Wordless Wednesday: Life Couldn't Be Better

Halloween Hullabaloo

We have been busy little bats with all of the Halloween festivities that we have enjoyed over the past few days! Last Saturday, we enjoyed an evening at "Boo at the Zoo"...animals, costumes, and LOTS of candy! Both kids were tuckered out by the time we got home, but this was only the beginning of our Halloween fun...

Today, we had our Halloween Spooktacular Party at Ross Bridge with all of our friends from the MOMS League. All of the kids wore their costumes and enjoyed games, crafts, and lots of yummy treats! The party was a huge success with over 85 guests in attendance...it was also a success because the kiddos took a 3-hour nap this afternoon!

Our Halloween festivities will come to an end Wednesday night...instead of the traditional trick-or-treating, we are going to see Disney on Ice- Finding Nemo. I can't wait...I think that I am more excited than kids! We will all be ready to take it easy this weekend after all of our Halloween Hullabaloo!

The Great Pumpkin Patch

We went with all of our pals to The Great Pumpkin Patch last week, and it was a blast...well, everything except trying to carry a large pumpkin and a large infant across a pumpkin patch while coaxing the older one to follow along.

I was excited to pick one of the beautiful, round, bright orange pumpkins...The Fred had other plans. After wandering all the way across the patch, at least the length of two football fields, The Fred had no plans of returning to the covered wagon where her friends were waiting. When I asked her what she was doing, she simply replied, "I am looking for my tiny pumpkin." A few minutes later, she exclaimed, "I found it!" As she reached down into the dirt, I noticed that she had picked out a small, oblong, yellow and green...thing...that I could only surmise was a pumpkin. All I could think was, "They better not charge me six dollars for this thing." When we returned to our group, one of the pumpkin patch workers told me that we could just take it because no one else would want it...yes, I know.

For the next two days, The Fred and her pumpkin were inseparable. It rode in her lap when she was in her car seat, it slept in the bed with her for nap time, and sat on the edge of the tub for bath time. Do you ever wonder what goes through their little heads?

Newest Addition to the Family

Please help me in welcoming the newest addition to our family...Elvis...my new baby. The Husby hopes that I will get over my desire to have another baby, if I can focus my attention on something else. And yes, for those of you that are wondering, that does make a total of three dogs now. It's just like children though...once you have one, what's one more?

Elvis was a dog that was rescued by T.E.A.R.S. If you have never heard of this organization, they have a wonderful cause...you can read more at http://www.tearstown.org/ .

I Have Been a Bad Blogger...

This might sound like a trip to confessional, but I have been a bad blogger...it has been 11 days since my last post. Things have just been hectic here lately, and I have replaced my normal blogging time with exercise. With the daily workouts and the everyday strains of child-rearing, I have gotten way behind on my blogging. I promise to get things caught up...definitely...maybe.

War Eagle!

I had to share my latest pics of The Fred and SweetBoy in their new Auburn gear! Even if you don't like the colors, you have to admit that these are some cute pics. Unfortunately, it was nap time for The Fred, so she was not a willing participant. It was SweetBoy's nine-month birthday on the day of the pics, so I guess that I am one step closer to professional pics. I have committed to making an appointment to have some taken this month...until then, enjoy our little War Eagle babies!

Fitness Together

For my birthday/anniversary present, I begged the Husby to let me give Fitness Together a try...luckily, it wasn't too hard to persuade him, so he told me I could try it out for 5 weeks.

I was really nervous on Monday when I went in for my first appointment. I met my trainer, John, and after a few minutes of discussing my health history and my goals, we jumped right into a weight routine to gauge my fitness level. About twenty-five minutes into the workout, I started getting dizzy...then, I threw-up...twice. How's that for gauging my fitness level? An hour later, we started stretching and cool down...thank you, God.

After I left on Monday evening, I could barely walk...by Tuesday, I was limping around...by Wednesday morning, I looked like I needed a walker to help me around the house. Time for Round Two. Wednesday evening, I went in for my second appointment...cardio and my fitness evaluation (weighing, fat-pinching, measuring, and all). To my surprise, I can bench press 85 pounds, do 15 push-ups (yes, real ones), and run on the treadmill for 20 minutes...wow! Who would have thought?

I left, this evening, feeling really good about myself. I have committed to working out 6 days a week, 2 weight-training days and 4 cardio days. My trainer and my nutritionist have both assured me that I can reach my goal of losing 20 pounds in 5 weeks...let's keep our fingers crossed!

Time for the Fair

The Fred, SweetBoy, and I got a chance to go to the fair yesterday with our "Boo," and we all had a blast. Unfortunately, Papa "C" had to work, but he got in a little time with the kiddos since we spent the night Monday night. Both kids seemed to enjoy their first fair trip, and of course, I was happy because Boo and I got Polish sausages with peppers and onions for lunch...yummy!

By the time our fair trip was over, we had pet a few cows, seen baby chicks and ducks, watched some dancing clowns and Inspector Detector the Dog, The Fred had a blow-up Dora doll and multi-color cotton candy, SweetBoy was still giggling, and MommaDrool and Boo were in dire need of a Tums. Sounds like a perfect trip to the fair to get the fall season started right!

Almost There...

Thank you so much to all of you for the donations and support that I have received for Race for the Cure! I am just $25 short of my fundraising goal, but we have exceeded our collective Team Becca goal...hip-hip hooray!

I can't wait for the race Saturday morning...the weather should be cool enough that we will be able to enjoy being outside. Thank you again for all of your support, and I am planning to run the 5K next year...after 20 minutes of running on the treadmill with my personal trainer tonight, I am well on my way! See you Saturday morning!

Bed-Hoarding

Okay, we all talk about what our kids will do in their rooms when left alone, but The Fred has started an unlikely tradition...hoarding items in her bed...

I went into her room this morning to find her laying in her bed surrounded by various items. If you look at the picture, the Pull-Ups box is filled to the brim with toys and Mr. Potato Head's body is filled with lipstick and socks. I am not sure why she has started this, but she does it at nap time and bedtime. Very odd, indeed...maybe she is scared that someone will take her stuff while she is sleeping...I dunno, but I am getting so tired of having to put everything up after she wakes up.

And by the way, the little monster that has frequented the homes of BlueMomma and MommaPeas, leaving a trail of shredded books behind, has taken up residence at our home too. All books have sought refuge on the top shelf of the bookcase. From what I can tell, the monster must be under four feet tall...

It's a Good Thing...

Top Five Things That I Love...Right Now:

1) New 5-quart saute pan...for cooking lots of yummy food
2) Red & black polka dot broom and jumbo dust pan...for cleaning up crushed Goldfish
3) My hand-me-down FoodSaver...for keeping strawberries fresh for longer than I ever thought possible
4) Vanilla & Lavender fabric softener...because it makes the sheets smell soooo good
5) Baby carrots dipped in Annie's Naturals Goddess Dressing...oh, a taste to die for

Race for the Cure: Team Becca

As most of you know, the 16th Annual Race for the Cure at Linn Park in downtown Birmingham, Alabama takes place on Saturday, October 13, 2007. Few Alabama traditions touch the hearts of so many like the Komen Birmingham Race for the Cure. Every year thousands of people come out to give moms, dads, aunts, uncles, sisters, brothers, daughters, sons and friends the the gift of life, support and hope.

I hope that as many of you as possible will join me to help support my friend, Rebecca Jenkins, a breast cancer survivor. I will be participating in the race this year with several of my friends and family in support of Becca and her family. You can go to Team Becca to register.

If you can't participate, you can still make a donation to the team or one of the members that will be racing.

Team Becca will meet in front of Boutwell Auditorium in Downtown Birmingham at 7:30 am the morning of the race. Thanks everyone for your support - look forward to seeing you there!

Favorite Recipe: MommaDrool Meatloaf

Well, several of us discussed meatloaf at the park today, and although, it is normally not a part of my normal cooking fare, I decided I would whip some up for dinner tonight. One of my grandmothers used to tell me that meatloaf could be made with a pound of ground beef and any leftovers you can find in the fridge. Even though I respect and enjoy most of her cooking decisions, this is one that I was never able to take to heart...reminds me of mystery meat. Instead, this is a more traditional take on meatloaf with a little pizazz...sorry, that's a word in my grandmother's repertoire, so I thought I would throw it in for good measure! Enjoy!

MommaDrool Meatloaf

Ingredients:

1 pound lean ground beef
1 onion, diced
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 and 1/2 cups soft breadcrumbs
3 tablespoons ketchup
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons maple syrup
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons Texas Pete hot sauce
1/2 can diced tomatoes
1/2 can tomato sauce
2 bacon slices

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Stir together ground beef and next nine ingredients (through diced tomatoes) until combined.
2) Shape mixture into one loaf (9 x 4 inches) and place in an aluminum foil-lined broiler pan.
3) Pour tomato sauce over loaf and arrange two bacon slices on top.
4) Bake for one hour and let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

The Fred Flees the Scene

We made a trip to Target today to return some items and purchase a few more. The Fred is a big fan of the carts with the two seats at the front, so we found one for her to ride in as soon as we pulled into the parking lot. After I strapped in The Fred, I decided to let SweetBoy ride in his car seat on top of the cart (this way he is out of the line of fire when The Fred starts pitching a fit and throwing punches...which is almost a guarantee if we are in public).

After I finished picking up the few items I needed, we proceeded to the express checkout lane. Usually, this is The Fred's favorite part of a shopping trip...putting the items on the checkout belt, pushing all of the buttons on the credit card machine, making friends with the cashier, and telling her life story to everyone standing in line behind us. Today, The Fred had other plans...

Once I had finished unloading the items we were purchasing, another Target employee asked me if we had dropped a bottle a few rows back. Of course, it was ours...The Fred had chucked it...she then stated, "I threw it...it went far, far away!" Why am I not surprised? As I stepped forward to retrieve the bottle, The Fred put her plans into action...

From behind me, I hear, "Momma, I'm out!" What? What do you mean? (...spinning around in horror...) And she's off! Running at full speed...through the automatic doors at the exit...onto the sidewalk...around the corner...

"STOOOOP," I scream, but it is no use. Alright Mom, think quick....abandon SweetBoy at checkout line and piss off all customers in line behind us...or...take off in a mad dash after The Fred and beat her relentlessly while avoiding store cameras...

As I take off after her, here she comes around the corner...being carried like a sack of potatoes by a woman (another mother, of course) that grabbed her just as she rounded the corner. As we made eye contact, she said, "I would be willing to bet that this is yours." "Yes, but I think the saying is 'finders, keepers,'" I reply. We both get a good laugh out of it, and she hands over The Fred. Looks like someone won't be going to the park today after all...