Going Green...or Not

So, when I go shopping, I like to use my reusable bags. I will occasionally get paper bags instead since I use them for lots of things including the preschoolers I teach. I wouldn't say that most Americans are "green", but I would say that most are reasonable. Today I found one strange old lady who could not fit into the "green" category if she tried.

As we were checking out at Raley's, I glanced over at the lady checking out in the line next to us. She was old. Skinny. Gray hair twirled into a bun on top of her head. I was completely confused as I watched her loaf of bread slide across the scanner. Not because it was bread, but because it was bread in a bag, wrapped in a produce bag and tied with a green twisty-tie thingy. Seriously. So I glanced at her cart. I couldn't look away. Every single item was wrapped in one of those thin produce bags and tied with a green tie. No joke. Everything. She also had about 10-single gallon containers of water. I looked up and noticed that several other people were watching her as well.

It didn't end there. As we were driving away, the lady comes running through the parking lot pushing her shopping cart. She runs all the way to the far side of the parking lot and stops next to a man with a long ponytail. He looked about 20 years younger than her. They were talking as we drove away. It was strange.

I wish I could have counted how many bags she wasted today. I'd bet close to 50 total. Ridiculous.

#2

Today, Ellie turned 2. Amazing. Here are my highlights:

1. She got to go to preschool for the first time.
2. She got flowers and a balloon from a boy.
3. She got a new baby stroller from her grandma and papa, which she pushed around the house most of the night.
4. She called me up to her room after bedtime to have me pick up her binky from the floor. Apparently it was too far for her to reach without moving.
5. When I left her room after tucking her in, I heard her rollover and say, "Oh, hi teddy!" to her teddy (which is actually a monkey).

It's hard to believe that 2 years and 1 day ago, it was just me and Ben. It's hard to believe that she is my very own daughter. Mine. I have a child. Two, in fact. What an amazing life I have been blessed with. Thank you, Jesus.

Success!

In case you all are just as excited about my child learning to use the potty as I am...

Our first out-of-the-house, undies-only excursion was a success! Yes, indeed, I am one proud momma. Costco and back with no accidents!

Yipee!

Underwater Treadmills, Non-Exploding Cars, and Clutches.

Today was amazing. I ran in a treadmill in a pool. Seriously. Did you know that was possible? I didn't. And, yes, you actually run. The water comes up to your shoulders. They turn on the treadmill part, and you just run. So strange.

On my way home, I had to stop and fill my tank up with gas. When my car was almost filled with gas, I heard a car running and thought "who's car is running?" I looked around and noticed that I was the disobedient person who forgot to turn off my car while filling it up with gas. I quickly turned off my car. I called Ben almost in tears because I thought that when I restarted my car, it was going to explode. It didn't, thank you, Jesus, and I am still alive :)

A couple days ago Ben's dad towed up an old BMW. It is Ben's new project. At some point, they needed someone to sit in the car and push the brakes as they pushed the car off of the trailer and into the garage. Seems like a simple enough task, so they ask me to hop in. They push, the car rolls, I slam into the back of our garage, and I declare that the brakes failed. Fast forward several hours to where I hear sister Joni mention something about the clutch. What? No one told me this car was a stick. I thought I was pushing the brakes when I was obviously pushing the clutch. Like Ben, you may be wondering how I missed this huge detail....

1. No one told me it was a stick shift
2. The stick in the middle wasn't a clue to me as Ben's Audi had one there, too
3. I was too busy trying to avoid touching mouse poop and diseases to notice that there were three pedals.
4. Again, no one told me! (This one is huge in my book) If you are going to push someone off of a trailer into a garage, please make sure they know which pedal is the brake.

...Along came Zoe...

Zoe Hope arrived 12 days early, on my 23rd birthday (August 4th). This was particularly special because I, too, was born on my dad's 23rd birthday :) I am pleased to have two obedient children who both came out a little early. We knew we were having a girl, yet she still didn't have a name until day #2. We knew her middle name would be Hope from the beginning of the pregnancy, but first names are hard! Things are definitely different...

*Raising 2 children is much more difficult and busy than 1.
*I would love to have a clean house, but I can't remember what that exactly looks like.
*I forgot how well I function with little to no sleep.
*Zoe takes a bottle (Ellie wouldn't)...this is freeing...I think its time for a date with my hubby...tay tay & aunt Joni?
*I definitely want to have more children :) Life with kids is a lot of work, but so much fun!

The Countdown is On...

*There are less than three weeks until we get to meet our new little peanut. I think I will go into labor before then, though. Wishful thinking? Maybe.

*What am I going to do with two kids? Oh man, this changes EVERYTHING!

*I've discovered that I actually like reading when I'm not forced to do it. Last week I read Love, Acceptance, and Forgiveness...the new one, and Sheet Music. The title explains the first one, the second one is about sex ;) Both were fantastic. I just started The Shack, which is good so far.

*Preschoolers are funny. During free play time, a child playing in the "kitchen" brought me a cup. He said, "here, I brought you some beer!" I began reaching out for the cup and then decided against it and instead said, "we shouldn't drink beer at school". A second boy behind me excitedly said, "Ooo...I like beer!" End of conversation.

Power Tools and Curtains Rods

Ben is gone until Saturday afternoon.

Whenever Ben is gone, I try to accomplish something. This time, I decided that I would hang a curtain rod in our bedroom. This task first required me figuring out how to use Ben's drill. Yes, it's a power tool, and yes, I figured it out after about 10 minutes...all on my own. No, I didn't ask for permission, and yes, it usually makes him nervous when I touch his drill. For those of you who haven't figured it out yet, the huge protruding mass on my belly is a baby that is about to pop out very soon. So, me and my big belly are highly impatient because its hot and I just want things "done". The curtain rod is "done", though I can't boast that it is level. Measuring takes time that I don't want to spend. I'd rather play Snood on my computer.

I hope Ben likes it :)

Cars, Keys, and Pregnancy Brain

Cars, keys, and pregnancy brain. Yes, they are all related. Let me tell you how:

Ben plays soccer on Sundays. Today is Sunday, so he had a soccer game. I dropped him off, ran to Old Navy, and then came back. Ellie had fallen asleep in the car, so I decided to park, turn on the air, read my fantastic book (George Orwell's 1984), and wait until she woke up. I figured that it would be silly to have the car all the way on, as I was not driving, so I just turned it on "partially" so I could have some air. I thought this was a good idea, and that I was conserving energy, gas, and whatever else might possibly be associated with having the car "fully on". Afterall, who doesn't like to "be green"?

Then, my car died. Oops. Mistake #1.

Ellie wakes up, I go tell Ben what happened. He said "you're not supposed to do that". I replied. "No one told me!"

After the game in which they lost :( I go to find my keys. They aren't in my purse. I reluctantly ask Ben if he took them, and then looked all around. They were nowhere to be found. Someone sarcastically suggests that they are probably in the ignition in my car. That's ridiculous! I would never do that! Ben headed to the car, and found my keys in my ignition. For real. Mistake #2.

He and I both decided to blame the baby for stealing my brain, and all was good. A nice trip to Starbucks followed, and now we are at home resting from a long, but wonderful day.

Numbers

9 : Times I've read If You Give a Pig a Pancake to my daughter...today
2: Times I've tried to hide this same book
2: The number of copies we own. Ellie always knows where the extra one is.
1: Number of nursing covers I sewed on my own today
0: Times I jammed my sewing machine-this is a huge improvement
536: Words in my essay due tonight
7: Times I've been on facebook today...sigh
4: Nights before preschool is back from Spring Break
27: Kids whose faces I can't wait to see!
1: Piece of cake that I'll be eating tonight...thank you James!

Gas

Today I was on my way to Whole Foods. My gas light has been on for a couple of days, so I decided to stop at the Chevron by my house before hopping on the freeway. I pull up, get out of my car, and start pushing and pulling on my gas cover thingy to get it open. I realize that there is a little latch inside my car that I need to pull first (which unlocks the cap). I then realize that I don't know if I've ever filled my car up with gas. ???? Weird. I've owned it since late summer...August? September? Why haven't I ever filled up my car with gas?

Obviously, my wonderful husband has been filling up my car whenever I tell him (or when he notices) that my gas light is on. I have the best husband in the world! Thank you, lover!

Blowouts

Today brother Louie popped his head into the classroom and asked if I had a few minutes to help with something. Since we had an extra teacher today-go Miss Shontell-I stepped out and followed him to the office where my daughter was being held about a foot away from my husband. There is poo on the ground. Apparently, Ellie had a nice blowout, which was actually a really good thing as she has had a bladder infection and has not really poo'd since last Thursday. Antibiotics always make poo a little funny, too.

So, the best part of this whole thing, and the reason I'm blogging, was my husbands thoughts on how to get her clothes off without getting the poo all over her. He suggests, in all seriousness, "we can just cut her shirt off". I started laughing. Later I came to find out that Louie had the same idea. All I could think of was being at the ER when they tear off someones clothes so they can operate really quickly. Daddy's are funny. The have an interesting outlook on things...much different than my own. I am thankful for the joy that living life with Ben brings me. I am also thankful that my little one is feeling much better!

What's the point?

What's the point of spring break if all of your normal assignments & quizes are due on the first Monday back? Don't they know I don't read their nonsense on spring break? College professors can be lame.

Basketball

I have a confession to make. Up until yesterday evening, I had never been to a real basketball game in my life. For real. My dad used to watch the Chicago Bulls on tv and yell loudly, and I was just not interested in it. Last night, Ben and I went to watch a UNR basketball game...thanks for the tickets, Matt. It was a lot of fun. It was even better since UNR won the game. I liked watching the people...it is probably one of my all time favorite passtimes. Ben thinks I'm bad at it because I stare. I think I'm good at it because I stare. Anyway, I liked the noise and the energy, and I especially liked being on a date with my hubby (two nights in a row, might I add...thanks Weezer x2). I would definitely go to another game some day!

Monday

Today is Monday, Today is Monday, Monday String Beans...Any Eric Carle fans??? Anyway, yes, today is Monday, and there was no work today as it is a holiday. Not only was there no work, but we had nothing to do; No where to go. Ellie woke us up at 7:30 by running into our bedroom and yelling "MAMA!" Very cute. Even cuter was the fact that she had slept through the night. The only bummer is now that I am nice and pregnant again, I wake up twice a night anyway to go pee :( We went to Scheels to buy Ellie a new pair of shoes. She has little tiny feet that have only grown 1 shoe size in the last 4 months....makes it really easy to justify buying the "good" shoes for her little tootsies :) Ellie took a 3 hour nap, and I took a short nap, too. We just finished dinner, and I will probably go and eat some delicious chocolate from Sees candy. Jealous?

Peanut Butter

So apparently my organic creamy peanut butter AND my organic crunchy peanut butter are among the lists and lot #'s that were recalled with the recent salmonella outbreak...so sad.

Sleeping

My little Ellie girl is sleeping in her toddler bed right now. We bought one a few weeks back from a lady on Craigslist. It is really cute, but it needs to be painted to match the rest of her furniture. Anyway, it's been sitting in her room with blankets on it for the past few weeks. She occasionally plays on it, but that's about it. Ben is gone tonight "jamming" with the guys, and I played with Ellie in her room. She kept climbing into her toddler bed and laying down. In fact, she wanted to do everything in it tonight...read books, play with her farm house, play with teddy. So, I thought, "well, maybe she wants to try it out!" So, I put her down in the toddler bed tonight. She's been asleep since 7:30 (it's now 8:48).

I have mixed feelings:

1. How long is this going to last? I keep expecting to see her little face pop through my door at any minute, with a charming "mama!" She may be back in her crib before long. If so...that's okay!

2. This is my baby and I feel kinda sad that she is not in her crib. She's slept in it since day 1. I know she has to grow up eventually, but it's still a bit sad, and happy, all at the same time.

On another note, Ellie has taken a fancy to repeating whatever Ben says. I suppose we need to be more careful now about the words we speak. So far this week, she has repeated "butt-hole" and "munch" (from the latin root-word butt-munch). I think we are going to have to limit the number of times we use the word "douche" as well. This could be hard :)