I am guessing he will be "that teenager" who sneaks out his window at night without me knowing.

I just came upstairs to check my email and Cohen was sitting at our computer desk, watching Nemo. How a two year old knows how to navigate the computer well enough to find Nemo and click the right buttons to start it, is beyond me. He was supposed to be taking a nap, I guess he had ideas of his own.

If Ryan Seacrest would only work one job like the rest of us, maybe our unemployment rate wouldn't be so high.

The guy is everywhere. E!, KIIS FM, AI, New Year's Eve, restaurants, clothing lines, the Emmy's, the Oscar's, the Golden Globes, the Grammy's, America's Top 40, the list goes on and on. I don't think he sleeps, ever. So the other day when I was listening to him do his morning show on KIIS, I had to hand it to the guy, I was entertained. He does this thing on his show he calls, "Ryan's Roses". I guess there is a form on his website where people can sign-up to be on-air, all in the hopes of catching their significant other in a lie/cheating. First of all, who in the world would sign up for something like this? I guess all those people who go on Springer to confess that they are cross-dressing-transgendered-sleeping-with-their-cousin-cause-my-father-was-never-in-my-life-kind-of-people. Crazies I tell you.

So back to the sting. Ryan has some girl that works at the station call the suspected cheater to offer him a free dozen roses to be sent to whom ever he chooses, no strings attached. She says she is trying to promote her flower business and that he was the lucky winner! Yippee! She doesn't need a credit card or his address, just the name of the person he wants to send them to, and a note. Sucker (Joe)......

This is all going on while Ryan and the suspicious wife/girlfriend (we'll call her Jill) is on the line listening in. On this particular call (and I've heard many) the wife had signed up because her landlord had called her to tell her she had two weeks to find a new place to live due to the unpaid rent. She hadn't suspected a thing prior to the landlord calling her, but now she knew the money was going elsewhere.

Florist: I just need a name and a note.
Joe: Ok, um, send them Sara.
Florist: Sara, ok, and what do you want me to say in the note?
Joe: Um... Say, I love you and only you and I can't wait to go on our cruise.
Jill: *(@#)(*&%#_$) WE HAVE THREE KIDS!!! (*@_)(#* SO THAT IS WHERE THE RENT MONEY HAS GONE, TO A CRUISE? UN$+_)* BELIEVEABLE. DON'T YOU %+@_)# COME HOME YOU%&!+)). WHO IS JILL? WHO IS SHE? SHE IS THE ONE YOU CARPOOL WITH ISN'T SHE? (@&$&!*%*
Ryan: Joe, as you can see, I have Jill on the line, you're on air with Ryan Seacrest... Who is Jill?
Joe: Who is this?
Ryan: Seacrest.
Jill: *&@#)%*&_@)#($*_)(*@#_()*_)!)!)
Joe: Ryan - can you see what I am dealing with, Jill has problems, she is a total nutjob.
Jill: How could you do this to us, we have 3 kids, what you were just going to take our rent money and leave us, without a home, with nothing, and go off on a cruise with this girl? How could you do this Joe? HOW COULD YOU DO THIS???
Joe: Jill, I wasn't going to leave you without a home, I am paying the rent tomorrow, I am figuring it out. I don't want to talk about this right now, we will talk later.
Ryan: Bro, how could you do this to your wife? And you're kids?
Joe: Dude, she's crazy. I can't take her anymore...
Jill: )@(#&%_!+__#$__)!(_#)(_#))$*&*%*$*(%($)$)$_! (you get the idea)

My jaw was on the floor. I couldn't believe that he actually fell for it. I was sick to my stomach for that woman, but I have to admit, I was entertained at the same time. What intrigues me the most is that he pulls it off time and time again and people don't recognize the set-up from the beginning. I searched for archived audio files but I couldn't find any...anybody out there suspect their spouse of cheating because Ryan can help!

Baseball Mom

Because I will never (hopefully) be a soccer mom.

Ethan has officially started little league baseball. This is his first organized team, probably the first of many. My life has forever changed. From now on it will be filled with practices, games, and laundry, but I can't wait to see which sport Ethan enjoys the most. Of course Eric would have him play football and I, basketball, but for a diabetic I think baseball is a good choice.

The DODGERS first meeting:
(there are 3 little league teams - all from CA: Padres, Angels and Dodgers)












Three Amigos: Mason, Jacob & Ethan

If it's 6:00, then Eric is asking what's for dinner

Eric was very well taken care of as a boy. Diane loves to cook and Eric was direct beneficiary. He was used to a hot meal every night, and sometimes even for lunch. So, in 1999 when I took the reins as Eric's primay food preparer I came to the realization that it wasn't going to be cereal or Ramen for dinner and defintiely NO PB&J's allowed. Was I crazy to buy into this? Probably, but I am always one for a challenge and I like to cook as well so it really wasn't that diffcult. Jump ahead five years, Ethan in tow, me working full-time, let's just say it got a little harder - and at that point Eric was kind of used to "good eats". So, I signed up for Martha's Everyday Food when it first came out (because, you know, I am a Martha addict) thinking it would help me be more efficient with my meal making. I loved the recipes so much that I started cutting out the ones that I tried and liked and laminated them for future use. I guess Eric was missing some of the recipes since we've moved in with the Brown's because on Sunday night he sat down with my books of laminated recipes and started assigning recipes to the days of the week.

Sunday was Italian Post Roast.

Monday was Meatloaf with Mashed Potatoes & Spinach with Bacon.

Today was Chicken Curry with Peas & Cashews.











I am a big fan of having a menu in place. I hate it when 6:00 rolls around and I am starring into the fridge, hoping something will jump out at me. What I like even more though is that Ethan has liked everything that I've made. If only I could get Cohen to eat something other than Spaghetti O's or Mac & Cheese.

Ethan's D-Day

4 years ago (on Saturday) Ethan was diagnosed with Diabetes and this year we decided to celebrate the day and reward him for being so brave and responsible with his diabetes. He really amazes me with his patience and understanding. He doesn't question why he needs insulin, or why he can't eat certain things... he just goes with it. It makes my job a lot easier because he doesn't fight me when it comes to his condition - and for that I am grateful.




















The day was left up to Ethan - he chose to go to the beach with my Mom, eat lunch at Wienerschnitzel, and then go bowling. He got decked out in his JDRF t-shirt and the hat he got from his pump company. He was pretty excited. I can't believe it's been four years.

Sideways

Cohen has become the worst-sleeper-ever. He is on this weird schedule of going to bed at 8:30, waking up at midnight only to come and get in bed with us. If I am still awake at that point I always bring him back to his own bed, but if we're asleep and too bugged to get out of bed to redirect him, he just ends up falling back to sleep in our bed. Now, we have a California King bed so if he were a normal child I wouldn't even notice him next to me, but since he is the crazy-erratic-worst-sleeper-ever that he is, he always ends up like this in our bed... sideways, feet in my back with his head resting on Eric. This has been happening for at least three months now. I've even tried those door knobs that you put on the handle so that they can't turn it...THEY DON'T WORK. He figured it out in like two seconds and on the off chance that he doesn't quite grip it just right, he manhandles it until the thing snaps in half and falls off. I need any and all advice. I could vacuum under Ethan's bed while he is sleeping and he wouldn't wake up. HELP!

Who are you and what did you do with Ethan?

Ethan:  Mom, if I mess anything up you can scream my name and I will come up and clean it.

WHAT??

Sorry if I'm the only one that found this funny.

Ethan (while driving in the car): MOM, CAN YOU PUHLEASE TURN OFF THE HOTNESS BACK HERE?

Thanks Terminator

Taxes. Yuck. This is the first time in three years that I have even bothered thinking about taxes.... no income = no taxes. Oh, the good old days, living on student loans, racking up debt, oblivious to real life. Good times. When I was single, working lame jobs, I was always excited for tax season because I always got a refund. Always. And this year I was hoping for the same - mainly because with the sale of our house, and all the student deductions we have, moving expenses, etc... I was secretly wishing for a miracle check to appear in our mailbox. Enter, Gov. Arnold. He has managed to run California's deficit into oblivion which has resulted in higher taxes and lay-offs for many. Oh, and one more thing... he has said there is no money in the budget to allow refunds to tax payers who have overpaid. But don't worry he says, the state will issue IOU vouchers. Really? That's nice of you. Vouchers that will likely never amount to one cent. So, my question for the Terminator is (in case I owe on my taxes); Govenor, well, I know I owe you lots of money in taxes right now, but see, I just don't have it, sorry, my husband really needed to buy a car, and you see, I really can't afford to pay you, but I have an idea, I will give you this IOU, here, I'll even sign it and promise that I'm good for it, you believe me don't you? My guess is that it doesn't work both ways.

New favorite

I bought this nifty guy at Christmas time and today was the first time I used it. I love it! It works really well. I made snickerdoodles which is really sticky dough and it did the work for me.  For all those bakers out there that love their Kitchenaid - this is a must have.  

I'm speechless.

Ethan: Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for this day, thank you for mom, dad, cohen, grandma, grandpa and me. Thank you for my friends and my toys. Please bless we can have a good Halloween next year. Please bless we can have a good Christmas next year. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Trauma

Last night I was making dinner for the fam and wasn't paying attention and totally burned the tip of my middle finger. I think it has to be one of the worst kitchen burns I have ever had. I couldn't take it off ice for longer than a few seconds before it started throbbing. So, Eric gets this genious idea to go to the office and get some Lidocaine to numb it. He had to hurry because I had to leave for YW (yes, I have a new calling) in a few minutes. Now, I am not a wimp. I can take pain. I've had multiple IVs, three epidurals, the list goes on and on.... so I was thinking, it couldn't hurt half as bad. OH MY GOSH, I was so wrong. I was balllllling. Eric shoved that needle in my finger, past the blister and into the tissue below it. Then, he pumped it full of Lidocaine which added to the fluid already building in the blister. It was the most painful thing I have ever experienced. AND after all that pain, it didn't even help. It is still swollen today and it is hurting to type this. I think I am officially changed - I don't know if I will ever be able to let Eric give me a dental injection again.