Spring Is Finally Here!

For some reason, this winter seemed to drag on, even though we didn't have that much horrible weather... I think maybe it had to do with the bad economy, it was just too much, too overwhelming to think about combined with the dreary, cold, gray weather. We're thanking our lucky stars the sun is BACK and enjoying it as much as we can right now! Here are some new photos from the end of winter/ early springtime~

March- Starting her own fashion trend?

All the COOL kids are doing it...

Well, I guess if it makes you happy! And yes, we went out in public like this. Don't judge ;)


I love this next set of pictures but I figure I should give credit where credit is due... I had no part in the taking of these adorable photos, it was one of those (blessed!) nights when hubby offers to cook the meat on the grill, saving me time and energy... So they were outside playing and grilling, and I was inside doing sides and washing dishes, but he stuck his head into the window and told me to hand him out the camera because she was having such a good time... All of these ones were taken on 5/4/10.


Peek a boo!


In deep concentration...


Those croc boots are her absolute favorite shoes lately. I know a lot of people aren't big fans of the Croc brand, but I love them because she can put them on herself, they are easy to clean, and they have all different styles now! It doesn't hurt that I always find super deals on them, either ;) I believe I paid $7.99 for those boots, with shipping? Pretty awesome. I just got her a pair of Croc maryjanes for the spring and summer- I figured her feet would get pretty sweaty running around in rainboots once it gets up into the 80's and 90's, but you have to admit, they look pretty adorable even with shorts :)

I do have a few more posts in mind that are coming up. And yes, I know I haven't been keeping to my 2-posts-a-week goal since I posted it... I also know excuses are just that and aren't worth anything, but I am working on it! Between planning her party, having her party, Mother's Day, visiting, and then me feeling like crap-ola these past two days (horrible cold!! ugh!) and barely being able to think straight, I haven't gotten to it. But I will! Easter pics and Ilyana's 3rd Birthday post coming up soon... <3 ~Mama Rugg

Our Life Lately- Catching Up

A couple of photos taken in November 09 (yes I am behind!) the night we were putting up our Christmas tree.

I have been horrible about updating the blog and taking photos lately. The other day, Bendy, you looked at me and you looked like such a girl... Not a baby, not a toddler, but a girl. It makes my heart ache to think that I have only taken a few random photos in the past few months, and have missed so much I could have documented about this time in your life... but I guess all I can do is try and be better about it now that it's come to my attention.

It's been difficult lately with life flying by at its usual rapid pace, and on top of that, there are a lot of changes that may be happening in our life soon and your Daddy and I have been trying to prepare for them. With thoughts of these big upcoming shifts constantly knocking around in my head, the worrying, the stress, the wondering if everything will pan out how we hope... Well, it's been taking up a lot of space in my brain and I haven't had a lot of time to focus on other things besides work, keeping the house in order, chores, shopping, and the changes. I know I am not being specific here, but these are big changes and there isn't a lot more I can say about it here until things are finalized and I am sure what's happening. I want to be sure, and ready to take the leap, before we announce what's going on.

You have been in a bit of a mood lately, it seems like maybe the proverbial "terrible twos" are starting a little bit late for you. Or maybe, I'm hoping, it will just be a SHORT phase and only last the next few months. Whatever it is, you've been a little button-pusher lately, always testing boundaries, being bossy, not wanting to share with the other kids at daycare when you bring a toy with you, yelling and interrupting and well... TESTING. You are feeling out the boundaries for what you can get away with and what you can't, what you can control and what you can't, and whether or not you can get a different answer out of one parent than the other gave you. It's certainly trying, but then you inevitably pull out all the cuteness stops and get us right back on your side with that smirky, beautiful little smile. When I was brushing your teeth the other day, I did notice you had a molar in there that was only halfway through your mouth. I thought we were past the two year molars already (yeah, I know, shiteous parenting, I maybe should know whether or not my kiddo has all her teeth yet, but really, give me a break, she's my first and I don't know exactly how many teeth kids are supposed to get! *ahem*) but I guess I was wrong. I'm wondering if perhaps the crabbiness and bossiness has something to do with the molars...

Last weekend, during a particularly frustrating shopping trip which included you running around the grocery store like a maniac (I had let you push the mini-cart to keep you occupied, which worked out great in the beginning but backfired on me towards the end when you were too tired to listen or pay attention to where you were driving the damned thing) and rolling around on the dirty floors in front of the other customers on a SATURDAY (aka one of the busiest shopping days at the grocery store), I heaved a heavy sigh. You knew you had been bratty and you immediately knew I was just tired and on my last leg that day, and you looked up at me and said "Mommy. Look me in the eyes. I'm very worried about you, and I'm very sorry." It pretty much made me melt, and made the whole day seem a little bit better. You know just the ways to cheer me up, even when you're the source of the frustration in the first place :)

Your birthday is coming up pretty soon, and I've already booked a spot at Chuck E Cheese for the party. We haven't done one of these at-a-location shindigs yet, but you had so much fun at the last few Chuck E parties you were invited to, and enjoyed it SO much, that we thought this year would be a perfect time to try it out. I've already sent out invites and we're hoping it will be an incredible time for you. You deserve it, sweet pea. Daddy and I haven't decided yet if we are going to tell you about the party being at Chuck E's or if we'll just tell you it's your birthday but let the Chuck E part be a surprise... I wish we could know what you'd like better. Funny story: when I was turning three (I think? Mom? Is that right?) I begged for weeks to have a surprise party. I don't think I really knew what it meant, just that it would be fun and all my friends would be there, and I certainly didn't realize that asking for a surprise party kind of defeats the purpose. But Cey-Cey managed to pull it off, had sent me to Bushka's house the night before and nobody had told me it was my birthday. When Bushka brought me home and I was greeted with a loud "SURPRISEEEEE!!!" at the door by my family and friends, I was terrified! I screamed and ran and hid under the stairs in the hall in our apartment complex, and it took a lot of coaxing for Cey-Cey and Pep to get me back out. I wouldn't want to freak you out like that! So we'll definitely let you know it's your birthday... But I'm thinking you might like the special surprise of Chuck E Cheese more if we wait until we get there to let you know that's how we're going to celebrate.

I have a few new(er) pictures that I have managed to take over the past few months that I keep forgetting to upload onto the computer. I am going to try and get those up here soon because god, you are growing so fast... and I really want to keep this going so you can look back someday and see how loved you were and how much we enjoyed all of our time with you. No matter what changes we go through as a family, no matter how worried/ stressed/ preoccupied we become with other things, THAT will never change. You are the light of our life and you make me smile each and every day.

I Heart Faces Week 8- Messy Face!

This is only my second week participating in I Heart Faces. And I have to tell you, I heart it. heh. I know, I'm so witty.

You can participate in, or see other entries, at the I Heart Faces website. Just click my little link on the site name. :)

This week, they singled out us beginners... Which in one way, I don't like- because I can only enter one photo, not one each for kids and adults, like last time. But I guess this balances out, since they asked that if you enter, you be open to constructive criticism. I would be more than grateful for any suggestions or help all you more experienced photographers could offer! Have at it... Just be nice, please :)

And now, here is my entry for the I HEART FACES Beginner week "Messy faces" category:



As mentioned above, please feel free to offer any help and/ or information on what you would have done to improve the picture. I am not great in photoshop (if you're experienced, you can probably tell!) but I did play around with this photo in there to try and punch it up a little. I desaturated the background and tried to brighten up her face some... What do you think?

Edited to add: I really should learn my lesson, trying to change font size within my posts. It always changes a ton of the post, rather than just the sentence I'm going for... And then I can't get it to revert back. DOH! Sorry the text at the top is so miniscule.

Oscar Meme

Oscar Meme on a Monday...

I stole this from MamaDawg, who stole it from MAW. I guess there's been a lot of snatching of this meme going on.

Here's the idea. You bold (or color differently, or italicize... however you roll) the movies that you've seen. Of those listed. Which are all ones that won Oscars. Get it? Got it. Good.

Let's see how I do. I claim I love movies... Hmmm....


1980. Ordinary People, Coal Miner’s Daughter, The Elephant Man, Raging Bull, Tess

1981. Chariots of Fire, Reds, Atlantic City, On Golden Pond, Raiders of the Lost Ark

1982. Gandhi, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Missing, Tootsie, The Verdict

1983. Terms of Endearment, The Big Chill, The Dresser, The Right Stuff, Tender Mercies

1984. Amadeus, The Killing Fields, A Passage to India, Places in the Heart, A Soldier’s Story

1985. Out of Africa, The Color Purple, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Prizzi’s Honor, Witness

1986. Platoon, Children of a Lesser God, Hannah and Her Sisters, The Mission, A Room with a View

1987. The Last Emperor, Broadcast News, Fatal Attraction, Hope and Glory, Moonstruck
1988. Rain Man, The Accidental Tourist, Dangerous Liaisons, Mississippi Burning, Working Girl

1989. Driving Miss Daisy, Born on the Fourth of July, Dead Poets Society, Field of Dreams, My Left Foot

1990. Dances with Wolves, Awakenings, Ghost, The Godfather Part III, Goodfellas

1991. The Silence of the Lambs, Beauty and the Beast, Bugsy, JFK, The Prince of Tides

1992. Unforgiven, The Crying Game, A Few Good Men, Howards End, Scent of a Woman

1993. Schindler’s List, The Fugitive, In the Name of the Father, The Piano, The Remains of the Day

1994. Forrest Gump, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Pulp Fiction, Quiz Show, The Shawshank Redemption -Guess this was a good year for me! lol...

1995. Braveheart, Apollo 13, Babe, Il Postino (The Postman), Sense and Sensibility

1996. The English Patient, Fargo, Jerry Maguire, Secrets & Lies, Shine

1997. Titanic, As Good as It Gets, The Full Monty, Good Will Hunting, L.A. Confidential

1998. Shakespeare in Love, Elizabeth, Life Is Beautiful (La vita è bella), Saving Private Ryan, The Thin Red Line

1999. American Beauty, The Cider House Rules, The Green Mile, The Insider, The Sixth Sense

2000. Gladiator, Chocolat, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Erin Brockovich, Traffic

2001. A Beautiful Mind, Gosford Park, In the Bedroom, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Moulin Rouge!

2002. Chicago, Gangs of New York, The Hours, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The Pianist

2003. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, Lost in Translation, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, Mystic River, Seabiscuit- I put Master and Commander in green because I never finished it. We thought it sucked- hard- and shut it off about a half hour through. I don't know if that counts or not... haha

2004. Million Dollar Baby, The Aviator, Finding Neverland, Ray, Sideways

2005. Crash, Brokeback Mountain, Capote, Good Night and Good Luck, Munich

2006. The Departed, Babel, Letters from Iwo Jima, Little Miss Sunshine, The Queen

2007. No Country for Old Men, Atonement, Juno, Michael Clayton, There Will Be Blood

2008. Slumdog Millionaire, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Frost/Nixon, Milk, The Reader


Not too bad... Considering I was a young'un for most of these years... Born in '83, so really you can't fault me too much for missing a lot of those early ones.

What about you? Have you seen a lot of Oscar winners?

Friday Fill-Ins #16

1. I'm funky, I'm fresh, I can blog just like the best!

2. Why do I have a Scion and not a family car?! (I ask myself this every time I have to HOIST that little girl up into her seat while the front seat slides dangerously back into my legs and butt, almost taking me out. It's not a lot of fun. But I know the answer... Because I chose it, and now I'm stuck with it! At least for a while... *sigh* At least it's a reliable car, and cute, to boot.)

3. How does this silly document protection crapola work, anyway? (I ask myself as I try and complete some more training for work...)

4. Every morning, I put perfume on my body... Clothes were such the obvious answer, I had to think of something else.

5. I consider myself lucky because after eight and a half years, my husband is still my best friend, we are still in love, and we are blessed with an amazingly intelligent and beautiful little girl, who completes our life.

6. One day we’ll see Europe on a dream getaway together.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to maybe stopping by a friend's house to say hi and then going home to chill, tomorrow my plans include working out, cleaning, dancing with my girl and starting to pack and Sunday, I want to do more of the same!

You can find other Friday Fill-In participants HERE.

Wordless Wednesdays #18- Around The Park Plaza Hotel...

You can find other Wordless Wednesday participants HERE.

Random Tuesday Thoughts

...You know, because I'm not random enough as it is. Ha. Ha.

...oooh man, I crack myself up.

*Illy is going through a phase right now of discovering her emotions. She has been doing a lot of the fake whiny-whiny lately. The kind where she sits in the backseat (or next to you on the couch, or hanging off your leg) and goes "ehh.... weeeeehhhh.... meeeehhhhh...." until you look at her and ask, oh so nicely, "Honey, what's wrong?" And then she has nothing to say. Or tells you something like "The train stopped." ...Uh... Really? No way.

*She hit her elbow the other day and hurt it, so I called her over and said, "Come here and let Mommy kiss it and make it all better"... So she came over, I kissed it, we agreed it was all better... Then she ran over to her Dora trike and slammed her elbow down on it again. "Ouch Momma, ouch, make it better" and came back for more magic kisses... and again... and again.... and... yeah... you get the point.

...Not that I am complaining about any of this. It's pretty cute to see her figuring these things out. Although, the fake whiny whiny? I'm not a big fan.

*I am baffled at her verbal prowess. Yes, you read that right. She has prowess. Of the verbal sort. She blows my mind all the time, coming out with words I didn't even know she knew yet, making whole sentences. The other day she said to me in the morning as I was busily packing lunches- "What you doing, Momma? You makin' the foods this morning?" Did I mention she's not even 22 months old yet?!?! Is it too early to declare my child a genius?

She also came home from day care the other day singing Mary Had a Little Lamb, which we didn't teach her. Of course, she did learn "Boom, boom, aint it great to be- CRAZY!" From me. Cuz that's how I roll.


*I need new undies ass covers and bras tit slingers. Thanks for reminding me, Kia....

*We went to give our new landlord our deposit for the duplex. They are soo nice and they really like Illy. I have a really good feeling about this place... I hope for this to be the last time we move until we buy our own house :) That would be so nice. Moving ever year (or more) is really no fun. Seriously.

*Our new TV came. Boo-yah. And I actually don't feel guilty for treating ourselves to this right now, even though it's not the best time... Because we just spent thousands paying back debts we've owed for years to improve our credit scores. So I think we deserved it.

*My husband does feel guilty. They just laid off two more people at work. The same day our TV came. He said he felt like a shmuck, even though he knows he shouldn't, because it's not his fault... and we did need a new TV and deserve one. It's just hard to enjoy something special like that when (a) you're worried how much longer before it's your job being let go and (b) you know there are TONS of people out there right now just worried about making ends meet.

*I have a banana today, but I forgot my peanut butter. I don't think I'm going to eat it. Plain bananas are not nearly as exciting as PB ones.

*My little tweet-bird (yes, another nick name for her, I know) didn't want to let me go this morning. She was clinging to my legs and hugging me with all her might... she didn't even want to get down and play with her best friend or go to her Dada. It made my heart break into a bunch of little heart-shards. :(

That's all I got right now. If you liked this, or have some random thoughts of your own to share, visit The Un-Mom to grab the button and play along!

Luxury Lounging

As mentioned in my last Friday Fill-Ins post, we got to spend this past weekend in the Presidential Suite at the Park Plaza Hotel. Let me just tell you.... this place was FABULOUS!

Ilyana was, of course, right at home. She ran around and played the piano butt nekkid as if she had been living this way her whole life. She must have been royalty in a past life or something, because I was totally in AWE of this place, and here she was, acting as if she belonged there at one year old.

Friday night, we arrived, parked, and got ready to go out to dinner sans Bendy... We don't get to do that too often, so when Mom offered to take her, we were totally there! We walked to the restaurant, an awesome asian place called Jae's... Got a couple of good pics on the way, but my ass almost froze off so we decided to take the T on the way back. Well, I should say ATTEMPT to take the T. See, we got on the wrong line, and we thought our stop was the first one... turns out it dumped us two blocks over from where we should be and only about half of the distance back to the hotel. So I still froze my ass on the way back, too. Seriously. I thought I was gonna need a butt amputation or something. But I survived... Here are some cool pics from the walk:

A little bit of red, white and blue we spotted on the skyline...

Random street block

Hubby plays with the camera in a sidewalk mirror

My artistic alley find

When we were done with dinner and our freezing walk, we went back and relaxed for the night. We didn't want to try and cram too much into one night and get run down... Plus, how often do you get to relax in a suite that EVERY PRESIDENT since the 1920's has stayed in?!?

Yeah, me neither.

The suite was A-freakin-MAZING!

Here is one of the sitting areas in the living room space. There's Bendy in the middle, just for a little perspective. The bar is right behind her...

Here's a closer view of the bar, with my Stepdad David!

Well, hello again, David. I see you are sitting in the OTHER living area. tee hee.

The grand piano which sat in between the two living room sitting areas.

And here is the dining area.

Here is a shot of the kitchen/ bar area. Yeah... I hope my kitchen looks this chic someday! Notice the fruit plate and petit-fours they left us? They left something new for us to eat every day. Yum, yum! Check out some of our goodies:

Everything they served us was so fancy-shmancy! Will re-arranged some of it to get this pretty lil shot.

Spring water in wine bottles.

Truffles... mmmm....

Almost all of the food they gave us, like these nuts, was in edible containers. This one is made of peanut brittle. You can see from how much of it is gone that is was oh-so-good.

More and more fruit!

The suite had three bedrooms and five bathrooms. I don't know why, but we didn't get any good shots of EITHER (that's right, we had two!) of our bathrooms, and we only got this of our bedroom, which isn't very impressive to look at if you could have seen the WHOLE space:

I do have to say, though, that compared to my bed... This IS impressive. haha.

We made sure to get some shots of each of us sitting at the desk in the private office in our suite.We couldn't go without them, knowing that past Presidents had probably sat there to make some important executive decisions. Who doesn't like to feel big and important?

Bendy sitting at the big, honking, GORGEOUS desk which I am pretty sure had a leather inlay... Niiiccceeeee...

Some very important business...

I just love the face he is making! Like he is trying to decide whether to deploy the troops or not... Or maybe he's just trying to stifle a toot... hmmm...

Fancy offices make one feel very high-class, you know.

Oh, look! I can put on a pretty face when I try!

I had to be a little wacky.

This was our view from the living room, both at daytime and at night. Personally, I prefer the night-time view.


Day:

Night:

And here are just some more cute pics of the Ruggle. I got a few great ones of her looking down into the marble floor... She thought there was a baby trapped in there at first, because she could see her reflection. She found it very amusing...

I see you, baby!

And we, of course, found her amusing... As per usual.

Hamming it up for the Grumps.

Sneaking spicy cocktail mix leftover from the party the night before...

Saturday, we took Ilyana to the aquarium for the first time. It was fun... But it was SO crowded that we didn't even get to look at some of the exhibits. People were pushing past us, and it took about twenty minutes just to get back to our locker. So yeah, note to self- next time, go during the week. I think the girl was a little overwhelmed, because she didn't want to touch the animals in the tide pools and it seemed like she was more excited about getting back on the T (which she loved!!) than seeing the fish... fishes... Yes, they are both words. The aquarium says so.

Ilyana especially loved the jellies! This was one of the least crowded parts of the aquarium, so we got right up close to the glass with them. Some of them are so beautiful...

Funky glowy jellyfish!

We also liked it when Mr. Turtle in the big tank swam right up to our glass!

But not so much Mr. Scary Eel. Although Illy seemed less freaked by him than I did.... What?! He's creepy!

We just thought this *star* fish was cool. Is that what it is?? I don't know... it has a lot more arms than a typical starfish...

Nifty shot Dada took of the tank looking up.

And a little ray, too. I didn't even see him. I guess Dada Rugg has a better eye than I. heh.

I've always loved the penguins! They are so cute. Illy thought it was funny that they were taking a *shower* (they have mist sprayed onto them from nozzles.)


After the aquarium, the girl was due for a nap, and Dada Rugg decided to pass on shopping in Boston with the ladies... hmm... wonder why...
They went back to the suite for a much-needed nap and relax, while Mom and I tromped around Boston for another few hours. I do have to say, though, that our shopping trip was lacking. I couldn't find what I was looking for, and it took us forever to find my Mom's stuff! By the end, we were beat and our feet were saying "ow, ow". So we went back to the room. I couldn't wait to relax around the nice room, and sort of felt bad for my Mom, who still had a long night ahead of her... She had the big awards ceremony for NEPA to attend and afterwards, a cocktail party in our suite. So she had no time to rest! Her and my Stepdad got all gussied up:


Don't they look so nice?

Smiling on the outside, but inside... Her feet are saying OW, OW.


And went off to their big awards ceremony.

Of course, Mom had to come back a while later, after I had gotten the Bend up and bathed and ready, to give her some lovin' and bring her downstairs to show her off at the dinner...



I just love this photo! *Pats self on back*

Oh hello Momma, are you going to let me go to the awards ceremony? Pretty please?

So off went the Ruggle to show herself off and suck up to the peeps. They all loved her, of course.

This weekend was really amazing- more than I could have expected, a once in a lifetime experience to be treasured always.

Thanks again Mom and David! You. Guys. Seriously. ROCK! :) Love yaaaaaa....