Happy Halloween!

In honor of Halloween tomorrow, I went out and bought Tobey his first costume. I decided on the devil, because most of the time, he is a little devil! I also couldn't resist buying him a matching puffy vest to go along with mine (for only $2.00!). We are supposed to be dressing up for work, however I avoided buying a costume and will be dressing up as a stressed out and disgruntled VA Emoloyee (complete with red VA Polo Shirt)! I wonder if I'll win the prize...

Tomorrow I am looking forward to seeing my adorable niece, Charlotte, in her first costume, and maybe even Trick or Treating with her. Rest assured that those pictures will be much cuter.

This Morning Sucked...Period.

Sorry I couldn't think of a more creative or thought-provoking title for my post, but that title pretty much sums up my feelings so far today...AND IT'S ONLY 8:00 AM!

I honestly think that when the temperature is below 50 degrees, and it's raining...work should be on a two hour delay. I mean, they do it with snow, why not rain?

So far this morning, I have:
- Debated taking a "Personal Health Day" today at least 6 times.
- Gotten out of my amazingly warm and comfortable bed to come to work.
- Realized that working 6:45-3:15 is going to be really hard throughout the winter months
- Dealt with a dog that refuses to go out in the rain
- Sat in my freezing cold car on the way to the metro station
- Bought expired yogurt at the 7-11 (Guess I'll just be hungry for the next 6 hours until lunch!)
- Fallen down the steps at the metro station after some lady pushed me, "accidently"
- Had no one help me up when I fell down the steps at the metro station after some lady pushed me, "accidently"
- Ridden on an extremely crowded, smelly train, with someone who seemed to think there was nothing wrong with letting their child scream until they "got it our of their system".
- Had a wonderful woman whack me in the head with her oversized golf umbrella, that she insisted on opening on the escalator, even though the escalators are completely covered.
- Arrived at work to find an email that today will be my "quality review day", meaning that everything I do today must be checked over for my boss to judge my work quality...what a wonderful day for them to evaluate how positive I am about my work environment!

Seriously...I REALLY should have taken a "Personal Health Day" today.

I've Been Tagged...

My lovely sister tagged me... so here are 7 little-known facts about me!

1. I am the best sleeper on the planet...period. I can literally fall asleep within 2 seconds of getting into bed, I do it on a nightly basis.
2. I love listening to Delilah on the radio at night. I especially like listening to her late at night if I'm driving in my car.
3. I REALLY wish that I had a nice camera and could take nice pictures, but I don't have the money for a nice camera, and that makes the taking really nice pictures part hard.
4. I hated football until I started dating Adam, and I really don't want to admit this, but today, I actually checked ESPN.com to see what the predictions were for this weekend's Penn State vs. Ohio State game. I still hate NFL football though.
5. I really can't stand beer. My favorite alcoholic beverages include Lambrusco (ultra cheap wine), Amaretto Sours (my signature drink), Mimosas, and Adam's Dad's margaritas.
6. I use the same mascara for more than 6 weeks! Oh the Horror! Now you know what to buy me for Christmas!
7. I am addicted to Chap Stick. Without fail, I have a tube of Chapstick in every purse, on my bedside table, on both my desk in my apartment and at work, in my car, and on the coffee table.


I Tag:
1. Toni
2. Nicole
3. Michele
4. Adam
5. My Mother
6. My Father (Although I doubt he'll ever do it)
7. Anyone else who reads my blog

*If you don't have a blog...leave a comment with your 7 things

Life in Numbers

5:45 : Time the alarm clock goes off in the morning
26: Number of minutes it takes me to get ready
7: Metro stops between my stop and work
5: Days of the week that I wish were Saturday
510: Minutes I spend at work each day
40: Credits stand between me and a master's degree
411: Days until the wedding
7: Diamonds on my beautiful ring
6: States that I have called my home
1: Cute little puppy sitting at my feet
799: Dollars per month spent on rent
30: Miles to a very expensive gallon of gas
10: Episodes of Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy Adam and I watch each week
7: Other countries I have visited
2: Older sisters
10: Months since finishing college
2: Amazing parents
7: Members of my family
22: Years old
1: Perfectly adorable niece
5: Average number of veterans I help each day
8: Games Penn State has won this season
5: Number of games Delaware has lost

What does your life look like, in numbers?

I'm Voting Democrat Because...

Yesterday I was cruising the internet when I came across an interesting article entitled:

"Jobs & Birth Order. Oldest, Middle, Youngest: Who's More Successful?"

My question for you all is....do these descriptions fit you?

Blame it on social class, education -- even luck, but according to Dalton Conley, New York University professor of sociology and public policy, inequality begins at home. In his book 'The Pecking Order: Which Siblings Succeed and Why,' Conley says that 75 percent of the income inequality between individuals in the United States occurs between siblings in the same families. He points to the diverse fortunes of Bill and Roger Clinton, and Jimmy and Billy Carter as examples.

Research shows that first-borns (and onlys) lead the pack in terms of educational attainment, occupational prestige, income and net worth. Conversely middle children in large families tend to fare the worst. (Marcia! Marcia! Marcia!)

"A child's position in the family impacts his personality, his behavior, his learning and ultimately his earning power," states Michael Grose, author of 'Why First-Born Rule the World and Last-borns Want to Change It.' "Most people have an intuitive knowledge that birth order somehow has an impact on development, but they underestimate how far-reaching and just how significant that impact really is.

Conley concedes that birth order is significant in shaping individual success, but only for children of large families -- four or more siblings -- and in families where finances and parental time are constrained. (In wealthy families, like the Bushes and Kennedys, it has less effect.)

Here's a look at what impact your birth order may have on you:

First-Borns:
More conscientious, ambitious and aggressive than their younger siblings, first-borns are over-represented at Harvard and Yale as well as disciplines requiring higher education such as medicine, engineering or law. Every astronaut to go into space has been either the oldest child in his or her family or the eldest boy. And throughout history -- even when large families were the norm -- more than half of all Nobel Prize winners and U.S. presidents have been first-born.

Famous eldest children include: Hillary Clinton, Bill Clinton, Richard Branson, J.K. Rowling and Winston Churchill. And macho movie stars are First-Born, too, including Clint Eastwood, John Wayne, Sylvester Stallone, Bruce Willis and all the actors who have played James Bond.

Middles:
Middle children are more easy going and peer-oriented. Since they can get lost in the shuffle of their own families, they learn to build bridges to other sources of support and therefore tend to have excellent people skills. Middle children often take on the role of mediator and peacemaker.

Famous middle children include: Bill Gates, J.F.K., Madonna and Princess Diana.

Youngest:
The youngest child tends to be the most creative and can be very charming -- even manipulative. Because they often identify with the underdog, they tend to champion egalitarian causes. (Youngest siblings were the earliest backers of the Protestant Reformation and the Enlightenment.)

Successful in journalism, advertising, sales and the arts, famous youngest children include Cameron Diaz, Jim Carrey, Drew Carey, Rosie O'Donnell, Eddie Murphy and Billy Crystal.

Only Children:
Only children have similar characteristics to first-borns and are frequently burdened with high parental expectations. Research shows they are more confident, articulate and likely to use their imagination than other children. They also expect a lot from others, hate criticism, can be inflexible and are likely to be perfectionists. Well-known only children include Rudy Guiliani, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Alan Greenspan, Tiger Woods, tennis' teen queen Maria Sharapova and Leonardo Da Vinci.

Twins:
Because they hold equal status and are treated so similarly, twins turn out similarly in most cases. Consider advice columnists "Dear Abby" and "Ann Landers" (Abigail and Esther Friedman), and Harold and Bernard Shapiro, who became presidents of Princeton University and Canada's McGill University respectively.

Dr. Frank Sulloway, a behavioral scientist and visiting professor at the Institute of Personality and Social Research at University of California, Berkeley and author of the book, 'Born To Rebel: Birth Order, Family Dynamics and Creative Lives,' says first-borns are more similar in personality to first-borns in other families than they are to their own younger siblings. He adds that youngest children are often more similar to the youngest child in another family than his or her own elder siblings. He says this is because the family is not as much a "shared environment" as a set of niches that provide siblings with different outlooks.

Conley agrees, but stresses that these are just general trends -- and that the whole birth-order theory can be turned on its head depending on the child's personality, the age gap between siblings and the family circumstances each child experiences during his or her formative years.

Dun Dun Duuuunnnnn

So tomorrow is Tobey's big day, the big doggyhood surgery (I think you all should know what I mean). I just checked my email and found this thoughtful message:

Subject: Tobey

Tobey,

Be Strong! ...as they are about to steal your manhood!

Remember to whine a lot when you get home - work the guilt angle!

If you need refuge, you can stay at Grandpa's.

Love,

Grandpa Bob (Adam's Father)


If anyone else would like to leave their well-wishes for Tobey as he faces the operating room tomorrow...feel free to comment.

CRIBS...Rachel Achuff

Since I am not venturing anywhere over the weekends in October, I was struggling to think of something to blog about. Since many of the people that read my blog (if there are any of you) have never been to my apartment, I thought I would take you on a virtual tour of the little space that I am proud to call my own. Of course, it looks way better in person, so if you would like to come visit, feel free!

My bedroom

Dining Room Table

Kitchen Table

Living Room & Desk

My Two Favorite Boys