Happy Halloween!

Things you don’t know about 1969….

I have a standing weekly conference call with my internet BFF, AlwaysFunkyFresh to discuss FOOTBALL. Yup, that’s right. We go hard on the week’s games. Analyze the players, stats, injury reports…all dat.

Despite having an intense love of ALL seafood. I am highly allergic to clams. Strange right? I eat oysters, mussels, etc….but one clam will send me to the hospital.

I have been skiing only once and I will be okay if I never do it again. (Picture me rolling down a hill like THIS…the agony of defeat)

Despite my love of all things baked….I HATE BAKING.

If God forbid anything ever happens between Mr. 1969 and I….my next and last husband will be 98 years old and filthy rich. Yup, call me Sixty Nicole Smith.

As much as I love clothes, my favorite outfit is probably a 3/4 sleeved black tissue weight t-shirt from Target for $10, a pair of seven jeans from TJ Maxx for $25 and my sneakers.

I have a secret irrational fear that Tali 2 will one day hold us hostage in our own home until he gets cupcakes.

I love Glee and download all the songs (hangs head in shame).

You are what your friend’s eat?

I log on daily to spa.rkpeo.ple to count the number of calories I consume on a daily basis. I have a fitness goal and this site works for me.

1) It’s FREE (what’s better than Free?)

2) It’s easy and accessible.

3) Almost every food imaginable is listed and I can see exactly what my daily caloric intake is and adjust it to meet my personal fitness goals.

If you are trying to do better and watch your eating habits, you can’t go wrong on their site.

Everyday, they have quiz questions. Today, one of the quizzes asked the question “If your friend is obese, the chances that you will become obese too are….”

a) 17%

b) 27%

c) 47%

d) 57%

e) 67%

So I thought about and I chose my answer. Guess what? I was WRONG, WRONG, WRONG. 57% is the correct answer. Can you believe that? More than half of us with an obese friend will also eventually become obese.

Now I don’t know about you, but that info is both alarming and shocking. Think about the things you do when you are out with your friends. Hmmm…eating and drinking are probably pretty high on the list right? How about inviting a friend to exercise with you instead of meeting for lattes? How about a pick up game of basketball on a Saturday morning instead of beers and monster nachos at the bar?How about asking a friend to take a walk around the neighborhood with you?

When I read stats like this it makes me so sad. We are killing ourselves America….hell, our friends are now killing us.  It’s even worse if we’re the obese friend. Are we hurting those around us? Like our spouses, our kids?

Weigh in (that was pretty clever….) what are your thoughts?

If Mama Ain’t Happy….

Our fabulous First Lady is on the cover of this month’s G.l.a.m.our Magazine. In the article, she is quoted by saying :

In answer to a reader question about how she keeps her sanity, the First Lady told Katie, “I have always tried to put my kids first, and then…put myself a really close second, as opposed to fifth or seventh. One thing that I’ve learned from male role models is that they don’t hesitate to invest in themselves.”

When I read the quote from Mrs. O, I had to laugh because she rephrased something I say all the time. A man will not hesitate to do for themselves when they need something. Why is it so hard for a woman to do the same?

Do you feel guilty if you decide to splurge on some item or take some time for yourself? I know that there has been many a time that I will put off something I want or need to do because someone else in my home or family has a more pressing need.

As I get older, I have learned that taking care of myself is just as important as being a good wife, mother, friend and co-worker. It’s okay to let everyone know that I need some time for me.

Men always seem to do for themselves. They want something? They get it. They want to go somewhere? They go.  Not to mention they will look at you like this when you complain about not having time to do something you need to do.

Whenever I start telling Mr. 1969 “How come you always find the time to do X, Y and Z while I am here doing all of this?”

He responds with “What’s stopping you? Did you ask me to help you? Did you tell me you wanted to go somewhere else? Why didn’t you just do it?”

I am usually the main person holding me back.

Are you always complaining about doing too much? Maybe you need to make a schedule and carve out time for yourself? Are you angry at your partner for always getting to do what he wants? Well, what’s stopping you from doing some things that you want to do? Stop blaming your situation and start making time for yourself.

Take a tip from the First Lady and learn to live…..you’ll be much happier in the long run and so will everyone else around you.

Daddy’s Girl

I picked up my Dad and his wife from the airport and after a nice evening at home on Thursday, we headed out of town to my uncle’s wedding.

First of all, the cake was beautiful.

The wedding was fun. We drank, I taught my dad the Cupid Shuffle (he was kicking it!) and all in all we had a great time. However, I would be remiss if I didn’t share photos of the Bride’s hairdresser. He was indeed the highpoint of my evening….

Yes, the shirt is sheer in the back. Yes, his belt has bedazzled skulls on it. Yes,his hair is free flowing and NO…I don’t know where you can purchase a blinged out hair clip so don’t even ask me.

And yes, he had breasts. I think he was a 42A. He worked that dance floor like it was a runway. He truly shut it down.

As for me and my Dad?

We bonded some more. Which can’t hurt.

Who had the most fun?

The groom, my Uncle and Mr. 1969. LOL

 

I’m back…

I love my family dearly but I was sooo happy to put them back on a plane yesterday and collapse on my couch. I cleaned, cooked, chauffered and am officially exhausted.

My uncle’s wedding was nice. I will share pictures later in the week. It was great spending time with my dad and his wife. They enjoyed being with the boys and we all had a great time. Of course, I returned to pure chaos in the office today so I have to keep it brief. I promise to do better on the posting manyana.

Every boy’s dream…

Let’s just say that Christmas just came early for our boys. Why? Because their Uncle who works at a major sneaker company showed up yesterday with a box full of these:

Yes, those are the famous sneakers of the greatest basketball player of all time.

What’s even cooler is that these are prototypes/one offs so no one will be rocking these (or at least that’s what I was told). He works in kids shoes so there are no sneaks for yours truly. *sigh*

But hey, as much as they go through sneakers…these are a blessing. I know their Uncle Dallas  and Uncle Fresh are somewhere jealous of the Tali boys right now. My top 3 are below….

 

Men are from Mars

This past weekend, I was watching Little Bill with the boys. In case you don’t know what that is, it’s a cartoon based on Bill Cosby’s life growing up in Philadelphia. So anyway, Little Bill was the ring bearer in his teacher’s wedding. At the end of the wedding the bride and groom kissed. Tali 1 turned to me with a serious look on his face and said, “Mom, I don’t think this is an appropriate show for a kid Tali 2′s age.” *sigh*

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Mr. 1969 and I are working on the game plan for what to do when my Dad and his wife arrive tomorrow night. Since they will be flying in, we’ll probably cook dinner instead of going out tomorrow night. I made the mistake of asking him what to cook.

“Fried catfish, red beans and rice but no cornbread. I don’t like cornbread.”

“Uh hello. That’s what YOU like. What do you think our guests will like?”

“Everybody likes fried catfish.”

See what I deal with?

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This morning, everyone’s favorite curmudgeon could be heard wailing (as usual) in his room. I was in my bathroom getting dressed and he was getting dressed by his daddy (a.k.a. Cold Pants).  Par for the course, our favorite “I hate mornings” child was at it again. Today’s issue was “I don’t want to wear this jacket.” (His gray fleece pullover.)

“What’s the matter Tali 2?”

INSERT WHINY WAILING………………

“I don’t want to wear this jacket.”

“It’s cold outside and you have to wear your fleece okay?”

“NOOoooooooooooo.”

“What’s wrong with your jacket?”

“It’s too hot.”

“You can take it off and put it in your cubby when you get to school.”

“NO I CAN’T!!!!!!!!!!! And it’s tooo hooooooot.”

“What do you want to wear instead?”

“THIS JACKET! (Holds up the identical fleece jacket in navy blue)”

“This one doesn’t make you hot?”

“No.(wailing) It’s cooler.”

*sigh*

And they say women have issues.

It’s Sabotage…

I have so many friends that talk to me about their goals. They have great ideas, things they want to do. My friends are great people.  They’re intelligent, have loads of charisma and know how to manage things. These are people that should be able to make strides towards achieving their dreams. However, many of them won’t get there. What makes some people successful and others not?

I am sure some of it is timing, circumstance, outside factors affecting your life like children or a job. However, these circumstances also affect successful people so why are they able to move forward while others can’t get ahead?

One thing I notice when I talk to people is their attitude. I truly believe that some people sabotage themselves and are their own worst enemies. They do things that they know will lead to failure. This way they can blame their failures on something else.

Some people are just afraid to fly. Others are afraid to actually roll up their sleeves and do the work to attain their goals. Some have unrealistc expectations. Some are just selfish.

I try to sit back and examine why I fail when I try to do something. Did I give it 100% and fail? If that’s the case then maybe that goal was never meant for me. Maybe I need a new goal? However, I find that sometimes I failed because deep down  I was afraid of what would have happened if I really did succeed. Instead of trying, I decided it was easier to hang on to the familiar.

It’s great to be comfortable but is that enough for you? For some people it is. They can live their whole life in one spot and be completely satisfied. If that’s not you, what’s stopping you from taking that next step? If there is an obstacle in your way are you preparing to leap over it or are you deciding to pitch your tent in front of it and make yourself comfy there because you’re afraid of what lies on the other side?

I’m trying to do better at taking risks. Not being afraid to dream and dream big. Taking steps. What are you doing?

The Chickens Coming Home to Roost

This is a big week for me. My Daddy is coming up from Trinidad on Thursday. This will be the first time he has ever been to this house. Needless to say, I have been cleaning and re-organizing like a madwoman. I redecorated the guest bedroom. New curtains, new sheets and comforter.

*cough*tookallofmywashedlaundryofftheguestroombedandfinallyputitaway*cough*

The boys are very excited that their Grandfather is on his way. They haven’t seen him in over a year. To tell the truth, I am excited too. I really am enjoying this new relationship I have with my Dad. I am looking forward to having him here and spending some time with him.

This Saturday, I cooked a good meal and Melonie came by to enjoy it with us. People….it was cold and raining and Miss Melonie rolled up at casa 1969 like a little ray of sunshine. She arrived with a cake and a bottle if wine. How’s that for being a good houseguest? I won’t even mention that on the nastiest day, Mel had on a cute sweater dress with a heeled suede boot and tights. Ahem. To lounge on the couch. I was rocking my husband’s fleece hoodie and sweatpants. Uh…yeah….little cute heffa.

We proceeded to eat and then chill on my couch for hours watching old school videos on VHI1Soul. The running commentary between Mel and I was hilarious. We were firmly interrupted by Tali 2 who announced “I’m SIRSTY and I need a DWINK!” Mel almost choked on her wine. Maybe now that I have a witness to the shenanigans, everyone will believe me. That boy was nice as pie until he got sleepy….he got his DWINK and was promptly sent to bed.

Thanks to Mel for coming by and making me laugh so much. Old school new edition (Mike Bivins ), Joe, Maxwell Bad Habits (Mel watched that one and said “Hold up we need to rewind and pause…what’s going on in that mirror?”  and our personal favorite of the evening…..GHOSTFACE.

Really…this has to be one of the greatest videos ever made. When he called her a ruthless chick? DEAD The best part is when he tries to get his ring back and he says “Oh, it’s stuck? Well, I’ll take the whole finger.” WU-TANG FOR LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

How was everyone’s weekend?