Cece Can't Sleep

brothas

Marik rang in the New Year with much chundering.  Seriously, it began at midnight and lasted all night.  He's pretty much been sleeping since then -it's now Sunday night.  Good thing he likes Special K with Red Berries because that's all he has eaten.  Nolan got some of it,  but not to such a severe degree.  Its the first time any of us has been sick for the better part of 6 months.  Anyways this just happened....

Mike carries Marik into his bed, he's been zonked since 6, its now 10.
Mike: G'nite Bubba.
Marik: G'nite Dad.
Nolan (from the other room): G'nite Bubba.
Marik: DONT call me that Nolan, SHUT IT!!!!

He doesn't miss a beat. 

if you havent heard already...

all (ok, most) of our Christmas cards are being returned to me.  I went to the post office to see exactlyit would take to mail each card.  I gave him my card, told him I had 60+ identical cards and I need to know just how much to put on there.  He told me normal postage would be sufficient.  I bought my books of stamps, affixed, threw them in the slot and was outta there.  Christmas Eve and the day after Christmas brought a stuffed mailbox full of MY OWN CARDS!  All with a 'need more postage' sticker on them.  I guess it really needs 64 cents to mail my cards. 

Could that BE anymore annoying?  I think not.

My handmade cards are really the only tradition I have at Christmas.  I make 100 of them.  I overspend because I horrendously misjudge the materials needed, I buy the wrong stuff, I cut the paper out too big/small.  It's a flippin' process, Im tellin ya.  15 hours and counting on this years card prep.  I cried to Darby and my mom telling them to tell me not to do this again.  But then I came to the point in the process when the cards started to look like cards and then I was all happy again.  Even planning out next year's card.

I do like the fancy website ordered cards that have great layouts, I do.  They're impressive, I like how you can fit so many pictures on those cards.  And maybe handmade is a dying art, afterall, mine are the only ones I've seen this year.    

So..I hope you get one from me eventually.  I dont play the I-only-send-to-those-from-whom-I-receive game.  Sometimes people get their panties in a bunch over that.  I pretty much send cards to all the addresses I have my hands on.  I can already count about 20 families that I am missing addresses for.  Which really chaps my hide.  Its my own fault.  However, I did start a database of addresses on Outlook last week.  Finally I can get rid of those pages of wide ruled notepaper I have been relying on. 

If you dont get a card, tell me about it and I will get one out with proper postage.  I have 40 cards that need homes.  And once those are all out then I'll release the summer family photo shoot hostages and update all of my online profiles.  

oh, p.s., if one of my cards made it to your home, please let me know in the comments - was it intact?

The hat

We finally found Marik a Santa hat.
The best part is that it's made of satin and we found it at Victoria's Secret!
Playa!

It's like I'm a Neanderthal

In preparation for 48 kid free hours in CA, I decided a pedicure and manicure were in order. My fingernails are natural and I trim them using my teeth. With zero skill in nailpainting, my fingernails go bare. Since I was getting the manicure, I decided to heck with it, might as well put some color on them jagged claws of mine. I chose a dark burgundy. No shimmer. Know what? The color keeps catching me off guard. For instance last night, I was snacking on some pomegranate arils and I kept trying to EAT MY FINGERTIPS because I thought they looked just like my food.

Greenbacks

This is what was on my bedside table when I woke up to the other day. Mike left it for me before he went to work. It was for gas and a pilates class I signed up for at the gym.
The day before, I woke up to $25 in singles on my bedside table. Now THAT one made me laugh.

Can You Be Trusted With A Chocolate Advent Calendar?

Most people can't.  We were just discussing that yesterday with a neighbor who gave us one.  It's so true!  I remember having those when we were growing up.  My sisters and I had to share one.  Why this was, I will never know.  Why didn't we each get our own, what are they, a DOLLAR? 

Tonite our Elf On A Shelf makes his first appearance.  He was so difficult to find last year in the stores, and this year he's all over the place.  Dont have a clue what I'm talking about?  Educate yourself here. 

This year they added Elf plushies as well as a dark skinned Elf.  So cute.

                                                      
 

See how my Christmas Card rack needs some fillin' up?  Yucky Iphone pics, I know.

Also threw up the Decor Elements Christmas Countdown (Stampin Up, I can order you one).  I placed it on the bottom half of our front door so the wee ones could have something at their level.  p.s. Mike says we are getting a new front door as this one is all sorts of yucked up, can I hear a YAYYYY?!  

Because I don't follow application directions, I had the pleasure of picking out ALL of the polka dots out with my thumbnail.  And yes, I plan on fixing that area on the bottom where the vinyl doesnt go with the flow of the door panels.  

But now, now I have to find my advent house.  It's somewhere in the garage, in a box.  Mike did a heckuva job organizing the garage this weekend.  The goal is to park my car inside sometime this month.  You are all welcome to come pick thru boxes of crafts, stamps, home decor, Longaberger baskets.  Ok, I'll probably want to sell the baskets, but the rest...free.  It isnt junk, its just that going from a 5300 sq ft home to a 2200 sg ft home, well, we dont need to be stumbling around it all. 

BTW, it is 12:26 am and Nolan just woke himself up to try and eat the first chocolate.  Yep, looks like I'll  be needing 4 more calendars.   

still cuckoo

I generally welcome the time my kids spend off-track.  But this first week (of 3) has thrown me for a loop.  Not once did I take a nap.  You may say, boo-hoo I dont feel sorry for you.  Let me make my case...Mike and I go to bed between 12:30-1:30.  And lately we cant seem to get decent rest.  We're up at 6 going to the gym and getting Al and Nolan up for school, etc, etc.  So, yes, I take a nap during the day.  But this week has been wrought with morning commitments and naps just didnt get taken.  And to some degree I almost felt like I didnt need them as much.  I also ran quite a bit this week, and I wonder if thats another reason I didnt nap.  All I know is my Aden+Anais muslin napping blankie doesnt even recognize me anymore.  

After weeks of trying to get together with my cousins for lunch, we finally made it happen.  Normally I am not afraid of having to take my kids to lunch with my friends.  They're pretty well behaved and if not, I get all drill sargeant on 'em and everything's good.  This time, not so much.  There was myself and three cousins, who each brought one of their kids.  Their kids were really good, stayed in their seats, ate nicely, or slept.  Mine made me a little nuts.  I became that mom who lets her kids walk (ok, run) around willy-nilly.  I usually hate that mom.  Marik even grabbed Val's chocolate covered strawberry off her plate and ate it.  I even let them play with my iPhone in an attempt to corral them to the table.  And you know what they did?  Made videos of themselves fake injuring themselves.  

Gwen wasn't a problem that day at lunch.  The last few weeks she has been crying on a daily basis, missing Nonna and Vittoria.  Since it has become a very regular thing for her, I will probably look to see if there could be a different way for us to help her with her grief.  So sad. 

She also breaks down in tears when she hears songs.  I might have mentioned that she can barely listen to Michael Buble's slow songs.  Which I kinda sorta can get that.  The kicker was when she totally cried as Kelly Clarkson's My Life Would Suck Without You came on!!   "This song just touches my heaaaaaarrrrrttt." slobber slobber snort snort. 

Tonight Gwen couldn't seem to find anything to do.  Everyone else was doing their own thing and relaxing.  We gave her endless ideas of things to do but she really wasnt interested in them.  She preferred lounging on all of us.  It was not fun after 20 minutes.  And then a miracle happened.  The phone rang.  It was Rory and Natalie calling...for GWEN!  Could she spend the night?  I had her packed in 3 minutes flat!  Gwen told Mike her plans about 5 times.  She's been gone for an hour now and only called once (so far).  "Does Daddy know where I went, I dont want him to worry."  Oh, Gwen, we are all aware of where you are, trust me, nobody is worried!  

I celebrated Gwen's sleepover with a huge bowl of Cap'n Crunch.  Now I am sick to my stomach. 

It's That Time Again....

Oh Sweet Sadie is at SoDa Row in Daybreak.

See you THERE!!

It is my dream to work at this boutique. Dani, you listening??

Before I implode from kid overload....

It's been a mind numbing coupla weeks.  Here, laugh at my pain.

Originally we were supposed to be on 'vacation' this very moment.  Borzoni family vacation consists of this..

*drive 750 miles to CA, straight thru, 7 of us in the Suburban.  (Up until this latest trip, its been pretty tolerable, thanks to DVD players, Nintendo DS and the miracle that is the iPhone)

*7 of us stay at Mike's dad's place with a dog that, upon getting the slight bit nervous, piddles on the spot.  That being said, its great that we have a place to stay.  The kids get to spend time with Paolo, Mike's dad, and that's what we are there for.

*Visit with family and friends.  If we can convince anybody to visit with us at Sky High (trampoline wonderland) or Great America or Dave and Buster's, then we consider that a double bonus.

*At some point in this trip, I am able to escape alone for a few hours and my sister Cari drives up to troll the grounds of my alma mater, Valley Fair and it's satellite campus, Santana Row. 

We still have oodles of friends and family in the area and you might wonder why you haven't seen us when we are in town.  It basically comes down to this.  If your name ends in Borzoni or Marchini, you will probably see us.  If you have ever been to Utah and stopped to see us, then you will probably see us.  This is not to say that we dont want to see everyone.  We do.  But when we have 6-7 days, two of which are spent traveling, we have to be very selective with our time.  The trips where we drive all over to meet up with a ton of friends, make for a fun but super exhausting 'vacation'.  We are still learning how to vacation as a family, and even though we would love nothing more than to go somewhere relaxing, we have a hard time skipping visits with Mike's dad and family.  Plus, I grew up visiting Utah as my vacation.  It was dandy, dont get me wrong, but we hope to expose our kids to more of the country as a family. 

Ok, so you probably know that our vacation didnt turn out as planned.  We ended up going to CA two weeks early for Mike's nonna's funeral.  Which meant that trip turned out to be our vacation. 

Here are is an interesting snapshot of some of the events.  

*ate ourselves silly at the first Jack In The Box we came to.  Winnemucca.  Tacos, curly fries and Oreo Shakes, come to Momma.  I can feel the acid in my throat as I type

*Attended a 5 hour long viewing and rosary for Nonna at the mortuary.  More Jack In The Box.  Finished up the night at In-N-Out.  Upon arriving at the viewing and seeing Nonna in a casket, Marik sobbed for 30 minutes straight.  At the end of the rosary Gwen took her turn and howled.  Loudly.  The amount of time they both cried took us by surprise. 

*Attended the funeral for Nonna where Gwen continued with the howling.  Only stopping for the limo ride where she got to guzzle Pepsi.  We let the grand kids ride in the limo.  On one of the legs, the driver took off with just the kids inside, no adult.  That was funny.  

*Two nights we spent at Mike's uncle's home.  One night in a hotel.  Hawthorne Suites.  Very nice.  I will return, they had free laundry.  The other two nights we stayed with Sharon, Jerry's mom.  This is where it gets spicy.  The first night we stayed there, Marik threw up all over her couch, and tried to blame it on the dog.  It was so bad that not even Sharon's dog would lick it up for me.  The second night Nolan scared Sharon's dog so badly (NOLAN!!) that the dog was jumping around squirting pee and shooting pellets of poop, he was so scared.  Later that evening Gwen semi-woke up and threw up in MY suitcase.  I feel so badly, poor Sharon welcomes us into her house and bodily fluids are all of a sudden out of control.  Sharon if you are reading this I really, really hope you were able to get someone to properly clean the couch.  Send us the bill.  You are an angel. 

Did I mention that while we caused all that ruckus at Sharon's place it was her BIRTHDAY?!  Yeah, we're classy like that. 

*While we thought we might stay longer, we ended up heading home early.  Mike had totally tweaked his back while jumping at Sky High and since the kids were taking turns passing the vomit crown around, we called it quits and drove home.  The kids weren't really ill, per se, but we had been eating out every single meal.  And..since we left early on November 1, the kids didn't eat any of their own Halloween candy, thus pigging out on candy from our CA friend's stash. 

*Our kids have become so horrendous and nutty when we all drive together (near and far), that Mike and I vowed to not make the trip in a car with all 7 of us for a VERY LONG TIME.  You would not believe the goober/noobicus behavior that comes out of these kids when we are all in the car.  Even NOLAN!!  Yes, Nolan.

I have lots of pics from the trip.  I'll post them later. 

And so, one week after the trip, I am at my limit with kid's jokes and the like.  I don't really see any relief in sight in the near future.  Today I made cookies and I know that a piece of the butter wrapper went into the batter.  I didn't even remove it.  I am that far GONE.  I weighed in today and hello, that was crappy.  I went to pick up at carpool and all the kids had left school early.  I went to pickup an online order because I was too cheap to pay for shipping, and the joint was closed.  There was a lot of traffic and I brought Nina, Gwen and Marik along and WOW was that insane.  Not the Nina part, but the Gwen/Marik part. 

Yesterday was Mike's birthday.  The kids had a good time telling him he was turning 12 for the third time.  We had hoped to eat dinner with friends of ours but it didn't work out.  So Mike thought we should take all the kids to Tepanyaki.  It was a good idea at the time.  But Marik got all Wolverine happy with the chopsticks.  We ordered 3 adult meals and 1 kid meal for the kids to eat and I think they ate about 2 total.  We listened to Michael Buble's new cd on the way home (birthday boy loves him some Michael BUBBLE) and Gwen cried because the songs 'touched her heart'.  Since my mom zip drive is at capacity, I was annoyed with that.

I just got a text from my niece Kylie saying they are coming over.  That means some temporary relief is in sight.  If you havent found any of this post funny yet, here are two quotes to tickle you.  

Gwen says to me, "The pilgrims came from Mouse-and-Cheez-Its."  Girl knows her geography. 

and from Marik, "That is a 'mean toad' (nematode).  They live in the sea.  They will eat anything.  Even pineapple houses."  See, Spongebob CAN be pre-school curriculum!

  

500+ pieces of candy

Full size candy bars have jumped in price this year. I usually give out full size Nerd Ropes, Tangy Taffy, Nestle Crunch, 100,000 Grand, Butterfinger & PlayDoh minis (weird I know, but some of the kids get so excited over that). Wasn't sure how I could pull it off this year with the higher prices and my tiny, Barbie sized wallet. And then I hit upon a great idea. Soda! I picked up root beer, orange and Cherry Pepsi for $.30 a can. And I was able to find the candy bars at $.40 a piece. $.15 over previous years. We had 161 pieces of candy/cans of soda. We were cleaned out by 8. The soda went super fast, so next year I'll really stock up- good thing it was the cheapest, hafta put that in my Halloween primer for next year.

This was the little(r) kids' haul. I love to take these pics just to see how much they collected. Biggest take home so far. Nolan went with friends in our old neighborhood. That area is heavy on the full size candy bars. Think he got 5. There is also a home over there that opens up their garage, throws in picnic tables and serves up hot dogs and drinks all night to the trick or treaters. I absolutely love that.
Nina and a friend scored their own full size bars in our new neighborhood. And she said that there was one house that made you do 5 creepy things in order to get a bag of chips. Scaredy cats could pass and walk with a tiny piece of candy.

My own Halloween goodies came from the mall. I took my five kids and also my two nieces to the mall to pick up some clothes for the kids for the funeral. It wasn't as crazy as you might think. Between Allison, Natalie & Kylie helping me choose the clothes, and Nolan and Nina wrangling the other two-it really worked out well. Between the 8 of us, we gathered the needed items lickety split. We even bought stuff from the Sephora vending machine, COOL! Ok anyways, some ladies were passing out free kid meals for Chilis and TGIFridays. I think we amassed about 15 free meals. That was my Halloween happiness.

While at the mall I ran into the nail salon to get my eyebrows waxed. They stopped short of of scalping my eyebrow skin. Some seriously scalding wax. Blisters. On my eyebrows. Above and below. Lesson learned.

I have a few pics of the actual costumes that I'll upload later. Right now, I have to pick up some dress socks and undershirts for the boyzzz.