What's he mixed with?

I met Really Tepid Gal (RTG - my former co-worker at the Federal Reserve) for lunch yesterday at Arun's Thai Place in Kansas City. I mentioned to the waiter that the little bundle of boy sitting next to me was also named Arun. The waiter made the obligatory remark about his cuteness and HAIR, then proceeded to ask quite curiously "What's he mixed with?" While I was tempted to say, "Oh, the usual - drugs and the mafia", I gave in and confessed instead to the fact that I am married to an Indian. Sometimes I wish X spoke English such as this - since he started learning English when he started kindergarten, he very rarely offers up anything good in this way. He doesn't even do the Asian Head Bob or the lilting accent. Once in a great while I will snigger secretly at something he misprounounces only to find out that it wasn't a mistake at all - just a British version.

So, lunch with RTG went as expected. I got all the lowdown on what was happening with at the Fed since I left in June. The meeting only served as a stark reminder to how freakin' happy I am to be a mother and that I get to stay home full-time. I needed that reminder because the night prior, the kid was a fussy MESS. Nothing I did could calm him down. While he eventually crashed at midnight and proceeded to sleep like a champ, it was still a stressful evening. In general, my mothering belief system consists of "Try, Try Again" and I ran out of things to TRY, which leaves the whole philosophy quite useless. Anyway, lunch with RTG was really nice. I miss HER, but certainly not working at the Fed. I still feel quite odd about the fact that I so casually walked away from my career - something that I only just completed paying the student loan for last spring.

Overall, I view these next few years of staying at home as my own Personal Sabbatical. I realized a few years back that I had so clearly chosen the wrong profession. There have been a few jobs here and there since college that I have really enjoyed, but they were usually due to my co-workers - as evidenced by the large percentage of my current social group that is represented by such past colleagues. So, while I figure out the Next Grand Plan for my life, I am going to suck every precious moment out of being a mother - something I have always wanted to be since I received a beautiful baby doll when I was 8 years old. Ironically, that very baby doll had a thick head of black hair and I have often been reminded of her since I brought Arun home. An eery way of coming full circle, I guess.

Last night, X and I went to dinner in Lawrence. What's in Lawrence? Great restaurants AND free Monkey Monitoring since both of my parents live in Lawrence. Can't beat that with a stick.