Friday, January 29, 2010

Vay-cay!!!!!

So in two weeks I am going on a much needed 7 day vacation. I consider myself lucky that since our second son was born my husband has made this vacation an annual priority (mainly because he fears for my sanity with 2 toddlers and would like to preserve some shred of that sanity for when the boys go off to college and he has to be alone with me). We go every year at the same time in February. The first time we went to the Bahamas and got married which led to the consequent vacations being around the same date so we can also celebrate our anniversary. The second trip was in St. Lucia were I experienced zip lining, total rush. This year due to the economy we are staying state side and will be attending Mardi Gras in New Orleans. Sleeping in, getting tipsy here and there, and BEADS! What more can a woman ask for? The majority of these vacations are spent resting no matter where we go. Last year all of our activities were done the last two days of our stay and I have no doubt this year will be very similar.
Our Bahamian Wedding










What do we do with the kids you ask? Well, we contemplated leaving piles of food throughout the house and several accessible diapers then asking a neighbor to check on them from time to time but evidently that is illegal and only allowed with pets, so we have a grandma come in to do the heavy lifting. This year it will be my husband’s mom. She does a great job and spoils my boys to no end. Though I will have to do major reprogramming after 7 days of grandma I am totally psyched to get away from cleaning, (some) cooking, and diapers. I will miss my boys but now that they’re 2 and 3 I know they are okay and figure they need a break from me as well. I also love to be able to call home and talk to my 3 year old on the phone. He is so funny and cute over the phone.
I will be posting about the happenings when I get back. We’re renting a car so there should be some very interesting stories that come out of that. No matter what happens I am very excited to get outta here. Vegas is nice but can be a little boring after 12 + years, so come February 15th I will say Bon Voyage to my little neon lit, free cocktail provisioned town for a new neon lit, free bead provisioned one (temporarily at least).







St. Lucia (that's me under the smudge)

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Why Do We Fall For It? How Massachusetts Got Me Thinking.

Our government has become like our worst high school boyfriend. Sure he cheats on us with no regard for our feelings and we’ve been with him far longer than we should but we just keep going back. I was reminded of this last night while watching the Massachusetts Senatorial Race. I’m not big on politics, I am registered as Non Partisan because I am not hooking my wagon up to any of these sinking ships. Coakley lost which was a surprise because I thought everyone was just going to go for whoever Obama told them to. It was great to see people actually thought for themselves.
Watching Nancy Pelosi before that election say they will push through healthcare no matter what made me question my fellow San Franciscans. How can they be proud of someone who only cares about her ideology even though the government is there to represent everyone. My husband is a small business owner, we do not have health insurance (I know, that’s like Russian roulette with kids) so I do feel something needs to be done but what is on the table is just wrong and we all know it. I would love to see TORT reform, here in Nevada we’ve lost hundreds of great doctors because they can’t afford the lawsuit insurance. I would also love to see competition across state lines, my in-laws live in California and have access to Kaiser which we would love to purchase but can’t here in Nevada. Opening up the market would force Sierra Health (Nevada’s Hitler of health) to lower their rates and provide better care. I would LOVE to see pre-existing conditions abolished because my last pregnancy which I found out about right after purchasing insurance was denied because of such a clause.
I am not just bagging on the Dems, the Republicans suck too. You can’t run anything based on straight negativity with no clear message the way they have. I say that the government officials are like a bad boyfriend because some of these fuckers have been in office for 20+ years and people keep electing them. Look at Arlen Spector, not only is he old but he doesn’t even have set beliefs. I know your outlook can change over the years but that dude bails when it looks like he’s on his way out. That’s not conviction, that’s cowardice and self preservation. This trait is okay in your neighbor or boss but shouldn’t the people who represent our beliefs and best interest be above that? How can any of those people relate if they’ve been living the good life for so many years? How do they know what we go through if they’ve never owned a company or it’s been a decade since they carried a real job? I do not agree with Obama and have not since day one but I was down with the change thing that came along with him. I get it, we are sick of the same. If that is true why don’t we start to wash out some of these incumbents come November? If we are ready for change lets start where the real decisions are made, the House and Senate. Don’t vote for someone because they’ve been there, vote for someone because they are new and daring (no I am not supporting Sarah Palin either). With all of these back door deals and double speak we should all be pissed at the whole rotten lot of them. They are selling you a bag of shit while telling you it’s roses. We are smarter than that people. I wish everyone (or more people) would go out and register Non Partisan, then they can’t claim you before an election and they would have to work harder because they would have no idea which way the vote was going to go.
I am not trying to preach I am just stating what I see. Maybe people are changing as some of the news stations were labeling what happened in Massachusetts last night but I don’t have that much faith. I think there are far too many of us that will just go along with what we’re told and vote along our party lines because that’s how it’s done. One thing I do know, the only party I subscribe to and will look out for is the human party. When I vote this November I will be thinking about my kids and yours, our families and their needs/future, not about whether or not Harry Reid and I are on the right or the left.

Monday, January 11, 2010

I Hate You Aunt Flow, and Your Carry-on Baggage is Too Big for the Overhead Compartment

Caution: the following content may not be enjoyable for those of the male persuasion

Though I have never been properly diagnosed nor do I love giving in to one of the many disorders our health care profession has provided us with choosing from but I think I suffer from PMDD. If you’ve seen one of those cheesy YAZ commercials lately which depict women sitting around a nightclub or their coffee table discussing birth control, you know that PMDD is Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder. I know, I think the same thing when I see them, nothing says clubbing like birth control. And you know women, we discuss that shit everywhere. Or so advertisers seem to think. Anyway, I digress. The reason I am self diagnosing is because every month during the week sometimes two weeks before my little monthly “friend” I gain two very severe new personalities. They are nothing like some of the fun child personalities Sally Field enjoyed in Cybil. No, my two personalities are Raging Bitch and/or Depressed Wino. During the other week or two of the month I get to be the cool chick that is in my nature (and yes I am a cool chick, I have been told so by many dudes). This craziness would be fine if I lived alone in the Ozarks, but with a husband and two sons it can be a huge inconvenience. I have been trying to explain this issue to my husband before he and my sons decide to start living elsewhere monthly. The poor guy didn’t have much exposure to this issue early on as we did not live together during courtship and I got pregnant pretty much a month after we moved in together. I was pregnant again about 3 months after my first son so my husband’s exposure to my menstrual cycle has really come on in the last 2 years. He is not impressed. I appreciate that said “friend” was always a sign of my fertility and a great indicator of the fact that my little men were going to make their way into the world but, now that I am done with all of that I wish it would just go away. I get in moods which I can’t control and which can be very off putting to those around me, as I mentioned. All of that shitty behavior goes without even accounting for the accoutrements that must be purchased and used during this unstable time. I don’t use tampons so I am faced with an extra diaper (so to speak) to change for 4 to 5 days of each month. If this monthly thing were an “aunt” or a “friend” I would disown her and change my address and phone number so that she could never find me again. I think I will ask for an elective hysterectomy. Maybe without the engine the car won’t start. Then I can keep my sanity and my husband all month.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

The Kitchen is Done, Man

My title is a sad reference to a line from the movie Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead. Anywho, my kitchen is finally done and I am in LOVE. My kitchen was sad and ugly before but now it's so beautiful. My husband and I keep saying we feel like we broke into someone else's house and are using their kitchen. I can't even use it comfortably as I am not ready to break it in "Sabreena Style". I am not one to do dishes immediately after a meal, they will usually sit for a few hours if not overnight but now I feel like I have to do them or ruin the new sink. Though I love this kitchen this new urge to keep it nice is really cramping my half-ass housekeeping style I have worked so hard to perfect. I am sure this temporary OCD will wear off and I will get back to the lazy old me but for now I will slack off in other departments like laundry or dusting to make up for the extra work I am doing in the food containment area of our house.

Here are some pictures of the new kitchen:

If you'd like to see what the kitchen looked like during the loooooong construction check out my post A Break from the Monotony.

Saturday, January 2, 2010

Appreciation, the Hottest Accessory for 2010

I recently joined SITS (The Secret is in the Sauce) and have been trying to consistently read and comment on the featured blogger as is the rule of the sight. Recently I read a really nice blog called “Jeannie’s Happy World” at http://happy-jeannie.blogspot.com/. One of her featured posts Two of My Most Favorite People got me thinking. Over the last few years I haven’t stopped to appreciate the great things in my life as often as I should have. So I’m thinking this year and in years to come I am going to appreciate more often. I, like many others, take some of the good things for granted. I get so caught up in the stress and rush of daily life I forget to appreciate all that is good. I have two beautiful, smart, healthy, and happy little boys. They love me no matter how stressed I am or how messy the house is. I have a wonderful husband who adores me. Even on the days when I am irritable and grumpy or haven’t changed out of my pajamas/brushed my hair though it is 3 in the afternoon. He works very hard and always strives to be his best so that we as a family can enjoy the best. I have a warm and comfortable home which my husband has diligently remodeled to accommodate our family comfortably. I enjoy the luxury of a well running vehicle to get around wherever I need to go. Thanks to my husband I have a caring extended family who loves my boys the way they deserve to be loved and accept me for who I am. I have my health which is amazing since I don’t consciously attempt to be healthy (i.e. exercise, eat right, or see the doctor as often as I should). Don’t get me wrong, I do appreciate these and all of the great things in my life I just feel that I don’t do it often enough. So in 2010 I am making this appreciation more of a focus in my days and weeks. I will treat it like a favored bracelet or purse and put it on more often no matter how much it clashes with my outfit (mood). I could resolve to lose weight, quit smoking, be nicer to animals and small children but I think for this year I will stick with this simple thing which seems like an easier resolution. I will stop to smell the roses even when I feel I am neck deep in the weeds. Hey, I may even blog once a month about one or two things I am appreciative of at that time. Or, like every other resolution I've made in past years I will forget 3 months in and go on about my life. I guess I can do nothing but try.