Over the Weekend

It was a pretty busy weekend. After getting caught up on the week's laundry, I spent Friday night wrapping Christmas presents while Tom worked on some music he was converting to "tab" (you'll have to ask him what exactly that means). I'm only halfway done with wrapping... ugh. Every year I say I'm going to do more gift cards... why haven't I done this yet?

On Saturday morning I got ready for our weekend visitors - Mandy, Austin & Bailey would be coming to stay and Josh & Jess would be coming for the day for our "Game Night". We get together every 2-3 months to have a themed dinner and play games. We made homemade pizzas (including dessert pizzas) and played Yahtzee! (a first for game night), Dirty Minds (actually a really boring game) and some card games like Scat! and Pass the Trash. We also ventured into the hot tub but I pushed a wrong button earlier in the day that turned the heat off so the temperature had dropped a little too low to be comfortable. Oh well... maybe next time.

On Sunday we went to Cracker Barrel for breakfast. Our 1 star waitress was terrible but the food was good. And then we ventured to Towson for more Christmas shopping. The boys took Bailey - I'm sure they looked like the perfect little couple strolling a baby through the mall - and Mandy and I did some shopping but then treated ourselves to mani's and pedi's. A great idea after walking for so many hours.

The rest of the evening was spent relaxing (that is, after a half hour of trying to find where Bailey hid Austin's keys) and playing more Yahtzee! It was a really fun weekend. The only problem is that now I have this song stuck in my head and I keep singing it while Tom looks at me like I'm crazy...

"I am going on a trip... in my favorite rocket ship...
Flying through the air... Little Einsteins!"

Thanks Bailey Boo! Click Here to Read More..

Whoosh whoosh whoosh

We had an appointment today for our 12-week checkup and were able to hear the heartbeat. The doctor said it sounded good - the rate was 150... which everyone tells me indicates "girl" but who knows for sure. I've been starting to feel a lot better... fewer runs to the bathroom, less and less nausea.

This is good because I am so ready for Thanksgiving! Turkey day is my favorite holiday... what other holiday are there no expectations except to eat and be lazy?! I'm also glad I'm feeling better because I plan on fighting those crowds on Friday. I haven't missed Black Friday shopping since I was 18 and I don't plan on missing this year either! Besides, this year it is actually convenient... when I get up at 3 a.m. for my normal refrigerator run and bathroom break, I'll just throw on some clothes and hit the door!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Michelle Click Here to Read More..

Weekly Update

This is sourced from http://www.babycenter.com/.

The baby is currently about 1 1/2 inches long (the size of a fig). She is supposed to be almost fully formed but I won't know until my next ultrasound. She is also supposed to be kicking and stretching and hiccupping but I can't really feel that yet... maybe by Christmas.

As for me... well, not much has changed. The nausea has gone down just a little bit but there are still episodes of running to the bathroom (ex: Tom ordered pizza for his dinner last night and it had bacon on it... as soon as it came through the door my stomach turned and off I ran). It seems that with the nausea going down, the headaches have increased. I need to talk to my doctor about it next week b/c I'm getting 2-3 a week and I feel like I have to take a lot of Tylenol to get any effect.

I had a fun little shopping trip with Tom's mom on Saturday... my first trip to "Destination Maternity". I got several tops that will fit both now and hopefully through a good bit of the pregnancy. Thank god they actually have normal clothes and I don't have to wear a muu-muu or worse yet, something that looks like it's made for a 3 yr old - ribbons, bows, ruffles - yuck! I am torn though whether the highlight of the trip was the shopping or the most fabulous pretzel I have ever eaten from Auntie Anne's... It's a toss-up!!

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Last Weekend...

Last weekend was something of an "eye-opener" for Tom and me.

On Saturday we went to the birthday party of Tom's goddaughter, Jordyn, who turned 3. As soon as we walked in, we realized we forgot the one accessory that every other parent brought... a screaming child with a sugar high. There were about a dozen or so kids between the ages of 1 to 5... this was the same number as the adults and yet we felt very outnumbered. Jordyn was adorable and very well-behaved considering the surroundings. One little piece of information we are going to store away for the day we have a dozen kids running in the backyard - the moon bounce is a HUGE attention getter and keeper. Those kids would have stayed in there all day if they could have. Despite the mayheim, we want to wish little Jordy a very happy birthday!!! We love you sweetie!!

On Sunday we went to another birthday party. This one for our goddaughter and niece, Bailey, who turned 1. A much different scene as there were only two other children (my nieces Shawna & Elizabeth) and a 5-month old friend who were there with the 25 adults to help Bailey celebrate. My sister and brother-in-law (Mandy & Austin) had prepared a really neat picture and video slideshow that we watched while we ate. It was crazy to realize how much Bailey had grown and matured (weird description for a baby - but it's true) in just one short year. Bailey had no idea what to do with her little cake so she just stared at the icing on her hands like it was really icky. Give her a few years and she will appreciate the value of cake & ice cream!! Bailey's favorite gifts were a talking Elmo that made her laugh, books - she absolutely loves books, and her baby Einstein videos that she immediately recognized the music and got up to clap and dance. Bailey is such a doll. I got to spend time playing with her and her new toys while Mandy cleaned up the party - what a treat! We love you little munchkin!!

We are counting down the weeks until we have our own little one to introduce to "her" cousins and friends... (FYI: I'll probably switch between him and her until we actually know the sex). But until then, we'll just continue keeping notes - which will inevitably be thrown out the window once we actually have a child. And I will continue in my current state of "Prego Hangover" - nauseus, headachey & moody, exhausted & throwing up every day. Good times! Click Here to Read More..

Big News!

Tom and I are very happy to announce that our family is expanding!

Yes, my waistline is very quickly expanding due to being pregnant and anxiously awaiting the arrival of a baby! I am due June 8th, 2009.

Right now the baby is about an inch long and the size of a grape. We've already had our first doctor's appointment, saw the heartbeat and were relieved to find that everything looks normal. Our next appointment is the week of Thanksgiving. We should be finding out the sex (if the baby cooperates at the first shot) the week of Christmas.

So far, I've been doing okay - not the best. A lot of nausea and very exhausted. The so-called "morning sickness" is basically all day long and makes it pretty difficult to concentrate at work. I'm hopeful that this clears up in the next couple of weeks though.

We'll keep you posted!

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Happy Anniversary!

Today we celebrate our first anniversary! I love you babe!

This is one of my favorite "silly" pictures from our rehearsal dinner.

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Joe Satriani - Ram's Head Live October 22, 2008

Last night, as a birthday present, Michelle took me to see her favorite guitar player - Joe Satriani.



Here's the setlist

I Just Want to Rock
Overdriver (I think)
Satch Boogie
Ice Nine
Flying in Blue Dream
Ghosts
Revelation
Super Collossal
One Big Rush
Cool #9
(Not sure)
Stu's bass solo
Andalusia
Always With Me, Always With You
Surfing With The Alien
Crowd Chant
Summer Song
(encore - With Leslie West)

Birthday Blues/Stormy Monday
Goin' Down

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Pug Tongue

Lenny is sleepy - as usual!

Lenny shows off his big pug tongue! Give me a kiss!

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St. Lucia

A fabulous vacation! Beautiful water, warm, great food, lots of fun, very relaxing... I savored the sand on my feet up until the very last moment before we had to head off to the airport.

A tasty beverage on the beach at the Sandals Grande.

Fresh steamed rock lobster at the "Jump Up" street party.

Our perfect stretch of beach at the Sandals Regency... soft sand & crystal clear 80 degree water.

On a catamaran tour to the Piton volcanic mountain.

Visiting the waterfall at the Botanical Gardens.

Riding the zip lines through the rain forest.

A beautiful sunset before dinner.

It seems impossible to have such an incredible week and then have to come home to rainy cold weather. I'll be counting down the months until next summer and my next opportunity to lay on a beach with a cold beverage and a good book.

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Hellish Rock 07/08 Helloween - September 23, 2008 - Ram's Head Live!

...

GAMMA RAY

Intro: Welcome

01. Into The Storm

02. Heaven Can Wait

03. New World Order

04. Fight

05. Empress

06. Valley Of The Kings

07. Rebellion In Dreamland

08. Heavy Metal Universe

09. Ride The Sky

10. Somewhere Out In Space

--------------------------------------

11. Send Me A Sign

HELLOWEEN

Intro: Walls Of Jericho / Crack The Riddle

01. Halloween

02. Sole Survivor

03. March Of Time

04. As Long As I Fall

05. A Tale That Wasn't Right

06. Drum Solo

07. Mr. Torture

08. Eagle Fly Free

09. If I Could Fly

10. Paint A New World

11. Dr. Stein

----------------------------------------

12. Medley:

- I Can

- Where The Rain Grows

- Perfect Gentleman

- Power

- Keeper Of The Seven Keys

----------------------------------------

13. Future World ( w/ Gamma Ray )

14. I Want Out ( w/ Gamma Ray )

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Lenny's Surgery

The surgery was successful... but scary...


Lenny had to go to the vet for surgery today. Many of you know that some of his nicknames are "Mr. SnaggleTooth" and "Mr. StinkyBreath". Well, at his last vet visit a few weeks ago, the decision was finally made that he definitely needed some dental work. To what extent, we weren't sure b/c Lenny hates having his mouth touched and the only way to survey the damage would be to put him under general anesthesia. In addition, Lenny developed a lump of fatty tissue on his underbelly about 2 months ago and we elected to have it removed (even though the vet thought it was fine) since he would already be asleep and we didn't want to put him through a second surgery a year from now.


So after tons of snuggling and dozens of hugs and kisses and having Mommy sing him his favorite song ("Beautiful Boy" by John Lennon), he marched to the vet's office in true "General" fashion. He was out for several hours, had 14 teeth pulled, the rest were sandblasted, the lump was removed, a mole at his ear and the mole on his upper lip were removed. He is currently recovering and most likely enjoying the painkillers. I'm sure he'll be back on his feet soon enough - scanning the perimeter of the yard, barking at anyone that passes by the front window of the house, and humping the life out of his stuffed doggie.

He will remain Mr. Snaggletooth (with the few teeth he has left) but hopefully no more Mr. StinkyBreath.

So my words of wisdom for all you dog owners out there... start brushing those teeth early! Get them used to you sticking your hands in their mouth and touching their teeth! If it's part of their routine, it is sooo much easier... the same with cleaning those ears and clipping the nails.

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Pugs - Zoey and Lenny

I can't get enough of these guys! They don't care about anything except giving love, getting food and sleeping... What a life!

I dare you to try to get me out of this bed!

Peek-a-boo!

Mommy & Daddy already got out of bed but it's still sleepy time! So glad we have each other to lean on!




Taking a nap with Daddy... Zoey has her little pink pig and Lenny has his doggy. How cute!!

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Last Big Party of Summer 2008

This past weekend was Labor Day Weekend and we hosted our 3rd Annual Labor Day Party. There were close to 30 adults and 6 kids. Lots to eat and drink and plenty of activities. A good time was had by all and a few lessons learned as well...

1. Need to establish "House Rules" for beer pong. Lots of confusion here... still not sure what the issue is but apparently some are more competitive than others... Isn't the object of the game to just have a backdrop for drinking?

2. Need to enforce age limit on Slip 'N Slide. Although this can be entertaining for people of all ages (when used properly), the object of the slip 'n slide was for the little ones who are too small to be in the pool with the big kids but still have fun getting wet... when not enforced it is (1) too dangerous for bigger kids and (2) I'll be nursing my grass back to health till next spring. ugh!

3. Obtain extra gladware to distribute leftovers... If I see another baked bean or macaroni, I might just go into convulsions. And we all know that I didn't need half a 7-up cake to finish off myself... a score for the tastebuds but negative score for the thighs. (No, I didn't actually finish it all off... just a piece... okay, two pieces.)

4. CAMERA?! Didn't realize until much too late that I never got the camera out... thus no pictures in the post or to add to snapfish, facebook, myspace, etc. (although... this means one less thing to do!)

Well, that's a summary of some of the lessons that we'll have to incorporate into next summer's parties. For this year, the pool will only be open a few more weeks... and the Tiki Bar will close shortly after... and then the holidays will be here. How depressing! Click Here to Read More..

The Concert List

I've been to a few shows over the years. Not as many as I'd have liked, but a few. I thought it'd be interesting to see the list all in one place... So, here it is...

No.	Date	Headliner	Opener	Venue	City
1	07/28/89	Metallica	the Cult	Capital Center	Landover MD
2	03/19/91	Jane's Addiction	Red Cross	Smith Center, GW University	Washington DC
3	06/20/91	Gun's n Roses	Skid Row	Capital Center	Landover MD
4	11/07/91	Queensryche	No opener	Baltimore Arena	Baltimore MD
5	04/01/92	Metallica	No opener	Capital Center	Landover MD
6	04/02/92	Metallica	No opener	Capital Center	Landover MD
7	07/17/92	Gun's n Roses / Metallica	Faith No More	RFK Stadium	Washington DC
8	10/18/92	Kiss	Faster Pussycat	Capital Center	Landover MD
9	01/19/93	Megadeth	Stone Temple Pilots	Towson Center, TSU	Towson MD
10	07/17/93	Van Halen	Vince Neil	Merriweather Post Pavilion	Columbia MD
11	11/05/93	Vince Neil	???	Hammerjacks	Baltimore MD
12	02/28/94	Yngwie Malmsteen	???	Hammerjacks	Baltimore MD
13	08/14/94	Metallica	Suicidal Tendencies	Merriweather Post Pavilion	Columbia MD
14	01/26/95	Megadeth	Corrosion of Conformity	Michael's Eighth Avenue	Baltimore MD
15	06/17/95	Boston	???	Merriweather Post Pavilion	Columbia MD
16	10/06/96	Kiss	???	US Air Arena (Cap Center)	Landover MD
17	04/01/97	Kiss	???	Baltimore Arena	Baltimore MD
18	04/08/97	Metallica	???	US Air Arena (Cap Center)	Landover MD
19	07/22/97	Boston	No opener	Merriweather Post Pavilion	Columbia MD
20	11/09/97	Ratt	???	Xhale	Frederick MD
21	03/25/98	Yngwie Malmsteen	???	Daytona's	Baltimore MD
22	08/22/98	Jimmy Buffett	???	Merriweather Post Pavilion	Columbia MD
23	03/11/99	Better Than Ezra	???	Bohager's	Baltimore MD
24	05/22/99	Dave Matthews Band	Santana / the Roots	Veterans Stadium	Philadelphia PA
25	07/17/99	Lynyrd Synyrd	The Marshall Tucker Band / Great Train Robbery	Aberdeen Proving Ground	Baltimore MD
26	08/10/99	Rollins Band	???	Nation	Washington DC
27	09/10/99	R.E.M.	???	Merriweather Post Pavilion	Columbia MD
28	03/02/00	Agent Orange	No opener	Fletcher's	Baltimore MD
29	07/01/00	Kiss	???	Nissan Pavilion	Bristow VA
30	07/04/00	Metallica	Korn / Kid Rock	PSINET Stadium	Baltimore MD
31	07/15/00	Dave Matthews Band	Ben Harper / Ozomatli	Veterans Stadium	Philadelphia PA
32	06/09/01	Dave Matthews Band	Macy Gray	RFK Stadium	Washington DC
33	03/24/02	J. Mascis	???	Fletcher's	Baltimore MD
34	10/04/02	The Rolling Stones	???	FEDEX Field	Washington DC
35	11/02/02	The Misfits	???	The Silo	Reading PA
36	12/20/02	Andrew W K	???	Recher Theater	Towson MD
37	08/09/03	Aerosmith	Kiss	Nissan Pavilion	Bristow VA
38	09/13/03	Dave Matthews Band	???	Nissan Pavilion	Bristow VA
39	09/28/03	The Reverend Horton Heat	Southern Culture on the Skids	Recher Theater	Towson MD
40	10/05/03	Stryper	No opener	Recher Theater	Towson MD
41	11/08/03	G3 - Satriani-Vai-Malmsteen	No opener	AJ Palumbo Theater	Pittsburg PA
42	04/06/04	The Darkness	The Wildhearts	The 9:30 Club	Washington DC
43	10/17/04	Metallica	Godsmack	MCI Center	Washington DC
44	03/06/05	Motley Crue	???	MCI Center	Washington DC
45	04/02/05	Carl Filipiak	Special Event— "Hendrix Tribute Night."	Recher Theater	Towson MD
46	04/11/05	Collective Soul	???	Recher Theater	Towson MD
47	04/30/05	The Misfits	???	Sonar	Baltimore MD
48	05/04/05	Foo Fighters	Coldplay, Billy Idol, Good Charlotte, Social Distortion, New York Dolls, Garbage, Echo & The Bunnymen, Interpol , They Might Be Giants, Louis XIV, The Bravery, Gold Mind Squad	M&T Bank Stadium	Baltimore MD
49	05/12/05	Wednesday 13	???	Jaxx	Springfield VA
50	06/19/05	Judas Priest	Queensryche	Nissan Pavilion	Bristow VA
51	10/03/05	The Rolling Stones	???	MCI Center	Washington DC
52	12/03/05	Yngwie Malmsteen	(some band from Trinidad)	Rams Head Live	Baltimore MD
53	04/17/06	Joe Satriani	Eric Johnson	Rams Head Live	Baltimore MD
54	06/23/06	Dave Matthews Band	???	Hershey Park Stadium	Hershey PA
55	06/24/06	Lynyrd Skynyrd	3 Doors Down	Aberdeen Proving Grounds	Aberdeen MD
56	09/16/06	Brad Paisley	Sarah Branch / Eric Church	York Fair	York PA
57	04/13/07	G3 - Satriani-Gilbert-Petrucci	No opener	Warner Theater	Washington DC
58	05/18/07	Heaven and Hell (Dio's Sabbath)	Megadeth	Merriweather Post Pavilion	Landover MD
59	07/21/07	John Mayer	Ben Folds Five	Hershey Park Stadium	Hershey PA
60	08/10/07	Dave Matthews Band	???	Post Gazzette Pavilion	Burgettstown PA
61	08/25/07	Kenny Chesney	Sugarland	Nissan Pavilion	Bristow VA
62	09/19/07	Genesis	No opener	Wachovia Center	Philadelphia PA
63	09/28/07	Bob Dylan	Elvis Costello	Merriweather Post Pavilion	Columbia MD
64	09/29/07	Steve Vai	Mark Wood	Borgata Music Box	Atlantic City NJ
65	10/23/07	Danzig	Gorgeous Frankenstein	Rams Head Live	Baltimore MD
66	11/01/07	Van Halen	No opener	Verizon Center	Washington DC
67	01/06/08	Trans-Siberian Orchestra	No opener	1st Mariner Arena	Baltimore MD
68	03/01/08	Flogging Molly	The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band	Rams Head Live	Baltimore MD
69	03/15/08	Shamrock Fest	Multi-band	RFK Stadium	Washington DC
70	04/26/08	Megadeth	Children of Bodom	Merriweather Post Pavilion	Columbia MD
71	05/10/08	Kenny Chesney	Brooks and Dunn	M&T Bank Stadium	Baltimore MD
72	06/18/08	Iron Maiden	No opener	Merriweather Post Pavilion	Columbia MD
73	06/22/08	Pearl Jam	leo and the pharmacists?	Verizon Center	Washington DC
74	06/27/08	Dave Matthews Band	the Black Crowes	Hershey Park Stadium	Hershey PA
75	07/31/08	Poison	Dokken / Sebastian Bach	Merriweather Post Pavilion	Columbia MD
76	08/07/08	Judas Priest / Heaven and Hell	Motorhead / Testament	Nissan Pavilion	Bristow VA

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