Je Blague

The misrepresentation of Africa and why I am a ONE member

2011-12-03T14:38:00.000-08:00

As many of you know I am a passionate ONE.org member. I went to the monthly meeting this morning and I left inspired as I always do. After leaving a ONE meeting or function I always ask myself, out of all the wonderful organizations out there why have I chosen ONE? What keeps drawing me back in? I don't have the full answer yet but I do have a good understanding.

The foundation is that I lived the first 6 years of my life on the continent and I have been back a couple of times. I was very young so I do not have the capability of recalling and comparing in a way that would be understandable. It's simply embedded in who I am. I am an empathetic and compassionate person so of course I would seek an organization that helps the less fortunate. I am a mom and it pains me to think other mom's have to watch their children die unnecessarily. These are extremely simplistic reasons that tug on my heart strings. There are many issues in this world that tug at my heart strings and I realize that is not enough to make me a passionate advocate. So what is it about ONE that has drawn me in so completely? I will try to answer that question.

First and foremost, ONE.org does not ask for money. Hell, I ain't rich and my baby needs shoes. All they ask is for your voice to keep the less than 1% of our foreign aid budget intact. I can do that! And the beauty of it, is it doesn’t take any time at all!

When I came home from the monthly ONE meeting my mind was filled with so many thoughts. I saw a TED video posted by Mark Olsen about Africa and how journalists, researchers and NGO's misrepresent the continent.

This inspired me to write this note. I realized again that ONE takes me back to my Communication Studies degree. I started thinking about my favorite theory, The Narrative Paradigm Theory by Walter Fisher. I won't bore you with all the scholarly details. Please google it if you'd like to learn more. The gist of the theory is that we are all storytellers, we make judgments with "good reason" and form our opinions by the stories we are told. The theory also relies on the coherence and fidelity of the story. This is only a fraction of the theory. It reminds me how powerful a story can be, whether it's in print, oral form, photography or a painting. Think about the message it is sending and how true to reality that message is. Is it only showing you one side or is it showing you the bigger picture? Is it twisting reality for its own purpose or for greater knowledge and understanding? (Why I can't stand Fox news, yes I said it).

Here are my thoughts today of why I am a ONE member. What are the images we see of Africa? Please let me know what terms immediately spring to your mind when you hear the word Africa. I will admit mine are: poverty, sickness, AIDS, starvation, death. And I have lived there and seen it be so different! There is vibrancy, life and color to the continent that words in our English language cannot even begin to describe. Yes, there is illness, yes people are poor, hungry and dying but that is not all that it is. Leslie Dodson was quick to point out that Africa is not a country it is a continent. Africa is not in impoverished ruin. There are countries such as Botswana whose economy is thriving and extremely competitive to South Africa's. Even in the poorer countries such as Kenya, there are farmers that are thriving. The continent is full of entrepreneurs and their stories inspire me. Did you know that a woman made a washing machine out of a vuvuzela or that a bicycle is not just transportation, it can also be used to charge a cell phone when the power goes out? I cannot get enough of these stories!

So back to the main question; why does ONE inspire me? The less than l% of the foreign aid budget serves a bigger purpose than just helping the impoverished that tug on our heart strings. It helps with national security. Did you know Al Qaeda is in the horn of Africa “helping” by giving out water and rice? In my opinion, a person who is hungry and they are watching their children die because of starvation will get the help they need and be influenced by anyone. That scared the bejeezers out of me! I paraphrase a quote from World Aids Day in Washington D.C., “how can we do trade with people who are sick and dying?” Our budget helps the global economy which in turn helps ours. As a ONE member I want to send the message that Africa is not just an impoverished 3^rd world nation. There are many areas that are thriving because of our foreign aid. With our help we can help them help themselves in the areas that need it most right now. We share the same planet and are no different. U.S. citizens are just lucky enough to live in a different environment. Read Rachel Fox’s blog post titled “Peeling Potatoes with Grace”. I don’t see the budget as charity. I see it as a necessary means of teamwork, a collaborative effort on both nations part to help Africa with their current struggles. This is the message I want to send and why I am a ONE member.

If you would like further reading feel free to visit:

One

and

Rachel Fox's blog

Rainbow Hunting

2008-06-27T19:31:00.000-07:00

It's been a tough week. My job is stressful but I was given an opportunity to lay out some much needed changes and only hope that it may have an impact and a benefit for the company as a whole.

Marley had a few stressfull days this week. Thankfully her fangs did not come out but the temper tantrums did. This was Wednesday morning with my grumpulophougus.

Marley laying on the floor, crying:

"Marney no want juice"

Mom asks "Do you want a breakfast bar?"

"Nooooooo". sniffle, sniffle.

Mom asks, "Does Marley need hugs and snuggles?"

"No, Marney no want hugs and snuggles." with a louder pitch and a few fists hitting the floor.

Mom asks "Does Marley want to lay on the floor and cry?"

"YEEEEESSSSS"

It was left at that. A happy Marley emerged about 10 minutes later and all ended well.

Sometimes we all need a good cry.

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

I love Friday. Marley and I have been walking to the river front to listen to free concerts. We enjoy a slice of pizza and listen to a band and then head home. Sometimes we go with friends and sometimes we don't.

It was raining last night and I was really tired. The music venue was an 80's chick hairband and I was not in the mood. So we opted to stay home. We made a lady bug out of construction paper and glue. It kept our interest for about half an hour. Wondering what to do next, I noticed that it was still raining but the sun was out. This is when we decided to go on a rainbow hunt and we found one. This adventure led us around the block seeing neighbors, a fire truck and a heart built out of bricks.

I can't seem to get enough of the simple things in life these days and thanks to Marley they are more fascinating than ever before.

It wasn't the rain....

2008-06-23T18:47:00.000-07:00

...that detoured me from the beach this weekend, it was the lightning. I was somewhat disappointed because it was our plan, a wonderful day at the beach. I like the beach when it's cold or rainy yet I love the beach when it's warm and sunny. It's simply, earth, in it's raw beauty.

Last Friday Marley was nicknamed "Rain Goddess" at school. I remember dancing in the rain as a child and how much fun it was and how good it felt. Why I stopped doing such things, I don't know. I have come to realize that one of the true joys of being a parent is rediscovering the child in me and all the little things in life that are a joy.

Here is to my Rain Goddess. May you splash in many puddles, dance to the beat of your own heart and live to always enjoy the simple things in life.

In the midst of insanity

2008-06-16T18:30:00.000-07:00

As crazy as my life is, there are a few treasured moments that bring life back to reality.

After Marley and I read our books before bed she looked out the window and saw the full moon. She exclaimed, "Moon, Mommy, Moon-Mommy Marley go outside see Moon!" It was 15 minutes past her bedtime. The clock in me said "no" and a voice inside said "of course!". I carried her outside and found a spot on the porch where the trees and houses did not obstruct it in any way. We stood there, Marley in my arms, and we stared at it and talked about it a little. After a few quiet moments, Marley kissed me on the cheek and said, "I love you, Mom".

Moments...precious moments......

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

There is a serial biter at Marley's daycare. This little boy, who I will call Lestat in the name of privacy. Lestat was on a rampage for awhile biting who he could and when he could. Marley fell victim three times in a month and other classmates more often. A meeting was held with the director and appropriate action was taken.

Two year olds don't necessarily bite because they are bad/unhappy toddlers. They bite for a variety of reasons one being they don't know how to express themselves any other way. They are only two! Another reason being, simple exploration. What ever the reason, it should not be taken lightly.

Lestat has not bitten Marley in at least a month. Last Wednesday, I was gathering Marley's things and noticed the dreaded piece of paper neatly folded and clipped with her art work and daily report. My first thought was, please not again! Then I looked down at the dreaded piece of paper and saw that Marley was not bitten. She was the one that BIT! I was horrified. My beautiful, blond haired girl grew vampire teeth in a matter of hours!

On our drive home I asked Marley who she bit. She said, "Marley bite Lestat Mom, Marley make Lestat cry". I almost drove the car off the road. Part of me wanted to say 'good for you, great job!" and the rational part kicked in and said, "we don't bite our friends".

Talking with her teachers the next morning, the consesus is that Marley had just had it with this boy. She was acting like a typical two and she stood up for herself. I simply can not stop laughing as horrible as that sounds. In a way I am very proud of her and in another way I am realizing she is going to be a handful as she gets older.

Why I miss Blogging

2008-05-05T18:45:00.000-07:00

My schedule:

Rise and Shine: 6:30
-Snuggle time with Marley
-Juice and breakfast for Marley
-Coffee is percolating
-Beagles are walked to the back yard (don't ask, ask the house instead)
-Sit with Marley and enjoy a cup of coffee
-Make Marley's lunch
-Brush teeth, get dressed, etc and try not to forget the beagles in the backyard.

Run out the door at 8:05 a.m.- This, on occasion, has been the time Marley chooses to take Elmo for a walk around the block. An activity that is slated for the evenings and weekends.

8:20 a.m. Marley and I arrive at daycare. I help Marley settle in, talk to her teachers, etc.

8:30 a.m. time for Mom to go to work.

8:45 a.m. I'm clocked in.

5:45 p.m. Clock out. Race to the daycare.

5:58 p.m. Big huge smile from my most adoring fan and a "Mommy!"

Some days a run to the grocery store as Marley would say "shopping!" other days straight home.

Then it's dinner, activity time and the night time ritual.

8:30 Marley is sound asleep.

It leaves me with two hours of time for dishes, shower, miscellaneous odds and ends and maybe a little reading, video watching time to myself.

All I can say is I love weekends!

Being a Mom that has to work has it's challenges.

More to come.

The Sneaky Chef

2008-02-24T08:13:00.001-08:00

Marley is a very picky eater. As a baby she ate almost everything that I put in front of her until she was 18 months old. It was like a light bulb turned off. She started refusing all the food I normally prepared. Her doctor and many friends and relatives told me not worry, that kids only eat what their bodies need. Being a first time Mom, I still worried. She's healthy but I worry that she's missing out on a crucial developmental stage of trying new flavors and textures.

For Christmas my sister in-law gave me a fabulous cookbook called The Sneaky Chef. This cookbook for kids "hides" vegetables in favorite dishes like pizza, mac 'n' cheese, hot dogs, etc. My first reaction was, what a wonderful concept!

I was going through the cookbook yesterday to pick out a couple of recipes to make this weekend and I started thinking. Is this concept really fabulous? It certainly makes meal time less of a struggle for a parent but is it truly a good idea in the long term for kids? The vegetables are pureed, so that children do not detect them and the flavors are hidden-hence the sneakiness. Shouldn't a child be offered the cauliflower in it's unpureed form to be able to enjoy it as an adult? If children are only eating vegetables that are hidden, won't they miss out on a developmental stage of being introduced (even if it's over and over again) to certain foods?

Like Marley, I was a very picky eater as a child. As an adult, I will eat certain foods that I would not even try as a child. Although, I am still picky. Certain vegetables I still won't eat but it certainly was not a lack of my parents trying.

Any thoughts about this would be greatly appreciated!

I am still going to make a couple of the recipes today. The corn muffins with zucchini sounds delicious! And I am not a fan of zucchini at all.

What to do in February....

2008-02-21T19:22:00.000-08:00

I found this over at Montessori Mama's and had to steal.

The February 10
I think the February ten is right up my alley:

1. Blogger.

2. Snuggling under warm blankets with Marley.

3. A car that has finally warmed up to the point that I can blast the heat.

4. My bathrobe and slippers at night.

5. Two obnoxious beagles that keep my feet warm and my face clean.

6. The warmth of the oven when I take out a batch of oatmeal cookies.

7. Very happy that I no longer live in snow country. Although 11,600 feet was fun in my twenties the coast of NC is more my pace in my 30's.

8. Bundling up and taking Marley for walks in her stoller.

9. My sweaters. I have a few that I just love to wear!

10. The Febraury 10 that I will steal and post on my blogger page in hopes that the author does not mind.

Daily Chef

2008-02-21T18:44:00.000-08:00

As I am learning how to cook daily foods again I came across a great dish. It did not come from a food website or one of my many cookbooks nor my Mother. I found it on the back of a Pierogies box and changed it of course.

Pierogies a la Spectacular

A box of delicious frozen Pierogies
Portobello Mushrooms
Red Onion
Olive Oil
Parmesan Cheese

Dice the onion, chop the portobellos. Heat the olive oil until warm and throw all the ingredients in until the pierogies are no longer frozen and the onion and portobellos are to your liking. Sprinkle with parmesan and feast!

Next time I may add fresh spinach, red pepper and a smackering of hot red pepper flakes.

This is the best dish I have found so far when you are tired, hungry, have a two year old and need to find the time to blow bubbles.

Ease on down, Ease on down the road...

2008-02-16T19:02:00.000-08:00

All of life's changes in the last six months has completely changed the way that I normally have done or handled situations. Priorities are different, the time I have in which to accomplish tasks has significantly reduced and the tasks keep multiplying. It's a good thing that I was a great multitasker prior to all of the changes! At least the changes have subsided for the time being and I'm hoping I'll be able to blog more often.

I started a new job a couple of weeks ago. It is a job that I have been looking for and I am thrilled to have the opportunity.

My only complaint is that Marley has fallen into the category of the child in daycare for 9+ hours a day and I miss her. Thankfully, I am I am over joyed with the daycare. Marley seems very happy and loves her teachers. They give each parent a review on paper of the daily activities. Periodically they will make a suggestion of a game to play with your child that incorporates what they are learning. One week it was reptiles. The suggestion was to roll play dough between your hands and make snakes. Now when Marley sees play dough she says SNAKE! Which make Mommy jump every time.

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

I just came back from seeing the movie The Wiz. The movie is based of off L. Frank Baum's The Wizard of Oz. It has an amazing cast but I am not amazed that it did not win an Oscar. It was still a joy to see. It made me realize what a fortunate person I am. When a person has positive, supportive people surrounding them, they can unlock inside of them what they thought they were lacking.

Dorothy's quest through out the film is to go home. At the end of the story, Glinda the Witch tells her that home is not a place where you eat or where you sleep. Home is the strength that you find within yourself to accomplish life. A satisfying life that only you can define on your own.

On that thought I bid a good night to everyone!

The Move

2008-02-03T17:45:00.000-08:00

I have been in Wilmington for approximately six months now. Lots of changes in my life and a lot of transitioning. I moved to a house that was temporary and it was wonderful but I did not unpack all my belongings to simply repack them in three months. I felt I was living out of a suitcase and could not wait to finally feel settled again. Then I found a place that was three blocks away, adorable and a huge fenced in back yard for the dogs. It turned into a nightmare. The evening before the move I walked in to look around and to picture where my belongings would go. As soon as I opened the door I smelled dog, not just dog, but dirty dog. The landlord had nine dogs along with various other animals living there and why I did not notice the smell or the see the dirt, I don't know. I looked around and the place was filthy. I am not the type of person who is obsessed with cleanliness, but when you find a bird feather stuck to your bedroom wall.....needless to say I called the landlord and was diplomatic, what my family and friends heard was $!*%#!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have since found a new place that is wonderful. I moved last Thursday, it took 12 hours but it's done! The place is charming, the landlords are wonderful and best of all it's CLEAN.

Now back to my laundry, I've been working hard getting the dirt pit, as I so graciously nicknamed it, out of all my linens, towels and clothing.

Daily Chef I am not

2008-01-15T17:57:00.000-08:00

One of the main things I have had to adjust to with all the transitions is cooking. Hubby did the cooking, it is how he would unwind after a busy day at work. In return, I did the grocery shopping and the dishes.

I have come to the realisation that I am a lousy daily cook! I can make a killer quiche, a delectable crusty whole wheat loaf of bread and many other non-daily dishes. Thankfully I know how to boil water and pasta and I have become very good friends but it gets old day in and day out.

Today, I will be starting a new theme. It will appropriately be called "The Daily Chef". It will include recipes that I have found easy and delicious as well as a few I conjure up on my own. I am my own guinea pig and will advise you on the ones to truly avoid. Any suggestions or recipes that you would like to share would be greatly appreciated. I would love to know what you had for dinner last night and what you are planning for this evening.

Now I begin:

Stove Top Stuffing Casserole:

1 box of Stove Top Stuffing
2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup of frozen peas
1 chicken breast cooked and cut up in chunks or shredded

Prepare the stuffing as recommended. Mix in all remaining ingredients and enjoy.

I give it a 2 star rating. It was nice to have the next night when I was tired and hungry.

Chicken Curry

3 chicken breasts-cubed
1 can coconut milk
2 shallots
6 green onions
2 cloves garlic
salt & pepper to taste
curry powder
2 cups of cooked jasmine rice

Cook the chicken in a pan until it's almost done. Pour the can of coconut milk over the chicken and cook for about 15-20 minutes. Saute the shallot, green onion and garlic and add to the chicken. Let it simmer for about half an hour. Pour over jasmine rice and voila! Delicious!

This one gets a 5 star rating. I will be making it again. It was easy, quick, inexpensive and the left overs were even better.

Happy daily eats everyone!

Welcome to 2008!

2008-01-07T18:17:00.000-08:00

'Tis the season to reflect.

1. What did you do in 2007 that you’d never done before? Moved to a new city by myself with my daughter in tow.

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year? I never make New Years resolutions, daily resolutions are more my speed.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth? Oh yes! and very exciting too. My sister in law and a close friend.

4. Did anyone close to you die? Yes, my Grandmother and my Mother's neighbor.

5. What countries did you visit? The good ol' USofA.

6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007? Stability.

7. What was your biggest achievement of the year? My daughter Marley. She always will be.

8. What was your biggest failure? The house I moved into...don't get me started.

9. Did you suffer illness or injury? Thankfully no.

10. What was the best thing you bought? A new vacuum! No maybe the curtains hanging in my room. Ok, I'll be honest it was the box of chocolates I bought before the holidays and consumed each and every morsel in my closet all by myself.

11. Whose behaviour merited celebration? My family and friends without their support I would be left flailing in the wind.

12. Where did most of your money go? Moving and bills.

13. What did you get really, really, really excited about? A part in an Indie movie, ask me and I'd love to tell you the story.

14. What song will always remind you of 2007? The ABC song followed by Up Up Apple Sauce (translation, twinkle twinkle little star). Sung many times daily by me and requested by you know who.

15. Compared to this time last year, are you: a) happier or sadder? b) thinner or fatter? c) richer or poorer? a) happy b)thinner c)the same

16. What do you wish you’d done more of? reading

17. What do you wish you’d done less of? worry

18. How did you spend Christmas? With my family. It was wonderful as usual.

19. What was your favourite TV program? Got rid of the TV and very proud of it. Although, last seasons "Lost" on DVD has caught my eye.

20. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? Hate?! That's a rough word.

21. What kept you sane? My Optimism.

22. Who was the best new person you met? My roommate.

23. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007. Don't sell yourself short.

Hello again!

2008-01-06T18:03:00.000-08:00

So many changes, but I'm back!!!!! After a 6 month hiatus it's a challenge to get back into the swing of my blogger page. Where do I start?! Many life altering things have happened that has kept my mind focused elsewhere. More stories to come.

I have decided to make my come back with my previously mentioned addiction. If you have not discovered this phenomana you are missing out. If you need advice about parenting, it's a great place but you must take all advice given with a grain of salt but I like salt and some advice is worth contemplating. Do not even mention the subjects stay at home mom vs working mom. It's an all out riot. If you have a problem with your car you can save a ton of money by at least walking into the mechanic with the appropriate lingo.

Now my all time favorite subject these days. The elections. We see America at it's best. My favorite question so far is

Clinton or Obama and why?

My favorite answers

OBAMA FOR 2008!!
Hilary is the devila nd very stuid, doesnt know ****

neither one! google ron paul

can't stand Clinton, but if they were the only choices, I think Clinton could actually do as good a job as Bush (and he is sort of Nixon-like), I doubt Obama can even do as good a job as Carter.

C none of the above. Hey when they talk about change, are they referring to what's left of my paycheck when they get done with it?

and finally a somewhat intelligent answer

Barack talks about hope and change yet has no substantial plans or adequate experience to bring it about - all talk and few results is not substance. Clinton is a longtime veteran of knowing how to provide change by leading and by working with both parties. Hillary will do a lot more than Obama - she's ready to hit the ground running while he'll still be trying to figure out how things work.

Barrack just got to the senate about 2yrs ago and is not ready for the big presidential seat.. yet. Hillary is ready because she's worked very hard in congress and knows how high-level politics works. A proven person who has actually gotten results is preferable over an orator who just raises hope and doesn't have the experience to bring it about. Hillary can actually do what she says because she's done it many times before. Hillary is already on many important Congressional committees.

My answer has gotten 2 thumbs up and 3 down, disappointing there are no more thumbs down. Sorry not sharing my answer on my blog.

Gotta love the USA!

Stress Reliever

2007-06-28T17:19:00.000-07:00

Ok, so here it goes....

With working, packing (still haven't filled a box but have gone through and purged items), coordinating, and all the other logistics in my life, my stress level is though the roof. I brought Marley home from daycare yesterday and we usually play outside but it has been really hot and muggy and I simply was not in the mood.

With a small tantrum we came inside and I brought out all the puzzles. Marley was not interested, it's summer she doesn't care about the heat, she wanted to be outside. Sorry but Mommy is not giving in this time.....so I thought.

I was busy with something and Marley was climbing up the walls, then she started running around the coffee table in her toddler Cro-Magnon way. I stopped what I was doing and joined her, mimicking every move. After two laps we were both on the floor in a fit of hysterical laughter. When the laughter subsided we did it three more times.

It reminds me of a Peanuts cartoon that I read years ago. The punch line was "if you can't beat 'em join 'em"... and so I did.

Please don't come back from the moon: My review, my perspective

2007-06-26T16:38:00.000-07:00

As you can see with all the latest blog entries, I am procrastinating on the packing. I truly would love to have my mind on something less mundane .

I finished the book please don't come back from the moon by Dean Bakopoulos last night. It was short and it was good. I can't say that I will be enthusiastically handing it over to someone else tomorrow either. In fact I'm wondering whether or not to donate it so I don't have to pack it!

The story line is about Michael a boy from Maple Rock, Michigan a suburb of Detroit. A depression hit and many Father's simply left their homes, their wives and their children. One Father left a note stating that he "went to the moon". Michael's Father left when he was a teenager, he watched his Father climb into a car, both with an understanding on both their faces and his Father was simply gone, never to be seen again. The book trails Michael's life through the rest of his teenage years and entering his late 20's early 30's always with an emptiness in his heart. At the end he has a wife a stepson and a daughter, lots of questions and yearnings and not a lot of trust in himself. He's content but not happy.

This book, although melancholy, was very well written. I think the line that struck me most was the very last line of the book:

"Like an eye, the moon follows us wherever we go".

When my Grandmother passed away last month I felt that she was watching me. I made sure I didn't say the word "got" unless it was grammatically correct. I cringed when I wore my blue jeans and I went through all the letters she ever sent me kissing each one. She is a beautiful woman and I know she is still out there watching over me quit possibly from the moon.

Marley update

2007-06-26T10:46:00.000-07:00

So here I am blogging instead of frantically trying to coordinate and organize this impending move. I truly thought I would have no time to blog but here I am! Actually I am at work, it's slow and I have just about done everything that I can do to make sure the transition goes smoothly. And anyways, what are they gonna do if they find me blogging, fire me, HA!

Marley has become quit the little girl these days. She went through a phase recently where she was OBSESSED with her belly button. That obsession had subsided... until yesterday when one of her teachers caught her offering her belly button a sip of water from her sippy cup. She also likes to share her sippy cups with her stuffed animals too. Belly buttons, stuffed animals they are both adorable and need tending to, right!?

Marley's vocabulary is growing. She has quite a list going these days. She says "bubble", "turtle", "all done", "more", "nana" (which interchanges with my Mother and a banana), "Mama and Papa" for Grandma and Grandpa, and last but not least there is "apple sauce". Not surprising that it's her favorite word but also her favorite food! If she sees something she doesn't know what it is, she simply calls it "apple sauce", it too is interchangeable.

Then there are her animals. Marley's favorite are two stuffed animal beagles and the real ones too! She also has a little Lamb which she calls "BA" (yes that loudly) and recently another stuffed dog that follows commands. Marley is constantly telling the new dog "DOWN" (yes that loudly). As far as calling the animals by their given identities she'd rather not. She's working on saying "dog" but would much rather bark and she'd much rather meow for a kitten, moo for a cow and so on. Just don't ask her what the dragon says, it's quite frightening when she lets out a big "RAH" and bares her teeth and claws.

Motherhood is better than I would have ever imagined. Watching her grow and discover the world and her capabilities simply astounds me. Her daycare had their first "water day" a couple of weeks ago, I was so excited for Marley knowing how much she loves the water. When I picked her up her teachers told me that out of all the kids Marley had the most fun, I wasn't surprised. So now when people ask me how Marley is doing, I tell them that she knows how to have the most fun!

.... Even with a pile of dirt that she played pretend shampoo. This dirt stuck to the scalp and after four real shampoo's still did not get it all out...but I won't go there because she had the most fun putting it there!

My first Meme

2007-06-26T06:07:00.000-07:00

I stole this from my good friend Viking Zen.

One Word Meme

1. Where is your mobile phone? Purse.
2. Relationship? Enriching.
3. Your hair? Brown.
4. Work? Tedious.
5. Your sister(s)? Awesome!
6. Your favorite thing? Coffee mug.
7. Your dream last night? Frustrating.
8. Your favorite drink? Coffee.
9. Your dream car? Elephant.
10. The room you're in? Office.
11. Your shoes? Sandals.
12. Your fears? Abandonment.
13. What do you want to be in 10 years? Happy.
14. Who did you hang out with this weekend? Marley.
15. What are you not good at? Anorexia.
16. Muffin? Banana Nut.
17. Wish list item? Vacation.
18. Where you grow up? Earth.
19. The last thing you did? Breakfast.
20. What are you wearing? Shorts.
21. What are you not wearing? Sombrero.
22. Your pet? Double.
23. Your computer? On.
24. Your life? Hectic.
25. Your mood? Optomistic.
26. Missing? Earring.
27. What are you thinking about? Moving.
28. Your car? Jeep.
29. Your kitchen? Functional.
30. Your summer? Splendid.
31. Your favorite color? Red.
32. Last time you laughed? Today.
33. Last time you cried? Weeks.
34. School? Pending.
35. Love? Fabulous.

I'm still here

2007-06-20T07:21:00.000-07:00

Moving is not fun and I haven't even packed a box yet. That process will begin this weekend. The good news is I have a place to live, a job and I have secured a daycare for Marley.

Marley and I saw several daycares last Friday and it does pay off to walk into these places. I had 6 places to see on my list but only made it to 3 because I kept getting lost. I know, I know, I should never seek a career as a Captain of a ship. I feel with all the research I have done I chose well. The first place we saw was great and is in fact the place that I have chosen for Marley. The director and the teachers were fabulous, they truly care about the children. The second place I saw was horrible. It was huge and it felt like a factory for kids. The director didn't let me ask any questions. We did see the class where Marley would be placed and the kids were screaming, a few were crying and the teachers were chatting in the corner. I ran not walked out of that place. The third place would be great except it's in a bad area of town and Marley would be the only white kid. Color doesn't bother me what so ever but it would be awkward. Even though it's the 21st Century this still is the south.

Although I would love to clone Marley's current daycare, I feel I have made an excellent decision for her. I really don't want to uproot her and put her in another daycare again. Although I will if she's not happy.

I am going to give my notice at work today. I always hate resigning from a job. It feels like I am breaking up with someone which is never a good feeling. I am also telling Marley's daycare today too........sigh................

It's all a little bitter sweet. I am excited about the new town, the new people I will meet but I will miss the house and the life I have built here. Being a diplomats kid you'd think I would be used to saying goodbye but it's never been easy.

That's my life in a nutshell for the time being. I will try and blog as much as I can but realistically it won't be as much as I would like to.

Happy Wednesday!

The Book Club

2007-06-03T10:00:00.000-07:00

I joined a book club last summer mainly to recondition my "Mommy Brain" back to a state of thoughts that did not involve routines, diaper changes and the trials and triumphs of breast feeding. Sadly I have not been able to attend that many, there has always been a conflict, despite the fact I truly am a homebody. The meetings I have attended have been fabulous, the book club has a great group of smart ladies. Some of the books on the other hand have been down right awful.

The two I do not recommend are "Marley and Me" by John Grogan. It's a cute story but in our book club session we couldn't find anything to talk about, as far as the book goes. It was given a unanimous two thumbs down by the whole group. Another book was "Best Friends" by Martha Moody. Another two thumbs down and very little discussion about the book during the meeting.

My favorite book so far was "Sunflower and the Secret Fan" by Lisa See. What a fantastic book, I could not stop thinking about it for weeks after I finished. Lily and Snow Flower are best friends and you see their friendship and lives develop and change during 19th century China. This book does not leave out any details about female bonds, foot binding and how stifling it was for Chinese women during that time. Needless to say it was given a two thumbs up from everyone in the book club. The meeting lasted a lot longer than normal and the only discussion was about the book.

We are now on the last book of the list which is "Please Don't Come Back From the Moon" by Dean Bakopoulos. One member of the book club has read it and has already given it a thumbs down. I haven't even opened it yet, so we shall see.

We voted on the next list and here it is:

1. The Road - Cormac Macarthy

2. The Thirteenth Tale - Diane Settterfield

3. Eat, Pray, Love - Elizabeth Gilbert

4. A Thousand Splendid Suns - Khaled Hosseini

5. Stolen Lives - Malika Oufkir

6. The Raw Shark Texts - Steven Hall

I am proud to say that my suggestion is number 5! I am very intrigued with number 4. He is also the author of "The Kite Runner" a book that I have read and heard wonderful things. We will see about the others.

Sadly, I will have to leave my book club due to the imminent move but I have the list, friends from the book club and hopefully will find another that is just as fabulous.

Words of Wisdom -Times Two!

2007-05-30T10:01:00.000-07:00

A Baptist Church somewhere in North Carolina:

"Don't Give Up! Moses was once a Basket Case"

And my favorite Baptist Church that I pass everyday:

"May I suggest a good book for your summer reading?"
~ God

Memorial Day Weekend

2007-05-29T08:14:00.000-07:00

This forgotten Blog. Life has been crazy there is just too much going on! The one thing about living at the beach is visitors. My Mother came down the weekend before Mother's Day, my Mother-in-law was here the weekend after Mother's Day and my sister is visiting again, this time for 10 days. My brother-in-law is coming with his wife next weekend. So if anybody else would like to make reservations at Casa Marley it must be done soon, July 31 is our last day in the house and the month of July will be spent packing/organizing/pulling our hair out, etc. Although we will still be living at the beach, just a different one, so reservations can be made at the "new" beach beginning August 15th.

What a whirlwind of a weekend! Friday I secured a job, a place to live and saw a new "Words of Wisdom" it's the best yet and will be posted before the weeks end. Saturday, Marley and I went to the beach. The weather was gorgeous and hot but I could not convince her to get her feet wet. I can't really blame her, the water is freezing!

Marley is entering a hording phase. She must sleep with as many stuffed animals and toys that can fit in her crib, still allowing room for her to lay down. At the beach she MUST carry, her sand shovel, various toys, a sippy cup and pick up every single seashell (broken or not). Oh and Mom can not help her carry a single item, she must do this herself. Inevitably she dropped most of the items along the way, even the sippy cup that landed in the ocean and was rescued by a brave swimmer. I was allowed to carry the sippy cup after that incident.

Sunday morning was spent cooking various meals for Marley, in an attempt to get veggies inside of her. Among the hording phase, she has also decided that nothing suits her palette unless it is cheese, bananas or peanut butter. Thankfully, she did not turn up her nose to the broccoli, chicken, cheddar nuggets I made.

Sunday evening Marley went to a babysitter for the first time. The babysitter was one of the teachers at her daycare, someone Marley knew, but it was still a little traumatizing for Mom and Dad. For four hours I got to be the old me. It felt great, the trauma of dropping her off at a babysitter wore off very quickly! We had tickets to see Government Mule play in an outdoor setting. It was wonderful, it was fabulous and the weather could not have been more perfect. I picked Marley up from the babysitter at 9 p.m. and she slept until 8:30 the next morning. I could not have asked for a better scenario than that.

Monday was yet another gorgeous day so Marley and I had to go to the beach again. This time Mom remembered to bring a bucket for all the seashells, toys and sand shovel. Marley was yet again apprehensive about the waves. I still could not blame her too much the water was freezing. I did decide that she needed to get her feet wet (literally, ha ha). I started kicking, skipping and splashing in the water, Marley enjoyed watching me but she insisted on staying in the dry sand...until we found a tidal pool. That was it Marley found heaven. She jumped, skipped, splashed and then found the courage to try out the waves. The rest of the time at the beach was spent chasing Marley who was literally trying to drown herself. No more resting quietly on the beach for Mom. Maybe it wasn't such a great idea to show her how much fun the waves can be after all.

Being a relatively new Mom, I see the world very differently than I did before. There is a sense of pride and sheer happiness when your child is bringing joy to strangers who are merely observing your child exploring and at play. What surprised me the two times at the beach this past weekend was the fact that it was not the "Grandmother" types that were cooing over her, it was late teens/early twenties boys! There was one in particular that was playing in the surf on his skim board that stopped to watch Marley. He had a silly grin on his face and I thought to myself what a great Dad this guy is going to make someday.

Happy belated Memorial Day weekend!

The end of another era

2007-05-23T08:08:00.000-07:00

If Mississippi wore her New Jersey what would Delaware?

My Grandmother would always repeat that when I was a child.

My Grandmother passed away yesterday morning, she was 96. She led such a beautiful life and I am going to miss her so much. She was such an inspiration to me and such an influence in my life. I am so lucky to have had her as my Grandmother.

I have no doubt that I will be blogging about her a lot in the weeks to come. She was truly an amazing woman.

A Celebration of Life

2007-05-13T05:51:00.000-07:00

My Mother has a farm in a valley nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains. This valley has remarkably been left untouched by the urban sprawl that surrounds it. I have fond memories of this valley, it's always been home, a place we would return to after all of our overseas travels.

I spent a portion of my childhood there. It's where I learned how to ride horses, my bike, play tennis and build forts in the woods. It's a mystical place where the aromas of spring envelop each hill, where the haze of summer give the mountains a mystical feel, the bold colors of fall feel as though you have entered a painting and the snow of winter blankets the mountains with a soft and quiet touch.

There have been a lot neighbors that have come and gone through the years but there have been a few that have made the valley their permanent home and a comforting and familiar place for me to return. As you enter the valley there is a little red house on the right where Ol' Mr. Dawson lives. You would see him every day working in his garden or simply sitting on his porch, his cane by his side. Mr. Dawson passed away several years ago and was replaced by his son who is now older in years and just like his Father works in his garden every summer and is seen sitting in his porch with his cane. As you make your way down the windy country road you will find a cemetary with headstones of the people that have given this valley it's history. Oh the stories I wish they could tell! Keep going and about a mile later you will come to my Mom's farm a gorgeous place that I wish everyone could visit. Further down you will come to a "T" interesection where three sisters live. Their family has lived in this house for many generations and are very dear to my heart. These are just a few that make this valley rich with wonderful memories and give it the uniqueness and charm that simply does not exist elsewhere.

Across the road from my Mother's, there is another farm where the family has lived for two generations now. It's a farm, fully equipped with grapevines, a pond and a tennis court and where I learned to play tennis. I have fond memories of Heirloom. Which brings me to the story of Charlie.

Charlie is a fabulous musician. An eccentric man who is a truly gifted artist. He has such a love for life, his music, truly loves the people that have come in and out of his life over the years. I feel truly lucky to have had him as my neighbor as a child and a friend now that I am an adult.

I saw Charlie last August. I was visiting my Mother and decided I needed a Charlie fix. Charlie and I had a good chat and as usual the time flew. When I was getting ready to leave he handed me a couple of cd's of his music. I have thoroughly enjoyed and treasure these cds.

I'm sad to say that Charlie passed away last Thursday which leaves my heart heavy today. I never e-mailed him to tell him how much I enjoy his music. Truly my loss.

Today is his 53rd birthday. Happy birthday Charlie and to your twin brother Jim. To everyone who was more fortunate than I to be an everyday companion to Charlie, I'd like to say my thoughts and prayers are nowhere else but with you today.

Here's one of Charlie's songs for you to enjoy

I'll SeeYou Again

So many years are passing right before my eyes

So many roads I might have taken

But the rides been a good one living it day to day

Of all the good things

I'm glad you came my way

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

Chorus

I trusted you and

you never let me down and

it's lovely

you turned my life around

I'll see you again

I know where I'm going and

I know where I've been

Today or tomorrow

Good times and sorrow

I'll see you again

**********

A river rushes through the canyon

slows into the wild

Almost still it seems so peaceful

But the power in the journey

Makes it deeper atthe end

Never thought I'd make it

I'm glad you've been my friend

Chorus

Words of Wisdom

2007-05-09T07:18:00.000-07:00

This is the same Baptist Church that I pass everyday taking Marley to daycare. They haven't had anything funny lately, I've been a little disappointed because I truly enjoy the giggles. So here you go....

"Don't make me come down there" ~ God

Marley the next Houdini or a Circus Clown

2007-05-08T08:04:00.000-07:00

Marley is quit a toddler these days. I read that children really reach the "terrible twos" at 18 months and so far I see what they mean. Lucky for me she has not had too many tantrums but she is a strong willed child. Life has become interesting between discipline and trying to supress the urge to burst out laughing.

Stunt #1: The dryer. Our laundry room is around the corner from the kitchen. Our dryer is a front loader. I was doing the dishes and saw Marley go into the laundry room. I had the Motherly instinct saying she's up to something... so I peeked around the corner and what did I see? Nothing, absolutely nothing and that nothing included Marley. It took me a moment when I realized she was in the dryer, with the door shut. When I opened the door to get her out she squealed with delight that I had found her.

Stunt#2: We have a tall end table between the sofa and the wall. I was in the kitchen again, this time trying to make her dinner. I looked over and she had climbed onto the table, was standing on it and did a belly flop onto the sofa. Again, she squealed with delight and started climbing back onto the side table. Again another big no, no. I went over to grab her off the table and right before I could get her she tried her belly flop again, this time she missed. Half of her hit the sofa and the other half rolled onto the floor. I panicked a little and picked her up. She was fine, in fact she was laughing and wanted to do it again.

This child is giving me gray hairs.....

Spring/Summer Fashions

2007-04-27T08:13:00.000-07:00

Spring time can be a little tricky. I'm never sure what to wear. One day it's rainy and in the 50's the next it's sunny, humid and in the 80's. My closet is a mess! I have t-shirts mixed in with my cashmere.

I'm realizing that I need to go shopping. I literally do not have any clothes to wear to work! Last summer I did not work, I was home with Marley. My wardrobe consisted of shorts and t-shirts. The summer before that I was pregnant, my wardrobe consisted of maternity clothes. Which brings me to this years fashions. Is it just me or has anyone else noticed that this years trend may make the maternity stores go out of business?

Here's a preview appropriately labeled:

First Trimester
Second Trimester Third trimester

Seriously though, I could be saving a lot of money on clothes if these were the "in-style" two summers ago!

Welcome spring time and the stomach flu!

2007-04-26T06:24:00.000-07:00

It's spring here and the weather is simply gorgeous! I have been itching to take off my shoes and walk the beach, feeling the warm sand in between my toes. I had this weekend packed full of fun outdoor activities with Marley, then she got sick.

I need to back track a little. For the last couple of weeks Marley has been defiant about going to bed. Naps on the weekends have been lasting a total of 20 minutes before she would start screaming again. I looked through all my parenting books, checked babycenter.com and even logged into Yahoo Answers to find out what to do. I tried staying with her until she fell asleep but each time she would wake up and find me not there, the whole thing would start over. I tried the crying out method, checking on her every ten minutes. It would take two hours for her to finally settle down. I even broke down and let her fall asleep on the couch while hubby and I went on with our evening. Friday night, I decided we needed to be consistant and I opted for the crying out method. Well, in the midst of the ten minute intervals Marley had thrown up all over her crib, on the carpet and the walls of her room. Boy did I feel GUILTY. When I went in to check on her she was at the opposite end of her crib, screaming. She saw me, then pointed at the vomit and said "oops". That was it, I looked at hubby and said "the crying out method is no longer an option, I'm back at square one". After we gave Marley a bath, cleaned her room, I put her back in her crib and left the door to her room open and she was out in five minutes. Granted she was exhausted but I finally realized that she simply did not want the door to her room closed, she didn't want to feel secluded. Nap time and bed time have been a joy since. I've been slapping my forhead for the last few days saying "duh" to myself. How flippin' simple!

The Friday night episode turned out to be a horrible stomach flu that lasted five days. Poor Marley couldn't keep anything down on Saturday except for Pedialyte. Sunday she would not drink anything and slept all day. This worried me, so we went to the ER. Thankfully her CO2 levels were good but they gave her fluids anyway. It turned out, not surpising of course, she caught this nasty bug at daycare. It wiped out most of the kids at daycare as well as the owner. As the note on the front door said "...thankfully, we are at the tail end of the stomach flu and look at the bright side, at least the kids are sharing". I'm only now starting to see the humor in that statement.

Being home with Marley for five days straight gave me some time to do one of my favorite "time wasters", surfing the internet. I came across a wonderful blog called "A Reluctant Mother". She is a stay at home Mom with two strong willed girls. I am really enjoying the reading. She has fabulous tips, she doesn't sugar coat the trials of being a stay at home Mom either and I find myself bursting with laughter at some of the stories. I had to link her blog to mine.

Happy Thursday!

I must write about Tech

2007-04-19T17:00:00.000-07:00

I named this blog "Je Blague" because it is a way of getting away from the stresses of life or seeing the humor in the stresses of life but I am going to take a break from that and write my thoughts about the horror that happened in my home State on Monday.

I want to start by saying that yes I do know people that attended the school, one who's professor is one of the victims. As I mourn, I know my heartache can not even compare to those who are closer to the campus and the people affected.

I am enraged with NBC for airing the videos of Cho. Mainly for their reasoning. I qoute from Matt Lauer from the Today show"

"And, to be honest, there are some very big differences of opinion here within the news division as to whether we should be airing this at all. But we have made this decision because by showing some of this material, perhaps it will help us understand or answer the question -- Why? Why did this happen?"

Why did this happen?! What I would like to understand is what was going through Cho's mind, what led up to this massacre? How did this happen?

The videos, which upset the family and friends of the victms DID NOT answer this question. The question still remains. In my opinion this confirms my belief that this country has turned into reality TV. Why show it? Yes, I want to understand why he did it but I feel qoutes from the tapes and experts deciphering the tapes would have been much more informative than all this sensationalism.

I must also mention that I read an article that NBC's rating were at an all time low due to American Idol and various other shows on other networks. I truly believe the airing of these tapes were purely selfish, money grubbing reasons. It's simply sick.

Voila! That's it. I had to get that out. I promise to post something light and humerous soon.

I'm at work and...

2007-04-19T07:15:00.000-07:00

...very,very bored. I am the customer service and marketing rep for a local mortgage company and business is very slow this week. I really should be balancing my check book, organizing my day planner, you know doing something constructive. Instead, I'm surfing the internet and making up excuses to avoid productivity today. Then my boss, who is also bored, sends me this test:

http://www.mikescomputerinfo.com/inteltest.htm

My advice, read each question carefully, then re-read it before you answer. According to this test, I have "a bitchin' love life" and my life will "take a sudden turn for good in the next 2 weeks". Maybe I should buy a lottery ticket this week.

Happy Thursday!

Ok, ok, off I go to do something productive. If I must.

Marley has a what!!!!

2007-04-18T06:40:00.000-07:00

Yes, Marley has a boyfriend. He's a cutie too with blond hair and blue eyes. She met him at daycare.

Last week Marley was reading a book and this little boy walked up to her and tried to take it away. She refused and then taunted him with it and made him cry. On Monday she took him by the hand and led him around the classroom, I believe they did about 5 laps. When Marley had enough she let go of his hand but he kept on following her. Yesterday, Marley was sitting on one of the teachers laps. This little boy came over and sat on the lap as well and put his arm around Marley and Marley put her head on his shoulder.

She's not even two yet and Daddy's biggest fear is becoming reality. At least she knows how to call the shots!

I love weekends

2007-04-15T06:49:00.000-07:00

I love weekends. Marley slept until 7:30 this morning a true treat for me. I took her into the single bed and we just laid there yawning and rubbing our eyes and snuggling. We love to snuggle! Marley peeped out the window that is next to the single bed and said "tweet, tweet". It's raining, and I did not see a bird in sight. Oh well, she enjoys looking out the window into the back yard where she loves to play.

The forecast says rain and wind for the day. I'm elated. I have been so busy and now I have an excuse not to leave the house all day. Usually I'd be griping but today is a much needed day for rest and relaxation. I'll read more of my book, do a couple loads of laundry and Marley and I will immerse ourselves in a few crafty projects.

It's going to be a beautiful day despite the fact we are under a tornado watch until mid afternoon. Yikes.

Why I'm not black

2007-04-11T10:33:00.000-07:00

My Father was a diplomat. I had the pleasure growing up mainly overseas. The first six years of my life were in Africa. I was born in Nairobi although my parents were stationed in Burundi. From what I understand the hospital in Bujumbura was infested with rats. Being a new Mother myself I can understand why my Mother moved to Nairobi the last 2 weeks of her pregnancy. The Dr. did not make it to my delivery, so I was delivered by two Kikuyu nurses who had no problems with, literally, tossing me around the room as if I were a football. My Father watched in horror and tried to say something but was quickly interrupted by one of the nurses, who sharply gave her opinion of men in the labor room who were not in the medical profession. It was something like "new Father's should be seen but not heard".

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

When I was 3 and 1/2 we moved to Algeria. We lived in a beautiful house in the center of Algeirs. My brother and I were not allowed to wander the streets, it was far too dangerous. Thankfully, I did have a friend who used to come over and play frequently. Her Father was a diplomat too, he was a Kenyan diplomat. One day I looked at my Mother and said "Hudja was born in Nairobi and I was born in Nairobi, so why is she black and I'm not?".

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

We moved back to the U.S. when I was almost 7 years old. We moved to a small town about an hour away from Washington D.C. This was my first experience with culture shock. My parents put me in the second grade in the American public school system. Boy, did I NOT fit in. I remember trying to make friends with one of the girls in my class. She reminded me of Hudja whom I missed. I quickly realized during the first week of school, she was not in anyway like my Kenyan friend Hudja. I'll never forget the day she called me an "African dog". And that was supposed to be an insult? I didn't get it, I still don't.

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

Years later, I moved back to the US, this time from Paris, France. I was 19 years old and a little savvier than when I was 7. I moved back to the same town. Although I did not experience culture shock to the same intensity as the first move back to the US, it was still quit an adjustment. I felt a little like Rip van Winkle. I missed out on popular television series', there was a bit of a language barrier as well. I asked someone to pass me the hoe and couldn't understand why she started laughing. I was simply asking for a garden tool. She was nice enough to explain that there is a slang term ho, that is used for a loose woman. Oh! now I saw the humor...sort of.

While I was attending a local Community College I had a revelation. I was sitting at a table in the student lounge studying with an African American friend named Paul. I looked at him straight in the eyes and said, "I'm more African American than you are". He looked at me like I was nuts and said "What?". I repeated my statement and then said "I was born in Africa". I went back to studying while Paul was trying to regroup from his laughing fit.

During the same time frame my Father was sent to the Congo. He called one late November night, to simply say hello. It dawned on me that my Father was going to be all alone for the Holidays. So I made him a deal. I told him if he paid for the trip, I'd go. Less than a month later I was on a plane headed for the heart of Africa. The trip was fabulous, I will blog more stories at another time. The one aspect about being back in Africa was that I was made very aware that I was not black (although I was born in Nairobi). I was confined to the house or the pool at a local hotel. I was desparate to walk the streets, take in the culture but it simply was not safe. There had been some fighting, as it turns out I was there for the beginning of their civil war. Knowing I was bored, my Father told me that there was a man at the Embassy who's daughter was also visiting and would I like to meet her? I jumped at the opportunity. We went to lunch one day. She was attending a University near Washington D.C., she was my age and we found a lot of things to talk about. She asked me what I had seen or done while in Brazzaville. I told her I had not done much, I was not allowed to go outside by myself, that I was told it was not safe. It turned out that she had been all over the city and BY HERSELF! How could this be? Why was she allowed and I was not? Then it hit me, I looked at her again to confirm and realized she looked a lot like Hudja and that is why she was able to wonder the streets of Brazzaville.

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

So, I'm not black but I am African American, so to speak. Not much offends me but I do realize that words can hurt. Would a certain someone still have all his sponsers if he had used the words, "diaper* headed garden tool"?

*nappy being a British term for diaper

Crazy weather and Easter

2007-04-07T16:27:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter everyone! I have to start this blog by griping about the weather. Last Monday it was HOT. H*O*T, hot. Did I dress appropriately, no, did I dress Marley appropriately, no. It hit 85 degrees and they were calling for mid 70's. One little boy at daycare had a flannel shirt on! The teachers did take it off, so he was sporting a bare chest with suspenders and his coveted gold necklace (yes, I know, why does a toddler have a gold necklace...beats me). Anyway, it was quit a sight!

Today was a different story. We went to an egg hunt at the Elizabethan Gardens. It was COLD, I'm talking C*O*L*D, cold. I think it hit a max of 40 degrees today and yes I saw snow flakes. The wind was whipping making the temperature feel in the 20's. From what I heard there has not been a snowflake that has fallen out of the sky in April here since 1963. Marley was dressed appropriately resembling the little boy from "A Christmas Story" although she could move and even run.

There's my gripe and now onto who, but of course Marley.

Marley has discovered that loves Easter. Not that she has any idea what it is about but she loves the baskets and the colorful plastic eggs and the stickers we have used to decorate the plastic eggs. She MUST carry this basket of eggs every where she goes.

I had Good Friday off from work, the same day they were doing the egg hunt at daycare. We had to go! They had little buckets with all the toddlers names on them and the eggs strategically placed on the playground. Marley found eight. She loves them, she spent the afternoon taking them out of her purple bucket and putting them back in. After dinner I had to reenact the egg hunt, while she was eating dinner, I hid them around the living room. After dinner, the hunt began. She found them all with a little help and all eight were placed back in her basket. Then the Mother's nightmare happened. She discovered she could open them and how wonderful the contents were. Before I knew it she had bitten into a green jelly bean. Her eyes grew wide and a glistening stream of green drool dribbled down her chin. She had found heaven! Well, until Mama decided to gather all the eggs and empty the contents before she discovered the sugary delights were in all the plastic eggs. The last thing Mama needed was an 18 month old on a sugar high.

The egg hunt at the Elizabethan Gardens was nice. The older kids had a fabulous time collecting all the eggs and not leaving many for the toddlers. Oh well...Marley did find two and thankfully they only contained stickers.

Happy Easter!!!!!!!

Oh what a day!

2007-03-25T05:37:00.000-07:00

I had such an amazing day yesterday! The weather has been intoxicating. Spring has sprung here in the south. Spring time is my favorite time of year. My whole world comes back to life. The flowers are pushing through the ground and the trees are beginning to bud. The rebirth of nature rejuvinates my soul.

We went to a 7 year olds birthday party yesterday. Her parents made a big deal out of it too with a moon bounce and pony rides. Since the weather was warm I was able to dress Marley in a beautiful spring dress finished with cute sandals. She looked adorable! Being a 7 year olds party Marley was the youngest but it didn't stop her from trying to be a big kid! She did her best to climb into the moon bounce. She was determined! Hubby and I had to save her a few times from the rambunctious big kids. Then Marley's dream came true, the big kids cleared out and lined up for the pony rides and the moon bounce was empty! Marley and I took off our sandals and climbed in. I have never seen my daughter have so much fun! I'd forgotten how much fun a moon bounce can be! Marley and I had a blast jumping, laughing squeeling, you name it! It was great being a kid again myself.

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

A few nights ago a neighbor and friend of mine stopped by and told me about a band that was going to be playing at a local restaurant. It was for a charity benefit so it started early and ended earlier than most bands normally would. Since I became a Mother, I don't go out as often as I used to. I jumped at the chance to see live music and have some adult fun.

The band is called The Screaming Orphans. I was a little afraid that they were going to be an angry chick band, thankfully they were not. The band consists of 4 sisters, Joanne, Grainne, Angela and Marie Therese Diver. Originally from Donegal, Ireland and unfortunately, to my understanding, orphans.

I almost forgot how much I love live music! This band evoked so much emotion, so much awe and envy of their talent. Their range of instruments, vocals and music repertoire. They played music from Dolly Parton, Hank, Jr, Johnny Cash, ABBA, their own songs and quit a few Irish jigs. The lead singer is also the drummer. I do not play a musical instrument, I learned at an early age that I inherited my Father's keen lack of rhythm. Watching her play made me feel like I need to practice rubbing my belly while patting my head. This band is a MUST see!

Yesterday was an amazing day. I came home at midnight and fell into bed. Thankfully Marley slept until 7:30 but I am on a third cup of coffee.....

Southernisms

2007-03-19T16:52:00.000-07:00

Another Baptist Church:

The Big Bang Theory? God Spoke and bang it happened.

Up for a debate anyone?

Perspective

2007-03-19T09:13:00.000-07:00

I have an addiction. It's called Yahoo Answers!. It's a fabulous community. It's been the answer to all my prayers. All you have to do is ask and you shall receive. I'm mostly in the Parenting section I also wander over to the Politics section and it's always a great debate. I recently bought a used Jeep and had a million questions, so I wandered over to the Jeep section. And then there is the Travel section. Having lived many different places in my life, I feel I have some expertise in the Colorado and Paris section.

I was looking over the travel section the other day and came across a question that I still think about. The question was "How can travel change the ideas of living". My response was:

Travelling opens your eyes and mind to other cultures. When you can see a different perspective you will be more open minded and start thinking about your choices in life differently.

It was voted as best answer. I got 10 points. Ok, I cheated, I saw that the question was put to vote so I voted for my own answer and was the only one that voted.

Anyway, it's hard to answer this question in just 3 sentences. It's hard to answer this question for someone who has never experienced travel or living in another country, there's just so much more that words can not tell.

I grew up overseas and didn't know any different. So my question is "How can growing up in one place change the ideas of living?". It's all about perspective, hence my title.

Southernisms Chinese Style

2007-03-17T17:59:00.000-07:00

I haven't seen any good signs in the last couple of weeks but did run across this last night as hubby and I were ordering Chinese food. I can't believe I never noticed it before on our take out menu! By the way it's a great restaurant!

The short version:

CHINA KING: Chinese Restaurant To Take Out.
Next to Nations Merioaland Close to K-Mark-Welcome to Party Order & Banquet.

They are referring to The Wright Brother's National Memorial, which in fact is not located in Kitty Hawk but Kill Devil Hills ( now thar ya dun lurned somtin').

The the kicker was: We put pupu in your platter! (Ok I confess, it was not on the menu I made that one up as I was giggling).

Last weekend

2007-03-05T09:54:00.000-08:00

On Thursday, Marley and I headed to Virginia with my sister to visit the Grandmothers and to pick up a new/used vehicle for me. It was an exhausting visit. Nana's house is NOT babyproof with the exposed outlets and valuable trinkets strategically placed all over the house. Besides the fact that Marley was wide eyed and to all the untouchables it was a good visit.

We were able to spend a few hours with hubby's Mom, aka Grandma, on Saturday. Grandma wanted to go toy shopping and spoil her Granddaughter. We found a Kmart and headed straight to the toy section. Grandma picked out an Elmo doll and handed it to Marley. Of course Marley fell in love with it and we knew it was going to be placed in the cart. This particular Elmo doll teaches children to dress and undress, which is Marley's favorite past time these days. Here's a link. (I'd make it pretty on my blog but I am not yet so computer savvy)http://www.kmart.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=175650&destName=null&Ntt=elmo&Ntk=All&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&N=271&Nty=1

This doll got my approval until the next day.

The next morning, I took Elmo out of all of his packaging and handed him to my wide eyed toddler. She unzipped Elmo's jacket and Elmo says "Is it hot in here or is it just Elmo". Nana and I stopped and looked at this so seemingly innocent toy and burst out laughing. Seriously what is he trying to teach my daughter?!

Speaking of Marley

2007-02-26T18:31:00.000-08:00

Toddlers are so much fun!!!!! The tiniest little things just make them laugh hysterically. They are learning so many things and still mastering so many objects like a zipper.

They informed me at daycare today that not only has Marley mastered the zipper on her sweater but she has also learned how to take off her clothes. I had a feeling, she spent a good portion of the weekend zipping and unzipping. I only wish I could have seen her stripping in the middle of the daycare center then running around naked while the teachers were chasing her trying to put her clothes back on her. Oh the FREEDOM!

Southernisms

2007-02-26T18:25:00.000-08:00

I don't seem to be travelling as much these days with it being winter and the fact that winter also took me from being a stay at home Mom to being in the work force again. I pass only one church each day as I take Marley to daycare. This Baptist church is quit clever the majority of the time and I also feel that winter has not brought very many worshipers. So the Southernism is......

"Calling all Men, Women and Children to sit in slightly used pews"

Why I don't wear skirts

2007-02-15T05:26:00.000-08:00

If you don't live in the north east, like me, all you have to do is turn on the news to see the havoc the blizzard is reaking. It takes me back to the time hubby and I lived in high country of Colorado.

When we first married we decided to move to Colorado. I'd never been so we decided to take a vacation there for me to see it. I was hooked immediatly! Although I spent all my teen years in Paris, France I love the great outdoors. Give me a tent, some food, a good book or two and a beautiful lake and I could stay for a week. I also love to ski, so without hesitation we began the plans to move to the high country of Colorado.

The one thing I did not anticipate were the long winters, nine months to be exact. We bought a house that sat at 11,600 feet and our commute to work was over a mountain pass with a lot of switch backs. The first winter proved to be interesting but I was up for the challenge. I had never driven in the snow before and all the locals convinced me that I should buy a car with 4-wheel drive and a manual transmission. I'd also never driven a stick before. Thankfully I mastered the stick before the snow started flying.

I have many, many stories of my adventures with the house at 11,600 and our commute over the mountain pass. I will only tell this one for now, hence the title to this blog.

It was April, Easter weekend to be exact. I had a bridal shower to go to and I had to travel over the mountain pass. It was a beautiful morning, unseasonably warm (about 50 degrees) for a high country April morning. I decided to dress up for this bridal shower. I had a skirt that I hadn't worn yet so I was quite excited to get all dolled up and feel like a girl. I dressed, drove over the pass and had a fabulous time at the bridal shower. When it was time to leave, I walked outside to find 3 feet of heavy, wet spring snow lying on the ground. In the 3 hours of the bridal shower it had snowed 3 feet! I could barely walk to my car because of my cute, no traction shoes that I was wearing. I found my snow boots in my car and promptly changed my shoes, then proceeded to brush off my whole car.

I had to go to the grocery store as well. It was Easter weekend and we were having friends and neighbors over the next day. I drove to the grocery store and while I was shopping I overheard an employee apologizing that he was late for work. He said that the pass was a mess, there were cars spinning out and in ditches everywhere. I walked up to him and told him I had to drive home over the pass, did he think I was going to make it. He said yes as long as I had 4-wheel drive and drove slowly.

I finished my grocery shopping, walked out to my car and had to brush off about another foot of wet, heavy spring snow and began my journey home. I was in a long line of cars that were behind a snow plow, slowly ascending the pass. As we were approaching the summit the line of cars stopped for a brief moment when the traffic started moving again the car in front of me started spinning tires. It was a 4-wheel drive vehicle that was not engaged in 4-wheel drive! Idiots! and yes their tags were from out of state. They started sliding backwards, there was a cliff right next to me so I had to think quickly. I maneuvered around them barely missing on coming traffic. Thankfully, they found the momentum to move forward. I reached the summit and began to descend, again very slowly and behind a long line of cars. As I was descending it must have snowed at least another foot and all the new snow that accumulated on the roof of my car slid onto my windshield. I couldn't see! I couldn't tell where I could even pull over to get the snow off of my car! So, I rolled down my window and stuck my head out to see the car in front of me. I finally made it to the bottom of the pass and pulled over. I got out to clean off my windshield in approximately 4-5 feet of snow. Do you have any idea how cold snow is when you are wearing a skirt?! I was cursing the whole time I was cleaning off the windshield. Thankfully I made it home, unloaded the groceries and poured my self a glass of wine vowing that I would never wear a skirt again.

Valentine's Day

2007-02-14T12:26:00.000-08:00

I guess I'm feeling a little guilty (although I'm still gritting my teeth) about my last entry. It is Valentine's Day, so here are a few quotes:

Nothing takes the taste out of peanut butter quite like unrequited love.
Charles M. Schulz, Charlie Brown in "Peanuts"US cartoonist (1922 - 2000)

There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness.
Friedrich Nietzsche, "On Reading and Writing"German philosopher (1844 - 1900)

The best proof of love is trust."
-Joyce Brothers

Happy Valentine's Day!!!!!

Smooch, smooch.

Mr. Mom

2007-02-14T08:48:00.000-08:00

Hubby was laid off from his job at the end of last year. As devastating as it felt then things are much better now. He will be going back to work in a couple of weeks and we are also contemplating a move as well.

How has Hubby been doing these past several weeks? Well, it been kind of interesting for me. He goes to the grocery store, cleans the house and has dinner prepared. I know, I know, you think I'm spoiled, right? Well, think again.

When we decided to cohabit many years ago we set a ground rule. I won't touch your laundry if you don't touch mine. This was after a cashmere sweater of mine ended up on the regular cycle in hot water then the dryer. I'm not even sure my Barbie doll from my youth would have been able to wear it. I decided to do laundry one day and put his t-shirts in the dryer. Although the t-shirts were not ruined he preferred that they be hung dry. So fair enough I do my laundry and you do yours.

As the years have gone by the rule is still in effect but I have the chore of all the household laundry and Marley's as well. No big deal, I'd rather do it then have the cashmere sweater incident again. All has gone well until yesterday. Hubby decided that he would "help" with the household laundry. The fabric shower curtain in the guest bathroom had not been cleaned in awhile (although it did not need it). So in all of his "helpfulness", he forgot to read the tag that said DRY CLEAN ONLY. This mangled, obviously shrunk mess is hanging in the guest bathroom until I have the time to purchase another.

Let's see what else has happened. Oh yes, my beautiful, one of a kind coffee mug ended up in 60 pieces as well. I don't collect knick nacks, stamps, coins, etc but the one thing I do collect is pottery because it's beautiful artwork that is functional. I found this coffee mug in Breckenridge Colorado made by a local artist. It truly was a one of a kind. It has been on the top of my most prized possession list for 6 years. There have been a few other things as well, such as going waaayyy over budget on the grocery bill. At this rate we may as well eat out every night. But things are fine..... (as I grit my teeth).

Oh well, at least the house is vacuumed every day......(I really hope he goes back to work sooner than 2 weeks).

As a full blooded Democrat I just simply could not resist!

2007-02-12T08:47:00.000-08:00

E-mail from my brother

1) (On an infant's shirt): Already smarter than Bush.
2) 1/20/09: End of an Error
3) That's OK, I Wasn't Using My Civil Liberties Anyway
4) Let's Fix Democracy in This Country First
5) If You Want a Nation Ruled By Religion, Move to Iran
6) Bush. Like a Rock. Only Dumber.
7) You Can't Be Pro-War And Pro-Life At The Same Time
8) If You Can Read This, You're Not Our President
9) Of Course It Hurts: You're Getting Screwed by an Elephant
10) Hey, Bush Supporters: Embarrassed Yet?
11) George Bush: Creating the Terrorists Our Kids Will Have to Fight
12) Impeachment: It's Not Just for Blowjobs Anymore
14) America : One Nation, Under Surveillance
15) They Call Him "W" So He Can Spell It
16) Which God Do You Kill For?
17) Cheney/Satan '08
18) Jail to the Chief
19) Who Would Jesus Torture?
20) No, Seriously, Why Did We Invade
21) Bush: God's Way of Proving Intelligent Design is Full Of Crap
22) Bad president! No Banana.
23) We Need a President Who's Fluent In At Least One Language
24) We're Making Enemies Faster Than We Can Kill Them
26) Rich Man's War, Poor Man's Blood
27) Is It Vietnam Yet?
28) Bush Doesn't Care About White People, Either
29) Where Are We Going? And Why Are We In This Handbasket?
30) You Elected Him. You Deserve Him.
32) Impeach Cheney First
34) When Bush Took Office, Gas Was $1.46
35) The Republican Party: Our Bridge to the 11th Century

Just call me Goober Chicken Dippin-Dippin Tush

2007-01-31T09:42:00.000-08:00

Huh?! You ask. Well this is why. Don't laugh at me until you've done your own.

MY NEW NAME IS IN THE SUBJECT.....DON'T LAUGH UNTIL YOU FIND OUT WHAT YOUR NEW NAME IS!!!

We all need a little stress-reliever! This only takes a minute. Sometimes when you have a stressful day or week, you need some silliness to break up the day. Here is your dose of humour...Follow the instructions to find your new name. And don't go all adult - a senior manager is now known far and wide as Dorky Gizzardsniffer!The following is excerpted from a children's book, Captain Underpants And the Perilous Plot of Professor Poopypants, by Dave Pilkey, in which the evil Professor forces everyone to assume new names...

So:-1. Use the third letter of your first name to determine your New first name:
a = snickle
b = doombah
c = goober
d = cheesey
e = crusty
f = greasy
g = dumbo
h = farcus
i = dorky
j = doofus
k = funky
l = boobie
m = sleezy
n = sloopy
o = fluffy
p = stinky
q = slimy
r = dorfus
s = snooty
t = tootsie
u = dipsy
v = sneezy
w = liver
x = skippy
y = dinky
z = zippy

2. Use the second letter of your last name to determine the first half of your new last name:

a = dippin
b = feather
c = batty
d = burger
e = chicken
f = barffy
g = lizard
h = waffle
i = farkle
j = monkey
k = flippin
l = fricken
m = bubble
n = rhino
o = potty
p = hamster
q = buckle
r = gizzard
s = lickin
t = snickle
u = chuckle
v = pickle
w = hubble
x = dingle
y = gorilla
z = girdle

3. Use the third letter of your last name to determine the second half of your new last name:

a = butt
b = boob
c = face
d = nose
e = hump
f = breath
g = pants
h = shorts
i = lips
j = honker
k = head
l = tush
m = chunks
n = dunkin
o = brains
p = biscuits
q = toes
r = doodle
s = fanny
t = sniffer
u = sprinkles
v = frack
w = squirt
x = humperdinck
y = hiney
z = juice

Thus, for example, George W. Bush's new name is: Fluffy Chucklefanny.And remember that children laugh an average of 146 times a day; adults Laugh an average of 4 times a day. Put more laughter in your life.

Southernisms

2007-01-23T06:32:00.000-08:00

Baptist Church-Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina:

"Soul Food served here"

Funeral home Nags Head, North Carolina:

"We want to URN your business"

clever ain't it

Marley update

2007-01-19T08:19:00.000-08:00

Wow! It's been a month since my last entry! Bad me.

Marley is turning 16 months on Sunday. I can't believe how time is flying. She is losing her babyesqueness (can I play that word in Scrabble?)rapidly. It's bitter sweet.

Hubby is in Virginia clearing out our storage unit this week (so glad it's him and not me) so it's just been my Bug and me. Our routine in the evening is bath, pj's, snuggle on the couch with a sippy cup of milk, clean up the toys, book and bed. On Wednesday night, after the sippy cup of milk, I was throwing her toys into one of the baskets. I noticed Marley was at the other basket, my first thought was she is emptying the contents. Boy did I not give my Bug the benefit of the doubt. She was putting her toys into the basket! After she finished she went over to her Legos Princess Carriage and began putting all the Legos pieces back in. When all the pieces were in the carriage she rolled it under the coffee table, gave me a look that said "Ok Mom, it's time for bed".

So what have I been up to?

2006-12-21T10:22:00.000-08:00

I spend a lot of my days reading cnn.com. Silly me went back to work on the downside of the real estate market and just in time for the holidays to boot. So, I really do have time to catch up on my blog. No more excuses for me.

I do love cnn.com, I think it's the Entertainment page that keeps me going. The highlight today is that Britney Spears has been nominated as the most controversial celeb of 2006. No, I'm no joking, amazing isn't it!?!

I also enjoyed a question that was asked to viewers several days ago. The question was: (I may not be getting this verbatum-I can't seem to find it in the archives)

Q:"Do you think Barack Obama is a threat to the U.S?"

A large amount of the people who were asked this question responded, "YES", when asked why, one man replied, "because he is still out there plotting...".

I leave you with that this holiday season. Please, somebody please send me back to France.

Dear Blog, I have not forgotten you

2006-12-06T19:05:00.000-08:00

Life has been really busy adjusting to waking up and scrambling out the door in the morning to have Marley in daycare by 8:20. Breakfast is served at 8:30 and a perfect way for Marley to start her day with all of her friends. It's been an adjustment for all of us, Marley the most. Growing up is a hard thing to do! This is week number 4 and I really feel that she has finally adjusted. She's had more good days than bad and so far this week they have been all good, better than good they have been great.

That is my update for now. It's after 10:00. I just came home from my book club. The book this month was Best Friends by Martha Moody. I'm still on the second chapter (told ya life has been hectic), so far the book has not impressed me nor did it impress my fellow book clubbers. I may not read any further. Nonetheless, it's a great group of women and we have a really great time talking about more than just the books that the group has chosen. I am meeting some great people. For example, tonight, I met a woman who lived in Breckenridge for 10 years. She and her husband left 2 years after hubby and I had moved there. We had a good time reminiscing and yes we discovered we knew some of the same people. On the way home I was singing, "It's a small world after all.....".

Good night my dear Blog. I think of you often even though I don't write as often as I would like.

Marley's off to college or so that's how it feels

2006-11-06T10:18:00.000-08:00

Marley started daycare today and I went back to work. I worked for 3 hours today and Marley was at the daycare for about 4 hours.

I dropped her off about 8:15 a.m. They serve breakfast at 8:30 a.m. and I wanted Marley to be there for breakfast. I had a few things to go over with the daycare owner and I wanted to set up Marley's cubby hole with diapers, wipes, etc. Marley jumped right into playing. She was a woman on a mission, she knew exactly what to do and where to do it. When it was time for me to go I felt a lump form in my throat. There was no way I was going to show Marley I was a little sad, so I found the strength to swallow that lump. I hugged her and kissed her goodbye and I out the door I went. I have to say I had a few tears roll down my cheek as I was pulling out of the driveway. Marley on the other hand was so happy. She was having way too much fun to even realize that I was gone. Hubby stopped by to see our little girl and she was too busy to give him the time of day. Yes, he told me he could relate to the lump in the throat. I called around 10:30 and the owner said all the kids were on the playground and Marley was having the time of her life! I can't tell you how relieved I am. I don't know if I could have handled it if Marley started crying as I walked out the door or if the owner said she was inconsolable. She's such a big girl now. My little miss independant.

When I picked her up at noon, she had just finished her lunch. When I walked through the door she was happy to see me, yeah. They all said that she was great and what an easy going child she is. She did sit down and have a cry at one point but one of the employees comforted her and then she was fine. The other kids would steal toys from her and Marley didn't care, she would let them have it and then she'd move on to the next toy.

I couldn't be more proud of my baby girl. She's always going to be my baby girl even when she does start college. I'm thrilled that she was happy and I am actually happy to be back at work.

Funny bumper sticker

2006-11-01T07:32:00.000-08:00

I saw a funny bumper sticker yesterday:

Democrats are sexy!!!!

You've never heard of a great piece of elephant have you?

It's official...

2006-10-31T05:49:00.000-08:00

I'm going back to work. After a lot of thinking, conversations with family and friends and crunching numbers over and over I have decided it's worth going back. My main concern of course is Marley. Will she be happy? Will she adjust well? If she doesn't then all bets are off.

I received a phone call last week from one of the daycares that I thought would be best for Marley. They called to say they have an opening starting November 6th. We decided to visit again that afternoon. Marley made herself at home. She was having so much fun playing. We were there for close to an hour and Marley pitched a fit when it was time to leave. It certainly made me feel better that Marley enjoyed being there. Now, I have not dropped her off and left. My heart is going to break if she cries when I leave. Then again my heart might break if she doesn't cry when I leave. Monday is going to be a tough day. I have worked it so that I am only working 3 hours Monday and Tuesday. Four hours Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. I will only be working 6 hours 5 times a week, so we will begin the final schedule the following Monday.

Today we will be visiting again, this time for their Halloween party. We will go back on Friday so I can make sure I have all my ducks in a row and another period of time where Marley can get used to te surroundings.

It will be an adjustment. One that I feel will be good in the long run. If that changes then all bets are off and I stay home again. The daycare is 15 minutes from my home and work. I will miss her terribly. Then again I feel a little guilty for really looking forward being back in an office, using a part of my brain that is in need of a fine tune up and talking to grown ups for a straight 6 hour period. I am looking forward to not changing diapers in a 6 1/2 hour period. Let's see that would be about 3-4 diapers a day. Oh my goodness, that's 15-20 diapers a week! Those are great perks but I will miss her terribly.

Wish me luck and stay tuned to the updates next week.

Why do these things happen to me? Just in time for Halloween.

2006-10-19T10:45:00.000-07:00

Anyone who knows me knows that I am petrified of snakes, lizards and frogs. Although I do not like spiders I do not have the same fear as the 3 previously mentioned. I have stories that will make your skin crawl and yes these have happened to me. I don't know anyone else who has as many creepy crawly experiences except for maybe the late Steve Irwin.

Story #1- One of Jocelyn's most embarrassing moments. I was hiking on the Appalachian trail one day, by myself. It was a beautiful Indian summer day in October/November. I had on a pair of shorts, a t-shirt, and a flannel button down shirt. As I was hiking I got hot so I took the flannel shirt off and wrapped it around my waist. I was about half way to my destination, a small lodge for the Appalachian Trail hikers, when I happened to look down and I saw a snake and this snake was not black, the first thing that went through my mind was it's a copperhead. I panicked and started running. I then heard something behind me a sound that resembled a snake slithering at an amazing speed. I started screaming for help. Ok, I'm in the woods several miles at this point from any road and probably anything human. I am panicking like I have never panicked before in my life. Finally, reality set in and I remembered a nature show that I once saw about snakes. There is only one snake in the whole world that will chase you and I believe it lives only in Australia. So what could be chasing me I looked behind me and in the midst of my delerioum I got a stick stuck to the bottom of my stupid flannel shirt. What I heard was the stick dragging on the ground. I took that stick off my shirt and threw it as far as I could, uttering a few curse words, and was very thankful there were no humans around.

Story #2- I lived in Jacksonville, FL for a summer with my Father when I was in college. The apartment that my Father was renting was right next to a stream. Beautiful, yes, but that stream attracted frogs of all kinds. I worked as a hostess at a chain restaraunt so I came home late many, many nights. My Father was nice enough to turn on the outside light before he went to bed. I appreciated it except for the fact that the light attracted bugs and the bugs attracted frogs. I came home one night and there were literally a hundred frogs stuck to the door, the door handle, etc. I promply left, found a pay phone and called my Father. I felt bad that I woke him up but he was happy to save me. The next day he bought me a flash light and we never turned on the outside light again.

Story #3-Last year I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, Marley. Every parent knows how wonderful, yet trying the first few weeks can be and Mother's know that raging hormones, lack of sleep is a terrible combination. For me, my life also threw in a lizard. I was sitting on the couch nursing Marley one afternoon and noticed that Cherise was very interested in something in the dining room. My first thought was, it's a mouse or a spider. Then Cherise darted into the living room and was just going nuts over an end table. I realized what ever it was it had moved into the living room in an attempt to get away. The next thing I know both Rubin and Cherise are pouncing on something in the middle of the living room floor. Marley had finished nursing, so I put her down on the couch and walked over to see what it was. It was a LIZARD!!!!!! It was injured but it was still trying to save himself, he darted towards the couch. I shrieked, and ran half way up the steps. Now this lizard was between me and my daughter. What to do, what to do!? I jumped off the stairs, ran into the laundry room and found a bucket and placed it over the lizard. Marley and I spent the rest of the day in the bedroom, with the door closed until hubby came home.
The next day I was sitting on the couch on the phone with my brother telling him the story. At this point I was laughing about it and really happy the previous day was over. I had not been off the phone with my brother for even a minute when I saw another lizard climbing up the side of the couch. I called hubby and asked him if he could come home. Thankfully he was 2 minutes from the house. Needless to say he saved his girls from the icky, creepy lizard.

Story #4-Today. Yes today. Our house, as cute as it is it has a few architcural querks. The front door is a sliding glass door that does not lock. We put a shower curtain rod down between the door jam and the glass so no one can come in when we are not home. This means we have to walk behind the house and enter through the back door. No big deal until today. Marley and I just came home from our playgroup. As I was walking towards the back door I noticed something moving towards my feet and moving very quickly. It was a black snake!!!!!!!! If I had not moved the damn thing would have slithered over my foot, and I have flip flops on. How am I supposed to go to the grocery store later. I have to lock up the house but that means I have to walk around the side of the house again. Somehow I am going to have to find the courage. I can say that NEVER will I walk to the back of the house again in the dark.

Happy Halloween!

decisions...desicions

2006-10-17T11:17:00.000-07:00

This past year has been the most incredible time in my life. I gave birth to a fabulous little girl and have had the joy of being able (barely) to stay home with her this past year. I was planning on taking my 3 month maternity leave from work and put Marley in daycare. The area where I live has a shortage in daycare facilities and, I say thankfully, I never found an opening anywhere. Not that I would have put my beautiful daughter in any place just because they had an opening. So, now a year has gone by and I am contemplating reentering the work force and becoming the American working Mom. My old employer is hiring for a part time position which will turn to full time once the real estate market turns. It is not an easy decision. There are pros and cons on both sides.

The pros:

-Marley will have an amazing amount of socialization, she gets so excited when she sees other kids. Daycare will provide her the socialization that I can't even with our once a week Mommy & Me group.
-Financially-Yes we do need the extra cash. Money is very tight and the savings are dwindling.
-My career- I have not really lost the edge yet.
-I will be able to have adult conversation almost all day long! (Not a real priority on the pros).
-The job is only 6 hours a day 5 times a week.

The cons:

-Marley will be in daycare all day and not with me. This tears at my heart strings.
-I will have to dish out $145/week for someone else to look after my child.
-It's 30 hours a week that I will not be with Marley.

So as you see the pros are greater than the cons or maybe I am trying to be too optimistic about this decision. My heart will ache now or when she's 5 and goes off to Kindergarten. I do need to make sure that it is ultimatley the right decision for Marley. So here is how it stands. The daycare I really wanted for Marley last year has 2 openings coming up. No, they can not tell me when. It could be 2 weeks it could be 2 months+. My previous employer said that they can hold the position open for me for awhile. Very nice of them to do that but I do not expect them to hold it open forever. I have decided to pursue this as we do need the money but I have decided to keep all my options open and if for any reason Marley is miserable at daycare or things just are not working out I can quit right? Right.

The funny thing about all of this is that one day I am very excited about going back to work and the next day I am terrified of leaving Marley. There doesn't really seem to be a right decision just a decision that needs to be made in light of the circumstance. So, we will see. If it's meant to be than it will happen and everyone will be happy. If it's not meant to be then well....we'll reach that road of it ever come up.

Catching up- Starting with the big trip

2006-09-30T06:22:00.000-07:00

Life has been very busy in deed. I am going to back track and begin with my wonderful vacation with Marley and my Mother.

My Mother came down to spend a couple of days at the beach at the end of July. We wanted to go to the beach but the temperature was 113 degrees and no one wanted to be outside so we spent the time inside playing with Marley. On Saturday July 29th we left for Virginia, spent the night on the farm, woke up the next morning and headed for Pennsylvania to visit my Grandmother.

My Grandmother is approaching her 96th birthday. She is the most amazing woman I have ever known. Unfortunately, a few weeks prior, she fell and broke her hip. Now this usually marks the end for people of that age but not for my Grandmother. She had to leave her apartment and stay in an assisted living area of her retirement home. She had a roommate that she could not stand and made it absolutely clear that she was ready to get out of there and back to her apartment. Amazingly the Dr's felt that she was well on her way to making a full recovery and did for awhile contemplate her living on her own again. Since then she has made an incredible recovery and although she is not back in her apartment, she is in another area of the retirement home that allows her some freedom and thankfully no roommates. I only hope that I will have the will of iron that she embraces.

Now, as you can imagine Marley was a delight in the retirement facility. She especially loved the long corridors and crawled and crawled to her hearts delight. This amazed and warmed the hearts of all who passed her. Marley took no time to warm up to her Great Grandmother. She stared at her at first and then spent the rest of the visit showing her silly face. Marley went through a stage of puckering her lips and drawing in air through her nose making a loud and long sniffing sound. When ever she made this face we all would laugh which made her do it even more, my little ham.

On a hot Monday morning we left Pennsylvania to proceed with our trip. We said goodbye to my Grandmother who was on her way to the hospital for her triweekly dialysis treatment. Marley gave my Grandmother another shot of her silly face. For a woman who spends three days a week hooked up to a dialysis machine and who had recently broken her hip she looked absolutely amazing and remarkably happy.

The three of us headed to Massachusetts that day. What an amazing drive. I have never spent a lot of time in New England and I have heard it's beautiful but words can not describe the scenery that I witnessed. I can understand why people move there and never want to leave. We drove through the mountains of Connecticut into Massachusetts and landed at our final destination, my Uncle Tom and Aunt Jane's house. They were more than anxious to meet Marley. One thing I have discovered with being a new Mother is the zealous attitude of visits. People are very happy to see the Mother because the Mother is the transporter of the "star", the baby. It's a reason why I have named my blog...All About Marley. This zealous attitude fills my heart with great joy and pride.

The next morning we woke up and lazily began the day. This was the day that Marley was going to meet a good friend of her Mommy's, Vikingzen and her daughter Snicker. Vikingzen and I had not seen each other in many, many, many years. We are good friends from highschool. All I can say is that it was an amazing afternoon. We met at Vikingzen's beautiful home and had a great visit. Our daughter's played while we caught up on the last...ok I'm not going to say how many years had gone by but I will say even after all these years our friendship has stood the test of time. I truly feel it's the definition of true friendship. It was wonderful seeing you Vikingzen and meeting Snicker and I hope another, undisclosed amount of time does not pass us by again.

The next day was Wednesday. Our itinerary noted another long drive this time to Cape Cod to see my cousin in the circus then to New York. Yes, my cousin joined the circus. Not just any circus though, this is the one and only Circus Smirkus. It is a troupe of highly talented teenagers that spend their summer touring New England performing just about every day. What an amazing show. For anyone who is reading and who ever has the opportunity to see this group you will be astounded. For information on the next tour visit www.circussmirkus.org.

It was oppressively hot even on the Cape. I was a little worried about Marley and the heat. I made sure that she had plenty of water and I placed an ice pack between the two of us although the ice pack did not help us from constantly sweating. Marley was absolutely mesmerized by the performance. There was a loud bang in the first act that scared her and I had to take her out to console her. As soon as she calmed down she was eager to get back to the show and she spent the rest of the time in my lap watching, her eyes glued and her mouth open.

After the show we said goodbye to my Aunt, Uncle and cousin and headed to New York to spend the night with my Uncle Steve and Aunt D. We arrived late to find the electricity out. In fact you could here transformers popping all over the neighborhood. Why? THE HEAT. The use of air conditioning was more than the town could handle. It was late when we arrived so we had a quick visit with my Uncle and Aunt and then off to bed we went. Marley did not seem to care about the heat, she was very happy to be out of the car and in her pack n play for a nights rest. I eventually fell asleep despite the fact I was pouring sweat. We woke the next morning and had another brief visit with my Uncle and Aunt and we were off again this time back to my Mom's farm in Virginia.

This marks the end of our wonderful vacation. I was so impressed with Marley. She was great on the long car rides and really didn't have any problems sleeping in new places. She is so easy going. I am really lucky to have such a great daughter. I love you Bugalicious.

It's been awhile now hasn't it!

2006-09-02T16:24:00.000-07:00

Every day for the last few weeks I've been trying to get back to this page. I have so much to tell! You guessed it my life has been busy. Busy with things I need to write and no time to sit and write because the things I want to write just keep happening. The Brits would say "bugger". I'm not a Brit so I say it's mostly because of a certain Bugalicious. How is she you ask?! Oh my goodness what's a Mother to do when your first born is walking and needless to say becoming a very good toddler. She had a melt down in the grocery store the other day despite the baggy of Arrowroot cookies. I was in line checking out when the little volcano inside of her exploded. People have always said how embarrassing a melt down can be. Embarrassing?! She's not even one. I simply looked at the people behind me in line and said "what's she's really saying is excuse me but I'm having toddler moment". If you're a parent, you'll get it.

So enough for now. I have so much more to write but it's Labor Day weekend and I must make a goody for a BBQ tomorrow.

Rubin & Cherise

2006-07-19T05:52:00.000-07:00

I realized yesterday that I have never written anything about Rubin & Cherise, my fur children. They have been great with Marley.In the first few months all my attention and energy was spent on Marley. I really didn't have much to give them and I have felt so guilty about this. It's easier these days now that Marley does not require as much attention. The four of us have a great relationship.
I think, as with all babies and children, pets are a little apprehensive. When Cherise sees Marley coming, she bolts. She wants nothing to do with her unless she has food stuck to her then Cherise is all over her. Rubin on the other hand is a lot more patient. He will tolerate the ear pulling, eye gouging to a point. When he's done he gets up and walks away. Another tidbit about Rubin is his foot fetish. He loves to lick people's feet! And yes Marley's little tootsies have been attacked by the beagle tongue. Her favorite is when she is kicked back in her bouncy seat, with a bottle watching her Baby Einstein DVD and getting a slobbery beagle foot massage.
Now of course Marley is in LOVE with Rubin & Cherise. It doesn't matter what's going on or what mood she may be in. She stops stares and talks to them. The noises she makes are amazing she refers to them as zaza and da-da.
Now off the subject of Marley and her fur siblings. I was feeding Marley breakfast yesterday morning and heard strange noises in the backyard (The kitchen window faces the backyard). I looked out and could not believe what I saw! Rubin & Cherise climbed the tree! Ok, the tree is small but not that small and they were almost to the top. I had to stop feeding Marley because the first thought I had was "Oh my goodness what if they fall!". Thankfully they didn't, then I started thinking what am I going to tell the vet, "my beagle fell from a tree?" Now this thought sent me into a fit of laughter, it still does. In a fit of laughter telling the story to hubby, this is what I imagined the dialogue would be in the vet's office.

The Vet walks into the examining room and yells at the technician:

Vet: Where's the cat? Am I in the wrong examining room?

Technician: No sir, I told you it's a dog.

Vet: I thought a cat had fallen out of a tree?!

Jocelyn: No sir, it was my dog

Vet has a huge look of bewilderment on his face and says to Jocelyn

Vet: What was your dog doing in the tree?

Jocelyn: I'm not sure, but could you please examine my dog?

Vet examines dog,bewildered and muttering under his breath..."What the...How?!...what the...A dog fell out of a tree, now I've seen everything..."

Continuing with my fit of laughter... by this time I'm convinced my sides are going to split. I imagined the dogs not falling from the tree but not being able to get down from the tree. What would I do? I haven't climbed a tree since I was a kid! Who would I call? The Fire Department! Yes, the Fire Department they get cats out of the tree all the time, right?! And again we are not talking about a cat we are talking about a dog!!!! Now I have to stop, I have tears rolling down my face from laughing so hard, never mind the fact that my sides hurt. I can only imagine what the fire fighter would say. Probably something similar to the vet and then he would tell me to keep my dogs out of the tree. Like that's going to happen. Beagles have a mind of their own. Unlike labs they are self pleasers and they do as they wish.

So, I had to take a picture. Unfortunately the sun was shining through the tree so I couldn't get a really good picture. I have named the picture "find the beagle" and you can see it on Marley's shutterfly website.

Words of Wisdom 7/17/06

2006-07-17T05:12:00.000-07:00

I have a few new Words of Wisdom seen by a few friends. Enjoy.

On a billboard:
Don't make me come down there- God

Bumper Sticker:
Jesus, please protect the U.S from your followers

Sign on a Cathlic Church in Houston, TX"
Staying in bed and shouting "Oh God" does not constitute going to Church.

A Priest's parking spot in Maine:
Thou shalt not park here

Location unknown:
Don't let your worries kill you, let the church help

Infant to toddler?

2006-07-09T10:02:00.000-07:00

I was on the phone with my Mother a few minutes ago when hubby starts waving his arm to get my attention. So, I walked over to the couch where he was sitting and saw Marley. She was standing with one hand on her push walker and the other hand on the couch. She took her hand off the couch and put it on the push walker and started walking!!!!! She was smiling and giggling then she fell. She got up brushed herself off and with out the help of the couch did it again. I stood there with my jaw to the floor which quickly turned to a huge smile. I am so proud of her. I just can't find the words to express my joy.

Marley's favorite recipes

2006-07-08T16:48:00.000-07:00

So, I have yet to buy a good baby food book. Why? Well, the area where I live is a beach town full of bookstores packed with Judith Krantz novels. I did find one bookstore that actually has good books and a great variety but they were out of all their baby food books and I have not had a chance to go back. Why not order it online you ask? Because I'm too cheap to pay for the shipping. I have spent a lot of time online finding recipes, suggestions, charts, etc. Here are some great websites:

www.wholesomebabyfood.com

www.babycenter.com (of course!)

www.homemade-baby-food-recipes.com

The one thing I am not fond of is the suggestions to mix fruit with vegetables. Fruit is great but it's sugar so I only feed her fruit in the morning. There are plenty of veggies (sweet potato and corn) that contain sugar.

Using these resources and my own imagination I have come up with some very tasty meals to please my baby's palette.

I have nothing against feeding Marley the jarred stuff if it's one ingredient like squash, sweet potato, peas, etc. or the fruits because it is just water and the veggie or fruit. I have in a pinch bought stage 3 beef and vegetables, which I will not do again the stuff smelled like Chef Boyardee. Marley loved it but all the ingredients on the label made me wince. Marley loves chicken but will not eat the jarred chicken. I don't blame her, dog food smells better.

Here are some of Marley's favorite foods:

Breakfast: Fruit and yogurt or oatmeal (YUM). I use Gerber baby oatmeal for the iron and an organic whole fat yogurt such as Stoneyfield. I buy Gerber or Beechnut fruit except for bananas, canteloupe and apple sauce.
I was amazed to find in the yogurts for babies all the added sugar and the God awful ingredient high fructose corn syrup.

Lunch/Dinner:

Chicken with broccoli and a little cheddar (organic of course) and a small side of squash

Une melange de legume- Corn, peas, grean beans and lima beans-boy was Marley happy, good thing too because Mom came up with this one cleaning out the fridge.

Black beans and rice sometimes mixed with some corn and a side of carrots, sweet potato or squash

Lentils and rice with a side squash

Beef and vegetables. I bought ground sirloin, browned it added a little water and put it through the food processor. Oh my! It looked and smelled terrible. I mixed it with a lot of peas and Marley LOVED it!

More recipes to come! We are doing cauliflower this week.

Words of Wisdom 7/8/06

2006-07-06T06:53:00.000-07:00

On a sign in front of a church in Manteo, North Carolina:

The real Superman died for you

On a sign in front of a church in Salvo, North Carolina:

Remember that God sees you on vacation too

A bumper sticker on a car seen in the parking lot of our local grocery store:

Surfin' for Jesus!

A bumper sticker that has been seen several times:

3 nails + 1 cross = 4given

A billboard seen in Harbinger, North Carolina:

Freedom paid for by the blood of Jesus Christ

More to come........

Living in the south

2006-07-06T06:33:00.000-07:00

I call myself a full blooded Yankee wilfully transplanted in the south. I have always been intrigued with the American southern culture. Originally being from Northern Virginia, which is still south of the Mason Dixon line, I am considered a Yankee here in North Carolina.
I do love the south. There is a lot to say about southern hospitality. There have been many locals that have made us feel completely welcome. The one thing that does not go over very well is when I am asked what church I belong to. I tell them I was raised Catholic but do not practice. It doesn't go over very well partly because of being raised Catholic and mostly because I do not belong to a church. To truly fit in I should belong to a church...oh well. I have my own views on religion. I have my values, I believe in the 10 commandments yet I don't feel that I need to belong to a church to be whole. I will always be "different" when it comes to religion.
The reason I am bringing this up is that Hubby and I are in a competition. We have been noticing a lot of signs in front of Churches and bumper stickers that we find absolutley hysterical. I certainly do not want to offend anyone but I decided to post these on my blogger page so that I had one place to write these "words of wisdom". At the end of each month Hubby and I are going to vote on which one is the most clever. If you read please help us vote! The title will be "Words of Wisdom".
Enjoy.

Babyproofing!?

2006-06-29T06:57:00.000-07:00

Marely is crawling and a whole new world has opened to her. It has opened a whole new world for Mom and Dad too. It certainly has become a challenge. The days of being able to walk out of the room to switch a load of laundry or to walk out to the mail box for a quick second are GONE. It's wonderful to see her find something in the house that is fascinating to her. A whole world of discovery! But, it's time to set the boundaries in place. She loves the knobs on the stereo, she loves the dirt in the plants and her all time favorite is the toilet. All of which are NOs. I hate seeing her little face fall when she discovers something thrilling and we have to say NO. I do take the time and show her that NO item but also explain that it belongs to Mommy and Daddy and when she is older she will be able play with it too but for now it's a NO then I redirect her to a YES. I have been struggling with these NO items but I have come to realize that life is about boundaries. I, as a parent must set boundaries for her the rest of her life! This is just the beginning.
It's also about keeping my Bugalicious safe. I have discovered that no matter how much you baby proof there are still dangers that lurk. We discovered one that sent us racing to the Dr's office one day with a bloody mouth. I felt awful, the guilt was overwhelming. Marley was fine. I, probably over reacted a little but when it's your child and blood is gushing from her mouth....
I always said I would never use a play pen, well now her pack n play is set up between the kitchen and the living room. It follows a growing list of things that I said I would never do BEFORE I became a parent. I now live by the words "Never say never".
So in light of these new challenges I had to write a song. I am borrowing the tune and have changed the lyrics to "Janie's Got a Gun" by Aerosmith.

Marley's on the Run

Marley's on the run

Moms world has come undone

What did that baby do

She fell down and went boom

They say that Marley was a wanderin'

Mom found her cryin' on the floor

Marley says Mom I'm crawlin'

I'm headed for the bathroom door

Baby proofin' works but not for everythin'

Marley's on the run

Moms world has come undone

What did that baby do

She fell down and went boom

Ok I know it's terrible. Marley has a serious goof ball for a Mother but it's my blogger page and I can do whatever I want.

Marley is 9 months old today

2006-06-21T06:47:00.000-07:00

I just can't believe how time is flying! I never understood why parents were so infatuated with their children until the day Marley was born. I have also realized that I have never loved like I love her. Of course I love my husband, my parents, my friends but the love that I have for my daughter consumes every cell in my body and it just grows more intense with each day.

She started crawling the last Friday in May. She has discovered a whole new world now that she is very mobile. Although it is challenging for both Mom and Dad it is fascinating to watch her become consumed at a wall or a closed door or even a dog hair that is lying on the living room carpet. One of her favorite areas is the sliding glass door. She loves to look outside and play with the curtain that hangs. When she started crawling some rules had to come into place. The stereo and the tv are a NO. The remote, the phone and the plants are a NO. It's tough to watch that happy face when she discovers a No thing just fall. We redirect her to something that is a YES and her face lights up again. She understands the word NO now. She is so amazing, when Mom or Dad tell her NO she gives us that sad look but will more times than not crawl away and find YES. She is so smart and I am so proud of her!

A typical day in this world with Marley begins between 6-7 a.m. I hear her little wake up noises and get her. There is a single bed in the nursery and I lay down with her and we snuggle as she slowly wakes up. We kiss, hug, play itsy bitsy spider then she sits up and crawls across the bed and I catch her right before she topples onto the floor. Hubby and I had a cold a couple of weeks ago and spent 2 weeks coughing. Marley decided that coughing is a fun thing to imitate. One morning as I was lying in bed with her I had a cough attack. She looked at me very seriously and coughed. She had her head on one pillow and mine was on the other. We stared at each other, she would cough and I would cough. This little game must have gone on for 5 minutes. Between coughs we laughed and laughed. I had joyful tears streaming down my face.

When we are finished with our snuggle session. I take her downstairs put her in her play pen and proceed to make her bottle and my coffee. When both drinks are ready I take her to the couch and help her with her bottle. She's very good with feeding herself a bottle but she prefers that I hold her morning and evening bottles. I sip my coffee, she drinks her bottle and we watch the news together.

When Marley was about 5 months old I took her to her changing table to change her diaper. She looked at me square in the face and said "OWWWW". It was the first time she had ever made a noise like that. I laughed and said "OWWWW" back to her. She looked at me with a puzzled look on her face and then did it again, "OWWWW". It is still our game. I can look at her and say "Marley can you say "OWWW"? Nine times out of ten she'll do it and we will go back and forth. There are times that she will stare down customers in a store and when they look her way she'll say "OWWWW". It makes the other customer laugh. No doubt. I've had people come up to me and say that she is the cutest baby they have ever seen. My response is, "I know".

We have a 3 foot deep inflatable pool that we set up in our back yard. We introduced the pool to Marley last weekend. She had a look of bewilderment on her face. Although the water temp was 83 degrees it felt a little chilly. Once she got used to the temperature and the toy frogs and toy skate fish she had a blast! Last night Dad took her into the pool with him. A friend of ours bought Marley an infant inner tube. We put her inside of the tube and with Dad's guidance she floated and floated for 1/2 an hour. The two of them had so much fun. Dad had a great time swimming under Marley and popping up right in front of her. Marley thought the game was great! Dad also showed her how much fun it is to put your face in the water and blow bubbles. Marley, as well as she could with the inner tube, put the side of her face in. We have decided that the next swim session we will start with the inner tube then take her out and see if she may be interested in putting her own face in. Pictures of last nights swim session will be posted very soon to Marley's website.

Wow! Today is a day for blogging for me. I guess I had a lot to get out. I should cut myself off and get on with my day. More Marley updates soon.

Children and nutrition

2006-06-21T05:51:00.000-07:00

My friend, Vikingzen blogged about a fabulous topic. The title is Political Fluff. She discusses the junk that is served to our children in schools. She comes from a similar background that I do, junk food was not a staple in our homes growing up.

It astounds me how many parents buy into the junk food commercials aimed at children and think that if they buy the crap it's actually healthy for their kids. For example a brand name lemon-lime soda's commercial shows people harvesting plants that resemble carrots but instead of the carrot at the end of the plant it has a can of this brand of soda. It's great marketing but a terrible image, one that is sending a very bad message.

When I found out I was pregnant last year I started reading labels. I decided that everything I put in my body was going to be something that was beneficial to my baby. I was astounded with the crap that is put in our foods! One of my pregnancy cravings was peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. As I was choosing which brand of jam/jelly I discovered that all the jam/jellies out there have high fructose corn syrup! I realized that there is nothing beneficial about high fructose corn syrup. Thankfully I found a brand of jam that was all natural. On the same grocery trip I decided that I needed granola bars. A pregnant woman must eat! I was shocked as I was reading the label to find that darn ingredient again, high fructose corn syrup. So I decided to wage a war against that ingredient. I did some research and found that high fructose corn syrup may be one of the causes of obesity in our country. What I discovered is fructose releases the hormone leptin. Leptin regulates our storage of fat and regulates our metabolism. So, obese people have built up a resistance to leptin. A very informative article about high fructose corn syrup can be found http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12058364/.

I'm going a little of track from Vikingzen's blog. I agree with her 2 cents that parents should be held accountable of the foods their children eat. I recently discovered a statistic that is astonishing, 25-30% of toddlers in our country do not eat a single fruit or vegetable in 1 day. My question is, what are they eating? All I can think of is that there has to be a lack of education in this country. There is a frame of mind out there that Vikingzen and I will never understand.

So there it is. I could blog for hours on this subject but have decided to stop here.

Freegan

2006-06-21T04:09:00.000-07:00

I came across the term Freegan yesterday and was intrigued. The word comes from free and vegan. Freegans spend their time dumpster hopping for other people's trash. It's amazing what they have found, laptops, muffins still in their wrappers, shoes, expensive watches that were not broken, the list goes on and on. More information about Freegans can be found at www.freegan.info. They state that it is a site that is dedictated to revealing human over consumption and waste.

Although I believe in their concept I also feel that they are radical. There needs to be more of an education. A concept that we can sell to the American public. Our society makes me ill with all the trash we produce. For years I have been calling the U.S. The Swiffer Wet Jet Society, just use it and throw it away! Convenient yes but a WRONG attitude. Every time I walk into a Walmart I look at all the shelves that are packed with stuff and am horrified with the reality that all that stuff will end up in a landfill one day. Where did our society go wrong?

This Swiffer Wet Jet mentality has not been around that long. As I was growing up my Grandmother would always talk about waste not want not. I live by those words. I truly believe that our current gas crisis is just the beginning of having to revert back to the days and the values of our grandparents. Conservation is the key to continue a good standard of living.

The Freegans have a great movement and great ideas. I feel that they are fanatical which really won't help their cause. I honestly don't think I could go dumpster diving but would be all for trying to figure out a way to distribute the goods that do not need to be thrown away. So before you toss something into your trash can, stop and think...think if you could wash it and reuse it or see if someone else may be able to use it. There are plenty of ways to keep waste out of our landfills. Sell it at a yardsale, donate it to the Salvation Army, Yahoo Groups has Freecycle, see if there is a Freecycle Group in your area.

Let's keep our planet at a standard that our children will be able to enjoy!

What a week!

2006-06-06T07:45:00.000-07:00

Last Monday started a week of an emotional roller coaster. Monday we received horrible news that hubby's Aunt and Cousin were killed in a car accident. This news came a few days after the Indonesian earthquake. Hubby's brother and wife decided to move there for a year and thankfully are fine but a little shaken (no pun intended) although their hotel is uninhabitable. The rest of the week was spent feeling numb and offering many condolensces to all hubby's family. The only shining star was our little Bugalicious. We e-mailed happy baby Bug pictures to hubby's Dad, who lost his sister and his neice. I believe the pictures did make him smile a bit. It's hard not to have your heart melt when you see a super happy baby. There is something about a baby that makes the world feel right even though the world is crashing down all around you.
On Saturday a miracle happened, Bugalicious' cousin was born. Although she is in the NICU and her parents are sleep deprived and on edge, she is going to be fine and will be home with her Mommy and Daddy this weekend.
Just as I was getting the feeling that the world was going back to normal our van broke down on our way to the southern beaches on Sunday. My only thought was "oh geez, here we go again". There we are broken down on the side of the road with our Bugalicious. Thankfully we called some friends that lived a few minutes away who rescued the Bug and her Mom. Poor Dad spent the day on the phone with insurance company trying to get the van towed. No thanks to the insurance company the van was finally towed back to our house 5 hours later! The plus side, Mom and Bug spent the day on the beach with friends, the bad side, poor Dad spent the day stranded on the side of the road waiting for a tow truck.
Today is 6-6-06. The Devil's day and to top it off it is also Bugalicious' Dad's 36th birthday. Although I am only slightly supersticious, I do have an uneasy feeling. Where is Dad today? On a boat fishing for flounder (Yum!). What could go wrong today, besides the fact I woke up with a nasty head cold? Who knows. My thoughts of course are that I married and had a child with the devil (our joke today, teehee) or my devil won't catch any flounder. Time will tell.

2006-06-03T07:32:00.000-07:00

Marley has a cousin! Maya Grace, she was born at 4:20 a.m. I can't get over my excitement that I am an Aunt and my brother is a Dad!

The man under the sea

2006-05-29T07:20:00.000-07:00

My Dad and his girlfriend were visiting last week. We decided to spend an afternoon at the local aquarium. I love this aquarium! For a small town aquarium they do a fabulous job. Marley loves seeing the fishies and her favorite, the Otter room, she recognizes them thanks to her Baby Einstein dvd.
This visit to the aquarium was spectacular as usual. As with all aquariums there is a big monstrous fish tank with the sharks-Yikes! We arrived in time to witness the end of feeding time. I strolled Marley to the big tank just as the men with the food, all dolled up in their scuba gear were swimming towards the exit. One caught sight of Marley and swam to the front and waved at her. My little bugalicious had a look of awe, I'm sure she was thinking, now that's the wierdest fish I've ever seen or maybe Sponge Bob really does exist!

They grow up so fast!

2006-05-27T06:49:00.000-07:00

My father was in town with his girlfriend Carole this past week. As they were getting ready to leave little miss bugalicious began to crawl! What a major milestone and I am so glad that her Grandfather and Carole were able to witness the major event. Maybe Mom will be able to finally lose those few extra pounds chasing her Bug around the house!!!!

The insanity of Motherhood

2006-05-19T08:30:00.000-07:00

So, I am currently working part time for a catering company. We have2 uniforms 1)white polo/khakis for casual events 2)black pants and tuxedo shirt for formal. I have a pair of brown shoes to wear with the casual outfit and black for the formal.
I had a crazy hectic day today. About 10 minutes before I had to be out the door I got on mapquest to get directions to tonights catering gig. In the midst of trying to get the directions my 7month old started crying, well she left me a surprise in her diaper.At this point I have 3 minutes to run out the door and I still don't know how to get there. So, I am feeling a little frantic because I also had a couple of other things to do before I left. So, I figured that I would stop at a gas station and ask for directions. Finally I'm ready, I grab my wallet my cell and put on my shoes and run out the door.I was busy setting things up for the evenings catered event and my feet caught my eye. I stopped, I looked down and noticed I had 1 brown shoe and 1 black shoe on!

Baby and signing

2006-05-16T15:48:00.000-07:00

Oh my goodness Marley understands! I am just so impressed with her. I have been using sign language with a few of our daily activities. Today, Marley and I had to go to Super Wally World to pick up some formula. When we got home I brought her inside and put her in her bouncy seat so I could bring in the purchases. She started wailing. I knew and she knew it was time for a bottle. So, I looked at her and said Marley, Mom's getting your formula so she can make your bottle and I did the sign for milk. She looked at my hand and giggled and settled down! There was no mistake that she understood. I am just so proud of my bugalicious!!!!!!!! What a smart cookie.

Solid Food

2006-04-09T06:20:00.000-07:00

Rule of thumb:
- Always start with a single grain rice cereal. Marley ate rice cereal once for the first week, twice a day for the second week then three times a day for the third week. Mix the rice cereal with breast milk or formula. Not only will it taste better and be a familiar taste but it's a good way to add extra nutrients.

-Start with yellow solid foods. They have the least chance of an allergic reaction. Some experts recommend starting vegetables instead of fruit. Unfortunately there are more yellow fruits than vegetables. Stick with the one food for at least 4 days to see if they have an allergic reaction. Always introduce inthe morning so your not running to the ER in the middle of the night of there is an allergic reaction.

Marley's introduction to solids: (Introdced Saturday to Saturday so Dad could witness her reaction.

When I can I make her baby food. I have made organic peas and grean beans. In all my research I have discovered a coupe of pros and cons. Ready made baby food; the produce is selected from fields where the soil has very little nitrates. When you make your own even organic vegetables and fruits are not going to be tested for levels of nitrates. I still feel that organic is better because I believe that pesticides have to be much worse. It's a question that is still up in the air from all the experts, even Marley's doctor.
Whenyou make baby food. Use a food processor NOT a blender. It's so much faster and easier. Steam the hell out of the food (don't boil, boiling takes away alot of nutrients). I found you can get more peas than grean beans from a 10 oz. pack. I guess green beans naturally hold more water. The cost of using organic frozen vegetables vs. buying Gerber non-organic is the same, at least at my local grocery store.

Week 1-3- Rice cereal
Week 4- Pears (because she was constipated, which cleared up the constipation). She LOVED them.
Week 5-Peas. Not such a big fan, so I mixed a little in with some rice cereal so she could get used to the taste. They are still not her favorite but she'll eat them.
Week 6-Squash. She died and went to heaven! Loves them, loves them.
Week 7-Avocado. HATED IT. I would not recommend. I even tried mixing the avocados with rice cereal, it still did not work. So, I waited a couple of days and went to
Green beans- Same reaction as the squash. LOVED THEM.
Week 8-Apple sauce-YUM!!!!! I bought a jar from the health food store. Less expensive and I can enjoy some too!
Week 9-Sweet potatoes- YUM! Marley was given the go ahead by her Dr. to eat turkey or chicken! That should be fun. Her Dr. also said to start promoting self feeding and suggested a sippy cup with water and Gerber makes veggie or fruit puffs that dissolve in the mouth very quickly. I can't wait it will be fun!
Week 10-Bananas-Yummy!

Diapers: cloth vs disposable

2006-03-25T07:00:00.000-08:00

We are all aware of the cost and the impact that disposable diapers has on the environment. Believe it or not cloth diapers are just as easy as disposable. When I found out I was pregnant I decided that I really wanted to use cloth diapers. I also knew that I hate doing laundry. So, I started my research. I was AMAZED at how many different types of cloth diapers are out there. I chose one that is an all-in-one diaper. It resembles a disposable and is easy to put on like a disposable. As for the extra laundry...I realized it wasn't doing laundry I hated, I hate folding! I keep a basket under the changing table and as soon as the diapers are dry I toss them into the basket. Voila! Easy to reach and very convenient. To find out about the wonderful world of cloth diapers type in "cloth diapers" into any search engine and you will find all the information and different types that are available.
After my daughter was born I realized that I could do one more step by saving money and the environment. So, I eliminated diaper wipes. I bought a large pack of wash cloths and store them, moistened, in a plastic disposable wipes container. I found that they work so much better than the wipes and I wash them with diapers.
Not only has this saved me in literally hundreds of dollars but I also never have to worry about running out of diapers. I love them.

Tips:

-Wash the cloth diapers twice. Once on the soak cycle and the second on the regular cycle.
-Use very little detergent but a lot of vinegar for both cycles . The vinegar eliminates all residual odor.
-Use fleece diapers. Very absorbent and easy to shake of the poopies so you won't have to dunk the diaper in the toilet.