Friday, July 23, 2010

Newsflash: Having No Money Sucks

Four months pregnant with Lil' Bean and having trouble getting a handle on this. On the one hand, I'm super excited for this newest addition to our family. I think of how Henry has changed our lives for the better, and it's awe-inspiring. Now there's another little person on the way to mix things up again. I'm so excited and feel so lucky. Okay, enough mush, onto the bitching.
I'm scared shitless, people. SCARED. Henry had a full on nuclear meltdown at Panera Bread earlier this week when I wouldn't let him run through the restaurant and open all the doors. I'm talking screaming, limbs-flailing, head-banging, full-body writhing, rolling on the floor the entire three minutes during which I ordered and waited while the staff triple-teamed filling it in order to get us the hell out of there asap. Fortunately, the place was mostly empty, but the few patrons (all adults with no children present) each gave me a tight smile/eyebrow raise as if to indicate, "Would you please DO SOMETHING about that?" All I could think was, "What am I going to do with two? I can barely physically contain the one I have (a 35 pound almost two year-old is surprisingly strong)."
We live in a two bedroom house which is already about to bust at the seams. Now Lil' BowWow is on his way (I'm certain it's a boy), and we're faced with the timeless question, "Where are we going to put him?" Clearly, the most logical answer is to move, but then the other big question, "Where?" There are several areas in Roanoke that I like; but frankly, we can't afford to live in any of them. And do we buy or rent? Can we even sell the house we're in? Then there's childcare. We have a sweet deal with an awesome sitter who Henry loves now; but I've avoided asking her how she feels about watching a newborn in addition to Henry because I'm pretty sure she's not crazy about the idea. Also, childcare (even the sweet deal we have now) is expensive! Can I afford to work part-time when I'm paying so much for childcare? I really want my mother to quit her job and come live with us a few days/week; but she works and needs the money, and we can't afford to pay her a comparable amount. In times when I feel a lack of control (such as now) I tend to want to focus on little things I can control. Decorating Henry and the baby's rooms when we finally do move is my immediate instinct. But I'm trying not to do that because we don't have any freaking money and we're looking for a house! (I'm sure the fact that in the last month we replaced a wonky washer/dryer and had to shell out several thousand dollars to resurface our driveway is playing into my desire NOT to spend money). So, basically, I'm reminded on many levels that having no money sucks. I'm sure no one can relate to this. Sarcasm, the lowest form of humor, is my defense mechanism. Share your stories of poverty and help me feel better, please.

Friday, July 9, 2010

Home Shopping

I love real estate, people. Seriously. Growing up, on any given weekend my Mom and I would go to open houses and take note of what we liked and didn't. Instead of doodling, I often visit one of the big real estate web-sites: homes, realestate, zillow, trulia, etc. and window shop, see what's out there. No joke, I do that for fun. But now that we're gearing up for Baby 2 and we live in a rather small house that feels like it's shrinking, we're under the gun so to speak to find another dwelling. What was once fun has become incredibly stressful; and I want nothing more than to avoid the whole thing. Adding kids to the mix complicates it. And adding the whole, "we might be here a while" thing is something I'm totally unfamiliar with. Since age 21, I've never lived in a place longer than 2 years. Until now. Knowing that we'll probably be somewhere short-term allows a certain amount of freedom: Who really cares if the neighbors are cooking meth when we'll be gone in a few months? Now we're talking about potentially living in a place long-term and having two kids we're responsible for who we want to go to a good school and have safe places to play and people to play with. Being responsible is a buzz kill. I miss the meth heads.

Movie Review 8: Michael Cera Can Do No Wrong

Listen here, Nick Twisp fans: The Youth in Revolt movie is surprisingly good and thoughtfully done. I had my doubts about Michael Cera playing what I considered to be the nerdy if slightly sociopathic lead; but he did a great job! The story isn't completely true to the book, but it captures the essence. And a great cast including Fred Willard, Jean Smart, and as noted earlier the eternally adorable Michael Cera. 26 Stars!