BIG WHITE GRR

I'm frustrated beyond belief. I get this GREAT, shining review. And then I get yelled at. *sigh* For something I didn't do. *Bigger Sigh* Then we get our checks. I got a raise. 21 cents. Are you freakin' kidding me? *BIG MEGA SIGH!*
Just par for the course this week.

I'm on a desperate hunt for a second job. Money is tight & it falls on me to bring more cash into the house. Yippee. I know the "easy " solution is just look for a new daytime job, but that means I have to leave my kids with someone else to raise. I just can't do that. I don't care if it's grandparents or not, the thought of anyone other than us teaching the baby in ways differently than us, being there for every milestone, etc. many days a week just kills me. I will work a second job to avoid that from happening. And so I'm on the hunt.

Anyone know of any leads?

6 Months

I should have posted this yesterday, but time simply slid away from me, so here I am today!

I can hardly believe my Bug is 6 months old! Time has passed so fast, and he's growing each day. He's charming & sweet...and hopefully will always love his mama as much as he does now. (I know the picture is blurry, but you get a 6 months old to sit still for a digital camera with far too much delay!)

Things are good here...we've been relatively spared by the storms, though just south or west of us has some serious flooding. I worry about my friends, as I saw Wayne Co. & northern Ohio was under a great deal of flooding too. (Please let me know, ok?)

The kidlet is anxiously trying to suck all she can out of summer vacation, as school starts in just 2 short weeks. To me, the start of school is the start of fall...let's hope for some lovely crisp, cool fall weather, eh? I'm sad too that I didn't get to do even 1/4 of the things I wanted to do this summer. Oh well. This fall hold some promise of fun, so that's ok.

I'm obsessed. With Swap-bot. Please join us in the insanity. (I'll post a photo of my first "rewards" soon!)

Overdue

A review of all the things I've been meaning to write, but haven't had the time to.

1. Last weekend we had a lovely, waaaaay overdue dinner with our neighbours Ian & Abby & family. They are fun. They are kind. And now they are gone. How wrong it is that just when you truly realize the value of a great neighbour they have to move away? Still, it was a fun night and we will really miss them. I hope their new adventure southward brings nothing but joy for them. Hopefully we'll stay in touch & see one another again one day in the not-so-distant future.

2. I have a great best friend! (In case you didn't know that already.) I came home to find a package on my porch...what was inside, you ask? A gorgeous, hand knit blanket for the baby! A fun, fun, fun game for the family! And my favourite English chocolates, just for me!! Yeah...she rocks!!! (Thank you! Thank you!! Thank you!!! Now come visit so we can play!) (photos forthcoming)

3. We went to Irish Fest last night. FUN! I had all my favourite treats...curry fries, Walnut Whips, Yorkie bars, Bunruddy Mead, and great music. FUN! The sick & twisted par? Nowhere on the Irish Fest grounds could we find a Guiness! Just not right.

4. I'm going to Bristol RenFaire this weekend to play. I'll let ya know how that goes.

To Do. Do too.

UPDATES:: Too much to attempt to accomplish today.
1. Attempt to write some clever or witty blog entry. Nope, I've failed, this is the best you get for now.
2. Pick up paycheck. Cash said paycheck. Attempt to figure out why I've been charged the bank fees I've been charged thanks to stupid cell phone companies not following policy. Done. Done. Nothing finalized on deleted the bank fees unfortunately, but cell phone company was oh-so-kind as to credit me 10 whole dollars. Oh joy.
3. Buy kidlets school supplies. Done, with argument because no, she can't be satisfied with the generic 5 for $1 spiral notebooks, no they HAVE to be $2 each Pirates of the Caribbean notebooks. *sigh*
4. Buy groceries so we no longer are attempting to stretch the few piddly remnants of food in the freezer by adding tomatoes to everything.
5. Buy a new pair of shoes since the ones I wear all the time to work are literally falling apart.
6. Clean the house.
7. Buy a basket to store baby toys in the living room.
8. Laundry.
9. Color my hairs & cover up any tell-tale signs of aging.
10. Spend time with the kidlet AND baby since hubby will be working until 10pm tonight. Ok, at least I can say I've done plenty of this today with all the running around, and lunch out together.
Yeah, wish me luck.

Becoming Obsessed

Last night hubby & I had a lovely date night where we were able to go see the film "Becoming Jane". It was delightful! They successfully took the facts that are known about Jane Austen's life and filled in the rest to created a lovely, enjoyable historical fiction film worth watching again & again. Add to the pleasure that the film was at the Oriental Theatre in Milwaukee, one of the old ornate movie houses...complete with the organist playing before the film. After the film Marsha Huff, the head of the Jane Austen Society of North America did a talk back, discussing the fact from the fiction, answering questions, etc. All in all it was quite simply a lovely evening with my own Mr. Darcy.
(I couldn't help but show these two film shots.)

Farmer Me

Look what I plucked from my meager little backyard garden today! I couldn't believe it! And I have many more that should be ready in just a few days! Forgive me for being overly proud of such a minor accomplishment, but I'm hardly the "nature girl/farming" type! I can't wait to slice them up! YUM!

Tron to Bot!

This is too Cool!

Are you crafty? Do you like to shop? Do you like getting surprises? I am. I do. I love to!
That's why I was thrilled to stumble across SWAP-BOT! This site just seems to cool for words...but I'll try to explain. Basically you sign up (Free!) and you join a swap, you send stuff to a stranger, someone sends you things. Simple, right?
Ok...let's try this again. For example I signed up for the stationary swap. I will be given an international partner to whom I will send a brand new stationary set (I will look at their profile to see what kind of things he/she likes). Likewise, said partner will send me stationary. We've swapped! There are all sorts of categories for different swaps (I'm sticking with some rather simple ones first) from sharing art work to cooking tools or recipes to purses filled with goodies! It's free, it's fun, and the best part is you get a surprise in return. I love that!!

Faith or Fear?

Ok, I'm going to risk offending someone, but this is my blog, so I can express my thoughts, and if you can add any insight to counterpoint to this, I welcome it.
That said...today I realized evangelical christians scare the crap out of me! Seriously! I am a firm believer in balance; that any extremes are bad. And these people are definately the extreme. I had Jehovas Witnesses at my door...thankfully they left with a simple "I'm sorry, but I don't believe the same things you do and I really don't have the time to get into a discussion about it." I've actually gotten into religious discussions with these people before...and had an older man shake my hand & left respecting me despite the fact that I'm Catholic. But what really disturbed me was the fact they were dragging their children around with them. Little kids, no more than 10 and as young as about 6, dressed in long sleeves & trousers (or skirts) on a humid 90+ degree day, while all the other kids are running around playing & swimming. Is this the self-sacrifice God expects of us? Somehow, I don't think so.

Then I had to satiate my curiousity and watch the documentary "Jesus Camp". Wow...talk about scary! These evangelical Christians are only perpetuating fear in children. They are teaching them ridiculous things like "there is no such thing as global warming". Ok, its one thing to argue creationism vs. evolution (a pointless argument to me as I believe they go hand in hand) but its another thing to say global warming is a lie. What?? Are you kidding me? (Watch "An Inconvenient Truth" please!) They are teaching kids that God allows us to hate anyone who doesn't believe what they believe. They are telling kids things like"Harry Potter is evil & would be killed if this was during the Old Testament". Uh...hello....have you actually read the Old Testament? 1. Taught in parables. 2. If you are going to say that is the teaching of the Bible to believe then you sure as heck better not be eating an shellfish or certain meats either. People, you don't get to pick & choose which parts of the Bible suit your needs! And by virtue of calling yourselves "Christians" that means you believe in Jesus Christ, and therefore the teachings of the New Testament...stories of love & kindness & forgiveness. Jesus embraced the outcasts for a reason...to show love to ALL. *sigh*

I truly believe our American media perpetuates fear. These people simply live by it, and unfortunately, are breeding a new generation with fear AND hate.
Update: I feel like I have to say, so I don't sound like a hypocrite...I don't expect others to believe what I believe. That's why I welcome any opposing views...or support.

Growth

So the kidlet is back home after spending the summer with her father. She had a great time, saw almost every movie worth seeing this summer, went to sports camp & her first sleep-away camp experience too...which was possibly the coolest things she did. Besides the usual camp experiences, she had theatre (and received the highest advanced acting award!), photography (yes all the photos here are ones she took), canoeing & kayaking, and horseback riding. Not only did she get to ride, she actually learned how to STAND on a walking horse. The performer in me is amazed & thrilled...the mom part of me is glad to know after the fact! I wish I'd gone to camp as a kid, but I never had the chance. Growing up on a lake, with endless trails to explore with your friends through the woods, I guess parents just didn't see the point. Plus I went to year-round school. Perhaps they should have summer camp for adults? I think we need it more than the kids do! Now she's off to Art Camp all week, then learning to sail on Lake Michigan after that. Yeah...it would be nice to have summer vacation as a grown up.

Treasure

Read this. Then immediately run to your children & hug them. Hard.

Ok, I can't just let this go, I need to make a comment. This is beyond tragic. However, as someone who grew up on a lake I think it is so very important to realize water is greater than us. I should be respected, but not feared. No one, adults or children, should EVER swim alone...and by that I mean if you're in the water, someone else had better be IN the water too, not just on the shore. No one should ever experience this.

Dog Days

It's hard to believe August is here. The summer is drawing to a close and soon enough it's back to school time. I feel I've hardly begun to enjoy the summer, and yet, time is speeding by. And with the steady ticking of time, I'm quickly realizing with each passing day we're getting older.

I know that probably sounds silly, of course we are! But I think we tend to drift through most of the time, taking it one day at a time and always anticipating something in the future. Maybe its because I, personally, don't have anything I'm really waiting for, feeling excited about. And that's really something I thrive on. And so, the dog days of summer tick by.

My kidlet comes home on Saturday. I am looking forward to that. I've missed her, but I know she's had a great summer...and has more to come....Art Camp, learning to sail at the yacht club camp, her best friend's birthday party, and just hanging out. Ah, to be a kid again.

This photo totally represents the essence of childhood to me...eating snowcones & popcorn with one of your best friends, while watching a waterski show...while mom & dad sit 5 rows behind you.