Day 62: Totally Out of Control

Last night I was having trouble sleeping, which happens from time to time. I was lying there thinking that something didn't seem quite right, but I couldnt' put my finger on what exactly. Then it hit me: I hadn't felt Jade move in a while. Now, usually my daughter is fairly quiet during the day, saving energy for the night time, when she invites several friends over for a kegger in my womb. Or at least, that's what it feels like. But last night she had been quiet all day, and was now quiet at night. If you've ever been pregnant, you probably know that the thought that your baby has not moved in a while is one which often fills you with this irrational dread that something has gone wrong. This leads to all sorts of other thoughts and pictures which go tearing through your mind, thoughts and pictures that I would rather not share because they are just too traumatizing. Anyway, I was lying there experiencing this terrifying moment, trying to tell myself that I was being silly and that she was just having a quiet day. Rationality has little place in a pregnancy, however, so this line of thought was having little effect. Enough, already, I had to try to wake her up, or I'd never be able to get to sleep. So, I began to rub my belly. Nothing on this side, nothing on that, oh wait! Is that little knobby spot a knee sticking out? Rub, rub, rub, and like a genie from a lamp, little Jade leapt awake, kicking that little leg out of my reach and rolling over, as if to say "Mom, do you mind? I was sleeping!!" Ah, much better. Now I was able to sink peacefully into my own sleep as my little one rolled and squirmed and confirmed that she was just fine afterall.

Cruel, aren't I? This sort of disruption for the sake of my own sanity will not end with her birth, either. All you mothers out there, admit it. Haven't you ever snuck over to your baby's cradle, and, upon not being able to make out any breathing or movement, nudged your little one to make sure she was alive? I certainly have. In fact, Julia is almost two, and I still do it! Many a sound sleep in this house has been interrupted by an irrationally panicked mom.

You can't really blame me, though. I mean, with all the talk of SIDS, how could I not fear for her sleeping safety? It is completely terrifying to imagine that my child could just die right there in my own house without anyone even knowing there was something wrong. *shudder*

The same fear is upon me throughout my pregnancy, too. What if something horrible happened right here, in my own womb, and there was absolutely nothing I could do about it?

Motherhood is about spending every waking moment trying to keep your children safe, happy, healthy, and growing properly, all the while knowing that you really have no control at all. God, it's all in your hands. I can remove every sharp object from my house, cover every hard corner, gate every stairwell, and follow my child around incessantly, but in the end, you are the only one who can protect her. You are all I have. I am so thankful that you care about me, about my children, about our piddly little lives that mean so much to us but are, in the greater perspective, tiny and insignificant and fleeting. Thank you for the small miracle that is within me. Please protect her. And thank you for offering me a knobby little knee to rub so I can know that all is well, even if I'm not the one keeping it that way.

Day 60: costume update

Ok, so I have basically finished the costume, which consists of a green scaly shirt, a blue shimmery cape and belt, and a mask. This is not, however, the mask that I put in my last post. That one was kindly but soundly rejected by my eldest child. Apparently it was a bit too friendly. So, I made him a new one, this time using a drawing of what he had in mind, and it has been deamed "perfect". I personally like the other one better, but, hey, who am I to say? So, here is a picture of the new mask.
He'll wear black or green pants and black or green gloves, depending on his mood, really. All in all, it's a fairly simple costume, but he seems happy, so I am as well. Phew! Check that one off my list!

Day 58-Was that a UFO? Or did someone just toss several yards of fabric out her window?

Well, I have to make a costume today. I suppose I don't really have to finish it today, since Halloween isn't until next Wednesday, but I know that if I don't finish it now when I'm thinking about it, it will turn into a panic project on Tuesday night. And I certainly don't want that. So, I am now formulating my plan of attack on this costume.

Joshua is being Harry Potter. His costume was purchased last year at the after-Halloween clearance sale at Target. Actually, it has already seen some use, as he wore it to the book seven release party at Barnes and Nobles. You can't beat getting a costume on clearance and then seeing it used twice in one year.

Julia has a costume, too, although I can't quite remember what it is at the moment. I bought hers last year too, and I know it's something cute and girly, like a fairy or something. I'll have to get it out of the back of her closet later and have a look.

So, it is Jacob that is my pain in the butt this year. He just couldn't find a costume he liked at the sale last year, so we put off making any sort of decision until this year. He has finally decided what he wants to be: an alien. Not a scary alien, though. Besides the fact that I don't allow them to be scary things, there are strict rules about not frightening the kindergarteners at his school's halloween parade. So I have purchased green scaley fabric, blue shimmery fabric, and green foam (for a mask) to make him a one of a kind friendly alien-type costume a nine-year-old can be proud of. Now I just have to figure out exactly how to do it.

I do not sew. Not really, anyway. I mean, I have sewn some small things in the past, all by hand, which takes a small eternity. I don't have a small eternity, and I don't really have the motivation, so I am thinking of using a combination of stitch witchery (iron on adhesive for fabrics) and safety pins. I do have one of those little sewing machines for small jobs, but I can't figure the darn thing out, so it sits in my closet meditating on the meaning of its thus-far useless existence. And no, I do not have any desire for a big sewing machine, because those things frighten me. I vaguely recall attempting to work with one back in my high school home economics class, but it could not have gone too well, since that turned into my first hand-sewn masterpiece. I think it was a fuzzy animal of some sort. Maybe a snake? Whatever it was, I distinctly recall finding bits of stuffing in my car for months afterwards as it slowly migrated through the poor animal's less-than-tight seams. And did I mention I can't figure out the small sewing machine? Yeah, the bigs ones would be even worse, I just know it. So, I stick to hand sewing or, um, safety pinning. Or, preferably, buying something somebody else sewed. The point of all of this is that I am hoping for some sort of miracle here because I have to make this costume, somehow, today. Prayers would be appreciated.

On an up note (for me anyway), my mom is returning today from her trip down south. She went to visit my sister for the week, which is really really great for all of them and really really sucky for me. I know, I know, I really can't complain since I get to see her all the time and my sisters, who live in Timbuktu, hardly ever see her. But, you see, that was their choice. I chose to stay in the frozen tundra of the north for the sheer sake of being near my parents. Anyway, I have been missing her terribly and can't wait to have her nearby again. Sorry Beck.

Survivor has finally gotten interesting! Suddenly the season of the idiots has taken a turn, and we have discovered some almost clever folks stepping up. Well, ok, one almost clever person: Pei Gei. The other apparently clever folks on the other team turned out to be idiots afterall as they 1. stupidly went after the hidden immunity idol in broad daylight in front of everyone and were subsequently caught, forcing them to include more people in their plot, and 2. pompously concocted a plan which went seriously awry, leaving then down a person and an idol, which James now happily owns. Still, it was fun seeing them all at least attempting to do some thinking for a while. Next week there is a merge, so more interesting developments will hopefully follow. This season may be salvageable, yet.

And that's all I really have to talk about today. If I am suddenly hit with an amazing and inspirational observation about the world, I will be sure to blog more later. But I wouldn't hold my breath. I imagine it's hard to be inspired when struggling to detach scaley green fabric that has somehow sewn itself to my pants...



****UPDATE******

It is now later in the day, and I thought you might like to see the mask portion of said costume, which I have just completed.
Well, what do you think? Alien enough? friendly enough? Impressive, right? Yeah, I thought so, too.

Day 57: Obsess Much?

Today is Thursday, which is one of my favorite days of the week. It is absolutely Jacob's favorite, as there is Taco Bar for lunch and it is both library day and computer day for his class. I mean, come on, what could be better than that? I don't have such clear reasons for my enjoyment of this day, but I think it has to do with the fact that we've gotten over the hump of Wednesday and are smoothly sliding towards the weekend. (It also may have something to do with my TV shows on Thursday night, but that would just be sad, so I'm going to say it's, um, some other profound reason that I will come up with later.)

So what is on my mind this Thursday? Well, the baby certainly is. Have you noticed my little countdown to Jade widget over by my pictures? Besides being really nifty, it also serves as a reminder to me of just how little time is left before my newest little peanut joins our nuthouse. This is thrilling!!!!!!!!!! and also terrifying!!!!!!!!

I don't really need a little widget to remind me of this, however, as I have now entered what I fondly refer to as the Obsessive Stage of my pregnancy. As I see it, pregnancy can generally be broken down into these time periods: The shock/denial stage, quickly followed by the panic/excitement stage (with varying degrees of both, depending on your circumstances), which leads into the acceptance/ reading-as-much-as-you-can-about-what-the-heck-you're- supposed-to-be-eating-and-doing-now stage, which slowly evolves into the boredom/getting on with normal living stage, interrupted, of course, by various mini-panic stages, especially if you have any problems in your pregnancy, which finally leads to the all-important complete-obsession stage, which comes directly before the birth. It is at this point that your belly is so huge that you simply cannot forget about it, even if you tried, and every single person you come across, whether you know them or not, asks, "Oh! When are you due?"

I find this interesting, actually. I mean, I understand why friends and relatives might want to know my due date, but complete strangers? Why do they need to know? Were they planning on buying me a card and stashing it in their purse during my due week on the off chance that they may run into me again just after the baby is born? Or are they simply frightened that I am about to pop right in front of them, spraying them with amniotic fluid and who knows what else, and they feel the need to prepare their fight or flight instinct? I think it probably is some sort of morbid curiosity born out of misguided simpathy over my impending labor, like a guard asking some poor shlup on death row, "Hey, when's your funeral?" Or perhaps, my belly is just so, so HUGE that they feel they simply cannot help but make some sort of comment, but saying "Wow, you're gigantic!" probably wouldn't go over too well, so they ask an innocuous question instead. Whatever the reason, it always serves to remind me that, yes, very soon I will be entering once more into that realm of trauma known as Labor Land, therein seeking to vanquish the dragon of excruciating pain and emerge victoriously with my sweet little maiden of joy. Prepare, prepare, prepare!!! I must prepare for the journey, for the battle, and for the maiden herself!! And of course, once I am basically as prepared as one can get, it's like, alright, already, let's get this show on the road! The anticipation is killing me!! You can see how this could lead to some obsession.

So that's what's on my mind this Thursday. Of course, that's what was on my mind yesterday, and the day before, and probably tomorrow and the day after that and the day after that...did I mention I'm obsessed? This is why I like to look forward to my TV. I mean, if Survivor and Grey's Anatomy and CSI can't distract you at least momentarily from your own problems, what can?

Day 55: Baptism report

Hello all! Sorry it's been a few days since I've posted anything. I think today would be a nice day to tell you about the wonderful baptism experience my boys had on Saturday night. It was really everything we hoped it would be. The Saturday night service was intimate, but not too small, so it was not overly intimidating but it also felt like the church body was there to welcome them. There were a couple of songs, both of which were wonderful praise songs ("Open The Eyes of My Heart, Lord" was one of them. That is such a wonderful song, and the repetition made it easy for the boys to pick up, so they were really worshiping with the adults.). Then, after a brief introduction by Pastor Warren, it was their turn. Both boys stood together on stage, next to Warren and the musicians, and, I swear, they actually looked comfortable up there! I thought they would be terrified, but they were both smiling!

Jacob went first. Warren held the microphone for him and he read his testimony, which he wrote himself. Here's what he said:

Jacob’s Story

Back in 2003, when I was 5 years old, me and my mom had just finished reading The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. Mom and I started talking about becoming a Christian and how the book is like that. A few days later, I decided that I wanted to become a Christian and ask Jesus to become my forever friend. I wanted to have the gift of eternal life and I wanted to become a part of Jesus’ family.

Knowing that Jesus died for my sins made me feel sad, and I felt that he was a kind and giving God to do that for me and everyone else. It’s like somebody is offering you a present. I didn’t want to be someone who would say “No thank you, I don’t want it.” So, I asked my mom to pray the special prayer with me, and I accepted Christ into my heart as my forever friend.

Jesus helps me to be kind to others and to do what God wants me to do, which is how to find true happiness. Without Jesus, no matter how much you get, you still want more, because nothing brings you true happiness except Jesus. Since I have Jesus, I can be truly happy with what I have and live a good life.

I try to be a good example for my friends by not calling people names, by being kind to my enemies and by not doing things that I know God doesn’t want me to do. Jesus gives me the strength to do what’s right even if everyone else is doing something bad. I am really glad that I became a Christian and that I can have eternal life and happiness.

Isn't that great?!?! He read it really well, too, only getting a little mixed up towards the end (he had to restart a sentence and he accidentally said "by doing things that I know God doesn't want me to do" instead of "by NOT doing..." We all knew what he meant, though!). Then, it was time to get dunked! Warren and he got into the baptismal, which he later told me was actually "quite warm" and "much deeper" than he expected, and, after a few questions, Warren dunked him and welcomed him as a "brother!" I have to say, I was quite teary eyed at this point. Joshua watched from next to the baptismal, and when Jacob came back up, Josh jumped up and down and gave him a thumbs up. It was so cute!

At this point, there was a bit of a conundrum, as Warren was too wet to come out and hold the mike for Josh. I thought, "What's Josh going to do now? Will he be confused? Will I have to help him?" I should not have worried. Josh just went straight to the front of the stage, next to the guitar player, smiled, and got down to business. The guitar player helpfully held out a microphone, as Warren had done, to catch Josh's words, but Josh grabbed the mike right out of his hand! He held it in his left hand, pointed right at his mouth, with his paper in his right hand, and spoke without even the slightest tremor of nerves. You would think he had been speaking on stage for years! Here's what he said:

Joshua’s Story

In 2003, my mom finished reading me a book called “The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe.” She started talking to me about becoming a forever friend of Jesus. She asked us if we wanted to. I said yes and she told me how to do it. We prayed together and I accepted Jesus into my heart.

When Aslan died in the book, I was very sad. Then he came back to life, and I felt happy and excited. When my mom told me about Jesus dying for me, I felt the same way. I know he didn’t have to do it, that we deserved to go to Hell, But He did it anyway. It made me feel like God is good, that He really loves us. If Jesus loves me that much, I really want to be His friend.

Following Christ makes me kinder and happier, safe and protected, and I feel like I have a friend who is always with me who I can talk to anytime. If I hadn’t become saved, I would probably sin a lot more and feel sad, like something was missing in my life. As a Christian, I am content and thankful for what I have.

Too cool! Then he traipsed over to the baptismal, entered the water, was asked the questions by Warren, and "splash!" he too was welcomed as a brother! The congregation clapped and cheered for both of them, and they were all smiles as they gathered their towels and scurried out to get changed. I know I was crying rather heartily at this point, and I believe there were more than a few other wet faces in the crowd.

I am so thankful to God that my boys are both saved. They are believers in Christ, they have the Holy Spirit in their hearts, and, whatever else happens in their lives, I know that someday they will be with Him in heaven. There is nothing more important than that fact, not school, not sports, not wives or grandchildren or successful careers, not anything at all. They are SAVED!!!!! My boys are baptized brothers in the church of Christ, and, what's more, they really understand what that means. I could have had them baptized a few years ago, since they were saved then, but I'm glad that I waited until now. They're still young, but they're old enough to understand the meaning of baptism and to remember this moment for the rest of their lives. I am so incredibly proud of them both, and just so, so thankful for this experience.

Afterwards, my parents joined us at a restaurant of the boys' choice (Pizzaria UNO. They just love the "make your own pizza" menu choice!) to celebrate. I know the entire night was a really special experience for them, just as I always hoped it would be. THANK YOU GOD!!!!!!!!

Day 52- We love K-love

Hey, just a quick post today. I just wanted to point out that K-love is having a pledge drive right now. They're a Christian radio station that plays throughout the US, even in Alaska! The cool thing is that they have absolutely no commercials, which is why they need pledges to run on. Anyway, if you feel the calling to give, you can go to KLove.com or call 1-(800) 525-LOVE. If you feel like listening in, and you live in the Syracuse area, just tune to 101.7 or 101.3 fm. Anywhere else, you can probably find your station on the website. God Bless!

Day 51- Good News Travels...to everyone but us!

Well, today Jacob is home on his first official sick day. What started as a mild cough yesterday had grown to a full-blown cold, with coughing, sneezing, sniffling, very red eyes, etc.by this morning. In the interest of hurrying him along on the path to good health again, I decided to keep him home and basically tie him down to the bed. Tomorrow is his baptism, you see, and I'd really like for him to be healthy enough to enjoy it!

This leads, of course, to my observation that it is really so nice to have him home, even if he is emitting a constant stream of appalling noises and fluids. All three of my children are home with me again. Aaaahh. This is how it was meant to be. Joshua's extensive unit on the pioneers has convinced me that I was really meant to live out on the prairie with my family and no one else for miles around. Just me and them, living our lives, enjoying each other, farming and cooking and cleaning and basically doing the things I'm doing now minus the constant pressures of the world to compete with the Joneses, be they materialistic Joneses or perfect-spiritual-super-mommy ones. To be able to shout at the top of my voice, which is a fairly formidable decibel level, and not bother anyone. It would be particularly nice if my sisters and parents were there, too, perhaps a mile or two away, close enough to visit often but not too often, if you know what I mean. Jeremy's family could live back east. A letter once every other year or so would probably suffice for them.

Speaking of Jeremy's family, we have just learned that his brother and sister-in-law are pregnant with their third child. This is nice news. What is particularly interesting, though, is how we found out about it. We weren't the first tier of people told, nor were we the second. In fact, we found out more or less by accident after most everyone else knew. The sister-in-law created a cute poem announcement and sent it out via e-mail to basically everyone but us. Interesting. We only found out when Jeremy's mother accidentally included his e-mail address when sending a letter about something else entirely out to all of her sisters, in which she fondly mentioned the joy of having a new baby to love, but clearly not in reference to our pregnancy. When questioned by Jeremy as to the meaning of said statement, she outright denied having sent him the email (he later forwarded it back to her to prove that she had in fact done so. I mean, how the heck would he have known about it if she hadn't sent it to him? I'm sorry, but she's not the brightest bulb in the box sometimes.). Now realizing that we knew something was up, she begrudgingly forwarded the sister-in-law's poem to us. Wow, I am incredibly touched. Here he is Jeremy's own brother, and the schmuck doesn't even bother to call him with the news before his darling wife tells everyone else in the family. Don't even get me started on her. The woman has not said more than two words to me since I married Jeremy. Far be it for her to actually include me in a mass e-mailed announcement or anything. Much, much better that we find out this way. You really couldn't get more insulting.

What really kills me is the knowledge that Jeremy's mother would severely tear into him should he not tell his brother first thing about such news. But Eric? Nooooo, he'll get off without a scratch. You have never witnessed favoritism like these people exhibit. And for what??? Jeremy is a successful engineer supporting a family of six, while his brother got them to take out personal loans so that he could finish college and go on to work at...Walmart! Not as a manager or anything, either! Now he's basically living off of the teaching salary of his wife, who would vastly prefer to just stay home and raise her children, and running off every weekend to go hunting, leaving her alone with the two, soon to be three, little ones. And Jeremy's parents treat him like some kind of king! It's a sad sad state of affairs. These people make me so mad!

Anyway, I remember promising to include something positive in each post, so today's positive thing is...It's Friday! Yay!!! I love weekends! My husband will be home for two whole days and my world will be full and complete. And, as I mentioned, this weekend my boys are getting baptized!!! I am so proud and thrilled for them. I'm sure I will tell you all about it in next week's posts, so stay tuned for details!

Alright, I need to go check on my little sick babooski. TTFN!

Day 50 - Time Flies!

Wow! It's been fifty days since I started this blog! Boy, it really doesn't feel like it was that long ago. Time certainly does fly!

Which is why I am currently desperately trying to do the myriad of things one needs to do to prepare for a baby before it hits Thanksgiving and I find myself dragging my contraction-ridden body across the floor, clutching a crumpled list in one hand and a laundry basket in the other and moaning "so much to do....so much to dooooo." I am lucky to be starting off from a pretty prepared point, since the nursery is already done and I already have most of the baby accessories one needs thanks to Julia. Still, it's amazing how many little things you have to get done before a baby arrives. I have just finished washing all of her clothes and linens in special baby soap and organizing them into the drawers of her little dresser. Already I find myself struggling with too much stuff and too little space. I mean, baby blankets alone take up two drawers! Still, I am thoroughly enjoying the experience of once again getting out the little bitty onesies and teeny tiny little socks (Oh, to nibble on those little baby piggies again!). I really thought when I put them away that I was done with baby clothes for good. It is a deeply satisfying experience to anticipate another sweet little one wearing each adorable outfit. And they're the pink ones! I'm getting out the pink ones again! I mean, I love my boys with all of my heart, but I have to say there is just nothing like little girl outfits. This is why women in the olden days used to dress their baby boys in ruffly white dresses, too. Try to get away with that today, though, and you'll get a vastly different reaction. Probably something about having "issues." I do think I will need a few new little outfits, though. I mean, every little girl needs a few individual pieces in her wardrobe! And then there's the all-important coming home from the hospital outfit. She has to have something special for that!

Today I am going to visit my Grandmother, or Ella-The-Great as my boys call her. I know you all think you have wonderful grandmas, but my grandma is THE grandma. She is pure grandma, through and through. She simply exudes grandmaism. She even smells like a grandma, with that sweet, somewhat baby powder scent that transports you back to a time when you felt completely safe and loved. You have never met a sweeter woman in your life. She's over 90 now, but she's still going strong, and I pray that my girls get to experience a relationship with her like my boys have.

So, I have to cut this blog a little short so we can get going. Perhaps I'll write a little more later. But only if you're really lucky!

Day 49- Morning Has Broken....Me

Ok, I know I have a tendency to be negative about things, and I apologize to those of you who don't like negativity (which begs the question: What the heck are you doing reading this blog???) , but I guess inner Jess is sometimes a rather cynical place. I do try to put something mushy and positive in from time to time (note: see happy happy joy joy. I mean, if that's not the most positively sickening thing you've ever read then...well, you must be reading my sister's blog too. :} ). Really, my life is so amazingly wonderful that I should not have one negative thing to say ever. I mean, seriously, I love my life. As I've noted before, I have the best job ever, plus a husband who is so good to me, and a family that supports me, and kids who are simply amazing, and, I could go on and on and on... So, in the interest of showing my gratitude for a truly blessed life, I am going to try to write at least one positive thing in every blog. If, like me, you tend to say "Gack!" whenever you read too much positive crap (particularly if you tune in first thing in the morning when, let's face it, sunshiney people make you want to get out your shotgun), you can skip down to the * sign, where I will once again commence my usual cynical angst-filled diatribes.

So, today's positive point is about the incredibly wonderful news I received just the other day from my sister Steph. This is the sister, you may recall, who I think is "very cool" due to her heroic efforts to make this world a better place by putting away all the nasty, villainous, bad guys in New Mexico. Well, she has found another way to make this world a better place, and that is by bringing forth her own little mini-me to continue her valiant efforts when she retires. That's right, she's having...(drumroll please)... a BABY!!!!! I'm pretty sure I'm allowed to announce that now, right Steph? If not, everyone will be instructed to forget what they just read or face the little blinky light used by the Men In Black (oh yeah, I have some serious connections. Don't test me!). I am so excited for her, and I know she will be a wonderful mother. I haven't met Sidney yet, but it sounds like he'll be a great father, too. So, CONGRATULATIONS STEPHANIE AND SID!!!!!!!!! I will be praying for a healthy and happy pregnancy leading to a healthy and happy child!

* Ok, now back to your regularly scheduled negative diatribe. Today's topic is mornings. I don't know why exactly, but morning is by far the worst time of day for me. I do not get up easily. Basically, from the moment the alarm goes off, my body and mind enter into an epic battle over whether it's really so important to get up or if it wouldn't be better to stay in bed for, say, another five minutes. Make that ten. Perhaps an hour or two? Which is the point where my mind usually puts a foot down and says "enough already!" forcing my body to get up or risk a spontaneous lobotomy. This battle gets decidedly more difficult to win as A) my pregnant belly gets bigger and thus harder to heave off of the mattress and B) the mornings get darker and more gloomy thanks to the onset of Autumn. This morning, I was so late getting up that, when I finally did open the bedroom door, I overheard my husband giving instructions to Jacob on how to get himself ready and to the bus stop on time if I didn't make it. Very sad. And then, of course, there is the morbidly depressing thought that he probably would prefer to get himself to the bus stop rather than be accompanied by an anti-social zombie who manages little more than a grunt of acknowledgment when addressed by all the other chipper morning-loving super-mommies already waiting there. Waiter, can I have what they're having? Because somehow my coffee is not working so well anymore. Perhaps a shot of adrenaline? Anyone know where I can get a lifetime's supply?

Usually I feel better by, say, 9:00 or so. Which is better, I suppose, than my college days, when I didn't start feeling like a human until, say, dinner time. Aahhh college. Now that was the life....

Day 48- Rather boring life stuff. Oh, and serious sucking up to mom.

Well, I am sitting here trying desperately to think of something interesting to write about, but it's just not coming to me. I can tell you about some of the things I've been up to lately, I guess. Um, well, this weekend I had a wonderful time hanging out with my mother. We went to this place called Mackensie Childs, where they make all sorts of interesting decorating things, like oddly painted doorknobs and dishes, and even some really outrageous furniture. The place was pretty cool, especially the house, which had three floors of the most amazingly decorated rooms you've ever laid eyes on, but really, the best thing about the trip was just being with my mom. I know some people struggle with mom issues, but, really, for me the only issue is that I don't get to spend enough time with her. She's fun, interesting, amusing company who always makes you feel like you're the most important person. She really listens, even to stupid stuff, and offers oodles of advise, only some of which is irritating (afterall, she is a mom). And she is just so, so, I don't know, motherly I guess. I mean, I remember distinctly when I was growing up that my friends and people who worked for her always treated her like she was another mom to them. She puts everyone at ease, is never pretentious, and makes you feel like you just want to follow her around like a puppy dog. Which, sadly, I still do whenever I'm over at the house. I often wonder if she gets annoyed by this. I mean, with my own children, if they're following me around, I reach a point where I basically have to hide in the bathroom for a few minutes because they are driving me crazy. I love them dearly, but they do sometimes get on my nerves. I must totally get on her nerves the same way, but she never makes me feel like it. Anyway, I know she is absolutely loathing all this mushy yay mom talk, so I had better move on to something else.

Um, uh, let's see. Oh, right! I went to another visitation thingy at Jacob's school yesterday. This time, we got to participate with our kids in an actual classroom learning experience (as a homeschooler, this kind of makes me laugh. I mean, I've been participating in every single learning experience up to this year. Anyway...) and then eat lunch with them. It was fun! I discovered that the girl who sits across from him ( it used to be a boy, but all the seats were rearranged due to some overly "chatty girls," as Jacob put it) goes to our church. Her dad and I know each other a little. So, that was kind of neat to point out to them. Their family always goes to a different service than ours, so they hadn't run into each other at church yet. I also discovered that his reading partner is a cute asian girl. I don't know why, but I have always had this weird feeling that he was going to marry an asian girl, so my heart gives a happy little flutter every time I see him with one. Don't tell him, though. I certainly won't!

Jeremy joined us at lunch time, which made Jacob very happy. Actually, he was pretty thrilled to have me there, too. He kept hugging me and stuff. It's really really nice to see that he is not afraid or ashamed to show that he loves his parents. And don't worry, lots of the other kids were doing it, too, so he won't endure taunting. I guess that sort of thing starts later. And I found that lunch at their school is really good. I mean, I wanted some of what he was having! It certainly looked better than anything I ever had when I was in school!

So, those are some of the amazingly exciting details of my life lately. I have more interesting things to write about, I just haven't had time to think about what I want to say exactly. So, stay tuned, I guess!

Day 45- The World Wide Web

The spider's name was Francis.

At least, that is what I decided to name him. He probably has some other spider name which I couldn't possibly pronounce. Do spider's even have vocal cords?

Anyway, Francis appeared before my eyes as I swept into the bathroom, hurriedly getting ready to leave the house. Normally I would squish a spider in my bathroom, or, at the very least, get my husband to do it, but not Francis.

It was clear from the moment I laid eyes on him that Francis was, well, frantic. He had been peacefully clinging to the side of one of our bathroom lights, enjoying the calm, the darkness, the simple life of a spider, probably contemplating where to go next, but in no particular hurry. Then, in a flash, the light turned on. Blazing brightness, heat, fire- he was sent flying into the air, hanging, literally, by a thread, surprised, shocked, scrambling desperately for direction. He made it over to the wall, only to find it slick from our recent showers. No purchase there, he scrambled crazily some more, slipping and sliding in a panic to find somewhere, anywhere to hide from the sudden onslaught of light. Finally, he found his way behind the wall sconce of the lamp, into darkness, safety. I could almost hear his tiny heart beating frantically as he waited to see what would happen next.

I couldn't help it. Even though I am normally petrified of spiders, I felt sorry for Francis. And I saw myself in him. How many times are our lives on an even keel, puttering along nicely, when suddenly the lamp turns on and we're sent spinning loose in mid-air, shocked and uncertain, wondering how this could have happened and what we should do next? When even the walls are slick with condensation and we can't seem to get a grip on anything anymore? I know how Francis was feeling, I know that panic, that twisting, grasping, heart-pounding moment when it seems like life is about to come crashing down all around me. Will I survive it? Will I ever find safety and security again?

Eventually, if Francis waited long enough, he would find that his eyes grew accustomed to the light. Eventually, the water would evaporate, the walls would no longer be slick, and he could once again continue on his way, probably finding a nice corner in which to build his web. Eventually, that moment of shear terror would become a distant memory, or, perhaps, even be completely forgotten in the pleasure of a new home, a nice meal, a good life. Eventually, if we breath and live and keep on moving forward, things do work out. The panic will pass. The water will dry up. And life will get peaceful and predictable again.

I can't be certain, since I had to leave, but I'm pretty sure he went on to be just fine and dandy. Certainly I couldn't kill him. Not after seeing so much of myself in him. In fact, Francis, I wish you a long and happy existence. Thank you for providing me with a moment's reflection. And thank You, God, for always providing a safe place to cling to in our most uncertain moments.

Of course, now I have to look very carefully before sitting on the toilet. I certainly wouldn't want to sit on a spider...shudder...

Day 44- Happy Happy joy joy

Happy happy joy joy happy happy joy joy!
Today I am feeling rather happy! This is a vast improvement over yesterday's prevalent feeling, which was rage. But we don't need to get into that. No, today I am happy. Happy happy happy!

Oooh, bragging time!! Children are fabulous! Mine make me sooo proud. Let's start with Jacob. Ok, remember that I mentioned that he had a big math test last week? Well, he got a 100%! That's right! 100% correct, ladies and gentlemen. Not one thing wrong. And only one other person in the whole class achieved this honor. How do I know? Well, to highlight this fabulous achievement, his teacher had him and the one other person stand on their desks!! Jacob was so pleased! He was telling me about it, and his face was all lit up and smiley. He said he was really proud of himself. How cool!!! I have to say, I'm feeling rather better about my homeschooling abilities now, as well. He had me worried for a bit there, but once he was comfortable with the way school worked, he has been really showing what he knows. Oh, and he got a 100% on his spelling test today, too!! What a week!

On to my little sweet baboo, Julia. She has mastered the meaning of the words "big" and "little"! Ok, those of you who don't have one and a half year olds may not understand why this excites me, but I have actually taught her something this week, like, on purpose, and she really gets it! That's cool. Also, she has now gone potty twice! Like actually sat on the potty and peed! And wiped, and washed hands, and everything! Again, you really have to be in these shoes to appreciate my excitement, but, believe me, it's also very cool.

Joshua, well, he always impresses the heck out of me. If you know me, you probably know that I think he is basically one of the smartest kids who ever lived, especially in the area of writing and english. So the new thing that I am proud of in him is his soccer skills. I talked about this in an earlier post, so I won't go into details now, but suffice it to say that his newfound sportiness is an unexpected and rather exciting revelation to me.

Oh, oh, and Jade finally turned over and is no longer breach! Even she is achieving great things! And she's not even born yet!

So you see, all my kids seriously rock. It's just a fact.

I just looooove children, don't you? Lots and lots of children, each bringing a bit more wonderfulness to the universe. Aaahh! Happy happy joy joy!

So are you sick to your stomach yet?

Ok, it is Friday, which means it's time for another addition of "Jess talks about her Thursday night shows!" I knew you'd be thrilled. Feel free to skip all of this stuff. In fact, if you haven't yet watched Grey's Anatomy, Survivor, and CSI from last night, I seriously recommend it. On Survivor, the season of the idiots continued as the team that won reward decided to kidnap one of the strongest males on the other team for the day. Why is this completely idiotic? Well, the reward was a big meal, which means that they basically guaranteed that they would be providing the other team with a well-rested, well-fed strong male with whom to win the immunity challenge. Duh, people. I hope they thanked their lucky stars when said challenge turned out to not be too physically taxing, and they still eked out a win. Interestingly, this same strong male, by the name of, um, was it Rob? Something like that. Anyway, he-who-we-will-refer-to-as-Rod ended up being voted out anyway, so it was not that big a mistake. His was the first vote-off I could actually understand since, let's face it, he was a complete A_ _. Really an odd and annoying guy. Full of himself, too. It was quite pleasing to see the back of him. The only bad thing about it was that I started rooting for his team, after the other team committed the unforgivable sin of voting off the Christian radio lady for no good reason, and therefore his being voted off resulted in my new favorite (or least hated) team being down two players. Bugger.

Grey's was, um, forgettable, frankly. I'm glad Meredith is beginning to get along better with her sister, and was quite saddened to think that her sister may have thought she would purposefully kill her mother, whom Meredith actually loved very much. Derrick gets an A, Yang gets a D-, George and Izzy both get F's, I feel horrible for poor Callie who does not deserve any of this, so I guess I give her a B and, basically, really old guy was probably the only one worth paying any attention to, so he gets an A+. And what was up with Karev? He's been so much better lately. Why did they have him say such a mean thing to George? It seemed rather random and unnecessary, actually. Oh well. I'm just not thrilled this season.

CSI, well, was a bit creepy, but still entirely too predictable. I told my husband basically exactly what had happened by about a third of the way through the show. Not much mystery to these murders. I will say the very end did shock me, though. It was really nice to be shocked by something, as everything else these shows are producing is really boring me this season. I'm seriously thinking about branching out into other shows. We'll see...

Ok, well, I must work on my dinner now, so TTFN.

Day 43 Continued

Ok, the moment has passed. I feel much better now.

In fact, I would like to share a joke which I read in the Reader's Digest just now.

A computer Geek is crossing the road when he sees a frog who opens its mouth and starts talking.
"If you kiss me," the frog says, "I'll turn into a beautiful princess, stay with you for a week and do anything you want."
The guy smiles and puts the frog in his pocket.
"Did you hear me?" asks the frog. "A beautiful princess? For a week?"
"Look," says the nerd. "I haven't got time for a girlfriend. But a talking frog- now, that's cool."


Ah yes, I definitely knew a few of these in college!

Day 43

pant..pant..pant...must control anger...pant..pant..many obscenities trying to escape my lips...pant..pant..pant

Day 42- Miss Chief (read mischief)

I just felt I should share this with all of you. I just walked into the kitchen to find my daughter sitting in the middle of the kitchen table helping herself to a bag of Craisins I had left there. She certainly is a little Miss Chief!

Day 42 continued- Judgement day

It is interesting how easy it is to judge somebody.

What's particularly interesting is how often we judge others by telling them not to be so judgemental, or that it's wrong of them to be so affected by other people's judgements of them. Somehow, we think we have the right to tell someone our opinion on what they are doing wrong, but nobody else does. Or, maybe not to even tell them about it, but just think it or talk about it to someone else. We hate to think of people judging the ones we love, and making them feel bad about themselves, but then we turn around and judge the people we love, too. Even judging them for feeling too bad about themselves!

It's a funny thing, really. It's so easy to transition from "helpful" to "critical." We love someone and want to help them, but somewhere along the line our helpfulness changes to criticism and, often, judgement about how very wrong they're being. I do this all the time, especially with my husband. In fact, it seems like the more you love someone, the more you do this to them. It's so so sad, because all you really wanted in the first place was to make them feel better, or to help them fix something dangerous or damaging in themselves, but you really end up making them feel so much worse instead.

Anyway, to all those I love to whom I've done this, I want to apologize. You are the greatest people I know, and I would be so lost without you.


On a less serious note, I am seriously thinking of throwing my TV out the window. All of my favorite shows seem to, how shall I put this, seriously suck this year! What happened to all of the writers?? Did they all spend the Summer partying hard, resulting in a serious loss of brain cells?? I'm beginning to think that I could write better than these people. Maybe I will. Maybe I'll write my own television show and spend each night acting it out for my husband (securely shackled to the couch, or I'd never be able to get him to sit still that long!) . Seriously! Would that be weird? Wait, you're judging me, aren't you?! :)

Day 42

It's morning. I'm tired. bleh. Just thought I'd share.

Day 41- Discovering America...

I don't really feel like I have anything much to talk about today, so I'll just write about what we did this weekend. It was a long weekend, thanks to having Columbus Day off. It's funny, I used to think it would be annoying having the school district dictate my days off, and in some ways it is, but sometimes a school-forced holiday, like Columbus Day, is actually a really nice break from the norm. The kids knew going in that this would be a three-day weekend and were very excited to get the time off. So was I, for that matter!

Let's see, on Saturday, we had Jacob's soccer game, which is always a very exciting event. He is now at a level where it is only boys and everybody's starting to take the game much more seriously. I am proud, and slightly shocked, at the consistency with which Jacob plays. I have never looked at my boys as being terribly sporty, but he is absolutely determined to give soccer his all. He doesn't have a lot of the natural talent that many of the other boys have, but he really makes up for a lot of that with his effort and drive. Anyway, we all had fun there, and then we basically spent the rest of the day taking it easy at home.

That is, the kids and I took it easy. My husband has this overwhelming need to spend free Saturdays doing as much around-the-house work as he can fit in. This is not house-work, mind you. I truly believe that most husbands' arms would literally fall off were they to actually pick up a broom or, heaven forbid, a vacuum cleaner. No, this is manly around-the-house work. Work that involves grunting and sweating and becoming completely filthy. Work that is almost always outdoors, where they inevitably feel the need to remove their shirts so all the world can bask in the glory of their hairy, sweaty chests. Work that often requires a trip to a hardware store where they can strut importantly around displaying their equipment, nodding at the other manly men strutting by on their important manly errands. Oh yes, this is what it means to be the head of your household, the king of your castle: You are not truly a man until you've spent your day off working around-the-house until you smell like a lumberjack. This particular Saturday saw my husband mowing, weed-wacking, cleaning out the shed, putting a new drain cover on our lawn drain thingy, and tarring the roof. Or something like that. I know he spent a lot of time up there, grunting and sweating, and he definitely smelled like tar when he was eventually forced down by the afternoon thunderstorm. Not that he gave up easily, mind you. My pointing out that it was probably not a particularly smart idea to stand on a metal ladder in the middle of a lighting storm went unanswered. My subsequent threats that, were he to die in such a manner, his obituary and headstone would both read simply "He was an idiot" also garnered little response. I'm not sure what finally convinced him, but it may have had something to do with our daughter standing on the porch crying pitifully "Daddy! Daaaaaaaddy!" Whatever got him down, I will give him credit that, once he got himself and all of his smelly, manly stuff cleaned up, he did spend some nice one-on-one time with her.

On Sunday, the boys went to a baptism class before church, and then we all had our usual church experience: the boys in their Promiseland areas, Jeremy in the sanctuary analyzing what was wrong with the sound mixing, and me in the 18 month-24 month nursery area with Julia, who was not about to take her eyes off of me lest I sneak out like last time.

Sunday afternoon found us at Joshua's game, where he also showed an impressive amount of drive and determination. With him, I believe it's born out of anger. The more the other team pisses him off, the harder he plays. According to Jeremy (I had to miss most of the game due to Julia's nap), this team was really pushing our team around on the field, so Joshua found good reason to exhibit some passion. I simply don't know where he could have gotten such a righteous temper. Ahem.

After the game we went to Critz Farms, which is this very cool place to pick pumpkins and, in the winter, Christmas trees. We have actually found it to be much more economical to buy our pumpkins from another place, but we still go to Critz for the activities. They have several large wooden play areas (like a ship and a long train), a huge hill of slides, hay bales stacked for climbing upon, a "haunted house" (which is actually really mild and childish, but my boys still insist on running through like something is going to grab them and suck them into the walls to dwell forevermore in the depths of torture-induced terror), animals, a corn maze, and, of course, apple fritters and cider. There used to be pony rides, but due to "liability issues" these have been replaced with a large blow-up bouncing house. sigh. This world today...

On Monday, we went to my parents' house for a visit. The highlight, for me at least, was everybody joining together for craft time. We made "Gorgeous Gourds," which is an idea I got out of Family Fun magazine. I was so proud to have actually done one of the crafts in there. Usually I read through it with a sense of "That looks cool! I should do that with the kids!" but then never actually make anything. But this time, as you can see by the pictures to the right of your screen, we did make something, and I think they all came out really great!

So that was our long weekend. I could go into greater details about much of it, and maybe I will later this week, but for now I'm sure I've already written your eyes off (as opposed to "talking your ears off") and I will call it a post. Have a lovely Tuesday!

Day 38- Um, how about "Life, The Universe, and Everything"

Ok, I have a lot to write about today, so, to make it easier for my avid readers, I will organize my writing by letter. A. will be about regular family stuff, B. will be about school (or The Experiment, for those of you in the know), C. will be about pregnancy (insider information, not for the week of constitution), and D. will be about my Thursday night TV. So, feel free to scroll down to only what you want to read and ignore the rest, you uncultured, self-centered baboons! (Kidding!) (Kind Of)

A. Family Stuff, AKA What's Up With Us

Let's see, well, Joshua got strep throat from his grandfather, so we had to go to the doctor's office on Wednesday. Actually, it was pretty cool. I discovered his fever at around 1:20, I called the office, and by 3:00 we had gone, been seen and diagnosed, had gone to the pharmacy to get his meds, and were back home. I was pretty pleased by the quick and helpful service, I must say. So, he has now been on medicine for three days and is no longer considered contagious. Phew! Hopefully he'll be the only child to get it! You have to feel bad for poor Joshie, though. Somehow, he is always the one who gets stuff. When the rest of us get a cold, he gets pneumonia. When we get a cough, he gets the kind of cough that lasts the entire season and warrants a trip to a chest specialist. He has actually asked me once why God gave him such a worse immune system than his brother, to which I said we all have our struggles and this is one of his. I'm sure that made him feel tons better.

So, Joshua got the day off from school on Thursday (sick day! Yay!). In true State-Of-Insanity style, however, said sick day actually turned into a trip to the zoo. That's right, while most of you would snuggle your sick child into bed with tea and books, I took mine on a field trip. Ok, to be fair, he felt much better than he had the day before and he no longer had a fever. He wasn't even really contagious anymore, thanks to the extra strong medicine the doctor gave him (he's allergic to the regular stuff. Yeah, that's right. Nothing can be simple for him.) So don't judge me!

Anyway, Julia, Joshie, and I went to the Rosamond Gifford Zoo first thing in the morning, when it was peaceful and quiet and mostly empty, and it was wonderful. Julia is at this lovely age when she just stops and looks at things for a long time. Fish, for example, are enthralling to her. She stood next to the glass and stared and stared, pointing every once in a while at a particularly interesting one and making her "blub blub blub" sound for fish. Really, if it weren't for the fact that we had a much less interested eight year old with us, we probably could have spent an hour just in the fish area.

It was also amazing to see her stand face to face with a full grown lion. The lion, who, I must point out, is actually named Joshua, much to my son's delight, was sitting in this patch of sunlight right next to the glass, and Julia just walked right up to the glass and stared into his eyes. I was struck by how truly shocking it is to think of how close my sweet daughter was to such a huge, dangerous beast. That lion could eat her in one gulp. And there she was, face to face with it, looking at him looking at her. Her sound for lion, by the way, is a low growling noise, which she also enjoys making whenever she chases her father around the house. Now, I think, it will have a much larger meaning for her.

Joshua was a joy as well, reading the map and leading the way to this exhibit and that. He walked on top of the penguin tracks to find the penguin exhibit, and played along with his silly mom when I pretended to search for the tiger I had "heard was spotted in the area." He's still my buddy, even though he's getting so big. It was a really nice way to spend the day, and I am very thankful that he suggested it.

B. School

Jacob has his first big public school math test today. It should be interesting. The math they teach these kids is really freaking weird, if you ask me. They seem to spend more time teaching them about how to kind of get the answers than they do about how to actually get them. His first unit was all about estimating, like, Here are three vases of flowers- estimate how many there are. Then, count them to see how close you came. Huh? What the heck is the point of that? Oh well. At least it isn't overwhelmingly difficult for him.

He also had his first science test last week, which we got back this week. He got 100%!!! See, I told them science was his best subject! Take that, you anti-homeschool establishment! Maybe his writing isn't fabulous and his spelling leaves much to be desired, but in his area of interest, he ROCKS!

Joshua took a class field trip to the zoo yesterday (Refer back to section A. if you're interested in hearing more on this). Though his class consists of himself and a one-and-a-half year old, it was still a stimulating experience chock full of learning opportunities. Like, "The lion has the same name as you, Joshua!" and "Look at the size of that elephant poop!" Plus, it was fun! Oh yeah, homeschool is da bomb!


C. Pregnancy

Really, if you're not pregnant, you probably don't want to read this. It's about, um, less than pleasant side effects of pregnancy.

Ok, so I love being pregnant, don't get me wrong, but really there are some parts I could do without. Currently, my greatest annoyance is with incontinence. Here I am, enjoying nine months of no period, and I find myself having to wear a pad anyway everyday to protect from little "accidents." Every single time I sneeze, or cough, or laugh too hard, I lose a little control, and it's freaking annoying. And yes, before you suggest it, I am in fact doing Kegel exercises every day. It just doesn't seem to help at all. This is my fourth one, so maybe it's just worse with each subsequent pregnancy as things are so stretched out or whatever. Either way, I wish it would stop. And, to top that off, my bladder is now so squished that I have to get up and go at least once in the middle of the night. Last night I slept so soundly that I didn't get up for my scheduled potty break, and I almost wet the bed! Seriously, I woke up just in the nick of time, as I started peeing, and was saved only by my own fast reflexes and proximity to the bathroom. I now hold the world's record for fastest woman in the 3-yard-dash-to-a-bathroom.

I could also do without the heartburn, although my patented ice cream heartburn medication makes it much easier to cope with. And even enjoy.


D. Thursday Night TV

As we all know, Thursday night is my favorite night of television (call me during this night and you may risk your puny existence on this planet), due to Survivor, Grey's Anatomy, and CSI. If you haven't watched these from last night, do not read on until you do.

In Survivor last night, another team showed a complete lack of common sense when they voted off the Christian radio personality. This bothers me not just because she is a sister, and extremely nice, but also because they had absolutely no good reason for doing so. They had a good reason to vote of the teeny tiny little blond girl, since she not only lost them a challenge but also lacks the energy to do much of anything useful around camp. I did not want them to vote her off, but at least I would have understood if they had done so. They should have voted off Jean Robert, since he's a completely useless, annoying, bumbling idiot who they will never be able to trust after a merge and whose very presence makes their camp a worse place.

But the Christian lady? There was no reason to vote her off. She's not terribly weak, she's not terribly annoying, she does her best to help around camp, and she would be kind and loyal to a fault. They are idiots, people. This season is the season of idiots.

On to CSI. There's not much to say outside of the fact that I think the Grissom/Sarah romance is really really sweet and I hope they don't mess with it or write her out now that she's moving to swing shift. I did find the "mystery" of the night way too predictable, though. I mean, if you didn't see that coming, you're either blind, or desperately seeking a more interesting alternative to the obvious, which, I suppose, you are to be somewhat congratulated for. Would that the writers had done as much.

Which leads me to my favorite show, Grey's Anatomy. Ok, I am quickly growing weary of the dumbing down of the writing. And the fact that they think Izzy would be just fine and dandy with having an affair with George is just destroying her image as a nice girl that she has spent several seasons building up. Any girl worthy of the love of Denny would not be acting like this now! Can they not let one person be remotely respectable? George and Izzy were the two people we actually smiled about, the ones who we could count on to try to do the right thing, even if it didn't always turn out right. Now they're supposed to be having an affair?!? The entire universe would not stop working if they just allowed these two to be good people. Stop messing with them, you sick, sadistic writers!

I am also perplexed about what they're doing with Mer and Derick. Are we supposed to be rooting for Derrick to break up with her because she is too messed up for him? I'm sorry, but I just don't think that way. If he truly loves her, he should support her and try to help her. Not leave her because she is too high maintenance. She clearly knows that she has a problem, which means she can now start working on it. But she will need help, and, if he loves her, he needs to be there for her. She certainly put up with enough from him in earlier seasons, didn't she?

Ok, well, that's quite enough writing for today. I think I'll go find some housework to do until my sweet baboo wakes up. TTFN!

Day 36- Tell me again why we have a phone?

Ok, this is another addition of Things That Annoy Me. I hate it when I get phone calls from charities made by paid solicitors. Basically, they are asking me to pay their salaries so that they can continue calling people. I mean, if I could afford to make huge donations to all of these phone charities, that would be one thing. But the amount I can actually send them would be enough to pay for about three hours of the paid solicitor's work time. Why in the universe, if this is such a worthy charity, can they not find people willing to donate their time to call people? Then the money I send them could actually go to the charity rather than into the pockets of the people doing the calling. When I hear the words "I am a paid solicitor calling on behalf of (thus-and-such) charity," I hang up. I would rather give my money to my church charities than send it into the bureaucracy of some national charity that requires paid solicitors. That really annoys me.

Day 35- Things I think are cool

Well, since I do have a "Things that annoy me" series going, it seems only right that I also create a "Things I think are cool" one. After all, every good unfortunately needs a fortunately. So...

I have been thinking about this all weekend, and I just have to say it. I think my lawyer sister is very very cool. She's like a superhero, protecting innocent victims, going after the bad guys and seeing that justice is done. I watch Boston Legal and Shark and the occasional Law and Order episode (which are all totally realistic representations of a lawyer's life, right Steph?), and I have to say, I love lawyers. Sure, there are your occasional bad seeds, but you get that in every profession. Even cops. And engineers (not you of course, honey!!!), which is the number one most trusted profession in the United States (according to polls, anyway). But we should never let a few nasty examples influence our attitudes towards an entire profession. Without lawyers willing to work so hard to put the bad guys away, just think how much more dangerous our country would be. I already fear all of those creepy unknown terrors that go bump in the night. How much worse would it be if we didn't have people putting away the ones who've actually been caught? Like children, civilized society needs not only limits to be set, but someone willing to punish those who ignore them. Cops, judges, corrections officers and lawyers, though not always perfect (like many parents), are absolutely necessary to see that this society doesn't turn into a complete anarchy. So, to Steph and all the other prosecution attorneys out there helping to make this world a safer place, I salute you. You are all extremely cool! Now all you need is your own theme song...and maybe a costume...though probably not the tights and lycra look....Ooh, how about action figures? With cool catch phrases whenever you push a button on the back...