PRICELESS!

I almost forgot to tell you that the BIG kids' sale was this weekend. Jems on John is truly that - a gem for my pocket book and my kid's wardrobe.

2 pairs of pajamas
2 pairs of shorts
2 large board books
1 pair of sandals
1 dress shirt from Old Navy
1 one-piece Carters short outfit
full medium size ziploc of socks (appox. 12 pair)

Grand Total $21
Mom's satisfaction with saving money and still keeping her kid clothed - PRICELESS!

Ode to Customer Service

Is it too much to ask for a company to issue an apology letter when they screw up? Sure, the lady on the phone can apologize (with little actual remorse in her voice), however, I would truly appreciate receiving even a form letter apologizing and noting that THEY made a mistake.

I'm certain Nicor gas would be prompt in informing me if I missed a payment or made some other mistake regarding my account. Why can't they do something to acknowledge that they made a mistake?

Ugh! They are not on my happy customer list today. More than any other utility that I pay for, gas service bugs me, especially when I know that the only thing using it is the furnace. Is it time to turn on the air yet?

End of vent.

Just a bunch of stuff

It seems like there is so much going on, I don't know quite where to start so here go a few highlights.

Last weekend, I had a great time celebrating Krista's bridal shower and bachelorette party. I was exhausted (apparently I'm not 20 anymore) but we had fun. I must say that I participated in some games that I had never envisioned. Who knew her mother-in-law could control a hot-dog in a pair of panty-hose so precisely?

The week was nuts. I'm not even going to pretend I remember what all happened. On Friday, after getting home a little later than I had hoped, John and I took some time to slow down and enjoy each other's company. He was actually willing to play Scrabble with him. I think I felt somewhat uneducated after that game but we had fun.

On Saturday, I helped to host a baby shower and then participated in some retail therapy. A few weeks ago I read someone else's disgust with how all the tops out right now look like maternity clothes or matronly. I must agree this is the case and they are NOT flattering on me. I don't want to look pregnant! I did find one shirt and purchased a pair of khaki shorts with a gift card I received for my birthday. I also got Jer some new PJs and a shirt to wear to Krista's wedding.

I've been in some weird moods lately. There is so much going on inside my head - to the point of headaches. I shared some of it with John last night with the warning that I would be falling asleep crying. If I didn't know better, I would think I was PMSing. Hopefully, I can catch up soon and feel better both physically and emotionally.

Wow, this is really boring blather, but that's all I've got. I apologize that there's nothing deep here.

I felt the earth move...

under my feet. We were awakened at about 4:40 a.m. to our house rattling. At first, I thought it was the cat messing around, then I thought it was the wind, and finally I realized it was sustained. I asked my husband what was going on (not that I didn't have a clue) and he responded that he thought it was an earthquake. Indeed it was. We stayed awake a bit longer to learn that a 5.4 earthquake had it's epicenter located a little over 100 miles south of our house.

It really was a bit of a surreal experience, thinking you know what's going on but trying to determine what you should do and before you can think, it's over.

Walking thoughts

The number of things that can go through one's head during a single-solitary walk is amazing to me. Here are a few highlights from my 30 minute walk to the post office during lunch today.

1. Am I doing what I want to be doing professionally? Am I good at it? If I'm going to continue to advance on the path I'm on, how is that going to affect other aspects of my life. Hmm....I wonder if I could handle doing in-home daycare. Whoa, is this a quarter-life crisis or just general thinking?

2. Do we worry about money too much? Because of growing up in a house that always seemed to be worried about money, do I worry about it too much? Did we pass up what could have been a stepping-stone opportunity for my husband's career because we obsess too much about ensuring we are financially stable (saving, college funds, not too much debt, etc.)? I think some people probably think we make more than we do and some probably don't realize we earn as much as we do, but in the end it comes down to money in and money out.

3. Earlier today a friend of mine mentioned putting some places to visit on her list, in part because we have another friend who is miticulously dedicated to writing down goals, places she wants to visit, etc. and doing things to make them happen. It's pretty inspiring. While I was on my walk, I saw two people playing tennis. I've always wanted to learn how to play, or even watch tennis. Perhaps I need to get committed to a written list. I think I've posted one here before. Maybe I need to revisit it and get cracking!

That's all. But really, that's alot for 3o minutes. Heavy stuff.

One for the memory books

We're back to civilization and various forms of communication so it's time to give our trip summary. It's almost 9:30 and I'm feeling kind of lazy (trip overflow) so you may not get many details but you'll get the jist.

We arrived in New Orleans at about 8:30 p.m. on Sunday, March 30. We hit Bourbon St. for dinner and people watching. It was more than I had anticipated. Monday morning we took a nice bus tour of NOLA and then it was time to head for the boat. I think we might want to head back for a long weekend in NOLA sometime again.

The first several hours of the cruise were actually getting to the gulf but, unfortunately, we knew when we had hit the ocean because the ride got rough. Seasickness greeted me with a vengence and we were scared that our whole trip would be like this. We didn't know it was rougher than normal until later in the week when the captain noted it during an announcement that Monday night and Tuesday had been rough but he didn't expect that again.

Thankfully, by Tuesday night things were calmer. The rough seas had given us a great excuse to nap much of the day and we were able to stay up to greet the midnight buffet, a true artistic feat.

On Wednesday, we rose early to head out for our much-anticipated tour of the Mayan ruins at Chichen Itza. They were awesome! That's a true compliment from a girl who is not a history buff. I knew John would love this excursion but I too felt it was the highlight of our trip. We enjoyed some time on the deck after our tour, a late dinner, and then a deck party around midnight.

On Thursday, our shore excursion took us to the Discover Mexico museum in Cozumel. It was a unique way to get a "miniature" glimpse of many of the sites throughout Mexico without spending 3 weeks touring. Then, we hit the numerous shops in downtown Cozumel for a little retail therapy.

Friday brought a lazy day in 90 degree temps. John burned his legs pretty good and I got so hot lounging in a chair reading that I almost passed out when I got up. We retreated to our cabin to pack our bags and cool off. That evening we did a little dancing and had some drinks. John enjoyed some Cuban cigars that were gifted to him by a lady across the hall from us when she realized it was illegal to bring them in to the country.

We had fabulous dinner mates that we enjoyed all week long. They were from Valparaiso, IN and St. Louis so we all had midwestern life in common.

Oh, I almost forgot to tell you that we did miss our little man. We kept in touch with brief e-mails but we were ready to come home. We needed the time away and value it as a gift to our marriage and to Jer but it was wonderful to see him on Saturday night. He was a bit miffed at us, choosing Grandma to put him to bed, but by last night, he was back to his old self.

That's enough. If you want more details, just ask.