Last week was my first week back at work. It went pretty well overall. I guess when you've done something for the past 10 years and you have a pretty good system down of doing what you do getting back into the swing of things isn't too difficult. It was kind of like riding a bike. OK, if I'm being completely honest, the moment I walked in to my classroom and saw the desks arranged differently and the piles of stuff that my sub had left on my desk and tables I felt a bit overwhelmed, like, "Where do I even start?" I just had to tell myself that I wasn't going to get everything put away in one day and that getting re-organized was going to take time. The teaching part was the easy part. I just stepped right back in like I'd never been away. After only a day and a half being back at work I took a half day on Tuesday because McKenna had her 2 month well-visit with her pediatrician. McKenna is getting big so fast-she weighed in at 11 pounds 5 ounces and measured 23.4 inches long. While we were there the pediatrician asked me if I was still breastfeeding her, to which I replied yes, I still am. She told me that we should put McKenna on vitamin supplements and that she would call in a prescription for them. The pediatrician stated that it would be just to make sure that McKenna was getting all of the necessary vitamins that she needed, because apparently when babies are exclusively breastfed that they are lacking some of those vitamins. I didn't pick up the vitamins until after work on Wednesday, and Wednesday night I read the box before I gave her the first dose. They didn't sound so bad, as the box claimed that the vitamins were fruit flavored and she only needed 1 milliliter per day. After I opened the box and the bottle I was surprised to see that said vitamins were the consistency and color of (clean) motor oil and smelled (for lack of a better word) vitaminy. There was no fruit smell for sure, I certainly hope that the vitamins tasted better than they smelled. McKenna has now been taking them for 5 days and has now started to make a horrible face when we give them to her and has even started spitting some of them out. Which leads to my question...all these healthcare professionals and even friends and family will tell you that breast is best. However, if you give your baby formula he or she is getting those essential vitamins built right in and they don't have to take the nasty vitamin concoction (supposedly). Maybe some babies still do end up having to take liquid vitamins if they are formula fed, I'm not sure. I mainly wanted to breastfeed McKenna because I knew it would be good for her immune system and honestly I wanted to save money (for those of you who don't know, formula isn't cheap). It just makes me wonder...if breastmilk is so fantastic why should we have to supplement with motor oil vitamins? Sometimes I think it would have been easier if we had just formula fed her from the beginning. It would have been expensive and I would have felt like a bad Mom if I had formula fed her though (thanks to the pressure I put on myself and the pressure that I feel from others about breastfeeding). After a rough start breastfeeding is working out for us, even if we do have to give McKenna the lovely Poly-Vi-Sol vitamins. Guess it's what's best for us for now.
Until next time, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
Monday, January 31, 2011
Friday, January 21, 2011
Random Things
Well, here it is...my last day of maternity leave. I'll try to get on here from time to time to post some more deep and interesting (hmm...) thoughts but no promises when I'll be working full time and being a Mom full time as well. Today's blog is just a collection of random facts and thoughts.
1. My fingernails are my best feature.
They have always grown quickly, are strong, and best of all they naturally grow into a nice oval shape so I don't even have to file them. I have had to keep them short since I had McKenna so I don't scratch or poke her but that is fine. It really doesn't bother me.
2. I am someone who actually enjoys being pregnant.
Love me or hate me for it. When I was pregnant with McKenna it was a pretty enjoyable experience, with the exception of a few typical pregnancy aches and pains, heartburn and swelling. I had absolutely no morning sickness throughout and at my very last OB appointment I had put on 36 pounds. Not too bad. You never know, the next time I get KO it may be very different. I'm hoping that's not the case though.
3. Things in my life never tend to go smoothly.
You can bet on it, whenever something happens in my life there is never a straight path through to the end. Whatever random roadblock or hurdle that can possibly be there will be there. This applies to all aspects of my life-professional and personal. A good example of this is the fact that although my dissolution was finalized from my ex-husband over three years ago, we still own a house together. I wish there was some way that he could or would buy me out. It is the only albatross that still is hanging around my neck from that particular time in my life.
4. I have never in my life been to Florida.
I think that I have traveled pretty extensively in my 33 years on this Earth. I have been to Canada numerous times, Mexico, the Bahamas, France (twice), Costa Rica, Belize, and many different states in the United States. However, Florida is not one of them. Even with all the international travel that I've done I've never once had a layover/departure/landing in Florida. I have told family members and friends this fact and they look at me like I'm crazy. I've just never had the opportunity to go there. I'm not a Disney fan (gasp!) so I don't have any burning desire to go to Disney World. I'm sure I'll make it to Florida at some point in my life, just haven't yet.
5. If I could go anywhere in the world I would go to Tahiti.
Gorgeous beaches, little huts on stilts right over the water that you can stay in, and they speak French. Need I say more? However, going to Tahiti is not cheap and the flight is horribly long. Not sure when or if I will ever have the chance to go there. More realistically I would love to go to Seattle and Vancouver or maybe up to Maine. I really need to get my passport re-done (it is still under my previously married name). That can be a goal of mine for the summer.
6. I am addicted to trashy reality TV.
Real Housewives of Atlanta, Bridalplasty, Big Brother, Teen Mom 2, Jersey Shore, I could go on and on. Even though I've heard that a lot of "reality" TV is in actuality scripted, I still enjoy it. It is entertaining to see that some people have lives that are more of a train wreck than my own (not that mine is all that bad, but still).
7. One of the things I miss most is having time to read.
From a very young age, I have always had my nose stuck in a book or magazine. Ask pretty much anyone who knows me. Since having McKenna I haven't had much time to indulge in my favorite activity and I'm sure I'll have even less time once I get back to work this coming week. I used to plow through a book a week or sometimes even more. Hopefully over the summer I'll have some more time to read, especially since I'm working at the MCC again (woo hoo golf shop). I'm looking forward to that.
8. At one point in time I totally stopped drinking pop/soda.
Several years ago I did a weight loss challenge with my Mom, Aunt, and my cousin's now ex-wife. I kept to a very strict 1200 calorie/day diet and worked out almost every day of the week. I was a huge pop/soda drinker before the weight loss challenge and I managed to wean myself off it gradually by switching to carbonated flavored water, then flat flavored water, then just regular water. I was really good for a long time and in the last couple of years have started drinking pop/soda again. I don't overdo it (maybe 1 can a day of Coke or if we go to a restaurant I drink it there) but I know I'd save a lot of calories if I could kick the habit again. In addition to renewing my passport, maybe this could be another goal to meet by the end of the summer.
9. I worry about my dog dying.
My ex-husband and I got Dakota in May 2001 when he lived in Mansfield. She was only 6 or 8 weeks old when we got her and with the exception of May-June 2001 when she was still in Mansfield at the house where she was born (we had to wait until I was done with student teaching and then I had her live with me at my parents house) she has been with me ever since. I know it might sound weird but she has been with me through a lot. She was there when my Dad was sick, when he died, through the crumbling of my first marriage and subsequent divorce. She has also been a real trooper about me getting re-married, having to move after living in my previous house for almost 7 years, and she has been wonderful with McKenna. Not bad for a dog that will be 10 years old in March. I love her very much and I will miss her when she is gone. We don't plan on getting another dog after she dies (at least not anytime soon after that). Maybe when McKenna is a bit older and can help take care of a dog. There will never be another dog like Dakota though. She is truly a special white beast "fur child" to me.
10. I have a cut-off date for having kids.
Originally when I got married I was 23. I would have liked to start having children around 27 or 28, but if you know me (or even if you don't) nothing in my life ever seems to go according to plan (see Random Thing number 3 above). Therefore, I had McKenna exactly one day after my 33rd birthday. We have no plans to have another child right away; maybe in another 2 or 3 years when McKenna is a bit more independent. If everything goes well and we don't have issues TTC that would put me at 35 or 36 when we have our next child. We have talked about having three children total, and if we did want to do that I don't want to have any more kids past the age of 38. No particular reason, it's not because I worry that it would be dangerous or anything like that, it's just a personal choice. I don't want to be 39 or 40 years old and still having kids. I know that being older and having kids is way more commonplace now, but it's just not for me. I can't wrap my mind around the fact that if we had a child at 40 he or she wouldn't graduate until we were 58 years old. I attribute this cut off date to having had very young parents (my Mom will just be turning 52 this June and I turned 33 in November; you do the math. My Dad would have been 52 this coming August but died from liver cancer when he was 48). It always seemed like a really great thing to have your kids grown and out of the house when you were in your mid-forties. Obviously that won't happen with McKenna, seeing as we'll be 51 or so when she graduates from high school, but it's still pretty young. Way better than being 58.
10 random things is good enough for me for now. Maybe you knew some of these things about me and maybe you didn't. Hopefully some of them have provided you with a new or interesting way to see me.
Until next time, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
1. My fingernails are my best feature.
They have always grown quickly, are strong, and best of all they naturally grow into a nice oval shape so I don't even have to file them. I have had to keep them short since I had McKenna so I don't scratch or poke her but that is fine. It really doesn't bother me.
2. I am someone who actually enjoys being pregnant.
Love me or hate me for it. When I was pregnant with McKenna it was a pretty enjoyable experience, with the exception of a few typical pregnancy aches and pains, heartburn and swelling. I had absolutely no morning sickness throughout and at my very last OB appointment I had put on 36 pounds. Not too bad. You never know, the next time I get KO it may be very different. I'm hoping that's not the case though.
3. Things in my life never tend to go smoothly.
You can bet on it, whenever something happens in my life there is never a straight path through to the end. Whatever random roadblock or hurdle that can possibly be there will be there. This applies to all aspects of my life-professional and personal. A good example of this is the fact that although my dissolution was finalized from my ex-husband over three years ago, we still own a house together. I wish there was some way that he could or would buy me out. It is the only albatross that still is hanging around my neck from that particular time in my life.
4. I have never in my life been to Florida.
I think that I have traveled pretty extensively in my 33 years on this Earth. I have been to Canada numerous times, Mexico, the Bahamas, France (twice), Costa Rica, Belize, and many different states in the United States. However, Florida is not one of them. Even with all the international travel that I've done I've never once had a layover/departure/landing in Florida. I have told family members and friends this fact and they look at me like I'm crazy. I've just never had the opportunity to go there. I'm not a Disney fan (gasp!) so I don't have any burning desire to go to Disney World. I'm sure I'll make it to Florida at some point in my life, just haven't yet.
5. If I could go anywhere in the world I would go to Tahiti.
Gorgeous beaches, little huts on stilts right over the water that you can stay in, and they speak French. Need I say more? However, going to Tahiti is not cheap and the flight is horribly long. Not sure when or if I will ever have the chance to go there. More realistically I would love to go to Seattle and Vancouver or maybe up to Maine. I really need to get my passport re-done (it is still under my previously married name). That can be a goal of mine for the summer.
6. I am addicted to trashy reality TV.
Real Housewives of Atlanta, Bridalplasty, Big Brother, Teen Mom 2, Jersey Shore, I could go on and on. Even though I've heard that a lot of "reality" TV is in actuality scripted, I still enjoy it. It is entertaining to see that some people have lives that are more of a train wreck than my own (not that mine is all that bad, but still).
7. One of the things I miss most is having time to read.
From a very young age, I have always had my nose stuck in a book or magazine. Ask pretty much anyone who knows me. Since having McKenna I haven't had much time to indulge in my favorite activity and I'm sure I'll have even less time once I get back to work this coming week. I used to plow through a book a week or sometimes even more. Hopefully over the summer I'll have some more time to read, especially since I'm working at the MCC again (woo hoo golf shop). I'm looking forward to that.
8. At one point in time I totally stopped drinking pop/soda.
Several years ago I did a weight loss challenge with my Mom, Aunt, and my cousin's now ex-wife. I kept to a very strict 1200 calorie/day diet and worked out almost every day of the week. I was a huge pop/soda drinker before the weight loss challenge and I managed to wean myself off it gradually by switching to carbonated flavored water, then flat flavored water, then just regular water. I was really good for a long time and in the last couple of years have started drinking pop/soda again. I don't overdo it (maybe 1 can a day of Coke or if we go to a restaurant I drink it there) but I know I'd save a lot of calories if I could kick the habit again. In addition to renewing my passport, maybe this could be another goal to meet by the end of the summer.
9. I worry about my dog dying.
My ex-husband and I got Dakota in May 2001 when he lived in Mansfield. She was only 6 or 8 weeks old when we got her and with the exception of May-June 2001 when she was still in Mansfield at the house where she was born (we had to wait until I was done with student teaching and then I had her live with me at my parents house) she has been with me ever since. I know it might sound weird but she has been with me through a lot. She was there when my Dad was sick, when he died, through the crumbling of my first marriage and subsequent divorce. She has also been a real trooper about me getting re-married, having to move after living in my previous house for almost 7 years, and she has been wonderful with McKenna. Not bad for a dog that will be 10 years old in March. I love her very much and I will miss her when she is gone. We don't plan on getting another dog after she dies (at least not anytime soon after that). Maybe when McKenna is a bit older and can help take care of a dog. There will never be another dog like Dakota though. She is truly a special white beast "fur child" to me.
10. I have a cut-off date for having kids.
Originally when I got married I was 23. I would have liked to start having children around 27 or 28, but if you know me (or even if you don't) nothing in my life ever seems to go according to plan (see Random Thing number 3 above). Therefore, I had McKenna exactly one day after my 33rd birthday. We have no plans to have another child right away; maybe in another 2 or 3 years when McKenna is a bit more independent. If everything goes well and we don't have issues TTC that would put me at 35 or 36 when we have our next child. We have talked about having three children total, and if we did want to do that I don't want to have any more kids past the age of 38. No particular reason, it's not because I worry that it would be dangerous or anything like that, it's just a personal choice. I don't want to be 39 or 40 years old and still having kids. I know that being older and having kids is way more commonplace now, but it's just not for me. I can't wrap my mind around the fact that if we had a child at 40 he or she wouldn't graduate until we were 58 years old. I attribute this cut off date to having had very young parents (my Mom will just be turning 52 this June and I turned 33 in November; you do the math. My Dad would have been 52 this coming August but died from liver cancer when he was 48). It always seemed like a really great thing to have your kids grown and out of the house when you were in your mid-forties. Obviously that won't happen with McKenna, seeing as we'll be 51 or so when she graduates from high school, but it's still pretty young. Way better than being 58.
10 random things is good enough for me for now. Maybe you knew some of these things about me and maybe you didn't. Hopefully some of them have provided you with a new or interesting way to see me.
Until next time, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
"Chore"ing it up
Good old household chores. We all have too many of them to do and not enough time to do them in. I will readily admit that since I've gone through my divorce and remarriage and the birth of our child that I have gotten a lot more lax on my household chores. When I was married to my ex the bulk of the household chores fell to me the longer that our marriage dragged on. At first we split up the chores evenly (I cleaned the 2 1/2 bathrooms every week, wiped down the kitchen, and swept or Swiffered the floors; he would vacuum and mop said floors). Neither of us were big on dusting, so this was a chore that largely fell by the wayside. As time went on and our relationship was nearing its end, both of us pretty much stopped doing the household chores. Neither he nor I spent much time there at the end of our relationship (he was always out or staying over at his girlfriend's Mom's house and I was at Justin's apartment most of the time), so the house wasn't horribly filthy; it just had that "unlived in" aura about it. Once Justin and I bought the house we currently live in I got really lazy about doing chores because he picked up a lot of my slack. I still cleaned the bathrooms pretty consistently, but didn't (and still don't do) much else. He makes it too easy for me to cop out of the cleaning. He vacuums, dusts, rearranges furniture, cooks. I do help with dishes and laundry, although I used to complain a lot about how much laundry Justin made. I don't complain any more, I just suck it up because it's really not that big of a deal and I really do appreciate all that he does around here. We both have a bad habit of stacking various crap up on the kitchen and dining room tables, which we both clean from time to time but then it always builds up again. I have tried time and again to prevent this and have not been successful at it. When I got pregnant my participation in helping with chores took a turn for the worse. I was one of those people who was constantly tired during their pregnancy and took daily naps (I am sure that waking up at 5 AM and teaching a full day pretty much every day didn't help in this respect either) so I started doing less around the house. Now with McKenna here and taking care of her during the day I am lucky if I have time to throw in a load or two of laundry and switch the clothes into the dryer. Sometimes I run the dishwasher and empty it as well, but that is pretty much the extent of my helping with the chores around here for now. Is this horrible and lazy of me? Yes. I just don't feel that having a super squeaky clean house is that high of a priority. It's not like we are those people you see on Hoarders or something, with dog shit and piss encrusted floors and carpet, shit stacked up to the ceilings, and rats and mice running through all of it. It's just a bit jumbled and dusty and dog-hairy. I can deal with it for now. Maybe things will get easier when McKenna gets older and I get the desire to help out some more around here. Oh well, she just woke up and is panicking. Until next time, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
Jenuinely Yours
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Anticipation
This past Sunday night I found myself unable to fall asleep. After a couple of weeks of sleeping 5 to 6 hours per night, McKenna suddenly decided to start waking up every 3-4 hours instead. She had also been really good about going to bed-when we put her down in her crib awake and put on her Luv U Zoo sound and light show (like crack for her, I swear, she is addicted to that thing) she would always fall asleep. Not so much on Sunday. We tried to put her down a little after 11 PM and she fussed, so we went and got her out of her crib and tried to rock her to sleep. Not so much. Justin put her down again and she fussed again, this time shortly after midnight. I had been lying in bed awake, thoughts racing, coming to grips with the fact that I am currently on my last week of maternity leave. I was worrying about the state of my classroom, after having visited last Monday, January 10. Of course my long-term substitute had moved things around (and I don't have an issue with that, she had every right to), but I was concerned about the tables, desks, files, etc. getting back to where they needed to get back to. I was also thinking about the lack of sleep that I am going to have when I go back and how I am going to have to deal with 100 or so teenagers every day for 8 hours. In addition to getting my classroom back in order (for me), planning and getting things ready for lessons at school, the potential lack of sleep and being an unhappy camper about that fact, I also stressed over the fact that I will need to find time during the school day to pump since I am breastfeeding McKenna. Kind of difficult to put into your plans when you teach the first three 48-minute periods of the day, then you have 50 minutes or so of planning but there is a study hall in your room (no privacy to pump then), teach again for 25 minutes, have a 25 minute lunch, teach another 25 minutes, and then (finally) have a 48 minute planning period where I can hopefully catch my breath and find about 15 minutes to pump. I finish out my day teaching another 48 minute class. I do plan to find someplace to pump during the time the study hall is in my room as well, and probably after school too. So with all of this on my mind it really wasn't a big deal when McKenna started fussing at 12:15 AM and I got up to take care of her. I figured that she was probably hungry so I took her out into the living room, strapped on the My Brest Friend and settled her down to nurse. Looking at her peaceful little face, I took a deep breath and gave myself a strong mental check to stop stressing so much about going back to work. I want to enjoy my remaining time as a "stay at home Mom" with McKenna and don't want to waste the time worrying. Everything will work itself out in regards to work. I may not be quite as organized (I bordered on OCD before McKenna was born), I may not be able to grade quizzes, tests, essays, and the like as quickly as before (my students have always raved about what a quick grader I am, and I have always prided myself on being able to give them feedback in a very timely manner), and I may not always have the sleep that I would like or need and might not feel like being the nicest person ever, but I'll get through it. I do believe that. Every time I see McKenna smile at me I am reminded that she is the main reason I do have to go back to work (being a SAHM was never an option; we are a two-income plus two additional part time job family and we probably always will be), but in order to provide for her I will do what I can and must. Providing for her is the most important thing and anticipating tomorrow and worrying about it and having that take my attention away from her is not worth it. Glad that I was able to take a step back and realize this. I will greatly enjoy and cherish our last 5 days together until I go back to work.
That about wraps it up for now. Until next time, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
That about wraps it up for now. Until next time, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
Monday, January 17, 2011
Did I Sell Myself Short?
Sometimes this question haunts me. I wonder if the line of work that I am currently in is the line of work that I was meant to be in. Originally when I was making plans to go to college I had intentions of being a pre-med major. Once I got to my chosen school I was excited to find out that they had a medical technology major that was offered, and I declared that as my chosen one. My first semester I must have been a bit crazy (or just following through with my normal overacheieving behavior, as usual) as I signed up for 18 semester hours. Included in these semester hours were a biology and chemistry class both with labs, along with 10 other credit hours worth of courses. Somehow I still managed to pull off a 3.7 GPA that crazy busy first semester. Once I started my second semester I realized it was very similar to my first semester schedule. I still had biology and chemistry with labs and I think I had 7 other credit hours in addition to those. Unfortunately I learned early on in this second semester that they were doing away with the medical technology program and that I would have to be a biology major with a chemistry minor instead. At that time I really didn't want to do that, due in part to an egotistical biology professor who was not only horribly cocky but also very sexist, and a chemistry professor who reminded me of Ben Stine when he did the Clear Eyes commercials. It was still early enough in the semester where I was able to drop and add classes with no penalty, so after deciding that gthe biology/chemistry route was not the way I wanted to go, I went to the registrar and did just that. I had taken an introductory French course my first semester, mainly to fulfill a general education requirement but also because I enjoyed it and it was extremely easy for me. After dropping the science courses and labs I signed up for 2 additional French courses instead. Not too long after this I decided that I would like to major in French. The next logical question was, "What the heck can I do with this as a major?" Me being the smarty pants that I am, I quickly realized that I could minor in secondary education and be a teacher. From this point on I stuck with my chosen major and minor, graduating in four years and having to come back for one additional semester to student teach and finish up a couple of courses as a post-bac student.
Now I am 10 plus years into my chosen career. With all the changes that have come to the educational table during that time and the seeming lack of support and respect from many students and parents (not all though) I sometimes wonder if I chose the right career. I wonder if by making the decision to not major in biology and minor in chemistry if I sold myself short, if I could be doing something in the scientific field now. I wasn't afraid of the amount of work it would have taken; I am an intelligent person and could have handled it and handled it well. Perhaps I would have gone into something like nursing eventually. Unfortunately at this point now it is too late. I am already (hopefully) a third of the way through my career and it is not in my best interest to go back to school again for a career change. I have way too much debt to pay off from my undergraduate and graduate degrees still (my as yet still useless school counselor degree, but that is another story) and with a child now is not a good time to go back to the classroom. I also don't have a strong enough desire to return to the classroom as a student. I basically take the two 3 hour classes I have to take every 5 years online to renew my teaching certificates, and I do that only because I am required to. It makes me wonder though...what would have been different if I had not become a teacher? Would I be where I am at now? I wouldn't want to change things in my life, as I have so many wonderful things now. It would be interesting to find out though. Guess I'll never know for sure.
Well, on to more important things, like spending time with Justin and McKenna. My time at home is quickly running short. Until next time, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
Now I am 10 plus years into my chosen career. With all the changes that have come to the educational table during that time and the seeming lack of support and respect from many students and parents (not all though) I sometimes wonder if I chose the right career. I wonder if by making the decision to not major in biology and minor in chemistry if I sold myself short, if I could be doing something in the scientific field now. I wasn't afraid of the amount of work it would have taken; I am an intelligent person and could have handled it and handled it well. Perhaps I would have gone into something like nursing eventually. Unfortunately at this point now it is too late. I am already (hopefully) a third of the way through my career and it is not in my best interest to go back to school again for a career change. I have way too much debt to pay off from my undergraduate and graduate degrees still (my as yet still useless school counselor degree, but that is another story) and with a child now is not a good time to go back to the classroom. I also don't have a strong enough desire to return to the classroom as a student. I basically take the two 3 hour classes I have to take every 5 years online to renew my teaching certificates, and I do that only because I am required to. It makes me wonder though...what would have been different if I had not become a teacher? Would I be where I am at now? I wouldn't want to change things in my life, as I have so many wonderful things now. It would be interesting to find out though. Guess I'll never know for sure.
Well, on to more important things, like spending time with Justin and McKenna. My time at home is quickly running short. Until next time, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
Friday, January 14, 2011
Car and Driving Pet Peeves
Here are some of my top pet peeves that are related to cars and driving:
1. Failure to use a turn signal.
This one is really annoying to me. They put a turn signal on a car for a reason, and that would be to indicate to other drivers on the road where and in what direction you intend to turn. For those of you who choose not to use your turn signal, no, we cannot read your mind and we do not know where and which direction you want to turn. I sincerly get irked when I see this happening and often mutter to myself, "Did that particular make and model of car not come equipped with a turn signal?" This same failure to use a turn signal also applies to those of you who switch lanes on the road or especially on the freeway and fail to use your signal. When someone hits you because you failed to signal, I won't feel bad for you. Stop being so lazy and use the turn signal.
2. People who don't clear their car off in the winter (especially around here, with the snow we get).
This is not only annoying, but also dangerous to you and to other drivers around you. I know when you get out of work, school, etc. that it is cold and snowy in the winter and you want to get out of school or work as fast as you can and out of the cold and snow. Take a couple of minutes and brush your car off. The whole car. Not just your front windshield and your half on the back window. Brush off all the windows, the hood, the trunk (if applicable to you), the roof, headlights, license plates. I can't stand when people leave snow on the hood or roof of their car and it blows back at their windshield and also blows back at your car. Not brushing off your headlights is just stupid. It prevents other drivers from being able to see you. Once again, stop being so damn lazy and take a couple of minutes to brush off your ENTIRE car when we have snow that covers it. Also, we live in Northeast Ohio, make sure you have a snow brush in your car from about the end of October to the beginning or middle of May. That really irks me when I am leaving work and some nimrod asks me if they can borrow my snow brush because they are too lazy and/or stupid to come to work with one.
3. People who use their garage as a storage unit.
Umm, what was I thinking when one of my biggest wish list factors in buying a house was a two-car garage? Oh yeah, a place to have my cars sit in at night so they don't have to sit out in the driveway and be tempting hooligans to break in or vandalize them, and a place to have my cars sit in the winter months so I don't have to go out and clear snow off of them all of the time. It is also helpful to have a garage to pull in when it is raining outside so hard it is like a monsoon. That way you don't have to get out of your car, get soaked, and then go in your house. I know and have seen some people that have so much shit stacked up in their garage that they couldn't even walk in there, much less park a car or two in there. In my old neighborhood there was one house in particular where the two-car garage was stacked from floor to ceiling and front to back with boxes and various other crap. This would be a wake up call to me-either rent a storage unit or go through that shit and either donate it or throw it out. Guess this doesn't bother some people but it would drive me up the wall.
4. People who drive with loose hubcaps or bald tires.
'Nuff said. Just dangerous.
5. People who drive like assholes just because they have "designer" cars.
You know who you are...you people who own the BMWs, Mercedes, Range Rovers, etc. All the higher end cars. Just because you have a nice car (notice I didn't say "because you can afford a nice car-I know there are a lot of people out there driving those who can't afford them) doesn't give you the right to weave in and out of traffic, ride peoples' asses like it's your job, and cut people off. There are people with lower end cars who do this too, but maybe it's because your car is so flashy that I notice it more. Yes, your shit does stink just like the rest of ours do. Just because you have a designer car does not make you better than anyone else and does not give you the license to drive like an asshole.
6. People who drive under the speed limit.
I have a huge personal problem with this one. On the freeway if you are in the left hand lane and only doing 70 MPH, move the hell over. You are not doing people a favor by going 5 miles over the speed limit. If you want to drive slowly, there are usually at least 1 or 2 other lanes for those of you who like to putz. Some of you may have speeding as one of your pet peeves, but not this woman. I don't speed (per se) on side roads, will usually go the speed limit or maybe 5 over. On the freeway you better watch out, because I love to speed there. This does not make me a hypocrite however, because if speeding is one of your pet peeves it is not one of mine. I have been driving the same route to work for 10+ years now and I know where the cops hang out, making it even easier to speed on the freeway.
I am sure that I have some more, but those are the ones that readily come to mind. You can agree with me or disagree with me (I am sure some would agree just as I am sure there are some differences of opinion out there) and that is fine with me. Drive safely and keep these pet peeves in mind when you are driving. You may have some driving habits that annoy a person or people who aren't me.
Until then, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
1. Failure to use a turn signal.
This one is really annoying to me. They put a turn signal on a car for a reason, and that would be to indicate to other drivers on the road where and in what direction you intend to turn. For those of you who choose not to use your turn signal, no, we cannot read your mind and we do not know where and which direction you want to turn. I sincerly get irked when I see this happening and often mutter to myself, "Did that particular make and model of car not come equipped with a turn signal?" This same failure to use a turn signal also applies to those of you who switch lanes on the road or especially on the freeway and fail to use your signal. When someone hits you because you failed to signal, I won't feel bad for you. Stop being so lazy and use the turn signal.
2. People who don't clear their car off in the winter (especially around here, with the snow we get).
This is not only annoying, but also dangerous to you and to other drivers around you. I know when you get out of work, school, etc. that it is cold and snowy in the winter and you want to get out of school or work as fast as you can and out of the cold and snow. Take a couple of minutes and brush your car off. The whole car. Not just your front windshield and your half on the back window. Brush off all the windows, the hood, the trunk (if applicable to you), the roof, headlights, license plates. I can't stand when people leave snow on the hood or roof of their car and it blows back at their windshield and also blows back at your car. Not brushing off your headlights is just stupid. It prevents other drivers from being able to see you. Once again, stop being so damn lazy and take a couple of minutes to brush off your ENTIRE car when we have snow that covers it. Also, we live in Northeast Ohio, make sure you have a snow brush in your car from about the end of October to the beginning or middle of May. That really irks me when I am leaving work and some nimrod asks me if they can borrow my snow brush because they are too lazy and/or stupid to come to work with one.
3. People who use their garage as a storage unit.
Umm, what was I thinking when one of my biggest wish list factors in buying a house was a two-car garage? Oh yeah, a place to have my cars sit in at night so they don't have to sit out in the driveway and be tempting hooligans to break in or vandalize them, and a place to have my cars sit in the winter months so I don't have to go out and clear snow off of them all of the time. It is also helpful to have a garage to pull in when it is raining outside so hard it is like a monsoon. That way you don't have to get out of your car, get soaked, and then go in your house. I know and have seen some people that have so much shit stacked up in their garage that they couldn't even walk in there, much less park a car or two in there. In my old neighborhood there was one house in particular where the two-car garage was stacked from floor to ceiling and front to back with boxes and various other crap. This would be a wake up call to me-either rent a storage unit or go through that shit and either donate it or throw it out. Guess this doesn't bother some people but it would drive me up the wall.
4. People who drive with loose hubcaps or bald tires.
'Nuff said. Just dangerous.
5. People who drive like assholes just because they have "designer" cars.
You know who you are...you people who own the BMWs, Mercedes, Range Rovers, etc. All the higher end cars. Just because you have a nice car (notice I didn't say "because you can afford a nice car-I know there are a lot of people out there driving those who can't afford them) doesn't give you the right to weave in and out of traffic, ride peoples' asses like it's your job, and cut people off. There are people with lower end cars who do this too, but maybe it's because your car is so flashy that I notice it more. Yes, your shit does stink just like the rest of ours do. Just because you have a designer car does not make you better than anyone else and does not give you the license to drive like an asshole.
6. People who drive under the speed limit.
I have a huge personal problem with this one. On the freeway if you are in the left hand lane and only doing 70 MPH, move the hell over. You are not doing people a favor by going 5 miles over the speed limit. If you want to drive slowly, there are usually at least 1 or 2 other lanes for those of you who like to putz. Some of you may have speeding as one of your pet peeves, but not this woman. I don't speed (per se) on side roads, will usually go the speed limit or maybe 5 over. On the freeway you better watch out, because I love to speed there. This does not make me a hypocrite however, because if speeding is one of your pet peeves it is not one of mine. I have been driving the same route to work for 10+ years now and I know where the cops hang out, making it even easier to speed on the freeway.
I am sure that I have some more, but those are the ones that readily come to mind. You can agree with me or disagree with me (I am sure some would agree just as I am sure there are some differences of opinion out there) and that is fine with me. Drive safely and keep these pet peeves in mind when you are driving. You may have some driving habits that annoy a person or people who aren't me.
Until then, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
The Infertility Factor
I have been reading some other blogs lately and there are several out there on people dealing with infertility. Although Justin and I did not meet the technical definition of "infertile" as we were able to successfully conceive before 12 months was up, we did have fertility issues when trying to conceive (TTC). I wanted to share my story and although I'm not sure if anyone will read it, please don't judge us. There may be people who read this who have been trying for years and still have yet to conceive and of course their circumstances will probably be vastly different from mine. However, it wasn't all peaches and cream for us in our journey to have McKenna either. Here is our story...
We got married in May 2009, and Justin had turned 32 in April and I was going to turn 32 in November of that same year. I went off the pill in March 2009 and we used backup birth control until our wedding night. We figured if it happened it would happen, basically we weren't doing anything to prevent pregnancy. We didn't actively start trying to conceive until July 2009. We went on our honeymoon to Riveria Maya, Mexico, and I headed down with an ovulation predictor kit and the great desire to succeed at getting pregnant. Each morning I used the OPK and each morning it came up negative; however, we still did our fair share of trying to get pregnant on that particular vacation (hey, it was our honeymoon after all). No luck that month. No luck in August, September, October, or November either. At this point I was getting frustrated and very anxious. I hadn't truly realized that it could possibly take that long to conceive, although of course I had read that it could take up to a year or more. Also keep in mind that I come from a family where my Mom had me when she was 18 and my younger sister had her first at 16 and pretty much everyone in my family is as fertile as they come, so this was really annoying for me. Finally I made an appointment to have a consult with a well-known OB in the Medina area; we met right at the beginning of December 2009. What I liked best about this OB was that he didn't trivialize our situation; he didn't sit there, look at me and say, "Oh, you've only been trying for 6 or 7 months; come back and see me when you've hit a year and you're still not pregnant" like I've heard that a lot of other OBs would do. We talked about my cycles (unusually long) and he also said that he would send me for some initial testing to see if we could figure out what the deal was with our inability to conceive. I had some blood work done, poor Justin had to submit a semen sample, and later in December I went to have an HSG (if you don't know what that is, look it up...definitely not the most comfortable procedure in the world). I figured if I couldn't deal with the discomfort of the HSG how would I ever deal with labor and childbirth? I ended up sucking it up for that test. After all the testing was done I was given a diagnosis of PCOS (polycystic ovary/ovarian syndrome) which basically means that I don't necessarily ovulate on a consistent basis every month and that sometimes the ovum can get stuck before it bursts through the ovary and form cysts on the ovary. This also accounted for my really long cycles, which had not been regular since I went off the pill (I had been on the pill since age 16, with a year in college on Depo Provera and one semester in college where I went off it because I was engaged and out of the country at the time). The OB told me that if we kept trying we would finally hit the jackpot, but then when my period came in January he told me that he would prescribe me Clomid if I wanted it. I was weary of TTC at this point and figured it couldn't hurt to try it. I had read several stories and heard from several people that Clomid didn't work for them, they had to try several different doses several different times and it still didn't result in a pregnancy. I had this picture in my head of that being our situation, having to try hormone shots (I absolutely hate needles) and having issues for a long time to come. I took the lowest dose of Clomid possible and we hoped for the best in February 2010. In March my period was late (not out of the ordinary, since I have PCOS) but I had been instructed to call the doctor's office if I was late and then they could give me some other type of medication to have me start my period. When I called the secretary asked me if I had taken a pregnancy test, and of course I hadn't. I had grown weary of the monthly testing and the results always being negative. The next morning I took a test and it was a First Response test with the pink lines. It appeared to me that there was a faint second pink line. The next morning I used my last (more expensive) Clear Blue Easy digital test and it came up as positive almost immediately. I went into the bedroom, turned on the light and basically shoved the test right in Justin's face (which I am so sure he appreciated). Later that day I called the doctor's office and they had me go to the hospital for a blood pregnancy test, which also came back positive. With the help of one round of Clomid, we had done it...we had finally been successful at TTC. Now, I did have to take several blood pregnancy tests until my betas got to a certain number, but we got there. It took us around 10 months with the Clomid to be successful in our quest to conceive. I also found Fertility Friend online to be very helpful, as I tracked my cycles on there and was able to find out approximately when I would be ovulating (probably the best $30 or so I had spent in a long time). I also used ovulation predictor kits-just the cheap ones, where you get a box of 30 or so with the little blue lines on them. I hadn't realized when I first tried to use them in July on our honeymoon that you need to test a couple or a few times a day, not just in the morning when you wake up. Better not to buy the box of 7 digital ovulation tests if that is what you plan on doing (testing multiple times).
With all that said, my heart breaks for friends of ours and other acquaintances that I know of who have been trying for way longer than 10 months to conceive. We have some friends who have been trying for years and have had every test possible and have tried everything from Clomid to injections to IVF and it just hasn't worked. No particular cause has been found. I thought that in sharing our story I would give hope (and maybe some comic relief) to people who may have struggled with or who are currently struggling with fertility issues and/or infertility. I wish the best for my friends and acquaintances who are still TTC.
When we decide to have our next child, we'll see how it goes. It does scare me a bit that I'll probably be 35 or 36 by the time we try again (hey, wait, you may be thinking, that's not old at all...keep in mind my background...Mom had first child at 18, younger sister had first child at 16...yeah, compared to that, I'm OLD). Maybe it will just happen on its own, maybe it won't. We'll have to wait and see.
Until next time, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
We got married in May 2009, and Justin had turned 32 in April and I was going to turn 32 in November of that same year. I went off the pill in March 2009 and we used backup birth control until our wedding night. We figured if it happened it would happen, basically we weren't doing anything to prevent pregnancy. We didn't actively start trying to conceive until July 2009. We went on our honeymoon to Riveria Maya, Mexico, and I headed down with an ovulation predictor kit and the great desire to succeed at getting pregnant. Each morning I used the OPK and each morning it came up negative; however, we still did our fair share of trying to get pregnant on that particular vacation (hey, it was our honeymoon after all). No luck that month. No luck in August, September, October, or November either. At this point I was getting frustrated and very anxious. I hadn't truly realized that it could possibly take that long to conceive, although of course I had read that it could take up to a year or more. Also keep in mind that I come from a family where my Mom had me when she was 18 and my younger sister had her first at 16 and pretty much everyone in my family is as fertile as they come, so this was really annoying for me. Finally I made an appointment to have a consult with a well-known OB in the Medina area; we met right at the beginning of December 2009. What I liked best about this OB was that he didn't trivialize our situation; he didn't sit there, look at me and say, "Oh, you've only been trying for 6 or 7 months; come back and see me when you've hit a year and you're still not pregnant" like I've heard that a lot of other OBs would do. We talked about my cycles (unusually long) and he also said that he would send me for some initial testing to see if we could figure out what the deal was with our inability to conceive. I had some blood work done, poor Justin had to submit a semen sample, and later in December I went to have an HSG (if you don't know what that is, look it up...definitely not the most comfortable procedure in the world). I figured if I couldn't deal with the discomfort of the HSG how would I ever deal with labor and childbirth? I ended up sucking it up for that test. After all the testing was done I was given a diagnosis of PCOS (polycystic ovary/ovarian syndrome) which basically means that I don't necessarily ovulate on a consistent basis every month and that sometimes the ovum can get stuck before it bursts through the ovary and form cysts on the ovary. This also accounted for my really long cycles, which had not been regular since I went off the pill (I had been on the pill since age 16, with a year in college on Depo Provera and one semester in college where I went off it because I was engaged and out of the country at the time). The OB told me that if we kept trying we would finally hit the jackpot, but then when my period came in January he told me that he would prescribe me Clomid if I wanted it. I was weary of TTC at this point and figured it couldn't hurt to try it. I had read several stories and heard from several people that Clomid didn't work for them, they had to try several different doses several different times and it still didn't result in a pregnancy. I had this picture in my head of that being our situation, having to try hormone shots (I absolutely hate needles) and having issues for a long time to come. I took the lowest dose of Clomid possible and we hoped for the best in February 2010. In March my period was late (not out of the ordinary, since I have PCOS) but I had been instructed to call the doctor's office if I was late and then they could give me some other type of medication to have me start my period. When I called the secretary asked me if I had taken a pregnancy test, and of course I hadn't. I had grown weary of the monthly testing and the results always being negative. The next morning I took a test and it was a First Response test with the pink lines. It appeared to me that there was a faint second pink line. The next morning I used my last (more expensive) Clear Blue Easy digital test and it came up as positive almost immediately. I went into the bedroom, turned on the light and basically shoved the test right in Justin's face (which I am so sure he appreciated). Later that day I called the doctor's office and they had me go to the hospital for a blood pregnancy test, which also came back positive. With the help of one round of Clomid, we had done it...we had finally been successful at TTC. Now, I did have to take several blood pregnancy tests until my betas got to a certain number, but we got there. It took us around 10 months with the Clomid to be successful in our quest to conceive. I also found Fertility Friend online to be very helpful, as I tracked my cycles on there and was able to find out approximately when I would be ovulating (probably the best $30 or so I had spent in a long time). I also used ovulation predictor kits-just the cheap ones, where you get a box of 30 or so with the little blue lines on them. I hadn't realized when I first tried to use them in July on our honeymoon that you need to test a couple or a few times a day, not just in the morning when you wake up. Better not to buy the box of 7 digital ovulation tests if that is what you plan on doing (testing multiple times).
With all that said, my heart breaks for friends of ours and other acquaintances that I know of who have been trying for way longer than 10 months to conceive. We have some friends who have been trying for years and have had every test possible and have tried everything from Clomid to injections to IVF and it just hasn't worked. No particular cause has been found. I thought that in sharing our story I would give hope (and maybe some comic relief) to people who may have struggled with or who are currently struggling with fertility issues and/or infertility. I wish the best for my friends and acquaintances who are still TTC.
When we decide to have our next child, we'll see how it goes. It does scare me a bit that I'll probably be 35 or 36 by the time we try again (hey, wait, you may be thinking, that's not old at all...keep in mind my background...Mom had first child at 18, younger sister had first child at 16...yeah, compared to that, I'm OLD). Maybe it will just happen on its own, maybe it won't. We'll have to wait and see.
Until next time, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
Monday, January 10, 2011
Moving On
Today's post may seem a little vague, but for those of you who know me and know about certain situations in my life, you will understand. This seems to be a bit of a touchy subject for some of my friends and relatives, hence the reason for keeping some of the details under wraps. What I'm referring to here is going through some sort of life experience, be it negative or positive, learning from said life experience, and going on in a healthy and happy manner. There have been several people that I have known who have experienced terrible things in their lives, for example the death of a parent, death of a spouse, divorce, loss of a child, infertility, etc. Some of these people have made the choice to rise from the ashes and move on with their life. Since I won't offend anyone except possibly myself, I will use my situation as an example. Go back with me to November of 2006, the day after Thanksgiving, when I found out that my then husband had been cheating on me for an undetermined amount of time. Did it hurt like hell? Yeah, of course it did. Did it rock me to my very core? Certainly. Once you've been with someone for 10 years and married to them for more than 5 of those years that is definitely not what you would expect from that person. There were many nights where I wasn't able to sleep and would quietly go downstairs into the living room, sit on the couch wrapped in a blanket, and sob. Did I try my hardest to make the situation right itself? Yes, I did, including going to couples therapy and trying (in vain) to reconnect with my now ex. It is extremely difficult to put a relationship back together when only one person wants that relationship back, even more so when one person has already fallen in love with someone else. Although the situation was horrible, I relied on my family and friends to help me make it through the worst of it. Add to the fact that my Dad who had been diagnosed with liver cancer in April of 2006 and had gone through treatment and was supposedly clean had a recurrence of cancer in January 2007 and times were twice as hard. The year didn't get much better, with the exception of one thing (which I will get to in a moment); my dissolution of marriage from my first husband was finalized on December 7, 2006 and my Dad died exactly 10 days later. Now tell me that isn't a shitstorm to have to go through. I am convinced this would have absolutely driven some people into the ground. Not me, I'm a tough cookie and I'm not going to just roll over and die for anything or anyone.
So, you may be asking, what is the point to the above? The point is that instead of wallowing in my self-pity and asking, "Why me?" I chose to move on and go on with my life. My ex and I officially called it quits the Saturday before Easter in 2006. He had been seeing someone else all along, and I didn't see any problem with trying to get back in the dating game myself. Hell, I was 29 years old, somewhat attractive, had no children, so I figured why not...I'll try match.com. I did sign up that very weekend and did correspond with some people. I even had a couple of dates (2 with the same person, Neanderthal man/carpet cleaner Mike, but that is a whole other story in itself) and of course then I met Justin. We went on a few dates, knew we really clicked well together, he had been through a similar situation with his Mom having cancer and dying at age 50 in 2001, so he understood me and what I was going through. I waited until our second date to tell him that I was still married and fortunately he didn't flip out and break things off with me. I'm not going to rehash all of our relationship here and now, but he was (and continues to be, to this very day) a wonderful support for me, throughout all the craziness with my Dad, the ending of my marriage to my first husband, and of course now with our beautiful daughter McKenna. Notice that above I used a form of the verb "choose" in my statement. Yes, you have to make a choice when life hands you lemons...you can choke on the bitterness and stagnate in the acidity, or you can take the lemons and make lemonade. Or lemon meringue pie. Or whatever other tasty item you can make with lemons. I am extremely proud of certain people in my life who have made the choice after certain tragedies to move on with their life. One of these of course is my Mom (who I'm also sure won't mind being called out). I can't even imagine losing Justin after only being with him almost 4 years and being married for less than 2. My Mom lost my Dad after nearly 28 years of marriage and were together for probably 30. Was she absolutely crushed by this? Yes, she was, but not to the point where she turned into a shell of her former self. She went out, kept busy with family and friends, and even started dating again. When your spouse dies at the age of 48 and you are the same age that is WAY too young to stop living. I am so happy for her that she was able to take her grief, process through it, and MOVE ON. I know that she still loves my Dad, always will, and that she will never forget him. He is there with her every day, although not physically any more. I think it was the strength of their love for one another and the strength of their relationship that allowed her to move on. I also think that the support that she received was another very valuable piece of the "moving on" puzzle for her. She is now happily engaged to someone that she has known for a long time in a casual manner, but they started dating and now plan on getting married sometime in the near future. My Mom is 51. She's still got a lot of life to live. I am just so happy to have such a wonderful role model in my Mom.
There are also others that I know who have not made the choice to move on. It is very sad to see people wallow in depression, sadness, and grief. People who sit and stare at the same walls day in and day out, not interacting with the outside world on a regular basis. Unfortunately there is nothing that you or I can do for these people. We can talk with them about our concerns, beg and plead for them to get help, see a therapist, get some antidepressants, come out and socialize, etc. However, until these people make the choice to MOVE ON by THEMSELVES they will be stuck in the mire of their own circumstances.
The choice to MOVE ON can also be applied to other situations in life, not only divorce and death (these are just the two that have hit closest to home for me). If there is something out there that you want, you need to go and get it. It is not going to just magically show up for you. Wouldn't it be nice if that was the case, though? I have grown very weary of people telling me that they desire something in life that is readily (although not necessarily easily) attainable and then feeling sorry for themselves when said desire doesn't just happen in their life. It's time to move on, people...grab the bull by the horns, shit or get off the pot, whatever old, cliched saying you want to use. Stop expecting life to bring you good fortune...go out there and make your own good fortune and MOVE ON.
That's it for now. Until next time, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
So, you may be asking, what is the point to the above? The point is that instead of wallowing in my self-pity and asking, "Why me?" I chose to move on and go on with my life. My ex and I officially called it quits the Saturday before Easter in 2006. He had been seeing someone else all along, and I didn't see any problem with trying to get back in the dating game myself. Hell, I was 29 years old, somewhat attractive, had no children, so I figured why not...I'll try match.com. I did sign up that very weekend and did correspond with some people. I even had a couple of dates (2 with the same person, Neanderthal man/carpet cleaner Mike, but that is a whole other story in itself) and of course then I met Justin. We went on a few dates, knew we really clicked well together, he had been through a similar situation with his Mom having cancer and dying at age 50 in 2001, so he understood me and what I was going through. I waited until our second date to tell him that I was still married and fortunately he didn't flip out and break things off with me. I'm not going to rehash all of our relationship here and now, but he was (and continues to be, to this very day) a wonderful support for me, throughout all the craziness with my Dad, the ending of my marriage to my first husband, and of course now with our beautiful daughter McKenna. Notice that above I used a form of the verb "choose" in my statement. Yes, you have to make a choice when life hands you lemons...you can choke on the bitterness and stagnate in the acidity, or you can take the lemons and make lemonade. Or lemon meringue pie. Or whatever other tasty item you can make with lemons. I am extremely proud of certain people in my life who have made the choice after certain tragedies to move on with their life. One of these of course is my Mom (who I'm also sure won't mind being called out). I can't even imagine losing Justin after only being with him almost 4 years and being married for less than 2. My Mom lost my Dad after nearly 28 years of marriage and were together for probably 30. Was she absolutely crushed by this? Yes, she was, but not to the point where she turned into a shell of her former self. She went out, kept busy with family and friends, and even started dating again. When your spouse dies at the age of 48 and you are the same age that is WAY too young to stop living. I am so happy for her that she was able to take her grief, process through it, and MOVE ON. I know that she still loves my Dad, always will, and that she will never forget him. He is there with her every day, although not physically any more. I think it was the strength of their love for one another and the strength of their relationship that allowed her to move on. I also think that the support that she received was another very valuable piece of the "moving on" puzzle for her. She is now happily engaged to someone that she has known for a long time in a casual manner, but they started dating and now plan on getting married sometime in the near future. My Mom is 51. She's still got a lot of life to live. I am just so happy to have such a wonderful role model in my Mom.
There are also others that I know who have not made the choice to move on. It is very sad to see people wallow in depression, sadness, and grief. People who sit and stare at the same walls day in and day out, not interacting with the outside world on a regular basis. Unfortunately there is nothing that you or I can do for these people. We can talk with them about our concerns, beg and plead for them to get help, see a therapist, get some antidepressants, come out and socialize, etc. However, until these people make the choice to MOVE ON by THEMSELVES they will be stuck in the mire of their own circumstances.
The choice to MOVE ON can also be applied to other situations in life, not only divorce and death (these are just the two that have hit closest to home for me). If there is something out there that you want, you need to go and get it. It is not going to just magically show up for you. Wouldn't it be nice if that was the case, though? I have grown very weary of people telling me that they desire something in life that is readily (although not necessarily easily) attainable and then feeling sorry for themselves when said desire doesn't just happen in their life. It's time to move on, people...grab the bull by the horns, shit or get off the pot, whatever old, cliched saying you want to use. Stop expecting life to bring you good fortune...go out there and make your own good fortune and MOVE ON.
That's it for now. Until next time, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
Sunday, January 9, 2011
What I've Learned About Baby Clothes...
When you know someone who is pregnant or has recently had a baby, one of the most popular gifts to give to the Mom-to-be is often clothing. There is absolutely nothing wrong with giving clothing as a gift, but I have learned some interesting things about baby clothes since recently having a baby. Here are some of the things I have learned and that I will abide by in the future...
1. Take it easy on holiday-themed clothing.
We had McKenna on November 20, five days before Thanksgiving. One of my friends had purchased us an absolutely adorable Thanksgiving outfit of a onesie that said "Thankful for Mommy", a pair of pants with a turkey on the butt, and a matching turkey bib. It was a newborn outfit, perfect for when she was only five days old. We also received several different "My First Christmas" outfits, onesies, pajamas, etc. The poor child could only wear so many "My First Christmas" outfits and now these outfits have been relegated to their respective storage totes, many after only one wearing. In the future I will try to stay away from holiday-themed clothing unless it or they are so cute that I just HAVE to buy it for them.
2. Keep in mind the age of the child and what size they will be wearing in what season.
Once again, many people will see some baby clothing when out shopping and just HAVE to buy it. This is fine, but if you find a totally adorable snowman sweater with matching fleece pants and you buy it in size 6 to 9 months, the poor child will probably not have a chance to wear said outfit if he or she was born in November/December/even into January. Same goes for when you see that adorable two-piece swimsuit in Gymboree and buy it in size 12 months when the child was born in the aforementioned months. She is probably NOT going to be wearing a two-piece swimsuit in the dead of winter unless her parents are wealthy and they can afford to take beach vacations in the winter months. This definitely does not apply to us. In the future I will take into account clothing sizes and seasons when purchasing clothing for family members or friends who are expecting.
3. Try not to purchase onesies as a gift unless the expectant parent(s) have specifically requested them on their registry or registries.
Oh, onesies. They are so darn cute and usually pretty inexpensive, making a perfect gift in themselves or as an additional little gift to a gift that has already been purchased. The issue with this is that the expectant parent(s) then end up with several renegade onesies that are very cute but then don't have any matching pants/bottoms to go with them. We put several plain white onesies, both long and short sleeved on our registries, and we did receive some of them. We also did put a few on the registries that had prints on them or were different colors. We ended up with WAY more onesies than we will probably ever use. We tend to use the white onesies most often under McKenna's daily outfits and at night under her PJs. I suppose we could use the colored/printed ones we got as well but then you can't see how adorable they really are. :)
I resolve in the future to not purchase onesies for people unless they have a pair of pants/appropriate bottom to go with them or unless they are really cute and/or appropriate (or sometimes inappropriate, like the "Little Fucker" onesie I bought for a friend's child ;) and I just can't help myself.
4. Buy clothing in larger sizes for the child.
We received a few newborn sized clothing items for McKenna and thought to ourselves, "Oh, she'll never wear these, they're way too small." She ended up being in newborn sized clothing for the first 4 and a half to 5 weeks of her life and we actually had to go out and purchase her some additional clothing in newborn sizes because we didn't have enough. On the other hand, we have TONS of 0-3 month and 3-6 month clothing. We also have some 6-9 month clothing and some 12 month and up clothing. However, most people seem to buy in the 0-6 month category and before you know it, the child is moving up to the 9 month size and hasn't even worn half the clothing in the other sizes. Also refer back to number 2 above, as this is important for sizing of clothing as well. In the future I will purchase clothing for expectant parent(s) in sizes 6 months and older.
6. Stay away from pajamas.
Once again, pajamas are just so fuzzy and adorable and are usually inexpensive. We have so many pajamas (especially in sizes 0-3 and 3-6 months) that McKenna probably won't have to wear the same pajamas more than one night while she is in these clothing sizes. On the flip side, sleep sacks and gowns are highly useful, especially the first few weeks the baby is at home. They allow for very easy diaper changes. I resolve in the future to not buy pajamas for gifts for expectant parents, unless they are sleep sacks or gowns or if they are so darn cute that I just can't help buying them.
7. If you do buy pajamas for a gift, we have found that pajamas with snaps are easier than pajamas with zippers (if they are the sleep and play type, NOT the sleep sacks).
This one is more of a personal opinion (as are numbers 1-6 above, but who's worried about that right now). It may seem totally contrary, unzipping a zipper should be way easier than undoing and then redoing all of those snaps, but we like the pajamas that snap way better. I don't have a resolution for this particular comment because this is up to the individual choice or preference of the parent(s) to be.
In conclusion, clothing is a wonderful baby gift. For anyone who purchased clothing for McKenna, we are very grateful and happy that you purchased said clothing for her. I am not trying to be nasty or snarky. Just making some general comments on things I've learned over the past 9 months of being pregnant and 7 weeks of McKenna's life. If you agree with any of the above, you can always go along with my final recommendations/suggestions or you can always purchase something else from the registry or registries. Don't forget that you can NEVER go wrong with gift cards for the store or stores where the parent(s) to be are registered either. Justin and I had some of our hottest date nights going to Babies R Us and out to dinner afterwards and those gift cards that people so generously gave were the gifts that kept on giving. We were able to purchase all of the big-ticket items off our registry with those gift cards.
Well, time to get going now. Until next time, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
1. Take it easy on holiday-themed clothing.
We had McKenna on November 20, five days before Thanksgiving. One of my friends had purchased us an absolutely adorable Thanksgiving outfit of a onesie that said "Thankful for Mommy", a pair of pants with a turkey on the butt, and a matching turkey bib. It was a newborn outfit, perfect for when she was only five days old. We also received several different "My First Christmas" outfits, onesies, pajamas, etc. The poor child could only wear so many "My First Christmas" outfits and now these outfits have been relegated to their respective storage totes, many after only one wearing. In the future I will try to stay away from holiday-themed clothing unless it or they are so cute that I just HAVE to buy it for them.
2. Keep in mind the age of the child and what size they will be wearing in what season.
Once again, many people will see some baby clothing when out shopping and just HAVE to buy it. This is fine, but if you find a totally adorable snowman sweater with matching fleece pants and you buy it in size 6 to 9 months, the poor child will probably not have a chance to wear said outfit if he or she was born in November/December/even into January. Same goes for when you see that adorable two-piece swimsuit in Gymboree and buy it in size 12 months when the child was born in the aforementioned months. She is probably NOT going to be wearing a two-piece swimsuit in the dead of winter unless her parents are wealthy and they can afford to take beach vacations in the winter months. This definitely does not apply to us. In the future I will take into account clothing sizes and seasons when purchasing clothing for family members or friends who are expecting.
3. Try not to purchase onesies as a gift unless the expectant parent(s) have specifically requested them on their registry or registries.
Oh, onesies. They are so darn cute and usually pretty inexpensive, making a perfect gift in themselves or as an additional little gift to a gift that has already been purchased. The issue with this is that the expectant parent(s) then end up with several renegade onesies that are very cute but then don't have any matching pants/bottoms to go with them. We put several plain white onesies, both long and short sleeved on our registries, and we did receive some of them. We also did put a few on the registries that had prints on them or were different colors. We ended up with WAY more onesies than we will probably ever use. We tend to use the white onesies most often under McKenna's daily outfits and at night under her PJs. I suppose we could use the colored/printed ones we got as well but then you can't see how adorable they really are. :)
I resolve in the future to not purchase onesies for people unless they have a pair of pants/appropriate bottom to go with them or unless they are really cute and/or appropriate (or sometimes inappropriate, like the "Little Fucker" onesie I bought for a friend's child ;) and I just can't help myself.
4. Buy clothing in larger sizes for the child.
We received a few newborn sized clothing items for McKenna and thought to ourselves, "Oh, she'll never wear these, they're way too small." She ended up being in newborn sized clothing for the first 4 and a half to 5 weeks of her life and we actually had to go out and purchase her some additional clothing in newborn sizes because we didn't have enough. On the other hand, we have TONS of 0-3 month and 3-6 month clothing. We also have some 6-9 month clothing and some 12 month and up clothing. However, most people seem to buy in the 0-6 month category and before you know it, the child is moving up to the 9 month size and hasn't even worn half the clothing in the other sizes. Also refer back to number 2 above, as this is important for sizing of clothing as well. In the future I will purchase clothing for expectant parent(s) in sizes 6 months and older.
6. Stay away from pajamas.
Once again, pajamas are just so fuzzy and adorable and are usually inexpensive. We have so many pajamas (especially in sizes 0-3 and 3-6 months) that McKenna probably won't have to wear the same pajamas more than one night while she is in these clothing sizes. On the flip side, sleep sacks and gowns are highly useful, especially the first few weeks the baby is at home. They allow for very easy diaper changes. I resolve in the future to not buy pajamas for gifts for expectant parents, unless they are sleep sacks or gowns or if they are so darn cute that I just can't help buying them.
7. If you do buy pajamas for a gift, we have found that pajamas with snaps are easier than pajamas with zippers (if they are the sleep and play type, NOT the sleep sacks).
This one is more of a personal opinion (as are numbers 1-6 above, but who's worried about that right now). It may seem totally contrary, unzipping a zipper should be way easier than undoing and then redoing all of those snaps, but we like the pajamas that snap way better. I don't have a resolution for this particular comment because this is up to the individual choice or preference of the parent(s) to be.
In conclusion, clothing is a wonderful baby gift. For anyone who purchased clothing for McKenna, we are very grateful and happy that you purchased said clothing for her. I am not trying to be nasty or snarky. Just making some general comments on things I've learned over the past 9 months of being pregnant and 7 weeks of McKenna's life. If you agree with any of the above, you can always go along with my final recommendations/suggestions or you can always purchase something else from the registry or registries. Don't forget that you can NEVER go wrong with gift cards for the store or stores where the parent(s) to be are registered either. Justin and I had some of our hottest date nights going to Babies R Us and out to dinner afterwards and those gift cards that people so generously gave were the gifts that kept on giving. We were able to purchase all of the big-ticket items off our registry with those gift cards.
Well, time to get going now. Until next time, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
Friday, January 7, 2011
Online Message Boards and the Mean Girls Syndrome
Over the summer or around the time I went back to school in August I started going to thebump.com, a pregnancy and baby website, quite frequently. The Bump has many message boards, anything from trying to conceive to toddlers and just about everything in between and around those topics as well. As a newbie to message boards, I didn't quite understand the hype about them at first. I had originally started out on the local message boards for pregnancy questions and information, and there just weren't all that many people on the local boards (I went on the Cleveland and Akron boards). After some messing around on the site, I then discovered the different trimester boards. At this time I was already in my third trimester, so I felt a bit behind as many of the other posters had been on these trimester message boards since their first (and some probably even when they were trying to conceive), but I quickly got sucked in. I enjoyed the playful banter of the (mostly) women who posted questions about their pregnancies and even some other questions and information that was not related to pregnancy at all. I even found myself laughing out loud at some of the posts and comments that were made from time to time. This was pretty embarrassing when it happened in my classroom, but luckily it happened when there weren't students in my room (duh...did you think I went on to The Bump when I was supposed to be teaching? Nah...just during planning period and before and after school). ; ) There was a group of about 6 or 7 women who had obviously gotten to know one another quite well during their time on The Bump, and they formed a sort of "mean girls" type clique where they pretty much took over and ran the third trimester board around September/October of 2010. I found that I was very interested in their posts, not necessarily for the information that they were providing, but for the ways that they would sometimes gang up on and criticize other posters. Sometimes it was inappropriate, sometimes hilarious. In case you were wondering, yes, it is possible to share WAY too much information on a message board site (oh, the stories I could tell about that one) and this particular group of ladies definitely let people know when they had let too much information slip. This group of ladies also must have had some significant time on their hands while wating for their LOs (loved ones) to come into the world, as some of them would go and "lurk" on other message boards and place links to these other message boards on the third trimester board and then go and totally bash these posters from the other message boards. They also would create their own "siggie pics" and have "siggie challenges" according to whatever month we were currently in, further leading to the mean girls mentality that they were "cooler" than other posters on the board. Once the beginning and middle of October hit, many of these women in the "mean girls" clique had their LOs and moved on to the 0-3 month board. I do have to admit (since I wasn't due until almost the end of November) that after these "mean girls" left the third trimester board it was a bit dry. Not as much snark, sarcasm, and drama. It was nice in a way though to not have the board run by a small group of people.
Finally I had McKenna on November 20 and after awhile when we got used to having a baby in the house I was able to go back on The Bump while she napped and check out the latest postings on the 0-3 boards. Of course, the "mean girls" were back in full force on these boards, and at first I didn't have any issues with it or with them. The sarcasm and snark were still entertaining. After a few weeks of having a newborn myself though, I often would think to myself, "What do these people do all day and what do their kids do all day that they can just sit and post and comment on basically EVERYTHING on this 0-3 month board?" I would generally have a half hour or an hour here or there to just look at things, make the occasional post, and then McKenna would be up and needing to be fed and changed. These ladies apparently had the feeding and changing down pat, in addition to having their laptops or desktop computers constantly attached to themselves (or their iPhones or Blackberries in some cases).
Then came the day when I finally got fed up with the snark. Someone on the 0-3 month board had posted a question about how long can your infant stay in a bouncy seat or swing before they started to fuss. I thought this was a perfectly logical inquiry, as I had been wondering the same thing about McKenna. At the time she was going through a phase where she liked to be held a lot and would maybe spend 5-10 minutes max in either of those places. I opened up the post to read the responses, and was greeted by the following reply (not word for word, but pretty close): "Ours stays in there for 2-3 days. We are trying to get them to stay in there for a week." This response greatly irked me. The OP (original poster) had asked what I thought was a totally honest question and was looking for honest responses from people, not the snarky reply that was given by this poster. Yes, in case you were wondering, it was one of the mean girls. For some reason this totally annoyed me and since that time I have found myself staying away from The Bump. I felt as if I had learned better information from the third trimester board than I had been learning from the 0-3 month board. I also felt as if I had in some respects outgrown the snarkiness of the "mean girls" and just didn't want to be in a place where I had to see their nasty, inappropriate comments and posts. That isn't to say that I never go on The Bump any more, I just spend significantly less time there. Instead of logging on at least once every day, I might log on once every 5 to 7 days instead. Sometimes I just look at the titles of the posts and who posted them and don't even open them up. Overall, my experience on The Bump message boards was positive, but I just felt that I outgrew the childish, immature behaviors of the "mean girls" on the boards.
If you've never tried posting on message boards, you should try it. I'll warn you, it is addicting and you never know...you might come across your own group of "mean girls" that you'll have to deal with.
Another thrilling post coming your way later today or tomorrow. Until then, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
Finally I had McKenna on November 20 and after awhile when we got used to having a baby in the house I was able to go back on The Bump while she napped and check out the latest postings on the 0-3 boards. Of course, the "mean girls" were back in full force on these boards, and at first I didn't have any issues with it or with them. The sarcasm and snark were still entertaining. After a few weeks of having a newborn myself though, I often would think to myself, "What do these people do all day and what do their kids do all day that they can just sit and post and comment on basically EVERYTHING on this 0-3 month board?" I would generally have a half hour or an hour here or there to just look at things, make the occasional post, and then McKenna would be up and needing to be fed and changed. These ladies apparently had the feeding and changing down pat, in addition to having their laptops or desktop computers constantly attached to themselves (or their iPhones or Blackberries in some cases).
Then came the day when I finally got fed up with the snark. Someone on the 0-3 month board had posted a question about how long can your infant stay in a bouncy seat or swing before they started to fuss. I thought this was a perfectly logical inquiry, as I had been wondering the same thing about McKenna. At the time she was going through a phase where she liked to be held a lot and would maybe spend 5-10 minutes max in either of those places. I opened up the post to read the responses, and was greeted by the following reply (not word for word, but pretty close): "Ours stays in there for 2-3 days. We are trying to get them to stay in there for a week." This response greatly irked me. The OP (original poster) had asked what I thought was a totally honest question and was looking for honest responses from people, not the snarky reply that was given by this poster. Yes, in case you were wondering, it was one of the mean girls. For some reason this totally annoyed me and since that time I have found myself staying away from The Bump. I felt as if I had learned better information from the third trimester board than I had been learning from the 0-3 month board. I also felt as if I had in some respects outgrown the snarkiness of the "mean girls" and just didn't want to be in a place where I had to see their nasty, inappropriate comments and posts. That isn't to say that I never go on The Bump any more, I just spend significantly less time there. Instead of logging on at least once every day, I might log on once every 5 to 7 days instead. Sometimes I just look at the titles of the posts and who posted them and don't even open them up. Overall, my experience on The Bump message boards was positive, but I just felt that I outgrew the childish, immature behaviors of the "mean girls" on the boards.
If you've never tried posting on message boards, you should try it. I'll warn you, it is addicting and you never know...you might come across your own group of "mean girls" that you'll have to deal with.
Another thrilling post coming your way later today or tomorrow. Until then, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Thank You Notes
I've seen some interesting things regarding thank you notes lately. I'll be the first to admit that I'm not up on my Emily Post etiquette regarding thank you notes, but I think that my parents taught me pretty well in regards to them. I always wrote thank you notes to family members, friends, and others for large occasions, such as graduation from high school and college, wedding showers, weddings (yes, I have had more than one :) ), and baby showers. Although it's been quite a few years and I don't actively participate in any religious activities, I was raised as a Catholic and I'm sure that I also wrote thank you notes for my communion and confirmation.
I've recently received thank you notes from friends and family members thanking us for birthday gifts and for Christmas gifts. I can understand (to some point) writing thank you notes for birthday gifts, especially if it is a child's first birthday or a sweet 16 party and there have been a lot of guests invited to help celebrate along with many gifts. If it is just for any other birthday (not a milestone) I think a simple spoken "thank you for the gift" should suffice. On the other hand, I think that writing thank you notes for Christmas gifts is simply overkill. We have relatives who have children that we buy Christmas gifts for and friends that have children that we buy Christmas gifts for and they likewise do the same for our daughter; some of these family members and friends sent us thank you notes for their Christmas gifts. I did not write thank you notes to these friends or family members for the gifts, but they were told "thank you" by both myself and my husband. I am not sure whether or not this is a regional thing (writing thank you notes for birthday gifts and Christmas gifts) or if it is just how certain people were raised and they are continuing that with their children. I don't see anything wrong with it, I just don't plan on doing it for my child or having her do it when she is old enough to do it on her own (unless of course it's for a milestone birthday or some other significant event, as I mentioned above). A simple hug and/or kiss and a spoken "thank you" is certainly enough in my humble opinion for birthday and Christmas gifts.
Another interesting trend that I've heard about but have yet to see is going to a bridal or baby shower and having guests address their own envelopes for thank you notes to be sent from the bride and groom to be or the mother and father to be. I've read on some online message boards that people do this and turn it into a game, putting all of the pre-addressed envelopes into a box or some sort of container and drawing out envelopes to win door prizes. I think the whole idea is totally tacky. All of these people took time and effort to come to your bridal or baby shower and you can't even take some time to personally address their thank you notes for the gifts you received from them? I just don't get it. Some people have defended this new trend, stating that people may have moved and that they don't know the peoples' addresses. Whatever. We live in a very technologically oriented world, you can text, e-mail, Facebook, call a person or maybe someone else who knows the person whose address you do not know and find out. I think this new trend is just a cop out. If you're going that far, why don't you have them write their own thank you notes as well? Have them write down all the gifts they gave you and you can just sign it, put the postage on it and send it. Hell, just sign them right at the shower and tuck them in the envelopes and have your guests pick them up on the way out the door. That way you don't have to worry about them at all after the shower. Guess you can tell that I'm definitely not a fan of this new trend.
Another new thank you trend that I have heard of recently is pre-printed thank you notes that you fill in. For example, you buy a package of thank you notes and on the inside of each thank you is:
Dear ____________________,
Thank you very much for the gift(s) of ___________________________________.
I will enjoy the gift(s) very much. I plan on using this gift for_________________________.
Love,
________________________
Obviously, you get the point. Much of the work has been removed in the actual writing of the thank you note and all you have to do is fill in the blanks. Being a teacher, I know that if you create a test with fill in the blank answers it is geared toward lower level thinking. People, take the high (and less lazy) road and write your own thank you notes from beginning to end. You will be doing yourself and your children a favor by making yourself and them practice writing and (hopefully) proper English grammar and people will appreciate receiving a thank you note that is not already pre-written for them. I know that I would be pretty offended if I ever received a fill in the blank thank you note.
As a final comment, somewhat related to thank you notes, I firmly believe that hand addressing of anything demonstrates that you put time and effort into thank you notes, invitations, greeting cards, etc. I am so much more impressed when I receive any of the above that are neatly hand written or have calligraphy on them rather than having a computer printed label on them. Not that it's necessary to hand write all the time when you are addressing things, but I think it is classy.
Until next time, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
I've recently received thank you notes from friends and family members thanking us for birthday gifts and for Christmas gifts. I can understand (to some point) writing thank you notes for birthday gifts, especially if it is a child's first birthday or a sweet 16 party and there have been a lot of guests invited to help celebrate along with many gifts. If it is just for any other birthday (not a milestone) I think a simple spoken "thank you for the gift" should suffice. On the other hand, I think that writing thank you notes for Christmas gifts is simply overkill. We have relatives who have children that we buy Christmas gifts for and friends that have children that we buy Christmas gifts for and they likewise do the same for our daughter; some of these family members and friends sent us thank you notes for their Christmas gifts. I did not write thank you notes to these friends or family members for the gifts, but they were told "thank you" by both myself and my husband. I am not sure whether or not this is a regional thing (writing thank you notes for birthday gifts and Christmas gifts) or if it is just how certain people were raised and they are continuing that with their children. I don't see anything wrong with it, I just don't plan on doing it for my child or having her do it when she is old enough to do it on her own (unless of course it's for a milestone birthday or some other significant event, as I mentioned above). A simple hug and/or kiss and a spoken "thank you" is certainly enough in my humble opinion for birthday and Christmas gifts.
Another interesting trend that I've heard about but have yet to see is going to a bridal or baby shower and having guests address their own envelopes for thank you notes to be sent from the bride and groom to be or the mother and father to be. I've read on some online message boards that people do this and turn it into a game, putting all of the pre-addressed envelopes into a box or some sort of container and drawing out envelopes to win door prizes. I think the whole idea is totally tacky. All of these people took time and effort to come to your bridal or baby shower and you can't even take some time to personally address their thank you notes for the gifts you received from them? I just don't get it. Some people have defended this new trend, stating that people may have moved and that they don't know the peoples' addresses. Whatever. We live in a very technologically oriented world, you can text, e-mail, Facebook, call a person or maybe someone else who knows the person whose address you do not know and find out. I think this new trend is just a cop out. If you're going that far, why don't you have them write their own thank you notes as well? Have them write down all the gifts they gave you and you can just sign it, put the postage on it and send it. Hell, just sign them right at the shower and tuck them in the envelopes and have your guests pick them up on the way out the door. That way you don't have to worry about them at all after the shower. Guess you can tell that I'm definitely not a fan of this new trend.
Another new thank you trend that I have heard of recently is pre-printed thank you notes that you fill in. For example, you buy a package of thank you notes and on the inside of each thank you is:
Dear ____________________,
Thank you very much for the gift(s) of ___________________________________.
I will enjoy the gift(s) very much. I plan on using this gift for_________________________.
Love,
________________________
Obviously, you get the point. Much of the work has been removed in the actual writing of the thank you note and all you have to do is fill in the blanks. Being a teacher, I know that if you create a test with fill in the blank answers it is geared toward lower level thinking. People, take the high (and less lazy) road and write your own thank you notes from beginning to end. You will be doing yourself and your children a favor by making yourself and them practice writing and (hopefully) proper English grammar and people will appreciate receiving a thank you note that is not already pre-written for them. I know that I would be pretty offended if I ever received a fill in the blank thank you note.
As a final comment, somewhat related to thank you notes, I firmly believe that hand addressing of anything demonstrates that you put time and effort into thank you notes, invitations, greeting cards, etc. I am so much more impressed when I receive any of the above that are neatly hand written or have calligraphy on them rather than having a computer printed label on them. Not that it's necessary to hand write all the time when you are addressing things, but I think it is classy.
Until next time, I remain,
Jenuinely Yours
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Cardiologist Appointment/Thoughts on Going Back to Work
Today we had McKenna's cardiologist appointment. The nurse took her blood pressure, measured and weighed her, and did an EKG. After that we saw the cardiologist and he listened to her heart. He said that he didn't hear anything so he believed that the hole between her two lower ventricles had closed. He did say that the EKG showed a flap of some sort on one of her upper ventricles but it is very common and as she grows and her heart muscles grow it should close up on its own. He doesn't need to see us back unless the heart murmur shows up again between the time she is 6 months to 1 year old. Very good news. We hope that we don't have to see Akron Children's Hospital again soon. We have been there 3 different times in the past 6 and a half weeks of her life.
The other thing that has been on my mind a lot today is going back to work. My feelings change by the day, sometimes hourly. In a way I am looking forward to going back to work, as I miss interacting with my colleagues and my students. On the other hand it makes me sad that I can't stay at home with McKenna and take care of her full-time. Unfortunately our financial situation doesn't allow for that-we are a two-income family (with 2 additional part-time jobs as well). I would guess it is the same for almost every working mom; you look forward to going back to work but feel guilty as hell that you can't stay home with your child or children. Guess that's one of the good things about teaching; we do get Christmas and spring breaks, and the summers off.
Good enough for this government. Signing off for now.
The other thing that has been on my mind a lot today is going back to work. My feelings change by the day, sometimes hourly. In a way I am looking forward to going back to work, as I miss interacting with my colleagues and my students. On the other hand it makes me sad that I can't stay at home with McKenna and take care of her full-time. Unfortunately our financial situation doesn't allow for that-we are a two-income family (with 2 additional part-time jobs as well). I would guess it is the same for almost every working mom; you look forward to going back to work but feel guilty as hell that you can't stay home with your child or children. Guess that's one of the good things about teaching; we do get Christmas and spring breaks, and the summers off.
Good enough for this government. Signing off for now.
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