Where it all started - Travel Entry #2

Taking trips down memory lane whenever I go home never gets old.  I like to take my kids to see where mommy grew up and to show them what I was doing when I was their age.  Sometimes they think mommy was born old and knows nothing about being a kid.  So whenever we are in New York, they see all my old hang out spots,  I share the stories of all the bicycle crews that took over the streets of Uniondale and we play the games that I once played in my front yard, to show them I actually had a childhood before they came along.

If this park could talk...the crazy stories it would tell.         RIP Mr. Brown.

Lifelong friendships were made at Smith Street Elementary  School.  Nothing but fond memories of this place.

Turtle Hook Junior High!!! I thought it was cute showing my middle schooler where I went to "junior high school" when I was his age. He couldn't care less and didn't even get out the car.

I stopped by my aunts house and this was in the living room.  You couldn't tell me I wasn't cute! I think I was 16 here.

We played hot peas and butter like I did back in the day.  Nothing like someone chasing you with a wire cord to whip your butt.

We hung out at the mall where I had one of my very first jobs.... Sales Associate at JcPenny.  My only real memories of that job are of me hanging out in the break room.  Model employee I was. LOL (Sorry, we didn't do any shopping in Pennys that day, so I don't have a photo.  The deals were hitting in Zara.)

I heard the ice cream truck and we went running.  Mr. Softees song is still music to my ears.

New York City Sunshine - Travel Entry #1

It's been a crazy year and I felt like I needed to recharge. Some go to the Islands to relax, others go on a cruise to get away. Me, I go back to where it all started.  I go home.  I go to New York.  Where the smells bring me peace, my friends let me be me and the possibilities seem endless.  So I packed up the kids and we headed to NY for 3 and half weeks.

Packing

I'm old school West Indian American, so you know I had to put ribbon on my luggage to identify it. Looks crazy to most, but with 1000 black suitcases going around that conveyer belt, bet I get mine on the first try.

Traveling for almost a month might sound overwhelming when it comes to packing clothes. But I decided instead of over packing like I usually do, I would only bring enough for a week and a half and do laundry when necessary. We stayed at my moms house on Long Island, so doing laundry was kind of convenient. I went over board on packing the shoes though( One carry on bag has nothing but shoes).  I honestly only needed to bring 3 pairs instead of 6 but you never know when you might need red, black or tan heels, sandals in all colors and flip flops for the beach I will probably never see.

The Flight

Once upon a time, I could only do redeye, direct flights when traveling with the kids.  I didn't want to drag them around the airport for connecting flights and I wanted to guarantee their silence on the plane by scheduling the flight during their bed time.  But now that they are older, I book whatever flight gives me the best deal. Act up on the flight and get your feelings hurt if you want to.

We had to catch a connecting flight in Texas, so I had everyone bring a book and do their summer reading in the airport. Thats right, all the reading they did all summer was in the airport during a 2 hour layover.  It's better than nothing, so don't judge.

We didn't get much sleep on the plane ride because my son hadn't flown in years so his nervous energy kept us all up. We had to stage this photo in hopes that his eyes and mouth would stay closed, but it didn't work.

And just like that. I was home.  Ready for the all the adventures that the summer had in store.

BEST PROTECTIVE STYLE EVER....CROCHET BRAIDS.

Even though my natural hair is usually pretty easy to take care of, it still requires me to put some work into maintaining it.  But when daddy goes out of town, I don't feel like maintaining anything.  So the boy child got all his hair cut off, the girl child got braids and mommy got...CROCHET BRAIDS.
God bless the people on You Tube for showing me the endless possibilities for this hair style. I love it. I am not so bold to try it myself so I went to an amazing hair stylist in the San Fernando Valley named Amber Harris and told her what I wanted. She hooked me up.
1) I purchased 3 bags of Freetress Bohemian Braid Hair 20"(about $6 a pack). The store (shout out to Wow Beauty Supply) was out of the color I wanted so I went dark black (1) and it still worked.
2) I washed and blew dry my hair so that the wonderful Amber could braid it all up.

3) On You Tube most people just corn row their hair straight back but Amber did my hair in a bee hive pattern. I'm not a stylist so I can't tell you if it makes a big difference but I do know with the "bee hive" pattern, you can't pull the hair back because there is a track going around the front of your head:(
4) Amber cut the hair in half to create the length I wanted and used a crochet hook to attach the bohemian  hair to the cornrows and VOILA....

I've had the hair in for 3 works and it still looks good. I would say best protective style ever,  but let's wait to see how long it takes me to take it out

NATURAL HAIR

 
3 WEEK OLD CROCHET BRAIDS

SUNSHINE AND SHENANIGANS...THE HOME MAKEOVER SHOW

As a stay at home mom, I find different ways to keep my self busy.  I volunteer at my church, I also volunteer at a low income facility that provides meals and clothing for families and I volunteer at my childrens school.  That's the sunshiny stuff.  But every once in a while an opportunity will come along that allows me to subject my family to pure SHENANIGANS within our own home. THE HOME MAKEOVER SHOW.

Yes, I am addicted to signing up my family for makeover shows.  I love sprucing up the place and redecorating on someone elses dime.  Me and the man get to work together and learn how to use different tools and gadgets that we've never even seen before.  But even though it's an exciting experience and we get free stuff,  it comes at a cost.

Time:  Don't plan on doing ANYTHING while they are filming at your house.  They come to your house just as you are wiping the crust out of your eyes in the morning.  So imagine your already difficult task of getting the kids ready for school in the morning, interrupted for four days by having people in and out of your house starting at 7am. But I must say, by waking up 6 every morning now, we have actually been early to school every day this week.  So maybe I need not complain about production lighting the fire under my feet to get my butt up earlier in the morning.

Stuff:  My stuff is everywhere.  In order for them to work, they have to move all your crap out of the way.  They don't care where it goes or how it gets there, they just want it out.  So we have dining room chairs in our office, our living room chair in our bedroom and my plant was put in the closet.....who the hell did that?! I appreciate the makeover but where the heck is the order and respect for my stuff. I'm going to be pulling my knick knacks out of odd places for the next month. Sheesh!!

Design: Lord have mercy.  My love of makeover shows is about to have my house looking crazy.  I'm trying to keep an open mind, but this design seems WACK! They got these multicolor stripes on my dining room wall looking like someone painted a bunch of paint samples on it.  I've seen the designers work before and it was nice, but what they are doing in my house ain't hot.  I was "eye hustling" and saw that they plan on covering my brick fireplace with marble. HELL TO THE NAH!! This ain't the 80's.  Don't come in my house making it look tacking and outdated because you want to practice some DIY projects.  Lord I'm nervous.

I can't tell you what show it is yet but when it airs, I will post an update with pictures.  Fingers crossed that they have more vision than me and it ends up looking fabulous in the end.  If not, I will be blogging about "How to recover after your husband chews your butt out for jacking up the house."

Sing Celebrate

What an amazing MLK weekend.  Started it early and ended it late.  Went to see a taping of The Doctors with my homie Thursday afternoon (I enjoyed spending time with my friend.  Spending time watching the taping of The Doctors..not so much).  Then raced through traffic to meet the man at the movies (I loved "Girl with the Dragon Tattoo". Was on the edge of my seat the whole time. Some scenes were racy so beware)  Friday afternoon, went to Roscoes Chicken and Waffles with some college friends that were in town (I inhaled them chicken wings! I don't play around on my off days for my fast). 

That night, celebrated Delta Sigma Theta Sororities 99 years of service with my sorority sisters at a great restaurant in Bel Air (Vibrato restaurant is a beautiful place with awesome musicians and great food.  But the portions...yikes.  Three raviolis on a plate! Really?! What am I suppose to do with that..hey Mona). 

Saturday, sorority chapter meeting in the morning followed by a  play date that started in the afternoon and went well into the evening (when cocktails are involved you lose track of time).  Sunday I hung out with my sorors again at a clothing line launch and had a great time. (Thank you Miss Jessie's for the hair care product gift bag.  My hair thanks you). 

Then finally today, Monday, hung out with the family at the MLK Parade on Crenshaw this morning and then celebrated a dear friends birthday at a small gathering this evening.  

I am feeling so blessed so far this year! The time I have been spending with family and friends is recharging me.  It's making me feel like I am somebody outside of being someones mom.  Love my babies but I am loving, loving life again(my social life that is).....Now to get a job so I can afford some more hanging out:-)

PS:  Last few days of the fast.....No slipping this week! Let's go!

10...the not so perfect number.

So today is the 10th day of my "fast".  It is amazing how I allow "my thoughts" to overrule "the plan".  After the first week of the fast, I knew I was going to have to make a few "adjustments" to the set menu.  I was going to only eat one meal a day (still no "meat") and continue with no food past 7pm.  Cool.

It's been working out great this week.  Until today.  Today my mind was telling me that my earth would crumble if I didn't have more than one meal.  I was feeling week and sleepy and I just knew that if I had something in my system I would be back to normal.  Well, 2 slices of pizza later, I figured out hunger wasn't my issue.  IT'S PMS!

I swear, as soon as I finished that pizza, the PMS kicked into high gear.  Without giving you TMI, my "time" can consist of horrible mood swings (a new feature added to my system post having babies...Yippee).  SO EVERYTHING AND EVERYBODY IS WORKING MY NERVES RIGHT NOW.....wooooo saaaaaaa!

Needless to say, I will be obedient tomorrow and I will stick to my one meal. And if I feel a little lethargic, I will not combat that with food, how about I  just take a nap. HOW ABOUT THAT!

FAST and furious

Day 3 of my 21 day fast was a beast of a day.  WATER AND JUICES ONLY!  It was tough.  Started my day off totally wrong.  Not thinking before I acted, I woke up, drank some tea and took my vitamins.  WHY DID I TAKE VITAMINS ON AN EMPTY STOMACH! 2 seconds later.....it was not a pretty picture.  But I can promise you that I will NEVER do that again.

The rest of the day just felt soooooooo long.  No food can make for a grouchy household.  Between the many bathroom breaks and watching my kids eat the juicy hamburgers I have seen in my life, this day was truly a test of will power and strength.  Well, I passed the test, but not with an A:-(.  I'm sorry but I needed something.  So a baked potato with broccolli caused me to have a less than perfect grade.

But I'm still standing.  And I'm able to make it through the day.  This is teaching me that I don't NEED half of the stuff that I eat during the day.  And I think the same can go for things in my life.  I don't think I need half of the things that I have in my life.  Do I really need over 20 scarves,  do I really need 30 hats.    So I am not only purging my body....I'm purging my life.

21 Days of Silent Sunshine

Today I started a 21 day fast.  It is a time of prayer, reflection and cleansing.  The fast was prepared by a local church and they have a set meal plan for the next 21 days.  Well, day one was quite interesting.  I could only eat salad and fruit.  My body was craving a snack in the worst way.  Oh Lord, who knew you could miss a chocolate chip cookie like this.  But I stayed strong (except for a small piece of corn bread that I ate when feeding the kids...moment of weakness....oh and the bagel that I didn't want to go to waste....I'm a mess).  But I had fruit for breakfast and a salad for lunch and dinner.  Even with the mis-steps, I am very proud of myself.

I also learned a valuable lesson today.  SILENCE IS TRULY GOLDEN.  When you don't tell other peoples business, you don't have to worry about what you said coming back to bite you.  And for me, a person with HORRIBLE memory, I can't remember half the conversations I have, so if you said I said it, I can't remember if I did.  So in this moment of cleansing clarity, I will learn to shut my mouth to other peoples business.  I will not jeopardise any of my relationships by having conversations and revealing more than what their eye can see.  I AM A GREAT FRIEND but I am also human and I make mistakes...I am learning from them :-)

It's the holiday season

I love this time of year....

I love sitting by the fireplace....

I love leaving cookies for Santa....and a cocktail...

I love getting to decorate the smallest of rooms...

I love celebrating with my community (Kwanzaa)...

I love spending time with the ones I love...

HAPPY HOLIDAYS...

AND MAY A LITTLE SMILE, CREATE A LOT OF SUNSHINE 

IN THE NEW YEAR!!!

Princess and the Frog....Mission Complete

I know, I know.  Why is it December 1st and I am writing about a party that took place on October 22nd.  Well, it's because frick and frack upstairs limit mommys nighttime "freetime" with "having to go to the potty", "I'm thirsty" "I need a hug".....go the heck to sleep!

Yet I digress....the birthday party was awesome(In my opinion)!  My daughter had fun and so did I, so that is all that mattered.

In the beginning....

If I saw anything green, purple or froglike, I picked it up.  I held on tight to my receipts because I knew I wasn't going to use half the stuff I bought.  But when Michele (the other birthday party planner) and I went shopping downtown, we knew that most sales were final, so we better like what we buy. Downtown is where we got the pinata and party favors.

The set up...

Why in the heavens (if I cussed, that word would go right here) does time seem to speed up when it's almost party time?!  Half my decorations didn't go up, the table wasn't set the way I wanted it to be and I was funky and unshowered with an aunt jemima scarf on my head when the first set of guests arrived. BUT it was hard to smell my funk over all the great food Michele served.  Princess and the Frog is set in New Orleans so we did a cajun style menu.  She did an amazing job preparing the food.  The the decor might have been lacking on the food table, but the food was doggone good that people didn't even notice.

Party on...

The Kids Table

The Dessert Table

The Gift Table

The Jumper

The Painting Station

The Painting Station...Final Product (Each guest painted 3 strokes to celebrate the 3rd birthday)

Eudora's Dress Shop...Dresses for rent

The Grand Finale

Well, I got the Tiana Dress from Costume Craze and it was as cute as can be.  My neighbor couldn't do it so it was mama to the rescue. Since mama is not a size 12, I was swimming like a fish!  That once size fits all jibberish was a lie.  My poor strapless bra kept falling down, I had 2 big safety pins under my arms and I swear it was the hottest day of the year cause I was sweating like a pig.  BUT The kids loved her...Tiana that is!! 

All in all....The Princess and The Frog was a success!!

The Week of the Frog..Planning begins for The Princess and The Frog Party

So tomorrow my countdown begins for the big Princess and the Frog Birthday Party for my baby girl. This weekend the supplies arrived from Oriental Trading. I have to give them a call first thing tomorrow morning because they didn't pack the froggie finger puppets that I ordered. HOW WILL I SURVIVE WITHOUT FINGER PUPPETS. LOL. I will be just fine. My daughter is turning 3 so all she really needs is a simple play date; I don't think the finger puppets will be missed. And that will be $8 that can be placed back in the budget (According to my co-party planner Michele, I have created an imaginary budget that I am doing a great job sticking to :-)

Another way I'll be saving some money is that instead of hiring a character to show up to the party and making me $200 dollars poorer, we bought a Princess Tiana costume from Costume Craze for about $35 bucks. Please pray that when I remove it from the bag tomorrow it doesn't look crazy. I'm trying to see if a neighbor is available to wear it to take pictures with the party guests but if that doesn't work out, Mommy Princess will have to do :-)

Tomorrow I'll post pictures and I'll let you know how my prepping is going. EXCITED!

Countdown to my rebirth: Day 22

Wow wee!! I am so behind with this blog. But those of you reading that have kids know that finding time to do anything "not kid related" is very difficult. But here I sit at 12:30am writing my blog because I promised myself that I would see this to the end.

So let me catch you up a bit on my birthday celebrations. My last entry was Day 30 where I spent a relaxing evening with "The Man". Well, I think that peaceful evening near the fire sparked something in "The Man" because this is no longer my personal countdown, it has become his countdown. Since my last blog, I have woken up to cards, flowers and wonderful surprises.

Day 24 he gave me a word puzzle that was my clue to the days event. Soooo cute. We went downtown to the fashion district which is a spend thrifty womans paradise.

Day 23 I went to I Fly which is an indoor sky diving place. I am soooo glad I tried the indoor skydiving before I did the real thing. I was not feeling it. I'm a cheesy, smily, laughy type of person and none of that could be done in the air chamber without losing all the breath in my dag gone body. I felt like my cheeks were gonna fly off because the air pressure was so intense. But woo hoo for trying something new before I turn 40.

And here we are at Day22....an amazing day. I went to hang out with some girlfriends and when I returned home, there was jazz music playing and candles lit throughout the house. In the dining room there was an arrangement of cheese, crackers and an awesome array of exotic teas. Does this man know me or what?! I am a tea drinking fool. So we sipped tea, relaxed and then he enjoyed the sound of my snoring once I fell asleep half way thru our mini date. Ah, the simple things in life make me so happy.

Countdown to my rebirth: Day 30

There must have been something in the air because my toddlers were on level 10 tonight. Screaming, crying and temper tantrums were in effect the moment they walked in the door.

My son is like TV Mike from Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (no young'uns, not the one with Johnny Depp). If you let him, he will watch tv until his eyes roll out of his head. So tonight, we said homework, then a few "minutes" of tv, then bed. My child got possessed by the Tasmanian Devil and started spinning around the room because we had the nerve to not allow him to watch a full movie at 8'o clock at night. Well, he spun himself to sleep once he didn't get his way and Day 30 pampering began...

DAY 30: ENJOY AN EVENING BY AN OPEN FIRE

I have been in my place for over 3 years and I have never used my fire pit. I think the main reason is that the yard is the home to every creature this side of the 405 freeway. Take your pick, I got 'em. You want ducks...I got 'em. You want raccoons.....I got 'em. You want skunks...well, I know you don't want skunks, but I got'em. But I "man'd up" and took my backyard back from the wild kingdom....and brought the dog and the man with me for back up.

It was sooooo peaceful. We don't get much quiet time together, so it was long overdue. An evening of conversation under the stars is something that I wish I could do every night.

Well, the Tasmanian woke up so I gotta run...