Sydneyisms and Jerk of the Week

Our current favorite Sydneyisms:

"Liam! It's not your job to play with that!" (she's very into "jobs" and who is responsible for what)

"Liam! I can't hear my shows - be quiet!" (ahhh....payback's a pain, isn't it?)

"He's annoying me!" (take a guess who "he" is in this scenario)

"That's not nice! You can't tell me what to do!" (this one was directed toward me and followed by a time out)

"Liam's about to hurt himself." (after we told her not to tattle unless someone was about to get hurt)

"When I grow up into a grown up, I can stay up as late as I want."

"When I grow up into a grown up, I can have a TV in my room."

"When I grow up into a grown up, I can eat TWO desserts."

Can you tell she can't wait to grow up?

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This week's Jerk of the Week should actually be renamed "Creep of the Week". What makes it worse is that I actually know this guy. He used to be my doctor when I was growing up (he was one of two doctors in town - there really wasn't a choice) and then he was my customer when I worked as a pharmacy clerk and tech. He completely creeped me out when I was teenager (as a customer - I'd changed doctors by then) and now I know why. Turns out that my "female intuition" was right on with this guy. Ewwww.

Withdrawal Pains

Our computer is sick. The battery has slowly been losing its ability to hold a charge leaving me a mere 35 minutes or so before I have to plug it back in to recharge. And the recharging cord has to be jiggled "just right" so that it will work and I have yet to figure out how to do that successfully 100% of the time. I am often left with a computer that has a mere 8 minutes or so of life left in it. Considering that I've got enough blogs on my RSS feed to give me at least an hour's worth of reading each day, this computer's ailments are killing me.

So, our little iBook will be going into the shop tomorrow and I just know I am going to be suffering from withdrawal pains. Ryan's pitiful laptop (which shall remain nameless/brandless to save him from the embarrassment of people knowing that he uses a machine so obviously inferior to anything Apple produces) may have to be my methad*ne tomorrow evening if our little baby is still at the computer hospital. I just might have to break down and (*gasp*) actually read a book to entertain myself tomorrow. Maybe I'll finally finish "Two Towers". I don't think I've ever taken this long to read a book.

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In other news, my parents are keeping the kids overnight on Sunday (my mom practically begged, what could I do?) so Ryan and I will have a free evening. Anybody have any suggestions on a movie for us to go see? We've already seen the latest Harry Potter, but since our days of seeing non-animated movies ended sometime around May 2003, I have no clue as to what else is out for us to see.

Please Go Home

Those of you who know me personally are aware of how opinionated I am (insert eye-roll here). I have opinions on lots of things and I don't mind sharing them, including politics, even though my views often clash with those of my conservative parents and in-laws. I don't often share my political views in my blog, but today I just have to, hence the title: Please Go Home.

This is directed toward the Katrina evacuees who currently live in my city. Not all of the evacuees, just the ones who refuse to acclimate, whine and complain about EVERYTHING and insist on murdering our citizens.

I am tired of hearing about how horrible Houston is. I am tired of the countless meetings to protest the potential cut-off of your federal benefits. I am tired of your kids bringing down our standardized test scores because not only were your schools sub-par, but you refuse to insist that they step it up and get used to a higher level of education. I am tired of having my tax dollars go to support those kids in the same set of schools that my daughter will be attending next year.

Most of all, I am tired of the murders. When our mayor publicly announced that our substantial rise in crime magically coincided with the arrival of 200,000 of you from New Orleans, the poor guy was called a racist and fear-monger. But you know what? He is right. Our crime rate has sky-rocketed since Katrina hit two years ago this week. And frankly, if you can't get along with everybody who was already here, then GO HOME.

I am sorry for what happened to you. I cannot imagine losing my home and all of my possessions. I cannot imagine losing loved ones and waiting for days to be rescued by a government that was obviously clueless and unprepared. I cannot pretend to know exactly what you went through and I pray that I never have to go through it myself.

But you know what, I'd like to think that if I had to relocate to another city under similar circumstances, I wouldn't spend TWO YEARS in a FREE apartment, refuse to find employment, whine about the city and people who generously donated money, time and effort to help me out and then proceed to rob, hurt and murder those people.

Enough is enough.

If you are an evacuee who has found a job, started paying your own rent or mortgage and put your kids in our schools with the expectation that they will learn, then I say, please stay. We're glad to have you; stay as long as you want. I understand that Houston is quite different from New Orleans, but we're glad you're here contributing to society.

For those of you who are draining society, GO HOME. We don't want you here any more than you want to be here.

Rant over.

My Baby's Growing Up

I dropped Sydney off at pre-K for the first time today. Her school is in the same building as her Mother's Day Out program, but is in a different set of rooms and run by different teachers. Very few of her Mother's Day Out friends moved up to the pre-K program with her so I was expecting some apprehension and maybe a little clinginess. But there was no clinginess and there were definitely no tears to be seen. She practically threw her stuff in her cubby and promptly asked her teacher if she could dress up like a princess. My baby's growing up.

Here she is this morning before we took off:


And here's last year's "first day of school" photo:


And here's the one from the year before last:


How quickly they grow up.......

Jerk of the Week

The honors go to this woman. I'm all for knocking back a few AFTER the funeral, but apparently she couldn't wait to drown her sorrows.

How 'Bout Them Apples?

After thinking back to my economics classes and the concept of supply and demand, I've decided that I should offer seasonal products/treats. I'll be like the Girl Scouts and create a demand for a yummy treat that is only offered once a year. Hopefully, I'll create some buzz and get some loyal customers; and I won't kill myself trying to make the treats all year long. For instance, my Valentine's special will be chocolate covered strawberries and cheesecake-stuffed chocolate covered strawberries. And I will only offer them around Valentine's Day. Unless I really like you and then maybe I'll make some for you if you ask me nicely.

When thinking about the other major chocolate holidays (Christmas, Easter, Halloween), I kind of hit a road block. Until I saw this. Would it not be the perfect treat for the Halloween season? And did you see the price those people were charging? Jeez. Take a look at these. Yum. And how cute are these? I don't know if I can make those, but I'll sure have fun trying (and eating the mess-ups).

In other chocolate news, my advertising/graphic designer friend came over today to help me design a logo. After looking through the pictures of what I've made and a little taste test, she predicted that I'm going to be needing a bigger kitchen and a staff of 3 within a couple of years. Oh, the possibilities.........

Progress!

There is progress on the chocolate front! I now have a URL registered and Ryan is currently working on my website. I also have e-mail addresses set up so that customers can contact me through the business rather than through my personal e-mail address.

I took the biggest step so far yesterday: I registered with the state for a tax ID so that I can collect (and pay the state) sales tax. I'm sure I'll be consulting with my mom (who happens to be an accountant) on how to keep track of all of it. It's slowly becoming a reality!

Liam has also made some progress this week. Our little guy began pulling up on furniture, the baby gate, his crib, people, etc. You name it, he can pull himself up on it. We're just waiting for him to start cruising along the couch or from one piece of furniture to the next. He also began drinking from a sippy cup this week and eating finger foods at his meals rather than all pureed baby food. He's growing up. **Sigh**

Progress and change are tough for me. In general, I'm a huge fan of the status quo, but I'm actually looking forward to having the business progress. I think it's exactly what I need to fill my time and feel productive at the same time. Plus, a little extra income couldn't hurt. :)

After all, wouldn't you pay for something like this?

Proof

Proof that I wasn't the only one who thought "John From Cincinnati" was boring.

Proof that babies really can sleep in any position:


He fell asleep sitting up and just fell straight forward. I know it's cruel to take a picture of this, but in all fairness, I did move him to a more comfortable position after taking it.

Proof that even babies know how to avoid the paparazzi:



****Edited to include smaller pictures.

Chocolate, Pre-School and Jerk of the Week

Still no name. I'm still down to Third Coast Chocolate and Eat This Chocolate, but I'm waiting on several things before I decide. First, Ryan has to set up a URL for me. If one of the names is not available, then obviously we'll go with the other.

And second, a friend of mine is coming over next week to help me develop a logo and color scheme. Once we've come up with a logo, I'll post it here to reveal the company's name, so you'll just have to wait a bit longer. My friend is also a whiz at marketing so I'm going to pick her brain about that as well. So much to do!

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In other news, Sydney starts full time pre-school in a couple of weeks. I'm a little sad to have my girl gone all week, but it's time for it to happen. She and I have been at odds all too frequently the last few months and we are both in need of a substantial break from one another. Our personalities are quite similar and that is bound to cause conflict. A lot of conflict. But, don't feel sorry for her or me. If you want to feel sorry for someone, feel sorry for Ryan since he's got two stubborn, argumentative females to contend with.

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And finally, did you hear about the woman in this article? She wins the award for "Jerk of the Week". Yes, it's an award that I made up. I think I just might make it a weekly post topic. Heaven knows there are plenty of jerks out there.

And the Winner is.......

I don't know. Sorry. I know the suspense is killing some of you, but I just can't decide between Eat This Chocolate and Third Coast Chocolate. I'm still waiting for feedback from my parents (yes, I'm a grown up who still seeks approval from my parents who don't read this blog and don't check their e-mail all that often) and then Ryan and I are going to reserve (and I'm sure there's a more official word for it than that) a web address so that we can start setting up the web page. How's that for a run-on sentence?

A HUGE thank you to everyone who popped on to vote for a name. Who knew all I had to do to get all those comments was say "please" so much? I just might have to give all of you some free chocolate. Of course, if you live more than 30 miles away and I have to mail it, then you'll have to wait until November so the scorching temperatures don't melt it in transit.

In other chocolate news, I made some "thank-you" truffles for the mom hosting Liam's swim class and she passed the box around the group. All of the families live in the neighborhood, which is my target market anyway, and everyone raved. I don't know if they were just being nice or if they truly liked it, but I went ahead and announced that I was starting my own business making it.

So I guess it's official. I am a business owner.

Scary, huh?

VOTE!!!!!

OK, I think I'm going to do it! Now I need everyone's help in voting for a name for the business. Please, please, please leave your vote in the comments section.

Carpe Dulces (Latin for "to pluck sweetness")
Eat This Chocolate
Sinful, Yet Sweet
The Fifth Food Group
Third Coast Chocolate


Please vote for one of the above or leave me another idea in the comments section.

Thanks!

Coward

I am admitting it....I am a coward. I posted a while back about wanting to start a business and I just can't work up the courage to do it. I'm not afraid of researching chocolate suppliers and candy equipment and I'm definitely not afraid of all of the work making the chocolates or the party favors. In fact, I really like making the treats.

I'm afraid of the food licensing rules in the great state of Texas. You see, the state will not issue a food license unless the food is made in a location that is not a residence. It makes sense and I completely understand the reasoning, but the whole point of setting up this business is that I could do it while my kids were napping, in my own kitchen, on my own time.

Of course, I can do it anyway and just not have a license, but I am a total scare-dy cat and goody two shoes who has this thing about following the law.

There are commercial kitchens nearby that rent out space by the hour, but it just doesn't seem feasible when toting around an infant, especially when it takes hours to make, set and form the chocolate.

Hmmmm.....any ideas?

Dreaming of Cooler Temperatures

So since it's 95 degrees outside with 90% humidity, I decided to cool myself off by dreaming of autumn and I started planning the kids' Halloween costumes this year. Of course, now that Sydney is older, I'm past the opportunity to choose her costume for her, but if I had my way, they'd be dressed like one of these famous pairs:

Shrek and Fiona

Frodo and Arwen

Yoda or Darth Vader and Princess Leia

Cowardly Lion and Dorothy

But, since I don't have my way, I guess Sydney will get her wish to be Cinderella or Snow White and Liam will be something adorable, like a monkey or a koala. At least I still get to choose his costume!

Is it Just Me..... Part Deux

So Ryan told me that my last post accomplished two things: I let everyone know I was having a bad day by ranting and that I proved I was a dork by comparing segments of the Star Wars and LOTR trilogies. He's right on both counts. I'm not embarrassed to admit I'm a dork (because he is one, too), but I after re-reading the post, I am embarrassed by how negative it was. So here's my positive "Is it Just Me...." post.

Is it Just Me.....

......or are Jane Austen's stories really not that bad? (I know, that's not truly positive, but it's as positive as I can get about Jane Austen.) I never could get all the way through "Pride and Prejudice" and I've tried twice: once as a teenager (yay for Cliff's Notes) and once last year. I never made it past Chapter 3, but I did check this out of the library last week and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I just might have to try the book again.

......or is Colin Firth one of the best and cutest actors EVER? I've loved everything I've seen him in, even when he played a jerk in "Shakespeare in Love", and it was perhaps his starring role in the movie linked above that made me check it out in the first place. If you're a fan of "Friends", you'll understand when I say I think he just scored a place on my "List".

......or does watching your kids accomplish something difficult help you keep plugging away with all of the hard work of parenting? Seeing Liam crawl and Sydney sound out words and actually read them ("I did it!! I did it!!") kind of gave me a second-wind of sorts this week.

......or is ice cream the absolute best invention EVER? Next to air conditioning, of course. I think I'm addicted to ice cream and we don't even have it all that often. Just thinking about it makes me salivate a la Homer Simpson and his donuts.

.....or is yard work an activity that can actually be fun? I spent a couple of hours pulling weeds and raking last weekend and enjoyed myself. Of course, my iPod shuffle helped keep me going; I just love being "surprised" with the songs it selects. Were it not for the gallon of bug spray I had to use to ward off pterodactyl-sized mosquitoes and the buckets of sweat that poured off of body parts I didn't know I had, I think yard work could actually rank right up there with reading and cooking as one of my favorite activities.

And in more positive news - our car is back! It has a new hood, bumper, radiator and other innards that I don't know the names of and it looks and runs great! We paid a grand total of $38 to have the side mirror replaced since it was a casualty of my ill-fated Monday Morning Garbage Can Obstacle Course run and not the wreck, but that's it. Our insurance took care of the rest and it's now up to them to haggle with the other guy's insurance. And our insurance turned down his claim to repair his car. HA!

So how's that for being positive?