Archive | August, 2010

Hanes Giveaway…Item of YOUR Choice (CLOSED)

30 Aug

Earlier this month I wrote about the Hanes Event I attended and how smitten I am with the new Comfortflex Fit Bandini Bra. Check out the video to get a feel for the event.

I already knew I loved Hanes panties and sweats (for myself and the kids) but I never realized there were so many versatile bra choices.    I’m also understanding that Hanes isn’t just about underwear.  Over at Hanes.com I discovered women’s tunics and kids polo shirts.  There’s also something great about TAGLESS shirts if you have a sensitive little guy like me who is always tugging at his shirt collar.

But really what I love most about Hanes is that the aim is to make the most comfortable clothing possible, and I am alllll about comfort!

I am excited to let you know that one (1) Just Another Manic Mommy reader will receive any one (1) item of your choice from Hanes.com.

To enter? Easy.

Visit Hanes.com to check out the best-fitting most comfortable clothing.  Then, each of the following will earn an entry:

  1. Leave a comment with your name and email stating what you hope to win.
  2. Became a fan of Just Another Manic Mommy on Facebook and leave a comment on the wall stating what you hope to win.
  3. Link this post on your blog.
  4. Send an email to your friends about this post and let me know.

Winner will be chosen randomly on 9/6/10 and notified via email.

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Wine is Calming

30 Aug

Do you like wine?

I like it but know very little about it, so I jumped at the chance to attend a wine tasting dinner.

It was Friday.  It had been a long week and I was ready to unwind on a beautiful outdoor patio on a summer night.

I sampled a sauvignon blanc, albarino, chardonnay, pinot noir and a zinfandel. 

The food was amazing to match the wonderful wine.

Of course, after a while I couldn’t really even see or care what I was shoveling in!  What I did know is that I felt relaxed and content, all around good.

I must be a white wine girl because, while I didn’t walk away with any more knowledge (because I was too drunk distracted by my good company to concentrate on learning) I did specifically enjoy these wines:

Alois Lageder Chardonnay

Babich Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2009

Mar De Frades Albarino, Val Do Salnes

Are you knowledgable about wine?  What are some simple ways to learn?

Friday Wrap Up

27 Aug

I still can’t get over some of the things that are coming out of my children’s mouths. 

Some are really cute…

Hey look mommy I see Barnes & Elbows!

Is that a freckle or a birdmark?

How do flies get in the house?  How do they open the door?

Some are insulting like when my son told me…

I wanna throw you out of the Earth!

Some make me look like a bad parent like when I was talking with my neighbor and my son rode by on his bike shouting…

Hey there fatsos!

Some are so innocent, like when the little one said…

All the ladies want to take my curls.

(What ladies?)

The ladies that are old.

They continue to amaze me by identifying cars…

Chubby lay

(that’s a Chevrolet)

Alexis

(Lexus)

You know there’s a lot of tantrums and long days here, but I wouldn’t have it any other way :)

Have a great weekend and get ready for giveaways! 

(and this is what I found one night on my precious bed…unposed…I kid you not!)

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Look out Tiger Woods

26 Aug

We had just finished lunch the other day at Eddie’s Pizza (love giving them a shout out because 1-the pizza is the best 2-the staff is so awesome 3-they put ‘Video Killed the Radio Star” on the jukebox for the kids when they see us coming) when we decided to take the kids mini golfing for the first time.

Not knowing what to expect, I was actually sort of shocked…

The big kids were kind of decent players.  I’m always surprised when my children engage in any sport with the smallest evidence of skill because I am completely lacking in any athletic strength.  Not the golf is really a sport…no offense.

The little one had a hard time keeping up and ultimately had a great tantrum on the green.

They had a nice time overall and talked about it for hours afterward.  So when it was drizzly again the next day I decided I needed to jump on this new love and take them golfing again.  I mean, who knew what they would be doing the second time around as I contemplated their astounding capabilities.

They started out alright and even the little one was catching on.  But then they all became obsessed with the hole where it the ball drops in and down and pops out below to another hole.

Now it was all about the 2 holes and who could drop it and get it in.  Clubs were abandoned and the race was on. 

But as it always happens in our routines, someone got mad, and a tantrum ensued.

His platinum head seems to just glow when his face gets red!  I look forward to displaying these photos at his wedding showing these photos to my adult son in the future.

But all in all it was a fun day and something different to do with the kids.

And now I’m wondering if this blog should be called Just Another Tantrum.

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The Poor Child…

25 Aug

He can’t even have a good old face in the kitchen floor tantrum without his crazy mom snapping a picture!

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Hello, Wrong Day

24 Aug

A few weeks ago we took the kid to see their first play, Snow White.  Their aunt gave them tickets to that and Cinderella so we asked her if she wanted to come to Cinderella with us today.

The kids were excited on multiple levels.  I was thrilled because it’s rainy and chilly…a great day to have a planned indoor event.

So we got to the theatre today and it seemed, well, sort of empty.  And then I looked at the tickets.  I got the August and the Tuesday and 11 a.m. right, but the show was on the 17th!  Last Tuesday! 

Boy did I feel like crap and actually I still do.  I screwed up and the person that so graciously bought the tickets was right there to witness it.  Luckily, she is totally cool and didn’t give me a hard time about it.  We quickly joined together to divert the kids to some other kind of activity to make them forget about the play that never will be.

We headed to the Children’s Museum.  But when we arrived there wasn’t a parking space to be found and it appeared to be packed beyond belief.  Again, we had to rally and distract the kids to something else.

We ended up at the mall at something called Jungle Rides. 

We told the kids it was like bumper cars but with animals.  They were sold.  After all, we had walked by them a million times and I was always too cheap to shell out the 6 bucks per kid for what looked like a lame ride on a gross dirty machine animal.

But they really got into it.

And then 4 minutes later it was all over and they wanted to know where we were going next.  And as usual, someone had to pee.

Luckily we had a plan.  And that plan included the bathroom, lunch, and M&Ms. 

Thanks Aunt Diane!

So, do you ever screw up events like I did?  How do you recover?

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The Patient and Sprinkler Fun

23 Aug

You’ll have to excuse me because I have been too busy to write.

I’ve been caring for the patient.  You know, the one that had his laser eye surgery on Thursday. He’s been requiring me to administer his eye drops and to drive him around, among other things.

You may recall I was sitting here nervously awaiting the post surgery call last week. 

So when he finally called the first thing he says is,

I don’t think you should have your eyes done.  It was disconcerting.  You won’t be able to handle it.

EXCUSE ME?  Let me get this right.  It seems he is saying that I, the person the birthed 3 children naturally, 2 of whom popped out just minutes apart, can’t handle a little laser beam in my eyeball!?  Shut up.   But this is also the guy who, while I was in LABOR with twins and contracting badly, complained to my nurse that HE was having a back spasm and could she spare some Advil.

Well I was kind of interested in getting it done before.  Now, I am very interested.

He managed to pull himself together, keeping his eyes appropriately eye dropped and protected, and we had a nice weekend. 

One of our county parks has a sprinkler set up and the kids had a ball attacking their dad with the water.  And I was reminded of why he is so endearing when I saw him running around in there while the rest of the moms and dads were on the sidelines trying to stay dry!

I’m not ready for the warm summer weather to be gone!

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Singing and Stress

19 Aug

As I sit here writing this my little girl is running around singing Copacabana and replacing the Lola in “her name is Lola” with her brother’s name.  He is chasing her shouting,

I’m not a show girl!

And now he has started in with one of his favorites, Video Killed the Radio Star.

I’m admittedly distracted.  My husband is currently in the chair (actually is it a chair?  maybe he’s lying down?)for his laser eye surgery.  How is it that he, the patient, has no anxiety, while I’m completely terrified? 

I’m very jumpy.  At lunch, I threatened to never feed my kids again if they can’t sit. down. nicely. at the table and simply consume their food without fighting with each other.

The other thing on my mind is school.  In some parts of the country it has started already yet in my community we haven’t even received the teacher assignments.  The twins are only going into kindergarten but I am a need information kind of Type A person.  I got so excited last week when an important looking piece of mail arrived from the school district only to tear it open and read the notice that a sex offender has moved into the district.

But here’s the great thing about kids.  I’m sitting at the computer consuming increasing amounts of caffeinated beverages (on a side note, why do I alway feel the urge for caffeine when I am stressed?  That has to exacerbate the symptoms wouldn’t you think?), waiting for the laser eye place to call, waiting for the mail, troubleshooting my annoying Blackberry desktop software when I hear little pitter patters.  I look up to see this.

They tell me they are going for a family walk.

I may feel like there’s a lot of stress but I am also very aware that there’s a lot of cuteness here. Ahhh.

Now, can you please help me pray that my husband is not blinded today?!!!

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Little Boy Hair

17 Aug

There’s an ongoing debate in this house.

Maybe you can weigh in.

This:

Or this:

Which hairstyle do you prefer on a little guy?

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Bean Town and Bean Bags

16 Aug

I’ve asked before…how do people travel anywhere with children, in a relaxed and enjoyable way?

We drove up to the Boston area and it took about 4 hours.  The kids didn’t sleep and managed to physically fight with one another despite being restrained in their car seats. 

Actually there was one quiet moment when I asked them to just be still to think about what they hoped their grandparents bought for them.

We got there and the kids let loose in the house.

My dad set up a ‘treasure hunt’ in the backyard and they can’t stop talking about it.  I have to give a big shout out to my parents for this cute idea that had the kids completely delighted. 

Here they are examining their treasure.

The next day we had a long anticipated visit to the Swan Boats.  We waited on-line and the kids were awed by the new sights. (Oh and by the way there are no public restrooms anywhere nearby!!!)

That’s what we sat in as we floated around in the waters of the Boston Public Garden on a gorgeous sunny day.

I love this one:

When you wake up before 6 a.m, the day is long. 

We went back to the house and the kids went into an over tired, manic house destruction.  The little one found her way into a closet and discovered a bean bag from 1972.  When I heard my dad yelling “Oh shit” I raced into the room to find one million little bean bag balls all over the floor.

And there were my parents, crawling on the floor trying to clean up the mess, when I instructed the little one to apologize.  She runs over to them and screams

Sorry SUCKERS.

There are no words to describe this 3-year-old tyrant who WAS the easiest, sweetest baby around.

Later on she was back at it messing with a phone.  I disconnected it and put it high on a shelf.  One minute later the phone rings and I hear my dad saying “911 call back?  No we didn’t call 911…”

Sigh.

So this is why:

  1. I’m exhausted
  2. We don’t go away much.
  3. When we do go away for a visit somewhere we try to keep it brief.

Good thing I’m off to yoga!

How do you successfully manage your kids when you travel?

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