The perfect day

Today was as pretty darn near perfect as you can get. I've been wanting to take the girls to the Gorge for several weeks now. I'd actually planned to go last weekend so we could catch the Cherry Festival in a small town, but we were having another raining/snowing/hailing weekend - plus C came down with the stomach flu.

With the promise of dry, 70 degree weather, it was the ideal day for a little sightseeing. As all good women do, we made our first stop at the outlet mall. New summer jammies for the girls, new silicon bakeware for me to try. Then as we were making our way to the front of the Gap Outlet with a few sweatshirts in hand, C announced "Mom, I've GOT to get out of this store!" M immediately started chanting the same mantra. Since there was an extremely long check out line, I asked the girls if they still wanted me to buy the clothes for them, or should we put them back and just leave? P must have started coaching them about shopping with mommy, because they were undeterred in their mission to exit the store and move on to the next (non-shopping) destination.

I was surprised when we arrived at the Falls to find a packed parking lot, and almost as many cars backed up trying to find spaces. However, we finally scored a spot after I took a detour to the historic highway and the smaller parking lot that is actually closer to the Falls. It turned out that there was a search and rescue event going on with volunteers doing training/demonstrations and manning several information booths. This was a total bonus for the girls as there were a bunch of rescue dogs on hand to pet. With the permission of the owners, we pretty much have to pet any dog that crosses our path wherever we may be. My favorite was a Newfoundland that reminded me of my sweet Oso.

It was pretty cool to see the volunteers rappeling down the cliff. We even ran into a friend just as her dad was heading down. One little girl was telling C with obvious pride that her dad had come down too. It's kind of hard to see the climber in the first picture. You'll probably have to double click on it to get the larger view. Look for the red jacket about halfway down on the left side of the falls. The second photo is a teenage volunteer who got to pick up litter while doing his training.


Now here's some photos of the girls. They had a great time, and they were so good. I'm such a proud mama!

Since we were now on the scenic route, we decided to stop at one of the view points. For some reason, the skies were a little hazy, so we weren't able to get any exceptional photos overlooking the Gorge, but it's pretty amazing to see snow on the tops of the hills in the distance given the time of year.

On the way home we dropped in on some dear friends that live in the Gorge and were able to spend a little time catching up. The perfect end to the perfect day!!!

Full circle

As I've mentioned before, I have worked for a large insurance company now for 11 1/2 years, on the claims side of things. About eight years ago, the large company bought a smaller company. (Well, one in particular - they're always selling and buying small companies within the larger corporate umbrella.) Very shortly afterwards, we were informed that all west coast claims handling operations were going to go under the management of this smaller company. There were all sorts of rumors going around to explain why it felt like the tail was wagging the dog, but whatever the reasoning was, it was something of a hostile takeover.

After all the layoffs and reorganization, we then shifted over to their computer system. It was DOS based and archaic and we hated it. The rollout seven years ago was sudden and chaotic, and the training provided wasn't particularly helpful when it came to actually working the claims. It was a very unhappy time and the whole transition appeared to me to be not well thought out.

A couple years ago the parent company announced that they wanted to work towards having a seamless claims operation, including all companies using the same system. That was easier said than done because there were many challenges in getting all of the platforms involved to talk to each other. The west coast was to pilot the roll out of the new system. Surprise! The new system is the same one we used seven years ago (with some updates, of course). I had actually predicted this would come about, but I really thought it would happen sooner than it did.

So the rollout was scheduled to happen on Friday, April 18th. Fine, since that's not a particularly busy day - and I don't work on Fridays. But as it turned out, there were set backs, and instead, the rollout happened the following Monday. Now why they couldn't just push it back another day or two so it wouldn't happen on the busiest day of the week, I just don't understand. When I left work for the week last Tuesday, we still had no idea what the new workflow was going to be. So Monday I came in to work and had to find out just how I was supposed to do my job that day. Although it was a familiar system to me, it was still a chaotic rollout. Then, to top it off, the system crashed at 10:30am due to server overload. Really? No one anticipated how many of us would be on the system? Lovely. So then we had nearly three hours that we could do next to nothing (except go to lunch, and stand around and complain). Just what I love. Knowing the work is piling up and having no way to do it. Tuesday was a slight improvement, the system only slowed down for about 30 mintues, but no crashes. However, we seemed to be experiencing a huge disconnect when it comes to management all being on the same page as to how they want things handled. No one seemed to be in agreement, which put me in the middle. I love my job, I love my job.

I'm so thankful that I'm only part time, and that I can get all my hours in in two days instead of having to spread it out over five! Hopefully they'll have worked out most of the bugs by Monday. It truly boggles my mind how a large corporation can do these half baked operations. It's times like these that keep me remembering why being a mom is so much more satisfying than trying to climb the corporate ladder and getting all caught up in the politics involved!

Darwin award?

For the gazillionth time I picked up the magazines and books off of the floor and rearranged them neatly on the coffee table. (I know, why do I even bother?) Then I noticed someone had written on the front of a book. As I started asking the girls who had been writing where they weren't supposed to, I turned the page - only to have the mystery solved. The inside cover showed that C had been practicing writing her name. Instead of remorse, C beamed with pride as she said "I wrote my name for you, Mommy!" Now who can be mad at that?

Beware of stickerpox!

I recently noticed that P had taken some pictures of the girls while I was at work. I was shocked to learn that last month they had contracted a bad case of stickerpox! Luckily they were all better by the time I got home.

Who's that girl?

I've been stewing over whether I should even write this entry. I fear that once I put it in writing, I'll be jinxed and the bliss I've been experiencing will prove to be short lived. I know for many of you, this may not even seem like a big deal or remotely news worthy, but in our household it is truly life changing!

Very recently, we've begun to notice a marked improvement in C's behavior. So much so that we've even questioned if we have the same girl. (Would the real C Mod please stand up?) It's almost weird, although certainly welcome, like someone flipped an internal switch.

Less attitude, fewer (and less severe) meltdowns, and I'm seeing a whole new level of cooperation and helpfulness. It's not that she didn't cooperate before, but it was entirely on her own terms. Now it seems I may have a generally cooperative little girl. Can I tell you how much I am loving this transformation?! I'm hoping that positive reinforcement will keep this going, because I'm dishing it out like there's no tomorrow.

Last Friday I had the girls clean their rooms in preparation for houseguests. Since I was still cleaning after C had finished, she asked what she could do to help. She cleaned her bathroom mirror and sink (and did a good job) before she moved on to mopping - which she really likes doing for some strange reason (I don't). When P walked in the door, she informed him that the mopping job was now his, but still she remained helpful in that she didn't create any more work for me by pulling out toys, paints, balls, etc and she made sure her sister didn't either.

On Thursday, C woke up before me and came into my room (fully dressed, I think) and told me she was going to play quietly in her room. Great! Since M was still sleeping, that meant I could sleep some more too. Next thing I know, I hear C & M playing, so I decided it was time to get up. I headed straight downstairs to get them fed, only to discover that C had gotten out bowls, spoons, cereal & milk and they had already eaten breakfast. And there wasn't even any more of a mess than there would have been had I been there to supervise. Wow, I am really loving this big girl stuff!

These are just a few stand out examples of the positive changes I've seen. Let me tell you, I couldn't be more pleased with my little girl!

Potty talk

OK, I need to know just how long this fascination with potty talk is going last! I am so tired of "poopy" this and "poop head" that. They use other terms too, but I can't think of any right now. Maybe I've just tried to block it out. However, unless they are calling someone a name I try to just ignore it or I'm simply fanning the flames.

So it stands to reason that any word that is associated with the bathroom is sure to be a big hit with the girls. Knowing this, I showed a temporary lapse in judgement when I saw M prancing around holding herself in front of the athletic center Saturday night. I asked her if she had to go to the bathroom and she said no. Then I said "well, if you don't have to go potty, then why are you doing the pee pee dance?" So, what you may ask did the girls talk about all the way home? You've got it! It was all about the pee pee dance - followed by hysterical laughter (particularly from M - if you haven't viewed her Stinka video, you need to go back and watch it now to see what I'm talking about). This lasted pretty much the entire one hour drive. But I do have to admit, it was pretty funny. At least for the first 15 minutes.

Then on Sunday, when the girls were all ready for church, I told them that they looked pretty stinkin' cute (and they did)! When P picked up M from nursery, her teacher informed him (with a smile) that M had told everyone how stinkin' cute they were all throughout class time.

The best laid plans

I was so excited to have something really interesting to post today. I recently learned that several local universities have Hawaiian clubs and a few host an annual lu'au. We planned to attend one last night in a small town an hour away where, surprisingly, 20% of the student body is Polynesian. I didn't get a chance to order reserved tickets, but the website said that general admission tickets would be available at the door.

The Lu'au started at 4:30 and the show started at 6:30, so I planned for us to leave at 3:30. Well 3:30 came and went with P still doing car paperwork. We finally head out the door at about 4:15, so I figure we're going to miss the meal and we'll have to pick something up to eat on the way, but we'll still be there by 5:30 when they open the doors to start seating for the show. Meanwhile, someone had the audacity to have an auto accident and block the right lane of the freeway, so we spent an extra 30 minutes hangin' out in gridlocked traffic. Later we pull into the only Sonic Burger in the metropolitan area and P decides he doesn't want to eat in the car, so we pile out to eat outside on this beautiful day. By the time we get back into the van, P realizes that maybe we didn't have time to sit around after all. (Really?) As we get closer to the town exit on the freeway, I learn that I misunderstood P when he said he knew the town and thus overestimated his ability to find the campus. I knew I should have mapquested it! We did find it, but I'm sure there is a more direct route.

Anyway, we arrived at the athletic center about 5 minutes before the show only to learn that the last tickets sold at noon and they sell out every year. It sure would have been nice if the website hinted at this possibility! We waited around for awhile to see if all the will call tickets got picked up, but no such luck. The girls were so disappointed (as were we)!

So, I'm afraid, I've got nothin' for ya!

Socially inept

****SNOOZE ALERT - these are ramblings, proceed at your own risk.****

Several weeks ago I was at a going away party where I had a conversation with a woman I know from church. She confided that she feels a little like a social reject because she doesn't know how to talk to people. This is a lovely lady who is nice, intelligent, and a stay at home mom to a young daughter. I heaved a sigh of relief as I unloaded my secret that I, too, feel totally inept in the social department. I have lost my hold on the art on conversation.

I haven't always been a wallflower. Although I started out shy and insecure, I grew into a confident and outgoing teenager and young adult. I had no problem talking to my peers and even those outside of my peer group. After college, I worked for a few years as a sales manager at a large hotel where I often took clients out to lunch. While I was initially a little out of my comfort zone, I was able to step up to the plate (since I was being paid to do so) and I got to the point where I felt I could easily carry on an engaging conversation with pretty much anyone. I also put those skills to good use in some of the positions I held in church, including one where I had to frequently visit those women on the rolls of the church that never attended services.

So what has happened? It's not like I'm still a brand new mom, so sleep deprived that I can barely string three coherent words together. (Let me tell you, I felt like I'd been beat with the stupid stick back in those days!) I am no longer outgoing, although I still consider myself to be friendly. I find myself challenged to carry on a conversation that is not about kids, adoption, work or church, or anything else not immediately relevant to my now very small world. I'd rather stand around quietly than attempt to engage in small talk. Am I lazy, not wanting to make the effort? Have I become downright boring? Or is it that I'm merely out of practice and now feeling insecure in my ability to carry on an intelligent conversation with another human being with whom I do not already have a strong bond? (I'm hopeful that it is the latter.)

I'm not a gossip. I'm not judgemental. I can honestly say that I like almost everyone I meet (exceptions are rare). I'm easy to get along with, although I think I'm probably hard to get to know. I have so little free time that I don't have many opportunities to build new friendships beyond what I can do while being at work or church, and fulfilling those responsibilities. Although I associate with plenty of "new" people, I can't say that I've made any new friends in recent years. I can barely find time to maintain my long term close friendships. Luckily for me, most of my "old" friends became mothers later too, so I think we're all in the same boat right now when it comes to keeping up. I'm not lonely or unhappy. I'm too busy for that, and as long as I think people like me - I'm really okay with my current social standing. But will it always be this way? Will I start to feel like a real person with a real life as the kids get older? Or is the fact that I've allowed myself to become a bit withdrawn now indicative of what my future holds?

If you haven't fallen asleep and shorted out your keyboard with drool, is there anyone else that feels this way? Is this normal? Does one return to the land of the social living as the kids get older? How much older? School age? Teen age? Or is it all a matter of me morphing into a dweeb?

I am hopeful that this is just a normal phase of life. In fact, I had assumed this was the case. I have taken for granted that I will some day get to build friendships with the women that I meet and know that I really like, but don't truly get to know. However, the aforementioned going away party was for a woman that I knew I liked from the first time I heard her speak in church about three years ago. I always figured I'd have time to get to know her, so I was really bummed when I heard that my time had run out. I don't want to miss out on getting to know all the interesting people around me.

Poisoned apple

The other day, while we were still at the beach, the girls and I were having lunch. I'm convinced that C is going to be an actress when she grows up. For the life of me, I couldn't get her to sit down to eat. All she wanted to do was re-enact the poisoned apple scene from Enchanted with each and every bite she took of her apple. Naturally, M had to follow suit.

In hopes that I might get them to sit after I immortalize their acting debut on film (or whatever you call it now), I suggested that we make a movie and then finish lunch in peace.

Just a little disclaimer, I'm not a camera man, director or film editor - so this clip is even worse than amateurish. I also recorded the little scene from the movie first so you understand what is being re-created.

Hail, yeah, we had a great spring break!

It seems that Mother Nature is schizophrenic.

We had heavy rain, and wind,

and hail,
and even snow! (You can't tell, but these flakes were huge.)

This was the first time I've ever seen it snow at the beach.

And every once in awhile, the sun would peek out.

Oh, how they love to swing!

Here's your sneak peek at the new deck turned sunroom.

Ah, but it's always nice to come home.