turkish delight.

sonny & uncle cheese

This is me resisting the urge to post the classic picture of a giant plate of Thanksgiving food (you better believe i took one) You also won't find any pictures of me preparing any food (cause i didn't) If you are thinking you might see a picture of me blowing out a candle or two, think again (for this marks the 28th year my birthday was overshadowed by driving and packing :) But if you are dying to hear a good throw up story, then i am your blog, cause I've got tons (since my family has the gag reflexes of champions, or rather non-champions).

We seriously have someone throw up at every holiday. Like this year on Halloween, I reminded my kids all night not to eat too much candy or else they would get a tummy ache. When we got home...Adam threw up (from eating too much candy). And let us not forget this time.


So this Thanksgiving when cousin Ashlyn burped at the table, Elyott was so grossed out, she heaved every last morsel she had just eaten back onto her plate (such a considerate thrower-upper) When cousin Ashlyn saw this, she went to the bathroom to toss her own cookies (this is also a girl who one time barfed at her own fart smell). I don't make this stuff up guys, luckily it doesn't even phase me any more. 

team Boo ♥'s you

team Boo gets cheesy.

Thank you Geoff and Stacie (yes, they have real names!)...we will surely be back. As for the rest of you...well you haven't seen the end of us yet (cause doi, you read our blog) but also because we have a fun thing we are making with these pictures, but it's a gift...so it's top secret until christmas. shhh.

team Boo ♥'s you

Family ties

There is nothing in this world that I am more grateful for each day than my family. Family is everything. So I was sad when I saw on the news two women camped out front of Target TWO days before black Friday (missing thanksgiving) in order to be first in line to get a cheap flat screen tv. Not because I don't love myself a little technology, cause I do. How else would I watch 30 rock...and family guy...and Modern Family...recorded on DVR...in HD :) but my point is those things are nothing if I am not snuggled up with my lover, and only after I've soaked in the wonder and craziness of my kids each day like a sponge. Without them, a giant flat screen is nothing but a fat waste...a really awesome and hilarious fat waste ;)

Hope you all enjoyed your families(no matter it's shape or size) more than anything else this thanksgiving :)

p.s. My kids dressed themselves. Thankfully Mario goes good with everything.

t when tea ate.

{by Lang Photographers}

Unfortunately for you, in this picture my thighs got their immodest birthday wish. Takes every girl back to when they got their first pair of spanx (*sigh*). I promise this is the most you'll ever have to see of them. And even though this pic is almost crotchtacular, i am going to post it anyway because i want to remember those sparkly legs when I'm old and fat. happy birthday to me.

team Boo ♥'s you

(I know you've gotten snippets of the Dikefest 2010 photo shoot, but now its been so long that the build up is getting stupid and you'll be like "whats the big deal? its just your same old stupid face." The hold up is that I am making a christmas book for my parents with them, but maybe i'll just show you now anyway??)

The last dandelion.

Sheamus is such a face melter. And he really doesn't even try. He has no ulterior motives, and is so very thoughtful...he's kinda like a Winnie the Pooh movie personified. For example, yesterday we went to the park to take our minds off a particularly serious "brain injury" of his. After his brain "healed", he played a little in the grass and a few minutes later brought me what he described as the "last dandelion of the season." It was sweet enough in itself to offer to me, but then before we blew it out together, he wished for "mom for a new camera"...and that's when the total face meltdown was complete. (This can only be something he has overheard and remembered how much i long for) Where did this kid come from?

team Boo ♥'s you

cry baby?

Sonny has been really sad and snotty. Now that he's 9 1/2 months he finally decided he'd like a tooth razor to slice my very important areas. This is a series of pictures where he is actually crying, but since he has such a happy reputation to uphold, appears to be smiling. Which I think is pretty messed up and adorable at the same time. Don't be fooled though, this kid is very sneaky. He crawled off the bed twice this week AND almost face planted down the stairs. I think i was busy playing Mario Brothers on DS with Sheamus or something...

;)

team Boo ♥'s you

are you my mother?

Elyott and I ran in our local 5 K on Friday. Naturally, we wore our matching purple pants (i've come a long way with purple, i even own two purple dresses! it used to burn my eyes, but now i'm okay-ish with it) We made the mistake of bringing our borrowed spaz dog, who when let free is okay with other dogs...but when on a leash, has something major to prove (like short guys who buy monster trucks). This picture was taken about 4 seconds before he "ferociously" ran face to face with a giant wolf dog that could have swallowed him whole. Griff doesn't know he's small. He's like Lenny from Mice and Men, but instead of being giant and too strong for his own good, he's a rat dog....who is in denial.(did i seriously just write about a dog twice in one week!?!)

Anyway, the race was so much fun to run with Elyott. I surprised her that afternoon at school with a spaghetti lunch and garlic bread (her fave). At the race she pretty much wanted to hold my hand the whole time, which at first i thought would be really uncomfortable while running (plus my hands get oddly sweaty even when i'm doing non exercising things, like playing X box with Adam) but it was actually pretty sweet. Just me and my girl running along, holding hands for encouragement, noticing all the kinds of runners that were there, and looking for daddy (who was all flustered while carting both boys, snacks, diaper bag, jackets, a boat sized stroller, and that same nutbag dog....tables are turned sucka!) for three miles. I really like that girl.

It would be so fun if she ended up enjoying running as a hobby. So far she likes most things opposite of me, but i think that is just a daughter vs. mother thing (?) This time I "lured" her in with the well played matching purple pants (shes a sucker for "twinsies" ;) If not, then thank you sweet girl for humoring your dear old mother :) You are my best girl.

team Boo ♥'s you

robo hair flip

Geoff made me do it.

I was like the tin man...and head twirling was my "oil can".

p.s. this dress is a vintage find (by my sister). 

sorry charlies.

team Boo ♥'s you

and i was like, baby baby baby ooooooh

My sister steph finally had her little muchkin! (That makes two for her now) Hopefully people will stop thinking I am the oldest sister since i have "all the kids". I'm the youngest sister, and technically my other older sister has one fetus more than me (cause she is preg and i'm not).

It's because i'm so wise.

Happy Birthday "Sweetie Peetie"

(aka: peter christopher kubal

born 11/15/10)
We've almost gotten all the "pumpkin eater" jokes out of our systems...or the stroking of his little head saying "pretty bird" (the duct tape headed bird on dumb and dumber was "peetie")...almost. There are no free passes into this family...everyone has to pay their dues ;)

team Boo ♥'s you

when funny trumps sanitary

We are taking care of my parents dog for a little while.

Now, I'm not really an animal person, but it's been ideal because he's pretty mellow and already fully trained. Which is good cause dogs that chew up poopy diapers and stuff really make me want to abuse things. Typically i keep Sonny and doggie pretty separate cause I don't really trust dogs (also dogs lick their privates and my baby is clean and i kiss his face with my own mouth) but you know me, I can't resist a genuine defenseless babies moment...

worth it.
I'm pretty sure i would have fully thrown up.

Don't fret, i sprayed Sonny down with the hose afterward ;)

team Boo ♥'s you

sneaky peaky...

So i can't divulge too much yet

but here is a preview of Dikefest 2010
with more to come...

p.s. Steoffrey is as cute in person as they are on their blog.

Don't be jealous now that we are basically best friends.

p.p.s. Don't tell them i said that. They don't know yet ;)

team Boo ♥'s you

team picnic

I have been neglecting my computer. I haven't even read Nie in like a week and a half, so you know I'm for real. but i've been taking lots of pictures (do iphone pictures count??) Here are a few i wanted to share before too much time goes by and then it's old news and I feel like i'm breaking the blog rules even though you'd never know ;)

*Fun fact about this picture: I am wearing the same pants that I was wearing in the previous post....Onlyyyy it's been like three years and i'm still trying to pretend like they fit me. I'm pretty certain I haven't bought new jeans in those same three years (besides the maternity ones that were basically ripped from my quivering fists when my sister was nine months pregnant and needed them more that me, who was wearing them 7 months post-pardom :) The jeans i did have all died and became cutoffs/nevernudes (except for "old blues" above) at which point I started to pretend leggings were pants (sorry legs) but then it got too hard to disguise my court ordered ankle bracelet so I alternated between thigh high boots with ripped fishnets, and the more classic metallic hammer pants (for when i needed to be grown up, you know for court and stuff)...wait nevermind, that's Lindsay Lohan...i hate when I get us mixed up. 

Anyway, needless to say, when I found my old blue-ies I was SO relieved...I wore them for the rest of my life. 

oh ya, we had a lovely picnic.

team Boo ♥'s you

lets get physical.

Some of you have wondered how I can stand to run on the treadmill for such far runs. the short answer?...the people watching.

I love the diversity at the gym. There's the middle aged men I'm praying won't get on the machine next to me (as their BO is most likely to burn my eyes). The Chatty Kathys on tandem machines...how do they have SO much to say? Their lives must be very exciting...the scandals! (i'm just jealous they have a friend) Then there are the sweet old folks that work out in jean shorts and fanny packs, so cute you could just put 'em in your pocket. 

But my absolute faves are the "My-ipod-Makes-Me-Invisible" ladies:

-We have the J-Lo-Stair-dancing-Mamacita: complete with side kicks, dips and twists (in her defense, she has the booty to pull it off)

-The Tammy-Faye-Motivational-Listener: tons of What Ever Happened to Baby Jane make up, a giant perma grin and makes an occasional shout out of "YES!" or, on a good day, an "I am capable!"

-And the newest to this club is the lady i recently saw lying on the ab rolling machine. Before she began, i watched in delight as she spread her arms out wide (as if conducting an orchestra) waved them around a bit and then drove it home with a few fist clenches (for added drama)...then casually went on to strengthen her core. I imagined she was listening to Celine Dion...so, the fist pumps made sense.

I'm sure you are expecting me to call them a bunch of nut jobs, and based on my first reactions to their public displays, you'd be right. But actually, i'll tell you why I cherish these ladies so much: I truly adore their lack of inhibition. You may or may not be surprised to know that i am actually pretty retarded on the spot. It makes for really awkward pictures, missed opportunities to make memories with my loved ones or meet new peeps. I have a family photo shoot coming up on friday with Steoffrey and i can already feel my elbows and knee caps fusing together...my face has prematurely started to contort into various drunkface positions (caught between a split decision to make a cute or silly expression)...

exhibit A:

Like those at the gym, i wanna not care who is watching me and the judgements they may or may not be passing. Who cares right? I realize judgements are a way of life. It is one way we gauge how we will behave, the people we want to be, and the environment we want to experience. The tricky part is avoiding getting carried away with this. My goal is to (after i stop giggling) avoid assuming those ladies were crazies, and instead applaud their right to go with what they are feeling. And also avoid judging myself too harshly. The truth is I'm gonna look like an idiot sometimes, but if im gonna do it, i gotta do it all the way...or not at all. Otherwise all i'll be left with is a rigid sense of self (aka: a stick up my butt) and a couple of fugly pictures. 


But...you'll probably still never catch me salsa dancing solo on a stair stepper in the middle of a gym, because seeeriously.

;)
team Boo ♥'s you


p.s. I get so annoyed at blogs that are novels...when did i get so long winded and "thinky"?? If my blog were an outfit right now it would be Michael Scott in an unintentional woman's pants suit. I'm ready to be legwarmers again.

Grow up and blow away

Elyott: "mom, what was your name when you were little?"


Me: "i always used to wish it was 'Sally' but it was 'Carolyn' just like it is now"


Elyott: (giggling in disbelief) "mom! That's a grown ups name!!"


Me: "well if you want to get technical, it's more like a 55 year old lady bus driver's name."


Elyott: (completely ignoring how right i was) "I wonder what my name will be when I grow up..."

team Boo ♥'s you 

I am actuallly nice (when i'm not hungry)

(this photo has nothing to do with this post by the way, he just has a way cuter mug than mine ;)

All this self horn tooting has my hands all clammy and uncomfortable. Its time to get back to making fun of myself where I belong ;) But since last month was Suck-tober, let's make November a month of food, and love, and magic...and turkey! (Novem-binge?) Yes I know that's food twice, but it's Thanksgiving and my birthday month, and we all know birthdays are just a fancy way of disguising another reason to over-eat.

I love a good tradition. The problem is, I always have a gajillion ideas at once...and then the second someone holds something shiny in front of my face, i basically forget my own name, let alone the things i was trying to implement. I try to be consistent but I'm pretty A.D.D. all the time with some things. Like "one time" when i started a project in the middle of the walkway (my favorite place to start them) and spread my stuff all over then got up to get scissors but got distracted and instead organized the junk drawer that they were in, then went to throw some of it away but the wipes were sitting on top of the garbage so i decided to clean all the smudges off of it, and then felt hot so i went to get a soda with ice and then just sat down and blogged about it instead. 

...but i digress. I digress hard.

SO what is my November tradition? is my project still on the floor? does this post even have a point? Yes! it's about being less scatterbrained than i was last month. And reminding the world why im glad to be in it!! WAIT...no, it was supposed to be about traditions?! Crap! (see what i mean) Soooo, what are yours? (I'm only asking so i can copy you :)

team Boo ♥'s you
vote for me HERE!

dressed to kill.

I tried to get my family to dress up as cavemen (not the annoying Geico kind...ones like this adorable family) but i lost to the marketing genius that is Nintendo (brought to you and crafted entirely by handsome bob/dad).

Name that Carebear...

I had a hard time figuring out how a cavewoman should pose...

team Boo ♥'s you

get a CLUE?

Elyott told me while we were painting in our backyard: 

"Mom I don't even think you understand how much i love to paint!...i think the decorating part of the party is way more fun than the actual party....Do you think they will put me in charge of this job when you are too old to do it?"

She knows just how to make a momma proud

(be careful what you wish for my love ;)

So as i said before our theme for this years halloween party was "Clue" (see last years circus freak theme here), so inspired by this artist we painted 6 foot portraits of each character to adorn the walls of our "mansion" (aka. basketball court) with some up lighting to make them extra spooky...

We constructed a giant pvc chandelier in the center of the room over a long dining table decorated with plenty of moss skulls and candles. And centerpieces of giant weapon cards (like in the board game) with green moss on silver chargers and #10 cans. I envisioned the chandelier to have WAY more lights strung on it but we had to pare it down based on "blown fuses"...stupid electricity is always interfering with my ideas ;) The perimeter of the room had carnival style games that represented each of the rooms of the mansion with the stage as the "scene of the crime." Unfortch i only have the capacity of my camera phone to capture the mood but hopefully you get the idea...

team Boo ♥'s you