We Love Grandma!

Ah....so mom came to visit this weekend.....and her favorite thing to do is sleep in baby Kahuna's room!! It's a beautiful thing. Mind you, she's got her own double bed and private bath, so it's not crowded or anything. But the sleeping is a bit interrupted. Baby is back to waking up once a night. Not a huge deal, but to have a slight respite from this was HEAVEN. Friday night, Saturday night, and Sunday night-sleeping from midnight-7am, with no trips to take care of baby--what a beautiful thing. Oh and a date night with L on Saturday night. Weird to think we did that several times a month before Baby, but so it goes. We were home by 11:30pm and had to visit da babe before going to bed, but it was great. Although kind of like leaving the house without my left arm.

We are working on moving out of storage......off-site storage space is not in our new super-saver budget. So far, we've cleared out the garage to make way for the stuff. I am confident it will work. It's a pipe dream to think that I'll ever park my car in the garage again, but hey, more miraculous things have happened. We may try piggy backing onto a friend's garage sale. I know, I know, I should learn from past experiences. But their neighborhood has better sales than ours.

Maybe we'll make enough money to go to dinner on another date night!!

a there was sleeping throughout the land

This week baby kahuna has turned 7 weeks old. To celebrate, she's started sleeping through the night--from about 9 pm-5am. It is a beautiful thing. We set the record at three nights in a row, and then last night we had a little set back. But I really didn't mind--now that 2:30am feedings are becoming a thing of the past, it's rather sweet.

We bought her her first jam box today--it's much sleeker than the pink Sharp one I had with the lime green strap in 1987. This one will play MP3's when she's ready to do so. Of course it will have be on CD format, so it will probably never happen.

In other news, I'm enjoying my very part time job at Sylvan Learning Center--Saturday mornings and subbing in the evening here and there. I can see how people say that part time employment is the best of both worlds. In the coming weeks and months we'll have to see if it will help me to create my uptopia.

shock has turned to sheer disgust

So I'm home now. Alot. With the TV on. Alot. I don't feel it's damaging the monkey in anyway--as she's pretty oblivious, and I'm pretty sure that she can't really see that far anyway.

So the hurricane hit and the levee broke, and I was fixated in horror, watching all the devastation and mayhem that followed on Network TV. Sure that problems would be quickly solved, sure that the water could be quickly removed, sure that atleast vital city services could be restored, sure that evacuees would be well taken care of, all because this is America. If the 3rd world could recover from the tsunami, surely the US would recover quickly and adeptly.

So now, almost a month later, I'm getting angry. Partially becuase I watch too much TV, partially because I'm slightly hormonal with the monkey in my care, but mostly because I don't understand.

Police officers working 24/7 are HOMELESS. I find it hard to believe that there isn't a shelter/hotel/school/dry land to pitch a tent to take care of these men and women. That the Red Cross wouldn't specifically have services for them. That their families would have places to stay, and not have to worry about relocating to a new state while their officer is at home trying to restore peace and order.

FEMA had the idea to give out debit cards. Good concept, poor execution. Apparently they were only made available to people in Texas. Those in other places never got them, and now they are supposed to be getting funds through direct deposit. Great. Brilliant. Because I'm sure all survivors have bank accounts, have the information, and that their banks are up and running. And I'm sure they have ATM cards, and that the shelter where they are staying is close to an ATM.

My neice & nephew's uncle (and my nephew's godfather) got an early ticket home from Iraq because his family had to evacuate from Slidell, LA. After his second deployment, he's returned home (before seeing his wife and children) to find several trees on his house. To find most of his house uninhabitable. And to find out that he can't get the debit card he heard about. Not sure why, doesn't matter why, it's just wrong.

And George W has decided that he needs to head the investigation as to what went wrong??? What the hell? Because he has training in emergency management? Because he doesn't have anything else to do?

Obviously, no one saw this coming. I get that. But WOW-it just shows how upside down the world can become in an hour. And you'd think that after 9/11 and other catastrophes, that we'd be a little better at reacting to such things.

So I've chosen to help the family closest to me directly, I keep boxing up things to take to places that are helping evacuees, and I'm trying to keep informed. And I am praying that this country takes a long hard look at its leaders, its emergency management and priorities.

Enough of a rant for now.

The wonders of magnets

I don't know when the magnet was invented, or when someone discovered that magnets could stick to a car, but golly, car magnets are almost as fun as fridge magnets!!!

Yesterday I saw a Ten Commandments car magnet. I don't know if it was just because they were out for a Sunday drive, or whether its an "everyday" magnet.

Will someone please make it stop?!?!?

Is the fad FINALLY fading?!?!

Attention Anti-Magnetic Ribbon Readers:

Last night, while scanning the clearance at Meijer, I came across a yellow "support our troops" on clearance!! Yes, that's right, on clearance. I can only hope that it means the demand is down, and the fad is fading, not that they are clearning the way for the late 2005 model of ribbon (new font? new color? more color photos?) .

The wackiest part?? On clearance that damn ribbon cost more than a pair of kids sandals on clearance. That led to the dilemma:
"Join the latest fad and slap my ribbon on the car OR buy the kids shoes and give them to someone in need?!?" I chose the shoes, but who knows how many people would have chosen the ribbon???

I am a Spoiled Brat

Although, I suppose, that most spoiled brats are so spoiled they don't realize it.

Last night, while surveying the kitchen for food, I told L that I needed to go grocery shopping because, "we have no food". I then proceeded to grill chicken, simmer potatoes and make a wacky mexican thing.

I then heard about the semi trucks the Jonathan Bender, Pacers Forward and Mississippi native was loading up and escorting down to his home town. So I looked in the pantry and came up with a box of dry goods--powdered milk, granola bars, applesauce, pasta....along with two containers of formula that were given to me, a few other random baby extras and 2 packs of size 3 diapers I bought should the B.O.J. ever get that big.

I then proceed to go grocery shopping on our new $50 a week budget. But that doesn't include the diapers that are on sale (so I have to buy them), or the shoes I find for $2.49**. I buy both pairs, to stick in with the pantry extras I loaded up for Katrina Relief. I met an aquaintence 1/2 way through the store, and realize after speaking that I have lost the tally on the bill in my head. Hmm....guess I'll see what it is when I get up there.

Turns out, I went $18 over (plus the diapers and the shoes). Guess I'll try harder next week.

It never ceases to amaze me the amount of excess in my home. We donate regularly to a food pantry, have just recently cleared out the house and given to Goodwill, and yet I had no problem finding more things we really don't need/won't eat/ won't miss to pass on to someone else.

Talk about the misappropriation of wealth......Guess I'll continue to balance the scales one carload of donations at a time.

Half baby, half grown man

That's they only way I can explain my daughter--she who burps, hiccups and farts all at the same time. AND who can poop different colors in the same diaper for a nice layered effect.

I can't stop thinking about how I would have packed our Saturn if we had to evacuate--with the prospect of everything being gone if we were ever able to return. Hard drives? Wedding album? Then all the formula and diapers we could haul. Oh, and water, granola bars, and a few changes of clothes. And we'd grab our credit cards and just drive like hell.

But that's the difference--we'd grab our $$, and get in our cars. And we'd know that whatever happened, we'd be all right. Our families and friends would help us. We'd move on, because we're educated, we've moved before and well, it's daunting, but I'd get the hell out of Dodge.

I doubt that I'd have the same perspective if I'd never been out of my hometown, didn't have a car and only had the cash in my pocket.

So Katrina survivors, know that you are in my prayers, and we are doing what we can to help you.