The rumors aren't true! Or are they??

Some of you may have wondered who the sperm donor is. Although the cryobank maintains confidential records, we are beginning to wonder. We have noticed some similarities. Sam often has red, rosy cheeks, he has a nice jiggly belly, and he loves to hand toys to Sarah. We will let you know if he starts saying, "Ho, Ho, Ho."

Sarah's Sense of Self

Sarah is still enjoying taking pictures. In this picture, she took a series of photos of her feet. When we asked her about why she took pictures of her feet, she said she did it because it is fun. We think that she does good work when she is having fun.

The Waiting

At midnight last Monday, I got into my car and drove to a parking lot where I proceeded to wait in line for six hours. What, you may ask, did I wait in line for? Did I score front row seats at a Tom Petty concert? Did I buy the newest Ipod/Playstation/Wii? No, nothing that glamorous. The waiting was to ensure a spot for Sarah in the coveted morning session of next year's Westminster 4-year old preschool class. Yes, I waited in line for 6 hours in the middle of the night in a church parking lot in 25 degree weather just so my daughter would be in a certain preschool class. I am one of those moms.

When I first heard of the tradition that parents arrive at midnight and wait in line over night, I thought it was crazy. I debated with myself whether or not to join in this madness, and decideded that the morning class really would be better for our schedule. When I drove to the church parking lot at midnight expecting to be the only loony person there, I was shocked to find a line of seven minivans already parked. So I pulled up in our old station wagon and joined the queue. Can you find me in the picture? I am eighth in line...oh wait, parents didn't actually wait in line. The chairs waited in line. Yes, that is my chair, eighth in line. The parents waited in their warm and comfy minivans and watched DVD's while falling asleep. While I was relieved not to have to stand out in the cold night, I have to admit that I was a little irritated that others were not doing so. Maybe if parents were required to sit with their chairs in the freezing cold in order to maintain their place in line, they wouldn't show up in the middle of the night.

I spent my night in a minivan with two other parents watching movies. Watching out the car window as other parents drove up and put their chairs in line. I wasn't able to fall asleep as my carmates did. The preschool staff opened the doors just before 6 a.m. I was home shortly before 7 a.m. and promptly fell asleep. Staying awake for 24 hours is hard on the body. I felt like I had jet lag. In fact, if the minivan seats were a little more cramped, then it would almost have been like an overseas flight. Except I didn't get off a plane and see the bonnie hills of Scotland, instead I got out of a minivan and saw bleary eyed parents wearing wool coats and mittens. Will I do this again next year? I don't know. Anyone have an RV I can borrow?

Plugged In

I finally broke down and purchased a portable DVD player for car trips. I thought it would help on the 3 hour car ride at Thanksgiving. The kids wanted to try it out so here they are on the couch watching a video. Sarah was in a trance the minute the Dora movie started. Sam didn't really get the concept and enjoyed pulling on the cord. He has been fussy lately in the car, so I am trying to think of things to keep him occupied during the long car ride. Any suggestions?

Now I Believe

My past reservations about Obama aside, I am very pleased that Barack Obama is our president-elect. I feel like my shroud of skepticism has melted a little bit and in place of it I have hope that things will change. 'I believe, hope, change' - sound familar? Okay Obama, you have my attention. Don't let me down.

I am very curious about the Obama's family choice of red worn in Barack's victory speech. Was it a jab at the conservatives and their red states similar to a victor taking the enemies flag or was it an olive branch? It seems to me if there are 'no red states or blue states, but just the United States of America', then shouldn't his family have worn purple? Maybe I read too much into things, but I didn't like the red. Red is an aggressive color, the color of sports cars, the Republican color. Obama, why red? Don't deny us a blue victory.

Another thing that I find interesting is that if you look at the electoral votes, it appears as if Obama had an overwhelming victory. If you look at the popular vote, however, the victory doesn't seem as large. Almost 49 million people voted for McCain. 49 million people thought McCain would be a better president than Barack Obama. 49 million people want to keep the status quo. That is a huge number of people - 48% of the votes. It appears that we are as divided as ever. It is shocking to me that we live in a country that seems to be so connected to each other electronically, but be so divided politically.