Today was work, hot yoga and American Idol. I was terrible at yoga. It's only my 2nd time in a month. Prior to getting the flu, I was going 3-4 times a week. Today felt as if I was starting all over from the beginning. I guess today is the first day of the rest of my life and I am willing to start over.

Baby steps. One day at a time.

Poor Mitchy is working late again tonight.

Let's see, what interesting tidbit of life can I share with you today? Oh, I know. Last night we got home from our Seder and we had a message on our machine from our friend Phil. Phil was the teacher when Mitch and I attended a finance course at the church by our house last year. Phil was a teacher and a basketball coach, maybe a principal too, I forget now...and then, he was diagnosed with a brain tumor. His surgery was successful, and he is fine. More than fine. Phil is awesome! ...but he had to stop working for a while. Years have passed, and now Phil is working at St Paul's Lutheran Church, where he is very involved, has loads of friends and teaches again! Yay! ...and we were lucky enough to attend his class.

Phil ran the Dave Ramsey course, Financial Peace University. He told us stories, made us laugh, and brought us together as a whole. By the end of the 13 weeks, instead of 30 people in a room, we became a Thursday night family. Mitch and I hope to attend the course again, when his work load goes down a bit. We love the people we met at class too. If we weren't Jews, St Paul's Lutheran would the place for us! At least we met some terrific people and we made some wonderful friends.

New Years Day, Mitch and I hosted an open house. We invited lots of different people. Ya know sometimes you have a get together for your "work friends" or there could be a party for your "girlfriends" or family, possibly even a lunch for the people in some group, book club or church you attend. ...but it's not often that all those people, people you love but who are from different parts of your life, get the opportunity to mingle together. Well our New Years Day party was just that! A mix of all different types of people, all of whom we adore! Phil, our teacher, sat with Grandma Mildred and her friend Muriel, and Aunt Rena (from last nights Seder), and my boss too! All people we love, together. It was awesome for us. Phil's beautiful wife Charlene, wasn't able to make the party, she was under the weather at that time. We missed her.

Anyway, back to my story. Last night Phil called to invite Mitch and I to attend an Easter play at the church that he was going to be in. How sweet of him to think of us! We really made some nice friends, and we learned some financial stuff too! :) Sorry we can't make the show Phil, but here's to you! Break a leg!

Today's picture is a Jim Shore gift that we received from Phil and Charlene. It's Noah's Ark. How beautiful. Look at all the detail. Love it! ...we are so thankful for our friendship with them.

Tonight was our 2nd Seder.

Aunt Rena and Uncle Stuey invited us over to their house. They are the best cooks ever! (Not including my mom and dad!) There were only 9 of us. We had Schnitzel (breaded chicken cutlets) and teriyaki salmon, along with zucchini, potato latkes (pancakes) and some kugels, veggie and matzoh. Yummolicious!

We had all the fixins' of a real traditional Seder. We all read from the Haggadah, dipped our bitter herbs and ate our Charoset. I used to dread the long Seder readings, and only counted the time 'til our food was ready to be eaten, but lately, as I get older, I savor the time with family, and enjoy every minute of our traditions.

Fabulous food! Wonderful company. Thank you Wasserman Family! xoxo

A terrific time was had by all!

Quite unlike my neighbor... who undoubtedly had a pretty rotten time when he got home.

Rut Roh!!!

Hag Sameach

Tonight begins Passover. Passover is a Jewish holiday and festival commemorating the Hebrews' escape from enslavement in Egypt. Matzo, an unleavened flat bread, is eaten in remembrance that the Israelites left Egypt hurriedly. http://hirr.hartsem.edu/ency/judaism.htm

Mitchy and I met his parents for dinner at "Poppies" tonight. I gotta admit, when we pulled up and saw all the people, I was a little scared. It was crowded around the door and every mad, crotchety, old, up north person, that was able to stay awake after 7pm, was there.

It actually ended up being very nice. It was only crowded cause we couldn't go in until all the real early birds, who had dinner at 5 , left the restaurant. Once inside, we had a nice booth for 4 and it didn't really matter who else was in the place. The food was good. Service was fine. All around I'd give it a 7. I still like a nice family holiday in the house, even if we bring food in, but we all work and no one really wanted to do it this year. Well, maybe next year. Hopefully, Sloaney and the boys will be here and we can have one of the Seder nights with them too!

Speaking of the boys...today was Brandon's surgery. Surgery went well. After he woke up, he was in a lot of pain, poor thing. They gave him some meds and he's doing a little better now. I hope and pray that this is the first step to a better life for him. I love that boy. ...and that whole Gillman clan.

Gma sounded terrific today. She had showered and sounded strong. She's an awesome lady. I am so glad I know her.

Thanks again for all your prayers for my loved ones. They sure helped! :)

To all my Jewish friends...Gut Yom Tov.

Don't eat too much matzoh! You won't poop for a week.

Hag Sameach (HAHG sah-MEHY-ahkh) Hebrew.

Literally, joyous festival. This is an appropriate greeting for just about any holiday, but it's especially appropriate for Sukkot, Shavu'ot and Pesach (Passover), which are technically the only festivals (the other holidays are holidays, not festivals) http://www.jewfaq.org/express.htm

Quiet Sunday

Yo yo yo my people! Waz up????

Oh Goodness. See what happens when you don't leave the house all day? Oh my. I've gone batty. Let's see...last night's movie "UP", very good! It's an animated kids movie but it was a nice story and it was GORGEOUS! Lots of color. Me likey color.

Today I still have a headache, so I slept 'til 11 and no yoga. I ate a 1 point bagel thin for breakfast, with some Brummel and Brown spread topped with Boarshead Lacey Swiss. I had soup for lunch (Progresso. 1 point per serving, but I ate the whole can...so 3 points) and left over spaghetti for dindin.

I actually went out 3 times today. Once to say bye to Mitchy as he left for work. Of course our friends Chelsea and Dustin stopped by as I was in my pj's. Oy. Then I went out to the backyard and moved some furniture around. And I was out once to walk the dogs. Other that...on my spot on couch. I called Gma, mom in law left me a message, I texted the boys and Michael...other than that, I was alone with my pups and peaceful all day. What a life.

One can only watch so much television, so after 2 hours of RUBY and 3 hours of HOUSE I got up and decided to clean out the make-up and jewelry drawers in the bedroom. Whoa. That was some mess.

Here's a picture of my bathroom drawers before...

SIDE NOTE: My floors are not filthy. Each of the porcelain tiles have a pattern on them, they just look like dirt in the photo. The drawers however...filthy.

And here are the after shots...

All organized now...beautious!!

My jewelry is kept in this gorgeous imported hand carved writing desk. It was a mess. It collected a bunch of things that didn't belong and it was time for a cleansing.

Nice!

I know...the frames are empty. Part of cleaning is the chance for change.

Let's see who ends up in the frames! Out with the old...in with the new.

Tonight we turned our lights off from 8:30 - 9:30 local time in an effort to help the environment. Climate change poses a serious threat to our lives, the lives of wildlife and the natural habitats we all call home. World Wildlife Fund seeks to protect those threatened by climate change and through Earth Hour 2010 you can learn more about how you can reduce the effects of climate change now and protect our entire planet’s future. Every little bit helps!

We also went to the mall, got my car new tires, ate lunch at Grand Lux and shopped! Wheeeee. Came home about 8pm, just in time to sit in the dark. Warmed up some leftovers, and sat on the couch. Now it's 10pm and we're putting in the dvd. Tonight we're gonna watch "UP". An animated film that won lots of Awards this year. Last night's movie was "Beyond a Reasonable Doubt" with Michael Douglas. Hello! Awesome. Rent it. NOW!

Spoke to Gma. She's tired but doing ok. Lab results will be back on Wednesday. I'll keep you posted. Thank you for all the prayers and good wishes. Hope y'all are enjoying your weekend.

Here's a picture of us, sitting in the dark.

Tonight on the news there was a story on how this is the worst season ever for allergies. Maybe that what's been going on with my headaches. They've been terrible. I made an eye exam appointment for next week anyway.

Today was the lumpectomy for Gma. Things went as expected, and as long as she heals well, everything should be fine! Yay! I'll feel better when I speak with her tomorrow. Until then. Creative visualization. :)

...next up. Brandon's surgery on Monday.

Oy my aching nerves.

Mitchy and I were home tonight. He has laryngitis, so we stayed in, ordered in Chinese food and watched Gordon Ramsey's Kitchen Nightmares. This weeks show was about a little Italian place we eat at a lot. Anna Vincenzo's. Right here in Boca Raton. Crazy! We can't wait to go back there since he fixed it up!

That's all I have to report for tonight. Hope everyone is having a great weekend, and as I tell my son every Friday, enjoy the weekend, but always remember to "make smart choices!"

Good Shabbos! Love, hugs and peace.

Creative Visualization

Not much to report today. Got a beautiful e-mail from Uncle Bob. He loved his blog shout out. I think Michael liked his too. I worked. Had another one of those horrific headaches from 2 weeks ago. Came straight home after work. Had some pasta. On the couch now with the pups. Mitch is working. The boys went to NJ today for 12 days.

My friend that I told you about last week, the one who is touched with breast cancer, is going for her surgery tomorrow.

Brandon, my oldest neph, is having his gizzard surgery on Monday. :(

Please think good thoughts and send some love their way.

Back in the 80's, I read a book titled, Creative Visualization by Shakti Gawain. http://www.shaktigawain.com/booksandmore_title.php?ISBN=1-57731-229-5

She tells us that if you believe in something enough, and can actually see it in your head, it can happen. Tonight, I choose to believe that. So I will be picturing Gma and Branny up and about and feeling better than ever! I hope you will too.

Thanks!

Love you.

Hello! Today was ...you guessed it. Work. Had a fun day though. Bossman took me to lunch. BlueFin. Only the BEST sushi ever. Had a Boca Roll. Crab, avocado, papaya and mango with brown rice. Also had my favorite spicy yellowtail handroll, brown rice, no scallions, add avocado and cucumber. Perfection. After work went to the Bro in laws place and had dinner with him and my beautious nephs. Also, my sisters oldest friend Eric joined us. (I think I joined them. I believe Eric has dinner with my boys on Wednesdays...Oh well. Aunts trump friends.) It was nice. Me and all the men. On a side note, I just finished watching American Idol from my DVR, and Letterman came on. Joan Jett is singing. She looks and sounds AMAZING!!! OK, where was I? Marc took us to the club. I had a yummy beet salad and red snapper en papillote (in paper) with julienne veggies. So good!!!

So every day I start my blog off with, "So, today was work..." or something like that. So I thought that today I should introduce you to the man that gets to enjoy most of my goodness. Hey! I said ENJOY! :) He might beg to differ. I have worked with Michael since 1985. He says, "You can get out of jail for murder in less time." ...but I think he's kidding. Michael is a financial genius, who specializes in municipal bonds, and I am his muse. ...FYI ...I did not say amuse. I said Muse! The following is blatantly stolen from the www.dictionary.com website.

Muse

  –noun

1.

Classical Mythology.

a.

any goddess presiding over a particular art

Michael hired me when I was a 25 year old single mom of a 2 year old boy. My family lived in NY and I was alone in Florida. He took me under his wing and he helped me get back on my feet after losing my job. He gave me a chance and I have appreciated it so much every day since then. I have worked my ass off to prove that. :) Over the years we have gone from co-workers to friends to family. We have been together for our weddings, and divorces. Our babies being born, their brises, bar mitzvahs, driving tests, and graduations. We were there for each other for about 10 puppies, 20 new cars and about 8 new homes. He is the most important person, (non-family member of course), in my life. There's not enough good to say about this wonderful man. (Except that he reads my blog ;) ) So, without any further ado, please let me introduce you to my boss, friend, confidant, Michael. I love you man!

Picture is stolen too, from technologytranslated.com Thanks guys!

There goes my raise!

Here's the real handsome Man. Greatest guy in the world.

Did I mention, he pays for my yoga? Love him.

Uncle Bob

Finally! Feeling better and back in action! Today was work. Then my friend Katie and I came home for lunch. We had Boarshead All American Chicken sannys on 1 point Arnold's sandwich thins with Boarshead Lacey Provolone cheese and a delicious spinach salad, and of course, water with limes! (Katie's favorite!) I forgot to mention, (selective memory) I GAINED 2 pounds at weight watchers last night. Whah! So back on track and tracking my points.

Work was great. Then I made it to Yoga! Yay! I can't believe I only missed 2 weeks. It felt like 5 months! So glad to be back on schedule. For dinner I had leftover spinach salad with leftover whole wheat pasta with broccoli, red peppers, and shrimp. Yummy.

As for today's photo, I have a little story. Ya know when two people fall in love and decide to spend the rest of their lives together and they get married...then, just like that, their family becomes your family and well, a whole new life begins. Sometimes you get lucky and sometimes, well not so much. I my case...I got very lucky. And today's story is proof of that. Mitchy (and now I) have this unbelievable Uncle Bob. Uncle B lives in Mendocino County California. He is just the most interesting guy. He knows so much about everything, but not in a showy way, just in a nice, kind, smart way. Uncle Bob is down to earth. In the real sense. He loves nature. He likes to bird watch. Loves to Kayak and adores the wildlife he sees along the way. He hikes, he volunteers for crisis hotlines, and Greenpeace. He loves wine and he loves music. ...and he is the BEST hugger! Uncle Bob is one helluva cool guy. Last time he was out here visiting us in Florida, we started talking about some of the music he listens to. He mentioned "Papa Dukie and the Mud People". After his trip I looked it up on the internet and found that "Papa Dukie" was the name of a song by the group "The Subdudes". I researched some more and found the lyrics. I sent them to Uncle Bob. We had a chuckle through email. And that was it.

...or so I thought.

Guess what came in the mail today?

Yup you got it! Our very own the SUBDUDES cd!

Even better than the fact that Uncle Bob thought of us while he was at a concert, is the fact that the music is really awesome! It's very 70's yet modern. It's rock yet country. I really loved it! Anyone who is into music they don't play on the radio, look up "The Subdudes" and see if you like them. They are pretty awesome, just like our Uncle Bob! http://www.subdudes.com/news/

Also, my best friend Lauri turned me on to Marc Broussard. He reminds me of them. Very cool. http://www.marcbroussard.com/home.cfm

::mental note to self:: Tell Uncle Bob about Marc Broussard.

Extra picture for today...Our Uncle Bob!

See the cute little pup on the right? That's Cosmopolitan Gillman. My sweet little lovable baby nephdog. See how cute and delicious he is in this picture? Laying around my house like a little angel? Well lemme just tell you all a little story about Aunties day out yesterday... It all started with a phone call from my nephew Grif around 11:00am. It went something like this...

GRIF: "Auntie? It's me Griffin. Our plane from Jersey isn't due in 'til 7:15 tonight. Do you think you could pick Cosmo up at the Kennel between 2-5pm and drop him at the house so we can see him when we get home tonight?"

ME: "Of course!"

GRIF: "Thanks Auntie! Oh, and Auntie, please bring a leash with you, we left ours in the car."

ME: "No problem babes, it's my pleasure. Oh Grif, I don't have a key to your new house!"

GRIF: "Just use the code on the garage door Auntie. The door to the house is opened."

ME: "OK."

K, so far it all sounds good right? Yeah. Just wait.

So I walk my four dogs. Finish up my blog about last nights show, shower and get outta my pj's. Now it's about 1:30 and I get in my car, with the leash, and head off to pick Coz up at doggy camp. La La La La singing. Excited for alone time with my nephdog. Saturday was his very first birthday. Can't wait to kiss him. Oooops. Missed the turn. Did a u-turn. Pulled in. Found the place. Walked in. Said "Auntie Randi's here to pick up Cosmo!"

The facility was adorable, The staff was so nice. Great place for the little baby to spend a few days. Then out he comes. Breaking through the security gates like a greyhound at Palm Beach Kennel Club. Running around the lobby like a ceiling fan on extra high speed. On the couch, off the couch, around in circles, up again, biting my pant leg, eating my sneakers, crying, howling, peeing, jumping, kissing, squealing. Nice place, but he was sure glad to be going home. So I try to catch him to hook up the leash and get him outta there. To no avail. After further inspection, I noticed he didn't have a collar. I asked the desk clerk for his collar. Apparently when Griffy told me there was no leash, he meant there was no leash OR collar. OK. No problem. I picked him up and got him in the car. Told him to please sit down in the passenger seat, and then drove home with him on my lap. Yeah. I have no say. I am the boss of nothing.

So Cosmo drove himself home. We get to the guardhouse, dog on my lap, and I cracked the window just enough to slip the security guard my license and thank goodness he opened the gate. I drove to my sister's house and parked in the driveway. Now I have to find where I wrote down the garage code. I'm trying to get the dog to sit. My phone is ringing. (It's Griffin. He was looking for an update on the pups whereabouts.) Texts are coming in. (It's Cameron, my other neph, looking for an update too.) I don't answer. I get the code. I take the dog in my arms (still no leash) and we go to the garage opener. I punch in the numbers. Viola! The garage goes up. Yay!

Uh oh. The garage not only has two cars in it, but it is a storage facility for many things that have not been unpacked, or repositioned into the new house yet. Wasn't sure if we would fit through, but I couldn't disappoint the boys! There had to be a way through this sea of stuff, so, I hold Coz in front of me like a smelly wet cat and we pass through the garage all the way to the door. Yay! We made it!!! Coz was almost home. I put my hand on the doorknob, tell Cozzy he was almost home, and then...door's locked.

Argh! We weren't defeated yet! There's another garage! Of course! That must have been the one they meant! Coz and I back up through the crowded garage. Punch the code to close the door, walk to the other garage, punch the code, walk to the door, and ...yup. Locked!

Hmmmm, well, this wouldn't be too big of a problem. I would just take Coz to my house and the boys could pick him up there after they land. Only problem is, I have 4 dogs of my own, and they are a bit over protective of their home. Bringing a new dog in, by myself, without proper introductions, is not smart. What could I do? Well, first I thought I should let the poor pup pee, but with no leash, where could I leave him? I got it! I opened the gate to the backyard at my sissy's house. Be free little puppy. Be free! It's 2:30 now. I will let him pee and we'd go to my house and I'd put him in a room and close the door. I'll figure something out.

OK NOW IT'S 4:00pm!

Apparently once you put Coz down outside, if he isn't ready to go, you will never catch him. Yup. That's right. He was running around the backyard for a freaking hour and a half! I was crying. I finally had to get the neighbors kids to help me catch him. OMG. Killing myself! Finally we catch him. I put him in the car. Brought him to my house. Left him in the car. Locked up my dogs. Brought Cosmo inside, and we played til 8 when the boys got home.

All in all, it was great auntie/nephdog bonding time. LOL...I think this story deserves another Cosmopolitan picture or two. ...or at least I deserve a cosmo, make it a double!.

Here he is driving us home.

Here's Coz looking his usual adorableness