Getting Militant Again

I have been fired up this last week. First gay rights, now a woman's right to choose is in the headlines. I wrote about my feelings on my other blog. Check it out!

My Brother Bill's Visit, The Details

Because I know you can't sleep at night until you know how the visit with my brother went. Bill just got back from Iraq and drove up here from San Diego with his beautiful wife Ari.



My oldest, Michael, loves Uncle Bill, but Bekah is all about Aunt Ari.



That's the living roof at The California Academy of Sciences. We had a field trip there last Thursday. My Dad and awesome step-mom came along as well. My poor husband had to work though. That's what happens when you own your own business. We did see the guy who gave my husband a vasectomy, his wife, and all 4 of their kids. That's what happens when you are an urologist and your wife is a dentist. You get to take all 4 of your kids to the a museum on a Thursday. I am not bitter, I just wish my husband could have been there.

Aunt Ari loves me even if I take off my pants and scratch my mother's face hard enough to draw blood.

Jake gets jealous if I show attention to anyone but him. Did I mention that he scratched my face hard enough to draw blood? Little a-hole. We were having lunch at the museum and he decided to throw a classic 2 year old tantrum. Don't worry my tetanus is up to date.

Bill asked Michael to help carry his back-pack out to his car. Michael said, "No, because that means you will be leaving faster.". When Bill and Ari drove away Michael turned to me and said, "I'm sad.". I hugged him and said, " I am too.".

Iraq- My Brother

My brother is back from Iraq! I am so happy. Over everyone, even my husband, he knows me. He knows where I come from. He knows what drives me. If I flinch, raise an eyebrow, sneer, clench my fists, purse my lips, drop my shoulders and hang my head.........he knows what it means. He can make me laugh until I cry, and use the word "Dude" way more than a 38 year old woman should. He says I am meaner than any drill sargent he has ever met and sweeter than most women.

Phew, and he made it back alive. Bill came back late last week but I gave him space to hang out with his woman before I called and demanded his attention.

So I talked to him tonight and asked how he was. Fine. How was Iraq?, " Well you know some of the citizens were dumb as a box of rocks but they were just doing their own thing. So you know, different strokes for different folks. ". Cool. Then Bill said, "But you know there were others and you need to keep this to yourself.".

Sigh...........ok fine. The really cool stories will stay with me, close to the chest.

The only stories I have to share, are something that everyone can agree on:

1) If your fingerprints are on a bomb, that if blown up will hurt people of all color, creed and gender, then you deserve to have the shit beaten out of you.

2) If you use an infant to try to deflect bullets from you, then after this infant is gently extricated from your hands, you deserve to have the shit beaten out of you.

Do you dare disagree with that?

Raiderzzzz and George W. Bush

Erik and I went to a Raiders game last Sunday and froze our asses off. It was 40 degress and raining. For the longest time I refused to budge out of our seats because if the damn Raiderettes cheerleaders can cheer in the rain then I can sit and drink beer in the rain. But obviously they are getting paid so I finally moved under cover. I have to say I am proud of my native Californians. We are sitting there freezing and soggy and all of a sudden, everyone starts sniffing and heads start swiveling, that's right somebody actually got a joint lit up. Hilarious! An only in California moment.

Raiders lost of course.

So George W. Bush was in Iraq over the weekend and an Iraqi reporter threw a pair of shoes at his head. I am sure you have seen the video a 100 times by now. I really hate the man but you have to give it to him for fast reflexes. Very impressive! Maybe he should play for the Raiders next season.

An American Bar In Iraq

So my younger brother Bill is in Iraq. Weird place for a Navy Seal since there isn't a lot of ocean in the desert, but Seals are good for other stuff too. I was talking to him this evening on Facebook, using instant messaging. I actually talk to him more now than I did when he was in San Diego because when he is at home in his spare time he is surfing or hanging out with his wife. Now that he is bored in his spare time he talks to basically any family or friends on Facebook. He also called me on my cell phone and it sounded like he was in California, it was amazing! He told me everything is monitored so basically the phone calls consist of me talking about the kids.

This evening he did say that him and his buddies are building a bar and would like bar decorations. I made some joke about building a matching still and making potato wine, which he promptly ignored, making me slap my forehead remembering that he has told me countless times everything is monitored, Duh! Anyways I do want to help our men in uniform by sending them bar decorations.

I asked my husband if he would like to donate his dogs playing poker tapestry he got in Tiajuana while at UCSD but he actually got sad and said only if Bill promises to bring it back. OMG, of course I am not going to ask Bill to bring that back from Iraq! Men get so goofy and sentimental about that shit, I knew better than to ask about the framed velvet painting of the monkey poker dealer. So I said fine then I am buying Bill a neon sign and Erik said fine.



My brother's name is Bill, when you get a chance, please say a prayer. And I don't care who you pray to, it could be G-d, Buddha, Jesus or your garden gnome just say, "Please let Charlotte's brother Bill come home intact.".
Below is a pic of Bill with my first born. They are clones. Bill has passed out watching Transformers with his first nephew.

This is Bill's beautiful wife Ari with a squirmy Bekah, Dec. 2007

This is Bill with Jake after Jake has obviously eaten a dinner of sweet potatoes and carrots. I am guessing since he looks a little orange. Dec. 2007

Wow it happened!

We have a good man for president and he happens to be black. And we have a strong woman for our first lady and she happens to be black. And we have young children in our white house. These are people I can relate to. These are people I can trust. Ok yes I am a blubbering idiot.

And if asshole Bush got re-elected then you know Obama can too, which means we are going to have a good president for 8 years. Yippee!

Never, ever in my lifetime did I think a black man would be president. Honestly before Barack Obama I never thought about it at all.

Tommorrow is the Day!

Don't forget to vote tommorrow. Let's all channel Obama's Grandma. Her name is Madelyne if you need a name to pray with. Yes I am going to get all cosmic and spiritual on your ass for a second. Look this is important, not just for our country but for our planet and our planet is ruled by other planets etc. etc.

Dear Madelyne must have passed today for a reason. Her beloved Grandson may or may not be voted into the next presidency tommorrow. Now we have all heard stories, whether it be Hollywood or personal, where a sick and elderly person held on to life to complete a mission. Both Johnny Cash and Ray Charles died right before the stories of their lives hit the big screens but they had both worked on perfecting their story so the truth came out. Once they knew that was going to happen they were able to leave this planet in peace. Maybe Madelyne knew that her legacy would continue with her grandson, and she was able to leave in peace. So it's our responsiblity to make sure that happens.

Ok I will stop.


So earlier today I passed out door hangers for local Democrats with Mike and Jake. I probably broke some child labor laws but it's for a good cause. Actually they sent us out into a neighborhood in Walnut Creek where only half the streets had sidewalks, so only half the stuff got hung up because I wasn't risking my children's lives. This election is important but not that important.

Earlier this evening our friend called to talk to Erik and started asking about me and the recent drama. I was shocked realizing that a guy friend had heard about this mama drama and actually called my husband to ask about it. And of course Erik was telling him his version of events which is wrong and then joking about living with a social pariah and leper colonies etc. etc. Meanwhile I am convulsing in the corner begging for the phone. I finally get it and set the record somewhat straight, I won't lie, I can do positive spin. One of his co-workers is a member of that mom's club and mentioned some of what was going on, that's how a random guy found out. Turns out she is on my side so that was comforting. San Ramon is a small town.

Vote for Obama.

No on 8

So my SIL, Merrill, who lives in San Ramon now, called me on my cell today while I was grocery shopping. She had called to inform me that there were Yes on 8 losers on the corner of Bollinger Canyon Rd. and Alcosta with signs. Grrrr! I got all fired up in Safeway and Merrill was cracking up. I had Mike and Bekah with me and Erik was home napping with Jake. Erik let me sleep in this morning, so I was paying him back by getting Mike and Bekah out of the house so he could nap too.

The 3 of us finished our grocery shopping with only minor annoyances. Mike tried to gnaw his way through a bag of chocolate chips and Bekah tried to help herself to some cheese from the cart but I caught them both in time. Once we were in line though I did find some surprise purchases but Pasta Roni and baked Lays aren't that bad so I let them through.

Once we got in the van we took the long way home to check out these protesters. We live deep in the burbs so protesters are as exotics as elephants. Sure enough, in all their whiteness was a dozen protesters with Yes on 8 signs on the corners of Bollinger and Alcosta, a busy intersection. I told the kids that I was going to roll down the windows and honk and then I wanted them to hold up a thumbs down towards these people. I didn't hesitate to explain that these people were bad and stupid. This was shocking because stupid is as bad a word as shit or fuck in our house. But I honestly believe this is a civil rights issue and I wouldn't hesitate to call a skinhead or a KKK hoodlum stupid. That would surely be an understatement. So why not call these people stupid? They are taking away the right of marriage from consenting adults, it is stupid and hateful and it's ok for my kids to know that.

But honestly my kids are very young. Jake is 18 months old and has nary a clue of pretty much anything. Mike is 4 years old and when it comes to marriage he either wants to marry me, Jake, his sitter Sarah or one of his cousins. As far as he is concerned if you love somebody you marry them. Bekah is somewhere between Mike and Jake. I have 3 No on 8 signs on my lawn and Mike and Bekah think they are there to keep away the raccoons. I really have no desire to go much further in explaining the issue of gay marriage to them right now. I just want them to grow up and look back and say, "Wait a second it used to be illegal for gays to get married?, No way! That is so weird!! Who cares if gay people get married? Those people must be really stupid!".

On Sunday I learned that yelling, "Fucking Fox News!", is not appropriate at the gym. I was punishing myself on the treadmill and at first put on CNN, but Fareed Zakaria was interviewing Queen Rania of Jordan. She was going on about how it's ok to wear a veil if you choose to. I was not into that. The t.v. at the gym is limited, it's mostly sports channels, a girly movie, a gory movie and CNN or Fox. So I switched on Fox and immediately became enraged.

The anchor men and women on Fox were besides themselves because Colin Powell had endorsed Obama. They were interviewing people on the street but being very selective. They asked this one woman about Powell's endorsement and she was all disgusted and said his motive must be because he wanted a position in Obama's cabinet. Then the reporter asked her about Palin's performance on Saturday Night Live, and this same random citizen went on to say that she was brilliant and that it was brave of her to go into the thick of it. I am assuming she meant the dark hole of liberalism that is SNL. Then they went back to the anchorman who said that they were just waiting on Obama to speak live at a rally but he was running late. And then he actually pointed out that McCain wasn't late at the rally he spoke at earlier in the day but we are going to wait for Obama anyways because we are fair and balanced. WTF! No you are not!! That's when I lost it.


A couple of people looked and I pretended that nothing happened and switched on football. Even though football is on at my house on Sundays for 12 hours at a time. I decided that I was better off lifting weights.

Then Limbaugh on Monday was saying that Colin Powell only endorsed Barack Obama because they are both black. He repeated it several times, loudly. I am not making this up. I used to like and respect McCain. But paired with Palin, he has become so simple and base. So scummy and desperate. Palin is not afraid to stir up the most hostile rancor. She is not afraid to liberate the ignorant, to validate the seemingly disenfranchised. When she is done stirring up this anger and Obama wins (please, please, please) where is this riotous mob going to go? What are they going to do?

What is November 5th going to be like?

My Brother's Visit Before Going to Iraq

Ok so I apologize to anyone who has already seen this picture which is pretty much everyone in the United States. I have recently lost 25 pounds and then you stick me in between my 2 cute, "little" brothers and I am going to make you look whether you like it or not. The whole beard thing was a weird coincedence. Brandon's was for fun, Bill was instructed to grow facial hair cause Iraqi men take hairy men more seriously. And I just had mine waxed off.

These 2 are kindred spirits. My brother Bill is the only other human who can tire out my 4 year old Michael. They are clones right down to the cowlick in their hair.

This is why my brother needs to come back from Iraq alive. This is a picture of Bill and my oldest son Michael and see how natural it is for them to cuddle together. They love each other so much and I love the both of them so much.

My Brother's Visit Before Going to Iraq

So here is a portion of my awesome family. From left to right: my mom Louise, my youngest brother Brandon, my husband Erik holding our youngest Jake, me holding my gorgeous daughter Bekah, my younger brother Bill holding my oldest son Michael who is holding a football over his face, Bill's wife Ari, my dad Rankin, and my step-mom Cherie.

Palin doesn't rhyme with Stalin

Bye baby bunting

Father's gone a hunting

Mother's gone a milking

Sister's gone a silking

And brother has gone to get a skin

to wrap the baby bunting in

When I read this poem to my 3 toddlers a week ago I thought to myself that this mother had spaced her children really far apart. While reading this poem again tonight, at bedtime, I thought to myself that it sounded like Sarah Palin's family. Especially if "gone a silking" is a euphemism for something that gets you knocked up.

Sarah Palin getting nominated for the Republican's choice for Vice President really got people fired up! The Republicans are all happy and excited, at least the ones on television. I don't know many Republicans so I will just have to trust in the enthusiasm I see on my cable news shows. The Democrats are fired up but their faces don't seem so shiny and happy.

I think the Democrats are a tad nervous. Americans like fresh, new and exciting, we have short attention spans. That nervousness was never so obvious in the $8million in donations to Obama's campaign that came rolling in the day after Palin's acceptance speech. Ugh, we have 7 more weeks of this election and I already find her voice more annoying than George W. Bush's.

In fact I started this entry a week ago and now I don't even have the energy to finish it, I am already so sick of Sarah Palin! It just kills me that so many of the happy, shiny t.v. Republicans can actually say she has foreign relations experience because Alaska is next to Russia. That's like me saying since I am married to a doctor I am qualified to give you a rectal exam. I could fake it, but would you really want me to?

DNC

Ok so after bath and bedtime this evening I made sure that Hillary's speech was being recorded on our Tivo before I started dinner. I have to share my opinions on her speech on my blog because Erik is working at home on his computer tonight and can't be interrupted by my commentary. So anyone reading this is welcome to skip or skim the following.

So I am watching MSNBC because Fox is the evil right and CNN can be too liberal even for me. In the minutes before Hillary took the stage it was like watching the coverage before the Super Bowl. Lots of talking heads trying to guess what she was going to say while the camera was firmly lodged on Bill Clinton in the audience. Bill was sitting next to a woman I didn't recognize and was talking her ear off. What amused me was that she seemed to be leaning away from him and barely listening. This is Bill Clinton, the man who can talk the panties off a Nun. I even had to interrupt Erik to show him this and he agreed that you have to be a very hard-core lesbian to not be charmed by Bill Clinton. Sure enough about 3 minutes later this woman leaned closer, tossed her hair and smiled. You gotta love him. I mean I would never want to be married to him, he is a horrible slut, but if you have ever had guys as friends, you know some them just can't help it. Some men play football, some men play women.

That is why I could never vote for Hillary. It's ok to be friends with men like that, even date them, but you don't marry and have children with them. And if you do, once it becomes obvious that they just can't keep it zipped up, you dump them. It is your right as a mother (especially to a daughter), to set an example on how wives and mothers should be treated.

Having said all that Hillary's speech moved me to tears twice this evening. I had to endure some severe eye-rolling by my husband but I let the tears flow. The video before her speech at first made me laugh because it was so transparent in it's goal to make Hillary girlie and even kind of hot. Thumping, throbbing rock music and pics of Hillary young and in college, with long hair, and glossy lips. Too much. But then when they showed several pictures of young children and Chelsea started narrating and talking about the G-d given potential of every child...........well I took off my glasses and started rubbing my eyes.

Once Hillary took the stage in her orange power suit and started hitting all the key points, my tears dried and I started to eat my veggie pizza fresh from the oven. I kept the t.v. on and got fired up from the kitchen table as she ripped on the republicans and really plugged health care. The tears started to flow once again when she started talking about the fight for the right for women to vote. When she brought up Harriet Tubman I lost it. The several references to the 18 million cracks in the glass ceiling was pretty awesome too.

The fact that I didn't vote for Hillary and just can't put aside my personal feelings in regards to her personal situation, doesn't mean I don't respect her on some level. I have known many a smart woman who has made many a stupid decision when it comes to their personal life. Here is my double standard; I truly believe Bill Clinton is a slut but I would vote for him again, I would not vote for Hillary for putting up with Bill's behavior. It's awful, I know, but I expect alot more out of women than men. I need to change my attitude because I have 2 sons but as it stands right now I can forgive men like Bill Clinton because I believe they just have not evolved enough to be able to control themselves.

I could only vote for a woman for president if she is capable of putting a man in his place. Hillary is awesome, she has done amazing things and raised an amazing daughter. But Hillary Rodham Clinton did not respect herself or her daughter enough to get rid of a man who cheated on her with several women, including a young woman the same age as her daughter.

If only Michelle Obama would run for president, and if she was Jewish too!

Since my last posting

This is going to be really long. I haven't posted since June 23rd, when I left my honorific to George Carlin. A rather jarring entry to read if you don't know the history. I also shared my blog with Erik's grandmother and quickly skipped over the 7 originals. I then realized that armed with my blog address, Estelle is going to eventually see it anyways.







I am not too worried, any woman who has birthed 3 kids, isn't going to be too offended by some swear words. I didn't come up with those swear words on my own I was quoting! Estelle is very cool by the way. How cool can an 83 year old woman be you may ask. Well she stays up late enough to watch the Daily Show with Jon Stewart, when her grandchildren and great-grand-children are already in bed. And she supported womens' and gays' rights way before it became trendy. She also makes a righteous brisket.







So 4th of July was interesting. It coincided with Shabbat so we went to temple and hooked up with Judy, Jamie and Estelle and sat in an outside service. That's perfect for my squirmy monkeys. Service was followed by a bbq and then we went home to view fireworks.







We loaded the kids in the wagon and trudged up our hill. This is our first Independence Day in this house, and we were sure we would have an awesome view from the top of our street. As we climbed upwards a neighbor stopped us and asked if we wanted to watch from their lawn. Of course, how nice of them. It soon became evident that they had been imbibing for quite awhile and that the only sober people at their party were 2 fourteen year old girls who happily played with Michael. We eventually moved off of their lawn and back onto the sidewalk. A guest from this party was an autistic teenage boy who went across the street to throw poppers at a family that came to view fireworks. His mother reprimanded him from her friend's lawn but never went to actually physically intervene to save this family from having poppers thrown at them. So of course this family finally got annoyed and the next thing we know the father of the teen is having to restrain him and drag him up the hill and his mother is in the face of this innocent family. The father yells, "Get away from us you whack-job!", and then turns to leave. This middle-aged mother of the autistic teenager actually starts chasing them down the street and then starts kicking and punching the dad!!! By this time I am on my cell calling 911 and walking away from my kids. After being spoken to in Spanish and then being put on hold, I walk to my garage and picked up the land line and got right through.





I explained to the dispatcher what I saw happening before the trio dissappeared around the corner. After hanging up I trudged back up the hill and whispered to Erik that I had called the police and he told me that the father had loaded his son into their car and took off. They never came back and we finished viewing our fireworks in peace. After the kids were in bed Erik and I talked about how stunned we were that that had happened on our street.





It gets better, I sent out an email to the mom's club gossiping about the altercation and 2 moms wrote back giving me a perfect description of this woman and her family. Turns out she is infamous in the community for these types of situations and the 2 moms that wrote to me had interacted with her in a school setting. The next morning the police also called me back to take a more detailed report and the way the officer let her name slip out led me to believe he was on a first name basis with this hag. I am grateful she isn't our actual neighbor, but I still don't want to socialize with anyone who is friends with somebody like that.



The next day we took our monkeys to the zoo, and left them there. Just kidding. After paying for gas to get there, parking, entrance fees and lunch.........wow, expensive!



So I am in a mom's club, that has nothing to do with that other one, that I joined when Mike was 6 months old. It's been a lifesaver, the activities, the friends, the support. What kills me though is when people don't show up for stuff. I understand when things happen, motherhood is full of surprises, but why join a club and never show up? My friend Barb hosted July's Gourmet Gals and it was her, me and our new President M. Gourmet Gals is a goofy name for a fun potluck where you pick a food theme and bring recipes to share and it has nothing to do with any other group of that name. The theme for July was sneaky, healthy foods. I made my original Sesame Street muffins chock full of carotts, zucchini, raisins and apples. Healthy but better with butter of course. And it's a good thing my family likes them, since so many people flaked, we had lots of leftovers.



The weekend following the 4th, Estelle came to stay with us for an evening and it was wonderful having her here. It wasn't how I would have planned it, Erik was on-call and I had a baby shower to attend in Stockton but it turned out well anyways. Our friend Michelle C. from our Modesto gang was having a hard-won pregnancy and I really wanted to go to her shower to support her. I always feel a little guilty being around women like her since I can get pregnant just walking by my husband. I really wanted to celebrate a baby I know they "worked" hard for.



It was a nice, small luncheon at a Chinese restaurant and that night at home we ordered Chinese again and it paled in comparison to my lunch. While I was lunching with the ladies, I actually left Sarah in charge of the kids so that Estelle could just play with them and Erik could take call and run to the hospital if he needed to. Richard came to visit his mother and his grandkids, so my kids got so much love and play all day they were in heaven. The next day my Dad came to visit before his game and him and Estelle had a nice conversation over lunch.



The weekend of July 18th-20th we took the monkeys camping. My Dad and Cherie rented us a trailer with air conditioning which was a life-saver. We were up in the Yuba area and it was hot and smoky but we spent most of the time in the lake. Mike and Bekah loved their cousin Emily who they called Elmoly. Jake was a huge hit with his drunken, stagger and sense of adventure, otherwise known as a death-wish since he bolted out onto the campground road many times. By Sunday we were all exhausted.



While Mike's preschool was on summer break for a week I sent him and Bekah to day camp at Temple. I was nervous because when I sent Mike there at age 2 his teachers took me aside and tried to convince me that he only had a 4 word vocabulary, had a hearing problem and needed a behaviorist. Well none of that was ever found out to be true and I was afraid of him being discriminated against by the temple staff at this daycamp. I purposefully didn't finish the paperwork so I could stay and observe the staff interaction with my kids while I finished filling it out. Well those teachers weren't there and the staff that were present didn't seem to know who Michael was, so I was very relieved. Michael is such a sensitive person that even though I didn't say a word to him about anything, he knew something was up, he can read me like a book. When I got up to leave Mike yelled across the playground, "Bye mom, don't worry I am not going to cry.".



While Estelle was visiting, Merrill and Chris were busy moving out of their sold home in Fremont and getting ready to buy a new home in Pleasanton. Unfortunately it fell through and I am not smart enough to explain in writing what exactly happened. But it turned out for the best because now Merrill, Chris and the girls are temporarily moving into Chris's brother Matt's house here in San Ramon. This will give them the chance to save a ton of cash before hitting the market again for a new house. Prices are still plummeting so they should do very well.



Michael's preschool, The School of Imagination, had an end of the year show and my son is a super star. No really, he is a ham and was the only one who did not need a microphone. My mom, Jan, Merrill, the girls and our friend Natalie and her kids all came to see the show and Michael was thrilled! Afterwards we had beers and pizza and then walked to Sean and Carrie's house for dessert and more beer. The next day I took Michael to our little friend Jake's first birthday while Bekah and my Jake napped. Unfortuanately I wasn't feeling too great so we had to leave early. Michael had a wonderful time and was on his best behavior.



My life is getting easier. Dear Sarah took Thursday and Friday of this week off to go to L.A. to watch her brother graduate. So I was alone with the kids and it was no big deal at all. I know that sounds pathetic since I am their mother but when Jake was first-born that was really, really hard. And when we first moved into this house in October and I had no help, and was stressed and depressed to boot, I was ready to go to the corner for a pack of smokes and never come back. So when I manage to make it, 2 days alone with my kids with no yelling or crying (me crying, not them), I can see the light at the end of the stay-at-home-mom tunnel.



Before I had kids I would be shocked to think that I would write a paragraph like the one above. Now I just don't know who those women are that can stay at home all day with their kids and think it's the best damn thing in the world! Not every moment of a stay-at-home-mother's day is running rampant with shiny G-d filled miracles. What's even more frightening is that it's still the best option out there. I do have help, and I am so grateful for that privledge, because I now realize that mothers back in the day survived because they had grandmas, aunts and neighbors. The real successful mothers don't do it alone, they have help, whether it's paid for or family, they have support. As cliche as it sounds it does, "..... takes a village.". If you are doing it alone, you are either not doing as well for your kids as they deserve, or you are a martyr that will some day melt into a puddle of uselessness when you don't receive the gratitude you think you are owed. This is just my opinion.



So Thursday our family friend Laura took over while I went to this month's scheduled mom's night out. Jake had a fever but Laura is in nursing school and reassured me I was not a bad mom for still going out. And Kaitlyn and Haley came over to play with Mike and Bekah and Erik came home straight after his meeting. That's my village.

The mom's night out with an unofficial mom's club, was dinner and comedy at Tommy T's in Pleasanton. Only 4 of us showed up, and we have over 60 members in our club. Well the 4 of us, me, M.J. and K. had a blast and Mark Curry was really funny. We went out for another drink in Danville afterwards but we were all winding down.



Friday morning I had huge plans to take Bekah to swim lessons, take all 3 to the zoo, lunch and a family night at Primo's but Jake woke up with a 102 degree fever and that was that. Another village member, Auntie Merrill, came and got Mike and Bekah and took them to lunch with Nana Jan and Kaitlyn and Haley while I stayed home with my sick monkey. Jake is definitely not his self and didn't eat anything solid until dinner time. Afterwards he finally perked up and Erik and I were so happy thinking he was on the mend. Unfortunately this morning he was ferverish and lethargic again and gagged down some yogurt and a bottle before passing out again and has now been asleep for almost 4 hours. Poor baby. If he is like this again tommorrow I will take him to the urgent care in Walnut Creek.



I cuddled with Jake in bed this morning since he was hot and cranky. Erik took Mike and Bekah downstairs to eat breakfast and I told him if he made coffee I would get up. Well Jake and I both passed out until 9:30a! I am downright hyper now! I let Erik take a nap since he hung out with the Muscos last night and now he is at the gym with Mike and Bekah and I am blogging in my pajamas while Jake naps. After blogging I will be plagued by guilt so I will do laundry and clean the grout in the kitchen, woo hoo! We had tickets to a pre-season Raiders game tonight but since Jake is sick he needs his mommy and I am sending Erik to the game with Anderson. Those 2 will have a blast and Erik needs a guys night out.



Mike starts pre-K on Monday and Bekah-Boo starts preschool. My baby girl is growing up. In September I am cutting Sarah back to 3 days a week to save money and because I am more confident in my mothering skills. I also cut out year round swim lessons for the 3 kids to save money. Bekah won't miss it that much, but Jake and Mike absolutely come alive in the water so it breaks my heart to take them out. A cheaper option is soccer, for Mike and Bekah, and dance, for Mike, at our gym. The dance class is Hip Hop for boys and Mike can't wait. He has already taken soccer at out gym and excelled at it so I am continuing that and I am curious to see how well Bekah will do. I would have put Bekah in dance too but no classes fit our schedule.

Bill is being deployed in early September and will be coming for a visit next weekend, Laboy Day. I am very excited to see him and anxious about him going to Iraq. I really, really, hate George W. Bush.

Obama picked Biden has his V. P. today and the song Ebony and Ivory has been running through my head.

I gotta publish this posting it's way too long already.

Hanukkah/Xmas

I am backtracking to catch up. Bill and Ari and were here for the weekend of Dec. 21st-23rd. I was ecstatic to see them but it wasn't much of a vacation for them since I put them to work helping with the kids and getting ready for the party of 34 people here on Sat. It was a feast and everyone got along. We didn't tell my dad that Bill was going to be here so he was surprised and ecstatic.

There were a ton of kids here and Kaitlyn came running up to me to say,"This is just like my dad's side of the family except it's all girls, I am in heaven"!!!! Michael , Jake, and Travis were the lone boys and since Travis is 13 he was the victim of some serious pre-teen girl energy. He left with a huge scratch on his face from being dogpiled by a bunch of crazed girls. Ooooops.

Bill thinks he is going to Iraq in 3 months which is of course horrible and if my beloved brother gets killed I will personally assasinate George Bush.

Xmas day we freeloaded at my brother-in-law's parent's house. There family is so gigantic that if we crash there Christmas party they hardly notice us. Their house is in the foothills of Fremont with a beautiful view. But since it's on a side of a steeply sloping hill the backyard resembles an Escher painting with steps and platforms leading everywhere and nowhere. So of course being the more energetic parent I get the task of chasing Mike's butt all over the place. While Mike is zipping around Bekah takes the steps much more slowly. Finally Chris came out to save me so I could go inside and refresh my drink. Jake just gets passed around to be cuddled and kissed. Which was great because he had another ear infection.

Over the course of winter break we endured runny noses, sore throats, coughs, vomiting and diarrhea. GROSS!

New Year's I was in bed by 9p and Erik passed out on the couch at 8:30p.