not bad, not bad at all

The regular season's almost over & who isn't impressed by the strides the Pens have made this season?? I mean, thus far it's a 5 way tie for 6th place overall. This from a team that has struggled to make it out of the dregs of the league for the last few -if not longer- years. (Albeit, we did get some choice draft picks). I'm impressed. They've got a playoff spot clinched. Yay!!! It's freakin' exciting! They're a young team. Um, with some seasoned vets thrown in, of course. And the young pups are developing nicely. Yes, it is FREAKING EXCITING. FINALLY! You know we've been waiting years for our team to make a comeback as a force to be reckoned with (sorry for the cliche). Watching footage -'cause all I get are highlights on ESPN out here- takes me back to those golden days in the 90's. Thank God for XM radio! And then playoffs in 2 weeks! I'm waiting impatiently. After the strike 4 years ago, I felt I had lost my passion for hockey. Being 1500 miles away from my favorite team doesn't help to fuel a waning passion either. The Pens got tons of t.v. time briefly when Mario made his "return" to the ice. After that, nothin'. So it's been a slow ride for me to actually keep up with the happenings at the Arena. It didn't help that we didn't visit for four years. Maybe now they'll have a little more t.v. coverage & I'll be able to participate in this long distance relationship on a more personal level. I'll say it again: FREAKING EXCITING!!!!

DD1 &DD4

Conversation b/t me & Lib & Fi the other day ran like this: me: "Nikki is daughter #1, Maddie is #2, you Fiona are #3 and you Lib are #4" Fi:"NO! I'm 4, Libby is 3" Lib:"yeah!! I'm 3, FiFi is 4". me: "Noooooo, you're daughter #4 not FOUR years old". Lib:"NO! I'm THREE!" Fi:"I'm FOUR!" me: "(sigh) yes, you're right. you are 4 & you are 3."

You can't handle the truth

My fave is the 2nd highlight...beautiful deke!




(thanks, B, for the heads up)

flashback of the week -or Adventures in Parenting

We were watching a bit of "Singles" the other day & it got me to thinking of this vid. You'll have to scroll down & start it yourself to view/listen. I was also reminded that Snick was about 4 when that movie came out &, lacking a sitter, she went w/ me & some friends to see the flick. No biggie, right? You remember that scene where the dude's mom takes him to the doctor to learn about the birds & the bees? Innocuous, as were the rest of the "risque" type scenes that warrented the PG-13 rating. So that weekend we were at my parents & the adults were all sitting around the dining room table one night chatting. Snick was laying down in the living room to sleep & I hear her chime up "Mom? What's a penis?". Um, yeah.

And did we really dress like that? I think I have one flannel hanging in my closet still. It doesn't get much use these days. Why do I hang on to it? It's not even one of my original favorites; those have long been donated to Goodwill. And the hair. Holy crap. I'll have to dig up some pics to post. A stroll down memory lane might be fun.

Lib's bday @ Gunther Toody's

She insists that she's Peter Pan, but Tink is as close as we can find usually


She was jumping up & down with extreme excitement when they brought out the balloons. It was the first thing she asked for that morning: "I can't wait to play with my birthday balloon"

Lib's bday party

Wouldn't you have loved to have had a store like this when you were little?

flashback of the week

hot boys & hot music; guess I'll always be a Led head @ heart.

Remember when this song first came out some 15 years ago or so. It was "found" & released, obviously years after the band's break-up. We were all so excited to hear the news & then, of course, bought the Zeppelin boxed set on which the "new" songs were released (along with all the old classics). Marketing ploy, if ever there was one. Like we needed an excuse to buy one of the best boxed sets ever from one of the most talented bands ever.

movie meme monday

I've seen this this meme on few blogs now. Sorry to be so lame, but I worked overnight & I can barely type correctly today. Supposedly, the meme goes, that if you've seen more than 85 of these, you have no life. Hmmmmm. In this day of cinematic sedation, who can really not have seen at least 85 movies? And who chose these particular titles?


(X) Rocky Horror Picture Show
(X) Grease
(X) Pirates of the Caribbean
(X) Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man’s Chest
(X) Boondock Saints
(X) Fight Club
(X) Starsky and Hutch
(X) Neverending Story
( ) Blazing Saddles
( ) Airplane
(X) The Princess Bride
( ) AnchorMan
(X) Napoleon Dynamite
(X) Labyrinth
(X) Saw
(X) Saw II
(X) White Noise
(X) White Oleander
(X) Anger Management
(X) 50 First Dates
( ) The Princess Diaries
( ) The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement
(X) Scream
(X) Scream 2
( ) Scream 3
( ) Scary Movie
( ) Scary Movie 2
( ) Scary Movie 3
( ) Scary Movie 4
(X) American Pie
( ) American Pie 2
( ) American Wedding
( ) American Pie Band Camp
(x) Harry Potter 1
(x) Harry Potter 2
(x) Harry Potter 3
(x) Harry Potter 4
( ) Resident Evil 1
( ) Resident Evil 2
(X) The Wedding Singer
( ) Little Black Book
(X) The Village
(X) Lilo & Stitch
(X) Finding Nemo
(X) Finding Neverland
(X) Signs
(X) The Grinch
( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre
( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning
( ) White Chicks
(X) Butterfly Effect
( ) 13 Going on 30
(X) I, Robot
(X) Robots
(X) Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
( ) Universal Soldier
(X) Lemony Snicket: A Series Of Unfortunate Events
(X) Along Came Polly
( ) Deep Impact
(X) KingPin
(X) Never Been Kissed
(X) Meet The Parents
(X) Meet the Fockers
( ) Eight Crazy Nights
( ) Joe Dirt
( ) King Kong
( ) A Cinderella Story
(X) The Terminal
( ) The Lizzie McGuire Movie
( ) Passport to Paris
(X) Dumb & Dumber
( ) Dumber & Dumberer
(X) Final Destination
( ) Final Destination 2
( ) Final Destination 3
(X) Halloween
(X) The Ring
( ) The Ring 2
(X) Surviving Christmas
(X) Flubber
( ) Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle
( ) Practical Magic
(X) Chicago
( ) Ghost Ship
( ) From Hell
( ) Hellboy
(X) Secret Window
(X) I Am Sam
( ) The Whole Nine Yards
( ) The Whole Ten Yards
(X) The Day After Tomorrow
(X) Child’s Play
( ) Seed of Chucky
(X) Bride of Chucky
(X) Ten Things I Hate About You
( ) Just Married
(X) Gothika
(X) Nightmare on Elm Street
(X) Sixteen Candles
(X) Remember the Titans
( ) Coach Carter
(X) The Grudge
( ) The Grudge 2
( ) The Mask
( ) Son Of The Mask
(X) Bad Boys (I've only seen the old Sean Penn flick of the same name, not the one they mean here w/ Martin Lawrence)
( ) Bad Boys 2
( ) Joy Ride
(X) Lucky Number Sleven
(X) Ocean’s Eleven
( ) Ocean’s Twelve
(X) Bourne Identity
(X) Bourne Supremecy
(X) Lone Star
( ) Bedazzled
(X) Predator I
(X) Predator II
(X) The Fog (I've only seen the remake)
(X) Ice Age
( ) Ice Age 2: The Meltdown
( ) Curious George
(X) Independence Day
(X) Cujo
(X) A Bronx Tale
( ) Darkness Falls
(X) Christine
(X) E.T.
(X) Children of the Corn
( ) My Bosses Daughter
(X) Maid in Manhattan
(X) War of the Worlds
( ) Rush Hour
( ) Rush Hour 2
( ) Best Bet
(X) How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
(X) She’s All That
(X) Calendar Girls
(X) Sideways
(X) Mars Attacks
( ) Event Horizon
(X) Ever After
(X) Wizard of Oz
(X) Forrest Gump
(X) Big Trouble in Little China
(X) The Terminator
(X) The Terminator 2 (the best movie ever)
(X) The Terminator 3 (the worst movie ever)
(X) X-Men
(X) X-2
(X) X3
(X) Spider-Man
( ) Spider-Man 2
( ) Sky High
(X) Jeepers Creepers (no wait, this is the worst movie ever)
( ) Jeepers Creepers 2
(X) Catch Me If You Can
(X) The Little Mermaid
(X) Freaky Friday (I've seen the remake & the original)
(X) Reign of Fire
( ) The Skulls
( ) Cruel Intentions
( ) Cruel Intentions 2
( ) The Hot Chick
(X) Shrek
(X) Shrek 2
( ) Swimfan
(X) Miracle on 34th street (only the original)
( ) Old School
(X) The Notebook
( ) K-Pax
( ) Krippendorf’s Tribe
(X) A Walk to Remember
(X) Ice Castles
( ) Boogeyman
( ) The 40-year-old Virgin
(X) Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring
( ) Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (I know, lame that I haven't seen the last 2; I keep falling asleep; they need to be seen on a much larger screen than a t.v.)
( ) Lord of the Rings: Return Of the King
(X) Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
(X) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
(X) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
( ) Base-ketball
( ) Hostel
( ) Waiting for Guffman
( ) House of 1000 Corpses
( ) Devils Rejects (oh yet another horrible flick)
(X) Elf
( ) Highlander
(X) Mothman Prophecies
(X) American History X
( ) Three
(X) The Jacket
( ) Kung Fu Hustle
(X) Shaolin Soccer
( ) Night Watch
(X) Monsters Inc.
(X) Titanic
(X) Monty Python and the Holy Grail
(X) Shaun Of the Dead
(X) Willard (they really should specify b/t original & remake; I've seen the Crispin Glover remake)
( ) High Tension
( ) Club Dread
( ) Hulk
(X) Dawn Of the Dead
(X) Hook
( ) Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
(X) 28 days later
( ) Orgazmo
(X) Phantasm
(X) Waterworld (ummm, okay, THIS is the worst movie in history)
(X) Kill Bill Vol. 1
(X) Kill Bill Vol. 2
( ) Mortal Kombat
(X) Wolf Creek
( ) Kingdom of Heaven
(X) the Hills Have Eyes (the only movie I've ever walked out of)
( ) I Spit on Your Grave
( ) The Last House on the Left
(X) Re-Animator
(X) Army of Darkness
(X) Star Wars Ep. I The Phantom Menace
(X) Star Wars Ep. II Attack of the Clones
(X) Star Wars Ep. III Revenge of the Sith
(X) Star Wars Ep. IV A New Hope
(X) Star Wars Ep. V The Empire Strikes Back
(X) Star Wars Ep. VI Return of the Jedi
( ) Ewoks: Caravan Of Courage
( ) Ewoks: The Battle For Endor
(X) The Matrix
(X) The Matrix: Reloaded
(X) The Matrix: Revolutions
( ) Animatrix
(X) Evil Dead
( ) Evil Dead 2
( ) Team America: World Police
(X) Red Dragon
(X) Silence of the Lambs
(X) Hannibal

I'm almost tempted to add some movies onto the list. You know, add some & pass it on, kind of thing. But my brain's not working; actually, the hand/eye coordination isn't up to par just now.

lieutenants' lounge

Check out this blog created & maintained by a high school friend. Well, actually he's the twin brother of my best friend from high school. He was what Grace & I considered a "dweeb" (natch, what else is your brother when you're in high school? My bro was a burnout & we still thought he was a dweeb) & (of course) he was a pain in our collective butt. But look! Chuck's all grown up & he's a t.v. weather man! & he voluntarily! signed up for the reserves in the last year or so. Now he's reporting quasi-live from Iraq. Get this: he got to see the birth of his son via webcam! Cool, huh?

Ah, high school memories...Grace & me -staying just out of reach of trouble. Chuck & his bud Ben (not my brother) getting on our cases about it. Like the time we "borrowed" the blinking saw horse so we could take it home & dismantle & figure out how it worked. Yeah, we were odd girls. Ditzy even, at times. I blame it on the youthful disconnect b/t brain & synapses (or whatever it is that scientists are learning about the teenage brain these days). Anywho, I remember the admonition from Chuck & Ben. HA! No, we did not get into trouble over that, boys! What's that bumpersticker? "Good girls go to heaven. Bad girls go everywhere." Apparantly, dweebs grow up to be good guys. I'm proud to have grown up w/ you, Chuck!

Lib's bday pt 1

oooh! a raincoat!

this umbrella's a little small



and little pink puddle jumpers!

for me?

don't need no stinking paintbrush

Someone has turned 35 today!

And it ain't me obviously.
If you see this man:


wish him a happy one!

more chair pics

see where Mad painted with white out oh so many years ago? I couldn't find her one day & was panicky b/c I was calling for her & we only had a 2 bedroom 500sf apt & I couldn't find her anywhere & she wasn't answering. Aha! She was busy under the computer desk, painting the chair & her legs. with white out. It was a bitch to get off her legs. You can see that it's STILL on the chair!

I think the chair turned out well. Not perfectly professional, but I like it. I think Mad will like it too.

more fo's

what's this? It's lovely, it's a surprise, & it's finished! It's also not sent yet, so I can't give a better pic/description yet



this is also a gift. But for whom?


It's Madster's mirror redux. And look! You can see the desk chair I just re-upholstered. It was much used & very not comfortable anymore. I replaced the padding & the fabric & it doesn't look like an old $40 6 years ago chair anymore. Yay!


decorations for Mad's asian theme bedroom. It will be finished one day. In fact, I'm working on the bookshelf immediately after I log off.

I still hold this against the city

To tear down this beautiful, old, fabulous accoutics- not a bad seat in the house- venue & put in a frigging parking LOT is reprehensibly poor city management -especially how they went about doing the deed. Remember that surreptitious act?Shame shame shame. Even after 13 years.

could it be true?

The dome of Pittsburgh's Civic Arena, the site where the Pittsburgh Penguins play hockey, is seen to the left of the proposed site for a new arena, in this Jan. 11, 2006 file photo.
10:26 a.m. ET, 3/13/07

Look at that tribute to 1960's architecture. It was always novel that the roof opened, but it was too costly for many entertainment acts to utilize that feature. Time to let go of nostalgia. The Pens -as well as the fans- deserve better.

neat, huh?

Read my VisualDNA™ Get your own VisualDNA™

try it for yourself

I'll take a 3 seed

I think G jinxed me last night w/ all his smack talk about Pitt. Oh well. So they lost the Big East. At least that loss is out of the way. I wouldn't be comfortable being in Memphis' place right now w/ that 22 game win streak. They'll have to make that a 27 or 28 game win streak now.

bball

Pitt v Georgetown 7pm MT. Grateful for DVR; we have to attend Mad's school auction fundraiser tonight. Don't tell me the score b4 I see the game. It's so exciting!!!! And you know how excited I am? See how I jumped the gun with the brackets & being afraid I was already behind? Whew. I've still got a few more days to analyze....

Pens pt 2

The rumor mill grinds on...and I think LV would be a much more profitable market than KC. I hate for them to leave the 'burgh, but ya know, ya gotta do what ya gotta do. Like me & G, for instance. Time to move on in our respective job situations. Anyone know of any job openings in the healthcare management industry?

Is it really March Madness already? I didn't even have a chance to make any picks. Glad to see Pitt making it to the next round. Oooh Louisville. Should be interesting. You know who I'm taking. G says I'm foolish for always picking Pitt. But hey, it's not a bad choice & I have a feeling that this is the year. So what if I say that every year. I've got faith.

CSAP madness again this week

Maddie was wigging out this morning about breakfast -what should she have? how much? what if she gets hungry b/c she didn't eat enough? why do we have nothing (other than the 5 choices I gave her) to eat in our house, etc etc etc. Serious high anxiety about something so mundane. She finally got around to telling me that she was upset about CSAPs b/c her teacher reprimanded her for getting into her desk to get her lipbalm last time. "Since when is that against the rules of CSAP??!!" she asks incredulously. ARGH. She put on her game face during the car ride to school & was completely emotionless when she got out of the car. Poor thing. She's got to learn to deal with the fact that standardized tests are a part of life. As is homework. You'd think she'd be adjusted to that latter fact considering this is her 4th year of homework. She actually did her math homework last night & Monday with no arguments. It's subtraction in the 3 place settings range. I honestly don't remember doing that in 3rd grade. And she's got the hang of it & she likes it! Finally! I mean, she does proclaim that math is her favorite subject.

And then there's Lib & Fi. They woke up @ 5 this morning. Lib is at the end of her rope-tired. I am growing impatient waiting for her to fall asleep. The whining is barely tolerable on a good day, let alone on a day when I'm sleep deprived. Fi had her meltdown earlier but says she's not tired now. She's not acting tired but she is doing her best to torment her sister. So you can guess the decibel level coming out of Lib's mouth just now. If I hide out here will it all go away?

my 2 cents on the Pens

I cannot believe the idiots in authority in PA. I understand that PGH doesn't have the financial growth that places like Denver do. There isn't a huge population compared to big cities like NY or LA. But there is a strong fan base in the whole tri-state region & if a new arena is built, I'm pretty sure folks would sell a left nut to afford reasonably higher ticket prices that would offset the cost of said new arena. So what's the holdup?

And is Mario that much of an idiot himself to think that someplace like KC will be more profitable in the long run? Or maybe he's just looking at the current situation & wants a new arena & KC will pay for it "right now". But will there be fans? I suppose there will be, just as the teams in FL & ATL & PHX have survived when folks were initially skeptical about the non-traditional locations. But certainly not with the same level of loyalty as what the Pens enjoy in PGH. And seriously, have you been to KC? It's very similar to PGH, from what I can tell, very blue collar. If it's not a city with much economic growth, how will the team fare over time? What would be the future financial profitablity for the Pens?

I just don't understand the stalemate b/t team owner & city gate keepers. If the team leaves, won't it be detrimental for the city's already sad state of finances? There goes all that generated income from tickets, food & alcohol -in house & locally, parking, memorabilia, gas, sight-seeing, souvenirs, shopping ('cuz you know out-of-towners make a day of it), and whatever else I can't think of just now.

And sadly maybe hockey itself won't be as popular in the 'burgh; I know a lot of rinks were built when the Pens were at the top of their game a few years ago & lot's of little (& big) kids were inspired to skate year-round instead of only in Schenley Park in the winter. How will those businesses be affected?

Will Penguin fans remain loyal if the team moves? Doubtful. The city is generally not friendly to "traitors".

How frustrating for everyone involved. And it's sad b/c the team appears to be on the upswing of the "rebuilding" phase. I'm almost glad I'm 1500 miles away.

new vid for your perusal

Snick turned me onto this gal's music & I found a couple vids. It was a toss up b/t them as to which one I'd post. They're both tragic humor (humorous tragedy?) catchy tunes that I can't get out of my head. I've only got 5 songs; don't know if there are more, but those 5 are really good. Thanks again Snick!

princess lib's turn sitting on the throne

today

It's Lib's birthday -unofficially, b/c technically she won't have her 1st birthday until next year, being a Leap Day baby & all.

You know the princess throne chair Fi got for her birthday? We bought Lib a matching chair, more like an arm chair instead of a throne but the same pinks & purples & more plush. Lib loved it right away. So did Fi. She promptly stated that no, she would not sit in her own chair b/c she didn't want it. She wanted Lib's chair. She picked up her chair & attempted to throw it. It didn't fly very far so she muscled it up & out the playroom door, depositing the throne in the hallway there. I suggested that maybe they could take turns everyday. Lib shook her head "no". She knows it's hers & she knows Fi wants it. Badly. And she's not going to share anytime soon. Don't get me wrong. Lib is one of the kindest most thoughtful 3 year olds I know. Pleases & thank you's without prompting kind of kid. But she's getting the hang of this sibling-survival-of-the-fittest thing. She's the kid who will grab for another cookie while she's still chewing the cookie that she just shoved whole into her mouth. So yeah, she had that little "Ha!" smile on her face when she shook her head that she would not like to take turns everyday with her chair or Fi's.

It seems today that everything Lib has, Fi wants also. No matter that her own birthday was a mere 26 days ago. Lib opened a present from her godmother, my good friend Angela. She was super excited "oooo I have mine own just like Maddie" when she saw the art set just like Maddie got last year & will not no never let the little girls touch hers. Fi saw this & immediately protested "hey! I want one too!" I tried to remind her that she did receive as a present from her friend Amelie her very own art set, albeit not the exact same one, but with similar ingredients.

From my parents, Lib got a cabbage patch kid outfit of a raincoat, puddle jumpers & an umbrella. Later in the day she complained that it was HER present, not Fi's, & that Fi wouldn't let her have it. Fi had confiscated the outfit & put it on the cabbage "kid" that she had inherited from Maddie. I tried to give Lib the newer cabbage "baby" & tried to trade it's shoes for new boots. Fi astutely, if not a little smugly, points out "they don't fit THAT doll". Sigh.

It's been one of those day. I wonder how long this phase will last?!

last night

G:"tell mommy what it's called when you fart under the covers."
O:"a dutch oven."

yeah, that's the greeting I received last night upon returning home from birthday present shopping. And this little story: G was putting the little girls to bed & was explaining to Lib what a dutch oven is. Useful info for bedtime fun, right? So Fi hears this & across the room gets under her covers & makes farting noises w/ her mouth and "I have a dutch oven too". Kids these days....