Wordless Wednesday (a little early)

Our Boxer Angels: Sprite and Sudz

Scale is down ... or should I say "was" down?

So two weeks ago we started the "Biggest Loser" competition at work.  Last week, I weighed in 5.5 lbs lighter than the week before.  You'll be impressed to know that I won for this week's "biggest loser" and am now sporting a cool bowling trophy with my name and a few Mardi Gras beads hanging on it ... it's pretty comical to look at and from what I am gathering, a pretty coveted title.  I wonder if I can stay on track to win again this week? 

Not only did I win individually, my team won for the biggest weight loss percentage as well!  I am on a team with two other wonderful ladies that I work with ... one lost 5 pounds (and as I type, I think she is down in the weight room working out) and the other lost 3 pounds.  Way to go ladies!!  We are kicking some major butt.  (Literally!!) 

I am generally following the weight watchers plan that I used a few years ago when I got skinny.  Then I got pregnant with SweeTart.  Do you think they were the result of one another?  LOL  Now, here I go all over again ... she's almost two and I'm pretty heavy ... I chunked up too right around when Twinkletoes was 2ish.  Hopefully this time I will shed the extra poundage and keep it off.  I have to start exercising.  I have to, I have to, I have to ... (imitating the Little Engine that Could). 

Does anyone have any delicious recipes to share with me that actually fit into the weight watchers plan?  I would love to try something new ... I'm dying for comfort food.  It has been raining and cold for the past two days.  I'm planning for a pasta night tonight ... whole wheat pasta, of course, laden with sauteed onions and peppers, which are leftover from last night's meal.  Hopefully that will get me over the comfort food "hump" and I can look at my salads again and smile. 

*toodles*

The Happiness Project

We're Members!

The Happiness Project - Week #5 - sponsored by Leigh v. Laundry:

If you want to jump on the bandwagon simply post a photo of something that makes you wildly happy.
Then, steal Leigh's button from her blog (if you can't get it from mine) and include it in your post.

Be sure to add your link to Mr. Linky, also on Leigh's post.  (I'm not savvy enough to figure out how to get that Linky to my blog.) 

Have a MAGICAL day!

Trying to sneak a quick one ..

blog post that is .... it's almost 8 a.m. and where are your kidlets?  Mine are all still sleeping.  (I probably shouldn't have said that - I'm sure to have jinxed myself!!)

We had a great time at RedStone last night.  I made reservations for us via OpenTable.com.  It was the best thing I could have done because, man, was that place hopping.  The Hubs says that lots of singles go there to get "tail".  For the non-singles, they must be going for the fabulous food and inviting atmosphere.  While I must say it was hard to read my menu becuase the lights were dimmed so low, something I am generally not used to dining with three kidlets, I chose a petite filet, asparagus (I got three pieces - hold me back) and a baked potato.  I had a beer at the outside bar (yes, it was a little chilly but they had heaters so some people were probably warmer than me) with the Hubs while we were waiting for our friends and then sipped iced teas the rest of the evening like a good designated driver.  LOL.  The food was fabulous!  The conversation was heated at the bar outside while they spoke of politics ... Obama...Christie...teacher cuts...aide cuts ... Mrs. H and I tried to calm the atmosphere by talking about DISNEY.  It worked ... a few times!!  While inside we caught up with our friends that we haven't had a night out with in too long.  We're all so busy with work, kidlet sports and kidlets in general ... and Mr. H coaches HS wrestling from Thanksgiving until the first weekend in March ... all that being said, we should really try to do it more often.  I miss hanging out with our friends more regularly.  :-)

The true reason for this post, besides rubbing it in that my kids are still sleeping at 7:58 a.m. on a bright and sunny Saturday is because a crazy thing happened while we were out last night.  First and foremost, I have to say that our sitter rocks! We left the van at home "just in case" something happens and she needed to take the kidlets somewhere ... you never know, right?? She arrived on time, I went through what was going on with the kids ... where the bottles and diapers are (I'm sure I was boring her out of her skull - but she didn't show it) (see spoke too soon .. 8:00 a.m. and DinoBoy has decided to join me in bed) - I knew she had my cell # because I had texted her earlier in the week.  Lo and behold - it was 8:01 - we had just gotten our dinner and here is a text from the babysitter ... "power is out.  twinkletoes and sweetart are scared. can i take them to my house or have my mom come pick us all up?"  Holy crikies, right?  It was a beautiful clear evening - what the hell happened to my electricity???  I texted my mom because she has the neighbor's cell # to have her call them to see what was going on at their house ... she couldn't get in touch with them ... ugh.  Texted babysitter back ... of course it is okay to take the kidlets to her house (her parents are friends of ours.)  Told her we'd finish up dinner and come right home instead of hanging out forever ... she replied "don't rush, we'll be fine".  How's that for a grown up, high school senior??? Needless to say, we finished up, talked some more and headed home.  By the time we got home, the power was on - we let the sitter know the coast was clear and she brought the kidlets home ... safe and sound ... she's AWESOME! 

Wondering now if I dare jump in the shower before the girls get up.  We all know that as soon as I get in, SweeTart will start jumping in her crib ... "mommy, mommy, daddy, daddy, where are you?  help! help help!"  Funny right?  She is definitely a trip.  I will hold off on the shower until she goes down for her nap.  I'm going to start surfing the net for Dora party supplies for her 2nd birthday which is just around the corner. 

Have a wonderful day!  Toodles!

TGIF.....

Friday Follow ---- Blog Hop

hosted by One 2 Try, Hearts Make Families and Midday Escapades!

Yesterday was a trip.  It started out well enough with The Hubs coming to take me out to lunch so that we could finish signing our paperwork for the DVC ... that was a wonderful break from my daily toil ... of course, we had to sign a lot and we've pretty much signed our lives away on another mortgage...again.  We should be used to it by now since we've already starting pledging our souls, our home, our first born, etc. to the banks to get his business up and running.  Its all good.  He said the next time we decide to do this (sign our lives away) he is bringing his signature stamp so that he doesn't get a hand cramp from signing so many different forms!  I thought it was amazing how my signature changed from one form to the next.  How are they supposed to remain the same when you're signing so many papers?  Anyhoo - it's all good.  We have our first DVC trip booked for December so that we can experience "Disney at Christmas".  Everyone is excited.  I'm not sure how we're all going to be able to wait for the day to get here when we leave.  

After work, I took all three kidlets to the doctor.  I love, love, love our pediatrician.  The Hubs made the switch to her last year in the winter when we could not figure out what was wrong with DinoBoy after he was in and out of former pediatrician's offices for 3 months.  One trip to this new doctor (who my SIL found for her little boy) and she began a new course of treatment for DinoBoy and he was better within a few weeks.  Amazing gal, she is!!  Doubly amzing too becuase she took the time to see my gaggle of kids after her normal office hours were over for the night.  Here I was walking in for a 6:45 p.m. appointment ... DinoBoy couldn't catch his breath again (just like when he was sick last winter), Twink had a sore throat and an earache, and SweeTart was still miserable after being diagnosed on Tuesday with an ear infection and an upper respiratory infection.  The end result was:  DinoBoy just has a cold but will need a nebulizer every four hours for the next few days because he is wheezing; Twinkletoes has an ear infection but not strep; and SweeTart's ear infection has gotten worse so everyone is going home with prescriptions for one thing or another.  Doc called in our prescriptions at 7:00 and I was hoping to have them before the kidlets went to bed.  I waited at the pharmacy for almost 45 mintues while they worked out kinks with the insurance company and finally filled the "mixes" for the girls.  GEEZ!!!  I didn't get home until after 9:00 and their bedtime is 8:30  .... needless to say ... I'm exhausted.  (and I'm not even sick!) 

Today will be a great day even though the weather is still crappy over here in NJ -- we've got a sitter and are going out with our friends for dinner.  I'm sure our dinner conversation will be a heated one over the current state of the State's budget and our new Governor's call on teachers to take a pay freeze for one year and begin to contribute to their health benefits....the friends that we are going to be dining with are both teachers.  I work in a school district so I know first hand how things are going down but it takes a village to raise a child ... and I'm a firm believer that everyone, everyone from the top of the administration to the bottom of the scale must make concessions ... no more "I teach your children ... I mold the future of America " that I have actually heard teacher friends of mine say ... I will give a little so that everyone can keep their jobs!! 

Toodles ... have a wonderful weekend! 

Boggle Me Thursday and then some ....

Not much time for me to play right now.  Later.  But how are you making out on these boards? 

Things were hectic last night ... the older two do an after school program on Wednesdays until 5:00 then Twink has practice from 6:30 until 8:00 ... I picked them up and when I got home I had expected my mom to have the oven on so I could thow pizzas in for dinner but the Hubs was already home and had the pizzas in the oven.  What an unexpected surprise!! (Thanks honey!!) Then we ate, changed diapers, put hair in pony tails, finished homework and raced out the door to drop Twink off, then to the dog food store to get the dogs food -- we've been out of their food since Sunday (no, I didn't let them starve, I picked up a small bag of Pedigree @ CVS instead of their usual brand) -- the store was closed but the owners were still there and unlocked the door so that we could get the food for them ... then check out my SIL's new hair salon which is in the construction phase ... then to my BIL/SIL's to show them our new mini-van (oh yeah, I haven't blogged about that .. SURPRISE ... I have a VAN!) .. then back to gymnastics to get Twink.  Needless to say I didn't get anything done last night except visits and getting the dog food.  The visiting was nice!  And the dogs appreciated their food!! 

One of things I also wanted to share was that last night while we were checking out SIL's new shop, SweeTart went behind a pile of boxes and I told her to come out where I could see her ... she poked her head out from behind the boxes, pointed her finger at me and said, "No!  I don't think so!" and went back to hiding.   How are you not supposed to laugh at that?  She is 23 months going on 16 years...we're in for it with this one!

Wordless Wednesday

A few of my favorites ...

The Happiness Project

Lunchtime is almost over at my desk.....

The happiness project today was to post a picture of something that makes me wildly happy.  SweeTart and the Husband ... holding hands ... best buds ... she's definitely her Daddy's Girl.  *sigh*

SweeTart is in two votable contests ... thanks for helping out!!

1.

and



2.  Parents Photo Faves

Friday Follow Blog Hop

Parents Photo Faves

Another day ... another move forward. SweeTart is now at position #30 up from her spot yesterday. Seems like these kids in the front must have a LOT of people voting for them. Hopefully we can do it too!!

Parents Photo Faves

Vote for SweeTart and Play Boggle!

Please take a quick minute to cast your VOTE for SweeTart.  I know it is getting a bit redundant but she finished last week at #55 out of over 7,000 other little kidlets.  That's pretty cool.  This week, she is already at #55, from #284 yesterday so something is working in our favor so far.  I've got my fingers crossed for her.  :-)  She's such a cutie and a sweet kid (when she's not beating the crap out of her brother and sister because she just doesn't quite get her own strength yet - kind of like BamBam from the Flinstones.)

Looking foward to going to see our nephew tonight ... and my sister in law too.  It's been way too long since the little ones have played together.  I've already got my camera in my bag and I will be ready to go crazy with the camera.  Pictures will be forthcoming, no worries. 

Ok, I know you've been waiting for this:  Boggle Me Thursday.  Here you go!





I haven't played yet.  I will let you know what I come up with later on ... let's say lunchtime? 

Make it a wonderful day ... it sure is beautiful here!!

Lets Try Again This Week

Click the below link to Vote for SweeTart!

Parents Photo Faves

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Each year, my mom takes pictures of the kids on Saint Patrick's Day.  I think it is secretly her favorite holiday!!  These are some of the pictures she managed to get of the kidlets before the older two went off  to school.  She is planning on taking SweeTart to the local supermarket, Murphy's, which has a fantastic St. Pat's Day celebration each year complete with free cake, coffee and tea, balloon art and face painting ... even free shamrock hats, and head band antennae (what are they really called??) The kids' school has a parade today - the 2nd graders are the stars of the parade and they wear St. Patrick's Day hats that they've either purchased or designed themselves.  I didn't download Twink's picture in hers but I'll get to it today ... its cute.  We got it last year when shopping for DinoBoy's hat, in anticipation for Twink to be in the 2nd grade hat parade. 

Enjoy your St. Patrick's Day!

Beautiful sunshine!

Hello sunshine!!  It's been a while!!  It has been raining here since Friday - cloudy since Thursday.  Today is a beautiful, "sunshiney", spring day!  Hope you can enjoy the warmth or at least be close to a window to enjoy the natural light!  I hope the kidlets are ready to spend some time outside with me tonight cooking dinner on the grill!! 

Nothing much new is going on.  Looking forward to Twink's first gymnastics competition this weekend, as well as DinoBoy's wrestling banquet and first baseball practice.  SweeTart is keeping us all on our toes since she has learned to scale the gate guarding the steps and has been frequently greeting us upstairs when we're least expecting to see her.  I guess it is time to take the gate down and put locks on all of the doorknobs upstairs (that is another new trick of hers - she can open any and all doorknobs.)  Funny that it is only Tuesday and I'm already looking forward to the weekend.  Must be spring fever. 

Hope the sun is shining on you too!

An interesting thought ...

Click on the widget above if you are interested in a postcard exchange.  Sandra has noticed how the technology of today has put the "art" of letter writing on the back burner. 

I used to have pen-pals when I was young.  I actually still exchange Christmas cards with one girl ... she is fabulous.  I can't tell you how much fun it was to get a real letter in the mailbox - one that had interesting thoughts and stories in it.  I loved hearing how my "friends" in Thiland, Norway and Finland spent their time.  There used to be a place that would match kids up by their ages, interests and countries.  I haven't come across that anywhere since.  I think that with all the craziness with the internet and child predators, those types of places have seen their demise.  I am not sure that I would let my kids communicate with a stranger ... how do you know who they really are? 

Funny - the one pen-pal I do still keep in touch with, I went half way across the country to meet after my graduation from high school.  How crazy is that?  It was an experience I wouldn't change for anything.  I got to experience Colorado - Colorado Springs, Pike's Peak, Garden of the Gods, the Air Force Academy ... I am thankful for that trip and for the friendship I forged.  Not sure that I would let one of my kids - 18 or not - go across the country to meet a stranger!! LOL 

Twinkletoes and I were shopping on Saturday before the deluge of the storm hit us 100% and she talked to me about her "sister school" in Africa.  Her school's principal took a trip to Kenya this past fall and kept the students of IMS very involved with her activities with the school she visited and worked with.  I think the kids may know more about Kenya than I do.  (I take that back.  I am sure they know more about Kenya than I do.)   Part of the project of their principal was to have the kids correspond with one another on different grade levels.  No letters are exchanged with last names or addresses. All letters must go through their teachers and the school so I guess it is safe and fun for all of them.  I think it is a good thing for the kids on both ends of the letters to have fun writing to each other, learning about ways of life in different parts of the world.   

Do you still write "real" letters or is everything now electronic? 

Keep on Voting ...

SweeTart has moved up more than 2,300 places since Wednesday ... thanks for all of your votes ... please keep them coming!!

Parents Photo Faves

Vote for SweeTart!!!

Parents Photo Faves She moved up almost 2,000 points with your help! Please keep the votes coming!
Love, the proud parents!

Boggle Me Thursday

Boggle Me Thursday ...

Fun ... if nothing else ... exercise your brain ... goodness knows it is the only part of me that is exercising these days!! 





Is anyone really even playing along?? Hello, Hello ... anyone out there??

For the specific rules to Boggle, please go here. But remember, this is for fun; there are no points, no winner or losers!


If you don't have a blog, feel free to list your words in the comments.

For an added twist, when you're done, write a sentence with as many of the words you found as you can!

Please remember to visit fellow Bogglers... part of the fun is seeing what words others found!

Ready! Set! Go!
 
I had fun with this one this one this a.m. (must have been the Golden Grahams I was eating at the time)  I found:  stale, salt, date, sassed, toe, moe, moat, moats, ass, lass,lee, leas, lea, toss, moss, sassy, sale, seals, seal, toys, toy, mote, toast, toasts, tots, tot, sad, late, lat, lasts, last, sat, sleet, lee, tee, lets, let, teet ... time's up.  Have fun!

Still Recovering ...

Had an awesome weekend in Ocean City this weekend with my mom, step mom and girlfriends.  Even with a friend whom I used to work with years ago in Princeton ... that was a different lifetime all together!  We'd been planning this weekend of scrapbooking with Scrap Away Get Away since July.  Once again, the girls who run the show did an extraordinary job of getting things together.  A few bumps in the road - like last year 4 of us shared a 2 bedroom suite and this year, the same 4 of us were put in a one bedroom.  No biggie....after we figured out that we got an awesome deal last year, Mrs. H (funny calling her that) and I decided to suck it up and sleep on the pull out couch. It worked out fabulously. 

I got soooo much done.  More so than I've ever gotten done on one of these weekends away.  I'm pretty impressed with myself.   I only need to "journal" events related to our trip over Thanksgiving weekend 2009 to the Gaylord National Hotel outside of Washington, DC in National Harbor, MD.  It was fun looking at all of the pictures and seeing how much all fun all of the kids had - even if it was hairy trying to get SweeTart to sleep in the same room as the other 4 of us - in that port-a-crib supplied by the hotel.  It was such a cool trip. 

After brunch on Sunday, I had done as much as I could on the Thanksgiving pages, I decided to take a few minutes and read.  I gathered my book, (I had started "The Help" on Friday night because Mrs. H brought it with her as she is supposed to be reading it for her new book club and even though I had just started to read the Postmistress on Wednesday night, The Help was one of my newest downloads as well) and went to sit in the "lobby" of the 2nd floor where we were scrapping.  I finished the 2nd chapter, put the bookmark on and looked up at a painting on the wall next to where I was sitting.  There is a local story about a resident ghost at the Flanders Hotel where we were staying and the painting is supposedly a rendition of the ghost they call "Emily".  After a few minutes, I had finished looking at the painting, clicked page advance on my book and nothing happened.  Not a big deal, I hit the page advance again.  Again, nothing.  I looked down at the battery meter - I still had a complete charge.  Then all of the sudden, this circle (which appears when the book is syncing with the computer) appeared and then the book turned itself off!  That has only happened when I've previously let the battery go dead which was certainly not the case on Sunday.

So ---- I hauled a$$ back to my friends and family to tell them what just happened.  They were still at the crop table working on their projects.  I turned the book back on while I was telling them my story.  Another twist to this creepiness is that when the book turned back on, it did not bring me up to the book where I had left off.  It didn't bring me back to The Help at all!!  It brought me back to the Postmistress which I hadn't even touched while at the beach - and it indicated when I went to The Help that I hadn't even started this book at all?? I was getting ready to go on to the third chapter.  How freaky!?!  I took it as a sign that I should not be wasting valuable scrapping time reading.  I promptly started, and nearly finished, our escapades with the Waverunner this past summer.  Another 2 or 3 pages, plus journaling and I will have that complete as well. 

The husband says that I still have residual snoring from staying up so late while we were away.  For those of you that know me at all, you know that I am not a night owl.  Not in any aspect of the word.  I'm much more of a morning person.  This week, however, even though I am going to bed early, I cannot get my lazy arse moving in the morning to get out of bed.  Yesterday, I thought I hit "snooze" on the alarm clock when I really hit the "off" button and woke up 45 minutes late.   Maybe a few more days of going to bed super early will be good for me and I'll catch up on that missed sleep. 

PreOrder a new book and get a FREE autographed Jen Weiner book!

I read this on Jen Weiner's blog yesterday and thought it was too good to be true ....

Sarah Pekkanen is a great, witty, observant writer, who managed to finish a her novel while mothering three little boys. (Respect). She’s also savvy about the realities of the marketplace and how much online sales matter. That’s why she’s urging people to pre-order her book from online retailers ON WEDNESDAY, MARCH 3.



The more pre-orders the booksellers get, the more likely they are to promote the book on their websites, to recommend it in their newsletters, to spur that all-important word of mouth that matters more than anything, and more, now, than it ever did.

Sarah’s raffling off some fabulous prizes on her blog (camcorder! Fancy makeup! A phone consultation if you want to learn how to sell your book!) to anyone who pre-orders the book on Wednesday, and I’m thrilled to be part of the fun.

So here’s the deal: order THE OPPPOSITE OF ME on Wednesday. You can get it from Amazon! From Barnes& Noble! From your favorite independent bookstore!

Next, head to Sarah’s website to be eligible for her fabulous prizes.

Then send me a copy of your receipt (minus the credit card information, obvs), either at jen@jenniferweiner.com, on my Facebook home page or fan page, or via Twitter. Tell me which book you want and how you want it inscribed, and I'll send out books until I run out, which shouldn’t be for a while.

You’ll get to read a great book, and discover a fresh, funny new voice in women’s fiction. You’ll score a signed copy of one of my books (and if you’ve read them all, they make lovely gifts)...and we’ll all get to see just how much social networking can get a new author on the radar.


What’s not to like?

I'm wondering how a deal like this can be passed up!!  Let me know how you make out if you take advantage of this offer and what book you get from Jen!