May 6, 2022
1. I packed up 35 lbs of baby gear and clothes, mostly clothes, for donation! I have a third box waiting to be packed but I have to emotionally prep first to remove Smol’s recently outgrown clothes from hangers. It always makes me a bit sad!
2. I perused a local wholesale bakery website, curious whether they had a storefront like some of the other wholesalers in the area, but they did. I mused aloud, “well darn. Now I want pastries.” PiC muttered “hm, trying something here… ” as he took an exit off the freeway. Five minutes later we pulled up to a 24 hour donut shop! Whee!
3. I’ve been doling out toys from friend’s box one every few days and there are a couple that Smol keeps coming back to repeatedly, they really enjoy dropping things down a spiral chute and stacking rings.
The loss of Roe v Wade is just the beginning, I’m sure. Support these folks fighting for reproductive rights and providing reproductive care:
National Council of Jewish Women, @NCJW, also they’re organizing a rally that I can’t attend so I will donate to support instead.
Yellowhammer Fund, @YellowFund
Black Feminists Fighting Abortion Bans and Advancing Reproductive Justice
Give directly to more than 80 abortion funds (link from NNAF)
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April 29, 2022
- The book fair has come to town and boy howdy do I love the book fair even if I don’t buy anything.
2. After multiple fails with the Waterloo brand, I realized we still have Spindrift water. Turns out I like it better when the alternatives are cherry yuck flavors from Waterloo! My sparkling water experiments are on hold until we get through everything we have. Plus side: I’m doing a little better with hydration given the push to drink up the existing waters.
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April 22, 2022
1. We bought an apple pie from a bakery on Monday and we’ve been sharing a big slice for dessert each night since. $23 for a treat all week.
2. PiC also had surprise cheesecake happen earlier this week and it tasted like the Real Thing. I haven’t had that in a while. Nomz.
Giving: Child and Family Relief – feeding families in Afghanistan.
Cars are more expensive than expected, Quiara needs a bit more help to get over the hump for their move out of Arkansas.
Challenges this week: Childcare. Please. But no, none for us because ….
Vaccines for under-5s, please.
Still zero reliable news on our vaccine prospects. It’s so incredibly frustrating to both of us here and all of our circle who are Still Waiting. Yesterday there was a flurry of news saying “maybe June” but they’ve been saying that since December. “Maybe Jan. Maybe Feb. Data in early April!” The goalposts keep moving and I just cannot keep hoping.
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April 15, 2022
1. HUZZAH. I was searching for a place to donate my old eyeglasses that are perfectly good but don’t feel comfortable on my face any longer and I kept striking out searching the Lion’s Club but Shep to the rescue! They found me this link for donation centers. They once needed glasses and were only able to get them through the Lions Club program so if you have old eyeglasses to donate this looks like a great way to do it.
This GoFundMe is for an organization that I’ve supported in the past doing really important work. I’m respecting their request not to state their name in relation to the GFM but I actually know the lawyer mentioned in the post and verified with them personally that this is for their organization. Update: Yay the organization is ok with being identified now. If you can donate to the Survivor’s Project, that would be really swell.
This GoFundMe is to keep the doors of Courage House, A Haven for Abused Women open. I donated directly to save them some fees.
Challenges this week: A lot. This week was a lot.
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April 8, 2022
1. Finally found the scrub brush I vaguely remembered and cleaned up my garden shears. (Though I did slice a flap of skin off my finger doing it. Ouch.)
2. I cooked! Deviled eggs and panko baked chicken thighs! And Smol Acrobat even liked the deviled egg. Much amazement.
3. We survived both of PiC’s hybrid on site work days with less angst than before. I don’t know what got us through this week better than last but I hope next week will be better than this week was.
Challenges this week: I had a prolonged day of feeling like a terrible parent and it fueled a severe pain spike.
I’ve been feeling very sad about the loss of a dear friend lately. They’re not gone-gone, but they’re gone from my life and I miss them a lot. I uncharacteristically sought out a Rabbi’s writings in search of some kind of comfort. I happen to appreciate Rabbi Ruttenberg’s writing a lot so this seemed an appropriate text. It didn’t actually bring me any comfort but I wasn’t really expecting that. It did give me something to mull over when I have mental capacity for it: The Trauma of the Golden Calf: Terror, Loss, Technical and Adaptive Challenges
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April 1, 2022
1. I can hide under my covers and check out books from the library on my phone and read them. 8 year old me would be SO JEALOUS of this kind of access.
2. There’s an earring maker whose crafts I love admiring but have held back from buying anything for a bit because Smol keeps ripping out my earrings and it’s not fun. I did find a pair that are perfect for a Christmas gift for a friend and since I was paying for shipping anyway, decided to pick out one bright colorful pair to go with my bright colorful dresses I bought a couple years ago. I normally avoid bright and colorful but I’ve been thinking that I could try branching out a little and even accessorize! I only agonized over spending the money a little bit. For a while.
3. This Direct Aid campaign to help Afghani citizens in dire need passed their goal but I think we should keep contributing as much as long as we are able. I’m really glad that Shep shared this last week.
Challenges this week: The top of my foot has been swollen for a week and I haven’t been able to convince it to stop. If it sticks around a few more days, I’m naming it.
We’re acutely aware of the continued devastation that Russian is wreaking on Ukraine and it’s all horrible.
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March 25, 2022
1. I wish I’d also gotten the manufacturer coupon to stack with the deal but I found our usual brand shampoo and conditioner (2 each) from Walgreens for $20 (before tax) and $5 Walgreens reward cash, making it $7.50 for a pair. I’d have had to buy 5 sets plus their $10 off $40 to come close to the same pricing from Target.
2. Smol’s very vocal but has only experimented with lots of different sounds without any real attempt to assign meaning to them yet. Still. They still don’t call any of us anything, we are just “high pitched excited shriek”. So it was a real shocker when they were asking for apples and SAID “Ah-pa” several times. Practically a word!
Giving
I’ll do another round of donations to support refugees in Ukraine and trans kids in the states.
Shep shared to their friend Jelena and friends’ campaign to provide food and supplies for those in Afghanistan.
Arlan Hamilton shared Beauty 2 the Streetz.
Challenges this week: Kid germs are the pits.
We’re having to schedule activities for JB and family plans through the end of summer but we still know nothing about under-5 vaccines. Sigh. I’m using this NPR page to keep an eye on the status of the review of vaccines. This latest on Moderna efficacy has me disheartened. I feel like I’m grasping at straws trying to find hope in the CNN overview.
Return to work has been especially rough on the adults.
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