Chistmas at Grandma Kathy's & a New Family Car

Christmas at my mom's house was great!  Liam and Marlo had a blast thanks to Grandma Kathy and Uncle Chris.  My mom always makes us feel at home and Uncle Chris was on fire!

He dressed up as Santa and Liam totally believed it!

Liam is obsessed with his gift from Uncle Chris - a huge remote control truck!

Even Marlo got a new ride from Uncle Chris!

In addition to plenty of family time, I got to meet my girlfriend Sarah's baby girl Mazie for the first time and got to see my dear friend Francie and her daughter Patty Lu who are visiting from New York.  I love that I have friends who also had baby girls in 2012 - second generation friendships!

Marlo and I came back to the O.C. on Wednesday night, but Liam was picked up by Grandma Mary and is staying with my in-laws in West Hollywood until tomorrow morning.  For being only 3 I think he's doing a great job being away from home for so many nights.  He's only had one major "I miss mommy and daddy" meltdown.  

It's been so quiet in the house without Liam.  It's crazy how easy one child is.  I'm stating the obvious, but sometimes I forget how peaceful everything was with just one.  Although the peace and quiet has been nice, I miss my boy.  I'm really looking forward to seeing him tomorrow.

Oh, and tomorrow is Joe's 36th birthday so we're having a daytime date - lunch and a movie! We're both really excited since neither of us can remember the last time we went to a movie - possibly it was before Marlo was born and she's a year next month.  So, yeah, it's been awhile. 

Lastly, I think we'll be heading into the New Year with a new car!  Our lease on the Prius is up soon and we're buying a family car.  Joe's getting off work early today so we can "close" the deal we have on a new 2012 Chevy Traverse.     We're considering buying the Prius out and trading in Joe's car.  I hope we do end up keeping the Prius.  I'm not into cars at all!!  I just want something that is safe and easy to drive.  But the Prius is the first car that I'd be sad to get rid of.  I love the Prius.  But we need a bigger car. 

We've talked about MAYBE having another baby next year and if we decide to grow the Friedman clan, the Prius ain't going to cut it.  More about baby business in another post!  I still need to get one kid walking!

Well, I suppose my next post should include my new year's resolutions...I better get to thinking!

Not your typical playroom: Home for the holidays!

I took the kids up to LA to spend Christmas with my mom.  Joe will be here for the weekend and Christmas, but he has to work quite a bit next week.  And since Liam is off from school for two weeks I thought I'd seek refuge with my mom and in-laws.

Staying at my mom's house is always wonderful.  It's the house I was raised in so it will always be home to me.  But it's also home to my mom's photography studio.  Kathy is taking the week off from shooting so she's turned her studio into a playroom for the kiddos!

Crawl mats for Marlo and a plethora of toys!

Light reflectors for the optimal playtime experience 

Make-up station for dress up

A rainbow of photo back drops for art time!

My mom even moved out of her room for the week and gave us the master bedroom!  She spoils us!  

Oh, and I got my two front teeth!!!  

Hello Gorgeous!  Okay, not a gorgeous picture of me, but compared to the picture of me with crazy teeth - this one is a winner!  

 

I was in quite a bit of pain and had to take a shot of this baby.  It actually did the trick - go figure!

Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday!! If you didn't get our holiday card, here is the photo we used, sans cute "all you need is love" message. 

 

 

I am a Johnny Apple Seed holiday card giver.  I give them to everyone.  I LOVE getting holiday cards.  I know many people throw them away.  But I cherish them.  I display them until the end of February.  I look at them frequently - they make me happy.  When I was younger, my mother would display our holiday cards from each year, and by the time I was a teenager, I got quite a kick out of seeing how we all changed from year to year.  We now have three holiday cards as the Friedman family.  I can't wait to display them all 20 years from now when our children are older.

Side note: the camera really doesn't lie.  I love our holiday card, but after we took the picture, I realized that we had acquired an animal in our family and it was living on my head.  So, yes, we got rid of the family pet - I cut my hair.  It's still long, but it doesn't look like I have a cat sitting on my head.

Oh, and I will be posting some video from Liam's holiday show at school.  There were some hilarious moments.  I just need to edit it!  Happy Saturday!

 

All I want for Christmas are my two Front Teeth!

After my last post, I thought I'd bring back some humor to my blog with revealing the tragedy of my two front teeth.  About ten years ago I knocked out my front teeth, the top ones.  It's a long story, but basically, I was in a swimming pool and had an accident and lost them.  I had bonds on them for a while, and finally got veneers after the bonds were constantly chipping.

A few weeks ago my veneers chipped.  I always thought veneers were like diamonds - they didn't, or very rarely chipped.  Guess I was wrong.  And, let me add, that veneers are not cheap. And if you chip one, you replace them all.  I thought I could live with the chip until my insurance would cover them (another 3 years..ridiculous!!?)  But then another piece chipped so I decided to suck it up and get my two veneers replaced.

So, they put temporary veneers on while the actual permanent teeth are being made.  It takes a couple of weeks.  I've been in some pain, but the pain is small potatoes compared to how awful the fake veneers look.  The day after they were put on the tops of my teeth started to turn grayish-blue.  And each day since they've discolored even more.  I now look like I have two rotting front teeth and haven't seen a dentist for twenty years.  Fantastic. I called my dentist to complain and she said this is all perfectly normal!! Really?! For $1200 couldn't my temporary veneers at least be the color of my teeth?!

Closed mouth you wouldn't think twice...

I smile...and whoa! 

I get my new teeth this Friday so only two more days of looking like this...I don't mean to be so vain.  And when I think of how stupid it is for me to be complaining about some funky teeth when the nation is mourning the loss of those beautiful babies, I honestly want to give myself a smack.  But, I suppose we could all use a good laugh.  And come on, you can't not look at this picture of me and not laugh!

In response to today's events

In addition to shedding a few tears and staring at my babies sleeping for longer tonight than I usually do, I could only process the tragedy of today with writing.  Not that any words said or written can make things better, but it is my way of processing things.


I can't imagine what losing a child would be like.  To be honest, this is stuff that keeps me up at night.  I know it's ridiculous and somewhat self-destructive to think about these things, but I can't help it.  I think of how wonderful and happy I am and then I think of all the things that could happen that could take the most precious people away from me.  And days like today just make these thoughts worse.

Joe lost his little sister, Molly, when she was 13.  Joe was a freshman in college.  I wish I could have met Molly.  We named Marlo after her.  I hope her spirit lives within Marlo in some small way.  When I visited Joe's hometown, we went to Molly's grave.  While we were giving Mary (Joe's mom) some time alone at Molly's grave, I was in tears.  Of course I didn't want Mary to see me upset, but I just couldn't bare seeing a mother at her child's grave.  As a parent, you always imagine that your child will out live you.  And it seems like such an injustice when this is not the case.

Molly was sick and her death, obviously, was very different from the lives of the children that were taken today.  But no matter what, the death of a child is just so wrong.  The dreams destroyed.  In the words of James Baldwin, "The children are always ours, every single one of them..."

My heart goes out to all the victims - the children and the teachers - and their families.

Happy Hanukkah Mommy!

I've been debating for a while about getting a nice purse.  At first, I wanted to get a really nice diaper bag.  I settled though on the Skiphop Versa, a reasonably priced one that fit my needs.   I decided against getting a nice d-bag because 1.) It's a bag for kids and will get destroyed and 2.) I'm not always going to be carrying a diaper bag around.  The baby years will be gone before I know it.   But I've always wanted a nice hand bag.  I've just never invested in one.

So, for Hanukkah this year, mommy got herself a handbag!

 




I realize that one can spend thousands of dollars on a purse and that was not my goal at all!  I wanted something nice, but not something that would break the bank.  I also wanted something that was mom friendly, but could still be trendy enough to wear out to dinner.  I got the Tory Burch Amanda Hobo bag and it has a cross body strap which will be great for day to day and taking the kids around.  But the cross body strap can be removed and the purse can be worn over the shoulder as a tote.  There's plenty of room in it for a wallet, make-up bag, my day agenda, cell phone, and what have you.  It's not an evening clutch, but it's stylish enough to be a mom purse during the day and a lady's going out bag at night.

Anyways, I'm excited.  I called my best friend and told her about my new bag and she told me that I'm officially now an O.C. mom and housewife now that I have a Tory Burch bag.  True; I won't deny it. But I LOVE this purse!  I suppose it's only a matter of time before there's crushed Cheerios at the bottom of the bag, but so be it.  I admit that I do feel guilty about getting this for myself.  I don't need it.  Well, I do need a purse, but I don't need one this nice.  But I'm pretty sure I deserve this!  We all deserve to treat ourselves every once in a while - be it a new handbag, a yoga class, or Krispy Kreme Doughnut!

I'd love to know what some of my readers have treated themselves to lately!!  Do share!

(Full disclosure - yes, Joe knows I got a handbag. But the one I asked him if I could get was not the one I got.  The Amanda Hobo is a bit more expensive, but not by much.)

And here's a cute video of the kiddos - the piano was one of Marlo's Hanukkah gifts, but Liam discovered it and brought it out to play.

Updates from Previous Posts

Happy Hanukkah!  After the last night, I'll post some  highlights from the holiday.  Liam has been really excited about the entire holiday season. I suppose it started with Halloween which led into Thanksgiving, and now he's beside himself over Hanukkah and Christmas (at my mom's house.)

But, I wanted to post an update on some of the things I've blogged about over the past few weeks,

Marlo's Physical Therapy: 
Marlo is still seeing her P.T. twice a week.  She's making solid and steady progress each week.  Her P.T. says she should be crawling by the end of the year.  And hopefully, by her first birthday in January, she will be pulling up and trying to cruise around.  She REALLY wants to move - the motivation is there.  She can scoot around quite well on our hardwood floors and is rolling everywhere.  We're focusing on getting her up on all fours unassisted.

I am so looking forward to Marlo moving.  Beyond the fact that she is behind the curve on this milestone, her inability to crawl has taken a toll on me physically.  I carry 23lbs. around all day.  It's nuts!  My shoulder bursitis has come back with a mean vengeance, my lower back is consistently in pain, and by the end of the day, I feel as if I've worked out for hours.  I guess the one benefit is that I've lost all pregnancy weight and then some by weight lifting all day, but I'm done with it.  Moreover, Joe and I have talked a bit about having another baby, but I can't even start to think about having another baby when I have a giant infant on me all day.  Marlo is one next month and in no way does she seem on the verge of toddler-hood to me.  That being said, I can't wait to announce it when she's finally on the move.

The No-Nap Sleep Solution:
Well, the no napping thing is working.  Liam falls asleep by 7 every night.  Sometimes he can't even make it to then and he's down by 6:30.  It's fabulous!  I get an hour to do whatnot in the house before Joe gets home and then we get a solid two hours of hang out time before bed.  Plus, there are no more crying and screaming tantrums because it's time to go to bed.  Although Liam spends less time with Joe, I really think it's been better for everyone, Liam included.  Usually, Liam wakes up early enough to say good bye to Joe before he leaves for work and this seems to make him happy.  And all weekend is pretty much family time so Liam and daddy get plenty of hangout time then.  The house is just more peaceful.  It means more work for me during the day, but so be it.  And I've been trying to use this time with Liam in productive ways.  For example, when Marlo naps, we'll usually use that as our cooking time.  We'll bake something or puree Marlo's baby foods.  Or sometimes we'll use the time to clean up the house.  Liam LOVES cleaning.  I bought a bunch of non-toxic green cleaning products so I'll let him clean the counter tops in the kitchen - one of his favorite chores.  Or I'll let him vacuum - maybe his all time favorite chore.  Although I might need to go over something he's cleaned, he usually gets about 80% of the mess.  It's actually helpful.  He just likes to be busy.  After Marlo wakes up, we'll go to the park or go outside to play with his friends.  And it took a solid week for him to adjust and not to be Mr. Fussy-pants in the evening, but he's there.  No more meltdowns in the evenings!

Dinner: the monkey on my back
I'm still trying to get the whole dinner thing organized.  I really appreciated getting some recipes from my readers.  And I'm ALWAYS asking other moms how they organize dinner.  It's a work in progress.  I got Jessica Seinfeld's book Deceptively Delicious to see if I could sneak in some veggies without Liam turning up his nose.  And it's totally worked, but I've only make snack food items such as banana bread and muffins. (Oh, and I tried the chocolate pudding made with avocado - deceptively disgusting!)  I've also started reading French Kids Eat Everything.  So, yep, still trying to get dinner on a solid role! Now that Liam is always going to bed before Joe gets home, I at least know that dinner will be in two shifts every night. This is one of the major downsides of Liam gong to bed at 7, but it's one that I'm willing to deal with for a more peaceful evening.

Post Party Reflection

Last night's holiday party was wonderful!  Joe and I had a blast.  There was a raw bar with fresh lobster tails and champagne being passed around as we walked in the door - my kind of place!  I LOVED seeing all the dresses and shoes and jewelry.  Some women wore long dresses, some went short.  The dresses were diverse, but everyone looked elegant and very put together.  There were plenty of women that got their hair done for the party.  Or there were a lot of women who knew how to do some pretty fancy updos!

Dinner was delicious - scallops, prime rib, stuffed chicken, squash ravioli, tons of veggies - for an event that large (about 600 people), I was really impressed with the food.  I was also impressed by the the opening speech given by the CEO Mohamed El-Erian.  I've always respected Joe's work, but listening to this guy and his colleagues talk about PIMCO really made me proud.  And I appreciated in the CEO's greeting that he acknowledged the spouses and families of PIMCO.  He said it's not easy working at PIMCO and the spouses play a critical role in keeping the PIMCO employee's sane!!

It's also incredible to see someone you love accomplish and live their professional dream.  Joe wanted this job at PIMCO badly.  During the interview process, I remember him telling me that if he didn't get this job, there would never be another opportunity like this.  I thought he was exaggerating a bit, but now after what I know about the company, I get it.  And being at the holiday party just made me really proud of how hard my husband works.

Unfortunately, I couldn't find my camera before we left!! I was so upset about this. The one time I'm all dressed up and I can't take a decent picture!!!??  Arrrggg!! But, Joe took a couple phone pics of me and we got the "prom" style portraits taken at the party. Oh and our photo booth pictures didn't turn out - the photo booth battery went out and we didn't want to stand inline again...so the photos were not happening for the night!

Our portrait - with my hand looking ridiculously long

The new dress and the new shoes!  

An attempt at a close up...sigh

Outfit update!

I seriously can't believe how much I debated over the dress I am wearing tonight to Joe's holiday party.  I've been obsessing over it.  I guess because I wear "mom" clothes everyday and don't get out much, the holiday party is a bit intimidating to me.  And the crowd that will be at this party is an elite bunch.  I feel a bit out of my league.

So, hearing from my readers was awesome! I highly recommend posting your outfits for a public vote for an important event!  It's a great way to get multiple opinions.  Anywho - the black dress was winning by about 1 vote.  (Unless I followed my friend Nicole's method and gave the men's vote a heavier weight. In that case, black won by far.)

I really wanted to wear the red.  At the end of the day, I felt like it was something I would never wear, but it made me feel fabulous!  I felt like a million bucks in that thing.  And I can always wear a black dress. But the red Von Furstenburg is unique and could only be worn at an occasion like this evening. 

But, Joe liked the black better on me.  And any man I asked - chose black.  This just goes to show what men want - tight and black. I could be wearing something from the dollar store, and as long as it shows the body and some leg, it's a winner.  But, my friend's dress was so tight I honestly feared that I'd pop a seam.  Seriously. No joke.  And I know I wouldn't even want to sit down at the party for fear that something would rip.  So, I splurged and bought a tight fitting black dress with new shoes (you can't tell from the picture but they are bejeweled and sparkly).  The new dress' fabric is a bit more giving so I feel comfortable moving in it - a good thing!

I asked Joe if he thought it was too much. I want to look sexy, but I also want to look like a wife and a mother.  Tall women who wear short things can easily look like hookers.  But Joe assured me that the dress is perfect for the party.  So, the above is what I'll be wearing.  If it was up to me, I'd be in red.  But, this time, I'm going with what the husband wants.  We never go out. I might as well look my best for him.

Anyways,  I can't wait to go!  They take pictures, there's a dinner, pool tables, dancing, photobooths - sounds like a whole lot of fun!

Thank you readers for all your outfit votes and compliments!  I'll be sure to post some pictures with hair and make up done!

Need your help!

Joe's holiday party is this weekend and I need help on what to wear. It's at a nice hotel in Huntington Beach.  And let me just add that PIMCO is located in Newport Beach and the employees are a classy and rather conservative bunch.  The PIMCO wives wear designer clothes, have designer bags, and I'm sure they are not shy of getting things augmented.  So, that being said, I have none of the above, in my closet, or on my body.  So I borrowed a couple of dresses from my girlfriend Brenda, who has impeccable taste and style.  Here are my two options:

The Red Dres:
Pros: This is a stunning Diane Von Furstenburg.  It is breath taking when on.  It is fun, sexy, and says happy holidays as it is bright red.  It's also quite giving. I could eat a steak dinner and not have to worry about my tummy growing an inch or two.

Cons: I'm 5'11.  This dress shows some leg!! Yikes.  And I never wear red.  Ok, let's face it. I never wear color because I'm a boring house wife!!!

The Black Dress:
Pros:  This is classic.  Black satin.  Shows leg, but not too showy.  I love black. This is my comfort color.

Cons: I literally feel like I'm wearing a sausage link.  This thing is tight. And I mean tight. It's my size, but it's one of those form fitting dresses so I'm sure I'll be passing up on the hors d'oeuvre platters for the evening.  Also, I always wear black.

 

I've pretty much narrowed it down to these two. I have one more choice, but I don't think it compares. I'll post it though.

Lacy black dress: Lace seems to be in right now...since I rarely look at magazines I could be totally wrong here. Comfy and sexy since it has that nude look under the black lace. But I've had this forever. Might be dated.

 

 Please let me know what you think.  I've asked a few friends and I'm getting votes for both. Thought I'd reach out to my readers.

It's that time of year!

The holiday lights were up in our neighborhood the day after Thanksgiving.  It seems like folks in Ladera Ranch can't wait to get into the Christmas spirit.  Our neighborhood even has a holiday light contest for the best lighted house.  For some, this is taken seriously.  I hope to one day invest in a crap load of Hanukkah stuff so we can win one year.  You'd think they'd have to let us win at some point if only for not wanting to look like they passed up the Jews!

This past weekend I made an attempt at hanging some blue lights outside.  Yikes - I was not aware of what it takes to light a two story house!  I quickly learned this was beyond my skill set and that we'd have to hire a light installation company to do our lights or I would have to settle for some nicely lit shrubs.  Sigh...

Liam is psyched for the holidays.  He's been asking about Santa and I tell him that Santa won't be coming to our house, but he will go to Grandma Kathy's house.  He seems a bit confused by this.  All his friends keep talking about Santa and it's hard not to become bombarded with Christmas everywhere you go.  I've decorated for Hanukkah in out living room.  I have a table with our menorahs and other festive items.  I also hung  various blue and silver bulbs from our windows and put up some glittery Stars of David that Liam and I made last year.   I doesn't compare to the Christmas decor in most people's homes.  And this wasn't my goal.  I know Christmas and Hanukkah are not equal holidays for Christians and Jews.  But I wanted Liam to experience the holiday spirit in his home since he's been asking about the holidays.

For gifts, the kids are mostly getting books and puzzles.  But Liam is also getting a Razor scooter and  kid's digital camera.  He's obsessed with taking pictures.  Maybe he inherited it from Grandma Kathy? 

Oh, and we took our holiday picture!  It's pretty darn cute!  It was not easy trying to get both kids looking and smiling at the camera at the same time. But we got a shot of Liam smiling and Marlo looking like a cutie pie.  Maybe it's because I was raised by a photographer, but our family pictures mean the world to me.  I'll wait until the holidays are closer to post it!

Family Matters

And I did it! I cooked my first Thanksgiving turkey!  Granted, once my mother-in-law got to our house, she did most of the basting.  But I prepped the turkey - massaged it, seasoned it.  And I have to admit, if I never have to touch the inside of a turkey again, I don't think I'll be disappointed.

Overall, I'm glad we hosted.  It was wonderful to spend our first Thanksgiving in our new home.  But, as it goes with hosting, I felt like I was working all day.  Between cooking since 6 a.m., trying to keep the house clean for guests, and catering to Marlo who woke up with an ear infection and a fever, I was pooped by the time it was all said and done.  Oh, and not to mention cleaning by hand all the fine china.  Ugh!! What a  pain!  But, I loved using my china.  Little things like that do make my day.

Poor Joe was exhausted.  He's been working like a crazy person and had to be at work on Black Friday at  6 a.m.  He was so tired that he wished my mom "Happy Birthday" instead of a Happy Thanksgiving when she left!   But at least he was well fed!  We all were!

Joe's entire family was there and my mom and brother Chris and his girlfriend were there.  I wish my entire family could have made it, but so be it.  My older brother and his wife had their own Thanksgiving and my younger sister has been MIA for a while living up north.  Since Joe's immediate family is just his parents and his sister, we always know that they will take part in family gatherings. But with multiple siblings I guess it's harder for everyone to get together.  When I told Liam that his aunt and uncle weren't coming to Thanksgiving because they were having their own, he responded, "But mom,Thanksgiving is for family."  This made me smile and broke my heart at the same time.  I love that my three year old is aware of the importance of holidays and family.  But it also made me sad to think that although this is true, not everyone thinks this way, and it doesn't always work out with people's schedules and what have you.  I can't expect all my siblings to come together for every Thanksgiving.  I am hoping that once there are more kids in the family, there will be a greater desire to come together because Liam could sure use some buddies at the kids' table! We did get to Skype with my aunt and uncle and cousins in Wisconsin and that was pretty cool!  Liam remarkably remembered who everyone was even though he only met them once.

But we did have a wonderful, wonderful time.  I am already looking forward to Thanksgiving next year - mainly because I won't volunteer to host!

Here are a few pictures!

19 lbs.  Whole Foods Kosher Bird

Prepped and ready to roast!

Cooked and ready to eat!

A little decor and a cozy fire!

The adults' table!

Took out the fine china!

Kids' table

Liam's place setting

Hand turkeys by Liam for everyone

A picture of my darling (who woke up with a fever and an ear infection!)

Oh, and one more adorable story - when I asked Liam what he was thankful for, this is what he said:

 "I'm thankful for bananas, and mommy, and daddy, oh, and I like strawberries, so I'm thankful for strawberries."   (Note:Liam does not like strawberries.)

Bed time advice, please!

This week I am experimenting with taking away Liam's nap time.  If Liam naps he will stay up until 9:30 easily, and that makes my day soooo long. Also, he will fight going to bed if he has taken a nap.  It becomes a battle and I am going in and out of his room a dozen times before he falls asleep.  I would just shut the door and not go back in, but he screams so loud from his room that he frequently wakes up Marlo.  So, I feel forced to go in and calm him down.   Moreover, Joe and I try to be in bed by 10 since Joe has to wake up at 5 am for work.  So, when Liam is up to all hours of the night Joe and I don't get any time together - but what's new there - that's what you sign up for when you have kids.

If Liam doesn't nap he easily falls asleep by 7.  And there is no fighting.  He's pooped from his long day and falls asleep within 5 minutes of hitting the pillow.  He does get a bit more sensitive in the evening, but he doesn't have major meltdowns or anything. This tells me that he might be ready to give up his nap.

Here's the issue: if Liam goes to bed at 7 he will never see Joe during the week. The earliest Joe gets home is 7:30.  Usually, he gets home closer to 8.  And this surely takes a toll on Liam.  He asks for Joe all the time.  And when he's upset he just cries for Joe.  Part of me wants to take the nap away so he can fall asleep at a reasonable time, but part of me thinks he should nap so he can stay up later and spend time with Joe.

Thoughts? Any other parents deal with the issue of one parent getting home late and trying to balance that out with the kids' schedules?

I'm Bringing Sexy Back

Today I had to drop off some stuff to Joe that he accidentally left at the house.  While outside his office, I noticed an attractive woman passing by.  She had a short skirt and quite a large chest.  I couldn't help but notice her.  She was noticeable in an appealing way.  For whatever reason, I felt the need to comment to Joe about her attention grabbing rack.  Of course Joe replies, "that's my secretary."

Sigh.  Big sigh.  So I've decided to reduce my sweat-pant wearing days from 7 to 3 days a week.  To be fair, today my self-maintenance was at an all time low.  Marlo had physical therapy at 7:30 a.m. so I didn't even have a chance to brush my teeth this morning before we were out of the house.  Gross; I own up to it.  And I know Joe thinks I am beautiful either way.  It's not so much about Joe as it is about how I feel.  I felt lowly seeing this beautiful woman that sits feet away from my husband all day.

Granted I LOVE, LOVE that my job at home means I can wear yoga pants everyday.  But I would also like to put in a bit more effort in the self maintenance category.  I'm not talking about wearing high heels or mini-skirts.  But I can't leave the house without brushing my teeth anymore.  And if it means waking up 20 minutes earlier to make sure that I can pull myself together a bit more then so be it!   

I guess I could also invest in some new clothes.  I haven't really gone shopping for clothes since before Marlo was born.  Hmmmm.....this may motivate me to wear something other than sweats. 

Below is a picture that Liam snapped of my mom using my phone.  My mother is always stunning to me.  People, she's a senior citizen and look at her!  She's a beauty!  I'm going to keep my mom in mind as I work towards my new goal: to bring sexy back into my life.  My mother never leaves the house without looking like a gorgeous woman!

Keep 'em busy for one hour!

This morning I had an activity that kept Liam busy for an hour! And with the exception of a few check-ins and helping him with the end of the project, Liam did everything on his own.  I thought I'd share with other moms out there because an activity that can keep your 3 year old independently occupied for an hour is a winner in my book!

Activity: Pasta Noodle Necklace

Supplies:
Large Pasta Noodles (Penne or larger)
Finger Paint
Paint brush
String
Paper towels
*A work space that can handle a little washable paint!

Below is the breakdown! 

I showed Liam how to paint the noodles and this kept him busy for a good 40 minutes.  I only had to help him once as we changed the muddy paint water.

We let the painted pasta dry on a paper plate.

I then showed him how to string the noodles onto the necklace.  I thought this would be too hard for him since the string was so thin.  But he wanted to do it all by himself.  So this kept him busy for the next 20 minutes.

Suggestion: I used string that was a bit firmer so it was easier to loop through the pasta.

 

After putting the painted pasta on the string, I helped Liam tie the necklace knot.

 

We're making these for his grandmas for Thanksgiving. (And if this activity still keeps his interest, we could be making these for the entire family!)

It was great to have him occupied this morning!  He was working so well independently that I even had time to make homemade scones!!

Super MOM style today folks!

Anywho - thought I'd share!  If any other moms, dads, babysitters, etc. have activities that really work for their kiddos, pleas share!  The trick is giving them something to do that I do not have to manage!

Physical Therapy: Day 1

Marlo met Andrea, her physical therapist today.  Andrea did an over all assessment to see Marlo's strengths and weaknesses.  Marlo isn't rolling over yet, and is not crawling.  Andrea and I discussed Marlo's daily activity as well as her overall disposition.  I emphasized that she is a VERY easy going baby.  She doesn't get pissed often.  If she can't reach a toy she claps her hands or starts playing with her toes.  She's content.  I love this about her.

But, according to Andrea and Marlo's pediatrician, she should be doing a bit more.  Andrea said that Marlo needs to strengthen her core and her upper body.  So, yes, basically, Marlo will be participating in baby pilates twice a week.  Marlo did not like the evaluation very much.  For a baby that rarely cries, she did a lot of crying.  But I suppose this was to be expected since she was being handled by a stranger and being forced to do core exercises for an hour.

Andrea gave me some "homework" to do with Marlo.  We worked on side sitting and balancing on our knees today.  She said that the cause of all of this is partly her disposition and partly not enough tummy time in early infancy.  (If anyone looks at Marlo's head, she has a perfectly round head! I was always putting her on her tummy!)  But, so be it. I guess during the afternoon she didn't get a lot of tummy time because that is when Liam plays outside so I usually had her in the sling. 

Either way, I'm looking forward to Marlo's sessions and hopefully in a couple of months I will have some great videos of Marlo rolling and  crawling to share.

The dreaded question: What's for dinner?

At the end of the day, when Joe gets home from work, I cringe when I hear the dreaded question: what's for dinner?  Joe usually gets home around 8 pm.  By this time in the evening, I've dealt with various tantrums throughout the day, am covered in crusty kid stuff, am surrounded by a mess in every direction, and if I'm lucky, both kids have been bathed and are sleeping.  On my unlucky days, one of them is still fighting going to bed.  The last thing I want to do is cook dinner.  Liam's dinners are pretty simple.  I make him pasta or give him chicken with rice.  His stuff I can make easily.  Liam and Marlo eat dinner around 6.  They can't wait until Joe gets home. 

On my good days, I have dinner prepped when the kids are napping or I've got something in the slow cooker so dinner is already done when Joe gets home.  Full disclosure, these good days happen about once every two weeks.  Sad, I know.   Usually, I end up hating cooking and putting the minimal amount of effort into it.  Or I tell Joe he can have a bowl of cereal or pick up take-out.  And I really want to have a good dinner ready for Joe when he gets home.  I just need to set myself up for a bit more success.  I would love to get some slow cooker recipes.  So if any of my readers have one or two to share, please do!  We like to keep it healthy, but are not afraid to indulge.  We eat everything!

This is the happy face I want to make when my dear husband asks, "What's for dinner?"

Demon voice...it always comes down to this

We are in one of those difficult phases with Liam.  Two steps forwards, two steps back; my life can easily be defined by these Paula Abdul lyrics.  I find myself telling him 6 or 7 times to do something before he does it.  And it's not like I'm asking him to do things that are beyond him.  I'm asking him to put his shoes on or brush his teeth.  Simple things he does every day.  So usually by repeat 6 I've had enough and demon voice comes out.  And, of course, he listens when I use demon voice.  But really?  Do I need to use demon voice in order for my son to listen to me?

He is also going through a major independent phase.  He wants to do EVERYTHING on his own.  Get this - just a few days ago, during outside playtime, Liam leads his buddy, Charlie, into the house.  This is not that uncommon, although the kids know that they should be playing outside.  So I went to go get the boys, and Liam had locked me out of the house!  Thankfully, I left the garage door unlocked and was able to get in that way.  Upon entering I found Liam and his buddy hiding under the kitchen table, bike helmets still on, scarfing down Halloween candy.  Pretty hilarious, but so not okay!  I'd also like to add that the candy was placed on the kitchen island, so Liam had to get on a bar stool and climb to the middle of the island in order to retrieve the candy.

Here is an in-action shot of  a flooring kicking tantrum.  I know, I'm an evil parent for documenting this.  I think I actually took it to send to Joe so he knew what kind of a day Liam and I were having.

Going back to the discipline drawing board  - so to speak.  Demon voice is unattractive.

And the chaos has begun!

Until this year, Liam didn't really "get" Halloween.  But, boy, the times have changed!  On Tuesday he kept reminding me that it was "one more day until Halloween" and on Wednesday, whenever I called him Liam, he corrected me and said, "Mom! I'm not Liam! I'm the Big Gardener!" 

Yesterday, by 9 pm, I was Halloweened out! I had been going strong with Halloween activities since the early AM.  To start the day off with fun and excitement, Liam and I made orange pancakes with chocolate sprinkles.

Silly pancake making face

The finished product

 

I then spent the morning cooking mac n' cheese for 30 kids for Liam's class party.  I didn't get a picture, but it was a crap load of mac n' cheese. 

 

The Halloween parade was pretty darn cute, but I had to fight through the crowd  of parents to snap my shot.

Liam chowed down big time at the class party.  And he was such a little gentleman at the table saying "please" and "thank you."  Two parents came up to me and complimented me on how well behaved Liam was.  I was thinking if they only knew the other side they'd think otherwise!

Yum!

Marlo even had a great time!  She met a baby Hulk and was quite smitten with him!

 

Baby Hulk, on the other hand, was a bit timid.

Liam was getting a bit antsy around 5 pm.  It was still too early to trick-or-treat, but the anticipation was building.  At 6 we went out and met some our neighbors.  Our block was such a wonderful place for Liam to spend Halloween.  He was darting back and forth from one friend's house to the next.  One of our neighbors cooked chili and made cornbread so I didn't even have to cook dinner!  The streets were bustling with happy children.  It was straight out of a story book.  

My mother-in-law came down to help me with the kids so she stayed at the house to pass out candy while Joe and I took Liam with a group of his friends from house to house.  We quit after an hour.  Liam could have gone on for much longer, but I was pooped!  But Liam even had a great time when we were inside and handing out candy.  He was in heaven!

 

I guess the chaos of Halloween has officially started!  No longer can I put Liam in a costume and sip wine at home.

 

Here are a few more pics!

 

  Marlo and her best gal-pal, Baby Gaby - of course Gaby was a Flower and Marlo was a Bee.

Liam at the school parade.

Marlo asleep at the school parade - her legs in those yellow tights got a LOT of attention!

One last picture of my cutie in his John Deere Gardening Costume!