I am making a bunch of updates to the blog over the weekend and I want to make sure I have my blog roll up to date. 

You can either click on the link to the left that says sites I stalk, or just leave your URL and I will do the clicking for you. 

Hopefully my new creation will be ready to be unveiled in time for Sunday Snapshots.

Have a GREAT weekend!

Today was a glorious day! I woke up at six, showered and jumped on the 7:07 am train on the Long Island Rail Road headed to New York City. My husband was with me but he was going to work and I was going to a quick meeting in the city. After saying our goodbye's I headed uptown.

Today's Thursday Thirteen is about how glorious the day turned out!(clicking on the pics should bring up a larger version of the shot)


1. After kissing the hubby goodbye I decided to walk the 30 blocks instead of cabbing it. On my journey I saw the crew at CBS studios setting up the morning performance of David Cook (the new American Idol). I don't watch idol, so I did not really care. But figured I would mention it. :)


2. Walking along 5th Avenue I had to wipe my drool from my mouth because of excessive staring at all the store fronts of the stores I will never be able to afford to shop in.





3. After a quick meeting, I headed toward the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I met my work buddy Mike on the steps and we headed inside.









4. I have NEVER been to the Met. Yes, I know how sad that comment is to say because I lived on Long Island my whole life. But today I took inside of each gallery in awe. I took my time in each exhibit soaking in the art, the history, the beauty of the pieces of work.


5. My favorite gallery was the Impressionist period.











6. On the roof top of the Met the artist Jeff Koon had an exhibit of a balloon character, a heart and an abstract Piglet. Here are some of those best shots.








7. My favorite statue was of the Burghers of Calais. The statues are as dark as the story behind the statue.







8. After leaving the Met we jumped in a cab and headed into Soho.















9. But traffic in NYC was terrible, so we hopped out of the cab and jumped on the subway.








10. A quick stop in McSorley's Ale House- the oldest bar in NYC. They only serve Light or Dark Ale. I of course had to have a dark. Yum.














11. Lunch was at an amazing little Cajun style restaurant called Acme where I had a delish blackened chicken salad.









12. After lunch I passed the brownstone that Will Smith used as his house in I Am Legend.







13. I caught the 2:15 train back to Long Island. It got me home just in time to get my boys. I am excited that I am going back to the city this Sunday for a movie premier, except this time I am bringing my son. It is going to be a Mommy and Donnie day and he is over the moon about it.

**I did all this in less than five hours. It was an awesome break in the ho-hum of my workday.

Man am I old!


Need to see a man about a horse <

It took us eight months to conceive you. I will never forget the moment on September 20^th 2006 when I took my monthly pregnancy test and it actually reflected a positive result. I stood in the bathroom and cried with joy.

When I was five months pregnant with you the doctors told us we were having a little girl. I immediately went home and gave every piece of boy clothing away to charity. My mother was beyond ecstatic because you were going to be the first granddaughter she could spoil. You see you did not know at the time but she has six grandsons and no daughters. How quickly that all changed!

You had other plans about your sex. It was my 32 week sonogram appointment and I will never forget the conversation with the nurse. I asked the nurse, can you just double check that she is still a she. She said without hesitation, “who said you were having a girl, because you are clearly having a boy”. My mother was at this appointment with me and we both went into a hysterical laughing fit. It was clear she was not getting her first granddaughter.

I found it odd that on this appointment that I kept getting transferred from one room to the next. And then the whispering amongst the nurses was odd but I kept cool because my mom was with me. But then, my little man, I was not prepared for what the sonogram specialist was going to tell me next.

Hydrocephalus. There was a chance you would be born with hydrocephalus. I tried to have a stiff upper lip because the doctor was being so kind, and gentle with how he delivered the news, and again my mom was with me so I did not want her to freak out, watching me freak out. I don’t remember walking to the car, but I remember closing the door and just sobbing. Sobbing so hard that I could not talk. Sobbing so hard that I could not breath. Not only was I going to have to tell your daddy that we are no longer having “Daddy’s little girl“, but that there was the possibility of our baby being born with a handicap. Your daddy was much stronger than I was because he filled me with hope, he hugged me and told me what I needed to hear.

In reality, you were loved by us already and no matter what we were going to love you. I had to wait four long weeks before we could go for another sonogram. On my 36 week appointment, your daddy and I received news that it appeared that the condition was clearing up and there was a strong possibility that you would be fine.

Prayer works. I strongly believe that.

On May 25^th I was induced. You were big and you were a week shy from your due date and our doctor said if we waited any longer I may not be able to give birth naturally.

On May 26^th, 2007 god allowed me to become a mother to another one of his beautiful angels. My Aaron angel. Your birth was like something out of the movies. I was in hard labor for only 11 minutes. You were in a rush to meet us the doctors said. Hearing you cry for the first time was magical. Having the doctors tell daddy and me that you were 100% healthy made us both cry.

Thank you for choosing me as your mother Aaron. Thank you for showing me just how wonderful motherhood can be because as I told you I had a rough time with your brother. As I write this I still cannot believe that you are now a one year old. Each day your curiosity grows about the world.

You are a dare devil. You love to see “what if” even after mommy has said no, no, no to you. Your smile is healing. Your giggle is infectious. You idolize your older brother. It is adorable how you try to imitate him. You and your brother take my breath away sometimes when I see the both of you playing together.

How did I get so lucky?

Even when you wake up at 2:00 am for a bottle I still pick you up out of your crib so that I can hold the bottle for you. We both know you are quite capable of holding your bottle on your own, but I still love our quiet time together. That is our time that it is just me and you. Our time where I can brush your hair with my hand and kiss your forehead. Our time that you will still wrap your fingers around my index finger. And as I saw when your brother was so tiny this time will come to an end soon enough. I am not ready to let go yet.

There is such a big world out ahead of you my little man. I promise to encourage your dreams, keep you safe and to love you to pieces.

Happy First Birthday Aaron James. I could not be more blessed than to have you call me mommy.

 

My Little Date


Happy Memorial Day


Teething Toy


Godmother Love

 

This Friday is like no other on Long Island. It is the weekend for the official kick off to summer. Back when I was single, kid free and crazy I would patiently wait all year long for this Friday. I would be giddy with excitement from the moment I woke up.

My friends and I would have the house in the Hamptons lined up. We would be making plans to see what bars we would “hit” and what cute outfits we were going to wear.

Friday night would be spent at our friend’s house in the Hampton’s.
Saturday night would be spent at local spots like Casey’s or Beach Bar.
Sunday was the slop mess of the Boardy Barn.

Ask me how I feel about this Friday now?

Frustration.  Why?

Well, because as of today every Friday until Labor Day will be a traffic nightmare when I get out of work at 4:30 pm. All the single, kid free crazy “kids” will be packing up and hoping in their car with the intentions of getting on the road by 3:00 pm. The very popular Hamptons Jitney bus line will be adding extra fleet to drag the NYC “kids” out to the east end of Long Island for fun in the sun.

What I am saying is that traffic is a mess. A big fat mess. And what kills me is that I can drive 58 in a 55mph zone and get pulled over for speeding. But Mr. Wonder Gel and his fake Prada sunglasses can be driving on the shoulder at 89 mph, on his cell phone, with NO headset, texting to Miss Fake & Bake next to him and not get a ticket.

So, every Friday from now until Labor Day I will sit in a ridiculous amount of traffic. To entertain myself I pretend I am Sabrina the Teenage Middle age Witch. I have secret powers that can magically wish for quicksand traps on the road so that when Mr. Wonder Gel and Miss Fake & Bake drive by in the shoulder at 89 mph they are sadly met by a dirt nap.

My next blog post will be about, how to correctly fill out your AARP form since apparently I am old and have this post to prove it.

PS. Happy Memorial Day to all!

Warning, my TT this week is more like a therapy for me.

1. For about a week I thought I was pregnant.

2. Found out today that I am not.

3. Secretly I think I wanted to be.

4. Though if I said my secret thoughts out loud I believe many people would say I was crazy.

5. Especially my husband.

6. It is amazing how your mind can trick you into think your pregnant. I would have sworn up and down that I was because I felt pregnant.

7. I already had HER name picked out.

8. Ella Marie (this was going to be Aaron's name until we found out we were not having a girl the second time around)

9. I think I have baby girl envy because three of my good friends recently had girls. Every one of them, and they are all about two weeks apart. I have baby girl envy.

10. It is weird how you can be sad for something that never really took place.

11. I think this is also coming from my baby turning one on Monday.

12. I can't believe my baby is turning one on Monday. I no longer have a baby anymore. That makes me sad.

13. No Mom I am not pregnant. No need to call. I am sure. Very sure. xox

(picture quality is not very crisp due to a high ISO..but I love the look on his face)

This week I was going crazy with my camera.  I received an awesome new camera lens for Mother's Day and I have been non-stop with it.  Here are my favorite shots from the week. :)

King of The Road

Little Red

Vampire Sponge Bob

Mow Mow Man

BBS (Beautiful Baby Sis)

Sweet Cheeks

My son likes loves is obsessed with the Jetix channel.  This is the channel that is the home of Superman, Batman and Spiderman cartoons.  It is also the channel that is forever advertising every kind of toy that my son NEEDS.

"Mommy I NEED that new Power Ranger motorcycle"
"Mommy I NEED that race car track"

So when my son said I NEED The Pancake Puffer I didn't take him seriously.  My son NEEDS everything so I just thought it was another silly request.  And plus it was the Pancake Puffer, what could he really want with that? Then he saw it in Target on one of our many shopping adventures.  (Mommy NEEDS things too right?)  And since that day he spotted it I cannot get through the store without the begging "I NEED the pancake puffer Mommy".

I broke down today and I purchased the "Puffer" on my lunch break.  When I picked Donnie up from school I had it waiting on his car seat with a bow on it.  The boy nearly lost his mind when he got into the car. 

Tonight for dinner we had pancakes "puffed".  We also had pancakes puffed with chocolate syrup pumped inside.  Yep, processed chocolately syrupy sugar in whole wheat pancake batter tastes like HEAVEN.   I love the "puffer".  The puffer is my new cooking companion. I am going to puff everything. 

Tomorrow my husband is having puffed steak.

PS. Not a paid post at all..but everyone needs a puffer.  :)