- I do things like make cookies from scratch or chocolate chip muffins while the kiddo is napping. I’ve mastered the art of stealth baking. It stresses me out. But it also soothes me.

- Yesterday was rough. I tried to shower twice and both times I had to run out of the shower naked and shivering and half shampooed because the kiddo was wailing. But as frustrated and annoyed as I was, he never saw a hint of it. I’m all light and sweetness and Disney bluebird singing mushiness with him. He’s the only person in the entire world who ever sees that side of me.

- Sometimes when Ken and I are watching RuPaul’s Drag Race we look over and find that B has contorted himself so he can watch as well. My son likes to watch a show about drag queens. I applaud him.

- We’re starting Mommy & Me soon. I. AM. EXCITE.

Sometimes he’s on his changing table and I make little munching sounds and nibble his neck and he giggles. I look at his beaming face and he looks back at mine. Little hands explore my eyelids, my cheeks, my chin. Mom. He laughs and little fingers pinch and dig.

And ouch!

And oh!

My heart.

From now on if anything is acting up and stressing me out I’m just going to shove a boob in its face because it’s like MAGIC BOOBS THAT SOLVE ALL PROBLEMS!!

Prompted by Michael B. Berkman and Eric Plutzer’s recent column in Science deploring “a pervasive reluctance of teachers to forthrightly explain evolutionary biology,” Popular Mechanics asked Bill Nye for his reaction. “It’s horrible,” Nye replied.

Nye was particularly concerned with the characterization of evolution as “just a theory,” arguing, “People make flu vaccinations that stop people from getting sick. Farmers raise crops with science; they hybridize them and make them better with every generation. That’s all evolution. Evolution is a theory, and it’s a theory that you can test. We’ve tested evolution in many ways. You can’t present good evidence that says evolution is not a fact.”

Oh, you know, just celebrating the fact that I JUST ROLLED OVER ALL BY MYSELF FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER!!

I was reading some excerpts from the No Cry Sleep Solution when I came across this gem - you have to want a change.  You have to really want to change your baby’s sleeping habits, or everything will stay the same.

Right now we are in a less than ideal situation.  Brandon sleeps in a travel crib in the living room. Ken stays up with him from 8 pm to 2 am, waking me 2-3 times during that stretch for feedings.  At 2am we switch off.  Ken goes to bed, and I stay up with B for the remainder of the night.  Sometimes I nap on the couch, but it’s rare, and never for longer than 20 minutes.  Any stirring, sighing, or slight change in the breathing pattern of the little one jerks me awake.  So mostly I play iPhone games, catch up on social networks, read, or watch TV.  I miss sleeping through the night, and I miss sharing a bed with my husband.  But do I miss these things enough?

After some soul searching I realized that the answer is no.  Private, personal time has always been essential to my mental health, and finding that when you have a baby is rare.  I treasure my quiet pre-dawn hours of solitude.  They are my lifeblood, and I’m not at all sure that I’m ready to give them up.

But more importantly, there is the Brandon factor.

Could I sleep, knowing there wasn’t a watchful eye on guard making sure he takes his next breath?  And then the next one?  And the next one?  Do I want to give up nursing him to sleep before he outgrows the habit on his own?  Do I want to teach him not to sleep all safe and warm and snuggled in my arms, little head resting on my shoulder, little hands pawing drowsily at my face?

The answer to all of these questions is yes.  But not yet.  Not yet.

He will have a lifetime of independence, and I will have decades of proudly watching him pull away from me and be everything that I know that he can be.  He will learn not only to do things on his own, but to value the self-worth and self-esteem that comes with not having to rely on others.

These moments, though?  These moments when he looks to me for warmth and comfort and security?  These few months where he needs and demands and roots and snuffles?  These moments are mine.  I’m not ready to trade them in for sleep yet.

Out of 173. Eek! But in the “women who just pushed a live human out of their body under 4 months ago” category, I’m pretty sure I placed in the top ten. And that’s without the extra points for awesomsaucedness.

My brother came in 1st in his age group and 12th overall. He’s the fast one.

Slow and steady didn’t win the race, but she damn sure finished it. See my medal?!?!

I think I lost the last 3 lbs of baby weight.

But only if that hand had, like, 50 fingers

“Dong jokes are low hanging fruit”