A Study in Nose Picking

I couldn't resist...

TV: When will the new shows start already????

We spent most of the Fall about 3-4 weeks behind in all our shows. What a busy last few months. All it takes is a few weeks of holiday time repeats and specials to slow down the new episodes, bring in the finales, and catch up. Which is what we've done. And now we have nothing. I even searched through On Demand the other night to find something. On Demand sucks, by the way. We're down to 2 movies at a time on Netflix and 1 of them, unfortunately, is Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure. However, Inglorious Basterds should arrive today. Weee.

We landed last night on Hoarders. This is a super-sad, super-disgusting show spotlighting people who compulsively collect and pile up things until their homes are unrecognizable, filthy, and their children and animals are on the verge of being taken away. I, on the other hand, compulsively throw things away (I have been known to unknowingly in my zeal throw away brand new items, such as a nice Brooks Brothers tie with tags still on). If ever I wanted to farm out the kids for a day and just clear crap out from the top to the bottom of my house it's now. Joe doesn't think he could watch it again. I think I must, but I will be alone.

Moving on...big shows coming up that I can't wait to begin...

1. Lost (Tues, Feb 2) - so far away still...
2. Big Love (Sun, Jan 10)
3. Friday Night Lights (I thought Jan, but it's still airing on DirectTV. Newman.)
4. Archer (new FX animated adult show. the commercials look hilarious) (Thu, Jan 14)
5. Damages (Mon, Jan 25th)

Year longs that we're continuing to watch...

1. Office
2. Parks & Rec - getting better all the time
3. 30 Rock - Can't go wrong
4. Glee - I'm not loving it, but it's decent.
5. Modern Family - Liking it more than Glee, but there are trying a hair too hard. We'll see.
6. Greys - me only. It's really terrible, but I can't stop.

Looks like we'll be watching some stuff on DVD for awhile...

1. It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - About to start Season 3 and really liking it
2. Brotherhood - We need to watch Season 3. I just saw this was cancelled. Bummer...we liked it.
3. HIMYM - This is just me so I'm about 22 episodes back right now. Shelagh calls this show the "Marshall" show. I won't really catch up until Joe goes on his annual ski trip probably. I'm at the end of last seaon and I have all of this season taped and continuing to tape.

Maybe we'll try...

1. Bored to Death (HBO) - I started taping these, but never watched and then just deleted them. I like Jason Schwartzman. It looked interesting anyway.
2. Go back to In Treatment (HBO)? We stopped watching this, but maybe we'll watch Season 2 during this down time.
3. Time to start Battlestar Gallactica??? I'm going to have to work on Joe for this one. It's 5 seasons though, so he'll have to be on board.
4. Time to go back to watch Homicide? We've been wanting to watch this show (from creator of The Wire) for awhile now.

New Interests

Shelaghs in rock design...

Rory's seems to be Entertainment Weekly...A man after my own heart.

Pandora is cool

I love Pandora. I was totally bored with my music selection but not sure how to search for something new. A friend at work suggested setting up channels on Pandora Internet radio, which is free if you haven't heard of it. I'm officially addicted.

Since I can't get Sirius on my iPhone at work, b/c of the annoying charge and lack of Howard which makes me even LESS happy about paying beyond my already paid for lifetime membership; now I can get a bigger range of music. I set up a few channels depending on mood and what project I'm working on (ie the level of concentration required). I'm trying to get a good upbeat dance kind of channel. I'm so lame and out of date that I literally had to start off with Madonna and then add a few things here and there to figure out what the hell is upbeat these days. I added one Black Eyed Peas song I heard on SNL that seemed catchy, but I don't like all their music...it's irritating sometimes listening to Fergies weird voice/accent/who knows.

I'm so pathetic with my ability to keep up with music. I listen to Howard and Martha Stewart too much and when I do listen to music I go right to the channels that play stuff I already know. What I need to do is muscle through Sirius Hits (Channel 1) for a bit and get some exposure to what's going on out there. Big sigh. Any suggestions are welcomed.

The Beauty Center

And, as promised, Shelaghs new beauty center.

Please note the following special touches...

• Windowsill decor - lotion, preschool class picture, flower clock
• Shoes lined up neatly - she got black "party shoes" for her Christmas outfit and then Santa gave her the same ones in silver in the shoebox underneath.
• Clothing hanging to the left of the vanity
• Plastic bag filled with wrapping paper scraps from Xmas that she "just wants to save to use later". I would be grateful for the recycling inclination except that really she is just hoarding.
• The entire surface of the table is covered and the mirror is mostly blocked with all her her little boxes and cases of jewelry and hair implements

She spent a good 45 minutes organizing her space a couple of nights ago and probably the same amount of time getting ready yesterday morning. Those of you that know her well can appreciate what she is putting into this effort.

Christmas

We had a really nice Christmas and relaxing Christmas weekend, mostly at home. The kids were pleased and had fun playing with their stuff all weekend. Kelly ate wrapping paper. Shelagh was THRILLED with her new vanity table as you can see below by her expression even though "I didn't even ask Santa for this??????" I will note that this will be a nightmare for the rest of us...She already takes forever to get ready in the morning. Now she has to perform beauty on herself as well. Come back later for a snapshot of the beauty center she created in an entire corner of her room.

While Rory was thrilled to get the entire Maters Tall Tales Rescue Squad Mater set (see below for his humble appreciation look), he also took this weekend to get into Star Wars (cool). We watched Star Wars 4 last weekend and then watched Empire and Return of the Jedi this weekend. Just in time for his birthday next week...

Miss Kelly is so easy to please...she indulged in snacking on some catalog while the kids opened gifts. She supplemented her meal with some wrapping paper, but managed to avoid those annoying twist ties, thankfully.

Dedicated Help

Who is this strange union-suit-wearing oddity, you might ask? Yes, it is my husband being helpful as ever and determined to find a way to cut shallots without tearing. What you can see is his Christmas get-up and his ski goggles, which despite not being able to see very well, did prevent his eyes from tearing up. What you can't see is the water running and a candle lit in the background as well. I told him my old roommates grandmother swore that by wearing her husbands tighty whiteys over her face she wouldn't tear at all; but he insisted that that would not be necessary and that the orange goggles would do just fine.

Bahamas, Baby!!

Some of the 300+ photos I took in the Bahamas over our quick getaway...

Finally, a good family shot of the 5 of us!

How cute is this??? They truely enjoy being together. They accept each other completely and deal with the others annoyances without hesitation. Their personalities are completely different and yet complementary at the same time. They played under the lounge chair covers for a good hour on our last day just being silly.

Thank you, zero entry pool for allowing my baby to laugh and splash and play while I just shot away...

In front of the MANY fish tanks throughout the resort.

The big kids went to "camp" for a few hours so Joe and I could have a nice quiet dinner out and Kelly obliged by falling asleep as soon as we sat down. She spent most of the dinner face down in the booth.

So many wonderful things about the vacation...the sunshine, the family time with almost nothing scheduled, the kids swimming, watching Kelly watching all the fish, the plane ride, and I could go on and on. It's a tough time to organize and be away, but it completely refreshes you for the holidays!! Thanks, Joe, for pushing this...it was worth it!

Bahamas Part II

Just because she's cute and often pretty cooperative with pictures. She pretty much knows how to pose for me now and it's only a matter of time before "Cheese" becomes one of her first words.
Rory nursing "Bruce 2-eyes" before bed... (Bruce the shark from the same resort 2 years ago lost his eye a few weeks ago. This time he got a new dolphin and named him Bruce again so I suggested perhaps Bruce 2-eyes might distinguish the two and the shark is now Bruce the Pirate or Bruce one-eye).

While out for a stroll, the kids stopped to play drums and wear hats set out by the band playing outside at the resort. It was way cute.

The big kids and I went out to explore while Kelly napped one morning and were happy to pose for me, with puppies of course.

Kelly in the Tub

Luckily, the bath seat strategically covered Kellys girl parts so that I won't get in trouble for posting nakedy pics of my baby :) She's having a ball splashing and cooing and just having a good time in the tub. I couldn't help but film it. Enjoy, my far off relatives!

Cream Biscuits

I've been wanting to make homemade biscuits for awhile now. I'm TERRIBLE with dough, but biscuits are so much less sensitive to screw ups - I've been clipping recipes for several months and finally did it for Christmas dinner. These are Cream Biscuits from smittenkitchen which is, truely, a beautiful food blog that I read all the time. They were SO easy and so good fresh. I like that they take about 10 minutes and that you can freeze them raw to bake anytime in 12 minutes. I think I'll start digging out my clipped biscuit recipes that I've avoided for so long with herbs, cheese, etc. What a good way to get rid of extra cream too.

Bahamas Getaway and Last Xmas Prep

We took a last minute quick vacation with the kids to the Atlantis in the Bahamas. We did the same trip at this time of year 2 years ago right before Rory turned 2. What a fantastic place! We had mixed weather, but it was better than the foot of snow and frigid temps here in Boston. I have over 300 pics so I'll work on getting a few posted this weekend. I've managed to finish cards, calendars (although I still have to mail them), all extraneous gift giving (care givers, etc) and have only a few things left to do:

1. Make Toffee Caramel Cheesecake for Xmas Eve with family (crust done, cake tonight, caramel topping tomorrow). Let's hope I don't eat the Trader Joes chocolate covered toffee candy that I crush and sprinkle on top before I finish the cake!
2. Make cookies and crunchy vegetable snacks for Santa and his reindeer with the kids tomorrow AM.
3. Wrap all the kids gifts (SIGH. I meant to do this a couple of weeks ago and, alas, I did not). We do Xmas Eve in southern NH so there is no way I'm waiting until we get home to do that. Tonights activity along with the end of Season 1 of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.
4. Put together Shelaghs gift - a Vanity table and chair set. This is Joe's job that he will hopefully do tonight.
5. Clean my house for Xmas and Xmas dinner. Only my MIL is coming, but I cannot stress enough how FILTHY my house is. FILTHY. Kelly shoved a dust bunny into her mouth this morning.
6. Organize my Xmas breakfast (french toast which soaks overnight) and Xmas dinner plan.
7. Put aside and plan some time this weekend to cook. I miss it terribly, but I have been so busy that I've only been making superfast staple meals. I'm hoping this weekend to make 1-2 soups, some bread or muffins, and do a Meal Plan for next week (it's been ages).
8. Figure out when the hell Joe and I can escape for an IMAX 3D viewing of Avatar. Plus a few other movies we both have wanted to see.

Kelly Trying to get out of her Stroller

We had 2 Santa events this past Saturday. First we had Breakfast with Santa at our golf/pool club which I had booked a few weeks ago. Then, my father in law invited us to a Santa event run by his little Irish group he belongs to that was a sing-a-long, Santa present hand-out thing, and Mrs Claus "magic show". The kids had fun at both, but the whole time I'm thinking "Don't get too close. Santa has dyed eyebrows this morning and a bulbous nose this afternoon. Crap!" They are still too young, thankfully, to notice. Remind me not to double-book Santa again. It was a LONG day and a bit much I think. Oh well.

The best part was Shelagh walking into Santa #2 event with her Hanukkah book so that "Grandpa can read it to me". I got her to agree to put it in my bag for the time being since this was a Christmas event and not a Hanukkah event. She forgot about it. So it goes when you celebrate both, I guess.

Here is Miss Kelly watching the kids listen to a story from Mrs Claus. I just want to eat her up.

All 3 in a Picture!

Here are the 3 kids snuggling in Kelly's pack n play the other day. It is SO hard to get them all looking at me at the same time, let alone smiling. I don't know how on Earth some people get these perfect holiday cards with all the kids looking straight ahead, smiling or making a 1/2-way decent face, and even looking artsy. Seriously. I don't even DARE take them to Target or Sears or something. Just trying to get our holiday picture I'm jumping up and down and yelling out promises about ice cream and lollipops and extra TV. I get no cooperation, I swear.

Happy Hanukkah!

We've had a very nice first few days of Hanukkah! Here is Shelagh displaying her new Purplicious PJs & Book set (we LOVE Pinkalicious and Purplicious). She has yet to wear the jammies (she tends to save things - best for last mentality - as long as possible before using them), but we have read the book every night since.

Here is Rory is 1 of his 2 pairs of Super Hero jammies he got. Batman and Superman are a big hit. He told me he is "moving on from Cars movie. i need a break, mom." I'm split on this...It's my favorite Disney movie and he's been crazy into it for 2 1/2 years now (really, it's been ALL vehicles and nothing else - no dinosaurs, no superheros, no building toys, NOTHING else!). It's a great thing for him to be into, but I did step into the super hero's aisle of the toy store and it was like a whole new world. So far he likes Spidey, Batman, Superman, Wolverine, and Flash (yes, Flash). A little Iron Man. My next step is to find some intro comics for little kids and see where that goes.

Here is Kelly doing "TOUCHDOWN". Really...she does it on command! Other than trying to grab the Hanukkah candles (burning on the Menorah), she seems to be enjoying her first Hanukkah.

Sirius iPhone App

Bummer. I just sat on the phone with Sirius for a half hour trying to get the iPhone app service set up. We got through the whole deal and then after we're done I asked if the channels are the same as Internet Radio to which he replied "It's all the same, except for Howard Stern". Seriously, people. That is pretty much the main reason I wanted the iPhone app. I mean I do love the music and Martha Stewart, but come on. I can use Pandora for music variety...why would I pay additional $ when Pandora is free???

This is complete bulls*&%. I was so close to getting Stern while at work. Then I'd REALLY not be getting much accomplished but at least I wouldn't have to sit in the car in the parking lot finishing an interview. Newman. Maybe Howard will use this as leverage when negotiating his new contract. IF he even tries. This sucks.

I Love end of year Top Lists

From Pop Candy today I found the Top 10 Best TV Shows of 2009 from Time Magazine and I think I agree with most of them, but not the order...The 3 I wouldn't put on this list are Battlestar Gallactica (I'm dying to see this, but haven't yet. It's over so that's a 4 Season DVD commitment - next summer possibly), Modern Famliy (I've only seen 1 but have a bunch taped), and Glee (I like it and continue to watch, but it's not my favorite show).

I'm thrilled to see Sons of Anarchy, Big Love, Breaking Bad, Friday Night Lights, Mad Men, and the Office/Parks & Rec tie on here. For me, Sons & Mad Men would be numbers 1 and 2 respectively. The Sons finale last week could not have been more intense, heart-wrenching, and just filled with awesome. I LOVE Charlie Hunnam...he is GREAT as Jax, the main character, plus I heard on Stern that he just wrote a screenplay to remake Dracula in an action-adventure format being produced by Brad Pitt. Nice.

I would have liked to have seen Nurse Jackie on here for sure. It did make their Top 10 Best Episodes of 2009, though. That is a pretty cool list and I'm on board with those choices for the most part.

1st McD's Trip. Gross.

It's been 8 years since my last fast food experience. Afterwards
confirmed there was a reason. Holy salt. We left late for our trip to
NJ, got stuck

Sent from my iPhone

Okay, let's finish this now...You can send a post to blogger via email, but you can't edit it. Pain in the ass.

Anyhoo...we got stuck in traffic and were still on the road at dinner time. Joe was heading out with one of our friends we were staying with Friday night, so we had to grab dinner on the road which we hadn't planned ahead to do (usually I'd pack sandwiches). McD's it was. I have successfully kept my kids from fast food up until this point. I've never eaten much fast food, other than a gross stint in high school when I had Burger King now and then. I figure you can always at least find a local pizza place if you are out and about and in need of food fast. Reading Fast Food Nation only added a conscience to my decision.

I realize that they will go to McD's and BK at some point and I've not forbidden it by any means, but it won't be me bringing them. Joe lived on it growing up and through college. He doesn't really eat it anymore, but he likes it still and would probably bring them. So, we bit the bullet and you know, they weren't that into it. Shelagh spotted the Mac & Cheese at Boston Market and got that instead and, although Chicken Nuggets and French Fries are Rorys favorite foods, he only ate 2 nuggets and 1/2 the kid-sized fries. I ate the rest of the fries (okay, the fries are good once in a while). I was PARCHED for the rest of the night, which only allowed me to drink a bit more with my girlfriend that night after the kids went to sleep. Now I've reconfirmed why I don't eat fast food.

I am a Mess

Thanksgiving is over, most of my holiday shopping is done, yet I am still a mess. My family celebrates the holidays in NJ early so that is another reason I do my shopping before Thanksgiving. It's more peaceful, I like browsing without the shopping-rage, and I need to organize my family gifts, Hannukkah and Christmas. We don't do full presents for both holidays, but I do tend to do one bigger item for each kid for each holiday and then little stuff otherwise. We exchange gifts on 4 out of 8 of the days of Hannukkah - usually a book, an art something or other, etc. Anyway, I usually have to spread everything out and divide it up, wrap it accordingly and hide it in a way that doesn't have me winging it at midnight each night throughout December!

We are contemplating a last minute get away this month for the family. It would be great to get away. Let's just hope I finish my stuff soon!

Holidays cards...borderline disaster trying to take a picture of the 3 kids over the weekend without one of them crying at any given time. Looks like separate pics of each kid will be the call this year. We seriously mail out about 150 cards or something crazy like that. My husband keeps in touch with ANYONE HE'S EVER MET! It's nice though to cover our dining room with everyone elses pictures. It prompts me to make plans with friends and try to entertain over the winter to catch up with people we haven't seen in awhile.

Annual calendar...last night I went through over 1500 pictures from 2009 narrowing down my favorite 3-8 from each month. I have to actually put the calendar together now and come up with witty captions. Joe will be good for this part.

Gift wrapping...3 kids, 2 holidays, 2 families of swaps...I'm dizzy.

Okay, I'm going to try to work for at least a few minutes today.

Thanksgiving Debrief

Another Thanksgiving hosting at our house for Joes side of the family. I spent the day before prepping and despite a oven thermometer disaster, all come out fine. A plate of leftovers representing the holiday meal prepared for 19 - 9 adults and 10 kids. Still eating leftovers, by the way...

Here's the break down...

Roasted Turkey from Roasted Turkey with Italian Sausage Stuffing. I loosely based my turkey on this recipe this year, whereas the last few years I've done this to the letter with the sausage stuffing in the bird adding only the brining step. This year, I bought a pre-brined turkey from Trader Joes, which I'm split on, and did the Martha Stewart technique of draping it with a cheesecloth soaked in butter and reisling. I did not stuff the bird and switched up the stuffing recipe. My 20+ lb turkey cooked in 2 1/4 hours and was done 2 1/2 hours early. You should have seen me Googling "Turkey Done Too Soon !!!" while in a panic. Who knew that it would still be HOT almost 3 hours later! It turned out to be a blessing b/c now I didn't have to use my neighbors oven to finish the sides as I expected.


I used a new Bon Appetit recipe for Bacon, Onion, and Rye Bread Stuffing. I was so worried about the state of my oven temperature and the fact that I didn't soak the stuffing overnight (who knows why) that I added in too much chicken broth before baking and it was a little soggy. The next day and onward, though, it's been great! Rye bread and slab bacon was a nice variation.

Honey-Glazed Roasted Carrots and Parsnips were par-roasted before the turkey and finished while I carved. Despite being slightly underdone, the honey/butter/balsamic glaze was really nice. Instead of just carrots and parsnips, I also added turnips and sweet potatoes. Thank you, T Joes for pre-peeled and pre-cut veggies!

Green Beans with Balsamic-Shallot Butter were the only repeat from previous years. This dish is 99% do-ahead with a quick reheat while carving. Still good the next day and better cold!

Mashed Potatoes with Crispy Shallots. I never vary my mashed potatoes. Red skin with skin on. Hand mixer to mash. Tons of butter and sour cream with some salt to taste. Always creamy and buttery. I make them after the turkey goes in and keep them warm in the crock pot all day. This year, I used a Bon Appetit recipe trading out for Yukon Golds, 1/2 and 1/2 for the sour cream and using a ricer instead of the hand mixer out of fear for gummy potatoes. They came out really nicely...The crispy shallots as a topping were probably the most talked about item on the table. I will do those again!

The Jellied cranberry Sauce with Fuji Apple, also from Bon Appetit, was nice although I liked the sauce I did last year with citrus better...could not find the recipe.

Beforehand, I decided to serve a Butternut Squash Soup from Mark Bittmans Bitten Blog on the New York Times online. It wasn't a "recipe", but was on his list of 101 things to add into Thanksgiving...no measurements, no timing. For a wing it type of dish, it came out great! A little thin, but tasted really nice.

Gravy is the bane of my existence. Why do I fear thee so???? As usual I called my mother in law in to take over here. In my defense, my original plan was to do what seemed to be the easy Thanksgiving Gravy from Gwyneth Paltrows GOOP site. I did make the giblet broth after roasting the neck and parts in the toaster oven first. I also was able to pour off the turkey drippings and separate the fat since the turkey was out and cooled to the touch so early. It's really the roux and the texture that freaks me out each year. Oh well. She saves me every year.

I don't do apps or dessert so that helps. I should probably dish out some sides to my siblings in law, but truth be told, I like my stuff the best and would rather cook the whole meal. 3 days of shopping, prep, cooking, and cleanup...Priceless. I love Thanksgiving food.

Holiday Specials by Day by Channel !!

Thank you, Pop Candy, for this link to a nice chronologic guide of all Holiday specials for December. TiVO, here I come!!

The usuals...Charlie Brown, Shrek, Muppets, Grinch, Frosty...and for Joe and I, I'll throw in a Denis Leary Christmas Special along with our beloved Bad Santa - everyone needs a little class-less, foul-mouthed humor over the holidays!