Hey friends!  Hope everyone had a great weekend! Holy humidity! Ladies, is it me, or was frizz and hard to manage hair at an all time high this weekend? Dana’s little girl’s first birthday party was Saturday on Long Island and we had a great time. Thursday and Friday consisted on transforming their home into luau central. I can’t even tell you how many times we ran to Party City. Joelle had a great first birthday and her parents made the day SO special! They even had a palm tree bounce house in the backyard! There was no shortage of CUTE kiddies and mimosas! I mean really, cuteness . . .

What an awesome face. Love this little lady.

. . .  and of course, Joelle’s first Red Sox shirt from Aunt Amanda! Her grampy already says he’s using it as a baby wipe next time he changes her diaper. Yankee fans – so cruel.

Good to be back in the grind today though! We’re busting out some BLIND LUCK this afternoon. We’re blindfolded … one thing is delicious, one is gross. We eat one. Of course, video coming … gross. Today’s delcious item is pixy stix … the gross one, well, you’ll just have to tune in and see. Yuckkkkkkk.

Last night I went to see LADY ANTEBELLUM in Reading … what a show! They are simply CAPTIVATING. I was totally taken by their presence and their talent. People keep saying I look like Hilary, the girl in the group, so i’m thinking I should dye my hair dark like hers. Wanting to really look like her is my motivation to keep doing P90! (which by the way, is so hard to do in the morning  . . . I just don’t have the energy in the am!)

The show was awesome . . . until I got this horrific text message from a friend telling me that she thought my apartment was on fire. After 40 minutes of uncertainty … I asked another friend to walk by (they closed the road down) and find out what was going on .  . . it ended up being a house a couple down and it was a BAD fire. It’s so sad. Have you ever had that pit in your stomach that wouldn’t go away even after you found out the bad news wasn’t really bad news for you? Yup, I still feel like scary pit right now. Ahh.

Check out the vid and pics!

I went to Long Island this weekend to visit one of my best friends, Dana, her husband Kevin, and their new little baby, Joelle Grace. The baby is such a little mush ball and I just can’t get enough of her. I love her.  She is just a happy little 3 month old person who just hangs out and doesn’t fuss and just loves being held. She just molds her tiny little body into yours and just hangs out. It amazes me how alert and strong she is . . . and how much eye contact she makes and has made from her first days. Dana and I hung out at their place with the baby and took a walk through the village they live in. (all of this before the evening’s events of heart to heart girl talk accompanied by champagne fueled emotion) I give moms so much credit. Being “on” 24-7 is really quite an exhausting task and there are so many things to be constantly aware of when you have a little 10pound person to be responsible for. Joelle is such a happy baby and it really amazes just how quick her little pacifier calms her the second she starts to fuss. One thing I learned a long time ago (once people started trusting me with their babies and left them in my car) is that you never want to be “that guy” who the second the baby enters your arms, makes the kid cry. Before I get baby, I want a binky nearby. Just sayin.

 Forget the diaper genie, PACI’s are the best invention – ever. For anyone in the presence of a little one, it’s a necessity.  A lifeline.  A source of peace and quiet at times. It is often the only thing that will make the screaming stop.

That being said, I spent all of Saturday and some of Sunday jumping after, reaching for, and making a mad dash towards — the PACI’S HEADING FOR THE FLOOR! That HALF OF A SECOND that you watch the paci go from BABY to the FLOOR is a crucial time where RAPID REFLEXES really come into play. Rapid reflexes combined with the baby in hand juggle is really key and sometimes you just CAN’T GET THERE.

 I get it now. That paci represents so much more than something to stick in the mouth of a baby. It’s really a Mom’s best friend. . . and once paci hits floor, baby needs a different one . . . and mom needs to sanitize paci that hit floor . . . so baby is PISSED  OFF without paci.

Typically in my single girl lifestyle, the only thing i’d really make such a mad dash for as it was about to hit the ground is my cell phone or my drink. With babies . . . the paci is most valuable tool to keep baby at peace and I reached for that stupid paci on it’s journey to the ground atleast 50 times within 24 hours. Someone should invent a paci with a leash on it or some kind of magnet situation so that paci has less of a chance to reach floor.

I swear I am even experiencing some anxiety just thinking about the awful feeling of NOT GETTING TO THAT FREAKIN PACI IN TIME, time and time again.  I just want to keep baby happy and sometimes that is very hard to do when pacis are being cleaned in the microwave and baby wants to suck on one.

btw – Dana and I downed a few bottles of champagne and did what we do best, laughed and cried until 2:30 in the morning. It was the best.

Here are some pics from Joelle’s first official photo shoot . . . ahh I love her! I mean really, shouldn’t she be modeling little munchkin clothes sitting in a bath tub for the Johnson’s people?!

Just wanted to share a little gem with you! Sometimes I can’t muster up the energy or time to get into tanning mode and go and do a bed a few times a week. I’m totally the kind of person that likes results, fast. I was feeling BLAH and PALE this morning and went to Atomic Tan to get a mystic tan. It’s the perfect solution for the pastey white like me who are dying for a tan, but don’t feel like going tanning all the time and just need/want a quick fix.

. . . umm and by the way . . . MYSTIC MONDAYS are only $10!  Visit Atomic Tan on RT 315 in Plains if you’re looking for a quick tan. It’s pretty awesome and takes literally 5 minutes. (just don’t wear white . . . probably not a great idea)

It’s really crazy how advanced we are. The second your kid does something cute, the whole world can see. I think i’ve watched this tiny person like 20-something times. If, god forbid, i’m ever blessed with a tiny little mini me, I hope it has an awesome personality like this munchkin!