Baby Rave

Long gone are the days where DJ Billy (now know as Daddy) is spinning at some dark, dank warehouse on the banks of the Cuyahoga from dusk til dawn and I (AKA Mommy) leave the party at 5am to go home and make us breakfast. A very pitiful, burned, sad breakfast, but the best I can muster after an all-night party.

Welcome to Saturday, April 12, 2008 2pm. The Velvet Dog. Yes, you read that correctly. The Velvet Dog in the middle of the afternoon. We roll up to the club in the minivan, automatic doors slowly open, and squeals of delight come from the 2nd row seats. It is time for Rock N Tots. A rave for kids. Three floors of juvenile delight and the two of ours are ready to p-a-r-t-y.

We headed for the 3rd floor since it is for the non-walkers. It was set up for loads of kiddie fun. Lots of soft play mats to sit on, a tunnel with a tent to crawl through--that was a favorite of both Reagan and Nolan-- and completing the scene were two diaper stations in the corner.

Floor 2 was where the "rave" was going on. The music was not set to "deafening" as it usually is in 'da clubs. Nolan and Reagan had fun trying to catch the lights as they made patterns on the floor. This is where I discovered that no matter how much a bar can try to clean itself up, it is still a bar. The kids hands, knees, and tops of their socks were filthy. Just as their mothers used to be back in the day. If you didn't know me then, lets just say that crowds overwhelmed me sometimes when I was a little tipsy (ok, downright drunk) and I felt safe being away from it all. Usually that meant taking up residence under a table. Don't laugh. I had followers. There were usually 4 or 5 of us under there at times. It was a new perspective and we got into some deep conversations under those gum-ridden tabletops. We solved lots of the worlds (and our own) problems there. I digress.

Here they are shaking their booties.....

The kids favorite part of the event seemed to be finding places to look at themselves. This is the thing they find really funny lately.

When the kids are older they will enjoy even more of this event. Our friends daughter got some tats, you could get your nails done, chair massages for moms and dads, and mini-facials. A little something for everyone. The bar was stocked with Juice Boxes, fruit, and little munchies. Pizza was provided by Bar Cento and Nolan was all over that. He practically pulled the piece I was eating out of my mouth. Good thing we are going there tomorrow night and he can make his own pie for Cook Chefin' With Cento Kids Night. There is a ramp pizza callin' my name.

Now back to scrubbing the dirt off of Reagan's leggings...... next time she will wear overalls :-)

Time Warp

I discovered that my timer was a casualty of the chili cookoff prep. Guess everything I cook has to be done in 20 minutes or less.

Now we know Bill can make time fly too!

Chili Part Deux: My Take

(Posted by Bill) First off, I'm not that bad of a photographer. While I do not have the artistic flair that Shelley possesses with photography (I'm more of a photojournalist), I've taken more than my share of photos over the years (heck, for quite a while, I was Abby-Normal's band photographer ;-). I'm actually more surprised that I didn't take two shots, just to be certain (anyone with kids understands this). To add insult to injury, Shelley left the camera, so that I could take some pix of the event. The camera went into my back pocket, and that's the last I thought about it. No pix of any of the other contestants, many of who are some of the area's great chefs that we're fortunate to know. The cook-off is such a fun event every year. So many people work hard to make it a success. Being held at "The Place Formerly Known as the Jake" makes it even more special. My Barracho recipe has been pretty stable over the past couple of years, with a little variation due to available ingredients. I swapped the pork shoulder with braised pork cheeks (thanks, Chaty!), along with chorizo (not homemade this year), and roasted peppers in pinto bean gravy. I had just enough corn bread pudding for the five gallons of chili that I served. I ran out just a little after 8p, and went downstairs to try a few bites of chili from Momocho and ML the Restaurant. Both Chefs Nolan Konkoski and Michael Longo turn out some of my perennial favorites. I also really liked the veggie chili from Mike Piazza (no, not the Met, but the chef, who I just met). Anyway, I had a pretty good feeling that I would win something, as the dish was pretty solid, and I was getting a lot of good buzz. Still, competition was really tough. Then, someone mentioned that I should "stick around". So, when the winner of amateur "non-traditional" was being described, I started smiling, as I realized it was me. Naturally, I was so absent-minded, that I didn't even set down my ice-cold Corona, and I'm holding it in the award photo with Diane and Brian, with the trophy behind us (d'oh!). I walked back, and started texting Shel that I won. I was in mid-text when I heard my name announced again! Best Overall Amateur. I was overwhelmed. At least I wasn't holding my beer in that photo! I then got to have a real celebratory beer (Commodore Perry IPA) at GLBC with RRBC Brewer Extraordinaire Matt Cole (who took 2nd Place, non-trad. with GLBC's own Luke Purcell). Matt shares an affinity for many of my favorite Cali Ales, including the "other" RRBC. Cheers, guys!

Outta The Park

Bill particiapted in the 3rd annual Greater Cleveland Chili Cookoff for Austim at The Jake (aka Progressive Field) Tuesday night.

This event was a grass roots effort that started through the food forum that Bill and I enjoy posting on. Bill has entered his barracho (drunken beans) each year. The first year he got an honorable mention for creative toppings. Last year, he won 2nd place- amateur.

The kids and I went down to the cookoff early. Bill made them "20 Mule Team Barracho" shirts and it was good exposure to a crowd since they will need to get ready for their birthday party very soon! They got to meet some people from the food forum and some chefs that "know" them just through our posts. It was a nice chance to personally thank these folks for their thoughts and prayers when Nolan was in the hospital. The kids enjoyed eating dinner in the terrace club. No, not chili! If only they could have gotten out of the stroller and touched all the windows!

The kids and I left early so I could keep them on their normal nighttime schedule (dinner 5p, bottles 6:30, bed 7:30p---hey, it is what works right now for us) so I didn't get to stick around for the results, but I was there when he was dishing barracho for the judges.

This year he changed the recipe a bit (if I tell you what he did, he'll have to kill me! LOL) When I tasted it, I knew he had a winner. It was excellent. I'm not a huge bean fan and I asked for a 2nd helping. He served it with my corn pudding and cilantro crema.

Around 9pm, I got this text message from Bill "make room for two trophies" Woo hoo!!!

1st place amateur and first place amateur non-traditional chili. The first place amateur trophy is SO beautiful. It deserves a place on display for sure.

The kids and I are so proud of Daddy!

This is why Daddy cooks and doesn't take the pictures :)

Nolan's Next Surgery

We met with Nolan's ENT today to discuss the removal of the "cyst" on his neck. The reason I put cyst in quotes is because the doctor is still not convinced it is a branchial cleft cyst. He thinks it is an accessory ear. That is right, an ear bud that never formed. It would actually be better for Nolan if that is what it is because it wouldn't go down as deep and removal would be much easier. If all goes according to plan he will pop it out and close the incision with glue or stitches.Without complications or the need for a drain, this should be outpatient, but an overnight stay for observation could be necessary. Nolan will have a small scar, but chics dig scars, right? It won't even come close to the big one in his head! Anyway, June 4th is the day, so do whatever you do to keep him in thought and prayer then.

Cough, Cough, Sneeze, Sneeze.....Again!

Reagan and Nolan are sick.....again! We have spent all winter passing this dreaded virus back and forth between the four of us. We took them to the doctor today and they got antibiotics. It is the first time either of them have been on them so we shall see how they do. There is nothing more pitiful than a child that can't figure out what is going on, can't tell you how they feel, or wipe their own nose! LOL Last night was an adventure. Nolan joined us first and was pretty good until around 3am when he decided he was going to play with Chandler. God bless that big old cat. He just sat there and let Nolan "pet" him (we are working on the petting motion, currently it more of a tap-tap-tap.) Then Nolan decided Chandler was a good pillow. The big kitty still just let him roll all over him. About 4am, Reagan couldn't breath and was crying in her sleep so I got up to get her and brought her into bed and propped her up in the boppy pillow Nolan had vacated. He was in Daddy's arms, but not happy anywhere at that point. He decided to climb over Chandler and Reagan to lean on me. Needless to say he and I were up rather early this morning and he napped for a couple of hours sitting in his high chair after his morning bottle. Wish I could say the same! Here's hoping they make a quick recovery!

All's Right With Reagan's World

While the Cuddle-Fest was going on upstairs, Nolan was eating a rice cake that was almost as big as his head!

For The Love of Sourdough

Last year when Bill was in San Fran for his work conference/vaca (yes, it is part vaca when you get to go and hang out with our friends, eat good food and drink great wine, even just for an afternoon or an evening) he sent home sourdough cheese wheels from Acme Bread Co. in the Ferry Building. If you've never had one, it has to go on your must-try list. Each bite is filled with sharp cheddary sourdough goodness. One is never enough!


Last year when the overnight express mail arrived I was pregnant......very pregnant.....with two babies. I opened the package and the smell of those cheese wheels turned my stomach. I was so sad. I tried to eat one, but the babies rebelled. No cheese wheel for Mommy. I never even told Bill because I felt so bad that he went out of his way to send them and I couldn't enjoy them. I froze them and tried after the babies were born, but as we know cheese doesn't exactly freeze well.


So yesterday I got a text message from Bill asking if the mail had arrived. I answered "Yes." He responded "Any packages." My answer "No." Damn USPS (sorry Bobabooey). Bill went out of his way to express mail a package overnight on Monday, for Tuesday delivery by noon. Nope. Didn't happen. I wasn't expecting anything since the only thing I told him to bring home for me was the burnt caramel confections from e Rechiutti. My cheese wheels were sitting at the post office downtown. Of course, it was after 5pm or I would have gone to rescue those pillows of cheesy wonder. Let me tell you, I called the USPS help line, and after spending a long time in their phone system hell, I finally got a person and gave them a piece of my mind! My cheese wheels were losing valuable eating time and now we have to go stand in line at the post office for a refund of the shipping cost!


There was a knock on the front door at 10am and low and behold, there was the man with my cheese wheels.


Excuse me, but the kids are napping and I've got to go. There is a sourdough cheese wheel calling my name.

New Food Find For Reagan and Nolan

The kids are very into feeding themselves these days. You can sneak in a spoon or two of applesauce or yogurt, but they much rather have something to pick up and pop in their pie holes. It also gives Reagan something to throw overboard when she is full, but that is for another post. (I love her so much, but she is a PISTOL! I have a feeling she will be my greatest challenge in life. Yeah, yeah, paybacks. I get it!)

On Tuesday, we went to visit Aunt Connie at work. She does hair at the local nursing/assisted living home. Aunt Connie loves Reagan and Nolan just about as much as their Grammy does, so everyone at the home "knows" them. Especially Adelle. She thinks they are her grand kids. She keeps pictures of them on her bulletin board in her room and talks about them all the time. We've never even met Adelle..... until yesterday. Chalk it up to doing a good deed for the day because it made my heart happy to see Adelle's face when she saw Reagan and Nolan. She just kept saying how adorable they were. Reagan really put on a show too. She did all her dance moves and made faces. Nolan clicked his tongue, but he was sleepy so no show from Nolan.

Reagan and Mrs. Adelle


After driving around while the kids napped (hey, gas is $3.20/gallon, but you do what you gotta do!) We stopped at Longo's for a bite. I love their meatballs calzones and salad. Nice garlicky meatballs. The kids usually get a grilled cheese or chicken fingers, but I saw that they had cheese ravioli on the kids menu so I thought I'd give it a try. What a mess, but they LOVED them.

Nolan with a booger of ricotta





That's right....rub it in!



Reagan liked the sauce....really she did!



For those of you that enjoy the many faces of Reagan....... here is a good one!

No Joke, It is WINDY Today!

So we walked to the library today..... that's right, the kids are walking!!!



HAHA April Fool's!!! Why walk when you have Mommy to push you around. Actually the wind pushed us most of the way. We have a wind advisory for up to 40 MPH today.



It was warm this morning, temps are supposed to start falling around noon, so we headed up to get more bedtime story books and to register for our Thursday morning story class. We skipped last session because of Nolan's surgery and me not wanting to drag them out in the middle of winter.



This morning Nolan looked up the stairs and I swear he said "Where's Daddy?" He "says" a lot of things that sound like actual words. He was "talking" to Aunt Deb yesterday about our swimming class and she said swim to him and he said it back. He also seemed to repeat the REALLY bad (yes, the F--- word) when Mommy dropped the top of her steaming hot tea pot on her thigh this morning. I was not quite awake since I had another vomiting cat incident in the night.....this time it was Jeepster. Luckily it was only once, but it was enough to wake me from my sound sleep and then I couldn't go back. I was rolling around that bed like a pig in a blanket. I learned that our mattress sucks and it has two distinct sleep spots with a very high spot in the middle. Guess we should turn it more often!



Saying Hi to Daddy this morning



Watching water blow in the puddles



putting their heads together to scheme

First Home Opener!

A first I forgot!

Babies 1st Indians Home Opener.

This used to be a big deal in our household. Bill had been to every HO for years. We took a break one year as a trip to Puerto Vallarta overlapped opening day and being 7.5 months pregnant with twins last year, I opted out.

During the game last year, I was envisioning that in '08 we would dress the kids in their Tribe gear and head down to the JAKE, as a family, to check out the brick we bought Daddy for Father's Day in the Heritage Park.

That is not happening.

First, we forgot to get tickets and it sold out in like 5 minutes. Second, it is not the JAKE anymore :-( Third, Daddy is in San Francisco. No family experience happening today. Since it is supposed to be a nicer day, I actually thought about taking the kids downtown just to experience the Opening Day Atmosphere.

Who am I kidding.

After being up half the night with a barfing CAT --not kid---CAT, and going to gym and swim at the Y this morning, I'm not going to be up for dragging these kids anywhere! We'll send Grammy out for some baseball game food and sit in front of the TV... for the 5 minutes the kids will allow me without wanting to climb all over me. On second thought, maybe I will take them to a restaurant so I can actually see an inning or two! LOL

Anyway, GO TRIBE!!! I'll probably end up catching the score on the news, if I can stay awake that long. Please, no barfing tonight Chandler!

I set up some templates in photoshop last night and had hoped to get some good pictures of Reagan and Nolan in their outfits. I guess I need to lower my expectations of "good" photos of 2 10-month olds! LOL Here are some outtakes :)

So Many New Things

It seems like a switch got turned on inside Reagan and Nolan in the last couple of weeks. They are really trying to communicate. Reagan started clapping and hasn't stopped. Nolan began making these noises with his lips and tongue, that neither Bill or I can duplicate. They both figured out how to crawl up the stairs. Yes, gates are being installed ASAP. Nolan is getting faster and faster at furniture walking and Reagan let go of both my hands for a brief second and stood before grabbing back on.



I'm trying to work on the kids 1st birthday party invitations. I've got it pretty much how I want it and I just need a "now" photo of the kids. I got them dressed in their birthday onesies the other day and tried to take a decent photo. Reagan has started this new thing and when she sees the camera she wrinkles up her nose and face like she is smelling poopy! EVERY.SINGLE.PICTURE looks like this. Help me!!!!!


On a somber note, my cousin JoAnne's brother-in-law passed away this week. He was 47. You'll remember that JoAnne lost her husband, Joe, a couple of years ago and he was barely 40. No mother should have to bury two of her sons. Just a reminder to hug your loved ones a little tighter tonight since you never know what tomorrow will bring.

Go Ahead, Have A Good Laugh

On Friday we became one of those people. The people that used to drive nice cars until they have children and then suddenly, a rolling jumble of storage compartments, power doors, and 18 cupholders suddenly become cool.

Yes, we have become mini-van owners!

I have to say, while it is nothing special to drive, the Dodge Grand Caravan is really nice and comfortable. It has a ton of storage and the middle row of seats fold completely into the floor. Another feature I find really awesome are the tailgate seats. The rear seats turn around and you can sit in them when you are tailgating or at the drive-in. These will come in handy when we go to Browns games this year..... and we will be going to more than the one game we went to last season!

Don't worry, there is no way in Hell Bill will ever give up being a Porsche owner, so when the urge to really DRIVE a car hits, we can still do that. (Bill adds: damn-straight, skippy. I gotta admit that it rides well, there are no hauling issues with this thing, it has a LOT of features including free Sirius for a year, and between the tier-I supplier discount and a wheelbarrow full of rebates they practically PAID us to drive it off the lot.)

Easter was awesome this year!!! The kids had a great time, we shared the day with my mom, Sam & Deb, John & Jan, and Joey. The food was fabulous. From the $120 ham we had for a starter (Bill adds: that's $120 a pound Iberian ham, that has a texture like butter), to the panettone bread pudding, it was all SO good. I had to take three pictures to get all of the food in. The kids looked so cute dressed up, they ate a little bit of everything, and they played with all their new stuff. An all around wonderful day.

Kids all ready for Easter

The next three are compliments of Ed Chuey. Uncle Ed and Aunt Eleanor are both great photographers and they caught some cute moments between Reagan and Grammy, Nolan and his ears, and Reagan being Reagan.

Easter Morning

Stuffing, grilled asparagus w/balsamic reduction, honey-mustard glazed turkey

smoked kielbsa, bread, cheesy corn bake

braised cabbage, ham, and amish style mashed potatoes

Easter Greetings

Not Impressed With The Rabbit

They didn't cry, but they didn't crack a smile either!



Reagan was busy pulling her ears off and once those came off she started going after the real ones. Nolan tentatively touched the fur, but quickly drew his hand back.




Easter is the last of the "first" holidays for the kids. That makes me very sad since we will probably not experience first holidays ever again. I guess we could celebrate some lesser known days to get a few more "firsts". For example, National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day , Hug a Newsman Day , No Housework Day ,Pig in a Blanket Day , Hug an Australian Day , National Shrimp Scampi Day.

Bill adds: There are a few more Holiday "firsts" that I have been waiting on, with gleeful anticipation

4/11 International Louie Louie Day

4/30 Beltane / Walpurgisnacht (an alternative to May Day, which will never recover from its preemption by the commies. All those bolsheviks out there banging their shoes still don't get it).

Also, today, a very Happy Snowman Burning Day to you!

Happy St. Patrick's Day