Survey Says...

Since last Friday's seriousness went over like a concrete balloon, I am going to try and be a little more interactive this week.

The topic for discussion is calling your spouse/boyfriend/girlfriend at work.

Do you do it? Does he or she call you? How often? Do others in your office do it? Are you a fan? Inappropriate?

Discuss.

I get it...lay off the seriousness during summer

So, no one liked my serious Friday post, eh? Yea, I get it...summer Fridays are no time for sovereign debt discussions...(although, it was well-timed, as it turns out). So I will lay off of the Federal Budget talk for a while. Just be warned, that is the tool that the old people are using to rob you blind...indifference!!!

Anyway, some nonsense...Project Runway is back on, which makes me all giddy inside. I don't know who I like or don't like yet, so I will hold off on that for a few more episodes. I did hear that there is a Project Runway All-Stars coming on, although it has no Heidi and no Michael Kors. In other words...it is TOTAL BS!!! A hostess that uses contractions? Blasphemy! And Isaac Misrahi is fine, but he is a poor substitute for Kors...too over the top, tries too hard. No way he will be able to use "80's power bitch" in a sentence nearly as often as MK can...

I am OK with the cats, although what I would really love is to see all of the best non-winners together. Mondo and Rami are both on, which is good, but Daniel from Season 2, Emilio from a couple seasons ago and Jillian from the Christian Siriano season would all have to be there to make it a really great season. All of those people were better than some of the winners, and all just sort of ran up against better designers.

Changing gears...last week (really the last two weekends) was the annual "Mrs. Mama Bear's Family Beach Bonanza" where they all invade the beach house. As usual, it was a really good time with TONS of people (the family keeps getting bigger:-))...and Munchkin played hostess for the whole time. Because, as we all know, it is really her house.

She is away at soccer camp this week, then back to the beach for her final week of work, then off to France:-) Tough life that kid leads, eh? On the downside...at the moment it looks like no babies on the France trip, but more on that tomorrow. I think The Boy has talked me out of it, but I still sort of like the idea, so we'll see.

Anyway, until then...call your Congressman and tell him to stop borrowing money on your behalf!

Debt Ceiling...a week or two late

I wish that I had the energy to write about last week's debt ceiling debate, but I would just make myself angry and have to take a while to simmer down. Short version:

1) The fact that we have a debt ceiling is asinine
2) Republicans made a stink about raising it is preposterous
3) Tying it to future spending cuts would be the same as insisting that any hikes in import taxes be attached to decreases in prescription drug benefits - the two have NOTHING to do with each other
4) The fact that Democrats even engaged in the discussion is embarrassing
5) Their "solution" to this "crisis" is weak-willed, short sighted and pushes the problems further down the road. That's right, even when they manufacture a crisis, they can't solve it right
6) There are no more than a handful of members of Congress who will ever willingly tell someone bad news.

On the plus side, putting the Defense budget on the table as a place in need of cutting is a major step. (And let's be honest...only in Washington DC can you give something exactly as much money next year as you do this year and call it a "cut". In fact, you can give it more next year than this year and still call it a cut.) You can't have a reasonable budget discussion that doesn't address the major expenditures, and that is one of them that has often been considered off limits. So, at least that was something of a positive development...not unlike the changes to the Social Security formula a handful of years ago - not that it was a major change, but it set the precedent that at least we could maybe make some changes. Now, about Medicare...

But really, it was just one big fight over who could be more wrong. I think the Republicans won that fight, but not because the Democrats didn't put up a strong effort of their own.

Anyway, we seem to be past that speed bump (until it comes up again in...oh...six months or so) and back to focusing on the fact that the economy is in complete shambles. Wait, you mean that massive government intervention didn't fix the economy? Wow, we are definitely gonna have to re-write the Economics text books now.

On Baby Travel

So, not surprisingly, you were torn between best and worst idea ever. So, a couple things...

First, yes, I would feel a little guilty going and leaving both girls home. Mostly for missing them, but a little bit for leaving The Boy with them all by himself (and likely with his mother's help:-)) Not that he would complain...(in fact, he may be trying to talk me out of this...more on that later).

But mostly, I just think it will be really fun! And sure, she won't ever remember any of it, but I will, and Munchkin will, and that has to be worth something, right? I am sure the flight will be a pain, but for a couple of reasons I am not overly concerned about that. And once we are there, I actually think she will do really well (assuming I can get her sleeping schedule adjusted to the time change!)

She generally does very well with being busy, regardless of what it is. New places and things and people keep her very interested...she just needs to be fed, have a chance to run around a bit, and always have her stuffed bear (a bear dressed as a bee...don't ask). I wouldn't take her to the Louvre for four hours, but she will do really well with general sightseeing and riding around in her stroller (and yes, I will need to borrow a single stroller!). And then we will be at the beach for a couple of days, which will be easy, too...she loves the beach.

So, yes, it may turn out to be a bad idea, but I think it will be really fun. Frenchie's Mother and Sister were super excited to find out, too, which definitely matters (not all that cool to just show up somewhere with a baby;-)). I'd say I am 98% taking her...although The Boy may still try and talk me out of it...so we will see...

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On another unrelated note...has anyone ever seen Sunshine Cleaning? Watched it last night and really liked it. But I am sort of a sucker for sister-stories...

French Adventure 2011

So, I am going to France with Munchkin later this month because...well, why not? It is Paris and the Riviera with lovely local hosts and places to stay! I would be a fool to turn it down:-)

My only real worry about going is being away from the girls for that long, and leaving The Boy all on his own with them for that long. Frankly, it is a lot of work, and I would be a little irritated if he left me for over a week to go on a vacation. Even acknowledging that he is better on his own with them than I am, it is still an awful lot.

So...how could we possibly fix this? I'll give you a hint: it involves a baby passport!

That's right, Munchkin and I are taking LK with us:-) Which could turn out to also be the worst idea ever, but I think will be really fun! She deals with strange people and places a little better than MA does, and doesn't get as unbearably cranky as her sister when she is tired...so we think she will probably travel a little better. The downside is that MA sleeps more and is easier to get to bed, so I will have that to deal with;-)

Obviously, it will be a lot to get her out of her routine for a week, but I think it will be fun...and between Munchkin and I she will have plenty of familiar faces around. And then next time, MA can come:-)

What do we think? Best or Worst Idea Ever?