Sunday, June 24, 2012
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Inspiration from Abroad
Did anyone ever watch Jamie Olivers' Food Revolution? I was obsessed, and I think the dire state of our school lunches is a real concern to the health of the next generation. Apparently, a little girl on the other side of the pond agrees. This blog is pretty cool. She has taken it upon herself to take photos of her primary school lunches and rate them based on a system she created which includes how many bites the whole meal took (portion control), the yummy factor, the health rating, the price, and if she found a hair in the meal or not. Highly important factor. I think this little girl is hella cool, so check her out. Did I mention she also raises money for a non profit in Africa? Amazing. Here is her profile for starters:
"My dad says I should call myself Veritas Ex Gustu, truth from tasting in Latin but who knows Latin?
You can call me Veg."
That First Week
I started this post several months ago, two weeks into both of us working full time without full time childcare. Because of this and the craziness that is our lives, Im just now getting around to finishing the post and sharing the insanity of that first week.
Hectic isnt the right word to describe the events of that week. Luckily, the boys have some very accommodating grandmommas, so we survived. Many random and crazy things happened that week, but one of them topped the others. On tuesday of that week I had lunch with a coworker and on the way decided since it was such a pretty day, I would roll down my back windows and enjoy the breeze. Unfortunately for me, one of them would not roll back up. I dont use my back windows often, so I guess it was severely out of practice. Since I haul the boys around daily, I couldnt have them exposed to the elements in the back seat. I quickly called my amazing mechanic (shameless plus for Duffy's Garage) and they fit me in after lunch. It just needed a new motor, but they would have to order it. In the meantime, they took the car door apart to find the fallen window, raised it up, and duck taped the hell out of it to get it to stay. This took some time, so in the meanwhile, I chilled out in their office. For a while, I just surfed facebook and minded my own business, until another one of garage's clients came in. He's was an older man, probably 6 foot 6, and at least 300 pounds. He looked like he hadn't bathed in days, and was wearing an over-sized grey t-shirt and flannel pj camo pants. He's also driving a Mercedes. If there is anything ive learned in over five years in the personal finance industry, it's that looks are deceiving, and the millionaire next door doesnt always look like they stepped out of a Brooks Brothers catalog. (See Duck Dynasty)
So, as redneck santa talks about the work done on his car, I step out to call J and let him know where I am. As the phone starts ringing, I glance over at my car and see some reddish looking oil on the ground underneath my door. Then I see a mechanic grabbing his leg, and I quickly realize that there is not oil, but a whole lot of blood not only on the floor, but also all over the inside of my car. WTF. I'm comprehending all of this while starting a conversation with J that quickly ended with, "I'm gonna have to call you back." I ask the guy if he needs some help and he said yes right away. So, I run into the office and let the owner know that some medical attention is definitely needed in the shop. The next thing I know, there are two firetrucks and an ambulance blocking in my car. Apparently, while trying to get my window un-jammed, this guy has accidentally stabbed himself in the leg with his tool. He had to have about 10 staples, but ended up being ok. Things finally calm down and they take the guy to the hospital. Someone else starts working on my car so I can get out of there (its been over an hour at this point).
I went back into the office and sit across from redneck santa as he proceeds to pay for his car repairs. Instead of taking out a wallet he reaches into his pj pants and produces a brown lunch bag full of stacked $100 bills. But he doesnt stop there. For some reason, he also very nonchalantly pulls out a flask and a pistol. WHAT IN THE WORLD. I am now staring down the owner with a "What in the hell is going on" look on my face. He gives me a reassuring nod that this is normal, not to dont panic. I'm pretending to surf facebook now, but all my attention is on this crazy guy and these items. He pays with the cash, and the stuffs the other effects back into the big ass pockets. Wow. That was a first. (was the highlighted for you? it wasn't meant to be, but i cant figure out why its doing this. I digress)
My car finally gets done, and by now three hours have gone by since I left the office for lunch. I get back and unbeknownst to me, the staff had thrown me a "Five years in the business" party (that day was my work anniversary). However, by the time I got there, it had been long over. They told me it was fun and that there were ice cream sandwiches in the fridge. Go figure.
That week we also found our amazing nanny (thank God, I couldn't deal with anymore over the top crazy) that is not allowed to get married or have kids of her own, because I want to keep her forever. So, our weeks are slightly less hectic thanks to her and to our mothers being there for us. Luckily for you, our life is always slightly manic, so good stories are just around the corner...
Hectic isnt the right word to describe the events of that week. Luckily, the boys have some very accommodating grandmommas, so we survived. Many random and crazy things happened that week, but one of them topped the others. On tuesday of that week I had lunch with a coworker and on the way decided since it was such a pretty day, I would roll down my back windows and enjoy the breeze. Unfortunately for me, one of them would not roll back up. I dont use my back windows often, so I guess it was severely out of practice. Since I haul the boys around daily, I couldnt have them exposed to the elements in the back seat. I quickly called my amazing mechanic (shameless plus for Duffy's Garage) and they fit me in after lunch. It just needed a new motor, but they would have to order it. In the meantime, they took the car door apart to find the fallen window, raised it up, and duck taped the hell out of it to get it to stay. This took some time, so in the meanwhile, I chilled out in their office. For a while, I just surfed facebook and minded my own business, until another one of garage's clients came in. He's was an older man, probably 6 foot 6, and at least 300 pounds. He looked like he hadn't bathed in days, and was wearing an over-sized grey t-shirt and flannel pj camo pants. He's also driving a Mercedes. If there is anything ive learned in over five years in the personal finance industry, it's that looks are deceiving, and the millionaire next door doesnt always look like they stepped out of a Brooks Brothers catalog. (See Duck Dynasty)
So, as redneck santa talks about the work done on his car, I step out to call J and let him know where I am. As the phone starts ringing, I glance over at my car and see some reddish looking oil on the ground underneath my door. Then I see a mechanic grabbing his leg, and I quickly realize that there is not oil, but a whole lot of blood not only on the floor, but also all over the inside of my car. WTF. I'm comprehending all of this while starting a conversation with J that quickly ended with, "I'm gonna have to call you back." I ask the guy if he needs some help and he said yes right away. So, I run into the office and let the owner know that some medical attention is definitely needed in the shop. The next thing I know, there are two firetrucks and an ambulance blocking in my car. Apparently, while trying to get my window un-jammed, this guy has accidentally stabbed himself in the leg with his tool. He had to have about 10 staples, but ended up being ok. Things finally calm down and they take the guy to the hospital. Someone else starts working on my car so I can get out of there (its been over an hour at this point).
I went back into the office and sit across from redneck santa as he proceeds to pay for his car repairs. Instead of taking out a wallet he reaches into his pj pants and produces a brown lunch bag full of stacked $100 bills. But he doesnt stop there. For some reason, he also very nonchalantly pulls out a flask and a pistol. WHAT IN THE WORLD. I am now staring down the owner with a "What in the hell is going on" look on my face. He gives me a reassuring nod that this is normal, not to dont panic. I'm pretending to surf facebook now, but all my attention is on this crazy guy and these items. He pays with the cash, and the stuffs the other effects back into the big ass pockets. Wow. That was a first. (was the highlighted for you? it wasn't meant to be, but i cant figure out why its doing this. I digress)
My car finally gets done, and by now three hours have gone by since I left the office for lunch. I get back and unbeknownst to me, the staff had thrown me a "Five years in the business" party (that day was my work anniversary). However, by the time I got there, it had been long over. They told me it was fun and that there were ice cream sandwiches in the fridge. Go figure.
That week we also found our amazing nanny (thank God, I couldn't deal with anymore over the top crazy) that is not allowed to get married or have kids of her own, because I want to keep her forever. So, our weeks are slightly less hectic thanks to her and to our mothers being there for us. Luckily for you, our life is always slightly manic, so good stories are just around the corner...
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Important piece of advice
DO NOT WATCH
"WE BOUGHT A ZOO!"
These instructions are especially important if you are hormonal, in an isolated place (like a plane), are without napkins or tissues, and for some reason dont like Matt Damon. All of those were true of me last week when I watched this flick. I was envisioning a heart warming tale of a goofy family who loved animals. This is not the case people. It is sad, emotional, and certainly not PG (with some above age 13 language, and frequent parent-children argument scenes that made me cringe). Not that I care about language, but if I had a child over the age of 5 and under 13, they would prob want to watch it, and it was just too mature. The main themes of the movie are: dealing with the death of a parent/wife, coaching a child through depression, and putting down large animals. Not. Ok. It is also the only movie where Scarlett Jo is just not a good actress. That was unfortunate, bc im a fan. Then, at the end of this roller coaster of emotion, you find out this is all a true story (although it was advertised as such, I just didnt know that) and the faucets start all over again. I have not been this disappointed in a movie since the remake of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. (More true to the book, but much less entertaining- mad props to Roald Dahl though)
Even this add is deceiving. They look so happy....
Consider yourself warned.
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