Reality Kicked My Ass

Absolutely nothing funny or mildly amusing happened today. Don't get me wrong--the kids were great and I got work done around the house, but I watched way too much hurricane coverage on television. And cried. I then checked in with a friend of mine who just moved to Birmingham, AL and has family in New Orleans. She wrote back to say that her sister-in-law and her children are on their way up to stay with them indefinitely. They have no idea if they even have a house to go back to. Her in-laws both work in different hospitals in the New Orleans area. They also don't know if they have a home left. They are both at their hospitals working and trying to salvage what they can. The ex-brother in-law and his new family have not been heard from since Sunday and they are very worried. I then tried to get through to some friends who live in Gulfport, MS but the phones have been down so there is no way to know how they are. Jeff is in the Coast Guard so I would imagine that he is up to his hairline in search and rescue.

I went online and sent a donation and cried some more after I saw footage of children on the balcony of an apartment needing to be rescued. This time, Baby Girl caught me crying and became very upset. She has only seen me cry one other time and I doubt she remembers it. It was about a week before Peaches was born. The cleaning lady had not been gone 15 minutes when I discovered white footprints throughout the house. I followed them to the nursery where I found her "cooking" with all of the baby products we had received as gifts. There was a huge pile of paste on the floor comprised of baby powder, balmex, baby oil, baby lotion and baby bath gel. She claimed she was making pizza. I started to sob hysterically because I had just spent $75 for Agathe to clean my house.

After Baby Girl caught me crying today, she started to cry because I scared her. I then tried to explain that there was a big storm and lots of rain and wind, and then I realized-- she is 2 1/2--I'm going to scare her even more. I changed the subject by offering her Scooby Snacks and all was well. Later as I was fixing dinner the local news indicated that my county's Sheriff's Department had semi trucks 15 minutes from my house and they were taking donations and driving them to Mississippi. So I packed up the girls and went to Kroger and bought as much drinking water, diapers and baby wipes that would fit in the back of my Xterra and took it to the hurricane relief site. I explained to Baby Girl that there were babies far away that needed help and that they needed diapers and water. While she seemed to understand, she didn't seem upset, which was good. She was very excited at the prospect of seeing Police Officers.

So, for a couple of minutes I felt a little better. The television is off for the rest of the day.

The Calm Before the Storm

Today is a sad day for me. It really shouldn't be, but it is. Today is the last day Baby Girl will be in daycare. It is a day I knew would eventually come, but I hoped it never would.

Anyone who reads my blog knows that I love my girls. I worked full time 6 weeks after Baby Girl was born (fear of Corporate Employer firing me--another story, another day). At any rate, Baby Girl has been in daycare since she was a wee one. Even after I left Corporate Employer and started working part time for Nice Employer, she was in daycare three days a week. After the birth of Peaches, we figured we should keep her schedule for a couple of reasons. We had just rocked her world with the new sister AND we were moving across country a couple of months later and we didn't want her to think we were pulling out the rug from under her. After we moved to Ohio, we decided that she still should go three days a week here.

Baby Girl has really flourished. She adores going to "school" and seeing her teachers, "Miss Amanda and Miss Sara." She talks about her friends and sings all kinds of songs in English and Spanish. Her time at daycare has allowed me to bond with Peaches, which has been wonderful.

There are just two problems. Number One, daycare is expensive. Since I am no longer bringing in the dough I used to, this daycare scenario has been an expensive luxury. While I have been so grateful to be able to do it, I would much rather use this money to fund other things, like college funds and my mutual fund. The other problem is that Baby Girl is completely incapable of playing by herself. I am certain that daycare has something to do with this. She is stimulated and played with for 7-9 straight hours every Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. The days she is home with me are REALLY TOUGH. She doesn't care that I have work to do or another baby to care for. She is constantly wanting me to play with her and flies off the handle if I have to say no. While I certainly love playing with her, I don't feel that it is my sole duty to be her constant entertainer. I am hoping that by being home full time, she will eventually learn to entertain herself. I also know that eventually the girls will learn to play together(or fight) once Peaches gets a little older.

So, I put a pretty dress on Baby Girl this morning and took her to school with Peaches in tow. I said goodbye to Miss Amanda, who started to cry. Baby Girl, of course has no idea what is going on. All she knows is that Mommy brought cupcakes to school and she is going to have them for morning snack. Later this morning, Peaches and I are going to enjoy our last day of "freedom" by going to the mall--something we have not done alone in a long time.

I guess starting tomorrow, I'll have to be a real full time parent like most everyone else.

While You Were Out

Dear Husband,

I am hoping that you are well and enjoying your conference. Things here are going fairly well, but I wanted to give you a rundown of a couple of things you have missed since Saturday since I am sure I will forget to tell you this when you get home late late Thursday.

Peaches cut her first tooth. Figures, doesn't it? She's only been teething for 3 months. She wouldn't allow me to take a photo of her mouth, so you are just going to have to trust me that the tooth is indeed in her mouth.









Baby Girl is under the impression that she lives in a Nudist Colony. While she will agree to wear a "pretty dress" out in public, she refused all clothing and diapers when at home Saturday and Sunday. You would think that this is a great sign for the ol' potty training. Not so much. She did agree to wear underwear this morning for a brief period of time as seen here.

Oh, right--the mess in the living room. Bet you're curious about that. I have decided that I am not going to clean it up until we leave for vacation on Friday. Baby Girl has decided to go on strike, so I am following suit. The rest of the house is spotless. No, really it is.

Peaches has a rug burn on her belly. No, it isn't from crawling. I happened to see Baby Girl grabbing Peaches by the ankles and dragging her across the livingroom yesterday afternoon. I could also hear Baby Girl muttering, "Dammit Peaches, stop touching that. I don't like that." I was laughing too hard at the spectacle to actually step in and parent. Mea Culpa.

I didn't get much sleep last night. It wasn't because of Peaches--she slept until 5:30. Rather, I let my imagination take over when I tried to sleep and I suddenly had it in my head that I was going to have a stroke or a heart attack in my sleep and die, and then no one would find us until Thursday because that is when your mother is coming, but then she won't be able to get in the house because we keep forgetting to give her a key. I thought that I would feel better if I let the dogs sleep with me, but I thought better of it. I've heard that your pet will eat you if you die. When I relayed this to So Not Martha she told me that I should probably speak to her psychiatrist husband and that she'll make sure he calls me tonight. She did say she now feels so much better about her own irrational thoughts because hers aren't nearly as twisted. I guess that's something.

Baby Girl has spent the better part of Monday Morning announcing at full volume, "ALL ABOARD THE CRAZY TRAIN. CHOO CHOO!!!!" Keep in mind she is buck naked.

We had a very succesful shopping trip at Target on Monday. Baby Girl wore panties and didn't pee or poo in them while we were out. She did, however, take a fancy to the cashier so she lifted her dress, twirled her nipples and said "I'm wearing panties." Just what a pimply-faced 19 year old wants to see. I guess she has moved on from doing her floor shows exclusively for her Godfather Jeff.



Oh, Oh--I am saving the best news for last. I got some very exciting news this morning. Apparently, we are going to be RICH!!!!!!! See the email I got below from our newest best friend--Edward James!!!

Date:	Mon, 29 Aug 2005 16:43:12 +0300
From:	"edward james"
Subject:	Dear Hopkins,

Dear Hopkins,

I am Mr.Edward James, I work with the Standard Credit Union Bank Abidjan Cote d'ivoire as an account officer in the Treasury/Credit Control Unit. I came to know you in privatesearch for a reliable and reputable person to handle this confidential transaction,which involve the transfer of a huge sum of money into a foriegn accountrequiring maximum confidence.

THE NATURE OF THE PROPOSITION/TRANSACTION:

A foreigner by name Engineer Lungi Hopkins who is a marine engineer by profession,until his death some times ago, does his and banking transaction with us at Standard Credit Union Bank, and had a closing balance as at the end of January 2003,which is worth $15,000,000.00 dollers ( fifteen million united state dollers)I was his personal account officer and since he deposited this money with us in the year 2003, a single paying or withdrawal was never made by him. We where instructed by my late client that the money be kept and secured in a security and finance firm because it was less expensive to keep and secure the funds in the security. This was done for him according to his instructions.

Surprisingly, for Two years since this money was kept in the security and finance firm nothing has being heard from him, not until I was informed about his death with evidence when I decided to call to the number he once gave to me, of which several attempts has been made earlier but all was in vain. Our bank now expected his Next of Kin to come forward as a sole beneficiary to his assets with the bank. As his personal account officer valuable efforts has being made by me for more than one year to get in touch with any of my late client family or relatives without any success.

It is because of the percieved impossibility of being able to locate any of my late client Next of Kin(He had no wife, Children or Relative that is known to me ).Based on this, I secretly seek advice from a fellow colleague who has being in banking for about 14 years now about this issue of my late client , he made me understand that things like this do happen and at the end of the day the chairman and board of directors of the bank will declare the funds as ''Unclaimed'' and subsequently divert it for thier personal use. In order to avert this negetive development,I now seek your permission to have you stand as the Next of Kin to my late client, so that the funds will be released and paid into your account as the beneficiary's Next of Kin.

As soon as I recieve an acknowledgement of your acceptance, I will furnish you with the necessary modalities of the transaction. I assure you that this transcaction is 100% risk free, When this business is completed and the funds is already in your account,the money will be shared on a 50-50 basis.

Regards.
Mr Edward James

Kisses,
Misfit Hausfrau

The Lonely Traveller and the One Left Behind

My husband left yesterday afternoon for a conference in Washington DC and will be gone until late Thursday night. I hate it when that happens! It's not as though it happens often--he travels just once or twice a year. I'm not upset that I am alone here with the kids for all of those days either. We will be just fine and will be doing all sorts of stuff to stay busy until he returns. I guess I hate to see him go because A) I really like hanging out with my husband and B) I don't like being the one left behind even if it is to go to Home Depot and look at router bits.

When my husband was in graduate school in Pittsburgh, I had positions with two different companies that required a significant amount of travel. One job required me to fly to Raleigh, NC every other Monday and return that Friday. It was hardly a glamorous job and I grew bored with the same hotel and the same sit-down chain restaurant diet, but I didn't see him much anyway, so it worked. Then I joined another company that required a lot of travel to different places around the country. Some months I would travel once, some months I travelled 3 out of the 4 weeks. Again, it wasn't glamorous. I wasn't staying at W Manhatten like my friend Laura does for her buying job. I was typically at a Hampton Inn or maybe a Marriott in Davenport Iowa, Charlotte, or Florence, AL. But at the end of the day, I always felt that what I was doing was marginally important for the company and was proud to represent them wherever I was sent. And while I called my husband everyday and really missed him, I was the one who wasn't left behind, so the travel didn't seem so bad.

So when the shoe is one the other foot, I am really unhappy about it. But I shouldn't be. This week, my husband will be surrounded by thousands of people in his field, but since they are Chemists, you can be assured that 85% of them are complete science geeks who have virtually no outside interests and tremendously overblown egos. My husband will be spending the majority of his off time going to a baseball game, running, drinking a beer or going to the Spy Museum alone. Many of these people believe that cutting loose is having 1 watered down lite beer and talking about quantum physics or whatever their specialty may be. For most of us, that would be Snooze Fest 2005.

My husband called me last night after he had eaten dinner. He had planned on eating at his hotel but he quickly discovered that his wardrobe was not appropriate for the restaurant. This surprised him as his room is a dump and his window has a view of an airconditioning unit for another room. Instead, he walked to Capital City Brewing Company, a fantastic brew pub we used to go to when we lived in Maryland. When he got there, he went up to the bar and was completely surrounded by Chemists, including a Chemistry Historian (who knew?) who tried to start up a conversation with him. He said he suddenly experienced a deja vu. He remembered a magical Saturday many years ago in which we spent the afternoon with our friends Peter and Jennifer. At the time, we each had boxers and they were playing in the back of our car that was parked outside. The dogs were having a blast romping around and we were having a blast drinking. He remembered people coming up to us and asking about our dogs and raving about how cute they were. Mercury and McBain always got attention wherever we would go so it was no surprise that people were approaching us. Corey got extremely choked up by the memory because Peter, Mercury and McBain all left this world at different times, and much too soon a few years later. He told me he left the bar and sat at a table by the window with his beer and his memories.

Cast Your Vote Here For the "World's Crappiest Mom 2005"

Hi. My Name is Misfit Hausfrau and I need your vote so that I can be crowned "World's Crappiest Mother 2005." I never dreamed that I could actually qualify for this esteemed award because I don't beat my kids, I feed them when they are hungry and I hug and kiss them a lot. After reading the rule book, however, I found out I qualified because I have no regard for my baby's hygiene. I realized that I haven't bathed Peaches since Wednesday. Of last week.

One could argue that I don't have much of a chance to win because I DO wipe her face, hands, feet and under her 12 chins after each and every meal. I also wipe her butt at least six times a day. However, she is starting to emit a not-so-fresh-baby smell. I guess you could say she has Baby Odor (BO). Her ears are also very yellow. Like corn. Maybe it is corn. No, no, I haven't fed her corn yet--whew!

One could also argue that her Baptism on Sunday counts as a bath. Not so. Father Jamie merely poured water on her forehead and nary a drop went elsewhere. Then he put this greasy holy oil on her forehaed, so that cancels it out.

What should put me over the top in the voting is that I am sitting here eating my "Light Ruffles" and blogging about it as opposed to getting off my ass and bathing her.

Vote early and often. I thank you for your support.

All's Well That Ends Well

We have returned from our baptism odyssey. It was a fantastic weekend. The weather was great, the girls were really good and my Mom hadn't been so healthy looking and vibrant in more than two years. We forgot to have someone take pictures of the event with our camera, so as soon as someone sends me some photos of the blessed day I will post some.

And now, I am back, trudging through the mundane. Our neighborhood is having a community garage sale this Friday and Saturday, so I am rummaging through my house to find things to sell.

It's not hard.

We have so much great stuff that just isn't right for our new home. For example, we haven't a single tree in our yard (weep), so there is no point in owning three yard rakes, two push brooms, and a tree trimmer. We have countless sets of curtains from the old house that are too small for the windows in our new house. I briefly considered using the curtains to make outfits for the girls but I kept hearing the soundtrack to "The Sound Of Music" in my head and thought better of it. Besides, my sewing skills are sorely lacking and the girls would turn out looking more like hobos than this or this .

We are selling all of our 200+ cd's (we moved everything to our I-Pod), an original Apple I-Book, the dining room chandalier that came with the house (we brought our old one), strollers (how many do we really need?) and our two dog backpacks. Yes, you read that correctly. When we were young and childless, we used to do things like travel the country with our dogs. And we bought them backpacks so that they could carry their own poo-bags, water and dogfood.

While I was pricing things last night, someone actually came up the driveway and asked to look around.

Three Days Early.

Since she was a neighbor and was a grandmotherly type, I didn't say no. She ended up buying some crap and didn't even haggle me. She even came back with her 7 year old grandson and showed him the stereo we are selling. I had no problem with it. The more I sell now, the less I have to deal with this crap on Friday since my husband will be at work and I will have to haul all of it into the driveway myself. I figure that two days of annoyance and then donating the rest is easier than dealing with Ebay, though not as profitable.

So if you happen to be in Cincinnati this weekend, feel free to stop by! Wish me luck!!!

I am Screwed

So, having a six month old is pretty easy, right? You can lay them down and go to the bathroom, or take a shower, or eat and be assured that they will pretty much be in the same spot where you left them. While I didn't write stuff down in the 3 "Record Your Baby's First Year" books we got for Baby Girl, I am pretty sure that's how things went down. Baby Girl was no trouble at all.






Right. A week ago, Peaches started pushing herself up and bringing her knees under her and making very tentative crawling motions. I wasn't too concerned, I mean, she won't even sit up yet and she doesn't have any teeth, so I figured it was a fluke. Then a couple of days ago, she started doing this half-crawl/half roll maneuver that they teach in the military so that she could get things she shouldn't (Baby Girl's toys). This morning at playgroup she crawled from one end of the living room to the other. In front of witnesses. It is now all very real. Shit.

This leaves me with no choice. If she feels she is old enough to suck on her toes and crawl around like a maniac at 6 months, then it is time for her to earn her keep. She will now be wearing pants with Swiffer wipe clothes attached to them with velcro. She can start keeping the floors clean. If it was good enough for her sister, it is good enough for her. Damn.

I'm BAAAAAAAACCCCKKKK

Well, that was certainly a pleasant six days! My husband and I rewarded ourselves yesterday by barely speaking while our kids napped (in order to enjoy the silence), ate huge steak dinners (I lost another 2.4 lbs.) and watched "Sideways." During my kid's naps in the afternoon, I succumbed to a guilty pleasure of mine--a Bollywood movie! Well, it was "Bride and Prejudice," a Bollywood-esqe flick by the same director who did "Bend it like Beckham" (another one of my favorites!) Recently, I found out that a couple of my girlfriends dragged their husbands to see "Bride and Prejudice." After seeing it, I can't believe that their penises didn't fall off and that they didn't develop breasts while watching it--it was THAT girlie!!! Now I understand why they were so mad to have to sit through it! It was FABULOUS! I made my husband thank me for not making him watch it.

If you never have, you really should rent a Bollywood film. It is the only type of movie you are going to see where men will be in the middle of an intense battle, when all of the sudden, brightly dressed maidens will suddenly appear and start dancing in the middle of the battlefield. The men will toss their weapons aside and join them in the gaiety. And all the while, there is a struggle between a man and a woman who never should have met, much less fallen in love... The plots are always predictable, I can never understand the words to their songs, but I can't stop myself from watching them.

My movie watching was a great escape for me so that I didn't have to think about my next Hausfrau Family Fistfight, which is coming up this weekend--My Daughter's Baptism!!!!!!!!! In Indiana!!!!!!!I'll See the Same Family Members Who Just Left!!!!!!!And More Relatives!!!!!!Who Are Always Mad at Someone!!!!! At least I will have some friends who will be there to witness the hilarity that is my family.

Serenity Now!

I have spent the weekend doing deep breathing exercises and seeking my inner serenity. Why do you ask? My sister is coming for a visit!!!!

Yes, yes, I love my sister--I'll get that out of the way for all of you strangers who might find this offensive. But anyone who knows me and my life knows that a visit with my sister is always stressful. And weird. And far too long. Suffice it to say I will have a lot of material to entertain one and all after she leaves. In just 123 short hours.

It doesn't matter that she isn't even here yet--I am still counting down.

On the plus side of this, I will certainly lose more weight this week as I will be going to the gym EVERY SINGLE NIGHT!

Stay tuned...

Friday Night Dance Party

My favorite thing about Friday nights is the dance party we have after dinner. Baby Girl calls it "Party Dance." Here, she is dancing to House of Pain's, "Jump Around."

















Still photos simply don't give her Wonderbread dance moves justice!














Party Dance Rocks!

A Sure Sign that the Apocalypse is Upon Us

Check this out

The King's English (Or Lack Thereof)

Recently, my husband and I had the following conversation over dinner:

"Blah blah blahblahblah, and then we blah blah blah. I coulda went there instead." said my husband.

"You mean 'could have gone...'" I said.

"Coulda WENT," he insisted with an evil smile.

"Why won't you say that phrase properly?" I ask.

Husband shrugged his shoulders.

"How do you expect to get promoted into middle management if you say that at work? Oh My GOD, you don't actually say that at work do you?"

Again, shoulders shrug.

"Do you hate me?" I ask, near tears.

"COULDA WENT" sends chills up my spine each and EVERY SINGLE time I hear my husband say it. I want to wash his mouth out with soap. The only other word that makes me react as violently is the "C" word. I have been hearing "Coulda went" at least twice a week for 14 years. I am sometimes unsure as to how much longer I can take this incredibly intelligent man butchering the English language with this simple phrase.

You see, I am not a very smart girl. My husband, on the other hand, is BRILLIANT. He has a PhD in Chemistry and he creates drugs for mankind. When he isn't trying to save the world one medication at a time, he dazzles people with all sorts of Simpson's trivia, drinks beer and can discuss a myriad of topics with just about anyone. Pretty much the only thing I have going for me is that I am a fairly articulate speaker (I can edit too, but who cares?!) OK, there was a period of time when I said "like" and "um" WAY TOO MUCH, but I worked through it.

I said nothing for the first ten or so years we were together. I didn't want to appear rude or be critical of the man I love. I also didn't want my husband to start bringing up my faults, bad habits and idiosyncrasies that number in the hundreds. But after listening to it all those years, this verbal faux pas and his seasonal sniffling (particularly when we are in a car together for long road trips) started sending me into hissy fits of biblical proportions.

Recently, I discovered this blog . After reading about this tortured woman's life I decided that I really don't have any problems with my husband and that I just need to shut the Hell up.

Where I was in 1994

Well, Susan and SoNotMartha wanted to know where I was and what I was doing in 1994. After reading SNM's post, I was confused and then she realized that she had actually written of 1993 (silly girl, do it again!)

Well, in August of 1994, my husband and I had almost been married for a year and we still hadn't had a fight. The reason we never fought was that we had SEPERATE BANK ACCOUNTS!!!!!!

The Chemist and I had been in Ellicott City, Maryland (near Baltimore) for about two months. He had accepted a chemist position with WR Grace. We lived in the richest county in Maryland and we were DEFINITELY bringing down the average! We lived in a dumpy apartment complex, but we didn't care. While we missed the friends we had in St. Louis, we were glad to be gone.

ATTENTION TO ANY CURRENT OR FORMER ST. LOUIS RESIDENT WHO MAY BE READING THIS:St. Louis is a lovely town ( I even went back when SNM got married)--I just wished I lived in the lovely part. I lived in a part of town that was very, uh, "White and Proud." What also didn't help the city's cause was that we witnessed a gang scuffle at the St. Louis Arch. Nothing like a couple of guns being waved around to make me want to leave and never come back. We had been there with my husband's parents and grandmother for Christ Sakes! They couldn't wait until we left?????

It had been a rough 18 months in St Louis for us, particularly me. While we were there, I had struggled to find a job in my field. As a matter of fact, there was only one publishing company in St. Louis at the time. I interviewed with them SIX TIMES for six different editorial assistant positions. I turned them down when they asked me to come a seventh time--I couldn't take the thought of being rejected yet again. My asthma was, at times, debilitating because of the climate and the huge floods that had occured while we were there. And my job? The particular Olive Garden that employed me was a petri dish of booze, cigarettes, gossip, hooking up and the white trashiest customers I had ever encountered (come to think of it, I am not sure that I ever waited on a minority). I started off at the restaurant an enthusiastic, fresh-faced country girl who had moved to the big city. I was excited to be there and LOVED everyone--customers included. After about a month, I was being pulled aside by the manager on duty because I was rolling my eyes and getting caught because of all of the mirrors in the restaurant.

"But Doug, that entire table just ordered plain spaghetti and a bottle of ketchup! You would have rolled your eyes too!"

It was a relief that the GM liked me and promoted me to the bar. Shlepping Old Fashions and Margaritas was a much better gig.

Anywhoo, back to Maryland. I really liked it. It was great living 45 minutes from Washington DC and 20 minutes from Baltimore. The weekends were filled with touristy activities and oppressive heat and I loved it. The weekdays were what was tough. I was interviewing like crazy for editing jobs in DC and Baltimore, but getting nowhere. I couldn't afford to take the jobs offered because they paid peanuts and wouldn't cover commuting expenses. I had been determined to not wait on another table when we moved there, but bills were coming up due.

After realizing one afternoon that I knew the plots of three soap operas running at the same time, I decided I'd better get a job. Any job. I poured through the classifieds and found an ad for a temporary agency that needed someone to do office work. That was how I ended up in a career in Human Resources. It is also how I ended up meeting one of my dearest friends Jen, who was my boss at that job.

So by the end of that summer, our life there was starting to take shape. I was even more excited because our good friends Laura and Frank were moving there too for their jobs. We referred them to the same shitty apartment complex we lived in and life was good (not sure if she ever forgave me for the apartment thing--they had VERY SMELLY NEIGHBORS!!!!!!)

So that was what was going on in my life at that time. OK, who's next?

And All is Well With the World

WHEW! Dora is on at it's appointed time! Now, SoNotMartha and I can breathe a collective sigh of relief. There WILL be naps at 1:30!!!

Oh, What My Life Has Become

About this time three years ago, I was probably negotiating a $90K salary with a candidate to join my fabulous company and open a new store in New Jersey (or Wichita, or Portland, Maine, or Indianapolis). I was probably in conference calls with a District Manager or two discussing succession planning and salary budgets for the following year. I am sure I was stressing over an extremely hard-to-staff market ( I covered New Jersey to Kansas minus the south). At some point, I was probably making travel arrangements to help out with a mass hire in some market. I helped set up temporary housing for a Manager who was moving from Oregon to the Philly area. I know I was studying my Excel spreadsheest so that I would be prepared to discuss my hires for the year, where they came from and the cost per hire at our weekly meeting. I also studied the statistics of my colleagues to be reassured that I still had more hires than they did for the year, so I could stay employed another day. I am sure I was telephone interviewing some prospective candidates that evening until 10PM under the watchful glare of my husband.

This morning, I am in a panic because Noggin changed the show schedule this morning and Dora the Explorer was on at 7AM instead of 1PM. I am uncertain as to what the repercussions may be since Baby Girl is very comfortable with her TV viewing lineup the way it is. I even went to the Noggin website to see how other shows would be impacted. Their schedule shows no changes yet nothing is right! I wasn't this worried when we changed to daylight savings time. Better turn off tv...