Dishwasher Update

My friend, Lena, suggested that I try using some Calgon in the dishwasher. She said that they use a powdered Calgon at her school (she teaches at a Montessori school), and they just throw some in the bottom of the dishwasher every time they do the dishes. Well, I happened to have some liquid Calgon sitting in my basement from our apartment days (Yep. I never threw it out). So, I gave that a whirl. (I only threw half a capful down in the bottom of the dishwasher.)

It worked.

WOOOHOOO! Ancient Chinese secret, huh?

Thanks, Bean!

A "Dear John" Letter to Winter

Dear Winter,

Despite my clear communication, you just don't seem to get it. We broke up. Get the net. It's over, baby. Done and done. We're splitsville. The end.

Move on. Go do what Winter does when Winter gets dumped. Take a hiatus for, like, three seasons or something. I don't care. Just get outta here, will ya?

I'm not trying to get rash here, but I won't lie to you. The words "restraining order" have crossed my mind now and then lately. I'm not going there yet, but if you keep up with this "showing up uninvited" nonsense, I may have to go there. Don't make me do that. I don't want to be "that girl," but I will be "that girl" if I have to—'cause you're being "that guy."

Ye be warned.

Leave me alone, okay?

I'm sorry things didn't work out between us, but seriously. How long did you think this would last? I knew at the beginning it was going to be, like, a December-March relationship. How did you not see that coming, too?

It's not me. It's you.

Sincerely,

Jenny

P.S. The baby isn't yours, either. Sorry.

Belly Photo

I remembered to take my picture today!

Here I am at 18 weeks. (I'm still in regular clothes! I was totally in maternity
clothes at 18 weeks with Nora!) There's Nora in motion, too.


Here's a shot of that little girl's face.

The end!

Dishwasher Update and BREAKTHROUGH!

Well, the dishes that I washed again were undoubtedly cleaner than they were, but one of the butter knives still had peanut butter on it. Plus, there were two other dishes that were still not quite "passable."

The dishwasher looked cleaner, though. Hah.

I don't know if I'm going to win.

In other news, I'm pretty sure that Nora just asked me to change her dirty diaper. She was grunting and crying at me while she was standing next to her bedroom door (her changing table is in there), and she was doing this funny wiggle dance. It was as if she were saying, "Mom! I'm uncomfortable! Do something!"

That's the first time she's ever done that. Maybe potty training isn't too terribly far away.

Dishwasher Gripe

For the past four months or so, I've been having an ongoing battle with my dishwasher. We have an ancient beast of a dishwasher that was probably the state of the art in the eighties. It's a KitchenAid (a well-known brand, right?), and it's got the awesome faux front on it (you know, the kind that matches the rest of the cabinets). When we first bought the house, the knob that turned the dishwasher on would fall off the front whenever we'd open the door. I fixed that some time ago with some JB Weld. The prongs on the inside of the dishwasher rust out and fall off from time to time, and I've attempted several times to put them back in using some JB Weld and some duct tape, but I've found that the prongs just rust and break off again above where the JB Weld is. So, I've obviously given up on that, and prongs are disappearing slowly.

Unfortunately, the fact that the dishwasher is physically falling apart isn't my biggest beef with it. It has basically stopped washing my dishes. Any of Nora's plastic dishes always come out with the same layer of grease and goo that was on them when I put them in there. I don't even want to talk about my silverware (stainless steel Oneida silverware that should look glorious after a visit with the dishwasher). Sure, a good portion of my dishes come out acceptable (or passable), but they still aren't quite up to my standards. I end up rewashing a good 40% of the dishes by hand when I unload the dishwasher. (When Willis unloads the dishwasher, I think he assumes that everything is "clean," so he ends up putting it all away for me to find when I go to grab a dish. Even though I find these "surprises," I'm still glad the guy unloads the dishwasher now and then. It's not his fault the dishes are still dirty, after all. I just inspect each dish as I pull it out of the dishwasher—which is, admittedly, a bit OCD.) I've tried several different things (that actually did work for a good portion of time), but it seems like nothing I try anymore is helping at all.

• I make sure that there's always salt in our water softener. Our dishes always seem to come out cleaner when that thing is stocked. (And maybe this is the problem: we went through part of the late winter without stocking this thing because stores always keep their salt outdoors. We haven't bought any because they've been covered in snow and ice. I just started buying it again last week. Maybe the system needs to get used to the salt again?)
  
• I always try to remember the wetting agent (although, I'll admit I have no idea how much I should be putting in because there is no "fill line" or "instructions" for my dishwasher or for the wetting agents).
• I typically use Cascade dishwashing detergent (not even the generic stuff, but I've used generic stuff before and had it work just fine).
• I actually don't use much detergent: I also add a lot of vinegar. (This used to work like a charm when I first started doing it, and now, it doesn't seem to help at all.)
  
• I often times will even run my dishwasher while it's empty with a cup of vinegar and a cup of baking soda to clean it out.
• I make sure that the little "catch" thing at the bottom of my dishwasher is cleaned out.

I don't know. I think I might need to just admit I need a new dishwasher. Right now, I'm rewashing a partial load of dishes (I wasn't willing to hand wash these guys), and I tried something different. I threw in vinegar and baking soda, and I also tried using a bit more detergent than usual (still not as much as I'm supposed to use based on the dispenser). So, we'll see how that goes.

We weren't planning on buying a new dishwasher yet. So, it's going to have to wait, and I'm going to have to continue to be frustrated for awhile, I guess. What's sad: the thing still runs like a charm. It just does a terrible job at, well, its job.

Alphabet Parade

This afternoon after Nora woke up from her nap, I turned on an audio CD that I hadn't played for her in awhile. It's a kids' music album that my cousin actually made. Nora loves it.

When I turned it on, she just kind-of stood there for awhile with her little thumbs in her pockets. She was still a bit zoned out from her nap, I think. Then, after a few minutes, she started moving to the music. Here's a still shot of that.

After I took that photo, I realized it wasn't going to do her little dance justice, so I had to take a video of it.

I was bummed out when it cut out on me at the end because she actually started "reading" her book out loud. It was pretty funny.

Two Things

Earlier today, Nora was holding her penguin just after I changed her diaper and stood her on the floor. Next to the changing table, there's a plastic dresser (Rubbermaid) that has translucent drawers in it. I keep the penguin's stunt double in there, and I didn't hide him as well as I usually do. Nora saw his foot. She stood there for a minute looking at him through the drawer, and then she took the penguin she was holding and turned him over to look at his foot. She did seem rather puzzled. That poor kid. This double penguin thing is really messing with her.

Nora absolutely loves shells and cheese with peas and tuna. This makes me very happy because I am wanting it for lunch a lot right now (at least once a week). It is seriously tasty, and this kid cleans her plate every single time I make it. It's incredible.