Inundated with media today

While I was waiting at Peachtree Dermatology today for my annual mole check up, I had more than enough time to read the entire newspaper. Cover to cover. Talk about feeling grown up. I even shared the newspaper with other grown ups in the waiting room. It was a nice, albeit unfamiliar, feeling. Being grown up AND mature all in one day? Whew, I was definitely going to need a nap after that mental work out.

So I read through the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and one of the articles that caught my attention really made me think. And yes, it is political, so please brace yourself if you need to. The article makes some good points that we ALL need to be aware of as we sit here and complain about this or that when it comes to our government. And, don't worry: I am not talking about Democrat or Republican ideas but instead I'm talking about doing something that will help the people in Congress to remember that they are there to serve OUR best interests, not theirs. When I was at the gym this afternoon, one of the "news"channels was showing statistics on the approval rating for congress - - it's at 18%! Can you imagine if your boss told you that you still had a job even if you did a good only 18% of the time? Of course not!

You are probably wondering: Ok, Krista, this is all good information but what in the world are you suggesting we do? Run for Congress, ourselves? And, to answer your great questions, I am not asking you to run for Congress but to take an active role in learning about what is - and isn't - being discussed and/or passed in Congress.

Check out this link and please consider signing up. All you have to do today is input your information and you will then get updates on what is going on in Washington and you can choose to act - or not act - if you feel that the issue being addressed is important. It costs nothing except a little bit of your time. That is a very fair exchange - - give a few minutes a month in return for an improvement in the world in which we live and an opportunity to make our country a little bit nicer for our children. (For some reason, I have Whitney Houston's song, The Greatest Love of All , in my head now...)

The Bestest Christmas Gift Ever

If someone were to ask you what your favorite Christmas gift of all time was, what would you say? Do you have one Christmas or a particular Christmas gift that comes immediately to mind? I do. When we were growing up, Kelly and I were hoping for a puppy as our gift. We assured my parents that if Santa brought us a Shih Tzu on Christmas Day, we would be the best kids in the WHOLE WIDE WORLD. We would never act up again.

Our piano teacher had the sweetest little Shih Tzu named Mozart. We didn't particularly like going to piano lessons but being able to see the little pooch always made the visit a little bit easier. So, maybe if we got a Shih Tzu for ourselves we'd be better off? Of course we would, helllooo.

As we were crawling into bed on Christmas Eve, exhausted from visiting with family at Mommo & Poppo's house in Pilot Grove, opening presents, and going to our annual candle light church service, my parents came into the room with something that they found downstairs. It was the cutest little Shih Tzu in the world! My Dad said Santa must've dropped it off while we were at Mommo & Poppo's. We were so excited that it was a chore for my parents to get us to go back to sleep that night ... and as you could imagine, we lived happily ever after and Kelly and I never acted up again. Bandit, as he was later named, was the best Christmas gift that I ever received.

We switched up our routine this year and stayed in Atlanta for a wonderful Martin-style celebration. Echo enjoyed the visit, too, since the car ride is much shorter going to the Martins across town than going to the Langs in Missouri.

While I don't know what gifts Bettyann has received during Christmases past, I do know that the gift she received this year would qualify as her best Christmas gift ever. Stephen said that for as long as he can remember, when he asked her what she wanted for Christmas, her response remained the same, year after year: a pony. This year, she must've done something right because Santa brought her exactly what she was hoping for.

Randomness

First, let me start by saying that I finally found a movie that I've seen and Dennis hasn't. In case you couldn't guess, the movie that I'm talking about is UP CLOSE & PERSONAL. What type of award should I win for this accomplishment? I am going to nominate, and award myself with the highly esteemed - and not to mention, highly coveted - Oscar for being the COOLEST SPOUSE IN DA HOUSE. I think that this will look very nice on our mantle. Oh, and by the way, Happy Kwanza today.

I didn't realize - until Dennis pointed it out to me the other day - that after EVERY single movie we ever watch, I ask him, "on a scale of 1-10, what would you rate this movie?" So, as should be expected, when we exited the theater after watching FOUR CHRISTMASES the other day, I asked him the inevitable question. He rated it a 6. I gave it an 8 and Dennis couldn't believe it. But, part of the rating criteria that he missed (because I never told him) is that ANY movie that is 90 minutes or less gets an automatic minimum score of 6. And the movie finished safely under that time frame.

Today, Dennis and I were brainstorming names for our son (is he 'our son' yet? do I need to wait till he's born to refer to him that way? who knows) and got into a big debate over how to spell the main character's name from Family Matters. Is it Urkel (Dennis' vote)? Or Eurkel (my vote)? This is a serious question, now, because we were contemplating initials and need to know this type of information.

Although commonly (mis)spelled with an "E", Dennis wins that bet. Damn. I guess he can have an Oscar, too, it just won't be as awesome as mine. What should his Oscar be for?

His can be the not-so-coveted spelling bee award.

Merry Christmas from our house to yours!

Baby Lane

In the 3+ years that we've lived on our street, the occupancy rate per house has grown significantly. There are 20 houses on our street. After we have our baby in May, there will be an additional 14 people on our street. I'm not referring to a bunch of renters moving into one house or anything like that, I'm referring simply to the number of BABIES. That's pretty freakin' insane if you think about it. That's an increase of almost 3/4 of a person per household (used my calculator on that one). Can you imagine having 3/4 of an extra person running around your home?

With the influx of babies on our street, we've also had more than our fair share of baby showers. A few pictures from Wendy's shower (at our house) are below. She is 33 weeks in this picture and her due date is early February but she probably won't make it that far. Lucky her: she may be able to participate in our monthly Wine Night sooner than we originally anticipated!

Belly Shot

My belly shot is not what it used to be and I am having a hard time accepting it. I obviously know that you have to gain weight when you are pregnant and that you can lose the weight later (what I hear when people say this to me is blah, blah, blah, you just have to be fat for a while, blah, blah, blah) but it's not a lot of fun yet. I feel like I have a rubber tire around my middle section. Or that I swallowed a bowling ball. Or a small child.

I have put off posting the inevitable baby-belly shot as long as I could but Dennis told me I couldn't wait any longer. So, here it is. Me in all my glory at 16 weeks. Thing is, it will probably be better when I get bigger because then, hopefully, people will KNOW that I am pregnant and not just think that I am porking up over the Holidays. Now I just look like a frumpy child eater.

I saw this shirt online and think that I absolutely need to get it because it sums up how I feel in 4 simple words. It's an awesome shirt... I'm just not sure I could get away with wearing it to work. Maybe I could dress it up with some jewelery?

Memo

Apparently we missed the memo. As you can see from our smorgasborg of Christmas cards that we have so beautifully displayed on our pantry door, sending a picture or you, your loved ones, and/or your pets trumps sending an actual paper card with a hand written message in it.

Am I old fashioned? I think so. Getting photo cards is great, don't get me wrong, but I guess I'm stuck in the 1990's by suggesting that cards should have a hand written component to them. And, hey, maybe I'm just jealous that I missed the memo. And most everyone else got it.

All of that being said, I was really looking forward to having a baby because I knew that we would finally be able to send out photocards. So, I guess we didn't need to get pregnant just to send them out, afterall! And, I am slowly realizing that photocards are taking over the world (just as fast and feverishly as kudzu has) and they are personal - - just photos rather than words. Hey, a photo is worth a 1,000 words, right? And I know that I've never written 1,000 words in any Christmas card. Perhaps I've had it backwards all along.

NSFW (Not Safe for Work)

I would be surprised if the title of this post actually kept anyone from continuing to read or open this page...based on my knowledge of who frequents this site, I bet that if anything, it probably encouraged people to pull up the post to see what type of work-inappropriate material I could be sharing. Me, inappropriate? Never...

After a long weekend of running around, I had some cramping and bleeding this morning so I called my OB's office and the high-risk MD's office to see if I should be concerned. I'm pretty much a paranoid freak about anything that does or does not happen, so I am sure that the nurses recognize my phone number on their caller ID and probably do a preemptive eye-roll in anticipation of my questions. Anyway, I was told to go home, put my feet up, and relax (what's that?), and they were going to see if they could work me in for a quick appointment in the afternoon. They were able to squeeze us in and we were glad to find out that our SON (yes - I said it! We're having a boy!) is doing very, very well. At first, he had his legs crossed and was sucking his thumb but after a few minutes he decided to uncross his legs and we saw everything. Dennis claims that the only reason we could tell a month 'early' (we're 16 weeks now and people usually don't find out the sex until their check up at 20 weeks) is because this little boy is his son.

As you can imagine, we are thrilled. I'm thinking of everything blue. Maybe green. And yellow. Now it seems more real than before...I wonder about names? I guess we have plenty of time for that, but my concern is that everyone and their brother has had little boys lately so we may have a hard time picking out an unused name. Guess we could always go with Obama.

Things that make me go mmmmmm....

A few things have come to my attention lately...making it clear that I mmmmmight be pregnant. I know, I'm hilarious. Without further adieu, here they are:

1. Dennis has ceased calling me Rip-van-Krista when I want to sleep. Now any sleeping that I do is OBVIOUSLY for the baby and not due to my love of sleeping.

2. Bending forward isn't as easy as it was previously. So I guess my days of cleaning the house and "picking up" are limited.

3. After a shower, I can been seen (only by the spies that hide in my house) rubbing cocoa butter all over my body. Bathe with water and then bathe in cocoa butter.

4. I finally have fingernails.

5. Some nights I get REALLY CRAZY and have a glass of chocolate milk when Dennis has his glass of wine.

6. A follow up to #5 is that I always feel good on Saturday and Sunday mornings. No more cases of the beer flu for me.

7. I have learned that it's a good idea for me to cross my legs when I sneeze or laugh really hard.

8. I have developed a sudden love of sleeping on my back. Apparently, that is a no-no for later in pregnancy and so when Dennis catches me sleeping on my back, I get a friendly reminder to roll over...every night.

9. Now I walk on the treadmill rather than run. It's a really good idea, too, because my coordination is pretty much non-existent and I need to avoid falling as much as possible.

10. I think my belly is growing a lot...I just can't see over my boobs to know how much.

Unions are so last century

So, we've all heard about this auto bail-out thing-a-ma-bob being discussed, deliberated, and which will ultimately be passed..... only to fail. Or need another huge "life line" in the next few years. But, whatever, it's not a big deal. The $700 billion bail-out is supposed to help save American companies that are near failing, right? But, wait a second...isn't that what capitalism is all about? Good companies succeed and bad companies go bye-bye? No, that can't be right ... we live in an all-too-pc-world where we can't just let a company go bye-bye. That isn't fair. Or nice. It's much nicer to throw $$ at companies that have already failed on their own...just to post-pone the inevitable.

You are probably thinking...wow, it's been a long time since Krista's posted anything remotely political. It has...and yes, a month or two is a long time. Not to worry, though, because I do throw up a little in my mouth each time I hear President-elect Obama's voice on TV. So, I'm still alive. I am really trying to be a glass-half-full-person and hope that he proves me wrong and that he turns out to be a great president. Doubtful, but there is that 1% chance. And hey, there was only a 1% chance that one of the embryos we implanted would split into two, and that happened. So, you never know.

Ok, now to the point of all of this: unions suck. Yes, they do (or did) serve a very important purpose with helping labor conditions in factories to be improved and to make the work environment much more safe for workers. And don't forget child labor laws. What we need to ask ourselves is are they really necessary in 2008? Unions are so last century.

Just take a look at what's happened to the auto makers. Now, I'm not suggesting that all of the problems these companies are facing are due to the unions, but let's not overlook the big (or HUGE) contribution they've made towards pushing these companies over the edge.

Can you guess at what a union worker makes at one of the Big 3? $73/hour. Wow, that's a big number. It's especially big when you compare it to $44/hour (average) for Honda, Nissan, and Toyota employees. And $73/hour is especially big when you compare it to the average $31.50/hour that manufacturing workers make in the US. This is just asinine. With these companies spending SO MUCH of their employees, how can they be competitive? At a bare minimum, it raises prices for all of us.

Y'know, this kind-of makes you want to go to work for a union, doesn't it? You just join and then you make upwards of 150% what someone else in the industry is making in a non-unionized setting. You do the same work for more money. No difference between you and them except the money.

It's been suggested that the Dem's are in bed with the unions, as well they should be. Unions contributed about $80 million (or $450 million, depending on which source you use) towards the most recent election (for Dem's, of course) and they want their payback.

I also find it interesting that people say that the CEO's or other high ranking officials at these companies need to forego their high salaries, give up their private jets, and refuse any type of bonus. What have the unions offered to do to help in the same regard? Wait...nothing. They've ruled out any discussions of concessions. Now, that's pretty nice and fair, isn't it?

Cheeseburger gone wild

Phew. I am so glad that I received this news alert via email today. (And yes, I fixed the "e" key and it is wonderful! eeeeeeeeeeeeee)

NOW I see why everyone says that I should be careful when I'm walking in dark alleys every night. I never thought that one of those gang members could be carrying something as dangerous as a cheeseburger!

Man allegedly assaults girlfriend with burger

VERO BEACH, Fla. — A Vero Beach man faces a domestic violence charge after authorities said he assaulted his girlfriend with a cheeseburger. An Indian River County Sheriff's Office arrest report said a 22-year-old man and his girlfriend got into an argument as they sat in a car in front of their home.

The report said the man would not let the woman out of the vehicle, so she threw his drink out of the car. In response, the man allegedly grabbed her arm and smashed the cheeseburger into her face. The pair got out of the car, and authorities say the man again took the McDonald's sandwich and put it on her face.

The man was released on $1,000 bond Wednesday.
___
Information
from: Press-Journal, http://www.tcpalm.com/vero (Maybe they meant press-a-cheeseburger-in-your-face journal??)

And the excuses begin

Ok, first of all, my "e" key isn't really working. So you may notice that thy are missing from this post. Oh well. nough struggling with that stupid key.

Dennis has always been vry considrate and sweet but he has been especially protectiv of me sinc I've ben prgnant. At first, I kpt trying to resist and I would do everything that I had done prviously. But, you must embrac change, right?

I've mbraced it with a little bit of a twist. Possibly an evil twist. If Dnnis asks me to do somthing or if I ask him to do something and he doesn't want to do it (which is most of the time), I respond with, "you don't want to do [insert task here] and you'd prefer for your pregnant wife to do it instead?" I must admit that I'v gottn away with a lot mor than I evr could have bfore.

And ys, I'm going to get that damn key fixd. (That's my first cuss word on the blog! I feel libratd...is that wird? Shit. Ass. Ok, I'm stopping now. Bitch. BYE!)

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Have you ever taken a minute to think about how cattle will stand outside in the snow, in the rain, in the heat, and never complain? Well, before this trip home for Thanksgiving, I hadn't either. I have a new found respect for cattle. And several other things. Yes, don't worry: I am going to share what "other things" entails.

I have a new respect for The Day After Thanksgiving shoppers that do not act like a herd of cattle and run over the store manager. The polite, calm shoppers. Like my Mom and Dad, who bought us an early Christmas present on Friday. A Sony Blue Ray player. And yes, Dennis picked out that gift. It'll probably be unwrapped and set up before we get our suitcases out of the car tonight.

I have a new respect for football games. Really. I do! Even though it was a devastating loss to KU, the MU/KU game at Arrow Head was so much fun. It snowed the entire time and we each wore ten more layers of clothing than normal. Dennis even bought his second pair of Long Johns for the game. I think he bought the first pair when we were in Columbia last year for Christmas.

I have a new respect for paper maps. They come in handy when Dennis thinks he can outsmart Mr. Garmin.

I have a new respect for family and friends. We spent our first Thanksgiving in Missouri this year (we usually stay in town and visit with the Martins) and Dennis survived the 60-some person reunion. It was actually a smaller turn out that usual, but I think that was probably good for Dennis' first visit. I realized that my cousins, aunts, and other family members are actually cool. Well, let's not go too far. They are at least normal. I never realized that before! Even my two cousins that Kelly and I nicknamed Pee-Pee and Poo-Poo were nice to visit with. It was weird.

AND, my little niece Georgia, is absolutely beautiful. Megan isn't really my sister, but we've been great friends for so long and she feels like a sister. And that makes her daughter my niece, so there. It was great meeting her for the first time and I cannot wait to see her again.

I have a new respect for good food. Man, I feel like I gained 30 pounds but it was worth it. On Sunday we visited Mommo and she put together a "quick and boring" lunch that included ham, friend chicken, corn, green beans, rolls, fruit salads, mashed potatoes, cookies and pecan pie. Yes, I had a piece of pecan pie. That stuff is magical. ANYWAY, we ate plenty of "quick and boring" meals that far surpassed the "exciting and time-consuming" meals at our house. I am going to learn to cook. I really am.

Lastly, I have a new respect for wireless cards. It's awesome to be able to play on the Internet while Dennis drives us home...through the snow and sleet.