drain-oh!

day 140:


husband of the year fixed my sink.


it was not draining and really irritated me.


he said it was really clogged with these super long wavy hairs.


i'm not sure where they came from...


but i'm glad my sink drains now.

girls girls girls

day 139:


we're not going to find out the sex of the baby.


we just thought that it would be fun to be surprised. 


but one thing is for sure, if we have a girl, she will fit right in.


although, ryan might like some more boy company!


today was renee's birthday party... and there was no shortage of skirts, dresses, pony tails, and girly accessories.


all the girls had to sit with each other while they ate. cause that's what girls do. they do everything together... and that doesn't change. take for example trips to public restrooms. girls never go alone.


i love the picture of natalie helping to blow out the candles. she didn't want it to be renee's birthday. she wanted it to be hers. happy "not" birthday natalie.

but my favorite was of the birthday girl. she's so sweet. happy birthday renee. i hope you had a blast!

the destroyer

day 138:


the dog is going through a stage.


at least, that's what i keep telling myself.


take for example her stuffed animals that i once blogged about. if you're following, then you know that i wrote that she loves them and doesn't chew them. 


well that has changed. 


she chewed every last one of them.

now, one of her favorite things to do is push around all of the couch pillows/cushions. usually pushing them on the floor.


this is the love seat after one of her tirades.


like i said, she's going through a stage. 

prison dog

day 137:


well, my dog is creating prison weapons.


this was once a normal bone, but after some hard work, griffey has successfully made a prison shank. 


i'm not sure why she has done this...


but part of me is scared to turn my back on her.


she could strike at any moment.

best day ever

day 136:


today was the best day.


it was a snow day, so i got to sleep in.


then, i had a dr's appointment, and we got to hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time. it was the most amazing thing. i didn't think it would be that cool, but i was wrong. it was awesome.

on the way home we stopped at cold stone and i got the best ice cream on the planet. cake batter with graham cracker pie crust mixed in.


as if it couldn't get any better, i gave in to my craving and had mcdonald's for dinner.


all in all, a pretty amazing day.


but the best part was definitely the heartbeat.

slippers galore

day 135:


i'm surprised i haven't posted about my wnec sweatshirt.


haven't heard of it? it's only the most important piece of clothing in my wardrobe.

i probably haven't posted a pic of it because i'm always wearing it.


however, the second most important thing in my wardrobe is my pair of slippers.


i wear them every single day... if not out of the house, definitely around the house.


but over the last year, i have ruined them. wearing them non-stop outside doesn't help.


so this year (thanks to my wonderful mother-in-law) i got a second pair. 

yes they are the exact same pair as the first ones. and i promise to try and take better care of them...


so here they are... old and new. 

does a body good

day 134:


for those of you that have facebook, perhaps you saw the comment about mcdonald's french fries...


well, for the record, that is not the only thing i crave. and some of the other things are much better for me.


like milk. 


we go through milk like crazy. it seems like i can't keep it in the house. i buy it, then it's gone.


so we started buying it in twos and threes.


that's right, threes.

get some pride

day 133:


i know people get sick of the dog... but come on! look at her!


she had just woken up, and i couldn't help but snap a picture of her.


that ridiculous ear. and those groggy eyes. not to mention the messed up hair.


oh, to have the life of a dog.


and i suppose i could have helped her with her ear, but i didn't. i left it there and giggled at her for a good 10 minutes.

and it begins

day 132:


it's true. my jeans are too tight.


i got my first official pair of maternity jeans yesterday.

and honestly, they are amazing. they are so comfortable. no more button digging into my stomach. (also, as an added bonus, no more zipping and unzipping when i use the bathroom. which is constantly).


the picture is a little blurry, but that's because i had to take it of myself in a mirror... not a lot of practice with that.


and for those that are following, this is my first appearance on the blog... i'm glad i got to share the spotlight with baby balut :)

karaoke king

day 130:


tonight we went to boston to have dinner with friends.


we also went to visit the newest addition to the lutz family. maggie lutz.


while there, we had an amazing dinner, played taboo, and sang karaoke.


not sure what was the best part.

maggie wasn't so sure about the karaoke.

icicles icicles

day 129:


i love icicles. although, we don't have many at our house. which, i suppose, is a good thing.


it always amazes me how they are formed. i know that might sound dumb, but it's true.


they just start out as a little drip of water...

that's why the huge ones are so awesome.


sorry mine don't compare to those at the matt+julia household, but this was the best i had.


i think he's a cute little icicle. 

stopping by woods

day 128:


i looked out at the back yard today...


it looked like a picture. 


and it kind of reminded me of the robert frost poem "stopping by woods on a snowy evening".


although, it is not snowing now, and in the poem it is snowing.


and it's not really the woods at all...


but that's still what i thought of.

funny story...

day 127:


you might be wondering why this log is sticking out of my snowbank. 


well, that's because i put it there... in order to put out the flames.


you see, it was my job to keep the fire going today. and normally i'm pretty good at it.

however, i may have slightly misjudged the size of this one particular log.


and as i tried and tried to force the log into the stove, i realized that it wasn't getting stuck on anything, it was just too big.


no big deal. just take it out and put one in that fits right? right. except for the fact that this log was already catching on fire.


so, i had to take the partially burning log and carry it (yes with gloves on mom) through the living room and the kitchen and out the door.


now it is safely extinguished in the snowbank.


crisis narrowly averted. 

the ice storm

day 126: 


well, it was snow day number 3 today. but it was more ice than snow.


this time, griffey stayed inside with me, while husband of the year bore the elements.


here she is watching him shovel.


and i guess technically i was watching too... 

stairway to heaven

day 125:


i went to matt and julia's home-in-progress for dinner tonight.


we all ate at a table made of 1x6s and work horses.


dinner was great, but the company was better.


these are a couple shots of all the hard work!

lookin good guys! julia, keep up the good work!


it will all be worth it in the end :)

art class

day 124:


when i was in high school, i had to take art. i guess everyone does. 


and for some reason, you are required to paint/sketch a still life... which is usually a bowl of fruit. or sometimes flowers, but usually a bowl of fruit.

well, for those that don't know, i am a terrible artist. or at least in high school, when i thought art meant being able to paint or draw, i was a terrible artist.


but artistry is not just being able to paint or draw, but being able to express yourself. 


and i express myself through my camera.


so here's my still life.


take that mrs annis! 

i got caught

day 123:


well, i told you we had a mouse.


this morning, while still in her crate, griffey started barking like crazy.


tim got up to go see what her problem was. he didn't see anything, but when he let her out of the crate, she bolted to the wall and chased the mouse into the bathroom.


he proceeded to lock the two in the bathroom, but griffey couldn't find it so he went in (with gloves on) hoping to find it himself.


once he found it he told me he was going to let it go outside. i quickly objected and told him to kill it because if he just let it go it it might come back.


but apparently he is more humane than i am, because he decided to drive it down the street and let it go there.


i'm not lying. he literally drove the car, while holding the mouse in his hand, and dropped the little fella off at the end of the street.


when he came back, i told him that it would probably just freeze to death, but at least he tried to save it.


poor fella.

movie night

day 122:


tina came over to watch "the social network" with me and tim.


the movie was pretty good... but the best part was, tina came bearing gifts.


she brought an amazing chocolate chip banana bread.


and she brought a gift for baby balut :)

snow day #2

day 121:


i have been wearing the same clothes for the last two days.


and by clothes i mean sweats.


why change you clothes if you don't have to go anywhere? you know, like, why make your bed when you're just going to get in it again in a few hours... why change your pjs when you are just going to get back into them in a few hours.


at any rate, griff and i sat around and did nothing... that is until griff caught the scent of the mouse we have.

yes, we have a mouse. we have set traps, but it is really smart. i have only seen it once, but i have heard it a few times.


well, today griffey must have seen it because she shot up from her nap in front of the fire, and would not stop trying to get behind the entertainment center.


this lasted a better part of the afternoon.


at least it was more interesting to watch than daytime television. 


i mean, there are only so many episodes of law and order that one can watch.

snow day #1

day 120:


first real snow storm of the season.


griffey didn't know what to do with all the snow. 


she couldn't walk in it, she had to jump through it.

but she had a blast once she got used to maneuvering through it.


tim, aka husband of the year, took her out in the yard until she was tired and shivering.


then he cleaned the cars and shoveled and snowblowed (if that's a word)

i took all the pictures from inside my warm house.

laughter

day 119:


well, i'm sure many of you know (but for those that don't) pregnant women have mood swings. and although they have not been too bad for me, i have had a few.


for example, tonight... i couldn't stop laughing.


you see, there was this little get-together... and alexis made cake pops. (which are amazing little cakes that are like lollipops).

and just as i was about to eat mine, i realized that it looked like my brother. well my brother in high school.


remember in the 90's when the bowl cut/ mushroom cut/ whatever you want to call it, was in style? everyone had it! including my brother.


well, i thought it was funny. so funny, that i could not stop laughing. so funny, that i did not eat the cake pop, but instead took it home so i could take a picture of it and blog about it.

and baby makes three

day 118:


well... i know i have taken a few pictures of my willow tree people, however, this one is extra special.


it was a gift from my parents... right after i told them i had a baby on the way.


this is one of the craziest most exciting times of my life.


i can't believe there is a little person inside me!

feed me

day 117:


lately my life has been all about food.


and tonight i was in the mood for shepherd's pie. 


so i made it. and it was good.


what should i eat next...


maybe a chocolate milkshake.

i love new england

day 116:


for those that might not know, tim lived in california for a year.


we were dating, so i went and visited him often. 


i have spent a good amount of time there, and i absolutely love it. 70 degrees and sunny... all the time. perfect.


however, i would not trade living in new england for anything. i love the changing seasons. 


i love the leaves changing in the fall, the new flowers in the spring, the sunshine in the summer, and the fresh snow in winter.


new england is beautiful.

smartphone

day 115:


if you are like me, then you can't live without your phone. 


almost two years ago i upgraded to a blackberry... and now i can't imagine anything else.


some people call the blackberry the "crackberry" because people can't get enough of it.


i like to call it the "mixedberry" because it is more culturally diverse.

snuggle time

day 114:


i wasn't planning on taking a picture of the infamous griffey...


however, when i saw her snuggling with her elephant, i couldn't resist.


this elephant was her very first toy, and she still loves it to pieces.

do your job already!!

day 113:


this remote really irritates me.


as i have discussed with others (or at least with one other person), the cable button is not doing the job that it was created to do.


you see, the cable button is moody. it only lights up when it feels like it.

and no it's not the batteries. because sometimes when the cable button is not working i press all the other buttons to see if they are working, and they are.


it just doesn't want to light up.


i try all sorts of ways: i press it really hard and hold it down... i press it a lot of times all in a row... i try my left hand as well as my right hand... i sometimes even shake the remote, hoping that i will wake it up.


nothing works. it just lights up when it feels like it. no rhyme or reason. just completely random.

italiano

day 112:


people always ask me what nationality i am.


and for years i would say italian. 


i figured that the reason they were asking was because they were wondering where my long dark curly hair, and olive skin came from.


so italian seemed like the logical answer. no need to include the other nationalities that are obviously... well not as obvious.


however, just recently my husband discovered that although my italian traits are more dominant, i am not predominantly italian.


in fact, i am only 25% italian. with french canadian taking up a good part of 50% of my multicultural pie chart.


so i apologize to my lovely husband, and to anyone else i may have misled, but i'll always be italiano at heart.

messy miffers

day 111:


well, no matter how many times i pick up the dogs toys and put them in her basket, she takes them out one more time.


the best part is, she takes them out one at a time... plays with each for a moment or two and then leaves it carelessly on the floor as she gets the next one.


and when i try to pick them up, she decides that she was still playing with them.


she could be dead asleep on the couch, but if i pick up her bear she is awake and wants him.


even as i took these pictures, she came over to check on her toys.



i know, i know... just wait till i have kids.

one for one

day 110:


not sure if you have heard of toms shoes, but they are amazing.


not just because they are great shoes, but because they are a great organization.


when you purchase a pair, toms donates a pair to a child in need.


check them out... and support a great cause.


www.toms.com

finally time to relax

day 109:


i think i need a vacation from my vacation.


this christmas break flew by.


i felt like i had something to do every single day/night.


i'm pretty sure i spent all my time cleaning, cooking, and eating.


i am exhausted from my busy vacation!


so tonight i did this... nothing.