Bountiful Baskets

Some of you know that I belong to a fruit and vegetable co-op. Bountiful Baskets. I love this thing. Pay your $15 and head to the park (way too early on a Saturday morning) and you leave with a laundry basket full of fresh fruits and veggies. Most of which is what you would have bought at the grocery store anyway... and then there are always those few items that you wouldn't have bought- but you have now... so you better figure out what to do with them. I got introduced to this whole idea by a girlfriend a few months ago- I was a regular for awhile- and then the holidays hit and I just didn't have the energy AND our schedules were too messed up. But, this week, I decided to get back on the wagon and sign up again. Our basket had the following treasures this week: broccoli, red peppers, tomatoes, spinach, green leaf lettuce, English cucumbers, apples, plums, oranges, blueberries and bananas.
It also just so happened that they had some extra specials this week- pink lady apples and sourdough bread. YUMMY! A couple of my favorite foods! So, I now have 40 lbs of apples and 5 loaves of sourdough bread at my house.... 20 lbs of the apples will go to my mom, as well as 2 of the loaves of bread, but still....
The best part about the whole thing is watching my kids get so excited over fruits and vegetables... Julia was over the moon with the apples- and I had to convince her that more than 3 apples in a day *will* really make your tummy hurt- I PROMISE! And, Colin can't wait to have blueberry pancakes tomorrow morning...
Anyway, I think I better get off the computer and get busy making something with all of this stuff! The good news is that folks in lots of places will benefit this week by enjoying homemade apple pie! Happy Saturday everyone!

Lion King!

In October, I got a flier advertising that the Broadway show Lion King was coming to Grady Gammage at ASU. I was VERY excited! I have always wanted to see that show, and I thought it would be the perfect time to expose Colin to the theatre. Julia has gone several times before, but Colin never seemed quite ready to sit still for that long. (I think I got scarred with Colin in several movie experiences when he spent the entire 2 hours of a movie bouncing up and down in the seat. And I spent 2 hours apologizing to everyone around me...) Anyway, I really wanted to go and take Colin and I had a pretty good feeling that my mom would want to go as well (she LOVES the Lion King soundtrack). So, after several calls and conversations with my mom and like a 2 hour internet session with Ticketmaster, we secured tickets for Feb. 7th- the 7:30 p.m. show. Why 2 hours on the internet you may ask? I wanted very specific seats- 1st balcony (cheaper, and I think your view of the entire stage is actually better than on the floor), in the center, in the first or second row. Needless to say it took putting in almost EVERY date for the show to get these exact seats, but I did get them eventually! In all of this searching, Joe decided that it probably wasn't worth the cost for him to go with us. The tickets were very expensive- especially when you added on the surcharges and fees. So, we just got 5 tickets for Nana, Papa, Julia, Colin and myself.
So, then several months passed. Julia and Colin's birthdays, Thanksgiving, Christmas, 2nd Christmas, etc. etc. And I had basically forgotten about going. :) But then the week arrived... and I realized that Colin needed a new pair of dress shoes- I swear that kids feet grow faster than weeds! So, we hit Savers to look and see what they had. I just couldn't see paying $20-25 dollars for a pair of dress shoes knowing how little he would wear them. We were in luck- found a great pair (looked like they had been worn once) of brown tie loafers. Julia also found a 'fancy' dress that she fell in love with- and still had the tags- for $6. So, now both of my kids had some new finery to wear- we were ready for the day to arrive.
We had great fun getting ready to go. I ironed Colin's pants and his dress shirt (I can't believe how big his clothes are getting- ironing his dress shirt was close to ironing one of Joe's!) Daddy was off canyoneering, so the kids and I had a good day together just hanging out and getting ready. Julia wanted 'fancy' hair to go with her 'fancy' dress- gotta love her- she just doesn't realize that hair is NOT momma's forte. Anyway, eventually we were all ready and dressed and headed over to Nana and Papa's house.
Nana and Papa are my kids whole lives. I don't know how else to describe it. So my kids were very excited to go see Lion King with Nana and Papa. Here are some photos of Nana and Papa with their kids.....

*Nana and Papa and their kids*

*Papa and his girl.... *

*He really was happier about going than he looks in this photo. :) *

We had dinner at Serranos and then headed to the theatre. We had to walk a little bit to get there and being the bad momma that I am, I forgot Julia's jacket, so she was pretty cold. The show was AWESOME- especially the music. Colin did enjoy his first trip to the theatre- except for the fact that he dozed off during the second act and slept through the end of the show. How anyone could have slept in that theatre- as loud as it was- is totally beyond me, but my little guy did it. I so wish I had taken my camera to the theatre so I could have taken a picture of my little man, all dressed up, sound asleep in his chair. We didn't get home until almost 11 p.m. and my kids were exhausted! (note to self: next time go to the matinee, not the evening performance!) Anyway, I will be on iTunes later today getting the music from this show. ;)

25 Random Things from Facebook

I wrote this for my Facebook account after being tagged by like a dozen people. Thought I would post it here for those that don't 'do' Facebook. Started out doing it as a lark, but I think I actually learned a few things about myself that I didn't expect.. and it was more painful than I thought it would be. Haven't posted here in awhile, going to try to get back in the habit again...

25 Random Things

In no particular order:

1. Joe Furedy is my soul mate- the love of my life. I could not go more than a day without talking to him. I fell in love with him when I was 14 years old, and I have not stopped loving him since.
2. That being said, I really wish I had met Joe 10 years later... to give both of us the chance to have experienced more things.
3. Giving birth naturally to my children (no drugs, no interventions) and breastfeeding both of them are two of my greatest accomplishments in life.
4. I love to listen to music and I love to sing- loudly. I usually only do this when I am in the car by myself. Usually.
5. I love shopping at Target. I shop there at least once a week, usually more like 2 or 3 times. This has only gotten worse since they built a SuperTarget that has groceries down the street.
6. Mexican food is the best food on the face of the planet. I could eat Mexican food every single day without hesitation.
7. I drink TOO much Diet Coke- at least 64 oz every day. I cannot function without it.
8. I love my children more than life itself. I cannot imagine where I would be or what I would be like without their presence in my life every single day.
9. That being said, most days I like one of my children much more than the other one. And I feel horribly guilty about that most of the time.
10. I need time by myself every single day. If I don't have it, I get really cranky.
11. One of my biggest regrets is that I have NEVER learned to read music or play an instrument. (which is a shame because- see #4)
12. I think Joe and I have often chosen the path in life that is safe, rather than the path in life that was right when it comes to jobs, school, etc.
13. In my adult life I have been every size between a 4 and a 14 (and possibly bigger but at some point I stopped buying clothes), and I have hated my body at each and every size.
14. I would love to have another baby with Joe.
15. However, sometimes I can't wait until my kids are older and we have more time for just the two of us.
16. I have kissed ONE man in my entire life. One. (see #1 and #2)
17. I really like to swear. The 'f' word really is my favorite. I try to keep myself from doing it, but some days....
18. My mother is my best friend (outside of Joe), but some days that is really hard.
19. One of my biggest goals for myself in the future is to run a marathon. But, since I run 3-4 miles every single day and that just about kills me, I wonder if I'll ever get fit enough to do it.
20. I read every day while I blow dry my hair. I read anything and everything. I usually have 4-5 books going at any given time.
21. I rarely allow myself to drink because of the genes that I have inherited, and I am horribly afraid I will become an alcoholic.
22. I want a tattoo. Badly. I have researched tattooing, looked at all sorts of designs, and found out which shops nearby are the best- with good artists and good safety procedures. But, I have yet to dig up the nerve to actually go get one. I swear I will when I reach my ideal body weight. We'll see.
23. I have strong faith and believe in God. I pray every day, and believe that he is my savior. I have not regularly attended church for the last 10 years because I can't find a church where my family 'fits'.
24. I want to go back to school and get a PhD. But, I worry that in doing so, people would figure out that I am not really that smart. I also worry that adding the stress of school to our already busy lives would ruin my marriage.
25. I worry way too much about what other people think. All the time. I've read this about 20 times worrying about what everybody will think about it...