A Post In Which I Discuss Laundry Detergent

Yes, I'm posting about laundry detergent. It's my job now. I do a lot of laundry, therefore it's what is on my mind.

My laundry detergent has disappeared. For many year's I've used All brand because it's half the price of most others and works fine. And comes in the super small bucket. Greg is very sensitive to laundry detergent, so I buy the Free & Clear version. Everybody's happy. Then we bought our front loader high efficiency machine last summer. Wanna guess how many places sell All Free & Clear in an HE version? Kroger. That's it. Found it once at Walmart, but never again. Not a problem. A little more expensive at Kroger but still cheaper than Tide and Kroger likes to send me coupons for it.

This week I discovered that my Kroger no longer carries it. I sighed a big sigh and went in search of another brand I could use. I found plenty of HE options. And plenty of Free & Clear options. Unfortunately, manufactures haven't caught on the combo yet. Nothing. Not a single scent free HE laundry detergent, not even Tide. I've checked every place in Clinton I can think of, nothing.

I figure my options at this point are:

a) drive all over town in search of somewhere within a 30 mile radius that sells a scent free HE detergent that's not ridiculously priced.

b) give up and start making my own homemade laundry detergent (which are typically low suds, making them fine for HE machines).

c) stop washing clothes.

I haven't made a decision yet. I'm leaning towards option C.

A Less Than Information-Filled Update

So we had a doc appointment yesterday afternoon, but I have nothing to report. My sugar was fine, they didn't even stick my finger (so HA!, Greg, I was right about chocolate cake that is associated with a birthday being sugar free!). I broke even on weight again, which didn't make her happy but didn't exactly get me yelled at. I think I was technically up half a pound. She wants a few more, but I got 8 more weeks to get there! Other than that everything is running along as planned.

In other ironic news, yesterday was the first day we had to wait due to baby deliveries. Apparently Dr. T delivered 3 babies yesterday. Why do I find this ironic? 'Cause it was Sept 2! I know more people born on Sept 2 than any other single day of the year. I think I ended up with a total count of 5 yesterday, and I suppose you can add 3 more now! I've decided it's a Christmas/New Year's thing. Gotta do something while waiting up for Santa.

As a side note, Tuesday night was baby class. We got to meet and interrogate one of the anesthesiologists. And yes, I just spelled that without looking it up. Anyway, the doc was a hoot. He explained everything, took lots of questions, and made the big needle sound less scary than it did before. He brought all the needles and stuff for people to look at if they wanted to. I refrained. I was the only one in class who didn't want to see them, but for me sometimes ignorance is the best policy. That aside, my two favorite quotes from the Q&A session:

Guy in class (after doc talked about potential problems and how they can fix almost all issues): "What can't you fix?"

Doc, (rubbing his hand over his shiny head): "Baldness..."

and my personal favorite:

Greg: "What reasons are there for not getting an epidural?"

Doc (who already admitted to being a big baby about pain himself): "I can't imagine one..."

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday to BFF Jen!

And to my friend Melanie...

And Danielle...

And Allison's mom...

Anybody else???

I hope all of you, but especially BFF Jen, have fabulous birthdays!

Wow.

I just realized that I ran all over Jackson today wearing white shorts with bright blue underwear. Seriously, I only have a few brain cells left, I'm trying to conserve them as much as possible!

Susan: Taking stupid to a whole new level since 1975.

Tot Turns 30

So Tot turned 30 this past Sunday. She's growing up fast. However, I have to admit that despite the fact that I've felt pretty good the past few months, I'm about to the point of wanting to be done with this. I've definitely turned the corner into the third trimester.

The sudden exhaustion is back. Yesterday I walked to the bedroom to do something and woke up when Greg got home. Pretty sure I didn't walk down there to take a nap, I was simply attacked by the bed monster.

The back pain that had actually improved dramatically since I left my job is back with a vengeance. Sometimes I feel almost crippled when I first stand up.

When I have an hour to sleep, I'd like to be able to sleep instead of wasting half of it squirming around trying to get comfortable. Comfort doesn't happen. And inevitably when I find a spot that's less uncomfortable, I immediately have to roll out of bed to go pee.

I want to be able to walk 2-3 miles again instead of getting to the end of my street and thinking, "Ok, I'm done. Can I make it back or should I just sit on the curb until a neighbor drives by and takes pity on me?"

I want my thermostat back. I nearly passed out in childbirth class on Tuesday night. Literally. Hot flash hit me out of nowhere and I got so dizzy the nurse teaching the class was very concerned. I ended up having to go sit in the lobby drinking water until I felt like I could stand up on my own again. I just want to know I'll be cold all the time like I used to, instead of jumping from hot flash to freezing ten times an hour.

Having said that, I will admit that it could be worse. I haven't seen much of the emotional roller coaster that can come with the pregnancy hormones. Perhaps they're just saving up for after the birth. Woo. Something to look forward to. And I'm sure the back pain will get worse at Tot continues to grow over the next 9 weeks, but at least I haven't gained 40 pounds. I'm sure that would hurt worse.

I know it'll all be fine. And it'll be worth it. As I've said from the first day the nausea hit me, it's all just part of the package. Remind me of that when I have a screaming infant, haven't slept in 4 days, and my postpartum depression drugs haven't kicked in yet.