oh yes, the day after immunization shots and my ideal apartment

Last night she slept pretty much like she normally does. Napping yesterday was all day on me, but by nightfall she was feeling more secure and dozed off around 6.30pm. She was up a few more times than usual, but nothing extraordinary. I got at least one session of 3.5 hours, so I can't complain.

When she got up this morning at 6.20am we woke up daddy (sorry, daddy!), did her swim lesson in the bathtub, and dressed. Then cleaned her new ear piercings and removed the one that was off center. I debated this in my mind all day yesterday, all night, and this morning. Looking at it this morning I realized it is just TOO close to the part of her ear where she hears from and not enough on the lobe. It'll always be off and if I was her, I'd be annoyed.

I'm annoyed with my piercings since one was done badly. Had I known it would close up, even when I was 14 and had them first pierced, I would have let it close and did it again.

So we're going to let the one heal and close and keep the other pierced. When we go to Mexico in December we'll take her to a baby medical center kind of place where all they do is treat babies and they pierce all the baby girls' ears. They will do it correctly and (god willing/ojala) without all the unnecessary trauma like we had yesterday.

I will be the most angry I have ever been if they mess up her ear for a second time. So hopefully for everyone's sake, it goes well and peacefully :)

She still is warm but no high temperature/fever. She has noticed that the baby Tylenol taste shows up when we go to the doctor's. I'm guessing that's why she looks at me a little panicked and strangely when I put it in her mouth again this morning. The other months she didn't mind the taste, it is last month and this one when she started to make the connection. I'm guessing. I don't know how aware she is/can be, but she seems pretty whip-smart so I'm going to give her the benefit of the doubt.

Right now she's napping. I think it's time for me to nap, too.

I've started to think about burgers again. I should get back on that 'horse' and start up my burger trials.

In the meantime, I'll pose this to you all... we are going to wait to see how much our landlord raises our rent for next year's lease. If he won't lower it to $1700 or leave it at $1800 and do some repairs that we've been wanting, we're very likely going to move. Below are our criteria. Anyone know of a place that fits? (No sarcastic comments, please. I know I'm asking for the nearly impossible.)

The first 5 are requirements, the others are nice to haves...

1. Two-bedrooms. One of the bedrooms must be at least 8' x 10'. The other bedroom similar but larger. Not a half room suitable only for a little office. We'll need to fit two kids in there one day.
2. Has a washer and dryer in the building. In the apartment is fine, too.
   
3. $1600 a month or less. $1700 max if it's totally awesome.
4. 45-minute commute or less for Ismael to Rockefeller Plaza area, and doesn't require buying Express Bus passes. (Those are an extra $100 a month!) Although $1500 + express bus is, you know, ok.
   
5. 45-minute or less car ride from my parents' place in Fort Lee, NJ. They come to visit often enough that moving to the a**-end of Brooklyn or Queens where it's a hour plus ride, would just be obnoxious.
6. Downtown Manhattan, Brooklyn, maybe western part of Queens or Hoboken. We don't have a car and don't want to buy one. These are the places where you can get around fairly easily and do weekly food and baby stuff shopping without having a car. Hoboken may require the occasional ZipCar rental -- which is fine since then we'd stop paying NYC taxes and get to save 4%+ of our annual income.
   
7. Has a park within a 10-15 minute walk
   
8. Is not within 10 blocks of a major highway.
9. Within 25 minute walk to a friend's apartment. Preferably a friend who likes Carolina and wouldn't mind her coming over to visit and possibly nap on their bed if necessary :)
   
10. Does not have a "roach problem"
11. Does not have "plumbing issues"
12. Has a decent landlord and super
13. Does not have neighbors who think playing music at Volume 11 is okay.
14. Does not have mold actively growing on the bathroom walls
15. Does not have creaky, wooden floors that wake up the baby after I JUST got her to sleep (again)
16. Is within 10 minute walk of a decent grocery store, butcher shop, cheese shop, fish shop, and some Italian, Polish, Greek, Latino, Middle Eastern, Japanese, Chinese, Thai and Korean food. Oh and some good Jewish-run bagel and knish store could be handy, too!