i hate it when...

...my age (32) is higher than my birthday date (30). I have decided today I am pretty much almost 40.... today I turned 32. 32 is almost 35. 35 is "mid thirties" and mid thirties is just a blink away from the big 4-0. So today, I am pretty much 40....(maybe I am getting more dramatic with age...)

My husband has informed me that he is still pretty much 25 since he is still 31 until September... He says 31 is almost 3o. 30 is still so close to 20s that he is still "young" and "spritely" and pretty much still 25. Nice. Well Mr. 25, I think that makes you married to a "Cougar"! hahah!

I joke, I joke. I feel so blessed to have lived such an amazing 32 years. I truly think I have the best husband, kids, family and friends (but I am only probably slightly biased). Today was so relaxing and wonderful and I will even probably be in bed by 10pm. My how birthdays have changed.

packing to go to the beach for 10 days with 2 kids and a husband... I might as well be going for the whole summer (no mom and dad this is not a hint)... I think we've pretty much got everything but...

No, sadly that is not my kitchen sink... but I wish it was! ha.

Can't wait for some beach time!

so you think you can dance

Is it me or do you feel like when you watch the beginning of So You Think You Can Dance "Janey and Jeff" are totally going to come out and shake their groove thangs. It takes me back to a special little place called Dance TV. You know... from every girls favorite flick of the 80's, Girls Just Want To Have Fun. I swear every time this show starts I wait with bated breath for Janey (Sarah Jessica Parker) and Jeff ("what's his name?"--pretty sure he realized he reached the pinnacle of his career with this hit and future appearances were limited to a cameo here and there) to come in stage left and rock it out.

Another mindless rambling from me.

i know i can

I hope this doesn't come across as sarcastic but I truly feel so blessed to be the mother of not one but two "spirited" children. Spirited children are typically:

• intense (check),


• persistent (double check- mommy can i have a cookie, mommy can i have a cookie, mommy, how about now, can i have a cookie, now? No. No. and No.),


• slow to adapt (1/2 check- I can't tell if I made him a routine freak or if it is his personality- so I will take 1/2 credit for that- despite contrary believe, I am reasonable like that!) and


• energetic (double check).

My boys are strong willed for sure but I wouldn't want it any other way...mix "spirited" with a little bit type A and you have a highstrung perfectionist budding four year old. Good thing for that second cup of coffee because today I had to give my first "we don't say can't in this house" speech... I hope he took away from my rant that we don't throw baseball bats when we don't like our hit and we never say "I can't". I sometimes let my imagination get the best of me and might have saw him throw his bat today and flashed forward to a 5th grade little league game filled with swear words, bat throwing and some stomping off the field. Whilst on my soap box, I am sure I sounded like such a nerd (oh gosh, i hope the neighbors weren't listening). It's a good thing my three year old can't laugh in my face yet.

I really just hope he understands that we always try our very best and feel good that we did even if we don't get the outcome we wanted. Oh and I am sure, I threw in a "quitters never win and winners never quit" (cause I am sure as a 3yr. he can totally understand that!) I don't ask much... maybe I should add "always try your best" to these three others. Tomorrow we will break out The Little Engine That Could to reiterate the point but I wish I could play him this song that I heard at the gym today. It's on my iPod. Don't judge.

There's always gonna be another mountain
I'm always gonna wanna make it move
always gonna be an uphill battle
sometimes I'm gonna have to lose

ain't about how fast I get there

ain't about what's waitin' on the other side
it's a climb.
-Miley Cyrus

Yes, you read that right, I just quoted Miley Cyrus.

2 cups

it's a two cup of coffee kind of day...

Mine won't look nearly as elegant and will probably be sipped inbetween "stop that" and "get in the car!"

Happy Wednesday!

'95% cured.'

I am happy to report I am 95% cured of my addiction to Jcrew. ;) Don't worry, I don't bring my kids to the store (well, except during the 5% of the time I am not cured) or shop online in front of them, so therefore it must be, 'ok', right. It surely means by the end of the summer I will be....Jcrew, who?

I joke, I joke.

could i consider it a veggie...

if it is covered in dark chocolate???? It probably can't be considered, a veggie can it... I just bought these DElish dark chocolate edamame at Trader Joes. They are quite yummy and I do believe that a soybean is a soybean (whether it is chocolate or not!) I might be justifying a bit, but if it comes to a cookie or a chocolate covered soy bean I bet that the latter is better for looking less like a beached whale in my swimsuit tomorrow. just sayin'.

What are your Trader Joe's faves? I need to branch out... I am getting to set in my Trader Joe's ways.

sun is out and...

we are pool bound! lunches are packed (pbj, cantelope, yogurts, pretzels), swimmies are packed, and we are excited for the pool!

best father's day gift...

our father's day gifts were totally trumped this year by.....

it has rained for seriously 16 out of the last 21 days. we have got 6 inches in May and almost 7 inches in June. I was going to build aj an ark for father's day but I couldn't find any dry wood. Thank God for the sun today!

happy father's day

happy father's day to all the daddies (I think my dad might be the only daddy that reads the blog, but that's why he is the best! ha ha!)

The kids made AJ a special Father's Day Golf Mobile and a subscription to a Golf Magazine... cause that's what this house needs is one more magazine!

happy

something about the smell of fresh basil makes me happy.

just thought you'd like to know.

Happy Friday.

tricked ya!

I was hesitant to post about this until I was certain I had truly fooled them! So far I have successfully added flax seed to three meals without hesitation from my already picky eater! Thomas, who would knock you over for a plate of peas, was as predicted, unphased. But Jack who picks apart his plate with a fork mulling over each piece was totally tricked! Well maybe he did say his eggs look dirty but whatever... he still ate them which means.... tricked ya! Really easy to throw into yogurt, sweet potato pancakes, muffins, cookies, scrambled eggs and the like.

I recently read an article in Parents magazine about Flax seed and it's benefits - dha (omega 3s), fiber, yada yada. I was initially concerned about Thomas getting enough of these after ditching the formula which has these vitamins in it... so this seemed like a good alternative to serving "pink chicken" (or salmon to the uncrazies) every day.

Coincidence that we read Sleeping Beauty before nap today (she was pricked by a piece of flax for those not up on their Disney reads..), I think not! Yes, I giggled a little as I read that part! Don't judge-- I know I need to get out more. It's cool.

takes the cake.

perhaps my husband drank too much last week on our wine extravaganza? Or maybe he has early case of dimentia or alzheimers or something (not that either of those are funny to joke about, but something ain't right and those seem like plausible causes at this point, if he were about 40ish years older). Long story short AJ's mom's bday gift was ready for pick up. AJ being the awesome husband that he is said he would pick it up on his way home from work. I call on the way home from the gym and said I can pick it up to which he replied, "Nope, I got it."

Fast forward to bday cake and present time tonight. Jack says, "let's give mom-mom her present! Let's give mom mom her present!" to which AJ responds, "Oh NO, I don't have it. I forgot it!?" Screech! (*that would be the sound of my brain coming to a halt!*) Switch! (*that would be my Irish temper switching on!) What does he mean he forgot it, I called to ask him if I should pick it up!? He didn't forget it, he's just joking. Surely, he is kidding... Hurry, quick, quick before I kill you say you are KIDDING! Maybe some of that was said outloud- you get to guess which part.

"Um so when I called to say I would pick it up and you said, 'nope I got it'... what in the world did you pick up... (please say diamonds... please say that purse I have been eyeing... for the sake of pete please make up something good...)
"Ohhhhh, I thought you meant the cake."
"Ahhh right, the cake... Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

Well this sure does take the cake. Boys, I love your dad, but he is in kahootz with you all to make my hair gray. What is that vitamin to enhance memories... ginkobilba or something? We need it, whatever it is.

throw a shrimp on the barbie

Tis the season for BBQ! Father’s Day is rapidly approaching and if it ever stops raining I know that our fam will likely be celebrating outside on the grill. (No one said Dad’s actually got to rest on Father’s Day, right? I joke, I joke, AJ will do plenty of relaxing on the golf course, I am sure) After all he deserves it ;).In an effort to ensure we are all eating some tastetastic BBQ I found these great tips from National Champion Pit Master Mike Davis of Lotta Bull BBQ. I am guessing he sports a title something along the likes of "Master BBQer" (just like you, Aje...only his title was actually given to him by someone other than himself! hah!) He published some tricks of the trade on how to keep your grill in high demand this Father’s Day and I thought I would pass along:

• When cooking larger cuts of meat, always use an indirect heat as a source. Using the direct heat method will char the outside of the meat without allowing the inside to cook properly.
• When grilling, use a "smoker" box of aromatic hardwoods such as mesquite, hickory or pecan to give that distinctive wood smoked flavor. **Note to self: Purchase a smoker box for Father's Day :)
• Use olive oil or any other cooking oil to coat the surface of vegetables to add crispness and to hold on spices and seasonings.
• Pay careful attention to pork and poultry when grilling, you must make sure both meats are properly cooked through.
• Just like I prepare for my competitions, frequent heartburn sufferers should come prepared to enjoy the foods you love and start your 14-day course of Prilosec OTC in advance of your BBQ event. **Note to self... purchase Prilosec OTC to put with smoker box for Father's Day... we are approaching our mid thirties you know...grey hair, hearing aids and heartburn are on the horizon. hah.

Mike's Basic BBQ Rub
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup turbinado sugar
1/2 cup paprika
1/3 cup garlic salt
1/4 cup kosher salt
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon black pepper

Who knows... maybe AJ will post with a few BBQ tips of his own!

happy birthday mom-mom

Happy Birthday Mom- Mom! We hope you have a happy day!

wine country

We had the BEST time visiting Sonoma with our friends Sare and Michael. I have not laughed this hard in a long time. My stomach muscles hurt. seriously. We tasted at so many great places. Just in case I want to revisit this post before the next time we go we really liked Hop Kiln, Harvest Moon, Talty, Jordan although I am not sure we really disliked any of them.

Here are our besties Sare and Michael (you totally made the blog! :))

All of us at Talty Vineyard.

And just for the record these pictures are ... not to scale (ahahah. you knew that would be in here somewhere.)

happy anniversary

Six years ago today.... I married my best friend. It was such a happy day with all of our family and friends there to celebrate. Happy Anniversary Aje! Thank you for always making me fall to the ground with laughter, our two precious boys and giving me the life I always wanted. Cheers to 50 more years together (yep, you read that right. FIFTY years! That's what you signed up for... ha ha).

I had hopes of posting a pic from our wedding (or at least the two of us) but I am still "roadblogging." Oh well. Maybe I will update.,.. if i remember... not a strong suit these days...

oh goodness, y'all

There is nothing more fun than spending time with good friends. And spending time with good friends who you haven't seen in fo-eva while partaking in some tasty adult bevs, and acting silly in sonoma, well, let's not kid ourselves --it's the best. Cheers to you sare, on your bday! (I wish I could post one of the 100 pics we took but I'm blogging from the road,cause - am a techie like that)

buns o steel

No joke if I lived in San Fran I would (be broke and) have buns o steel! Like bounce a quarter off my bum, buns o steal!! This place is sooooo hilly. I am sure they host a marathon here and I would love to meet the two people who run it! Surely all this hilly walking means that I can eat whatever I want and still fit in my dress for the wedding. In hindsight perhaps vacationing post wedding would have been better. Oops.

And so far my mom hasn't expelled the boys from Camp Nana so all is great! Jack even has a playdate with his buddy Gabe tomorrow!

missing my apendages already

I dropped the boys to my mom yesterday for Camp Nana. How is it that I was only 1exit away before I started missing them. Now I am sitting in the airport hot coffee and a pile of entertainment mags in hand staring a fab vacation in the face and all I can think about is that they are probably having their waffles and shows without me :(

Is it too early for a mimosa? Probably would get some weird looks,huh.

Ok, be good boys. Mommy loves you.

California here we come!

We are headed to San Fran! Yipppeee! Looking so forward to seeing my roomies from college (and of course their husband/fiances too!) Should be such a fun week wining and weddinging and wining and laughing and wining and catching up. I know I can't wait! Oh and did I mention, no KIDS! Despite Jack telling me at bedtime he is so excited for the wedding, he is going to get out his bowtie and church shirt and "special" sneakers - sorry dude, no dice, mommies and daddies only. Something tells me you will have just a little fun at Camp Nana.

what kind of person will you be today

The boys and I recently went to play at a little boy who is in Jack's class house. He is the youngest of 4 kids and we just really clicked - kids and moms. I think her kids are 12, 10, 8 and 4. It is so interesting to me to hear from veteran moms about how alike/different their children are, gender differences, etc. As I was leaving I saw a signed posted at kid eye level on their door saying, "What kind of person will you be today?" And I LOVED it. I hope I remember to do things like this when my kids are a little older. I think it is such a great reminder that the choices you make as a friend, student, son make you the person that you are.

Dear Husband and Kids,

Should you not be able to find me over the next few days, no, the giant pile of laundry at the top of the basement stairs has not eaten me, I will be here.
Cheers and happy shopping!

Summer time state of mind.

I've been tagged! This blogging world has been such fun! I never knew I would "meet" such fun people. Domestic Diva has tagged me for my Favorite things about summer! Which is hard to narrow down because I love me some summer time...

Summertime in CT... my favorite place to be. We head north to the beach for lots of bikerides, walks, rock skipping, blueberry picking, crab racing and seafood eatin'.

Dinners on the porch.

Flip flops, sundresses, sun kissed faces, pony tails and boat sails

Watching my kids play and swim and laugh and love every minute from dawn to dusk (literally... much to my dismay, we start at dawn chez P)

July 4th... everything about it - bbqs, parades, old friends and family fun. I might love July 4th more than Christmas :) (no joke)

Tag... you're it... Sippycups, The Company She Keeps, More more more, TCP