the SIT down bridge

now those of you who didn't grow up with me probably have NO idea what a sit down bridge is. well, lets go back before raleigh's population boom...

once upon a time, 401 was only 2 lanes, all the way to capital blvd. even more spectacular, capital blvd was only 4 lanes (or less). this was way before 540, triangle town center, even target or fuddruckers. even more, this was WAY before seatbelts were required for anyone, not just the front seat folks (noone needed them), and cars were LARGE (and in charge) back in those days.

when you drove south from rolesville towards capital blvd (south on 401), you had to drive beneath the north bound US1 single lane bridge. (there still is a bridge there, but it is very different...) and then quickly merge onto capital blvd. there was only about 100' of a merge lane onto one of the southbound US1 lanes. this sounds really complicated. so, i'll get to my point.

when we'd get to the bridge (which we were driving UNDER), mom would always say to sit down so she could see to merge. hence why it became known as the "sit down bridge."



this is the current "sit down bridge", which you wouldn't have to sit down for it now a days since it is 2 lanes which do NOT end, but since we ALL have to wear seat belts (even backseat passangers), i suppose every bridge is a sit down bridge.

new survey from amy

Tired of those same old 55 questions about me surveys?

Well here are 55 I guarantee you've never answered. (Or so they say!)

1. Are you taller than your best friend?

no. i'm not taller than many folks.

2. Do you have a favorite type of pen?

anything colored!

3. Look at your planner for March 7th, what are you doing?

we have family (old friends + little ones) coming over for dinner!

4. What color are your toe nails usually?

plain, skin.

5. What was the last thing you highlighted?

REVISED

6. What color are the curtains in your bedroom?

No curtains, only blinds and they're white.

7. What color are the seats in your vehicle?

Gray.

8. Have you ever had a black and white cat?

probably, but i can't specifically think of one.

9. What is the last thing you put a stamp on?

a thank you card

10. Do you know anyone who lives in Wyoming?

no

11. Why did you withdraw cash from the ATM the last time?

pay kate for 'sitting.

12. Who is the last baby that you held?

rkt

13. Can you spell well?

NO

14. Do you like Cinnamon toothpaste?

no

15. What kind of car were you driving 2 years ago?

explorer

16. Pick one: Miami Hurricanes or Florida Gators:

Someone from FL must have originally devised this survey. I don't care.

17. Last time you went to Six Flags?

i've never been to a six flags!

18. Do you have any wallpaper in your house?

No.

19. Closest thing to you that is yellow?

the tigers on k's shirt. he is in my lap.

20. Last person you gave a business card to?

um, noone i don't think.

21. Who is the last person you wrote a check to?

i havent written a check in a long time.

22. Closest framed picture to you?

a photo of a sundial

23. Last time you had someone cook for you?

the cxooks at fireside grill did it last night...

25. How many emails do you get in your inbox daily (excluding spam)?

eh, 15?

26. Last time you received flowers?

not sure, but it was this year

28. Do you play air guitar?

No.

29. Has anyone ever proposed to you?

Yes -2. first one doesn't count.

30. Do you take anything in your coffee?

sugar free syrup.

31. Do you own any Willow Tree figurines?

i don't know what that is.

32. What is/was your high school's mascot?

warrior

33. Last person you spoke to from high school?

andrea!

34. Last time you used hand sanitizer?

i don't like it, so it has been a while. drys out my skin too much. i prefer soap and water to WASH away the germs rather than killing them and leaving them on my skin!

35. Would you like to learn to play the drums?

not really.

36. What color are the blinds in your living room?

White.

38. Last thing you read in the newspaper?

hum, do coupons count?

39. What was the last pageant you attended? never been to one.

40. Where is the last place you bought pizza from?

strombolis. but, more recently i made pizza on the grill! it was good!!!

41. Have you ever worn a crown?

i wear one all the time. :)

42. What is the last thing you stapled?

hum, i don't tend to staple things. especially since i don't have a stapler. dont need one either. i

43. Did you ever drink clear Pepsi? i vaguely remember it. so, i probably did.

44. Are you ticklish?

yes.

45. Last time you saw fireworks?

last time i kissed my husband!!! :) :) :)

46.Last time you ate Krispy Kreme donuts?

not really a donut fan, unless they are holes and chocolate and from dunkin donuts!!!

47. Last person that im'd you, and you actually responded?

chris.

48. Last time you parked under a carport?

yesterday at mom's house. to get out of the rain rain rain.

49. Do you have a black dog?

sorta, greyish!?! does that count? even though she is not mine. she does live in this house!

51. Are you an aunt or uncle?

i'm an aunt 3, almost 4, times!!!

52. Who has the prettiest eyes that you know of?

color? melissa. eyelashes? nathaniel. whole package? kendal's.

53. Last time you saw a semi truck?

probably on the way home from target, i didn't really pay attention to the cars around me. i just knew i was hungry and needed to get home and eat before i ate something (or somewhere) that wasnt' good for me!

54. What is the last song you belted out in the car?

well my standard sing-to-kendal song is jingle bells. sometimes old mcdonald. so, it could have been either one of those. even in the car.

55. Do you have a little black dress?

i have nothing little. i also don't have any dresses. i have neither a place to wear one nor the patience to shop for one.

First Degree Murder???

This morning, we saw a story on WRAL about a man (Moretti) who ran over (3 times) another man (McLeod) who tried to rob and stab his wife. Previously, Moretti was charged with assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill. Because McLeod died, Moretti is now charged with FIRST degree murder. Apparently, when the woman was attacked outside a pizza place in Fayetteville, she yelled for her husband who then shot 2 or 3 shots (with the gun he was carrying in his pocket???) in the air and McLeod fled on foot. Incidentally, McLeod lived right down the road from this pizza place, I suppose he was running home for safety? McLeod died yesterday because of injuries sustained during the incident. Nathaniel and I disagree about the new charges. I'm curious as to what thoughts you all have about it... but in the mean time, let me tell you what I think. (And yes, I'm trying to use capital letters today.) Ok, here goes it with my opinions. First, the dad was quoted as saying... "I had a chance to talk with him, I was able to tell him (Monday) morning that I loved him and (that) this was not his fault." It is sad that his son died. I feel bad for him and his family. BUT... wasn't his son trying to rob and possibly stab a woman? Does he really NOT think it is his fault? Really. If his son had not been performing a criminal act, he wouldn't be dead right now. Second, the dad also said "I wouldn't even run over a dog that way." Whatever. He shouldn't kid himself that there aren't things/people that he would protect with everything he has (strength). If the pit bull up the street were to get loose and attack Kendal (whether it was in MY yard or on the road in front of their house, if we were walking by), I would definitely respond in a very violent and tragic way. I would most certainly beat the dog to death with my own hand. I wouldn't need a car. Same goes for a cat, or a wild animal, or a person. When Moretti left that day to go get pizza, he did not plan to kill someone on his way home. Moretti obviously felt a great sense of protection and fear when his wife was attacked. He was startled by the scream of his wife, "fight or flight" kicked in... and he responded in a way that, although a bit extreme, IMO wasn't that crazy considering the circumstances! I don't think it was necessary to run over the guy 3 times. Even once was probably too many times. BUT, if Moretti had shot the robber from the start, would he be charged with murder or some sort of self defense type charge? If he had shot him 3 times would it still be murder? I agree with McLeod's dad when he says that you shouldn't take the law into your own hands, but when Moretti fired his warning shots, maybe McLeod shouldn't have run. Why did he run? because he was caught. He didn't want to get caught... so instead of having a criminal FREE on the skreets, Moretti chased after him. I do think Moretti did the wrong thing, he responded in a bad, over-the-top way. But first degree murder? No, that is too much. He does not need to go to prison and sit in a cell with a man who raped and murdered a 2 year old baby girl. Or a robber that stabbed an old lady 13 times. Moretti is not THAT kind of criminal (based on this incident). What is manslaughter? Wouldn't that be more appropriate? Kinda like what a drunk driver gets when he runs over and kills someone? When McLeod chose to do the crime, he should have realized that , as Newton proclaimed, an action has an equal and opposite reaction!!! Sometimes the robber gets outrobbed! In this case, he was robbed his life. A life that in other circumstances would probably have landed him 15 years in prison, to be followed by parole in 1 year, and another robbery (and maybe even a stabbing) within 5 months. I guess I just don't have any sympathy for criminals.

mean man store

this photo isn't of the mean man store, but it is a photo of the little store next to it. this photo is from 1996, and now the above store is white, has lots of broken windows, and a front door that doesn't shut. i don't think the neighboring house is there either. why? because 401 was widened some 5 years ago.

back when i was little, 401 was the way we went to raleigh. from our house, we turned down mitchell mill road, went over the little river by mitchell mill state park (i used to always hope we'd stop and get to walk in the woods to see the old dam, which we could then walk down), then past andrea's house (which we always looked to see if they were home), then we'd pass the old house (where melissa and i spent our toddler years), then over the rumble strips (which mom would veer over in to the oncoming traffic lane (when safe) so we could feel the rumble strips coming from the other way), then past the turn where we'd go to the pool when we were little, then down the windy part of mitchell mill road, then over the up bump (which is now a stoplight and not much of an up bump at all anymore), then to the stopsign at mitchell mill and 401. then we'd turn left and look and see if there was water in the river (which there always was, but sometimes you could see the rocks poking out! see, i was a destined to be a geologist). next was the stoplight at perry creek road (and 401). maybe it wasn't a light at all, it may have just been a flashing light. so sitting on that corner (where there is now a walgreens) was what we called the "mean man store".

were there mean men there? i don't know. seems to me, though, that maybe it was in that store that my mama heard someone say "hell" or "damn" or maybe even "shit" which meant that our little ears didn't need to go in that store. maybe even they sold those magazines with naked women on the front, or maybe they had guns. i was never really sure why they were mean, but i do remember that we ONLY stopped there if we were about to run out of gas.

last week, i was driving to raleigh (alone, to work to print) and i noticed the little white centerblock building in the photo above was obviously abandoned. it reminded me of what 401 (and raleigh) used to be like when i was little. no walgreens, no malls (except north hills and crabtree), no subdivisions, no 6 lanes, no starbucks... no prostitutes walking the streets near capital and 440. "mini city" was still booming (and safe)...

was raleigh better then? probably not. is it better now? probably. but in those days, we sure didn't have to worry about water!!!



up next:
the sit down bridge!!!

baby boot camp update

today, i found the pricing for the mom and babe classes.

i just don't know if it is worth it. in the next month, it'll be warm enough to get outside and walk. and, that is free!

what do you think? i definitely wouldn't want to join for 12 months, i'd prefer month to month... and i wouldn't want to buy too many classes at once, in case i didn't like it or found it wasn't satisfying. so, that'd be $100 for a month either way... isn't that a lot? seems like it to me. if i didn't join and saved that $100 a month, i'd have enough money to buy a GREAT jogging (3 wheeled) stroller in just a few months! and for the advanced classes, that is what they recommend (not the 4 wheeled stroller i already have).

so anyway, i'm not gonna go to the class tomorrow. mainly because it is almost 2 am and i just finished my work. i'm gonna need to sleep late tomorrow as much as K will let me, because tomorrow afternoon i have to go PRINT the report. which, unfortunately takes about 5 to 6 hours. so, i'll be working late late. which is ok, i'm glad to get out a report. i'm hoping to do a bit of painting before i start on my next one. we'll see what ed has planned...

what do i want to paint? first, the kitchen. we've had paint for over a year now for that room and it is about time to get it on the walls.
second, i want to paint some art for our new room and the kitchen. i got an idea of stuff to do from the rhoads' home, LK had this really cool wavy dotted aboriginal canvas in the living room that looked to me like a topographic map. (i am a sucker for a map.) so anyway, i looked up some stuff online about it and you know what? it may have BEEN a map!!!
here are some of the cool "contemporary" aboriginal paintings i found online:

baby boot camp

yes, there is such a thing! i'm so excited that on wednesday, i'm going to my first class. i can't wait. i'm SO ready to loose my GUT! (and i totally lack the self-discipline to do it on my own.) so, i'm hoping that by doing it with KENDAL and a group of other new moms, i'll actually TRY! (and succeed!) really, i'm most excited to get to work out with my baby. you know how gyms are... not kid friendly.

this summer, there is supposed to be a fitness center that has an indoor, olympic sized pool opening in rolesville that we will join (even if it costs too much). if that doesn't pan out, we'll join one of the nearby swim clubs/country clubs so that kendal (and his mama) can be fish all summer long! can you just see that red hair after it's been in the sun for a few weeks!?!

random stuff

1.) my favorite kiddy cartoon is the wonder pets. if any of you haven't seen it before, i think you should watch it just to see how cute it is. even if you don't have kids. or your kids are grown. their theme song is so catchy, and i sing it to kendal all the time. he loves it too. each episode follows the adventures of three classroom pets--Linny the Guinea Pig, Ming-Ming Duckling, and Turtle Tuck--who travel around the globe helping to rescue animals who need their help. The show features photo-puppetry animation--an animation style created specifically for this series--which allows the animators to manipulate photos of real animals. each episode is like a mini-opera with dialog often sung to an original score by some of Broadway's top composers. And each episode encourages teamwork, empathy, problem-solving skills, and an appreciation of music and humor. at the end of each episode, they break celery (celery-breaking, celebrating). TOO cute. 2.) nathaniel has pretty much finished "building" our family room. the only thing he has left to do is frame a door and put a little bit of stuff around the floor, can't remember what it is called. but, that won't 'take long. the bulk of stuff is done, and we've already put couches and books and art on the walls. it is REALLY nice. one of my favorite things about sitting up here is that in the afternoon, the sun warms the couch and i can sleep like a cat. or, the cat can sleep like a cat beside me. or, kendal can sleep like a cat beside me. another thing i love about it is that it is about the same level as the neighbor's back yard (they live up a hill). they home school their youngest son and during the day, i guess he has PE outside in the backyard. (no really, i guess he just has a while to play during the day). he is the cutest boy (besides my own). sometimes i watch him play with willow. i love watching him play outside. one day not too long from now, i'll get to watch kendal play outside too! 3.) i love lorna doone shortbread cookies. 4.) i can write this now and not jinx myself but in the last 3 weeks, we've had to take bo to the vet 3 times (shots round 1, eye funk, shots round 2). i am VERY pleased to announce that not once did he pee, poop, or throw up in the car. we used mag's crate and lined it with puppy pads (for any accidents) and put it in the back of the vibe. both cats fit in it and i'm sure the people at the vet office think we are one crazy family. because, we all 3 go to the vet with the cats. the trick is to BLOW in bo's face when he stands up. he can't pee or poop if he doesn't stand up. he usually hisses at me, but it keeps his excrement inside of him so that is GOOD! thank god we finally have a system for the vet trips! 5.) kendal was as ill as a hornet yesterday, don't know why but he cried and cried and cried. and no, he isn't cutting any teeth. i think it is because he didn't have any real, long naps (just short ones and not many at that). so today, he's already on nap 3 and much happier. he is in his crib even. i hope he sleeps for another 30 minutes or longer!!! (he does best with 1 hour or longer naps). 6.) wonder pets, wonder pets, we're on our way, to help a friend and save the day. we're not too big and we're not too tough but when we come together we got the right stuff! go wonderpets! YEAH!!! 7.) i DVR the wonderpets episodes. my favorite one so far came on today. they helped save an inch worm. 8.) when i went to put kendal in his crib a while ago, willow was ASLEEP in it!

alexithymia

anyone ever heard of alexithymia? well it is a disorder in which one has trouble feeling, describing, and/or expression emotion. i don't know how i found this disorder, i'm sure i was surfing for something stupid like baby clothes and made my way to it. and i am not a hypochondriac (because i really don't think it is a fatal disease...), but for some reason it sparked my interest. i've been told on MORE than one occasional that i was really rational. being rational is a "symptom" of not having emotion (not feeling emotion - "concrete, realistic, logical thinking, often to the exclusion of emotional responses to problems"). so i wondered what this was all about. i found this quiz (go here to take it for yourself) and it turns out that accd to this quiz, i have it. my score was a 120 (113 and up are the magic numbers). (by the way, the evaluate test results link doesn't work, so you'll have to add the numbers up yourself). so i don't really think i am emotionless, i just thought it was really interesting that there is a name for folks who aren't drama lovers. :)

things that go THUMP in the night!

as you all probably know, in December we switched kendal into his crib because he really takes up a lot of room in our bed. i won't let him sleep "on the edge" and i don't like him in the middle (so he was getting half the bed and we had to share the other half). one thing that helped [me] with the switch is the AWESOME color video monitor we bought so we [i] can not only LISTEN to him sleep, but we [i] can watch him sleep. the monitor takes up less room in the bed than kendal so it worked out for all of us except for the fact that i didn't sleep because i watched him more than i slept. i didn't want to close my eyes and not see him. i used to hold the monitor in my arms all night and just stare at the tiny live video of kendal sleeping peacefully in his crib. over the past few weeks, though, i've gotten better about it. i don't hold the monitor anymore (usually), and i even click off the video part sometimes.


i do still keep the volume pretty loud because if ANYTHING should happen i want to hear it. it is so loud that i can hear the dull hum of the humidifier over 10 feet away. if the cat jumps in the crib, i want to be able to hear his paws hit the sheets. honestly, i obsess all night about hearing kendal breathe. (this obsession is based in the simple fact that my biggest fear in the world is that he will die... i'm scared to death of the SIDS.) so, i want to hear him breathe. i have to hear him breathe. if i can't hear him breathing, i watch the monitor to see his chest rising and falling. and if i can't see it on the monitor, i jump up and run in there, look at him, if i can't see his chest moving, then i put my finger under his nose to see if the air is warm. sometimes he is such a shallow breather that it really is hard to see him breathe. plus it is dark, so that makes it even harder. and occasionally, rarely, i actually lift and drop his arm until he stirs (to make sure he's alive). he sleeps hard like his daddy.

anyway, here lately i've awoken and surprised by this thump thump noise. at first, i thought it was the cat scratching the carpet or something, because it is really just a thump thump thump (like their nail is stuck in the fiber or something). so i'll look at the monitor and nothing is happening. hum... what could it be? sometimes he kicks a lot (which is loud), so i'll watch it to see if he is kicking. nothing, he is still and sleep as can be. so then i thought maybe the cat was in the rocking chair, which creaks. or maybe the cat is moving the door, which could creak, or playing with a toy under K's bed, which could make that thump thump noise.

but the cats are on the bed. so, what else could it be? i've walked in his room, even turned the light on trying to figure out what this noise was. but, it just doesn't happen while i'm in there. not a thump thump thump. UUGH! everyone knows monsters live under the bed and in the closet, what if it is the SIDS monster coming to get my baby?

well tonight, i heard the thump thump thump again. i looked at the monitor and it was still thumping. as a matter of a fact, it's been thumping a lot tonight. sometimes 8 or 9 times (not just 2 or 3). when i look at the monitor, he isnt' moving, the cats are on our bed, and i can hear the humidifier with no interruption to the hum. so what was it? i started thinking.

poot. poot. poot. poot.

that is what it is and has been all along. he is a sleep pooter. :)

falls lake ranked in most endangered lakes!

i saw this gallery on newsweek, and thought it was interesting that falls lake was ranked among the most endangered lakes. so this blog is not about global warming, whether it is real or not, human induced or natural, etc. lets just assume - for the moment while you are reading this blog - that global warming is real & why is irrelevant.

ok. some things to consider. first, matter can be neither created nor destroyed. second, water is matter, rather Hydrogen and Oxygen are matter... third, water is always here, it can be produced by some chemical reactions (and i don't mean the change of liquid to gas), but for the most part, the amount of water on the earth is practically a steady volume.

and for those of you who are right this very moment trying to think of a chemical reaction that 'creates' water, consider H₂O₂ (hydrogen peroxide), a highly reactive oxidizer and an acid, will decompose into water (and oxygen) if allowed to react in air (btw this is why hydrogen peroxide has an expiration date). therefore... 2 H₂O₂ → 2 H₂O + O_{2. :) i liked that part of chemistry!}

back to my point... during a "global warming", doesn't that mean the polar ice caps melt? doesn't that also mean that all that water from the melting ice caps has to go somewhere, hence why a concern is rising sea level? supposedly only 3% of all water on the earth is freshwater (non-ocean water held in lakes, rivers, groundwater, etc.)

drum roll please... here is my discussion (this blog is a lot of "know this so you can follow my train of thought"):

if the oceans are becoming fresher (diluting the salt), then are the actual ocean currents shutting down? because... it is the ocean that feeds moisture into the atmosphere (called the hydrologic cycle), and the atmosphere (and the ocean) currents are driven by the spin of the earth.

from the newsweek list of endangered lakes, i noticed most of them (save the SE US which are probably so low because just too many folks are using it and naturally the SE is a desert therefore water is not in abundance)... are located along the eastern edge of continents (eastern africa, eastern asia, eastern australia, eastern NAmerica) - so really. does this mean the ocean currents are shutting down from all the freshwater?

once i took a class on global climate change. it was the most awesome one ever. i wish i could take it again right now.

incidentally, we ate at ruby tuesday's this evening (they have the best CRABCAKE that you can't make at home). at our request, we both got water. there was even ice in it (without an extra charge). funny thing is is that nathaniel got a refill (without his request although his glass was empty of liquid water, but was half full of ice). my glass, however, never was refilled. i ended up drinking some of his second glass then eating the ice. i wondered if they (the ignorant people who think it is agst the law to serve water but tea is ok) realize that ice is water too. when will the drinks be served sans ice?



ok. i'll stop now.

new outlook on food

well, 2 weeks have passed. last week we were in KY and not with a scale. plus we considered last week a vacation, and everyone knows that vacations mean calorie free. so we ate as such. yummy cake, cheese dip, chips, peanut butter, etc. we ate "like hogs" (or at least i did).

so today's weigh in is 1 pound less... which totals maybe 6 pounds now? i'm not really sure what my starting weight was now, so i think it is around 6 pounds. whatever the total, this is the lowest number yet and nearly matches what i dropped to after having kendal (while i was breastfeeding). yeah! makes me want to go eat.

my tummy is especially empty today since i had a migraine of all migraines yesterday. lets just say i won't be eating spaghetti or pesto any time soon... because i don't chew my food well!

ok, on to better subjects.

here is today's train of thoughts>>>
food: veggies: teeth.... what kind of teeth do horses and goats have? you know the kind that are flat (unlike human teeth)? so i did a websearch about teeth. i didn't find the actual name of them, but i did find this fairly interesting webpage about whether or not the human GI tract (from teeth to colon) are most like a carnivore, omnivore, or herbivore.

In conclusion, we see that human beings have the gastrointestinal tract structure of a “committed” herbivore. Humankind does not show the mixed structural features one expects and finds in anatomical omnivores such as bears and raccoons. Thus, from comparing the gastrointestinal tract of humans to that of carnivores, herbivores and omnivores we must conclude that humankind's GI tract is designed for a purely plant-food diet.


makes me wonder at what point the prehistoric humans began eating meat, if in fact we were "originally" herbivores. makes me wonder also what digestive differences (tooth decay, tooth wear, reflux, poop, smells, sounds, problems i.e. diarrhea, etc.) there are between the mcdonalds-bigmac-eating human, the chili-and-chicken-pot-pie-comfort-food-eating human (like myself), the cheese-and-eggs vegetarian, the tofu-only vegan, and even a raw foods vegan. maybe someone can do this study!

bugger picker

well, the wee one unfortunately has his first cold. with all the temperature changing that has been going on over the last few weeks, i'm surprised he's stayed healthy this long. heck, i'm surprised i've not got a cold yet too!

so 2 days ago he sneezed this massive green bugger. its the first bugger i've seen from him ever. so, since he can't blow his nose properly yet, i pulled out the handy dandy bugger puller (aka nose syringe, bulb syringe, etc.). i wasn't sure when or how to use this thing, so i asked my mom. basically she said to just stick it in his nose and suck. well, i can hear rattling in his nose/sinuses, but when i look i don't see anything. so, i tried sucking... not sure what i was trying to get, but she said to just suck, so i did. nothing.


today, he sneezed out another big green bugger. this time, i decided it would be my first try at using the snot sucker. i guess i was kinda cheating since the bugger was hanging out of his nose. but, it worked. i caught myself a bugger! a nasty one, too.

well anyway, the humidifiers are pumping as hard as they can, humidity has already risen from 37% to 48 % in just 1 hour. yesterday when we went to bed all the windows were steamy upstairs. but during the night, the humidifier wells run dry and they stop pumping out that warm moist air. today i'll just keep them full and let humidity work its healing magic. hopefully, anyway. because if he isn't any better by friday, i'm calling the doctor!

A 3-year-old's Tea Party!!

this story was forwarded to me... it is too cute not to share.




One day my mother was out and my dad was in charge of me and my brother who is four years older than I am. I was maybe 1 and a half years old and had just recovered from an accident in which my arm had been broken among other injuries. Someone had given me a little 'tea set' as a get-well gift and it was one of my favorite toys.

Daddy was in the living room engrossed in the evening news and my brother was playing nearby in the living room when I brought Daddy a little cup of 'tea', which was just water. After several cups of tea and lots of praise for such yummy tea, my Mom came home. My Dad made her wait in the living room to watch me bring him a cup of tea, because it was 'just the cutest thing!!'

My Mom waited, and sure enough, here I come down the hall with a cup of tea for Daddy and she watches him drink it up, then says, 'Did it ever occur to you that the only place that baby can reach to get water is the toilet??'

from chris's old-school-yahoo360 blog...

1. Where were you 1 hour ago? downstairs

2.Who will be your next kiss? nathaniel, in the next hour when he gets so sleepy that he has to roll over

3. Is there anything pink within 10 feet of you? actually NO! unless kitty noses count...

4. When is the last time you went to the mall? several weeks ago, i can't remember when or why. i suppose it was after christmas though.

5. Are you wearing socks right now? nope

6. When was the last time you went out of town? just got back from KY(jelly)

7. Have you been to the movies in the last 5 days?not in the last 5 days

8. What was the last thing you had to drink? diet a&w root beer

9. What are you wearing right now? yellow shirt with white tank beneath and black comfy pants

10. Have you been in a car wash? i have not, my car has. i was in my car.

11. Last food you ate? lime chili coated cashews. then i burped and nathaniel said it stunk.

12. Where were you last week on Saturday? this past saturday? in a car, driving back from KY(jelly). the saturday before? went to todd and LKs.

13. Have you bought any clothing items in the last week? underwear, since i forgot to pack them.

15. What's the last sporting event you watched? hockey

16. What is your favorite class? geology!!!

17. Your dream vacation? anywhere, anytime. i want an eternal vacation.

18. Last 3 people's houses you were in? my sister's, my parents', and... todd and LK's.

19. How old are your parents? too old for me to write their age. (mainly because that would require me to do math in my head)

20. Do you miss anyone? the fairels

21. Last play you saw? the vagina monologue at ECU with rhonda and jay was signing. it was SO funny.

22. What are your plans for today? well the day is almost over, but i plan to work on my model some, a little, just a small bit. until i get to sleepy.

23. Ever go to camp? went to kate's camp and climbed a really tall wall and then jumped off (on a line)

24. Were you an Honor roll student? not really.

25. What do you know about the future? it is always there

26. Are you wearing any perfume or cologne? nope

27. Where are your best friends located? right beside me

28. Do you have a Tan? hardly. rarely. i glow in the dark.

29. How old do you want to be when you have kids? well i already knocked out 30, so hum. maybe 32, and 34 and 36?

30. Do you collect anything? not really.

31. Last time you got stopped by a cop or pulled over? been a long long time. thank God, knock on wood.

32. Have you ever drank your soda from a straw? i usually drink it with a straw.

33. How do you like your drinks? root beer flavored, diet, and cold

34. Do you like Hot sauce? yes

35. Last time you took a shower? just a few hours ago

37. What is your mood today? drugged, since i had a migraine

38. Are you someones best friend? i hope so

39. Are you Rich ? rich with love. rich with bad jokes. rich with sarcasm. rich with stinky burps.

no water: where?

this past week, our travels took us across the SE US. along the way, (as usual) we stayed exclusively at holiday inn/express hotels. something i noticed at the first HIE we stopped (greyson KY) was the AWESOME shower.

this was tuesday night. tuesday night was also the night of the killer tornadoes that dusted KY and TN... and they were ALL were all around us that night too. i hardly slept. every time i heard it thunder, i flipped on the tv to see if we were about to get killed by a storm.

so anyway, the shower head was amazing, it was nice to have a shower that actually had water coming out of it (not a low flow showerhead). my SO thick hair would be wet in mere seconds (compared to the 4 minutes it takes in our shower, not to mention the rinse time, etc. for both shampoo and conditioner. i really have THICK THICK hair).

so the next night, we ventured on to ft knox, and stayed at a brand new HIE in radcliff, KY. this place was ok. we had to get a handicap room because they messed up my reservation (for a king). but again, the shower rocked. and they definitely must not be in a drought (because i think i could have filled the tub with a 5 minute shower unlike at home in which water barely trickles out).

so last night, we stayed in newton (?) TN at a holiday inn. it was such a cheese hotel, very old no doubt. had been partially updated, but, eh, i wouldn't really make big efforts to stay there again. they did have the cool HI showerheads too, which poured water.

now unless i am mistaken, TN is in a drought just like NC. right? so, what are they doing there to save water? well, they aren't requiring the hotels to install low flow showerheads.

so to my point. why is raleigh (and durham) proposing all the regular home owner to cut their water usage? seems that if 1 holiday inn, for example, installed low flow showerheads, they'd save TONS of water, much more than if the residents just saved on water.

by the way, if we ever DO get out of this drought and you would like an amazing showerhead, find a kohler multifunction forte' showerhead.

the new hat

josh has (unknowingly or knowingly) donated his favorite winter hat to keep kendal's head warm for the remainder of the winter!

here's josh sporting the hat...

one day i'll post a pic of kendal with it on too!

Small Tall I want them ALL

a NEW survey!

i realize that many of you won't be able to complete this, but, i found it on myspace and thought it was sweet. I am a proud mommy 1. AGES? Kendal - 4-1/2 months 2. Name? Rowland Kendal T. 3. Birthday? September 15, 2007 5. How long did labor last? 8 hours from when water broke to baby came out. hard labor started way after my water broke. 6. Who was in the room when baby was born? my husband, the doctor, and a nurse 7. How long did you push 2 hours, 10 minutes away from a csection (the dr came to give me the bad news when i actually learned how to push the right way!) 8. weight 7 lbs 10 ozs 9. Length? 21 in. 10. Any hair? quite a bit of RED hair 11. Who does baby look like? very much like me (and my dad), but he is looking more like his dad now. he definitely has my pasty white skin and square face and fat cheeks, but he has his dad's lips and toes. even his eyes look like N's a bit. he has N's curly hair too, but i still wonder how melissa gave him the red hair?!?!? 12. Be honest...how much weight did you gain while pregnant? dude. 50 pounds. no joke. within 2 weeks, though, i lost all but 10 of it. it was ALL water. i was SO waterlogged. i had rockin' cankles! 13.Due date, On time or early? ON my due date. 14. Who drove you home from the hospital? my hubby 15. How many baby showers did you have? 2 16. When did baby start sleeping through the night? about 6 to 8 weeks 17. Did you breastfeed? milk didn't come in. i pumped for 6 weeks to give him what i could, then just switched to formula. 18. Who keeps your baby the most? i do the most (since i stay home from work), but other than me, that'd be my mom and katelyn. 19. When do you wanna have another? already trying... 20. How did you pick the name? rowland is a t. family name, and the t.s are originally from Kendal, England! 21. How did you know when it was time to go to hospital? water broke as "hurricane" umburto came across NC 22. Anyone spend the night with you first night home? just me and the proud papa! 23.Did you cry the first time you held your baby? i don't even remember holding him. i had such a migraine from the labor/pushing... by the time i could open my eyes, i just didn't know what to think about a baby because i've never been much of a baby person. but within 12 hours, i couldn't stop looking at him and crying... because he was so beautiful! 24. Where was the baby born? rex 25. Did you video tape the birth? heck no. no photos allowed (per my request. in retrospect, though, i wouldn't have cared during the bad part. i just wanted it to be over!)

Mecca lecca hi, mecca hiney ho

see any resemblance to the REAL jambi?

i know what you did last night

i know how many times have i offered you a stick of sugarfree gum. you never accept. you always remind me about how aspartame makes you sick. i think it gives you a headache. it used to give me headaches too, but somewhere between 140 pounds and 160 pounds i started tolerating and even enjoying diet sodas. i remember the first diet soda that i had that didn't make me sick. it was a coke zero. from a home depot drink machine somewhere near fort leonardwood missouri. last night i saw that you bought both a water and a diet pepsi. always looking out for others, huh? wanted to make sure that even though she said she wanted water that that is what she really wanted. i'm sure in your head you were thinking "sometimes pregnant women change their mind." but she took the water. and you drank the diet pepsi. i know what you did last night. and it was sweet. not artificially sweet, but white chocolate sweet.