DDIY ~ Don’t Do It Yourself

Hon,

You are a smart man.

You are a strong man.

You are a handsome man.

You aren’t a handyman.

Hire someone else to do this, please!

Kevin and I have a long history of semi-disastrous Do It Yourself projects.  I think it’s because we think we’re smart – or maybe we’re just cheap. Both of us, despite years of proof to the contrary, believe that we can do anything that we can read about.

Take this weekend, for instance. Our 23^rd anniversary started with an eerie smell emanating from the basement bathroom. Naturally, we both thought perhaps there was a clog in the toilet. Plunging resulted in sewage seeping up through the bathtub drain… eeeewww.

Our next logical thought was that the septic tank needed to be pumped. We’ve had a rainy spring and it’s been five years since we’d had it done. Mr. Router happily obliged us with a $400.00 house call. Goodbye, anniversary gifts, baby sitter & dinner at an upscale restaurant.

Then Mr. Router gave us the bad news. The septic tank wasn’t the problem – the ejector pump needed to be replaced. Estimate:  $1, 200.00 more… Goodbye, ever eating out again.

So, what do two smart people do in this situation? Look it up on the internet!  If someone can describe how to install a pump in four paragraphs how hard could it really be? All we needed was a wet/dry vacuum, tools and some time.

And rubber gloves… and old towels… and no sense of smell… Kevin gamely bought a shop vac and began to remove the foul smelling stuff from the mysterious hole in the basement floor.  Several hours later, with no end to the ooze in sight and no good way of handling the waste we came to the conclusion that $1,200.00 was a very fair price.

Some anniversaries are silver. Some are gold. This one was just plain sh*@.



Fernbank Museum of Natural History

If you are in the Atlanta area Fernbank Museum is a great place to take the kids. Both of our girls love it -which given their varying ages and abilities is rare. It's a surprisingly good place to take kids with disabilities. While we were there today we noticed three other families with children with special needs so this isn't a big secret - or if it is, it shouldn't be.

The Museum is very accessible. There is excellent disabled parking as well as curb cuts and ramps around the exterior. The only failing I've found is the lack of an automatic door so maneuvering a wheelchair actually into the building is tricky.

The museum is three stories tall, focused around a soaring central atrium which is filled with dinosaur skeletons. There are stairs between the floors and a (very slow) elevator for visitors with strollers or mobility impairments.

The permanent exhibits are interesting and include plenty of hands on exploration for kids in the super-cool new NatureQuest and the older Sensing Nature gallery, both on the third floor.

I'm particularly impressed with how accessible they made NatureQuest. The former children's exploration rooms had very little for a child with physical limitations to do. The new center, while it does have inaccessible areas like a crawling tunnel and a tree house, is well thought out including a ramp up to the "archaeological dig site" and pathways wide enough for a wheelchair. The exhibits are intended for young children so they are also at an ideal height for wheelchair viewing.

As funny as it sounds, the nicest bathrooms are also on the third floor. While I can't vouch for the Men's Rooms, the third floor Women's Room near NatureQuest has a nice private area for nursing, including a comfortable glider chair and a curtain for privacy. There are also good single bathrooms at the other end of the floor - perfect for families or companion use.

NatureQuest

The girls playing together in the Sensing Nature gallery

Danielle can spend hours looking at the exhibits, playing at NatureQuest or on the outside patio, running on the front lawn...Fernbank has an IMAX movie theater which, while it makes me nauseous, Amanda loves. Fortunately if she gets restless exploring the museum Kevin is usually willing to sit through the movie with her.  

Admission isn't cheap - a family of four will pay $66 to get in. However, annual membership is under $100 and, from our perspective well worth it. One of the nicest features of being members is not only can we go as often as we like for free, the membership is good for 2 adults and 4 children. If I go alone with the girls I can invite a friend and her children to come along as our guests for free. This gives me one more adult to watch the kids as well as a companion for one or both of them. And I look really generous in the process!

 

Seriously, who wouldn't want to stand under a T-Rex?

Full Hair and Makeup

For 14 years, almost a third of my life now, I've lived in "The South". And down here it is clearly still capitalized, as if they actually managed to secede in the 1860s. Amazingly there are clear cultural differences between The North and The South.

For instance, the concept of full hair and makeup. Frankly, with two kids I'm happy if I sneak in a shower every day. The idea that I could and should put on make up and style my hair before dropping Danielle at preschool seems alien.

Yet I remember my Mom never left the house "without her eyebrows on". Every morning Mom put on eyebrow pencil, blush and lipstick without fail. Even on Christmas morning, even in the nursing home during her last days  I can't remember her with out Maybelline Coral lips.

My Southern friends always greet me with delight when they see me in makeup. I get not-so-subtle compliments like "You look so nice when you take the time to put on a little makeup" or, my personal favorite, ""oh, you are pretty!" (said with honest surprise.)

So I will now go upstairs and before I wake Sleeping Beauty I will put on makeup - well, at least some moisturizer.

Well, hello there,

Hi. For years I've thought I was in a unique postion. I thought I was more or less alone to handle all that life has thrown at me. Now I know I'm not. If you're reading this you may fit into one of these categories:

• I had a child in my mid-thirties
• I had a child in my forties
• I have a typical child
• I have a child with special needs
• I've been married to the same man for decades
• I'm in my mid-forties

If you are in any of the above groups: you're not alone either. Over the past few years I've reconnected with friends from throughout my life. Women who adopted in their thirties and forties. Women who had babies in their forties. Women and men with children with special needs. Familes balancing the crazy schedules of kids of extremely different ages. Parents struggling to keep life "normal" for a typical child with a sibiling with special needs... parents stuggling to keep it all together!

I'm not an expert in any field. I'm just a Mom who tries to do her best day in and day out. Sometimes I suceed. Sometimes I mess up. The point is, we all have successes and failures. Maybe we can share our stories here and learn from each other.

I hope to get to know you. Trust me, soon you'll know everything about me.

Stay tuned.