The rugrats...as of a few days ago

Do you like freebies?

I do! Click the link if you're the mother of a young girl or know one who would like to be delighted.

http://grosgrainfabulous.blogspot.com/2008/10/grosgrain-mini-store-opening-and.html

I voted!

Early voting rocks. Sweet, simple...AND fast! Obama is officially one vote closer to winning! :)

Where I'm at now (in life I mean)

I've recently discovered the frivolous pleasures of My Space and Facebook. Originally, Lenny dragged me on My Space so I could become one of his "Mafia" on a virtual game to which I am now, alas, hooked myself. I ventured over to Facebook at the admonishment of a friend and after realizing that people, that I hadn't seen or thought of in years, could be tracked down easily on these sites.

It's fun to see people from "way back when" and realize that, just like me, they've somehow morphed into adults with families and new ways of life and interests and all that good stuff. There really is life after 'Zo. Who knew? ;)

So, in response to tracking people down and checking them out, I've had a few emails of "what are you up to?" and "tell me about your family." But, I have to admit, when it comes to expressing myself, I'm staying true to my nerd-self (that does still hearken back to high school days) and would rather express myself essay-style on my blog rather than pop-style on MySpace or, even more briefly, in photos on Facebook. So, I thought I'd do a "catch-up" post on myself and then direct folks over here to bloggy-me. If you're a here and present friend, forgive the digest a la Renee. ;) Watch out, you might learn something freaky.

Sooo...I got married to Lenny the month after h.s. graduation. We moved to Cruces for college, and here we still are. Lenny did a year of automotive tech and got far enough for his certification and then just started working full-time. He's had a variety of jobs over the years including working for the City pools, working as a Title Searcher for a title company, managing a gas station and, for the past eight years, driving a tow truck. Alas (for me ;) ), he seems to have found his calling because he likes being called out at all hours, not having to sit at a desk or be inside, working with his hands, meeting lots of people, and interacting with police and other emergency staff (fire department, Border Patrol, DEA, etc.).

I came to school on a scholarship and finished that degree in five years (working throughout) with a BA in Journalism. Of course, by the time I had that, I'd changed my mind and came back for a second BA in English (32 credit hours in one year, nothing but English courses. I haven't changed that much, have I?). I was intending to take that ENGL BA and enter Graduate School the following semester (Fall, 2000) when I found myself pregnant with our first child. I initially thought I could wear all hats and do it all. I successfully finished the second degree but when Fionna was born at the end of July, I realized that full-time grad school, teaching as a T.A., and being a full-time mommy would never work with the combination of Lenny's 24/7 on-call, can-never-commit-to-watching-baby job. So, I dropped out of school but kept working and took Baby Fionna to work with me. I managed this until December 2001 when she was almost 18 months. By that time, she was well on her way to destroying my office as a busy and inquisitive toddler, and my work wasn't getting done. It was time for one to go, either work or bring-baby-to-work. I chose to quit work, enter the world of being a poor, single-income family and be a full-time mommy for awhile.

That has been my slice of life for the past almost seven years. In those years, we've added two children, Grady in July, 2003, and our second daughter, Ainslie, in July, 2006. (Please, don't ask why we're weird and have had three babies born in July). I guess I get my groove on in October. ;)

I'll be the first and say, I've come a very long way from my high school, raised in the sticks, small-town self. I've learned a lot about valuing different life experiences and ways of doing things. I'm a strong Feminist, Liberal woman (thus the capitals), and I've become passionate about the way I parent and about causes which I think will affect my kiddos in the world we will someday pass on (politics, human rights, environmentalism, sustainable living, gay/lesbian rights). Gone are the days of thinking of nothing but the opposite sex, makeup, hairspray and rockies jeans. I'd probably best describe msyelf as a neo-hippie meaning I'm very anti-establishment, heavily focused on the natural and easy-going on rules. In the superficial realm, I only recently cut my dreadlocks (now sporting a very short, do-nothing hairdo), I seldom come near much in the way of make-up, and I mostly shop at thrift stores. I'm all about a minimalist life-style in a lot of ways, low on the fuss, heavy on just enjoying life in the moment and trying to model a way of life for my kids that is real, in the present, fair and mindful and fun. I'm a work in progress but I'm enjoying the actual process very much. :)

I'm also on the verge of some pretty big changes. I love being home with my kids but life as a single-income, working class family means we are pretty damned poor these days. Which is alright but you can only stretch so far...So, I'm planning on returning to Graduate School in January, getting my MA in EDUC and entering a teaching career within 2-3 years. Fionna is in second grade, Grady will start Kindergarten next Fall, and Ainslie will hopefully not be terribly impacted by my return to school. Ideally, I'll take night classes but I have generous offers from friends in the event that I need some childcare. My goal there is to minimize the impact on my kids but also to recapture some focus on myself and move us all towards a life that isn't quite so paycheck-to-paycheck (without caving the The System, of course). ;)

In terms of interests, I've found myself really drawn to Herbalism. I've studied with a couple of people, as well having done some online courses. I try to make as much of my family's medicine as I can and take care of things around the house in a natural, low-key way. I also have found a calling to offer mother-to-mother support on the subject of breastfeeding, and I'm now a trained and accredited La Leche League Leader. It's a volunteer position I've held for almost three years that I find very validating.

I guess that's all I can think of to babble on and on about in regards to myself. Again, I'm really enjoying the chance to "glimpse" old friends and hear their successes and adventures. :)

An exchange at the bus stop...

Grady, Ainslie and I took advantage of a beautiful Fall day a few weeks ago and bussed to the park for playgroup. Well, actually, that's not 100% accurate. We tried to bus to the park, missed the bus and had to get a ride from daddy to the park. (Sadly, this scenario has played out before). The good news is that Lenny's work is just diagonally across the corner from the bus stop, so it wasn't a big deal to walk over to him and bum a ride in the tow truck. Happily, we were successful in catching the bus for the homeward-bound trip. As we sat waiting for our bus to pull into the transfer station, a man approached us.

--He said, "Hey, do you smell that?"

--I have a bit of a sensitivity about my less-than-keen sense of smell so I fudged and said, "Umm, yeah."

--He then took it one further and said, "What do you smell like?"

--This turns my thinking completely around and I'm still mentally puzzling over whether I've been insulted or what when he says now, "Patchouli, that's it. Is it you?"

--I was relieved at that point and said, "Yeah, that' s me." I was not, however, expecting the next question.

--"So, are you married?" he asks.

--"Yep," I reply. "Three kids too."

--"Oh well" is his answer and he wandered off.

I love taking the bus. I mean, my kids get to experience mildly strange people (of which I know I qualify) and people from all walks of life. I hope, now that autumn and milder weather have arrived, we'll bus more often. The kids are certainly clamoring for another adventure. :)

My new blog banner

I thought I'd explain...the political season has me firmly riveted to public events and the election process. As such, I was proud to have a few political signs in my front yard (Obama and two local politicians). We came home from a weekend away last week to discover my Obama sign and one of the others had been stolen. Our town saw a big spate of sign thefts but I was so angry to be one of the victims. I've since replaced my sign but my political vigor is stronger than ever. :)

A medley...

Fionna read Grady right to sleep Saturday night. They were very happy to finally have cool enough weather to require snuggly jammies...


Ainslie's playing with her butterfly toy from the fair. Chris K. gifted the kids each with $5 for fair spending, and this was Ainslie's pick. (Grady came home with a light sabre and Fionna got a child sized fake nail kit.)



This time of year brings out the witch in my children. This is Fionna and Grady (and his black cat on his shoulder, hard to see) brewing up potions consisting of dish soap, water, rosemary and mint (the two herbs plentiful enough in my garden for the kids to play with).


First off, the weekend in soccer...I am happy to report that Grady's weekend soccer game, so bright and early on Saturday morning, was a blazing success. After three tough losses (as in, we were trounced three times), we finally either won or very nearly tied. The score is not really closely followed but Grady feels confident we won, and most of the kids on the team scored at least one goal, if not more. Grady exuberantly scored twice.
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Next up...the fair came to town, and we made the most of it. On Thursday, Grady, Ainslie and I headed out there with our friends Sandra, Ben and Abe. We saw performing bears, a magic show, all manner of animals and farm equipment, and lots of neat school art. Fionna's school won Grand Champion for their art display!

Fionna visited the fair the next day with her class. She loves field trips because she gets to ride the bus, something she doesn't do often since we drive her to an out-of-district school.

The whole family was back at the fair, AGAIN, later Friday night to watch Lenny race in his first-ever car race. It was an "Enduro" race, 200 laps or two hours, whichever came first. Lenny drove the first half and his friend Brian the second. They didn't win but they didn't crash or explode. AND, out of seventy-some-odd cars that started, only 13 finished and they were among them. I wasn't too keen on the idea (not that I was really consulted) but it ultimately was pretty fun. The kids were over the moon about it, although Grady and Ainslie succumbed to sleep before the end. I have a feeling it won't be the only car race we get dragged to...

RIP Whitey, a very special chicken friend

We came home yesterday to a truly heartwrenching sight, our very special chicken, Whitey, dead and being torn asunder by our dog. We'll never know what happen, whether she died naturally and was then eaten, or if Munch killed her. It saddens me, beyond just her loss, because I loved that our dogs and chickens hung out in the yard together, and it made it so easy to let the chickens range about. We can't take that chance anymore, they'll have to have their free time when the dogs are inside.

Whitey came to us as an adult hen, already laying her splendid pale green eggs. She was the sweetest of souls and would always hunker down and let you scoop her up as soon as you approached. She was the amazing hen that we took to the Farmer's Market last spring where she placidly sat and accepted pettings and popcorn offerings and also sat to have her portrait sketched in Fionna's lap. I will never ever forget the sight of the drowsy hen, nestled into Fionna's arms, even drooling a bit in her slumber.

The kids are all sad but Fionna is particularly devastated. She said it eloquently when she wailed that "Whitey was my good, good friend."

This has prompted us to order some new chicks, via mail. We want to up our egg production just a little, and Fionna is just a bit consoled that she can raise a chick to be another special friend. If you're local to me and interested in ordering chicks, we are ordering from http://mypetchicken.com/. If you can let me know quickly, in a day or two, we could share an order (we've already placed our's but they've let us know that it will be several days before they can give us a timeline on the types of chicks we chose). That is another post and, in deference to Whitey, we'll save it for another day.

Thank you, Whitey, for being part of our family, for your tasty, beautiful eggs and for being Fionna's good, good friend. :(