It's Not Christmas Yet

I know everyone says it is the Christmas season but to me it doesn't officially begin until December 1 (however with that being said I already decorated my house) ... because today is my birthday!  I had grand plans to write a nostalgic post about turning 36, but no one wants to hear that crap - plus who has time? 

Seriously I have never seen my phone buzz so much - between texts, phone calls, e-mails and facebook messages.  Thanks to all of you who sent me one!  I really appreciate the love!  But one question for you .. don't you think it's weird when random people from high school or college send you HAPPY BIRTHDAY notes on Facebook?  I think it is a bit odd, especially from those people who I barely talked to in high school and are friends with on Facebook but never correspond with.  Maybe it's me but it's a bit weird!  It does make me look super popular though!

Mr. ESPN wanted to make me cake balls for my birthday with the assistance of his two little sous chefs.  We discussed it briefly and I told him (very nicely) that cake balls were a little advanced for the three of them and suggested the box of funfetti cake mix and frosting in the pantry.  I could sense the relief in his voice.  Anyway Mr. ESPN and the little sous chefs made 19 funfetti cupcakes (which I iced b/c well Mr. ESPN isn't so good at that part).  Yes the box makes 24 - I am not sure what happened!  In addition to that lovely dessert, my buddy the Kingston Queen made this for me (from my post last week):


(although her white chocolate snowflake broke!).  Can't wait to dig in - she is an awesome baker!

OK - I better get back to work because unfortunately I can't slack all day, even if it is my birthday!!  Enjoy the last day of November!!

A Strange Obsession

Who starts drinking coffee at 35 (almost 36)?  Yep that would be me.  I never liked coffee, maybe an occasional Starbuck's flavored drink but that was it.  Until I saw this:

I became obsessed with having one and I don't really no why.  I just thought they were so cool (and I like cool kitchen appliances).  I kept checking the ads for them and looking for the best deal.  On Friday I found a decent deal on it at Kohl's plus I had two additional coupons and decided to finally buy it.  Then I found this:

and this:

and I think I am hooked!

Holiday Eats

Have I ever told you that my favorite magazine ever is Southern Living?  I have had a subscription for at least 10 years.  They have some of the BEST recipes ever (especially if you like good comfort food and great desserts).  I use my trusty Ultimate Southern Living cookbook all the time, and it never disappoints.  I received my December issue of Southern Living in the mail yesterday.  I grabbed a glass of wine and proceeded to read it from cover to cover (as Bia and Chatty "did" my hair - i.e. brushed and put an assortment of barrettes in).  I may or may not have drooled quite a bit while I flipped through it.  Some of my favorite recipes from the issue (all photos courtesy of southernliving.com):

Cherry-Pecan Brie

10 minute recipe!!

 

Bacon-Grits Fritters

 

Potato Gratin with Rosemary Crust

I think I may may serve this Christmas Day

Pancetta-Wrapped Beef Tenderloin

Bacon makes everything better!!

Chocolate Truffle Cheesecake

They even provide instructions on how to make the white chocolate snowflake

Caramel Italian Creme Cake

Isn't this cake gorgeous?

And for my Cousin J - they even had an article on tamales!  Go pick a copy up!!

Self Esteem

Bia to Poppa on the phone last week: "Poppa you come watch me dance (she takes a class once a week at her daycare - dance and yoga)."
Poppa: "I would love to see you dance, tell me when."
Bia: "You get in your car and take me to school and watch me dance.  The you tell me I great!"

Chatty had a double header this past weekend.  She scored one goal in the first game and two in the second. 

As you can see we don't have any self-esteem issues in our house!

Another Day at the ESPN House

My friend Robin and her family were in town this week and came over to visit last night.  Robin is my oldest friend - I met her in 4th grade when we moved to the desert.  Even though we have lived in separate states for most of our adult life, we still keep in touch.  It was great to see her, Trent and her twin daughters.  They also got to witness a normal night at the ESPN house which included Bia throwing a royal fit about what she was wearing and running around in her underwear refusing to put on her jeans, Chatty losing a tooth and leaving her bloody paper towel on the ground (yes she lost another one!), the girls pretending like they were WWF wrestlers with each other (I thought only boys did that), etc.  But the highlight of the night was when Bia told Miss Robin she should go in Mommy's bathroom because Daddy always poops in his bathroom.  Classic huh?  Robin - I hope you, Trent and the girls will come back again and that my family didn't scare you away! 

And no I didn't take any pictures - I was a total slacker.

Life at Our House

People always ask what we have been up to and I always say - not much - just the usual chaos that is life!  Seriously, that's how I describe our life - see below for a recap of the last few days....

Thursday - Mr. ESPN bought I-Phones for him and me ....

Friday - took the day off and packed for the family - headed to Tucson to meet up with our good friends the Cottrells for a U of A football game .... Mr. ESPN becomes addicted to his I-Phone.

Saturday - drag our kids all over campus, tailgaited with the Cottrells, froze our butts off at the football game, Mr. ESPN can't hardly put his I-Phone down

(some pics from Saturday)

 At the hotel before the game - all of our Mini-Wildcats

 Bia wanted Daddy in her picture ... who enjoyed it more?

Chatty and Ainsley join the group

These two are like "peas and carrots" (Forrest Gump)

Bia, me and Wilbur 

And an attempt at a family shot ...

Sunday - breakfast with the Cottrells before heading north, lunch and then Chatty's soccer game and finally home ... then back to the phone store to exchange my phone. I know, I am probably the only person on Earth who didn't like the I-Phone ... got a Blackberry instead and still don't know how to use it.


Monday (today) - ran 9 miles, volunteered in Chatty's class and did more laundry - does it ever end?


And now it is almost time for Chatty to get off the bus and I still have a ton of thing left on my to-do list! 

Veteran's Day 2010

Take some time today to thank a Veteran for their brave service.  If it wasn't for the men and women who have served this country and continue to do so, we wouldn't be able to enjoy the freedoms we have today.  My sincerest thanks go out to my grandfathers, fathers, uncle and my big brother!  I appreciate all that you have done for your country!  Mr. ESPN, Chatty, Bia and I are PROUD to be a part of your family!

"This nation will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of the brave." -Elmer Davis

Sneak Peek

Over the weekend we met up with a friend of a friend who took some family photos of us (for a great price).  He was so patient with the girls.  Between Chatty's fake smiles and Bia's total lack of cooperation, I was wondering if we would ever get a good one.  Needless to say we got several good ones and now I am trying to figure out which one(s) to use on our Christmas card ...



It's amazing how in one split second you look like a normal, happy, sane family! 5 seconds later it's back to reality!

Like a Good Neighbor ...

Mr. ESPN and Mr. Jim are there.  I came home from Chatty's soccer practice the other night and noticed Mr. ESPN's car was in our neighbor's driveway with the lights on.  I thought this was odd and then noticed my other neighbor, Jim and Mr. ESPN were over there with shovels.  I get out of the car and ask what's going on. 

"Rattlesnake in their garage, Jim and I killed it" (no he didn't try to run this one over with his car - he brought his car over so they could see it better since it was getting dark).  WTH - don't these things hibernate for winter?  I guess they are all screwed up too since the temps here hit the 90's this week.

Here's to cooler temperatures and no more snakes!! 

Halloween Recap

I am not a huge fan of Halloween.  Mr. ESPN and I don't dress up ... and most of the Halloween decorations we have are courtesy of my mom.  I do enjoying dressing up the girls and they love everything about Halloween - the costumes, candy, you name it.  We celebrated with our neighbors with a pre-trick or treating potluck in the street.  Afterwards the dads took the kids out and the moms passed out candy. 

Speaking of which, I am not too thrilled with the large quantity of candy in my house. I was off today and officially lost count of how many pieces of candy I ate.  Needless to say it wasn't pretty and negated the 6 miles I ran this morning. 

Since our kids are always in such a rush to hit the streets as soon as they get their costumes on, we decided to do a trial run after church to get some photos in their costumes. 

Tinkerbell & a Phillies baseball player

In case you weren't sure who Chatty was ...

her favorite player Chase Utley

Ready to hit the streets

With the neighbors

"Daddy my bag is too heaby!!"