What I know about Politix

To this day, I still don’t understand why Bush got re-elected. I voted for Kerry seven times! I found the voting booth extremely difficult. I’d put in the dollar and push the “start” button, nothing would happen, except four flashes of light. I know first hand, what they say about confusion at the polls is true!

I thought about going into the Army for a long time, people always say that it builds character. Finally one day, I went in. I told them I wanted to join. They said, “Ma’am, this is the Salvation Army” and I said, “Salvation? Even better! Sign me up!” Now I go two weekends a month. The Army has some groovy pants.

I think Michael Jackson should be president. He could invite Kim Jong-il over for talks about missles at Neverland Ranch. Then, later, they could have a sleepover and ride the ponies.

I love Halliburton. Especially in Monster’s Ball. And, who can forget BAPS! She’s stunning. I don’t get why people are always blowing the whistle on her. That's just mean.

Duchovny's Blog

Wow, I just read some posts on David's Blog. I just think it's great that he cares enough to do a little journaling and I'm sure his fans appreciate it. I haven't seen David in any movies lately, but I will look forward to seeing "House Of D." I very much enjoyed David in X-Files and was a huge X-Files geek for a while. I am glad he went on to do so much more. I hope David continues blogging, and inspires other actors/directors/etc. to do the same. It is a great avenue for PR and one that junkets and talk show appearances simply can't compete with.

Coincidentally, David's wife, Tea Leoni is one of those actresses who has earned great respect from me. Not only does she do great work (I just saw Spanglish and she was spectatular) but, she's also such a devoted wife and mom. A while back, I heard her say on a talk show that she was still breastfeeding her 20 month old and I thought "she rocks!" To be able to do that for your child AND to say it with pride on national television, she's a goddess to the highest degree. I hope David appreciates what a great partner he has there and I hope he occasionally will blog some of his family news and photos.

Kindergarten to come...

David Cox Elementary
Originally uploaded by candy.

We attended an assembly today at David Cox Elementary School, specifically for parents and rising kindergarteners. Ethan will be starting at David Cox this fall. Ethan's school next year is not far from our house at all. In fact, it is quite within walking distance. But, because of the logisitcs of how our mornings will go, (one off to preschool, one off to kindergarten) we have signed him up to take the bus *gulp* The bus stop is actually right at our house, so it will be easy to get him on every morning (provided mom can stop weeping... kidding)


Some family members might know that Ethan decided a while back that he'd like to one day become a "Dolphin Doctor" and help sick dolphins. Coincidentally, the school mascot is a Dolphin!! I suppose before he gets his degree in veteranary medicine with a cetacean specialty, he will have to learn to read and write, and maybe tie his shoes.

Short Film and the SFD

Well, I am still working on my feature length screenplay, but being a novice at this, I thought I'd start with something simpler, a screenplay for a short 10 minute film, featuring inanimate socks and other laundry. Yep, you read that right. My husband wrote a funny little inner monologue from a sock's point of view entitled "The Secret Lives Of Socks" and so I turned it into a screenwriting project for myself.

I recently upgraded Final Draft for my PC, after years of owning it on my ancient Macintosh clone. (I think I had FD ver. 1... or maybe ver. 0, heh) I was thrilled to find out I could just pay the upgrade price and not the full price to get it for my PC. Anyway, it is really cool. I had done a little bit of the script in Word before the software arrived. Then, once I installed FD 7.1, I copied and pasted the word text, and, woosh!! It was all (mostly) in the correct screenplay format, with character names and dialogue indented as needed and so forth. Impressive! The new version also features a voice readback, so you can have your computer read your script to you, and you can choose different voices for each character. I doubt it can put any kind of emotion into the voices, though. LOL. Also, there used to be a support program called "3x5" that helped you to do index cards to organize your scenes - now that's all part of Final Draft. I'm impressed so far, though, some people say that FD 7 has some bugs and they're sticking with 6. I'm hoping that the the 7.1 has worked most of those out.

"In fairness, the developers did release this new version a little earlier than they should have as early, out of the box editions were plagued by some hiccups. However, Final Draft, Inc. quickly solved those problems. They now provide free updates for version 7 that repair any possible bugs to the first editions of the new Final Draft."

Well, I am proud to say that in a day and a half, I have completed my SFD (Shitty First Draft) of "The Secret Lives Of Socks" and will spend some time to check format and so forth. This is great practice to do before diving into a 100 page project. It is a cute little story that we could film ourselves with our digital video recorder if we wanted to - no fancy props or locations and no special effects - just a lot of humor, well, I hope. LOL. Who knows, maybe next year, we could take part in the Tribeca Amazon Short Film Competition.

New York In July?

I just received a pre-invitation to the 50th anniversary gala for the Public Theater in NYC. It is likely to be a star-studded event. The only problem is that it is on a weekday, a Tuesday night in July, which leaves me with a child care dilemma, since my husband would be working. I think it would be very exciting to go, so I'm keeping my options open. I was last in New York in August of 2001, just before the horrible events of Sept. 11th took place. I've been meaning to get back ever since, but there's always something that makes me call off my plans. I guess I will have to just wait and see. I certainly miss the Big Apple, it is one of my favorite places to visit.

New Food Pyramid

For the first time in 13 years, they have changed the food pyramid! Now it's easier than ever to figure out how much and what you are supposed to eat as the program is designed with age, gender and activity level in mind. Will this solve obesity problems plaguing the US? I doubt it; if people ignored the other pyramid, they aren't going to pay attention to this one either. But, at least now we can all lie and say we're 14 year old very active boys. LOL.

Pink Eye

Pink Eye
Originally uploaded by candy.

I am always thankful the internet is available during my child-raising years.

Yesterday, Ethan got sent home from preschool because it was apparent that he had pink eye. I was a bit horrified and embarassed that I had sent my child to school and hadn't even noticed his eyes. Jonathan often has red itchy eyes this time of year, and I knew Ethan has the same allergies as his dad. I thought nothing of it.

We took Ethan to the doctor, and she confirmed that it is conjunctivitis. She prescribed him some eye drops and some over-the-counter medications for his allergies. What she didn't tell us is that the allergic type of conjunctivitis is different than the infections type. A big difference. One is contageous and the other isn't! It does appear that Ethan has the allergic type, but we will be washing our hands frequently and keeping him home from school, just in case.

On Weaning Adam

Weaned!
Originally uploaded by candy.

You'd think that 29 months sounds a bit old to be just now weaned, but actually the natural weaning age for a human is later than age 2 1/2. It's only us Americans who are in such a rush to hurry along the process.

Ethan had nursed until he was about 26 months old and weaned fairly easily right after I found out I was pregnant with Adam. Since Adam is my last baby, I was in no rush to wean him, but I started to use the "don't offer, don't refuse" method sometime after he had turned one and he was eating and drinking other things. Gradually, he nursed less and less. By the time he was 20 months, I was even able to go away for a weekend and he was fine.

A couple weeks ago, Adam was sick and his nursing picked up again for a few days. I noticed that my energy level was comprimised and that I felt really "touched out" by the end of the day. With Adam being so big, he tended to kick and squirm as he was nursing, which started to get uncomfortable. I figured that at least I was ready, and I knew I'd take the next chance I got to encourage weaning.

Last Friday, Adam was back down to nursing breifly in the morning and sometimes before nap. It was more of a routine for him than something he couldn't do without. That night, he was running in the hallway and banged his head on a corner. He was beside himself in pain. To comfort him, I held him and he asked to nurse. I held an ice pack to his bump and he calmed down. This was to be our final nursing session. It wasn't a conscious thing at all. The next day, Jonathan was home and spent most of the day with the boys. Adam had fallen asleep in the car instead of being put down for a nap by me. When Monday came, I realized we hadn't nursed all weekend. I decided to see what happened, and I made a couple routine adjustments. In the morning, Adam now goes straight to the breakfast table as opposed to us cuddling on the sofa watching Bear In The Big Blue House. For nap, we've been going for a drive, and a couple times, I just put him in his crib to play at naptime and he's fallen asleep. It has been more than a week now and Adam seems to be his same happy self, not any worse for the experience.

I will probably need to avoid going topless for a few weeks, or holding him in a cradle position, so as not to remind him, but I am pretty sure he's done now. This is the first time I've had my body all to myself since 1999. It is sort of bittersweet as Adam is my last child, but I will definitely be celebrating with some bra shopping soon!

Frozen Cakes

5th Birthday Cakes
Originally uploaded by candy.

Back in January, Ethan turned 5. We rented the clubhouse and planned a big party, invited his whole class and all his playgroup friends. I painstakingly made two cakes for the party, a vanilla "Herbie" car and a chocolate police car. Four 1/2 cake mixes and four hours later, my project was complete. (I also made 20 cupcakes for school from some of the batter leftover)

Then, outside, it started to rain... and get cold... and turn to solid ice. For the third time in Ethan's little life, his birthday party had to be put on hold due to weather. (you'd think that I'd learn!)

I looked at my two creations and thought, "damn, they're useless now!" But someone told me to go ahead and freeze the cakes and they'd be fine. I boxed them up and sealed them in plastic, put one in my freezer and the other in the neighbor's freezer. I got them out the day before the party and let them thaw in the refrigerator, praying that they'd be edible.

Let me tell you, it was possibly the best cake I've ever tasted. Something about freezing them for a week and thawing them out and it made them moist and decadent. (much more than the cupcakes made a week prior from the same batter)

At the party, several of the adults mentioned that they wanted the name of the cake mix I used. It was just plain old Duncan Hines, I assured them. Then, my friend Cindy piped up and said that her wedding cake was frozen and it was very very good too. From now on, I will be freezing cake before I eat it. Yum!

Cinderella Sundays and Talkin' to Walken

Sometimes, I just want to catch up on housework. Yesterday was beautiful here in Charlotte, the weather was perfect for being outdoors. So, I sent my boys out with my husband to have fun. While they went to the park for a picnic, to Old Navy to get some sandals, to the grocery store, etc, and played outside most of the day, I spent my time indoors. I finally got around to some heavy dusting in my large foyer, did the floors, laundry and organized a couple of cupboards. It felt good to catch up, but I couldn't help but feel like Cinderella just a little bit, every time I glanced at the beautiful day outside.

At about three o'clock, Cinderella got her reward. It is not very often that I get a call from Chris Walken. In fact, it's been almost a year since I spoke to him on the phone. The fan club had sent him a gift for his birthday, and he was calling to thank us. You'd think I would be a bit taken off-guard by such a legendary actor calling me, but he is just such a normal guy on the phone. I really wasn't nervous. Our members had all sent in messages or their favorite quotes to Chris, which I had printed out on perfectly sized cards, and stacked inside a beautiful handmade wooden box. All the quotes sent in were great, from Mae West to Kevin Spacey. A very good variety. This was a very good way for Walken fans to express their admiration, and a good way for Chris to occasionally pull out a thought provoking or interesting message and read it, and be reminded that he always has the support of his fans. I guess he appreciated the gift.

Chris also mentioned he will be filming the movie Click, with Adam Sandler during the summer. He also said that he was invited to go to the Dubrovnick Film Festival and that he had never been to that part of the world. He noted that the climate there is much like southern Italy and that it is situated off the Adriatic Sea. He's looking forward to his trip to such a beautiful place.

The short conversation ended with me thanking Chris for getting in touch. He doesn't know how much it means to his fans to get an acknowledgement for a gift. Many fans have sent him things over the years and of course it is very hard for Chris to have time to acknowledge every little thing he receives. But, of course, it's nice to have these rare moments when he does.

Parent Tip: Don't Have A Fever Freak Out

I remember when I was a new mom and Ethan was maybe 5 months old and woke to feed at 2 am. As I rocked him, I could feel that he was feverish, so, being a panicky mom, I flip on the lights and take his temperature rectally. "Thanks mom, what a way to wake up!!" I think the thermometer read like 100 degrees and I, of course, immediately freaked out and gave him Tylenol and called the doctor's office and page the triage nurse. Then, I nurse Ethan back to sleep and just as he's dozing, the phone rings. I shout on the phone over the crying, "He has a ONE HUNDRED DEGREE fever, what do I do???" I have got to say to all the triage nurses out there, you are true heroes because, to be at a job where you have to work the graveyard shift, you've just spoken to a mom with an unconscious child and sent an ambulance , and then you get a call from a dumb mom about a 100 degree fever and you act very calm and reassuring and talk her through her crisis... well, that's just more than I could ever do. LOL. Of course, I've become wiser about fevers since then.

It seems that older generations will advise Tylenol (acetaminophen) at the drop of a hat for any fever. I guess that's what they were probably told when their kids were young. Nowadays, we know that fevers can be a good thing, and, unless they are dangerously high, or the child is in pain, it is not necessary to medicate the fever. Just keep the child as comfortable as possible.

I know it says "fever reducer" right on the box, but there are a few problems with giving Tylenol for every little fever that comes along. One problem is that the fever is fighting the virus or infection and, by artificially lowering that fever, you are delaying that process. So, your little intervention is giving the virus or infection a better chance at survival!

Another problem is that it is extremely easy to overdose Tylenol. Let's say your child has a cold and you give him/her cold medicine, and then you notice your child has a fever so you give Tylenol too. But, if you don't read carefully, the cold medicine could also contain acetaminophen, so you can easily double dose without knowing. A double dose might not be enough for liver damage, but suppose you give the next double dose a little bit too soon - that's basically a quadruple dose. Overdose from acetaminophen is the leading cause for calls to U.S. Poison Control Centers(over 100,000 per year(1)). The marketing of Tylenol makes us think that it is pretty darn safe, and when taken as directed, it is! But, it is a medicine not to be thought of as "harmless" it can potentially be deadly if not used exactly as directed.

NOTE: If your infant is 6 weeks or younger, and has a fever of 101 or higher, this is considered a medical emergency. Call your doctor immediately. But, if you have an older baby, a toddler or preschooler, and the fever is below 103.6, you don't necessarily need to medicate. If your child is miserable from the fever or in any pain, of course, medication will help. Just try not to panic at the mere sight of numbers.

So, what can you do for your child with a fever if you decide not to give medication? Well, a warm bath works wonders to make a child comfortable. Snuggling together can have the same effect as the child's body tries to regulate to your body's temperature. If you are still breastfeeding, that will help tremendously as it is not only as warm and comforting as chicken soup, but it is full of antibodies. If you have an older child, lots of fluids are good - encourage drinking.

Adam (age 2 1/2) has a fever today. He's a bit more irritable than normal. It was just 100 in the morning, but went up to 102.6 in the afternoon. But, he was still playing cars and running around the house, so I didn't medicate. But, when/if I decide to medicate, perhaps to help him sleep more comfortably if he seems irritable, I feel that ibuprofen works far better and lasts longer than acetaminophen. It is also much harder to overdose. But, after being a mom for five years, I definitely no longer freak out over fevers. If only adults could handle fevers as well as kids do...

(1)Acetaminophen and the U.S. Acute Liver Failure Study: Lowering the Risks of Hepatic Failure. Hepatology, Issue 1, July 2004, p. 6- 9