In July we found out that my husband's company was disbanding their IT department and sending it to India. Given that I was 6 weeks out from having Henry, I refused to worry about it. It's not supposed to happen until the end of the year, and in the meantime he still has a job. He qualified for a few open positions in the company (8, I think, and 800 being laid off), but there were others who had been there longer who apparently got the jobs.
His company does some work for the government, and those contracts would have to have stateside contacts, so there were a few open positions with the new company. My husband applied for and got one of those positions, set to start Nov. 2.
Then Nov. 8.
Then Nov. 11.
In the meantime, they have been terrible about getting back to him about every question he asked, even small things like, "can I still work for the regular company until Nov. 10 since you changed my start date so I'm not missing any days?"
So Friday he called and asked my opinion about saying no to the job for the new shady company and instead continuing his hunt. It does mean that there is still no guarantees on the job front come 12/31 (although if he ends up there that long, there is an excellent severance package). But I respect his decision to not take the new position and hopefully something will come along that he'll be happy with, with a company that he'll be happy with. Here's to hoping we don't go down to a single income come January 1.
Friday, November 5, 2010
More than seven
-- I turned on the Wii Fit yesterday and it had been 779 days since I last used it (what is that, 2 years, 2 months or so?). I've lost 3 1/2 lbs since then. Of course, I also had a baby in between. Woohoo for goals!
-- I let Spencer run around with the Wii remote and let the game think that it was me to earn fitness credits. Hey, he loved it! Probably not helping me with my goals though.
-- He then cried for an hour for not being allowed to play any more video games. I'm thinking no on letting him play any more.
-- We started attempting 1-2-3 Magic on Thursday. Spencer was in time out at least 10 times over the course of the day including one timeout in Target where we stood in the stationary aisle for 2 minutes. I'm hopeful for it, but I don't know. It's similar to what I already do, I think just more consistent. I'm hoping that consistency can save my sanity.
-- I'm giving up on potty training for the next week. If he does it, great, but I'm not even going to mention it for the next 6 days, except having him go potty before bed. Maybe when he's in daycare again more and I have to deal with it less, we'll all be more inclined to actually deal with it.
-- We've bought three Christmas gifts for Spencer so far: Buzz Lightyear pjs, a Cat in the Hat floor puzzle and the Toy Story trilogy. I have no idea what to get Henry. I know he doesn't care but I feel obligated to have an equal amount of presents for him too. Maybe I can buy a package of socks and wrap them individually. Hey! Maybe I can do that for my husband too!
-- I think I'm going to print pictures of everyone and put them on their Christmas gifts this year so Spencer can hand them out.
-- I go back to work in less than a week. Oh, the humanity! Where's my coffee?
-- Henry has his first cold, and I don't know where it came from since I've kept him home more than any time the entire last three months, and Spencer's been home from daycare this week, but he's a sneezy snotty mess and I've had to suction out his nose three times a day and mist him with saline. He's still a happy baby though, just one with slightly less sleep.
-- I'm going to see if Camp Rock 2 is on Disney On-demand.
-- Yes, I know I have a problem.
-- I let Spencer run around with the Wii remote and let the game think that it was me to earn fitness credits. Hey, he loved it! Probably not helping me with my goals though.
-- He then cried for an hour for not being allowed to play any more video games. I'm thinking no on letting him play any more.
-- We started attempting 1-2-3 Magic on Thursday. Spencer was in time out at least 10 times over the course of the day including one timeout in Target where we stood in the stationary aisle for 2 minutes. I'm hopeful for it, but I don't know. It's similar to what I already do, I think just more consistent. I'm hoping that consistency can save my sanity.
-- I'm giving up on potty training for the next week. If he does it, great, but I'm not even going to mention it for the next 6 days, except having him go potty before bed. Maybe when he's in daycare again more and I have to deal with it less, we'll all be more inclined to actually deal with it.
-- We've bought three Christmas gifts for Spencer so far: Buzz Lightyear pjs, a Cat in the Hat floor puzzle and the Toy Story trilogy. I have no idea what to get Henry. I know he doesn't care but I feel obligated to have an equal amount of presents for him too. Maybe I can buy a package of socks and wrap them individually. Hey! Maybe I can do that for my husband too!
-- I think I'm going to print pictures of everyone and put them on their Christmas gifts this year so Spencer can hand them out.
-- I go back to work in less than a week. Oh, the humanity! Where's my coffee?
-- Henry has his first cold, and I don't know where it came from since I've kept him home more than any time the entire last three months, and Spencer's been home from daycare this week, but he's a sneezy snotty mess and I've had to suction out his nose three times a day and mist him with saline. He's still a happy baby though, just one with slightly less sleep.
-- I'm going to see if Camp Rock 2 is on Disney On-demand.
-- Yes, I know I have a problem.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Shutterfly loves us
I'm so excited to hear that Shutterfly is giving away 50 free cards to bloggers, I just can't even stand it.
I ordered the above cards last year, and they turned out fabulously, as you can see. Isn't he the cutest? I ended up ordering 20 cards on the beautiful stationary for family only, and then ordering another 20 cards on photo stock to send out to friends that looked like this:
And really, the stationary cards are a cut above but they both turned out just great. I'm super excited to be able to order them again this year FOR FREE (except, you know, with different pictures of my now TWO little charmers). I just can't decide which cards to use this year - this one? This beautiful one? And how cute is this??
And what pictures of the kiddos? Maybe this one?
Or this one?
Oh, the decisions that have to be made! Order yours today!
Background noise
I got a lot done yesterday, but at the end of the day it felt like I did nothing because I a) didn't get dressed beyond yoga pants and b) had movies going in the background all day.
But somehow, the house got cleaned, the dishes and bottles got washed, the pantry got cleaned out, Spencer got several timeouts, three loads of laundry were washed, folded and hung (okay one was folded and hung but at least all three made it through the dryer instead of sitting in the washer until I have to re-wash!), and I made a steak dinner with risotto (box, so sue me - Target risotto is actually pretty awesome) and brussel sprouts while feeding Henry and policing Spencer so he wouldn't get in Daddy's way while Daddy fixed the dern Wii.
I went through kids movies yesterday trying to find one that Spencer would enjoy, because he still doesn't watch movies (except Elmo Goes Potty - you'd think he'd be getting something out of that one, he watches it so much). So we warmed up on Diego and Caillou episodes on Netflix and then we watched Anastasia which I love. Him, not so much. Finally I turned on Newsies, which is one of my very favorite guilty pleasure movies. I love it. I can recite every word and sing every song and Spot Conlon, be still my heart. I still have my little-girl crush on him, even though I found and watched his other movies and he really didn't age well.
Henry has a very stuffy nose, which he was fine with yesterday but this morning he's none too happy about. I'm thinking about breaking out the saline because I couldn't suck anything out without it, but every time he sneezes he blows snot bubbles. No other symptoms so I think he's okay.
Now, coffee.
But somehow, the house got cleaned, the dishes and bottles got washed, the pantry got cleaned out, Spencer got several timeouts, three loads of laundry were washed, folded and hung (okay one was folded and hung but at least all three made it through the dryer instead of sitting in the washer until I have to re-wash!), and I made a steak dinner with risotto (box, so sue me - Target risotto is actually pretty awesome) and brussel sprouts while feeding Henry and policing Spencer so he wouldn't get in Daddy's way while Daddy fixed the dern Wii.
I went through kids movies yesterday trying to find one that Spencer would enjoy, because he still doesn't watch movies (except Elmo Goes Potty - you'd think he'd be getting something out of that one, he watches it so much). So we warmed up on Diego and Caillou episodes on Netflix and then we watched Anastasia which I love. Him, not so much. Finally I turned on Newsies, which is one of my very favorite guilty pleasure movies. I love it. I can recite every word and sing every song and Spot Conlon, be still my heart. I still have my little-girl crush on him, even though I found and watched his other movies and he really didn't age well.
Henry has a very stuffy nose, which he was fine with yesterday but this morning he's none too happy about. I'm thinking about breaking out the saline because I couldn't suck anything out without it, but every time he sneezes he blows snot bubbles. No other symptoms so I think he's okay.
Now, coffee.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Brain rot
I obviously am having a hard time blogging lately. I keep staring at the screen, thinking about what I want to say and then it doesn't happen. Yesterday I started Ten on Tuesday but I just couldn't finish. I'm going to go ahead and blame it on the fact that I have ONE WEEK LEFT BEFORE GOING BACK TO WORK. I just can't concentrate.
So here's what I've done since my last list update:
Watched movies -
Good Dick - listed as a comedy. NOT a comedy. Should have been a comedy. Someone give the script to Kevin Smith and have him make this thing funny.
I'll Be There - much better as What A Girl Wants with Amanda Bines.
Lost In Austen - I wasn't expecting much from this, so it was cute.
Forever Strong - have I told you about my serious love for sports movies? Even sports that I don't care about. Love them. Loved this.
Remember Me - good, received by accident by not keeping track of my Netflix queue
I Hate Valentine's Day - Oh. M. G. I know that my husband thinks Amy Pohler is the worst actress on the face of this earth, but he's never seen Nia Vardoles "act". She really is the worst ever.
Did you Hear about the Morgans - eh, cute
Leap Year - obviously predictable but sweet and ahh, sexy Irish accents.
Reading books:
I am Number Four - fan-freaking-tastic. I loved it. I assume there's a sequel and I can't wait to read it.
My Name is Memory - fascinating look at reincarnation. I loved it, but there's a subplot that is weaved in at the end that I wasn't fond of that lends itself to a transparent plan for a sequel. I would have much rather it been the straight story without out that subplot.
Life as We knew it - I didn't like the format (written in diary form) and it was depressing - sort of a cross between War of the Worlds and The Road written from the POV of a 16- year old girl.
Other things done:
-- Cut out all recipes that looked good from my two years back issues of Rachael Ray, Bon Appetit, and random other cooking magazines and recycled the rest
-- Took Spencer to the Children's Museum, Chuck E Cheese, and the playground.
-- played many hours of Fallout: New Vegas (but not nearly as much as my fair husband, who has been attached to the computer almost every night)
-- slept in until 9:30 two days in a row! And Spencer didn't tear the house apart!!
-- took good pictures of the boys
-- am on day 3 of keeping Spencer home from daycare and don't want to tear my hair out. yet. (We get one free week a year, and since Henry won't be eligible this year and I'm not taking any of the holidays off, I thought I'd keep him home for my last full week before going back to work)
I have officially done everything on my list except the working out and I've come up with a plan to start working out when I go back to work. I work on the third floor, and the coffee machine is on the sixth floor. I plan on doing stairs to get to my desk and to get to the coffee. I need to get a pair of flats that I can stick in my purse for this use (I'm thinking of getting a pair of City Flats). Once I start getting use to all those stairs, I'll work on adding to my regiment.
Other quick things:
We went to a Halloween party on Saturday, and this year I was the one that got sick. Before that, so much fun! Evidently taking jello shots every time the tray was passed was not such a good idea. But my hubby got me home in one piece, and I woke up on Sunday sans hangover.
Here's us before drunkenness set in:
I don't have any plans for the rest of the week except to maybe bust out the Wii with Spencer and see if he likes it, enjoy every smile and laugh the Henry graces me with and try to speak in normal volumes and lengthen my fuse. And maybe I'll blog.
So here's what I've done since my last list update:
Watched movies -
Good Dick - listed as a comedy. NOT a comedy. Should have been a comedy. Someone give the script to Kevin Smith and have him make this thing funny.
I'll Be There - much better as What A Girl Wants with Amanda Bines.
Lost In Austen - I wasn't expecting much from this, so it was cute.
Forever Strong - have I told you about my serious love for sports movies? Even sports that I don't care about. Love them. Loved this.
Remember Me - good, received by accident by not keeping track of my Netflix queue
I Hate Valentine's Day - Oh. M. G. I know that my husband thinks Amy Pohler is the worst actress on the face of this earth, but he's never seen Nia Vardoles "act". She really is the worst ever.
Did you Hear about the Morgans - eh, cute
Leap Year - obviously predictable but sweet and ahh, sexy Irish accents.
Reading books:
I am Number Four - fan-freaking-tastic. I loved it. I assume there's a sequel and I can't wait to read it.
My Name is Memory - fascinating look at reincarnation. I loved it, but there's a subplot that is weaved in at the end that I wasn't fond of that lends itself to a transparent plan for a sequel. I would have much rather it been the straight story without out that subplot.
Life as We knew it - I didn't like the format (written in diary form) and it was depressing - sort of a cross between War of the Worlds and The Road written from the POV of a 16- year old girl.
Other things done:
-- Cut out all recipes that looked good from my two years back issues of Rachael Ray, Bon Appetit, and random other cooking magazines and recycled the rest
-- Took Spencer to the Children's Museum, Chuck E Cheese, and the playground.
-- played many hours of Fallout: New Vegas (but not nearly as much as my fair husband, who has been attached to the computer almost every night)
-- slept in until 9:30 two days in a row! And Spencer didn't tear the house apart!!
-- took good pictures of the boys
-- am on day 3 of keeping Spencer home from daycare and don't want to tear my hair out. yet. (We get one free week a year, and since Henry won't be eligible this year and I'm not taking any of the holidays off, I thought I'd keep him home for my last full week before going back to work)
I have officially done everything on my list except the working out and I've come up with a plan to start working out when I go back to work. I work on the third floor, and the coffee machine is on the sixth floor. I plan on doing stairs to get to my desk and to get to the coffee. I need to get a pair of flats that I can stick in my purse for this use (I'm thinking of getting a pair of City Flats). Once I start getting use to all those stairs, I'll work on adding to my regiment.
Other quick things:
We went to a Halloween party on Saturday, and this year I was the one that got sick. Before that, so much fun! Evidently taking jello shots every time the tray was passed was not such a good idea. But my hubby got me home in one piece, and I woke up on Sunday sans hangover.
Here's us before drunkenness set in:
I don't have any plans for the rest of the week except to maybe bust out the Wii with Spencer and see if he likes it, enjoy every smile and laugh the Henry graces me with and try to speak in normal volumes and lengthen my fuse. And maybe I'll blog.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Christmas shopping
The holidays are upon us.
In the spirit ofspending gobs of money giving, most of us have an idea of what we would like our children (especially those young enough not to demand certain things) to get. I'm thinking that I would like Spencer to get a kid's camera, junior golf things, the Toy Story collection, books, and any electronic that can help him learn to read/spell/write without getting markers all over my wall.
Do you coordinate with people that will be giving your child gifts (like his grandparents, both sides) so that he gets the things that you think would be useful and cater to his interests instead of ending up with a bunch of expensive crap? Or do you cross your fingers and don't worry about it?
I started an Amazon wish list so I could keep track of what I thought of throughout the year that he would like, but I don't know how to share that with others - I don't necessarily care that they buy off the list but would like to give them ideas. However, I don't want to end up with 5 kid cameras either.
Ideas?
In the spirit of
Do you coordinate with people that will be giving your child gifts (like his grandparents, both sides) so that he gets the things that you think would be useful and cater to his interests instead of ending up with a bunch of expensive crap? Or do you cross your fingers and don't worry about it?
I started an Amazon wish list so I could keep track of what I thought of throughout the year that he would like, but I don't know how to share that with others - I don't necessarily care that they buy off the list but would like to give them ideas. However, I don't want to end up with 5 kid cameras either.
Ideas?
Menu Monday
Last week's menu:
Monday: plum-spiced chicken with rice and sauteed spinach
Tuesday: taco salads
Wednesday: Stir fry
Thursday: Out with Stacy to Byblos: Labneh, Shanklish and Falafel ... and wine :)
Friday: A pre-party mini-party with the a few of the same crowd from Saturday - a good friend was on leave from the Navy and wouldn't be able to make the main party, so we started early. I brought over a Mexican lasagna and chocolate pumpkin cupcakes so the host wouldn't have to cook, and we played Circle of Death and Jenga Circle of Death ... ahh, drinking games.
Saturday: Halloween party! It was crazy. I made guacamole. I drank ... umm, too much.
Sunday: Pita's Republic and Halloween candy, a match made in heaven.
I had three nights in a row of too much drinking, and while it was fun I'm thinking a little detox is in order this week.
Monday: Cajun Dirty Rice
Tuesday: linguine with pesto sauce and parchment fish and veggie packets
Wednesday: slow cooker chicken and dumplings
Thursday: steaks and cheesy risotto and some vegetable
Friday: out with Crystal?
Saturday: chicken pizza
Monday: plum-spiced chicken with rice and sauteed spinach
Tuesday: taco salads
Wednesday: Stir fry
Thursday: Out with Stacy to Byblos: Labneh, Shanklish and Falafel ... and wine :)
Friday: A pre-party mini-party with the a few of the same crowd from Saturday - a good friend was on leave from the Navy and wouldn't be able to make the main party, so we started early. I brought over a Mexican lasagna and chocolate pumpkin cupcakes so the host wouldn't have to cook, and we played Circle of Death and Jenga Circle of Death ... ahh, drinking games.
Saturday: Halloween party! It was crazy. I made guacamole. I drank ... umm, too much.
Sunday: Pita's Republic and Halloween candy, a match made in heaven.
I had three nights in a row of too much drinking, and while it was fun I'm thinking a little detox is in order this week.
Monday: Cajun Dirty Rice
Tuesday: linguine with pesto sauce and parchment fish and veggie packets
Wednesday: slow cooker chicken and dumplings
Thursday: steaks and cheesy risotto and some vegetable
Friday: out with Crystal?
Saturday: chicken pizza
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