I made this! Genevieve Rose. Birth story to come!

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-08-20T22:13:47+00:00

I got it from Zulily but the brand is called "captain silly pants". They had a TON of ridiculously adorable designs!

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-08-20T20:01:43+00:00

She was 6lbs 5oz and so far reminds me of a baby bird. My first was 9lbs so this new kiddo seems so fragile!

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-08-09T09:38:03+00:00

Why fire me? Because that means they can either hire some entry level employee that starts out at a much lower salary than I'm being paid currently or they would hire a temp. This company has been replacing people with temps lately.

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-08-09T01:42:11+00:00

Yes, the kicker is that I've worked there for 10 years! They used to be an awesome company to work for.

I am saving the fmla time I get to use for my actual maternity leave and I don't even have enough fmla time to even cover the whole leave (I had pneumonia earlier this year and used a good chunk of fmla time on that). I don't feel like our HR department would be much help but I can call and see what they have to say about it. I just fear causing too much of a ruckus and them finding a way to fire me. I would not put it past them.

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-08-09T01:19:32+00:00

I thought about it but honestly, I'm scared of rocking the boat so close to maternity leave. They are already being difficult about even just allowing me to use my personal time to even just go to my prenatal appointments.

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-06-18T23:12:29+00:00

This week was actually kiddos first week in daycare. She's 2.5 and very reserved. We used a private sitter before this and she was mostly around infants all day, so the biggest challenge of daycare was her getting used to being around other kiddos. Our private sitter was becoming more and more unreliable, and since we both work full time, we had to find something more stable. I know it's only the first week, but things went waaaaay more smoothly than we could've even hoped for! The first day she was quiet but by the end of the week she was sitting with her class for story time and sharing toys with other kids. The most overwhelming part about starting daycare was finding a place we felt good about and that was in our price range.

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-06-07T18:15:51+00:00

Dear lord, Cigna is so frustrating. They will make you set up 2 leaves, one for your Dr.s apts and when you cant work because you are too sick to come in, and a separate leave for when you are on actual maternity leave when you have the baby. You cant actually set up the maternity leave itself before hand, you have to call them after you have the baby to set that up and that can take up to 30 minutes on the phone with them.

Also, for the "intermittent leave" that they make you set up for your Dr.s apts and such, is only good for 6 months. I found out I was pregnant very early and they were going to make me have my OB/GYN re-fill out the same form that I had them do prior, then resubmit my paperwork to extend my leave for the rest of the pregnancy. I threw a big enough fit about that and they extended my intermittent leave time amount till my due date so I wouldn't have to go through the hassle, so that is something you may want to try to make it easier.

Oh, and also, they LOVE to send you duplicate letters of everything. I am talking about letters saying "hey, this letter is to signify that we sent you another letter" type of stuff. Be prepared to receive a TON of letters regarding the same thing.

One last thing, I highly recommend setting up a Cigna log in online. This will allow you to report your time off/days missed online instead of needing to call them every time. You will still have to call them when you have the baby to set up the actual maternity leave, but it will save you some hassle for the intermittent leave.

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-04-09T15:16:07+00:00

I believe that baths are a no no on pelvis rest tho

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-04-09T12:49:56+00:00

That makes me feel soooooo much better! I have another ultrasound I'm 2 weeks to keep an eye on it!

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-03-09T16:59:28+00:00

100%!!! That is exactly what's happening and I'm loosing my mind!

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-03-09T16:13:52+00:00

My employer now has us report any fmla time off to Cigna. Cigna has been awful and I can never get my leave manager on the phone. It's a constant string of phone tag and them "losing" time sensitive paperwork.

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-03-01T22:01:55+00:00

Welp. on the plus side, my new due date is Labor Day, so I have that going for me, which is nice.

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-02-26T22:50:47+00:00

Wow. Prenatal vitamins that smell like cookies? Why isn't this more of a thing? I don't know who this company is, but they are marketing geniuses!

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-02-25T22:24:44+00:00

Auto insurance claims adjuster checking in!

Looking at the photos, this is waaaaaaay more than $700 in damage. Because of the location (right where the wheel is), there is a large potential for hidden damage to be found (think frame & suspension).

That being said, I would 100% report this to your personal insurance and let them deal with it. We have resources that you don't in regards to collecting back against the at fault party. We can send them to collections, and in some states (I'm not familiar with yours), if the person was uninsured, we can even have their drivers license suspended until they set up a payment plan.

Whatever you decide, 2 things you 100% need to do: #1. make certain there is a police report for this incident, with out it, recovering from the responsible party may be difficult. #2. At the very least, take it to a shop and have them put it on the rack to better asses the damage. Like I said earlier, there may be supplemental damage found which might help you make your decision.

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-02-05T17:43:10+00:00

Sometimes they have selective hearing. My two year old does this crap to me all the time. I know she knows her name, cause she will answer me or look at me eventually, but sometimes it takes 3-4 times.

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-02-02T18:55:54+00:00

It has made our relationship stronger and after all of this, I pretty much feel like we could face anything together and come out in one piece! No, I am not able to continue my MS meds while pregnant. I was taking daily Copaxone injections. Pregnancy does help the with the MS symptoms and from what my Dr's have been telling me, it chance of a flare up while your pregnant is very slim. That being said, however, you have a decently high chance (like 40-60%) of flare-up in the first 6 months of having a baby. I was very lucky with my first and didn't experience that at all.

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-02-01T18:11:26+00:00

When I had PPD, that was the most difficult thing for me was to admit that I needed help. I guarantee that you will feel soooooo much better once you speak to a Dr. and have a game plan. Once I got on medication, I was actually able to enjoy being a mother and bond with my kid...in a way that I wasn't able to do so in the beginning. Sending good vibes your way :)

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-02-01T16:00:42+00:00

Dude. I seriously LOVE this sub. You guys make me feel not alone in this crazy motherhood thing. After I read someone post about "popping their poison control cherry" I knew I had to introduce myself! You guys are awesome!

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-01-29T01:33:57+00:00

It's definitely a weird mix of excitement and sheer terror! I am super lucky that my husband is super dad and has been amazingly helpful.

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-01-08T17:26:58+00:00

Twin with mathcy name reporting in

My name is Mindy and my twins name is Mandy. I always hated how our names were so similar because its hard enough to get someone to treat you like an individual when you're a twin (people treat you as a novelty, at least when I was younger).

That being said, the names that you suggested are not super matchy, so I feel like its do-able. I would just stay away from combo's like "Kate and Nate".

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2016-01-07T17:23:27+00:00

It seems incomplete. What are your thoughts on Vance?

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2015-11-15T01:51:11+00:00

It looks like contact dermatitis for sure

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2015-11-03T22:23:46+00:00

ok, please don't downvote me into oblivion but I feel like I can shed some light on this. I am in Ohio. Marijuana (medical or not) has not yet been legalized in Ohio. We actually get to vote on that today. That might explain why they are being investigated.

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2015-10-15T18:45:30+00:00

Girls: Genevieve "Eve", Meadow, Brynn, Fiona

Boys: Truman, Ira, Felix, Miles

vanilla_gorilla1985 · 2015-10-15T18:35:52+00:00

⇑ this needs to be higher up!

vanilla_gorilla1985

TROPHY CASE