Top 10 Reasons to Run the Disney Marathon (On Your Birthday)... for My Husband :)

I love running.  A lot.  Kevin does not like running.  At all.

Being the good Marine that he was, he ran when he had to and he ran well.  He could beat me in any race any day, hands down.  I hated it.  When he got out of the Marine Corps, he no longer had an evil Sgt Slaughter (aaah... I loved that nickname) telling him to run.  He did however have an evil runaholic wife that tried to tell him to run... that he laughed at and said "nope.  Not today hunny."  :/  Sadly he could get up off the couch and STILL beat me in a race.  (I am working on this though...)

I did manage to talk him into running the Color Me Rad 5K coming up next month.  Ok, well I signed him up for the race and told him he was running.  He begrudgingly obliged, although I'm sure he is less than excited about it.  Heck, I even bought him some really ridiculous looking sunglasses to wear.  Still not excited.  He just doesn't *get* the whole running thing.  Running was always his sport's punishment.

So anywho... the Disney Marathon just so happens to fall on his birthday next year.  What better way to celebrate your birthday than to run a marathon???  Right???  As you can imagine, he could easily list a million and one better ways to celebrate his birthday.  Psssh.

In an effort to convince him that running the Disney Marathon with me would be the absolute best birthday celebration ever, I made a Top Ten list for him...  

Top 10 Reasons to Run the Disney Marathon... on your birthday...

1. What better place to spend your birthday than Walt Disney World? I mean... come on... it's the happiest place on earth!!! I may as well stop right here. 
2. What better way to spend your birthday than doing something you love. Wait... you don't love running. Crap. Ok what better way to spend your birthday than doing something that your wife loves??  But it's YOUR birthday.  Hmm... riiiiight... How about doing something that's good for you. Hmm... Fail. Ok. How about just making an awesome memory and completing your first ever marathon? It will be incredible!
3. Everybody gets a medal. Chicks dig medals.
4. Two words Pre-Race Pasta Party. Okay that's 3 words. More like 3 and a half. Whatever. You get the idea. You love pasta...
5. Umm... because you love me and I'm asking you to? This is an excellent reason.
6. Kennedy will get to run in the little kiddie race. It will be so cute!
7. Speaking of Kennedy, we have to start her running obsession, er... I mean love of running early. 1 year old sounds like a fantastic time to start. Let's set a good example and show her how much we love running (ok how much I love running and how much you love to make me happy by running with me!) by running this marathon. She can come cheer us on. It will be cute. You WILL like it.
8. Just think of it as the most awesome mobile birthday party with several of the Disney characters and several thousand fans as guests, giving you high-fives, cheering you on, wishing you a happy birthday. Pretty cool, eh? EH?
9. Once you cross "run a marathon with my wife so she will shut up about it" off your bucket list... then I can shut up about it. ;)
10. Umm... beacause... maybe... possibly... I already signed us up. :D Happy birthday, hunny!?!?!?!

I'm going to go above and beyond here and add a #11. I'll even make you a super cool "it's my birthday and my wife drug me out here at 5:30 am to run this damn marathon" t-shirt. WINNER!!!!!!!!
I ♥ you!

Do you think this will help to convince him?  Do you have any other reasons I can add to this list??  :)

New Mom Lesson Learned: Traveling with a Baby... Top 10 Things I Wish I Would Have Known

So a few weeks ago, Kennedy and I took our first trip to Florida together to visit my side of the family.  Daddy had to work, so it was just me and baby cakes flying alone.  I learned... a lot, but these 10 things I really really wish I would have learned before our trip.  Actually, let me give myself a little credit here... a few (and by "a few", I mean 2 or 3) of these things I actually did know beforehand.  Most, however, I learned the hard way and a little too late.  Hopefully my lessons learned can help out another mama who is getting ready to take her first solo trip with a little one.

1. Book Smart-  And if you are like me, you might just need someone to tell you "Don't be an idiot."  A little back story...  Normally, I work evenings.  I am NOT a morning person.  At.all.  Thankfully, baby girl is not really into mornings either.  We usually wake up around 8:30 or so and hang out, take our time getting ready for the day before I head off to work.  Why oh why oh why did I think it was a great idea to book a 7am flight?  Smack me.  WHY??  Well, I *thought* (insert stupid "should have known better" chuckle here) that if we got up really early then baby girl would be super tired and sleep on the plane.  Then, we would get there by 10am and still have a whole day ahead of us to enjoy.  BAHAHAHAHAHAHA.  So here is what happened... Alarm goes off, I'm still in a sleepy stupor, Kennedy thinks she should nurse and then go back to sleep, Kevin and I are flying around the house getting everyone dressed and assembling last minute things like snacks and such.  We go to the airport at about 6:45am... for my 7am flight.  Yeah.  Worked out real well.  NOT.  Needless to say we missed out flight (which brings me to #2)... but first, let me just say that you need to book a flight at a time that works for YOU and your little one.  If you are normally awake, put together and out the door by 6:30am... then a 7am flight would probably work just fine.  Otherwise, stick with a flight that would actually fit into your normal schedule.
2. Arrive early-  Duh, right?  But seriously... We fly in and out of the Syracuse airport, which happens to be about the size of my pinky toe.  Kevin and I both have flown several times and never taken longer than 30 minutes get from car to plane.  Stupidly, we assumed this would be the case for this flight as well.  Even though all of the airport guidelines and such recommend 2 hours early, I thought we could arrive at 6am and be just fine.  Well, we didn't arrive at 6am, but even if we had, we may have still needed some extra time.  Think about it... you have to remove the car seat and/or from the car (if you are like me, the last time you did that was... well... never) and pack that away into your not-so handy dandy car seat bag.  Then you have to figure out how you are going to drag car seat bag, luggage AND baby (oh and don't forget your diaper bag and carry on) through the airport to the ticket counter.  Daddy can only watch helplessly from the car as he pulls away, otherwise the airport parking nazis will ticket or tow him immediately.  Then, it never fails, when you do get to your gate, baby decides to have a massive poop-splosion that requires a change (outfit included) before boarding.  Then, when you get her cleaned up, she wants to eat.  So... yes.  Bottom line.  Arrive at LEAST 2 hours early, if not more depending on the size of the airport.  Not just to get through security, but to give yourself time to get everyone cleaned, fed and comfortable before boarding.
3. Wear Your Baby-  Baby.  The fashionable new hands-free accessory.  :)  This one (pats self on back), I knew ahead of time.  I babywear all the time anyway, but knew for sure, that I would be wearing K when we traveled for a few reasons:  She sleeps really well in the carrier, I want to keep her close and I wanted to have both hands available.  I bought an Ergo for our trip, but it didn't arrive in time so I used our Maya ring sling.  Bonus- the Maya has a pocket sewn into the tail.  I put our IDs and boarding passes right in here so I didn't have to dig through the diaper bag for them when we needed them.  Getting through security was a breeze.  I just popped her out of the sling, tossed the sling in a bin with the diaper bag and we waked through.  I put her back in the sling and was able to nurse comfortably and discreetly no problem.  About 5 minutes before boarding, I got up and walked around and swayed with her until she dozed off.  I kept her in the sling on the plane and she slept about half of the flight.  I was even able to nurse her on the plane, in the sling, without any problems.  Worked out perfectly!
4. Two Words:  Curb.Check.-  Yeah... shoulda woulda coulda.  I wish wish wish we would have arrived early enough to take advantage of the curbside check-in.  Since Kevin couldn't help me carry anything in, I attempted (ha!!) to drag the car seat bag and large suitcase (and diaper bag, and baby) through the airport to the ticket counter.  I made it about 1 foot every 5 minutes before I had to adjust, reposition, take a deep breath and schlep on.  Thankfully, after about 15 minutes, someone took pity on this pitiful sight and offered to help.  I am normally too proud to accept a helping hand (big lesson learned here, see #8), but I was already starting to break a sweat by this point and was very grateful.  I could have avoided this all together, though, had we just curbside checked the car seat bag and suitcase.  "But what about the car seat?  I have heard it's safer if you gate check it"... I don't get this.  I see people all the time dragging their car seats around the airport.  Why??  If you gate check it, it still goes under the belly of the plane... I don't get the reasoning.  I did buy the car seat bag to protect it from dirt and scratches, but i checked that bad boy as soon as I could and was happy to see it go.  One less thing to fight with.
5. Pack Smart (and Light!)-  I originally planned to bring her stroller with us and gate check it, using it like a shopping cart through the airport.  At the last minute I decided to just leave it at home and I'm so glad I did.  I can't imagine folding it down and getting it through security, while holding her and wrangling a diaper bag and camera bag... all by myself.  You also *can* take a carry on and a diaper bag (counts as a personal bag)... but then that is a suitcase and a bag and a baby you have to manage.  It's just not worth it.  We brought one large suitcase and fit everything for K and I into the suitcase.  Things like diapers and wipes... I only brought what I needed for the diaper bag and bought more once we got there.  Dealing with the car seat bag and the one large suitcase (and diaper bag and baby) was more than enough for me.  Another carry on suitcase would have just been absurd.
6. Pack Everything But The Kitchen Sink In Your Diaper Bag-  Contradictory, much?  Yep.  But... just when you think you have everything you need (and have ENOUGH of everything you need)... you get stuck in an airport for an extra 4 hours.  True story.  Then, all of a sudden, skimping on packing the diaper bag to try to keep it nice and light was a horrible idea.  Think you packed enough diapers and clothing changes?  Thank again.  Think you packed double what you need?  Great.  Now pack more.  MORE!!!  You may know your baby's routine by heart and know just how many diapers and extra clothes you need to get through your flight... but... what you can't account for are delays, cancelled flights, extra blowouts and the number of things you will drop on the floor (hence rendering them automatically useless).  We made it by the skin of our teeth... but in retrospect, I should have packed at least one extra outfit and at least 2-3 extra diapers.  Just in case.  Also, pack an outfit change for you... or at bare minimum at least an extra top.  Why you ask?  Well... sitting on an airplane for 3 hours next to a complete stranger while you reek of baby poo is... well it stinks (Ha!  Get it?  It stinks!).  So yeah... take it from someone who has endured that embarrassment.  Pack a shirt for yourself.  
•  *A little side note here.  I found myself really wishing that I had brought a back-pack style diaper bag instead of my super cute purse style.  It would have just made the hands-free business even easier.  I wouldn't buy a special diaper bag just for traveling (unless you travel a LOT) if the one you have functions well for you at home... but... if you own a back-pack style diaper bag, I would most definitely take that for traveling instead.
7. Buy A Million Booginheads-  What the heck is a Booginhead?  THIS... is a Booginhead.  Best.Invention.Ever.  They are intended for pacifiers (and they make some to fit around sippy cups too!), but they can be used on just about everything.  I brought 3 with us and could have easily used 3 more.  As I'm sure you know.  The airport and airplane floors are no man's land.  Once a toy or pacifier hits... it's dead.  Gone.  Bye-bye.  Well... since baby's love to throw things on the floor (or at least mine does) and you can only pack a finite number of toys and pacifiers... this presents a bit of a problem.  Insert Booginhead.  I clipped a toy, a pacifier and a burp rag to her.  Problem solved.  She can attempt to throw them on the floor as much as she wants, but they don't go any farther than the 6 or so inches that the Booginhead allows.  These things are wonderful!!
8. Ask For Help, Ask For Favors-  Don't be afraid, too proud or too shy to ask for a helping hand.  And if/when you are traveling without your little squish... be the one to lend a helping hand.  When you check in or get to your gate, ask the representative if the flight is full.  Let them know that you are traveling with a small baby and would really really appreciate extra space if there is any available.  We lucked out and ended up with a whole row to ourselves on the way down. 
9. Borrow, Borrow, Borrow-  Staying with family??  Pull some strings.  Ask grandma or grandpa or whoever you are staying with to ask around for loaners.  My mom was well prepared when we arrived.  She borrowed several things (pack and play, jumparoo, bumbo seat) from a friend in her yoga class.  She also scoured garage sales and CraigsList for a cheap stroller.  If you are not staying with family, call your hotel ahead of time and see what they have available.  Most hotels have portable cribs and some have other baby items available free of charge or for a small rental.  Popular vacation destinations even have baby item rental services that will deliver items to your hotel.  I would never recommend borrowing or renting a car seat (for safety reasons), but things like strollers, pack and plays and toys are just fine. 
10. Keep Your Cool-  So you packed and planned and you've got books and toys... and your sweet little prince or princess decides that here... on this hot, crowded, uncomfortable airplane and now... 30 minutes into a 4 hours flight... is the optimal time to have a melt down.  Stay calm.  Babies can sense our anxiety and it only makes a bad situation worse.  Smile, speak softly, hold them close, rock them, bounce them, give them a paci, make silly faces.  Do whatever you can do to calm them down.  Getting embarrassed or upset isn't going to help the situation at all.  And worst case... apologize to your neighbor (who is thinking next time they will happily fork over the extra $200 for kid-free business class) and offer to buy their headset... or a stiff drink.  Crack a joke about it.  Make the best of an awkward situation.  Chances are... there are at least a few people on the plane who can empathize with you.  True, right now they may be thinking "Thank God that's not MY kid"... but trust me... at one point it likely was their kid.  No one is perfect.  So... don't let the eye rolls and icy "shut that baby up" stares get to you.  Smile, keep calm, be polite and people will soften up.  Next thing you know the melt down will be over, baby will be smiling and acting all cute and stuff.  People will be cooing at them and saying how precious they are.  Amazing, but true.  :) 

Hope you find this helpful!!  :) 

Top 10 Nursing Mother's Necessities

1. A good... make that a GREAT Nursing Bra.  It took me way too long to finally find a bra that I loved, but when I did... it was a life changing experience.  :)  A few tips... don't waste your time or money buying nursing bras before you actually start nursing.  Your boobs may be ginormous at the end of your pregnancy, but when your milk comes in after delivery, there is a very very good chance that they will get even bigger!  True story.  "But I need to bring a nursing bra to the hospital"... No.  You don't.  Stick with nursing tanks and/or sleep bras (shaped similar to a sports bra) that are sized S-M-L, etc rather than 34D, 36E, what not.  These are a lot more flexible and much better for the first few weeks anyway. 
2. Nursing Tanks-  I lived in these for the first few weeks.  I was a big fan of the Gilligan & O'Malley brand from Target.  These have enough support to keep you comfortable and enough stretch to accommodate your magical growing and shrinking breasts throughout the day.
3. Style-  There is no need to go out and buy a whole wardrobe full of fancy "nursing" tops.  Most of my favorite nursing tops are not nursing tops at all.  A few examples...   Cardigans... wear a cute cardi over a nursing tank and voila!!  Instant nursing friendly style.   Another one of my favorites is the button up shirt... think relaxed, boyfriend style.  These are also great for nursing!  And lastly this is a great style top I found at Target (on sale for $6!!  Woot!).  Also not "nursing" but the wrap/crossover style bust line works perfectly.  This is inspiring me to do a Top 10 nursing friendly outfits... coming soon.  :)
4. Sleep Nursing Bra-  I snubbed my nose at these for a week or two.  I didn't see the point in buying them since I loved my nursing tanks and just didn't think I needed them.  Well, when the sleep deprivation finally set in and I found myself fumbling around like an idiot while K was wailing in the middle of the night, I thought I would give them a try.  They are wonderful!!  They are also very supportive yet very stretchy... and... best part, no looking for clips to undo in the middle of the night.  You just slide the material off to the side, whip one out and nurse away.  Wonderful!
5. Support Pillow- I went with the Boppy.  Some swear by the My Breast Friend.  Whatever you decide, save your arms and your back and invest in a support pillow.  This also makes middle of the night feedings a little easier.
6. Cup With a Lid and a Straw- simple, yes?  But boy oh boy I can't count the number of cups of water I spilled before I figured out that this was a good thing to keep handy while I nursed.  Do yourself a favor and keep one around.
7. Hair Tie- now you can find designer nursing bracelets and nursing apps for your phone and all sorts of other tracking devices.  And at 3 am when you are up for the 5th time that night, you tell me how wonderful those apps and fancy bracelets are.  All you need to keep track of (if you can even remember to do this) is a hair tie on your wrist.  Put it on the side that baby is nursing on, so when you wake up for the 6th time at 4am you will know, in your sleep, which side the baby needs to nurse on next.
8. Breast Pump- depending on your plans to go back to work or stay at home, nurse exclusively or supplement, your needs may vary.  But... chances are you will need a breast pump of some sort.  I work full time and although Kennedy is exclusively breastfed, she needs to take her breast milk from a bottle while I am away.  Which means that I need to pump while I am at work.  I am a nurse on a very busy floor and often getting a lunch break is tough, so I needed a pump that could get the job done in as little time as possible.  I decided to go with a Medela Freestyle.  It is a double electric with the ability to pump completely hands-free.  This has been the perfect pump for me, I am even able to do my charting while I pump.  Nice, huh?  Your needs may be different, though.  I do really like the Medela brand... and on their website they have a very helpful tool to help you decide what pump would work best for your particular situation.  Also, some insurance plans now cover the cost (or partial cost) of breast pumps.  Before you drop big bucks on one, check with your insurance company to see if it is covered.  Always check first, because they may have restrictions on type and brand.  Once you get your pump, take really good care of it.  These things are pricey and you will want it to last through as many babies as possible!!
9. "Back-Up" Manual Pump-  While I absolutely adore my fancy pants double electric hands free wonder pump... I will never ever forget the first time I went out after the baby without it.  While it is absolutely wonderful, it is also somewhat cumbersome to tote around (lots of parts, comes with it's own bag, makes noise, battery, tubes, bottles, etc etc).  I figured that I was just going to the mall "for an hour or two" with my mother in law, so I would be fine without it.  Mistake.  5 hours later I was crying in a dressing room with my boobs so engorged I didn't dare move another muscle.  I didn't want to lug my big fancy pump with me to the mall, but I would have given my left arm (or my left boob) for a quickie, cheapie manual pump.  The point of these pumps is not necessarily to pump enough milk to stash and store (because, let's face it, you would end up with carpal tunnel before that would ever happen)... but they are a quick fix when you are out and about and need some relief.  The alternative?  Take your cute scarf off and hand express into it before your nipples pop off.  Not pretty.  Buy the cheapie hand pump.  It stashes easily into your purse and is a lifesaver in certain situation.
10. Know Your Rights- every state is different, but most truly support the rights of nursing and pumping mamas.  In NY, for example, large companies (>50 employees) must have a room available for mothers to pump in.  They are not forced to pay you on your pumping break, but they are mandated to allow you reasonable time to pump.  If you are unable to find your rights, per your state or company, contact La Leche League (see below) and they can advocate for you.  Baby's gotta eat.  :)  AND...  Know Your Resources-  friends and family who have (recently, preferably) been there, a pediatrician who if pro-BF (meaning they won't try to push formula the second you or your baby has an issue with breastfeeding), your local LLL (La Leche League), the Lactation Consultant from the hospital (they are available to you, in most cases, long after discharge), FB groups like the Badass Breastfeeder and others.  Bottom line... you are NOT alone.  Ever.  Right now there are thousands and thousands of breastfeeding mama out there.  If you are having problems, take a deep breath and nurse on.  Most of us have had some sort of issue be it latching problems, pain, reflux, supply concerns... at some point.  Don't give up.  Talk to someone, get some ideas, try something different, but just keep nursing, just keep nursing (repeat like Dory from Finding Nemo).  You can do it.  :)

Top 10: New Mama Must-Haves

 I read the books, I talked to friends who have been there, done that, I scoured the internet... but nothing truly prepared me for the first week of motherhood.  It was an amazingly beautiful, wonderful, crazy, chaotic zombie trance-like week that I can barely remember, but will never forget.

Settling into life with a newborn is tough.  With the help of my wonderful husband, family and friends... and the items listed below... we made it through!!

1.  Earth Mama Angel Baby New Mama Bottom Spray

In those first few days post partum, to say I felt like an NFL kicker had taken a shot at my lady bits with a steel toed boot is an understatement.  And I didn't even have a tear... I can only imagine how horrible that would feel.  Anyway... sensitive, painful, tender, OUCH... doesn't even begin to describe it.  This glorious spray felt cool and refreshing.  It contains natural ingredients to help soothe your poor privates during the aftermath.  I don't know what I would have done without it.
*EMAB also makes a New Mama Bottom Balm, which I bought, but never used.  If it's anything like the rest of their products, I'm sure it's awesome too!

2.  Gilligan O'Malley Nursing Tanks

I lived in these.  I knew I wanted to breasfeed and thought I would be proactive and purchase a few nursing bras during the last month of my pregnancy.  I *thought* I bought the right size... I mean... I had ballooned up several cup sizes already... how much bigger could they possibly get?  Boy was I clueless.  When my milk came in, I was busting out of everything I *thought* would contain them.  That's what I get for thinking, right?  See the good thing about the nursing tanks is that unlike bras which are sized pretty specifically (34D, 36DD, etc)... these are small, medium, large, etc.  The tanks are no where near as structured and have a lot more stretch to accommodate engorgement without sacrificing support.  They are wonderful!

3.  Gilligan O'Malley Nursing Sleep Bras

Another Target wonder product.  As fabulous as the tanks were, in the middle of the night when you are in a trance because you have been up every hour on the hour to nurse... the last thing you want to mess around with is trying to make sure you can get your nursing tank clipped back together before you hit the pillow for another quick 15 minute nap.  These sleep bras are very similar to sports bras, also have tons of stretch and are super simple to nurse in.  All you have to do is pull the material to the side, whip it out and feed that baby.  By far the best thing to sleep in when nursing!

4.  Earth Mama Angel Baby Natural Nipple Butter

The first few days/weeks of nursing are painful.  Seriously.  Nobody really warned me about this.  I can say that it gets better, but in the meantime finding something to soothe your nipples is really important.  The hospital provided some samples of lanolin- which worked great... but I definitely preferred the Natural Nipple Butter and was happy to switch when my samples ran out.

5.   Reusable Nursing Pads

It took me one outing in my disposable nursing pads to realize that I hated them.  I don't like panty liners or pads, so I don't know why I thought I wouldn't mind plastic-y pads on my boobs.  During my first trip to Babies R Us after Kennedy arrived, I picked up a package of reusable nursing pads... then came home and ordered a bunch on Amazon.  I have acquired a few different kinds, but my favorites are the cotton ones that came with my nursing cover.  So much softer on the skin then the pastic sposies.  Blech. 


6.  Mesh Hospital Panties

Yep.  Seriously.  Take them.  Take as many as you can get your hands on.  Take them all.  Whether you have a c-section or vaginal delivery, the first few days/weeks post partum are umm.... messy... and these disposables are awesome!!  Let's face it... nobody wants to wash that kind of a mess and tossing out your granny panties by the dozen doesn't exactly seem practical either.

7.  Always Infinity Pads

Speaking of messes... these are about as good as they get at containing them.  I am not a fan of wearing panty liners, let alone pads (ahem diapers), but post partum you really have no choice.  It was a trial and error process to find a pad I could actually tolerate and these were the winners.  May I suggest stocking up on pads... lots and lots of them... in advance.  The amount that you will go through in the first few weeks is pretty absurd.

8.  Pandora Radio

For some reason I thought singing lullabies was one of those innate motherly instincts.  I figured I would somehow just *know* the words to all of those traditional little songs and I would sing softly while my sweet babe drifted off to sleep.  HA!!  I have learned that not only do I not know the words to lullabies... but when I am super sleep deprived and baby girl is screaming, I can hardly remember the words to my favorite country songs.  Andplusalso, how many times can you sing "Rockabye baby in the treetop" before you are ready to stab yourself.  Enter Pandora.  Specifically the Rockabye Baby channel on Pandora.  This channel plays classic rock music (think Journey, Aerosmith, AC DC, Metallica) in lullabye form.  It's great!  I turn this on in the middle of the night and jam out softly to "Don't Stop Believing" and "Dude Looks Like A Lady" while we nurse.  Love it!

9.  Garnier Nutrisse Skin Renew Eye Roller

 

Let's face it... sleep deprivation does not do good things for your appearance.  Vain as it may sound, I did not want to sport the stereotypical "new mom" look... you know sweats, messy hair, dark circles and big bags under my eyes.  Umm... no thanks.  I did hang out in yoga pants, tank tops and a pony tail for a while... BUT... I did manage to throw on a little makeup before I left the house (most days at least).  Even if I didn't have time for my normal makeup routine, I did manage to swipe this wonder product on.  It's a concealer with (drum roll please) caffeine in it, which helps to not only hide those dark circles, but gives your skin a little pick-me-up.  Definitely a must have! 

10. Keurig

Speaking of caffeine..... I may or may not be slightly obsessed with my Keurig.  I loved it before... I even blogged about it when Kevin bought it for me last year (and may or may not have pictures hugging and kissing it, lol)... but now I REALLY love it.  I am pretty awful at making coffee anyway, and now I certainly don't have the time or patience to mess with a full pot... so K-cups it is.  Lord knows I need my morning cup o' Joe now more than ever.  

Holy October!

October really snuck up on me.  I don't know how, because I am always looking forward to my favorite month... but it really caught me off guard this year, perhaps because I slept in until 11 (what a bum) and awoke to 30 something degrees with rain.  Bleh!

Anywho... this is going to be a good month.  Make that an awesome month.  As such, I feel the need for another Top Ten.

Top Ten Things I Love About (this) October

10.  Graduation.  As it stands right now, I am 64 clinical hours away from being finished with nursing school.  Our graduation is October 31.  Can't wait!

9.  Speaking of October 31... Halloween (duh).  Love Halloween.  I think this year I am going all out.  Maybe I can talk Kev into hosting a Halloween party.  THAT would be awesome.  Then I can do the totally dorky frozen hand in the blood looking punch (Sangria, mayhaps?), and those cookies that look like fingers... and spider cupcakes.  I am over-the-top excited about this already, can you tell?

8.  I love how fall really kicks into high gear.  The leaves change, the temps cool (although it does NOT, repeat does NOT need to hit 30* again for a while.  That was a bit much, thank you).  But seriously... October IS fall.. and I love it.

7.  For some reason, I am thinking this is going to be our bfp month.  No particular reason why... but I just have a good feeling about it.  Thinking positive.

6.  Fall fashion.  I was so excited to break out the Bearpaws (fake Uggs) and skinny jeans and scarves.  I even picked up a new fleece vest and cute scarf yesterday.  I love wearing cute coats that are not your typical Eskimo garb, which is what I normally wear from November-April up here.  Love wearing light layers and maybe a light coat and still feeling comfortable.

5.  Apple picking, pumpkin picking, mulled cider, hot chocolate... all things fall food/drink.  Speaking of... I must find myself a pumpkin martini.

4.  My pellet stove.  We turned it on last night for a little while and I have it on right now.  I love the smell and the cozy warmth.  Next best thing to a fireplace... although with the easy clean up and cheap pellets (vs wood, holy expensiveness) I think I would choose the pellet stove.  Anyway, love it.  I look forward to turning it on every year.

3.  Football.  Yeah... it starts in August/September-ish... but it doesn't reallllly get addicting until now.  The weather, the tailgating, the parties... this is the time of year where it is in high-gear.  There is nothing better than a crisp fall breeze carrying the scent of chili and chicken wings through the air while you have a house full of friends screaming and yelling at the TV and doing imitation touch down dances.  I love fall football.

2.  Jeans to work day.  I know (eyeroll) this is not exactly of Top Ten caliber, but in my little world... it sure is.  There is only ONE day a year that we are allowed to wear jeans to work... and I look forward to it every.single.year.  This coming Friday, October 7, will be the day.  It's the little things... lol

1.  MY BIRTHDAY!!!  Don't tell me you didn't know?  :)  Normally, I hate birthdays.  I don't want to get any older and the idea of "pushing 30" and not having any children yet does not thrill me.  Nevertheless, I am looking forward to this birthday like it is my own personal holiday... and this year like it is going to be *my* year.  Look out, world.

So... that's it.  It's October, officially... and I am super happy about it.  Fingers crossed that this is going to be as great of a month as I am thinking it will.

Hello fall!!!

I know it's only September first and "fall" doesn't officially start for a few more weeks, but I can't help myself.  I love fall.

Last night was the first night that we didn't have to run the horrendously white trash-y window unit air conditioner all night.  I woke up and it was a chilly 50-something degrees.  It was a beautiful thing.  On my way in to work, I stopped at Dunkin' Donuts and enjoyed a delicious pumpkin coffee.  I am lovin' life this week!

Before I spoil the rest of my post, I better get right to the point...

Top 10 Things I LOVE About Fall

10.  Pumpkin coffee/lattes.  If only they were calorie-free

9.  Leaves.  I grew up in Florida and never got to experience the whole leaves changing color thing.  Palm trees don't change colors, ya know.  Anyway, it's beautiful... and the Finger Lakes wine region has the absolute BEST fall scenery I have ever had the pleasure of enjoying... paired with a glass of NY State wine... perfection.

8.  Speaking of wine... mulled wine.  It's kind of amazing.  If you haven't tried it, you are definitely missing out.  Whip some up in the crock pot and your house will smell fabulous.  If I'm not in a wine mood (or if I happen to get lucky enough to get pregnant this fall)... mulled cider it shall be!

7.  Apple picking.  I am kind of partial to Beak-n-Skiff... mostly because the have an apple winery too.  It's always a great date with the hubby and means I get to enjoy apple crisp and apple pie for weeks!  yay!

6.  Cheaper electricity bills.  I know I know... it's not all warm and fuzzy... but who doesn't love September and October for the wonderfully decreased electricity bills.  I sure do!!

5.  Jeans!  I must own about 20 pairs of jeans that have been piled up just staring at me for the past 4 months.  Don't get me wrong, I love summer clothes and practically lived in a bikini during my teenage years in Florida... but I so love my jeans and love getting to wear them again.

4.  Snuggling.  Mushy, yeah.  but seriously... who wants to get all cuddly when it's 90+ degrees?  Not me.  I can't wait until it's just a little bit chilly outside and I get to snuggle up on Kevin and enjoy his body heat.  I always call him my polar bear because he loves the cold.  I sissy out at about 50*

3.  Closet shopping.  This goes hand in hand with #5.  Twice a year I completely change my wardrobe.  I will soon be retiring all of my tank tops and shorts... and diggging out my box of fall.winter clothes... you know.... the Bearpaw boots (yep, too cheap to buy Uggs... so what?)... the skinny jeans, cute sweaters, scarves, hoodies... all of it.  It's like going shopping in my own closet and I look forward to it every year.  Come spring, I will be sick of the eskimo getup and ready to bust out the shorts again, but for now... I am excited for a change.

2.  Fire.  Bonfires, fires in our pellet stove, all of it.  I love fire.  No, I'm not a pyro... but I love sitting around a fire with some friends, drinking beer and signing along to our fav music... or cuddling up with Kevin and watching a movie in front of our pellet stove.  And the smell... ugh... LOVE the smell of fire.

1.  Pumpkin Ice Cream from Gannons.  Of course it was going to be food related.  I am an uber fat-kid at heart.  Gannons pumpkin ice cream is the epitome of fall, to me... and it is so absolutely delicious.

Well... that's my top ten for fall... what's yours?

Top 10

A fellow CNY Knottie, acmj11/, posted a hilarious "Top 10" list yesterday and I wanted to share... keep in mind she has been planning her wedding for about 18 months and is just 10 days away.  For anyone who is in the planning stages or recently married, this will probably ring a bell.  Enjoy.

"Top 10 Reasons to Elope

10.  Writing out the invitations by hand.  I did EVERY SINGLE ONE by myself.  It really sucked.  A lot.

9.  Figuring out the rehearsal dinner.  OMG!  Formal vs. casual, inside vs. outside.  I lost this one, and you know what?  It wasn't even worth it. This was more stressful than I ever thought it would be.  Good thing we're getting married on a Friday.  Because our rehearsal is on a Thursday, we were able to book it last minute.

8.  The expense.  Grrrr...I originally wanted something untraditional, lowkey, etc.  Somehow everything spiraled out of control.  Our guest list got up to 260 and it turned into this big formal production.  I come from a BIG Italian family...I guess I should have seen it coming.

7.  Oh, so you're RSVPing for 2?  That's interesting because I didn't invite your plus one.

6.  This seating chart is driving me insane.  Sit where I put you and like it

5.  Fighting the Bridezilla urge.  Now I really think I've been a reasonable and easy going bride.  All I asked for was a black patent leather shoe.  I don't care what height, whether its strappy, or a pump, or open-toed.  Why are you fighting me on this?  Don't make me remind you that the specific pair I was forced to wear for your wedding is sitting in my closet and I will never wear them again.

4.  This one kind of goes hand in hand with number 7.  When the seamstress pinned my sister's dress at the knee to be hemmed, she remarked, "Are you sure that's wear you want it?  One of the other bridesmaids got hers a lot shorter."  Seriously????  I'm going to take deep breaths and hope for the best on this one.

3.   Just because you asked me to be in your wedding, does not mean I owe it to you to be in mine.  Just because I don't ask you doesn't mean we're not friends.  Get a grip and be thankful that you get to come without shelling out the extra cash you would have if you were in the wedding party.

2.  Grrrr.... weddings and blended families do NOT mix.  I don't think I have to elaborate on this one.

1.  I can't wait until things go back to normal with my family.  My dad can't handle anything and I don't really feel like I should be talking to my stepmom about everything.  For crying out loud, dad, it's YOUR daughter's wedding!!" 

Athena has inspired me to create my own "Top 10" list, which I will work on this week... for now... back to the grind.