Ten Things About Where I Grew Up

1) I grew up on Cape Cod. In a small village called Osterville, with the ocean all around us. It was a great place to grow up.

2) Osterville is known for having very well-off residents, and most of my friends were really rich. I used to be so embarrassed to say I lived in Osterville because I didn't want people to think I was rich, so I used to say we lived in the bad part of town. Ha! There is no bad part of town :)

3) My parents owned and ran a homemade ice cream shop on the Cape for 20 years, called Maggie's (named after my mom). It opened when I was 6, and I was serving customers by age 12. By the ripe old age of 16, I was a manager. All 6 of us kids had to work in the shop in order to make money for college. Having a family business really instills a great work ethic in kids.

4) When I went to Ohio for college (FUS is the best!), I used to tell people I was from Boston because I didn't think they would know where Cape Cod was. Turns out I was wrong, and everybody seems to know about Cape Cod!

5) In the summers on the Cape, the traffic is horrible due to all the tourists. Having an ice cream shop, we valued the tourists...they were our bread and butter.

Even still, my favorite Cape Cod bumper sticker has to be:

6) Wait, maybe my favorite Cape bumper sticker is: It makes all the tourists think there's a special tunnel to get onto the Cape, when there's really only 2 bridges to get on/off the Cape.

7) Speaking of the bridges, they get very backed up in the summer. Especially on Friday nights for people coming on Cape, Saturday mornings for the weekly renters coming on and leaving the Cape, and Sunday afternoon for all the weekend visitors leaving the Cape. It's really a pain for the Cape residents because we have to plan our off-Cape excursions around the summer traffic.

8) Around the time I was in high school, Cape Cod Bracelets became all the rage. I never wanted one then because they were too expensive and trendy, but now that I can appreciate their simple beauty, I sort of want one. If anybody watches the Bachelorette, Chris from the Cape just gave Ali one. Not that I would ever watch that trash ;)

9) Even though there have always been lots of beaches around, I am not a great swimmer. And I do not swim in the ocean if I can help it. I have a great respect for the ocean, and I don't like stepping into an environment with fish and crabs and jelly fish and sharks. Sharks do come around the Cape every once in a while, like now for example. And the jelly fish come out when the water is hot. So, I bring my kids to the beach a lot, and let them swim, but I stay on the shore. I'm such a dud!

10) I now live off Cape, about 25 minutes from the bridge. But I still work on the Cape, and Phil and I hope to continue the tradition of running an ice cream store some day in our future. And since we have a daughter named Maggie, we could still call it Maggie's Ice Cream :)

OK, your turn. Blog about your hometown, and paste the link in the comments section so I can read more about you!!

Wordless Wednesday: My God Daughter Runs Her First 5K

She ran with her Dad (my brother-in-law), Adam. He's a real runner, and Bridget wants to be just like him!

Bridgie’s official time was 35:48 Can you believe that?? She's only 7!!

OK, so this is not quite wordless, but I'm too proud of her!

A Fairy Tale with a Happy Ending

Once upon a time, a beautiful and generous Queen looked at her King and said "Let them eat donuts!"

The King was shocked, but being the handsome and supportive man that he is, he happily obliged.

The townspeople could not believe their luck!

Donuts?

For no special reason at all?

Was the Queen losing her mind?

But they dare not voice their concerns, for fear of donut rejection.

The King drove with determination to the most delicious donut shoppe in all the land.

He left the royal carriage to bravely fetch the donuts.

The Queen began to question her unusual decree. Donuts? What was she thinking? Porridge, fruits, and honey were the normal morning meal in the Kingdom. How would the townspeople react to her impulsive decision?

Alas! Her King returned bearing gifts of donuts, and all her worries were forgotten.

And as for the townspeople, well, let's just say they lived happily ever after!!

The End

Mommy's Sippy Cup

I just have to share one of my new favorite things.

Phil and I like to make and drink iced coffee in the summer, and I found these cups (complete with straws) that are reusable, sweat-proof, insulated, and dishwasher safe.

They are AWESOME! I feel so fancy drinking with a straw, and my coffee/water/smoothie stays cold for so long. Just thought I'd share :)

(Click on the picture to get some for yourself!!)

Hi Lo: July 9th

HI's:

1) Happy Birthday to my Dad!!

He turns 70 today, and with 6 children (all married) and 19 grandchildren, you can bet he was celebrated big time. We had a cookout on Sunday complete with delicious lobster rolls and birthday cake. Lookin' good Pops! (My Dad's on the left and his brother, Tom, is on the right. They both came to America from Ireland in their teens/early twenties and became builders.)

1) Exercising has been going really well. I'm not running any longer than 6 miles at a time, but I've been keeping up with my kickboxing classes, and adding in a toning class once a week. On my day off, I've been trying to walk with a friend. If only I could stop snacking at night!

2) I just booked flights and hotel reservations for one of my best friend's wedding in Indianapolis on 1/1/11. How great of a date is that?? And we'll be sleeping in a king bed...heavenly! If I'm not already pregnant by then, well let's just say I wouldn't be surprised if Baby #5 makes her debut on 10/1/11. And yes, it will be a girl :)

3) I love my husband. I love my kids.

LO's:

1) This week has been so stinkin' hot in the North East:We're breaking heat wave records, and I'm not happy about it. I told Phil that my only requirement for my next house is central air. I better offer it up because there is one *place* that's definitely hotter!!

2) The lady who rented us the vacation house with mice in it says she is not required to refund us any money per the lease agreement. She is considering refunding us something because she empathizes with us.

What the heck??? We signed the lease expecting to rent a clean, rodent-free house and saved our hard-earned money only to have to leave 3 days early because of a mice-infested house? And she doesn't think she should give us a refund? We're going to keep on top of this. It's so unjust, and you know what they say about karma....

How was your week?

Bieber Fever

We watched the Macy's Fireworks special on TV last night with the kids (a few days after it aired live) and Justin Bieber was the first to perform. He sang "Baby, Baby, Baby" as he does in the video below:



Turns out my kids, who are ONLY allowed to watch PBS or wholesome videos at home, had a LOT to say about Justin Bieber.

John-Paul (7): "All the girls in my class love Justin Bieber and all the boys pretend to throw up. I pretend to throw up too even though I don't know him."

(Ha!)

Andrew (5): "Why do all the girls like him?" (I try and explain that girls usually like guys that are talented and can sing.) and he quickly responds, "I better be a singer when I grow up!"

(Smart boy!)

Eamon (3): "Why does Justin Beaver sing like a girl?"

(I am not gonna explain puberty for at least a few more years...)

Maggie (2): "Does Justin Beaver look like a beaver?"

:)

I guess around here we have Beaver Fever. Well actually, seems like we don't. Sorry Justin, when you've got Veggie Tales to compete with, it's a hard sell. I still think you're cute and talented in a little-boy-sort-of-way :)