tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-90241012011-04-21T15:12:56.429-07:00Listening to Myself... After all, who else will? Thoughts on my various interests: politics, housing, personal finance, and whatever else is bright and shiny at the moment.Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.comBlogger1131100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1137189268346357802006-01-13T13:51:00.000-08:002006-01-13T13:54:28.366-08:00

Hi everyone, my blog is moving. Matt set me up with an instance of Word Press, and it is set up enough over there that I'm ready to start using it. From now on, I'll only be posting on my new blog... *drumroll please*Rutabaga DreamsI hope to see you all there!

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1137180945047773162006-01-13T11:20:00.000-08:002006-01-13T11:35:45.083-08:00

We completed lesson 4 today in Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons, and all is still going well. (a shorter title for the book would have been nice though) She's getting better at watching the page and my finger rather than looking at me, which is making things easier. I tried having her point to the page and the letters, but it seemed like too much for her to think about at this

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1136921361287356852006-01-10T11:25:00.000-08:002006-01-10T11:29:21.520-08:00

Because of Mrs. Darwin's discussions of Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons I decided to borrow a copy from my library and take a look at it. In the fall, I bought another book about teaching your child to read but I haven't done much with it because they want the child to know all their letters and most of the letter sounds before you start it. Also, they don't give all that much aid

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1136740895721929142006-01-08T09:05:00.000-08:002006-01-08T12:56:22.293-08:00

I've been keeping track of all of my reading since halfway through 1998. In case you're wondering why I decided to start halfway through the year, it's because I started keeping track the day after I graduated from college. It's an enjoyable exercise and even more fun now, thanks to LibraryThing. One of these days I'll get the rest of my reading log imported into LibraryThing, but right now

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1136528375336968772006-01-05T21:44:00.000-08:002006-01-05T22:19:35.416-08:00

We are all really enjoying Gregory. He's such a wonderful and amazing baby (although as his mother I suppose I'm rather predisposed to saying that). He seems older than just two and a half weeks, and not just because he's become part of our family so smoothly and easily. We're all amazed at how strong he is, and how alert. He has a remarkable amount of control over his head and even his torso

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1136396107740841672006-01-04T09:18:00.000-08:002006-01-04T09:35:07.773-08:00

Yesterday I took my first trip out of the house with both children and without Matt. All I have to say is that it has *got* to get easier! *grin* All in all, it went pretty well, but I was definitely worn out by the time we got home. Our objective was to go to the post office to mail a box and buy stamps, then head to the library to return books and check out more. First, it took us almost

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1136102514611185232006-01-01T00:02:00.000-08:002006-01-01T00:01:54.643-08:00

I've been listening to people setting off all sorts of fireworks for the last half an hour, causing me to jump and check the time repeatedly. We're almost there... only a couple more minutes. I can't believe I'm still awake, I don't think I've made it to midnight on New Year's for a couple years now. Emma went down at about 8:30 and Matt and Gregory crashed together at about 10 (Gregory fell

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1136099127397458422005-12-31T22:27:00.000-08:002005-12-31T23:08:22.376-08:00

In the course of going through things in the closet, we came across a box of my cycling gear. For the last two years of high school, through college, and after I graduated I was really into cycling. At my peak I would easily ride 100+ miles a week, and I participated in a number of 50 and 100 mile events. It was something I loved, and something I never thought I would give up. For a number of

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1136096845586181852005-12-31T22:13:00.000-08:002005-12-31T22:27:25.603-08:00

Matt and I have started to feel rather overwhelmed by the amount of stuff we own and have crammed into our humble abode. It could be worse I suppose, but then again it could be quite a bit better. It doesn't help that we live in a rather small place that tends to look cluttered very easily, making things appear perhaps worse than they are. Matt and I both have some pack rat tendencies, as well

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1135834400162062322005-12-28T21:22:00.000-08:002005-12-28T21:33:20.206-08:00

I've been meaning to post for awhile now, but I've been a little, well, preoccupied. I'm sure you can understand. We're all doing well here though, and settling in nicely together. Gregory so far seems to be a pretty mellow baby, which makes for a nice switch from our delightful but sometimes a bit intense daughter. From the beginning he's slept a good 4-5 hour stretch at a time at night,

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1134933320517031572005-12-18T11:11:00.000-08:002005-12-18T11:15:20.533-08:00

Here's Gregory, looking quite alert. This was taken only a few hours after he was born. By the way, I should have mentioned that he was 8 lbs, 2 oz, and 21 inches long. I just can't get over how long he is - a full 4 inches longer than his sister was at birth!We're still all doing really well, and it is so nice to be home and not stuck in the hospital!!

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1134865570989107422005-12-17T16:09:00.000-08:002005-12-17T16:26:11.006-08:00

The birth of our son, Gregory Alan! He was born at 5:25 am this morning, at home with our midwife and her assistant present. It was absolutely wonderful, I couldn't have asked for a better birth experience. Gregory is doing very well, and I am feeling tired, but well and healthy. It was a pretty fast labor, really - I started having contractions at about 7 pm, but they weren't really that

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1134776606438347972005-12-16T15:25:00.000-08:002005-12-16T15:43:26.480-08:00

I haven't posted anything because nothing particularly interesting is happening. Well, that's not entirely true... progress is being made, it is just happening veerrryyy slooowwwly. Another cm dialated, irregular contractions are getting a little stronger, that sort of thing... all good things, but it would be nice to actually really go into labor! My midwife seems surprised that I haven't

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1134508036953794422005-12-13T13:02:00.000-08:002005-12-13T13:07:28.570-08:00

waiting. And waiting. Yes, yes, I know, it takes as long as it takes and all that. But yes, we're ready.The house is so quiet and peaceful right now... Emma is up in the office bothering, err, visiting Matt and it is nice to just sit here in the still downstairs and sip my tea. I just recently read this - A 2005 Rollick, by James Lileks - which wins my vote for best 2005 rap-up. Not that

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1134278294310386872005-12-10T20:56:00.000-08:002005-12-10T21:18:14.983-08:00

Yes, today is my due date. I suppose it doesn't mean all that much, other than a rough approximation of when the baby's expected... but still it carries quite a lot of psychological weight. At this point I am in the odd position of feeling like the baby's birth is both imminent and impossible. Completely contradictory, I know, but there it is. I'm starting to feel more emotional and more

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1133852535399610822005-12-05T22:53:00.000-08:002005-12-05T23:02:17.336-08:00

and still pregnant. Just thought I would let you know. It is very strange to think that I am now less than a week away from my due date, even though the due date doesn't exactly mean much. It is bugging me a little though, I feel like I am expected to produce this baby by my due date, because due date just sounds so much like a deadline to me. I'd love to just get this crossed of my todo list,

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1133291298308255332005-11-29T11:04:00.000-08:002005-11-29T11:08:19.086-08:00

Matt's mom sent me a few photos this morning that she took over Thanksgiving, and I thought I would post a couple here.Here's a picture of our beautiful little girlAnd here's a family picture.

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1133238286698043562005-11-28T19:05:00.000-08:002005-11-28T20:24:47.240-08:00

I got a call from my midwife and she said that I am GBS negative this time, yippee!! No stressing about my water breaking early and no IV antibiotics, both of which are quite a relief. I don't really understand how I can be positive one time and negative several years later, but whatever... I'll happily accept the test result without any further questioning.It has started to rain this evening,

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1133208400114864742005-11-28T11:46:00.000-08:002005-11-28T12:06:40.793-08:00

Ah, waiting. It build character or something, right? I am almost at the point where I am further along in this pregnancy than I got in my pregnancy with Emma, since she was born at 38 weeks, 3 days. I am definitely starting to get huge now, and the baby and I are having a hard time figuring out sleeping positions that work for both of us. The baby seems to prefer me to sleep on my left (which

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1132346632599409972005-11-18T12:10:00.000-08:002005-11-18T12:44:00.136-08:00

I had my in-home visit with my midwife this morning and all is well. The baby is head down, although his back is parallel with the right side of my body, which can lead to back labor... so I'm supposed to be spending time on my hands and knees and making sure I sleep on my left side as much as possible. Both should be far easier to do and be much more enjoyable than the breech tilt! She

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1132245377063718342005-11-17T08:15:00.000-08:002005-11-17T08:36:17.113-08:00

Things are fine here, nothing too exciting. I think the baby might have shifted position on Tuesday morning, although my belly has been so tense with Braxton Hicks contrations it has been a little hard to tell. Yesterday I sort of felt like something might be happening as I just felt sort of different and what I assume were still BH contractions were getting stronger and more regular, but of

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1131682600766868012005-11-10T19:55:00.000-08:002005-11-10T20:19:26.893-08:00

Today we had our second class at the Lindsay Museum up in Walnut Creek. The class is supposed to be about the weather, but I think the instructor has decided that it is too complicated of a subject to try and broach with three year olds, so instead we talked about spiders and insects. The kids enjoyed it, and I got to hold a 4" walking stick insect so it all was fine. There was also a good

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1131681282942687652005-11-10T19:26:00.000-08:002005-11-10T20:21:00.836-08:00

I read this in our local freebie paper today:"Thirty years ago, a family earning 70 percent of the state's median income could afford to buy a house at the median price. Today, a family must earn $110,000 per year, or 175 percent more than the median income, to afford a house that is priced at the statewide median, which is $469,000."Ah, lovely. And then to think that the median price is higher

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1131503113248129432005-11-08T17:36:00.000-08:002005-11-08T18:25:13.290-08:00

I read this morning that this year's "special election" spending has exceeded previous elections, even though there were half as many propositions on the ballot. I reflected back on the election season and realized that we only received one piece of mail relating to the state elections, and that I've only seen a handful of billboards relating to the propositions. We also received absolutely no

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1130992735783363062005-11-02T20:35:00.000-08:002005-11-02T20:38:55.806-08:00

*sigh*At least the baby's only been in this position since Thursday night (I think) and I'm "only" at 34 weeks. My midwife doesn't seem too concerned as of yet, and everything else seems to be looking just fine so at least there's that. But still, *sigh*

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1130828148091454622005-10-31T22:09:00.000-08:002005-10-31T22:55:48.106-08:00

I am not really a Halloween person at all. I used to really like it when I was a kid (my friends and I would even make haunted houses for our younger siblings, plan out our costumes and routes way in advance, etc), but I lost interest when my parents said I was too old to trick-or-treat when I was 11 or 12 and I never really regained it. Emma and I did make pumpkin shaped sugar cookies this

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1130775669531609812005-10-31T07:50:00.000-08:002005-10-31T08:21:15.170-08:00

I am starting to feel quite large these days... and at 34 weeks I am starting to both become acutely aware of just how much bigger I am going to get and how little time there really is until this baby will be born. Matt says that I've developed a couple new stretch marks on the underside of my belly already, so there's that to look forward to seeing! *grin* (Boy was I surprised by those after

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1130258578276937072005-10-25T09:17:00.000-07:002005-10-25T09:42:58.323-07:00

Boy I was tired yesterday! We got home at about 2:30am, after even more delays at the airport (they had trouble finding someone to fuel the plane, minor problem...). Thankfully the parking lot shuttle was quick to come and we had a smooth drive home once we got out of the airport area. I'm hoping that things will be a bit more back to normal today as I was completely dead yesterday and barely

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1130128671758593962005-10-23T21:23:00.000-07:002005-10-23T21:37:51.776-07:00

We are stuck at the airport. We got here a little after 5 for our 8 pm flight (yes, we were eager to head home) only to find that our flight was delayed until about 10. Now the departure is set for 10:50 pm. This is a long time to sit at an airport, and I'm way beyond ready to BE HOME!!! Emma's doing great though - Matt and I are taking turns reading to her and exploring the airport with her.

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1129737216493586192005-10-19T08:28:00.000-07:002005-10-19T08:53:36.506-07:00

I have been eagerly awaiting the results of the tax advisory commission (yes, I'm serious, I'm that weird) and I'm pretty pleased with what I've been able to read so far about their findings. I think that what they are recommending makes a lot of sense and would go a long way towards simplifying the code and evening things out. I'm glad to see that the AMT would disappear and that many of the

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1129607902247849692005-10-17T20:36:00.000-07:002005-10-17T20:58:22.256-07:00

I've been looking forward to blogging tonight, but now that I'm sitting with my computer in my lap I don't seem to have many coherent thoughts in my head. I came down with a cold last week and I'm still trying to get through the tail end of it. Matt came down with it today, poor guy, and I'm really hoping he'll get over it faster than me. I'm also hoping that if Emma hasn't gotten it yet that

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1129174426090043982005-10-12T20:13:00.000-07:002005-10-12T20:33:46.100-07:00

Well, not as busy as my Wednesday was last week, but still we were pretty busy. We started the day by picking up my MIL's friend that she flew up from Southern CA with then dropped them both off at the airport for their flight home. After that, we headed through the Caldecott Tunnel over into Walnut Creek, got lunch, then visited the Lindsay Museum. The Lindsay Museum is this intimate little

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1129171914559991092005-10-12T19:36:00.000-07:002005-10-12T19:51:54.566-07:00

Emily tagged me a couple days ago with a what are you listening to quiz and I think I have a chance now to answer it, although I really don't have much of an answer.So anyways, here's what I'm supposed to do:Instructions: List five songs that you are currently enjoying. It doesn't matter what genre they are from, whether they have words, or even if they're any good, but they must be songs you're

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1128962598845793012005-10-10T09:27:00.000-07:002005-10-10T09:43:18.860-07:00

One little story I forgot to mention on my last post that I thought I would blog about... on the way up to Portland, there was a fair amount of turbulence. At first the baby was really bouncing around and kicking and pushing - I really don't think he liked the bouncing at all. After a bit though, I started feeling a very strong and steady pressure against my rib cage, and a lot of pressure

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1128626414561734982005-10-06T11:35:00.000-07:002005-10-06T12:20:14.596-07:00

I flew up to Portland yesterday, rented a car and drove across the bridge into Vancouver. (I felt like such a road warrior - reminded me of my working days! I teared up though whenever I saw a small child though because it made me think of my daughter... I am so glad I able to be home with her!) I met up with the realtor I contacted and she seems nice and competent, although somewhat

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1128491943992367422005-10-04T22:57:00.000-07:002005-10-04T22:59:04.000-07:00

So, I'm going up there... tomorrow (wednesday!)!!! It turned out to be the best day for Matt to work from home to stay with Emma and the cheapest flight. Fingers crossed and all that - it is still hard to believe I am doing this!

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1128467795201678392005-10-04T16:11:00.000-07:002005-10-04T16:16:35.210-07:00

So things are still looking very promising with that property - very promising. Matt and I are seriously considering sending me up there in the next few days to take a look at it, and at a couple other ones that look interesting, but not quite as much so. YIKES!It is strange because it feels really quite right to be doing this, but then I step back and think "what are we doing?? This is insane

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1128291029207554772005-10-02T14:48:00.000-07:002005-10-02T15:10:29.226-07:00

I've periodically been torturing myself by looking at homes in the Vancouver (WA) area to see what is on the market. I try to tell myself that it is market research, but really it is a way to make me feel even more frustrated and caught up in limbo. I looked at one point yesterday, and found a place that seemed neat, but the pictures were pretty bad so it was rather hard to tell. I told Matt

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1128231537626680742005-10-01T21:26:00.000-07:002005-10-01T22:38:57.666-07:00

I'm now at 30 weeks and I think I have reached moose stage. I feel big, but not quite all the way to elephant - I think that will hit at about 34 weeks. From there I think I'll go onto blue whale until I finally pop. But we shall see, I reserve the right to change my mind. I don't remember feeling quite so stretched and sore in my lower abdomen in my last pregnancy, but I have also recently

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1127862766594379482005-09-27T16:10:00.000-07:002005-09-27T16:12:46.600-07:00

I stood in front of the door to my home, keyless entry dongle for the subaru in hand, and tried to open the front door by pressing the unlock button twice. When it didn't work, I stood back, with a puzzled expression on my face for a couple moments. Then I slowly shook my head and pulled out my house keys.We have our second childbirth class tonight from 6:45 - 9:45... I think it is going to be

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1127433706307191042005-09-22T16:50:00.000-07:002005-09-22T17:01:46.333-07:00

I took this quiz because a number of other blogs I read have been taking it too... and I can't say I'm surprised at the results.You speak eloquently and have seemingly read everybook ever published. You are a fountain ofendless (sometimes useless) knowledge, andnever fail to impress at a party.What people love: You can answer almost anyquestion people ask, and have thus beennicknamed Jeeves.What

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1126805759372499002005-09-15T10:08:00.000-07:002005-09-15T10:35:59.433-07:00

I read today that the median home price has reached 619K in the Bay Area and 586K in Alameda County (where we live). I haven't found published data for the city we live in, but we seem to run about 75K higher than the county median which puts up somewhere around 660K. Oh joys. We need to get out of here!!! But I think I've already made that abundantly clear *grin*.I feel like we're in limbo

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1126673148408725512005-09-13T21:36:00.000-07:002005-09-13T21:45:48.416-07:00

I keep running across moms who talk about their kids having absolutely no sense of colors/patterns matching, wearing whatever they first pull out of their drawers without respect to occasion or season, etc... Well, I just can't relate. For instance, we went out to Trader Joe's this afternoon and Emma was wearing pink underwear, pink tights, a pink plaid sleeveless dress, a white shirt under the

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1126588758579802772005-09-12T21:57:00.000-07:002005-09-12T22:19:18.680-07:00

At my local Mom's Club meeting this evening we had a guest speaker who teaches local parenting classes. She had some interesting things to say, and a lot of what she said validated what I've already learned and (at least try to!) practice. One thing that really struck me was her discussion of a genuine encounter. If you're not familiar with the term, pretty much what it means is taking the

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1126587460708276102005-09-12T21:50:00.000-07:002005-09-12T21:57:40.710-07:00

Over the weekend we discovered what our cats have been watching for so intently in the backyard... yes, that's right, we have at least one resident rat. It is a cute and plump female rat who seems to have a taste for tomatoes. I was rather wondering why it seemed like the green tomatoes on our tomato plants never turned red, and I wasn't terribly surprised to find that this was the answer.

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1126586995342947562005-09-12T21:47:00.000-07:002005-09-12T21:49:55.350-07:00

I wimped out and decided not to do it. If I didn't have to get in at that hour, or didn't have to bring the carseat, or if they weren't quite so far away from the airport or if it wasn't flying into JFK... etc, etc, etc. Just more than I wanted to tackle on my own (well, not on my own as I would have Emma, of course, but I think you know what I mean).I think I'm a little disappointed in myself

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1126331443839237312005-09-09T22:22:00.000-07:002005-09-09T22:50:43.860-07:00

My step-grandmother's (Nanny) 95 birthday is coming up next weekend and that whole side of the family is getting together for it. It really isn't that big of a family, but they rarely all get together. She lives on Long Island and my parents and brother just made their arrangements to fly out for this party. My step-brother and his girlfriend will be out from NYC, and my step-sister and her

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1126299880308666872005-09-09T13:19:00.000-07:002005-09-09T14:04:40.316-07:00

Danielle Bean has a great post today with a really cute story about one of her kids - really made me laugh out loud!Cash for CrabsAnother good one on a totally different subject is Jane Galt's smack-down of some of the European response she's seen regarding Katrina. I thought it was quite well put together and an altogether entertaining and enlightening read. "Myth" BustingMy favorite paragraph

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1126282880318647472005-09-09T08:44:00.000-07:002005-09-09T09:21:21.773-07:00

Marginal Revolution linked today to two more posts on the whole U-Haul pricing as a way to look at migration patterns. One is a review of the idea by the Freakonomics authors and the other is a huge data crunch that some guy with too much time on his hands did as a little mental and scripting exercise. Nothing all that new learned, I suppose, but the trends do seem to bear out. Personally, I

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1125375512617377672005-08-29T21:07:00.000-07:002005-08-29T21:18:32.623-07:00

I read a short piece on Marginal Revolution about U-Haul Pricing, where they cite another blogger who is speculating about what U-Haul's pricing might be able to tell us about moving trends. He checks the price of a LA to Las Vegas rental (and vice versa) and finds that it costs about 3.5 times as much to go from LA to Las Vegas than the other direction!I thought this was rather interesting, and

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1125337766341426912005-08-29T10:18:00.000-07:002005-08-29T10:49:26.960-07:00

We have booked a trip up to Portland, OR in October to go take a look around! Matt managed to wrangle two days off (ah, the joys of working for a small company) and we're going up on Oct. 20th for 4 days. I'm really looking forward to having a car and being able to drive around the greater area to take a look. Right now we're focusing our research in southern WA, in Clark County. Right now

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1124913054151309872005-08-24T12:47:00.000-07:002005-08-24T12:50:54.153-07:00

Last night we walked up to our local grocery store and they had those smaller watermelons on sale. I've been wanting to try one, so we bought one... then my poor husband had to carry it home because Emma need to rush home to use the potty! (Thanks, hon, I appreciate it!) Emma and I opened it up today and proceeded to eat half of it for lunch. It was so tasty! The funniest part was that Emma

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1124768972620433202005-08-22T20:30:00.000-07:002005-08-22T21:12:00.230-07:00

I've been thinking about my last post, and feeling like I need to remind myself of our overall situation a bit and put things in perspective. What I've been considering is more specific than the "well, at least we have our health and a lovely family" type of perspective (not that these things aren't incredibly important!). Instead I've been thinking how fortunate we are that we have as much as

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1124747176904579362005-08-22T13:46:00.000-07:002005-08-22T14:46:16.976-07:00

One blog I really enjoy is called Classic Adventures. It is written by a woman who has a way with words, a great sense of humor, and a good eye for what to write about. They live in Northern Alabama and have 3 boys, with another child on the way. They are also homeschoolers, which I very much enjoy reading about! They have been trying to figure out where and how they can get to their forever

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1124743548253193582005-08-22T13:37:00.000-07:002005-08-22T13:45:48.270-07:00

Not that I mentioned that we were going anywhere or anything... We did a 3 day camping trip with my husband's parents down at Sequoia National Park and had a very nice time. We stayed in the Mineral King area of the park, which is definitely off the beaten path. My husband has a knack for picking campgrounds like that! It was 20 miles off the highway on a one lane, seriously windy road. I

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1124135111748886462005-08-15T10:39:00.000-07:002005-08-15T12:46:01.573-07:00

First off, the weather has been glorious the last few days. We woke up on Saturday with a very nice high cloud cover, and it has returned every morning since. The highs have only been in the 70's and the sun has been peeking through in the afternoons... it has been such a welcome relief from the relentless 95+ degree days we've been having for the last month. I've been feeling so much more

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1123360242125707192005-08-06T13:19:00.000-07:002005-08-06T13:30:42.136-07:00

Well, the cake didn't turn out quite as well as I had hoped, but it still was pretty good. Making an angel food type cake is an interesting experience. I've never taken 3 egg yolks and 3/4 cup of water and turned it into one quart of mixture before! Amazing what beating eggs for a long time will do. The cake did fall a bit in the oven, which defeated my plan to slice the cake in half and put

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1123260115404173042005-08-05T08:37:00.000-07:002005-08-05T09:41:55.430-07:00

Real Live Preacher (RLP) is a blog written by a somewhat unconventional Baptist minister in Texas. It is one of the first blogs I ever read consistently, and the blog I've read for the longest period of time. I've been reading his blog since sometime in the early spring of 2003, not too long after he got going online. One of his essays, called "The Preacher's Story", was very important in my

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1123203098150814722005-08-04T17:29:00.000-07:002005-08-04T17:51:38.160-07:00

I have discovered knitting! For the past couple of years, I've been trying to find some sort of portable handicraft I can do. Ever since about half-way through college, I've had a lot of problems with my wrists and hands. My dexterity, especially in my left hand, is nowhere where it should be and my hand strength has never really fully recovered either. I've tried cross-stitch (as my

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1123201368514150822005-08-04T16:49:00.000-07:002005-08-04T17:22:48.540-07:00

Well, actually I've been back since late Monday, but it has taken me a couple days to get back in the swing of things. We had a very nice trip to Portland, I really like it up there. The weather was great, we had fun doing the various activities we picked out, and we generally had a very nice time. If anyone is doing any sightseeing in the Portland area, I highly recommend the jet boat tour of

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1122527664134860372005-07-27T21:58:00.000-07:002005-07-27T22:14:24.140-07:00

I've had all these posts swirling around in my head, and absolutely no time to put anything together. Well, I probably could have a bit over the weekend, but I was up in Tahoe and I decided that I needed to spend some time not staring at my computer! My hubby is off on a 5 night backpacking trip in the Eastern Sierra Nevada, up above Bishop. We drove to Tahoe on Friday, stayed at my parent's

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1122009433572412262005-07-21T22:06:00.000-07:002005-07-21T22:17:13.576-07:00

Ever since I thought of the title for this post, I've had that song "Beauty School Dropout" from Grease stuck in my head. Get it out, get it out!Anyways... yes, I did it, I dropped out of the playgroup I was in. I realized that belonging to something that I dreaded going to is probably not exactly the greatest idea. I also didn't feel like I was getting much out of it (other than fodder for

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1121987476273292422005-07-21T16:05:00.000-07:002005-07-21T16:11:16.276-07:00

This is so weird. We've dropped 10 degrees in the course of the afternoon and the skies have been darkening considerably. We're now just below 70 degrees at 4 o'clock on a July afternoon, after seeing a high of about 80 around noon. I've been futzing around the house, thinking "goodness, if I didn't live in the Bay Area, I would think we're in for a thunderstorm soon!" It certainly isn't

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1121644594923595072005-07-17T16:34:00.000-07:002005-07-17T16:56:34.930-07:00

I often think today or what a difference it would make if children believed that they were contributing to a family's survival and happiness. In the transformation from a rural to an urban society, children are robbed of the opportunity to do genuinely responsible work. - Dwight D. Eisenhower, as quoted in How to Find your Ideal Country Home, by Gene GeRue.I read this quote then stopped and

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1121354415804246602005-07-14T08:10:00.000-07:002005-07-14T08:20:15.810-07:00

I thought this was an interesting post, by a woman who was homeschooled, and soon will be homeschooling her children.Homeschooling: What worked and what didn'tI really find these second generation homeschoolers interesting, and I'm very curious to see how they end up influencing the overall homeschooling community, as well as all the various sub-groups.I also really like the name and tagline of

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1121271409668419222005-07-13T09:05:00.000-07:002005-07-13T09:42:29.346-07:00

The Hazards of Pregnancy: Bread and Jam for Frances is not an easy book to read when one is perpetually queasy from pregnancy! It is better than Archie the Donut though, which we thankfully returned to the library yesterday.But that aside, this pregnancy is going very well so far. I had my 18 week appointment with my midwife on Monday afternoon, and all seems well. I have "only" gained 10 lbs

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1121146973898746712005-07-11T22:34:00.000-07:002005-07-11T22:42:53.900-07:00

What is it with doing birthday parties for small children? I just don't get it. Why do parents feel the need to do these fancy parties for their small children? Whatever happened to a small family celebration and leaving it at that? I don't see why every birthday needs to involve a whole big thing with party favors, activities, games, etc, etc, etc. One of the questions asked tonight was

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1121146465351660922005-07-11T21:58:00.000-07:002005-07-11T22:34:25.360-07:00

Someday I hope to find a group of families where my family can feel like we belong. I was at my mom's club meeting tonight, and I realized that while all these women are generally nice women and all, I really don't fit in all that well. I get along just fine with all of the women I've met, I just don't really find myself becoming particularly close to any of them, and it has been a little hard

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1120797643232679182005-07-07T21:21:00.000-07:002005-07-07T21:40:43.236-07:00

My mother-in-law received the following information about the crash from her local police department (I have edited it to remove location details):The event occurring in this subdivision on July 4th was a reported grand theft of cardboard at a nearby Target store. Three subjects were seen fleeing the area in a Toyota van, which was picked up by an officer a couple blocks away. The officer

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1120587444437920932005-07-05T10:18:00.000-07:002005-07-05T11:19:57.456-07:00

We drove down to Southern CA on Saturday to visit with Matt's family over the long weekend. It has been both a relaxing and eventful weekend. After the 7.5 hour drive up on Saturday, we got to spend a very nice evening visiting with Matt's cousin and her family, which was very enjoyable. I think I have made a new friend, even if she does live on the other side of the state. Sunday started off

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1120427736329626942005-07-03T14:42:00.000-07:002005-07-03T14:55:36.336-07:00

I haven't been posting much to this blog over the past couple months because I felt a little uncertain how I wanted to write about one of the main things going on in my life right now. I've decided that I'm tired of this, and I would like to be able to break the mental logjam, so I figured I would just make this little announcement and then hopefully that will make me feel a bit more comfortable

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1119042258582396432005-06-17T13:41:00.000-07:002005-06-17T14:04:18.586-07:00

I was reading this article in the Contra Costa Times "Buyers see new line of mortgages" and it just makes me want to scream. At some point, it seems like the banks would run out of crazy financing options, don't you think? Well, no, I guess not, we Americans are a creative lot, aren't we. *sigh*But I think I have come up with the a new mortgage product, that should be available at a bank near

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1118594109545050922005-06-12T09:14:00.000-07:002005-06-12T09:35:09.550-07:00

I took Emma to Santa Cruz on Friday, to do a couple errands and to visit our old neighbor. Matt wanted some Sweet Italian from Santa Cruz Coffee Roasting Company (yum, so good!) and some green coffee and a beer kit from Seven Bridges. I wanted to get a couple copies of Emma's birth certificate (not that I need them immediately or anything, it just seems like a good thing to have) and go out to

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1117691690254575232005-06-01T22:52:00.000-07:002005-06-01T22:54:50.256-07:00

I thought this was a kind of neat little quiz... and yes, I know, it is pathetic that this is all I seem to be posting these days. I am not feeling particularly extroverted these days (which isn't saying much for me, I suppose) so I haven't really felt like posting much. Your Dominant Intelligence is Linguistic IntelligenceYou are excellent with words and language. You explain yourself well.An

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1115333313051302112005-05-05T15:43:00.000-07:002005-05-05T15:48:33.056-07:00

I've had this cold for almost a week now, and I'm really getting tired of it! The worst was Tues and Wed, when I could barely drag myself out of bed... but today is a little better and I'm hoping that tomorrow I'll be almost back to normal. I'm glad I was a little better today though, I had 9 overdue books that needed returning, and we were desperately low on cat sand. Both of these things

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1113580040467198962005-04-15T08:44:00.000-07:002005-04-15T08:47:20.466-07:00

I took this test and I thought the results were kind of funny.Your Linguistic Profile:70% General American English15% Upper Midwestern10% Yankee5% Dixie0% MidwesternWhat Kind of American English Do You Speak?Considering I've lived all my life in California, I'm really curious about that 5% dixie and the 15% upper midwestern. The 10% Yankee could be a linguistic "gift" from my step-dad, but who

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1113409469278076042005-04-13T09:15:00.000-07:002005-04-13T09:24:29.280-07:00

From an article in the Contra Costa Times...In 2001, as the housing boom got under way, fewer than 2 percent of California homes were bought with interest-only loans, according to an analysis done for the Los Angeles Times by LoanPerformance, a San Francisco mortgage research firm.By last year, the level had risen to 48 percent. Nationally, LoanPerformance says, interest-only loans were used in

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1113410480236488302005-04-13T08:45:00.000-07:002005-04-13T09:41:20.236-07:00

It occurs to me that I haven't posted for quite awhile... and it isn't because I've run out of things to say!Emma and I have been so busy, I feel like every monday morning I just throw myself headlong into my week, and hope feverently that I manage to make it to the weekend. Today is a nice, quiet day where I don't have anything planned or scheduled - the first of such days in quite awhile.

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1111169292929352192005-03-18T09:36:00.000-08:002005-03-18T10:08:12.993-08:00

It is extremely nice to live in the land of sidewalks. With the weather being as lovely as it has been for the last couple weeks, Emma and I have been walking or biking to the park, library, or other destinations almost every day. One of the things I most disliked about living in the Santa Cruz mountains was our inability to go out the door and go places. I wasn't sure I would take advantage

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1109480035601212572005-02-26T19:44:00.000-08:002005-02-26T20:56:16.053-08:00

Going to the zoo with just Emma was an interesting experience. Forgetting the stroller made it even more interesting. I liked Emma's take on this omission though -- "Mommy, not having a stroller means that we can go up the stairs together!" The zoo did not seem as not as crowded as I thought it would be, but that was largely because we went straight to the new Grizzly Bears then worked our way

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1109281399308984102005-02-24T13:14:00.000-08:002005-02-24T13:43:19.310-08:00

So that job I was thinking about (and mentioned in this post) - I decided not to do it. Things were very much up in the air, and there was no confirmation that I would get it or even when it would start... but still, I decided to take myself out of the running. After I had made my decision, and before I told anyone, I came across this quote which I found particularly relevant. This is from an

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1108617402955897652005-02-16T20:36:00.000-08:002005-02-17T11:32:34.686-08:00

We received our copy of Newsweek last night, with Judith Warner's article about "Mommy Madness" on the cover. I eagerly read the article last night because I'm always interested in this sort of thing, and I've been trying to digest it ever since. Really, I'm not sure what to say -- the world she describes is largely foreign to me. I just don't seem to travel in the same circles she does, and I

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1108144729599081702005-02-11T09:32:00.000-08:002005-02-11T09:58:49.600-08:00

Mothering Magazine recently published an article and a slideshow showing women at the workplace with their child(ren) in tow. There's an interesting post and discussion about this on Half Changed World about this idea, and the feasibility of it. Personally, I think that the second comment on this post sums it all up quite well - this all is getting rather ridiculous. First, we were supposed to

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1107996361153243132005-02-09T16:07:00.000-08:002005-02-09T16:46:01.153-08:00

Earlier today I was listening to NPR in the car with my (almost) three year old daughter. I was only half-listening, really, also thinking about errands I needed to run, things I needed to do, and the rest of the usual mental clutter that usually streams though my mind. I was vaguely aware of the news report, a story about a 13 year old boy who was killed by a police officer, and was thinking

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1107469058786474832005-02-03T14:08:00.000-08:002005-02-03T14:17:38.786-08:00

The White House has made a correction (by same unnamed senior official? I wonder) regarding the second part of my post below. The government will not seize a substantial portion of your personal account upon retirement, rather they will reduce the guaranteed portion of your Social Security payment by the amount of your contribution to your private account, plus 3%. Six of one, half dozen of the

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1107449089674441162005-02-03T08:03:00.000-08:002005-02-03T08:44:49.676-08:00

I've been meaning to write something on Social Security for quite a while (although I suppose I did write something here, although this proposal seems to be DOA) and I think I'll try to do that today. It seems like an appropriate time, given that we just heard the President's State of the Union address last night. My first thought is regarding the general need for reform. I may be completely

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1107371877004536732005-02-02T10:56:00.001-08:002005-02-03T14:19:52.553-08:00

On Sunday, we went to the Santa Cruz mountains to visit our former neighbors. This was Matt's first trip back to the area since we moved, and only the second time Emma and I had been back. The old house looked sad and a little run down, and it was strange to see it that way. It's a lousy time of year there though -- the sun barely touches the ground, and the moisture is so thick in the air you

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1107370398409577522005-02-02T10:36:00.000-08:002005-02-02T10:53:18.410-08:00

I don't think of myself as someone who holds a grudge, but I've realized recently that there is one I've been holding onto for about three years. My husband and I have a friend who came to visit us only days after our daughter was born -- he just happened to be passing through and stopped by for a visit. During the visit, he hardly even acknowledged our brand new baby's presence, and referred

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1106171775178991732005-01-19T13:35:00.000-08:002005-01-19T13:56:15.180-08:00

I recently read an interesting article in the Contra Costa Times about saving for retirement. The basic premise of the article is that people need to be saving a lot of money, and that saving more and starting earlier is far more important than getting a high return on your investment. For example, they state, based on their research: Say you're a 30-something, with 30 years to go before

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1106170494695960002005-01-19T13:25:00.000-08:002005-01-19T13:34:54.696-08:00

Subtitle: Why I love economists Only an economist (I think) could come up with an argument like this: Basic microeconomics recommends a simple strategy. Have the number of children that maximizes average utility over your whole lifespan. When you are 30, you might feel like two children is plenty. But once you are 60, you are more likely to prefer ten sons and daughters to keep you company and

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1105803577182565512005-01-15T07:30:00.000-08:002005-01-15T08:11:44.860-08:00

This morning, David Brooks has a column (sorry, registration required) that discusses something I've often thought about and discussed with my husband. He discusses the possibility of accepting more flexibility in the sequencing of women's lives, so that it might be easier for families to raise children. It's what I've somewhat inadvertently stumbled into, I suppose, and it would be really neat

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1105637348445625822005-01-13T08:57:00.000-08:002005-01-13T09:30:32.520-08:00

I read this bit in the "Value Driven" column in the 1/10/05 issue of Fortune Magazine. The columnist, Geoffrey Colvin, is talking about consumer debt levels, and offers this as a vivid example of the consumer debt situation. The question asked respondents [in a Zogby poll over the summer] "what it means to be well-off or successful". You might have expected answers about expensive cars or

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1105635042467967342005-01-13T08:38:00.000-08:002005-01-13T08:50:42.466-08:00

Why is knowing all the animals on a farm and the noises they make considered a critical skill for young children? For two year olds, it seems like it is given the same level of importance as learning shapes and colors. Is this a lingering throwback to our agricultural heritage? Is it because farm animals are considered "cute"? I wonder if other cultures share this obsession with barking and

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1104779223016853852005-01-03T10:50:00.000-08:002005-01-03T11:37:09.453-08:00

Inspired by Anirvan's post over on the Bookfinder Journal I decided to put together my 2004 reading stats. I don't (currently!) post a log of all that I read, but I have been keeping track of all the books I've read since June of 1998. So, without further ado... 2004 Reading Stats: Number of Books read: 64 Average read per month: 7.8 Greatest number of books read in one month: 9 (March)

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1103755590563354872004-12-22T14:39:00.000-08:002004-12-22T14:46:30.563-08:00

Things rapidly get out of hand! Here's an article from the Sacramento Bee, documenting how a Schwarzenegger quote got completely mangled and blown completely out of whack. The quote changes from a rather mild statement about how the Republican party should move back towards the center a bit, to one where he is telling the Republican party that they need to embrace gay marriage and abortion

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1103746158895027232004-12-22T13:01:00.000-08:002004-12-22T12:09:18.896-08:00

And one more post for today (since dear daughter is content to play with her legos a bit longer!) Here's yet another example of how everything is far more complicated than it seems - this Reason article describes some of the fallacies and challenges biologists confront when they attempt to do stem cell research. Here's a very interesting quote, which I hadn't really heard anything about: John

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1103745630876760892004-12-22T11:55:00.000-08:002004-12-22T12:00:30.876-08:00

I've been reading quite a few different suggestions about how to alter Social Security, and I think this one is my favorite. I orginally saw it in Fortune magazine, but now it's also posted on the New America Foundation website. I think it's reasonable, pragmatic, not too drastic, and should help both the fiscal solvency of Social Security as well as adding an ownership aspect to the program.

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1103745311376406372004-12-22T11:49:00.000-08:002004-12-22T11:55:11.376-08:00

I'm sure the real reason for this isn't nearly as interesting as we would like it to be... (thank you, Glenn Reynolds) They are welcome to a Subaru Impreza Outback Sport windshield as well, especially if they'll clean the inside too. But it is rather intriguing, isn't it, especially since it keeps happening.

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1103178837471042192004-12-15T22:29:00.000-08:002004-12-15T22:40:12.490-08:00

This is a neat thread - what I find facinating about it is that a not insignificant number of these books that people are deeply embarrassed to not have read, I've never even heard of! My goodness that was a convoluted sentence. I guess that shows the limits of my education... and I guess that applies to both parts of the above paragraph. I'm trying to think what I consider embarrassing not

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9024101.post-1102986665867450492004-12-13T16:34:00.000-08:002004-12-13T17:11:05.866-08:00

I just decided not to respond to someone and I'm not sure how I feel about it. There's someone who's been interested in the cohousing group for several years, but has stayed at the sidelines instead of becoming a member. I think she's gone to a few meetings, but she hasn't for at least a year. Despite her lack of contact with the group, she's made several decisions about the group's

Amberhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08511985186451079402noreply@blogger.com1