Hey GoodYear -> Hit the Road!

So the word on the street...literally: GoodYear Sucks.

:)

http://whatsnextonline.com/mt/mt-tb.cgi/3901

This is an article by B.L. Ochman about a GoodYear case where a woman was THE lowest paid manager for years...until someone slipped her a note & let her know she was getting screwed.

She sued & lost (statute of limitations issue) BUT she is going to win due to technology!

Final words:

If you are a woman...don't buy GoodYear!

This should fall into the same category along w/Exxon (which I STILL do not buy my gas from).

Speak up with YOUR purchasing power.

Happy Trails

-jen

Your Momma's so Tired...

So Clara slept through the night (with a midnight feeding), I think. I didn't see any extra pink bottles & I don't remember feeding her...so YES! SHE SLEPT THROUGH THE NIGHT!
Your Momma's so tired...
1. she blacks out in the middle of the night
2. she thinks the babies are talking to her e in the middle of the night about their love of granny smith apples.
3. people bring her coffee at work for no reason at all
4. she has no problem heating up yesterday's coffee & slamming it like she was 21 again.
5. she left yesterday's grounds in the filter & just added more water - & didn't complain
But...I wouldn't trade it for the world...unless that would mean BOTH babies sleep through the night at the same time. -jen

Has to be a Monday

Almost locked keys in car...
Late for appointment (nothing new)...
Didn't get Breakfast...
Got Lost...
good news...only one poopy diaper..
Welcome to Monday
-jen

My Working Mother Blog

So I am pretty excited abou this...
I am one of many working moms blogging at www.workingmother.com
Go to their MOM BLOG spot & look for...what else...Caffeinated Mothering.
THAT IS ME!
Next step...the cover.
:)
cheers.

How to Save the Earth

Growing up I was always taught to:

Turn off the lights when you left a room

Don't just stand in the shower & let the water run...what are you doing in there anyway?

Use ice to get your drinking water cold...again, don't let the water run.

If you walk into a room in the middle of the day, do you really need to turn your light on?

Close the door so the heat/ac won't get out.

I was taught these things to save money. In Bend, you were charged by the gallon for water, so that was a big one to try to conserve on. And of course sticking your head in the frige 4 times in 2 minutes didn't change the outcome of what was in there...so that was hopefully a bill that could be saved on as well.
Here's the kicker. I teach, preach & practice these things as well in my adult (yikes, "adult") life too.
But I do it to save the earth.
Everything that I listed I do to decrease my footprint. We recycle everything we can (we even have recyclable dryer sheets now) so that my guilt is lessened every day that I step up & into the bohemith of a vehicle that I drive. Yes, I drive an expedition that sucks $75 in gas about every 8 days. My gut hurts every time I step on the gas. I try to coast when possible & I rarely gun it. Every time I step up into it...I just think of a little piece of iceburg melting away into the vast ocean, never to be seen as a solid mass again. Sigh.
But there is help along the way...and it is not in the form of a stretch Prius (ok, but how cool would that be for anti-mini van moms?). There is a NEW electric car out there called Tesla. Nightline had a piece on it last night. There is SO much to talk about here, but all I can say is that my gut feels good. I just have this feeling that in the next 5 years there is going to be major change with the car industry. I don't know the structure or the truth...but someone out there (Bush) is getting paid really well to keep us dependant (Cheny) on oil.
But we can change the world. We (you & I) now have the power to be heard (internet) and let them know we know there are options out there, there have been for a long time...but it is now our turn to take over, sieze power & save the earth.

Coffee is a GREAT thing!

I LOVE Bill Cosby.

So everytime I hear something good about something that has been bad, but is now good...I do the happy tummy dance and sing the words of Mr. Cosby...."Dad is Great, he gave us Chocolate Cake!!!"

In this instance it is "Life is Great, it gave us a 20 oz-skinny-iced-mocha-with 2 straws" dance.

Yea, I know, it doesn't rhyme...but this article still makes me happy...and justifies my addiction.

ENJOY EVERY SIP MY FRIEND, EVERY LAST SIP!!!

Is that a G-G-G GRAY hair?

Does Caffeine give you gray hair? Does lack of sleep give you gray hair? Does the incisive whining words "I'm Tired" of a 3 1/2 year old that doesn't want to entertain her 4 month old brother...while I change the 4 month old sister & try to get out the door so I am not more than a half hour late for work give you gray hair? Take a wild guess as to which one added 3 strands this morning.

My first gray hair is a direct result of 2 weeks of hard core studding for my comprehensive exams in grad school...of course I did not find it until 2 years later...but with my scientific gauging of hair length divided by time, my analysis is dead on.

Since then I have reluctantly, but continuously plucked at least 2 a week. The ones that scare me the most are the long ones that are half & half. At what point did a little piece of me...die? (my scientific hair gauging technique only works when you can remember timed events - that doesn't happen any more-hence the need for excessive amounts of caffeine).

So I am a lively, energetic, fun loving, 30 something with a FANTASTIC life and great genes: so why am I considering subjecting myself to a never ending die job that will at one point expose the truth of...gasp...ROOTS!!???

Yea, that's not going to happen. People ask me all the time how I manage 2 infants, a 3 1/2 year old, work 40+ hours/week & manage to smile & get through the day with enthusiasm.

SIMPLE: I love my life & wouldn't trade it for the world!

Gray hair is here to stay, so I am going to accept it (aka: blame it on the caffeine) kiss the toddler 10 times as much tonight & know that my life is just beginning...can't wait for the sequel!

{{I would love to do this when I get home!}}

We really try to get things done in our house by midnight Sunday night:

dishes, laundry, stuff picked up, put away etc...it starts the week off w/that much less stress.

But our laundry piled up to the very end of the weekend the past 3 weeks (seriously, we were doing laundry until midnight Sunday night)....and it makes me cringe.

In Ella's first few months when I was at work she went to the house of a family friend. They had 3 young daughters & HUGE piles of laundry that made me gasp....just like my piles did the past 3 weekends.

We did get it done though last night...with this comment from my husband at 1:30am...

"WOW, you are on it! Not only are the jeans that I wore today clean & folded, but they now reside back in my closet! You are just like the maid I always wanted."

Another kudo to the bean...the coffee bean.

I just found my favorite new store here in Boise.
And of course it is not for me.
I truly believe that buying good shoes will affect your child’s future…their foot future. With Ella, she wore NOTHING but Robeez for the first 12 months. They were tough, they stayed on, they let her foot develop & of course they are so damn cute! Since then, we have purchased cute sandals, but nothing that I felt good about. About a month ago we went to REI for the sole (no pun intended) purpose of buying Crocs which didn’t fit due to the funky sizes (they go up 2 sizes at a time). We did buy her a GREAT pair of sandals for the summer: Keen – they are so so so cool!
ANYWAY…my favorite new store eliminates us running around to at least 3 different stores, one being online to get what we feel is the best for our kids…and reasonably priced. So this morning before a Starbucks meeting at Eagle & Fairview in Meridian I went into Little Feet & was amazed. I thought it was going to be $100 shoes & no variety…WRONG!!! They have everything! Robeez, Keen, Pediped, Teva, Croc type shoes that go up one size at a time…etc., etc., etc!!! I am so excited! Can you tell?
Anyway, go visit this store…there is something to be said about experts in their field & a SELECTION that is incredible!

How do YOU work from home?

So yesterday my plan was to take it easy since my body was letterally shutting down from the lack of consistant sleep. All I really want in life right now is 5 hours of sleep in a row...luckily, I found these green tea pills that not only have CAFFEEEENNNEE in them, apparantly they help you loose weight...yea, we will see.

Anyway, I ended up working in the morning for about 3-4 hours from home. My computer had to "think" for a bit...so I went outside & picked weeds. Then, I started the dishwasher, let the dog out, ran a load of laundry (didn't fold it though) & had lunch.

My question....

HOW DO YOU WORK FROM HOME?

For those that do it, congrats...you have a lot more will power than I do. My best friend tried working from home w/her first baby & it was fine while the baby was a "blob"...and I say that in the most loving way a mother of 2 progressing "blobs" coould...But once he started commanding more time (which is what should happen if you are a stay-at-home-mom) she had to work at night.

My very passionate point: if you want to be a part of the "work at home" type moms...do it while the kids are at school/daycare...being a stay-at-home-mom does not mean stay at home & work while my kid is plopped in front of the tv.

Nikki Rae (& Others)...This is How you Blog

Ok-this is easier than burning toast.

You visit Caffeinated Mothering in a variety of ways...

1. you received my email announcing my new post
2. you have the blog in your favorites http://caffenatedmothering.blogspot.com/
3. you have subscribed to an RSS feed (at the very bottom of the blog are the words "Subscribe To: Posts (Atom)" click on the purple words & follow the directions. This will automatically get you the blog every time i post & obviously you will be notified through email & this will be under favorites (that nifty star at the top by your browser tabs).

Now that you have visited, you are amazed by writing abilities & have this undeniable urge to write & share w/others about the same thing....
YOU CLICK ON "COMMENTS"
and you do just that.

CAN'T WAIT TO SEE YOUR COMMENT!!!
xoxo
-jen

The Mom Jean

At 34 & the rescent graduate of squeezing 2 babies out of my body in 22 minutes flat...I swear I will never wear the mom jean. I actually just put a brand new pair of Eddie Bauers in the "give it to someone who will wear it" pile because despite the fact that it DID cover the muffin top, here was my major concern...THE POCKET PLACEMENT. Now if the Mom Jeans would just change this & this alone, all moms would have a killer badonkadonk! The pockets need to be closer together & not as big...this would solve Mom Jean-itis & would make Stacy & Clinton proud.
My solution not to fall victim to this? Work it off. Have not started yet, but swear I will as soon as I can sleep for 5 hours/night.
What's your greatest "now that I am a mom, I HAVE to wear this..."

Guilty Mom Does Not Live Here

Who: Wife of Greg, Mom of 3, Woman of the working world
What: 3 1/2 girl & 4 monoth old boy/girl twins
When: Pregnant since 4am on Christmas morning 2002...

Where: Suburb of Boise
Why: Lived our life to the fullest & thought that at age 30 it was about time...

I read frequently in my Working Mother magazine (highly recommended) about mothers who feel guilty about working. I am NOT one of them. I love, love, love my 3, but really love my job too! There is a way to balance & here is how I do it...

1. 1. "Day Care" (we call it school...Day Care just sounds like Ed Bradly is going bust in w/cameras & do an expose' on dirty toilets). Our school is AMAZING! Education Station has great teachers at all levels, they are very strict w/the kids (no Montesori School here!) & they absolutly love them. I truly believe that I am not the only teacher in their life & that they will learn from others, but will be guided by the morals & values that we instill in them. FYI: our 3 1/2 year old gets praised all the time by the teachers because she does what she is told & keeps the other kids in line when they act out. She knows right from wrong already....because that is how we have raised her so far.


2. 2. 50/50 Balance: Greg & have never said..."oh, that is X's job". We both do everything. If you don't have this, you must get it. Bottom line.


3. 3. I LOVE my job! My marketing company, BlueLine, is a dream job. I am an account manager & also do sales when needed. Couldn't ask for a better bunch of people to work with.


4. 4. COOOOFFFFFFFEEEEEEE! Greg makes the best pot of coffee. My 2 mugs in the morning, an Oregon Chai between 11-2 & then sometimes one at 6 on the way home...and then at least a cup of "leftover" coffee about 7pm. I will cut back once I can get more than a 3 hour block of time in sleepy-ville...until then, NO GUILT!

So guilt is what you make of it. I know that my children are SMART, loved, disciplined, fed & taken care of while I go out & make a living for my family. I love not only being a financial contributer in our family, but a strong one at that.