Just another Cyber Monday

So it was a busy Cyber Monday in the world of online shopping. More importantly we received our first Christmas card today. My blog friend Raising Z sent us a beautiful card with her kids pictures on it. She's a girl after my own heart. I LOVE Christmas cards and I don't throw out kids pictures. Just can't do it. I noticed her card was from my favorite online photo place, Shutterfly. Great minds think alike! She inspired me to post my very own Shutterfly creation now...so, here it is our 2009 Christmas card, well the outside anyway...good day.

Thanksgiving 09

getting ready for dinner

getting some much needed help in the kitchen

This was the best Thanksgiving dinner ever. Seriously. We bought a turkey from a local farm. It was the best turkey I've ever eaten.

Thanksgiving eve one of my dogs decided to dig a trench along the back of our house. She was covered from nose to tail in mud. Of course this was after we cleaned the house and I was on my way to bed. I nearly cried. Then my kids trashed their TV room. I was about to loose it when a strange thing happened. I thought of my mother in law who passed away a few years ago. She just sort of popped in my head I thought about how she would react. This is what ran through my head...it just doesn't matter, laugh about it, no one cares if your house is clean, people live here, let it show. I started laughing and everyone thought I lost my mind. At least I had a good time. No tears, just muddy paws & a little mess. Best Thanksgiving that I can recall. Hope you had a great day...I did.

the day after, making gingerbread houses with the aunt.

What was I thinking?

This picture is another one from our photo shoot. Just a random photo because I have no clue what else to post up here because I.am.so.freaking.busy!

People have TOTALLY started their Christmas shopping and I am swamped (ever so grateful, seriously grateful, I take nothing for granted with the economy the way it is) My customers are the best. Love the people who order early. We are already running out of things. It's crazy!

I got a call today from a morning show style editor who ordered a few things from us for a segment on Christmas gifts that will air early in December. Hope that goes well. Time will tell.

We are having company for Thanksgiving and Christmas. What.was.I.thinking?

Seriously, I'm a spaz, what was I thinking? It's going to be non stop work for me from now until January. No rest, and I'll be inclinded to keep putting periods between every word I type. Like this
THANK.GOD.MY.HUSBAND.COOKS.

Back to work...it's almost time to go get yer gobble on...

Favorite Picture Friday

One of this years Christmas photos...
Have a great weekend friends!

Different Reason

My cousin Stephen passed Tuesday from a secondary infection after this damned flu. Just 41 years old. He was born with Cerebral Palsy. Never able to talk or walk but modern technology allowed him to communicate using a computer. It's was amazing when they unlocked what was going on in his mind. Things he could never say. He loved music. My aunt would bring him over for a visit when we were kids and we'd listen to Casey Kasem's top 40 count down on my transistor radio. I was obsessed with writing every song down for him. Not sure why.

He and I were born less than a year apart. I think it must have been hard for his mom to watch me grow up, walk, talk and hit milestones when her son wasn't able to. He was confined to a wheel chair his entire life.

His parents passed away and he was moved to a group home where he thrived. He had a girlfriend and at last, a social life. After being moved to the home, his siblings had a hard time convincing him to leave, even for a quick dinner out. He loved being there, he loved the people there and he basically refused to leave.

His sisters Bev and Barb are two of my favorite cousins. They remind me of a grown up version of my own girls. Polar opposites, physically and otherwise. They are taking this particularly hard. I'm off to see my family today. I only wish it was for a different reason.

50 is the new 40 when it comes to Mammograms

Yesterday I heard reports on just about every news program about new recommendations released by the Preventive Services Task Force of the Department of Health and Human Services regarding screening for breast cancer in women age 40-50. .

The condensed version is:

1. they no longer recommend mammograms until age 50 (changed from age 40)
2. mammograms should be done every 2 years (changed from annual exams)
3. they recommend that doctors stop teaching women how to do self breast exams

The reasons they gave for the drastic changes... false positives create too much stress for healthy women. The cost of the exams are too much considering that so few women really have a problem. Risk (low) -vs- cost (high). Women are over treated for false positives. But critics of the new rules say ignoring the health risk is not worth it. Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths among women and the seventh leading cause of death overall for women. Plenty of opposition came out yesterday saying it is completely irresponsible to make these kinds of recommendations. Some came out in favor saying that even though catching breast cancer early is the key to surviving it, they still think these are good recommendations. This is confusing at best.

Just curious what my blog friends think about this. Do you think this is in anyway related to the pending government health care option that is currently being voted on? Is this just setting the stage for insurance companies to save money on routine testing that EVERY woman has been told they need starting at the age 40? Is this health care rationing? It's been drilled into our head that we need this testing starting at age 40 and now they tell us, no, it's no longer necessary unless there is some sort of history in your family. Was the original recommendation just a money maker for doctors? Is everything an evil twisted plot to rob the public of their hard earned money and make doctors rich. Have insurance companies been paying for unneeded testing & procedures all this time? Was this all a hoax?

Do you feel like we are moving forward or taking a step back with respect to women's health care? The overwhelming feeling was that if the government says you don't need it, insurance companies will move quickly to stop paying for it. Is that what women want? If this was a test for men would they be so quick to change the age for testing a full 10 years? These are the questions that rattle around in my brain.

If I want a mammogram, no government recommendation or lack of insurance coverage will stop me from getting one but I wonder about the people who don't have the means. I'm interested to hear what you have to say. Thoughts?

See you Poolside!

Post It Note Tuesday what will you say today?

It's Post It Note Tuesday...go here to play with Supah Mommy how is hosting this fabulous thing.

See you Poolside!

What we did this weekend

We usually do our Christmas pictures in October. This year things got a little behind with everyone being sick. I get so busy this time of year with work that I really have to get everything done early or it won't get done at all. This isn't the picture, but here are the girls getting ready. This year and last year I let them pick out their own outfits. They have gotten really casual. I decided to post some old pictures of them below. I do miss the good old days when they had no say in what they wore. Those days are LONG gone. Oh well, casual is good too. I guess I've had my fun. Here are a few highlights...(cue the song "through the years")

4 years ago - the photographer blew this up to poster size and hung it in her studio window. My girls FLIPPED when they saw it the first time we drove by. They thought they were famous. It was really funny. You had to be there. Screaming from the back seat "MOM MOM WE'RE FAMOUS!!!" as we drove by...oh that was funny. They were too little to know a billboard from a store window. Whatever.

3 years ago


2 years ago.

Like you don't take your dogs for a Christmas picture? This was the year when we got the fur babies and I couldn't resist bringing them. Aren't they good posers? They were 6 months old here. This shot was not my idea, but I did love it.

2 years ago when the fur babies came to town. Yes, I had a thing for animal print jackets, but I'm over it. This was the last year I went down that road.

And yes, we put up our trees early. Again, if I don't do it now, then we won't have one. That little tree in the first picture is in our hearth room. The girls put a really cute colorful tree up in their TV room as well. We haven't put the big one up yet in our family room so there is still something too look forward to. I know, I know. The turkey hasn't even hit the table. This is just the way it is at our house. I won't even share with you the fact that I am pretty much done with my Christmas shopping. Hey, if I'm going to cater to the Christmas shoppers (some of you what line of work I'm in) then I have to get my own shopping done early. Not to mention that we almost always have company during the holiday so I have precious little time to do these things as Christmas gets closer.

When do you put your tree up? Do you send out photo cards? I love getting photo cards and I can't bring myself to throw them out when the holiday is over. I have to save the pictures of all the kiddies in our life. I love to pull out the old ones and see how they have changed over the years. I'm a picture freak.

I've been AWOL lately because it turns out that I had a secondary infection after the H1N1 thingy. Fun fun fun. I slept. A LOT! This took much longer than I thought to get over. After some antibiotics I appear to be on the mend. I'm ready for turkey. Bring it on.

See you Poolside!

Giveaway

Someones feeling generous today. If you want to enter to win one of 3 monogrammed scarves hop on over here to enter. And if you see anyone who looks familiar...shhh...I am a member of the blogging protection program. Poolside is the place where I go to get away from my job so don't blow my cover...but feel free to enter. Just don't mention Poolside because I will deduct points if you do (kidding) (OK maybe not) (you don't want my family to find this blog do you?) (didn't think so) (this means I'm whispering)

See you Poolside!

Favorite Picture Friday

Happy Friday! The pooches got a treat today. I haven't had much time to play with them because I've been running the H1N1 infirmary over here.

My daughter is up out of bed for the first time since last Friday. This took much longer than I thought it would. I am just waiting for the next person on the house to get it. I can't imagine that the rest of us could escape it. Time will tell!

Have a great weekend friends.

See you Poolside!

Swine Flu

Well it's official. Swine flu is in the house. I just got back from the Dr. with my baby girl. She is on day 4 with a fever all the other good stuff that goes along with it and a horrible cough that wont allow her to get any sleep rest.

I have been on the phone with the Dr. every day. Let me preface this story by stating that I love our Ped. This is not a reflection on him. This is a reflection on his front line who I'm sure have heard it all and seen it all with the H1N1 hysteria. I get it.

Here is a word of advice for all you Dr. Moms out there. NEVER DOUBT YOUR INSTINCTS when it comes to your kids. You know when something is wrong. Don't second guess yourself. I wanted her to be seen two days ago and the nurse said no because her symptoms were normal for this and that type of illness. Today I demanded an appointment. The nurse told me "well, if it will make YOU feel better, fine..." (insert screeching record sound here)

The rant that I responded with is not something I care to repeat to all of you since I would like to keep my reputation of being semi-civilized. Long story short, I made it very clear that I don't need to feel better, my kid does. She is coughing up bloody junk and she needs to see a Dr.

I was issued an apology when we arrived today and was assured that she absolutely needed to be there and needed to be seen and that I was right and the nurse was wrong. Then they talked me down off the ledge and taught me how to breathe again. They ushered us in like we were someone important. Thank you. I was told that she was one step away from being admitted to the ER for complications due to a secondary infection even though she doesn't have Asthma.

So she is on Z Pack to see if that will knock this out of her. If not, we'll do whatever we have to.

I just hate playing the hysterical mom card but I'll do whatever it takes. I'm not looking for a fight. I just know when there is something wrong with my kid and coughing up bloody junk is a problem. End of story.

I'm off to tend to the girl and try to get some sleep.

See you Poolside!

Post It Note Tuesday what will you say today?

See you Poolside!

Halloween 2009

Here's Pippi...don't you love the hair? I'm not sure if you can see it but her overalls say Pippi on them. She got tons of compliments on her costume. I only helped her a little bit. She even had her monkey.

that's the monkey on her lap.

cool braids!

of course Pippi would have her monogram on her clothing. She was resourceful. She'd have figured out a way. It doesn't hurt that this Pippi's mom personalizes "stuff" for a living.

Here's my angel.

Sadly, she threw up 5 minutes before the parade started at school. No parading for her. I'm glad I was right there when it happened so there was no drama. I had a plastic bag in my purse and no one was the wiser. Except the janitor that helped us out. Dad took her home right away. Let's hope it's not SF. Holding my breath.

I'm off to tend to the sick one. Have a great weekend!

See you Poolside!

Haters

I have precious little time to be original today. Work is calling. I read this on a friend's blog and decided to re-post it here (with her permission) because this really hit home with me especially the line "they see my glory, but they don't know my story".

Stop over and see my friend Southern Living Preppy Style if you get a chance.

Haters
By Maya Angelou

A hater is someone who is jealous and envious and spends all their time trying to make you look small so they can look tall.

They are very negative people to say the least. Nothing is ever good enough!

When you make your mark, you will always attract some haters... That's why you have to be careful with whom you share your blessings and your dreams, because some folk can't handle seeing you blessed...

It's dangerous to be like somebody else... If God wanted you to be like somebody else, He would have given you what He gave them! Right?

You never know what people have gone through to get what they have...

The problem I have with haters is that they see my glory, but they don't know my story...

If the grass looks greener on the other side of the fence, you can rest assured that the water bill is higher there too!

We've all got some haters among us!
Some people envy you because you can:

a) Have a relationship with God
b) Light up a room when you walk in
c) Start your own business
d) Tell a man/woman to hit the curb (if he/she isn't about the right thing)
e) you are a strong person and don't let people run you over
f) you have a strong and loving marriage and they can't get in-between spouses to spoil it Haters can't stand to see you happy.

Haters will never want to see you succeed. Most of our haters are people who are supposed to be on our side (like some family and friends).

How do you handle your undercover haters?

You can handle these haters by:

1. Knowing who you are & who your true friends are *(VERY IMPORTANT!!)

2. Having a purpose to your life: Purpose does not mean having a job. You can have a job and still be unfulfilled. A purpose is having a clear sense of what God has called you to be. Your purpose is not defined by what others think about you.

3. By remembering that what you have is by divine prerogative and not human manipulation. Fulfill your dreams! You only have one life to live...when its your time to leave this earth, you want to be able to say, 'I've lived my life and fulfilled my dreams, Now I'm ready to go HOME!

When God gives you favor, you can tell your haters, 'Don't look at me...Look at who is in charge of me...

See you Poolside!

Favorite Picture Friday

Thing 1 and Thing 2 with their favorite toys. Waiting for someone to play with them...anybody...anybody?

Happy weekend friends!
See you Poolside!

Post It Note Tuesday what will you say today?

Why bother wasting your breath, spewing verbalness... when you can simply sum it all up in one neat n tidy little post it note. Supah is hosting Post it Note Tuesday. Stop by her blog to participate.

See you Poolside!

Meme Monday - I've Never...

Supah Mommy is hosting MeMe Monday...topic is 5 things you have never done that make you stand out from the crowd. I hope I got that right...

I've never....
-done drugs
-smoked anything
-been arrested
-skied for more than 5 minutes without hitting a tree
-gotten a tattoo

What haven't you done?
See you Poolside!

Lobster Mac & Cheese

I was really sad to hear one of my favorite restaurants in the area closed. A mother and son ran the place. Mom cooked, son was the host. Korean infusion. Her Lobster mac & cheese was to die for. I suspect that they fell victim to this awful economy. Also construction in front of the place was a total mess and made it practically impossible to get there. Who wants to pay $24 for a plate of mac & cheese? I do. There was a whole lobster in there and they gave you enough for 3 meals. I used to eat it for days. I loved the place. It made you feel like you were in NYC. Very Manhattan, but with a mom chef cooking for you so there was some TLC added. She made everything to order. This food wasn't sitting for days, it was sitting for minutes. Her son the host was not pushy and obnoxious. He made you feel like he invited you over to his house after school for some of his mom's (fill in the blank with whatever you ordered). Great duo.

I'm done boo hooing and I decided to take a stab at making my own version. I saw Barefoot Contessa today making some on the food channel so know I'm all confident that I can do it too. I love her! I'm thinking of taking a few test runs before Christmas in order to perfect it by then. It would be so easy to put this in a chaffing dish and forget about it so that when company comes on Christmas Eve they can dig in and I can enjoy the holiday. Comfort food infused with decadence, who doesn't need that?

Here's the recipe I'm starting with. It's a cross between Barefoot's recipe & Chef Mom's recipe (which I don't have so I'm guessing on this)

1 1/2 lbs of cooked lobster meat, chunky, not shredded up..leave it big but not huge.

1 box of pasta (1 pound) (pick your favorite)

1 quart of milk

1/4 stick of butter

flour (not sure how much, but enough to make a rue, usually equal to the amount of butter?)

pinch of salt

some black pepper

a pinch of nutmeg

2 C shredded sharp cheddar cheese

2 C shredded Gruyere

1/2 C shredded Parmesan

1/2 C shredded Swiss

1/2 C shredded Romano

bread crumbs (really not sure how much)

Cook the pasta, set aside

Melt the butter, add flour to make a rue. Cook the rue for a few minutes, whisk in milk, salt, pepper, nutmeg and stir until thick. Easy on the nutmeg...I don't measure these things though.

Add in all the cheese and stir until melted. (you can set aside your favorite cheese to top this with if you want or mix it all in, up to you)

Mix pasta and cheese sauce together, then gently mix in the lobster meat. Pour into baking dish. Top with breadcrumbs and bake at 375 for 30 minutes.

This is just my test run. Let me know if you have any ideas that would improve this. Other cheeses, spices?

I can't believe this place closed while chain restaurants are thriving. I guess the stomach gets what the budget can afford. I'm sure this duo will be back in another restaurant soon. I'll be looking for them...and until then I'll be missing Chef Mom's Korean potato pancakes and her tuna and... OK, now I'm boo hooing again :(

See you Poolside!

Fall Fest 2009

Fall Fest '09 was a blast. I haven't recovered yet. Thanks to all my blog friends who gave me some really great ideas for the party including food and activites. Gracias!

The Menu

veggie pizza (perfect colors for fall)
buffalo chicken dip
cheesy mexican dip
mini pulled pork sandwiches
cheesy yellow squash casserole with stuffing
baked ziti
chili
corn chowder
dessert (too much to list) but smores were a big hit.
wine from the vineyard down the road
cider from the local orchard
beer from around the globe

I made all the food except for my husbands famous corn chowder and the desserts. No one showed up empty handed so the guests provided the pies, cookies, brownies, you name it, we had it. Here are some photos... (you know you had a good time when you forget to take pictures DURING the party!)

A scarecrow greeted the guests...

New stone stairs & railing leading up to the fire pit

My husband built the stone staircase & the fire pit out back. He did a great job.

The fire pit. We had about 40-50 people out here by the time the night was over. This is where the boys kept their stash of ... (see photo below)

Here's a sample of the beer menu

We had wine tasting on the patio. The leaves were a perfect mix of green, orange and crimson.

Another scarecrow guarding the vino.

The view of our pond

corn husks and pumpkins everywhere

Setting up inside...here's the dessert table

Some gourds from the farm down the road

Here we're setting up the chaffing dishes and a few crock pots. These allowed me to enjoy the party and not worry about the food. What a life saver. The foyer is the next room to get a make over. Can't wait!

Here are my daughter's pictures. She's the only one who thought to take some during the party. This reminded me to take the date setting off her camera, or at least set it to the right date for her.

EVERYONE got their face painted.

Getting the fire going

old friends!

no party is complete without throwing a few gang signs.
KK and Leo. Are you scared of the Scarecrow KK?

We had wine tasting on the front patio, smores out back by the fire pit, most of the food was inside. We ate too much. We drank too much. The leaves were at their peak and the weather was just right for a bon fire. THIS PARTY WAS SO MUCH FUN! Saw some old friends, new friends, neighbors and relatives. The kids did face painting, games, prizes...so well behaved, every last one of them. What a great time. I'm pooped and so are the dogs...until next time...

See you Poolside!

Finger - vs - Food Slicer

My friend Ronnie called me today. It seems that one of his fingers recently got in a throw down with a food slicer. The finger dang near lost the fight. Lots of stitches & blood. Not good. This is going to effect his job. Ronnie sings and plays guitar (think James Taylor with lots more hair). How does one play guitar minus a finger? I am afraid to ask. If there's a way, I'm sure he's figured it out.

We've been friends since grade school. He's played at just about every party that I have ever thrown, including our wedding. Even my grandmother's funeral. Which was not a party now that I think about it...

Two years ago when my grandmother died he spent hours reworking her favorite hymn "Rock of Ages" into an acoustic wonder. He played it at her funeral service. My grandmother adored Ronnie and I know she would have been really honored. He's a true friend indeed.


That was a horrible time for me. Things were getting tense over the funeral preparations. Did you ever notice how death can bring out the best in some people and the worst in others? I was feeling really let down by some people that are close to me and I was struggling to keep it together. It's not easy being the family organizer, party thrower, cruise director, person who always gets asked to write and deliver the Eulogy, the go to girl, the girl with all the answers.

My peeps, God bless them.
Are they lazy? Perhaps they are.
Have I let this go on for years? Perhaps I have.
Would I like it to stop? Perhaps I would.
Can I depend on my husband to help me 99.9% of the time? Damn straight.
(so we've established that he was not the problem)

But there are times when we can't do it all. Times when I would like to blend into the background and not be the go to girl. I sometimes want to be the girl who just shows up and phones it in. Comes late and leaves early. No worries. Yeah, that never happens. So my friend Ronnie saw what was going on and talked and helped and stepped in and did some things that others should have been doing but weren't. He picked up the slack. That's what friends do. You don't forget stuff like that. Friends that come through for you in your time of need. My hubs and I were grateful.

Speaking of my hubs here he is with Ronnie. I'm glad they get along. Not all husbands are wild about "old male friends" but these two get along famously.
Here he is with one of my daughters. This was her 1st Communion. We all love him and parties just aren't the same without him.

So what's the nicest thing a friend has done for you? Do you have any old friends that your better half approves or disapproves of ? Isn't it interesting when you see which of your friendships you can keep going after you meet your better half and which friendships just fade away?

This friend is a keeper. Let's hope his finger is too.
See you Poolside!