Reading

A couple of days ago I finished the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. It was a great series. I was quite reluctant to read it when it came out, viewing it as a teen book that probably didn't have much substance. Turns out, I was wrong in my assessment and truly appreciated the love story of it all. I also loved that I was able to read the four books in what amounted to about a week, considering I have about 3 or so hours a day to myself - usually 45 min at a time, although that has been getting longer. (My husband will account to the fact that I pretty much ignored him after dinner during this time so I could finish the books.) Also, no housework got done during this time period, but it was totally worth it. I haven't read a book like that since the last Harry Potter. The story was engrossing, the characters interesting and the writing very good. And I was careful NOT to read the last 100 pages before bed, as I made that mistake with book 7 of HP and was up all night thinking about it. This time I had all day to think about the whole series which I truly appreciated. Thanks Ms. Meyer for a nice getaway.

Wimbeldon

I just watched the end of the woman's semifinals between Serena Williams and Elena Dementieva. It was awesome, Dementieva held her own very well and even had Serena at Match Point once, but Serena came back to dominate the last two points to win. Fantastic playing.

Bye bye celebrities

OK, I realize I haven't posted in 3 months. I will try to be better about posting, but I'm not making any promises. I just wanted to comment on the recent celebrity passings. Ed McMahon will forever be remembered as the "Heeeeere's Johnny" and the Publishers Clearing House Sweeptstakes guy with that huge-ass check. He seemed to have a pretty good life so good for him. Next Farrah Fawcett. She also had an illustrious career in TV and film, most notably as one of the Charlie's Angels. She unfortunately had cancer and passed quite young. Billy Mays, the Oxy Clean guy, recently passed due to a head injury. He may have been the annoying infomercial guy, but he actually had a good product.

Finally, Michael Jackson. He was only 50 years old and I believe the official cause of death was cardiac arrest. What caused that is anyone's guess. The King of Pop had a successful, controversial and fascinating life. From the age of 5 or so he was a star with his family in the Jackson 5. Apparently the home life left a lot to be desired, but the success of that group cannot be denied. As Jackson aged, the speculation and controversy that surrounded him grew. Why was his skin changing color? What happened to his nose? Why did he name his home Neverland? What was his fascination with children? You can believe what you want, but none of the allegations were ever proven and now, in his death, those who were paid off to drop such allegations have said that they were never true. Whatever the answers to these questions, he was still the King of Pop, he was beloved all over the world and was quite talented in his music making. Although I was not a fan of his (mostly, I'm not a fan of that style of music in general) I can appreciate his contriubtion to music. Apparently, he was preparing for a final tour and had over 100 unreleased songs in his library. I wonder if those songs will be released or if his family will keep them forever. I truly hope they do release them in a final tribute to Jackson to allow him to make one final mark on the music industry. I hope wherever he is now, he is at peace and people will let their speculations dry up and let the man rest. What I want to really know, is what is going to happen to his rights of The Beatles collection?

Opening Day

Opens tomorrow. Damn rain.

RnR HOF induction ceremony

So I just finished watching the 2009 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. Following are my comments and thoughts on the show (kid of a play by play as it happened):

Little Anthony & the Imperials - performed wonderfully. Classic oldies. About fricking time. Smokey Robinson is 69. Really?

Wanda Jackson. Inducted by Roseanne Cash. Again, about time for the first woman rocker to be inducted.

Joe Perry looks awful. Weird hair, weird eye makeup. Yikes.

Wanda Jackson is so cute singing! Good for her.

Flea is going to induct Metallica? They couldn't get anyone else?

Paul Schaffer inducts sideman Spooner Oldham. Nice job. Spooner is stanky! Spooner looked more out of place in a tux than Bob Dylan, but he certainly deserves it. Hilarious thank you speech, very thankful but also like it was no big deal. Also, he had a spoon on his lapel. Fantastic. I think he was totally stoned.

Jason Newstead was interviewed. I think he seemed gracious and gave a lot of props to Cliff Burton. It's cool that he is there.

Bobby Womack was inducted by Ronnie Wood. Again, about time for Bobby. Ronnie did a good job, kind of all over the place and heartfelt at the same time. Bobby gave props to Sam Cooke and Obama. Pretty awesome. Good performances. Ronnie Woods watch matched his guitar.

Run DMC. RIP Jam Master Jay. So instrumental in bringing rap to the forefront of the music scene. Breakthrough song and video with "Walk This Way" with Aerosmith. Inducted by Eminem. He was, in fact, quite sincere. Comparison to The Beatles though? A little much for me. Rev. Run gave nice praise to Jay's mother and family. DMC gave a nice shout out to his family and said how important it is to give love to a kid since he is adopted. JMJ's mom was great. She was so strong and her faith is immovable.

Max Weinberg and Garry Tallent (E Street Band members) inducted sidemen: drummer - DJ Fontana and bassist - Bill Black who played with Elvis Presley. They had amazing careers, even though Bill Black passed away when he was 39. Max and Garry kind of went on and on like what they want people to say about them if they ever get inducted. Bill's kids accepted they award for him and they were great. His son was very emotional, but it was adorable (even for a 61 year old.) DJ Fontana was great. Thankful and cute, short and to the point.

Holy crap - Wanda Jackson is SHORT!

Jeff Beck. Makes Clapton look like a beginner. Ridiculous. Not to self - buy more Jeff Beck albums. Inducted by Jimmy Page, former bandmate with The Yardbirds. No stories from Jimmy though, probably too graphic for Fuse anyway. Jeff Beck looked good except for the top he's wearing that looks like a straight jacket without arms. Jeff is quite humble (well, as humble as an amazing guitarist can be) during his acceptance speech and hilarious when he flipped off the people who didn't help him. Also, he made fun of Rod Stewart's hair?

Wait, was that Joe Torre? It couldn't have been since the Dodgers played in LA that day, but I swear it was his twin!

Jeff Beck gave props to Scotty Moore (Elvis' guitar player.)

Who the F is this Fuse host guy? What a tool. Alfiero would have been SUCH a better host.

I think Jeff Beck forgot what song he was going to play - that was funny. Jeff Beck playing with Jimmy Page. Ridiculous. Do you think the Jeff Beck's entire thumb is a callous? I mean who freaking plays like that without a pick? My fingers hurt just watching him. He played Peter Gunn. F'ing fantastic. Did Steve Vai ever study with Beck? Sounds like it.

Metallica. Really? Fuse had to bleep the word ass? Give me a break. RIP Cliff Burton. Inducted by Flea. I'm sorry, did RHCP and Metallica ever even tour together? He actually gave a very nice induction speech. Quite eloquent and descriptive of Metallica as a band and as musicians. Cliff Burton's dad was there to accept for him. So cute. You've got to love an old headbanger. I'm glad Kirk grew his hair long again.

OK, and F'ing tiVo didn't tell me this was a live showing so I have to wait until next week to catch the end?!?!? Thank the internet for YouTube.

Lars gave a nice speech too, surprisingly wasn't a dick about it, and thanked his dad very graciously. James was equally happy to be inducted and gave Lars a hilarious bear hug at the end. James also mentioned a ton of bands who are not in the HoF including Judas Priest. That is a crazy shame as I have already blogged about how awesome they are here. They played "Master of Puppets." Either something in the sound got f'ed up on YouTube or the sound on the show but something sounded off. They also played, "Enter Sandman." Sounded much better, in fact, they blew the roof off the place with that song.

The finale song was, "Train Kept A Rollin." Which I love. Now, don't get me wrong, it's a great song, but wouldn't you think the finale would've been a song by one of the bands that was inducted? Joe Perry was there and played on the song, but it was a little weird. The performance in itself was awesome. At least 6 guitars and 3 bassists was really cool.

All in all, a pretty good show.

Things we miss

You wouldn't think that a 4.5 month old would have already outgrown habits. Unfortunately, this is true and if you don't snap the photos often enough or turn on the video feature of your digital camera, you will miss them. Forever. For example, E used to sleep with us all the time, for his naps, at night, whenever he wanted to sleep, he would fall asleep on our chests or in our arms. He was easily transferred to his bassinet and would sleep some more. He would not dream of doing this anymore. We are too interesting, there is too much to see, too much to do. Every once in a while, he will fall asleep while we, or someone else, is holding him, but for the most part, he will not. Not anymore. Another thing he used to do when he was waking up after having a nap on one of us, he would raise his eyebrows, with his eyes closed and pucker his lips. It was SO CUTE! We never got a photo, but I think we will remember the face.

On the other hand, it is so exciting to see the new things he is learning every day. He is getting better at reaching for things. He is so good at doing push ups while on his tummy, and now he is bringing his knees up a little. His voice changes every day, from cooing to squealing, to back to cooing and now blowing raspberries. He learns so much and tries to copy us (like with the raspberries) it is amazing.

So, I try to take lots of photos and video (thank God for digital cameras - don't have to worry about batteries or wasting film!) And hopefully the things we miss will at least be captured somehow physically, but will always be captured in our hearts.

New things

Sorry for the lack of baby posts.  Facebook has kind of taken over as the updater vehicle, but I realize some of you may not be on fb and might be interested in what's going on with us.  Ethan is doing great!  He is 4.5 months old now which is crazy to me.  He is so amazing, every day he is learning something new, working on a new skill or something of the sort.  He has gone from cooing to squealing, from sucking his hands, to his fingers, to his lower lip and back to the fingers.  He can sit up with our help for a few seconds and then lists to the side or backwards.  He can hold things with a ferocious grip and is trying to get everything he can into his mouth.  He has the most wonderful smile and a little bit of a giggle when he is tickled.  He is a wonderful car traveller (we have yet to venture anywhere in a plane).  He seems to like the bath.

I am also doing well, fully enjoying this new role of mother and am so grateful to be able to stay home.  We have joined a few play groups and are taking a class with a couple other Blossoming Newborns so I get to have some adult interaction besides Sean.  We are surviving the winter well, and went for a walk yesterday with a friend and her 5 month old.  I am tackling the 45 minute naps a little at a time, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, but I am grateful for the at least 8 hours of sleep Ethan has at night.

We are starting to think about solid food, but not for another couple of months, he's still eating and growing well which is really reassuring to me that things are going as they should.

Sean is great.  Ethan always gives him a great smile when he comes home which is probably the highlight of his day.

Not to say, we don't have our moments.  Sometimes there are times when E is so upset and we just can't figure out what to do so we do have some crying, but overall, he is a really happy kid and so am I.

New blog

Check out my friend's new blog.  There are only two posts, but they are freakin' hilarious.

Grammy's 2009

Well, the Grammy's happened on Sunday.  Per usual, I TiVo'd them and skipped through the stuff I didn't care about.  Since they only give out about 5 awards during the show, I usually skip through those too and look up the winners online.  Here are some of my brief notes about the show and some performances (in reverse order of their appearance in the show):

Stevie Wonder got screwed twice in the same Grammy show:  1st by playing with the Jonas Brothers, 2nd by playing during the credits when people are leaving.  Dude, just because he's blind, doesn't mean he doesn't know how annoying the Jonas Brothers are and it doesn't mean he doesn't know people are leaving while he is preforming.

Robert Plant and Alison Krauss are awesome, but the wind effect for Alison was a little much during their performance.

Lil Wayne and Robin Thicke were actually not bad.  Hardly any bleeping required.  Allen Toussaint and The Dirty Dozen were awesome.

Hmmm, I never realized John Mayer was such a good guitarist.  If he wasn't so annoying, I probably would've realized it earlier.  I guess he is worthy to share the stage with BB King.

It is so cool that Dave Grohl got to play drums for Sir Paul.  It would've been cooler if Ringo have played on "I Saw Her Standing There."

What is the big deal about Radiohead?  I know a lot about music but I don't get it.  I must've missed something.  If someone wants to enlighten me - feel free.

Does Neil Diamond ever perform any song besides, "Sweet Caroline?"

Rick Rubin won Producer of the Year.  I guess he deserved it considering what he did for Metallica.

Why did some/most (?) of the Grammy awards go to albums/records that were released before 2008?  Wasn't this the 2009 Grammy's?  Did nothing worthy come out in 2008?

Justin Timberlake was all over the Grammys.  Again.

Another reason to love TiVo, no need to leave the room when Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift are singing - just skip through!

Coldplay performed great, waiting til the shine wears off.

U2 also performed well.  I liked that song - Get On Your Boots!  

Feeling better!

Ethan is finally feeling better and his cough seems to only be horrible in the mornings (after all that post-nasal drip has settled in his throat.)  His demeanor is much better, he is eating better and all around, seems to be on the mend - YEAH!

On another note, I am so happy to have my little guy here in the outside world with us, but there is one thing I do miss about being pregnant - my pregnancy hair.  When I was pregnant, my ever-so-thin hair all seemed to stay on my head, giving the illusion that my hair was slightly thicker than it actually is.  Now that all the pregnancy hormones have gone, my hair is falling out like it did before (not that it's an abnormal amount), but there's always hair in the shower drain that I have to clean out.  Another weird thing, is that I am back to my pre-pregnancy weight (yeah!) but not my pre-pregnancy body.  My clothes still don't really fit.  My guess is that this is because fat weighs less than muscle and currently, I have more fat than muscle.  Since it's winter, it's been hard to get out and go for a walk or do any sort of exercise so I guess we will just have to wait until spring to see how my body reacts to some exercise.  We'll see!

Sick :(

Ethan has been sick for the past week.  He has had a terrible cough, a fever and runny nose, and has mostly been miserable.  Luckily, his fever only lasted about 2 days and his lungs were clear (as of Tuesday) so the doctor seemed to thing this is just a cold virus and it just seems worse because he is so little.  The cough is what bothers me the most.  It is like his whole body is vibrating from the bottoms of his toes throughout his whole being.  Today and yesterday he seemed much better, mostly because he doesn't have a fever anymore, but his throat is hoarse from coughing and when he cries it is even more sad because he hardly makes any sound.  

So this week has been tough for me.  I didn't want to take him anywhere for fear he would get another type of cold or pass on what he has to another baby.  Doing so has left me home alone all day for the past week.  Needless to say, I have been on facebook a lot, but it's hardly a replacement for adult interaction.  Sean and I have both been exhausted, making sure our sick one is eating enough, sleeping enough, still breathing, etc. during the night.  Two exhausted parents does not make for keen conversation.  It usually goes something like this:

me:  How was work?

Sean:  Exhausting (insert comment on crappy economy and how it is affecting his company here)

we watch TV for an hour or so and then attempt to sleep.

I have talked to my sister a few times on the phone which has been refreshing.

I never thought being a parent would be easy, but I did not anticipate the feeling of utter helplessness when your child is sick, especially when he can't tell you what's wrong.  I know he is a resilient kid and we have been so lucky with how mild mannered and well tempered he has been so far, so I know he will come through this with flying colors, it's just hard to wait that long.  For now, I'm trying to be the best comforter, sleep aid and meal provider I can be and hope that gets him through.

Video

This video is a little over 3 min. long.  It's probably not that interesting to anyone but me and Sean, but thought I would share it anyway.  I'm still figuring out iMovie.

A sad day

Yesterday, we brought Ethan to his first funeral.  My friend's sister passed away a week ago today.  She was only 28.  It was an unexpected and untimely passing of a young woman who still had a lot to give.  I had only met her a few times, but she always seemed kind and happy.  She was the middle child between my friend and their brother.  The memorial service was filled with people who knew her through work or school and of course, lots of family.  It was a cold day, but nice, with some brief snow flurries.  I was a bit conflicted whether to bring my new baby or not.  I wasn't sure if seeing him would make my friend's mom even more sad that we have a baby and one of hers is no longer with us.  We ultimately decided it would be ok and it was important for his aunt and uncle to see him (even if he was a little cranky) and know we all loved them.  

My friend's husband gave a wonderful eulogy  during the memorial and showed the strength and love he has for his wife and her family.  He had a particularly difficult role this week, that of gatekeeper, basically, fielding phone calls and visitors and just being the supportive man he needed to be for my friend and her family.  He excelled at this job with grace as he is one of the best men that I know.

I know my friend and her family will come through this tragedy even stronger than they already were.  It will take time, but the love and support they have from their friends and family will help them make it.  

I feel such sadness for my friend, but it makes me reflect on how lucky I am to have my family and friends in my life.  I am so thankful for them all and love them dearly.  My friend's husband sent me a wonderful thank you note for coming to the memorial and for being his friend.  It was so kind and heartfelt, I hope he knows I feel the same way.  I am so lucky to have him and his wife in my life and I am so happy that Ethan has them in his life.  For that's what life is all about, right?  Friends, family, love.

Boston Legal - the End

Last week was the series finale of Boston Legal.  BL is has been one of the best shows on TV for the past few years and we are sad that it won't be on anymore.  I think the best part about it is that it makes fun of itself, it even referred to the last episode "jumping the shark" when Denny proposed to Alan.  Frickin hilarious.  The show was funny, smart, often over the top, and it had William Shatner whose cell phone ring was the Enterprise sound.  Fantastic.  We will miss this show, but at least we still have Chuck.

Being a parent

Specifically a mom, is the best.  Even yesterday, when I got pooed on, woke up at 1 am and 4 am to feed my baby, took care of my husband who had literally passed out from exhaustion from a crazy work week and horrible cold, cleaned up the kitchen, and hosted a playgroup.  It made me so happy I wasn't going back to my insanely boring job and I felt more fulfilled than I have in a long time.  I know that sounds weird but I am so happy to have this life of dirty diapers, dirty dishes, a loving husband and a wonderful baby.

Loganberry syrup

Two years ago, one of our wedding gifts was a sampler of Buffalo wing sauce and a bottle of loganberry syrup.  We have long since used up the buffalo sauce and have ordered more of the medium (there was a mild, medium and suicidal) - medium seems to be just right and we make wings pretty much every Sunday during football season (we're on our 2nd gallon).  The Loganberry syrup remains unopened, purely because we have no idea what to do with it.  I suppose I could be resourceful and look it up online, but if anyone has any suggestions, I would be more than happy to listen.  Thanks again to Scott and Leah for the gift!!

Oh Yeah, I have a blog.

Sorry it's been a while.  We have been a little busy, having a baby and all.  Ethan was born Oct. 27 and is absolutely amazing.  We love him so much it is ridiculous.  Sean was able to be home for 3 weeks straight which was great.  Today is his first day back at work.  We are managing ok, the biggest thing is that I have figured out that even though Ethan doesn't really like to sleep in his bassinet, he will sleep in his car seat so he is napping there right now, although I do anticipate he will be waking up shortly to eat and be changed.  He makes the most adorable sounds when he's sleeping and is a fairly easy baby, we can usually get him to calm down in a relatively short amount of time (knock on wood) and he seems curious when he's awake and has the most beautiful eyes.  We have gotten lots of great gifts from lots of people so thank you all again.  We've had great visitors and my mom will be coming up later in the week so that will be a help.  I would post a picture, but I am using my new computer and therefore have not had a chance to upload any software or anything to it yet.  It is my wonderful baby/anniversary gift from Sean.  Hope you are all well.  I'll try to post more as we get into more of a routine (if possible!!)

It's over

Last night the Tampa Bay Rays won the ALCS 4 games to 3. The Sox put up a valiant fight to battle back from 3 games down to get to a 7th game, they just couldn't get it done. I am bummed, but at least I don't have to listen to those jackasses on TBS anymore.

Playoffs

Tonight is do or die for the Dodgers and tomorrow is do or die for the Sox. Both teams pretty much walked through their Division series winning 3-1. Now each team is losing 3-1 in the Championship Series which is a best of 7. The last three games for the sox have been terrible. Terrible pitching, no offense, lost opportunities. It has been very disappointing. I am hoping the day off, travel to a sunnier state and Dice-K on the mound will revitalize them and they will come off with a win. We will see tomorrow.

As for the Dodgers, it would be cool if they won since I still love Manny, but I really don't care that much.

GO SOX!!!

When it comes to October, no one dominates like Boston

This was a headline on ESPN and makes a few of us question, "Really? Are we in some alternate universe?" The answer is clearly, "NO!" We are the Red Sox of a new generation. A team headed by a great manager in Tito Francona and filled with players who are young, old and in between and who collectively, have the biggest heart and desire to win in the game. They are an exciting team to watch. They're not filled with the feeling of something to prove, nor do they have a chip on their shoulder from sucking for as long as they've been a team (hmmm, Tampa anyone??)

Last night's game was amazing. Two great pitchers (how come no one dares to call Lester our Ace BTW?), lots of strong defense (by the Sox) and hits that mattered. Now we head to Tampa to attempt to beat our nemesis for the ALCS. It should be a great series. I can't believe I have to wait til Friday, but at least it will give me a chance to catch up on my sleep. I know I should be taking advantage of all the sleep I can get right now, but baby understands - he cheers too!!

There's only ONE October! GO SOX!!