I go to work

Howdy friends and family,

Today at lunch my coworker asked I could identify what the "green things" are in his gumbo soup. I quickly answered, "it's okra!" He asked if I had much previous experience with okra and I dove into a Bubba-Gump-like soliloquy of, "fried okra, pickled okra, sautéed okra..." Then he correctly identified me as, "from the South". To which I sarcastically replied, "yeah, what gave it away?"

Anyhow, Kendra and I continued with our next step in the Financial Peace University program by completing a proposed budget tonight. Starting April 1st there will be many changes in the casa de Webb to which we both agree. However, I will not under any circumstances eat generic brand Oreo cookies or use generic brand toilet paper. That's where I draw the line. Almost everything else is up for discussion. We purposely deferred FPU until after the Hawaii trip because otherwise we would have had a miserable time pinching pennies and feeling guilty for making it the vacation of a lifestyle.

I told Kendra, "vacation is NOT the time to save money". So here we are facing the daunting challenge of accounting (being accountable to each other) for every dollar we spend next month in order to establish our baseline of expenses. According to the strategy we will contribute to the college fund of the twins and a car replacement fund for us. Then we'll have to figure out how to eat for a month on the $14.32 left over after all of our savings. I'm just kidding. Our situation isn't that extreme, but sometimes feels like it.

OK, so on to the twins... Our front yard is terribly inadequate as a playground for kids. We have cement, rocks, cactus, and all manner of unfriendly plants. That being said, one of the things I learned about kids is that if they don't know any different then they are happy with what they have! Layla and Easton are proof.


Have you ever seen two kids so happy about rocks before?


That's why we occasionally go in the back yard where we at least have grass to twirl around and run in circles. These next two pictures of Easton and Layla really show their personalities. Layla with her Eye of the Tiger intensity and Easton with his Jamaican, cool vibe.


Easton has that freshly-shaken bottle of soda excitement and when Layla laughs she lets it all out in copious amounts.


As you notice, the fenced pool in the background rests undisturbed as we wait patiently for the temperature to rise. It will be at a rolling boil within 2 months so it's time to start shopping for a fresh set of arm floaties that fit Easton and Layla's growing arms.

Our friends, Scott and Marisue, came by tonight to hang out with the 4 Webbs. Easton and Layla were as excited to see them as we were. Maybe even more so than us because BOTH of them went pee-pee in the potty and were looking for someone, anyone to tell them about their great accomplishment.


Thank you, Scott and Marisue, for perfectly responding to their conquest of the potty! I can't remember who told me this little bit of wisdom, but recently I internalized and implemented this concept: An adult's response to a child should be equal to the tone of the child voice. If the child is meek and troubling, then the adult should respond with equal calmness and sense of deep feeling. Likewise, if the child is exuberant and loudly proclaiming success, then the adult's response should be wildly excited and equal the child's as opposed to being ho-hum and nonchalant with a response.

Maybe that is common knowledge and I'm just way behind, but it is something I want to give more focus as Easton and Layla continue to communicate more and more verbosely every day.

Finally, a funny story about the twins: This evening the front door of house sat wide open to let the pleasant breeze flow through. Layla grabbed her purse and informed me she was going to work. Easton jumped on the band wagon and wanted his own bag for work. Kendra and I played along with their pretending and it turned out to be a laugh-out-loud experience.

I can't believe how much they pick up from me and even more incredibly how they want to be just like me already. It just blows my mind how these two munchkins look up to me with such admiration. Imitation IS the most sincere form of flattery. Especially when it is unprovoked and 100% innocently real.

At the end Easton tells me to come along with them and I presume it is because he really believed he was going to my work and moved beyond the pretend phase. Easton and Layla both said they wanted a bag because I carry my laptop in my work "bag" every day. Also, they wanted to go to work at the same place I do, which was cool to hear. Easton was slightly distraught when he realized they weren't really going to work. He whimpered, "I want to go to work, daddy". I thought, yeah, that's probably the last time I'll ever hear anyone say they are upset because they couldn't go to work!



I make an extra special effort to let the kids know I enjoy work and am grateful for "getting to go to work" instead of bemoaning and talking disparagingly about my job. Well, well, well... I guess it DOES make a difference. Who knew?

See you soon!