Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays to all!

Love, Santa & his elves

If you’re wondering why I have been so absent, it’s because I’ve been busy daydreaming about our big move!

This has been a year of three serious and incredible changes.

1- BABY

2- HUSBAND GOT NEW AMAZING JOB

3- NEW HOUSE!

We are still living in the city but we’re upgrading to a slightly bigger place with a balcony, garage, and an extra bedroom. It is basically my dream house without the yard. We are even closer to the heart of Philadelphia. We can finally grill or lay out on our balcony. We won’t have to shovel snow from our cars before running to the market. We can have more babies without stressing out over space. Our guests won’t have to sleep in the ocean with Raffi (since the guest bed is in there and we use a very loud white noise machine set to ocean waves all night).

This exciting news means my to do list is a mile long, and that’s before we even actually move in. I sadly go back to work January 2nd (I am sooo not ready) so I want to get as much done now. I find that I can only get a few things done at a time with my sidekick hanging around the house, so it’s important that I do what I can when I can. I spend most of my days shaking toys at Raffi and begging him to smile.

He’s very stingy with his smiles.

We still need to find a nanny, so if anyone is looking please email me! Having a baby around means that unless you’re supermom you are only getting a few things done a day. At the encouragement of RookieMom Heather, I just made a did do list so my husband and I can both be proud of all the things I’ve done today. It felt like so little until I looked at it. And now I’m proud.

Anyway, that’s our big exciting news! I’ve been dying to share it with you for several weeks now, but until we made it through the inspection I kept my mouth shut.

Hoping to be back soon with a baby, sleep, swaddling, and post baby body update.

*The kitchen photo is of our current kitchen. I will post pics of our new house once we’re there.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today I feel thankful to be me. To have all of you in my life. To have a special husband and an incredible son. To be happy every day of my life.

I feel blessed.

someecards.com

No… not that surprise.

No baby yet.

This surprise!

After my doctor’s appointment on Friday I picked PB up from work for a birthday lunch. We parked and starting walking down 18th street when I suddenly saw someone that looked just like my dad.

Wait, it WAS my dad!

He and PB planned a big surprise! My dad came down from Rhode Island for the night to help me celebrate my last birthday before becoming a mom. The three of us had a nice lunch, went shopping, and then PB and I showed him the baby’s room. We all took a siesta and then met up with my mother in law and her husband for dinner at LaCroix followed by a long stroll.

I had a Grand Marnier souffle that was so light and fluffy yet rich at the same time. The chefs at LaCroix are masters.

It was exactly the last pre-momma birthday I needed.

I was hoping that labor would join me on my birthday, but this was an even better gift.

Now Bambino Watch 2011 can officially begin!

Flashback 1: 2010 Surprise Party
Flashback 2: 2009 Chef PB
Flashback 3: 2008 Me, blindfolded

We’ve been married for two years now and I’ve officially known PB for 4.

Happy 2nd anniversary to us!

To relive our wedding, watch this video. It is long but worth it, promise.

A little timeline of us…

Summer 2006: We meet briefly, but he doesn’t ask for my number. I have a boyfriend at the time anyway.

June 16, 2007: We meet for real. I am smitten immediately. He is too, and after the first night meeting me gushes to his mom and his friends all about me.

4th of July weekend 2007: I drag Lynne down as my chaperone for my first trip to Philadelphia. I buy new bathing suits, cover up, and outfits for the weekend. PB and I hold hands on the beach, and he is so happy about it he accidentally drops his wallet (at least that’s why *I* think he dropped his wallet).

July 18, 2007: I’m on the plane with 4 of my girlfriends heading to Greece. PB and I are texting back and forth furiously. Before takeoff, he has secured me as his official girlfriend. I write frantically in my journal for 3 hours of the flight, gushing about his amazingness the whole time.

When I get back he greets me at the airport. We go to a nice dinner on Federal Hill.

Fall 2007: He tells me he loves me. I love him too.

November 2007: We travel together for the first time. The trip is to California for his friends’ wedding. We have a ball.

December 2007: He is very serious about me and wants our dads to meet. I am nervous and get drunk on red wine. Everyone gets along beautifully.

May 2008: He proposes! We also start our first half marathon, but we don’t get more than 5 minutes in. He is a hero.

July 2008: We celebrate our first anniversary where our first private date was: Opia in NYC!

July 2009: We get married! (Photo courtesy of LifeFusion.com)

November 2009: We run our first half marathon. The first few months living together were tough, but running for hours with friends every Saturday helps.

Winter 2009/2010: We had so much fun doing an activity together that we find another. I teach PB to snowboard.

February 2010: He becomes addicted to snowboarding. We go to Colorado. I have a lot of fun teaching him. He is a good student.

Summer 2010: We go on an epic trip to Jordan and never want to come home. We start talking about babies.

Christmas 2010: Christmas this year is extra special. We’ve made a baby! No one knows yet.

Spring 2011: We announce our pregnancy and then head off to Italy. It is a trip we will never forget.

And here we are… happily in love, expecting our first baby, and excited to see what the next year will bring us.

Happy 2nd anniversary amore!

1. I like the canned Pillsbury cinnamon rolls more than homemade ones.

2. I like the reduced fat Pillsbury cinnamon rolls more than the regular ones.

*Image Source

3. I ate 2 this morning.

4. With a fork and knife like a weirdo.

5. I also had a tall glass of cold skim milk for the first time in years.

I think my pregnant body is craving calcium.
It was delicious.

Pillsbury cinnamon rolls… breakfast of champions!

Now your turn to confess.

I think I just laughed so hard I bruised a rib.

My dad drinks a lot of coffee- instant coffee. He wakes up and immediately fills the Alessi tea kettle to make his hot water for his coffee. When PB and I were in Italy we came across something that would make the PERFECT vehicle for an April Fool’s joke on my dad. Luckily I was in RI to do it…..

His normal tea kettle:

What he found this morning:

I woke up at 5 AM and crept down to the kitchen to replace his tea kettle with the mini identical one we got in Italy. Then I crept back up to my bed to wait until he went downstairs.

Of course this is the first time ever that he sleeps in! I waited and waited and finally heard him clear his throat, open his door, and go downstairs. I crept down behind him.

His reaction?

Imagine a strong Middle Eastern accent, and then read this:

“Ohhhh my Goddd.. What is happening? What is going on? What is happening????”

I was cracking up! I went into the ktichen and yelled APRIL FOOL’S and we both laughed like hyenas.

It was a good one, no?

For comparison, here are the two together:

The mini one is only about 2, maybe 3 inches high.

Happy April Fool’s Day!

April Fool’s Day 2010
April Fool’s Day 2008

Share the tricks you’ve done or had done on you today!!

Last night’s party was a huge success, but I am too tired to share it right now and have too much work work to do. Instead, I share the story of the 3 accidents.

Accident #1 I made these delicious stuffed mushrooms in the oven. As I was taking them out I was wearing just one oven mitt. I forgot that fact and grabbed the pan with my other hand too. OW! I have a decent burn and it still hurts this morning!

Accident #2 We had an impromptu house blessing after dinner, and the charcoal from the incense was put in foil on the stovetop to burn out. I didn’t know that, and as I was cleaning up grabbed the foil to toss it. It burned my other hand and then sprinkled everywhere. I burned a hole in a dishtowel and made a huge mess.

Accident #3 Shortly after accident #2 I was cleaning some dishes and turned away from the sink to kiss someone goodbye. As I turned my body I swung my arm and broke a red wine glass! I am such a klutz.

How is it possible that 3 distinct accidents happened in one evening? Too crazy. Maybe there was something in {only my} wine.

I’ll share the fun details of the party soon… for now I need to ice my hand and put my feet up… oh yeah, and work. Happy Friday!

I’m not sure I’ve ever made any NYR before, but this is the year that is going to change. My few days away from reality in the bubble of a lovely ski house has totally and completely inspired me. PhillyBoy is inspired too.

Here are our combined New Year’s Resolutions:

• No TV or other electronics at the dinner table. TV time while cooking dinner or after dinner is fine, but actual dinner time is for sharing our days and talking together. We have been really bad about this for a long time now, and we both want to get better about it. It will be good for our marriage!
• Set a nice table every night for dinner. Sometimes I don’t even put napkins on the table, but since we eat with our eyes it is worth the little extra effort.
• Early bedtimes. We go to bed later than we’d like, and this has been a goal of ours for a lonnnng time. By stating it here, we will have to follow through. I am much happier, eat better, and live better when I get enough sleep, so early bedtimes are pretty important.
• Complete our wedding album. Can you believe we still haven’t put together the photos we want for our official album? At first I wanted a few months after the wedding to give me time to reflect back on the day, but now it’s been one and a half years. It’s time to finalize that! Luckily we have made a few small iPhoto albums for our parents, but we don’t even have one ourselves yet.
• Photo albums of Jordan trip, honeymoon, and a few other things. There is nothing like holding a photo in your hand.
• Schedule ourselves less. We have over-scheduled our lives to the max, and this year we will change that.
• New recipes. I’m out of my cooking slump (thanks for your suggestions), and I’d like it to stay that way. For our tastebuds and our passion we’d like to try a new recipe every week. We rely a lot on basic meals and family favorites, but we’d love to branch out a bit more. I love sharing my kitchen adventures with you, and I want to continue to do that. And PB has been too busy to cook lately, but this challenge will help both of us in the kitchen.

Do you have any New Year’s resolutions? Please share!

Happy New Year to all- may 2011 bring you health and happiness, love and friendship.

I just made an awesome cappuccino!!!!! I found this amazing inexpensive tool that I am adding to the Foodie Gift series immediately. I will post about it next week!

Right now I am too busy prepping several items for Thanksgiving tomorrow! Can you believe the time is already here?!

I try to keep my family life as private as possible to respect everyone, but did you know I have a brother?! He is 4 years older than me and is married to an amazing woman, my sister in law! We all work together every day, me from home and them in the office in RI. They are on their way down to Philly, and tonight my dad arrives too! I am so excited to celebrate Thanksgiving all together!!!

I have a lot to be thankful for on this Thanksgiving. I feel blessed and happy.

Back to the kitchen!

P.S. You don’t need a fancy machine to make espresso- just buy a percolator! Mine is from Italy in the 1980′s and belongs to my parents! It makes 2 perfect cups.

P.P.S. I need photography lessons.

P.P.P.S. One shot of espresso and I am a hyper woman.

What are your plans for Thanksgiving?! Gobble gobble!