Post Holiday Greetings

Ho, ho, hum. . . . Well, another Christmas bites the dust! The madness and the mayhem was over within a matter of hours. I enjoyed this Christmas and tried to take it easy because, God-willing, next year I will have TWO children at Christmas- AGH! So, I enjoyed just having to focus on one child and play one game of pretend instead of being stretched between two children and feeling like I'm not devoting an equal amount of time.

Now that the holidays are about over I am starting to focus on how my life is about to drastically change in FOURTEEN short weeks! And I doubt seriously that I will even have time to take a breath. . .in addition to New Year's, my husband is running the Houston-Chevron marathon in January, hubby's birthday (along with 2 nieces, my moms, & only aunt birthdays) is in February, my son's b-day is in March and then BAM! Baby girl is due in April. OMG! People have been asking me about names. . .I am sooooo far away from thinking about names it's not even funny. I think I'll probably get it together after my son's b-day (March 2nd) maybe. . .I really need to FOCUS! I tell you what I am looking forward to the MOST (besides having a healthy baby) is taking THREE MONTHS off after my delivery!!! I am exhausted!!! Okay, I'm getting tired just thinking about it. . .

Instead I'll share my favorite story from Christmas. Christmas Eve to be exact. My son, got a ridiculous amount of STUFF from my family (as usual) and as he was opening his presents I was taking them and hiding them in the closet- because we open family presents at midnight and afterwards he needs to go to bed so Santa can make an appearance. One of the presents he received was a Batman shaving kit. It came with all the fake razors and a small can of foam a.k.a shaving cream.

After my family packed up and left (around 12:45am) I told my son it was time to go to sleep so that Santa could stop by and he started to have a MELT DOWN!!!! He had big crocodile tears and he was saying, "But I have to do something first," And I'm like- WHAT YOU COULD POSSIBLY HAVE TO DO AT 1:00 IN THE MORNING?!?! He started stuttering and blubbering that he: NEEDED TO SHAVE!!!!!! Bwahahahahahaha! He was sooooooo serious and looking so pitiful but I bust out laughing!!!! My husband didn't find it as hilarious. He told him he could shave in the morning and proceeded to march him upstairs. In less than three seconds he was out cold. He didn't wake up the next morning until almost 9:00!!! After he checked out what Santa left for him, he ran back upstairs to SHAVE!!! (I'll post pictures later).

I was still beyond exhausted so after playing one round of Power Rangers I went back to sleep. As I was nodding off that movie, A Christmas Story was on t.v. When I woke up it was still on so I thought I had only slept about twenty minutes- turns out the show was on a continuous 24 hour Christmas marathon loop and I had almost slept through it TWICE.

Now, I'm back at work still a little out of it. . .good thing Christmas only comes once a year because if it was more than once a year, I'd be celebrating Hanukkah!

Hope everyone had a safe and happy Christmas!!! I wish you much peace, love and exponential blessings for 2009!!!!

Balancing Act

Yesterday, my co-worker was going on and on about how she thought I was such a wonderful mother and that I seem to have found such a perfect balance in my life. I swear I just stared at her blankly for a few minutes because I thought she was gonna start laughing and say, “SIKE!” If anyone perceives that I have perfected “balance” in my life let me set the record straight: IT’S ALL SMOKE & MIRRORS.

I think one of the lessons I have learned- begrudgingly- since I got married and had a child is that, unfortunately, life is not all about ME anymore and that I have to put my selfishness aside. Armed with this knowledge, I have been able to avoid a lot of frustration and disappointment. Don’t get me wrong I still feel extremely overwhelmed from time to time but when I do, I just breathe and think whether or not it’s worth me losing my mind. And sometimes I TOTALLY fly off the handle to get my point across and to let the people in my life know without a shadow of a doubt : she’s kinda crazy. It’s been my secret weapon for years! :-)

Another thing that has really given me more sense of “balance” in my life is accepting my job for what it is. A job. It is not my “career”. I do not have delusions of grandeur or thoughts of climbing the corporate ladder. For the most part, I enjoy what I do and I when I am here I give 100% (it ain’t brain surgery, though) but I do NOT work overtime (I am salaried and don’t get paid for it), I don’t take any of the b.s. or politics home with me (I’m too busy pretending to be a Power Ranger with my son), and I don’t get involved in office cliques (I’m too damn old for that).

So, I have relieved an incredible amount of stress from my plate by not letting my job consume me or my time. For the first time in my life, I feel like I have options and I could work here or not and it’s not going to cripple me or my lifestyle so the way I see it, my job is pretty lucky to have me, not the other way around. And I say that strongly even in the current economic environment.

Besides I’m only one person and there is no way I can give all of myself completely to my job or to my husband or even to my son. It’s just not humanly possible. And there are times that I still feel like I am failing miserably in some area in my life but I just try to do better the next day. I want my mind to be strong and sound for decades to come so, I can’t afford to start losing bits and pieces of it now.
One thing that is out of balance is the weather in Houston. We keep going from 40 to 77 degrees (and vice versa) overnight! Here's a picture of my son playing in the snow from last week!

Totally Random

The most random thing happened in H-Town yesterday evening. . .IT SNOWED!!!! Earlier that afternoon I was running errands and it was COLD (32 degrees) and raining and at times the cold combined with the rain made it feel like ice was hitting my face but I never thought it would SNOW!

Let me just clear something up for anyone who doesn't know about weather in the South. First of all, anything below 70 is COLD to folks born and raised in the South. Second, this weekend is supposed to be around 74 degrees. So, color us a little shocked to get enough snow to stick to the ground and cars for more than an hour. Some places on the outskirts of the city actually got about 2.5 inches of snow.

The other thing that's so fascinating and somewhat cool about all of this is when I picked my son up from school yesterday he asked me if it was going to snow. I laughed and said I don't know. His teacher (remember he attends a Christian day school) however told him to PRAY and maybe God would make it snow. When we got home my son asked me if it was okay to pray for snow and who am I to challenge prayer? I told him to go right ahead. He took a prayer posture- clasped hands, bowed head and closed eyes and he prayed: "Dear God please make it snow today, in Jesus name, Amen."

When my husband called us around 5:30 and told us it was snowing my son- to say he was excited is an understatement. He kept running from window to window exclaiming "I made it snow! I made it snow!" I had to explain to him that he didn't make it snow, that God did. And he countered with, "But that's only because I asked him to," I didn't even bother. . .

It would have been really cool if this miracle could have taken place on Christmas like it did 4 years ago. It actually snowed on Christmas Even in 2004, my son's first Christmas, and hasn't even been that cold on Christmas since. They are trying to tie the snow to the hurricanes and some freaky weather pattern. Whatever the case, it was pretty awesome, that is until this morning when Houstonians all over town went sliding and crashing into each other. There should be a city-wide rule that if it snows in Houston or if there is ice on the ground- the city is CLOSED for the day! We can drive in rain but snow/ice? Not so much.

Tomorrow I'll post pics of my son throwing snowballs. . .

Little White Men

As I was pulling decorations from the Christmas crates I noticed that I have unconsciously started a collection of ceramic snowmen!! Aw, I'm either getting anal or old (perhaps both). Actually I think it stems more from me not wanting to buy Caucasian Santa's- I have one black Santa but he was hard to come by. . .anyway, in an effort to keep it merry and bright I've started this collection that I actually think is kinda cool.

My son probably won't appreciate this treasure after I go to the great beyond but I'm sure my baby girl will. . .unless she's like my mom and my sister who don't have a sentimental bone in their bodies!

Anyway, I'm still freakin' out because there are only 16 days until Christmas and I still have over half of my family to buy for. . .I would just get everyone a gift card but my family is so anti-gift cards. They prefer ripping open presents and pretending to be excited and then calling each other behind your back and saying, "what in the hell, why would he give me that ugly ass scarf," Ha ha! 'Tis the season!

Like Butta

Today I am taking a break from my hormone fueled rantings about marriage and focusing on the holiday season. After all 'tis the season to be jolly fa la la la fu- WTF?! Is it really 0nly 20 days until Christmas?!?!?

Okay, I am so not ready and this is so NOT like me. . .but I'm nothing like myself lately anyway so I guess I shouldn't be surprised. I went out last weekend (not on Black Friday) to try and do a little shopping and ended up buying a few decorations and a gift for myself. They have this bath robe at Bath & Body Works. . .OMG!!. . .it is soooooooo soft and cuddly! I imagine that's what clouds might feel like. . .before you fall through them and come crashing to the Earth- but I digress, the robe is like butta! I LOVE IT! And I scored such a deal. It was on sale in the store for $29.99 and I had a coupon to get $10 off any item so I got this delicious robe for $19.99! The best $20 I've spent all year!

If you need a new robe or you want to give one as a gift you've got to check it out! It comes in it's own over sized box and a variety of colors. All you have to do is wrap it! Happy shopping!

Role Play

Okay, remember when I was ranting about the roles we play in marriages? Well, I almost went ballistic last night when my husband starting making snide comments about ME not cooking. Then he did the ULTIMATE and started to mention how his mother, God rest her soul, used to work full time and still managed to cook a hot meal every night.

First of all, I think I startled the entire neighborhood when I yelled, "I ain't yo mama!" Second of all, she had EIGHT kids! And I'm thinking at some point one of them should have been old enough to put some chicken in the oven. Apparently the lady had Julia Child aspirations.

I will be the first to admit my son could probably benefit from a lot more nutritious meals but one thing is for certain he eats EVERY night! Let's get that straight first. Now, regarding me being Suzy Homemaker. There was a time for a couple of years after we were married that I would come home after working 8 hours at a job that I HATED ( complete with a 1 1/2 hour commute one way) but endured because my salary was CRUCIAL to our household (still is) and I would cook a delicious, hot meal. I'm talking a meat and two sides! Sometimes dessert!

But as time marched on it seemed it went from being appreciated to expected. The number one thing I hate about cooking is that not only do I prepare the meal but folks sit down at the table and want you to bring them a plate and then I have to clean up the kitchen too?!?!? Oh, HELLLLL no! I found the kitchen stays a lot cleaner when nothing is cooked in it. Ha ha!

Seriously, can we step in to the new millennium DEAR HUSBAND? I mean I do work full time, my commute is about 35 to 45 minutes longer than yours, I go to school (taking THREE classes), I'm preggers, trying to be the best mommy I can be to our son and you think I'm gonna come home (when you're already at home) and start frying chicken and snapping peas?? Baby, I regret to inform you that you married the wrong woman. So sorry. No refunds.

I think I should probably call and tell him to stop and get a burger on his way home tonight. . .or he is more than welcomed to hook up a big pot of spaghetti tonight- he actually makes it better than me. So, what's really going on? I guess because he cuts the grass and changes the oil in the cars, boiling spaghetti is just asking too damn much.

When you stop by the Burger Shack tonight be sure to hold the onions and mayo on mine!

Blah-Blah-Blah

Happy Belated Turkey Day!! Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. Mine was awesome. We went to my sister's house and gorged on way too much food! It was divine. Also, saw some family and friends that I had not seen in a while.

The day before Thanksgiving I had a doctor's appointment and it was confirmed that I am having a GIRL! Let the drama commence! Ha ha! My son didn't really mask his disappointment and he still refers to her as a "him" I guess he thinks if he wishes hard enough things will be different when April gets here. . .you never know. . .but I think both doctor's are pretty certain there are no boy parts in there.

It's getting to a point with this blog- unfortunately- that it's just another thing on my "to do" list. And I can almost predict its demise. It's been fun but I honestly don't know how much longer I'll keep it up. It was supposed to be an interim type thing while I regrouped with my parenting website but it kinda took on a life of its own and I never started the other website so I used this one for an outlet.

But with school, work, the holidays and a second child on the way- a sista is tired and totally not feeling the blog. I know it's getting bad because I don't even lurk around on other blogs like I used to. Although you wouldn't know it by the comments I actually get quite a few hits on this site about 50 a week. . .but there are only a handful of people who comment. I sincerely appreciate Super Dave, TheDad, Veronica and Don for taking an interest and leaving comments.

I am going to try and keep this going at least until the baby is born- don't want to leave everybody hanging but I apologize in advance if the posts are sporadic or just not that entertaining. Winds of change are blowing in. . .

The Greatest

My son and I have been left to our own devices since Thursday because my husband was out of town. We had a great weekend that consisted of "movie night" (we rented DVD's because my son confessed he doesn't like going to the movies, he's so strange), library day, shopping, pizza and games @ Gattitown, sleeping late and lounging in our pajamas all day Sunday.

I think I fell in love with him all over again this weekend. I simply cherish these days because he is such a sweet, smart, funny and just wonderful little human being. Everyday when I pray to God, one of the things I ask is that my son maintains some of those endearing qualities throughout his lifetime. And I pray that I remain strong and healthy enough to be positive influence to keep him on the right path.

Here are some of the priceless highlights from this weekend:

Me: (tickling him mercilessly) Now what are you gonna do, huh?
Him: (screaming in between fits of laughter) Stop, stop! No tickling!
Me: (I stop because I'm out of breath) Whatever, Egghead!
Him: (scrambling away from me) You said exactly what you are
Me: What?!
Him: What did you call me?
Me: Egghead.
Him: (laughing) That's exactly what you are (runs from room laughing)
Me: (mouth hanging open and thinking to myself- man, I'm gonna have to use that one!)
______________

Me: (giving him a vitamin) You've gotta take your vitamins so you can be big and strong
Him: (chewing it without complaint) So nobody will try to be a bully to me
Me: That's right, you let them know you are not the one!
Him: That's right, if somebody comes up to me and pushes me I'm gonna push them back and say, 'Not today, brother,' (but it totally sounded like BRUDDA).
Me: (laughing so hard I almost choked).

_____________

Me: So when your new baby brother or sister comes along, you are going to have to be in charge and show them how things work around here.
Him: Like the t.v.
Me: (laughing) Yes, but I'm mostly talking about the house rules.
Him: Like what?
Me: Like who's in charge, where things go, no whining, picking up after yourself, -
Him: Helping me clean up my room

Oh yeah, he is so ready to be a big brother! Ha ha!
_____________

Daddy will be back today and he was missed. He ran the Philadelphia Marathon in 32 degree weather in 4 hours 22 minutes. That is truly amazing to me! Twenty six miles?! Are you kidding me?! I couldn't have walked twenty six blocks! Hell, after two or three blocks in 32 degree weather I would have been dying!!

I'm really proud of him and can't wait to see him this evening. See, how absence makes the heart grow fonder. Now, if I could only get him to be gone for a week every month, I am more than certain we'd make it to ten years! :-)

Dead Wrong

No, I am not referring to my post from yesterday, although hubby was way too sweet yesterday when he got home. Don't know if it's because he was leaving to go out of town for four days or because he read the post. . . .

Anyway, why did I go to Subway for lunch today and see this unsupervised little Hispanic boy around 3-years old hanging out at the door as people were leaving the restaurant. Seriously every time someone left he all but followed them as if he were trying to hitch a ride home.

I go into Subway and he is running all over the place. As I am in line I notice a woman, who I assume is his mother, get him and promptly place him in a booth between her and another lady. OMG! He starts screaming bloody murder. His voice was literally echoing off the walls and irritating the shit out of everyone in the place. So, his "mother" allows him to get down and continue his running rampage with every stranger he encountered.

As I am paying for my sandwich I notice the person sitting across from this woman and another woman has on a Subway uniform. So, I think they must be friend's of this Subway employee and they are visiting her at lunch.

Unt-uh. I go to get my drink from the fountain machine and I see a JOB APPLICATION on the table between them. This woman is on a freaking INTERVIEW with her kid wrecking havoc everywhere! When I passed by I couldn't help but give the Subway MANAGER a look of disapproval when she says to the woman, "Can you start Saturday?"

That is why customer service in minimum wage paying service industries is so BAD!! I don't care if you are interviewing to be the person who scrapes gum from under the table at McDonald's- you should always be PROFESSIONAL! Proper attire, knowledgeable about the position and you come ALONE!!! What in the HELL! And as a manager doesn't that lady realize she is hiring someone who apparently has BABYSITTING ISSUES?!?!?

It would be funny if it wasn't so doggone SAD! I mean I can appreciate the fact that she is trying to get a job but why couldn't her "friend" or whoever the other lady was sitting with her, stay in the car with that little boy or push him around in a basket at Target next door until the interview was over?!?!

That's a big part of what's wrong with this country- mediocrity is accepted and common sense is overlooked!

Why Did I Get Married?

When Tyler Perry's movie came out earlier this year I ran to the theater to see it- not because I'm huge fan of Mr. Perry's (although I do think his accomplishments are phenomenal) nor because I was a big fan of anyone in the cast. I ran out to see it so that I could perhaps gain some understanding of this thing called marriage. Sadly, I wasn't given any insight- no more than I already had, which is not saying much.

I've been married six years and while it seems like a lifetime to me, it's nothing when I think about people who've been married 50 plus years or even my own sister who got married at 18 and has been married 17 years. I guess part of the secret to a long marriage is either marrying the "right" person to begin with or having the fortitude to deal with whatever bullshit comes your way and not give in or give up.

But I wonder what happens when the person you thought was "right" changes in to someone all wrong. Or perhaps you change and that person is no longer what you need. How do you deal with that? Will you constantly be forced to change who you are or suppress your true needs in an effort to make things "work"? And then when children are thrown into the mix-man- I think most of the time couples find themselves trying get along just for the children's sake but meanwhile their (the couple) relationship is suffering.

I think what honestly happens in most marriages is that as men and women we get settled into these roles. The man is supposed to take care of the house, fix the cars, cut the grass, etc. While the woman makes the house a home, decorating, cleaning, cooking, washing, etc. Eventually these roles become very lopsided and one person- usually the woman- is doing WAY more. ESPECIALLY if she works full time AND has a child.

So, then the woman voices her need for some assistance and perhaps because she's fed up with having to pick up dirty socks off the floor everyday, the request may sound more like a complaint. So now she is tagged as a "nagger" (gasp!). Simply because she wants her mate to pick up after himself. And the unraveling begins. . .

Most men talk about wanting an "independent" woman or a woman who is successful or ambitious but I think they also want that same woman to cater to them. You can't have it both ways. Women like that want a man to cater to them. And some of us are so selfish in our relationships that we establish a "quid pro quo" rule. If you do this. . .then I'll do that. Instead of doing something for your mate and not expecting a damn thing in return. I am more than sure there are married couples out there who operate on the no expectations principle but more often than not I'm sure their efforts are reciprocated by their spouse. But there are probably also those unions where one person is doing all the giving and the other is being a selfish receiver.

I started this post because I was beyond PISSED at my husband. And as I washed out a RANCID skillet that he scrambled eggs in on Sunday (yes, today is WEDNESDAY) and buried at the bottom of the sink still full of eggs that stuck to the pan. I began having these thoughts that if I was SINGLE I wouldn't be washing out this stinky ass skillet or having to waste time cleaning up instead of DOING HOMEWORK, which is why I am off on Wednesdays, so that I can catch up on homework and attend class! But instead of finishing two quizzes online and getting ready for my 1:00 class here I am cleaning up because apparently I am the only person in this house that cares whether or not mushrooms start growing up through the floor! And don't even get me started on wiping PEE from the top of the closed toilet lid. I only have one thing to say. When I pee I am 99.99% sure it is going IN the toilet.

ARGH!! There are times when I consider myself extremely blessed to be married and have a family, my health, a home and a decent paying job. And there are other times like today when I wonder "why did I get married" and where would I be in this moment if my time, my life and my future were my own and not tied to another person?

But I am married and I know why I did it: L-O-V-E. I married a great guy and although I want to tie him up and stuff him in a closet sometimes- I do love him. And we've created a great family that we will (God willing ) be adding to pretty soon. So, I will more than likely mention the skillet episode to him. He will more than likely down play it. I will more than likely get mad and keep stressing how disgusting it was. He will more than likely tell me that I need to give it a rest. I will more than likely tell him to go hell. We won't speak for thirty minutes. We'll go have a nice dinner out with my son to wish my husband good luck on the Philadelphia Marathon this weekend. And it will be over.

I guess I probably should just let it go since I am getting a TREAT this weekend. My husband leaves tomorrow morning for Philly (he has relatives there) and won't be back until MONDAY! Woohoo!! Maybe a little taste of "single life" is just what this married girl needs!

I LOVE this song by Anita Baker. . .I thought it was appropriate for this post. No more fairytales! Marriage can be wonderful but it is HARD WORK! I plan on hanging in there for the long haul! :-)

I Like To Move It, Move It

Yesterday, my husband and I took my son to see Madagascar 2: Escape to Africa. Mainly because WE (my husband and I) wanted to see it. One of the benefits of having kids is using them as an excuse to go see animated movies.

Anyhoo, I am a big fan of the first Madagascar film and had high hopes for the sequel. Hopes that were promptly squashed. Despite the rave reviews and the $63 million it raked in the first weekend, I was disappointed in the sequel. Perhaps there was just too much going on. . .too many story lines to follow. . .too many damn zebra's! I don't know! But I just didn't enjoy it nearly as much as the first one. I was however excited that the penguins got more screen time. They are hilarious. **Spoiler Alert** When they jacked that jeep and asked if the old lady was dead and one of them said, "no" so they went back to run her over. . .MAN! I was laughing so loud! I know that's horrible, right? But I did think the whole thing Skipper had going on with the dashboard hula doll was kinda corny. King Julian was another reason I was able to sit through this one, Sacha Baron Cohen is a nut!

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the good job the late Bernie Mac did as Zuba, Alex's father. Not really funny but I think he was a good vocal choice for the character. And Will.I.Am did a great job as the sexy hippo hunk, Moto-Moto. So, nice you've got to say it twice. . .ha ha! He was killing it with that Barry White voice.

That's just my two cents. My husband enjoyed it. . .now as for my son, the verdict is still out. I don't think he really liked it because about an hour in to it he asked me when was it going to be over. He kept saying he was ready to go home. But then he kept talking about his "favorite" parts when we got in the car. Go figure. If you just want to drop some serious duckets on a family outing this weekend and have nothing better to do, then check out the movie otherwise wait for it to come out on DVD in two months.

Another Year, No Divorce

Hubby and I celebrated our 6th year anniversary on November 8th. We started the celebration on Thursday by attending a Maxwell concert (she says screaming and swooning simultaneously). I knew there was something missing from music today and after attending his concert I realized: Maxwell was missing from music. He is a phenomenal performer but his dancing KILLS me. . .he's the guy who asks you to dance at the club and the minute he starts jumping all over the floor you regret you got up out of your seat. But what he lacked in rhythm he more than made up for in sex appeal and singing.

The day after the concert we boarded a plane to Salt Lake City, rented a car and then drove to Park City and holed up there for the weekend. IT WAS COLD. I'm talking snow on the ground cold. Although anything below 70 degrees is cold to this Southern girl, it was legitimately cold there with the temperature hoovering around 40 degrees. We slept A LOT, shopped, ate and took in the beautiful landscape.

I am so officially OVER traveling for a while now. . .maybe it's the hormones talking but I don't want to leave the great state of Texas for at least 6 months to a year! On another note, somebody please tell me I'm trippin' and that THANKSGIVING is not in TWO WEEKS! AGH!

The only good thing about time flying by is that before you know it I'll have (God willing ) two children to post about. Pregnancy is definitely NOT my friend the second time around!

Here's my FAVORITE Maxwell song. . .Enjoy!

If I'm Dreamin'

If I'm dreamin', then just let me sleep

Don't wake me up until my dream is complete

--I'm Dreamin' by Christopher Williams

I am STILL reeling. . . . I KNEW there was no way he would lose but man, he REALLY won!!!!

Now we've got some serious work to do, people we gotta help a brother out and do our part to get this country on the right track. You can start in your own home with initiatives like recycling or carpooling to help impact the environment, invest in the stock market even though it's down (it WILL be back up) to help stimulate the economy, mentor a child or volunteer in an underprivileged area to help save one young person from any pitfalls that lie ahead. Don't be passive and wait on President Obama to be a savior otherwise you will be thoroughly disappointed. His win should inspire you to want to do and be more not expect him to fix the world.

If his Presidency is considered a failure it's because WE (as a country and a people) failed. Be encouraged and do your part!

BARACK THE VOTE

Okay, I had to do a double post today. . .the Red Beans & Rice were delish but I had to get serious for a minute.

I voted early in my state on Wednesday, October 22nd. It took me all of 15 minutes. It was the first time I voted early and can't believe I never thought to do it before. There are a lot of people who didn't vote early for various reasons (maybe your state didn't allow it) but today is do or die!!! I have called and harassed everybody I know that is registered to make sure they vote!

So much has been made about this being a "historical" election that it's almost a cliche. This is BEYOND historical. This is destiny. This is more than Dr. King probably ever even dreamed of. Not only is there a black man running for President. He could ACTUALLY win!!! And he's not just any black man. . .he's intelligent, smart, informed, dignified, distinguished, family oriented, funny, attractive, and just totally awesome.

But I do not for one naive minute think that Barack Obama is going to come in like Superman and clean up the economy and end the war in his first hundred days. Realistically it might not even happen during his presidency BUT I do think he will leave a mark that will forever change politics and this country. I think an Obama Presidency will mean that America regains the respect of other world leaders, an Obama Presidency will seriously force America to deal with this ugly thing called racism that eats away at our society every day and most importantly an Obama Presidency will make black children and ADULTS aspire to do more and be more because ANYTHING is really possible if we work hard, treat people right and never give up.

Please, please, please VOTE today if you are reading this and you haven't already cast your ballot. I do not want to wake up tomorrow and feel like it was just another dream deferred. This is real and it can happen VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE!!!!!!

French Quarter Flavor

Looking for a quick meal with homemade appeal? Try Zatarain's Red Beans & Rice Mix. All you need to do is add sausage (Chappell Hill brand made in Texas is my fave) and a little garlic spice or Tony Chachere's to kick it up a notch. (I made a big pot last night and can't wait to get home for leftovers!)

Make a pan of "from scratch" cornbread to accompany the meal. If you've really got the time and want more down home flavor try Chef G. Garvin's recipe for Southern Fried Chicken:



Ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons pepper
2 tablespoons garlic salt
2 tablespoons seasoned salt
2 tablespoons paprika
olive oil (enough to deep fry)

Instructions
1. Coat skillet with enough olive oil. 2. Pour flour in a bowl. 3. Season flour with seasoned salt, garlic salt, and paprika. Mix. 4. Remove chicken from ice bath and set on plate. 5. Sprinkle chicken with salt, pepper, garlic salt and seasoned salt. 6. Coat all sides of chicken with flour. Pat off excess. 7. Place each piece in heated skillet. 8. Fry for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. 9. Remove chicken from pan. Place on paper towel to soak up excess oil.

Enjoy!

Potential Drama

I had a routine prenatal visit today and my doctor, God love her, says to me, "it's looking a little girl-ish," Ha ha! She said she felt about 75% sure that I was having a girl. I'm 16 weeks, 5 days today and won't find out 100% until I'm 20 weeks. But I've been saying all along I think it's a girl also, just because I feel totally different than when I was pregnant with my son. I basically feel like crap EVERY DAY. I think this is a sign that I'm growing a little "princess" inside of me- I think drama is on the horizon in our household.

I guess I shouldn't be so sexist considering I am a woman BUT because I am a woman I know what this could mean. There were three females in my house growing up: me, my sister and my mom. For the most part the drama was extremely mild and I think that was the case for two reasons- 1.) there were no men in the house, 2.) my sister and I KNEW there was only ONE woman, one QUEEN in our house and that was our mother. Period end of story. But there were those times I would run through the house screaming bloody murder because my sister not only borrowed my clothes without permission she put a hole in a shirt or got food on my pants.

We would yell and fight about the most petty, random ISH ever! But at the end of the day it was all good. And to this day my sister and I have a really close bond. My cousins on the other hand- two boys- would wrestle and play karate all day and unless one of them accidentally hurt the other one for real trying to be Kamala the Big Ugandan Giant (remember him?!) they never really fought or cared if someone was wearing someone else's underwear let alone a stupid shirt.

I don't really anticipate drama between my kids. . .since I'll have a son that's 5 years older than his female (potentially) sibling. I think the drama will be the fact that my husband will allow a daughter to get away with ten times the things my son will be allowed to get away with. . .I've seen it happen. Never mentioned it before but have a step-daughter who is about to be 11 and when I tell you SHE CAN DO NO WRONG IN HER DADDY'S EYES. . .it's kinda sickening. All I have to say to the potential princess is that she just needs to always remember who's the QUEEN and everything should be copacetic. Ha ha!

I'm kidding. . .kinda. . .seriously, I just want her (or him) to be as HEALTHY as possible! Besides I have no doubt this child will know their place once they arrive since my son mentions EVERY DAY that he's going to be the big brother, which means he's in charge! Like I said. . .drama is a-coming!

Boo to You!!

Happy Halloween!!! I've posted a preview of the tonight's costume. . .what else would TheGenius be but a POWER RANGER?! He woke up at the crack of dawn this morning all excited because today is "pajama party" day at his school and he got to wear his "cool" Batman pajamas- two superheroes in one day?! Life doesn't get any better than that!

We sat together this morning and watched the sunrise since he woke up so early. I was late to work but who cares? That was a priceless, special moment. I know people say this and then go on love their other children just as much BUT as I was sitting watching the sunrise with my son, witnessing the wonder on his face and hearing the excitement in his voice as he talked about his upcoming party, I started thinking to myself, "there is no way this second child will be nearly as special and awesome as this one," I KNOW, I KNOW. . .that's horrible, right? But this new baby seriously has a tough act to follow so far.

I just hope and pray that baby number 2 arrives (God willing) healthy first and foremost but I also hope that we at least have another laid back, go with the flow kinda kid that just meshes with the family dynamic we've established. The last thing I need is a high maintenance, drama prince or princess. I seriously don't know if I'd be able to deal. My husband is super laid back and unflappable (for the most part) and I am about the most low-to no maintenance chick around. And usually when you give my son a choice to do something, go somewhere or wear something he says, "whatever you want me to do Mom," LOVE IT!! I just get this feeling that this baby is gonna come along and shake us up and mess up our little cocoon of comfort! Ha ha!

Anyway, enough of my baby bashing- already giving this unborn kid a complex! I hope all of you have a SAFE and Happy Halloween!!!

Mama's Boy

It's no secret that I love the fact that my son is a mama's boy. He told me the other day that I was his one true love! Of course this was after he asked me what that meant because Bruce Banner said it to Betty Ross on the Incredible Hulk. But I digress, despite our "love affair" I do realize there are times when I need to "turn him over" to his father for some tougher love and discipline. Being the little Pisces that he is, my son, is always looking for rationale. It's not enough to say to him, "because I said so," he wants to know WHY are you saying so and why is it not up for negotiation. He tries to play that game with me all day long but something in his father's tone let's him know that perhaps he should not have all the answers to life's questions at FOUR so, he backs down and does what he's told.

Now when it comes to him not feeling well is where I draw a line in the sand with my husband. It incenses me sometimes when he tells him to "shake it off" or tries to make me feel bad for "mothering" him when he feels bad. He says I take it too far and I MAKE him act like a baby. . .AH! The nerve!! For example, last week my son had an allergic reaction to soap that contained perfume and dye (don't ask) - his entire body broke out into a rash and he was miserable. He was itching ALL OVER. We gave him Benadryl and lathered him in Cortisone and Calamine but the relief was not instant. So, there were times- not even that often- that he would take his nubby little fingers and start a scratch fest (he has NO NAILS because he's starting to bite them again). My husband would chastise him saying he was going to make it worse and not to scratch. The little Pisces says to him, "Daddy, if it itches I have to scratch." OK!

So, me being the mother that I am, hating to see him suffer through any discomfort no matter how small, I had the bright idea to take a sponge that was for the most part soft but it had just enough texture to provide relief if you rubbed it over your itching body. I took off his shirt and proceeded to give him a rub down with the sponge. My husband came UNGLUED! He actually said what I was doing was GAY and that I was going to turn my son into a marshmallow.

If I wasn't so pissed when he said it I probably would have laughed because he sounded so damned stupid. I proceeded to yell, "HE IS FOUR AND HE IS ITCHING!" Gimme a break, I'm nine times his age and if I was itching I'd want to scratch too! I never pegged my husband as homophobic and I happen to know for a fact he had a sappy relationship with his mom, God rest her soul, so I don't know why he's trippin'! I think that my son needs and deserves equal parts NURTURING and discipline. I don't want him growing up to be some cold, heartless, MAN because of the idiotic notions that his dad is unconsciously planting in his head. Hubby and I need to have a serious heart to heart because this morning my son told me, "Men don't cry,". I proceeded to tell him he's NOT a man yet and that REAL men do cry if they are hurt. I want him to be a strong, righteous, noble, man who is not afraid to be in touch with his feelings because of some bullshit societal rules that are imposed on him.

Besides as much as I love him and want to protect and nurture him I KNOW when it's time to put the hammer down and get tough and trust me my son, knows when he's pushed THAT button. But for the most part I just love him, nurture him, teach him, hug him, kiss, show him right from wrong and just try to enjoy each day with him DRAMA FREE. Because ten years from now if he's getting into all kinds of trouble he will NEVER be able to say he didn't get enough love or hugs from his mama!

Jack Move

It appears throughout my business travels I have become the victim of a form of identity theft. I remember sitting in the airport, after my flight had been delayed for two hours, realizing I forgot my American Express card. So, I called my bank to transfer money since all I had was my debit card. The balance in my checking account seemed a little low but I was semi-delirious and didn't really think anything of it so I just made a mental note to check it once I returned from Orlando.

The alarm went off when we checked the mail this past Monday and there was a envelope from my bank that resembled an insufficient funds notice (there was a time a couple of decades ago that I got those all the time!) so I rip open the envelope and it's a notice saying they tried contacting me via e-mail but the message was returned undeliverable. I'm thinking why are they trying to contact me. . .so I call and check my balance. . .it's really low so I listen to the transactions that have cleared and the first cleared item threw up a red flag. I press zero to speak to a representative while simultaneously checking the transactions on line.

Someone has gotten my debit card number and charged $636 within a three day period at the most random places. They paid their T-Mobile bill, ordered some movies from Comcast, $200 for flowers, $200 at some bar, and the purchase of eyeglasses.

The bizarre thing is that I actually have my card, this has never happened before and I am super cautious about when & where I use my card. I never even use it online. So, apparently the last time I went out to eat someone jacked my number. Now I'm thinking I might need to just start taking the AMEX card and paying it off at the end of each month. Because I think I was extremely lucky that this sorry bastard didn't charge more or put me in an extreme financial bind.

But what's really crazy about this entire thing is that they were able to use my number in person at most of these places. . .they had to have a connection at these places. I don't think I could go to Chili's or Macy's or Eyemasters and say, "Oh, I don't have my card but here's the number" I wonder if they duplicated my card?? That settles it I'm carving a hole in my mattress! Why are people so damned devious?!?!? If they would only use their evil powers for good!

I'm Baaack!

Man, I totally forgot I even had a blog! ;-p It even took me two tries on the password. So much for trying to blog once a week this month. . .this month has been totally insane. Here's the recap:

1. Traveled to six different locations for annual enrollment meetings at work.

2. Verbally assaulted by wonderful co-workers in Newark. Such a classy bunch.

3. Got snowed on in Salt Lake City. Seriously, snowflakes in my hair!! Needless to say I was semi-afroed for the remainder of the trip.

4. Was able to fly first class to Orlando after sitting in airport for 2 1/2 hour delay due to weather.

5. Tomorrow will mark my 16th week of pregnancy. . .

Yep, I know who cares about 1 through 4, more on this number 5 bombshell. First of all, I am very hesitant to even talk about my pregnancy because if God forbid, something goes wrong and I don't deliver a healthy baby or any baby for that matter on April 13th then I'll have to address my feelings about that. . .which might not be a bad thing. . .

But I digress, I am expecting and this was TOTALLY unplanned and I have been in denial for three months. Especially after this tirade. Still scratching my head on how this happened. . .I mean I KNOW how it happened but still. . .anyway, I'm getting a little excited and will also get FIXED when this is over. I thought one was enough but I'm certain TWO will do! I think I'm most excited for my son. He will have a sibling and get the opportunity to impart his wisdom on another human being who will think he hung the moon. He will also get a chance to boss someone around, blame things on and from time to time be best their friend. I can't imagine my life without my sister and hopefully he will develop that kind of bond with his un-gender known sibling as well.

We haven't really specifically told him that he's going to be a big brother but we've spoken more in hypothetical terms and he is beyond excited at the prospect. He even has every one's role figured out. He will feed the baby, I will change the pee-pee diapers and daddy will change the poopie diapers. I love that plan! I think the age spread between the two will be perfect also because my son will be old enough not to still want to be a "baby" and require so much of my attention so, I'm hoping there won't be much jealousy or regression. Besides my " first baby" will be starting KINDERGARTEN next year! (She says throwing herself on floor and crying hysterically) I cannot believe how fast the time flew by. . .and to think just when I got him all trained to be semi-self-sufficient here I go bringing another person into this world who will be totally dependent on me. I think I know how this happened now. . .it was the blue pill that I took with the shot of Patron. . .

Needless to say hubby is ECSTATIC!!! This has been his plan all along! Come to think of it he gave me the blue pill! Ha ha! I have been in a shitty mood everyday exhausted, nauseous, bitchy, craving weird stuff and then not eating it, did I mention exhausted and bitchy? Whatever the case, I'm taking good care of myself and I ask for God's mercy daily and hope that he will bless me with a healthy child at the end of 40 weeks. I'll keep you posted as this journey continues on.

Whassup

My new goal is to try and post at least once a week. . .I am about to start a whirlwind travel schedule for work so I may as well just write October off as a month lost from my life! So, sorry if I don't update the blog as much as I'd like. Hopefully the more time away will give me more (better) things to post about.

Here are some more GEMS from The Genius:

1. Me: (convincing him to get a haircut) Don't you want to be handsome?
Him: I'm already handsome. I don't need a haircut for that.

2. Him: (to his dad) Okay, I need for you to call my school every morning to see what they are having for breakfast so I can decide if I want to eat at school or at home.
His dad: **blank stare**
Him: For real.

3. Me: (in between kissing him a million times) I'm so glad God sent me such a smart and handsome little boy. I didn't know you were going to be so smart and handsome.
Him: You thought I wasn't going to know anything when I grew up?

4. Walking through Target looking at Halloween stuff we come upon a skeleton used for decoration.
Him: I can name all the parts of the skeleton.
Me: (intrigued) I don't believe you!
Him: Watch (so he starts as I point to the head) Brain, chest, stomach, arms, PENIS, legs. . .
Me: (laughing loudly and covering HIS mouth) Boy, a skeleton doesn't have a penis!
Him: Is it a girl?

Man, oh man life is just about to start getting FUN!

Bad Parents

Prior to the hurricane my son had an episode of vomiting, high fever and pain in his ear- yep, you guessed it, it was a full blown ear infection. So the doctor prescribes an antibiotic that my son is supposed to take for 10 days.

Two days later we evacuate for the hurricane. Needless to say my son probably received two doses of the medicine. Exactly one week after the hurricane my son throws up again and is complaining about his ear. Shit. So, we go back to the doctor and I tell a pretty convincing lie that when we evacuated we FORGOT the medicine at home and since it had to be refrigerated it ended up spoiling because we lost power. She gave me the side eye but wrote another prescription.

So, September 19th we get another prescription that he is supposed to take TWICE a day for 10 days. Although the hurricane is over the aftermath still lives on and to say our schedule/pace has been harried is the biggest understatement of the year. My son has not taken the prescription- correction his horrible parents have not given him his medicine in two days. My fear is that if we go back to the doctor she will excuse herself and call CPS from the another room.

I seriously feel like a major failure. It breaks my heart when he's sick and although he has been fine- wrecking havoc all over the house- I know the infection is probably still lingering and will rear it's ugly head again and it will be all our fault. If we have to go back I'm going to put a reminder in my phone to ring when it's time for his medicine- I know I should have done that at first, hindsight makes me feel even worse. I pray to God he gets better and that we don't have to go back to the doctor. Internet please send positive vibes our way!

(that picture is from my collection The Genius @ 10 months old)

Slowly but Surely

As you can imagine things have been a little crazy ( or crazier than normal) in my world. We're finally trying to regain some sense of normalcy. . .our power came on Thursday evening around 6:30 and the way we found out was hilarious (in retrospect). My husband- bless his heart- had gotten the hook up with a 15,000 watt generator (yeah, he could have powered up the entire street) and he also had an AIR CONDITIONING WINDOW UNIT- I didn't even know they still made those. . .I have no idea where he got this stuff and while I was grateful I was somewhat leery.

I kept thinking something was going to blow up or we'd have carbon monoxide in the house. So, I was extremely paranoid. At one point I was sitting on the couch watching this monster in our backyard with all these cords coming out of it and all of a sudden I hear this grinding sound and I start screaming. . ."Oh, my GAWD it's gonna blow!" Turns out the grinding noise was our GARBAGE DISPOSAL. Someone had flipped the switch and when the power was restored that was the first thing that came on. After I nearly gave my husband a heart attack we started celebrating. We went outside to tell the neighbors who were all outside in their driveways. My son ran out and started yelling, "hey everybody we got lights!"

Although I am EXTREMELY grateful that the power has been restored at our house (we still have friends and family who are without power) and while I did miss it- things weren't that bad when the power was out. We learned to improvise. We stayed closer together. We went to sleep earlier. We talked more. We were still.

Now that the power has been restored we're back to our frenetic pace. Today was my son's first day back at school and he was feeling the pain. He's been on "hurrication" (vacation due to hurricane- heard that on the news last night) and it was hard for that young brother to get it together this morning. As for me, man oh man, I was already struggling to stay on track and now I have to kick it in to the highest gear possible to get caught up before my ridiculous travel schedule (for work) kicks in next month. Next month. . .do yall realize that' s NEXT week?!

AGH!!

Safe and Sound

Hurricane Ike has come and gone. It tore through Galveston and Houston like a beast on a rampage. Praise God, my family and I are okay. So are the majority of friends that I have been able to contact. We sustained minimal damage to the outside of our house and that's it. No electricity but the weather was great last night and it was our first night back home.

Not sure how much longer we'll stay without power. . .hope the 4 week rumors aren't true. I'm at work today trying to regain some sense of normalcy. At least there's electricity and INTERNET at work! It is surreal to see all of the landmarks I'm familiar with in the city (on my side of town) torn down or hanging by a thread. Ike beat up the city pretty bad. . . but I know H-Town will bounce back in no time at all. It's a big ass inconvenience right now but it could have been so much worse.

My son, just realized the severity of the situation when we were returning home yesterday (we sought refuge in New Braunfels and Katy)- the playground structure in front of his school is GONE! He gasped and his eyes widened (even larger) and he said in his most devastated voice, "Oh, no the hurricane took our playground what are we gonna do?!"

To have a child's priorities. . .hope anyone who was in the area during the hurricane survived and all is well with you and your loved ones.

Things I Would Grab in a Hurricane

You know every since Hurricane Katrina and her sister, Hurricane Rita tore through the Gulf of Mexico people in Texas are always a little on edge when it comes to hurricanes because we have been thisclose to experiencing the devastation that our cousins in Louisiana and Mississippi experienced 3 short years ago. Whenever there is a disturbance in the Gulf we make sure our tanks are full of gas (after taking out a loan!!) and that we have our contingency plans mapped out in case we have to haul ass out of State (it would take you six months to get out of the State so, we all just head as far North Texas as we can)!

Well, the last time we vacated for Rita’s impending arrival I was at a loss when it came to deciding what priceless mementos I should cram into the trunk of my car. Let me stop here and say I am a total nostalgia geek! I have saved everything from ceramics that my late maternal grandmother made me in 1986, my 8th grade memory book, volleyball trophies (and I wasn’t even a starter on the team) photo’s GALORE, and even locks of my son’s hair from his first haircut.

Now I should clarify and say that because I am such a neat freak all of these items are neatly stored away and if you were to come to my house its cozy and somewhat minimalist appearance might shock you. . .there are no photo’s nailed up on the walls or stacks of old newspapers turning yellow in the corner. But there are certain things I just can’t seem to part with just yet.

Anyhoo. . .back to the topic at hand. I’ve thought about it and if I only had time to grab a few things (with the idea that everything else would be loss and this doesn’t include my husband and son) I would snatch up the following items:

1. My purse- contains the plastic loot, my drivers license and my phone
2. My passport- I might need to leave the country and grieve over the loss of my material possessions (might as well grab my son's while I'm at it)
3. Three photo albums (childhood pictures, some travel and my wedding) - the photo’s weren’t digital so this is all that exists
4. My laptop- all of my digital photo’s and some important documents are on my hard drive
5. My Chi flat iron- If nothing else I might be able to PAWN it if times get hard
6. The Power Strangers- the only way I'll have some peace

7. Underwear- we might be stranded somewhere for a minute

Amazing, that’s all I could really think of that I would be lost without. My priorities aren’t as screwed up as I thought. Since Hurricane Ike is hovering in the Gulf like he’s looking for Tina, I might need to start packing tonight!

Next Avengers

My son has been in total superhero worship mode for the past few months. Superman, Incredible Hulk, Spiderman, Transformers and of course his beloved POWER RANGERS. So, Friday when I stopped by Hollywood Video to pick up some new releases I also decided to get one kid-friendly movie for him. After picking my selections (Street Kings & National Treasure 2) I immediately focused my attention on the cartoon superhero section.

Their selection was scarce to say the least not to mention he had already seen most of the movies on the shelves. So, I wander back around to the new releases thinking maybe there would be something worthwhile yet not extremely violent for him to watch. I picked up a DVD case for an animated "movie" called the Next Avengers. It's a story about the children of the Avenger superheroes: Captain America, The Giant, Black Panther, Black Widow, etc.- yeah, I never heard of them either- just Captain America. Anyway, I figure he would like it since it was dealing with superheroes not to mention an old (as in aging) Incredible Hulk and Ironman were on the cover.

I take the movie home and of course he wants to watch it as soon as I show it to him. So, we settle in an began to watch it. I have to admit I was actually planning on reading while HE watched the movie and I would provide the occasional, "wow" "that was awesome" or "cool" in response to the action on the screen that I missed. But instead I actually started watching it and it was GOOD! Really good!

The animators did a great job with the action scenes and the story line was really good. Turns out all of the kids were orphaned (their parents lost a major battle and died- what a twist- superheroes dying) and they were raised under the radar by their "uncle" Tony Stark (yeah, IronMan- he's like a 60 years old). They find Bruce Banner (the Incredible Hulk) hiding out in the desert and need his help to help defeat the evil that has taken over the world. And although Bruce is about 70- the Hulk is still the strongest superhero alive and boy does he prove it! I thought it was a bit overkill (no pun intended) for him to rip someone in half (robots) and pound them over and over with boulders. But I guess he was trying to prove a point.

Anyway, it was a great cartoon and if you have an aspiring Superhero on your hands, he or she will love it! (BTW- I think this maybe debuting on the Disney channel or Jetix pretty soon. If it hasn't already. . .)

Don't Believe the Hype

I've said it before and I'll say it again. . .I consider myself to be pretty involved and engaged when it come to politics in this country but that's not why I started this blog- to debate or promote my views. HOWEVER I am compelled to throw out factual information in the face of bullshit. (Note: This is from a credible unbiased Associated Press writer.)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080904/ap_on_el_pr/cvn_fact_check

P.S. If the audience at the Republican National Convention is any indication of WHO McCain and Palin are representing then I think we all know what needs to be done. . .

Eight is Enough

My new guilty pleasure is watching the show Jon & Kate plus 8 on TLC. OMG! Have you seen this show? There’s this couple, Jon & Kate, who started off with twin girls and they wanted one more baby and ended up having SEXTUPLETS! Yep, that’s SIX kids, three girls and three boys. So, now they have EIGHT kids! The twins are 8 and the ‘tuplets are 4. Straight madness!!!

But the thing that intrigues me is how freaking “calm” Kate seems to be despite the fact that she has EIGHT kids under the age of ten!!! She appears to be a typical mom, cooking, cleaning, playing around, teaching, loving and disciplining her kids. But did I mention she has EIGHT kids. I refuse to believe she is not on drugs. Valium, Paxil, marijuana. . .SOMETHING! I have ONE child and from time to time I just want to turn up the Nyquil bottle.

I know there’s probably some extra’s on hand helping out or something- there has to be. But typically when they show Jon and Kate going somewhere alone (which is hella rare) her sister, Jodi takes care of all EIGHT kids plus Jodi (I think that’s her name) takes care of her own four kids. That’s a total of TWELVE kids!!! AGH!!! My sister would be like, “Um, I gotta wash my hair, I’m not gonna be able to watch them-ever!”.

But what I love most about the show is the REAL relationship between Jon and Kate. There is no pretense. She told him the other day, I love you but sometimes I can’t stand you. And he smiled and said, “The feeling is mutual”. Ha ha! I mean I think I’d be pretty bitter too if I didn’t leave well enough alone with TWO kids and then to have SIX more! I swear if my son would have been a twin I would have been like, “Okay, tie up my tubes right now!” She’s also prone to giving him “love taps” across the head every time he makes a sarcastic comment, which he does quite often.

Another endearing thing about the show is the close relationship between the kids. One episode had Jon taking the boys on a “boys only’ excursion and the little sisters all came over and hugged them and gave them kisses and told them to have fun. It was the cutest thing! I was sure they probably staged it but they all seem to be very affectionate towards each other that is when they’re not throwing toys and antagonizing each other. Even the older girls, Cara and Maddy seem to be taking all the chaos in stride.

Jon and Kate did this thing that I thought was pretty cool but I wonder how often they will be able to do this- each kid had their own special day where they were they got to spend time wherever they wanted with their parents ALONE. So, it was like they were an only child for a few hours and Jon and Kate got to imagine how life would be if they only had one kid.

I guess the reason I really like the show so much is because it takes parenting to a whole new level and it helps me to put things in perspective. My house is a calm, peaceful, RETREAT in comparison to the daily pandemonium that household!

New Initiative

After doing some research and watching programs on television advocating for the reduction of our carbon footprint on the Earth, our family has decided to start recycling plastic containers.

We drink a lot of bottled water and my husband drinks a lot of Gatorade, even my son’s Juicy Juice containers are recyclable. I’m sure a better option would be to get a filtration system to avoid buying plastic water bottles and we could get reusable containers for our water. But you gotta crawl before you can walk. . .

So, we are setting up a slim garbage can in the garage for plastic bottles. We’ve explained this entire initiative and why we’re doing it to my son and he’s quite excited. Although he initially thought we could recycle everything plastic including bags, which is a no-no. Once a week I will drop the containers off at the large center in our neighborhood on my way to work. I’m hoping this is a habit we can start and keep!!

This is just a small step (one of many) we plan on making in the coming years to do our part to help save the planet. Here are some recycling facts from http://www.earth911.org/:

--In 2006, Americans drank about 167 bottles of water each, but only recycled an average of 23 percent. That leaves 38 billion water bottles in landfills.
--Bottled water costs between $1 and $4 per gallon and 90 percent of the cost is in the bottle, lid and label.
--According to the Beverage Marketing Corp, the average American consumed 1.6 gallons of bottled water in 1976. In 2006 that number jumped to 28.3 gallons.
--It takes over 1.5 million barrels of oil to manufacture a year’s supply of bottled water. That’s enough oil to fuel 100,000 cars.
--Eight out of 10 plastic water bottles become landfill waste.
--In 2007 we spent $16 billion on bottled water. That’s more than we spent on iPods or movie tickets.
--Plastic bottles take 700 years before they begin to decompose in a landfill.
--If everyone in NYC gave up water bottles for one week they would save 24 million bottles from being landfilled; one month would save 112 million bottles and one year would save 1.328 billion bottles from going into the landfill.

Fairy Tales

The Princess and the Frog is an upcoming animated musical feature film currently being produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and based upon the classic fairy tale The Frog Prince. It will be the first traditionally animated (2-D) feature film in Disney's animated features canon since 2004's Home on the Range. The film is set in New Orleans during the 1920s Jazz Age, and Tiana will be the first black Disney Princess.

While it seems this might be a GREAT thing for us. . . there are critics who say the Disney story is too-little, too-late and that the story line is full of racist elements. I say to the critics: SHADDUP!!!!! And I say this mainly because the majority of the critics are black folks or “well meaning” white folks who have appointed themselves our representatives.

First of all, Disney is the ONLY Company that has even thought about, considered or put into action any type of plan to include a diverse group of characters in their portfolio. Why didn’t some of these critics come up with the idea or beat Disney to the punch? Why haven’t black owned studios or television stations created programming or movies that cater to little black girls to show them that they are just as beautiful (even more so) than Cinderella.

There are even critiques about the storyline, which takes place in the 1920’s in New Orleans. People who got an early taste of the film were “shocked” that there was a plantation owner and that the main character was a chambermaid and that her name was Maddy. Um- correct me if I’m wrong but wasn’t that pretty much how things were in the 1920’s in the South?!?!? So as not to offend (and to protect their bottom line), Disney tweaked the story line and now the plantation owner is a “sugar cane farmer” and the main character while still a chambermaid her new name is Tiana.

Again maybe I’m crazy but I thought ALL the Disney princesses were poor or down on their luck before they become “princesses”?! That is the Disney formula!!! Rags to riches. Wishing on a star and making your dreams come true. Who cares if Maddy/Tiana is a maid or that she lives on a plantation? As long as in the end she gets the damn prince and they live happily ever after!!! Seriously people, there are much bigger fish to fry and other issues that need our immediate attention. If we could get people as engaged in protecting the lives and education of our children as they are with fighting over the image of an imaginary, animated character- then we’d probably make some serious progress!

I think it's going to be a great film and has the potential to be a classic just like the others. But what will probably dictate it's success is whether or not Black folks go out and support it like they should! Check out the trailier: http://disney.go.com/disneypictures/princessandthefrog/

Phenomenal Mama of the Year

Lately it seems I have been struggling to keep up. Struggling to get everything crammed into a short 8 hour day. And our last excursion seemed to wipe out what little determination I had left. As much as I enjoy this blog and as committed as I had become I also found it becoming a struggle. A struggle to post something worthwhile. A struggle to even sign on in the evenings after to work and connect.

But last night I was given a burst of energy. Renewed motivation and a hot topic to discuss: Mrs. Michelle Obama. A Phenomenal Mama for the ages!

I almost did myself a disservice by not watching Mrs. Obama because I was tired and it was getting late but I felt drawn to the television as she took to the stage in her vibrant turquoise dress, with her perfectly coiffed hair and infectious smile. So, I copped a squat and turned up the t.v.

I felt riveted and a bit emotional throughout Mrs. Obama’s speech. There is something about her that’s almost Oprah-esque but she definitely has a certain flair all her own. She’s very quick witted, intelligent, and articulate (the Anglo’s favorite word) but she also possesses this down to Earth “sista” quality that reminds you of your best friend, aunt or co-worker who tells it like it is. . . . although she’s the closest thing we have to black “royalty” she also comes across as very approachable and able to relate to the masses.

But the thing that I admire most about Mrs. Obama is her absolute adoration and devotion to her children. It is so apparent that she is a nurturing, attentive and engaged mother. I admire any woman that can juggle motherhood, marriage, work, etc. and make it seem effortless but to do it on a world stage with so many people watching and so many people judging. . .that to me takes some serious confidence and courage. I have been on Team Obama since the beginning and not only am I rooting for Barack Obama to become the next President I’m also rooting for this family to continue to be strengthened throughout this process (and his presidency) so that all Americans can see the shining example of what a family is supposed to be and what really matters in this life.

Melancholy

I remember when my son was first born. . .it was a scary and exciting time. Scary because he wasn't exactly breathing when he was born. They had to rush him next door and suction him to clear his lungs. But soon I heard the cat-like cry that let me know he was okay.

I look at him now and sometimes I get emotional because although he is only four years old I can barely remember him at the various stages that he's gone through without the aid of pictures. I guess because I'm so focused on him now, it seems as if he has always been this age. As we sit and have "philosophical" conversations (like about how this boy in his class is not telling the truth about his age because he should be in kindergarten- I swear my son said this!) I marvel that I had anything to do with the formation of this little person. A little person whose intellect is already apparent and has his own thoughts and ideas about how things work. Not to mention he constantly reminds me that God is the only one who knows EVERYTHING.

Sometimes I miss the little baby I use to hold in my arms and kiss in to oblivion. But I absolutely adore the little boy who can walk, talk and use the toilet unassisted. And every now and then he lets me hug him tight and kiss him a hundred times. I know much too soon he will become mute and unaffectionate and I will sit and get melancholy wishing that I had that four year old who would talk and make me laugh everyday. So, I'm treasuring these moments because I know they will be gone all too soon.

(The picture is The Genius at 9 months old. That HAIR was out of control!!!)

Paying for the Sins of the Undisciplined

Have you ever found yourself overcompensating in the discipline department because other folks aren't disciplining their kids?

When we were in the airport waiting on our flight there was this "family"- I use the term loosely because the roles didn't appear to be very defined. There were two women who looked to be about the same age (35+), one man around 30 and SIX kids. Two older girls probably 11 and 13 and FOUR kids under the age of 8. . .three boys and one girl.

To say they were unruly is an understatement. I have never in all my years of traveling ever seen AIRPORT security have to come tell someone about their kids. And the thing that made it even more painful for me is that they were black. The only other black family in the waiting area with us. Sidebar- in addition to their behavior being out of line they looked a hot mess, very unkempt.

At one point both women disappeared, the two older girls were into their MP3 players and the other four kids were in the middle of the floor- as in the area where everyone is walking to get to their gates or get to baggage claim- playing with cars and making all kinds of noise. The "dad" (I heard one of them call him that) was just sitting there totally oblivious. I checked out the expressions of the other people around us and everyone seemed to be perturbed by their unruly behavior. They were just LOUD and rowdy. I know they were just kids but at that age they should know what behavior is unacceptable. . .then for the adults to just sit there and allow the behavior to continue.

The best thing that happened to us was getting bumped from that plane. I couldn't have even imagined being on a plane for 12 hours with all that madness. (I also found out later they were visiting someone at an airforce base in Okinawa and all three adults worked for the airline so they didn't have to pay for the tickets.) As a result of their behavior my husband and I kept giving my son stern reminders about being "good" and if he raised his voice to ask a question we both got all up in arms. Ridiculous, I know. . .but for some reason it was almost like we were trying to prove a point that not ALL of OUR children act that way. There are a few of us who have children who know better.

The thing that was hilarious (in retrospect) is that every time we would tell my son things that were unacceptable he would say, "I know" or "I don't do that" or "Why are you telling me that?". Although we had NO problems out of him (nor do we ever have problems when we are out in public) I just want to make sure we reinforce what's acceptable because being a black boy who will someday become a black man people will already have a preconceived notion about him- I just don't want him giving them any ammunition.

Konnichiwa

So, my last post was kinda vague, I know. . .bet you thought I was in Brooklyn or Bangor, Maine. No, try a little farther East. We spent a week in Japan. The Tokyo area to be exact. We visited friends who are stationed at an air force base on the continent.

I was a nervous wreck prior to the trip and tried to be prepared to the tenth power because my son was going on this trip and the flight was 12 hours non-stop. I know that I have a tendency to brag about him from time to time but this time it is soooo deserved! He was the perfect little traveler! He asked ONCE in twelve hours when we were gonna get there. . .he slept half the flight so that helped but otherwise he watched movies or played games from the back of his own personal headset screen or ate snacks from the duffel bag full of goodies we brought on board or played with the Power Strangers (yeah, they are still holding up).

As for me, I was beyond tired and stressed out from the time the trip began until it ended because I let some outside influences affect me as we were preparing to leave and it continued throughout the journey. I enjoyed seeing my friends and experiencing a different culture- sidebar: why is the United States the only country that caters to people who don't speak our language? If you don't know some Japanese you will be LOST in that country! I found that to be the most frustrating part even people who understood a little English still couldn't really comprehend the questions I was asking.

Anyway, we visited the Sensoji temple in Asakusa, the Ueno zoo, ate a restaurant where we were sitting on the floor but our feet were hanging underneath us; the portions were MINIATURE but very good- my son loved the noodles, we rode the train to our destinations and did A LOT of walking, we also got to see some of the Yokota Air Force Base. My only regret was that we went all that way and didn't get to see Mt. Fuji. We were supposed to arrive on Sunday and take a tour on Monday but because we were a day late I guess we missed our chance. . .such is life.

Anyway, I was extremely glad to be back in the good old U.S. of A.! We arrived in Newark Friday evening and flew to Houston that night so, that was a total of 15 hours on an airplane and again my son was a complete angel! They only problem we had once we returned home was that he was still on "Japan time", which is a 14 hour difference so, at 1:30am our time he was up running around playing saying he couldn't sleep. We were all pretty jet lagged, I still don't think we've adjusted to our own time zone. I can't believe how fast that week passed and that we're back into our daily routine.

As of now, travel is officially ON HOLD until the work in my bedroom is done. So, Mo I hope you're reading this!!!!