Nesting or Crazy?

I've been getting emails from pregnancy websites about the "nesting" phase of pregnancy, which I guess I'm in right now... Granted, we're planning a move, not just the setup of a nursery, but I've been particularly motivated to "homemake" these days.  I have been going through all of our closets, drawers and such and just purging and organizing.  Given the pain that results from bending over, I can't do that much at a time, but I try to do at least an hour or two every day and I'm making headway.

Hubby is thrilled... he and I have very different "styles" when it comes to our approach to cleaning / clutter management.. I like piles... having a couple of neat piles doesn't bother me one bit if they're organized.  It drives him nuts.  While I like neat, who doesn't?  I'm not as motivated to achieve neat as he is... We've lived together for almost 10 years and this is still something we debate often... I will freely admit that I'm messier than hubby and he is a far superior cleaner than I am.  What I will also admit, is that there is a method to my madness... I may be messy, but I'm organized!  He's moderately organized, but doesn't hold a candle to me.  The problem with our apartment right now is that we have tons of stuff, but everything is "stuffed" away in random places (NYC living... you store things where there's room) and we don't know where to find things!  My goal in preparation for this move is to get everything organized... All of the tools in one place, electronics / cords in another place, office supplies all together, etc... Right now, things are just stuffed in various places, wherever they would fit... Well, I'm not having it anymore... When we move into our new place, I want to be able to find things... The other problem that both of us have is that we forget... I thought we bought tylenol... where is it?  Medicine cabinet?  Medicine drawer?  Medicine pouch we have for travel?  It usually takes a couple of looks before we find things... Or, one of us will say, I need new gloves... We buy them and then 2 months later discover a treasure trove of gloves that we forgot we had. Well, no more... Our new apartment has a ton of storage space, we're outfitting our closets with some handy dandy container store drawers and cabinets AND I'm adopting the strategy that has kept me so organized in business and bringing it home. 

I ordered a label maker!

Have you ever used one of these things before?  They're AMAZING little devices that help you identify things at a glance.  These little labels will allow me to put an organization system in place and then adhere to it, by plainly saying on the outside of each little box what it contains.  It's perfect.  I am so excited for my best buy purchase to arrive!!  I've already started a list of all of the labels I need to print out.

When you gotta go, you gotta go

One more story from San Diego... Hubby and I are in the bathroom together at my Aunt's house.  I'm getting ready to get in the shower and he's going to pee.  (I tell this story assuming other couples spend alot of time in the bathroom together like we do... but maybe it's a product of living in NYC and only having one bathroom?? regardless, at this point, it doesn't matter where we are... we go into the bathroom together - no boundaries!)  I'm pulling out the towel, assessing the toiletry situation in the shower (making sure there's shampoo, conditioner and soap) while hubby begins to pee.

Like a whirlwind, the bathroom door slides open and my cousin's five year old is pants down, holding his junk, screaming I gotta go potty!  I gotta go potty!  Hubby turns to me, not sure what to do... he's midstream at this point... And I say, step to the side, let him in. I figure they can cross swords... Hubby is actually able to stop mid-stream and step away in time to not get peed on...  The five year old begins peeing immediately and I'm impressed by his good aim... Well done, little guy!

It's amazing how quickly the whole thing happens... Hubby and I are both looking at each other... Don't forget, we just woke up... This is a shocking experience first thing in the morning... Then the 5 year old pulls up his Star Wars pj pants and runs out with the same reckless abandon he had when he ran in.  Hubby and I burst out laughing... To watch this tiny little person kick my big hubby off the toilet, while he was using it, was priceless... And hubby and I thought we had no boundaries!  It was a funny glance into our future with little Brady...

But I guess when you gotta go, you gotta go... As a pregnant lady who pees at least 2-3 times a night, I do understand this...

Time to Get Literal

When I was in San Diego a few weeks ago I was trying to explain to my cousin's five year old that I am having a baby and what that meant - he was going to have a new cousin soon!  I don't have much experience talking to little people, but thought I could handle this...  Here's how the conversation went.

ME: I'm having a baby.  There's a little baby in my tummy.  He's smaller than your other baby cousin's and that's why he is still in his mommy's belly.  He's growing and when he's ready, he will come out and play.

He loses interest and runs around with a light sabre for a few minutes while I wait.

5 YEAR OLD: When's he coming out?

ME: Well, he's still cooking.

5 YEAR OLD: Wait... you're COOKING THE BABY?  eyes open wide... Why would you do that?

ME: Floundering to explain to a five year old that when I say cooking, that I really mean the baby is growing and developing in his mommy's tummy... He looks at me, completely flabbergasted that I would cook my own child and goes back to playing with his light sabre.

And I learn my first lesson in talking to little people...