the pirate.

Miss Peanut was our house guest while Mom and Dad Z are pum runch snorkeling (aka booze cruising) in Aruba. I have to admit, I was a wee nervous about how things would play out since Zora often thinks Peanut is a chew toy play buddy of equal size and strength. Although they ended up getting along pretty well, to assure there weren't any mishaps, I spent the weekend in the following arrangement:

Me sitting at the kitchen table. Peanut in her bed on top of the table. Zora in her bed next to the table. Brody in his bouncy seat/play saucer on the floor next to me. All of us watching 2 1/2 seasons of The Walking Dead. Straight through.

I am happy to report that at the end of 3 1/2 days together, the only carnage in the Arch household was that of the zombies. I'm sure Miss Nut will be extremely thankful to go home tonight... until she finds out she has to come back Thursday and Friday this week when my sister watches the lil Brodster. Sorry Nutters.

I like how the 9 and 90 lb dogs seem to think they both fit in the same bed. Um Zora, your bed is on the right.

I pray that I never have to administer shots to my children or pets. I had to give Peanut her insulin twice a day and totally pitted out every time. I was also convinced that between Brody, Zora and Peanut's schedule medley of food, bathroom breaks, shots, eye drops, pills, snacks and insulin... something was getting F'ed up. But alas, I rule. We all survived.

I can't wait to go back to getting the bathroom alone. Wait, who am I kidding? That hasn't happened since Zora was adopted. However, it was pretty funny to see Peanut and Zora getting along...  in the bathroom... while I showered. 

Peanut also spent a significant amount of time in Brody's crib this weekend. She preferred the safety behind bars rather than be fair game on the floor with Zora. She and Brody were rather content in there for awhile Saturday afternoon.

In other news... stiiiillllll lookin' for a daycare. I told Brody's last daycare lady we were completely done with her on Friday. I can't have a daycare provider calling me to come get him every time he has a baby-like symptom. Oh you know, like crying and spitting up. I found a lady that lives in my neighborhood that I've already completely stalked online and may or may not end up doing a drive by on my way out tomorrow. She looks promising. Fingers crossed everyone. Thank God grandma, grandpa and Ash have the rest of the week covered.

Unconventional Love Story: Happy 11 Years

Once upon a time...

...there was this barely 16-year-old girl who went to the movies with friends. She had candy chucked at her during the whole movie, was embarrassed in front of people she barely knew and was made fun of relentlessly... all by some conceited ass she had just met an hour earlier.

An ass who thought the pick up line, "My name's Clay... wanna mold me?" would work.

Welp, it did.

Today marks the celebration of the eleven years that she has shown god-like restraint by not strangling that man who is still quite the turd even today.

The end.

Andrea + Clay 2002

There. Who said love stories are predictable?

Happy (unofficial, irrelevant dating) anniversary to my wonderful husband! Here's to many many more years and more adorable babies. I love you. xoxo  :)

Yellow + Grey Gender Neutral Nursery

Yes, I know I already posted pictures of Brody's nursery... but that was before it was completely done and before I had a really nice camera. Since I last posted photos, a few updates have been made...

Our spare bedroom's walls started out this um, unique shade of sea foam green. That had to go. Check out my tutorial on how to paint straight, clean lines on your wall.

The fake family didn't have to live in the frames for long before we printed Brody's newborn pictures. For as many awesome pictures as we have of him, I have a feeling I'll be changing up those frames quite often. Originally, the frames were black and mirror was white.

I created an 18x24 inch alphabet print with shades of yellow and grey to match the room's color scheme. A huge thank you to Holland Litho, one of my favorite vendors from work, for printing it for me! It turned out beautifully. The yellow frame now holds Brody's, Clay's and my hospital birth photos. 

We also hung a shelf over Brody's crib to display the wooden train set from his Aunt Shelby and Uncle Ken. That too was painted to match the decor. The mobile was made with metal rings from Hobby Lobby, fishing line and the same paper starbursts I created for my holiday garland...  just on a smaller scale. 

Mama Z finished off the quilt she made for Brody by embroidering his name and birthday in the corners. She also sewed the pillow, handkerchief curtain, bumper pads, three sets of bedding, crib skirt and two contoured changing pad covers. Aren't moms wonderful? :)

I took full advantage of the closet shelves with these canvas collapsable totes. They hold Brody's outerwear, socks, bibs, burp clothes, a few books and toys, etc. to free up drawer space... all nicely labeled of course. Clothes size dividers are super helpful too and I would highly recommend them. 

Resources

Crib and dresser set - Essentials Collection from Baby Cache (via Babies R Us)

Chair - La-Z-Boy Niagra Glider (pattern: handsome, color: steel)

Paint - Behr Classic Silver, Behr Ultra Pure White and Dutch Boy Polished Gold

Carpet - Mohawk Smartstrand squall line (via Lowes)

Baby Monitor -  Graco True Focus Digital Video Monitor

Mirror + picture frames - Meijer 

Canvas totes, closet organizer + shelf - Menards

Touchlamp - refurbished 

Bedding/linens - homemade with fabric from Hobby Lobby

My Children Are Tanks

After a scheduling error with my doctor's office, Brody and I were finally able to get in for his two month appointment yesterday afternoon. Poor lil man was so happy going IN to the appointment... not so much on the way out. He was screaming, I was pittin' out... good grief. He cried pretty hard for almost ten minutes after his shots, whimpered during checkout and half the way home and then passed out.

My favorite thing about Brody is he always seems to know when I need a big smile. We barely got him out of the carrier and he was grinning from ear to ear. He was the happiest lil man for about two hours... then all hell broke loose. I opted to not give him any Tylenol prior to the appointment after reading about pros and cons online and wasn't going to give him any meds unless he needed it afterwards. Poor lil guy woke up from a nap and starting crying so hard. He had to be hurtin' because after some grape Tylenol (nom nom) and some cuddles, he fell asleep for the night.

Brody started out as a big baby right away with a birth weight of 9 lbs 2 oz. Not overwhelmingly large and definitely didn't have the length I would've guessed. Hoooooowwwwwwever.... at almost 11 weeks, my "little" man is 15 lbs 6 oz and 24.5 inches long. He's in the 87th, 89th and 97th percentiles for height, weight and head circumference respectively.

DATE	WEIGHT	HEIGHT
November 29	9 lbs 1.9 oz	21 inches
December 3	9 lbs 2 oz	21 inches
December 10	9 lbs 2.4 oz	21 inches
January 3	11 lbs 9.2 oz	21.5 inches
February 7	15 lbs 4.4 oz	n/a
February 12	15 lbs 5.8 oz	24.5 inches

Holy crap. No wonder his 3-6 month clothes are already tight on him. Now I know why my mom put me in sweatpants all those years when I'd outgrow outfits in a matter of weeks. Oh well, when warmer weather hits, my house is pants optional anyways.

In addition to my sweet lil chunk, as I mentioned in Sunday's post, Zora hit the 90 lb mark on the scale. Shocked the heck out of me considering A) she doesn't look like it at all, and B) the APB thought she'd be a 45-60 lb dog. Hahaha! My kids are such tanks. We're a family of large thick healthy individuals... except for Clay. He's still got the body of a pre-pubescent lil boy.

Other than that, not much else going on. Quit my dance class the other week. Big surprise there. I'm still not big into working out in a group, I have two left feet and the most awesome reason of all... post-baby body + jumping around = a major need for Depends. God's punishing me for all those years my sister and I laughed at mom for not being able to jump on the trampoline with us. Damnit. Sorry mom, I understand now. 

Happy 2nd Birthday Zora!

Happy 2nd Birthday to our fur child Miss Zora!

Happy 2nd birthday crazy dog!

We adopted her from the Animal Placement Bureau in Lansing, MI when she was only 4 months old. Her name was originally Grizzly, but changed it to Zora when we saw how her face markings looked like a mask (like Zorro). We were actually first interested in her sister Fauna. When we learned another family wanted Fauna as well, we decided to check out Zora as a backup just in case the other family got to Fauna first. We drove to Lansing one Sunday to the APB Pet Parade and were immediately hooked on Zora and never further pursued Fauna.

I have to laugh because she was only 37 lbs when we got her with an estimated adult weight of 45-60 lbs. Zora weighed in at 90 lbs this week! She's a solid tank with crazy ears that have a mind of their own and long legs that even now are sometimes too much for her.

Although I am very very anxious for her to grow out of the puppy stage and not be such a wild spaz sometimes, I love her to pieces and am so thankful to have her as part of our family! xoxo

Most of Zora's siblings

How much she changed in just 4 months!

"Grizzly's" adoption photos

Zora's first day with us

DIY: Valentine's Day Crafts for Kids

I am looking forward to the day when Brody is old enough to join his mama at the kitchen table with a can of spray mount and an xacto knife Elmer's glue and safety scissors. I love to craft and really admire moms like Amanda over at What Is Your Cup of Tea that get involved with their children and really let them express themselves creatively. Thanks to sites like Pinterest, there's never a shortage of crafts or unique games that parents and kids can whip up almost instantly.

Won't daddy be surprised when Brody passes up hunting for an evening of arts and crafts with mommy... :smirk:

Since Valentine's Day is just around the corner, I thought I'd share a few of my favorite DIY valentines and craft that you can do with your lil ones (or by yourself, I guess). I don't think the designer in me is ever going to allow my kids to settle for store bought valentines covered in Dora or Spongebob or whatever horrible, non-80s cartoon is popular at the time.

Go forth... be crafty.

1. Football Valentine (Pear Tree Greetings)

2. Sucker Valentine (I Heart Nap Time)

3. Heartstring Garland (Spoonful)

4. Caped Cute-Sader Valentine (Spoonful)

5. Treat Packages (Martha Stewart)

6. Matchbook Valentine (Inchmark)

7. Cinnamon Hearts Bird Treats (Silly Eagle Books)

8. Crayon Hearts (Martha Stewart)

9. Paper Heart Wreath (The Hybrid Chick)

Phantom Flu Bug + a Doggy with a Death Wish: My First Week Back

It's the weekend... finally. Thank you baby Jesus.

Technically, this week should've started out super shitty and slowly have gotten better. Unfortunately, for as bad as Monday and Tuesday were, the rest of the week was worse.

Dropping Brody off at daycare Tuesday was tough. Real tough. He was sleeping hardcore in his carrier while I talked to the daycare lady and just as I was leaving, he opened those big, beautiful eyes and stared at me. I hauled ass outta there and quickly found the loudest, most upbeat song on my iPod. Thankfully I was busy at work and could keep my mind off things. My mom, dad and sister sent me a beautiful and very fragrant bouquet of lilies and roses to make the day better. xoxo

Thursday I got a call from daycare saying Brody had what looked like the flu and I had to come get him. She said he had been throwing up all day, crying a lot and his stomach was super hard. I made a doctors appointment on my way to pick him up just to be on the safe side. When I got there, he looked like maybe he was sick, but content nonetheless. By the time we got to the doctor's office, he was smiling and all sorts of happy. Anyways, not sick... apparently just wanted to be a turd for the daycare.

Friday morning was a bitch. I was ready to call it a day before I even got to work. Miss Zora, who's lucky I didn't turn her into a nice pair of furry boots, decided to stress me the F out bright and early. I had the car running, bags loaded and Brody in his car seat ready to walk out the door at 6:15 AM. Clay warned me the roads were super slippery and since my car absolutely sucks in the snow, I wanted to get an early start. I let Zora out one last time to pee and that's when that pain in the ass decided she did NOT want to come back inside.

I tried everything... nothing worked. Finally after an hour, I had to call Clay. I was suppose to be at work already, Brody was screaming, I was still all bundled up sweating my ass off and nothing stresses me out more than when Zora won't come inside when I have to leave the house.

So eventually Clay got home and I left with Brody in the truck. I figured that with the way things were going, if I had gotten Zora in myself and went to leave, my car probably would've gotten stuck in the driveway or cul-de-sac. If that would've happened... I probably would've resorted to an all day drink fest. I finally made it to work an hour and a half later and Clay managed to pounce Zora and drag her ass back inside.

So, my first week back wasn't spectacular. Let's hope for a less-hectic week two.

In not so sucky news, lil man isn't quite so little apparently. While we were at the doctors, he weighed in at 15 lbs 4.4 oz. Definitely doesn't get those genes from daddy. (Sorry kid.) His neck strength is finally getting up there and likes to sit facing outward in our backpack carrier thing. Yay more hands-free parenting! I tell you what tho, that's quite a workout squatting down to pick things up with 15+ pounds strapped to the front of you. Killer on the back and shoulders.

Speaking of working out, I've been diligently working out every day after work (except for Brody's supposed flu day). I've also been dieting hardcore for almost 3 weeks now. Um, "yay" for a whole whopping .7 lbs I've lost. Brody's going to be leaving for college by the time I shed all that baby weight.

A little dieters tip my mom shared with me that she learned at weight watchers for anyone who cares... weigh your food instead of measure it. You'll get way more food. For example, croutons... 2 Tbsp or 7 grams. You'd probably fit one, maybe two, croutons on a tablespoon whereas you get almost 9 croutons for 7 grams. The difference is quite amazing. Momma Z bought me a nice lil electronic kitchen scale that I just love.

First day back to work...

Welp, I survived.

More or less.

I think it helped a lot knowing he was with my mom all day. Good thing Mondays are Brody and Grandma days so that my week starts off a little better. Tomorrow when I have to drop him off at daycare might be a different story.

I also loaded a digital picture frame up last night to put on my desk. Out of the 304 pictures on it... I think there's three of Zora, one of Clay and the rest are of the lil man. I love them all equally, I swear.

My co-workers did a wonderful job at making my first day back a little brighter. Josh bought Brody this awesome dinosaur onesie. Thankfully he included a note indicating who it was for just incase Zora and Brody were wearing the same size. Phew. Sarah made some delicious banana muffins for everyone as well. All of the projects that came in for me while I was away were all wrapped up so I didn't have to try to play catch up on anything. Thanks guys, I really appreciate it!

Apparently having to work at my desk and look at pictures of Clay, Zora and I on my wall and desktop were too much for Josh...

Hilarious, isn't he?

I also work 7:00 AM - 4:00 PM now which it totally awesome! With Brody's sleep schedule and my zombie-like productivity late in the afternoons, this is going to be fantastic!

Brody was suppose to have his two-month appointment today, but when I called to verify the time, they said they had him down for March 4. Umm... no. That would put him at 3 months now, wouldn't it? Not that I really wanted to add anymore unpleasantness to today, but I think I could've dealt with him getting his shots a little better with an extra set of hands from mom. Now I gotta go all alone. They wanted to reschedule me for 8AM next Tuesday. Stick him three times and then make me hand him back over to daycare and me go back to work? Umm, I don't think so.

Since I didn't have to take a late lunch for the doctor's appointment, I decided to workout at noon. Ugh. Didn't die then either.

Soooo.... success.

My short stint as a SAHM...

Today's my last official day of maternity leave before returning to work Monday. Breaks my heart. In my perfect world, I would be a stay at home mom until we were done having kids and they were both/all in school. But alas, my cubicle awaits me. Don't get me wrong, I love what I do and where I work... but there's no place like home. And sweatpants.

...and not spending every day snuggling with Brody and Zora.... ugh, Monday is going to suck. Big time.

So in an attempt to mentally prepare myself, here's my list of, for lack of a better word, "pros" and cons of being done with maternity leave:

Tolerable, yet insignificant pros:

• During the day, I get to interact with other living creatures that actually talk instead of whimper, cry, coo and bark at me.
• I get to leave the house more than once a week. Somedays I feel like I'm under house arrest. Sure I could leave the house with Brody whenever I want, but let's face it... it's cold and snowy and why risk bringing a baby out during an agressive cold and flu season? 
• I will have a legit reason to shower, brush my teeth and apply deodorant consistently every day (you're welcome co-workers.) In the beginning, there were days I was getting ready to crawl back into bed at night before I realized I never got around to the necessary hygiene regiment I was used to. I know, what a dirty bird.
• Like I mentioned earlier, I love what I do and the people I work with. I kinda miss them. 
• My fat ass has half my baby weight to lose yet... the work wellness center is calling my name. I don't have any cardio equipment at home and the hell with running outside in the cold... so I'm looking forward to going to have to force myself to workout at the end of the day before picking Brody up at the daycare.
• Being home for 9 weeks has been a mixture of not enough hours in the day and too much time on my hands. For example, I've rearranged my kitchen cupboards and pantry five times in the past month alone. Sign of losing my mind?
• I've watched waaaaay too many TV shows. I've watched about 5 or 6 new series in their entirety on Netflix during my leave alone. It was just too convenient to have Netflix on my phone during feedings or when he was sick and I was up all night with him, etc. I need human interaction obviously.  

Very, very sad cons:

• I have this super adorable, smiley, cuddly, chunk of happiness that I am going to miss dearly every day. No mom likes the thought of a stranger raising their child(ren) during the week, but alas, such is life. Thank God my mom is going to come over every Monday, so I only have to be super sad four days out of the week. 





• My fur child is going to be devastated when she has to be crated again all day after 2+ months of freedom. To go from lounging on the couch all day to stuffed back in her crate is not going to make the furball very happy. 





•  I've spent a day or two at my mom's house every week with Brody over the course of my leave. It was a nice break to get out of the house and I love spending time with mom. Now I get an hour or so every Monday. Much sadness. 
• I absolutely loved my mornings at home. Some days I'd sleep in until 8 or 9 when Brody got up and others I'd stay up after his 4 or 5:00 feeding. To have the kids go back to sleep and I'd curl up with my computer and a cup pot of coffe and watch the sun come up... such a pleasant way to start the day.





• Unless I went out into public, and I don't count my mom's or Walmart, I didn't change out of sweatpants/pajamas AT ALL. My daily attire consisted of pants with an elastic waistband, Clay's tshirt and a robe. Go ahead, judge. I frankly don't care. 





• It's Michigan in the wintertime. I got to bypass December and January of going out/driving in the super crappy, super cold weather. Boom.
• Did I mention I'm going to miss Brody and Zora dearly all day? I don't see why a baby gate across my cubicle entrance wouldn't be sufficient for them both. They just sleep all day anyways. I'd be productive... I promise.