I just bought these boxes last night to help me in my quest to be organized (the $.97 plastic shoebox size seems to meet my needs very well).  It also apparently ”fits” Yummy’s needs, as well. I really wasn’t very surprised at how quickly she claimed these as her own. Whatever the diva wants, the diva gets.

 This is the same bush as in this picture, but I took it tonight during another snowfall.  After all of the snow we have received in this area since December 1, 2007, it is very easy to get lost in how inconvenienced I am by the mess it inevitably leaves behind.  Yet, I just looked out my front window and realized how beautiful and peaceful the earth is after a new fallen snow and cannot imagine living anywhere other than here, where I am fortunate to be able to experience this gorgeous winter weather.

About two months ago, Brad and I saw a movie called Once and although the dialogue was somewhat difficult to understand because of the thick Irish dialect, the music was awesome. We ended up buying the soundtrack and even made a copy so we could each have one in our vehicle.  Tonight they won the Academy Award for Achievement in Music (Original Song) for Falling Slowly, a song featured in the movie.  Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová (who also starred in the movie) wrote and performed the song and just recently performed it on the Awards show tonight. Even though I saw the movie Enchanted (nominated for 3 songs!) and enjoyed the music, I am really excited that Falling Slowly won the Oscar and even clapped outloud when the winner was announced.

Two weeks ago, my friend Emily was in town with her two kids, as she and her family currently live in North Carolina.  We tried to schedule a time to get together, all four of us — Jill, Emily, Amy, and myself — and it just so happened that we were all available February 8, which was Jill’s daughter Caitlyn’s first birthday, and only one day after Emily’s daughter’s third birthday (I tried to write that in the least confusing way, but I don’t think it mattered).  Needless to say, we all met at Jill’s Palatine residence and had a fun birthday party honoring the baby girls in our lives!  The following pictures depict only a few of the sublime moments we experienced together at the party, some of which represent “inside jokes” that will only really be funny if you were there.  I love knowing that I have friends who are cool parents with cool kids and are still cool to be around after almost a decade of friendship.  And so, here are 9 items I have deduced must be included in your party plans in order to be ultimately successful:

#1) A Cooperative Game of Candy Land: It’s important to realize that you cannot get better at Candy Land, that the cards are random and you do not need to get mad if you lose. Luckily, these kids did a wonderful job following this concept and played in sweet harmony together.

#2) Cute, Preferrably Chubby-Cheeked Babies:  For me, babies are very important to making a party successful.  Some of my friends tend to disagree with me and insist that this opinion will change after I have my own children, but until then — the more babies at a party the merrier!

 #3) DOGS: As long as the dog is calm, no larger than 80 pounds, and could care less that its home has recently been invaded by twice the amount of children and three times the amount of adults.

 #4) Paparazzi:  If your guests are made to feel as important as celebrities, then you have thrown a successful party. Because, who doesn’t want to feel as if every move they make is picture-worthy?

#5) Sk8er boys with great hair (or no hair):  I guess this is a preferential statement. I prefer the mountain man look, but during this specific party, I know a few ladies who really dug Josh’s hair and atleast one lady who really loves this bald man.

#6) Mothers and daughters:  What a blessing to see at any party. Witnessing a beautiful relationship between a mother and her daughter reminds guests of the important bond that exists betwen that relationship and how much influence a strong woman can make in the life of child.

 #7) A Host with the Most: Make sure you have a designated host for your party, and if you are smart, it would be a mild-mannered, cooperative, enthusiastic, almost-three-year-old little boy who is more than willing to share all of his toys with his guests.  Jackson did an excellent job hosting his sister and Tyler’s birthday party (sans a brief crying fit, most likely due to the stress of all the responsibility he was feeling).

#8) A little sorcery or witch craft: This is an inside joke — No, I normally do not condone practicing black magic at parties, but at this particular party, it was awfully cute watching Josh wave his sister’s plastic star wand around and I laughed like crazy when Cory suggested he was practicing witch craft in the other room.

 #9) Best Friends:  What else can I say? A party without friends who love you and have stuck by you is really no fun, so…make sure you invite them to your party.

(This picture is actually in antique finish, but it’s really hard to tell. I’m still trying to learn how to use my new camera and create the best effect with my photos.)

 (This picture is in black and white. Also hard to tell because of the stark conditions today.  These trees are in our backyard.)

(I desperately tried to catch the flurries of snow in the picture and you can only sort of see them in the upper right hand corner. This picture is actually in color.  I might try and use it in a scrapbook page that was featured in February’s Creating Keepsakes magazine.)

I was trying to think of how to categorize this post, because it’s rather vague, but also somewhat of a hot button issue.  I am entirely disgusted that the agency at which I work did not close due to the winter weather storm we have had since last night at 6pm.  Here is a picture of what it looked like down my street earlier this morning:

When I wake up and hear that a slew of govertment offices, schools, organizations, and churches — on Ash Wednesday! — are closed, but not my agency, I get a little peeved.  Like a good employee, I decide I’m going to brave the weather, mostly because I cannot afford to take another vacation day after taking the trip to Idaho last month.   I am only 1/4 of the way into my commute when I get a call from the General Manager at Old Navy letting me know they are closing the store and I don’t have to come in tonight for my shift. Then, I hear on the radio that the mall is closing! The mall!  I can barely see 1/4 mile ahead of me, can’t see street light colors because they are covered with snow and can’t see stop signs since they are covered with snow, as well.  I call my program supervisor to let her know that I have decided not to come in after all.  I also voice my frustration towards the head honcho at the agency who is choosing to have his employees risk their safety and emotional health by having them feel inclined to drive in for a day of work. 

All in all, I might not have to take a vacation day for choosing to stay home today so that will be a plus. I just wish the bigger picture would be taken into consideration by people in superior positions instead of worrying about how much money the agency might lose by closing for a day.

This is going to be a very brief post — mostly pictures — regarding my trip to Boise, Idaho, last week.  I was able to take some photos of the mountains from afar, and then zoomed in on them with my photo editor.  I was also able to spend quality time with the kiddos, and posted a few pics of them here, too.  It’s unfortunate that my trip was concluded by being delayed at the Boise airport for 6 hours last Monday, then had to wait for my plane’s wings to be de-iced.  Once at O’Hare, I learned I was 15 minutes late to catch my bus into Rockford and therefore had to wait another 45 minutes for the next bus. I finally got home at midnight Monday night and was miserable and totally fine not setting my eyes on another airplane for a very long time.

That is, until I go to Austin in April.

-View from the plane-

-Haleigh, 9 years old-

-Alaina, 6 years old-

-Ben, 4 years old-

-Rocky Mountains-

-Sunday night, my last night-

I can tell by Brad’s nervous behavior and uneasiness that he is on edge not quite knowing what to expect from me in the very near future after learning this information today.  All I can say is that I am squealing with delight on the inside (okay, maybe a little on the outside, too, which is what leads Brad to be very, very scared).

This is how today’s weather was being predicted by local weather authorities over the last week.  Everyone seemed to be preparing for it, and luckily I was unscheduled at Old Navy today so I had the luxury of staying at home all day.

Except for the fact that I needed to get gas for my car and run a few errands in preparation for my upcoming trip.

You know it’s bitter cold when you get a “cold” headache while standing outside pumping gasoline.  You know it’s bitter cold when you can feel your nose hairs freezing inside your nostrils.  You know it’s bitter cold when you have been inside for over 10 minutes and your skin is still cold underneath your jeans.  You know it’s bitter cold when you almost get the wind knocked out of you while walking the few feet from your car to the store as a result of the freezing air entering your lungs.

The Weather Channel website says the high today was 1 degree and the low -8. There is a wind chill advisory until noon tomorrow.

Funny how it is actually going to be warmer in Idaho this week!

Brad and I had the pleasure of entertaining our friends Amy and Cory and their ani-baby, Otis the Beagle, this past Sunday evening.  I had committed to making dinner and didn’t want to prepare just some old meal that was handed down to me from my mother, but wanted to make something unique and creative.  Early on, I had decided to make a Thai-themed meal, but after the list of ingredients I would have to buy ended up looking more like dollar signs than produce and spices I quickly changed my mind and chose a simpler, Mediterranean dish that required fewer, less obscure and already-available-in-our-pantry ingredients.

I ended up choosing a menu from 30-minute Get Togethers by Rachael Ray. The Road to Morocco Double Date Night theme included two recipes: “Quick Tagine-style Chicken with Couscous” and “Green Pepper and Tomato Salad.” (Although this was the first time I have even attempted to prepare anything from this cookbook, I love how Ray has separated the recipes into themes and even makes suggestions for setting the mood and has a variety of menus for variously sized parties and uses a range of ethnic flavors).  For people familiar with Rachael Ray’s approach to cooking a meal, she teaches techniques to keep it 30 minutes or less to prepare.  However, this concept is difficult for me to follow — me, the girl who doesn’t understand the concept of “eyeball it” or “palmful.”  I have to measure everything and re-read directions dozens of times.  This is most likely due to the fact that I don’t have a lot of experience cooking and was never expected to prepare meals growing up.  Earlier in the day, Brad helped me measure, chop, slice, and combine what we could so that it would be easier to complete the meal at dinner time.  Once everything was ready to go, the meal did not take long to cook and tasted excellent!  The side salad could have used some feta cheese or additional dressing, but was flavorful.  For dessert, I prepared Ultimate Carrot Cake from the back of a Betty Crocker Carrot Cake box cake mix minus the nuts per Brad’s request.  Come to find out, Cory doesn’t even like carrot cake.  At least he could feel better knowing that he showed me how the cake stand I received as a wedding gift three years ago can also be used as a punch or trifle bowl.  Go figure!

The rest of the evening was filled with good conversation, belly laughs, and free entertainment provided by the animals.  Best of all, we had a relaxing time with good — make that great! — company.