Sunday, January 31, 2010

Blue Buggy shopping


Last Thursday was a busy day for Michael and me. Living in Fallon, it is feast or famine with things to do. We find ourselves either extremely bored with nothing on the calendar or a whole list of things we have to get done all in one day. Thursday was one of these busy days. Chris was arriving home from a work trip late on Thursday night. So I piled Michael and the girls (Lucy and Katie) in the car. We headed up to Tahoe to get the house settled and unpacked. Then around 3 pm, Michael and I got back in the car and headed down to Reno to pick up Chris. We always have to time-up longer drives for nap time, he loves sleeping in the car.

When we arrived in Reno we headed right for the mall. I, unfortunately, forgot my nice Maclaren stroller, so I ended up renting this blue buggy for Michael. Being the germ-a-phobe that I am, before putting him in it, I fully sanitized any surface that he would touch. It is a really nice service the the local mall offers. For $5, I rented this baby mover, and Michael loved it! As you can see in the second photo, he totally got the concept of driving it! I would try to turn the buggy in the direction in which he was turning the wheel. So we hit up Macy's (for make up) and Gymboree (for a new outfit for Michael's 1- year old b-day). It was a successful shopping trip! And now we know, if we forget our stroller in the future, the mall offers these rentals!

Our nice deed of the week: When we went to return the blue buggy, there was another Mom and her 2 year old son standing there. Clearly she wanted to rent one but did not have the $5 to do so. So we offered her ours. She was super appreciative, and we walked away feeling like we make another Mom's day a tad bit easier.

At 9:30 pm that night, we collected Chris at the airport and our family was one again. It was a well lived day.

Saturday, January 30, 2010

A fun day on the slopes!

Yesterday, I got a chance to get out on the slopes and I had a blast. I have now skiied all of the major mountains up here at North Lake Tahoe and here is my list of favorites from my most favorite to my least favorite:
1. Northstar
2. Homewood
3. Alpine Meadows
4. Squaw Valley
5. Tahoe Donner

I am a true intermediate skiier (blue runs). I can get down a black diamond that is steep, as long as there are no moguls on it. I do not enjoy the moguls, one bit. This was my first season of skiing at Squaw Valley. There is A LOT of hype around this mountain because of the challenging terrain and the fact that back in the 1960's they hosted the Olympic Games. It is a huge mountain, I have (maybe) had the opportunity to get on about 25% of the slopes, but overall it was not my favorite. I think it is a little overrated.

The reasons I like Northstar the best:
1. They have a lot of trees, thus making the runs defined.
2. You know what run you are going down because it is all very well marked. I am not having to "Call Management" while skiing.*
3. The blue runs for intermediate skiiers are awesome! There are a lot of long blue runs and the mountain is still a pretty big one, you can find a way to stay away from the big crowds.
4. The Village at Northstar is a lot of fun. There is an awesome sushi and pizza restaurant there.

So, if I only ski Northstar for the rest of the season I would be a happy girl!

*The story behind: "I'm Calling Management!!" Two seasons ago, Chris and I were skiing at Homewood with a friend of ours. I don't find Homewood to be as well marked as Northstar and I took a wrong turn. I thought I was going down a blue run, well, it turns out I was headed down a black diamond. I was not prepared mentally for this and at that point in my skiing, I was not able to get down a black without hating it! So we were standing at the top of this black run and I was pretty stressed. It certainly did not help that one of the lifts went right overhead so everyone on the lift was watching! I told Chris, "I'm going to have to call Management about this! (poor signage)." Ever since then, whenever I have a complaint, we both exclaim, "I'm going to call management!!" We all made it down the run, I just skiied back and forth really slowly. Chris, who is about the same level as I am, just sat down on his butt with this ski's between his legs and scooted down. He got a lot of hoots and hollers from the people on the lift.

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Kiwi's, peaches, and bananas


If Michael could subsist off of these three fruits, I am convinced he would. He loves them at the neglect of other foods! Ahhhh!! Last Sunday when Chris was changing Michael's poo diaper, Chris about jumped out of his own pants when he looked at the poo. "It has little black dots in it!" I had to explain that the black dots were the kiwi seeds. Chris: the family comedian that saves all the drama for the poo diapers!

The picture included was taken a couple of days ago when Michael's hair dried overnight sticking straight up. He woke up in the morning looking like this! It was hysterical!

It's been a quiet week

Not much to report here, we have been kinda bored and cooped up around here. It has been really cold outside and we got some snow earlier in the week so we have just been playing indoors. Today we are heading to the grocery store to stock up on food for the weekend in Tahoe. We are looking forward to having Chris back home for a while and hanging out. And, as my loyal readers know, life is just a little more fun and exciting with Chris around!

Monday, January 25, 2010

Our Cutie!

Seeing as it is winter and very cold out here, Michael rarely gets to run around in just a diaper. This was a rare moment and he was loving every minute of it!

Right now he is snacking on veggie puffs out of his snack cup, while Lucy stands by hoping to get any droppings or handouts.

Hope everyone is having a fabulous Monday! It's almost nap time then after nap time, a trip to the grocery store! We have such exciting weekdays, huh?

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Organizing, organizing, and more organizing...

So the countdown begins. Approximately 68 days from today, a moving truck will pull up to our home in Fallon. These men will then pack all of our belongings into a big 18 wheeler truck like a puzzle piece and drive to our next home in Hanford, CA. I can't tell you how many times I have driven up to our home out here and imagined that moving truck parked out in front. I know, that sounds terrible. This town is nice, but I am ready for a change.

I have started going through each closet, room, drawer, nook and cranny. I'm sorting and sorting and doing more sorting. Goodwill pile/trash pile/it needs to be filed in a different place pile.

So last night I worked on the linen closet. Somehow I have 9 different table cloths, 30 pillow cases, and a million sets of sheets for every size bed you can imagine. King, queen, double, twin, crib. I think I've got them all covered. Literally.

I have to share a new discovery/infatuation. Space Bags. They are everything the commercial says they are and they were on sale at WalMart. It truly is amazing how much stuff you can get into them and how it all shrinks down so well! Plus, the Space Bags keep my linens clean and dust free!

So between now and 68 days from now, I will be organizing, cleaning, and doing more organizing. All so when we move into our next home, it will be a smooth and clean and organized transition. The little things in life that keep me happy. I just love a clean, organized home.

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Lack of blogging


So I just have not had much to say recently, hence my lack of blogging. Michael and I have been busy playing and doing whatever it is that we do each day. We stay busy, somehow! So I expressed to Chris that I may shut down the blog since I really don't have anything to say right now and he about jumped out of the phone at me! He said, "Well, since 90% of your blogs are about me, and I am not in town right now, it is no wonder you don't have much to say." So here is the deal: once Chris gets back home, I promise my blogs will be more fun again. I'm not sure what I will do once he goes on deployment again! I need to find a hobby...

I'll include here a new picture of Michael. He loves this little LeapFrog learning table, he plays with it everyday! It was a gift from Santa. I just love his smile in this picture. He is such a great baby, but you already know that. I just can't get enough of him. I miss him even when he is sleeping. Really, no joke. A Mother's love, I guess.

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Our precious bundle and other stuff

Michael is SO tired from our 3 days/3 nights visit with little Z that he is napping like crazy today! He had so much fun with her, watching her and trying to keep up with his speedy crawling while she can (quite literally) run. It was so fun to watch! I don't know how it is possible, but I love him more and more each day that goes by.

This afternoon, Michael and I hit up Blockbuster and Wally World. I have been trying to catch up on movie rentals recently. Last night I watched "I Love You, Man." It was really funny! I had heard good things about it and I was pleasantly happy with the movie. Today, I rented "Confessions of a Shopaholic" based on the book by Sophie Kinsella and "Bride Wars" with Anne Hathaway and Kate Hudson. Looking forward to watching my chic-flicks!

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Michael's first sleepover

Yes, you read that title right! We had our first sleepover last night! Our dear friends went in to deliver their second baby today and Michael and I volunteered to take Z for a couple of days while they are in the hospital. Michael just loves the company and having another playmate! He watches her so intently and wants to do what she is doing. Keep in mind she is 8 months older than him - so sometimes he gets a little frustrated! It is a lot of work with 2 and mostly what goes through my mind is: How does anyone do it with more than 1!

Thankfully, their nap schedules are a little different so I can give each of them some one on one time. Oh, it is so fun!

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

The Blind Side

We finally got to the movies! I think it had been at least a year since Chris and I had been to the movies. During the 3rd trimester (a year ago), I had such bad back pain if I was sitting in one spot for more than 15 minutes, so we just did not go much before Michael was born. Then he arrived and life got crazy.

Well, there is a great little movie theater on base out here and they were showing The Blind Side last night at 9:00 pm. I had just recently finished the book. I thought they did a great job with the movie! But I recommend everyone read the book too! There were a ton of details that were left out.

Another fun date night!

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Our new nephew is here!


Such a precious baby face. JTR arrived last Friday. We are beyond thrilled for "Big Man" to have a little brother! And I am excited to be an Aunt again!

I think JTR has more hair than Big Man, for sure!

Saturday, January 9, 2010

A Blog to check out

Actually this website has a whole list of blogs to read.


On the left and right columns there are a ton of bloggers that are fun to follow. It is not just about food, there are lots of other topics they cover too. One of my fav's to read is the "Plan B Mom."


The secret to traveling with Michael

Because of where we live and the fact that all of our family members are about 3,000 miles away, I feel like we are constantly getting on airplanes and traveling to see family and friends. This is just a fact of life for us. So far, in Michael's 10 months of life we have taken 6 different trips via airplane (5 of which were back to the east coast). I wish I could get frequent flyer miles for him! On every trip, it has been a nightmare to get him to sleep at night. He gets up every 3 hours when he is not in his own nursery, in his own crib. Well, I think we have finally figured out how to get him to sleep while traveling.

He needs to be in his own room, with his own blanket, sound machine, toy bear, and humidifier. We are up in Truckee now at our ski lease and we put him in his own bedroom last night.

He slept like a champ, I was up all night.

You see, when his normal routine is to get up every 3 hours when we are not in our own home, I am on alert listening for him. I was terrified that he was too hot/too cold or not breathing. I know this probably sounds irrational, but it is just the Mom in me. He slept great through the night. So from now on, when we travel we are going to have to have a separate room for him to sleep in. He sleeps better, we sleep better (hopefully tonight, at least). And everyone is happy. Ah, the little things in life.

Friday, January 8, 2010

A fun night in Truckee!

Tonight we went out to eat in downtown Truckee, Ca. We hit up Burger Me! on Donner Pass Road. It was really good! Michael is a fan of hamburgers too! Interestingly they serve Bison burgers. I may have to try one of those next time.

While Michael and I ate our dinner Chris was busy scrounging for quarters to play Frogger. A couple quarters later and he was done with Frogger, saying "It is a harder game than I remember."

Tomorrow: skiing at Alpine Meadows or Homewood!

Monday, January 4, 2010

Our Date "Mornings"


Most parents have "Date Nights." Chris and I do "Date Mornings." This pic was taken as we were having a date at Alpine Meadows ski resort yesterday morning. What an awesome way to spend a couple of hours. We love skiing, the views, the fun chats while riding the lifts, and Chris trying to convince me we can handle more black diamond runs. My goal on most runs is to get down alive with all parts of myself intact! Looking forward to next weekends skiing already!

Saturday, January 2, 2010

Hey Safeway: Can I get a "Southern" food section?

So I was at the grocery store on New Years Eve in search of black eyed peas. This is something my Mom always made us eat for New Years in the Southern tradition of it bringing good luck in the upcoming new year. As I am strolling the aisles of Safeway in Truckee, I cannot find a single can of the black eyed peas. What I did find is an Asian and Mexican section of the store. Can I get a "Southern" food section? All I want stocked is black eyed peas, okra, collard greens, lots of butter...you know the basics. I don't think I am asking for too much!