Category:

All Three, Together

12/9/2013

Call me conspicuously delinquent, but we haven't taken family photos in over three years. Ugh, it pains me to type that. I don't know why or what the hang up was, but after Scotty's first birthday, we just kind of forgot about it. Life kept rolling along and my crappy iPhone camera seemed to suffice. Mind you, images of the three of us all together are few and far between. We know we are a family; that's the important thing, right?

Well, cue my very talented and clever friend Jessica. She was on Communications Committee the year I chaired, and I honestly would have been lost without her design help and photography skills. She recently started a little photography business, and I'm so glad she is now offering her exceptional skill set to the general public.

Our original plan was to frolic in the snow on Mount Charleston with mugs of hot cocoa. The weather, however, had other ideas. Having worked up there for three years, I can tell you definitively: if you can't see the mountain, you shouldn't be on the mountain. Those low hanging, ominous clouds looked terribly foreboding. Combined with whipping, unforgiving winds, our snow-date got shelved and we decided to keep indoors.

The best thing about Jess is that she makes you feel comfortable immediately. We are not the easiest family to photograph. I like to micro manage, Brian's natural smile takes a bit of coercing, and Scotty was on silliness overload. Somehow, she pulled us together with some gentle guidance and the promise of tiny marshmallows. She also made our house look pretty good. You can barely see the crumbs ground into the rug. Twinkling Christmas lights, anyone?

O boy...

And as you can see, your kid is still your kid, even on family photo day.

And you are still you. Brian and I had the unfortunate mistake of staying out a wee bit too late on Friday. It was date night! There was an Irish bar involved! I'm still in post-marathon celebration mode! (how long is she going to keep talking about that damn marathon? you wonder...Forever, I reply) and that made for a rough morning. As Jess snapped photos for lighting and Brian made a quick run to CVS for Advil, she captured this winner.

Not impressed with this early hour...

Just call me McKayla Maroney. I was not impressed with how slowly the coffee was brewing. Or the pounding in my head.

But the goods worked their magic and Brian and I quickly perked up.

I quite like this one. I feel a bit like the Queen Mother. Yes, royal subjects, please stand while I remain seated...

Prince George Bear?

Or this one. I didn't tell Jess, but this is the train my dad made for Scotty. Having it in the photos was incredibly important to me. She seemed to grasp its emotional significance almost intuitively, and it's in practically every shot.

We even headed out to a nearby tree farm for some outdoor shots once the weather improved.

Yup, that's our kid.

I cant' tell you the excitement of seeing our little family all together in one shot. Thank you, Jessica!

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My Plan for the Holidays

11/13/2012

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I've decided that in order to not only survive the holidays this year, but actually have fun during the mad rush, there is only one option:

Sacrifice November.

There. I said it. Some may not agree with me, but drastic times call for drastic measures. November no longer exists; today is merely December-negative-18th to me. Tomorrow is the negative-17th, and so on.

Several factors lead me to this decision. First, I do not even remember the holidays last year. It was just a giant blur of energy, illness, lights and tinsel. We somehow landed squarely in 2012, but I'm not sure how. One thing I do remember: I did not order our holiday cards until December 14. After paying what seemed like hundreds of dollars in rush delivery charges - and then having to stuff, label, and stamp over 200 cards in a matter of 2 days - it just wasn't worth it. Not to mention, the sixteen other things that were calling for my attention also did not get done, and I don't even remember who bought what for Scotty. I think I may have sent Brian out one night to play Santa, but again, it's all a blur. Like childbirth, really. Just with fewer catheters.

Secondly, I had no contingency plan last year. I was sick from the half-marathon and then Scotty came down with the Plague the following week. My ship was completely sunk at that point, as I became more nursemaid that holiday elf. Everything I had put off suddenly got pushed back another week - and then another week - which literally sent me into a tailspin the week of Christmas.

And finally, after studying this year's calendar, we have no less than nine - 9! - events, starting from December 1 to December 23. That doesn't not even include the actual holidays of Christmas and New Year's. There are only eight weekend days between 12-1 and 12-23. We are double and tripled booked. And all of them but one require heels. I'm tired just thinking about it.

So this year, I'm taking the bull by the hours. I refuse to be the crazy lady fighting the lines at the mall on December 23rd or crying to Tiny Prints representatives days before Christmas. I've determined that someone (Greeks? Romans? Mayans?) gave us a full thirty days from the end of Halloween to the start of December, and therefore, I must to use those days wisely.

Some of you may be thinking, "What about Thanksgiving?" I love turkey (mmm) and cranberries (ahh) and stuffing (num-num!) as much as the next guy. But in all fairness, a day dedicated to food and football and laying on the couch is quite honestly the last thing I need. We have too much to do. Thanksgiving has been renamed "The Day Before Our Christmas Decorations Go Up," and Black Friday is glowing hallmarker that December is negative eight days away. And by the way - Thanksgiving is next Thursday. NEXT THURSDAY. How crazy is that?

Stressed yet?

Must.

Keep.

Planning.

So far, I've gotten the Christmas cards done and ordered. I've purchased the stamps and stickers for the cards, and our address list is 75% complete. (there is a certain pleasure that comes with crossing people off your list, no?) The outdoor lights went up today. I've finished several easy crafts for the holidays (brief tutorial on the picture below will be posted later this week. And help me decide, are the letters cute or heinous? I can't tell at this point). I've already planned the menu for the holiday party I'm hosting and all of the vendors are confirmed. Thanks to Nordstrom's half-yearly clearance sale, I have all nine dresses picked out - with coordinating accessories and shoes, including appropriate Spanx selections- and set aside in the closet, labeled accordingly. (no, not all 9 are new but that sale certainly helped to shake things in the closet up a bit!) I am setting my alarm and going to try my hand at being one of those Black Friday shoppers (tips are appreciated!!) Childcare is confirmed for all of the parties and yes, I have a contingency plan in place this year (in the form of my loving mother. Thanks, Mom!)

I'm making a list and checking it twice; the holidays this year better be calm and nice.

Every tiny moment I can squeeze into the day has been dedicated to getting all of this crap - I mean, fun stuff, done before December 1. Yes, you heard it here. December 1 is my deadline.

And I will make it. As God as my witness...I will make it.

Now, I'm off to bake cookies and twist some pipe cleaners into candy cane shapes. What - are you still reading this? Go get some of your own holiday stuff going! Buck up and start working!

Happy holidays everyone.

Canvas letter craft. Thoughts?

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Turkey Wreath Tutorial

11/5/2012

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Over the weekend, I made this dude:

Gobble goggle

Clearly I've found my medium. Tulle.

Anyways, while I totally wish I could take the credit for inventing this little guy all on my own, I found the idea on a blog called "Baby Rabies" (kind of like when baby fever is out of control. The author now has two children and I'm not sure she has baby rabies anymore, but the name seems to have stuck.) Jill is the one responsible for these fun tulle creations and she is about 100 million (no hyperbole) times more crafty than I am. She is also better at giving directions, so if you want to make this wreath with some good visuals, click here. If you are okay following my directions sans images, keep reading.

(sorry, I was so absorbed in tying knots on my wreath I forgot to document the experience. Brian and I were also watching "Rambo" on TV, and since it was the first time I'd ever seen it, I was kind of absorbed in the movie.)

You will need:

1 12-inch or 14-inch foam wreath
a ball of brown yarn
red, yellow, and orange tulle (about 2.5 yards each)
a foam triangle-cylinder for the beak (these are right next to the foam
     wreaths)
foam balls for the eyes
a sheet of red foamy paper (the squishy kind. Extra points if one side is
     sticky)
Your trusty glue gun
floral pins and ribbon (if you are hanging it on a wreath hook like I did)
black and yellow acrylic paint

Okay, after you've put the children to bed and have poured yourself a healthy glass of vino, start the following:

Paint eyes on your foam balls. Set aside to dry.

Paint the foam triangular thing with yellow paint. Also set aside to dry.

Remove the plastic from the wreath, and start wrapping 1/3 of the wreath in brown yarn. This part is really boring, so I suggest watching a cheesy movie from the 80s to keep yourself from falling asleep. Wrap the yarn tightly so there is no white of the wreath showing through. You can hot glue the ends, or just wrap them with extra yarn.

Once the body of the turkey is done, begin with the tulle. You'll need about 12 inches of tulle per knot, and I alternated between 12 reds, 12 oranges, and 12 yellows. Just like with the monster wreath, simply tie each 12" piece of tulle around the wreath in a double knot. If the ends are not all even, don't fret; you can give the little guy a hair cut when you are all done. Just make sure all of the knots are even with each other and line up well.

Once the entire body of the turkey is covered in either yarn or tulle, attach the eyes. I'm no good with tooth picks, so I went to the good stuff: floral pins. Using wire cutters, I cut each pin so it was just one straight piece, and then poked it through the eye. I then jabbed it into the wreath. My eyes were a little googley (it was quite unsettling, really - the eyes seemed to follow me as I moved through the room) so I adhered them with a drop of hot glue on the back side. I lost several finger prints (again) in the process, but I'll be damned if those eyes are going to move on me.

Cut a long cord of red foam and drape it over the beak. If it's already sticky on one side, you won't need to use glue to attach it. Then, with another floral wire, poke the beak into the wreath and voila! Mr. Turkey Wreath is just about done.

We have a hook on our door, so I needed to put a ribbon on the back of my wreath in order to hang it. As I learned from the monster wreath on October, hot glue is only minimally helpful. Instead of trying to glue the ribbon on the back, I jammed more floral pins into the ribbon, and then into the back of the wreath, and you know what? That wreath isn't going anywhere. God bless floral pins.

So I hope you enjoy making a turkey wreath this season! Brian has this strange, sentimental affinity for Thanksgiving - he really feels like it gets overlooked between Halloween and Christmas. He seemed pleased that I made something that honors this holiday, which made me feel good. Even Scotty was excited to meet the turkey the next morning. I believe the exact quote was, "Oh Mom. You did some nice work!" And as we all know, pleasing a three-year old is next to impossible, so I'll take what I can get.

Happy crafting!

PS - if you want to follow me on Pinterest, I'm under "Kim Boschee." Follow me and I'll follow you!

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Clutter

1/2/2012

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Here in our house, we are nothing...

December 25, 2011

...if not efficient.

January 2, 2012

If there is one thing I can't take, it's clutter. Call me unromantic, but my only comment to Brian when the clock hit 12:01am on Saturday night was, "Now can we take the Christmas decorations down?"

Happy new year to you! Hoping your year ahead is an organized and clean one!

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The Year that Was 2011

12/30/2011

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It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.

2011 will go down for me as a strangely bipolar year. When it was good, it was very good. And when it was bad, it was horrid.

On one hand, I feel fortunate to have found two amazing communities in a town that has a reputation for transient and rootless. Junior League of Las Vegas has been a fantastic outlet for me to find like-minded women working to better our valley. It's put me in touch with people I would have never otherwise met and I love, love, love the fact that we really are making a difference. It's exciting, it's inspiring, and it's allowed me to use my (non-mommy) brain again. I'm proud to say I've volunteered over 500 hours this year alone to Junior League. I'm exciting to see what the new year brings and what new challenges the organization takes on, and I'm very thankful to be a part of it.

The second community is my little running/boot camp group. It may seem weird to call them a community, since I barely know most participants by name (and subsequently have given them nicknames in my head like "Grunting Girl" and "Overenthusiastic Guy"), but I really appreciate their presence. The boot camp and running team have changed the way I look at myself and the world around me. I never thought a fitness challenge would yield such amazing returns, but it's helping to push me in other areas, too. I feel that I've grown as a person this year, in terms of self-confidence and ability, and shrunk in the areas that count the most: arms, waist, thighs. (haha). Hooray for that.

On the flipside, however, 2011 was a game changer of a year. Losing my dad is still something of a mystery to me. It still hasn't quite sunk in. I'm not sure if it's the alacrity in which the events moved - six weeks from diagnosis to death - or just the fact that I cannot accept the world is without him. I don't know. It's made me reevaluate everything in my own life, from my spiritual beliefs to the grief process to various healthy and unhealthy behaviors, and I've come up with more questions than answers. If anything, I think I've learned to live with the fact he's not here, although it's easiest to pretend it didn't happen. If and when that denial ends, I'll let you know. But for now, it's the only way I seem to be able to function.

I also lost some critical friendships this year. I'm still not sure what happened, but after he passed, I just kind of shut down. I fully admit that I was a crappy friend to many people; it was like the perfect storm of events took over and I literally stopped returning phone calls/emails/texts. I take full responsibility for that. My job in Junior League (which started in early June) was broadsided by my dad's passing in mid-June. I threw myself into activities to cope during most of the summer, and by then, Scotty decided that I could not talk on the phone for longer than five minutes whenever he was up. With his nap times taken over by work, I simply did not have the time nor energy to return calls. The hands-free law that went into effect in Nevada on Oct 1 put an end to me talking while driving, and so, I became a really bad friend. To those who have been patient with me, thank you. To those that are fed up with me, I'm sorry. Maybe the new year (and preschool!) will be different.

With that said, I've gotten various questions from people who have mentioned that I have time to write in the blog, yet lack the time to call them back. This is a deliberate choice on my part. Writing this blog has literally become oxygen to me. When I started, I didn't realize how helpful it would become. Now, 2+ years in, I make time to write because not only do I enjoy it, but it helps me to vent, organize, get through, or extol on whatever is going on in our lives. It does not - and should not - serve as a way of keeping in touch with friends, but when it does, it's helpful.

So I'm going to keep writing into the new year. I don't know what 2012 will bring. For Brian, my guess is more work and more responsibilities (and I promise: some golf. I promise). For Scotty, it brings the beginning of his academic career (I say that mildly sarcastically; the kid is going to make butter and sparkly crafts for an outrageous price-tag, but whatever) and hopefully, potty-training. For me, I'm just going to continue doing what I do: writing, running, volunteering, and trying to be a good mom/wife/cook/hostess/life organizer.

Thank you to everyone who's read the blog this year. I've appreciated all of the feedback, all of the comments, and all of the support. I wish you the best in 2012. Happy New Year!

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Updates and Blog Notes

12/20/2011

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I have a million things swirling in my head, but I'm not sure how to get them all down on paper.

Let's make a list. Helpful, no?

-- Scotty is better. He's back to his normal Bear self, which includes yelling, "Mom has boobs!" to anyone that will listen at the grocery store, demanding to be picked up ("Up! Up! UPPA!") when I've got my hands full, and demanding to play chase with Da-da the minute he hears the garage door. In other words, he's 100% again.

-- Brian's arbitration is over, at least for now. I have a husband again. This is a wonderful thing. We celebrated Saturday night with cocktails and dinner on the Strip. It was a much, much, much need adult-night out.

-- Our damn Christmas cards are finally done. For the record, I hate Christmas cards. I wasn't even going to send any out, and then last Thursday, I decided to resurrect Christmas and put in a super-rush-order to Tiny Prints. The stupid cards probably cost more than Scotty's tuition to preschool. And then I realized I ordered square cards, which require additional postage, so Brian had to make an emergency trip to the post office. And after all of that, the cards look a lot like drink coasters. So please, after you receive yours, please feel free to set your beverage on it as well. Double purpose. And then I'll feel like I got my money's worth.

-- I am losing a dear friend this week. Sarah O, one of my favorite people in the whole world, is packing up forever and heading to the great snowy state of North Dakota. While I'm happy she'll be with her husband and kids again, I'm selfishly very sad for myself that such a good friend will be so far away. But thanks to the wonders of social media, I'm hoping we are still able to stay in good touch. Miss you, Sarah.

-- And finally, I accidentally clicked on a link on my blog prior to writing this and ended up in June 2011. I started reading through everything that happened and realized that my dad really isn't going to be here for Christmas. I just honestly still can't believe it. I'm so sad for my mom, my sister, and our whole family. I just can't believe it. Living out here is fairly insulating, but then there are the occasional moments when it becomes real. And it's crushing.

So with that being said, I'm going to take a few days off from writing. I'm just ready for a bit of a break. I'll be back next week.

Happy holidays, friends. :-)

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Trimming the Tree(s)

11/30/2011

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On December 26, 2010, I dragged Brian and Scotty to Lowe's. It was dark that night, and if I remember correctly, we were still clad in our Packer gear from the game earlier that day. Thankfully, the Packers had won, but Brian was really, really grumpy with me for forcing him out of the house.

In the aisles, Christmas decorations were strewn around. Broken ornaments, unwoven spools of ribbon, and dead tree branches made it seem like an angry Christmas Eve mob had plowed through the store days earlier, in search of last-minute holiday decorations.

Regardless of the mess and my husband's mood, I plowed ahead. I loaded our cart with all kinds of things as I picked through the wreckage. Package of blue glass ornaments that were not broken? Check. Strands of garland that had not been ripped or flattened? Got those too. A nine-foot pre-lit tree still in the box? Score! Despite feeling like a holiday vulture, I was pleased with the bounty we scored. As we packed the car so tight that Scotty had to sit with a package of brightly colored balls on his lap, I realized that our $300 would have cost us $1200 earlier in the month.

Gotta love clearance.

If you've been a blog reader for over a year, you'll remember that the Christmas decs spurred the need for overhead shelving in the garage. Which in turn caused Brian to drill through a water pipe in the process of hanging the shelves. So any money that we saved buying items on clearance was subsequently spent on an emergency plumber, but I stand firm that my December 26th shopping spree was still a good idea.

And this year, as we took down the new decorations from their home in the garage, I really did feel like a kid on Christmas morning, since I couldn't remember what we had bought. There were some good surprises ("Oooo! The snowflakes have glitter on them!") and some bad surprises ("It appears our pre-lit tree is in fact, not pre-lit.") So while Brian googled the equation to find the surface area of a 9-ft cone, I gently unpacked all of the ornaments, garland, lights, and assorted stuff in great anticipation of turning our house into a merry, jolly wonderland of holiday fun.

And then I realized that trimming a tree - or three, in our case - is about as much fun as going to the dentist.

It's kind of like how I feel about cleaning: I hate the process, but love the results. I don't know who really enjoys putting up Christmas decorations. Sure, it looks all cute and fun on Facebook, but in reality, my house looked like Christmas had thrown up on it for two solid days. We had so many boxes in our living room that my mom was forced to remove the Bear from the house because it was really a toddler hazard.

(they went on a long walk).

Brian and I found our marriage tested as he inexplicably strung eight boxes of lights on six total branches of the tree. We only had twenty boxes to use, and the tree instructions said there should be no more than 1,000 lights on the tree at any given time. When I came downstairs after stringing the garland on the banister, I found him hunched over six incredibly well-lit, though extremely flammable branches.

He had been working diligently without a break for almost two hours.

It's one of those moments in a marriage when you think to yourself, "Do I correct him or let this one slide? Pro: I won't be nagging at him. Con: the house will likely burn down this holiday season. Okay, looks like this is a battle I'm going to take..."

Needless to say, he wasn't happy with me.

But at least we won't be homeless, either.

With that said, I present to you the three trees of our household. It took two days, 1,500 lights, yards upon yards of garland, and three adults to complete.

Tree #1: the Formal Christmas Tree

This is the "don't-touch-tree-or-you-will-go-to-time-out-tree." That applies to both Brian and Scotty.

Don't worry; I'll figure out how to cover that cord in the back. I know, it's an eye sore.

Tree #2: the Nostalgic Christmas Tree

This is a polite way of saying, this is where all of Scotty's handmade ornaments will one day hang. No offense to the little Bear, but shiny balls don't really mesh well with pine cones dripping with Elmer's glue and glitter. Maybe I'm a bad mom for not wanting handmade ornaments on my formal tree, but...I don't want handmade ornaments on my formal tree. Sorry.

Please note: this tree also houses many old ornaments, such as the ones given to me by my grandma, as well as "milestone" ornaments -- one that we received the year we were engaged, several that say "Baby's First Christmas," and several photo ornaments with pictures of family members. I'm not totally made of stone, okay?

Fuzzy memories pair well with colored lights

Tree #3: The Packer Tree

Among our finds of last year, I stumbled upon this adorable little four-foot pre-lit tree (that actually was pre-lit, thankfully). As we pulled out ornaments this year, I couldn't help but note how many Packer-related pieces we owned. Not wanted to mar my formal tree, and it's not really "homemade" enough to qualify for Tree #2, I had the inspired idea of making a "themed" tree. I knew Brian would buy in as soon as he heard it was football-related, and we had enough gold and green balls to coat the empty spots. And thus, the Packer tree was born.

We call this bad boy the "Undefeated Tree"

The piece de resistance, however, is something we did not purchase: it's the three stockings that now adorn our mantle, courtesy of my mom and her very talented sewing skills. I LOVE the personalized creations and hope to hang these for many, many years to come.

And as my mom was quick to point out, that's a football under the Christmas tree on Brian's stocking, not an almond.

Thank you Mom!!!

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Walkers at Costco!

11/22/2011

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Against my better judgement and completely adverse to my post from yesterday, I did something surprising this morning: I packed up the Bear and took him to Costco.

On the Tuesday before Thanksgiving.

And the best part? We really didn't even need anything from Costco. We're going out to dinner for Thanksgiving. Sure, I wanted to stock up on one more Christmas wreath (or two), but that did not have to be purchased this week. I wanted to go more to see if I could -- to see if the lines really were as long as everyone said, and if people were grouchy and pushy. If I was strong enough to defend myself and the Bear from an angry mob.

I see this as further evidence that I would never survive a zombie apocalypse.

Because if zombies overran the Earth, "Walking Dead" style, I probably wouldn't believe the other survivors. I think all the zombies are gone...here, let me open the door and check---- ahhh! Help! He's eating my face!

I'd be a danger to everyone in the group.

I can't remember if I've talked about it before on the blog, but Brian and I are kind of obsessed with "The Walking Dead." Yet another amazing show from the good people at AMC, home to "Breaking Bad" and "Mad Men," and another way to spend our Sunday nights. I usually spend the whole show curled up in a ball, chewing on the front of my shirt, whimpering. Brian likes to poke me during the opening credits when the disclaimer comes on: Due to the intense nature of this program, its images may be unsuitable for some viewers.

They should just say, "Kim, please leave the room because you are going to have nightmares for the next six months."

For those of you who haven't seen it, it's about zombies. More specifically, it's about this sheriff guy named Rick. He gets shot in the line of duty, wakes up in a hospital 28 days later, and finds that the world has literally just about ended. Streets are bare, car have been abandoned, dead bodies are piled up everywhere, and human beings that used to be alive are now wandering the streets at a very slow pace, mouths agape, flesh rotting, in search of their next meal. Almost every human being has turned into a zombie. These "walkers" can only be killed by taking out a specific area of their brain; regardless of what else is amputated, cut-off, or hacked, the way to kill a walker is through the mid-brain region.

Poor Rick has a lot to come to terms with, and quickly. Is his wife still alive? What about his son? Where are the other survivors? And if his best buddy survived, who just so happens to be really cute and really single, would his wife sleep be sleeping with the friend, thinking her husband is dead? The whole show is one tense moment after another. There is lots of screen time dedicated to zombies-eating-people's-faces-off, and quite frankly, it's changed the way I look at the world.

Every time I open our big freezer in the garage, I survey the contents and think, "Almost enough to survive a zombie apocalypse. Almost."

Which brings me to Costco.

So this morning, I couldn't help but take note of the giant mass of people moving slowly through the aisles. They lurched between the pastries, slack-jawed and dead-eyed, moving from one baked good to another with no sense of urgency. When we got to the deli aisles, it was as though there was fresh meat present (literally) - people were scratching each other, groaning, pushing, and (I swear) biting each other for the next foil-wrapped ham or cheese tray. By the time I got to dry goods, the movement had slowed considerably, but there was an intensity in the air as the zombies, er, Costco shoppers, lumbered after the next free sample. Scotty and I moved as quickly and quietly as we could, careful to not interrupt the zombies in their environment. By the time we got out to the parking lot, wreaths in tow, we exchanged a high five. We had made it. The walkers didn't get us.

And if Costco is bad, I can only imagine other places. Just last night, Brian and I were discussing where to find these gingerbread-flavored marshmallows. After several minutes of conversation, it both hit at the same time:

Wal-mart.

I told him I'd rather go into a zombie-invested high school to retrieve medical supplies than go to Wal-mart the week of Thanksgiving.

After all, we all remember what happened to Otis.

Editor's note: surprisingly, AMC does not pay me to review their shows. I just really, really, really like their programming. And I think you would too - check out The Walking Dead on Sunday nights on AMC; check your local listings for times. The mid-season finales airs this Sunday, and then the show will return in the new year with eight new episodes. Don't blame me if you develop an anxiety condition as a result of watching; you've been warned.

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You Can Smell the Crazy in the Air

11/21/2011

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The Monday before Thanksgiving means only one thing to me: it's a slippery,event-filled slope from here until the end of the year.

And as we slide, it brings out the crazy.

Maybe because it gets darker earlier, we subconsciously freak out. Or maybe our to-do lists just go nuts and we realize there really aren't enough hours in the day to get it all done. Maybe it's the idea of having 36 parties, events, and holiday-celebrations on the calendar and the only thing flying is time and money out of your wallet. Either way, it's a mess out there.

I was going to brave Costco today and then realized - huh? The cart zombies, the mad grab for canned sweet potatoes, the discounted Christmas wrapping...no thank you. I fear I would not make it out alive.

Brian and I actually had a team meeting last night. Maybe it's Junior League, or maybe in my inner dork is in full-gear, but I realized that he and I need to sit down and make a road map of December. Well, end of November and December, because not only do we have at least one event per weekend, we have multiple events per day at varying times. We literally had to strategize how to make it work, fitting in Scotty's nap schedule and our occasional need to sleep.

Case-in-point: the first weekend of December. I have an event on Friday night, Brian and I have an event on Saturday night ("blow-out worthy," I noted to Brian, adding an additional two hours to my planning), we have a toddler birthday party on Sunday morning, and then the marathon is Sunday night. I think my running coaches would be aghast to learn not only will I be out past 9pm the night before the race, but I'll be clomping around in 4-inch heels as well. At least I worked out my outfit to ensure I'll be wearing my most comfortable 4-inch heels...

See what I mean? Crazy.

So if you're anything like me, tie a knot in the end of your rope and hang on. Be sure to start defrosting that turkey if you already haven't. Try not to allow that neurotic gleam to creep into your eyes too often, and go easy on the caffeine. January 1 will be here before we know it...

...I hope.

Good luck, and god

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Halloween 2011: No Mercy

11/1/2011

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About a year ago, Brian and I noted that Scotty looks strangely similar to Johnny, the blond kid from "Karate Kid."(no, not the one with Jaden Smith, or the third one with Hillary Swank. You little millennials. I'm talking about the 1984 version - the real one - with Ralph Macchio).

You know, Johnny.

So we dressed him up like Johnny this year for Halloween.

Of course, Johnny needed supervision for trick-or-treating, so he went with the sensei of the Cobra Kai dojo. The mean guy, the one who wanted to sweep Daniel son's leg.

("But I'll be disqualified, Sensei!")

("Mercy is for the weak.")