Current Mood:
Lovey
After our early evening shoutfest with Clare I was in the mood to just sit back and veg - aka be like a slug. My day started out early with Clare wanting to watch TV in our room, which was fine with me because I was still sleepy and slightly hung over. Yes, it was another cocktail night in the Eastowners abode last night. I went to turn the tv on, however with all the lovely wet snow we got last night there was no such luck in the tv realm as the satellite was covered in snow. So we settled on watching Fern Gully & then Fantasia to pass our morning away, and it gave me a chance to nap. Then it was time to get dressed, eat lunch, and head to school. There were a few attitude adjustments that I had to take care of on our way out the door, but mainly I was focused on getting Clare to school.
When I picked up Clare from school her teacher told me htat she had been in tears earlier because the pom poms that are on strings on her boots were all wet and dirty. The main purpose of the pom poms is to tie the top of the boots tight, however she never ties them and they just drag on the ground. So, I knew the day would come when I eventually would have to but them and pull them out. Clare however had an idea to wash them and keep them after I cut them out. Why oh why do they come up with these ideas to want to keep things that are shear garbage! So the temper tantrum began, and she tried to pull them out of the garbage. I basically told her to knock it off and when she didn’t she was sent to her room. The temper tantrum insued, and got only bigger. I had to go up the stairs and knock some sense into the girl, and try to get her to quit. The tantrum only got bigger, and she lost her TV privledges for tonight, and she was on her way to loosing more. I had her stay in her room til Brad got home, and she still wouldn’t stop. I was nice and gave her permission to read books, but nothing else. She said she was bored up there, and I said that’s what happens when you loose your privledges. Brad came home and the tantrum started all over again! She was to stay in her room until dinner, and then after dinner she was back in there til bed. We decided on sandwiches for dinner, so I ran to get them with a side trip to the store. By the time I got home it was time for Clare to go to bed. She is so weasely about trying to make sure she gets the chance to watch TV tomorrow.
After she was set to go to bed and I flipped through the channels about 3 times - nothing on. I am really tired of this whole writer stike, it really ruins my evening veg time. So, tonight with Clare in bed and Brad down in the basement listening to his music I settled down with a bowl of popcorn to watch The Notebook. I hadn’t watched it in a while and it was a good movie to cuddle up in my blanket and munch on some popcorn and just feel like a slug. I love this movie; the relationship Noah & Alli have are very similar to the one Brad & I have. We fight and we always seem to lock horns, but in the end we always make up, and we have a very passionate relationship. He’s always a jack ass, and I’m always the emotional know it all…but in the end we still love each other. I guess it keeps life interesting. All in all it was a good night for a “chick flick” as Brad would say, and not only did it help me pass my time away, but it helped me feel all sappy.
So…this weekend was a marathon of Star Wars movies. Clare is REALLY into this for some reason. She says her favorite is Yoda, because he’s slow like she is. It was rather hilearious though, as we were watching episode 5…and you hear Yoda talk for the first time to Luke. Clare exclaimed, “Yoda talks like an idiot!” I am extremely impressed that she even likes these movies, as they aren’t much for young kids. We decided to get the origional first 3 as a family gift for Christmas this year. She watched episode 4 on Saturday, and then 5 & 6 on Sunday…and yet she wanted to watch them again when we finished on Sunday. I couldn’t handle it….so the answer was NO! The movies were more filled in for me this time, as when I was younger I wasn’t much for them….so I never watched them entirely through I don’t think. Now, after the New Year I have a feeling that we’ll be getting episode 1 & 3. I don’t know how much Star Wars I will be able to handle…but I’ll give it a try!
Current Mood:
Tired or Sleepy
So…on Monday I went to do our Costco grocery shopping trip. I try to go faithfully at least once a month to stock up on things, but for some reason I think it’s been like 2 months since I’ve last been shopping there. I like to shop there for things like bulk Organic Milk, orange juice, toilet paper, bread (I freeze about 6 loaves, and yes we go through that in a month), cereal, apple juice, healthy snacks, and sometimes whatever else I can manage to find that I think we need to have. For the most part my bill is pretty reasonable, and I have a lot of things on hand that I wouldn’t otherwise have. When I went into the store on Monday they were handing out their Christmas flyers…sure I’ll take one I said! I was glancing through their Manufacturers Rebates add when I noticed they had The Original Christmas Classics DVD for $12 or so. 7 of your holiday favorites including “Frosty the Snowman”, “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer”, and “Santa Clause is Comin’ to Town!”. There are extra’s on each DVD with “The Little Drummer Boy”, “Mr. Magoo’s Christmas Carol”, “Cricket on the Hearth”, and “Frosty Returns” with a bonus Music CD. I remember watching most of these on tv (or copied VHS from the tv) with my brothers as a kid. We spent many a Sunday afternoon’s watching these when the holidays came around…mostly because we didn’t have cable, and there was nothing else on the 8 channels we got from our antenna ontop of the house. So, I saw a deal and scooped it up thinking how much fun it’d be to watch these with Clare. Boy was I wrong! She wants to watch them over and over and over and over and over again. Yesterday she watched Frosty twice, and Santa Clause is Comin’ to Town once before I put the kiabosh on it. First thing she says this morning when we come down stairs is I want to watch Frosty! I protested, so she moved on down the line of the other movies in the set. I don’t know if I’ll ever get out of Christmas town after the first of the year! HELP! I could always pull something my mom & dad did to my brother Frank. He had an obsession with Ghost Busters & Backdraft as a kid….they hid the movies from him telling him that one of my dad’s co-workers wanted to borrow our copy, when really they hid it in their bedroom. Sneaky!
Current Mood:
I’ve got an Idea!
Last night, was the best night ever…..according to my 5 year old Clare. Something prompted her & my husband to have a discussion this past weekend, followed by wanting to watch The Wizard of Oz. I swore up & down that we owned this movie…however, we did not. So, I went to our handy dandy Netflix account and put it at the top of our que. I had recently sent a movie back, so I was suspecting we’d get The Wizard of Oz yesterday…and we did. I had come up with an idea of fun for the entire family including dinner & a movie. After the start of school a few weeks ago, we realized that Clare’s bedtime needed to be bumped up a bit to make up for the crabiness that was occuring. Because movies are so long, I knew there’d be no way we could make dinner and watch a movie before bedtime. So, we did the next best thing….eat while you watch the movie. 
We ordered pizza from our local favorite Big Bob’s in East Grand Rapids….their pizza is arguably one of the better in town, and they deliver to my front door! So, we sprawled out on the floor with our pizza, some beverages, and a movie. Clare had never seen The Wizard of Oz before, and I was a bit worried about what she’d do when the witch melted…..however, my daughter proclaimed “YES, BULLSEYE!” when the water hit the witch in the face, and she giggled about it as the green witch melted into the floor. This morning I started doing the “I’m Melting” in a witchy voice, and she would have sat their all day and had me do it if it weren’t for her breakfast getting cold. So…..one of the cheapest things we’ve done in a while as a family….pizza and a movie picnic style on the living room floor, was a hit with Clare, and that’s all that counts!
Also, on a side note. I have 4 One Month Free subscriptions to Netflix if anyone reading this is interested in trying it out. Post a comment telling me you’d like to try Netflix, and I will send you the code to sign up for it. They expire Oct. 31st…..so first come, first served!
Current Mood:
Playful
Ah……sigh……another quiet morning in the Eastowner house. I feel like things are slowing down, or at least I HOPE they are. I don’t know if I can handle too many more crazy weeks. Last night instead of cooking dinner we opted for going out to Zoup! for some fine soup. There are several of these restaurants around town, and they offer a great variety of 12 handmade soups every day….that’s right, every day they make their own soups in restaurant with frest ingredients for you to enjoy. We hadn’t been in a while because by the time we got what we wanted the bill was quite pricey when taking a child that doesn’t eat an entire bowl of soup. They however now offer a relatively cheap kids meal, and the cost of our entire bill was just over $20 for the 3 of us. Clare had their kids meal with a grilled cheese, a small bowl of Fire Roasted Tomato Bisque (they have mac & Cheese too for the wee ones that don’t like soup), gold fish crackers, and a juice box. Brad & I both had one of their newer offerings…..a You Pick Crock. With the crock you can put over brown rice or whole grain pasta your choice of 5 toppings. Now, the 5 toppings thing we were still unsure of what that all entailed…..but for sure we both put soup over our rice. I had the Seafood Chowder, and Brad had the Fire Roasted Tomato Bisque. It was perfect for a cloudy & chilly Friday night. And because Clare cleared her entire plate, we bought 2 brownie squares (one chocolate & one blonde) for the 3 of us to share. We came home, it was clean up time, and time for Clare to get to bed. Brad & I settled down to a movie - “Better Off Dead” - a hilarious 1985 John Cusack flick. The few drinks we had helped with the aweful 1980’s cinematography…..God some of those movies were so aweful then, I don’t know why I ever thought some of them were so Cool when I was a kid. Better Off Dead though, was a fun look at the past though……and made for some fun movie watching on a chilly Friday night. I LOVE this weather!
Current Mood:
Bored & Tired or Sleepy
In lieu of my usual Tackle it Tuesday post I am Offically calling it Lazy Tuesday today. Clare is still with my in-laws, and I was able to sleep in until oh about 8:45am or so. I went downstairs to muster up some breakfast, which was a YUMMY bran muffin I bought from Nantucket Baking Co. last night. They are located at 208 Union NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49503 right next to the other YUMMY store Martha’s Vineyard. Martha’s has a fabulous beer cooler, and some absolutely delish desserts in their dessert case. So, after heating up my muffin I decided that I was going to start watching my The Thornbirds dvd’s I had checked out from Netflix. I spent literally the entire day watching this epic mini series…..and it was almost as good as I remembered it from my younger days. I’ll admit there were some slow parts I started dozing through, but my all time favorite part is when Meggie tells Father Ralph that she’s dieing because she bleeds all the time for days, but then some how it stops and she just knows that her days are numbered. It’s so silly, yet I’m sure almost reminesent to every woman that reads this of when their time began. I did get a few loads of laundry done during the course of the day, so I feel some what accomplished. Tonight Brad & I are off to the elementary school for parent orientation. We get to meet Clare’s teacher and learn about how they will be teaching our fine new Kindergartner. I can’t believe she’s off to Kindergarten in one week…..I can remember just yesterday they thrust her into my arms and said here’s your baby girl. I swear I won’t cry……although I think I’ll do a jig, I can’t wait for school to start!
So….it’s been only a short while since the last time I’ve written. Not much on the home front going on, except the god damn snow that needs to just disapear! Thanksgiving was pretty uneventful. We headed SW down to Niles on Turkey Day to have dinner with the Watson’s….Dan & Karyn, Grandma & Grandpa, Aunt Caroline, us, and Brad’s parent’s. Brad’s parent’s put on a spread as usual, Clare ate up all the attention she could get, and we just hung out. After dinner we went down to Mishawaka to see Borat….it was pretty funny. Some of the people he ripped on were pieces of work! We came back the Brad’s parents, and relaxed for a bit before hitting the air mattress. Friday afternoon we headed down for some shopping, while Clare played with her Buscia & Pa Pa. We were able to get Brad some nice work clothes for a pretty good price. We also scored and found a Wii! I also did some shopping for Clare, as their were deals on some of the things she had on her list. Then we headed back for dinner, and relaxing. On Saturday we headed over to Dan & Karyn’s and then on home. I had to get Moonshadow from the kennel, as she doesn’t do well with large amounts of people around. Last week not much happened, I did some shopping for an outfit for Brad’s work dinner (it was at a fancy country club, and I didn’t have anything nice to wear). While I was out I noticed a few more things on sale, so I picked them up. I found the Snowman plates Larry & Meghan had gotten me for Christmas a few years ago, so I picked up what they had left for an almost complete set. We also decorated for Christmas, and cleaned some of the house. Upstairs continues to illude me….I have hopes of one day having an entirely clean house! This past weekend we were at my parent’s house. My dad’s fire dept. was having Lunch with Santa, and they invited Clare to come. She ate pizza, and then they sat on Santa’s lap. While my parents had her for that we went into town in hopes of finding more remotes for our Wii. We found 2 of them, but no nun chucks. Yesterday I went to visit a Charter School, for Clare. We have doubts about the Elementary schools in the area, and want to make sure that she is being challenged properly. THis place was great, and had lots to offer the kids that attend. I filled out an application, so with any luck we’ll make it in! Currently today I am inside cursing the snow. I literally HATE this stuff. It’s so cold outside, and the snow only means shoveling, cold feet, and me being angry! God I wish we could move someplace warmer…..anywhere at this point, don’t care, so long as it doesn’t snow and get below 45.
So, things are finally into somewhat of a routine around here….although the mornings tend to vary depending on the week. Clare loves preschool…..as do I! The 2.5 hours of quiet in the house do a mommy good. Although, most days that time flies by without even realizing where it went to, or I don’t even get home because I run errands. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday afternoons from 12:30-3pm Clare is in school. Tuesday and Thursday mornings are spent at the YMCA for Yoga or Yoga/Pilates. And the rest of the time slots are filled with various activites with MOMS Club, playdates, or whatever comes our way. All in all, the weeks are pretty busy around here this Fall. And with Fall, the set-in of allergy season has hit. Clare’s pediatrician thinks she may have allergies….so we are going to try Nasonex this Fall in hopes that it will help her. I’ve been running the humidifier at night to help her sleep better. About 2 weeks ago she was really bad off, and came down with a fever too. I think she was mainly run down from all the activities we’ve been doing on top of preschool….and she’s so stubborn about napping or resting these days. Although I have gotten more naps in with her in school. Not much else to report around here. This week is flying by, and hopefully this weekend will be nice enough as it’s Eastown’s Streetfest….live music, artisan booths, and hopefully an elephant ear cart! I think we’re also going to go to an orchard here in town for some Family Fun. We may hit the theater’s if it’s raining though, we tried last weekend….had our tickets to see Everyone’s Hero, went out to dinner, played a game of air hockey to pas the time by before the show started….and then the theater lost power. Apparently there was a tornado warning for Kent County, and one had been spotted touching down East of town. So, we were stuck in the theater, and our movie wasn’t showing because of the tornado. We’ve got vouchers, so the movie is paid for already….it was just hard explaining to Clare that we couldn’t see the movie. So, we hit best buy to get a new movie for home….and we had popcorn and movie night at home instead. It worked….and Clare was happy! That’s all that counts….
So….here’s the update on life in CO on vacation. On Sunday I was invited out with Jackie & her mom to go see “The Devil Wears Parada”, as well as go to lunch. We went to a yummy mexican place, and then did some shopping before the movie. The movie was good, and a highy reccommended chick flick. They could have cut out the last 15-20 minutes, but what can you ask for from a chick flick! On Monday we went to one of the nicer malls in town, and shopped around. Then we came back, and lounged around our woderful host & hostesses home. On Tuesday we celebrated Brad’s birthday by going to Dave & Busters. It’s a video arcade with many bars inside. Afterwards we went over to the movie theater to go see The Pirates of the Carribean. It was an okay movie, kinda long, but many fine Johnny Depp sites were to be seen. Then we came home to go out for fish taco’s with our host’s, followed by an awesome dessert tray that had creame puffs, tiramisu, and some other yummy thing that was completely devowered. On Wednesday we went downtown and shopped along the 16th street mall. They have some really cute shops along the way, and it’s great excersize! We of course went to my favorite shop Breaking the Mold, and bought large amounts of awesome smelling candles. While down there we met Chris for lunch at one of the Brewerys on the strip. VERY yummy beer, and veggie burgers! Today we slept in late, what vacations are all about, and then headed out for some breakfast. Afterwards, we went to the Downtown Aquarium. It was very neat, and had some awesome tanks with some cool fish in it. We watched a few of the tanks get fed, and I was able to touch a horse shoe crab, as well as a couple of sting rays. We took a ton of pics, and some neat videos too. So be on the look out in the photo gallery as soon as we get home. Tomorrow we are going with Chris out to Golden, and Red Rocks, to do some touristing. Our plans include a Coors brewery tour, and lunch in Boulder. On Saturday we are VERY excited about going to Castle Rocks wine festival, to do some yummy tasting. I think on Sunday we are hitting a rather large dirt mall, and then we are planning on leaving on Monday towards MI. We don’t know if we’re gonna stay in St. Louis and do the SOuth route, or not, but it’s in our thinking plans right now. Clare is having fun with her Pa Pa & Buscia this week (aka Brad’s parentals), and this weekend she is headed to my parents until we come and get her. Moonshadow is with her too. Overall it’s been a relaxing vacation, and we can’t wait to get up into the mountain foot hills tomorrow. It’ll be a bummer to go home, but I guess Brad has to be to work on Thursday, and I have to return to Motherhood at some point. Til Nextime…
So….we made it out to Colorado for our annual vacation. We left Thursday 7/13 evening to go to Brad’s parents. After getting Clare & Moonshadow to bed we got about 3 hours of sleep, woke about 2:30am to head out. Clare and Moonshadow are of course on vacaion at Pa Pa & Buscia’s, and next weekend will be on vacation with Grandma and Pa Pa. We stopped just inside of IN to fill our tank, get some fresh ice, and the usual energy drinks to help us make it cross country. I started out driving the early shift, and made it into Iowa by about 9:30am or so. Then it was Brad’s turn to drive for 6 hours. I think the first 6 hours are the easiest, it’s those last 12 hours that are killer! We stopped along the way for the usual potty breaks, ate breakfast at Dunkin Donuts….they have an awesome breakfast sandwich on a crossiant that hit the spot! We had terrible, greasy truck stop pizza at the Cum & Go in NE somewhere. We decided to wait until we made it into Denver to eat dinner…which was a great choice, as we had sushi, always a plus! We made our worst tme ever this year….it took us about 19 hours to get out here from Niles. We were held up in some pretty bad Chicago traffic as it was down to 1 lane, and then it rained like it had never before. I couldn’t see shit, with the fog and heavy rains. I just kept my eyes peeled for the tail lights in front of me, and in the right hand lane. Neither of us slept very well, and were whooped by the time we arrived. Yesterday we slept in, ate a leisurly breakfast, and did absolutely nothing! We watched some movies, and munched all afternoon. Today is looking pretty similiar. I paid our few bills, to assure that we don’t overspend on our vacation, Chris & Brad are out to Wally World, and the Asian food store for some things, and Jackie is off to a kick boxing class. So, I am all alone! I dream about these moments, as I get very few of them. So, I am sitting in a quiet house, eating my Dr. Pepper Jelly Bellies…..my favorite! I think I may go read for a bit when I am done here. We have no definite plans, as we tend to fly by the seat of our pants out here. I have a “few” things on my list….I never get to do all of the things I find, but we always do something interesting none the less.
After our early evening shoutfest with Clare I was in the mood to just sit back and veg - aka be like a slug. My day started out early with Clare wanting to watch TV in our room, which was fine with me because I was still sleepy and slightly hung over. Yes, it was another cocktail night in the Eastowners abode last night. I went to turn the tv on, however with all the lovely wet snow we got last night there was no such luck in the tv realm as the satellite was covered in snow. So we settled on watching Fern Gully & then Fantasia to pass our morning away, and it gave me a chance to nap. Then it was time to get dressed, eat lunch, and head to school. There were a few attitude adjustments that I had to take care of on our way out the door, but mainly I was focused on getting Clare to school. 
