Learning to Love Music

Happy Halloween! We went trick or treating on Sunday and it was a hit. This was the first time Grant was old enough to walk and get into the action and he was a natural! Gabe was “The Human Torch” (from Fantastic 4) and Grant was; get ready for this original idea…a ghost!! He looked very cute though so I’m glad I saved $20 and made something he really enjoyed.

Today Gabe started swimming lessons and it went well! Although I don’t think I’ve really clicked with any of the mom’s I’ve met so far, but it’s probably me. I miss my mutual mom friends in WI and believe it or not, I am quite shy so it will probably take some time for me to adjust again. Anyway, today we had a blast doing an old-school music lesson. Just out of the blue I started singing “Suspicious Minds” to the boys and Gabe loved it instantly (not my singing, just the song)J. So I pulled out my Elivs cd’s and we had a party! From that moment on I decided I want to really teach them the great, legendary, classic artists. When I was in high school I worked at a tiny little radio station that still played 45’s! The benefit was that I learned a ton of great music from classic rock (Knights in White Satin by the Moody Blues, Dust in the Wind by Kansas, InAGaddaDaVida by Iron Butterfly, Magic Carpet Ride etc). I learned great oldies like Crimson and Clover, Down in the Boondocks (Billy Joel Royal) Save the Last Dance for Me (The Drifters), Bye Bye Love (The Everly Brothers). Not to mention classics from the Monkees, The Beatles, Dolly Parton, Neil Diamond, and of course Elvis! Oh yeah, I also really liked Cat Stevens back in the day (yes I know he’s a bit strange these days) but when I was a little girl I completely memorized his 1975 “Greatest Hits” tape! Lol. He had some killer hits like “Wild World” and “Oh Very Young”. It’s so funny that I took two years of French and I can’t remember a lick of it, yet I can remember just about every single artist and song I played from working at WOCO when I was 15! Lol. So I thought this might be a fun time to put all of that to use. There are some great singers and amazing songs that I think the boys should hear so we are on a little adventure. I think we’ll just focus on Elvis for a little while and see if I can get one of them to curl their lip!!:) Anyway, I have “Don’t Be Cruel” in my head so I better go crank it up! Happy November!!!

Food Fun!

Last night Gabe and I made some "Candy Sushi". Sounds a little weird but it's ohhh so good! As always, we saw the recipe on Rachael Ray's "30-Minute Meals" and knew right away it would be easy and yummy for Halloween. Basically you make rice krispie treats, put them in a fruit roll-up and stuff a few twizzlers in the middle too. You roll it up and cut it and the ingredients look like the rice, fish, and everything in a real sushi! It turned out great and I was happy because it was pretty spill-proof and he could get in there and roll and have a good time. The recipe was a hit with our family and it's almost gone 24 hours later!:)
You can get the recipe by clicking this link: http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_28960,00.html
We are running out the door for open swim at the YMCA but I'll try to come back later and post a picture! Have a great weekend!

Pretty Palazzo's!

Check out these pants, how cute! You have to love clothing with an elastic waist but that's still stylish and slimming! I recently purchased these and they are more comfortable than my own pajamas. That means I'll be wearing them to work about 3x a week (sorry guys)! Lol. Not really but I have been tempted too!! Definitely a great purchase if you are looking for a cute, comfy, trendy pair of pants. You can score a pair by clicking on this link! http://www2.victoriassecret.com/commerce/application/prodDisplay/?namespace=productDisplay&origin=onlineProductDisplay.jsp&event=display&prnbr=SF-194428&page=1&cgname=OSCLOALPZZZ&rfnbr=2419

Wagons Ruuuuule!

I have officially joined the ranks of mom-mobiles! I skipped right over the mini-van and went right for the wagon! I never imagined myself driving a wagon but I have to tell you, I LOVE it! You might be picturing a 1980’s wood paneled family station wagon but actually I think mine is MUCH cooler! Lol. I have the same car that Teri Hatcher’s character, Susan drives in “Desperate Housewives” so scope it out next time and you’ll see what I mean! Since we moved here I’ve been driving a car from Ganley Ford but we needed to finally get our own second vehicle and I had wagon-wishes!:) It just made sense because it’s all-wheel drive, good in winter driving, great gas mileage and plenty of room for the family. So far it’s been a great week and the boys and I have had fun despite the rain. We are doing pretty good with our YMCA membership and we go to the gym just about every day! Usually it’s the only exercise I get, so I don’t want to skip it. I can’t believe how sedentary I’ve become living in a small condo these past few months. In our house, I would climb the stairs literally hundreds of times a day (or pretty darn close) and I miss that because I was always moving. Anyway I better get going, the boys and I need to run errands around town in our super cool wagon!!:)

Cookin' in the Kitchen

I had the coolest experience yesterday! We went to a place where you prepare 6 (or 12) gourmet meals, then wrap them up and take them home for a week of good eatin'! You just throw it in your freezer, then defrost and cook and you have a balanced, 3-4 coursed meal! It might sound lazy but I need some help these days in the dinner-department. Cooking has been my responsibility while we are staying with mom and dad and we right now I need a boost!:) It was so cool though, and a GREAT idea if you know someone who just had a baby, or needs some help saving time. Jim is off for a few days so life is good! We played raquetball yesterday and we are baaadddd. I really don't know if there is any hope at all, we might just go our separate ways when it comes to our cardio workout!:) I also signed Gabe up for swimming lessons too. Today we might go furniture shopping for the new house, they are digging in and building it now...less than 2 months until we move in!:)

A Cozy Robe Cures All

It's been a long few days and today my husband came to the rescue by surprising me with a new robe! He is so sweet and it couldn't have come at a better time. He bought me the "CloudSpun Robe" from V.S. and it is like nothing I've ever worn before! It literally feels like you are wrapped in a cloud, I highly recommend it. I haven't been feeling good, the boys have been sick, and the nights are getting colder but just looking at the robe boosted my spirits, how's that for medicine?!:) The bigger event that we've been dealing with though is that my Uncle Gene died yesterday. He had suffered with a brain tumor for quite a while so in some ways, there is a sense of peace that he is finally free from all that pain. At the same time of course it's a major loss and a difficult thing for the family to go through. They have quite a large family (5 girls and 1 boy) and I am just a tiny link in that side of the family tree, but nevertheless I am grateful to be "home" and have the opportunity to be here. So today's entry is a short one. I am beat, the boys need a bath, and my robe is calling me along with a big ole' mug of hot chocolate and the Bible.

Busy Week!

Hey, look at that, I finally got around to updating!:) Thanks for sticking with me and being patient with my page. Life has been moving at warp speed lately and frankly, I’m just wiped out!:) The boys are still struggling with a bug and now both of them have a pretty yucky cough. I tried to cheer them up this week with a tour at the chocolate factory and I think it worked!:) Harry London Chocolates is right down the road from us so I buckled up the boys while Jim was at work and headed down there to see some real, live chocolate-makin’! It was fun and I learned a lot (dark chocolate is better for you than broccoli, and Harry London’s makes 90% of all chocolate for the Disney company)! Plus we had fistfuls of freebies and let’s face it, that’s the reason I paid $5 for the tour in the first place! Lol. Yesterday we carved pumpkins and tomorrow we are going to the YMCA to finally get a family membership. Jim and I tried to play tennis this week and decided we are better off doing racquetball in a court with no windows and no way that people can see how bad we are!:) It was fun though, and that’s what counts plus it felt good to get a good cardio workout. My flat iron finally came in the mail and I already love it! Arista e-mail me and recommended the “Chi” brand (which I have heard overall is one of the best) but the brand I went with…mainly because I scored a good deal was Babyliss. It’s worth every penny and really does a great job! I also forgot to update about Wendy, my cousin who is an Interior Designer who walked through the house with me last week. I felt such a big relief after talking to her and she had some fantastic ideas. One thing she said was that if you are going to use color at all, the most important place to paint, or wallpaper is a bathroom. She said because it’s so utilitarian looking with the white fixtures, toilets, tub, sink, and white walls. Exactly 2 months from tomorrow is our move-in date! I think about it all the time, but Jim and I are also starting to worry about our house in WI and freak out that it might not sell. It doesn’t help that I just saw a news blurb about the real estate market getting ready to crash and burn and how hard it will be to sell a house (ouch…not what I wanted to hear)! So we just have to pray about it and leave it at that. Well I better get going I have to work on laundry before the boys wake up! Have a great weekend.:)

Sick and Tired

Sick=The boys. Tired=Mommy.:) That just about sums up the week so far.:) Is there a bug or something going around? Maybe it's just the time of year but I keep hearing about sick little kids and now my boys are included in the bug-brigade. Poor little Grant was up ALL night and his pathetic little cry just about broke my heart! It's such a bummer as a parent when your child can't talk and tell you what's hurting, and you can't do anything to fix it, except replenish the Triaminic. So needless to say, I'm wishing it were Friday!:) The bright spot though is that both boys are up for snuggling. Gabe has always been a super cuddle-bug but Grant usually wants none of that! Lol. So it's a brief little blessing when he clings to me and wants me to just cradle his little body until he falls asleep. Those moments are rare and I try to really appreciate them when it happens.
Aside from that I am excited for my meeting with Wendy (the Interior Designer) on Friday. I can't wait to get her advice and tips for decorating the new house. One another note, I'm also on the hunt for a good flat iron for my hair. Last week I went to Maria Giallanza salon and they gave me a fantastic 'do' but now I can't get it stick-straight and shiny like they had it at the salon. In fact, I have NEVER been able to duplicate my hair like they do it at the beauty shop...what's the deal?! Anyway, there are a gazillion flat irons out there ranging from $20-$200 and I have NO IDEA what's the best, and why there is such a huge gap in price?! My stylist told me you can't really get a good quality flat iron under $90 (ouch, that's expensive for our budget) but thank goodness for Ebay! So I'll let you know the verdict after I use it (I don't even remember what brand I settled on). Well it's time for another dose of kid's cold medicine so I better run. Have a great day!

Planning a Wedding VS. Planning a House

I have come to realize that there actually a lot of similarities between those two! Except I lucked out on the wedding planning and never had to deal with the monumental details that, (knowing me) probably would've given me an ulcer.:) We had such a super small, informal wedding (and it happened so fast) that we were spared all the planning and preparation that goes into a big ceremony. With building a new house…TOTALLY different story! I have been losing sleep, and obsessing about our new home and everything that goes with it. I’ve been talking Jim’s ear off about decorating ideas, new furniture we need, budgeting..etc. I have learned that honestly, all he wants to know is how much it costs and where he needs to put it!:) He wants me to handle all of the little details that go into moving into a new home. Isn’t that usually how the wedding goes (the woman plans and the guy just goes with the flow)?!:) So here I am, left to try and figure out the wallpaper, carpeting, themes for the boy’s rooms, furniture choices, and what-goes-where. By the sound of it, you would think we are moving in this month but the house won’t even be finished until mid-December.:) The nice part is that I happen to have a cousin who is an Interior Designer. She is coming over Friday to go over a few ideas that have been swimming in my head and I’m so grateful I have a professional who can offer some insight! I always have these elaborate pictures of how I want the room to look, but I can never put it together once I try to decorate! So that’s been the big brainstorm in my head lately. If you know of anyone who can finish a basement, or paint a faux finish on the walls..let me know!:) I could use all the help I can get at this point and goodness knows I can’t tackle those tasks by myself. We tried in our last home and I did learn a lot (mostly that we need to just pay someone ELSE to do that stuff from now on)!:)

Keepsake Quilt

What an incredible idea, this is pure genius! WillowCreek Baby takes the infant clothing you have saved and turns it into a memory blanket. You can send up to 16 outfits and they will create a keepsake work of art. Instead of collecting dust in a box, you can have a daily reminder of when your child wore those adorable 0-3 month outfits! To find out more, log on to www.willowcreekbaby.com.