miscellany monday

Well I don't know about the rest of you lovelies, but I'm already looking forward to my next day off -which is not until December 23. How. Will. I. Make. It? (I have weekends off but I'm not counting those.)

It's Monday. Miscellany Monday to be exact. Linking up with lowercase letters!

1. Friday night, we went Downtown (Minneapolis) to celebrate my Husband's, Cousin's Birthday - so I guess my Cousin too! First of all, I do not enjoy "going out" downtown.

Let me list a couple of reason's why I do not like weekends Downtown:

• Too much drama 
• I work downtown so it may remind me of work
• Cabs get spendy - no one wants to drive home
• The bathrooms smell like urine
• I recently viewed the cities "Violent Crimes" map by precinct since I work downtown. Scary stuff.  Happening all within blocks of me every day. Gun shots, assaults, rape. To make it better, I tell myself, "they are probably all sleeping during the day. I'm safe."

So it's rare that we do that but we did, all for the love of Corey. Here are a couple of pictures from Friday night at Bootlegger's.

From L-R: SIL Molly, the Husband, Corey the Birthday Boy, Me, Jess (BIL's GF) and BIL Chad.

Not sure why we all look pink, I stole this from one of their fb's.

The party started at 9pm,  and we were the first one's there at 9pm. Ha, ha! That's why no one is around us in the photo above. 

L-R: Husband, Corey, Me

The name of the band playing that night was, no joke, F*cking Sick. They were pretty good too! They were a 2 man show. The lead singer played the piano and the other guy sang and played drums. I would definitely see them again if I was a roadie type. The name still kills me. Ha, ha!

2. Thanksgiving photos are starting to appear online. The following one cracks me up. Jack at the table watching everyone play dice. Jack got into the game. He would yell whenever they all yelled.

He'll be hustling by the time preschool starts.

3. Also on Thanksgiving, we tried "The Popcorn Trick". Have you seen this one floating around online? The one that leads you to believe that if you have 4 cell phones, you can pop 4 kernels of corn? You just need to have all phones ring simultaneously. Well my friends, that is a lie. We tried.

Fail.

Happy Monday!

Fly yyyyyyyy, Fly yyyyyyyyy

Every parent thinks their kids are the best at everything right?

I took this video of my girls singing in the car yesterday en rout to Thanksgiving #2, not because I think they are the best singers but because I think it's funny.

Unless you have been blessed with vocal talents (I am not), you have found yourself in this situation a time or two. Your in the car singing, it gets to the really high notes - when your not really a soprano. Something like this ensues...

I better get back to my internet surfing work. Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving Day!

Ding, dong.

Kids keep your life interesting that is one thing I know for sure. Teenagers? They are barely human. Take last night for example...

My oldest is a Freshman in High School (if your trying to do the math in your head, I started early, I was 18 when I had her). They are now officially on Thanksgiving Break. What does that mean? Well, it means sleep overs, loud music, laughter, drama and food consumption up in our house. Last night I get home from work to find 3 girls at the kitchen table huddled over the computer. Of course, as soon as I get home, they retreat to the bedroom. It's the norm. Whatever.

Within 10 minutes, the text messages start. Yes, she is one floor up and has to text me, it's how she communicates whenever she wants something. "Can they sleepover?" she asks. Wait for it. Here comes another text "or wait, can I sleepover there?" EVEN BETTER!

Then they all come running down the stairs...

(This is from another night, but just gives you an idea of what I'm working with here.)

"Can you drop us off at the band concert? It's at the High School." - Says Teenage Daughter

"Why do you want to go to the band concert, you never wanted to go when you were IN band" - I reply.  Immediately I am suspicious. If it sounds to good to be true, it probably is.

"Mom... puhleasseeeeee." - Teenage Daughter begs.

Fine. I give in against my better judgement.

Drop the girls off at the band concert. They offered to take Jack (my 15 month old) with them but I declined that offer. When they asked why he couldn't come, I politely said "no, if you get kicked out of the band concert, I will not have my 1 year old participating in such activity."

"Mom, we are not going to get kicked out!!!" she says as they run into the school.

After the drop off, we head to the place I like to call hell grocery store to pick up our Thanksgiving goodies, which was just about as fun as it sounds. When we get home, I immediately start checking Twitter for any updates or clues as I like to call them of to what my daughter and her friends are doing. Creepy? Maybe, but I know what my daughters is up to, her friends do, who they are with and like to think it helps guide me in the decision making process. Too much?

Well, my Daughter is aware of my private eye skills and made her Twitter private, but her friends, not so much. Like the private eye I would like to think I am, I start investigating. They are at the band concert and who knows what they are actually doing there.

As I'm investigating, I see one of her friends tweets "Tell me why we just embarrassed ourselves major time and ran like the biggest retard ever."  Oh great. What did they do. I'm assuming it was at the band concert but that's just a guess.

So I send the texts asking when they need to be picked up, etc. To which she replies that her friends parents are getting them soon. Ok. They are sleeping over at one of her friends houses. Ok that works.

We start cleaning, getting ready for bed, feed the dogs....

While twitter stalking, I look up and see my Son, sitting near Stella (our Yorkie) while she eats. Watching her eat - or so I thought. I get up to go move him, away from the hungry dogs. Not that I think our dog will bite him, but who knows. He likes to pull their hair and such so I'm just taking extra precaution.

I turn the corner in the kitchen and there he is. EATING dog food with Stella. Just sitting there right next to her, CHOMPING on dog food. Jack sees me and starts smiling. Juicy dog food saliva, pouring out of his mouth. Yuck. Gross. Disgusting.

I yell for my husband to get over here now! He comes running, I'm sure prepared for the worst and sees our son eating dog food. He takes the dog food away, to which does not go over well with Jack. He screams, wanting more. Yuck. After I take a couple pictures, get the baby some water and banana puffs to get the left over dog food remnants out, we get the little guy in bed.

Fast forward a couple of hours, around 11pm. The husband and I are having a glass of wine watching Jersey Shore. (No judging here.)

All of a sudden, the door bell rings like 6 times, and the dogs start barking like crazy. My first thought is we are about to be chopped up by a serial killer who is standing outside our front door, 10 feet away from where we are sitting. My Husband jumps up to look out the door as I am shushing our dogs before they wake up the sleeping baby, who will not be so easy to get back to bed. He opens the door and walks outside to see who is out there.

Meanwhile, I'm going over in my head what can happen to my husband outside, with the possible serial killer lurking and what actions I would take to defend my family. No joke. Phone in hand. I grow a pair and walk outside.

No one is out there.

We were ding, dong, ditched! Where the eff did these little jerks go so fast? They HAD to be hiding behind a car or neighbors house. 

What kind of stupid kids are we dealing with here? That was ONLY cool to do in what, Junior High. I never did it in High School.

After I know we will not be homicide victims, I text my daughter to inform her about the juvenile delinquents and she replies back that someone just did it to them at her friends house too. Now her friend lives 4 blocks away, so its entirely possible that these jerks ran there after our house.

5 minutes go by, as we are watching our front yard, a pizza delivery man pulls up.

Are you serious? I walk outside and say "where are you delivering that to?"

Poor guy probably thought I was off my rocker.

"Ummm, this house." he says as he walks across the yard to our neighbors.

Again, he must think I'm certifiable now. So I must let him know why I am the crazy lady outside, barefoot, at 11:30pm at night.

"Sorry, we were ding, dong, ditched so I'm looking for teenagers running around, then I see you and think they ordered us a pizza. Promise you I'm not crazy." I say.

He laughs, gets in his car and leaves.

We wait out the little beasts a while longer and decide to get to bed. It's midnight on a work night. I fall asleep trying to think of how I am going to catch these little kids. I will wear all black, have a paint ball gun or something and wait for them. Maybe after a couple of glasses of wine. Wait? Can I get in trouble for shooting them with a paintball gun? I don't own one but maybe it's a good investment? This behavior seems to be a regular occurrence the past couple weeks and I'm ready to defend my home.

Homie don't play that game!

Need a fast app?

I found the World's Best dip today. Well, a co-worker brought it in for "Snack Tuesday" (I needed that like I need another set of thighs...) It's a cranberry-orange dip. So good. Use Wheat Thin Stix  to dip. So easy. She picked this up at the the Rainbow Foods deli. Rainbow here I come!

This is all I got today girlies, this week in Advertising is nutz. Yes, with a z.

Baby Booty Shakin'

Ok. One thing I cannot get enough of is baby booty shakin'.

Last night, we watched part of the AMA's. Katy Perry performed, Jack immediately started dancing.

So, here you go. My booty shaker - Jack.

If you watch this video, you'll notice:

1. I left our blinds crooked. Gah!

2. Our coffee table is padded for safety purposes.

3. While filming ("filming" used loosely as it's just my iPhone), I tried to motion to my Husband to get his feet off the super-protected coffee table, only he thought I was telling him to "look at Jack", wrong. Move your stinky feet please. (I love you babe.)

Hosting Thanksgiving?

Yikes.

Yes, we are going to give this a shot.

No, I have never cooked a turkey and the thought is scaring me just a little.

I'm all over Pinterest trying to find some good ideas.

When am I going to have time to do this?

Oh crap.

Thank you Vets!

Today, I recognize all the Veteran's out there. Past and present, living and dead. Thank you! The courage and selflessness are truly admirable. So again, THANK YOU.

I have one Veteran near and dear to my heart, my younger brother Jason.

Jason enlisted in the Army in August 2001 at the tender age of 17 under the delayed entry program. I had mixed feelings when he enlisted. I was proud, scared, nervous and excited for the journey he promised to take. We didn't come from a huge military family. He had never mentioned before that he was even thinking of doing this. As far as I knew, he wanted to go to college. In fact, I tried talking him out of doing this. Pleaded with him. Our family had always just been there. No one ever moved away. We all made it to every holiday, birthday party or family function.

Then came that horrible, horrible day we all know as 9/11. I was glued to the television just like the rest of the country, uncertain how this would affect my brother.

July 2002, the day after he turned 18, he was on his way to Boot Camp. Alone, to embark on this new journey not knowing a single soul. We didn't hear much from him while at Boot Camp, he sent a few letters but that was pretty much all that was allowed. I thought it sounded awful, he seemed to be proud and dare I say enjoying it.

He ended up going into the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, KY. I remember him calling me and telling me the history behind this group. He was proud to join them. I was proud of him.

Thanksgiving and Christmas were different. Jason was missing. It was weird, it felt hollow.

Then he got his orders. He was being sent to war. 6 months after my baby brother joined the military, he was going to war. Something I never thought I would ever have to say or think about in my lifetime. He asked if I could drive down and bring home some of his personal belongings since he didn't know when he would be back. I would also be able to watch his Air Assault Graduation. So, early February 2003, I made the drive down to do just that. The Air Assault Graduation wasn't quite what I had pictured. They were supposed to be jumping out of helicopters, but all of the helicopters were in transit to the Middle East. Everyday, supplies by the truckload were on their way out of our country, far away.

I spent that long weekend, driving around the military base, spending time with my brother. I asked him why the dirt was red in KY, he laughed and said he wondered the same thing. I remember there was an ice storm that was supposed to come. The whole city shut down, because of  the possibility of a storm? Being from MN, never having anything shut down, ever, we laughed. He stayed in the hotel room with me. We talked, we laughed, we didn't talk about what was to come. A couple of nights, he woke up screaming. Nightmares. This broke my heart. Why did this have to happen? Why. He just put on the brave face for me, never letting on any insecurities he may or may not have had. I remember us going to get breakfast and he was in uniform. The waitress comped his meal and told him God Bless.

I remember him showing me his chemical warfare gear. I had no clue what that even meant. He explained and put on the mask. Holy crap. This happens? This is happening.

I asked him what if I just took him home? Now. Tell them you changed your mind. Please. Please. Please. He explained he would then face charges and be sent to prison so that was out of the question. I just had to pray to God, that my brother would make it home alive.

Two weeks later he was gone. No way to tell where exactly. No phone number to call him at. Just hope. Hope that he was ok. Hope that he would be ok tomorrow, next week, next year.

I watched CNN all the time. The war was consuming my life, my families life. I would talk to my Mom many times a day, asking if she had heard from him. No word. My Grandma would call me at work with updates. We watched for any sign of my brother. We figured out most of the troops were in Kuwait. Thousands. March 2003, came the attack at Camp Pennsylvania in Kuwait. At first, the news outlets were saying they were being attacked, the sirens were going off - the chemical warfare sirens. My mind ran wild. I was sick to my stomach. The feeling is helpless. How do you go to sleep at night, knowing that your brother is being attacked? Bombed. Shot at. Turns out that attack was by a U.S. solider. Throwing grenades at his own troops.

Then came Shock and Awe. It was like living a nightmare. Soldiers were dying. My Brother was right there in the middle of it.

He called home when he could. When he found cell phones in the bombed buildings he was searching. We knew he was in Iraq. He would write letters. Telling us how sad it is to see people walking miles with just their clothes on their back. All they had. He felt sorry for the people. To have to call that place home.

At some point the tone of the letters changed. The kids who used to run after them, hugging them, taking candy were now shooting at them. They would wave flags at them, then drop them and start shooting. He had a can shot out of his hand. He had to watch for road side bombs.

Months went by, we got word that he would be able to come home from Iraq before Christmas. Then have to go back to that war torn country. I was so happy to see him. To have him home, alive if even for a few days. He didn't talk much about bodies, or bullets. He seemed the same but different. I couldn't quite pin point it. Something was off. He wasn't the same. Then again, how could you ever come back the same person after seeing that. How do you return to "normal" life.

You don't. That "normal" isn't the same. You see things much differently.

While he was home with us on leave, Saddam Hussein was captured - it was December 13, 2003. We celebrated, we hoped this would end this war. We hoped he would be home soon. He didn't think it would quite work that way. He still had to report back - to Iraq. Where there was very much still a war going on. His friends, his other family.  We had to say good bye again. He was eager to get back to his brothers. He felt bad even coming home at all.

He came out of Iraq once again, alive. Which is more than thousands of other Soldier's - who did not have the same fate. I watched and wept for those who did not come home. For the Mother's, Father's, Wives, Husbands, Brother's, Sister's, Children and Grandparent's who would never see their Solider again.

Many years later, my Brother home safe, out of active duty, I still weep. I weep for the dead, also for those quite alive - who are forever changed. I weep for the families who send-off, for families who welcome home. I weep for those affected by PTSD and hope for healing.

Freedom is never free. ~Author Unknown

Share Your World, Thursday

This week has been crazy town for me. 

Example #1:

I some how managed to post my response to Carolyn's blog as a blog post. No idea I did that until I got the following google chat....(no worries I deleted said response, should have kept it up though. We all need to laugh at ourselves right?)

carolyn: um....

you somehow posted your comment on my blog to your blog

LOL

Dottie: wahhh

haha

Dottie: is it a new post?

carolyn: yeah

it's on your blog

and not in my commetns

Dottie: wtf

haha

hahaah

this is really funny

carolyn: BAHAHAHAHA

Me needs the weekend STAT.

Moving on...

Linking up with the very sweet Jessica over at Stilettos & a Fishing Pole.  Annnnd it goes a lil something like this:

1. What style do you tend to lean towards when decorating your home?

Modern. Sometimes too modern for my own liking. Take for example my gray walls in the living room. I now want them much lighter, maybe a beige. My Husband cringes whenever I suggest such changes. Love you babe!

2. I never leave the house without...

Thinking "did I lock the door?" It's like a fear almost. 

Me: I know I did, well pretty sure I did. Wait. Maybe I didn't. Shoot. Better go check. (Enter thoughts of robbers waiting for me ready to chop me up and take my coin collection.)

P.S. I do not have a coin collection, but I guess I thought it sounded funny? What else are the robbers going to take? The TV? Boring.

3. I love to pamper myself by...

Pedicure, massage, hair did, throw in some shopping that doesn't include Boogie Wipes, diapers, tampons or food.  Oh yeah, that glass of CHARDONNAY. A nice long bath that does not include constant banging on the bathroom door from my very sweet baby boy. I'm not picky. Any of those will do.

Fill in the Blank Friday!

Linking up with Lauren for Fill in the Blank Friday!

1.   My favorite thing about this week was/is  Halloween! There is nothing like the excitement that kids have waking up the morning of a holiday and Halloween was no exception. Making memories ya'll.  Oh. Another favorite thing, getting my pillow from SugarBoo Designs that I won from PB&J Stories giveaway! Pretty much rocks my socks off. Thanks Pamela for doing this awesome giveway! 


Since I've already shown pics of my kiddos all dressed up, here's the pillow. I promise you it's perfect!

and the perfect spot for it to go, under my new picture wall:

2.   Colder weather makes me want to move to warmer weather even more. Do you hear that snow gods? If you want me to be happy, stay away. Pretty please?! I am really not looking forward to my winter commute that consists of an hour to hour and half on the road to go 8 measly miles. Yes, I just said "measly". 


3.  Three things that make me terribly happy as of late are quality family time, at least 8 hours of sleep and Jalapeno Popper Dip. What can I say? I'm a simple girl. 

4. If I could only wear one kind of shoe for the rest of my life, I'd choose ballet flats.  Never thought in a million years I'd say that. I used to HATE flats. Heels only. I guess with age comes comfort. Crap, I sound middle aged. I promise you, I'm 32. 


5.  My personality type is  I had to google this. But discovered... ESFJ (Extravert, Sensor, Feeler, Judger). I understand if this means nothing to anyone. Ha!


6.  I have a serious problem resisting snacks of any type. Sweet, salty you name it. I also cannot turn down this question "would you like a glass of wine?" 


7.  My favorite color to wear is black, black and black.




Have a great weekend girls!!!

Share Your World, Thursday!

I was so excited to do this link up when Jessica over at Stilettos & a fishing pole came up with this! Thanks girl!

So ready or not...

1. Go back five years, would you have pictured your life as it is now or would it have been different?  If so, how or why?

2006. Seems like an entire lifetime away for me. I had a 9 year old little girl and a 2 year old little girl. I was 27 years old and miserable in my marriage desperate for a way out. I had previously been working part time, so I could spend as much time with my girls as possible. I loved that I could do that -spend so much time with them, I will forever cherish those memories. But, I had to think about my future. Our future. Taking my first step on the very bumpy road that would become my life, I got a full time job. (I knew if I were ever wanted to really get out of that relationship, with my girls, I needed more money and a full time job to support us.) So I did just that. I got a full time job and began to plan out in my head how I would make my dream a reality. Don't get me wrong. I was not being beat up every day but this was definitely not a healthy relationship. I despised him. I made him sleep on the couch or would have the girls sleep with me so he would have to sleep there. There is so much more I could say that would take me forever. Just know it was not an ideal relationship and I did not want my kids to grow up with such memories.

I had always dreamed of having "Mr. Right" come into my life and my girls too. It seemed so distant and impossible at the time. But, it came true. It took alot of work, sweat, tears and of course good friends, but I made it happen. I am now married to the love of my life. I wouldn't want it any other way. Whoa, loaded question much?!


2. In a perfect world with no attachments, my career would be...
Attending to my family. Yes, I would love to be at home with my kids. With our dogs. With my messy house. I would also like to start some charity with something to do with helping pediatric oncology patients... Give back, teach my children and feel good about myself.
 I would also have dinner ready for my Husband at 5pm every night (you said in a perfect world) and have my kids all snuggled in their beds by 8:30pm so I could wind down with the love of my life over a glass of wine (or a bottle). In a perfect world, sigh.


3. Name one thing you do {or don't do} that the world may think strange of you.
I often find myself so deeply invested emotionally in tragic stories. I read them, then can't stop thinking about them. It consumes me. Makes me sad. It's like I almost try and think about "what would I do" if that was me. Debbie Downer anyone? I could spend hours watching CNN or Nancy Grace. Don't even get me started on Casey Anthony. 

Photo dump

There is no rhyme or reason to this. This is a photo dump from my iPhone. 

Ready? Ok.

Random photo #1

This is from Oktoberfest obviously. That kettle corn was to die for. Seriously. Since I am part German, it would only make sense that I have a natural talent for Hammerschlagen. I hope you all have played this before. We loved it. So much in fact, we are making our own for the cabin. Then we can play all summer long. I know you all want to come play!

Here is a photo of said game...pretty much get one "motion" to hit the nail in. Up, then down. With the opposite end of the hammer. Not easy. You can see all the marks from all the misses. Totally fun though.

Random Photo #2

Ella & Jack admiring the stash of candy Ella raked in Trick or Treating. Jack looks so proud! Ella's eyes look spoooky!

Random Photo #3

 These are the standouts we ordered, recently purchased from our family photo's we had taken in August. This photo is crap but, they look pretty sweet in our living room. That is a red couch and gray walls. Woot, woot! My 1 year old loves looking at himself too. He just keeps pointing at the pictures with his middle finger (pointed down, so no, not giving me the bird...yet.)

Random Photo #4

Grandma would say "Bless his heart". I love this photo. My little Frankenstein wouldn't let me take a picture with the hat on while he was awake, so I did what any other Mother would do. Ran for the camera and hat immediately after he fell asleep. Then I thought of how funny it would look if I put the candy bowl in his lap too. Priceless!

Disclaimer: Why is it so dang hard to get the right spacing on here. I promise I'm not an idiot. I just can't get it right to save my life right now. So I give up!

Jalapeno Popper Dip? Yes please.

You guys HAVE to make this dip. Seriously. For dinner even if you have to. I did.

The Best Jalapeno Popper Dip Ever

(makes 4 snack sized servings)

Ingredients:

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese - room temperature

1/2 cup mayonnaise (I used light)

1/2 cup cheddar cheese (grated)

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese (shredded)

1 (4 ounce) can sliced Jalapeno's (pickled)

1/4 cup Panko Bread Crumbs

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese (shredded)

Directions:
1. Mix the cream cheese, mayo, cheddar cheese, 1/2 c. Parmesan cheese and jalapenos in a bowl.

2. Pour the mixture into a baking dish. (It doesn't "pour" as much as it splats or thumps.)

(Ok. SUPER bad lighting on this one. It's not green, I promise.)

3. In a separate small bowl, mix the Panko bread crumbs and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. (This is your topping!) Then sprinkle over the dip.

4. Bake in oven at 375F, until bubbling on the sides and golden brown on top. About 15-20 minutes. Serve with tortilla chips. ENJOY!

Seriously.