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July 24, 2008
Catch up
I realize my posts have slowed to a crawl in recent months. The very same-ness of every day doesn't lend to many interesting stories. Luckily, we don't need much entertainment around here & are quite content to watch her steal the dog's ball and run away as quickly as she can, giggling. The dog, of course, doesn't find this quite as entertaining. She's even smart enough to trick him into dropping the ball by distracting him with another toy. Pretty impressive if you ask me.
We did go to the gastroenterologists who talked us into trying beef. I did it just to prove to him that I knew what I was talking about, and she did have the expected reaction. He was also eager to try her on cow's milk. As much as I'd love to get out from under the $30 per half-can formula, I'm shaking my head at the very suggestion. I can't help but have the feeling that he just doesn't get it. He's also wanting us to see an allergist, but tells me food allergies are very hard to test for in babies under 2 1/2 - says the test will frequently give a false negative for something they are actually allergic to. Then what's the point? The good news is that she is growing very well even on her limited diet.
I finally got around to getting her one-year pictures done this week. That was so hard it was comical. I really wanted one of her standing up, but a standing up Mandy is a mobile Mandy. We spent about 30 minutes leading her to the spot we wanted her, but she didn't even pause over it as she went toddling off to her next point of interest. I was about to pack it in & just go home already when another person came to help. We abandoned the standing up pose and managed to get some outstanding shots of her sitting down. For all our efforts, we really did get some great shots. You'll see on 08/05 when I get them back.
On a couple of personal notes, my ex-husband used to have a sweet comment for when I'd make a mistake for the second time. That comment was "even rats learn from negative reinforcement." Alas, it is applicable as I recently allowed my mother-in-law to give me a perm. I know she leans toward really small curls. In fact, we usually have a mini argument before every perm in which she's telling me there's no point in doing it if I'm going to use the giant rods I've picked out & I'm trying to convince her that they will in fact give me the body and wave I'm looking for. We did not have this argument this time and that should have been my first clue. I have an afro. A very tight one. If I brush it continuously while blowing it dry, and if I pull a curling iron through every strand very slowly, I can get it to look like a smooth football helmet. It will hold this shape for a couple of hours before reverting back to the afro, if and only if, the weather is not humid or it doesn't get wet, at which point it reverts almost immediately. The whole rat & negative reinforcement thing? This is the second time this has happened. Sigh.
I'm also getting eager to finish my degree, but I'm running into some frustrations. I checked into some online degrees, but I'd have to sell my left kidney to fund it. One wanted $427 per credit hour. My boss went to a private Christian college & his tuition was less than that. Another wouldn't even give me the tuition per credit hour - gave me a per semester rate that included the computer equipment I would need. I tried explaining that I probably had whatever computer equipment they would require, but that didn't get me anywhere. The sum of his degree would be $41,000 - for an ASSOCIATES degree! Either they are idiots or they think I am. Deciding I needed to stick with Chattanooga State, I remembered a daycare on site. How sweet would that be to drop her off, take my class & pick her back up. Nope. You can do that, of course, but you have to pay for the whole month at over $600. What a fantastic opportunity they are missing to actually be of service to their students. So I can't afford an online education and I don't know how I'm going to manage going to a physical classroom. I'll figure it out soon.
Work on the house has halted until our financial situation improves. Mike did repair our current gutters. They are still brown, but at least they are no longer held up with a highchair and a board. Other than the gutters, all we really need to do is paint a bunch of stuff anyway. And my amazing husband is going out of his way to get all the overtime he can while not uttering a single complaint over me spending most of my time caring for the baby and the house. Some days I'm just overwhelmed at the blessing that is her. To just have an hour to snuggle with her while she watches her morning shows is a moment so sweet as to almost bring tears. I remind myself constantly how blessed I am for these moments. Without my husband, and without my employer allowing me to work from home, I would be racing thru my mornings trying to get somewhere and spending my evenings just trying to keep the house clean enough to live in. But I'm in a situation where I actually get to enjoy her. And I don't know what I've done to deserve that - rather, I know I haven't done anything to deserve it. (And yes, there are moments during which I would happily hand her to anyone walking by, but luckily we don't get that much foot traffic in front of my house.)
But speaking of money, we recently went from a "get by with as little as you can" mentality to a "spend no more than this amount per week" mentality. Much more effective and actually interesting. Did you know that generic Honey Nut Chereeos were half the price of regular? Did you know that omelets make a wonderful and affordable dinner? Did you know that leftover pork roast makes mouth watering barbecue sandwiches a day or two later? Just some things I missed by not having an actual food budget in the past.
There. You're all caught up. Aren't you glad?
| By Wifeepoo | 10:26 AM
Comments
tell me about the budget thing! our biggest issue is eating out.....which has come to somewhat of a halt. it had to! i'm telling you though, the crockpot has helped me so much. you can make a ton of food in it and freeze it! glad that you updated and thanks for your comment on my blog...it made me feel better knowing i'm not alone in those thoughts. are we ever going to meet?
Posted by: erin at July 24, 2008 3:32 PM
have you tried Quest (Covenant College) they have evening courses and I think you can do one 4 hour class a week in the evenings or on saturdays. But you have to have at least 2 years of college.
Posted by: grace at July 24, 2008 10:19 PM
Quest only offers a couple of degrees, not the graphic design degree I am seeking. Excellent program, though.
Posted by: Lisa at July 25, 2008 7:07 AM
