Lutchers plus 2

Whip Em' Out!

2010-08-30T09:52:00.003-04:00

Crazy to me how trendy it is to breastfeed now. All the cool moms are doing it - celebrities included.

Courtesy of Domestic Refelctions

Who said woman are bad drivers?

2010-08-11T23:20:00.000-04:00

Apple Upgrade

2010-07-13T22:11:00.003-04:00

Today my 2g 8gig iphone finally gave out, so I was on a CL hunt to find the perfect iphone. In the meantime, I had to dig out my still awesomely cool pink Razor phone to hold me over until I got a replacement. Wow!! Going back to that after having an iphone makes me feel like I was handling a dinosaur phone. I remember when R and I thought that the Razors were the coolest, most high-tech phone around. Crazy how a couple years change your need for apps and email at your fingertips.

Since we have T-mobile, we had to do a lot of searching for an unlocked one. And since the new iphone 4 was coming out, we thought that this would be easy. Well, turns out that the new iphone 4s' are having some issues, so most people are returning them and sticking with their 3Gs phones. That sucked for us, cause I was in need of one ASAP. After a bunch of hours searching and several emails exchanged to numerous scammers, I finally found one I wanted.

White 3GS 16 gig unlocked and in immaculate condition.

I definitely lucked out! I can already see and feel the difference. I can't believe that someone would want to upgrade to something better than this. This phone is AMAZING!! I know I am excited about an older model, but it is perfect for me:)

My feet are loved

2010-07-02T14:25:00.005-04:00

Tory Burch "Millers" - Most worn shoes this summer.
Tory Burch "Reva" - Most classic from Tory Burch.

Picture Practice

2010-07-02T13:56:00.003-04:00

This was my first attempt on picture taking with new camera. Feedback greatly appreciated. I used the Bloom setting.

Hint: Kirsten and Jenni:)

Summer Time

2010-06-30T23:46:00.006-04:00

I'm sorry I've been MIA for a while. We have been pretty crazy here now that school is out. T-ball, tennis lessons and school all ended around the same time, so that means I am pretty much pulling my hair out with bored kids. The weather has been in the 90's so not so much fun to be outside for long. We have been doing the pool a lot lately - mostly due to Ryan being gone in NYC.

I always feel weird to blog. I feel like I can't be myself, thinking I might just post lots of pics of the boys and maybe about my fashion,makeup finds and buys.

Anyway, I got a new camera for my birthday, so I have been taking a lot more pics lately. Any advice on taking better pics, please let me know. I need all the help I can get:)

Between the lady lumps

2010-04-09T14:11:00.002-04:00

I came across this picture on Guilt and I think this mom is so hot! She is the definition of a MILF. Jealous.

If you are interested in joining Guilt Groupe, leave a comment and I will send you an invite. Great designers and affordable prices. A must if you are a label whore like me:)

Mardi Gras Here I Come!!

2010-02-10T18:26:00.002-05:00

Only 2 more days till my trip to NOLA for some Mardi Gras fun! Did I mention that I am going all by myself? Yeah, no kids on spouse to answer to. That could be good or a very bad thing:) All I can say is that the Saints just won the Superbowl, so it's gonna be crazy!

Top things I need to do in NOLA:

-Eat a Po boy (At least twice)
-Visit the French Market
- Hunt down the perfect Fleur De Lis beads
-Eat 30 lbs of crawfish (you think I'm joking)
- Go to Cafe Du Monde and eat beignets and drink cafe au lait
- Drive by our old house in Uptown

I know there is a schoad more things I plan on doing but these are the ones that come to mind at the moment. I will be sharing pictures when I get back:)

Cheers!

It's all Christmas-ish

2010-01-07T13:13:00.008-05:00

Happy New Year! Just a few days late:) I hope ya'll had a wonderful time and ate a ton of food. I know I did.

Our Christmas was also wonderful, even though it was just us this year. Yep, first year all by ourselves. We even did Thanksgiving alone. I know so sad. Since we stayed in Utah for 3 weeks last Christmas, we decided it would be smart to stay low key this year. Next year I think we will travel to see family, so maybe it will be an every other year kinda thing. That is definitely one of the downsides to living on the complete other side of the country; you have to travel FAR to see anyone.

Anyway, I have been busy trying to get everyone back on schedule and it is not as easy as I thought. Having a child in school now kinda sucks. Trying to get him to bed earlier than 11pm is like pulling a veneer off. Pain in da a**!

So this year I have made some goals that I want to accomplish in 2010. I just have them in my head, not on paper yet. Need to do that soon. One of them is to not procrastinate, so you can see that I am struggling with that one already. What are your goals for 2010?

I'm gonna leave you with a quote of the day: Give People more than they expect and do it cheerfully.

Jordan's Artwork

2009-12-20T22:56:00.003-05:00

Jordan knows how much we love pandas, so he surprised me with this drawing. He is so perfect!

PANDA STYLE!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-26T13:33:00.003-05:00

I am most grateful for this! I love my life!

Happy Turkey Day!

Geaux Saints!

2009-11-23T16:14:00.008-05:00

My dad came up from Miami to see us for the weekend and we had a blast! I had not seen him in awhile and it was great to finally get together. We went to some yummy restaurants, went fishing and got to see the Saints play the Bucs here in Tampa. It was a great game! We beat them 36-7 which means we are now 10-0 baby! We freaking LOVE the Saints and I am proud that they are my hometown team. Who Dat!

I have attached a few pics of our weekend. Hope ya'll had a great one too!

Nolan's gun holder

2009-10-20T13:27:00.006-04:00

Notice the gun tucked into the diaper? I do.

Halloween Costumes

2009-10-20T13:12:00.007-04:00

We finally got around to getting the boys their costumes and decorating the house spooky (as the boys say).

Jordan at first wanted to be Batman again, then Indiana Jones and now Wolverine. Nolan wanted to be whatever Jordan would let him be. He wanted to be Bumble Bee from Transformers, but changed his mind last minute when he saw TMNT costume.

I let them wear their costumes for a bit yesterday and as soon as they put them on, they started beating each other. And when I mean beating I mean BEATING! They don't know how to pretend fight. They get really into it. It scares me sometimes. Crazy boys! I sometimes wonder if I had girls if they would be doing the same thing but in princess costumes. Probably not.

What are your holiday plans?

Butternut Squash Lasagna

2009-10-16T14:15:00.004-04:00

Finally it is starting to feel more like Fall here. It has been raining since early early this morning. It is breezy and cool outside. I love it! Last week it was super humid and in the mid 90's; until today it did not feel like Fall or that it was coming soon. I LOVE this time of year; pumpkins, breezes, Halloween decoration and knowing that Thanksgiving is coming soon. I want Thanksgiving dinner NOW!

Since I have been in a calm, snuggly fall feel I decided I wanted to cook something that felt like the time of year. I came across this yummy looking Butternut Squash Lasagna recipe, courtesy of Giada and it seemed perfect.

UPDATE: I finally made this dish and it really is an amazing Fall dish. Next time I think I will add fresh garlic and ground turkey. Very yummy!

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 (1 1/2 to 2-pound) butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch cubes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup water
3 amaretti cookies, crumbled
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 1/2 cups whole milk
Pinch nutmeg
3/4 cup (lightly packed) fresh basil leaves
12 no-boil lasagna noodles
2 1/2 cups shredded whole-milk mozzarella cheese
1/3 cup grated Parmesan

Directions

Heat the oil in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the squash and toss to coat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Pour the water into the skillet and then cover and simmer over medium heat until the squash is tender, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Cool slightly and then transfer the squash to a food processor. Add the amaretti cookies and blend until smooth. Season the squash puree, to taste, with more salt and pepper.

Melt the butter in a heavy medium-size saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the milk. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the sauce thickens slightly, whisking often, about 5 minutes. Whisk in the nutmeg. Cool slightly. Transfer half of the sauce to a blender*. Add the basil and blend until smooth. Return the basil sauce to the sauce in the pan and stir to blend. Season the sauce with salt and pepper, to taste.

Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees F.

Lightly butter a 13 by 9 by 2-inch glass baking dish. Spread 3/4 cup of the sauce over the prepared baking dish. Arrange 3 lasagna noodles on the bottom of the pan. Spread 1/3 of the squash puree over the noodles. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese. Drizzle 1/2 cup of sauce over the noodles. Repeat layering 3 more times.

Tightly cover the baking dish with foil and bake the lasagna for 40 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses over the lasagna. Continue baking uncovered until the sauce bubbles and the top is golden, 15 minutes longer. Let the lasagna stand for 15 minutes before serving.

*When blending hot liquids: Remove liquid from the heat and allow to cool for at least 5 minutes. Transfer liquid to a blender or food processor and fill it no more than halfway. If using a blender, release one corner of the lid. This prevents the vacuum effect that creates heat explosions. Place a towel over the top of the machine, pulse a few times then process on high speed until smooth.

Do any of you have a favorite Fall dish?

Have a great weekend!

Wii rules according to our 5 year old

2009-10-14T17:29:00.003-04:00

Today I overheard Jordan and Nolan "discussing" why Nolan is not allowed to play the Wii. Ryan and I did not make this rule, Jordan did. We have been having a lot of issues with Jordan not wanting to share his Wii with his younger brother. We have caught ourselves bribing Jordan with treats, money, games, movies, no school, etc. IF he will share his Wii with Nolan. This still has not worked out for us, cause our kids are smarter than us. Anyway, back to the "discussing" part. I heard Jordan telling Nolan HIS new set of rules for playing the Wii and I had to share.

1. If you touch my Wii and your hands are dirty, you are not playing.
2. Do not pee on the couch.
3. Do not pee in your diaper while you are by the Wii
4. You can never be Batman, only Robin
5. You better learn to follow me
6. If you do any of these, I will spank you until you get a rash!

Nolan pulls out his pacifier from his mouth and says "I have poo".

Pumpkin Parfaits

2009-10-05T16:39:00.003-04:00

I am so obsessed with pumpkin pie (actually pumpkin anything)that pumpkin pie is really the main thing I look forward to at Thanksgiving. Once I ate a whole pumpkin pie IN ONE DAY. True story. Anyway, I came across this recipe on Gourmet.com and this has given me the itch to make pumpkin everything. Where is my pumpkin latte? Mmmm pumpkin!

Here is the recipe:

* 1 envelope unflavored gelatin (2 1/4 tsp)
* 1/4 cup cold water
* 1 (15-oz) can pure pumpkin
* 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
* 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
* 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
* 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
* 1/8 teaspoon salt
* 2 1/4 cups chilled heavy cream, divided
* 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract, divided
* 20 gingersnap cookies, coarsely crushed

*
Equipment:
8 (6- to 8-oz) glasses

*
Sprinkle gelatin over water in a small saucepan and let soften 1 minute. Bring to a bare simmer, stirring until gelatin has dissolved. Whisk together gelatin mixture, pumpkin, brown sugar, spices, and salt in a large bowl.
*
Beat 1 cup cream with 1/2 tsp vanilla until it holds soft peaks, then fold into pumpkin mixture gently but thoroughly.
*
Beat remaining 1 1/4 cups cream with remaining 1 tsp vanilla until it holds soft peaks.
*
Spoon about 1/4 cup pumpkin mixture into bottom of each glass, then sprinkle with some of cookies and top with about 2 Tbsp whipped cream. Repeat layers once, ending with cream.
*
Chill until set, at least 2 hours.

Cooks’ notes: Parfaits can be made 1 day ahead and chilled.

Do you think we could of removed the pacifier?

2009-10-03T18:51:00.001-04:00

Make a Smilebox greeting

I think I already posted these, but thought I would make them look cuter with music.

Jordan's Birthday Part One

2009-10-01T16:30:00.011-04:00

Thank you to all who sent gifts for Jordan! He could not believe that people give him presents besides us and Santa. He was definitely spoiled this year.

We did a small celebration on his birthday and had a pool party with all our friends & his the next day. The day of his birthday we woke him up for school with a candle in a doughnut and an obnoxious Happy Birthday song. He was less than thrilled at first (I included a pic). He was grumpy because he knew he had to still go to school on his big day. We told him that we would be bringing treats for his class and he would be leaving early. That sure made him all hyper at 7am. We ended up dropping him off and the rest of us went out to breakfast, since we would be back to bring treats in 2 hours. It was nice to just go out to eat with Nolan. I think that was our first time. We did notice that he talks more when his brother is not around and very well behaved.

Anyway, we headed back to his school with ice cream sandwiches that Jordan choose the night before and we had Jordan pass them out to the whole class. The kids were so excited that they didn't care that the ice cream was melting faster than Jordan could pass them out. The kids were so thrilled and LOVED us for bringing them a treat! One of the girls said that I was the bestest mommy ever and later drew Jordan a picture telling him how much she loved him! I will scan the picture to show you.

After we got home, Jordan wanted to open his 1 and only present we got him. He had a pretty good idea of what he was getting and couldn't wait any longer. (See pics)

We did baseball cupcakes and Mcdonald's for dinner. Jordan's choosing.

Stay tuned for more on his party! Have to go break up a fight over the Wii:)

Vincenzo Rizzo - Original Watercolors

2009-09-17T10:05:00.006-04:00

I came across these today and I LOVE his style of painting! Can you tell who is in each painting? I want these, but again, another thing I don't need.

Please go check out his store on Etsy.

Jordan SAY WHAT?

2009-09-16T14:54:00.002-04:00

I didn't think this time would come for a few more years, but I was wrong.
......

Today Jordan asked about the S.E.X word. And when I mean asked he said "Mom, why do you and dad have so much sex? Um, I am pretty much still in shock. I mean what do you say when your child says that to you? I haven't even had time to rehearse this, let alone come up with a good response. My first thought was "I knew it, your teacher is a pedophile because I didn't check her background", but I knew that I was overreacting, so the first thing out of my mouth was "What? Sex? We don't do that; I don't even know what that is. The boys start laughing like a giggly school girl and I tried to change the subject. "Heeey....yooouuu....guuuuyyys...want some treats when we get home?". The whole time I am thinking "where in the hell is their father when I am asked questions like this".

For the record - we do not have a lot of sex, cause if we did I think I would know about it and I would tell you:)

So I need advice. Have any of you been put in this kind of situation and if so, what was your response?

I am too young for this.

P.S. Would it be wrong to put this in his baby book? We have hit another milestone:(

Gourmet.Daily

2009-09-16T09:13:00.006-04:00

I am excited to share this with ya'll today!

Ryan just added another piece to his growing puzzle. He always amazes me with the things he comes up with. I think he is truly a genius! Thanks Howells for your great genes!

The site is called Gourmaily. We will be choosing one unique gourmet food company DAILY to review. Gourmet.Daily. AWESOME freaking name! imo

The reason I am so excited, besides the fact that Ryan started this, is that he asked me to help him run it. I will help in choosing the companies and adding the info to the site!

I have a couple of companies in mind to start. I will choose them strictly on their uniqueness and packaging. If you know of any Gourmet food companies that fit this description, please email me.

Check out the site and let me know what you think. I hope you like! Add it to your RSS to stay up to date on the hottest gourmet products.

Have a Gourmet Day!

Welcomed home with chocolate cake

2009-09-15T13:37:00.000-04:00

I have to say that I have the most awesome spouse and kids ever! I am not just now realizing it; I am just now telling everyone I know.

While I was at the fashion show, Ryan and the boys were home cleaning the house AND baking me a chocolate cake. When I came in the door, I was greeted with excited, screaming kids. They were so excited to see me, that you would have thought I was gone for a week and not 4 hours. It was so sweet! They showed me how they cleaned their room and helped daddy do the dishes and Nolan was excited to tell me that he helped daddy stir the cake.

Gosh, I think I need to leave them home with daddy more:)

By the way, cake is way better when you are Superman! Don't believe me? Ask Jordan

Labor Day weekend

2009-09-10T20:56:00.000-04:00

We had a wonderful weekend filled with friends, food, drinks, fashion and ponies. What did ya'll do for Labor Day weekend?

Saturday we met up with some friends at a carnival in Oldsmar. The boys rode ponies for the first time ever. We were unsure of how they would do, but they LOVED it! The boys had so much fun riding them, that we used all our tickets on the ponies instead of any rides.

Sunday I met up with a close friend of mine and we hit up the fashion show that came to Clearwater. It was my first show and it was a blast! Picked up a adorable boy face necklace at the sample sale.

Monday we had the same friends come over for a bbq and pool party. Pretty relaxing long weekend. More pics to come.

Tuesday morning Ryan and I woke up with a sore throat and body aches, so the boys have passed on their sickness to us. Thanks boys! Next time Jordan, NO kissing me on my lips:)

Hope you had a great Labor Day!

Trying it out

2009-09-06T14:08:00.001-04:00

We have been wanting an ottoman for our living room, instead of the black distress country coffee table that we bought YEARS ago. Leather ottomans are pretty expensive, so I had been looking on Craigslist for a used one.

We ended up finding one for $100 bucks and jumped on it right away. The couple was moving out of the country and desperate to get rid of all their belongings.

Here is Nolan trying it out. I guess it was so comfy that he fell asleep.

Amazing Grass

2009-09-02T12:18:00.000-04:00

Sorry for anyone who thought this post was about something else.

So our kids have been sick lately. Jordan has been in school for 5 days now and has been home for a total of 3 days. This child has caught 2 different sicknesses in 1 week. First it was stomach flu and when he came home on Monday he had a really bad cough and sore throat. I am about to pull my hair out, because now Nolan is sick too. He had a really high fever last night and I was having severe anxiety about this. Anyone that knows me well, knows that I am already a very anxious person, so to add this on top of it makes me feel like I need to be comatosed.

So it is Wednesday and he has missed another day. I stress in the morning about calling his school to tell him if it is okay that I keep him home again. I feel like I am calling into work sick and worrying that they are gonna tell me to come in anyway or I am fired.

Anyway, I was doing some research on things that can help "boost" his immune system and I came across this awesome stuff. This company called AMAZING GRASS. They have chocolate milk powder that you mix with milk and it has all their fruits and veggies, plus wheat grass in it. I called Ryan right away when I saw that our health food store sells it, so he could get it on the way home. I must say, this stuff is AWESOME! Our boys LOVE it! It really tastes like chocolate milk. While they were drinking it down, I was beaming with excitement, because OUR kids were drinking VEGETABLES! Jordan just drank a zucchini and he didn't even know it. AWESOME!

I am hoping that by giving this to him everyday will start to help boost his immune system.

Anyone who has kids who do not eat the recommended daily dose of fruits and vegetables needs to get this. They also have it for adults too. I think I might try.

Taga

2009-09-01T16:03:00.000-04:00

This is the coolest thing ever! Have you seen the latest european invention. Hope they come to the states soon.

2009-09-01T15:52:00.001-04:00

Four years Later

2009-08-30T13:52:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was the 4 year Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. I can still remember it as if it were yesterday. I wonder if over time I will not get teary eyed when I think about what we saw and went through.

I will always remember this day and will remember it well. Those who don't know me, don't know what we went through on August 29th 2005 through September 2, 2005. This was the scariest, most surreal thing we have ever gone through. Thank goodness for my dad, because with out him, who knows what would of happened.

I will say that I am grateful for going through a catastrophe such as Katrina, cause I have a new appreciation for a lot of things. I can say that I no longer see tangible items the same, except for pictures, as I once did. Within minutes I had to decide if an item was worth taking or leaving. Pretty much everything besides a few clothes, diapers, some pictures ( we had to go back for those) we left. Nothing else mattered to us at that moment.

We honestly thought that the storm would turn and we would be uncomfortable for a few days without electricity, but everything would return to normal and we would all go back to our lives. Little did we ALL know that this time it was going to be different.

We sat and watched the news while most of the city was evacuating. I remember watching the local news channels and the Mayor of New Orleans was BEGGING people to get out of the city because it was going to be really bad. They warned us that if something bad were to happen to us, there would be no one on the other line of 911 to help us. WE WERE ON OUR OWN. I remember questioning my dad, asking him why we were not evacuating like everyone else or going to the Superdome like others that were staying or could not afford to leave. He told me we were safer here, over taking the chance of getting hit by the storm in dead traffic or being in the dark with hundreds of people in the dome with a baby. He said he had chosen to live in that part of town because that part was above sea level; unlike most other parts of NOLA.

The storm came and passed and the whole time we were glued to the radio, listening to the only radio station that stayed on air. The radio host said that they could call the station to report things in their area. I will never forget hearing calls from people saying that they were in their attics and the water was rising and to help them. One call in specific that I remember; a lady called in, panicking saying that the water was coming in and they headed to the attic with their 9 day old baby, 5 year old and grandparents. She said the water was coming in and was crying for someone to help them. The radio host asked if they had an axe so they could cut open the roof. They lady screamed no, but to hurry and help them because it was waist high in the attic. The host didn't know what to say, but asked for her address and said they would do the best they could to try and help them. The problem was that there was so much water in that part of town, that you couldn't really tell what street were what. I remember her begging on the phone and suddenly the line went dead. After that, I felt like I was in a third world country. How in the hell could this be happening to us. We live in AMERICA! I tried calling my mom to tell her that I loved her because I had gotten in a huge fight with her the month prior and wanted to make sure she knew that if something were to happen to us that I loved her. The phone lines were down. We had zero contact with the outside world. We wondered if anyone even knew what we were going through.

At that point, we did not know what the city looked like. We heard that there was severe water in the 9th ward, but clueless to the rest of the area. After the winds died down we all went outside to see the damage. In our area it was completely dry. Just damage from the wind. Little did we know, that the levees broke and the city was flooding. I remember looking out my dads window right after the storm passed and seeing people running down the street to the famous Wal mart that got looted. They were coming back with carts full of electronics and everything else that was of no use to them now. We had cops coming to our building looking for people who stayed and also looking for food, water and ways to charge their radios. The building had a generator that would light the halls only and we would run it for 2 hours a day. We were the officers only way of communicating. There were no other ways for them to charge their radios. So they would come over and use the electricity in our halls.

We had permission before the storm to go in other residents units and get water and food if we needed. There were about 20 of us total in the building that stayed and we all took turns going into units and getting food out of the freezers to grill, since it would go bad anyway. I remember getting low on diapers and looking in every unit, praying that someone had baby diapers. No such luck.

At night it was extremely hot! We could not sleep; the heat was overwhelming. There was zero wind. Very black outside and no sound. Jordan would wake up every 30 minutes crying because he was sweating so bad. I would go in the kitchen and try to find something cool in the freezer to put on him to help cool him down. All Jordan wanted to do was nurse, but that made it worst since it made me feel I was being suffocated. I remember feeling like I couldn't handle it anymore and started to break down. It was becoming unbearable. As soon as I would start to doze off, we would hear gun shots. I kept asking my dad what it was and he told me it was people unloading stuff off trucks. I knew that wasn't true, but I knew he said that so I wouldn't freak out. The next day, we booby trap the main entrance/exit that we knew would be an easy way for looters to get in. We had heard from the officers that they were breaking in everywhere and starting fires. One man in the building had a gun and the men took turns with it at night staying up keeping a look out for looters.

On the last night we were there, I remember thinking that I can not stand another night here. We were scared for our lives AND I had a baby. The officers planned a meeting the next morning and informed us all that it was getting worst and no longer safe for us to stay here. They said the gun shots we heard the night prior, was a gun war between looters and officers. An officer was shot in the head. We still have a bullet shell from that incident. We were told that if we leave, we should leave in groups to lessen the chance of someone killing us and taking our car. There were reports of men running onto the roads so people had to stop and they would shoot and kill them and take their cars. My dad decided that we would be leaving at noon and anyone that wanted to leave with us had to be ready by then. I remember it was a crazy feeling knowing that we were leaving but unsure how it was gonna look once we left behind our gates.

We parked our cars in the hotel parking garage next door to my dads building, so we would make sure it was away from wind and water. We had to go get the cars but started to see a whole lot of people coming from the Superdome and heading to the convention center, which is pretty much right across the street from where we were. People were pulling their kids in plastic bins across the concrete with sheets tied to one handle. I remember seeing how exhausted and sweating they were. Everyone was walking around like zombies. Babies were screaming because they were hungry, hot, dehydrated. Everyone in the Superdome got word that there was food and water at the convention center, so they all gravitated there. Which was not true. There was still no help on the last day that we were there. I believe it took another day or 2 before there was help.

My dad had to go get the car so we could leave, but was worried that someone would kill him, so he took the gun and held it up in the air as he ran to get the car.I am bawling and shaking at this point, scared behind the gate hoping that someone doesn't hurt my dad or try and jump the gate while my dad is gone with the gun. I hear screeching tires and my dad bangs on the gate for me to let him back in. We were smart and brought all our belongs down my the gate first, so once we got the car we would throw everything in and leave. My dad held the gun up in the air as Ryan put everything we had into the car. My dad did not have enough time to get Jordan's car seat out of our car, so we had to drive without one. Ryan loaded everything in and no one else was ready to leave, so we left by ourselves. I still remember the first feeling of air conditioning hitting me after being without for days. Jordan fell asleep right away from exhaustion.

My dad drove I think 70 down a 30 mile zone. He said he was not stopping for anyone in fear of what the officers warned us about. He was prepared to hit anyone that tried to stop us. As we were trying to get on the on-ramp that is when we saw hundreds of people and they were touching our car, like zombies in a movie. We finally got on the freeway that was clear from water or debris and I will never forget seeing this girl with only her bra on and shorts hiked up as high as could be, sweating and pushing a shopping cart with a baby screaming. I did not see anything in her cart except for the baby. No bottle, food, diaper, water NOTHING. I wanted to stop and help her, but knew that by doing so we could be risking our lives.

It took us two days to get to Florida, due to the roads being destoryed and debris all along the gulf coast. We stayed in Miami for a month and got word we could return home to see the damage. My grandparents lost pretty much everything in their home. Our condo was surprisingly fine. There were 72 units and 5 were okay. Ours were one of the five. And we even had a bottom floor.

Since then my grandparents have rebuilt their home. NOLA is coming back more and more everyday. Soon after, we bought a flooded home in New Orleans and remodeled it. We stayed a year and realized the crime and schools were really bad and decided that it was best for us to move with small children. Jordan 2 and a newborn. We now live in Clearwater Beach, Florida. We love it here, but I do miss the culture of NOLA.

Sorry this was such a long post. I have not documented this experience until now.

Thanks for reading!

I think I need these

2009-08-28T20:49:00.000-04:00

Oh My Gosh! I am in love with these adorable pieces. Looks like a boat but it's a wagon. Genius! You want to buy a boat, but know your baby needs a crib. Problem solved. I am trying to find a good reason why I need them.

If you can find a better reason than me to buy them, you can get them here.

Toy Sushi Set

2009-08-28T20:30:00.000-04:00

Forget those regular wooden ABC blocks, check out the unique selection of wooden children’s toys from Melissa & Doug. Like this amazing sushi set, comes complete in bento style box! This well crafted and detailed set comes with a wide variety of sushi, chopsticks, ginger, wasabi, soy sauce bowl and chopping knife. This set is an incredibly creative way to teach kids about a different culture and their food, as well as about colors and presentation. This set, among so many other fun sets from Melissa & Doug, will provide hours of endless fun.

$15.99

Kidfresh please

2009-08-28T19:59:00.000-04:00

Kidfresh is a brand new lifestyle concept store that provides fresh, healthy foods especially for kids. They have super cute names for each line, such as, “kidfresh2o,” the “kidchen” and the “Kidfresh Dough Card”!”

How cute are their lunches?

So little

2009-08-28T17:30:00.000-04:00

I came across this picture and it almost brought me to tears. I can't believe how old they are now. Nolan's hair was black when he was born. I miss that age.

Nolan LOVES Baseball

2009-08-27T18:04:00.000-04:00

Nolan and I were just playing baseball in the house and he told me that I am bad at throwing a baseball and my game is over. Even a 2 year old notices how bad I throw a ball.

By the way, he started wanting to dress himself yesterday. Notice the matching outfit?

Here comes the sickness

2009-08-27T15:19:00.000-04:00

I was warned by several of our friends that have kids in school/daycare to be prepared for them to get sick a lot in the beginning. Well I didn't think that it would start 4 days into it.

Our poor little guy just woke up from his nap and vomited. He was shaking, crying and asking for daddy. SO sad! I feel so helpless. I gave him tummy soother and he is sleeping again. I hope it is not a bug, because I know we will all get it next.

Why do some parents bring their kids to school when they know they are sick? I am puzzled. Could you imagine feeling sick and achy and having to sit in class?

Jordan's 2nd day of school

2009-08-25T18:13:00.000-04:00

I had to take 4 pics of them to get 1 decent.

So this is the 2nd day of school for Jordan and I think I am already over getting up at 7am. It really sucks! I feel pretty good after I am up and running, but getting to that part is so hard. I told Ryan that if I am expected to be up this early to take them to school for the next 13 plus years, than we better invest in a coffee maker that has a timer on it. I HATE making coffee early in the morning when I feel half dead. Not only do I have to make the coffee, but I have to grind the beans too. Too hard for me at 7am. - Ry, if you are reading this; this is a friendly reminder:)

I think I liked the school a little more today, so hopefully it will grow on me. I found out that they teach Spanish AFTER I pick him up; when I heard that I got angry eyes. He only goes for 3 hours a day since it is VPK. fyi, VPK is a free program that Florida does for all residents with preschool aged kids. It does not matter how much money you make and you get to choose any school you want; private or public. So we choose Montessori. It's free, so why not. The school is pretty dated as you can tell in the pictures. My brother asked if it was someones ghetto house. Too funny! They teach from preschool all the way to 5th grade and I think the cost is around $700 a month. Yikes! We won't be putting him in it next year, that's for sure.

My Baby Is In School

2009-08-24T15:57:00.000-04:00

So this morning was the BIG DAY! Jordan's first day of Preschool.

We have been preparing him for awhile now, so it wouldn't be a huge shocker for him when the day finally came. I have to say that he did very well. We were really worried about the whole Going To Bed On Time thing, since this child will stay up till 2am if you let him. We tried to all get on a better schedule of getting to bed earlier, so we could get up A LOT earlier, but it ended up not ever happening UNTIL the night before he started school. Again, I know we are such slacker parents. I don't like getting up early. Ryan and I LOVE our sleep. Before we had kids; our friends would tell us that our kids will probably sleep a lot because that is all we would do when we were not working. I remember in high school we were all asked to write down a little about us and one of the questions were - What are some of your favorite hobbies? - All I wrote was SLEEP.

But, I digress.

So we got up at 7am and got Jordan dressed right away. He wanted a Toaster Strudel for breakfast; which I got him, but our toaster broke so it was a hot & soft Toaster Strudel. YUM! He wanted to watch Noggin which had Blues Clues on and I wondered if that comes on everyday at that time, because I am gonna get sick of JOE really quick. Daddy ended up doing his hair, so it matched with his. Jordan had his Batman backpack on and ready to go, but guess who was holding up this excited 4.5 year old? His younger brother who was still sleeping. I hate to wake that child up, because he is so grumpy in the morning. He growls and moans like you have been poking him with a stick for an hour and saying "ha ha, ha ha, ha ha". Anyway, we finally got him up, dressed and fed and out the door.

We arrived at his school and were told TODAY that since he has a late birthday and because they are Montessori they don't follow by the rest of the county rules on age, so they put him in K-1 grade; not Preschool. I still don't know what I think about this, because the schedule is completely different then what we planned on and what I told Jordan he would be doing. No yoga or a second language. I am going to let it sink in more and give you my opinion in a few days.

We went into the new area that I had never seen before. That kind of upset me, because now he has a different teacher, different classroom, even different bathroom. This was a shock to me because it was out of my control. I couldn't all of a sudden say - Hey, let me check your bathroom to make sure you have soap, or let me see the teachers credentials, so I can assure myself she is not a pedophile or let me see the schedule to make sure it was a good fit for my child. And then with all that info, I get to choose if I want him to go here. NOT surprise, you get stuck with this. So at the moment, I feel a little confused and uneasy about the whole thing. I hope I will get use to it and I will love it tomorrow or the next.

Jordan did very well. After we put his stuff away in his cubby and we showed him his workstation, he told us that it was okay for us to go. That was really hard for me and I had to refrain from bawling right there. My little guy looks much older to me in school rather than at home. What was surprising, was that even though they put him with the K-1st graders; he still seemed a little bigger than them.

When we picked him up and were driving home, Ryan and I asked him if he met any new friends and he says "Yeah, I have like 16 friends". p.s. there is only 8 total in his class:)

So this is Part One. Sorry so long. Will keep you posted tomorrow.

Green Goodness

2009-08-22T01:14:00.000-04:00

If you have picky eaters like I do, than you know it is hard to get them to eat their fruits and veggies.

Jordan is pretty good about eating most fruit, but Nolan will only eat a banana and smoothies. So their diet does not include any veggies. They REFUSE to eat them. I can make Nolan alfredo with noodles and HIDE 1 just 1 PEA in there and he will find that damn thing in his mouth and spit it out. It is so frustrating, because how are they going to survive on chicken nuggets, corn dogs, cereal and ice cream.

Well I found out about this green drink smoothie that you can make that is stuffed with spinach leaves. (I know you are probably thinking EWW). Trust me it is delish! You can not even taste the spinach. I add loads of strawberries, pineapple juice, fresh banana and coconut flakes. The Boys LOVE it and ask for it all the time! If I want to cram more in there, I add flax seeds and probotic powder for kids.

Give it a try - I know your body will thank you:)

Bros before H**s

2009-08-20T21:42:00.000-04:00

So my younger brother Daniel and his GF came see us for the first time since we moved to Florida. Did I mention that we have lived here for 2 years this month? He lives in NOLA where we moved from. It is only an hour flight, but obviously too long of a flight that it has taken him 2 YEARS to see us. (jk Dan, I love you!) Anyway, his GF is from Austria and down visiting him for a month. They decided that they would come see us since they wanted a tan and the weather in NOLA had been rainy and yuck, so they thought Florida would be different. WRONG. It pretty much rained the whole entire time they were here. Actually it DID rain the entire time they were here. They were unable to get a tan or any amount of sun. We were able to go to a baseball game and eat a lot of food, which is always great for my inner thighs. Sitting a lot plus lots of food and drinks=HOTNESS. NOT.

Well here are some pics of their stay.

Womo

2009-08-20T20:28:00.000-04:00

If you have not noticed; I am fascinated with unique & modern packaging design.

This company has some amazing packaging! I LOVE the bright colors and simple labels. I am sad they are not in the US, only Spain. I would love to display the candy jars in my kitchen. Some people like to display flour, sugar and noodle containers on their countertops; I would like to display loads of awesome looking candy that no one can eat, only look at and maybe touch on occasion.

Back To School

2009-08-18T22:28:00.000-04:00

It is that time of year and any parent who has school aged kids knows that back to school shopping can be a major pain. I am such a procrastinator; I have waited till the last week to do all of Jordan's clothes shopping.

We decided that this evening would be the last day we could do it, due to my brother visiting last weekend and leaving yesterday and Ryan leaving tomorrow for New Orleans for business till this Saturday. The child starts school on Monday. Yeah I know; Bad Mommy!

We decided that since we live in Florida that we mostly just need to buy plenty of shorts and short sleeved shirts. Little did I know that stores here; such as Gap, tend to carry the same style of clothing that appeals to the rest of the country that sees Winter. Do they not stop and think that it doesn't even get chilly here until Nov? And when I mean chilly I mean high 60's.

We go into Gap and all they have for back to school clothes are long sleeves, jeans and fleece pullovers. Where in the damn are the shorts and regular clothes that all of us shopping at this mall or in the entire state will ever need for the next 3 months. If I put my child in these clothes he would be dying of heat and I would probably get a call from Child Services.

We ended up finding a couple of polos in the sale section from their summer collection. We had to go to several different stores looking for Summer clothes, and no such luck. I am curious what other parents are thinking or what they did. I think I might ask some moms when I drop him off on his first day if they know a store that keeps secret summer clothes.

Anyway, I spoke about this for way too long and this was not what this post was suppose to be about.

I wanted to talk about how sad I am about him starting school. Since this is kinda my online journal I thought it would be appropriate.

Jordan, I love you so freaking much and as I am so excited for this milestone. I am also very sad to let go of you. I know it is only Preschool and it is only 3 hours a day, but never again will you be able to hang out with me all day. Never again will you or I be able to sleep in until 11:30am cause we stayed up late playing Nick Jr online or watching Noggin till 2am. I hope you love your school and make lots of friends.

I remember like it was yesterday; looking at him so small and perfect and thinking someday that I will be picking him up from school and it seemed like forever away. I am now living what I couldn't even imagine 4 years ago.

I will post pics of his first day on Monday.

Chocophilia Drinking Chocolate

2009-08-13T19:16:00.000-04:00

Flat graphics and rich colors differentiate this brand from their hot chocolate competitors: a category which surprisingly remains overrun with poor design solutions.

I think these would be perfect Christmas gifts.

You can check them out here.

What to Say

2009-08-11T18:43:00.000-04:00

I am trying to think of something to blog about; I keep starting to write something but then delete it and start over. So I thought I would just write about what is on my mind as of late.

I have not felt in the mood to do anything lately except be with my family and think about how grateful I am to have the people that I love and love me in my life. It's sad that something tragic has to happen for people to realize how important family and friends really are. Nothing is important or truly matters in life except the ones that are the closest to us. We stress about the dumbest stuff and take for granted what really matters most in life.

As I type this I am holding back tears for what I am about to tell you.

We got a text yesterday afternoon from Ryan's older sister telling us that her boyfriend and 2 of his family members left for a fishing trip 3 days ago and still have not returned. They were flying in his private plane from Idaho to Washington and were suppose to be back on Sunday. When there were no sign of them the family became worried and called search and rescue.

We searched online for hours trying to get up to date info and kept calling family asking if they have heard anything that we could not find online yet.

We heard that they spotted the plane but were unable to get within 1000 feet due to the rough terrain. At this point, we are all coming up with our own scenarios. We were thinking that the engine went out and they coasted down into a bunch of trees; escaping with only minor injuries and were on their way looking for help.

This was killing us not knowing more. Hours later we got a call from Ryan's mom saying that they were able to get to the plane with an ATV and confirmed that there were 3 bodies. This is the absolute worst thing to ever hear. Ryan is bawling and I am bawling and our boys are scared; we don't know what to do or say and we feel completely helpless being so far away.

You can see the report here

Our hearts go out to the families and we know that words can not describe how they feel.
Kir, please know that we are mourning with you and know that this has deeply affected us. We love you!

Please appreciate your loved ones, because you never know when they will be taken from you.

Watermelon Bars

2009-08-05T21:46:00.000-04:00

These creamy bars are just the thing to serve after a meal cooked on the grill. Made with watermelon, lemon juice and cream, they're served chilled and are perfectly complimented by a dollop of whipped cream or a dusting of confectioners' sugar.

ingredients

1 box round vanilla wafers (12 oz.), finely ground
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
5 cups watermelon juice (from about 1/2 of a large watermelon)
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest (from 1 lemon)
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (from 2 large lemons)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
4 packets of gelatin
1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar or 1 cup whipped cream, for garnish

directions

step 1 Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 13-by-9-inch baking pan with foil, leaving a 2-inch overhang on the long sides of the pan. Spray the foil with cooking spray.

step 2 Mix the melted butter into the finely ground vanilla wafers and add 2 Tablespoons of water. Mix well and press the crumbs onto the bottom of the prepared pan, forming a crust. Bake the crust for 20 minutes and allow to cool.

step 3 Set aside 2 cups of the watermelon juice in a small bowl. In a large bowl, combine the remaining 3 cups of watermelon juice with the lemon zest, lemon juice, sugar and heavy cream.

step 4 Sprinkle the gelatin over the reserved 2 cups of watermelon juice. Allow to sit for 2 minutes so that gelatin can dissolve and begin to absorb liquid, or "bloom." After the gelatin blooms, heat it in the microwave for 2 minutes on high, or heat gently in a small pot over low heat on the stove top, until the gelatin has completely melted into the juice and the liquid is smooth.

step 5 Add the watermelon juice with the melted gelatin to the larger bowl of juice from Step 3. Stir to combine. Gently pour the mixture over the prepared crust from Step 2 and place in the freezer for 2 hours or until the mixture is firm. (Alternately, place the pan in the refrigerator and allow to set for 3 to 4 hours.)

step 6 Keep in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Before serving, cut the watermelon bars into squares. If desired, sprinkle each serving with confectioners' sugar or a dollop of whipped cream.

chef's notes

To make watermelon juice, simply place the watermelon cubes in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Strain the mixture with a strainer into a bowl.

Enjoy!

I can't work during Shark Week

2009-08-04T23:08:00.001-04:00

I don't know why, but I am obsessed with shark week. You would think that I would not want to watch it, since we live by water and sharks. It is just so fascinating to watch these huge scary meat munching things of the sea, swimming around lookin to much someones lunch.

Last night it came on right when we were about to turn the TV off and head to bed. I couldn't just turn the TV off knowing that it was on, so I decided to watch it in our bed with our boys. The whole time I am saying "OMG, that thing did not just flip up in the air; trying to eat that fake Sea Lion". It was freaking the boys out, but we couldn't stop watching. We stayed up till 2 am watching this. Poor Ryan, he just rolled over and went to sleep, since he is the only one in the family that has to get up early for a thing called "WORK".

The next morning I turned on the TV (even before I turned on the coffee pot, so you know this is serious) and they were talking about "How to lower your risk of getting bite by a shark"
I had to watch this since we live by water and I fear this every time we go to the beach.

They were saying that there are 3 things you can do to prevent being a target.

1. Never swim by the sand bar because that is where bull sharks love to feed.
2. Never swim with your dog in the water, because the dog paddle attracts them. I guess it looks like something is in distress.
3. Don't wear jewelry while swimming. It reflecks in the water and looks like fish.

I was shocked to find this out! Because I do all of these things.

1. We always swim with the kids to the sand bar because we can stand up and that is where we catch the sand dollars.
2. We don't have a dog to swim with, but I only seem to know how to swim like one. Is there another way of swimming? I thought doggy paddle was the only cool way to swim!
3. I never think to take off my jewelry when hitting the beach. I mean I don't wear a lot, but I do have a belly ring to thin the look of my belly and a toe ring cause I have worn it since I was 1o.

So I guess by my habits I am a perfect target for shark lunch. I might stay out of the water for a bit.

Night

NOLA Cafe

2009-08-01T15:35:00.001-04:00

I am happy to have just found out that there is a Cafe in S. Tampa dedicated to New Orleans food. NOLA Cafe. I am so excited to try this place out. They have everything that I miss and crave so often. Everything from beignets to po boys. We will be checking it out tomorrow and I will give an update soon. If you have not visited or tried food from New Orleans then you are missing out.

Sprinkles and Woman Nails

2009-08-01T11:43:00.000-04:00

I love that I finally have a blog and that I have been pretty good at blogging regularly. I do not keep a journal and I feel guilty every other day for not keeping track of our kids lives and the cute and funny things they do. So this blog will have to take that place.

I wanted to hurry and write this before I forgot.

Our boys are HILARIOUS!! Within the last 24 hours our boys have said some pretty funny things that I think will be told over and over again.

Jordan goes up to Ryan and asks if he had to go to work tomorrow, Ryan respondes with "Yeah I have to work everyday. If I don't work we won't have any food or be able to live here, so we would be living on the street." Jordan has a look on his face like he is really sympathic and Ryan was waiting for him to say "okay dad" but instead, this is what he said in a really soft tone "oh dad, all I really care about are toys and treats!" Ryan looks at me and can't help but laugh. So funny how he doesn't care if he lives in a condo or that he has food; all he cares about are "Toys and Treats".
We were having a ticklefest with the boys on the couch. We all take turns holding each person down while we all go to town tickling them. After the fun was all over and everyone regained themselves from the fest Jordan says " Hey mom, you scratched me with your WOMAN NAILS". Priceless
Yesterday morning, I was playing with Nolan on our bed and I was looking at his STILL chunky thighs and I noticed that he had a little freckle on his thigh. "What is that" I asked and he replied with "It's a sprinkle, I got it from the mall". I was laughing so hard I had to text Ryan at work. The more I thought of it the more I thought was funny was his reaction. He acted like he had seen it before and that was nothing new. I wonder if the first time he saw it he thought "Oh I have a sprinkle, I must have gotten it from the mall".

So there you have them. Feel free to comment or laugh away.

Gotta run heading to the gym and the daycare closes soon.

Help Remedies

2009-07-29T22:35:00.000-04:00

I was looking for unique Gourmet Food products and I stumbled across a site called Lovely Package. They have the most modern unique package designs I have ever seen. The products vary from Food to Soap. I have included a sample of what I am talking about. The look alone makes me want to buy them all. Now that I think about it I am getting a headache.

Peach Napoleons

2009-07-29T17:00:00.000-04:00

This looks amazing! Next time we entertain I will be making these for sure. Yum Yum!

Peach Napoleons with Sugared Wonton Wrappers
adapted from Quick Fix Meals

Serves 4

cooking spray
12 wonton wrappers
2 tablespoons sugar
1 cup fresh prepared sweetened whipped cream
2 fresh peaches, cleaned and thinly sliced
1 tablespoon powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 400F. Coat a large cooking sheet with cooking spray.

Lay the wonton wrappers on the prepared sheet in a single layer. Lightly spray the tops with cooking spray. Sprinkle sugar evenly over the wrappers.

Cook in the preheated oven for 5 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven.

To arrange, place four of the wonton wrappers on a serving plate or on individual dessert dishes. Top each wonton with 2 tablespoons of the whipped cream, followed by 1/4 of a peach. Top with a second wonton wrapper. Repeat layer with 2 tablespoons whipped cream and 1/4 of a peach. (For a total of half a peach for each dessert.) Top with the remaining wonton wrappers.

Sift powdered sugar over the tops and serve.

Pizza Pizza

2009-07-28T21:59:00.000-04:00

Today I came across a post by one of my fav bloggers and she posted her dinner from the night before. It was homemade pizza and it looked amazing! So today I decided that I would try and make my own; using only whole wheat flour and fresh ingredients. I think it came out pretty well. I had enough dough to make two thin crust pizzas and cheese sticks for the boys. They loved dipping them in the pizza sauce. The second pizza ended up looking like a heart.

Real or Fake?

2009-07-24T13:11:00.000-04:00

I came across this the other day and I thought it was awesome, so I had to share. What do you bet that this will become trendy? I honestly would rather carry this around instead of the yucky total fake Chanel bags that you can purchase at the mall. Now that is embarrassing.

They can eat

2009-07-22T14:01:00.000-04:00

I am wondering if it is normal how much my boys eat. I swear they are asking to eat or drink every hour. This can be pretty frustrating when I am trying to work. To tell you a little more about what they can eat; my 2 year old can eat 4 scrambled eggs at once and then ask for more. We go to McDonald's and I order the 10 piece chicken nuggets and that is only enough to feed one of them and they are still asking about fries, apple dippers, drink and frosty (yeah they don't understand that you have to go to Wendys for that). I get them popsicles and they each want their own box, because they know they will run out in two days if they share.
This can be pretty expensive, so thank goodness that I am a bargain shopper. (while I write this, my 2 year old is calling me a doggy and trying to feed me wet popcorn from his mouth.YUM!)

Here are a few pics of the little stinkers eating their own pushup pops. Notice the floor of noodles? This was from their previous mid afternoon snack to hold them over before snack time. Hope you like:)

Saying Goodbye

2009-07-16T12:33:00.000-04:00

We dropped my little brother off at the airport yesterday afternoon. He had been staying with us for the summer to help with the kids, so I could launch my business. The 3 months went by way too fast and I did not get nearly as much stuff done as I was hoping for. And now he has headed back home. We will miss him lots! He was a great help and very patience with them.

It was so heart wrenching, because I did not think or prepare myself for what this would do to the boys. They were devastated! Not only did little hottie N think that he was going with him on the plane, he prepared himself at home beforehand . He packed his little Kung Fu Panda backpack with rollers and he made sure to include a few toys and an extra pacifier. (no way he is traveling anywhere without a passpee!) The child was planning on leaving us and heading to Utah with my brother! We arrived at the airport and got my brother all checked in and all the while N is as happy as can be, cause he thinks that he is getting on a plane real soon. We get to the part where we have to say our goodbyes' and N goes "bye mom". So I tell him that he is staying with mommy and he says " No, I going with Chris" with a big smile. It was so hard to tell him no and hold him with his panda pack while we saw him go through security. That is when the extreme screaming started. Jordan was cool as ever and I was appreciating his "toughness".
I tried to lighten the mood by saying we should go watch him leave on the shuttle since this is their fav part of the airport. We waved our last goodbyes' until we could no longer see him. I look over and "tough" J is bawling! Now I have two bawling children and people are looking at me like I just pinched them or something. Little hottie J goes "moms don't let uncles leave". I felt like crying now! Not only do I not have someone to help with them right now, I am sad to have a family member go and I realized that I am gonna have to carry both to the parking garage and one is wearing a panda pack.
I ended up getting them Mcdonalds and everyone suddenly was happy again. I love how food can change your mood like that!

Seattle

2009-07-14T17:39:00.000-04:00

Love this from Ork Posters! Thinking about getting for Ryan's office. Wonder if I should do the poster or the screen print. If they don't have your city listed, check back because they are adding more soon!

Pics from Month trip to NOLA May 2009

2009-07-14T17:08:00.000-04:00

Family Portraits

2009-07-14T16:59:00.000-04:00

Pictures courtesy of Jenni Howell Photography. Thank you Jenni! You are so talented! We love them!

I have been meaning to do this for years

2009-07-14T16:44:00.000-04:00

I have started a couple different blogs, but have not done anything with them after the first post. I seem to forget the login/password and even the site I signed up with. So I am making it a goal to blog weekly. I will be writing it on my daily to do list.

I have had many people ask if I have a blog, so they can be updated with pictures. So I will be starting out with posting a lot of pics and as I get comfortable I will write more.