So long, farewell

I know I'm a few days late here, but I've been too tired to blog the past few days.

Sunday afternoon, the hubs and I went to the season finale at Camden Yards. I must say, the game was sad all around. The O's lost... badly. The day was also sad because it was the last day of baseball in Baltimore. Really, that's what saddens me more than anything. Now, I really can't deny that fall is here and summer is over.

Although the O's didn't play up to their potential this year, I'm going to miss baseball season. The hubs and I went to somewhere between 25-35 games this year. Honestly, we lost track sometime in August. Oh well, here's to next year. Camden Yards, we'll see you April 6th for the season opener against the Yankees.

Live from New York...

I'm at my parents' house in New York this weekend. If I had a blog goal to blog from another state, well, I could cross that off my list of things to do. Sweet!!!

Unfortunately, the weather and trip haven't been all that great. I came up to drive my brother, who lives in Delaware, to NY so he could undergo another round of knee surgery. Not exactly a happy-go-lucky reason for visiting the rents. Then, mother nature decided that the weather has been far too nice lately and it is due time for a weekend of non-stop rain. Yucky all around.

To salvage the crummy weekend, I made chocolate chip cookies. I'm such a good house guest. Hopefully, my parents won't mind when the cookies mysteriously go missing when I leave. Hmmm, I wonder where they went?

Here's two quick pictures I took yesterday. My parents don't have the greatest internet connection, so I won't try to test my luck and upload too many photos.

SATC

We're weak, we gave in and we have no self-control... the hubs and I watched "Sex and the City" tonight. Actually, we saw it in the movie theater earlier this summer, but I went out and bought the DVD today. We had a little dinner and movie date night. Hey, for a Wednesday night that's cool in my book!

I must say, I felt the pace of the movie was much slower the second time I watched it. Maybe, it's because I knew what was going to happen and I just wanted the big parts (no pun intended) to show up already. It's a funny movie though, not very quotable due to some of the vulgar language, but funny. (okay, maybe the movie more quotable for others, but I'm not a fan of swearing)

The hubs laughs at almost anything Samantha says. She's by far his favorite character. I can share that over the internet, but not with any of our real life friends... because that would give it away that my hubs likes SATC. Now if I only could get him to love the movie "Love Actually" we'd be good to go.

Here's my plug for the movie. If you haven't seen it yet, rent it. Seriously, even if you never watched the series on television (I'm not sure that is possible with its syndication on at least two different channels) there is a quick sum up at the beginning of the movie to catch everyone up. Grab your gals, break open a few bottles of wine and let the laughter flow (possibly a few tears as well).

Get Carried away (okay, that was just too easy and too cheesy!!!!).

Spice up your pumpkins

All the ladies on the Nest know that glitter pumpkins are so last year. So what are you to do with this year's pumpkins? Fortunately, the folks over at Better Homes and Gardens have 25 ways to decorate your pumpkins.

Alright, I'll admit so of the ideas are certainly cuter than others. I think there is something for everyone. I, myself, am bit of a naturalist, so I'm not really a fan of anything that involves painting or gluing anything on my pumpkins. However, I do absolutely love the Pretty Pumpkin Pots idea. If I can find a large enough white pumpkin I think this would look amazing on my front porch.

I don't think the hubs and I are going pumpkin picking this weekend, but I may have to push for going sooner rather than later. I'm also trying to convince my sister to take a few pictures of my dad's pumpkin patch. Last week he told me he had at least five pumpkins he thinks will weigh over a hundred pounds. Pretty cool.

Elvis has left the building

It's over. So over. (Thanks Grey's for that line)

Yes, I'm crying over a baseball game. The last game in Yankee Stadium just ended and I'm crying. Players are literally taking Gatorade cups out into the infield and taking cups of dirt from the stadium. How awesome is that? Did anyone else love it when the camera kept coming back to that adorable little kid crying??? Whitey Ford and Yogi Berra provided color commentary. Jorge Posada put on a brave face to came out and join in the celebration. Bernie Williams swallowed his pride and came back. The fans cheered to let him know he was missed.

Then, a little 92 year old woman came out and broke everyone's heart. The Babe's own daughter threw out the ceremonial first pitch. Unbelievable!

The game ended as it should. Derek Jeter made the last out in the bottom of the 8th inning. Then, "Enter Sandman" played and Mariano Rivera closed out the ninth inning. It wasn't a save situation, but I think everyone knew he would be pitching the ninth inning. I'm glad to see that Joe Girardi was observant enough to take Jeter out with two down in the ninth. Jeter isn't my favorite player, but I started to tear up when the crowd demanded a curtain call.

The hubs and I only went to one game together at Yankee Stadium. I grew up in NY (not the city... there's a whole state up there as well) and I'm proud that I've been to my share of games. Of course I wish I went to more, but I can't go back and change the past. I already told the hubs that we're going to have to take a weekend trip to NYC next year and check out the new ballpark. The hubs flew out to Seattle once just for a baseball game, so I think I can work out a trip to NY.

Maybe the only thing that will get me through the off season will be Berra's new line of commercials. I love that guy! Yeah, he's the reason I wore #8 (Sorry Ripken, you don't even hold a candle to Yogi). Thankfully, the Yanks open their 2009 season here in Baltimore. I think it's safe assumption to make that I'll be at the game.

I know this post is very jumpy, but that's how my brain is working, or not working, at the moment. I'll end with a moment of brilliance from the always quotable Yogi Berra, "it ain't over till it's over."

(Oh yeah, I'm that weird person who takes pictures of my tv... deal with it!)

The end of an era

I can't believe this day is here already. Sunday, September 21, 2008 aka the last Yankees game in Yankee Stadium. Now, I'm incredibly curious why the Yankees aren't ending their season at home. I mean, why on earth would the schedule makers allow the Yanks to close Yankee stadium a full week before the regular season ends???? The hubs tried to come up with a few answers, but I call bs on all of them.

See, I truly believe there are three types of people in this world: Yankee Lovers, Yankee Haters and those people who don't care about baseball (honestly, I don't know that many of them). Even my Yankee Hater friends are confused as to why the last game of the regular season isn't in Yankee Stadium. We agree that the Yankees should close the drapes on The Stadium against the Red Sox. Anything less is just sub-par. Sorry O's.

Thank goodness that the last game is being broadcast on ESPN. It's a nice touch to let the Yankee fans all over the U.S. have the opportunity to see "the house that Ruth built" one last time.

I'm just bitter. I'm not happy about the new stadium at all. I have no idea how some people think it is a wonderful idea to take a place that has so much history, so much feeling, so much pizazz and then tear it down. Travesty! What's next, tear down Wrigley Field or Fenway Park? Absolutely not!


Here's some pictures I took this past December on a trip to Cooperstown.

TGIF!!!!

Yay!!!! The weekend is almost here! The hubs has to work for a few hours on Saturday (silly CSX inspections), but it's okay, we'll still have a great weekend. The weather is supposed to be beautiful this weekend, yet, I understand that a 10 year old with a kite may give a more accurate weather prediction.

As of right now all of my weekend plans are up in the air. If the hubs is feeling energetic after work on Saturday, then we'll go apple picking. If he isn't feeling energetic, maybe we'll just putter around outside in our yard. If a certain someone comes through, then we'll go to the Browns vs. Ravens game on Sunday. If that doesn't happen, then maybe we'll go to apple picking on Sunday. (I really, really, really want to go apple picking!)

Who knows what will happen?!?!?!?!?!? I just want to spend some time outside now that the weather has turned a bit cooler (yes, even though the weather forecast calls for a high of 80 degrees on Sunday).

I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend.

Really, was that necessary?

I think my dog, Jewels, has an obsessive compulsive disorder. She has to circle 8 times before she... well you know. She will only eat out of one food bowl. She always circles clockwise. She doesn't like a mess and she actually puts her toys away (now, if only we could teach Jax this lovely habit). She has to have a light on to go outside at night or into any dark room (okay, that's not so weird). She won't run down the stairs in the morning until a human goes with her. She will rotate standing on three legs when the grass is wet (clearly, all four legs can't get wet at the same time).

But, one of her oddest behaviors must be her obsession with fluffing blankets. I kid you not, she'll spend 20 minutes fluffing her blanket before she lays down for the night. It's crazy.

Tonight, she hopped up on the couch and started fluffing a throw blanket. What strikes me as incredibly odd, is that she'll rip the blanket down from where it was folded on top of the couch. Then, she'll spend 20 minutes fluffing and circling the blanket. Finally, she'll lay down behind the blanket. Really, was all that work necessary?

V-Day

Today, the hubs and I did the most despicable of things. We took our dogs to the vet for their yearly checkup. Of course, that didn't sit well with either dog and I felt bad for them. I certainly don't like to be picked, prodded and drained.

Much to our surprise, Jax and Jewels, were perfectly well behaved while they were at the vet. They didn't snap at anyone, which they only usually do when a needle is involved. Plus, Jax is a total chick magnet and had all the ladies fawning over him. Don't worry, Jewels uses her petite frame to her advantage and gets lots of loving too.

Unfortunately, I am highly allergic to cats. I didn't bring any allergy medicine with me and by time I got home, my neck and the inside of my arms were covered in hives. My eyes were blurry and I had a terrible headache. I spent the rest of the day past out with the pups and we all recovered from our trip to the vet.

The hubs took this picture while Jax and I were asleep on the couch.

Then, I took another one of just Jax. Jewels is buried upstairs and she's one sleepy puppy that I don't dare disturb.

Where is my Coach coupon?

I swear, I usually receive a Coach coupon for 25% off right about now. I know the coupon comes way to early to think of buying my sister a Christmas present. That makes me believe my coupon should be in my mailbox any day now. Hmmmmmm..... where is my coupon???

I need my coupon, because I need this bag. Okay, I don't need this bag, but I certainly want this bag. I could just go out, get it over already and buy the bag, but I know if I do the coupon will show up the next day. Silly Murphy's Law!

The only thing that is keeping me from buying this bag is it isn't "technically" fall yet. I think this bag will be perfect for fall and will work during the holiday season. I'm a sucker for purple and I love the color of this bag.

Sigh.... I guess I'll just keep dreaming of this bag until my coupon comes. Until then I'll have to slum it and carry my plain brown Hamptons bag. Ugh!

Pottery Barn Lust

Pottery Barn... why do you do this to me? I'm pretty sure I'm not hosting Thanksgiving dinner this year, but if I am I need to have these plates. My mind is already racing with how I could complement these lovely salad plates with my own dishes- read, I need to buy new dishes.

Maybe, just maybe, I can score enough of these plates after the holidays for a fantastic price.

We will never forget

September 11, 2001. A day that will live in infamy forever. I hope that everyone has taken a moment to reflect and remember those whose lives were forever changed on that day.

Here's an old picture. My dad took this from the World Trade Center's observation deck in the spring of 2000. I'll always cherish that day and the views my family and friends were able to take in. Then, I'll always be sad that no one else will ever be able to take this simple picture again.

Whew... I'm tired

Today was a pretty productive day, well, in terms of my own personal fitness that is. Today I did the following:
- ran 4 miles
- took Jax on a 1.5 mile walk and the last half was more of a controlled jog (FYI- hubs was walking Jewels. She wasn't neglected.)
- completed a lovely On Demand Yoga workout

I feel good. I almost feel good enough to want to start lifting weights again, but then that desire quickly subsides. Lifting is a difficult story for me. See, I used to lift weights all the time in high school and in college. In high school I sort of tinkered around with all of my dad's weights in our family's basement. Then, in college I had to partake in a much more stringent weight-lifting routine directed by my soccer coach. To sum up, I don't like to lift anymore. I'm one of those weird females that bulks up rather easily and I try to avoid any and all interaction with the shiny weights littering my own basement. Unfortunately, my husband lifts 3-4 times a week and every time he heads downstairs he asks if I want to join him. We're a year into our marriage and I'm already running out of excuses as to why I don't want to lift. Oh well, he'll catch on sooner or later.

I'm tired. My arms feel a little tight, yet, that is an oddly pleasant feeling. I'm going to veg out on the couch and watch the end of "V for Vendetta" and wonder if I could ever pull off the shaved head look as nicely as Natalie Portman (the answer is a definite and resounding no!).

Caught redhanded!!!

I swear, I have more going on in my life than just obsessing over my sunflower plants. Really, I do and in a few days I'm sure I'll get over these darn plants and talk about something else.

I snapped this picture this morning. Yes, it is a crappy picture, but I couldn't exactly open the window, remove the screen and direct the squirrel. So, here is one of the squirrels that is enjoying my sunflowers. As you can see in the photo, you can only see one other flower head... yeah the punks have eaten the rest of the flowers on that particular plant. I don't want to acknowledge this as reality yet, but I only have four plants left that have all of their flowers intact. Part of me wants to rip all of the plants up this weekend, just so I don't have to look at these gigantic flowerless plants.

Thankfully, I might be able to save some of my plants. I asked for help on the Nest and a few gals came to the rescue. I'm going to try spraying the plants with a water and vinegar solution. I was going to spray the plants this morning, but with a 70% chance of rain, I didn't want to waste my precious vinegar. Hopefully that will do the trick and then my sob story will have a happily ever after.

Longwood Gardens

Yesterday, my husband and I drove up to Kennett Square, PA to meet my aunt and uncle at Longwood Gardens. We were originally scheduled to head up on Saturday, but Miss Hanna had other plans. The extra day wait was definitely worth it, as we were treated to a gorgeous day and an amazing fireworks show.

Now, Longwood Gardens is Disney World for my aunt and uncle. They live almost three hours away from Kennett Square and, yet, they lamented yesterday that they had only visited Longwood four times this year. That’s a bad year for them. My aunt is a florist and my uncle is a landscape designer, which meant my husband and I had our own personal tour guides.

I think Longwood is one of those places that no matter how many times you visit, no matter how many photos you take, there will always be something new to discover and enjoy. While we were walking around and taking in the sheer beauty of the grounds, I couldn’t get over how truly fantastic the day was unfolding.

Seriously, I could go on forever with how much fun the day was. In the end, you need to take a trip out to Longwood if you can. If not, go to any botanical garden and just absorb for a few hours Mother Nature’s immense power and talent.

Martha Stewart- eat your heart out!

More bad photos on my Flickr site. I really need to get a better camera.

Wow!

I just got home and I'm incredibly tired, but I'm incredibly excited with how my day went. Just a teaser, but here's a picture from the fireworks show I went to earlier this evening. Expect a long post and lots of pictures tomorrow.

Tropical Storm Hanna???

As I proclaimed yesterday, my house didn't suffer any major damage due to Tropical Storm Hanna. Upon further inspection this morning I did notice a few minor problems. One, the normal dirt packed area behind my shed is now a big ol' mud hole. Two, a 4 foot long tree branch managed to knock over one of my tomato cages and snapped the plant's stem. Finally, quite a few of my sunflowers were snapped. I think this had to do more with the fact that the sunflower heads became incredibly heavy due to being water-logged. So all in all, really, nothing too bad. I really shouldn't even be complaining, considering that people lost their lives in this storm and I lost a few plants.

This morning my lovely next door neighbor called me. She's that stereotypical little old lady- she'll talk your ear off at any chance. She called and actually got my name right (I've lived next door for over a year now and she still calls me "Holly" or "Heather" most of the time) and told me to look outside my front windows. I thought, "great, what's going on that she wants me to look at?" Well, the punk got away before I could get a picture of him, but there was a very fat squirrel sitting on my front porch and he/she was eating my sunflower plants!!!

Now, I've noticed a few decapitated sunflower heads in my lawn over the past few weeks. I thought, okay, the wind must have blown them off or the occasional bird may have swooped and had a snack. This squirrel on the other hand was feasting on what I counted to be five different sunflower heads. When an unknown animal attacked and destroyed two of my tomato plants I chalked it up to survival of the fittest, but this is a fat squirrel. There are a ton of acorns in my back yard and plenty of other plants in the neighborhood, so this squirrel could easily feast on a multitude of other delicious treats.

Sigh.... It seems I have a squirrel problem. I'm not really sure how I'm even going to attempt to solve my "problem." Short of letting Jewels sleep outside on my front porch, which isn't really an option, I guess the squirrels are going to get the best of my sunflowers. Oh well, they were pretty while they lasted.

Next year though... it's on like Donkey Kong!

The carnage.


A centerpiece I put together earlier this week from a few sunflowers.

Tropical Storm Hanna

Well it looks like Tropical Storm Hanna has huffed and puffed and blown herself out of the Baltimore Metro area. I sincerely hope that everyone in Hanna's path is safe and sound.

I think we got off pretty easy. Yes, it rained all day, but the rain was nice and steady for the most part. My yard didn't flood and the water level in the street didn't come near the level of the freak thunderstorm we had a few weeks ago. We also lucked out and didn't have any major power interruptions, just a few brown outs here and there.

I did everything I could think of yesterday to prepare for the storm. I refilled our Brita, filled up all our plastic bottles with water, brought out all of our candles, checked flashlights, brought out the new batteries, dusted off the board games, baked muffins (hey, if the power goes out I want something tasty to snack on), cleaned the entire house, wrote down all the emergency numbers, charged the cell phones and checked our gutters for any blockages. I avoided the grocery store because I figured it would be a mad house. Yeah, I used to be in the Scouts... gotta be prepared.

All in all, the only thing Hanna really did was mess up our weekend plans. I was scheduled to meet my aunt and uncle for a fireworks show tonight, but Miss Hanna postponed the show. It's not the end of the world and the show has been rescheduled for tomorrow. Of course Murphy's Law comes into play and as soon as I found out the show was rescheduled to tomorrow, someone called with extra Ravens' tickets for tomorrow's game. Go figure!!!!

My pledge to shop local

I must admit it, I absolutely love online shopping. Guilty.as.charged. I light up with sheer glee whenever I receive a coupon or special offer from J. Crew, Pottery Barn, Crate & Barrel, etc. I think my husband would prefer to block J. Crew from my e-mail inbox and I have definitely caught him throwing out the occasional catalogue before I have the chance to look it over.

I've reached a point in my life where I realize that as much as I love online shopping, I need to expand my horizons and incorporate more local shopping into my habits. No, that doesn't mean driving over to Nordstrom's and picking out a new pair of shoes... my wallet isn't that friendly. Instead, this summer I've made a few trips over to the farmer's market and have enjoyed all the fresh produce. I bought all of my flowers and vegetable seeds from a local nursery instead of a big box store. Also, my husband and I are planning to go apple picking this fall and then wander over to a farm for pumpkin picking.

These are nice small steps, but I need a bigger push. Ideally, I'd love to start supporting local artists by buying a few pieces. Unfortunately, my husband won't let me ruin our beige walls by hanging anything that requires a nail and hammer. There is this small gallery in Federal Hill that I pass by all the time on my way to my softball games and I can't wait for the day to step inside and make a purchase.

In the meantime, I've discovered Etsy. I'm lucky enough that Baltimore has its own wonderful Etsy group: Baltimore Etsy Street Team. I'm drooling over some of the things I've seen so far and hopefully I'll go ahead and bring some of the treats into my home sooner rather than later.

I hope this incredible necklace will be my first Etsy purchase. Etsy seller: Vibrant Earth Jewels

Fall TV is back!!!

Yes! The new season of TV's finest programs begins tonight. I know many shows don't begin their new episodes until later in the month, but thankfully "Prison Break" starts back up tonight.

This is just the news I need, because right now the hubs has the O's and Red Sox game on TV and I'm just not in the mood to watch anymore balls fly out of Fenway Park. The O's have tied the game 2-2, but the Red Sox are on a roll it seems and the O's are unfortunately rolling in the opposite direction. All is not lost though, Adam Jones made he is triumphant return from the DL today.

Yay!!! Once 8pm rolls around I get to enjoy two blissful hours of "Prison Break."

Too much sun

I really have no idea how I used to play soccer outdoors everyday for hours at a time. Now, it seems I can't go outside for more than few hours before I want to pass out and retreat to a cool, dark area. Yesterday, I went to a park for a friendly BBQ and today I cringe at the mere thought of venturing outside. I guess that means I'm not going to the state fair this year.... boo!!!

Anyway, yesterday's BBQ was loads of fun. The highlight for me was watching a few nautically challenged individuals almost sink their paddle boat. The guys on the back of the boat were yelling for the park ranger and everyone near the lake could hear them. It was actually quite amusing. I know, it isn't nice to laugh in a situation where someone could actually get hurt, but come on... it's a paddle boat people. Make sure the plugs are in before you go out. It's not rocket science.