Tag, I'm it and I'm gonna get ya!

Jen tagged me on this and it looks fun, so why not?

8 Things I am Looking Forward To:
1) The end of tax season!
2) Going on vacation with my family and my parents.
3) Eating sweets whenever I want them (this Lent was tough).
4) Easter!! He is Risen!
5) Getting outside today after work - it is a beautiful sunny day.
6) Getting my paycheck for these 6 days of work this week, it should be a big one.
7) Staying home with the kids next week.
8) My 7th Anniversary next month.

8 Things I Did Yesterday:
1) Worked
2) Ate a yummy dinner that Phil prepared - Chicken Saltonboca, mashed potatoes, and steamed broccoli.
3) Went on a nice walk with my friend Laura
4) Heard about how Eamon (age 2) decided to give his pacifier to the Easter Bunny, and slept through nap time without it!
5) Gave Maggie antibiotics and ibuprofen for her double ear infection
6) Watched a TiVo'd episode of 24
7) Helped my friend Katie with her taxes
8) Went to Mass

8 Things I Wish I Could Do:
1) Go to Disney world with the kids
2) Run a marathon
3) Be more crafty/creative
4) Afford to buy a nice, new, huge house with a gorgeous landscaped yard
5) Lose 10 pounds
6) Get a tummy tuck (just for the extra baby skin)
7) Meet all the people whose blogs I read
8) Spend more time with my family

8 Shows I Watch:
1) 24
2) House
3) Lost
4) Fringe
5) Heroes
6) The New Adventures of Old Christine
7) The Office
8) 30 Rock
(sadly my list could go on and on...)

8 People I Tag:
1) Lerin at Beautiful Chaos
2) Aubrey at Laughing all the Way
3) Laura at Catholic Teacher Musings
4) Laura at Robby's Adventures
5) Rebecca at The Momologue
6) Aussie Therese at Aussie Coffee Shop
7) Sarah at Memories on Clover Lane
8) Modern Mom at How to Survive Life in the Suburbs
(and anyone else who wants to play - I tag you too!)

Thanks Jen, that was fun!

I can see the head!

Taken by my friend, Laura. Looks like her son, Robby, has a future career as a ob/gyn!

And can I also mention that this picture makes me so excited to be a grandma??!!

Including Today...

...there are 10 more days of tax season.

And I will be working for 8 of them.

Forgive me if I'm not around here much.

I can't wait to be done with all of this, and catch up on all your blogs!

Happy Holy Week :)

Who, me?

Here's a thought for today:

Let's just say a certain someone gives up eating sweets for Lent.

Then let's pretend she happens to buy a lot of frozen food at the grocery store.

And imagine that when she comes home to put it all away, she needs to take out the ice cream to make room for the chicken.

So...not wanting to let the ice cream go to waste (that would be a SIN after all), she decides the proper thing to do would be to eat the ice cream, and make her husband eat some too.

(Hmmm, why does this sound a little bit like Adam and Eve?)

There's nothing wrong with this scenario, is there? I think this person should not feel guilty at all. Waste not, want not, I say.

Of course, the sprinkles that the certain someone put on top of her ice cream weren't exactly going to perish....

Thoughtful Thursday

Today is the 4th Anniversary of Pope John Paul II's death

Okay, so I admit that I might be a little obsessed with Pope John Paul II. I loved (still love) him sooooo much and I miss him. I never met him in person, he doesn't know me from Adam, but I did get to see him three times in my life.



The first time was when he visited New York. I was a junior in high school, and entered a contest to win a trip to NY to see the Pope. I had to answer questions and write an essay, and I actually WON!

There were 16 winners picked from all over the country, they flew us all to NY, and we got treated to a weekend in the City while JPII was visiting. The main event was a Mass he was celebrating in Central Park, and we were all so excited to go...but the day before, myself and another guy were asked to miss out on the Mass in order to be interviewed on tv during that time. I was really bummed out about missing the Mass, and I was so nervous to be on tv, but I couldn't really say no.

We were interviewed, and then because they felt bad we missed seeing the Pope at Mass, they gave us tickets to the Pope's small gathering at St. Patrick's where he was to lead the Rosary. How lucky was that??? Now instead of being in a huge space with a ton of people, we were about 10 pews back from the Pope with only a small group of people.

When Pope John Paul II walked by my pew, I leaned over to touch him, but I couldn't reach. The man next to me ended up shaking the Pope's hand, so I grabbed his hand to get the Pope's cooties :) Anyway, seeing him changed my life. After that, I was much more "into" my faith and decided to go to Franciscan University of Steubenville to get a real Catholic education. Seeing the Pope is AMAZING, you can just feel the holiness and excitement in the air.





The second time I saw the Pope was on Ash Wednesday, 2000 during his Wednesday Audience in Rome. While studying abroad during my junior year of college in Austria, our whole college went to Rome and Assisi for ten days. We all yelled out "JP 2, Steubenville loves you" and were so happy to hear him say he loved us back. Whatta man!





The third time I saw the Pope was at the Easter Vigil a couple months later. My parents and older sister came out to visit and we (including Phil and Annie) were all able to go have Easter Vigil Mass with the Pope. It was sooooo long, but felt like a minute because it was almost supernatural. Can you tell how much I love this man? Actually it was at this time that I decided my first born son would be named after the Pope (it wasn't even up for discussion, good thing Phil approved). That's why I hyphenated John-Paul's name so that nobody would just call him "John", and that's also why I like to dress him up like this:

So, JP II, we all love you and miss you, and as much as you accomplished here on Earth, I'm sure you are accomplishing even more in Heaven by interceding for us. Thank You!!

Meet my Friends

I have nothing great to write today, so I thought I would introduce you to four of my "real-life" friends who have blogs.

1) Annie
She was my roommate in college (in Austria and in Steubenville, OH). She probably has a lot of scandalous stories about my past, but I know she won't tell!! Right, Annie? Annie and her hubby have a BEAUTIFUL baby girl named Darby. It took them a while to finally have a baby of their own to hold, and she is well worth it. Check her out at: http://ohbabymurray.blogspot.com/

2) Emma and Jonah
This couple (who has been together since they were like 16) are actually friends of my little sister and her hubby, but since Emma and I are in the same MOMS Club, and we all went to the same high school, I have gotten to know them as well! They have 2 adorable little boys, Jacob & Caleb. Check them out at:
http://mikutowicz.blogspot.com/

3) Michelle
Michelle and I met about 4 years ago at the Mommy and Me playgroup in our town. I liked her personality right away, she makes anyone feel like they're an old friend. She comes from a huge family and our kids were about the same age. She loves to scrapbook, and is quite talented at it! Go see her at:
http://mimiscraps.blogspot.com/

4) Laura
Laura and I met only a few months ago, but it feels like a lot longer than that!! We went to the same college, and she read my little blurb in our alumni magazine and emailed me. They live right down the street from us and her Aunt teaches with my hubby - what a small world! Laura and Peter have the cutest little boy named Robby, and you can find out more about them here:
http://robbysadventures.blogspot.com/