I have been dying to do this post but having thrown out my back immediately upon my return home from vacation, I was to disconnected to do so.

ANYWAY….

We got to the shore on Wednesday and it was Babygirl’s BF’s birthday. I was excited because this was his 20th and he was with us for vacation. In June, Hubs and I had gone to a restaurant and the food was indescribable. I was excited to go back and share this with the kids because BF will eat anything and Hubs and Babygirl were ready for the great steaks and superb mashed potatoes.

We went to LUNA. (Oh yes, there is the name) It is a few blocks off the beaten path and it is a restaurant with an adjoining club that has live music and dancing.  I felt like it was a well kept secret.

I was wrong. Apparently we were the ones not in the loop.

We got there and ordered drinks and appetizers. My drink was fabulous and the salads were incredible. However, when Hubs and Babygirl ordered their steaks and mashed potatoes, we were told there were no mashed potatoes. Strike one.

And so, as we waited, we took the time to notice the other diners. A table of eight twenty-somethings drinking beer. A family of six behind us with a two year old that was getting itchy. Another family of about ten. The place had full tables.  The wait staff was hopping, filling glasses, taking orders, refilling drinks. Hubs had three drinks and turned to me. “These drinks are really weak.” Strike two.

The family with the two year old left. We chalked it up to the kid becoming hard to handle. The twenty-somethings left. We figured that they had eaten already and were just done drinking in this particular place. Another couple came in and ordered salads. And still we sat waiting. The waiter (who barely spoke English) came over and told us that he was sorry about the wait. He refilled our glasses and we waited. By this point we had been there for nearly 45 minutes. They make all their meals fresh so we thought this would be considered normal. Strike three.

Before we knew it, we were noticing that the wait staff was saying the same thing to all the other tables. (Sorry about the wait. Your order is almost ready) Finally it was just us and another table. The couple finished their salads and left. The hostess was running in and out of the kitchen. It was obvious that she was upset about something. The wait staff looked at each other as if they had no idea how to proceed. Hubs was on his fifth drink and still unfazed. Strike four.

We joined in the exodus, asking for our bill and leaving.

As we were leaving, another group was outside deciding on whether or not to eat there. Babygirl turned to one girl and said “No. Just walk away and eat somewhere else.”

I can’t tell you how disappointed I was in LUNA. It is a very intimate type of place. The food is incredibly good. It isn’t very expensive. Some of the food is not the run-of-mill Italian fare. I had been psyched to share this place with Babygirl and BF. So much for a birthday celebration. By the time we left, it was nearly 9pm. We walked to another favorite restaurant and ate dinner in a mostly empty room….not exactly festive.

Two nights later, Hubs and I were in a taxi discussing with the driver our plans for dinner. He suggested a few places and Hubs asked his opinion of LUNA.  ”Oh God! Don’t go there!! They must have the most brilliant PR because it looks like a great place. Too bad they have one of the worst management in Wildwood!”

Before he said that, Hubs and I were actually considering that it may have been a fluke…the chef was sick or fired or quit mid-shift. To hear that opinion spoken so vehemently stated by the driver….. Well, it seems that the one dinner that Hubs and I enjoyed was actually an anomaly.

Want to eat somewhere good in Wildwood NJ? Ask a cabbie.

Saturday was Shenanigan’s baby shower. Lemme say from the getgo that this was an incredible event thrown by her sister. Because Shenanigans never had a baby shower for Jazzy, this was the opportunity for Jamie to go all out. She did the food, the decorations and had several games planned for the guests…..around 50 of us….in a small house and back yard….in the heat. Despite the weather and crowd, it was awesome and everyone had a very good time.

Shenanigan was surprised….truly surprised. This is no small feat because she is the type of person who needs to every single little detail of things and never likes for plans to go awry. Everyone did a great job of  hiding things from her and even son was quiet. She went to lunch with a friend, during which she received a call from Jazzy who told her that she was at grandmom’s with a bloody nose. They jumped into the car and raced there to SURPRISE!

After the food, she started to open her gifts, and Son1 arrived to watch. He stood in the back of the crowd and just looked at her, smiling. A few minutes later he came over to me and put his arm around me.  I looked at him to see tears in his eyes. I asked what was up.

“Just look at her, mom. She is so happy. I’m just a little overwhelmed with all of this. Look! We got everything we wanted and then some. All of these people are here because they love us! This is just filling up my heart.”

To hear these words from my son made me emotional too. I always knew he was a sensitive guy, but never realized the depth of his heart. Later he drove me home and it was just the two of us. I asked if fatherhood seemed more real to him now that he had tangible items to prove it.

“Oh yeah. It scares the shit out of me. I mean, you saw how I was at the shower. How will I handle watching Shenanigans in so much pain, knowing that I can’t do anything for her? I hate when she gets upset, so how will I deal with her hurting?”

“You will hold her hand, and rub her back, and listen to her scream. You will tell her that you love her, and that she is beautiful. That is about all that you can do. Afterwards, that is what she will remember.”

My son looked at me and said,”Thanks mom. So…are you going to the Union party later?”

And with that, the subject was changed.

I keep replaying this conversation over and over in my head. I have done a good job with this kid. He is responsible. He is solid. He is a man who is now ready to be a father, not just a dad. He has shown his true colors. Compassionate, sympathetic, gentle, and most of all, loving. Not only does he feel love for others, but he can see the love that he receives from others.

He didn’t only receive gifts for his child, he received the gift of actually seeing the love that flowed from his family, his friends, his extended family.

Most of all, I received the gift of seeing his love for this young woman who will give him the greatest gift of his life…..a son.

Does anyone remember the news reports a few years ago about how the government spends its money? You know, $450 for a $45 hammer?  $75 for a single nail? Has anything been done about that?

With all the talk about balancing the budget and making cuts, I began to think. Just like my doctor gave me little baby steps to lose weight in a manner that wouldn’t hurt, why can’t the government do the same? I mean, I know that when you are talking about the word ‘trillions’ or even ‘billions’ , the cost of a hammer or nail is a drop in the bucket. But let me put it like this:

A man works at Home Depot (or Lowes or Ace Hardware). Business is down, and in order to save their business they let the man go. Now there is no income for the man to feed his four kids. Now they are forced onto welfare and of course the government is cutting all kinds of programs so he still can’t make ends meet. His kids get ill from poor nutrition, they lose their home, and the downward spiral doesn’t end.

Now, if the government would pay $45 for that hammer -say at a Home Depot – that frees up $405. More money spent in Home Depot, man keeps his job, pays for his insurance to take care of the kid, keeps his house, etc.

I’m sure there are flaws in my logic. I am not an accountant or financial adviser. But I am a housewife. When the bills get too high,  I make changes. I shop for the best prices. If I can get that hammer somewhere else, I damn well won’t spend $450 for it!  If I need to meet someone for lunch to talk business, I will go to say, Applebee’s , rather than a four star restaurant…because I don’t have the money for it!

This is just a little step. But if every sector of government did little things, took baby steps, in the end it would add up. I am not talking about program cuts, I am talking about the wasteful spending. Little steps among every congressman and representative could add up to millions if not billions. If they started there, I think that the American public would feel alot differently about the goings-on in Washington. Maybe if we all demanded an itemized spending list from each of our officials and said NO to what we feel is unexcusable, then maybe, just maybe, things could work out.

That’s just my opinion.

Summer is such a lazy time. The heat slows things down to a slow crawl and my head is no exception. There is no inspiration these days. Life is good. Things are moving along but there is nothing truly blog-worthy. I’ve been dating my husband, seeing movies, spending time alone and such.

However, August is upon me and with it comes a full calendar. The baby shower for Son1 and Shenanigans is coming this weekend, as well as a party/event that involves my beloved Philadelphia Union. Saturday will be long but worth a post or two. Immediately following that, I’ll be headed off to the beach for a much anticipated week. Beyond that, we will be preparing for Babygirl to head off to college again.

Two big events are also looming on that horizon. One is the wedding of my dear ‘twin’. She is marrying a friend from grade school whom she met at one of our mini-reunions. I am very excited and happy for both of them. The other is the wedding of BlondeBlogger. I will be travelling to North Carolina  for the ceremony and am taking Hubs. Once more, this will be blog worthy.

And so, I just wanted to let y’all know that I have not fallen off the face of the earth. I am just trying to stay chill in all of this weather from hell. I hope you all are cool as well.

Until next time……