I am slowly going crazy ......

In my quest to become the best wife EVER (transitioning to the best Mom EVER) I have a Christmas cookie plan. It involves a LOT of cookies. Not just your ordinary cookies either. I think I'm trying to turn myself into my mom LOL. I kept thinking last night about making cookies and making breads and just baking baking baking. And how I'd tell my child what I was doing - you know a running commentary to the baby (no, I don't have any kids, and I am not pregnant) and then how when he/she was old enough, they could be mommy's helper.



I think I'm driving myself crazy. Did I mention I have plans for a bookcase for the nursery (nursery that doesn't even exist) and Clay said I could paint and decorate this bookcase whenever I wanted and whatever I wanted. I'm currently into a moon & stars theme. Yeah, the jury's in - I'm totally nuts. I mean, seriously - who does that?

iWhat?

I went Christmas shopping yesterday. I'm pretty sure that Ridge Road sucked all the Christmas spirit out of me...but I digress.

My mom was up here a few weeks ago and mentioned that she wanted an iPod dock stereo for the kitchen. OK, no problem. My dad and I decided that I would be a better person for the job, since I'm so "in touch" with the techno goodness of iPods. So, this was supposed to be an easy present.

I did some research to see where I could get the best bang for the buck and still get a good stereo for her - I didn't want to get one with crappy speakers or one that would fall apart after little use. So - armed with information, I headed to Target. Walking around Target on Dec. 1st was a feat in and of itself. Trying to find the iPod stuff through the mass of people was a pain. But I prevailed. I came upon an endcap that had an Audiovox iPod dock/stereo/AM/FM Radio/CD Player - BINGO! So I pick it up and look it over. All it says is made for iPod. It doesn't say what iPod. I figure it'll fit my mom's - but I wanted to be sure.

BACKSTORY: My mom and I have the same iPod - just a different color. Clay got me my iPod mini for my 22nd birthday, and that swummer (2004) I got one for my mom. Well, after the nano and shuffle, they stopped making the mini. But lots of people still have them, so it's not completely obselete (like the first gen iPod sitting upstairs).

OK, so I go over to a guy. This is the conversation:

Me: Does this work with the iPod Mini?
Him: What?
Me: I want to make sure that this works with the iPod mini before I buy it.
Him: Ummm, let me see. No, it only works with the regular iPod. Wait, it should work. No, the picture is a regular iPod. I don't know. Let me check.
Me: OK, thank you.

waiting waiting...he goes to look at the ipod section......

Him: What kind of iPod?
Me: Mini.
Him: Can you come over here and look. I don't see it.

We both walk back to the iPod section, now there is another Target employee in tow....

Him: OK, the nano?
Me: No, the mini.
Him: There is no mini.
Me: They don't make it anymore.
Other dude: You mean the shuffle.
Me: No, the mini - it's bigger than a nano, and smaller than a regular.
Other dude: Well the dock is the same so it should work.
Me: OK
Him: And you can bring it back if it doesn't
Me: OK, thanks.

So I bought it and brought it home. I opened the box and stuck my mini on the dock and it works.

So long, Christmas spirit.

Let it Snow

I woke up this morning to a snow covered yard, driveway, sidewalk, car, etc. We have had a few flurries since Thanksgiving, but nothing stuck. And so December was ushered in with the first real snowfall of the season. I think it's fitting.

And the first snowfall in the new house. For the first time in my adult life, we've had something to shovel! (I think that novelty will wear off soon) There's just something so awesome to curl up on the couch in the living room and look out the huge window we have into the front yard. I feel all grown up. =)

Live From New York.....

So, here I am in NYC on my very first business trip. I'll be here until Wednesday at a conference on electronic discovery. Facsinating, I know. So, I went to work today and left early to catch my plane. The flight was delayed and then we had to circle JFK for about 20 minutes before we could land -- too much air traffic. I'd never been to JFK before, and I must say I was not particularly impressed. Then I got a taxi to take me into Manhattan and it was the taxi ride from HELL. Not only did the dude drive like a total maniac, but he was on his cell phone the whole time, and driving like a total maniac!!!!! I plan to take the A to the air train for my return flight on Wednesday.

THEN....I got to my hotel. It's a comfort inn and it costs nealrly 800 for 2 nights. I couldn't go over 800 - that was my budget. So, like I said, it's a comfort inn, and it is the hotel room from hell. It's dirty and the bathroom is about the size of my closet. The room itself is about the same size as my bedroom at home. I took some pictures, maybe I'll be able to post them when I get back home.

Hopefully I'll be able to do some fun things during my stay, instead of just fancy lunches and conferences.

Holy Housewarming!

Today we're having a housewarming party. We're expecting about 40 people to show. And what am I doing? Sitting at the computer writing this post - not cooking, not cleaning. Actually, that's not completely true - I have some sweet & sour meatballs in the crock pot. I've got 5 hours before people descend upon my house. I'm nervous.

There's a fly stuck in my light

OK, so the title has nothing to do with the post, but, really, there is a fly stuck in the light on my ceiling fan. If Izzie (my cat) was in here, she'd be going nuts.

So, let's see. I'm 26! My birthday passed without mych fanfare. My parents came up and we had dinner and cake and a good time. This was the first time they were able to come and stay in the HOUSE. I couldn't think of what would be a good birthday present, so I asked Clay if we could get a new mattress, since the one we had was from our days in Buffalo and it was one of those fell-off-the-back-of-a-truck kind of deals. The old mattress sucked. The new one is heaven. And bankruptcy, but heaven nonetheless.

We're having a housewarming party next Saturday and so far 30 people have RSVPd that they're coming! I'm starting to get nervous that I'll have enough food to feed all these people.

OK - I must get something to eat before watching Desperate Houswives. My tummy will thank me.

Aunt Becky, Take 2

I'm an aunt again! My lovely niece Raina is almost 2, and my sister in law just gave birth to a healthy baby boy this morning. His name is Alexander Jay, and he's 19 inches and slightly over 6lbs. I can't wait to meet him!

The House

My cute house, complete with some fall decorations.

Happy Anniversary to Me!

Today is our one year wedding anniversary! And I got the best present ever - I got a HOUSE! (OK, so we got that last month, but it was a big time purchase). To celebrate, we went for dinner at Mario's Italian Steakhouse in Pittsford. I still like Basil's better.

Finally

So this weekend we are finally moving into the house. It never fails that I forget how much stupid crap I own until I try to move it all. This is the third time in 2 years that we've moved - it's definitely going to be the last time for a while!
On the plus side, we've managed to move a lot of stuff over the last few weeks. We bought new bedroom furniture and my parents gave us their dining room set (long story - but my mom wanted to get rid of it since they had moved into a smaller house and it didn't fit very well in their living room/dining room combo). So, we managed to clean the entire house (including the horrible fridge - another long story - i never thought I'd want a new fridge for Christmas, but now I do). We have all hardwood floors downstairs and only carpet in the three bedrooms. Andrea let us use her steam cleaner for those carpets, and we used some hardwood floor cleaner stuff for the rest of the floors - and basically cleaned every inch of the house! And we also painted the dining room because, even though we liked the color it was, the guy before us had painted around pictures that he had hanging up, so there were three big spots of just primer. And we couldn't match the color, so we just painted it.
Well anyway - I'm just going to be glad when we have our stuff all in there so we don't have to go to work, go to the apartment, go to the house, then go back to the apartment because that's quite a trip, since the apartment is in Henrietta/Brighton and the house is in the city by Greece. So close!

How Time Flies

So, long time no blog. Not too much has changed.
Last weekend was a BIG weekend. Clay and I went to the Old Toad in Rochester and met up with Becky, Brian, and Jen from law school (and Bonnie and Adrienne as well). I was so surprised that Becky came all the way to Rochester! And it was good to see Jen too, since she moved all the way to NC a year ago! Then, Clay and I went to Lollypop Farm and adopted another kitty. I named her Izzie (yes, from Grey's - I'm a dork). She's a 1 year old orange/black/white/gray tiger. And THEN.....on Sunday, we went to some open houses. One in Penfield which was a horrible dump and one in Charlotte in the City. And the house was soooooo cute. It was so great that we went home and started frantically calling agents and figuring out what we would do to get preapproved for a mortgage (we hadn't been planning on finding such an awesome house so soon). So, on Tuesday we went with the agent for a showing and made an offer. And then they counter-offered and we accepted it. We had the inspection on Friday and all went well. So, as of right now the only contingency is the mortgate commitment - but I don't see any problems with that - just some formalities. And then we should be set to close at the end of July! WHOOOO
So..about the house. It's a colonial, built in 1927. 1664 squre feet. It's been freshly painted with an awesome color scheme and is truly in move in condition. I'm so excited to have my own washer and dryer and garden! I am SUCH a dork!
So...we've been married almost a year. We have stable jobs. We have 2 kitties. And we are weeks away from owning a house. What comes next? Things have been flying in this past year!

Changes part 2

So...once again the "plan" has changed. We're no longer looking for another apartment and are hoping to be able to buy a house sometime early 2008. Sometimes we're kind of indecisive, and it take a little while before we're able to sort through both of our thoughts and come to an agreement.

That means I probably will stop actively looking for another job - I'll just keep my eyes open in case a good opportunity comes along. I DO NOT plan to be a lifer there. And...if I can stick it out until next August - I won't have to pay back a cent!

Changes......

A year ago......

• I was studying for the bar
• I was interviewing at law firms
• I was offered the job that I currently have
• I was looking for an apartment in Rochester
• I was engaged and planning my wedding

Today.....

• I have passed the bar and been admitted as an attorney (that was a while ago, now)
• I am looking for a new job
• I'm married - for almost 9 months
• We're looking for a different apartment in Rochester

Some things have obviously changed, but it seems as though my general stress level hasn't. I haven't coped well with the real world - still semi-stuck in a student mentality. And I'm seriously unhappy at my current job. But, it pays the bills, has decent hours, and I'm not entirely sure what it is that I actually want to do. Maybe doing something that you actually want to do is a pipe dream., but I'm not quite ready to give up on that yet. I feel like I'm in some terrible state of limbo - where things aren't right, but I don't know what to do to fix them, so I'm just floating on until I get to land somewhere.

And so we're looking for a new apartment now. A few months ago we were looking for a house. But then we found out how much the rent was going to go up and it's just not worth it. I mean, where we live is nice and all, but not worth that price. But, I suppose if we can't find anywhere else we'll just stay here.

I feel like I should be doing more with my life. I'm young and I don't have kids yet.....so this is the time, right? Instead of 7 years from now when I have 2 crying kids to come home to everyday....when I have to think of them as well and how my choices impact the entire family. Right now, my choices impact my husband and me, and he is very supportive of everything I do.

Now is the time.

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference

Becky, Esq.

So, yesterday I had my first case. I got the case from the VLSP on Wednesday and interviewed my client then. The court appearance was yesterday morning. I was freaked. I mean - I've been to court under a practice order....I did moot court...I took trial tech.....but this was the first time I actually had to be a lawyer. For real.
It went really well. It's a visitation case, so it's kind depressing and hard, but I did a good job. My client gave me a hug when it was over and told me how great a job I did and how lucky she was to have me representing her. That was awesome to hear. I mean - this was for real - real people's lives - not just a grade or a reference.
So...if a settlement can't be reached, the case will proceed to trial in July. I don't want that to have to happen, considering the circumstances, but I'm ready for the challenge.
And, like I said to Clay, if I do enough of this for free....I can start chargin people on my own. Whooo extra income. For now, I'm bucking for 50 hours of pro bono in 07, which would qualify me to be called "Empire State Counsel" - Now THAT looks way better on a resume than what I do at my real job =)

Houses and Taxes

So...this weekend was good.Saturday Clay and I got up and decided it would be a good idea to go get our taxes done. We usualy do them ourselves, but with the wedding and the relocation that we were given from Thomson, we didn't know how it would all play out. We went to H&R Block and paid an obscene amount to do something that we ocld have done ourselves, but, we got a $4000 return! That's what happens when you're taxed in a 70,000+ tax bracket, but only actually made about 30,000 because you didn't work the whole year! WHOOOO!! Next year we may get them done again because we hope to have a house which will lend us to having a host of itemized deductions instead of taking the standard (don't worry, Becky I'm not going to start talking about capital gains and boot hehe)Which brings us to houses.......Sunday we went to 4 open houses. The first one was a condo in Brighton which was a DUMP (looked wayyy better in the pictures). And, being in Brighton, it was EXPENSIVE. For the amount of work that needed to go into it, an asking price of 100,000 was ridiculous. Then we headed over to Greece and saw a relly really nice townhouse priced just over 120,000. It was so awesome, but the taxes were 6000 a year! So, with the high price plus the taxes, we just wouldn't be able to make that mortgage payment every month, at least not if we wanted to eat. On a side note, it is sooo easy to get qualified for a ridiculous amount on a mortgage. As an example, Clay and I can qualify for almost a 200,000 mortgage on a 70,000+ gross income because we have good credit and only school debt. But, paying that every month just would not be possible!Anyway, then we went to Gates and saw another condo. This one was a reasonable price for the amount of work that had to be done, but it was a lot of work and the rooms were pretty small. And it came "furnished," which made us think that someone died there. Ick. Finally, we ended up at a really nice townhouse in Henrietta (West Henrietta). That one would have definitely been a possiblility, except it was too small. It had 2 really nice bedrooms, but the kitchen and living area were small. And to get an office, we'd have to finish the basement.Which leads me to this thought.....so, we've been looking at houses and townhouses and we don't have an agent. This is because we are not ready to buy yet and we don't want to waste an agent's time. We would obviously get one when we were closer to buying. But, at the dead person open house, the agent there was nice. We signed in and later that day I got an email from her apologizing for ot being able to talk more to us because the open house was so busy (it really was - there were people all over that tiny condo). So, I thought that was nice, but I didn't follow up. Today I got another email from her saying that she had created a list of places that fit our criteria and tha it would be updated nightly, blah blah blah. And when you click on the link it says "Listing for Rebecca M.." So, I got a little annoyed and figured she was being pushy. So, I emailed her back and changed the criteria (she had us only seeing listings in Greece and Gates and we want listings in Henrietta, Irondequoit, Victor, Chili, Churchville,... And I also told her that we weren't ready to buy yet because we were saving and because our lease doesn't end until August. Well...to her...credit(?), she was cool and changed the criteria and said she'd just keep updating it and when we were ready we could just call her. So yeah, I guess we have an agent kinda now.Still deciding on whether we should mortgage through the Nothnagle mortgage services or through Wells Fargo (we were already pre-qualified through Wells Fargo)Looking for a place is really exciting, but scary at the same time. I'm way more picky than I have been with apartments because I know that this is a place where we will be for a longer time (we're looking at at least 5 years on a 15 year mortgage to build enough equity to make it worthwhile)...and it's a place where we'll have kids, so it has to be big enough and not in a shitty neighborhood.OK, so that whole post made me sound really old. I think I'm going to go to bed, since I have to go to WORK tomorrow =(