Odds And Ends

Do you ever look at your kid, really REALLY look at him, and think, "Wow, you're MY KID."

The amazement of reproduction and the creation of life is never too far away when you have a baby. In those first couple of weeks after bringing a baby home from the hospital, it's with you all the time. It's easy to get swept away by the insane fact that you just made a person. But then your fresh-faced newborn becomes a chubby-thighed infant who becomes a boyish toddler.

Most days you subconsciously accept the fact that he's yours that he came from you. But every once in a while, the amazement of life catches you again and you just stop and stare. And the harder that you stare at your kid, the more he looks like a stranger. He's not the tiny baby you brought home from the hospital. He's become a person with preferences and feelings and thoughts. And when you stop to think about it, really REALLY think, it blows your mind. You CREATED this person. He came from you. He lived within you.

Amazing.

And now, he's running around in his underwear, launching throw pillows across the living room, and chanting "I have a BIG TOOT!"

Really? THAT came from me?

In other news:

I'm been insanely busy getting ready for Jacob's 4th birthday party. After work this week, I've already done the following: sewn a slip cover for our baywindow cushion (I'm never doing that again!), sewn spider-shaped bean bags for a Spiderman themed bean bag toss, AND paper mached a spider-shaped pinata. Phew. Tired.

To go off on another tangent....

If I have to read ONE MORE politically-charged Facebook status, I'll probably throw my computer against something. Seriously, I'm so sick of it. I don't mind if people want to say good things about their favorite candidate but it really bugs me when people belittle the candidate or views of people on the other side. Facebook has gotten as negative as all the shit-slinging Presidential campaing ads. I'm. Up. To. Here.

I think the biggest problem is that among my FB friends, my views are a minority. I'm a fiscally conservative, socially liberal libertarian. I vote both party lines. I voted for Bush in 04. I voted for Obama in 08. I think I am more open minded than most and I can respect and understand the views that I don't agree with. But I have to put up with everyone's negativity all day long.

I recognize political rhetoric when I see it, on EITHER side. And when it comes to Facebook, I've noticed one thing that is always true. The negativity is ALWAYS the result of someone not understanding the other side or labeling them incorrectly in an attempt to make themselves feel self-righteous. And the negativity always brings hypocrisy. No one is flawless. No political party is perfect. Get over it. There is no evil here. There are just hopeful people trying to do good. We need to rid ourselves of the negativity and stop being so close-minded.

Ugh. Ok. I'm getting off my soap box now.

Now, to end on a happier note.