A Taste of T written by Tanya Munoz

So long farewell...

2012-04-30T11:48:00.000-07:00

Hello friends,

I apologize for the absence in April. I have been reaching for updates and posts for months and months. I decided to take April off to reflect on what I'd like to do with A Taste of T going forward.

The answer that came to me is...nothing. I honestly have no idea what I'd like to do. For right now, I plan on discontinuing blogging. So this is a goodbye for now.

I'm so honored that you joined me over the years. If you ever want to get a hold of me. Please feel free to send an email here.

Have a great day!!!

Sending so much love,
T

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Rainy Day Weekend

2012-03-30T16:02:00.001-07:00

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It is Friday and I'm working from home. That's a lot more difficult with a little Maddi. Who, when she saw a mom whip out a boob the other day to feed her kid, went in for it to give it a try. Yes, Story Time got real personal.

This weekend we are doing soups and movies. It's a PJ filled weekend. I'm super excited about the laid back weekend, clean laundry and homemade soup. I love the weekends oh so much. I just love snuggle time with the fam.

What are you fine people up to?

Guest Post: Floral Decoration for Spring

2012-03-29T00:01:00.002-07:00

Spring is the epitome of the rejuvenation of all living things. Fertility, growth and lush vitality define the season, welcoming the arrival of fresh, spring flowers. With the natural world taking over the senses, the desire to incorporate the sweet perfumes and vibrant colors of spring flowers into home decor becomes inevitable.

Spring bouquets are the most obvious way that fresh flowers are incorporated into home decor. Some of this season's most popular blooms include: tulips, lilies, gerber daisies, carnations, iris and daffodils. Select one or a combination of these to create colorful flower arrangements that can be placed all throughout the home for some added brightness and cheer. Below are some other ways to create floral home decor for the spring season.

5 Creative Ways to Use Flowers in Home Decor:

* Use flowers for arrangements in a more creative format. Take fallen petals and place them in bowls of water for an elegant, tranquil decoration. Enhance the look of the floating petals by using sparkling water in the bowls or vases to create a brilliant illusion.

* Take fresh flowers and make a spring welcome wreath for the front door. Purchase a straw wreath from a craft store and gently weave in delicate blooms to the pre-made structure. If needed, secure the blooms by spiral wrapping ribbon around the wreath to help maintain the flowers in position.

* Dress-up candles by taking some smaller flowers and jute. Wrap the jute around the candle and hot glue the flowers over the meeting point of the two ends of jute.

* Dry press spring flowers to preserve them. Utilize the dried flowers by decoupaging them onto old picture frames or creating a new piece of artwork by arranging the flowers onto card stock to be framed.

* Dry out flowers to make fresh, floral scented potpourri for the house. Put the dried petals into a jar with some essential oil, allowing them to soak up all of the fragrance for about a week. Then place in bowls or satchels around the house for some punches of color and natural aromas.

Easter, in particular, is a springtime festivity that is enhanced by the presence of lush blooms and delicate flora. Flowers represent the rebirth of nature, symbolizing the purpose of the Easter holiday. Listed below are some clever ways that fresh flowers can be integrated into the Easter celebration dinner, creating a memorable experience for all.

5 Easter Decoration Ideas:

* Take fresh flower petals and sprinkle them around the center of the table, creating a focal point for the centerpiece.

* Use fresh blooms in Easter dinner place settings. Smaller, individual vases can be placed in front of each setting with a single bloom. A card can be tied with ribbon around the vase with the guest's name. If one chooses not to use the vases, a folded piece of card stock with the guest's name and a glued on bloom can be used as a place setting instead.

* Floral garnishes make the overall dinner feel more cohesive. Keep the floral theme running throughout by using two to three blooms per serving tray.

* Make floral napkin rings by tying the napkins with long-stemmed wild flowers. The stems are flexible and can be tied in a knot, while the little buds are a sweet and colorful decoration. Trim the stems so that there is only about an inch of excess after the knot.

* Decorate the dessert with flowers. Whatever the dessert may be... cake, cupcakes, tart, etc., there are several varieties of flowers that are edible with a sweet taste that will enhance the flavor of the dessert. Lavender, pansies,
chamomile and carnations are a few of the succulent blossoms that can be used as decoration for the sweet finish to Easter dinner.

Spring is defined by the presence of beautiful, blossoming flowers of all varieties. Celebrate the season and all of the beauty that nature provides. Flowers are a versatile decoration that can be used in a variety of ways throughout the home. Take advantage of postal flowers, which are conveniently shipped to the front door to make decorating tasks simple and stress free. For big savings on spring flowers for home decor, take advantage of online flower vouchers and coupons. Decorate with freshly bloomed flowers and experience all of the spectacular outdoor spring sensations inside the home.

About the Author

Patricia Hall works part-time for an online florist in uk and loves to surround herself with flowers at any given point of time. Even in her free time she loves to involve herself with everything flora and fauna.

'To me there is nothing more beautiful and global as the language of flowers - it is the easiest to understand all around the world in the same way. That is one reason why I truly admire flowers for what they represent in some ways - unity of all mankind!'

Guest Post: Saying Goodbye to the Baby Weight: Easy Diet Plan for New Mothers

2012-03-28T00:01:00.002-07:00

Becoming a new mother is an exciting time and quite the lifestyle change. Not only do you learn to function on little to no sleep on a daily basis, but you are also learning how to integrate your old life into your new one.

Exercise and diet is sometimes a little more difficult to stick to once you bring the baby home because you are no longer operating on your own time. Dieting can sometimes be challenging for a sleep deprived mommy who just doesn’t have the time to count calories and restrict herself to a complicated diet plan. The key for new mothers to drop the baby weight fast is to keep it simple. Celebrities make dropping baby weight look easy, but they have an arsenal of nutritionist and fitness experts, which are a luxury a majority of us don’t have. However, you don’t need professionals to lose weight, just stick to the basics.

The most important exercise needed when trying to lose weight is exercising portion control. Use common sense to evaluate an appropriate serving amount. One helpful tool is to use a smaller plate. If you are not engaging in exercise, then limit your daily calorie intake to around 2,000, but if you are exercising you can consume up to 2,400 calories. Breastfeeding burns 500 calories by producing milk, so keep that in mind when setting your calorie consumption limit.

Don’t allow your hunger point to reach the level of starvation. Healthy snacking gives your body the fuel and energy it needs and helps maintain a healthy metabolism. By keeping yourself only moderately hungry at meal time, you will also be keeping yourself from over-indulging. Eating every 3-4 hours will also help you maintain healthy blood-sugar levels.

Keep your weight loss goals realistic. Remember, losing weight too quickly can impact your milk supply, if breastfeeding. A healthy weight loss goal would be 1-2 lbs a week.

Focusing on eating healthy foods will also help reduce the chances of filling up on empty calories. Allow yourself to splurge on a treat once a week; this will help satisfy normal cravings.
A healthy diet is easy to follow, if you know what to eat. Try to include 3 of the food groups into every meal and keep an eye on how much of each serving is appropriate. The American Cancer Society states a proper diet can enhance mood and boost the immune system to fight disease like pleural mesothelioma.

*Fruit- 3 servings
*Veggies- 4 servings
*Dairy-3 servings
*Whole grains- 4 servings
*Lean Protein – 3 servings
*Treat- 1 serving (every 2-3 days)

Planning meals in advance is also helpful in maintaining a healthy diet. Taking a quick moment to plan out your weekly meals will not only help you monitor calorie intake, but will also help save money and time at the grocery store.

Kristin Wells is a recent college graduate from The University of Georgia and an aspiring writer. She wants to make a difference in people's lives through her writing. Kristin also likes competitive cycling, running, and traveling as much as possible. Kristin contributes on curiousmindmusings.blogspot.com

Story Time

2012-03-27T11:29:00.000-07:00

Our little Maddi loves books. She even has bath time books. So the Hubs started taking her to Story Time at Mockingbird Books and local libraries. That's one of the best, free kiddo things ever.

Have you been? The Story Tellers are always so animated it's hard not to be super into books. I love that she likes to read. We had a ton of books growing up but we'd use them as pretend ice skates on our linoleum floor. I liked TV far more than reading.

In addition to reading, Maddi also likes to play dog

And then she turns that game into play dog through the obstacle course called our living room

Isn't she the cutest?

Hubs Photo - Please Vote

2012-03-26T14:00:00.000-07:00

Isn't this photo AH-mazing? It's one of many from the Hubs. He made some entries to a local photo contest and could use your vote on FB:

http://bit.ly/H57zZm

Here's more of his:

Cherry Blossoms at UW

Skate Park at the Seattle Center

Maddi and I loving each other

Isn't he amazing? Those were all taken with his iPhone :)

VOTE HERE

Teething, Sleeping's Worst Nightmare

2012-03-26T11:57:00.001-07:00

Our poor little lady is having a really rough time at it. She appears to have an upper tooth poking through and a molar trying to make it's way through as well. She's having a really terrible time sleeping at night. She is crying out in pain a lot too.

It's heartbreaking! Baby Orajel has become our BF. And we have learned the art of distraction during the day...but no such luck with sleep at night.

I do not like teething. But her smile is pretty cute :).

What a Gorgeous Day

2012-03-23T09:13:00.000-07:00

When the sun shines in Seattle, it brings on a whole new set of characters. Happy ones. Ones that look up from the ground and smile at you as you walk by. Ones that hold doors open and say, "Good Morning." I like sunny Seattle.

What's on your agenda this fine weekend? I'm SUPER excited for the weekend. I need more family time :).

How bout you?

Utter Chaos

2012-03-22T11:21:00.001-07:00

This is my team totally confused this morning. I tore down the walls. Ok, not me physically, but we're redoing our space and having an open bullpen. I LOVE IT. I have a better view from my desk now :).

This picture does not do it justice, but that's Lake Union. Also in view from my desk, exposed cords.

Its exposed wires, no walls, I have 80s ballads playing on speakers and its complete chaos. And I love it. Tomorrow, it'll be all nicely uniform, no wires and I'll be in a new desk with an even better view. No complaining coming from me.

In other news, here's Maddi's impression of Kung Fu Panda

Losing It in a Grocery Store

2012-03-21T08:57:00.001-07:00

The grocery cart. Not always your best friend.

Shopping at the local Safeway is far different in the city vs the suburbs. You pull up to the cashier with a full cart of groceries, you get ignored. This is what happened to me last Sunday. I went to the store early in the morning to avoid the rush, list for the week in hand, Maddi sitting front and center in the cart. We get up to the cashier ready to check out and start our Sunday family brunch...but we end up being asked to wait to the side for another cashier (the only register open is the 10 item express). So we wait. And wait. And wait. About 15 people checkout before I say, "Are you going to call another cashier then?" He looks up, super annoyed, picks up his phone without breaking eye contact and calls for another cashier. Apparently, anything over 10 items is frowned upon.

Finally, another cashier comes up and rings us up. Then an old lady comes up and bags our groceries. This takes forever. I offer to bag the groceries myself, but she declines so sweetly I can't say otherwise. But again, this takes forever. To put it in perspective, After I checked out, I counted 12 people who checked out after me...and she's still bagging, Then I realize that I forgot one thing. So I run to the back of the store w/ Maddi, come back, check out and she's STILL bagging. By the way, I brought my own reusable bags and the groceries total 5 bags. FIVE. It's not like I had a gynormous order here people. Five bags.

Finally, she has us bagged, I refuse her help out and wheel my cart to the cart escalator. I put the cart in and walk down the people escalator with Maddi in hand. And then, all of a sudden, the cart escalator stops. Just shuts down. No sign of movement, my cart in the MIDDLE of the damn thing. Since the baby bag was also in the cart. I attempted to hold Maddi and climb over to the cart to grab the bag. This is awesome to watch, I'm sure. I probably look like a pissed off spider monkey mom. Then I walk over to the express cashier (he's back to being the only cashier) and tell him my dilemma. He IGNORES me. I mean, just continues passing items and checking out people like I'm not there. So I move closer to him thinking he couldn't hear me and again say "The cart escalator stopped with my cart in the middle." Still nothing. I look around and there are no other employees. Even the old lady is gone. WTF. By this point, I'm super annoyed, Maddi has lost it too and she's crying. I get in line with the other customers and when its my turn when I'm directly in front of him and he has nothing to ring up and say "Are you going to (f word) listen to me now?" He says "Oh so the thing is just turned off?" I say, defeated, "Yes and my cart is stuck, can you please have someone turn it on?" He says ya, I move to the side and he calls no one. Just continues to check people out.

This is the breaking point. I start SCREAMING. Maddi's already screaming, so I figure why not join in? I am yelling at this guy to fix the escalator. I'm googling the number to the store to get some kind of manager upfront to help me. Maddi is wailing. Finally, the guy (without saying one word to me), logs off his register, walks over to the escalator, picks up my entire cart, sets it in the elevator, hits the down button and goes back to the register. Not one word to me. I was so impressed that the scrawny guy could pick up my cart with his bare hands, that I didn't say anything. I was so happy to be wheeling my cart to my car. As I putting Maddi in her car seat, you won't believe who comes back? The old lady! She grabs a bag and says, "I'll just load you up while you strap her in."

At this point, I am dying laughing. Seriously? I'm being punked, right? I put four bags into the trunk and then finally grab the bag from the old lady and say, "Your cashier's a real a-hole. And your cart escalator is broken. But man you really made my day. Thanks." And then drive off.

What the freak. I need to just order groceries online. City shopping is not working out for me.

Addicted to the Hunger Games

2012-03-20T08:25:00.001-07:00

Hunger Games cupcakes

My mom told me about the books a long time ago, but when I read the description I was not at all interested. But then, the preview. The movie looks SO good, am I right?

So I started the book. And I cannot put it down. I want to finish reading it right now. Right. Now.

ahhhhhh.

She's wonderful.

You reading/read it?

Weekend Update

2012-03-19T16:03:00.000-07:00

This weekend was SO wonderful. It was filled with so many wonderful things:

Naps with Maddi
Homemade soup
Auntie visits with Maddi
My sister's cooking (her new addition, flax seeds)
Family walk in the sunshine
The Hub's camera skills
The Hub's music skillz
Coconut water
Movies
Hunger Games
Snow
Green
Love

It was really quite perfect. How was your weekend?

Ah Friday, there you are. I've missed you.

2012-03-16T09:31:00.000-07:00

Happy St Paddy's Weekend!

Thank goodness for it. Right? This week has been go go go and my brain hasn't necessarily kept up. Here are a few examples:

I thought I was coordinating meeting stuff with a fellow admin...turns out is was the actual VP. So when I said things like "Does your guy have ...." he must've thought we were talking in third person.
I attempted to have my guy all set up for a phone call by dialing in from my phone and placing them on hold. I'm currently staring at two blinking lights and my guy calling from his cell phone. Um, user error?
I created a meeting for our whole team that magically disappeared off my calendar but stayed on everyone else's.
I went to deliver this extremely heavy roll of paper to someone a floor below me but accidentally walked upstairs instead of down.
During said walk I got stuck in the stairwell because my badge wouldn't scan me through.
Without my phone.

I think it's contagious too because my boss had a meeting this morning in his office. I put his office on the location including his office numbers in case an attendee needed it...and he ended up on the 5th floor in an empty cube. He said he saw the numbers and assumed 5th floor and didnt put together that it was his office.

Thank goodness for Friday. Any plans?

Busy Little Tot Handlers

2012-03-15T16:58:00.000-07:00

101 Things to Do With Your Toddler

Saw this list today. Whoa. Sometimes it's easier to start backwards and work your way up.

Color
Blow Bubbles
Play Hide-and-Seek
Peek-a-Boo
Play Chase
Do Finger-plays
Sing a song
Collect rocks in a basket
Make an obstacle course out of cushions and/or furniture
Make a fort out of cushions and sheets
Go for a Walk
Make a Car out of a Box
Read a book
Go to the park
Finger-paint
Play with Play-Dough
Toss Bean bags into a Bucket
Play the shell and pea game
Dance to music
Download games for toddlers from the Internet
Practice putting things in and taking things out of boxes and bags
Make a temporary slide out of a table leaf and your couch
Roll a ball back and forth on the floor
Scoop dirt or sand into a child's bucket (or use a serving spoon and bowl)
Practice climbing by stacking boxes on top of each other (only with adult supervision)
Put on a puppet show
Go fishing with a yard stick and yarn
Make a Horseshoe game
Make a Shape Puzzle
Play paper basketball
Run through a Sprinkler
Play with a bucket of water and a sponge (PLEASE WATCH CHILD AT ALL TIMES!)
Make a Drum out of an oatmeal box
Play with a kazoo
Wash windows together
Bang on Pots and Pans with a spoon
Brush each other's teeth
Play dress-up with stuffed animals and your child's clothes
Stack canned or boxed food on top of each other
Let child stack mixing bowls inside each other
Make a playhouse out of a large box
Let child play with a sticker sheet (make sure your child doesn't eat them!)
Put stickers on fingers for finger puppets
Play a musical instrument together- i.e.recorder, piano, etc.
Go on a Smelling Hunt
Frost Cookies
Plant a flower or vegetable plant together
Roll a tennis ball into an empty trash can or bucket
Draw on a mirror with dry-erase markers
Play hide and seek together- trying to find a stuffed animal or other object
Have a splash party together in the bathtub
Put a leash on a stuffed animal and walk around the house
Record each other on a tape recorder (great for scrapbooks or journals!)
Make and try on paper hats
Give a piggy-back ride
Play "Horsey"
Talk into an electric fan (it distorts your voice)
Play tug-of-war with a blanket
Collect flowers (felt, artificial, real...)
Make a camera and go on a Safari
Play games with frozen juice lids
Disconnect your phone and pretend to make phone calls to relatives
Leave your phone connected and really make phone calls to relatives- let your child talk too
String large beads onto or along a shoelace
Squirt each other with squirt bottles
Glue shapes onto paper
Make sock puppets
Make paper puppets
Fill an old purse with toys
Use a paper towel tube as a megaphone
Make binoculars and go "Bird Watching" or "Stuffed Animal Watching"
Put snacks in different fun containers (paper sacks, empty canisters, etc.)
Act out a story from a book
Walk on a balance beam- use a 2x4 placed on the ground
Draw with chalk on the sidewalk
Sketch an outline of your child on the sidewalk or paper with chalk
Paint child's palms with tempura paint and blot on paper. Makes a great card for loved ones!
Put lipstick on child and kiss a mirror
Make a puddle on cement and splash barefoot in it
Let child decorate and eat an open peanut butter sandwich
Make a toilet paper barricade for child to go under, over, or through
Do the Hokey Pokey
Make a super-hero costume out of household items
Do Knee-Bouncing Rhymes
Play "Red Light, Green Light" saying "Go" and "Stop"
Make a shoe-box train for stuffed animals
Make a pillow pile to jump on (keep it clear from any hard surfaces, including walls!)
Make an easy puzzle with felt and Velcro
Make bracelets or collars for stuffed animals out of pipe cleaners and jingle bells
Learn numbers from a deck of cards
Play the matching game with a deck of cards
Make a domino chain
Have a picnic in the park, backyard, or living room!
Play dress up in Mommy or Daddy's clothes
Make a tin cup telephone and talk to each other in it
Make a nature collage
Mirror each other
Make a "Mummy Mommy" with toilet paper
Make a tape recording of short music selections and instructions to move in different ways
Make and walk along a toilet paper trail
TAKE A NAP!

Hoedown

2012-03-14T11:14:00.003-07:00

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The stage has been set. Maddi's first birthday party will be a hoedown of epic proportions. It'll be a boot wearing, country dancing, BBQ eating good time! Grandma is even flying in from Texas for the big event!

And what's REALLY exciting, the return of Fat Dog Heavy at her birthday!!!!

We need to get Daddy a cowboy hat! Soooo exciting!!!!

More FDH here

It's Snowing

2012-03-13T09:27:00.000-07:00

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Ok, that snow is not from Seattle but if keeps up at this rate, it could be in a few hours. I love snow. And now that I'm in Seattle, I'd LOVE another Snowmaggedon. Cause I can walk everywhere!!!!

Check out snow in Seattle: http://www.king5.com/weather/cameras

The Naked Spa

2012-03-12T11:29:00.001-07:00

Not the actual spa but this picture looks pretty amazing, right?

So the Triple Threat had a spa day. A naked spa day. It started as this awesome plan to buy one of the sisters a really funny birthday present. An uncomfortable situation. When this idea popped in my head, I immediately called the non-birthday sis and said "I want to do a Triple Threat spa day...but at a sketchy spa." Without hesitation she responded with, "Oh look in Everett or somewhere over there." This is what I love about her. Fearless. So we found a naked spa. A really nice non-sketchy female-only...naked spa.

It's one thing to think in your head "Hey I'm going to a nude spa" but to actually experience in person really takes the cake. Here are some things I didn't expect that made it so so so memorable:

Noise control. You're supposed to whisper throughout the spa. My sister (non-birthday) cannot whisper. I'm convinced she can't hear herself speak - so she has to yell. We were shushed, a lot.
Shower options. Standing or sitting. Upon arrival, we showered standing. Post Korean Scrub (amazing), we opted for sitting showers. Then saw a sign that said 'No sitting on the stone.' We proceeded to half crouch and shower. Then when leaving the room, saw three experienced nude spa-ers sitting on the provided buckets. Oh.
Water. As with any spa service, water is recommended. Not those pre-spa cocktails we had. Not walking in without a water bottle (which they should tell you when booking appts). Not the post-spa cocktails we had afterwards. Our bad.
Uterus wash. Yes, uterus. It's like the fountain of young but for your ute. I washed both sisters utes. Maddi really needs cousins.
To towel or not to towel? When you sit bare butt in a steam room, its awkward. What's more awkward is when everyone else is sitting on that small towel we didn't know the use for and then you sit down and the bare ass to wet steam room chair contact creates a sound...indicating to those experienced nude spa-ers that you're a newbie cause you entered without a towel AND without a water bottle. And then maybe you start laughing because the sound and looks for the nude experienced spa-ers with comfy butts are staring at you. Which causes you to run out of the steam room really fast. Naked.
Repeat the laughter and running out part of the story above for EVERY hot room in the spa. The relaxing therapeutic hot rooms.
There is no space off limits during a Korean scrub. Not even your ass crack. Not even.
And finally, the comment (birthday) sis said to Hubs post spa. "There were a lot of girls there with vags that looked like you're beard."

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Best.Gift.Ever.

Dear 10th Month Old Daughter,

2012-03-09T14:46:00.000-08:00

My little Miss Maddi Mae is not so little anymore. You are 17 1/2 lbs and 28.25" tall. This past month you've had your daddy 24/7 and you love it. Your face lights up with adventure by just the sound of his voice. Together you two have the most fun. You sing songs, you watch Sid the Science Kid and you eat. You can still eat. You are still favoring potatoes but also enjoy lunch meat, avocados and crackers. You also get down on some banana cookies. You rarely hold your bottle but you do love trying cups and even sippy cups. You love water. Running water. Bath water. Water in the dog dish. Love it all.

You are super super comfy on your dad's back walking around town. You also LOVE your new car seat. It's more like a throne.

You have discovered opening drawers and cabinets...and the ability to sneak into a room as soon as the door is open. You think the presence of a baby gate is an invitation to grab hold of it and shake it. Your most entertained by looking at yourself in the mirror or taking self portraits and then viewing those.

You love to laugh. You crack yourself up all the time, even when crawling. Your new thing is to look over your shoulder at your parents, then crawl away really fast while laughing. Then repeat.You're so much fun to be around.

You LOVE older gals. You're such a girl. You love girl talk, girly things and especially older kiddos. Your dad and I might have to adopt an older sister for you.

Your mommy and daddy love you so much. You're the best thing in the world!

Happy 10 months my angel,
Mum

Introducing Baby Briggs

2012-03-08T08:56:00.000-08:00

Meet Miss Meghan's new pride and joy:

Briggs Zimmerman

Born 03/07/12 at 4:42pm

6lbs 14oz, 20 inches long

Look at the whole family. Big sis looks SO happy! They're so cute.

I'm sure Megz could use some guest bloggers since this little one arrived a few weeks early. Feel free to send her a guest blog here.

Welcome to the world Baby Briggs!!!

To Avoid Contagion

2012-03-06T08:36:00.000-08:00

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I'm home today. Snuggling a sick baby has its repercussions.

The Sick House

2012-03-05T08:04:00.000-08:00

In the past week, Maddi has had a cold and an allergic reaction to something (we think strawberries). Between the cough, running nose and swollen face - she's been miserable. NOW, she has the flu. Her and the Hubs have the flu. I have no idea where they got it but it is YUCKY!

The good thing about sick babies are the snuggles. She'll only go to sleep being held.

It's hard to make out in this photo but her eye face is super swollen. It went away pretty fast but it was devastation for a bit.

Please send vitamins our way.

Little Gym Schimm

2012-03-02T08:17:00.002-08:00

You wanna know who hates Little Gym? Little Miss Maddi Mae. Hated. It. Mom and Dad. Hated. It. Maddi much preferred watching basketball at the bar for breakfast afterwards. If her gymnastic skills are anything like mine, this is a really good thing.

Also, Dave got followed around by a crazy wife/mom who was there with her kid and husband. I couldn't understand a word the instructor said. And we all got sick after being there.

Moving on to music classes...

Party Planning

2012-03-01T10:54:00.000-08:00

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Maddi's first birthday is right around the corner. I can't even believe it. Wasn't it just yesterday when she waved to us from inside the womb?

Here's what I'm thinking...

Hoe down
Cowboys boots
Purple butterflies
Country band
Mason jars

What do you think?

I pretty much want to recreate this. But for Maddi.

Bad Snacking

2012-02-28T06:40:00.000-08:00

This thing might've just saved my life

The Oscars

2012-02-27T06:47:00.000-08:00

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I watched part of the Oscars on our new HDTV and, well, some people should not be in HD. It was more horrifying the glamorous. Here are a few of the gown colors that I loved (one above, she's so cute).

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She can pull off a pixy cut. Me, not so much. Trust me, I've tried.

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I like the color and flow of this dress, not the boobie region. The jewels are pretty though and I love her.

Any favorites?