Fry day

What I brought for my morning snack this morning: Strawberry Greek yogurt.

What I ate for my snack this morning: pack of M&Ms. 

Our house is completely torn apart.  The kitchen renovation forced us to put our crap elsewhere, and it has overtaken every other bit of room in our house.  Demolition was yesterday.  There are slivers of wood and staples on the floor of every room.  Thank goodness I hate to be barefoot.  I always wear shoes.  Forced the children to wear shoes.  They were not happy. 

Further evidence that our townhouse is a POS: When the drywall was pulled off the walls in the kitchen, it was discovered that the builder put all his trash behind the walls.  Drywall, papers, leftover wire, junk. It was next to exposed wiring and a fire hazard.

I knew ahead of time that the contractors would using our bathrooms, but I found one of my books in the powder room last night. It wasn't there yesterday morning. I shuddered in horror. Thankfully, I was finished with it. Might as well leave it in there so they don't take another. Maybe that's judgy and snobbish but I don't go to other people's homes and take one of their books into the crapper to read while I take a dump.  Am I the only one?

The kids are pissed because there is a ton of our junk and a tall kitchen cabinet that have been put in front of the TV.  We can't reach the cabinet to open it up, so they can't watch TV.  Also, we took them to The Diet Coke Store (McDs) last night and REFUSED TO LET THEM GET A TOY!  And no dessert.  And they had to eat fruit.  At The Diet Coke Store.  The horror.  It's inhumane, and I expect them to call Amnesty International any day now. 
Our cabinets were supposed to be framed and hung today, but since the drywall was taken down, it was decided that the electrician needed to come first and rough in the wiring.  And they don't know if that will happen today.  So, great, a weekend of cabinets in the living room and no TV. Great.  What am I supposed to do with the children???

Other things that happened yesterday:

-Trips to book store, used book store, and library.
-Two trips to the neighborhood nursery for plants.
-Got the Batmobile inspected.
-Got massage.
-Toy store for some gift closet things.
-Had lunch with The Spouse.
-While I technically had a vacation day, my boss forgot I was out of the office and emailed me all day with stuff, which I responded to and took care of.  Until it was time to attend a 3pm meeting.  Then he was not happy I took such a long lunch.

The heat and ungodly humidity is back just in time for the weekend.

My laugh for the day

http://www.happyplace.com/3080/the-7-most-brilliantly-pointless-street-fliers

Kitchen remodel

Today is the longest day ever.  Ok, not as long as my 8th grade science class, but close (apologies to Mr. Kinnear.)  The humidity has broken.  It's still in the 90's, but a much drier heat.  I want to be outside!

I took the Dynamic Duo to the dentist this morning.  Batman has no cavities.  Neither does Robin, but he does have an anomoly of weak enamal on his tooth that has to be filled.  Coincidentally, so does Sally.  Hmm.  So, like Sally, Robin will need to go in for a filling.  I'm hoping The Spouse can do it.  Not that I'll be all emotional about my baby getting gassed, more like I don't want to deal with the screaming before/after.  I took two kids to the dentist today, the least he can do is take one for the follow up.

Following the appointment, I took the kids to an early (for me), dropped them off at school, and came in to the office.  I'm used to having my hour lunch to read, go for a walk, and get away from C-SPAN.  Gah!!  I'm losing my mind.  Only 1.5 hours to go.

Our kitchen remodel begins Thursday.  We still have a bit to pack up in the kitchen, but I would say we are over halfway there.  We have moved the china cabinet and bookshelf.  Tonight we will move the microwave cart and pack up the dishes (and pick up the new microwave).  Tomorrow night, we will do whatever is left.  I'm not looking forward to the process, but I am looking forward to a more functional kitchen.  We have been told it will take four weeks.

Our townhouse is a piece of shit.  The builders did not have a buyer for it prior to completion, so it was not upgraded at all.  It has a poor layout, awkward angles, and dead space.  When you combine that with builder grade materials, you get a piece of shit. 

This week marks our eight year anniversary of living in the POS.  Why have we been there that long?  The neighborhood is good, with excellent amenities.  It's close to stores, daycare, The Spouse's office, the freeway.  But, most importantly, it's cheap.  We bought it before we had kids, and just before the market really took off.  We are one of our few neighbors that is not underwater in our mortgage (thank you, God!).  We are lazy.  We could sell it and buy a SFH, but we would have to do a ton of cleaning and maintainence on a larger, more demanding home(see: We are lazy).  Someday, we will move but for now we live in our cheap POS.  We spend our leftover (small amount - two kids in daycare) money taking vacations.  We visit our families.  We buy new clothes.  We bought the Batmobile last year.  These are all things we couldn't do if we bought a large SFH.  This is a crazy thought in America in this age, but we live below our means.  However, we foresee the day that we will sell or rent out the POS townhouse, and we are updating/upgrading it tpward that goal.  The kitchen is the first (and largest) step.  We hope to get to enjoy it for a few years before we move. 

Helter Skelter in a summer swelter

My God, it is hot out there.  The heat wave that baked the Midwest earlier this week has landed in DC.  Hot, humid, flesh melting. 

I miss Central California heat.

Today's Civics Lesson

All political conversations in Washington this summer seem to start and end with the debt limit.  For example, “Any news about the debt discussion?” “Same old stalemate.  When do you think the Senate will act on Ag Approps?”  “Not until a deal is reached on the debt.” 

The U.S. government hit the debt ceiling on May 16th, and Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner told Congress he would have to suspend investments in federal retirement funds until August 2nd in order to create room for the government to continue borrowing in the debt markets.  No one knows exactly what will happen if the debt ceiling isn’t raised by August 2nd, but the general consensus is that can’t be good.  One Senator has compared this summer to the movie “Groundhog Day”.  It’s a fitting analogy. 

This dilemma challenges House and Senate leadership to prioritize which legislation will be deemed important enough – or sufficiently “completed” – to earn floor time. The issues likely to reach critical mass are dwindling to a precious few.

See, kids, government can be fun!

(Obviously, I ripped the graphic off from NBC.  Just in case there was any confusion.)

Thanks Mom(s)!

Nearly everyone has another mother.  Not the woman who raised them, bathed them, punished them, or made their birthday cake.  I'm talking about the other mother.  The woman who lived next door or across the street.  Your best friend's mom or mom's best friend.  A favorite aunt or a kind teacher who took a special interest in you.  The Other Mother. 

I have been very lucky and blessed to have been the beneficiary of several Other Mothers.  Some have come and gone in my life (we moved a lot as I grew up), there for a particular time or purpose when I needed them.  Others have been lifelong Other Mothers that are now Other Grandmothers to my children.  Every one of them have taught me something about what it means to love a child and what it means to be a woman.

My Other Mothers have taught me to cook, listened to secrets, driven carpool, let me hang out in their homes, corrected my manners, indulged my strong personality, and blasted favorite Madonna songs in the car.  My Other Mothers weren't perfect.  They weren't a replacement for my mom.  They weren't necessarily women I aspired to be, but they all loved me, looked out for me, and made me feel safe and secure.

One of my Other Mothers recently passed away.  It's been 20+ years since she was a regular part of my life.  I went away to college, moved across the country, got married and started a family of my own.  It hasn't been until I became and adult and a mother that I really appreciated everything she did for me those four years she was my Other Mother.  I'm sure I drove her up the wall and was ungrateful, taking advantage of/for granted her hospitality and generosity. In recent years, I have begun to appreciate all of the sacrifices that she made for me, on top of what she did for her own kids, family, job, and life.  I am afraid I never properly thanked her for everything she did for me.  I wish I had.

I hope my children are lucky enough to have Other Mothers as wonderful as mine have been.  I hope that when a child I know needs anOther Mother, I'm wise enough to fill those shoes.  I hope I do as good a job for them as all my Other Mothers have done for me.

Thanks to the Other Mothers out there, both mine and everyone else's.  Your fingerprints and legacies will live on in our hearts and lives long after you have left us - or we have left you.

Photo shoot

I bought a Groupon for a photo shoot (I know, I know) hoping for the best but expecting the worst.  Robin gives the camera a stink eye every. single. time. he gets his photo taken.  It's just a part of his personality.  Batman grew up watching America's Next Top Model, so he knows to capture the light and smize at the camera. 

I had high hopes that having a photographer follow the children around for 1.5 hours would give me a pretty good selection to choose from - and it did.  For Batman.  Poor little Robin just doesn't have "it".  He will never be a finalist on ANTM. 

(all rights to these photos have been purchased by me, and I have the sole authority to authorize their use - MOM! - so don't copy/paste/photoshop/otherwise use without my explicit permission.)

I had some serious sister wife hair at the time of the shoot, and I miss it.  Not loving my suburban soccer mom 'do.

Crud

There is a crud going around my office and now I have it.  NO!  This is not acceptable.  I do not like to be sick in the summer.  Furthermore, it is my job, as a mother of young children in daycare, to bring the crud to the office, not the other way around.  Of course, the children will also get it.  This is simply unacceptable.

In other news, summer's humidity has descended upon DC.  I prefer Central Valley heat.  When it's in the triple digits, you can look at a thermometer and confirm it is indeed 111 degrees today.  Here, there is some convoluted heat index system that requires you to multiply temperature by humidity level by day of the month by how angry you are to sit in traffic.  Today's result - 105 degrees.

We had family game night last night.  Robin played an entire hand of Uno by himself - and WON!  I was very proud.  Of course, I was also coaching him.  Batman was a somewhat gracious loser.  We are grooming our children for college drinking games by requiring them to say, "Batmobile on the streets of Gotham" when playing a Batmobile card (Batman Uno deck, natch.)  Batman began doing it about a year ago, and now it's a game rule.  Only thing missing are the shots of Jaeger. 

Life has been a whirlwind lately.  Minor league baseball games, July 4th at Mt. Vernon, Smithsonian Folklife Festival, birthday and pool parties, swim lessons, getting (baby-no-more) Robin in his big boy bed, and preparing for the upcoming kitchen remodel.  Plates for the Batmobile have arrived, but I have yet to brave the heat to attach them to the car.  So I am still incognito when I'm out and about fighting crime. 

On that note, there is a Joker down the hall I better go deal with.

I'm big in Korea

I was about to post today's rant (which is basically what this blog is, a stream of conciousness longer than Facebook allows) when I noticed the ads were in Korean.  Korean!  I checked my stats and lo and behold, I have many Korean readers.  WOW!

I have visited your beautiful country once.  (Note: I am assuming that the readers are from South Korea, since I'm pretty sure the only person in North Korea with internet access is Kim Jong Il.  While I would be flattered to be followed by a fellow dictator, I'm not sure he understands the term "benevolent.")  It was an amazing visit.  The people are so friendly.  So, to all my Korean fans, kamsamnida!

To the Batmobile

It's not that I don't like personalized license plates, I do.  I like to sit in traffic and unravel what they say.  I like to recognize assholes that cut me off over and over again.  I like unique and clever word puzzles.  I like white Rabbits marked, "IM LATE."

Virginia is a great state for plate reading.  The state knows it has a good thing going for it, and it keeps fees low so people will continue buying/renewing them.  Over the years, I have contemplated several personalized plates.  "FAT DOG" and "MY ROX" were taken.  Somewhere out there in the great Commonwealth of Virginia, there are cars with plates that read, "CSUC" "CHICO ST" "BARBIE" and "CA GIRL" (and "CA GURL").  Everything that I've been interested in has been taken.

Last year, when I got the new car, the superheroes rallied around it.  It became their Batmobile.  They have a special nickname for it, and whenever we head to the car (daily and/or multiple times per day) they put their hands in the air and yell, "To the Batmobile."  So, this afternoon, when I renewed my registration, I scooped up BATMOBILE (or a facsimile thereof).  One day, it will embarrass them, but today is not that day.  I will enjoy my children while they are young.

Our washing machine has been given a DNR.  We bought it eight years ago, when we bought the house.  After leaking for a year, and getting worse and worse, The Spouse finally called a repairman.  He reported there are two major leaks.  Even if he fixed them ($200 each) the timer would likely go within a year.  No brainer.  Time to buy a new machine.  A little disappointing though, I had hoped this would last ten years.  But better to do it now.

Off to consult Consumer Reports...

Working Mother Fail

My entire morning was craptastic.  I dropped the kids off an school only to see a pile of gifts for Batman’s teachers that they were opening (spa robes!?!) and I got them nothing for the last day of school.  Dropped Robin off.  Got in the car, called The Spouse, and headed to Target where I power shopped a straw tote bag of summer stuff for the teachers (beach towels, freezer pops, water bottle, chocolate, sunscreen) and thank you notes.  Went home to non-stop dog barking while I artfully arranged the totes and left them on the table for The Spouse to retrieve and deliver, then headed to 395. 

Thankfully, I heard about the Pentagon suspicious vehicle mess before driving into it.  I stayed on the main line.  Got off to pee.  Drove through town to Columbia Pike, took 50 to 66 to DC. 

Arrived at 10:25.  Probably an hour later than I would have been due to the traffic. 

Fickle Fashionista

I have 27 t-shirts for my 2.5 year old son.  TWENTY SEVEN!!  Yet, every single morning is a fight because I don't have seven cars/hot wheels/superhero shirts. 

27 short sleeved t-shirts, people. 

Ungrateful child.

My School-ager

Batman's new backpack arrived yesterday.  He was so excited and could not stop grinning.  He was thrilled that it was camo - even if it was only blue camo and not green camo.  He loved his initials.  He loved the pockets.  He kept putting it on to model and showing us what he will look like when he is a "school-ager" (his term).  So cute.  So very very cute.  Last night, he stuffed it full of toys to take to school today.  I had to override him on some, but his classroom is getting cleaned out for the summer camp group starting next week, so they are allowed to bring in their own toys this week.  I managed to cram his lunch in there somehow.  He looked so big going off to school today.  His classmates were not as excited about it, but they can bite me.  He was adorable.  I need to get a picture.

If I could save time in a bottle

I have been very nostalgic and sad lately that my babies are growing up.  Part of me is trying to come to terms with the fact that The Spouse doesn't seem to want any more kids.  Part of me is just sad that these babies are little boys now.  Baby Robin barely fits in his crib and will be in a Big Boy Bed sometime this summer.

Yesterday, I was overcome in the Costco parking lot by the thought that in a year or two Batman won't hold my hand in the parking lot anymore.  I held on tightly, then he slipped his hand out of mine on the sidewalk.  Sigh.  Where did my baby go?

May the Force Be With You

Check out this awesomeness!!



* Darth Vader from Star Wars MIMOBOT Series 2
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* Mac/PC compatible
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Brand: Global Holdings, Inc.

http://www.gilt.com/sale/women/stars-wars-usb/product/79773137

shameless contest entry

My friend, Emily, has a blog that I enjoy reading and aspire to emulate one day.  But the real point of this point is to try to win tickets for my family to Six Flags, because Emily is giving them away. Yes, Emily, I desperately want to take Batman and Robin to Six Flags.

Visit her blog for your chance to enter!

West of the Loop

My life, as I wished it looked

I have secretly replaced all of my work pants with Gap Premium pants in black and gray.  Let's see if anyone notices.

It's Friday and instead of being excited about the weekend, I'm worried about thousands of small minor details that are out of my control.  Doesn't do me any good to worry about them, but worry I must.

Happy Friday!

Hello, my pretty

In the words of Batman, "I very very want these."

The pink of perfection.

Now I feel like watching Summer Magic.  Best Haley Mills film of her career.

I'm dreaming of a MOOOLTEN CHOCOLATE CAKE, just like the ones I used to eat

I'm down another 2 pounds, for a grand total of 7 pounds lost from my all time non-pregnancy high.  It seems the "Not Shoving Everything I See in My Mouth, Sleeping, and Getting off my Ass" diet plan is working.  Go figure.  It also helps that my husband is following a strict regime of "I Refuse to Eat in a Restaurant With Our Children."  Which really made me bitter on Friday when he was off all day and I came home and had to cook (Sidenote: WTF?!?)  I just wanted a molten chocolate cake from Chili's.  And a magarita.  And some southwest eggrolls.  Instead, I had chicken with chipotle and black bean salsa, corny cornbread, and brownies with white wine.  I know it sounds the same, but it's not.  Oh, how it was not.  Did I mention that I had to make it?

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.