Thanks to Rosie for this one:
The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 and came up with $160,140.00 for a middle income family. Talk about sticker shock! And that doesn't even touch college tuition.
But $160,140.00 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into:
* $8,896.66 a year,
* $741.38 a month,
* $171.08 a week,
* $24.24 a day,
* $1.01 an hour.
Still, you might think the best financial advice is: don't have children if you want to be 'rich.' Actually, it is just the opposite.
What do you get for your $160,140.00?
* Naming rights. First, middle, and last!
* Glimpses of God every day.
* Giggles under the covers every night.
* More love than your heart can hold.
* Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs.
* Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies.
* A hand to hold usually covered with jelly or chocolate.
* A partner for blowing bubbles and flying kites.
* Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said or how your stocks performed that day.
For $160,140.00, you never have to grow up.. You get to:
* finger-paint,
* carve pumpkins,
* play hide-and-seek,
* catch lightning bugs,
* never stop believing in Santa Claus.
You have an excuse to:
* keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh,
* watch cartoons,
* go to Disney movies, and
* wish on stars.
You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets and collect spray painted noodle wreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay for Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters for Father's Day.
For a mere $24.24 a day, there is no greater bang for your buck. You get to be a hero just for:
* retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof,
* taking the training wheels off a bike,
* removing a splinter,
* filling a wading pool,
* coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and
* coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream.
You get a front row seat in history to witness the:
* First step,
* First word,
* First date,
* First time behind the wheel.
You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren and great-grandchildren. You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications, and human sexuality that no college can match..
In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God. You have all the power to heal a boo-boo, scare away the monsters under the bed, patch a broken heart, police a slumber party, ground them forever, and love them without limits, so one day they will, like you, love without counting the cost. That is quite a deal for the price!
Children are the best investment you'll ever make...
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Hyperactive
I am convinced my child is going to be hyperactive. First because of all the flailing about during the ultrasound a couple weeks before we should have been so active, and then when we went looking for a heartbeat.
We went to hear the booger yesterday... Yes, "we"... my husband actually made it which made me happier that I think he realizes. But the little jumping bean kept moving around... just as soon as the nurse would find it, we would hear a thump or 2 then it would fade away... just kept moving out of the way. I guess we just don't like being prodded :-)
I recorded it on my cell phone... I wanted to post it but the blog site won't take gif files (whatever that means) and I don't know how to make it work. If you really want to hear it, drop me an e-mail.
We went to hear the booger yesterday... Yes, "we"... my husband actually made it which made me happier that I think he realizes. But the little jumping bean kept moving around... just as soon as the nurse would find it, we would hear a thump or 2 then it would fade away... just kept moving out of the way. I guess we just don't like being prodded :-)
I recorded it on my cell phone... I wanted to post it but the blog site won't take gif files (whatever that means) and I don't know how to make it work. If you really want to hear it, drop me an e-mail.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Dreams
I've heard that they get really crazy when you are pregnant but mine have been violent and gory lately.
Last night, it started as me as a killer and I brought a bunch of people to a house in a trance and I blinded them so they couldn't escape then I killed a few then let the rest all go. Then it morphed as they all ran out the door. I became the house and I sucked them all back in. The house became all pretty and friendly and then I would make them secretly turn on each other and kill each other one by one. Very strange.
A couple weeks ago, I was trying to escape a haunted house (like the fake ones at Halloween) that was in a mall and had an actual killer running around in it and I was the only one who knew or believed it. I had a baby (not necessarily my baby) in my arms in some flashes and not in others. When the killer got too close, I had this huge knife I would slash at his face. I always cut him and it would slow him down but he never stopped chasing me.
Hormones can do some wild things to a person. I don't really watch scary movies so this was very strange for me...
********************
Going to hear the heartbeat on 3/24...
Last night, it started as me as a killer and I brought a bunch of people to a house in a trance and I blinded them so they couldn't escape then I killed a few then let the rest all go. Then it morphed as they all ran out the door. I became the house and I sucked them all back in. The house became all pretty and friendly and then I would make them secretly turn on each other and kill each other one by one. Very strange.
A couple weeks ago, I was trying to escape a haunted house (like the fake ones at Halloween) that was in a mall and had an actual killer running around in it and I was the only one who knew or believed it. I had a baby (not necessarily my baby) in my arms in some flashes and not in others. When the killer got too close, I had this huge knife I would slash at his face. I always cut him and it would slow him down but he never stopped chasing me.
Hormones can do some wild things to a person. I don't really watch scary movies so this was very strange for me...
********************
Going to hear the heartbeat on 3/24...
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Oh Crap!!!
Here's a quote to live by:
"Be the kind of woman that when your feet hit the ground each morning the devil says, 'OH CRAP, SHE'S UP!'"
"Be the kind of woman that when your feet hit the ground each morning the devil says, 'OH CRAP, SHE'S UP!'"
Friday, March 20, 2009
Bandit
My in-laws lost their oldest dog yesterday. Bandit would have been 10 in April.
The night before last, my FIL had all 3 dogs in the truck when he stopped at the end of the drive to toss the trash bin in the back on his way up to the house. The dogs are used to this and always stay in the truck. I guess Bandit jumped out and my FIL didn't see him. When My FIL started up the drive, he accidentally hit him.
My FIL took him straight to the vet who sent them to the ER vet since they had personnel there to monitor him over night. X-rays showed no broken bones but Bandit was clearly in a lot of pain and could not stand up on his own. They decided to monitor him overnight and reassess the situation in the morning.
Yesterday morning, they picked him up from the ER and took him to our regular vet who re-examined him. They said he could relieve himself if they held him up but that he couldn't get up on his own. And there were apparent signs of major internal injuries. The vet told them that it would be a long road and that he may not recover. My in-laws decided to end his suffering and put him to sleep yesterday afternoon.
I talked to my MIL tonight. She is clearly upset but seems to be doing as well as can be expected. She is the cool head in these situations. We wouldn't have gotten through losing Gizmo without her. My FIL, however, is a mess. He feels like its his fault even though there were so many strange things that happened.
The dogs NEVER jump out of the truck... even Geronimo who is still fairly new to the family stays in the truck until he is called out. And those dogs will meet you at the end of the driveway and run circles around the car all the way up to the house and never get hit. And my FIL was going slower than usual to keep the trash bin from falling out of the back. So there was something going on that made Bandit jump out like he did and then not allow him to move out of the way when the truck was put into gear and started to move.
Regardless, there is a large hole at my in-laws home now. The dogs are clearly missing their friend. When my in-laws brought Bandit home to bury him, the dogs never got out of the truck even though they were told they could. They sat there and watched the hole being dug and everything. Early this morning, they went outside and to opposite ends of the yard and barked for a long time when they are usually late sleepers. When they get pig ears, Taz and Bandit would always go into the bedroom to eat theirs while Geronimo would plop down in the living room with his... This afternoon, Taz took hers into the bedroom, then came right back out and sat down next to Geronimo. And while they always steal each other's food at meal times, they have left alone the little bit of food that remains in Bandit's bowl.
I plan to take Bailey by to see them all tomorrow. Hopefully she will be a welcome distraction if only for a couple hours.
Bandit was a wonderful dog and will be greatly missed.
The night before last, my FIL had all 3 dogs in the truck when he stopped at the end of the drive to toss the trash bin in the back on his way up to the house. The dogs are used to this and always stay in the truck. I guess Bandit jumped out and my FIL didn't see him. When My FIL started up the drive, he accidentally hit him.
My FIL took him straight to the vet who sent them to the ER vet since they had personnel there to monitor him over night. X-rays showed no broken bones but Bandit was clearly in a lot of pain and could not stand up on his own. They decided to monitor him overnight and reassess the situation in the morning.
Yesterday morning, they picked him up from the ER and took him to our regular vet who re-examined him. They said he could relieve himself if they held him up but that he couldn't get up on his own. And there were apparent signs of major internal injuries. The vet told them that it would be a long road and that he may not recover. My in-laws decided to end his suffering and put him to sleep yesterday afternoon.
I talked to my MIL tonight. She is clearly upset but seems to be doing as well as can be expected. She is the cool head in these situations. We wouldn't have gotten through losing Gizmo without her. My FIL, however, is a mess. He feels like its his fault even though there were so many strange things that happened.
The dogs NEVER jump out of the truck... even Geronimo who is still fairly new to the family stays in the truck until he is called out. And those dogs will meet you at the end of the driveway and run circles around the car all the way up to the house and never get hit. And my FIL was going slower than usual to keep the trash bin from falling out of the back. So there was something going on that made Bandit jump out like he did and then not allow him to move out of the way when the truck was put into gear and started to move.
Regardless, there is a large hole at my in-laws home now. The dogs are clearly missing their friend. When my in-laws brought Bandit home to bury him, the dogs never got out of the truck even though they were told they could. They sat there and watched the hole being dug and everything. Early this morning, they went outside and to opposite ends of the yard and barked for a long time when they are usually late sleepers. When they get pig ears, Taz and Bandit would always go into the bedroom to eat theirs while Geronimo would plop down in the living room with his... This afternoon, Taz took hers into the bedroom, then came right back out and sat down next to Geronimo. And while they always steal each other's food at meal times, they have left alone the little bit of food that remains in Bandit's bowl.
I plan to take Bailey by to see them all tomorrow. Hopefully she will be a welcome distraction if only for a couple hours.
Bandit was a wonderful dog and will be greatly missed.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Allergies and an Injury
Bailey has always had eye boogers. I clean them off her face whenever they appear which is usually every-other-morning or so. Its a joke... its playful... "momma hates eye boogers" said in a sing-song voice... and she just lets me do it...
Last summer, she had some issues with some reoccurring spots on her back. We figured it was just chigger bites since her flea/tic/mosquito treatment didn't list them as something it guarded against. Once the fall came around, the spots disappeared and we forgot all about them.
Last month, the spots showed up again. We were already going to the vet for some annual vaccines so I asked about them when we got there. The vet checked them for mites (negative) and gave me some special shampoo to try to clear it up.
Over the next few days, I noticed the eye boogers were coming more frequently and seemed to be worse from her left eye. I kept an eye on her to see if it got better or worse since her eyes didn't seem to be bothering her. Less than a week after we had seen the vet, I noticed her left eye was red and seemed irritated. So I called a smaller vet who is closer to our house and easier to get into on short notice.
He examined her and said that it looked like allergies. He also said she had an infection... kinda like how we get sinus infections when our allergies act up. He gave me some goo to put in her eyes 2x a day and said to start her on Benadryl to help with the allergies overall. (Of course the goo has steroids in it so I can't touch it... my husband has to do it and will only do it when I remind him so it only gets done once a day if we are lucky.)
Well, the shampoo has worked wonders after only 2 treatments and her eyes are no longer as gooey despite our lack of consistency. But now one of the spots from her back has shown up on her lower eye lid. It doesn't seem to bother her so I have just been giving the Benadryl and continuing the goo and watching to see if it gets worse.
Then we went to the dog park the other day for the first time in a few weeks. She was so excited and immediately spotted a man tossing a ball for his dog, Bo, using a "chuck-it". Since Bailey doesn't really get the concept of fetch (outdoors with a ball, anyway) she chases the dog chasing the ball and seems to have a blast doing so. So Bo chased the ball and Bailey chased Bo, hard, for a solid 15-20 minutes before the man and I agreed it was time for a drink break since they were both panting kinda hard.
As we were walking away from the fountain, I noticed Bailey was walking kinda funny. Stiff... her back end was waddling like she couldn't move her legs at the hips. I moved closer to get a better angle but she seemed to be walking fine. I kept watching and noticed her waddling again. Then Bo's dad mentioned he thought she was walking "kinda hippy".
I kept pretty close to her for a few minutes to see what she would do. Usually, she stays far away from me because she doesn't want to go home. But she stayed pretty close so I decided it was time to go. When I tried to make her sit so I could put her leash on, she flat out refused, and just stood there looking at me like "I can't". As we were walking toward the gate to leave, she tried to stop twice like she didn't want to go on. And when we got to the car, I almost had to lift her in.
We got home and she kept going from walking fine to waddling. She laid down for a while, then seemed fine. This morning, all seemed well. I am guessing she may have pushed herself too hard to fast for too long with out getting warmed up first and maybe pulled a muscle or something. Again, I plan to keep an eye on her just in case.
She was just 16 months last week... and she already seems to be falling apart...
********************
I am 12 weeks today...
Last summer, she had some issues with some reoccurring spots on her back. We figured it was just chigger bites since her flea/tic/mosquito treatment didn't list them as something it guarded against. Once the fall came around, the spots disappeared and we forgot all about them.
Last month, the spots showed up again. We were already going to the vet for some annual vaccines so I asked about them when we got there. The vet checked them for mites (negative) and gave me some special shampoo to try to clear it up.
Over the next few days, I noticed the eye boogers were coming more frequently and seemed to be worse from her left eye. I kept an eye on her to see if it got better or worse since her eyes didn't seem to be bothering her. Less than a week after we had seen the vet, I noticed her left eye was red and seemed irritated. So I called a smaller vet who is closer to our house and easier to get into on short notice.
He examined her and said that it looked like allergies. He also said she had an infection... kinda like how we get sinus infections when our allergies act up. He gave me some goo to put in her eyes 2x a day and said to start her on Benadryl to help with the allergies overall. (Of course the goo has steroids in it so I can't touch it... my husband has to do it and will only do it when I remind him so it only gets done once a day if we are lucky.)
Well, the shampoo has worked wonders after only 2 treatments and her eyes are no longer as gooey despite our lack of consistency. But now one of the spots from her back has shown up on her lower eye lid. It doesn't seem to bother her so I have just been giving the Benadryl and continuing the goo and watching to see if it gets worse.
Then we went to the dog park the other day for the first time in a few weeks. She was so excited and immediately spotted a man tossing a ball for his dog, Bo, using a "chuck-it". Since Bailey doesn't really get the concept of fetch (outdoors with a ball, anyway) she chases the dog chasing the ball and seems to have a blast doing so. So Bo chased the ball and Bailey chased Bo, hard, for a solid 15-20 minutes before the man and I agreed it was time for a drink break since they were both panting kinda hard.
As we were walking away from the fountain, I noticed Bailey was walking kinda funny. Stiff... her back end was waddling like she couldn't move her legs at the hips. I moved closer to get a better angle but she seemed to be walking fine. I kept watching and noticed her waddling again. Then Bo's dad mentioned he thought she was walking "kinda hippy".
I kept pretty close to her for a few minutes to see what she would do. Usually, she stays far away from me because she doesn't want to go home. But she stayed pretty close so I decided it was time to go. When I tried to make her sit so I could put her leash on, she flat out refused, and just stood there looking at me like "I can't". As we were walking toward the gate to leave, she tried to stop twice like she didn't want to go on. And when we got to the car, I almost had to lift her in.
We got home and she kept going from walking fine to waddling. She laid down for a while, then seemed fine. This morning, all seemed well. I am guessing she may have pushed herself too hard to fast for too long with out getting warmed up first and maybe pulled a muscle or something. Again, I plan to keep an eye on her just in case.
She was just 16 months last week... and she already seems to be falling apart...
********************
I am 12 weeks today...
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
SBF
Nancy never fails to impress me:
This has to be one of the best singles ads ever printed. It is reported to have been listed in the Atlanta Journal:
SINGLE BLACK FEMALE seeks male companionship, ethnicity unimportant. I'm a very good girl who LOVES to play. I love long walks in the woods, riding in your pickup truck, hunting, camping and fishing trips, cozy winter nights lying by the fire. Candlelight dinners will have me eating out of your hand. I'll be at the front door when you get home from work, wearing only what nature gave me.. Call (404) 875-6420 and ask for Daisy, I'll be waiting....
Reportedly over 150 men found themselves talking to the Atlanta Humane Society.
This has to be one of the best singles ads ever printed. It is reported to have been listed in the Atlanta Journal:
SINGLE BLACK FEMALE seeks male companionship, ethnicity unimportant. I'm a very good girl who LOVES to play. I love long walks in the woods, riding in your pickup truck, hunting, camping and fishing trips, cozy winter nights lying by the fire. Candlelight dinners will have me eating out of your hand. I'll be at the front door when you get home from work, wearing only what nature gave me.. Call (404) 875-6420 and ask for Daisy, I'll be waiting....
Reportedly over 150 men found themselves talking to the Atlanta Humane Society.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Oh, Jenny...
The idea to keep a blog came from a friend who started one a few years ago when she moved her family across the country to San Diego. It was her way of venting and keeping those back home up to date on her happenings.
And here it is, however many years later and she is back home and still keeping us laughing with her witty posts that make you laugh, cry, examine your political and religious beliefs, etc...
The following quote is a gem from a recent post:
"Yesterday I did make it to Wal*Mart, and I bought 2lb weights and 3lb weights. I was feeling confident. I also bought tampons, wine, and 12 Cadbury Creme Eggs. Dude running the register never made eye contact."
Visit http://notinkansasanymoretoto.typepad.com/ for more...
And here it is, however many years later and she is back home and still keeping us laughing with her witty posts that make you laugh, cry, examine your political and religious beliefs, etc...
The following quote is a gem from a recent post:
"Yesterday I did make it to Wal*Mart, and I bought 2lb weights and 3lb weights. I was feeling confident. I also bought tampons, wine, and 12 Cadbury Creme Eggs. Dude running the register never made eye contact."
Visit http://notinkansasanymoretoto.typepad.com/ for more...
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Oh... Wow...
I saw the baby...
I was working at one of my smaller sites on Tuesday and the ultrasound tech was there. She knew I was bummed that I wasn't going to get one until 16-18 weeks and she asked if I would like to see my baby...
Oh... wow....
Things have been going so well so far that it doesn't feel real... I don't feel pregnant...
But, oh, wow...
It was the perfect profile... Arms and legs flailing and waving and jumping all over the place... Long legs like mine (like as long as the length of the entire body)... so active that the tech commented that it was unusual for that much activity this early (I am 11 weeks today)... That it takes a lot of energy for them to move that much so we must be VERY healthy!!!
So, yeah, wow...
Not many things leave me speechless...
But, oh, wow...
I was working at one of my smaller sites on Tuesday and the ultrasound tech was there. She knew I was bummed that I wasn't going to get one until 16-18 weeks and she asked if I would like to see my baby...
Oh... wow....
Things have been going so well so far that it doesn't feel real... I don't feel pregnant...
But, oh, wow...
It was the perfect profile... Arms and legs flailing and waving and jumping all over the place... Long legs like mine (like as long as the length of the entire body)... so active that the tech commented that it was unusual for that much activity this early (I am 11 weeks today)... That it takes a lot of energy for them to move that much so we must be VERY healthy!!!
So, yeah, wow...
Not many things leave me speechless...
But, oh, wow...
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Too Good To Be True
I am almost scared because things have gone so well so far...
Only 1/2 hour of nausea so far... that's it... Although I don't really want to eat much even though I am starving... nothing seems good... fruit is the only thing that always sounds good so I guess that's good...
I haven't even been tired like I thought I would... I always hear folks talk about how completely exhausting the first trimester is but I have only been a little more tired than usual... nothing that is debilitating like I have heard it described... I only get naps on the weekends and only if I am lucky... but I do sleep pretty sound and have been trying to get to bed earlier than usual since I found out.
I hope things keep going well. But it makes me wonder what's in store for us later...
Only 1/2 hour of nausea so far... that's it... Although I don't really want to eat much even though I am starving... nothing seems good... fruit is the only thing that always sounds good so I guess that's good...
I haven't even been tired like I thought I would... I always hear folks talk about how completely exhausting the first trimester is but I have only been a little more tired than usual... nothing that is debilitating like I have heard it described... I only get naps on the weekends and only if I am lucky... but I do sleep pretty sound and have been trying to get to bed earlier than usual since I found out.
I hope things keep going well. But it makes me wonder what's in store for us later...
Thursday, March 5, 2009
It's a Girl!!!
I know my little brother is soo excited! He wanted a girl so bad!!!
I am proud to introduce my new baby neice Margo Vella R:
6lbs 13oz 19" born at 12:44 PM CST
She is not too happy to be here yet... it's loud and bright and cold compared to where she's from... But she'll get used to it :-)
I am proud to introduce my new baby neice Margo Vella R:
6lbs 13oz 19" born at 12:44 PM CST
She is not too happy to be here yet... it's loud and bright and cold compared to where she's from... But she'll get used to it :-)
Purina Diet
Yet another doozie courtesy of Nancy:
Yesterday I was buying 2 large bags of Purina dog chow at Wal-Mart, for my dogs Zoe and Lily and Sugar. I was about to check out when a woman behind me asked if I had a dog. What did she think, that I had an elephant?
Since I had little else to do, on impulse, I told her that no, I didn't have a dog, and that I was starting the Purina Diet again, although I probably shouldn't because I ended up in the hospital last time. On the bright side though, I'd lost 50 pounds before I awakened in an intensive care ward with tubes coming out of every hole in my body and IVs in both arms.
I told her that it was essentially a perfect diet and that the way that it works is to load your pockets with Purina nuggets and simply eat one or two every time you feel hungry and that the food is nutritionally complete so I was going to try it again. (I have to mention here that practically everyone in the line was enthralled with my story by now.)
Horrified, she asked if I ended up in intensive care because the dog food had poisoned me I told her no; I had stopped in the middle of the parking lot to lick my butt and a car hit me.
I thought the guy behind her was going to have a heart attack, he was laughing so hard!
WAL-MART won't let me shop there anymore.
********************
I am going to be an aunt sometime today :-)
********************
10 weeks today...
Yesterday I was buying 2 large bags of Purina dog chow at Wal-Mart, for my dogs Zoe and Lily and Sugar. I was about to check out when a woman behind me asked if I had a dog. What did she think, that I had an elephant?
Since I had little else to do, on impulse, I told her that no, I didn't have a dog, and that I was starting the Purina Diet again, although I probably shouldn't because I ended up in the hospital last time. On the bright side though, I'd lost 50 pounds before I awakened in an intensive care ward with tubes coming out of every hole in my body and IVs in both arms.
I told her that it was essentially a perfect diet and that the way that it works is to load your pockets with Purina nuggets and simply eat one or two every time you feel hungry and that the food is nutritionally complete so I was going to try it again. (I have to mention here that practically everyone in the line was enthralled with my story by now.)
Horrified, she asked if I ended up in intensive care because the dog food had poisoned me I told her no; I had stopped in the middle of the parking lot to lick my butt and a car hit me.
I thought the guy behind her was going to have a heart attack, he was laughing so hard!
WAL-MART won't let me shop there anymore.
********************
I am going to be an aunt sometime today :-)
********************
10 weeks today...
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