Our tax dollars at work

This post has nothing to do with my kids, it’s just something I find interesting.  I got a letter the other day from the United States Postal Service confirming my address.  At first, I thought maybe my address had changed, that they had added a West or a North or changed my Drive to a Boulevard.  (I’ve always wanted to live on a Boulevard.)  But no, it is the same old address, and for some reason, the USPS felt it necessary to write to me and tell me my address.  Did anyone else get this letter?  It seems odd to me, and yet, in light of my recent (and extremely frustrating) attempts to get my mail forwarded AND continue to get my mail until the date I requested the forwarding to begin, I’m not so shocked that someone at the USPS felt this was a brilliant idea.

Mommy vs. The Utility Companies

Last week my project was to switch over all our utilities for our upcoming move to an apartment.  I managed to get a small bidding war going between the phone company and the cable company after the phone company tried to charge me $47 to transfer my service to a new address.  Along the way, I learned that when trying to get a good deal, you want to select the option from the automated menu that has to do with disconnecting or downgrading your services–that’s how you get to someone who wants to keep your business, and all of a sudden, you don’t have to pay a fee to transfer and you get stuff for less!

Anyway, the point is, I was on the phone with the cable company, trying to be assertive and tough and get myself a great deal.  I was talking to the guy for a long time while he typed on his computer and got everything set up.  Christopher was having “naptime”, and I heard him come out of his room.  There’s only one reason he’s allowed to come out of his room during naptime–to go poop.  So I quietly grabbed him, put him on the potty, and walked into the other room.  A few minutes later, I heard him call out (quietly, to my relief), “Mommy, I put poop in the potty!”  So I went and got him down, and thinking I was being very discreet, told him he’d get a treat after naptime and to go back into his room.  But, OF COURSE (you all know where this is heading), he loudly replied, “I put a BIG poop in the potty!  Aren’t you SOOO glad I put that big poop in the potty and not in my pants?!?”  Fortunately, the cable guy thought it was hilarious.

Will has become addicted to music, especially in the car, now that he is able to sign “please” and let us know when he wants something.  Last week, I was listening to the radio in the car, and there was a little blip of music followed by talking.  Will started whining and signing “please” like a maniac, and I couldn’t figure out what he wanted.  Finally, I put in a kid’s music CD, and he started bopping around, totally happy.  Now if I’m listening to talk radio, he’ll almost always protest and beg for music with his emphatic signing.  He’s also been trying to imitate me snapping my fingers to the music.  It is so cute!

The Wild West

Will, Christopher and Mommy just returned from a big adventure–we flew to Salt Lake City to visit Aunt Amanda and Uncle Brian. Uncle Jamie was visiting from Boston as well, so it was like a family reunion!

Flying from Indiana to Utah with a 4-hour layover in Chicago with a 3-year-old, a non-walking 1-year-old, a car seat, and a heavy carry-on bag filled with entertainment and snacks is not something I would ever like to do again. It was quite entertaining to see the looks of amusement/pity/amazement on people’s faces as we forged through the airport. Potty trips were my personal favorite, including the woman who took one look at me and said, “Now, how are you going to do this?!?” The funny thing was, she was watching the easy part–Christopher sitting in the stroller while I changed Will’s diaper–not the part when the three of us crammed into a tiny bathroom stall so Christopher and I could go potty!

This was the first time in almost a year and a half that Christopher had been on an airplane, and he was EXCITED. On our first flight, non-stop to Chicago, Christopher talked non-stop: “I think we’re on a jet airplane. I think it is very loud. We are going very fast. I think we are way up in the air. We’re in a cloud now. We’re not in a cloud anymore. I think we’re on a jet airplane. I think it is very loud . . . ” On the way home, he was totally conflicted–ecstatic to be going on more jet airplanes, but so sad to be leaving Utah. He was thrilled to board the plane, but when we got out on the runway, he looked longingly out the window at the beautiful mountains and said, “Well, I just wanted to stay in Utah.”

Will also loved Utah, mostly the green rubber ball that he played with at Aunt Amanda and Uncle Brian’s house. In his grand tradition of doing new things while away from Daddy, he has started waving bye-bye (while saying “buh! buh!”) and saying “cracker”. We were sitting at dinner, and Will reached for the package of Ritz (his favorite food) and said “cracker” clear as day. Aunt Amanda and I couldn’t believe our ears! But sure enough, he has continued to utter this 4th word in his vocabulary, letting us all know that crackers are just important as Ma-ma, Da-da and ball. (Mommy feels a little bit of sweet revenge toward big brother, since so far he has been left out, and when he was a baby, he said “dog” before Ma-ma.)

Although the weather was pretty crummy while we were there, we still managed to have lots of fun! We went to the children’s museum, where the highlight for Christopher was a real helicopter to climb in and pretend to fly. There was also an area filled with balls that Will enjoyed playing in. We went to the park one afternoon, and on another day we drove up into the mountains and Christopher walked around in the snow with Uncle Brian.