I think it's a universal rule

The later you go to bed, the earlier your kid gets up. I went to a Bon Jovi concert last night. I know, I'm such an 80's hair band chick. Friend's husband is a bigwig and got us VIP seats and into the private party. I KNOW. I KNOW. I drank way too much and stayed out too late and came home and was up until after 2 because I could not fall asleep. Diet Coke at 12 am is not such a good idea. Michael was up at 3 am, and 5:45 am. At 5:45 I managed to get him to go back to sleep until 8 am. It's like I can never learn. Every time I am hung over, Michael gets up early. And to add insult to injury, I had an appointment with a personal trainer this morning. What moron scheduled that the morning after going out drinking? Um, clearly me.

The difference between men and women

We have just started using a new babysitter. She is great with Michael and really trustworthy, but she does not drive. And she lives about 20 minutes away. Her parents have been dropping her off and we have been taking her home. Last weekend Doug drove her home and I cleaned up toys, put dishes in the dishwasher, and packed my gym bag and Michael's diaper bag for the morning. Doug came home and we went to bed. This weekend I drove her home and I got home and cleaned up toys, put dishes in the dishwasher, and packed my gym bag and Michael's diaper bag for the morning. Doug was already in bed.

Remind me not to complain about my life

I came home from running errands Monday ready to put Michael down for a nap. A police officer was sitting in front on my neighborhood. He wouldn't let me in without showing him my license. "You can go in," he said. "You are not in the row that's on fire." "Um, what????" "Yeah, a whole row of townhouses are on fire." (As a side note, maybe the police should work on their delivery a little bit. Had my house been on fire would he have been like, sorry ma'am, you can't go in, your house is on fire?)

At which point I noticed the millions of fire trucks and ambulances, some from as far away as two towns over, which is never good, since they always send the closest trucks. And I could smell the fire and see the blaze and realize, oh my goodness, my neighborhood is on fire.

This is a real picture, taken by a local news organization.

At least 12 people and possibly up to 20 people have been displaced. Damage is estimated at $800,000 for the town house and another $100,000 for the homes on either side.

3 days later, you can still smell the smoke in the air. And when you walk by the house, it is still smoking.

Yes, everything in my life is just fine.

Because that's what makes it believable

Upon watching the 18th million episode of Wonder Pets on Saturday, Doug says, "oh, I get it. They are classroom pets. That's how they get to go out and have adventures and no one notices." Right, because the idea of a duck, turtle and hamster getting out of their cages, building a fly boat, donning capes and becoming super heroes totally makes sense once you put that piece in.

Dear Me,

Look, I'm not trying to be mean or anything, but I've never really liked you. I've been on a diet for as long as I can remember. Never really enjoying food, either not eating or eating too much. I've always been too critical. My head is too round, it looks like a pumpkin. My nose is too big, thighs are too big, stomach is too big. But mostly, I'm just too fat. I didn't even appreciate you in pregnancy. In fact, I hated pregnancy so much I don't have one picture of me pregnant (Big mistake). You carried and birthed a baby and still, was my first reaction to thank you? Nope, it was to diet and spend two hours every day at the gym, must lose baby weight RIGHT NOW. Even as I write this, I still punish you. Even at my thinnest, it was not thin enough. So here it is, thank you. Thank you for being healthy. For taking care of Michael. For even, dare I say it, being beautiful. You are a gift, and I will try to do a better job of remembering that. Brought to you by Blogher's letter to my body.

Quote Book Saturday Goes Political

Someone wrote on the birth board I frequent, this message about Obama. I could not agree more. Whoever the next president is, has an unbelievable job ahead. They have to repair America, Americans, the Economy, our image, our allies and then our government. These tasks are going to be a great challenge, any change at this point will be a step in the right direction....the next president has to heal a nation that has lost it's faith in the leadership! No small task! I think that Obama inspires people to believe not that he can fix it all, but that we as a nation can pull ourselves up from our bootstraps and we, as a nation can rise above and make the choices to heal and change together...... ______________________________________________________________________ And, don't forget MamaPop talk's Oscar party. It will be a blast!

Labels: Quote Book Saturday, Random Bloginess

Bill Nye, the Science Guy

Anybody else remember this dude? What ever happened to him? Parent Bloggers and Zula Intergalactic Inquirer are asking bloggers how will you bring science back for your kids, and why do you think it's important? I think ALL subjects are important. I think the fact that we now teach to the test and worry about No Child Left Behind (which in my opinion only leaves children behind), is insane. I plan to expose Michael to everything. Monday, when we went to the Museum of Natural History, we went to each and every exhibit and tried to explain what Michael was seeing in 3 year old terms. Dinosaurs are animals that lived a long time ago. Meteorites are big rocks from outer space. Bugs, well, he knows what those are. To me, teaching is about exposure. Making it part of everyday life.

You are invited

to a virtual Oscar Soiree. I love the Oscars, it is my absolute favorite night on TV. Pre-Michael, I always went to an Oscar party but I just can't stay out that late anymore on a Sunday night. (I am so old. ) So, join us, the writers at MamaPop, as we talk about dresses, awards, who looks great, and she is wearing what? Chime in. Tell us your picks and how much you hated that nominated movie. I have not seen one of them this year so I will have a lot to contribute. And the best part, you can be in your PJ's. I'll be the one drinking lots of wine.

Because what is missing from my life is more TV

I have recently become addicted to Jon & Kate plus 8. I watch way to much tv as is, but my playgroup recently turned me onto this. Have you seen this? Oh my goodness, they have 8 kids. And they manage. Although she is a little OCD. It actually makes me feel a little bad about myself. I can barely handle my one.

The Conundrum of a Lost Toy

Doug was off for Presidents Day so we decided to take Michael to the Museum of Natural History. He is obsessed with dinosaurs and it was beautiful out and we had a perfectly lovely day. Morning at the museum and lunch at Teaism and no temper tantrums all day. Michael insisted on walking though the museum and I ended up pushing an empty stroller (with a million other parents). But he held hands, did not run, and did not touch the exhibits and in general, was a perfect little museum goer. Except, we got back to the car and realized that somewhere along the way he dropped his favorite Spider Man action figure. The one my mom bought him when he was in the hospital. It has been his constant companion for two weeks. He insisted on bringing it even though I told him not to because I didn't want him to lose it. I have no idea where he dropped it and there was no way to re-trace all our steps that day. Somewhere, in downtown DC is a lost Spider Man. All I can think of is the line from Toy Story when Woody cries, "I'm a lost toy." Michael was pretty calm about it. A little upset and then looked at me and said, "that's okay Mommy. You can get me another one." And yes, I can. But what message does that send? It won't break the budget to replace his toy. But, I'm very cognizant of the fact that I'm raising an only child, and I refuse to raise a spoiled rotten only child. He needs to learn that if he takes toys out of the house he has to be responsible for them. Actually, he needs to be responsible for toys in the house since he is constantly losing toys in the house and expecting me to find them. Is replacing the toy really what I want him to learn from this? But, he isn't even 3 yet. Is it unreasonable for him to understand that a lost toy is lost forever? That Mommy and Daddy won't fix every problem with money? And in all honesty, if I don't replace it my mom probably will anyway. Cross-posted on DC Metro Moms.