A quick two week recap before Christmas

Week of Dec 2

Seems like we spent the whole week with Nicole and her kids. After dropping Mike off at work on Monday we went to Supervalu to do some grocery shopping then I stop by Nicole's house to drop off some items she left at the house from Saturday. I didn't plan to stay very long but we ended up just hanging out and letting the boys play most of the morning. Once we left there we headed back to the house to do a little cleaning and cooking for the day so Monday was pretty much gone.  Mike that we were going to have some turkey leftovers for dinner but I surprised him and had chicken I'm saving all the turkey leftovers from my turkey and grits for breakfast...Yum!!!!  There was nothing special going on Monday night, just hung out around the house play with the kids had dinner put the boys to bed then after that we went to bed ourself. 

Tuesday I had planned on going to the coffee morning in Douglas but ended up getting an invitation from one of Nicola friends, now my friend too to go to a EUmom Christmas celebration. I had tried to sign up Monday night for the event but it said it was all sold out so Nicole and I decided to just meet at Costas and have a coffee then head over to the event and see if they would let us in.  So in that Amanda at the hotel and we talk to the ladies at the gate and they said it was okay that we come in even though we didn't have a ticket. I guess since it was a free event it wasn't that big of a deal I think they just didn't want to have too many people for that venue but I'm sure there was a lot of people that signed up to say they were going to didn't go so there was plenty of room for us. It was actually a pretty nice little events, there was pictures with Santa there was also a life-size Buzz Lightyear and Woody and some other characters, free coffee and cookies for the moms and kids and even face painying... it was nice. Lino was really impressed with the Buzz Lightyear and the Woody he just stood there for a few minutes when he first saw them and just stared at them. Finally I was able to convince him to take a picture with them instead of just looking at them and he was really excited about that. Unfortunately he didn't have on his Toy Story T-shirt otherwise it would've been perfect. 

I was even able to get a picture with Leno and Sean with Woody so that was pretty cool. 

Then we ended up taking pictures with Santa Claus and the boys that really good and actually look at the camera so I got a very good picture of them on my real camera. This is only the second time was taken picture with Santa Claus with the first being last week so it's really a big change for me. It's not that I don't like the Santa Claus I just never got into it so I guess the boys are getting bigger will be seeing Santa more often. The good thing about Santa Claus is that I use him as a tool to get Lino to do what he supposed to do so I tell him if he's being bad Santa Claus will give him any toys and usually he straightens up. I really hate doing that but if it works it works and sometimes I just need a little bit of a break... it's tough work fighting with a 3yr old. So we let the kids run around for little while then they sat down to watch a magic show but Lino wasn't very impressed so he kept getting up. After we spent a couple hours there was getting time for lunch in time to go so we packed up and just went over to the bar area to have lunch. We thought we would have the carvery there but it wasn't open yet so we just got something off of the menu for the kids. Lunchtime at a restaurant with 5 kids is not very fun let me tell you that... It's more like a battle then lunch. I don't understand why kids don't want to just sit and eat but they don't ... anyway we eventually were able to get some food into the kids and then we all went our separate ways.  I invited Nicole and the boys over after Cian got out of school so she said she would give me a ring if Cian didn't have any homework to do.  So we went back to the house and played for a while and Nicole was able to come over with the boys so that was nice.  So we hung out that afternoon and they boys had lots of fun playing together while Nicole and I worked on the TV. We've been trying to get our TV to work with the sky cable every since Sept with no luck. We thought getting a cable from the states would work but it didn't so Nicole's husband had an idea what might be wrong so we fooled around with that stupid box for like an hour and still couldn't get it to work. We did at least get a different error message so that was a little progress. Then I finally decided just to call sky and see if they could help us out. Honestly I was really worried that they would be able to help but it would take several weeks for them to send someone out. And I kind of just didn't want to be bothered with it since we don't watch any Irish TV anyway. But I called and the guy was pretty helpful and he was able to send out a technician next week so that was better than I expected.   It was nice to have a little help with the cable, it made me feel good to have a friend help me out.  Anyway Nicole and the boys left and we finished making dinner before having to leave to get Mike.   He thought it was funny that I tried to fix the cable but didn't have any real progress but I told him I got further along than he did so it was progress...he is always trying to give me crap about stuff...doesn't he know I know I'm the sh^t??? Hahahaha...well at least now we know one day soon, we might actually have Irish cable!

Wednesday we did the normal drop off routine then Shaun and I had to go downtown to get our PPS numbers...like a Social Security number. I had heard it was a real pain like going to the DMV and it was kind of. It took almost 2hrs to get thru all the nonsense and I was so activated because it didn't have to be that long. There was a bunch of paperwork that I had to fill out in front of the agent. If I could have filled that stuff out before hand it would have saved me at least 30min. Then I needed all this documentation for the boys and I didn't have one thing for Shaun so it was almost like I wasn't going to be able to proceed with the application because I didn't have it but the lady seemed to forget about telling me I couldn't appt for Shaun's number and she went ahead and processed all of our information. All I had to do was mail in the form that I was missing so that was a bit of a relief for me. The relocation lady was there with me and I didn't want to have to come back with Shaun and not have any help...that would have been a real pain in the ass. So anyway I think we are all set...we will see in a few weeks I guess. So we raced back home and I had a few min before having to get Lino so I looked up GP's in the area because I needed to register Shaun with one to have proof he is a resident...what a pain. So I picked Lino up from school and we went to the GP in Glanmire to get registered. I needed them to sign this form saying we were registered but the lady said the Dr actually had to see us before she could sign the form...really??? Is that really necessary???? I have to make an appt to see the GP even tho nothing is wrong as I'm going to have to pay €50 to have someone sign a form saying we are registered!!!! I wanted to shoot that lady I was so annoyed but I needed the form filled out so I had to do it. So she was able to get me an appt for later that afternoon so at least I could get this done today.  So in the mean time we went to the store to get some things for dinner then headed back home for a little until it was time to go to the GP.  We went back to the GP, sat in the waiting area for 30-45min then talked to the GP for maybe 10min and she signed the form. All that and €60 later...60 freaking euros for a signature...I had the documents that I needed for the PPS people. Thank God that is done. So I put it in the post right away so that the application wouldn't be delayed.  After that we ended up meeting up with Nicole and the boys at the park for a quick afternoon outside.  When the weather is semi nice you really have to take advantage of it quickly so we headed to the park.  The weather wasn't too bad it was cold but at least it wasn't raining wet. Actually wasn't really that cold at all ... it was cool.  We stayed for a while and Nicole told me about a place I could go to print pictures so I figured I would go there before getting Mike.  Just as we were packing up to go it started to get dark like it was going to rain so it was perfect timing to leave.  We headed over to the Harvey Norman shop and I was able to get the pictures made that I wanted to do for Christmas.  I had to kind of design my own card which ended up being a little bit more work than I had expected but it worked out ok.  The cool thing was that my prints printed right away so we just hung out around the shop until they were done.  The bad part was that I was a little late getting Mike but since we were so close he just walked down to the store to wait with us.  He was also impressed with the pictures and the cost so I guess I made a good decision with the cards!  So off to the house we went for a quick dinner.  Lino was pretty pooped from the day so it was pretty easy for Mike to put him to bed.  Shaun of course wasn't ready to go to bed so only Lino went to sleep Shaun ended up staying up late with Mike & I which wasn't too bad. 

 

Thursday was coffee morning in Midleton but unfortunately I couldn't stay long. I have to go to the store before I went to the coffee morning because I needed some more things for dinner. It seems like I go to the store almost every day I still can't get used to this. Before we left Texas we were barely going to the store once a week because I had the whole week planned out as far as meals and groceries but here it's totally different. Anyway I got my few bits and headed over to the coffee morning for my short visit...it was short but it's always nice to be able to get out of the house for a few minutes and have a chat with the other girls. Then race to pick up Lino then back to the house for lunch. Nicole gave us a call during lunch to invite us to the play area in Mahon Pt so we went ahead and did that after Lino got finished eating.  We ended up walking around the mall for a while doing a little window shopping and a little Christmas shopping.  The boys were going crazy about going to the play area so we had to cut the shopping short and headed up to the play area.  When we got there we thought Lino & Cian would be running around together having a good time but they both ended up sitting on one of the structures watching TV!  Seriously boys???  We come all the way here so that you could play together and you guys want to watch TV?  I don't get it...eventually we were able to get them to move away from the TV and actually play but it seemed like it took forever.  While we were there one of the moms that Nicole & I know came to the play area too so we sat and talked to her for a little.  While we were sitting there Lino started wrestling with me so I was tossing him all over the place and they were both looking at me like I was crazy.  I guess I'm pretty rough with him and I didn't even realize it but I'm OK with it.  He doesn't mind being tossed around and I think it makes him a tougher kid so its not an issue for me but it was funny to see their expressions when I was body slamming him.  Also, when he is coming at me full force ready to play I have to be ready to defend myself or else he is going to really hurt me and I can't have that :-)   So after a couple hours of playing it was time to head home...I had to pick up some sausage from Tesco so we stopped there before heading to get Mike. The evening was relaxing, we actually had a little family time which was nice. 

Friday was my relax day so nothing to report. Saturday we took our traditional Saturday walk and train ride to the city. It was busy busy with all the Christmas shoppers.  We had heard about the Ferris wheel down in the city so we wanted to check it out. There was also a little Christmas display in the park near the Ferris wheel so we wanted to check that out too. Once we got down by the festivities we realized it was like a little carnival going on. There were a bunch of street venders selling food and candy and of course they all were cash only places and we didn't have any cash so I had to go get money. While I went to get money Mike and Lino went to get in line for the Ferris wheel. I figured I would be back in time to get a picture of them but I had to freaking walk 5 miles to get to an ATM and once I got there there was a line   It seemed like it took forever but finally I got cash and got back to the ride but they were just getting off so I completely missed it. Mike said Lino really enjoyed it so that was nice. So we got a little candy at the sweet shop, because that is what you so in Ireland then Mike saw a BBQ place with a huge smoker and he made me go ask them about their wood. He is on a mission to find wood but he doesn't want to ask anyone about it, he wants me to ask. So I felt bad just asking about the wood so I got a sandwich too and made it like part of the conversation but I don't think the guy was buying it. He told us his brother gave him the wood, apple, oak and something else and I told him we were looking for apple wood but he didn't go any further. I could tell he was being protective about his secret recipe. Then as we were walking off Mike was like "I could make better BBQ than him and sell it here!" Oh brother, I thought he just wanted to BBQ for us but now he wants to go into business and give this local guy some competition...how funny.  Next we decided to go thru the little Christmas in the park, it was little but it was nice. It took all of 10min to walk around the place but it was nice. We could have stayed another 15min to wait in line to take a picture with the Christmas themed sleigh but it really wasn't that cool and not worth the "que" so we just kept walking.  Lino enjoyed walking around and everyone in Cork talked about this little exhibit so we had to do it.  Now that we had finished all of our sight seeing for the day we headed back to the train station.  Its crazy because it was only around 4 something but it was already getting really dark.  So we knew it was going to be a crazy walk home because by the time we get off the train it was going to be past 5...and that's exactly how it was.  I was all worried and nervous and Mike didn't think any thing of it.  I was freaking out because we didn't have any reflector gear on or any lights other than our phone lights so I wanted us to hurry but Mike didn't think it was that big of a deal.  So we walked up the small little road to the house and we thought we wouldn't see very many drivers but we actually came across 4 just on that little road.  I had my phone light pointing behind us, in case a car was coming up from behind and Lino had Mike's phone light pointing in front of us so that we could see in front of us.  I'm telling you it was a little scary...I could barely see 1 foot in front of us even with the light.  Somehow we made it home safely but not without me annoying Mike to death about being nervous and about it being crazy for us to be on this little road in the pitch black!!!!  I guess there was not much we could have done at that point but I just wanted Mike to feel a little worried too but he didn't...oh well.  We survived and it wasn't the end of the world.  So we had a nice day out and we were all pooped at that point so we just lounged around the house for the rest of the day.

Sunday we relaxed around the house and did our normal grocery shopping.   Another week down and a couple more weeks until we are back in the states for the holiday's...I can't wait!!!!






Week of Dec 9

Monday we decided to go to Gymboree with Nicole so after we dropped Mike off we came home to finish breakfast then headed over to Go Safari.  Lino seems to be on the fence with Gymboree but he likes the idea of hanging out with Nicole and Senan so it usually works out.  He seemed to have a good time today so it worked out for us...and Shaun always enjoys the singing and music.  We usually end up staying all day when we go there but today Lino was actually ready to go so we packed up and was out of there before 1.  I didn't really have anything else planned for the day so we just went home and tried to find something to keep us busy.   We ended up just watching TV because I'm a horrible mom but at least Lino was happy.  Nicole and I had talked about doing a boxing class today but she had something else to do this evening and I was suppose to go to a Cuidu meeting so we decided to push that off until after the new year.  So since I knew I was going to be out this evening I made sure dinner was ready for us to eat as soon as Mike got home.  Even before I went to pick Mike up I reminded him about tonight and that he had promised to watch the boys so that I could go and he gave me the murp murp face via text but said he would do it.  But once he actually got off of work he was feeling so bad, he had been getting sicker the last few days and it seemed like he was going to be done with the cold by now but it was just hanging around.  So he was giving me a sad story about him still feeling bad and that he was tired and he didn't think it would be good for him to watch both boys tonight and I was getting so annoyed.  But I knew he was sick and tired so I couldn't be too mad.  So I helped him get Lino ready for bed and was about to get Shaun ready to go with me but he said he would keep him...made me day!  I knew he really wasn't up to it but he wanted me to be able to go to the meeting kid free for once so I was very happy that he stepped up to the plate.  It would be the first time that he would be at home with the boys by his self!!!!  I told him I wouldn't stay long but since this was my first meeting I really didn't know how long it was going to last.  So I raced out to get there and of course I ended up getting lost.  So instead of it taking 20min to get there it took me more like 30 or so...ugh.  It doesn't help that there are no street names and trying to find a new place in the dark is even worse...but eventually I found it.  I know I could have called to get more directions but I knew that I would find it myself...it just took a few extra mins.  But it was nice to be out without any of my boys...even the car ride was nice...so quite...AMAZING!  So my first committee meeting was fun, had lots of good food and good conversation.  I wasn't quick to join any groups but I really am excited about being apart of the team so once I get my feet a little wet I think I'll feel more comfortable joining some of the groups.  I did get put on the events committee which is cool because I like having parties so hopefully I can be of some use/help with the Cuidu events...guess we will see.  So the quick meeting actually lasted for like 3hrs and Mike was getting worried about me and even called me to see if I was OK...I thought he was calling to say come get Shaun but he wasn't.  But eventually it was time to go so I headed home and didn't get loss and my boys (Mike & Shaun) were happy to see me!  Shaun did good he said and even took a little nap after I had left so that gave Mike a little break at the beginning of his assignment.  I was glad to hear Mike wasn't going crazy....that means I can leave Shaun home with him more often ;-)



Tuesday was coffee morning and playground.  Wednesday & Thursday was school for Lino and a little clean up time for me.  Friday was lazy day...ah I love lazy Friday!!!  I did need to do a little shopping because we were planning to make Christmas cookies this weekend so I did that on Thursday & Friday but that was pretty easy.  The hardest part was trying to find 2 things on my list...Christmas cookie cut outs (like trees, snowman, candy cane stuff like that) and Crisco!!!  Thankfully my trusty friend Nicole knows all the things a new American would need to find in Ireland.  I searched high and low for some nice cookie cutters and only found crap ones at SuperValu.  I even went to the home store, aka Bed Bath and Beyond and they didn't have any Christmas ones.  I thought it would be pretty easy to find a bag or box of them at the store but it ended up being a serious treasure hunt...that I didn't win.  And asking for Crisco in the grocery store was a joke too...which I expected.  But anyway Nicole helped me out with both.  I actually saw her in the store on Friday when I was going to get the Crisco replacement and she offered to let me borrow her cookie cutters so that was a sweet deal!  So after I finished my shopping I went over to her house to get the cookie cutters then headed home.  I got all our stuff for baking and we were set for the weekend!

Saturday we got up had breakfast and skipped going for a walk because we had to get on the cooking before Mik'es work Christmas party. So that what we did...we made 3 different types of cookies on Saturday - Egg Nog Snicker Doodles, Almond Finish Cookies & Butter cookie Cutouts. I didn't have enough time to ice the Cutouts and make the last batch so we did that on Sunday. We actually had a good time making them. Lino helped a little but mostly he just wanted to "taste" all the ingredients. It's a Cutaia tradition to make cookies for Christmas so I'm glad we got to do it!!! After slaving over the 15 dozen cookies that we made we hurried up to clean up the kitchen really quick so that the place didn't look like a complete bomb exploded in it. I raced to get ready while Mike got the boys fed and then the sitter came so we knew we were running behind. So Mike got ready we have our few instructions and we raced out to the party. We were running a little later than Mike wanted but we actually made it in good time. The party was nice, really nice...almost weird like actually. It was more like a wedding reception than a Christmas party. There was a cocktail hour with free drinks and hors d'oeuvres, then followed by a sitdown four course dinner, they had a live band and even more free drinks during the first hour or so of dinner. It was a heck of a party we had a good time we even stayed until it was almost over which was close to 2 o'clock in the morning!!!  When we got home Clina said that the boys were very good so you're happy about that. Shaun even slept for about three hours while we were gone so she didn't have too much fussing out of him actually.  She said she didn't have very much fussing out of him at all so he was much improved since the last time she watched him. Lino was sleep and all we had to do was put Shaun down to bed and we crashed as well... what a busy but fun day. Sunday we tried to sleep in but the boys were up fairly early as expected so we just moseyed around the house for a while until we went shopping. Since I have finished up the cookies I gave Nicole a ring and told her we would drop by and drop off the cookie cutters so that she can have it for when her mother came to town on Monday. So we went to the grocery store to pick up a few things... I had decided on Saturday that we needed to make the Italian Christmas cookies because it's one of my favorites and everyone usually likes him so we need to get some ingredients for that. Since we were just going to go to the store and then back home we just bumped it and left in our path PJs have workout clothes even the boys were still in their PJs. We went shopping then we stop by Nicole's house to drop off the cookie cutters I just was going to drop them off but she insisted on us coming in. After fighting with her at the door for a few minutes and trying to letter know that the boys were not dressed for company we went in just to have a coffee...at least that's what I said. We ended up spending a couple of hours there and I felt so bad because the boys looked like hobos and Mike & I didn't look much better...thankfully we are friends so I know she wasn't judging me. It was a nice time anyway so I'm glad we gt to stop by. After our morning coffee and buscuit visit we headed back home to finish up on the cookie baking & decorating then to make dinner.  We had a good week but it was busy and I'm excited for Christmas. 

The cookies that we made. 

Egg Nog Snicker Doodles

 

Almond finish cookies...yum

Butter Cutout Cookies...finally decorated

Italian Chriatmas Cookies...my favorite recipe that my mother in law always makes me...so darn good!!!

 

Christmas recap

Week of Dec 16th

This week went by super fast. Basically we spent the week packing, cleaning and getting ready to go back to the states for Christmas. We dropped off cookies at the friends houses & my neighbor and Mike took the rest to work...they were gobbled in no time! My neighbor stopped by on Tue afternoon and I had the kitchen turned inside out with cooking and craft stuff...I was only a little embarrassed. She is so nice she didn't even make a face at my mess which was nice. So since my neighbors visit was so hectic I made plans to go over to her house on Wed to have a proper coffee and scone visit. So that was nice to have a chat with her & her husband on Wed and she even volunteered to take us to the airport which was nice. She also volunteered to water the plants for me and check on the house while we were gone so that was very sweet of them.  Then  I made things even more complicated by volunteering at the last minute to host a coffee morning on Thursday morning knowing that we would be leaving that afternoon. It really wasn't as bad as it sounds...it was actually a nice break before we left. So coffee at the house, raced to get Lino, raced to finish cleaning up and packing before I had to get Mike and got a nice surprise that he was going to be dropped off at the house by his plant manager. We had negotiated with our neighbor across the street to take us to the airport which was super handy. They just drove our car since we had all the seats in it already...plus we had a ton of stuff so our car fit all of it better. Anyway Mike got home we loaded the car and collected our neighbor and headed to the airport. Mike & I had planned to do a few things before we left like pick up the swing set but that didn't happen. We figured it might be safer for it to stay on the ground while we were gone anyway because you never know when an Irish wind is going to come thru and blow it down again. And I told Mike to take the canopy off because I thought that is what was catching the wind but we didn't do that either. We will see what happens to it while we are gone. So we got to the airport in plenty if time and ended up having a decent 2 flights. Although the flight from London to NY was brutally long, 9hrs for some reason...must have had a strong head wind. I couldn't believe it took that long and nobody really slept much which was ok because we needed to sleep once we got to NY.  

Lino's version of trying to sleep on the plane. 

Got to NY and the plan was to stay there for Christmas then head to KC on the 26th to spend a week with my family and bring in the New Years there. But Mikes gma has been battling pancreatic cancer for the past 4 mo and we knew she didn't have much time left. We knew she was just waiting to see Mike & the boys and hopefully have one last Christmas with the family but sadly she ended her battle on Christmas Eve. It was very sad but also a relief because she didn't want to be around like that. I'm glad we all got to see her and spend time together before she went. She is definitely more happy and healthier so we can't be too sad. It was kind of crazy because it hit me at the wake that she was gone...it's crazy how that happens. The other crazy thing is that for Chtiatmas Eve we usually go to the city for dinner then to see the tree. We weren't going to go because of Nan but I think she wanted us to go so we decided to go anyway. I think the way Mikes family deals with death is actually a good way. You could tell everyone was sad but we knew it was coming and we wanted her to be at peace so there was no reason to be an emotional ball for the holiday season so we celebrated instead of sulking. Anyway we were able to keep our tradition which was nice and Shaun enjoyed his dinner at Carmine's. We didn't make it to the tree because we took the train down to the city and it was going to be a bit ofa treck to walk there  plus the boys were getting tired so it was time to head back home. 

Lino & the Grandparents...so cute!

Shaun's first Christmas!!!

The boys had a great Christmas of course...Nini & PopPop spoiled them rotten as always. Lino got a cool train set that he was dying to open & set up. It was cool to watch them put it together. Mike and PopPop use to put the trains together for Christmas when Mike was smaller so now it will be Lino & Mike...I love the family tradition. 

A little Christmas celebration!

We had a quiet Christmas dinner but it was like a party at dessert time. It was nice...I actually really love spending Christmas with this crazy family...my family!!!!

So we ended up staying until Sunday so that we could attend the funeral. Nan was buried with her husband which was nice and Mikes parents have a spot right underneath them...it's actually a good idea to have that kind of stuff already taken care of so that the kids don't have to try and decide what their parents wanted.   Anyway we had to change flights so that we could stay for the funeral and Mike was able to get our flights changed for only £50 each ticket which is about $300 which is actually not bad at all...a blessing actually because when we called the airline they were going to charge us $800 each ticket which is crazy. Mike had used this travel site to book the tickets and it actually worked out for us...God always has a plan. So we got to KC on Sunday and basically relaxed. Monday Lino had his first dentist appt.  Mike thought it was a little ridiculous to send him to the dentist already but he has what looks like a cavity and it's been there for a while so I thought it was time to see the dentist. Lino was kind of excited because he saw Morgan go to the dentist when we were here in Oct so that helped a lot. The dentist office was pretty cool, had a play area in the waiting room, 2 Wii sets, and a TV. Then inside the room there was a TV on the ceiling so that the kids have something to keep them distracted while they do the cleaning...very creative...I don't think they had places like this when I was a kid. 

This is the hygienist explaining all the tools...Lino wasn't really interested he just wanted to watch the movie. 

He got bubble gum flavored tooth paste and cool shades to wear while he watched his movie...oh and got his teeth cleaned. 

So the dentist said he had an enamel defect which probably was there almost as long as that tooth. She said it was normal and nothing to do with his teeth hygiene, his teeth were in good shape but it looked like the defect may be starting to get a cavity so she wanted to fill it. We were able to make an appt for later in the day so that was nice.  So I went to get my hair done while TT took Lino back to the house. 

Mike decided to come back with us for the filling...he was to tired in the morning to come for the regular visit.  He was excited about the video games...as you can see. I think this is what Mikes been looking forward to every since we had Lino...a video game buddy! One day daddy...one day soon!

They actually gave Lino a little laughing gas for the procedure but he is more worried about the TV. 

Very cool!

So Lino is all set now and he didn't even complain about any of it which was nice. 

New Year's Eve has become my family's Christmas.  Everyone is at TT's house and we open all the gifts the hang out for the New Year.  This year Miss J wasn't there so that was the only person missing, it was kind of sad because she's usually around...she will be here tomorrow so I guess I can't complain. There were about a million presents this year as always and all the grand kids had a good time.  I thought Lino would be able to stay up for the new year but he was so cranky that I put him to bed. Then Shaun got super fussy so I ended up putting him down and basically missed the New Years kisses because I was fighting him. Oh the joys of motherhood. The good thing is that I didn't have anyone to deal with for a while so I was able to hang out and enjoy the family. As always there was a little singing & dancing on the PS2 which was fun. Mike was completely wasted but still didn't do too bad. He loves to dance :-)

We actually got up and went to have brunch at the casino for New Year's Day which was very nice. There are so many of us that we had to take 4 cars to fit everyone in.  We had a good brunch and I was enjoying myself...so much so that I went back to get more food and everyone had packed up to leave. I felt bad but I wanted my chicken & waffle so I ate quickly so that we could Go. I was the joke of the day after that...but I was ok with that. The rest of the day we just relaxed at the house...and recovered from the parting last night.  It actually snowed a bunch on New Year's Day so when I had to get out to take Shaun to the dr office on Thursday it was a big pain in my butt. Pierre had shoveled the driveway and TT got the car all warmed up so that was helpful. Mike even came with me so that was nice. Shaun got his 9mo check up and one shot. He actually didn't cry for the shot either, just a little whimper but that was it. Very impressive. Later that day Mike and I had a dentist appt too. We went to the same place TT & Morgan go but we didn't have the best experience. First our appt time was the same but the took us back one at a time. So Mile went first and I ended up stirring in the waiting room for about an hr. I was in there sleeping because I didn't have anything to do and I didn't know I was going to have to wait. TT & Morgan came in a hour after we got there and they went right back...I was pissed. Finally Mike was done then it was my turn. They did a good job and the people were really nice but when we left we were talking about all the stuff they wanted to do to our teeth.  They have this fancy equipment that like looks for microscopic pores in your teeth and they fill them so that you don't get a cavity. Apparently I need a few "explored" because my readings were high. But the dentist was like, "I can't say I see a cavity but if your reading is above 30 I believe there is something forming". What the fuck kind of crazy shit is that!!!!!  I was so not going to get fillings because something might become a cavity in 5yrs. In 5yrs when you can finally see that it's a cavity then you can fill it. At my dentist in TX, that I went to regularly for the last 7yrs, he gave me one pre-filling because I had some hole in my tooth that he could see. He could see it, it was small and he told me it wasn't a cavity but since he could see it he knew that food would get into it and sooner than later it would be a cavity. That I can buy, microscopic holes I can't buy.  Then Mike was telling me that he wanted to replace one of his fillings too. He's had these fillings for over 15yrs I guess but apparently one of them looks like "spotty workmanship" so it needs to be fixed. Now Mike has also been going to the dentist in TX with me and he has never said anything to him about his filling. So I just can't believe that all of the sudden we have all these issues.  I guess some of it could be that this new guy is a cosmetic dentist but to me it sounds like a lot of unnecessary procedures. So we will be back but we won't be gettig these recommended procedures done. Sometimes I really dot like change, but I have to get use to it.  So after dentist we were going to go exchange the boots Mike got me for Christmas but decided to save that for Friday so instead Mike took me to a sushi restaurant and we had a nice little happy our break...just the two of us!!! It was a really cool place and the sushi was amazing, and a little pricy but totally worth it. We had a few drinks, a lot of laughs & kisses and just enjoyed the small break from our normal reality. We would have stayed longer but the bill was racking up quickly so we had to get out of there before we did too much damage. It was great to spend that time with the hubby...I love him so much. Friday we raced around trying to pack, exchange shoes, get Chipotle and get to the airport on time. We made it and we thought our flight might be canceled because NY got a bunch of snow on Thu night but it wasn't...NY here we come. 

 

It was a quick trip to KC now back to NY for a few days before heading back to Ireland. We ended up going to a bday party for one of Mikes cousins kids....it was kind of a long drive but not too bad but since we had just got in that night Lino was super pooped so he took a nice nap In the car. And that jacket...well Mike had to run out to get it because I was super smart and forgot to get his jacket out of TTs closet when we left. I got all the other coats but somehow forogot his.  So now we are stuck with this bright orange loud batman jacket. Now I do love the color but I'm not sure it's exactly what I would want if I were Lino. Oh well it makes for a good pick and a good story. 

 It was a nice party and it was good to see the cousins, we don't get to see them very often. After that we went to see my good friend from work then we had dinner with another one of my old work buddies. We ended up spending the whole day out which wasn't the plan but it ended up being nice anyway. There was a lot of snow out there because it had snowed quite a bit when we got to town but it wasn't too bad thankfully.  The last day in NY we spent with the family and Nini made lasagna which was amazing...so good!!!!!  The boys also got some last minute Nini game time in before we left...she loves her boys and they love her too. So cute. 

It was a bitter sweet holiday for us but all in all it was a good one. 

The flights back home were brutal. Lino didn't sleep more than 3hrs which isn't good and he was cranky when we got to Ireland. We knew he would fall asleep in the car so we just planned to let him sleep in the car for a while. Our neighbor was waiting on us at the airport, so nice. So we got to catch up with Him on the drive back home.  As expected, Lino passed out in the car after about 30sec of us driving so he slept for about 3.5hrs and I finally decided to wake him up. If he would have slept any longer he wouldn't sleep at night. So I knew it was going to be a battle and it was...talk about fussy...whooooo that kid was fussy. And Shaun didn't sleep much so that means I didn't sleep much either. Oh well, it's all part of the traveling experience right?  Our landlord had actually picked up our swing set which was really nice and took the canopy off but the damage was already done. The poor canopy is all ripped and I don't think we will be able to fix it, it's going to have to be replaced but with the winds here I'm not sure if we really want to replace it. Well we we save that debate for another time and we will have to check out the stability of the swing set later too...I'm not sure about it but we will see. 

Here's to a Happy New Year for the Cutaia family and everyone else of course too :-)

Thanksgiving!!!!!

This week is all about Thanksgiving. The beginning of the week was prep for Thanksgiving and coffee morning...so excited for the week. 

So let's skip past Mon-Wed because nothing special happened. Wednesday night after the boys went to bed I worked on prepping my batters for tomorrow's coffee morning. I did have to make cheesecake that night because it needed some time to set and chill before I served it. I was going to make the chocolate chip cookies that night as well but Lino was being a pain so I just decided to do them on Thursday. After everything was prepped we were able to hang out for just a little while before was time for bed.  While in bed I realized I forgot to get more butter so I knew I had to get up a little bit earlier to make sure I had time to go to the store to get butter and get back and finish baking before we left. So Thursday morning when my alarm clock went off Mike decides to tell me that he actually had the day off. I was really excited but then I was kind of upset that he didn't tell me the day before but it was nice to know that he was going to be able to stay with us for Thanksgiving day. So I got up ran to the store to get the butter finished my cake batters and got those into the oven before all the boys got up. When might that downstairs and realized I have went to the store he was surprised that I was able to get everything done and go to the store before they got up... it's a rarity for me to be so efficient. He actually thought that I was going to be able to stay in the bed since he was home and he was going to be able to help me but I just wanted to get everything done so I didn't have to rush to be late. So once you got downstairs he help me make the chocolate chip cookies and then we decided what we were going to do for the rest of the day. Mike was going to go and take Lino with him to the farmers market so that they could pick up the turkey for our Saturday Thanksgiving dinner and I was going to stay with Shaun for the coffee morning. Although Mike had the day off he really had to go back into work for a few hours to attend a couple of meetings so the plan was after he got back from the farmers market he was just going to take the car to go to work that way I didn't have to leave to go get him. Plus we let Lino stay home from school today too that way neither one of us had to go and drop him off or pick him up so it worked out. So Mike left and I was finishing up my prep for the coffee morning I was so nervous and excited all at the same time. I have no idea why I was so nervous it's such a relaxed thing... there's no reason to be stressed about it but I was. So my first guest arrived and I still have a couple things left to do so that really stressed me out but she was pretty nice and wasn't bothered that I was still prepping. After that it was all downhill ... the doorbell kept ringing every 5 or 10 minutes and at the end I had a nice crowd of moms and kids.  My neughbor even surprised me with a visit to bring us a homemade pumpkin pie!!!!  I was so shocked, she wanted to give us something for our Thanksgiving since we weren't able to be home for it. I couldn't believe it, she is so sweet...we are super lucky to have such a nice neighbor. So everyone liked the cakes that I made too so that made me feel good... I was worried about the coffee cake that I made because it was the first time I have ever made that recipe. It turned out pretty good but it was really rich.  I usually like to try recipe out first before I presented to a big crowd but this when I didn't have time to try thankfully it worked out. The cookies that Mike helped me to make turned out okay too...they were little flat and Mike was worried about that but the recipe picture shows flat cookies as well so I'm thinking that's what they're supposed to look like. Everyone really like the cheesecake and that's Mike's favorite as well so I figured it  it would be a big hit and it was. All in all it was a really nice morning Nicole was there as well so was nice to have someone who I consider a friend there to make sure I wasn't going crazy. After everyone left a little bit later Mike made it back home and we just hung out for the rest of the afternoon it was a nice Thanksgiving day. Before we went to bed made our phone calls to all our family back home to wish them happy Thanksgiving as well. We got to FaceTime with most of our family as well...it's nice to be able to see them even though we aren't there. For some reason I had a strong desire to see my cousin and I tried to FaceTime her but no response so I have to give her crap on Facebook to make sure she knew I was thinking about her... hopefully I'll be able to catch up with her on Friday.  Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays it always helps me to remember what I'm so thankful for this is something I posted on Facebook that I always want to remember because it truly sums up my feelings for today and everyday:

Today I am thankful for my all powerful God, my amazing husband, my crazy kids, my wonderful family and my irreplaceable friends. My God has got me thru more than I could imagine & given me more than I deserve, my husband completes me (good & bad), my kids make me a better person, my family is like no other and my friends are always there with a helping hand. No words can express how thankful I am for my life!

Friday was my chill day and even tho I should have been preping and cleaning for the party I didn't. So I sat and watched my TV shows then I did decide to move the couches around but that was about all I did.  Once I picked up Lino we decided to watch a little more TV  but before I could turn the TV on Lino peed his pants. He actually has been peeing his pants the last 3 days after we pick up Mike from work. Very frustrating and I don't get it...I'm hoping he's just exhausted from school and the day and that's why...even tho that's not a good reason either it's better than he just doesn't want to go pee. Which is more than likely the real reason.  Anyway, no TV for Lino so we found some other things to do to pass the time. Mike and I had been trying to decide if we were going to make mac & cheese or not as we kind of decided that we weren't because there wasn't a good recipe substitution for velveta so we didn't want to put out a crappy mac & cheese dish. But I just couldn't see Thanksgiving without mac & cheese so I looked online for a last min recipe and found one that looked fairly easy and produced a creamy mac & cheese similar to velveta so I had to try it. I didn't want to make a massive batch so I made 2 itty bitty batches and got them ready to take with me to get Mike. If he approved of them or at least one if them then we would be set. So we picked Mike up and he tried my test creations and actually thought they were ok...I was shocked. So we found a recipe that was going to work after all...Thabksgiving is saved!!!!  Thankfully we had planned to go shopping for the last few things we needed for Saturdays dinner after we picked him up from work so that's where we went.  We couldn't find the cheese we needed for the mac & cheese so Mike will have to I get it on Sat otherwise we got our things and headed home to start working on the 18lb turkey. We got it all salted and in its brine for an overnight soak...fingers crossed I don't have a dry turkey.  We also had to get the sweet potatoes into the water to boil so we could make the sweet potato pie. While all that was going we had dinner and Shaun Shaun tore up his dinner. Whenever we have chilli I usually have to strip him down to his diaper so that his clothes don't get all stained from the sauce. Needless to say he enjoyed himself and enjoyed his dinner

Then bath for the boys while I cleaned up the kitchen. I was done sooner than I expected so I started working on the sweet potatoes, a job normally reserved for Mike but I figured I would help him out but when he saw that I was already straining the potatoes he was not happy. I was so confused, that's the hardest part of the job and I was doing it for hi but he wasn't happy...I think it was because he wanted to be apart of the process but who knows so I stopped what I was doing so that he could finish up. We got the pies done and into the oven to bake while we watched our TV shows...hopefully they will be ok for the dinner. 

So it's Thanksgiving dinner day and I should be getting up early to cook but for some reason I feel like I don't need to since we are not cooking everything ourself.  Mike was still in bed so I got thugs started before the gang got downstairs. I got the bird in the oven and said a little prayer that it wouldn't be dry. Then started breakfast...had to have breakfast since dinner was later than normal then clean up. I was getting a little stressed because I wanted to clean some stuff but the boys were all over me so I told Mike to take the boys for a walk. This way he could get some excercise and I could focus on a few things without being distracted by my men :-). I thought I would get a lot more done while they were gone but I really didn't. Just enough cleaning was done to say I cleaned so we moved to taking down stuff from the attic and putting it out. We had a few other things to do before it was time for someone to go get the last minute items we needed. Mike could see that I was obsessed with cleaning and so he took the boys again so I could finish up. I was hoping to be done with everything before he got home and I basically was and even got a shower in. But I didn't prep the mac & cheese and I still needed to make the gravy and I had only just put the rolls in the oven to rise so I really still had a lot to do. So I started on the gravy but had to call on some support from my dad because I really suck at making gravy. I wasn't sure how much we were going to need either so I was nervous about making a big batch and it coming out lumpy or floury so he walked me thru it on FaceTime until Nicole got there...then I knew I was behind!!!  So I tried to rush but with kids and trying to find places to put everything I didn't get I do any more prep so that meant it was going to be a late start for sure. Before I know it Martha was here and another guest and I had only just put the rolls in to rise the 2nd time and still didn't start on the mac & cheese. For some reason I thought the mac & cheese would be super quick so I wasn't stressing too much about if but once 1/2 the guest were here ad I didn't have the mac & cheese done I was panicking. So I had everyone helping me out, doing this and that, cleaning, cooking, watching my kids, moving furniture whatever...everything!!!  And poor Nicole was in charge of almost everything...I kind of left her hanging...we were suppose to do this together but she was ultimately in charge of everything. I just provided the house and a few dishes but it all worked out. It was kind of nice anyway, this is what we would have been doing if we were having Thanksgiving with family so it almost felt like family...it was nice. So finally I got I makeig the mac & cheese but had to put Regina in charge of that and she did an amazing job. The rolls got in at some point and everything was done but some of the food was cold by this point...I guess it's to be expected since we were about 1.5hrs late!!!!  The only thing that kind of saved me was that Michelle got there at 5 because her Facebook invite said 5 not 4. That was a good and bad thing because she was fussing at me about my time being wrong and I was happy that she was late because I used her as an excuse for being so behind...hahaha. Anyway it all worked out and we got food reheated in our itty bitty microwave and we had an amazing feast!!! Everything was so freakig good and there was so much stuff it was just amazing...I felt so blessed and so happy we did it. I would have survived missing Thanksgiving but it really made me happy that I didn't have to and that we got to spend it with some cool newly acquired friends.  

 

So we stuffed ourselfs, talked, ate more, more chatting and story telling then coffee and cakes. I think everyone had a great time and I know everyone stuffed themselves so that means it was a success. And even tho I tried to keep people from cleaning everyone helped with the clean up so it was really nice. I felt bad because they were cleaning my house but I was also happy to have the help and I guess they didn't seem to mind so I shouldn't make too much of a fuss out of it. I just feel so blessed to have these good friends and we have only been in Ireland for a few months.  I think we ended up having 11 adults and 9 kids...not including us so it was a full house. I can't wait until next year!!!

Once everyone left and Nicole put me to shame by cleaning some more we just passed out on the couch and watched a movie. My feet were swollen and Mike was pooped so we both agreed the cleaning could wait until tomorrow. We had a load of dishes going in the dish washer and no one wanted to wash any more dishes so that was that...until tomorrow. 

Sunday was clean up & party day. I thought I was going to be able to go over to Martha's for a coffee but after we got going I remembered we had 2 Christmas parties to go to so it was going to be a busy day. So we got thugs straighten up around the house, took showers and headed out to the Cuidu Christmas party. Thankfully it was close because we couldn't stay long because we were suppose to go to Mikes kids Christmas party later. So we said hello to everyone and Lino ran around crazy and was amazed with Santa then we left. We got to the Pepsi kids party and some of the people that were leaving were warning us that it was crazy in there. We missed the first hour that was just for the infants since we were at the other party so this portion was for the bigger kids. And it was crazy...bouncy castles, lots and lots of candy, sodas, chips (or crisp if your Irish) and toys...so many toys it was unbelievable. You play a game and u get a toy, u spin a wheel and u get a toy or candy or both...nuts!!! So needless to say Lino had a good time and I got a chance to meet some of daddy's work people. The sad part is that I met so many people I really couldn't keep the faces and names straight... It will take a couple more introductions for me to put all the pieces together. But overall it was a really nice evening and will have lots of fun and it was nice just to get out and do something different. We even got to take a family picture with Santa Claus which is our first picture with Santa Claus ever so this was definitely one for the memory books. By the time we were leaving there it was late and we're both tired and didn't know what wanted for dinner so we decided to just try some Chinese food near Glnmire. I thought there was a place near the library that we could go to and try out but when we checked on the Internet we couldn't find it so we went to the next best place. It got good reviews on the website so we went for it.  It was funny because when I called to place the order the lady acted like she couldn't understand me or I was either ordering something she had never heard of. I was looking at the menu online so maybe it wasn't right but anyway we finally got it ordered and headed out there. By the time we got to pick up the Chinese food Lino was passed out in the car so we hurried home to see if he would wake up and eat something before bed. The food turned out to be pretty good so it was a good thing that we didn't go to the other place. We had our dinner got the boys cleaned up and put into the bed. Once the boys are in the bed we watched a little TV, had a glass of wine, relaxed and headed to bed ourselves...it was a long busy weekend but lots of fun.