sweeps week part two

we co-sleep. we have a queen sized bed. sometimes akello sleeps in the middle and sometimes hes on theresas side. When we started co-sleeping I was fearful that i would swat the guy or rollover on him. Theresa allayed my fears saying, "that wont happen" to which i replied, "how do you know!" well,, it just doesnt happen. in some weird way, your body learns to stay still when its sleeping. i sleep on my stomach mostly and thrash about all night, but not since co-sleeping. so since your body and mind know that there is a baby in the bed, your subconcious is able to overide your reflexes. what what!!!

So im sleeping on my side the other morning and the sun is starting to peek through the blinds. i wake up to something on my body, like a moving rodent or something. now the old me at this point would be out of the bed and shaking out the sheets in about 2 seconds. but the co-sleeping me does the opposite. I am frozen. my eyes wide as can be. in nano seconds my brain has told me to be still for a moment and to let my brain figure this out. in about two more nano seconds its told me that a rodent is not the culprit, no. its akello's hands moving across my body. deep breath. I turn over to see the cutest baby in the world cruising across my body as he learns to walk.



i turn back on my side. he climbs back up and goes at it again. his hands move together, and apart, together and apart as He carefully makes his way from my shoulders to my legs and back again. what a way to start the day. it was like akello was the kracken and i was the rocky shore. you had to see AND remember the Clash of the titans to get that ref. but if you did and you do, then you know exactly how it felt to have akello walk up and down you.

so i wanted to talk a little bit about prince lionheart baby proofing. this is good stuff. i have been through a lot of different brands that all sucked! the stickum wasn't strong enough on those for a baby. (isint that funny) but lionheart is akello approved! tasty too!



we got it at babys r us







so the other day i decided to go to the guest room and take a nap, well out of akellos little hands grasp. im in the guest room from time to time to enjoy "the chair". but i really never get to admire the chair. its dark up there and i keep the shades drawn so as not to let the chair receive any direct sunlight so as to prevent sun damage. well. i went up there and opened the shades a little, and took a nap. when i woke up, it happened to be the magic hour. i looked over at the chair and was stunned!



it was gorgeously glowing in front of me. and i had never seen it from that angle as i have never taken a nap on that bed. i ran down to grab the camera, but the moment had passed. i still managed to take some acceptable pictures that are good enough to share that is a true representation of the rosewood finish.



Soooooo...............on with the continuation of sweeps week:

So one fine day two months ago, theresa says, "i want to run something by you, and tell me if im being crazy." I sit down.

"how would you feel about us cancelling mornings in the nest and moving to Dallas for June July and August so that I can attend montessori training from AMI, the harvard of montessori training schools?"

One of my eyebrow's is raised at this point. (harvard and montessori in the same sentence? expensive expensive.)

"i would be getting my certification in 0-3 assistants to infancy and be half certified by the end of the summer. we would have to do it again next summer. Its a rare opportunity for AMI to be in dallas doing this training. You can transfer to the dallas location temporarily and in the fall we can start MITN fast and furious with 8 kids and i can hire an assistant.

Both eyebrows are now raised. "sounds great to me!" i yell. I stand up and start pacing the room like an old movie or something. "we can live at one of my relatives house, theres an opening at the dallas store, so maybe they will let me work there and that will give them time to hire a new person to start after i leave and come back! a perfect plan!

and that brings us to today. we are about to load up the truck and move to beverly! dallas that is.

but it has not been that simple. We realized that i didn't want to work while in dallas, i just wanted to stay with the little one while mommy went to school. and then i could work nights waiting tables or something. so i changed my request to work in dallas to simply take a 2 month leave of absence. My company didnt like that. My company is not very family oriented to begin with but i was still kinda shocked that my request got turned down. "well drats" i said! what am i going to do! im not about to have all of our hard work bringing up akello in the montessori style go to waste by putting him into daycare. (no montessori schools available in dallas for his age group) Gee willikers.

Now i got to say i was planning on a career move once akello started weekend activities like, soccer or something, but lately i have really been missing out on a lot of weekened activities with family and freinds. I have also realized that retail is not for me. too much about sales goals and excel spreadsheets and not enough about cool furniture and decorating. So i saw this as a great opportunity to start new, right now! so just like two years ago, theresa asks me again what i want to be if i could be anything. Well there are only 2 things left at this point having realized that i dont want to be a decorator. Have my own business, or be a screenwriter.

well, i cant just start making money screenwriting, and i dont even have a business plan, so what now? well what would be best for my family? a job where i spent more time at home, had weekends off, made descent money, and had spring break, christmas break, and summers off so that i could start my business or write my movie! yes, i would be a teacher! i could start in the fall and get some kind of alternative certification! that way theresa and i would have the same schedule too! sure its less money, and i cant curse anymore, but it will be soooooo worth it.

But what am i going to teach? not math, not science. maybe history. maybe ill just coach soccer! can i do that? can i just walk off the street and coach soccer? i could wear a tracksuit all day. how pimp would that be!

well i quickly realize that to get a gig doing this i have to teach math or science. those are the jobs that are in demand. i suck suck suck at math. i have a mental block against math b/c my dad is a math teacher and i went to the same school that he taught at. i have always wanted to be an art teacher. ever since the day in second grade when Mrs. Short, THAT RIGHT IM CALLING YOU OUT! when mrs. short threw away my painting, calling it and im using extreme air quotes right now..."CRAP". EVER since then i have wanted to teach art. even as a second grader i knew that you couldnt teach art, only methodoldy, history, tecnique. and i wanted to be that person. but when i pursued being an artist i quickly realized you didnt make any money. drats! so thats why i picked radio tv film as a major in college. i could be a rich hollywood director, and you dont have to know math to make movies right! hahaha, oh if i only knew. i think i learned what drop frame timecode was on the first day of class and quickly sulked in my chair.

"too bad i cant be like my friend and teach Film Production classes to high schoolers" i mumbled.

"why not" theresa asks.

um, i dont know. so i call my friend. and he says, "all you need is 5 years expireance and a degree in the field."
and im all, "not a problem" and he's all, "are you serious about this? i thought you were going to be an interior designer?" "no, i just like furniture and picking out paint colors" "ok then i'm going to tell them to fire the guy working with me who doesnt even know how to turn the camera on and tell them to hire you to replace him. talk to ya later.

then we find out that akellos godmother, Tia Anita has come to the rescue with a rental property that she owns that has come available. i get this phone call,

anita "are you at a computer?
gil " yes"
anita "google this adress."
gil "ok"
anita "how far away is this from the school that theresa has to go to"
gil "10 miles"

anita "well, if you want, you can stay at our rental property this summer. everything is on and working, but you got to bring a refrigerator of some sort and its all hardwood flooring so you might want to bring a rug. no furniture though!

and im all "you had me at you can stay" but seriously, what a blessing this way we didnt have to baby proof my uncles house. that would have been worth filming.
and now. the less furniture the better, so we just got to take a dorm fridge and a few things like a mattress and stuff.

whoohoo! things are looking promising right? but then here comes the monkey wrench....

my manager calls me to tell me that she is quitting! and that she wants to promote me to her position! whoa!
awesome! if you would have told me this........... a year ago! i think about it but really
my mind doesnt even blink. No thanks. i would rather be a teacher! low pay and all! even though my wifes a teacher and both my parents are teachers and all my freinds are teachers and im going to have to hear loads and loads of unsolicited advice, (prolly more than baby advice) i still want it. i can't stand the sales pressure as it is! i'd hate to be the one giving it! so not worth the money! Like if i really wanted a career in sales, id be selling homes ya know? id have one of those ads in TRIBEZA, yeah you know that type. all airbrushed and everything.

Well my friend made some calls and i interviewed and was offered the job. So i will be teaching filmaking this fall! and might even be an assistant soccer coach! best part is... i dont start till after we get back from dallas in august. Im sooooooo glad my company didnt grant my leave. it was really god saying....."it is time you wore a tracksuit to work. t-shirts and flipflops are too dressed up for you."

We are truly blessed.