Tuesday, September 08, 2009
Friday, September 04, 2009
September 4, 2009
Things are finally settling down around here. The kids are quickly getting into a routine. I am getting back into some kind of routine. Mitch’s schedule will be a pain in the butt the next two months, but I am usually so busy that the soccer season usually flies by. It is really the two weeks of pre-season at the end of August that I have a hard time with. Mitch is at work 7 days a week and is gone from 7 AM until like 10 PM at night. Pre-season ended last week, and this week I am feeling a little more hopeful that I can endure another season.
I think next year, if he is still coaching, I am heading on a vacation during pre-season. Not sure where I am headed but maybe California to spend some time with my only living great-aunt. Maybe I can coordinate and fly out with my Aunt Teen. We used to spend a lot of time together and she is actually who I went to California with the last time. The kids are usually gone those two weeks, and Mitch is only home to sleep during that time. Of course, next summer Hayley will be gearing up for college. Maybe she can be my traveling partner. It is still a ways off, but it goes by fast, so I will be making arrangements well in advance.
Speaking of traveling and vacations, I found a travel agency while shopping yesterday and they have FABULOUS short-notice vacation plans. Round-trip to Paris for $519??? I almost bought the ticket yesterday! Of course I don’t have a passport so I have to look into getting one mighty quick. Lots of cruises and all-inclusive packages for cheap, cheap, cheap. Of course there is always fine-print, but the lady that works there is my friend Janice’s cousin, so I feel confident that I won’t be taken advantage of and I like the idea of a travel agent. Of course it is easy to do things yourself online, but sometimes it is nice to pay extra for a little ease and piece of mind. Obviously a travel agent wants to stay in business and so will probably be able to work out some fun perks that a novice won’t be able to do. There is a place that I definitely want to travel to with Mitch before the baby. A little pre-baby vacation...at one of the Couples Resorts. They have several of them each with lots to offer. All inclusive and private beaches, private dining on the beaches...just the couple and the waiter...sounds good to me!
I think next year, if he is still coaching, I am heading on a vacation during pre-season. Not sure where I am headed but maybe California to spend some time with my only living great-aunt. Maybe I can coordinate and fly out with my Aunt Teen. We used to spend a lot of time together and she is actually who I went to California with the last time. The kids are usually gone those two weeks, and Mitch is only home to sleep during that time. Of course, next summer Hayley will be gearing up for college. Maybe she can be my traveling partner. It is still a ways off, but it goes by fast, so I will be making arrangements well in advance.
Speaking of traveling and vacations, I found a travel agency while shopping yesterday and they have FABULOUS short-notice vacation plans. Round-trip to Paris for $519??? I almost bought the ticket yesterday! Of course I don’t have a passport so I have to look into getting one mighty quick. Lots of cruises and all-inclusive packages for cheap, cheap, cheap. Of course there is always fine-print, but the lady that works there is my friend Janice’s cousin, so I feel confident that I won’t be taken advantage of and I like the idea of a travel agent. Of course it is easy to do things yourself online, but sometimes it is nice to pay extra for a little ease and piece of mind. Obviously a travel agent wants to stay in business and so will probably be able to work out some fun perks that a novice won’t be able to do. There is a place that I definitely want to travel to with Mitch before the baby. A little pre-baby vacation...at one of the Couples Resorts. They have several of them each with lots to offer. All inclusive and private beaches, private dining on the beaches...just the couple and the waiter...sounds good to me!
Thursday, September 03, 2009
September 3, 2009
My blog contributer and I will be taking two vacations this year. The first will be this winter, to visit his grandmother in Florida. The second will be in April to DC again. I have been many times at many different times during the year...and in my opinion, April is the best time to go. June has been the latest that I have gone and it really is too hot to enjoy any of the vast amount of walking you want to do. Plus in April, you get the cherry blossoms minus the crazy crowds that the summer months provide. February was actually a good time too because there weren’t a lot of lines to wait in for any of the exhibits and you don’t mind the walking because it is usually in the low 50’s and you want to keep warm, but by April, assuming it is an average year, you can enjoy a day or two at Virginia Beach.
My kids are enjoying the start of school. It is nice to see them happy with how things are going. My hope is that the enthusiasm lasts. The weather has been quite nice this past week. Chilly in the morning, very warm throughout the day and evening. The humidity is gone for a bit. Narragansett is a very humid town, being on the ocean and all winter long it is very humid and foggy. Warmer than the inland, yes, but still foggy. For some reason though, come fall, the humidity leaves for a month or two. Clear, starry skies at night and an endless blue of sky and sea during the days. It really is the most beautiful time of the year around here.
Some concerts I want to go to this year are Kings of Leon and Panic at the Disco. Still want to see ACDC, Fleetwood Mac again, Journey, maybe the Eagles. I want to see Wicked. The Boston Pops Holiday concert. There are probably most definitely more. Definitely Kings of Leon, though. They are my favorite NEW band of the past two years. I’ve been a fan since the first time I heard them and now they are getting more known. I’ll probably stay on the bus until they sell out and then it will be on to newer and better things.
My kids are enjoying the start of school. It is nice to see them happy with how things are going. My hope is that the enthusiasm lasts. The weather has been quite nice this past week. Chilly in the morning, very warm throughout the day and evening. The humidity is gone for a bit. Narragansett is a very humid town, being on the ocean and all winter long it is very humid and foggy. Warmer than the inland, yes, but still foggy. For some reason though, come fall, the humidity leaves for a month or two. Clear, starry skies at night and an endless blue of sky and sea during the days. It really is the most beautiful time of the year around here.
Some concerts I want to go to this year are Kings of Leon and Panic at the Disco. Still want to see ACDC, Fleetwood Mac again, Journey, maybe the Eagles. I want to see Wicked. The Boston Pops Holiday concert. There are probably most definitely more. Definitely Kings of Leon, though. They are my favorite NEW band of the past two years. I’ve been a fan since the first time I heard them and now they are getting more known. I’ll probably stay on the bus until they sell out and then it will be on to newer and better things.
Tuesday, September 01, 2009
Thanks TO...
...Allison. Thanks for being a great best friend. You are always there when I need you. Thanks to Lori, too! Hope to see you guys again soon!
A WHOLE LOT OF NOTHIN'
The kids went back to school this morning. Both looked darn cute if I do say so myself. Zach was pretty excited, which I haven’t seen in quite a few years. The first 5 or 6 years of school he loved. The last few years, no so much, but I think football has made a difference with that. He’s had early morning practice the last two weeks, so I think just having to be at the school at 7:30 AM every morning kind of got him back into the swing of things. His social group has gotten larger. Hayley is excited too. She’s lost weight this summer and is starting her senior year. We had her senior pics taken on Sunday. I will post them when they become available.
We had fun over the weekend. Mitch joined us after his practice was done, while Hayley’s pics were finishing up and then we went to Providence Place. This is the kids’ favorite mall of our 5 or 6 to choose from because it has four floors. The first floor is about the size of most regular malls. Just x’s that by 4. There is one about about 15 minutes of traffic closer to us, a more traditional single floor mall with three or four anchor stores. One in Swansea, the one at Emerald Square, two that I know of in Connecticut close to us, and of course the two we always go to in CT when we shop with my sister. There is also outlet shopping in Wrentham and in CT. Zach DID inform us that he is not going back to Providence Place until he has a job! He found lots of things that he wanted that weren’t back-to-school necessities.
We rented three movies this weekend. Messengers 2. Don’t bother. Race to Witch Mountain. Not as good as the one I remember as a kid. But ok. The Watchmen. Good. Definitely something you have to watch more than once. Kind of hard to follow unless you are familiar with the story, but worth the effort. A movie you need to pay attention to, and not multi-task throughout or you’ll be lost. We also bought two new movies to add to our cult classic collection. Mallrats and one of my personal faves, Empire Records. Zach is really into Clerks, I & II, and Dogma, so I introduced him to Mallrats. We’ll skip Jersey Girl just because it wasn’t a showcase piece of work.
I talked with Kayla this weekend and yesterday. She is feeling very overwhelmed with working and trying to find an apartment. We talked for a while and I feel confident that she is now refocused with a refined plan for a new apartment. I know she at least sounded better after our conversation.
The humidity has broken...finally...continuing to make early Fall my favorite season, at least in RI, where it is still very warm until at least November.
Today is starting out slow, but will prove to be a full day. I will be running my errands, picking up Hayley at 1:50, take her to the library, work with David for a few hours, pick up Hayley, run to the grocery store and then to Zach’s scrimmage to catch the last hour or so of that, and then home to make dinner and sign a milion papers no doubt, that the kids will have brought home from school. Mitch also has the first game of the season, tonight at 7 PM. I want to go. I want to be supportive. I want him to know how much I love him. Zach definitely wants to go, but these are early mornings, getting the kids up for school, and making me tired come 8:30 or 9 PM. I wouldn’t mind if I didn’t have to get up tomorrow and do it all again! Tomorrow is an early day for me and the kids. I have to drop them off to school and then get myself to work. I will be home at 3 tomorrow, so the kids will be pleased with that.
The four of us have been sneezing up a STORM the last few days. Not sure what it is from. Mitch thinks it is because we’ve had the air on, but then I’d have been sneezing all along because the air is always on at work and in my car. My sinuses are at least feeling better, despite the sneezing. I have cut out all wheat from my diet because I heard a rumor that diets high in wheat and yeast products can cause sinus trouble. It has been about a month since making the change. My waistline is definitely thanking me for cutting out the wheat, which also coincidently is full of CARBS! I’ve also cut out excess sugar, which contributes to sinus trouble. I still use a little in my coffee and in my tea, but I often prefer unsweetened tea anyway, so it hasn’t been so challenging. I had been drinking almost 32 ounces of McD’s sweet tea per day! I definitely feel less sluggish and my eyes aren’t itchy anymore. Still taking my fiber tabs and my multi-vitamin. I’ve probably lost 15 pounds or so, just cutting out the wheat and excess sugar.
We had fun over the weekend. Mitch joined us after his practice was done, while Hayley’s pics were finishing up and then we went to Providence Place. This is the kids’ favorite mall of our 5 or 6 to choose from because it has four floors. The first floor is about the size of most regular malls. Just x’s that by 4. There is one about about 15 minutes of traffic closer to us, a more traditional single floor mall with three or four anchor stores. One in Swansea, the one at Emerald Square, two that I know of in Connecticut close to us, and of course the two we always go to in CT when we shop with my sister. There is also outlet shopping in Wrentham and in CT. Zach DID inform us that he is not going back to Providence Place until he has a job! He found lots of things that he wanted that weren’t back-to-school necessities.
We rented three movies this weekend. Messengers 2. Don’t bother. Race to Witch Mountain. Not as good as the one I remember as a kid. But ok. The Watchmen. Good. Definitely something you have to watch more than once. Kind of hard to follow unless you are familiar with the story, but worth the effort. A movie you need to pay attention to, and not multi-task throughout or you’ll be lost. We also bought two new movies to add to our cult classic collection. Mallrats and one of my personal faves, Empire Records. Zach is really into Clerks, I & II, and Dogma, so I introduced him to Mallrats. We’ll skip Jersey Girl just because it wasn’t a showcase piece of work.
I talked with Kayla this weekend and yesterday. She is feeling very overwhelmed with working and trying to find an apartment. We talked for a while and I feel confident that she is now refocused with a refined plan for a new apartment. I know she at least sounded better after our conversation.
The humidity has broken...finally...continuing to make early Fall my favorite season, at least in RI, where it is still very warm until at least November.
Today is starting out slow, but will prove to be a full day. I will be running my errands, picking up Hayley at 1:50, take her to the library, work with David for a few hours, pick up Hayley, run to the grocery store and then to Zach’s scrimmage to catch the last hour or so of that, and then home to make dinner and sign a milion papers no doubt, that the kids will have brought home from school. Mitch also has the first game of the season, tonight at 7 PM. I want to go. I want to be supportive. I want him to know how much I love him. Zach definitely wants to go, but these are early mornings, getting the kids up for school, and making me tired come 8:30 or 9 PM. I wouldn’t mind if I didn’t have to get up tomorrow and do it all again! Tomorrow is an early day for me and the kids. I have to drop them off to school and then get myself to work. I will be home at 3 tomorrow, so the kids will be pleased with that.
The four of us have been sneezing up a STORM the last few days. Not sure what it is from. Mitch thinks it is because we’ve had the air on, but then I’d have been sneezing all along because the air is always on at work and in my car. My sinuses are at least feeling better, despite the sneezing. I have cut out all wheat from my diet because I heard a rumor that diets high in wheat and yeast products can cause sinus trouble. It has been about a month since making the change. My waistline is definitely thanking me for cutting out the wheat, which also coincidently is full of CARBS! I’ve also cut out excess sugar, which contributes to sinus trouble. I still use a little in my coffee and in my tea, but I often prefer unsweetened tea anyway, so it hasn’t been so challenging. I had been drinking almost 32 ounces of McD’s sweet tea per day! I definitely feel less sluggish and my eyes aren’t itchy anymore. Still taking my fiber tabs and my multi-vitamin. I’ve probably lost 15 pounds or so, just cutting out the wheat and excess sugar.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Friday, August 14, 2009
Official Summer Pic
I know I haven't blogged forever. The kids are in Maine. The girls attended the funeral of one of their best friends. She was brutally murdered last weekend and the funeral was yesterday. A man was arrested for the murder and he is now in protective custody. As he should be. I have known this little girl a long time and I definitely think some street retribution is the way to go. There isn't enough fire in hell for this bastard. The last time I talked with her was a few months ago and she was excited to get a place with my daughter. Her mom was happy because she always felt Kayla was a good influence on her and I was happy because I felt like Holly would take care of Kayla and look out for her. Holly was always a little more street smart. I am still in shock over the whole thing and probably will be for a long time. Maybe in a few weeks I can write a nice tribute along with pics for her on the blog. Right now, I am having a hard time even looking at pictures of her.
Personal friends of mine that spent any time at my house will remember Holly as she spent a lot of time there herself. She will always be remembered as Kayla's best friend, Hayley's sister she never had and Zach's first crush.
I did not attend the funeral. Holly is in my heart and I didn't feel like I needed to engage in the drama that I am sure was her funeral. I'm sure a lot of her "friends" were there. I felt like I was not able to give her mom the support she would need and am feeling a lot of blame towards her right now. Nobody needs that at their daughter's funeral and I am sure the guilt she will feel the rest of her life has nothing on me. The girls' dad went with them to support them as they are our main concern right now. They are both pretty devastated. Hayley is spending some time today with Holly's mom and sister.
Personal friends of mine that spent any time at my house will remember Holly as she spent a lot of time there herself. She will always be remembered as Kayla's best friend, Hayley's sister she never had and Zach's first crush.
I did not attend the funeral. Holly is in my heart and I didn't feel like I needed to engage in the drama that I am sure was her funeral. I'm sure a lot of her "friends" were there. I felt like I was not able to give her mom the support she would need and am feeling a lot of blame towards her right now. Nobody needs that at their daughter's funeral and I am sure the guilt she will feel the rest of her life has nothing on me. The girls' dad went with them to support them as they are our main concern right now. They are both pretty devastated. Hayley is spending some time today with Holly's mom and sister.
Wednesday, August 05, 2009
A WHOLE MONTH!!!
Crazy that I haven't blogged at all for a month. Wish I could say I was terribly busy. We have been a little busy with road trips and such but other than that, we've just been trying to beat the heat and I've been trying to enjoy the summer.
Tuesday, July 07, 2009
Road Trips Road Trips Road Trips
I will be posting Boston 4th of July pics, DC pics and NYC pics reallllllllll soon! Promise!
Monday, June 22, 2009
Washington DC
So we have been in DC for a few days enjoying a mini-vacation. Hopefully we'll spend a couple of hours in NYC on our return trip home...weather cooperating of course! I will have lots of pics and video to post once we get home. Brought the laptop and cameras and Flip but forgot the cords...and my card reader! Now that I think about it, I am quite sure Kayla has my card reader and she is now living in Ohio. Grrrrrr!
I have to finish my hair and then we're headed out to board the Metro for another day in our nation's capitol.
I have to finish my hair and then we're headed out to board the Metro for another day in our nation's capitol.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Unleashed!!!
I haven’t blogged in forever but last night was a night I will always remember. Mitch and I picked up the kids from school, settled them in for the evening and headed for NYC. We decided to drive the whole way in this time. Usually we park in New Rochelle and take the train in to the city. We found and ideal (cheap) parking spot on 39th and 7th and then headed for Madison Square Garden...WHERE...I...SAW...FLEETWOOD MAC!!!!
Oh my goodness! The show was fantastic. Even better than The Dance, if that can be believed! Which is hard for me to do so! They were so much more relaxed and were all about having a good time with each other and with the fans! Their new stuff is fantastic. Can’t wait to download some of it.
Ok, so about the show...let’s just say, I was completely blown away by my emotions. I couldn’t stop smiling at Bob Seger. I figured this concert would elicit the same response. Nope. The lights went down and I saw their shadows on stage and I burst into tears! Mitch was like, “WHAT IS WRONG?” All I could say was, “I am happy.” This have never happened to me before and in fact, I often make fun of the idiots that can’t control their emotions. I was not prepared for how overcome I would be by the flash of a lifetime of memories as they came flooding back. Fleetwood Mac was with me as a child, as a teenager, as an adult, every road trip I have ever taken, most poignantly is the memory of driving my much younger children back from either Old Orchard or Camden beaches and they’d be all sandy and exhausted and I play The Dance and they’d be asleep or about to be and the sun would be setting and Landslide would come on. They’ve been with me through all my good times and all my bad. All the many Saturdays or Sundays I’d spend cleaning the house with the radio blaring or laying in the sun or in the pool, counting the songs until I knew it was time to flip.
Unbelievably, they even performed Stevie’s Stand Back, which blew me away. For a long time, I sensed some resentment possibly from the band, because she had such a successful solo career, so I was so impressed that the band not only backed her up on the song, they blew it out of the water! They even sang two of the band’s more popular songs that Christine MacVie would normally sing. She isn’t on this tour and they didn’t offer up any reasons why. I personally would have probably left those two songs out, even though they were such popular Mac hits, simply out of respect for her. The Dance was about burying the hatchet, and Unleashed is about rejoicing that all this craziness happened in the first place.
It was great to see Stevie and Lindsey as old friends, (they’ve known each other since high school) and not as a tense, estranged ex-couple. They clearly have come full-circle and enlightened us on several songs what the writing process was, whether they were together and the song was happy, or breaking up and the song was a bit aggressive.
They had two encores and I was disappointed after the first because it didn’t look like they’d be playing Silver Springs. I have waited my WHOLE LIFE to hear them perform that song and I wanted nothing to mar the memory of this night. Well, they came out again and sure enough, they finished up with Silver Springs.
Mick Fleetwood had an incredible drum solo where it was just him on stage and he played with the crowd. In his thick burly voice, he’d yell, “are you with me?” He’d make noises and the crowd would yell it back and the drums were getting more intense all the time. There aren’t the right kind of words to describe his performance.
I also have to say, watching Lindsey play Big Love was a highlight of my life. Mick calls him the man with the magic fingers and you just have to watch him to understand.
What can I say about Stevie? Every song was done to perfection. She sounds exactly like she does recorded. Towards the end, you just knew her voice had to be hanging on by a thread, I know this from playing American Idol. Play Idol for a few hours and your throat feels like it is on fire and it gives you a new and different kind of respect for performers who will sing their set and come out and give one or two more. Anyway, back to the story, so just when you think man, she saved my favorite song for last and her voice isn’t going to do it justice, blah blah blah, out of no where, came these notes and this voice that sounded like it came heaven. She saved her best performance for last.
Simply the greatest night ever. The greatest show. The greatest band.
Oh my goodness! The show was fantastic. Even better than The Dance, if that can be believed! Which is hard for me to do so! They were so much more relaxed and were all about having a good time with each other and with the fans! Their new stuff is fantastic. Can’t wait to download some of it.
Ok, so about the show...let’s just say, I was completely blown away by my emotions. I couldn’t stop smiling at Bob Seger. I figured this concert would elicit the same response. Nope. The lights went down and I saw their shadows on stage and I burst into tears! Mitch was like, “WHAT IS WRONG?” All I could say was, “I am happy.” This have never happened to me before and in fact, I often make fun of the idiots that can’t control their emotions. I was not prepared for how overcome I would be by the flash of a lifetime of memories as they came flooding back. Fleetwood Mac was with me as a child, as a teenager, as an adult, every road trip I have ever taken, most poignantly is the memory of driving my much younger children back from either Old Orchard or Camden beaches and they’d be all sandy and exhausted and I play The Dance and they’d be asleep or about to be and the sun would be setting and Landslide would come on. They’ve been with me through all my good times and all my bad. All the many Saturdays or Sundays I’d spend cleaning the house with the radio blaring or laying in the sun or in the pool, counting the songs until I knew it was time to flip.
Unbelievably, they even performed Stevie’s Stand Back, which blew me away. For a long time, I sensed some resentment possibly from the band, because she had such a successful solo career, so I was so impressed that the band not only backed her up on the song, they blew it out of the water! They even sang two of the band’s more popular songs that Christine MacVie would normally sing. She isn’t on this tour and they didn’t offer up any reasons why. I personally would have probably left those two songs out, even though they were such popular Mac hits, simply out of respect for her. The Dance was about burying the hatchet, and Unleashed is about rejoicing that all this craziness happened in the first place.
It was great to see Stevie and Lindsey as old friends, (they’ve known each other since high school) and not as a tense, estranged ex-couple. They clearly have come full-circle and enlightened us on several songs what the writing process was, whether they were together and the song was happy, or breaking up and the song was a bit aggressive.
They had two encores and I was disappointed after the first because it didn’t look like they’d be playing Silver Springs. I have waited my WHOLE LIFE to hear them perform that song and I wanted nothing to mar the memory of this night. Well, they came out again and sure enough, they finished up with Silver Springs.
Mick Fleetwood had an incredible drum solo where it was just him on stage and he played with the crowd. In his thick burly voice, he’d yell, “are you with me?” He’d make noises and the crowd would yell it back and the drums were getting more intense all the time. There aren’t the right kind of words to describe his performance.
I also have to say, watching Lindsey play Big Love was a highlight of my life. Mick calls him the man with the magic fingers and you just have to watch him to understand.
What can I say about Stevie? Every song was done to perfection. She sounds exactly like she does recorded. Towards the end, you just knew her voice had to be hanging on by a thread, I know this from playing American Idol. Play Idol for a few hours and your throat feels like it is on fire and it gives you a new and different kind of respect for performers who will sing their set and come out and give one or two more. Anyway, back to the story, so just when you think man, she saved my favorite song for last and her voice isn’t going to do it justice, blah blah blah, out of no where, came these notes and this voice that sounded like it came heaven. She saved her best performance for last.
Simply the greatest night ever. The greatest show. The greatest band.
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