Walking Machine

Miller is turning into a walking machine. He's unsteady but doing more and more on his own now. I can't believe how less than a week ago, he had no desire to walk on his own without his truck. Now he only uses it to haul stuff or run laps in the house. What a crazy kid. Looks like we will have more bruises and cuts coming up.

More Steps

Miller took 4-5 steps tonight without assistance. He's such a foodie. I was eating dinner and he was on the other side of the table. He traveled along the chairs and then he just took a few steps away on his way to get to me and my food. Now I have a begging dog and a begging child waiting for me to give them handouts while I eat.

Also, I had gone in the kitchen to clean up. I gave him his sippy cup. I heard a noise, looked over and there he was; standing in the doorway to the kitchen and he took a few more steps towards me. Then he sat down, put his water bottle/sippy cup into the pack of real water bottles. What a goof.

Resolved!

I called the bank this morning to make sure my transfers happened this morning as planned. The lady took care of it within 5 minutes from when I called and confirmed all was set. Then I called the online banking number and the first try was unsuccessful. The second attempt, unsuccessful. Tonight I got home, cleared my cache and tried one last time. No love. I called a third time and to my sneaking suspicion, they had typed in the wrong letter for my username. They got me in, I reset everything, and double checked my account. All is golden. I am just waiting for a new check card so I can access my moola and some new checks so I can pay some bills and order cute checks (that's right, I still write out checks and guess what, it's the reason they caught the online bill pay fraud-so there!).

Now if only my speeding ticket stuff goes this smoothly...

Oh, and Miller received another haircut via Master Stylist Ryan Froyd. It looks pretty good although it's a little short for me. I won't admit this to Ryan but he did a good job and it was nice to not have to pay money or wait to have it done. ;) I love you honey!

Rough Weekend

Although Miller can be an angel 95% of the time, this weekend has been a tough one for him. He has some new teeth coming in, it's been 10 days since his shots and I think he is experiencing a little side effect like we were warned, and he is just plain ol' worn out from all the fun stuff he did this week. He smucked his head on the tile yesterday and tonight he fell on top of Ryan and they both had big, fat, bloody lips. He tossed his cookies twice this weekend and had some icky poos. Good thing tomorrow is back to daycare for him and work for us. Weekends are too much!

First Swimming Lesson

Miller had his first swimming lesson yesterday. He did really well for the first 15 minutes and then the second half was touch and go. He was tired and over having water in his ears but he did leave with a smile.

The school we went to has an indoor saltwater pool. The teacher was in the water with Miller and Ryan (one other mom and her baby). Ryan and I are going to take turns being in the water with Miller. They teach the babies to float up to the top of the water and float on their backs. I will let you know how it goes. He loves playing in the water and doesn't seem to have a fear of getting his face wet. This could be a blessing or a curse...time will tell.

If the weather holds out, we might get some practice in at the Polich pool. :)

Bank Update

I went to the bank today to fix my account situation. Here are the facts:

1) Large sum of money transfered from savings to checking
2) Online bill payment set up
3) Bank found this combo fishy and blocked my account
4) Bank notified me at home and work and via email
5) After some craziness, I have a new checking and savings account, new checks ordered, 92 cents in my old/frozen account (details in a moment), and a current functioning debit card with a new one on the way

Because I made purchases yesterday before I called, they wanted to make sure they all clear. They linked my old account to my new one with new behind the scenes numbers. The 92 cents is to keep a balance for the few charges that haven't come through AND for my direct deposit to land in on Tuesday. The bank already has my deposit/transfer ready to go for Tuesday because they know I won't be able to fix it on my end before then.

All in all, I was very impressed with their swift action and service. I am not one for plugging banks but WaMu/Chase did a great job. Let's see how I feel Tuesday when I try to transfer funds and have them finalize the drama.

As a side note to all women: the bank told me there has been an increase in thefts of purses because of the economy. People literally wait for ladies to get out of cars without a handbag. If they don't have one on them, they assume it's in their car. They are even driving up to cars that are getting gas. Smashing the window, grabbing the purse and leaving before you can scream or figure out what just happened. It's not in bad neighborhoods either. So, please take your purse with you and be careful.

First Time Fireworks Purchase

I completely forgot to blog about my first time purchasing fireworks with the boys! Last weekend Ryan let me go purchase the fireworks for our annual 4th of July party. Every year, the boys make a trip and I don't get to go. (They did let me tag along one year but we were all virgin buyers then).

I got up early Sunday, met the boys, and off we went. I was not prepared. They had their wish list filled out, figured out which coupons they were going to use, how we were going to split our 3 orders into 2 so we could get more free stuff, etc. We were there for over an hour and I now know why Ryan always spends more than we budget. It's just too darn easy!

I hope I did ok. I felt like I had to purchase some good stuff or I wouldn't get to go next year. The boys were patient with me as I pondered which things to buy. I never thought spending a speeding ticket's worth of moola on something you are going to light up would be fun.

Banking Fraud

I was so excited to get home tonight and see my boys. I picked Miller up from bowling and put him to bed. The first thing I did was go through the mail and then listen to the answering machine. Unlucky me! I had a message stating my account had suspicious online transactions happening. I called Wamu and my account is blocked. Now I have to stop in at the main bank to set up a new account, rerun an antivirus software for them to reset me up with online banking, and I am sure jump through some other hoops.

I am bummed. Not how I wanted to spend my morning and since I never carry cash, I have to take care of this first thing tomorrow morning. Ick!

18 and Counting...Whatever

I have TLC on tonight while working. 18 and Counting came on and I just want to scream at that family. For those that are not aware of that show, it's about a family that has 18 children and more on the way. I can't tell if I dislike it because I have an issue with their goody goody attitude on life or the fact that it bothers me to think of the older kids raising all the younger kids. They aren't farmers and aren't using them to keep the family afloat...they just like to procreate and don't believe in birth control.

I am going to end my post now before I say something offensive to the masses but if anyone else finds this disturbing in today's current state of the world...chime in.

What Happens When Dad's In Charge

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyNbViIPcgw

Thank God It Wasn't Me

Today's flight was horrible. Horrible because across the aisle from me was a 3-4 year old who decided to throw a 30-45 minute tantrum/full meltdown. I mainly blame the mom in this instance but also felt bad for her after it was over.

The kid was a little shit. He was nasty to her before we took off. She couldn't get him to leave his tray up before we took off. He kept kicking the seat ahead of him (bless that lady for giving two glares and finally saying something). I would have pinched the kid if it were me. Well, I would have said more to make the mom feel like shit. He tossed his bear at me multiple times. I was tempted to keep it at one point and make him cry about something real. At about the 1 hour mark of the 3 hour flight all hell broke loose.

The kid wouldn't behave and the mom decided she would force him to sit still and quit kicking the lady ahead of him. That provoked the 30-45 minutes of screaming, yelling, hitting, screaming, screaming, screaming...You get the point.

This is what raced through my head:
1) do you want to borrow my Parents magazine?
2) would you like to hit him with my Parents magazine?
3) would you like me to hit him with my Parents magazine?
4) take him to the bathroom and give him something to cry about.
5) you have a scarf, muffle him!
6) does anyone have dramamine or benedryl? Can't we drug him? Whiskey?
7) lady, set him down or let him run around.
8) lady, please set him down or let him run around.
9) can I ask him to fetch me something at the back of the plane?
10) let him sit on the floor and have the tantrum, he would kick less and quit screaming "mommy quit huring me." *she literally had wrapped herself around him to get him to hold still. All the while he continued to scream and hit her.

At the point where everyone within a 5 row radius was now annoyed and looking back, the stewardess came by with a juice box and some snacks. She said this is from the lady up front, would you like to try this? The lady snapped and told her "to tell the fucking lady up front to mind her own god damn business."

Well, it continued for another 10 minutes or more. Finally she set the kid down on the floor and he shut up. Then she melted down and cried a little. I felt bad and handed her a pack of kleenex. She was nasty to me and told me to back off (with the nasty hand gesture she gave me).

I think that was my worst fear about traveling with Miller-a full blown meltdown in a place you can't escape from. I also reassured myself that my kid would never carry on like that and I would have tried many of the options above even if it went against my parenting outlook. If she's on my return flight, I am sitting on the opposite end of the plane and sending her drinks to pass out or share with the monster so he passes out. I honestly do not think I have ever encountered a tantrum like that in my life and hope to god Miller never has one that bad.

Swimmer's Delight

On Thursday's at DC, they have "Splash Day" where the kids get to play with water outside. Miller loves it!

This weekend it was a beast of hotness so we went over to a friend's house to play in the pool. In typical Sunrise fashion, it started to storm when we pulled in the driveway. We waited it out inside and then got our splash time in. Miller loves the pool and water. I can't wait to get him in some swimming lessons.

Other than that, it was a pretty uneventful weekend. I am just about packed (mainly need the toiletries) for my trip to Chicago tomorrow. Ryan stocked up on Totino's pizzas for him and Miller. Glad I won't be eating that! Hopefully they will stay out of trouble.

Speedy Gonzales

I got pulled over today literally less than 50 feet from our parking lot. Talk about a shitty way to start my day. You may wonder, how did you manage that one? Simple. There is a road behind our building I take every morning and evening to avoid an extra stoplight that takes forever to get a green arrow. The road is empty and there's a stretch with no ins or outs to offices because it's wild jungle. I haven't seen a stalker cop back there in over a year. Today, he pointed his radar gun at me from behind a light pole in the driveway before ours. I had just flipped on my turn signal. I honestly thought the road had a 45 mph speedlimit but nope. I got clocked going 44 in a 30.

I pulled in, rolled down my window. Started to unbuckle my seat belt and quickly strapped that back on. I turned down the radio (a little) and said good morning. All the cop said was license, registration, and insurance. I had them for him but it took me a while to sort through my registrations to make sure I had a current one. At that point...I started to shake because I was so mad. He never said a word to me until "I am writing you up for going 44 in a 30. Sign here, it doesn't admit guilt but says you will take care of this within 30 days." I had all these stories race through my head like "but officer, this is my first ticket and I am feet away from my destination, can you give me a warning?" but I knew I was guilty, he was a prick, and nothing was going to change that.

I went in to work (which I was headed in early for an 8am meeting and wasn't even running late for). I called Ryan, he teased me, I started crying. Then my coworker came in and started bugging me and I cried some more. I am lucky it was just a speeding ticket and not an accident or a DUI. I was just so upset because I consider myself a pretty good driver and can't believe I got a ticket.

Now I have to figure out the easiest and cheapest way to take care of it. Everyone says do the pay a guy to represent you...I am concerned about that because I don't understand how they can waive the points and make so little money on me that it's legal. I know I was in the wrong...any advice from fellow Florida violators?

Work From Home Wednesday

Man, I said this last week and I am going to say it again...working from home rocks! I wouldn't want to do it all the time but here is what I was able to accomplish with the time I would normally spend commuting, in meetings, or being interrupted.

1) Prior to 8am with my commute time I picked up the house, sorted laundry, and started a new load. I logged in at 7:45 and began working.
2) During the day, I was able to switch 4 loads of laundry.
3) At lunch time, I took 20 minutes to scarf down food AND fold Miller's laundry and put it away.
4) Get actual work done.
5) Attend meetings.
6) Leave the house at 5 to get a haircut.
7) Be back online by 7:15 after giving Miller a bath, eating dinner, and picking up afterwards.

If this were a normal day in the office, I would have only accomplished #5 and made it home to maybe give Miller a bath but more than likely not. Normal dinner time is 8pm these days. Now how can any office deny this type of work? Not only was I uber productive but I also am in a good mood and have balance in my life!

Who's the Spoiled 1 Year Old?

Sorry for the delay in posting pictures of Miller's birthday bash. Here's the recap. On his actual birthday, he celebrated at DC with his friends. They all had cupcakes. The first picture is of him sitting all sweet and innocent before digging into the cupcake goodness. He ate two at DC.

Mmmmm...this is good. Do you think I can shove the whole thing in at once?

He proceeded to have one more that evening after dinner. Then we hopped in front of the computer on Skype to open presents in front of Grandma and Grandpa Froyd. We also saw Uncle Sean over the internet. Gotta love technology.

On Friday, we opened a couple presents from Mom and Dad. Saturday was the big festivity. Miller's Grandma and Grandpa Sladky were able to visit and party with him along with the usual crew. Here are the TWO cakes he had.

And the aftermath of eating the piece with the bear on it. Notice the clean right hand. He's such a lefty! Here he is tuckered out after a day of present opening. We had to work in shifts; open presents, eat, open presents, eat. He played with his balloons for a couple minutes and then laid down and went to bed. No stories, no music, no rocks. He was wiped out.

Then on Sunday we tried out the new turtle water toy/pool from Uncle Pete. It was fun and felt good on such a warm day. Why don't they make these for adults?

After all the hub-bub and 4 days worth of partying, it was back to the grind on Monday. Today we went for the 12 month check up. His stats are holding steady:

Height: 32.5 inches (off the charts)

Weight: 25 lbs 15 oz (90th percentile)

The doctor said his vocabulary is advanced for his age (cup, cat (sorta), truck, dad, mom, and dog (sorta)). She also mentioned he was a good baby and acting super well compared to the average 12 month old. His eating and drinking is on target. She wasn't surprised to hear he's not walking unassisted but from what we told her she said it's any day now. I can't help but beam. He had a great checkup and with his three shots, he cried but it was short lived after he received the cherry flavored tongue depressor.

Wow-what a first year!

Happy First Birthday Miller!

Happy First Birthday Miller! What an eventful year you have given us. Many firsts with more on the way. We love you.

Wii Early in the Morning

Today I got up, Wii'd (LOL, that sounds so funny in my head), showered, took Miller to DC, and came back home to hit another day of work. As I am sitting here, the dog is laying with her back against the couch and the cat is leaning over the top looking down at her. Annie is growling like a snore and Jazzy is reaching down to make her do it louder. Needless to say, neither one can reach each other in this position but it's pretty funny. One day I will put a video camera up to catch them at their daily antics when we are not home.

Ah...time for real work.

Working From Home Rocks

I would assume most normal people would agree that working from home rocks. Here's where I probably differ from the norm. I actually got a ton of work done. I slept in a little, played with Miller a little, got ready for work and started 15 minutes before I normally do. I was able to get a TON of things done today that I have been trying to do for months while in the office. I also met my hubby for lunch today. Then I worked some more and actually feel good about where I left off today. I have two major items on my checklist to do and hopefully tomorrow will put a dent in them. I even attended a few meetings today. I wish every day in the office was like today.