I want my son's retirement plan.

Sam had last Friday off from school so I took him to the bank to get an elective signed off for Tiger Cubs. He had to talk to someone at the bank about what they do and what happens to money.

I asked if they offered minor accounts with no fees or minimum balances. Indeed they do, with a really low interest rate. Anyway, Sam was rexcited about opening his own account so we decided to deposit all the money from his piggy bank.

That evening Yagopuchae decided to explain 401k retirement accounts. He promised to match Sam's deposits 100%. Sam got his piggy bank and we started counting. Yago thought he'd be out about $40, turns out there was about $150 in that piggy bank.

Finally!

I got a cable for my camera so I have pictures again. Here's a shot of Sammy at the Pinewood Derby when he won most creative design. The car isn't in the picture because the kids weren't allowed near their cars until it was over and by that time my camera was out of batteries.

Down the Drain

Sam lost another tooth last night, his fourth. I was cooking dinner when he told me his dad pulled it out. While I was cooking he took his tooth and said he was going to wash the blood off it for the Tooth Fairy. The next thing I heard was an awful gutteral noise. I asked what was wrong and I knew as soon as I saw him, he dropped his precious tooth down the drain. He fell apart, heartbroken. I calmed him down and promised the Tooth Fairy would come anyway. I told him to leave a note under his pillow and she would know to come.

He finished his homework trying his best to stifle sobs. I really felt bad for him. When it was time to leave a note for the Tooth Fairy he wrote it and let me read it afterward. It was so cute and he signed it "love, Sam." (With the quotes.) He's still learning about quotation marks and letter writing. It was adorable though. The Fairy left him $1.25, the most she's given to date.

Congrats

Yagopuchae won Company Grade Officer of the Year at the wing level so I need to give him a shout out for that. It's more impressive when you consider his wing hq is in San Antonio and it's an intel wing that let a comm weenie win.

I had a dr appt today and everything is progressing normally. We were going to take a little trip over President's Day weekend to Venice but that was pretty much nixed. The dr said I'd be right on the borderline of when they advise against air travel. Turns out the airlines won't let me fly anyway and the trains are outrageously priced. We'll have to come up with a plan b.

During yoga today the instructor was showing us a new pose. She demonstrated first, I actually laughed (scoffed) out loud, a "yeah right" kind of noise. I didn't mean to use my outside voice but it happened. I felt pretty self-conscious afterward. I think yoga is like mass, you're not supposed to make any noise. I did feel a slight improvement today for the first time since I started going, back in November.

Well, I'm pooped today. I think I'm going to try to take a nap before the boy gets home.

The Derby

Sam didn't win the Pinewood Derby but he did come in second for a couple of heats which was exciting. He's really happy that he won most creative design though. They gave him a certificate and medal for it. Keep in mind though that they had 22 award categories... I'm pretty sure that equals something for everyone. It did make Sam very happy so I don't have a beef with someone sitting around thinking up 22 different award categories.

Fer Me?!

A little unusual, two posts in one day. I don't really think I've done that since I quit working in the NOSC over a year ago.

Anyway, I forgot to mention that Yagopuchae came home with flowers yesterday and didn't even do anything wrong! It's the first time he's ever bought me flowers. I was initially suspicious but he reassured me. It was very cute, he sent Sam in with them. He's been busy with his classes trying to finish up his Master's. Hopefully he'll be done the end of February.

Ralphie's still hanging in there. I get to see him in less than two months, that's exciting. A little over seven weeks left and in three weeks I get to start drinking the raspberry leaf tea. Rememeber, Mistress?

Rub-a-Dub-Dub

The thought of showering exhausts me for some reason. It's been this way all week. I spend the day not doing anything, waiting until I shower but dreading the shower. I hope it passes soon. In the meantime I'm sitting here avoiding the bathroom.

On Your Mark, Get Set...

I have been quite uninspired to write lately, not sure why. I think of clever little things to write about when I'm away from the computer but when I'm home I can't think of a darn thing.

Last night Sam and I went to register his Pinewood Derby car. This thing was cool. He painted it yellow and put orange and red flames on it. I put some flames on the hood and he did the rest. Then he decided he wanted to stick a little Lego guy in there, all the other Tigers were jealous. Unfortunate for Sam, his mother has no idea how this race thingy works. At all. We got there and had someone attach the wheels for us and then it was time to weigh the car, it has to be 5 oz or less. Ours was a little over 2 oz which translates to piss poor performance, if I understand correctly. I attached a strip of weights to the bottom and weighed again. Viola, 4.95 oz. Perfect. Then off to measure. The weights made the car's clearance too low, I'd have to put them on top. This destroyed the entire design of the car. I broke the weights apart and stacked half of them in the groove next to the driver. When we turned the car in the guys kind of laughed that it looked like the little dude was a pizza delivery driver. I know this makes no sense if you can't see it but perhaps my little illustration will help.

Schmitty has a new bedtime routine that I must share. When we got back from the states he had jetlag so we told him to go read in bed. Now, every night he grabs a Jack and Annie book and goes upstairs to bed. He's also really in to Beethoven and plays a Beethoven at Bedtime CD while he reads in bed. Yago and I sit downstairs watching tv while Beethoven plays in the background. We think it's really funny.

My Name is Waldo and I'm a...

PB&J-holic. Sad but true, I'm back on the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I first realized I had a problem in 2002 when I started eating at least two a day. I lost my 6-pack (again) around the same time. Coincidence? Probably not.

I rediscovered these tasty little treats again a couple weeks ago and I'm back to having at least one every day. This is not good and I need to kick it now but I'm not ready to swear them off completely. In fact, I'm a little nervous thinking about it. Maybe next week I'll be ready to give them up again. Maybe I'll wait until Lent and give them up.

I left the house today and went to Yoga again, have mercy. The normal instructor is back and so is the normal class size. Did I tell you about the class I went to while she was on vacation? It was just me and the substitute Yoga instructor. Oh Lordy. One of the worst hours of my life. Really, I couldn't have been more self-conscious. Anyway, today's class was good and difficult. My favorite part was getting in to a pose I'd never been in before and feeling very awkward trying to hold it. I was trying to figure out what the heck I was supposed to be doing and after a good amount of time realized I was looking at EVERYONE in the class. That meant I was doing it ass-backward and the whole class was watching me hold it ass-backward. That was cute. (Made cuter by my 7-month pregnant belly, I'm sure.)

This weekend the family will be working on the Pinewood Derby car for Schmitty. I hope it goes well and no one cries. (yagopuchae)

I just found some peanut butter in my cuticle, that's funny. Mmm-mm.

Why would I expect anything else?

I got a phone call and email yesterday about my Reserve status. I am finally in the system (kind of) and can work. What they failed to mention was that the put me in an unpaid slot so I can work a month a year and not get paid at all for it. "Points only," means it counts toward retirement but I don't get any pay. What the heck? I never approved that, I wasn't even consulted. Oh, and by the way, I can't work past 35 weeks gestation. I'm over 31 right now. I'm a little ticked off and I can't find anyone who knows what the heck is going on. Ole girl that's been working on this since September is just now getting the paperwork together. She also said since it's points only, I can do just 17 days a year. (There are about 20 workdays in month if you work Mon-Fri.) Unfortunately, the website says for it to count toward retirement I have to do 35 days. If it weren't a two hour drive I'd like to march in to her office and smack her. Just fantasizing a little there.

I will start calling Sam's Tiger Scout Den Meetings --drumroll-- Sam Appreciation Night because I hate all the other kids and their parents. Every time I come home from one of the meetings Yago gets an earful of how much I hate all the little monsters and their parents. None of the parents discipline or correct bad behavior and none of the kids (except Sam) sit still or keep their mouths shut. You'd think I'd enjoy an opportunity to talk to another adult besides Yagopuchae but I don't.

If you can't tell, I'm a little cranky. I'm going to take a shower and see if that improves my mood. I wish I had a more productive way to spend my day but I'm just waiting for Ralphie to get here.

New Skills

Sam learned how to ride his bike yesterday. It took him quite a while but yesterday Yagopuchae took him to a park in town and when they returned Sam could ride his bike. Yago didn't give me many details, sufficed it to say that there were some spills and tough talk. There wouldn't have been success if I'd been with them, I'm sure. I lose my patience with Sam's lack of self-motivation but feel sorry for my little buckaroo when he falls down. I would have thought Yago was being too hard on him and Yago would have been frustrated with my "mothering". Regardless, we finally have success.

Today's my first day in a month back in my normal routine. I went to the gym and the commissary in peace but missed Sam a little bit. He'll be home shortly and I haven't done any housework yet or showered, I need to get a move on. Have I mentioned only a couple more months of walking around with a basketball-size growth in my belly? Then I get to have a cute little baby!

Happy New Y... Blah.

This will go down in the books as my second worst New Year's Eve, we won't even talk about the worst. I spent midnight in the bathroom throwing up, and not from having too good of time either.

Saturday night we went out to dinner with the Mormon couple to celebrate New Year's (since New Year's Eve was actually on a Sunday). Shortly after being seated Yago had to excuse himself and go to the bathroom, not an entirely unusual event. He admits to having a bladder the size of a pea. When the other couple called home to check on everyone the eldest daughter reported Sam had thrown up. Yago excused himself again and announced he wasn't feeling well. We left the restaurant and Yago had to pull over and throw up. We picked up Sam and came home. I spent the entire night awake on the couch as they took turns throwing up. My turn came Sunday night, although I didn't have it quite as bad as they did.

Today we don't have hot water and I'm waiting for the landlord to call me so I can take a shower. This kind of sucks also. Why does it always happen in the winter? At least the house has heat. In Leonberg we would lose heat AND hot water which made me super-cranky.

I've been waking up between 2:00 and 3:00 in morning and unable to go back to sleep. It happens several times a week and it's really ticking me off because it ruins my entire day. I feel like crap and I can't figure out why it's happening. I've got a little over two months left to enjoy sleep and it's eluding me far too often. I'm not stressed or worried about anything and I don't have a problem falling asleep, I just can't stay asleep.

Well, Sam is thoroughly bored watching me blog and I should find something else to do with myself today. I had grand plans of sterilizing everything in or near a bathroom today but I don't want to play in cold water. (excuse)

Hope everyone else had a happy new year.

Fa la la la la...

The neighbors that live behind us have their Christmas tree outdoors. It's been out there since we got back from the US. It's lit and decorated... and sitting in their backyard. It's a little odd.

I swear my husband is like my father. The day after Christmas he was eyeballing the decorations and then he headed downstairs. "Where are you going?" I asked. "To get a box to start putting the Christmas stuff away," he answered. Just like my dad. "You don't leave it up until New Year's?" I asked. Let's just say I was met with a look but the Christmas stuff is still intact.

I had all these notions of what I was going to do with Sam over the Christmas break. I haven't done anything but drag him to the clinic with me and run errands. I went on Wednesday and had a gestational diabetes test and then back on Thursday for my rh shot so I don't start producing antibodies that try to attack and destroy Ralphie. I don't think he's stopped moving today, it's strange. Seems like he's been up all day long reminding me he's there.

We went out to dinner this evening, something we like to do on Friday nights. I ate too much, as usual. The thing is, I consciously tried to avoid overeating. I had some french onion soup as a starter followed by salmon filled ravioli. I ate about 2/3 of the ravioli and was happy that I left the rest. Unfortunately, I kept sneaking fries from Schmitty's plate and then had apple struedel and coffee for dessert. Maybe I'll hit the gym tomorrow. (Yeah, I don't think so either.) I'll be sure to brag if I do go...

Whew!

Christmas is over, thank goodness. It wasn't easy coming back a couple days before the holiday with jetlag. I'm pretty sure Sam knows I'm Santa now. (okay, I'm positive because he's a pretty smart boy) I hauled the presents downstairs and spent a little while bickering with Yagopuchae about how I overdo Christmas. Apparently, wrapping gifts is above and beyond in his book. Anyway, I stuffed the stockings and came upstairs to hang them on doorknobs and go to bed. I hung Sam's and brushed my teeth. I left the bathroom with Yagopuchae's stocking in hand only to bump in to Sam standing at his stocking in front of his bedroom door. It was after midnight but he was still awake trying to adjust to the time change. I dropped Yago's stocking (which has a jingle bell on it, so much for being sly) and asked what he was doing. He said he woke up. Oops.

On Christmas Eve we went to a small gathering at Karry and Amy's house. They have five kids with the sixth due in a month (Mormons). They do a reenactment of the birth of Jesus every year and invited us and two other families over. Sam got to be one of the wisemen, it was cute and funny. Sounds a little more bizarre than it turned out to be. I was braced for pure wackiness but it was fun watching them all.

Yago is bragging that he got 3 Christmas cards and I didn't get any. I'd just like to point out that getting a Christmas card from a merchant that sold you several thousand dollars in rugs a couple years ago DOESN'T count. His friend sent one addressed to Jason and Jennifer. Also, the neighbors don't know my name and addressed the card to Jason and family... joint cards. I assured him if people knew my new address I would have gotten many more cards. (or at least one) By the way stuckinmd, it's PSC 3 Box 64 APO AE 09021. Thank you, and feel free to address to just Sam and me!

Packy Pack

I drafted an entry the other day explaining why the German dry-cleaning ladies hate me but I became bored writing it so I knew you'd be bored reading it. Suffice it to say, they aren't very nice or forgiving of my forgetful tendencies. Even if it's in German I know they're insulting me. It reminds me of when Elaine knew her nail technicians were talking about her in Vietnamese. (Seinfeld)

Sam sang with the Catholic Children's Choir last night for the tree lighting ceremony on base. I tried to take pictures but by the time the flash when off and the picture snapped someone's head would pop in my way. It was a complete debacle anyway. They changed the song list at the last minute on a bunch of 4-7 yr olds. No one knew what the heck they were singing. They sang two songs and one of them was in German, you can guess how that went.

I have a lot of getting ready to do for the trip. I'll have two cranky boys that don't travel well and honestly? I'm not sure which one will be more difficult. At least I can give the little one a trinket or game to keep him busy. The big one is higher maintenance and not as easily pacified. I wish I could slip them some extra-drowsy Dramamine or something... And, by the way, I was supposed to by flying business class this trip until evil Delta doubled the mileage requirement on me!! Still bitter.

I haven't done much Christmas shopping yet. I've gotten a few games for Sam and that's it. That means I'll either have to brave the mall crowds in the states or wait until the weekend before Christmas here. Either way, it doesn't sound fun. Tonight is St. Nick's Night here. The children leave their shoes outside and St. Nick comes and fills them with candy if they're good or coal and switches if they're bad. Heehee, I can exact my revenge.

Well, I'd better get busy doing something or else Yagopuchae will be grumpier than usual. He's already in service dress today, I hadn't better push my luck. ...Where do I keep those Dramamine?

Nuernberg Trials

I've been quite neglectful of my little blog lately...

Yesterday we went to the Christmas Market in Nuernberg, it's quite famous. I got up at 6:00 on a Saturday morning to leave at 7:00. We got there at about 12:30. I really love the Christmas Markets but this one was so crowded it was difficult to really enjoy it. They serve Gluehwein, mulled wine, everywhere in about a thousand different varieties but being pregnant I had to practice restraint. Anyway, it was so crowded... It's a huge outdoor market and little amusement park for kids but it was shoulder to shoulder throughout and I get grumpy when people constantly push me and never say, "Excuse me." Especially when I'm pregnant, whether they can tell or not. I feel bad for Yagopuchae because he's been talking about the gingerbread there for over a year now and he bought lots of it to bring home only to discover it's fruitcake.

Sam nearly got suspended from school on Thursday. That's right, first grade. He punched a kid during recess and they tried to suspend him but couldn't get a hold of his parents to pick him up. The kid he punched is huge, going to be eight this year and I learned it wasn't so much a punch as a heel of his hand to the kid's forehead. I think the kid was running at Sam and Sam panicked...

Yago's 30th birthday was last Friday and I tried to make him a special lemon raspberry liquor bundt cake. Unfortunately, I forgot the baking powder, baking soda and salt. That didn't make a very good cake. Sorry.

Well, I've already skipped mass this morning and if I don't get my behind in gear we're going to miss CCD too. (For the third week in a row...)

Mistress... we need to work out what day we're coming up there. Maybe the 19th? What do you think?

Happy Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving at our house went really well. I was exhausted by the time it was over and dishes were done. I made turkey, stuffing, candied sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, pistachio salad and green beans. Oh yeah, and two pumpkin pies. It was WAY too much food. I've never made Thanksgiving dinner by myself before, all I had to work with were memories of my mom making it for our family. I didn't keep in mind that Yagopuchae, Sam and I can't eat as much as my parents, sister and me. I bought a 20 lb turkey and have no idea what we're going to do with it all... We had turkey tetrazzini last night for dinner.

Sam lost ANOTHER tooth. He's going to look like his Gramma pretty soon! The Tooth Fairy left him three quarter dollars.

We put up the Christmas tree last night. We had box after box of mismatched decorations. In the end we went with an oldie but goodie... the salmon colored tree. I know Mistress would be relentless if she were here but it looks good! Good, I tell you!

I wish there were Christmas movies on TV. I really want to just curl up on the couch and watch cheesy Christmas movies. Any cheesy Christmas movie would do. Of course, right now there's too much work to do. The living room is destroyed with the boxes of Christmas decorations I have to sort through.

I hear Yago doing dishes and I should get downstairs to help. He's making pumpkin muffins for breakfast. Such a good husband...

I'll be back in the states in a couple weeks, I can't wait to see everyone.

When will it end?

Although I've tried to avoid watching the footage of Michael Richards' tirade I wasn't able to escape it this afternoon. It was disgusting. What is wrong with people? I had hoped 20 years ago that this was over...

Ralphie is really worrying me. I've still got almost four months of pregnancy left and I'm uncomfortable entirely too often. I found out a few weeks ago that Yagopuchae was 8 lbs 11 oz and I was none too happy. Plus? Yago has a big melon. Some of you remember what Sammy's head looked like... How can I have heartburn this much and feel so much pressure on my ribs already?

Sam's teacher gave them something like 5 sheets of homework over the holidays. I'm glad he'll be kept busy but I think it's odd that a 1st grader should have that much homework over a long weekend. Not to mention his parent's dole out plenty of workbook assignments for him as it is.

Or not...

This weekend wasn't really that busy after all. I skipped all the Sunday morning stuff because I didn't feel well, I have a cold. So no church or CCD. We did, however, all go to the Pack Meeting and the choir thing for Sam. A little girl that was chosen for the solo ruined it, in my opinion. No one showed her or told her how to use a microphone so she stood up there with her lips pasted to it and yelled her solo in to it. She completely drowned out the other kids and made me cringe. At one point I giggled out loud at how ridiculous she sounded.

I went to yoga again this morning. The pilates instructor is filling in for the yoga instructor and everyone is just patiently waiting for Jennifer (the regular instructor) to get back next month. Today there was an old couple there, it was cute. They had to have been in their 60s, at least the husband was. I was amused at the thought of Yagopuchae and I going to yoga together in 30 years. During the relaxation at the end of class Ralphie always wakes up and completely distracts me. How am I supposed to go in to a deep state of relaxation when he decides it's time to strike a few poses of his own?

Still Busy

I've been very busy the last few days and Yago always takes the computer on Wednesdays for his class so I haven't written much.

Sam had Thursday and Friday off from school due to parent/teacher conferences. We went to his conference yesterday and he's doing very well. Ms. Oppenheim wants to have him and a couple other kids in the class tested for reading. She thinks he's above his grade level and could benefit from this test. Really the only advantage she mentioned was that the librarian would direct him to more challenging books. They color code the books according to grade level and if he places on the test then they would make sure he chooses books of corresponding color. His teacher says he's doing well though and his behavior is improving.

Tomorrow is a rehearsal for some choir thing they're doing Sunday. Sunday is mass, CCD, pack meeting and then choir performance. That should keep me busy most of the weekend...

Poor Yagopuchae has had to tolerate my hormonal mood swings. Twice last week I started bawling for no real, apparent reason. I'm not usually much of a crier but I think Ralphie's getting the better of me. I started crying at the gym last week and had to hurry out after watching the 60 Minutes tribute to Ed Bradley. How silly, I don't even know the guy. I almost cried at choir practice because the kids were so cute singing about the Lord. ???

Sam lost his other front tooth last night. I don't know why losing teeth grosses me out so much but it does! (Maybe it has something to do with an incident with a "frozen dog turd.") Sam is so excited, he can't wait until Gramma and Grandpa see BOTH of his teeth gone. I think he looks like a hillybilly, but that's just me.

Sorry about the lapse, Mickity. ;^)