UNBUTTONED

Yesterday, at the Flames hockey game, I had to unbutton my jeans. They have become too tight!! On one hand I am excited, perhaps this is the baby bump finally starting to show, however on the other hand, I am worried that it is just the cookie dough I can't stop eating!!! I know, I know, pregnant chicks shouldn't eat cookie dough, the raw eggs are dangerous for baby. My head knows it's wrong, but my fingers won't stop dropping balls of raw dough, speckled with chocolate chips into my mouth!!

Whatever the reason, yesterday was the first day I had to unbutton in public! Thankfully I was wearing a long shirt and thankfully, I only needed to be unbuttoned when I was sitting down. I tried to remember to rebutton when I stood up, especially when I saw people I knew, but I am sure I forgot a couple of times.

I unbuttoned as soon as we climbed what seemed like miles to the seats our free tickets provided for us and sat down. I was hoping that would help with the uncomfortable feelings I was having in my guts...it didn't. Before the National Anthem was even played, I had to excuse myself, and head back down the numerous stairs to the bathroom. I picked a stall in the middle of the long rows of stalls, sat down and let er blow!!! Wow, did I have gas...and that's not all!! I was greatful for the loud noise the sounds of the game and the fans made that echoed through the arena and the bathrooms. I sat there for a long time, greatful that there were plenty of stalls and not the pressure of someone waiting to use the one I was stinking up. I was also greatful for the screens that play advertising on the back of the door. I was actually quite entertained staring into the faces of smiling realtors and insurance adjusters while I did my "business." For a few uncomfortable minutes I thought I was going to have to text Marty and tell him to come down, we'd have to go home. I seriously did not think I was going to be able to sit through an entire game, feeling like I did. Eventually though, half way through the first period of the game, I was back in my seat, button undone, enjoying the red Twizzler the old lady next to us insisted I have.

Today, I went to work with the button of my capris undone and stood in the staffroom listening to everyone tell me how I didn't even look pregnant yet and when would I start to "show?" If they only knew....

DOULA

Just met the best Doula today!!! Her name is Leanne and I have invited her to be a part of our birthing journey. I am soo excited. I have interviewed a couple of Doulas but, Leanne, I connected with instantly! She had this energy...an energy that matched mine. I felt it the minute she waked through my door and it lasted well after Scout licked her to death!

She was excited, a little hyper, just like me and so passionate about her role in the whole process. Hiring a Doula makes this all seem even more real and I love that!! I love it! I love it! I love it!!!!

SECRET ITS OUT

The kids at school today, guessed my secret...they guessed that I am pregnant! The staff already knew, but I hadn't told the kids yet. It was the last class of the day, grade 6. The girls were whispering and giggling. They said they needed to ask me a question, but they'd wait until later....weird, but I went with it. Eventually, they couldn't wait anymore, and one of them whispered in my ear, "Mme W, are you pregnant??" She stepped away from my ear giggling and squealing with anticipation. I must have blushed. I know I got all flustered and instinctively looked down at my tiny protuding tummy. I was wearin a purple dress with a black belt, but I guess it just didn't hide my secret. They said when i turned to the side, they could see my "baby bump." I had to admit that yes I was. They screamed and jumped up and down. They were sooo excited! Hugs went all around and even the boys were asking if I would bring the baby to school when it was born. I told the class that they were the first to know my big secret and that they could tell others. The bell rang and they stampeded out the door. It was the last class of the day and the halls were buzzing with students. By 3:05, the news had been spread and my classroom was filled with girls hugging me and giggling like crazy. It surprised me, how much fun it was sharing my news with my students, but the hugs and squeals were genuine and contagious!!! Some of the older girls were choked that I wouldn't be able to go on the French Trip to Quebec with them in May, which, in a weird kind of way, actually made me feel loved! :) Some of them mentioned that they also thought I was pregnant last week, but were afraid to say anything, incase I was just getting fat....LOL!

CATCHING UP TO TODAY.......

TELLING NIC AND TROY

We went camping with Nic and Troy just after we found out we were expecting. I really wanted to tell them, though, Marty was against telling anyone until the official 12 weeks were up. Marty doesn't have sisters, so he doesn't understand how there are some things you just gotta share with them! I was excited that we'd get to tell them in person, so I cam up with a plan. We hadn't seen them since returning from our amazing honeymoon in Greece, so we still had a little souvenir for them. I wrapped the souvenir and put a card on top that read:

To: Auntie Dic and Uncle Farn,

Here is a little something from Naxos, Greece.

Love, Ryder or Payton Wright

I knew they'd figure it out right away as Marty and I have had our kids named for years.

I presented them with their gift at the fire, just as everyone was pouring the first drink. Nic and Troy sat in their lawn chairs, read the card and paused....finally Nic hollers, "Does this mean your pregnant????" We screamed and a few tears may have made their way down my cheeks, before we hugged!! It was sooo exciting to share the news in person!

TELLING MOM

A week after telling Nic and Troy, we headed up to Edmonton. Marty had to work up there for a couple of days and I thought I'd tag along so I could visit Nic and Mom. We planned to have dinner with Mom one night and that's when we thought we'd tell Mom she was gonna get to be a Grandma again. I wanted to tell her in a fun, clever way, but we couldn't think of anything. Finally I came up with the idea of digging out some of our old toys. I knew there was a fisher price circus set and some farm pieces that I could locate in Mom's basement. I brought them upstairs and dumped them on her bed, dust bunnies and all! I wrote a little poem on a piece of paper, just so she'd definately get the message, and placed the note under the fisher price baby, then Marty and I waited for Mom to come home. I figured she go upstairs to change clothes, she'd see the toys on the bed, ask, "What's with the toys?" then Marty and I would just stare at her until she figured it out. Seemed fool proof....NOT!!

Mom did come home and headed straight upstairs to change out of her dress clothes. Marty and I follwed her, is that creepy?? He he! She did notice the toys and a smile broke out on her face. "Where did you dig up all of these?? Oooo, maybe we can set them up for Max. I forgot all about these toys, oh, they are soo adorable. Max will love them, won't he?" Max is my nephew and to date, Mom's only Grandchild, and she just kept going on and on about how much he would one day love these toys. Finally I asked her if she had seen every little piece, every little fisher price person? I rubbed my hand over the baby sitting in the rocking horse on top of my little note. Finally, with a little more persuading than I had imagined she'd need, she picked up the note, read it and squealed with excitement when she got to the part about her becoming a Grandma again!!! We hugged, we cried tears of joy and enjoyed another moment I have been waiting for all of my life!!!!

Our old Fisher Price Circus set and few playground people

I set them up in a big circle on the end of Mom's bed.

We are all soooo happy!!!!!

9 WEEKS

So, my boobs are huge! Marty mentioned it lastnight and my girlfriend mentioned it today. I can feel it when I walk, when I put on my bra and when I press my hands against them, just to make sure they are still sore. Ofcorse "huge" is a relative term, I am pretty sure I am still a "B" cup, just a very full one. It is actually kind of fun, having bigger boobs. I have great cleavage, even I enjoy staring at it!

Up to this point, I have not been sick at all! yay! By sick, I mean, I have not thrown up. I do quite often feel like I could throw up, but then to ease the feeling I just put something in my tummy and that seems to quiet the uneasy feeling. I've been ridiculously tired too, which is frustrating to me as I am not used to feeling like I need naps or just need to slow down! I am so greatful that this first trimester has been over summer holidays. I have huge respect for those who have struggled through this tiredness while working full time! Hopefully this lack of energy will subside by the time school starts.

I am sooo excited about everything! Only three weeks to go until we are in the "safer" zone! I can't wait to share my news with all my friends!

11 WEEKS

Here it is 8pm and I am done, exhausted, can't get off the couch! It's been this way for a while and though I find it frustrating, I hate being useless, I am glad....because it means I am still pregnant! Yipeee! I just keep worrying that it is too good to be true. Only one more week to go until things are safer and I can tell people!

It's pretty early for me to actually look pregnant, and when I wake up in the morning, I sure don't but by 8pm, my belly is bloated, hard and sticking out. I get gassy,(worse than normal,) uncomfortable and feel like doing nothing but laying down. I have been embracing the couch time though, and Marty has been enjoying the more relaxed, Jeanne. Today, it took me all day to clean the house. I had to stop once to eat, easily taking down an entire sleeve of saltine crackers, once to nap, just for 15 mins, once to go to Totem with Marty, they server free popcorn there, yum, and again to rest....

Here's to being unproductive, if it means your finally pregnant!!! Yipeeeeeeeeee!

12 WEEKS

Today I officially made it through the first trimester successfully! It is week 12 and I still have a fetus inside of me! Again, this seems like a dream! I have seriously waited my whole life for this!! I have looked forward to this moment for what feels like forever!

I have also been looking forward to enjoying a whole, entire cinnabon, with an extra tub of cream cheese icing for what feels like forever.

Every time I go to the mall, I stop at Starbucks and order my skinny vanilla latte while breathing in the irrisistable aroma of the fresh bakes cinnamon buns at the Cinnabon across the mall foyer. I always walk by the Cinnabon without indulging because, while the buns look and smell like heaven, I know that the calories would be hell on my ass. I've shared a bun or two with carefree girlfriends, who don't have to worry about their asses carrying a few extra pounds, but I've never just sat and eaten a whole one, guilt free. I decided a long time ago, long before I got pregnant, that when I made it through the first trimester, I would buy a fresh baked, extra large cinnamon bun with extra icing and eat the WHOLE thing! Today, I did just that!!!! I bought it, got it to go and got as far as my truck in the mall parking lot. I just had to have one little bite. I'd save the rest for breakfast, since it was 8:30pm. I tore off a little piece, licked my fingers clean...then tore off another piece. I still had just over half of it left when I got home. Just one more bite before I put it in the fridge. This time I opened the tub of extra icing, and dipped my bite into it...ummmmmm yummmmmmmmm!!!!!!!!!! The cinnamon bun never did make it to the fridge and every single calorie definately made it to my ass.....but here's the best part, I dont' care! I don't need to care because I am pregnant and I'm gonna get fat anyway! I am going to embrace this new eating freedom!!! Don't worry I am not going to be ridiculous and eat a lot of crap food, but every now and then I am going to eat stuff I normally would pass by and I am not going to feel guilty about it!!!

Remind me about this after the baby is born and I am complaining about loosing the baby weight! LOL!!! For now, I'm gonna live in the now! :)

TELLING JIM AND TRISH

We went to Kelowna last weekend for a wedding. I had the honor of being CO-MC with the bride's cousin of the wedding. The wedding itself was in Penticton, BC, but Marty's Dad and his wife, Trish, live in Kelowna, just half an hour away so we took an extra day off to hang with them and tell them the baby news before the wedding.

Our friend, Heather came for the 7 hour road trip with us. She had met Jim and Trish at our wedding and they were happy to have her stay and visit too. Marty and I let Heather in on our little secret and she was excited to get to be a part of the excitement. I had called ahead to the local Dairy Queen to order a cake. I had them decorate it with a baby and a stork and write the words: Congratulations Grandma a

nd Grandpa on it. We had planned to pick it up and show up at Marty's folks' place with the yummy, surprise dessert, but we were

running late and there was no way we were gonna make it to the Dairy Queen by 10pm so we had to go with Plan B.

Marty called his Dad, told him it was Heather's birthday and that we had a surprise cake for her. Marty asked him to pick up the

cake and keep it covered until we got there. We had called the DQ and asked them to put something over the cake as it was supposed to be a surprise.

Just after 10, we arrived in Kelowna. Trish met us at the door with hugs and kisses and a big birthday card for Heather! Trish started immediately pouring champagne, to celebrate the birthday. I pushed my glass aside and insisted that the cake be brought out before any toasts were made. Marty brought the cake up from the basement freezer. Trish pulled the cover off and looked confused when she saw the baby. After the shock wore off, she started screaming and crying and kissing my tummy!!! Her excitement was off the charts! She just kept singing, "I'm gonna be a Grandma! I'm gonna be a Grandma!" Jim sat quietly looking proud as could be!! We all went to bed that night, excited and looking forward to everything....to everything!

THE SECRET IS OUT!!!!!

The kids at school today, guessed my secret...they guessed that I am pregnant! The staff already knew, but I hadn't told the kids yet. It was the last class of the day, grade 6. The girls were whispering and giggling. They said they needed to ask me a question, but they'd wait until later....weird, but I went with it. Eventually, they couldn't wait anymore, and one of them whispered in my ear, "Mme W, are you pregnant??" She stepped away from my ear giggling and squealing with anticipation. I must have blushed. I know I got all flustered and instinctively looked down at my tiny protuding tummy. I was wearin a purple dress with a black belt, but I guess it just didn't hide my secret. They said when i turned to the side, they could see my "baby bump." I had to admit that yes I was. They screamed and jumped up and down. They were sooo excited! Hugs went all around and even the boys were asking if I would bring the baby to school when it was born. I told the class that they were the first to know my big secret and that they could tell others. The bell rang and they stampeded out the door. It was the last class of the day and the halls were buzzing with students. By 3:05, the news had been spread and my classroom was filled with girls hugging me and giggling like crazy. It surprised me, how much fun it was sharing my news with my students, but the hugs and squeals were genuine and contagious!!! Some of the older girls were choked that I wouldn't be able to go on the French Trip to Quebec with them in May, which, in a weird kind of way, actually made me feel loved! :) Some of them mentioned that they also thought I was pregnant last week, but were afraid to say anything, incase I was just getting fat....LOL!

ABSENCE MAKES THE HEART GROW FONDER

Well...I am not absent yet...I still have 6 more months of teaching before this baby is due. In my student's eyes though, you'd think I was already gone.

The bus supervisor came in from supervision yesterday afternoon, and told me that half the grade 8 girls were crying that I was pregnant because they want me to go on the French Trip to Quebec with them in May.

They were so upset that today, they started a petition! Yeah, a petition to go to Quebec earlier in the year, so that I can go!!! One of the girls came to me after school and told me that she had already planned that she would sit next to me on the plane cause she hates flying and I was the only one she wanted to sit with.....

I gotta admit that I am flattered and I think their actions are sweet! I am sure the petition won't make a difference, it will be damn cold in Quebec in Jan or Feb...besides, I already tried that angle and the principal wouldn't let it fly!

Week 6&7

I guess I had my mom and Grandma to thank for awesome baby carrying genes. I had not been sick at all! I was, however, stupid tired and my boobs ached, which I actually really liked. The way I saw it, sore boobs, meant that I was still pregnant and because I justcouldn't relax until I hit the magical 12 weeks, I woke every morning hoping my boobs would be sore. In fact, I walked around all the time poking myself in the breast just to see if it would hurt. I also took pregnancy tests every week, just to convince myself that this was real. It's crazy that I spent so much time thinking this was all too good to be true!

Because I am older, 34 years old, they wanted to do an early ultrsound, to make sure the baby was in the right place and that it's heart was beating, how cool is that????? They had instructed me to drink and finish 2 litres of water an hour before my appointment. Dear God, that is a painful, uncomfortable experience. I walked into the Doc's office ready to pee my pants. Marty had come with me, but he had to sit in the waiting room for the first half of the appointment. I layed on the cot while the Tech lady smeared the cold gel on my belly and ran the machine overtop of it, pushing on my bladder, seriously causing me to wonder if I was gonna pee all over the paper under me. She continued to rub the ultrasound "wand" thingy over my belly while I studied her face, trying desperately to read her expression. I wanted so badly for her to tell me that yes there was a baby in there and that yes, the heart was beating. Eventually, she did!!! Then she told me to empty my bladder and come back for the internal exam. I was sooo greatful that I was allowed to pee that I didn't even consider how weird the internal would be for Marty to see as they were going to call him in while the thing was inside me to show us little Baby Wright. Marty came in the room, after the nurse had inserted the wand. I noticed he made a big effort NOT to look down, clearly he did not want to see where the camera was. WE both concentrated on the screen and we both nodded confidently when she showed us the heart beating, though when we talked after, neither one of us could actually see it. I was ecstatic as we left the office, thinking, this is REAL, it is really REAL! I couldn't wait to be excited with Marty, but the first thing that came out of his mouth was: "Was that thing in your va-gee-gee?"

THE BEGINNING

I found out late, July that I was expecting! I was home alone and had just gotten a hair cut. Marty was out doing errands and just "because" I decided to take a pregnancy test. It is no secret that we had been trying for a LONG time to get pregnant, so I had a huge stash of pregnancy tests. I took them all the time, always hoping, and always being dissapointed. This day, I peed on the stick, like I had done a million times, and set the stick by the sink on it's wrapper so as not to get any pee dribbles on the counter. I glanced at it from my porcelain seat to see the familiar single line show up. I got up, pulled up my pants, washed my hands, and reached for the pee stick to toss it in the garbage, but WAIT!!!! I couldnt' believe it! 2 lines! 2 lines!!!! I had never seen the two lines before and I put my face right down close to inspect and make sure it was really, really true! The smile that spread across my face, was ginormous!!!!

I did have a moment of disbelief, a moment of panic though, thinking this was too good to be true. I called my sister, Aimee. She had a baby in March and had let me in on her secret early in her expecting time too. I squealed, "Aim, I have an emergency situation! I think I'm pregnant!!" She screamed with delight and assured me that you can have false negatives, but not false positives. Just to be sure, take another test though." I did, it confirmed, that yes, I was preggo!!!

I had been waiting my whole life for this moment, the moment when I learned I would be expecting. I had played it over and over in my head, what I would do, how I would feel and how I would tell Marty. I had come up with some clever, fun ways to surprise him and let him know that he had "done it." I had bought a little kid's hockey dad book and thought I would give it to him with a card, or buy a little tiny jersey and get "Wright" printed on the back, but when Marty got home, he took one look at me and the smile I couldn't keep hidden and he instantly knew!! He screamed, "your pregnant," while he scooped me off the stairs and twirled me around. Then he said, "I need a drink!"

DREAMS DO COME TRUE!!!!!!!

Pinch me! It just doesn't seem real, but after several home tests, things have been confirmed.....I am pregnant!!!!!!!!!!!!

Seriously, it just doesn't seem real! It is now just over 13 weeks into the pregnancy and it still seems too good to be true!

That's right, 13 weeks in, only like 187 more days to go!!! I have waited this long to tell everyone because Marty insisted that we wait until we made it through the first trimester to tell, but now we've made it and now, I can shout if rome the rooftops!! Telling people has been my favorite part so far! We've laughed, cried, hugged, danced and screamed our excitement with those closest to us! Having so much family so far away makes it hard to share live hugs but screams of joy through the phone are a fun replacement!!

I have been keeping a bit of a pregnancy journal over the last few weeks, and now that the news is out, I can post my entries! Thanks for sharing my journey with me! :)

Me, MCing my girlfriend's wedding last weekend....13 weeks preggo!

Me and the cutest "Dad to be" ever!!!

SUCKED IN!!

I have not been to the mall enough lately! I know this because I made a rookie mistake while there today, for the first time in a LONG time....I made eye contact. I made eye contact with a Make up sales person at a kiosk in the middle of the mall. I made eye contact just long enough for her to suck me into her long winded, extremely energetic, crazy intense, very convincing sales pitch. She rubbed sparkly eyeshadows on the back of my hand, smeared lip gloss on my lips, mixed powders and water with Q-tips and before I knew it, she was washing my own make up off my face for me, bragging about the face massage I was about to get. How did this happen? How did I go from being on a major mission to buy a dress for the wedding I'm MCing this weekend, to sitting on a stool in the middle of the mall having a very large Israleian woman with a strangely sexy accent, rub my face with strange powders? When all was said and done, I walked away from my unscheduled stop at the make up kiosk with three new eyeshadows, a foundation, a blusher and not one, but two professional brushes! My first mall rookie mistake was making eye contact, my second was falling for the most amazing sales pitch I have ever heard!!!

Second, I know I have not been to the mall often enough because in my search for an appropriate dress to wear as the MC of a vinyard wedding, I had trouble decifering between tops and dresses. Have ya noticed that lately tops and dresses seem to be the same length? Things that I thought were tops, turned out to be SHORT dresses and things I were sure were dresses ended up being long tops. I'd head to a dressing room and a sales clerk would follow me with leggings and boots to go with the top, I thought was a dress. They'd hang the dress I thought was a top in the dressing room by itself, leaving the tights I had chosen hanging on the door knob outside....good God! Am I really that out of touch????? Seriously, I gotta spend more time in the mall!!!!!

By the time I left today, I had a dress so short, it should be a top, a killer pair of pumps and a bunch of make up. I know for sure that at this wedding, I will have a great face, a skirt on under the "dress" I bought and the sexiest shoes ever!!!!

NO TOAST FOR ME!

Sunday, I had this hankerin' for cinnamon raisin toast. I have a bread machine and a delicious recipe for just that, so I happily poured the ingredients, in order, into my bread machine, hit the buttons and patiently waited the 3.5 hours for my fresh loaf of bread. About the time I was taking it out of the machine, Nic and Troy showed up. They were gonna crash at our house for the night before heading to visit some other friends in Calgary on Monday. Between Nic, Troy and I we picked a good chunk of that fresh loaf apart, letting ourselves enjoy the unbeatable taste of fresh baked, home made bread!!! For breakfast the next day, we, Marty included this time, polished off the bread, by turning each slice into toast, watching the butter melt into the little cracks! Yummmy! While everyone ate, I began mixing the ingredients to make another loaf thinkin' how good it would be to have cinnamon raisin toast every morning for breakfast before school. (I only had time to wolf down one piece before the first loaf was demolished!) When the second loaf was done, I dumped it out of the loaf pan, placed it on a cooling rack drooling over the idea of homemade toast every morning for the next week. I went downstairs to the basement to watch a movie with Marty while the rain poured outside. After the movie I came upstairs to discover that Scout had eaten the entire loaf! The entire thing, leaving only crumbs and the very smallest piece of crust!!!! Like she had pulled it off the counter and feasted while I lay innocently cuddled in my husband's arms downstairs!!! Grrrr! I was disgusted and furious!!!

2 loaves of bread, only one slice for me! Yeeesh!!! No toast for me Tuesday morning! I did stop at the little conveniance store by our house to grab some raisins on my way home, as I had used the last of them on my second loaf. The store/gas station is one of those amazing little places that carries enough inventory to stock a Superstore, but in an eighth of the space! I knew there's be raisins there, but they were not easy to locate! I finally found a bag and brought them to the front. I guess raisins aren't a big seller as the computer didn't even "recognize the item." I showed the clerk where I had found them. He took all three of the bags that were there to the till, again, the computer wouldn't recognize them. Finally he just looked at me and asked how much I wanted to pay for them! Sweet! It was like "pick your price!" I happily took my raisins home and immediately mixed together my third batch of bread in just as many days. Though just before the "add ingredients" beeper went off, Marty suggested putting in diced apples instead to make cinnamon apple bread. The idea was just interesting enough to make me wonder if that would work. He volunteered to dice up the apples and as we write this the add ingredient button is beeping at him....I will keep ya posted and I will keep this bread out of Scout's reach!!!

ROAR!

It's been a LONG time since I've been able to use and show off some of the skills I have that fall outside of a stereotypical woman's skill set. Basically since I've been living in the city, I've been spoiled. I've gotten soft. No early morning barn chores to do, no after school hay forking, grass cutting, fence painting, shed cleaning, snow combatting, no real inconveniences at all. While my heart has always ached for the Country living I left behind, the rest of me has settled quite comfortably into cushy city living.

Today, though, I was given an opportunity to dust off some knowledge once given to me by my father. Knowledge that I once used more than I ever wanted too.

Back when I used to drive shitty old trucks and cheap cars I got pretty good at "boosting" or "jump starting" vehicals as my batteries were notorious for being dead all the time! To give me independence and to keep me from bugging him all the time, Dad gave me my own booster cables and lessons on how to use them. Reinforcing the very important, never to be forgotten rule, when it came to connecting the cables to the battery, "boys to boys, girls to girls or you get sparks," several times. I sure cussed my old truck and it's dead battery, but every time I was able to jump start it myself, I felt a huge sense of pride and power!

Today, I went to school, on the last day of my long weekend, to get some planning done before the craziness of September really gets rolling. I was the first one in the building, but after about an hour or so 2 other teachers showed up. They appeared at my classroom door looking upset. "Jeanne," they asked, "your a country girl arn't ya? Do you happen to know how to boost a car battery?" A smile spread across my face as I jumped up from my desk, "ofcorse I do!" One of the girls had booster cables in her hand, her own, though she had no idea how to use them. The three of us headed out to where the dead car was parked. I moved my vehical to be closer and we opened the hoods. Finding the hood release proved to be the most challenging part of the ordeal, as I had Marty's van. He was using mine to haul dead trees to the dump. Anyway, the girls started reading the faded instructions on the cables outloud, while I confidently, without listening, attached three of the four clips to the batteries. The girls squealed and jumped out of the way when I hooked up the last cable. I think they thought there'd be sparks. I jumped in the Van, fired it up and the owner of the dead car, did the same. Before long her car was purring like a kitten and she was grinning like crazy. We let the car run for a while high-fiving each other while we waited. It felt good to be celebrating our capabilities as 21st century women together, it felt particularily good for me. I have not felt that powerful, independent feeling for a very long time! Thanks, Dad, for giving me the skills to take care of myself in those situations, and thanks, girls, for reminding me of a long forgotten gift!

TUPPERWARE!

Okay, it is 2010 and as far as I know there is still no perfect system for organizing tupperware! I can't believe we send people to the moon, we use cell phones to contact people all over the world and yet we have no way to store tupperware that doesn't involve toppling towers of plastic and missing lids!

Marty actually admitted today, after watching me restack the tupperware containers that toppled off the shelf when I reached in to grab a piece, that he would rather eat all the food on the table, leaving no leftovers than go into the tupperware cupboard! It's true, I thought, going into that cupboard only leads to frustration. We have the containers, stacked and the lids lined up beside them. The lids however, slide all over the place when you take a container and if you don't catch them in time, they all end up falling off the shelf, taking every container down with them! I've tried several methods of organizing things. I've placed lids, according to size in baskets, I've tried keeping the lids on the containers and stacking the bunch of them, I've tried having rows and rows of like container sizes stacked together, but nothing has proven to be the magical answer! Today, the method we go with is stack everything, line up the lids, close the door and hope the other guy is the one that has to get the next container!