I am a major procrastinator.  It's one of my least favorite personality characteristics.  I finally (FINALLY) sent off the paperwork that was critical to the next phase of a project I've been working on.  Four weeks later than I would have liked, but it's done.  DONE!  Well, this phase.

Can we use college funds for therapy?

The Spouse worked over the weekend, so it was me and the Dynamic Duo for two days straight.  Saturday morning, we went to the church Easter Egg hunt.  It was well run, and so much nicer than the clusterfuck near riot egg hunt the HOA held last year.  Both kids got several eggs and won big prizes (Robin - big first place chocolate bunny, Batman - slightly smaller second place bunny) and Robin is still talking it about (egg hunt, saw bunny, CHOC-O-LOT) to everyone he sees.  We went out to a fancy sit down lunch (KFC Bell), then home for naptime. 

At 4pm, the photographer (http://tomerlinphoto.zenfolio.com/) showed up.  For 1.5 hours, we followed the boys as they played at the playground, ran around a baseball field and basketball court, searched for dinosaur tracks, and were silly.  I'm hoping we got some good shots of them. 

We went home, changed clothes, and had a snack.  We agreed that we would watch part of The Wizard of Oz, then eat dinner, then watch Tangled.  We would finish WOZ on Sunday. 

Batman passed out by 6:30.  Robin and I made pudding (CHOC-O-LOT), then ate dinner and had pudding (with cweem, mommy, CWEEM!  I do myself!) and whipped cream.  Batman woke up at 8:30, just as The Spouse was getting ready to leave for work.  He ate a bowl of yogurt, then went to bed.  I was very surprised, but happy.  I ready for awhile, to ensure that he was really asleep, then got the Easter eggs stuffed and baskets filled.  I was debating where to leave them.  Batman wakes up about an hour before Robin does.  I knew if I left the baskets on the kitchen table, like I did last year, Batman would open his and Robin's and eat all the candy.  I decided to put them in the basement.  I gated the down stairs and went to bed.

In the morning, I woke up to Robin demanding I read him a story.  I drug myself out of bed and retrieved him from his crib.  I was changing his diaper when Batman came in with tears streaming down his face.

"Mommy, I have some bad news."
"What's the matter?" Oh crap, did the tv die?  Is the playstation broken?  What could make him cry like that this early in the morning?

"The Easter Bunny didn't come."  Sob, cry, tears, snot, etc.

In my head, "OH SHIT!!"  Aloud, "I'm so sorry.  Why don't you come downstairs with me while I let the dogs out?" "No."  "Oh, come on" "NO." for another five minutes.

Finally, we all went down to the basment, as Sally and Leo crossed their legs and barked in desperation.  "MOMMY, LOOK!!!"  And so Easter morning was saved.  At least, until Batman snuck his Easter basket out of the kitchen and into the living room while I was getting dressed for church.  He would have gotten away with it, too, if it hadn't been for those meddling dogs.  He tattled that they ate all his chocolate.  So he got in trouble for sneaking the basket AND for giving chocolate to the dogs.  Luckily, I went easy on the candy this year and stuffed the eggs with legos and hot wheels.

The rest of Easter was uneventful.  We went to church and bagels for lunch.  I finished my book while Robin napped.  We played with neighbors in the afternoon.  Early baths, then tv in the basement while severe thunderstorms rolled through.  Finally, bedtime. 

The Easter Egg hunt at school was postponed due to rain, so even MORE candy and chocolate today.  Groan. 

Crap.  Cruise is out.  Baby Robin isn't potty trained and won't be allowed in the pool.  One to plans B and C.  Not exactly sure what those are yet.

Baby let's cruise, away from here...

I really really really want to take a (nuclear) family vacation this year.  We haven't taken a family trip together since we went to Assateague/Chincoteague when I was pregnant with Robin.

My family is spread over the U.S. and The Spouse is from the midwest.  Most of our vacation time and money is spent visiting family.  More specifically, I want to take a cruise. I'm so wiped out juggling 1.25 jobs, 2 kids, 2 dogs, and my husband's works schedule.   I'm a cruising virgin, so I'm doing my research on various cruise lines and programs.

The Spouse isn't completely sold on a cruise.  He's afraid of the unkown, afraid he's going to hate the ship, afraid the rooms/beds will be too small for we giants, afraid that the other people on the cruise will be elderly and lame, afraid that the other people on the cruise might be cool and awesome and I would force him to make friends.  Lots of fears, people!

I think The Spouse would prefer to go to Rehobeth for a week.  Here's my fantasy of a Rehobeth vacation this year:

-We drive the 3+ hours there in horrible traffic.  Stay 2-3 blocks from the beach and have to schlep our kids and assorted crap to and from the beach.  Our kids only want to go to kiddieland and throw tantrums when they have to go anywhere else.  We have to chase them around the beach during daytime hours.  We have no sitter, so all meals are at kid friendly places and at a speedy pace.
-Plus, we need to book two months ago.

Here's my fantasy of a cruise:

-We drive to the Port of Baltimore and park the car.  (I've been eyeing Carnival Cruise, seems to have the best prices and kids program.)  We can drop our kids off at the kids club in the morning and afternoon during days at sea (3 days).  We eat meals together, go to the pool together, nap together, plus family appropriate shows and activities.  We spend a day at Cape Canaveril, a day at Atlantis, a half day on the beach in various ports of call.  The Spouse and I get to eat a few meals together, alone, while the Dynamic Duo are at kids club, and whatever else it is that we used to do before the superheroes came along...

Cost of Rehobeth vacation would be considerably less than a 7 day cruise in August.  Cruises can be found inexpensively the rest of the year, but between The Spouse's work schedule, my work (and business) schedule, and Batman starting public school next year, I don't know that there is a better time for us to cruise. 

I spent the first part of my lunch hour getting my 'pits lasered.  I don't love doing it.  It hurts a bit more than waxing.  And there's the burnt hair smell.  However, the sting dissipates within 30 minutes and it's permanent.  This was my second session, and I noticed a big difference after the first.  It's not fun, but if I don't have to shave for the rest of my life, it's worth it.  I would consider doing my biniki area and possibly my face (but my facial hair is blond and it doesn't work well on light hair.)  Not sure if I could handle the pain of doing my legs.  That's a lot of area to get done.

After ignoring the dogs' tornado warning last week, I ordered a weather radio today.  It's allegedly programmable, so I will only get warnings for Fairfax County.  Fingers crossed.

As of Saturday, Batman is officially 5.5 years old. 

It really bugs me when people say "Nuh-vah-da."  That's not how you pronounce it.  Nor is the state of my birth "Or-gone."  Really, really bugs me.  No, actually, I was born in "Orey-gun." 

We spent 1.5 hours with the kitchen lady on Saturday, going over swatches.  It's a step forward.  Now we wait for the estimate to see if we can afford our tastes.

Things that need to be done but are being procrastinated:

-Email photos to kitchen lady.  I finally faxed the dimensions/outline that we said we would send in early January.  For a project we decided to do/set aside money for two years ago.
-Bathe dogs and trim nails.  They stink and their nails are way too long.  Poor babies.
-Finish taxes
-Send financial stuff for business to banker.
-Put photos in frames
-Re-hang painting in bathroom
-Hang photos in hall
-Replace Robin's photo in a frame with Batman in it.  So when Robin points to it and says, "That's my Robin picture" he will be correct.  And not absent from the walls.

DC is eerily quiet and still today.  It's as if everyone is sitting inside, huddled around a tv, waiting to see if we get a budget.  Saving for a rainy day hits home when it's pouring on the last day your husband might get paid for awhile. 

The Spouse is essential staff, so he will still go to work.  However, he won't get paid until this entire mess is worked out.  And no guarantee of back pay.  Our stupid congressman, Jim Moran, is spouting off that people won't get back pay.  They have in every other shutdown, so we're optimistic.  I'm a firm Dem, but have no idea how that man keeps getting elected.  I digress.

I am seriously torn between my desire/lust/longing for my "government shutdown commute" and my desire/greed/longing for my husband to gather a paycheck.

I was going to chop my hair this weekend, but waited too long to schedule an appt, so I'm a sister wife for another week at least. 

The boys have a photo shoot in two weeks and The Spouse has to work, so I'm not planning on it being a family shoot.  But I feel like I should make an effort to look nice, in case I get pulled into the shots.  I think we are just going to do it at the school playground/park across the street.  The boys can play and run around.  Not as scenic as I'd like, but I'm too tired and worn out to put any more effort into this than necessary.

Busy weekend ahead.  JCP is coming to fix our recliner tomorrow.  Soft play class and karate.  Drop boxes of shred stuff off at the county shredding event.  I need to redeem a Groupon at the butcher and hopefully get a pedicure.  Robin has a birthday party Sunday morning, then I am redeeming a Groupon for a massage and facial.  And a nap, at some point, I hope

How can the federal government justify not paying the soldiers it has sent to war?  If the feds shut down, they better pass a Defense appropriations bill before Friday night.  Frankly, I would walk off the job and be a deserter if my ass were getting shot at and I weren't getting paid for it.