Havin' a Party

So I am having a dinner party tonight- just to say thank you to some amazing people. This in and of itself is not novel- I love to entertain and any excuse I have to make numerous dishes with bacon is a great thing. However, I forgot the get the chocolate. You know, the chocolate I need to melt to dip the (vodka-soaked) fruit in, and to cover the mint truffles. No big, after J's nap we'll head to mecca, Weggie's. I was slacking on making the truffle insides because there is no real hurry, I can't finish them yet anyway. I had all the ingredients ready on the counter (mise en place is key when cooking with two smallish kids!) and decided to empty the dishwasher. M was putzing around and the next thing I knew I heard the food processor going. Um, hello heart attack. Never mind that it wouldn't run without the lid and all the safety gear in place, I thought I had a bacon loving poltergeist on my hands! Turning around, I find Mr. Cheffy Pants Magee making the truffles. He was crushing the cookies, and then said "OK Mommy, it's done, time for the rest!" I helped him take the lid off, and he popped in the rest of the ingredients, put the lid back on himself- AND REMEMBERED TO PRESS THE DOUGH BUTTON. I rarely remember that myself! This kid totally retains EVERYTHING. That's not a good thing all the time because my language is not so pretty sometimes. He can also recite "Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc" and does so every time we enter the alcohol section at Weggie's (he's never been to an actual liquor store- I'm not that terrible an influence- hang up on DCF) so the fact that he could make the truffles wasn't a total shock. We make them way too much because they are delicious, easy, and his beloved Miss Nessa at school is QUITE the fan. The dough button however? That blew me away. M finished his work, and dragged his stool over to the fridge and waited patiently for me to open it. "Hurry up mommy the dough needs to chill."

Hmm, ok, kid. I'll open the fridge for you, but you have to make lunch.

Disney

So I just got back from almost a week at Disney. I know there are people that think it's overrated, over priced, not worth it until the kids are x years old, but not me. I LOVE DISNEY WORLD. Seriously, it's my happy place. As a child I think the first time I went I was about twelve. There is a picture of me wearing one of my mom's "Wild Wilson Women" t-shirts from her prep school days (GO NORTHFIELD! WAHOO!) and am standing next to my grandmother looking none too pleased. I was petrified of the stupid characters, and not terribly thrilled with much. I was probably a huge pain in the ass. I matured, however, and came to love the freedom that Disney represented- I could be out and about, safely, alone in my later teen years. That Disney bus thing is genius. As long as I could get back to Dixie Landings I was a-ok (for you newbies that is now Port Orleans Riverside- stupid PC movement)! Epcot enthralled me, and it still does. Fast forward way too many years, and now I get to go with my boys AND my parents. Hello, PERFECTION! There is no where I would rather travel to- well, except for maybe Cape May. We stay at Art of Animation now, and it's great. I spend A LOT of time in the Magic Kingdom, and that's great too. Different, but great. Every time we go I am reminded of how lucky I am. I have been able to create wonderful memories there with my parents and grandparents, and now my boys get to do the same. It's an amazing feeling.

Creating those memories is priceless, and I wouldn't trade those moments for anything.

Graphics graphics everywhere...

I have been way too attached to my PC. Yeah, I said it. PC. I am a Mac girl through and through but for some stuff, it's PC all the way. I mean I have Publisher on my work computer! It's awesome! I can create PDF's, and make invitations, and super duper cute Valentines! I am having way too much fun. This morning, I made a poster!

Yesterday, I made a Valentine for J's little Wobbler friends.

Seriously. It's like a disease. I can't stop. I made birth announcements for EVERYONE I know...

Fish sticks for dinner!

OK, so we had Nemo. And I'm blogging which means my neighborhood HAS POWER! More amazingly than that, we NEVER LOST IT. If anyone knows me, you know that we bought a house in the single most powerless neighborhood in town. Houses are really spaced out, which means the power company gets way more bang for it's buck to bring other areas back on the grid first. Touche! Anyhoo, we got 28.3 inches of snow according to my handy dandy yardstick. That's an assload of snow. When I was in grade 12 back in good ole' New Jersey, a major storm was predicted, but I was with my family is sunny Ft. Lauderdale. Me, being a complete IDIOT, insisted on flying back BEFORE the storm. I got to stay in National Park with my dear friend Krista and her family, and I was thrilled. Then it snowed. I think maybe 18 inches or so? I don't really remember. I do remember missing school for A WEEK. Snowmobiles to get to the Heritage Farms for milk. Me borrowing her dad's full body Carhartt snowsuit so we could go out and play for like twelve seconds. It was AWESOME. If I was a drinker at 17 it probably would have been a lot different, but it was great. When I look back on high school, those memories are probably my favorite. I love my Oldts- we had some awesome times... Fast forward to right now. Those 28.3 inches. State of Emergency. Driving ban in effect (complete with one year prison time AND $500 fines. And yet, you call my local pizza place? "Thanks for calling (insert town name) house of pizza will that be pickup or delivery?" Yep, that's how we roll. My neighbors are like 85 and their deck, front steps, AND driveway are pristine. Like, they used a blowdryer. Granted, my driveway is looking pretty amazing after three and a half hours of shoveling wearing the baby on my back. Toddlers are handy with a shovel, just sayin'. (note: baby was actually napping but y'know being all ATTACHMENT PARENT and all it just sounds better!) There might still be a driving ban in effect, but I could get anywhere I needed to go (and no, Mom, I'm not stupid enough to go anywhere- UNLESS the wine box becomes empty) and the pizza place can still deliver.

So take that, Nemo- with tartar sauce.

My ass!

OK so if you live under a rock, let me catch you up- the northeast is getting swallowed up by a cute little clownfish of a storm named Nemo. Well, it's officially started. This morning was rather lovely- no work, kids at daycare/preschool, a yummy breakfast with hash browns! Around ten flakes started to fall but it was that dandruffy snow that just sort of falls every which way and blows around in the air. Fast forward one hour and I'm thinking, hmmm, better go get the kids NOW. It was yucky driving, but tolerable. Fast forward to right now. Well, Nemo, you can go f*&% yourself. It's cold, the snow is coming down in buckets, and it's NOT light and fluffy. It's more of a Scar storm, a Jafar storm, a sea witch Ursula (my friend Ursula is none too fond of her Disney Villain counterpart, so we'll leave her out). Pick pretty much any other Disney character. Nemo? REALLY? I could even see it being Sebastian- he has claws at least. Nemo the adorable gimpy finned clownfish has some serious teeth. I was outside shoveling AGAIN (because my husband seems to think he is headed to work for 8 am in the morning. Um. No!) and humming the "I'm dancing with myself" song- if you replace it with "I'm shoveling by myself" it really is quite catchy. Only one shoveler at a time- can't leave these kids unattended! Anyway, it sucks. I am not a fan. I am going to drink my wine and go the f&*# to sleep (say it like Samuel L. Jackson and I swear it sounds classy). I will probably dream about proper snow removal technique, as I just read "How to Shovel Snow Like a Man". Yeah, I know, I'm not a man, but it was rather entertaining anyway.

So everyone pour a glass of something (I know every single Massachusetts has AT LEAST a case- you were all in the packie with me this morning) and just go to sleep. This little clownfish is going to kick our asses, and we need all the wine sleep we can get!

Holy crunch, Batman!

I am the uncrunchiest person I know. I hate recycling and get a sick thrill over throwing away a can (calm down, I do recycle-MOSTLY), worship at the temple of disposable diapers, and genuinely enjoy Red Dye 40 and fake sugar. I use enough chemicals on my hair to take down a small town's water supply. Today I am home with a sickie totally bored out of my mind, so I decided to take a shower while said sickie gorked out to quality PBS programming Spongebob. I used my homemade coconut oil soap shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. I exfoliated with brown sugar-coconut oil-lime scrub I made, and shaved with whipped coconut oil (hey, it was a double episode of Spongebob)! I got out, put on my leave in conditioner made of what else, coconut oil and other stuff, and put on my deodorant. That's when it hit me. My deodorant was also homemade, from coconut oil, essential oil, baking soda, and cornstarch. My laundry detergent, fabric softener, cleaning rags, boogie wipes, counter spray, deep cleaning solution, stain solution, tub scrub, floor cleaner- all homemade. All non toxic. NOT that I would drink any of them, but the lavender lime tub scrub smells awesome. My bread? I made it. From ORGANIC ingredients. The black bean soup simmering in the crockpot? Also organic and GULP, VEGAN. Don't worry I will add lots of sour cream and cheddar. I said crunchy, not kookoo crazy.

What the hell has happened to me? Must. Change. More. Disposable. Diapers.

It's the little things...

These days are insanely hectic. Yes, the boys are BOTH sleeping well (finally) but work gets busier and busier and I have less and less time to accomplish much at home. Last night I was thrilled to be able to mop the kitchen floor. Yeah, it's sad. I have to say though that my life has changed for the better since I discovered this little beauty. Seriously, my life has been changed. It's genius. It's cordless. Efficient. Quiet enough to use while everyone in the house is asleep. Picks up crumbs like you wouldn't believe (except for big stuff like graham crackers- I crush those first) and even will pick up pasta and crap as long as you've let it sit for a day or so- it likes crunchy things! My floors might be the only cleanISH things in the house.

The best part? It's ORANGE!