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All About the Weekend

This weekend actually seemed longer than normal – in a good way. Talking, we think what did it was the fact that my parents had the kids on Friday night (they typically take them on Sat night). I got lots of stuff done Friday and Saturday too so that we had almost all day Sunday to just be. It was very very nice.

Friday was my day off and I volunteered at Tabby’s school and mostly just did housework … other than the 3 or 4 hours I spent on a work project. It is hard for me to get away right now. After Matt got off work, we dropped the kids off at my parents’ house and grabbed some food at Qdoba and brought it home to eat with margaritas while we played video games. We’ve gotten really into an old school Final Fantasy (SNES) that we downloaded on the Wii and we had a great time playing that.

Saturday morning we went for a run and then got some errands done – we had to pick up white shirts for a photo shoot and buy a birthday gift and of course, groceries. By the time we went to get the kids from my parents’ house, it was after 12 and we too them right home for a quick lunch and a nap. We headed out right after nap to a friend’s 40th birthday party. The house was packed with people of all ages. We had a great time chatting with our friends and the kids went mad in the basement with Legos and games and eventually had a dance party with glowsticks in the darkened living room.

The kids were exhausted when we got home after 9 and no one complained even a little when we put them right to bed. Unfortunately, the night was not over since Ben woke up at midnight to puke all over his bed. After a shower, we moved him into the little toddler bed we still have in his room and he woke only once more, though happily no more puking.

He was pretty subdued all day Sunday and didn’t eat much. That worked out well because we didn’t do much all day. We had breakfast, cleaned up the house a little, lounged on the couch and played video games and watched TV. The kids had naps and in the late afternoon we ran an errand. Around 4:45 I started making dinner and it err … didn’t go well. See I tried a new recipe, Butternut Squash Gnocchi, and completely missed the step where you cook out excess moisture. So I  kept adding flour and kept adding and adding and could barely get it into dough and when I did, it tasted awful, like pure flour (pretty much was). We ended up calling for a pizza.

After dinner we suited the kids up in their costumes and headed to the community center down the street for the kids’ Halloween party. It wasn’t too well attended, but we had a nice time. Our favorite neighbor was there painting faces and she did a glittery blushy lipsticky job on our little butterfly that looked awesome. Tabby is going to go back over and have her do a repeat on the big night.

By the time we got home it was bedtime for the kids and back to the kitchen for me. I made 20 ghost-shaped rice krispie treat pops for the kids in T’s class. It was a delicate balance between melting and freezing. Sticks had to go in when soft. Candy coating had to go on when frozen. Had to be refrozen for wrapping, etc. etc. Matt helped me a while and then took off to meet the neighborhood guys for the Bronco’s game. I finished up in plenty of time, but ignored my OCD ways and left cleanup for another day.

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It has been a gorgeous fall. We had a wicked hot dry summer so no one knew what to expect with the fall and yet it’s been gorgeous. That is all quickly coming to a close though as we’ve had a few days of windy weather followed by rain and now snow. Most of the pretty leaves are gone and now we are left to clean them up.

Good news though. Pumpkin is still very much in vogue and I can make fallish things to my hearts’ content. Like …

I could go on. But instead, I think I’ll make a grocery list. Because I clearly do not have enough to do.

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To Do List

The vague future always seems like a good time to travel. The reality is that we’re always busy and no matter when I schedule a trip, I’m likely going to be manically trying to get everything done right up until we head out. I/We need to:

  • decorate the house for Halloween (Tabby is dying to do this)
  • register Tabby for another session of rock climbing
  • register Ben for something where he can run around a lot and burn off energy
  • make and package 20 bags of orange, pumpkin pie scented playdough
  • make and package 20 ghost-shaped rice krispie treats
  • load an MP3 player with Halloween music for “musical chairs”
  • return several books to the library
  • take a few phones to visit the Geniuses at the Apple Store
  • pack us up for our trip
  • pack up baby clothes to take to Nashville
  • take Loki to our friends’ house
  • figure out who/what to vote for
  • vote!
  • attend a few Halloween parties (4)
  • myriad work-related things such as taking a phone to the Apple Store, spending a whole day with our new web designers and before that getting all of my thoughts on the site into some coherent tangible form, turning in various reports on this and that, selling my soul to get a few extra iPhone 5 cables, etc.
  • pay bills, update budget and all that crap
  • clean up our house
  • buy Ben some new shoes
  • figure out an appropriately awesome b’day gift for my niece
  • get haircuts
  • make sure we have appropriate clothes for the family photo we’ll be taking on our trip
  • stop the mail
  • check in with the kids’ schools about absences
  • check in with our neighbors about minding the house
  • make a car rental reservation

Then we’ll need to buckle down and enjoy our vacation!

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iStillReallyLikeMyAndroid

I have joined the ranks of iPhone users. Well really, it’s just an i because it hasn’t been activated to mobile phone service. See last week, my company upgraded all of our blackberry users to iPhones. It was a great move for us because our employees (many of whom are away from the office regularly on jobsites) can now use handy things like maps (or maybe not) and open attachments and web browse. We’re also hoping it will allow us to purchase fewer jobsite cameras since they pretty much replace point-and-shoot cameras for most people. One of my primary functions is to support our mobile devices and it was decided therefore that I should carry one … but I am very happy with my Android. For me, it’s the best. I know that may not be a popular statement, but it just works better for me. I have many reasons, but Swype is probably the biggest since it allows me to really type on the phone in a way the iPhone’s virtual keyboard just can’t.

So we reached a compromise. I will continue to carry my Android, but I will also have an iPhone, but only for use with wi-fi. It doesn’t duplicate mobile plan fees and I get the vast majority of the user experience so I can troubleshoot and provide support for our users. On the plus side, it gives me the one thing I care about on an iPhone … the apps that I can’t yet get on Android.

So I present to you, my iOS only favorites:

  1.  Artkive – This app archives your children’s artwork using your camera phone including data on artist, date, grade and description. You can share pics digitally with friends and family and have books printed as well.
  2. Red Stamp – Nice app for sending out pretty e-cards from your phone. You can also have them send paper ones for $2.
  3. Simpsons Tapped Out – a fun social game from your favorite Springfield family. Game is free, premium content costs.
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Another Busy Weekend

Thursday, midday, we were surprised to learn that Ben’s 24 hr strep test had come back POSITIVE. So he had to come home and stay home for 24 hours until antibiotics took effect. So Friday I got to spend the day with my baby boy while he recuperated. We ran some errands, had lunch with Daddy and Grammy, had a nap and a run and went to pick up Tabby. Friday evening, I had Bunco and Matt took the kids to get Ben a haircut.

Saturday morning, I took off to the mountains for an abbreviated Girls’ Weekend with some of my besties. We relaxed, had lunch, had a walk, relaxed some more, had some cocktails, and went to dinner. That’s when the fun started. At dinner, the fire alarm went off and the Vail fire fighters showed up … the very same fire department that one Ryan Sutter is a part of. One of my girlfriends is a huge Ryan Sutter fan and she was lucky enough to have an encounter with him in the lobby of the restaurant.

After the heart-palpitation inducing event and dinner, we went out on the town for some drinks and dancing. We always have a great time burning off steam and gettin jiggy with it (am I showing my age??). We got in super late and slept really well. In the morning, we had a leisurely morning and headed home, for once avoiding I-70 traffic.

Meanwhile back at the ranch, Matt took the kids birthday shopping, had an evening out with the other husbands and spent Sunday morning at a birthday party. By the time I got home, the kids had to go down for naps and we had a nap too. By the time we got up, we had just enough time to start Tabby’s school project (she gets to tell all about herself on the All About Me board this week). Then we had dinner with my parents and came back home to finish up Tabby’s project and head to bed.

Phew! Think I need another weekend to rest!

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I Have Nothing to Say

Or nothing worth expanding into its own post anyhow. Here’s what’s going on:

  1. Ben has been sick for like 2 weeks … we finally took him to the pediatrician and she thinks he’s just unlucky and caught back to back illnesses. Matt isn’t feeling too well either.
  2. I’ve been working a lot. No real complaints, but I’m not quite as much fun when I’ve got work on the brain 24/7.
  3. I forgot to buy onions last week. There are a lot of things that are pretty hard to cook without onions. Just saying.
  4. I’m really really tired. Ben keeps waking up in the middle of the night and I don’t think any of us has gotten more than about 3 hours of sleep at a time in 2 weeks. It’s a bit like having a newborn again. But at least he can use the toilet!
  5. It’s getting cold and I can’t find one of my favorite jackets.
  6. I’m seriously sick of politics. And I’m sick of how it invades EVERYTHING. Like Facebook, and my answering machine and my mailbox!!
  7. Been reading such good books lately.  Joshilyn Jackson is awesome. Check her stuff out – you’ll thank me later
  8. OMG seriously with the tired. I am starting to wonder if I have mono or chronic wasting disease or something.
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Mussel Night

One of the best things about being married to my husband is what we call the “cockamamie scheme.” One of his go-to lines is “I’ve done crazier.” That should give you an idea of what life with him is like. Anyhow, when we were at Whole Foods last weekend, we noticed they had mussels on sale and when Matt chatted up the fishmonger, he learned that they were having a sale all week and would be flying in fresh PEI Mussels daily. Since our kids have decided they LOVE mussels, Matt decided we had to have a mussel night. Thus, I found myself on Wednesday at lunch hour at Whole Foods, buying them out of mussels. Continue reading “Mussel Night”

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Crockpot Apples

It’s FALL! In addition to the fall colors and cool running weather, we have of course been chowing down on our share of “fall” foods. Pumpkin pasta, butternut squash, pumpkin pancakes, pumpkin oatmeal, pork ragu, tea and plenty of apples. With soups, in salads, for snacks. And on Sunday, we came home from Sunflower Market with an entire tote bag full  of apples because both Jonathan and Granny Smith apples were on sale! 49c/lb! We paid under $6 for a whole tote bag FULL of apples. Continue reading “Crockpot Apples”

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Galloping in Golden

Boys and Girls Port-a-Potties

This morning was the Golden Gallop, a race in a nearby burb that supports local schools. The course (and cause) have bumped around a lot over the past few years. The first time we ran the Gallop, it was a 10K and you did two loops of the same course (never my favorite). But now it’s changed and it’s 5.28 miles (a mile is 5280 ft) and it’s a loop course going from downtown and back.

Matt and I signed up for it a while ago. You always know that the weather in Denver in October is unpredictable at best, but you always hope for the best and really this wasn’t too bad – just COLD – but at least it wasn’t rainy like yesterday. Matt unfortunately, woke up with an upset stomach (really upset) and it didn’t calm down by the time we met up with friends at their house.

So after hmming and hawing, I decided to go ahead without him. I’m never much for hilly courses (I run a lot of treadmill and suburban streets), but this was nice for a hilly course in that it started up and finished down. A couple miles into the course, with the sun shining on me, I had to pull my sweatshirt off and carry it. Luckily my friend and his boys rode up on their bikes a mile or so before the end and took it off my hands. I could have made it but I was glad to be rid of it too. I was also glad I’d packed my inhaler in the little pack I carry my phone in – for whatever reason, I had to puff on it twice during the race. On Friday, I ran 4+ miles without a puff.

Today, my race outfit was pink. I frequently wear pink without a specific reason, but today, I wore pink in honor of my friend who was diagnosed with breast cancer earlier this year. Race for the Cure was today and I would have loved to have joined her team, but this had come up first, so I wore pink in her honor instead.

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The Color Red

Two stories involving the color red:

Story #1 – Tabby: So I lay out an outfit for Tabby almost every night. Last night it was her red Harajuku Mini top and a pair of yoga-style capris. I also laid out socks and underwear, but not shoes. So she got dressed this AM and I encouraged her to wear some tennis shoes since Thursday is running club day. But she, of course, wanted to wear the sparkly shoes that my mom got her. They’re pretty good school shoes with rubbery bottoms and all, but they’re not great for running. But if Tabby makes a stand anywhere, it’s on footwear. She loves shoes and tennies aren’t really her idea of high fashion. Suddenly, I remembered the red sparkle cons I’d bought her when she was around 2 yrs old. I loved them, but the only size they had them in was 13 (she was probably a 7 or 8 at the time). They were on sale, so I bought them anyhow and kept them until her foot hit the magic number. Unfortunately, that was late last spring. Not a lot of call for red sparkle cons in the summer months (4th of July primarily). But luckily her feet do not grow like they once did and so she donned the shoes this AM and couldn’t have looked cuter. She informed me that they are her new favorites since they are sparkly AND red (her favorite color).

Story #2 – Ben: Last night, everyone went to bed without much incident. They kids were tired and we got home way late. Ben has had a little cold and he has been waking up occasionally when he coughs a bunch. Usually he either goes back to sleep on his own or he just needs a pat on his back. But last night all hell broke loose over a red blanky. Ben has quite a few beloved blankies. None of them is red. Yet last night, after I stumbled half awake into his room, he repeatedly requested his “red blanky.” I offered up every blanky at hand (quite a few: brown, blue, Buzz, little Buzz, Buzz sheet) and after the Buzz sheet was offered, he seemed happy enough. So I started back to bed. I’d just gotten comfortable when he started screaming again. I went back in and he made the same red blanky request. I wondered if he meant the large blanket we keep in the popup. It’s never on his bed, but it is on ours and he comes to snuggle with us sometimes, so I suggested this and he vehemently insisted that it was HIS red blanky, not some other popup blanky. Finally, I turned on the light and asked him to point to something red. He pointed to the nearest GREEN thing and my mystery was solved. He has a very much beloved GREEN blanky which I quickly found for him and derailed BenCON 5. The whole thing is puzzling though because he definitely knows his colors. I can only assume he was in as much of a stupor as I was.