Brandon's Puppy

This and That

Matthew is 15 months old today! He said "baby" last night while we were watching something on the developmental baby channel. He also absolutely refuses to be fed, preferring to feed himself. Half the food ends up on the high chair and floor, but he's learning so I'll deal with it. He also points at everything he sees, understands just about everything you tell him, and even follows commands (when he wants to).

As for Brandon, he's getting ready for Kindergarten. We're keeping a reading log for school, and for every 10 days he reads he gets a coupon for a free personal sized pizza from Pizza Hut. He likes reading time, but when there are too many words he doesn't know and has to sound out, he gets bored and started fidgeting. But he's taken to it for the most part.

The tour dates for the New Kids on the Block tour have been released. No Miami yet, but there's still hope. I highly doubt that there are only seven stops on the tour. But for now, I just keep waiting...

Speaking of tours, the American Idol tour is coming this way on July 6th. Tickets go on sale on May 19th. Hubby and I plan on going. Anyone want to join us?

Mother's Day is in a week and a half, and I have no idea what to get my mom, stepmom, grandmothers and Godmother. I'm sure I'll figure it out, but will it be economical? I hope so! What are you getting the moms in your life?

Happy birthday, Erica!

Shopping for my niece

My sister-in-law's baby shower is at the end of the month, and I'm not quite sure what to get her. I've been browsing her registry for the last week, and I am torn between making her a gift basket with lots of little things, or buying a big ticket item. One thing I do know is that I'll probably spend more than I should. There are so many cute baby girl things out there, I'll probably end up doing a combination of both, including a little something for the big brother so he doesn't feel left out.
I'll be bankrupt soon, but I don't care. I can't wait to meet my first niece!

Brandonisms

Career Goals

This morning:

B: Mommy, when I grow up I want to be a conductor.

Me: You do? How come?

B: Because I love trains, of course!

The first thing that popped in my head when he said conductor was a musical conductor, hence my question. Silly me for not thinking train-related thoughts.

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Shopping for groceries

This evening, getting a few staples at the supermarket:

Me: Brandon, we're going to Publix.

B: Yay, I love going to Publix!

Me: Why is that?

B: Because they have lots of food. And they give me cookies!

Of course!

Marching for Babies

First, I'd like to once again thank all of you that donated. Our team raised over $1,200.00!
As far as the race goes, my first walkathon experience was a bit lacking as we missed half the event. We arrived just over two hours late to the walk location. Traffic leading up to and on the causeway was unbearable, and we got stuck on US1, at the toll, and later towards Crandon Park. Under normal circumstances, it should not take more than 30 minutes to reach that beach. We were slightly irritated, but made the best of it.
Many other walkers were stuck in that nasty traffic too, so we felt better that we weren't the only ones who arrived and walked late. Unfortunately, our route was cut short since part of the street that had been closed for the event and was re-opened after 10am. We were re-routed and walked what was left of the path, about 3K or so.
There were families walking on behalf of preemies in their lives, some born at 32 weeks, 28 weeks, and even earlier. Others were walking for babies they lost to birth defects, and I teared up a few times when I saw these teams with their "In Memory Of" t-shirts. This event made me appreciate how lucky I am that in spite of two borderline preemies, both my boys were born healthy and remain so.
We missed the opening ceremonies and pre-walk warm up, but we raised a nice amount of money and walked for those who can't, and that's what counts.

(Missing from this picture is my friend Lilli, who was part of our team but actually managed to avoid the traffic and arrived on time, walked on time, and left as we were arriving.)

New Fishy

After picking up Brandon yesterday, we stopped at the pet shop, just a few doors down from his school. We were only going to look and see what they had, but both Eric and Brandon fell in love with this little guy. So we got him.
I told Brandon he had to pick a name for him. He thought long and hard (about five minutes) and came up with Buster. I think it was influenced by our field trip earlier in the day to see Arthur Live!. Isn't he beautiful?! He's mostly blue, though his anal fin is a mixture of red and blue, and his ventral fin is all red. We've been watching him get accustomed to his new home all afternoon. Here's hoping he likes it.

It's Friday!

At least for me it is. I requested tomorrow off. I'll be chaperoning Brandon's class on a field trip, and in the afternoon I'll hopefully be able to go register him for Kindergarten. That's all dependent on whether his doctor's office has his immunization records ready for pick-up. I won't get to sleep in since I have to drop off Matty and be at Brandon's school by 8:30, but I don't have to come to work, and that's makes me just as happy.

They're back!

Finally, after months of waiting, my Thursday night lineup is back! New episodes of Ugly Betty and Grey's Anatomy air tonight. I can't wait. Seriously.

Rest in Peace, Fishy

When my nephew Mikey turned 1 in August of 2004, my sister threw him a huge Nemo-themed birthday bash. For favors, she bought all the guests (the kids) a betta fish. I'm sad to say that our beautiful red betta, which Brandon named Fishy just under four years ago, has died. We think he was already an adult when we got him, so he definitely lived his full five years of life.
Thank you, Fishy, for entertaining us these past four years, and for being such a wonderful first pet for my kids.

A different way to commute

My employer recently initiated an incentive that sounds quite appealing: effective June 1st, they have the pass for the Metrorail and Metrobus for sale! Employees making below a certain amount will get it for free, and employees making above that certain amount will get a 50% discount off the regular price. I’m definitely signing up for it once Matty starts going to daycare. I’ll not only save money on gas and tolls, but wear and tear on my car. That car has to last us as long as possible, and the less stress we put on her the better.

Still training, and still motivated

The March for Babies walk is this weekend, and I think I'll do okay. I was a bit worried about walking for 3+ miles, but then I realized that we walk way more than that when we got to Disney. Of course, that walking is not constant and is at a leisurely pace, but it is at least ten miles during a park visit. 5K? I've got this!
I didn't walk yesterday, but after getting home from work today I walked for about 50 minutes. It was probably about 2 miles, if not more. I can't really measure it because half of our walk (the boys were with me in the double stroller) was around the lake. I think there might be a sign somewhere saying how long the trail is. I'll check it out next time.
My legs have felt a bit sore the last few days, I'm guessing it's because my muscles are becoming defined and my body is getting used to the shock of actual exercise. I hope I make time to keep walking after this weekend. I don't think I've lost any weight to date, but I do feel better physically, and that's a big plus. We all know what an avid athlete I am. (/sarcasm)
Oh, and of course I can't close this post without shameless asking for your money. I increased my goal last week, and I'm just $25 short of my new goal. If you can, throw a buck or two in here and help me meet my goal, m'kay? Thanks!

For our viewing pleasure

While we were out running errands yesterday, we stopped at Best Buy and hubby used a few gift cards he had to buy this contraption. He was fiddling with it last night and didn't give up until he got it to work properly. It's great, the only problem is that we have to unplug the phone in the kitchen from the outlet because it creates interference. When he was first testing it out, we got audio from the TV but video from the baby monitor. That was amusing. We don't use the monitor anymore, so we put that away. But now you know: if you call my house and I don't pick up, it's because I'm watching TV while in the kitchen.

Ingenious

Hubby has been trying to get a game night going for some time now. None of the guys wanted to participate, saying they couldn't commit to taking a night off without their better halves holding it against them. But, little do they know that us girls would prefer they have a standing game night, because that means that we get to have our girls' night out gatherings more often. So we decided, smart women that we are, that they are all getting poker tables for Father's Day. That way, they all have the proper equipment and there's no excuses to cancel a gathering. In turn, we get a night off a week as well. See? Everybody wins!

A Teaser

This was one of my favorites.

We had such a good time at the Sunrise Balloon Race this morning, we regret not having gone in years past. It's a very unique, fun-filled event, and it's for a good cause. The boys had an awesome time, Brandon even asked if he could go up on a balloon.
There's so much more I have to say about it, but it's time for me to go to bed. Remember, I woke up at 5:30 this morning to make it to the event on time, and as usual, we've had a non-stop day. I've got a paid post to do, and then I'm hitting the sack. Good night.

Coveting Patio Furniture

After our lovely morning at the balloon races today (pictures are forthcoming, I haven't downloaded them from the camera yet), we ran a few errands, including our weekly visit to my favorite store (need I really point out the obvious?!). We limited ourselves to essentials once again, but I couldn't help roaming the patio and garden section and staring longingly at a beautiful teak outdoor furniture set. It will be a good while before we are able to get anything to adorn our backyard, but it will be mine. Oh yes, it will be mine.*

*- A little twist on a favorite movie quote. Any guesses?

Why am I still awake?

I need to be in bed, asleep. We're supposed to be waking up tomorrow at about 5:30am to go to this with my mom. Yes, I know, it's practically sacrilegious to wake up that early on a Sunday. Hubby's not very happy about it, but there are rumors that this is the last year of the event, and it is just about two minutes from my house, so I told him we had to go.
Yeah, I need to get to bed. Now. My mom will disown us if she drives all the way over here in the morning and we're still sleeping. Good night!

Orovo

I was at a friend's house tonight, and someone was talking about their recent success using a weight loss supplement. I thought it was the one I heard about before, but this is a different one called Orovo. It's based on the same 10 SuperFoods, and also prevents acne and wrinkles. but this one allows you to become an associate and sell the product. While I'm all for the weight loss part, I'm a bit weary about tier-based business opportunities. One bit us in the behind once, and it wasn't pretty. But hey, it's not good to generalize because of one bad experience. It's something to think about...at this point, any extra income is good!

Things to do: weekend edition

There's much to do around here these next couple of days. Besides cleaning (why is it that I can never get caught up with this task?!), I've got laundry to do, I need to go to the bank, the post office, and the dry cleaners, we have a birthday present to buy for a birthday party we're attending tomorrow night, and if I have time (?), I want to get started on remodeling our closet. Nothing major, and nothing that involves spending money right now, just going through some old bins and putting some stuff in storage. I've got a bin full of Halloween costumes so old, what once fit me demurely now looks like a collection of sexy costumes. I may sell them online later, closer to the fall, but for now they are headed upstairs to the attic.
A few fun things are planned too, but those I'll fill you in on later. For now, I'm headed to bed so I can get an early start tomorrow.

It's been a while...

since I loaded new pictures onto flickr. There are a bunch of Matthew hamming it up, and a few I took today during lunch of the Orange Bowl. It's almost gone, and it was bittersweet for me to see it in its current state. The first football game I ever went to was at the OB. Before that, when I was around Brandon's age, I remember all the ruckus on the streets when the Miami Dolphins had a game. My great-grandfather, who lived just a few blocks away, would rent his parking space to spectators.
The OB was old and falling apart, in a not-so-great neighborhood with inadequate parking, but it's part of my childhood. And for a tiny moment, it was part of Brandon's too. Goodbye, OB. You'll soon be gone, but not forgotten.

New Acquisition

Did I mention we got a new-to-us TV on Sunday? I don't think I did. My great-uncle got a new TV for his family room, and we inherited the old one. It's a 32-inch Sony, and it looks fabulous in our living room. The boys now have the 27-inch in the playroom, and the small set that was in there is now in the kitchen. Hubby now wants to get some a/v sender equipment for the TV set in the kitchen. I didn't even know that existed! From what I've read, they are similar to KVM switches for computers. That would be great, then I wouldn't miss my shows when I'm stuck cooking or cleaning up the kitchen during prime TV-watching time.

A Reminder

As most of you know, I'm participating in the March for Babies 5K Walk next weekend. I thought that my donation goal of $250.00 $300.00 (increased thanks to my uncle's generous donation!) was modest, but it seems it's been harder to meet that goal than I originally thought. Some of you have already donated, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I'm asking those of you who have not contributed to please throw a couple of bucks in the till. I know we are all facing tough times, but even $5 can make a difference. All babies should have a chance to lead healthy lives, and with your help, they can.

Lipo in a box?

That’s what I think of when I see the word lipovox. If you haven’t heard of it, it’s a dietary supplement that includes extracts from 12 “SuperFoods” and 2 antioxidants. Their website claims it not only results in weight loss, but the product diminishes wrinkles and acne too. I don’t know if it works or not, but I hear the name and think of a tiny Thumbelina-sized surgeon with itty-bitty scalpels living inside the box. Operating room sold separately.

Squash you like a....

I was in the car driving home this afternoon, and heard a rustling noise coming from the backseat on the passenger side. I turned around and I saw a roach on top of a magazine Brandon had left in the car. EWWW!!! You all know about my fear of frogs, but I don't think I've mentioned how much I hate cockroaches. I can't stand them, especially that crunchy noise their bodies make when they are squashed. I have no idea how it got there, but I had to get it out ASAP. Fortunately I was near my dad's job, so I got off the highway and called him to please come out to the parking lot. He was laughing at me when I told him what I need him for, but he looked for it and killed it for me.
Anyway, I just did a search on roaches, and found out they can go without water for a month, and without eating for up to 3 months. Ugh, that means the roach could have been living in my car for days, even weeks! Ewww!!
Thankfully, I also found out how I can decrease their visits inside my home. We get a visitor every so often, and they are always in our bathroom. We have a drippy shower tap. Do you see where this is going? Yup, we're fixing that, like, NOW!

Little chick gosling and his bodyguards

I went walking to pick up Brandon at school. We headed home the "long" way and went by the lake, where we saw this little guy (almost can't see him, he blends in with the grass), protected by his elders. I'm figuring one of them is his mommy, and the other three are aunties. Aren't they lovely?

Good News. Sort of.

I've just received official confirmation that beginning June 1st, I will be making 6% more than I make now.
Of course, when you break it down per month, and subtract taxes, it's really not that much. But hey, something is better than nothing!

Family bonding and game playing

I invited my mom over for dinner last night. I picked up Matty, ran into the grocery store to get a few things, picked up Brandon, and was home by 6:15. As soon as I walked in the door it was non-stop: give the boys a snack, put away the groceries, defrost the pork chops we'd be having for dinner, clear the sink and load the dishwasher, start dinner, help Brandon with his homework, have dinner, give the boys a bath, have dessert, clear the dishes and table. My mom had a great time with the boys, we even played Connect Four for a while, but I didn't have a moment of stillness till I read with Brandon right before tucking him in. You would think that at that point I would have headed off to bed, but no. I got online and played PackRat on a popular social networking site. I gave myself a 10 minute window to play, rack up some points, and go to bed. That didn't happen. I played for a little over an hour, I even caught myself nodding off a couple of times when the page was slow to load. I'm going to have to seek some sort of addiction treatment for this thing. (If you know what game I'm talking about, you know exactly what I mean.)
I'm now paying for it dearly with the circles under my eyes from lack of sleep. Maybe, if I don't turn on the computer when I get home, I might actually ignore the game tonight and get more than 6 hours of sleep.

Silly Boy!

Guess who spent about 10 minutes "dancing" to the music from his Tigger and Pooh ride-on? As soon as the music ended, he'd start it back up again. He did it until he got so dizzy he fell on the floor laughing. Here's a small clip of Matty's Mad Dancing Skillz. You can tell when the dizziness started since he stalls a couple of times while dancing, but it was still a while before he stopped.
My kid is a riot!

Shoe Shopping

(wb, I know you're going to love this post!! LOL)

Hubby, the boys and I headed to DSW this afternoon to get hubby new shoes for work. His have gotten so uncomfortable that his feet hurt. I know they must really bother him if he was willing to spend money on new shoes. We thought it might take awhile, but the first pairs of shoes he tried were perfect. Get this: they are made by Dr. Scholl's! I had no idea Dr. Scholl's was in the shoe market. This works out because we always buy the gel inserts anyway, and they are built into the shoe. And, we spent less than $50. I had a $10 off coupon because I belong to the DSW rewards club, but still, great price.
Before paying, we did a little shoe shopping for me, but I wasn't as lucky. I tried on about 6 pairs, and settled on none. I guess that's a good thing though. Less money spent and all that.

Saving a life

This story brought tears to my eyes. The 13-year-old is a hero, no doubt about it. I'm glad to see some kids pay attention in health class. I remember learning CPR in middle school and high school, and I'm ashamed to say I have not kept up with my certifications. I should do that, I'm going to look it up right now and see if any classes are available here at work. It's one of those things that you hope you don't need, but it's good to know, just in case.

*crickets chirping*

I know, I know, it's been quiet around here. I'm in a funk, mostly worried about our finances. We're getting our escrow analysis next month and I'm just waiting for the bomb to drop. I have a running spreadsheet listing all our bills and when they are due, from the mortgage payment to our auto insurance. I was elated when I first created the spreadsheet because we had $300 extra, but now I'm $400 short. Can someone tell me how that happened?!

Brandonism-American Idol edition

Last night, after watching American Idol, which he loves.

Me: Brandon, who was your favorite tonight?

B: The guy who sang the song from Wizard of Oz.

Smart kid! I like Jason too, though not for the same reason. ;-)

(p.s. He knows Kristy and Brooke by name, and likes David Cook but doesn't remember his name. I guess because he gets confused since there's another David in the competition.)

He likes it!

Late last week, we received a personalized CD in the mail for Brandon. Sometime in March, I had signed up to do a review for Kids Personally, a company that specializes in personalized books, CDs, DVDs and other gifts for kids. We were sent the CD Sing-a-long with Mickey, Minnie & Goofy. When the package arrived, I told Brandon it was for him, but I didn’t explain further. On Saturday, I put the CD on in the car, and waited for the reaction. He loved it! He was thrilled to hear Mickey talking and singing to him. The CD is great! It contains 12 well-known children’s songs, with dialogue before and after each one, and the child’s name is incorporated into both the songs and the dialogue.
But don’t take my word for it. Here’s what Brandon said about it:

“I like it, a lot!”
“My favorite song is M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E.”
“My name is funny when they say it. I didn’t know it had my name in it.”
“I like the second song too” (Zip-a-dee-doo-da).
“Mickey, Goofy and Minnie sing songs to me. And Mickey can’t find Pluto.”
“I like all the songs so much!”

There you have it, straight from the source.

It was such a smash, I wanted to order one for Matty too, but I think he’s too young for the CD. Instead, I’ve got my eye on a couple of personalized books featuring Elmo and friends for him. Those are sure to be a hit as well.

Does your doctor's gender matter?

There's a pretty good article today on MSN Health. It discusses the role gender plays in your relationship with your doctor.
The article tends to lean towards the belief that women prefer women doctors, especially for certain specialties. But, it also states that men are favored over women in a "surprising" field, gynecology. I'm actually not surprised by this conclusion. Both my primary care physician and my obgyn are male. I did not favor either gender, I chose both my physicians based on recommendations from friends, their experience, and their personalities. Both are easy to talk to, and listen to whatever questions or concerns I have. And that's more important to me than if they are male or female.

I've lost my motivation. Has anyone seen it?

Some days I feel great, and am anxious to get home and go for my daily walk. I’ll look in the mirror before going to bed and think I can actually see the inches burning off. Other days, like this entire week, I feel like it’s a hopeless cause. I’ve eaten like a pig the whole week, and I only walked on Monday. My eating habits have taken a nosedive, and I feel like not even a combination of the world’s top diet pills and 2-hour daily walks will help.
I’m joining a weight-loss program at work this week. It a 12-week thing, starting tomorrow, and I get reimbursed at the end. I don’t have to lose weight (though that would be nice!). I still get my money back, as long as I attend the weekly meeting.
I know you can't tell, but I really am optimistic about it.

You know you're a Floridian if...

I just got this via email, and they are all true!

(I know this may have been posted before, either by me or some of the other Florida bloggers. But there's no harm in re-posting it, right?)

*Socks are only for bowling.
*You never use an umbrella because you know the rain will be over in five minutes.
*A good parking place has nothing to do with distance from the store, but everything to do with shade.
*Your winter coat is made of denim.
*You can tell the difference between fire ant bites and mosquito bites.
*You're younger than thirty but some of your friends are over 65.
*Anything under 70 degrees is chilly.
*You've driven through Yeehaw Junction.
*You know that no other grocery store can compare to Publix.
*Every other house in your neighborhood had blue roofs in 2004-2005.
*You've gotten out of school early on Halloween to trick or treat before it got
dark.
*You know that anything under a Category 3 just isn't worth waking up for.
*You dread love bug season.
*You are on a first name basis with the Hurricane list. They aren't Hurricane Charley or Hurricane Frances. You know them as Andrew, Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne.
*You know what a snowbird is and when they'll leave.
*You think a six-foot alligator is actually pretty average.
*'Down South' means Key West.
*Flip-flops are everyday wear. .Shoes are for business meetings and church, but you HAVE worn flip flops to church before.
*You have a drawer full of bathing suits, and one sweatshirt.
*You get annoyed at the tourists who feed seagulls.
*A mountain is any hill 100 feet above sea level.
*You know the four seasons really are: hurricane season, love bug season, tourist season and summer.
*You've hosted a hurricane party.
*You can pronounce Okeechobee, Kissimmee, Withlacoochee and Micanopy.
*You understand why it's better to have a friend with a boat, than have a boat yourself.
*You were 5 before you realized they made houses without pools.
*You were 25 when you first met someone who couldn't swim.
*You've worn shorts and used the A/C on Christmas and New Years.
*You recognize Miami-Dade as ' Northern Cuba. '

Across the Universe

While I was laying on the couch yesterday afternoon willing myself to get better, and hubby was next to me with a napping Matty on top of him, we decided to watch "Across the Universe". It had been on the DVR for about two weeks, and we were both anxious to see it. I told hubby, "I really don't want to start watching it right now because I might fall asleep", and he said, "I'm putting it on. If you fall asleep, you can finish it another time". (We have an ongoing battle about who watches what without the other, because he always tapes things and I never have time to watch them.) Well, I didn't fall asleep. It was very good, in a groovy, psychedelic, drug-induced sort of way, but I guess that's to be expected of a movie based on The Beatles' music. I am really amazed at how they were able to tie all those songs together into a story, especially since most of the songs don't make any sense. I kept pointing out the cameos to hubby (Bono, Eddie Izzard, Joe Cocker, and even Salma Hayek). Oh, and afterwards, and this is just an aside and doesn't affect the movie one way or another, I realized that the actress playing Lucy is the girl who is currently engaged to Marilyn Manson.
Anyway, have any of you seen it? What did you think of it?

It's Official!

They are back!! That whole "not spending money this year" thing? Yeah, this is the exception.

Two boys and a sick lady

I called in sick today. My allergies worsened last night, and I woke up with a sinus headache and swollen throat. Matty has had a runny nose since Tuesday night, and last night he had a mild fever. Brandon is fine, but he lucked out because since it's spring break, there's no curriculum going on at his school right now, and he didn't go today. He's been playing in the playroom all morning, and Matty split his time between the playroom and the living room, where I had his favorites playing on the TV (Sesame Street, SuperWhy, Dragon Tales, etc). I was able to take little cat naps throughout the morning, and we just had breakfast. My throat still hurts a bit, but that sleeping thing sure helps cure an ailment!
Hubby has a short work day today, and once he gets home, if I'm feeling better, we'll go to the grocery store and take the boys for their haircuts. It's a lovely day for lounging, and that will be the extent of my activity today.
How are you on this very fine Thursday?

Brandonism-Twister edition

While watching the Wizard of Oz yesterday with Nicole and Julie, who haven't seen it before, Brandon stated to the girls:

"That won't happen here. There are no tornadoes in Florida"

I didn't have the heart to tell him he was wrong.

It was inevitable

With Spring here, I knew it was just a matter of time before I got an allergy attack. Surprisingly, I hadn't gotten one since January 22nd. That's a pretty good run in my book. It might have been triggered by a bit of cleaning up I did in our closet last night. Or it might have been the muggy, humid morning today. Either way, I've taken two Tylenol and am on my second cup of coffee (to combat the grogginess caused by the sneezing). I'm trying to avoid taking a Benadryl because then I'll have to go home to sleep, which is not a terrible thing to have to do actually, but I have many tasks to take care of and don't want to have to come in early to finish them the rest of the week. Yes, I know that was a run-on sentence. I am not quite in the mood to go back and fix it. Anyway, more later. I really want to update you all on the latest goings-on with the boys, and a few other things, but I need to actually work now.