Friday, September 28, 2007

CSI and Other News

So on E! earlier this week Kristin said that Jorja (Sara Sidle) was not returning to CSI. Knowing the season ending cliff hanger from last year, I didn't watch last night because I didn't want to get all emotional and cry about Sara dying. I just read the Episode Guide for last night's show - SPOILER ALERT - Sara didn't die... so now I need to watch that show! BLAH (I probably wouldn't have watched anyway because we were in bed by 8:30). If you watched the show - let me know what you thought of it.

Doug is sick. Poor guy really doesn't feel great and is being a real trooper!

I had a flat tire when I went to go to the gym at 5:20 this morning. I decided to crawl back into bed with my hubby - but even sick he was my Knight in Shining Armor and got up and filled up my tire. So I was able to make my class.

After a 90 minute meeting I headed to the Exxon near work and they fixed my tire in 5 minutes - literally! It was awesome.

Big weekend coming up! Aubrey's first dance class, a birthday party, Orioles are playing the Yankees and we will be there. PLUS Aubrey's 5th or 6 th birthday party to celebrate her turning 3. The child is going to be SOOO confused about what a birthday is!

I will of course keep you all bored to death with the details :)

10/4 Update: Just watched last week's CSI... craziness. But really good. And I am glad I waited until tonight to watch - now I only have 20 minutes to see what happens next - not a week -HA!

Thursday, September 27, 2007

"Look, Look Mama..."

"... I made a hot dog poopy!"

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

School Field Trip

Lori-Anne had just my girls today at "school". She took them on a field trip to Brown's Farm to pick apples and pick out some pumpkins. She took these pics for me!

If you don't already know - LA ROCKS! We are very blessed to have her in our lives and more importantly in our children's lives. THANK YOU!

Aubrey you are a tall girl :)
Aubrey apparently took this task VERY seriously and went through at least 4 pumpkins before settling on a BIG one.
Molly loves her small pumpkin with a good handle.
Ahhhhh
Cutie Pumpkin Pie!

Sunday, September 23, 2007

A Letter to My Daughter for Her Third Birthday

My darling Aubrey on your 3rd birthday,



So many feelings and words and tears are spilling forth and it is hard to put everything in the right place. I am so lucky to be your Mama. Every day you bring new joys, new reasons for smiles, new reasons for laughs, and new reasons to learn something new.





Daddy and I were so excited when we found out you were going to be part of our family. We had so much fun trying to find the perfect name, find the perfect clothes, and blankets, and books, and toys. In the last three years we have learned that none of those things were as important as we thought they would be. What is important is the time we spend with you and the consistency and love we try to give you.





You are an amazing daughter. You are loving, inquisitive, a voracious reader, and you have the most amazing imagination I have ever known. Every day there is a new story that we are acting out and a new song that we are making up together - although more and more I am hearing, "No Mama, I can sing it myself". And that makes me a little sad and a lot proud.





I have no doubt that you will continue to challenge daddy and I everyday and that everyday you will continue to grow and learn and become who God intends you to be. You have very special gifts that I hope daddy and I can help you learn about and grow into.





I love you more than you could know. You have given me strength and vulnerability both - to a degree I never knew I could have. Everyday I am a better person because you are in my life.



I love you,


Mama

A Day Of Sunflowers and Farms

We spent the morning with our friends, they showed us a beautiful sunflower farm and then we went to Clear Meadow Farms for a walk.






Saturday, September 22, 2007

Painting and Babies

Today we REPAINTED the foyer - I had used a high gloss "bathroom" paint when I did the foyer - leftover from my bathroom. Doug said he liked the color but wanted a different gloss and said he would help. So we repainted the foyer - the same color. I have to admit it looks ever more awesome than it did... It looks great!




The kids played with a favorite friend while we worked.


We also painted the kitchen ceiling and the bathroom ceiling. We used an neat paint that starts purple and turns white when it dries so you know where you painted! I highly recommend that.


Cute baby pics as promised from Build A Bear Survival...





Arley!



Molly and Sarah - after a very nice hug.



Another series of hugs...



Eleni! I love this pic of her.



Sarah!

Build A Bear Survival

We had a GREAT time at Build A Bear today for Aubrey's 3rd birthday party. Lots of friends and lots of parents - thank goodness :)

Here are a few pictures - the focus on the build a bear big girl part - there are lots of baby pictures I am not posting... but may do so a different day!

Chocolate or Vanilla - what color bear do you want?
Stuff that Bear!
Finishing the stuffing to get to the dressing!
All dressed!
A pink kitty cat cake - Thank you Ms. Lori Anne!
My favorite part of the day was when the kids sat in a circle with 2 hearts each. They all gave their hearts kisses, and touched their foreheads (for brains), eyes, ears, noses, and knees (so the bear would NEED them), then they took one heart and made a birthday wish for Aubrey. All of those hearts went into Aubrey's bear. The other heart had another wish on it and then they put those in their bears. So sweet!!!!

Good Snack Choices


Aubrey ate a good dinner and was able to pick her own snack. This is what she choose to put in her dessert bowl.

New TV Season

A friend's post got me thinking about what shows I will try to record on our ReplayTV and give some of my very precious time too.

I am sorry to say I have never seen a Grey's Anatomy or Desperate Housewives, I know I might lose my girl card... just never a convenient time and never got it on the Replay TV list.

So as the new TV season starts it is time to create my list...
  1. How I Met Your Mother - probably the ONLY show on this list that Doug and I both like.
  2. Pushing Daisies - something like that, new on ABC looks interesting
  3. Bones - FOX
  4. CSI - the original one
  5. Back to You - I saw the season premiere and while it didn't blow me away (can you say OVER ACTING) I am giving it a chance.

Anything out there I should be watching? What are you watching? Blog it or COMMENT!

Friday, September 21, 2007

Dinner and Color

We had new friends over to the house for dinner last night. Patrick (contractor - see saga below), his LOVELY wife Lena, and their 2 kids - Sanna is 3 and Gavin will be 2 in October. Aubrey and Sanna were barely seen all evening - except when Aubrey tried to put Sanna in time out... Sanna was a little upset over this.

Doug put the roller coaster in the kitchen after dinner and the kids enjoyed some quailty time with that toy! Pictures to be posted another time :)

Lena was there to help us pick out some colors for our family room. She is thinking that the Warm Buff above the chair rail and a maroon below the chair rail would work out well... but Doug finally said out loud and quite clearly, "I don't like Warm Buff". So at least now all the cards are on the table.

Doug and I really enjoyed our time with this family and we REALLY hope we can do it again!

At the end of the evening I was thinking about my day Thursday and how it really was a wife/mother day! And that I really enjoyed it, despite it's chaotic moments.

5:15, get up and go to Wegmans
6:30, unload car and put away groceries
6:45, get dressed for gym and load car for work/gym/lunch
6:50, remember to pack everything for Show and Tell Day and shoes for kids
7:00, get both girls up and dressed and breakfasted (Doug did make the yummy bagels and cream cheese for them)
7:20, get girls in car and kissed by daddy and to LA's
7:45, bridge is still out and traffic was horrible so my "3 mile drive" is much longer
7:50, change poopy diaper, help Aubrey and Molly get into their "Ballet" clothes
8:00, head to gym
8:20, excercise for 33 minutes
9:05, get Chocolate Dream Shake
9:35, get to work
After work, hit Graul's for potato salad and dessert (Wegmans deli area wasn't open at 6am)
Pick up kids
Cut up onions, tomatoes, and lettuce, make shells and cheese, mop kitchen floor, help Aubrey clean up toys in family room, give both girls a quick snack, unload car, run dishwasher and clean out sink, set table, set up "kiddie" table, get meat out to grill, set up all food and condiments required.
Call husband to stop on his way home for Alcohol
Kiss husband as he walks in
Company arrives at 5:32 and wine is opened
HAVE FUN!
8:35, unload dishwasher, load dishwasher, do dinner dishes
9:10, CRASH

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Bathroom Saga Final Notes

The tools, the trucks, the men... all gone and they scrubbed the floor and powerwashed the driveway on their way out!

The concrete and drainage is done in the front of the house and is apparently better than new and was very timely!

The new pedestal sink is in, the toilet is in, we asked them to hold off on doing all the fixtures - we are going to paint in the next month so we can do that ourselves and it will be easier to do without all the stuff on the walls!!

It looks great and it was a very positive experience. I am going to wait to post final pictures until the painting and fixtures are in!

Insert "BIG SIGH OF RELIEF" here!

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Knock Knock

Aubrey: Knock Knock
Mama: Who's There
Aubrey: Banana
Mana: Banana Who
Aubrey (giggling): Are you happy I didn't say Orange?

Mama: Knock Knock
Aubrey: Who There
Mama: Banana
Aubrey: Don't you want to say your happy at the orange from the refigerator?

Random Ramblings

Aubrey and Doug are back from Maine, although I believe Aubrey was swapped for a "No, I DO IT MYSELF" Replica. Quite the attitude from my 2 year old (I only have 6 more days to call her that so BACK OFF).

Molly has quite the temper and I am wondering if there are anger management classes we can enroll her in. Per my mother, my sister had a similar temper - even through her school years. So at least I know she won't grow up to be a monster.

This is the picture on my phone wallpaper! I love it.


Doug and I are painting our kitchen ceiling tonight. There is ongoing discussion about painting the family room and what color we should do. Any and all input is appreciated.

Tomorrow I have to 1) work 2) get my car to VEIP or pay a fine 3) Give blood at lunch 4) get Aubrey to swim lessons and 5) get my teeth cleaned. Yikes.

The contractor is grouting and putting in the fixtures in the bathroom today and pouring the concrete so we should be done and ready for CLEAN UP!

Saturday, September 15, 2007

Painting Pics

My kitchen ceiling hole fixed and wall repainted
My bathroom The foyer before... white
The foyer primed, one small wall completed and LA getting to it!
My Warm Buff Foyer



Friday, September 14, 2007

Painting

So since Doug has been gone Lori-Anne and I have painted my bathroom, the foyer, and my kitchen! WOO HOO! This is very exciting - and I am exhausted.

BS Day 3

Great news today! We are still in the original estimate for the bathroom, we are one day over on the outside (to be expected) so YAY :)
Day 3 Entry 1: 9:27 am The drywalling is almost done in the bathroom. They are starting the tiling and setting up the wet saw. Of course the bathroom isn't square and isn't being setup very "standard" so finding center to start the tiles is an issue.
LA handed over some beautiful (very heavy) marble 1x1 foot tiles that we are using - so that is a great savings - THANK YOU :)
Day 3 Entry 2: 9:49 So the lines for hot and cold water are crossed. This is not something the contractor did - the lines are switched at some point and not marked correctly. So, when they were filling a bucket with the new outside faucet it was all hot water. Luckily it was also reveresed in the bathroom which means it is a simple fix at the source (in the basement).
Half day today, grout tomorrow morning, Monday the fixtures put in the bathroom and the concrete poured outside! YAY!!
Day 3: Entry 3: 1:14 The tile is finished and is beautiful. They will be in tomorrow morning to grout!
Lining it up.
Finished and SO beautiful!

Thursday, September 13, 2007

Bathroom Saga Day 2

So, I had to go to work today but I called the contractor and he says they have finished the plumbing in the bathroom and will be doing the drywall and tiling in there this afternoon and the HOLE under the foundation is bigger than originally thought.

If you don't know the HOLE is a REALLY big issue... Hopefully when I get home I can take and upload pictures. Doug and Aubrey made it to Maine and are having a great time...

IM from Doug earlier today.
IMScreenName: I caught a small guy, plenty of perfect baitfish, and we saw 7 seals and 2 DOLPHINS they broke 4 feet from the bow of Roy's boat, AWESOME


Bathroom Electrical and Plubing are done... with drywall started. Something about a pressure test before they finish the drywall and start on the hole for the shower. Tile tomorrow... not today odviously.
The HOLE
THE HOLE
The construction site...

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

The Bathroom Saga

Entry 1: 9/12/07 8:22 am
This past week, Doug and I decided we were going to work together on a home improvement project and picked the downstairs bath. We figured a quick change of the vanity/sink, the light and accessories, plus a coat of paint would be inexpensive (under 500) and a weekend job - even with the kids around.

Thursday we hit Lowe's and picked up everything we needed. Friday night Doug started demo and found bad plumbing (I would explain it but then I would have to look up some big words and details on the class action suit...). We still thought we could do this.

Yeah, not so much. So Lori-Anne was having some work done on her house by one of the Dad's of one of her old daycare kids - and one of Aubrey's favorite friends. He came by on Tuesday and he and his team started work today.

Did I mention Doug leaves for Maine today?

What began as a simple, can you help us with the plumbing became redoing the entire bathroom - moving where the sink was and tiling and full plumbing redo of the entire bathroom (shower, toilet, sink), plus the outside drain that is connected in there, PLUS putting in drainage in the driveway near the garage, plus the kitchen ceiling and a few other small things that needed fixing.

Did I mention Doug leaves for Maine today?

Last night we hit Lowe's again - we had to return the vanity we got because it was too wide for where the new sink is going. We couldn't find anything we liked that was 24 inches so we ended up with a pedestal sink. I think it will look great in the end. But the stress of quickly finding all the accessories and everything we needed in the 2 hours we had... YIKES.

Did I mention Doug leaves today for Maine?

This morning at 7am 3 guys, 3 trucks and A LOT of equipment showed up. They have pulled out all the drywall in the bathroom, dug most of the drainage area in the driveway - and Doug is talking to Patrick now about adding scope to the drainage project due to concrete and sunken hole syndrome (I made that one up... but no other way to describe it).

my under 500 dollar project has become a several THOUSAND dollar project and is for a bathroom we DO NOT EVEN use - BUT it is the right decision and needed to be done for the house. And maybe we will use it :) So stay tuned to this station for continuing updates and pictures :)

Entry 2: Day 1 8:46 am So the 6 inch drainage area in front of the garage is now a 2-3 foot ashpalt demo across the entire front of the house due to concrete under the asphalt that is cracked and water damaged. New concrete to be poured...

Entry 3: Day 1 9:30am It is a GOOD thing we did the drainage/concrete thing in the driveway. There is a BIG hole under the foundation due to water damage - when they re-concrete they can fill it in!

Entry 4: Day 1 2:10pm Patrick (contractor) just said, "you and your pyscho camera"... I just scared him because he didn't realize I was there and he thought the flash was an electrical "issue"... OOPS. Bathroom has been unearthed and the only surprise is that we do need a new fixture so I will head to Lowe's later today, otherwise we seem to be within original scope (HA: if by original scope we are not talking about the under 500)

Entry 5: Day 1 9:51 pm
Lori-Anne came over for dinner and after Molly went to bed we painted my upstairs bathroom :) Well the entire bathroom except for the wall behind the toilet that needs one more coat of "mud" and sanding... I love the color :)

Daddy and Molly at the Farm

We enjoyed some time at Clear Meadow Farm last weekend. Kris - a brilliant photographer captured this moment with Doug and Molly in the pool.



Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Aubrey to Maine

On Sunday evening at dinner, Doug told Aubrey she had a choice. She could go to Maine and see Anna and Caleb or she could stay home with mommy and go to her first dance class. Aubrey turned her head, her hand on her cheek, looked at me and said, "See Anna and Caleb in Maine, bye mommy".

So Monday night, laying in bed with Aubrey I explain to Aubrey that she will be going to Maine with Daddy and that Mommy will be staying home to work, Aubrey says, "OK, what about Molly". I told her that Molly was staying with me. Aubrey - the little stinker says - "OK, I am going to see Anna and Caleb in Maine, bye mommy I will miss you". WHAT?!?!

While my house will be VERY quiet for a few days, I am going to miss that little girl. Sorry, Aubrey... I am going to miss that big girl!

Steps

Since I have become a mother I have an issue with any process that takes more than 2 steps or changes a long running routine.

I have recently purchased a number of pairs of pants/skirts which have 3 steps to clothes, a button, a clasp and a zipper. I have found that I only do 2 of the 3 steps and people keep having to tell me that zipper is down. This is particularly embarrassing at work.

The bridge that we use to take the kids to Lori-Anne's is closed for repair work. This means we have to go WAY WAY around the long way to get to and from her house. It has been a week since it has closed and there has only been ONE time I didn't try to go the "good" way - and that was ONLY because I needed to make a quick stop at Graul's.

Turning off the car involves 3 steps if you think about it... breaking, putting the car in park, removing the key. I keep leaving the car in Drive and trying to take out the key.

The gym we belong too used to not offer towel service - now they do. I am using that service to reduce my loads of laundry. But I keep forgetting to actually GET the towel before I go to the locker room and hit the showers...

I once considered myself pretty smart, very effecient, with a great memory - now I am OOOO for THREE!

Saturday, September 8, 2007

I've Been Tagged

I've been tagged...here's the rules:
1. I have to post these rules before I give you the facts.
2. Each player starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
3. People who are tagged need to write a post on their own blog (about their eight things) and post these rules
4. At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
5. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

Eight Random Facts About Me:
  1. I am a Navy Brat - moved every few years growing up.
  2. I am very hard on myself and extend that level of expectation to others around me (which isn't fair and always leads to conflict)
  3. I will not watch horror movies. I close my eyes and ears if things on TV get scary or suspenseful.
  4. I played tennis in high school
  5. I love to read. (Andrew M Greeley at the moment)
  6. I love pop music and secretly watch the VH1 Top 20 count down every weekend
  7. I hate cleaning my house and I am not very good at it - which is probably why I don't like it! I seriously wish there was a class to take on how to clean stuff in your house. (see Item 2)
  8. I know how to knit - have for at least 2.5 years and have only attempted to do blankets (see Item 2)

TAGGED: Erica (because you are starting a blog), Ali, Kelly, Jessica, Anne... I don't think I know anyone else :)

Wednesday, September 5, 2007

Kissing Me

I love you too!

xoxoxo

Oxymoron?

Sprint Service is it an oxymoron or not? For those of you that don't know (here comes backstory), I love my cell phone. My cell phone is an extension of me. It has my email for work, my personal email, my contacts, my calendar, and oh yeah, it is a phone.

I dropped my cell phone in the baby pool on Monday while talking to a friend and fighting with Molly over walking head first into said pool.

I will take a short break so you can stop laughing, compose yourself and continue reading...

Are you done yet? Good.

So I tried to dry out my phone. I read up on how you can take a bunch of silica packets and put your phone in a baggie with the silica and it will magically work. Then my darling husband reminded me that we have Equipment Protection.

I called Sprint. I was on hold for 14 minutes and 40 seconds (hey, 1440... just made that connection (the company I work for)). Did I mention I was on hold for over 14 minutes waiting for a rep? I explained my issue, she transferred me to the right person (but first gave me that direct number in case of disconnection), and in 2 minutes I was done and a new phone (an upgraded phone I might add) is being shipped and will be here Thursday morning.

YAY!

Tuesday, September 4, 2007

Family Dinner

So I am not sure I will survive another month of birthday parties! We had our family dinner Sunday evening. Here are some pics! Aubrey and Pop-pop (my grandfather) celebrated their birthdays and it was neat to see them together!

The birthday buddies!

Opening presents together!

Happy Girls

The sisters loved the new karaoke.

Nanny B, Mommy, and Molly