My New Year's Resolution

At the close of 2010, I am trying to decide what 'realistic' New Year's resolution I would like to set for myself. Every year, I seem to set my sights too high, only to be disappointed at the results. This year, I decided to set a goal for our family. It just seems like, right now, everything I do revolves around the health and happiness of my family. There is a time and a season for everything, and right now, that time and season is my family.

So......for Christmas, my mom gave me this:

Have you heard of it?

I have to admit, I started sweating a little when I unwrapped it. Pressure. Oh, the pressure to improve something I know I am lacking in.

With a family that has a crazy schedule, football games, baseball games, sports practices, a self- employed hubby who works some crazy hours and likes to go to the gym after work, piano lessons, dance lessons, gymnastics, after school stuff, etc., etc.......who has time to SIT down at a regular time every night at the dinner table and have a civilized, organized, well prepared family dinner? I admit, I TRY. I do make a healthy dinner every night. But it's usually me doing all the work, and eating up at the island/bar. Sometimes we watch the news, too. And hubby nowhere in sight. AND it often ends with a child crying because he/she doesn't like what's for dinner, one child pretending it's comedy hour at the dinner table, and TONS of left-overs because noone will eat. And a very frustrated mom. Phew.

Soooooo.........for the last few days, I've been reading this book. And lo and behold, it's fabulous. It's inspiring. Full of ideas. Full of inspiration and positive thoughts. Rules of thumb for a sucessful dinner experience. Great recipes to try. Beautiful pictures. And LOTS of reasons why to keep trying to instigate family dinner. Oh, and there is even a helpful website to go along with it.....here

This is my New Year's Resolution. Family Dinner. At least 4 times a week. Children HELPING. Making new recipes. Trying new things. Making a weekly menu, putting it up where everyone can see it. Turning the TV off. Having meaningful conversation. Now, I need to work on a cute place to write the menu and job/meal chart. I have the perfect place to hang it. :)

Hold on to your meatballs. It could be a bumpy ride.

my one obsession

OK, that's a lie. I have MANY obsessions....chocolate, Glee, little eiffel tours....to name a few. But recently, I have to say, I am OBSESSED with cute, unique trays and platters. I love to find unique trays to display in my home. I love melamine, I love ceramic, I love earthenware, I love glass. There is no end to my tray loving obsession. And I just recently purchased THIS cutie over at Pottery Barn. Who can resist the blues and greens and hello???? ROBIN EGGS?!! I swept this up as fast as I could, rushed it home, and found the nearest easil. And I have thoroughly enjoyed it. It's so hard to find a holiday platter that ISN'T in the shape of a snowman or nutcracker (not that I don't enjoy those too.....)

I have had so much fun browsing Target, Crate and Barrel, and Williams Sonoma for my new obsession...look what I found, the butterfly and Home Sweet Home are two of my fav's and they are from Target (never lets me down!) and in melamine, another new obsession.

Check out the cardinal platter (from etsy.com) and the black and white platter (also etsy). Did you know you can have your family silhouette placed on a platter at etsy.com as well? The gold platter and red and green mosaic are from Target. The Party Etiquette is from Williams Sonoma. Cute as can be. So unique.... This one is also from Target, and more mainstream for the holidays:

not that I don't still love these:

to gift, or not to gift?

Teacher gifts........ hmmmmm.......

I have to say, I'm not too creative in this department. I've had this conversation recently with my girlfriends...."what do you give a teacher for Christmas?" Do you give something he/she can use in the classroom? Do you give something they have to haul home with 100 other presents? Or do you give something easily consumed in the day? Like a baked goody? Or maybe a gift card to be used on whatever their heart desires? OR do you just stick with a homemade card from your child?

I have to say, when school let out for the summer last year, we gave each teacher a personalized notebook, stationary, notepad, etc....and they raved about them. It's something with their name on it that they can use in the classroom to send notes home or write reminders to students. Etsy.com is FULL of these cute custom notepads. I got mine from the sweetlifepaper shop on etsy, you should browse the cool ideas!

This year we did your basic anti-bac soap and hand sanitizer in holiday scents from good ol' Bath and Body Works.....but I think there are better ideas out there, and I want you to share them with me!

Go....Utes?

One word: BLING. And those of you who know me, KNOW that there's NOTHING wrong with THAT.Disclaimer: I feel like a complete traitor even featuring this on my blog, but I had to spread the word.....

Victoria's Secret has CUTE University of Utah apparel! Do you know how hard it is to find cute university tees to wear to games? Hubby likes to give all of our money to the RED school....by purchasing season football tickets and basketball tickets......so occasionally I have to accompany. Well, I walked into Victoria's Secret yesterday and nearly fell over due to the cuteness of these shirts. Red, black, and BLING! Unfortunately the website doesn't feature the red or black shirt....you must go to the store....and they sell out quickly!

Ps: (Go Cougars!)..... there is some BLUE left......

Parlez-vous......Damon?

Now if any of you haven't joined my extremely cool club yet.....it's called, "Handsome Vamps Club..." don't laugh, one viewing of this show, and you will want to join me right away. Don't get me wrong, I am happily married. But in some, wierd, parallel universe...like Mystic Falls.......you get me? This guy puts Edward to shame.

Season Premier THIS THURSDAY September 9! I can hardly contain myself.

Oh, and PS.....sleeping much better, thank you! Thank you Melatonin from the health food store! My new BFF!

How have you been sleeping?

A conversation with my Ambien tablets:

"Goodbye, dear friends, thanks for the nights of awesome sleep. But now it's time to let you go. See, you've been giving me headaches during the day. And sometimes, at night, I go get snacks out of the pantry and eat who knows what. Oh, and sometimes, I even get on the computer and make comments on Facebook and don't remember doing it the next morning. Probably NOT a good idea. :) But, ooooooh, how I will miss you. "

Two weeks later: What I would give for a good night's sleep!!!! I've been up for almost 2 weeks straight, I have huge dark circles under my eyes. I am cranky, grumpy, weepy.....oh my goodness, who knew how hard it would be to stop taking my beloved Ambien! But I have to muddle through......I have to stick with it! Long warm baths...no caffeine....hot milk....reading...whatever it takes. Sort of wishing the evil witch would come put a sleeping spell on me right about now...........

Last night: Finally, 6 hours of sleep. It's a breakthrough. And I am NEVER EVER EVER EVER EVER NEVER taking Ambien AGAIN! What a process!

Suffering from insomnia is no picnic. That's for sure. I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. Lying awake for hours on end, tossing, turning, and waking up easily? BLAAAAAH! But I have to find other ways to help myself. Any ideas from those of you who also have sleep issues? Have any of you tried other methods? PLEASE SHARE!

I'm going to take a nap........zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

it's like TiVo

We've been making a glorious mess today chez nous...........nope, no special occasion.....

everyone needs a sweet day....Chocolatey....fluffy.....delicious....goooooooooey.....sinful......homemade.........

FROSTING! with SPRINKLES....

Not the professional, dry, stiff frosted cupcakes that are so popular right now...
but the SOFT, GOOEY, milky, melty, sloppy, messy kind.......that you honestly need a big glass of milk to wash down every crumb...
and a couple of wet wipes won't hurt either......


Let him be the judge......

Homemade Chocolate Butter Frosting:

1/3 cup butter, soft, and whipped with your mixer

slowly add: 1/2 c. good unsweetened cocoa, mix in

2-3 cups powdered sugar (mix will look very dry)

add 1/4 c. milk, mix in slowly

a little vanilla

if it's too loose, add a bit more powdered sugar....

So much better than the frosting in a can!

This is the kind you could eat all by itself, dip fruit in, put on cookies.......you have to try it!

Once you've tried it, you'll never go back. It's like TiVo.

gettin' my groove back

I've been on a "bloggin hiatus" this summer....we've been busy soakin' up the rays, sticking our feet in the sand, frequenting the slurpee store and snow cone booths, flying across the country to visit cool states, seeing all the new summer movies, trying to beat the heat and get ready for the "grind" to start over again. Does anyone else have anxiety over school starting soon? I get sick to my stomach even talking about it.......seems like we just barely got into a summer groove. That groove being sleeping in, eating out, swimming all day, seeing matinees, and pretty much doing whatever we want all day long.

Please tell me I'm not the only one that dreads the start of school, and a .....sigh......schedule.

Why go on?

I'm wondering, after last night's previews at the end of Bachelorette...."Why watch the rest?" They basically tell you everything that's going to happen until the end! THANK YOU ABC! Some warning might have been nice....like, "Coming up on this season of the Bachelorette...and by the way, please mute your television if you'd like to be somewhat suprised in the next few weeks." I mean, really? Could they have revealed much more? We know Frank has a complete meltdown, Ali is suicidal, and Ty is in Tahiti. Duh. Where is Chris L. during all of this? Prepping to be the next Bachelor, me thinks.

Two words, Rated R......Good. Bye.

And yes, you are famous, don't worry. A famous LIAR. Way to go. And I love the exit....keep on walking. Walk away, psycho.

And Frank....hope you've found the perfect spot for that absolutely fabulous Turkish rug that you bought (that you absolutely WERE NOT going to buy....)....you'll be needing it to curl up on and bawl your eyes out after you break Ali's heart. I'm starting to think that Frank may have split personalities....it may be a good thing for Ali if he does end things. A little bit too unstable for me....

Roberto.....olive oil......shirt off......

sigh.....

Hi, I'm back, I totally got sidetracked for a minute. Wow.

pass the kleenex....

I'm not a huge lover of sequels, but can I tell you that our family has been anticipating the release of Toy Story 3 for a year! Even my 2 year old couldn't wait! And let me tell you, it was worth it. Every last tear shed. Every last piece of buttery popcorn consumed. Every last piece of my heart broken.

Yep, I bawled like a baby. Like, four times, to be exact. This film pulled at my heart strings...well, every mother's heart strings. If you have a child that is going to grow up, outgrow his/her childhood, move away from home, etc. etc.....bring the kleenex. I held my 2 year old son and cried like a baby into his hair. I was a mess. And later on that night, I got a glimpse of his "Toy Story" sippy cup and started crying all over again. Even the "Toy Story" potty seat cover brings me to tears. Somebody hold me!

This movie isn't lacking in humor either. Just wait until you see Buzz get switched to "Spanish mode".....and start dancing the Samba, or whatever that was. I was dying. The whole theater was laughing. And another notable part? Mr. PotatoHead turns into Mr. Tortilla. Wow. Genius.

An absolutely fabulous part of this movie was the addition of Ken. The Dreamhouse and his wardrobe is hysterical. The fashion show with Barbie is so so funny. You will die laughing during the "groovin' "......... and what a MAN Ken is.....
A moving part for me? Without spoiling the movie......when the toys think that their time is "up"...and they look at eachother and reach for everyone's hands. Yep, of course I started bawling. And when Andy plays with his toys for the last time, I think even my eight year old got a tear in his eye. Why do our kids have to grow up? WHY!

As my sister would say, if you don't cry in this movie, you are emotionally dead inside. This ranks right up there with The Notebook on my cry list.....

Maybe I'm still recovering from the Jake/Vienna breakup.....

oh the agony.....

Well, don't worry, I have mopped myself up off of the floor and think I have a grip.....click here for the most shocking news of the day...oh, for the love!Never mind the fact that I had my outfit all picked out for the "televised wedding of the year"...looks like I'll be taking THAT back! Thanks, Vienna, for shattering my dreams of a 'fairytale' romance. Now I have to go burn my copy of "On the Wings of Love".......way to go! I had it all ready for the big day......

Moment of silence.

Ok, on to last night's episode that made Bachelorette history for me. Never has a contestant been left alone on a volcanic glacier to fend for themselves and freeze their butts off while the Bachelorette and her snazzy man flew away in a getaway-copter. Can you say, "Classy?" Looks like Ali had NO desire to guard and protect YOUR heart, Kasey. I would head straight to the Tattoo Removal shop if I were you. In fact, you can't get there fast enough.

Justin, wow. Never have I disliked someone more. Well, maybe crazy Craig, the hair douche. But Justin, you are a bully. A big Rated-R bully. And from the sound of things, you get around. Can't wait for next week's Rated-R BOOT. (no pun intended......"boot"....)


Looks like our mystery man of the season....Chris N. finally got eliminated. No surprise. None at all. Never saw him coming, ....or going, for that matter. What, did he say like five words the whole episode? I couldn't tell if he was talking, mumbling, singing.......hmmmmm. He did, however, let Ali know how "funny" he is......hilarious.

Still sticking to my final picks. Chris L. and Roberto. Love both of them. Seriously.

Now I have to go take my Prozac........(sniff sniff....WHY Vienna, WHY!?!)

Um....cover your mouth!

Sorry I missed my "Bachelorette Analyzing Post" last week, but I was visiting my sister and we actually got to watch it together, which was such a treat. It took us like, four hours, to make it through the episode. We had to pause it every few seconds to analyze, make fun, etc. etc.....

UM....., shall we wait and see if on the next episode of Bachelorette d-r-a-m-a if everyone (well, almost everyone....) has contracted the death plague that little miss sunshine had this week? Seriously? I would rather die than make out with someone that sounded like that! I don't think she's ever made out with this many guys in one episode. Ever. Boy, are they going to be sorry!

Now, I am just going to ask the question that EVERYONE is wondering.

Wait for it.

.................................................................................

WHO IS THIS GUY?

Does anyone know?

Seriously?

Chris N. is his name. He hasn't had a SINGLE conversation with Ali on the show thus far....and yet she keeps giving him one rose after another. I don't get it. Please, someone help me.

And does it need to be pointed out that our sweet Roberto got his groove on? I mean, the guy can MOVE! He has the whole package. How cool is that?

Kasey. Do you dream about rainbows and peaches and all things magical at night? Are you sure that you are here to protect and guard her heart? Really? I'm not sure you got that point across. Might want to tattoo it on your chest or .....something. Or here's a better idea, put it into a really annoying, extremely awkward song/serenade. Twice.

So here's my final picks, folks......it's gonna be Robert and Chris L. in the last ceremony. Frank might have a chance...if he doesn't decide he's bored and need a change of scenery. (remember he likes to move around a lot...a bit too unstable for me!)

take me out to the ballgame.....

Anyone who has a child who plays on a sports team knows that sometimes you get to know the other mom's really, really well..and you live, eat, breathe, sleep whatever sport you are playing, but especially baseball.....my son played on a baseball team this year that went undefeated in the regular season, and made it all the way to the championship.....I'm not proud or anything!

We always bring treats and gifts to celebrate the end of the season, and I thought it would be fun to make each of the cute moms a fun shirt to cheer our team on to the end. And our boys thought we were FABULOUS. They kept turning around from the dugout to check out their cute moms....it was so fun.

Michael's Crafts has an excellent deal on tee's right now, 2 for $5, and then I just bought the cute fuzzy iron on letters, and this easy project only took a few hours. A lot of ironing, but worth every minute. Talk about proud boys! Go Red Sox! You can check out my family blog for some Red Sox pics.....

that boy is Poisssooooonnnn......

Tell me that the song, "Poison" did not go through your head all night after watching this episode. Just tell me. I know it did.

Didn't yo mama teach you not to bully the other kids, Craigers? Oh wait, she probably did...but since you are freakin' 34 years old, it's probably been a while since you got some motherly wisdom....better move back in with mama!

What a bully! I mean, SERIOUSLY?!!!! People still act that way SOBER? It was like he was a drunken fool, wandering around looking for people to make fun of and bully and insult. I just can't believe someone didn't hit him in the face. I was just waiting for it. Instead, they just sat there and giggled. Dumb.

I actually felt a little sorry for the Weatherman, the brunt of all the jokes. He bugs, but noone deserves that.

And the photo shoot? What was up with him running his fingers through his own hair every two seconds? GAG!!!! Nice sweater tied around your neck, too, preppy boy. You are inlove with yourself, 100 %. Take it back to the 80's.....

I still like Ty, but I didn't see a lot of chemistry there (sniff, sniff)....that's ok, because she has....

that's right.....Roberto.

Big BIG yummy sigh.

What a great guy! AND.......he plays baseball. What could be sexier than that?

I still like Jesse, too....just a real down to earth guy. And I think she really liked him, too. It will be good to see Chris L. get some screen time on the next episode, maybe he'll actually get a date.

Oh, and let me just put in a shout out for this guy:

Justin. The Poor Guy. What a trooper. I can't believe how hard he's worked to keep up on his crutches. And the whole pack just leaves him there to hobble for himself. I think Ali could have taken a little more time to seek him out and see how he's doing. Instead she flits off with the pack down the beach...."How ya doin' back there, Justin?"..........not too classy. Somebody get that guy one of these:

A Segway....a scooter....a something!

blog

I've updated my family blog.....fyi. If you need an invite, just email me or leave me a comment. :)Happy Memorial Weekend!

bachelorette da-r-a-a-a-am-a

Ok, so if you want a synopsis on all of the fabulous bachelors, go HERE

But if you just want to hear me relish in my favorite bachelorette moments, look no further.

Ali, you looked stunning, but seriously, it was almost painful to watch all of the boys get out of the limos and try and "outdo" eachother on the intros. And you just laughed it up and squealed it up to the point that I wanted to throw up a little in my mouth.....

I think the best intros were the ones that weren't forced, were sincere and didn't involve neck breaking backflips out of the limo, silly nickname jokes involving pre-ejac...(well, you know), realing in a fish line, or fake proposals.....OMG I nearly fell over when the guy "fake" proposed with a CZ ring....cheeeeeeeeezy. And dude, I actually think you may be g.a.y. But she kept you around anyways......maybe to balance out the testosterone in the house?

Jesse. Wow. Cute. Cute. Cute. Nice. Nice. Nice. Me likey. Seems like a very genuine guy.
One of the hundred "Chris's" in the show.....and hello, did they find all of the contestants in Canada? Anyways, Chris L. is one of my fav's so far....nice guy. Lives in Cape Cod....very close to his family. Seems pretty grounded.

Well, there always has to be an emotional wreck on the show that is Bachelorette/Bachelor. This is our drama queen.....Kasey. Sniff. sniff. sob. "I'm here to get married. I'm here to find my wife. I'm here to fall inlove, for the love!!!" (sound familiar?)

Roberto. I have to agree with Ali. This guy is sexy. And so sweet. What do you think?

This was the first guy (and the first Chris..ha ha) to step out of the limo. WOW. This is a cute guy. But he got NO screen time. But she kept him anyways. Good, Ali..... Go Canada.

Biggest douche award goes to........

Craig.

Hands down.

What's up with the hair? And the pink scarf in the pocket? Light in the loafers? Inlove with yourself? Vomit. Gag. Eew. Boo! Ali, you really wasted a precious rose on this one.

I don't know why, but I really really like this guy. Ty. I think it's because he's a southern boy. He has that southern charm. And I think he's handsome, even more so in person.

The "most like fingernails scratching down a chalkboard" award goes to: Jonathan. The weather man. Yikes. I think he just likes to hear himself go on and on and on and on........I see a limited number of roses in this weatherman's forecast. Stormy days ahead.



I see lots of awkward moments in the future. I love it!