Tonight, the Boston Celtics were playing the Golden State Warriors. Now, I suck at the Celtics game. Luckily for me, my friend (Andrea) does not. Andrea was lucky enough to score some tickets to tonight's basketball game through her other friends. And it just so happens that I was also lucky enough to be invited to go with her tonight. Thank you Andrea!
Needless to say, I had a very enjoyable night. Raising a one year old and a three year old, I don't get to go out that often. So it's always nice to be able to go out once in awhile and just have fun. And it's even more fun when the hometown team lays a smackdown on the visiting Warriors 94-86. It wasn't the prettiest game, but at least the Celtics played a lot better than the time I went with my friends (Cass and Marc). Paul Pierce and Jeff Green were the stars of the game.
And it was definitely fun to hang out with Andrea again. Among the topics of discussion that came up during the night was finding a sugar daddy for Andrea. That led to discussions about whether or not she would drop her friends when she found a sugar daddy. And there may have been a brief discussion about the tactile sensation of making out with someone considerably older.
One of the more interesting things I found out today was that Andrea enjoys photography. I always knew that she liked taking pictures. I just didn't know how much until she mentioned that she wanted to start a blog on photography. I thought that was interesting. Of course, I also thought that the fact that she had a book about the New Kids on the Block interesting as well. Apparently, she was a closet fan. And naturally, I'm curious about the book myself. Best boy band ever.
All in all, I had a great time just hanging out and having fun. Thanks again Andrea.
Saturday, March 2, 2013
I Suck At Celebrating My Daughter's Birthday
My youngest daughter (Bridget) turned the ripe old age of one on Wednesday. Happy birthday Bridget! Too bad I suck at celebrating my daughter's birthday.
Normally, I would attribute Bridget getting hosed on a lot of things due to her being the youngest. After all, I don't have nearly as many pictures of Bridget that I do of her older sister (Briana) when Briana was one. We didn't do photo books for Bridget like we did for Briana. We didn't have a professional photographer take Bridget's picture. Flat out... Bridget gets the short end of the stick.
As it so happens, the weather happened to be quite nasty on her birthday. With the downpour of rain, it made doing something on her actual birthday difficult. For anyone curious, I think we took Briana to the zoo for her first birthday. See... Bridget gets hosed.
So in a somewhat spontaneous act, we decided to take Bridget to spend some time with her godparents (Karlene and Tommy). Unfortunately, that meant traveling to the great white North known as Lowell in the pouring rain. Luckily, there's a lot to like about Lowell... or so they will have you believe.
Anyway, I would say Bridget absolutely enjoyed seeing Karlene and Tommy. Heck, she shuffled her feet around their house more than she does at our house. She's definitely walking more. Likewise, I think Karlene and Tommy were excited to see Bridget and Briana.
We didn't really stay too long in Lowell. Karlene and Tommy were gracious enough to make us dinner. We had discussed a few things like having a work blog. One of Karlene's friends has one. I was a little curious about that because I wondered how does that come about... does the company just add that to your job duties? And really, what about work is blog-worthy?
All in all, it was a fun time. I think Bridget and Briana enjoyed the time as well. So it was definitely worth driving in the pouring rain to celebrate Bridget's birthday with her godparents. And to be honest, I think collectively that is where Bridget did not get the short end of the stick: the godparents. After all, Briana's godparents were supposed to take her out for her birthday of last year. It has almost been a year and they haven't gone anywhere... and her next birthday is in a few weeks.
Regardless, happy birthday Bridget!
Normally, I would attribute Bridget getting hosed on a lot of things due to her being the youngest. After all, I don't have nearly as many pictures of Bridget that I do of her older sister (Briana) when Briana was one. We didn't do photo books for Bridget like we did for Briana. We didn't have a professional photographer take Bridget's picture. Flat out... Bridget gets the short end of the stick.
As it so happens, the weather happened to be quite nasty on her birthday. With the downpour of rain, it made doing something on her actual birthday difficult. For anyone curious, I think we took Briana to the zoo for her first birthday. See... Bridget gets hosed.
So in a somewhat spontaneous act, we decided to take Bridget to spend some time with her godparents (Karlene and Tommy). Unfortunately, that meant traveling to the great white North known as Lowell in the pouring rain. Luckily, there's a lot to like about Lowell... or so they will have you believe.
Anyway, I would say Bridget absolutely enjoyed seeing Karlene and Tommy. Heck, she shuffled her feet around their house more than she does at our house. She's definitely walking more. Likewise, I think Karlene and Tommy were excited to see Bridget and Briana.
We didn't really stay too long in Lowell. Karlene and Tommy were gracious enough to make us dinner. We had discussed a few things like having a work blog. One of Karlene's friends has one. I was a little curious about that because I wondered how does that come about... does the company just add that to your job duties? And really, what about work is blog-worthy?
All in all, it was a fun time. I think Bridget and Briana enjoyed the time as well. So it was definitely worth driving in the pouring rain to celebrate Bridget's birthday with her godparents. And to be honest, I think collectively that is where Bridget did not get the short end of the stick: the godparents. After all, Briana's godparents were supposed to take her out for her birthday of last year. It has almost been a year and they haven't gone anywhere... and her next birthday is in a few weeks.
Regardless, happy birthday Bridget!
Friday, March 1, 2013
I Suck At Calling My BFF
On Tuesday, I had parenting duty while Karen went out to celebrate her sister's birthday.
Nothing particularly exciting ever happens while I'm on parenting duty, unless you get amused by my two year old (Briana) like when she picks her nose and tells you she found a raisin. So without a doubt, one of highlights for my Tuesday was when my BFF (Kerry) called me. Kerry had to call me, of course, because I suck at calling my BFF.
Back in my "gossip queen" days, I used to enjoy talking on the phone... strangely about nothing. It seems that as I have gotten older (because I'm a grumpy old man these days), I tend to shy away from the phone... and social media. I'd shake my fist at Facebook if that would do anything.
My days do seem busier now with Briana and my one year old (Bridget). And unfortunately, I sometimes forget to do the little things like contact my friends to at least let them know I'm still here once in awhile. Needless to say, I was pretty ecstatic to talk with Kerry on Tuesday.
Interestingly enough, the egocentric Facebook was one of the topics we had chatted about over the phone. Kerry was just becoming a little tired of the "me". Among the other topics of discussion were her upcoming trip to Mexico and her attempt to donate blood. The real reason she actually called, however, was not to discuss Facebook, Mexico, or her blood, but to find out what Bridget's middle name was.
I'm not sure what she needed Bridget's middle name for. Regardless, I had a great time talking with Kerry. It was almost like I was the "gossip queen" again. So thanks Kerry! I had a fun time chit-chatting.
Nothing particularly exciting ever happens while I'm on parenting duty, unless you get amused by my two year old (Briana) like when she picks her nose and tells you she found a raisin. So without a doubt, one of highlights for my Tuesday was when my BFF (Kerry) called me. Kerry had to call me, of course, because I suck at calling my BFF.
Back in my "gossip queen" days, I used to enjoy talking on the phone... strangely about nothing. It seems that as I have gotten older (because I'm a grumpy old man these days), I tend to shy away from the phone... and social media. I'd shake my fist at Facebook if that would do anything.
My days do seem busier now with Briana and my one year old (Bridget). And unfortunately, I sometimes forget to do the little things like contact my friends to at least let them know I'm still here once in awhile. Needless to say, I was pretty ecstatic to talk with Kerry on Tuesday.
Interestingly enough, the egocentric Facebook was one of the topics we had chatted about over the phone. Kerry was just becoming a little tired of the "me". Among the other topics of discussion were her upcoming trip to Mexico and her attempt to donate blood. The real reason she actually called, however, was not to discuss Facebook, Mexico, or her blood, but to find out what Bridget's middle name was.
I'm not sure what she needed Bridget's middle name for. Regardless, I had a great time talking with Kerry. It was almost like I was the "gossip queen" again. So thanks Kerry! I had a fun time chit-chatting.
Monday, February 25, 2013
I Suck At Celebrating My Daughter's Birthday
On Saturday, Karen and I celebrated my daughter's first birthday. Happy birthday Bridget! Unfortunately, I suck at celebrating my daughter's birthday.
Originally, the party was scheduled for Sunday but with the upcoming snow storm this weekend, we opted to move the date a day earlier. As it turns out, having the party today probably would have been okay. Weather forecasters (shake fist). Just kidding. And interestingly enough, we lost power for over an hour on Saturday during the party. So Sunday may have actually been the better day. Oh well.
Anyway, I think my daughter enjoyed the party. She practically inhaled her birthday cake. Surprisingly, Bridget ate her cake much neater than her sister (Briana) did when Briana turned one. And for anyone curious, there was a heart theme for the party. The cake was decorated with hearts. Karen and Briana made a "Happy Birthday" streamer of hearts. My favorite sister-in-law (Janine) cut bread into heart shapes for sandwiches. We made heart shaped ice cubes. It was nice.
Most importantly, Bridget had fun. And what's not to like about constant attention from both sets of grandparents, an aunt (Janine), cousins (PJ and Kaleigh), godparents (Karlene and Tommy), a great grandmother, and Karen's aunt and uncle (Denise and Paul)? And of course, I got to rib Karlene, the self proclaimed "fuddy-duddy". So that was always fun.
Incidentally, Saturday also happened to be Janine's actual birthday. Happy birthday Janine! Thus, following Bridget's birthday party, we immediately headed to the Villa Rosa in Quincy to celebrate Janine's birthday. For anyone curious, I think the Villa Rosa has the best eggplant pizza. I'm not sure what they do to their eggplant pizza, but it's always so good.
All in all, Saturday turned out to be a birthday celebration day. Hopefully everyone enjoyed it.
Originally, the party was scheduled for Sunday but with the upcoming snow storm this weekend, we opted to move the date a day earlier. As it turns out, having the party today probably would have been okay. Weather forecasters (shake fist). Just kidding. And interestingly enough, we lost power for over an hour on Saturday during the party. So Sunday may have actually been the better day. Oh well.
Anyway, I think my daughter enjoyed the party. She practically inhaled her birthday cake. Surprisingly, Bridget ate her cake much neater than her sister (Briana) did when Briana turned one. And for anyone curious, there was a heart theme for the party. The cake was decorated with hearts. Karen and Briana made a "Happy Birthday" streamer of hearts. My favorite sister-in-law (Janine) cut bread into heart shapes for sandwiches. We made heart shaped ice cubes. It was nice.
Most importantly, Bridget had fun. And what's not to like about constant attention from both sets of grandparents, an aunt (Janine), cousins (PJ and Kaleigh), godparents (Karlene and Tommy), a great grandmother, and Karen's aunt and uncle (Denise and Paul)? And of course, I got to rib Karlene, the self proclaimed "fuddy-duddy". So that was always fun.
Incidentally, Saturday also happened to be Janine's actual birthday. Happy birthday Janine! Thus, following Bridget's birthday party, we immediately headed to the Villa Rosa in Quincy to celebrate Janine's birthday. For anyone curious, I think the Villa Rosa has the best eggplant pizza. I'm not sure what they do to their eggplant pizza, but it's always so good.
All in all, Saturday turned out to be a birthday celebration day. Hopefully everyone enjoyed it.
Sunday, February 17, 2013
I Suck At Getting Sick
Karen poisoned me yesterday. I'm just kidding, because I suck at getting sick.
Yesterday morning, I didn't feel quite right. And naturally, we had a lot planned for the day. My parents had wanted to go to dim sum with us for the new year. As well, my friends (Cass and Ellen) were having a birthday party for their daughter.
Needless to say, I wasn't feel too good for either dim sum or the birthday party. I practically didn't eat all day, which is a rarity for me. So something had to be up. And unfortunately, my condition grew worse as the day went on. So by the time the birthday party came, I was getting shivers.
And naturally, I wasn't thinking too clearly because when I got home after the party I thought it was a good idea to install a ceiling light. Maybe I should get sick more often so that I would actually accomplish more home improvement projects. Oh well.
Shortly after installing the light, I went straight to bed... at eight o'clock... another rarity for me. We have a heated mattress pad, and I remember thinking why am I so cold when I have so many layers of clothes on and the heated mattress pad is turned on. Eventually, I did fall asleep only to wake up in the middle of the night thinking that I am so hot with all these layers of clothes on... with the heated mattress pad on.
Luckily for me, I am feeling much better today. My bug seems to be only a 24 hour bug. Unfortunately, I may have gotten my two year old (Briana) sick.
Yesterday morning, I didn't feel quite right. And naturally, we had a lot planned for the day. My parents had wanted to go to dim sum with us for the new year. As well, my friends (Cass and Ellen) were having a birthday party for their daughter.
Needless to say, I wasn't feel too good for either dim sum or the birthday party. I practically didn't eat all day, which is a rarity for me. So something had to be up. And unfortunately, my condition grew worse as the day went on. So by the time the birthday party came, I was getting shivers.
And naturally, I wasn't thinking too clearly because when I got home after the party I thought it was a good idea to install a ceiling light. Maybe I should get sick more often so that I would actually accomplish more home improvement projects. Oh well.
Shortly after installing the light, I went straight to bed... at eight o'clock... another rarity for me. We have a heated mattress pad, and I remember thinking why am I so cold when I have so many layers of clothes on and the heated mattress pad is turned on. Eventually, I did fall asleep only to wake up in the middle of the night thinking that I am so hot with all these layers of clothes on... with the heated mattress pad on.
Luckily for me, I am feeling much better today. My bug seems to be only a 24 hour bug. Unfortunately, I may have gotten my two year old (Briana) sick.
I Suck At The Hunger Games
On Friday, my friend (Andrea) came over for a movie night. Having movie nights on a routine basis is something I always wanted to do. So it was good that I was able to have a movie night with Andrea. For Friday, the plan was to watch The Hunger Games.
Now, I suck at the Hunger Games. When the movie first came out in the theaters, Andrea and I were probably the only ones in our circle of friends who were interested in watching the movie. We never did end up watching the movie in the theaters, but I was fortunate enough to DVR the movie when it premiered on television this year. And it just so happened that Andrea was available this Friday to watch the movie.
Needless to say, it was good hanging out with Andrea. We got to chat about a lot of things. Plus, she kindly took some of my amassed freebies off of my hand. Granted, she just took the Chapstick, but she took it nonetheless. The funny thing about getting things for free is that no one seems to want them. It's weird. I didn't think it would be so hard to find takers for free things.
As for the movie itself, I thought it was very entertaining. I would definitely watch the rest of the movies in the trilogy. Heck, I thought the movie was much better than the entire Twilight series. At least Jennifer Lawrence can show more than one emotion.
All in all, it was a good time. I'm looking forward to having more movie nights.
Now, I suck at the Hunger Games. When the movie first came out in the theaters, Andrea and I were probably the only ones in our circle of friends who were interested in watching the movie. We never did end up watching the movie in the theaters, but I was fortunate enough to DVR the movie when it premiered on television this year. And it just so happened that Andrea was available this Friday to watch the movie.
Needless to say, it was good hanging out with Andrea. We got to chat about a lot of things. Plus, she kindly took some of my amassed freebies off of my hand. Granted, she just took the Chapstick, but she took it nonetheless. The funny thing about getting things for free is that no one seems to want them. It's weird. I didn't think it would be so hard to find takers for free things.
As for the movie itself, I thought it was very entertaining. I would definitely watch the rest of the movies in the trilogy. Heck, I thought the movie was much better than the entire Twilight series. At least Jennifer Lawrence can show more than one emotion.
All in all, it was a good time. I'm looking forward to having more movie nights.
Sunday, February 10, 2013
I Suck At Blizzards
It has been one crazy weekend.
And sadly, the weekend is pretty much over and I can't say I really did much this weekend other than shovel snow. Interestingly enough, I do own a snow blower. My driveway is long enough that shoveling it by hand can take some time. So when the blizzard forecast came about, I thought I'd be good and actually get the snow blower ready. After all, the snow blower has practically been untouched for about two years, which was the last time there was a big chunk of snowfall.
Needless to say, I think my snow blower incident was an indicator of things to come during this blizzard. Yep, I suck at blizzards. Not only could I not get the snow blower running, I actually pulled so hard trying to get it to start that I ripped the chord right out of the blower. Not just once. Twice. Both times, I had to take apart the back just to rewind the pull string. It was frustrating, especially since I still could not get it to run.
And since I really couldn't spend too much time tinkering with the snow blower (I have kids), I decided I'd just forget about the blower and remove the falling snow the old-fashioned way... with a shovel. It took a while. But I suppose the plus side is that it was a great workout. Heck, I'm still a little sore from shoveling.
And yet, shoveling was not the worst part of the blizzard. Shortly after 11 p.m. on Friday night, we lost power. I only happen to know the time because I was up late watching a movie on my laptop. For anyone curious, I watched Fright Night. The reboot was actually pretty entertaining. I enjoyed the movie. But while the movie was playing on my laptop, I noticed the power went out throughout the house. Thankfully, I still had enough battery power in my laptop to finish the movie. Just kidding.
But for most of Saturday, we were without power... which I suppose made shoveling that much more bearable since it was something to do to kill the time. The down side of course... heat. My house runs on electricity, including the heat. If it were just Karen and I, we'd probably have no problem because we could always just wear layers and layers of clothing to keep warm. Well, I'd probably have no problem. Karen gets cold easily. But when kids are involved, that's when things get a little tricky. Truth be told, I was starting to get a little concerned after a while for my eleven month old daughter (Bridget).
Luckily, my favorite sister-in-law (Janine) had power during the blizzard. Not only did she have power, she had heat. So off we went to her place, just as the driving ban was being lifted by the governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. I always knew Janine was my favorite. It probably should go without saying that it's good to know that we have a bunch of good friends and family who are willing to help us during times of need. So thank you everyone.
Anyway, it definitely felt nice to take a nice warm shower at Janine's. My two year old daughter (Briana) had a blast playing with her cousins and her auntie. It was a great time. Interestingly enough, Bridget took her first steps at Janine's. Similarly, Briana also took her first steps shortly after being at Janine's when she was learning to walk. That was yesterday.
So as to not wear out our welcome, we packed our things and headed to my parents in Quincy today. After all, the town of Norwell was not supposed to get power until three days from now... Wednesday. Things were looking pretty grim, not only because the temperature in our house had fallen to 40 degrees, but because living with my parents until Wednesday wasn't too high on my list. Don't get me wrong, I love my parents. But spending that much time with them may drive me crazy. Yes, I know. I'm a terrible son.
Anyway, my parents definitely enjoyed seeing Briana and Bridget. They were extremely happy because today is Chinese New Year (the year of the snake) and they thought it was such a nice way to start the year off. The "nice" part being the fact that they got to spend time with Briana and Bridget, not the fact that there was a blizzard that wreaked havoc. I think my parents get all giddy whenever Briana and Bridget are around. It's cute.
While at my parents, my neighbor (George) called telling me that power was restored to our neighborhood. That was exciting news. Thank you Stop and Shop for being so nearby. I am guessing that may have benefited us. Truth be told, I think my parents were slightly disappointed to see us go home, probably because they wanted to spend more time with Briana and Bridget. But at least they got to spend some time with them, right?
All in all, it has been a crazy weekend. Thank you again to everyone who was involved in helping us. I hope the best for those who still do not have power from the blizzard.
And sadly, the weekend is pretty much over and I can't say I really did much this weekend other than shovel snow. Interestingly enough, I do own a snow blower. My driveway is long enough that shoveling it by hand can take some time. So when the blizzard forecast came about, I thought I'd be good and actually get the snow blower ready. After all, the snow blower has practically been untouched for about two years, which was the last time there was a big chunk of snowfall.
Needless to say, I think my snow blower incident was an indicator of things to come during this blizzard. Yep, I suck at blizzards. Not only could I not get the snow blower running, I actually pulled so hard trying to get it to start that I ripped the chord right out of the blower. Not just once. Twice. Both times, I had to take apart the back just to rewind the pull string. It was frustrating, especially since I still could not get it to run.
And since I really couldn't spend too much time tinkering with the snow blower (I have kids), I decided I'd just forget about the blower and remove the falling snow the old-fashioned way... with a shovel. It took a while. But I suppose the plus side is that it was a great workout. Heck, I'm still a little sore from shoveling.
And yet, shoveling was not the worst part of the blizzard. Shortly after 11 p.m. on Friday night, we lost power. I only happen to know the time because I was up late watching a movie on my laptop. For anyone curious, I watched Fright Night. The reboot was actually pretty entertaining. I enjoyed the movie. But while the movie was playing on my laptop, I noticed the power went out throughout the house. Thankfully, I still had enough battery power in my laptop to finish the movie. Just kidding.
But for most of Saturday, we were without power... which I suppose made shoveling that much more bearable since it was something to do to kill the time. The down side of course... heat. My house runs on electricity, including the heat. If it were just Karen and I, we'd probably have no problem because we could always just wear layers and layers of clothing to keep warm. Well, I'd probably have no problem. Karen gets cold easily. But when kids are involved, that's when things get a little tricky. Truth be told, I was starting to get a little concerned after a while for my eleven month old daughter (Bridget).
Luckily, my favorite sister-in-law (Janine) had power during the blizzard. Not only did she have power, she had heat. So off we went to her place, just as the driving ban was being lifted by the governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. I always knew Janine was my favorite. It probably should go without saying that it's good to know that we have a bunch of good friends and family who are willing to help us during times of need. So thank you everyone.
Anyway, it definitely felt nice to take a nice warm shower at Janine's. My two year old daughter (Briana) had a blast playing with her cousins and her auntie. It was a great time. Interestingly enough, Bridget took her first steps at Janine's. Similarly, Briana also took her first steps shortly after being at Janine's when she was learning to walk. That was yesterday.
So as to not wear out our welcome, we packed our things and headed to my parents in Quincy today. After all, the town of Norwell was not supposed to get power until three days from now... Wednesday. Things were looking pretty grim, not only because the temperature in our house had fallen to 40 degrees, but because living with my parents until Wednesday wasn't too high on my list. Don't get me wrong, I love my parents. But spending that much time with them may drive me crazy. Yes, I know. I'm a terrible son.
Anyway, my parents definitely enjoyed seeing Briana and Bridget. They were extremely happy because today is Chinese New Year (the year of the snake) and they thought it was such a nice way to start the year off. The "nice" part being the fact that they got to spend time with Briana and Bridget, not the fact that there was a blizzard that wreaked havoc. I think my parents get all giddy whenever Briana and Bridget are around. It's cute.
While at my parents, my neighbor (George) called telling me that power was restored to our neighborhood. That was exciting news. Thank you Stop and Shop for being so nearby. I am guessing that may have benefited us. Truth be told, I think my parents were slightly disappointed to see us go home, probably because they wanted to spend more time with Briana and Bridget. But at least they got to spend some time with them, right?
All in all, it has been a crazy weekend. Thank you again to everyone who was involved in helping us. I hope the best for those who still do not have power from the blizzard.
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