Crappy.

I’m a pretty mainstream gal most of the time, but I do identify with the “granola moms”. You know, the moms that do the Bradley method for childbirth (no epidural) and have midwives and doulas, that nurse their babies forever, that cook everything organic and make their own babyfood, do attachment parenting and wear Birkenstocks.

I used to be a much more staunch advocate (with Vince, I did do 40 hours of labor without any pain medication and when I look back on myself I just think “Why did I do that?” But at the time, it’s what I wanted to do, so whatever..), but since I’ve become a mother 5 years ago and especially dealing with Edda and her needs, my views have softened quite a bit and I’m a live and let live about these things now. Not everyone has the same circumstances and priorities and that’s OK by my book.

My neighbor is really into all the granola-ness and invited me today to the Honest Weight Food Coop to the natural parenting meeting. I had a great time mainly because Edda had a great time – walking around and seeming really pleased to be in the middle of a whole bunch of babies. And everyone was very nice to us and accepting. It was nice. The food coop is cool too. Just what Whole Foods is suppose to be like before they became WHOLE FOODS, you know what I mean?

On a more stressful note, on the way out of the parking lot of the Coop, I had a fender bender in our rental minivan. I can’t decide what happened. I was behind another car making a right out of the lot into traffic. That person made a right without incident. Then I pulled up, stopped, and looked to my left for oncoming traffic. When it was clear, I turned right and then hit a car with my right front bumper. Of course, I have a picture

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The driver immediately came out of the car and said that he was just “parked” there. But do you see how he’s parked in the driveway of the coop? How the curb starts right after his front wheel? I think he went past me on and then stopped right in front of me. Ugh. But I was moving and he was not.

Thank goodness it was only the cars and no one was injured.

We got rid of the toaster!

Sheila, who comments often on this blog under the name sherah, is my absolute hero when it comes to clutter control. In her house, there are no piles of papers, no old magazine issues, no things that are unused or unloved. Everything has it’s purple proper place. It’s neat, yet not intimidating – orderly, yet not fussy.

The last time we got together, she told a funny story about how she got rid of her toaster. I looked at her and asked what she did when she wanted toast. She said, “The oven toasts just fine! I can’t have 2 things in the kitchen that do the same thing.” I couldn’t believe it. No toaster!

So, Sheila, I though of you fondly when I found Jeremy this morning, bent over the open oven door, toasting our morning breakfast in the oven.

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We started visiting schools for Edda – today we went to the Spotted Zebra Preschool (love the name). This school was opened in 2005 by a parent who wasn’t satisfied with the preschools she saw for her autistic son. It’s an integrated program – 12 kids in each class, 6 special needs and 6 typical kids. They focus on kids with language and social delays. Edda has more physical needs than they typically deal with. They are also full for the fall, so we’ll keep looking.

But we did take some time to enjoy their playground (Jeremy in his work clothes).

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Our sweet, next, next door neighbors invited us for dinner tonight. Vince and I made a pound cake for dessert. I’m not sure what is going on with our oven – the recipe said 50 minutes at 350F and I think I had to bake it for twice that length of time. So frustrating when you go in to get a cake and the top is still liquid. Ugh. Also, I let Vince lick the beater.

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On Life and Love…

Well… I’ve been thinking a lot lately (when have I not?)…

I talked to Choon about life and stuff on Saturday. I mentioned to him that I’m sorta feel a bit purposeless in life at the moment. Sure I enjoy myself, biking and whatnot, but you know really, I’ve got no responsiblities. I’ve got no goal in life – I don’t think I’ve really had a goal since college. He suggested that I come up with something to focus myself. His goal, of course, was to become a CxO (CEO, CFO, CTO), which made him realize that his regular job wasn’t going to get him there, and so he quit and started is own company. It’s definitely something that I admire.

I guess this come to the love part. I think part of the reason that I don’t want to figure out my life right now, is that I’d want to figure out my life with someone. You know, have some emotional support or feel like we’re building a life together. As people grow older, it seems more and more, than instead of forming something together, it’s more about how someone fits into your life. I dunno. Seem rather… depressing.

Anyways, perhaps I’m forced to change my worldview at this point. Maybe I’m forced to go out on my own to figure things out. Can I say that I don’t like it one bit?

Looking for a job, blanching and just regular fun.

I’m looking for a job. I did apply for nursing school, but it turns out they are full until next year, so I’ve decided to give engineering one more chance at bat. Here are some employers in the area:

Watervliet Arsenal: This is the arsenal responsible for making the cannons on top of the Army’s main battlefield tank, the M1A1 Abrams. Yikes!

Knolls Atomic Power Lab: Both Mom and Dad are nuclear engineers, so maybe I could work here and continue the family business. They make the reactors on nuclear submarines here. I think this is a step up from making the cannons.

And last, but not least, Aquatic Development Group: These clever folks make water parks all over the world! Water rides, wave systems, movable floors in pools.

So, as you can see, I can go from super-serious life/death kind of employment to totally fun and frivolous. It’s all here in the Capital Region.

Vince loved his first day of school:

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Then he came home and went straight to his computer and after a while I found:

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Apparently, he needed some “privacy”. Hmmmm…

Also, I blanched some brussel sprouts today. You boil them until they are almost cooked and then you immediately immerse them into ice water to stop the cooking action. Then your sprouts come out bright vivid green. Still doesn’t make them taste better – just makes them look more appetizing when you eat them.

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Serviceberry

Common name: serviceberry
Scientific name: Amelanchier
Location: New York