How to waste 2 hours without realizing it

Ok, so I am finding it very hard to concentrate today because I am missing the boy so badly. I did stumble upon this which got my mind off of the funk for several hours. You see, D and I don't have cable (gasp) and don't have VH1, so looking at all of these 80's videos brought me back a good well, 15 or more years. If you love to remember these old songs, go visit the site.

I remember some of these like it was yesterday...A-ha-Take on me...George Michael-I want your Sex(I can so see now why my mom had a FIT when this came on MTV-very racy for even back then)...Tom Petty-Free Fallin and of course Chris Isaak-Wicked Game. Of course there were some ultra-cheeseball vidoes that were bad even back then but I had to watch and laugh: Stevie B-Dreamin of Love, Glenn Medeiros-Nothin's Gonna Change my Love for You and then there is the ever emberassing Eddie Murphy-Party all the Time.

What is your favorite? Mine isn't listed...Lita Ford-Ain't no Big Thing. Go ahead, waste some time and brain cells, it's worth it!

Amazing friends!

Although D and I have had quite a few streaks of crap luck in the past few years, topping off with the loss of Quincu Guiness O'Malley two days ago, we are very very blessed with our amazing friends. My counter is full of flowers and beautiful cards. My wine rack would be full of new bottles of wine too from all of the offers to come over with wine yesterday, but we just weren't into having company. Poor D is taking this so hard. I am holding up much better than I thought. I think because I have been through the loss of pets before, the loss of a good friend Jim and of course my dad. This is D's first real loss, and although lucky not to experience it until age 36, my heart just breaks for him. Q was his best friend in the world. We work from home and instead of a smoke break he would take a 5 minute "snuggle break" with Q.

It is just too quiet in our house now. I miss our boy so much and wonder if I will ever be able to not cry when I walk into the house and not see him bumbling down the stairs at neck-breaking speed. Even Higgies(the cat) hasn't eaten in two days. This is the first time our 20 lb fatboy has ever skipped a meal. It was his best friend too. Hopefully he crossed that rainbow bridge and my dad is taking care of him until we come and meet him again.

Goodbye Quincy, you were loved.

Our sweet, adorable, amazing little Quincy passed away last night. He was only 3. The vet believes he had a heart attack due to his Addison's disease. We are just heartbroken. Probably more so than alot of people who lose their animals. We were with him 24 hours a day and took him on all of our vacations and to most of our dinings out on Atlantic Ave. We loved that boy more than alot of people love their kids. The real kicker is that it happenned 5 years to the day of my dad's passing. I just feel like God is testing us sometimes.

Thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers.

Darwin Award

I should not be allowed to use candles.

You know that little sticker on the bottom of all(or at least on Yankee candles) that says something to the affect of "do not let candle burn all the way down or else the glass will burst, burn a big gaping black burn hole on your expensive bedstand and leave shards of glass stuck in your carpet"?

I did not heed it's warning, nor the one that states "do not leave candle burning while unattended".

Lesson learned.

You think I would have learned not to play with candles after D and I nearly burned our apartment complex down back in college. We lit a candle on the back of the toile', right underneath a hanging hand towel. We thought it was all steamy in there from the hot water, like a scene from a soap opera(excuse the pun-SOAP opera-never mind). Yup, we were morons. Still are, apparently.

Soccer Widow

This one is for you Ana-and all the other soccer/football/basketball widow's of the world:

This last week I have made a new best friend: my I-Pod. You see, the World Cup has started and I am married to a latin. That means at all times the game is on as loud as it can go. D announced that he would be working part-no make that spare-time during the month of June. Because we work from home, I needed to be able to concentrate while proceeding to keep the business on track. I cannot do it with GOOOOOOAAAAAAAALLLLLLL, GOOAAAL, GOOAAAAL, GOOOOOAAAAAL, GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLLL is being screamed at by the announcer (ok, and David too) every flippin 10 minutes. So, my I-Pod, the Killers, Jack Johnson and I have become one. I am so racking up blackmail points for when I want to take days off to say do more important things than watch some stupid soccer game-like getting a pedicure or having lunch with one of my several teacher friends who have the summer off.

It's not just the soccer games, but because of our limited cable abilities(go ahead and laugh Crackin'), the only channel the game is on on our huge 10 inch tv is the spanish channel. The thing is, it's not your regular football halftime discussion with 4 overweight ex-pro coaches and players but rather one overweight announcer, a mariachi band and a gaggle of big breasted bimbos(seriously, one had knockers so huge they were each the size of my head and she was wearing what looked like a toddler's bikini top on them). On top of this, dear hubby printed out a set of rules for wives during the world cup. This list was sent from his brother. Hubby then sent it to poor Ana's husband (poor Ana, not her husband). He yells "Yellow card" whenever the poor dear breaks any infraction. At least he has to leave the house to go to work! Lucky, lucky girl! On to the rules, some of these include:

3. If you have to pass by the TV, please crawl on the floor and without distracting me. If you stand naked in front of the TV, make sure you put your clothes on right after because if you catch a cold, I won't have time to take you to the doctor during WC month.

4. During the games I will be blind, deaf and mute(lie, he isn't mute when he yells GOOOAAAAL) , unless I require a refill of my drink. You are out of your mind if you expect me to listen to you, open the door, answer the phone or pick up the baby that fell fromthe second floor-won't happen.

9. Tell your friends NOT to have any babies or and other events that require my attendance because a) I will not go b) I will not go c) I will not go

Lastly, here is a picture of dear hubby and our furbabies he is holding hostage during the 114th game. Notice he is snuggled on a bed, which is in the guest room, which is right next to the office. Yup, he has to watch it 10 feet from me because it's more comfortable than the downstairs couch. Is it almost over yet?

Exciting post

Ok, not really. But I wanted to share a recipe that I have made several times in the past few weeks for different events and it has received rave reviews. A few people have asked me for it, so here it is:

Greek Lasagna
prep: 20 min bake: 55 min stand: 15 min

1 med onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 can (14 1/2 ounce) vegetable broth
1 Tbs fresh or 1 tsp dried rosemary
1 can(14 ounce) artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1 pkg(10 ounce) frozed copped spinach, thawed and drained
1 cup black olives-chopped
1 jar (16 oz) Alfredo sauce
9 uncooked lasagna noodles
3 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
1pkg(4 oz) crumbled herb and garlic feta cheese

1. Heat oven to 350. Spray 13x9 baking dish with cooking spray

2. Spray 12-inch non-stick skillet with cooking spray or olive oil, heat over med-high heat. Vook onion and garlic about 3 minutes until onion is crisp-tender. Stir in broth and rosemary. Heat to boiling. Stir in artichokes, spinach and olives, reduce hear. Cover and simmer 5 minutes. Stir in Alfredo sauce.

3. Spread one fourth of the artichoke misture in bottom of baking dish, top with three noodles. Sprinkle with 3/4 cups of the mozz cheese. Repeat layers 2 more times, spread with remaining artichoke mixture. Sprinkle with remaining mozz cheese and top with feta and a pinch of rosemary.


I have added chopped chicken to this as well, but you will need another 1/2 jar of alfredo sauce.

Bon Appetite!

Oh Oh, we're Halfway there, Oh oh, livin on a prayer...

Sorry, bad Bon Jovi referance.
I have over 50 quilt squares! Woo-hoo! Keep them coming, I still need 48 more! Get your buns in gear! Yeah, that means you my slacker family. Not one from my family, can you believe it! Where's the Donald-you're fired!

What the heck is a Up-per?

This weekend we celebrated our friend Ty's one year anniversary being in Florida in style. Ty and his sister and my good friend Heather are from the U.P.(upper peninsula) in Michigan and refer to themselves as Up-pers(pron. you-pers). Apparently the residents of the U.P. are a complete 180 from those in our neck of the woods(Palm Beach, Boca Raton). Heather is very creative and for the surprise we donned beards, flannel plaid shirts and these weird hats. We also had fake bow and arrows, Boone's Farm, a game of skeet on the tv, swisher sweet cigars and lots of other fancy, classy stuff. D and I bought him a bottle of Reunite for his class act night with the womenfoke, some slimjims, and an ancient bottle of Black Velvet whiskey-fer speshal okashuns, ay you hoser. A picture is worth a thousand words so here are a few. It was a very fun time! It was also a bit of a hurricane party since we got the outer bands from tropical storm Alberto!

Pregnancy vs. Paper Pregnancy (P vs. PP)

Before getting “pregnant”:

P: 10 minutes of Foreplay

PP: 6 months of insurmountable paperwork

Winner: Pregnancy

Fat Feet:

P: Swollen Ankles from water retention

PP: Swollen Ankles from running up and down the Couthouse and the USCIS’stairs

Winner: Tie

The Bulge:

P: Growing belly due to the growing “weight” o the bay

PP: Growing belly due to the growing “wait” of the baby-because all the pints of “Chunky Monkey” ice cream consumed after reading bad referral rumors

Winner: Pregnancy-at least 20 pounds will automatically be dropped on the “BIG DAY”

New Threads:

P: Lots of cute new maternity clothes that you have to wear for only a few months.

PP: For each month the CCAA tacks on to the wait, your dress size increases by two, again due to Chunky Monkey.

Winner: Pregnancy-see the Bulge

W(h)ine:

P: No alcohol for 9 months.

PP: Each month added to the wait by the CCAA turns you one step closer to having to join a 12 step program. Except I believe recovery is for quitters, and I am no quitter! Ha!

Winner: Paper Pregnancy

Bring on the Chunky Monkey and Pickles please:

P: Your dear husband will gladly go to Publix at midnight to make you happy.

PP: Your lazy husband says “Go get your own damn Three Blind Moose Chardonnay and Chunky Monkey”

Winner: That’s obvious

“Sick” day:

P: Can take days off for dr appts and fake some sick days.

PP: Fat chance

Winner: Pregnancy

Nice to Meet you:

P: 9 months till “metcha” day

PP: 18-24 months plus plus plus plus till “metcha days”

Winner: Um, pregnancy

Labor Pains:

P: Give or take 24 hours of Labor Pain, eased by meds, laying in bed.

PP: 24 hours of flying, switching planes 4 times, attempting sleep with Tylenol PM

Winner: Paper Pregnancy by a slim margin

Friendly strangers:

P: Conversation w/ clerk at Babies-R-Us: “Oh congrats, how far along are you?”

PP: Conversation w/ clerk at Babies-R-Us: “Thank you, come again”, me: “Thank you, by the way, I am expecting too!” You try to work your excitement into any conversation!

Winner: Pregnancy

More reasons to make me : )

Most of the times I open our mailbox I find a quilt square or three from the April06DTC group I joined. I am "swapping" squares with 47 other adoptive moms to be and have received squares from Norway, Puerto Rico, Australia, and most of the states. I love those, they make me happy. But what makes me ecstatic is the ones I receive from family and friends.

This week I received wishes from 3 wonderful families. A Big Thank you and Hug goes out to these families.

On Monday, Carol and Tracy A. gave us an adorable wish that said "May you always feel the love your parents had for you before they even held you in their arms". This was sweet because as a part of our church small group, they listen to us whine, I mean talk about the wait. Carol is my #1 reader : ) -I love how she fills me in each week with what she read on my blog, it makes me keep writing even when I think no one is checking it out!

On Tuesday, our good friends Myra, Jerry and son Ty sent us three separate wishes. Myra actually embroidered the wishes-one has a magical wand, the other has the cutest goldfish-very Asian inspired. We love this family-it's actually D's college roomates parents, who are so much fun that we still do a bar crawl with them once every other month!

And yesterday, I got another sweet surprise. Ana and Ron, another adopting couple sent a "laugh" wish and the cutest fabric.

Hopefully these pictures will show up here, but I know they won't be in order. I'll never be a blogging expert-I actuallu somehow magically deleted every stinkin photo on the blog the other day! I'm so smart.

How to make a girl cry...

On Saturday I received an unexpected and hugely wonderful surprise from the sweet and very fun Zakos family-April and Zack in Michigan. They sent me two beautiful quilt squares with Chinese lettering embroidered on them, they also made a matching pillow with Amelie's name stiched on the front and a wish for her on the back. If you are reading this, I can't thank you enough, it is such a lovely and heartfelt gift! Here is a picture of it....




Also, Amy C has been a busy beaver making me a bunch of cute squares, I told her we'd have to make an extra quilt just from auntie Amy! She is very creative and says she has more for us!

These past three weeks we have received about 30 more in the mail-two from Norway, one from Australia, one from Puerto Rico, and bunch from Canada....I have all of the ones from our April 2006 DTC group shown here...we have 44 so far, almost to our halfway goal!

FCC BBQ

Thank you Lee and Becky for a great bbq. We have waiting family meetings one a month, but it was good to have it in a more casual atmosphere. It also gave us a chance to meet more families who are already home with their darlings! The food was fabu too! Here are two little pics for your veiwing pleasure-one of some of the girls-it was Sarah's b-day-you can see the cupcakes I made with homemade ganache icing in the pic too. They almost didn't make it too the party-I wanted to eat them all. The other is of us "waiting" couples. Wendy and Ed (on the right) were LID 07/05/05-so they will be getting their referral in the next month or two. I am so excited for them! On the left is Ana and crazy Ron. They are one fun couple! Kim and Todd, if you are reading this, we missed you!

All better now!

Ok, I'm back. A few things helped me back to my state of "ignorance is bliss" this week. In no particular order: 1. Time to heel from the "twins" shocker 2. Prayer 3. My wonderful friends who listened to me whine and didn't offer any bad cliches, just offered a gal's night out when in need-love you guys! 4. A bbq at our FCC friend Lee's house, there were no less than 10 adorable little girls adopted from China there. Just looking at their faces and hearing from the moms and dads how long and worth it the road was to their daughters. 5. A chemical peel care of Amy M's new medi-spa -Radiance (yes, Amy, this is a shameless plug-Radiance is located at the SE corner of Boynton Beach Blvd and Congress). I felt a few years older these past few months, but damn if I don't look a good 5 years younger now!