I've been spoiled!

Since winter hit, we've been heating with our woodstove. Because wood is currently free, we haven't been rationing it.

Now, I have three logs to last me through the day because I, stupidly, told Ben last night not to cut any for today because we had enough. Three measley logs.

So here I am, putting off heating the house because I want to save the logs for when Morrigan wakes up, since she can't quite figure out the concept of layers yet. I'm shivering, teeth chattering. And the thing is, it's only 65 degrees in here. It's not THAT cold.

But oh, leaving the bed this morning was a feat of will power all on it's own...

Works for me Wednesday: FAFSA

When I decided that I wanted to go back to school about a year ago, the decision was not made lightly. Morrigan was about 8 or 9 months old. We had just moved two hours across the state. Money was tight and motivation was a bit lacking.

But I knew if I put off school any longer, I would never go back.

After some soul searching, I decided to try it. Luckily Columbus has a very good community college downtown (Columbus State Community College) that would be within reasonable (less than an hour) driving distance, reasonably priced, and had a degree program I wanted. I applied.

The told me about the FAFSA - The Federal Application For Student Aid. At first I laughed, thinking Ben made too much for us to qualify for anything. I don't consider us 'poor' because we live fairly well, have regular meals, and our house stays a balmy 68 degrees. The school urged me to apply anyway.

I did, and to my surprise, I got funded. Fully funded for tuition and with the option of a student loan for books. I've also recently found out that when Ben goes back to school, he will receive even more benefits than I am because we have two students in the same house.

So if you're thinking of going back to school, please don't brush off the FAFSA. Even if you don't think you qualify, you really should put in an application just to make sure. It's not hard, and it's all online. All you need is your previous year's tax return and your W2's.

For more information, please see www.fafsa.ed.gov

Dear Doofus...

Dear Doofus...
The kid's play area at the mall is a play area... not a babysitter. I realize that your new spiffy cell phone needs to be set up and it must be DONE. RIGHT. NOW, but meanwhile, your child is trying to climb on, bite, and otherwise torment mine. If you would look up from your finger fiddling more than once an hour, you might see this.

When I asked you "Is he yours?", it was a hint. I was hoping you would see that your child currently had his teeth embedded into my kid's arm. But no! You just smile, nod, and go back to your phone... Not once actually looking at your child.

Now, to get your child to take his teeth out of my kid's skin, I have two options. Forcibly remove him, in which case I would probably be singled out for either kidnapping or abuse, or taking my child (who was playing nicely and having a BLAST) out of the play area, which would break her little heart.

Or, you know, you could watch your kid like you're supposed to and keep this horrible fiasco from even starting.

So, please, dad on the cell phone... Look up once in a while. At least check on your kid. And please get that kid a mouthguard... those teeth are sharp!

Thanks!