We survived!

I have to admit that the flight back to CA was 100% better than the one going TO New York. For one thing, all 3 kids slept almost the entire flight. Yes, it was a mid-day flight but who am I to question sleeping kids??? So, Jet Blue, I do love you (hey, I made a rhyme) but your seats don't recline enough - fix it and we will be good to go.

Otherwise, the last week is a blur. Why is it a week of vacation goes by in the blink of an eye but a week at work goes by, well, sooooo much more slowly? Overall we had a great time. We took Foster to the Natural History Museum and the Hayden Planetarium (on two different days). Now, these are world-famous museums, known all over, right? We were thinking that Foster would go crazy over the dinosaur bones and the Planetarium show. Well, he did enjoy all that but wanna know what the true highlight of his two-day trip into the Big Apple was???? He wanted nothing more than to collect used Metro Cards - off the floor...in New York. Ick. For those of you not familiar with the Metro Cards you can click on the link and see what they are but basically they are pre-paid passes for the subways and buses, etc. And what do good New Yorkers do when their Metro Cards are empty and no longer usable? Do they throw them in the multiple trash cans nearby? Nope. Do they insert them into the easily accessible Metro Card recycling container? Nah. They toss them on the ground for 5 year old boys to pick up. Lucky for my kid!

Laura took me for my birthday to see Beauty and the Beast on Broadway. I really enjoyed it. How can you NOT enjoy a Broadway show? However, I admit to liking The Lion King much better. She also treated me to a wonderful lunch at the nearby Bond 45 restaurant which was simply wonderful! What a treat. That day, we were in the City solo - even more fun!

Not so fun was all of us getting sick mid-week last week. I must blame my horrible head cold on the New York subways. I could just "see" the virus' floating around the subway car invading my California immune system. I got it first, then my mom got it from me, then Laura got it from everyone else. Well, the kids seem fine though so that's good.

We also did some visiting with friends and relatives and as usual, my mom threw a party for the kids and invited half of Brooklyn - okay, not half, maybe a quarter! ;-)

That was also really fun and the food, OMG, the food........if ever there is a good reason to go to NY, the food was out of this world (Jewish Deli) - seriously, it was one of the few things that kept me going on the red-eye flight to NY (when I wanted to flush myself down the airplane toilet - well, either that or just lay down in the aisle - I was SO tired) - I just kept thinking of the food waiting for our arrival.

So, now we are back and I'm back at my new job.

I'm not going to go there just yet, that's a post for another time...

Repeat after me...

"I will never, ever, ever, never ever take the Red-Eye flight with 3 kids and sit 10 rows apart from Laura. Never, ever, ever..."

This is the flight that shall not be spoken of, well at least not right now. Maybe later, maybe.

Suffice it to say we are in New York, we've survived the MONSOON - good grief, but today we took Foster to the Natural History Museum and it was wonderful, just as I remembered it as a child when I went there on school field trips. I just loved watching Foster check everything out.

Tomorrow is the Hayden Planetarium - can't wait. More later!

Single Digits Baby!

Not counting today, we are 8 days away from our trip to New York.

Don't say I didn't warn you all you Jet Blue passengers on the red eye to New York from CA....

Just kidding, I hope.

Maybe I'm just making more of an issue about the flight than I need to, maybe the kids will be complete angels, maybe they'll sleep the entire time and be all refreshed and ready to go when we arrive, maybe there won't be any turbulence and we'll get there early...maybe not.

I can only hope that all goes well and the kids do fine. Right?

My new job isn't particularly happy that I'm working for 3.5 days (I'm taking a half day off on Friday the 13th, the day we leave for NY, AND it's my Birthday!!!) and then leaving on vacation for a week and a day (I'm taking the 23rd off as well to recuperate even though we arrive back in CA on the 22nd). But what can you do? I planned this vacation in January - way before I even interviewed for my new job. Yeah, I explained that all to them but you now the saying about "deaf ears". They do understand but I have this feeling it's just setting up some barriers that I'll have to work extra hard on to break down once we are back in CA and I'm back on the job. Then, get this, one of the largest 'cosmic jokes' has landed in my mailbox...

So, I'm planning to go to work on the 24th, my first "real" day on the new job. A day my new supervisor is waiting for with bated breath (they are in desperate need of more workers). And what do I get in my mailbox last week???


Can you guess???


Yup, a Jury Duty summons.


Guess the start date???


Go ahead, I double-dog dare ya!


YES - April 24th! My first day back on the job!


So, what does a good county citizen do?

I postponed my start date until October. I'll push my luck but only so far. I couldn't imagine telling my new-to-be supervisor that wait - I have jury duty, sorry, can't come into work. Then imagine if I got on a case? Not good. So, October it will be. Maybe by then I'll be ready for a day off of work. I don't think I'll want to be selected to be on a case so that's why I'm hoping for just a day off. Here in San Diego County for jury duty we have "One Day, One Trial". So if you go in on your report day and you don't get selected for a trial, you're done. Well, at least until your name comes up again and you get another summons (but at least you have one year to count on not having to go back). BUT, if you get selected for a trial, you have to serve just on ONE trial. After that is done, you are free for 3 years.


Well, I'm actually home right now for an hour and a half lunch (unheard of usually) during the end of my CPS training so I'm eating lunch, listening to the news, reading e-mail and updating my Blog.



I can so seriously multi-task...