my weekend so far

This morning, I went to Rolla with a couple of fitness instructor buddies to get my CPR/AED certification. The course and instructor were pretty darn lame - that woman should NOT be an instructor! She was just so random and disjointed, and could never seem to actually answer a question - she would just talk in circles. And we were disappointed to find that we were not covering child/infant CPR, but only adult. Oh, well. At least I got my certification, and a yummy lunch at Panera.

So, last night, we took our good friend Mike out to dinner to bid him a fond adieu, as he is moving to Ft. Hood, TX. We went to this amazing restaurant called Sybill's, which is about 30 miles from here. It was WONDERFUL! Brian and I had eaten there before, but Mike never had, so it was great that he got to experience it before he left. The bad news is that I ate enough calories for several days. (On a side note, we discussed the unfairness of that. Say you normally eat 1500 calories a day. If you eat a 3000-calorie meal, then, why can't it be that you wouldn't be hungry again until two or three days later? Wouldn't that make sense? But no - I woke up this morning just as hungry for breakfast as I always am. ) The good news is that all of our food was amazing. We had simple but scrumptious bread and butter to start with, and we also ordered spinach artichoke dip with crostini to dip in it. We bought a bottle of yummy local red wine, and enjoyed delicious salads - mine had Romaine, cucumbers, tomatoes, red onion, bleu cheese, etc. Brian had pork chops, Mike had a chicken dish, and I had this amazing ravioli that was stuffed with portobello mushrooms and various cheeses and surrounded with olive oil, spinach, sweet peppers, red onions, feta cheese, etc. OMG. It was so rich that I simply couldn't finish it. Actually, I was proud of myself, for though I did eat a staggering amount of food, I actually left part of everything on the plate, even the peanut butter pie I had for dessert! (Brian had peach cobbler and Mike had lemon raisin bread pudding.) This restaurant is very ambient and posh, and our waitress was amazing - she really knew her stuff and was very attentive. Here's how fancy the place is - when she brought out our bottle of wine, she actually poured a little into my glass and then stood there waiting for a second, and I realized that I was supposed to do the whole "tasting" thing! I was rather embarrassed, as that's a bit over my head, but I think I pulled it off pretty well. I picked it up, swirled it around a little and sniffed it, and then took a sip, swirling it around in my mouth before swallowing and pronouncing it delicious. :) The total bill ended up being in the triple digits, but it was well-worth it, in my opinion. It was a once-in-a-blue-moon occasion, and the perfect way to send off Mike, who is quite the foodie.

Mike left today, and I'm pretty bummed about that. I'm really going to miss him! He was a good friend and such an interesting, layered person. He never ceased to surprise me, and we had the best conversations, and various interests in common. And the great thing about him was that unlike all of my other friends here, who have families, he is single, so he was almost always available and willing to "hang out" with us, even on very short notice. That was rather refreshing, and will be missed. I know we'll keep in touch, but it's not the same. I wish him the best of luck, though, and hope he has a great experience in Texas! And I hope that he'll visit us sometime - he'll always be welcome.

This afternoon, after a short nap, I commenced (finally!) about taking down the Christmas tree. I've got everything off of it, and after I'm done blogging, Brian and I just have to take the tree apart and shove it in its box. Yay! It'll be good to have that monkey off my back. And, true to my goal, I did manage to purge several ornaments as I was taking them off the tree.

Well, I guess I'd better go and get that tree down. How's your weekend going?

update on progress toward goals

First of all, we're having the first snowfall of the winter here (finally). It's very dry and powdery, and probably won't amount to much, but it's pretty to watch it falling! We were going to head to Rolla today for some errands (Brian has a long weekend for MLK Day), but we decided to stay home, because it's so cold and unwelcoming outside. :)

OK - on to my goals. I'm still doing pretty well! I am down another 1/2 lb. this week - inching ever-closer to my goal. And frankly, even that small loss surprised me, as I didn't exactly eat like an angel. As for continuing to tone my body, I'm really happy with the definition I'm seeing, and I've even been getting compliments lately, especially on my upper body. I have pretty rockin' quads and calves, too. :) And I'm looking forward to my CPR certification tomorrow. I'm hoping to have my fitness instructor certification by this summer.

As for cooking more, that hasn't been happening so much, but I DID make those muffins yesterday, so I guess that counts. Something else that hasn't been happening is listening to my CDs - I guess you can't win 'em all, eh? And, there's still lots of year left, so ya never know!

I'll be singing at my church in Springfield in mid-February, so I'm really looking forward to that. Unfortunately, I won't be able to join the community choir in Rolla this semester either, because they rehearse on Monday nights, and Brian has to take a Monday night class later in the semester. :( Alas.

I'm happy to report that all of my fall/Halloween/Thanksgiving decor is now in plastic tubs, along with my paltry little pile of Valentine's Day decor! Yay! Next, I'm going to do my sheet music and Easter decor, and leave the Xmas decor for last. But, I'm slowly but surely getting it done, which feels great. The purging has slowed down somewhat, but hasn't come to a complete halt. I'm still pumped that I emptied my bookcase, and now I just have to get the books out of the house. I think that the next phase of purging will be to do the kitchen, one cabinet at a time, over the course of a couple of weeks.

So, there you have it.

my son ate zucchini!

Of course, it was grated and baked into a muffin. :) I'm pretty proud of myself, as Nick never eats vegetables. He's pretty stubborn! I'm just hoping his daily multivitamin will pull him through until his palate matures. Anywho, here's the recipe, and they're really good - very moist and just the right amount of sweet.

Zucchini Bran Muffins

1 box (18.25 oz.) raisin bran muffin mix (My Walmart didn't have ANY bran muffin mix, so I had to substitute 2 7-oz. boxes of Jiffy oatmeal muffin mix. Not as healthy, but the best second choice. I didn't add any raisins, as I don't love them.)
1 medium zucchini, grated
3/4 cup apple juice
3 egg whites
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1-2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 400 and spray Pam in a 12-muffin pan.
2. In a large bowl, stir together all ingredients until combined. Spoon batter into muffin pan so that cups are almost full, but not quite. (I actually had a little left over - maybe enough for one or two more muffins.)
3. Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool muffin pan on wire rack before removing muffins.

Enjoy!

my sweet little boy

I just had the best time with my son! You know how some days they're total turds, and then some days they're just in such a good mood, all sweetness and light? Well, today is a sweetness and light day (so far). I took Nick to preschool this morning, and Brian picked him up and took him to lunch and then brought him back to me, and Nick was all excited about this tiny plush puppy he got in his Happy Meal. She's a girl, according to Nick, and her name is "Dog." From the moment he got home, he was so agreeable and considerate, and then we ended up cuddling on the couch together and reading books - just me, Nick, and Dog. We stayed there for a good 45 minutes, and it was heaven! And then when I told him it was time for his nap, off he went eagerly, taking Dog to bed with him. Sigh of contentment. Why can't all days be just like this?

And the day only promises to get better, because Idol starts tonight! Yes. Our friend Mike (the one who's leaving forever in 4 days) is coming over to watch it with me.

state of the amy address

I have been felled, yet again, by some kind of sinus thing, and I'm quite miserable. I was, as you may recall, exhausted for the entire latter half of the week - my theory is that my immune system was fighting this illness. Well, apparently my immune system lost, because I am stricken with relentless sinus pressure and congestion, and I'm just wiped out and in a fog. I took a nap mid-day - I just felt like I had no other choice. Needless to say, the Christmas tree will be with us for another week. :) Alas! I just hope I feel well enough tomorrow morning to go to the gym. We shall see.

I wish to share the following with my readers in hopes that you will be as indignant and disgusted as I: Yesterday around noon, Brian took a whole bunch of stuff to Goodwill. Among the items was a rather nondescript brown teddy bear of Nick's. He had had this bear since before he was born, and had never shown it the time of day, aside from one random week, months ago, when he was sort of attached to it. So, I felt rather confident that we could get rid of it with no ramifications. Apparently, I was wrong. Mind you - this bear had been in our basement for a couple of weeks before Brian took it to Goodwill, and Nick hadn't missed it. But amazingly, just a few hours after Brian donated it, Nick suddenly started asking about "Teddy." He just had to have him. He missed him, especially his sweet smile. I dodged his questions and feigned innocent confusion - "I don't know where he is, honey. He must have gotten lost." But Nick wouldn't drop it, and started to get really upset, to the point of tears. I know that he would have eventually been OK and forgotten all about it, but mommy guilt got the better of me, and I decided to run by Goodwill to see if I could rescue Teddy. After all, Brian had dropped him off just a few hours before. I went in clutching Brian's proof-of-donation slip and spoke to a woman who was not at all sympathetic, and really no help whatsoever. I described the bear, but she just looked at me blankly and claimed that there was no point in looking for it, because they had had a lot of donations during the day, and everything was just piled up willy-nilly in the back. There was obviously no way she was letting me back there to search. I mean, come on! You'd think she would have taken pity on my poor little boy who missed his bear! I asked if it could already be out in the store, and she said no. Well, just to be sure, I went back to the stuffed animal section and looked, and there it was, along with the other stuffed animals Brian had donated. I grabbed it triumphantly and made a beeline right back to that woman, telling her that the bear had, indeed, been out already. She then informed me that I would have to PAY FOR IT. Seriously. How grubby and low-class can you get? I mean, this bear had just been dropped off earlier that same day, and it was obviously mine - how could I make that up? And why would I? So, I had to go up to the counter and give Goodwill their precious $1 so that I could spring Teddy and take him back to Nick. Blech. The whole thing left a bad taste in my mouth. The good news is that Nick was overjoyed, and has been clutching his bear lovingly ever since. :)

yay!

Those 3 holiday pounds are gone, which is great! I'm not so great today, however. I've just been really exhausted the past few days. I feel like my immune system is fighting something off, and it's just wiping me out. After today's workout, I felt glazed over with tiredness. Consequently, I don't have anything scintillating to say right now. Hope everyone has a great weekend! Wish me luck - I'm planning to take down my Christmas decor...

first step

I have signed up for a CPR and AED (automatic external defibrillator) certification course on January 17. That's my first official step towards becoming a certified fitness instructor!

P.S. I have weeded over 100 books out of my bookcase! It looks quite desolate now, poor thing. Now, I just have to figure out what to do with all those books.

any suggestions?

I have a $25 gift certificate for Amazon MP3 downloads. What should I get?

thanks for indulging me :)

Wow - it's nice to see what can be accomplished with a little whining. And I'll be the first to admit that I'm not above seeking pity-comments (obviously)! So, thanks to those who commented - it actually did make my day.

The purging continues, though sadly, it has eclipsed the taking down of Christmas decor. Who knows when I'll do that? Sometimes I have a hard time prioritizing.

I took Nick to our credit union today to open up his own savings account. When he was born, my friend Christie sent him this lovely gift-box-shaped bank, and we've been putting extra change in it ever since. It was finally so full that I couldn't squeeze in another dime, so I figured it was a good time to deposit it! That bank had $40 in it! I had no idea it was so much. Add to that $5 more from me and $20 in Christmas money from Brian's brother, and Nick had a hefty little initial deposit for a 4-year-old. And our credit union's reward system for kids' accounts is such that he came home with not one, not two, but THREE prizes! A foam football, a little foam rocket-shooter, and a calculator. Not bad! Quite a big day.

blah blah blah

First of all, I'm going to be petulant and selfish for a moment and say that I'm kind of bummed that no one has been commenting on my blog lately. Wah!

Here's something ironic: Yesterday, I met my friend Katherine at a local cafe to have coffee and chat. We would have enjoyed sitting out on the front porch to enjoy the 60-degree day, but we had to stay inside, because people were smoking out there. The smokers drove us inside!

I am ecstatic to report that my progress has continued today. I have really caught this purging bug, people! Yay! Today, I finished purging the entire living room. Mind you, that was by far the easiest room in the house, but I feel accomplished to have finished one room. I quake in fear at the thought of such areas as the kitchen, office closet, bookcase, etc., but the more purging I get under my belt, the more I feel ready to tackle. I even purged unwanted files and bookmarks from my computer and unneeded papers from my file drawer. This might be TMI, but I'm so into purging now that whilst I was sitting on the toilet today, I actually purged a cabinet in the bathroom. That's multitasking for you. :)

I'm also happy to say that per my plan, I bought two plastic tubs at Walmart today and filled them with Halloween decor. I would estimate that I probably still need another couple of dozen tubs for all the seasonal decor, but hey - at least I've gotten started! So, I'm basically on cloud 9 at this point.

My happiness is currently tempered, though, by the fact that my poor little son is lying on the couch right now, listless and feverish. He's obviously been stricken by a virus, and he's really pathetic! We're doing our best to take care of him and keep him comfy, and he's watching Thomas, which he finds very soothing. I really hope he's better in the morning, since it's his first day back to school. Wish him a speedy recovery!

progress report

Well, I'm pleased to report that I've already made a bit of progress towards a couple of my goals. I actually dusted the house a couple of days ago (not a totally thorough job, but still!), and today, I purged a few small items! Purging really does feel good, and the key is to just take one small area at a time. See, my problem is that I have such an "all-or-nothing" mentality that I feel like if I'm going to do something, I have to do it all at once, or it's no good. So, I end up just being paralyzed by the thought of how big a job is, and doing nothing at all. I know I need to get over that, and I'm really trying. Today, I went through the little cabinet that holds my stationery, the coffee table drawer, the coat closet, and my small movie collection. Of course, I feel like I need to keep going, but I'm not really in the mood. I need to get over my internal struggle about it and realize that it's OK if that's all I do today. I think that the key to success is going to be picking one cabinet or shelf each day (or a couple of times a week), and realizing that it's OK to stop there. Same goes for transferring all of my seasonal decor to plastic tubs. The thought of going to Walmart and buying dozens of tubs at once, and then moving all of the stuff at once, is rather paralyzing. So, I've decided that maybe twice a month, I'm going to buy two tubs and then fill those. If I keep that up, I should be done within a few months, and it will be relatively painless! Wish me luck. I'll keep you posted on how it's going...

holiday damages

I'm up 3 (!!!) lbs., which totally sucks. It just seems like I'm skirting so close to 140, but can never quite get there. But, you can bet your bippy that my next weigh-in will show a loss. It's time to just bring this frickin' train into the station, ya know what I mean?

christmas pictures

Here are a few pictures from Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in Springfield:

Christmas Eve at PaPa's house

Christmas morning at PaPa's

Christmas Day evening at Uncle Tim's (in the first pic, Nick is playing the harmonica he got for Christmas)

happy new year, everyone!

I just want to wish everyone a very happy 2009. What did you do last night? We had a friend over for dinner, but we were in bed by 11:00. We're just not very exciting people anymore, honestly. And today, I feel like I've been beaten about my entire body with a big stick, thanks to my workouts this week. :) So, I'm going to keep a low profile today and try to get a few things done around the house. I'll post again when I actually have something interesting to say!

quick post

I'm embroiled in the Christmas aftermath (laundry, processing gifts, getting rid of old toys, etc.), but I just wanted to jump on and tell everyone that we had a very nice Christmas. It was great to spend time with family and friends, and to see Nick's delight at his gifts. And yes, I ate way too much decadent food. :)

It's good to be home, but I feel like I have a million things to do and can't quite catch up. I doubt that I'll be taking down any Xmas decor this week or weekend - maybe Jan. 10 and 11?

I hope you all had wonderful holidays, and are fully recovered. :) As you can see on the sidebar, I have set several goals for 2009. What are YOUR goals?

happy christmas eve!

I must admit that so far, this Christmas Eve isn't so great. I feel really miserable with my cold, and on top of that, I'm now completely exhausted and spacey, because I was up no fewer than 8 times last night, unable to breathe. But, we're going to stick with our plans to head to Springfield this afternoon, because hey, it's Christmas! Needless to say, I haven't exercised yesterday or today as I had planned to, and will be going a full 6 days without working out, which is unheard of! But next Monday, I'm going to get right back in there. It'll probably kill me, but it'll be good to be back in my routine. In happier news, I decided to weigh myself a couple of days early since we won't be here on Friday, and I was at 141! Yay! That certainly cheered me up.

Yesterday, I went back to bed after breakfast and slept all morning, but then I got up around 1:00 so that I could get some stuff done. I made a couple of fruitful phone calls - I switched trash services, saving us $45/year, and I also upgraded to a faster Internet speed. Joy! Then, I set to work making my Christmas treat - cranberry-almond bark. It also has coconut and Rice Krispies, and I made both a white chocolate and a dark chocolate batch. It's really yummy! I was exhausted and felt terrible by about 7 p.m., so I went to bed at 8.

This evening, my whole family will descend upon the paternal home for Christmas Eve festivities, and then tomorrow morning, Brian, Nick, and I will have even more gift opening to do. We plan to visit some friends tomorrow and/or Friday, and tomorrow evening, we'll be going to Tim's for Christmas Dinner. We're also going to try to squeeze in that visit to the Titanic museum that keeps getting put off. And of course, I have a few things to shop for in the after-Xmas sales, such as wall calendars, Christmas cards, etc.

So, this will be my last post for a few days. I want to wish everyone a very merry Christmas, and I hope you are all surrounded by family, friends, warmth, and good food this holiday season. Ho ho ho!

just a mini-post

#1: I definitely have a cold, and I feel pretty wretched right now. Ack. I have a strong feeling that trying to sleep tonight is going to be pretty miserable. Wish me a speedy recovery.

#2: We got a Christmas package from Jutta today! We're saving most of the gifts in it for Christmas, but I opened one tiny box, which contained a little salamander pin! How clever and thoughtful of her. I love it!

#3: Notice my new poll on the sidebar, and vote! Also, notice my list of goals for 2009. I thought that this would serve as a good visual reminder for me of the things I want to accomplish next year. I will probably add to it as time goes on.

happy....

...birthday to you,
Happy birthday to you!
Happy birthday, dear Patty;
Happy birthday to you!

I don't honestly have much else to say. We had a very lazy, uneventful weekend, which was fine with me! I do feel like I'm coming down with a cold, which is to be expected, as I think I held it at bay through sheer will until after I was done singing. I got all my gifts wrapped last night (yay!), and now, I just need to make some cranberry-almond bark, which I'll do tomorrow. Hope everyone's having a good Monday!

pics from nick's christmas program

Here are some pictures from last night: Nick during the program, with his teacher Mrs. Tate, with his teacher Miss Proctor, and with his girlfriends Riley and Sarah. :) Look at that beaming smile on his face in the last picture - he is the consummate ladies' man!

finally - a chance to just take a deep breath

We just got home for the evening, and......it's all over! All the craziness of this week is now behind me, and I can just chill out and relax. Granted, I still have plenty to do, like wrap gifts and other stuff around the house, but I don't really have any actual plans, and that's awesome. From now until the 24th, there's just not much going on, and that's fine by me. On Sunday, I'm just going to sleep until I wake up (can't do that the next two days because I must go to fitness classes), and it's going to be glorious!

So, this evening we attended Nick's preschool Christmas program, and it was absolutely precious! I will admit, at the risk of being mocked, that I got a little teary. Hey - it was my baby's first school program! The kids were on risers on the stage, and they all had on these Xmas sweatshirts that they had decorated with fabric paint, and they sang (OK - yelled) a selection of cute Christmas songs, complete with hand motions. Nick did OK - he sometimes lost his focus and spaced out, but for the most part, he did the words and hands. This one girl, Sarah, was hysterical - she was completely into it, and did everything not just perfectly, but with such alacrity that it cracked me up the whole time. At times, she even looked angry because she was so focused on yelling the correct words, and all of her hand motions were extremely exaggerated, yet still accurate. After the program, I got a really cute picture of Nick flanked by Sarah and Riley, another classmate. I will share that pic, along with some others from the program, soon. Brian videotaped the whole thing, and his parents are just going to eat it up! Absolutely priceless.

alrighty, then!

I just asked Nick if he thought he would like to go see The Tale of Despereaux, and his reply was "Well, if I were a mouse, I'd go see it, but I'm a boy, so - no, I don't think so."

good times

At today's MOPS meeting, we had our White Elephant gift exchange, and the gift I ended up with was a box full of hotel soap, shampoo, and conditioner - hilarious, and so useful! I will totally use it, and I won't have to buy those products for ages. There's like 10 shampoos, 10 conditioners, and a dozen little bars of soap. :)

Nick had his school Xmas party today, and came home with a bunch of loot. I guess all the moms (me included) thought that Xmas pencils were a good idea, because he had 10 of them! Lots of erasers, too. And of course, plenty of candy, which will be rationed out over the next several days.

My Dad spent the night here last night, and after MOPS and preschool, the three of us went to the commissary to get groceries. Right now, Dad and I are chilling out while Nick naps, and Brian should be home soon. This evening, all 4 of us are going to Nick's school for his Xmas program (should be so cute!), and then out to dinner, after which Dad will head home.

And tomorrow, all the busy-ness stops! Yay! I can't wait to just take a deep breath and sleep in.

Oh, I have to share this: The other night, Nick and I were cuddling before he went to bed, and he looked into my eyes and said "Mommy - without you, I'd be sad." I pretty much melted into the floor.

post-performance high

I'm too tired to think right now, but I just had to jump on the blog and say that tonight's concert was awesome! Not just my solos, but all around. The band sounded incredible on everything from the rock and jazz numbers to the Nutcracker. And yes, my solos went great and were miked the whole time! I couldn't be happier. Yay!Goodnight, Dick.

pics, as promised

last night was interesting...

Tim got here just fine, and I went ahead to the theater, leaving him with Nick. They had dinner at McDonald's together before proceeding to the concert. My friends Katherine and Brigitte also attended the concert last night - it's so nice to have peeps sitting out there! As a whole, the concert went well - the privates loved the music, and the band sounded great, minus a few isolated issues. Unfortunately, when I went out on stage to sing my first number, "Man with the Bag," there were technical issues and my mike wasn't on for the whole first half of the song! I just kept singing as though nothing were wrong (because what else could I do?), and halfway through, someone walked out and traded mikes with me, handing me one that actually worked, so at least the end of the song was audible. I must say that I looked quite smashing in my red dress and silver shoes, and I was having a great hair night, thanks to the wonders of the flat iron. :) The whole mike debacle was disappointing, but I really didn't stress too much about it - I mean, at least no one could blame me for it, and I just carried on and did what I was supposed to do. Luckily, the mike was just fine for "O, Holy Night," though the tempo was way too slow. I'm going to have to talk to the commander before tonight's concert and hope that she picks up the pace tonight. The guy who served as the "MC" last night had some hilarious gaffes, such as saying "Mannheim Stroller" and saying that "Man with the Bag" was sung in the 1950s by Karl Starr (it was sung by Kay Starr). Everyone had a good time, though, and spirits were high. After the concert, I hung around visiting with my peeps, and we even took some pictures, which I'll share soon.

When we got back to my house, we discovered that school had already been cancelled for today, which is completely inexplicable, considering that we really only had negligible precip yesterday, and the roads are totally fine. Go figure. The disappointing thing is that Nick's class Xmas party was supposed to be today, and Tim and I were going to attend. I'm assuming that they'll have the party tomorrow, but I won't be able to go, because I have a MOPS meeting. Alas. :(

Tim will be leaving after lunch today, and my Dad is going to come and take Nick with him to tonight's concert. Dad will then spend the night and come with us to Nick's Christmas program tomorrow evening. Should be fun!

Wish me luck for tonight - hopefully the technical glitches will have been worked out! I just hope my voice holds out - I'm feeling a bit hoarse this morning. I'll be so glad when the concert is over tonight, and then I can just relax, and it won't matter if I get sick or lose my voice!

wish me luck!

Well, the weather is holding pretty well here. We didn't get the snow that was forecast for last night, and there is just a light freezing mist happening now, but the roads are pretty good. So, Tim has decided that he will go ahead and come up and take Nick to tonight's troop concert. He should be here by 4:30 or so, and I have to leave about an hour later to get some dinner and head to the theater for sound check. I'm starting to feel nervous, but I think it'll go well. And assuming tonight goes well, then I should feel much more confident tomorrow night, for the "main" concert. Hopefully, the weather will continue to behave so that my Dad has no trouble coming up tomorrow. So, say a little prayer for both the weather and my voice, and wish me luck!

my weekend, in a nutshell

I'm a bit short on time today, but wanted to do a brief post about my weekend. I started off my visit to Springfield by accompanying Tim to the historic, beautifully restored Gillioz Theater to see White Christmas on the big screen. I had actually never seen this movie (I know, I know!), and I absolutely LOVED it! What a great way to spend the evening. ("Sisters, sisters....")

Saturday morning, I accompanied my sister-in-law, Gayle, to the Y, where we jogged a mile and then took a step class. It was a good workout! Saturday afternoon, I had a rehearsal at NACC, and Saturday evening, my Dad and I did a very small amount of shopping and had big, sinful burgers at Red Robin.

Sunday morning, I was up bright and early for the first service at NACC. Both services went very well - both the choral music and my solo. So, I was pleased! My Dad and niece came, as did my friend Katherine, who lives in my town. I was so honored that she travelled to Springfield to attend the service. After the second service, Dad, Maddy, Katherine, Tim, and I went out for sushi, and then Dad and I went to see the Springfield Chamber Chorus in concert. This group is absolutely outstanding, and has the highest standards of musicianship, tone, etc. Suffice it to say that I cried several times during the concert (certain moments in choral music make me spontaneously tear up) - at the end of one particular piece, I just had tears rolling down my cheeks. I plan to audition for this choir when we move to Springfield! The city has always needed this type of choir, and I'm thrilled that it finally has it.

After the concert, I got packed up and returned home just in time for Brian to leave to play for a troop return. This morning, I had some flu-ish stuff going on, but soldiered through a dress rehearsal with the Army Band. It went fine. I'm feeling better now, and we're planning to attend Brian's battalion Xmas party tonight, despite the single digit windchills. Tomorrow night is the first of our two concerts (weather permitting) - wish me luck! The next three days are going to be insane; I can't wait until Friday.

i'm off!

I'll be leaving in a little while to head to Springfield for the weekend, so you won't be hearing from me until next week. And, I gotta warn you that posting next week could be quite spotty, as it's going to be an insanely busy week for me! (see my schedule on sidebar).

So, I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

whoo hoo!

I just saved $200/year by switching my auto insurance from GEICO back to Progressive! What a ridiculous game this auto insurance business is. But, I'm glad to be saving some money. BTW, if you're in the market for auto insurance, I have to say that Progressive's online quote process is amazingly fast and user-friendly. And, if you want to talk to an agent, you can just click and enter your phone number, and they will call you immediately! It was pretty sweet. It was a very painless process.

hump day

We had some freezing rain last night, and the roads are fairly slick, so school has been cancelled. So, no preschool for Nick. We're just going to stay home all day. Brian got to work OK, thank goodness. I hate days like this, but I guess they're part and parcel of living in MO. :(

In funnier news: Nick has this tiny flashlight, and today he took it apart. After I successfully put it back together, he pronounced me "the magicalest woman"! What an endorsement!

It's 10:00. Another few hours, and I'll probably be climbing the walls. Wish me luck!

someone's sleeping on the job

So today at Big Lots, I bought Nick a knock-off on Hungry, Hungry Hippos. It's exactly the same as the aforementioned game, but with frogs. Are you ready for the stellar, exciting name of this game? Ready? Ready?......................................
Frog Game. Uh huh. Frog Game. I've decided to call it Famished, Famished Frogs.

tgif

Not much exciting to say today, so I just figured I'd ramble a bit. :) I'm happy that I maintained my weight this week - yay! Lately, I'm feeling rather tired and frazzled, but it's the holiday season, so who isn't? I just feel like I have a million things to do, and I can't stay on top of it. I even cancelled my plans to go to a play tonight, because I just wanted to stay home and get stuff done around the house and chill with my boys. I'm REALLY dreading the week of December 15, because after getting back from Springfield on the 14th, I'm going to be launched into 5 days of extreme busyness, including Brian's battalion Xmas party, two Army Band Xmas concerts, Nick's preschool Xmas party, a MOPS meeting, Nick's preschool Xmas program, etc.! I'm really looking forward to Dec. 19, actually, because after that it should be smooth sailing through Christmas.

Today, I had to take Nick to the hospital for a "sports physical." Yes, to do a little soccer workshop thingy, even a 4-year-old has to have a physical beforehand. So, it was a pointless appointment to begin with, and to make matters worse, we were at the hospital for almost 2 hours! Grrrrrrrrrrr. Nick was incredibly charming and loquacious, and the nurses and doctor loved him, which helped take the sting out of the long wait. At one point, someone said the word "dehydrated," and Nick said "That means you need to drink some water!" The little smarty. Nick is healthy as a horse. His only problems were an almost imperceptible heart murmur and excess ear wax, for which we got drops. :)

Well, it's time to go and get to work. I think that I can finish my Christmas cards tonight, which will be nice. Then, it's on to gift prep, etc. Hope everyone has a fabulous weekend!

the hilarity continues

So, Nick is quite spazzy, and has a tendency to flail his limbs and propel himself violently into people near him, which has caused us untold numbers of injuries (none serious, so far!). We are constantly telling him to be careful in this regard, but our words seem to fall on deaf ears. Earlier this evening, he flailed his leg and came this close to kicking me in the face, and I got angry with him, yelling "Nick! When are you going to learn to be careful with your arms and legs around other people and stop hurting us?" His reply was "In a couple of days."

my santa baby

If you're not already in the Christmas spirit, maybe these pictures will help:

cute, cute!

This evening, Nick was being spazzy and stepped on my toes not once, but twice, in short order. After the second time, Brian admonished him, saying "Nick, watch what you're doing, and apologize to your mom for stepping on her toes twice." You looked a little confused, and came up to me and said "Sorry, sorry." :)

We had the first snow of the winter today. It didn't stick, but sure looked pretty swirling down all day!

In other news, we had a horrible day trying to put up our Christmas tree (many of the lights wouldn't illuminate), and after two impromptu shopping trips, ended up with a new tree and very behind-schedule. The new tree is nice, though rather skinnier than our old one. I'm now exhausted and off to bed. Good night!

my thanksgiving

Hello again, everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful, warm Thanksgiving, rife with good food and loving family and friends. Ours was very nice. We headed to Springfield Wednesday evening, stopping at the mall when we got into town. I had a couple of quick shopping objectives, and we decided to just eat dinner at the food court. So, after eating a yummy crepe with turkey, avocado, tomato, pepper jack cheese, and black bean spread (Nick had Chik-Fil-A), I split from Brian and Nick to do my shopping. I scored two fleece 1/2-zip pullovers for $13.60 (total!) at JCPenney - whoo hoo! I was walking along the mall when I noticed that Santa was there already, doing pictures with kids. Furthermore, the mall was rather empty, and there was no line. Now, we always like to get Nick's pic taken with Santa, but it had not even occurred to me that he would be there yet, so I hadn't thought about doing it that evening. Nick was wearing a non-photogenic shirt, and his hair looked rather bad. (We're trying to let it grow, but between his cowlick and other odd directional things going on at the crown of his head, he looks awful unless I get some product involved.) :) So, I thought on my feet. Before even tracking down Brian and Nick, I went into a hair-product store in the mall and asked the girls there if they would be willing to give Nick a free coiffure. They said "Sure!" So, I got Brian and Nick and sent Brian out to the car to get Nick's argyle sweater from the suitcase in our trunk while I took Nick to be styled. And, we got our Santa pic! Our incredibly, shockingly overpriced Santa pic. But at least that's out of the way.

After we got to my Dad's house and got all settled in and got Nick ready for bed, Brian and I decided to head to The Moxie, an independent movie theater in Springfield, to see Man on Wire - an absolutely amazing documentary about Philippe Petit, the Frenchman who tightrope-walked between the Twin Towers in 1974. It was awesome! I highly recommend it, if you have a chance to see it. The Moxie is really cool, and the best part is that they serve beer and wine. So, I enjoyed a glass of pinot noir with my popcorn. :)

Thanksgiving day was spent mostly being lazy and watching the Macy's parade. I was having some gastrointestinal upset and didn't feel 100%, so I just chilled out until it was time to make my sweet potato casserole and apple salad and head to my sister's house for dinner. It was the usual loud, crazy family gathering, and it was nice, although my stomach was still not feeling great, so that rendered me a bit grumpy. I ate plenty, though not as much as I might have otherwise, and it was all delicious! This was the first time I had made sweet potatoes, and they turned out great. And as always, my sister's sausage stuffing was delectable. Nick had a blast playing with his cousins. At one point, my brother (a drummer), my sister's husband, and my niece's boyfriend (both guitarists) went down to the basement to jam, and Nick grabbed a mic and proceeded to sing made-up lyrics in rhythm with their song. It was hilarious! He was singing stuff like "Oh my gosh, whaddya do?" :) Greg even let him try out the drum set.

When we got home, Nick and I were both exhausted and went right to bed at 9:00. I slept for 10 glorious hours, and my stomach troubles were gone when I arose. Yay! We packed up, visited some friends, and headed home. I'm just doing TCB this evening, and then tomorrow, the 2-day Christmas decorating extravaganza shall commence. Wish me luck!

happy thanksgiving, everyone!

We're heading to Springfield later today for our familial Thanksgiving celebration, and I just wanted to wish everyone a very happy holiday before we go. I have much to be thankful for this year, including the good friends whom I hold dear, and that includes everyone who reads my blog! I'm also thankful that I weighed in at 142.5 today! No, this isn't my normal weigh-in day, but I figured it would be wise to get a pre-Thanksgiving reading. :)

If you're traveling, please do so safely, and have a wonderful time! "Talk" to you later...

they just keep comin'!

I just gave Nick a cheese slice for lunch (you know, like a Kraft single), and he referred to it as "flappy dairy."

he's killing us lately!

Last night, we were putting Nick to bed, and I was holding him on my lap, cuddling. He said "Mommy, I want to go to sleep in your tummy, and then you can be pregnant forever, and I can push your pregnant button." I said "What's that?", and he replied "It's a blue button that makes you throw up and barf on kids." (I love the fact that the pregnant button has a specific color!) :)

my (er, nick's) new toy!

Normally, spending this much money on a new toy for Nick would be completely out of the question for me, but when I saw this, I just couldn't resist - how cool is it? I can't wait to play with it (Yes - I'll admit that.). But, he'll love it, too. It combines his two favorite things: trains and music! I think he's going to be thrilled with it.

how many 4-year-olds....

....talk like this? Nick got in trouble today for something he had done, and he burst into tears, exclaiming "I can't take it anymore! I'm so ashamed!" Even though I was trying to be serious and disciplinarian, I couldn't help but laugh. :)

random ramblings

It's been a pretty good week so far. Tuesday, I went grocery shopping, and in an amazing twist of fate, I got through the store really quickly, I got every single item on my list, and there was no line at the checkout! It was truly wondrous. That alone made my day. :)

Yesterday, I got a haircut. I'm not sure how I feel about it. The woman ended up cutting it shorter than I originally wanted. I'm not sure how it happened - I think we just both got a little carried away. So, it's hard to get used to, though it is pretty cute. I'm just used to having more hair on the sides, and it's suddenly short there again - I don't have much going on in the sideburn area anymore, and it's above my ears again. I still have length in the front, which I like. So, right now, I'm just kind of feeling *eh* about it. We shall see if it grows on me. Well, it WILL grow on me, literally, so I just have to wait awhile, and I'm sure I'll like it more. :) Hair grows - I just keep telling myself that. Why is it so hard to achieve the perfect haircut?

This morning I had a MOPS meeting. I ended up being in charge in a very last-minute fashion, after our coordinator's son threw up shortly before the meeting and she had to skip it. Our mentor mom leader was gone, too, so another mentor mom (Donna) and I just took charge and ran the meeting. It ended up going very well. Not much structure - we just worked on a craft and visited - but it was very enjoyable for everyone, I think. We have such a great group of ladies! The main thing today was that we all brought desserts we had baked for the Thanksgiving dinner at Genesis House, a local shelter for battered women and children. We had a great number and variety of desserts, so I think our contribution will really enhance their dinner. I made my yummy, decadent gooey cream cheese bars. And the craft we did was actually centerpieces for their tables, which I hope they'll like, too. I always enjoy MOPS meetings, and only wish they happened more than twice a month.

This evening, we went to parent-child night at Nick's preschool. There was lots of incredibly yummy potluck-y food, which I overindulged in, of course. That was pretty much a foregone conclusion. :) In observation of Native American month, they had this Cherokee guy named Chad Lookinghorse there, and he told the kids some Cherokee folklore and did some dances. And can I just say that he was H-O-T??? I mean, I know I sound like a total trollop, getting all turned on by a guy at my son's preschool function, but he was really, really good looking. I was talking about it with some of the other moms, and they were in concurrence. It added a nice little frisson of enjoyment to the evening. Good food AND eye candy!

So, that's my week thus far. How is yours going?

oh, BTW

I took my measurements this morning, and I have lost 5 more inches in the last three months. I have now lost a grand total of 45.5" (OMG - that's almost 4 feet!) all over my body, including 2 3/4" from each arm, 7" from my bust, 9" each from my waist and hips, 5 1/2" from each thigh, and 2" from each calf. Wow!

what a scream!

So, last night was our MOPS Moms' Nite Out, and we met at Pizza Hut for dinner, because they were having police officers wait tables, with all tips going to Shop-with-a-Cop. We figured we could have fun and be charitable at the same time. Of 19 members, only 8 of us came, but boy did we have fun! We got there at 6:00, and five of us were still there at 9:30! We talked and ate and laughed and laughed and laughed, and it was just a wonderful way to spend an evening. I love my MOPS peeps, and I hope we can organize another Nite Out in January, because we all need more of that! Here's a shout-out to my partners in crime: Angela, Rebecca, Katherine, Susie, Glenna, Casey, and Mary - I had a total blast last night! Thanks for coming.

the best-laid plans of mice and men...

To put it simply, my weekend was a complete and total bust. The entire trip to Springfield ended up being ill-fated and pointless. Don't worry - I'm over the horrible foul mood I was in yesterday, so I can now look upon it with a modicum of humour. Yesterday, though, you would NOT have wanted to cross paths with me!

Let's start at the beginning. On Monday morning, Brian had noticed that the valve in the basement that controls the water coming into the house had a slow drip. He told our landlord about it, but our landlord, in typical fashion, didn't do anything about it all week. On Friday at 4:30 p.m., we were completely ready to leave the house - the car was packed and running, people! We thought it wise to shut off the water, lest the drip turn into something more while we were gone. So, I went down to the basement to do so, and when I turned the handle, it came off and water started spewing from the pipe! OMG. Long story short - our landlord came and called a plumber, and we ended up making him stay until it was fixed, so that we could get on the road. We left an hour late, but made it to Springfield by 7:00. To sum up this part of the story, when we got home today, the pipe and valve were fine, but our landlord had left the basement lights blazing and the water turned on all weekend, even though he had told us over the phone that he had turned both off. Sigh.

So, off we went to Springfield, and when we got there, we had pizza and retired early. By this point, my voice was completely gone, and I was 99.99% sure that I would not be able to sing at church on Sunday morning. Because of this and the water issue, I was in a bad mood, and Brian and I were snippy and bickering with each other. Let's just say that when plans go awry, I don't handle it well, and when I get upset about stuff, Brian doesn't handle THAT well. It doesn't make for a good time. I did, indeed, have to cancel my gig, which totally sucks, because I was really excited about singing the song I had chosen, and we could really have used the money! Aarrrrggghhhh. That was the first time I had ever had to cancel on a paying gig, and I hated having to do that. But, as you might recall, we still had reason to be in Springfield, because we had a family portrait scheduled for Saturday morning, and we had brought our dressy clothes with us, planning a very fancy picture, indeed. Can you guess by now that something derailed that, too? Oh, yes.

See, Nick has this habit, this self-soothing mechanism, if you will, of banging his face against his mattress to put himself to sleep. When he was younger, we were all worried that he was autistic, but doctors assured us that since he only does it in bed, we didn't need to worry. It's just his way of putting himself to sleep. Odd, yes, but mostly harmless. Occasionally, though, he'll really go to town and end up abrading his nose - giving himself sort of a sheet-burn. And, you guessed it! When we went into his room Saturday morning, he had a doozy of a red, raw, oozing abrasion on his nose. And that was the straw that broke the portrait camel's back. Don't get me wrong - I would have no problem with going ahead with a portrait if he had, say, a little scratch on his face, or even a small bruise. But this was a big, honkin' red, oozing sore right on his nose. Add that to my already foul mood and the fact that I could barely talk and wasn't feeling well, and I pretty much lost it. Which led to more strain between me and Brian. What a fun morning! We cancelled the portrait, and I proceeded to sulk mightily for a few hours. I finally left the house and went and vented to Tim for awhile, and then went for some lunch with him. After eating, I went to do another thing that I had planned for the weekend, thinking "Even if everything else has gone to hell, at least I can do the shopping I had planned to, so the weekend will not have been for naught." I had various coupons to redeem, and items to seek. Remember that I was in a foul mood and didn't feel well. Also know that I can't handle an uber-crowded mall during the holidays. What was I thinking? It was Saturday afternoon in mid-November! I walked into the mall and almost immediately regretted it, and it only got worse with every step I took and every store I entered. I ended up being there for all of 20 minutes, during which I hastily bought something at one store, and then I hightailed it out of there. I just couldn't handle it! So, I had all these coupons that went unused, and I didn't buy anything on my list. I slunk back to my Dad's house, completely defeated, and spent the rest of the evening watching TV shows that I had recorded. That was fairly comforting, and helped to calm me down a bit.

Yet another plan of ours went unrealized, which was to go to the Titanic attraction in Branson. To be fair, that was completely our decision, because there was no reason we still couldn't have gone on Saturday after I returned from the mall. I was just so down and felt so grumpy and pathetic that the last thing I wanted to do was drive to Branson and battle crowds, so we opted out. In retrospect, it was probably a wise decision. I can't imagine I would have enjoyed myself much at all.

So, to sum up for you: spewing pipe, lost voice and cancelled church gig, cancelled portrait, aborted shopping trip, and no visit to the Titanic. We were batting 1000!

This morning, I did the ONE productive thing of the whole weekend, which was going to the church between services to talk to the music director and get the music for the lessons and carols service I'll be singing in on December 14. That took all of 30 minutes, and if not for that, there was absolutely NO need for us to be in Springfield this weekend. We headed home early, and got here by 1:00. And here I am. Thank goodness this horrible weekend is drawing to a close; I can only hope that the coming week is better!

off for the weekend again

We're heading out again this evening. Tomorrow morning, we'll be re-donning what we wore to my cousin's wedding, to have a family portrait done at JCPenney. I hope it goes well! The weather is supposed to be very raw and cold tomorrow, so it won't be fun having to leave my Dad's house in the morning in my scanty dress. :) While we're in Springfield, I (as always) have various mall shopping objectives, and many coupons to help me retain my bargain-queen status. Tomorrow evening, Brian and I may head to Branson to take advantage of the free Titanic pass I won on the radio. I would never pay full admission to see this attraction/museum, but I would definitely check it out for free! And Sunday morning, I'll be rising very early and heading out into an even colder morning (mid-20s!!) to sing at church. I'm somewhat concerned about this, because I've been fighting off a cold, and my voice is somewhat compromised. I haven't gotten full-blown sick, but every evening and morning, I have a phlegmy cough, and it has made me rather hoarse. I can only hope for a miracle on Sunday - wish me luck! We'll be back Sunday evening, and you'll hear from me next week. Have a great weekend, everyone!

the price of gas

Some of you might find this rather boring, but I thought it would be interesting to ask everyone to share the price of gas where you live, just so that we can see how it compares around the country (and even in England - Christie?). Here, I can fill up my tank right now for $1.97/gallon. How about you?

that boy!

So, Nick and I were in the car today with my friend and her 2-year-old son. John was being somewhat petulant, and shrieked at his mom, and Nick said "John, how dare you scream at your mother?" It killed me!

post of the day

First of all:

Happy Birthday to you;
Happy Birthday to you!
Happy Birthday, dear Jutta;
Happy Birthday to you!

AND:

Happy Anniversary to you;
Happy Anniversary to you!
Happy Anniversary, dear Greg & Gayle;
Happy Anniversary to you!

(and many more, to all three of you!)


Today, Brian had the day off, so I decided to head up to Rolla for some shopping. I got a really cute bracelet for $5 - a total impulse buy, but sometimes ya just gotta have those, no?

So, even though I was all set with a "little black dress" to wear for the Army Band Christmas concerts, I had started to think that a "little red dress" would be even better - what an impact it would make for me to walk out on stage in bright red for a holiday concert! So, I went to JCPenney with the idea that I would just see if they had anything. And of course, they did. I ended up getting this totally hot red dress (in a size 6!!!) - it was originally $70, but I paid $29, so you can't beat that with a stick. And then, I just had to get some silver high-heeled sandals to wear with it (You can follow that logic, can't you?), so I found some at Payless - originally $23, I paid $14. Yay! Now, for under $45, I have a totally smashing, much more eye-catching Christmas concert ensemble. (sigh of contentment)

That sums up the high points of my day! Tomorrow, I'm going to check out the local Veterans' Day parade, unless it's raining. Are you doing anything special?

nick's quote of the day

Our good friend Mike came over tonight, and as always, Nick proceeded to be very crazy and spastic, throwing himself at Mike, poking him, prodding him, flailing in his general direction, and basically pulverizing him to within an inch of his life. (OK - that may be a slight exaggeration.) After Mike left, as Nick and I were headed to the bathroom to brush his teeth, he said "You know, he's a very nice man, but sometimes he just gets too rough!"

seriously???!!!

If you have not seen this frightening new toy for girls, I suggest you check it out and share in my horror. Click here to see the Tini Puppinis at Toys R Us.

2 completely unrelated questions

1. Which song would it most surprise people to learn that you like? I'll go first. :) Mine is "Baby Got Back" by Sir Mix-a-Lot. I absolutely love this song! I know, I can't believe it, either, but it's one of my guilty pleasures. Maybe it's the clever, titillating lyrics, or the kickin' beat, or the fact that it celebrates the non-skinny female, but whatever the reason, every time this song comes on the radio, I'm in heaven. In fact, I just downloaded it to my computer, so I can listen to it whenever I want! I must admit that it kind of makes me want to "dial 1-900-mix-alot" for a "triple-X hoedown", even though he would surely find my "back" quite lacking by his standards - definitely not the "juicy double" he's looking for! His anaconda probably don't want none. :)

2. Which Thanksgiving dish could you absolutely not live without, if you had to choose just one? Mine would be my Mom's sausage stuffing, which my sister still makes every single year (Thank you so much, Mary!) I can't wait!

I look forward to your answers...

zumba report

In my opinion, the class was just 'ight. But then again, maybe I'm just too picky. For one thing, the music was way too loud - I think I'm overly paranoid about my hearing because I'm a singer, so I'm really concerned about exposing myself to loud music. Secondly, the floor was sort of slippery, which sucked. Thirdly, the class was sort of large and impersonal compared to what I'm used to, and fourthly and most importantly, the instructor didn't really explain anything or slowly demonstrate moves, so if you were a first-timer, you just had to kind of try your best and hope you could figure everything out and keep up. I did pretty well, but had my moments. Parts of it were definitely fun, but because of all the reasons I just mentioned, I may not go back. Also, I noticed that while I did sweat some and get my heart rate up to an extent, I didn't get nearly the workout that I always get at my gym. I'm usually dying by the time one of my regular classes is over, especially step and kickboxing. So, I would have to give the Zumba class a "C."

My new friend Katherine went with me - she's one of the new instructors at my gym. It was fun to do the class with a friend, and afterwards, we went out for coffee. It was such fun! We are two people who could talk forever and never shut up, and no topic seems to be taboo. :) It was a great way to spend time, and left me feeling warm and fuzzy. Of course, I just met her and she's moving away in 3 months - it's the story of my life. I'll tell you what - I can't wait to live in Springfield, where I can actually make friends who will be sticking around! Living in a military community really sucks in that respect. :(

When I'm done on the computer today, I'm going to go gather up a bunch of stuff to donate to Goodwill. My friend Rebecca has really galvanized me - she came over last night to try on my shirts and sweaters, and she took a bunch of stuff. The best part, though, was that she very generously offered to take whatever she didn't want and donate it to Goodwill, along with some of her own stuff that she was planning to take there. Getting all of that stuff out of the house (it was a LOT!) has just made me want to get rid of more stuff! The floodgates have opened, people.

Hope everyone's having a good weekend...

you lose some, you gain some

Well, I'm back up a pound this week, which really doesn't surprise me after the way I ate in St. Louis. :) I'm still pretty OK with where I am. The thing that worries me is where I'll be after the holidays. I really don't want to creep towards 150 again, and I'm afraid that will happen. I guess I'll just have to really try to control myself as much as possible, and most importantly, keep working out as often as I can.

Speaking of working out, I'm going to try a new class tomorrow at the fitness center on post, and I'm looking forward to it! (If you had told me, a year ago...) It's called Zumba, and it's apparently a cardio workout that incorporates Latin dance moves. Sounds like it's right up my alley! I'll let you know how it went.

I'm inching ever-closer to becoming a certified group fitness instructor. For me, it's a matter of timing and overcoming my fears. I'm thinking of doing a certification workshop at the end of January. I just need to get some more info first, and do some soul-searching. And I need to get my CPR certification first.

It's a sunny, cold day here. How about in your neck of the woods?

thank god it's over!

The election, that is. I was so sick of the commercials and the DAILY phone calls we were getting. Whatever your feelings about the outcome, at least you don't have to deal with all of that advertising anymore! Now, we can all worry about more mundane things, like what we're going to make for Thanksgiving, and what we're going to get people for Christmas, etc. :)

i have a question

If 18 different people have voted in my president poll, then how come there's only like 2 people that ever comment on my blog? Come on, people - let me know you've been here! I would love to know who's actually reading my blog - just a friendly "hello" would even be appreciated. So, speak up! :)

i have only two things to say:

1. It is sick and wrong that they're already playing Christmas music in Walmart!

2. Please go and vote tomorrow!

more pics!

Here are some pictures, as promised. The first one is of Nick's very first self-portrait. Isn't it cute and whimsical? I'm just so charmed by it. I actually framed it and hung it on his playroom wall. :)

The next three are of my Dad and us outside our hotel before we left for my cousin's wedding, and the last one is of my cousin and her new husband.

a wonderful trip!

We got back from St. Louis yesterday around 6:15 p.m., and I've been a busy girl since then. I still have a ton of stuff to do online, but I wanted to take a couple of minutes and tell you about our trip. I have a few pictures, which I'll post later after I've had a chance to process them. We left around noon on Friday, and stopped in Rolla on the way so that I could use a JCPenney coupon before it expired. :) I got a really cute shirt for just $3! Our drive went without a hitch, and we arrived at our hotel around 3:00. My sister and her husband arrived at almost exactly the same time, and my Dad got there about 45 minutes later. We stayed at a Holiday Inn Express, and it was nice. The rooms were large and even had couches and coffee tables! And we got welcome bags with a bottle of water, an apple, and Oreos. Nice touch. We got all settled in the room and then ordered some pizza so that we could fill our tummies for the evening, since the reception wouldn't even start until 8 p.m. We got all gussied up for the wedding, and boy did we look great! Brian always looks handsome in his dress blues, and Nick was just so incredibly dapper in his little pants, shirt, vest, and tie. Seriously. I can't get over how darling he looked. And if I may toot my own horn a bit, I thought I looked pretty stunning in my little black dress, sexy shoes, and fancy jewelry. The halter top of the dress really accentuated my arms and shoulders, which I consider among my best features now, and the dress and shoes served to show off my rather sculpted calves. OK - I'm done tooting my horn now. :)

We all caravanned to the church - Our Lady of Sorrows. It's a beautiful Catholic church, and was the perfect setting for a lovely wedding. It was nice to see some of my relatives before the wedding started. It was a wedding Mass, so it lasted a little over an hour. Considering this, I was very impressed with Nick's behavior - he really did very well, and when he felt that he just had to say something, he whispered. He was the picture of restraint! He also said many cute things all evening. For instance, when my Uncle Jim was walking Jessica (his daughter/my cousin) down the aisle, Nick turned to me and exclaimed "You didn't tell me she was marrying Uncle Jim!" And then when Jessica was standing on the altar with her fiance (Brian), Nick said "You didn't tell me she was marrying HIM!" See, Nick fancies Jessica his girlfriend, so he was quite chagrined that she was marrying anyone at all. The ceremony was very nice, and included three vocalists. Jessica is a singer like me, so she obviously wanted lots of music in her wedding. The most notable vocalist was her best friend, Mikey. He sang "Panis Angelicus" during Communion, and his voice is just gorgeous! I'd heard a lot about him over the years, but had never met him or heard him sing. It was very impressive.

After the wedding was over, we all caravanned again to the reception. It was held in an historical building that had an old freight elevator - that was how we got up to the third floor for the reception. The decor and ambiance was very nice, and the buffet was scrumptious (not to mention the open bar). Our table was next to the one with a branch of my family named the Crowleys, and I had a great time talking to Maureen and her daughter Katie, and catching up with them. They're such nice people! Nick proceeded to completely charm them (and others) - he was just so loquacious and personable to everyone! The best moment came, though, when the bridal party finally arrived and lined up behind their table. During a moment of relative quiet, Nick shouted "Jessica - don't do it!" Several people heard him and busted out laughing. Poor kid - it was too late! It was also absolutely precious to watch him dance with his little cousin, Claire, who's the same age. They were so cute together! As far as I'm concerned, the highlight of the reception was the wedding cake. It was from this amazing bakery in St. Louis called Lubeley's, which makes sinful gooey butter cake - my favorite. The wedding cake was chocolate with the most amazing, rich frosting I've ever tasted. I can honestly say that it was the best cake I've ever had. We visited, ate, and congratulated the bride and groom, but we had to leave by the time the dancing got underway. By then, it was after 10:30, and poor little Nick had had it. He was so exhausted! We were all in bed by 11:15, and went right to sleep. (We heard later that the reception had gone strong until midnight.) When our wake-up call came at 7:45, it was very unwelcome! But up we rose, to start another day...

We got ready and checked out, and then we all headed to this really old restaurant called Uncle Bill's Pancake House, where we met my Aunt Joanie (my Dad's sister) for brunch. It was nice to see her and spend some time together. Aunt Joanie, who is 78, reminisced about eating at Uncle Bill's when she was 17, after a school dance. After that, my Dad and sister headed home to Springfield, but Brian and I went to a shopping center to hit Trader Joe's and World Market. I was in complete heaven, and was only sad that I can't shop at these stores more often. I got several yummy snacky foods and cereals at Trader Joe's, including chocolate meringues and freeze-dried banana slices. At World Market, I bought a few Christmas presents for friends, and a cute Christmas tray and cup for Nick. I just love that place! I really enjoyed looking at all the foods, candy, and drinks from foreign countries, but I didn't buy anything edible this time.

We left the shopping center and headed to Uncle Jim and Aunt Karen's house for an open house party - a sort of continuation of the wedding celebration. Jessica and Brian were there, since they weren't leaving for their honeymoon (in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic) until today. There was more totally scrumptious food and yet another cake from Lubeley's - this time it was amaretto cake, with the same amazing frosting. I definitely overindulged, but I just couldn't help it! Nick had fun running around outside with Claire and her younger brother, Evan. We finally said our goodbyes a little after 4 p.m. and headed home, and here we are! It was such a lovely trip, and it was nice to eat good food, shop, and visit with relatives. I hope we get back to St. Louis again before too long. Stay tuned for pics!