6-Year-Old Basketball

Okay, my kid is not into sports. Given, Eli is only six, and many say that he’s too young for us to judge his potential effectively, but I think a mother just knows these things. Eli has been playing basketball the last couple of months, and he does seem to be having fun. That’s the important thing, right? Right?

I will say this for my son. Watching him play basketball is not nearly as painful as watching him play soccer. I actually enjoy watching him play basketball. He bounces around with all kinds of spastic energy, never quite sure where the ball is. He guards his person no matter which team has the ball (so I’m thinking defense is his strength), and when the ball comes near him, it’s as if someone dropped a bomb and yelled “duck and cover”.

Like I said, this is actually better than watching him play soccer.

This weekend, they take the official basketball pictures, and I’m excited about that. A cute picture of my son in a jersey. Who cares if he wins.

Oh yeah, my husband cares if he wins. Dude! He’s six! So far, I have successfully halted my husband from jumping up out of his chair during the games. I’ll have to be content to listen to him scream things like, “Eli, get open!” This just causes Eli to stop in the middle of the game and stand on the court staring at us, saying “Huh?” Yeah, best not to scream at the kid while he’s trying to play.

But like I said, I think he has a strong future in defense. I have to try to get a picture of his best defensive move. He stands in front of the person he’s guarding and inches ever so close. Then he gives them “the look”. Oh yeah! It’s the look that says, “I’m going to hack up your body and hide the pieces.” This causes every kid, no matter how big or small, to back up!

That’s my boy!

Stop and Shop Healthy Ideas

As some of you may know, I have been very into holistic nutrition. I have been working hard to eat healthy and to get my family to eat healthy, which isn’t easy when I have two children (three including my husband) who are desperately addicted to sugar. Going to the grocery store each week has become very time-consuming because I have to read label after label after label trying to determine if foods are healthy.

I was very pleased when Mom Central launched their latest blog tour for Stop and Shop! Stop and Shop has made finding nutritious foods much easier and has created a huge time-saver! Stop and Shop has launched Healthy Ideas, which is a new symbol they use to label healthy foods. This helps consumers easily identify foods that fit into their healthy lifestyle.

Stop and Shop has placed the Healthy Ideas symbol (pictured above) on more than 3,000 items throughout its stores. This symbol helps you identify foods that have less fat, saturated fat and sodium. It also helps you locate foods that include a healthy amount of at least one nutrient, such as fiber, whole grains, calcium and minerals.

Healthy Ideas was developed by a team of registered dietitians to create a healthy foundation of foods that you can purchase with confidence for your family.

For more information on Stop and Shop and on Stop and Shop healthy Idea, visit the Stop and Shop Web site at http://www.stopandshop.com. Their Web site offers more information about the Healthy Ideas Program as well as expert testimonials and Healthy Idea recipes. In addition, if you are interested in learning more about Mom Central, please visit them at http://www.momcentral.com.

Happy New Year!!!!!

Yes, I am still here, and it is my New Year’s Resolution to blog more often! I miss all my blogging buddies!! I have been so busy with my new job the last couple of months that everything else has kind of taken a back seat. But that is no excuse! I know all of you are just as busy!!

I wanted to wish you all a Happy New Year!! We have been crazy around here as usual. Here are my babies celebrating the New Year last night as they banged pots and pans on the front porch screaming Happy New Year at midnight! Well, okay, it was 10 pm, but I lied and told them it was midnight. I’m not going to go to hell for that, am I?

The kids are really growing up so fast! Eli is mid-way through kindergarten. I still can’t believe that!!! And Georgia is really enjoying preschool. Here is a picture I took of them last weekend. One of those rare pictures where they are both smiling and looking at the camera!

My Sister-in-law informed me that Georgia’s hair looked like a hippie out of the 70’s, and while I thought that was a little harsh, I did agree that she needed a haircut. So I took her to my friend Megan’s on Tuesday night who gave her the cutest little bob. Eric was sad because he thinks it makes her look older, but it is flipping cute!!!! See?

I hope everyone got what they wanted for Christmas!! Santa brought me a Wii Fit! So now I am on my way to fitness! Woo hoo!! And let me tell you, I am already an expert hula-hooper! Oh yeah, baby!!! Plus, I am kicking Eric’s ass on the Wii ski slope! Watch out!!

Did everyone have a good New Year’s?? Mine was AWESOME!!! You all know my love of the Goo Goo Dolls, right? Well, they were performing last night at the House of Blues in Atlantic City! While I was unable to fly across the country for a concert, I have a friend who went to the concert and called me during my favorite song, Naked, and held up the phone so I could hear it!! Thank you, Karen!!! I let my voicemail get the call so I could listen to it over and over!! That’s right! I had John Rzeznik singing my favorite song to me live on my phone on New Year’s Eve! 2009 couldn’t have started off any better!!

Personalize Your M&M's!!!

Who doesn’t absolutely LOVE M&M’s?!! Seriously! They are my favorite candy, as well as my daughter’s (she likes to pick out the green ones). In fact, my kids love M&M’s so much that very often their grandparents will enclose a bag of M&M’s in with birthday gifts, Valentine’s gifts or Easter gifts.

When I saw that Mom Central launched a blog tour on personalized M&M’s, I was thrilled. You can go to www.mymms.com, and personalize your own M&M’s!!! My kids are going to be thrilled when they open their Valentine’s candy and find their picture on M&M’s!!

MY M&M'S allows you to customize your M&M’s by choosing your colors, messages, and uploading your photos. You can make your order special for all occasions. And it’s not just for kids!! Imagine how much Grandma would love her grandchild's face on her birthday M&M'S, or how great the bride and groom would look on their wedding favors!

The site also offers dozens of gift options to accompany the MY M&M'S, such as candy dispensers, decorative tins, and MLB-themed containers. And new this year, MY M&M'S has even teamed up with Martha Stewart for ideas to make personalized gifts even more special. Each of Martha's MY M&M'S personalized gift options provide easy step-by-step instructions.

The site is very user-friendly, and makes personalizing and ordering your custom M&M’s a breeze!! I just placed my order for Valentine’s Day, and I can’t wait to see my kids’ faces!! I just know they are going to be thrilled! Visit www.mymms.com today to check out their different options and place your order for that special gift!

Ultimate Meatballs - YUM!

There is seriously nothing I like better than party food!! I could honestly eat nothing but munchies and appetizers at every meal. My favorite things to eat are little smokies or little meatballs in the crock pot!! Everyone seems to make these, but everyone has a different variation on what kind of sauce to put over them. Some people just dump them in with barbecue sauce, but I like to be a little more creative than that.

When Mom Central announced the Ultimate Meatball Blog Tour, I was very excited! A new way to make little meatballs?! Oh yeah, baby! Bring it!! Heinz and Ocean Spray provided me with Heinz Chili Sauce and Ocean Spray Jelled Cranberry Sauce so I could make my own party meatballs. I first thought “Cranberry sauce? Really?” I have made something similar with cocktail sauce and grape jelly, but this was a little twist on it.

Now, instead of trying the meatballs, I bought little smokies. I LOVE little smokies, and those are also one of the few things my son will gobble up! All I did was dump two packages of little smokies in the crock pot, and I added the Chili Sauce and Cranberry Sauce. I let it simmer on low for about 3 hours, and voila!!! AWESOME!!! Oh yeah! Sweet and tangy! They were great! And my husband (Mr. Picky) thought it was much better than the way I usually made them with the grape jelly!

In addition to this great recipe, Heinz and Ocean Spray have created an Ultimate Party Meatballs Website! Woo hoo! Visit www.ultimatepartymeatballs.com. They have the recipe for the ultimate meatballs, as well as other great recipes that are perfect for parties, snacks or emergency yummies when you have unexpected guests. For example, they have a recipe for ultimate baked brie! Sweet Lord, that is some goooood stuff!! Yum!!!

Check out their Website and enter their contest to win their sweepstakes with a $3000 grand prize to throw the ultimate party!!

Spiderman!

I was going to do this as a Wordless Wednesday, but I really thought this photo needed an explanation. Eli went to a birthday party last weekend where the entertainment was a face painter. As you can see, the lady did an awesome job. The only problem was that the party was in the morning, and we had errands to run afterward. Needless to say, we got a hell of a lot of attention at Wal-Mart, Costco and Red Robin!

Clorox 2 Coupons!

With two kids in addition to being a klutz myself, I have become used to stains on most . . . okay, ALL of my shirts. I have tried several different stain fighters with no results except to watch my bright colors fade. So I can’t tell you how thrilled I was when I was asked to participate in Mom Central’s Clorox 2 blog tour.

Clorox 2 launched a new stain fighter with an advanced formula that works better on tough stains and keeps clothes bright! Whether you’re fighting grass stains, food stains, arts and craft spills, or Starbucks espresso truffle spills (like me), Clorox 2 will work for you! All you need to do is add Clorox 2 to every load with your detergent for cleaner and brighter clothes.

Now for the test. Does it REALLY work? I received my coupon in the mail for my free bottle of Clorox 2 and went to the store and got it. I made my morning Starbucks run, and as if on cue, I dribbled my espresso truffle down my bright blue shirt. (I have never been able to multi-task and drive.) Anyway, when I started the laundry, I put a little bit of Clorox 2 in the laundry. Guess what? The stain came out! Woo hoo! I was thrilled! (You have no idea how many coffee stains I have on my shirts!)

If you want to learn more about how Clorox 2 removes stains and gets your laundry clean and bright, visit their Web site at www.daretobecolorful.com. If you are interested in trying a bottle of it for free, you are in luck. I have three coupons to give away for a free bottle of Clorox 2. Be one of the first three to leave me a comment below complete with your mailing address, and I will send you a coupon so you can try a bottle of this great new stain remover for free!

It's Santa Time!

Yesterday, we took the kids to see Santa, and for the first time EVER (!!) Georgia did not scream or cry!! I was thrilled! Now, she didn't smile either, and in fact, she has a weird look on her face in the picture, but this is progress, right? Right?

Keep your child safer with SeatSnug!

I was very pleased to be asked to participate in Mom Central’s SeatSnug blog tour. If you are a parent, you know there is nothing more important than your child’s safety. SeatSnug helps you keep your child safer in the car, and that is something we all need.

My son is 6 years old, and currently rides in a booster seat. I remember when we switched him to a booster seat, and I was surprised to discover that it wasn’t more secure. The booster seat is not attached to the car at all. It just sits in the car, and the seat belt goes around the seat and your child. This makes me nervous because my son does not like his seatbelt tight against him. It is a constant battle for me because I have to keep telling him to leave his seatbelt alone so it fits against him securely and doesn’t leave any slack.

Even if you are not in a car accident, when you quickly maneuver your car or swerve, the seatbelt is not locked, so your child can be easily jostled around resulting in injury.

SeatSnug attaches to your child’s safety belt and can be gently tightened at the child’s hips, diminishing any seatbelt slack, and keeping the seatbelt snugly fit against your child. SeatSnug dramatically reduces bouncing, rocking and tipping, and helps your child avoid injury or death when involved in a car accident.

This is one of the best products I have written about for Mom Central. I was very impressed with how easy it was to adjust, and the secure fit gave me peace of mind that I was lacking. SeatSnug retails for $34.95, which is a very small price to pay for your child’s safety.

I hope you will check out the SeatSnug Website where you can learn more about the product and how SeatSnug can make your child’s car rides safer. On the SeatSnug Website, you can also watch a video to see SeatSnug in action. Seatsnug is all about preventing injuries and saving children’s lives!

Manic Monday - Season

Happy Manic Monday! This week’s word is Season. That reminds me, it is the season for Christmas shopping, so if you still have a job and have money to spend, head over to The Wren’s Nest for some kick-ass holiday gifts!!!!

I really do love the holiday season. I always have Thanksgiving at my house and both sets of parents come up for the holiday. I think I’m beginning to perfect it. I no longer serve turkey because there are way too many leftovers. This season, we are doing pork loins, cream cheese & chive mashed potatoes, dressing, noodles, rolls, and green bean casserole. For dessert, I’m doing pumpkin pie and pecan pie, and I’m trying to decide on that all important third pie. I found a great recipe at Pillsbury.com that I was thinking of trying for a pumpkin-ginger pie with marshmallow topping. It sounds orgasmic. Let me know what you think.

Oh! And lots of wine! I can’t forget that. Because who could resist an entire day of my mom calling me a wino.

The thing that screws me up this year is that Thanksgiving is so late. I’m one of these people that doesn’t start shopping for the Christmas season until after Thanksgiving, even though the Christmas season apparently starts now in October. I swear, it just gets earlier and earlier every year. At least this year, the kids are getting a Wii for Christmas, which we already have, so there shouldn’t be too much more shopping to do. That’s good because I’m heading to New York for work the second week in December. I’ll have the “ohmygodihavetogetonaplane” anxiety leading up to that, and by the time I get back, well hell – it’s almost Christmas! This season is flying by!!

What are all your plans for the holiday season. Online shopping – plan #1! The further away I can stay from the mall, the better!

I'm Still Here!

I know it may have seemed like I have dropped off the face of the earth lately, but I haven’t. I am still here, and I wanted to share with you why I have been so busy lately.

Many of you may know that I have done freelance work for WikiAnswers for the last four years. Last week, I started work with the company as a full-time employee. Woo hoo! That’s right, I am fully employed, in addition to my full-time job as a mom. I am really enjoying my job, but it hasn’t left me a lot of full time to blog.

Hopefully, once I get into my normal routine, I will have more time to keep up on my blog. I have so much going on that I want to share, including all of the cute things that my kids are up to. Eli is doing awesome in kindergarten, and already received his first report card. Dude! They grade things so much differently than they used to. Instead of A,B,C,D,F, now there are a bunch of S’s and N’s. Well, Eli only got one N (Needs Improvement) in Art. That sent me straight to the school to meet with the Art teacher. Yeah, I’m still crazy. Some things never change!

Georgia is going full steam ahead at preschool, and she is doing great. We had her first parent-teacher conference last week. I was extremely pleased to discover that she never screams or throws fits at school. Okay, I was pleased and a little surprised when they told me how well she was doing. I said, “Really, she doesn’t scream ‘I need my drink’ and then yell at the top of her lungs? Or she doesn't wiggle the zipper on her coat and scream because she wants you to zip it?” They just looked at me like I was crazy and said no, she doesn’t.

Her teachers informed me that meant I was doing things right. She knows to act like a decent, well-behaved child when she’s in front of other people. Now if I could just get her to act like that all the time, I would be in business!

Barbie and the Diamond Castle

Oh, how I wish they had all these great DVDs when I was a kid. Oh, who am I kidding? They didn’t even have VCRs yet when I was a kid!

These days, children’s programming is very educational. It’s not just the violent cartoons we had as children. I don’t mind when my children watch TV because the shows and DVDs available today teach them important lessons.

My 3-year-old daughter, Georgia has really been getting into her Barbies lately. She has two that are her favorites – one with purple hair, and one with pink hair. When she started seeing the commercials for Barbie and The Diamond Castle, she stared, hypnotically transfixed at the television. When the commercial was over, she would say, “Mommy! I really like that one!!” That is her usual mantra when she sees something she really wants.

When Mom Central sent us the new DVD for Barbie and The Diamond Castle, I was absolutely thrilled because I knew how much Georgia really wanted to see it.

Barbie and The Diamond Castle is a great musical story that teaches children about the importance of friendship. If Barbie and her friends want to preserve music for the entire world, they have to save their friend Melody who is trapped inside of a magic mirror. Melody holds the key to the Diamond Castle. The girls must journey to the Diamond Castle and overcome obstacles in order to save music for everyone. This is a great story to teach children about friendship and how important it is to believe in yourself.

My daughter Georgia not only loved the DVD, which she has now watched several times, but she also is going crazy to get the new Barbie Dolls from Barbie and The Diamond Castle, with the very pretty dresses. Every time she sees them on TV, she says, “Mommy! I really like that one!!”

To learn more about this fun and educational DVD that your children will love, visit the Barbie and The Diamond Castle Web site! And if you loved Barbie as a kid as much as I did, you will love it just as much as your child.

Manic Monday - Colorful

Happy Halloween a little late! I know I haven't been blogging a lot lately, and I do have a good excuse, which I will (hopefully) blog about this week. In the meantime, I wanted to share some Halloween pictures of my little goblins, and this week's Manic Monday theme gave me the perfect word - colorful.

Eli was the new Speed Racer, Georgia was Stephanie from LazyTown, Daddy was classic Speed Racer, and me? Well, I went as Speed Racer's girlfriend. The comment we received the most from people was about Georgia's colorful hair! Her costume did come with a wig, but she refused to leave it on. Rather than fight with her, I just bought pink hairspray, which she loved. The only problem is that the hairspray rubs off on EVERYTHING!

Now, having been a blonde my whole life, there have been times when I have made my hair very colorful. I learned that the colorful hairspray comes out easily (unless you use black). Other people, apparently have never used colorful hairspray because everyone who looked at Georgia's hair would say things like, "I can't believe you dyed her hair pink. I hope it comes out," or they would just flat out say, "You've ruined her hair. That's not going to come out."

Dude! First of all, I get really sick of everyone and their opinions. But instead of offering them a great big cup of shut the fuck up, I just smiled and said, "It will come out. I've done this before." And guess what? It came out just fine. If anything, Georgia is upset because we no longer have a reason to color her hair pink. Maybe I should just do it every Friday for fun. What do you think? (see slide show in next post)

Trick or Treat!!

Manic Monday - Ghost

This week’s Manic Monday word is Ghost! Oh, how I absolutely LOVE Halloween – when all the ghosts and goblins come out! Halloween is great fun now that we have kids, but even before kids, we always had a great time this time of year! Eric and I actually had our first date on Halloween weekend 1992.

The year we got married, 1994, we went to Boston in October to visit some friends. They took us to Salem, where they were having the Witches’ Festival. Now, THAT is a freaking AWESOME place to be at Halloween! Salem is full of ghosts and witches – one of which read my palm. Thank God her reading didn’t come true. She told me I was going to have twins.

A few years ago – 7 to be exact – Eric and I visited San Antonio in October. This was our last vacation before we had kids. I remember thinking how much fun it would be to stay in a haunted hotel. We stayed at the Emily Morgan, which is right across the street from the Alamo. This hotel is really haunted because it is an old hospital that was converted into a hotel. In fact, when you make a reservation and tell them you’re a ghost hunter, they’ll give you a discount.

It was all fun until I got the bright idea for us to take a ghost tour of downtown San Antonio. We learned all about the ghosts that frequent the Alamo, which was very cool. The freaky part was when the guy focused on our hotel and we heard about how haunted it really was. There was one room that they didn’t even rent out to people unless it was specifically requested because there were too many people who left the hotel screaming in the middle of the night due to the ghostly happenings in that room.

Now let me tell you, as cool as it is to stay in a haunted hotel, it certainly does not seem cool in the middle of the night when you can’t sleep and have to get up to go to the bathroom at 2 am. I actually woke my husband up to walk me to the bathroom in the middle of the night because I was that terrified. Needless to say, I don’t think I’ll be staying in anymore haunted hotels. They are awfully fun to visit, but not spend the night in.

Friday Craziness

I’m sorry my blog has been lacking lately. I have been so busy with kids and work that I haven’t had time to keep up. I certainly don’t have a shortage of things to write about! I wanted to do a TT yesterday of weird things my kids have done lately, but I ran out of time.

I swear, the kids are definitely getting more interesting each day. Yesterday, Georgia was dancing around with her green Brobee doll. You’ve all seen Brobee, right?


After awhile, I noticed she was holding her doll around the neck (in the same affectionate way she does the cats) and saying “you want a piece of me?” Seriously. I don’t know what the Brobee doll did, but for a second I thought she was going to kick his ass.

Then there’s Eli. After we read stories and put him to bed last night, I went in to check on him after he had fallen asleep. He was lying on top of the covers with no pants on and a jean jacket. I took a picture, but Eric refused to let me put it on the blog.

The kids continue to crack me up each and every day. This weekend, we are really going to hit the Halloween activities hard. Tonight is Freaky Fall Fest, tomorrow is Boo at the Zoo, and Sunday is Trunk or Treat at Georgia’s preschool. Dude! I get tired just thinking about it!

I can’t wait to get pictures of the kids in their costumes. Georgia decided that she was going to be Stephanie from LazyTown. I only hope she’ll keep her wig on this year.


Eli decided he was going to be Speed Racer.


They wanted me to be Hannah Montana for Halloween.


Sorry, I don’t think that’s going to happen.

Fighting Allergies with Clorox

I can’t believe it is the end of October already. With that, comes the cold weather, and you may begin to notice that your kids are spending a lot more time indoors. My allergies tend to be worse in the fall and winter because I’m not able to spend as much time outside. Indoor allergies flourish when you’re cooped up in the house.

Apparently, I am not the only one. Fifteen percent of people suffer from indoor allergies whether it’s dog and cat allergies or dust mites.

I was very pleased when I found out that Mom Central teamed up with Clorox to promote their new Anti-Allergen Fabric Spray, to help us fight those miserable indoor allergies!

Clorox is helping you battle those indoor allergies with the new Clorox Anywhere Anti-Allergen Fabric Spray. It’s easy to keep those countertops and hard surfaces clean, but what about that easy chair you can’t keep your cat out of, or the comforter on the bed where your dog hangs out all day? That’s why I was thrilled when I learned of Clorox’s new Anti-Allergen Fabric Spray. I have used it to spray bedspreads, chairs, ottomans and carpet, just to name a few things.

It is safe to use on any soft surface in your home, and when used correctly, it deactivates cat dander, dog dander and dust mite matter by up to 90 percent! On top of that, it smells great, giving your home a nice fresh scent!

To learn more about the new Clorox Anywhere Anti-Allergen Fabric Spray, visit Clorox’s Web site today, and look for Clorox Anti-Allergen Spray in a store near you!!

Wordless Wednesday - Dancing Queen

Manic Monday - Bite

This week’s Manic Monday word is Bite! As some of you may know, I am a huge Buffy fan just like Mo!! That is the first place my mind went to – those lovely vampires. Oh, there will never be another Angel, will there?

Anyway, I got to thinking about some of the vampire movies that I absolutely love, and one of my favorites is Love At First Bite! Have you all seen this? This 1979 movie stars George Hamilton as Count Dracula, who moves to New York to find his bride, and he falls in love with Cindy, played by Susan Saint James. This movie is flipping hilarious! It’s worth watching just to see Arte Johnson play Renfield. I love this movie! It is a great laugh, and this is the perfect time of the year to cuddle in and watch it. Here are a few great lines from the movie:

Dracula: “I’m going out for a bite to drink.”

Dr. Rosenberg: “You know what Freud said: if you don't pay for it, you don't get better.”

Dracula: “Without me, Transylvania will be as exciting as Bucharest... on a Monday night.”

Dracula: “Ah, Cindy Sondheim, you should have lived in an earlier age. Things were simpler, less complicated. Do you know how many women had nervous breakdowns in the fourteenth century? Two.”

What are some of your favorite vampire shows or movies? Many people have directed me to the HBO show . . . is it Torchwood? I still want to watch that. And I know Twilight is really big. I bought the book, but I haven’t read it yet, and I know there is a movie coming out soon. I have so much to catch up on!!

Have a great Manic Monday! And if you don’t, you can just Bite me!

It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!