More Misc. Musings
Posted by: anitajd on: February 5, 2010
I so desperately need a manicure. I think the “weak nails due to the freezing cold and dry weather” spell is slowly ending. Although….the freezing cold and dry weather is not.
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I’m not exercising. No movitation. Hate the cold. Clothes are getting snug. Waiting for spring. And I’m sure you are ready for me stop bitchin about this and just do something about it. Me too.
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Oooh, another “2009 update” for you…..Do you remember my “tank top post“? Where I didn’t know whether to wear a bra or not with tank tops that come with a “ready built bra”??? Well, last night we went out and I had this beautiful cardigan that needed a tank top underneath. I decided to go braless and use the “ready made bra.” (which I don’t know WHY since with every other tank top I wear a bra). I haven’t looked that flat-chested since I was 14….and I’m not that well-endowed to begin with. Result: I’m wearing a bra from now on.
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The other day I went to Kohl’s to get M a new pair of jeans. Didn’t find his size, but the clearance/sale items called to me (Ok, at Kohl’s everything is on sale all the time!). I decided to pick up a couple of sweatshirts since T&M have outgrown a couple of sweatshirts. My color choices: red, navy or black. My twins have been “color coded” since babies. T is in red, M is in blue (originally it was the other way around until T declared red is his favorite color). They are older, but they each like their “designated color” and for ease-of-laundry purposes, T still dresses in red, and M in blue.
What is my issue with the Kohl’s color selection??? That’s pretty much the ONLY color choices in this size/age group. I’m TIRED of only seeing T in red, and M in blue/navy!!! Yes, they have some black intermingled in their wardrobe. And unfortunately, their gray Boise St. sweatshirts are the ones I was replacing as being “too small.” There is no diversity in their wardrobe!! I used to love finding greens or yellows or browns/tans for them to wear. But as far as I can tell, those colors don’t exist once you enter size 8 or above.
And today, their school is asking the students to wear red for the AHA “February is Heart Awareness Month.” M turns to me and says “Mom, I don’t have anything red.” True. Why don’t you ask you brother if he’ll lend you something of his?” Sigh.
No longer a baby…
Posted by: anitajd on: February 3, 2010
that’s what I have to keep telling myself.
Little Guy turns 5 in 14 days.
And as a result, I have had to work consciously to treat him as a “Big Boy.” And it hasn’t been easy!!
A couple of months ago, Hubby (who takes care of the bath-time routine) decided that showers are *much* easier than baths. He has the twins take showers now, and he made a deal with Little Guy to alternate bath and shower nights. And although he dislikes showers, Little Guy does a pretty good job washing himself in there.
But then…..I dress him, I brush his teeth, I zip up his coat. All the stuff that I KNOW the twins were doing at this age. So I’m phasing things in…..all week, Little Guy has dressed himself. I told him on his 5th Bday he will start brushing his own teeth…..and the zip jackets….I’ll wait until winter is over and the bulky coat goes away.
However…..I face a dilemma of sorts. For February vacation, we’re going skiing with friends. I’ve signed the big boys up for all day ski school. But I don’t know what to do with Little Guy. He’s never attended full day ski school. HE’S MY BABY….I don’t want him to get tired!!! But I also know that he has the most stamina of any little creature I’ve seen. So I need to get over this purely mommy-psychological hump.
He’s growing up.
Shopping Challenges
Posted by: anitajd on: February 2, 2010
I have so many topics to blog on (time being my most major hinderance)—our ski trip on Sunday, my parenting class, dogs. Be patient and there will be some good reads in the near future.
But I just returned from a trip to the mall. I return utterly frustrated because I struck out on all 3 objectives I had. I’ve never been “big” into clothes shopping, but I do get into “moods” where I can find a ton of stuff at great prices. But for the last several years, shopping has just become an unpleasant experience for me.
First, I think clothing manufacturer’s and stores have priced several items out of “average” consumers. Second, the quality of clothing items have become poor which makes me feel like I’m paying a lot for crap. for example, for the longest time I refused to pay more than $30 for jeans. Due to inflation I’ve upped that to $50. However, what has happened to denim? It used to be “thick” and “sturdy.” Most jeans that I find in stores nowadays, I feel would rip in the knees if I crawled on the floors with my kids more than 3 times (or is that the “new” look?). Or Tshirts….how often have you picked up a tshirt only to be able to SEE THROUGH IT??? Sigh….. Third, I have trouble finding age-appropriate, “real woman” clothing. I’m not a gym-rat, so I prefer not to wear gym clothes every day (no offense to those who prefer “comfy” sweats/gym clothes…nothing against you…it’s just NOT ME). And since I don’t have a job outside the house, I don’t need “work” clothes to fill my closet. Some jeans, casual pants, nice tops that are age and season appropriate.
On Thursday, I’m going out to a seminar/dinner at the Boston Wine Expo. My friend, who goes every year, told me that it’s not a “dressy” event per se, but to use an English term, I need to look “smart.” Sorry…my winter wardrobe just fails in this way! (summer…I don’t think I’d have a problem). I thought I would go buy a new top to wear with black pants or skirt. I did find a top I liked…for $60. I could afford that, but for $60 I would like to get more than one wear out of the blouse…and I just didn’t see that happening. (For $30, I would have bought it!) Other items I saw were frilly and sleeveless…um, my mom brought me up to DRESS WARM in the winter…and I just didn’t see myself buying that! Or how about the “short sleeve knit top with tight ribbed waist”. What real woman would fit into that?
I actually got into a discussion with 2 ladies (approx. age 55) about how hard it is to shop these days. Clothes are geared towards teens/20 somethings or grannies. One of the ladies suggested I become a clothing designer!
I learned several years ago (when I was trying to fight off my PPD) that if I put some effort into the way I look, I will feel better about myself. And it does work. When I can find stuff that I like (at reasonable prices).
But for now, I guess I’ll just have to stick with my turtlenecks. Sigh.
Misc. 2009 Updates
Posted by: anitajd on: January 26, 2010
On my Mother of Twin list-serve people are curious to know “how things turned out” when someone posts a problem/issue. I thought I might do the same with some of my 2009 posts….just in case y’all care or are curious.
1. UGGS–surprise! I now own a pair. When hubby was having trouble deciding on a Christmas present for me, he turned to his mom for help. MIL=HUGE UGG FAN. So she suggested UGGS. Lo-and-behold, there was a box of short chestnut Uggs for me. (I’m going to give you the long version…hang on). Well, being a New England Girl, where it snows a LOT, short Uggs don’t make sense…I needed/wanted/would prefer the Tall Uggs. And I’m not a huge fan of that “Chestnut” color….black is much more versitile for my wardrobe. All Tall Black Uggs in the Northeast were sold out right after Christmas! But I did stumble upon a rather “sharp” looking pair of Tall Chestnut Uggs at the Walking Company that were embroidered. (unfortunately the black w/ gold embroidery are sold out in my size). So, I figured if I’m going to own a pair of UGG-ly boots, I might as well own the prettiest ones I can find! Yes, I still find them F-ugg-ly, but they are snug and WARM. And they make *great* dog-walking shoes when it’s cold, snowy and icy out there. Thank you honey!
2. Remember around June, when I mentioned I reconnected w/ a HS friend who turned into a photographer? I hired him to take family photos of us, and during the day he was all “business/professional” but at the end he threw out the possibility of having us over his house. I wasn’t sure if he was being sincere or just polite. Well, in November WE DID GET TOGETHER…..pizza and beer and football. It was a nice casual evening with an old friend, exchanging stories from the past 20 years. It was really nice. Hubby and I had a really nice time, and our kids got along well too!
I’ve also decided that for March Madness I’m inviting him and some other HS friends that I’ve reconnected w/ through FB….the ones who didn’t go to the reunion. Should be a good time.
3. Along similar lines, I reconnected w/ my first boyfriend through FB. Our relationship ended badly (to put it mildly… a big chunk being my fault). For 20 years I felt the need to apologize to him. Well, I got the chance….and for 20 yrs he harbored some serious anger towards me. (would I have done the same?) I explained to him it was HIGH SCHOOL DRAMA….something that would be shown on 90210….after 2 e-mails he “mellowed” a bit, and put it aside. We’ve exchanged some funny emails (yes…btw…hubby DOES know that I’ve communicated with 1st-ex). So, guilty-conscience is put to rest.
4. I know it’s been just over 2 mths since I ‘recovered’ from pneumonia….but my lungs are still not fully healed. I still get tightness in my chest and have occassional coughing fits. What really got me was when we were in California–how the tightness in my chest really bothered me out there. I still have my inhalers and use it occassionally. Really, I’m done with it. Hubby insists my lungs will never be “the same.” Sucks getting old.
Well, that’s all I can think of for now…..although I”m sure there’s many MORE updates I could bore you with! Hee hee
The Winter Blahs
Posted by: anitajd on: January 21, 2010
Yup, they’re setting in. A little earlier than normal—they usually hit in February–perhaps you recall last year’s? Maybe because it has been so freakin’ cold since December. Regardless….
I thought this would be a good time for a bitch session.
* I hate what this dry, cold, winter climate does to my already fragile nails. Errrr
* Something about this time of year I feel like my family takes advantage of me–maid service, short-order cook.
* Seems like Hubby’s work schedule has revved up to full gear again–like it was last June and last November. He has more on his plate than he ever has before at work, and then he throws in going to the gym, and then the kids want him. His whole work-life balance goes off kilter, and it really, really effects me. Blech.
* I can’t seem to find the energy (or time?) to work out/exercise. I’ve been to only 1 pilates class, and the Wii Active has not made it into the machine yet. In my head, other “activities” are replacing the exercise (i.e. running up and down the stairs preparing for the party, running up and down the stairs at school for the lemonade thing, shoveling). Those count, right?
* I can’t seem to find the time (energy?) to put into my business. EVERYTHING else seems to come first.
*I feel like I’m at the end of the line with my Twin Club. I’m looking forward to passing on the presidential reigns. I’ve committed myself to being treasurer next year. But after that????/
* I’m tired of nagging my kids.
* I hate cleaning bathrooms. Especially with 3 (4) boys in the house. (today is a bathroom cleaning day. Chose blogging over cleaning).
*I’ve been picking up from other bloggy-friends that they are avid readers. I used to be an avid reader. I thought for the New Year I would spend more time reading. (but I don’t want to join a book club). I went to the library last week, and looked at the books on the shelves. NOTHING interested me. Feeling “done” with romance novels (maybe I was PMSing at the time?). The biographies looked HUGE…and boring. Last biography I picked up…Bill Clinton…never made it passed page 50…kept falling asleep. Couldn’t find another catagory/genre that looked vaguely interesting. So I left. WIthout a book. Failed with that mission. Sigh.
Ok….enough bitching. I’m starting to bring myself down. Hopefully I can shake out of this rut soon.
Lemonade Stand for Haiti
Posted by: anitajd on: January 20, 2010
- In: M-Man
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As the saying goes, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.
And that’s exactly what M’s 3rd grade class is doing today.
In 3rd grade, the kidlets start learning about multiplication and division. M’s teacher, Mrs. C, has a fun activity each year to supplement the classwork—she has kids bring in lemons, water, sugar, juicers and pitchers and make lemonade.
This year (as she did in 2005 after the Indonesian Tsunami), she is taking her class project to a whole other level. This week, students (through their parents) were asked to bring in 400+ lemons, 27 gallons of water, 54 cups of sugar, pitchers and juicers for an all-out school Lemonade Fundraiser to benefit the Red Cross effort in Haiti.
How awesome is that???
The kids were all involved—from bringing the water and lemons down from the classroom to the cafeteria, rolling out the lemons, each taking turns at the juicers. They were counting, multiplying, dividing. Taste-testing. And during the lunch periods (I had to leave because Little Guy was done w/ preschool), they will be “selling” the lemonade to the whole school for a donation.
I am very proud of M and his class, and want to thank Mrs. C for her innovative way of teaching math, cooperation, compassion and social responsibility to her class!
PS. Just got an email from the teacher. The class raised $1600 today for the Red Cross Haiti Relief Fund! Well done!
The Birthday Week
Posted by: anitajd on: January 19, 2010
- In: hubby
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I didn’t have time to post last week because it was BIRTHDAY WEEK. My wonderful Hubby turned 40.
And I had a few surprises up my sleeve for him.
His actual birthday was Wednesday. I made reservations for one of his favorite steak restaurants (Capital Grille) for the whole family. The two of us, our three boys, and my mom and her SO. Yes, I was taking the kidlets to a 4-star restaurant (yikes, what was I thinking?……and they behaved GREAT).
We took our presents to the restaurant for hubby to open. The boys got him some Red Sox clothing (we had to move on after the Patriots loss), then some nice Vodka and a boating gift card. And then my gift….
One could tell it was a frame. But a picture of what? I had Scott thinking when I suggested it might be a nude photo of me (a la “How to Look Good Naked” with Gok Wan). The look on his face was “You wouldn’t bring that into a full restaurant…with your mom…and kids…here? Would you?” The look I shot him back was “You never know!” He slowly tore the wrapping paper to peak….nope! It was the 18th Hole Tee Flag from St. Andrews framed. “Oh how nice!” he said. But that wasn’t all!!!! (Pu-leez….that would be a lame 40th Bday gift!). He had to open the card to get the “real gift.”
Are you filled with suspense yet? I’m sending my honey to Scotland for 4 days in April for some serious golf at St. Andrews. This was a “DREAM” of his when we first met. And I never forgot!!
And with that type of gift (and dinner)…OF COURSE he thought I was done.
But I wasn’t!!!!!!! (Ooooh, being a sneaky Thomas can be so much fun!)
On Saturday, there would be a surprise party for him. He mentioned/asked for one at least twice in 2009. I wasn’t keen on the idea. Partying right after the holidays? Right after our trip? In the cold, when we can’t send kids outside? The idea was just not pleasant.
But then I heard of so many other people throwing parties for their hubbies. I asked 3 people who had done it—how had they done it, how did it turn out, etc…I became excited and inspired. What the hell? Let’s do it!
I was having 20 adults and 14 kids coming. And because Hubby thinks about work so much, already had a great gift, and he can be clueless, he DIDN”T KNOW A THING!
I ended up telling T&M on Saturday morning, because I needed their assistance on a few things—get Daddy to put together the 5-in-1 game table we bought (needed something for the 14 kids to do during the party) and to have Daddy take the pick-up truck to their basketball game, since it was blocking my driveway. I offered each $5 if they could keep quiet. And if one spilled the beans, the other would get the entire $10.
T. had a few close calls. At one point, he asked if he could have his hair spiked for the party. Mom’s quick recovery: Of course you can spike your hair for Chris’ Bday party on Monday.” And then, while assembling the game table, “Do you think we can have the big pool table AND the little pool table for the party?” Luckily, hubby was totally engrossed in the assembly instructions at this point!
I had my BFF call me at about 2pm asking me to ”meet her for margaritas.” And since I haven’t seen her since October, of course I could go and have a ‘rita. But that would mean I would miss T&M’s Basketball game. This was my out to go pick up ice for the beer chest and the Birthday cake. I was then in “hide-out” mode until the guys left for the game. BUT OMG……they took FOREVER to leave the house!!!!! So much for “leaving early to watch the game before us.”
Eventually they left, and that gave me about 45 min. before guests started to arrive. BFF and her family came early to help set up. Caterer came. Food all set. People came. All set.
5pm….mom calls to tell us they are on their way.
5:10…He’s here!!!!
Voices from truck:
Hubby says “Oh, one of our neighbors is having a party” upon noticing the cars on the street.
M: giggling from the back seat…..No it’s us!!!!
So, I had hubby clueless until the last minute. It was awesome. He had such a great time! And for the next 24 hrs, all he kept saying was “I’m so CLUELESS” after replaying the (minor) clues and slip-ups from the last 2 weeks.
heeee heeeee. Good fun!
A (near) Perfect Weekend!
Posted by: anitajd on: January 11, 2010
Ok, it WAS a perfect weekend. The only thing that made it “near” (and this is according to Hubby) is that the Pats lost.
On Saturday, the kidlets slept until 7am-ish. Yes, they are still on California time….and I will gladly accept that for as long as possible! Little Guy had his rec. dept. Basketball at 8:30am. He flip-flopped as to who would take him…..Daddy won. Little Guy returned home all happy and excited. After 3 weeks of drills-n-skills, they had a wee bit of a scrimmage, and he had made an assist, a basket and a rebound! Woot-woot! Next Saturday is the final week and the entire fam is invited because the Little Tykers play a real game. Looking forward to it!
Saturday was Aspen’s Birthday. My beautiful doggie turned 13! And Senior Mutt had a vet appt to look at her annoying skin condition and a blood test for her thyroid condition. She’s back on anti-biotics. I joked with the vet that I’m going to have to get her one of those old-people-pill-cases to keep track of her meds!
In the afternoon, T&M had their basketball game. In case I haven’t mentioned it (writing this before any caffeine), Hubby is the coach for T&M’s basketball team. He is taking his coaching duty VERY seriously. I can’t tell you the amount of time he spends planning and scheming. And he goes early to “scout” the competition. He thought this week would be easy-peasy. Uhhh…no. The opposing team had 2 football studs and a set of very tall twins who were also good B-ball players. They matched us shot-for-shot, until one of our football studs (who, according to his mom, doesn’t like basketball and only touches a basketball is at practice and games) took control and made 3 fantasatic shots per half. The first 3 were at the end of the first have to give us a comfortable lead of 12-6. But then in the second half, they came back and tied us!! A NAIL BITER! Our guy made 3 more fantastic shots in a row to bring us to 20-14 right at the last 2 minutes of the game. PHEW!
That night I made a wonderful, wonderful, wonderful prime rib dinner (Thank you, Costco!). Why? I don’t know. I was craving beef? The prime rib looked really good? To celebrate Aspen’s Birthday? whichever….we enjoyed ourselves and after dinner we sang “Happy Birthday” to the old girl and gave her (and Lily) some scraps.
On Sunday, my certifiably insane husband insisted on taking the kids skiing despite the thermometer reading 3 deg. F in the morning. I was not so sure this was the smartest idea. But when we arrived at Nashoba Valley Ski, I found 300+ certifiably insane families already there. Lunatics—-all of them!
But all the guys had a great, great time. We decided not to put T&M into lessons, because at Nashoba they are only an hour each, instead of a 1/2 day (or full day) ski school program. Scott decided to take the boys up with him on some easy trails to get them used to skiing again. And he said they did awesome….both at about the same skiing level. And they LOVED IT!
I did sign Little Guy up for a 1 hr lesson. I worked with him a bit before hand. He seemed to have a really nice instructor, and he was one of 3 kids in the class. After the lesson, his instructor said he was a pro and would be more than happy to work with him in a private lesson. I think she was sincere. I watched….and he did do much better than the other 2 students.
We came home to watch the Pats game by the fire. The fire was nice, the Pats game….not so much.
But it was a perfect weekend!
Wii game review: Ni Hao, Kai-Lan
Posted by: anitajd on: January 8, 2010
I just spent the most enjoyable 40 minutes playing Wii with my 4 (nearly 5) year old!
We’ve had our Wii for a year, and the only game(s) Little Guy has been able to actually play are “Cow Racing” on the Wii Play CD and Baseball (wow, he’s good!) on Wii Sports. I tried to buy 2 “childrens” games for him, but they were beyond his ability/understanding.
For Christmas this year, Little Guy received “Ni-Hao, Kai-Lan”, a show he enjoys watching, so he knows the characters. At the store, I was surprised by the $40 price tag (I was hoping for $20). But to see the fun he’s having playing it, the $40 is worth it.
The game has very bright colors, and the characters are large. Kai-Lan does a great job explaining how each game is played. And the games are exactly what the 4 yr old age group (3-6?) are into.
The first level includes:
1. Whirley-Twirley Game: fan the Wii remote. The faster you fan, the higher the whirley-twirley goes. You must “land” the whirley-twirley in a Tree, Bush, Birdhouse, or Tree Hole….each one worth a different point value. Little Guy was on the floor jumping up and down fanning his Wii remote.
2. Butterfly Catch: Swing the Wii remote in a up-to-down motion (as you would with a butterfly net) to catch butterflies.
3. Bubble Pop: To get some bubbles, move the character over to the spring board, and then press #2 on Wii remote to get the character to jump and “make bubbles.” Then move character over to the bubbles, and press #2 to get character to jump and pop the bubbles. Each bubble popped earns points.
4. Ye-Ye’s exercise (not the right name of the game. Ye-Ye is the grandfather). Ye -ye is on a stage showing the character what moves to make. It’s basically an exersice session for little kids. Brilliant. Little guy was a shakin’ and a groovin’!
After we finished all 4 games, we released the next level of games which included Dragon Parade (this was actually challenging for me and Little Guy), Dragon Boat Races….very fun, just swoop the Wii remote as if paddling a boat. The 3rd game on this level totally had Little Guy going….he didn’t want to stop….a Water Ballon Toss (in a carnival setting). What little kid doesn’t like water balloon tosses?? Great fun!
This opened up a 3rd level for us. We’ve only played 2 games—Badminton and Soccer. Badminton is self-explanatory. In Soccer, your the goalie and you have to block the soccer balls coming towards you. My David-Beckam-the 2nd REALLY REALLY REALLY Liked this!
I’m looking forward to spending more time playing this game with Little Guy!! It’s fun, it’s bright, it gets the tykers moving about. I almost wish my twins were small again….it would be FUN to watch a twin Wii competition! Hee Hee! I thoroughly recommend this game if you have a pre-schooler!
Swim School Update
Posted by: anitajd on: January 6, 2010
Today was the first swim lesson since my last post. As the director was taking attendence, I asked if I could ask her questions on the swim program, explaining how in England the boys swam the length of the pool, whereas here they seem to be hanging to the edge A LOT. She looked at her sheet and said that T&M were evaluated on their first day (which isn’t entirely true, because M missed the first class) and were designated at Level 1 (which I take to mean beginner). She said she would have them re-evaluated.
Lo-and-behold, they were pulled out of their class and were given a new instructor (just the 2 of them!) and THEY WERE SWIMMING THE LAP OF THE POOL!! THEY WERE ACTUALLY SWIMMING IN SWIM CLASS! AMEN!
M has an absolutely beautiful and fluid back-stroke. Love watching him. T still needs to work on his a bit. But I am happy to report that T did an honest-to-goodness DIVE!
YAY BOYS!
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After swim class, M comes up to me and says “You EVIL woman. Why did you have to go and TALK to that woman??? We swam 20 laps, at least. WE”RE TIRED!”
Ohhh, poor baby……….Cuz I paid for you to SWIM at swim lessons?
Here’s hoping next week goes just as well!
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