Randomness

Thanks for the boredom busters, Kendra!

60%How Addicted to Blogging Are You?

Mingle² - Online Dating

--I guess I have a pretty serious addiction to blogging, at least in terms of reading other people's blog because heaven knows I don't post enough on my own!--

$5225.00The Cadaver Calculator - Find out how much your body is worth. From Mingle2 - Free Online Dating

Mingle² - Free Online Dating

--Gee, and I've worked the past few years beacause? I could've just sold my body to science. Hehe!--

Mingle² - Online Dating

--Hmm, I wonder when I used the word "kill" that gave my blog it's rating?--

I Scored a 80%!

--I'm still trying to figure out which two I spelled wrong. I pride myself on being a human Webster's Dictionary...guess I'd better not give up my day job!--

Back from the Artic!

Have I mentioned that my husband is brilliant? Remember how I threatened to retreat to the Artic Circle to escape the heat and lack of air conditioning in our apartment? It seems that Ben had had enough of sweltering in the heat and decided to poke around in the closet (he had to break in since the apartment community locks it) that houses our furnace. He took the cover off of the furnace and noticed that there was a little switch. Hit the switch and the next thing we heard was the sweetest sound I've heard in a long time--the air conditioning turning on. Apparently, there must be a ground short somewhere in the apartment because this switch keeps clicking off. Ben positioned the cover just-so hoping to prevent it from switching off again. At least now, we know what happened and how to fix it. Took him all of about 5 minutes to discover what was wrong and to fix it and the maintenance people couldn't find 5 minutes out of their day spent sitting on the curb smoking to relieve a sweating family of 4? All that I can say is, thank God Ben is handy!

Oh, and look what Ben found while he was poking around in the furnace closet...


Nice, huh? And no, that's not ours!

The Artic Circle Looks Good

I'm thinking that a vacation sounds good right about now. Not your typical summertime, relax on the beach vacation either, the last thing I want to go is anyplace warm. Denver (and much of Colorado, for that matter)is in the midst of yet another heat wave with the forecast predicting near-record highs in the upper 90's and almost no rain in sight. Normally, this wouldn't be a problem, since we have central air. Or I should edit that to say, we did have central air. Our unit (which is probably 15+ years old)decided to quit working--again--Friday morning. Ben called them around 1pm after failed attempts to get it going again, and they said they might send someone out that evening (didn't happen)or "possibly" Monday. Knowing these sum-lords, we'll be lucky if we're cool before the 4th of July. Ben & I are going to draft up a letter telling them that we will be deducting a day's rent for each & every day that we do not have A/C in the month of July. Maybe that will motivate them?

So, that said, I'm about to pack my bags for Antartica and hang out with the penguins. In reality, we may escape to my parents' place where at least they have a swamp cooler. We are getting together with them on the 4th anyway, for a picnic and such in the mountain town of Ouray. It's kind of a family tradition.

Flickr changes

Hi everyone! I wanted to let you know that I've recently uploaded some new pictures of the girls out in the wading pool. However, due to an obscene number of views, I have decided to change some of them to be viewed only by family & friends. So, if you want to see them and are not a contact, you may have to create an account and then add me as a contact. If you already have a Yahoo account, you can use that. Sorry to have to do this but I worry about someone, somewhere, using my daughters for child pornography. I've seen it done so many times with innocent partially clothed pictures. When an innocent picture of your daughter in her bathing suit gets 223 hits in two days, something's up! Some of the pictures are still public, for now, but that may change too. When it comes to my girls, I just can't be cautious enough.

Thanks for understanding.

Hop Aboard the Whirlwind Express

The low-down of our trip to the Great Lake State.

I'm happy to report that we left the house EARLY on Thursday morning, don't ask how that happened. Honestly, I think it had something to do with the fact that we packed up the car the night before and that I was up at 3:45am. When then drove to the park-n-ride by the airport, parked, unloaded, climbed into the shuttle and arrived at DIA at 6 o'clock on the button. We discovered that Curbside Check-in is SOOOO worth it when you're lugging three suitcases, carry on bags and carseats. What's a measily $6? After that, we were down to two carry ons, a diaper bag and a garment bag, umbrella stroller, and two car seats. Little did we know that we could've checked both car seats and saved hauling them thru security and all that. No one at Northwest offered to do this for us. The line for security moved very quickly and we got thru without any problems, thank goodness. They did ask me what was in Cara's sippy cup--water, no liquid explosives--but otherwise, we were in the clear. We got to our gate in plenty of time to go to McDonald's for breakfast ($14 for 3 breakfast Extra Value Meals?!) and watch planes pull in. Having kids pays off at the gate when we are allowed priority boarding with all of the first class people. It took us that long to get everyone situated, including asking for help with Cailtin's car seat. We then settled in for our just shy of 3 hour plane ride. Cara briefly nursed before falling asleep, Ben was out almost immediately (having worked the night before) and Caitlin dozed off shortly after take off. Cara woke up after about a 45 minute nap, so I entertained here with toys and Cheerios while Ben & Caitlin continued to sleep. Pretty uneventful and routine flight in all regards. The only thing that urks me is how the major airlines are charging for food now. On our flight, they were charging $5 for a snack box! Not even real food, just snacks. Thankfully, I had packed snacks for everyone, we just took the free beverages. Anyway, we got into DTW (Northwest World Gateway...WOW!) right on schedule and after figuring out the Tram, got to the luggage claim and met Ben's mom & sister. The girls were greeted with hugs and gifts...Ben and I with just hugs. Once we got outside of the terminal, the humidity and heat hit us! Holy smokes...I sure haven't missed THAT about Michigan! We just don't get the humidity here in Colorado, thank goodness. The rest of Thursday saw us unwinding and prepping for the journey down to Toledo for the wedding. My sister-in-law (thanks F!) treated me to a manicure & pedicure and Caitlin to having her nails painted. What a rare and appreciated treat! I got a french manicure and looked like sophisticated momma.
That evening, I snuck over to my good friend Robyn's house and we hung out, she showed me how to do my make-up (I'm clueless) and played with my hair. I'm sorry to say that she was the only friend that we had time to see and that's only because she lives right down the street from the in-laws (and yes, it's just because we like them too).

Firday, we all got up, showered and packed for our journey to Toledo. Ben & I had the grand idea to try to stop off in Birmingham on our (out of the) way down. Unfortunately, we ran into construction traffic (construction has it's own season in MI) and ended up scratching that idea. Turns out that the people we wanted to see were out of town anyway, though I would've loved to have seen the library. Ben decided to take Evergreen to 7 Mile, don't ask me why, and then 7 Mile to 75. Needless to say, it was THE SLOWEST way to get to 75--lots of stoplights, detours, etc--and took us through some rough neighbors like something right out of Eminem's 8 Mile. After about 1 1/2 hours, we finally got on I-75. Problem was, our directions were from US 23, so we got totally turned around ending up all over the Metro Toledo area including down on the waterfront (very pretty area). By some miracle, we arrived at the rehearsal at 5:02pm, only two minutes late. I think Caitlin was hot & tired because she really did not want to cooperate with the wedding coordinator and had to be sternly talked to ("Catilin, I'm sure there's a wall for you to stand with your nose against around here somewhere...") before she conceeded and cooperated with everyone. The santuary was beautiful, built in 1905, but lacked one essential during midwestern summers, air conditioning. To say it was warm in there would be a gross understatment. Thankfully, we were able to run through the ceremony quickly and then head off to the restaraunt for dinner. We had dinner at the Navy Pier Bistro down on the waterfront. Beautiful location, great food, lots of fun. I had this piece of caramel pecan pie to die for!

We awoke to a beautiful, yet probably the warmest day of the summer thus far, on Saturday morning. Caitlin was up and out with the bridal party to have her hair done around 10am and Ben followed at noon. Cara, my mother in law and I headed to a local Target to pick up some last minute dress essentials before going back to the hotel to change. I am proud to say that I negoiated Toledo's freeways all by myself and got us to the wedding with time to spare. Unfortunately, that was the last piece of good news. Just as we feared, the santuary was very warm again, with only fans to circulate the air. At first, Cara & I were doing well. We sat towards the outer aisle in the back in case we had to make an emergency exit and Cara was as happy as a clam. However, as soon as the actual ceremony started, Cara began to fuss. I noticed that she was drenched in sweat despite my attempts to cool her with a paper fan & a sippy cup with water (word of advice, make sure baby's clothes are made of cotton). We ended up having to vacate the santuary and watch the ceremony from the doors leading to. I couldn't hear what was being said, but the ceremony was beautiful nonetheless. Ben looked handsome standing up as his brother's best man and Caitlin did a wonderful job as flower girl, she looked so grown up. I think that Ben & I shed a tear. My brother in law and his new wife were so blistfully happy and in love, such of a wonderful sight. Susan looked so beautiful and glowing in her gown. It was just a picture-perfect ceremony. Afterwards, we all assembled outside to see the new couple off. Mind you, it was a perfectly clear, sunny day so the sun was just beating down on us. Cara was not happy about being outside and soon started to wail. I brought her back inside and attempted to pacify her with no luck. At one point, I was seriously considering foregoing the reception due to Cara's temperment. I decided to give her one last chance and escaped to the bellows of the church to feed her. Momentary peace came over us while she nursed only to be follwed by convulsions. I am fairly certain that she had heat stroke. Never have I felt so guilty or scared. I rushed her to the sink in the lounge area, strpped her down to her diaper and splashed cool water all over her. After a few minutes, she stopped shaking and promptly fell asleep. After making sure she was indeed sleeping (checking for a pulse and signs of breathing), I moved her upstairs again, by the fans, while the wedding party had more photographs taken.
Afterward, we all headed over to the reception. Again, the food was wonderful and the entertainment was great. It was so cute to see Ben dancing with Caitlin and then his mom. Ben & I got to dance too, which was a rare treat. We both thoroughly enjoyed it. The rest of the night, Ben & Caitlin got their groove on while I stayed with Cara. Caitlin had a blast dancing with her Uncle Kofi, Aunt Effie and brand-new Aunt Susan. That little girl danced from the time the music started until Ben carried her off the dance floor around midnight! Cara & I headed out awhile before then as Cara was sleepy. We ended up driving around town and to a Meijer parking lot where Cara had her nightcap and promptly fell asleep. Ben and I, both high on life after the reception, went out in search of food and found a Kroger. Armed with yogurt, salad and chips, we came back to the hotel, sat in the dining room and chatted for awhile. Ahh...life without kids, even if it was 1:30 in the morning!

Sunday found us out in the country around Slyvania, OH at Susan's parents' home. We all had a BBQ followed by a refreshing swim in the pond in front of their house. Ben, Caitlin & I attempted to paddle boat but, Caitlin got scared when the tether for the boat got caught up in the paddles and we coulnd't paddle. Brave Uncle Kofi and Navyman, Jason came to the rescue. Once we were freed, we made one more loop around the pond before heading inside to leave. I almost forgot, we all watched Kofi & Susan open their wedding presens and boy did they get some beautiful things, especially some crystal serving pieces. Kofi was saying that they got so much stuff that they needed a bigger house to put them in!
We headed back to MI and over to Kofi & Susan's place to say goodbye to them and have some wonderful Jet's pizza. They were heading out to Hawaii for two weeks in the morning as we were leaving to come back to Denver.

We arrived at the airport, checked in at Frontier where they promptly asked if we wanted to check our car seats (yes, please!) and then headed to security. Again, we got lucky and went right through, no problems while the family in front of us got searched. After some Starbuck's for breakfast we boarded the plane. I have to say that I love Frontier airlines (not only because they started in Denver either). The employees are very friendly and helpful, the planes are comfortable, they offer free drinks & snacks and the best part---for $5 you can watch TV or movies on these little screens built into the seats. We paid for Caitlin to watch NickJr in-flight and it kept her quiet and happy. Cara slept most of the flight while Ben and I rested up. We got into Denver right on time, and after struggling with getting luggage to the shuttle pick up point, got back to our car and on our way home.

It's good to be home but, we are missing Detroit and our friends and family there. Caitlin really grew attached to her Uncle Kofi, Aunts Susan & Effie as well as her Nana and Grandpa (who she met for the first time at the wedding). She still talks about how she misses them and the fun that she had (especially the limo rides). I wish that we had more time to make the rounds to see family and friends. Hopefully, we'll be able to make a trip out next summer to see everyone.
Well, that's all folks. Everything considered, it was a pretty seamless trip there & back with just enough "adventure" thrown in to make things interesting and memorable!

To Kof & Susan--we can't wait to see the pictures of both the wedding and honeymoon! We hope that you guys had a wonderful time in Hawaii! Thank you for letting us be a part of your special day.

To Aunt F & Nana--thanks for providing the means for us to come to MI and for the hospitality (oh yeah, and for spoiling the girls).

Going on a jet plane

In case you have been wondering why I've been so quiet lately, here is the reason. I have been running ragged trying to prepare 4 people for a trans-continental flight to Detroit for my brother-in-laws wedding. We've had to patiently (or not patiently) await the arrival of Caitlin's flower girl dress, drive way across town to have it altered, take suits to the dry cleaners, find suitable clothes for the mother of the flower girl and then attempt to pack our family of 4. Let me give you some of the highlights.

--Finding a "formal" dress when you've not been blessed with a model's body has been nearly impossible. I have been to store upon store and resorted to ordering from JCPenney (thanks for the gifts cards Mom & Dad). What a mistake that was. First, did you know that you really can't pay with gift cards on JCP's website? Well, you can't. Especially if you have more than one. You have to pre-pay in the store, wait for them to receive the payment to "release" the order to be shipped, then wait for the order to arrive in the store. To make a very long story short, let's just say that JCP's right hand doesn't know what it's left hand is doing, or saying. They told me the order was shipped one day via the 1-800 number and when I arrive in store to pick it up, I'm told another date, four days later. Umm, hello...I'm on a deadline here! Grr! Thankfully, in my running about today, I found a cute outfit from Catherine's. Granted, it cost me about twice what JCPenney was charging but hey, it's in my hands and it looks good. No guessing if JCP's periwinkle will be more purple than blue.

--Having a dress altered is a royal pain in the arse. Caitlin's dress for the wedding is beautiful. It is kind of an antique ivory almost a sheer with lots of layers, a petticoat, the works. Well, turns out, that in order to take up a hem off the length, one has to take it up from the bodice due to the delicate ruffle on the bottom. The seamstress made it look simple enough even if there were pins every 1/2 inch along the bottom. The dress was promised to be ready to go today. Well, we get in there, Caitlin tries on the dress for the final fitting and what do I immediately notice, despite my naive eyes? That the ruffle along the bottom is not the same length all the way around. OMG, are you serious?! I momentarily panic because in exactly three days, we are to be mid-air. I politely (don't ask me how) point out the problem to the head seamstress who promptly comes over with her pin cushion and begins to make the adjustments. She asks me, again, when I need the dress back by and when I tell her, you can just see the color drain from her face (that makes two of us). "Umm, our plane leave bright & early Thursday morning, so I'll need it by Wednesday". So, we are due back in Lakewood, about 40 minutes away again at 4pm on Wednesday--lovely, with the price of gas being what it is.

--Coordinating and packing for 4 people is a gigantic undertaking. You'd think, enough said, right? Not quite. It's not just doing the laundry, folding clothes and packing them into a suitcase...oh no, it's more complicated than that. Here's a sampling of my internal monologue: "What is (insert family members name here) going to where to the family portrait? To the rehearsal?...Do we have tights and shoes to go with it? What about if there's a pool at the hotel? Better pack a bathing suit. Oh wait, since we're not going to be at the wedding/rehearsal all day, I've got to pack casual clothes for everyone too. And, let's not forget that every one's beauty care products must fit comfortably into a quart size Ziplock bag...how are we going to pack Caitlin's pink hair lotion? Shoot, gotta remember to pack diapers, wipes and Pull-ups". Once that is accomplished (sometime Wednesday). I still have to put together carry-on bags for the girls and Ben & I, figure out how best to carry-on Caitlin's flower girl dress, arrange for off-site airport parking and pick up Ben's suits.

That said, I will be so glad when we finally board the plane on Thursday morning. It will feel good to sit back and try to convince two kids to behave somewhat like humans for three hours. That seems like a piece of cake compared to the past couple of days and the days yet to come. Just writing this post has made me tired. Traveling as a family of four is bound to be an adventure, I'll let you know how it goes. I'll tell you all about the journey and the wedding when we get back.

Caitlin's Quips

Out of the mouth of a not-so-little babe---

(after waking up for a nap and being asked to pick up her toys)
Me: Caitlin, please pick up these train tracks and put them in the box.
Caitlin: Mom, I can't, not yet.
Me: Why not?
Caitlin: My brain isn't awake yet.

(after picking out a movie to watch)
Me: What movie are we going to watch?
Caitlin: Muppet Christmas Carol
Me: But it's not Christmastime
Caitlin: I'm a kid, it's always time to watch this movie.
Me: Okay then
Caitlin: This movie is brought to you in part by Pedigree!

Kids do say the darnest things.

A little consideration would go a LONG ways!

I've had it, that's it, I'm throwing in the towel, no more Mrs. NiceWoman. From now on, I'll be playing hard ball and rounding the bases in a furry.

To my downstairs neighbors, consider this your warning! We've all just about had it with your loud, obnoxious, gang-banging music blaring at all hours and all decibel levels. In case you haven't noticed...you live on the 2nd floor, so that means that people live both above and below you! It really wouldn't kill you to have an ounce of consideration for those around, especially those with little kids who are trying to sleep, who have jobs that require them to sleep during the day (and night) and, heaven forbid, those who don't want their place to sound like a club gone bad!

Apparently, informing the property manager has no effect on you, so let me just say that we are stepping up the game. The next time that our floor vibrates at an obscene hour, we will be calling the courtesy security patrol and they will be paying you a not so welcomed visit. If that doesn't work, we will be calling the police. I know, I know, they are frequent guests at your place--well, that's great, they shouldn't have any trouble finding you then. Now, please understand, we are not saying that you have to walk around on your tiptoes and whisper. See, we realize that we live in an apartment too and that certain noise is a fact of life. However, you've taken "noise" to a whole new level. Webster's has created a new definition of the term just in your honor.

That said, please, go onto Ebay and buy yourself some consideration!

Oh, and to our chain-smoking, puffing like a train next door neighbor. The city of Aurora called, there's now a new smog zone right over your head and it ain't attractive. They wanted me to tell you that every day is a no-burn day. All joking aside, we would appreciate not inhaling 2nd hand smoke every time we want to open our windows or turn on the A/C. If you want to smoke, do so in your car going 90 down I-25. That way, no one really has to smell it 'cause they're going too fast. Thank you!

--------------
Bottom line, apartment living bites rocks! We've never had this much trouble with our neighbors before. I must be the low-life residents that this place attracts coupled with the fact that the property management does nothing to enforce the "rules" that we're forced to sign as part of the lease. We have affectionatly named this place DelPoopAy (Actually called Del Arte Lofts & Flats) and when our lease is up in August, we plan on high-tailing it out of here. Oh, I hope and I pray!

Well-rounded look at me

*** THE EVERYTHING TEST ***

There are many different types of tests on the internet today. Personality tests, purity tests, stereotype tests, political tests. But now, there is one test to rule them all.


Traditionally, online tests would ask certain questions about your musical tastes or clothing for a stereotype, your experiences for a purity test, or deep questions for a personality test.We're turning that upside down - all the questions affect all the results, and we've got some innovative results too! Enjoy :-)



PERSONALITY
You are more logical than emotional, more concerned about self than concerned about others, more atheist than religious, more loner than dependent, more lazy than workaholic, more traditional than rebel, more engineering mind than artistic mind, more idealist than cynical, more leader than follower, and more introverted than extroverted.
As for specific personality traits, you are adventurious (100%), intellectual (74%), romantic (71%), greedy (55%).

STEREOTYPES
Young Professional (100%)
Old Geezer (50%)
Punk Rock (47%)


LIFE EXPERIENCE
Sex (19%)
Substances (8%)
Travel (24%)


POLITICS
Your political views would best be described as Liberal, whom
you agree with around 46% of the time.

SOCIOECONOMIC
Your attitude toward life best associates you with Working Class.
You make more than 82% of those who have taken this test,
and 8% less than the U.S. average.

If your life was a movie, it would be rated PG.
By the way, your hottness rank is 45%, hotter than 9% of other test takers.

TAKE THE TEST
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Rain, tornado watches and hailstorms

Gotta love Colorado weather. In the matter of eight hours, you can see all weather extremes. Yesterday was one such day. Started off cloudy and a bit on the cool side, then the wind picked up to about 35-40 MPH. After that, it started to pour, complete with thunder and lightening. Next thing we know, NickJr is interrupted for a weather bulletin. We were under a tornado watch for several hours. The sky was a really icky color between gray and green though nothing else really happened. It got pretty cold last night though, enough for the girls to put on their winter pajamas and for me to put on my flannel bottoms. Woke up this morning to partly cloudy skies. You can barely tell that there was any severe weather around here yesterday.

Check out this slide show to see some of the extreme weather Colorado saw. Slide 12 shows the tennis ball sized hail that fell from the sky around Elizabeth in Elbert County. Amazing! I have only seen golf ball sized in my time and I remember going out into the front yard of a house that I was at for a birthday party, putting some into a ET glass and coming back inside to add sugar and food coloring to it. Ahh, the memories!

Happy Memorial Day!

Graphics & Layouts

Let us remember to give thanks to all the men & women who fight every day for our freedom. We are truly blessed to live in this county and sometimes, I know that I take it for granted.

So, today, spend time with your family & friends, grill some hot dogs and burgers and think of some of the wonderful reasons why living in the United States is great. When you see a flag blowing in the wind, count your blessings.

Happy Memorial Day everyone!

Getting Acquainted

Now that we can finally see the floor here at the apartment, time has been freed up to do other, more entertaining things. Take Friday for example. We decided, spur of the moment, that we couldn't miss the premiere of Shrek the Third. However, going to a movie theater with two small kids spells D-I-A-S-T-E-R. Thankfully, there are a few drive-in theaters still operating in the Denver Metro area. Feeling like Speedy Gonzales, we ran around the house gathering up blankets and sweaters, piled in the car and headed to the Cinderella Drive In down the road in Engelwood. We got there with plenty of time to spare and while the girls finished their naps in the car, Ben went off in search of classic drive-in food (corn dogs, nachos, candy). I was amazed and how big this place is. It has two screens and rows upon rows of parking. By the time the movie started, the lot for Shrek was pretty darn full. There was quite a line of people hoping to get in and many who watched it through the slots in the fence. Next to us was a SWEET tan '46 Chevy Impala (kudos to me for identifying the car) and an awesome little family. We enjoyed the movie (well, Ben, Caitlin & I did, Cara slept) and the fact that we could take the whole family to the movies for under $20 without having to worrying about Cara crying or Caitlin sitting still. Shrek the Third gets about 1 1/2 thumbs up from us though, it was good but not "laughing until you throw up" funny.
Fast forward to yesterday, we spent the evening after Ben got home from work, driving around a northern suburb looking at housing. Ben is hopeful that we might be truly house hunting by the end of the summer. We found a couple of really cute townhouses in our price range. This town is not that far from Denver and has good schools. We are working with a mortgage broker to see what can be done. So, keep your fingers crossed for us. Anyway, it was fun to drive around, looking at homes, and talking about what we want or, do not want in a perspective house.
Today, we are planning a trip to Borders so that I can spend my birthday gift card and then to Payless to pick up THE PERFECT pair of shoes to go with Caitlin's flower girl dress for her Uncle Kofi's wedding in June. Then, we'll rendevous back to the "flat" to finish up some house work.
Oh, while we were out yesterday, I came across a table that was set up near the mall's play place that was promoting a new charter school in our area. While we're hoping to move out of Aurora, if we don't this could be a great option for Caitlin. They are teaching multi-culturalism and awareness and will be offering instruction in three foreign languages (Chinese and Spanish to start) with a promise to add a third next school year. Best part, it's a public charter school which = FREE! From what I've heard and read, this place sounds right up Caitlin's alley! The public schools here are not that wonderful, so this would be a great alternative.
One more thing...I may not be going back to work after all. The harsh reality regarding the price of putting two kids in day care has hit home--hard. My salary at the library will only leave me with $200/month after forking over $1500 for childcare. Did I mention that a few days a week, Cara will be in another person's care for 11 hours out of 24? Add that to the fact that we are having a hard time finding licensed people to watch Cara who are willing to be open past 6pm for those of us that do not have the luxury of working early mornings. The final decision hasn't been made yet, as Ben & I need to do some serious number crunching, but I think I know, in my heart, what's the right thing to do.

Okay, okay, I'm done rambling now, I promise!

Stop the Madness!

Oh boy, oh boy! Make it stop, please! I'm beginning to think that everything in my life has to be difficult in order for it to be worthwhile. You know that old saying, whatever doesn't break us will make us stronger? This seems to be my mantra. Just when I thought I had life, for the foreseeable future figured out, a few curve balls have to be thrown into the mix of things. Let me explain...
You all might remember that I recently took a job as a circulation clerk despite a decrease in pay, knowing that I'd be making pennies on the dollar after paying for child care X 2. Well, never in a million years did I expect to have this much trouble finding infant openings for Cara. I can't recall how many places we called, even going where no parent should ever go and checking out a few "centers" that are run out of shopping centers. Maybe I'm not current on things and this is the new trend but the few that we've seen have had very small rooms and one in particular smelled peculiar. I did the math and the "play area" in the infant room would allow for about 2 square feet of space per child. What?! Even in our small, awkwardly laid out apartment, Cara has more space than that and we're paying less a month in rent than they want for child care. Are they joking? We are not willing to dive into the realm of in-home day cares because I have lost faith in the Qualistar rating system as well as the state of Colorado's licensing program. The person who signed the license of the provider we originally had (pre-Three Bears) for Caitlin needs to be slapped! Anyway, I digress...we did finally find a early childhood center that we'd like to use for both girls ('cause I'd rather not drive all over Arapahoe county dropping off kiddos if I don't have to). We loved it because it's right across the canal from us and it's a Christian program. They also teach Spanish and ASL starting at the infant level. The atmosphere appeared to be well-rounded and loving. Couldn't get much better, you say? No, it really couldn't. There are just a couple of hurdles or curve balls--
1. They want tuition up front and you have to pay either monthly or bi-monthly. That comes out to $1400. For this financially struggling family, that is impossible to come up with in a week.
2. In addition to tuition, there's an enrollment fee (for both girls) and a materials fee.
3. They close at 5:30pm. That might not seem like an issue but for us, it will be because I do not know my hours at the new job and Ben will have a hard time making it back to Aurora from downtown by then.

So, what we have to decide is whether or not I should go back to work and if so, how on earth are we going to overcome all of these hurdles? I am debating contacting the library supervisor to see if we can't negotiate more money per hour so that it actually, somewhat, makes sense for me to pay 3/4 of my paycheck towards child care. Ben & I are actually considering the fact that it just might not be financially sound for me to return to work just yet...that I should wait until a better-paying offer comes along, preferably when Cara is a year old (no more worrying about her not taking formula or breast milk and also a rate drop if she's walking). We would also have more time to save up for the cost of enrolling the girls. My only concerns are that if I turn this job down, I will be burning bridges and not be able to work for this library system for a long time and may not find anything that pays well when the time comes. In addition, even though it's only a couple more months, I'm afraid that I will go wacko staying home any longer.

I know, I know...Ben & I seriously need to talk. But, when do you find time when your spouse works two jobs and when he is home, he's sleeping or we're jointly taking care of the girls? Late night chats via instant messenger seem to be on the agenda.

Enough venting, time for some strategetic decision making. What would YOU do?

Happy Mother's Day!

Here's to hoping that all of my mom friends have a great Mother's Day. Relax, be with your family and remember what you love about being a mom.


TopIcons.Net

The time has come, almost.

Well, the day is almost here. All the boxes are just about packed, the moving truck rented. Soon, we will be back in the Denver Metro area. I, for one, am very excited! I get to have my husband back as well as a new job in the public library setting. Officially, we will change residences on Tuesday but it may take a few days to get everyone settled in. So, if I seem to disappear for a little bit, you'll know what's up and won't have the need to send a search party. Now, if you happen to know any fit guys who want to carry couches, mattresses and such up 1 1/2 flights of steps, send them my way!

I guess it's fitting to say goodbye to the good ole Western Slope one more time. This area has been good to me and will always be home. Hopefully, we can visit often. A plan is already brewing in my head for the 4th of July.

Eastward ho!

The Good, the bad and the best!

The Good:
-I got a job with the Aurora Library. This means that, eventually, I'll be able to get these annoying, pesky creditors off of my back and I'll be getting out of the house!
-There will be "flexible income" again.
-We will be moving back to the city!
-I got hired despite a bad reference from a former boss (see below).
-Two of my dear friends gave me glowing references (thanks Jeanne & Jana).

The Bad:
-I was offered the Library Clerk position instead of the Library Assistant.
-The pay that I ended up being offered was about $4/hour less than was discussed at my interview.
-After paying day care, my take home will be a mere few hundred dollars.
-I found out that a former boss gave me a bad reference and had me panicked thinking I wouldn't get the job.
-I have to put my baby in day care and do not know of an upstanding one--time to do research. (Caitlin will return to the preschool she attended before)
-We will be 5 hours away from my parents, again.

The Best:
-The girls & I will be living with Ben again.
-We will be a family again, all under one roof.
-Ben & I have worked on our "differences" and what happened that fateful day in August & have mutually decided to save our marriage.
-I will be close to many of my wonderful friends on the Front Range.
-Did I mention that I will be getting out of the house?! Don't get me wrong, I love my girls but I think I'll be a much better mom if I'm not home with them 24/7, 365. Both will also benefit from the socialization that preschool/day care provides.

Well folks, that's the skinny. Now, even though I got the official offer...I still have to pass a background investigation, credit screen, drug test (shucks, no more poppy seed muffins) and have a physical. Other than the credit screen (for reasons mentioned in previous posts), I have no worries. What can I say except--WOO HOO! This good news came at the perfect time, the day before my 29th birthday!

Woot!

Just a short post to say that I have officially joined the ranks as a member of the gainfully employed! The final offer has not come in & I still have to pass a backgroung & credit check. But...the director said she wants me on her staff! I should have an official offer--postion & salary by the end of the week. Time to start packing...wagons east!

Let me be lucky!

Please, let the stars, or is it the planets, line up; let Yin & Yang be in balance; let there be good karma...
Momma needs a job! I am in the running (I hope) for two library jobs in Aurora. I interviewed for one last Tuesday and I believe I impressed them with my thorough responses to their questions. Heck, I think I even managed to sound articulate and educated. My "mommy brain" took a temporary vacation. I have another interview with the same library district for another position next Tuesday. This is the one that I really want, it's a Library Assistant position, which is a little more glamorous and pays a lot better than the Library Clerk job that I interviewed for last week. Truth be told though, I'm so desperate right now, that I'll take which ever one is offered to me. It sounds like they are very short-staffed too, so hopefully, that will work in my favor. When I asked when the director hoped to have the position filled, she replied, (direct quote) "the day before yesterday"! Now, I'm not bilingual in Spanish like they'd prefer but I'm more than willing to learn. I'm hoping that my customer service skills just won them over. What can I say, I like working with people (most days). This library district is right down the road from where we used to live and pretty central to any other part of Aurora that we chose to live in, so it's perfect. The schedule might be a bit funky (something like 6 days on, 2 days off and then 4 days on, 2 days off) but, we can work around that. I mean, I used to work EVERY, single weekend when I worked for DOC. All in all, I'm really psyched and have a good vibe that I'll get an offer for one of the positions by the end of next week. As much as I love being back in "small town Colorado", I have come to realize that it will take a miracle for me to find a good-paying job doing something that I'm good at here. Besides, I actually like living in the Denver Metro area.
When we were there last week, Ben, the girls & I spent an evening walking in LoDo visiting the Denver Public Library (oh my gosh, amazing), a huge Barnes & Noble were I snagged the latest in the Shopaholic series, and then had dinner at BD's Mongolian BBQ. While it was windy and sleeting at one point, we all had a wonderful time. There's something awesome about being amoung tall buildings and culture at every turn. Gives me the chills! I am already making plans to visit the many museums with Ben & the girls and have many eating establishments to try out. Mile High City, here we come, again (I hope & pray)!

Easter Morning 2007

Easter Morning 2007
Originally uploaded by Mountain Chronicles.

Hope that you had as much fun this morning and we did! The Easter bunny was very generous to both girls and thankfully, hid his eggs and baskets indoors since we were greeted with a downpour.

Easter Memories in the Making

Easter Collage
Originally uploaded by Mountain Chronicles.

Wishing all of you a very happy and joyful Easter.
Here, on the western slope of Colorado, we have set plans in motion for starting some great Easter traditions. Caitlin, my mom & I have made Easter sugar cookies and a bunny cake. Earlier today, we went to a Lions Club sponsored egg hunt & dyed eggs. The Easter bunny will hide them first thing in the morning along with baskets for both girls. We will feast on cinnamon rolls after the hunt is over and a dinner of ham, potatoes and muffins will follow. These are the things that make for great childhood memories. I remember doing these very things with my parents & siblings. I can only hope that Caitlin & Cara will be able to look back and smile too, some day.

I hope that this Easter is full of joy & wonderful memories for you & yours,

Like Mother, Like Daughter

My creation
Originally uploaded by Mountain Chronicles.

Further proof that Cara looks like me, especially with the new 'do!

The final results

Okay, before you all start freaking out...let me just say that this is NOT how my hair is going to look 90% of the time. It's just that I can't wash it right now. Here's what took place. I went to Rumours, my favorite salon here in town 'cause the stylists know there stuff, and talked with one of the girls. We must've spent 20 minutes talking about my options. Did I just want to give my hair some texture and a little bit more funkiness? How about learning techniques involving lots of styling products and time (which I don't have)? What about a body wave for some body and loose curls that I could blow straight? Doing this would allow me more styling options without too much fussiness. A body wave, I was told, would make it easier to achieve the "straight style" that I wanted 'cause I'd already have the body. On the days that I didn't feel like doing anything though, I wouldn't be stuck with a horrible cut. How could I lose? So, I sat down for my first perm in about oh, 13 years or so. Kinda scary but, I trusted Katy, my stylist. She promised that I wouldn't look like a french poodle!

So, here's the final result--not blown straight. Right now, it is a tad bit "wild" but it will calm down some once I can wash it and style it (Sunday night). Truth be told, I finally look like my girls, more like Cara than Caitlin, of course. Maybe now, I won't get the "Are they both really yours?" or "Are you the nanny?" comments. I know, I know, fake curls are supposedly are their way out but these are not curls, it's waves, honestly! This really isn't a good picture but I don't have any other way of taking a picture of myself at the moment. I promise to post more, after I can wash it! Have faith, it will look great!

This is what my hair would look like, blown straight (minus the tiara 'cause I don't have that kind of bling bling).

It's time to get bold and start caring about how I look again. I might even try a headband like Lauren suggested. Now, to get nominated for TLC's What Not to Wear...

Wanted: New Hairstyle

My hair is beginning to drive me nuts. I mean, seriously, who wants to look like the Flying Nun on a daily basis. Granted, I am not talented when it comes to styling products. The most that I can manage is a blow drier and maybe some gel-like stuff. Anyway, after spending 15 minutes attempting to "style" my hair, this is what I got...

Why do I even bother, really? So, I'm in the market for a new look. Here are some styles that I'm thinking about, let me know which one you think would look best. I am willing to get some body in my hair via curls, etc. I'm getting kind of sick of my pin straight, limp hair.

1. Not quite that short, probably done over my ears.


2. Not too much of a stretch from what I have but I imagine I'll need some body in order for it too look like this.


3. This is pretty close to my "normal" style, but again, this chick has a lot more body to her hair. I would have mine come down over my ears.


4. Totally curly. Probably not as "poofy" on the top and longer on the sides.


5. None of these

What do you guys think?

Just listen to mommy!

(I posted this on the Single Mom's Group on CafeMom, but thought I would vent here too)

*sigh* This is one of those days that I don't want to be a mom, especially a stay at home one. I guess I had a rose-colored view of what it would be like to stay home 24/7 with my girls. I pictured us doing crafts even though I'm craft-challenged, going to play groups, visiting the zoo, children's museum and the like. Instead, I am stuck home with them most days because I have limited funds and frankly, there is not much to do in this small town (I lived in a metro area prior to my separation). Anyway, I digress. Last night, my 8 month old screamed and screamed for about 20 minutes for no apparent reason then nursed for about 10 seconds and passed out. This meant a late night, rushed dinner and no patience. Then today, my oldest decides to defy me at every turn and ask "Why?" to everything that I ask her to do. You can only put a kid in time out so many times before it stops working. Kids just know how to punch the buttons sometimes. I'm tired and cranky and yet, I can't run away, even for a few hours. I'm stuck...
That said, I give MAJOR kudos to the SAHMs who do this and have been doing it successfully for years. I admire you all and wonder how you stand it! True, some can afford to find and pay for outlets for their kids (preschool, tumbling and the like), so they get some time to themselves but still, I'm sure those times are few and far between. Even those who are not SAHMs, you're still the primary caregiver and disciplinarian. Doesn't that get old? I would hate to replay what I say to my oldest every day 'cause I'm sure it's a lot of "No", "Stop that!" and "Not now"s. I feel guilty but sometimes, I just want to snap! I want to be an ostrich and bury my head in the sand. Not to have to hear "MOMMA...!" 5,000 times a day would be lovely, not to have to attempt to decode a baby's cries, not to be pulled in a million directions at the same time. Right now, I would kill for a job, for a little escape. Then, at the same time, I know I will miss being home, that I will miss precious moments and milestones.

Anyway, thanks for letting me vent. Life would be so much simplier if kids would just do what we tell them, huh?

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Since we all probably have a little bit o' Irish in us...


Courtesy of MsTags.com

We are going downtown to show our love for the Irish by watching the parade and eating some brats!

**Update on the parade** We had a lovely time. It was in the 70's during the parade, which lasted all of about 15 minutes. Caitlin sat on the curb watching the floats, cars and horses go by and catching candy that was thrown down. She managed to get about 6 pieces so it was a mini-Halloween to her. I saw an old high school home ec teacher who handed me a paper crane, symbol of peace. I guess I haven't changed much, because, after almost 11 years, she still recognized me! After the parade, we walked a few blocks down to the Coffee Trader for Italian Cream Sodas (Coconut for me, strawberry for Caitlin) and then walked back to the car. Caitlin spent a majority of the day outside since it was absolutely gorgeous. I cleaned out my car and then opened the house up to let the fresh air in. It was a wonderful day!

Sampling of pictures

Click on the Flickr icon to see more recent pictures!

No sick days

*scratch, scratch, cough, cough* That is me. It seems that I have come down with a little cold/ear ache of some sort. It started yesterday with a slight irritation in my throat and now, it REALLY hurts to swallow, drink, etc. I'm also really hot and dizzy. As much as I'd love to sleep all day and wallow in self-pity...moms don't get sick days. So, I must plow on. I have Weight Watchers tonight though I'm not sure if I will gather up enough energy for the 30 minute drive to the meeting site. I'm sincerely hoping that both girls will be good to me today so that I can take it easy. I will, however, have to make a trek to the market to get some cough drops or something. *sighs* I hate being sick. I'm just praying that neither of the girls gets what I have. Nothing more pitiful than sick kids.

Weight Loss Tracking

As most of you know, I have been going to Weight Watchers since February and have been (most days) following the plan rigidly. It has been hard, especially with cravings, but I know it will be worth it when I don't have to jump in the Plus section anymore. Well, I am proud to report the fruits of my labor---10.4 lbs lost! Woo hoo! And yes, I can tell a difference. My "fat" pants are getting baggy and my "regular" pants are fitting pretty well. I have a long way to go to get to my goal weight but, I now have the confidence to keep going. I may drop attending actual meetings 'cause other than weighing in (accountability factor), the meetings do nothing for me. I track my Points online anyway and am a message board a-holic, so maybe just doing it online will work. So, that's the latest!

I'm still around

I don't really have anything to post about at the present time but just wanted you folks to know that I haven't vanished off the face of the planet. I have been avidly reading and posting on CafeMom, reading and commenting on my friends' blogs, searching for a job (no luck yet) and trying to keep two little princess-divas somewhat happy. I am also researching loans/grants for grad school (Library Science) some day--figured I had better get my finances back on track first--and doing some reading. This all makes for a busy day, most of the time.

I hope to have some more interesting stuff to post about soon...

Oh, I did want to mention the cutest thing today. I put Cara in the big bathtub with Caitlin (I held & supported Cara, of course) and the two girls had a blast "floating" next to each other. At one point, Cara was riding on Caitlin's back (a total Kodak moment but I was occupied with keeping Cara from drowning, so no picture) with her chubby legs on either side of Caitlin as they swam "like Diego on the seat turtle up & down the length of the tub. Some good times had by both girls.

That's all folks. :)

She did it!

You know, I've found it so hard not to compare Cara's milestones with those of other babies born in the same month as her or even her big sister. I don't know why though 'cause I was so relaxed with Caitlin and had the whole, "She'll do it when she's ready" attitude but with Cara, I'm much more nervous, go figure. Once again, my worry was unfounded. About two months ago, Cara mastered rolling over from tummy to back and I was anxiously awaiting the day when she would roll over consistently from back to tummy and she really only did it once and then stopped, rolling halfway, twisting herself all up but, not rolling over. So, I've been giving her tons of time on the floor with her favorite toys just out of reach and she was oh, so close. Naturally, the day that I go out for a counseling appointment and to have some Mom-ME time, she rolls over not once, not twice but three or four times! So, we can officially write that down in her baby book--one more developmental milestone met, right on! You go baby!
She is also sitting up unassisted & we will try sitting up in a shopping cart soon. I can't believe how fast she is growing & changing. She is a no longer a little, motionless baby but rather a blossoming little tyke.

Valentine's Day Fun Facts

I found this on history.com, it's a fun hodgepodge of Valentine's Day facts. Hope that you all have a wonderful day & tell all the wonderful people in your lives that you love them. I have two cute little valentine's this year...Caitlin & Cara! Caitlin made out some valentines for family memebers, even signing a "C" on each one. She had a blast choosing one for each person and then handing them out this morning.

Here is what my parents got me:

It has a significance to me, as of late, because a friend quoted a verse that talked about faith the size of a mustard seed...that even if you had that little bit of faith, nothing was impossible.

Fun Valentine's Day Facts---
There are many opinons as to who was the original Valentine, with the most popular theory that it was a clergyman who was executed for secretly marrying couples in ancient Rome. In any event, in 496 A.D., Pope Gelasius set aside February 14 to honor St. Valentine. Through the centuries, the Christian holiday became a time to exchange love messages and St. Valentine became a patron saint of lovers. In the 1840s, Esther Howland, a native of Massachusetts, is given credit for sending the first Valentine cards. The spirit of love continues as valentines are sent with sentimental verses and children exchange valentine cards at school.
Looking for Love
- 188 million Valentine's Day cards are exchanged annually, making Valentine's Day the second-most popular greeting-card-giving occasion. (This total excludes packaged kids valentines for classroom exchanges.) (Source: Hallmark research)
- Over 50 percent of all Valentine's Day cards are purchased in the six days prior to the observance, making Valentine's Day a procrastinator's delight. (Source: Hallmark research)
- Research reveals that more than half of the U.S. population celebrates Valentine's Day by purchasing a greeting card. (Source: Hallmark research)
- 904: The number of dating service establishments nationwide as of 2002. These establishments, which include Internet dating services, employed nearly 4,300 people and pulled in $489 million in revenues.
Be Mine
- 2.2 million marriages take place in the United States annually. That breaks down to more than 6,000 a day.
- 147,300 marriages are performed in Nevada during 2005. So many couples "tie the knot" in the Silver State that it ranked fourth nationally in marriages, even though it's total population that year among states was 35th.
Candy is Dandy!
- 1,241: The number of locations producing chocolate and cocoa products in 2004. These establishments employed 43,322 people. California led the nation in the number of such establishments with 136, followed by Pennsylvania with 122. (Source:http://www.census.gov/prod/www/abs/cbptotal.html)
- 515 locations produced nonchocolate confectionary products in 2004. These establishments employed 22,234 people.
- The total value of shipments in 2004 for firms producing chocolate and cocoa products was $13.9 billion. Nonchocolate confectionery product manufacturing, meanwhile, was a $5.7 billion industry.
- 3,467 Number of confectionery and nut stores in the United States in 2004. Often referred to as candy stores, they are among the best sources of sweets for Valentine's Day.
- The per capita consumption of candy by Americans in 2005 was 25.7 pounds. Candy consumption has actually declined over the last few years; in 1997, each American gobbled or savored more than 27 pounds of candy a year.
Flowers
- The combined wholesale value of domestically produced cut flowers in 2005 for all flower-producing operations with $100,000 or more in sales was $397 million. Among states, California was the leading producer, alone accounting for nearly three-quarters of this amount ($289 million).
- The combined wholesale value of domestically produced cut roses in 2005 for all operations with $100,000 or more in sales was $39 million. Among all types of cut flowers, roses were third in receipts ($39 million)to lilies ($76.9 million) and tulips ($39.1 million).
- There were 21,667 florists nationwide in 2004. These businesses employed 109,915 people.
Jewelry
- There were 28,772 jewelry stores in the United States in 2004. Jewelry stores offer engagement, wedding and other rings to lovers of all ages. In February 2006, these stores sold $2.6 billion worth of merchandise.

Boy do we spent a lot!

Happy Valentine's Day! :)

Flip Side

Must count my blessings in times like this so, here are some GOOD things that have or are happening:

1. I have a job interview for the Youth Librarian job in Pagosa Springs this coming Thursday. I am to have lunch with the director first (small library) and then meet the staff afterwards. I'm not sure if this is a full-fledged interview or just the preliminary, but in either case, I'm totally psyched!

2. In keeping with one of my New Year's Resolutios, I have joined Weight Watchers and am on the plan. I have lost 3 lbs so far and am finding it easy to watch what I'm eating. Thankfully, Weight Watchers is not a restrictive diet, I can have whatever I want, in moderation.

3. Cara has learned how to roll over in both directions. She is better about stomach to back, but has mastered both! :)

4. I have been feeling a resurgance in my faith as of late. I'm not sure what brought it on, but I am totally enveloping it.

5. It has been warm outside! We have finally been lifted out of the Artic temperatures that we've had for awhile.

6. I filed my income taxes and was absolutely floored to find out that I'm expecting a refund from both state and federal...first time in years. Don't worry, I plan to be very responsible with the money. :)

I'm sure there are more things to be thankful for, including my health, my girls and my family & friends, but these are the tops ones on my list for now.

What's been going down...

This is going to be pretty hard for me to blog about, but those of you that know me know that I am an open book and will share just about anything with anyone. So, here goes...if I ramble on, please forgive me!
So--most of you know that my husband and I are separated and were trying to decide how to proceed from there. Well, last weekend (that's another post in and of itself) solidified our decision to go full force and get divorced. This has been hard for me to swallow because I wasn't ready to totally give up and now, I am feeling a loss of the man that was my husband, even if we do end up being good friends (which is what I hope & pray for)after all is said and done. Originally, we were going to attempt to handle things ourselves, saving lots of money, by proceeding pro se. Well, I'm not exactly sure what changed this, but, I think that right now, we are both working to obtain counsel. I am hoping to be accepted as a pro bono case (shouldn't be too hard considering that I have no income)within the next month thru a legal aid program in my county. In the meantime, I am attempting to make heads or tails out of the mounds of paperwork necessary to file. I am beginning to see why lots of people go to the expense of hiring an attorney. I am finding myself asking "What do I put here?" or "What does THAT mean?" That being said, I am hoping that I can find someone to at least help me complete all of the paperwork and perhaps, too, represent my interests and those of the girls at the hearing. Like I was saying earlier, this hasn't been easy for me to accept. Never in a million years would I have looked into a crystal ball 6 years ago and saw this for my future. I thought that I would be one of those blistfully happy people living the good old American Dream. I am reading a wonderful book given to me by my counselor about how to survive the lost of a love. No, it doesn't deal with death or anything morbid like that but rather that it's okay to feel the way that I do and that I'm going to be okay, at the same time. I have learned that I don't always have to be strong, that I can show that I'm hurt, upset, anger, scared, etc.
Okay, that's the first half of what's happened lately. Here is the second part...
With the separation came the crumbling of my financial situation as I have been struggling for months (some harder than others) to find a job that will support myself and my daughters. Try as I might to make creditors understand my situation and cut me some slack, some have been better about it than others. One in particular has gone to a total extreme. **let this be a lesson to everyone to ALWAYS read the small print** One creditor, who will reman nameless, has decided that since I cannot pay them and they don't have a kind or sincere bone in their collective body, that they will take me to court to file a judgement against me regarding my past due account. It wasn't totally out of the blue because said creditor had been calling for weeks offering me payment plans and such but, honestly, I did not expect the phone call that came on Thursday. It was from the legal office that represents the creditor to inform me that a claim had been filed against me and that I had until the 23rd of this month to pay $1500 plus commit to a monthly payment or else. Basically, if I didn't pay them ASAP, they would give my case to the legal team (lawyers) to proceed with getting a court order for me to pay them. Words like "wage garnishment, severe penalties, covering their lawyer fees" were spilling out of this guy's mouth. This of course freaked me out. I don't have that kind of money, frankly, who does? I'm not proud of the thoughts that were going through my mind that led to an emergency counseling session to help me sort everything out. My counselor is a wonderful, patient woman who listened to me, allowed me to cry and then, got on the phone to get me some help. I have since learned what could happen if a judgment is issued against me (not as worse as I feared) and also that, I am going to be okay! Bad things happen to good people sometimes, but I firmly believe that this is happening for a reason and that I'm going to come out of everything better for it.
I guess that wraps up probably the longest post you've ever read. Thanks for reading!

Singing Its Praises

I just wanted to tell all of you moms out there about a wonderful new site that I just discovered last week and am already hooked on---CafeMom. This site is kind of like MySpace or Facebook just for moms. They just started some Groups (read message boards) and I've found one for inter-racial families, Moms of Babies Born in 2006, weight loss support boards, and the list goes on. I have "met" some wonderful moms that I seem to have lots in common with and it has been fun sharing joys, frustrations and strategies with them. No one knows the challenges of motherhood better than another mother and, I don't know about you, but I certainly could use all the friends that I can get. So, I encourage all of my "mommy friends" to stick there neck out there and explore the site. You do have to create a profile to join but once you do, you can find other moms that live near you, have children the same age or same some common interests. Check it out, I don't think you'll be disappointed.

Then again, maybe not...

Boy am I so glad that I stew things over, over-think or double check things sometimes. Here I was, making plans to go to Denver to interview for the technical services position when it hit me that maybe I might want to remind myself what exactly I would be interviewing for. So, I logged on to their human resources department website and scanned the job duties and such. Scrolling down towards the bottom of the posting, I saw the salary and did a double take--$13.83/hour! Excuse me! Obviously, I must've not been thinking clearly when I applied or confused the salary with that of one of the many other positions I applied for the same day 'cause that so NOT a living wage. So, I had to email my would've-been boss to tell her to withdraw my application. Thank goodness I did this before driving all the way over ther to find out this pitiful salary. See, sometimes it pays to be neurotic.

Stretched pretty thin

I thought I would let you all know about my job search as of late. The time has come for me to find gainful employment as I have started to get those threatening phone calls from creditors. Granted, I had been looking before now, just not as hard. Currently, I have applications and resumes in all over the state of Colorado, seriously. I just applied for two more library positions, one in Pagosa Springs (south and east of here, near Durango) as a Youth Services Librarian and another in Parachute (east of here along I-70) for the same position. I was amazed that neither require a MLS and that the pay is decent. I also got an interview for next week at Regis University in Denver. I applied a week or so ago for a technicial services position there. So, it looks like I will be making the trek over the mountains to see if this is something that I'd want to do. There are a lot of unknowns (housing, child care, etc), but I'm going to cross those bridges when I get to them. First step, get a sassy new interview outfit and hair cut to impress the big wigs! Wish me luck. I am hoping for more calls regarding interviews soon. Imagine this, I may actually get to CHOOSE which job I want...totally foreign concept. I have lost count as to how many applications/resumes I have it, but could list all of the cities (but I won't, too boring). So, it looks like I may actually be able to get on my feet soon, which would be wonderful.

Well, that's the latest...

Uno, dos, tres...

I didn't feel that it was fair to brag about Cara without shinning the light on Caitlin as well. She is 3 1/2 years old now, which she asks me just about every day--"What number am I Momma?" Just about every day, am I amazed at the things that she says or does, she is such of a sponge and a puppet. I have to be really careful what I say or I'll find Ms. Caitie repeating it. Like one time, I called Winston, the family Golden Retriever, a blonde idiot and wouldn't you know, I heard Caitlin call a dog at the park that same thing! Whoops, I need a sensor on my mouth! The cutest things come out of her mouth too...the other day, I was nursing Cara, who has discovered that she can bite Momma, and she decided to attempt to take a nibble. I yelped out in pain and unlatched Cara. Caitlin, seeing my distress said, "Breathe Momma!" Do I have a future labor coach or therapist in the making? I was laughing so hard that I forgot about the pain that I was in. I swear that I don't know where she learns these things from.
Also, Caitlin has been starting to say things in Spanish lately, thanks to Dora the Explorer and Diego (and yes, the Dora Kitchen). She can count to ten and does so without thinking a lot when she's counting up stuff while playing; and uses many phrases in the course of a conversation. I even heard her talking to her Little People doll house characters the other day, in partial Spanish. It's pretty bad when your 3 year old knows more Spanish than you do. I had to find a website to translate some English words into Spanish when Caitlin would ask what such and such was in Spanish. Thankfully, I came across this site that not only finds the correct word for you, but sounds it out (http://www.spanishdict.com/). I need that since phonics are not one of my strong points. I'm thinking that Muzzie might be a good birthday gift idea for her. Who knows, maybe I'll pick it up too...goodness knows it will come in handy out here where we have a large hispanic population.
We are working on letter recognition and have found it to be a lot of fun to make letters out of PlayDough and identifying each of alphabet letters that we have on the fridge. I think, I'm going to take Lauren's idea and make flash cards for her--that will be a test of my artistic ability because I want to draw a picture on one side that starts with that letter and the letter on the other side. I'll probably chicken out and use clip art! She did get two alphabet games for her Leap Pad for Christmas, so she has learned a lot because of those too.
I have noticed a great change in Caitie's drawings as of late. The little artist in her is blossoming. She is drawing faces that are atomically correct and other pictures with things in them that I can usually identify. When she colors, she is also staying within the lines most of the time and coloring things a more realistic color...green for grass, yellow for a sun, etc. I love to watch her be so artistic and creative.
Her pretend play has also become more grown up too. She roll-plays with her doll house characters, plays "What's cooking?" with her Dora Kitchen and loves to make houses and forts for her stuffed animals. She has also recently taken to puzzles, effortlessly putting together 25 piece puzzles. Somewhere, there is a little brain working away.
I just delight in seeing these "big girl" changes in her though I find it hard to believe that she will be FOUR this summer!

Growing like a weed, she is.

Cara had her 6 month well baby check up yesterday. While we were there, Cara was totally charming everyone from the doctors to nurses and other mothers--with her head of dark hair and her babble and kicks. She was very good throughout the entire appointment and barely cried when given her shots. All in all, her doctor was impressed with her progress especially since we were just ther about a month and a half ago for her 4 month check up. Cara is almost sitting up on her own, without support, babbles almost non-stop for hours at a time (there will never be peace in my household!) and is oh so close to rolling over. We have started real solid foods though she hasn't taken a liking to any thing other than nursing. We are also trying to work on transitioning her to a bottle and formula, which isn't going well. Not that I can blame her, there is a big taste difference. She just has to get used to it though, so that I can safely leave her with a sitter knowing that she will not starve herself.
Cara's personality has really emerged lately and no longer is she an inactive baby. She is just so sweet and social. One of the things that she does that I just find so adorable is if I put my face close to hers, she will take both of her hands, reach up and grab the sides of my face and pull me down towards her and slobber on me--baby kisses. She also loves to play with her favorite things being her exersaucer and play gym. She loves to "twirl" around on the exersaucer, playing with all of the different toys. She has learned how to manipulate them so that she can chew on them, funny to watch! With her play gym, she has mastered the scoot & roll technique and can move all over the mat, playing with all of the toys and harassing the heck out of the flying birdie in the middle. It's nothing short of a miracle that the poor bird still has its head and wings. She usually strikes up a conversation with the toys while she's playing too. Mostly, she is a very content baby. Lately, we've had some fussy days due in part to teething. Two pearly white teeth really stand out in her little mouth and by the way that she drools and chews on everything, I'd say more are coming.
From her doctor's visit, we came away with only one concern and that is to get Cara rolling over with ease soon. I guess she is lagging behind just a bit since most kids are rolling over by about 4-5 months. Her doctor is not overly concerned though since babies are put to sleep on their backs, tummy time is not a popular thing with them...especially babies like Cara, who have big heads. She is in the 99% for head size. So, more time on her tummy every day, as much as she'll tolerate was the Rx given to me. Wouldn't you know, that night, she rolled over! Sure, it's not a habit yet, but we're heading down the right path. This past weekend, we went to the Children's Museum of Denver while visiting Ben, and Cara played in the infant pond and rolled over again, in both directions. I'm so not worried...she'll do it when she's ready. I guess that's a common trend with 2nd children. The first, we freak out if they don't do things right on time and with the 2nd, we want them to take their time!
One more note, Cara is to have her ultrasound on the 30th to check on her sacral dimple. She was born with one, just like Caitlin. Again, no real concern because she moves and kicks her legs too well, but, just the same, I can't help but be nervous. I will keep you all posted on that.
I guess that's it for my update on Cara. I am so extremely proud of her and how much she has grown and changed lately. I am so blessed to be home and able to see this first-hand.

6 month stats:
Weight-15lbs, 15 oz (I had her weight wrong @ 4 months, she was 15lbs)
Height-26 inches
Head Circum-18.5 inches

Keep on growing baby!

Today's Special

While Lauren & Jon take a stroll down memory lane, I thought I would too! This was one of my favorite shows as a kid, I rarely missed an episode.



I also found Pinwheel which according to a reliable source was on Nick right before Today's Special at 2:00pm EST.

It just keeps coming!

I just thought I would report that we got MORE SNOW last night & a little bit today. I've stopped adding up all of the white stuff that we've gotten this year. I just know that it is a lot...more than we've seen in the course of a winter in about 12 years! I saw an article in our paper about a lady in Loveland, CO who sold snowballs to a guy in CT for $200 so that his daughters could have a little bit of a white Christmas. She had tons of snow to spare since Loveland got hit during the blizzard of 2006 with over two feet of snow. I remember, during some brown (and a few green) Christmases in Michigan, wishing that my parents could buy snow...I guess it's true, you CAN buy anything on Ebay! Now, this poor woman has got to figure out how to ship the snow without melting it--two words for her-dry ice. Anyway, we got about 3 inches here and some bitter winds. I was out pumping gas (a moderate $2.39/gallon for 87 Premium) with my hood up and my ears will still REALLY cold by the time I got back in the car. No playing out in the snow for the next few days. I think the highs are only supposed to be about 20F. Truthfully, I'm getting a little sick of having to deal with the snow (bundling kids up, trekking thru it, etc), so if anyone wants to make me an offer, I might be willing to sell all the snow in town!

A little update

Time seems to have gotten away from me lately so I thought I would update everyone on what's been happening here...

~I had another job interview with the county health & human services department last week. I interviewed for two social work positions. I saw the ad in the newspaper and thought, maybe, it was time to put my sociology degree to work. The first was for a child welfare case manager. When I first graduated and moved to MI, this is the kind of work that I interviewed for there and didn't want to do. Thankfully, this isn't Metro Detroit...there is no police weapon-carrying training or a high crime rate. Still, I would have to testify in court, possibly remove children from their parents and other unpleasant tasks. In addition to the case load demand, I'd also be on call 24/7 M-F and rotating weekends. Not good for someone with two young kids. So, I don't think that's a feasible job for me. I also had a chance to interview for a 32 hour/week position as a coordinator for the teen pregnancy prevention program. Now this, it sounds like, would be right up my alley. I was really intrigued by the prevention program in high school and college (did some volunteer stuff here & there) and pictured myself doing something related to that cause when I graduated. I told my interview panel that I thought that this program would be a good match for me. I would be teaching classes on pregnancy prevention, self esteem and things like that in addition to one-on-one mentoring. I think I interviewed well and am now just waiting to hear back.

~Cara visited a pediatric optamologist yesterday due to my concern that she appeared to go cross-eyed a lot. She had a vision exam and a refraction test where they dilated her pupils. She was such of a trooper through the whole thing, even letting me briefly put on the little sunglasses to protect her eyes from bright light. Her doctor was awesome, had a whole bag of tricks to get babies to pay attention to her...a monkey banging drums on a the end of a stick that she kept in her mouth, a Pooh light, etc. After all was said and done, Cara was pronounced a normal, healthy baby who has a wide bridge on her nose which makes it appear that she's cross-eyed because we can't see as much "white" in her eyes. I let out a big sigh of relief...another hurdle jumped or avoided all together.

~Cara now has two teeth. The bottom left tooth (front) came in days after the one next to it. What can I say except that she drools a lot and Baby Orajel has become our best friend! She has a lot of fussy days when sometimes, only crying herself to sleep seems to work. This too, shall pass, I keep reminding myself.

~Caitlin has developed a total obsession for dancing, especially ballet and Angelina Ballerina. It is so cute to watch her dance around, twirling, doing splits and jumps. As soon as finances allow, I'd love to get her enrolled in a tumbling/beginning dance class. She seems to be a natural. If I knew how, I'd post a little video that I took of her dancing in the kitchen.

~I have made a few minor changes to the blog. I have added a counter on the left-hand menu below the Flickr icon. If you're curious to see how many people, besides you, might visit my site, take a look. I've also added birthday countdowns for both Caitlin & Cara, just for fun. Oh, and there are new pictures on the Flickr account...

I guess that's about it, I think. Peace out! *wink*

Clear!

Good news everyone! Ben got the preliminary results back from his biopsy yesterday and it showed no signs of cancer! Praise be! I was so happy when he told me that I weeped afterwards. It was just a benign cyst, which is what I was praying for. Now, I can rest assured that I'm going to have one of my best friends around, healthy, for a good long while!

Mystery Solved

Well, the mystery of Cara's fussiness has been solved--dum dum dum--she has a new tooth! It's just started to peek thru her gums, it's so white and cute! Another date to fill in on her calendar and baby book. She's growing up so fast!

Prayer Request

I have never posted anything like this before. I am asking that you pray, think good thoughts and pass this on to your family and friends so that they can do the same.
My husband (we are still married even though we're separated) just told me that he may have a cancerous lump under his chin. He is to go next week for a biopsy to determine if it is cancer or benign is only 31 years old and mostly a heathly guy. Maybe I'm being selfish but I'm not ready to lose him yet and my girls need their father.
I am trying not to assume the worst until I hear the results but, it's hard not to, especially since cancer runs rampant in his family. As he once told me, the men in his family don't live long. I tried to tell him that I didn't believe that it was his time. Of course, only God knows when it's someone's time...
So, please pray, think good thoughts, meditate or do whatever it is that suits you. I will keep you all posted.
Thanks so much, in advance.

Check it out

Thanks to Lauren for the tips on how to add my Flickr account to my blog! You can find it on the sidebar. Click it and you'll be able to see all of my latest pictures, including those from Christmas. I was a tad bit disappointed to see that there weren't any good shots of Caitlin. My dad was appointed camera man while I handed out presents. He didn't get many pictures at all as he quickly became consumed with opening his own presents. I am going to have to learn how to crop using iPhoto so that I can post the few pictures that I do have of Caitlin. Truth be told, she was so busy tossing paper aside that I doubt my dad would've gotten too many good shots anyhow...

Pure Frustration

For those of you without kids, consider this a good dose of birth control or why you don't want to have kids...
For the past few days, my youngest, 5 month old Cara, has been very fussy almost to the point of being inconsolable at times. I've tried everything from feeding to a car ride to calm her down. On she wails. If I I could truly decode her cries--is she overstimulated, tired, hungry, bored, mad? Does she have gas? Is she teething? Your guess is as good as mine.
She is content right now, in her car seat, go figure...I wonder how long it will last?

P.S. Christmas pictures will be coming soon, I promise...as soon as I get more than 30 seconds of free time & peace.

Happy Holidays One & All

I wanted to wish you all the blessings that this holiday season can bring. The love of family, friends and memories.

Christmas this year is going to be in two parts. Santa will come tonight for Caitlin & Cara and tomorrow morning, they will open the gifts that he brings along with some from their daddy and an honorary aunt.

Our big celebration won't be until the 27th when my brother Mike and my soon to be sister Ally arrive here. Matt is actually on his way back from Denver via Amtrak today (Christmas Eve). He was in the Mile High City for the Blizzard of 2006. Anyway, we will open the majority of presents then and of course, the stocking that were hung on the couch (we lack a fireplace) with care.

Caitlin is beyond excited this year and it has been fun doing all of the rituals with her--visiting Santa, decorating the tree, making cookies, etc. The honorary aunt sent a Winnie the Pooh Christmas Countdown calendar, so we have been doing that everyday too. Tonight, Grandma is going to read 'Twas the Night Before Christmas to the girls, another tradition in our house. I MUST remember to get a picture of this.

This is Cara's first Christmas, so it is just so priceless. Of course, she is clueless but, it will be fun for me, no doubt.

I'm so blessed to be able to be here with my family for the holidays. Even though the circumstances that brought us here weren't the best, it has all worked out splendidly.

So, HAPPY HOLIDAYS everyone, Happy Holidays!

Please excuse me while I crank up the Christmas tunes on the stereo...

We saw Santa Claus, we saw Santa Claus

...and for the record, Santa lives in a cabin, at least here in Montrose.
Caitlin was so excited when I told her that we were going to go see Santa. Such of a different reaction from last year where she wanted nothing to do with the man, much less sit on his lap. This year, she not so patiently waited her turn and then climbed right up into his lap and began to tell him how she wanted a Dora the Explorer Kitchen for Christmas. (Sorry to disappoint you, little girl, but Santa's helper a.k.a. your momma has already purchased your gifts) and how much she can't wait for it to be "Merry Christmas time". I handed Cara off to a sweet Mrs. Claus and then tried to persuade Caitlin to smile for the camera. All I got was a look of, "Gee Mom, can't you see that I'm busy?" from her. Cara looked so content with Mrs. Claus and much to my surprise, she did not cry...possibly because she couldn't tell who it was that was holding her. I'm so happy that this year was a happy & memorable experience for both girls.


(Caitlin fell in the parking lot right before we got to the cabin, hence the dirt on her tights) It is almost impossible to get a non-cheesey smile out of this girls these days!

Why we love KidzPlex

Why we love KidzPlex...it's a simple thing, really...there, Caitlin can run around and be silly 'till her heart's content. In fact, it is encouraged. There are always kids her age for her to play with. She gets more brave each time that we go (climbing up to the very top of the structure, going down the long purple slide, doing the zip line all by herself...). They have popsicles for the unreal price of 10 cents. There's a really sweet employee who loves to play with the kids and help them out, which is wonderful to a mom who already has her hands full with a baby. Speaking of babies, they have a cute tot area too, so that Cara could get in on the action. All of this for the bargain price of $3 for limitless hours of fun. Can't beat it, can you? Did I mention that it tires Caitlin out? I just love the peace & quiet on the way home...totally worth the drive up there (it is in Grand Junction).

My Chunky Monkey

Cara had her 4 month check up today and would anyone care to phantom a guess as to how much she weighed? *drumroll* 15 lbs! Truly earning my new nickname for her...chunky monkey. But, she is a really cute one at that.
The pediatrician just adored her singing, "I'm falling in love with you". He is such of a sweetheart and my favorite doctor in the practice.
Cara was given a clean bill of health along with three shots. We do have a couple of appointments with specialists coming up. One for a hearing test, given my hearing loss and all and the other for a vision screening. I am a bit concerned because she seems to cross her eyes more than normal. While it has decressed lately, I am still concerned since there is some family history of lazy eye and vision problems. Her doctor isn't real worried since a lot of babies do this but then outgrow it around 6 months.
Otherwise, no real concerns and Cara is hitting all of the developmental milestones.

A smack in the face...

Some of you know about my current job dilemna...I was offered (officially) a position as a library technician at a correctional facility in south east Colorado on Tuesday. This followed an informal offer from the regional librarian. I was all set to take the offer when the business manager for the contract employer called on Tuesday. However, that all went south when she quoted my salary. Let me back up a bit and explain...when I interviewed for this position a few weeks ago, I was told by the regional librarian that I would get a raise in my salary since I had two years of DOC experience. I was thrilled because I knew that I couldn't raise two kids on what I made before. Even with a raise, I'd be cutting it close every month. So, imagine my surprise, when I find out that the contrct employer is going to offer me the EXACT SAME salary that I made when I resigned! WTH?! I was furious, of course. After I had cooled down some, I did some serious number crunching & sure enough, there's no way that I can make it off of that pathetic salary. Long story short, I'm going to decline the offer some time today. I am really bummed 'cause I was looking forward to going back to work (yes,in a prison) and working with one of my good friends. But, maybe this is happeningfor a reason??