Today I got a call from the “Office of the President” of Direct TV. A very nice lady named Amanda listened and helped me out.

They said they would refund my money to my account in about 48 hours. I will let you know when/if it happens.

I’m working with my bank in order for them to reverse the bounced check charges once the money comes in.

I am very pleased that Direct TV took my request seriously, but it should not take a blog and the Office of the President to do what was right in the first place.

But thanks Amanda. You were very helpful.

DirecTV responded to me yesterday, asking for my account information. And I’ve yet to hear from them again.

However, their charge did post to my bank. Which caused five things to bounce.

And I’ll get charged $37.50 per one.

So not only did DirecTV steal my $300 but so far they’ve cost me $187.50.

I’m in the process of disputing this with my bank.

Come on DirecTV. Do the right thing. Give me my money back. And add a “T” to your name.

I sent my blog link to the President of DirecTV so I know you can read this. Come on. Be a good sport.

Yahoo. I just logged into my yahoo mail and there was the results of the gymnastics that will be airing tonight on the main page. That is the third time I’ve been unintentionally spoiled to the results of the gymnastics. Darn it all.

DirecTV sucks. Not only because they forgot to put the second T in their name, but for their horrible customer service.

Back in July, I called to cancel my service.

They said if I did, I would need to pay the early cancellation fee and whatever else I owed at the time.

I said that was fine, but I would need to wait until payday.

They said that if I cancelled it, they would charge my account that same day.

I said that wasn’t going to work, so just hold off on cancelling it.

They cancelled it anyway, and took $200 from my account the day before payday.

I just dealt with it and waited for them to send the package for me to return the receivers. I figured maybe they had sent it to the old address and it was taking its time getting here through the mail forwarding system.

Then last week I received a letter saying I owed $310.45.

And today, DirecTV helped themselves to my bank account, taking the money out.

When I called to complain, they said that they were authorized to do so because I kept a card on file, and that it was part of their agreement that they could take any money that I owed.

I argued with them, saying that I never owed that money.

They said I owed it for not returning the boxes.

I said they never sent me the thing to return it.

She said that they were sorry, that they would send me out a new return package today.

And once they received my receivers, they would refund the money.

“Back to my bank account?” I asked.

No. They will send it in the mail and I will receive it in six to eight weeks.

“Because it takes that long to process.”

So let me get this straight. They can take out money directly from my account whenever they want, but they can’t put it back in. And to send me a check will take up to TWO MONTHS?

This isn’t the first time I’ve had bad customer service from DirecTV either.

Don’t get DirecTV.

I’m having a really hard time dealing with what happened last week at court. I can see the physical manifestations of it…wanting to sleep all the time, clenching my jaw, grinding my teeth at night so I wake up with a horribly sore mouth, upset stomach.

I love those kids so much.

And even though I love them so much, I could deal with this better if I knew Mom had made an effort. If I thought the team thought that she really had a good chance.

But she hasn’t, they don’t, and I am dealing with the fallout here with some very confused little kids.

And I don’t ever want to encourage someone to fail, but I find myself hoping that she won’t show up for the visits.

I’m just sad. Just so very sad and scared.

The Parent Bloggers Network sent Bubba Bob the Builder–Can Do Zoo computer game to try out.

Can Do Zoo has a lot of games that reinforce basic pre-K skill such as pattern recognition and matching. There is also a storybook section and opportunities to earn virtual stickers.

I haven’t ever seen Bubba watch Bob the Builder so I wasn’t sure that he would be attracted to the game, but I was wrong. He immediately knew who Bob was (How, I don’t know) and was very excited that he could “work on the computer like Mommy.”

Unfortunately, Bubba doesn’t have a lot of experience on the computer and while he found it easy to move the mouse, he couldn’t quite get down the skills needed to click on an object and then drag it to the appropriate area. So for instance, when doing the pattern game, he could determine what color would come next, but he wasn’t able to actually make Bob paint the fence that color and he got quite frustrated. Until he learns how to use the mouse, this is a game which I’m going to have to play with him.

If your child knows how to use a mouse though, they will probably like the Can Do Zoo. The games are simple to understand and while the graphics are basic, they are better than a lot of other educational children’s games I’ve seen. I thought the games really reinforced areas that he has been learning in preschool, which helped keep his interest and make the game a lot of fun for him. I also see a slight improvement already with his mouse ability, which is useful in terms of hand-eye coordination and just general computer skills.

If your little one is a fan of Bob the Builder, I don’t think you can go wrong with this game.

IMtoMom: I need to go shower, so I can get ready to babysit Elle.

IMtoBaggage: Ok, have fun.

IMtoMom: Well, I’ll either have fun or have a nervous breakdown.

I was really nervous about babysitting Elle. The last time I saw her culminated in an all out sobbing spree.

She was so big, and smelled slightly like sour milk. She looked like Elle, but she wasn’t my little baby. I knew it was the same kid, but at the same time, it wasn’t MY Elle, and somehow that made it easier.

She smiled a lot at me, ran across the room to me, and we spent the hour going up and down the stairs, climbing into the entertainment center, turning the TV on and off, and opening and shutting doors.

And in the end, I hugged her goodbye, told her I loved her, and shut the door. And I didn’t cry.

of my life, who would play me?

V’s Herbie asked the question. Her answer?

Julianne Nicholson.

So in an effort to distract myself from sitting here banging my head into the computer monitor in absolute disgust with the foster care system, I’m going to open this up for a contest.

Name the celebrity who should play me in the movie of my life.

Leave your answer in the comments. I’ll randomly pick two winners to receive two packs of KidsLunchBoxCards. These are nifty little postcard looking things that you can send in your kiddos lunch box that are neater looking than a scribbled napkin note. They have interesting facts, riddles, gross stories, weird laws…all sorts of things kids would like to read about. And a big space on the back for you to write your own personal message.

If you know what I look like in real life, you are not eligible to play!

I got permisson for Callie to be  homeschooled.

Geo and I are in counseling.

I am babysitting Elle for an hour tomorrow.

Today was a permanancy hearing for Snowbaby and Bubba.

It was expected that due to them being in care for 18 months so far, a motion to file a Petition to Terminate Parental Rights would be filed.

Instead, their mother, who has done absolutely nothing for the past 18 months, showed up with some pictures of the most abysmal dwelling. It was bare concrete walls, bare floors, with a bed thrown in. She showed a letter which said that she was being paid cash by the same people who she was living with to do household chores.

And now suddenly, this counted as a home and income for Snowbaby and Bubba.

And instead of filing the TPR, they granted her unsupervised visitation starting next week.

I am beyond devastated.