Obama's Riding High

Having a little bourgie chickadee of my own has made me want to garner some hope for her future, because the current state of affairs makes me depressed, forlorn, disappointed in what our children are offering up to the world and what we are leaving behind for them...They do not deserve a salvage future unless they must possess the audacity of hope to want to make that change. Check out this great speech of Obama in Philly today (3/18/08) in where he addresses the race issue in the campaign and the issues with his pastor's comments. Truly impressive speech:

Here's the link to the full transcript.

This has to be the funniest short I've seen about Obama. Hilarious and witty and smart! I'm sure Obama had a giggle about this.

I stay woke

Been listening to the new Erykah Badu, finally...folks were trippin if you hadn't bought it on the day it came out...sorry, Black folks work 40 hours a week and we live for the weekend.

So, what if there were no niggas, just "master teachers"? Would we be telling everybody what to do? Some people may take it there, but, I stay woke, too, Silly E. Badu. Keep your third eye open.

Anywho, me and Super Noodle been building together. We've been working out the gas and spit up issues (she's so gross!) but I must say, this kid is reflecting my light. Check her out watching CNN this morning:

Look at the intense brow line...this little sister is critically engaged despite the spin.

But our nights are getting better. Me and Daddy are so happy that she's sleeping in 4-4.5 hour stretches. Folks with kids know that is huge! Finally, I can finish a sleep cycle.

Took her to see her granny and great granny and great aunts last night...how they gush over her! The elder women of my family amaze me. They badger me and Dad about spoiling her but at the first site of her stirring from her nap in her car seat, they were eager to scoop her up and brag on all the things her infantile body can do:

Chile, look at how she hold that head up!

That gal know she can squirm...

Look at her going back to sleep...she know she knocked out like somebody clucked her upside the head.

That's my bourgie baby.

Noodle: The Adventures of Black Super Baby or The Proud Black Mama Chronicles

*Title Credit: Thanks Keta! Too bad I don't have comic strip skills - might have to contract me an artist*

Last time we checked in on this blog, we saw Noodle on an ultrasound, days before she were to enter the world.

"OK, just breathe, Mama!" As the needle was rammed just kilter of my navel, I realized that getting an amniocentesis (my second one) has to be one of the most alarming and awkwardly uncomfortable pains I've ever felt before. And I'm not sure why they ask you if you are OK when you are clearly in pain; yet, we respond, "I'm alright!"
Anywho, my bourgie baby finally made it here January 17th at 2:08pm and what an adventure. I'll spare you the graphic and gruesome details of my c-section (scarred for life, again) but yes, Lord, we made it!

My Noodle...her adventures began when my preggers belly finally popped out in a very noticeable way in December. I was waddling, I was breathing hard, I was ravenous, I craved hot melty cheese and shredded wheat...I was a merciless, carnivorous horse, but a cute one. Check me out in my full glory...I was quite cute...We were on our way to devour Thai food on New Year's Eve...not enough meat or calories...we ended up at Sonic at the end of the night.

Embracing Motherhood has been an emotional journey, and it's only been 7 weeks and a day. I had my dark week of post-partum depression (my God, was that shit man-made?) and I'm so glad I got through that. I definitely don't want to be like these tricks. But I love my Noodle...I remember when she was rocking and rolling underneath my right rib...geez, I couldn't sit down most days. But once she got here, I realized what she's been doing in my womb:

a little bit of this:

a whole lot of this:

a clabber of that:

My baby got them kara-tay skills...but oh, how I suffered. She was so "verbal" with her arms and hands when she made it out, I had to wonder if all that flailing and moving was normal.

But embracing motherhood makes you wonder in these first weeks of life if your baby even likes you. They are so demanding they come off angry and agressive. She yelled, screamed, and hollered like a mad bull when she was hungry, sleepy, or passed a BM...and it's like she's been stabbed and gouged out when she passes a BM. I just hope in the coming weeks, she will learn to appreciate what I do or I will have to put her out! Now I see why mothers are always complaining how they feel underappreciated it...I had to go buy myself some trouser socks and clearance earrings to feel better (gotta love shopping therapy).

But you must say, we are quite cute! Even at 4am:

3 Week Notice (post-partum back story)

*Post originally intended on being posted February 6, 2008)*

"This is my two weeks notice/ I resign my position/ becuz you ain't treating me right..."

I am beyond notice even though motherhood isn't something you can opt out of, that is, for the morally upright. Maternity leave....yeah, it is the typical humdrum of "Feed Me Hold Me Burp Me Change Me Love Me Console Me Burp Me Feed Me Change Me Figure Me Out FOREVER MAMA!" That's what I hear everytime she shouts out, not cry out, in tragic fury that any small 3 week old baby can muster out. Where does she pull the lung strength, I wonder?

But, maternity leave has been like a job itself, without the lunch break, annual leave accumulation, water cooler chat, meetings, 15 minute break, the cafeteria (you prepared this for me? thanks!). All I get is massive amounts of free time to think about how my social life is at a stand still. How much of our social lives is tied into our job...I need to work on that. I need some regional friends. I also get to hob knob with my doctor during brief post-partum check-ups...and what fun and delight at Noodle's Well Baby Check-ups (are they peeling the skin off that child in that back room) with her pediatrician, Dr. Bologna (her real name is an African derivative very close in spelling) though we call her that behind her back. I await the day I have a slip of the tongue and call her that.

My Mama Used to Say...(pregnancy back story)

*Post was originally intended on being posted December 16, 2007*

That having a child will bring you closer to death. Those sentiments are strongly resonating with me, seeing that I have to check into the hospital for "monitoring". One of my worst fears has popped up in the final weeks of my third trimester: gestational diabetes...

You'd think I was going on a spa visit the way my doctor was putting it: "You'll be checking in and we'll feed you a special diet and we'll be monitoring you, if things don't get better, we may try some insulin, ya know...probably will take about 24 hours...it'll be fine."

I'm not really worrying b/c I can't really blame myself...this shit just popped up. Look how sad I was at the hospital for my 3 day stint (it seemed endless):

Pictures Coming Soon

So hold your horses!
Here's one from back in October...for some reason, I wasn't able to get my belly in the shot, just a smidge of it.

Put a hump in your stomach and squeeze in your rump

OK...I know I have grossly neglected this blog since August, but, OH (holding forehead in a graceful Southern belle manner), what challenges and obstacles I have faced. Shall I share?

Sure. As I sit here at 31 weeks, and a baby's noggin rustling against my ribs (uh, yeah, I can feel it in the most pronouned way), I am having difficulty typing with my right hand b/c my baby is conspicuously moving my arm with every movement. Since August, my belly has doubled in size, gained 7 lbs. (amazing!), and people are just realizing that I'm pregnant and I'm about to drop this load in a few weeks. I think I have pulled off the greatest secret reveal without revealing anything!! Just call me Moodini...

Anywho, the hub and I found out we were having a bouncing baby girl back in September. She will be dubbed Audrey Pearl of the Griggs Clan, so Lil Bug turned into Ladybug, and gathered a few other nicknames from family: Bug Ann (my Aunt), Lil Henrietta (my Aunt, again - what's up with her), Noodle (me, after feeling like she was all up in my guts), Oddie (me again - just a play on Audrey)...so who knows who she will be called when it's all said and done. When I look back at the roster of all my nicknames (Mookie, Macadamia Nut, Moo Cow, Mackie, Hell Mel) as well as my siblings (Sunshine, Funky London*, Pup, Puppy Dog, Diver Dan, Booter) and parents (Blind Melon Jelly, Bull, Wompy Cat), I can't help but to think that my new little person is about to be heralded into a time honored tradition of mis-naming. And we will love her just as she is (I watched Bridget Jones this weekend).

*As a sidebar, not this kind of Funky London

What else?

• I hated my doctor but then grew to like her after a succession of awkward appointments.
• I had to get an amniocentesis when they believed my Noodle had Trisomy 18 (very scary shit).
• I had to stand flat footed with my director who clearly isn't ready to deal with a professional and outspoken woman...the details are too numerous to account here, but let's just say I came out victorious.
• I managed to work my ass off and still was able to come to work 97% of the time despite the usual accoutrements of pregnancy.
• I managed to put a registry together, which I am not sure if people will honor. I never really got registries b/c people never give you what you "want" on them. And originally, I put together a book registry for my babe but was met with resistance...humans are odd pieces of work.

Cravings Report:

It's all about the Milky Way caramels! So relaxing...

Cocoa Chewy Cookie from Whole Foods Bakery

Pizza - I don't think I've gotten over that one

The Big Salad...think the Seinfeld episode

The third trimester has brought on some very unhealthy snacks, but I still attempt to keep it healthy so I can maintain my womanish Amazonian figure (bump the girlish one).

Other than that, I've been discovering more and more how appalling the world has become. For instance 2 Girls 1 Cup...I won't even provide a link to it, but I will give you a video of folks reactions: