Pu's Corner

Walang Balita

2012-01-24T18:05:00.000-08:00

I apologize for the recent blog silence. I really do have lots of posts in my head that never seem to make it to the screen. We recently received word that my grandfather is heading quickly downhill. This was somewhat unexpected (in spite of the fact that he is nearing 90), as we did not know until just last week that he had a life threatening illness. My father has blogged more extensively than I am willing to, but this event has dredged up some powerful emotions. I was with my grandmother on her deathbed, but one of my greatest regrets is that I did not get to see her one last time when she was still coherent. Now I fear the same will be true with my grandfather. I had more to say, but I think it's best if I just leave it at that. This is, perhaps, no longer the forum to air my private thoughts.

Bidding Again Already??!!

2012-01-13T15:18:00.000-08:00

That's right, folks, the CNL (now called RLP - Recruitment Language Program) bid list is out! I am excited about all the possibilities for our 2nd tour. We are required to bid on everything that even comes close to being a fit for us, but looking at the issues of timing (i.e. when I am due to leave Manila + home leave + time for additional training at FSI), I think our list is narrowed significantly. All of our options are exciting and interesting in their own way, so I think we'll be thrilled no matter where we end up going. Our lists are due in about a week and a half, and I'm not sure how long the matching process takes, so it may be a while before we know definitively where we'll end up in 2014. It's going to be weird to have the next 5 years of our life fully mapped out after living with such uncertainty for so long. If only we had little black passports to match!*

*I promise an update on the saga of getting our diplomatic passports in the next post or so, but it's going to take more time than I have on hand to explain!

Ovetjkin Jr

2012-01-10T15:41:00.000-08:00

I'd like to say the above pictures were due to an awesome hockey fight, but, sadly, we must blame that sole piece of metal playground equipment spared by the late 90's, early 00's plastic revolution: the slide. A and the slide don't get along to well and eventually the slide got the better of him. Unfortunately for A it took the school about 30min to track me down at work (I keep my phone off during class and the school had Husband's number written incorrectly). Poor kid sat around gushing blood until we finally showed up almost an hour after the slide one upped him. As usual, he didn't shed a tear. I, on the other hand, wanted to cry the minute I saw him. An ER trip later, A was off to the pediatric dentist to have one of his front teeth removed. Luckily he was able to keep the other one, but it's root was likely killed by the impact, so he may end up losing it at a later date anyway. On the plus side, he looks like a real hockey player now!

I begin to see how fortunate people with careful children are. C was a very calm child with few accidents. Between J&A we've had multiple ER visits resulting in stitches, heads glued back together, heads stapled back together, and now teeth knocked out. His skating instructor suggested it might be best if he wear his hockey helmet all the time instead of just on the ice. She may not be wrong!

Holiday Spirit

2012-01-01T18:12:00.000-08:00

I was going to title this post, "Suck it. Bitches." but my husband was concerned that all of the other newsy bits would get lost in my crowing over how I WON MY FANTASY FOOTBALL LEAGUE.* That's right, people. I am AWESOME!!! Bow down to the great power and ability of yours truly to pick the right players and kick major fantasy ass. What? What's that? Well, no. It's not actually a sport. Fantasy football is where people pick players who actually do play a sport and then get points when they do well. You know what, why don't you just Shut the Hell Up. I am the WINNAH!!!

I know, I know, I kept meaning to post over the vacation, but I was too busy trying to relax to get around to it, so there is a lot to catch up on. We spent an awesome (and way too short) few days with the extended Pu clan in good old Albuquerque, where we had a perfect white Christmas. Strangely enough, Abq has never failed to deliver on the white Christmas front. It was a balmy 50 degrees here in DC when we got back! It was so nice to visit with the family and meet my new niece, Lia, who is sooo precious! Cousin Y and J are just 6 months apart and the girls were inseparable for the entire vacation. It sucks that we get to see them so little. We did the usual: ate, ate, then we ate some more. I think there may have been some conversation in there...mostly about the food and how we were cooking it. I must have gained 10lb. Anything less would have been an insult! I would post pictures, but I hardly took any. I have come to the conclusion that I am just a terrible photographer and maybe it would be better for my temper if I just gave it up altogether. My mom and BIL are both excellent amateur photographers, who documented the event well enough for all of us. So I'll just poach their pictures when posted!

You know what else Abq is good for (besides snow at X-Mas)? Sleep!! That's right. I slept with no problems at all the minute I arrived in Albuquerque. I feel like I have finally caught up with my sleep, and I hope it stays when I get back to work on Tuesday. Speaking of which, I have not studied one bit this entire vacation. I have some lingering guilt over this, and I am sure that I will be regretting it greatly when class starts back up. But, right now, it seems like the best decision ever. I so needed a break from studying after this incredibly intense year.

C turned the big 1-3 yesterday, and I came to the sudden realization that I am the mother of an honest to god teenager. WTF? You know you're old when suddenly your kids birthday milestones make you feel older than your own! I took C to see Breaking Dawn Part 1 as one of her birthday gifts. I am happy I did so because she absolutely loved it, but that must be one of the most excruciatingly boring films I have ever seen. They spent the 1st hour solely on long, dramatic face shots of the two leads as they gazed at each other adoringly. And there's still a part 2 to live through!! Have you ever seen the Seinfeld episode where Elaine is forced to watch the English Patient? That is how I felt. I hope C knows how much love it took to sit through that ;)

So I guess that's mostly everything. Oh, I also got a Mac. Yay, me! The only problem? Now I have to learn how to use a whole new OS :( Boo! I'm too lazy for that. I think I'm going to sign up for classes at the Apple Store in Ballston because this no right click thing is killing me (I also never realized how much I used the page up and down buttons!). This is primarily why this post is so short. I am getting to frustrated! Now off to figure out how to sync my iPod without losing my folders. Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season. Here's to an even more exciting 2012!

*And also it doesn't really sound all that diplomatic. Bleh.

Cultura Overload

2011-12-20T10:33:00.000-08:00

Otherwise known as Pu Dances the Tinikling and Goes to Church.

I have been meaning to post about the SLS Fair that occurred, oh, maybe a month ago, but I just kept forgetting to get permission from my teachers & classmate to post pics. One of my friends in Hindi posted a video about their class cultural experience, which inspired me to get off my ass and make this post! The SLS Fair gives our FSI instructors an opportunity to share their different cultures with each other. Students don't usually participate, but the Tagalog section is so tiny that our instructors asked if we might help out. First they taught us about two different Philippine holidays, the Flores de Mayo and the Ati-Atihan Festival, that we would be representing. Then we got all Imeldific! L & I got to rock some sparkly gowns, heels, tiaras, and sashes as Philippine beauty queens, but the real fun came when we learned and then got the chance to to teach people how to dance the Tinikling. My teachers made it look incredibly easy and graceful, but, to me, it was like jumping double dutch for two straight hours. I was so gross and sweaty by the end of it! On the plus side, we were by far the most popular booth at the fair. L & I posed for pictures, enticed people to come dance the Tinikling and try on traditional costumes, we played music, and generally had a blast. There was a booth next to us from a different part of the world (we'll be ultra-diplomatic and leave out said country's name) and man were they pissed! They kept complaining about how noisy we were being, and how we kept getting in their space, blah blah blah. As they sat there stone-faced and pouting, I couldn't help thinking how happy I am that we are headed to the Philippines! After having spent so many years not being represented (for a long time the Tagalog section only had 1 teacher, so there was no opportunity for her to participate), my teachers were so proud to have the Philippines be represented so well. Plus it was a total blast (and I got a good workout in!).

Teacher G and Language Supervisor M show off the traditional Ati-Atihan costume

L posing in front of the Philippines booth

Teacher G & I in front of our booth

Teacher S strikes a mean Tinikling

Three lovely Philippine ladies taking a break from dancing

This last week we did something on the opposite end of the spectrum and attended the first night of Simbang Gabi with my teacher. The Mass ended up being in English since the priest was not Philippino, but all of the songs were in Tagalog and we got to converse with people after the service while eating a traditional Philippine breakfast (lost of simple carbs and chicken soup!). The only negative was that we had to get up at 4am to make the 5am service. Mercifully, our teachers took pity on us and let us out of class early to make up for the fact that we started our day so early. This was a big plus for me since the other item on my agenda for the day was to get off my ass and haul the family downtown to get our diplomatic passports. I will post about this journey separately since it was truly its own adventure!

Insomnia

2011-12-17T15:30:00.000-08:00

You would think now that my Masters program is finally over (FINALLY!!!) I would actually spend some time updating my blog. Oh you silly readers. Actually a little over a week ago I began suffering from the worst bout of insomnia I've ever had. I've always been prone to periods of insomnia for as long as I can remember. I have these weird memories of childhood nights spent listening to a self-hypnosis cassette tape meant to help me visualize my way to sleep. I can also remember hearing the click of the cassette as the tape ended, lol. As I've gotten older I've recognized that usually these patterns develop during times of high stress, and they usually last for about 3-4 days or until I pass out from lack of sleep (because, as with everything in my life, we don't half-ass things here at Pu's Corner, if I have insomnia it means I don't sleep at all). This last bout, however, seems to be unending. It started the last week of my Master's Program (and the week following my incredibly poor performance during my 1st Tagalog assessment), so I thought once I finished up with school that it would clear up. Alas I think I totally fucked myself up in the head because I have not been able to sleep for almost 2 weeks now.

You would think at some point a person would just keel over from lack of sleep, but apparently you can just keep on functioning. Husband eventually dragged me to the doctor after my own attempts to self-drug did not work (I tried Tylenol PM, Melatonin, and even NyQuil). The doctor prescribed me Ambien, which helped give me a few hours of sleep, but I would still wake up at about 3-4am and then be wide awake until my alarm went off. So I went to see a sleep specialist, who basically told me there's nothing wrong with me (physically) and then gave me some Ambien CR, which is supposed to last longer but ended up acting just like the regular Ambien. I finally got fed up and combined a double of dose of Ambien with some alcohol, which is not particularly safe or healthy, but it did work. I slept from 10pm to 8am this morning. I have never been so happy! Hopefully this will kick my body into gear and get me over this mental block against sleep. I guess we'll find out tonight!

One More Week, One More Week, One More Week

2011-12-05T17:31:00.000-08:00

That is the manta I am currently clinging to anyway. Just one last week of dual school before I am so donesies with my MS, and I cannot freaking wait! I foresee many a Tagalog flashcard in my future!!

Anyway, its been a while since I posted any recipes, and the seasons are a changin'. So here's a few of the most popular recipes we've been chomping lately. The key to making these recipes is to use minimal effort and time to come up with the best results possible!

Skillet Roasted Chicken

4-6 boneless chicken breasts
kosher salt
pepper
juice from 1 lemon

Salt and pepper the chicken to taste and add squeezes of lemon over top. Heat a large non-stick, oven-ready skillet over medium heat and brown the chicken breasts on both sides. Toss those suckers in the oven at 400 degrees for about 5-8 min (depends on the thickness of the chicken). Seriously, that's it.

Roasted Winter Veggies

1-2 diced sweet potatos
2 diced parsnips
1 peeled head of garlic
1 medium yellow onion
Spice Mix - paprika, New Mexican chile powder (or whatever kind ya got), cumin, pepper, and kosher salt*
1-2 tbsp olive oil

Combine the veggies in a large glass pan. Add the spice mix and oil, and toss that shit til every bit o' veggie is covered. Roast veggies uncovered at 400 degrees for about an hour, or until the veggies are nice and tender.

Of course you can make this with whatever veggies you prefer. We usually just combine whatever looks best at the market. Turnips, shallots, carrots, butternut squash, and various kinds of mushrooms have all made appearances in the past with great success.

Hint: Chopping your veggies into like-size pieces will give you the best result since everything will cook evenly.

Homemade Applesauce

8-10 Honeycrisp Apples**
1/2 cup sucanet
1- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup water
1-2 tbsp cinnamon

Peel & core the apples, and add them to a large pot. Add the other ingredients to the pot and bring everything to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for about 20min (you can use a fork to check the done-ness of the apples). Now that your apples are soft you can either use an immersion blender or I prefer the old fashioned method of using a potato masher to smash my apples because it results in a much chunkier sauce. This recipe is so versatile. You can eat it warm right out of the pot as a dessert, chill it and it eat as regular old applesauce, or you can use it as a topping for waffles or pancakes (you may wish to add more water to make it thinner if you want to use it more like a syrup).

Apple Yogurt

1/4-1/3 cup Homemade Applesauce (see above)
1 cup 0% plain greek yogurt
Sprinkle of raisins
Sprinkle of chopped nuts

Mix that shit up and dig in! Sometimes I even add a little extra cinnamon or swap out the nuts for some Bare Naked Fit granola if I'm craving more crunch. Tastes like fall :)

*I specifically left out amounts on the spice mixture because I like my veggies pretty spicy, so you can choose to add whatever amount of paprika and chile powder you please to achieve the taste you prefer.

**You can use any variety you wish, but I like to use apples that are naturally quite sweet so that I don't need to add much sweetener.

Hockey Man

2011-12-02T13:23:00.000-08:00

In addition to cheering C on the volleyball court*, we are hard core hockey parents. Of course since our son is only 4 and just learning to skate, yelling at him to body check the other kids is generally frowned upon. Stupid other parents. So we started him in individual lessons so that he really focus on learning how to throw a good right hook. Today we realized our lessons had really been driven home when A took a face plant on the ice and promptly started bleeding profusely from his mouth and nose. Some pussy bystanders expressed concern, and they even made everyone clear the ice so they could clean it up and examine him (it was really a decent amount of blood). A, however, thought it was all quite hilarious.** His brave face earned a high five from some of the Capitols (yeah, the Washington Capitols!) who were passing through on their way to their practice rink, who told him to "stay strong, little man." They were not as enamored with his penguin hat, however. I guess we were lucky he wasn't wearing any of his Sabres gear!

* Had our 1st parent meeting on Tuesday night. The girls will have a clinic to focus on particular skills on Saturdays and them practice only 2x a week, on Wed nights and Sunday afternoons. Yeah, guess who's going to be missing all of the 2nd halves for the rest of the year :( Well, at least this means the Bills might actually win some games since I won't be around to screw it up for them!

**At the moment...later he really played it up for the some cuddles and the all important candy!

Gobblins

2011-11-27T14:31:00.000-08:00

Pun intended. We've got five of 'em here and, boy, can they eat! Anyway, here's some pics of their Turkey Day feast. I was going to do a post about how football broke up with me (and it was a bad break-up, too, none of this let's be friends bullshit), but then the Bills had to go and put up a decent showing today (oh, don't worry, we still lost, but at least we made it a fight). So now, I'm confused. Does football like me or not? Check yes or no. I think I'm going to lose in both of my fantasy leagues, so I'm leaning towards the "no" box.

Gobblins Being Forced to Make Stuffing

Believe it or not this is the best picture I could get of all 5 Gobblins

Yes, this was a child's plate

Let's dig in!

Oh, yeah, we also braved Black Friday* and made a side trip to Santa's lap

*Okay, so technically it was Black Saturday since I had to work on Friday to avoid losing per diem. Long story but basically if you take leave while staying at Oakwood you not only lose per diem for the day, you also have to pay the daily Oakwood rate (meaning I would be out around $200 for just one day of leave). Since I'm already going to be shelling out a small fortune just to go home for X-Mas, I just wasn't willing to do it for a day when I was here in town. On the plus side, FSI was completely empty and finding a computer was a breeze!

Oh to be Twelve Again

2011-11-15T18:37:00.000-08:00

Has anyone in the history of the world ever uttered those words? I think the middle school years are best forgotten for most of us, and my poor C is in the very midst of them. We are struggling with school issues, truth issues, friend issues, attitude issues, and she's one of the good ones!! I think the biggest problem is that her keen intelligence far outweighs her complete lack of common sense. Unfortunately I don't think those two trajectories even out until sometime in your late-twenties to early-thirties. As I understand it, these issues are all par for the course for this age, so I am completely baffled as to how the human race has managed to survive all these years.

In the very good new column, C tried out for and made the volleyball team. This is club volleyball (meaning I get to pay for the privilege, lol). There were many girls who tried out, so when the coach called and said C was one of the solid nine to make the team (there will be 12 girls total on the team) she was very proud. We are very proud of her! Last year was tough because it was her 1st year playing, and volleyball is huge (!!) in FL, so she was on a very competitive team playing with girls who had a lot more experience than her. That meant we ended up investing a lot of time (1 1/2 hours driving 3x/week to practice, plus all-weekend tournaments every other weekend) just to watch her ride the bench for most of the season. I think learning to play at that level has really benefited her, and now she is one of the more experienced and knowledgeable players, so she'll really have a chance to shine this season. The international schools in Manila also offer volleyball, so this is something she'll be able to continue throughout the upheaval of moving again.

Happy Veteran's Day

2011-11-11T13:53:00.000-08:00

Happy, happy day to all my friends and family who have served (even if it was only in Alabama ;) Having an all-volunteer force makes the sacrifices we are willing to make just that much more special. Much love and thanks to all of you!! To celebrate this special day, my kids made me a special breakfast:

The plate is divided into the five food groups: Crackers, Cheesy Crackers, Cheesy Poofs, Cookies, and Yogurt

The proud chef poses next to her creation:

And, yes, that is strawberry milk in the glass. Go ahead, be jealous ;)

Oh, and for those who inquired, Delgado is home and doing fine. In fact he is up and walking around with no issues as all. The incision doesn't look anywhere near as bad as I thought it might, and he doesn't even seem to notice that he's missing a leg! He's moving around with much more ease, trying to chase after the cat, and moping because of the Elizabethan collar he's forced to wear while the stitches heal. He goes back in two weeks to have the sutures removed and, with any luck, once those come off we'll finally be able to have the normal family dog experience we've been wanting (long walks, dog park visits, etc.).

Suck Day

2011-11-09T15:23:00.000-08:00

We took Delgado in for his surgery today. Up 'til now I have been very pragmatic about the whole thing. After all there is nothing we can do now but move forward and do what is best for him. But I couldn't help getting a little choked up this morning as we dropped him off at the vet's. He has been very subdued for the last day or so, as if he knew something was up, and I felt so sad watching him trot off knowing that in a few hours he would be a very different dog. We got a call this afternoon that the surgery went very well, and Delgado is already recovering nicely. He'll stay at the vet's tonight for observation and then we can go pick up tomorrow. I know everything is going to be fine and now he'll be able to move and grow like a normal dog instead of dragging around that useless limb, but I have still felt like crying all day. This day just sort of sucks.

It's Not You, It's Me

2011-11-07T12:30:00.000-08:00

My streak of attending horrific football games where we not only lose but lose badly continues! I have been witness to the Bills losing to Arizona after they went 4-0 in 2008*, and losing to Miami after Miami had an 0-16 season, among other notable loser games. And now I can add our utter and depressing defeat to the despised NY Jets, in our own house none the less! After all the talk I've heard about what an awesome stadium the Ralph Wilson is (and it is), how rowdy and crazy the fans get, etc. it was such a let down to have the Jets just walk all over us and suck the life out of that stadium from the very first drive of the game. I was extra sad because we had the choice of attending this game or the one against the Pats in Week 3 (you remember, the one where we came from 2 touchdowns down to actually best the Pats for the 1st time in 8 seasons) and this one. I chose poorly :(

I'm beginning to think it's just me. I must be some sort of bad luck charm. Husband has also commented on this, that my presence seems to inspire teams to play poorly (I have this affect on the Sabres, as well). Am I doomed to never witness one of my teams win?? Well, here's some pics of happier times:

Look how cute and hopeful I appear in front of the Ralph

The game hasn't started yet, smiles still on our faces

Tailgating!!

*We started the season 4-0, then our ex-QB got sacked by the AZ defense who gave him a concussion and knocked him out of the game, then he ended up sucking after that and we finished the season something like 7-9.

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T18:34:00.000-07:00

Before you ask, he was Yoshi not a frog or a turtle! Clearly people are not up to date on their Super Mario these days!

We also had a leopard...

But, no C this year. She lost trick-or-treating due to a series of unfortunate events involving undone homework and the truth (or lack thereof). She decided she was too old for it this year anyway.

This one was an actual turtle*

* Unfortunately the turtle face wouldn't fit over his crazy big German Shepherd ears!

The Dogs of Our Lives

2011-10-29T10:31:00.000-07:00

Oh how the dog drama continues! I wish it were only as exciting as a previously unknown twin returning from the dead or a doggie wedding busted up by a jealous bride, but unfortunately our dog drama is a lot more painful and a lot less exciting. After four months of dog ownership, 3 1/2 have consisted of broken limb issues, casts, and physical therapy.* Delgado had his cast on for about 4 weeks, meaning the cast has actually been off longer now than it was on in the first place, yet he still does not use the leg at all.

Doggie Saga Part 1: After the first couple of days post-cast removal, we called the vet's office (hereafter referred to as the Surgeon's office because that is their specialty, they do not do general veterinary work) because we were concerned about the lack of use. We wanted to know if we should start him on physical therapy (thank you, inerwebs), and they assured us that this was normal and we shouldn't worry about it and that physical therapy was not usually needed for puppies so young. This sequence repeated itself for about 3 weeks until Husband took the dog into his regular vet for a routine check-up (shots, getting his chip put in, etc.) and she completely freaked out and said that this was in no way normal and we needed to take him back into the other vet pronto. In fact, she even called the other vet's office and complained for us, stating how serious the situation seemed to be. Husband received a personal call shortly thereafter from the head vet of the Surgeon's office. He listened to Husband's concerns, and scheduled an appt to bring in Delgado the following day.

Doggie Saga Part 2: Husband takes Delagdo into the Surgeon's office, and the head vet acknowledges that something is really wrong with Delgado's leg. It has not healed properly, and the joints do no not bend to any degree of normalcy (about 10-15% range of motion). He basically drags the rear leg around behind him like it is dead weight. So he refers Husband to an in-house physical therapist to start working with Delgado on a regular basis. Husband innocently asks whether this problem could have been avoided if we had just started him on physical therapy right away, and the head vet gets very upset. They end up having a small altercation where Husband basically says it was the vet's office reassurances that nothing was wrong that prevented us from seeking help earlier, and the vet mutters something about how we could have made an appointment any time we wanted and leaves the room while Husband is still talking. Needless to say, Husband was extremely pissed, and wanted to go to a lawyer right away to see about potential malpractice since we were then looking at many months of intensive physical therapy (which is not cheap!) from a simple tibial fracture. Husband was able to negotiate free access to physical therapy and so he next chapter began...

Doggie Saga Part 3: We begin doggie physical therapy, which consisted of 2x appointments per week and daily therapy at home 2-3x per day where we stretched and contracted the joints. Delgado hated it (yelped and tried to bite), and it didn't seem to help improve use of the leg at all. We were able to get his range of motion o improve a bit (15-20%), but he still dragged the leg behind him as if it were a dead weight. After a few more weeks, we were starting to get desperate. Husband even researched and made appointments with doggie alternative medicine providers (acupuncture for dogs!). I suggested that we make another appointment with the vet and/or physical therapist to figure out why Delagdo was refusing to put any weight on the leg or use it in a meaningful manner. So that is what we did on Thursday. We went back to the Surgeon's office (different vet, same practice), who noticed right away that there was something wrong with Delgado's hip in addition to his knee problem. They decided to do a new set of full x-rays to identify what the issue was and whether or not it would be fixable. He took a long time to explain what hip issues mean for dogs in general, and especially for German Shepherds, which are prone to hip issues as a breed. He also explained that having 2 joints (maybe 3, although he thought the ankle problems may just have been a continuation from the other two joint issues) have major issues meant that even surgical intervention had a low probablity of making the leg into a usable limb, especially in a puppy so young who would continue to grow (and potentially outgrow any surgical solution put in place). After several hours of waiting and worrying, we got the news I suspected after the vet's earlier long explanation. The leg is not salvageable, and amputation is the most humane solution for us at this point. Surgery has a less than 10% chance of working just on the hip joint, and they have no idea how it would affect the issues with the knee joint, so it would likely be a lot of $ and time (recovery, physical therapy) thrown down the drain only to find out that we would need to amputate anyway. If we leave the leg on as-is, it is having a negative affect on the healthy leg, which is overcompensating and being pulled out of socket because of the weight and angle of the dragging leg. So then you end up with 2 fucked up legs. So, Delgado is scheduled for amputation surgery on November 9th.

I am feeling very zen about the whole thing. I have seen tripods before (as they are known) and they are able to function just as any four-legged dog would do. Dogs do not have the same hang ups about their bodies as humans do, Delagdo will never know that he is different from other dogs, and since he is so young, he may not ever remember life with 4 legs. He will adapt quickly and be much happier to be without pain. Husband, on the other hand, is just furious. How do you go from a simple tibial fracture to needing amputation. In the vet's own words, he has never seen anything like this. It is just a freak occurrence. I do think the Surgeon's office feels some culpability because our visits and the x-rays have all been comped. I did bring up the cost of the surgery (about $3,000 + post op visits, suture changes, etc.) and how we felt in, in no uncertain terms, that this all might have been avoided at some point along the journey if we #1 hadn't been discouraged from coming in, #2 were continually assured that nothing was wrong, #3 neither the 1st vet nor the physical therapist noticed there was anything wrong with the hip...all of which leads me to believe that the Surgeon's office must be concerned that we have a pretty strong case for malpractice. Either way, husband is devastated that our beautiful, perfect family pet will now have to live his life as an amputee. I think Husband is projecting some personified feelings onto Delgado. As I mentioned, dogs aren't like people. he isn't going to walk by as other dogs whisper and wonder about his missing leg. He'll just be another dog to them. And, he'll be able to function just as a normal, four-legged dog will. So, in the long run, this is the most humane decision to make. What is the point of letting him drag around a diseased, non-working leg that isn't doing anything but impede his development? The whole things is just a set of freak circumstances. No one gets a dog thinking, gosh I hope something happens so that I can amputate one of his legs, but what happened, happened, and there really isn't anything we can do about it. The sooner we accept that and move on, the happier we will all be.

Oh, and 2 of 3 kids have strep throat, Husband is still sick (he was diagnosed with pneumonia a few weeks ago but finished the medicine and yet the cough has not gone away), and I've got some sort of mild cold that is annoying the shit out of me! Sept/Oct has been the rainiest by far the NoVa has seen in who knows how many years (J has literally had about 3 practices and 3 games all soccer season since everything else has been rained out). Today it is literally snowing (slushing, really)!! Fall has not been the best of seasons for us this year!

*Add that one to the things I never thought I'd have to say, "Sorry, I can't go, my dog has a physical therapy appointment."

Yet Another Cop Out Post

2011-10-24T15:08:00.000-07:00

I love posting pictures. It prevents me from having to come up with ever more creative excuses for not updating my blog, lol!

Falls Church Farm Day!

2011-10-13T16:45:00.000-07:00

Pony rides, petting farms, pumpkin painting, and bees, oh my!

Freebies!

2011-10-10T18:58:00.000-07:00

Alas, I have let this whole 3-day weekend getaway from me (happy dance for being back with the federal government, who are the only ones besides school children who still get Columbus Day off!). I spent a whole day and half not studying at all! In case I have not mentioned it lately, if you are thinking about joining the Foreign Service while still pursuing other studies...don't! The overkill of constant studying is really taking a toll. There is absolutely no break for me, and I feel as though I could be progressing much faster in language if I wasn't so encumbered by my Masters coursework. In my case, the money was already sunk, and I only have my Master's capstone after this last class finishes up in a couple of weeks, so it is worth it to see it out, even if it does mean that I am losing some of my hair (if hair meant sanity). Anyway, that was a very long explanation for why I don't have anything to blog about! I promise to post some pics of our trip to Falls Church's Farm Day 2011, but in the mean time here are some freebies I've been storing up to tide you over (and/or distract you from sending me nasty e-mails ;)

This interview* is with three foreign service officers and talks mostly about the changes in the service post-9/11. You can either listen to the broadcast or read the transcript.

For those with special needs children, someone on the FS Special Needs board recently posted a link to the 2011 Special Education Needs Seminar videos. This is a really fabulous resource with information on how to navigate the system, help in planning moves overseas, allowances, researching posts, and just pretty much anything you might want to know as a FS parent of a special needs child.

Free yoga! **

*Amb Munter came and spoke with my A-100 class, and he was such an awesome speaker!
** Disclaimer - I have never actually used this site, it was just forwarded to me by a friend. So I can't vouch for how good any of these videos are!

Putting the Minions to Work

2011-10-01T18:10:00.000-07:00

And making them think it is fun! Apple picking works even better than corn shucking :)

It was cold out there!

...and the bonus was the pick your own pumpkin patch :)

A pumpkin patch that grew pumpkin trucks...I wonder where they get the seeds for those?

Klase ng Pornographica

2011-09-26T14:48:00.000-07:00

So maybe I got a leetle bit carried away yesterday...maybe...probably not. I mean this was monumental. Four interceptions of Tom Brady (matching the # of interceptions he had all of last year!), overcoming a 21-0 deficit, putting an end to the 15-0 winning streak the Pats have had over the Bills (it has been 8 years since the Bills have beat the Pats), being #1 in the division since god know when! This was a big fucking deal!! What are we going to do without football in the Philippines!!??

Okay, enough about football (at least until the Redskins beat the Cowboys tonight, yeah!). Language continues to struggle along...or, I continue to struggle along in language :) Some days are good Tagalog days and others, well, not so much. Today was a good Tagalog day. We had a couple of officers who just came from Manila come and talk to us about life and work at the Embassy. It was really nice of them to take the time out of their days to come and talk with us, and it was fantastic to get some perspective on what it's like for an ELO (entry level officer) as well as what it's like for families. This week my kaklase (classmate) has a language test in another language (she speaks like 5, she is crazy amazing!) so it will just be me for two hours for some 1-1...not sure how I feel about that. It is difficult being in such a small class because there is absolutely no break (as in, you can't take a minute to just absorb because it is always your turn to speak or translate!). Now I'll get to find out what it's like to be a single student. Hopefully my head doesn't explode. I don't think the custodial personnel would appreciate that very much.

In other Tagalog news, my teacher is totally awesome. She has reached a certain age - the age at which you no longer give a fuck what anyone thinks. She loves to make jokes and just laugh and laugh, which is awesome because that is what I like to do :) She also likes to tell dirty jokes, which is hilarious. L & I have been making jokes because I make stupid, crazy sentences with the limited vocabulary I have. We recently learned the word for snake, so I have been making sentences like: the fat, gluttonous snakes who live near the back of the church, or the dirty snakes who smell bad that are located on top of the clean stove. Well, I guess snakes is also a euphemism for penis because on Friday our instructor asked what my deal was with snakes (in slightly different language), and we tried to explain the humor in making these inane, ridiculous sentences. Apparently humor doesn't really translate because she thought we were giggling over making sentences about penises and promptly pronounced us to be the "Pornographic Class" !!*

* incidentally, I now know the words for penis and pornography in Tagalog...adding these to the other dirty words I have picked up so far should make me a popular figure in Manila! ;)

Who's # 1??!!

2011-09-25T16:54:00.000-07:00

The fucking Buffalo Bills, bitches, that's who!!!!!!!!

3-0 and our 1st win over the Pats in 15 games feels sooo good! Husband and I went to a Bills Backers bar in DC to watch the game, and it was fucking in.sane, ya'll, in-fucking-sane! Watching Brady cry, piss, and moan in his post-game interview was just the icing on the cake.

GO BILLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

School Daze

2011-09-17T17:38:00.000-07:00

I know posting has been slow lately, but I promise that I really do have a good excuse this time. It's back to school season! This year we've decided that it is so exciting everyone is joining in. The kids started back to school on the 6th, and I started language training the same day. Husband and I are also back to our various other educational pursuits. After a couple weeks of summer break, I am back to my Masters degree (I graduate in Dec, yay!) while Husband is pursuing a post-grad certificate program in IT program management since he may as well put the rest of his GI Bill to good use!* Husband also starts ConGen on Monday. This is the same course that I just finished which is required to get your consular commission. As an EFM (eligible family member, which is what we call all family members listed officially on one's orders), Husband will not be eligible to adjudicate visas like an FSO, but there are many other jobs in the consular section for which a cleared American is needed. Manila is a rather large post and there are many jobs available for EFMs that pay on the US pay schedule. After looking into jobs on the Philippine economy, Husband has decided that it would probably be better to pursue employment at the Embassy and earn a decent wage rather than try to put his MBA to use and make very little.

Now that school has been in session for a couple of weeks, I can report that all children seem to be doing quite well...thriving even. I was concerned, especially for C, that the change from small private school to large public school would be a difficult adjustment, but my children constantly amaze me with their incredible resilience. C is absolutely loving her new school. She has made lots of friends, joined the morning announcements team, and her favorite class is FACS (I forget what it stands for, but it is apparently the new, PC term for Home Ec) where she gets to cook! J is also enjoying school, and she recently started soccer. Today was her 1st game. I was a little worried how she was feeling about the whole thing because we discovered at practice that she is not only the only new child (all the other children played together last year), she was also 1 of only 2 girls on the team! J is more than a bit shy, and at practice one of the rambunctious boys kicked her soccer ball away from her and the look on her face just broke my heart. At first J mostly stood around on the field, but after a couple of quarters and some encouragement from her parents and coaches (who are really wonderful) she started running around after the ball just like the other kids. She even kicked a few times! I was very, very proud of her. A seems to be flourishing in pre-K. His teacher is very sweet, and although A is not quite over his shyness, he is doing well. A will be starting ice skating lessons in Oct (NHL here we come!).

As for me, well, language training is not quite what I expected. I am in a class of two...actually, I am in a department of two! L and I make up the entire Tagalog language department at FSI :) Fortunately, L is an awesome girl, and it has been a very bonding experience so far. I imagine we will be very close by the end of the course as we have nothing but each other to talk about during class :) Another benefit to being in such a small class is that we got to set our own schedule. Generally language classes at FSI are either in the morning (0740 - 1440, 5 hours of classroom instruction and two hours allotted for language lab) or in the afternoon (1040 - 1640). Since it is just L and I, we requested to have class from 0740-1240 with no break for language lab so that we would be free to do it at our leisure. This way I will always be home to pick up the kids from school, even on Wed when they have early release. It is really a great schedule! As for the course itself, let me start by saying if my teachers are representative of the Philippines, I think I am really going to like it there. They are such a warm people, and they love to laugh! Just like me! :) As for the course itself, well, it has been an interesting experience so far. Tagalog is a very unique language. It is of Malay origin, but it has been heaving influenced by Spanish and English, so it is really a bundle of contradictions and lack of rules. On top of that our instructors, as wonderful as they are, are not teachers by profession, so it has been a struggle to understand some of the madness behind their methods. We had little structure to our days, no drills, no grammar, no homework. I actually became quite jealous of my friends in Hindi and Chinese who had hours of class devoted to grammar, pronunciation drills, etc. It had gotten so bad that on Thursday L & I met with the head of of the SE Asia Maritime Dept (who also happens to be a Tagalog speaker and has a PhD in second language acquisition). She was very understanding and seemed to be expecting some of our feedback. I don't know what she said to our instructors but yesterday was like a brand new class. It was a good Tagalog day! I am also amazed at how much we have learned so far. We have only been in class for two weeks, and we are already having small, halting conversations. It boggle the mind to think of how far we will have advanced by the time we leave next year.

Remembering

2011-09-11T05:38:00.000-07:00

Living in VA has reminded me of my desire to never live or work in the DC area. Between the multiple natural disasters (including the last week of non-stop rain that caused flash floods and tornadoes), the incredibly rude people (perhaps we have just become accustomed to the friendliness of the South and Southwest?), and the ridiculous cost of living here, I am more determined than ever that we will spend the vast majority of our career overseas. However, there have been some incredible high points to living here. I blogged about experiencing 4th of July in our nation's capitol, and being here for the 10th anniversary of 9/11 is right up there with it.

I was in the process of transitioning from active duty to ROTC when 9/11 happened. I had flown into Seattle on the 9th and was staying with my friend A while I apartment hunted and got registered for school. My ex and C were staying with relatives in Idaho and were supposed to fly in on the 11th. My friend A and I were at her friend's apartment when the news reported the 1st plane crash. I remember talking to my dad on the phone and trying to make some sense of what was happening, watching the fuzzy picture on this friend of a friend's small television on a disconcertingly beautiful fall day, but I don't have a whole lot of concrete memories of what I did for the rest of that day. I know the ex and C's flight was delayed since everything we grounded, and they didn't arrive until two days later. I know that I felt sick to my stomach that something like this could happen here, and I knew that nothing would ever be the same. I think if you asked any American where they were when the planes hit we would all have some rather distinct memory. They might be as vague as my memory of staring at strange pixelations on an old tv set, searching the channels for coverage that would help us make some sense of what was happening. It's not so much the memory of what I was doing that stands out to me as he memory of how I felt. I remember distinctly the sense of disbelief and dread when we learned of the attack on the Pentagon. To me, even more than the 2nd tower crash, that signified that this could not be interpreted as anything other than a serious violent attack on the U.S.

It's hard to explain to people who joined the military or the intel field post-9/11 (as many did) the difference between what it was like before and after. It was not the same experience. When I joined the AF in the 90's most people came in to get their education (GI Bill), to escape a bad situation, or to learn a skill. We had a decent operational tempo (after all there were still tings like Kosovo, EP-3 crashes, stand-offs in the Taiwan Strait, etc. to worry about), but the difference was that feeling of security. I can't put into words the changes that I saw over the years, some were quite sudden and jarring and some were so gradual it's hard to say when they changed at all. Of course, there are many things I expected to change that have never changed at all (thus my distaste for serving in Washington). All I can say is that to serve today is very different than it was to serve 10 years ago, and I am proud to have served my country in as many capacities as I have. I myself joined the military to go to college. I ended up loving active duty, oh how I needed the structure, and was awarded a scholarship to ROTC through the AECP program. I commissioned as an officer post-9/11 and rejoined a service changed by experience and by declaration of war. I also left active duty for the same reason some years later when the deployment tempo simply became too much for our family, and I was unwilling to leave three small children behind to go to Afghanistan for a year supplementing the Army. But, I can reflect upon how the wars were managed (or mis-managed in some cases) in another post. I would rather you take this time to read this article and reflect on how 9/11 affected your life.

So to my foreign service colleagues, military counterparts, intel professionals, and our civilian equivalents: Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Americans feel safe again because they have no idea what you do on a daily basis to keep them safe.

Are You Ready for Some Yoga?

2011-09-04T09:16:00.000-07:00

While the end of August/beginning of September brings with it pre-season football and fantasy drafts (only doing two leagues this year, but I still ended up with several of the same picks - Arian Foster better be a beast this year or I am screwed!), September is also known for being National Yoga Month. I hearts me some yoga! Yoga has innumerable physiological, physical, and psychological benefits. Personally, practicing yoga has really increased my flexibility, my mental calmness, and my physical strength (especially core strength). Because I have so little time to fit it in amongst my other fitness routines, I only do two long (60min+) yoga practices per week (although I do stretch for at least 10min after every workout). Yoga has become so popular that there are multiple online resources, no need to go to a class or purchase a DVD (unless you want to). Most are pay by month or pay by download sites, which helps if you have exercise ADD like me. Yoga Today, Yoga Vibes, Yoga Glo, Yoga Download, and My Yoga Online are all excellent sites with a variety of different types of yoga classes. Most of them have free trials so you can see if you like it before you commit to anything long term. There are even some totally free resources online like Yogis Anonymous. Many yoga instructors like Sadie Nardini and Jill Miller have their own YouTube Channels that offer several free practices, and, in honor of National Yoga Month, several different sites are offering free trials or free downloads, why not try kripalu?

If you're not big on following along with a screen, try some MP3 downloads that simply talk you through, like Alive Yoga. It feels more like a classroom just without all of the other sweaty people in your space :) Yoga Journal and iHanuman have free podcasts for download.

Now that I've shared all of that with you, I'm off to do my own practice for the day because after a weekend filled with school preparation and broken doggie doings, I sure need some relaxation!

Perils in Parenting - School Version

2011-09-02T12:35:00.000-07:00

Everyone is heading back to school next week, and it has been a pain in the ass trying to get everything ready. Since C attended private school last year, she had to take placement tests for English (reading and writing) and Math. To her great disappointment my Francophile daughter will have to endure yet another year of Spanish (what they taught at her last school) since they only offer year 2 of French for 7th graders. I did, however, attempt to ease the sting by agreeing she could take chorus instead of band this year. I think 3 years of flute is torture enough. Because we had to wait for the results of C's placement tests we weren't sure what school supplies to buy. Now that we have them, I have to head back out and brave the crowds and empty aisles trying to track down the last few items she will need for the year. I am a bit worried about how she is going to deal with going from a very small school environment to one that is not only large (there are more kids in her grade than there were in her entire school last year) but also significantly more complicated. C will have to change classes by period (Math in one room, Spanish in another, etc.) as well as by day (each day's schedule is slightly different since only some classes are 5 days per week, while others are 2 or 3 days per week), contend with actual lockers (one in the main hall and one in gym) and floors (3 of them!), and the realities of middle school fashion choices (uniforms - I miss you already!). I have a feeling the 1st couple of weeks are going to be quite a challenge as she acclimates to this new environment.

As for J, well, it has been a bit of rough going there as well. She had gone in a few weeks ago to do a reading test and based on that assessment, I learned yesterday that the school has recommended that she repeat kindergarten. Now, I was already concerned because she is not reading and I felt like she was not at the same level as C had been at that age, but her K teacher from FL seemed to think she was ready for 1st grade. So it was a bit of a blow to have my fears given some credence. J is also very young (the youngest in her class), and I am not opposed to having her be the oldest rather than the youngest in her class. Plus, I would rather she have a strong foundation now instead of perpetually being behind and playing catch up. She's too young to be stressed about school yet. So I was feeling okay with this abrupt and sudden change of plans until I ran into some friends at the school's open house later that afternoon where I learned that the school had also recommended the same thing to them except they turned it down. I was not present when J took her assessment (Husband had to take her, but he wasn't permitted in the room), but my friend S said that she felt the assessment was unfair, that the administrator had been cold and a little intimidating. It's understandable that a young, shy child might clam up and not want to answer questions in an unfamiliar and somewhat scary environment. So now I feel very conflicted. Did I make the right decision for J? I don't want her to feel bad about having to repeat a grade, but I want to make sure she has a really good foundation before we throw her into international school (which generally has even more rigorous standards than U.S. schools). All her new friends here at Oakwood FC will be going into 1st, and I wonder what they/she will think about not being together in the same grade. Did I make the right decision?

A's school entrance have also been somewhat of a nightmare. 1st we had the contention of just getting him in in the first place. Then we had to wait for all the new paperwork to get processed. So when I took in J yesterday I asked about A's class & teacher, and they didn't even have a file on him yet! School starts Tuesday!! Anyway, after some scrambling and a lot of time being sent from person to person in the school, I got word today that A will for sure be in the afternoon program, as well as am e-mail from his new teacher. They have also changed his IEP to reflect the appropriate language, hours of therapy, etc. to meet VA's requirements. He may also have to get two more shots (they never reviewed his shot records since there was no enrollment verification, so no one told me that VA has different standards for immunizations than FL). After all the issues we've faced changing from just one state to another I can only imagine the hell we're going to face when we transfer overseas.

Of course, husband is in LA right now, so I've been taking care of all this + the one-legged dog all on my own (wah, wah). I try not to let my decisions weigh too heavily on me (my thought is usually, what's done is done and you just have to move forward rather than dwelling on the past), but I can't help it when it comes to the kids. Did we do the right thing putting them back in public school (especially for C)? Did I make the right decision having J repeat kindergarten? Will A thrive in his spec ed pre-K or will the other kids need much more attention so he gets lost in the shuffle? This parenting thingy really sucks some times.

Broke Ass Pup

2011-08-30T16:50:00.000-07:00

So, we got a dog. Husband and small Pu's have been begging for one for quite a while, but I have resisted mainly because I was wary of the great effort a puppy requires. I didn't even want to cat to begin with (he has grown on me). With five children, a husband, two jobs, and school, I just felt that taking care of a new puppy would be too much to take on. Husband was adamant that now was the perfect time since he is home full-time and would have the time to train the dog properly. Also he missed out on having pet as a child and really wants to give our children the benefit of having a dog through their formative years (and J is a huuuuuge dog lover). Thus the dog came to be. As with all new toys that come into the Pu household, the kids promptly broke it (no, seriously). So the dog that I didn't want has now come into being, cost me several thousand dollars in hospital/vet bills, and now must be carried around everywhere since he's supposed to stay off the leg. He is lucky he is so fucking cute. Seriously fucking cute.

Dog Before

Dog After

Hunkering Down

2011-08-27T08:15:00.000-07:00

This is absolutely crazy. Irene has totally freaked out the East Coast. New York shut down its subway system for the 1st time in history in anticipation of the storm. She is just a bit south of us now and moving quickly, so I expect we'll be out of power for a couple of days based on what the news reports are saying. We've got our water, flashlights, extra food, everything is charged, etc. etc. I find it amusing that we went storm free in FL, and now that we've moved to VA we're about to get hammered, lol. Hopefully this is all for naught and all we'll get are some heavy rains. I guess we'll find out soon!

ETA: Just some strong winds and lots of rain for us. We didn't even lose cable satellite, much less power. A little anti-climatic after all the news coverage!

Earthquake!

2011-08-23T13:43:00.000-07:00

Having lived through earthquakes in Japan and Cali, we were unfazed by Virginia's 5.9 today. I paused, waited it out in a doorway, then continued working out*. Apparently the rest of the East Coast freaked out and evacuated. What's next, a hurricane? ... oh wait ...

We've lived through earthquakes, hurricanes and typhoons, wildfires, mud slides, blizzards, and floods...I'm beginning to think our presence may be more than a mere coincidence. Take note, Philippines!

Random Shit

A: What butts made of?

Me: Um, butts are made up of butts. What kind of question is that?

A: Butts have more butts in dem?

J: No, dummy, butts are made of poop.

Me: Seriously? Is your butt made of poop? Butts are made up of flesh. Poop comes from digesting the food you eat.

A: *horrified* Poop in you tummy??

Me: No, food goes into your tummy, which digests it and then pushes the waste down into your intestines, which eventually comes out of your butt as poop.

A: *ponders this for a bit* ...what peepee made of?

Me: I cannot believe I am having this conversation. Oh wait, this is the same little boy who told the UPS man that he eats farts. Never mind.

*One of the little known benefits of gap days at FSI - you can sleep in and work out at 1pm and still get all your work done from home!

A Year of Pu

2011-08-21T13:35:00.001-07:00

Pun intended.

Another year older, another year wiser. Well, another year older anyway. I had an awesome birthday this year. I read some trite, sentimental article in one of those parenting magazines and have since been collecting original artwork from the progeny as gifts on my special days. Soon I will have enough glitter and foam stickers to build my own rotating statue. Suck on that, Turkmenistan!

From the husband I received a day off from Mommy duties, a fabulous dinner date at Tallula, and some Bills gear to kick off the season right! But, I have to say, that this year's best gift award goes to my lil' sis and her hubby who gifted us with a new niece:

I'm still not sure if they're planning to ship her by Fed Ex or UPS. Either way, welcome to the world Lia Agnes! You have already started inconveniencing your parents by spoiling well laid birth plans. This bodes well for you. If you should need further assistance in how to become even more of a PITA, I have 3 children who would be happy to share some tips and advice. It may be a few years before you are old enough to crawl on the floor of a grocery store, but you should try it. Nothing will gross out your mother more than crawling on your belly on the floor of a store that sells raw meat and seafood. Then run into people you don't know and shout, "Now you dead! I make you a zombie! Go eat braiiiiiins!" This is just one suggestion. Congratulations A&R; welcome to parenthood!! :)

Checkin' In

2011-08-17T15:43:00.000-07:00

Just a brief post to say I'm still here! ConGen is progressing nicely (we graduate next Monday!). We've made it through Passport & Nationality, Immigrant Visas (IV), and Non-immigrant Visas (NIV), and now we are working our way through American Citizen Services (ACS). The work is incredibly diverse and interesting. I have studied everything from how to detect fraudulent documents and micro expressions to interviewing techniques. Today, for example, we role played death notifications. Not exactly light subject material but, unfortunately, a reality of our job. I continue to hear wonderful things about Manila through the grapevine and it just feeds the fire of our excitement, in spite of the fact that we won't be leaving for almost a whole year!

In other news the kids are mostly settled for school. Yesterday J went in for her reading placement test (all 1st graders must do this), and today I took C in to meet with her 7th grade school counselor who helped her pick out her schedule for the year. she'll need to come back next week for a math placement test (a reading comprehension assessment will be done for all students at the same time after the start of the school year). At her last school she took advanced math, which doesn't fit in nicely with any of the offered categories here in FC (i.e. algebra or geometry), so this test will help us figure out where she needs to be. She will also be taking chorus in place of band (I'm tired of fighting over it), continuing with Spanish (she would have preferred French, but they don't offer French A for 7th graders), and this is a civics/economics year vs. History. I'm actually okay with that as one of my biggest worries about attending international schools is the lack of U.S. history and government instruction. As for A, after a bit of a head/heart ache over transferring his IEP (no two states are the same, so they were having trouble deciphering his needs) we have been offered the option of having A enroll in the spec ed pre-school option or just taking outside services (which would equate to just 1 hour of speech and 1 hour of language with an ST, and one hour of OT, per week). Unfortunately, FC does not have the option we pursued in FL, which was an all-day, language based program that mixed neuro-typical kids with mild spec needs kids. The school here is only half-day, and it sounds like it is intended for kids with far more severe needs than A, but I am loathe to restrict his services to just a couple of sessions per week. I think we are going to go with the school option for now and see how that goes. We can always pull him from the program if we think it isn't working out.

To wrap up this quick update, T&V went back to Texas last weekend (back down to 3!)and I finished my last class of the semester with a killer final. Once ConGen ends it will be a little bit of a break for me while I take a few onesie, twosie classes before I launch into language training on 6 Sep, coincidentally the same day the kids start school.

Family Traditions

2011-08-03T17:14:00.001-07:00

Okay, so there's no time to blog about how ConGen is progressing (quickly!), or how my MS is going (slowly & painfully!), or how the summer is flying by. But, there is always time to write about one thing: Shaaaawk Weeeeeek!!!!!!! This has been a family tradition for as long as I can remember (or at least for the last couple of years). Every summer Discovery Channel has shark week in July, and every summer we watch it with the kids and reminisce about all of the shark infested beaches we have been to/lived near.*

In other family tradition news, I just have to gloat for a minute. You may not recall my previous posts on the great list debate, but AinA sent out what I consider the final word on the matter in an e-mail earlier. So, in the spirit of gift giving: in yo face, sistahs!!!

*Fun fact: Florida has the world's most dangerous shark-filled waters in the entire world, yay! :)

Reason #29 to Move to Oakwood FC

2011-07-24T16:20:00.001-07:00

Bouncy House!!*

*Forgot to take pictures of the snowcones, but I guess that would make the title of this post #'s 29 and 30 :)

I Be ConGenning

2011-07-17T13:13:00.000-07:00

Useful Bits

So it’s getting harder and harder to keep up with the bloggio as things progress. As my post title suggests, I am about a week into Basic Consular Training, also known as ConGen. This class is totally rocking my world. I now understand why so many ex-lawyers become consular officers. It is nutso the amount of information you must understand and know how to apply in order to do your job effectively. I can’t go into too many specifics because so much of the info we work with is considered SBU (sensitive but unclassified)* but let’s just say this shit is hard, yo! They are going to grant me god-like powers. No, really! For once this isn’t just a fantasy in my own mind!! Many consular functions are left to the discretion of the individual consular officers working the case. You want your baby born abroad to be a U.S. citizen? BAM, I just made your baby a U.S. citizen…or not. Okay, that last example is sort of not true because citizenship and transmission thereof is written into U.S. law, so it is pretty cut and dry, but there is a lot in Consular World that is not. We have the FAM to guide us (talk about legalese!) and case precedents, but many of the decisions we make are based upon our own personal abilities and judgments. I.feel.so.powerful! If you could see me now *nerd alert*, I look just like Galadreil when Frodo tries to give her the ring…Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea for State to send me on a Consular tour, lol.

Okay, obvs the above is somewhat tongue in cheek, but it truly is amazing the types of decisions I’ll be making. These are decisions that can have profound effects on an applicant’s life, regardless of the service they are looking for, and I am in awe that I am being entrusted to carry out such important work.

In totes different news, I haven’t posted a recipe in a while, so lemme share what I’m eating now. Because I have so little time to cook anymore I am fixated on creating meals that take about 5min to put together. Besides tons of big ass yummy salads, I am currently obsessed with chunking shit in a bowl and hoping for the best. In general I have pretty good luck with that. Here are a couple of creations that are in the current repertoire:

Berries & Shit:

Equal mix of blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries mixed with crumbled goat cheese and about 1 tbsp of sugar-free raspberry syrup (like Da Vinci). Let it sit for at least an hour and mange!!

Nuts & Shit:

Blueberries, sliced bananas, chopped walnuts, raisins, halved dried figs, crumbled goat cheese, and about 1 tbsp sugar-free maple syrup. Mix that shit up and it’s ready to go. Sooo yummy!

PB & Shit:

Chopped roasted peanuts (no salt), sliced bananas, halved grapes (or whole, depends on how much time I have), maybe 1/4cup 0% plain greek yogurt, PB2. Sprinkle a little wheat germ on this one for an added nutrition boost.

Best Dip Evah!

2 parts almond butter, 1 part almond milk, 1 tsp light agave syrup, sprinkle of unsweetened coconut. Whip that shit together and keep adding almond milk until it reaches the consistency you prefer for a dip. This is awesome with either celery and carrots or with any fruit.

Random Shit

So I’m in the bath with J rinsing the soap out of her hair talking about things like the move and camp.** We are casually discussing subjects like how it stinks when Marley (the cat) poops, how candy tastes really good, and the progress we are making potty-training A (fully trained, including pooping – yay – except for the nighttime accidents) when J very nonchalantly says, “Yeah, I always pee and poop in the potty and sometimes I pee in the bath.”

Me: Wait, sometimes you pee in your own bath?

J: Yeah, but it’s okay because it’s just water.

Me: Okay, hold on, did you pee in this bath?

J: *smiles sheepishly* No?

Me: Now I need a shower, too.

*Every time I read that I think SBD and start giggling…because I seriously have the sense of humor of a 12 yr old boy

**J is adjusting well, but there have been a couple of instances where she has asked to “go home” and mentioned that she misses Florida. Sometimes with accompanying tears :(

Belated 4th of July Wrap Up

2011-07-10T15:52:00.000-07:00

Yeah, yeah, I know this is about a week late, but considering I sometimes go months without updating, consider yourselves lucky! ;)

Useful Bits

So we’re living in DC, and I’m determined that we shall take full advantage while we can…you can see where this is headed, right? I decide, in all my brilliance, that since we are living in the nation’s capitol during the celebration of our nation’s birth that we should spend the entire day at the National Mall starting with the 4th of July parade and ending with the fireworks over the Washington Memorial. Well, this would probably be a pretty awesome idea if it were for all those dang kids we have hanging around (where do they come from??). Most of my memories from the 4th will probably be of the great amount of perspiration I exuded, the amount of money I dropped on stale hot pretzels and lunchroom-style pizza, and the smell of the metro as we rode home with 1 million of our closest (and I do mean close) friends. The kids, I’m hoping, will remember the parade and the fireworks and possibly the great amount of time we spent inside the Air & Space Museum trying to cool off.

Personally, I thought the parade was a really good event for the kids, but the fireworks? Well, the great mass of people is fun to be in if it’s just you, but it was not a pleasant experience trying to shepherd all five kids through the metro (it was worse than the NY subway after a Yankees game). Plus, I didn’t even think the show was that great. The fireworks only lasted about 20min and there was a lot of condensation in the air that held the smoke in so it kind of obscured the subsequent fireworks. IDK, I was a little let down :( Also, I would recommend either picking only one event to attend or leaving the National Mall area between events because 12 hours downtown was waaaay overkill.

I mentioned to my parents that my greatest memories of the 4th of July were the numerous summers we spent watching fireworks over the lake in MD, walking the jogging paths to get there, eating homemade popcorn, and playing with sparklers while we waited for the fireworks show. My parents’ greatest memories? Trying to get out of the parking lot and fight traffic on the way home, then having to stop and let my little sister pee in someone’s yard because the traffic was so bad and she was too little to hold it. Amazing how the same event triggers different memories depending on the generation, lol! Anyway, we did get some kick-ass pics out of the deal:

Random Shit
A friend shared this on Facebook, and I thought it was hilarious. Personally, for many years I was confused as to why CCR was so obsessed with the “bathroom on the right.”

Officially Sworn In

2011-07-02T19:12:00.000-07:00

So Friday was graduation day, at least for the 161st A-100 class it was. I'm excited and a little sad to see it all end, although I have to admit I was ready to be done with the 8hr lecture days! Most of my classmates had their entire families come out for the big day to see them get sworn in, it very much reminded me of the excitement surrounding my commissioning day as an AF officer* I wish I could have been more enthused, but I generally hate these types of events (I even skipped my own college graduation!). It does feel really good to be an official FSO, though. Now I just need to get my paws on that little black passport and I'll be on my way to ruling the world, mwah hah hah hah...er, I mean I'll be on my way to Manila. Same thing.

Anyway, since I enjoy imposing some type of order on this incredibly eclectic and nonsensical blog, I've decided to try and use this forum to actually provide some useful information in addition to my bits of random and useless info. Thus I bring you:

Useful Bits

This whole experience of joining the FS with a special needs kid has been quite the adventure. It is not as simple as having just a Class 2 Med EFM (eligible family member), which you can get cleared through Med itself. For a special needs kid you have to get substantiating info from the schools at Post that they have the appropriate curriculum for whatever it is your particular child needs (in our case A needs speech and occupational therapists and has an IEP that lays out specific goals in each of these areas). You also have to get verification from Post that they have the specialists needed to support the child’s IEP. Originally I had not planned to contact Post until I was much closer to my ETA since my TM1 (the travel message that lets Post know I’m coming) hasn’t even been issued yet, and I hadn’t even begun to think about choosing a school for the kids yet since I still have to enroll them for this school year here in VA! Ah, well, this long-term planning is generally right up my alley. I have sent the CLO (Community Liaison Officer) an e-mail to see if they can help me out since I don’t even know where to start to gather all this info! There is also yet another yahoo group dedicated to FS parents with special needs kids that I am hoping will be another good resource of information for us as we try to figure all this out. Oh, and State does have a lot of guidance out there both on the internet and the intranet, but every situation with a special needs child is unique so each case must be handled individually. Will keep you posted on how this progresses regardless of interest, lol.

Random Shit

On the way home from mandatory fun last week, some friends and I were discussing the blogosphere, and they were stymied by the fact that they couldn’t come up with a clever name for their blogs. First I had to explain that my blog name is actually sort of clever, or at least not insulting (Pu is my Chinese name – pronounced Pooh, not Pee Yew as so many people seem to think. My blog name is a play on Pooh’s Corner, not a reference to my BO). So, anyway, my girlfriend from A-100, M, came up with the awesome idea for a blog named, “I Would Rub My Face All Over That.” She was referring to the rotating gold statue of ex-president of Turkmenistan

but she was also open to the idea of rubbing her face all over the Neutrality Arch

Personally, I think this is a fucking fantastic idea for a blog. Imagine all the things you’d like to rub your face all over like:

Giant Pandas

Pilipino Rice Terraces

Giant piles of pink feathers

Hugh Jackman

A big bowl of pho

Okay that last one might not be such a good idea depending on how hot the soup was, but, still, that’s a lot of shit to rub your face all over. The possibilities are endless!

*Fun Fact - The FS oath of office and the military officer oath of office are exactly the same! :)

I Have a Confession

2011-06-28T17:56:00.000-07:00

My name is Pu, and I am an exercise DVD addict. I know you all already think I am crazy obsessive with my workouts, but even I am starting to worry. This year alone I have done rotations with the Firm Express, Insanity: Asylum, Tracy Anderson's Meta, This was my A-100 rotation (I combined BCX with Real Strength), and now I am coveting PeakFit and P90X 2! Do I really need all these workouts????

The answer is YES, people. Yes I do....I may also need a straitjacket, but that is another conversation altogether.

Also, I have to give a shout out to AinA who, upon hearing that I will be learning Tagalog* for my first post, commented, "Thank God! Finally, someone else will know an even more useless language than me."

*Fun Fact: Every time I type Tagalog into Word it tries to correct it to Tagalong. Mmmmm, Tagalongs with Manila....

***ETA: Five minutes after I wrote this, I bought PeakFit...I am so ashamed.

Manila...It's Not Just a Folder

2011-06-25T13:22:00.000-07:00

Well, if you didn't know that the flag I posted was for the Philippines, don't feel bad. Neither did I! And if you're surprised we're heading to Manila, then you can imagine how I felt when they called my name. I almost fell out of my chair I was so surprised. After all of the talk about bidding strategies and keeping expectations low, we were preparing to go to some of our lower priority areas. Manila was our #3 choice, so we are stoked!!! For future post-bidders (and any looky-loos who are just interested), here's how we looked at it:

Pu's Priorities: I wanted a post that would allow me to learn a 3rd language (on top of Mandarin and English), fulfill my consular tour (now I have a really good chance of doing Econ work in China), somewhere in the EAP (Pacific Region) Bureau (which is the Bureau I would like to major in), and somewhere with great schools & great special education resources for A.

Husband's Priorities: Husband wanted a post that was in a warm weather area on a coast so we could continue to enjoy beach activities, somewhere that had a decent amount of English so it wouldn't be such a shock to the system (a transitional post, if you will), somewhere with a bilateral work agreement so that he could find employment, and somewhere where the cost of living was low so we can afford a nanny.

Secondary Priorities (nice-to-haves): We both wanted to leave DC sometime after the New Year so we could spend one last holiday with our families, we also wanted to be close a military installation so that we can shop for any US necessities and so I could have an opportunity to do my Reserve duty without having to travel to far, and we wanted a location that would allow us to do a lot of traveling.

Manila fits every single one of our criteria. My CDO absolutely could not have advocated for a better assignment for us!

So now what happens? Well, I have about a week after A-100 ends next Friday where I'll have to arrange my own training either by doing some distance learning or scheduling consultations in the Department. After that I start ConGen (consular training where I'll learn how to do my job), which lasts the rest of the summer. In early Sep I will start about 8 months of Tagalog training before we leave for the Philippines next April. So we will be staying here in Oakwood Falls Church until we leave the country since we will be in training status. A will continue to attend DiploTots at FSI through the end of summer when he'll transition into the VA school system (as will the girls, of course). This was really fortunate since I wasn't sure how we'd handle the whole pre-school thing overseas.* Now we can relax and just enjoy the rest of our time here in DC, and you all can start making plans about how you're going to come visit us in the Hawai'i of Asia!

*The State Dept is incredibly generous by paying for your child's schooling while you're posted overseas; however, they only pay for K-12 not pre-school. Since A has an IEP that covers pre-K (like his program in FL), I wasn't sure if they would also pay for his special needs pre-K since it is something that would be offered to him in the States.

And The Winner Is....

2011-06-24T14:26:00.001-07:00

A-100 Update #4

2011-06-19T07:41:00.000-07:00

So much to catch up on! Let's see where I left off...Camp was fun, but very hot! I can see why this is considered a highlight in A-100 because you really get the opportunity to get to know your fellow classmates in a way you just can't in your normal environment. Luckily I have been blessed to be part of an amazing cohort, so I really enjoyed getting to know my colleagues (the wine may also have had a small part in my increased happy level). Poor Husband, on the other hand, returned from spending several days in the actual, for real woods with the kiddos (about 6-7hrs travel time to get home from rural Wisconsin) only to discover that our car had been towed despite having our complex sticker on the dashboard. Apparently they felt that because our car was parked in the same spot for a number of days that it had become a "suspicious vehicle." You can imagine the Husband's pleasure at returning home after a long day of travel with 3 kids, an extra trip to pay $250 to get our car out of impound (we did complain, and Oakwood will reimburse us), so when I called to talk from the bar it didn't go over so well.

I also got a call from Oakwood while we were gone that they had found us a space over at Oakwood Falls Church (we were in Ballston previously), so we spent last weekend moving into our new apartment. We had to move ourselves since we were the ones to requect the move, but it was totally worth it because FC is like paradise for kids. For any future FS'ers, I cannot recommend FC high enough if you have kids. If you're single or child-free, go to Ballston!

Week 4 of A-100 saw the decent into exhaustion. The excitement has worn off some, and the classes are long (and some a wee bit painful). We're also getting anxious for Flag Day (next Friday!!), so it's harder and harder to pay attention (also there is a lot of info being presented and the likelihood that we'll remember it all is getting smaller and smaller. At least for me it is, I've only so much room left in my brain!) In addition, the s-kids arrived so we are back up to 5 kids + MIL, which makes a total of 8 in our 3-bedroom apartment. So, there isn't much downtime, which has resulted in me developing a terrible cold that I'm desperately trying to get rid of before I head into Core Skills week next week. Core Skills week should return us to our normal level of excitement (and/or terror) since it is mostly focused on how to keep your composure when answering tough questions about U.S. foreign policy (and also how to avoid inadvertently changing it by answering stupidly), as well as public speaking among other things. Then on Friday, as noted above, I will finally find out where I am going in a ceremony known as Flag Day. Basically we'll all be seated in an auditorium where our MC will bring up pictures of the flag of a certain country, we're supposed to yell out the name of the country from memory (so I'll be the one in the back mumbling), and then they call the name of the individual who will be going to that post. This is a big family event, so even though Husband is really not looking forward to having all 5 kids there, it means a lot to me to have everyone involved.

Oh, I also found out last week that putting A on the FSI daycare waiting list paid off. Starting Monday he will be coming with me on the Oakwood shuttle to work to go to FSI's daycare center on campus. This is going to be a mental lifesaver for the Husband, and it should be great for A, as well. I have heard nothing but wonderful things about the FSI daycare and how focused it is on preparing your children for going Global.

This weekend we had a small bbq with a few classmates and there kids (there was a larger event going on last night, but we didn't want to make people suffer through having our 5 kids running around like maniacs). It was nice to finally hang out with people outside of the classroom. Husband and I also plan to attend one of the Happy Hour events next week (we always have about 3-4 events scheduled per week, but I have not really been able to attend any because of the fam), and, of course, we will attend the family-friendly celebration after flag day. I am stressing a wee bit because I have procrastinated on my school work, and I have two big papers due in the next week that I have yet to start. It makes me feel very guilty to come home after work at 6pm and have to hole up in my room trying to bang out homework when Husband has been home all day with the kids (who also miss me, I hope!), but I am so close to finishing! Only a few more months. I have to say, though, that I would not recommend staying in school while attending A-100 to anyone else!

So that's life in a nutshell right now. This week should be fairly busy, but you can be sure I'll post the minute we know where we're gong so everyone can start making their travel plans! :)

Rollin' the Dice

2011-06-06T16:56:00.000-07:00

Bid list is complete and sent. Where are we going? No freakin clue! But we'll be happy and together wherever it is :)

This weekend we went to the "beach." FL has spoiled us, and we have become complete beach snobs. We have missed the sun and sand so much, though, so it was nice to have a little bit of it back in our lives even if the sand was orange (J: Mommy, sand a sposed to be white). We also had a birthday party for A, who turned 4 on Sat. My baby is 4! I need a new one stat! I need to schedule a visit to see AinA post squiddo-birth so I can fend off these crazy hormones. 6 kids? I can't even begin to imagine.

We also hit up the Eastern Market. I took the kids by myself on the metro, and we had a blast. It was the first time for the two little ones on any kind of public trans (yes, I know, it is hard to believe that FL doesn't have a great subway system), and they were pretty enamored of it. We'll see how long that lasts.

This week I go to the Woods (actually it's an Army Reserve Base somewhere in WV, but they still call it the Woods). This is for a couple of days of leadership and team-building training, which is a highlight of A-100. I won't be missing the fam too much since they have already abandoned me to go to WI for my family reunion (I couldn't go since we aren't allowed to take leave during A-100). It is a little weird being in my own home without anyone around. I have spent a lot of time talking to the cat, lol. On a positive note, I have already finished all of my homework for the week (only 6 more months!). Now if only I could get the motivation to do anything else!

So Tired

2011-06-01T17:15:00.000-07:00

It's so crazy. This should be almost a vacation for me. No deadlines, no crazy people promising others that we will do things that can't accomplished, I don't even have to drive myself to work (yay FS shuttle)! Yet I am utterly exhausted. I can't figure it out?

I had my language test today. The language phone test I took as part of the hiring process was just a mini-test to see if I spoke at a reasonably appropriate level. This test a little over an hour and it was excruciating. It felt like my testers sucked every bit of Chinese knowledge out of my brain with one of those tiny little straws you get with your coffee and spread it out on the table...then they pointed and laughed. And that was just the speaking portion! It. Was. Painful.

So to lighen the mood here's a taste of the send off I got from work. First they gave me this really handy emergency booklet that I can use to help me out in my new jobs as an FSO:

And so forth...There are literally nametags in just about every language. I am so ready for this!

Additionally, I also received a wonderful book of top ten lists to remind me of all the wonderful things I have left behind, as well as all the wonderful things I have to look forward to:

*BTW, I've added a little disclaimer into my intro for any random people wo happen to stumble onto my blog (and in accordance with State's official policy). I've also added some links to other FS blogs written by other people in my A-100. Enjoy stalking them!

1 Week Down

2011-05-27T17:09:00.000-07:00

Only 5 more to go. Week 1 was a lot of information and even though we are mostly just sitting and absorbing the info given to us, I feel incredibly wiped out. We received our bid list on Tuesday. There are about as many jobs as there are people in my class, but we have to bid on all of them. We get the choice of bidding every location/job at either High, Medium, or Low, but, of course, the decision on where to send you is based on the needs of the service, so we have been cautioned not to fall in love with a certain job since the only thing that is truly certain in the FS is that you should remain flexible!

For us the process will be a bit more complicated. A was given what is called a Class 2 medical clearance because of his Apraxia. This means that any post we're sent to must have the appropriate care available and we must verify it through MED before we can be given clearance to go to post. In order to figure out which posts on our bid list were actually open to us, I poured through what medical care is available at each post on the list (e.g. did they have a speech therapist), then I looked at the information compiled by the Office of Overseas Schools, which does mini-recaps of the international schools available at each post and states whether or not they have special education resources (and whether the ones hat do meet US standards). This narrowed the list down by about 2/3 for us. Then we used some other criteria to help sort out the remaining available posts into either Mediums or Highs (the ones we can't go to will all be Lows). It has really changed the way I had originally looked at how we might bid, and I should forewarn everyone that we may not end up in any part of the world we had expected (there are also about 20 Mandarin speakers in my class competing for the much less than 20 China posts).
The good news is that if we don't get China as our 1st post, we will definitely get it for our 2nd post (just the way the FS works if you took the S/CNL points), so we will get there eventually.

Made It

2011-05-22T17:36:00.000-07:00

We're here, we're safe. No one was killed in the 2 1/2 days it took us to drive here (although a couple came close). So much to write, but I'm just too exhausted right now. My peeps at BB gave me an awesome send-off complete with some nifty little tools to use in my new life as an FSO. I promise I'll take pics and post when I can because they were so funny. It made me feel good to know that I would really be missed (and I'll miss them, too! There's nothing like going through hell together to bring a group close together.)

We went to our first social tonight. Our sponsoring class put it on for us. Found out our class has some 90+ people in it, so you can imagine how many names I remember, lol. Not surprisingly, we were one of maybe 3-4 couples that had kids, and we definitely win the prize for having the most! :) Tomorrow is my first day, but it will mainly consist of in-processing at Main State. My normal training will be at the Foreign Service Institute (FSI), which I will start on Tuesday.

It is about 70 degrees here, and I am wearing long pants, a sweatshirt, and big fuzzy socks. I wonder how long it will take for my tan to fade? On the plus side, there are about 1 million restaurants that deliver to our door and groceries, too! I never have to leave my apartment again (except for that pesky working and all). Promise I'll do a post on our living quarters in the future; it is much better than we expected and we are quite pleased all in all.

Moving Amnesia

2011-05-17T07:25:00.000-07:00

Similar to pregnancy amnesia, this phenomena entails forgetting what a complete ass-pain moving a large family across the country is. I have moved over a dozen times to multiple states and countries, and yet it always seems like the inane bullshit that goes along with moving all of the crap you have accumulated from all of the amazing places you have lived is completely brand new. For example, yesterday the movers did not show. I spent the entire morning on the phone with various offices at State and the moving company itself...come to find out someone had entered the date incorrectly (it might have been caught if I had, you know, received my TO before Monday morning - which I had to call back to State to get since they didn't bother to send it to me), and the movers weren't planning to come until the 17th. The problem: Our pack out is a two-day job (hey, we have a lot of kids), and we need to be out of the house on the 18th. So I need time to reorganize all of the crap we're loading in the car and clean the entire house before we turn over the keys. After a lot of headache and extra stress, the movers showed up yesterday at about 2pm. They packed up about 1/2 the house and returned this morning to finish the job. I have a feeling it is going to be a very late night for us :( On the plus side, the movers themselves are great and seem very nice and competent, so at least we have that going for us!

I have to say, this has not been a good intro to moving as an FSO. My travel admin has been completely unresponsive and unhelpful and was, in fact, very, very rude the one time I actually managed to get her on the phone. I had to call the main office several times and instruct them not to patch me through to her but to find someone else to answer my questions. Since our next move will likely be in less than a year and to a much farther location, I do not have high hopes that it will be a good experience. But, who knows, I have been known to be wrong a time a two.

In other moving news, today is my last day at work (only a couple of hours to do my out-brief and sign some paperwork, turn in my badge, etc.). We pick up the rental car tomorrow (we rented a mini-van for the drive since I already sold my car; Husband will drive his own vehicle loaded up with crap) and check into our hotel tonight. Tomorrow consists of house cleaning and check-out, and spending our last few precious moments at the beach. We are bringing our boards and other beach gear with us in spite of our new close quarters, and I envision many weekends exploring the East Coast beaches in our future!

Patience is the 14th Dimension

2011-05-13T11:26:00.000-07:00

So when you're going through the process of becoming an FSO, you learn there are 13 Dimensions they (the FS) are looking for in candidates. Patience is not one of them, but it definitely should be. I am supposed to be moving on Monday, but I still have no travel orders. Without these orders I cannot have the movers pick up my things, and if the movers do not come on Monday then our entire time-line (which we have planed perfectly in order to arrive on time) is going to be completely fucked up. I am trying not to lose my mind, but it is becoming exceedingly difficult when NO ONE WILL ANSWER THEIR PHONE. I have been on phone and e-mail for the last couple of days trying to get things in order, but I keep getting the run around regarding what paperwork they need and again NO ONE WILL ANSWER THEIR PHONE. It is so frustrating to sit here at 2:30 on Friday afternoon with no confirmation that I will, in fact, be able to move on Monday. I realize that these folks are overworked right now with the incoming class being last minute and all, but I can't imagine that it is too much to ask to get some kind of contact letting me what the status is. And there is nothing I can do right now but wait.

It's Really Happening

2011-05-06T17:24:00.000-07:00

Agreement to Join the FS & Salary Offer - signed & sent
Travel Orders - on their way
Pack out - scheduled for 16-17 May
Welcome packet - received
Husband - totally freaking out!

Oh yeah, it is definitely happening!

Man, am I going to miss this place

It's True

2011-04-26T09:58:00.000-07:00

I've received my Insanity: Asylum!! And I've already started my rotation. What can I say? I'm a sucker for super crazy Beachbody products.

Oh, and, yes, it’s also true that I’ve received an invite to the May 23^rd A-100 class to start my journey as a Foreign Service Officer!!!! We are beyond thrilled and excited and just a wee bit nervous about this total career change. To answer a few common questions up front:

We will be leaving FL on 18 May to drive to Arlington, VA where my initial training will be held
I have no idea how long we will be there, but it will likely be somewhere between 3-12 months depending on what post we get sent to
No, I don’t know where we’re going yet. I get what’s called a bid list (a list of available posts for Junior Officers with varying locations, training times, and start dates) sometime near the end of the 1^st week of class, and we’ll find out where we’ll be posted sometime around the 5^th week of class. So we should know where we’re going and when we have to be there sometime in July.
No I won’t be able to make it to the family reunion now :( Unfortunately they don’t allow leave for any reason (short of devastating illness, etc.) during A-100, which is about 6 weeks long.
We will be living in State Dept contracted housing for the duration of our stay in VA, which means cramming our family of 7 into a 3-bedroom apartment. Yes, we’re going to be “that” family, lol!

It’s all happening very quickly, and there is a lot to get done, so I’ll try to keep the blog updated as much as I can (not that I do now anyway, ha!), but try to be understanding if it seems like I’ve fallen off the face of the earth. We’re still here! :)

One Clearance Down, Two to Go

2011-04-04T11:20:00.000-07:00

Got word today that my State Dept security clearance was granted on 3/21. Now I am just waiting on medical and the final suitability review. I suppose in light of the federal budget craziness all this waiting might actually be a good thing. After all, they can't hire me if there isn't any money, lol!

Conversation with J

Me: What did you do in school today?

J: Adriana and Emma and me played the cheetah game.

Me: What’s that?

J: *gives the ‘duh, Mom’ look* We pretend to be cheetahs.

Me: And what do cheetahs do?

J: We chase boys...then we catch them.

Me: And then what do you do?

J: *evil grin* We eat them.

Me: Well, I suppose that’s what cheetahs do.

J: Yeah, then they run away again. *evil giggle* But then we catch them and eat them again.

Me: Well, what about the girls?

J: No, girls don’t taste good.

Jacksonville

2011-03-21T10:14:00.001-07:00

*C is #3

Still Waiting

2011-03-17T06:38:00.000-07:00

Now that I’ve let the cat out of the bag about my career aspirations, that’s about all the news I can give. This is a long and painful process that mostly involves waiting. State has requested some additional medical info from me, but I have to wait another 3 weeks before I can get the tests done, so I won’t even be able to submit that paperwork for consideration until the beginning of April. Then there’s always the chance that they’ll want more info/testing, so that process could continue to drag on. My security clearance seems to be chugging along (they redid the whole investigation – our tax dollars at work!), and I suspect I may hear news on that before I hear about my medical clearance. After those two items are done, I still have to pass through the Final Suitability Review before my name even goes on the hiring register.

I suppose all the delays are a good thing for now. I just got wind from the Yahoo Groups I belong to that State is canceling the May A-100 class altogether, most likely due to all of the budget issues. What does that mean for me? I have no freaking clue! My guess is that the registers will simply continue to grow with people, some of whom may have better scores than me which would put them higher on the list for the next class. Of course, when the next class will be held is also up for debate. I can only assume that State will have to hire at least at attrition rate (meaning that they need new blood to make up for retirees and those leaving the service for their own reasons); however, if there’s no budget and therefore no money…basically I have no idea when the next A-100 class will be or where I’ll be on the register once they resume. There is talk that they may cancel classes for the entire year! *sigh*

Of course in my real life (not the fantasy one I have in my head) I also work for the federal government, so the budget woes concern me greatly in that aspect as well. I don’t think I’m going to be laid off any time soon, but the longer this fiasco goes on, the more I have to worry about. Maybe I should have just stuck with the family status quo and gone into business for myself. At least then maybe I would feel like I have some control!

The World's Gone Crazy

2011-03-16T07:48:00.000-07:00

Between the uprisings in the Middle East and the recent disasters in New Zealand, Australia, and Japan, it seems like the world's gone crazy. Husband thinks we're all going to die in 2012, but until we do, please consider going to the Red Cross and donating to your favorite cause. We used to live in Northern Japan (a few hours north of Sendai), and we have visited the area that was recently devastated by the earthquake and tsunami, and now the nuclear reactor business...It's very surreal to see a place where you spent so much time going through so much misfortune. Our hearts and prayers are with the people of Japan.

The Boy

2011-03-06T17:42:00.000-08:00

Then

Now

*He's so not a baby anymore *SOB*

My Kids Are Badass

2011-03-04T09:22:00.000-08:00

So, I have a number of ladies in my life that are or are about to become new parents, so I was thinking I should start writing more about parenting in general since I am so freaking awesome at it. You don’t think so? Well at least one of my kids has outlasted all of the others (that I know) – 12 years and no limbs lost - so, I win! Considering I get most of my parenting wisdom from here, here, and old episodes of Arrested Development, I think I am more than qualified to be doling out advice so here it goes. Kids are annoying. Yes, even yours. And even when you are the BEST PARENT IN THE WORLD your child will sometimes develop annoying or embarrassing characteristics. Take, for example, my youngest. Try as I might to deny it, it has become increasingly apparent that he is a One-Upper. He just can’t help himself. I’ve tried to teach him not to do it. I tried telling him it just makes him look like an asshole, but he just thinks that it’s funny that I said asshole. Case in point:

J: Mommy, I cut my finger in school today.

A: My too! My cut my finger, too!

J: It bled and my teacher had to put a bandaid on it.

A: My too! My too! My fin-er bed and put TWO bandaid on! No free! Free bandaid!

J: Look the bandaid is still on my finger.

A: Look my fin-er all gone.

Me: Um, you’re holding up your finger.

A: Dis fin-er not real.

Yesterday's conversation:

J: Mommy, mommy, mommy, mommmmy, mommyyyyy!

Me: What??!!

J: Tomorrow I’m going on a field trip!

A: My too, my too! My go in fee tip amorrow!

J: Well, I’m going to see a puppet show, and then we’re going to eat pizza!

A: My too. I go see poopin show and eee pizza, and then go to zoo and Disney and eveywer. My see bears and lions that poop on your face (because everything ends in pooping in someone’s face here at the Corner)

J: That’s gross

A: Dat awesome!

Latest Thoughts & Random Musings

2011-03-01T10:51:00.000-08:00

Food For Thought

Someone posted this question on a fitness forum I frequent, and I thought it was really interesting. What if you could go back and live for a day in your 21 yr old body, what would you do? If I could live for one day in my 21 yr old body I would either be pregnant again (no thank you!) or just out-of-shape. Amazing that in my mid-thirties and after 3 kids, I am in the best shape of my life. Is my body perfect? The answer is decidedly no (thank you hangy stomachy thing). I will never have perky boobs again or a completely flat stomach (short of surgery), but I jump higher, run farther, and lift more than I ever could in my twenties. Oh, and to answer the question, I would probably get drunk and make fun of old people.

Not Food For Thought

In other news, we are flat broke. Okay not flat, flat broke, but I made a boo boo this month wherein I accidentally paid all of the mid-month bills at the beginning of the month. Unfortunately, the beginning of the month bills did not give a rats ass and still wanted to get paid thus resulting in a loss of any discretionary income whatsoever. In addition to being lame (!!) it also means I have started coveting many things which are now out of reach* like the Vitamix. Can you imagine? You could make soup in your blender! You can throw in whole fruit without having to peel or chop!! You could make super-dooper green smoothies!!! Aghhhhh! I am overwhelmed by its awesomeness. I am also seriously craving a TRX. Check out the tutorial. You can even use it with your kettlebells, my latest fitness craze. Me wantee!! Ugh, okay enough about stuff I’ll probably never get anyway because I just can’t bring myself to spend $400 on a blender (no matter how freaking awesome it is!!!!).

I’ve toned it down a bit on my workouts mainly b/c we were all hit with the pooping disease** around Christmas time. As most diseases go, it does not hit everyone all at once but instead infects only one family member at a time thus ensuring you have to take the maximum time off of work and spend the maximum amount cleaning*** So, in reality, this lasted us a good month. I was also obsessed with preparing for my oral exam, which caused me such nerves that I had very little appetite even if I hadn’t been pissing out of my ass (er, too much?). Anyway, boils down to, it’s just now that I’m starting to pick up my workouts again. As I like to do every so often, here’s my current workout schedule:

1 – 60min Circuit Training
2 – 30min HIIT, 30min Kettlebells
3 – Long cardio (60-70min)
4 – 60min Circuit Training
5 – 30min HIIT, 30 min Kettlebells
6 – Rest
7 – Yoga/Fusion/Pilates

On a lighter and totally unrelated note to anything I have written so far, you MUST go here …immediately…I’m waiting…no I mean right now. This post in particular made me laugh until I cried (be forewarned, close talkers, I lick!), which was unfortunate since I happened to be reading it at work.
Coworker: Um, Pu, are you okay in there?
Me: *snorfle laugh* Yeah, yeah. I'm just *SNOOOORT hahahaha* errrr, reviewing this project proposal.
Coworker: My project proposal?

I also discovered that although I have seen about 60% of our great country, I have actually only seen about 6% of the world :( Here’s hoping that will be rectified sooner rather than later.

visited 30 states (60%)
Create your own visited map of The United States 60%

visited 14 states (6.22%)
Create your own visited map of The World 6.22%

*Not that I would purchase them anyway since I am notoriously frugal (read: cheap) thanks to my Mama’s upbringing (she used to make us clothes…and ones for our Barbies to match…I can’t even hem my clothes…craziness!!
**Exactly what it sounds like
***Remember we still have at least two family members who have only a tenuous hold over their bowels when not inflicted with the pooping disease (again, not naming names)

SUP Ya'll

2011-02-27T13:14:00.001-08:00

Stand Up Paddle Board, that is...

Forgot to add one thing to our "Out" list = TOURISTS!!!!! I know living here is awesome in the winter (just check out the pictures above; that was our entire weekend!), BUT there is nothing more annoying than having an additional 15-20min added to your daily commute because of all the idiots who've flocked to your neighborhood just for a visit. Drives me dingbats!

Another Week, Another Volleyball Tournament

2011-02-24T08:09:00.000-08:00

Because I enjoy reminding everyone about how busy we are, here’s a recap of my week so far:

Sat – Sun: Volleyball tournament (leave house by 6am to get there by 7am, return home late afternoon, oh and squeeze in other kids’ dance and ice skating classes somewhere in between)

Monday: Work all day, pick up 3 kids at 2 different schools, drive 45min to C volleyball practice, entertain 2 small children for 1 ½ hours while trying to cram in homework*, drive 45min home, feed & put kids to bed, make sure C does homework (a current major problem here at Pu’s Corner), collapse in bed with clothes still on.

Tuesday: repeat (except J has piano, so factor that in, too)

Wed : No volleyball, yay!

Thus: repeat

SO…yeah, we’re busy. Anyway, I prefer to not get political here, but one of the blogs I follow (an FS guy who is also ex-army, so kinda the exact person I aspire to be!) had a really interesting commentary on Indecisive Wars. I won’t say any more than that! :)

It’s been a while since I did our Ins and Outs here at the Corner; let’s see where we stack up now…

Things that are In:
- The colors pink and purple
- Annoying your sisters
- Hitting your brother in the face (see above)
- Puzzles
- Spending money on volleyball paraphernalia
- Hanging at the beach (forecast to be 80 degrees here for the foreseeable future, yay FL!)
- Green smoothies!
- Having Mom do everything

Things that are Out:
- Dairy (we’re testing to see if J is lactose intolerant)
- Gas prices!!! (have I mentioned how much time we spend in the car traveling to and from volleyball events?)
- Diapers
- Pooping in the potty (at least for 1 family member…I won’t say who)
- Homework
- Needles (everyone had to have massive blood drawn for our medical clearances…very traumatic for the under 12 set)
- Having Dad do everything

*In case I haven’t mentioned it to some of you, I’m back in school…again. What can I say, I am a glutton for punishment!

Why I Wasn't Free to Skype This Weekend

2011-02-08T11:48:00.001-08:00

And 2 full days of this:

(C is #3, btw)

Tidbits from the Corner

2011-02-04T06:23:00.000-08:00

J: Somebody was smiling at me
Me: Did you smile back?
J: I don't know. I can't see my face.

Me: So are you talking about what's happening in Egypt in class?
C: Huh?
Me: Don't you guys talk about current events at school?
C: Mom, I'm in the sixth grade. I can barely keep up with what's going on in iCarly.

Yay For FL

2011-02-02T16:48:00.000-08:00

...just sayin'...

My OA Experience

2011-01-27T12:28:00.001-08:00

I wrote this up for the FSOA Yahoo Group, but I figure I should post it here, too. This was 1st attempt at the Oral Assessment, and I passed with a 5.6. Adding in my SCNL and veteran bonus points that means I should be pretty high on the register when all my clearance stuff come through.

I arrived in Atlanta on the afternoon of the 20^th with plenty of time to get checked into my hotel and scout out the location of the OA. I had prepared a strategy for all three sections based on the information I gathered in the files of the FSOA Yahoo Group, but it ended up flying out the window the minute we sat down to do our GE. One of the other individuals in my GE was very assertive and assigned everyone their roles and also grabbed the paper they dropped in the middle of the table. I found that just being myself (and being very organized in my presentation) were probably the key factors in passing this section. Personally I feel being calm, collected, and most of all *collaborative* are the keys to passing the GE. You must speak up (it’s been said a hundred times, but they can’t assess what they don’t see), but be polite, interested, and above all make sure to be the guide towards consensus. If you are not used to speaking in public, I highly recommend finding a study group or just practicing with friends and family. I often participate in meetings like the kind the GE is meant to represent (although we don’t generally have such time limits), so I felt very comfortable speaking in front of others even on a topic I wasn’t very familiar with. Also, I recommend learning how to structure a briefing (since that’s what your 5min presentation really is). None of my other GE members passed that day, and I would venture that not being well organized was a part of that (again, that’s just my observation).

CM was the second section for me, and since I am a pretty fast reader and typist, I did not find the time constraints to be too bad. In fact, I finished with about 20min to spare, which I think was my downfall in this section (I did not pass CM) because I started to second guess myself, went back and started changing my original memo which caused it to go over the 2 page limit. Then I started editing the crap out of it to keep it within the 2 page max, and I think I ended up weakening my overall recommendation. In studying for the CM, I would highly recommend practice, practice, practice. If you are not a fast reader or typist, these are things you can improve through practice, especially if you have several months between the time you pass the QEP and take the OA.

The third section for me was the SI. I passed this section, although I came out of it with mixed feelings. I have to say, BEX is good! One of my self-assessed strengths is that I am very good at reading people, and they were very hard to read! They definitely played the good cop/bad cop, and I came out of there feeling like one of them loved me and the other one hated me! This was not the case as the “bad cop” assessor was the 1^st to congratulate me on passing the OA, and she was very, very nice. So don’t be nervous about the reactions you get from BEX, just do your best, stay calm and collected, and don’t be afraid to ask questions. Some of the questions they ask are very complex and it will not hurt to ask them to repeat all or part of the question (but it will definitely hurt if you don’t give a full answer). I had prepared the most for this section (since it is one you really can prepare for since you are the one who knows yourself best), but most of my preparation went out the window as soon as the questions started rolling in. My best advice on this section is to speak from the heart. One of the questions was not something I had a ready answer for, so I spoke about my son’s disability and some of the challenges I faced as a mother, and I actually got a little choked up during my answer. I was a little worried that letting my composure slip would cost me points, but now I think it may have helped since it was clear that I was passionate about what I was talking about and I made sure that the concepts were directly relevant to how I would serve as a FSO.

Once that section was over, the waiting began! It wasn’t too bad since we were a relatively small group, and they actually shortened the day so that we were completely done by 3pm. Still that wait to get the results is just excruciating! Luckily, I took the OA with a fantastic group of people (I was really surprised that there weren’t more passers as there were some very accomplished people in there with me, including 3 lawyers and a congressional aide), so we killed the time by telling stories and laughing, we were a very jovial group! I can’t say whether there’s anything to the last man standing concept, but in my case I was the second to last person called, and the other passer that day was the last person called. One of my SI assessors walked me down the (very long!) hall where I found a group of assessors standing around waiting for me. Then everyone began to shake my hand and congratulate me for passing the OA; I was in such shock, I didn’t even know how to respond! I had a lot of paperwork to fill out since I am married with 3 kids, so I ended my day at about 4:30pm. Now I just have to wait for all my clearance paperwork to go through to find out where I stand on the register. I already have a TS/SCI clearance through another agency, but the DSS members who took my fingerprints and released my SF-86 were unsure whether that would have any bearing on how quickly my DoS clearance would come through.

Just as an FYI, all this means is that I have some more waiting to do before we find out when/if I'll be called up for an A-100 class (like boot camp for FSOs). These classes are only held a few times a year, and you have to hold a high enough spot on the register to get the call (meaning that even making onto the register doesn't guarantee you a spot!). I'll stay on the register for 18mos and if I haven't received a call by the time the 180mos is up then I have to start the whole process over again. I think my score is pretty good, and I have a very good shot at getting the call once all the paperwork is completed (could take 4-6mos) so hopefully the wait won't be too long. I guess we'll find out! :)

I'm Back

2011-01-24T09:49:00.000-08:00

Yeah, I know it’s been a while. Sorry ‘bout that. To recap the last few months: went to sister’s wedding in France; traveled in Italy w/Hubs & parents; hosted Thanksgiving w/parents, cousins, & aunt and uncle; had s-kids here for X-mas break; started the New year with 1 kid in club volleyball, 1 kid in dance, gymnastics, and piano, and 2 kids in ice skating. Whew! Oh, also new: I received a conditional offer of employment from the State Department as a Foreign Service Officer.

What? What’s that you say? You had no idea? Well, that was sort of the point. I started this process back in June of last year when I took the 1^st of many, many steps by passing the written exam known as the FSOT. Actually, the State Dept website explains this whole process a lot better than I could, so here’s a link to their version. I didn’t want to say anything about my interest in becoming an FSO until I knew it could in fact become a reality instead of just a big, fancy fantasy in my mind. Now that I’ve passed the last step…more waiting! I now have to get medical clearances & have DoS recognize my DoD security clearances, then pass the final review before my name officially goes on the hiring list. Luckily with my decent OA score and all the bonus points I get for my language & being a veteran, I should be pretty high on the list once I make it there. What does this all boil down to? Probably no job offer for at least another 6mos or so.

Anyway, now that I have made it to this stage, I feel like I can start talking about everyday life stuff again. We’ve been in limbo for the last 9mos waiting to see if I’d even make it this far, so it is a big sigh of relief to get back to life as usual. I promise to start posting lots more inane, everyday stud and keep this blog updated. Can’t let the last 5 years go to waste! :)

Updates, Updates

2010-08-09T17:47:00.000-07:00

I meant to link the butterfly experiment in my last post, sorry about that!

Life continues to be incredibly busy. I worked my reserve weekend this past weekend, and now it is already our last full week with the s-kids. School starts in just two weeks, and we've still got all the school shopping left to do, plus family pictures (we haven't done one since before I was pregnant with A, so I figure we're due!).

To tide you over until I can find the time to post again, here's some pics from our Disney trip last week (kids loved it, hotter than hell, sooo many people - there's our vacation in a nutshell, lol)

Catching Up

2010-08-01T07:05:00.000-07:00

I realized that in addition to not posting any updates, I also haven't posted any pictures. So here' some recent pics from T&J's combined b-day party (ice skating party in FL in July? Makes perfect sense to me!) and a couple from the great butterfly experiment, which was a big hit with all the kids (not just the girls).

Shark Week is this week, so if you've got the cable the kids highly recommend tuning in for this defining week (we watch it every year!). Next week we'll be at Disney, so I expect I'll have lots of pics to post following that.

Long Time No Write

2010-07-25T15:28:00.000-07:00

Wow, I did not realize it had been so long since I wrote a blog post. In all fairness, I was startin to feel a little sorry for myself, so I took the last couple of months to mope around and be depressed and now I feel like I've figured out some things to get myself back on a good path. Anyway, thing around here are pretty much par of the course. Work is continuing to be a massive pain in my ass. As I contractor I work just as much overtime as I did when I was active duty, how depressing!

We are up to five kids again. I hired a part-time nanny to help Hubs out with the kids this summer since he is still working from home & going to school full-time. It has been a life saver to get him 4 uninterrupted hours a day. The kids have had a blast this summer. We hit the beach every weekend, and we've done lots of interesting trip. This weekend we celebrated J and T's birthdays together at the ice rink. We had Hubs' family and some of J's friends from school along with our whole crew. They did the whole cake and pizza thing, and then we got a 1/2hr lesson for the kids. Not one of the except C had ever been on ice skate before, and you can only imagine what A was like; he couldn't keep his feet under him! They had a fantastic time, though. I think they all enjoyed it so much, we might go back and just do an open skate before the kids leave. Hubs, of course, is now making plans for how our 3-yr old son is going to be a professional hockey player.

Oh, I won an award at work. I would guess it equates to something like employee of the quarter. Anyway, it comes with $1500 to spend on the vacation of your choice. So, we're taking everyone to Disney. With the military deal they have going right now, we were able to get 6 tickets (A won't need one) for $600 with no tax that will allow us single-day access to each of the parks (no park hopper). With hotel and food, it should still come out under $1500 (I hope!), although we did schedule a breakfast with the Disney Princesses for the girls (Hubs asked to take them, which I thought was very sweet, and I think he might have a bit of a crush on Ariel).

I guess that's it to get the ball rolling again. Promise I'll try not to neglect my blog for so long again!

A++ You Knocked It Outta The Park

2010-05-19T16:03:00.000-07:00

Or so I was told by my gov't overlords following my Very Important Briefing (VIB) today. Next up, six dozen more VIBs! Never time for a breather *sigh* (but at least I don't have to worry about trying to find another job, lol!).

Hubs is off to LA on Friday, so it'll just be me and the kidz for a few days. Looking forward to quality hooping time (hula, that is) with the Goose (J). A will have to live without his Mario for a few days since I don't play (I've never seen a kid more interested in watching Daddy play video games over watching tv, go figure!). C will, alas, be on punishment since she "lost" her report card. The great irony is that the one class she did poorly in was religion, and I could have cared less about that particular grade (what can I say, we send them to Catholic school but I'm not Catholic). But now she's in trouble b/c she "lost" her report card (mysteriously not losing any other bit of paperwork) and then hid it from us. Loving the pre-teen years!!

Haven't Posted in Forever

2010-05-17T17:34:00.001-07:00

Rest assured I am being kept very busy with work stuffish. Also find time to attend events like these:

Hopefully you all are slightly less busy than I. I am hoping for a reprieve sometime in the near future, but it is not looking to be shaping up that way as the summer is already starting to fill up with various work stuffs. I am looking forward to our mini-vacay over Memorial Day when my 'rents and big sis and fam come for a visit. We'll be a full but happy home! Can't wait to see all the cousins together. J is very, very excited to see her cousin Y again (they are only about 6 mos apart). We also pln to celebrate A's 3rd b-day when everyone is here (mainly as an excuse to get my mom to bake us a cake, lol!) Promise I'll make a longer post at some point this weekend when the Hubs is out of town gallivanting about with his friends in LA. Mwah!

Happy Tuesday

2010-05-04T10:47:00.000-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EP0sHfgkbSg&feature=related

Weekend Round-up?

2010-04-05T09:33:00.000-07:00

What the hey? A weekend round-up? We never do those around here. Alright, so I realize I've been all doomy and gloomy recently (wah I have to get a root canal, wah I have no iron in my blood, wah my job sucks, etc. etc.). And I've realized something from all this, an epiphany if you will...no one wants to comment on your posts when all you do is whine! So take that nugget of wisdom for what it's worth, lol ;) So we're taking things in a new direction. Da Hubs and I have been doing a bit of talking and a bit of planning, and I am hoping that this will help me focus on future goals and not get so aught up in the crapiness of the now. Plus, it's like 82 degrees out (we went from straight Winter to 1 week of Spring, to full-blown Summer, yay!) and we spent all weekend at the beach. Who can be pissy about that!

We had a lovely Easter. The Easter Bunny once again outsmarted herself by failing to count the number of eggs put out, but I'm sure we'll figure it out eventually :) Much candy was eaten, much energy was expelled by randomly running around in circles and shrieking. Oh, and we gave some to the kids, too. All in all, about what one can expect from a successful Easter in a non-Christian household.

In other news, A has a humungo appointment coming up on Wednesday to get tested for FIDLRS. This is the The Florida Diagnostic and Learning Resources System, which is basically the Early Steps for age 3 and up. This appointment is so they can test him to see where he falls on the development spectrum now and will basically affect the rest of his life...or something not quite so dramatic. Not sure yet. Anyway, our level of support from the state will be based on the outcome of their assessment, so it is pretty important. Our ST is coming over tonight (instead of during the day like usual) so she can prep me for what to expect. This will also mark of the start of our venture into IEPs, which are extremely important for parents to understand so they can properly advocate for their kids. To say I'm nervous would be putting it mildly.

In not so big news, da Hubs is working on becoming a regular Betty Crocker. Or at least one with a clean eating bent. He successfully tackled the Fitnessista's Sweet Potato Black Bean Chili (we added pork tenderloin to the mix because, well, I love meat), and it turned out to be really, really delicious. I knew it had to be good because it was made with sweet potatoes (and you all know how I feel about them - I heart u sweet potato!!) and black beans (never been a huge fan of beans in general, but I have come to discover that I lurve black beans). So, so yummy. And so, so nice to come home to a completely prepared meal without my having to lift one finger!

Feeling Sorry for Myself

2010-03-31T16:31:00.000-07:00

Work continues to suck all the life out of me *sigh* In some ways I love what I do, and I think I am pretty damn good at it (my boss told me that I am too talented to be working at our place of business, lol...either that means he really thinks I'm talented, or he is angling to make me more loyal, either way it worked, hah!). Our customer, however, is exceedingly difficult and just sucks all of the joy out of my day to day life. I wish I could just put it aside when I get home, but I can't help it. It keeps me awake at night knowing all of the help we could be providing that is just being thrown away by a group of very petty and selfish individuals who have no idea what they're doing. This place is the epitome of fraud, waste, and abuse of taxpayer money, and it makes me sick to my stomach whenever I think about it. On top of all that, to make up for their incompetence, I (and my team) end up workng long hours to meet unrealistic expectations, so I have very little time away from this toxic environment.

On the plus side, I live in a freaking paradise. Of course, this means that everyone else wants to come and visit paradise, and now I have to fight them all to get home. I fucking hate Spring Break.*

Recently Heard:

C: Mom, I need to use some of the carbon pernoxide.
Me: What?
C: The carbon pernoxide for my ears*
Me: You mean the hydrogen peroxide?
C: Yeah, that. Whatever, I'm not good with chemical stuff.
Me: Then I guess you won't be building a meth lab any time soon.
C: *stares witheringly** You're not funny, Mom.

J: *coughs weakly* I lost my voice...no wait, I found it under the table.

*Wah, wah, waaaah - I'm such a Debbie Downer lately!
**recently pierced

Not Dead, I Swear

2010-03-24T18:41:00.000-07:00

I might feel like it, but I don't think I am actually dead. Work has just been overwhelming, then we had the munchkin invasion, and we're in the midst of C's softball season, which means at least two long games a week. So, anyway, not much time to write. I can share one interesting little conversation I had with the goose while watching C's long and painful softball tonight (they only lost by 20 this time!) who is clearly being influenced by her school:

J: Mama, I'm going to be a baptized.
Me: Oh?
J: Yes, just like you and Daddy.
Me: Well, I was never baptized.
J: *arches brow and stares at me seriously* Yes, you were. At the ice cream store.
Me: I don't think people get baptized at ice cream stores.
J: Well, I do. I'm going to get my baptized and then eat some ice cream.
Me: I'm pretty sure you have to get baptized in a church.
J: Oh, I have a church at my school. It has the baby Jesus and he's being held by the Daddy Jesus.
Me: Really?
J: Yes. And the Daddy Jesus is next to the Mommy Jesus who's name is Mary. Mary is Jesus's cousin. Like my cousin Y.
Me: I don't think you have that quite right
J: Yes, Mary is the cousin and the mommy. She is very importantant. Like Haiti.
Me: Like what?
J: Like Haiti. Haiti had an earthquake and now she has no mommy and no daddy, so we need to give her money.
Me: I'm not following.
J: *indignantly* Haiti got hurt and everyone is giving her money, so give me some money so I can help Haiti!
Me: I don't think Haiti is a her.
J: YES SHE IS!!
Me: How can a person have an earthquake?
J: People can have earthquakes. That's how they lose their mommies and daddies. It is sad and then you give them money. That's how it works.
Me; Fair enough, here's a quarter.

EPIC

2010-03-07T08:48:00.000-08:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=28jBDhqwXhE

THAT IS ALL!

LAME!

2010-03-03T13:25:00.000-08:00

The only word I can think of that sums up the suckage of getting a root canal...which I got today.

Heard Recently on the Corner

2010-03-01T16:47:00.000-08:00

"How did I know that? I turned on my mind and it told my brain all kinds of things. Now I'm the smartest."

"I'm hungry, Mama. I wish I could build a robot. Then the robot cound make me snacks."

"Mama, I have the bestest surprise for you. *shrieks at the top her lungs* AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII. Isn't that a great surprise?"

T: Come here and give Daddy a kiss.
J: *does not look up from playing* No, I'm sorry. I'm all out of kisses right now. You should try again later.

All Kinds of Fucked Up

2010-02-25T15:21:00.001-08:00

Sorry for the continued radio silence. Work has continued to be crazy busy and I don't foresee it slowing down anytime soon. In addition, Hubs has a new job (yay, Hubs!) that he will be starting on Monday. He is already doing ad hoc work for his old company and working on his MBA (he's taking 3 classes right now, isn't he nuts!), so our schedules are about to get even busier. I think I'm just going to have to accept that blog posts are going to be fewer and more far between than I would like. I blog for two big reasons: first and foremost it acts as an open e-mail-like dialogue for me to keep in contact with family and close friends, but secondly it acts as a record for me to keep track of what we've been up to. I don't keep a diary, so the blog is really the only thing I have that reminds me of all the things we do/have done. So it makes me sad when I think of all these things I would like to blog about but just never seem to have time to get down on paper *sigh*

Anyway, my other big excuse for not blogging how we've been all kinds of fucked up lately. I recently had two crowns replaced on either side of my mouth (because I am smart like that), and while the temporary ones were on (got the permanent ones on today), I was in horrific pain. I think it was just that my crowns were so big that when they removed them and put the very tiny temporary ones on, some of the tooth was exposed that hadn't been exposed to elements for many, many years and so it was terribly sensitive. It has been so painful that I have to take aspirin every 3-4 hours plus the prescription pain meds they gave me (which I only take at night since you can't drive on them) just to be able to function normally. I haven't been able to eat solid foods for two weeks now, and it is driving me insane! I have the new ones on now, but I am still very numb so it remains to be seen if the blinding pain will subside now. On top of that, Hubs gave himself a very nasty cut on his foot while trying to clean up some broken glass in the garage. Luckily he did not need stitches, but they did give him a tetanus shot (aren't they sweet) and, of course, it is very painful to do anything (drive, walk, etc.) since it is on the bottom of his foot.

Okay, enough about the bad stuff. A has been making some really significant progress in therapy. He recently learned how to say mean (men!) as in, while we were waiting for Tim at the ER I ate one of his vanilla wafers (okay, I sucked on it until it turned to mush and then ate it, lol) and he looked at me horrified and cried, "Mean!" lol. C has started softball and really seems to like it. Softball is a much more relaxed sport than soccer, and her team seems very laid back and just there to have fun. It is really perfect for C's style.

J has been taking gymnastics at her school (it's offered as part of the after school program) and is now very into twirling around and doing somersaults. She is also very interested in horses (if only it weren't so expensive!). She recently told me about her dream to own a horse:

J: Mommy, my biggest dream in the whole world is to have my very own horse. No wait, a unicorn.
Me: Wow, that sounds like fun.
J: That flies.
Me: That would be cool.
J: She would be my friend and I would call her princess and we could fly all over the world and eat candy.
Me: That sounds like a wonderful dream.
J: Want to know what my other most favorite, biggestest dream is?
Me: What?
J: *sighs dreamily* I want to drive a truck.

We also recently acquired a new family pet. Christmas Sprinkles came to us courtesy of the Wal-Mart fish department. She was a lovely beta fish. And if you haven't guessed from my use of past tense, Christmas Sprinkles is no longer with us (nor is Christmas Sprinkles 2, but that's another story). Christmas Sprinkles passed on after just a few days of ownership and Tim and I were concerned that the kids would be upset about her death, so we did what all good parents do and surreptitiously flushed her down the toilet without telling anyone. To my great surprise I overheard a conversation between J&C over their morning bowl of cereal:

C: What happened to Christmas Sprinkles?
J: *shrugs* She just dieded.
Me: How did you know that?
J: I just saw her this morning in her bowl and she was dead.
C: Are you sad that Christmas Sprinkles is dead?
J: I guess *pauses thoughtfully* but sometimes things died...and sometimes they stay alive. That's how it goes.

True wisdom from a four-year-old. So we did end up replacing Christmas Sprinkles. We now have two goldfish, Cinderella and Snow White, and a small yellow fish, Mr. Bananas. So far they're still living. As J would say, that's how it goes!

Olympics Whore

2010-02-13T14:38:00.000-08:00

I think I may have blogged about this back in '08, but I just love, love, love the freaking Olympics. If Hubs would let me, I would have them on all day long. I can't help it, I'm just a sucker for everything about them. I love the sob stories (happy and sad ones), the amazing athletic fetes, the chance for people to represent their countries, etc. I desperately want to pass on my obsession to my kids, but I just don't know that it's possible any more. When we were growing up there were only so many choices out there on tv. That meant that the Olympic hype was broadcast everywhere and there was little escape from it. Since I always fancied myself an athlete (I had dreams of being an Olympic swimmer - Janet Evans was my childhood hero!), I was so drawn in by the pinnacle of all athletic competitions. I always thought it was a mistake to split the summer/winter Olympics (they really should have stayed during the same year), but that doesn't make me any less excited about seeing them.

It's wierd, though. I grew up Olympics-obsessed, and I kind of thought that was the norm for people. I mean doesn't everyone remember where they were when Mary Lou Retton scored her perfect 10? When Greg Louganis hit his head on the diving board? Is it just me!!?? My hubs doesn't seem to remember actually watching any of these things, and also seems to think I'm a bit nutty over the whole thing. So maybe it is just me? Or maybe the Olympics have lost their luster in the face of so much other competition? Or maybe it's just here in the US? I just watched the Dutch win a gold medal in speed skating, is that big news over there or am I truly the only one left who cares? Either way, I'm still forcing my kids to watch :)

At Last...An Excuse!

2010-02-10T15:39:00.000-08:00

Finally, after all this time, I finally have a good excuse as to why I'm too tired to blog, too tired to cook dinner, to tired to go out (etc., etc.). I went to the doctor for the first time in years a little over a week ago just for a check-up and found out that I am apparently so severely anemic that the doctor was shocked I haven't keeled over from a heart attack yet. Anemia is the lack of iron in your blood, but more importantly, it affects the hemoglobin in your red blood cells - you know, those cells that carry oxygen from your heart to every other organ in your body, including your brain. Signs of anemia include constant fatigue, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, and feeling cold all the time. You can't function at peak performance with severe anemia since you can never get enough oxygen from your heart to your brain. So all this time I've been blaming my increasing fatigue an inability to muster the will to do anything on my lack of sleep, but really it's because I'm not getting any oxygen to my brain. The symptoms of anemia are mostly annoying and not really dangerous; however, in cases where you have had for a long period of time, your heart has to work extra hard to pump oxygen to your vital organs and sometimes, well, it just works too hard and gives out. Apparently my levels are so low that I'm very nearly at that point (a normal, healthy person has a level between 15-30, my level was 7). It's wierd because in all other ways I am the picture of health. Anemia is generally the symptom of something else not a disease on its own, so they're going to have to do some more testing to figure out what is causing this in an otherwise normal and healthy person. But, honestly, I'm pretty relieved that they found this out (and not just because it would suck to keel over froma heart attack). I have been trying to figure out why I never seem to be able to kick this feeling of exhaustion or why I can't seem to concentrate for very long or why I don't ever feel like I'm at full mental capacity. I thought it was just that I don't get enough sleep and that I was just destined to always feel this way. Now I have a cause for my symptoms, one I can actually treat and, hopefully, recover from. So I'm feeling very positive!

Hubs celebrated my potential impending death by going out and spending in anticipation of the large life insurance settlement. Okay, in reality he went to a couple of garage sales and found this nifty cuckoo clock. It looks pretty damn ugly to me, but when he took it to the jewelers to see if it could be restored, he found out it is a very rare clock. One of only 25 made to be exact and one for which there is a nice collectors market. Hubs was offered a very tidy sum by the clock fixer upper guy, but he turned it down because he enjoys making me look at ugly clocks, lol.

The Higher Up in Government I Get

2010-02-03T15:43:00.000-08:00

the more disillusioned I become... *sigh*

WTF Happened to January

2010-02-01T17:58:00.000-08:00

Somehow I blinked and January was gone. Not really sure what happened. I think this god awful project that has swllowed up all of my spare time also got hold of Januray. Oh well, I don't really like cold weather anyway, lol.

Anyway, lots has happened. I swallowed up by this horrible project which required very long hours for very little thanks (it's nice to have contractors around since they can always be the scapegoat for gov't incompetence...I mean it must be nice for the people I work for since I am but a lowly contractor myself). I was working 12-15 hour days, weekends and holidays, I even missed most of my parents' visit here a couple of weeks ago *sigh* On a positive note, I managed to score an all too quick trip to see my little sis and her soon to be hubby in Amsterdam. That was really such an enjoyable trip, not only because A-dam was a beautiful city with such a great vibe, but because I had my first real opportunity as an adult to sit down and just chat with my little sis as women. It was so neat to connect on that level, and it makes me appreciate her all the more (and miss her, too!). Even though we're only a couple of years apart in age, we haven't really lived near each other in 16 years, and, while we skype and talk at family get togethers and stuff, this was the first time we just hung out together (i.e. went shopping and ate, lol!). Hopefully my future projects will continue to take me over her way so we can spend more time together!

As you've surmised from the above, I managed to score the trip on the front end of a business trip to Germany (where my credit card info was stolen, just to add insult to injory). I didn't get to see much of Germany b/c I was working on a military base so I basically went from the hotel to work and back again since we were working such long hours. I did, however, get to enjoy many hours waiting for my delayed plane in the Frankfurt airport (which I knew quite well since my flight into A-dam was canceled and I had a lovely adventure trying to get my luggage back an dtake the train...someday I may well tell this story, but this entry is already getting a bit long and my brain is fried from trying to do my taxes - I fucking hate the state of NM this time of year!!!!). Oops, sorry, I thought I had gotten all of that out of my system earlier. I'll try to save tax bitching for another post!

At some point I will actually get off my ass and download my Europe pics so you can what A-dam in the snow looks like (hint - it literally looks like a postcard - so beautiful!), and I may even have some pictures of the Frankfurt airport (I was there for a looong time). Also, if you enjoyed my last post (such a long, long time ago) about not giving a fuck, you should really check out this link my Aunt B sent me (thanks, Aunt B!). It made me laugh when I really needed to :)

Count Down Continues

2009-12-23T12:15:00.001-08:00

Two days a counting people. Or at least that was the update from the office Count Downers to Santa's arrival this morning. This has really been a fun year for us. The kids are at such a great age for this whole Santa thing (not being Christian the religious aspect of x-mas doesn't even come into play for me, lol!). And I can't even begin to explain how effective threats of landing on the naughty list have been (for the kids, too! ;) If you've never seen it before, consider buying the Elf on the Shelf and revel in this new way to blackmail your kids into behaving!

Besides baking the shit out of my kitchen, my one nod to Christmas tradition is to force my kids to watch Christmas movies every night in the lead up to Christmas Day. A is particularly enamored of the Grinch (cartoon, not live action) and begs for it nightly. J prefers Rudolph or Alvin and the Chipmunks (Hubs bought the Christmas DVD set, how 80s are we??!!). C likes to switch it up, but last night was my night to pick. So we watched my all time favorite Christmas movie, the Nightmare Before Christmas.

Hubs is back from LA. He got in late last night, so I haven't had too much time to talk with him since I had to work today (although I did come in late since I have to close tonight). But I don't have to talk to him to know that while he was out drinking and gallivanting with the drummer from Fleetwood Mac (really!), I was having equally exciting experiences like this one:

C leans over and farts on A's head.
Both laugh hysterically.
J: *indignantly* Ew! That is gross! Mom! Make her stop fawting!
C farts again.
A laughs so hard he knocks himself over.
J: *in a whiny yell* Stop fawwwwwwwwwting, C!!! *suddenly burps, looks surprised, then all three laugh hysterically*

Or,

Picture this: you're calmly shopping in CVS. Your children are distracted by a colorful makeup display, so you are free to quickly browse the aisle when suddenly your youngest son starts screaming bloody murder, screaming like someone has gravely injured him. You rush over to see what the matter is and notice a bright red substance on his mouth. You worry that it is blood, that he may have bitten his lip, when you suddenly notice the bottle in his hand.
He has eaten nail polish.
I repeat, your son has opened up a bottle of nail polish and decided to eat it and now has a tell tale nail polish mustache that incites all people within the relative vicinity to stare at you like you are the worst mother ever
...also, he is still screaming and has drooled nail polish onto your coat.
...He takes after his father.

In retaliation to life in general, I have decided to start following this creed. I hope you will all follow suit and not fall into the trap, as I did, of not giving a cunt suck.

When It Rains...

2009-12-16T07:56:00.000-08:00

So after Monday's insurance disappointment, I received in the mail yesterday a couple of medical bills from August! Apparently BC/BS just paid out their end. Awesome. To top that off, we made an emergency trip to the doctor for A yesterday only to find out that he has a bad staph infection on his tummy. That has to be the worst thing I've ever seen one of my kids go through (and that includes the staples in the head and the time C got stitches in her mouth). I had to hold him down while the doctor drained the damn thing. A doesn't have too many words, but he was in full command of "no, owwie, and 'op (stop)." And that look. The look of," Mommy, why are you doing this to me?" It sucked.

In other news, da Hubs leaves tomorrow for LA for about 5 days, so it will just be me and the kiddos for a while. Hubs gets back next Tuesday, he's home just over X-mas, and then off to Texas to visit the s-kids for a week. He gets back on the 1st and then a few days later I head out the door for Germany.

Also, I think I forgot to blog about C's first concert. C plays the flute in her school band (she begged me to do it last year, so I spent about $400 on that friggin flute and I'll be damned if she gives it up before she graduates from high school!). C was very nervous and attempted many ploys to avoid having to go through with it. But I have to say that on the day of, she was very excited and proud. The band was about as good as one might expect a group of 4th and 5th graders to be (lol). It was a wee bit painful. The concert only took about 20min, and when it was over I complemented her on how well she played and how difficult some of the songs were C replied, "Yeah, I know. I didn't even know half the notes on the last one, so I just made them up!" Ha!

Still Here

2009-12-14T11:23:00.000-08:00

Well, work has been as crazy as I had predicted. Last week I left the house every day by 6am and didn't get home before 6pm even once :( To top it off, last weekend was my Reserve weekend, so I was into my 12th day of straight work with no break. Not fun! In slightly better work news, although I will continue to be so busy I hardly have time to breathe, I am going to be heading to Germany for a week in support of this project. I had hoped to be able to take a day or two additional so I could swing up to Amsterdam to see my lil' sis and fiance, but I think I'm going to have to bank on them possibly having time to come down to Frankfort to see me :(

In other news, we had an update meeting with Early Steps today to talk about A's transition from the ES program (0-3 years) to FDLRS, which is FL's program from kids aged 3 and up. This was just a preliminary meeting to get the paperwork started, but I did find out that even if he does qualify for services (which I have no doubt he will) there will be a three month gap from the time he turns 3 in June until school starts in late August where he won't be covered by ES or FDLRS. My ES coordinator is going to try and help us secure some funding from other sources, but I have a bad feeling I make too much money to qualify for any special funding. So there's an extra 3mos of $$ we're going to have to sock away for A's therapy *le sigh* The good news is that FDLRS covers the cost of pre-K and transportation (yes, he will ride the short bus, lol!), so once school starts we won't have to worry as much. A is due for his 6-month eval in Jan, so we'll get a formal assessment then of how he's progressed since he started therapy in July.

In my personal opinion A has made huge strides, but he still has a long, long way to go. He started out with no words and is now up to about 20 or so recognizable words, even more if you count sounds (e.g. he says doo doo for train, ruff ruff for dog, mao mao for cat, teet teet for bird). He still has a very hard time imitating sounds. If I tell him something is yellow, he repeats ee-ooo. He also uses sounds that are easier for him to say to describe lots of things. He calls trains doodoos (he can't say choo choo) but he also calls Scooby Doo, doo doo. He calls everything a truck (guck because he can't say the tr sound) whether it's a car, truck, bus or train. On the positive side, he is definitely trying to use language and those of us that are around him a lot can understand what he needs based upon a combination of his sounds and other cues. For example, if he's standing in the kitchen or pointing at the fridge and says, "Anna mek," I know he's saying, "I want milk." He also uses some signs, although those are pretty infrequent. I plan to start using the Baby Signing Time DVDs again since he seems more open to them now.

Our GF diet has kind of fallen to the wayside recently. It was very hard to get Tim's Grandma (who watches him during the day) to comprehend the idea of the GF diet, and her mistakes made it kind of for naught. No matter how hard I try to keep him on the diet, if she accidentally gives him a cookie or some other "no" food, all that time, effort and money (going GF is expensive!) goes out the window and you start the timeline all over again. Our care plan may change starting next year, so we'll try again when we have a little more control!

Inadvertant Blog Hiatus

2009-11-30T15:59:00.000-08:00

Sorry for abandoning my blogging duties so egregiously. I have a huge project ongoing at work that is threatening to eat up all my free time. I wish I could say that this makes me a littler happier (and, to be fair, it does a little since I can't stand being bored at work), but I fear we are being so obviously set up for failure that I work feverishly with the despair of knowing that our fabulous product will probably go nowhere thanks to the childish politics of the various government offices involved (e.g. My org should be leading this project, therefore I will sabatoge any effort you make in spite of that fact that we are fighting a war and people are dying. Who cares! It should be my project!!!!).

To tide you over in between my infrequest posts, here are some other stories of life in the Pu household:

C made some new friends with a few of the sixth grade girls at her school when she brought her copy of Twilight: New Moon to school to read at recess. I believe the coversation went something like this (as repeated to me by said child).

Random Sixth Grade Girl (RSGG): OMG! Is that, like, Twilight: New Moon??!! EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! I looooove Twilight. Do you love Twilight, too??!!
C: OMG, yes! Twilight is, like, so totally awesome and cool. I love Edward. I am Team Edward all the way, whoo hoo!
RSG: OMG, me too! We should be BFF forever (hugs!!!)
C: Like, that would be so awesome! Twilight is so cool. I wish I had a vampire boyfriend like Edward.
RSGG: HE IS SO DREAMY!!! EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
C: I KNOW!!!! EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
RSGG: I have already seen New Moon twice and I am going to go again!
C: NO WAY!!!! EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I haven't seen New Moon yet because my parents are so lame!!!!!
RSGG: No way! That sucks! You're parents are way lame!
C: I KNOW! What is wrong with them??!!
RSGG: You should tell that that you will just die if you don't see it!!!
C: I tried that!!!! My mom said that I was lucky to have the book! SO LAME!!!!
RSGG: LAME!!!!
C: I KNOW!!!!

And so on. Tween talk is very hard to interpret because of all the random squealing.

J, on the other hand, has become an expert at interpreting A-speak:

A: Oh weee
J: A says he wants Halloween candy.

A: Ah guck!!! Ah guck!!
J: A wants his truck. You are sitting on it, and he wants it back before your butt eats it.

A: Mo geegah!
J: A wants to have more cookies.
Me: But you don't have any cookies.
J: Yes, that's why he wants more.

Post Turkey Day Ideas:

I always make way too much food for Thanksgiving (who doesn't), and I'm not crazy about having T-Day feast repeats over and over, so I have become pretty good at figuring out what to do with the leftovers. So far this year I have made Tom Kha Gai with turkey and a hybrid turkey pot pie (mashed potato crust, so sort of a turkey shepherd's pie, really). One of my favorite recipes for leftover turkey, however, is Turkey Tetrazini. It is really delicious and it is also super, super easy. Here is my version, which is very slightly adapted from an old Homes & Gardens Cookbook I have.

Pu's Tetrazini:

1 lb spaghetti, cooked
1/2-3/4lb chopped turkey
3- 3 1/2 cups of chicken broth (or turkey broth if you saved it)
1 cup half & half
1/2 cup sherry or white wine
1 tbsp lemon juice
6 tbsp butter
1/2 cup flour
1 lb mushrooms, sliced
1 lg onion, chopped
1/3 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp nutmeg
salt & pepper to taste

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Melt 2 tbsp of the butter in a large pan on medium heat (large enough to hold all ingredients mentioned in the recipe) and cook the onion and mushrooms with a little salt and pepper and the lemon juice until cooked through (about 5-7min). Set veggies aside and melt the remaining butter in the pan. Add the flour and stir the roux until it is smooth and a nice caramel color. Slowly add the chiken or turkey broth and sherry until the mixture is a thick almost chowder like consistancy. Add the half and half and nutmeg and season to taste.Then add the saved veggies and chopped turkey and cook just until mxture is heated through. Spread the cooked spaghetti evenly in a large oven-safe pot or dutch oven. Pour the turkey mixture over top of the spaghetti and sprikle the cheese evenly on top. Bake at 350 for about 30min or until the cheese browns slightly. Let the dish cool for about 10-15 minutes and then slice into even pieces and serve (like lasagna). So delicious!

Boys Are Stinky and Girls Are Mean

2009-11-16T06:43:00.000-08:00

Very uneventful weekend. On Saturday we held a birthday party for Tim’s Grandma (the one who watches A for us). We all pitched in and bought her a ticket back to Buffalo to visit her family back there. I found it humorous that we live in FL and bought her a ticket to go on vacation to Buffalo in January! We also went to the market on Saturday and got lots of produce. I tried to make a cauliflower soup with curry and cardamom, but it turned out to have way too much cardamom and no one would eat it :(

The temperature here has dipped a bit. It still gets into the high 70s/low 80s during the day but it’s down into the 50s at night (hey, after the summer weather, this feels like ice to me!). So in honor of the cooler weather, here’s my current recipe for Tom Kha Gai:

Pu’s Tom Kha Gai

2 cans Coconut Milk
2 cups Chicken broth
4-6 Tbsp Roasted Red Chili Paste
1 stalk lemongrass
1 6” piece of galangal
1 can straw mushrooms
½ lb boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 tsp sugar
1 Tbsp Thai fish sauce
2-3 Tbsp lime juice
Kafir lime leaves
1 serrano or Thai bird’s eye chili seeded and sliced (big slices so you can fish them out) *optional
Salt & pepper to taste

Season the chicken and cook it in a skillet until cooked through. Set aside. In a pot, put the coconut milk and broth, peeled & sliced galangal, and lemongrass* and turn the heat to medium high. Add the chili paste, lime leaves (as much as you’d like to taste – I put in about 8-10), fish sauce, sugar, salt and pepper, and serrano chili**. Bring the soup to a boil and then turn down the heat to let it simmer. There is no prescribed cooking time for the broth. The true flavor of this soup comes from the galangal. You cannot substitute for it, and the flavor will be deeper the longer it cooks. So don’t be worried about overcooking it! Conversely, if the broth tastes good to you after 20-30 min of cooking, so be it! Once you’ve decided the broth is done, add the straw mushrooms, chicken, and lime juice (use this judiciously and taste as you add so you don’t accidently put in too much) and cook for another 10min or so.

*Prepare the lemon grass by chopping the stalk into 1 – 1 1/2” pieces and bruising them with the side of your knife.
**Depending on how spicy you like your food, this ingredient is totally optional. It is mainly for the heat and its omission won’t affect the flavor of the broth that much.

This is one of my favorite comfort meals. It is warm and spicy and soothing. I craved this soup daily when I was preggers with A. Hubs used to get it from his coworker who lived near a hole in the wall Thai place in Long Beach that made the absolute best version of this soup. I have never been able to equal their recipe, but this version is as close as I’ve ever gotten. One of the great things about Tom Kha Gai is that it is a very personal recipe. You can add or take away as much of any one ingredient as you like to make the broth fit your taste. Hope you like it!

Thing Heard Recently on Pu’s Corner:

J: My brain is telling me to eat your head.
Me: Hmm, well I would tell your brain that that is a very bad idea.
J: *very seriously* I know. I keep telling it that, but it doesn’t listen. Stupid brain.

Me: Your cousin, Y, is about to have a baby brother. What advice would you give her?
J: I would tell her not to have a brother. Boys are stinky and poop in their pants. She should have a sister.
Me: Like C?
J: No, not like C. She is mean and won’t let me play with her movies. Sometimes I can play with her cats but only when Daddy yells at her.
Me: But you would still tell her to have a sister?
J: *thoughtfully* No, she should just have a cat. Cats are soft and if you want their toy you can just take it and they don’t get mad.

Stuffs

2009-11-04T12:23:00.001-08:00

So Halloween has come and gone (as evidenced by the pics in my last post), and now we have entered the true Holiday Season. That is, now we get to be inundated with commercials about how we need to spend, spend, spend for all the upcoming holidays (Christmas, Thanksgiving, Hannukah, Kwanzaa, New Year’s, C’s Birthday*). This year the Hubs and I have decided to keep our spending to a minimum. We are hell bent on getting ourselves out of debt, and I can’t think of much that we actually “need” (vs. want J ) We will be buying each child one large gift and stocking stuffers. Wish us luck in actually sticking to that, lol!

In other news, A’s therapy is progressing well. He has approximate sounds that he uses as words, which I am starting to figure out. For example, he says:

Jus – juice

Tada – Potato (as in, Mr. Potato Head or just to refer to potatoes in general)

Doodoo – Scooby Doo

Eeeoo-uu - IDK

In other news, I totally forgot that I have my reserve drill this weekend (1st one at my new base), so if I promised to Skype with you that's obvs not going to be an option. Sowwy!

*This one is considered optional for the population at large, but Amazon likes to remind me that it is coming up and I should buy, buy, buy to prepare!

Halloween '09

2009-11-01T18:41:00.000-08:00

Forgot to Mention the Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-22T08:50:00.000-07:00

Pumpkin patch was okay. Apparently the entire state of Florida decided to go the same day as us, so it was a wee bit crowded. Lines were long, there were pony rides (A refused to participate, but, surprisingly, J was very nonplussed by the whole situation, and even a mini-circus. It was all a bit overwhelming. Whatever happened to the good old days where there was, you know, a pumpkin patch. There were pumpkins, but they were in a cordoned area and already picked.So, it was alright, I guess. Next year I am hunting for an actual pumpkin patch where you can pick your own pumpkin and there might be perks like a cup of cider or a bale of hay to jump on. Pics are loaded to my new Facebook page, so I won't repost them here (mainly b/c I am lazy), but I will give you a taste:

Ha ha ha. This is my new favorite picture of A. He looks very Calvin to me.

All Around Update

2009-10-13T12:43:00.001-07:00

So, I'm very conflicted about all these new kids movies coming out. On the one hand, I'm thrilled that the literary greats of my childhood (Where the Wild Things Are*, Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs) are getting their pop culture due. On the other hand, these are literary greats because of their indelible whimsy and, yes I'll say it, brevity. What is left to the imagination if it's all put out there in an hour to hour and a half movie? Granted I've not yet seen the movies, but, still, I feel vaguely betrayed.

In other movie news, da Hubs and I went all the way into Tampa to see Paranormal Activity, which is a new horror flick in the style of the Blair Witch Project. I'd heard about it on the radio where people were touting it as one of the scariest movies they'd ever seen, blah blah blah. Honestly, not that scary. Also, I figured out the ending before it occurred, so it was kind of a let down. Hubs, on the other hand, keeps telling me we have a demon in the house, so think of that what you will ;)

In other news totally unrelated to movies, I recently discovered Facebook. Okay, I didn't actually discover it, but I did create a profile and have been spending way too much time looking up people I don't really care about (and some that I do). We'll see how long this fancy lasts, but I am enjoying posting redonkulous updates about pooping (see our "in" list below).

Recipe

In the spirit of cooking easy, yummy food. Here's a quick recipe for those busy weeknights.

Pu's Hoisin Pork Chops:

1lb boneless pork chops, thin cut
3 tbsp hoisin sauce
3 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp brown sugar
1 tbsp rice vinegar or Shaoxing

Salt & pepper the chops to taste. Combine all other ingredients in a small bowl and then brush over the pork chops. Place in a shallow dish and broil for about 3min per side (baste again when you flip). Yum! I put these over an asian inspired noodle salad (rice noodles reconstituted combined with 2 tbsp Shaoxing, 1 tbsp Hoisin sauce, 1 tsp minced ginger, and 1 tsp minced garlic - toss all that with thinly sliced green & red peppers, purple onion, & cabbage).

Things Recently Heard on Pu's Corner:

Bringing an old feature back, we recently had a serious discussion on what is currently "in" in the Pu household. For your reading pleasure:

"In"
- Tinkerbell
- Miley Cyrus
- All Things Mr. Potato Head
- Punching People in the Butt
- Bubbles
- The Word "Poop"
- Hello Kitty Underwear
- Farting Noises
- The Color Pink

"Out"
- Dora the Explorer
- Carrots
- Playing Nicely With Your Brother
- Zombies
- Socks
- The Color Yellow

*btw, also authored by Maurice Sendak - see Chicken Soup post.

Yay for Fall Cooking

2009-10-10T18:08:00.002-07:00

I have really been in to simple cooking lately for obvious reasons. I'm looking for delicious, flavorful dishes that can be made very quickly. None of this 30min meals bullshit where the 30min doesn't ever seem to include the actual prep time. I'm also excited for fall flavors. I love root veggies (if my Ode to a Sweet Potato hadn't tipped you off) and hearty soups and stews. So, in spite of the fact that it was 95 degrees here yesterday (!!), here is a great little fall recipe I made on Saturday.

Pu's Roasted Sweet Potatoes & Onions

2-3 sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced into ~1" pieces
1 lg sweet onion, chopped into pieces about the same size
1 sprig chopped fresh Rosemary
2-3 tbsp olive oil
salt & pepper to taste

Super simple. Toss the veggies in the oil with the spices and stick in the oven at about 400 degrees for about 30-40min (cooking time will depend on the size of your veggie slices). I served this with a lucious roasted chicken (nothing but kosher salt and an onion in its belly roasted at 400 degrees for abot 1 1/2 hours). Sooo easy!

Today I learned A has a new word. As I got dressed for the day, my beloved youngest son pranced around my room wearing nothing but a diaper and my push-up bra draped attractively over one shoulder. "ahhh, sssss!" he cried gleefully. To celebrate this complete nonsequitar, I bring you a new feature here at Pu's Corner:

Things You Never In a Million Years Imagined Would Come Out of Your Mouth During Normal, Daily Conversation:

"Did you just lick the shopping cart?"

"Yes, that is my son in aisle five on all fours meowing like a cat."

"Yes, cats fart, but that wasn't the cat."

"Don't shove that in your ear. You are not Mr. Potato Head."

"Please don't punch Mommy in the butt."

Today He Called Me Mama

2009-10-10T18:08:00.001-07:00

And it was the sweetest sound I've ever heard.

Our Crappy Weekend

2009-10-06T15:13:00.000-07:00

* I meant to post this earlier in the
week (obviously), but it has been an
incredibly busy week at work so,
sorry!

So here we are looking blissfully happy just before we got our asses handed to us by Miami (Miami! 0-3!!! Well, now 1-3, I guess *sigh*). To add insult to injury, Land Shark stadium is a truly crappy place to be (although the seats give you a pretty good view). It was so hot I was sweating from places I didn't even know were capable of producing sweat. Anyway, Miami itself was a fun little diversion. The game sucked, we had kind of a crappy time with the in-laws (FIL's wife is a piece of work!), Hubs, J and now C all have the flu, and I am the busiest I've ever been at work.

Musical Education

2009-09-28T08:10:00.001-07:00

Lamest Football Weekend Eva!! (seriously, both my teams lost miserably and then I got my ass handed to me in fantasy -- where I have Drew Brees as my QB, so not only did we get trounced by NO, I also got no pts for Fantasy since he didn't throw for any TDs!)

In the awesome news pile, however, J came home on Friday and announced with much fan fare (and in a monotone yell-y voice):

In September for a while,
I will ride a crocodile,
Down that chick soup-y nile.
Paddle once, paddle twice
Paddle chicken soup with rice

I cannot express my joy! However, as much as I tried to implore J to sing other verses of the song, I soon learned that September was the only month she knew and the only one I could remember was February *le sigh* *

It was only after consulting with the Hubs that I realized not every child grows up with a musical-theater obsessed older sister, and therefore does not benefit from hearing the songs of Really Rosie over and over and over on cassette tape. I also realized that I had been neglecting my children's musical upbringing by playing them dumb shit like Mozart and Chopin. So I immediately went to Amazon and bought them a box set of Maurice Sendak stories as well as a DVD copy of Really Rosie (starring the Nutshell Kids, thank you very much!). Problem solved!

*I do, however, remember all the words to A Alligators All Around, which I think speaks volumes about my childhood!