Fun at the Park

Sydney and her Daddy playing on the swing.

Mommy and Riley chilling on the bench.

She loves the park.

Riley took a nap in the shade.

Me and Jenny...my childhood BFF.  It was so great to see her!

Sydney...the Fairy Princess

More fun with babies...

Fun in the ATL

Sydney reading the book Aunt Ally brought her.

Dinner at Pappasito's.

Outside the Fox Theater before Jersey Boys...great show!  We got to go to the cast party afterwards. 

Riley being Riley.  That's about all she does...sit there a look precious.

Sydney loves her penguins.  I think she has 25 of them. 

Where do they find these people?

Have you ever notice how grocery baggers don’t know how to bag groceries? As in they put fresh fruit in the same bag as raw chicken. Or canned goods in the same bag as bread. Shouldn’t they be required to have some sort of training. Most of them are teenage boys. They have never grocery shopped in their lives. There mom does it for them. Sometimes I wish I could just bag my own groceries. 

Have you ever noticed how people who work in a sandwich shop can’t make a proper sandwich? As in the meat is all on half of the sandwich and the cheese on the other. How hard is it to even everything out? I really don’t enjoy having to remake my sandwich after I just paid you to do it. Once again…training would be nice.

Have you ever noticed how bagel shop employees don’t know how to properly spread cream cheese on a bagel? How hard is it to spread it evenly on both sides? And 9 times out of 10 when I tell the clerk at Einstein’s I don’t want my bagel toasted they toast it. Even if I said not toasted 5 times. A toasted bagel is just gross…it’s like chewy burnt toast.

Whatever you choose to do for work you should own it. Even if it is just a part time summer job. Learn it and do it well. This will help you in the future when you have to work a full time job. And you will enjoy work so much more. I am not liking some of the trends I am seeing in the up and coming millennial generation. I know your parents told you that you can be anything you want to be. But you will amount to nothing without some hard work. And you are entitled to nothing…unless you earn it.

Wanted: Pet Owl

At times I love living in Florida. We are 50 minutes from the beach. We have countless theme parks to visit. Some only 1.5 miles away. It is 80 degrees in January. I can lay out by the pool on Christmas. But one thing I cannot stand is the pests.

We get snakes in the pool, frogs on the patio and in the exhaust fan in the bathroom (WTH?), squirrels in the attic, ducks in the garage begging for food, catfish in the driveway after heavy rain, bats in the screen enclosure, turtles, armadillos and bunnies in the yard, baby rat nests in the birds of paradise and who knows what else. 

If you remember 2-3 years ago we spent almost $1000 getting the squirrels out of the attic. We squirrel proofed it. Well….turns out squirrels keep rats away. And rats are much more creative and finding entry points than squirrels. Yes, there are rats in the attic. If they ever got in the house I would pack up and move. The pest control guy set traps a few days ago. I like this plan so much better than when we had to relocate the squirrels. I guess there is a difference between a pest and critter. It is socially acceptable to kill a pest but not a critter. But we still have to find out where they are getting in at. And you know what makes this all worse is that the house next to use is empty and in foreclosure. So you know the rat colony is going to relocate there and no one will do anything about it. Oh the joys of living in Florida! Maybe we should just set Mako and Mahi loose in the attic. Or maybe I should get a pet Owl. That would solve a lot of the pest problems.

They say every house in Florida will at some point have squirrels, rats and termites. We are 2 for 3. Although I am pretty sure we may have had termites in the moldy back wall that we tore out. So maybe we hit the trifecta.

We also have random black bear, alligator, python and cougar sightings in our area. It’s like our own little zoo…without the protective enclosures.

Lately

I have not been blogging a lot recently. I just don’t have the time and to be honest it is not a priority. I am busy here people. But I do still like to keep you all updated and will do some more in-depth post soon. So here is the latest and greatest:

Congrats to by good friend Adaya. She is now going to be an HR Manager on board the Disney Fantasy. I am trying to convince her to start a blog about her high seas (not work related) adventures. This sounds like so much fun. I will miss her. But I look forward to a cruise getaway on her time off! We are having a Bon Voyage gathering for her on Friday at Bahama Breeze. Seems appropriate.

Mother’s Day was great. Dave cooked a Bahamian Feast. We celebrated with Mimi (Dave’s Mom). I wish my mom could have been here as well. But I will see her next week.

Dave has been stranded at home all week because he does not want to drive the banged up Porsche around town. Hopefully it will be going in the shop soon.

Last night I had the best meatballs ever while out to dinner with 2 girlfriends. They were so good. And it was nice to catch up with the girls. I don’t see them enough.

I am going to do my first “barre” class tonight. I am super excited about this. We have 2 studios in town. I am trying one tonight and the other on Sunday. I am pretty sure if I like it I will go with one on Sunday. It is so much closer to home. Although I hear the other one is opening a new location in my area in August. I like it when I have choices.

I leave for Atlanta next Friday. My friend Natalie got free tickets to see Jersey Boys at the Fox Theater on Friday night and asked me to go. This should be lots of fun. I think we may even make it to Pappasito’s for dinner with Devin and the babies before the show.

Mom and Dad bought a condo in Chattanooga. I am hoping to see it next weekend. I wish I was there to help them decorate. But my childhood BFF Jenny has stepped into help. I think Mom feels like she is going around in circles picking out furniture and decorations. Jenny to the rescue!

That is about it for now. I should have time to blog while in Atlanta. But I am not gonna lie…it will most likely be all about my adorable nieces.

Mahi eating Mahi and other such happenings

Not much going on around here. We are enjoying all of the mahi and wahoo Dave caught in the Bahamas. We are having Michael and Mimi over on Sunday for Mother’s Day and will be making a Bahamian Feast. We will also cook a little plain mahi for Mako and Mahi. Mahi is going to eat mahi. That is just wrong. I also found a whole in the wall Bahamian Grill in town that I am going to attempt to get some conch fritters from. We shall see how this turns out. I would try and make them myself but I don’t deep fry anything. I would burn the house down. I wish my Mom was here for Mother’s Day. Although I don’t think she was a fan of the conch. 

In other random news…I have decided to try and pay more attention to what I eat. So I downloaded this calorie count calculator thing. I don’t know anything about calories and just wanted an idea of what is good for me and what is not. The stupid thing told me I needed to gain 26 pounds. If I gain 26lbs I better be 9 months pregnant. Who comes up with these “target” weights anyways? They are totally wrong.

I am super excited about going to Atlanta in 2 weeks to meet Riley. I am also hoping to meet up with some friends I have not see in while too. I hope Dave can survive a 3 day weekend on his own. If you hear about a house party getting out of control in Orlando on the news you can be sure Dave was involved. Whatever…as long as he cleans up the mess before I get home and feeds the kitties.

Somebody tried to run over the “car” last night. I guess they were backing out of a parking space and hit it. Maybe they did not see it is so little. It really crushed the back bumper. Funny how the only times it is has even been damaged is when it is parked and Dave is not in it. Do people just go around looking for Porsches to damage? Because I am convinced they do. I feel bad for people who drive Aston Martins and Bentleys. I bet people damage them for no reason too. And I can only imagine what it cost to fix one of those.

Why is it that when it is so hot outside it is so cold inside? I had to get a heater to put in my office. When I come in the mornings my thermostat says 65. And I have no control to change it. I put it on 80 and it still stays at 65. My hands were turning blue and I could not feel my fingers. This is summer madness! But now I have a little heater. So I think I will survive.

Bahamian Dave

Dave went to the Bahamas without me.  I guess after all of my girl's trips I have no business complaining.  When he goes to the Bahamas he gets a Bahamian accent.  It is very entertaining.  I have decided this is his latest alter ego.  Diamond Dave, Famous Dave, Bad Influence Dave, Option Dave...and now Bahamian Dave.  

Meet Riley Allyson

Isn't she just adorable!!  I will get to meet her in person in 2 weeks.

Clam Digging

I think we have come to terms with the fact that Germany is just not going to happen this year. Maybe next year. It was just too much to take on a 2 week vacation this year. But don’t worry…we are moving on to plan b. And yes…it involves clam digging. Every time I wear capri’s Dave asks me if I am going digging for clams. Well this August I will say yes, I am going digging for clams.

I am this close to booking flights. Maybe in the next week or so. We are flying to Bangor, Maine. Random, right? But there is a direct flight from the Sanford/Orlando airport and it is only 3 hours. I thought Maine was much further than that. I guess New England is tiny because I can get to NYC in 2.5 hours.

I am still working on the details but I know that we will stay 2 nights in Bar Harbor, ME at a Bed and Breakfast. I still have another 5 nights to account for. This will involve visiting Saint John, New Brunswick and somewhere in Nova Scotia. That’s where the clams are. We are pretty much going to drive the coast of the Bay of Fundi. Right now I am torn between taking the ferry from Saint John to Digby, NS and going across the bay or driving up and around possibly visiting Prince Edward Island. Everything up there is so close yet to far away. I want to see as much as possible but I don’t want to spend 5 hours a day driving. I am leaning more and more towards the ferry. That would mean visiting Yarmouth, NS instead of Halifax. Has anyone ever been there? Do we really need to go to Halifax to get the true NS experience. I am not really sold on PEI either. It is kind of tiny and dull looking. But it would be cool to go there and check in on Facebook. Yeah…I just said that.

Besides this we will be going to Nashville for my brother’s wedding in October and I am still hoping for a girls weekend in NYC in December. And there may be a girl’s cruise to the Caribbean in November. I am keeping my fingers crossed on this one. So all of my travels happen late Aug – Dec. That kind of makes for a boring summer. We will have to make several day trips to the beach. I need to be nice and tan so I stand out in Maine and Canada. They are going to know we are from Florida.

We are still waiting on Riley to join us. I will be in Atlanta Memorial Day weekend and will be sure to take lots of pictures.

Fun With Madison

Aunt Ally and Unce Dave have a big swing in their backyard.

Supermodel pose.

They have matching blue eyes.

Uncle Dave hiding behind Madi.

Daddy teaching her the ring game.

I think she gets it.

Do it again Uncle Dave!

Uncle Dave you got no hair.

What?  Where did my hair go?

She's got her banana and her suitcase and she is ready to go!

That Guy

On Friday night we met up with our friends Steve and Jenny for happy hour at the Palm at the Hard Rock Resort. It was pretty good. We loved a few of the bar bites while others were not that great. After that we snuck into pool area and chilled at the pool bar. That is a pretty fancy pool. We need to figure out a way to sneak in there on a regular basis seeing as how we live less than 2 miles away. After trying the fruit loop drink it was time to head over to Hard Rock Live.

We had tickets to see Kevin James aka The King of Queens. He was really funny. It was my kind of humor…not raunchy at all. One time Dave made me go see George Carlin in Vegas and we sat in the front row. Every time he told a dirty dirty (yes 2 dirties) he looked right at me. I think he could sense my unhappiness. Never again…I guess I don’t really have to worry about that one. And you know who was even worse live? Tracy Morgan. About half the audience left before the show ended because he was so offensive and incoherent.

Anyway…We had great seats in the little VIP balcony area where they have table service. But there was this guy next to us who was wasted and beyond annoying. The whole opening act he kept booing and talking as loud as he could about how it was not funny. He would take a break every 10 minutes or so to go get another drink. And then when Kevin James came out he was still complaining and begging his date to leave. After she apologized for his rudeness they left about halfway through the show. Luckily it was easy to tune him out. But why does there always have to be that guy who wants to ruin things for everyone. I hate that guy. If they did not leave I was going to see if we could have him thrown out. I just don’t understand why people pay all this money for tickets to a show and then get so drunk they not only do not enjoy it but they don’t even remember it. Makes no sense to me. I hope he got arrested for public intoxication later that night.

Dave went to bed Friday night not feeling well and has been in bed every since.  He is so sick.  Let's hope he feels better soon! 

Toucan Sam Would Be Proud

Fruit Loop flavored vodka.  This is awesome.  Go try it...now.

Babies and Spades

Nothing much going on around here. My friend Kim was in town last weekend from DC so it was great to see her. We went out for dinner and chocolates. Park Ave in Winter Park is really growing on me. It is just about the only place in Orlando where you can find good restaurants that are not chains. Kim, Jenny and Natalie are planning a weekend in NYC for December. I have never been at Christmas time. I think we have connections for a discount on the hotel and broadway tickets. That makes it even better. Dave loves it when he finds out about my travel plans via the blog. But this one is still a ways away. It is just something I have always wanted to do.

On Friday I am cashing in my birthday present. We are going to see Kevin James at the Hard Rock Live. I think I have seen every episode of the King of Queens 25 times so I am super excited about this. We might just check out the Palm happy hour at the Hard Rock hotel before the show. I have always heard great things about it. And we have a gift card that we have had forever that we need to use. It is $50 and you know that does not even buy one dinner at the Palm. But they have an awesome happy hour menu that we will be taking advantage of. We have only ever done dinner there once. We spent $350 on just the two of us. Tell me that is not insane. But I guess a 7lb lobster will run up the bill.

We are still counting down the days until Miss Riley arrives. And I am already planning my one on one time with Sydney while I am in Atlanta. I might go to Nashville for Mother’s Day to see my family and celebrate little miss Emma’s 2^nd birthday. Dave is going to the Bahamas on the annual boys trip. How is it my trips are to Atlanta and TN and he gets to go the Bahamas? My friends and family need to move to the islands. Speaking of Islands. I have something exciting going on. It really has nothing to do with me. But I am super excited for a friend. I can’t share details yet but this is a once in a lifetime opportunity and I am so happy for this person. And yes, it has something to with islands. Maybe even me going to visit the islands. Confused? Good…you will get details later.

I have a new love…Kate Spade. I had to retire my favorite Juicy coral bag because it was getting dirty…velour does that. And I had to throw away the Juicy sunglasses. They were scratched to the point I could no longer see out them. So I used my birthday money and got some Kate Spade sunglasses and a new summer bag. It has actual spades on it. Am I the only one that thinks that is the coolest thing ever? And we are lucky enough to have a Kate Spade outlet close by. Last weekend everything was an additional 40% off and I had a coupon for another 10% off. Amazing deals…you have to check this place out. This is one outlet that actually has items you will want. Not like the Lululemon outlet that only has things in hideous colors in XXL. 

That’s it…I’m done. Later peeps.