A Lot to Learn

Two of my former runners, Kegan and Andrew, went to the charity dinner with me tonight. I forgot to pack a dress purse when I left the house this morning so I had nothing with me to carry my keys, cell phone, and chapstick in this evening. Both of them were looking quite handsome in their suits so I asked if either one of them would be my "date" for the evening and carry my stuff in their pockets. They both looked at me like I asked them to grow an extra arm or something. They've both got a lot to learn before they get a wife someday.

Happy Halloween!

Mommy: Come on Jake. We've got to get you in your [Darth Vader] costume for school.

Jake (crying and whining): Nooo! I don't want to wear it. I'm scared!!!

Mommy: You're scared of your costume?

Jake (more crying and whining): Yes! It's scary! I don't want to wear it.

Mommy: But Jake...YOU are the one in the costume. How can you scare yourself?

Needless to say he loved it once I wrestled him into it. He kept running through the house making the cape flap in the wind behind him.

A day of extremes

Happy Halloween!

Today is going to be a crazy day. First of all, it's in the low 30's this morning but it's supposed to hit 60 today and be in the upper 50's for Trick-or-Treating tonight. That's fantastic considering how cold it has been here this week. The timing couldn't be better but it makes it a little hard to get the kids dressed in the morning. Talk about having to dress in layers.

As for me, I've got a lot of stuff going on today that require wardrobe changes of my own - and none of them are costumes! As office manager it is my job to have office activities on the holidays. This year we're having a pumpkin carving contest. We have a bunch of huge pumpkins in the conference room and we'll be carving them throughout the day so I needed to dress for being messy today. I'm starting out my day in yoga pants and a t-shirt so I can get "down and dirty" with pumpkin guts.

When all that is over I have to head straight to a charity dinner this evening which means full hair and make-up and nice clothes. Talk about having trouble getting ready this morning. I had to find an outfit for today as well as tonight and make sure that all necessary undergarments match both. What a pain in the ass. I have a small bag that I had to pack with make-up, curling iron, etc. as well as shoes, pants, tops (yes, tops....I need options for tonight). And of course a bottle of perfume to help cover the pumpkin smell.

What a crazy day it's going to be!

It's Time for Some Campaigning!

Entertainment for both sides of the political aisle. Enjoy!

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The Funky Monkey Dance as performed by Jake with Lincoln playing the role of Sock Monkey

I'm enjoying going through all my old photos and videos of the kids. I am so glad that we live in an era where having a video camera is as easy as carrying my camera in my purse. The night this was filmed was absolutely hilarious but I honestly wouldn't have remembered it if I hadn't come across this video on my laptop.

This activity went on in the kitchen for a really long time and what you're seeing is only a small part of it. Hannah and I were laying on the floor laughing our butts off. Jake was so entertained by the "Funky Monkey" dance that Lincoln was doing with one of those old sock monkeys. Remember those?

Judging from what he is wearing I'm pretty sure this was Easter night 2006 which would make Jake about 16 months old. Here he is that same day at Grandma and Grandpa Snow's house:

Mommy's little helper

Sometimes getting Hannah to get herself ready for school in a timely fashion is harder than making a working space ship out of paper clips. And then sometimes she really surprises the hell out of me.

I was cleaning up the kitchen this morning when she woke up and came downstairs. I asked her if she wanted to empty the dishwasher. (She's at that stage where the idea of having chores is actually exciting to her.) She emptied the dishwasher and then sat down to eat her breakfast. Jake had already eaten and was playing Star Wars. Once she finished eating I told her that I had to run up and take a shower and that she was in charge of Jake until I got back.

I came downstairs about 30 minutes later and not only had she gotten herself dressed she had changed Jake's Pull-Up, had him try to go pee in the potty, and brushed his teeth and hair. She also had brushed her own teeth and hair. The only thing she didn't do was get him dressed. I quickly got him dressed and started gathering our bags together. While I did that she put on Jake's shoes and coat and then put on her own.

She was SUCH a great helper today. I don't know what got into her today but I like it.

Vintage Video

In February 2006 Hannah and I went to Seattle together. Debbie, Mom, and I took Hannah to Sunday Brunch in the revolving restaurant at the top of the Space Needle. This is the dessert that she got. I don't remember what it was called but it was really cool. The funny thing is she couldn't take her eyes off it - mostly because I think she was a little afraid of it.

Queen of the Collage

My mother is the queen of the photo collages. She has them all over the house and they are fantastic. I've started sorted through pictures of the kids for the past few years and am trying to put together some collages of my own. I'm sure they'll never be as great as Mom's but I'm trying. I'll have to post some good photos as I come across them.

Here's one from 2004:

Unbelievable!

Yesterday I took Hannah to see the 2008 Tour of Gymnastics Superstars at the TD Banknorth Garden. I had received a pair of free tickets and thought that she would really enjoy it since she enjoyed watching the Olympics this summer. The Tour of Gymnastics Superstars is basically the men and women's Olympic teams as well as the Hamm brothers, Shannon Miller (from the 1996 Atlanta games) and a few others.

This is what I have to say about the show....UNBELIEVABLE!!!! I didn't really know what to expect. I figured it would be all of them coming out one by one and doing their routines on the beam, floor, bars, etc. That would have been cool too but they actually put on a really neat show. It's like the circus but with people that are way more physically fit.

Something that you can't see on TV (or maybe those of you with fancy HD televisions can) but these athletes are in peak physical condition. You can literally see the outline of every muscle, joint, and tendon - I swear to God. There is not an ounce of fat on these people. On a side note, Shawn Johnson, the Olympic star from Des Moines, IA, is surprisingly thick. She's not fat. There is not a drop of fat on her. But she's thick. She's very short but with a LOT of muscle and therefore looks like a really, physically fit tree trunk. She's a compact little powerhouse, that's for sure.

All of these athletes are in their prime and this is where I wish I had the ability to write really moving pieces of prose. There is no way to describe watching them live. They are like tightly controlled little balls of energy and physical perfection. As they move you can see every muscle ripple through their body. They bounce and fly through the air as easily as you and I walk. They can be walking across the floor and all of sudden will throw themselves though the air and effortlessly do a few flips and land perfectly. It is amazing.

Normally when I watch gymnastics on TV I prefer watching the women's team. I enjoy the beam and the uneven bars. They seem a little more difficult than the high bar and rings to me. Or not necessarily more difficult but at least a little more entertaining.

Watching it live actually changed my opinion a little bit. While I still enjoyed watching the girls yesterday (they did the floor, beam, and uneven bars only) it was the guys that truly impressed me. The girls did a great job. Watching them fly around on the floor mat was insane. They literally launch themselves in the air and look like they're floating until they land perfectly on the mat. They seemed a little more jaded though. They came out and performed but it was like they have "been there/done that". They didn't "play" around a lot. The routines done by the women that I enjoyed the most were actually the rhythm gymnasts. I don't normally watch them on TV either but they were cool. They would toss all sorts of stuff in the air, perform a few flips and twirls, and catch it. Pretty amazing. And there were two women that performed a routine hanging from these silky "sheets" coming down from the ceiling. They had no safety wires on them and often times would be hanging upside down with just their feet wrapped in the sheet. INSANE!

The guys were a different story. Every time they were out on the floor they looked like they were having a blast. They came out and did a gymnastic routine and added some break dancing. They would get multiple guys on the same piece of equipment and start playing off each other like they were just having a blast on the playground. And once again, I can't explain how fit they are. Watching them was literally like watching perfection in motion. And they would perform in whatever they happened to be wearing. Sometimes they would be wearing gym shorts and no shirt. Other times they would come out and be in jeans, a shirt, and a blazer and they'd still fly around like it was just another regular day.

I would love to say that the show was worth every penny but as I admitted at the beginning of this story I didn't pay for my tickets. I definitely would though. If they came back around I would definitely buy tickets and attend. It was that awesome. If they're coming to your neck of the woods you should definitely get tickets.

Not for children - Santa talk below

Months ago Lincoln and I decided that we were going to get the kids a Wii for Christmas. Of course they're a pain in the ass to find but we finally found one yesterday. The plan was for that to be from Santa. Yesterday morning, while the kids are in the room, Lincoln slips me a note that reads:

Santa can go "f" himself. I want us to get credit for that Wii.

I burst out laughing and of course the kids wanted to know why but we didn't tell them. I then put the note in the shredder. So now the plan is that Mommy and Daddy are giving them a Wii and any accessories or games will have to come from Santa.

Where do I begin?

Last night I took Hannah to the 7:45 p.m. showing of High School Musical 3. It was the opening night and I knew that the whole weekend would be crazy but I never imagined it would be anything like this.

Hannah and I arrived at the theater around 6:45 p.m. Surprisingly the parking lot had quite a few open places considering that there was also a 7 p.m. showing of HSM3. We walked in, collected our pre-purchased tickets, and went up to concessions. Once again the line was surprisingly short and we were 2nd in line. We got our two sodas and a popcorn and went over towards Theater #9.

When the man tore our tickets we were directed to a rope line. This didn't surprise me and I figured that even with the movie playing in multiple theaters the previous showing wouldn't be done yet. There was one lady in line with her two kids around Hannah's age. This was about 6:52 p.m. Less than 5 minutes later the real rush began and probably 20-30 people arrived to get in line. What was interesting was that they were coming in huge groups where there were probably 3 mothers and then at least a dozen children. The kids ranged from Hannah's age through early teen. A few older teen girls were there and dragging their boyfriends who were definitely hating standing in line with children to watch a movie that they didn't even want to see in the first place.

Around 7 p.m. the previous showing started emptying out of the theater and the cleaning crew went in to clean. They seemed to disappear into a black void. It took forever for them to clean that theater. The line was getting longer and longer and even though we were at the front of the line it had gone all the way to the back wall and was starting to wind back up on both sides of the original line. Hannah did great. She wasn't whining or complaining and luckily I had been smart enough to tell her to bring a book with her. She stood in line and read her book and was as content as could be.

Around 7:15/7:20 people were definitely starting to get restless wondering what was taking so long to clean the theaters. The line just kept getting longer and longer (and louder and louder - there were a LOT of kids there). At about 7:25/7:30 two mothers walked up with about a 1/2 dozen pre-teen girls (or more) and tried to talk the high school kid tearing tickets into letting them go in before everyone else even though they had just arrived. He said no and directed her to the line where she clumped all her girls together and appeared indignant (and downright bitchy) when parents were grumbling about her trying to cut in line. At this time the lines on both side of the original line were now wrapped all the way around so that the people at the end of each wrapped line were equal with the front of the original line. THAT is how insane it was. For the most part I was just taking it all in and was pretty amused. Hannah was being an angel so I certainly wasn't stressing out and I actually find people watching pretty entertaining. I was looking forward to finally being able to set the soda and popcorn down though. My biggest concern, at this point, was that we actually were at the front of the line and that Hannah would get trampled. I don't doubt that before this weekend is over some small child in America will be the victim of HSM3 crowds.

At this point it was almost 7:35 and the movie was scheduled to start in 10 minutes but they still hadn't finished cleaning the theater and let us in. One of the fathers who was at the end of the line actually stepped out to talk to management and said that he was worried about the rush of kids and hoped that someone would be around to make sure the line would be released in an orderly fashion based on arrival. The funny thing is that he was at the "end" of the line directly to my right and he was less concerned about getting in and getting a good seat then about the safety of all the children while the mom at the "end" of the line to my left was the one ready to trample all the small children to get her 6 pre-teen girls in first.

Luckily the management took heed of the gentleman saying there was going to be a stampede and came over to release the original line first. Of course, since the ends of the line were now equal to the front of the line it could easily have been a mad rush. And it almost was. As he released the center line (the front of the original line) the lady to my left said "this is ridiculous" and started to push her 6 kids to go. At that point the mom behind me, who had a gaggle of her own girls with her, yelled "Oh no you don't" and threw out her arm in front of the other group. It was pretty funny but I didn't stick around to watch. I was just concentrating on getting Hannah into a seat without being trampled. Even without all the lines being released at once there were 6 girls behind us going into the theater that really wanted the back row, started to run, and almost ran over Hannah to get there. Luckily they noticed her and said to me "don't worry....we won't trample her...we doubt you're heading to the back row anyway."

All in all everyone was in their seats before the movie started 10 minutes later and there were actually empty seats left in the theater. The movie was good although not as good as the first two. The opening shot is of Zac Efron's character, Troy, and it's a close up of his face so all the girls in the audience screamed. I'm pretty sure those boys that were escorting their girlfriends were hating every minute of it but hey, those girls are doing good to have their boyfriends so well trained so early in life.

The Greatest Mommy Ever

I'm taking Hannah to see High School Musical 3 tonight - Opening Night - with thousands and thousands of other screaming kids. Who's the greatest Mommy ever?

Thank you for the introduction Sir Isaac Newton

Hannah is pretty good about playing with her 3 year old brother but sometimes he's a handful. Last night they were playing catch with a beach ball and he was throwing it all over the place. This morning they started playing with it again.

Jake: Can I play ball with you Hannah?

Hannah: No, I'm going to play with my new friend...Gravity.

She then proceeded to lay on her back and toss the ball directly in the air.

Jake, to say the least, was not happy. At one point I believe he said he was going to "kick Gravity". As stated before, he doesn't play well with others.

Ooh la la

Last October Lincoln's company decided they were closing their Boston office. At that time he had the choice of going to work for their Indianapolis office (still living in Boston but doing a LOT of traveling) or being laid off. We decided it would be a good time for him to go out on his own.

He set up his own business and immediately started busting his ass. Most people would have at least taken a day or two off to veg out or something between jobs but he immediately started contacting people and really hustling. In the past year he has been doing sub-contracting work for a number of companies while also establishing his own "small but respectable" customer base.

Today he called me and asked if I could come home a little early tonight because he has a business dinner and the man wants to take Lincoln and his wife out. Is this what the life of an executive is like? If so, I'm game!

Ewwww....

My son has such weird eating habits. He actually eats better than Hannah but some of the things that he requests are out of this world.

Hannah, on the other hand, is very picky. I know this is payback for the fact that I'm incredibly picky too. We can't even convince her that cut up chicken off of a grilled chicken breast is the same chicken that she eats inside her chicken strips and popcorn chicken. That's how picky she is.

Jake on the other hand has some odd choices in his repertoire. For breakfast, on occasion, he likes toast with bananas and raisins on it. His new favorite is a peanut butter and grape jelly sandwich with a slice of American cheese in the middle. The thought of eating that makes me want to gag but he loves it.

So for breakfast this morning Hannah is having dry Lucky Charms and Jake is having the peanut butter/jelly/cheese sandwich. Could they be any more different? I suppose having two such different children is a good thing.....who would want a carbon copy of the first kid?....but it definitely keeps us on our toes.

Woot off!

Today is a Woot Off! If you've never "wooted" before you should go to www.woot.com and check it out. It's a great place for some holiday shopping.

A Sad Day

Today is the day that Mom and Dad fly home. They actually left on a flight early this morning. We had to leave the house this morning at 5:45 a.m. so bedtime was really sad last night. Hannah really didn't want to go to bed because she knew that when she woke up Grandma and Grandpa would be gone. It broke my heart.

I begged Mom and Dad to come for a visit to help me get my house in order and they didn't disappoint. Both of them worked their asses off for a week and my house looks fantastic. Dad built shelves for us down in the basement, helped Lincoln close up the pool for the season, and cut down about a year's worth of cardboard boxes (among many other projects). Mom sorted out all the chaos of the upstairs including both Hannah and Jacob's closets. She also organized all the toys that are spread all over the house. That alone is a daunting project. On top of that she didn't even have a mental breakdown when she cleaned the downstairs every day and watched it be destroyed every evening once the kids (and I) got home The entire house looks amazing (except our bedroom and the dining room which we asked them not to do) and I feel like right now would be a good time to move out. Or at least wrap it in plastic to preserve it's loveliness.

Hannah's school picture 2008

Here is Hannah's 2nd grade school picture. It's not her best (I prefer the ones from this past weekend) but it's very cute.

Case in point.....

I'm trying to sell something online for my boss. I posted the item for $125.

"Potential" buyer email: "My offer is $50"

My emailed response: "My response is laughter."

Hello! My name is Ms. Cranky Pants

Is everyone in this world an idiot? I really feel like they might be. Today is one of those days where I seriously want to hit people over the head. Our corporate office is handing down all sorts of new regulations which unfortunately I am in charge of either tracking or implementing because I am the Office Manager. If you, as an employee, feel the need to bitch about them please do not bitch to me. I DIDN'T DO IT!

On top of that I'm just having to deal with a bunch of stupid stuff at work. You know those days where everyone thinks the world is coming to an end and you just want to scream at them......THIS ISN'T ROCKET SCIENCE! WE'RE IN THE FUCKING MUSIC INDUSTRY FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!!!!!!!! THE WORLD ISN'T GOING TO END IF YOUR EMAIL DOESN'T GO THROUGH.

This man is seriously smoking crack

2nd set of pictures.

First set of pictures.....

Hannah:

Jake: (he's holding onto his Curious George stuffed animal). This is the picture that I think really shows his unique eye color if you could see the original photo.

Jake and Hannah: (yes, he's cheerfully trying to strangle her with his hug)

No, we did not fall off the face of the earth

Sorry that I haven't posted in a few days but we've been a little crazed around here. Thursday night I went to Madonna with 11 other people and let's just say that I spent most of Friday either in bed or on the couch recovering from the evening. Thank God for my mother who planned, and executed, a great birthday dinner for Lincoln that night since I certainly wasn't up to it.

Yesterday we had a lot of things scheduled back-to-back. We took the kids for pictures at a portrait studio on Saturday morning. This place is fantastic...it's called Portrait Simple...and while it's definitely pricier than Target or Sears Portrait Studio it is definitely worth the money. We got a fantastic shot of Jake that really shows his unique eye color. I have no idea how to describe Jake's eyes. I'm hoping I can scan the pictures into the computer and if so I will post them on the blog.

After we got back from the picture session we had to quickly change the children into their costumes and head over to the school Halloween party. Lincoln and I were so exhausted we moved the kids through the event pretty quickly.

When we got home from the Halloween Party I packed a suitcase for the kids and they went with Mom and Dad to a hotel in Milford to spend the night and go swimming. The kids had a blast. They went swimming both last night and this morning and they got to order pizza to eat in the room. Lincoln and I got to have the house to ourselves and we ended up heading down to the local bar to hang out with his brother and sister after having dinner with Tracy and Denise. Lincoln and I have been away from the kids before but it's a whole different ballgame when you get to have the kids out of the house and we can just hang out in peace and quiet. It's almost like not having kids. We watched a few TV shows before heading out (without interruption!) and then got to sleep in this morning which was great.

Mom and Dad brought the kids home at 10:30 a.m. and we headed out to Natick to meet up with my cousin Kate and her husband Jim. They live up in Andover and even though that is only about an hour away we never seem to manage to get together. Our schedules never match up unfortunately.

When we got home from brunch Lincoln and Dad closed up the pool (finally!) and Mom and Jake started working on cutting back our rose bushes. Jake didn't last long since it's actually pretty chilly today but Mom and Dad finished them up. Hannah and I worked on a science experiment that she had worked out in her head. She charted out the goal of her experiement, her predictions, and her results. Then she got on her computer and typed up her results. She's such a smart little nerd.

And that is where we've been lately.....I have felt bad not posting but I just haven't had the time or the energy. I promise to be back to daily posts now.

Madonna!

Tonight I am heading out to Madonna with a bunch of my friends. I'm pretty excited about it. I saw her the last time she was in Boston as well and she puts on a great show.

Last night Lincoln and Mom and I went to Carrie Underwood at Agganis Arena. Believe it or not I very rarely go to shows but this week is full of them. The show last night was fantastic. We had seats in a box and the boxes at that venue are great. They're like little mini living rooms where you can sit and watch a live show. They have a little fridge that you can have pre-stocked with beer, wine, water, and soda and then you order food that they bring in and set out buffet style. It's fantastic. Of course it was a late night and tonight will be another late night but oh well.

This morning began the first day of Mom and Dad's "vacation" where they helped me work around the house. I took the day off from work and we spent the morning on the office and a little in the basement. There is still tons to do but hopefully through the next few days we'll keep picking away at it.

Tomorrow is also Lincoln's birthday and like the sucky wife that I am, I didn't plan anything. It has just been too crazy. This last month has gone by in the blink of an eye. Luckily Mom is here and she's planning a nice dinner for tomorrow night and also invited Lincoln's parents over for dinner. I'm glad she's here because otherwise Lincoln would be lucky to get a "happy birthday" this year. Yes, I'm a sucky wife.

Baby Shower Day

Today is another baby shower here at the office. When I gave birth to Jake in December 2004 I was the first lady in the office to be pregnant in about 10 years. Now we have new babies here in the office about every 6 months. There is obviously something in the water.

I'm actually very excited about this baby shower. I'm in charge of throwing the office parties around here and I always try to make each one unique and tailored to the mom and/or child. The shower I threw last spring was actually for newly adopted 20-month olds. Their moms have a house down in P-town by the beach so I went with a beach theme and bought two red wagons and filled them with swim suits, beach towels, and beach toys including little chairs and a sun tent. That party was pretty cool because they brought the twins in for the party and they were SO adorable.

The baby that we're celebrating today is going to have a music themed nursery so that is the theme of the party as well. For the gift, which is from the office but coordinated through me, I purchased an iPod and set of speakers for the baby's room. The iPod is loaded with a bunch of Rockabye Baby CDs. These CDs are actually lullaby renditions of popular artists.

I downloaded the following:

• AC/DC
• Bjork
• Bob Marley
• Coldplay
• Green Day
• Metallica
• Nirvana
• No Doubt
• Pink Floyd
• Queens of the Stone Age
• Smashing Pumpkins
• Beach Boys
• The Beatles
• The Cure
• The Eagles
• The Ramones
• Rolling Stones
• Tool
• U2
• Led Zeppelin
• Pixies
• Radiohead

I think she's going to love it.

No power / No energy

Sorry but there will be no witty posts today. No stories of my children or pictures of their cuteness. Today was about catching up at work. Unfortunately that was interrupted by a lovely little power outage in the middle of the afternoon. For no reason. It's not raining. It's not snowing. It's a beautiful Indian Summer day. But for some reason we lost power for 45 minutes and it threw my day all to heck.

Delightful.

And now I have to go home and bake sugar cookies. We're having a baby shower tomorrow for someone here in the office and the lady who was going to make the cookies for me is sick so guess what I get to do tonight. The good news is that I'm also going to make Jello Jigglers because I know at least one person in the office who is totally freaked out by them. And if I have to suffer they have to suffer too.

More Apple Picking Pictures

Here are some more pictures from the apple picking outting that Hannah and Jake went on with Tracy and Hunter. Aren't they adorable?

A long and productive day

Another Before Picture:

Another Angle on the Same Area:

After:

Almost Full:

Making Progress

Before:

At Lunch Break:

1/2 Way Full:

Tracy is the best babysitter ever!

Last night Lincoln and I went out to celebrate our anniversary and his birthday which is next week. Tracy agreed to watch our children and they were ecstatic. They love hanging out with Tracy and her son Hunter. Instead of just hanging out at their house she actually took them apple picking, out for both Happy Meals AND pizza, and then home to watch Star Wars. It was their dream day.

I am serious about this cleaning!

We have a dumpster being delivered later today. We are seriously doing some hardcore cleaning this weekend as well as when Mom and Dad are here. Our basement is so full of crap we can't even begin to organize it. And most of it is like broken furniture and just general crap. I can't wait to purge everything!

Jake loves everything and everyone

Tonight at dinner Jake was in a very lovey-dovey mood. He said he loved everything. It was hilarious. I eventually grabbed the camera and started filming him. Before you watch the video I just want to say a few things:

1. No, you're not imagining it. The same music starts playing over and over and over again in the background. It was the menu screen of the movie the kids had been watching before dinner. For some reason we sat through our entire dinner with that playing and never even noticed.
2. Yes, I realize that is not Christmas music even though I refer to it as such in the video. It was, however, the menu screen from the movie Mickey's Magical Christmas. No, I do not know why my kids were watching a Christmas movie in October.
3. Grandma and Grandpa Lentz will particularly love this movie around the 35 second mark.
4. And yes, Lincoln is the who turned off the music - just after answering Hannah who is calling him from another room and just prior to running in to turn off the timer in the kitchen. He makes a great production assistant.

And with all of that....Enjoy!

Imitation is the greatest form of flattery

Taking a page from one of my favorite bloggers, Sarah Nielson, I have created a "cast of characters" on the blog. Unfortunately my website isn't as fancy as hers so my list is sort of hidden down to the bottom right. Take a scroll down and check out "Who's Who" on the website. If you've wondered in the past who some of these people are now is your chance to find out. Enjoy!

And if you want to check out Sarah's blog, Tales of Wit and Charm, click on the "Blogs I Love to Read" also on the right.

Proving to myself those young whippersnappers don't have me beat!

I'm unveiling a new look for the blog to prove that I'm not a computer illiterate old fogey. Thoughts? Comments? Do you like the new look?

Wow. I feel positively ancient today.

So a few years ago I signed up for a MySpace page. I'm not even sure why I did it because I certainly had no plans to actually put up my profile or anything. And then earlier this year I did the same with Facebook. I know why I did that....I did that to view someone's page when I was helping my boss look some people up.

Everyone I know seems to have one or the other. Lincoln has a MySpace page even. Today I decided that I would actually do something with the pages. So here I sit, a person who manages to publish her own blog and keep the Memorial PTO website updated, and I can barely figure out all the crap on either MySpace or Facebook.

If that didn't already put me in my mental 70's I had a co-worker come down to my office to drop something off and I told her I was trying to figure out both MySpace and Facebook and this was her response:

Kathryn: (wrinkling her nose) MySpace is soooo last year. Facebook is where it's at.

So apparently I'm not only behind the curve, I'm just flat out left in the dust. God help me.

The Super 8 is Great!

When we go back to Elma, Iowa we actually stay in a small town nearby called New Hampton. There isn't much there but they do have a very nice Super 8 hotel. Now normally I wouldn't stay in a Super 8 - I've become quite the snob when it comes to traveling - but this one is actually pretty nice.

On the Thursday night that we were all back for Grandma's funeral 12 of us cousins got together in the "party room" of the hotel and sat around drinking and swapping stories. My cousin Brenda purchased a bottle of Winneshiek Wildberry Winery's Picket Fence Peach wine (in honor of Grandma who liked to drink peach flavored alcohol). She paid $15 for it. I think we came to the conclusion that this wine had to have gone bad. There is no way that anyone could drink that stuff and actually like it - must less charge more than $1 for it. The smell alone was like an entire boys' locker room full of old gym socks.

I decided that even though the wine was terrible I really wanted the bottle. My dining room is decorated with all things Decorah and Decorah is the county seat of Winneshiek County plus the winery is in Decorah. (By the way, I'm using the term "winery" very loosely.) Anyway, I really wanted the bottle and when we all packed it in for the night I took the bottle back to my room and left it on the dresser. The next night, after the funeral, the cousins were once again all downstairs...this time in the lobby eating pizza...when it occurred to me that I hadn't noticed the bottle in my room when I got back from Elma. I went back up to my room and discovered that the bottle was in fact gone.

Now, at most hotels these days, this would be the end of the story. But not in Iowa. I called down to the front desk and explained that I had been saving that wine bottle and asked if they had a recycling bin that it might be in. The lady at the front desk rumaged through some glass recycling and told me that she hadn't found anything but that she would check with housekeeping when they came in at 9:30 the next morning. Once again, at most hotels this would have been the end of it.

The next morning we checked out of the hotel a little before 9:30 and I figured there was no point in asking about the bottle since housekeeping wasn't even in yet. I checked out and headed back to Boston thinking that the bottle was gone forever. When I got back to Boston that night there was a voice mail from the Super 8 from earlier in the day. They said they had found the bottle and were holding it for me and I should call them back. By the time I got the message it was Sunday...two days after the bottle was taken by housekeeping. I was so tired that day that I didn't even bother calling them back.

When I was driving to work on Monday morning I was thinking about the bottle and figured that if I really wanted the bottle for my dining room I could always buy another bottle of it when we were back there for a visit and just pour the turpentine...I mean wine...out of the bottle and save the bottle. But the more I got to thinking about it the more I really wanted that bottle. That bottle was the one we had passed around after Grandma's wake and it was more sentimental than anything. I figured I'd give the Super 8 a call but there was no way in hell that three days after they originally threw the bottle out, and two days after they called me to say they found it, would they actually still have the bottle. But they did! They were still waiting for me to call them back and when I explained that I was back in Boston they said they would mail it me. No discussion about postage cost. No discussion about shipping and handling fees. Nothing. They just said they'd be happy to do it and asked me where I wanted it sent.

I have to say I completely forgot about the bottle until today. I walked into the house and there was a box on the counter marked "fragile". I couldn't figure out what it could possible be until I looked at the return address stamp which read: Super 8 - New Hampton. I couldn't believe it! Inside, carefully wrapped in bubble wrap and newspaper, was my bottle.

This is what customer service should be like. The weekend before staying at the Super 8 in New Hampton, Iowa I was staying at the Ritz Carlton in New Orleans. The Super 8 put them to shame. Now, if the Super 8 just had the great room service macaroni and cheese as the Ritz for those late night, post-drinking munchies it would be just about perfect.

Wow! Times are changing.

I took a typing class in 9th grade (half the semester on a TYPEWRITER and half a semester on a computer). I was self taught on PowerPoint at the age of 24. Now, according to the school's Technology Newsletter, the kids are taught how to type in 3rd grade and learn PowerPoint in 4th grade. I feel so old all of a sudden.

My excitement level is completely disproportionate to actual accomplishment

This year is the first year that Memorial is having a yearbook and it is my pet project. I'm so excited to be doing this but also a little bit nervous. Especially with the economy the way it is and the fact that the books are a little expensive ($25 per kid). This week the ordering information went home and I have to say, I'm ridiculously excited when I check our online orders and see how many are on there already. It makes me down right giddy. I know...I'm a dork.

I love my job

As part of my job as Office Manager my job is to coordinate a monthly "birthday lunch" to celebrate all the office birthdays. Today was that lunch.

This afternoon I was in my friend Melissa's office. Whenever the two of us get together it's a conversation of trying to best the other person and give the other person the most smart alecky responses possible.

While I was in her office today my boss Doug walked by and stopped and asked me where the sodas were that were left over from lunch. Since they were in the same spot as earlier in the day, and Melissa had me all fired up as a smart ass, this was my response:

Me: They are in the same spot they were previously in prior to their earlier consumption.

Doug: (laughing) You sound just like my wife when you talk to me.

Since I am also his assistant, in addition to being the Office Manager, I take great pride in that. I always say that a good assistant is like a bad wife.....nag, nag, nag.

What will she say tonight?

Last month at our PTO meeting Tracy got up in front of the entire group, including the principal and the dean of students, and announced a request for more balls on the playgroin. Yes...Play Groin.

What will she say this month?

Fall in New England

This is my favorite time of year. More so than any other season I really love fall in New England. The colors on the tree, the crisp morning air, the smell of burning leaves...I love it all. I realized earlier that I haven't posted any pictures lately so here is an old one of Hannah. Given the season I thought it was an appropriate one.

Happy Anniversary to Us!

Yesterday was our 8th wedding annivesary. It seems like the last 8 years have gone by in the blink of an eye although if you ask Hannah I'm sure she'd disagree.

Lincoln and I met, moved in, got engaged, got married, and got pregnant in the span of 16 months. It moved quickly but from day one it has always felt right. It is the most perfect relationship that I can ever imagine existing. Many of my co-workers, who sometimes don't get to meet Lincoln but get to hear about him, think that I've made him up. They're always a little surprised to learn that he's actually real.

What did I ever do to deserve such a great man? Whatever it is I thank my lucky stars every day that I did it.

Yay....Mom to the rescue!

My mother is a very organized lady who likes a clean house with little clutter. I'm a very organized lady (at work and with the PTO) who has a house that looks like a tornado hit it and is resided in by a pack rat (that would be me). Right now, after the activities of the past few weeks, my house is worse than usual. Hannah's room is only half done thanks to the fact that I never finished sorting out her toys. The office is full of boxes and other random shit which I just haven't had a chance to organize. I was so desperate for Mom to come out and visit and help me get my shit together that I actually sent her a picture of Hannah's room yesterday. She had been leaning towards not coming but last night she called to say they were booking their tickets. I'm sure it took her awhile to recover from the mild heart attack she had looking at those photos but hey, whatever works.

Whenever my parents come to visit they always leave my house in better shape than when they came. When Lincoln and I took 10 days to go to Greece and Turkey last March we came back to a small piece of heaven. New shelves put in, closets and cabinets organized, and general cleanliness. One time when they visited they even shampooed all my carpets. I'm telling you...it's great. Except when it isn't. Mom cleaned my house from top to bottom while I was in the hospital having Jake and I couldn't find anything when I got home. Normally that isn't as big of an issue (I just call her and say "hey, where did you put the spatulas") but you just can't stress out a hormonal woman like that right after she gave birth.

But I digress....it is great that she is coming and I can't wait for her to swoop in and save the day when it comes to my house. Of course I blame some of my messy ways on her since she always cleaned up after me while I was growing up. I do believe I was in college before I realized that my bed didn't actually make itself when I was in the shower each morning.

Lincoln, on the other hand, is a little stressed about them coming. When I told him last night that they were coming he started working on a list of all the things he wants to get done before they're here so that they don't see how little we've done since the last time they were here. He also started putting together a grocery list of items we need before their arrival like the preferred type of hand soap that my mother likes. Because he's great like that while I just want my Mommy to come help me.

Ewwww

I hate cleaning out the office fridge. There were some seriously scary things in there.

ICK!

What a nice weekend

This is the first weekend in at least a month that we haven't had something going on. First there was the weekend of Tracy's birthday party (as well as our nephew Kyle's birthday), then was the New Orleans weekend, and then the funeral weekend. It was so nice not to do anything this weekend. We actually probably did too much of nothing. Yesterday I slept in, took a bath, and caught up on television shows. Lincoln and the kids played video games and watched Star Wars all day. Today we actually got up and cleaned the downstairs, took showers (which neither of us bothered with yesterday) and went to the Fire Department Open House downtown but it's still a pretty low key day. It's nice just having a weekend to completely veg. Thanks to the gymnastics studio closing we didn't even have that this weekend.

This sounds ominous

Jake: Daddy, where are you?

Lincoln: I'm upstairs.

Jake: I want to show you what I want to blow up!



(Don't worry, he was talking about a balloon.)

I was wrong...it's kittens....not puppies

This was sent to me by a co-worker during the last presidential election.

Have no fear my Republican readers (and dog lovers)

Yes, I did tell Hannah that Republicans kill puppies. And that they use them to test out lipstick for pigs. She knows I'm not serious. Hannah knows that Mommy has a very dry, sarcastic wit and she could also probably give you the exact definition of what that is and list a few prominent public personalities with the same style of humor to illustrate her point. When I say things to her like "Republicans kill puppies" she looks right at me, points at me, twirls her other index finger in a clockwise motion around her ear, and says "Cuckoo".

And, as possible punishment for me saying that Republicans kill puppies, if Jake heard me (and I'm not sure he did) I'm sure for the next few months everytime we see a puppy on the street, in a book, or on TV Jake will ask me "Are the 'Publicans going to kill that puppy?" He is way too literal and takes away all my fun.

Read the post directly below this first....

Earlier tonight, on a friend's blog, I viewed a video of "an extreme eco-group" sitting in the forest crying and screaming over the death of trees. At that time I said to Hannah "if you ever become this extreme of a tree hugger Mommy will kick your butt."

Then the conversation in the previous post took place.

After that Hannah showed Lincoln and me a "book" that she had written earlier today. As Lincoln was reading it he came across the page that said "Less cutting, more trees". At that point he turns to me and says:

"You know honey, most tree huggers are Democrats."

I'm telling you, he's secretly a Republican.

As I sit down to watch The Daily Show with Jon Stewart

Hannah: Mommy, why do you like this show?

Me: Because he's funny and I think he's secretly a Democrat.

Hannah: I don't know what that is.

Me: Well, the government is divided into two political parties. The Republicans, who are wrong, and the Democrats, who are right.

Hannah: Oh.

Me: (to Lincoln) Is it too early to start the brainwashing?

Lincoln: Apparently not.

Me: (to Hannah) You should always vote Democrat. Republicans kill puppies...and use them to test out lipstick....to be worn on pigs.

Parent / Teacher / Warden conferences

Since I was unable to make it to Open House last week Hannah's teacher, Mrs. Bomba, invited me to come in at 8:45 a.m. this Friday with Hannah so that Hannah can show me all the stuff that she got to show Daddy last week. At dinner tonight Hannah and I were talking about the meeting and Jake asked if he could go too.

Jake: Can I go with you?

Me: No. This is a Hannah/Mommy meeting. When you get a little bit bigger we'll have Jakey/Mommy meetings. Of course those will likely be through a glass partition.....

No news is good news

I realize that my posts have been few and far between the last few days. With as hectic as life has been lately that's actually a very good thing.

So far this week I've just been playing catch-up at work as well as getting ready for the PTO Board meeting on Thursday night. Sometimes our life is so very carefully scheduled that when something changes it throws everything out of wack.

In addition to the usual craziness of life we received a letter from Hannah and Jake's gymnastics teacher that their gym closed as of this last Saturday. Since they were mid-session that's pretty inconvenient because all the other local gyms are mid-session as well. I'm not sure what we'll do. Both kids were loving their classes. And because rumor has it that the reason the gym closed was because the owner's ex-wife took off with all the money I'm not even sure we'll get the half of our money back that we deserve. On top of that they actually tried to send us a bill!

Anyway, so that's the news. No news is good news at this point.