March 30, 2011

You stole what!?! Spill it! (writing prompt 4)



OK, I admit it…..I did it, but I couldn’t resist this colorful box!!  While I was contemplating my plan to make this box my own I could only imagine what amazing creations I could do with what was inside this box.  I looked down the aisle…..no one so I grabbed the box of Crayola crayons and stuffed it into my purse. 

Now mind you, I didn’t go for the tiny 8 pack. I went for the box of 24!!! Maybe it was the added on sharpener in the back of the box that sold me but I was going to go big!!  After I concealed my treasure, I ran back to my mother and continued our grocery shopping trip.

When we got home I quickly went to my room and took out MY box of crayons, opened them up and was just amazed at all the in tacked crayons because the crayons in my crayon box were broken, wrappers taken off or just plain…………..used.  As I was in the middle of creating a crayon masterpiece my mother came in looked at the box of crayons and asked “where did you get those?”. Crap, I didn’t plan out an alibi at all………..so the only thing my 7yr old pony tailed self could come up with is that it was a party favor from a party we had at school for someone’s birthday. Now, maybe if I would have thrown in a name, yeah that would probably end up believable…but she wasn’t buying it. So she brought me to the kitchen table with evidence in tow and had my father  do the interrogation. Geez, you would have thought he would have gone a little easy on me considering I was only 7 yrs old and not some of his REAL criminals he arrested earlier that day,  but he got the truth out of me…..even my crocodile tears didn’t save me.

So I seriously thought that was it. I told the truth so give me back the crayons. No such luck!! My mom grabbed me and the stolen box of crayola crayons and took us back to the store where I had to confess my thievery to the manager. Yeah, I had to endure a lengthy talk about right and wrong all the while I thought  to myself  “dude you need to steal some gum your breath stinks”.  

I went home that night empty handed and was sent straight to my room……………grounded of course.

 So now that I confessed.....what did you steal?

March 28, 2011

Table for ....................One





 
The Mister is a waiter for a four star restaurant here in town and let me begin to say this restaurant happens to have some amazing Mediterranean food.  So I was a bit surprised when the Mister asked if I would like to come to the restaurant and he’d buy me dinner. Mind you, he would be working and I would be ………. “Just one”.  

When I was single I didn’t mind being “just one” at a restaurant or at a movie theater. When the kids where off with their dad I would grab a book and head on to a café and enjoy a nice meal with my book or I’d treat myself to the movies. It was a bit freeing and I enjoyed it!

I rarely do that now and I’m not sure why ……………… don’t get me wrong I do enjoy my quiet nights where I can write or catch up on blogs or just do me things, but going to a restaurant and sitting in the lounge area having dinner alone watching the dinner crowd roll in………without a book is just a little intimidating…..but I went. 

The beginning of dinner went fairly well, I got my glass of wine, had too much of the bread and started to catch the Mister up on my day. When I would start a sentence he’d stop me mid sentence to go take care of a customer, when he’d come back he would start small talk which I thought was the green light to start again. Nope, I was wrong……I finished my wine fairly quickly hoping he’d notice that my glass was empty and to refill it…..but he never noticed.  When my food came, he’d come over and stare at the yummy creation and again …small talk…I mimic him and answered in very short answers. I watched him tend to table after table, making sure their visit was pleasant all the while I’m hoping he’d catch my glance so I can ask for more wine.  Seriously, me being his wife he probably thought that I don’t require that much attention at the restaurant but…..I’m still technically a patron and should still get the same sort of attention…..right??  After picking at my main course ….trying to get what little drop there was from my wine glass and trying not to give into the smell of freshly warm bread on my table. I decided that I should call it a night. It took me 3 attempts to get a box, each time I would hear “hold on”, “give me a minute”……annoyed I sat there watching him attend to the 4 tables surrounding me over and over again. SHIT!! Ok, so I understand that he’s paying for my dinner….and I wouldn’t really be leaving him a tip …but he could have received a nice tip at home in our bedroom. Once he made it to my table he then asked if I wanted a glass of wine………………..seriously??? no I want a damn box!! …. I didn’t say that but I was thinking it. 

Fast forward to 10 minutes ago…..the Mister comes home and tells me that I hurt his feelings.Hmmmm….when? he tells me that when I made a comment that he wasn’t very attentive it hurt his feelings. Then he continued on saying that he had other tables and that I’m his wife. Baffled, I replied “Yeah….and you invited me to dinner, wife or not!! I was at one of your tables and deserve the same treatment.  I shouldn’t have had to wait for a glass of wine or be asked if I wanted one …when I am all set to leave”

So …. I guess this is just another one of those “agree to disagree” moments…….I just learned my lesson, and if I come and visit him at work I will make sure I am in someone else’s section and then he can visit me.  He’ll be happy and I will be happy…..and my wine glass will be filled!!

March 27, 2011

Writing Prompt 1

I recently came across a really great blog called “Mama’s Losin it”….with all her writing prompts I’ve decided to incorporate one question per week. 

Writing Prompt 1. 

Ask a loved one to use 6 descriptive words to describe you and report your findings. How well do they know you?

I’ve decided to ask more than just one loved one and ask 3…which are my oldest children, I would have asked the Misters kids but I can only imagine their 6 descriptive words (wicked step mom, not my mom, who cares) ,so last night I asked my son to come up with 6 words that describe me….he just gave me this look like “is there a catch?”. I made sure that he knew this was part of my blog exercise so he will not get in trouble, grounded or hurt my feelings. 

14 year old (son):
Dog lover, overly protective (meaning the computer), ….in his words “wants everything to be perfect”…you mean anal or structured?? I asked. …."a little bit of both", pushy (like right now when I’m asking for six things about me), Funny, caring, hard worker. 

Then it came to ask my 17 year old…..she quickly came up with 6 things……but I have a feeling if I asked today she’d come up with a total different set of 6 words…..one being  the big B word, which would just end her up being grounded. I just don’t think she needed to sleep in any longer …..geez it was 1pm already!!

17 year old daughter : 
Pretty, fun, protective,  hard worker,  animal lover, artistic (writing) 

I then texted my daughter in college to come up with 6 questions…..she told me that she didn’t want to play this game. I explained it wasn’t a game and she wouldn’t get in trouble ……I told her that I just needed 6 words, not 6 sentences or paragraphs.

College daugther: 
Planner , dreamer, perceptive, hopeful, organized, motherly

so overall nothing shocked me......I know that i can be over protective at times but what parents isn't.

.....Go ahead and try this writing prompt and see what you come up with!!!



March 26, 2011

I think we just inhaled too much dust!!!


Wondering what I’m talking about, well for the last week at work we have been preparing ourselves for our move to a new building. Which entails cleaning up our cubicles that were circa 1974, tossing out things we no longer need and old meeting notes that are dated 2006 aren’t really relevant now.
Friday we all came in early….and when I mean early, I mean my ass was up at 5:15 to roll into work at 6am. I understand there are some of you that are frequent 6 o'clockers but I just can’t do it, my brain just can’t function. I only proved that point that morning when I sat in front of my computer looking at it with a blank stare. “what’s my log in” and “what the heck am I doing here this early the sun isn’t up yet” were thoughts that kept weaving it’s way into my brain. 

As the day went on, desks and boxes were being moved out of the office all the while we still had to continue to work among all the chaos of people cleaning and taping up their boxes…..a sound that I just can’t stand now…that sound is so loud and obnoxious, seriously I can understand if you are sending a box across country and all that tape is going to keep it from falling apart during the flight and being tossed around….but we are moving just down the street…so I truly doubt the 10 stripes of tape is truly necessary!!  Now, with all the hustle and bustle there are bound to be unnecessary bits of crudeness that emerge from someone’s demeanor. 

As some of you may know working in a big facility or even a small facility groups are formed ….just like cliques are formed in high school these groups are usually formed in what department you may be in…..billers, patient accts, follow up, cash posters etc.……well, some groups aren’t easily offended and sometimes merge with other groups…because that’s what an adult does!! This isn’t high school……some adults refuse these little workplace cliques and mind there own business…..but sometimes enough is just enough. 

Lunch approached and some of the girls decided to go and get some food and while eating their lunch a woman came in and got offended because no one asked her or her group if they were hungry or wanted something to eat. To this little rant another woman stops the other gals rant and pretty much told her “seriously you are doing this now….a day when everyone is moving?” the other girl continues to rant about no one coming over to see if they wanted anything and then she got an ear full, the other girl stated that she never asks anyone other than her cliquemates if they would like something and she has a car and legs so she and the other s can get their own lunch. To this …..I held my invisible glass filled with Malibu rum and coke and said “right on!”.  It just brought me back to when those popular girls would just have their way…and no one had the guts to say anything. 

I just think everyone was just in a moving frenzy……and attitudes just got the best of them…..but wow what a way to end a day!!

March 24, 2011

About to pull the plug on Skype

Skyping has been a very handy tool in our family. We are able to connect with our oldest daughter in college and bring her to the dinner table while we are having dinner. Personally I don’t skype, besides connecting to my daughter I don’t venture out in the skyping world and meet new people. I really didn’t think there was a skyping lounge that fellow skypers can connect with one another. I wonder if it’s like yahoo chat, because back in the day ….when the kids were young and newly divorced, I was a big yahooer and wow what an interesting world that was. That’s when I realized the person that you may be chatting with isn’t what they portray themselves to be.

So when my 17 yr old daughter jumped into the skyping world I would monitor who she was talking to and for the most part she’s talking to her friends from school or her sister, but now she’s throwing out names that  I never heard of and when I ask who this boy may be  she tells me she met him on skype. When I start throwing out the 20 questions she calls me paranoid. Paranoid? No little lady I’m just a bit wiser than you. I explained to her that the person on the other end my say he’s 17 or 18 but it could be some old wrinkly old man who is just praying on young naive girls just for his pure satisfaction. She then laughs and tells me that she’s seen pictures, but I continue on and say that was probably a picture of his himself 30 years ago or some picture he pulled offline. To her I’m being over protective, but I’ve seen enough shows on tv where they capture these man that think they are chatting with a teenage girl, I see reports come through my desk about girls being hurt by men. I try to scare my daughter with stories of putting too much trust in a guy she’s chatting with I know she’s listening but I’m about fed up with this skyping world and will be pulling the plug soon!!

March 23, 2011

Rocky Candy Music & More





Ever wonder what happened to your favorite record that you would play over and over again back in the day? Yeah I know now a days you can find all your favorites either online or on a CD…….but the smell and sound of a vinyl can’t compare to the smell and sound of a CD, right?. The smell can bring back memories and for me hearing Rick Springfields “Jessies Girl or Don’t talk to Strangers” takes me to when I was a little girl in pig tails singing and dancing in my room  or when I see the Go Go’s record it brings me back to when I had left my record outside and it got warped from the sun, I no longer could pretend that I was one of them and sing to “Our Lips are Sealed”.

Now I can relieve my “olden” days by going to Rock Candy Music and More in Santa Clarita, Ca. A close friend of mine, Melissa and her husband left corporate America and decided to do something that they love, which was to open a store that focuses on music…and more. They started a small independent record store that caters to music fans …. They have everything from Vinyl LPs, new and used CD’s, DVD’s, retro toys, retro candy, t-shirts, posters, jewelry, candles and spiritual décor.  The most amazing thing about this store is they let local songwriters and bands have a chance to promote their music. My friends spotlight local bands and singers during the week and feature Acoustic Saturday nights...... so you can come by, enjoy music and roam the store and come across some of your own blast from the past while meeting some awesome people such as Melissa and Billy the owners of Rock Candy Music and More.


So if you ever find yourself heading towards Santa Clarita or just want to take a drive to visit a store that will take you back in time….this is a must STOP!!!  You won’t regret it…..it’s so worth the gas!! 

Click here to visit their site :Rock Candy Music and More

Located in the Bouquet Canyon & Plum Canyon Shopping Center.
28124 Bouquet Canyon Road - Saugus, CA 91350
Tel: 661.263.9800

My little white lie

So a few weeks ago I wrote about our two oldest boys getting caught checking out porn. Well they haven’t been caught since but considering it is spring break and the Mister and I are in and out of the house going to work…..I decided to tell a little white lie to the boys today.

Coming home for lunch my oldest asked if he could go on the computer and with all the boys gathered around I told him yes………….but……………I also added “just letting you boys know that if you guys check out porn or any improper sites from any computer in this house a text message will  be sent instantly to my phone showing me what sites were just visited”. The look on their faces were priceless…..big eyed and jaws dropped they seemed to be in disbelief that I have that capability!!

March 22, 2011

Dancing with the Stars

I just finished watching DWTS on DVR and boy was I impressed with the ones that were categorized as under dogs or better yet "the ones that will leave in the first couple weeks".

To my surprise the oldie but goodies did an excellent job!!

Ralph Macchio and Katrina just blew my socks off......and who would have thought that Ralph would have pulled off such an a great dance!! .....but was that a hair piece or his real hair?? either way.....he has my vote.

Kristie Alley....You go girl!! I didn't think she would have had the moves but to my surprise she does, and she's only going get better as the weeks go on!

March 21, 2011

Daycation to Temecula

With the busyness of our lives, the Mister and I made a promised to each other that we will make Sundays “our day”. We go to church and then plan a date day, normally we have been taking little daycations either to different wineries or to see the snow covered hills or share a nice dinner and go see a movie.  We find that if we don’t take this time for us than we can lose focus on US and let the other  things just consume us………like spring cleaning, rearranging cupboards, cleaning the outside of the house, just the run of the mill chores…which I try to get done the day before or surgeries, which one is coming up in just a few weeks. The Mister is scheduled to have another hip replacement which will keep him down for about a month.

We decided to head to Temecula once again to do some wine tasting. The last time we drove down the main wine road, Rancho California and this time we wanted to try the wineries on the other side of the hill, but before that we were told by a good friend to try South Coast winery (on the main drag) , let me tell you that we were so highly impressed and a little tipsy (I was) that I was ready to call it a day, besides Weins and South Coast we really didn’t have to go any place else, but the Mister wanted us to move along…..so we did, to the other side of the hill. The first winery we came to looked pleasant and the view was just amazingly beautiful but their wine….uh not so good, I didn’t even want to continue with our wine tastings….but we did still we were not impressed. Off to the next ….disappointment. What was it about the wineries on this side of the mountain? The third winery that we visited was alright but still nothing that would be memorable. I had given up and told the Mister that we just had to go back to the main road and head on over to our favorite winery….by that time I was getting a little bit sick and it wasn’t because of the wine consumption because it hadn’t been much. The 2 wineries that weren’t much to mention had not agreed with me whatsoever and when we arrived to Weins I wasn’t feeling much for tasting any wines and by the time I started tasting their heavenly concoctions my taste buds had already gone through a journey of their own and nothing tasted good.

After wine tasting and feeding our bellies we headed home and yes I was aware that we may hit rain and yes I heard the weathermen state that we were to have heavy rain fall, but seriously when are they ever right? well let me tell you…..they were right this time and I don’t do well driving in the rain, even though I was just the passenger I still went into full anxiety mode.  It didn’t help that the Mister was driving 70mph while sheets of rain were coming down, or the SUV I saw flipped on to its side on the other side of the freeway or the feeling that I was about to toss my cookies due to the dinner I ate, the bad wine and the insanely bad weather that had my nerves all in a knot. The Mister noticed that I was nervous and slowed it down a bit but my nerves just couldn’t settle not even with his “I’m a good driver and watch what is happening with the cars in front of us”….the thing is it was dark, cold, windy and raining buckets of water you can’t see puddles in the dark and the last thing I needed was for some moron driving not paying attention and cause an accident.  We finally made it home 2 hours later and headed straight into the bathroom and tossed my cookies, took 2 tylenol because due to my nerves I had a tension headache……then went to bed, thanked GOD for our safe return and cuddled with my puppies!!

March 19, 2011

Fireproof - The Movie







For the past year I've been hearing about the movie Fireproof from family and friends and how wonderful this movie is. All I knew about the movie was it featured  a couple dealing with their failing marriage and the journey back to one another.....honestly the reason why I didn't want to watch it a year ago was because I knew it would hit too close to home. The Mister and I were under going our own journey so I just didn't want to see some movie that would just have me in tears and bring up some unnecessary conversation.

So last night since we were kidless the Mister and I decided to watch it. I couldn't believe how right on this movie was.It hit on arguements over jobs, finances, housework , outside interests, boundaries and addiction.

Close to enter into divorce proceedings, Caleb's (Kirk Cameron) father callenges him to commit to a 40-day experient" THE LOVE DARE" and he agrees for his fathers sake more than for his marriage. He definately discovers the callenges which are tied to his limited faith.The He said She said clips brought back memories and the feeling of helplessness the characters encountered hit too close to home.  What I loved about this movie , the part that really started the tears to flow was when Caleb grew frustrated because he wasn't seeing the results as he had hoped and asked his father "How am I suppose to show love to somebody who constantly rejects me?" and then the father boldly told him that the Lord continues to show him love even when he has rejected him for years. The father explained to Caleb  that he needed the Lord no matter if he thought so or not and once HE GOT IT and broke down , his arrogance was shattered by his faith and in time everything started to turn around. Yeah....he had struggles, he wanted to give up many times but he learned patience and love not only for his wife but for the Lord.

This was an amazing movie and a must watch for couples. You will see yourself more than a few times in each of the main characters and it will also give you insight on your own marriage ....strong or not. 

March 18, 2011

Defiance

The dictionary states : Open or bold resistance to or disregard for authority, opposition or power---a challenging attitude or behavior; challenge.

I know it’s normal for kids to be defiant towards their parents once in a while and this normally leads to them being grounded or involved in a long winded talk that leaves the kids with a blank face staring at the ceiling just waiting for us to finish.
Lately I’ve been dealing with the defiance coming from a step kid and dealing with it is a little bit different then when the defiance is coming from one of my own children.  With my own I can scare the bejesus out of them and threaten to remove every single item from their room. When it comes to the step kids I have to step back a bit …. Because they have a tendency to share everything with their mom and at times paint of picture to her like some wicked stepmother. BELIEVE me…..they haven’t seen that side of me yet!!   Yeah it’s tough but they aren’t going to break me, especially his oldest.

Lately, if the oldest step-kid is told to mind the rules and I remind him or discipline him I get a very rude reply of “OHHH MY GOD!”….1. don’t Ohh my God me 2. God is not going to help you in this situation 3. Don’t use Gods name in that manner unless you are dying and needing his assistance. Thankfully the Mister heard him and he stepped in and set him straight which I think shocked him. I also found out that they don’t back talk their stepdad. So why me, why the disrespect  I’m not out there to make their lives a living hell. The Mister and I have set boundaries and rules and we try to keep them straight especially after all the chaos that we experienced a year ago regarding rule breaking and defiance, which I refuse to go back and have to deal with it again.

Here’s how I see it. I work my butt off all day, I hear nasty rude people on the other end of the phone for 8 hours a day and by the time I get home I refuse to put up with any rudeness. Now I do admit I can be snippy and inpatient with all the kids, but I’ve been trying to hold my tongue until absolutely necessary. The Mister and I aren’t strict parents but we have rules and if you continuously test the waters, lie or snap back then that’s when the foot will come down and the discipline will follow.

March 17, 2011

It's time......to get a new car



We finally realized that it is time to get a new car and not just any car…..a car that will sit 7.

For the last 2 years the Mister and I have had to take 2 cars to restaurants, events or any place out of town when we have all the kids. Sometimes we would borrow his fathers car but that is getting old and the questions from his mom and dad are getting old, don't get me wrong we tell them where we are going but then we get the third degree and well I’m too old to endure a third degree. 

So, we started searching this past week I've looked at vans...but I just can't see myself driving a VAN.  I just can't get over how wide and long they are, and plus the kids aren't  little......so a VAN wouldn't be practical. Then there's the Ford Explorer and the Trailblazer which are close contenders but I'm leaning for towards the Ford Explorer.

I will keep you posted on the search for the right car for us.....it's going to take some time and many visits to car lots and dodging the ever so persistent car salesmen.


NEXT…..a big enough table that will seat 7.

March 12, 2011

DMV ----I have to take a ...what???


Yesterday I had to go to the DMV, imagine my surprise when I was told that I had to take a written test to replace my license. “Seriously?” I asked the obviously irritated DMV employee…she looked at me like she wasn’t in the mood and said “yes…here’s your test, just do side one…and come back when you are done”.  GREAT!! The last time I had to take this test was when I was 16 and ironically at the same place. So I grabbed my stupid test and headed to a counter.  “What if I fail?...how am I going to explain this one to my children and husband”….I tried to calm down and began to take the dang test.  I knew I should have gone with my first instinct and not analyze every question, but I was looking for that trick question.
I stepped back in line, test in hand and the fate of my license standing in front of me looking through her bi-focals.  She takes her red pen and the answer sheet and started going through the test…..1 wrong, 2 wrong, 3 wrong, ……..4 wrong. ….she looked up at me and said “you didn’t pass”………….WHAT!!!!! shit shit shit……then, she said “but you can take it again today, here’s a book, read up and then come back when you are ready.”
I looked at the red marked test and the questions I over thought were the ones I got wrong. So I took my seat and read the stupid DMV handbook. Not ready to take the test quite yet I met the Mister and took him to work and then…..headed back to the DMV to take the test. Standing back in line, I grabbed my cell phone and instantly got yelled at “LADY LADY…you can’t use your cell while you are in line”….seriously what am I going to do?? I have no test in hand YET!!! ….whatever, I finally got to the front and received my test. I took a deep breath and headed into the test area……….geez, you could cut the tension with a knife in there.  There was even a man that was trying to peek at my answers “dude they give us different tests you dumbass” I wanted to say….but I didn’t want the security guard who was watching us to tell us that talking was an instant fail!!  I took my time, reread the test….said a zillion prayers and then went back in line.
The lady grabbed my test and looked it over……red pen in hand she started marking …..check, check …….check…..  3 wrong, you PASSED, sign here…… I signed that sheet so fast, thanked GOD and got out of there so fast!!!

March 09, 2011

Good Bye bread... see you in 39 days




Every year about this time many give up something for 40 days. Growing up and attending Catholic school we had to share what we had planned to give up as a sacrifice, normally it was “I’m going to stop being mean to my sister”, sometimes it was “I’m going to stop eating sweets”….none the less I think it probably lasted for a week or two until it slipped my mind. Sort of like a New Years Resolution, that’s why I seldom make New years resolutions because I’ll forget by week 3.

This year my daughter started to talk about giving something up, I instantly told her to give up her cell phone. That didn’t go over too well, then I mentioned “bread” and then ….my mouth spoke before I truly thought this one over, I said “and I will give it up with you so we can do it together”. Mind you I didn’t say “CARBS”, because if that was the case I would be such a bear by day 3. How hard would it be to give up bread? So my daughter and I agreed…….soon after she started to list off things she can’t eat at school “do cheetos count as a bread?”. Heck I don’t know…..Cheetos is a form of a chip right? and a chip comes from potatoes…..so technically if you think about it…I don’t think so.

Today is day one of no bread and obviously I didn’t think this one through prior to grocery shopping. I went home for lunch…stared at the items in the fridge  and ended up having a slice of lunch meat, a few slices of a cucumber and a string cheese. Today is going to be a long day. 

One day down…39 more days to go.

Scheduling conflicts

As a blended family the schedules can get overwhelming…..but when the chaos flares up that’s not the kids fault it’s the parents.  I feel that it is the responsibility of two sets of parents to keep in contact in regards to appointments, club meetings, youth groups, school activities…and most of all work schedules.

It’s not fair when the Mister is put down in front of his children  by his ex-wife in regards to his work schedule. We all have issues with his schedule but it’s not technically his fault, his employer takes his merry time to get it together at the last moment…..but at least it’s pretty much the same schedule. My problem with this issue is that if she has a “concern” don’t blab it to the children be an adult and talk it out with the other parent…..AND before you start to insult the other parent, check yourself first. There has been many times that we have to alter our schedules  because she tells us at the last minute that the kids have certain club meetings, youth group, boy scouts or school events in which we have to switch around everything. Do we insult her in front of the kids for her lack of insight to inform us ? no, we keep it between us. I wish I can say something but I just keep my mouth shut and wish the Mister will nip this in the bud and tell her that we need to know the kids extracurricular activities way in advance …not THAT day, THAT morning. 

March 07, 2011

For a good cause - Reality Riesling




Wilson Creek Winery has gone above and beyond in their sponsorship and support of Reality Rally Temecula Valley with the private label wine release of Reality Red and Reality Riesling

Light straw color, very floral and spicy in the nose. Flavors of juicy fruit peach and pear. Clean bright finish with a lingering of sweet fruits. All net proceeds of the 2011 Reality Rally Temecula Valley will benefit Michelle's Place which provides emotional and educational support to those touched with breast cancer.

Our trip to wine country







The Mister and I took a trip to Temecula’s wine country and had the most amazing time. There’s nothing better than escaping the desert for a day of wine tasting, beautiful wineries and stunning vineyards. We started off our wine adventure at Callaway winery and just loved the ambiance of the tasting room, informative employees and the wine was oh so good! We then went across the way to Thronton Winery, we really didn’t stay long just because it was just consumed with so many events and their tasting room was moved outside ….it just seemed like it was scattered all over the place, so we opted to just leave and come back another time. That’s when we made a plan…..lets start from the top and work our way down.That brought us to Wilson Winery and it was amazingly breathtaking…..creeks, bridges, fountains, a beautiful restaurant and the tasting room was so inviting!! Then we were hooked!  We then ventured to Wiens Winery which blew us away…..and our wine guy “Richard” was so engaging, that the Mister and Mr. Wien guy just talked wine and memories, I didn’t quite mind their analogies  because Richard kept throwing wine our way!!

 I was amazed during the tastings how many memories the Mister had by just taking a sip of wine…… during one sip it brought him back to tasting honey suckle as a child and he looked at me like I had a honey suckle story as well….dude I grew up in Sylmar I wasn’t tasting anything that was growing in the field across from the house, because I truly doubt it was honeysuckle it probably would be some flower that would send me into some hallucination. Then while tasting a red wine he stated it tasted like a branch or a limb of a branch, I being on a wine high said “hmmm I don’t go around licking branches so I have no idea what a limb of a branch taste like”. He then explained to me it was more like a reed that you would use while playing an instrument, then while we were tasting a Muscat he talked about using it in a strawberry cake recipe…..wouldn’t that be awesome I thought !!

After our visit at Wiens Winery we headed to a few more before we decided that we HAD to go have something to eat!! But before going to dinner we were given such an awesome tip, I was to go to the CVS close to the wineries and there I would find so many of the wines from the wineries that we visited for pretty much half off and ……she was right!! 

We had such an amazing time and it was nice being back to a place I called home for a few years back in my late twenties. Temecula is such a beautiful place and wine country was just incredible!!

March 06, 2011

Katie please destroy the BINKIE

This is  a tad bit disturbing.....Suri is way too old for a binkie!!

March 05, 2011

Teenage boys .....Here we go!!!!


Having three boys brings on some new experiences and by experiences I mean teenage boys and their curiosity of the opposite sex. Now, back in the day most boys knew where their dads’ stash of girly mags were kept, normally under the bathroom sink hidden behind the Clorox cleaner and rolls of toilet paper or wrapped up in a paper bag tucked in the night stand. 

I’m not naïve; I know the boys drool over pics of Megan Fox or those tightly, nearly clothed women on WWE. I’ve heard crude comments come out of their mouth regarding women which get quickly extinguished and then an ear full on how those comments are offensive. I know that they learn things from their peers at school and can simple google a phrase and up comes various porn sites…..but do you think I would have thought MY boys would have do such a thing?? HECK NO!!

Imagine the surprise when my ex-husband told me that my 15 yr old son was caught checking out porn at their house. Not my little boy…hmmmm yes my little guy..Well the embarrassment enough seized his curiosity. With that news, the Mister decided to check his laptop because his sons usually do all their face booking on it. Well ….I get a phone call at work and he lists all the “sites” that were visited.  All I’m thinking is “Great I’m not ready for this part….I wonder if Toys R Us has a therapy group for teenage boys who are pornoholics”, the Mister kept listing the names and I just finally told him to delete them and put extra “protection” on computers….and THEN I was thinking about my laptop. If my son had the nerves to do this on his dads’ computer what about mine?

Well….we were going to have a “intervention aka scare tactic” meeting after work, but the Mister was called into  work and it was my ex-husbands day to have my son. So the Mister confronted his boys  and  found out it was only his oldest son that had been searching those sites and came clean about getting a link from someone at school and then it just went on from there. After work, I went to confront my son…..still embarrassed he knew I knew and I asked him if he had “used” my laptop to fill his curiosity. With a quick no he settled my nerves, but then asked if the Misters oldest son got caught. With that I asked “you knew?”, he explained how he caught him about a month ago and told him that he better stop or not get caught and if he did not to mention his name.  I spoke to my son some more in regards to his curiously about unclothed women and he just promised that it wasn’t going to happen again. 

That didn’t stop me from inspecting my laptop and putting stronger preventive measures to stop them cold when they decide to have fun with google or you tube.

What’s next???     Maybe I should check under their mattress……..

Double D's Yummy Delights


 
I've driven by Double D's many times and thought they were just ANOTHER cupcake shop and once you have one gourmet cupcake then they pretty much all taste the same right?? Wrong.....

It wasn't until the Mister and I turned on cupcake wars and saw Double D's, what sold me was the first challenge which was to incorporate wine in their cupcake and the judges just LOVED it!! .....ok....where can I get THAT cupcake!! it wasn't until they ended up winning  the competition that our minds were made it...we had to go check the place out.

We went.....and they were all sold out! urgh.

So today I decided to surprise the Mister with a little treat....well make  it 4 little treats. So i can't wait for him to come home to sink my teeth into one of those yummy creations!!


March 04, 2011

The only diva in the house




Her name is Lily…and she’s a diva. With her 4 paws prancing up and down the hall ; tail wagging she knows she runs this house, and in reality it’s a tie between her and the cat!

I’ve had this cute ball of fur since she was 8 weeks old and she’s just not a “dog” she my furkid and quite the character . I’ve never seen a dog throw a temper tantrum like a two year old….but if she doesn’t get her way or if 30 minutes of ball throwing isn’t to her liking she will go in the corner with her ball and flop like a fish and kick her hind legs to let us know that she’s not happy. Now I thought this was cute when she was a puppy….now 2 years old and a MOM you would think she would stop this insane temper tantrums in front her child.  You gotta love her though !! 

Lil is a smart cookie and this surprised the Mister when he was first introduced to Miss Lily. You tell her to go get her baby (white teddy bear) she’ll search for it and if it’s outside all you have to say “you’re baby is outside go get it” and out the doggie door she goes!! and I swear I can just talk to her and she understands everything I say, with the tilt with her head and those dark convincing eyes I know she listened to everything I said about my day or my recent rants!!

As a mom she’s great!! She’s very attentive to little Dart and if he happens to get out of bed and roam the house late at night all I have say to Lily is to go find Dart and there she goes “huff” and all off the bed …prancing down the hall to find Dart, I hear a muffled bark and here they both come back to bed and  during play time she will make sure to bring his stuffed animal first and drop it in front of me and then she goes off and gets her ball. It’s her sense of selflessness that always tugs at my heart!! ….and when the rest of her puppies come to visit she gives me a look like she’s thankful for the first 1 hour and then it’s a look of “ok send them home”.  It always reminds me of when she was nursing her puppies and by week 2 she was exhausted and would hide under the bed and quietly growl and huff and thats when I stepped in and tried to settle the puppies with a warm blanket or some cuddling. I knew she needed a break, heck  four puppies hanging on her day in and day out I could understand her exhaustion. 

She's my little girl and she will always be my little Lily!!


her puppies

March 03, 2011

The Brady Bunch ...we are not!


I believe the Brady Bunch was the first television show that focused on life  as a blended family.  Well, let me be the first one to say ….the Brady bunch we are not!  We don’t have an Alice who cleans and solves the families’ problems or happy ending lets hug it out moments.  We are your typical blended family full of ups and downs…arguments and compromise and trying to just all get along. 

Lucky for me the Mister knew my children way before I even knew the Mister even existed, so there weren’t any awkward “get to know the kids” moments when we started to date but once we merged the families together that’s when it started to get a bit challenging. 

I have 3 children from a previous marriage and their ages are 19, 17, and 14 and his children are 10 and 12 …all in all we have 2 girls and 3 boys. So as you can see we are smack dab in teenage hell!!  The Mister and I have dealt with everything from the typical “you’re not MY mom/dad” attitude, to finger pointing between the children to his kids against my kids. It can be pretty hectic at times but once the Mister and I learned through counseling that we had to be a team and that the children had to see that they couldn’t manipulate us to take sides than things took a turn towards ……normal?? 

Every day is a learning process, especially with the new title “wife and stepmom”. Whenever I have to raise my voice I have this vision of the wicked step mother from Cinderella in the back of my head and I stand there quietly outside the bedroom door waiting to hear them say “what a witch”, but that never happens. 
All in all I have to admit I do enjoy being part of a blended family……can it be difficult? You bet….but it teaches me patience which is a stretch for me, it makes me that much more organized although from what I’ve learned is nothing ever goes the way you probably have planned because their might be unexpected club meetings, youth groups, boy scouts , school projects due the next day, emergency trips to Walmart,Micheals or Target.

 I can tell you one thing …… my favorite part of being part of a big family is when we are all gathered around the dinner table giving thanks and then enjoying each others company and sharing our day…..it may be over grilled cheese and tomato soup or something gourmet that then Mister put together but either way it’s those 45 minutes that are being treasured!