On Saturday, we went to a fancy tea at the Brown Palace. Grey wore a fancy gold dress and we all took her cue and wore our finest! We drank champagne, ate yummy mini sandwiches and scones covered in Devonshire Cream. We had delicious tea and listened to a piano player serenade the special birthday girl. On Sunday, the house was decorated in golden balloons and streamers and the birthday girl got to have her favorite birthday breakfast. It was a really special weekend and I know she was in hog heaven!

One of my SIL’s darling ideas (helped along by my sister’s creativity) was to have a tree up in the corner that she called the Birthday Tree. The photos were from the birthday girl’s previous four birthdays, from when she was born and also other special milestones.

I’d never heard of anything like this before, but I LOVED it, and can’t wait to incorporate it into my own family’s traditions one day!

Please excuse the iPhone pic.

Do you have birthday traditions like this? What are some of your favorite ways to celebrate the special kids in your life?

Exhibit A

I had gnarly winter toes and decided yesterday afternoon that a pedi was needed STAT.

I left after getting a pedi, mani, shoulder rub, and eyebrow wax (no, I don’t want my upper lip waxed, thank you very much).

Those girls really ARE the best upsellers known to (wo)man.

PS – It’s never to early to break out the hot pink toenail polish.

PPS – Please excuse my nasty dancer feet…and the fact that my “pointer” toe is longer than my “thumb” toe.

PPSS – Please do not leave a comment if you’re into foot fetishes.

I’m the director of public affairs for a large developer. Marketing is a part of my gig. I’m pretty good at it. So why was I totally speechless?

I knew that this was going to be a good year for getting out of my house and not waiting for Mr. Right to come knocking on my door. I’m back in tennis lessons and I’ve really been thinking about hitting the driving range on the weekends (dudes abound!), getting more involved in church, and finding new things to do with friends.

But I’m also a member of the instant gratification generation, so I hopped back online and started shopping for a boyfriend. Yes, I joined an online dating website for a month, just to see what I could find (RIGHT NOW)!

I used to HATE the idea of online dating, but it’s become so common and normal that I had to get over my issues and just jump in. I’ve tried it in the past and had some pretty good dates…some lame ones, too, but not bad enough to turn me off completely.

After a week of “smiling,” sending “sparks,” and email messages, I found a fellah who seemed normal enough to meet in person. He was GREAT on paper, looked handsome in his pics, shares my values, and works in a similar industry. We decided to meet at a sports bar in Newport and exchanged clues about what we were wearing.

Yes, folks that’s how it begins. I suppose I should have been holding a rose like Kathleen Kelley at the coffee shop, but instead, I just gave a description of my outfit; he sent his, too.

So, there I was standing in a crowded and loud sports bar waiting for Mr. Maybe.

And he showed up.

And he was handsome.

And he was easy to talk to.

And he seemed interested in me.

And we had NO SPARKS.

{sad trombone}

But hey, I got out there, I gave it a try, I was vulnerable and nervous, but open to possibility, and that folks was almost better than meeting Mr. Right.

]]> http://www.theblahblahblahger.com/2012/01/jumping-back-in-to-the-dating-pool/feed/ 5 http://www.theblahblahblahger.com/2012/01/microwave-of-death/ http://www.theblahblahblahger.com/2012/01/microwave-of-death/#comments Wed, 25 Jan 2012 10:00:07 +0000 JJ http://www.theblahblahblahger.com/?p=1631 Last time I checked, these things were not supposed to catch on fire.

This sucker is less than five years old, so once again, I’m happy that I have my home warranty to come to the rescue!

It’s TINY.

Lately, the chair I’ve been using has been ultra uncomfortable and I’ve needed a better solution. I looked at HomeGoods, Target, and just about everywhere I’ve been. Though I’ve been on a self-imposed shopping hiatus, I realized I had a gift card to World Market and that it would be okay to get something I needed if I didn’t have to shell out any big bucks for it!

I ran in to the store on Sunday after church and zero’d in on the perfect chair within five minutes…and it was comfy…and it was on sale. BONUS!

I’ve literally avoided my computer all month because I haven’t wanted to sit at my desk, but now I can actually say that I’m happy to be back in my “office” now that I have a nice place to rest my bum!

I'm digging on the mixed patterns!

It scoots all the way under the desk, leaving me with the appearance of more space!

When the oldest turned five a few years ago, my old roommate from DC brought her daughter out here to Disneyland for a girls weekend. We had a blast, even though Mackenzie preferred playing in the sand at the beach to a day full of Disney delights. It was an awesome trip and Robin asked me if she could bring Travis out for his 5th birthday, too!

Planning a weekend for a five year old boy is not anything I have experience with, but I think we succeeded in spoiling this kid rotten. Though I didn’t buy the right kind of milk or apple juice, the kid got just about everything he wanted including pizza for dinner twice, donuts for breakfast, and big slices of birthday cake!

We took him to Discovery Science Center (an AWESOME place – thanks for the hook up Sean!), the Pirate’s Adventure dinner in Buena Park (which I HIGHLY recommend!!!) and then to Legoland.

I’d never been to Legoland before and though I don’t have a ton of pics, trust me when I say we had a great day. We went on Friday and there were NO lines, the park was incredibly clean, and the food choices were incredible for an amusement park (seriously, I had a delicious salad from a gourmet salad bar and Robin has stir fry that was made to order!). I posted something about our awesome experience on FB and got a few responses sounding like our day at the park might have been better than most, but I don’t care…I’d still recommend it for boys (and even girls) under 8ish. There were some roller coasters, typical amusement park things, and even playgrounds for when mom and dad or mom and fairy godmother need to rest their barking dogs! The lego sculptures were incredible…and I’m not even a big lego fanatic!

I love that my friends include me in their childrens’ lives. Being Auntie Awesome/Fairy Godmother is really something special that I treasure…especially in this single season. I never thought I’d be childless at 35, but having these little monkeys in my life gives me something to look forward to!

Travis asked me when I was getting married. I didn't have an answer for him, but I did find a man at Legoland! ; )

R & T on the safari tour. He liked driving the car, but he did tell me it wasn't real, in case I was confused!

Robin and I were roommates in DC. It was great to see the replica of the Capitol. We showed Travis where we both worked!

One of my friends knows that I resolved to get my cabinets and cupboards organized this year and she gifted me with organizers for my junk drawers, etc. The moment I got home, I tackled this project! It’s so funny how something so small was so exciting to me.

But I really loved the gift all the more because she listened to what I had been talking about and surprised me…I guess gifts really IS one of my love languages as it brought me so much joy!

Before

After

Am I the only one, or do organized junk drawers just make you happy as a clam?!?!

But it got a little silly.

I decided last week that I really didn’t need to buy myself anything anymore. In fact, I purchased something online on the 1st (while I was home feeling sick and sorry for myself), and I’ve already repackaged it to return. Sure, the dress is pretty, but I don’t need it.

And frankly, my closet is full.

As I’m working on the garage organization project, I realized that my resolution this year was to be more organized in my closets and cupboards. I’ve kept my closet neat and tidy since I remodeled it, but I truly have clothes in there, that while they might fit, I just don’t wear all that often. It’s time to edit…and I DEFINITELY do not need to be adding to the mess.

One of the beauties of singleness is that a person doesn’t have to justify their spending to anyone! And this is something I enjoy tremendously. But while I pretend to budget, one thing I know for sure is that overruns in the shopping category have got to stop. Especially, if I want to have a more robust savings account! Ergo, the shopping hiatus.

No more clothes for JJ this quarter. Is that realistic, at all???

Encourage me, I need it!

A garage (or really any storage space) can become overwhelming really quickly. If you’re anything like me, it’s the out of sight, out of mind mentality.

I’ve got more sorting to do, but in the meantime, give me some tips on how you keep your garage organized!!!

I resolved to do that for more years than I care to admit. And 2011 was the year that I accomplished the silly resolution.

My mom and I were talking this week about weight loss. Our family is not genetically blessed and weight is often a struggle. I tried to challenge and encourage her, sharing what works for me and that is to:

INVEST IN MAH A$$

I’ve been seeing a trainer since August. I started there because I’d lost 10 lbs., then hit a plateau. I do WW online, take dance classes and occasional spin classes, but I wasn’t at peak performance…plus, I didn’t have a muscle to my name. At my initial assessment with the trainer, I was at 31% bodyfat, which was fiiiiiiine, but not good. At this week’s assessment, I was at 16% bodyfat and I feel like HAWT SHADOOBY. ; ) Oh, and I lost another 10 lbs, too, have muscle tone, and can do push ups for the first time in my life!!!

I know that not everyone can afford to hire a trainer. It’s freaking expensive…ridiculous, really. But for me, having a mondo financial investment, has got my a$$ to the gym, allowed me not to get bored, given me someone to coach/encourage me, and provided consistency when I needed it.

But there are other ways to INVEST IN YO A$$ if hiring a trainer is cost prohibitive, so stick with me!!!

• Before I took the plunge, I bought myself two sets of workout clothes at Target. Having something new and fun ACTUALLY made me want to wear it!
• I also purchased a couple of workout DVDs earlier in the year. Having something I could do at home that was new, got me off my duff!
• Three years ago, at Loehmann’s, I bought a gorgeous Michael Kors bikini. I couldn’t wear it then, but bought it to be a goal outfit!
• When Ruthanne was here, she showed me the Couch 2 5K app on her phone. It’s a little price for a big training tool. I’m not a lover of running, but it’s really a simple training guide that doesn’t cost much!

Knowing there’s a cost/value associated with the trainer (or other goods), forces this money conscious chick to not waste what I’ve spent…and I’m guessing something similar might work for you, too! If your goal this year is to shave off a few lbs, I congratulate you and cross my fingers that you’ll find something awesome that works, too! Best of luck to you…you can do it!