On Tuesday I packed up the car and took my girls to spend a few days here.  It may not look like much but it’s such a break from the ordinary chaos of life.  It’s a place where no one cares if you’re showered or properly dressed because no one really sees you anyway.  It’s a place where  you eat yummy food that’s not so good for you.  It’s a place where the phone rings maybe once a day and there’s no internet connection.  The closest store is twenty minutes away and excitement is seeing the legendary beaver or snapping turtle swimming by in the lake.

It’s been called many things: The Camp, The Cottage, The Lake House, The Relax Inn.  But it doesn’t matter what you call it, it’s just awesome.  It’s decorated with lots of little trinkets both old and new.  And inside the cabinet doors you can find little news paper clippings and such with instructions for wound care and “recipes” for things like paint remover and drain de-clogger. We all sleep in one room that has 5 beds and a crib.  And the kids bathe in the kitchen sink because there’s no tub.   It’s not big, it’s not fancy, but it’s one of the greatest places I know.

My girls love it up there.  They get special treats and we take a wagon ride over to the other side of the lake where there’s a little beach.  If you ever want to feel good about yourself, just go there.  It’s amazing to see what some of the locals wear for swimming attire and how they just have no shame at all.  It’s so peaceful and the view is amazing.

It’s a little place to go and get away from it all.  And sometimes that’s all you need to feel refreshed (even if you were up all night with a feverish teething toddler!)

Anyway, I had been scouring craigslist and local tag sales for a jogging stroller, but just couldn’t seem to find one that was in pretty good shape for pretty good money.  So, I peered over to the double jogging stroller sitting near the bike display in the sporting goods store.  I could see the tag hanging from the handle but couldn’t quite make out the price.  All I could see was the last part of the price, $79.97.  I knew there had to be a number in front of the 79 but I couldn’t make out what it was from where I was standing.  So, I grabbed Nora and left Brinely with Scott to go and scope it out.  I walked over and read the tag:  InStep Safari TT Double Jogging Stroller with front swivel wheel, Price $79.97, You save $179.00.

At this point, Scott was by my side asking me if that could really be the price of the stroller.  I thought to myself, there is no way!  I kept thinking back to the insane deal that I thought I was going to get on a Britax Marathon car seat about a year or so ago on Target.com.  The car seat was listed for like $40 and it’s typically nearly a $300 car seat.  Of course I added it to my cart and thought I had scored such a deal.  A few days later I received an email from Target saying that it was a pricing mistake on their part but they could not honor the price.  I received a $25 gift card for my disappointment.  Again, I digress…

So now a sales person walks over to us asking if we need any help and we ask him if that is really the price for the stroller.  He says yes and it’s because they’re getting rid of them to make room for the new models.  He checks to see if they have any left in boxes but we find out that the display model is the last one.  I strap both girls into the stroller afraid to leave it where it is because someone else might snatch it up.  We decide that we’re going to buy it.  Scott continues shopping for his golf stuff and I take the girls to play with the balls.  But they’re starting to get antsy because it’s just about dinner time.  We head over to Scott and I tell him that I’m going to pay for the stroller and leave with the girls to get them dinner (we had separate cars).  When I got up to the register I was still worried that the price would be wrong, but lo and behold it wasn’t and I scored a $280 stroller for $79.97!!

Fast-forward to this morning…  The weather is beautiful.  The sun is shining but the humidity of the past, I don’t know, two weeks is gone!  It’s about 70 degrees and breezy.  Perfect for a nice walk.  One of the many awesome things about our town is something called the Rail Trail.  It’s a former rail road route that passes through 8 connecting towns.  When it’s complete it will be about 25 miles long.  It’s completely paved and lined with fencing.  It’s open for non-motorized use including jogging, walking, biking, rollerblading and skiing.  So this morning, I decided to grab the girls and go check it out.  We drove about 2 miles into town (I would have walked it but the street to get there is pretty busy and has no sidewalks).  I strapped the girls into our new stroller and started a route on the iMapMyWalk iPhone app.

It felt great to be out in the fresh air taking advantage of such a great feature.  Having the new stroller really allowed me to move faster but with more ease.  The girls were well behaved for the most part.  I worried a little that with them side-by-side they’d annoy each other.  They were perfect for the first 3 miles.  They just sat there and took in the scenes and ate their snack.  At about mile 3, Nora started nudging Brinley and Brinley started nudging back.  We still had a mile to go before we were back to the car.  So I did what any mom would do… I started singing!  Old McDonald, Itsy Bitsy Spider and Nora’s favorite (thanks to Mimi) How Much is that Doggy in the Window!  It took their minds off of bugging each other and they started singing along.  Passers by were looking at me a little funny but I didn’t care.  We were having so much fun and I got a great, brisk 4 mile walk in before 10:30am.

I’m going to try to make this a regular occurrence.  It felt great and now that I have the right equipment there’s no excuse not to!

We had to avoid this on our way in to the city:

And by avoid I mean we had to jump a curb, drive over some grass, and pretty much drive the wrong way down a one way street to get to a flood free road.  (For any of you locals reading, this is Storrow Drive and we had to cut over to Beacon St.)  It might not sound like the safest idea but everyone was doing it so we followed suit.  Thank God we did otherwise we would have been sitting in that traffic backup for nearly 3 hours.

Once we found our way to the hotel the sun looked like it was peeking through the clouds.  I was relieved because we had planned to have dinner in the North End and then walk around a bit.  We pulled up and handed the keys over to the valet, to which Scott joked, “Have fun!” and I nearly puked at the $42/night parking rate.  Upon checking in to the hotel, Scott mentioned to the front desk girl that we were in celebrating our 5 year anniversary (this will be important later).  We got our room key and headed toward the elevator to our king sized bed, Fenway view room on the 5th floor.  Heaven!

After dropping our stuff in the room, we made a reservation for dinner, which wasn’t until 8:30pm and then headed out to take in the city and stop for a snack to hold us over until dinner.  We were gone an hour tops.  When we returned to our room we saw this:

That’s right kids, the receptionist sent a bottle of champagne and chocolates up to our room for us! How’s that for service!  It took the sting off the valet parking charge.

After downing the bottle of champagne and pretty-ing ourselves up, we hopped on the T and headed to the North End.  By this point, the rain had totally stopped and it turned into a pretty nice evening.  We walked through Faneuil Hall and down Hanover Street before making our way in to Strega for our 8:30 reservation.  As we watched Italian Mafia movies we dined on stuffed portabella caps, lobster ravioli and shrimp and scallop fettuccine.  We were beyond full.  However we couldn’t call it a night without stopping into Caffe Vittoria for a sweet treat – iced B-52s and chocolate mousse cake!

We then headed back to the T and made it safely back to our hotel where we hit up the bar for one last drink before calling it a night.  After a fantastic nights sleep ::wink, wink:: we rolled out of the king sized bed at 11am!!  We packed up our things, checked out of the hotel, and requested our car from the valet.  But in true Bostonian fashion, we didn’t leave without grabbing breakfast first.  Where else but Dunkin’ Donuts!

Where were the girls you might ask?  They were home with Mimi who took fabulous care of them while we went out and pretended they didn’t exist.  They were beyond spoiled and loved.  And when we got home, Brinley was not happy.  She kept asking for us to leave.  I’m wondering if the bag of chocolate munchkins left on the counter had anything to do with that?!

After we were all drained from the sun and ran out of cold drinks and food, we headed back to my brother-in-law’s house for a BBQ.  Burgers, sausages, steak tips, chicken, pasta salad, fruit salad, coleslaw, cookies, brownies, margaritas, beer… you name it, it was consumed!  The kids all played in the yard while the adults talked and ate.  Around 9pm we all paraded back down to the beach for the most amazing fireworks display ever.  You’d never have known that lighting off fireworks was illegal in Massachusetts after seeing the show that was put on by the locals.  Probably some of the best fireworks that I’ve ever seen.  We kept the kids up waaaaaaaaay late but they were amazing.  Nora stayed awake for the show and Brinley fell asleep in daddy’s arms under the fireworks.

At about 10:30pm we trudged back to the house and packed the girls up in the car.  Nora was still awake so I managed to get her into her PJs.  Brinley was already passed out so we just plopped her in the car.  They both slept for the entire ride home and then  we transferred them to their beds.  Scott and I followed suit and passed out just as our heads hit the pillows.  We never originally planned to stay for the fireworks but the girls were being so good and having so much fun that we just went with it.  I’m so glad that we did.

When Brinley started school back in September she was a totally different child.  She was extremely shy and cried every morning when I dropped her off at school.  It broke my heart to see her like that but I knew that eventually she’d come around and love school… So what if it took almost four months.  Now, eight months later, she is so sad that school is over.  She tells me everyday that she doesn’t want to have a summer vacation because she loves school.  I just keep reminding her that she’ll enjoy the break and she’ll be going back in September.

Back to today… For weeks Brinley and her little class of seven other kids have been preparing for their end of the year musical program and graduation.  She’s been singing all sorts of songs at home that she has learned in school and I was very curious to see how this would all play out live on stage at school.  The day finally arrived and she got dressed up in a cute little dress.  She was so excited this morning to perform for us at school and to take part in the finale.  I dropped her off at the usual 9am and ran home to finish getting myself and Nora ready.  I knew that I’d need to get there a little earlier than 10am to be sure to get a seat.  But when I pulled into the school parking lot at 9:35am and there was not a single spot in sight, I was a little taken aback.  I finally found a place to park and headed inside.  When I got inside the gymnasium I was once again surprised to see that nearly every single seat had already been taken or reserved.  From talking with another mom, I learned that some parents had gotten to the school as early as 8am to reserved their seats.  (At least I’ll know better for next year!)  Anyway, I managed to find a seat for Nora and I but Scott would have to stand when he arrived.

The show started and Brinely’s class was the second to preform.  She walked perfectly into the gym with her classmates and lined up on the stage all ready to sing.  She saw us and smiled and the look on her face was of such joy.  It truly melted my heart.  Then they began to sing and my once quite little girl was up there as proud as can be belting out the words to every single song.  It made me so proud and I began to feel my throat get tight and my eyes well up with tears.  And trust me I am NOT a sappy person.  I held back the tears but it was an emotional moment to say the least.  Brinley recieved her diploma and walked down from the stage with the rest of her class.  The entire performance (for her class) lasted maybe 8 minutes but those were 8 minutes that I’ll never forget.

Seeing your children grow up and change and be so proud of themselves is amazing.  And knowing that your love, support and guidance has brought them to that place is a very overwhelming feeling.  I am so proud of my little girl and though I’d like her to stay little forever, I am so excited to watch her continue to grow and prosper.  I have no doubt that she will achieve great things in life.

Now, can someone pass me the tissues? ::sob, sob::

1. I’ve lived in the same state my whole life.
2. The first time I went on an air plane was when I was a senior in high school.
3. I hate talking on the phone.
4. I’ve been sky diving.
5. I’ve never gotten a ticket, speeding or parking. (knock wood!)
6. I didn’t get my drivers license until I was 18.
7. I hate beach sand.
8. I’m egg intolerant.
9. Scott and I have been together for over 10 years.
10. I wear a size 8 shoe.
11. I have a “lazy” left eye.
12. I’ve never had stitches.
13. I’ve never broken a bone.
14. BUT I’m accident prone, go figure.
15. My house is pink (but it won’t stay that way).
16. I hated pepperoni pizza my entire life until I was pregnant with Nora, now I love it.
17. I have a freckle on my toe.
18. I’ve never dyed my hair.
19. I have consistency issues when it comes to food.
20. Jello, pudding and yogurt make me gag.
21. I suck at parallel parking.
22. The only C I ever got in school was in high school physics.
23. I wore an eye patch for a few years when I was young.
24. I had my tonsils removed when I was 5.
25. I’m 8 years older than my sister.
26. I have a permanent flip flop tan.
27. I can roll my tongue and make it into a clam shell.
28. I hate cold cuts (deli meat, lunch meat whatever you call it).
29. I prefer beer over wine.
30. I prefer beer over mixed drinks.
31. I taught 3rd grade before becoming a SAHM.
32. Sometimes I miss my old job.
33. But not that much
34. I’m not a big fan of traveling.
35. I’ve only left North America once in my life.
36. I’ve only visited 8 of the 50 states.
37. I ate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich every day for lunch for 12 years.
38. I never wear high heels.
39. My eyes are gray, not blue.
40. My birthday is 2 days before Christmas.
41. I won’t accept birthday presents wrapped in Christmas paper.
42. My favorite ice cream flavors are Friendly’s Vienna Mocha Chunk and Ben & Jerry’s Mint Chocolate Cookie.
43. The only thing I ever wanted to be when I grew up was a mom.
44. I like animals, but don’t want a pet.
45. My first car had a broken speedometer.
46. I’m afraid of bridges.
47. I had braces in middle school.
48. I used to play the flute and the piano.
49. I don’t like cold cheese, only melted cheese.
50. I’m halfway there!!
51. I’m pretty punctual.
52. I love Dunkin Donuts coffee.
53. I’m the middle child.
54. I was a Computer Science major for one semester in college.
55. Then I changed back to Education, thank God!
56. I was a nanny for many years.
57. I have a great sense of direction.
58. I love to bake but don’t do it often.
59. The first concert I went to was Alanis Morissette.
60. I never want to go on a cruise.
61. I had pet birds when I was a kid.
62. My step-father gave me a diamond pendant on my wedding day and I’ve never taken it off.
63. I love root beer.
64. I have a fear of public speaking.
65. I make a kick ass apple pie.
66. My favorite store is Target.
67. My 2nd favorite store is The Christmas Tree Shop.
68. My two pregnancies were completely different.
69. I love Mexican food.
70. I wish I had more time to read for pleasure.
71. I went to St. Lucia on my honeymoon.
72. I had an epidural with both of my deliveries.
73. I don’t mind folding laundry but I hate putting it away.
74. I’ve never seen an episode of Sex in the City.
75. I like my feet.
76. I have a great memory.
77. When I was born I had black hair.
78. I eat dinner at my mom’s house almost every Thursday night.
79. My favorite movie is Good Will Hunting.
80. I enjoy coloring.
81. I am going to attempt to sew more valances.
82. Some of my favorite foods are pizza, Chic-fil-A and Chipotle burritos.
83. I never slept when the baby slept.
84. My husband cleans the tub.
85. I have a ridiculous number of pens.
86. Did I mention that I love Dunkin Donuts coffee?
87. My nickname in high school was Smack.
88. I fell through thin ice up to my waist when I was about 10.
89. I can put both of my legs behind my head like a pretzel.
90. I got my belly button pierced when I was 16.
91. I took it out when I was pregnant but the hole is still there.
92. I hate orange soda.
93. I was accepted to all of the colleges I applied to.
94. Before I got married, my initials came in a row in the alphabet – KLM
95. If I had the time and money, I’d go to nursing school.
96. I’d secretly love to work at Target.
97. I fold towels a particular way.
98. If Scott folds them wrong, I unfold and refold them.
99. I have the two most adorable kids ever.
100. I do my best not to judge other people. You never know where they’ve been or what they’re going through.

If you made it through the entire list, thank you! I hope you were amused and amazed by some of them. If not, I wish I could give you back the time it took you to read that list. Sorry! So, do we have anything in common? What were you surprised to learn about me?

After a quick stop at the post office and hitting up the drive through at Dunkin’ (a warm, spring-like day is just not complete without an iced coffee in hand), we were off to the park.  Brinley was in her glory.  She ran around on the field playing soccer and just enjoying the freedom of the outdoors.  It’s been a rough winter being cooped up inside.  It’s not easy to take a three year old out to play in the snow when you have a non-walker stuck to your hip.  So yesterday’s weather was a much needed break from the monotony of winter.

Nora really enjoyed being outside too.  She sat in the stroller and watched Brinley and I play soccer and then both girls enjoyed some time on the swings.

We also met some new friends.  As I was pushing the girls on the swings another mom and I started talking about our kids.  She asked the girls’ names and I told her.  Then she asked me, “Are you married to Scott?”  It was too funny!  Apparently she and Scott went to college together and she recognized the girls’ names from Facebook.  What a small world, huh?

I’m really looking forward to spring and being outside with the girls.  It’s going to be so much fun.  What are some of your favorite things to do with your kids outside?  How do you take advantage of unseasonably warm days?

I blame no one other than myself for this.  Scott has tried ad nauseam to try to get me to go out and have a ME day for quite some time.  But for some reason I just could not pull myself away.  I feel compelled to be with my kids because, let’s face it, they NEED me.  There isn’t another person who could possibly do all that I do with them and for them in a day, right?  Wrong.  I guess I just like to give myself waaaaaaay to much credit.  I mean I’ve gone out alone since the birth of my kids to do various things – quick shopping trips, appointments, etc – but I’ve never left for an entire day by. my. self.

I started my day by getting my hair cut.  The last time I had my hair cut was in June.  I was long overdue.  It felt so great to be pampered and have adult conversation.  I didn’t want it to end!  When I left the salon I felt like a new person.  I had just lost about five to six inches of hair!  Wow!  I absolutely love my new hair do.  I went from long, straggly hair that ended up in a pony tail every day to actually having a style!  (Check out my “About Me” page for a picture.)

My next stop was the mall.  I typically visit the mall on week day mornings with the girls.  At that time the stores are filled with moms, kids and old ladies.  I’ve gotten quite used to being able to maneuver my double stroller through the stores with my kids blabbing away and spilling their snacks on the floor.  Imagine my surprise when I enter the mall on Saturday to crowds of teenagers, busy women shoppers and just packs and packs of people.  It was sheer madness!  But I was alone.  No stroller, no kids, no diaper bag.  I had the freedom to zig and zag at will to avoid the crowds and bounce in and out of any store I wished.  It was very liberating.  I scored some new bras and underwear from Victoria’s Secret and grabbed a new outfit before heading to the food court to enjoy some lunch.  I didn’t sit in the kiddie area and I didn’t have to search for a table large enough to accommodate me, two kids and all of their paraphernalia.  I left the mall via Target (my favorite place on earth) and grabbed a few quick things.

Here comes the best part of my day… I’m walking to my car and there are eager shoppers in their vehicles stalking me to find out where I’m parked.  I’ve got cars coming at me from both directions and as soon as I turn toward my car, blinkers start flashing.  I politely wave them off saying that I’m not leaving.  I put my bags in the back and got into the driver’s seat.  I did not turn on the car.  Instead, I locked the doors and just sat there – alone.  No radio, no kiddos in the back seat, nothing.  Just peace and quiet!  I sat there for a good ten minutes before starting the car and heading off.

I returned home at around 4:30pm and Scott and the girls were still very much alive.  Shortly after walking in the door my mom called to say that she was on her way over.  When she arrived I headed upstairs, got ready and Scott and I headed out.  You see, it was the night of my ten year high school reunion.  BUT, I did not go.  Instead we met up with some good friends for dinner and drinks.  I had no desire to attend my reunion.  If I had gone, I don’t think I would be able to say that Saturday was the third best day of my life.

Wait, wait, it gets better.  I have a coupon in my pocket for a FREE, yes free, medium coffee at Dunkin Donuts (because I spent $25 there on my DD card last month) and we’re out of the house early enough for me to make a quick pit stop before heading to school, major score!  I grab my coffee but not without the obligatory munchkin demand from the peanut gallery in the backseat.  We pull in to school and I’m sort of anticipating a bit of crying/separation anxiety from Brinley since its been over a week since she’s been to school.  Much to my surprise she’s asking when she can get out of the car and go see her friends.  I let her out in the car pool lane with a huge smile on her face and I’m on my merry way home.

Nora and I head in the house for some one-on-one play time.  We have just about every toy out of the basket yet she insists on playing with the laundry and a tissue, ah kids!  After enjoying her belly laughs for 40 minutes, she starts to get sloppy which means she’s ready for her morning nap.  I put her in the crib without so much as a peep from her and head down stairs to get my dinner in the crock pot.  Peel, slice, chop, season and here you have it: