This is my space for all the things that I love, things that are close and personal to me: motherhood, my babies, family, and special moments. Here are some posts that’ll give you a glimpse into my happy, lovely, yet sometimes awkward world:
Laundry: On My Final Reserves
Laundry is my nemesis. It always was and always will be. I just can’t seem to get past the fact that even if I do ALL the laundry in one day, then I’ll have more laundry to do the next day. Forever and ever as long as we keep changing our clothes. Until I face the truth that it’s supposed to be an ongoing thing, I will consider laundry as my #1 enemy.
I’ve been keeping up by doing a few loads throughout the week. But today I realized that I’ve hit an all time low: I can’t find my underwear! I only have one basket of dirty clothes from last week, the loads that are currently in the washer/dryer are sheets and comforters, and all the other clean clothes are folded and put away. I’m so curious to know – where is my underwear???
It has gotten so bad that I already used up the reserves. You know, the ones that you wear only when all the others are dirty. They are like the garments that are on their last string – literally – where the elastic is all worn out or it’s one thread away from falling apart at the seams.
Nope, I’m past that stage.
I’m on the reserves of the reserves: my bridal underwear. The last time I wore these fancy things was on my wedding day and it even has rhinestones on the side that spells out “I do”. I never thought I’d have to wear these again, but it’s seriously all I’ve got left.
I have a really important meeting tomorrow that I’ve been stressing over these past two weeks. I’ll be wearing the same underwear that I wore on the best day of my life to what can possibly be the worst day of my life. Funny how laundry puts things into perspective.
Wish me luck!
Men I LOVE
I had the week from hell at work. It was so bad that if I were to join AA somewhere down the line, I would use today as my start date of my alcoholism. I’m determined to forget about it this week’s events because worrying and stressing over work will get me no where. I want to have a stress free weekend and enjoy spending time my babies after working long hours all week.
It’s Friday night, so first I have to clear my mind with a glass of wine and some of my favorite men: Mars. Tatum. Casey & Severide.
Ahh…My stress level was cut in half already!!! I’m happily married, but get all giddy like an adolescent school girl over these boys. I can’t help it. Here’s why:
Bruno Mars
I love his songs, lyrics, tone. He writes his own music and he’s half Pinoy! Locked out of Heaven has been my favorite song for the past 3 months now and I’m not sick of it yet. But my love for Bruno really came when I found some YouTube videos of him singing live. He can sing anything. He just looks like he’s having so much fun and I especially loved his cover of Michael Jackson towards the end:
I really hope to catch him live one of these days. I tried tweeting him to see when he was coming to the Chi, but never got a response even after I told him that I loved him 🙁
@brunomars when are you and your afro coming to Chicago??? I love you 🙂
— Gracielle Tamanio (@MommyA_Z) January 18, 2013
Channing Tatum
I may have mentioned him a time or two on this blog, so no surprise here. This boy can dance and he always plays that sweet, sensitive, and funny leading male role in his movies. I just got done watching The Vow and he just melted my heart the way he loved Rachel McAdams in that movie. I cried the entire time. Crying was a great way to relieve all that tension from work-related stress, but I’d rather cry over a broken-hearted Channing Tatum than over work. Crying over work is not worth it. Ever.
Yuck. I’m talking about work again! This should make it go away:
Kelly Severide & Matt Casey (characters from the show Chicago Fire)
I finally found a TV show that I really look forward to watching every week that is NOT a reality TV show. I can’t decide which one I like more: the blonde haired, strong Matt Casey who always does the right thing, or the dark-haired, sexy bad boy Kelly Severide that is kind of a man whore and addicted to pain killers. Either way, I love the show because of the action, drama, kick ass girls, and most of all – city of Chicago. They mention parts of the city that people wouldn’t know unless you’re from the Chicago-land area. I appreciate that.
They film around Chicago, so hopefully I’ll be rescued by them one of these days. Jeff saw Taylor Kinney who plays Severide at his work and his cousin’s fiancé said they were filming at her work. It’s only a matter of time that they come out to the ‘burbs, right?
Ahh….I’m feeling much better already! I’m all done with my glass of wine, just spent a bit of time writing about the men I love…Looks like I’m off to a good start for my weekend! Toodles!
Fabulous Finds – My Sweet Spots
I have a little obsession with getting a fantastic deal. I’m not organized enough to be a coupon clipper, I just know where to go to get really awesome, ridiculous deals. Here are my top 3 sweet spots for my fabulous finds:
Sample Store
I work in retail, so naturally employees are welcome to shop in the middle of their work day at the corporate Sample Store. They have new stuff everyday and the deals are so unpredictable that it creates pandemonium. Think of it like Black Friday, where people line up at the door before the doors open and grab all the good stuff right off the shelves, but all-year round, Monday thru Friday at 10am. Everyday prices on shirts and tank tops are $2, shorts $6, dresses $12. They have auto gear, baby stuff, apparel, toys, housewares, kitchen accessories, and other random things. It’s not a secret that I’m a Sample Store junkie. I go almost everyday and come out with the most ridiculous finds – my best one was this chandelier for $35 that retails for $895 on Amazon. It proudly hangs in our master bedroom.
I’ve had some family and friends come visit me to see what all the fuss is about, but it’s hit or miss depending on the merchandise they put out that day. Since I go everyday, I’m bound to find something good every now and then.
Macy’s Clearance Center
Not a lot of people know about this hidden gem. There’s a Macy’s Furniture store in Schaumburg where they have a really nice showroom and pushy sales people…but the upstairs of that same building is their Clearance Center. It’s run as a totally separate entity from the main floor gallery – you can find the same products, but at up to 90% off retail value. Say whaaaa?!
It’s a totally different vibe up there, too. The price tags are color coded to match the current percentage off for that week and the sales people are very helpful only when you need them to be. They get new shipments every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Jeff and I go once a month because their inventory changes so quickly. Our best bargain to date is our dining room table. It retails for $799, but we got it for $99. Seriously! Our receipt said “Your savings today = $700.”
We also got a white leather sofa for our living room for $600 (retail $1200) from there:
Thrift Stores & Garage Sales
It’s true what they say – someone’s trash is someone else’s treasure! Thrift stores & garage sales are pretty tricky because they’re time-consuming and risky. You have to have the eye for good stuff among the piles of junk. If you’re into re-purposing furniture you have to be able to see past the worn paint, outdated fabric, or missing hardware. Once you get past all the crap, you might end up with something good. Something really good. Something NO ONE ELSE HAS. Here are some of our pulls that I’ve featured in previous posts:
Vintage white dresser from Arielle’s room that I featured here.
Chairs that I re-upholstered chairs and featured here.
Hunter Boots that I featured here.
“The history of cerael” art that I posted on Instagram. I scored this at a garage sale for $1! It’s a framed shadow box that displays real cereal, with a caption the name, original manufacturer, and year established. I hung it in our kitchen breakfast nook (duh! where else?). It looks vintage, but on the back it says it’s from Z Gallerie with an original sticker price of $70.
So my secret is out! That’s where I shop to get all my amazing deals. Don’t all go there at once and take away the good stuff before I can get to it! 🙂 Oh, and please do leave a comment if there’s a place you know of that has crazy awesome deals. I’d love to check it out sometime!
30 is Not Too Late…
I had this list of things I wanted to do before I hit 30. I didn’t write it down or anything, I just had a general idea of accomplishments I wanted under my belt by this age. For the most part, I hit the mark: own a single family home, have a successful career as a manager in a large organization, and have a family. Yay for me! I did it!
Then, there are some things I did not accomplish like go to the Philippines, get my MBA at a top-ranking B school, take Glamour Shots…
Glamour Shots – remember that? My friend recently posted this article on Facebook and I thought it was hilarious. I missed out on that fad and now they are no longer in business. I can remember exactly where it was in the mall and longing to have my own Glamour Shots so that I could share them with my friends at school and mail them to my relatives in California. Never did I get the opportunity, so I joked that this was on my list of “Regrets.”
Anyways, I also wanted to be really good at ONE thing. I’ve kind of been mediocre across the board and never got a chance to hone in on any particular skill – fitness? cooking? fashion? music? calculus? Nah. I’m just aaaaaight in those areas.
So here comes the mini panic attack: Uh-oh! I’m THIRTY and what have I really accomplished?! Look at Justin Bieber – he’s made so much money, has his own fragrance, and traveled the world at such a young age. It’s too late…
THEN something hit me. Call me crazy, but I consider myself to be an avid reader, but I’ve never really sat and read the Bible. The good thing is that God is forgiving (at least that’s what they say) so there’s no foul on my soul for not reading the Bible all this time. This time, I started reading from Luke and I was shocked by this verse:
Luke 3:23 Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry.
Ah ha! 30 is not too late…Jesus himself didn’t start his ministry until he was 30! So after reading that, it kind of put my mind at ease that 30 is not too late to do something great or start something that will eventually become great.
For those of you who are approaching 30 (…or 40…or 50…and beyond) it’s never too late to achieve your accomplishments or find new things that inspire you. There’s still time for me to visit the Philippines one day, go back to school to get my MBA, read the Bible, learn how to sew, bake, swim, or become a world-famous blogger 🙂
Thanks for reading.
A&Z Valentine’s Day Photo Shoot
I had a mini Valentine’s Day photo shoot with the kids this past weekend in our home. Arielle loved getting her picture taken (as you can see), but my faves were the ones where her smile looked natural and not overly cheesy. Zavier, on the other hand, did not want anything to do with getting his picture taken or sitting still for that matter. I bribed him with a lollipop, stuck a heart on his shirt, and snapped away for any chance that at least one of them would turn out good! Here’s how they turned out:
I used my Canon Rebel T3i. I’m still very new to taking photos of my kids, but here’s what really worked well for me:
- Natural light. Jeffrey bought me an at-home photo studio for Christmas that we previously set up in the basement, but I hauled everything to the loft where natural light comes pouring in from the large windows. This really left the guess-work out of how to configure the lighting, flash, ISO or shutter speed. I just shot in AV mode and set the aperture to the lowest setting possible.
- Simple. I know some people get crazy with the outfits, backdrops, and props, but I kept it simple so that I could just focus on the kids.
- Timing. I only took pictures for about half an hour, after they ate lunch and took their naps. There’s a small window of time before they get crabby and stop following directions. I made it a pleasant experience for all of us so that we could look forward to the next at-home photo shoot! Weeheeeheeee!
I loved the way they turned out! It’s already all over my Facebook and on my desktop wallpaper on my work computer 🙂 I have a few others of Zavier that are just hilarious because he’s totally in his own little world so I’ll share those, too. Hope you all enjoyed!
I Don’t Think You’re Ready for This Jelly
Sorry, there’s nothing bootylicious goin’ on in this post…Just some pictures from our recent trip to the Shedd Aquarium where we saw dolphins, penguins, sharks, and oh yes – jellies!
This was part of Jeffrey’s birthday celebration last week where we took off work on Monday and Tuesday just to be together as a family. One of my favorite thing about Tuesdays is that general admission to museums in Chicago are FREE ! We definitely took advantage and hit up the Shedd Aquarium and the Field Museum. (Click here for a schedule of free museum days in Chicago in 2013).
I was surprised at how much the kids enjoyed the aquarium. They had pretty long attention spans for a 3- and 1-year-old. Perhaps it has something to do with the movie Finding Nemo. The Field Museum wasn’t as much of a success – probably because they are too young to understand the exhibitions and/or because they were tired by the time we got there.
This was also a fun time for me to get out and practice taking photos…it really tested my ability to shoot in dark places and moving objects. Umm, yeah. I still need a lot more practice! I did get a few good ones of the jellyfish and some up close and personal pics of dolphins and sharks. Click any thumbnail to activate the gallery. Enjoy!
Owl-themed First Birthday Party
A&Z’s birthday is coming up in March so now I have to start thinking of what to do for their birthday party! I plan on doing a joint celebration since Arielle will be turning 4 on March 24 and Zavier will be turning 2 on March 23. Sorry, kiddos, you’ll probably have joint birthday parties for the rest of your lives, but I promise to get you each a cake every year!
Before I get ahead of myself and start thinking of birthday party themes, I wanted to go back and re-live Zavier’s first birthday party theme: Owls! It was a HOOT! I picked it because he has the rest of his life to have typical boys’ sports or car-themed birthday parties and because they’re so darn cute. I mean, whoooooo doesn’t love owls? That was a year ago, but now they’re everywhere! That was also a year ago when Pinterest wasn’t that huge, and this was my first pinboard that helped me turn inspiration into reality (check it out here). Here’s how it all came together:
Owl Invitations
I ordered these through Ebay for $12.99. Just send them your photo and event details and then they send you a proof. When you’re happy with the layout, they send you the image file that you can print from your own computer or at your local drug store! Super cheap and super cute!
Owl Hat
I found this crochet owl hat on Amazon, but it’s no longer in stock. I used this hat for his 1 year photo shoot that I did myself just a few days after my first photography class. I still need a bit more practice!
Owl Cake
I ordered this cake from a local bakery, Piece-a-Cake Bakery. They let me help with the design, so we incorporated the border from the invitations and Zavier’s picture. I loved the way it turned out!
Owl Goodie Bags
The owls have invaded! I got the idea from Pinterest, but the original post can be found here. My sister and I stayed up through the wee hours of the morning creating these owl giveaways made from brown paper bags, stock paper, and glue sticks. It was a labor of love…literally! By the end of it all we grew a bit attached to our owl friends: the girly owl, the nerdy owl, and the pirate owl. 🙂
Here’s a pic of Zavier enjoying his 1st birthday party that he’ll never remember, but I definitely will:
Christmas 2012
That’s our best shot at this year’s family Christmas photo. Here are my faves from this year’s Christmas Festivities:
Christmas Eve at MY House
After no word of upcoming Christmas festivities from my side of the family just a week before Christmas, I got a call from my Tita (aunt) Jelyn asking if I can host Christmas Eve. Oh boy. That’s quite a tall order because all my warm and fuzzy Christmas memories from my childhood took place in the beautiful homes of my aunts and uncles, and now I had to host for them in return? Yikes!
I slaved away at a 10 lb. prime rib for 4.5 hours that turned out to be exquisite. (By “slaved away” I meant that I bought a prime rib from Costco that was already infused with garlic and rubbed in spices and all I had to do was pop it in the oven.) Everyone else brought food and wine, too, so I didn’t have to prepare much. Music, laughter, lots of pictures, and fun was had by all so I think it was a hit! The family that has taken care of me my whole life didn’t disappoint – they even took care of the cleaning at the end of the party so that I could rest pass out once the party was over.
Arielle Takes the Stage
My cousins were jammin’ out on the guitar in the living room and so began the impromptu musical performances that my family is known for. This time, Arielle took center stage and sang 4 songs: Justin Beiber’s “Baby,” One Direction’s “Beautiful” and “One Thing”, and an a capella version of Ke$ha’s “Die Young.” Everyone was surprised at how she knew the words and was not scared or shy to perform in the middle of a crowded room:
The gifts were piled high at the Tamanio Christmas for all the little kids. There’s 15 or more…Sorry, I lost count after Bubba was born. Most of them are old enough to understand what Christmas was all about, so Lola Leh decided to teach a little lesson before the gifts were distributed. She asked them whose birthday it was and then asked each child to stand and say a prayer before opening presents. Arielle went second. She stood up, closed her eyes, and held her hands in prayer. The entire room was quiet as her little voice spoke, “Dear God….” I held my breath, hoping that she come through with a simple yet thoughtful prayer…but then she opened her eyes, looked around at all the people just stopped. Oh well. It was still very cute.
Zavier Says “Cheese!”
Little stinker! He kept making this face for pictures. He even says “Eeeeeee!” That’s just how he poses for pictures and it’s so funny it made everyone laugh!
Christmas Service
The Christmas Service at Willow Creek put on a full-out Broadway-esque production to tell the story of Mary, Joseph, and the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ through theatrics, dance, and cinema. This time, they presented it as a story within a story – the bigger story being that God created man and loved us so much that we worth saving after centuries of turning our backs against Him – and then it linked with the smaller story of the moment at which Jesus was born to save us. It was kind of nice to take a step back and remember why we celebrate Christmas in the first place. It’s not just Santa, presents, and time off of work. I wish I could find a recorded version of the service because it was so beautiful, but all I could find was the trailer.
There were so many other special moments, too much for just one post – Zavier got a Jeep AND a Fiat for Christmas…Arielle was finally old enough to understand who Santa Claus is…woo! It was a very merry Christmas indeed. 🙂
My Christmas Came Early This Year
I’m so incredibly spoiled by my husband. Every time Christmas or my birthday comes around, I’m showered with gifts from Jeffrey. Every time, I giggle from excitement and I’m delighted and surprised by his thoughtfulness. He even takes the time to wrap it. It’s shoddy wrapping, but still so sweet that he takes the time to do it because he knows how special it feels to unwrap a gift. He gets me things that I LOVE, even if I don’t even know that I’d love it. For example, he got me a Kindle one year – I didn’t ask for it or even express the desire to have one, but he knew I loved to read and now I’m hooked on reading digital books.
This year, the surprise, delight and thoughtfulness was no different. I suspected that my gifts arrived in the mail today, and when he got home from work he asked me if I wanted to open my Christmas presents early. DUH?! Of course! So he went down to the basement and brought up two wrapped gifts (totally killed an entire roll of wrapping paper and was a little excessive on the tape), one small and one large….I went for the small one first and it ended up being the iPad wireless keyboard that I put on my Christmas wish list. Very thoughtful, but not much of a surprise since I made it easy for him by writing out a list. I had already gotten my camera, so I guessed on what the larger gift was and I was right: a sewing machine!
But wait, there’s more! He went back down to the basement and brought back 2 more gifts, unwrapped but still in their mailing packages.
Here’s a little side-story: My grandmother taught my sister and I how to play classical piano when we were little and I’ve been playing ever since. My dad and my Uncle Joer play the guitar and piano by ear and my Uncle Joer even has his basement equipped for jam sessions – drums, keyboard, guitars, microphones and speakers. So, music runs in my family’s veins. I used to play the piano and sing, but I never quite finished a song or got any good at it. I just did it for the love of music, but stopped after I had Arielle and Zavier because I never had time to practice. Now that they’re a little older, I’ve had time to play a bit more and learn new songs. I mentioned to Jeff how cool it would be to have mini jam sessions with me with my piano and Jeff with his guitar, but I needed a microphone. Lo and behold, Jeff got me a microphone with a proper stand so I can sing and play the piano at the same time! Weeheee! What a nice surprise!
Seeing that I was thrilled with my surprise gifts, he went back down to the basement to get…more gifts?! Seriously? Now I’m screwed. I got him a pretty decent gift this year and was quite pleased with myself that I got him something more than an alarm clock (which is what I got him last year). This is too much. I can’t top this! But hey, if he wanted to give me more presents I was not about to stop him! What could it possibly be?
Here’s another side-story: I’ve been trying to learn how to take nice pictures with my dSLR. I was inspired by this article on the Huffington Post: Facebook Profile Photos Are a Serious Business and I couldn’t agree more – Facebook photos, Linked In profile pictures make up your digital presence and having a picture from some party where you crop out the weirdos as your main image is no longer acceptable. I briefly mentioned to Jeff that I want to start taking head shots for my friends. Being the entrepreneur that I am – or that my mom is (I swear, I get it from her) – I figured that I might get good at this and maybe I can start my own business one day. I think I mentioned it to Jeff in passing. I may have muttered it and I don’t even know if he was listening or awake at the time. Apparently, he was listening. He remembered and he’s supportive of my ideas and goals because he got me…a freakin’ portrait studio! An entire set – backdrops, lighting, and stands! He even set it up in his sacred and beloved man cave space.
Christmas came early for me this year and I totally won. I’m too excited to sleep! I’m so happy. Thank you, Jeffy. I love you!
A Day in the Life of a Working Mother
Here’s a day in the life of me on my craziest day of the week, which just so happens to be Wednesdays. Jeff works his 12-hour shift on Wednesdays, so it’s just me with the babies on a work day. Here goes:
- 6:30 am – Alarm. SNOOZE. Repeat every 9 minutes.
- 7:00 am – I look over and the babies sleeping soundly next to me. I thought we trained them to sleep in their own room, but they made their way over into my bed sometime in the middle of the night. I don’t mind. They look so sweet and peaceful when they sleep, it makes it so incredibly hard to get out of bed.
- 7:30 am – Shit. Too much alarm + snooze. I get up and start getting ready.
- 7:40 am – A&Z wake up crying so I stop getting ready and turn on Barney. Thank God for Barney.
- 7:55 am – I get A&Z ready and throw on socks, shoes and coats over their PJs. Breakfast is to go, so I throw some muffins in a plastic baggie.
- 8:00 am – I dial-in to a conference call. Everyone curses out the person who scheduled the conference call at 8 o’freakin-clock and then I apologize in advance for the babies screaming in the background. When my speaking portion of the agenda is over, I mute the phone for the remainder of the call while I get the babies in the car.
- 8:20 am – We’re finally on the road and we’re off to pick up the nanny.
- 8:40 am – I drop off the babies and the nanny at the house. I instruct the nanny on what to prepare for lunch, let the dog out, kiss the babies goodbye and I’m off to work! I’m so relieved every time I leave for work and they are not crying.
- 9:00 am – Work.
- 11:00 am – Sample store! It’s the highlight of my day.
- 11:30 am – Work.
- Noon – I eat my lunch at my desk and work some more. People come and talk to me even while I’m shoving food in my face. It’s ridiculous.
- 2:50 pm – I grab my second cup of coffee of the day before the café closes. I need it or I’ll pass out. Where has the day gone?
- 5:00 pm – I call the nanny because I’m running late and apologize. I work a little more. Seriously, where has the day gone?
- 5:30 pm – I send out last-minute emails, and then call it quits for the day!
- 5:45 pm – I sing at the top of my lungs in the car on my way home. I hope Bruno Mars is playing on the radio. Is it weird that I look forward to the car ride home?
- 6:00 pm – I’m home. I make my grand entrance and the babies and Coconut greet me with hugs and kisses. Then they cry. Why?! Every time I come home, all they do is cry.
- 6:15 pm – OMG, I HAVE TO PEE!!!! I realize that I haven’t had time to pee all day, and all of a sudden I have to pee so very badly. A&Z follow me in the bathroom and watch me pee. Arielle asks about a million questions about me being on my period. I start to explain, but just end up telling her that I’m wearing a diaper, too.
- 6:16 pm – I wash my hands. (I had to make sure I included that minor detail because of what happens next…)
- 6:30 pm – I start cooking dinner. The nanny keeps the kids occupied while I cook and tells me about their day. While the food is cooking, I get a head start on the dishes.
- 7:15 pm – Dinner + tantrums. I ignore the tantrums so I can eat; otherwise, I’d probably snap. My cooking is actually good today – beef & broccoli. YUM! I make a mental note that I really am SUPER MOM. Once I’m done eating, I help the kids eat the rest of their food.
- 7:30 pm – We get the kids ready and head out once more to take the nanny home.
- 7:35 pm – I forget to pay the nanny. This happens every stinkin’ week. We turn around and go back home or go to the nearest ATM.
- 7:50 pm – We drop off the nanny. I call my sister to catch up with her on our way home. She’s my bestie!
- 8:10 pm – Home. Jeffrey is home now, too. Thank goodness. I feel at ease knowing that we’re all together and home safely.
- 8:30 pm – We get the babies ready for bed.
- 8:50 pm – A&Z are sleeping. I catch up with Jeffrey and we talk about how our days went.
- 9:00 pm – Ugh. Dishes, laundry, bills, or blog? Blog it is (at least for today). Dishes and laundry can wait, I’ve done enough for today.
So that’s my day in a nutshell. Monday, Tuesday, and Thursdays aren’t as bad because I don’t have to pick-up/drop-off the nanny or cook since Jeffrey is home. On Fridays, I work from home. We are very fortunate to have flexible schedules and a nanny so that we don’t have to take the kids to daycare full-time. It just gets a little hectic on Wednesdays, so much that I forget to pee. I’ll just have to set reminders on my calendar for that.
Sleep Training Update: SUCCESS
Greetings! I previously mentioned that I started to sleep train A&Z to sleep on their own in their own room (if you missed it, catch it here). I had a nine day plan all laid out. As it turns out, I didn’t need nine days because it only took one day! Am I that lucky to have the best kids ever? Or am I that good at parenting?!
Arielle whines a little and tries to get out of bed, but I don’t give in and put her back in her bed. She usually falls asleep less than 10 minutes later. The first night was a little rough for Zavier because he cried for about 45 minutes. The second night, he cried for less than 10 minutes; third night 2 minutes; last night and tonight – no crying! I just put him in his crib and he just looks at me as I quietly leave the room.
So now what do I do now that I have all this free time??? I’m seriously giddy with excitement when their bedtime comes along. I feel like I can move mountains and achieve so many things with a few hours of reclaimed free time. The first night, I painted my nails and did 2 loads of laundry. Jeff and I realized that we don’t have any TV series that we follow besides the Jersey Shore (not something to be proud of), so we tried getting into The Walking Dead. I don’t know about that one – lots of gashing zombies in the head, not much dialogue, more slashing zombie heads. Anyways, we watched 3 episodes in a row! I’ve moved furniture around, unpacked boxes in the basement, even allowed myself to just knock out early one night so I can catch up on my own sleep. I feel like an entirely new person and find that I even wake up earlier because I have time to relax instead of being worn down to the bone every night.
After all the books, forums, and parenting articles I read on sleep training – turns out that it’s really just me that needed to be trained and disciplined enough to make them sleep in their own room and ensure that I get them ready for bed at a decent hour.
F is for Fabulous Finds
Jeff and my favorite leisure activity is to go shopping at garage sales and thrift stores. I think now that our house hunt is finally over, we like to hunt for treasures instead. It has turned into a little friendly competition on who can find items that are actually worth something by comparing it to the original retail price or the current price on eBay. Here are the goodies that we found today at the local Community Thrift store:
Jeffrey’s Find: Vintage Michelob Dry Beer Sign
This is for Jeffrey’s man cave. I was iffy about this purchase, but when he plugged it in at the store we discovered that it changes scenes and it’s actually kind of memorizing. Not only did the sign light up, but Jeff’s entire face lit up as well! He was so happy watching the sign dissolve and fade into the next scene as if it was the Super Bowl and the Bears scored the final winning touchdown. I’m kidding. It had to be interesting to someone out there because someone took the time to post this amazing phenomenon on youtube: click here.
Gracielle’s Find: Hunter Rain Boots
Hunter Rain Boots – Kellan Wedge Heel. I scored the pink ones in MY size for $7.71! The shoe gods were definitely shining their favor upon me today! It’s funny how the thrift store has certain “behind-the-counter” items that are just too good to let the general public get their grubby hands on. They didn’t do that with these boots – they were just sitting among us commoners just waiting patiently to be noticed. There were women everywhere along that asile and none of them recognized what a gem these were! (For those of you who are wondering why I’m so excited – Hunter is a name brand, lifestyle boot kinda like UGG boots. Instead of sheepskin boots that UGGs are known for, Hunter is known for rain boots. You can usually find them at Neiman Marcus or Nordstrom so you know they’re fancy and come with an even fancier price tag!) They were in excellent condition, too! I just wiped ’em down with disinfectant cloths and they were as good as new.
I think I totally won in today’s treasure hunting competition. For a second, I thought about selling the boots on eBay to make a sweet little profit…NAAAH! Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to do my rain dance in hopes for a little rain so I can rock these boots like an em-effer!
Zavier 1.5
I think he was going for the toddler version of “teenage angst” in this photo, and he totally nailed it! This picture was taken after he got his 2nd hair cut that he needed so very badly. Now I can actually see his face and all his handsomeness. It’s funny because every time Jeffrey calls out to him and says, “Hey, pogi*!” Zavier gets upset and responds with a “Hmph!” and makes that pouty face.
At 1.5 years-old, Zavier’s little personality is really starting to show. He has a few words in his vocabulary: “Mommy,” “mo'” (more), “hi,” “bye,”, “bap bull” (apple), and “Bah-ne” (Barney). He’s pretty curious the way he points at things and carefully plays with new toys or books that are given to him. I just started reading to him regularly and he’s really getting into books! But above all, he loves me more than anything else in the world!
He gets along very well with his big sis Arielle. She’s the only one that can really make him laugh and the two of them can tear up a perfectly clean room in 5 minutes flat. They fight occasionally and it’s usually over toys or competing for my attention. He started sticking up for himself more recently where he’d push or smack Arielle right back if she was bullying him around.
He loves to eat, sleeps through the whole night next to his daddy, and loves to kiss (girls especially!) It’s sad to think that one day I won’t be the most favorite girl in his life and that pretty soon he’ll be a stinky boy with stinky feet. So I’m enjoying every bit of 1.5 – the few words in his vocab, his pouty face, and his appetite for life (and food!)
*Pogi = “handsome” in Tagalog3 Year Wedding Anniversary
For our 3 year anniversary, we just took a nice long walk around the neighborhood with the kids and Coconut and then had a simple dinner. The only things I requested for our special day was a chocolate frozen custard concrete with snickers and to watch the movie Snow White and the Huntsman (both were really good, I highly recommend!), which he was happy to oblige. After 3 years, we are still going strong. He is very thoughtful and makes me laugh, so I guess I didn’t expect anything much when our anniversary came up because I know he loves me everyday. For example, I know he loves me because….
…I was flipping through the pictures in his phone to see old pics of the babies when I realized that he only has one – ONE – picture of me in his phone. It’s not the quantity of pictures in his phone that tells me he loves me, it’s the quality of picture. I look like a monster, yet he still carries this picture around in his phone. If someone at work were to ask to see a picture of his family, I imagine him showing it to them proudly like, “Yes, and here is a picture of my wife!” He probably doesn’t actually do that, but the fact that it’s there makes me think that if this isn’t love, then I don’t know what is:
Is there anything weird (or in my case – ugly) about you that only your significant other could love? That one thing that makes you appreciate everyday and every anniversary? I’d love to hear it!
Wedding Memories Beyond the Photos
This Tuesday, Jeff and I will be celebrating our 3 year wedding anniversary. I loved having all of our dear family and friends in one room, seeing their smiles, and knowing that we are loved not only as individuals, but as a couple. Best. Day. Ever. Like all weddings, we went through all the traditional moments – a walk down the aisle, that first kiss, cake cutting, first dance, throwing the bouquet…and sure, those were all captured by our photographer, Jay Crihfield. But what about the special moments in-between that aren’t necessarily captured in the photos?
Shortly after our wedding, I shared my top 20 favorite moments with my family and friends. They were things that no one would have known about just by looking at the wedding photos, the stuff that happened behind the scenes that made my day as a bride extra special. Then, I turned it into a photo book. I’m so glad I did because every now and then when I go through the photo book, I can relive all those memories. Here are some pages out of the book:
Photo cred goes to Jay Crihfield (thank you for the wonderful photos!). Oh, and happy anniversary to my wonderful husband! You are my home.
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“Where’s Mommy?”
Sometimes I just need a little moment to myself. I’m not talking indulgent, massage + mani/pedi + 2 hours at the gym “me time.” That’s just a fantasy, that would never happen. I’m just talking about a minute to myself perhaps to stop and gather my thoughts, mindlessly browse the internet, or take a dump. That’s really not much to ask for, right?
I have to steal those moments for myself. Once I see that they are occupied with an episode of Dora with their snacks or if they are playing with their daddy, I seize the opportunity and quietly slip away. As soon as I’m out of sight, I let out a quiet sigh of relief and my mind races to calculate how much time I have until they realize that I’m gone and what I should do with that precious time. Start a blog post? Cut my fingernails? Sit on the toilet with my iPhone and play a few rounds of Scramble with Friends? Oooh sometimes that decision alone will send me into a frenzied panic.
Then, when I’m actually doing what I’m doing – there’s a little thing that pulls on me and makes me feel kinda bad. I think that’s what people call “guilt.” I keep 75% of my attention to the task at hand and 25% of my attention listening to what’s going on with the kids off in another room. Sure enough, 2 or 5 or 10 minutes later I hear the words:
“Where’s Mommy?”
As endearing the words, “Where’s Mommy?” sounds coming out of Arielle’s little voice, my brain interprets it as, “Fun time is over, lady.” Like the bell that sounds to signal the end of recess or the alarm clock going off in the middle of a sweet slumber. Pout. Sometimes, Jeffrey would buy me a little more time and start another episode of Dora. But more often, I would start hearing the little feet start to get up to look for me, “Where’s Mommy? Where’s Mommy go? Where’s MOMMY GO?!” and then the second pair of little feet and Zavier start to whine, “ooooh….ooooh….waaaaaahhhh.” That means I have 60 seconds at most to wrap up what I was doing – save the draft of whatever I was blogging about, finish up my game of Scramble, wipe my butt. So much for that.
I put on a happy face, take a deep breath and respond, “I’m right here, honey! I’m here.” Then I see the 2 faces, so delighted to see me that I can’t help but smile back in return.