Way overdue...

"How are things in Glocca Morra???"

What?!?!  You act like it's been two months since I've updated my blog.....yeesh.

OK - guilty as charged.  I realize that it's been a long time, but believe me - while I'm not updating as often (or at all) I think about you all quite often, and know that you're out here in the blogosphere waiting and waiting for an update.  :-)

So, let's see......the show I was in (The Drowsy Chaperone) is over and done with, and was a LOT of fun.  We played to sold out houses and the show was very well received.  OK, the theatre sits 75, but STILL....that doesn't necessarily guarantee a sell out! 
That being said, it was great to be back on stage again after so long and I'm looking forward to my next stage adventure.  Speaking of, Jim is actually in rehearsals right now for a play at the very same theatre, which goes up in February.  Such a talented family we are.

Other than that, nothing new is going on.  Work is as busy as ever, and I'm still enjoying it. 
I feel badly for my former co-workers who are unfortunately still dealing with the unstable work environment I was so happy to escape from.  Rumors of layoffs are still flying over there and with the upcoming holidays, people are STRESSED.

In addition to being in rehearsals for his own show, Jim is directing a show (which opens in 2 weeks), still taking care of Zachary all day long, and is currently working part time (seasonal help) at the local Crate & Barrel.  Needless to say, he's a tad busy.  Hopefully we'll manage to have some extra cash, which we so desperately need, and we won't spend it all on Crate and Barrel 'stuff'.  It will be difficult I'm sure, as we both love that store, but we can do it!

OK - I'm interrupting my normally scheduled blog post to tell you that as I was writing this entry, I received a Facebook message from the ever delightful (and fellow blogger) Blobby, inquiring as to whether or not I ever planned to update my blog.  Isn't that CRAZY?!??  Seriously....what the hell are the odds???
Obviously, he's spying on me.  Anyway....I thought you should all know that just happened.

So - it's Friday afternoon and I should be doing one of the 5,000 things I need to do, but I decided to update my blog and spread a lil' love around the Internets.

I hope you're all well, and you're having a super fun holiday season (if that's your 'thing')

Kisses!!!

Here's a picture of this year's Halloween costumes.

Yes, Scooter was a skeleton again....it's his favorite. 

As you can clearly see.

Get out your tap shoes (again) Frances!!!!

I'm doing a show!!!

OK - truth be told, I've been in rehearsals for about a month at this point, but I've been SO lacking in the blog department, that the news is just hitting the Internets. 
The show is 'The Drowsy Chaperone' (GREAT show) and I'm playing George, who is Robert's (the groom) best man.  Rehearsals are going well, and I think it's going to be a really fun show. 
I'm doing the show at a local community theatre, which also happens to be the very same community theatre where I performed in my VERY first musical, 'Oliver!'...TWENTY-NINE years ago.  :-)

What's even crazier is that the woman directing this show is the same person who directed 'Oliver!'!!!
Clearly, she doesn't age because she pretty much looks the exact same as she did  in 1983. 
While this theatre may not be known for putting on the best shows or have the highest production values, it will always be a special place for me.  I kind of grew up in that theatre, and it was a fun and 'safe' place for me to spend a lot of my time.  They were also super-supportive and kind to me when my mom passed away.  As many of you know, when my mom died, I was only 13 years old.  Right before she died, I had auditioned for 'Oklahoma!', was cast in the show, and then right before rehearsals started my mom passed away.  The director (same one as Oliver! and the current show) told me that if I wanted to drop out, she'd understand, but I decided that it would be a good distraction and the best place for me to be.  As it turned out, I was totally right.  Doing the show allowed me to take my mind of being sad, it gave me the chance to talk to people about what was going on, and in doing that show, I met some great people that I'm still friends with to this day.  So.....that, in a nutshell is why I feel such a connection to that theatre.

Other than the show, everything else is going well.  I'm doing well, work is still going well, and everything is great at home. Speaking of home....and Jim, he just started teaching a theatre class at a local music school a couple times a week and will be directing an (well, HIS) adaptation of 'A Christmas Carol' there in  December.  He's having a great time, and is thrilled to be back doing some theatre related 'stuff'. Very fun.

Zachary is doing awesome.  He's been walking around like a pro, and through Early Intervention has started going to a weekly play group, which he LOVES!!!!  Thankfully, he's a very social little boy.  He loves to play with other kids, and he seems to really like music.  YAY!!!
We haven't had to deal with any 'separation anxiety' at all (YET) which has been excellent.  He'll give us a look as if to say 'Is it OK if I go to this person???' but he doesn't lose it when we aren't with him or if we have to drop him off somewhere.  Fingers crossed that that lasts!

Here are a couple of recent pictures.....

I came acroiss this random shot on the doggie daycare's website where we used to send Scooter.

He's a BIG fan of lounging in the sun.

Yes, much to Scooter's dismay....it's almost that time of year again!!!

SCOOTER!!!

Due to popular demand.....

His usual spot....

Look at that face!!!!

It was an exceptionally warm evening...

More lounging

Even MORE lounging....this time, with a friend

Alert!

And this is Miner....my sister's dog.....

Miss Me????

Have you missed me?!?!?!?

After being ENDLESSLY harassed by Blobby (OK, he sent me one email) about my lack of blogging, I thought it was about time I update you all on all the EXCITING things that have been happening since I last updated this blog....in June.  YIKES.

Let's see.....work has been super busy,  but very good.  It's so nice to not be filled with dread each day when I wake up.  Everyone here is so friendly, the work is interesting (and challenging) and even the commute (although long-ish) hasn't been bad!!  All in all, things are great.
And they had an ice cream truck here last Friday giving out free ice cream!!!

The summer is nearing an end (sad face) - but even though it was a pretty stressful one (our endless pool issues, travelling for work, summer illnesses, etc...) that is all behind me and I'm looking forward to the fall!

In my last post, I talked about our pool drama and I'm happy to say that it is all taken care of.  I'm not happy to say that it cost us a TON of money, but at least it's all done and now we have a brand spankin' new pool liner and patio.  Here are a couple of pictures of the end result:

Pretty fancy, huh?

In addition to all that pool work this summer, I traveled to Minnesota for a couple weeks at the end of July into August and had a FANTASTIC time.  I ended up meeting up with a bunch of friends that live in the area (who knew I knew so many people in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area?!?!?) and best of all, I got to meet fellow blogger CB!!!  We met up for dinner one night while I was there and had so much fun.  After dinner, he gave me a tour of the Minneapolis area, and in spite of me almost completely ruining the entire evening by 1. almost ordering a Miller Lite at dinner and 2.  referring to his  'Drum and Bugle Corps' as 'Band' - it was a PERFECT meeting.  ;-)

While I was in MN I worked a ton, but was able to see the sights including The Mall of America (which I loved) and I even made it to a Twins game.....AMAZING stadium.

All in all, it was a great (although crazy busy) trip and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved the Twin Cities. 

After a very painful, irritating, and incredibly inconvenient bout of 'Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease' which BOTH Jim and Zachary had (poor guys!!) we are all in good health and doing well.  We just had a family photo shoot on Monday night - yes, our good friend Barrie is still at it :-) so I'll attach a couple of shots for your enjoyment.

Oh - and I 'celebrated' - OK, I missed.....my 4 year blog anniversary which was on Monday the 13th.  I know, I know.....my blogging has been lacking, but it's still here, and I still think of you all VERY often, so that has to count for something, right?!?!?!

Have a great day and I hope you're all well.   XOXO

Pictures, Pictures, Pictures......

Lists, lists, lists....

1. I'm writing this entry on my iPhone.
2. I miss you all somethin' terrible.
3. The new job is great.
4. The people here are happy.
5. The people here are friendly.
6. The people here chat with one another and have fun.
7. My commute is long, but it's not 'traffic-y' so I don't mind.
8. Jim is glad to have the 'old' John back.
9. I'm glad to have the 'old' John back.
10. Keep your 'old' comments to yourself.
11. Zachary is doing great since his surgery and is back to normal.
12. We are all set to have the pool re-lined as well as getting some other 'cosmetic' stuff done in the pool area.
13. Jim and Scooter can't wait to swim.
14. I split a second pair of pants at work last week.
15. My diet starts today.
16. Lists make blogging easy.
17. I'll be sure to post pictures as soon as the pool area transformation is underway.
18. xoxo

When It's Time to Change...

The day that I never thought would arrive, has arrived.  :-)

Today is my last day at my current job.  When people ask me how long I've been with the company, it's kind of difficult to give a simple answer, because it's a complicated situation.  I generally say that I've been here just about 11 years, but then I have to add the qualifier that I've only been with my 'current' company for the past 5 years, but I was with the previous company for 6 years, before they were acquired by my current company.  Make sense?  It's been just about 11 years in total, but that technically split up between two companies.

That being said, it's been a long time since I've started a BRAND new job....and that will happen on Monday.  YIKES!  As you'd expect, I'm a little bit nervous, but mostly excited.  For the first time since 1996, I won't be working for a financial company, and that alone sends me through the roof.
There will be no talk of trade processing, no buys and sells to process, no variation margins, no trade extracts, no amortization, etc.and that makes me very happy.

I'll be sure you do my best to keep you all updated as to how things are going, you can be sure of that.

In the meantime, our little boy, Zachary underwent his second (and hopefully final) surgery last Wednesday and is doing great with his recuperation. 
Here are some photos:

Jim and Zachary hanging out before he went in for the surgery (Jim went downstairs with him, which explains why he's in scrubs)

One last photo before he went down to the O.R.

He was very sleepy/cuddly after surgery, and required a constant flow of oxygen 'mist' just to be safe.

Spending some time with Scooter at home after being discharged.  The 'braces' on his arms are to keep him from putting anything in his mouth, since that's where the surgery was....they're only temporary, and he doesn't mind wearing them. 

For the most part.  :-)

As I mentioned, Z is doing well with his recovery and aside from having a little bit of a cold (of course) he's just about back to normal.

In other news, Jim and I got a bit of bad news/shock of our lives when the pool company came to open our pool yesterday afternoon. 

Long story short:  They took off the pool cover, and the pool was empty.

SHIT. 

It seems that there's a leak in the liner, and we'll need to get a new one ASAP.  Of course, we don't have an extra $4,000 lying around (which is the estimated cost) so we're going to have to do some creative financial planning in order to take care of it.  Until then, we've got an eyesore of a pool that we have to keep under lock and key, since it's a very dangerous place right now.

Here's a picture of what we saw when it was opened, and the picture doesn't nearly capture what it really looks like.  It looks AWFUL and we feel like ultra white-trash having this mess in our backyard.

I look forward to the day (hopefully SOON) when I can post some "Look at our beautiful new pool!!" pictures.  :-)

I hope you all have a great weekend, and I'll be sure to keep you posted on what's going on in my world.

Thank you again for all your kind words and support.

Also - to all my Boston readers, have a GREAT Pride weekend!!!!

xoxo

I GOT A NEW JOB!!!!!

Hey there everyone.....

As you can guess by the title of my post for today, there have been some exciting things happening with me lately.  While I don't have the time to get into all the details at the moment, the fact is, that I will be leaving my current position on June 8th and starting my new job on June 11th.
No rest for the weary, right?!?!

I have to thank each and every one of you for your encouraging words, helpful advice, and above all else, helping me to find the humor in everything, even when I thought there was little hope of my 'escape'.  You're all amazing....each and every one of you.  :-)

xoxo

The Sun is Back!

I'm happy to report that the sun is shining outside my office building as I type this.  While we were in DIRE need of rain, I'm thrilled that the sun is back, and is supposedly sticking around for a few days!

I managed to survive the rest of my day on Tuesday with my ripped slacks (awful word) and hopefully this weekend I can get out the sewing kit and make the necessary repairs.  The last thing I need is to be down a pair of pants.  I have specific outfits that I wear, and I'm in no mood to either shop for work clothes or try and come up with an appropriate alternative.  Lazy enough?  :-)

I must take a moment to wish my awesome husband a belated 40th birthday!  He 'joined the club' on May 3rd and I actually pulled off throwing him a surprise party last Saturday night!  He was indeed surprised and had a great time.  I'd be lying if I said it was easy to pull off, especially with all the stuff that's been going on for me where work is concerned, but I did it!!  Of course, I couldn't have done it without help from his family, so THANK YOU to all of them for everything they did. 
I'm very lucky to have such a great group of in-laws. 

Things at work are (dare I say it?) OK for now.  It's calmed down a bit and I've been managing to get through every day without having a breakdown or being filled with dread.  Don't get me wrong, I still want out - but I've been able to make it through the past couple of weeks without too much stress/anxiety/etc.....
Baby steps, right??

We have nothing planned for this weekend and I'm looking forward to some family time and hopefully doing something fun!  Since I'm not playing softball this year (did I mention that before??) I may try and visit my old team and watch a game or two.  It'll be nice to see everyone and if I take Zachary with me it'll give Jim a well-deserved break. 

I hope you all have a great weekend, and things are happy and sun-shiny in your corner of the world!!!

xoxo

Here are a couple of pictures from the party:

Zachary and I waiting for Jim to walk in the room

SURPRISE!!!

'Post-Surprise' Family Portrait

(my beard needs a trim, it makes my face look chubby)

Zachary hanging out with Cheryl and my Dad

Ripped

I just thought I'd let you all know that I'm at work and I just realized that I have a HUGE hole in the crotch of my pants.

I figured that my readers would appreciate it the most.

Happy Tuesday!

Under the wire...

Hey Everyone!

First of all, thank you so much for all the kind words and supportive comments.  It's nice to know that there are people out there who have been though exactly what I'm going through and have managed to survive.  In fact, some are going through it right along with me!  Misery loves company.  :-)

Things at work have improved slightly, so I'm at least able to survive one day at a time.  Is it an ideal situation?  Not at all....but at least it's manageable, and hopefully things will stay that way or improve, until a substantial change can be made.

Other than work stuff, things with me have been great.  Zachary is making all sorts of attempts at talking these days, and while he's still not walking, he's getting there.  Believe me, I'm in NO rush for him to start.  It's difficult enough to keep up with him these days, as he's an expert crawler.  Of course, once he starts walking it'll be a while before he's moving all that fast, so maybe we'll have a little bit of a break. 
Wishful thinking.
Jim is great, and has been beyond supportive through all of this.  There's not a day goes by (tip o' the hat to Mr. Sondheim) that I don't thank the Baby Jesus that I have him in my life.  He has been amazing.
I've not only had Jim helping me, but my entire family.  They have been a HUGE help and an amazing support system while dealing with everything the past few weeks.

Well, I just wanted to stop by and thank everyone and let you know how much I truly MISS my daily blogging and blog reading.  I vow that someday things will return to normal and you'll be tired of hearing from me!!!

Have a great weekend!
xoxo
 
It's been a while, so here's a picture for your weekend enjoyment:

Scooter, fresh from the groomer. 

(In our newly painted living room)

Confession Time...

Before you get your hopes up, there's nothing juicy about to be revealed in this post.  I just figured that it's been so damn long since I came up with an entry that I'd better have a juicy title to grab your attention and keep you reading.  :-)

It's no secret that I haven't been blogging at all recently.  I haven't even been all that active on Facebook, Twitter, or any of the other things that used to keep me entertained way back when. 
I know that a lot of you have been reading me for a long time and were around in the days when I was blogging much more frequently so I'm sure you've noticed a steady decline in my social media activity.
Yes, it happens to everyone now and then, so I guess it's just my 'turn'?

Truth be told, I've been in a real yucky place lately.  It has nothing to do with Jim, Zachary, or my home life.  Everything is great as far as they're concerned, but unfortunately, they're affected by everything else that's been going on.

As many of you know (and those of you who don't, soon will) my job has been really getting me down for quite a while now.  Well, things haven't improved, and they're even getting worse.  It so difficult for me to put into words, but let it be said that I'm really not happy with my current situation, and while I continue to try to make changes and look for other options, I've been having a pretty tough time.  
I've been going through a whole lot of emotional 'stuff' as a result of my day to day work and at times I feel like I'm completely losing it.  (That's where the 'affecting the family' part comes into play.)  Poor Jim has had to deal with me being an emotional wreck so often lately that I'm beginning to feel guilty about being miserable.
Make sense??

The best way to describe it is that I feel completely trapped in my work situation.  I'm completely overwhelmed by everything I have to deal with at work, and there's no way I can get out of there until I'm able to find something that will pay the bills, provide us with benefits, etc...etc...etc...  It's extremely overwhelming at times (most of the time?) and I tend to get myself very worked up about it.  It's constantly on my mind, and I know that I'm not the same person I was before all this started really getting to me.

Don't worry...this isn't some cry for help and I'm not about to do something crazy....I'm not THAT bad off. However, it's been a really rough road the past few months (years?), and seeing the light at the end of the tunnel is sometimes really, REALLY difficult. 
I know that I have plenty of friends and family who are always there for me to lend an encouraging word, and above all else, I know I have Jim and Zachary to greet me at the door each night when I come home.  Truth be told, I've been getting a little teary (OK, a lot teary) each night when I come home because my days have been so much for me to deal with.

I'm planning to have a chat with my manager tomorrow in hopes that he can offer some advice/assistance/help so that I'm not feeling so incredibly overwhelmed and completely stressed about my job.  Hopefully that will make me feel better.

Thank you all for listening/reading....I look forward to getting back on the happy train soon and picking up where the 'old John' left off.....

xoxo

Next To Normal - See it.

Hey all....before you even begin reading this, remember that I'm NOT a theatre critic by profession, nor do I claim to be.  However, I had the privilege of seeing an outstanding production recently and thought it deserved more than just a 'Hey, you should really see this!!!' mention on my blog - so I wrote a review of sorts.  That being said....here's what I wrote.

I hope you're all well....and if you're in the Boston area....seriously, you should really see this!! :-)
xoxo

My first exposure to 'Next To Normal' was when I bought the CD and listened to it pretty much non-stop until I was getting sick of listening to it. That’s generally the way things go for me when I get a new recording, especially if it’s one that I enjoy.


One of Jim’s college friends (Jessica Phillips) was part of the show from the early ‘workshop days’, and ended up staying with the show throughout most of its Broadway run, covering Alice Ripley who played the role of the mother, Diana. There were a few attempts on our part to get to New York in order to see the show when Jessica went on, but unfortunately we never got there to see it.

The last time that I was in New York City (in the fall of 2009 – how sad is THAT?!?!) I saw several shows, but decided against seeing ‘Next To Normal’ at that time. I mean, I was very interested in seeing it, but the only tickets they had available were obstructed view and WAY too expensive – no thanks.

We were however, finally able to see the show (with the original Broadway cast) through another way, that I will not explain any further as it may land me in the hoosegow (Google it) if I do.  That being said, it was a thrill to finally see the show, especially with the original cast, and for FREE!!! Seeing it helped to answer lots of questions that I had based on the fact that all I’d done was listen to the show.

Why all this information? I’ll tell you why….

After MUCH anticipation, I was finally able to see the Boston premiere of ‘Next To Normal’ on Sunday afternoon, and boy am I glad I did. At this point it’s been about 3 days since I saw it, and it’s still on my mind. I don’t want to go into too much detail regarding the plot, because I think it’s more powerful if you go into the show without knowing what’s going to happen and let the show speak for itself. Let’s just say that it’s the story about a family who is dealing with mental illness and the situations that they’re faced with as a result.

Kudos to Paul Daigneault (Director) for assembling an amazing cast who are all nearly perfect in each of their roles. As is typical with one of Paul’s productions, his vision is so clear and the transitions from scene to scene are so well-executed that you remain completely engaged in the story and are free to go along for the ‘ride’ that the characters are going on.

Sarah Drake, who plays Natalie (the daughter of Dan and Diana), embodies the role of the ‘tortured teen’ perfectly. She is completely believable throughout the story, so much fun to watch, and she sings the difficult role effortlessly…..loved her. Michael Levesque plays Henry, Natalie’s boyfriend, and does so with great success. He’s got a great voice, which is perfectly suited for the role, and while he’s pursuing Natalie throughout the show, you can’t help but root for him to win her over. Chris Caron, in dual roles as Dr. Fine and Dr. Madden manages to make you see things from his point of view as he struggles with how to deal with his difficult patient and the rest of her family. Who would have ever thought that you’d be feeling the stress/sadness/anxiety that the doctor was going through when dealing with a situation like this?! I didn’t think I would, but to be honest, there were times when I really saw things from his point of view and completely understood what he must have been going through. Michael Tacconi plays the role of Gabe, who is Diana and Dan’s son. He’s got a fantastic voice and there are certain moments that he had throughout the show that had me reaching for a Kleenex.

The role of Dan is expertly played by Christopher Chew. Chris has been away from the Boston theatre ‘scene’ for FAR too long, so it was an extra special treat seeing him back on stage again. His portrayal of Dan was out of this world. He sang the role as if it were written specifically for him (I’m not a huge fan of J. Robert Spencer on the cast recording) and was equally as great in the acting department. Kerry A. Dowling, who is no stranger to SpeakEasy stage has reached new heights in the role of Diana. From the very start of the show she engages the audience and makes them want to hear her story. She’ll make you laugh, she’ll make you cry and she’ll make you forget that you’re sitting in a theatre in the middle of the South End. The role of Diana is extremely difficult to sing, and she handles the score with ease. Whether she’s blowing the roof off the place, or settling in for a quiet moment, you can’t help but be drawn in to her every word. Hers is a performance not to be missed.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the expert musical direction of Nicholas James Connell. He not only made this extremely talented cast sound amazing, but assembled the off-stage orchestra that accompanied the ensemble so expertly throughout the evening. There were several moments where the ensemble sound (of the cast) was so good - whether it was a perfectly placed note or a ringing chord, that really made me take a moment and think “Wow….nice job Mr. Musical Director….that sounded GREAT.”

Finally, I have to mention the extremely talented design team. The versatile and well used (again, thanks to Paul D.) set design of Eric Levenson, which was enhanced by the extremely creative (and at often times humorous) projection work of Seaghan McKay and the lighting design of Jeff Adelberg. Of course, without a costume designer, we’d be looking at God only knows what on stage, so I have to mention Tyler Kinney who designed the costumes, which were well done and suited each character perfectly.

All in all, this was a show that I would highly recommend to everyone. In the past, when I when I’ve listened to the recording or when I saw the show, it really felt like the focus was really on Diana and what she was going through. In SpeakEasy’s production of ‘Next To Normal’, Paul Daigneault and the cast succeed in allowing you to see the show from the perspective of each of the characters and how they’re being affected, which makes for a much more interesting, rewarding, and enjoyable experience.

Go HERE now to get your tickets…….

Here are some pictures from the production: 

All photos were taken by Craig Bailey/Perspective Photo

From left: Sarah Drake, Christopher Chew, Kerry A. Dowling

 

From left: Michael Tacconni, Kerry A. Dowling, Christopher Chew

Kerry A. Dowling

 

From left: Chris Caron, Kerry A. Dowling

 

From left: Sarah Drake, Michael Levesque

It's Maaaahhhhch!!!!

I am simply EMBARRASSED at my lack of blogging. 
Horrified, I tell you.

Work has been so busy that I just don't have the free time I used to. 
Sad, sad, sad.

The good news is, that you haven't been missing out on all the amazing and exciting things I've been doing since I last wrote, because there hasn't been much going on.  :-)

Zachary has been sick for the past few weeks, which has pretty much kept Jim and I housebound.  Well, we manage to get out now and then - but the three of us haven't exactly been painting the town red lately.
I can't even say that it's entirely because of Z not feeling well.  I think it's this time of year.  Granted, we've have an extremely mild winter, but even so, we've been happier staying home and hanging out, rather than going out and about.

Jim and Barrie actually had a fun little night out last Saturday night.  Since Jim is home all day long with Zachary, I thought it would be nice for him to get out of the house and not have to worry about where Zachary was or what he was doing.  He and Barrie went out to dinner, saw a show, and then even went out afterwards to celebrate a friend's birthday!  They had a great time and I think it was a nice 'escape' for him.

Jim's parents returned on Tuesday from their month long visit to Florida, so we had his entire family over for dinner that night, which was quite fun.  His parents rented a place in the same complex where my parents live all winter, so the four of them had a GREAT time together.  Thankfully, they all get along and have lots in common....and it's more than just golf and wine.  :-)

Speaking of my dad....he started back to work at the brand, spankin' new Jet Blue Park in Ft. Myers and according to him, it's a BEAUTIFUL place.  Hopefully we'll get down there at some point soon to visit.

And speaking of the Red Sox, it's with great sadness that I bring up the retirement of my all-time favorite - Jason Varitek.  It's just not going to be the same without him behind the plate.  I'm hoping that he continues his affiliation with the Red Sox in some capacity, which I've heard is his intention. We shall see.
Either way, I'll certainly miss his presence - but just as it is with most things: this too, shall pass!!
I wonder how valuable that autographed bat of his will be now????  ;-)

I hope you all have a great weekend and all is well in your parts of the world. 
xoxo

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

Hello Readers!

I hope you all have a great Valentine's Day.  :-)

Quick recap since we last spoke:

-  Zachary had surgery on Monday the 6th and is just about back to his normal self.  Actually, he was just about back to his normal self a couple days after being home.  That kid is certainly resilient!  He has to eat soft foods for another week and then he'll be 100% back to normal.  Yay!

 - I didn't book the commercial, which is totally fine with me.  I did my best and had a great time in the process.  On the bright side, now I get to enjoy my Valentine's Day and not spend it in rehearsal, followed by an overnight 'shoot' from 8pm to 8am on Wednesday night.  THAT'S a plus.

- I turned 40 on Saturday and survived.  Jim arranged for Zachary to have his very first sleep over so the two of us could go out and not have to worry about getting home and picking him up.  It was the first time in well over a year that we had that luxury and we had a great time.  We went out to dinner and then visited a few bars with some friends we hadn't seen in a long time.  It was a LOT of fun.  However, Sunday was a bit 'rough' - but not nearly as bad as I thought it would be.  Fun fun fun.

Have a nice day, my Valentines!!!
xoxo

Get out your tap shoes, Frances....

I went to an audition yesterday!  It was completely out of the blue, as I received a call on Tuesday afternoon about attending.  It was for a CT Lottery commercial, and they were looking for a balding man, who could tap dance.  PERFECT!!

I went in there having NO idea what to expect.  I was told to look at the story boards to get an idea of what to expect.  For those of you who aren't aware, (I knew what they were, but hadn't ever seen any) story boards are a shot by shot drawing of what the commercial will look like.  They break it down by the different camera 'shots' they'll be taking.  Think of it as a kind of comic strip that lets you know what the commercial will look like.

Anyway, I looked at the story board and from looking at them, I could see that the commercial was going to be a big, musical number where this woman fantasizes about winning the $1,000 a day lottery game and sings this big song about what she'll do when she wins.  They were looking to cast a bunch of different dancers, the 'lead' singing woman, and a few other featured folks as well.  In the song, she talks about how she'd use some money to buy her friend a new toupee....and that's where I'd come in.  :-)

The audition went well, but it was so fast, I feel like it didn't even happen. 
I parked my car, went into the building, met one of the interns, filled out a form, went up to the audition room, put on my tap shoes, stood in front of the camera, answered 2 or 3 questions, did a little tap dancing, and then I was done.  The whole process from car door to car door took no longer than 15 minutes.

I wish that I had taken my time a bit more because the entire thing felt SO rushed and I really don't think I did as well as I could have.  BUT - I'm glad I actually went in there and did it, and even if nothing comes of it, at least I went in and the casting people know that I'm a real person and not just some random profile in their actor database.

I'm very excited for the Super Bowl this weekend.  Football is actually one of the sports that I enjoy watching the most.  Maybe it's because of all my years watching games as part of the marching band, or maybe it's because you're 'supposed' to drink beer while watching - but either way, I enjoy it.  :-)
I probably wouldn't be as likely to watch if my beloved Patriots weren't playing, but I'm thrilled that they are.

I hope you all have a great weekend, and I'll leave you with some pictures of our really attractive Patriots.
Seriously...they have some nice looking fellas guys on that team....

Under the Wire

This marks my third post in January.  Yikes.
There was a time when I'd have MANY posts in one month, but sadly, those days are behind me.
Apparently writing three posts a month is all I can muster.  :-)

That being said, everything is just fine with me and the family.  We've all been battling colds for about three weeks, with each of us taking turns getting sick, and none of us ever truly feeling 100%, so that's been fun. 
 But Zachary is great and getting bigger and bigger every day.

Work is work.  We had a 'town hall' meeting yesterday where we were given lost of information that no one really understood.  I'm looking forward to my team meeting tomorrow where we'll probably get some understandable information.  I think that we all may be reporting to a new director, but there was so much talking around in circles yesterday, that I'm honestly not sure if that's really happening or not.
At least I'm not alone.  I asked several co-workers who were on the same call as me, and they're not sure what's going on either.
Awesome. 
Whatever....I'll deal with it when the time comes!!

Other than work and family stuff, nothing too exciting has been going on.  I had a fun weekend last weekend.  I was up in NH for the day, visiting a college friend and seeing her daughter in a dance 'preview' before their competition season gets up a running.  It was a fun afternoon, and there were lots of talented kids in their dance school, including FOUR boys.  Granted, two of them were the owner's sons, but still.  They were there, they were dancing, and they were really good.
That night, I got together with some local theatre friends to see a local 'cabaret' show.  I went for the first time last year, but some of them have been going for 10+ years.  This was the 50th anniversary of the show, and let me just say - there are some people who have appeared in every single one of them since the first year.  Yikes.
It was a really good time though, spent with some really great friends.

That's all I have to report for now.....I'll be catching up on my blog reading today, so some of you may be hearing from me.  :-)
xoxo

PS - I turn 40 in 11 days.  Let the countdown begin!!!

Awesome Husband Alert!

I'm not one for lovey-dovey posts (as you probably know) but I have to say how amazingly awesome Jim is. 

Not only is he a GREAT stay-at-home dad (God knows I couldn't do it) but he's just an overall great person who makes me happier than anyone else in my life. 

This morning around 4am I woke up to use the bathroom, and noticed that it had snowed a considerable amount over night.  When I got back into bed, Jim was awake and I mentioned the fact that it had snowed, and I was not at all happy about that fact. Considering the fact that I had NO gas in my car (don't tell my dad!) I knew I wouldn't be able to let it warm up while I cleaned it off, and I was immediately irritated.
Well, while I was in the shower, Jim got up, cleaned off my car, and filled the tank!  By the time I was ready to leave the house, I was able to let the car warm up and not have to worry about running out of gas!!!

Isn't that just the nicest?!?!?

That's all I have to post about today. 
I'm here at work and hoping for a quiet day. (fingers crossed)

Happy Birthday to fellow blogger sfmoby!!!  Stop by his blog and wish him well.  :-)

Happy Friday!!!

First post of 2012

Whoops!!!  Look at that....it's already January 17th and I'm just getting around to writing my first post of the year. 
UNFORGIVABLE!!!

I hope you all had an EXCELLENT New Year's Eve and that 2012 is treating you well so far.
Things around here are great.

Jim, Zachary, and I spent New Year's Eve up in NH with our friends John, Leah and their kids, as well as a group of their kid's friends from (high) school.  It was a very fun, laid back night, and nice to get away - even if it was just overnight.  We spent the night in a hotel not too far from their house, got up on New Year's Day and went out for breakfast at a nice little place in their town.

Since then, we've just been living life, going to work, getting things done around the house,etc...etc...

We celebrated Zachary's first birthday this past weekend - yes, he turned ONE on Wednesday.  Can you even believe it?!?!?  It amazes me how quickly the year went by.  One year ago tomorrow (1/18) is the day that we brought him home for the very first time.  Looking back on it, I can't believe that he's been with us for a year already...it seems like it just happened.  Apparently time DOES fly!  ;-)

His First birthday party was a success and I think he had a great time.  We certainly did!  It was short and sweet (who the heck wants to spend hours at a one year old's birthday party?!?!) and I think that everyone who came had a lot of fun.

Here are some pictures from his birthday, as well as the party (Jim made all the cupcakes, which were crazy-good):

 

We also had a one year old photo shoot, with all photos taken by Barrie Smith Photography....as always.  :-)  Here are a few of those: