Better as an Old Friend

I have lived in this town several times in my life.  The first time my family moved here, I was only 16.  I had a whole year of high school here and made quite a few friends that I am still close to.  At least a handful of friends fit into this category. I love them dearly along with their spouses, kids and parents.  We go through phases where we see each other quite often and talk on the phone.  Then we'll go through phases where we don't communicate very much for a few weeks or months.  I have already put in the time and effort with my old friends so we can pick up right where we left off.  It is comfortable and we know each other's history.  I love sharing life with them.  I love knowing where they came from and seeing the progress and how well they handle the trials in life.  When we talk, they know that I am not that strange or only what I am right now.  They can see phases in life or why I am the way I am.

I also have other friends that I made during that time period that I am not really close with (mostly old church friends), but that I am thrilled to run into around town.  It is fun to catch up and even share an occasional activity.  Both types of these long term friends hold a special place in my heart and I feel like I am good at being their friend.  

On the other hand, we've lived here (this time) for the past 3 1/2 years and I've made quite a few new friends.  I think they are wonderful and I like them a lot, but I just don't feel like I am able to be a good friend to them.  At first, I wondered if it is because I feel so deeply for my old friends that it is strange to like the new ones.  It actually took a while for me to realize that some of the new people I spend time with are actually "friends." Now that I see that, I understand that relationships just take work.  

Sadly, I am stretched too thin as it is. In order to develop a friendship, it takes time and effort. The new friends want to talk more and hang out several times a week. I feel like I am being a little rude because I am just too busy.  Whenever we talk on a deeper level, it turns into a whole long conversation explaining the back story.  I don't mind sharing or listening, but it really isn't as easy as it is with my old friends.  Many of them are fairly new to this area and they are wanting to find people to do things with.  That is also difficult for me because I don't have money for extra things like going to lunch.  I also work full time and many of them are stay-at-home moms.  

I feel very fortunate to have so many wonderful people in my life.  I just hope that I am not failing them or making them feel like I don't care.    

Americans Can Cook

Every afternoon (3:30 pm), Jordan and I stand outside of Lexi’s school to pick her up. There are four moms at that exit that walk their kids home on a daily basis, so we have casually talked every day for the past six weeks. For some strange reason, I am the only US born mom and consequently the only one without an accent. One is from France. One is from Venezuela. The third one is from Bolivia.

Last week, the one from France brought each of us a bundle of fresh basil from her garden. The next day, they were all curious about how we each used our basil. The French one’s father was a chef, so she regularly cooks with fresh basil. The one from Venezuela teaches gourmet cooking classes for parties at people’s homes. She planned to use her basil for one of the parties. The one from Bolivia was still thinking about how she would use it, but had thought about using it in a cream cheese mix for various different things. They all looked at me with curiosity. I told them I was going to make a homemade margherita pizza (posted a picture above as proof). They were surprised that I knew how to cook since I am an “American.”

Isn’t that funny that they thought that? Is it because Americans eat out a lot? Maybe they just think we stick to meat and potatoes, which I know a lot who do. I happen to be better at foreign dishes. To be honest, I love all things Italian. Indian, Arabic and Japanese rank high on my list of dishes too. We hardly ever go out to eat, so I have to keep it interesting. I don’t know how Americans got that reputation or if it is wide-spread, but perhaps it is time we show them that we can cook.

Kids Talk

Today is the two year anniversary of the divorce. Emotionally, I am in a much better place and so is my ex. I know it was absolutely the right decision, even though breaking up a family is so difficult and shouldn’t have to happen ever. However, life has a way of helping people grow, heal and move on.

This week, I saw an article about dealing with your ex getting a new girlfriend. One of the author’s suggestions was encouraging your kids not to talk about the other parent’s life or your life. I think that advice is sad.

First of all, I can’t imagine discouraging my kids from sharing anything that affects their lives. I want them to feel like they can talk to me about anything and everything. Perhaps, that is one of the reasons my kids are non-stop talkers. I don’t want them to keep things from me. I hope by getting in this habit, they’ll come to me with everything especially during the teenage years or if anyone ever does anything to them that I NEED to know about.

Secondly, I don’t want them to feel guilty or bad about a person that is hopefully a positive influence in their lives. I wouldn’t discourage them from talking about their teachers or friends’ moms. Their dad’s girlfriend or their step-mom would be a significant part of their lives, especially since they spend every other weekend with him and most likely her.

Thirdly, kids are constantly trying to understand the world and life. Every new situation creates questions. They want to understand what things mean and how things work, especially relationships. Questions like: What will happen if they get married? What if they have a baby? How will that baby be related to me? Will that baby be related to you, mom? Will my dad still love me? Etc. Kids naturally ask questions and probably feel more comfortable asking the person who answers most of their questions, which in my experience is their mom.

I guess this point in the article struck a nerve because I am dealing with this currently. My ex has a special woman in his life that the kids spend time with. In fact, most of the time they are with him, she is too. I haven’t met her yet, but she seems like a great person and is really getting attached to the kids. I am sure that she is good for him and the kids. Since my kids are TALKERS, I have heard all about her and him and them and answered all kinds of questions. Sure, it sometimes causes moments of insecurity or self-doubt (when I think about it later after they are asleep), but overall I feel like it is a positive thing.

Then again, I am able to listen and answer from an emotionally stable place and with a level head. My point is that advice columns can be wrong. Before taking advice, think about it from all different angles and potential outcomes.

Bracing for the New Year

Isn’t it odd that many of us seem to spend the first week or two of each New Year bracing to see what it will bring? We are a bit nervous about whether or not it will be a good year. If last year was particularly rough, we hope and pray that this one will be a huge improvement. If we had a great year, we are extremely anxious that the pendulum will swing the other way. Lots of people, who claim not to be overly superstitious, look for little signs that will give clues as to what’s to come. It is almost humorous that the changing of a number such as 2011 (simply mankind’s way of keeping track) causes numerous emotions.

To be honest, I can’t remember having one year that I would deem as “bad.” Sure there were years when it seemed like lots of things hit hard, but in those years good things happened too. Sometimes the good and bad things carried over into the following year. Life seems to be more of a crazy mixed up ball of uncertainty that does not pay attention to a silly thing like what month or year it happens to be. However, outward randomness is not necessarily a negative thing. At least it is always interesting.

I am not sure where I am going with this. This little post is probably just a pep talk I am trying to give myself. I am trying not to view the negative occurrences that have recently happened as signs of what is to come. It all started one day, last month. I suddenly had a feeling of dread come over me. I felt like something terrifying is going to happen, but that in the end everything would turn out better than it is now. I have no idea what this means or when it will happen.

I would like to believe it has something to do with my ex being laid off last week. Sure I will not get child support for a while, but then maybe he’ll get a better job and be able to move on with his life. Even better, perhaps it means I’ll meet Mr. Wonderful and I’ll be extremely nervous about the new feelings. Beyond those two, I start to really dread what could be coming my way. With all my heart, I hope it isn’t that my company decides they don’t have enough work to keep me employed. I haven’t exactly been busy for the last few months. Plus, I desperately hope they can put me on full-time in the late summer so that my Texas plans will be a reality.

Despite the fact that being nervous is just a useless waste of energy, I am still bracing for whatever may come my way. Please be mostly kind…2011.

Roots of Envy

Lately, quite a few friends have shared news with me that made me feel happy for them and GLAD it wasn’t me. Of course, my two recently divorced friends that got re-married were on the list. When one of them shared the news, the only thing that popped into my head was… “You actually have to plan a wedding for a second marriage? What a pain!” Thankfully, I kept that to myself.

The other bit of good news was from a friend that is pregnant and about to have her third. She has two sons, one six months younger than Lexi and the other one is a little younger than Jordan. I would have thought that this might bring about feelings of envy since I wanted three kids, but no. Mainly, I was glad not to be pregnant. That really is such a miserable and uncomfortable state. In the last year, I have come to realize that I am quite happy with my two kids. Don’t get me wrong, I love kids. I am just hoping that if I find a Mr. Right, that he will have a few young kids of his own.

Neither of these news flashes brought about feelings of envy, but there was some news from a friend about two months ago that hit hard. This friend had been offered a dream job with a ridiculously large salary in Italy. I would LOVE to live in Italy and quite a few other countries. I spent several days stuck in the pit of horrible envy (not the hateful kind, just the depressed & wished that was me kind).  Probably the worst part of it all was that the move wasn’t even wanted. How could that be? I just don’t get it.

To sum this up, marriage and pregnancy are not going to make me feel envious, but a life altering experience in a foreign country will. I guess some things never change.

Feeling Old

It is funny what things make a person feel old.  For the past several months, it has been the fact that someone I knew from Jr High, Shawn Lindsay, was running to be a State House Representative in Oregon.  It makes me feel even older than knowing that my 20 year high school reunion is next summer.  He won yesterday, so I can't continue to pretend that he was just way too young for this type of thing.

Waiting Game

Ellen has a great stand-up show where she talks about how crazy life can be and that we should embrace procrastination. The idea can make some mom’s cringe and feel like they aren’t doing their best, but in many instances it is a great strategy. Lately, I have accomplished a few things that I had put off doing and found that the procrastination turned out to be the ideal approach.

First (and probably the best one) is all about potty training Jordan. Lexi wasn’t a tough child to potty train, but there were some upheavals and changes in our lives during that time that caused setbacks (a return to accidents). Since everyone claims that potty training boys is so much harder, I was not looking forward to the process with Jordan. I decided that I was going to wait until he was three. A few friends that did that said it was easy. I started Lexi right at two.

The first time Jordan went in the potty was at Christmas (a little after he turned 2). I have been able to get him to go right before his baths for months. He has been showing more and more of the signs that he is ready. Finally, a month ago it became too obvious that he was more than ready even though he will not be three for two more months. I put a pair of big boys on him and haven’t looked back. He only had three accidents (half accidents since he stopped himself) and two of them were outside. I believe this easy success has to do with his personality, his knowing exactly what to do from watching Lexi, and from me waiting until he showed ALL the signs of being ready.

Second, I started teaching Lexi to read last summer. She was doing fairly well, but it was taking a lot of patience on my part. Several of my friends had described the need for this kind of patience when teaching a child to read. Unfortunately, too much was going on last year for me to muster it. I just put the lessons away. I decided to start again a few weeks ago and have been completely pleased with her progress. It is so easy for her and me now. She is jumping way ahead of me and loving every minute of her lessons. If I decide to teach Jordan to read in the future (rather than relying on pre-school or school), I will definitely wait until he is four and a half. I know that is what made the difference.

Third, Jordan has been sleeping in a crib until today. Should I admit that online? I have felt guilty for not transferring him to a toddler bed the minute he turned two, but I just never made it a priority. I have a few excuses like the fact that he started climbing out of his crib very early. He has had absolutely no problem getting in or out. Also, my mom and step-dad both said they slept in a crib until kindergarten.

When Jordan was a baby, I had planned to buy a toddler bed exactly like Lexi’s for him. I love that her bed and the crib match perfectly. When I went looking for the same little bed for him, I couldn’t find it. I started dragging my feet and hating the options. Last week while watching House Hunters, I saw a nursery where they had converted the crib to a toddler daybed. Suddenly, I remembered that his crib did that. In this case, waiting was the key to getting a better solution. Today, Lexi has a toddler daybed and Jordan has a toddler bed. The kids get cute little matching beds and I didn’t have to pay any money.

So, as Ellen said, “Procrastination is not the problem. It is the solution!”

Airbrushing

For some strange reason, I haven't felt like posting personal or meaningful things going on in my life.  Possibly because there isn't much to share. 

However, I have been fascinated by the crazy drive for perfection and beauty that many Southern Californians seems to have.  Lately, that interest has made me a little more fascinated with airbrushing.  I don't really have anything negative to say about it.  As long as everyone understands that the ideals don't really exist even in women that are considered amazingly beautiful by many, I don't think it is harmful.  These are interesting: 

Ring by Cartier

During my warm-up at the gym everyday, I read magazines.  People bring in their magazines from home and leave them for others to read.  Since I am there five times a week, I get to read quite a few magazines.  You may have noticed that I am commenting more on articles and such. 

I have seen this ring, pictured above, in quite a few of the magazines.  I think it is beautiful.  I decided to find out how much it costs, despite the fact that I don't have any money or anywhere special to wear it.  I went on Cartier's website and they require an e-mail address for prices.  Since I had to sign up to find out, I thought I would share in case any of you were wondering too....

$26,700 

That makes it about the same price as my car.  Oh well...  My mom said that it would make a nice wedding ring.  Too bad I don't know any wealthy outstanding guys that are falling over themselves to marry me.  Oh & that I on my anti-dating kick, which pretty much ensures that I will not be finding someone in the near future.  To be honest though, I can't imagine having enough money to think that spending that amount on a ring is worth it.  There will always be someone who needs help.  Anyway, I think it is beautiful.

Leveling the Playing Field

While it may seem like lately I have it out for men, quite the opposite is true. I actually tend to get along better with guys. I grew up with 3 brothers, several of my close friends are guys, and I work in a male dominated industry. I also find the hot ones highly attractive (had to throw that in).

Like most modern women though, I do have a feminist tendencies. I hate the idea of the glass ceiling and that women get $0.75 on the dollar working the same jobs. Don't we all?

This topic has been on my mind this week because of an article I read in a magazine at the gym. I found it very fascinating and have spent several days trying to find it online. Here is the link:

The End of Men

I will not lie; there are many points in the article that I enjoyed reading. In spite of this, I think there are assumptions in the article that stretch the subject farther that it deserves. Mainly that the point seems to be in the battle between the sexes, women have so much momentum that they will quickly topple the competition. The competitive female in me thinks it sounds like justice after centuries of being viewed as the lesser gender. However, in reality, I prefer equality.

Plus, the whole idea of the article isn’t that men are taking on the roles that were traditionally female. It is that women are handling it all and men are falling by the wayside. That idea not only makes me a little sad for the men missing out on life and essentially becoming obsolete, but very tired for any woman who tries to take on that much responsibility.

Fortunately, I don’t see that men are so stuck in their ways. In fact, I think every new generation is moving closer to dropping the traditional roles. My dad’s generation was vastly better than his dad’s generation. My brothers have actually impressed me with their fathering and household roles. In general, I see the walls come tumbling down, which helps both genders. This makes me all the more thrilled to see how my own kids’ lives will be affected by this movement.

Completely Different

Yesterday, my sister and I went to get our hair cut. We didn't have an appointment so we put our names on the list and came back. She was entertaining/feeding the kids in the car while I went in. When I was done, we switched places and the same guy cut her hair. The stylist was a bit shocked that we are sisters. He asked her how I got straight blonde hair while she has curly brown hair.

The funny thing is that we have very little in common. I look more like our mom’s side of the family and she looks like our dad’s side, but that is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to our differences. I think our biggest difference is our personalities. I am very much an oldest child. I am ambitious, driven, a bit bossy, and have high expectations in life. She is a typical baby of the family with her laid back personality and go with the flow attitude.

On top of that, there are 14 and a half years between us. That means a generational gap. She doesn’t remember what it was like before everyone had personal computers and cell phones. Plus, she dresses like a 21 year old, while I try to avoid being too trendy and tend to stick to classic styles.

We’ve been hanging out a lot this week and I often wonder what people think. Our age difference is enough that people wouldn’t suspect that we are friends. She is old enough to be the mother of my kids, but they look like me. Perhaps, they come to the conclusion that she is our nanny. Hmm… I wonder.

*By the way, the picture is 9 years old. I couldn’t find a more recent one with just the two of us.

Updated Photo (yes, I look MUCH older):

Everything is Fine

Two weeks ago, I called a friend. Immediately, I knew something was wrong. She denied it and tried to make small talk. We have been friends for a long time and I know probably all of her secrets, but I played along. A few minutes into the conversation, she burst into tears and said she couldn’t talk right now.

Every few days since then, I have called her and slowly she divulged all the different issues bothering her. Mainly, she was worried that her career had taken a nose dive. For the past seven years, she has been working for the devil-incarnate. I have been hearing some rather extreme horror stories since she started. The whole thing finally blew up and she is suddenly without a job in a time when the economy is frightening. On top of that, every shot she has had turned sour as soon as they checked with past employers (we all know which one). I am actually listed as one of her references, because she assisted me with Marketing at a company where we worked together. I have yet to receive a call.

I gave her a few words of advice, but nothing very helpful. Two nights ago, the answer suddenly came to me. I knew exactly who she should work for and no other references besides mine would be necessary. Yesterday, after I made a few calls, she was offered a dream job working from home. Maybe I shouldn't say "dream job," she isn’t making an ideal salary to start off. However, by the end of the day, she was walking on sunshine. She went from the depths of despair to the highest of highs.

I have been thinking about this situation since then and I realize that opening up to others and networking can really work miracles. You never know who will be your link in the chain. For a while, I didn’t even realize that I was that link for her. This world really is small. Now, I just have to take my own advice and stop keeping all my problems bottled up. ...we'll see.

Lady in Red

Last week, the Today Show had a quick segment on attracting guys. They got hung up on the first suggestion and basically only talked about how guys are very turned on by the color red. Apparently, they've discussed this before back in October because when I googled it, this is what I found: The woman in red really drives men crazy.

I decided to test it out. For our little New Years Eve party with friends, I put on a red top (not sexy). Other than that, I was dressed and made up in my typical fashion. When I walked down the stairs, Steve said, "Whoa, you look great." I had to smile because I haven't heard that from him in quite a while. I guess it really does work. By the way, he has no idea. I can use it on him whenever I want. hahaha.

Give Me Something to Believe In

As everyone knows, today is the BIG day to vote. It is down to the wire and we'll be hearing the results not too long from now. For many, it is quite exciting. Mainly, we will not have so many ad campaigns.

Because today is the last day, I am amazed that there are still people who are undecided. I believe that there have been plenty of speeches, news articles, commercials, jokes, campaign calls, and propaganda out there to make an informed decision. I can understand that people are not exactly overly thrilled with either candidate, but nobody is amazing enough to win over everyone. Picking a candidate shouldn’t be about gender, race, good looks, or who would throw the best dinner parties. Although, I would imagine that getting an invite to the white house would be thrilling no matter who was hosting it. Plus, I am sure the white house staff happens to be amazing at organizing events.

Today, voting should be about selecting a candidate based on their stance on issues like the war, gay marriage/rights, abortion, the economy (if anyone has the answer), taxes, wealth distribution, social security, diplomacy, education, etc. etc. etc. Voters should decide what is important and choose the candidate that is more in line with their viewpoints or desired way of life.

For those who have their hearts set on one candidate, we should all remember that the President is somewhat of a figurehead. The position has far less power than we often imagine. In the end, the President/Vice President team that is elected will make mistakes and will do things that make us all complain for at least the next 4 years. Unfortunately for them, being elected means they will face extreme criticism from all sides no matter how hard they work. Vote and then feel a little sorry for whoever wins.

Single Women vs Single Men

Last week, I saw a quick clip on the Today Show about being Single. They talked to 2 women, one in her 40s and one in her 50s. Neither of them were against marriage, but had never found “the ONE.” They both seemed fairly good looking, personable, and had interesting lives. The point of the segment was how tough people are on women who remain single for one reason or another. The topic got my blood boiling when they mentioned rude things that people say or assume about them like that there may be something wrong with her or that she is too picky.

I was 30 when I got married, which is 5 years older than the national average and 8 years older than the Mormon average. I also have friends that got married in their 30s or haven’t been married yet. Plus, I have friends that have been divorced. One thing I have noticed is that there are a LOT of great women out there, but there are not a lot of great men. Don’t get me wrong, I love guys. They make wonderful friends (often better than women) and I am only attracted to guys, but they are putzes. I think lots of my female friends settled, not necessarily for a BAD guy but just not as great as they are. I also think lots of my guy friends got REALLY LUCKY. I can only think of a few cases of people I know where the girl married up.

It must be true. Why do you think there is so much talk about women having to whip a guy into shape? Or train him? Or change him? Guys really are loveable, but being with them is a lot of work. You have to find one that ignites enough romantic sparks to make the tough job worth it. Sounds like I am talking about a dog, right? (training, lots of work, loveable) Well, men are often called dogs.

For the most part, I think women who want to get married, but are still single just haven’t found one that is worth all the work. The relationship has to be special or the whole thing will just crash and burn. Single women really are just avoiding the whole headache of settling for the WRONG guy. I don’t think that means they are too picky. It just means they are avoiding a whole difficult phase that would probably end up in divorce. I say we quit picking on single women & start picking on single men who don't have their act together... Or we can learn to be happy with the many different ways people choose to live.

Men & Their Garages

Why do men love the garage? To me, it is a place to park your car, store your tools, and dump junk in. It certainly isn’t a place that I would want to spend much time in. Steve, for some reason, enjoys organizing and reorganizing ours. He even takes everything out and sweeps or uses the wet/dry vac. A couple of weeks ago, he came home with cabinets for the garage. I can understand why he wanted them mainly because they were for free from work. The strange part is that he seemed so excited to have an excuse to reorganize. This makes no sense to me. There are a million tasks inside the house where the cool a/c is blowing, but he prefers the garage.

Lately, I have discovered that it is a normal male trait. My dad was a computer/book nerd, so this love of the garage isn’t something I am used to. A few weeks ago, I was at a party with a bunch of old friends from high school. One of our other friends (still a bachelor) put his house up for sale and the guys were talking about it. Basically, they said that they couldn’t believe he would sale his house because he has the most amazing garage and that he had dumped $8 grand into it. The house is great for many reasons, but for them to single out the garage made me laugh. He doesn't live near us, so I have only seen pictures in this link (Grand Garage). My impression of the garage was that it really clean and organized. However, a four car garage on a single story house seems a little silly to me, especially for a guy who lives there by himself.

I guess I have always assumed that the kind of guy that would LOVE a garage is one that is a mechanic or at least a recreational mechanic. I picture this kind of guy with a classic car that is being restored or has been restored. One of the guys even mentioned that he would like to spend a lot more time in his garage, but there are too many boxes he needs to clear out. I should probably mention that I wasn’t adding to the conversation or asking questions. They were all just going on & on about their love of garages. Steve fits right in with my old friends.

Maybe I am the strange one, but I just don’t see what could be so interesting about a plain old HOT garage. It makes me wonder if they want to use it for a refuge. It would make sense if they were trying to get out of the house away from their wives, but I don’t think that is the case. When the kids are sleeping, Steve often asks me to come out there and chat with him while he is working. One of the other guys is out there on Saturdays when his wife is running their smoothie shop, so I know he isn’t avoiding her. There is also the bachelor guy who doesn’t have anyone to hide from.

Does anyone know the answer? If not, I guess I’ll just have to assume it is some manly or primal type of activity.

Creating Goddesses

When I moved here a year ago, I got to see one of my friends from high school that I hadn’t seen in a long time. I was blown away at by her physique. She always had a nice body, but now EVERY muscle has distinct definition. She told me that she had hurt her knee and started physical therapy. Once it was over, she joined a gym and loves working out. She went on to tell me all about her gym and how much she enjoys it. She also mentioned that it costs about $100 a month.

I didn’t think too much about it at the time, but since then I have met several women (all moms) with the same type of AMAZING body (think Demi Moore in Charlie’s Angels – minus the boob job). All of them have praised the same wonderful gym that they can't stop raving about.

This last year, we have been involved in a play group that is filled with moms that have great bodies. In their case, it is a combination of having great genes and being exercise fanatics. Some of them are marathon runners and others just love spinning or yoga. It is no stretch to say that I have the WORST body there and I am just a normal/average sized person. I have found out that they all go to the same gym, but a different one than the goddesses. These women have the kind of bodies that I dream of having. It takes hard work, but seems obtainable. They look FABULOUS, but nothing compared to the goddesses.

With all of these amazing looking chics around me, I decided to start going to my gym. Jordan is old enough to go to the nursery now, so I figured it was time. It is a national gym that everyone has heard of. The closest one to me is brand new and very nice. While I enjoy it, I can’t help but notice that the people around me are an even slice of the population. It is nice to be surrounded by all different fitness levels, but I have to wonder what is going on at the other gyms.

I am tempted to get a tour of the gym where the goddesses work out to see if they do DNA screens before allowing someone to be a member, hypnotize people into becoming exercise freaks, have magic potions or all of the above. There just has to be something strange going on. Goddesses are not normal. …or could it be that anyone willing to pay $100 a month is bound to spend several hours a day there?

Getting Old

After that last post, this one will seem odd... but am I the only one who gets grossed out by teenage public displays of affection (pda)? When we go to the pools on the weekend, I see teenage couples holding hands, hugging, and gazing into each others' eyes like they are trying to be madly in love. It makes me want to puke. I would rather see a toddler not make it to the potty & have an accident in the pool. That is not nearly as gross.

Single Moms

The last few weeks my husband has been working A LOT. He is overseeing 12 projects. 11 of them are going on in the day and 1 is happening at night. Theoretically, he should not be able to leave work at all because he is supposed to be there when things are happening. The other 2 guys that do the same thing he is doing have 3 - 5 projects. He doesn’t have the workaholic personality, but he is good at what he does and he gets excited about the idea of new projects, so he is given too many.

Because my husband is gone all the time and the fact that Sunday is Father's Day have me thinking about single moms. Lately, I have been feeling like one (who has a boyfriend that she sees once in a while). I guess I can't say that I feel exactly like one because most single moms don't get to stay home or work part-time from home. I am lucky about that, but I also don't get ANY breaks - well except when they nap. Fortunately, they both go down from about 1:30pm to 4:30pm. That is my only me time, which I have to use to get work done. Did I mention that working from home is tougher than dropping the kids off at daycare & going to work? It is when I have a tough deadline.

Rambling, rambling, rambling...where was I going with this? Oh yeah, single moms should be able to get gifts and celebrate Father's Day as well as mother's day. It is hard work. By the way, that is my excuse for my latest little on-line shopping sprees. I just want to make sure I get myself the perfect gifts the kids needed stuff too. Don't worry, I did find something for my hubby. I guess I'll give it to him next time I bump into him. :)

Flamingly Liberal

Since moving back to Texas, I have realized that my moderate/little to the left views are extremely liberal here. I guess it should not come as too much of a surprise seeing that it is a predominately Republican state that is strongly proud of being in the Bible belt. One of my friends told me that our voting district is considered the most conservative in the US. I don’t think that is necessarily a bad thing; I have just always felt that I am more on the liberal side.

Those who know me would definitely say that I am a laid back person. I am opinionated, but I have an open mind. While I feel a little out of place at times, I recognize that it is a wonderful location to raise kids. I went to high school here and I can tell you that I never experienced peer pressure. We had a big group of guys and girls. We were too busy playing volleyball, watching movies, joking around, and doing a million more things. This is a place where lots of kids are involved in Bible study and various church activities.

We live in a safe place and I am comfortable raising kids here. I hope that my kids continue to be surrounded by great influences, but manage to pick up a little of my open mindedness. Mainly, I would like them to be generally caring people and be able to listen and figure out their beliefs for themselves (after they move out of our house of course - until then they are MINE). :)