Mmmmm

I am becoming a coffee lover, slowly but surely. It has to be good coffee for me to drink it, though. I have long heard about Dunkin' Donuts coffee. My mom brought some over to us and yes, it is better than S-Bucks. I absolutely love my morning cup of Joe on the weekends. AND - it has an added bonus...caffeine! Oh, I love the burst of energy it gives me in the morning. Mmmm...

Heidi Klum ... where?!

My most recent model was my beautiful SIL Angie. We did some highlights with a "shimmer" lowlight to add dimension. Our goal was to bring her lighter and brighter, while keeping it very natural,,,for a glamorous "sun-kissed" look. We also gave her a shorter cut with some heavier bangs for sexy summer hair that would work straight or curly. Check out her before pic....

And after...

Hot Tubbin' in the City

Matthew loves his bath! I can't believe how big he is getting...he is almost outgrowing his little "hot tub."

Peek-A-Boo!

Matthew's new favorite thing to do is to squeal in delight! Haha. He loves playing "Peek-A-Boo," too! Matthew will take his favorite blanket pull it over his face, then pull it down quickly when we say PEEK-A-BOO! I love him so much.

In my oven...

Since I will be home this week, I will be able to get back to one of the things that I truly enjoy...cooking! This week I will be making stuffed zucchini/bell peppers, salmon, and chicken parmigiano. Yummy! I am also going to make Matthew's baby food. What is on his menu? Green beans, sweet potato, pears, and bananas! Mmmm mmmm.

Congratulations!

Congratulations to my BFF Lindsey! She welcomed a healthy baby girl - Elizabeth Freda Saturday April 18th. Elizabeth weighs 7 lbs 2 oz and measures in at 20" long. She is absolutely beautiful! I am so happy for Lindsey and Wojtek! I can't wait to meet her in person.

First Night Home

Last night was my first night home, and I enjoyed it to the fullest! I spent lots of time with Matthew/Jeff, relaxed, and enjoyed a nice bath...complete with magazines and bubbles! I feel completely rejuvinated today! I am really looking forward to the many nights home I will be able to spend with the boys, cooking, taking a knitting class, exercising, and much much more. I feel like I have my LIFE back. It is incredible.

I did it!!!!!!!!!

I graduated last night from Douglas J! I cannot believe that I finally did it! Working full-time, going to school at night, being pregnant, getting in a car crash two days before graduation...all of that is behind me now. Tonight, I get to go home after work and relax with my husband and baby, something that I will never ever take for granted.

Thank you to all of my wonderful friends and family who brought me so many flowers, gifts, and goodies to celebrate! And, a very special thank you goes out to my husband. Jeff, you have supported me in ways that I never knew that you had in you. Spending many nights alone, cooking, cleaning, and taking care of Matthew alone when he was just 10 days old. I am so blessed to have you as my husband and appreciate all that you have done and continue to do for me. And...thank you for my beautiful earrings!

Jeff surprised me with a pair of Swarovski earrings (pictured above) from Matthew. Of course, I know who carries the pocketbook. Thank you honey! Does my husband know me or what? They are stunning and I am wearing them today. Every woman deserves to feel glamorous and these earrings make me feel just that!

Lemons

On my way to school today at 4:40PM, I crashed my car. Wonderful. With two days of school left, if I did not make it to school by 6:00PM, I would have been withdrawn. Fortunately for me, the Royal Oak police department has their act together and I made it to school by 5:30PM. With just a few bruises, a smashed car, and a pit in my stomach, I managed to pull myself together to rock out a highlight/haircut.

Oh, but the story doesn't end there...in the meantime poor Jeff drove all the way to Royal Oak, had to drive the crashed Civic home, and arrived only to find out that he forgot to take my key. He called maintenance, had to feed Matthew a COLD bottle, and sat in the car for 20 minutes. Maintenance man arrived...would not let Jeff in the apartment. WHY?! Because his name is not on the lease. With some "crying baby persuasion," the maintenance guy caved and let Jeff in. Whew!

Yes, I am alive, but my car looks like someone took a sledge hammer to the side of it. Also, because I hit a curb after being hit, my tire is all jacked up making the car unsafe to drive. Life is handing us some pretty ripe lemons...time to make some lemonade.

Career Change?

When are you too old to make a career change? With the rising cost of college/professional school tuition, when does the cost of going back to school outweigh the benefits? In an era where men and women in their 30s and 40s are graduating from undergraduate programs, law school, and medical school...I think this is an interesting topic.

On a weekly basis, I would say that I encounter at least 5 people who are in their early-mid 30s, have families, and are "going back," to school. I would say 4 of these 5, have already completed an undergraduate program and have at least $30k in student loans already. Does it make sense to acquire more debt in the hopes of making an extra $10-20k per year?

What about the benefits that cannot be quantified in monetary terms such as a better work environment, working in a field that is more enjoyable, or more time to spend with family?

Jeff and I have done several "break even" analyses, to see if it would make financial sense for one or both of us to attend professional school. We were both lucky enough to walk away from our undergraduate degrees with no student loans. It is hard to think about the cost of professional school $100k+ and not get a little white in the face...

Spilt Milk

Whoever thought of the quote "It's no use crying over spilt milk," CLEARLY never breastfed.

Earth Month!

In honor of earth month, I thought that I would share some "earth" friendly ideas to make your lifestyle and home more "green."

1. Ditch your weekly supply of Evian for a reusable water bottle

2. If you love Starbuck's, Biggby, or Caribou...buy a reusable mug

3. Buy some recycle bins and start to recycle one new product/month. This month start with plastic. Pretty soon you will have more recycling than garbage!

4. Skip the individually packaged snacks. Instead buy in bulk and put in reusable tupperware.

5. Use both sides of a sheet of paper.

Just some easy ideas that I am trying to incorporate into my life!

Check out: http://www.thegreenguide.com/ for more ideas.

Creative Ideas for Childcare

Whether to work or not after having a baby weighs on a lot of new mother's minds. I decided to return to work part-time (3 days) after having Matthew. I have been very happy with my decision.

I L-O-V-E being a mother and want to have more children in the near future. With this in mind, I have started to think about the cost of child care and how that will impact our budget and plans for the future. So...I started to brainstorm some creative ways to approach child care. Here is what I have come up with so far...

1. Find another mother who also works part-time and "swap" a day or two of child care
2. Offer child care myself for 1-2 neighbor children at more affordable rates than traditional daycare centers or in-home daycare centers. This would help out another family who is in a similar situation.
3. Find another couple with young children and split the cost of an in-home nanny.

WOW!

Matthew has been learning to rollover, crawl, and talk! He can roll from back to tummy, tummy to back, and make his way a short distance to an out of reach toy. He can say "oooh," "oooh ah," and squeal in delight. Matthew also turns his head when his name is said, recognizes familiar faces, and gets upset when a toy is taken out of his hand. Our Matthew is turning into quite the animated baby!

The sound of laughter

My SIL Angie has asked me to post a video of Matthew laughing. Pardon the coaxing by Jeff to get him to laugh. We were enjoying his laughter for 20 minutes before we decided it would be a good time to get it on film...so Matthew was a little tired!

Bucket List

1. Phantom of the Opera
Her Majesty's Theatre London

2. Night at the Four Seasons - champagne, room service, lounging in a plush bathrobe

3. Kiss Jeff under the Rialto Bridge

4. Be in the audience during Oprah's "Favorite Things" episode

5. Ride in a Ferrari...top down

6. Buy a ridiculously expensive pair of Christian Louboutin pumps