April 27, 2011

I’m Here! I’m Here!

Hmmm. So let’s talk about how I do this thing where I write a post and promise to come back and then another week of life goes by and I say to myself, GET THEE ARSE BACK TO BLOGGING, WOMAN!

Yeah.  That whole thing.

UGH.

So, anyway…I’m just all over the damn place these days.

My weeks are crammed full of things.   It’s hard to remember what happened on each day.

Our Easter holiday was pretty good.  My parents had the boys overnight on Saturday so that Sunday morning Doug and I could go to church and actually listen the Homily instead of tossing a very fussy Owen back and forth and listening to Dawson ask “Is church almost done?” for the 80th time.

I was a little miffed that we had to grab chairs from the Mary Room (also known as the multipurpose room) and place them behind the last row of pews because all the Christmas-and-Easter-Catholics decided to venture out to Mass.  I love our church.  I’ve been a member of St. Bron’s since birth and I’ve watched the parish grow tremendously over the last 32 years, but honestly, when I can’t sit in a pew even when arriving 20 minutes early I get a bit annoyed.

After church Doug went home to do yard work and I took a long nap before we had to go to my parents’ house for dinner.  The boys were sugared up because Grandma had an Easter egg hunt (oh, the chocolate and jelly beans they consumed) and they refused to eat any ham and potatoes (I wonder why?) and I was ready to go home after 2o minutes.  I know I should love spending time with my family, but I think I was just exhausted.  Starting the new job and getting into a new routine is tiring.

I confess I didn’t even take one single photo at Easter.  I feel awful about it.  Everyone knows I take my camera with me everywhere and I take pictures every day.  That day I was just too tired.

The rest of this week has been busy.  Work is going well.  I love my new job.  My hours are 7:30 to 4:00 and getting home well before 5 o’clock is such a bonus.  I like what I do and my co-workers are really awesome.  I don’t even know if I mentioned that I got a job at Sentry Insurance in the Premium Audit Department.  I absolutely love it.  LOVE it.

Dawson had his first T-ball practice tonight.  He was so excited when we got to the field.  Three of his classmates are on his team, as well as our neighbor’s son.  He couldn’t stop talking about the practice all the way home.  I’m just happy he likes sports.  I think he’s going to have a lot of fun this summer between T-ball and soccer.

Owen went to bed an hour earlier than usual tonight.  I was so relieved because I had some homework to finish for my Employment Law class.  The topic is Privacy in regards to Social Media Sites and Blogs.  Right up my alley, don’t you think?  Considering I’ve been using Twitter since early 2007 and Facebook almost as long (or longer?  Can’t remember), my report on the topic is sure to be an A paper.

That’s what’s up in my world.  Life is good.  Busy, but good.

October 2, 2010

The Queen of Chaos

I’ve been trying to read a book for months.  This book to be exact (the authors are from my hometown.  You remember Mimi Bobeck, right?).  But with two boys who keep me insanely busy, I barely make it through a chapter before someone’s diaper needs changing or someone else needs to be fed.

When I’m Queen of My Own Life, I will rule that I be given two straight hours each day to read.  Considering I have a stack of books on my end table that I’d love to read, and magazines piling up in every corner of every room, I’ll probably need a full work day each week to catch up.  My husband will just have to deal with the diaper changing, the picking up of the toys, the constant yelling and craziness.

I just got the new issue of New York Magazine and haven’t had the chance to read about The Social Network, which is on the cover.  I’m not sure I want to watch this movie.  Anyone see it yet?  I love me some Facebook (hello, I’m on it every damn day), but do I really care about Mark Zuckerberg or whatever his name is?

It’s weird that Hollywood is making movies about social media.  I can’t wait for them to make a movie about Twitter.

Okay.  These kids of mine are whining.  The only think I’m queen of is chaos.  So much for blogging.

April 17, 2010

Animal Rescue

Last night we found a baby squirrel laying at the base of a tall pine tree in our front yard.  We had just gotten home from having the kids’ pictures taken when Dawson spotted the little thing on the grass.

“Mom!  I see a rat!  On the ground!  I think he’s dead!”

I immediately turned on my Mom Voice.

“DON’T touch it.  It might be full of germs.  Or rabies!”

When I got a closer look, this is what I saw:

Ugly, but cute at the same time.

“Dawson, that is not a rat.  That is a little baby squirrel.  He must have fallen out of the tree.”

It was very windy yesterday and I assumed one strong gust tossed the little thing to the ground.

“Oh, Mom, he’s dead!” Dawson began to cry.

My heart melted as I witnessed my son’s innocence and compassion toward this helpless little animal.

Then the wind blew and we saw the squirrel’s legs move.  His tail twitched.  His body curled slightly.

“HE’S ALIVE!” Dawson shouted.  His sadness was replaced with happiness, then he became distraught.  ”Mommy!  We have to save it!  We have to bring him in the house and warm him up and feed him and help him!”

I didn’t know what to do, but I was not about to nurse a squirrel back to health.  I mean, it’s a rodent.  Rodentia and I do NOT get along.  I’m terrified of the creepy, scurrying little things.  (When I was very young I found a dead mouse in the garage and it scared me silly.  Still have this phobia about it, all these years later.)

I tried to explain to Dawson why we could not bring the animal in the house.

“Call Daddy!  Daddy will save him!”

Doug was at a friend’s Trivia party and I called his cell phone and told him the news.  He assured me he’d be home soon to help me with this situation.

When Doug arrived he got on the computer and Googled “baby squirrel fell out of tree” and found a wildlife site that gave detailed directions on how to help the squirrel.  Next, he found a cardboard box, lined it with an old towel and tucked a heated water bottle underneath.  Using gloves and a paper towel he picked up the little squirrel and tucked him inside the box.  It was like a baby squirrel crib.  My husband was my hero.  I knew I couldn’t have done what he did. Little Dawson was so happy that his father rescued the squirrel.

The website said that the mama squirrel would most likely retrieve her baby as long as he hadn’t been severely injured.  Since we weren’t sure of his condition we didn’t know what to expect.  Doug told Dawson that all we could do was hope the squirrel would survive the cold night and that his mother would get him in the morning.

Dawson awoke at 7:45 and was eager to check on his little friend.  We went outside and looked in the box but didn’t see the baby squirrel.  I told Dawson that his mother probably retrieved him.

Ater the Doodlebug went back in the house, I moved the towel a little and saw that the baby squirrel was still tucked inside, but he had died.  I touched his leg with a twig.  No movement.  No breathing.  I cried. I knew I couldn’t tell Dawson the truth.  It would break his heart.

I feel very sad.  I don’t like that I’ve lied to a 5-year-old.  I know he’s old enough to understand the truth, but I do not want to upset him.  On the other hand, lessons on life and death could be learned.  But is Dawson ready for that?  I don’t know.

What would you do?

February 6, 2010

Dana Who?

I’ve been sitting at my laptop for several minutes, contemplating what I will write on here on this blog.  I’m drawing a blank.  Again.  I haven’t been here much these last few weeks.  I am not even sure anyone still reads the blog, considering that I haven’t written in a month.  Dana who?

I could give you a list of excuses as to why I’m not here, but you already know the answer.

Two weeks before Owen was born, I stopped working for BlogHer as a headline editor.  My contract ended and the financial difficulty that has followed has been miserable.  We’ve made drastic changes to our lifestyle, and have become very frugal.  The last thing I wanted to do on maternity leave was hunt for another job when I was nursing and bonding with Owen.

Just after Owen was 3 months, I began my job search only to discover there are no jobs.  The few positions available in the job market here in Wisconsin are being filled quickly.  So many applicants applying for the same jobs.  It’s depressing.

I’m grateful that my husband is still employed, although his company is making cuts, too.  Sixty people were let go in the last month due to this crappy economy.  It makes us both very nervous.  No one is safe from a lay-off.

I’ve been through two interviews this last month.  I was offered a position with one company and completed paperwork, only to find out later that their corporate office decided to down-size.  Several new hires were let go.  I never got to start the job.  The other position was filled by someone with more experience in the field.

Because of this insanity in the job market, I’ve decided to go back to school.  It’s time to finish my degree while I’m not working.  I’ve finished the application process and applied for financing (student loan) and now I wait for acceptance into the program.  I’ve got one year left and it’s now or never.

Dawson is still loving 4K.  He can’t wait to go to school each morning.  He tells me how much he loves his friends and his teacher, and his favorite part of the day is story time.  Last month his class took a field trip to the local library.  Dawson was so excited to check out a book under his very own library card.  We spend a lot of time at the library now that he can use his own card.

Owen is growing leaps and bounds.  He’s barely 4 months old but he weighs 20 pounds.  He’s my mini-linebacker.  Lately he’s been refusing to nurse on one side and is very fussy, mostly in the evening.  I thought he had an ear infection, but his pediatrician thinks he’s just got a preference and he’ll grow out of it.  I hope it happens soon.  Fussy baby makes me a little crazy.

Last month my grandmother’s house burned down.  She passed away in 2005, but my aunt and uncle still lived there as they run the farm.  It was caused by a chimney fire and it ruined the 100-year-old house.  My uncle is staying with his another uncle who lives down the road, and my aunt is staying with my parents.  I’m so thankful they made it out of the house alive.  They lost everything.  It’s devastating.

2010 has not started off on the right foot.