The Renee Chronicles

Lexie's Joint

2012-02-23T10:34:00.000-05:00

I recently went to this place with my SISTER

Located on Islington Street in Portsmouth NH. The place ROCKS. Small, diner type atmosphere. Perfect portions. Not a burger you have to unhinge your jaw for. Ridiculously tasty fries, shoe string style. So glad I went here. If you haven't tried it out. [hint hint Dana, Vinny, Deb, Jean] you really should. Its worth it I promise. You can check out their menu here. I had the Blue Angel and Sarah had the Stairway to Heaven. They were both aaaaahhhhhMAAAZING!

Twelve for 12 - Round 2!

2012-02-21T16:55:00.001-05:00

The second race in my 12 for 12 series was held in Nashua NH - Freeze Your Buns Off 5K. It was a "brisk" 33 degrees at 9:00 AM. What a fun race this was. NICE AND FLAT. I had an all time record run of 33min 35 seconds. See what you do to me hills??? You are harshin on my mellow. Even with that pace I was put in the Puttah Group. Oh well. It was fun and I completed it. Only TEN more to go. The next race is on March 24th at the Holy Grail in Epping NH. Rumor has it there will be free BEER for all racers. Besides that they have really good food. If you have never been it is a must!!

Other photo shots from the event:

For your place markers they handed out Popsicle sticks with your number on it. Oskar thought it might be something for him.

And this is the face he made when I told him he couldn't eat it. A pure Schultzy moment! I love you Butter Bean and all your silly faces!

Have You Ever Thrown A Fist Full Of Glitter In The Air?

2012-01-30T10:44:00.000-05:00

Holy GLITTER madness! I'm in the process of doing a crafty swap with my girls. Although I think I've gone a wee bit over board I have to show you some of the magic that is shaping up in my house. I found this from the blog "A Beautiful Mess" And please pardon me as I expound on how awesome this site is!! Its a project paradise and I'm in love LOve LOVE with all of it. Where was all this stuff when I was in my twenties? Oh wait the inter webs did not exist. We were running code on dummy terminals that were black and green and I was using a first edition Macintosh. If you have never seen their goodness it is a MUST. These girls got talent and I am envious!

I made these adorable glitter jars as part of my swaptastic package. I followed this tutorial if you are interested in giving it a try. Here was my end result!

Now what to put in them??

Because the swap occurs sometime around Valentines Day I thought I would go with some lovey dovey goodness. Cause who doesn't like to receive a nice Valentines gift that they can use year after year?? So I decided to make a little banner which I have never done before. Here is what it looks like so far.

What are you crafting???

Munchkin Man

2012-01-27T16:28:00.000-05:00

Erik with his new water slide 1999 / 2000?

Erik is my one of my three nephews. I have two of these pictures hanging in my house. It was taken on my Minolta SLR with b/w 400 speed film. I remember setting up this water slide in our back yard because it was his birthday. It took FOREVER to blow up the sides and assemble quickly. When we completed, I was slightly jealous that I could not join in on the fun. Growing up stinks sometimes.

This is how I will forever see Erik. No matter how old he is. Its sad really. I still call him my little Muchkin Man because he was such a little peanut. When he turned double digits he told me he didn't want me to call him that any more. That made me sad. Secretly I still do call him that. I CANT HELP IT!!

And now?.....

He's a little stud machine rockin it out on the guitar. He plays amazingly well considering a few short years ago he couldn't play a "D" Chord. He sings on Saturdays with the lovely Emily at Cafe KiLiM I'm so proud of how far he has come. If you want to go watch him play you have to order the Mocha Latte` Espresso. It is awesome and the server makes pretty chocolate swirls. He will only put in 3 shots of espresso [not seven as requested by Holly ] They are all very talented kids. Well the ones that actually play an instrument. Its a fun free little concert if you are looking for something to do on a Saturday.

Munchkin Man Rockin it out.

I'm proud of you bud! Keep on Keepin On!

xo AR

Birthday Week Over

2012-01-24T16:21:00.000-05:00

Its official. Birthday Week is over and I am sad. {insert deep pathetic sigh}

But it didn't end without some serious FLAIR.

Geoff and I went to the Portland Pirates game and we had some seriously rockin seats!

It was a super fun time and I can't wait until we do it again. As long as nasty smelling onion girl does not sit next to me giving me the play by play of the game...Showering before going out is beneficial to not only your own personal hygiene but to those around you.

The following day my Sister In-Law Holly took me for a pedicure and a little champagne! Of course we went to Acorn's and they treated us like ROYALTY!...

ooober goober picture but hey! who really cares.

Holly's Hobbit Foot - freshly shaved and painted.

my chubby little flippers. i told amy i could pinch with my toes and she ran away!!

It was a fantastic long weekend! I watched this movie on my day off. If you have not seen it, I HIGHLY recommend it. Now its back to working out like a Mo-Fo! My next race is in FOUR little weeks.

On The Fifth Day Of Birthday Week %

2012-01-21T00:02:00.002-05:00

my true love gave to me.....

a dozen long stemmed red roses. they are beautiful!

Speaking of beautiful. A beautiful work perk is that we get to take our birthday off! It snowed on the night of my birthday so I got up really early before the snow melted. I made a nice hot cup of coffee.

And soaked in the beautiful sun rise in the snow.

It really is such a pretty sight. If you're interested in cute you should see Otto try to catch snow flakes. I have no photographic evidence of this because its early in the morning when we walk. But envision a little liver and ticked gsp puppy jumping in the air to catch them....yup total swoonie swoon. I still have some out door christmas decorations that got covered in snow. The little berries are cute too..

Have a great weekend!! If you're in the North East stay warm this weekend. Its gonna be wicked cold up heah!

The Actual Birthday - The Face of 4 T 1

2012-01-20T00:59:00.002-05:00

Today I woke up and wished that I could bury myself in a LARGE tin of Humpty Dumpty Potato chips with Pickle Dip. I haven't been able to get that out of my head ever since my Sister In-Law told me the recipe. With the heat cranked and about a dozen good chick movies to watch. Such as 1. The Divine Secrets of The Ya Ya Sisterhood 2. Four Weddings and A Funeral 3. Truly Madly Deeply 4. The Notebook 5. Riding In Cars With Boys 6. The Lakehouse 7. Hope Floats 8. Somewhere In Time [Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiichaaaaaaaaaaard!!!!!!!!!] 9. Sweet Home Alabama 10. Steel Magnolias.

In between snacking on bagel bites, tator tots and a 2 litre bottle of COKE!

What a perfect day that would be. One massive movie blubber fest and comfort food. But, I had a new customer coming into today and could not hide myself under the covers. Although future plans may accomplish said Birthday Wish.

I found myself humming the theme song from "The Courtship of Eddies Father" because I was thinking about The Dude. This led me to the Ghost of Mrs. Muir to Family Affair and I was wishing I still had my Mrs. Beasley doll. I use to make my mom do my hair like this.....

and I really did have one of these.....

Mrs. Beasley Doll.

So Geoff is taking me to a Hockey game in Portland and then we will be going out to dinner with some good friends on Saturday. I suppose its not so bad considering I'm 9 years away from being a History Book!

Do you have any birthday traditions??

On The Fourth Day of Birthday Week %

2012-01-19T09:02:00.000-05:00

My true love gave to me......

wait for it...

wait..........

a KIMBER PEPPERBLASTER II

Tomorrow I will be 41. I have mixed feelings about this number.

On The Third Day Of Birthday Week %

2012-01-18T11:28:00.000-05:00

My true love gave to me.....super awesome hand warmers for when I party like a ROCKSTAHH in my garage.

Tonight we went to one of my favorite places WHEN PIGS FLY PIZZA!

I love LOVE their pizza. I also LOVE their amazing beer selection. Tonight I had a Southern Tier Choklat Stout - Brewed by Southern Tier Brewing Company out of NY. Holy Crap!! This beer needs to be served with a little scoop of vanilla ice cream. By far the best chocolate beer evah!

We took our pizza home to watch the Bruins game against Tampa.

Sausage - Meatball on a Margarita with LOTS of hot pepper flakes YUMMMMM. And there are left overs for lunch! Double YUM.

The Bruins lost. Insert sad face. Looking forward to Brad Marchand to return. See you on the ice Saturday!

Today marked the official first walk in the snow. Even though it is gone now and raining. Dudes and I were totally ready.

On The Second Day Of Birthday Week ~

2012-01-17T09:33:00.000-05:00

My true love gave to me....one pair of warm padded running socks to keep my feet comfy and toasteeeeee

Sometimes Dudes need to take time out and cuddle up to their Maaaaaaaahaaa.

On The First Day Of Birthday Week

2012-01-16T11:33:00.000-05:00

My true love gave to meeeeeee: A Fleeceee Headband thingeeeeeeee. So I don't sweat to death with a polar cap on running in the cold weather.

Sunday January 15th marked the offical start of Birthday Week. It is AWESOME! Don't tell anyone but its "almost" as good as Christmas!!

12 For Twelve Part 1 ~

2012-01-15T19:56:00.000-05:00

Saturday I ran in my first race for the 12412 series. My Sister joined me and man was I glad she was there! The weather was a balmy 24 degrees not including the wind. The roads were amazingly icy and I had no idea how to dress for this 5K run.

Geoff drove us to Milford and we left the house at 6 AM. I felt like I was in gymnastics all over again. Having to get up early on a Saturday is something I dread still to this day. We picked up Sarah and we were on our way. My Mom will appreciate this little tid bit. I'm one of those people who have to have Toll Booth money ready 18 miles before the toll. When I sensed we were not going to arrive at my pre-determined time I started going into PANIC mode. Sorry, Geoff...I'm a head case.

We arrived in plenty of time except to use the ladies room!! Not good my friends not good. Nobody wants to run with a full bladder. I'm Just Sayin!!!

Oskar Me and Sarah pre-race Photo - we look way to happy. I love this picture so much.

at the starting line...that's me waving to Geoff!!

here i come to cross the finish line.

About the race....It was really really hard. The roads were super icy and it was mostly up hill. I had a very difficult time half way through. I had to slow way down and was just trying to make it to the turn towards the finish line. During this moment is when I looked up and saw my Dads Jeep. It was so awesome to suddenly look up and see my parents cheering me on. I love you Mom and Dad for braving the weather and coming to see your girls run. It meant so much to see you at that moment you will never know.

I was so close to finishing and I honestly thought about giving up. But I didn't...I kept pushing through. I crossed that finish line in 38min and 30 seconds. [Still under the target time of 40 MIN!!]

And my sister who looks so darn cute in this picture I want to squish her finished in 40 min. NOT BAD!!! considering she hadn't run in about 5 weeks and did this just for me!!!

Lots of love going out in this post. Geoff who encourages me every single day. My sister for joining me and not letting me do it alone. My parents....uggggh I can't even express how awesome it was to have you there.

That completes race #1! Only eleven more to go!

A Posting From The DUDE - Birthday Celebrationmatations!

2012-01-12T14:46:00.000-05:00

So you know sometimes, when you wake ED in the morningofthenations and you think to yourself? Do you ever think to yourself? My self voice is really really loud which may explain why my eyes are always crossedalicous. Kinda like when He-Man shouts "BY THE POWER OF GRAY SKULL I HAVE THE POWER" Self voice is a little dominatatadeding. Dudes digress, again. So, that's how I woke up with my self voice shouting "ITS YOUR BIRTHDAY"!! It must have been really loud too cause maaaahaaaa came in and was singsonging Happy Birthday To Dudes.

Maaahh told me that today of all days was my very special day. Which was weirds to Dudes cuz Dudes feel special everyday. Wait, Dudes R special!! She said that we were going to go to Mill Pond for a big dog walk with my Unkle Greg, Unkle Holly and my nephew Freckled Nugget. Now, if you don't knows about MP its totally awsommmmme. Hill, Rocks, STUFF to sniff. Usually I'm out there for a good half day doin what Dudes do. Sews, we got into My Unkle Gregs travel machine and headed towards one of my favorite spots in the world.

Once we got there my self voice was like WAAAAAAHOOOOOOOOOOO and I was runningah and squeakamating. It was so freakin the best. Up until this guy showed up on a 4 wheelie...

If you don't know by now...Dudes don't wear no leash. A) because Dudes are trained B) because Dudes can't think of any other reason except for being trained.

Dudes didn't even know that Captain Couragous was on his way towards him cause like I said I was having a super good time sniffing shit. You know, coyote, rabbit, deer, varmint, squirrel etc. But I almost got runnned over by this numpty except my maaaah and UH started flappin their arms. Dudes thought maybe they were trying to fly or something. Which is stupid cause my maaaahs feathers are in her coat not her arms.

Well he eventually did stop and told us. "you know the town ordinance states that your dogs must be on a leash" Then he drove off and we kept walking.

Sometime later we ran into Captain Courageous again who was waiting for us on top of the hill, around the corner, on his four wheelie and his little note book.

He said: "You must respect my authoritiY" No he didn't really say that but thats what I heard my maaaH think and Dudes started chuckling cause I thought that was really funny. He proceeded to lecture my peeops about rules, disrespect, how he had been patrolling these woods for eleven years. Which is to bad cause Dudes think anybody patrolling anything for that amount of time deserves a proper badge and real tickets to distribute. So, I had to put my name in his little yellow pocket notebook and walk back. But because Dudes didn't have a leash I had to stay in real close and if I didn't there was going to be big Big BIg BIG troublematations. Which my self voice was like seriously!!! I haven't even had CAKE YET!!!

Then you know how sometimes you get an image of a movie in your head and its not a very pleasant movie?? No? Well maaahhh started thinking about The River Wild with Meril Streep. She's great but I really liked Kevin Bacon in Scoobie Doo. Just sayin. Yeah, so Maaaah started gettin all freak-A-matated out that maybe this guy wasn't really a cop but some freak riding around on his wheelie and now he has our address and how far away is the car really??? And she got to this thought because of this conversation.......

Dad: So you can hunt out here?

CC: Yes.

Dad: With a dog?

CC: Yes

Dad: Without a leash?

CC: Yes

Then Captain Courageous wanted to know if we had poop bags. POOP BAGS! Maaaahaaa wants to know if anyone is running around the woods with poop bags for the coyote, rabbit, deer, varmint, squirrel etc. Dudes are pretty sure that isn't happening and if you want a difinitiiivvivivived answer just ask Otto.

So, we went home and watched the Bruins game. Dudes pretty much don't care and fell asleep. Maaaah mumbled something about Brad Marchand being tossed out of the game and stomped off. Then everyone came over to give me a present!!! But Dudes didn't much care cause me, Knee-C and Otto were all to busy chewing on a bone. Well, Knee-C stole one of my bones and stood in front of the door while Ottos and I chewed on a bone. Good place for her...you know just in case "Captain Courageous" dropped by. Cause apparently my grammma and grumpus were out on the same walk and they got stopped by the same cop!!

Good thing I didn't put down Grumpies name in the little yellow pocket notebook.

Twelve for 12?

2012-01-11T11:52:00.000-05:00

A few years back I made a New Years Resolution to stop making News Years Resolutions. It appears that this is the only one I've been able to stay committed to.

Last year was a year of trials for sure. But I do believe that last year brought on a ton of new challenges for me too. I did things that I didn't know I was capable of doing. Anymore that is. One of those accomplishments was running a race.

I rang in 2012 with my usual flair of craziness but with no weight on my shoulders. No major life changes, no altering who I am to fit the mold of whatever it is "those people" say I should be. THAT, my friends was a really good feeling to have.

In early December I made the executive decision that I was going to attempt to do ONE race per month in 2012. For the simple reason that it will force me to keep running. I run on the treadmill, I'm still doing Insanity workouts mixed with some other workouts and I go for the longest run I can physically do on the weekends. It is liberating. It is powerful. I feel that I have pushed through some mental wall that has been holding me back. That blinded me from me. I stopped liking myself. Or I at least stopped liking who I saw in the mirror.

This Saturday marks the first in a series of [I hope] twelve. I am excited for this one too! Cause any chance I can run and then finish at the BEER tent is good news to me. Just Sayin. If you're interested and want to join me on my year quest and see if I actually cross the finish line or not I will be at the following races. Unless otherwise posted differently.

January 14th - Will Run For Beer - Bedford, NH
February 19th - Freeze Your Buns - Nashua, NH
March 24th - Pursuit of the Holy Grail - Epping, NH
April 15th - 5th Annual 5k To Keep Kids Safe, Portsmouth, NH
May 13th - Moms On The Run - Dover NH
June 9th - Market Square Day - Portsmouth NH
July 4th - Friends On The 4th - Portsmouth NH
August 5th - Hot Air Balloon Rally - Pittsfield NH
September 15th - Western NH Trail Run Series Farnum 5 - Lebanon, NH
October 6th - Apple Harvest Day - Dover, NH
November ?? - Portsmouth Turkey Trot - Portsmouth, NH
December - No Races Confirmed Yet.

There you have it! And you can have this too! For the last few weeks I have not been able to get this song out of my head!!!!! I think its time to make a new running play list.

Today Is Dudes Birthday!!

2012-01-07T08:29:00.000-05:00

Oskar's Third Birthday - He was patiently waiting to blow out his candles and Schultz was ready for the OK to be given!

Today - My little Brown Nugget of Love turns SIX. My, my how the time flys. Its cool though cause Dudes still think they are about eight weeks old with no sense of self or the fact that he now weighs 80 monster pounds. And its all muscle too.

Whats on Dudes Birthday Agenda???

Walk at the MP with his, UH, MUG, SS, Maaaah & Daaaaaad.

make CUPCAKES!!!!!!! for birthday desert. Dudes love!! cupcakes seeeeeeeee.

Then he wants to watch the Hockey Game @ 1PM Bruins vs. Vancouver

Maaahhs gonna make BIRTHDAY PIZZA!!

Presents

CUPCAKES!!!

Happy Birthday Butter Bean - I love you so much.

And Thus Ends The Holiday Break!

2012-01-05T15:10:00.000-05:00

Happy Twenty Twelve! I'm still amazed that we are in a new year. 2011 zzzzzZZZZoomed by. We were busy doing something every single month and I still didn't get it all done!

January 2011 kicked off in Y'bor City, FL with Matt. We spent a fair amount of time at the Tampa Bay Brewing Company. Any place that has a slogan stating Beer Is Your Friend is a must for me.

I turned Four T and I celebrated Birthday Week and capped it off with an amazing dinner at Mimmo's with Don and Velma!

I had a Pie Party aka Pie Palooza - It was friggen AWESOME

And I made napkins with a pie plate as my PRIZE!

In February my Internet crashed and I was out for most of the month. I did however finish my curtains for the kitchen, and joined my very first apron swap.

Geoff made all the lovely curtain rods....they are wooden and beautiful!

My Loot

The Apron I made.

March came with a vengeance and kicked February in the ASS - I snow shoed my existence into the ground and was sick for nearly the entire month. Hence, March sucked.

April brought people out of hibernation well after this horrific April Fools Joke that Mother Nature played on us.

but we finally got visits and spring was inevitably in the air! We purchased a "smoker" went to Trader Joes - Mosied around Tractor Supply and put an addition onto the deck! With Dudes Help of course

In May I had a great visit with the McCluskeys all the way over from England!

We celebrated Gus's FOURTH birthday with Cake and Hats

And Dude hunted Bee's

The flowers began to bloom on the compound and there was hope that the winter months were finally behind us.

In June the Bruins won the Stanley Cup and Geoff and I sat in awe to see it finally happen. The Dynasty is born.

nuff said for June!!

In July we had our annual FOURTH-A-PALOOZA event decked out in full hand made Bruins gear..

Our Stanley CUP!

Geoff in his Bruins Shirt and Utili-Kilt

Matt and I at the Keg - Full poodle skirt and Shirt!

We said goodbye to Muss-Man

We Celebrated Harrison's Birthday at the Beach!! And ate Pizza!

Oh Yeah and it was LIKE 100 Degrees with HIGH humidity for over a solid WEEK!!

In August April came to live on the Compound, I was half way to finishing INSANITY before our vacation to CAMP!! But not before we got hit with Hurricane Irene!

In September - My Niece Cayla Beanbean got Marhied.

In October!!! We celebrated Holly's Birthday with a really YUMMY cake [and dinner too]

I completed the INSANITY PROGRAM and started running!!!

We went to CAMP with amazing friends

and had the best time!! We even celebrated an Early Thanksgiving Dinner together canned cranberry sauce and all!

In November - Otto aka DOUGLAS came home.

I canned like a MoFo!!

Rita and Phyllis hit the Boston Wine Tasting

And my Sister and I ran in the Portsmouth Turkey Trot 5K race on Thanksgiving Day

To close out the year!!! In December Erik shot his first bird, duck hunting with Geoff and The Dude

Geoff celebrated Birthday WEEK with all kinds of crazy goodness.

I crafted and sewed like a sweat shop to make Jammie bottoms for everyone! We celebrated Christmas Eve at my parents house..

My Mom Made this AWESOME HAT

I made these awesome Jammie Bottoms!!

Aaron and I had a photo opp!

And we saw NuNu working on the train to wish him a Merry Christmas!!

Christmas day was Christmas TriFectahhh! with celebrations at all three houses on the compound.

and then.........................

We were back to Florida!

Then....it was 2012!!

Happy New Year

2012-01-02T12:02:00.002-05:00

Still in Florida! Hope everyone had a safe and happy NEW YEAR. More to come when I return.

A Christmas Present

2011-12-23T11:58:00.000-05:00

Sometimes giving a tangible gift doesn't do the trick. And this year especially I feel the need to toss out a handful of glitter and a Magical Christmas Wish.

Most don't really know what it is that I do for my real job. In fact I'm not sure either but I do go to an office every day for the Fifty Cent Coffee and Free Internet. This year my Christmas Wish goes out to my boss. I won't go into the details of why because it is irrelevant but he knows why and that's all that matters.

Dear Santa,

I have had the extraordinary privilege of working with Dana for Twenty years. For what ever reason I managed to convince him to give me a chance. I have pissed him off, made him proud, done what others said couldn't be done. Scheduled the appointments and sent him into never never land. Made a horrific first impression with his wife. [Blame Geoff NOT me!!] Watched him rise and fall. Supported him, gave him pep talks to get his thumb out of his arse to remember where he came from and all that he has accomplished.

In return, he has, worked with me for Twenty years. He has pissed me off, made me proud, done what others said couldn't be done. Thrown me into never never land. Made a hilarious first impression with Geoff. Watched me rise and fall. Supported me. Gave me pep talks to get my thumb out of my arse, reminding me of where I came from and all that I have accomplished.

They say you can't have the sweet without the bitter. Over time, I've come to realize that statement is very true. So during his bitter trials Santa, please help him to remember the following.

He is married to one of the most special people I have had the chance to know. She is strong, kind, caring and supportive. Just don't cross her. That's my favorite quality! And she loves you for you.
He has an amazing and beautiful daughter. You can read her wonderful writings here. And she loves you because your a great Dad. Because you have supported her in all the ways a Dad should.
He has the most precious little Grand Daughter who is not "allowed" to call him Pepe` even though that is what he is now.

Even though it is going to be different this year. He has a network of people all around the world that would drop everything to help him if needed.

You have been a great Boss, Mentor and Friend to my family for all these years. If I'm half of those things to someone in my career I will feel lucky.

I don't know if you can carry those intangible things on your travels Santa. But it would mean a lot to me if you did.

Merry Christmas!!

22 Days Until Christmas

2011-12-02T11:02:00.000-05:00

Thinking of Christmas Past -

me Schultzy - The Dude & Geoff

This picture always cracks me up. * its blurry * Schultz is secretly laughing at Oskar because he does not have to wear the stupid Santa Hat this year. * Schultz is angry with me for putting jingle bells around his neck. * The fake Christmas Tree is about to fall over. Which it did soon after this photo was snapped.

Erik - The Dude and Mustopher

This was the Christmas I cooked a spiral Ham and put the juices on the floor for the dogs. Schultz aka Garbage Gut chowed down, Oskar got WICKED sick and Mustopher stayed away. oooops

My Babies Schultz and Oskar

Looking Cute on a Christmas Eve!

There ALL mine!

Missing you Schultzy....I love you everyday.

Its December??? Wooooooooohooooooooo ~

2011-12-01T10:46:00.000-05:00

I have been so busy I forgot about my bloggie. I KNOW that you are wondering what I've been up to these past few weeks. Well, lets see....

I went to Kingston's Third Birthday Party....

I spent an afternoon at Friendly's with Patty drinking coffee and then we got our HAIR done. At the best place ever! Acorn Organic Salon.

oooohLaLa!!

I ran in the Portsmouth Turkey Trot 5K race on Thanksgiving Day with my Fabulous Sister Sarah...

I finished that 5K race!

I went home and listened to Alice's Restaurant and made food for Thanksgiving Dinner. We ate so much that we didn't even take pictures of the day. [epic fail on our part]

I went to DATT Day [Day After Thanksgiving Thanksgiving] in Haverhill with the Coletti Family.

mumma "C" and "The Dude"

Erik got his first WOOD DUCK with Oskar! Geoff was so very proud of him.

Then, Dudes were tired so we rested for a day.

AND THEN! The Christmas Cactus BLOOMED! you can read little stories about this here and here.

And then....It was December First! Looking Forward to Thirty One Days of SPARKLY GOODNESS!

THE END

I Can't HELP It!

2011-11-16T09:32:00.000-05:00

I can hear jingle bells jingling in the way back of my brain. I envision scarfing down awesome snacks and the smells of turkey, potato's, GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE, squash with cinnamon and butter, homemade bread all swirling around me. I can see myself floating around the house like a cartoon character from Looney Toones.

I cannot wait to make sugary sparkly chocolaty goodness with my favorite people. Team Beer-Pike puts Fanny Farmer to shame!

I cannot wait to go shopping for my Christmas Tree and have the smell of Christmas wafting through my house. I cannot wait to have all my twinkle lights up and bask in how pretty my house looks this time of year. Seriously, my house looks amazing this time of year.

I cannot wait to hang out with my Beer kiddies and slurp hot cocoa and watch a hilarious Christmas movie. I vote for ELF! Do you really know how happy I am that you guys are only 40 min away?

Christmas Margaritas.

Its an entire month and a half enjoying good friends, awesome family and really good food. I can't wait!

Traumatic Incidents

2011-11-08T11:36:00.000-05:00

This is a difficult challenge / post that has been brought up today. And, because I was just discussing with Geoff last night the importance of being honest when blogging, I feel obligated to do just that. I have posted a minor piece of this incident here. I have vowed to never post about this EVER. But I do believe there is a message that should be shared.

When I was younger I fell in love for the first time and ran away to California. I was young, immature and totally clueless. When this relationship ended I was beyond devastated. I was lost, hurt and broken.

I moved back home with minimal self esteem and began dating someone much older than me. Someone who could not remind me physically about what I didn't have. He was the transition guy. A guy that I will never name in this space. EVER.

Abuse comes at you like fog. You sense it there and yet you think you have time to get out before it completely surrounds you. I had attempted once to end the relationship after having a long conversation with a very dear friend of mine. When I came to the conclusion that it just wasn't healthy any longer I made the phone call to explain that we just were not meant to be together. It did not go well at all.

When he arrived an hour later at her apartment with flowers and M&M's in tears I felt terrible. How could I do that to someone? I relented and the relationship resumed. Over the next several months I was on an extremely short leash. I was living in a dump and I felt very suffocated. I was verbally abused on a daily basis. I was ugly, fat, stupid and useless. What I really was, was trapped. I had friends, good friends coming to visit me all the time. They would only come when they knew he wasn't there. I didn't realize that back then. They would try to convince me to leave. I couldn't see what they were seeing.

One weekend I made the decision that I was going to visit a friend for the weekend. I needed air. I needed time away. This visit allowed me the opportunity to finally see what I had been missing. I was missing out on my life. I was planning to make the biggest mistake of my life by marrying someone I had no passion for. I felt whole, I felt like me, I felt free. Driving home that day I knew what I had to do. And believe me when I decide that I'm going to do something move on out of the way. There was no stopping me.

I ended that relationship and moved into my parents house with the promise that I would not be there any longer than two weeks. I found an apartment in a week. 157 Central Ave. It was beautiful, it was all mine and I was living on my own for the very first time in my life. When I saw him coming up the stairs that night I knew it was not going to go well. I was scared and angry all at the same time. How dare you come into my new life and threaten me? The things he screamed at me that night were terrible, humiliating and disgusting. I could only imagine what my neighbors thought of me. It was awful.

My biggest mistake was thinking I could get away with snipping my engagement ring, chipping out the diamonds, taping it to a piece of paper that said: I hope this fits better on your finger then it ever did on mine. I got caught leaving that little gem for him. So when he grabbed me by the throat and threw me against the wall I was a little surprised. The beating that ensued left me blinded with pain. I have failed to mention that I'm at a radio station in a sound proof room where they record the commercials. Nobody could hear me. I thought I was going to die.

I crawled out of that room on my hands and knees and hid under the DJ's desk begging him to help me. I can't even imagine what was going through his head that night. He wanted to take me to the hospital and I just wanted to go home. I had black ribs, hand prints on my neck, wall marks on my back and bruises up and down both arms. I went to see my parents the following day in a turtle neck. Abuse, is so stupid. It makes you think nobody knows what is going on with you.

My mother and I went down to the police station that following day. I was terrified. Wasn't it my fault? I did do a really shitty thing. Did I deserve the outcome? Abuse, takes away your core and leaves you a weakling. I had to show a judge my bruises when I filed for a restraining order. I was mortified. Abuse, makes you feel that going through this process is not worth it. The judge ordered me to go to the hospital where photographs and a physical could be conducted. I was so embarrassed. It wasn't that bad. Abuse, makes you think its not that bad only because your alive to tell the story.

If there is one promise that I have kept to myself it is that nothing like that was ever going to happen to me again. No man, was ever going to put their hands on me that way again.

Mental and Physical Abuse make you deaf. If you are in a situation and you feel hopeless you are not alone. If your gut is telling you this is not right, it probably isn't. If it hurts you physically and emotionally it is not OK. If you are scared I beg you to seek help. If you know somebody who is going through this I urge you with every fiber in my being to make them see their situation. It could save their life.

I hate this post. I'm upset that I've put it out there. That one incident does not and did not define who I am as a person today. It was just one little blip in my time that brought me to bigger and better things.

Finding Balance

2011-11-07T11:55:00.000-05:00

Is there really such a thing? My mind is in a constant state of disorganization. Or maybe a short attention span.

Very early on in my relationship with Geoff we recognized the need to set aside time that was solely dedicated to just us. He was working different hours back then and on weekends. I was doing the 8 to 5 grind with weekends off. Our down time was always spent without each other.

Thursday nights became "DateNight" and I swear we coined the phrase because we were calling it that twenty years ago. This tradition continues today and has been the saving grace on many of an occasion. I love hearing the following question from my husband. " Can we have date night tonight? " We can have date night every night if you want! Although that tends to be a little expensive.

One of the key ingredients in our relationship is that we have always felt a need to keep the lines of communication open. Not that we don't talk on a normal basis but when you make the executive decision to shut the rest of the world out for a few hours and dedicate that time to your relationship it makes a world of difference. Even when we were broke and could only afford Mac-N-Cheese. It was putting the effort in and recognizing that it may not be fancy and ritzy but we are still calling it date night.

Marriage is hard. I love being married but it takes a lot of work to manage yourself sometimes let alone being an assistant manager to someone else. Over the years we have heard so many times, "If I could only find what you two have" It is a complement and an insult all at the same time. There are plenty of times that Geoff doesn't "like" me very much. That coin definitely has two sides. Most of the time we are blissfully happy and stupid but we have our moments. Some of them have been extremely challenging and hard. But with a little work, and a lot of love it usually works itself out.

We try to give each other enough space so that we each feel that we are our true selves. I think it is important to always have that sense of individuality. To do the things that make you, you. I've never wanted to morph into all of Geoff's likes and hobbies because honestly some of them I just don't enjoy. Just like he doesn't enjoy all of mine. The trick is to see how you can take pieces of that and merge them into something you can do together. For instance, he likes to paint duck decoys, I like to paint pictures. Although two different activities it is something that you can do together while doing what you want to do. There are also times when we do things on our own. Sometimes that is needed too.

I'm always amazed when I hear from both men and women this question. " Geoff is OK with you doing that? " As if I'm doing this without him knowing about it. There isn't anything I go off and do that he doesn't know about. If I want to go cackle with my girlfriends he has the same right to go talk about tools with his guy friends. We all need to feel that we are still connected to the person we have always been. So as much as we need to ensure that we communicate and spend time together. We also need to allow each other the freedom to feel that their sense of self still exist.

Life tends to get in the way more often than not. As far as I'm concerned nobody is going to judge me for how much laundry I completed when I die. There will always be another load waiting to be done anyways. And I've yet to receive a gold star from anyone when ALL the housework is done. That's how we try to find balance in the Pike World.

Now if I could only find that other sock...........

Pen vs. Computer

2011-11-04T15:07:00.000-04:00

Recently I stumbled across multiple journals that I had written from the age of 15 - 21. I was such a tortured soul. Or so I thought. Its funny to read about all my teenage angst and drama. If I ever had the opportunity to chat with my teenage self I would tell her to lighten up!!!

Its interesting the songs that I would write down in my journals. Remember learning the lyrics to a song on the tape recorder? Play - Write - Pause - Repeat. I think the beauty about the journals that I have from that time period is that I never scratched the words out. They were all honesty post. And, in the event that someone happened to read them, "Oh Well". It was my outlet, my pages to vent anger, happiness, sadness, happenings. Mostly it was very dramatic and I know the exact moment that I stopped writing in my journal. I met Geoff. I wrote one maybe two entries about him. But in reality I was to happy to write. So I tucked my notebooks away and never looked back.

I miss writing on scraps of paper and taping them into my journal because I had a sudden flash of what I considered brilliance. I miss the joy of finishing a notebook with all my handwritten entries. The joy of flipping through the pages one at a time pouring over the pages of my life. Knowing that a coffee stain was because I was sitting at the counter of a Dunkin Donuts in Dover NH smoking ciggs and feeling very Artsy Fartsy writing my observations down.

Although I do enjoy my blog even more so. I don't think my blog will ever offer me the same feeling as completing a notebook but it does allow me to add a different feel. Technology has allowed me to show my personality in a way that I could never do before. When I think about the network of people who do blog and share pretty much everything I am amazed! Imagine if we had the access to information then like we do now.

But the ability to share your journal with a group of people was not really a reality in the 80's. Journaling online or on a computer never really occurred to me until Dr. Doogie. Even in those days I thought it was sterile. Storing your most precious thoughts in Word Star, how geekie.

And yet here I am. Geekafying my life. I love my blog. I love writing down whatever comes to my mind. I love that people actually READ it. I love that I'm connected to people that I may not otherwise have the opportunity to be connected to.

But I still love opening those old journals and flipping the ancient pages of my past. Pages that remind me I was right even then. I always told myself that something better would come along. Something so fantastic. And it did. And here I am. Living the life I always wanted to live.

What's In Your Grocery Store

2011-10-31T10:32:00.001-04:00

Have you ever really looked around your grocery store to see exactly what they have hanging in the isles? What you may find is shocking!!!

I've got nothing against Jesus but I'm fairly certain this isn't a product of the Vatican.

You should know that I fell into fits of laughter when I spotted this.