11.23.2009

Awhile, awhile

It's been awhile. Work and adjusting to being a full time working mommy has been a struggle. Every morning up at 5:45am to get bottles together, dogs fed, lunch packed, and boobs pumped. Somehow in the tirade I produce each and every weekday morning, I'm able to get to work on time with a few mins to spare. I am fortunate though that my hubby who doesn't have to be at work a whole 30 mins later than me, always gets up and gets around with me and we all leave at the same time and he drops off the little one and gets to work 15-30 mins early every morning....just so I can have some sanity and control in my life as to having everyone up and out at the same time. I do love him greatly for that and he doesn't know how much I appreciate it.

It's the holiday time and I've been busy trying to find good deals for the family and the additional foster and angel kids I said I would buy for at Christmas. All at the same time, we are living frugally to pay off our last debt (my monster student debt) and our house. It does feel good that we accomplished so much this year. Once we have everything paid off I will feel so much better and feel more like I can really 'give' myself out to a career and to others. Right now I feel like I am confined to constantly think $, how to save it, how to spend (and not spend it), and how to use it wisely.

Little one is over 5 months now and has been growing in leaps and bounds. We're still breastfeeding which I'm very proud of myself for and he can hold his own bottle (which is pretty neat to us). He really is a happy baby and I love each and every minute of it. When I think about all the foster kids my agency alone is buying for this christmas, it makes me want to cry. So many little babies and youngsters who have no idea really what is going on in this world and what they don't have in terms of love and family. I feel for these children and all children. I really think we need to do more as a nation to help and protect the children instead of trying to only help ourselves. I would gladly pay higher taxes if that meant protection, safety, and all good things for children. But I also know just as many who would not, saying it's up to parents to do that.

It's so hard to understand how people can justify a child not having access to health care or food, yet we adults do, each and every day. These people have probably never went without food for a night, never been on food stamps, never had to think about where the next meal is coming from, and probably never wore 'off brand' clothing. For example, taxes, they say, will increase in the forms of the health care bill going around....yes but if you read the fine print it is only for families who are already making a very nice salary ($200,000K+ I believe). However we are led to believe that the everyday man will have to pay an increase in taxes for this. I don't know about you, but I don't have a whole lot of friends who make that much a year....I don't even know if I know personally of people who make that. But you can be well assured, those people, the same ones saying that we all will pay, are the ones who are being targeted and thus don't want to pay more than need be b/c they can afford health insurance and all the other needs/wants that come along in life. Lucky them eh?

Anyways, /rant....it's been on my mind and it just doesn't make sense in my mind how people (moms, grandmothers, dads) can say 'I shouldn't have to pay for others' and the like. Well I shouldn't have to pay for your child's public education, but I do. I shouldn't have to pay for your access to a library full of books free to check out, but I do. We shouldn't all need to pay for civil servants like police and firefighters, but we do. We certainly shouldn't have to pay for our political leaders going to conferences and having nice trips to other counties and the tropical areas, but we do. For once, please take the me out of the equation and think about 'us' as a nation, as a human, as a mom/dad/child themselves.

It's not a political issue, it's a moral issue. If the majority of this country is to believe 'treat others as you would want to be treated' does this not apply to a basic human right to health?