Daily Reactions of a Chemist

His Own Space

2009-10-29T10:12:00.000-07:00

Case is really developing into that stage where he wants his own space. Or probably, he's just growing up. I remember that's one of the key points in a book (and parenting sytle) Josh and I really like called Screamfree Parenting: that kids need their own space. It began awhile back when he started wanting to just go to sleep on his own in his bed. Now at bedtime, sometimes he wants to rock a bit, sometimes he just wants to lay down in his bed. He's been going into his room and shutting the door telling us bye-bye. He'll play in there for a bit. He also will leave our room and do the same thing. He has been rocking on the glider by himself and reading books. Many times, Josh or I can get him set up with a bunch of books and take care of whatever we need to (shower, clean, etc.). It gives us a small window of time. Last night though was a first. He asked me to go play with him in his room. So he led me to his room by the hand. He wanted to rock he said. I soon found out he wanted me to get him situated with his books on the glider. I thought he wanted me to sit on the footstool and read with him like we do a lot.

Nope.

He told me, "Leave." He wanted to read alone in his room by himself!

So I went to the livingroom, enjoyed talking to Josh without any interruptions, but got up myself (interrupting the conversation) to peek around the corner to spy on the little boy. He's getting so grown-up!

Things I Don't Like Thursday

2009-10-29T10:04:00.000-07:00

So in keeping with the blog trend of having special blog days....I've created "Things I Don't Like Thursday" where I will share one thing that annoys me.

(I was going to put "Things I Hate Thursday", but that seems a bit strong. You can thank my mom for that one - we weren't allowed to say, "I hate..." when I was little. That rule is still stuck in my head.)

Today's subject is how I came up with this idea: Smokehouses. There's like 3 right by our neighborhood. They are drive-thru cigarette stores where people can get their smokes without having to get out of their car. What annoys me? They block traffic on the main road going into our neighborhood. The line will be so long at the drive-thru that people are lined up on the main road blocking the flow of traffic! I guess it wouldn't bother me so much if the store had a better parking lot system and were faster at the window. Sigh. So maybe my subject should be "Blocking Traffic." I just want to get home with my baby after work in a timely manner. Is that too much to ask?

Another difference....

2009-10-29T10:02:00.000-07:00

My feet are swollen this time - sometimes really bad.

I never really swelled up with Case until right after I had him, and I got to stay in a hospital bed for a few days so it didn't matter. Maybe I'm on my feet more this time around.

It's a Bit Different This Time Around...

2009-10-27T19:38:00.000-07:00

1. I definitely feel bigger this time than I was with Case. But my mom-in-law told me she thought I was smaller this time (God bless awesome mom-in-laws!).

2. This baby is longer I think than Case was ever in my womb. Case would stretch across my stomach and kick my ribs. This baby though is kicking up way higher on my ribs than Case ever did. I can feel him on my hips all the way up towards the top of my ribs. He must like to stretch all the way out!

3. My belly button is halfway an outie now. If I wear a snug T-shirt, you can see my belly button. I bet it totally gets turned out before I have this baby.

4. I'm having stronger Braxton-Hicks contractions than I ever had the first pregnancy - and way more often and earlier. Tuesdays seem to be the day for them. Wierd. Maybe that means I'll have my baby on a Tuesday. Bets, anyone?

Leg Cramps and Pchem Dreams

2009-10-15T13:50:00.001-07:00

I'll blame it on pregnancy: awful leg cramps and crazy dreams.

About a month ago, I woke up with a start when I had a horrific leg cramp shoot through my calf. This time I was prepared though. During my last pregnancy, most of the times that I would get a leg cramp, I couldn't get awake all the way so I just screamed while Josh tried to figure out what was wrong with me. Not this time - I jumped out of bed and started walking around. Of course, I'm crying and yelling about it because it took forever to get it to stop cramping. Josh also is a pro this time around. He rolls over, looks at me, and says, "And so it begins..."

So I've increased my potassium intake and it's helped most nights.

But about a week ago, I started having an awful leg cramp while I was asleep dreaming about pchem. I was dreaming about what I had taught that day in lecture - the Carnot cycle. I couldn't get myself awake all the way to realize I need to get out of bed and walk. Nor could I tell Josh why I was moaning and crying. All I could think about what how I needed to calculate the amount of energy that was put into the system to do a certain amount of work. I kept thinking, If I figure that out - this pain will stop. Ultimately, Josh got me awake enough and pushed me out of bed (which is definitely needed by this time) so I could walk around.

Ah, gotta love that last trimester of pregnancy!

Pchem Lore

2009-10-15T13:47:00.000-07:00

So this year I'm getting to teach PChem this year. Physical Chemistry is the subject that (usually) only pchemists want to teach. As an undergrad, I ended up liking pchem - even after miserably failing the first exam. As a grad student, pchem was okay - I appreciated the complexity, but decided against majoring in that field. I liked it well enough to take some classes in that area in grad school. Pchem is the subject that people will share their horror stories about. It's the class that give chemists and biochemists bragging rights for surviving. Of course, I'm sure these statements get further exaggerated as the years go by:

"My pchem exams took 3 hours."

"Well, my pchem exams would take all day. And we could leave and come back and it wouldn't matter to the teacher - its not like we could go look something up and figure it out."

As one of my students wrote, "My cousin took this class recently and told me it’s a class that while you’re in it you don’t really know what’s going on and once you’re out you don’t really know what happened, but it was cool…"

For the most part, I'm enjoying this class. It's challenging, but my calculus skills have been renewed.

We Stayed Too Long

2009-10-15T13:39:00.000-07:00

So the picture of Case in the TRex's head was the last time we saw him happy at the zoo. We stayed too long. I do that sometimes at the store. Case is doing awesome - so I decide, I can slow down. I can go look at a few things that I don't need, just interested in looking at. But then - watch out! Tired Toddler Alert! I've put him through too much store-time, or in this case, too much zoo-time. After having a meltdown about not being able to push his stroller into the grass and that Mama couldn't carry him any further, we high-tailed it out of there! He promptly fell asleep in the car and stayed asleep for a LONG nap inside the house. We had had a good day...we just should've went home a little earlier.

Maybe the Dingo Ate Your Baby

2009-10-15T13:36:00.000-07:00

If you aren't a Seinfeld fan, that title probably sounds very inappropriate.

We never did see any dingos, but we did find these dingo-look-a-likes: African Pack Dogs. And guess what? These are now Case's official favorite animal at the zoo. He was calling to them, clapping for them, babbling out about them. That's right, we went to the zoo to see dogs.

Tall like a Giraffe

2009-10-15T13:34:00.000-07:00

Driving Those Crazy Animals Around

2009-10-15T13:31:00.000-07:00

Check out Case's cool turning ability. (He gets it from me - in the car now when I turn he usually shouts, "Wheeeee!" I'm assuming he just likes to say Whee! Not that I'm a crazy driver or anything.)

Walking on a Path

2009-10-15T13:29:00.000-07:00

Case loves to walk on a path. At the zoo, it was these drainage vents that encircled the birthday party entry way. On our walks, it's on the curbs so he can practice his balancing.

Happy Birthday Pistol Pete!

2009-10-15T13:23:00.000-07:00

Aren't these cakes beautiful?! They were yummy too!

That old picture is of Casen with Pistol Pete when he was 3 months old. It was the first time he met Pistol Pete. They go way back.

The Best Animal to Be...

2009-10-15T13:22:00.000-07:00

If you had to live in a zoo as an animal, I think the best choice would be as these white peacocks. They roam around freely. What a life!

Of Course We Had to See the Lions

2009-10-15T13:18:00.000-07:00

I think these lions love the limelight. Today they mosied on down to the big rock to lay out with all the people next to them. Last time, they were laying right by the glass while kids banged on the glass. That same female lion that last time was swiping at people through the glass - this time, anytime a kid was nearby she would sniff in their direction. I promise she would like to taste them.

Case loved the lions though - he was roaring at them!

The Zoo is a Great Place to Pose

2009-10-15T13:12:00.000-07:00

The zoo has a bunch of statues (and a ride) that little ones (or big ones - see my pictures) can pose by standing next to them or sitting on them. Case liked to pose on the little animals....the giant gorilla? Not so much - it scared him I think.

Pre-Zoo: Picnic after Church

2009-10-15T13:10:00.001-07:00

A few weekends ago, the zoo was hosting Pistol Pete's birthday. We took a picnic lunch to eat after church. Picnics in the back of your car are always fun!

Preacher Man

2009-10-15T13:07:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday, after we got home, Casen would stand on top of his train, hold the church bulletin, and "read" it outloud to Josh's mom and me. He was a'preach'in it seemed...or at least making announcements.

Today he "preached" from his books while standing on top of the baby wipes box. He just needs a platform to stand upon, and he's ready!

Big Boy

2009-10-02T18:17:00.001-07:00

As I write this post, Casen is shouting, "Watch, Watch!" Then proceeds (after both Josh and I are actually watching with verbal acknowledgement) to run REALLY fast across the living room and then leaps at the end. He's such a little boy.

This picture reminds me also that he's not a baby anymore. Casen likes to sit in his glider himself. He rocks himself. He looks at books. Sometimes, he just sits up there and jabbers. But he rarely lets us rock him anymore. He's a'grow'in up!

Best Dad in the World

2009-10-02T18:12:00.000-07:00

One of the reasons why Case loves his Daddy....yes, that's right. Josh is IN the crib with Casen.

Casen Loves a Tractor

2009-10-02T17:59:00.000-07:00

We went to a pumpkin patch up in Topeka last weekend. Mostly, Casen wanted to just sit on one of the many tractors that were scattered across the area. What a boy!

Casen's Top Things at the Zoo

2009-09-19T12:23:00.000-07:00

The RRoooaaarrss! (aka the lions). I think this is the same female that will come off the hill to come down and watch the little kids like Case more closely. Today, she was already by the window to get out of the rain. She swiped at anybody who stood by her too long. Look out!

(Oh, and a sidenote because I didn't get a picture of the sealions...everytime I would tell him that was a sealion (as we watched him swim by), Case would roar. Much to the delight of the bystanders.)

Giant bunny statue. Freaky to Mama? Yes.

WAATTEEERR! It rained all morning.

The Big Turtles! (and yes, he can say "turtle" now...he just started saying it; I thought tortoise was too much to ask a 19-month-old)

Freed peacocks walking around. We ran into a few different ones throughout our stay at the zoo. The white peacock came to visit when we were in the Pachyderm House.

Best Email of the Day

2009-09-14T19:22:00.000-07:00

Hey Babe,

Case and I just recently got back from our run. He is now watching Pink perform on the Today Show while playing his harmonica. It’s sweet. Earlier he said, “eat more prunes” but it sounded like “eee mwor pru.” Hope today is going well. I hope you got your stuff done this morning. Have a great rest of the morning and afternoon.

Love you lots,
Josh

[You have to see Case play his harmonica - it's awesome! His Mamaw bought sent him a harmonica, and he learned how to use it pretty quick. He gets to playing, stomping his foot, and swaying to his music. He can rock it - even a harmonica.]

[And Yes, Case loves prunes. Obviously, we have to limit his intake.]

Mr. Independent

2009-09-14T19:18:00.001-07:00

That's what my mom called Case today when I relayed this story to her.

Case wanted to get his shoes on his feet by himself with NO HELP today. He kept throwing fits because he couldn't get the crocks to get on his feet all the way. I tried putting the shoes up, but he didn't forget. I tried to help which threw him into a tantrum even more. Finally, I pulled the back strap towards the front so he could just slip them on. When Case finally got his shoes on (after 30 minutes of trying), he was so happy. Complete joy. He was so proud of himself. Then he walked around the house with his shoes on for about 5 minutes.

Then he pulled his shoes off. I guess those 5 minutes of glory was all he was after.

Good Night Moon

2009-09-14T19:12:00.000-07:00

Casen's current favorite book.
He "looks" for the mouse on each page. I say "look" because he has now memorized the spot of the mouse on each page, but pretends to look for it each time. We know this because last time he and Josh read it in the dark (Case wanted the lights out for bed), Case could find the mouse on each page in dark.
He gets so excited whenever he points to the mouse.
I love it!

How You Know If You Are Talking to a Scientist...

2009-08-27T07:51:00.001-07:00

...Or a mathmatician...or an engineer:

He or she does math in his or her head.

And not just simple math. Usually some sort of conversion.

Case in point: At our meeting this week, one professor says, "It gets up to about 18,000 feet." Another professor replies after a few seconds, "So about 4 miles?" The first professor corrects him, "Actually closer to about 3 and half miles."

No lie. I can't do math in my head like that - and believe it or not, I don't have random unit conversions memorized.
Sigh. I have to admit - I'm a bit jealous.