My Piece Of Mind

Operation Remove the Excess

2012-01-28T10:46:00.000-08:00

So blog...you might be wondering what the heck I've been doing lately, since it's obviously not blogging.

Well, I have been busy chasing these two around. The big one has decided to get into a bit of preschool trouble again and the little one is exploring the joys of being two, which appear to include all manner of throwing - objects and fits.

But what's really has been distracting me is my house. Or rather all the stuff that's inside my house. There is nothing like the avalanche of new possessions from the holidays to work me into a decluttering frenzy. I've been sorting, organizing and donating like a mad thing this past month.

I think the highlight was discovering not one, but two giant warehouse store size containers of mustard that had been expired for more than two years. We moved about a year ago so this means we MOVED giant expired mustard...I think that's a crystal clear sign that a little decluttering and reorg is order.

So I've gotten rid of a ton of stuff. I've gone through the kids' outgrown clothes, the toy stash, my closet, my childhood stuff, the whole kitchen, my desk (which was slightly horrifying) and everything else I thought I could get away with without driving my poor husband crazy.

I have also bought a handful of "organizing" stuff. I've bought some files folders and magazine racks and that sort of these, but this is my favorite project so far.

I'm a big fan of earrings, but all my jewelry was shoved into a little jewelery box and I ended up only wearing two pairs on top. But now all my favorite jewelry is easily accessible! (My horrible photography doesn't do this jewelry tree justice, trust me in real life it's a beauty.)

I once read a organizing ideas book that suggested you arrange your clothing and accessories so that they look like a boutique. It sounds silly, but I've been experimenting with the concept and I am now a believer. Every morning I get to "shop" my wardrobe, which is infinitely more pleasant than digging through an over stuffed closet. All my old stuff seems so much more desirable and stylish when it's displayed rather than crammed.

I've also a big fan of this new purchase! I know it doesn't look like much, but these white doors now hide all the DVDs and children's CD that used to be overflowing a cheap bookcase type rack. We had definitely outgrown the old storage years ago and had been piling DVDs on top of it in a haphazard, potentially dangerous fashion. Not a good look and not a good design with small children about for many reasons.

Eliminating the temptation to remove all the movies is game changing. I love decorating my house in a way that limits the number of time I have to say "no".

It's still a work in progress, but Operation Remove the Excess has been wildly successful this past month. Our house is running much smoother. It's kind of amazing how liberating it is to get rid of the extra junk in your life. I feel much more in control of my world.

Maybe next month I should tackle operation get the blog back in gear!

Mastering Good Giving

2012-01-20T13:33:00.000-08:00

I’m trying to up my game and start giving better presents. There have been several occasions in the past when my extended family ended up just exchanging gift cards and frankly that’s pretty lame. Once both cards were even to the same store, but different amounts…awkward. Definitely not the stuff of holiday legend.

To be fair, I think gift cards are an excellent choice when somebody has need. We have an elderly relative with tight finances and we routinely send her gift cards. And I personally think it’s okay to send teenagers money. I have a brother who is in college and a niece in high school. I accept that I am too uncool to pick good presents for them, but I figure their cash flow is pretty tight.

But other than that, I want to avoid gift cards in general. But coming up with great presents is trickier than it seems. I really hate the idea of giving people crap they don’t really want. I really hate clutter and waste and I don’t want to add to piles of unused, unloved stuff in anybody’s house. So what’s a girl to do?

I’ve starting writing down gift ideas whenever something captures my attention. If somebody mentions an old movie they love but do not own, it goes on the list even if it’s February. I think it will help, but only time will tell. I'm not crafty (to be clear, I'm...not...crafty...at...all) so handmade is pretty much out unless it's baked goods, which I can handle. We’ve also been trying to buy experiences and not stuff. This summer my sister and I are taking my mom to the beach for a week to celebrate her 60^th birthday. I think trips and tickets and that sort of thing are ideal for people who don’t really “need” anything, but I live far from my family and sometime the coordination is challenging.

So I was curious, what is the best gift you got for Christmas? What made it so good?

I personally love it when people buy me things I secretly want, but I’m too cheap to buy for myself... like fancy lotion or good chocolate. And this Christmas, I got the best present ever. My boss tends to give gifts, rather than bonuses and this year I unexpectedly received a Kindle Fire from him. I had been coveting one, but I have a hard time dropping $200 on something for myself that is more of a want than a need. If he had just given me the money, I would have put in the college funds, but since he gave me the Kindle, I get to love it guilt free – and I do LOVE it.

Obviously I can’t drop hundreds of dollars on everybody on my list, but I’d love to hear any other ideas about what makes a gift special and memorable. I’m trying my best to master the art of gift giving, but I could use a little help.

Hope you are all having a great Friday!

PS - I'd also like to thank Mommy to Mommy for this award!

Drive This!

2012-01-16T12:51:00.000-08:00

Did you see this article? - Insurance study: Women are better drivers than men

I have to say this headline made me happy. I've heard many a cheap shots taken at "bad women drivers". I know plenty of crappy drivers and they certainly aren't all female. SO TAKE THAT!!!! (Is it a bad sign I'm feeling defensive about this issue?)

I suspect that we ladies are more likely to drive around with a car full of children and I've often wondered if that isn't the cause of our bad driving reputation. My worst driving moments are usually inspired by loud screaming coming from the back seat.

With real little ones you also get to worry about choking, siblings physically harming each other and projectiles flying at you from behind. And that stage when kids first learn to undo their seat belts, that was a pretty special time of unsafe driving around these parts.

Children have certainly added an element of surprise to the driving experience. I admit I've had some bad driver moments, especially since becoming a mother. That said, I don't have crappy driving moments because I have ovaries, I have them because I'm human.

Really, I think it's amazing that the study showed women are safer drivers. Obviously not every woman drives around herds of children, but I honestly would have mommy car pools of the world would have tipped it to favor the guys. I guess moms have even more super powers than I thought.

Adding a 2 to my 3

2012-01-11T04:45:00.000-08:00

Today is my 32nd birthday. I always thought I'd mind getting older, but so far my 30s really have been better than my 20s were. I feel much more at peace with my world these days. And I get cards like this one, which is pretty awesome.

It's an interesting year because it marks 10 years since I graduated college and 10 years since I met my husband. Back when I was 22 I had a master plan which definitely didn't include getting married before 30... which just makes me laugh.

This will also be a year of transitions. My little man will go off to full day kindergarten in the fall. I also plan to send my baby girl to preschool two mornings a week next year. This means I will be child free for 6 hours during the week, something that I find very bittersweet but am secretly very much looking forward to.

In the next year or so, my house should also become a diaper free zone and Audrey will move to a big girl bed. I have a hard time imagining a world without diapers, cribs and nap time.

In the last 5.5 years, I've been pregnant twice, nursed two babies for a year each and devoted most of myself to being a mom. I wouldn't want it any other way, but I am looking forward to having a bit more time to follow my own passions. And going to the bathroom by myself, I definitely miss that.

I think 32 is going to be a fun year. There are so many changes occurring and my kiddos are at such fun ages.

Have a wonderful day!

Melt My Heart

2012-01-09T14:01:00.000-08:00

We had our first snow of the year today! I thought it was only supposed to rain, but there have been big fluffy flakes falling for the last couple of hours.

Honestly, my first thoughts when I saw the snow were not positive. I started thinking about the hassle of shoveling and the logistics of the whole winter thing.

And then I saw the huge grins on my kiddos faces.

Somehow, I'd forgotten the magic of a first snow. I'd forgotten that this is really the first winter Audrey can play outside. Last year at this time she wasn't even walking. I'd forgotten about all the winter adventures my son had last year, partly because I was usually inside with the baby while the boys (J and his dad) explored the season.

So we changed our plans. We dug out the boots and the snowsuits. We found everybody a hat and some gloves. And we headed out.

Was it a all a bit of pain in the behind? Yup. It took longer than I'd imagined to get everybody bundled for the snow, especially since Audrey kept removing articles of clothing faster than I could put them back on. The aftermath of the adventure is also pretty impressive, my laundry is covered with wet stuff.

Was it all worth it?

Absolutely.

These kiddos of mine really do melt my heart. My life is so much more fun with them in it.

A New Year

2012-01-05T12:46:00.000-08:00

So I know I’m a bit behind with this, but I think I finally figured out my resolution for the year. At first, I thought that maybe it would be good to work on saying “yes” more. No seems have become my default answer lately and I don’t really want to live that way.

Lately, I find myself declining invitations because they seem like too much work or I’m too tired. And that is definitely not good. You’ll miss out on all the good stuff with that kind of mindset. I’ve also been saying no too often to the kiddos. Obviously, there are definitely times when the answer has to be “no” (like the continual request for cookies for breakfast and wanting to play swords with butter knives), but I could certainly say yes more than I do. Usually saying “yes” takes more energy or makes a bigger mess, but I suspect that’s the stuff that makes the best memories.

After thinking about it, I realized that the trick is to learn when to say no so that you have the energy to say yes to the important stuff. I have yet to master this one . Even as I’m saying no to all kinds of fun stuff, I end up saying yes to all sorts of obligations. I find myself agreeing too often to volunteering, donating and to doing too many work projects. Then I end up exhausted and end up saying no to the stuff I really care about. Sometimes it’s hard for me to accept that I only have a finite amount of energy.

I get asked to volunteer and donate so often that it’s kind of crazy. And I’m happy to do my fair share (as much as I pretend to be a slacker mom, I really not). But it’s easy for all the little requests to swallow up half your day. If you’re a SAHM type and you tried to say yes to everything people ask you to do, you’d end up losing your mind (or at least I do…).

So what I really want to do this year is work on that elusive balance of yes and no. I want to say yes to my kiddos as often as possible. More fun, more silliness, more playing, more trips to the park. (For the record, this does not mean I will buy them more stuff. It’s still no in the toy store.) I’d like to happily accept the fun invites and work on politely declining the other ones. I’m working on figuring out which volunteer projects I’d really like to do and which ones I should pass on. I’d like to say no more often so that I’m able to say yes when I really want to, if that makes any sense.

I think it’s going to be a good year. Happy 2012 everyone.

This Time of Year

2011-12-21T11:54:00.000-08:00

I love this time of year.

I don't mean the holiday season as a whole (although I not a holiday hater by any means).

But I love this time specifically...the few days before Christmas when the work is pretty much done. The decorations are up, the presents are bought, the packages are mailed, the cards are sent, and the menus are pretty much planned.

I still have a pretty serious amount of wrapping that needs to happen, but there is plenty of time to stop for a moment and just enjoy.

My kiddos are definitely bouncing off the wall with pre-Christmas excitement, but I think that's pretty normal. I'm sure all the sugar cookies aren't helping matters... But really, it's just nice that they are old enough to enjoy the season. Sometimes it's hard to be the one that makes all the magic happen, but there is undeniable magic in the air right now.

My in laws arrive tomorrow and then our celebration will officially begin. I'm going to try my best to enjoy it all and not stress over the little stuff. (Or even the big stuff...)

Happy Holidays everyone! I hope you and yours have a great holiday.

P.S- While I lost my blog mojo, this happened...

My baby girl turned 2! I am experiencing the bittersweet reality of your baby not really being a baby any longer.

I Miss You!

2011-12-06T12:46:00.000-08:00

Dear blog,

Sorry I haven't been by in awhile. I promise I'll return soon. Work has suddenly become very busy. The good news is that December is an ideal month to make extra money. The bad news is that I have to actually put in the hours to earn the bigger paycheck. So blogging time just doesn't exist right now...

I should be back by next week.

As a quick update while I'm here, life is going well here. My husband's head is healing up nicely and there isn't any long term issues. Holiday preps are coming along nicely. The tree is up and the kiddos are over the moon about it. I've finished my shopping, but I still need to wrap and mail everything. The cards are here, but I haven't addressed them yet. All and all, not too bad for December 6th.

This is really the best, most enjoyable holiday season we've had in years. Two years ago, my daughter joined our family in mid-December. Last year we moved two weeks before Christmas. Moving and new babies are both wonderful things, but they can serious add some stress to the holidays. I'm really enjoying a nice, drama free December so far. I love this time of year.

I love all is well with everyone.

Love,

P.S. - I love this photo! (Even if the rest of the story is that my daughter is on the floor just out of view throwing a fit.)

Giving Thanks

2011-11-24T11:02:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving to those who are celebrating today. Hope everybody is having a good day, even if it doesn’t involve a feast.

I am feeling truly thankful today.

We’ve had an eventful week in our house. My husband ended up in the ER to get 8 staples in his head after a fall playing basketball during his lunch break. He’s okay and he doesn’t seem to be hurt beyond the cut. But a head injury is always scary.

I’m very thankful that he wasn’t hurt worse. And I’m thankful that we have medical insurance.

In related thoughts, I’m also thankful for my husband’s job. All the economic issues of the past few years have certainly increased my appreciation for my husband’s stable government job with good benefits. I'm very thankful that we can ride out a trip to the ER and all the plumbing drama from last week without it putting us in debt. I'm also thankful for my part time job that allows me to make a little money, but still spend most of my time chasing my kids.

Last year at this time, we were in the middle of trying to sell our old house. We were under contract after 99 days on the market, but we were having inspection and appraisal issues. There were many times when it looked like the whole thing might fall apart. I am so thankful that we were able to sell our old home and buy the new one. I know that many others are underwater on their mortgages and don’t have any good options. We definitely lucked out on the home sale and we were lucky that we didn't buy at the top of home market.

I'm also thankful we won't be moving 2 weeks before Christmas this year. We managed to get our tree up last year, but it was a close call.

Finally, I am of course thankful for my family. I have two wonderful, healthy kids and a fantastic husband.

I love my life and I am truly thankful for all my blessings.

Well, enough of that sappiness. - I’m off to make some English toffee and put the finishing touches on our Thanksgiving dinner.

Don't eat too much!

P.S. Good luck if you're hitting the sales tomorrow. I'm venturing out for the first time on black Friday morning. I'll let you know how it goes.

The Name Game

2011-11-22T07:05:00.000-08:00

I recently stumbled across this article – No joke: Ex-mayor’s name too funny for Indiana government center

Fort Wayne, Indiana is building a new government center and is brainstorming what to call it. They’re hosting an online poll, but it doesn’t look like they are going to select the first place winner, even though one name is winning by a land slide.

What’s the issue? The name is Harry Baals.

Just to be clear, this name isn’t a made up joke. Harry Baals was a very popular former major who served four years in the 1930s and 1950s. He is exactly the type of man you would want to name a government center after.

But the town is worried about becoming a joke. (Probably with good reason.)

This is an issue that hits a bit close to home for me. You see, my last name is an actual English word. It’s one of those words that I think has a relatively high chance of becoming a dirty joke or making my daughter sound like a stripper.

It’s hard to predict what’s going to be hilariously filthy 30 years from now. I gave my children pretty standard names (James who we call “J” for short and Audrey) and I hope they’re full names will still be safe to utter in front of 13 years olds in the future, but still I worry a little. The potential for unfortunate jokes was definitely something I considered when picking names.

Back when former governor Harry Baals was named, the name wasn’t funny. His parent didn’t purposely select something that was too conversational to put on a building.

On one level, I find the whole thing pretty amusing. But I honestly do feel for the family. They’ve even changed the pronunciation of their last name to “Bales” from “Balls” in a an effort to protect Harry from ridicule. It’s sad that this man will miss on out the honor simply because of his name.

There is so much pressure on parents when picking names! Here these folks tried to give their child a nice, normal name and it back fired.

It makes me curious about the times when parents are trying to be unique or trendy. I wonder what some of these celebrity kids will think of their unique monikers as they grow up. But I guess getting a huge inheritance will soften any blows.

I just hope my kid’s names remain nice and normal. I guess only time will tell...

Ridiculousness All Around

2011-11-17T14:53:00.000-08:00

Today hasn't been a bad day, but it has been a ridiculous day.

If I told you how many times today I've said "this is not a good time to take off your clothes" and "please put your tongue back in your mouth", you'd probably think my life was far more exciting than it actually is.

I also think it's amusing how many little things preschool requires. Today, my son needed something for show in tell, a picture of something that starts with the letter "C" and it was our turn to bring in snack for his class of 15. This is also the day he stays late for an extra class so I needed to pack him a lunch. I know none of things are hard by themselves, but it gets a little out of hand when they all stack up.

I had a 1-5pm window for a plumber to show up this afternoon to fix a slow leak on the hot water pipe leading to a sink in a bathroom. This was also the morning when I happened to host a coffee for some neighborhood moms so there were about a dozen extra bodies in my house when the plumber showed up well before expected at 11 am. (The company did call to check if I was home, but I wasn't about to say no and risk the plumber going MIA.)

Turns out the main cutout valve that shuts off the water supply to the whole house was also leaking and covered in rust. Add in a few more minor things and the bill was almost $900. I am grateful that we discovered that the cutoff valve needed replaced before something was flooding our house with no way to stop it, but it wasn't exactly part of the plan for the day.

I'm looking forward to curling up on the couch with my husband today and having a glass of wine.

Anybody else have a ridiculous day?

I'm thankful that tomorrow is Friday and we have nothing planned!

I'll Buy that Free Replacement

2011-11-15T11:12:00.000-08:00

If you judge me by my gadgets, I’m pretty uncool. I don’t have an Ipad or a smart phone. We don’t even have a flat screen TV. I think it’s a mix of being frugal and living with two small very destructive beings. The reality is that anything small enough to fit in a toilet has the potential for a pretty short life span around these parts and even the big stuff is prone to projectile damage. It just doesn’t make sense to invest in anything optional that is both breakable and expensive at this point in time

Anyway, I own and still use a really old “first generation” Ipod nano. I bought it pre-kiddos and I’ve just never bothered to upgrade.

And I just want to take a moment to point out that it still works like a champ. I have used and abused the poor thing over the last six years and it has never let me down.

I’m not a complete convert to Apple, but I have to say that I am impressed with the gadgets they have been producing.

Now I have a reason to be impressed with the company itself. I got an email from Apple this week with an offer to replace my nano with a new one. Just to be clear, it's a new "first generation" nano so it's a new old one, but it's still got to be better than what I've got. Apparently, there is a battery defect associated with one of their supplies that can cause the battery to overheat and pose a potential safety risk so they are replacing all affected models for free.

I guess you could look at it and say that this is bad since my iPod has the potential to burn me or cause a fire. But as an engineer, I’m impressed with how they managed the problem. No matter how careful you, it’s pretty much impossible to prevent all issues. Perfection just doesn’t exist no matter how much you design for it. (Obviously, if a product breaks all the the time that's an entirely different matter.)

I think you learn a lot about a company from how they manage the issues that pop come up. I’ve seen plenty of examples where companies tried to down play an issue to avoid negative publicity. Apple gets points in my book for being proactive.

It is a bit of a bummer that it takes up to six weeks to receive my replacement Ipod, but I’m getting a new one out of the deal so I can’t really complain.

Really, the only negative is that I lost most of my justification for upgrading my Ipod to something newer and cooler. I've been secretly hoping it would finally die so I could upgrade without guilt. Maybe in a few years when the tablets get cheaper I’ll take the plunge…

Bottom line - this appears to be a rare issue with old technology and yet they are willing to replace my Ipod for free. My Ipod’s warranty expired about 5 years old so I think that’s pretty generous under the circumstances.

Does anybody else have any experience with Apple? What do you think of the company?

Right now, I have to say I’m feeling the love.

Here's the Skinny

2011-11-13T12:53:00.000-08:00

Why is it we women are so hard on ourselves?

I’ve always had a thing about my hips. Or not exactly my hips, but that region where my legs meet the rest of me that I like to refer to as the buthigh. That’s never been my favorite body part.

I don’t have much up top, but I always have a gap in my waist band. If I was so inclined to describe myself as a piece of fruit, pear would be the one.

But I think the time has come to just let it go. I’ve wasted enough hours worrying over the size of my hips. When I look back at old photos of myself, I realize that I didn’t appreciate my twenty something body nearly enough. Not that I was ever super model material, but I definitely focused on my perceived flaws and missed the good stuff.

And really, life is too short for that nonsense.

I’m going to work on focusing on the positive things. I’m proud that I’m at my pre-baby weight. I feel healthy. I’m getting a decent amount of sleep these days. So what if my hips will always be bigger than a models?

The end result of all this soul searching is that I sported my first pair of skinny jeans this weekend. And I liked it!

I swore I would never, ever wear skinny jeans. I thought they would make my hips look the size of Texas. I thought they were all wrong for my body type. But I kind of forget how forgiving sketchy denim is. I don’t actually think they look too bad once they were actually on.

I also kind of forget how fun it is to wear tall boots. The boots were definitely part of the motivation to try the skinny jeans.

Even when both children are screaming in the middle of grocery store and the situation is totally out of control, you still kind of feel like a bad ass if you’re wearing tall boots. Or at least I do. (Let me keep my delusions if this is just me, I need the boast these days with my wild 4.5 and the little one about to hit 2.)

I’m not sure why, but I really do feel so much better on a bad day when I put on an outfit I feel good in. I guess it’s a bit like faking it until you make it, but it really does help me channel the right mood to get through a rough day. I can at least look the part and then maybe I can act the part. I certainly don’t feel at the top of my game when my hair is in a greasily pony-tail and I’m in baggy sweat pants.

So long live the skinny jeans! To hell with the hipless model in the magazines. My boots are going to walk all over your stereotypes. Okay, maybe that’s a bit too sweeping and melodramatic, but I am going to wear my boots and feel good while I'm doing it.

Daylight, Go Save Yourself

2011-11-08T12:11:00.000-08:00

Oh daylight savings, you sly minx. Well played last weekend, well played.

I have once again underestimated your ability to cause chaos.

If you think about it, changing the clock is a pretty odd thing. Time is one of those things that an entire society has to agree on to work. It’s kind of like picking a side of the road to drive on, everybody has to be on the joke or the results really aren’t funny.

And my kids aren’t in on the daylight savings punch line. They are not amused.

My house is struggling because we can’t agree on what time it is. The kiddos’ sleep cycles and tummies aren’t digging an hour shift.

For some reason, they are protesting the whole thing by waking up even earlier than usual. I’ve always had early birds, but they’ve been celebrating daylight savings by waking up at 5 this week. I’m kind of over it.

On a positive note, I had no problem being on time for my son’s 9 am dental appointment yesterday because I had four hours to get us there.

Also, it turns out that things could be much worse. I thought it was confusing to shift the clocks twice a year, but apparently this is the modern, simple approach to making good use of the daylight. According to my good friend Wikipedia, some ancient civilizations dealt with the changing hours of daylight by varying the length of hours seasonally. They often divided the daylight into twelve hours so that hours were longer in the summer and shorter in the winter.

Can you imagine implementing that today? I’m pretty sure I’d always be late if time was a moving target.

Kim's Wedding Krash

2011-11-04T03:51:00.000-07:00

Kim Kardashian’s wedded bliss lasted for a whopping 72 days. I’ve been married for about 7.5 years, which is over 2,700 days. This means I’ve been married for more than 38 Kardashians! For some reason, that actually feels like an accomplishment.

I did enough stupid things in college that I can kind of understand how Brittany Spears ended up drunkenly hitched in a Vegas chapel. What I really don’t get is how you can spend more time planning the wedding than actually being married. Doesn’t it seem like a super elaborate wedding should produce a marriage that at least makes it to the first anniversary? I’d be pretty pissed if I’d bought them a wedding gift.

This story has been all over the headlines all week. I have to ask -Why is Kim Kardashian so famous anyway? Does anybody know? Obviously, she is smoking hot and I’m sure the sex tape didn’t hurt her career, but what does she do? Other than semi-famous man that is.

I can’t decide if Kim Kardashian is a genius master mind or dumb as a box of rocks. If the girl is actively plotting how to keep herself famous with no real accomplishments, she has been wildly successful. I secretly suspect she is laughing all the way to the bank. But, well, there is a vacant look in her eyes that I’m not sure can be faked.

As a girl with some junk in the truck, I do appreciate the fact that Kim Kardashian has helped increase the property value of my back porch. But in general, I don’t have a lot of love for the Kardashians. Maybe I’d understand the allure if I was a dude?

Thanking It Up!

2011-11-02T11:22:00.000-07:00

The Halloween decorations are down and the mood in the house seems to have followed suit.

Both of my little ones LOVE Halloween. And I think we did a pretty good job of maximizing the fun this year. My son was invited to a costume Halloween themed birthday party last Saturday. We hit an alternative no-candy trick or treat on Sunday and the kid got all kinds of goodie bag-ish loot. They are still in a sugar coma from Monday’s adventures. We even visited two different pumpkin patches this year.

But the excitement is dying down and they are both acting a little broken hearted. I keep trying to convince them that a super fun holiday is coming at the end of the month, but they aren’t really buying it.

I really do want to maxim the fun and make Thanksgiving feel special too, but I’m not sure the best way to do it. I personally think Thanksgiving is even more special than Halloween, but my sugared up preschooler isn’t convinced.

I’ve been searching for some Thanksgiving inspired decorations, but isn’t much to be found. I’m now the proud of owner of a pair of turkey hand towels and a turkey decorative plate.

(However, if you’re feeling motivated to put a Christmas tree, there are hundreds of options readily available. It definitely freaked me out a bit to see Christmas tree on display in mid-October.)

I love Thanksgiving. I love the idea of taking a day to be grateful and the fact that it’s a family centered holiday that isn’t just about what you get. I’d really like to teach my children to appreciate the day and see it was more than just a day off from school with the added bonus of pie. But it’s proving to be kind of a tricky holiday in our house.

Due to work schedules and distance, Thanksgiving is generally just the four of us. Without extended family around, it’s a bit of a struggle to make the day seem special. Do any of you have any suggestions?

So far, I’ve bought some Thanksgiving craft projects. I obviously plan to make a special meal. I’m also plotting some new fancy table settings. I think we’re going to attempt some family board games that day. But…that’s about all I’ve got.

What do you do to celebrate Thanksgiving? Do you like the holiday or is it just a day off from work?

Have a Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T11:37:00.000-07:00

We've got pumpkins!

We've got costumes!

We've got tons of candy to give out!

(Hopefully, it's enough...This is our first Halloween in the new house and apparently we now live in trick or treat central. I've had three different neighbors pull me aside to ask if I've bought enough candy and warn me that we will need A LOT.)

My husband's parents are visiting so we even have grandparents to help us party.

The plan is for me to man the door while my husband takes the kiddos around the neighborhood. My son has the route all planned out.

I think we're ready!

Have a great Halloween.

Ding Dong the Witch is Dead

2011-10-26T12:03:00.000-07:00

My house has been a spooky place this past week. There has been a foul witch haunting these parts, but I think she has been vanquished!

I'm not sure what is going on, but I've been a little too in touch with my inner hag. I am planning to dress up as a witch for the big day, but I wasn't planning on embracing the role so thoroughly! (Maybe I can just claim I was method acting?)

There isn't really anything wrong. All the small things just added up and my world starting to feel a bit too heavy. My minions have been misbehaving more than usual. Sleep has been elusive on account of teething and too much Halloween excitement. My husband went on a work trip last week. I have two giant pimples on my chin. I have a bigger than normal list of crap to take care of. But really I have nothing major to complain about and yet I find myself bitching.

I am normally a glass half full kind of girl, but this past week all I see is the empty half of everything. I generally roll with the punches, but I pretty much fell down about a week ago.

So I'm trying to pick myself back up. I've been drinking a few more cups of tea and squeezing in time to visit with friends. I am working a little less this week and reading a bit more. I've been trying to find fun activities to do with the kiddos. I've been avoiding the depressing news and sticking with the Style section of the paper. And I might have broke into the Halloween candy a little early.

And it is helping. Today is the first day I've really felt like myself for awhile. I think I've got my groove back. (I suspect it was hiding in the bottom of a glass of Sangria I drank last night out with friends.)

Hopefully, the witch is really dead. I really didn't like having her around.

What I Know to be True

2011-10-24T11:45:00.000-07:00

I’m addicted to watching TED talks. TED is a non-profit dedicated to sharing ideas worth spreading. How cool is that? TED.com has a ton of relatively short talks by a outstanding speakers, all completely free.

If you’ve never checked TED out, I highly recommend paying them a visit.

Anyway, I recently watched a TED talk by spoken word poet, Sarah Kay.

I’ve never really gotten spoken word poetry, but I really enjoyed this talk. Any woman who talks about inspiring people to rediscover wonder is speaking my language. It was definitely a well spent 20 minutes.

One of the things that Sarah said was that she assigns lists to help jump start kids into writing poetry. One of the lists she typically assigns is “10 Things I know to Be True” and this idea seemed to be begging to become a blog post.

So in honor of Sarah Kay’s Ted talk here is my list.

10 Things I Know to Be True

1. Life is not one size fits all.

2. Points should be awarded for effort.

3. My children bring out the best and the worst in me.

4. The golden rule is still pretty golden.

5. I am a work in progress.

6. Ready is essential to my sanity. Life gets pretty drab (and so do I) when I don't feed my brain interesting things.

7. The little things matter.

8. Holidays are more fun with kids around.

9. I love my family.

10. If you've been out of high school for more than 10 years and you're still sporting the same 'do, you should seriously consider a new hairstyle.

I found this harder than I expected, but I thought it was an interesting exercise. I know some of these items are clique, but I don’t think that makes them any less true. It's funny how I thought I'd know all the answers by the time I was my age, but I still feel like I'm learning to ask the right questions.

What do you know to be true?

Have a fantastic day.

All Fired Up

2011-10-20T10:43:00.000-07:00

In addition to the pumpkin patch adventure last weekend, we stopped by our local fire station’s open house. It was a very cool event. Every October the fire house opens their doors to local kids to help educate them about fire safety in a fun way. The fireman answered questions, gave out plastic fire hats and even let the kids use some of their equipment.

My kiddos got to “drive” the fire truck and ambulance-

And my son even got to spray the fire hose. (I don’t think I’m ever going to be able to top this one.)

It was really a neat adventure for my little ones. I think they both learned a little something too. The firemen did a good job telling the kids to never hide if there is a fire and to go to a fireman if they see one. I’ve never thought about it before, but a fireman in full gear must be terrifying to a young child. As much fun as these events are, I bet they save lives every year.

The fireman also reinforced that you should dial 911 in case of an emergency. My son recently learned this lesson and I am a bit nervous that my son is going to misuse his new skills.

J knows to call 911 if there is an emergency, but I don’t think he’s put two and two together and realized that 911 has the ability to summon a fire truck to our house. I won’t be surprised at all if my little guy is inspired to try the whole thing out one of these days. I just hope I’m not on a first name basis with the fire chief by the end of the year!

Hope you are all having a great week.

Patch Job

2011-10-17T12:03:00.000-07:00

I thought I'd at least nailed the festive background, but I just noticed the lovely power lines.

The weather was nice, but the subjects were a little overly excited.

Thank goodness for digital photography!

I'm not even sure what that face is my son is making and Audrey is trying to escape.

This was a near miss. They just don't look like they are having fun and Audrey has jazz hands. I will probably print it out and mail to the grandmothers because it's pretty much as good as it gets when it comes to photos of my kids (at least when I have the camera).

If you ignore the power lines, we were able to get some decent shots individually.

Audrey isn't exactly smiling, but I think she still looks cute.

I'm a big believer that photos aren't the point, that's it's more about the experience. And the experience was great. The kids had a blast and pumpkins were purchased. But I still wish I could get a great shot once in awhile.

Hope all your fall adventures have been fun so far!

Marathon Mama

2011-10-13T10:46:00.000-07:00

Check this out - Woman gives birth after running Chicago marathon

According to the article, a woman completed a marathon nearly 39 weeks pregnant and then gave birth a few hours later.

I'm not even sure what to think about that.

She had her doctor's blessing to run the marathon. She's a very experienced runner who has now completed 8 marathons. Both mom and baby are healthy.

But..

It still seems a bit over the top. I feel like I need to stop judging, especially since my main source of exercise in my third trimester was to waddle to the bathroom a hundred times a day, but I can't really help myself.

Running a marathon super pregnant just seems like a bad idea. To be fair, I guess I should admit that running a marathon in general doesn't really excite me.

Oh - the kicker is that this is the third time she's run a marathon while pregnant. She completed a marathon last May when she was 17 weeks pregnant with this same baby and she ran a marathon in 2009 while 18 weeks pregnant with her one year old son.

The only side effect of running the marathon 39 weeks pregnant - blisters on her feet.

Maybe we should clone this gal? She must have super powers.

My Cake Pop Wrecks

2011-10-11T10:56:00.000-07:00

Before I show you the following photos, I feel the need for a disclaimer. I am not a super star in the kitchen, but I'm not hopeless. I cook nearly all our meals at home, have mastered yeast and can even make my mom's English toffee. Family Circle just totally schooled me on this one.

In a fit of overachieving, I got inspired to try to make these cake pops for my MOMS Club meeting this morning-

According to the magazine, you just bake a cake mix, crumble it, chill it and dip it in melted candy coating and decorate them. I figured it would be time consuming, but clean, family fun for all ages.

I thought I could handled this one.

Wrong.

My mutant cat creations aren't nearly as well groomed or appetizing as the photo. It was nearly impossible to keep them together during the dipping process.

The melted candy coating was like a ray gun that disintegrated the cake balls on contact.

It ended with me angrily dumping candy coating on my surviving cake balls, resulting in some fairly disturbing demonic cookies.

So instead of being the mom who bought the super cute cake pops, I'm the mom who bought hot mess cookies with eyes.

Cake Pops 1, Me 0.

Darn you Family Circle and your promises of easy Halloween treats.

(I doubled checked and I correctly followed the instructions in the freaking article.)

I can't let these things defeat me! There will be another round and next time I'm determined that my cake pops will actually be on sticks and will not look like evil mutants.

So...do any of you domestic divas has any suggestions? Am I missing some super secret tricks on this one? Please help me conquer the cake pops!

Age of the Beholder

2011-10-09T09:34:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine generously passes along her magazines to me. This bunch included Glamour (which she assured me she got by accident).

Anyway, this is the first time I’ve even glanced at a Glamour since college and I have to say that the scenery looks pretty different these days. I’m so uncool now that I don’t even think most of the outfits in Glamour are cute.

I’m not shocked by my lack of style, but I was taken aback by the age of a few of the “real life” ladies featured in the magazine. For instance, 30 year old Anne was photographed at a music festival wearing shorts so short that the pockets showed. (I thought it was telling that the women’s ages were even included along with their photos.)

I’m 31. I can’t really remember the last time I went to a music festival. I have however made quite a splash at the merry-go-round of four year old birthday parties this year.

It’s just interesting to see how different my reality is from the lives of these women. I’m not trying to say that one is better than the other. The pages of Glamour are exist in a parallel universe from the one I live in.

Anyway despite our differences, Glamour and I were having a pretty good time right until I came to a page that said this in giant font – “At 16 you can drive. At 18 you can vote. At 21 you can drink. At 25 you hit your quarter-life crisis. And then comes 30, when you suddenly irrevocably transform into…and Old Person. Right? Wrong”

Any magazine that feels the need to reassure me that 30 isn’t really old, can’t be my friend.

At first I was kind of pissed, but then I realized that I’m the one out of line here. I really have no business judging Glamour by my “old” standards (or reading it for that matter). I am clearly not their demographic. If I’m being really honest, I’m pretty sure my 20 year old self would judge my minivan lifestyle harshly so I shouldn't hold a fear of turning 30 against the current crop of 20 somethings.

But as somebody who has had a 30th birthday and survived, I just wish younger people knew that getting older has some awesome fringe benefits.

Most of us quit worrying so much what others think, which is so very liberating. You’ll likely discover the joys of classic style and quit wasting time and money on trends. You aren’t wasting energy figuring out what you want to be when you grow up – because you ALREADY are grown up.

There is beauty in leaving beyond the uncertainties of youth and finally figuring out who you really want to be.

So maybe my ass isn’t what it once was. I wouldn’t trade the confidence of my 30s for the body of my 20s.

(Sorry Glamour – but we still can’t be friends. We aren’t good for each other.)

Design Inspiration

2011-10-06T10:17:00.000-07:00

We bought a new house last winter and it is likely to be THE house. I’m pretty sure this is the home where I will raise my babies and spend the vast majority of my adult life.

There is quite a bit more space in the new digs and I’ve been in a decorating frenzy since the move. I love this house and I want to make it beautiful.

But I’ve also realized that I want something beyond just pretty, I really want to create a meaningful home. Ideally, the house would be both full of meaning and lovely.

I'm not sure I can pull it off, but there's one of my attempts so far-

(And yes, I realize the photo is pretty bad. I'm crap with a camera so this is as good as it got.)

It’s a collection of sketches from Leonardo da Vinci’s notebooks. (The art was cut from a used book and the frames were bought on sale at Michael’s.)

I love Leonardo da Vinci. I find him to be fabulously fascinating.

Obviously, he’s best known as a painter, but the man was truly a genius who dabbed in just about everything. Beyond his skill as an artist, he was accomplished as an architect, musician, scientist, mathematician, anatomist, geologist, botanist, writer and engineer.

I’m an engineer by training, which is a field associated with a plethora of well-earned stereotypes. I know I tend to lean toward the left side of my brain, but I try to lead a well rounded life. I love the possibilities that a man like da Vinci opens. He gives me hope that maybe there is a little bit of artist, engineer, architect, musician, etc in all of us.

These pictures remind me that each of us is full of potential. They also inspire me to turn off the TV, get off the couch and do something productive myself.

I’m not sure others will find the pictures beautiful, but I love them.

The Kicking Queen

2011-10-04T09:10:00.000-07:00

Did you see this headline? - Homecoming queen kicks winning field goal

I thought it was a pretty neat story. A high school girl was crowned Homecoming Queen (in a football uniform with full pads) and then ends up kicking the winning field goal in the football game.

I always enjoy a lady who can turn stereotypes on their heads, especially if she can look good going it.

According to the article, this same young lady sports a 4.0 gpa and serves as the student body treasurer. Who can really tell from a newspaper article, but she seemed sweet and humble despite her impressive accomplishments.

I am a big fan of the fact that she is a good student. As much as I love the drama of a winning field goal, I'm a believer that academics have to come before extracurriculars.

I hope my daughter has plenty of role models like this in her future. I'd much rather she admire a football playing homecoming queen than Katy Perry and the rest of the current crop of pop queens.

I want my little girl to grow up knowning that she can be anything and that it's possible to be feminine and still kick a little ass.

How to Pimp Your Blog on a Budget

2011-10-01T11:19:00.000-07:00

So... I changed my blog design… again. (Sorry, I know I'm a bit out of control with the blog template changes this week. I promise I'm done now.)

I just haven’t been happy using generic templates. I kept running into my blog design more times than you’d think possible. Finding an identical blog is even worse than wearing the same dress to a party. It’s more akin to wearing the same face as a stranger and nobody wants that.

I realize that I could theoretically create my own custom blog header, but my attempts to do so have been shockingly lame.

There was no way I was paying to have a customize blog design built. The few times I was brave enough to google the idea, I was traumatized by the price of admission.

But once again Etsy has rocked my world and proven that it is one of the coolest sites on the web.

Just on a whim I decided to search Etsy for blogger templates. There are actually a whole bunch of options available at a range of price points. (Did you guys know that? I had no idea.)

I found a wonderful shop called Design Muse that sells some pretty nifty premade blogger templates for $25. The blog designs include a blog button, a signature graphic, header and background - the whole works.

The only bit I didn’t love was that the templates are resold. I really didn't want to run into my exact header in bloggyland, even if this was a huge step up from a freebie download.

I figured it was worth a shot so I asked if it was possible to have a header customized and she agreed to it for a very reasonable additional fee.

So now I have my very own unique blog design! I got to support a Etsy shop and I didn’t completely blow my budget. Everybody wins!

I highly recommend the Design Muse. She was responsive, pleasant and affordable. If you too dream of a unique blog design, this is a very realistic way to make it a reality. (She makes Etsy shop banners too if you're in the market.)

Blog on people! Blog on!

Preschool Progress

2011-09-29T11:12:00.000-07:00

The principal visit on Tuesday appears to have been rock bottom and things are looking up around here. According to both the teacher and my little man, the last two days went much better. Stickers were earned and everybody is happy.
(Thank goodness. I’m not cut out for the role of prison warden.)

I’m not sure what turned the tide of naughtiness. It definitely helps that J is making friends with his classmates. This morning, he held the hand of a little girl in his class and stared at her adoringly so maybe a new crush is inspiring his good behavior. (His love interest from last year is in the other pre-K class. It appears to have been a relationship of convenience that isn’t weathering the long distance well.)

I’m not sure it helps, but I’ve been trying to make the mornings as low stress as possible. I’ve started everything a bit earlier so that there is no rushing. I’ve been trying really hard to pick my battles and send him off to school in a good mood with a full belly.

I’m also trying to get a little more silliness back in our routine. My little man has always responded better to games and jokes and that sort of thing rather than straight out demands. For example, “Please get into the car” is met with resistance, but “Let’s race to the car” gets him into his car seat without a fuss nearly every time. It’s always a struggle to be creative with parenting, especially with the stress is on, but I’m working on it.

Despite my attempts to "fix" the problem, I'm pretty sure that time had more to do with it than anything. This is only his second full week of preschool and I think he just needed a little time to get used to everything.

So for this moment, the crisis appears to over. I'm not ready to call it a victory just yet, but at least we're back in the game.

The Principal Problem

2011-09-27T11:58:00.000-07:00

Did you know that you can get sent to the principal in preschool?

Well, apparently you can and it took my son less than two weeks to figure out how to accomplish this feat. Bet you’re jealous because my kid is so advanced!

I was hoping this was a milestone we could avoid…you know, to at least kindergarten.

Our transition to a five morning a week prekindergarten preschool class has been rocky to say the least. (He went three mornings a week last year so we added two extra mornings this year– which is standard operating procedure around these parts. )

My son has always been an active, stereotypical boy, but he has never been aggressive. Well, check that, he has never BEFORE been aggressive. This morning he hit a couple of kids on the playground and then kicked somebody at snack time.

Honestly, I’m really frustrated and not sure what to do.

We talk and talk and talk about this stuff. I take away privileges, I give time outs, I take away toys…I really am trying here. My little man hasn’t watched TV in a week and there have been very few treats of any kind around here. I try my best to balance out the negative with lots of positive reinforcement, hugs and kisses and all that good stuff.

Despite the substantial evidence to the contrary, he hasn’t been raised by wolves. He has a mother who cares and who is busting her behind.

I think we could all do with a time out this week.

Settled, Down not For

2011-09-26T10:18:00.000-07:00

There is an important difference between settling down and settling for something. That distinction seems to get lost sometimes.

It doesn't matter whether you are a working mom, a stay at home type or a some hybrid in the middle, there is a lot of negativity dumped on mothers. Books, TV shows, movies, even stories in the news are full of tales of unhappy, bitter woman trapped by their choices.

I’m sick of the frazzled, unhappy, frumpy mom stereotypes. They make me mad, but more than that I think they are dangerous. If you hear something enough times, it can start to sound like the truth.

So I just want to state once and for all that I may have settle down, but I didn’t settle. I choose this life. And I am happy, damn it.

Did I “give up” my full time career and a bunch of my personal freedom? Sure I did, but the rest of the question should be what did I get in return. I got a family that I adore. I get the wonderful privilege of raising two fascinating little people. I don’t see this deal as a sacrifice; I see it as the bargain.

Of course, marriage, even without children, requires that people give up a certain things. I’m sure there are exceptions, but most married folks can’t get drunk and kiss a stranger without consequences. You can’t be totally selfish and you should probably consider your mate in major life decisions. You might have to share the remote or allow your mate to decorate your basement with Steelers propaganda. But at the end of the day, I want to be tucked in next to my man. The pros aren't even in the same ball park as the cons.

I feel the same way about my kids. There are days when I just want to use the bathroom by myself. There are days when I’m desperately in need of reinforcements by the time my husband comes home. But I would never, never trade this chaotic life for anything.

I love being a mom. I love eating homemade dinners at our table. I love mornings at the park and long stroller walks. I love holding a chubby little hand. I love sharing my life with the one man who really and truly knows me and loves me anyway.

It’s true that I’m about as settled as one can be. I’ve got a couple of kids, a husband, a large mortgage and a minivan. But I’ve in no way settled. My life is so much larger than I ever dreamed it would be.

And I don't think I'm alone. I think we desperately need to build a more supportive world for women and a good first step would be to banish all the bitter stereotypes.

Excuse the Mess!

2011-09-24T13:36:00.000-07:00

Please excuse any messes you might find around here right now.

I'm changing my template because...well because I can. I just love that my blog can get a new outfit for free!

I'm tired of reading white letters on a dark background so I thought I'd try something simple and easy on the eyes. Please let me know what you think. If the new look loads slowly or is annoying in anyway, please tell me and I'll do my best to fit it.

So sorry if I've left any stray widgets laying around the joint. I'll do my best to have the place cleaned up in a jiff.

P.S. Am I the only one who finds it nearly impossible to write an "About Me" summary? It's more stressful than being asked what I do for a living or what my hobbies are. I've been searching for the right tag line for years now so it's just been blank until now. Again, any suggestions are welcome.

Hopefully Unanswered Prayers

2011-09-22T14:39:00.000-07:00

Said wilth all sincerity by my son at the breakfast table - "Dear God, please send me a baby. A boy baby. Mommy can grow it in her belly. We really need another baby, please. Amen" . His chubby boy hands were folded and his eye were closed.

(At this exact moment, my almost two year old daughter shrieks like Xena the Warrior Princess and hurls her bowl of oatmeal at me. I'm pretty sure it's a sign, but I'm not exactly sure what it means.)

Me- "J buddy, I don't think Mommy and Daddy are going to have any more babies. We're very lucky to have you and Audrey, but I think our family is complete."

J - "But Mom, I'll take care of it! I'll carry it up the stairs and everything." (I still not sure what to make of the stairs offer.)

Me - "I'm sorry Lovebug, but I don't think we're going to have any more babies. When you're a grown up and have a nice wife, you can have as many babies as you want."

At this point, J laughs like this is hilarious and finally starts eating his food. I'm confident we'll be revisiting this topic soon.

This marks the third time in the last week he has campaigned for another baby. Apparently he's tired of asking me and is now directing his request to the management.

So just in case any higher powers read my blog, please don't send me any more babies! I love the ones I got, but my hands are literally full of children at the moment.

In exchange, I promise I'll keep my 4 year old from carrying any babies up the stairs! I also promise to be the best mommy I can be to the two I've got, but I'm pretty sure my quality of parenting will plummet with any new additions.

The Books That Changed Me

2011-09-21T07:16:00.000-07:00

I’m a reader. It’s been a fundamental part of me for as long as I can remember. I’ve become slightly more selective of what I’ll read in recent years because I have limited time, but I’m pretty willing to read just about any subject.

Anyway, I just finished a pretty intriguing book call Incognito, The Secret Lives of the Brain by David Eagleman. That may sound dry or boring, but it really isn’t. It is definitely good brain food. It’s very thought provoking and filled with fascinating information. Even if you're not generally a non-fiction reader, I think it’s worth a look.

This is the first really good book I’ve read in a while and it made me start thinking about the best books I’ve ever read. I define “really good read” as a book that I think about long after I finish it. One that sticks in your mind. The kind of book that changes the way you look at the world and forces you out of your comfort zone.

Here are some of my favorites-
The Foundation series by Isaac Asimov
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood (and pretty much anything she writes)
I’ve always loved the silliness of Douglas Adam’s Hitchhiker’s Guide to The Galaxy
I still find Brave New World and 1984 to be thought provoking
I haven’t read it since high school, but Z for Zachariah still haunts me

My favorite recent fiction read is The Hunger Games trilogy. I read it last spring and I still chew it over in my mind regularly. Recent non-fiction favorites are Freakonomics and Outliers.

And it might sound strange, but I think Shel Silverstein’s The Missing Piece Meets the Big O is a profound, if simple work. I love Shel Silverstein’s work in general. I also think Dr. Suess slipped some very insightful children’s books into his career.

So now that I’ve rediscovered the power of a really great read, I need more. What are the best, most thought provoking books you have ever read?

Tis The Season

2011-09-18T12:08:00.000-07:00

It’s that time of year again. Couches across America will be getting fresh butt prints as people embrace the joys of football season.

It’s one of those things I just don’t really get.

To be fair, my husband has a very reasonable football habit. He watches the Steelers when their on in our area (which isn’t that often since we live near DC) and one of the summary shows on ESPN on Sunday nights. He’s not ridiculous about it; it’s just that my life would still feel complete if I never watched ESPN again.

We only have one TV with cable in our house, which I’m good with. I like TV, but believe moderation is key. I can think of more exciting things to do in the bedroom than watch a movie and I’m a big believer in forcing my kids to entertain themselves without a screen. (My son has already informed me that I’m the meanest mommy in the world.)

So all this adds up to quite a few nights that I’ll need to entertainment myself without changing the channel, blocking the TV or trying to talk to my husband. I’m thinking this is actually a positive thing (again…in moderation, too many nights married to a football zombie would be unfortunate). I’ve been plopping in front of the TV more nights than I care to admit this summer and it’s time to shake things up a bit.

I’m hoping to blog a bit more (since the summer was pretty much a blog free zone) and read a few more books. Now that my wild little man is back in preschool, I feel like I’ll have a bit more energy at the end of the day. We’ll see how the reality works out, but at this moment motivation is high.

How about the rest of you? Are you football lovers or haters? Does the fall mean a season of football widowhood or is your house a NFL free zone? Or are you cheering louder than your mate?

How To Avoid Being Room Mother

2011-09-16T11:12:00.000-07:00

I accidentally stumbled upon something brilliant. I think I've discovered the secret to avoiding being a room mother for the rest my life!

Just send your kid to his first day of school with his shoes on the wrong foot. It's a simple solution, but I think it effectively communicates a certain lack of competence and togetherness a teacher probably looks in a room mother.

If you're really committed to the cause, I'd recommend forgeting something once in awhile. Forget the school bag or class snacks and you should be home free from any additional responsibilities.

Oh and I'm not sure I can teacher this one to anybody else, but I also have mastered the skills to avoid ever being asked to photograph anything...ever.

If you don't believe me after that masterpiece of a first school day photo above - check this one out.

I'm thinking I should cross out photographer on my list of potential careers.

Happy back to school to all!

Fair Weather Friend

2011-07-29T04:35:00.000-07:00

Dear blog,

I'm sorry I'm such a fair weather visitor lately. I do love you. It's me, not you.

Things have just been a bit busy around here. It's all good things, but there are just a lot of them. I've been busy chasing the kids this summer. We've been to a lot of parks, gone on a lot of playdates, eaten extreme amounts of ice cream and all kinds of typical summer stuff. It's fun, but exhausting and when I get a few minutes to myself, I just want to read a trashy novel or stare at the wall. Some days, I just don't want to sit in front of the computer or think any more than necessary.

(As I write this my 19 month old is putting toys into my pocket now that she is done emptying my desk drawer...this about sums it up.)

Next on the schedule are two intense weeks of family bonding. My mom, stepfather, 14 year old step-nephew and 86 year old grandmother are coming into town next week and all staying with us. It should be fun, but it will definitely result in chaos. The week after we're heading to Virgina Beach with my in laws and my husband's grandmother. There parts of the next two weeks that I'm really looking forward too, but it will be A LOT of people in my house.

As a bonus, there is absolutely no way that I won't gather some awesome blog fodder.

So I am here. I'm happy and life is going well. I'm just busy living life offline right now. I'd be around in the bloggyhood when I can pull it off, but I might not be a very consistent blogger for the time being.

Love,
Me

Back in Action

2011-07-13T11:18:00.000-07:00

So our trip was great, but I crashed landed a bit hard into reality when we returned. I’ve been trying to get catch up with work and I haven’t had much time for blogging or really anything fun, but I think I’ve got my feet under me now. So I hereby declare that fun will resume starting right now and will continue as I head out to a local restaurant for a Moms Night Out tonight for a much needed sanity break.

Anyhow, we had a blast on our mini vacay. We watched fireworks (the baby girl’s first time), hit the outlets hard (my wallet is still recovering, but my closet is oh so happy), went to the petting zoo (successful since nobody lost a finger and no ducklings were injured) and, of course, the boys went golfing. The grownups even took advantage of the free grandparent babysitting and went to see the third transformers movie in 3D. (Which was better than I expected.) Lots of junk food was eaten, pictures were taken and some classic memories were made. What more could I ask for?

It really was a nice getaway. The kiddos got a chance to send a lot of time their grandparents and we filled a lot of adventure into just a few days.

Here are a few pics of the voyage-

Have a great day!

Blasting Off

2011-07-01T10:39:00.000-07:00

We’re packing up the minivan of coolness and heading to the in-laws tomorrow. They live near Pittsburgh. I love the ‘burgh. I feel a bit like I’m in a sitcom there with all the rabid sports fans and mullets. It’s a refreshing change of pace from DC which is a town that can take its conservative self a bit too seriously.

Plus we have big plans - the highlight for my son is grandpa’s golf cart and I’m a little overly excited about the fantastic outlet mall there. I will definitely be feeding my new found shopping addiction this weekend. We’re also planning a visit to a little local zoo where the kiddos can feed the animals and experience an old school petting zoo. I’m post some photos when we return if I get some good ones.

We have the only grandkids on my husband’s side so his family is always grateful for a grandbaby fix, even if we invade their house with enough supplies for an army of toddlers. It truly is amazing how much stuff we end up hauling along with two small kids. I’m excited to move past portable cribs and diapers. I realize that I am contributing to the over packing, but I just can’t help myself. With two little people there are just so many “what ifs” and I like to be prepared.

Anyway, we’re just about ready to go. I bought glow sticks to play with during the fireworks, craft projects to keep the boy out of mischief in a non-childproofed house, stocked on snacks and picked up “Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator” on CD from the library to listen during the 5 hour drive. (We had really good luck with “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory during a previous road trip so hopefully the sequel will entertain the troops as well.)

A good time should be had by all.

To my American friends, enjoy the 4th of July. I hope it’s filled with friends, family, food and, of course, fireworks! To everybody else, have a great summer weekend packed with everything good.

The Big D

2011-06-29T06:16:00.000-07:00

I just heard about another friend who is getting divorced after just a few years. It truly shocks me how many marriages I have already seen fall apart. (Background - I’m 31 and I’ve been married for 7 years.)

The news got me thinking about how we choose a partner to marry. Thinking way back to my dating days, I have to admit that I got caught up in superficial, unimportant things. For example, I’m 5’8” and I never wanted to date anybody shorter than me. This was pretty much nonnegotiable. (I’m sure you can see where I’m going here.)

Anyway…one day, I went to a bar with some coworkers and ended up taking the seat next to a cute guy that worked across the hall that was already there. After hours of talking, we stood up to leave and only then did I realize that I towered over him in heels.

I’m only slightly taller in bare feet, but I still think my younger, more ridiculous self would have cared if I wasn’t already completely smitten by the time I figured it out. I don’t know for sure, but I think there is a decent chance I would have overlooked the fabulous man I married if we had met while standing instead of seated at a booth.

I also got to thinking about one of the odder divorces I’ve seen where a couple split after about 5 years when they couldn’t agree whether or not to have children. This one always baffled me a bit because it seems like one of those things you’d work out before saying “I do”. I suspect there is more to this story, there usually is right?

So not that anybody is asking, but my advice to dating couples is to talk about the really important stuff and don’t worry quite so much about what type of music or books or movies or whatever each other likes.

How do you think about money? How many children would you like to have? Is this person fundamentally kind? What are your nonnegotiable areas where you won’t compromise?

If you match on the basics, you can happily coexist even if one of you loves ESPN while the other has an unhealthy addiction to HGTV and you have totally different taste in books. Trust me on this one.

Whenever I hear a divorce story, I just feel sad for everybody involved and thankful for my husband. I’m not exactly sure what the point of this post is other than just taking a moment to say I’m grateful for my marriage. So universe - thank you for my man and my babies. I'll do my best to treat them the way they deserve.

Bring on the Happiness

2011-06-26T14:28:00.000-07:00

Can I ask you a question? Are you happy?

And I don't really mean in a right now, this instant kind of a way, but in a fundamental general sense - Are you happy with your life?

Lately, it feels like everybody I come into contact with seems discontent. (FYI- This excludes my immediate family, my husband is a generally cheerful guy and the kids are silly, ridiculous little people.)

But it seems that most of the moms (both random ones and my friends) I have chatted with recently seem blue. My facebook home page is a strange list of vaguely angry status updates about misbehaving children and bitter political statements.

Is this just me? Am I hanging out at the wrong parks? Or is the world, especially the mommyhood full of unhappy people? Are we housewives really desperate?

I totally get having a bad day. I have definitely had some days that are crappy, sometimes literally. But I've been getting the sense that for some of the people I've been encountering it goes deeper than that.

As for myself, I am happy. I freely acknowledge that this mommy gig is freaking hard work, but I don't want to be doing anything else. I have bad days. I lose my temper sometimes, probably more than I should. But I'm truly grateful for my husband, my children and my life, even if there are occasional blurry moments in the big picture.

Bottom line, the negatively is starting to get to me. It's making it hard to keep things in perspective and I feel like I'm starting to have more negative thoughts because I'm hearing more negative thoughts (does that make sense to anybody else?).

What I think is it's time to up the positive in my life, but I'm not exactly sure how.

What do you do when you feel a case of the blues threatening to attack?

Do you have any suggestions? Where do the happy moms hang out? Are there any fun, uplifting blogs or websites you can recommend?

I've tried listening to fun music and jump starting my workout routine, both of which have been a success. I've also reached out to a couple of moms I know who are generally uplifting people to be around with mixed success, summer always seems a tricky time to meet up.

Am I missing something?

You Are What You Consume?

2011-06-20T11:51:00.000-07:00

Does this scare anybody else? Watching 'Jersey Shore' might make you dumber, study suggests

I've never been one for Jersey Shore, but I have wasted many hours watching Survivor and I do have a weakness for ChickLit with bright covers.

According to the article, a study was done where people were read two different stories. One about somebody being a dumbass in the spirit of most reality TV shows and one that was neutral with no ridiculous behavior. Participants were given a test after the story and those who heard the "dumb" story consistently scored lower.

I'm not sure what I make of the study, but there was some other info in the article that I thought was interesting. Apparently, anything we see influences our next thoughts, emotions or actions (even if we don't think it does) because it's on "the top of our mind". So basically, whatever information we last fed our brains is most likely to affect the way we think.

A scary thought when you consider the content of most TV shows.

I still think there is room for a little trash in the media we consume, but it is probably best as a dessert and not the main course.

Deeper Than Skin?

2011-06-17T11:25:00.000-07:00

Beauty is only skin deep. It's what's on the inside that matters.

I do agree, but how do I explain how much better I feel when I wearing decent clothes and a little make up?

I've never really been that into clothes, but lately I'm really enjoying shopping...really enjoying it.

I haven't been buying anything expensive because I'm well aware that my clothes can be ruined at any moment, but I've picked up a handful of new outfits that are practical for the mommyhood. I upgraded from a diaper bag to a actual purse again. I've experimenting with fun earrings and accessories. I like my haircut for the first time since high school.

I'm certainly not a queen of style now by any stretch, but I no longer feel frightening frumpy. I just feel good, better than I've felt in a long time. I feel like myself, not some mommified version of me.

It's utterly depressing to have a drawer full of bras that don't fit and a closet full of clothes you secretly hate. Before Operation Wardrobe Update, I was really starting to feel frumpy and kind of old. I've spent a good portion of the last five years pregnant or nursing and my closet definitely reflected this reality.

So I decided it was time to take action.

Does all this make me vain?

Maybe. But it also makes me happy.
In the end, I think it's okay to care about your appearance as long as you don't care too much about what other people are wearing.

I promise I won't judge anybody else for throwing their hair in greasy buns and sporting sweatpants because I've been there myself. I just don't want to be there anymore.

Past Its Cuteness

2011-05-13T10:21:00.000-07:00

(Disclaimer - Sorry for anybody who gets this post twice. Blogger apparently ate it yesterday after I posted it the first time. I'm also missing a draft I was working on - anybody else having issues?)

My daughter was sporting shorts this morning at the park. I got multiple compliments on her adorable chubby thighs. (She really does have some deliciously impressive rolls on her legs.)

I'm guessing an adult would get a different reaction if they were rocking a similar look.

Then I saw this headline - Police nab armed 'Batman' in small Michigan town'

Apparently some dude was hanging off a building in a Batman costume armed with a baton and pepper spray in Michigan. According to the article, he didn't really have an explanation for the behavior.

My little man spends quite a bit of time either in costume or pretending to be some super friend or another. He rarely has an explanation for any behavior.

It's just funny to me how something can be cute at 4 and totally inappropriate at age 31. (31 happens to both the age of the bizarre batman from article and myself.)

I guess that's just part of growing up. At least we adults can get eat cookies for dinner if we want, get driver's license and buy booze, even if nobody thinks our fat legs are cute and pretending to be super heroes just gets us booked. I'd take the perks of adulthood over the free pass of childhood any day of the week.

Mommy Madness

2011-05-08T12:56:00.000-07:00

My son's preschool puts on a Doughnuts for Dads and a Muffins for Moms one morning each spring. Muffins for Moms was last Friday to kick off the Mother's Day weekend. You go to school a half hour early and in theory enjoy a treat with your little one before delivering them to their classroom.

In actuality, the kids form a feral pack and wreck major havoc while the moms endure a stressful a half hour and are then extra grateful to give them to their teachers. The best part is that the moms are expected to provide the refreshments which just seems cruel to me.

Part of the tradition is that the kids give the parents a little present on their special morning. My husband got this:

I got this:
(In case it's not readily apparent, it's a recipe card holder. And yes, that's an upside down duck)

So to recap, the dads got trophies and the moms got... recipe card holders.

Is it just me or is that a bit unfair?

It's like getting a vacuum cleaner for Mother's Day. Even if it's cute, I don't really want anything that is used to cook or clean for Mother's Day...or really ever as a gift.

(My husband took me shopping for clothes so that was awesome. He even watched the kids so I could browse in peace.)

So Happy Mother's Day to all you mommies out there. I hope your day was filled with frivolous, impractical beautiful things.

You all deserve a trophy in my book!

The Difference

2011-05-05T09:20:00.000-07:00

“Mama, mama.”

I looked down at my daughter. “Audrey, do you need something.”

She looked at me like I’d grown another head. (It’s amazing how she has already perfected that look.)

She said “mama, mama” again with a little more force and patted herself on the chest. Then she picked up her favorite doll and patted its back gently and said “baby”. She then put the doll on her hip and continued flipping through the books on the shelf with her other hand.

I had no idea that she understood so much already.

It’s also funny how that same doll had just enjoyed a brief, but exciting stint as a missile. My son had just used her to bomb an enemy camp of super villains, complete with enthusiastic sound effects.

The longer I’m a mom the more I’m leaning towards the nature side of the nature versus nurture debate. Obviously, I believe that parenting and environment matter, but my kids certainly came with some hard wiring already in place.

I try not to force anybody into any roles, but at this point gender stereotypes are alive and well in my house. It’s definitely an adventure parenting one of each gender. I love it and I can’t wait to see how it all plays out as they grow up.

Runaway

2011-05-03T03:16:00.000-07:00

I ran away from home last weekend. (Don’t worry, I willingly surrendered to authorities Sunday night and I’m back on responsible mom detail again.)

But I did spend one glorious night away from my family. Just me, two friends and a tiny amount of luggage that didn’t involve a Pack ‘N Play, diapers or the kitchen sink.

This is the first time I’ve left my daughter for more than an afternoon and leaving at all is fairly new since she was nursing until last December. I had only left my 4 year old twice before and once was a work trip so it doesn't really count in my book.

It was the best weekend in a looong time.

We drove a little over two hours away to Charlottesville, Virginia which is a perfect example of a cute college town.

I ate fantastic meals at places that did not have chicken fingers on the menu. I shopped for clothes that didn’t have an elastic waist. I bought a pair of earrings I loved for the hell of it. I even got a professional massage.

It had been a long time since I had a chance to be spontaneous and just wander through a day. I didn't have to worry about nap time or bed time or really anything at all. This weekend was a breath of fresh air and I feel more like myself than I have in recent memory.

I just got a chance to remember what it is means to be just me. Not “mommy”, just Kim. And it felt good...really, really good.

After a day and a half of freedom, I also remembered what it’s like to miss my family.

I thoroughly enjoyed my weekend of freedom, but I also remembered that I don’t really want to be “free” all the time. A break is fabulous, but so is having a beautiful family. (That said, I can't wait to do it again next year.)

Have a great day.

Cyclops Daisy

2011-04-28T11:34:00.000-07:00

So this is the package:

And this was the end result:

Craft time with my kiddos is always an adventure. It’s a form of cheap therapy. It reminds me to loosen up. This unfortunately is a reminder I desperately need at times.

I’m not proud of it, but there is a piece of me that really wants the crafts to look “right”. My natural impulse is to fix the mutant bug’s wings, which is completely ridiculous. I want my children to grow into creative, joyful individuals, not drones skilled at copying other people. So the wings will stay upside down on my watch, even if I have to sit on my hands.

As a recovering perfectionist, I occasionally need the reminder that the cyclops daisy is beautiful just the way it is. Just like my children. And all the rest of us for that matter.

Operation Spring Break Fun Debrief

2011-04-26T11:07:00.000-07:00

All and all, operation Spring Break Fun was a success. We had one afternoon where the wheels came off the fun bus and everybody was grumpy, but for the most part it was a good time. I'm declaring it a victory.

One of the best things about living near DC is all the free things to do. We spent money on ice cream and lunch out one day, but most of our outings only cost us gas to get there and a picnic lunch.

The most ambitious adventure was a trip to Frying Pan Farm Park. It's a county park that has a working model of a family farm. It's about a 45 minutes drive for us. There were lots of baby animals and tractor rides. The kids loved it!

Luckily, the weather was nice every day but Friday. We were able to hit all the local parks and had a bunch of park play dates with our friends.

We also played in our backyard and got the water table and sprinkler out for the first time this year.

We did lots of crafts last week. Audrey had her first experience with paint. She hated finger painting, but thoroughly enjoyed the paint brush. She also learned a new word-yucky-when she decided to eat paint on two separate occasions. (At least it's non-toxic.)

Our week ended with a great Easter. The kiddos got baskets first thing, followed by a nice breakfast at home. Then we all dressed up and went to mass early. We also had a egg hunt in the backyard. It wasn't anything fancy, but it was a really nice day.

I love that both kids are now old enough to really enjoy holidays.

Now I just have to start making some plans for summer!

Breaking It Down

2011-04-17T12:04:00.000-07:00

This week is spring break here.

This means no preschool and no activities for the little man. I have him all to myself, all week.

I'm pretty excited to mix it up. I've been busy planning on some big adventures.

Tomorrow we're heading about an hour away to a park with a farm that is rumored to have lots of baby animals. I've also got big plans for a nature walk, story time, picnics in the park and a couple of play dates. I'm all stocked up with craft supplies and ingredients for cookies in case of rain.

I keep hearing other moms complain about the week off, but I refuse to buy into the idea that it's bad a thing to have both kids home with me for a week. I'm going to do my best to make some memories and really enjoy this break from our normal life.

But while I'm off playing tour guide on this voyage, I probably won't have much time to visit the virtual world.

So have a great week and I promise to check in when I have the chance!

Shovel Hacking

2011-04-14T10:40:00.000-07:00

Did anybody see this one? - A Shovel Cuts Off Armenia's Internet

Apparently, a 75 year old woman with a shovel accidentally caused Armenia and parts of Georgia and Azerbaijan to lose internet for almost 12 hours.

She accidentally took down internet access to an entire country! Imagine what could have happened if she was actually trying to cause trouble.

The woman, duped the spade hacker by local media, was out searching for scrap metal when she damaged a fiber optic cable that carriers 90% of the bandwidth supplied to Armenia. Turns out that copper cables and fiber optic cables are both usually buried inside PVC conduit so they can look similar. The fiber optic cable that was damaged was initially buried deeper (I’m guessing to protect it from old woman with shovels), but heavy rains and mudslides had exposed it.

This still leaves the question of why a 75 year old woman was digging for copper cable. According to the Google, there is a pretty lucrative scrap metal market in the region and plenty of abandoned copper cables left in the ground. It’s seems that it is relatively common for people to search for and sell scrap in this area.

Why does a 75 year old woman need to make a living digging up scrap metal? I have no answers to that one. I think it just shows that our world isn’t all that advanced, despite the wonders of the internet and all our technological gadgets.

Making the Rounds

2011-04-12T13:00:00.000-07:00

Today, I was expecting disaster. My four year old had a dentist appointment at 1:30 and I had to bring the 16 month old along during prime nap time. I figured a tired baby girl, a somewhat scared preschooler and a possible long wait in a doctor’s office was a recipe for mayhem.

Somehow things went magically well.

We got seen quickly, even before our scheduled appointment. My son happily sat in the big chair and opened his mouth on command. My daughter, usually a little machine of perpetual motion, was strangely fascinated by the dentist and just sat quietly on my lap and calmly watched the whole thing.

Nobody was bitten. There was no screaming. It went more smoothly than I could ever have dreamed.

On the flip side, I totally missed the mark with my son’s 4 year checkup last week. I was expecting smooth sailing. Things started to go bad when we waited in the exam room for over a half hour before we saw anybody.

It went from bad to worse when the first thing my son announced to the nurse was that he “loves to go to Old McDonalds because he gets a toy with his food”. He proceeded to go into elaborate detail about how much he just LOVES McDonalds and he eats it all the time.

He totally threw me under the bus.

(Just to set the record straight, the kid gets a happy meal maybe two or three times a month. We rarely eat out, let alone eat fast food. He’s a picky eater, but I really do fight the good fight.)

The first thing the doctor did was give my son a long and rather pointed lecture about eating healthy food. By the time she started the actual exam, he was cranky and uncooperative. I’m pretty sure the baby was going feral at this point because she was running around the tiny exam room and growling like a wild beast.

But the worst part was the shots. The 4 year checkup is a bit of a killer. Consider yourself warned if you have a little one coming up on the milestone. It was ugly.

I really do hate taking the kids to the doctor. It’s one of my least favorite parts of the mother gig. I’m just grateful that we don’t have any more appointments scheduled for a while and that my little man is healthy and cavity free.

What’s in a Name?

2011-04-08T11:19:00.000-07:00

What do you do?

It seems like such an innocent question, but it’s full of booby traps.

Sometimes I ramble about my part time work, but it doesn’t feel particularly authentic. Five hours a week doesn’t seem to “count” and my main priority and focus is definitely my kids.

Full Time Mom? This seems to imply that working moms aren’t moms when working and I don’t want to go there. (I swear this paranoia isn’t all in my head, I’ve heard a few working moms bitterly complaining about this term.)

Stay at Home Mom? This seems inaccurate because most moms I know don’t actually stay home that much. We’re at the park, library, play dates, Target, etc. (While I’m pretty sure this one is all in my head, it always conjures up images of women in stained sweats held prison in their house by their children.)

Family CEO or House Executive is too cutesy. I’m also not a fan of Domestic Engineer. I think because my background is engineering (of the mechanical variety), the last one makes me cringe on just about every level.

If I am being truly honest with myself, the title that probably fits best is Homemaker.

But that one is full of all manner of land mines. It makes me think of angry, repressed housewives sullenly cooking a roast. But the undeniable reality is that I spend a lot of time on home stuff. I cook, clean, do laundry and all that housewifey stuff, but I don’t feel in anyway trapped in my life or subservient to anybody.

The bottom line is something about homemaker or housewife just doesn’t feel quite right. I just can’t see myself ever telling somebody that’s what I “do” (even if it kind of is what I do).

After serious thought, I think I'm going with Trophy Wife.

I need a bit more polish before I can truly pull it off, but it seems better than the alternatives.

Shutdown Show Down

2011-04-06T07:23:00.000-07:00

Did you see this? As shutdown looms, agencies brace for impact

I know to most people this is just a headline, but my husband and many of our friends are federal employees. A government shutdown would directly affect many families in the DC area.

My husband is considered “an essential” employee which means he would still be required to work even if the government is shutdown. But the fun part is that it isn’t clear when he would be paid. Nonessential employees (whatever that even means) are furloughed and may not be paid for the time off.

Public attractions in the DC area would be shut down, including the zoo and the all Smithsonian museums. This might not sound like a big of a deal, but it’s spring break season. According to he article over 23,000 advanced tickets have already been sold for meals and Imax movies for April. That’s a lot of disappointed tourists, not to mention lost revenue

And the effects would be felt far beyond the limits of DC. The IRS won’t issues refund checks, passports and visas won’t be processed and a whole bunch of useful paperwork won’t be pushed.

What I don’t understand is how the politicians can’t find a way to pass a budget! Frankly, I'm a bit pissed at both sides on this one.

I know that there are big issues and vicious fights going on at the hill right now, but there are huge consequences if they can’t keep the government functioning. The disruption caused by a government shutdown is very real and really ugly.

I vote it’s time for more action and a little less talk.

A Not So Manic Monday

2011-04-04T11:26:00.000-07:00

Our crazy weekend went surprisingly well.

My in laws left this morning. My daughter is taking a much needed nap and my son is watching a little TV. As an added bonus, the weather is gorgeous and all the windows are open for the first time this spring.

Life is good.

Both kids enjoyed being spoiled by their grandparents and are currently undergoing severe grandparent decompression. It’s always a hard transition to go from constant attention from extra adults to just boring old mom.

I think a good time was had by all at J’s 4th birthday party. Sometimes it’s hard to tell with large groups of preschoolers. But there was pizza, balloons, games and cake. I know the birthday boy was beyond excited.

We went to a preschool fund raiser on Saturday night and it was more fun than I expected. There was Mexican food, a band and margaritas. I had just enough to drink that I had to remember not to giggle too much in front of my in laws when we came home. I spend so much time in responsible mom mode that it was kind of nice to feel slightly naughty.

The baby shower went well. Lots of presents were opened. Games were played. Way too many cupcakes were eaten (at least by me). The guests were a bunch of people I knew B.C. (Before Child). I’m pretty much the only one who left work to chase babies so it’s always interesting to see the road not taken. (I’m still really happy with my choice.)

Everything really did go well. I’m glad we’re not that busy every weekend, but it was fun for two days.

Hope you all have a great day!

Bring It

2011-04-01T13:45:00.000-07:00

My in laws arrived last night.

This morning I grocery shopped alone with my mother in law.

My baby can't decide if she wants one nap a day or two. Mostly she just seems to want to cry.

Tomorrow is my son's 4th birthday party. It's a Super Hero theme so I'll have 10 mini justice leaguers patrolling my house looking for trouble.

The good news is that tomorrow night my husband and I are escaping children free. The bad news it's to a preschool fund raiser.

Sunday, there is a baby shower at my house.

Deep breathe...

The pizza is ordered for the birthday party. The party favors are done. The house is clean for the moment.

Bring it on.

(Wish me luck.)

That Confounding Compounding

2011-03-30T11:15:00.000-07:00

“The most power force in the universe is compound interest.” – Albert Einstein

We bought a new, bigger house last December. This naturally resulted in a new, bigger mortgage. This also led to my new, bigger desire to buy stuff to fill my new, bigger house.

I think you can see the problem.

At one point, we refinanced our old house to a 15 year mortgage. So we now pay more each month and essentially added an extra 15 years to our mortgage.

To help mitigate the cost of operation home upgrade, we plan to overpay at least one mortgage payment a year. I really want to spend that money on something more exciting, but did you know one extra mortgage payment a year will significantly reduce the time on your mortgage? Compounding interest does crazy things giving enough time. Last time I ran the numbers, one extra mortgage a year would trim off more than 6 years.

This is a simple example to show much you can save over the long haul. (I'm ignoring inflation and everything else that makes the math hard.) Say you have a $2,000 a month mortgage. If you pay one extra payment a year for 24 years, it would cost you 2,000*24= $48,000. Now assuming you trimmed 6 years off your payments, it would save you 2,000*6 years*12 months a year = $144,000. Paying early saves you $96,000. That buys a lot of area rugs and throw pillows.

If you have a mortgage and you’re never played with a prepayment calculator, I recommend you check one out. It’s empowering to see what’s possible.

You can't talk about compounding interest without mentioning investing. Did you know that if you invested $13,719 at 10% when you were 20, stopped adding money and just let it grow, you would be a millionaire at age 65?

Obviously, most of us were either too broke or too busy buying cute shoes at 20 to think about such practical investments, but the point is that the earlier you start the better. If you don’t have a retirement account, check out this calculator.

(One last fact for the SAHMs before I get off my soap box, if you’re married to somebody earning income you can still contribute to an IRA even if you’re not working.)

Financial planning isn’t fun or sexy. I’d much rather be shopping, but I would like to retire someday. I know the economy is bad and times are tight, but if it is possible to find a little money now it can add up to big things in the future.

My new mantra - Nothing is cuter than financial security.

My Minions

2011-03-28T12:05:00.000-07:00

I'm starting the brain washing early...

Bwhahaha!!!

My little people happily took over the chores this morning! It was amazing. So amazing that I snapped a few photos to look back at when they are grumpy teenagers.

My in laws are coming to visit on Thursday so my usual pre-visit freak out cleaning is in full swing. This morning I had a little more help than I expected.

My son has always been a bit overly helpful. If I'm doing it, he wants in on the action. But this is the first time my daughter joined in on the "fun".

The living room has never been so dust free. I know the time will come when they won't think chores are fun, but I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts.

A Star Dims

2011-03-25T10:43:00.000-07:00

I like my stars larger than life.

I hate those magazine articles that talk about how celebrities are just like the rest of us. I don’t want to know that movie stars get sweaty, buy groceries and change diapers just like me. There are enough dirty bottoms and bad fashion moments in my world already.

What I want…no… what I need is a little more fantasy.

I loved it when a JLo wore a dress cut down to her belly button. Hell, I even admire the meat dress and crazy egg hatch by Lady Gaga. I’m fascinated by the brangelina bunch.

Honestly, it’s nice to be provoked by somebody other than my kids.

I want mystery and drama. I want impractical outfits and gorgeous people. I want my stars to orbit above the earth, not walk on it.

This is why I will miss the beautiful Elizabeth Taylor. She kept things interesting. The woman was married 8 times to 7 seven different men. In addition to her talent for off screen drama, she was a gifted actress with two Best Actress Academy Awards to her credit.

She was a star who knew how to behave like a star.

Rest in Peace Elizabeth. Without you the world will be a dimmer place.

This Little Piggy

2011-03-23T04:40:00.000-07:00

My daughter is a little piggy.

And of course, I'm in no way referring to her weight. I would never comment about a lady's weight, even one I gave birth too. Plus she barely tips the scales at 10th percentile for weight so I'm happy to encourage her to pig out all she wants.

She earns the title of Little Piggy based on table manners and her ridiculous enthusiasm about food.

If I’m eating it, she wants it. Ever since she sprouted her first tooth, she’s been loudly demanding to try everything.

She still has only six teeth, yet is somehow able to eat lettuce. It’s amazing. Audrey isn’t one to let a little thing like a lack of teeth get in the way of her eating.

My son has always been a picky eater. He's had his moments of creative dining, but Audrey really takes it to the next level.

She’s has mastered the art of the double hand shove into her mouth. A meal isn’t complete without a few handfuls of food in her hair and a couple of bites stored under her bottom for later.

If you're opposed to the barnyard style of dining, you might want to decline any dinner invites to our house for the next few years.

At least she's an adorable little piggy...

The Reality of It

2011-03-20T11:31:00.000-07:00

Ever notice how pretty much every reality TV cast contains a hero and a villain?

It’s kind of convenient how that works out isn’t it?

Editing sure is a powerful thing.

Take my own life. Let’s suspend disbelief for a second and say I was cast in a show. Granted it would be a very lame show, but let’s just gloss over that one.

If you needed a hero, you could easily fill an hour of footage with stereotypical good mom moments. You could catch me reading stories, playing in the sand box, baking cookies….you know…standard issue mom stuff. I like to think I have a few redeeming qualities. I donate to charity. I bake dinners for friends with new babies. I generally try to do the right thing.

But if you needed a villain, you could also certainly find an hour of not so good moments. Hell, some weeks it might even be easier to make me look like a scandalously bad person. I get tired and snap at my husband. Making dinner with the “help” of two little ones is guaranteed to provide some less than flattering scenes of me in action. You could probably fill an entire show with me yelling at my son to “just eat” his food. Footage of the food wars would be boring, but it would definitely paint me like a shrew in desperate need of taming.

It could really go either way depending on how I’m edited.

I think the power of editing extends to real life. After watching a mom melting down and screaming at her kids in the park, I don’t go out of my way to chat with her in the future. I see somebody return a dropped dollar and assume they’re always honest.

We only catch little snippets here and there, just a teaser for the real show, and we extrapolate all kinds of information about people.

I suspect if we could see people’s whole story, the lines between heroes and villains would all be a bit blurry.

Sigh...

2011-03-16T07:44:00.000-07:00

I was cruising Facebook recently and saw that my sister had posted this:

My mom had liked it and my step father added a comment saying that he didn't remember the Japanese goverment writing out any checks after Katrina.

Sigh....

To be fair to my family, I'm not presenting the whole discussion here. They all seemed to agree we should not send money, but that sending supplies to help with the relief effort was a good idea. But frankly the Pearl Harbor comment is pretty much lodged in my brain, blocking anything reasonable that may have been written after it.

I think the Pearl Harbor crack was fundamentally unfair. You only need to look at the cars on your block to know that our relationship with Japan is not that simple. It is true that Japan attacked us at Pearl Harbor in 1941, but a lot has happened since then including the US dropping two atomic bombs on Japanese cities. Pearl Harbor happened 70 years ago. Most of the people affected by the Japanese earthquake weren’t even alive then.

Questioning the Japanese response after Katrina doesn't strike me as particularlly fair either. I don’t mean in anyway to imply that Katrina was not a significant, horrible event, it absolutely was. But it’s not really on the same scale, espcially when you consider percentage of the country affected.

About 2,000 people were killed as a result of Hurricane Katrina and the damages are estimated at $81 billion. The missing in Japan are estimated at 8,000 and there are over 3,500 confirmed causalities already. The estimate of the cost of the Japan’s earthquake is currently $200 billion , but the reality is we don’t really know yet. Depending on the outcome of the crisis at the nuclear plants, things may go from bad to worse very quickly. It’s already apparent that it’s a much more severe event than Three Mile Island and that cost $973 million dollars and took 12 years to clean up. Bascially, what Japan is facing right now is worse than having Three Mile Island occur during Hurricane Katrina, quite a bit worse by the reports so far.

And Japan did donate after Katrina. A lot of countries did. It is true that the Japanese government didn't cut us any checks, but they provided about a $1 million dollars worth of supplies. Private and corporate donations from Japan totaled over $13 million.

If people want to argue that the US government needs to show fiscal restraint right now because our economy is in the toilet, that’s fine. We should absolutely talk about if we should donate and how much we can afford to contribute if we do.

I’m all for debate and discussion. But ranting about other countries just isn’t my cup of tea. But then I guess I already knew I was the only tea fan in a family of coffee drinkers.

P.S. What may be the scariest fact of all is that my family isn’t the only one riding this train - WNBA Star Cappie Pondexter Apologizes For Insensitive Tweets About Japanese Earthquake

Baby Steps

2011-03-15T04:17:00.001-07:00

I’ve been thinking about the phrase “taking baby steps” lately. Probably because I have a baby who recently started walking and I send way too much time alone. Anyway…

Usually when somebody suggests you take baby steps they mean you should start making slow progress towards your goal. A baby step is a low risk way to ease yourself into the process.

If you actually watch a baby stepping, that’s not what’s going on at all.

When my daughter walks, there is a decent chance she’s going to fall on her bottom or face. Learning to walk is definitely a high risk undertaking. There is also a distinct possibility she’ll end up moving in a completely unintended direction because she kind of wobbles around like a pint size drunken sailor.

Each step might be small compared to a grown up, but they are pretty big for her tiny size. She certainly puts more effort into walking than anybody with a few years of practice.

The most impressive thing about watching a baby learn to watch is how they deal with failure. When things go wrong, they just get back up and try again. There may be a little drama and some tears involve, but they always quickly try again.

I’m thinking there are some goals I should start baby stepping towards. I’ve been a little too afraid of falling on my ass lately.

Rocking The Red Pump

2011-03-10T04:07:00.000-08:00

Today I'm using my little piece of the blogosphere to Rock The Red Pump.

Every 9 1/2 minutes somebody in the US is infected with HIV.

That's less than every 10 minutes that somebody has their life altered forever. Every person infected is a child, a friend and a neighbor. These are real people living in our communities.

I live near DC, a city that has been fighting hard against the AIDS epidemic and appears to be losing ground. I'm a mother and I worry about the world my children will grow up in. So today, I will gladly dress my blog in a fabulous pair of red pumps.

March 10 is National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. The point of the day is to raise awareness and to encourage ladies to take action.

So take some action girls. Protect yourself and the ones you love.

It doesn't just happen to other people. And it doesn't just happen to men.

Go to this website to learn more: The Red Pump Project

Whack Job

2011-03-07T08:04:00.000-08:00

I’ve been growing my hair for a while now.

It my head, my long hair is beautiful. Think Gloria’s glorious mane on Modern Family.

In reality, my hair looks like this-

Basically, I have needy hair. It’s a frizzy mess unless I spoil it and give it more attention than my children. The end result is a pony tail every day...every single day.

So I chopped it off.

Now it looks like this-

I don’t think the picture does it justice, but think along the lines of Meg Ryan's look when she’s rocking the messy chin length do.

The best part is that it just takes a few minutes. Just throw a little product in it and done! No hair dryers needed.

I actually have a “style” now and it’s easier than putting my long hair into a pony tail. It’s my own little slice of hair heaven.

I feel like a 31 year old woman who happens to have a couple of kids and a minivan, instead of the reigning queen of Frumpville.

Now I just need to tackle the sorry state of my wardrobe...

The Pool Problem

2011-03-04T07:17:00.000-08:00

We moved about two months ago. It was only three miles, but it might as well be to a different planet. We sold our 1950s bungalow on a busy road to buy a 1970s split level in a “real” neighborhood.

(And yes, I know I’m an ass. I feel like the modern equivalent of a carpet bagger for capitalizing on the low home prices and interest rates to upgrade. It’s already added to the list of things I feel guilty about, but I still LOVE the new place.)

The new house has more room, a modern kitchen, good schools, sidewalks and a neighborhood pool.

I realized there is only one real problem. Did you catch it? There is a neighborhood POOL…meaning I will be expected to wear a swimsuit in public.

Oh my..holy…sweet.. mother… CRAP!

I for one am not excited about meeting my new neighbors basically naked. I know that I could just skip the pool, but it gets really hot here in the DC region. Chances are good I’ll lose my mind and my clothes come July.

It is time to step up the working out.

And by step up, I mean start. Right now my main form of exercise is literally chasing a toddler and having dance parties with the kids.

Unless I’m willing to surrender to the skirted swim suit, I need to go to battle against the budge. Wish me luck!

TADA!

2011-03-02T12:15:00.000-08:00

What do you think of my new look?

Does it make my butt look big?

(On a serious note, please let me know if it loads really slow or is somehow annoying to visit. Thank you.)

I still love my old template, but like so many beautiful things, it was a temperamental pain in the ass. I had to manually archive my posts and it wouldn’t work with a bunch of the new widgets. I’m still warming up to my makeover, but the new template is certainly easier to live with.

Do you like the new name?

Interstitial Life just wasn't working for me anymore.

When I picked it, I was thinking about how interstitial refers to a gap or space between things. I was convinced this time of being a nearly full time mommy was going to be a short term phase, kind of a gap between “real” jobs. But I don't think that's going to be the case. I don't see me returning to full time work in the foreseeable future. So the title “Interstitial Life” was starting to feel like a dress a size too small.

Interstitial is also kind of hard to spell. And as an added bonus it’s associated with a whole host of unfortunate illnesses like interstitial lung disease. So it is time for a new title. I also used the new name as an excuse to get my own web domain http://www.mypieceofmind.info/ so that I could change the web address without messing up any links.

I’m excited for a fresh start. Thank you all for your patience. I promise I will stop being so needy and self absorbed. No more blogging about blogging…at least for a while.

What I Missed Most

2011-02-28T08:06:00.000-08:00

There are two things I missed most during my time away. First and foremost - the people. I love how blogging gives you a little window into people's lives. There is some awesome writing happening out there.

I find the depth of conversation so refreshing compared to most of my daily social interaction. I'm sure it has something to do with my entourage of little people, but I don’t get much opportunity to have “real” conversations with people other than my husband. I get to yell a few pleasantries over screaming kiddos at playdates, but I desperately need something a bit more substantial.

I also missed the way blogging helped me think about the world. As the primary parent of two under four, I find myself in many situations where it feels like there are only two choices: laugh or cry. Turning unsavory situations into posts just takes the sting out life. Whether it’s bodily fluids places they should never be or the time my baby accidently shop lifted cheese, it all seems much funnier when I share it here.

So thank you my blogging buddies for everything. Thank you for a much warmer welcome back than I deserve.

P.S. I'm thinking about getting a new template and maybe even changing the title. So don't be alarm if everything changes - it's just a much needed makeover.

Recap Part 1: The Kids

2011-02-25T08:15:00.000-08:00

It's been so long since I visited blogland that I thought I'd do a quick update on the kiddos.

(I know it's a bit self indulgent and I promise to move along to other topics shortly. I'm still getting back in my blog groove.)

Thankfully, J and Audrey get along pretty well. J does occasionally suggest we leave her home or comments that she looks tired and needs a nap 15 minutes after she wakes up, but overall he loves her.
Audrey has grown into a giggling bundle of toddling mischief. She's about 15 months old now. Her favorite activities include emptying drawers, throwing things and trying to put stuff in the toilet.
She is finally walking and starting to talk a bit. She is a sassy little thing and definitely knows what she wants. I'm definitely busy these days, but at least I'm never bored! J is truly a preschooler now. He's still a wild, active BOY with a capital B. He talks constantly and asks questions nonstop. (For the record, I wouldn't want him any other way.)

J is deep within the Super Heroes phase. He loves fighting bad guys and all things sport related.

Thankfully, they are both healthy, happy kids. We have had little drama beyond the normal chaos of two kids under 4. I'm a very lucky mommy.

Hi Again

2011-02-24T06:08:00.000-08:00

Hi blog,

It's been awhile...a really long while.

It's good to see you again.

This is a bit awkward, but I've missed you.

I know I left a bit abruptly. I even flirted with another blog for a bit. I'd like to blame it on the sleep deprivation, but it was more than that. I was just plain burned out. I’ve been a terrible friend (not just to you…but in general).

I find the baby phase all consuming. She never did take bottles so I was on constant call for nursing. And when we put our house on the market, I was operating in survival mode.

But the baby isn’t a baby any more. And the move is a done deal.

Do you think we could start over?

Hiatus

2010-03-19T11:15:00.000-07:00

I need to go on a little hiatus.

The little man has decided he doesn't want to nap.

But he really needs a nap.

Let's just say that the toddler terror level in our house is set to high.

Time for hobbies and blogging has vanished at the moment.

I'm still sneaking in a shower and handing onto my sanity, but it's by my fingernails.

I hope to be back.

But until then - I'd like to leave you with this link.

Click on it - This website embodies everything I love about the internet.

Blog on people!

Boogie Baby!

2010-03-17T04:11:00.000-07:00

Did anybody else see this headline - Babies are Born to Boogie, Study Shows

I knew it!

My babies are definitely born to dance.

The little man has been "singing" since before he mastered words and he is always happiest when he's moving to the rhythm of music.

Is there anything cuter than little kid dancing? I really don't think so.

Anyway, a new study was done that "showed babies respond to the rhythm and temp of music and find it more engaging than speech". It seems it's the beat of the music, rather than the other features that really get them moving.

So grab your baby, blast some tunes and get grooving!

It's be good for both of you.

And if you don't have a little one, don't let that stop you from busting a move.

(Do people still say "bust a move"? I'm pretty sure I just dated myself there.)

I'm a big believer that a dance party is good for the soul (and probably the behind too).

After The Happily Ever After

2010-03-15T04:08:00.000-07:00

Awhile ago I wrote a post called The Commuter King about a woman working as a secretary at the Ghanaian Embassy in DC who unexpected became King of a village in Ghana.

The Washington Post magazine just printed a follow up story, "All The King's Men" that tells about her adventures after becoming King.

Peggielene Bartels is a US citizen who grew up in Ghana. Her uncle had been King of Otuam. After he passed away, the village elders performed an elaborate ceremony to select the next ruler and choose Peggielene.

I'm pretty sure they had no idea what they were getting themselves into.

She is the first woman to ever hold the title.

She is also continuing to work as a secretary in the US to earn much needed funds for her village so she'll be governing from a distant for the time being.

From the article, it appears that the elders might have selected her because they expected her to be weak because of her gender and distracted because of the distance.

They were wrong on both accounts.

You see, the same elders who selected the new King have been embezzling public funds that should be used to improve life for the village.

But the new King is putting an end to the corruption.

One of the more colorful quotes from article:

If people confess their crimes, I will be merciful. But if they don't, I will squeeze their balls so hard their eyes pop out. Then I will put them in jail and let them rot there; I don't care how old they are.

And she's not just talk.

She's putting her years of administrative experience to work and making real changes happen.

I just love this story.

I can't wait to hear the ending.

Unsolicited Marriage Advice

2010-03-09T16:32:00.000-08:00

Six years ago today I got married!

(Happy anniversary man of mine. I'm a very lucky lady to have you.)

I was young and pretty dumb when I got married, but I have learned a few useful things in the past six years. So I figure today is as good a day as any to share totally unsolicited advice with you all (because people just love unsolicited advice...right).

Here are the three most important things I've learned-

1. My husband is amazing, but he isn't a mind reader. If you want or need something from your man, you might need to tell him in small, specific words.

It might not be as romantic to get flowers or back rubs because you asked for them, but you do get them.

2. I don't have to understand it, I just have to understand that it's important to him.

This applies for a whole spew of interests in my house, particularly anything sports related.

I've learned to try not to talk so much during Steelers games. In exchange, he surrenders the TV for Watch Not to Wear marathons and pretends to care about my new shoes. It works for us.

3. A steady stream of compliments and kisses goes a long way toward harmony. Just taking the time for a few stolen kisses, a wink or a laugh through out the day has helped us keep our connection despite the relentless chaos of caring for two little ones.

That's the best I've got.

What's the best relationship tip you know?

RTT - Boobies, Bras and Visitors Edition

2010-03-09T03:35:00.000-08:00

Happy Tuesday folks!

It's time for Random Tuesday Thoughts. Please go visit the ever lovely Un-Mom to join in on the game.

And now let's get started-

My son recently watched an episode of Little Einsteins called "The Blue Footed Booby Bird Ballet".

Wanna guess what word he retained and has been repeating?

(Thanks for that Disney)
******************

I know that most of you probably don't care, but Target has cute nursing bras...multiple styles even.

They look like normal bras and I promise your ladies will be saluting proudly in these babies.

I'm pretty sure the ones I have leftover from my son's babyhood should be marketed as a form of birth control.
*******************

We recently learned that some family is planning to come to visit us.

My sixth wedding anniversary is Thursday.

Wanna to guess what day they are arriving?

(And nope, they aren't really the babysitting kind.)

Oh well. At least it will be fun to shamelessly show off my little ones.
**********************

It hit 60 degrees here yesterday!

Isn't it amazing how much better sunshine makes life?

(Or is that just me with my borderline seasonal affective disorder?)

Anyway, I hope all is well with all of you.

I'm off to start preparing kiddos for the day.

It's Time

2010-03-07T07:42:00.000-08:00

You know those old cartoons where a little devil appears on one shoulder and an angel on the other?

Well, I don't have that problem exactly,

But I do have a little drill instructor that haunts me.

He appeared sometime during college when I had to pass a physical readiness test and get publicly weighted every six months as part of my Navy ROTC scholarship.

(And yes - that's every bit as much fun as it sounds like.)

My internal drill instructor gave me a break during the pregnancy and he was quiet for the first two months after Audrey was born.

But he's started to grumble again.

And he's getting louder.

Lately, I keep hearing a little voice yelling "EXCUSES ARE LIKE ASSHOLES - EVERYBODY HAS ONE."

That and "IT'S EASIER TO PUT THE COOKIE DOWN, THEN WORK IF OFF YOUR ASS."

So the time has come.

Yesterday I went to the gym for the first time post baby.

I did feel a bit like I might die, but I did it.

And it feels good.

Goals

2010-03-01T18:07:00.000-08:00

Today's goals:

Don't get caught while sneaking candy in the kitchen.

Listen to one whole CD of grown up music. (Bonus points will be awarded for having a dance party with the kiddos.)

Say "yes" all day unless there is a really solid reason for saying "no".

Put on earrings, clean clothes and a little make up.

Drink one cup of tea before it gets cold.

Give the hubby a few extra kisses. (He definitely deserves them. I've been a bit of a bear lately.)

If I can pull off all that I'm going to call it a good day.

Clean houses are over rated...right?

RTT-The Cliches Edition

2010-03-01T17:33:00.000-08:00

What better way to ease myself back into blogging than joining in on the random fun with The Un-Mom and my new friend - Bitchin' Wives Club

Now that I have a second little one, certain things have become crystal clear.

I was a big, world class whiner the first round.

Really...world class...super grade A bitchin'

I probably could have earned a gold medal in over reacting and crying for no reason.

The two year old is approximately 800 times the work of the 11 week old.

It's probably for the best that I didn't realize how much more exciting things got once they get mobile.
******************

I am so freaking ready for spring.

Last year, we got 6 inches of snow.

Total...for the entire winter.

This year we had the largest snow fall in all of recorded history with a whopping 60 inches.

I'm over it.
***********************
Turns out our biological clocks start ticking even louder and sooner than previously thought - Ovaries have not adjusted to many women's decision to delay having children

It's not fair.

But I'm glad we're at least getting information so that women can make informed decisions about their choices.
**************************

Vienna! Really? And Jake is going to be on Dancing with the Stars?

WTF

************************

I love being a mom. I really do. But the one two punch of blizzards and illness on top of a new baby really knocked me on my behind. I'm still trying to pick myself back up.

Today is the first day my son went to preschool in quite a while.

And I was way more excited than I should be.

I hope you all have a fantastic Tuesday!

Paradoxes

2010-02-23T11:11:00.000-08:00

Is it just me or does the amount of interest an older sibling shows in a baby directly related to the amount of snot he is producing at the time?

How does a kid get sick during a blizzard when they are basically quarantined by mother nature?

How is it that there is a single most adorable baby in the whole world. And every mother has her, including me?

Why is the only time my baby naps for more than a half hour when her brother is making as much noise as humanly possible?

As much as a two month old sleeps, you would think naps would overlap at least one in awhile, but it almost never happens. (Maybe she has figured out she gets undivided attention when it's quiet?)

The snow is finally almost gone, but I'm having a hard time getting back in the groove.

So until I can safety get my head above water and find a little time to blog - a little cuteness to distract from my slacking -

Mom Mobile

2010-02-16T11:21:00.000-08:00

For the last eight years I've driven a Nissan Sentra. We had a good run, but she's been showing serious signs of wear lately.

But I still loved my car.

I wasn't in a hurry to get a new ride, but the addition of a second car seat was the tipping point.

You want to know the best thing about driving a beat up old Sentra?

Anything seems like an upgrade in coolness...even a minivan.

That's right...

I now drive a mom yacht.

And I have to say, it's kind of awesome.

It's the most comfortable vehicle I've ever ridden in. It obviously doesn't get as good of gas mileage as my little car, but it's not too bad.

The car seats are in captains chairs so my son can't poke the baby while I'm driving anymore, which is definitely a bonus.

Most important, it's very safe with air bags all over the place.

There is definitely a part of me that is throwing a tantrum in protest. But keeping my babies safe is priority number one.

And the six CD player and radio controls on my steering wheels are helping ease the transition.

I'm not rocking mom jeans any time soon, but I am definitely sporting a mom mobile now.

And I'm okay with it.

Actually, I'm more than okay with it.

I love my new minivan.

Guess it's time to sign my son up for soccer!

Enough Already!

2010-02-09T10:30:00.000-08:00

Dear Mother Nature,

Excellent show of fury last week. Closing the federal government for two days is pretty impressive. You successfully brought the entire DC area to a stand still. Mail wasn't even delivered until today.

We get it. You are clearly a bit pissed right now.

But do we really need a second blizzard this week? We still have two feet of snow on the ground without adding the predicted 10-20 inches.

Is it the politicians? If I was you I'd probably be more than a little angry at them too.

But maybe in the future you could use a more directed means of flexing your mighty muscles. I'd like to recommend some lightening strikes and maybe a few small well aimed tornadoes.

Just a thought...Please don't take my electricity as retribution for the suggestion.

Thanks,
Me

Snow-gasm

2010-02-07T11:26:00.000-08:00

There had been reports all week about record breaking snow fall in the area. (I live in a suburb outside DC.)

Usually, our weather reports are greatly exaggerated. I'm pretty sure a dart board is involved in the process somehow.

They'll predict a foot of snow and we'll generally get a few inches. School will be canceled and the sun will shine all day.

This time they actually got it right...

View from my back window

What my road looks like right now...

At least the little guy is enjoying the adventure. He's been "helping" dad dig us out.

We thankfully did not lose power. No heat and a seven week old isn't a good combination. Thousands of folks in the area are without power and heat right now.

I went on a stock up mission Friday morning before the blizzard (yes, it was officially a blizzard) hit so we've had plenty of food and supplies.

We really haven't had it too bad. I just have a raging case of cabin fever at this point.

And I do have to wonder why this stuff has to happen on Friday afternoon. Couldn't it hit during the work week so we at least get some work canceled out of the deal?

Hope you all are staying safe and warm this weekend.

Miss Education

2010-02-02T11:04:00.000-08:00

Lately, I've been spending a lot of time sitting on the couch feeding my peanut.

So...I've been watching way too much television.

This was the first time since high school that I've watched the Miss America competition.

I find the whole pageant thing strangely fascinating.

How do they get away with calling the swimsuit competition "Lifestyle and Fitness"? Are we really going to pretend it's about anything other than looking hot in a bikini?

If I was queen of the world, the fitness category would definitely involve some push ups.

And maybe some running and squats. Or we could even throw in a drill sergeant or two to spice things up.

Let's see how fit those girls really are!

Thanks to my friend google, I learned that the Miss America Organization is the largest provider of scholarship assistance for young women world wide.

Apparently, we only want to educate attractive women willing to parade in a swimsuit.

To be fair, scholarships for women are a good thing.

I guess I'd just prefer that the largest source of scholarships for women base their selection on something crazy like scholastic achievement rather than a pretty smile and fancy dresses.

Balancing Act

2010-01-30T10:21:00.000-08:00

I breastfed during a conference call last week while typing with one hand.

(The call was with my co-workers who aren't alarmed if they hear a kid in the background. I would never try such a feat with clients.)

I usually spend nap time frantically working, but adding a baby to the equation has changed things a bit.

(Am I the only who finds themselves literally balancing motherhood and work?)

Taking two months maternity leave made me realize a few things.

First, money is good. We could survive on just my husband's income, but my small contribution means we don't have to think quite so hard about the bottom line. It covers preschool, swim lessons and the little extras.

I also like the sense of accomplishment. It feels good to get something checked off the to do list that actually stays done. It's a nice change from from repeatedly cleaning floors that instantly get filthy and picking up the same toys ten times a day.

Also, if I don't use it...I loose it. It's amazing how quickly my skills just evaporate. Two months not working and I felt like I was chiseling through a thick layer of brain rust.

But most important, I think it's also healthy for me to be reminded what it's like to actually work. When I first quit my full time job, I completely lost my perspective.

I indulged in elaborate work fantasies that involved stylishly dressed, friendly co-workers and pristine offices. I focused on all the lunches out, happy hours and high heels, but conveniently brain dumped all the slightly evil coworkers, never ending pointless meetings and bosses with untreated ADD.

Not to leave you with the impression that my part time job is a bad job. It's not. But it is work.

When I'm having a bad day in the motherhood, it's good to remember that there are horrible days in the office too.

And in my experience, the good days home with the kiddos are better than any day at the office, dirt and chaos included.

I think I've finally found the balance that works for me and it feels good.

My Princess

2010-01-29T12:35:00.000-08:00

My son "shared" his recent head cold with the baby.

So I ended up at the doctor's yesterday with a snotty, coughing six week old.

(My son never got sick until he was 9 months old. Apparently, having a germy older sibling is a game changer and we'll be visiting the doctor a lot this year.)

The doctor put Audrey on her belly to listen to her lungs. She was naked, cold, tired and at the end of her patience.

She lifted her head up, looked the doctor straight in the face and let out the most amazing war cry I've ever heard.

She's let me have a few times at home, but this was unlike any baby cry I've ever heard.

Her little tongue was wagging up and down, her entire body turned red and the sheer volume was shocking.

It was clear that she was pissed. And it was clear she was pissed at the doctor.

Pretty much from birth, she has known (and let us know) what she likes and dislikes. She is much more alert and opinionated than her brother was at the same age.

She is definitely a bit of princess.

Not a princess like the ones in a Disney movie, but one more along the lines of Xena the Warrior Princess.

She certainly has the crazy war cry down already.

Glad It Wasn't Me

2010-01-25T11:25:00.000-08:00

I'm a bit clumsy, but I've never even considered this a possibility- Visitor Loses Balance, Damages Picasso Work

Some unfortunate person tripped and ripped a six inch hold in a hundred year old Picasso.

Remind me not to take the two year old to a museum unless the paintings are covered by bullet proof glass.

Apparently an elementary school teacher sent her students home with a class memories DVD that accidentally included six seconds of herself having sex. -Students get X-rated Surprise in Class DVD

How does that even happen? I've sent emails to the wrong person and I misspell stuff constantly, but how do you accidentally include a bit of sex tape?

I'm sure there is a important life lesson buried somewhere in this, just probably not the one she was intending to teach.

This is one idea that I'm glad I didn't have - Spice Girls Musical On the Way

I'm pretty sure ABBA should be offended by this copycat.

And last but not least, I'm glad I'm not on The Bachelor (or really any reality show).

The level of delusion among the ladies is almost mind boggling.

I'm not sure how much is just clever editing, but the drama is out of control.

I wouldn't want the world to see me only in my most desperate and petty moment.

Not to mention the whole getting dumped on national TV..that probably sucks too.

So while I might make an ass of myself fairly often, at least it isn't televised and I haven't done anything that made it in the news...at least not yet.

Company Detox

2010-01-25T04:10:00.000-08:00

Our visitors left yesterday.

It was a good visit. But I'm looking forward to a break from company, even good company.

A fun time was had by all (at least that's what they said).

My nephew is only 11 months older than my son so the little guys joyfully ran circles around the rest of us.

But my son definitely hit his limit Saturday night. It's been a little ugly. I figure he'll settle down in a few days as long as we both survive that long.

It isn't helping that my son figured out this weekend that I've been holding out on him when it comes to junk food. I'm pretty sure he's still holding a grudge because I wouldn't let him eat Coca Pebbles for breakfast yesterday when my nephew had some.

If nothing else, this weekend established that my older sister is a cooler mom than I am. Not that was much doubt, she has always been cooler in general.

She is a massage therapist and I'm an engineer. That pretty tells you a lot about our personalities (and parenting styles). I've always kind of taken it for granted, but we get along remarkable well for being so different.

So while it's been fun visiting with everyone, but it's time to figure out what normal life is like as a family of four.

I'm ready to start wrangling the kiddos solo...at least I hope I am!

Hope you all had a great weekend.

The Circus Is Coming to Town...

2010-01-17T11:33:00.000-08:00

And by circus, I mean our family.

So it will be the big three ring kind. Loud, fun and overwhelming to the senses.

My husband's little brother arrived yesterday.

He's young, single, and likes to sleep in.

(I kinda hate anybody who sleeps in right now. It's not personal...totally irrational sleep deprivation is taking over my body at this point.)

He leaves tomorrow.

Then on Wednesday my mom and sister arrive for 4 days.

My 14 year old niece is coming along. And my 3 year old nephew.

So we'll have a house full. And our house isn't particularly big.

(Am I the only one who finds themselves morphing into a whiny 13 year old around their family? Does this ever stop?)

I know the little man is going to love playing with his cousin and I know we'll have a great time.

But I also know my limitations.

I'm not as flexible as I should be. I'm going to do my best to bend and not break down this week.

The plan is to just enjoy these visits with family and let the little things slide.

(Nobody cares how clean my floors are at this point, right?)

Wish me luck.

Near Miss of Epic Proportions

2010-01-14T12:06:00.000-08:00

I need to write a few checks to charity or find a couple of old ladies to help cross the street because I'm pretty sure I used up every good karma point I've earned yesterday.

The baby was sleeping and the little man was playing happily in his room.

I decided to make a quick dash to the outside trash can to take out the overflowing stinky diapers.

(Can you guess where I'm going with this?)

I was gone for about a minute and a half...tops.

I grabbed the door knob and it doesn't budge. I frantically try it again.

Locked. (Apparently, my son has mastered a new skill.)

No keys, no phone, no neighbors home..Plenty of panic.

As calmly as I could, I knocked on the door. My son came running.

"Love bug, can you unlock the door please?"

And thank the stars above, he did it.

I honestly have no idea what I would have done if he hadn't unlocked it. The year is brand new and I'm already out of the running for Mother of the Year.

I'm just lucky that he is in that sweet spot of development where he is old enough to understand the request, but too young to grasp the comedic potential of the situation.

Next time, I'll be bringing the keys with me.

Or better yet, I might just let the husband deal with the trash when he gets home.

Baby Steps

2010-01-13T10:51:00.001-08:00

I ran my first errand with both kiddos today.

We went to Target to return something and bought a few essentials.

This might not sound impressive, but it feels like a major milestone to me.

There were no nuclear meltdowns, no major drama and all limbs are still attached.

The baby might have gotten poked a few times by her big brother, but she didn't seem to mind so I'm declaring victory.

This is my first week on my own, outnumbered by children. It hasn't been easy, but it's been a heck of a lot better than I feared.

Audrey is four weeks old now. Thankfully, she is a relatively laid back baby. She's an alert, content little lady and is quickly growing some impressive thigh rolls.

I think she is pretty prefect.

And as a bonus, the last two nights she went over four hours between feedings. Again, this probably doesn't sound impressive, but after nursing every two to three hours around the clock for the last four weeks it was a major step.

The zombie fog that has settled in my brain is starting to clear a little. (And I'm wearing pants with a zipper! Sorry - just needed to share that.)

The little man continues to be an awesome big brother. He continues to love the baby and really hasn't gotten jealous. He's a bit overly helpful at times, but that was pretty much his style long before he became a big brother.

I think it would be too bold to say I've got my groove back, but at least I can hear the music again.

Hopefully, I'll feel up to joining the dance again in a few weeks.

The Big 3-0

2010-01-10T13:26:00.000-08:00

Today is my 30th birthday.

Funny how 30 seems so old when you're a kid and yet you really don't feel particularly old when you actually hit the milestone.

I was kinda freaked out when I turned 29, but this year I'm ready for it. I can totally handle turning 30.

I've survived my first ER trip as a parent.

I have faced the terror of maternity clothes and navigated the dark mysteries of the nursing bra.

I've made a tentative peace with my career suicide.

I've somewhat successfully dealt with sickness, fits, poop and everything else my two year has thrown at me.

My body has already gone through the frightening changes that come with bearing two children.

Turning 30 doesn't scare me at this point. (And really, who has the time to worry about a little thing like a birthday with a newborn?)

At least my birthday means I get cake (one that my lovely husband baked for me) and presents.

So 30's here I come. I hope you're ready for me because I've got big plans for you.

Newborn Mysteries

2010-01-08T12:14:00.001-08:00

This is not my first rodeo. I've done this newborn thing once before.

I thought that I might have some clue what I'm doing this round.

But somehow I found myself in the position of calling the advice nurse at my pediatrician to ask about poo.

Once upon a time I used to brief important people about important things. Now when I say I've had a crappy day, I may actually mean that literally.

Thank goodness for washing machines and disposable diapers. And hand soap. I should probably buy stock in hand soap at this point.

Anyway, moving on...

My three week old daughter hadn't pooped in two days. Digging through the murky memories of my son's earliest days, I seem to recall that he pooped non-stop. (So far my daughter continues to make it clear that she is a completely different kid in just about every way possible.)

Sleep deprived, new mom paranoia set in.

So I called the advice nurse to ask if this state of affairs was something to worry about.

And I learned something amazing.

Apparently, breast fed babies can go up to six days without pooping and it's "normal".

Six days...

I wouldn't want to change that diaper.

A Happy New Year

2010-01-01T10:34:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year Everyone!

This time of year always make me reflect a bit on my life and this year with all the changes going on it seems especially relevant.

I am now the mother of two (which somehow seems much more serious than the mother of one) and I'll turn 30 in two weeks.

I keep seeing articles that talk about how the world has changed in the last decade. It just makes me laugh because my world is hardly even recognizable.

Ten years ago, I was about to turn twenty. I was a broke, stressed out college student. I couldn't even legally drink. My biggest crisis was the C I got my sophomore year in college.

I just KNEW what I wanted to do with myself, which was climb the corporate ladder as quickly as possible. And make lots of money, of course.

I had life all figured out. I never even changed my major.

Now, ten years later. My life doesn't look anything like I would have predicted. I wasn't even planning to even think about getting married until I was 30.

Now I have a husband (of nearly 6 years), a mortgage, two kids, a very part time job with a three digit monthly paycheck, an 8 year old car and a couple of cats.

I can't even remember the last time I had an alcoholic beverage and or was out past midnight.

I'm pretty sure my 20 year old self would be horrified.

The younger me was awfully dumb.

I do wonder about the "might have beens" and the "what ifs", but when the chips are down, I wouldn't change a thing.

This year, I'm skipping all the usual resolutions. I'm not ready to even think about weight yet (I'm just trying not to look at my pudgy postpartum self in the mirror too closely). And I honestly don't have the energy or time to embark on any major self improvement ventures right now.

My goal for the year: To just be happy. I am going to try to live in the moment more and just enjoy my life as much as possible.

I waste far too much time over thinking things and worrying about the roads not taken. I feel guilty that I'm not using my education more, even though I'm not sure why.

I'm going to do my best to quit this habit cold turkey.

I'm sure that the transition to two little ones will have a few rough spots, but I'm doing to do my best to just laugh at my kids antics and just have fun with the wild little people I created.

Maybe next year I'll start worrying about jobs and careers again, but this year I'm taking a time out from the topic.

I hope this is the start of a fabulous, productive New Year for all of you.

Random Thoughts: Xmas Edition

2009-12-29T07:12:00.000-08:00

Hi All!

I know I haven't been around much lately, but I'm still alive. A little sleep deprived and more random than usual, but happy, slightly hormonal and loving the mother of two gig so far.

So let's get started...

I recently bought a pair of slip on black Sketchers that I love. They are comfortable and fairly stylish (at least I thought so when I bought them).

Last weekend I discovered that my husband's grandmother has the exact same pair.

Sweet...

Apparently, I'm just way, way ahead of my time when it comes to fashion...like 50 years and 5 great grandchildren ahead of myself.
**************

I am now the owner of a two feet tall, talking Pillsbury dough boy cookie jar.

I totally believe that it's the thought that counts.

But sometimes I wonder what inspires the thought. What about my kitchen decor or myself makes somebody thinks that my secret desire is a huge talking dough boy?

All joking aside, I made out like a bandit on Christmas. I'm a very spoiled woman.

But not as spoiled as the little man. It really looked liked a toy store exploded in our living room.

What we bought was a very small percentage of what he received.

It's kind of mind boggling...I'm just trying not to think too hard about it.
***************

We had company for over three weeks. It came in really handy to have help with my son and a built in baby sitter for all the doctor appointments, but it's nice to have the house back to ourselves. I'm ready to get things back to normal (or at least try to find a new normal).
***************

All and all, life is good. I'm tired and a little overwhelmed, but I'm starting to get my feet under me.

Hope you all are doing well and have a great Tuesday!

The Big Baby News

2009-12-22T13:14:00.000-08:00

Well, it's been an exciting week in our house.

My little girl did in fact decided that Monday was too long too wait. (I think she just wanted her birthday to fall safety before Christmas.)

Audrey Ann was born on Wednesday, December 16 at 4:24 pm. She was 6 lbs 1 oz and 18 inches long. She is a peanut, but a healthy, cute little peanut.

I showed up at the hospital Wednesday afternoon with contractions 8 minutes apart, dilated to almost 4 so she was delivered by c-section within two hours of our arrival. The c-section wasn't as bad as I was anticipating (although I'm sure all the drugs they gave me helped me chill out a bit).

Everybody is doing well. We even escaped the hospital a day early on Friday to avoid the massive snow storm that hit our area. (We got about a foot of snow on Saturday, which is a ton for the DC area.)

The mystery of the breech baby was also solved. She had a cord wrapped around her neck and there was no way she could safety turn. I've definitely made my peace with the c-section and am just really thankful for modern medicine at this point.

So far, Miss Audrey is showing plenty of spunk and is letting us know exactly how she likes things done. Last night she took pity on us and actually let us sleep (well, at least we got to sleep in between feeding her every 2-3 hours).

I don't usually share photos, but who could resist with a brand new bundle to show off?

And here's one of the new big brother holding her for the first time.

So far, he absolutely adores her. If anything, he is a little too into her. He wants to carry her around and put her into the crib by himself. which isn't going to happen for obvious reasons. He's has been singing her a lot of songs (hopes she likes Bob the Builder's theme song) and giving her lots of kisses.

I'll post as I'm able, but right now I'm just trying to survive and get a little sleep. We have some family coming into town for Christmas and things will be a bit crazy until next week, but I'm excited to see what the little man thinks of all the presents.

My family is truly blessed and we're all just overjoyed by our new addition. It's one heck of a Christmas present.

Hope you all have happy holidays.

Backing Her Way Into the World

2009-12-11T10:40:00.000-08:00

Well, first off no baby yet. This is probably a good thing because she'll have a little more time to grow, but it means a little bit more time of being on high alert.

The doctor tried to flip her yesterday. Apparently, he's the best at what he does and all the nurses appear to worship him (he has a lovely Italian accent and wore a bow tie), but my little girl wouldn't have any of it.

One of the nurses told me that whichever way they come out, breech babies enter the world behind first.

So apparently this baby is bound and determined that her first act on this earth will be to moon everyone. I wonder if this is an indication of things to come?

She is a feisty little thing already. She's moves way more than her brother ever did and spent the entire hour we were kept for observation after the flip attempt assaulting the fetal heart monitor. I really think we might have our hands full with this one.

I am now scheduled for a c-section on December 21st, which will get us home on Christmas Eve as long as all goes well.

This puts the c-section at 38 weeks 2 days, which is only one day later than my son came so there is a chance I'll make it to my appointment. All the waiting is tiring, but at least we have a deadline. (I even bought a ridiculous babies first Christmas outfit and ornament today because I could.)

I'm still under strict marching order to get my behind to the hospital if I even think I might be in labor. In addition, the plan is to go to the doctor twice next week to check how things are progressing.

As of yesterday, not much had happened in the last week so we're going to try and give her a bit more time since I'll only be 37 weeks tomorrow.

I probably won't be posting very often for the next week or two. My brain is entirely filled with boring baby worries and pink fluffy thoughts so I'll spare you all, but I'll try to update if there is any news.

If anyone has any c-section insights or advice, please let me know. Anything I should definitely take to the hospital or prepare ahead of time? Anything that I should know that the nurses might forget to mention?

I've done this whole baby thing once, but I've never had a c-section so I'm not sure how different the experience will be.

Thankfully, my mother in law is willing to hang out until Christmas so we have a little help and somebody to watch the little guy if we need to disappear quickly. (And I am smart enough to just say thank you and not look a gift horse in the mouth. All pros definitely outweigh any cons of having family here for three weeks.)

I hope everyone is having a great holiday season so far. Enjoy your holidays and I hope to be back to blogging at least somewhat regularly before too long.

No News Yet

2009-12-08T12:57:00.000-08:00

...hello?

No... There's no baby yet.

No... Nothing exciting to report just yet.

Baby is still breech. So far it's looking like I'll make it to my appointment on Thursday.

My mother in law is in town. All the preparations are done.

Nothing to do here, but wait.

I've never felt so much like a watched pot in my entire life.

There is something truly bittersweet about these last days with just my son. I've enjoyed our time with just the two of us and I'm not sure I'm ready for it to be over.

But I'm also very excited to meet my new little one. This is such an intense week...

If I get sent home still pregnant on Thursday, I'll write a quick update and let you all know what happened.

Otherwise, I'll be in touch as soon as I can.

Hope you all have a great week.

My Little Drama Queen

2009-12-04T12:08:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I had my 36 week doctor's appointment. (I'll won't actually be 36 weeks until tomorrow, but it was close enough and my son was in preschool).

And it looks like it might be an exciting week in our house.

I went into the appointment convinced that the baby was still breech.

The midwife checked the heart beat and heard it pretty low and she thought she "felt a head" when she checked my cervix.

So it was looking like I was just being a paranoid, annoying patient again. But she decided to do a quick sonogram just to double check.

And my little one is in fact still sitting on my cervix. And this time she was actually sucking her toes...because what else would be doing, right?

I can't imagine that is more comfortable than just flipping head down, but what do I know.

And I'm also dilated to 2...just to keep things interesting.

Combine all this with the fact that my son came right at 38 weeks after a 4 hour labor and I definitely got the poor midwife's attention.

I think this little one might just be a drama queen in training. She already knows how to make an exciting entrance.

After talking over the options, we decided the best course of action is to try to do a version where they turn the baby from the outside and if that doesn't work...c-section.

(Click here to see a u-tube video of a verson being done.)

My appointment is next Thursday and I will probably not leave the hospital pregnant whether it's successful or not.

If they are able to flip her, I will most likely be induced so that she doesn't have a chance to flip back since my body is already gearing up. And if she stays put, they will probably do a c-section because nobody wants me to go into labor with her breech and my habit of popping babies out in a hurry.

In the meantime, I'm supposed to rest as much as possible and get my behind to the hospital immediately if I have any consistent, painful contractions of any sort.

It looks like I really might be holding her by this time next week. It's kind of blowing my mind.

The in laws are coming in this weekend to help.

But I think the husband and I will be on pins and needles until the appointment on Thursday.

And I'll be crossing my fingers (and legs) hoping she doesn't decide to come in the next six days.

Frazzled and Slightly Broken

2009-12-02T10:40:00.000-08:00

Do you ever just have one of those days?

You know...the one where you feel like you're an embodiment of every frazzled stay at home mom stereotype?

(If the answer is no, please don't tell me right now. I'm not ready to hear about how somebody loves every single second of motherhood and feels like they channel Mary Poppins daily.)

I attempted to run a couple of errands this morning with the little man in tow. It was a pretty big debacle.

I'm spare you the details, but it involved the works...tantrums, screaming, throwing stuff out of the cart, begging for treats, etc.

I'm guess everyone has a breaking point and mine is apparently 35 weeks pregnant, sleep deprived with a wild two year who has started to act out. Good to know.

(I didn't actually cry in the store for the record. I waited until I got to the car.)

I'm pretty sure I was walking ad for birth control. Non parents who witnessed the scene were probably traumatized.

Which got me thinking about all the condom commercials where they show all these lovely, happy couples making out. (I mentioned I haven't got a lot of sleep lately right? My mind just jumps to strange tangents right now.)

That is not the most effective way to sell birth control.

I think all that is needed is a couple strong shots of some good old reality.

Just show a mom during her rock bottom, worst moments. Show that to your average young man and you won't be able to stop him from stock piling birth control.

Or just show a few moms having a really frank discussion about the first month postpartum.

Just to add a quick disclaimer: This isn't to say that I'm not glad to be a mom. I am.

It's just sometimes it's a pretty challenging gig. (I'm sure it's nothing a little nap time, chocolate and tea can't fix. He's been asleep for a half hour and I'm already feeling much better.)

Deep breathes...deep breathes.

I can handle this whole two kid thing right?

The Call

2009-11-30T12:54:00.000-08:00

This weekend, my husband was checking in on a football game.

I was half watching, but doing something in the kitchen and missed a penalty call.

I asked my husband what the ref said. (I figure if I'm going to watch some football I might as well follow what's going on.)

Before my husband could respond, my little man very seriously replied "He did Wheels on the Bus, Mama".

Apparently, it was a false start.

He then went on to sing several rounds of Wheels on the Bus, complete with hand motions and butt wiggling.

My kid just cracks me up. He is definitely more entertaining than any TV show.

Let's Talk Turkey

2009-11-25T10:25:00.001-08:00

What do you mean it's a holiday?

It can't possible be a holiday.

We're not fighting traffic, there are no house guests in sight and I'm not all stressed out frantically cleaning everything.

Wait a second, I did see a lot of people buying turkeys this week....do you mean to tell me that we're home alone on a holiday.

Is that even allowed?

This is a whole new world for us. The three of us haven't celebrated a single "big" holiday alone ever. (I've mentioned that my son is currently my in laws only grandchild right?)

Basically, the planets just aligned in such a way that it is just us this year.

We can't really travel right now since I'm due to pop in about a month.

And nobody wants to visit us until there is a cute baby to admire so we won't have any visitors until Christmas time.

I figure there are two ways to look at this.

First option, I could think lonely thoughts and complain about the situation (but I'm pretty sure it's bad karma to whine on Thanksgiving).

Or I could look at this as an opportunity to celebrate exactly the way we want, stress free.

I get to cook only what my husband and I want (which means no stuffing, extra mashed potatoes, chocolate pie, English toffee and I'm skipping the turkey in favor of cornish game hens....because I can. Bwhahahaha!).

I'm going to enjoy the freedom! I'm even trying out some new recipes without worrying too much about how they'll turn out.

I intend to enjoy myself as much as possible (and make sure my boys have a good time too...of course). I plan to feast until my pregnant belly is completely full...and then I'll wait a few hours and do it again.

And to make it even better, my husband has Friday off so it's a four day weekend!

We even going to put the tree up on tomorrow. (It's fake so whole dying thing isn't a problem. I love real trees, but my husband won that fight.)

I wonder how long it will take before the kid or the cat knock it over?

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!