“The Customer Is Always Right”

I want to talk a little bit today about being a customer. And I think what I’m going to say applies to most every industry where there are customers. Because you know you hear that slogan, “the customer is always right” but I think it’s gone too far. People in this day and age have become bad customers. I think it goes back to that mentality where they think they’re always right so then it doesn’t matter how they act, though that’s just a theory.

I’m not saying every customer is a bad customer. But I think you know the type. The person who won’t get off their cell phone to check out for just five minutes. The person who just complains about every single little thing and nothing is good enough. One time when I was working in a fast food restaurant, we had a guy come through with a very large order close to closing time and we were doing our best to get everything right and as quick as we possibly can and we forgot to include silverware in the bag and he came back and cussed us out for at least five minutes with f-bombs and everything. I mean, I realize we forgot his silverware but still, does it really merit that level of a response?

I guess what I’m just trying to say is that the people who are serving you, be it at a restaurant, a clothing store, the grocery store, Wal-mart, wherever they may be, they are people too. They deserve to be treated with a basic level of respect, of common courtesy, of just niceness. There is no need to be rude or vulgar or disrespectful to these people. It bothers me so much when I see people acting that way. Just because they are serving you doesn’t mean they are beneath you and deserve to be treated so poorly. As the old saying goes, it shows more about your character the way you treat the people below you than the way you treat your equals.

I guess I’ve just seen a lot of this poor behavior lately and needed to get this off of my chest. Please just treat other people with basic kindness and respect.

“Show How Much You Care”

I wasn’t going to blog tonight to be honest. It’s late, I’m tired, I should probably be sleeping instead of blogging.

But I read something tonight. Something that I’ve read before a million times and I’m sure somewhere I thought about it in my head. I’m sure somewhere I must have processed it. But it never hit me until tonight how much it bothered me.

I’m sure you’ve seen or heard it too.

“Show how much you care” with x, y, or z product. Yes, because we’ve turned caring into commercialization. Praying on the guilt of people who just want to be good parents or spouses or siblings or children. Allowing others to check out because they’ve bought something for someone else so clearly they are showing they care. But buying someone more things doesn’t show them you care. It just shows them you have money. It just shows them you can buy stuff.

No amount of stuff can make up for never being around. Or for the hurtful words you said. Or for the time you screwed up. Because at the end of the day, it’s just stuff. And you certainly can’t take it with you when you die.

I’m not saying that gifts don’t have their time and their place, because they do, I’m just saying that it’s foolish to think that stuff would ever be as meaningful as real human interaction. I can tell you I have no idea what I got for most of my birthday presents when I was a kid. No idea. I’m sure I was really excited about it then, but it just wasn’t meaningful. Not that it wasn’t great stuff, but it was just that . . . stuff. But I can tell you I remember the trip to Six Flags, all the times we went camping, the family get togethers, cross stitching with my grandma. Because those – those are memories.

So the next time you want to show someone you care, why don’t you think about the ways you could not just buy them something and then check out, but think about the ways you could invest in their life? I will tell you that I will probably forget who got me what when Dominic was born, but I’ll never forget the two friends who brought me over a meal.

So take a walk with someone, invite them over for dinner, smile with them, laugh with them, cry with them, play with your children, make a memory. I can guarantee you that will show them you care a lot more than just about anything you can buy them.

P.S. Yes, I realize there are generally exceptions to the rule about gifts because sometimes gifts can be really meaningful like if you know someone loves a particular author and you go out of your way to get a copy of one of their books signed or a first edition or a signed first edition, but marketers slap that “show how much you care” on lots of things that are often very generic gifts that don’t require a particular amount of thought or effort.

5 Months Update, Brainstorming, and Dreams of BlogHer

Wow, I can’t believe my little guy is five monts old already. It’s crazy how time flies! I saw a newborn at church yesterday and even though I know, logically, and I remember that Dom was once that small, he looks so much bigger and older in comparison! And it’s only been five months since then!

He can sit really well now. It takes a lot for him to fall over and I think a lot of the times that he falls over right now he does so on purpose so he can be on his belly or his back. He can scoot himself around in a circle while sitting. He is so close to crawling and so frustrated that he can’t yet. He can get up on his hands and knees at the same time, which is a new development. He loves to be upside down, silly monkey.

Don’t you just love this face?

Somedays I get weary. It is hard to be a mom. In fact, it is the hardest job I have ever had. But it is so, so worth it. Especially when he smiles at me like this. I just love it.

Does this suit make my head look small?

This is the new snow suit Oma got him. It’s a little long for him now, but by the time it snows, I’m sure it will fit him much better. We didn’t get any snow yesterday, but it was chilly, so I dressed him up in it before we went over to church.

I do not think this is how it works.

While he’s not on solid foods yet (at six months we will be doing baby led weaning, like I think I mentioned last time), if he is awake during meal times I sit him at the table with us and give him baby silverware to play with. I just had to take a picture of this yesterday because it was so cute and funny.

He’s interacting more and more every day with us and with his toys. It’s neat to see him discovering the world around him. You forget sometimes that all these things were new to you once too, because now as an adult they’re so common and every day, but to babies everything is new.

I think he’s teething (I think I said this last month too hehe) and I go back and forth about it like every day. Sometimes he acts like he is, sometimes he doesn’t. I think that maybe I will just say it all the time he’s unusually fussy (he’s generally a happy baby) and eventually I have to be right.

With Nick’s blessing, I am attempting to brainstorm ways I can make money from home. I’d really like to at least help out as long as Dominic remains my first priority and as long as Nick is okay with it. So now that I have his blessing, I am trying to think of things I can do. I have decided that soon I will babysit again, like I used to, and I’m actually kind of excited about that and looking forward to it. I think Dom will really enjoy too having other kids to play with. I thought for a bit about doing direct sales (think things like Avon, Tupperware, Mary Kay, Pampered Chef, Scentsy, etc, etc) but I briefly dabbled in that in college and found that it didn’t really work for me. I have an easier time selling to strangers than to people I know. Isn’t that funny? I think it’s because when I’m selling to friends and family I usually know a little bit more about their financial situation than I do with a stranger. So does anyone else have any ideas for me? I’m open to hearing all suggestions. I’m not particularly crafty so I’m not sure if there’s something I can make. So I’m open to hearing any and all ideas – so go for it!

Also, lastly, part of the other reason why I’d love to earn some extra money on the side is that I really, really want to go to BlogHer. I’ve been dreaming of going for the past couple of years (at least 3), but something (usually finances though this past summer it was having a teeny tiny baby) kept me from going. This year it’s in Chicago so it feels super attainable and Dom will be a little older by then so maybe I could get my sister to come down and visit us to babysit him (and maybe I can get her to guest post too). I don’t know if it’s a smart financial decision though or if I should go, but it’s my dream, so I’m just putting that out there. I’ve been really working hard on blogging regularly and I think it’s falling into place for me. My next step is to go self-hosted someday. So hopefully I’ll be able to do that.

Anyways, leave your thoughts for me in the comments!

Melissa

Foster Care, Adoption, and Older Kids

I don’t know if you know this but I have long wanted to be a foster parent and/or adopt kids. It’s something I feel strongly about – that every kid deserves a loving home. And for some kids, it’s easier to find them homes than others. Many people are looking to adopt babies – older kids not so much. I was reading a newsletter from Adoption Resources of Wisconsin and I mean I had always been vaguely aware that it was harder for older kids to be adopted but I never realized just quite how hard it really is. Almost half (43%) of the kids waiting to find a permanent home are over age nine but almost three-quarters (72%) of adoptions are with kids under nine. And I look at these kids all the time. Adoption Resources of Wisconsin has a database and I look at it all the time. My heart wants to be a mom to these kids. But unfortunately a lot of them are just not a fit for our family. A lot of the kids would benefit from families where they are the youngest or only child and that’s not a reality for us right now. It is, however, my hope that Nick and I will be able to start the process of fostering kids when Dominic is a little older. He still needs me too much to add on another kid right now. But my heart longs to love these children and I hope someday we will be able to.

Safe, Legal, and Rare

Isn’t that the abortion advocates line? Safe, legal, and rare?

Well I can tell you first off that it isn’t that rare. Personally I know at least 5 people who had an abortion (or were the guy in an abortion situation) I have met at least three other people who had abortions (or were the guy in an abortion situation) who I don’t personally know. And these are just the ones I know of. That doesn’t seem very rare to me.

And what about safe? As I’ve mentioned before, abortion carries risks, both physical and pyschological. It can even lead to death. Not just where it is illegal but in places where it is legal too. This blog post here talks about a few of those cases where legalized abortion resulted in death (though certainly not all).

So I guess in the end all they made it was legal. And that’s not something to celebrate at all.

4 Months Old!

Wow how time flies. I absolutely can not believe that my little guy is 4 months old already! I feel like time has just gone so fast.

He had his four month well baby visit on Wednesday. He is 17 pounds and half an ounce. He is 27 and a quarter inches long. This makes him a pretty big baby. He is off the chart for his height and in the 75th percentile for his weight. His head circumference is 42 and a half centimenters which is also the 75th percentile. All this to say, no wonder he looks so big – he is big!

We think he might be getting teeth. Sometimes he acts a lot like he is but yet we see no teeth. It’s frustrating that the only way to really tell whether all that fussiness was due to teeth is to see teeth but we have yet to see them.

He constantly amazes me with his little smiles and giggles. Even when I don’t necessarily want to be changing yet another diaper, a little smile from him can turn my frown upside down!

He knows how to roll from front to back and from back to front. He can’t sit himself up yet but if you sit him up he can hold his balance quite well. He loves to stand up if you hold him up. The doctor thinks based on the gross motor skills that he is already exhibiting that he will learn to crawl early. I saw him stick his butt up in the air a couple of times today but it didn’t amount to anything.

We went on our first shopping trip to Walmart earlier this week and Dom really enjoyed it. There were so many things for him to look at!

We hope to be able to take him to the zoo before the weather gets cold. I think he would really enjoy it. We almost went on Thursday but then it rained. I am also looking forward to starting him on solid foods with baby led weaning at 6 months.

So that’s your Dominic update 🙂

Eastwooding

Well, I guess I have to jump in on the trend. It’s right up my alley you know, since it started at the RNC and I am all about the political things.

So first I decided to have President Obama sit in this chair

But my husband says that it’s rickety and I mean, it is a little rickety but I love the color and I got it for 50 cents at a garage sale so what do you expect for 50 cents? But it’s probably not very presidential. So I made him switch to this chair.

Which was deemed to be much better. We had a nice little chat but as to what we talked about, well that you’re going to have to speculate 😉

Until next time,

Melissa

Snip Snip Chop Chop

Guess what big thing is happening to me today? I’m getting a hair cut! Okay, I know, people get hairs cuts all the time, but do you have any idea how long it’s been since I’ve had a hair cut?

No?

Well, the last hair cut I had was in January 2010.

Yes, that’s right.

Before I had Dominic.

Before I was pregnant.

Before I got married even.

Over two years ago.

Needless to say, my hair was pretty long. The longest parts reach my waist, which was my goal, so it’s finally time to cut it off.

Here is the before picture.

My before hair, personal picture

And here is the after picture.

After picture, personal photo

Tell me, what do you think of my new hair cut? It’s so weird chopping off a bunch of your hair because your head is instantly so much lighter. And when you’ve had longer hair for quite some time, like when you go to brush it, your arm just keeps brushing. Even though there’s nothing there. Oh and this is what Nick thinks of it, “No offense, it’s gorgeous, but it kind of reminds me of a mushroom.” Apparently my new hair cut makes me look like those one up mushrooms (and the related ones) in the Mario games. To him anyways. I can’t say I see it.

Oh and guess what else I did today?

We got a new car. We actually got a really good deal on it and it’s really nice and I’m a little nervous about it because I have a hard time spending 20 dollars on myself, but Nick assures me it will all work out.

And we so badly needed a new car. Our old car still runs, but the drive train is pulling really bad and one car door doesn’t even open and the AC is broken (which was BRUTAL in a summer like this one where we had so many 90 plus degree days).

So here’s our new car. Oh and if you didn’t know, Nick is a car salesman, so if you’re looking for a car ever and you’re in (or willing to come to) southeastern WI, you should let me know and I can get you his work contact info. He’ll get you an honest deal and he’ll make it enjoyable for you too.

New car! Personal photo

Oh and if you have a  second, vote! I’ll be announcing my new name on Saturday, so get your opinion in!

Melissa

Thoughts for Wednesday

Every day this little guy amazes me more and more. He’s currently asleep in his swing and I just can’t believe how much he’s grown and how different and yet the same he is since we first met on the outside. It’s truly marvelous.

We’ve been talking about our life’s purpose and God’s plan for our lives in women’s Bible study. I go with little guy every Wednesday morning and it’s been such a blessing in my life. I’m still trying to figure out how God wants me to best use my spiritual gifts because I know he’s given them to me for a reason. I’ll take more about this later in a different post when I review the book we’re using. I’ll definitely tell you what I think of the book and what I’ve learned and reflected on about myself.

We don’t have a whole lot else left to do today. Nick works 9-9 on Wednesday, so it’s a long day with just Dominic and me. Every once in a while I get a little lonely or I wish there was someone else to take care of him, just for a little bit, so that I could eat dinner or lunch without worrying about him waking up or needing me or anything like that. But then he smiles and it’s all worth it. I truly do love the blessed opportunity I have to stay home with him every day. It’s awesome, despite a few moments of uncertainties or loneliness.

I like talking about myself a little bit more on the blog – giving you a glimpse of who I am and what my life is like. Anyways, I’ll leave you with some new cute pictures of the little guy.

His favorite past time – chewing on fingers. I played with this one a little on instagram.

Melissa

P.S. I am still stumped on a new name – help me please!

Twitter and Women’s Issues

Well, you may or may not be familiar with twitter, but I thought I would take this post to write a little bit about what you can find on twitter if you want to find things about women or other things.

If you’re familiar with twitter, this will probably seem a little basic, but if you’re just getting started with twitter, then this might be helpful to you.

Basically, twitter has something called hashtags. It’s a word (or a phrase without spaces) where a # comes before it. When someone tweets this, it shows up in blue and you can click on it. This will then bring up other tweets where the writer used the same hashtag.

Anyone can make a hashtag, but it helps to use already existing ones if you are looking to connect it with other similar topics. The reason I bring this up is because there are tons of hashtags that could be helpful in finding out things about the news, politics, women’s issues, etc.

For example, you can start broad, with hashtags like:

• #feminism
• #women
• #motherhood
• #mothers
• #girls

Or you can get more specific with hashtags like:

• #prolife
• #equalpay
• #VAWA
• #miscarriages
• #domesticviolence

Or you can get very broad and general with hashtags like:

• #Afghanistan
• #France
• #GOP
• #Sudanese
• #Saudi
• #Mali
• #news
• #conservative

If you are looking for these when you go to your twitter homepage, you can type the # and the word, etc, into the search bar and it will pull up tweets that way as well. There’s a hashtag for almost everything.

I hope you discover some interesting things – I know I have!