When I found out I was pregnant in September, one of my first thoughts was: how do we prepare Cordy for this?

She had just turned 2 at the time, and while her grasp of language is pretty good for her age, we figured we wouldn't tell her right away. Since then, I've tried to explain to her why mommy can't pick her up as much (besides the fact that she's 33 or 34 pounds solid), and why she can't sit on mommy's tummy. But she still shows no signs of comprehending what I'm telling her.

Then a few months ago, there was a special on Nick for the Blue's Clues 10th anniversary, and it covered the topic of having a sibling. Meet Blue's Baby Brother is still Tivo'd, because it is something she likes to watch at least once a week. I'm used to her walking up to me, looking up at me with pleading eyes, and saying, "Bwue's budder? Bwue's budder?"

So for about a month now, I sit with her when she watches it, and tell her, "Cordy will have a new family member, too." We didn't know if it was a boy or girl yet, but I knew that if we had a boy, we could keep using this program to prepare her for a little brother. I was even planning to buy her a Blue's Clues shirt that features Blue hugging her little brother, saying, "I love my brother!" if it was a boy.

Well, now I need to look for another way to explain it to her. Because it looks like she's going to have a little sister.

The doc is about 95% sure it's a girl.

The ultrasound yesterday showed a perfectly normal baby, growing at just the right rate. Unlike Cordy, who at her 20 week ultrasound was moving around so fast the doctor couldn't get much of a look at anything, this baby was mellow and stayed still - too still, even, which made it hard to get a look at everything. Her knees were pulled up, making it hard to look at "the goods", but the doctor and I both saw the trademark three lines (indicating a girl) at different times. It's possible we'll have another ultrasound in a month or so, to confirm that this is indeed a girl.

Aaron and I are happy about having another girl. While he was leaning towards wanting a boy, we certainly don't mind saving money by reusing all of Cordy's old clothes and toys. And it will be fun to see the relationship between sisters. I had a sister who didn't survive infancy, as well as a half sister who is much younger than me and I saw only a few times a year, so I never got the chance to experience that sisterly bond.

So, anyone know any good DVDs to prepare a child for a new baby sister?

It's no surprise that when receiving a gluttony of gifts, you're bound to get a few that make you say, "Huh?" You know what I mean - gifts that make you wonder what that person was thinking when they tossed it into the gift bag.

I have to admit that most of our relatives are competent gift givers. They actually take the time to think about what a person might like as a present. But every family has to have that one crazy family member, right?

Once again, my Great Aunt Dorothy has taken the prize for worst gifts. An item is only a good gift to her if it is on sale, preferably 75% or more off, and she has a coupon as well. If a store is closing, you can bet we'll be seeing products from that store at the next holiday gathering.

Aunt Dot never gives individually wrapped gifts. Instead, we all receive large gift bags (now that Lazarus has been bought out by Macy's, we no longer have gift bags made of Lazarus shopping bags), and in those bags is a random assortment of junk collected over the past year.

While little can top last year's winner of the map of "Historic Millersburg, OH", there were some puzzling gifts this year.

First up, in the category of, "Do you even comprehend what I'm saying?" is this little gem:


A nutcracker. I've told her over and over and over again that I do not like nutcrackers. First, I see no purpose in having a nutcracker that doesn't actually crack nuts. Second, I think they're a little creepy looking. And yet, having repeated my dislike of nutcrackers, I still get them every year. Besides this one (with Aunt Dot's trademark price tag left on the item - good to know she spent less than $2.49), she also gave us a nutcracker ornament for the tree, too.

Next, is this cute little bear for Cordy, in the category of "Are you sure this thing isn't infected?":

Noooo, don't touch it! It's concentrated eeeevil!

Oh sure, you may be wondering, "What's wrong with a stuffed bear?" and from the picture you can't tell the problem. Hell, it's even still white. But one day, when our technology allows us to share scents across the internet, you will understand. Except that by that time, the bear will probably be nothing more than ashes, because it is going out in the next trash pick-up.

The smell on this bear is a mix of cigarettes, rotten food, and bad breath. How it has remained white is beyond me, because it smells like it's been dragged through a sewage plant, or at least through a house full of children with stomach flu. Where did she find this treasure? The thrift store, of course. While I'm known to frequent thrift stores for good deals, there's no way I'd buy a stinky stuffed animal there. If it can't be washed, I don't want it given to my daughter.

Other interesting trinkets in the gift bag included a random selection of mis-matched, paper-thin washcloths, some outdated soup, and off-brand cashews that are chewy (just like last year...and every year). But the weirdest, most off-the-wall, Christmas gift of 2006 has to be this:


Store-brand, instant non-fat dry milk (nearly outdated). Need I say more, other than "WTF?"

It is the thought that counts when it comes to giving gifts. I just wish I could understand the thought process behind the gifts Aunt Dot gives.

Edit: After Kristen's urging, I'm now entering this into the Worst Present Ever contest over at A Mama's Rant. If you got a bad gift, be sure to go enter the contest as well!

It's over. It's all over. Christmas and Hanukkah have come, gone, and now are in the past. And this tired pregnant woman couldn't be happier to see it all go. Oh sure, I like seeing family, decorating the tree, eating good food, and getting and giving presents, but I put so much energy into it that I barely have enough to get me through to the end of the year.

Christmas Eve was the more formal party night. We went to see my dad's side of the family, and this year's gathering was being hosted by my cousin at his enormously beautiful new house. I can't even fully describe how big that place was. As we walked up to the door, Cordy said, "Look, a palace!" and Aaron and I had to laugh and agree that she wasn't far off. The place has three full floors, a sunken formal Italian-style dining room, a two story living room with a wall of windows looking out onto a lake, etc. The downstairs was a funhouse: a game room with a pool table, air hockey table and pinball machine, a full bar (seriously, when you stepped into that room, it looked like a well-kept small pub), and a home movie theatre, complete with leather theatre seats, a projector and a very large screen taking up an entire wall. I was blown away by it all - clearly we're in the wrong lines of work. It was stunning.

Cordy was very shy at first, but soon warmed up and was wandering through the crowd of about 35 adults and 20 children. Although there were a few other kids her age, who tried to interact with her, she ignored them and continued doing her own thing, as usual. Santa visited the kids, and while she wouldn't go near him without me holding her, she did at least say thanks for the gift (which we provided). All the kids then ripped open their gifts, and I found it funny that all of the other little girls squealed with glee over their princess dolls and dress up kits, while our little girl was excited to unwrap a Backyardigans pirate ship.

Dressed up for Christmas Eve

Next was the gift exchange for the adults. By this point it was after 9:00pm - a full hour past Cordy's latest bedtime - and by 9:30pm she was done. She climbed off my lap, laid down on the floor in the middle of all the chaos, pulled a pillow over her head, and fell asleep. Everyone had to carefully step over her, and the loud conversations did nothing to wake her. She slept for the rest of the night.

Christmas day we spent at home, with all of my mom's side of the family joining us for dinner and gift opening. Cordy started the morning with her big gift: a trike!

That is the face of a happy kid.

She probably spent a good half hour sitting on that thing, saying, "A bike! A bike!" over and over again. She doesn't know how to pedal yet, but she's happy enough to sit on it for now. We can work on the logistics of locomotion in the summer.

Once family arrived, the day became a blur. Food was being prepared while gifts were being sorted and then opened. Then it was time to eat, followed by clean up and before I knew what was happening, it was 3:00pm, everyone was leaving, Cordy was down for a nap and I felt a strong urge for a nap myself.

Cordy got a lot of very nice gifts, including lots and lots of books, a playhouse for the backyard, an Aquadoodle mat, and megablocks. But, as can be expected from many toddlers, she had no interest in opening those gifts or playing with them. Instead, she was far more content to play with the boxes.

Huh? An awesome toy? No thanks, I've got this box...

(More tomorrow, including the Gift Hall of Shame. Although the winner should be no surprise to you, you probably can't guess what the worst/weirdest gift will be.)

We've been busy here trying to finish the last of the wrapping, while keeping a certain toddler happy. Tonight is the big party with my father's side of the family, and then tomorrow my mom's family will all be at our house in the morning. Here's some pics of the day.

In PJs and red hat (she really loves that hat)

Playing with the tree

And finally, here is my first belly pic at one day short of 19 weeks. This Thursday is the big ultrasound, where hopefully we'll find out if this baby is a girl or boy.

I'm a believer that good things happen on the solstice. Of course, Summer Solstice is my birthday, which, well, I think is a pretty good thing, except when I turned 30. Winter Solstice marks the end of the days getting shorter, and the return of the sun shining just a little more each and every day. Well, if you actually get to see the sun where you are - our part of the country is known for most winter days being cloudy. But this particular Winter Solstice had other happy connotations besides more daylight.

First, my entire house now smells like yummy chocolate and peppermint. I made this recipe for dark chocolate peppermint bark last night, and despite my lack of culinary skills, it turned out very well. Of course, it helps that it was one of the easiest recipes I've ever followed. It's now hardened and today I have to break it up into small pieces and box it up for gifts. I promised Aaron I would make more so that we get to have some as well.

Second, our Christmas and Hanukkah shopping is finished. There are a few small packaging items still needed, but for the most part, we're done. It's a good thing we're done, too, since the marathon begins tonight with a Hanukkah celebration with Aaron's family.

I'm also glad to be done, because my irritation at other people was hitting a peak. Driving to the few remaining stores last night, I used more expletives than I normally do in a month behind the wheel. The rain and the rush to get their shopping done were turning people into road rage asshats, weaving in and out of lanes, cutting in front of others, and lacking any respect for fellow drivers. Now that the shopping is done, I can relax again.

Third, Cordy and I got to attend a birthday party for a local blogger's twins. Stella and Grant turned two yesterday, and a casual party was held at a McDonald's with a very new, very posh playarea. Cordy had a lot of fun with the other kids, and for the first time (and second, third, and more) went down the slide without my help. I enjoyed catching up with friends and meeting some new moms.

And finally, to top off Winter Solstice, we had a message on our answering machine when we got back from dinner. It was the police detective working on our break-in case, and he was calling to give us an update. Thanks to the DNA extracted from the tiny blood spot I found on our curtain, they arrested the robber, and he confessed to the crime! Woo-hoo! Aaron will be calling today for more details - there is little chance any of our stolen items will be recovered, but the police may be able to find out where the guy sold our stuff.

It feels satisfying to know that this guy will likely be spending Christmas in jail, where he won't be able to steal from anyone else and ruin another family's holidays. Justice came through, and I want to give a big thanks to the Columbus Police Department for keeping up with such a minor case compared to all of the larger crimes that require more attention.

So that was my day yesterday, and I'm pretty impressed with how it went, even if Cordy did skip her nap and leave me feeling frazzled. Now I must spend today resisting the urge to eat the chocolate peppermint bark calling me from the kitchen.

Time spent in bookstore to pick up a gift: 5 minutes
Time spent in parking lot trying to find one single stupid parking spot: 20 minutes

Right around this time every year, my holiday cheer is momentarily thrown out the window and replaced by a grinch. OK, maybe not a grinch, but certainly a person who doesn't like society very much. I know it's partially my own fault. I should have started shopping earlier for Christmas/Hanukkah gifts. I should try to shop when no one else is around. (Although even at midnight the lines are long.)

I'm generally in a good mood when I set out on a shopping expedition. I try hard to be polite to others, not get in anyone else's way, and overall make the experience as pleasant as possible. But then I run into the other last-minute shoppers - stressed, frantic, and grouchy - and they start to wear me down. They cut me off in traffic, steal parking spots I've been patiently waiting on, run into me with their shopping carts, cut in line, leave junk they decided they didn't want in the aisles for me to trip over, let their kids run around like mad and run into me, and yell at me when I take the last item before they got there.

It's no wonder my grip on my steering wheel gets tighter and tighter until my knuckles are white as I approach a store this time of year. "Just get in, and get out," I tell myself. And then other people make it take ten times longer than I planned, and I leave with a massive headache and the feeling that I've been beaten up. I want to enjoy shopping, but during the holidays, the one time I must shop more than any other, I'm forced into a bad mood by the chaos.

What is it about shopping in December that turns people into such monsters at the mall? What happened to remembering simple etiquette? If you're walking through the mall at a snail's pace to examine your list and discuss where else you need to go, can you at least not take up the entire path so others can get around you? I understand the pressure to find the "perfect" gift can make anyone feel edgy, but is it necessary to take out your stress and frustration on strangers who are just trying to get their shopping done as well?

It's no wonder that internet businesses are reporting record sales this year. With traffic jams around the malls every evening at 5pm and every weekend, long lines in the stores, and bad attitudes on top of it, it only makes sense to shop online.

I've avoided brick & mortar stores as much as possible so far this month, but with a few people left to shop for, and shipping deadlines passing, I now must face the angry crowds. But after last night's trip to the bookstore, as well as a few other stores, I realize that this insanity might be enough punishment for my procrastination to force me to plan ahead on gift buying.

So next year, I'm going to make that list early and preferably shop online as much as possible. Or become rich enough to afford a personal shopper.

And to the big athletic guy who stole the parking spot I was waiting for (with my blinker on, no less): I hope you felt at least a twinge of guilt as I walked past you later with my pregnant belly poking out from under my coat.

For years educational experts have told us that it is important to introduce a second language to our children while they are still babies and toddlers. This is the prime learning time for new languages, when little brains absorb words like a sponge. And with today's emphasis on the global economy, the world wide web, and the constant influx of immigrants, a second language really is helpful for just about anyone.

I've generally agreed with this, since my school system didn't offer languages until high school, making it difficult for anyone in our Spanish class to incorporate a second language into their lives. A year after the class, few of us could say anything in Spanish other than asking where the bathroom or library is. I took Spanish in college also, and while I can still read some basic Spanish, I'm lousy at speaking it or understanding spoken Spanish. It's a shame, too, because our city has a high number of Spanish-speaking immigrants (especially on my side of town), and breaking that language barrier would have been handy on several occasions.

Cordelia, however, seems to be listening to the experts, and has a strong interest in languages, as seen by her new preferences in TV shows. She used to love shows like Oobi, Higglytown Heroes, JoJo's Circus and Blue's Clues. But most of those shows hold little interest for her now, because at the moment, it's all about Dora.

Dora is her new idol, followed shortly by Diego, and the newest member of her obsessions, Handy Manny. All three of these shows teach a little bit of Spanish in each episode. Not enough that a child will be speaking Spanish fluently, but they do provide some basic words and phrases to build and expand on.

Now, in full honesty, I have to tell you: I hate Dora. I can't stand the whiny, football-head shaped girl, and her loud and obnoxious monkey. When Cordy first happened to see her, I didn't mind, because it seemed like a decent show, and it is, until the repetition finally gets to you, and you go to sleep at night saying, "Tree...bridge...Treasure Island!" And don't get me started on the messed up relationship she has with Map.

But, this little bit of TV each day is actually teaching Cordy Spanish. Besides parroting all of Dora's annoying catch phrases ("Where are we going?" "Come on, let's go!" "Swiper, no swiping!"), she's also repeating things that Dora says in Spanish. A few weeks ago I caught her repeating something slowly to herself, over and over, and I struggled to figure out what she was saying. It sounded like, "uno, dus, gwace, quando, seeko." And then I realized she was counting to five in Spanish, using some creative pronunciations.

At that point, I realized that I now needed to watch these shows with her, just to figure out what she is saying and praise her for learning new words. If no one reinforces these new words with her, she'll stop using them. So while she's learning Spanish, I'm re-learning it as well, even while rolling my eyes at Dora. (Thank goodness for Handy Manny and Diego - they aren't nearly as hard to watch as Dora.)

Last week, my mom called me at work (she was babysitting Cordy that day) and asked, "Can you help me? She's going up and down the stairs, and each time she goes up, she keeps saying something I don't understand. It sounds like sue-bay. What does that mean?"

"Oh yeah, she's saying sube. It means climb in Spanish. She learned it from Diego."

"Oh! OK! That's all I needed, thanks!"

So I suppose it's good for me to learn Spanish as well, just so I can serve as a translator for Cordy. Otherwise she'll be five years old and telling me off in Spanish, and I won't even know she's doing it.

Christmas is fast approaching, and I'm completely unprepared. No gifts have been wrapped - in fact, no gifts have been purchased yet. The tree is up and decorated, but the stockings are still boxed. Some of our outdoor decorations are in place, but we still lack the extension cord to complete the process and light up the yard.

However, today I set out to complete one holiday tradition: see Santa. My friend L. and I packed up the kids and set out for the mall, unsure of what was in store. Last year's Santa picture was a nightmare, with a screaming, crying child, and a near-tears mommy. I was hoping for something better this year.

The morning already had a rough start. In order to see Santa, Cordy needed a bath, which she didn't appreciate. Once we got to the mall, she was hungry, so lunch was our first priority. The kids, who begged for food in the car, then picked at their lunch until we finally gave up and threw most of it away. Luckily, the dress remained clean, so in my book it was still a success so far.

As we walked towards Santa, I tried to prepare Cordy to see the big guy. Actually, I had been preparing her for days - letting her watch all of the holiday episodes of her favorite shows. So we've seen Dora's "Present for Santa"(where I proved to her that presents go under the tree) and Diego Saves Santa. In the mall, I told her, "We're going to see Santa, and I bet he'll give you a treat!" Cordy seemed excited, repeating "Santa! Santa!" each time I said the jolly man's name. L.'s son was extremely excited to see Santa, and planned to tell him that he expected a "big Buzz Lightyear" for Christmas.

Once we got there, we noticed the long line, so we thought it might be best to take the kids up as close as possible and let them warm up to seeing him in person. They watched in awe as a little girl sat on his lap, and seemed a little nervous about getting any closer. However, the line wasn't moving. His "elves" said the camera was having problems, and they were working to fix it, so we decided to let the kids run off some energy in the play area while they fixed it.

Going to the play area, I was once again assaulted with salesperson stupidity. Just like the day after Thanksgiving, I walked past a kiosk and was practically chased down by the man working there. He looked at Cordy, and then said, "Could I have a moment of your time? Our product could do wonders for your daughter's hair!" I glanced back at the kiosk, and wasn't surprised to see it was a kiosk for a hair straightener styling tool. (Same product, but a different mall from the first time.) Furious, I shot the man a dirty look and said in my best back-the-hell-off voice, "She's two. She does not need her hair straightened."

I was redeemed once we got to the play area. Several other moms stopped me to comment on how pretty Cordy's curls were, and thankfully no one asked if she had a perm. We spent over a half hour there, playing, chasing, sliding, and having a great time. But then L.'s son remembered Santa, so we got our shoes back on and went back to see Santa.

Once we got there, I was disappointed to see the entrance blocked off. I asked one of the elves what was wrong, and she told me that their computer system was down, so they couldn't take any pictures right now. Apparently even Santa can't make a digital camera and computer work together. She did offer to let us in to see Santa if we just wanted to visit, and while they normally don't allow people to take pictures with their own cameras, she said that if we had a camera, we could use it. Of course, I had forgotten my camera, but at the last minute remembered that my cell phone had a camera in it.

As we walked closer to Santa, Cordy quickly fell into her normal "meeting strangers" position with her head buried into the back of my legs. Santa was nice, and quickly offered her a lollipop. Her curiosity, combined with my gentle nudging forward, led to her eventually accepting the lollipop from Santa. I grabbed my cell phone, while Santa quickly scooped her up onto his lap, and we managed to get a picture.


OK, sure, so it's a pic of Cordy trying to squirm her way off of Santa's lap, but it's better than last year's pic, even if it from a shabby 640x480 resolution cell phone camera.

And L's son, who was so excited to see Santa? He also turned speechless and shy when confronted with the real deal. While he did sit for the picture, he was too nervous to tell Santa what he wanted, and barely squeaked out a "thank you" for the lollipop.

So while we didn't get an official picture (and saving myself $12.99 really isn't a bad thing), we still got to see Santa, and this was a better year than last year's visit. Of course, had I known that after visiting the mall, she wouldn't nap again today (second day in a row), I might have asked Santa to bring back the nap. Please.

It's the time of year when people tend to think of their fellow human beings, and make efforts to help others. Oh sure, there's the fact that it's the end of the year, and a few more tax deductions are always nice, but I was actually referring to the holidays and the spirit of giving and helping others and all that.

If you haven't heard about Her Bad Auction yet, you clearly don't read my blogroll. Several bloggers put together this amazing online raffle auction to raise money for Muscular Dystrophy Research in honor of Her Bad Mother's nephew, Tanner, who is afflicted with the disease. Without major advances in MD research towards a cure, Tanner will most likely not experience the number of years many of us are privileged to have.

The auction features well over 40 donated items, small and large. All would make wonderful gifts if you're still shopping for holiday gifts. Plus, tickets for items cost either $1 or $5. While it's hard to sometimes pony up a donation for a charity that doesn't look puny, a couple of $1 tickets won't set you back too much, and hey, you might just win a cool prize in return!

I first heard about the plans for this auction right in the middle of our car crisis last week. While I immediately thought, "What an amazing idea!", I also felt at the time like I couldn't do anything to help, since I was stuck in my own minor issues that took up all my time and threatened to deal a financial death blow to us.

But now that the car has been replaced, cheaper than we thought it would be, and I can now focus on anything but the car, I see there are a number of ways to help this auction. (I even managed to find something to donate, which I didn't think I'd be able to do.) First, spread the news. If you want to post about this on your own blog, please do. The more people who find the auction, the more money will be raised for such a worthy cause.

Second, even if you can only spare a dollar, think of the good that dollar will do. Instead of buying your grande mocha tomorrow morning, brew a cup of coffee at home and buy a few tickets in its place. As for me, I sold an item on eBay that went for more than I was expecting, so the extra will probably go to a few tickets, like that cool diaper bag I saw or maybe one of the blog redesign packages.

And finally, if you have no extra money to give, there's still another way to help. Your children can send letters and drawings to Tanner. It's already tough to be a kid, but dealing with being "different" makes it ten times harder.

So go forth and be a do-gooder. You have until Sunday night at midnight EST. Make a difference this holiday season.

I have tried to explain to Cordy the intricacies of celebrating Christmas, including presents, the Christmas tree, Santa, and giving gifts to others. But she's two, and her comprehension of this upcoming holiday is still limited to, "Oooh! Itza big twee!"

This morning, Cordy was walking around the living room holding a gift we were given at a holiday party this weekend. It is a small tub of chocolates with a bow on top. Every few minutes, she would bring it up to me and say "pwesent!" She understands the word "present" now, although I think a present to her is anything with a bow on it. Still, it's a start, right?

(I should also clarify that she wasn't offering me the present - she simply wanted to show it to me. Every time I reached for it, she'd pull it close to her chest and run away.)

So I decided that maybe it was time for another Christmas lesson between Dora and Diego this morning. I sat down on the floor near our Christmas tree, and said to her, "Cordy, do you know where to put presents?"

She turned, gave me a puzzled look as if to say, "Go on...," and came closer to me. "We put presents under the Christmas tree," I explained, patting the ground under the tree to demonstrate.

Cordy walked towards the tree slowly, examining the area under it. "Yes, we put presents under the tree, and they stay there until Christmas day," I told her, thinking that she understood.

However, Cordy then locked eyes with me, smiled and said with a laugh, "Nnooooooo! Dat's silly!" Then she walked away, still carrying her present.

I tried to explain more, including the part of opening presents on Christmas day, but with another roll of her eyes and exclamation of, "Nnooooo! Dat's silly!" I realized that she thought I was clearly making all of this up. After all, there are no presents under the tree currently to prove my story to her. (We haven't had the time or money yet to start Christmas shopping.) So in her mind, I was trying to trick her to give up her present with some phony story about putting presents under a tree.

Maybe it will make more sense after this weekend, when there are other presents under the tree for her to see. Or maybe she'll just think I'm putting them there to back up this fishy tale I told her.

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Henslowe: Mr. Fennyman, allow me to explain about the theatre business. The natural condition is one of insurmountable obstacles on the road to imminent disaster.
Fennyman: So what do we do?
Henslowe: Nothing. Strangely enough, it all turns out well.
Fennyman: How?
Henslowe: I don't know. It's a mystery.
- Shakespeare in Love

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Somehow the pressures and stress of the past week seem to have worked themselves out, although I'm still uncertain how it all came together.

Aaron's car was dead. As in not worth the money to fix dead. We set out on car shopping expeditions Thursday night, which also continued Friday night and most of the day Saturday. The predicament was what kind of car to get. Before this happened, we had planned to purchase a new car sometime in mid- or late 2007, after paying off a bit of a credit card debt that had accumulated prior to Aaron getting his new job, and larger salary, in July. After paying the credit debt off, we would then save for a down payment, and have a nice cushion on which to afford a new, larger, safer, easy-to-handle-two-children car.

But of course fate doesn't always go along with what you want. And so we looked to the budget to see what we could cut, and with those cuts, what we could afford. The result was that we could afford something better than a '95 2-door car with 100,000+ miles and rust, but nothing nicer than an older sedan with at least 50,000 miles or so. Our emergency fund had been depleted to just over $1000, and monthly payments would have to be in the $100-150 range, possibly up to $200 a month.

At that point, as I was giving myself a massive migraine from the stress, things started to work out. I remembered I had an old 401k from my previous employer that I had yet to roll into my current retirement fund. It had been slowly tanking, thanks to the poor investment choices offered by said employer, but it still had some money left in it. (Before anyone starts lecturing me on withdrawing money from a retirement fund, yes, I know the crazy fees associated with doing this, and yes, I know taking money from a 401k just sets any retirement goals back. But trust me, there wasn't enough in there to do much for my current retirement planning, and in this situation, it seemed like the right thing to do.)

And then there was my mom. I've said before that my mother is an amazing help to us. She babysits once a week, buys most of Cordy's diapers despite my requests not to, and gives us money on occasion (that we are not allowed to refuse). I've never understood why she helps us so much, and I've told her many times to focus on her upcoming retirement instead of us, but she insists on doing it. I'll never be able to repay her, and can only hope I'll be as much help to our kids as she is to me.

Anyway, she called us Friday night, and told me she was shifting some money from her house account to her checking account, and was going to give us money to help with a down payment. The house account is money she receives from my grandmother as rent for currently living in the house I grew up in. (Yes, my grandmother insists on paying rent - the family is very insistent when it comes to money.) My mom refused to let us buy a run-down car that might not be as safe as a newer car, and she knew something with more space would be good, especially with baby #2 on the way. I argued with her several times, trying to turn down her offer of assistance - after all, she retires in just over a year and will need all her money - but she wouldn't budge. So now we had a significantly larger down payment to work with, and a much better range of available options.

The next stroke of luck came when I found a slightly used 2006 Hyundai on the internet at one of the local dealers. The price was well below what others were selling the same model for, so of course I worried there had to be a catch. We looked it over, had it checked out, and the truth is, there was no catch. The dealer had too many used cars, and had to get rid of some of them quickly. It was previously a rental car, and had the full maintenance record with it. It had only 19,000 miles on it. And it was a certified used car, too, carrying a warranty and free oil changes for three years. Finally, the interest rate we were offered for financing was lower than any rate offered by other dealers, and lower than my bank could offer.

Aaron and I looked it over, my mom looked it over, we conferred with others who know more about cars and everyone thought it was a good buy. Plus, with the down payment we had, the payments were going to be under $175 a month. So late on Saturday, after spending all day between dealing with a sick toddler at home and haggling with other dealers for hours and getting nowhere near as good of a deal, we went back to this dealer and purchased the car. They gave us $500 for our dead car, and even took care of the towing. (I'm just glad they were willing to take a dead car, honestly.)

Amazingly, we managed to get through the business office in under a half hour - no high pressure sales tactics to buy extended warranties, or special insurance, or gap insurance. Which meant that we were able to attend a holiday party our friends were hosting on Saturday night.

I'm still puzzled as to how everything worked out so well in the end. Don't get me wrong - we still must cut back on lots of luxuries in order to make payments, and our car insurance is higher, but everything is at least do-able. And most importantly, we have a new car that has plenty of room, is loaded with safety features, and should give us many years of reliable driving. Strangely enough, it all turned out well.

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And then, just when I was feeling so stressed late last week, I find out I was nominated by Kristen for her Support a Mom contest at her ClubMom blog, The Mom Trap. I was so surprised by her touching post that I burst into tears reading it. You can read her nomination here, and take a look at all of the amazing and very worthy finalists here. Thank you, Kristen - your post really made my day.

...you take them both and there you have The Facts of Life.

Sometimes life gives you lemons, and you make lemonade. But sometimes you run out of sugar, so you get just a tiny taste of the sweet, and then a lot of sour.

The good news: remember when our house was broken into back in July? There were no fingerprints, and it looked like the criminal might get away with it, except I noticed a very tiny drop of blood on the curtain that covered the window that was smashed in.

Well, we got a call from the detective on our case yesterday to let us know that curtain proved to be the key. They were able to extract DNA from that tiny blood spot, and they know who did it. They have a name (meaning the guy is a repeat offender, since the prison system already had a record of his DNA), and that person lived nearby at the time of the break-in. So now a warrant is being issued for his arrest, and they are working to track down his current location. We'll probably never see any of our stuff again, but seeing this guy caught and locked up would at least be justice.

And now the bad: First, money has been tight this month. Very tight, as in pray-the-account-doesn't-bounce until the next paycheck. However, this was just due to bad timing with some bills, and we figured we'd be back in a better position by the end of the month. But this is not as bad as many - all of our bills are paid every month, and we've been making good progress at getting rid of credit card debt, which when finished will make life much more comfortable. As I said over the summer, we're not drowning financially by any means. More like treading water at the top, hoping for no big waves to pull us under.

And then yesterday morning a financial tsunami wave hit us. Aaron's car left this world for its next life yesterday morning. He had the oil changed at a quickie oil-change place two weeks ago, and then two days ago the oil light came on and we noticed the car was leaking oil. Figuring they screwed up, Aaron was on his way back to the quickie place to make them fix it, when the engine gave up the ghost and stopped.

We took it to the dealer to have the problem diagnosed. They only know the problem is something wrong with the timing belt (probably due to the engine seizing), and it would cost at least $500 to take apart the engine to find out the exact problem. On the list of possible problems, few are anything but catastrophic for the car, and the cheapest possible problem would be $1300 minimum. If you saw this car, you'd know the car isn't even worth $1300 at this point (1996 Plymouth Breeze), and any expensive fix would only be a band-aid against future problems.

So now we need a new car, and don't even have a car that is running to trade in. Plus we have no room in the budget for a car payment. We had planned on the car not making it through 2007, and we were trying to pay off our credit card debt to free up money for a new car. But it died about 6 months too early for our liking. We also can't simply survive on one car, because we work opposite schedules (overlapping, really) and work in different parts of town, and we don't live near a bus route. Life is feeling rather like this at the moment.

Forgive me if you don't hear from me for a few days. We've got to spend some time thinking up creative solutions out of this predicament, and go car shopping. And while this is very upsetting at the moment, I know we'll figure out something - we're good at being creative, and I've been known to squeeze blood from stones. After all, between when I left grad school and got a job, I paid for my rent and bills that month by selling Beanie Babies on eBay. (seriously!)

And in this holiday season, I also remember that there are those far worse off than us. We still have our house and heat, we still have food to eat, and we're all in good health. In the grand scheme of things, this sucks, but it will get better eventually. We're very lucky to have as much as we do.

But still. Damn.

As many of you know, just less than a year ago I decided to go back to school. I have a Bachelors degree, and some work towards two Masters degrees that I never finished, but now I'm starting over again for an Associates degree in Nursing.

Nursing has absolutely nothing to do with my previous schoolwork. In fact, up until I had Cordy, I had never really thought about going into nursing. When I was younger I had considered med school, but decided against it due to the length of time I'd be in school, and the crazy costs involved. But after spending four days in the postpartum unit at the hospital, I came to have a real affection for nurses and all they do. It's always the nurses who make your stay pleasant or hellish, depending on your nurse. I had, for the most part, wonderful nurses who helped me adjust to motherhood as much as they could in those four short days.

Going back to school for this required starting nearly from the beginning again. I had most of my general ed classes taken care of thanks to my first degree, but there were a lot of prerequisite classes that I was required to take before even applying to the nursing program.

After four quarters of part-time classes, this week I completed the last two prerequisite classes, and my application for admission to the program has been submitted. One class, Patient Care Skills, was very easy for me. We covered some of the less "fun" tasks of nurses and aides, like wound care, venipuncture, and inserting catheters, but I found it all fascinating.

The other class, Organic Chemistry, was a class that I look forward to never, ever seeing again. I graduated from high school and my first university with honors, and have always been good with science classes, too, but never in my life have I encountered a class like Organic Chemistry. To make it even more difficult, I was taking the class online, without the regular help of an instructor to explain it all to me. It is because of this class that I have now shattered my perfect 4.0 GPA - I could only squeak out a mid-range B for the class. Still, at least I passed, which I had to do in order to apply for the nursing program.

Now with those classes behind me, I sit and wait for my answer. The program at this college fills up amazingly fast, so many people are often turned away during each application period. But I have confidence I'll make it in. For those who have met all requirements, decisions about admission are made based on GPA, and on Nurse Entrance Test scores. Seeing as I have nearly a 4.0, and my NET scores were in the 90% range (50% is the minimum needed for consideration), I probably will be offered admission.

In the meantime, I'll prepare for my winter quarter classes as if I am continuing on with the program. If I'm admitted, clinical classes wouldn't begin until the fall quarter, so I can use the time between now and then to finish up other non-clinical required classes.

I recently had someone find their way to my blog with the Google search, "What does a mommy want for Christmas?"

It made me stop and think, because honestly, what do we want for Christmas? Of course, different moms certainly have different wish lists, so I don't think you can group all moms into one category of Christmas gifts. And then there's the problem of mommy self-denial. We have this habit of putting ourselves last when it comes to gifts. Go ask your own mom what she wants for Christmas, and she'll probably say, "Oh, I can't think of anything I'd like for myself." She'll give you a list of things for the house, for your father, and for the family pet before she'll think of anything just for her.

However, I'll let you in on a little secret. Here's what many moms of young kids (including myself) would probably ask for, if they were being totally honest. Even if they didn't ask for these things, they probably wouldn't say no to them, either.

Time off - Kids, work, and a house tend to eat up all of the time a mom has. If you want her to have a special treat, give her an afternoon where she is ordered to do nothing except read, relax in a bath, or whatever it is she likes to do to unwind. Take the kids elsewhere. On those rare times when I'm alone in the house (and I mean totally alone - no child up in bed), I almost don't know what to do with myself. I can turn the music up loud! I can eat without anyone else begging for my food! I can take a bath without a toddler knocking on the door and saying, "Come in pweeze?" And I can just relax.

Pampering - I barely have time to shower 3 days a week, much less do my hair, exfoliate, or apply a moisturizing mask to my face. A gift certificate for a spa service would be a welcome gift for many moms. Not only does it give us the first gift of time off, but we are doing something to look better and feel better about ourselves also. That's a bonus for our guys, right? One of the best gifts I ever received from Aaron was last year on our anniversary, when he gave me three gift cards: one to get my hair cut and colored, one for a massage or facial, and one more to buy something hip from Hot Topic. A day off was included in all of that, of course. It was a very welcome, and well-planned, gift.

Assistance - I never like to ask for help, even when I know I need it. But I have a dream of someday having a maid service come to the house once a month to help with the deep cleaning. It's a frivolous expense for us, and one we can't afford, so we continue to split our chores and do them regularly (well, maybe not as regularly as we should). However, even the gift of one maid service visit would be an amazing gift, especially now that I'm pregnant and even less inclined to do my chores.

Food - Is the mom in your life a wine connoisseur? Find a local wine tasting and take her to it. Does she like chocolates? Get her some of the best chocolates out there, then. As a side note, if you have thieving little hands in the house, buy a box to lock the chocolates in, too, so mom can be the only one to enjoy them. There's nothing worse than sitting down to enjoy a special treat in the evening, only to find your special treat has been devoured by some bottomless pit.

Date nights - Truthfully, this gift is a benefit to both a mom and her husband/partner. But if mom is the one who gets to pick the restaurant, the movie (no complaints about a romantic comedy, guys), and isn't the one required to find the babysitter, it's a real treat. If this is a gift from another member of the family, it makes a great gift for the couple, if presented with the offer of babysitting, of course. Personally, I want to go out with my husband more, spending time together as an adult couple, instead of just parents. When we don't get to spend time together over a long period, I feel like I'm less a wife and more a mom than anything else. And lets be honest - it was the wonderful time we had together as a couple that led to parenthood, so I'd like to keep as much of that couple-time as possible.

So there's my list for what to get a mom for Christmas. Moms, did I miss anything?

It's time for the monthly blog exchange. Please welcome my fabulous partner this month, and be sure to go check out her blog, Binkytown!

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December up north is a warming from the outside in. We sink inward. Cheeks are rosy, blood vessels rush to the surface when wrapped beneath soft woolly scarves. Chapped hands tucked deep in pockets as we walk, faces down, the chin drawing closer to the chest, our bodies retract to keep out the cold. Taillights in front of you, the only thing you can see on a car covered in snow. Boots, size 7, too big for little feet sit patiently outside the door.

Inside the red light of the electric blanket blinks next to bedsides as couples sleep closer. Fires warm sitting rooms and backsides. The coils of the oven turn from black to orange to red in preparation for loaves of holiday bread. A tall glass of Pinot Noir swirls by it's stem, warm and comfortable in it's owners hands. It's smooth and warm as it goes down.

Red stockings overflow on the mantle with trinkets and treats. Shiny bows and ribbons lay in a heap, waiting for their chance to make memories. Big red bows adorn the porch lights. Berries on the mistletoe and candy canes adorn entranceways. Sparkling lights adorn branches of trees, now bare, but admired for their stark beauty as they sway in the winter wind. Resiliency.

Lips kiss. Hearts beat, closer now than any other time of the year to the ones they love.

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Binkytown lives where it is a cold for waaay to much of the year but doesn't seem to mind it until after the holidays. She lives in a well heated house with her husband, son and poodle. To visit Binkytown and find Christina, click here.

This post is part of the monthly Blog Exchange on the prompt Red/Green and was inspired by ECR's A Drive in the Country While the Time Changes. To read the other participants, click here, where you can also find out how to participate in the next Blog Exchange if you are so inclined.