Step up Ladies and Watch out Boys

Cracked open the crate of CDs that I've been hanging on to since the 90s and popped the Squirrel Nut Zippers in my car's player today.

Time machine back to 1997.

August was fading away and blessing me with the kind of magical balmy night that you can't convince me happens anywhere but Tennessee. By my side was a particularly handsome specimen of high school heartbreak and I still thank the Southern summer for memories of his arms in that t-shirt.  

The Italian Street Fair was alive with swing music in the park right by Nashville's full-size Parthenon replica.

I'll wait while that sinks in ...

I was falling in love with swing music and summer breezes and love itself. I probably ate cannoli.

When it was over, I floated to my best friend's place on a cloud. I don't remember if I gushed about his smile or if I swore to her that I was going to start dressing like the swing crowd. I hope I told her about his arms.

I know we watched the news.

Princess Diana was being pried out of a car in a tunnel halfway around the world & in my best friend's bedroom, we had a front row ticket. We stayed up all night, waiting for the good news from the hospital in Paris, but we all know how that that turned out. I thought of my other best friend who had already called dibs on Prince William and I knew would be devastated watching the same news.

I'm not sure if I cried, if we tsk'ed at the tragedy from the cynicism of our teenage wisdom. Maybe we just watched quietly. Did we do anything quietly?

I'm furious that I can't remember little details of the days and nights I was so certain I could never forget. Was there anything remotely Italian about the street fair that wasn't on a street? Did I get to enjoy those arms? I'm just going to assume I ate cannoli. I've got to hang on to that damn CD.

Anyone still out there?

Hello & hi there. It's been a while but you're looking mighty fine these days.

I'm going to start this blog with a major plug for work. If you're a Facebook friend of mine or follow me on Twitter, you're probably already sick of me sending out work links but this is a really fun project & we want to get it out there in the world.

I haven't talked much about work but not because I don't love it. I really do love it. I get to write & be creative all day every day so there's not much to not love.

Now this project was shot before I came on board but I've been in the wings watching it come to life through the editing, sound, graphics & the still photo shoot to accompany it. It's really awesome & I hope you get some chuckles out of it.

If you do enjoy it, let me know - it would be cool to get some feedback on it. If you really want to support us, like our facebook page or follow us on twitter.

Or don't. Whatever. I don't want to be a pest but we are a very small production company who would like to keep growing & being awesome so I'm going to be plugging this for the next few weeks.

If this is all new to you, let me introduce you to The Hangover Theory, a mash-up of The Hangover & The Big Bang Theory. It's a fun experiment in branded entertainment, which is a direction we are heading in at Sapling.

The first video is a trailer & the second is the first short episode.
There are five more to come then we'll release the final full version of it.

I couldn't embed the video from youtube so I've uploaded it here. Therefore, if you want to share it with your friends & loved ones (no pressure but it would be awesome & I'll repay the favor when you have something to flog), I beg of you to use the following link so we can get more views out of you:
http://youtu.be/cF3xhyeVIiU

Thank you kindly!

Now on to the triumphs of parenthood...
Benny dressed himself today!
Light blue Humpty Dumpty shirt with light blue jeans & flannel shirt to keep warm.
Everything put on, zipped & buttoned by himself.
I couldn't be prouder!
I have no idea at what point in development this is supposed to happen for boys but I'm assuming it's around 12 or 13 & he's super advanced? Right?
Please don't burst my bubble by telling me about your son who came out of the womb in a tuxedo, tying his own bow tie & straightening his cummerbund (note: when I originally typed that word, I mangled it horribly, somehow dragging poor Benedict Cumberbatch into the fray).

When I attempted to help him straighten out the button situation, he made the executive decision to just leave it unbuttoned. I can respect that.

And then when I started snapping pictures, he walked away. 

He's turning 4 on the 18th but I'm pretty sure he thinks he's turning 17.

While these pictures are here, may I please ask for your assistance with some decorating concerns?

Those grey $9 IKEA curtains are placeholders until we have inspiration/money for something better. 

We are looking for an affordable big rug & are inheriting an awesome funky coffee table. 

Yes, we hate the carpet but it's staying until it's so filthy it falls apart because it's so soft for the little guys at this point & we want to replace it with wood, which won't be as kind to a certain stumbling toddler.

So, we need help on paint colors for the walls!

The room has a blue, grey & yellow color palate with plenty of splashes of other accents.

Main problem is the mezzanine up there behind the couch is our dining room & kitchen area so while we don't have to use the same color, it needs to work together.

And anyone have some great curtain suggestions? I may just steal my friend Dana's cute ones while she's asleep. 

YOU DIDN'T READ THAT, DANA!

And Evan gave a rose to his daycare lady for Teacher Appreciation Day. 

That's all folks!

I am absolutely going to attempt to blog more regularly. And not just start 20 different entries then get distracted & wander away like usual. We shall see ...

The Second Son

Evan is now right around 18 months old so he's reached the very pleasant stage in life where he is no longer a baby but not yet a toddler (if you're not humming Britney Spears right now, we probably shouldn't be friends). I'm also pretty sure that he has been possessed by Satan so that's no good too.

We are quickly approaching time to wean him completely - the only feeds he has now are at night anyway so I have to stop the feeding to sleep & bringing him in to our bed because I'm too lazy tired to stay awake long enough to feed him & put him back in his bed.
Technically, I'm not feeding him to sleep because it's not enough to put him to sleep anymore so I feed and rock him, then put him down in his bed where he peacefully drifts off to sleep.

Wait, no, that's not quite right.
It's less drifting off, a tad more screaming like a banshee.
Also, a dash of punching the rails of the crib and throwing things at us.
He's such a charmer.

Marcel obviously has to deal with his nap times, which are equally as delightful. He captured today's session in a series of photos that will be no doubt be dragged out every time Evan tries to argue with us as a teenager. The rate at which he already argues with us, regardless of his lack of conversational skills, guarantees we are going to be up shit creek with this one.

With no further ado, I give you Evan's naptime of terror.

Currently

I have started new blog entries about 500 million times now but I either get interrupted or I lose enthusiasm for what I'm writing or I start thinking maybe I'm spending too much time up on my soapbox so I step away.

Turns out it's really hard to get back into once you've gotten away from regular blogging.
Who knew?
Everyone. Everyone knew.
Whatever.

Rather than forcing myself to come up with some original programming for you, I'm ripping other bloggers off (yay for stealing!) & just giving you a glimpse of life at the moment. Without further ado, I'm currently:

Watching pilates DVDs. Not only am I watching them, I'm actually doing them (well, have done them a handful of times)! I find it to be a hard workout but I'm also a wimp so you may think differently. In any case, I also find it to be a really fun workout so I'm happy to do it. I started doing short videos that I could find on Hulu Plus on my TV but they're all too short so I finally broke down & bought an actual set of full-length DVDs. I've also been watching way too much HGTV. Is anyone else addicted to Love It or List It?

Eating pure junk. Seriously, had a stomach bug situation yesterday & today I'm eating like my tummy's made of steel. There is something wrong with this picture. I'll be miserable tonight, I'm sure. And I'm starting Weight Watchers again soon - I don't like seeing the chub creeping back on after I worked so hard.

Planning Ben's 4th birthday! Some days, I can't believe he's that old. Other days, I'm convinced he's a very tiny & adorable teenager. I'm attempting to plan a little party for him & keep it simple & fun & not fussy. I'm not against big, fun, super planned parties but I know me & I'm not ready to jump off that cliff until he's old enough to demand it!

Reading embarrassing things. When I was home sick, I downloaded a book that I knew would have a bit of romance to it but thought it was more intrigue & politics but fluffy enough for a lay-around day. Turns out the author has a whole line of pure romance novels & I downloaded one of them by mistake. I have no complaints. I may do it again ... ON PURPOSE. Please don't judge me.

Inspired by Dorothy Zbornak, Liz Lemon and Kimmy Gibbler.

Excited about the Papal Conclave! I don't know why. I guess I just love pomp, circumstance, ancient traditions, mystery and all the scuttlebutt that comes along with the conclave. The last time this came around, I had a great bet on it with my office at Nat Geo but I have not gotten my act together this time. I need to at least an informal poll on Facebook or something.

And now for some gratuitous shots of my handsome young sons. Ladies, hang on to your ovaries!

Until next time, I bid you good day.

WARNING

I'm itching to blog again.
My brain has hurt too much to dive in for the last few months as I've adjusted to the New World & working & all that jazz.
But be on the lookout because I'm stretching my typing fingers & getting wound up!

To be continued ...

Frosty

It turns out I am still not willing to flash my headlights at another car if they're driving around without their own headlights on because I'm still somewhat convinced that it could be a gang initiation whereupon me flashing my headlights would cause them to shoot me.

Apologies to the dumbass driving along 495 without their lights on - I like to think I'm not the only coward avoiding getting your attention. I hope you didn't shoot any good samaritan that clued you in eventually.

Man, gangs were jerks in the 80s weren't they? But did this actually EVER happen to anyone? Was it just an urban myth? If I forget to turn on my headlights & someone flashes me do I have to kill them?

Anyway, I'm happy. I mean it.

Usually when I make such a sweeping claim of contentment in life, something gosh-awful smashes me & I'm not happy anymore. We're probably all going to get scurvy or narcolepsy now.

But I'm putting it out there regardless of what shit storm may get stirred up. I'm really loving my job (though it's been super slow thanks to the holidays - looking forward to being busier in the future), my kids are the best ever & my husband ain't half bad either.

I also love the holidays & decorating & buying presents & wrapping presents & Christmas music & cold weather & looking at Christmas lights. This time of year is just dandy!

Have I mentioned my wreath? My wreath makes me happy.

LOOK AT IT!

Isn't it GLORIOUS?? 

You need to get one too, don't you? 

Go check out Ever Blooming Originals & get one of Colette's amazing creations. 

I love my snowman!!

Elsewhere in my life, nothing is really going on. Our goal this weekend is to really dig into our house & get some more pictures up on the wall, some decisions made on paint colors, put the Christmas tree up, all the good stuff.

But hey, I do have a couple of corners that look great to me & I thought I would share them with you:

My bedside table. 

Lord love my Aunt Mary - that gorgeous table was hers & it just makes my day every day to look at it.

The little painting on the wall is from Marcel's parents' attic.

The little bowl is from some little awesome home shop we stumbled into in Tasmania (can't remember the town).

The picture is all of us at Disneyland with Mickey & Minnie.

The lamp & lampshade are Target. 

And my darling little cockatoo slippers were bought before I went into the hospital to have Evan. They ended up being way too squeaky on the hospital floor & I got dirty looks form the other mothers in our shared room so I retired them from hospital duty. Whatever, they're slippers that look like cockatoos & there is nothing unlovable about that.

And this is the entryway at the top of our stairs.

Yeah, it's busy & cluttered & looks better when it's not smothered in winter coats but I love it.

That gorgeous little cabinet is just from Target (online only for yellow) & I'm trying to find another place I could stick another one of them because it's a little piece of perfection. I'd like the teal next time, please.

The basket is maybe from Marshall's?

The awesome mirror is from Edie's Lab on etsy but I caught a demo model from a home show they had done so I got it half price. 

The big honeycomb vase is AWESOME & I actually ended up getting two from West Elm & I'll probably get more in more colors.

The little vase is even more awesome because up close it looks like a slightly crumpled paper bag. So cute! And a gift from my mother in law - love it!

We left most of our books behind when we moved from the Big Country so all that's left is in this cabinet. 

So there you go, a tiny little tour of two corners of our house. If we get anything put together this weekend, I shall take more pictures I promise. 

Have a happy Friday (or Saturday for those of you on the other side of the planet)(stay cool, by the way, I hear you're getting fried!)!

The Weight of the World

Went back to Weight Watchers yesterday for my first weigh-in on America's fair shores. America has not been kind to me. Actually, maybe it's been too kind to me.

I've gained 10 pounds since I stopped my meetings in Australia, which was the end of July or beginning of August. Impressive, yes?

This is not good news BUT I will say that I knew I would gain weight, thanks to the stress of the move and the reintroduction to some favorite old haunts and discovering new treats. In fact, I always said that I'd be happy as long as I didn't gain more than 10 pounds & since I managed to be right on 10 pounds I'm kinda okay.

I am a little mad at myself for starting the weigh-in process the week of Thanksgiving - a bit of a clown situation, bro. Ah well, at least it might make me eat a bit less destructively on the big day. Only 2 slices of pie instead of 5 & not just curl up on the couch with the entire dish of stuffing as usual, right?

Hoo boy, I'm in trouble.

So at this point, I am 19 pounds away from my goal weight. I can do this! I quit the gym since there is no hope of me getting there between work & trying to be halfway involved with my homefront, so I've got to find a way to be active without feeling like I'm being active.

Can I hire a personal trainer to wave my arms & legs around for me while I watch HGTV? Can I hire a nutritionist to swat my hand away every time I reach for the tortillas that I planned on using to make a cheese quesadilla? Does anyone else have an addiction to plain old cheese quesadillas?

So while I'm a little disappointed that the extra heft in my gut & tightness in my clothes isn't from my body swelling up with pride at the being the first body to successfully turn quesadillas into muscle, it could be worse.

I'll be in Tennessee for Thanksgiving weekend so I can't go weigh in anyway (no, I will not go weigh in while in Tennessee - how dare you suggest it) so I'll technically have an extra week to undo the damage I do over the holiday.

How long would I have to strap myself to a treadmill to undo a weekend of pie & stuffing? I think my game plan is pretty obvious - only eat my absolute favorites (the aforementioned pie & stuffing) plus veggies & not waste any points on things I like but don't LURVE. Success is going to be delicious enough to make up for all the collateral damage.

Okay, I'm getting sick of talking about my chubby ass.

I just ordered a wreath online. A WREATH. I think my transformation into a true mom is officially complete. We are decorating our damn house for Christmas. We were wimps for Halloween, assuming the new people (us) shouldn't be the first ones to decorate but then NO ONE else on our street did so we were stuck. One house around the corner went all out & we admired them so much & they happened to be one of the very few that came around trick or treating. They were as shocked as we were that no one else decorated - we vowed to ourselves then & there to follow in that family's footsteps & not to worry what the grinches of the neighborhood did or didn't do. We shall decorate.

I have visions of Marcel on the roof Clark Griswold'ing it up while other moms drive their mini-vans from near & far to admire my wreath. It will be glorious, g-l-o-r-i-o-u-s.

Speaking of glorious, Marcel & I went & saw Skyfall yesterday afternoon - it was fantastic. Just getting out without our lovely young dudes was fantastic & enjoying a movie too? Fan-bloody-tastic! There was a lot of buildup about this movie, lots of hype about it being the best Bond ever? Not so much. I've only seen the Daniel Craig 007's & I preferred Casino Royale to be honest but this one was pretty great.

I'm so glad that the Bond movies have kept using opening titles - I didn't even realize I miss credits & fancy graphics at the beginning of movies. Remember them? Good time, good times.

I don't have the energy to give any full review of the movie. If you like other Bond movies, you'll like this one & yes, there are some nice little winks at past 007's & some lovely eye candy in the form of Daniel Craig & his usual gaggle of ladies. I have only two complaints & they are my usual petty rants so here we go:

Why won't anyone give Javier Bardem a nice hairstyle? Lord knows he's a handsome man but the mop on his head was so distracting to me. I know he's the villain, whatever. There have been plenty of good looking bad guys in the world. Why not him?

Secondly & far less importantly, there is some flashlight use that is ridiculous. RIDICULOUS, I tell you. You see this person in the distance & the flashlight beam is all over the place. I ceased to process any more of the plot at that point, not being able to concentrate on any thought beyond "Put that flashlight down. What on earth are you doing with the flashlight? Holy crap, my toddlers could be steadier with a flashlight! Pleeeease stop waving the flashlight!" I assume the filmmakers wanted to build tension because you know someone is bound to see the flashlight but holy guacamole, baboons are more controlled than that.

Okay, rant over. See the movie, you'll like it & if you don't like it, then you'll at least like staring at Daniel Craig or the pretty ladies. And if you don't like them, then you are a robot & I can't suggest any viewing materials for you because I don't know what robots like.

I think I can't eat Sour Patch Kids anymore. I got a bit giddy about going to a movie & brought some with me because there is nothing better than Sour Patch Kids & popcorn. But my teeth still hurt. The sugar pushed me over some edge, now cold & hot are hurting my front left tooth too. Why me, why now? It's just not fair.

Okay, I should go now before I get too hyped up about not being able to get hyped up on Sour Patch Kids & I start waving a flashlight around all willy nilly. That's not good for anybody.