1st (Half) Step

At the moment, I'm fighting off a sinus infection/bronchitis, so I'm a bad mother and just realized I needed to document this.  Fay took her first unassisted step!  Okay, it was a half step (once her foot was in the air, she just leaned for me and waited to be caught), but she did it!  Of course, Steve was right there, but he missed it.  He was ticked.
BTW, this happened two days ago.
I know, bad mommy.

Now it's April 25th and I'm just getting around to announcing that my baby is officially a walker.  She has been since around the 15th.
Still a bad mommy.

Lick-it Glue

I'm waiting for Fay to wake up and decided to post.  I mean, why not?  It's not like the only thing I have to talk about is the glue on envelopes that you lick to make it seal.
Why does some of it taste so good?  Why does some taste so bad?  Do envelope companies have levels of nastiness listed on their products?  "This envelope has a nasty rating of 5, a perfect level when you really want to stick it to your customers as they pay you out the nose."
And why do some envelopes require a lot of spit, and some hardly any at all?  Why does some glue slip and slide back and forth, while others are instantly perma-sealed?
Just wondering.

Psychology

I really wish I could have majored in psychology.  I think I need it.  Then I can understand my own psychoses (and everyone else's, too).
That said, I bought Plaque Blast for Kellin (yes, as seen on TV) because he's too old to be put under for the vet to clean his teeth and they are nasty.  After I bought the stuff I saw all this ranting and raving on the Internet that it's poisonous.  Worried, I went to plaqueblast.com and the site had disappeared.  Needless to say, I kind of flipped out.
Well, the Plaque Blast finally showed the other day, and I was determined to send it back.  That is, of course, until Steve was late getting home, I got bored, and Kellin decided he needed to be right in my face for extended periods of time.  You know that smell at the fish counter in a land-locked, small-town grocery store?  That's what his breath smells like.  And since I've never liked seafood, it's doubly unpleasant.  Anyway, I sprayed the crap in his mouth because I figure people freak out about fluoride all the time and I happen to think it's a good thing.  Surprisingly, it cut the bad smell by probably 70%, and it didn't just cover it with a fresh minty scent.
If Jake can survive the popsicle stick, Kellin can survive poison Plaque Blast.
Right?

Piano Lessons

When I was a kid, everyone always threw such a fit when they had to go to piano lessons.  They were so adamant about how horrible they are that I never took any.
This is an e-mail I got today from one of the parents that I teach piano to their kids:

"I am so sorry for the short notice but the kids have to get shots this morning and I totally forgot :( so we won't be able to come for piano. They are walking around the house crying and they haven't had the shots yet! I'm glad I didn't tell them a week ago, it would have been a long week! Sorry!!"

This is a very typical reaction when someone doesn't come to piano.  I just don't get it.  I mean, yeah, they earn "stars" and get prizes and all, but it's still piano.  What gives?  Sometimes I worry people think I'm a child predator.

Pancake Batter

At school today (I teach a music class as the elementary) I told the kids it felt like my head was filled with pancake batter.  That's no better at 2:12 in the morning when I can't sleep and the baby will be up in four hours.
And I have nothing to blog about.
But I'm on blogspot, anyway.

I'm a genius.

Mangos

So, I realize I haven't posted in a long time.  Therefore, a completely random subject.

Mangos.

I've started doing Bountiful Baskets (to learn more, go to bountifulbaskets.org) and both weeks that I've done it I've gotten mangos.  I was excited because I've never really tried mangos before.  Here are my observations:
1.  Apparently you're not supposed to eat the skin, because it's really thick and leathery.
2.  Although there's no pit (like in a peach), there is a definite core in a mango, and it's as hard as a pit.
3.  Mangos have a surprisingly creamy taste, while still being vibrant and, for lack of a better word, they taste the way the color green looks.
4.  Sometimes, as I'm eating them, I get the overwhelming scent of freshly mown hay.

Now that we've covered the basics, I have to wonder why some mangos are to-die-for good while others make me want to gag.  Could it possibly be that the gag ones are not ripe?

So I searched to find out how to tell if a mango is ripe.  On the site I ended up on, I noticed immediately that "the skin of a mango is considered inedible."  Should I get a bonus point for knowing that, or lose a point for actually trying to eat something inedible?

Continuing on, I read:  "Because mangos come in a rainbow of reds, yellows, oranges, and greens, color is not the best way to determine ripeness.  Sniff for a fragrant fruity odor at the stem end, or squeeze very gently to detect a firm yet yielding feel under your fingers."

Huh?

My mango is mushy.  Is that good or bad?  How am I supposed to know if my mango is meant to be green?  Or yellow?  Or purple with pink polka dots?

I've come to the conclusion that I'm not smart enough for mangos.  Therefore, I will stagger blindly into the kitchen and eat my (possibly) ripe Bountiful Baskets mango.

Pray for me.