Surprise!

Posted in CJ, Family by teamtradermom

My dear ~~old~~ husband had a birthday last week. He turned 50. Normally he wouldn’t be keen on me sharing his age with the world but the half century mark is one that he’s proud of.

I couldn’t let this birthday go by without doing something special. I’ve know since the summer that I wanted to plan a surprise party for him but it took me a while to figure out just how I would do it. It all came together though and the big night fell last Saturday, the 10th (his actual birthday is the 15th).

The “rouse” was that we were going out to dinner with my family, which we do on a regular basis anyway so it would be nothing suspicious. The guests would arrive around 5:30 and we would get there at 6 for the surprise! Believe it or not, we were able to keep it a surprise too. There were a couple close calls in the weeks leading up to the big day but all were covered up so that he didn’t suspect a thing.

The day of the party was the most stressful for me and CJ did not help matters. I had created a video slideshow of old and embarrassing pictures that would run during the party. It took me until the night before to get it finished so I needed a way to get it to the restaurant on Saturday. We had plans to meet up with some friends Saturday morning for brunch so I suggested that CJ just go alone while I stay home with Isabella (and therefore use that time to drop off the DVD). He said no and insisted we all go. I tried again to convince him he should just go and enjoy some time away. He kept insisting so I finally relented.

I texted my brother-in-law and he said he would come to the house, pick up the DVD and drop it off for me. I told him I’d leave it between the glass front door and the storm door.

About an hour later, while we were at brunch, he texted and said the front door was locked. I had forgotten to unlatch it for him. Damn.

Plan B. When we got home and after I put Isabella down for a nap, I casually mentioned having to run to Target for milk and bread. He said he’d do it because he needed to pick up a prescription anyway. NO! I’LL GO! I insisted and he relented. *sigh*

Finally it was time to head to the party. We got there and he saw my family at a table (which was the plan) and headed toward them, into the room reserved for us. Suddenly he saw 40 or so people waiting for him and he was indeed surprised!

Isabella was too!

I was so happy to see so many people able to come out and help us celebrate. I know he was tickled too!

His sister and brother-in-law even made it all the way from Michigan! A delightful second surprise!

After some socializing and laughs over the slideshow, it was time to sing and have cake!

I hope someone was ready with the fire extinguisher…

Isabella had fun running around with some other kids but then started getting tired and cranky.

So my parents took her home so that we could stay and party! The last guest left around 10:30 p.m. and then we headed over to Two Fine Irishmen for some live music and dancing.

All in all it was a super fun night that I know CJ will remember.

I’m just glad it’s all over. All the sneaking around and withholding of information was starting to get to me!

We spent the next day with CJ’s sister and BIL, showing them around town.

We went to the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge and walked all the way across and back (even though it was a cool rainy day).

Then we went to The Upstream Brewery to dry off and warm up with a few beers.

And monster poopy diapers. Isabella had 2 big ones during our visit and wouldn’t you know, we only had 1 diaper. CJ had to run down the street to the gas station and get another package. I was the good wife and changed both diapers, being judicious with the wipes as we were low on those too.

It all worked out and we had a really nice day.

Here is the video slideshow from the party. Enjoy and thanks to all who came out to help us celebrate!

Tee hee…

**Most of the party shots courtesy of H&J Creative Studios!

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Happy Birthday CJ!

Another Day Older

9Mar2012

Bits and Pieces

Posted in CJ, Family, Isabella/Munchkin, Miscellaneous by teamtradermom

I know I haven’t posted in a while. Life’s been busy. Guess it’s time to play “catch up”!

1. I took a blow to the face in volleyball last week. Got hit right on my left cheek.

This picture was taken after about 5 days after it happened and it’s a nice greenish yellow color. Still a tad bit tender but nothing show stopping.

2. CJ and I went out on a date last weekend! Woot! We tried a new restaurant and it was fabulous!

OK so CJ looks annoyed in this pic but he wasn’t. I think I caught him right before/after the smile. Anywho, the place was Mark’s Bistro and it’s located above some shops in the Dundee neighborhood of Omaha. We had a great view from our table.

More importantly, the food was great! I had their famous macaroni and cheese. I mean, how could I not order that?

It didn’t disappoint! CJ got a salmon sandwich of some sort that was also very good.

After dinner we went to see “The Fantastik’s” at the local community theatre. It was in their small “in the round” theatre and we had front row seats. At one point one of the characters handed me his prop – pruning shears – and asked me to hold them. Turns out that actor was CJ’s high school theatre teacher! We went backstage afterwards and saw him. He said, “Hey, you were the one holding my shears!” It was a really fun evening and nice to get out for a bit!

3. Isabella helped me make Thin Mint Brownie’s on Sunday.

Samson was very interested in helping too…

There ended up being more licking than actual helping, but that’s ok!

4. I had to take Samson in to the vet today. He’s been limping around off and on for a few weeks. They think he has a sprained ACL. Doc gave him a steroid shot and some pain meds. Said if he didn’t stop limping after a few days on the meds, then they’d have to put him under and do X-Rays and other tests to see if there is a tear or something. Here’s hoping the meds and some rest do the trick!

5. Today I got to tour the construction site of the new office tower my company is building. It was super cool to see it all up close and personal!

Safety first!

This is one of the main hubs where all the electrical, HVAC, etc. run through.

Careful not to get to close to this guy!

Anyone have marshmallows?

Interior of the windows which are made of special glass. Don’t ask me to explain what’s special about it…I wasn’t listening that close. It’s environmental stuff.

Then we got to ride in this “Man Lift” all the way to the top. Our guide kept saying, “Man life…er, Woman lift…er,…Person lift.” Dude, just call it an elevator.

Now for the view from the top (11 stories up)!

Hiya!

I tell ya, I do not know how construction workers get those hard hats to stay on. I must not have a head shaped well for those. Mine kept slipping no matter how I tightened it. As you can see the vest didn’t fit real well either. But hey, it wasn’t about looking good, it was about safety!

6. As I was tucking Isabella in to bed tonight, she held on during our usual nightly hug for an extra long time. She rested her head on my shoulder and closed her eyes while I rocked her. I could have stood like that forever. After a few minutes, she pulled back, looked me in the eye, and then gave me a kiss and a smile.

There ain’t nothing better than that.

Nighty night!

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February Update

Random Thought Friday

Random Thought Wednesday

5Mar2012

February Update

Posted in Goals by teamtradermom

It’s the time again ladies and germs. Time to check in and see how I did on my resolutions for the year.

The shortest month of the year has felt very long indeed. To be honest, I really didn’t spend much time thinking about resolutions. We were so super busy that I pretty much just did what I had to do and called it good enough. However, much of these have sort of been ingrained in my head already so I was able to check a few off without too much hassle.

Love it when that happens!

Here are the items that we had success in.

1. Do at least one “special” family outing (i.e. the grocery store doesn’t count)

We went to a Super Bowl party and Isabella had lots of fun there. She was also a big hit during the halftime show.

We had friends over to celebrate Valentine’s day, which was also super fun.

We went to the Polar Plunge, which was quite the experience for all of us!

We were also invited to a neighbor’s birthday party, which was great. The more we can expose Isabella to other kids, the better. She’s getting better at playing WITH other children rather than just playing NEAR them.

2. Find window treatments for all windows

Got some valances hung up in the playroom, which was a huge win. Next room on the list: the master bedroom. At this rate, doing one room a month, we’ll be done by the end of summer!

3. Organize and decorate the front room

Big win! I participated in a blogging challenge that spurred me on to getting this room in tip-top shape! I’m super pleased with the results!

4. Add Built in shelves to the living room

We’ve started talking about what we want and I’ve been scouring Pinterest for ideas. Does that count?

5. Move Isabella to a toddler bed

We haven’t made the transition but she seems to be more and more ready. She’s taken to climbing up on our bed and laying under the covers, pretending to sleep. She always climbed up before but mostly to jump around and be silly, never to actually rest. I was *this close* to letting her take a nap in our bed one day but it didn’t end up happening.

6. Research pre-schools

As a matter of fact, yes! I have to give CJ all the credit on this one. He wrote down all the pre-schools and Montessori’s in our area and called them one afternoon. We still need to schedule visits and what not but this was a great start. Go Ceige!

7. Attend one professional event a month

Done! I attended an event all about the planning of the Omaha Marathon and it was really interesting. I work in technology so any time I can hear about projects in other industries it’s fascinating to me. All the details that have to be ironed out are mind-boggling.

8. Save 5% of paycheck and apply 5% to credit card debt

Not so great. I did initially set money aside in savings but then due to an accounting error on my part (I wrote in the ledger that we had deposited money but I forgot to actually do it), needed to grab it back to offset overdraft charges. I was so mad at myself for that. I did pay off a chunk of the credit card so I guess that’s the silver lining.

9. Daily prayers

I’ve been about 50/50 with this one when it comes to formally sitting down and talking with the Big Man. I do however have random talks with him throughout the day so I should give myself more credit.

10. One healthy habit a month – February’s was to read a daily meditation

Thanks to an app on my phone, it was pretty easy to do this one. I made myself stop and read every morning when I got back from the gym. It only takes a minute and helps start my day off right!

Oh and I’ve continued my January goal of eating one fruit/veggie at every meal. It’s truly become a habit now!

11. Attend 4 cultural events a year

I have 3 words for you – Barry freakin’ Manilow!

(my cube wall has become the Barry shrine)

12. Attend social events with friends

Super bowl party, girl’s night out with some gal pals from work to watch “The Help”, and Barry!

And these are the resolutions that we didn’t do anything on.

1. Create sitting area within master bedroom

2. Unpack boxes in basement (we actually ADDED boxes…)

3. Potty training

4. Find a church

5. Date night once a month – we had 2 date nights planned but one we canceled due to crappy weather and one turned out to be a girl’s thing (not couples like I originally thought). However, we have one on the calendar for March that will go on no matter what!

In addition to the above, there were a couple bonuses this month. For one, I found a new doctor (my previous GP had moved on to bigger and better things) and went in for a physical (I’m healthy as a horse)! I had been putting off getting a physical for years (though I do go to my OB yearly). After that I decided it was time to get back to taking a daily multi-vitamin and added fish oil supplements to the routine (given my family history of heart disease). Re-adopting these healthy habits feels great!

I also cleaned out our kitchen cabinet with mixed up dishes in it and added in a new set of china.

AND we overcame Isabella’s bedtime nonsense of fighting us when it came time to go to sleep. The Sleep Fairy + tough love = success!

How are you doing on your New Year’s Resolutions?

If you liked this, you might also like:

January Update

2012 Resolutions

2Mar2012

I {Heart} Barry

Posted in Friends and Fun by teamtradermom

There’s no maybe about it. Those old songs did bring back the old times and MADE ME WANT TO STAY!

If you have no idea what I’m talking about then you’re probably not a Barry Manilow fan. If that’s the case, I feel bad for you because it’s SO MUCH FUN BEING A FANILOW!

Me and 6,000 of my closest friends were on hand Wednesday night to witness the showman himself in action. OK fine, I didn’t know all 6,000 people. I only knew like 35 of them.

Let’s rewind.

Back in mid-January a co-worker mentioned that Barry was coming to Omaha at the end of February and tickets ranged from $7.99 up in to the $100’s. We all giggled at the thought of a Barry Manilow concert and then thought, hey wouldn’t it be fun to sing and dance the night away to the likes of Copacabana and Mandy? The more we talked about it, the more appealing it became. Particularly if we only spent $8 a ticket! That’s all the more money for food and booze!

Being the social butterfly and “woo” person that I am, I decided to send an email to female co-workers who may be interested, to see if we could get a group to go.

Little did I know 30 people would jump on board! People were not only interested but also signed up to bring their friends, moms, sisters and one even brought her husband!

So I bought us all tickets together and we were off to the races.

However, we had a lot of time on our hands between buying the tickets and the actual show, which got us to thinking.

T-shirts. We need t-shirts.

We didn’t just want to show up to the show. We wanted to make a statement while doing it. So we tossed some ideas around and then decided the best course of action was to keep it simple. We bought some iron-on transfers, 30 white t-shirts and made up a simple design that said “I Red heart Barry”.

We also planned out a dinner so that we could all ~~stuff our faces with pizza~~ eat before the show.

Finally Leap Day rolled around and the time was upon us! I actually wore my t-shirt to work, classed up with a red scarf. I’m loud and I’m proud!

Dinner was fun and really helped us all get amped up for the show! While there, we took a picture of everyone wearing their “I Red heart Barry” shirts.

Notice the photo bomber in the background? Lovely.

Then it was time to head to the arena!

Our seats were actually not too bad for being super cheap. We were in the last row of the first “bowl area” in the arena.

We found our seats and got comfie. Out of nowhere, an usher comes up and says he has 7 tickets on the main floor if any of us are interested in going down.

Wait, that sounds bad. He wasn’t propositioning us. We didn’t have to “go down” to get the tix. He just handed them over.

So to the main floor we went!

We no sooner got to our new seats when the lights dimmed and all of a sudden a spotlight hit the stage. The curtains parted and there he was – Mr. Manilow himself! The crowd was on their feet and going wild. We all assumed there would be an opening act so when it went right in to the main show, we were thrilled!

And what a show it was!

He sang our favorite songs, told all kinds of stories, showed old footage and even showered us with streamers.

You know those people at concerts who sit right behind you and are loud and obnoxious? The ones who yell things to the artist, dance like crazy and knock in to you, kick over the chairs next to you and sing at the top of their lungs?

Yeah, that was us.

To be honest, I wasn’t really a Fanilow when I decided to get a group together for this concert. I thought it would just be a good excuse to have a girl’s night. But I’m a Fanilow now!

Never mind the crazy ladies you hear in the background proclaiming their love…

Barry was so charming, funny and personable. He told us a story of how his Russian grandfather knew little Barry had music in him and so would take him to Times Square (they lived in Brooklyn) every Saturday. There, they would go to a booth where you could record your voice on a 45 record. He wanted 4-year old Barry to sing “Happy Birthday”. 4-year old Barry thought grandpa was nuts. He played us one of the actual recordings and you could hear his grandfather talking in his Russian accent and encouraging Barry to sing! Little Barry just jibber-jabbered, unsure what to do. It was really neat to hear that scratchy recording.

Perhaps my favorite part was when he sang “Mandy.” He left the stage and it went dark. Then on the video screen they showed old footage of Barry making his television debut singing Mandy on “The Midnight Special”.

The audience became mesmerized by this young kid singing a song we all know and love when suddenly the spotlight hit the piano on stage and there was current day Barry, in a white jacket, and he started singing a duet with his younger self! At first he was singing off of what the video was doing (not sure if on purpose or because he couldn’t find the same rhythm) but then all of sudden they synced up and were in perfect unison. Even at age 68 his voice sounds great and together they sounded like one voice. It was so neat and actually gave me goose bumps.

He talked too about the hip surgery he had a few months ago and how he was laid up in bed for 2 whole months. Though he walked around the stage a lot and even did a few hip shakes (sort of), you could tell he wasn’t moving as freely as perhaps he used to. He looked particularly stiff as the show drew towards a close. He could hardly bend over for his final bow.

But never-the-less, he gave it his all and his voice sounded fantastic.

I apologize for my off key singing in parts….

We had a lot of fun playing with the streamers too.

On our way out I grabbed some of them and wrapped myself up. I wanted to take Barry home with me!

To add to the excitement, our group was mentioned in the newspaper review of the concert!

“They gathered in groups of three and four [or 30], towed along husbands, wore T-shirts that said “I Barry” and waved signs that said “Pick me” hoping to get onstage.”

So there you have it – my night with Barry Manilow. In all seriousness, it was one of the best concerts I’ve been to. The singing was great, the songs were fun and he really connected with the audience. Hey, the man’s been doing this for decades….he’s a pro and it showed.

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28Feb2012

29 Day Organizational Challenge–All Done! {#29DOC}

Posted in Goals, House and Home by teamtradermom

Well, it’s the end of the month and therefore the end of the 29 Day Organizational Challenge I participated in (you can recap my progress here, here and here).

I’m really glad I participated in this challenge as it forced me to get moving on a room that I was continuing to put off. It now looks SO much better and I’m really pleased with how it turned out!

What room did I organize?

I chose Isabella’s playroom because it’s the first room you see when you walk in the house and it has a lot of “stuff” so it needs a good system.

Here are the before pictures:

Eeh gads.

I’ll give you that I took these pics on a particularly messy day but unfortunately, those messy days were becoming more the norm. With no real system in place, cleaning up seemed like such a laborious task. One that I was often too tired to bother with.

My goals with this room were pretty simple. Basically, I wanted to simplify, organize, coordinate with the adjoining dining room, and do it all without breaking the bank. I’d say I achieved all those goals, which feels great!

Here are the steps I took to ensure I completed the space in the 29 day timeframe:

1. I started out by making a plan of everything I needed to do to get it done, making sure to include my goals. I wanted to set up a course of action that would make sense and be doable. It wasn’t anything complicated. Literally my plan looked like this:

GOALS:

1. Simplify so that the room looks less cluttered

2. Use vertical space better

3. Unify color scheme with dining room so that the 2 rooms complement each other.

4. Visually separate the 2 rooms while still allowing for easy movement between them.

5. Keep costs down – try to use what we have first before buying

TO DO:

1. Paint cube organizer shelf white or use contact paper or find another shelf

2. Paint the canvas storage bins blue and yellow OR buy cheap new ones (around $15 for a set of 2)

3. Empty both LEGO bags into one of the canvas bins. Use remaining plastic bags for storage in basement.

4. Give each bin a distinct purpose and put labels on them

5. Put stuffed animals in ottomans and use the toy box for storage in basement

TO BUY:

1. Bench/ottoman

2. Possibly new canvas bins if painting doesn’t work

2. Next step was taking inventory of everything in the playroom and decide what to keep and what to purge (either trash or donate). Items that were kept were either relegated to storage (if they were something Isabella had outgrown but we wanted to keep for the next kid) or remained in the playroom.

3. Then I bought some new storage bins and ottomans and figured out a system of what goes where, labeling each one.

4. I also used a shelving unit we had in the basement to reorganize and “pretty up” her books, which also gave us more vertical space to play with.

After that it was a matter of re-evaluating how things were working and make adjustments. One thing that was bothering me were all the medium to large sized toys that were sitting out with no real “home”. I looked around and realized that the buffet we have in the dining room was full of junk and would be a perfect place to hide toys not in use. All I had to do was clean it out!

This picture gives you an idea of how the drawers were being used before.

Most had random toys, books, games, tablecloths, etc. in them, with no rhyme or reason. I went through each drawer and got rid of, moved or organized what was in them. Here’s that same drawer after my cleaning.

I was actually able to free up enough space to put several of Isabella’s bulky toys inside the cabinets of the buffet!

When the doors are closed, you wouldn’t even know there is a Sesame Street house and pirate ship in it!

After putting up some curtains, laying down a rug and finding some decorative items to finish off the room, we were all done!

Now for the big reveal!

Here are the “after” shots of the whole playroom!

I love how it still looks open and airy, yet there is a clear separation between the 2 rooms. It also feels grown up in all the right ways (like with the curtains, valances, rug, canvas bins and ottomans) while also having just the right amount of kid appeal.

(It’s a good thing Samson coordinates with the color scheme of the room!)

I also love how the dining room remains its own space yet the 2 rooms tie in together nicely (and the buffet hides some toys and coloring books)!

Close up of the bins/containers along with some decorative elements on top of the shelf (frame and flowers from Goodwill, lamp on Clearance at Target)

Finished bookshelf (2 items on top shelf on 80% off clearance at Kohl’s, yellow frame on clearance at Target, blue candle moved from another room). The Muppets paintings were actually done by my grandfather and given to me when I was 3! Such a cherished treasure!

What was the hardest part of the challenge?

Getting started! At first it seemed really overwhelming. I’m the type of person who wants to do it ALL right away but didn’t have the time or energy to knock it out in one afternoon. But once I made my plan and had a good place to start –as well as a vision of upcoming steps – it made it seem much more doable.

One of my proudest moments during the challenge…

…was when I saw my 2-year old daughter using the bins and figuring out where things went. Thanks to the labels having both words and pictures on them, when I told her to help clean up, she knew that her little cars went in the “little toy” bin and her blocks went in the “blue blocks” bin. She also thinks the “secret compartments” in the buffet are super cool. That’s when I knew the effort had been worth it and that this system would work!

If I had to give anyone advice as they begin their organization journey, I would say…

Make a plan and start small. As I said before, getting started is the most daunting part because it’s hard to know what exactly to do and what will work. Take a few days to think about it and write down a plan of action – including what you want to change in the space, what you want to get rid of, what you need to add (e.g. containers or labels) as well as what your final vision is. Also include the baby steps you’ll take to get there. Once you have that, the rest just falls in to place!

There you have it! A finished playroom – organized, tidy and still beautiful!

Next up for me? The kitchen pantry! I already got a head start today by snagging 5 bins from the Goodwill (for $.39 each)! Look out pantry, here I come!