The Wiggles Live

Well, I haven't posted here in a while and I have to apologize. I know I need to make time to put my ridiculous ramblings back on here even if only a few people read them. I still think I am funny, and I love looking back at all the old posts.

So, for my first post back I will tell you about our trip last week to the Wiggles Live. I get pre-sale tickets for all the kids shows in Pittsburgh, so we had 10th row seats for this puppy! It was great, but I should tell you...... I love the stinkin Wiggles. I sing their songs, I do the dances.... if you know me in real life you know that its not a stretch to say that I am a ham. I don't embarrass easily (that comes from falling constantly --- you just get over the embarrassment when people laugh at you and learn to embrace it as a good thing).

So, back to the Wiggles Live.... we didn't take Lauren because we were fearful that one of us would end up standing outside. These shows can be a little intimidating for kids --- the people in costumes are huge and its dark and loud ! So, we decided to leave her with her Auntie Dawn for the show!

MJ loved it, she did all the dances and sang all the songs she knew!
But the best part of the show --- and any Mom who has kids who watch this show will tell you --- is ANTHONY -- purrrrrrrrrrrrr. This man is a goof, but HELLO~ he is a hottie ! Now, I don't know if he is really hot or I have been forced to watch this show so much that I have just found the least hideous of the crew to drool over. But over time, I have built Anthony up to be quite the hottie in my mind --- so whichever it is, works for me !

Overall, a very entertaining show.... they throw in alot of humor for the adults which I love! Like things you know weren't supposed to happen but they did just to mess with each other.

I don't know if MJ will be too old for the Wiggles next time they come or not, but I know I will get to see that Anthony Wiggle at least one more time with Lauren --- WHOO HOOO for me :)

LIVE from MYRTLE BEACH---- it's us!

Hey there, hi there, ho there---- thought I would upload some pics from our Myrtle Beach VAY KAY!!! Enjoy!

Kyle giving MJ a Skim board lesson--- she didn't do too bad!

Ripley's Aquarium! Look out!

Lauren and MJ enjoying the fishies :)

Lauren watching MJ on the Merry-go-Round!

MJ went CRAZY for these little cars, and begged to ride them twice :)

Gettin all proud and stuff

Ok, I took this picture the other morning. I woke during a lightning storm, and I just stood on my porch watching the sky light up in amazement. Then I thought, "I wonder if I can snap a picture of this!"

Sure enough --- this is what I caught. It only took me about twenty pictures to get it!

And, yes... I am quite proud!

One last picture

I have one last picture of the girls' from when we had our outting last weekend. Kelly and I inadvertantly switched our pictures, so for a week now I have had pictures of Roman and Kailey here and she had pictures of Madelyn and Lauren.


Yesterday, we switched back. So, now I can share this little gem!

I have been pretty busy. We are trying to get our house in order (ROFL, ROFL) so that we can switch the bedrooms. Mike is busy cleaning out my mess in the basement. I am busy cleaning upstairs - basically our third bedroom (which used to be my office) is now a storage room. I am such a packrat, but mostly I am afraid to let go of things. I don't know where it comes from but seriously, I probably have clothes here that would NEVER fit me now. Mike is the same way. Most of his stuff is sentimental - notebooks from school, baseball cards, trophies. Some of mine is sentimental, but some of it is not and it just needs to go. We have some of our crap stored up at my sister in laws because we didn't have enough room to store it here when we moved. ... that's how much crap we have!

Well, we are doing an amazing job cleaning this stuff out - I can't wait to get the girls' moved up into their new room! Then they can have a little play room down here, and some of the shit can get the hell out of my living room! It's just so time consuming. I get frustrated that it's taking so long - but progress is a good thing!

Me and My Gang!

Check out Lauren's face - she's like why am I here with these wackos?

Some good times with good friends :)

Need I say more????

My rambling...

Ok, well it has been an eventful week in our house. First off, Lauren now has FOUR - yes, you read correctly - FOUR teeth. Two on the bottom and two on the top ! Holy crap. She is pretty pleasant but slobbering like crazy! She is also up on all fours and rocking. I think its absolutely hysterical that she doesn't sit on her own unassisted for more than a minute, but she is going to be crawling around within the next few weeks. She really gets going! I will see if I can get a video of it today, but here is a picture :)

On to Madelyn... well, we had a visitor on Sunday night - the 'dinky' fairy came to take her 'dinkies' away. We left the dinkies for her on the table and she took them, and left a present for MJ! She was excited for the present, but cried for the dinkies for over an hour. She actually said to me at one point, "Call her and tell her to BRING THEM BACK!" - then random waking up in the night crying and screaming for them!

Talk about a trauma! If you know me in real life, you know I DIDN'T WANT TO GIVE HER A PACIFIER FROM THE JUMP. But my doctor told me it has benefits, blah - blah - blah! I knew I should have tried to take it away before she turned two, but honestly - being pregnant, I was thinking about other things. I also thought how can I take it away, then introduce a new baby with one into our home. So, I put it off - mistake !!!! I should have just taken the damn thing away before she could tell me how much she loves it!

So the last few nights in our house have been ****H E L L**** Last night was a little better, but I think its because she took NO nap yesterday. Eh, lesson learned! Here are her last moments with the dinkies :)

Mike and I got to go out to dinner by ourselves Sunday night -which rarely happens. My mom watched the girls' and we got to eat a nice hot meal :)

Now the week has started and I am just trying to patiently wait for the QOTC winners to be announced :) I am working two days this week in addition to my evening classes ! So getting things prepared is taking some time also. But I am keeping busy, and thats a good thing :)

Damn skippy

A new post to thank Cheryl for her incredible birthday gift in my pyzam widget at the top of my blog. She left me a lawn chair and referenced the best game ever! Now, you didn't think I was really NOT going to post this picture did you.

Baking Christmas Cookies - my favorites

So, last night Maddie and I talked and decided it was time to bake the Christmas cookies. Typically every year in our house, we don't eat them, so they end up going to waste. I try to give them away, but everyone I know bakes too.

Regardless of whether or not they go to waste, we are baking every year. It is just a tradition, and I am going to keep it.

I will post pics or a scrapbook page of the bake-fest later! For now, I have to clean and clean and clean some more. Plus, there is laundry, naps and all that goes along with having two youngins.

So here are my favorite Christmas cookies to bake.

Buckeyes

Combine in a bowl:

1/2 c. butter melted

1-1/2 c. creamy peanut butter

4 c. confectioners sugar (powdered)

1 tsp. vanilla

(consistency will be grainy)

Roll into balls and place on wax paper in the fridge for 30 minutes.

In a double boiler (or you can use a metal bowl over a pot of water), you combine:

2-1/2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

and 2 tbsp. shortening.

Over medium heat, mix with a fork until smooth

Remove balls from fridge and use a toothpick to pick up them up, and dunk them into the melted chocolate. Leave a spot, so they look like a real buckeye!

Re-place on wax paper.

Continue and then re-refridgerate overnight.

My mom's EASY CHOCOLATE CHIPS

Combine in a bowl,

1/2 c. oil

2 eggs

1 tbsp. water

1 box of yellow cake mix

1 bag of chocolate chips

Use a baller to place dobs on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake at 325º for 10-12 minutes.

Peanut Butter Cookies

1 c. peanut butter

1 c. butter

1 c. sugar

1 c. brown sugar

2-1/2 c. flour

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

2 eggs

Combine all ingredients in a bowl, and roll into balls and place on a cookie sheet.

Bake at 350º for 12-15 minutes.

Press hersheys kiss or m&m in the center of the cookie while still warm.

Pumpkin Roll

3 eggs

1 c. sugar

2/3 c. pumpkin

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. salt

1 c. flour

Combine above ingredients. Grease pan with shortening. Press into pan a piece of greased wax paper. Pour cake ingredients onto wax paper and Bake 15 minutes at 375º. While still hot flip it onto a dish towel covered with powdered sugar and roll it up. Let it cool that way (this is how it will stay closed later!)

Make the filing.

8 oz. cream cheese

3 tbsp. margarine

1 tsp. vanilla

1 c. powdered sugar

When cake has cooled completely, unroll it, take out the towel, put in the filing evenly and roll it back up. Refridgerate!

Soft Sugar Cookies

3 c. flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

2 eggs

1 c. margarine (two sticks)

1 c. sugar

Mix flour, baking powder and baking soda. Separately combine the butter, eggs and sugar.

Now add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and fold together.

Roll with flourered rolling pin out onto a floured board. Cut with cutters and bake at 375º for about 7 minutes.

Decorate individual cookies with frosting, colored sugar or candies.

Professional pictures of the family

I got our actual pictures back from JCP today, not the crappy online ones. I know they CAN use a higher resolution, they just choose not to, so rude! Anyway, so I can officially upload them to you and show you what they really look like instead of the blurred version you got a week ago.

Here they are... drumroll please!

Our characature from the Christmas party!!

I had to share the picture that was drawn of Maddie and I at the Christmas party on Saturday. Her little face is so adorable in it... and I think it really looks like her ! Me, well... I should have tipped the girl more! I wish that is what I looked like that early in the morning. on the Saturday after the biggest sha-bang surprise birthday bash! She made me look like a news anchor or some shit... but I ain't complainin!

Eek! Two major milestones in one little weekend!

Oh, as if the weekend wasn't busy and exciting enough.... on Friday Lauren rolled over. Boy, does she get pissed once she is over though! She is just like, "I am here... now what?"

Secondly, MY BABY HAS TEETH! Two sharp little nubbies came in today on the bottom. Well, for as big as they are we didn't even know! We were eating dinner and she was smiling at me from her little seat on the floor. I thought I saw some white on her gums, so I stuck my finger in there and there they were! I know they weren't through yesterday because she was chewing on my hand during the Christmas party.

I tried to get a picture of the two white spots, and this is the look she gave me......

So young, and already giving me attitude! Look at her little pursed lips. She is just thinking, "Yea right mom!"

WOW - or should I say WAW!

W hat A W eekend !

The party went off without a hitch! I can now blab that for a few months now my sister in law and I have been planning a surprise 60th birthday party for my father in law! He was shocked, and everyone came and it was amazing. We had his senior picture from high school put on the cake (which was awesome - whipped cream icing kicks ass in a big time way). The food was great (and there was enough, which was a worry of ours). People came who haven't seen my father in law in years, and he was just tickled.

I spent the last three weeks or so making a scrapbook of his life. It ended up being two entire 20 page books (plus a refill kit for the book - so, about 50 pages or so!) Everyone loved it, and I was so happy. I worked SO freakin hard on this thing for ENTIRE DAYS and filled ENTIRE WEEKS! It is so nice to feel like they understood the hard work, and thoughtfullness that went into. Truly, there aren't too many people I would do that for, my father in law is just one of them. He is just a hell of a guy, and there aren't too many words in the English dictionary that can describe him. You just have to know him. He, my mother in law and my sister in law loved the scrapbook so much, they cried- which made me feel great! That was the reaction I was looking for.

Today was the Mike's work Christmas party which is mostly for kids (but it is INCREDIBLE!)... I should mention that my father in law works there as well, so we went to this party even before Mike started there. Santa Claus comes and there are jugglers, clowns, magicians, balloon animal makers, face painters, spin art, mimes, marionettes... just about everything a kid could want to do ! For adults, they have a free chair massage on each floor of the building, so there is never more than one person in front of you. They have handwriting analysis, a craft show, an amazing lunch and characture artists . I just can't begin to describe it!

So, Maddie gets her first shot at Santa Claus, who she finally understands this year. He came around the corner, and her face just lit up like a Christmas tree and she screams "Merry Christmas!" So adorable. She sat on his lap, and said, "nice a meet you!". He asked her what she wanted for Christmas, and even though she is able to rattle off a list to me, she goes, "toys!". He said, "Oh, ok, anything in particular?" ... she says, "no... just toys". I cracked up, poor thing just froze. I imagined in my head A CHRISTMAS STORY where the kid just nods and says 'Yea, a football" when he really wants the bb gun! Thank goodness there was no slide!

I will post some more pictures tomorrow. But here are a few of my favorites from the weekend!

Christmas pictures and PARTY TIME!

Well, we got the girls Christmas pictures back from JCP. They are so cute, but I am biased! We also got a few of the whole family! I like them, but I usually don't like pictures of myself. Here are my favorites

So, now that its like 5pm on Friday... ITS PARTY TIME!

Pictures to follow... lets hope for a big surprise :)

Funny joke I had to share.....

And for my daily Cleveland visitors, I bring you a joke :)

Ahem.

How do you get a Cleveland Brown to stop masterbating????


You paint his dick black and gold, and he will never beat it again!

Jack Lambert and Donnie Shell tackling Calvin Hill of the Cleveland Browns.

Get this beautiful print here.

I wonder........

Not that I care AT ALL, but I wish those of you who read this blog would at least leave a little hello, how are you comment or something behind. I find it a little un-nerving to think that strangers are reading my ramblings and not even saying so much as 'hey your daughters cute' or 'you are kind of funny sometimes'. My regular visitors, or my friends in real life comment to me personally on things I have posted or pictures, scrapbook pages and whatnot. But if I don't know you, PLEASE stay but leave me a little note! I know that some people whom I don't know personally are reading or at least visiting here and my Myspace. Believe me, I don't mind at all. I just wish they would speak. I am a very friendly person... truly!

Now that THAT is out, moving on to lighter subjects.

Here are some cute pictures of Lauren and Madelyn from today.

We brought the Jumperoo down from upstairs this past weekend, and I have been putting her in it a few minutes a day. Today was the first day she jumped for real, but only once... then her head started boinging around and she was more interested in eating and sucking on the seat. We think she is getting a tooth because it is hella drool-central over here!
This is Maddie's crazy curly hair after her bath tonite. So crazy, but I love it. I am seriously never cutting her hair because I am afraid the curly hair will go away!

Oh, and yesterday I was going through some pics and I found one of me and Kelly the very first time we met ! Here is us with the kids
Oh how I love my buds!

Speaking of.... I get another night away. Seriously, some of you reading this will be like...say what? But this never happens... Tuesday was the first night I was ever away from my kids. But I will be going tomorrow night to the Seafood Buffet at Seven Springs with my girls from college ! Oh, I can't wait. This crew is a rowdy bunch (well, I am probably one of the rowdiest, but I digress!). Should be a blast! Will post pics when I get back, of course.

Oh, I forgot. I attempted cereal with the Little One tonite. Interesting attempt.... here is the look she gave me. I guess we will be waiting a little longer on that !

Talk soon !