Wednesday, July 27, 2005

Our dog missed the news that the cold war is over..


Dog Hole
Originally uploaded by Geeky Mama.
...Because she keeps trying to dig a bomb shelter next to the AC unit.

We've tried everything. Chicken wire, rakes over top of the area. We've even put cement patio squares nearby -- but she still manages to move everything aside and dig a few feet deep every few weeks. She's had the unit precariously close to falling on top of her -- though not close enough if you ask my long-suffering (and non-dog-loving) husband.

Our home was built on a former pig farm. I have to wonder if there is something magical (to dog noses) about this particular spot..because she sure could find better spots in our ample yard to get her urge to dig out of her system. But no.

Friday, July 15, 2005

Happy Birthday Baby Boy


Baby Boy
Originally uploaded by Geeky Mama.
My dear baby boy,
My how time flies. I really meant to write up your birth story, oh, about 10 months ago.
And, I apologize that I last updated your Baby Book when you were about 6 months old. I know you know that this is your lot in life as the third child..but please believe me when I tell you that it doesn't mean we love you any less then your oldest sister who's entire first year of life is documented both on video and in countless photos. Or our second child, who had her baptism filmed - when all you got was one lousy photo out front of the church.
Please trust me that we are too busy playing with you, holding you and showing you how much we love you to put you down and grab the camera - and, with time, we've mellowed so much as parents that we're more interested in watching you explore the world than we are in documenting each gurgle and gassy smile like we were in the past.

I assure you --this has it's benefits. You get to try things at a younger age. Things that never occurred to us when your siblings were babies. For example, neither of your sisters had a Bouncy Castle for THEIR First Birthday party. We would never have thought to see if they liked that. Now that we know how much you love to bounce - well, it's the perfect thing to have for YOUR first birthday.

We so love you, our dear Bubba. You have grown so much this first year. You are your own little person. You have nearly 4 teeth - and got teeth younger than either of your siblings! You are brave, and so cheerful and easy going that you are the envy of all our friends and family. We KNOW how lucky we are to have you - and we love each minute we spend with you.

I like to think of your sweet personality as payback for the miserable time I had when you were in my belly. I was sick all 8 months, until my kind Doctor induced labor a full month early. You were over a month early and you were still 7 lbs 8 oz! Your birth was so easy - just like your first year of life.
I remember the nurses laughing at me as I tried to quilt while they hooked me to countless IVs and medical devices. Mostly the day passed in a haze..Daddy and I sat and talked quietly. We listened to some music. I think we sent emails to family. You were born early in the evening. We were all downstairs ready to go to sleep by 11pm. And then, then I woke up just after midnight and missed you - because they'd taken you to the nursery. I got up, just a few hours after giving birth, and walked down to the nursery to claim you. You had just been bathed and were wide awake and mad. I held you and you just melted into my arms with relief. And now.. 12 months later to the day.. you still do this. And now you hug back.

Happy Birthday my son. Your father and I love you more than words can say.

Wednesday, July 13, 2005

Always be Prepared

*Note: This post is the text from a speech I gave about a month ago..

While I spent time trying to figure out what I should do about my speech, three different co-workers stopped by my cube and said things like:
"Hey, do you have..." and without taking notice I handed out a band-aid, an Advil and an extra Post-it Note Pad from my collection.

And then it hit me. I should share with everyone another thing about myself. It's not really a secret - if you worked closely with me you'd already know this:

I am ALWAYS prepared. In the Boy Scout sense of the phrase.

You know how Grandma's purse is always chock-full of STUFF. With mints rolling around loose in the bottom that pre-date the Reagan administration?

You know how mom's invariably have tissues tucked away in some pocket for runny toddler noses - no matter where and when?

I am that mom. I am (in the future) that Grandma.

At work, I am THAT WOMAN WHO HAS EVERYTHING.

People who don't even know my name at work know that if they need a finger nail file in the middle of the workday, they should come to my cube.

I can be counted upon as a mini-Office Depot. I have scissors, staples, post-it notes and manila folders ready to give away at any moment. I have enough for me and for anyone else who might ask.

I am PREPARED.

My coworkers know that if they help me out I'm likely to share my secret stash of chocolate covered pretzels. Or if they get a spot on their shirt I have cleaning wipes and a Tide pen to help dab at their stain.

My boss one day forgot her lunch and I fed her an EXTRA frozen meal that I'd brought complete with snacks for dessert from my never-ending filing cabinet o' snacks. I have Oatmeal in case someone needs breakfast one morning. I don't eat Oatmeal, I just have an ample supply of instant oatmeal packets in my drawers.
I also have no less than 4 kinds of teas.

I have an (empty) flower vase stored in a bottom drawer, several spare mugs, extra graph paper note pads brought from home and every color ink pen known to man (or woman).

When a coworker is feeling ill, they just come to my Filing Drawer Pharmacy.
What Ails you? Tummy? Headache? Sinuses? I've got you covered.

I also have every manner of cleaning product, too. Antibacterial handwipes, monitor wipes, and desktop cleaning wipes. (I leave the baby wipes at home.)

In preparing for this speech I also discovered that I am still a miniature IT help desk in my own right. I have extra mice (3), extra laptop batteries, extra CD ROM players (2), two Laptop travel cases, extra locking cables (2), extra mouses pads (2) and extra LAN cables. I even have an extra set (2) of headphones in case you want to listen to music on your PC and forgot your headphones.
I play IT help desk to our internal project group frequently, we've all just gotten used to it - the times that one of us has had to leave for a trip only to realize our battery won't hold a charge or we need a laptop bag and I quietly hand the needed item over have become so frequent it's just expected now. I don't mind a bit - I'm just that way.

You'd never know it from looking at my desk area, because it's rather tidy. But my filing cabinets reveal the truth:

I AM ALWAYS PREPARED.