Welcome home Nemo

At some point today i lost my mind and broke one of my house rules - i brought something into the house that poohs and requires care and maintenance. However, if memory serves me correctly, such care is minimal so it should work out ok.

We are now the proud fish parents to a blue and red beta fish named .... you guessed it, "Nemo". Yes - very original, however since the three year old of the house named him, well let it pass for now.

Nemo is now all set up in a pretty bowl with rocks, water conditioner and food. He's happily swimming in circles, contented that he's no longer bouncing around the lap of said three year old, his little cup being shoved into the face of everyone passing us in the pet store.

I had my last beta (named "BOB") while i was till working. He had a little bowl on my desk and livened up the joint a bit. Made me smile to see him when i'd get to work. Bob was my faithful companion for several months - probably close to a year, until a fateful bowl cleaning accident left him scarred and burned.

Yes folks - i accidentally killed Bob. Let us not forget that i am blonde and thus easily distracted. While rinsing his bowl one morning someone started talking to me and before i knew it i had put Bob back into the bowl and started adding hot water to it - instead of the cool tap water i normally used. Bob didn't fare well. I felt horrible - and from that day on was known as the office fish killer.

Anyway - hopefully Mr. Nemo won't suffer a similar fate. He's already put a huge smile on Boo's face and purchasing him took up a large portion of our after nap afternoon time - something i'm always thankful for. Plus he looks pretty cool on top of the kitchen bar, smiling at me while i do the dishes.

Welcome home Nemo.

I want to read it, but....

It's very unusual for a new book to go unread in this house - at least by me. I bought this book almost a year ago and have never opened it - i'm sitting and staring at it now knowing that i SHOULD read it and that i NEED to read it. I just can't quite pick it up and open it.

It's called "Protecting the Gift" and it's a guide for parents in how to teach children of all ages how to stay safe from people that may want to do them harm. I've had several parents recommend it - but i haven't been able to start reading it yet.

Why?

Because by not reading it i can keep Boo safe in my own bubble. I don't have to admit to him that there's bad people out there that would hurt him. It takes something from his childhood and innocence by having him know this. But he needs to know - he needs to know how to be safe and stay safe and how to recognize people and situations that aren't. I just hate it. I hate knowing that pretty soon he'll be in school and around people i don't know. That i can't watch everything from around the corner and know immediately when something's wrong and fix it.

It breaks my heart to have to tell him these things. But at the same time - i can't be the suffocating mom that won't let her child out of her sight even when he turns 16. I know there has to be a balance, knowledge and trust. I just wish it didn't have to start so soon.

Birthday Party Planning

Ok - so since it's less than 3 months away i figured i should probably get on the ball and start planning SOMETHING for Boo's 4th birthday. I've been a mudge with birthday's so far, last year was his first real "party" and we did "Cars" per his request with his playgroup friends at an indoor playscape. It went over well - i did a few decorations and a cookie cake thing since he doesn't like cake. Everyone sang and the mom's got to hang out and have some chat time since the place takes care of the entertainment.

That's right folks, his 3rd birthday was the first time he had an actual party. His first we were at the ranch so it was daddy, mommy and baby. Yes, there were gifts and pictures and we sang. but no cake. His second we were at my IL - they had gifts and my FIL got him a huge "Cars" cake. He screamed bloody murder when we tried to get him to take a bite. He hated the cake, the icing, the whole singing thing. All he really wanted was the car off the cake. I'm horrible i know - but like he's gonna remember, right?

I think i'll do a different indoor playscape this year -a jumpy bouncy place- since it's in mid January and the weather can be so iffy. Most of the kids he knows and that will come are from his playgroup anyway and most of them really like places like that - and it helps with the entertainment factor again (since all the kiddos can run wild before and after the actual party) I looked into it last year and it's not terribly expensive per kid.

Ok - so firetrucks are this year's requested theme. He saw them at the party store while we were looking for Halloween stuff and i think the whole idea stems from the firetruck shaped straw cups. I can live with firetrucks, lots of red and blue. Very little boy - and no "super hero" stuff so far. Here's what i've looked up so far:

as favors:

Fireman badges:[img]http://www.partycity.com/images/full/products-new/174232.jpg[/img]

Fireman hats:[img]http://www.partycity.com/images/full/products-new/174249.jpg[/img]

straw cups Boo fell in love with - kinda started the whole thing:[img]http://www.partycity.com/images/full/products-new/174230.jpg[/img]

tablecover:[img]http://www.partycity.com/images/full/products-new/174241.jpg[/img]

streamers:[img]http://www.partycity.com/images/full/products-new/292736.jpg[/img]

candles- will depend on the typ of cake i get - may do the cookie thing again or brownies since my child doesn't like cake - maybe an ice cream cake or cupcakes? may be easier for kids to just grab a cupcake. plus i can bake, frost and decorate those myself with little topper that could be part of the favors. something like:
[img]http://www.partycity.com/images/full/products-new/174238.jpg[/img]

squirters:[img]http://images.birthdayexpress.com/bexpress/assets/product_images/E57514.jpg[/img]

more candles
[img]http://www.birthdaydirect.com/images/firefighter-pick-candles.jpg[/img]

favor boxes:[img]http://images.birthdayexpress.com/bexpress/assets/thumbnails/E2412FB.jpg[/img]

found some balloons:

[img]http://images.birthdayexpress.com/bexpress/assets/thumbnails/E2412MB.jpg[/img]

[img]http://images.birthdayexpress.com/bexpress/assets/thumbnails/BL324.jpg[/img]

[img]http://www.birthdaydirect.com/images/fire-truck-siren-balloon.png[/img]

[img]http://party-supplies-mall.makesparties.com/images/ProductImages/US529901.jpg[/img]

fell in love with these plates (for the kids / cake - then i'd have additional blue and red plain ones for food):[img]http://party-supplies-mall.makesparties.com/images/ProductImages/CE42-1771.jpg[/img]

these as additional cups maybe (to go along with the straw ones as favors[img]http://images.birthdayexpress.com/bexpress/assets/thumbnails/E2412CU.jpg[/img]

think i'll hit up Party City here in town and see if they have the balloons or can order them for me so it would be less expensive. All i have to do now is hope he doesn't change his mind before January.

My Home Ideas - since the blog idea is stolen....

Yes - i am not above borrowing / stealing good blog ideas, and my friend Jess comes up with (and borrows :grin: ) some good ones. I loved hers on all the things she wants to do with her house. It got me to thinking, about all the things we have done, and all the things we've yet to do. It's been 5 years, and we know we're going to be here a while - even if it's not our "forever dream home" - i want it as perfect as we can afford to get it.

So far we've:
- landscaped the front yard. Pulled out the ugly bushes in front of the bedroom window, put in a front porch, new plants and rock bordered the whole thing around the front
- put a deck on the back of the house
- landscaped the back flower gardens with rock
- created a back yard with grass!!
- pulled down all wallpaper in mater bathroom, had it textured and painted
- put in new towel racks in master bathroom
- pulled up linoleum in kitchen and put down tile
- pulled down wallpaper in kitchen, had it textured and painted
- put up window treatments in front and back living rooms
- painted front living room
- painted mater bedroom
- painted and decorated guest room - redecorated it as baby's room
- put shelves in garage
- upsized our file cabinet
- new stainless stove
- new dining room furniture
- new "TV" room furniture
- purchased wood laminate flooring for front living/hallway and back living rooms
- smoker
- gas grill
- charcoal pit/grill
- 2 sides new fence and new gate
- hot tub
- new chandelier in dining room
- new chandelier in kitchen
-

Things got a bit derailed a while back when we bought some property northwest of here (hubby hunts and fishes and we found 100 acres for a price we couldn't pass up - but the "cabin" needed some work)

Things i'd like to finish at the house:
- rip out linoleum floor in 2nd bathroom, lay tile
- pull down wall paper in 2nd bathroom, texture and paint
- rip out linoleum in master bathroom, lay tile
- new potty in mater bathroom
- additional cabinets, shelves in master bathroom
- paint office / guest room
- additional bookshelves / storage / organization in office
- window treatments in office / guest room
- paint hallway
- rip out carpet and install laminate flooring in above mentioned rooms
- refinish cabinets in 2nd bathroom
- refinish cabinets in kitchen
- additional shelves, cabinets, storage in kitchen
- new fridge
- new dishwasher
- new hotwater heater
- window treatments in kitchen
- new counters (i love the granite that just fits over the old tops, much less expensive since we don't want to pour tons of money into this house)
- more storage/shelves in Boo's room
- new entertainment center in TV room
- new entertainment center in master bedroom
- paint tv room
- update front flower beds, add dirt, mulch and put in some color
- updated back flower beds since my bulbs didn't work
- add flower pots/baskets to deck
- window treatments in master bedroom
- new sofa pillows for front and back living rooms

I'm sure there's more, but there's my start. I went to Ikea a while back and started doing some research on how much a lot of the storage type stuff would cost, especially for the guest/office and Boo's room. Things in there have GOT to get organized quickly because it's out of control and i hate cleaning in there already. I can live with dust (although hubby's allergies can't) but neither of us do well with clutter.

Mrs. Cravitz is alive and well...

. . . or so my hubby tells me - considering i'm now the neighborhood "Cravitz". I don't TRY to be nosey - but i'm home a lot during the day (by product of being a SAHM) and i'm in and out of house while taking the dog out, getting home from the store, etc. So i see things - not that there's really that much to see around here, we live in a pretty quiet area.

But - i know that my next door neighbor's 16 year old son and his friends got home about 3 minutes before his parents yesterday - and the friend's had just pulled the cars around the corner as the parents drove up. I thought it was funny. I also know that the friends were all over there a couple weekends ago while the parents were out of town at one of their daughter's colleges. The best part is - these kids know that i know.... but they don't know if i'll tell.

I also am the mean lady that called the cops on the kids riding mini bikes around the neighborhood. Yup - that was me - i ruin all the fun. I did this because - 1) they were ages of about 7 up to 12 and most were never wearing helmets 2) they were going way over the 25 mph speed limit on our street 3) they were not stopping at the stop sign at our corner 4) i saw at least 3 different people almost hit them in a 2 hour span of time (and lastly - the noise was driving me insane - but i never mentioned that) I wonder if someone else complained because it never happened again after i called and it was becoming a weekend ritual. There are appropriate places to ride those bikes - invest a couple hours with your kid and take them someplace safe to ride - and teach them the correct safety.

I also am the one who keeps walking down the street harassing some neighbors about their two Jack Russel's constantly being out and about. They escape, hang out and poop in my yard, have been found digging under my fence into my backyard, terrorizing the other neighbor's toddlers in their own front yard (a house almost 2 blocks from where these dogs live). They've been aggressive towards my dog while i've had him out (on a leash) in my own yard. Quite simply - i'm tired of it.

I've talked to the "dad" of the dogs 3 times in person. I've left a note. I've called animal control (unfortunately it was a weekend though and they're not in - and it wasn't an emergency so i didn't bother with 911) Today the guy was like "yeah, the kids left the door open and they got out". Well then - TRAIN YOUR KIDS! PUT COLLARS ON YOUR DOGS! DOG PROOF YOUR FREAKIN" BACKYARD! I know these dogs - they're escape artists. They jump, they dig they wiggle through tiny openings - it's what they were bred to do. you don't keep dogs like that when you have a decorative iron fence around your back yard and 3 kids running in and out all day.

I hate seeing animals out running loose. I'm not the person who will adopt all the strays - i just don't have that in me (though i admire people who do) But i firmly believe in pet responsibility. You don't just get a dog (or a cat - and don't get me started on the outdoor cats around here) and they just let them run wild. I don't get it - why the hell did you get one in the first place? Either treat it like family or don't get one . Oops - i forgot - most of the people i see doing this also let their kids run wild as well so ... i guess they ARE treating the pet like family. I just don't like it - and i don't want your pet in MY yard. I understand that pets will get out and run amok on occasion (like the basset hound down the street - but you always see someone chasing him about 2 minutes later) - but 4-5 times a week or every day - that's insane!

So, there you have it. I'm the nosey neighbor. Maybe something really interesting will happen and i can let y'all know. Till then ....

Halloween is now over ... till next year

Well we had a pretty cool Halloween. Maybe a bit low key for some people, but we all had a blast. Boo got to wear his costume a couple times and we did several different events.

Thursday we did our Mom's Club party. Had a carnival type theme set up where all the kids got to play games and win prizes. Everyone came in costume or "halloween" themed and the kids had a blast. Boo came home with a TON of stuff.

Friday we went over to a local park that does a "spook free" thing for toddlers/ pre-school kids, this year is was Dr. Suess themed. That was nice, but PACKED. Hubby got to go with us and took tons of pics of Boo in his Dallas Stars jersey playing all the games. They handed out goody bags - so more stuff (not as much candy, he got a book and noisy maker things)

Then Friday night we turned on the "spider lights" got all dressed up as "Buzz Lightyear" and headed out into the neighborhood. My child won't just say "trick or treat" on no! It's a rousing shout of "TRICK OR TREAT TIME NOW!!" at ever door. Fortunately everyone thought he was adorable and tried to make him take 2-3 pieces of candy or treats! We have a cool neighborhood - and that was only around the back of our block!! Maybe next year we'll venture out a bit more.

We didn't get too many at our house - we live a bit back off the main street so just really a few kids that live in right around us. We did have a couple that looked like their parents were just driving around - but the more candy i get rid of the better! Felt bad cause one little girl was terrified of the spider lights (they're all different colors - obviously fake) but i guess that and all the webbing in the yard had her freaked.

Guess we just got lucky. Boo thinks all the Halloween stuff is funny. doesn't matter how gruesome or icky it's supposed to be - he laughs at it. He loves all the stuff that makes "creepy" noises and thinks all skeleton items are "pirates". I'm thankful for that!

Today we hit some stores for clearance items to add to next years decor. Target didn't have much left - but i finally got my "witch hat" lights and a cool skeleton door mat along with ghost candles.

At Party City i got some hanging ghosts and new plastic "fencing" to add to my little "garden area" up front. This one has spiders on it - it'll go well with the jack o lanterns (especially since a couple of those broke) We'll have some fun next year.

And so it goes - but you can never start planning too early!

It's almost "that" time of year again!

... and for once i don't mean Halloween or Christmas - it's fall, and that means FOOTBALL and HOCKEY!

I don't know quite how it happened, but within the last few years i've become a sports fan. i watch even when hubby's not home, just cause i want to. I watch baseball playoffs (Chicago and Houston) football (Chicago and Dallas - Longhorns if it's actually televised free) and hockey (again, Chicago and Dallas) and get irritated if we're not home to see at least the end of a game. Last year we splurged - we got the "Center Ice" hockey package from our local cable provider so we could watch more games. Insane - i know.

I've always had a passing interest in sports - but no one in my family watched or participated so it wasn't a big thing. I'm a complete clutz and the world's most UN-athletic person so i never played / had a big interest in school. Plus there was that whole being raised to be a young lady aspect my mom had - it was ballet lessons and orchestra for me - which was probably safer for everyone anyway.

As i hit my 20's and hung out with lots of different people - the games were on quite often as the guys would watch / yell / curse and cheer and the women would roll their eyes and pass out more food and beverages. I started picking up bits and pieces of what was going on. I invited myself along to a couple hockey outings and then the place i was working started going to the local ice rink and baseball fields for games as team builders and outings. It was always fun - but i was usually lost in the details.

Then i met hubby - here was a guy that would actually EXPLAIN what was going on, answer all my inane questions and never get frustrated with me for interrupting. We watch together most of the time - but i am the "cool office wife" since i've been know to email him Stars scores during business dinners. For my birthday last year he took me to Dallas for the last Stars home game - the were playing the Blackhawks!! We were 8 rows behind the Blackhawks benches - it was awesome.

This year we have put down our deposit for season tickets to the Stars franchise team that will be housed in Ceader Park - very very excited! it'll be their first year here and we'll get pick of seats for season tickets. we went in with some friends so there will be someone to hang out with as well. And i'll have somewhere to wear my jersey - as will hubby.

I can't wait to take Boo - my little sports nut. The kid obviously got his daddy's sports genes cause he can pitch a baseball, hit a ball, pass a football, dribble and make baskets with a basket ball and putt a golfball. Oh - and he's my little soccer star too - the kid could throw a ball before he could sit up on his own.

So, just another little eclectic thing about me.