Happy New Year!

...I hope you will have a wonderful year, that you'll dream dangerously and outrageously, that you'll make something that didn't exist before you made it, that you will be loved and that you will be liked, and that you will have people to love and to like in return. And, most importantly (because I think there should be more kindness and more wisdom in the world right now), that you will, when you need to be, be wise, and that you will always be kind.

~Neil Gaiman

Two Weeks!?

Has it really been that long? Geez. I blame work.

I last left off at Ellie scaling her crib, or the Great Prison Break of '08 as it is now known.I ordered a safety rail, and it got here later that week. Wouldn't you know that it specifically says on the box that you can't use it for a toddler bed. Would have been nice if that had been in the description on the website. Or maybe if that particular safety rail didn't pop up when "toddler bed safety rail" is searched. Hmmmm.

So that safety rail was out. Another google search, and I found that the only safety rails that can be used on convertible toddler beds are these wooden ones made by the manufacturers of your specific model. OK, fine. Harry calls the store we got the crib from, and they quote us a price of $218. For a safety rail? That can't be right. The crib was only $260! And it would have to be ordered and could take up to 16 weeks to receive. 16 WEEKS. Yeah. No go on the wooden rail.

We decided that Harry would just build a safety rail, but even that didn't really pan out because he couldn't find the right thickness of wood for the job. How very frustrating.

We ended up deciding to ditch the crib-converted-into toddler-bed all together and just get a toddler bed with the rail already on it. They only go for $60-120. Go figure.

I then remembered that my niece's toddler bed was in storage at my mom's house. Um, FREE is always good in my book. We went and took a look at it, and it was still in perfect condition minus the crayon on the rails. We brought it home, cleaned it up (even the crayon came off!), and voila! A brand new big girl bed for Miss Ellie! She's been sleeping in it for the past 3 days, and, knock on wood, it's been fab. She loves her new bed. And she's been sleeping even better. It's crazy. And the best part... she still waits in bed in the morning for us to come and get her. It's so sweet. She'll just lay there and talk to her baby dolls until we get up. I love my little girl.

***

Now for the holidays. Christmas Eve was interesting. I got out of work around 3pm, and we headed on over to my mom's house for dinner at 6pm. My little sister, her boyfriend, and Kaylee joined us for some good eats (which I couldn't really enjoy because of the awful stomach bug I got from Ellie the beginning of the week). It was an interesting evening, to say the least. My sister's boyfriend is a little *ahem* young, to put it nicely. And he likes to hug. A lot. I'm not really much of a hugger. Oh, and they were both tipsy from going to the bar beforehand. Yeah. Fun.

We got home a little after 7, spread out the reindeer food on the lawn, gave Ellie her bath, then settled down with "The Night Before Christmas" and "The Christmas Key", two books that will be traditions in our household for years to come. For those of you who don't know what The Christmas Key is, it's a magical key you hang on the outside of your house that only Santa can use to open doors to those homes that don't have fireplaces. Nifty, right? We then put out milk and cookies for Santa, and then Ellie went to bed. We brought all the gifts up from the basement and set them under the tree, and then I got to work making homemade sauce for our Christmas lasagna the next day.

We got up around 7am the next morning, brewed some coffee, and opened gifts. Ellie loved her new bongos from Santa, and she got a few new books and DVDs from Mommy and Daddy, as well as a bunch of new bath toys, which she's super psyched about. The girl loves her bathtime.

We went back to my mom's house for our annual Christmas Crepes Breakfast, and it was SOOOOO good. We exchanged a few more gifts, experienced a few more antics from my sister's boyfriend (the boy is strange), and then I finally got to spend some time with just my mom as we cleaned up her kitchen and chatted. It was nice.

We went back home for a bit to shower and get dressed, then went back to my mom's for a third time for "supper". We visited with my older sister and her family there, ate some turkey with all the trimmings, and exchanged yet some more gifts. By 1:30pm, Ellie was TIRED. So we packed up and got home so she could settle down for a nap. I ended up napping, too, but only because my stomach was killing me and sleep was the only thing I could think of to combat it. What a nasty little stomach bug.

Meanwhile Harry picked his mom up from the nursing home, and they proceeded to watch hours of TV. LOL. It's what she likes to do. I got up, made the lasagna, then ended up laying back down again while they ate. I couldn't even have one little piece of it. So sad.

The evening ended on a quiet note, and I was kind of glad it was over. The next afternoon, Christmas was at an official end when we took the tree down and boxed up every last decoration. I have my house back!

***

Of course, family time wasn't over after Christmas though. My niece's birthday is the 28th, so we trekked our butts up to Torrington yesterday afternoon to help celebrate. We spent the majority of the visit running around after Ellie because my sister's house is a split ranch with an open stairway right smack in the center of the house. FUN. And there were lit candles all over the house when we got there that my niece's all dutifully ran around like mad-girls to extinguish to save my child any 3rd degree burns. Thanks Jenn and Jes!

Ellie only napped for 20 minutes in the car on the way up, so we knew it was going to be an interesting day, but once we got her into girls' bedrooms away from all the people and staircases, we had a really nice visit. And Ellie was fantastic in the car. I thought for sure she'd fall asleep on the ride home. Harry and I were chatting in low tones all the way, and at about the 1/2 way mark, when I was sure she was asleep, we were talking about the chocolate cake my sister had made, Ellie pipes in with "Choc-y! Choc-y!" Yeah, she so wasn't asleep. And she's totally addicted to chocolate. She found the stash of M&Ms while we were there, and totally destroyed them.

Which resulted in an extremely spastic Ellie once we got home. Chocolate overload will do that to you. She could not stay still, and she was talking up a storm. I thought she'd never go to bed.

***

So that's the last two weeks. I'm back at work now while Harry's at home with our little monster. Poor guy. Heh heh.

Another Rite of Passage

It's Saturday, 1:15pm. Ellie's been in her room for about 15 minutes now, unwinding before she naps. We hear her talking to herself as usual. Suddenly, we hear a strange sound coming from her room. It's a doorknob, turning. And a door opening. Harry and I both look at each other, that deer-in-the-headlights look on both our faces. I race down the hall to find my little girl emerging from her room.

Ellie has figured out how to get out of her crib.

Sigh.

I calmly put her back in, telling her she's not supposed to get out of her crib. It's time to take a nap.

1 hour later, and she hasn't tried to climb out again. She also has not slept. At all.

She manages a nap later on in the day on the way back from a visit with Grandma B at the nursing home, so at least there's that.

She goes to bed as usual that night. And she wakes up on Sunday as usual, too. No climbing. I order a safety rail anyway. Just in case.

Sunday night, she tries to climb INTO the crib. OK. We pick her up and put her in, ready to say goodnight. Ellie decides now would be a good time to show Mommy and Daddy exactly how she gets out. Clever little girl. She swings one leg over the rail, shifts her butt up onto it (it's about 3-4 inches wide), hooks her hands around the adjoining rail, and slowly slides over the edge, using her foot against the wall to stop herself from falling too fast, finding the radiator to stop entirely, then stepping off to the floor.

That safety rail can't get here fast enough!

A Rite of Passage for my little girl

I decided to try painting Ellie's toenails this morning. Wouldn't you know? She stayed very still and was tickled pink (heh heh) that her toes could looks so pretty.

Meme-y Goodness

Stole it from Cristina

One Word

Where is your mobile phone? desk.
Where is your significant other? printing.
Your hair color? brown.
Your mother? short.
Your father? aggressive.
Your favorite thing? baby.
Your dream last night? forget.
Your dream goal? travel
Room You’re In? cubicle
Your hobby? reading
Your fear? heights
Where do you want to be in 6 years? happy
Where were you last night? couching
What you’re not? male
Where you grew up? here
The last thing you did? eggroll
What are you wearing? sweater
Your TV? heavy
Your pets? Luna!
Your computer? Vaio
Your mood? eh
Missing someone? Yes.
Your car? Civic
Something you’re not wearing? bandanna
Favorite shop? book
Your summer? humid
Love someone? Yes.
Your favorite color? red
When is the last time you laughed? morning

Firsts Meme

1. Who was your FIRST prom date?
Chris
2. What was your FIRST alcoholic drink?
beer
3. What was your FIRST job?
filing at the office my sister worked at
4. What was your FIRST car?
1984 grey Oldsmobile Firenza - oh yeah.
5. Who was the FIRST person to text you today?
Nobody. I don't really do texting.
6. Who is the FIRST person you thought of this morning?
Ellie
7. Who was your FIRST grade teacher?
Mrs. Oliver. I loved her.
8. Where did you go on your FIRST ride on an airplane?
Canada
9. Who was your FIRST best friend, and are you still friends with him / her?
Kristine. Not really. I just got back in touch with her through facebook, but we've just pretty much said hi, how ya doin?
10. Who was your FIRST kiss?
Chip
11. Who was the FIRST person you talked to today?
Ellie
12. What was the FIRST thing you did this morning?
Turned off the alarm
13. What was the FIRST concert you ever went to?
Tori Amos
14. What was your FIRST tattoo or piercing?
First piercing - ears - around age 7. First tattoo - faerie - age 23.
15. What was the FIRST foreign country you went to?
Canada
16. What was the FIRST movie you saw in the theater?
Gremlins
17. When was your FIRST detention?
I have never had dentention.
18. What was the FIRST state you lived in?
CT
19. Who was the FIRST person to really break your heart?
Jeez. Probably Scott.
20. With whom was your FIRST date?
Mike
21. What was your FIRST pet?
Fluffy, a beautiful gray Persian cat.
22. Who was your FIRST roommate?
Lisa B.
23. Who was your FIRST love?
Scott
24. What was your FIRST screen name?
evilfaerie
25. When did you have your FIRST baby?
2006

The Lovely Long Turkey Day Weekend

I have been crazy-busy at work, which is why I haven't updated here in, what, two weeks? I also haven't been able to keep up on everyone else's blogs because of that, so I apologize and hope to check in more often.

To say that I have been stressed because of the testing I've been doing at work is an understatement; I'm completely overwelmed with numerous conflicting emotions because of it. It's taken its toll on me, and because of that, on my homelife. That's a big no-no in my book. Work should always stay at work. The stress should stay, patiently waiting in my cubicle, until I return the next day. Unfortunately, this is not an ideal world, so the ugly sucker followed me home whenever it could.

Once Wednesday, 3pm, hit though, I said screw it and decided that I would have a good holiday weekend. I would not think about work. I would spend 4 wonderful days with my husband and my little girl. And that's exactly what I did.

We decided on a nice, quiet Thanksgiving at home this year. We had a lot to be thankful for... good health, a wonderful child, an amazing marriage, a lovely new home, both of us employed... we are extremely fortunate. We know that. And we wanted to celebrate that in the one place our lives have really, finally come together. Our new house means so much to us. This holiday, for us, was about the trek getting to this spot.

I made sure to ring my dad up in the AM and wish him a happy thanksgiving. We chatted for a few minutes, Ellie got on the line to say hi, and that was it. I can deal with a relationship like this. I hope it can continue.

I ended up leaving a message for my mom since she must have been hanging out with my aunt and uncle and didn't hear the phone ring. I talked to her a couple of days later, and she had a great thanksgiving, too. She's pretty much moved into her new home down in Florida, and she sounds so excited. I'm happy for her.

Harry went and picked up his mom around 1pm, and I started dinner. We had a nice visit with her (surprise!) and dinner was absolutely perfect. I'm pretty damn proud of myself. We had turkey, mashed potatoes, cranberry and apple stuffing, cranberry sauce, corn, and crescent rolls. Nothing was particularly difficult to make; it was getting everything cooked and ready to serve all at the same time which was the feat I overcame this past Thursday. I rocked it.

The rest of the weekend was so chill and laid back. I so needed it. We put up outside christmas lights on Friday, which Ellie absolutely loves. She screams, "Lights! Lights!" over and over again whenever they're on. It was warm enough both Friday and Saturday for Ellie to play outside, which is awesome because she hates being cooped up in the house for days on end. We watched lots of Christmas cartoons, I did some shopping, and we ate and ate and ate this entire weekend. It was wonderful.

Now I'm back at work, waiting for the next round of hell to begin. Wish me luck.

Millenium Theater - A Music Meme

1.Put your iTunes on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS!


IF SOMEONE SAYS "IS THIS OKAY" YOU SAY?
The Righteous and the Wicked by Red Hot Chili Peppers

WHAT WOULD BEST DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY?
Have a Cigar by Pink Floyd

WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL?
Romeo and Juliet by Dire Straits (awwww)

HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY?
Stranded by Alien Ant Farm

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE'S PURPOSE?
Walk This Earth Alone by Lauren Christy (Yikes!)

WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO?
Shh by Frou Frou

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN?
Mid-Life Krysis by Travis

WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU?
Once in a Lifetime by Eminem

WHAT IS 2+2?
Mean Mr. Mustard by The Beatles

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND?
Call Me a Dog by Temple of the Dog

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
Glory Box by Portishead

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
Fly trapped in a Jar by Modest Mouse

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?
Cactus by David Bowie

WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
The Line is Fine by Travis

WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU?
Idioteque by Radiohead

WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING?
Vicarious by Tool

WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
New Machine Pt. 2 by Pink Floyd

WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?
Rock and Roll is Dead by Lenny Kravitz

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET?
Poses by Rufus Wainwright

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?
What You Want by The Flys

WHAT'S THE WORST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN?
Say Hello Wave Goodbye by David Gray

HOW WILL YOU DIE?
Blue Eyes by Cary Brothers

WHAT IS THE ONE THING YOU REGRET?
The Blower's Daughter by Damien Rice

WHAT MAKES YOU LAUGH?
Ka-boom Ka-boom by Marilyn Manson

WHAT MAKES YOU CRY?
Driftwood by Travis

WILL YOU EVER GET MARRIED?
Believe by Lenny Kravitz

WHAT SCARES YOU THE MOST?
Parting Gift by Fiona Apple

DOES ANYONE LIKE YOU?
Smooth Criminal by Michael Jackson

IF YOU COULD GO BACK IN TIME, WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE?
I Would Be Your Slave by David Bowie

WHAT HURTS RIGHT NOW?
It's All Over Now by The Rolling Stones

WHAT WILL YOU POST THIS AS?
Millenium Theater by Ani Difranco

My kid is weird, and I love that about her

Yesterday was Ellie's 2 year checkup. The best part about this checkup is that there were no vaccine shots! The worst part was... well, there ended up being no worst part. How cool is that?

For this visit she weighed in at 25 lbs, 13 oz (40th percentile) and measured 35.25 inches (85th percentile). Dr. S says she's growing beautifully, and this is the time when little ones start to really slim down (Ellie's a perfect case of that).

Dr. S is just so good with her. She's usually really shy around men, but he got her laughing right away. That's always the way to break the ice with Ellie. He lit up her belly button with the instrument he uses to look in her ear, which she thought was absolutely hysterical. He tickled her, which totally cracked her up. He pretended to eat her toes, which again got her giggling.

In between, he spoke to her and me in a calm, soothing voice, and it put both of us at ease. He really does have a wonderful bedside manner. This was the main reason we decided to have Dr. S be her primary pediatrician within the practice; I still remember how much he helped us when Ellie was in the hospital at 2 months with supposed pneumonia. If it weren't for him, I'd have totally been freaking out. He's also the doc that gave us Teri's name, so we're forever in his debt for that.

During the visit, Ellie was talking and animated and even did her happy dance for Dr. S. I was so glad she gave him the opportunity to see her in action; telling him she can talk is one thing, but her showing him is another thing all together.

She did need to have a finger prick done for a hemocrit/hemoglobin test and lead test, and I was flipping out prior to it. When the nurse came in to do it, I was trying to remain calm but I'm really bad when it comes to blood. I held Ellie in my lap, and when the nurse pushed down on the little cutter they use, I winced while Ellie just stared in wonder. How is this my kid?

The nurse had to take a decent amount of blood for the tests, so she had to squeeze and collect over and over again. I was trying to keep my lunch down as Ellie watched, completely fascinated with the whole ordeal. She seemed amazed that the blood was coming out of her finger. She didn't cry, hell it seemed like it didn't even hurt. The nurse put a bandaid on, and that was it. No fuss at all. I swear Ellie's gonna be a doctor or a nurse when she grows up.

So that was it. Ellie enjoyed her doctor's visit. Like I said, my kid is weird. And I love that about her.

I'm going to Richmond (And DC)!

Some friends and I decided that if Barack Obama got into office, we'd all get together for the inauguration weekend and celebrate. Well, he did, and so, we are!

My friend, Cristina, has graciously opened her house to us in Richmond, VA, so I'll be staying with her from Jan 16th-18th. It's a short trip, and I can't stay for the actual inauguration day, but I'm just so excited to be sharing what little time I have with people I've grown to love over the past year and a half. These women mean the world to me, and I finally get to meet a few more of them in person. Yay!

We'll be going into DC on Saturday to hopefully check out a few of the museums at The Smithsonian, some monuments, etc, and Cristina is trying to talk us into doing the Segway Tour. Me? On a Segway? I trip over my own feet while walking! We'll see. It is a great way to see all the major points of the city in a short period of time. Hmmmmm.

I'm taking the train down, which is WAY better than driving. Can you imagine driving from CT to VA on Friday during morning rush hour commuting in CT/NY/NJ and then hitting DC around 3pm? No thank you. I stop in at Penn Station on Friday for about 1.5 hours (What to do?), but my train ride back is straight through. I'll definitely be bringing an MP3 player along. I'd bring a book, too, but I can't read on a train (or a car or a plane for that matter). Sigh.

The biggest thing about this trip is that it will be my first time away from Ellie. It kinda scares the bejesus out of me, but I need to do this. Harry's gonna be with her the entire time, so at least I don't have to worry about what's going on with her. I missed out on the Vegas trip last year because I couldn't even fathom leaving her for just one evening. Now I'm testing the waters with TWO nights away. Yikes. Cristina has vowed to help me though it, though. I know I can do this.

I guess the only thing that sucks right now is that it's over 2 months away! It can't come fast enough.

Obama Wins!

Just do it

Lots of Stuff

Tuesday

Teri called me at work to let me know that Ellie had thrown up right after lunch, so I took a 1/2 day, picked Ellie up, and took her home to rest. I had noticed she was getting 2 new molars the day before, and sure enough, they were making her suffer. She was achy and a bit feverish and just plain old tired. After getting some Motrin relief and a nap, she was a little better, nibbling on crackers and drinking some water. She went to bed a little early that night. Poor thing.

Wednesday

She woke up with a low-grade fever and was she ever cranky. I stayed home with her for the day, trying to survive the bouts of holy terror that took over my daughter at hour intervals. I hate 2-year-molars.

Thursday

Ellie woke up in a really good mood and with no fever. Hurray! I so didn't want her to miss the Halloween party at daycare. She had a great time chowing down on Smarties and playing "bite the donut", a game Teri made up for the kids. Instead of bobbing for apples, she ties a string around a donut, hangs it in front of each kid, and lets them try to bite pieces of the donut off. It's not sanitary, but the kids really enjoyed it. Ellie got the idea of the game right away (probably because it involved donuts) and did her fair share of biting.

Friday

Halloween! Teri took the kids to get their pictures taken in their costumes in the morning. I can't wait to see how they turned out. I got to go home an hour early and get ready for the night's festivities. I got all the candy ready, set up prep for dinner, got Ellie in her costume, and then took a bunch of pictures of Ellie and Niko once Kim and her gang arrived at our house. My mom showed up soon after, and then it finally got dark out. I went to the first few houses to see Ellie taking a crack at trick or treating, and she picked it right up! She was so excited, she was even running a little ahead of us to get to the next house. Our neighbor, Dave, gave her 2 full sized candy bars (Good God the sugar!), she got to see her friend, Danielle, at the next house (which sent both girls into screaming fits of joy), and our neighbor, Mary Anne, gave her a whole bag full of goodies... a doll, books, crayons, etc. We really do have a wonderful neighborhood.

On her way back to our house, she decided to hit Dave's again and got yet another full-sized candy bar. This time she picked it out; Harry said she looked into the bowl, spotted the peanut butter cups, and grabbed it and ran. LOL.

After Kim and the gang left, I made waffles with strawberries and creme for dinner, which was delish. By that time, Ellie was ready to crash, so we gave her a bath, put Dora on the tube, and gave her her last cup of milk before bed. After brushing her teeth and saying her prayers, she was out like a light.

Saturday

The big day! Ellie turns 2! She slept in till 7:30am (woo hoo), and both Harry and I went into to her room to wish her a good morning and a happy birthday. We'd been practicing the birthday song and teaching Ellie she was gonna be 2 for the past month now, so she was super excited that the day was finally here. We sang to her, got her dressed, and made breakfast. Then we let her open a few gifts, which she totally got into. She loves ripping wrapping paper.

We picked up last minute food items, the cake, and a ginormous Dora balloon which sent Ellie into gleeful fits of giggles. While she took her nap, we decorated the house with crepe paper and balloons, set up the table and plates and stuff, then waited for 3 o'clock when the fam would arrive.

All in all, it was a wonderful day, and we all enjoyed it. And there was only 1 incident the entire day. A first for my family. And naturally, it was me who was involved.

I don't like my dad's girlfriend. We're just not cut from the same cloth to put it bluntly. I don't get her at all. I can't think like her.

So when I had placed the cake with lit candles a certain distance away from Ellie, and the bitch tried to push the lit cake closer to my two year old, I couldn't help but shout, "yes because I WANT to set my kid on fire!" when she wouldn't stop. She let go of the cake quickly.

To make matters worse, my sister, Debby, doubled over laughing at my proclamation. We really embarassed the hell out of her. I felt bad after, but she just pushes my buttons when it comes to Ellie.

Anyway, Ellie made out like a bandit, and we have lots of new stuff for her to play with at the house. Now to find room for all of it.

She crashed hard that night. She was just exhausted from all the fun. I was gonna let her stay up till 8:30 so we could get her a little adjusted to the time change, but she wasn't having it. She was in bed by 8.

Sunday

So no one was more surprised than I was when she slept till 7:30am Sunday morning, which is 8:30am the old time. She's never slept that late before. Ever.

We had our usual playdate with Niko, and Ellie had fun pushing him around and chasing him all over the place as usual. Please don't let my kid grow up to be a bully!

After her nap, my cousin, Linda, and her husband, Al, came by for a visit. They were in from Maine for the day, and they wanted to see the new house. I always love seeing Linda, and I wished we lived closer to one another. I'd hang out with her all the time if we did.

At the end of the day, I checked to see how Ellie's molars were progressing, and I was surprised to feel that one of the lower ones are coming in now too. Holy crap... 3 molars at once. That's just not fair. I'm waiting to check tonight and find the 4th coming in, as well. I can't wait for this teething crap to be over. It must be so painful for her.

She was practically begging to go to bed by 7:30 last night, and she slept pretty soundly even with the teeth coming in. I've got quite a trooper.

I actually had to wake her up this morning at 7 (and I was worried about this time change?), and she was all cheery and excited about her party at daycare today. Yep, another party! I got pizza and cake for the kids to chow down on, some coloring pages for them to do, and some modeling clay for them to take home as favors (except the baby who gets a rattle). I can't wait to hear about her day when I get home.

Ten on Tuesday - 10 favorite horror movies

1. Poltergeist - My favorite horror film ever
2. Halloween - I love how this film was shot
3. Alien - I don't know if it's more horror or sci-fi, but it scared the crap out of me the first time I saw it nonetheless
4. The Omen - Well written, directed, and acted
5. IT - I know it's kinda cheesy, but I still love watching this made-for-TV movie
6. In the Mouth of Madness - Seriously fucked up Lovecraft-based flick
7. The Haunting of Hill House (original) - Based on the book by Shirley Jackson, the original version was ever so much scarier than the remake with all it's fancy special effects.
8. Jaws - Again, scared the crap out of me.
9. The Exorcist - Possession really freaks me out
10. The Birds - based on the short story by Daphne du Maurier, this Hitchcock film terrifies me every time I watch it.

Some more movie reviews and my near heart attack

This past week, I finally got to check out 2 movies I've been dying to see: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and Ironman. I gotta say, I loved them both!

I'm a big Indiana Jones fan (and a Harrison Ford fan and a Shia LaBeouf fan and a Cate Blanchett fan), so I don't think there was a chance I wouldn't like the movie. Sure, the ending isn't exactly how I would have written it, but I loved it all the same. There were great action sequences, funny lines, and that general "This is an Indiana Jones movie!" feel to it. On top of that, I had been waiting to see the small section in the beginning where they're racing through downtown New Haven because I wanted to see how it was transformed from the Yale area in 2007 to the Yale area 50 years earlier. It looked just gorgeous!

We started watching Ironman Saturday night, and 20 or so minutes in, our power went out due to a wind storm. Nooooo! The power didn't turn on for a couple of hours, so we ended up going to bed early and finished watching last night. Holy crap was that a phenomenal comic book movie. It was so well done. And it made me even happier to see that Jon Favreau directed it once I got to the end credits simply because I think he's wonderful. Robert Downey Jr. was a pleasant surprise, and I really hope to see more of him on the big screen again. The only person I didn't really like in the film was Gwyneth Paltrow, and I'm usually a big fan of hers. Eh.

And speaking of the power outtage Saturday night, I ended up nearly having a heart attack along with it. Earlier in the evening, Ellie and I were in the living room watching Dora while Harry was in our bedroom putting his PJs on. I thought I heard one of the dining room chairs being pulled back, and I assumed it was Harry. He suddenly calls out, still from the bedroom, "Did you make that noise?" Um, nope, wasn't me, thought it was you. Hmmmm. A few minutes later, we hear it again, only this time it sounds more like a dog growling. Weird since we have no dog. I chalk it up to the wind storm possibly pushing our patio furniture or the recycling bin against the house or something. Harry swears it came from the dining room. We wait but don't hear it again.

So the power goes out around 9pm, and we're scrambling around for flashlights and candles. Once we got flashlights in our hands and a candle lit, placing it on the dining room table, I realize the laptop is still plugged in. Before the power comes back on and possibly shorts it out, I go to unplug it and shut it down. As I'm opening the screen, I suddenly hear a very large dog growling to the right of me, right by my ear! I nearly scream, jump out of my skin, and have a massive coronary, all at the same time. As I turn my head, ready to see a Hellhound sitting next to me ready to strike, my brain clicks back on, and I realize it's the wind forcing itself against our picture window. Like blowing on a blade of grass between your fingers, the wind was pushing itself against and finally through the smallest of fissures between the window and the pane where there is a plastic molding that snaps it all into place. Holy geez.

In a good mood

After my stressful weekend (stress that I bring on myself, I might add), I'm having a stellar day today so far.

Right now, I'm grooving to the new Amanda Palmer album. Her voice is so funky. She reminds me of Niko, the chick that cut a record with the Velvet Underground in the 60s. Not so much in style as in just having a really low voice. Ben Folds rocks on this album. Ben Folds simply rocks in general. I wish I had gotten the book that came with the CD. It's filled with all-things-Gaiman... pics, words, etc.

I also finally managed to buy some new clothes. Since having Ellie, I've had an extremely difficult time buying clothes. I thought my body shape was weird before. Nothing prepared me for mommy-tummy-after-c-section. Yuck.

So here are a few things I picked up and am super excited about wearing:


This lovely pin-striped vest. I got a white button-down shirt to go underneath it; the shirt shown here looks terrible IMO. I was a big fan of the vest back in the 90s, so I've been secretly (not anymore!) happy to see it making a comeback. I love wearing men's style clothing.

I also got this sweater:


It is so freakin' comfortable that I want to live in it.

And lastly, I got this cute little cardigan:



Yay for new clothes!

Even the blemish that popped up on my face this morning can't get me down. And that's saying a lot.

Ten on Tuesday - 10 Bands/Artists that Remind You of High School

Ooooh, a topic after my own heart.

1. Nirvana - The beginning of Seattle Sound. Oh, how I love it.
2. Pearl Jam - Eddie Vedder was a music god to me in my high school days.
3. Stone Temple Pilots - I was (and still am) so attracted to Scott Weiland.
4. Pink Floyd - I wasn't a Floyd fan as of yet, but my little sister was. She played "Comfortably Numb" over and over again every night for years. YEARS!
5. The Smashing Pumpkins - Reminds me of a High School ex
6. The Violent Femmes - Remind me of an old high school friend (and the movie Reality Bites)
7. Led Zeppelin - I think I listened to "Stairway..." one too many times
8. Hootie and the Blowfish - God how I hated this band. Every freakin' radio station played Hootie
9. NineInchNails - When The Downward Spiral came out, everyone was all over it.
10. The Gin Blossoms - "Hey Jealousy" followed me everywhere I went.

Batman and scarecrows and pumpkins, oh my!

We got to go see the movie Friday night (and only $4 a ticket!). Harry loved it, me, not so much. It was too long, the Batman voice had me cringing every time he was on screen (sorry Cathy and Jenni!), and... I didn't much care for Ledger's portrayal of The Joker. I know, I know, I'm in the minority on that one.

I think the idea of The Joker they wanted to put forth in the movie was a good one, but I don't think Ledger was the right choice for it. I'm not sure if they intended the character to be older or if it was Ledger's spin on it, acting like an old man through most of the movie, but it didn't feel right. His use of a Nixon-like voice in the beginning baffled me, as did him falling into a Jim Carrey-like deal during the fundraiser scene. The lip-licking, a la Bartie Crouch Jr from Harry Potter, and ticks were an interesting addition to promote the psychopath/sociopath, but again, I didn't much care for the way they were executed.

I LOVED Maggie Gyllenhaal in the movie. I just love Maggie period. Harry's quite smitten with her, too. She's just so darned likable, and she's a hottie.

Gary Oldman and Aaron Eckhart did a stellar job, too. The movie would have been a total bust for me if it wasn't for them.

Oh, well.
***

On Saturday, I pulled out Ellie's Blue (from Blue's Clues) costume to make sure it fit. It, um, didn't. The bottom half fit just fine, but her torso is so unbelievably long that the neck of the jumper only came up to her armpits. She needed at least another 5 inches of material in order for it to fit. Luckily the store I bought it at allowed me to return it, and we found a super cute Super Girl costume instead. I think the super hero theme is going to be ongoing at our house. Now to think of some more female ones for the years to come.
***

We also went shopping for Hallowe'en decorations since this is the first time we have the opportunity to decorate (my sister always confiscated that right). We got some scarecrows, a bale of hay, and some pumpkins to adorn our front lawn. It's pretty cute.
***

Yesterday, we met up with Kim and Niko at the pumpkin patch so the kids could run around like crazy people and terrorize the gourds awaiting picking. They had lots of fun, Ellie picked out a few pumpkins, we got our apple cider and apple doughnuts that I've been craving since the leaves started to change, and Ellie didn't pitch one fit the whole time. That made it one of the best days ever.

Naturally, I was in a cranky-ass mood most of the day, so nothing's ever perfect. Leave it to me to let every little thing Harry did (wrong) get to me. I hate when that happens. Here's hoping today is a better day.

Rock on, Ellie, rock on

Ellie and I were driving to the store this morning, and we were listening to Guns N Roses's You Could Be Mine. I was singing along while Ellie was playing with her mini-MagnaDoodle in the back seat, and I occasionally sneeked a peek at her in my extra rearview mirror (man, I love that thing). Suddenly, Ellie threw her MagnaDoodle aside at the final breakdown of the song and started to play some serious air drums. She played until the end of the song. Dude, my kid rocks.

Da na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na... BATMAN!

Not only did my mom email me this morning and ask if I'd like for her to make us dinner tomorrow night (salmon loaf and baked mac and cheese - yes please!), but she also offered to babysit so Harry and I could go out for a few hours. Score!

I immediately checked to see which movies are playing, and wouldn't you know it, a community theatre a couple of towns over is showing The Dark Knight. Yes! The last time Harry and I attempted to go see it, it was sold out. And then we never got another babysitter. We thought we'd have to wait until DVD, which sucks cuz movies like that are always better on the big screen. So I'm a happy girl.

I'm also in a good mood because I get tomorrow off of work, and I get to spend the whole day with Ellie. That always makes me grin like a fool. I'm not sure what we're gonna do, but I'm just happy to be able to get the extra time with her.

***

Oh, and I just finished Brisingr. And, well, it was OK. Just OK. There's entirely too much description, way too much gore (and I'm a die-hard Stephen King fan), and the freakin' trilogy has now become a quadrilogy. Huh? There was supposed to be 3 books to the Inheritance series, and I get near the end of this one, thinking "hey, there's only a few pages left, the villain really still hasn't shown himself, and he's certainly going to rush this last bit". Then I read a few more pages to be hit with a "to be continued in book 4". Not even the last installment, just book 4, which leaves it all open to interpretation. Damn.

I just got sick of all the characters whining and describing every friggin' twig and leaf in the forest over and over again. It's called overkill, Mr. Paolini. Sorry, dude, but you're starting to lose me.

I felt the same way when reading David Edding's The Belgariad series. It just dragged for pages on end. Just get on with it, man.

So that's my review. If you've already read the first two, read it. And then wait another few years for the next installment. And hope it's the last.

New Happenings with Ellie

Ellie's got a few new favorite pasttimes.

The first is counting. She's definitely my kid. She LOVES to count. She counts everything... whether it's the flowers on the page of a book or her tub letters or the number of apple pieces she has for dessert. Right now, she can count up to eight, and then she repeats seven and eight over and over again thereafter unless you say "nine" and then she'll say "ten". That pesky nine!

We've been working on ABCs, too, and we're making progress. We sing the song in the bath, we do the ABC books before dinner, pretty much whenever and wherever. So far, she's good on A, B, C, G, H, J, P, T, W, X, Y, and Z. She sings them at the right parts of the song, now she just has to get all the letters in between. She can also recognize some letters, namely A, Q, T, W, and Y. I know, random.

She's also gotten really good at body parts. I can ask her where anything is, and she'll repeat it and point to that part. This past week, she's even initiated the game, so now she says and points to the body part, and I repeat. She loves it. Elbow has been her favorite 2 weeks strong.

Lastly, she's started to memorize her books. Again, she's so my kid. That was actually how I started "reading". I'd memorize the books, and then recite them as if I were reading them. My mom thought she had a 2-year-old genius on her hands until she realized I could tell her the story without the book in front of me. It did help me learn to read though because I started recognizing the words that way. I'm hoping Ellie will pick it up like that, too.

Her favorite is her Winnie the Pooh and friends Super Sleuth's counting book. She's enthralled with it. She's started yelling out parts of the story as she turns the page, so excited that she knows what's going to happen. She memorized how many bugs or flowers or whatever are on each page, and she counts them out sometimes without even looking at them. We even got it on video, which is so cool because we've been bad with video lately.

Of course now everytime someone comes by to visit, Harry pulls the book out and hopes Ellie will "perform" for our guests. LOL. He's just so proud of her, but I keep telling him she's not a circus act. She eventually goes and gets the book anyway, so there's no need to push it. He just gets really excited.

Oh, and she's learned a new phrase. "Let go". Yeah. If I try and take something away, she cries, "let go!" Sigh. I'm sure "gimme!" is not too far behind.

Home Improvement Weekend

Harry and I decided to tackle yet another home improvement this weekend... the kitchen. Among a gazillion other things we want to do, the 3 top items on the list were to take down the ugly backsplash wall that used to be behind the stove, paint all the walls in Bavarian Creme high gloss like the other rooms we've already painted, and to redo the kitchen floor. Mission accomplished.

Harry took the faux wall down and sanded down the sheetrock behind it while Ellie and I were out of the house shopping. It made it a lot easier for him us not being there because he didn't have to sand by hand. He took out the electric sander and kicked up all sorts of nasty dust instead. Unfortunately, he didn't actually cover the dining room furniture or the counters, so I ended up having to clean everything after:(

After patching up the wall where it needed it, Harry taped off the room, which always takes forever and a day but is worth it because of the finished product. To my surprise and delight, he started taping right into the hallway, meaning we could also paint that, too. I had been secretly hoping he'd be cool with getting all that done, too, because it so terribly needed it.

When Ellie went down for her nap, we started painting. I do the roller while harry cuts. That's always how we paint because I suck at cutting and I can't reach the ceiling really, even when I'm on a stool. It ended up only taking us an hour to paint everything. That's got to be some kind of record. And it was the best paint job we've ever done.

On Sunday, Harry decided he was up for doing the kitchen floor. Here's a before:


And here's an after:



I LOVE my new kitchen floor. Love it. It goes so well with all my red kitchen gadgets. And it actually makes the kitchen brighter. Ellie was all over it, too. She ran up to the threshold between the dining room and kitchen and just stared at it, not sure if she wanted to actually step on. Then she bounded onto it and did a little jig. Then she started racing back and forth from the threshold to the window and back. It's got the Ellie stamp of approval.

Last on the major improvement list for the kitchen is new countertops. We really want to go with granite, but out budget doesnt' like that so much. I'm still weighing my options. Anyone have any other recommendations? I'm all ears.

Pimpin' my other blog

A few of us have decided to take on this challenge to post a picture every day for the next year, hence the name of my blog 365. There are links to all those participating on my blog, so please check everyone else out as well. I'm not that great of a photographer, but my friends rock at it. You'll be amazed these women aren't professional photographers. Yeah, they're that good.

This is an extra special challenge for me because I don't post pics of Ellie on the net, therefore I have to find other things to take pictures of. Shooting photos around Ellie for past photo challenges has always been hard for me, and telling me I have to take 365 pictures NOT of Ellie is torture. I'm gonna give it my best though.

Still sick but chugging along

I'm going on 10 days now with this damn cold. It just won't go away. Wah.

Ok, enough complaining. We had a great weekend. Yay! On Saturday morning, it was just me and Ellie. The last few weeks have been torture going shopping because Ellie pitches a fit the minute we put her in a shopping cart. Grocery shopping was our normal Sat. morning thing, so I've been crushed that Ellie doesn't want to do it anymore. Last week, I actually just went by myself and left her home with Harry because I was feeling so crappy and didn't want to wrestle with a nearly 2 year old in order to purchase our weekly sustenance.

I was originally going to wait until Harry got home from work to go grocery shopping, but Ellie was in such a good mood I decided to venture out on our own. I brought along a new sippy cup (with straw!), hoping that would make the trip more fun for her. And it worked! She was awesome for the entire trip. I know I'm not out of the woods yet, but it was nice nonetheless. I think the cup will be saved for weekends only in the hopes that she'll see it as a treat (I know that's lame, but it it works, I'll take it).

After she woke up from her afternoon nap, we all ventured out to the party store a few towns over to pick up all the stuff for Ellie's upcoming birthday party. I've been scouring internet stores all week looking for Blue's Clues party supplies, but it seems each place only carries certain things. I'd need to order from like 3 different places to get everything I want, and that's just way too much to spend on shipping. My last option was to check out Party City, hoping that since they have most of the stuff on their website, they'd have it at the store.

No deal. They had no Blue's Clues at all. Sadness. So we went with Dora instead. There's tons of Dora stuff to choose from everywhere we go. We even picked up a Dora baseball cap for Ellie, which she wouldn't let go of the entire time we were there. And again, we had another successful shopping trip. There were a shload of people there, too, and she was still cool with it. Hurray!

On Sunday, we had to run out to Home Depot for a few things, and she was cool with that trip, too. We're on a roll now. Please, please, please let this mean she's good with the shopping thing again.

Harry tackled bathroom home improvement this weekend. When we did our home inspection, we found some water damage to the floor immediately in front of the bathtub. We knew we'd have to fix it once we moved in. Harry pulled the flooring up in that area yesterday, replaced all the wood, then put down a new floor. It looks great. The bathroom is still all old fashioned looking, but at least the floor looks better than it did. We know that we're gonna have to demo the whole thing in a few years though, so I can live with the wallpaper and blue tile until then.

Kim and Niko came by for our weekly playdate yesterday, too. Ellie pushed him around again, but we kind of let the kids work it out on their own this time. In the end, they really started playing with one another instead of simply playing alone near each other. It's pretty cool. And Kim and I got to relax and chat for an hour or two. It saves both our sanities.

My mom came by to visit last night, too, which I've really been enjoying since we moved in. Ellie loves seeing her, too. Who would have thought that a new house would bring us even closer together? Yay!

Books and CDs

I am an avid reader and music lover, as most of you know. Nothing makes me happier than a good book and some decent tunes (Well, Ellie makes me happier than both, but that's a given).

I've managed to read quite a few good books lately and hear some really excellent music. So much so that I decided to splurge on myself a little and pick up some new stuff this week.

First, I'll start with the books I've recently read. It all started soon after we moved in, and I finally got back to the library. I read Stephenie Meyer's The Host, which I must say, I surprisingly enjoyed. The storyline seemed a bit hokey when I read the blurb, but in the end, it proved to be an interesting one. This is a purely for-entertainment-only book, my friends; you will not find the meaning of life in it, but it would make one hell of a sci-fi movie.

After that, I read David Sedaris's When You Are Engulfed in Flames. I heart Sedaris. I really do. This book was yet another literary feat. I definitely recommend it.

Next, I read Breaking Dawn, the last installment of the Twilight series. Loved it. I know quite a few Twilight fans gave this one a thumbs down, but not this girl. It was oh-so-good.

After that, I read Ian McEwan's Atonement. This was chosen by my book club. It's not something I would have normally chosen to read, and after getting through 90 or so grueling pages that poured words forth as slow as molasses, I was ready to give up. Luckily, the story picked up soon after that, and I ended up totally enraptured with the wartime parts of the novel. Another good read.

Next, I read Gregory Maguire's Son of a Witch. I was a big fan of Wicked, and I still can't believe I never got around to reading the next installment. Loved it, loved it, loved it. And I hear a 3rd installment is coming about. Hurray!

And now, I've just finished Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner. I had read a bit of his work earlier this year, and I knew I had to read more. His book read like pure poetry. I balled my eyes out quite a few times reading this. It's one of the best books I've read all year. I can't wait to get my hands on A Thousand Splendid Suns. The man is genius.

Now for the books I just bought:

Brisingr by Christopher Paolini. The sci-fi geek in me has been waiting for the third installment to the Inheritence Cycle. I'll probably start reading it tomorrow.

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman. Sure, it's a book for young adults. So what? It's Gaiman, people.

Next up is some good music I've purchased:

Jude's album, Cuba. If you've heard Jude, like No-One-Is-Really-Beautiful-Jude, you will love this album. His sweet voice is mesmerizing once again. And there are no label big bosses telling him what he can and can't put on the recond. This ain't no King of Yesterday.

Regina Spektor - Songs - This album was put out in 2002 I think, way before we'd all ever heard of Ms. Spektor. I can't get enough of this album. Oedipus is probably my favorite track.

Music I've just ordered:

Who Killed Amanda Palmer? by... Amanda Palmer from The Dresden Dolls. Two other artists, Neil Gaiman and Ben Folds, have contributed to this project. I can't wait to have a listen.

Way to Normal - Ben Folds - Ben is a musical genius.

Carnavas - Silversun Pickups - I've been hearing the song Lazy Eye on the radio for months now, and I just found out who sang it (mostly because I couldn't even figure out the name of the damn song!). I gave a quick listen to the rest of the album, and it's so me.

I'll write reviews for all the stuff that coming my way in the mail soon.

Arte y Pico

Cathy has nominated me for this wonderful award:



The literal translation, according to Cathy, is "art and peak" and is awarded to interesting and creative blogs. How cool! As I commented to Cathy, I thought I had lost my creativity when I stopped writing poetry. It's been nice to find that I've still got it - heh heh.

With the award comes the responsibility to nominate 5 fellow bloggers. Here are the rules:

1) Choose 5 blogs that you consider deserving of this award based on creativity, design, interesting material & overall contribution to the blogger community.
2) Post the name of the author & a link to his or her blog so everyone can view it.
3) Each award winner has to show the award & put the name & link to the blog that has given him or her the award.
4) The award winner & presenter should post the link of the “Arte y Pico” blog so everyone will know the origin of the award.
5) Post these rules.

So without further ado, my 5:

1. Cristina - Oh, how I love, love, love my Homey's writing. She has a way with words. She molds and sculpts them into works of art. I hope I get one of the first copies of her future book(s). Here that, C!

2. Kristin - Oh, and the second blog here - Oh, and now the third blog here - Need I say more?

3. Cathy - and her new photo challenge blog here - Right back atcha, babe! Cathy's got creativity up the wazoo! She knits, she bakes, she cooks, she takes photos, and she does them all well! She's not so good at putting bikes together, but nobody's perfect.

4. Jae - she takes some of the most interesting and impressive photos I've seen. I love when she's got a post full of them. I see the words "photo heavy" in the title, and I get all kinds of excited.

5. Postsecret - I've been following this blog for quite some time now. The very idea of it inspires me.

We have a fence!

I updated that we had all the posts set Friday, but it ended up that we didn't have a completed fence by Saturday. They were supposed to show up first thing Saturday morning to finish, but that didn't happen. Instead we got a call from Eli saying they would be there soon but asking if we could write our check out to the guys putting the fence up instead of to the company because the check from the last job bounced and the company didn't have enough cashola to pay their workers? Seriously?

Unfortunately for Eli (and us apparently), we were paying by credit card, so no-go (and it sounded a little shady to me besides). An hour later, no one had still shown up. We called Eli, and he said he was now trying to get another team together because the other one wouldn't do it because of the whole payment debacle (can you blame them?). We got another call about 4 hours later telling us he'd found another team (a guy plus his son he's apprenticing), and they'd be out soon to start, completing Sunday morning.

At 7pm, while we're giving Ellie her bath, someone rings the doorbell. It's the poor guy who agreed to do our job on his Sat. evening/Sunday morning. It was almost dark by this time, and the dude was dripping sweat from every pore in his body. He asked if he could start Sunday morning instead, and of course, we said yes.

True to his word, the guy showed up Sunday morning and got to work. He worked nearly all day (with a 1.5 hr lunchbreak), and he did a fantastic job. We couldn't be more pleased. We watched him work, and you could tell how much time and care and pride he put into his work.

As he was cleaning up, Harry asked him about the tension line that was supposed to be installed at the bottom of the fence, and he told us the company never gave it to him. Figures. Harry even reminded Eli about the damn thing on the phone Saturday.

After they left, Harry called Eli again about the tension line, and, for some reason, Eli thought Harry was talking about something else. Whatever. Someone's supposed to be out today to put it on. I'm not holding my breath.

But we have a fence. At first, Ellie was none too happy about it. Harry took her out to play, and when he closed the gate, she flipped. She started shaking the gate, trying to get out, and wailing at the top of her lungs. Yikes.

I suggested we take her outside to play again after dinner, but bringing her out the back door instead. That seemed to work better. She didn't freak.

***

In other news, for those who don't know, Harry is the King of Tag Saling. This man loves tag sales like nobody's business. He's a sucker for them. Every time we drive by a sign for one, I cringe, hoping he didn't see it. I used to love tag sales as a kid, too, but not so much anymore. I don't need to sift through someone's teaspoon collection or glasswares from 1955. I've got plenty of my own junk at home. Harry, on the other hand, sees treasure.

He did get me a rather nice bookcase a few years ago, so he doesn't just bring home trash (and he does bring home trash on occasion which irks me to no end). And I will admit, he did hit the jackpot this weekend.

One of the houses we were dying to buy but couldn't afford has finally been sold. The previous owners have to be out by this coming Thursday, so they had a tag sale this weekend to get rid of as many things as possible to make their move easier. While I went grocery shopping, Harry took Ellie to go check it out. Ellie must be his lucky charm (or maybe she's just too cute and has some secret power to get people to give her things).

He ended up scoring this awesome Little Tikes kitchen for Miss Ellie, including 100 odd kitcheny things like plates, bowls, food, etc. She's in love with this thing. He got it all for $10. He also got her a portable slide for $5, which he's planning on putting in the finished basement this winter so Ellie still has a playground for when it's cold (can you say spoiled? - LOL). The woman threw in a kid's art easel for free, which was something I had been wanting to get for her. Bonus!

Last, he got a receiver, speakers, and 50-CD changer for $10. I'm not kidding. It's in perfect working order. The hinge on the door to the CD changer had been broken off, but Harry fixed it. We hooked it up to the TV, and now we have stereo sound. How cool! And I got to select 50 discs to put in the changer. We listened to music all weekend instead of watched TV. That's pretty cool.

I had to give him a pat on the back for it all. I love a bargain, I'll admit, and since we started dating, Harry now shares my enthusiasm for finding the best deals. I've wanted a large CD changer for years, but they're just too pricey. I know he was trying to think of a way to get me one for Christmas, but I had firmly put my foot down about it last week when I saw him searching for them on the internet. Who would have thought he'd come across one at a tag sale?

I'm a happy girl:)

The Fence from Hell

We moved into our new home July 27th. The next day, we had a fence company come out to give us an estimate for the front of our yard. In all, we need 125' of fence to complete the one already on the property. This adds up to about 12-14 holes being dug, posts cemented in, chain link being run across, and a gate installed. It's a small job, so we were expecting an low estimate. NOT. It was over $3000! Can you say holy crap?

So the next week, we invited another fence company to come out and give us an estimate, one that was still a little higher than we expected, but way lower than the first. We checked out their credentials, checked on the BBB (of which they're actually a member), etc. Everything looked good. The one thing we asked before signing the offer was if they used materials from Home Depot or Lowes because we had already checked those out and we weren't impressed. They assured us that they only purchased materials from a vendor that supplied industrial quality fence and that you actually needed a contracting license in order to buy. Basically, the fence we would be getting is exactly like the one already on the property. That's what we wanted to hear, so we signed. We were told it was a 4 week wait, but most likely, our job would get done earlier because it was so small. This was on August 10th.

Fast forward 4 weeks. No calls. No workers. No fence. We started calling, leaving messages, etc. We finally got in touch with the owner who assured us that work would begin the next week. He said he had been in the hospital the previous week, and since he does all the purchasing and scheduling, nothing had been done that week.

So the next week comes around, we call a few times more, and finally, the owner tells us work will begin Thurdsay, Sept. 11th. At 4pm Sept 11th, I get a call from the owner telling me they didn't make it out to our house after all, but they'd be there first thing the next morning. The job would be completed by that afternoon.

At 4pm on Friday, the 12th, Harry comes home to find 2 guys JUST starting to dig holes (by hand no less) in our front yard. When I got home at 5:15pm, there were no guys there, and about 6 holes on one side of the yard with some posts sticking out of them. Ends up they didn't have the cement with them, so they had left to go get it. Then it had started raining, and they never came back. They also left all their tools there in our yard.

The next morning, Saturday, Harry went outside to pull all the posts out of the holes because he was afraid someone might walk by and accidently get hit by one. As he pulled them out, he noticed a bar code on each. BIG RED FLAG. His gut told him something was wrong here. So he took a trip to our local Home Depot, and, you guessed it, the damn posts they were about to install were from HD.

We left messages everywhere for the owner. Both of us were livid. The guy finally called us back late that afternoon. When Harry said there were barcodes on the posts, the owner says, "That's not right. There shouldn't be any. Let me call Eli (the other owner) to see what's going on." He calls us back a few minutes later to tell us that our posts got mixed up with another job (a job supposedly from Home Depot; he claims his company is one of HD's installers). He assured us that they'd switch the posts and resume work on Monday.

Harry get's home from work on Monday, and guess what? No one has been to our house. He calls and leaves another message. Tuesday morning, the owner gets back to him while he's at work. Now they tell us that our fence was accidentally ordered in black, and they're having an entire new order delivered from NJ. Hmmmm.

Eli shows up Tuesday night to fill in all the holes they dug (per Harry's request because we were afraid someone might accidentally fall into one and break a leg) and tells us a different story. He claims another customer asked the company to install the cheapest chain link they could find, so they went and bought supplies from Home Depot for it, and they got mixed up. Hmmmm again. He said our materials would be in by Thursday, the 18th, and our fence would be completed by that evening.

So Harry gets home from work yesterday, and guess what? No fence. No one was even at our house. Harry calls and leaves a message again (seems these guys are NEVER in the office). No one returns the call. This morning, I leave a message, and it's Eli that calls (I guess the other owner is done talking with us). He tells me our material is on its way to a job site in Trumbull, and a crew will be picking it up around 11am or so, so they should be arriving at our house to do the job at 12pm (which is right about now). He assured me that when I come home this evening, there will be a fully functioning fence and gate in my yard. I certainly hope so.

If it's not there, we're backing out. It's been 6 weeks since we signed the offer and put down the deposit, and we have nothing right now. It's been hell trying to track down these people, and I haven't appreciated their dishonesty. Harry and I both knew what happened the minute Harry saw those sku numbers. When we first called them at the 4 week mark, they realized they had forgotten to order our fencing material. Instead of telling us the truth, they ran to Home Depot and tried to install a low quality fence, hoping we wouldn't notice. When we did, they made up a story about materials getting switched. When they couldn't get new material quickly enough, they said the incorrect material was ordered. If they had been honest from the getgo, I wouldn't be so irate over the whole situation.

Here's hoping I have a fence tonight. I really don't want to have to go to battle with these people over my deposit. At least I did one thing right and put the deposit on a credit card. My CC company is good at getting these disputes taken care of if needs be. Ugh.

SNL opening

And here it is... Tina Fey as Sarah Palin.

Whining about Wine

So y'all remember my post about whether or not I should buy a case of my favorite picnic red to celebrate our new house, right?

In the end, I decided not to fork over nearly $200 because that's the frugal in me. That $200 was definitely needed elsewhere, like the extra cashola we ended up needing for the plumbing and the fence (which we STILL don't have; they claim they're putting it up today. We'll see).

Instead, I opted to go to our local liquor store which is rated one of the best wine stores in the state. I had called ahead of time to see if maybe they carried the one I wanted but alas, that was not the case. The guy on the phone did mention that they had another picnic red from another local vineyard I might like to try. I told him I'd be right down!

I found it exactly where he had described they kept it (along with all the other local wines) and decided to pick up a few others while I was there. I like both white and red, though I'm mainly a red girl. I also grabbed a rasberry wine, a pinot grigio (my fave white), and a merlot. I decided on 4 because my new china cabinet actually has a wine rack that holds, you guessed it, 4 bottles.

I placed the 4 bottles in the rack when I got home, and then, of course, I kinda forgot about them. They sat there for a good month until last evening when I decided, "Hey, I'd like a glass while watching Project Runway."

I broke open the picnic red, managing to accidently knock the bottle over and spilliing a little before I recovered it. Nice. Smooth move, Alicia. I quickly cleaned up, poured myself a glass, and planted myself in front of the TV. I took a sip. Fruity. I took another sip. Sweet. I let Harry take a taste. He's not much of a wine person, but it was palatable to him. I took a third sip. Hmmm. A little too sweet. Fourth sip. Um, juice? Fifth sip? Yeah, definitely juice.

And then... I poured it down the drain! Yeah, I just wasn't feeling it. I hardly ever waste wine, but I just couldn't bring myself to finish it. Maybe I can make a sangria or something with the rest of it.

I googled it this morning to get the pic to post, and I came across a blog about it. Can you believe the review was almost exactly like mine?

So this wine definitely gets a thumbs down. It's also left me to wonder if I'd like the picnic red I talked about seeing as how my taste has changed over the years. It's been a good 4 years or so since I've had it, back in the day when I loved all things sweet. That's not the case anymore. I don't even put sugar in my coffee nowadays.

I'm still glad I didn't spend the $200, but if I'm up near Litchfield, I might stop in at the vineyard to buy a bottle or two. $30 is much more my speed.

And then it's days like these...

Days like yesterday when Ellie has me laughing hysterically and she's all smiles that tug at my heartstrings and make me wonder how I could ever get angry and frustrated with this amazing little girl.

She still played with her dinner and pitched a small fit when she had to get out of the tub, but it was MY reaction that was different and made the evening so enjoyable.

I've noticed when I'm not stressing and just going with it, Ellie's tantrums and less-than-desirable behavior aren't nearly as fierce. Just like when she was a small baby, she feeds off of the vibes she's getting from me. She senses the tension and frustration in my body language and voice.

This just reaffirms that I do need to work on myself as well as help Ellie steer her stubbornness in the right direction. We need to do this together. We're so connected that it can't just be one or the other. I need to keep reminding myself of that.

"I didn't want you to worry; I was hit by a tractor trailer"

This is what he led off with this morning when he called me at 7:15am.

I saw Harry's number pop up on the caller ID 15 minutes after he was already supposed to be at work, so I knew something was up. I didn't even answer with "Hello?" I immediately asked, "Is everything OK?"

Instead of saying something like "I was stuck in traffic, and someone accidentally rolled back into me. I'm fine, and there's minimal damage to the car," he sucker-punched me with the tractor trailer line.

The images that came screeching across my mind were horrific. Of course, they only lasted a few seconds until reason and logic kicked in. He was, after all, calling me on his cell phone, and he sounded completely calm. It couldn't be that bad.

Once I got him to tell me he was OK, he told me the whole story. There had been an accident on I-95N, and he had been stuck in sluggish traffic for 1/2 an hour. At one point, he ended up behind the infamous tractor trailer. Harry noticed that it was slowly rolling back and thought the guy would realize he was doing it. When the truck started getting dangerously close, Harry started honking his horn like a madman. Unfortunately, the guy didn't hear it and didn't realize he was rolling until he actually made contact with Harry's bumper.

The guy immediately claimed fault, they called the cops, and that was pretty much the end of it. Harry already took it to the body shop, and it's about $400 damage, mainly because the bumper can't be painted so we need a new one. Harry also already called our insurance company to let them know it happened and to give a detailed account (Thank God I remembered you're supposed to call them). Since the guy claimed fault, I'm hoping we won't have any problems with his insurance company.

So that's the news for today... my husband got into a small accident, and he nearly gave me a heart attack when telling me about it.

Behavioral issues

It was an interesting weekend.

To start it off, Teri told us that Ellie started biting the kids at daycare on Friday. Great. We thought she had kicked the biting thing months ago. At that time, she was only biting either Harry or me. This was around when she was 13 months old. After a week of ignoring it, she stopped doing it. So when Teri said she started biting the kids, I wasn't too happy. Why now after all this time? I know the kids get in her face and invade her personal space, but she normally tells them no and puts her hand out so they can't come any closer. Is the biting a new defense mechanism? Is she doing it as a game? Is she looking for a reaction like she did with Harry and me all those months ago?

Our last theory is that she's teething. Those 2 year molars are getting ready to push out. This theory actually came about before the biting, earlier last week. She was cranky for no reason, and that usually only happens when she's teething. The biting was yet another indicator.

On Saturday, Ellie bit me. Not hard and not out of anger. She just did it because my arm was there. She was biting her toys, too. I still told her "no biting" because... everyone... consistency is key. She bit both Harry and me a few more times during the weekend, all softly and without malice.

Ellie also tested some boundaries this weekend, though that's really nothing new. I have one of the most stubborn little girls on the planet, no doubt thanks to me. Why in the world did I have to pass that trait on to her?

She still throws food when she's done eating or if she doesn't want something, but that had been getting better. She's been handing us the bowl or the cup once she's finished. This weekend, all that hard work went out the window. She was throwing with a vengance and moved onto rubbing the food into the dining room curtains. Lovely. We moved her chair so she can't do that anymore.

Since moving into the new house, Ellie has found that she can easily flip the little switch in the bathtub that makes the water drain. The one at our other house was too hard to move. Because this one is like 50 years old, it's a little worn out. Since she has found she can move it, she continually likes to flip it up and down. We've told her if she does it again, she's getting out of the tub. Usually she stops because she loves the tub. Last night though, she refused to listen. So out of the tub she went with absolutely no playtime. She was not a happy girl.

Luckily she got over it and cuddled with me while we watched Dora. As I was sitting there holding her, though, I couldn't help but replay the entire weekend in my head.

In order to make my voice stern, I actually have to raise it a little. There's just no way around it. I'm not yelling, but I'm definitely loud. I had to do that quite a few times this weekend. I also had to actually walk away from her for a minute or so at one of our mealtimes yesterday. I felt myself getting so angry, so frustrated that I felt I needed to take myself out of the equation.

The more I thought about the weekend, the more I wondered if I actually might need some counseling to help control my anger and frustration, which invariably lead to the huge amounts of stress I put on myself. The stress causes headaches, trouble losing weight, and really just all out bitchiness. It's not good for me or the people around me.

I started talking to Harry about it, and he doesn't see a problem. He says we need to raise our voices to get Ellie's attention, which I must concede is true. He also says that the anger and frustration is normal, which is also true. I just think the way I channel it is unhealthy.

And I admitted that when Ellie was playing with the tub drain switch, I had a sudden impulse to spank her hand to get her to stop. When raising all my nieces, that was how I was taught to reprimand them for touching something they weren't supposed to touch. We seldom had to actually do it because all 4 girls were very good at this age. I know, it's some kind of weird anomoly with my family. All 4 girls listened when spoken to and could communicate their needs at this age.

So Ellie is totally new to me. Her stubbornness is not something I've encountered before. Her self-awareness and independence is something I've never experience with a toddler. And I'm a little at a loss as to if I'm doing everything right.

Ellie does not ask for things. You have to ask her first. Ex: she'll be thirsty, but instead of asking for juice, she'll start throwing toys. You have to actually realize that that's what she needs. "Ellie are you hungry? Are you thirsty? Do you want juice?" and she'll gleefully shout, "JUICE!" like Oh, yeah, that's what's wrong. I'm thirsty. It's like she just doesn't care if she's thirsty. Harry said because she's always been on a schedule and usually gets food and drink at the same time everyday, she just doesn't see the need to ask for it. Maybe he's right.

I'm frustrated because she understands EVERYTHING we say to her, and her vocabulary is emmense, but she won't use it to get her point across. I've been trying to tell her to use her words, but it's been slow going.

This morning, she had a huge meltdown while I tried to get her dressed. She was doing this about a month ago but finally realized she was getting dressed regardless of how much she fought it. So she stopped fighting. This morning she kicked and screamed and cried. So much so that she became hysterical. I had to calm her down, which I can still luckily do. After she was calm, I asked her if her teeth hurt (which was the theory I had been holding onto all weekend). Instead of her usual "no!" when she's in a mood like this, she just stared at me. I asked again, and again she stared. This means "yes" in Ellie-speak. I then pointed to each side of her mouth, asking her which side hurt, and she immediately pointed to the left side.

Finally! Some communication.

I know it's small, but I'm holding onto it tightly with both hands. Even though she didn't use words, she told me her tooth/teeth hurt. I wanted to cry.

I explained it all to Teri this morning so she could watch her closely today. Teri says I'm doing everything right, which is nice to hear, and she agrees with me when I say that even though I had that urge to spank Ellie's hand, spanking would not work with Ellie. She'd probably look at me like, "What the hell are you doing?"

Honestly, why don't they come with a manual?

Just Stuff

We had a great weekend. We played outside a little, did our grocery shopping, and Harry and I even got to go out for a couple of hours on Saturday night (STILL no Dark Knight, though, damn the movie theatres here!). We did a little shopping, and I picked up a really cute knee length black coat for the fall. Go me.

We also tried a new recipe this weekend, courtesy of my friend, Kristin. Kristin is once again venturing into the world of vegetarianism. Go Kristin. My husband would never go for it, so we're carnivores for life. Heh heh. That doesn't mean I don't like a vegetarian dish every once and again.

Let me tell you, this easy to prepare burger is delicious. I was floored at the flavors. Harry was won over, as well, and he doesn't even like onions. I substituted vidalia instead of red, hoping it wouldn't be too powerful for his palate. I was right. So we're adding this to our weekly meals. Yum.

In other news, Ellie's vocabulary has pretty much doubled this past month. It's freakin' incredible. And she started to speak in short sentences. It's mostly things that start with "I ...", my absolute favorite being "I OK". My mom started a game with her on Saturday, asking Ellie, "Ellie, are you OK?" when Ellie slipped off the ottoman (on purpose), and Ellie gleefully responding, "I OK." It was just too damn cute.

She also surprised us with "Grammy's here" on Saturday, especially since she hasn't said "Grammy" yet. My mom was pleased, of course.

It just amazes me, how she picks everything up so quickly. She's big into pointing objects out now, too. She loves the look on my face when she does it. "Flower." "Bear." "SLIDE!" Her memory is phenomenal, too, and she totally gets if I say I'm going to take something away because she's not behaving... "Nooooooo!" Yeah, I don't like that one so much.

Do I have to?

I've been dreading it all week, but I kicked myself in the ass and got into the dentist chair today. I HATE the dentist, like have-an-insane-fear-of hate the dentist. I don't hate my dentist himself, merely the idea of a person that scrapes and drills into your teeth. How barbaric.

My parents only brought me to the dentist once as a child. Yes, you read that right. I was around 8 years old, and, naturally, the dentist found a cavity since my parents never really bothered with teaching us to brush our teeth (or buying us toothbrushes for that matter). I know, what planet are my parents from?

When they had to pay the bill for the cavity, that ended any future trips there. They had their own teeth to worry about; I was young so my teeth wouldn't go bad for years. My mom needed root canals, and my dad needed all his teeth pulled for dentures. Yikes.

I started going on my own at age 18 because I had insurance. By then, I had 5 cavities! And the teeth cleaning for that visit... holy God. It was one of the worst experiences of my life.

I also needed my wisdom teeth pulled, but that little experience wasn't that bad. The surgeon that performed the extraction was quick and precise. I appreciated that, especially because I couldn't afford the knock-out gas for the procedure. Hearing your teeth cracked out of your mouth is most unpleasant.

But the piece d'resistance, the reason for my hatred, came about from one specific cavity-filling visit. It was the last one of the 5, and I was so done with going every few weeks. I had spent hundreds out of my pocket for all the other stuff (insurance only covered so much), and I just wanted it to end.

This filling was supposed to be routine. And I thought it was. When the dentist kind of sucked in his breath and paused during it, I thought it was a bit strange. He didn't say anything to me and carried on until the filling was complete. We said our goodbyes, and I went home.

And then the novacaine wore off. Holy shit! The pain was atrocious. I'd never felt anything like it. And then I realized... he had hit the nerve. He had drilled too far down and hit the f'ing nerve. I quickly took a percocet (which I had gotten for the wisdom teeth extraction and never used because there wasn't really any pain with that), and tried to sleep it off.

I awoke 4 hours later, and it had settled down into a pulsing throb. I took another percocet, and luckily, the pain was gone by the next day. I never went back to that dentist again.

Many years later, that tooth started to chip around the filling. I was terrified of going to get it fixed. So I waited. And waited. And waited.

Harry finally talked me into going to his dentist. Surprisingly, the guy did an amazing job, and it didn't hurt one bit.

Unfortunately, my cleanings were still torturous for some reason. As the years have gone by, they've gotten better. And I haven't had any problems.

At my last cleaning in June, the hygenist noticed that that stupid tooth was chipping again. The dentist had told me I'd probably have to get it fixed every 5 years or so, and I was at about 4.5.

Today, I will say, was the best dentist visit I have ever had. The whole thing didn't even take 10 minutes, and I didn't need novacaine. Yay me.

I'm still glad I don't have to go back for my next cleaning until December though.

The Zucchini Bread Recipe

Since Annita asked for it:

Zucchini Bread (from The Better Homes cookbook)


1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1 beaten egg

1 cup sugar

1 cup shredded, unpeeled zucchini

1/4 cup cooking oil

1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (I use walnuts)


These are the Better Homes directions:

Grease the bottom and 1/2 inches up the sides of an 8-by-4-by-2-inch loaf pan; set aside,

In a medium bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, baking powder and nutmeg. Make a well in the center of flour mixture; set aside.

In another medium bowl, combine egg, sugar, zucchini and oil. Add zucchini mixture all at once to flour mixture. Stir just until moistened (batter should be lumpy). Fold in nuts. Spoon batter into prepared pan.

This is the way I mix it:

Grease the bottom and 1/2 inches up the sides of an 8-by-4-by-2-inch loaf pan; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine shredded zucchini, sugar, egg, oil, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add 1/2 cup of flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix. Add another 1/2 cup of flour. Mix. Add last 1/2 cup of flour. Mix again until all flour is integrated. Then fold in walnuts.Spoon batter into prepared pan.


Bake at 350 degrees F. for 50 to 55 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Remove from pan. Cool completely on a wire rack. Wrap and store overnight before slicing.

Photo Challenge: Look what I made!

This week's photo challenge was to take a picture of something we've made.



I put the zucchinis our neighbor gave us to work, and I baked a shload of zucchini bread. I even had more shredded zucchini left over to freeze. We passed some out to our friendly neighbors and gorged on some ourselves. It's delish, if I do say so myself.

Night terrors, sleep deprivation hangover, and roller coasters

Ellie woke up at 1am this morning crying, that piercing, I'm-terrified, screaming kind of crying that sends ice through your veins. I went in to check on her, sure that she was just crying in her sleep, which she sometimes does.

Nope, she's wide awake, standing in her crib, waiting for Mommy to make it better. That just broke me heart. I scooped her up, and she clung to my neck for dear life, practically crushing my windpipe and forcing me to struggle to get air. Holy crap.

Ellie's had a few nightmares in the past, but this one must have been a doozy. She wasn't even saying anything, just holding onto me like a life preserver or something. It made me want to weep. I walked her for a few minutes like I used to when she was a wee babe, and it settled her, though she still wouldn't ease up on her grip. I decided that there was no way she'd let me put her back down in her crib like that.

So I brought her back to our bed, and she still wouldn't let go. I tried to hold her next to me, but she crawled up onto me, still wrapping her arms around my neck. So I tried to sleep with her head lodged under my chin (no easy feat) for the next 1/2 hour until she loosened her grip on me enough for me to place her next to me. We slept like that for another 1/2 hour until she started getting chatty. That's the cue to put her back into her crib; the terror had passed.

She put up a small fuss but then fell deeply asleep and stayed that way till morning. How I wish she could have told me what scared her so much.

I woke up this morning with what felt like a wine hangover. Not pleasant. Two Tylenol and a whole lotta coffee helped with that, so I'm in pretty good shape now. Ellie woke up this morning not even remembering last night, thank goodness.

While I had to work today, and Ellie went to daycare as usual, Harry has his company picnic at Lake Compounce. He took Kaylee along with him, happy to have someone to brave the rides with him. Like me, Harry isn't an amusement park kind of person. He's afraid of heights like I am, so we don't really do the rides too well. Harry had mentioned that he'd always been so afraid to ride the wooden roller coaster there as a kid (you wouldn't even be able to get me near that thing), but he was going to attempt it today. Kaylee is an avid roller coaster rider, so she's the perfect person to help Harry overcome his fear. Good luck, Honey!

I don't need to conquer that fear; I'm perfectly fine with keeping it with me the rest of my life, thank you.

Couples Survey

Here's a meme I stole from Leaner; it looked interesting.

Couples Survey

[1] What are your middle names? The only question I won't answer. I still value a little privacy.
[2] How long have you been together? We started dating just over 7 years ago on July 29, 2001. We got married February 4, 2004.
[3] How long did you know each other before you started dating? We had met 3 times before that through mutual friends.
[4] Who asked whom out? I'm the one that called, but he was the one that suggested I call. LOL
[5] How old are each of you? 31(A) and 33(H)
[6] What are your astrological signs? Taurus(A) and Capricorn(H)
[7] When was your first kiss? July 29, 2001
[8] Who's mother do you see the most? Mine
[9]Who's father? Mine
[10] Do you have any children together? 1 little girl
[11] What about pets? We have a cat named Luna
[12] Do you have a song? "I Want You To Want Me" By Cheap Trick and "Angel Eyes" by The Jeff Healey Band
[13] Which bill is the hardest on you as a couple? our new Mortgage:)
[14] Who pays the bills? I make sure everything is paid.
[15] Who drives and who sits shotgun? I drive, he calls shotgun.
[16] Did you go to the same school? Yes, but we didn't know each other then.
[17] Are you from the same hometown? Yes
[18] Do you live in the same town now? Yes
[19] Who is the smartest? I have more book smarts, but Harry is way more street smart. And he's really good with his hands.
[20] Who is the most sensitive? My feelings get hurt more easily, but Harry is more compassionate.
[21] Where do you eat out at most as a couple? We have a few choice places: Knapp's Landing, Old Towne Restaurant, and Applebee's.
[22] Where do you shop the most as a couple? Marshall's and Homegoods.
[23] Where is the furthest you have traveled as a couple? Hawaii
[24] Who has the best group of friends? I do.
[25] Who has the craziest exes? Harry definitely wins that one.
[26] Who has the worst temper? I'm quick to anger, but Harry's anger is scarier.
[27] Who does the cooking? We share that duty.
[28] Who is more social? I have a few more friends, but Harry's more social with neighbors.
[29] Who is the neat-freak? Me, hands down.
[30] Who is the most affectionate? I'd say it's a tie.
[31] Who is the most stubborn? Me.
[32] Who hogs the bed? We have a king-sized bed, so there's no hogging.
[33] Who wakes up earlier? He does.
[34] Where was your first date? We went to go see a movie and then went to shoot some pool (we didn't actually know it was a date until the end of the evening:)
[35] Who said I Love You first? He did on our 1 year anniversary.
[36] Who has the bigger family? I do.
[37] Do you give/get flowers often? A couple of times a year. That's all I need.
[38] How do you spend the holidays? With family, although we occasionally get one with just us and Ellie.
[39] Do you have cute little names for each other? Just Hon. We actually don't really use each other's names; we always say "Hon".

Ten on Tuesday - 10 Favorite Villains from the Movies

1. The Alien in Alien
2. Michael Myers in Halloween
3. The Terminator in Terminator
4. The Joker in Batman
5. The Borg Queen in Star Trek: First Contact
6. Darth Vader in The Empire Strikes Back
7. General Zod in Superman II
8. Keyser Söze in The Usual Suspects
9. Pennywise in IT
10. Daryl Van Horne in The Witches of Eastwick

Quirky Meme

Mimi tagged me for this meme like a week and a half ago, but I just didn't have the time to do it while hanging out with Ellie. I guess better late then never:)

The Rules
* Link to the person who tagged you.
* Mention the rules.
* Tell six quirky yet boring, unspectacular details about yourself.
(I erased all the tagging stuff because most everyone has already gotten around to doing the meme).

1. I am anal about how clothes are put away, as in all tee shirts need to be on the same shelf in the armoire, all jeans, all long-sleeved shirts, all sweaters, and all non-jean pants. All bras must be in one drawer, all underwear, all socks, etc. All button-down shirts must be hung together facing left, all dresses, all dress pants, all skirts, etc. It drives me mad if it's not in the proper order. Ellie's drawers are also done similar, only her clothes are in areas of drawers in certain piles. I won't even go into Harry's armoire because it causes me to convulse into fits. He just throws stuff in. How can he find anything? (I used to be worse... everything in the closet also went from light colors to dark colors. I broke that habit once Ellie was born; I just don't have the time).

2. I am left-handed, but I have to shoot pool or mini-golf right-handed. It feels awkward shooting left-handed, which makes no sense.

3. I hate having long nails. I keep them pretty short. My hands are super small, and long nails make my fingers look weird to me.

4. I hate being the passenger in the car. I drive us almost everywhere. I hate not being able to use the brake, and I sometimes stomp on the floor of the car like there's a brake there when I don't think someone is stopping early enough (Harry). I am ashamed to say that I am most definitely a side-seat driver. I usually keep my eyes closed if I have to be a passenger so I don't freak.

5. Although I am anal about how clothes are put away, I do not separate laundry when washing (except if I know a red shirt will bleed). This is probably because the only white things I own are socks, and I don't really care how white they stay. I can just buy more.

6. I have this awful habit of licking my fingers when I eat sticky or messy food, like Cheetos or barbequed chicken. And it's not just once I'm done, it's the entire time I'm eating the food. It drives my sister crazy.