12 Tasks of Christmas

Dear Friends and Family,

Well, it's time for the usual frenzy before everyone takes off next week.

My colleague and I have 12 tasks we need to get through today to get to the holidays. If you assume 6 work hours (fingers crossed) and 50% efficiency and 2 people, that's 30 minutes a task... Game on!

Then, I get to come home and enjoy an evening with P.

We'll read and play and open presents and run around and maybe even dance a little. She may want to walk around holding a purse saying bye before doing a lap around the kitchen island. She may want me to lie on the couch and surprise her as she comes around the corner. She may want to go upstairs and listen to the messages on the answering machine. Or, she may want to sit and read Gingerbread Baby all night long. We'll see. They all sound fabulous to me.

I'm motivated to get in and get through my 12 tasks. The sooner I start, the sooner I finish.


Cheers!
mouse

End of Year Rant

Dear Friends and Family,

This might sound weird, but, honestly, it doesn't feel like December, at all, much less December 22nd with Christmas three days away and the end of the year a little more than a week away.

It feels like late October or so. How can it be December 22nd? And, more importantly, why am I not in a Christmas frame of mind?

I'm not stressed about the holidays. All of our shopping is done and we stayed well within our budget. We've attended a couple of parties. I'm taking a couple of days off from work.

Weird. I don't even have a name for this.


Cheers!
mouse

12.21.10: Getting Ready

Dear Friends and Family,

Woke up yesterday and knew right away something was wrong. A look at the clock led to a quick diagnosis of the problem - I had overslept almost two hours.

The weekend? What'd we do? Well, I guess that's why I blog, because I have no ability to recall where time went otherwise.

Saturday, I worked on a photo book of P's first year, we went out for dinner, or was that Sunday? Mr. mouse went out for our Christmas ornament one night. We went toy shopping one afternoon. I worked Sunday night. I'm drawing a blank on the rest of the weekend.

Happily, today is Tuesday and tomorrow is Wednesday and I am hopefully off on Thursday.

Seriously, how can I not remember two days ago?


Cheers!
mouse

Planning

Dear Friends and Family,

Mr. mouse is beginning to research real estate properties which must mean he's beginning to feel better about work. I think he's leaning towards taking a position at work, even if it's a demotion, and slogging it out until either A. the economy improves or B. we save enough for retirement.

The current calendar has us working until somewhere around the end of 2017 which seems like a long time away from now, but if you think about how quickly this past year went, it's not all that far into the future.

I think he thought the date was much further out than that. But, with seven years separating him from spending his days with P, I think he's willing to try to make that date stick. We'll see how the numbers play out between now and then. Another 2008 could hit us and then it'd be back to the drawing board again.

Well, we'll see how this month ends and 2011 begins.


Cheers!
mouse

Back to Work

Dear Friends and Family,

Well, it wasn't quite as relaxing as I thought it could be. But, it was good to have a day off.

We got off of our morning routine which meant drop off didn't go as smoothly as it normally does. So, instead of embarking on my vacation adventure at 8, I was headed out the daycare door at 10:30. And, instead of picking up one present for my brother and being done with the shopping, I ended up on a non-stop glazed-eye tour of the area picking up Mr. mouse's dad's gift, and something for Mr. mouse and, to be honest, a bunch of random stuff for P. And, instead of a relaxing lunch reading a book, I ended up with a hurried lunch reading my blackberry. And, instead of catching a movie, I plodded back and forth through the mall. And, instead of beating the traffic home, I ended up getting stuck at P's holiday party and coming home at the usual hour.

But, all that being said, I guess it does feel good to have P's gifts purchased and to be down to two purchases left for this weekend - our annual tree ornament and Mr. mouse's step-mom's present. And, I guess I can try for an afternoon off next week, to watch HP7A.

In any case, it's back to work today. Hopefully, not too much craziness ensued while I was out. Okay. Who am I kidding? The piper must be paid. Sigh. Next time, I'll take a day off without any plans. We'll see how that goes.


Cheers!
mouse

Vacation Day!

Dear Friends and Family,

I'm taking a vacation day and am very excited about it.

I slept in, a little, this morning.

Here's the plan.

I'll drop P off at school. Then, I'll head out - maybe for a cup of coffee, maybe to the mall to get some Christmas shopping done. Then, lunch. Then, either more wandering or a movie.

I'll pick P up a little early to enjoy the afternoon together.

And, then, I'll feel mega-refreshed for the day tomorrow. At least, that's the plan.


Cheers!
mouse

Quiet Morning

Dear Friends and Family,

Well, I went to work yesterday, and I came home from work yesterday, and in between were a bunch of meetings and a bunch of people stopping by my desk and a blessedly simple drop-off and a commute from someone who knew I didn't have it in me to do something more than blissfully short.

P's bottom right molar finally erupted. She's been walking on her tippy toes. And, she got into a Battle Royale with Mr. mouse because she didn't want any dinner last night.

And, today, I'm in a marginally better frame of mind.

The island is still under control although it's beginning to pile up with gifts we need to get out to gift recipients. And, left-of-sink area is still looking good. The elbow is a work in progress, but it's looking close enough for a final sweep this weekend which would leave the impossible right-of-stove for the next tackle point.

I just need to remind myself, it didn't become a disaster zone in a day. It won't become an organized spot in a day. Progress is what I should be measuring. Sooner or later the house will not look like a hurricane hit it.


Cheers!
mouse

12.13.10: Inevitable March to Year End

Dear Friends and Family,

It's December 13th and the steady march to year end continues.

I'm annoyed.

I need a vacation.

Work has been a constant non-stop barrage since... well, since forever, it seems. My potential vacation at the end of the week? Unlikely to happen since, well, work is too hectic. Instead of time off, I spent a good piece of yesterday working. Yes, that's a step in the right direction. NOT!

And, I think I may be working the week between Christmas and New Year's.

If you can't tell, I'm beginning to resent the toll work has taken on my personal life.

But, I want to give Mr. mouse the flexibility to make some decisions with regards to his work. So, I will continue to soldier on and try not to resent work too much.

What'd we do this weekend?

Saturday morning we took P in for a haircut and let her cry it out before the salon opened. Then, P and I went for breakfast with Auntie Janet while Mr. mouse came home to let the house cleaners in.

I can't think if we did anything after the house cleaners finished up. Nope. I remember now. P fell asleep on Mr. mouse's lap. We carried her to her crib and then went to our room for a monster four hour nap.

The afternoon was a chance to play. And, as if on queue, at 8, P asked to go out. So, we bundled her up and went out for a slice of pizza. She likes her Saturday evening jaunts.

Sunday, we woke up early because we all napped. Then, we went out for brunch. P napped. Mr. mouse got a tree. I worked. P played. I worked. We ate dinner. I worked. Mr. mouse did the lights. I worked. P went to sleep. I worked. Mr. mouse surfed. I worked. We all went to sleep.

See, that's how you want to spend one of the last weekends of the year. Working. Right.

Back to tree. P hates the tree. Or, rather, she is terrified of the tree. One look and she was crawling up my front trying to get away. I left her to help Mr. mouse bring it into the house and she stood there crying. I was holding her when Mr. mouse was leveling it and she turned and saw it gave a violent turn away and shuddered and cried and tried to get away.

We'll have to see if the lights and time get her more enthused. Or, if the tree thing will be a bust.

And, now, on the docket, gifts and cards. It would have been nice to get both done, but, I was too busy working this weekend. What kills me is that both require transit time and next weekend doesn't give me enough time for that so I'll need to tackle it one night this week.

Excellent.

I'm not even going to try and find a silver lining to any of this.


Cheers...
mouse

Tax Mystery

Dear Friends and Family,

I know it's more complicated than this. I'm not going to pretend it's not. But, I'm always been a big fan of a flat tax. Not a flat tax rate. A flat tax.

A flat tax?

Yes. A flat tax.

One where you take the budget (e.g. $3.8 trillion dollars for 2011) and the population (300 million for the US) - divide one by the other and voila, your tax bill.

You'd get rid of tax rates, exemptions, forms, credits, and all the other stuff. If we know our bill at the beginning of the year, we could all start saving for it and plan accordingly.

Our bill as a family of three would be $38,400 which is a fraction of what we pay. Not that I mind the taxes that I pay. I just mind all of the greed that is evident in all of the talks. And, I know that people making more than me (a lot more than me) are paying less than me (a lot less than me) in taxes.

Oh, and like United Way contributions, I'd like to spell out how I want my taxes to be spent (i.e. which department or initiative gets my money). If you leave it blank the government can allocate it. Think about how much smarter we'd all be about where our money goes.

Anyway, that's my source of inspiration for the day - simplification and ownership.


Cheers!
mouse

Mouse and the Kitchen Counter

Dear Friends and Family,

Another day, another victory on the kitchen counter war front.

The island is still clear. I think Mr. mouse realizes it's giving me a measure of sanity and is helping to keep it clear.

I've mentally broken the kitchen counter up into four sections. There's the "area toe the left of the sink", the "elbow", the stove, and the "area to the right of the stove."

I've been concentrating on the area to the left of the sink. This morning, I did a little more incremental shuffling. Still left to resolve are two items - a candle I need to either use or store or toss and an empty ketchup bottle that Mr. mouse may have some emotional attachment to. That last statement is not as weird as it sounds. He had it made with a personalized label. Perhaps I need to look at removing the label like you would with a wine bottle. That's an idea.

Then, I can tackle the elbow, the next vast expanse of Hoarder's Delight that is our kitchen.


Cheers!
mouse

Taming Monsters

Dear Friends and Family,

There are two wars waged last night. Two monsters. Two different approaches. Two different strategies.

The Toddler Terror

P was in a monster of a mood last night. She was tired from being up since 3:30. She was cranky from teeth coming in. She was unhappy with the fact that I had to send off two not-so-quick emails when I got home.

We were tired from being up since 3:30. I was cranky from a long drive home with a whiny baby in the car. I was unhappy that I had to bring work home. Mr.mouse was unhappy that P was whining at home.

This is a quick military exercise in survival. Let's get everyone decently calm, decently fed, decently clean, and into bed. NOW.

The Kitchen Monster

Our house is a constant battle against clutter. I detest clutter. I have been fighting it my entire life. It's a battle I lost at home growing up. One lone person cannot win against a family of hoarders. It's a battle I won when living alone. That's a gimme. It's a battle I have been waging since living with Mr. mouse - one where I win some and I lose some.

I have proudly been able to maintain my foothold on the most savage of beachheads - the kitchen island. Three days, now, I have been able to keep it cleared and organized. I think I need to use this moment to expand my small victory and start contemplating the kitchen counters. Same strategy as with the island - tiny changes to sneak in without Mr. mouse noticing. And, then, once I gain enough momentum, a massive attack on the remaining space.

The things that are my life. Sad, but so true.


Cheers!
mouse

Mouse Family Up

Dear Friends and Family,

3:30, P decided to get up and woke up both Mr. mouse and me.

I think it's a combination of molars and hunger that woke her. And, now she's being a whiny toddler while Mr. mouse gets her food ready. Sometimes she's so smart it's tough to remember that she's only a year and a half old.

Someone just asked to open the cabinet. I take complete blame for this because she saw me looking down there last night. Phew. Cabinet door closing. Disaster averted.

Well, Mr. mouse got more chores done yesterday. Router magically fixed. Closet rod re-installed. Which leaves P's haircut and a whole bunch of holiday stuff to do this weekend. Feels like it'll be fun and feels like it'll be relaxing. Just in time to still order gifts online. Just in time to enjoy my favorite time of the year.

I forgot to mention another developmental milestone. P started play acting with food, pretending to eat the popcorn from the catalog page and pretending to eat the sandwich from her book and pretending to eat the lemon from the kitchen island. Perhaps we need to feed her more. For now, I'm assuming this is play and not a sign of hunger so please don't call social services on us.

We weigh her weekly and feed her four to five times a day. I swear.

Time to go measure milk. Happy Tuesday.


Cheers!
mouse

12.06.10: Honeydew List Progress

Dear Friends and Family,

After a long weekend of diligently working through our to do list and keeping an increasingly independent toddler amused, I'm almost looking forward to work.

But, that being said, it does feel good to have most of the non-holiday to dos done. My hair is cut. My brows are trimmed. My nails are polished. The kitchen island was clear. The snow tires are on. Extra clothes are returned. Pantry and refrigerator are stocked.

What's left? Fixing a closet rod that broke Sunday afternoon and figuring out why our wireless has decided to go on early holiday. (For now we're using Mr. mouse's phone as a hot spot, not sure how long term sustainable that is.) And, P's haircut.

We had lots of fun with P over the weekend. She finally learned how to say Mommy on Sunday after meh which she started months ago and me-me which was both Mommy and Amy, her teacher at school. She learned how to step on a big girl scale, but only with me standing next to her on my scale. And, she's become absolutely enamored with an old answering machine we have plugged in.

P's molars are coming in and it looks so painful. Her gums are swollen with these huge white lumps just under the surface. And, when we offered her ice cream on Saturday night, the spoon came out with a streak of fresh blood. We caught her chewing on her swim shoes which have a bunch of rubber nubbins on the bottom. It must have felt good, but we had to ask her to stop.

She'll say no thank you if she wants you to stop or if she doesn't want something. She'll say please if she wants something, although its usage is more like now than please. And, she'll say hi if she wants your attention.

She pointed to a pomegranate and said apple. She pointed to an egg and said egg. And, she pointed to a beetle and said bug. She'll make animal sounds and ask you to guess the animal. She'll point to animals and make animal sounds. She'll put in song requests for songs she wants (e.g. Bumblebee, Monkeys, If You're Happy and You Know it, Row, Row, Row Your Boat are on her heavy rotation list).

Time to go clean up the island and sort through some pictures. Happy Monday!


Cheers!
mouse

Progress, One Nibble at a Time

Dear Friends and Family,

We have a basket on our kitchen island. It's full of junk. Literally. Chicken flavored lollipops, four year old chocolate, buttons to clothes we no longer own, you name it, it can be found in the basket.

And, it was overflowing. And, I couldn't see a way out of it with a pack rat husband. So, I took it one step at a time and started throwing away one thing in it at a time. And, the bottom is now visible and I think I can empty it before the year is out.

And, then I can replace it with the bamboo we have growing by the kitchen sink. It's not something I love, but it is a piece of greenery that could serve as a focal point on the island. In any case, I bought the container it's growing in and I like it more than I like an overflowing basket of junk.


Cheers!
mouse

Planning and Working

Dear Friends and Family,

Another month, another chance to revisit our retirement savings. And, since it's the end of the year another chance to revisit savings targets for next year and another chance to revisit our investment portfolio for this year.

I'm happy with the progress we made this year. I think I'll up our savings next year by $200 a month. I've determined that Mr. mouse's severance will cover next year's savings if we need it to.

And, I think we're going to to a blanket sell off of any stocks we have that are still capital losses to offset our income this year to minimize our tax bill come April.

And, last, but not least, I continue to be grateful that we have been as fortunate as we have been. We're not wealthy, but we're more fortunate than most. And, for that, I am thankful.


Cheers!
mouse

Mouse and the Tofu Factory

Dear Friends and Family,

Last night started off normal enough. Mr. mouse had dinner with a work colleague. I had the evening shift with P.

The drive home was uneventful given the light rain. P had her milk in her sippy cup (day two of no bottle) and we stopped for gas and french fries on the way home. We sang, we talked, we enjoyed the drive.

P asked for Mr. mouse when we pulled into the garage, but was okay with reading with me. We ate a light dinner, spent some time snuggling and playing in bed, and then went to her room for bedtime.

We read and when she was tired, she pointed to the crib and I put her down. She curled up and was TWO seconds away from sleep when... (queue up the dramatic music) I put her blanket on her.

Twenty minutes of crying later, I picked her up out of her crib and tried to console her. No luck. In sheer desperation I asked her a series of do you want questions. She lands on car. Yes, she wants car. So, I carried her downstairs (she was giggling and kicking the whole way) and put her down in her car seat. Buckled the top buckle. And, then, P opened her mouth and out came a steady stream of white gunk. It looked like she was an extrusion machine at a tofu factory. Fantastic.

Took her out. Brought her upstairs. Gave her a bath. And, brought her back to her high chair to monitor and relax. She was coloring when Mr. mouse got home just before ten. He brought her upstairs and with much coaxing got her to go to sleep.

Now, the car seat is clean. And, since it seemed like a convenient juncture, we turned it around before re-installing it. Technically she's not yet 22 pounds, but we're turning it around anyway.

We'll see how today goes.


Cheers!
mouse

Mouse and the Monday Morning Surprise

Dear Friends and Family,

Yesterday, our CEO came to our Monday morning meeting and announced that our department's boss was leaving the company. He also announced the new lead.

I don't think much will change for most people. But, I later learned that several of the younger people on the team were pretty stunned. I guess that's when I realized I'd been around the block more than once.

Will keep you posted.


Cheers!
mouse

11.29.10: Winding Down 2010

Dear Friends and Family,

Despite having to work a little, I had a glorious weekend.

I took Wednesday off and spent the morning at home playing with P. We headed out to Mr. mouse's office to meet him for lunch and to give P a chance to spend some time in Mr. mouse's office one more time to give Mr. mouse a sense of closure.

We walked out for lunch in the middle of a storm and found a calm oasis of Middle Eastern yumminess before heading back to the office. P slept in my arms for the afternoon which is always a good thing.

And, we headed home after rehanging the white board, gathering the walking sushi pieces and packing the coloring book and Mr. Potato Head with some potentially good news, but not anything we're banking on quite yet.

Thursday was the usually hectic but always eminently satisfying Thanksgiving meal. P had no interest in any of it outside of the roast turkey. She's a brave kid, but isn't crazy about having new experiences thrown at her. She likes to take her time.

Friday morning was Black Friday and I ended up buying a bunch of digital photo frames for P's teachers at school.

We spent the afternoon napping and hanging out with girlfriend at home. Well, Friday evening she wants out of the gate and goes downstairs and grabs her shoes and asks for her coat. She wants to go out after hanging out inside the house for two straight days. Since it was way too cold for a walk we loaded her into the car and headed out to pick up random stuff at Target. She had fun. We got errands done. Not bad for a Friday night.

Saturday morning we got the house cleaned. Yes! And, then, P napped for a couple of hours before we woke her and loaded her into the car and headed out for a toddler birthday party at Pump It Up. Well, P was not a big fan. And, after putting up with it for about 40 minutes, she walked over to the shoe rack and grabbed her shoes and tried to put them on. We had such a tough time keeping a straight face, she was so cute. She said bye and gave hugs and was giddy when we put on her shoes. She went and grabbed ours for us as well. And, we drove home to meet up with some friends for some pizza and some beer.

Sunday. Day five off in a row. Blissful long weekend. Breakfast at home and then 18 month doctor's visit. P was fine with answering the doctor's questions. She was proud of her 56 words. She wanted nothing to do with the physical exam. Well, it was short and sweet and she remains a steady 50th percentile noggin, 25th percentile height and 5th percentile weight.

P and I napped once we got home. We went for a quick walk in the afternoon to take pictures of her in her new boots. And, we spent the rest of the evening enjoying the antics of our toddler. We read. We played zoo. We folded towels. We spun in circles. We had bath. And, then we put her to sleep for the night.

I needed the time off so badly. I feel like I'm in a much better spot. Today, we try P on a sippy cup for the ride home. Our 18 month old may have seen her last bottle this Thanksgiving. At home and at school she has a regular cup, but for the ride home she needs something with a safety net. We'll see how it goes today.


Cheers!
mouse

Thanksgiving List 2010

Dear Friends and Family,

We all slept in yesterday so I didn't have time to blog before hitting the flurry of food preparation. And, I only have a couple of moments now so let's get down to business.

The Mouse 2010 Thankful List (in no particular order):

Mr. mouse, P, the continued health of our family, our friends, the roof over our head - it may leak at times but it's ours nonetheless, the food on the table - may it nourish us, our faith - may it sustain us, the wonderful memories each day brings, the new things P learns and teaches us, the adventures of trying to raise a toddler right, saving for retirement, work that I enjoy, and some level of wellness - even if I am not where I want to be, I am better off than I could be.


Cheers!
mouse

Faith

Dear Friends and Family,

Sometimes you have to have faith - faith that things happen for a reason, faith that things will work out, faith that the future will be a better place than the present. And, for some reason, despite all life has thrown at me, I still have faith.

Yesterday, Mr. mouse got some pretty bad news on the job front. The position he had been hoping for got filled and it wasn't with his name. I think he'll continue looking both internally and externally as he weighs his options. I think I'll continue plugging away at work as all of this plays out.

You can't predict the future.

I remember there was a job I hated. Hated as in could not bear it hated. And, I was ready to quit. And, my friend convinced me to wait one more day, just one day he said. And, I did. And, the next day was Tuesday and I had a dentist appointment and I was headed into work late and heard on the radio that a plane hit the World Trade Center. I assumed it was a private plane that clipped the antenna. Well, I quickly learned otherwise. And, the world hasn't been the same since.

Needless to say, I didn't give my resignation that day. And, I learned it's not over until it's over. And, when it's over, it might be completely different from what you thought it was going to be.

I have faith that this will be less dramatic but equally fine.


Cheers!
mouse

Resilient Mouse

Dear Friends and Family,

Today. If I make it through today I have a day off with P.

Mr. mouse heard more news on the job front. Still waiting to hear back from one more group, but so far, it looks like he'll be Mr. mom for a couple of months if things continue along the current trend.

Things could be worse.


Cheers!
mouse

11.22.10: Bi-Annual Dentist Visit

Dear Friends and Family,

We drove over Friday night while P was sleeping. And, we drove back Sunday during nap time. And, in between we spent time running around outside enjoying the fall weather and letting friends play with P.

I am happy to report that the beating my gums took during the pregnancy and breastfeeding stages seems to be behind us.

Okay. P wants computer.


Cheers!
mouse

Mouse Waits

Dear Friends and Family,

Well. If your only option is waiting. Then, guess what, you wait.

And, if nothing you can do will change the outcome or how long you wait, then, you wait patiently.

And, that, my friends, is what I have been doing the past three months.

While work rages around me and life's ups and downs lift me up and drag me down, I have been waiting to learn what Mr. mouse's work situation will be in 2011.

I can't say I'm a big fan of not knowing. I can't say I'm a big fan of waiting. I find comfort in knowing, in stability, in routine. And, it's tough waiting for all of the pieces to fall into place.

Sushi come when sushi ready.


Cheers!
mouse

Mouse and November Frenzy

Dear Friends and Family,

November is always a frenzied month. And, this November is no different.

If I can get through the next week, I'll have a couple of days to relax and eat and play and enjoy the launch of the holiday frenzy.

Then, the madness of snow tires, holiday shopping, cards, tree, and everything else can hit with a vengeance.

Um, would it be wrong to wish it was December 31st? There's a perspective and peace that comes with having all of the craziness behind us and looking into a new year.

Five more work days. I can do this.


Cheers!
mouse

Toddler Conversations

Dear Friends and Family,

Sometimes it's tough to remember that P is only 18 months old. After all, she's communicating so much and understands so much.

When I asked if she wanted her coat off for the car ride home, she said yes. Then, she knew to wait while I buckled her into her safety seat. Then, I asked if she wanted her shoes off, and she said yes. Then, I pulled her socks partially off so she can pull at them on the ride home. Then, she knew to wait while I got her bottle out. She said please. And, we were on our way. She signaled for diaper. And, she asked for milk when she was done and got annoyed when I said no more.

We went to pick up Mr. mouse and she said Daddy when she saw him in the mirror. And, then started to whine until I asked if she wanted potato at which point she gave the snack signal. We stopped by the golden arches and continued on the way home. She signaled done with the potatoes and asked for a drink. And, she signaled diaper again, probably wondering why we weren't changing her.

And, when we got home she signaled a third time, and lo and behold, she was right. Diaper.

Granted this is not philosophical musings, but it's tough to remember that P is only 18 months old when she's so good at telling us what's on her mind. When she melts down, I'm like stop crying and just tell us what you want. Then, I remember she's only 18 months old and toddlers don't have all the words to tell us what they want.


Cheers!
mouse

11.15.10: Partially Re-Centered

Dear Friends and Family,

We flew out Friday to attend a service in memory of our dear friend, G's husband. It was beautiful - hearing all of the stories. It was heartbreaking - hearing all of the friends and family members. It was heartening - to see all of the support. It was all the things that we humans need when dealing with an unexplained, unexpected loss.

Then, instead of staying for a night of partying and celebrating life, we headed home. And, Mr. mouse and I got part of the fridge cleaned out and part of the mail sorted through and some of the kitchen island cleared and some of the laundry done and other odds and ends to make us feel a little more human.

We took 18 month pictures and did 18 month prints. We let P run around the house and play and read and do the things 18 months old will do. She colored and drew circles. She went down the stairs with some adult supervision. She evicted bunny from her crib. And, she played with her shoes - her Auntie Janet would be proud.

And, now, it's Monday. Eight more work days until Thanksgiving.


Cheers!
mouse

Healthier Thanksgiving 2010

Dear Friends and Family,

Thanksgiving is just around the corner and that means it's time to contemplate the annual mouse Thanksgiving menu.

I made a promise last year to try to make Thanksgiving healthier, one dish at a time. So, last year, instead of my yearly indulgence in Pillsbury crescent rolls, I baked bread for Thanksgiving.

This year, I crossed the blueberry pie and the pumpkin pie off the list. We never make the blueberry pie. And, we never finish the pies we make. This change increases the chances the pie gets finished and ultimately reduces the number of calories we're consuming since we're eating one pie and not three - which must be healthier.

Why did I keep apple pie and not pumpkin pie? Well, for one, we both like apple pie more. And, we can make it with real ingredients vs. pumpkin pie, for us, comes out of two cans - one of pumpkin and one of evaporated milk. And, last but not least, it's prettier. Nothing like a giant pie at the Thanksgiving table.


Cheers!
mouse

Mouse and More Ballast

Dear Friends and Family,

The tank is running close to empty and I'm thinking about ways to economize.

If it was my car's gas tank, this would be a simple answer of getting more gas. But, it's not. It's my personal gas tank. I'm getting tired.

Work has been crazy. Commuting has been a drag. The house is a disaster. Mr. mouse has been interviewing. The weekends have been packed. Oh, and I found out I lost a close friend before his time.

And, hence, my quandary.

I'm taking Friday off for the funeral. Originally, I had a birthday party for Saturday for a girlfriend who's been through a ton recently. But, now, I'm beginning to realize, I need to come home for the weekend. I need to recharge and that'll be best accomplished here at the mouse pad with P and some serious cleaning and serious rest instead of partying with the girlfriends Saturday night.

I'm going to spend some time, myself, to feel human again - get my brows and nails in order, get my house in order, and hopefully get enough gas in the tank to last me until vacation.


Cheers!
mouse

P and Four Magic Words

Dear Friends and Family,

Sometimes your child does something that just melts your heart and makes you think now is the best moment ever. Never mind that you've had that thought for the past eighteen months. This time, you're sure you're right.

P is growing by leaps and bounds. She longer and leaner and more solid. But, more importantly, she's putting so many pieces together.

She says yum when she sees food or pictures of food. She says yeah when Mr. mouse carries her down the stairs. She says whee when she see a picture of a slide (never mind that it was a picture of the emergency slide on the safety information card on the plane). She says more bottle, milk please and looks at you to see if she got it right.

She's begun dancing. She tries to reattach a broken crayon. She wipes her hands, her nose, the table and her parents if asked to clean up. She covers her mouth when she coughs after watching me do the same for the past month.

She says please and thank you.

Oh, the four magic words? more bottle, milk please (Sunday night, on the way home from the airport). It's like when she said more for the first time, seeing if she got it right. She's said two words strung together, like more book or thank you, but she thinks of those as one notion. This time, she strung words and phrases together to get to a sentence.

It's a wonderful time.


Cheers!
mouse

11.08.10: Mouse Expands Her Horizons

Dear Friends and Family,

We took P further than we've ever taken her before - for a quick weekend trip to the Emerald City of Seattle. We always try to get together with Mr. mouse's BFF and family to celebrate the November birthdays.

P did well on the flight out and we made it back in one piece on the flight back. In between was a chance for all of us to watch the girls attempt to play together. P isn't of an age yet when she's really playing with others much less playing nicely with others. There was a lot of no, mine and pushing. I can't say she did us proud this weekend. Still, it was a chance for the adults to catch up and for the kids to eat ice cream and cake.

Friday, we went out for conveyor belt sushi. Saturday, we had a big brunch date and then we played at home and after the ladies of the house fell asleep, the dads went out for late night coffee. Sunday, we went for Taiwanese and then headed to the airport.

On the flight out, P was looking at the safety information card. And, she saw the picture of the plane with the emergency slide deployed. And, she pointed and said, "whee!" Okay, how can you stay mad at someone that cute for long?


Cheers!
mouse

Mouse and Teaching Moments

Dear Friends and Family,

Today is a coaching moment for someone who works for me. He's been procrastinating on the 2011 plan and it's due today. Time to have a discussion on priorities.


Cheers!
mouse

Mouse Seeks Closure

Dear Friends and Family,

Sometimes you just need to listen to your body.

And, my body has been telling me, "sleep!" I've been exhausted to the point where it's bad. And, when I sleep, my dreams have been racked with miscellaneous stuff as my brain tries to sort through all of stuff it's been trying to sort through.

And, that, tells me it's time to prioritize and shed some ballast. Time to regroup and recenter and reset and retrench and start again. And, now, reality sets in.

This weekend we've got plans with Mr. mouse's best friend - to celebrate their joint birthdays. Next weekend we're going to see G. The two weeks after that are crazy times at work. And, that brings me to December. I'm more and more liking the idea of a five day vacation in December, before the craziness of the holidays kicks in.

If I look at my top three, this makes sense. We should have more information on Mr. mouse's work by then. The elections are clearly over. And, my work is a longer term thing that will quickly bleed into 2011.

And, this gives me something to look forward to. A light at the end of the tunnel. Let's just hope it's not a train.


Cheers!
mouse

Mouse and the Phone Call

Dear Friends and Family,

When the cell phone rings at 8:03 AM at work and a friend who never calls your cell phone at 8:03 AM calls, you know it's not good news. Somehow you hope it is, but you know it isn't. And, then, the shock and numbness seep over you like a dense, cold fog. And, you wonder why bad things happen to good people.

I believe in reincarnation. How do I reconcile that with a general belief in God? Well, here's my twisted way of making it all work. I believe an infinitely graceful God would not set up a game that we mere mortals could not win. I believe he gives us as many quarters as we need to figure this game out. And, when we reach the end we find heaven or nirvana. So, it's just a matter of getting through and solving the puzzles in all of the levels. And, that helps me maintain my sanity when life ceases to make sense.

I wonder what lesson God wants G to learn in this life in her journey. And what lesson G wanted G's husband to learn in this life in his journey. And, selfishly, I wonder what lesson God wants me to learn in this life in my journey. I guess I don't know. Perhaps, one day I will.

Until then, I guess I need to trust. And, there's comfort in knowing that we can't lose. If I die before I figure out my life lesson, there's a stack of quarters waiting so that I can try again.


Cheers!
mouse

11.02.10: Back Again

Dear Friends and Family,

Well, if I were going to make lemonade out of lemons, I'd say it was good to see so many of my friends this past weekend.

We flew out to see G and to offer what support we could as we all wait for more news. She's amazing. I wish I could be that strong.

I wasn't sure what I'd find when we went out.

I found a house full of food and love and people with hugs at the ready, a steady stream of conversation to distract you, a focus on facts and details, and a concerted effort organizing and mobilizing and harnessing the good will of thousands of people out there wanting to help.

We're all hoping and praying for good news.


Cheers!
mouse

Nothing ][

Dear Friends and Family,

Sometimes Martin Gore in his twisted world seems to know me better than anyone.

Sitting target
Sitting waiting
Anticipating
Nothing
Nothing

Life
Is full of surprises
It advertises
Nothing
Nothing

What am I trying to do
What am I trying to say
I'm not trying to tell you anything
You didn't know
When you woke up today

Sitting target
Sitting praying
God is saying
Nothing
Nothing

Always
Knows the prospects
Learn to expect
Nothing
Nothing

As we continue to wait for news, sometimes I'm full of hope and sometimes I'm filled with fear and sometimes I'm drained and just waiting and that's when I sink into Martin's world.

Let's hope the weekend brings good news.


Cheers!
mouse

Girlfriends

Dear Friends and Family,

I had a job once for a very short period of time - six months. A former manager called me to say he had a fabulous opportunity that was perfect for me. I decided to take him up on the offer.

I found a three ring circus with a mad scientist as the ringleader. After six months of living in a Dalian Alice in Wonderland, I decided to find new work. But, in those six months I found several friends for life. There's Trixie and G and Frenchie and Ms. Jordan and so many others.

And, that's why I believe that things happen for a reason and even in your darkest moments your friends can keep you sane and make you laugh. And, I am grateful for the friends that I have.


Cheers!
mouse

Waiting and Hoping

Dear Friends and Family,

Yesterday morning, on my way into work, I was reading through my emails and came to a text message from one of my close friends to tell me that... well, I won't go into the details of it here, but suffice it to say, I wanted to drop everything, get on a plane and go hug my friend, G. Since then I've been glued to Facebook and to G's blog and to G's twitter feed and to any place on line where I'm likely to come across more information.

I keep hoping for good news. I keep praying for good news. I want it to be good news so badly because I can't imagine life otherwise.

It's weird. Life yesterday morning was about getting to work, working on our 2011 plans, beating traffic, getting P to school, and all of the daily trivial details that make up our lives. Today, it all feels different. It all feels a little less important. Today, I want to take P with me to go see G and see if there's anything I can do to help. Anything, because anything feels better than waiting and hoping and praying.

Please keep my friend, G, in your thoughts and prayers.


Cheers!
mouse

The Look of Winter

Dear Friends and Family,

Biggest storm of the past 70 years headed our way. And, that means it'll look a lot more like winter tomorrow than it did yesterday because all the leaves will have fallen off of the trees. And, with October coming to a close, I've begun to think about what lies ahead for me.

Perhaps it's time for a Top Three?

There's Klein. I'd like to take a week off and spend time with her away from work and, if possible, away from home. I'd like to play with her on the beach, in the sand. Yes, I think I need a vacation.

There's work - both mine and Mr. mouse's. I'd like to know what happens to Mr. mouse in the whole reshuffling his work is going through. And, I've begun to think about me. I had a good talk with my former manager yesterday and he gave me some very good advice about how to think about my own position.

And, there's Election Day. We already voted so there's nothing actionable on this one. But, I'm watching the media to see how this election cycle turns out. There's so much hate and vitriol and misinformation out there. My prediction? I think we're headed back to the future to an era of robber barons. I think at some point the masses will revolt and the age of the union will return.

So, where does that leave me? Well, I think I should hang tight for the next couple of weeks until we launch a big initiative at work and Mr. mouse gets a feel for what work will look like (or not look like) for him in 2011. Then, I think we should plan a vacation - a five day trip if we can't get the whole week off, and enjoy ourselves. The elections will have come and gone by then. And, whatever the outcome, life will go on.

And my work? I've got two to dos from my meeting yesterday - time with my manager to see where I stand and an updated resume for my old manager.


Cheers!
mouse

10.25.10: Toddler Times

Dear Friends and Family,

P makes weekends fun.

Saturday, we slept in then ate breakfast. We went out for a haircut, which for the second time in a row, P did not like. We drove out to check out a warehouse sale. P napped. We went shoe shopping for P. We went clothes shopping for P. We went grocery shopping for all of us. P was a darling - eating strawberries and crackers, drinking her water, and captivating us with her giant eyes. We got home and P was in bed by 10:30. Ouch.

Sunday, P woke up at 8:30. Wow! We hustled to meet some friends at the zoo. P sat in the stroller and watched the people and animals go by. Not sure she made the connection to the animals. I think she "got it" at the end with the giraffes and the camels. Not sure.

Then, we let her play out the afternoon sans nap. She slept from 6:15 to 8:30 and then played for an hour before falling asleep at her usual bedtime of 9:30.

The highlight of our weekend? On Saturday, when P signaled diaper before pooping instead of after. We let her sit on top of the potty with the lid down before taking her down to change her. Sunday, she cried when she pooped. Go figure.


Cheers!
mouse

Gratitude

Dear Friends and Family,

The other night, P and I were playing on the bed. She was laughing. I was laughing. Mr. mouse came home and walked into the room and he started laughing. And, I realized how fortunate we are, and more specifically, how fortunate I am.

I was thinking about what it must have been like for my Mom when I was P's age. She was a lot less stable, financially. The mean streets of the inner City in the 70s were a lot tougher than the streets of the new millennia. My Dad had issues when I was growing up and wasn't nearly as involved or supportive a parent as Mr. mouse is. My parents fought often and my Dad threatened deportation. My parents fought often and sometimes it got physical. My parents fought often and the emotional damage was both broad and deep.

And, here we blissfully go to work and come home and laugh and play and read and enjoy our lives. And, sometimes I feel a little guilty. Why do I deserve this much happiness? And, sometimes I get a little angry. Why didn't my mom get to enjoy this much happiness? And, I realize there are no good answers.

Then, I am grateful. I am grateful to have escaped the trap of statistics that say people have a probability of perpetuating cycles they are born into. And, I am grateful for Mr. mouse for being such a supportive spouse. And, I am grateful I get to share the joy with P and start her off on her journey with a different set of statistics. And, ironically enough, I hope she doesn't escape the probability of her statistics. I hope she does perpetuate the cycle she is born into and enjoys even more abundance and happiness in her adult life.


Cheers!
mouse

Hungry Mouse

Dear Friends and Family,

Yesterday afternoon I was tired and frazzled and emotionally wiped and fighting the distracted eating monster. And, I didn't snack. And, the sky didn't fall.

I was hungry on the ride home, but, again, the sky didn't fall. I was tempted to snack when I got home, and I didn't, and, again, the sky didn't fall. I wasn't gut busting full when I went to sleep, and, last I checked, the sky didn't fall.

Well, I'll put that in the success column and see what today brings.


Cheers!
mouse

Day Two and Alive

Dear Friends and Family,

Ready for the shocker? I entered in all of my food yesterday and the world did not end. It was surprisingly easy to get back on the bandwagon, at least for a day. We'll see how today goes.

P went to sleep at 7:45 last night, close to two hours earlier than she typically does. She fell asleep shortly after we got home and didn't stir when I put her down in her crib. And, surprisingly enough, she slept through the entire night, sans dinner. She's going to be ravenous when she wakes. Speaking of which, I should go wake her soon so she'll be ready to go when I am.


Cheers!
mouse

Committed

Dear Friends and Family,

P's almost 18 months and I'm still carrying around her first house.

Roger, one of my friends at work, stopped by yesterday to tell me he had just signed up for Weight Watchers. I told him I'd start tracking as well.

I entered in my breakfast, lunch and snacks for today. And, I have three points left for dinner. This, my friends, is why I haven't lost my pregnancy weight. I'll clearly use some flex to get through the day. But, now, I know, I don't have any wiggle room for animal crackers or other randomness throughout the day.

Here's to getting back to my pre-pregnancy weight.


Cheers!
mouse

10.18.10: Data Dump

Dear Friends and Family,

Well, I just got a LOT of time back. I'm not sure who I'm more peeved with - my quarterback for having an atrocious game, my kicker for missing three (yes, count 'em, three) field goal attempts, or myself for not taking a trade that would have gotten me through this week. Well, any which way you slice it, I'm going to be eliminated this week and that means I get time back. Somehow, it doesn't feel as good it should given I love getting time back.

And, because life wouldn't be fun without some excitement. Mr. mouse's company has been reorganizing and rightsizing. And, at some point we will find out if he has a job in the new organization or if we will become a single income household. I think he finds out in the next month or so. I think I'm more anxious than he is, not because I'm worried about the money, but because I know how much he loves his job. He's been at it for so long it's tough for me to imagine him doing something different.

But, to end on a high note, we had a fabulous weekend at home with P. The weather was beautiful. We went to the park both days to take pictures. And, we let P play in the playground - she's still not a big fan of swings or slides, but she liked the climber and liked jumping down with some parental assist. We also go to see some serious toddler dancing - there's nothing funnier. And, because she's a darling, we got to see some toddler logic - she bumped her head, and wanted to be soothed, and because her teether is soothing, she held it up to her head to see if it would make her head feel better as well.


Cheers!
mouse

Social Media Overload

Dear Friends and Family,

Uncle.

There's just too much "stuff" to consume. And, not enough time to consume it. There's facebook. There's foursquare. There's flickr. There's email. There's blogs. There's fantasy football. There's the news. And, my daily sudoku puzzle to keep the noggin sharp.

I can't keep up. Something's gotta go. What happens if I disengage from a social media platform? Does the world come to a screeching halt? No. Okay, phew, wouldn't want that to happen. Does my life come to a screeching halt? No. Okay, phew, that's a good thing.

So, seems like a low risk way to get back some time.

Foursquare. That can go. Easy. Done.

News. Sad, but true. I'm willing to sacrifice that to the time gods.

Facebook. Limited to Top News vs. Most Recent.

Which leaves a manageable amount of stuff to consume. I think. Well, let's try it for awhile and see if my mornings seem less scattered. Perhaps I should take a week off from all of it and just do some weights in the morning or get on the exercise bike. Now that's a thought.


Cheers!
mouse

Still Alive

Dear Friends and Family,

I made it another week in my fantasy football league.

I have yet to watch a full game. I still need to think for a couple of moments to figure out the difference between an RB and a WR. But, despite all that, thanks to some immense luck, I have eluded elimination. My day will come.

Remember my league? The one with the goofy rules? Each week we eliminate the team that scored the lowest points that week. Then, their players become free agents and we "redraft" them in reverse order of that week's scores.

Last week, since I was second from the bottom, I had first pick of the eliminated team. While it's fun to have first pick, it's not good to be the second lowest scoring team. We'll see how this all plays out. Sooner or later (more probably sooner rather than later), my day will come.

I'm just glad to have made it this far.


Cheers!
mouse

P Catches the Flu

Dear Friends and Family,

Yes. What's old is new again.

After hacking for the past two weeks, I've finally convinced the rest of the family to join in the fun and games. They called from school yesterday to say that P had a temperature of 101 and needed to go home.

We made it home in one piece thanks to some light traffic. And, since I've got phone calls all day, ironically enough, Mr. mouse is going to somehow manage with her. I wish I could stay home with her. But, I missed two days last week to being sick and one afternoon to a doctor's appointment and I've got another one this week and it just seems like there's too much going on to miss yet another day.

I really to wish I could stay home with her. My little P. There's nothing like holding her when she wants to be held.


Cheers!
mouse

10.11.10: Reunion Weekend

Dear Friends and Family,

We went home this weekend for reunion. And, it was a success of somewhat limited scope.

P was okay on the plane. We had fun walking outside on Saturday. My mom got to play with P. I got to see a bunch of old friends at reunion. And, we saw Mr. mouse's folks on Sunday.

So? Well, P had a rough night on Saturday so Mr. mouse had to leave reunion early to do disaster recovery. And, I got to see a bunch of friends from freshman and sophomore year, but the junior and senior year friends remain MIA through two reunions now. And, last but not least, because we had an early afternoon flight, we had only the briefest of visits with Mr. mouse's folks.

Still, all in all, it was a good weekend. Time traveling with P is always good.

One thing that's interesting is watching my mom and Mr. mouse's step-mom with P. I think my mom scares P right off the bat. She comes in the room a rush of energy and noise and P just stares at the hyper-kinetic whirlwind and runs for our laps. Mr. mouse's step-mom, on the other hand, approaches slowly and let's P get used to her before playing quietly with her. I think P does better with the latter, but I don't know how to tell my mom that without hurting her feelings.

And, last but not least, P learned to take her shirt off by herself yesterday. Excellent.


Cheers!
mouse

Deb Gibson Strikes Again?

Dear Friends and Family,

Ever since I found an impossible restaurant reservation, Mr. mouse and I have jokingly referred to my luck as an alter ego - Deb Gibson for her song "Only in My Dreams."

Deb Gibson has found a couple of scores. And, this morning looking for hotel rooms for a trip we're contemplating committing to, I think she may have scored again.

We'll see. It may be a dive. It may not be available. There may be hidden charges. Anything can happen.

But, I'm hopeful that it all works out.


Cheers!
mouse

10.06.10: Mouse Catches the Flu

Dear Friends and Family,

I'm not dead although there were times this past weekend I wasn't so sure.

Yes. I, who so prides herself in never getting sick, got sick. Fever, chills, aches, cough, hacking cough, headache, crusty eyes sick. It was beautiful. Really. So, I'm not sure I have much recollection of the weekend beside sitting in bed, lying in bed, lying on the couch and lying on the floor resting in whatever comfortable position I could find.

I worked from home Monday and Tuesday which entailed driving P out to school and then parking the car at the train station so that Mr. mouse could pick her up in the evening.

I think I was able to stay on top of my work, and get some rest. But, today, I'm going to attempt the office. My poor colleagues. They're going to have to listen to me hack my brains out.

Grossed out yet? Because I am.

On to more fun topics. P's ever growing vocabulary. She's begun saying yes (yeah) and her no is a verbal no now instead of just a shake of the head. She's definitely picked up mine (mine) and milk (milk, drawn out with the middle going down and the end of the word going up). She's got book and bottle down and says more book and more bottle. She's said hi and bye on occasion, but not consistently. My current focus has been teaching her the word please. More book please.

She's figured out where the animals are in her lift a flap book. And, her current interest is in finding Emily Elizabeth on every page of her Clifford book. She likes to make fish sounds in her Good Night book. And, she loves stacking people in her bus to wheel around the rug. She's got body parts down in time for her 18 month check up. And, she's figuring out colors more consistently now. She'll point to Mr. mouse or me if we ask where's mommy or where's daddy. She'll point to herself if we ask where's P. And, she'll point to her classmates if we ask where's so and so.

And, that, is life with P.

The funny thing was we got selected for the follow-up census questionnaire. And, in it you have to provide more detailed information about each member of your household, including P. One of the questions was speaks English, well, okay, not well, not at all. And, I wanted to put, come on, she's not even two years old yet, but that wasn't an option. So, I picked not well which was the closest fit. Perhaps they'll assume she speaks another language better, but, well, that wouldn't be true either.


Cheers!
mouse

Mouse Catches Up

Dear Friends and Family,

Not surprisingly, I overslept yesterday morning - somehow convincing myself that it was Saturday when the alarm clock rang.

And, today is Friday, and I've got to catch up on emails and stuff before I can settle into the weekend. Every week it seems like the next week will be less hectic than the last. But, every week something new pops up that keeps the craziness constant.

Perhaps I need a vacation - some days off with nothing to do. I'll have to ask Mr. mouse about that... I'm feeling like I'm burning out or at least I'm burning more than I'm taking in and that will eventually lead to burn out.

Time to recharge.


Cheers!
mouse

Mouse and the All Nighter

Dear Friends and Family,

I'm getting too old for this, but apparently not old enough to not do it anymore.

What am I talking about? The all nighter - when you look at the clock and it's time to wake up, but you haven't gone to sleep yet.

Tomorrow (today) promises to be a beautiful day. I think I may sneak out from 10 to noon to nap. Seems only fair since I lost 6 hours of sleep to work.


Cheers!
mouse

Mouse and Fantasy Football

Dear Friends and Family,

So, now, instead of spending P time at night putting together a strategy for my Fantasy Football team, I spent my morning time. Huh.

Unlike "normal" leagues, we're playing a Survivor style league. Each week we all play against each other. Then, the team with the lowest points gets eliminated and their players get re-drafted amongst the remaining teams with the second lowest team picking first. Therefore, it's in your best interest to be the second lowest team each week so you have first pick of the eliminated players, but then you run the risk of being eliminated. See why I'm hooked?

Mr. mouse says I'm like those Thai Scrabble players. I don't watch any of the games. I don't know any of the players. I'm not even sure I know what a running back does vs. a wide receiver. The names are deceptive - they both run after getting the ball from the quarterback so I have a 50-50 chance at getting that one right. I do know BYE weeks are bad since your players' teams aren't playing. Injuries bad. And, I need 1 QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, 1 K, and 1 DST to field an active team. See why this is hilarious?

Anyway. Off to get ready now. I'm #3 on the draft pick for the week so we'll see who I pick up. My goal was to make it through week 4 so one more week and I'll feel like I accomplished something.


Cheers!
mouse

09.27.10: Managing

Dear Friends and Family,

It was a hectic weekend, but I made it through in one piece.

Saturday, my sister called to say my mom was visiting. So, we jumped in the car and drove over for a visit. Fortunately, P slept most of the way down and almost all of the way up. My mom loved seeing her so it was worth the monkey wrench in the schedule.

Sunday, we spent the morning doing most of the errands that got punted from Saturday. Then, I dropped Mr. mouse off at the airport for a business trip. Fortunately, he should be back tonight.

Then, I spent the afternoon alone with P. We read. I let her run and play. We ate.

It was fun, but I was also a little (okay, a lot) preoccupied with the fact that my Fantasy Football team was in the toilet. Well, Sunday night I realized 10 years from now I won't give a hoot about my fantasy team, but I will remember the precious moments P provides - like she came up with a sound for fish while we were reading a Good Night book, or when we covered ourselves with the towel and she laughed when she saw my face, or when she wanted to walk around with the towel over her head but then she kept bumping into things.

I promised myself I won't let it happen again. I'm okay with her having independent play time. I just need to let go (mentally) of my fantasy team.

And, now it's Monday and time to get ready soon for the day.


Cheers!
mouse

Savings Update

Dear Friends and Family,

Well, after a very depressing August, September is shaping up to be a better month so far. Next week I get to reassess how our retirement fund is looking and how retirement is looking.

Our current worst case scenario has us retiring at 50 and 54 (my age and Mr. mouse's age) and our best case scenario has us retiring at 45 and 49. There's a ton of stuff this is all dependent upon (e.g. our ability to continue saving, inflation, how our investments do, etc.) but at least we're looking at it on a regular basis.

Hopefully nothing rocks the financial boat in the next seven days and I can see where we're at compared to our goals.


Cheers!
mouse

Reading with P

Dear Friends and Family,

We've been reading a ton with P. She'll bring a book over and say 'more book' and sit on my lap. She'll bring the book back to the bin when we're done if I ask her to. She has favorites like Ten in the Bed that she can't get enough of and others like Curious George where she shakes her head no and goes for another book.

She's gotten very good with animal sounds now. Is you ask, "what does a monkey say?" She'll respond with monkey noises. She'll do the same for cow, sheep, cat, horse and lion. She'll point to a duck and say 'duck' and she'll point to a fish and say 'fish.'

And, yesterday, she started picking the books we asked for. I asked for Ten in the Bed and she brought over Ten in the Bed. I asked for Babies and she brought over Global Babies. I asked for Ding Dong and she brought over the book with the play doorbell. We did this enough times to verify it wasn't likely dumb luck.

All that milk fat at work.


Cheers!
mouse

P Gets Pink Eye

Dear Friends and Family,

P was sent home yesterday with a puffy face, yellow goop in her eyes, and a bite mark on her neck. She looked like she had taken a beating in a street fight.

But, the doctor confirmed that it was nothing more serious than a case of pink eye. So, she spent the day at home today with Mr. mouse. And, she's off to school tomorrow.


Cheers!
mouse

09.20.10: Weekend, Weekend

Dear Friends and Family,

P's been crying for ten minutes now and it's not the easiest listening to her.

The weekend. The weekend.

Saturday, P and I went out for breakfast while Mr. mouse stayed home with the house cleaners. We went to the library after breakfast. Then, we walked home and just beat the rain. P and the stroller and I had a little bit of an incident on the dash home. Fortunately, we escaped with a minor scratch on P's nose to show for it all.

After playing in the basement and taking a quick shower, we headed out for brunch with a friend in town for the DMB concert. It was weird. I never thought of her as a kid person so I was a little nonchalant about kids. Well, it turns out she and her partner and thinking about trying. I think she was a little nonplussed at my nonchalance.

Next on the agenda was a stop at the museum to play since we wanted to give P a change of scenery. Well, funny enough, we ran into my friend from Brunch #1 at the museum. Small world.

Did some shopping and then headed home for the evening.

Sunday, we originally had plans for the zoo. But, with some last minute cancellations, we ended up going to the park instead for some pictures.

And, that my friend was the weekend. And, Mr. mouse went upstairs to rescue P so it's nice and quiet in the house.


Cheers!
mouse

Home Again

Dear Friends and Family,

I must be getting old.

There's nothing like sleeping at home, in your bed, with your family in the house.

I was bone tired when I got home yesterday. I'm a little bit of an introvert so being around people non-stop for three straight days tends to wear me out. It's nice to be able to crawl into my shell and zone out.

I'm glad that it's Friday.


Cheers!
mouse

More?

Dear Friends and Family,

Tuesday night, we played cards and my partner and I lost both games.

Last night, we played again, and won both games.

I suggested a fifth game to settle the score. And, we lost.

Really, I should have stopped when we were ahead. By winning both games last night, we clearly had bragging rights - at least for awhile. There really wasn't much to be gained by playing the last game.

Sometimes you have to know when to take what you've got and run.


Cheers!
mouse

Work Trip

Dear Friends and Family,

In the hustle and bustle to get out yesterday morning, I didn't have a chance to write. And, after the three cocktails I had with my boss last night, this morning isn't going to yield any pearls of wisdom either.

On a happy note, Mr. mouse and I resolved a difference of opinion we have. Now that P is older, I asked him to not post any pictures of us with her in our neighborhood. I'm fine with a picture of us at Mount Rushmore, for example. But, I'm not as crazy about a picture of us at places we frequent regularly. He thought I was being over zealous. And, I agree, I may be. But, that's what I'm comfortable with.

It got a little ugly Sunday night, but we slept on it, and for now, I think it's behind us.

Hope your morning is a little less fuzzy than mine. Wish me luck for tonight. Fortunately, my desert cactus friends, it will not include any last minute renegade runs down a water slide.


Cheers!
mouse

09.13.10: Social Weekend

Dear Friends and Family,

This weekend, instead of running from errand to errand, we filled the weekend with social engagements.

Saturday, after much dawdling about the potential weather, we ultimately decided to head to a friends house to watch Notre Dame take on the Wolverines. Seven kids, two pies of pizza, something like 24 single serve ice cream buckets, Shiner and Vernor's made for a fun afternoon.

Sunday, we had friends over. We went to see an art fair and then went on the roof for some toddler pool fun. Trying to have two toddlers play together is a naive attempt at trying to overcome natural inclination of two people not really interested in playing together. There was much toy grabbing, pushing, splashing, and temper tantrums. P doesn't seem to get much out of having a companion, at least not at her current age.

Monday, P's up since she didn't have much dinner last night. She was playing with Mr. mouse, but now the two of them are sitting down to eat. She's growing so much. Her babble is coalescing into words. There's a word that starts with 'b' for bib. There's 'book' for book. There's 'fish' for a yellow fish in her book. There's unprompted lion roars. There's 'down' which is the new up/down/help. There's 'rabbit' which she sometimes says when prompted. And, on a rare occasion I'll get 'more bottle' when she sees the bottle in the car. She's become a book worm. I'm convinced it's all gelling in her head.

And, P's reign with her two unicorns is officially over. This weekend at the fair, one or two people remarked, but most of the time P went unnoticed. It was fun while it lasted. Now, she's just our little sweetest.


Cheers!
mouse

09.10.10: Weekend!

Dear Friends and Family,

It's almost the weekend. And, there's so much I need to get done between now and the start of my weekend. I wish work was less complicated. I wish work was closer to home. I wish the economy was better. I wish I knew what was going to happen with Mr. mouse at his work place as the right size the workforce. I wish. I wish. I wish.

I think the right thing to prioritize, oddly enough, is getting the house back in order. I tend to do better when everything is in order at home. I think the physical clutter is adding to mental clutter. Maybe I'll spend some time this weekend tackling some corner of this.

I've had thoughts running through my head. Perhaps I should set up a 365 item challenge. Are there 365 "things" in the house that I can make leave the house? And, will I miss them when they're gone? Like the half eaten box of chocolates that are more than a year old. Really? Why are they still here? I'll brew on it a little longer and see if I make it a real thing I track or a mindset I adopt.


Cheers!
mouse

09.09.10: Weekend Revisited

Dear Friends and Family,

So what did we do over the weekend?

Saturday, we went out to brunch. Then, Mr. mouse and I got our brows done. Then, we let P sleep in the car while we went to get mail and pick up shoes. Housecleaning, followed by groceries, and before you knew it Saturday was gone. At least all of our errands were accounted for.

Sunday, we called my sister and convinced her to come visit for the weekend. Then, we spent the better part of the day playing with P in her swimming pool upstairs. I forgot to put her in a swim diaper. The regular diaper was a disaster when she came out of the water. It weighed a ton and looked like it was going to burst. We went out to dinner with my sister and her husband and bought a sack of burgers on the way home. Hamburgers for dessert. Fabulous.

Monday, we went out to the zoo. I'm not sure P made the connection between the animals in her books and the animals at the zoo. She got a good nap in, falling asleep holding her new book, and we enjoyed walking around so I'd call the day a success.

Three day weekends are so nice. You have a day to do errands and then you still have your whole weekend ahead of you. We need more of those.


Cheers!
mouse

Connecting the Dots

Dear Friends and Family,

P's been busy.

Saturday, she picked up a piece of chicken and ate it off of the bone. She started imitating animal sounds - moo, baa, ruff, meow, neigh.

Sunday, she began signalling - I've got a diaper by coming to you and patting her chest. She figured out duplo, almost. She figured out her pull toy.

Monday, she showed us she can walk backwards to come sit in your lap. She's mastered "up, down, and daddy."

Tuesday, pointed to a fish and unprompted said fish. She showed she has a routine. I was out late and she told Mr. mouse she wanted to go up and see meh when she comes home like she normally does.

Our little brilliant.


Cheers!
mouse

postponed

Dear Friends and Family,

Long weekend. Late morning. Will post tonight.


Cheers!
mouse

Mouse Catches a Cold

Dear Friends and Family,

Caught a cold earlier this week and it's gotten worse. Overslept yesterday morning (hence no blog post) and turned in early last night. Going to slog through one more day at work before turning in to recuperate over the weekend.

P caught the cold too. Mr. mouse made us both chicken soup last night. Here's to feeling better.


Cheers!
mouse

Why?

Dear Friends and Family,

Yesterday, I had one of those days. The days when you wonder if it's all worth it. The days when you wonder why you come to work every day. The days you do the math to see what changing jobs would be worth.

And then you take a deep breath and you grow up and you sleep on it and you gird yourself for the next day. And you hope the next day will be better than the day before. Or you realize you have a job to do and if you're committed to a job you're committed to a job. Then you wonder some more.

Sushi ready when sushi ready. No rush sushi. Pestering will not make sushi ready faster. That's what a menu said at a restaurant we used to go to. So simple, but so profound.

When my choice is clear, my choice will be clear. Agonizing will not make my choice clearer sooner.


Cheers!
mouse

The Adventures of Mommy Mouse

Dear Friends and Family,

I've come to the sad, sad conclusion that my blog is a sad, sad blog.

With the long commute, I no longer have the time in the morning wax philosophical. And, with the lack of sleep my once semi-faceted life has turned into a uniform sleep, wake, drive, work, drive, eat, sleep routine.

And, yet, the toddler accomplishments keep coming. Perhaps it's okay to recognize that for now, I'm merely mommy mouse. And, at some point in the future, mouse as an independent entity will re-emerge stronger and better for the time spent as mommy.

P walked to the car with my yesterday - all the way from her room, through school, through the parking lot and to the car. She's growing up.

And, yesterday, during bath time, she asked Mr. mouse for some soap which she used to rub her belly - three times. Cleanest belly in all of town.

And, last but not least, our toddler has fallen in love with her pillow. We relented a couple of months ago and gave her a pillow. And, now, she sleeps with it all the time. Last night, I went in to her room to say goodnight and she was asleep on her clean belly with her head on her pillow.


Cheers!
mouse

08.30.10: Summer in the City

Dear Friends and Family,

Still struggling with the layer of grime from yesterday. Gross.

We took Friday off. Yeah for vacation days! Flew over to the Twin Cities for a wedding. Got to see several friends and reconnect. Ate some pizza. Drove around a lake. Stopped off at the dry cleaners. Flew home.

Sunday, Yankees vs. White Sox. Our assessment? We're Sox fans, not Cubs fans. Time to order P her toddler jersey. Dinner in Chinatown followed by cake at home.

Why cake? It was my birthday this past weekend. Yeah for birthdays!


Cheers!
mouse

Surfacing

Dear Friends and Family,

It's Friday. And, I made it through the week without too many dents and dings.

What's P doing?

She's walking. Really walking vs. the waddling she was doing earlier.

She's constantly grunting and pointing, at things she sees, at things she wants, at people she knows.

She's begun throwing temper tantrums - crying me, me, me when she wants help with something, pushing and shoving if she doesn't get her way, and morphing into frog eyed girl if all else fails.

Yes, we have a toddler.

Happy Friday!


Cheers!
mouse

Bombarded

Dear Friends and Family,

Sorry to be lame. Still swamped. Hope to surface for air tomorrow.


Cheers!
mouse

Short Week

Dear Friends and Family,

It's a short week this week, but it's a grueling one.

If I can make it through this week, hopefully next week will be better. Funny, I say that often and then the next week I think... if I can make it through this week, hopefully next week will be better. Perhaps one day it will be true and when I make it through that week the next week truly will be better.

For now, as long as I am treading water, I guess I can't complain - until the next tsunami comes and threatens to overwhelm me.

One down, three to do.


Cheers!
mouse

08.23.10: To Do List Done

Dear Friends and Family,

We entered into the weekend with a to do list from hell. And, we're exiting with one item (knob proofing) on it. Yeah, for mouse and Mr. mouse!

Some of the items were onerous (e.g. oil change and dropping off shoes for resoling) and others were more fun (e.g. footprints for P and softball game for Mr. mouse), but put together the list was long.

Let's see. Saturday, haircut, bakery, library, dry cleaning, shoes, oil change, car wash, mail, lunch, groceries, Target, late dinner at home.

Sunday, bagels, cake order, footprints, groceries, toddler cup, softball game, kiddie pool, late dinner at home.

I'm exhausted just reading the list.

P slept a lot this weekend with a monster nap on Saturday at home and a second nap on the car ride home. Sunday, she had a shorter nap in the morning and a second nap on the car ride home.

We made the long trek out to the burbs two days in a row. And, I slept poorly last night - which means today's going to be a brutal day.

Short week this week. Let's focus on the positive!


Cheers!
mouse

Two Little Kittens

Dear Friends and Family,

P's favorite characters are:

• the two little kittens in Goodnight Moon
• Wedgehead in her alphabet and counting books
• anyone in her facial expressions book

She'll point and laugh or grunt or bounce in your lap. She'll flip through the book searching for the page. She'll kiss the book.

If she ends up a little more cerebral and a little less athletic, then I know she's my daughter. Her favorite books? Dear Zoo and Ten in the Bed.


Cheers!
mouse

Interns

Dear Friends and Family,

Had to read my intern's presentation this morning. The work was great. It's just that they can be a little bit of a hound in trying to get their projects done.

Interns, can't live with them, can't live without them.

Late. Gotta run.


Cheers!
mouse

Toddler Hat Tricks

Dear Friends and Family,

15 months old. What's our P doing nowadays?

She's just beginning to try out running. She'll get ahead of herself and tumble sometimes or sway to re-balance. But, she's beginning to get the hang of it.

She's developed an interest in knobs which means more kitchen proofing is coming soon.

She likes to come up from behind and stand behind you. If you look over your shoulder to see her she shifts a little to the other side. If you then look over the other side to see her she shifts back. She giggles if she thinks you didn't see her.

She runs around the kitchen island and the sitting area couch and slows down when she's coming out the other side to see if she can surprise you.

She like to climb on our stomachs and backs and ride horsey.

And, she's ticklish, especially the stomach.


Cheers!
mouse

Waiting on Inspiration

Dear Friends and Family,

Got up early, but waiting on inspiration. I guess nothing exciting happened yesterday and there's not a lot on my mind. So, I'm surfing and reading and waiting for that ah ha moment.

That's the thing with ah ha moments, you can't rush them. You just need to wait for them to happen. Now that I think about it, life overall feels like it's in a little bit of a holding pattern. I'm happy with work, but the commute is crazy talk. Mr. mouse is happy at work, but there's a lot of change going on this fall. We're happy with P, and jokingly debate another.

There's a sense we're enjoying life. But, also a sense that we're waiting for an ah ha moment. No rushing it. Not sure where it'll take us. Just pondering.

I guess that's my ah ha for the day, recognizing it's a little bit of a Mandelbrot fractal today and life in general.


Cheers!
mouse

08.16.10: Raising a Toddler

Dear Friends and Family,

P has indisputably convinced us, make no mistake, we have a toddler in the house.

She comes to up and puts up her arms if she wants to be picked up. She arches her back and wiggles out of our grasp if she doesn't want to be picked up. She points and grunts to let us know where she wants to go and if she wants something. She throws a temper tantrum if she doesn't get her way. Yes, we have a toddler in the house.

For all that, she's still a joy to have. She smiles and laughs when we smile and laugh. She runs to you if she's happy to see you. She "reads" books to herself and babbles on end. And, she calms herself down (in seconds) when it's obvious she's not going to get her way. Yes, we have a toddler in the house.

Our weekend with our toddler was a flurry of activity.

Saturday, we went to the market for frites and Vietnamese sandwiches. Then, we headed to the Air and Water Show. Through some freak of scheduling we arrived just in time to see all of the jumpers (who normally go in the morning and midday) and the Blue Angels who close the show. Guess it must have been windy in the morning. P had an hour and half nap in my arms and woke just in time to see the Blue Angels.

Saturday night, she fell asleep after reading to herself in her crib.

Sunday, we met up with friends for brunch. Then, we went for a walk to the grocery store. We stopped off in a toy store on the way back. P found a set of blocks she has and pointed to her favorite monkey block. At least she's consistent.

I got a manicure. Then, our friend from Hotlanta came over for dinner. P gorged on beans and pasta before guzzling down her milk. She fell asleep in our bed. And, woke later in her crib. She read a little while sitting on the floor with Mr. mouse and then tried to poop with no success before falling back asleep. I felt so bad for her, but obviously not bad enough to protect her privacy.

And, now it's Monday.


Cheers!
mouse

Thoughts on Another

Dear Friends and Family,

I don't think I'll have the time to finish this post this morning. And, I'm not sure where it'll lead. But, for the million and one people who think they're entitled to an opinion, truth be told you're not. And, for the thousand and one people who think this is a vote, it isn't. But, with that being said, if you feel the need to comment, I won't take it personally.

One

• we get to spend time with P
• we get to focus on P
• we have room for one in the house
• saving for college is expensive



• the next one maybe a boy, this is a minor one compared to everything else
• the next one may not be born perfect like P was (i.e. my eggs are getting old)
• I could get gestational diabetes with the next one
• I'm deathly afraid of SIDS
• I need to lose the baby weight from P
• I'd need to lose the baby weight from the next one
• the next one is not a carbon copy of the first one, they couldn't be as perfect as P



• the craziness that is breastfeeding for the first year and working at the same time
• taking maternity leave in my current job would be tough
• we'd be more limited in what we can do (e.g. travel, eat out)

More than One

• we'd have "the spare"
• P could be lonely being an only
• there'd be someone for P to share the burden (of caring for us) with
• perhaps this is one of those things where you can't imagine the happiness until you get there
• (some) babies are so cute

I guess I need to think about how important each of these are. And, I need to think about other factors, perhaps the list is incomplete.

But, for now, I think I'm happy with the one I have.


Cheers!
mouse

Midnight Snack

Dear Friends and Family,

P didn't eat much dinner last night. And, she wasn't in the mood for much milk either (more on that later). So, it came as no surprise when she woke at 1:44AM to tell us she was hungry.

Now, if she were older we could explain she should have eaten more dinner. But, at 15 months I'm not sure it'd stick.

So, we brought her downstairs and Mr. mouse grabbed some food out of the refrigerator. I spooned some yogurt into a bowl and he put on her bib. And, then she ate. And, the sight of her diligently using the spoon in the semi-darkness we keep our kitchen at for midnight snacks while Mr. mouse was holding the bowl for her somehow made the 1:44 wake up call worth it.


Cheers!
mouse

Urban Legends

Dear Friends and Family,

I hate to break the news to you. And, I feel a little guilty for admitting it. But, not all parents love all babies indiscriminately.

I didn't like holding babies before P was born. And, everyone told me that that would change once I was a parent. That after parenthood, I would love all babies and all baby pictures, and that I would love holding anyone's baby. I also heard I wouldn't mind baby crying.

Well, it's all bunk.

Frankly, I have little interest in holding any baby besides P who is now a toddler. Sometimes I do it because I can tell I'll hurt the parents' feelings if I don't. But, usually I'll decline, and Mr. mouse will explain away my behavior to the parents so they know it's not their baby's fault.

And, I still can't stand baby crying. It just puts me on edge.

That all being said... One of my friends just had a baby and I am so excited. He's absolutely perfect (at least in the pictures I saw) and I can't wait to meet him.


Cheers!
mouse

08.10.10: Whirlwind Weekends

Dear Friends and Family,

We may have been at home the last couple of weekends, but they've been whirlwind weekends packed with activities.

This past weekend was no different.

Saturday, we went out to a ball game. It was a close game with the Cubs losing by one with bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth. P enjoyed the game - watching part of it and standing in between our seats for the rest of it. The weather was stunningly beautiful.

Sunday, we went for brunch with our neighbor. Then we headed out to the doctor's office for a check up and a couple of shots. Our little empress remains oddly shaped with a >50th percentile head, 10-25th percentile height and 5th percentile weight.

Next, we packed the bags and headed out to market days - one of the many festivals summertime brings to the city. It was a little much for the kids, but I really enjoyed it. It wasn't so much the crush of bodies or the over the top exhibitionism, but the sense of freedom. These are people who day by day may or may not feel 110% comfortable in everything they do. That's what it's like to be a minority. There's one part that wants to conform to the majority and one part that wants to adhere to what makes you unique. Okay, that may be a gross oversimplification, but it's true for me. Data point of one. Excellent.

Anyways, it felt so wonderful - a venue where people were free to express who they are and not feel like anyone was sitting judgement on them. I loved it. But, it was overwhelming - there were just too many people.

Sunday evening we met up with one of my old friends. Her company was acquired by a local company and she'll be coming up for the next couple of weeks to help with the transition.

And, that was the weekend. Is your head spinning yet?


Cheers!
mouse

Late Start... Early Morning

Dear Friends and Family,

It's Monday. And, I've got my early Monday meetings. So, weekend recap will have to wait until tomorrow.

Will be eating core (Weight Watchers) today. Wish me luck!


Cheers!
mouse

Obsessions

Dear Friends and Family,

I think I'm one of those people - once I'm committed, I'm obsessed. Once I'm obsessed, I'm focused. Once I'm focused, I can do anything.

So, I guess the start of any journey is commitment. Which brings me to Weight Watchers. I'm beginning my (second) journey next Tuesday with my next weigh in.


Cheers!
mouse

Freedoms We Take for Granted

Dear Friends and Family,

I've been meaning to write about this for some time, but it's a fuzzy concept... the rights and freedoms we have and how we take it for granted. Somehow, in debating the nuances of it and/or not taking advantage of it, we counterintuitively validate it. Does that make any sense?

Okay. How about this example? While some heterosexual couples are debating his name, her name, hyphenated, each keeping their own, some homosexual couples are pointedly picking one common last name.

There's so much we do day by day where we take for granted the very basics that we can't imagine life without. Life insurance, medical insurance, unemployment insurance, hospitals, police, fire fighters, all of the rights in the bill of rights and our constitution, a justice system, a monetary controls system, equal opportunity, the list goes on.

Yet, every day, people wake up to a world without the basics. We debate whether to vaccinate our collective children while others don't have access to childhood vaccinations.

I'm not sure where I'm going with this post. If it's a call to recognize what we have and be grateful for it. Or, if it's a realization that we should be doing more for others. Or, for now, simply, that it's important to share our thoughts and opinions with others in respectful dialogue. Sometimes you need to stand on the shoulders of giants to push your thinking forward until it crystallizes.

Any tall volunteers around?


Cheers!
mouse