Lessons I’ve Learned from Lucy

I’ve been on an I Love Lucky kick. It’s fantastic. Whenever I’m feeling blah I turn on Hulu and get my Lucy on.

These are some of the things I’ve learned from I Love Lucy:

1. It’s OK to cry. It seems like every other episode Lucy is sobbing over something or other. Most of the time one of her schemes didn’t work out like she thought it would, but sometimes she cries just to get her way. Ricky, on the receiving end of what can only be termed a ‘tantrum,’ usually caves and/or feels extremely guilty and buys her something. I don’t think I’ll be going this route in my marriage (as I already have a 14 month old who has started throwing tantrums when she doesn’t get what she wants and adding mommy to the mix might give my hubby apoplexy).

2. If you aren’t allowed to use the term ‘pregnant’ in your place of work, substitute ‘enciente’. This seems crazy in this day and age, but you couldn’t say “pregnant” on TV in the 50s – whoa! And her maternity clothes! Circus tents with frilly collars/decorative buttons. Talk about trying to hide a major fact of life. Sooo glad I live in a time when pregnancy can be talked about and is celebrated! (And the clothes are cute too!)

3. Lean on your close friends. Ethel was always there for the Lucy. Always taking part in Lucy’s crazy schemes (no matter how many times they backfired) and ready to back her up when Ricky was mad about whatever Lucy had done. We should all be so lucky.

4. Never take life too seriously. I Love Lucy only deals with the lighter side of life and I love that about it. There’s plenty of serious stuff we have to deal with everyday and I don’t need my TV shows adding additional anxiety to my life.

5. Never give up. I think this is the most important lesson from the series. Lucy never quits trying to have her shot at fame. Poor Lucy…she’s not good at singing, dancing, or acting and she doesn’t know it (even though everyone around her tells her all the time). Still, she perseveres and takes every opportunity she can to be in the spotlight.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have another season to watch!

Dear Husband…Why can’t you read my mind?

Chris and I during a maternity shoot when I was pregnant with Penelope

Communication. The one thing my husband and I fight about the most.

I want him to recognize when I need some help and do it without me asking.

He wants me to tell him what I want help with.

For some reason I find it really hard to do this. I mean really hard. I think I’m just one of those people who has to do everything myself (*ahem ahem* control freak…) and so when it all gets overwhelming (which it seems to do a little more now that I get tired and cranky more easily) I blame it on my husband, who ends up shrugging his shoulders with a perplexed look on his face and saying, “I’d have helped if you would have told me you needed it.”

An example: A few days we were at the pool with family. I had Penelope in a chair next to me and I was feeding her lunch and trying to eat mine at the same time. My husband had just finished cooking the food and was standing near the table eating some chips. Penelope started trying to get down from her chair (while I tried to keep her there) and she knocked over a bowl of cut-up fruit. For some reason (I’ll blame pregnancy hormones), I immediately looked at my husband and snapped, “You could help you know.” He, confused, said, “I didn’t know you needed help.”

Why can’t he read my mind? More specifically, why can’t he read my mind the second the thought, “I need help” blares through it? Maybe I just need to be more aware of situations that could result in the need for assistance and plan to seek aid before things become critical.

In less drastic situations (i.e. I’ve been handling a fussy Penny all afternoon and cleaning at the same time while he’s been reading peacefully) I know what I want just fine (help with the cleaning or the kiddo!), and I don’t think it’s asking too much for him to know as well. I guess it’s true what they say: women work in subtlety and men are more candid. I’ll just need to find a way to relinquish a little control once in a while and maybe he can take some classes in ESP, and we’ll find our way to the middle eventually!

Yay Naps!

Yes…I need all of these toys!

Whew! I’m almost 7 weeks into my second pregnancy and I am pooped!

I remember the fatigue from my first pregnancy – the exhaustion that could usually be cured by lounging on the couch for a few hours with a catnap or two thrown in. No longer! With a toddler that has recently learned that by grabbing mommy’s hand you can take her anywhere you want to go, I spend my days being pulled from room to room to partake in the fun my Penelope has in mind for the two of us. So incredibly cute 🙂

However, for a pregnant lady who is drained by baby-growing, it can be tiring. So I do a new thing now. I take naps.

Yes, whenever my kiddo is down for her midday snooze, I go down for mine. It works out great – I can sleep and wake up rested and ready to run around after her for the rest of the day!

Beautiful, hour plus naps in my comfy, cool bed…ahhhh…I want to take another one now.

But, I’ll have to wait until Bugg’s naptime, because she has somewhere she wants to go and she’s taking me along for the ride!

You Named Your Baby What?

I was following my Baby Center Birth Club group and the ladies have known some people with very interesting names. It makes you wonder how many are urban legends, but you know people name their kids some weird things. Take a look at this article from Time: Top 10 Wacky Celebrity Baby Names. Not only that, every popular movie that comes out brings in a whole generation of kids named after the heroes and heroines of box office hits (according to StyleCaster Django and Katniss are some of the most popular baby names from 2013).

I’m all for unique and interesting names, but there’s a point where it’s too much. These parents flew past that point when they named their kids…

• Marijuana Pepsi-Cola
• Mayo
• Weiner
• Chewbaca (…if it’s possible to make this worse, it was for a girl…)
• Placenta
• Dude
• ESPN (Pronounced ‘Espen’)
• Dovahkiin (Bethesda Softworks had a contest and anyone who named their kid Dovahkiin got free Bethesda games for life)
• Ima Hogg (there’s an urban legend that she had a sister named “Ura Hogg”)

Does anyone else have any names to add to this list?