Why that lady no find a freaking spot?

I need to stop underestimating my kids. We were driving through a parking lot and this woman was blocking the lane, I muttered something about finding a freaking spot rather than jamming up everyone else. From the backseat I hear a little voice say: "why that lady no find a freaking spot mama?". Oops. Then Alden piped up with a "what's the heck!?". They've also learned to say dammit, courtesy of their father. We passed a big billboard and Alden told me the sign said a naughty word, he totally just wanted me to ask what naughty word so he could bust out with a dammit. When we leave places Ruthie likes to say "us bouncing now", sometimes we bounce AND roll. Yeah, my kids are hip to the late 90s-early 2000 slang. Haha.

Too dang smart

I was talking to Ruthie about getting rid of her bunty (pacifier), she's turning 3 in May and I just feel like she needs to give it up! Right? Maybe not. She's usually very generous so I suggested we box up her bunties and mail them to babies who don't have any, I tried this tactic a few weeks ago and it didn't go over well, so I tried again. The following conversation ensued:

Me: So we are going to mail your bunties to babies who don't have any, right?
Roo: No.
Me: Why?
Roo: Dey's mommy can go to Target and buy der own.
Me: Sometimes they can't do that honey.
Roo Dey have lots of colors at Target. My bunties is mine.

Disneyland or bust!

We will be celebrating Ruth and Alden's third birthday in style, with a trip to Disneyland! We went last summer and they had a blast, we decided to go again, and make it a longer trip. We only did one day last year, and Ruthie pried Nick's eyes open the next day and said "more Disneyland?" We figured we'd do three days this time, hopefully that will be enough for some real exploring, but not TOO long. I'm already doing some research, we'll probably stay at a different hotel this time, and I'm trying to figure out which character breakfast to attend, where the kids' favorites hang out, etc. Ruthie told me that she wants Tinkerbelle to hold her. What a crackup! Alden wants to see Mickey's house, he loves that mouse.

I think I'll wear this shirt, isn't it cute?

Cheers, not just for glasses!

Ruthie is very into "cheers-ing" just about anything, ice cream cones, crayons, drinks, dollies, and now......vaginas. We went to our favorite thai place the other night, it's THE BEST thai restaurant in Merced, and of course, it is freaking closing at the end of the month because of the stupid economy. Ruthie insists on bringing her Chloe doll everywhere, it is the ugliest thing ever, but she treats it like an appendage. The service was a little slow, so the kids were getting punchy. I heard Ruthie saying "cheers, cheers, cheers", I looked over and she was doing this weird dance, I asked what she was doing and she said "me's cheers-ing geenas with Chloe, cheers, cheers, cheers" while basically dry humping her doll. OMG, this girl. She cracks me up, I love her so much.

How bad will it get?

The local casualty list:
Mervyns--boo hoo, cute clothes at great prices
Circuit City
Linens n Things
random Japanese restaurant that had just ironed out the kinks and become a good place to eat
Crescent Jewelers
my favorite Thai restaurant
countless other small local businesses

Really, how "bad" will this recession be?? There are hundreds of empty/abandoned/foreclosed houses here, as time goes on the weeds get taller, more graffiti adorns the walls, and the danger of vandals accidentally setting a fire grows. It is freaking depressing to drive down a street and see these empty homes. I can't feel any sympathy for the greedy investors who thought they were buying a 400k bargain as an investment, then lost their shirts when they weren't able to flip their "bargains" as expected, and when the rental market shriveled up because they were WAY more homes than renters. The opening of a UC doesn't mean there will be a sudden mass migration of people to fill your overpriced homes, at astronomical rental fees, just because you are the idiot who paid $400k for a house in Merced AKA the butthole of the flea in the armpit hair of California. The upside of this, for us, is that we are moving closer to buying a home. I'm still leaning towards an older home with charm, but the rock bottom price for a big, upgraded house that has never even been lived in sounds pretty darn good. Benefiting from someone else's misfortune isn't usually my thing, but in this case I think my karma will survive intact.