Write this down!

During our home improvement process...my loving husband actually said those magic words..."You were right."

Holy heck...you could knock me over with a feather.

Of course, they were uttered only AFTER he broke two of three saw blades and I repeated what he was doing wrong...finally speaking at a level loud enough that I'm sure the neighbors heard.

Nonetheless...

I WAS RIGHT!!!!!!

We are in the process of removing old, ugly, pet-stained, carpeting from our front room (which will become our living room). It wasn't installed properly and had seams running down the middle of the room. Since the day we visited the house prior to purchase, I have said that the carpeting would go, I would install wood flooring, and buy some new furniture to make it less like a closeout garage sale house. Prior to my employment bad news, we went out and spent a portion of Steve's Christmas bonus to make my dream a reality.

Last weekend, while snowed in, we started to tear up the carpet and paint the walls (another pet peeve of mine is white or cream colored walls...no personality whatsoever). Aside from a little window breaking incident with the sofa delivery guys, it's coming along nicely. I'm very excited that we will finally have one room that is "done."

I have to admit that this progress means my house looks even more like a bomb went off than it normally does. All our furniture is crammed into our current living room, dog cages are stashed wherever they would fit (we have five), including one in the kitchen right in front of the microwave oven, Sam's toys are haphazardly stored in places where we may never find them again...all in all it's a MESS. You can't even GET to the bathroom at certain times of the day.

But the strange thing is that I'm at a stage in my life where this just doesn't bother me. I seem to be lacking the gene or chromosome that makes normal women/wives strive to make their houses into showplaces worthy of Better Homes and Gardens. While I'm excited to have my new living room completed, I don't feel the sense of urgency that I know I should. Why is that?

Is there anything worse...?

Is there anything worse than sensing impending doom, and having absolutely NO power to stop it? I find myself with the world's worst attitude at work this week since finding out that I will most likely be "downsized." I find it hard to take my clients seriously when they call about their legal problems. And a couple of my clients, who came out politically on the opposite side of the sales tax issue, have mysteriously found themselves un-prioritized. Is that wrong? Unethical? Do I care? I think I'm going to send out some resumes today. Maybe that will kick-start my attitude just a bit.

80-90% sure...

The u/s tech is relatively sure it's a...BOY!!!

She got a peek, but when she went to show us, the little stinker crossed his legs so we couldn't be absolutely certain. We asked for odds...and she said she's 80-90% sure. So we're going with boy.

We'll most likely be headed back in a month for another u/s. His heart was under my belly button, so she couldn't get a real good look at all four chambers. The size and heartrate look normal, but she would like to be sure. Also, the placenta is a little too low near my cervix at this point, so she'd like to keep an eye on it to make sure it resolves itself and moves up higher (which she said is likely to happen).

So the good news is we'll probably know 100% next month. But for now 80-90% is pretty good, I think.

Two boys...My wish is that they are good brothers and friends throughout their lives.

Tomorrow is the big day

We're having our big ultrasound tomorrow. Steve and I are the kind of people who cannot live with the suspense of not knowing the baby's gender...particularly when a high-tech toy is involved and there is no real reason NOT to know. We feel that it's kind of like having access to a computer, but choosing to use snail mail. Sure, there is some comfort in knowing that you are "different," but why wait for the same letter to be delivered in a week when you can get it instantaneously? I suppose we are a case study in the "me generation." That's ok with us. :o)

Open apology to all moms who come after me

It has been brought to my attention that the two most hated words in a mother's vocabulary are, "Just wait..." These two words are generally spoken to a mother with younger children/less experience, and are generally followed by some horror story about the joy that awaits the newer mom around the next corner/milestone. I am TRULY sorry to anyone I may have uttered these words to. I have no excuse other than I'm sure someone did it to me. And like the eternal quest for the perfect purse, this behavior has been handed down from generation to generation without question. It is my sincere hope that you and I can, together, break this cycle of irritation.

And you're outta here!

Nope...it didn't pass. Looks like my boss will have to get REALLY creative...or fire me. [sigh]

Today is the day...or is it tomorrow???

I suppose it speaks volumes that I had to go look up the day that the vote on the sales tax increase will take place. I'm oh-so-concerned about my job that I don't even remember when they're going to can me. (It is today, by the way)

On a side note, there have been some employment-related developments...

First and foremost, my boss says his plan is to not lay anyone off. Oddly enough, I'm not comforted by this position at all. It would seem that my boss has some sort of rose-colored glasses on that prevent him from being able to comprehend the facts of the situation. If this sales tax increase doesn't pass, he will have to come up with some creative solutions to just maintain this office at a skeleton level. I don't think he really has a plan for fulfilling his promise to keep us ALL gainfully employed.

Second...it seems it pays off to talk about the bad stuff. I have been talking long and loud to my clients and anyone else who would listen about this sales tax increase and the possibility of losing my job. Turns out there are untapped resources in this county that are mysteriously popping up as available salary money...if only you ask the right person the right questions. At least two departments are now considering the possibility of hiring me part-time (half-time each), in the event I am laid off from the prosecutor's office. I am, quite naturally, flattered that people think enough of the job I've been doing for them that they would offer to save my income stream. I am also, however, a bit confused as to where those funds are currently being spent. If the money has been earmarked for legal services...why am I not seeing any of that money at the current time? (ahhh...the joys of county government)

Lastly...my colleague in the civil division has announced that she is also pregnant...due one month after me. While my boss is quite happy about this, I think he has yet to figure out that this means our division will be effectively shut down for maternity leave and he will have to deal directly with all of our clients. I chuckle at that thought, quite honestly, since I know our division was created simply because we are statutorily required to represent these entities and the boss would rather be doing criminal work. Yet another reason he's working so hard to keep my job for me. hehe

Snow Days and Two-year-olds

On Saturday, during a very cold and wintery snowstorm, I had a quite lengthy discussion with my son on the merits of staying indoors versus going outside to play in the sandbox. This is the child who will not walk on the snow, mind you, for fear of slipping and falling (thanks to an age inappropriate commercial briefly glimpsed on television...thanks Universal Pictures). He requested...nay...he demanded that I trudge out to the sandbox, dig it out of its burial place under two feet of snow, so that he could play in it...without his shoes and socks. After a multitude of "why" questions and answers, I finally resorted to the age-old parental response intended to cease conversations that are annoying the heck out of you..."Because I said so and I make the rules." Holy moly! When did I become my parents?!?!?!

Isn't it strange...?

Why am I uniquely disturbed by the thought that images of Jesus are being peddled on eBay at an alarming rate?

How cool!

There are ACTUALLY comments on my blog! [doing my happy dance]

Is it just me...?

Or do the images from Saturn's moon look a lot like the images of Mars from a few years back?

LINK

Thank you family!

I forgot to send out the official Christmas thank you cards. So before I invite everyone here to read this blog I want to officially post a thank you to my aunts for sending Sam such wonderful Christmas gifts. He loves his truck (though Daddy and I are anxiously waiting for the time when the batteries will die), and he sleeps with his stuffed doggy every night. I know we have been out of touch for a while now, so I appreciate it even more that you think of us during the holiday season and include us in your celebration(s). Thank you!

And of course, I would be a BAD person if I didn't seriously thank Aunt Rebecca and Uncle Pete, Uncle Matt, Grandma and Grandpa B, Grandma C, and Aunt Maureen and Uncle John for all the amazing Christmas memories you helped us create for our munchkin this year. It goes without saying that Sam loved all his toys. But more importantly, he had a great time building his own history that he will look back on one day and smile. And don't worry...I plan to write it in his baby book that it took him eleven hours to open all his gifts. hehe

Is it a girl or a boy?

Well, Sam and I have graduated from the denial stage of pregnancy into the real world of, "I want to say hi to the baby."

When I first found out I was pregnant we would talk about it with Sam and he would simply say, "NO," and cover his ears with his hands.

Following that, we played a good round of, "What is the baby going to be...a boy or a girl?" The responses were usually all the same, "NO." We worked on softening him up a bit and we would respond back with, "Well if it's not a boy and not a girl...what is it? A baby goat?" This was usually followed by continued silliness during which the species grew more outrageous until we both dissolved into fits of giggles.

Now, he comes running into the room when I am changing clothes to announce, "I want to say Hi to the baby." This means it's time for me to present my bare belly for gentle pats and rubs and a very sweet, "hi baby."

Everyone told me how amazing it is to watch your children interact. I thought they were nuts until now.

Where in the world has the MIA blogger been? I've been out stumping around trying to convince people to support measures to save my a$$. OK...well that was a little too dramatic. I've been talking to people (mostly clients), trying to convince them to publicly support the sales tax increase that would save my job. I need this job. But more importantly, I LIKE this job. And I don't say that about most jobs. lol

I promise to blog more. I have so many things to bore you all with. hehe

Riding the John Kerry wave?

Do you think that my county, who voted for John Kerry in the last Presidential election, would vote for a 1/2% sales tax increase in order to maintain safety/security/justice services?

It seems our county is a couple million short when it comes to paying everyone they have on staff. The options for my office currently are:
1. Everyone take a 40% pay cut.
2. We work at current levels and run out of money in September, so we shut down the office.
3. We fire almost half our staff (8-9 people)...myself included.

The county-wide option is for our commissioners to unanimously vote to put a 1/2% sales tax increase on the March ballot. It would then obviously need to be passed by the general electorate.

Why, oh why, do I not have a good feeling about this? First, one commissioner has made it clear that his political stance prevents him from voting to even put the issue on the ballot. WTF?!?! His politics is going to cost me my job! But he gets to drive his county car to and from work every day, so I guess it doesn't matter to him that I'll have to work at McDonald's to make my house payment. Oh wait a minute...the McDonald's nearest us just closed its doors and sold its golden arches because they weren't doing good enough business. Now what the hell do I do?

Oh and yeah...Happy New Year.