What are the odds???

As usual, Amanda decided to have a fried egg for breakfast this morning.  She pretty much has a fried egg every morning (walking in the footsteps of her father).  So we heated up the pan and I cracked the egg and.... lucky Amanda got a double yolk!  What are the odds of that happening? 

Needless to say, it was quite the event.

Then... Lauryn wanted an egg as well.  So I picked up another egg and cracked that into the pan and.... double yolk!!!!  Now one double yolk is amazing, but two?  Incredible!

And now two of my girls were eating double yolks.  But wait... there's more...

Temera decided that she would have one just for fun.  I told her there was no way she was going to have a double yolk and she'd end up being disappointed.  But....

DOUBLE YOLK!!!!!!

THREE DOUBLE YOLKS IN ONE MORNING!!!!!

This must be our lucky day!

Will let you know tomorrow morning what the rest of the eggs look like.  I just might have bought an entire carton of lucky eggs.

My Thoughts on Immigration

Just wondering how our country, at one time, used to manage thousands of immigrants coming into our country DAILY and now we can't manage to figure out how to allow immigrants to enter legally without costing us and them thousands of dollars and taking several years.  Sorry, just don't understand.

I must admit I haven't read the entire bill that allows Arizona to stop the illegal immigrants, however, it must be a step in the right direction if people all over the country are against it.  I say that because coming from a border state, I see the effect that people being here illegally can cause.  We pay for their medical care, we pay for their lack of car insurance, we pay for their welfare checks.  If making these people legal citizens means they will be paying their own way (and contributing to our country's tax burden) then why is this a bad thing?

Our laws on legal citizenship are pretty simple:  speak English and learn about our country.  What isn't simple is the length of time and money it takes to actually get to that point.  It only takes someone being here (with a proper work visa) 5 years before they can become a citizen.  BUT... it can take up to 10 years to even be allowed to get a work visa.  That's just pathetic.  How about some of that stimulus money going to create some jobs so there are more people to do the paperwork on these people.  I think that might be some more government jobs that we all might actually approve of.  Come on people... we have computers now!  We don't need to wait for paperwork to be mailed from California to Washington D.C.  I say let's get this thing going and get back to helping immigrants become LEGAL!!!!!!

F.Y.I.   I'll be spending this summer in Arizona.  Feel free to stay away... more room at the pool for me.

My Saturday

So, 3 hours later, we had to figure out a way to tell the very nice guys that we wouldn't be signing their contract to remodel our kitchen for that astronomicle (sp?) price they wrote down.  In reality, it was a very reasonable price quote, but seriously, paying that kind of money when we could realistically do it ourselves (in theory we can, but will we?).  I don't know.  Houses may be more trouble than they're worth.  Sure, you can fix it up to your own tastes, but how many people really do?  I'm a designer and I can't figure out what I want.  Oh yea...now I remember:  I want a new house! 

Meanwhile, we'll be at the Hollywood Bowl tonight seeing the Eagles in concert.  Very excited but not looking forward to packing up everything we need to take with us.  Cushions to sit on, blanket for the cold, dinner, wine, bottle opener, camera, binoculars... oh and I hope I don't forget the tickets.  That would really suck!

Kids packing to go to Grandma's... husband out washing the car... Mom blogging, FBing, tweeting, etc.

A typical Saturday!

Adopted Russian Boy Returned - My Commentary

The latest story in the news that has my blood boiling is about a Tennessee woman who adopted a child from an orphanage in Russia.  She recently just put this 7 year old boy on an international airline flight ALONE back to Russia with a note saying she no longer wished to parent the boy.

OMG!!!!!!

The woman and her mother both said that they feared for their lives and the boy threatened to burn their house down.  Can I just say that anytime I say no to my 5 year old daughter she tells me she hates me and is going to kill me?  Now, I will admit that I don't know this child... or the adoptive mother.  I will also admit that this boy could very well have had emotional issues.  But...

The adoptive mother never took the boy for counseling.  She never had him seen by a doctor.  She didn't have him in school because of the language problem.  And may I say that any child coming out of an orphanage is bound to have issues.

I have never adopted a child (I have three of my own) but I personally know several couples who did adopt from Russia (both as babies and as older boys).  Yes, there were issues and yes, it wasn't always an easy transition, but the way I see it - adopting is no different than birthing your own child.  You just never know what you're going to get.  Plenty of healthy, newborn babies grow up to be disturbed adults.  Hello... that's why there are doctors and counselors. 

A real parent doesn't give up on their child.
A real parent doesn't send their child away.
A real parent knows what unconditional love is.

I don't know this Tennessee woman but I do know she isn't a real parent.

Bullying: Why is nothing being done?

Let's face it:  bullying is a huge problem.  It's not a new problem, but it is definitely one that is gaining in momentum.  With the invention of email, facebook, myspace and twitter, bullying has taken on a life of it's own and something really needs to be done to stop it.  Nearly every day you can find another story about violence caused by bullying, whether it be an attack or a suicide.  How incredibly sad when you hear of school officials and/or parents who KNOW about the bullying and do nothing to stop it!  The laws regulating bullying (or should I say, lack of laws) is outrageous.

In our school, for instance, there are daily occurances of kids taunting other kids, making threats, pushing, teasing, etc.  And no, there is generally nothing done about it.  There seems to be a set of school rules that only exist for protect the bully.  What ever happened to kids being expelled at school for causing harm?  When a child threatens to harm another student, why isn't that kid able to be seen by a professional?  Apparently the "rules" are that seeking help is only an option AFTER a physical attack occurs.  Hmmm.  So my child can only be protected AFTER she gets physically hit?  Wow... what a screwed up society we have.  Interesting how an adult can get a restraining order on another adult who threatens them, but a child can't go to school officials and request such an order for another child.  As parents, what are we supposed to do?  Many end up pulling good kids out of school.  How insanely ridiculous that the good kids are suffering and the bad kids go about their business as if nothing has happened.  Come on school board... and PTA... and local police departments.  DO SOMETHING!!!!  It's the kid who bullies at 10 who will become the same kid who pulls a gun in high school.

Disclaimer:  No, my own kids have not been personally bullied at school.  They do, however, know other kids who have.  Yes, I personally know some of the bullies and know for a fact that nothing is being done.  Scary!

Never a Dull Moment

Two major events happened within the past 24 hours in our house.

1) Last night after dinner and showers, I asked Amanda to go outside and tell her sisters to come in the house.  (Shower and backyard play don't mix in my book!)  So she goes outside and not 3 minutes later Temera comes running inside yelling, "Mandy fell, she's got blood everywhere!"  It's about 7:00 pm and I just put some chocolate chip cookies in the oven.  So "blood everywhere" really isn't what I wanted to hear at that point.  Apparantly, my tomboy daughter decided that instead of telling her sisters to come inside, she would have some fun on the monkey bars.  Problem is, she missed.  And face down she went onto the ground.  Now, our monkey bars are pretty high up, so that little 7 year old must have taken quite the nose-dive (literally).  Blood everywhere! 

By some miracle, her nose wasn't broken and her teeth weren't chipped.  That girl must have a guardian angel watching over her.  Nothing that an ice pack (and some chocolate chip cookies) couldn't fix.

2) This morning, I'm getting the girls ready for school.  I make Lauryn a cheese omelet like I do most days.  This day, however, she isn't real happy that I cut it in half and gave part of it to her sister.  In fact, she is so upset at me... and Temera... and the whole family in general... that she decides to call 9-1-1.  (I knew nothing good could come out of that child learning her numbers.)  I hear her dialing the phone and tell her to hang it up.  She does, but by that time someone has already answered the phone.  Oh dear!  About 3 seconds later, I get a phone call from the L.A. Country Sheriff.  Yes, my 5 year old called 9-1-1.  No, we don't have a problem.  I'm apologetic (and totally embarassed) and hoping they don't send a police car to my house.  They didn't.  But always good to know that they are on top of those 9-1-1 calls.

More and more and more wasteful spending....

I'm starting to hate going to the mail every day.  I thought junk mail was bad enough... but junk mail is on someone else's dime, not mine.  (I won't start on the trees being cut down, etc., etc.)  But junk mail ain't got nuthin' on our wonderful spend-like-there's-no-tomorrow government!

First, we all get letters (at the cost of $83 million) informing us that we will be receiving the 2010 Census Form in the mail.  I don't know about most people but I don't usually need to be told that I'm going to get something in the mail.  It's okay... just send me what you're going to send me.

Then we get the actual Census in the mail.  Okay... kind of a waste of paper (couldn't this be something we can fill out online and save us all the trouble?).  I filled it out and sent it in - better than having some stranger come knocking on my door and asking me all kinds of questions.

But seriously... did we all really need ANOTHER piece of mail (at what cost?) telling us that we should have received the Census in the mail. 

So let's recap... letter saying we will be receiving the Census... actual Census... postcard saying we should have received the Census. 

And our country is in debt?  No Kidding!