Miscellaneous Jibber-Jabber

So a lot of people are pretty vocally upset about Netflix raising prices and splitting plans.  And I think it’s pretty funny, and also indicative of a weird sense of entitlement in the U.S. that causes people to think that they should get something for nothing.  Or, in this case, that they should have streaming video and DVDs by mail even if the company that’s doing so isn’t making enough money to sustain those services.  Oh, I could go on, but it’s been said, like here and here.

 

That’s not what I want to talk about, though, really.  Tony and I are fairly new to the Netflix thing, and even at $9.99 (current price) for streaming and DVD, it’s cheaper than our previous Blockbuster service, which we clung to because we could exchange mailed movies at the Blockbuster in town for free.  But the streaming is so stinkin’ awesome with Netflix (do you know that Blockbuster streams, too, but it is a separate plan and twice as expensive?  Or, you can rent all sorts of movies from Blockbuster to stream for full price like pay-per-view?  These are not great alternatives) that I mentioned to Tony mere days before they announced the plan change that I would gladly pay $25 a month for what we are getting.

 

I spent the last 3 weeks of my pregnancy on the couch.  Tony and I made it through 4 seasons of Psych during that time.  We have since watched a season and a half of Better Off Ted and are sporadically watching such shows as Numb3rs, Pawn Stars, Man Vs. Food, and more.

 

But the greatest part is that I can get full episodes of Sesame Street, Thomas & Friends, and any number of kids shows for Charles instantly!  Do we live in an awesome age or what?

 

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In this layout in Blogger, I can’t really get my Google Reader to show my public shared pages as anything other than HTML (or is it XML?  I don’t know!).  Anyone know how to fix this?  I’d like to link to articles I find interesting, but I don’t want to shove them down your throat in a blog post.

 

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Jamie slept in 3 hour bouts last night!  Yeah!  I feel great today, best I’ve felt in awhile, even if Charles woke up at 6:30 am and joined us in bed – a queen sized bed for all four?  So cramped.  Tony also didn’t have to go in so early, so the crying and screaming on Charles’ part was somewhat limited.  He still seems to hate mornings, though.

 

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We’re going home for kite fest, sans Tony.  Anyone have any advice for me as I agonize over a long (5 hours without stops) trip with a toddler who needs to have a potty stop every hour, a newborn who needs to feed every 2 hours, and a dog who needs a walk at least once during the trip?  We’ll stock up on snacks, I’ll make sure the gas tank is full, but other than that, how can I keep my sanity (what’s left of it, that is)? 

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We’re considering hosting a barbeque in August.  Given my extensive complaining yesterday about the mess in the house and being unable to cope with standard mother/wife duties and also cooking for guests, this seems like a bad idea, no?  I’ll add to that the fact that I have accomplished very little weeding this summer and things are going quite crazy.  But!  We put in new grass in the back yard and it seems a shame to not show it off, not to mention show off James.  Am I nuts?  Do people do potlucks anymore?  Do you think anyone would be annoyed if I invited them to a potluck barbeque?  Do you think I could get away with enlisting others’ help for cleanup?  No, that last one probably won’t work at all…  I’ll end up cleaning, no matter what.  Perhaps we’ll just stick with smallish dinner parties and do a barbeque next year.

 

Speaking of, does it ever feel to anyone else like we are building and developing for fun in the future but are foregoing it today?  I mean, sure, that is the essence of the Protestant-American work ethic: sacrifice for the future, work hard for tomorrow, etc.  But what I mean is that I feel like Tony and I look forward to when we will be able to go camping with the kids, and fishing with the kids, and have friends over to barbeque without insisting that everyone go home by 8 pm so we can start bathtime, and we don’t find ourselves enjoying the current time.  In truth, we’re just exhausted by the end of the day.  What’s the cure?  As long as we keep having more kids, we keep putting off those great times.  Jamie won’t be ready to camp until next summer, maybe – probably the summer after.  I won’t be able to go anywhere overnight without him until next summer.  Tony and I won’t be able to go out alone for another couple of months (our anniversary?  I anticipate taking the baby, and that’s IF we actually go out anywhere) or later. 

 

Oh, I chose this (my mom’s always reminding me, “you chose this, no one forced you to have kids,” which is true, but does that negate my feelings?  Does that make my complaints invalid?), and I love James, and I love Charles, and I wouldn’t change them for anything in the world, I’m just wondering if anyone else has found a good balance.  And I guess I know, underneath all my “looking forward,”  that I will truly miss this time, this RIGHT NOW, and that when the kids are finally old enough to camp and to go someplace without a diaper bag, I’ll look back to their babyhood and be sad and nostalgic.  I think I read an article once about how people with kids are more fulfilled, but are not necessarily happier, chiefly because they cannot satisfy their own cravings and spontaneity, be those cravings for travel, food, activities, or any number of things.

 

So the question is really, how do you find contentment?  How do you keep from feeling like the grass is greener elsewhere?  I’m teary-eyed just thinking about how Jamie is already four weeks old (four weeks!) and I won’t ever get those first weeks back, but I also can’t help but think how awesome it will be when he sleeps through the night and walks and talks.  Oh, bother.  Way to make myself bawl.  This hormonal woman needs chocolate.

 

And, good God, I wish I could eat cheese right now.