Happy Leap Day!

Yesterday me and Sienna went to open play at a nearby playgym. It was our first time. For $6 you can hang out in an indoor space for up to 4 hours, us and every other mom/kid in town! Initially it wasn’t so bad. Sienna is still too young to go climbing in the ball pit area but there were lots of mirrors and cushions and balls for her. It started getting more crowded with unruly kids but it wasn’t the kids that annoyed me, it was their parents! For the most part, the parents were keeping a watchful eye on their little ones, especially the one that had a crush on Sienna. She kept following her everywhere and saying how cute she is! I’m glad the mom was close by yelling at her to not touch the baby and not to kiss the baby. But after awhile, she was just getting plain annoying! Sienna didn’t really pay her much attention in the beginning but I guess by the end, she was worn thin and almost kissed her back! Then there was the kid that was running around coughing and not covering his mouth and then the kid snacking with only a quarter of the food getting into her mouth. Uh, hello, where is your mom? Kids snacking on food under signs that said “please no outside food.” HA

Well, I can’t wait for Spring!

pgmirrorccblog.jpgpgmirror2ccblog.jpgpgmirror3ccblog.jpg

And here is a cute video I took last week. Just leave me a comment and I will send you the password to view!

Maggie Monster from Lisa on Vimeo.

New obsessions

So last night I finally got to watch the movie Once (which just won an Academy Award for best song on Sunday). I loved it! At first watch, I thought it was cute and charming but as it sunk in, I started falling in love with it. I watched it again today with Sienna and while she was napping. I watched the extras and some commentary with the director and the 2 lead actors on a couple of the songs. I NEVER watch commentary! They will be at Radio City in May and I’m hoping to go. Now that they won an Oscar, they will be more popular than ever. Here’s the video of them performing the song at the Oscars Sundance (the Academy won’t let it be posted)! It’s a beautiful song!

Then on Sunday I finally got to meet eatsdirt aka Edwina who I “know” from flickr. She came over to take some vintage cameras off my hands. She was telling me about the “fight” between Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert and Conan O’Brien, which I haven’t seen. She sent me the link to her livejournal that posted the video. It was indeed a very funny video, as you can imagine with those 3 guys. But in looking at her other posts, it was this video that drew me!

Cracked me up!

A present from Aunt Natalie

Sienna’s Aunt Natalie sent her an early birthday present. A beautiful hand knit sweater! It’s such a pretty green color and has a cool lizard button on it. Apparently, Aunt Natalie just started taking up knitting last year and has been working on this sweater for some time. I can totally understand that! Knitting is harder than crocheting, which is why I don’t want to venture into it. Aunt Natalie, crocheting is easier and less time consuming! Anyway, she got it last week and I put it on her straightaway but learned that I had it on backwards. The button goes in the back, which is probably a better thing so Sienna doesn’t stick it in her mouth!

So, thanks Aunt Natalie for the beautiful sweater! It fits perfectly!

knitsweater1blog.jpgknitsweater2blog.jpg

And here it is backwards
knitsweaterwrongblog.jpg

Here is also a picture of Sienna wearing a onesie from her Grandma. It says Smile Mon! Jamaica. It’s so cute but it’s a little too short on her. It’s a 12 month size but it’s wide and short. I don’t know what kind of babies they are having in Jamaica but Sienna is lean and tall. LOL. But no worries, I’m going to make it into a t-shirt for her instead!
jamaicaonesieblog.jpg

Still hooking!

pinkscarfblog.jpg
My re-interest in crocheting has not yet waned and I was excited to try a different kind of scarf (for me) from a pattern at crochet me. I would have prefered a darker yarn but after first starting with black and then brown, decided pink was the easiest to deal with so I can see the stitches since I had to count! Skippy models it here:
skippyscarfmodelblog.jpg
I really liked how it came out and maybe I will wear it but would prefer to give it to someone who likes pink scarves so if you know anyone, let me know!

So I came across this really cute rug that I wanted to try. Quite an ambitious project for me but I really liked the colors and the cute flowers. It didn’t seem so hard after looking over the pattern so I bought all the yarn I needed online. I had a few problems in the beginning and wanted to get it right from the start so had to pull it out a few times. I swear I tried it like 10 times and couldn’t get it right so I wrote to Bernat with my problem. Well, really complaining that their pattern can’t possibly be right! haha! They made me realize I was wrong and I was counting a stitch that I wasn’t supposed to be. Look how many I’ve made now!
rugmotifsblog.jpg

8 more motifs to go! Here are a couple of close ups. Aren’t the colors great?orangemotifblog.jpggreenmotifblog.jpg
If I manage to finish this project, I plan to make this!

Auntie Weekend day 3

Monday was President’s day so Yves had off and we went out to Queens to visit very pregnant Aunt Tammy and Uncle Mark. Of course we stopped off at A.C. Moore (big yarn sale!), Trader Joe’s and the new Michael’s. Can you believe I did not buy anything in Michael’s? The lighting was really dark in there and I think the high ceilings didn’t help make it appealing but it was pretty big. Anyway, they let us gorge on chips and dip and grilled chicken and vegetables. And Tammy made brownies with a coffee icing. YUM! I think it was a pretty successful outting for Sienna as she doesn’t get to visit many other homes. We brought her booster seat so she can sit at the table with us.

triotake1blog.jpgtriotake2blog.jpgsippycupmarkblog.jpg
Mark is going to make a fine daddy!

Auntie Sharon

A close friend of my MIL, Auntie Sharon, was in town visiting with Liz and the girls before their big move. They came over for lunch on Sunday and will probably be the last time they are all over for a long time. I know Liz loves my chili so I made that for her and also tried out a new recipe for a lite carrot cake (made into cupcakes). Everything was yummy despite cutting my pointing finger and burning my pinky all on the same hand!

cutegirlsblog.jpg
The next time the 3 of them will be together, they will be soooo much bigger!

carrotcupcakesblog.jpg
Carrot cupcakes

talktogramblog.jpg
Talking to Grandma
siennalistenseliblog.jpg
Sienna listens intently to her older cousin’s wisdom.

I let Eli take hold of the digital camera and she took some very nice pictures:elilizblog.jpgelisharonblog.jpgelilivingroomblog.jpgeliskippyblog.jpg

Bumblebee Potluck

Saturday the bumblebees came over for a potluck dinner. Joy brought bratwurst from Milwaukee, salmon caviar and blinis. Ruthie made a delicious Greek orzo salad and DeeDee brought dumplings from Rickshaw. I made deviled eggs. I was going to make a ricotta cheesecake for dessert but since Joy had to leave early, I did not want to risk making it and having more leftovers. I really cannot afford to be eating a whole milk ricotta cheesecake on my own! Joy brought with her the Wii and 2 guitars for Guitar Hero. I never, ever played before but I got the hang of it pretty quickly! It is fun!! It probably is a good thing Joy left early or I might have developed a strong addiction to Guitar Hero. Denise and Ruthie also bought some cute outfits for Sienna and DeeDee also got her a new toy. Thanks guys!!

ghyvesjoyblog.jpg
Joy & Yves rocking out!

ghmeblog.jpg
The ultimate Rock Star!

skippyloveblog.jpg
Skippy gets some love from Ruthie.

clothespresentblog.jpg
Pretty clothes for Sienna!

deviledeggsblog.jpg
deviled eggs

orzoblog.jpg
Greek Orzo Salad
bratsblog.jpg
Brats
blinisblog.jpg
Blinis

I swear I thought I took pictures of the dumplings but I guess I didn’t!

excitedfortoyblog.jpg
Excited for the toy DeeDee bought for her!

ruthieandsblog.jpg
A hug for Ruthie!

The Smith and 11th Street bar

Wednesday night was the February mixer. We went to the 11th Street bar, a nice place albeit hot as the heat was blasting! I did not have a physical mix but I do plan on uploading one soon. So, I guess I will focus on the dinner beforehand! We went to the Smith. A newish place that took the place of Pizzeria Uno in the East Village (thank goodness! I never been to that one). I’ve read good reviews about the place so I was anxious to try it. Now that I think about it, I think I read good reviews about their brunch because I was a little disappointed in their dinner. Me and Joy shared crab hush puppies, which were quite good. I ordered the short ribs and it was lacking in flavor and was using the creamy dipping sauce from the hush puppies on my meat. Joy ordered the pork chop and she said hers was also lacking in flavor. Robyn got the vegetable bibimbop and she said it was good but keep in mind, she’s a vegetarian. LOL. I didn’t get a chance to ask Jonathan and his girlfriend and her friend about their meals. They got chicken sausage, gnocchi and avocado salad. They obliged me when I asked if I could take a picture of their food. It was a nice touch that they had bottles of water and sparkling water on the table, I can give them that! And I didn’t go to the bathroom but heard they have a photo booth.

Again, I apologize for the blurry pictures! It’s hard to stay focused with food in front of you! HA!

smithappblog.jpg
crab hush puppies

smithsrblog.jpg
my short ribs (dare I say they were short on flavor? HA I did!)

smithpcblog.jpg
Joy’s pork chop, it was pretty thick

smithvbblog.jpg
Robyn’s vegetable bibimbop

smithcsblog.jpgsmithgnblog.jpgsmithasblog.jpg
Chicken sausage, gnocchi and avocado salad

Dim Sum with Sienna!

Monday my parents took us all out to Dim Sum in Brooklyn. We went to Ming Gee. Although cheaper than Golden Unicorn, I found it to be a little bit more greasier. Still good tho! We took Sienna’s booster seat with us and she sat at the table.
siennadaddsblog.jpg
Let the eating begin!

sippycupdimsumblog.jpg
Sippy cup, chicken feet and dumpling. Perfect Dim Sum plate!

mumdaddsblog.jpg
Enjoying the food
cartladyblog.jpg
Hey lady! Over here!

pointdsblog.jpg
Did YOU get enough to eat?

Sienna gets cheated at Dim Sum!

Cheated at dim sum from Lisa on Vimeo.

Assorted Cuteness

gangupneoblog.jpg
Skippy and Sienna gang up on Neo.

grandpaplayblog.jpg
Skippy & Sienna have fun with Grandpa!

giantsouttake1blog.jpg
Giants Hat outtake

giantsouttake2blog.jpg
Giants Hat outtake 2 (of many). I call this Pope NY Giants!

giantsparadeblog.jpg
Watching the Giants ticker tape parade.

uncledressblog.jpg
Wearing the Christmas present from Uncle Kenny.


Please leave me a comment and I’ll send you the password for the video!

Assisted Walking from Lisa on Vimeo. Filmed on 02.03.08

Next Page »