Step Off!!!

So I am going to make a confession. My child has developed a love for a particular movie. I kind of expected something like this to happen eventually. When I was little, I had an obsession first for The King and I. It lasted a while. I remember my mom telling me that I loved to watch it over and over.Soon after that craze, I fell in love with Mary Poppins. I love Julie Andrews to this day, and I used watch that religiously also.

But my daughter? She's a little different than mom. She still loves the music....but maybe not so much the music-als. She's a great fan of School of Rock. It's her favorite movie of all time. She demands to watch it everyday....sometimes twice, and I wouldn't be suprised that if Josh really had to study, she'd catch some pieces of it three times in a day. YIKES!

Even right now, she's screaming, "School of Rock!" and looking at this picture. Of course, what should I expect from the girl who had a love for rock since nearly birth. Her first car ride with me--alone--she started wailing. I had no idea what to do while driving, so I turned on the radio, put on some soothing music. That will help. Nope. She was only comforted when I finally turned to....Van Halen. She quieted down right away. So why would I be shocked to know that this is her favorite movie? Who wouldn't be entertained by this guy?

She has so many lines memorized, it's amazing. In fact, I just quizzed her on some math. Here's our conversation:

Mom- Three minus four is.....

Little- negative one!

Mom- And six times a Billion is.....

Little- Six Billion

Mom- And fifty-four is forty-five more than what?

Little- Nine!

Thank you Jack Black for helping me pretend my child is a math genius at 23 months. And thanks for the hours of entertainment you provide for her. Because, let's be honest, her favorite movie could be much worse, and at least there's a good message.

off to bed

So I'm exhausted, and I'm off to bed. I had a killer day at work, and I have to be there early tomorrow. But, hey, I posted. See you tomorrow, blogland.

Sweet dreams,
me

Love myself some Zumba

So since I began teaching Zumba, I'll tell ya that I've seen quite a variety of people trying to get fit, meet friends, and have fun! If you haven't checked it out yet, it's absolutely fabulous. As a teacher, I have to honestly admit that nothing makes me happier in class than to see people smile and really enjoy themselves. But on top of that, to later see them come back -- almost religiously-- because of their passion for the activity.....it's like a mini-rush right there for me. Which apparently isn't even comparable to some people's gym experiences.

While teaching is actually something that is super fun for me, a great work out, and an extra source of income, I have found a couple pet peaves from my participants. At work, I like to refer to her as, "Crazy Zumba Lady." While I do love all my participants, I have to say that my evenings are much better when CZL does not show up.

Let's paint a little picture here....I walk up to my room, and she's already there, waiting outside the door with bright red lipstick on and gossiping up a storm with anyone within a 10 foot radius. During the 7 minutes that I generally have to wait before my class begins, I probably hear 2 comments about other teachers at the gym, 1 compliment toward the other Zumba teacher (no biggie, I really don't care that much), and about 3 minutes worth of explanation to another participant about how CZL herself used to teach aerobics and really wants to get into it again. By the time the class is ready to start, I'm thinking about how I should have brought trashbags to cover the mirror over the spot where I generally see her. (Yikes, I'm sounding really mean now) To top everything off, throughout the ENTIRE class, I see her purposely changing moves ahead of time to make it look like I'm following HER. Blah!

Well the other day, she actually kept me after class for 25 minutes trying to explain to me that she'd be a fabulous teacher, grabbing my arm and talking about 3 inches away from my face in the process. "Go for it!" I don't need convincing! Let me go home and feed my kid....and shower! Thus, she received the permanent title of Crazy Zumba Lady, and the workplace hears updates every week. If only they could have the image I do because, oh yes, her wardrobe just tops it all off. Picture this....

Deciding....

A new blog idol of mine (mooshinindy) blogged every single day last month, and to top it off, she's decided to do it again this month. I think I'm going to try to follow in her footsteps and blog every day in December. I know, big YIKES! With the holidays, etc, I know I'll be super busy, but I think I can get a little something up here every day. With all of our SIX (yes, that's 6 at a minimum) Christmas celebrations, I'm sure I'll have plenty of time to blog, right? Gotta thank both our divorced families for that one! We're lucky with more people to love; that and Mara has somewhere upwards of 15 people she can call Grandma or Grandpa (or the equivalent in another language)! So here we go.....(eeek!) Wish me luck.

Feeling all on top of everything (at least at the moment)

I know it's been a while since I've posted, but I've been so busy trying to get caught up. Now I'm happy to say that I'm feeling like I'm actually a little above water right now. I still have the stresses of being insanely busy at work, struggling to get the church choir ready for our Christmas program (without a lot of time to practice), and...you know...living with a nearly 2 year old, but aside from that, I'm feeling pretty good about where I am right now.

For example, I must admit that I have had MAD SKILLS at getting my Christmas presents done early this year. I mean, I only have a few more things to get, and I'll have my lists complete. But I know what I'm getting everyone. I even bought stocking stuffers today! I know what you're saying. "Nicole, are you kidding me? I mean, it's just December 1!" All I can say is that, well, I amaze even myself right now. This is seriously a first for me.

I was at Target today, taking another quick swing by the dollar bin, and I decided to even get some Christmas cookie decorations and cookie cutters. I'm also planning on making chocolate covered Oreos. I'm killing myself right now with all these crazy plans of a perfect Christmas/birthday for Mara. But for once, I'm not really feeling all that overwhelmed. As I decorated the tree today with Mara, we listened to Christmas music and just had fun together. I'm so glad that- at least for now- the holidays are going smoothly and are so much fun!

On another note, here's a little shout-out to my lovely husband. Lovey, here is some of my Christmas list...I know I haven't been that organized this year in what I want, so here's a little help....

1) A deep, heavy skillet. Silly, I know, but you wouldn't believe all the stuff I want to cook that calls for this tool....one that I don't have.

2) Photoshop (Always a little dream for me to be a great photographer)

3) The Grey's Anatomy Season 3 Soundtrack

4) A new pair of black shoes (these are an example by my most favoritest shoe designer--Kenneth Cole Reactions)....size 9 please. By the way, these are called "Hil-laree". How fitting that I would pick these...5) a nice surprise

Gotta run....have to stay on top of things. What are your Christmas lists? Happy holidays!

Sicky, Mommy?

Yes, Mommy is sicky. No, not the normal migraine sicky. No, not that sicky, either; don't even think it! But Mommy has strep throat. Oh, poor Mommy.

The chica is at grandma's house because we don't want her to get sick; although, I'm pretty sure that she's the one who brought this home to me. We'll pick her up tomorrow when the fever is gone and the medicine has kicked in a little. Until then, I'll get a full night's sleep, and Josh will actually get some uninterrupted studying done!

OOOO!! Apple!!! Ushy??!!?! OOOO!!!

So tonight after work, I ran home and changed my clothes quickly, and I booked it over to pick up Mara from school. I knew it was going to be a good night when I heard it-- no biting, no pinching, no hitting. Wow! I have to stress that the biting ended a few weeks ago, but the pinching and hitting comes and goes when she's tired--- or when other kids don't seem to understand that she's the queen and rules the room. Anyway, so I picked her up, and we headed over to Anderson Orchard. Yummy and super fun!

Josh had class late tonight, so it was a girls' night. I had a snack packed for the car ride, and Mara was excited for our little adventure. Our camera is broken (suggestions of cameras you love and recommend (and that cost less than my mortgage) would be appreciated), so no pics of tonight. These from the orchard website will have to do.

When we pulled up to the orchard, Mara looked around, and then suddenly it hit her. "OO! Apples? Ushy!?!!!" She struggled to get out of her car seat and was so excited. What she really wanted was the apple cider slushy she'd had before. I have to admit that they're really great! In fact, on our way out, we bought another small one, and the lady behind the register thought that Mara was just too irresistible. She refilled our first and gave us a second one for free.

When we went to pick the apples, Mara was excited to hold the bag. We had to walk pretty far down the path to find some that were low enough for picking, but we had fun. In fact, there was a moment when Mara was eating an apple (don't worry, it was one I had given her, not one from the ground) and looking around, so I took the opportunity to quickly 'boost' myself up onto a limb to grab one of these puppies.

But she looked up when she heard me grab the apple and caught me. She quickly said, "Mommy! GIT DOWN! Gitdown MOMMY!" I had been scolded, and now if I catch her climbing on things, I know that I can only blame myself.....great.