naive or jaded

which am i?

i voted for a president that i hoped would not only set out to change things but would actually succeed in doing just that. i'm not alone. i know lots of people who voted for him.

since it has barely been a week since he actually took office, i am still holding onto that hope. i will not give up on him yet.

today he went to capitol hill to talk about his economy-stimulating efforts with republican leaders. before he even got there, the republican leadership was on the news telling everyone who would listen that they don't support his bill. now, i know they got to see the bill before obama's visit, so obviously they have already formulated their opinions of it. but COME ON! can't you at least make us think you were discussing it with an open mind?

i tend to think that the job of the congress is to play the bad cop. where the president gets to play the good cop. yes, clearly it didn't work that way for W, but that's only because he's a complete idiot.

this is not the way i wish it were. i wish our federal government could work *together.* like we hired them to do. i don't want representatives to automatically stand divided on the party line. i want them to use the few brain cells they possess and try to rise above the stupidity of DC politics.

and at the very least i would like them put on a good face. don't come out BEFORE the meeting and bash the bill. at least get in a room and discuss the damn thing before you pass judgement on it.

i elected someone who seems to have learned a thing or two in his 47 years. now, if only the rest of the politicians could just **grow up,** i think we might actually get out of "high-school mode" and accomplish something.

New Mexico House Bill 196

For those who might be interested or inclined to help:

Many of you know about our efforts at passing the MISSing Angels Bill to establish a Certificate of Birth Resulting in Stillbirth in New Mexico. It passed in 2007 but was vetoed by the governor. We have not given up our efforts and are once again in full legislative swing to get it passed again and finally signed!

The bill is HB196: http://nmlegis.gov/Sessions/09%20Regular/bills/house/HB0196.pdf

We would very much appreciate it if you could call or fax your legislators to ask them to support this long-overdue bill. If you have any questions, comments or concerns, please feel free to contact me. If you would like to do more than contact your legislators, let me know. We are always looking for more help, especially more people who can be a presence at committee meetings.

Here is where you can locate your legislator: http://nmlegis.gov/lcs/legislatorsearch.aspx

Thank you all so much for your support, not only in this effort, but in our journey through the grief of Jesper's loss.

Behind

i will get back here one of these days. i promise. i have pics form christmas and and more pics of willow and nate. if i were not so embarrassed by the state of my house, i would post before and after pics of the clean up. but it is just so mundane. laundry, laundry, laundry, kitchen, christmas trip stuff, and now items from the storage shed. suffice it to say, i am working on cleaning up the house and getting some stuff out of here or at least in storage.

i'll be back soon . . .

too big

the couple that works the sushi counter at my local grocery store love to see willow. she is just too cute. they love to make her smile. today the lady working the deli counter came out to coo at her, too.

"oh, she's so cute. they are both so cute. i have a grandbaby who is 7 mos old. she reminds me so much of my grandbaby."

then the phrase no woman wants to hear--unless of course it is actually true. "oh, are you having another one?"

"um, no."

"oh, well what do you have under your jacket."

"just my boobs."

she was standing behind me looking over my shoulder at the kids, so i'm guessing she mistook my clown boobs for a baby belly. nevermind that the one sitting in the cart chewing on everything in site is only 6 mos old (a fact the lady actually asked about).

this in combination with what my doctor said at my appt on tuesday, "you aren't that big, but your boobs are really big." in a way that makes me feel better.

but in another way, i have to wonder, just how big do your breasts have to get before you are not only mistaken for a pregnant woman (with the boobs playing the part of a baby belly) but that your own doctor, who is supposed to tell you to lose weight, says the bulk of your body is your breasts. however big you have to be to hear those things, that's how big mine are.

clown boobs.
pornographically big.

random shots

nate and willow hanging out on the couch.


the alleged teeth. (sorry for the fuzzy picture.) she's downright vicious with them at this point.


oh, hi.


yes, as with most babies, she can fold herself nearly in half still. she can actually get her toes in her mouth, though she isn't in this pic. she does this mostly when she's au naturale since pesky diapers and clothes hinder this ability.


just cute.

6 months

willow is 6 months old now. at her well baby visit (the day after this picture), she weighed 19 lbs. so she's slowed down some, which is good. i'm sure she'll slow down a bit more when she actually starts moving around. so far she hasn't even bothered to roll over yet, but i'm not worried. she'll get there in her own time.

Halloween 2008

Nate as a bumble bee. (or as Bumblebee. if you are familiar with transformers, you will know who that is. Nate was actually teased at school for this costume. the Bumblebee comment was my comeback to it.)


Willow as a cheerleader. (Thanks Pam!)


Nate and Willow together at Trick or Treat on Mainstreet.

love/hate

nate has, for the longest time, had a love-hate relationship with his fan. yes, his ceiling fan.

when he was a baby, all we had to do to keep him from going down the hall was to put a fan in the hall. he wouldn't get anywhere near it. it was convenient; we didn't need to use a baby gate to keep him confined to the living room.

later, when he got his own room, we installed a ceiling fan with bright rainbow-colored fan blades. he loved it and was completely fascinated by it. but he's also scared of it. he will often refuse to go into his room by himself because of the fan. "it can see me."

the other night, in an i'm-so-tired-i-can't-cope-with-anything mood, he was expressing his fear of the rainbow fan. papa said, "if it attacks you. i'll shoot it, and throw it in the garbage." to which nate said, "don't shoot the fan!"

i've never known another child to be so scared of something that is securely attached to the ceiling. but then nate is an odd duck at times. i think it is cute, and i know that the days of him being afraid of something we take for granted are numbered. so i cherish his little quirks (and blog about them here).

happy, happy, happy

happy thanksgiving to one and all.

speaks like an adult

ok, maybe a little adult. in the car last night, nate says:

speaking of school, apparently i have a field trip to the library on the city bus on monday.


cracks me up. laughing. tears. nearly wet myself. but i was driving so i had to maintain some control.
hahahahahahahaha!