Big T and Me: Day 2

Today started with some spewing from the little guy. It was not the kind that leaves a little wet spot on your shoulder, this was the nasty kind that gets on the floor and all down your back. Definitely a shirt changer.

He was pretty fussy for most of the morning. I'm not sure why. He seems to cry if I am not holding him up on my shoulder, pounding his back, and actively walking around. No real nap. I had a toasted cheese sandwich with a glass of water for lunch. I brought him up to Nell's school for his feeding. She told me she ate Market Street ribs with sides and dessert because of Teacher Appreciation Week. Hmmm. Maybe this wasn't the best week to take off.

The afternoon was filled mostly with crying. I'm not sure what I am doing to the poor kid. I'm beginning to think he doesn't like me much. I dropped him off with Nell for the rest of the afternoon when I went to go pick up Zeke. I got a call about 10 minutes later saying I forgot to buckle him into his carrier. Oops.

I also missed out on a free catered Mexican food lunch and some chicken strips at Chick Fil A. 3 granola bars later, and this is not my best day.

Big T and Me: Day 1

I am starting my two weeks at home with Titus. Big T and me. I wanted to write about our adventures at home together. We'll see how it goes. I am trying to have zero expectations as we get the week started. This is not a time for me to catch up on school work, have personal hobby time, or map out the next few months of my life. The only thing I am expecting to do is to enjoy my time taking care of my boy.

I got to have breakfast with Selah this morning. It was kind of nice to just be me and her. Well, the boys were five feet away screaming at each other in the living room, but it was just Selah and I at the table. Titus gave me a smile as I was getting him dressed. It was the big smile where you can see the little dimple on right cheek. That was some nice fuel to keep the morning moving. Zeke was a huge help taking care of his little bro' for ten minutes while I finished getting ready.

We had a bad trip to Wal-Mart. I guess that is redundant to say that you had a bad trip to Wal-Mart. Titus was not happy to be there. I can't blame him. Of course they were out of stock for a handful of items I needed. The cashier was unexpectedly helpful in loading up my cart for me while I held the crying boy. +1 for WM.

Nell came home for lunch, so that saved me a trip to bring him to her at school. He was pretty fussy for most of the afternoon. I did get a few things done on the computer while he napped. It is weird picking up Zeke from school. I guess this is what a parent feels like.

I ate four of those little Quaker granola bars today. They are just so tiny and good.

Really?- Peeps

It's hard for me to even imagine biting into one of these. Part of me can't even believe that they exist, and if it were not for my sister, I would never believe it either. Wow. Peeps? Really?

Peeps are made from marshmallow, sugar, gelatin, and carnauba wax. I don't know exactly what carnauba wax is, but if they sell it at AutoZone, I'm thinking I don't want it in my mouth. These 32 calorie chew toys are pumped out by the millions. 700 million Peeps are cranked out during Easter for the retail outlets of America. The plant in Bethlehem, Pa., can manufacture 2 million Peeps each day. I belive this to be the great army of the North prophesied by Daniel.

What's even crazier? They have a shelf life of 2 years. How is that even possible?

My fear is that those little beady black eyes are watching me and radioing in information back to their home planet. I believe our time may be short...



(Most info gleaned from an article in the Waco Tribune- Herald)

Musings- April Fool's Day

I'm sitting at my desk and having to take a step back and reflect for a bit.  The stress of the day has gotten me down.  I'm not sure if it's the kids or all the paper I deal with.  It's probably an insidious combination of both.

Tomorrow is April Fool's Day.  I used to like April Fool's Day.  But, there is only so many times you can hear kids say "Do you know what today is, Mr. Stortz?  It's Tuesday- April fools!"  Or "Guess what I had for breakfast Mr. Stortz?  Waffles- April fools!"  Or the ubiquitously popular "Your shoe is untied Mr. Stortz.  April fools!"  You see, six and seven year olds don't exactly "get" (air quotes mine) April Fool's Day.  Of course this never stops them from trying.
 
It should be more like "I'm going to play well with others today, Mr. Stortz.  April fools!"  Or "I'm going to complete all my tasks in a timely manner today Mr. Stortz.  April fools!"

I think I'm going to hide behind my locked classroom door tomorrow morning.  I'll put a sign up that reads: Class canceled on account of irony."  The sad thing is, I will be the only one to "get" it (air quotes still mine).

Musings- Financial Crisis

Politics have never been a strong interest of mine. I've always felt it should be though. I mean, it's important, right? The problem is, I have lots of great excuses-

It's too hard to follow.
I don't know where to get my information.
I don't understand most of it.
Who do I trust?
How does this affect me?

That's why I'm so thankful when simple things come along to make it easier for me to figure out what is going on. Check out this video below. It is about how America got into this financial crisis. It is simple with LOTS of visuals- my kind of video. Give it a view, it's only 11 minutes long. (Don't worry, I'm still going to have to watch 4 or 5 times to take it all in.)


The Crisis of Credit Visualized from Jonathan Jarvis on Vimeo.