Stories to tell, and New School worries

So, it appears that blogs like mine are EXACTLY what the blog-world needs to hold on to. Little stories like mine, told in my very own authentic voice, with no want for swag or ads or paid promotions, are what makes blogging great. I am so glad to hear this.

(...I AM GOING TO BE SO RICH!!!!!)

Just kidding.

But it does make me feel good that I've not had the guts wanted to take my blog to "the next level." I can't believe I spent an hour this morning reading all the comments at the BlogHer09 website, though. I don't know. Maybe a part of me does kinda dream of going there. I mean, some women who go to the conference ARE just small-time, like me. Anyway.

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What I really wanted to write about today is my number one fear right now. I'm feeling really worried that AJ isn't going to like school. I'm worried about his little feelings, his admitted nervousness about making new friends in Kindergarten. Which is so NORMAL, and I know that. But you know how it is, a Mom hates to think of her little guy being sad or afraid. Mostly, I'm worried he won't think school is fun -- that he'll feel like it's drudgery at a young age, all the way through the 12th grade, because he's been going to school so much of his young life already.

I'm worried he won't be motivated to do homework. Homework that it's CRAZY to HAVE at age five, but nonetheless, they have it now and he's going to have to DO IT. I bought him a little numbers "activity" book, as the school suggested, to work on during the summer. But every time I bring it up, he finds something else (video games) that he'd rather do instead. And I don't begrudge him the video games; they're part of his generation as no other generation before. I want him to be able to play them, actually. But when I was a kid I used to do "pretend" homework. I'd just grab any book off my Mom's shelf, open it up at an angle on my desk, and pretend to take notes from it, on a piece of paper. So I don't understand NOT wanting to do a Brand-new! Numbers! Activity! Book! (I was a nerd, yes.)

I'm worried about logistics. HOW are we going to get homework done? Will it be during his After-Care program at the school, or with me (somehow) at home... um... after dinner? I can't sacrifice his 8:00 bedtime to do homework, and I certainly can't sacrifice his bath... so like I do, I'm worrying over it. I'm sure in the end it will only be 10 minutes of homework at the most, but one never knows.

Despite my eensy hesitation, we ALSO signed him up for tee-ball. Now, I will say that on the one hand, what could be more AWESOME than little boys in baseball pants? I am excited for our first "team" experience, and we're hoping to be on a team with a little friend of his from daycare, which would be great for him. (Otherwise we would surely lose touch with that family, and the 2 boys have grown up together.) There's a requirement that the parents work the concession stand sometimes. Fun!! There will be something to do OUTDOORS every weekend. Score. The season is short, ending in October. All of that makes me giddy.

But the logistics, again, of having 2 practices a week until the games begin, and everything else that comes with a new Committment... worried.

Suppose it would be better to focus on the things I'm excited about, yes?
>> School supplies!! I was putting his name on pencil box and glue bottle last night.
>> Volunteering for lunchroom duty once a month. squee!
>> We got his textbooks -- there's a Spanish one! Yay for foreign language!
>> UNIFORMS!
>> He seems to like Harry Potter quite a bit already. (I can't wait to get to the Sorting Hat!)

Shameless attempt to WIN

They're giving away some lovely natural body scrub at Live Well Spend Well, and I get another entry for posting about it on my blog. And I get even MORE entries if YOU go over there, and leave a comment saying "el-e-e sent me."

And people, if you'd seen my feet lately, you would do this for me, as a kindness.

Sorry, TMI. But lordy, my feet in the summer are an embarrassment. All that fresh air and none of the armoured protection of socks. My worst grooming habit is to pick at that dry skin. I haven't allowed myself real pedicures in probably a year becuase, hey, you gotta save money somewhere and I'm NOT GIVING UP STARBUCKS.

Anyway, I'm sure you'd like to win, too, and if you do I will be happy for you. My feet will cry, but *I* will smile politely. Go forth and enter, and please put my name in the box!

7 Quick Takes Friday - with logo!

1. I cannot even tell you how sick I am of a particular project I'm working on at the office. It's a long "training guide," and I've never written anything like that before. Even in college I managed to graduate without ever being required to submit a paper much over 10 pages long. This one, so far, is at 18. AND IT'S BORING. My first draft is due today (Friday) and I will be so happy to kiss it goodbye.


2. After that, I am indulging. I've been invited to a single gal-pal's condo for pooltime!! I had forgotten that one of the best things about apartment/condo-living is having a pool. (Our subdivision has one, but we're too cheap to pay for membership.) Anyway, I simply can't wait. I bought a jar of fruity salsa and some chips, and we are going to lounge and swim and chit-chat and I am really looking forward to it. TODAY! In 5 hours!


3. My husband is a dear for giving me the afternoon/evening off. Love you, honey.


4. AJ starts Kindergarten in T-minus 3 weeks. Do you guys remember that just the other day, he was a teeny baby?? (Those are from the way-back machine, and MAN, have I been blogging a long time.)


5. Book Club is reading Twilight for August. Yes, we caved. Yes, we're planning to watch the movie at the meeting. I am more excited than I ought to be to finally get in on all the Edward hub bub. Meanwhile, I have started reading the first Harry Potter with AJ. I can't decide if he's really old enough, but took the plunge anyway. I know he's dying to see the first movie, but I just couldn't bear it if he didn't experience the book beforehand. We only manage to read a few pages at a time, but I think he likes it so far.


6. One of my coworkers seems to bring her kids into the office (ages 9 and 14) pretty often. I don't mind this, but I think it's odd. Have you ever done it? I mean, somewhat regularly? I know it's summer and all... maybe it's just that I've never worked with people who have that age kids before.


7. Latest TV pleasure (sorta): Extreme Logging: Ice Loggers. I don't love the show, but am somewhat intrigued. Mostly I love the cute Canadian accents. Eh? I keep thinking a lot of those dudes look much too young to be driving such heavy, dangerous machines. (I am getting so freaking old.)

go read more Quick Takes at Conversion Diary... happy weekend!

Good lunch hours

-- Walking across a Midtown street, on a 75-degree spring day, to a little park with a fountain, with your sweetie. He brings the sandwiches, you bring the chips and drinks. (Years ago, before DH was my "H.")

-- Driving home since you only work 7 miles away, patting the doggie, making a yummy sandwich or burrito, and watching a little noon-time news or BravoTV for 40 minutes. (Less often than I'd like - I somehow forget about this option.)

-- Driving home and eating, then cleaning a bathroom or vacuuming the bedrooms. (Not fun, but sometimes necessary.)

-- Going to the mall which is only 1 mile away; finding great shoes at Payless for next-to-nothing, picking up a sandwich, sniffing some stuff at Bath & Body, not to mention getting a "walk" in because you parked at the wrong mall entrance for Payless. YESSSS! (Last week.)

-- Being asked to lunch with a friendly coworker, and trying a new taco place that has patio seating. (Monday.)

-- Taking a 15 minute walk around the pond behind the office building, then going back in, heating up lunch, and reading a Philippa Gregory novel for 45 minutes while eating. (Yesterday.)


P.S. I don't include a lunchtime trip to Target in this list because 1 hour never seems long enough to peruse all the different sections of Target. Even when I have a focused objective and go there? It's never quite long enough!

Long overdue photo

The new cube-view

*forehead slap*

DH and I had a good, long talk last night about AJ. He had threatened a whiny meltdown RIGHT before he went to sleep, and MAN, are we weary from his fits.

We realized by talking about it that, DUHHHH, in daycare "summer camp," the kids don't get the 2-hour nap that they got all during Pre-K. I am such an idiot. They get "quiet time" with a movie, but OUR KID? Will do anything to stay awake during a movie. Perhaps THIS is the reason for his recent behavior. He's TIRED. (This, and the fact that his baby sister is no longer a little lump of sweetness, and is demanding extra attention and learning to throw her OWN fits, and he feels the need to compete.)

---> Mom guilt. I let him sleep an extra 10 minutes this morning.

It's tough because DH and I have always kept early-morning work schedules. When we commuted long distances, it was simply to get there on-time. Then it just became habit, and now I like being able to leave the office in the 4:00 p.m. hour. But this little revelation makes me want to reconsider our routine. Of course, Kindergarten begins at 8:00 sharp, and if he were taking the bus, it comes around at 10 minutes to seven in our neighborhood. (Get this -- the young kids' bus comes before dawn, but the middle school bus doesn't come until 8:30 or 9:00. Who planned that? Someone without little kids, that's who.) What I'm saying is, he's getting older now and the option to sleep a little later won't exist in a few weeks, anyway.

DH and I concluded, therefore, that we need to make 8:00 BEDTIME a priority. Since it's summer we've been pretty slack, letting him go 'til 8:30 or 8:45. But no more.

Did I say "idiot" already? ----> little bit of Mom guilt. Sigh.

Don't much like

One of the things I don't like about a (continuous, ongoing, lifetime for.ev.er.taking) weight loss effort is that you eventually have to become obsessed with it in order to succeed. Linda's article, and Swistle's, talk about the outward motion of obsession, where you "preach" to other people. I have definitely been there, preachy about fitness and diet when it's going well for me. I get especially preachy about yoga, which I love. Which is all probably a bummer to everyone around me who has to listen.

But this time around, it's a bummer for me as well. It's mentally draining, and lordy is it time-consuming, to constanly count calories and be mindful. I spend time working and re-working my menu in FitDay to get the right numbers of calories each day. With the stair-climbing I've decided is a fun new tactic, I find I'm thinking about it all the time -- When's my next "stair break?" Have I accumulated 20 minutes yet? Are people wondering where I am?

I also like online support; I think I've said before, I've used a message board in the past with success and made friends (one of whom still reads this blog sometimes, hi Stacy!) in the process. So today I signed back up for that, and damn if I don't want to check it obsessively to see new posts for recipes, tips, and responses to my questions. It's like another whole JOB.

I don't want to be obsessed with this. I want to be obsessed - and AM - with my kids. I am paid to be obsessed with my job. I am currently in the middle of a book series (Philippa Gregory) and obsessed with Tudor England, wanting to rent movies and watch TV shows about same. I don't really have time to add another bucket-load of time and mental energy to this, but I feel like I need to if it's going to work. I also don't want to obsess over it and make this a diet blog, which it sometimes already is and I'm sorry for my readers who are uninterested in that.

And it's just 10 little pounds! Just a little belly fat and arm jiggle! It doesn't seem to DESERVE all the stupid attention it's getting.

Two, 4, 6, 8, How do we Procrast-in-ate?

BLOG POST! BLOG POST! YAAAAAAY, BLOGS!

I'm supposed to be writing a white paper. My first. On a medicalish topic which I know very little about. Isn't that fun! Wheee! Wikipedia, here I come.

I would much rather talk about Nothing in this text box than about Something in that one. So...

-- My new cardio program is called "Running the Fire Stairs at my Office 4 Times a Day." I'm aiming for 5 minutes each time and it works out to almost that much. Currently going down and back up twice (I'm located on the 4th floor) definitely gets my heart pumping. The first time down, I'll walk back up 2-at-a-time. The second trip, I'll jog up 1-at-a-time. I never wanted to be one of THOSE people who had to workout by "taking the stairs" and "parking farther away," but hey, whatever it takes. I can't seem to motivate for a damn 20-minute session at home, so this will have to do until I get tired of it. (Or until tonight, when AJ gets his birthday present -- a Wii! Note his bedtime is at EIGHT SHARP.)

It's kinda fun, really, and clandestine and all. I just go after I get up for a bathroom break. I hate not wearing supportive shoes, but oh well. Hopefully my knees will manage.

-- KT's latest thing is wearing hats. Last night we had her all souped up in a backwards ballcap, with a string of mardi gras beads around her neck. She was all, "WHAT UP, YO?" It was cracking us up.

-- AJ's latest thing... I don't really want to talk about his latest thing. The word "bratty" has come into play. It's unpleasant.

-- KT's not all sunshine and rainbows either. I think the 16-month-stage was really tough with AJ, too, as in: CLING FEST. She wannnnnts MAAAA MAAAA. She's funny when she gets mad, too -- she goes over to our fridge and SWIPES! all the alphabet magnets harshly onto the floor. SO THERE!

-- Home life's been a little nuts, is what I'm saying. These kids are both WILD MONKEYS.

Everybody's Fourth of July

I'm loving stories of everyone's Fourths of July. The picnics, the "must-have" foods like corn-on-the-cob and watermelon, the fireworks.

For us, it was a perfect weekend. Friday afternoon, we swam at a friend's house in water that was cool and refreshing (unlike our condo's 85-degree pool from vacation week!), grilled hot dogs and chased kids around the yard.

Saturday, we relaxed with some other friends, let the kids play in their backyard where KT climbed the ladder and slid down the plastic slide with NO FEAR, and ... grilled hot dogs. And burgers. And brats. (Our must-have foods included baked beans, potato salad, and watermelon, for those of you playing along at home.)

Then we drove to a most unspectacular place, a nearby office park, where we had a most spectacular time! The kids ran around throwing a football (AJ tried really hard to throw it -- he's used to a smaller ball -- but he got in a couple of very good catches), and then they enjoyed sparklers and cupcakes while someone's iPod kept us entertained. "Jack and Diane," which I normally dislike, just sounds RIGHT on 4th of July, you know?

When the fireworks began, AJ hightailed it to the car with his Daddy -- poor little guy, the noise was too much for him -- but he still got to enjoy the amazing show. He and Daddy "COOOOOL!!!"ed and "AWESOME!"d every blast together. :) We were RIGHT underneath the display. I mean, it was directly above my eyes - I was almost worried the sparks would fall ON us. Beautiful. Loud. Smile-inducing. KT fell asleep on my chest as I sat in a lawn chair, next to neighbors and strangers, under an almost full moon.

In all my summers, this July 4th was undoubtedly one of my most contented and happy.

Swimsuits, smiles

Grateful, refreshed

1. For the first time in a long while, I think, I returned to work feeling truly refreshed after our vacation. Even though keeping up with the two kids -- not to mention managing my guilt over leaving them with the grandparents all the time -- makes for a BUSY vacation, I feel like we still got some down-time. I read 2 books, drank some adult beverages, ate well, and somehow feel really good this Monday morning.

2. I'm grateful for nice co-workers who invited me to a welcome-back lunch today.

3. I'm grateful for my wonderful family. Cousins, aunts, uncles, parents, and spouse. Here's hoping they, too, feel refreshed and happy after our reunion.

4. We actually got most of the laundry done! (And by "we" I mean "DH.") Thank you, honey!

5. My two little munchkins both give me such joy. KT, with her explosion of language over this past week ("da wa-wa?" [the water?], "dohhhhh!" [Joe, her Papa Joe], and all her other new words!) -- and AJ, growing by leaps and bounds and growing my heart with him, even in the trying moments... I am so, so grateful for having them in my life and for being "Mommy."

Hot by thirty-five?

So. I have made it to (almost) Beach Week. I have also recently made it to age 35. Back in February or so, I declared I was going on a diet, and would BE at goal weight by these two milestones.

Well... I'm not.

I'm not too far off, but in the last month I just gave out. Not that I was so exhausted from only eating broiled fish and almonds, by any means, but I quit measuring and Fit-Day-ing... and exercising. I told you my company has this cool program where anyone could do a walking video from 11:30 - 12, right? And I had been doing that, but then we had our national sales meeting and so the walking room became, instead, a conference room for a week, and that was the end of that.

So anyway. Did you know my company also makes swimwear? I just scored a free bathing suit, in fact. It looks... okay. I'm not exactly svelte but I just read something at Some Pig --which I have not been reading very faithfully because I don't think it had an RSS feed! But now it does, and praise heaven! I love Caroline's style!!-- Click over. I think it sums up my feelings at this moment.

I'm fine. I have the perspective of a 35-year-old, and it tells me that a glass of wine or a chips and fresh salsa snack are not forever verboten. If I don't look like a bronzed, taut teenager this year at the beach, it's because I AM NOT A TEENAGER. There's still the little matter of getting my BMI into the "healthy" range and I'm determined to do that. I want to retest my cholesterol and see if it's improved any. We'll tackle those after we get back.

But for this week? I'm good. I'll definitely be hot... temps are in the 90s and that sand reflects the sun, after all. Pass the chilled vino and the crab dip.

Lunch and other sundries

Today I get to have lunch on the corporate AmEx at a Mexican restaurant. I will say, one of the lovely things about this job has been lunches on the corporate AmEx. I'd say at least once every 3 weeks, and probably more than that, I get a free lunch.

It's the little things, you know?

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I found a bag I love. It's a black "work-tote," with hot pink interior. It's Ha-Yuge. Opens up all the way to the bottom and has a padded pocket if I wanted to carry my laptop in it. I've got room for my small purse, plus room for a file folder if I needed one, diapers and wipes if I needed those... it's perfect. I got it at Target, naturally, and although I kinda wanted something a little more name-brand and sophisticated, I adore this bag. Got a new wallet, too. Total score.

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Spanx.

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KT is 16 months old! This amazes me. TWO WHOLE years ago, we arrived at the beach with news that I was pregnant with her! I'm happy that I'll get to remember that arrival every summer for the rest of my life - it's an anniversary now, as well as a vacation. :) But, OHHHH, are we going to have fun this year with her. Last night in the bathtub, she was just babbling to herself, picking up squirty dolphins and pouring out water onto them and just talking away -- so busy. I just can't wait to add sunglasses and a floppy hat to that scene. (Well, and a swimsuit.)

Make My Happy Face

Yatt is moving!! Not out of town, but we're re-org'ing the office layout and she and her team are being shifted way out of earshot. There goes my entertaining blog fodder! But I can stop being so mean, which is probably a good thing. Anyway, I'll try to store up some good tidbits this week and then we will officially close this delightful story arc.

No, what I really want to talk about today is Age Four. Four is trying to kill me dead, with one re-usable phrase, and one alone:

"Make my happy face come baaaack!"

It's all my fault, too. I... maybe during one of AJ's early four-year-old tantrums, I was feeling bold and asked him, "Aww, buddy, where did your happy face go?" To try to get him out of his funk.

EPIC BACKFIRE. EP-IC. Now he turns that damn phrase back on me every time he feels the least bit dissatisfied. What he wants, usually, is for me to "fix it" by telling him a knock-knock joke. Because I tried THAT one time, too. Always with the deflecting techniques. Perhaps I should immediately say TIME OUT. I can be a real idiot, I guess. But I swear to pants, when he is pitching a fit and screaming/whining to "please tellllll me a joke or sumthin'! PLEEEEEASE MOMMY..." the very LAST thing I feel like doing is telling jokes. Rrrrrr! I've tried to explain to him that he is responsible for his own attitude, not me, but he doesn't get it. I've tried to ignore him. I've tried Time Out. (Time Out is, lately, actually the only threat that gets his attention.) I just... sigh. I am really tired of hearing "Make My Happy Face Come Back." I feel like it's one of those ultimate manipulative things kids do. He's the one pitching the fit, and I'm the one getting blamed for making his face go sad. GAH. Did your rotten four-year-olds ... I mean, darling cherubs ... ever pull this crap on you?

Calm, Pleasant, and Relaxed

I saw this today at Parenting by Trial and Error, in a list of 10 ways to make time with your kids meaningful:

6. Try to keep in mind what sort of childhood you’re creating for your kids. Is it calm, pleasant, relaxed? Or is it stressful, rushed and upsetting? Make sure that they’re getting those doses of CPR (calm, pleasant and relaxed) every day. You want them to enjoy being in their home.

An excellent thing to strive for. I really HOPE my kids don't feel rushed, stressed, or upset when we're home!

We had a great weekend. Saturday AJ and I bought his school uniforms for Kindergarten. What fun (for me) to go to the uniform store and see all those different plaids lined up on the racks! (I kinda can't wait for KT to start school now! The boy uniforms are slightly boring in comparison!) Then we had lunch at McDonald's, and he played in the play area, climbing all the way to the very top-top of a big curvy slide (not usually his deal - he's often too afraid).

Sunday the DH overexerted himself doing yardwork (cutting down branches, yikes), and made me nervous, but thank God for him, once again. I am (sort-of) looking forward to a time when KT's a little older, and I can safely leave her playing to help him with that stuff again. And the kids and I fingerpainted, played outside, played inside, folded laundry, and ate popcorn for a snack.

Those are my favorite kinds of days.

Please don't read this post.

This will sound like bragging, and so it's not meant for an audience. It's just for me, to go back to sometime when I need a little pick-me-up. My manager told me this morning that my 2 press releases received compliments from our new Public Relations firm. They said that "of all the press releases they've ever read, those were 2 of the very best," most well-written, etc etc. It is so nice to get an A+ sometimes. I just want to remember it.

Spending and Listening and Counting down, oh my!

I've been spending money. Birthday money, specifically, at TJ Maxx and Marshall's. I still have about $200 left (my parents and in-laws are so generous!) but so far I've bought 4 tops I can wear to work, 1 pair of capris, 2 pairs of shorts, 1 swimsuit, 1 pair of striped flip-flops, and some new underthings. I have held out on spending money for a long time, it seems, so this is fun, not to mention I'm doing it with our BEACH TRIP in mind, so that makes me very happy. (10 days until! I've been trying to withhold the annual COUNTDOWN for your reading benefit, but heck -- half the people who read will be there with me or were just there last month, so wheee! Vacation!)

By the way, the drink of choice this year wants to be a Mojito. I've found recipes that use raw sugar, and others that suggest powdered. I'm leaning towards powdered because it's handy.

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I am trying so hard to NOT say anything at work, or even to my husband, about Yatt. Because if you can't say anything nice... you know. BUT ZZZOMMMMMGGGGGG!!! Using Constance the First's logic, I may say how she is making me crazy right here on my blog. So let us begin. Yesterday:

--She spent, ohidontknow, about 3 hours cumulative, during the day, telling her team about her recent skin biopsy results. They're pre-cancerous. Now, I am not going to be completely rude about a cancer diagnosis -- I'll allow her that is a scary thing to hear, and I don't wish it on anyone nor begrudge her telling her story about it (loudly), but

-- She then had to SHOW her team (also loudly) all of her previous terrible biopsy scars. ......um..... Seriously? I peeked over and she was leaning down into a cubemate's desk area, pulling her shirt sleeves down off her shoulder, to show them some of the scar tissue where she'd had stitches. Number one, NO. We don't pull our clothes down in any way during work hours, and Number two, COME ON. Little scars from little biopsies? Not that INTERESTING to people, Yatt, hate to tell ya. All the while she's yak yak yakking. It's just too much, you know? I mean, sure, tell your friends about an ailment. Okay. But she never just TELLS -- she INSTRUCTS everyone about it. And somehow she never quite ENDS the sentences. She finishes a thought, then, "Ummms..." until the next thought begins. And keeps adding more and more information. Did I mention? ...Loud. Ly.
-- Right now she's saying to a co-worker, "Now, you have a right-hand desk, which means all your workspace is to your left. You see what I mean? But I am left-handed..." AS IF THIS LADY DOESN'T UNDERSTAND the concept.

I do wonder how her cube-mates deal with her. But none of them is terribly quiet (like I would be -- I would just have to shut my mouth completely if I sat over there and she was talking in and around me); and none of them snips back at her with the things I would WANT to say, like, "Okay, Yatt, do we really have to talk about your personal body again today? I'm kind-of trying to concentrate."

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It really is perfectly fine to complain, on my blog, with like-minded friends who understand.

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I am looking to spend the rest of my birthday money on either a stylish laptop bag/briefcase, or a new, larger, structured purse. The line is blurred -- both of those things might actually be the same, which makes is REALLY hard for a non-decision-maker like me. I could get by with my current purse selection (I have a smaller spring bag that I adore) if I had a bigger, more professional-looking bag to put it in. Because I could keep all the myriad PAPERS I carry around in the big bag, freeing up the purse for essentials: wallet, phone, pen, lipstick, gum, and unused coupons. I ALSO want a pretty but small "portfolio" thing that I can use for a wallet. One that kinda opens up like a book, you know? Holds business cards and all? My manager uses one and it looks so grown-up. Haven't found the right thing yet.

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Wow, this whole post is completely shallow, isn't it?! Well, Book Club is tonight -- maybe I'll have some intellectual thoughts one of these days soon. But... don't hold your breath.

Friday Quick Takes

1. I am feeling "meh" about work. On the one hand, I am finally – finally! – feeling like I've got my feet under me, like I know the basic tenets of my responsibilities and when they show up on the calendar, and how to accomplish them. This is a GOOD feeling – these last three months have been, to say the least, a bit wobbly as far as me knowing what the heck I'm doing. And now, to know that on Mondays I need to update the location database for website #1, and that when I need a Flash element, I email Such-and-Such in our Raubling office, and to make edits I need to use the "X" Spreadsheet and include screen shots – all of these bits of knowledge are very comforting and make me much less wobbly than I was before. I also have been doing some writing for work and getting good reviews on that, so, SCORE! Press releases, woo! HOWEVER. There are still many things that I don't feel authorized to do, and it makes me feel small and kind-of stupid for always having to ask permission, and my boss… well, my boss. I like her, and I think she's ambitious and young and single so good for her, but it makes it hard for me, who just wants to DO a job and then GO HOME.

And it's weird to me that every morning in the shower, I think about work. And I think about it at other times, too. Work is ALWAYS in my mind.

That's the job update.

2. I wrote a great press release!

3. I had a peach margarita with my birthday dinner. Actually it was mostly a glass of peach margarita mix. Which was kind-of disappointing. Especially because AJ whined the ENTIRE TIME we were at dinner.

4. He made up for it. This morning we were having our morning snuggle-time before his breakfast, and he said, "Mommy? I was kinda sad because I didn't get you a present for your birthday." Isn't that the saddest/sweetest thing you've ever heard??

5. This weekend is almost totally free and clear of commitments, and I'm so glad. We have some things to do, but I'm hoping that one thing can be a mani/pedi for me.

6. A dear friend of mine is moving into a brand-new beautiful house, and now I REALLY WANT one, too. One with a nice fenced, flat backyard so I can let the kids loose and sit on the deck with my iced tea and a book while they play. I feel like we may NEVER have another house besides this one, and I know that's another first-world whine, but DH and I tend to take the "do we NEED it?" approach to small purchases – like new bath towels and mats – and therefore we are using VERY OLD TOWELS. And that worries me, as far as bigger purchases like ever having a new house are concerned.

7. People are whispering in the office behind me. I'd better go so I can more effectively eavesdrop.

More quick takes here!

No NO, Mama.

I had to take down my previous post. (For anyone who read it before its mysterious disappearance, my friend DID feel really bad - so bad she almost shed tears once she realized - and it made ME feel bad. So. Lesson learned. No-NO.)

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KT is learning words at amazing pace. I love the stage when Mama and Dada can bascially have a real conversation with a baby, but anyone looking in from the outside can't understand a word.

KT: Where's my paci, mama? (Ba-pah?)

el-e-e: It's right there, Baby, can you get it? GOOD!

KT: Guh!! Ba-pah!

KT: I'm hungry. Can I eat something? Like a big cup of milk? (Eeee? Bah-bah?)

el-e-e: Want your bottle? Okay.

KT: Awesome! I love that bottle, Mom! (Bah-bah! Bah-bah!)

you: How are you getting any of this?!

I'm loving the sign language, too. The other day she surprised me with "Please." They're learning these things in school, as well as us teaching her the basic ones at home. It's adorable. She puts her whole heart and soul into "More." She'll put down her sippy cup, carefully point her fingertips toward each other, and say, "I love these cookies! May I have another mouthful?" ("Moe?")

The other one she's learned well at school is "No." Or specifically, "No NO." Emphasis on the 2nd "no." She tells the dog "no" all the time, words and sign together. Yesterday I saw her looking at him disdainfully, wagging her arm up and down.

It is so cute. That's about all I've got for today!

In the cool of night

I have been going to the grocery store at night, after the kids' bedtime, for about a year now; it's become mostly the norm around here, the only good time to do it efficiently, without "helpers" and with time to think it through. Sometimes DH does it, which I also appreciate very much.

But for me, the best part is that on nights like tonight, when the sun goes down and allows cool night air to breeze into Georgia, I get a few quiet minutes in the car, with the windows down. I drive slowly. It's less than a mile to, and from, the store.

Cool night air, a little drive, alone. I am thankful for those minutes.