The O'Sullivan Family

hilarity

2011-02-09T21:09:00.000-05:00

I found the Italian version and I'm trying so hard not to laugh as my husband will ask what I am doing and if I try to explain it to him he will think I've lost it. I found the lyrics too and I'm going to try to translate. Ahhh I love Italian. That's it, I'm making a 5 year plan sort of resolution that I will re-learn Italian and take a trip to Italy the next time we go to Ireland!

Channeling Richard Simmons

2011-02-09T21:04:00.000-05:00

I made a truley awesome discovery the other day in that my first ever ipod (the pink mini) still powers on and still has my music on it, some of the best stuff from the early 20s era of my life. I've been copying the music onto the iphone and making different play lists for every run. Tonight's run included the song Gloria by Laura Branigan which oddly enough has always been quite motivating to me (go ahead and laugh while I speed by you calling GLORIAAAAAAAAA).

It came on during a 5 minute run in tonight's training (week 4 of the couch to 5K) and it was just what I needed to get through the long run. It brought up all of these weird memories that I have associated with the song. First, I was almost named Gloria....can you even imagine??? Luckily my grandmother intervened and told my mom no way on that one. Then, I remembered back to my adolescence when I was also trying to lose weight - I'm pretty much a lifelong fatty - and I bought myself Richard Simmons Sweating to the Oldies which featured an aerobic routine to that song. I used to try to wake up at 5 AM before school to do the video. I took Italian in college and in one of the advanced level courses we learned that the original song was written by some Italian dude and it's about doing it on a white leather sofa or something. We had to sing it in Italian in the class.....sometimes I wonder about professors. The English version lyrics always get me going, they pretty much sum up my early 20s/dating life so maybe my mom should have stuck with Gloria!

Gloria, you're always on the run now
Running after somebody, you gotta get him somehow
I think you've got to slow down before you start to go bad
I think you're headed for a breakdown, so be careful not to show it

You really don't remember, was it something that he said?
Are the voices in your head calling, Gloria?
Gloria, don't you think you're fallin'?
If everybody wants you, why isn't anybody callin'?
You don't have to answer
Leave them hangin' on the line, oh-oh-oh, calling Gloria
Gloria (Gloria), I think they got your number (Gloria)
I think they got the alias (Gloria) that you've been living under (Gloria)
But you really don't remember, was it something that they said?
Are the voices in your head calling, Gloria?

A-ha-ha, a-ha-ha, Gloria, how's it gonna roll down?
Will you meet him on the main line, or will you catch him on the rebound?
Will you marry for the money, take a lover in the afternoon?
Feel your innocence slipping away, don't believe it's comin' back soon

Movie Night With Tony

2011-02-04T20:08:00.000-05:00

Tony and I hit up the library on Monday night in anticipation of this week's snow and he picked out a few movies for us to watch. This kid is definitely channeling his inner Celtic lately because he picked out the movie "The Water Horse" which is some tale about the Loch Ness monster. I'm a sucker for any movie with scenery of the UK so I thought sure why not. The scenery looked familiar so I had to look up where it was filmed in IMDB and it was mostly Scotland and the area of Scotland where some filming took place is in the Argyll and Bute region. Some of you may (not) remember that that is the area where my Scottish friend that I met outside a bar in downtown Boston on a drunken night circa the year 2002 was from. I totally forgot about that dude! I wonder what he is up to and if he still has the same email address and if he's ever traveled back to the States.

*Of course I've already tried googling him....you remember who this is right??? Too bad his name is quite plain and if I remember correctly he wasn't much for the computers anyways so no FB profile to be found.

TGIF....TBIGTSS

2011-02-04T15:13:00.000-05:00

That's Too Bad It's Going To Snow Saturday in case you didn't figure that one out!

The break from the snow last week was nice but this week we were slammed with not one but two storms.

This photo sums up what 5.5 snow days in less than 4 weeks feels like:

We were lucky that the one storm that was predicted to be a monster sort of fizzled out but dang there is alot of snow out there. There is something about snow days that make me want to bake and eat carbs so I didn't have the best WW week. I was down 2.8 lbs (for a total of 15.4 since mid-Nov) last week so I am not expecting a huge loss this week.

Working out is also hard when you can't leave the house but I didn't use the snow as an excuse to slack off. In fact the only times I left the house this week were to go to the gym.....kind of sad isn't it!

Sunday - 1 hr spin class
Monday - 1 hr spin class
Tuesday/Snow Day #1 - 30 Day Shred Levels 2 & 3
Wednesday/Snow Day #2 - 20 or so mins of the Firm DVD that I borrowed from the library (thumbs down) and then another 20 or so of the Pussycats Doll Workout DVD that I received for Christmas (a surprising thumbs up on this workout)
Thursday - 1 hr step/ball workout combo class
Friday - 30 minutes on the treadmill to complete Week 3 Day 3 of the C25K training program & 40 minutes of shopping at Wal-Mart with a baby <--- YES THIS IS A WORKOUT

I am hoping to do consistent Friday morning runs at the gym with Liam, it is nice to get the workout out of the way on Fridays. I will probably miss out on running tomorrow with the next storm system coming our way yet again but I'll make up for it with some Wii workouts.

I did meet my weight loss goal for February and now I will work on a small goal for March with the ultimate goal of fitting into my work pants by April 20th!! It's too bad I don't have my own gym and a personal trainer because I actually love working out but sometimes it is hard to get to the gym and when I try to exercise at home there are a million and one distractions. I'll find a time when the baby is quiet and get set to put on a DVD and then I get sidetracked by a sink of dishes or some clothes that need folding. I need to create my own cardio-house-cleaning fitness program....

I have no goals for this week, feeling a little blah because of the weather so I'll get more motivated after I weigh myself tomorrow. I went to the dreaded WallyWorld today specifically to find some of the new WW points plus products but they had a very limited selection. Why on earth is the grocery selection so freaking SUCKY in upstate NY????

milestones

2011-02-03T15:14:00.000-05:00

We've reached an important milestone this week...

Tony can now wear size 4 pants without the help of his adjustable waistbands! Of course they are already too short on him but he swims in 5s so he'll have to look like he's attending a flood until he porks up some more.

And just because, here is Liam babbling:

mom guilt

2011-02-03T14:25:00.001-05:00

Sometimes it feels like the Today show is spying on my life. I swear at least once a week they have some segment that relates to my life (either that or their demographics happen to contain lots of moms with new babies). Now before people get all Judgey McJudgester here let me set the record straight - YES I do watch TV while I am home with the babe. There ain't much else you can do while in the middle of a nursing session so YES the Today show and I have become very good friends these past few months. Tell me what you would do if you spent a majority of your day sitting down with your breast in someone's mouth??? I suppose I could be a "super mommy" and read him some Shakespeare while he eats but umm yeah, I'll save that for the super mommies and enjoy my little bit of quiet time and guilty pleasure TV.

Speaking of guilt, my latest psychic Today show experience was a segment on how to deal with working mom guilt. They have already covered postpartum hair loss and mom brain which, in addition to the working mom guilt, are three experiences of motherhood that I could do without! I know the whole war between working moms and stay at home moms rages on and I've been in all three positions in my life (working full time out of the home, working part time out of the home, and staying home full time....hmm I also worked from home so I guess that gives me four haha). I don't think anyone is "easier" or "harder" than the other. To toss in a clique it is like comparing apples to oranges. Each one has their ups and downs. But, one quote from this segment on the Today show stuck with me and confirms my belief that it is not "easier" to stay home full time but perhaps, more "desirable", for me at least? The segment leader said that when you are a working mom you hold down an outside of the house job in addition to being a parent but the problem is that many working moms feel like they are not doing either job well. BINGO! That's it. That is exactly the feeling I have when I'm working full-time out of the house. Distracted at work - CHECK. Too tired when home to do everything that needs to be done at home - CHECK. Constantly missing work because your child is sick - CHECK. Sending your kid to school/daycare without whatever item they need - CHECK. In my case, if I had to pick the job I'd rather do better it would be motherhood/parenting which is why I feel like staying home is the better of all the options. The timing of this was of course perfect as I've been fretting over the dreaded return to work for weeks now that my leave is more than halfway over :(

Of course with any Today show segments there is a "the more you know" PSA moment so they offered some tips on dealing with mom guilt. One was identifying the source of the guilt and seeing if there are ways to fix it. For example, does your kid fuss and cry when you drop them off at daycare. I've had good luck with finding quality childcare so far so that is a major plus. They also said to remember what you provide for your family by working and that taking care of your career is also taking care of your family. Yeah, I guess we didn't want to live in a rinky dink two bedroom apartment the rest of our lives so I know that going back to work has helped my family and unfortunately we live in a society where women are now expected to do EVERYTHING and are judged no matter what choice they make. Unfortunately there is nothing in place to help women have a thriving career while maintaining their home lives - don't ever read about other countries maternity policies, it will make you extremely depressed.

I have taken a step that will hopefully provide me with a little more balance in my life. Nothing is set in stone yet but I'm hoping to go back to work on a reduced schedule (4 days/week). The one day off would give me my quiet time with Liam and let me get somethings done around the house, run errands, etc that would normally be crammed into one or both days of the weekends. Then, hopefully our weekends will feel more like weekends and not two days of running around to get ready for the next week! In some of my reading about other countries maternity practices I saw that one country offered high-level part-time protected civic positions that require education, experience but were PART-TIME and protected for parents. Imagine how great that would be in NY. Part-time government jobs that attract qualified applicants and reduce government spending while stimulating the economy. Maybe I'll propose that idea to my distant cuz a.k.a. The Governor.

End of the Week

2011-01-28T10:57:00.001-05:00

TGIF (well, not so much now that I'm home now but I *guess* it's nice to see the hubby for a few days)!

I've set up my current Weight Watchers Program (version 5 or maybe I'm on my 6th go around now) so that I weigh in on Saturday mornings. This means my points reset for Saturday so I usually plan a little treat for myself for dinner like take out or a decadent dessert. I may need to switch this to Friday when I go back to work BUT hopefully Friday will be my day off and I won't feel and urge to de-stress with food or drink by Friday night because I'll use my free day time to work it out at the gym!

I have had a good week earning activity points but I've slacked on tracking my food. I do well with entering breakfast and lunch but we eat dinner when I get home from the gym and then the madness of getting the children to bed ensues so I end up "mentally" tracking my evening points. So far it is working because I've been doing fairly well with my self-control but I know at any moment that can just unravel and send me into a downward spiral. My goal for this next week is to plan my dinners - something I was already doing and did very well in 2009 when the weight just melted off - but planning them with one beginning of the week shopping trip. I've sort of been all over the place as I settle back into a more normal life pattern. I need to get back into the planning as this also helps with $pending, those little trips to the store to pick up "just one more thing" add up when you end up picking up more than one thing. From now on I want to get back into the pattern of grocery shopping way early on a Sunday and setting up some of our meals. Then that shopping trip needs to last us for the week. We'll eat the fresh fruits and veggies early in the week to avoid spoilage and then at the end of the week use frozen or more hardy items like apples. So that's the goal this week along with the usuals to track everything I eat and to get in at least 3 gym workouts and on days I can't make it to do an exercise at home. It still amazes me how I had zero desire to touch and prepare food when I was pregnant, just the thought of it would kind of gross me out, but now that I'm not pregnant I've thankfully fallen back into my old ways of enjoying meal prep!

I've sneaked a peek or 7 at the scale this week and I'm pretty sure I'll be down tomorrow and will also meet the goal I set for February!

My work out stats for the past week:

Saturday - played Wii Just Dance 2 for at least 30 minutes with my sister (that game is NO JOKE - I sweat like a PIG)
Sunday - 1 hr spin class
Monday - 1 hr spin class
Tuesday - 1 hr bootcamp class
Wednesday - no workout, skipped gym due to snow and day was very busy with errands
Thursday - 1 hr combo class with 1/2 hour step, 1/2 hour strength training on stability ball
Friday - just completed level 2 on 30 Day Shred video and planning on doing Wii Zumba or Just Dance 2 for a half an hour

Non scale victories for the week:

Made pasta (one of my BIGGEST trigger foods) with chicken for dinner on Tuesday and I kept to one serving of pasta and have spread the leftovers out into 4 meals! So far I've had them for lunch Wednesday and Thursday and will have ONE portion today :)
Stopped myself from reaching for a second after dinner treat on two nights
Two people at the gym yesterday referred to me as having lost my baby weight already - a great (albeit untrue) complement. I still have some weight to lose but I know the numbers are going down and my fitness level is inching its way back up to where it was in my awesome year of 2009.

4 month stats

2011-01-26T19:24:00.000-05:00

Liam had his four month check up today (and I'm typing with one hand because he's a fuss pot from the shots):
height = 26.75 inches
weight = 15 lbs 11 oz (almost 4 lb gain since 2 months!)

Snow Day Fun

2011-01-23T22:02:00.000-05:00

Last week was full of snow days here which means lots of baking, some playing outside (not much though, come on now, I have a baby who can't be out that long), movies, and trains. Here's a video of a track that Tony built all by himself, gotta love the little feet jumping for joy in the background:

We made many yummy treats including banana bread, blueberry muffins, apple muffins and oatmeal cookies

Looks like we may have the chance of a few more snow days this coming week. Hey, it may work out in the end for me....I'm due back to work on the Wednesday of spring break week. If they overuse the snow days they start taking back days from spring break. Do I dare say "Let it Snow". NAhhh, me and the little guy want to get out and have some fun. Before we know it our time will be through and we haven't done anything yet!

Things that make me go "hmmm...." vol. 1

2011-01-23T21:54:00.000-05:00

This man at my gym that currently has some sort of shoulder ailment (tendinitis maybe, can't remember what he said) that causes him to wear his arm in a sling yet he continues to take the spinning classes. While it is great that he is remaining active I do not get the point of taking a class in which you can't do any of the exercises. Can't that time be spent on the stationary bikes, thereby freeing up a coveted January spot on a bike for someone else who can participate in the class?
Engagement photo shots. What is this trend? It's so odd. I see many couples doing this now on facebook. Most are EXTREMELY cheesy and look like some sort of ad for a dating site. Is it not enough to have the professional photos for the wedding, now people need to have staged "lovey-dovey" pictures that show how "in love" they are. Definitely NOT a fan.
People that complain about people who complain about winter while living in cold climates. Hypocrite much? You are complaining about someone complaining, seems way more childish than someone with a very valid complaint i.e. frigid, sucky winters. Snow, ice, cold temps, etc can be dangerous and even in some cases cause death. Complaining about these things does no one any harm.
The same people mentioned above who say something along the lines of "It's the Northeast, it's winter, if you hate it so much then move". Ok, then much of the northeast would be desolate because I don't think I can find one person who thinks hoooorayyyyyy another snow storm. Also, that is a pretty ignorant statement, many people are tied to an area because of work, family etc. Again, where is the harm in a little bitching about winter?

1/3 of the way to one year!

2011-01-20T10:34:00.001-05:00

Liam is four months old today! He's smiling and giggling all of the time and has rolled from his back to his stomach at least one time. It won't be long before he's crawling, YIKES! We had to postpone his 4 month check up from tomorrow until next week due to an impending snow storm and the timing with a probable school delay. Of course the day we've scheduled for next week also has a storm threat. Time to start saving for AWD! Happy four months Liam, I can't believe how much time has gone by already and I look forward to enjoying the next three months of maternity leave that we have together!

New Look

2011-01-19T20:01:00.002-05:00

The winter is getting to me so I've been playing around with the blog layout and design. I like this new layout but I cannot figure out how to center my header photo. Darn mom brain is making me forget my basic HTML lessons!

Is this thing on??

2010-10-02T17:44:00.000-04:00

So............when am I going to start feeling "normal" again?

2010-09-05T12:20:00.000-04:00

I might start picking this thing up again while I'm on leave. I look forward to being able to go onto real websites during the daytime hours again.

Coupon Queen!

2010-07-27T19:52:00.000-04:00

Check out Coupon Queen for the best money saving tips out there!

http://coupqueen.com

Food Network

2008-11-06T21:52:00.000-05:00

The TV Food Network is coming out with a magazine and I've already subscribed. I got a post card from them yesterday that due to the overwhelming demand for their magazine they are going to press early. Sweet.

Updates

2008-09-18T23:10:00.000-04:00

We're back!!!

-I got a job offer while we were away. As of Tuesday, October 7th I will be back to work full-time. It's kind of sad but I'll be making good money and we definitely will buy a house next year (provided the economy isn't sucked into a black hole, in which case I will be moving to Ireland)
-Tony will be in the state daycare facility right across Empire State Plaza from me. I like the plaza, there are alot of shops and places to eat. Definitely a nicer place than Roxbury, MA and Bumblefuck/Canaan, NY!
-Had a great time in Ireland, can't wait to go back. Went a bit overboard with the pictures and cannot find a good free massive photo storage site. I thought I was all set with Picasa but I just ran out of space there so now for anyone that is not friends with me on Facebook you will have to go on Facebook to view them. Don't worry, the albums are viewable to the public so you won't have to join (although you should because really, who isn't on Facebook these days???)

http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2314481&l=4b895&id=918099

http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2314484&l=39e9f&id=918099

http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2314491&l=113db&id=918099

http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2314701&l=78a12&id=918099

http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2314707&l=2d15b&id=918099

http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2314709&l=93ee7&id=918099

http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2314713&l=5ca83&id=918099

http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2314704&l=60bc3&id=918099

http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2314740&l=9d258&id=918099

-I can't think of anything specific to share about the trip because to me everything was a "highlight" so I guess that is why I took so many photos. I was just trying to capture everything that I saw. It was a bit funny/nerve wracking when Tony said "Uh oh we're gonna crash" as our departure flight took off. In the "Flying with kids" brochure they tell you to make sure your kids don't say anything that may be perceived as a threat. I hope Tony clears security the next time he flies!

Counting down!

2008-08-27T22:40:00.000-04:00

In less than a week I will be in Ireland!! I know I know that is all I talk about but I can't contain my excitement. It feels like I have so much last minute stuff to take care of and my head is just swirling. I can't wait until we take off so all of this tension and anticipation can be relieved! Actually, I probably won't be able to fully sit back and say "ahhhhhh I'm in Ireland" until I get the keys to our rental car and then we'll be on our way.

I've got my cousin Carley with me until we leave so I took her shopping today. We went to Peter Harris (a sort of clothing outlet) and scored big on some good brand name items. Tomorrow we are staying in and getting the house in order because my husband robbed me of the car for the day so he can take care of work stuff before we go. I think we'll take a walk to the library to return all my travel guides and pick up some plane entertainment. Friday will be a massive laundry day then on Saturday Carley and I will go for manis/pedis! Trip planning is so much fun, I want to make a full time job out of it. Well if I get a job there will be the opportunity for so much more travel for us, like hopefully a California Christmas!

Another

2008-08-21T19:53:00.001-04:00

Tony has become a big fan of the HBO Family show "Harold & The Purple Crayon" (based on a kid's book). It's available On Demand so we watch it almost everyday and there is a new episode available where Harold imagines what he will do when he grows up. One of his careers is a train conductor so of course Tony is now obsessed with this particular episode for it includes his beloved trains. Harold also imagines a high profile career in the city so now when Tony watches it he tells me "Mommy I want to go to the city". One day soon my son I will take you to a real city. Sorry, I am a snob about this, Albany just doesn't feel like a city to me. I'll take NYC or even Boston despite me being annoyed with Boston after living there for 10 years. Luckily I am so over living in an urban area so I do enjoy living out here, sometimes I just miss the ease of living in a city.

Nudist

2008-08-21T19:36:00.000-04:00

Tony is going through his "nude" stage. Everyday this week he's decided at some point during the day to take off all of his clothes and his diaper, out of nowhere. I'll be doing something and I turn around and there's my naked kid. He even tried to go bottomless at our play date this week after he went "potty" with his friend. I am just hoping he keeps his desire to go nude under control when we are out in public! He's already got little to no shyness about him. I fear what this kid will do in school. I know he's not bad in a rotten sense but he's very mischievous/playful. He'll either annoy the hell out of his teacher's or be the teacher's pet (maybe both). I was told by the lady at the Y that he's the cutest kid. Well enough bragging about my cute son :)

In other news, I am getting sick of housewife duties again. Every time Tony and I have a busy and fun filled week my house hold chores suffer. I either make the poor kid suffer and sit inside all day and have a clean apartment or we go out and have fun and the laundry and dishes pile up (yes even with a dishwasher, I hate loading/unloading). Next week my 12 year old cousin is going to stay with us before school starts up for her so I hope I'll be able to get some stuff done quickly without him interrupting me so we can go out and enjoy ourselves. I'll also have to spend some time putting the finishing touches on my packing!!

The lack of take out/delivery options in this area is depressing me a little. I miss the days where I could order some Thai, Indian, Sushi or decent Chinese and have it delivered to me in less than an hour! There's nothing by us but some chain restaurants which are okay on occasion but there are only so many times I can stomach Cracker Barrel's chicken tenderloins. We were lazy tonight again and ordered from this hole in the wall my husband likes even though we took a vow of no take out/eating out for the month of August to save up for our trip but with the way food prices are and the deals offered at some places it is cheaper to eat out at times!

So my housewife days might be over sooner than I want but that would mean I'd have gainful employment. My interview went well I guess, I can never gauge how I do on these things, but, I have been contacted by my interviewer several times for more info on my resume and for permission to contact my references, all very good signs. I am happy that I might have a really great job where I'd actually be making some kind of difference in this world but also depressed about returning to work and losing time with Tony and all of the friends we've made. I am also worried about taking on a position with such responsibility. Ahh we'll see, we'll see, nothing is official yet and I've always been considered to be an outstanding employee in every position I've held so I'm sure I'd make out okay with whatever they throw at me.

WHY?

2008-08-12T22:32:00.000-04:00

Why must my husband and his family be so freaking....I don't even know the word! They've already rearranged my plans once and now that I type all of this stuff into a beautiful loose itinerary my husband says I don't want to do this, I'm telling mom and dad we won't go with them (on the trip they surprised us with). It's so much nicer to have a semi-structured plan to follow when you have a kid. Please do not make my head explode by changing things on me again. I know this trip is just as much as Mark seeing "home" again as it is a travel experience for us but he is so uncooperative when I ask questions like "do you want to see this", "would this be a nice thing to check out" and just says sure then 10 days or hours or minutes later he says wait no, I don't want to do this or my most favorite "we'll see". Well if he's a lump I'll just hop on a tour bus and Tony and I will do what we want!

Trip to Old Forge, NY (Summer 2008)

2008-08-04T21:29:00.000-04:00

Spent a few days up in Old Forge, NY, my families' old vacation spot from when we were kids. We were even able to stay in one of our old favorite motels. On our first night we went down to the arcade which hadn't changed a bit in the 10 years since we've been there. In fact half of the games were out of order! Since we are all grown up we pooled our tickets together to get stuff for Tony and he picked out a Spiderman doll-his latest obsession that bloomed after we attended a Tri-City Valley Cats game on Superhero night. Afterwards we enjoyed some yummy ice cream!

The weather wasn't that great for swimming or the water park at Enchanted Forest Water Safari but we still had a fun time.

It was kind of nice because there were no lines at the park and the crowd was pretty tame. Last summer we went to Water Country in NH and it was really a test of patience to be around a billion annoying and rude families in 90+ degree temps!

Tony enjoyed himself on the kiddie rides, especially the train of course. He picked out this Irish horse on the carousel all by himself, good little Paddy!

The water rides were a different story-he likes to swim and play in the water but if you get his face wet forget it. I took him on the lazy river ride and they have an elephant that spits out water and we were right in his path and apparently that has traumatized Tony for life! The 2nd time we went by the evil elephant he started freaking out and pulled my hand up over his eyes and kept saying "cover Tony eyes mommy". If we ask him about the water park he says "go on slide and go ahhhh" and then makes a noise about spitting out water and says something about the elephant and then says "Tony cover eyes".

I think Mark may have enjoyed himself even more than Tony did. He is not scared of the big rides like I am and he was the only one to attempt the highest slide there, the Killermanjaro. It was so funny to watch him running around from slide to slide like a little kid. His fun quickly came to an end because he's got no fat on his body to insulate him from the cold Adirondak air and he was shivering after about an hour! By the time it started to rain we were ready to head out anyways so our timing was great. We even got a small window of sunshine while we were there.

Tony was so well-behaved all weekend which is always nice. I think he's starting to come out of the terrible twos a little. I am hoping his screaming phase will die out in the next few weeks before our flight to Ireland!

Trying to pick a hotel & other travel planning

2008-07-30T10:16:00.001-04:00

I have been obsessed with planning our trip to Ireland for a few weeks now and since it is almost just a month away my obsession has kicked into high gear. I have never been to Europe or anywhere really fascinating until this year when we went to California so it's something very new and exciting for me so I just have to obsess! I am an organizer by nature and was much more so before motherhood took my brain but I still like to have plans and ideas. I think motherhood actually gives the planner in me a more "worrier" persona as in I think about everything that can go wrong when traveling with a kid so I like to anticipate these things and plan for them as much as possible. I'd like to think that if we were traveling without a kid that I might just let us go without a plan and pick hotels when we get there but we'll have T-man and I want to make sure that when we stay somewhere it's the best possible place we could pick in terms of value, kid friendliness and other amenities.

We actually had a loose itinerary planned out with our fist two days involving overnight stays in two different towns on the way down to M's parents' house but then in true family fashion M calls his parents after booking our B&Bs and finds out they had planned a surprise trip to one of the towns for us in the middle of our trip. At first I was annoyed at this wrench in my planning because it involves driving way back up to the area around the airport right in the middle of our trip but I've been able to re-work the itinerary around it. Also, they will be paying for our room so I can't complain about that (although fuel costs over there are outrageous so I am sure I will be able to rant about that). So now our plans are as follows:
Day 1: Land in Shannon, visit nearby castle/amusement park, drive to Dingle Peninsula (~3 hrs) for overnight stay at B&B
Day 2: Drive down to Allihies (~2 hrs) and explore Ring of Beara along way, possible stops in Killarney and/or Kenmare

Next few days are spent in Allihies until we head out again back up to the Shannon area to spend the night in the town of Lehinch which is near the town of Doolin, where we originally wanted to spend Night 1. M's parents have a wedding to attend so we'll explore and hopefully not get suckered into going into this wedding. IF WE DO NEED TO ATTEND THIS WEDDING - I want to know, like YESTERDAY, because that obviously changes my packing plans and means I need to buy something to wear to an Irish wedding and possibly also bring a new liver from what I've heard about Irish wedding!! See what I mean about obsessive planner? The next day instead of heading back down to Allihies we'll drive to Cork City and stop at Blarney Castle on the way down. This is where my hotel picking has driven me nuts. There are just too many reviews out there and I want to keep costs down but I also want to be in a good spot. M hasn't been home since 2003 and he warns against scary parts of Cork and of course the hotel I love which also offers babysitting is quite pricey but I am thinking it's one night and we've just gotten one of our planned overnight trips paid for so why not? Well I've got a topic started on TripAdvisor's forums (I heart that site, btw) and their resident "Cork expert" is agreeing with me about my hotel pick so I just need to decide if we want to spend a little more and enjoy one night of semi luxury. Check it out for yourselves. The cost would be about $200 (US) without breakfast which isn't that bad considering hotels are more expensive there and to get a hotel right in the heart of NYC or Boston you'd pay that much or more! Ahh someone decide for me, do we look for something cheaper or go with this??? Magic 8-ball where are you???

Resurrection?

2008-07-29T16:49:00.000-04:00

At the beach today our mom group got on the subject of blogging. I brought up my good ol' (now fairly inactive) LiveJournal that got me through some boring times at work and I remembered that I had also started a blog where I could post more family oriented stuff. I thought I would try and see if I could remember the user name and password but somehow when I directed my browser to the blogger website I was already logged in???? As you can see I started this thing in 2006 and I haven't used it since then so I was quite shocked. Then I remembered that blogger is affiliated with google and I'm always logged into google so I am assuming that is how this happened and that blogger does not have some super cookie that survived two hard drive dumps and multiple "Clean browser history" events!

Anyways, I'll take this as a sign that maybe I should start this up again so I can give my family and friends updates on our life since, especially because it is easier to only have to tell some stories one time!

Welcome to Tony's blog

2006-08-02T10:51:00.000-04:00

I am trying to create a universal space to post updates about Tony's life. Wish me luck!