101 Update-long overdue!

I stink at updating my list!! I have actually not been slacking on checking items off the list, just reporting them out when I do. I'd prefer to do a post per goal, but since I have been lagging and haven't updated since {cough} January, I will sum it all up in one post!

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#28: Read 50 books- I read my 5th book on my way to my goal of 50. I actually polished it off in 2 flights when I went to California on business at the beginning of March. I read Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult. It was a great book, just like every other one I have read by her. In case you were wondering, {you know it has been burning in the back of your mind} I ditched that 700 and something page book that I got half way through (The Fountainhead). I did not like the book and was basically forcing myself to read it, so I decided it was ok just to put it down and walk away.

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#43- Teach Nathan all the countries of the world and their capitals- (1/193) Nathan learned the capital of America. Hey you have to start at home, right? He cracks me up when I ask him because the Washington part is a little slurred but he belts out the D.C. with authority!

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#50: Try 10 new restaurants- (7/10) When I first came up with this goal I thought it would apply to RI, but I went to 2 new places in San Francisco that were amazing so I am counting them in my list.

The first one was Anchor Oyster Bar in the Castro district. It is a tiny restaurant that seats 25 people (including the bar) and it had some of the best seafood I've had in a while. I went to lunch with my grandma, uncle and his girlfriend and we all loved our food. I shared with my grandma and we had prawn cocktail, a Caesar salad with the most delicious croutons and sole with a sun dried tomato aioli. Mmmm, I'm salivating just thinking about it.

The second one was Frantoio. It was the restaurant where my BIL's wedding reception took place. We started out with passed appetizers of scallops speared with lemongrass and polenta, cheese and spinach bites and mushroom crostini. The best part of the meal, though, was the pasta course. It was squid ink ravioli (sounded gross to me at first but it was to die for) stuffed with with day boat scallops with a white whine cream sauce. It was so good my hubby asked for another plate (piggy)!

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#79: Watch the sun rise 10 times- (2/10) The first one was also out west when we were in Washington, but this time I got to watch the sun rise over the mountains as we left at the crack of dawn for the airport to go home. You'd think being on the East coast, I'd easily polish this goal off, but since I am generally at my house, I can't see the sun til it is already up. I'll have to hit the beach early in the morning to catch the sun rising over the ocean.

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#86: Sing at a Karaoke bar- Yup, I did it and I did it SOBER. What? Who the heck does karaoke sober? Me, unfortunately. I'm sure I sounded like a dying cat, but I couldn't really hear myself. We went out to a Karaoke Bar called Mint for my now SIL's bachelorette party. It was the very end of the night when I got called so luckily the place wasn't packed to the gills with the ringers that sang earlier in the night!! In case you are wondering I sang Fiona Apple's song Criminal, and my rendition just might have been.

The happiest place on earth!

Welcome to part one of our trip! I will spare you the plane ride details, but I will say that Natey was so good we bought him dinosaurs when we got to my sister's house. Amen for that because mommy has been know to get a little batty dealing with Nate and daddy on cross country flights!

We spent 5 days in southern California. It was in the 70's and gorgeous the whole time. That is, until we woke up on Monday to get ready for Disneyland. It was raining. Not a downpour mind you, just some sprinkles. I checked the weather and, on 3 different sites, there was NO mention of said rain. We decided to go anyway and it was sunny and beautiful by the time we got there!

I grew up in So Cal so Disneyland has always been a favorite of mine. My mom took me for the first time when I was 2 1/2 and this ride was there. I have a picture of my mom and I on the Dumbo ride and I had to have one of me and Natey. He thought it was the best thing ever. He pretty much yelled "Weeeee" the whole time, and when it was over he kept saying, "more ride".

My niece Megan loved having her little cousin there. She was so good with Nate and he just ate her up. Every morning when he woke up (even after we got to San Francisco) he would ask, "Megan go?". She was a good sport in riding the kiddie rides too, since that's all we really went on. Oh and before you even judge ask, yes, that is a backpack leash he's wearing. Sorry, but my kid could double for speed racer, without the car, and I didn't want him taking off. My friend Darcy is shaking her head in shame right now, but I'm ok with it.

Of course Disneyland (and vacation for that matter) means getting to eat things that are normally on the no-no list. Meg had an ice cream sandwich and after one bite Natey couldn't get enough. He helped her polish it off before we got on my favorite ride of all time...Small World. They just re-did the ride so it is all sparkly and new, but it still brought me back to my childhood. Natey loved it and stared in awe at all of the dancing dolls. He kept pointing and asking, "What that one?" over and over again.

And what's a trip to Disney without getting your ears?? I had to distract him with goldfish to keep the hat on long enough to get some pictures. Sadly, he was housing them so fast, I couldn't get one without his hand in his mouth, but you get the point!

We saw all of the characters and Natey was so enamoured with Goofy. I, on the other hand, wanted to punch him in his over-sized head. He was walking and I asked him if we could take a picture and he just kept pointing in the direction he was going, so we followed. I noticed he was headed for the staff area and I was not letting him get away without a picture. He sat down next to a baby on a bench and totally ignored me. As soon as he stood up, I told him we were taking a picture and he managed to stand still for 2 whole seconds. We got the picture and that's all that matters right?? :o) We saw Mickey and Minnie but they were dancing so I just snapped a shot of them. And I'm not sure why that other random kid decided to be in our shot with Pluto, but hey, at least his face is covered. Oops, was that rude?

By 3pm, a tired toddler and a cranky mommy were ready to go, so we called it a day. It was so fun and went surprisingly well for Nate being so young. I can't wait for him to be old enough to take to Disney World. I loved spending the day with my sister and my niece. I had a pic with all of us in it, but I'm the only one paying attention and Kiersten would kill me if I posted it! Ha! You're welcome, sis!

Guess who's back?

Yes dear friends, I survived my vacation. I enjoyed 9 gloriously warm days in California and am now back to a cold and dreary New England Spring. Thanks for all of the words of support as I almost lost my mind packing. I did manage to get all 3 of us packed and the only casualty was my hair. I forgot my shampoo and conditioner. Luckily I used my sister's while in So Cal, and I bought conditioner in San Francisco, but then I couldn't find it and had a questionable doo for the wedding, but oh well. I wanted to post pictures today but I am still jet lagged all to heck so hopefully I can get to that tonight. I am glad to be back at home. I really feel like I need a vacation from my vacation, but I'm back at work today. I tried to keep up with everyone via my BIL's I-touch, but it was a pain to comment, so just know I read and sent out happy thoughts even if I didn't post them!

Here is a sneak peak of some of the family fun we had on our trip. And yes, a trip to Costco is considered fun in this family!!

Overwhelmed

Are you one of those super organized people? You know, the ones that are packed for vacations a week in advance. The kind of person that has their clothes, socks and underwear sorted by color? Someone who's house is spotless at all times? If you are, I loathe you so go away now...

We are leaving to go on our trip tonight. Well, technically our flight leaves tomorrow morning, but we are heading to Boston to stay with my BIL so we don't have to wake up at an even ungodlier (is that even a word??) time in the morning. I had such grand plans of having us completely packed by last night. I had a list all ready. Then I had a realization. The temperature where we live is hovering in the 40's-50's right now. Where we are going is in the upper 70's-80's and all of Natey's clothes that fit him are long sleeves. CRAP. Luckily I hit the sale racks at the end of the summer last year and got him some clothes, however, they are all 2T. More CRAP. My poor kid is going to be swimming in all of his clothes. I'm going to have to tie his shorts up with some string or something. Can you say, howdy Huck Finn? I put them all out to be packed anyway. i mean, what choice do I have? I'm not buying clothes that will fit him for 2 months. Let's hope they sorta fit him at least.

Oh and did I mention that I'm NOT PACKED YET??? CRAP again. I have all of Natey's clothes laid out and most of mine, but daddy decided to not pick up the dry cleaning yesterday and set his clothes out for me, so we have nothing in the suitcases yet. I couldn't really yell at him because I sorta forgot to wish him Happy Birthday before I left the house yesterday (yes, I suck). I couldn't call out of work because I had like 5 things to finish today. Let's just hope I can get out of here early and finish everything in time to head out.

I hate being a procrastinator, but I guess I'll work on changing that later. ;o) Wish me luck!!

I Heart {No flash} Faces!

The theme for this week at I heart faces is no flash. This concept has been hard for me to grasp since I live in crappy light for half of the year, but the pictures do come out so much better in natural light! My entry for this week is one I took of Natey on a beautiful fall day in his grandparent's back yard. He was mesmerized by the birds in the tree. This was pretty much the only time he sat still all day! Check out I heart faces for other awesome pictures!!

Not Me! Monday

I'm sick and tired of it all! No really, I am sick...and tired. I managed to get caught by that darned cold that was chasing me last week. I don't know why people say they catch a cold. I really feel like it's the other way around. Well, you'd think being laid up with a cold would prevent you from doing stupid stuff, but not this girl. Nope, not me!! I still managed to have my share of oops and uh ohs and I'd like to get them off my chest....as opposed to out of my chest, which is where I'd like this cold to go!! Head on over and visit MckMama for more not me Monday action and while you're there say a prayer for Stellan who is back in the hospital with heart problems.
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I have not already started writing a list for our trip to California. Seriously, it should not be this much of a production to be gone for 9 days. This list is not primarily dominated by my not yet 2 year old, and does not include items such as kiddie leash, hulk, and toilet seat.

I did not teach my son how to sing, "Shake, shake, shake. Shake, shake, shake. Shake your bootie", because it made me laugh watching him run in circles wiggling his bottom all around. It did not come back to haunt me in Target when he started yelling "shake your bootie" over and over again to the chagrin of a disapproving elderly lady.

I did not manage to finish 4 shirts, even though I felt like I was going to die. I am not so behind in my projects with a half done purse, 3 presents for people, and 2 more shirts that I need to finish by Thursday so I can get them sent out by Friday before we leave on our vacation! Nope, not me!! I always work through illness and laugh in the face of death to sew! I didn't make one of my favorite item thus far for Heather. It almost didn't happen either because of a misunderstanding on fabric!

What did you "not" do this week??

Just do it!

See this super cute boy?? You've seen him here before. Remember? I was spreading the word about helping him get his cochlear implants? Well, his mommy (El over at Profoundly Seth) wants to give back to us and also help some amazing charities at the same time.

You've probably seen the button in my sidebar by now, but in case you haven't clicked on it, why don't you give it a try. It's ok, I'll wait....

See, wasn't it worth the click??? Go on, donate to these wonderful causes and you may even end up with an awesome prize pack to show for your kindness!! Oh and don't lag procrastinators, you know who you are, because the winner is announced on Saturday the 28th!

Random Ranting

I don't often use my blog as a medium on which to complain, but I just feel overwhelmed today and maybe, if I get it all out, I'll feel better. So here goes...

Why is it impossible for my husband to find anything unless it is attached to a giant flashing neon sign??? Whenever he asks me where something is and says he has "looked" for it, I can pretty much guarantee I will find it in 2.5 seconds and it will have been RIGHT in front of his face.
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Speaking of husbands, here is the conversation we had last night (me in my craft room and him in the kitchen) and what it resulted in this morning:

DH: Honey can you do something for me?
Me: Sure, but you have to put the food away from dinner while I do it.
DH: Ok. {Sounds deceptively easy now doesn't it?}
Me: Can you put 1 1/2 enchiladas and a scoop of rice in a container for my lunch tomorrow.
DH: Why not 2 enchiladas?
Me: I already cut one in half for dinner so just put the other half in my lunch please. {What does it matter if I only want 1 1/2??}
DH: Ok. How many scoops of rice?
Me: Just one.
DH: Ok. {I imagine here he is scooping said rice into container.}

I finish the project and we head over to our family's house to deliver it. We get home, I'm exhausted and I put Natey down and watch some TV in bed before I fall asleep. I awaken this morning and go to put my nicely packaged lunch in my lunchbox.....

Me: Honey, where's the rice?
DH: Oh, shoot, I forgot to put it in.
Me: Seriously, where is it then?{what the HECK were you doing during that whole conversation last night?}
DH: I must have forgotten to put it away.
Me: So it is still in the rice cooker on the counter {checking}? Ugh!
DH: You can still eat it.
Me: Um, no, you can't still eat it after it has sat out.... all night... at room temperature. Can you say food poisoning?

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What is going on with my throat right now?? It doesn't hurt, but it feels like it is closing on me and there's a golf ball there every time I swallow. I can not get sick. I do not have the time and we are going on vacation in 9 days. It would be SO rude if I were to get sick right now because then Aaron will get it right in time for our trip.
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Natey, please stop hitting mommy in the freakin face!!!
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Automatic flushing toilet, please stop flushing while I am still peeing!! I promise you can flush when I'm all done.
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Work is on my last nerve right now. When am I going to have a boss??? It has been a year and a half since I had an actual boss and not some interim idiot who doesn't even know what I'm doing or how to guide me in any way shape or form! I'm about to pull my hair out.
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Ok, I'm sorry for all of that, but I do feel a little bit better. It seems kinda stupid now that I go back and read it, so I guess it put things in perspective if anything. I now return you to your regularly scheduled blogging.

Taste the Rainbow

I got this recipe from Steph over at Live.Love.Eat. She always has the best food on her blog. I tried this dish out on Sunday when the in-law's came over and it was a hit. Sorry, the picture is of the dish before it was cooked. Dinner was taking too long and I had to rush everything to the table so we could eat. Also, I'm sure my MIL would wonder why I was taking pictures of our food if I had!

Recipe:

2 tbsp olive oil (divided)
1 large sweet yellow onion cut in half and sliced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1-2 russet potatoes, unpeeled
1 zucchini
1 yellow squash
3 large Roma tomatoes
Sea salt, freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
Dried thyme, to taste
1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Coat a baking dish with olive oil cooking spray. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the onions & saute until translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic & cook for another 60 seconds. Spread the onion mixture on the bottom of the greased baking dish.

Slice the potatoes, zucchini, squash & tomatoes in 1/4 inch thick slices. Layer them alternately in the dish on top of the onions, fitting them into a spiral. Season with sea salt, black pepper & dried thyme, to taste. Drizzle the last tablespoon of olive oil over the top.

Cover the dish with tin foil & bake for 35 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. Uncover & sprinkle the Parmesan cheese on top & bake for another 25-30 minutes or until browned.
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My hubby didn't love the thyme, but I thought it was great. Maybe next time I will try rosemary to shush him. I also didn't have a large round baking dish so I cooked the onion and garlic in my cast iron skillet and then just put the veggies in on top and popped the whole thing in the oven. I didn't have to spray the dish with cooking spray since I had already cooked the onions in the oil. I followed Steph's suggestion of not standing the veggies too upright so the seasoning coats more of the veggies. My one suggestion would be to make sure you don't cut the potatoes too thick so they cook evenly. I had a couple in the dish that were slightly undercooked because of my slicing technique!

I loved this dish and it has definitely made it into the queue for dinners.