Hubby's B-day

Hubby's 40th was nice. Small but memorable. I ended up settling on:
One night in Tahoe at the Fantasy Inn (his pick) and dinner at the cozy & delicious Cafe Fiore...which ended up being walking distance from the hotel. The next morning we headed to Heavenly Gondola, they request that you check in 90 min. before your Heavenly Flyer reservation.
Unfortunately, they had a fire the previous night due to someone throwing a smoke out the little gondola window...so they had to duct tape screens on all the gondolas before they could let anyone on... That put a glitch on my relaxing picnic plans on the observation deck. We had a 1:00 reservation and they ended up deciding to cut all reservations before 1:30...I worked my way up through management till I redeemed our reservation, and we ended up being the first ride of the day.
I was totally nervous on the steep ride up...but the zip line is a seperate (not nearly as steep) cable. They strap you in a harness, 2 at a time, pressed up against a mesh door that suddenly releases...and you're OFF...

Dave used his new iPhone to take a video:
MobileMe Gallery - Zipline

We headed by the Celebrity Golf Tournament but they had just wrapped for the day.
So, we headed home...to get ready for dinner. Which was supposed to be with his four best friends (& their better halves)... it was a SURPRISE! I had reserved their "Champagne room" which ended up being perfect for an intimate dinner party. The service, food, & ambiance was great.
It would have been fun to carry the night on to a little longer but 3 of the 4 guys just turned 40...and they were ready to go home. All in all I think he had a nice birthday. Cheers!

"Julie & Julia"

Inspiring chick flick for women of all ages--
especially if they cook & blog. :)

Simple Pleasures

"When we lack proper time for the simple pleasures of life, for the enjoyment of eating, drinking, playing, creating, visiting friends, and watching children at play, then we have missed the purpose of life. Not on bread alone do we live but on all these human and heart-hungry luxuries." --Ed Hayes

Random Romantic Rendevous

Not the best pic, but you get the idea.

Remember the excitement of anticipating & planning dates when you were single? I miss that.

I've been reliving some of the memories as my single girlfriend is in the throes of summer love. Rather than just live vicariously, I decided maybe we need to spice up the date nights with a little more creativity and spontaneity. So yesterday I scouted out her private beach location for a sunset picnic (the planning is 1/2 the fun). When tired hubby walked in the door, I handed him a glass of wine, told him to kiss the children goodnight, and I would be waiting in the car... We hiked down to the lake, with our handy picnic backpack. I knew he would be hungry, so in addition to the bottle of Cab, the Blue Catello cheese, the fruit, & homemade truffles, I also made Irish Beef Hand Pies (veggie)-- with an assort. of mini hot sauces (a must-have for him).

We had a lovely romantic evening.

Anybody else have some fun date ideas?

Rule #31

I saw this book on my trip to the library and it piqued my curiosity. I remember reading "The Rules" as a single girl, and practiced many of them. I wouldn't really recommend this book, I breezed through most of the rules, which seemed pretty common sense to me... one rule stood out for me personally,

Rule #31: "Don't complain about the kids"

I have 3 beautiful daughters, and 1 handsome, mischievous DESTROYER. I can't even begin to tell you the never-ending list of things he scribbles on, squeezes out, shatters, pees on (yes), stains, smears, squashes, throws everywhere, & tears apart... He is quick & persistent. He will unlock, climb, and sneak. Just when I think he is sound asleep, or I am in the middle of doing an important contract for the hubby, or I'm trying to cook dinner, or I just look away for a second.... OH NO!!! He has a knack for finding permanent markers, nail polishes, any expensive cosmetic item, countless toothpastes, oils, powders, glitters, anything with dye... I don't even know why I still try to enforce no shoes, food, or drinks on the carpet. Our carpets are beyond repair now and I look forward to the day that we get laminate floors.

In addition, the beautiful daughters argue, whine, complain, ignore, & also make minor messes. So, by the end of the day I, like many wives, am exhausted & drained...I am trying to make a nice dinner (that no one will likely acknowledge or appreciate)...and the house is still a mess.

I want to release some of the episodes of the day like a teapot letting off steam... but alas, apparently I should not. Maybe I want to justify to my tired husband that I too am VERY tired, and that I have been tidying the messy house all day-- to no avail.

I don't feel like I'm insecure, but maybe subconsciously I am now? Now that I'm a housewife struggling with a messy house, do I have a need to prove that I'm not inferior-- that I just come against a lot of obstacles throughout every day.

According to the book, "he will eventually tire of it and secretly think she doesn't know what she's doing... He might start questioning whether you are spending enough time with your children and feeding them all the right food groups. He may look bewildered every time you raise your voice or scold your child (even when the child deserves to be scolded) as if there is something wrong with you! You will feel judged, unsupported and diminished. Trust us, if you let your husband constantly see how your kids upset you, he many be compassionate for a while, but then he will become your biggest critic, the resident backseat driver."

They suggest that you tell him positive things about your kids ("Johnny brushed his teeth by himself today, Jane wrote her name for the 1st time, Brittany is saying please & thank you"). He will appreciate the happy news & think you are doing a good job. If you want to complain, vent, or get sympathy better to call a friend. I totally relate to this after having a handful of "Mother's Helpers"... I much preferred hearing how well things went to how terrible the day went-- it definitely made the helper seem more competent & caring when things went well and who doesn't love hearing when their kids do something good?

If your husband came home every day looking disheveled, disorganized, with more disaster stories you might begin to think he is just incompetent. So, instead of acting like a harried, overwhelmed mother who seemingly lets her kids run amok- we can pretend we are a CEO. The house is the company, the kids are the employees, & we run a tight ship. We will not accept insubordination. We will set rules for everything (meals, bathing bedtime, time-out, etc), and stick to them. We will act confident, not flustered. The more structure we give the kids, the more they will respect us. We don't need our husband's approval, but we will get it anyway.

Update: Ironically I posted this right after the "law of attraction" post, and I must say I had the worst afternoon/evening yet... he was like a mad midget on crack. He turned the house upside down & inside out...till 10:30pm (bedtime is 7). So, I'm noting that from here on out I really need to make an effort to focus on my progress with his improving behavior, not his out-of-control behavior.

Mind Movies

Somebody forwarded me a link to Mind Movies.
I wasn't totally impressed with the amateur presentation (maybe that's their niche), but I think it really is a great idea. I believe in quantum science and the "law of attraction" and this just takes it to the next level...beyond writing & collaging. What better way to help you clearly visualize in the ideal vibrational energy than by actually looking at images of what you want, plastered with powerful affirmations, to music you love.

Several people have posted theirs on youtube, here's one example:


Me & the hubby, and the girls can all do this. It will be fun. Their program is only $49 (& includes lots of extras). I thought about just trying to make one on my own using my MAC but beings that I'm not very computer saavy, it's probably worth spending the $ for all the time I would save. Plus they will show you how to embed your movie with subliminals as well (hmm, maybe I'll make one for my husband with my own agenda embedded...mwa-ha-ha).

"The One Minute Mother"

So this morning I see this book in my son's rm. I don't know how long I've had it or if I've ever even read it before...but it was a quick, easy read on the treadmill. I realize parenting methods are controversial, but this has some good, simple advise told in a story format of a mother & her 3 adult daughters who are being interviewed about the 3 one min. secrets (it could really be summarized in 3 paragraphs but then you would miss out on alot of helpful details & examples).

Here are some quotes from the book:

"Children who like themselves like to behave themselves."

"I take a minute. I look at my goals. I look at my behavior. I see if my behavior matches my goals."

"I help my children reach their full potential. I catch them doing something right."

"We become what we think about."

"Is is important for me to start right away to do the right thing than it is to wait until I think I can do it just right."

"I take a minute out of my day every now and then to look into the faces of my children."

"What's important as a parent is not so much what happens when you're there, it's what happens when you're not there."
"Children learn in three ways: by example, by example, and..."

"Goals begin behaviors. Consequences maintain behaviors."