More Party Gossip

CONTINUED FROM BELOW....

Here you can see the bride in the hot pink and black shirt. Unfortunately, Mr. Dimler is blocked in this shot. You can only see a bit of his blue shirt. Hopefully, I can get a better picture of them from others who were there and were taking pictures. Party started at about 5:30 p.m. , and we didn't get home until around midnight. Now that's the mark of a good party! Unfortunately, I had to change in to sneakers 1/2 way through, what with all the standing around and talking, and my foot has swelled up to the point where I lost my ankle again. Oh well, I guess that's the price you pay for having fun!




Despite the excellent food, T ate next to nothing....that is, except the cake. Take one guess...who really liked the cake, downed a huge slice, and was on a sugar high for the rest of the night? Both T and I have been tired all day today (Sunday), and have been taking it easy. One glass of wine and a party til midnight, and I'm dead-tired the next day. Oh my god how things have changed!

What was really great was seeing all my old friends. Sally (in the middle in black) I met when I was three. L, next to Sally in the gold shirt, I met at 5. We three went to kindergarten/first grade, junior high, and highschool together. The other two girls (in the halter top and green dress) we met in junior high. We've all chosen totally different paths to follow and see each other maybe once a year if we're lucky though usually less. However, whenever you put us together, its like we saw each other yesterday. Good lord, the amount of information we know about each other is scary: who we've liked, who we've hated, who we've chased after, who we've cried over, the list just goes on. ...and yes, that is my sis Aunt Dot peeking out from behind!



I wish T could grow up in a neighborhood similar to the one I had. Unfortunately, doesn't look like that's going to happen. Times have changed and neighborhoods here aren't as stable as in times past. People come and go too often. There's really no kids that live around here. Just little old grammas and grandpas.

In my old neighborhood, there were only one or two families that ended in divorce...quite rare even for those times. Most remain married still today. From just the families that were able to make it to the party, my parents, the Southerns, and the Schouldices will all be celebrating their own golden anniversaries within the next 2 years. My parents celebrate their golden anniversary at the end of the month, on the 30th.


I had to throw this last picture in...the kids retired to the master bedroom for a short time, and had fun watching TV. When we discovered them all lined up at the foot of the bed, I had to grab my camera!

The Dimler's Golden Wedding Anniversary

Here's the Weekend News: Saturday night Dot, T, and I schlepped up to Pembroke Pines to celebrate Mr. and Mrs. Dimler's Golden Wedding Anniversary. The Dimlers lived down the street from us growing up. Their two daughter's, Judy and Sally, were our very first real friends. Judy was Dot's age and Sally was mine. They came skipping down to our house shortly after we moved in, introduced themselves, and we were fast friends ever since. Though as we got older differing tastes and interests took us all in different directions, we've never lost touch.


Here's Sally and Manny's two kids (the two eldest), the daughter of another friend, and T. They all had a ball playing all night. T was wearing her new sparkling Hello Kitty shirt in honor of Mrs. Dimler, who is one of the biggest cat lovers I know....

Continued....

Carol's Qwik Kitchen

As I browse through other people's blogs, I often come across detailed recipes, complete with pictures regarding how to cook a particular meal or dish. Usually, the recipes are quite intricate and call for lots of ingredients. Totally useless to me. Those who know me, know that I hate to cook. My favorite kitchen appliances are the microwave oven, followed closely by the toaster oven. My goal in cooking, is to dirty up the least amount of pots and pans as possible...and also to prepare it in about 10 - 15 minutes or less. So, I thought it might be fun to post some of my own recipes and otherwise share quick-fix meal ideas on the weekend. I'd also be interested in anyone else's ideas.

I'll also rate the dishes, on a scale of one to five. So, here goes.

WHOLE WHEAT RAVIOLI AND SAUCE

Difficulty: 2
Mess Factor: 4
Taste: 5

You pick up these handy packs of ravioli in publix. T wont eat the chicken due to the texture, but loves the cheese. Cut open, dump in pot, and boil for 3 minutes. The sauce is delish and you just zap in the micro for 90 seconds.

I then strain out the hot water, and dump the raviolis in the container I'll store the leftovers in, then mix the sauce into the same container. That way, the ravioli pot is much easier to clean!


I 've rated this dish with a mess factor of four. I've given it this high rating, b/c it requires 2 things to be washed, and the strainer is a pain in the neck. I have to actually wash it some before sticking it in the dishwasher, else it doesn't come out clean and has junk stuck in its holes. It also gets a high mess factor, as you have to acutally use the real stove, and risk the stupid pot boiling over and messing up the stovetop and also due to the general risk of fire, whenever the stovetop is turned on.

All in all, though, I give it high marks as a tasty, quick meal!

Fear Strikes in my Heart

...so we're driving to swim class this evening, which was unfortunately cancelled due to rain. Anyway, on the way there, T utters words that literally stuck actual FEAR in my heart. Real, mind-numbing fear. What could be these dreadful words, you ask?

...Mama, I hurt. I have bugs in my tummy. I have to go to the bathroom.

YIKES!!! Luckily, we were just approaching the Coral Gables public library. I vered the schoolbus (aka my van) off to the right and screeched to a halt. A handy bathroom was just inside. Luckily, turns out there was no need for concern. But remember, T is no longer in a diaper. The ramifications of that statement could have been dire!

Swim Class Update

Not much to report, other than swim class is coming along nicely. I tried to get some video footage from today, but somehow screwed it up, and just got this short take. I'll try and get better footage as the week progresses.

Slip and Slide Fun

Remember this fun thing from our childhood? Dot and I never had one, and I ALWAYS wanted one. It looked like so much fun. Well, T and I were over at my parents house this weekend, while Leonor cleaned. I decided to make a target run, to look for something with which to entertain T, as she had no toys over there. I was thinking that I'd find a little pool. While scouring the "water play" area, I came up with this little gem. On major sale, too. I think it was like $5.00.

I took it into the parent's back yard, set it up, and T proceeded to have the time of her life. Now, she wasn't really slipping and sliding like you'd see the kids in the ad on TV doing and I couldn't demonstrate givne my trick back and my bum foot. No matter, T had fun running back and forth anyway, and splashing in the water. Finally, after about 2 hours, we called it a day and I dragged her home.

We're storing it at my parents' house for future use. I highly recommend it. Problem is, you need enough fairly level grass space. I don't...too many pavers in the back, but the grandparents yard is perfect! I must admit, it was nice seeing T playing and having fun in the same yard in which I played and had fun as a child. My parents moved into that house just before my 3rd birthday...just about the same age as T. Though literally a lifetime ago, funny how it seemed just like yesterday.

Unfortunately, no pics, b/c I didn't have my camera.

Potty Issues

Its funny how fast T changes. As you all know, for the longest time T didn't want to go to the movies or to sit on santas lap. Suddenly last week, she loves it. When T was really young, one of her favorite things to eat was the olive dip at Nordstroms. She'd eat it to the point that her whole face and shirt would be covered with the stuff...despite wearing a bib! Last night, she dipped a french fry in it, took a bite, and for the first time....started blowing raspberries saying over and over, "I don't like that". She wouldn't touch the stuff for the rest of the meal. These things I can deal with. However, there were bigger changes this week....

T has been potty trained for quite a while now. At night however, I have always put a pull-up on her, b/c there's no telling when she'll sneak into my bed, and every once in a while she has an accident. Not often, but maybe once every two or three weeks.

This last week? She's woken up for four days straight with a sopping pull up. I thought that maybe she'd gotten lazy and is taking the easy way out, so the last 2 nights, I had her in panties. Both nights, she's wet the bed. Poor thing, she comes into my room between 3:00 and 4:00 a.m., sopping wet.

Last night, we had a long talk before she went to bed, and I even left the bathroom light on, thinking maybe she didn't want to go in
the dark. She seemed to understand, but right on cue at about 3:30 a.m., she was in my room. What's worse, this time she was crying, poor baby. Now, as you can see, she's sleeping in my bed. I love when she sleeps like this. She doesn't do it too often. It so reminds me of when she was a little baby!

So, now I'm wondering if I've screwed myself by keeping her in the pull up to the point where she thinks its OK to go in it during the night?

Should I continue the pull up, or continue letting her wet the bed?

Maybe I should find those special pull ups that supposedly feel really wet and uncomfortable if she goes in them?

Any advice on this topic would be greatly appreciated! Please recall that I'm a single mom with absolutely NO EXPERIENCE raising a kid. Further, the last baby in our family was my cousin Erin...who was born in 1970! Please feel free to comment AT LENGTH!

HHHHEEEELLLLLPPP!

Families on the Move and GymBucks

Hi all,

I've tinkered with the families on the move list. Deleted families who have completed their journey and more importantly...added a family who just arrived in China. Check out Anna Li. The parents appear to be in their 30's with 2 older kids...and are adopting a 12 yr old. The site has music (Christian music) so if you're not a fan or are sneaking at work, hit the mute button before exploring!

Seeing older children finally find a family of their own is one of my favorite things!! BTW, these Cheeto-Mulan photos have nothing to do with the subject of this post. They're just here for your viewing pleasure!

Meanwhile, long-time readers of this site know of my love affair with all things Gymboree. That's pretty much the only place I shop
for T, as I absolutely know what size will fit her. I can't tell you the $$ I've wasted buying other brands at Macy's or the Nordstrom Outlet that don't fit. In fact...they'll NEVER fit. So, I stick with what I know.

Anyway, Gymbo has a nasty little marketing scheme that they use. Its called GymBucks. At certain times during the year, you earn Gymbucks with your purchases. These Gymbucks, which are in denominations of 25.00, can then be used at specified times in the future...usually a month or so away to give you time to lose the damn things! So, when its time to "redeem" the stupid Gymbucks, you feel obligated to do it. Problem is, you have to spend double the amount, i.e. to redeem 25.00 of gymbucks, your total purchase before the bucks must be at least 50.00. So basically, its a 50% off sale.

I am proud to state, that I have $75.00 worth of gymbucks currently burning a hole in my pocket. I'm even more happy to state that for the first time ever...I'm controlling my shopaholic ways and NOT
USING THEM! Ha! Take that, Gymboree! Of course, I admit I've come close (ooops!). I currently have a shopping cart full of stuff totalling 152.87 from their online store. However, I'm refusing to click "Purchase". I keep telling myself..... She has enough clothes...She has enough clothes.... For god's sake, I just scored 7 bags of loot from Aunt Ceci and Gabs, T does NOT need more clothes! I just need to stand firm for another 2 days, then the time to redeem the coupons will be over.

The damn bucks expire on Sunday 7/27 at midnight. If anybody wants them, let me know and I'll email you the serial number and pin numbers. I have one coupon for 25.00 and another for 50.00. You can have one, or both, depending upon what you want to spend. First come, first served! You'd be doing me a great financial favor!

Ears, Tubes, and Stats

First thing this morning I called the doc to get an appt for T. She has been pulling on her ears as if something is wrong. I peeked in over the weekend, and thought I saw something in her ears. Figured it was the tubes finally coming out. Last night I looked again, and saw nothing. Therefore, I figured that the tubes either fell out or she pushed them back in. Either way, I figured the doc better take a look.

Yep, one peek inside and the doc reported that they're lodged in her outer ear...not up where they're supposed to be, and stuck in wax. The doc got out her nifty tools, and seconds later the tubes were history. I suspect that they finally came out due to a recent growth spurt.

Yep, its official and you heard it here first: T HAS GROWN!!!! T weighed almost 30 pounds today, with her clothes and shoes on. Up a whopping pound and a half. What's bigger news is her height. She's been at 36 inches for about 6 months or more. Today, she measured a towering 37.5 inches. We've finally broken the 3 foot mark!

So, all in all, a success! Swim class is coming along nicely and after the doc worked her magic, T wasnt' tugging on her ears in the pool anymore.

Meanwhile, I think I'm going to look around for a martial arts class. No idea what type of class. I'll have to do some checking. All I know is that before KungFu Panda, and especially now afterwards, T can't seem to stop herself from KungFu'ing and Hiiii-Yaaaa'ing all over the house.

If anyone has any recommendations...I'm all ears!

Kung Fu Panda at the Moviehouse

Aunt Dot was over bright and early and chased both of us out of bed. We had a date with a Panda. The KungFu Panda! In theory, T really wanted to go and see the movie...or so she said. Upon arrival, she was somewhat afraid, but allowed us to carry her into the movie and sat in my lap for the first 1/2 hour. Once she got used to it and was watching the movie, she then moved to her own seat. I was interested to see if her weight would actually hold the seat down, and was happy to see that it would, somewhat. We all really enjoyed the movie. We can't wait for it to come out on DVD. Hopefully, it will be out for xmas, and that can be a present.

Afterward, we went off to Johnny Rockets for Burgers and Fries. It's conveniently located across the street from CocoWalk, where the moviehouse is located. Look closely, and you can see Aunt Dot's cast. I kindly cropped out her head, b/c she'd probably kill me if I posted a pic of her taking a big old bite of french fry!

All together a successful day! T can't stop talking about how fun it was to go to the movie. She's getting to be such a big girl! She even claims that she wants to sit on Santa's lap come xmas. Longtime readers will remember her previous responses were always, "No, I don't like that man!".