To smoke or not to smoke

I am pleased to report that New Jersey will be the 10th state to go smokefree!

Oddly this is a cause for much debate. I actually argued with my mother the other day, who by the way is a non-smoker, about this "almost" new law. She feels that we should be able to choose whether or not we want to smoke, work in a smoking place, choose to wear our seatbelts, have our kids wear helmets on their bikes, etc. It would be nice if we all just took responsibility for ourselves. But, too many people don't want to. I personally feel I should have the right to work, dine, or drink in a smoke free environment. I know that smokers, which I am occasionally, feel they should have the right to smoke where ever they work, dine, or drink. Unfortunately smoke is harmful to not just the smoker but those people around him or her. This article shows a good "Pro" point of view. Second hand smoke is harmful, and costly to our country. For that reason I think the government has the right to create laws to protect those who do not smoke. You can't smoke in the movies, or at the mall, or at just about any normal day job, why should where you choose to eat or drink be different? Even though I do enjoy a cigarette when I am drinking, I am going to guess that most people are not going to die from going outside, on the contrary we may all live a little longer. As for the government controlling us, as long as they pick something that is in the best interest of all our health, how can we fault them?

Carpe Diem

If I could freeze a moment in time, this would be the one!! The missing teeth, little toes, and big, I'm gonna get a lollipop if these come out good, smile are all priceless to me. They get bigger and bigger every year and I am more than excited to have captured this moment in time before it was over. I hope you enjoy it too.

Happy New Years!!

Happy New Year to everyone who might read this!! I hope you all had a wonderful 2005, and may 2006 be as good or even better.

I can't say that 2005 was exceptionally good or bad for us. I do know that I hope for better this year!! I enjoy the start of a new year because it is a good reason to be motivated to start new good habits or maybe kill old bad habits (which is usually less likely). So as a rule I like to talk about the things I would like start doing. I also try not to expect anything to major, last year I wanted to get our finances in order, I am happy to report we are just about there. I also wanted to exercise more and I am unhappy to report that I never achieved this one. This year not only am I going to make a few "resolutions", but I am putting them on this blog for everyone to see. I hope at the end of the year I can look back and feel that I have done alright.

#1 My first goal this year is to get ahead. We worked our butt's off all year long to recover from a couple of huge financial set backs that we had the year before (our 7mo. old daughter in the hospital for a week). In 2006 I would like to get ahead, start putting into our retirement and the kids college funds again, do some work on our house that we wanted, start up our savings again, and make a couple good long term investments.

#2 My second goal will be to make some sort of career move. We are done (hopefully) making babies, and I have no desire to be a bartender for the rest of my life. This year I would like to get my realestate license. I would love to sell realestate, and substitute teach one day. I do not have enough credits to sub yet, and without the kids in school more I am not ready to commit to going back to school, so my goal this year is to just get my realestate license.

#3 Read more. Not really hard, but I will need to manage my time better. I would like to read to the kids and myself more. I love reading and do to the kids a lot, but I would like to read more to them because they love it, and I would like to read for my own pleasure more because over the last few years I have not made anytime for that.

#4 Take my kids somewhere new and fun. Last year we went Baltimore Inner Harbor and they had blast!! I would like to go somewhere else this year that they will enjoy and remember. I would like to take them somewhere new every year, and I hope when they get older they will enjoy having all the memories (and pictures) of all the fun places we went as a family over the years.

#5 This is my most challeging goal of the year...... to get my family and I more healthy. We are not unhealthy, but we could be a lot MORE healthy. I would like to try cooking new things and expanding our menu a bit, trying more fish, different veggies, more beans, and less meat based meals. I know this will make my husband somewhat sad but I never make red meat good anyway. I would like to workout out more regularly, whatever it may be; walking, jumping rope, doing a workout tape, I really don't care. I would just like to commit to doing it more consistently. Hopefully this will help me lose the extra 15lbs that I would like to lose by this summer, and help the kids to get out and be more active.

Well those are my "goals" for the year, and hopefully blogging them will help me keep them in mind for the year. I wish all you good luck with any goals you might have set for yourself.

May 2006 be a happy, healthy, and productive year for all of us!