Love List - March

Although we are not loving on long and snowy this winter has been...we definitely continue to enjoy life with Miss L.

This month's "Love List" includes:

Loving: seeing the snow melt! Slowly, but assuredly! Weekly Zumba class with my friend Kelly - such a great, fun workout. It just so happens to take place at a local dance studio and it makes me real excited for Miss L to participate in dance class...just as I did. Lastly, brown sugar in my coffee. I had this at a Wild NHL game last month and it was delicious. Now, it is my staple.

Below are some photos from our 8" of powder on March 5th, 2013. Notice the "spring" wreath on the door with the snow-covered spruce tip topairies next to the door. Oxymoron.

We concluded our shoveling with cocktails...phew!

Miss L is LOVING eating rice, and also these new mini-crackers with peanut butter from Target...or anything with peanut butter. She knows the difference between hot and cold, yes and no, and is quickly identifying Mr. Cole as her new bestie. He is so patient with her.

Watching: As always, Kim & Kourtney take Miami tops the list (any Kardashian show is a reminder that my family isn't "that" crazy!). We also recently re-negotiated our cable bill and rec'd HBO, Starz, Showtime, etc. free for a year. With that said, I am certain we will gain an addiction in some new series.

Miss L is watching Poppy Cat, Chica, Thomas and more - all on our favorite new TV channel Sprout!

Anticipating: Seeing my family next month when we make a trip to MI to visit.

Listening to: Justin Timberlake's new album The 20/20 Experience, is a bit jazzy-blues-ish and we are fixated on the song: Suit & Tie

Planning for: Preparing our taxes...yep this on my list LAST month! 15 more days...eek!

Working on: Planning a girls weekend away later in the year with my high school/middle school long-time girlfriends! It seems as if a trip to SW Michigan is in-store...so I'm researching wineries and spas...as well as cottages with a hot tub! It is a reminder of how wonderful that side of Michigan is and there is a reason they call it "Napa Valley of the Midwest."

Wishing for: warm weather soon! A new job for J!

Vacay Recap

After having experienced 3 all-inclusive resorts with the Sandals brand, we were a little cautious about trying a different brand of AI resorts. After our vacay, I can say Karisma Resorts delivered on many aspects of the AI experience, particularly the family-oriented aspect.

Resort: Azul Sensatori
Location: Puerto Morelos, Rivera Maya, Mexico

I'm going to spare you the details of sitting on the tarmac to be de-iced TWICE while Miss L screamed bloody murder...or her carry-on having to get gate-checked and then failed to arrive at Cancun Airport...but instead, focus on the fun things at the resort, like...

We arrive and receive glasses of bubbly and a fresh towel just inside the contemporary lobby. They upgraded us to the Premium Building, which was oceanview, of course! We had a large jacuzzi tub in the suite and a nice balcony which Miss L loved to play on.

Our room was stocked with a real crib, toys from the toy lending library, a stroller, baby monitor and a few other baby goods such as a baby bottle warmer, bottle sterilizer, and baby bath tub. It was so nice knowing we didn't have to pack a ton of things, especially a stroller!

After day 2, we quickly realized we had been excpecting so much of an 18-month old - things out of her element that she wasn't used to; so we decided to sample the childcare on-site. The resort partners with Fisher Price to outfit a clubhouse called Azulitos House with a Doll Room, Theater, Arts & Crafts area, sports items and plenty of Fisher Price toys.

Miss L loved the Doll Room - it was her heaven on earth!

We could accompany her to the Azulitos House anytime to play, but we also began arrangements for "childcare." Just $15/hour to let her have a blast doing kid things and mommy & daddy walked on the beach and escaped to the adults-only swim-up bar. We really had her there for an hour every day and then also one evening while we dined at a 13-course French restaurant {adults-only of course}. The staff could not have been more attentive with her, acknowledging her by name as we saw them around the resort. Without a doubt, it was the best money spent on our vacation.

One day of the week they hosted a huge Kid's Fiesta Breakfast with the Little People {I don't know names, but the Fisher-Price Little People}...dancing, balloons, face painting and more! It was a zoo, but Miss L loved it!

With the help of this childcare arrangement, we created quite the vacation "routine." As we are not a family big on "schedules," this was an easy thing for all of us to adjust.

Daily Routine:

8am wakeup, most days

Breakfast in one of 3 restaurants offering breakfast - my favorite was the Carribbean restaurant and Jeremy enjoyed it too, as they had Eggs Benedict {his fave}. I became particularly fond of Baileys in my coffee and of course Malibu & pineapple juice.

Stroller walk around the resort followed by playtime on these large queen size beds suspended by a rope in a huge thatched-roof gazebo which contained a coffee bar, soft-serve ice cream and cookies!

Miss L goes to Azulitos House, Mommy & Daddy have fun

Lunchtime, followed by naptime {2-3 hours} for Miss L...and sometimes also for Mommy & Daddy
   *She would usually nap in the stroller under a nearby tree or umbrella

Pooltime or time spent on the beach...Miss L did not like the sand at first...let's say it was an acquired feeling on her feet!

Dinner was at one of the seven restaurants, we found ourselves going back to the Carribbean restaurant most often.

After dinner each night, we would head up to the rooftop garden to see the scheduled entertainment. It was a week full of great performers - from a "Lion King-style" theatrical dance show to a Michael Jackson Tribute - everything was impressive and very entertaining. Below is Miss L playing with her laptop at the rooftop garden.

Mommy & Daddy "powered-off" but Miss L needed to update her Facebook status!

Mommy & baby dancing on stage!

The restaurants were all pretty good and the bars offered top shelf liqours. The housekeeper was very attentive to our needs and made all of the fun "towel-art" to entertain Miss L. A few of the staff members made our trips to the swim-up bars really special by offering a serving of apple juice disbursed in a shot glass...thus, looking like tequila! It was quite the site, even random strangers at the Bar flipped out their cameras to take photos of Miss L casually sipping her juice with one hand, as she was belly up to the bar! "Raymundo" was awesome and helped to create memories forever embedded in our minds.

Another bartender made her a "Senor Pina" - aka Mr. Pineapplehead

 
Our vacation with a toddler was noticably different than past trips to an all-inclusive. We both felt that Miss L forced us to Sllloooowww down, relax more and do absolutely nothing...which is practically our idea vacation.

 Adios!

March Sadness

I must apologize...it has been nearly 6 weeks since my last post. Wow!

February, a short month, flew by as expected with us dashing off to warmth and sunshine in the Rivera Maya for a week {posts to follow, I promise!}.

Thus far, March has been filled with sickness {like every other household}...and loads of work and even more loads of snow. The white stuff just keeps on falling. For an entire week, we had just an inch every day. An inch doesn't sound like much...but it sure adds up.

It is no secret that I dislike winter. I admit I can appreciate it on occassion about 4-5 times per season and the special occasion of having a "White Christmas" or playing in it on a warm{er} day with Miss L...but for the most part, I would be a happy camper without the white stuff at all.

I think this never-ending-winter has really got me feeling blue, despite the carnival of green this past holiday weekend. Between the single-digit temperatures, constant snowfall, overflowing inbox{es}, taxes, housework and intense work load...I am spent!

We are also trying to decide how to give our Master Bathroom a facelift - enough to enhance the home for"resale value" but not enough to loose our shorts on the job. If this was our forever home, we would have our way with it with lots of fun, modern enhancements...which always = $$$.

Being the optimist, I am trying to combat the sadness with plans for a exciting and positive things:

• Short trips to Chicago and Detroit in the near future
• A Girls-weekend with friends from high school to celebrate our big 3-0 milestone year
• I started taking a weekly Zumba class with a friend - 60 minutes of pure "me time" and joy!
• I still LOVE my job...which feels so great.
• I need to work on the following: blogposts {lots of vacay photos and recipes to share}, staying hydrated, maintaining my workout regimine at the gym and maintaining Miss L's baby book. 
• Happy thoughts about relocating somewhere warm...crossing my fingers for anywhere but here {Don't get me wrong, it is beautiful here (6 months of the year) and the Cities have a lot going for them...but we agree this is not where we wish to live the rest of our lives.}

As Miss L would say: "Night, Night!"

Love List - February

Happy February! Man, that January was a loonnnnggg month! I welcome the shorter month ahead and getting just a tad closer to Spring!!

Another blogger that I follow at Macaroni & Cheesecake started a monthly "Currently Loving" post outlining what she is "loving" at this moment. I thought I would follow suit, afterall, this blog serves as my "back-up" for the baby book and helps me keep track of a lot of things in this household.

Right now...

Loving: My new dry erase board at work. I already made mention in a previous post about how I created this...but it definitely makes my chaotic work world just a little more enjoyable.

Watching: J and I are enjoying The League (a semi-improv sitcom based in Chitown surrounding a Fantasy Football League), Kim & Kourtney take Miami (any Kardashian show is a reminder that my family's crazy factor could be worse!!) and the Wedding Band on TBS (which is a funny Brian Austin Green sitcom about...you guessed it, a wedding band). Miss L is starting to love some shows on Sprout TV.

Anticipating: Vacay!! We are heading to Azul Sensatori in Rivera Maya in the near future. It is ultra-modern, is considered a gourmet all-inclusive and has partnered with Fisher Price to offer a "Toy Library." This uber-family-oriented resorts boasts cribs, baby monitors, step stools and baby bath robes...to name a few!!

Listening to: Red Hands by Walk off the Earth, all of the Of Monsters & Men album and most anything on Alt Nation radio station.

Planning for: Preparing our taxes

Working on: getting fit - hit the gym at least 5x this week!

Wishing for: an early spring
 

Happy Birthday Sis!

Twenty years ago today, our family grew from 5 to 6, as we welcomed my youngest sister - Jener Delane Katherine. Then, I was ready to continue my role as "big sister-caretaker-2nd mother."

Growing up, Jener was always my "baby sister," and being ten years my junior will make that happen naturally. However, in the past five years, the 10-year gap has felt much more narrow and the "caretaker" role has been replaced with friendship.





This transition has happened overnight, or so it seems. Jener has grown into one of the sweetest, most thoughtful and generous people I know. She also is a wonderful Godmother to Miss L and serves as a great role model being one of the most mature and responsible 20-year olds around. Regardless of her Godmother role, she is a wonderful Auntie to Miss L - spoiling her with love and encouragement, teaching her and guiding her to grow and have fun!



As a typical "under-funded college student" - she somehow finds a way to work hard for the money to send Miss L gifts, cards and buy her fun things like snow boots for sledding and a tent from IKEA for which she can run around or just sending her care packages, just because.




As she exudes passion in her education, community involvement and her future career path, I know she is on track for great success and to ultimately leave a legacy here. All of it makes me so proud to call her my sister and my friend and excited to see what the coming years have in store...

Cheers!



You might say she is my "mini-me!"

Whelmed!

Where did the month go and yet...when will it be over?! It seems like "months ago" when we went up north for NYE...nope just 30 days ago! This month has been so busy, fun, cold, and just a tad bit long!

Remember the line{s} from 10 Things I hate about you {high school Rom-Com starring Julia Stiles, Heath Ledger, et al.}:

Chastity: I know you can be overwhelmed, and you can be underwhelmed, but can you ever just be whelmed?
Bianca: I think you can in Europe.

Well, I am feeling whelmed these days, maybe I live in Europe or maybe I am just confused. Afterall, I am still trying to figure out just how or why I live in this frozen tundra called "The Cities."

I am not at a point of feeling overwhelmed...just yet, but I fear it is around the corner.

These days it just seems like once I hit the road in the morning, my day is a whirl wind. My work day is jam-packed and filled with meetings, phone calls, endless emails and projects. On any given day, my sent box has a solid 50 sent messages. Just yesterday, my calendar included meetings at 10am, 11:30am, 1pm, 1:30pm, and 3pm. Crazy, right?

The moment our cars arrive into the garage our evening goes as follows: change clothes, hit the gym for just shy of an hour, come home and make dinner, clean-up and play, time for Miss L to go to bed around 8:30 and then before we know it, we look at each other and say "where did the night go?"

Soo much for completing "Christmas Thank-You Notes" or replying to an email or phone call from days, weeks (er, month or so) ago! I'm ready for a shower or bath and bedtime!

Visits to the gym nearly all four weeknights per week may be scaled back after our vacay, which will be helpful. I have been trying to do one crock pot recipe a week, we also have been trying to meal plan together and also make one entree salad each week - tonight was a typical "Black & Blue Salad" with steak and blue cheese atop a bed of greens and veggies.

I am trying to streamline as much as possible at work. I have a "New Member Checklist," a "Newsletter Checklist," a "Marketing Touchpoints" Reminder sheet and so on... And I have secured a part-time intern for the summer...which makes me real eager for June to arrive!

Recently, I put a Pinterest project into action and made a very pretty dry erase board.
I bought a framed piece of art at Goodwill for $8.01.
I bought 4 pieces of gray with small white polka dot pattern paper at Michael's for < $2
Replaced the art with the paper and ta-da...a nice looking writing surface to manage everything:
To Do, Reports, Prospects, New Members, etc.....

 

 

 

The nice thing about being a working mom, it definitely forces one to leave at the end of the day...regardless of how messy the desk is or how many voicemails are sitting their blinking on your phone.

Look at this goofball, running circles around baggage claim at DTW in December!

 

 

Anyone have any grand ideas for making more time?

All kidding aside, any suggestions for striking a better home/work life balance? 

Burden Time: 3 Hours

It's official - the L family has booked an escape from the subzero frozen tundra. This getaway to Rivera Maya, Mexico happens to be scheduled in the near future...so we quickly came to the realization that lil' Miss L needs a passport! (didn't factor in THAT expense into vacation plans!) So, we research and research the requirements, fees, expediting stuff, etc...and decide we need to act NOW!

I printed the paperwork and was working on the application part...which at the top states "Time of Burden: 85 minutes." The U.S. government has determined it may take approximately 85 minutes to collect any necessary documentation, photo, review paperwork and complete the application.

I have news for them...the Time of Burden when preparing an application and photo for a toddler is over twice their suggestion!!

J spent a good hour, trying to review past photo files for a pic that "could" be used...Strike One!

Then, we decided to take our own photo - this would be at least 90 minutes of sitting her in the bumbo with a white sheet behind her on the couch. The lighting was poor. Strike Two! So then we tried doing this on the stairwell with better light; meanwhile, bribing her with animal crackers!

So off we go to the Passport Services counter at our local governement building with our photo in hand of Miss L with a neutral expression, with a light background. The kind lady informed us that our sheet is a bit wrinkled and not really white and the photo would likely be rejected. Strike Three!

We are forced to pay the $9.99 for their staff to take a picture. I thought to myself "Alright, let's see THEM take a decent photo of this wiggle worm!" I'll show them.

They put her on a chair, put a white blanket behind her and on the first attempt - DONE! A nice, clean photo just what was needed. You have to be kidding me? We spent 3 hours trying to save $10!

For your own knowledge, passports for tiny people cost just as much as big people.
$80 for the passport + $25 to the county for a processing fee + $10 (optional) photo + $60 (optional) expediting fee

Thank GOODNESS she still flies for free and also will eat free for the week at this all-inclusive resort.

Also, she just got a cute cover-up sent her from one of her grandmas...which got all of us excited for vacay!!

Below is a photo of the little eskimo barbie this morning:

Cinnamon Chips & Fruit Salsa

While home for the holidays, my mother-in-law had made this Fruit Salsa & Cinnamon Chips recipe which I thought was amazing, so I decided to make it for our friends at the cabin for NYE.

It was super easy and takes about 20 minutes total!

First, cut flour tortillas into wedges...brush on some butter and dust with some a cinnamon- white sugar mixture. Bake for 10 minutes or less at 350 degrees.

Next, dice up the fruit in tiny pieces for a nice mixture. I altered it from my mother-in-law's recipe - based on my grocery store availability. I combined one golden delicious apple, blackberries, raspeberries, and strawberries. Complete the fruit with two tbsp of brown sugar to help marinate the salsa and bring out the juices and flavors.

Serve warm chips with fresh salsa and enjoy!  

A unique way to ring in 2013

As I mentioned in a previous post, we had a very interesting new way to celebrate New Years Eve.

This year, we were invited to travel further north to a cabin filled with friends, food and fun. The only desire was to leave the pitter-patter of lil' feet back home. This was a natural challenge for us since family is not in close proximity to our home. Thankfully, we are blessed with friends close by that are just like family and a dear friend and neighbor offered to host Miss L for about 48 hours while mommy and daddy escaped even closer to Canada for some adult fun!

Miss L was in great hands and had such a blast with our neighbors and friends including a NYE Party with her friend - Miss R, as they are just two weeks apart! You can tell from the photos below...

We had a fun time up north (2 hours north) at a beautiful cabin with six other couples sans kiddos. The weather was not real cooperative a bit frigid, -14 one morning; which did not allow us to take part in typical winter time activities - such as snow golf on the lake, snow shoeing or tubing down a local ski hill - but we did enjoy lots of indoor games and I enjoyed a nice relaxing massage at the spa at the resort.

The cabin was set with a fireplace, pool table, foosball table, the Packers vs. Vikings game, and a very interactive home-made "Newlywed Game." Our friends Nick and Becky made up the questions for a multiple rounds of fun. Having been together for over 16 years, we were feeling confident with our ability to win this so we suggested a friendly wager.

The questions ranged from the typical "what article of clothing do you wish your husband would throw away already? to "what color panties is your wife wearing right now?"

As you can imagine it was a tough competition and we were in it to win it so when the opportunity came up for a "daily double" style final question - we bet everything! The men were asked to identify the all-important 4 C's of a diamond and the ladies had to guess how many they would correctly answer.

Knowing Jer and his impeccable attention to detail - I guessed that he would know all four...and I think I'm the only girl that guessed their guy would get all 4. As predicted, Jer did get all four - cut, clarity, color and carat! We were crowned winners and put $30 in our pocket...which of course went towards a round of shots for all later in the evening at a local bar!

It was a nice lil' getaway, adult time is so important; but we both couldn't wait to love in Miss L when we rushed to pick her up on New Years Day.

Here are some photos of our fun...

Happy New Year!

Bacon-wrapped Green Bean Bundles

Everything is better with bacon, right? I was happy to run across the Williams Sonoma recipe for Bacon-wrapped Green Bean Bundles, just in time for thanksgiving!
 

 

Wrapped with a strip of bacon, these green bean bundles add an elegant touch to the Thanksgiving table. To get a head start, you can trim and blanch the beans a day in advance, then store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ingredients:

• 8 thick bacon slices
• 6 Tbs. (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• 1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 3/4 tsp. roasted garlic powder
• 1 1/2 lb. green beans, trimmed and blanched
• 1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

Directions:

Preheat an oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment.

In a large nonstick fry pan over medium heat, cook the bacon in batches until the slices are just beginning to brown along the edges but are still very underdone and pliable, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and let cool, then cut each slice in half crosswise.

In a small bowl, whisk together the butter, salt and garlic powder.

Divide the green beans into 16 equal portions, about 6 beans each. Gather each portion into a neat bunch and wrap a half slice of bacon around the center to hold the beans together. Place the bundles on the prepared baking sheet with the loose ends of the bacon underneath. Sprinkle the brown sugar evenly over the bundles and drizzle with the butter mixture.

Roast until the bacon is cooked through and browned, 20 to 25 minutes. Let stand for 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the green bean bundles to a warmed platter and serve immediately. Serves 8 to 10.

Miss L was able to enjoy a full turkey dinner this year with us!
Last Thanksgiving, we had to stuff a blanket behind her to fit in the highchair.

Final product...delicious! And good for any dinner - not just a holiday!

Her headband or head looks funny b/c of the shadows...anyhow - Happy Thanksgiving!

Our Thanksgiving Day begins with a light breakfast while watching the Parade...followed by various appetizers in the afternoon during football, followed by our traditional feast in the eve.

Below is our cheese tray - Jeremy's fave: Blue, I'm a gorgonzola + honey + pear on a cracker type
J also enjoys the Asiago- he shreds, I like Gouda, we had some sharp cheddar for little girl, summer sausage and some proscuitto-wrapped mozzorella - mmmmm.



Time to Getaway!

It seems that the holiday hangover is in full-effect in our household. The hangover + the sub-zero temperatures last week, has driven us both to want to scratch the itch to go somewhere.

I thought maybe I should blog about our most recent trip to Orlando, back in November (which seems soo long ago!) prior to booking our next trip away.

We exchanged our timeshare for a week in Orlando in mid-November. We were less than a mile from SeaWorld and just a short distance from the fun on International Drive and Disney World.

We spent one entire day touring Kennedy Space Center. Although this is Jeremy's "thing" being the space-math-science type, it was really fun for me as well! Miss L did great as we spent about 6 hours on-site {without a nap!}.

Another day was spent at SeaWorld, which was our favorite. Although, Miss L was only 15 months old, she loved it! And we loved seeing everything through her eyes. One unique use of technology that really wow'd this modern family as during the pre-show, the big screen had these animated characters bouncing up and down saying "Hi, Josh or Hi, Samantha" and the screen said to text your child's name to SeaWorld to be highlighted on the screen. So we did...and thus you can see in the pic below that "Patti" said "Hi, Alexis!" THEN, I received a text from Patti saying email me a photo of you at SeaWorld...and so I sent a photo snapped just an hour ago to Patti and at the end of the show...Miss L's photo was on the big screen. How neat!!  

One of the last activities we did nearly as the Park was closing was enter a life-size faux snow globe for a magical holiday moment. All three of us were in the giant snow globe for some over-priced, photography momentos...but J did get out and let us girls play. He said, he's heard a lot of "oohs and awes" in the last 15 months of Miss L...but he had never heard or seen so many people stop in their tracks and look at us and comment. It was truly a magical moment that I will never forget.

 

We also visited Dowtown Disney...


Dancing with the other kids...surprised?

One of the best parts of our trip included a couple dinners with my long-time bestie Kel and her 4 boys {1 big, 1 three-year old, 2 one-year old twins}. They also graciously hosted us overnight on our last night, where the four of us enjoyed cocktails by the fire outside and our big boys enjoyed looking through Brian's massive telescope into space. Thanks G Family for the fun!

We also had dinner with a long-time friend from my time with the Tigers. She and her husband are foster parents to Miss B and the girls {just a couple months apart} had fun at dinner together!

Entertraining everyone at the Pool - this is what we do!
Her "Leo" personality shines at a young age.

Sign of a good vacay...actually slept on the flight home.

Where to next? Anywhere but the North Pole. Perhaps Cali again as it offers the Ocean, Palm Trees AND In-n-Out {which ironically has palm trees as the logo}! Hmmm...