Stuff Girls Say

Listen, listen, listen, listen…these videos are so funny.  I’m sure you’ve seen them already, but feel free to watch them again.

Because they are SO funny.  And (unfortunately?) SO true.

(Is that a coffee? I might get one.)

“Bethenny Ever After” Season 3: Sneak Peek!

I love, love, love Bethenny Frankel!  And her Bravo TV show, Bethenny Ever After, returns for its third (and final) season on Monday, February 20th.  I can’t wait!

Here’s a sneak peek of Season 3.  It’s filled with Bethenny’s famous sarcasm, a little marriage drama, that crazy “lost at sea” adventure, and one very adorable baby Bryn.

Baby, It’s Cold Outside

I grew up in Maryland so you would think I’d be used to a little cold weather.  You would think I MISSED cold weather since I now live in Jacksonville, Florida.  I did miss it a tiny little bit when we first moved down here five years ago.  But now I’m so used to living in a warm climate that the cold weather completely throws me for a loop.  Sure, even in Florida, we should expect a small stretch of cold days in December and January, but usually it’s never terribly cold here.  But the past couple of days (and nights!) have been really cold.  Well, really cold meaning low 30′s. And really cold meaning fleece jackets and (gasp!) hats and mittens.

The kids have been having fun with it.  They don’t mind it that much.  I just wish it was accompanied by snow. It’s hard knowing my kids will never experience a true snowfall. (Aside from the fun soapy one at the local Winter Wonderland.) They will never run out to build a snowman or zoom down a hill on a sled.  I know I can take them on a fancy vacation to a ski resort, but it’s not the same.  It’s not how I remember it.  I remember putting bread bags over my socks before I slid on my boots.  I remember making dozens of snow angels all in a row on our front lawn.  I remember catching snowflakes on my tongue.  I remember the sweet moment when the guy on the radio said school was canceled and I could turn over and go back to sleep.

But, then again, I also remember waiting at the bus stop in zero degree weather with tears running down my cheeks from the wind chill.  I remember slumber parties or basketball games getting canceled because the roads were too icy.  I remember shoveling the driveway only to do it all again the next day because more snow fell while we slept.  I remember the METRO being delayed while I stood on the platform jogging in place willing my body to warm up.  So, no, I don’t miss the cold northern weather anymore.  And I can always take the kids up north in the winter to experience it all for themselves.  In the meantime, we’ll be here complaining about today’s high of 60 and making plans to hit the beach NEXT week.

 

 

Golden Globes ’12: My Favorite Moments

Ricky Gervais was back to host the 69th annual Golden Globe Awards in Los Angeles and these are my top five favorite moments of the night:

1. Christopher Plummer’s acceptance speech.

Christopher Plummer won the first Golden Globe of the night for “Best Supporting Actor” for his role in Beginners and, yes, I admit I was rolling my eyes when the legend was going on and on during his acceptance speech.  But then he ended by talking about his wife of 43 years.  ”Her bravery and beauty haunts me still.”  Wow.  Just Wow.

2. Michelle Williams and Busy Philipps.

I watched these two actresses on Dawson’s Creek MANY years ago.  They are still best friends today.  They show up together to many of these award shows and I think it’s cool.  Plus, they both always look super glam. Michelle won for portraying Marilyn Monroe in My Week with Marilyn. I loved when she thanked her 6-year-old Matilda Rose (her daughter with the late Heath Ledger) for “suffering through six months of bedtime stories, where all the princesses were read aloud in a Marilyn Monroe-[sounding] voice.”

3. Kate Winslet’s dress.

Not only is Kate Winslet an amazing actress, but she has amazing style.  And you can’t go wrong with a simple black and white gown.  Sophisticated and elegant.  I want this dress!

4. Morgan Freeman awarded the Cecil B. DeMille Award for Lifetime Achievement.

I had the amazing opportunity to meet Morgan Freeman in a hotel lobby in Washington, DC about 6 years ago.  He was in town for a press tour and my friend was his press day “handler.”  He was having the time of his life working with Morgan and he would constantly tell everyone in our PR office what a great and humble guy he was.  When I went to the hotel to help with an event that evening, I saw my friend walking down the stairs with Morgan.  I was introduced to the actor and he stopped to look me in the eye and chat for a second.  Then, he sat on the banister and slid the rest of the way down.  He was just as laid back and cool as you would imagine, which is sometimes rare in the business.  I was so happy to see him FINALLY win this lifetime achievement award and Shawshank Redemption is still one of my favorite movies of all time.

5. Felicity Huffman and William H. Macy Sing Their Lines.

It’s SO NICE to see a Hollywood couple with a successful marriage and these two could not be cuter. Especially when they present like this.

Congrats to all the Golden Globe winners.  You can see the complete winners list HERE.

Justin Bieber Visits Whitney Elementary

I caught an episode of Ellen and I wanted to share it here.

In the episode, Justin Bieber gives a surprise visit, and performance, to the underprivileged children of Whitney Elementary in Las Vegas. This will give you one more reason to love superstar Justin Bieber.  Or, maybe it will be your very FIRST reason to love him. Either way, you can see he is one very cool, and bighearted, guy.

Bye Training Wheels

We took the training wheels off Daniel’s bike this past weekend.

And, of course, captured the moment he rode on two wheels for the very first time.

“Look, Mama.  No hands!”  Well, that was my husband.  You go, Bean.

“Glory”: Jay-Z featuring His Baby Girl, Blue Ivy Carter!

“The most amazing feeling I feel, words can’t describe what I’m feeling for real / Baby, I paint the sky blue, my greatest creation was you.”  -Jay-Z

This is pretty awesome stuff.

Brand new Daddy, Jay-Z, just wrote and recorded a brand new track called “Glory.”  It’s all about his two-day-old baby daughter, Blue Ivy Carter.  (Blue was born Saturday in New York City.) And Blue Ivy even makes an appearance on the record.  You can hear the baby coo in the backyard over some beats.  The track was produced by Pharrell and credits Blue Ivy as “B.I.C.”

Jay-Z just posted this track on his website, Life & Times.  He must have been truly inspired by the birth. I just wish his wife, and Blue’s Mama, Beyoncé made an appearance too.

Jay-Z does reference first-time mom Beyoncé’s musical past by saying: “You’re the child of destiny / you’re the child of my destiny / you’re my child with the child from Destiny’s Child.”

The notoriously private star even reveals that he and Beyoncé conceived the baby in Paris AND opens up about a miscarriage in the past.

“Last time the miscarriage was tragic / We was afraid you’d disappear but nah baby you’re magic.”  Wow.  You can listen to “Glory” below.

Are Stay-At-Home Moms Lazy?

Wow. I can’t WAIT to watch this one, Anderson Cooper.  (Thanks to Mom-101 for sharing.)

Are we STILL talking about this?  Why can’t we all just get along?  Everyone loves to create a Stay-At-Home Mom (SAHM) versus Working Mom battle.   It’s sad to think there might be one that even exists.  It goes back to the adage that you shouldn’t judge another unless you’ve walked a mile in their shoes.  I don’t know the reason why you chose to go back to work after you had your baby and you don’t know the reason why I chose to stay at home with my baby.  And maybe there wasn’t a CHOICE involved at all.  Either way, we should support each other as mothers.  As women.  As human beings.  (And while I’m at it, I hate the stay-at-home part. I rarely STAY at home. )

And, no, we are NOT LAZY, Anderson Cooper.  Grrrrrr…..

A 2011 Recap

In 2011…

I hit a major milestone.

So did my son.

And my daughter.

And my marriage.

And our country.

We lost a loved one.

And had the (not so) tough conversation.

We lost a pioneer.

We were back in the ER.

We had a fire in our backyard.

I watched a real life fairytale.

We went to Disney.

We went to the grand opening of LEGOLAND.

I went to my first Jags game.

Daniel started playing two new sports.

Annabel started dance class and got her first bike.

I had my heart broken by a woman.

Then, I fell in love with another one.

I met a Real Housewife.

I met Greg Brady.

I met Taylor Swift.

I spent the night with some New Kids.

Daniel went to his first movie.

I added another movie to my all-time-favorites list.

And another.

We decided not to travel and spent Thanksgiving at home.

We spent Christmas at home too.  And went on some fun holiday adventures.  Daniel even ice skated for the very first time.

And we rang in the new year with some great friends.

It was a year of major milestones and family moments.  I’m excited (nervous? curious?) what 2012 will bring.

 

Hi.

Hi. I’m back.

I took a mini break because of personal reasons.  The personal reasons were all mine.  I needed to clear my head.  I needed to miss typing my thoughts and feelings on my keyboard each week.  I needed to miss it, so when I came back (and I’m back!), I wouldn’t go away again.

The big downer about it all is that I lost two months of diary entries.  And a bunch of stuff happened in those two months.  Forgive me as I will be recapping some older moments over the next few weeks.  The entire point of this website is that it becomes a memory vault for my kids.  And when I stopped writing about my kids for 60 days, I realized how big each “little” moment was.   Because aside from the standard carving of the Thanksgiving turkey or opening gifts on Christmas morning, there was Daniel running around the baseball field for the first time and Annabel as an angel in her very first school play.  And I need to capture those moments.  I HAVE to.  For them.  And for me.  And, you know, hopefully for you too.  You who reads this blog everyday or once a week or once a month or even once every couple of months.  Thank you.  Thank you for letting me share all these moments with you. I encourage you to capture your own moments.  Whether in a blog like this one, or in a word document on your computer.  Or in a scrapbook or  journal.  Use words or use photos.  But capture the moments.   You’ll be glad you did.  Happy New Year, everyone.

« Previous Page — Next Page »