Cart Dog

I found this picture online and just love it. It is a little dachshund named Frankie who is paralyzed. Here he is in a costume contest that he won.

Our Refrigerator Saga...

Ron and I have been married almost 11 years and since day one, we have always gotten stuck with the most terrible refrigerators in each of the apartments we have lived in as well as our home. Our first refrigerator was so old the appliance repair man called it a dinosaur. It was dirty, it leaked and it boosted the electrical bill each month. We complained constantly to our landlord and he never replaced it -until two weeks before we moved out! Our second apartment was just as bad. The thing was Barbie doll size and during the hot summer months it would sweat and drip puddles on the floor. We tried to live with it. Finally that one was replaced when we came home after a week's vacation to mold growing on the walls because we had closed all the windows in the aparment and the moisture buildup caused major problems. Again a new fridge arrives just as we are packing up to move out. Fast forwad to our present home and once again, a disaster! The fridge here is shorter than me. I have to make sure Anna is nowhere near it when I open the freezer door because things inevitably fall out due to the small size.

Anyway, when Ron and I met with the architect to draw up plans for the addition, I basically designed the kitchen around the new side by side fridge I had dreamed of. It is a special color called graphite metallic that we just loved. Well, when it came time to order all the materials, we decided to hold off on the fridge for one more year to save some money. We ordered the matching dishwasher since the kitchen didn't have one and planned on getting the new fridge within the next year. Well, I promise you that since that decision was made, every time I went into Home Depot, I would visit 'my fridge'. I'd open the doors, imagine them filled with home cooked meals, and I would say to Anna "Someday, we are going to have this beautiful refrigerator in our house". Pathetic I know. Well, this past weekend Anna and I stopped by Home Depot to get some more flowers for our garden and I decided to see if my fridge was on sale ......however it was nowhere to be found! After searching the entire store I was told by the saleswoman that my graphite metallic color HAD BEEN DISCONTINUED! We searched all the Home Depots within driving distance and located one store that had ONE left -it was a floor model however. They said it had minor scratches but if we were interested, we could have it for 60% off! Did God have his hand in this or what! We made the trip and signed papers. There are a few scratches but nothing that a little compound and appliance paint can't touch up. Plus they are all near the bottom. My side by side refrigerator was delivered today. I'll spare you the ordeal we went through to get it up the front steps and in the front door but we did get it in. It looks great! Something tells me this will be a big grocery bill this week!

I had a fun morning planned for Anna today. Our nearby mall has a 'Kidz Summer Camp' each Tuesday during the summer. This morning they had Java John and His Amazing Talking Tiki and then Sparkles the Clown was going to join in on the fun and create some balloon sculptures. Pure enjoyment to an almost three year old right? Well on our way into the mall, I bumped into some ladies I know from church -women whose children are all grown now but whom I remember as always having it all together regarding their children. Well, wouldn't you know it but as we're talking (for only 30 seconds at this point) Anna decides to take off running down the long mall corridor. I call her several times but to no avail -she just keeps running. I start to make my quick goodbyes to these ladies just as Anna decides to turn around and come back to me. She comes running back and I make some comment about how we're so close to three years old but those terrible twos just won't give it up already. They smile and laugh as now Anna who is almost back by my side focuses on the nearby escalator. She takes off running again aiming right for it. Of course its the escalator going up which certainly is not going to help my cause at all. Fortunately I grabbed her just in time remembering my mom telling me about the many occasions she wanted to pinch me as I continuously embarrassed her in public. The thought entered my mind as I now wrestled my daughter and tried to finish my conversation with these 'perfect moms'. As we walked away I contemplated skipping the show and just going home as I truly felt Anna did not deserve to see the show due to her terrible behavior but the thought of sitting at home alone with her while she fights this terrible mood she is in was too scary of a thought. I hoped that the show would distract her and entertain her and maybe even tire her out for a good long nap while Mommy regrouped. I guess what discouraged me the most was that I thought we would have such a nice morning together and unfortunately it was just the beginning. She did watch the show but didn't want to participate in it and sat sucking her thumb for the majority of it. Lunch did not improve as I had egg salad thrown at me and then more and more tears. Where has my sweet little girl gone I keep asking myself. Did I mention that last night she put her vitamin in her ear? I know I shouldn't complain as she has always been so easygoing but I think that makes it that much harder. We'll see how this afternoon goes after her nap.

What Happened To My Sweetie-Pie?

Somebody must have taken my daughter and switched her with an evil twin. For the last week or so she has been a terror. Very defiant, oppositional and with crying outbursts throughout the entire day. How can this be that we are a month away from three years old and the terrible twos are rearing their ugly heads??? I'm not sure if it is a phase or if she is overtired but something is not right! She had a major meltdown today because I blowdried my hair -I blow dry my hair every morning!!! Do almost three year olds cut teeth? Help!

Well, This Pretty Much Sums It Up....

http://www.hulu.com/watch/1389/saturday-night-live-dont-buy-stuff

Hair At Last

I waited almost three years for this.

Temper! Temper!

I honestly have to say that Anna really only had a solid two weeks of the 'terrible twos'. However, as we head towards her third birthday, I am not sure if they have reared their ugly head or if Anna was just overtired from a week full of 4th of July excitement and a lack of regular bedtime hours and routines. On Thursday we hit the Bronx Zoo and between her insisting on walking the whole thing and her not taking a nap, we had a couple of minor episodes. Then on Friday, my grandmother came for a visit which involved more excitment and a later than usual nap. As the day progressed, the episodes of crying and raising her voice at us increased. Finally on Saturday, we had our biggest one yet where she had a huge meltdown when I told her she couldn't hold onto her crayon any longer because it was crumbling to pieces due to the heat and was leaving little pieces of wax particles everywhere. Everytime one got stepped on, it put a nice purple stain in her rug. Well, I'm sure the blood curdling scream could have been heard on the west coast as she yelled "NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" I stood in shock for a minute amazed she was capable of such a high pitched note. She was immediately put on the naughty chair and Ron and I discussed in private that bedtime must be set earlier for that evening because of course the child must be overtired! After a good night's sleep, our regular, happy girl returned. However I did have second thoughts about bringing her to church Sunday morning because I would have just died if her Sunday School teachers had to witness that behavior!

...Some More Zoo Pictures

'Mommy's Taking Us To The Zoo Tomorrow'

Yesterday we took Anna to the Bronx Zoo for the very first time. She loved it! Her favorite animals were the seals who were very vocal for us singing the entire time. Anna thought they were hysterical. She enjoyed riding the monorail and seeing the tigers and hippos. She also enjoyed the monkey house. She did very, very well considering the lack of a nap and all the walking she did. We're kind of paying for it today though as she is a little on the moody side!