Canetto and I have stayed in a few of these through the years. I don't know why because I totally prefer the anonymity of staying in a nice hotel and not being forced to make uncomfortable conversation with people I don't know in the morning. (I had enough of that in college.) Thanks -- I'll be here all week.
We stayed at a place in Charlottesville once and had breakfast with a huge table full of people. Everyone was nice enough, and someone asked if anyone was celebrating anything special. One couple had just gotten engaged, one was celebrating an anniversary, yadda yadda yadda...This person said to us, "So are you two married?" and I said, "yes...oh, but not to each other..."
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Thursday, June 01, 2006
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Mother's Day...Take One
For my first official mother's day, Canetto wanted the holiday to be special, so he planned a vacation to Wilmington, North Carolina (a place I've wanted to visit since I heard that Dawson's Creek was filmed there and that it is considered the "Hollywood of the East" -- no, I am not kidding -- yes, I am pathetic.). It's a 6-hour drive from where we live which means that flying would be much easier. However, since I've had Avery, I've become a bigger freak about flying than I ever was, so all vacations for the near future will be driving vacations. (And yes, I do realize that our Florida vacation when she was 2 months old required us to get on an airplane, but I was in a sleep-deprived stupor at that point).
Cantto handled all arrangements. We spent one night in downtown Wilmington and the next two nights on the beach. Our downtown Wilmington hotel was fantastic -- right on the river, corner room with windows on two sides that overlooked the river. It was peaceful and gorgeous. We were also right on the "boardwalk" there, so we were at most 1/2 mile away from every shop and restaurant in downtown Wilmington. Ideal when you're schlepping around an infant and her accompanying 6 tons of gear. So, we walked and browsed and then decided to have dinner outside at a restaurant overlooking the river.
There was a table next to us full of older people who had been looking over at Avery during dinner. As they were getting up to leave, they came over to say how cute she was and talk about their own grandchildren. Because my child looks exactly like Canetto and did not have the decency to look one iota like me after all I went through for nearly a year, one of the women was prompted to say to Avery in her vveeerrryyy southern accent, "Well, I know who your father is".
And I had to bite the insides of my mouth to not respond, "really? do you have his number? I've been trying to track him down for months."
Cantto handled all arrangements. We spent one night in downtown Wilmington and the next two nights on the beach. Our downtown Wilmington hotel was fantastic -- right on the river, corner room with windows on two sides that overlooked the river. It was peaceful and gorgeous. We were also right on the "boardwalk" there, so we were at most 1/2 mile away from every shop and restaurant in downtown Wilmington. Ideal when you're schlepping around an infant and her accompanying 6 tons of gear. So, we walked and browsed and then decided to have dinner outside at a restaurant overlooking the river.
There was a table next to us full of older people who had been looking over at Avery during dinner. As they were getting up to leave, they came over to say how cute she was and talk about their own grandchildren. Because my child looks exactly like Canetto and did not have the decency to look one iota like me after all I went through for nearly a year, one of the women was prompted to say to Avery in her vveeerrryyy southern accent, "Well, I know who your father is".
And I had to bite the insides of my mouth to not respond, "really? do you have his number? I've been trying to track him down for months."
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
Two Blogs That Me And A Million Others Visit Every Day
www.dooce.com -- just a quick scan of her bio and FAQs alone will explain why
www.thesneeze.com -- Check out "Steve, Don't eat it!"
www.thesneeze.com -- Check out "Steve, Don't eat it!"
Thursday, May 04, 2006
Monday, April 24, 2006
Why I'm staying home this year...
When I originally thought I'd be going back to work after my 3-month materntiy leave was up, Canetto (aka "Captain Spreadsheet") researched day care, nanny services and some other childcare options for us. I think #10 below sealed the deal for me to stay home. I'm a firm believer in providing perks and incentives to employees, but I'm just not going to let my husband "take care of the business end of the nanny"
Canetto's e-mail to me on the subject is below:
I contacted a nanny service (see link below). Here is the deal.
1. Live out nannies $2900 placement fee, full refund/credit within 3 months if does not work out. fractional refund after that within 1st year.
2. after 1 year if new nanny is needed for any reason(her or us) then need to pay another $2900 fee. (Sucks!) She did say that it is preferred by all that the nanny relationship goes for years. this is their goal
3. nannies are from many different places: other countries as well as domestic. (Ghana, Spain, etc...)
4. they must be legal and speak English
5. it would take about 4-8 weeks to get a matching nanny
6. the level of certification varies and, thusly, so does the price
7. hourly rate is between $12 to $15 per hour. ($25Kto $38K depending on rate and # of hours worked per week)
8. they work between 40 and 55 hours per week
9. it is possible to find another family with infant to help pay for nanny (can nanny share) She said that nannies sometimes prefer this since they can make a little more money this way.
10. we would need to take care of the taxes and business end of the nanny
11. I started updating the monthly costs spreadsheet to include the various day care options. Let me knowwhen you would like to review.
http://www.metropolitannannies.com/
Canetto's e-mail to me on the subject is below:
I contacted a nanny service (see link below). Here is the deal.
1. Live out nannies $2900 placement fee, full refund/credit within 3 months if does not work out. fractional refund after that within 1st year.
2. after 1 year if new nanny is needed for any reason(her or us) then need to pay another $2900 fee. (Sucks!) She did say that it is preferred by all that the nanny relationship goes for years. this is their goal
3. nannies are from many different places: other countries as well as domestic. (Ghana, Spain, etc...)
4. they must be legal and speak English
5. it would take about 4-8 weeks to get a matching nanny
6. the level of certification varies and, thusly, so does the price
7. hourly rate is between $12 to $15 per hour. ($25Kto $38K depending on rate and # of hours worked per week)
8. they work between 40 and 55 hours per week
9. it is possible to find another family with infant to help pay for nanny (can nanny share) She said that nannies sometimes prefer this since they can make a little more money this way.
10. we would need to take care of the taxes and business end of the nanny
11. I started updating the monthly costs spreadsheet to include the various day care options. Let me knowwhen you would like to review.
http://www.metropolitannannies.com/
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Thursday, April 06, 2006
Goin' Pantsless
In the early days of Avery (I can say that now becuase she's SIX MONTHS OLD THIS WEEK -- HOLY CRAP!), my friend, Media Goddess Stacey Kane, sent an e-mail that said something about, "I know little Miss Avery Pants is keeping you busy...". For some reason, that one e-mail caused us to being referring to Avery as "Avery Pants", "The Pants", and sometimes, simply "Pants."
A couple of weeks ago, Canetto and I were talking on the phone about going to watch the Mason game at a sports bar and he said to me, "Should we go with or without Pants"? Best part? He was at work at the time.
A couple of weeks ago, Canetto and I were talking on the phone about going to watch the Mason game at a sports bar and he said to me, "Should we go with or without Pants"? Best part? He was at work at the time.
Saturday, January 21, 2006
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