Halloween

Mom Jeans

Laura asked what "Mom Jeans" are...

...and Here is the infamous SNL clip:
Mom Jeans

Potty Advice

Maya seems to be getting past this "evil" phase and now I feel the need to focus on potty training. No pre-school around here will take the kid until she is potty trained. What is that about? Doesn't it matter that she knows how to count to 10 and say her ABCs? Just because she's potty-tarded doesn't mean she shouldn't make the cut.

So, does anyone have any nifty tricks, ideas, methods for potty training???

Maya's Joke #2

Maya: Knock. Knock.
Me: Who's there?
Maya: Banana.
Me: Banana who?
Maya: Banana hunk.

Eh, she needs a little work on her comedy routine.

Two Grown Men

I often hear Jeff tell me that I need to take some time for myself. I decided to finally go and get a haircut after delaying it for many months. Jeff's father was visiting for a few days and I thought it would be a good time to set up my hair appointment. Jeff's dad went to pick up Jeff from work (Jeff is still recovering from his knee surgery). He took Maya with him so I could have a little bit of free time. It was about lunchtime and Maya wasn't hungry because she had a late breakfast. I sent Maya and her diaper bag with Grandpa to go get Jeff. When the three of them came home, I told them that Maya needed to eat lunch. Jeff's dad asked how he could help. I asked if he could make a sandwich for Maya and he said yes. I left Maya and Reili with them while I went to get my haircut. My appointment wasn't very long but I had to run a couple of errands before returning home. I finally got home about 5pm. When I walked in the door, Maya said, "Mommy, I peed in my diaper. I peed in my pants." I said, "Okay, let's change your diaper." I walked over and got a diaper and asked Maya to lay down. She said, "Mommy, I peed in my pants." I looked at her pants and they were wet. I thought that was a little strange until I pulled down her pants and saw the largest diaper I had ever seen. I think it weighed 3 pounds! I looked at Jeff and his dad and asked if they had changed her diaper. They looked a bit dumbfounded, pointed fingers at each other and finally admitted that her diaper hadn't been changed... since I had changed it around 11am. Six hours and no one had bothered to change her diaper. It had leaked out onto her pants. In addition to the wet pants, she had sticky brown stuff on her face and hands. Apparently, she had a few pieces of candy and no one bothered to clean that up, either.

Jeff's dad wanted to take us out to eat that night. We got to the restaurant and I got the salad bar and so did Grandpa. We were sharing our food with Maya. Maya was eating anything we would put in front of her. I couldn't believe how hungry she was. I then thought about the state in which I found her earlier that day and asked, "Did anyone feed Maya lunch?" Once again, the dumbfounded looks appeared and I heard a "No." "So, she hasn't eaten anything since breakfast?" Jeff readily blamed his dad for not making the sandwich. Jeff's dad said he didn't remember anything about a sandwich.... I could feel my eyes rolling (on the inside) while they discussed how they didn't feed her all day.

The next morning, Jeff and Grandpa told me to sleep in, that they would take care of everything. I was so tired (Reili was crying until 1 am) that I slept in until 9:30am. When I got up, Maya was in her high chair, eating a mini candy bar. (The Halloween candy had been raided already) I readily assumed that she was sitting there eating candy for breakfast and I said, "Has anyone even fed her breakfast?!?" Jeff looked at me, once again dumbfounded, and said "No." ...then I heard a laugh... he was pulling my leg...that time!

Funny Mom Videos

I never really thought of myself as "Mom" but I'm slowly evolving no matter how hard I try to be cool. Next, I will have to buy some mom jeans. These videos are for all those moms out there:

Mom Overture
Mom My Ride

What is a Dollar?

Jeff and I have decided to seriously focus on saving money and paying off debt (school loans that equal a mortgage). Dave Ramsey is a Christian financial 'guru' that we are currently following. He is really good at telling it like it is and helping you to realize where your money is really going. Since Jeff and I are finally out of school (kind of), we can focus on paying off debt instead of accruing it. Ramsey says that student loans are basically used for helping the student look good while going to school. I think that is a bit far, but it does have some truth to it.

I don't advocate going to Wal-Mart on principle. I don't agree with a lot of things about the corporation. I wish I could stop shopping there all together, but when you are trying to save money, it is almost unavoidable. So, I was at Wal-Mart yesterday (yes, I am a hypocrite) and I was very hungry. I was at a dental appointment/cleaning/new patient thingy that went from 11:30am to 1pm...prime lunch hours. I thought about waiting until I got home to eat, which is what Dave recommends. He always says "beans and rice, rice and beans" and "you shouldn't see the inside of a restaurant until all your debt is paid off"...but Wal-Mart deli is technically not a restaurant. I got a sandwich and a drink for a little over $4. I thought that was pretty good. The thing is, the drink was over a dollar. For some reason, when you are really thirsty, those drinks at the cash register look very appealing. I guess I could've waited and gotten a "Sam's Choice" soda for a quarter or even a 2 liter for 58 cents, but I didn't...partially because they disgust me and partially because I was in a hurry and it wasn't as convenient as the expensive drinks lined up next to the sandwiches. (Smart marketing move on their part). So, I'm walking over to another aisle to pick up the one thing I came for. Who really gets ONE thing at Wal-Mart? I passed a bin of DVDs marked for a dollar. (These items near the register are dubbed "impulse items" for a reason) I looked over them, most of them really lame, and decided that I shouldn't spend an extra dollar on a DVD. What a waste, I thought.

Isn't it interesting how the mind works? A DVD that Maya could watch over and over seems frivolous while the drink, which will be gone in 5 minutes, is a good buy.