Jarring blog title, perhaps?

Well, that’s the first thing that came to mind when reguarding my experience in church one Sunday.

Usually I’m not one to interact with people’s little children (that’s a whole ‘nother post), but this particular Sunday I wanted to.

The mother was there alone with her kids and her little fella’s shoes were untied. The service was almost over and I knew he’d be going to his class and thought it’d be helpful if I swooped him up to tie his shoes for her (he’s pretty little, not really speaking at all, so 2-ish? I really have no idea; I forget how old I am).

This little fella and I have always gotten along (I’ve known him since before he was born… wait, that doesn’t make sense; you know what I mean). He’s a sweetheart, gentle and well-behaved. His cherub-like face would melt your hard heart (if you had one, and I’m not saying you do).

So this wasn’t a surprise to him that I’d swoop him up, I’ve done it many times in his life. The surprise came after I was done.

(whispering) “Let’s get this shoe tied. Over, under, make a loop, wrap one around, stick the other through and pull! … “OK, let’s do the same thing on the other shoe… over, under, make a loop, wrap one around, stick the other through and pull!” His eyes looked up at mine in appreciation. All done! Lift him off my lap…

…what the?!?

Moisture on my hand. Oops, his diaper must be full and it seeped out the side a little when he was squished on my lap.

Leaned over to his mother and said it seems his diaper is full because I got a little wet. Her inquisitive expression confused me then she said, “He’s not wearing a diaper.”

O_O

Grabbed my phone from my lap and felt it was wet, too.

Looked down.

See that my phone has considerable wettness on the front and side then notice the 6″ round spot on my skirt… the wet spot on the bottom of my shirt…

“Oh. My. Gosh!” she looked horrified and apologized profusely. I think she realized the severity of it before I did. I told her not to worry about it, it’s not like SHE did it (wouldn’t THAT be awkward) and besides… it makes for great blog material.

He just pee’d a full pee and it was in my lap, oozing wherever it could find places to go (you know what I mean).

{shiver}

When I stood up, I could feel the warmth trickle through my underthings. Yes, gross, but freaking out wouldn’t have helped. I calmly asked Ben for the car keys so I could go home to shower and change. I needed to be back within the hour.

Rumor has it that the little guy has been potty training for a couple months. Maybe he’s not ready (you think?)

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Wickedly Awesome Babysitter and Our Family

How does a parent find out how much to pay a babysitter in their area; it must be different for a family in New York vs. a family in a small town in Kansas, don’t you think?

A woman posed the question on Facebook recently for our area:
OP: What is the going rate these days, per child, per hour, for a babysitter?
Answer: ‎$7-8 per hour, although some people pay more. Many girls won’t tell you how much they charge; but if you don’t pay enough, they are never available. :)
OP: Thanks for the info.
Another: She is spot on!

The current Washington State minimum wage is $8.67 (federal is $7.25). Am I supposed to believe that we should be paying a 12-15 year old about the same or more than what an adult can get at a business? Perhaps it’s my frugal (i.e. broke) nature to be so *ahem* cheap, but I’ve been paying $4/hr for non-driving babysitters (12-15ish) and $5/hr for driving babysitters (16-18) and have had no problem with availability.

As a matter of fact, I’ve traded services for babysitting and haven’t paid out of pocket for a sitter in over six months. That’s not to say that people who watch my kids aren’t WORTH paying… just that we’ve been lucky to have people who love to come over and watch them.

A text conversation tonight with a preschool teacher:
Me: I want to have more babies just so you can preschool them :) (but I really don’t want to have babies)
Them: Hahaha. Well, if you ever do, I shall preschool them for free! Because you’re awesome and your offspring are awesome!
Me: Yesss (fist pump). But you’re worth $20/hr [this person has been paid to babysit for that much by other families]
Them: Just so you know, if I wasn’t already occupied, I would totally offer to babysit your kids… and for free!

Maybe the gal that says “but if you don’t pay enough, they are never available” has high maintenance children that nobody wants to babysit. Or maybe she adds housework on top of it. I hear some parents leave a list of things to do when the kids are asleep: laundry, dishes, vacuum, dusting, take out the garbage, clean the bathroom(s), etc. Yeah, if I had to do manual labor, then I’d be unavailable every time she called me to babysit.

Our babysitter’s get to watch two cool kids who can feed themselves, are polite, like to play video games (that the babysitter’s like to play) and can watch movies while eating/drinking our stuff after bedtime. We ask them to clean up meals (wipe the counter of crumbs, put the dishes in the sink, put away the food) but our kids are responsible for everything else they messed up while the sitter is here. Unless the teens have a school/church/friend function that keeps them from being available, they’d rather come to our house to hang out “babysitting” and make a few bucks than stay at home doing the same thing for nothing ;)

Comments section: Don’t be mad at me for being frugal and don’t compare teenager babysitting rates with professional service prices.

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Spatulas: Why do they make some that can’t handle high heat? Aren’t spatulas made for flipping hot skillet foods (eggs, pancakes, meats, etc.)? I can’t remember which spatula can handle hot and which one cannot. They should ALL be high-heat resistant. If I need to flip cold stuff, I could use my hands. {or leave it unflipped}

If most of the utensils in the dishwasher are spoons, shouldn’t that be a warning that you consume way too much cereal and/or ice cream? {yes, there is such a thing as too much}

Cutting French bread that’s been cut in half and slathered in butter (particularly garlic butter with herbs) creates a dilemma. Trying to slice into individual pieces while butter-side up makes a crushed mess. The better way to get slices without crushing it to smithereens would be to turn it butter-side down, but then you lose buttery goodness. {sigh}

As garlic presses go, I think I have tried enough to conclude that the Pampered Chef one is the bomb. I have had an OXO, Cutco (great knives, crappy garlic press) and other non-recognizable brand presses and the PC one reigns supreme. You don’t need to peel the garlic before sticking it in the press and it gets it ALL minced without leftovers. {I don’t dig waste}

By the way, if you need to peel your garlic, stick it in your rubber husband (that’s what we call our rubber jar opener thingys) and roll it around your hand or on the counter a few times. {instead of buying Martha’s expensive rubber tube that does the same thing}

Tongs in long and short versions are always handy and pretty cheap. I suggest having the kind that have a lever at the bend that locks them closed for easy storage. The kind with the metal ring you push back and forth to lock seem to malfunction and cause me grief. Less grief in my kitchen the better. {which means I might cook more often}

Have you heard of a butter bell? It’s a European thing, that allows you to have room temperature butter without worry of spoiling. There are physics involved, which isn’t my strong suit, so know that it works without needing to know how (the water in the crock creates an airtight seal, which prevents spoiling/bacteria to form). We recently said “peace out” to the perfectly red Fiesta Ware-type butter dish when it accidentally crashed to the floor, so our room temperature butter sits on a mini-plate on the counter. Gross, I know, but we need soft butter at a moments notice. {margarine won’t do}

Anything you want to add or suggest? Stick it in the comments!

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Very few times have I watched figure skating on TV, so I’m not familiar with Johnny Weir, but I’m impressed with what I’ve learned in this short article and accompanying video(s).

The interview was largely about how Weir decided to work hard for his dreams (he comes from a small town) and that he lives his life exactly how he wants (dressing in flamboyant attire; “Too much is not enough.”) and not how others tell him to be.

“I don’t need to answer to anybody.
I make my own path in this world.”

That statement is very powerful. It’s something that I wish more young people would embrace. Being confident in who you are and sharing that with the people you meet (on the street each day… Sesame Street, anyone?) to infect others with a higher self esteem (which, I feel, is lacking in many people these days… I wonder why that is.)

Of course that doesn’t mean we should be a jerk while embracing this idea. But Johnny has a cool disposition (in the few videos I’ve just watched of him this morning), is poised and polite.

When he addresses his feelings toward the 2010 Olympic gold medalist, Evan Lysacek, who’s beat Johnny two years in a row, I feel he is speaking honestly when he says, “I absolutely hold no grudges against Evan. Of course he was important in my life, simply because he was my biggest rival from the United States. He’s the Olympic champion and a world champion, and of course I’m jealous of those things that he has. But that’s the only jealousy or grudge I hold against him.”

Those last two sentences are what impress me… he’s jealous of the things he has, but that’s all. He doesn’t dwell on the fact that Evan has bested him or punish himself for not being as good, he instead has a healthy attitude toward his rival by recognizing his accomplishments and not attacking his character.

This is a highly combustive subject so I’ll just share what Weir pointed out about being a gay man. Meredith Vieira asked about “coming out” and he said:

“I’m very surprised by the reaction, because I’ve never lived in a closet. I’ve never claimed to be straight or gay, I claimed to be Johnny Weir. And that’s something I think is very important for anybody in this world is to own who you are, regardless of what you’re born into. I was born a white male, a white gay male, and I don’t celebrate being white or male, so why should I celebrate being gay? That’s my opinion on the whole thing.”

This man impresses me with his demeanor and inspires me to be proud of  and work hard at what I am good at, not dwell on what I’m not good at or the things I have little or no control to change.

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