Some bits of completely riveting information

1. So, I've switched practically my whole online life over to Google now. As a creature of habit, I was reeeally reluctant to make the change. It took days and days of baby steps, but finally one night last week I set up camp in my iGoogle profile, hoping for the best. And OH MY WORD. Why oh WHY did I not do this sooner? I'm totally infatuated with my whole setup. My e-mail perched right above my Reader subscriptions and right next to my Twitter feed...the fun backgrounds and gadgets...LOVE.

2. You know what else I love? Helpful store employees who aren't irritated by moms having airhead moments. I was at Martin's the other day and I don't know what to say other than that I don't know what was going on with my brain. I couldn't locate something obvious, I remembered half-way through check-out that I'd forgotten a crucial item, I left my keys in the cart. It was...epic. But everyone was so great, never once letting on that they noticed my idiocy. It's like the time a few months back when Maya dropped a full grande-sized cup of ice water on the floor in aisle 5, and when I slunk up to report it, the checkout guy bent over backwards to relieve my stress. "You have your hands full, ma'am. It happens all the time. Just let us take care of it, and you have a great day!"

And that's why I keep going back there. That, and the Starbucks kiosk. I mean, let's be real.


3. Know what I don't love? Walking out of the public library with my two-year-old, and being harassed with lewd comments and suggestions from a random man sitting on a bench near the front door. Really? You're going to speak that way to a woman? In front of her child? And what exactly do you think the outcome of this exchange is going to be? Are you under the impression that I will find this charming in some way? Perhaps the "Are you kidding me?" look I shot your way will convince you otherwise. (Not likely.)


4. We took the kids to their first minor-league baseball game the other night. I purchased us some excellent seats, right up front by the action. The weather was gorgeous. And three of us loved the experience. One of us did not. I won't name names, but he's the shortest, blondest member of our family. Thankfully, the manager of the home team handed him a baseball halfway through the fifth inning, which kept him semi-happy and occupied until we left. Note to selves: attempt again in another year. And take a baseball.


5. And just for the sake of total lack of cohesion - a list of more things making me happy these days:

- The sight of Maya skipping joyfully into school each morning and running excitedly out to the van in the afternoon with hugs and kisses and stories to tell.

- The promise of cooler temperatures just around the corner. (70's and sunny for Labor Day weekend? Yes, please!)

- The return of the pumpkin spice latte at Starbucks. A sure sign of autumn, and a sure sign of where a good chunk of my money will be going for the next two months, at which time my beverage loyalties will switch to the peppermint mocha in the holiday cup. Amen.

- Project Runway on myLifetime.com. Top Chef on Hulu. Cake Boss on Netflix on Demand. And not paying for cable.

- The fact that Kohls keeps e-mailing me coupons for $10 off any purchase, despite the fact that I shop at Kohls exactly never - until receiving such coupons, at which time I go find something for $10 and walk out having paid nothing.

- Noah's sunny personality, and his ability to find the joy in any and everything. "That was SO FUN at the library today, Mommy!" "This lunch is SO dewicious, Mommy!" "I LOVE going to the grocery store today, Mommy!" It's infectious.

- My church. I love my church. The end.



With all of that said, I shall now depart to Kohls, where I will search for a nice, $10 item, then to Starbucks for another dose of pumpkin spice perfection. And all of this will be deemed exciting and amazing by my toddler sidekick.