Hangin' With The Goddess

Last night my friend Melanie, aka The Coupon Goddess, had a little get-together at her house. As a blogger and a couponer, she gets lots of merchandise for free, or close to it. After donating a lot of it, she decided to share some with friends. She invited some of us over for a night of snacks, sangria and goodies.

Melanie filled several bags with candles, cleaning products and other goodies. We each picked a bag, yankee swap style, opened it, and if we didn't like the bag we chose, we swapped with one of the other girls.

It was a great night with friends, old and new.

Some of my favorite people were there...

Melanie, of course

I think she was covering her face at something I said (or did)

Kelly, Kelly & Cindy

I was thrilled with my goody bag filled with (among other things) candles.

I was so excited with all of the great stuff that I got that I decided to roll around in tissue paper.

I'm not sure I'll ever be invited back to Melanie's house.

I'll Take That 'Aunt of the Year' Award Now

A few weeks back I got into a little scuffle with my 7 year old nephew, Harry. Harry's a very good kid and is usually well behaved. He does have his moments though. When those moments come around, he does something that Kelly and I have dubbed "The Ugly Face Cry." His face scrunches up and his mouth opens and his eyes water. It's not pretty. One of these days I'll get a picture of it. Then I'll use it to blackmail him into giving me a hug when he's in high school.

Anyway, a few weeks back I brought over a jump rope that I received at a blogging event. I only had one so, of course, he and his brother fought over it. Oh, and I'm pretty sure that there are about 8 jump ropes in the garage from their older sister. But, I digress, the boys were fighting over the jump rope, yet again, that's when "Mean Auntie Laura" came to play. I yelled at them both to "stop it and give me the jump rope!" Brennan quickly obliged and went on his merry way. Harry was holding firm. He wanted that jump rope and he wasn't letting go. I said to him, "give me the jump rope RIGHT NOW" in my scariest voice. His response? "NO!" It was like he slapped me in the face! You don't say no to "Mean Auntie Laura." It has never been done. That's when I got all mature on his a** and said this: "You're being a real jerk right now." Yes, I said that to my 7 year old nephew. His response, "No, YOU'RE a jerk."

At that point I knew that I had to walk away. I yanked the jump rope out of his hands and gave myself a time out. He did the same. We apologized to each other about 15 minutes later. And we lived happily ever after.

The end.

5 Tips for Shopping on Black Friday

For those of you who haven't taken part in the spectacle this is Black Friday, I wanted to share some tips that I use to get through the day:

1. Hydrate: Pack a bottle of water in your purse. The stores and malls can get hot and your adrenaline will be pumping from those great deals you'll be getting.
2. Pack a snack. Throw a banana or some granola in your purse. Those register lines can get long and you don't want to get cranky from low blood sugar.
3. Bring the flyers. Some stores try to pull the old bait and switch. If you have the flyer with you, you can be sure that you're getting the deal you were expecting.
4. Split your list. If a friend or family member is going to Target and you're going to Wal-Mart, pick things up on each other's lists.
5. Leave your coat in the car! I can't stress this enough. The malls are especially hot this time of year. If you wear a big coat, you'll have to carry it around with you plus all of your bags.

Happy shopping!

Thanksgiving: My Least Favorite Holiday

Don't get me wrong, I don't hate Thanksgiving, it's just my least favorite of all the holidays.

There's just nothing to do. Except eat. And eat we do. In years past I would eat so much that I would feel sick. Ick, I hate that feeling.

I enjoy spending time with family, but I do that whether it's a holiday or not.

I also don't need a day to be thankful for things. I'm thankful everyday for everyone and everything in my life. Every night as my head hits the pillow I think about how lucky I am to have so much. Not material things, but a great family and friends and good health and happiness. I know that I'm fortunate. Not just on a Thursday in November, but every single day.

I find that I look forward to Thanksgiving being over. I look forward to a four day weekend. I look forward to Black Friday. I look forward to sleeping in the day after Black Friday. And I look forward to another year of things to be thankful for.

"Go The F**k To Sleep" Review & Giveaway

***This giveaway has closed. Thank you for all who entered***

And the winner is:

Ida Mae said...

awesome!! was saying this tonight!
Ida C.
ida_mai at hotmail dot com

YAY!! Congratulations Ida Mae!!

Last night, my friend Kelly and I went to a book reading/signing at The Boston Globe. We were excited to hear the book being read by the author, Adam Mansbach.

This is, without a doubt, one of the funniest books I've ever read. As a caregiver of children, I've said this to myself many, many times. Of course I would never say it out loud, but thinking it is an entirely different story. I'm sure every parent has said this to themselves on many occasions as well.

This is my favorite page from the book:

"The eagles who soar through the sky are at rest

And the creatures who crawl, run, and creep

I know you're not thirsty. That's bullsh*t. Stop lying.

Lie the f**k down, my darling, and sleep."

How would you like to win a signed copy? Well, it's your lucky day. I'm giving one away!

Just leave a comment with your first name, last initial and email address by Wednesday, November 23.

Good luck!

Fossils Vacation

The Fossils just got back from a two-week cruise around the Caribbean. They do this cruise with their friends every year.

I'm not sure why, but I am always in charge of uploading their pictures when they get back. Actually I do know why; they have no idea how to do it.

The pictures that they take are literally interchangeable from year to year.

I do love looking at the photos though. Here are a few winners:

There are always at least 3 photos of the ship.

This time was no exception.

The elevators. Always good to get a picture of those.

I think this is the ceiling.

I'm guessing that this is the moon.

People (that they may or may not know) swimming.

Thankfully, this year they only took 37 pictures. Oh, and there is not one picture of the two of them together. The Big Guy asked, "How would we get a picture of the two of us when one of us is always the one taking the pictures?" Fossils, can't live with 'em. End of story.

Happy Birthday Bryce!

Today my nephew, Bryce, turns 16. This is a milestone. He's the oldest grandson/nephew in the family. Since he also reads my blog religiously, I thought I'd give him a shout-out.

Dear Bryce,

In honor of your birthday I wanted to share a few things with you that you might not know.

1. When your Mom was a few months pregnant with you we took a trip to Sanibel Island, Florida. As Mom and I were swimming in the pool we decided to play a game of "who can hold their breath the longest." She won the first couple of games before we realized that it probably wasn't a good idea to withhold oxygen from the fetus (you). Sorry about that.
2. Mom gained A LOT of weight when she was pregnant with you. I mean A LOT. We're talking 'outgrown your maternity clothes' a lot.
3. You were born with a full head of hair. I don't think you ever lost a strand of it.
4. A few days after you got home from the hospital your big sister couldn't keep her hands off of you. Mom had to yell at her, which prompted her to grab her Barbie guitar and make up a song. It went like this: "I don't like my mother, she's so mean. Oh Bryce-ee, oh Bryce-ee cockadoodledoo." I'm surprised it never made it to the Billboard charts.
5. I fell madly in love with you the moment I laid eyes on you.

I was going to use this post to list all of the things I love about you, but there are just too many.

I wish you nothing but happiness as you continue your journey into adulthood.

Love,

Auntie Laura

P.S. Here are some pictures of you that I love.