The people at the Street Dept. must think I’m a nuisance… or maybe not. Well, probably.  I have their phone # in my contacts; that’s how often I’ve called them to make inquiries or complaints about different issues.

In the past I’ve complained about the mess that WM has left behind when they’ve carelessly collected the trash. They’ve left part of the trash scattered across the street in front of our house and haven’t even bothered to pick it up. They expect us to clean up their mess? No way! Even now, they still fail to take it all, but at least what’s left behind is still in the container. They’re lucky I haven’t complained about that… yet. That said…

Snowmaggedon hit last week with a snow and ice mix that had us housebound and hibernating for a good two and a half days. We had snow up the wazu. We cleared the driveway and sidewalks, but clearing space to gain access to the mailbox proved to be an impossible feat. Honestly, the Street Dept. can’t complain when I feel forced to call them and complain about the sorry a** job they did, leaving roughly 6 ft of snow (2 ft deep at some points) in front of our home (taking up street space). Poor mailman must have today’s toughest job in the city, and God forbid someone might want to come visit us… uh, sorry, no parking available.

Today I called in to complain. I was very annoyed to have to call, after all it’s been well over 4 days since the storm hit the city and by now anyone would expect all roads to be pretty well cleaned up. Not ours. So I called, and the man I spoke to was on the defensive the whole time and almost dismissive, like he was annoyed I was complaining. Who do you think was more annoyed when he, in the Street Dept.’s defense, told me they have to put excess snow somewhere, especially after an intersection (our house is the second down from a curve, which he called an intersection ??) AND that they try to do their best at removing the snow up to 10 inches from the curb?

I think at that point I wanted to reach into the phone and strangle him, but I contained myself and in my nicest voice {really, I was nice} I told him that whatever excess snow they had could be placed on the curve where there is no home to block access to (not my home) AND that I understood one couldn’t ask for snow removal beyond 10 inches from the curb, but we were swamped with snow extending 6 FEET from the curb. I think I heard his sigh of disbelief, and he said he’d come over and talk to me after he took a look at it.

Sure, he thought I was exaggerating.

I was surprised an hour later when he showed up at my front door, and said he looked at the issue and said that they’ll “try to do a better job next time and get it 10 in from the curb.” He also said something else, which honestly just made me want to slap him (LOL) though I contained myself, after I told him clearing access to the mailbox was impossible (the 6 ft of snow was about 2.5 ft deep of pure ice), “Well, the neighbors cleared their mailbox… but I don’t think we can do anything here since it’s probably ice now.”

DUH. Ice. But not my fault. It was ice to begin with!

I took a good look at him and kindly but [very] seriously requested he send a big ol’ snow plowing truck just to try to clean it all up. I said, “After all, we can’t lose anything in trying, right?”

He half-smiled. It looked pretty fake. He probably hated me, who knows. Oh, and no apologies from the Street Dept. 

Ten min after he left, low and behold a snow plowing truck came by and very quickly and easily cleaned up the street. Took nothing but 10 sec to clear the front of our house, and another min to clean up the rest of the street.

Apology accepted, thanks Street Dept.!

See? You just have to stick up for yourself and demand what’s right.

We frequently have long term guests at our house, and by that I mean a month or more at a time, even more than once a year.  In the past we’ve ended up doubling Nico and Victoria in her bedroom and offered up Nico’s room since Victoria’s crib won’t fit through the doorway in one piece and disassembling it is not an option we want to even think of.

In the event of an even tougher scenario, we need both kids’ bedrooms for guests which means both kiddos are booted from their bedrooms, and with both being under the age of 3 we have no where else to put them other than our bedroom. This can happen, it’s not a vague supposition.

Don’t get me wrong, I love having visitors, especially since all our family lives out of the country and we don’t get to see them as often as we’d like. But the situation is tough when it involves shuffling the kids around.

If guests stayed a week or two, it would be a bearable sacrifice. But when they have extended stays, it becomes SO stressful I can barely handle it. Their sleep patterns are completely disrupted (leading to mine as well), they wake each other up, and that leads to a domino effect of chaos, that quite simply put, is intolerable. It’s a crazy situation and adds more stress to an already hectic household. All of that leads to a more bitchy me. So, I object! (I’m sure Julio would as well.)

^{image by staci0421_photo}

My Mom will be spending a few months with us starting in March. And it looks like she may be visiting us for long periods on a permanent and yearly basis. I’m also taking into consideration the fact that my step daughter visits us over the summers and some Holidays as well. We really do need a solution, and pronto!

So, I’m on a mission to find the {perfect} solution!  The clock’s ticking… I’ll keep you posted on what I come up with.

So, it has begun.

I don’t know if this is the right time. Could it ever be the right time? Who are we kidding? Little things can be more annoying than the broken record of a little 2 yr 9 mth old boy {my son} repeating over… and over… and over again:

 

“Why Mommy? Why?”

 

The subject is never relevant. Sometimes, it’s an out of the blue question. “Mommy, why is this?” Other times, it doesn’t even make sense, and it’s oddly hilarious. Like when I  jammed my toe into the foot of the sofa, and while I screamed hurting he asked, “Why Mommy?”  Ok, so in the middle of my pain, I cracked up laughing. That must have been the silliest most stupid question, ever.

There are moments where this sassy Mama loses it, due to over-heated “why, why , why?” malfunction… it is those moments when I wish someone would just put me out of my misery. And then something cute happens; Nico will do something so adorable I completely forget the insanity, and just realize how adorable he is and how crazy I’m about him.

Craziness! I know. Us Moms can be so weak.

Nico is asleep as we speak, and somehow I still hear his voice saying, “Why Mommy?” {Haha.} Yep, losing it probably. It was cute the first time he asked why. Ok, the first two times. After all, Nico is so darn cute it’s hard not eating him. But in reality after that… dear God! I could really go insane, any day now. Whatever dismal bit of sanity might be left in me, may have just gone out the window a few minutes ago.

SOS! Anyone?

So, how long does this stage last, exactly? Of course, I’m sure that like everything else, once Nico grows out of this phase, Victoria will fall right into it. It’s like the whole diaper thing and cleaning poop everywhere. I could pull my hair out! But that’s a whole different story.

So, in keeping positive thoughts about this crazy and silly situation, I see the good in the, err, crazy.  My son is a learning machine, always wanting to understand everything.

Wow! He’s SO smart.

Yeah… SO smart he’s figured out another way of driving me insane, and then bringing me back from coo-coo-cachou land instantly by hugging and kissing me spontaneously, out of the blue, all while he tells me “Mommy, I loooooove you!”

I mean, could you resist this face? 

{oh, I just melt away…}

Along with many women, I too pledged to become part of this yearlong movement through BlogHer. Why not? It’s something to keep you thinking and motivated to strive to be the best you can be, love yourself, and do your part in encouraging and influencing others’ lives.

Own Your Beauty is a groundbreaking, year-long movement bringing women together to change the conversation about what beauty means. Our mission: to encourage and remind grown women that it is never too late to learn to love one's self and influence the lives of those around us - our mothers, friends, children, neighbors. We can shift our minds and hearts and change the path we follow in the pursuit of authentic beauty. 

In keeping with January’s theme, Adventure, I thought I’d write about my 2011 [projected] adventures.

Life is an adventure… mine is a mix of adventures with my kids, husband, marriage, long To Do lists, projects, friendships, and conquering even the worst health issues. I vowed 2011 would be filled with good things, positive thinking, completed projects, all wrapped up in a bundle of happy feelings with a big bow of joyful life. This, after the very stressful and heart-wrenching experiences we went through as a family in the last quarter of 2010 with Julio’s kidney cancer. I know our love and God was what got us through it all.

So, what adventures await in 2011?

1) Back to blogging. Because I simply LOVE it! I started off January by getting back to blogging, after what seemed like an eternal hiatus. I’ve vowed to become a serious blogger, and have been doing tons of research and work on that matter. I’m getting ready to pimp up both my blogs AND move to Wordpress once and for all. Blogging has become one of my most enjoyable hobbies since I started last year, so why not dive into it? Of course, I never have enough time to devote all that I’d like to it with the kids and life in general. But, when there’s a will there’s a way.

2) Travel with my hubby, sans kids. Or you can call it mini-honeymooning. Luckily my Mom’s spending some months here with us, so that will facilitate this, we hope. I just realized, more strongly than ever before, that Julio and I need more ‘us time’. We love our kids, but life can (and has) become mostly about them, and working all around them. And that’s ok. Most of the time. But we just cannot neglect each other, or stop enjoying ‘us moments’ for so long. We need time alone with each other. We deserve it, we want it and we’re making it happen. After all, we know life is too short, and every second counts.

3) Renewing our vows. Because after all, our love and family is what makes life worth living. This year marks our 5th Wedding Anniversary. I had always told Julio that when we married we’d renew our vows every 5 years. It was never written in stone or anything, but after 2010 came and went, nothing seems more appropriate than to renew our vows, and promise our love to each other once again. I’m sure whatever way we do it, wherever it ends up being, it’ll be as special, if not more, than when we promised each other the world the first time around that 21st of Dec. of 2006. Now, wearing my wedding dress might be too long of a stretch and an impossible feat, but it’s an interesting thought. I have it stored in the closet.

4) Complete projects. Because I’m addicted to projects. But, I have had an ever growing list of projects that keep piling up. Some I’ve started and never finished, and some have remained simply ideas as they’ve failed to launch. In any case, I’d like to renew the efforts to complete them, the most I can. My personal and cooking blogs are two ongoing projects that really need a lot of attention and work put into them. Others are mostly [our] home design/décor and organization projects including but not limited to: painting the house interiors (very big project); transitioning Victoria’s baby room to big girl room; basement kids/tv room; basement game room; garage organization; back yard gardening; etc.

5) Empowering ourselves with knowledge of our health and risks. Some adventures you simply don’t look much forward to, but nevertheless, they’re adventures. Live and learn. Julio will be getting check-up CT scans every couple mths or so, which I’m sure will not come without the added stress and anxiety of finding out results and praying everything is a-ok. But, like they say, “what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger”, right? Sigh. It’s hard not to worry.  We’re also thinking of getting genetic testing, for both of us, to assess the risks (or lack of) getting certain cancers for us and our children. VHL genetic testing for Julio because of his bilateral kidney cancers (which were successfully removed with negative margins in late 2010), and BRCA1 and BRCA2 genetic testing for me because of my family health history (Mom’s ovarian cancer and Dad’s breast cancer). Knowledge is empowering, no matter how you look at it.

So, many adventures set forth in 2011. I hope to be able to accomplish most, if not all of the things I’ve projected. There’s also the cliché New Year’s Resolutions that always seem to be lost in translation or fall through the cracks much before half of the year is even over: lose weight and get fit; clear the clutter; get organized; stop procrastinating; be on time to everything; etc. I hope to be successful at keeping those as well. Good luck to me!

…and good luck to all of you in all your 2011 adventures!

"Just The Way You Are" by Bruno Mars, is a current hit song that plays often on the radio, and I cannot help but think about my sweet husband Julio every time I hear it. It just reminds me of how he makes me feel, because he loves me just the way I am. Makes me happy every time I hear it!

Just thought I'd share some cheesy love with you... because it's Monday... why not?  Enjoy the song (courtesy of ElektraRecords via youtube.com)! :)

Sounds like a {fabulous} plan! It's on! :)

{{ New found LOVE on BlogHer.com }}

Ok, so maybe I shouldn’t brag. Or, maybe I should. I mean this is up there in the ‘greatest news ever’ department when you’re a parent.

 

Nico finally used the potty all on his own. Multiple times, all day long. Did I mention he peed AND pooped? FLAWLESSLY! OMG!! I’m so thrilled I could cry. But I won’t. Save that for the chaotic days when I wish I was on an island, by myself, finally able to hear myself thinking. Ok, so that’s another whole different issue we’ll get into in another post, someday. LOL 

 

Ok, so the potty process isn’t super perfected yet since I still have to wipe him when he poops, AND I also have to go to the bathroom every time he goes after he emphatically shouts “Mommy, I peed/pooped”. {oh, for heaven’s sake… I can’t complain!}

 

He did it all on his own, when he decided it was time, and has never looked back. I mean, seriously, the transition has been for three days FLAWLESS. Not a single time has he had an accident. That’s my boy! I think he takes after me. Actually, yes, I’m sure of it. He’s got determination and is independent in all his ways. Well, darn it, finally something he got from me! LOL  Oh, he’s so darn cute, I could just eat him. Often, he suddenly stops whatever he’s doing and says to himself (or sometimes to me) “oh! do peepee/poop”…sometimes with an added “go, hurry!” to himself. Hahaha. Ahh, good times!

 

Here’s the gist of how it all went down.

 

1/14/11 - Day 1: 

Julio and I explained to Nico that he was going to start wearing underwear while in the house (sans bottoms, until he learned to deal solely with the underwear), and that he was to pee/poop in the potty when he needed to; NEVER in the underwear.

 

Nico claimed he understood the situation and agreed to do as told. Yeah right. Four wet underwear later (caught by checking him – not that he ever told us - and after finding a huge wet spot on the carpet - beh!), day 1 came to a close with no success. Luckily he’d done a major poop early in the morning before we started our training process, and didn’t feel the need for a second #2 all day long. Phew! With each oopsies we never reprimanded/punished him and always talked nicely explaining each time he’d made a mistake, and repeated that the potty was the place to do everything. Though in all honesty, I thought at some point, eventually, I’d lose what little mind and patience I had left. Who are we kidding? I mean, after all, I was the one who’d have to clean every mess, and wash every wet or filthy pooped underwear. Beh!

 

1/15/11 – Day 2: (…and beyond)

First thing in the morning, off with Nico’s overnight diaper (no poop, just pee), and on came the underwear. Again, we explained how he had to go about it all. I was preparing myself mentally for that impending #2 that would sooner or later come, expecting a big horrible mess sometime, somewhere, just hopefully not on the carpet or fabric sofa. Sigh. {to my delight it would never come in that horrific way}

 

Not too long into the morning I noticed Nico running towards the bathroom. He seemed in a hurry, opened the door, turned on the light and after a few brief seconds of silence he shouted “Mommy, I peed!” 

 

I was ecstatic! Could it really be true?  I found him sitting on the potty, and though he assured me he peed, it was clean. I then noticed he’d made the attempt to get to the potty but had peed in his underwear and then sat on the potty. The same thing happened twice in a row and  both times I told him he did a good job trying but he still didn’t have it quite right.  Clearly he was making progress with his training since he’d made the attempts to use the potty. 

 

Like they say, third time’s a charm! He peed in the potty for the first time and has never looked back. I admit I’d never been so happy to see pee in my life until that moment. I shouted what a great job he did, what a big boy he was, did a little dance, a woohoo!, and high fived him. At his 2 yrs 9 mths old, I’m his biggest fan. And I’ll always be. Definitely.

 

He got a special reward every successful time, a cracker at first, until we noticed he kept running to the bathroom way too often and not doing anything but still requested a cracker. That’s when I switched the reward to dinosaur stamps, which was not only better but proved to be way too cool. In fact SO cool, he pooped successfully! …In retrospect, rewarding him with food was probably not the best idea, so I’m glad I switched to a non-edible reward. Besides, what kid doesn’t love dino stamps all over their hands and arms? Too cool! I feel like a super cool Mama for offering such a super cool reward. ;P

 

I’m such a proud Mama! I must have the smartest kid in the world. Right?! Of course! {giggle}

 

Oh the joys of the Mommyhood!