Attempt one: Failure

Took the boys to the KidsZone at the gym today. Yikes, yikes, and yikes. I was on the elliptical and could hear them WAILING all the way from the kids area. I gave up when the lady next to me said to her friend, "Those poor kids." I got off, cleaned my machine, looked right at her and said, "No, this poor mommy. Bitch." No, I didn't say that. I didn't say anything. I just went and got my red-faced maniacs and took them to the pool to play. We'll try again another day. See why I'm still fat??

Here's a picture of the boys with Todd from Saturday that I thought was great:

Running, Dancing, and Eating

Yesterday, Todd ran the Twilight 4-Miler that started right near our house. He did a great job, clocking in at 36 minutes! Awesome! It was HOT HOT HOT - the weatherman said it was a record-setting day for June. A few runners bit it in the heat and the boys loved the "woo woo" of the ambulances racing to rescue. Here are some shots from the event.

The boys wore their new outfits from MaMere. We did a few modeling shots before we left the house:

Owen with his new backpack:

And a lovely shot of Henry:

The one where I tell you I'm not really bitter!

Girls! Chillax! :)

The one where I make up my own award.

There are awards flying left and right around the blogosphere. So I decided to make my own. (Am I bitter? Maybe.)

If you get the award, follow the directions:

FIRST! Take the "Which Friend Are You?" Quiz by clicking the link below.
Surprisingly enough, I turned out to be Monica! Certainly not for my cleaning skills....but maybe my other neurotic tendencies...

NEXT, choose some bloggy friends you want to pass on the friend award to!
I am passing mine on to 3 of my great friends from my twins group. You girls ROCK.:


1. ERIN and I have been friends since the beginning of our pregnancies. We've been through a lot "together" and I consider her a twin mom sista.
2. Jenn. Ah, Jenn. So funny and caring and kind.
3. JK. Don't get me started on this one.

LAST, copy the image below onto your blog.





Which ''Friend'' are you?? Go to SelectSmart.com/FREE/select.php?client=funfriends

Wordless Wednesday x 2

Best. Show. Ever.

Todd and I just watched I Survived a Japanese Game Show. It rocked. Everyone, check it out. So, so great.

TT

O slept in our bed.

Wearing his racecar slippers.

Late, bolting upright,

"Uh oh!" he whispered to me.

Again. "UH OH!" Louder. "SHOE!"

Tanka Tuesday

Bampa!

Brother Love

Sunday morning the boys had some fun and Mommy and Daddy had a photo shoot. Here are some other good ones out of the approximately billion pics we took:

sonofagun

Today we had a fun fun day! We went to Todd's office picnic at a local golf/sports complex. The boys played putt putt for the first time (Henry actually hit the ball with the baby clubs), went on the moonbounce for the first time (Owen stayed in there close to an hour!), watched Daddy hit golf balls and softballs, ate at a big boy picnic table, and drank gallons of water and covered their faces in chocolate chip cookie. And what do I have to show for it? Not a thing. I forgot the camera.


Here is one from last week, though, of the kiddies having a pause in their driving around the room to admire the scenery. "Beep! Beep!"

Oh, I almost forgot! Heather.....YES, we did get a couple of YGYHF in NYC. Of course, after I started keeping official track of them, everyone stopped saying it. I may have even said "Don't I have my hands full?" a few times to egg them on....but no dice. I think I got one at the Mexican restaurant, for sure. And damn, I did have my hands full. :) Thanks for asking. :)

Blogblast for Education

A blog I regularly read (As I Was Saying....so freaking funny) led me to a "Blog Blast" today. It originated at the blog, It's All About Balance. After reading the posts at these sites, and all the others linked on the latter page, I thought I needed to participate.

First of all, I am a huge advocate for public education. I am against private school vouchers. I also am not a fan of most of No Child Left Behind. Now that that's out of the way, I think there are a few things that can really help our public schools.

1. Money, money, money. Stop spending money on stuff that doesn't even take place in our country. Save our children. Give them the education they deserve. Why are some schools rolling in dough and others have asbestos in the ceiling and no working toilets? If the federal government has the chutzpah to lay down the law, then show us the money.

2. Teachers. (I am one.) Get out there and keep learning yourself. How many teachers do we know that never try new methods, never share with their colleagues, and never go the extra mile. Take classes, get new certifications, go to workshops. Heck! Go to the art museum and pick up some pamphlets. Let's get some fresh ideas, some real-world experiences, and some new methods in our classrooms. Not everyone learns by rote memorization. The drone of your voice lulls some to sleep. Step it up.

3. Parents. Come on. You need to step it up, too. You should know where your kids are. The remote control to your TV has parental controls - use them. Monitor the internet. Be there for them. TALK to them, not at them.

4. Human beings. Speak up. If you see an injustice that involves a kid, DO SOMETHING. Don't wait for the next person. It might be too late.

Ode to Tonya

Happy Birthday, Tonya!
If you all haven't checked out Tonya's blog, check it out. She is my idol and a true superwoman.

my eternal quest....

...for a new layout still continues.....one day I will settle....or will I? Maybe I just like changing it up often. It's better than moving the furniture around in every room, and I don't break a sweat.

Grab a drink and your reading glasses for this one...

We arrived in NYC Sunday late afternoon and unloaded the car. Our jogging stroller didn't fit in the hotel room door, which seemed slightly ominous, but we soldiered on, taking it apart, dragging it upstairs, and then back down again to go out. We took a walk to Times Square and ate at Bubba Gump's. It was very yummy, but Mr. and Mr. No-Nap were a bit on edge.  We dragged them out, kicking and screaming, and walked back to the hotel (dragging stroller inside).  The first night was a bit rough...the boys were afraid and couldn't sleep. After we tried to let them hysterically scream cry it out for a while, they ended up passing out in our bed. Henry slept most of the night at the foot of the bed, sprawled out, and Owen slept some in his bed and some wedged against my back. It was a sleepless night for Todd and me.

 

Monday morning, the boys and I walked Todd to work and then headed to breakfast, where we ate, what else - pancakes! Then we went to Central Park for a bit while waiting to meet Auntie Erin! The boys were not very fond of the playground, and neither was I, but we wandered around a bit:

We met up with Erin and hung out for a few hours at the Central Park Zoo. The boys loved running up and down the paths and looking at the big bird thingies.

 

We had lunch at the zoo and then headed to FAO Schwartz to look around. The boys got out to try out the big piano from the movie "Big." They loved it. Look at Henry's face in the first picture - he is INTO it.

After they wore themselves out, they fell asleep in their stroller and Erin and I stopped for a drink and a 20 dollar crab cake. So not worth it!

 

After breaking the bank, we went back to the room (it was easier getting the stroller in with Erin's help) and played a bit and said goodbye to Erin.

That night was a little better...Todd brought us dinner in the room, and we almost got them to sleep on the bed. Once Todd left for dinner with his group, Henry decided to roam the bed and fall off about 7 times.  I ended up putting him in his bed and snuggling with Owen. Amazingly, Henry only screamed for about 10 minutes and then was out for the night. Owen (a.k.a. Fidgety) slept on the bed all night. He woke up, crawled over to Todd and leaned over him and said "Hi!" What a nice wake-up call. :)

Tuesday morning we got moving pretty early and grabbed a bagel, banana, and blueberry muffin on our way to Central Park. We walked around for quite a while and then ended up at that same crappy playground. This time, though, the boys noticed the water squirters and proceeded to soak themselves. They had a blast.

We then visited Talbot's to get some dry clothes and found some cute outfits on sale. We had lunch in our room (after jamming the stupid stroller in the door) and had a nice, much-needed nap.  In the afternoon, the boys and I discovered Bryant Park, off of 42nd Street, by the NY Public Library. It was fabulous. We wandered around looked at the carousel, read some of the books that were on the outdoor library shelves, and listened to some children in a violin concert. It was delightful.

 

We ate dinner at a Mexican restaurant that night and it was a debacle. Broken water glass, chips all over the place, rice in my shoes, screaming, throwing ourselves, and ripping placemats off the table. Here are the grumpy boys in their glory at dinner:

Then we wrestled with the damn stroller again. Had a good night's sleep because I let them stay up until they passed out. Owen fell off the bed about 9 times. One time was a lovely backwards dive.

Today, we were lucky because we got to have breakfast (pancakes again!) with Daddy. Then we headed back to FAO Schwartz to buy some NYC firetrucks and dance on the piano again.  We came back to the hotel and I abandoned the f-ing stroller in the lobby. The front desk guy said "I can't be liable for that!" and I yelled "I don't care! I hope someone steals it!" (Unfortunately, no one did). Then we played in the hotel room until it was time to go.  It was an awesome room.

Then we shoved everything in the car. Todd convinced me to bring the stroller along because it wasn't its fault that it didn't fit through the door, and it has been good to us in the short time we've had it. So, it got a spot in the back. All in all, a stressful trip, but a fabulous adventure that I loved and will always fondly remember.

feel the beat of dancin' feet....

....on the avenue I'm takin' you to....42nd Street!

The boys and I walked down 42nd street today. A massive amount of pictures and stories to come as soon as we return.