For Christmas: Zimbabwe, Somalia.... the World.

The people of Zimbabwe are in dire need of prayer. I don't know if there is really anything that we can DO besides pray for these people. The cholera outbreak there is threatening to wipe out the people, and the bank issues are just..... unreal. These people need help. Read more here.

Rarely do I listen/watch our own country's news casts. Sometimes, but rarely. Most of the time when I'm in my car especially, I listen to the BBC. This is where real world events are reported, whereas in the US, I'm tired of hearing how damn spoiled we are. I mean, stories about how a man was trampled to death by the Christmas shopping rush when opening the doors to a Wal-Mart - THAT'S TERRIBLY EMBARRASSING, and I'm ashamed of the lack of concern of our country's people. This, among many OTHER embarrassing moments like this, should never EVER happen.

But turn around this Christmas season and donate to the cause of the almost-in-complete-famine country of Somalia.

Here's a good one: donate some money in the name of your friends and family (in lieu of a Christmas gift - like a Nintendo Wii, for instance) to the Blood:Water Mission. At least you'll be helping sustain the lives within a whole COMMUNITY. I promise - you'll feel great, and the person that was supposed to get that elaborate fruit cake will be thanking YOU!

Seeing PINK

Well, friends....... we are having a baby GIRL!!!! :) We could not be more excited!! It didn't really matter, honestly - but we did think it was going to be another boy. My first instinct was girl, but then, as usual, like a ding-a-ling, I didn't trust my instincts.

I've never been much for girlie stuff - but I do like pink - most of the time - especially on my new little girl.

Come April, pink will be EVERYWHERE. :)

Business is good - so far.

I'm getting excited..... I've just been so "blah" lately feeling a little discouraged about my new business. Sure things are progressing - slowly, but yes, they are progressing - but I've been in a rut on several aspects, and in the last few days, the clouds have been parting a little. I've gathered a new client in the last few days, and established my contracts. I'm still tweaking my contracts, but they are so close to being done, I can taste it. I think simply the fact of organizing my legals makes this whole thing a little more tangible - and that's exciting to me. Finally, something that's reachable and actually official and obtainable. Without contracts, i was feeling a bit naked, and vulnerable, not only by watching this interest of business teeter on mere existence, but also, with the fact of getting taken advantage of clientele because of my lack of an official legal protection and "lay out" of design progression. Its just as important to them as it is to me - clients need to see that an organized progression of my business and design ideas instead of string of emails that 'explain' my brain storms, terms and estimates. The world of web design is not a well known subject - and is easily misunderstood and underestimated- so it feel GREAT to be able to present something organized.

I have another client as well that I've known about - we've just been gathering content for their site, and I'm going to get started on that in the next few weeks. Its an optical shop that has a really cool vibe, and I want to reflect that vibe in the site. I can't wait to start!

In the meantime, over this holiday season, when I find my inbetween times, I will be designing my own basic business site. Its not going to be too intense right away, but hopefully in the future, as my own skills grow, I can make it great and a sample to my future clients.

Wee Hoo!

My faucet's a-drip

My faucet is leaking. It used to be a steady drip that would come and go - but now its a full blown stream.

The plumber in town said they chard $90/ hour PLUS a $25 trip charge, and then for additional parts.

What?!?! A $25 TRIP CHARGE?!?!?! But you are 2 miles away.

I told them basically where to "stick it...."

Procrastinating....

I am not a procrastinator by nature. If there's a job - JUST. GET. IT. DONE.

Not today. I have no idea why. I feel like working - but for some reason I'm just ... well, not. I even have a sitter today so I can rock and roll. I will in a moment. This morning, I wanted to do some blog cruising - something I haven't done in 6 months or more and I just miss it. Sometimes I can easily feel isolated in this place, and forget that there IS life on the outside. Maybe I've spent too much time traveling in my earlier years (I speak as if that was more than 5 years ago...). Maybe my travel days were a bad thing - giving me a taste of something that I couldn't have forever.

(Sigh) coming clean, I think I'm a little down because I found out last night that a particular family member and his wife are leaving today to spend a week in New York City. And I'm just ... ugh ... longing, I suppose. November/ December is my favorite time of year in NYC, and I suppose I'm a little envious that I won't be able to go there ...or anywhere, for that matter... for quite some time. Just feeling a little sorry for myself.

But on another hand, there's no way I could leave my little man here, but its much too hard to get around in NYC with a toddler - let alone being pregnant at the same time. So I just need to get over it.

Looking at a few blogs today, I noticed a few were writing random things about themselves. So I thought I would dig up a few that I *could* share. (ha!) So here's my procrastinators-list-of-random-facts-about-me:

1. I have an outie belly button. Yes. Its true. And it is accentuated by my pregnancy ALREADY. Didn't take long.

2. I love chocolate but don't care for other sweets. I'll eat some, but would rather have a coffee, chai tea, water, or an apple than a candy bar.

3. I absolutely LOVE eggs and peanut butter. Together. Mixed. Yum. Hey-don't knock it until you try it.

4. My name is Katie. Not Katherine, Kathy, Katrina, Katalina.....just Katie.

5. Love shoes, but can never find any I like, and always fall back on my Reefs leather flops, even in 30 degree weather.

6. I hate to shop. Hate it. Hate it. Hate it.

7. I love forensic science and crime scene investigation. If I was to start over again, and choose another career path, I would do one of the two.

8. I'm very simple and love simplicity. I love the classic pottery barn living style - no clutter, all organization, and matching colors. I don't have that right now due to the merging of lifestyles of marriage, and my lack of a sufficient budget. Maybe someday.

9. I dream in vivid color and detail, and often remember the most minute of detail.

10. My favorite places in the world: Home, Venice Italy, Sicily, Seville Spain, New York City, Sardinia Italy.

11. I love Sangria.

12. After my first pregnancy, i became allergic to a bunch of foods that I love: carrots, watermelon (any kind of melon), some nuts (not bad though), cherries, and many more.

13. I love tequila, but after pregnancy, my body will NOT accept it. (That's a good thing.)

I have so many more, but my procrastination hour is needing to come to an end. Tell me some of the random things about you! :)

Days go by

Day by day, things are getting a little more settled, and I think before long, we will be more settled that we thought we ever could be. There's just so many things to do around this house that we simply just don't have the time to do - and its embarrassing that we've been here since June now, and our garage still looks like we moved in an hour ago. Pretty bad.....

I've been busy with designing sites lately. Not really building anything right this moment - but will be very soon. Still in design stages with a few clients, but its going pretty well. I'm still eating some dirt yet - but who doesn't in the early stages of a small business (or any business) for that matter. Photoshop is becoming very familiar to me, and I'm flying on it now. I still have worlds of learning to do, but I can at least compete now. And oh, so much to learn with web development. Its not necessarily rocket science, but the type of sites that I want to be able to build ARE in fact a slew of tedious tasks. I'll get there eventually....

Little man has a birthday coming up. Hard to believe he will be 2!!! Where has the time gone? He's still incredible. His heart is just simply amazing. He's trying to enter the terrible two's but I'm not taking any crap from him, so he gets shut down right away when the whining starts. He still hates diaper changes and going to bed at night, but what kid likes either of those?? The thing about him - he'd rather have a poop glob stuck to his behind, and run 100 mph from me than let me clean him up. The other day, he deposited a stealth poo that went undetected for about 2 hours (I'm guessing by the redness of his back side when I went to clean it up), and he's paying for it now with a raw bottom.

Halloween has come and gone - but here is the little pumpkin that stole the hearts of many...



I'm finding myself these days going batty if I have to watch another Thomas the Tank Engine video or Nemo or Cars. Yeaow.....

The baby is growing fast....I'm about 17 weeks now - and I'm getting so big. UGHHH. We find out in early December if we have a girl or boy. I'm READY! :) I've been feeling guilty because I just haven't put that much thought into this baby yet - but I think I was the same way with my first until I found out the sex. Then I could really start personifying him and feeling like I wasn't just getting fat for no reason.

Joe's kicking ass and taking names at work. Man - if they would just let him take the reigns on so much stuff, that place would flip upside down and profit intensely. He has all the muscle to do it - but no one to spot him. Well, he DOES have a spotter, but they choose not to do what's right. long story..... maybe someday.

Where am I .... Ecuador?

There is coliform in my water. COLIFORM. Thank you, Mississippi rural water association. Who took a DUMP in the well THIS time?!?!

These are not your average jelly beans, folks.

The boil alert apparently was posted last Friday - but living here you tend to hear about these things 3 days too late, and from your neighbor, who heard from another neighbor, who heard from a friend. Turned out, the rumor was true, but being 4 months pregnant, this did make this hormonal mama HAPPY.

After a wild goose chase, I was finally able to speak to someone at the MS Health Dept Water Division. Our water association servicing my area does not have the funding to send out a "message" to their users about BOIL ALERTS, so word-of-mouth is apparently common around here.

Where I come from, you either got a call, and email, or a little flier tucked into your door so that you'd know immediately. This happened for us last Friday. So we're pretty much SCREWED. Look out - hepatitis, giardiasis, and dysentery.

No brushing teeth, no ice (i can do without anyway, but Joe...not a chance), no water in J's oatmeal (now that he's had 3 bowls since Friday, so that doesn't matter), no rinsing fruit and veges (oops...) and no bathing with open sores (we're ok too....). Oh yeah, and wash your dishes with BLEACH (that'll taste good.)

Wish us luck.....

How can you resist??

He's my little rock star.

EHhhhhhhh I dunno about this....

I grew up with cats. I like them. At times, I've loved them. Some. But.....at my new place, even if they are outdoor - I now have a screened in porch that I want to keep as my sanctuary, but these little cute - ahem - terrors will tear it, and any other tangible screen, to shreds.

Joe found them yesterday at the warehouse and its been his dream lately to have cats around to deal with our living-out-in-the-country mouse and snake problem. But Joe does not believe me that cats are capable of tearing your screen world apart. He's asked everyone else's opinion, NOT listening to mine. HELLO, JOE, honey - you don't have to go any further than ME. I know the relationship. I've never not had cats. Take it from me......

Plus, these little girls are driving Happy and Rudy (the pups) to a whole new level of crazy. Rudy is foaming at the mouth to eat them, and Happy - well, Happy just wants whatever Rudy wants. Truth be told, he'd probably just kiss all over them and cuddle with them if he just had the chance. But not Rudy.... his history concludes that he was bred to catch cats.

If I have anything to do with this (which, you know what happens if Mama's not happy....) they will be chasing mice elsewhere. But they ARE so cute........

I've been away for a while......

I can't take it..... I'm simply in love. This little boy steals my heart every moment of every day. I kept waking up with horrible dreams of him getting hurt, and every dream had something to do with him getting something stuck in his eye. HORRRRRRIBLE dreams.

I don't sleep well these days, but I think its because we're PREGO!!!!! We are going to have another baby in April, and we are pumped. I wish I could sleep better, but that comes with the territory. I havent' slept well since I was pregnant with Joey, and I think that's just part of being a mom. You spend your wakened nights praying for protection over your children and your whole family, as at 2am, you simply have no control over the uncontrollable, or the unpredictable.

Anyway, I'm so sorry that I haven't updated the blog in a while. As many of you know, we bought a house back in June, and its really kept us pretty busy. Plus, I've been working really hard on my website building business. In addition to my mom's site (www.pencilworksbyjoyce.com), I recently built another site for a friend of mine who has put together an AMAZING cause for women who live and deal with breast assymetry. That site is called "Its Okay To Stuff Your Bra." I'm excited for her cause, and I was honored to be apart of the process. I really think it will reach a lot of women, young and old, who have spent their lives hating their breasts and in turn, loathing their bodies and struggling to feel like women.

I have several other clients lined up that I'm working with right now. I'm still learning my skills, but I build to the best of my abilities. I will keep you all updated as I build my sites.

Joe's been doing great as his business. He's turning the place upside down. I'm so proud of him.

We have a trip planned to go see my folks this weekend. They haven't seen Joey in a long time, and they are pining for him. Who wouldn't?!?! :)