From Philly to Seoul

I love technology! I have a friend who is working in Seoul, South Korea. Despite the fact that she is nearly 7,000 miles away, we just had a quick little chat online. It amazes me that information can travel so quickly and so efficiently (most of the time!), and yet I often take it for granted. So here's a big thank you to all the geniuses out there who came up with the idea of the internet and for the super geniuses who invented it and continue to make it faster and better. You rock.

The Simeone Foundation Museum - Vrrrooom!!

I don't know anything about cars, but this race car museum was awesome! Bobby, Nate and I went with Lillian and Sydney on Saturday. It's been in South Philly for about a year and a half and it's comprised of Dr. Fred Simeone's personal car collection. We actually got to meet Dr. Simeone and he's a really nice guy. His dad was a general practitioner who got through med school by fixing cars. He said his dad was his hero and he wanted to be just like him, so he started collecting race cars at a young age, mostly in the 70's, before anyone knew their worth and history. He said most of them are so valuable now that he wouldn't be able to afford them. He donated his collection to the Simeone Foundation so that the public could enjoy it. And enjoy it we did! There were lots of Ferrari's, a couple Aston Martin's, an Auston Healey, some Bugatti's, a few Stutz cars, a bunch of Alfa Romeo's (these must be Dr. Simeone's favorites), and many, many more. I've never heard of most of these cars before (please excuse my ignorance for all you car experts out there), but it was still fun to look at them all- especially the pretty, shiny ones! I highly recommend a visit, I know you'll have fun.


The museum is located at 6825 Norwitch Drive in South Philly, right off I-76 and Passyunk Ave. It's only $8 for students, $12 for adults, and kids under 8 are free. They also offer yearly memberships. Their website is www.simeonefoundation.org.

My favorite quote in the museum is right above the entrance door: "The first race was conceived when the second car was built." Thank you, Dr. Simeone for your generosity and time in constructing this museum! Vrroooom! :)

Survivng Lillian

Sydney is one tough cookie. Her big sister loves her, but sometimes her lovin' is a little rough. In her short 2 month, 3 day life, Sydney has thus far endured the following from her good-intentioned sister:

-countless pokes in the eye
-mach-speed pushes in her swing and bassinet
-heavy duty bouncing in the bouncy chair
-a few attempts to pick her up (to her mother's horror!)
-tight squeeze hugs
-runny nose kisses
-she's been stepped on, laid on, and rolled over

Despite the tough love, Lillian is a great big sister and a good little helper. She always gets me diapers and wipes for Sydney and she likes to inform me when Sydney has pooped or tooted (just in case I hadn't noticed). After Bobby gave Sydney a bath tonight, Lillian came running into the living room with a pair of pj's for her. She likes to make her smile and she thinks it's the coolest thing ever when Sydney holds onto her thumb. It looks like they're already becoming good friends. :)

She's Here!

Sydney arrived last Thursday on September 10th- right on her due date (she's already more punctual than her mother)! She's doing great and everyone is adjusting well to having a new member of the family. Lillian loves being a big sister and Tasha is so sweet and tender with her. It's amazing to have a new little life to take care of. I'm trying to enjoy her newborn phase as much as possible because (as I have learned with Lillian already), they grow up so fast!!

(I don't know why the pictures are so fuzzy. I'll try to post better ones soon!)

I could sit around and wait for FOUR hours, or I could . . .

go shopping!!! And that's exactly what I did today.

I got to the West Philadelphia County Assistance Office at 10:30 this morning. I took a number to wait to be seen by "the man behind the curtain" who would or would not be able to fix the mess with my Food Stamps account. My magic number was 100. They were currently on 60. I sat and waited patiently for one hour, then decided that my life was too valuable to be wasted by sitting on my butt, waiting with no end or solution in sight. Number 67 was being served when I left to go to the mall to find a dress to wear to my brother's wedding next week (not an easy task, considering it had to be modest AND maternity AND within my budget). But with the help of a deeply devoted friend and a few small purchases from the candy store to keep 3 toddlers happy, we succeeded! [If you really want to know, it's a cute, black v-neck dress. You'll see pics after my bro's wedding.] :)

I got home at 2:30 pm- 3 hours after leaving the CAO and 4 hours after I first arrived there. Out of shear curiosity, I went back to the office to see what number they were on. To my surprise (or maybe it was to be expected), they were on 101- only 1 past my assigned number of 100. I dug my crumpled number out of my purse, showed it to the front desk receptionist/security guard and she said, "Honey, they just called your number. Where were you? Stay right here and someone will see you next."

I never told her where I had been, but five minutes later it was finally my turn. I can't believe that I could've sat there for four hours waiting to be seen. What I can't believe even more is that I actually left for several hours and was still able to come back in time. What a system . . .


**Note: I don't want this post to make it sound like I'm ungrateful for the County Assistance Office, any of the people who work there, or the Food Stamps program. I'm very thankful for all of them and the tremendous help they give to me and my family. I'm just amazed with how inefficient and short-staffed the office was (largely due to the fact that the entire state of PA has been running without a budget for the past few weeks, but that's an entirely different story). Anyways, I'm very thankful for this country and the many welfare assistance opportunities it provides to families like ours who need it temporarily.**