The Weekend Review

I spent the weekend at the Gaylord Hotel and Conference Center with 3,000 of my sorority sisters. It was insane. I did get to spend time with Mia B and I got to meet one of my regular readers, Donna B (who is fabulous by the way!).

A few takeaways from my weekend:

1. I am too old to go to bed  two nights in a row after 3am.

2. I am too old to dance two nights in a row after 3am in four inch stilettos.

3. Mr. 1969 is not allowed to stay home alone anymore after he texted me a picture around 3pm on Saturday of him and 25 of his frat brothers hanging out in my living room watching the NCAA Tournament.

4. Did I mention that he sent my two children to the movies with his Aunt Gerri who is 72 years old during his party? *sigh*

5. Did I also mention that he decided to fry chicken for his boys using a fry daddy AND a frying pan and what my kitchen looked like when I came home yesterday? Can you say grease and flour?

Curried Shrimp

Okay, after so many people requested the curried shrimp recipe. I will do my best to post it. The problem is that I kind of cook all of my Trini recipes off the top of my head. I have been watching Mama 1969 cook these dishes since I was a kid. I have learned most of them by osmosis. I will do my best to give you the recipe.

2 lbs shelled and deveined shrimp

1 tsp minced garlic

1/4 cup finely chopped onion

2 tbsp of green seasoning (most Trini homes have this. You can also purchase a bottle of green seasoning from Goya at the supermarket called Goya Recaito)

2 tbsp curry powder or more

1/4 cup of water

2 tbsp vegetable oil

2 large potatoes diced

1 cup of chicken or vegetable stock

1 tsp salt

hot pepper, soy sauce to taste

1. Season shrimp with garlic, onion and the green seasoning for at least 20 minutes.

2. Mix the curry powder with 1/4 cup of water to make a curry paste.

3. Heat oil and add the curry/water mixture and saute for 1 minute.

4. Add diced potatoes and stir until well coated.  I usually add one more tbsp of curry at this point. Stir until the potatoes are well coated and add your chicken or vegetable stock. Cover and cook on low heat until the potatoes are fork tender.

5. Add your shrimp, hot sauce, dash of soy sauce, salt and pepper to taste. Stir well and cover until the shrimp turn pink.

DO NOT OVERCOOK THE SHRIMP!! They cook in about 3-4 minutes. Too long and they will get tough and rubbery.

Serve with rice, roti or by itself.

ENJOY!

Ripping and Running

I feel like I haven’t sat down to write a “real” blog post in a while. I have been out fighting crime and saving the world like all Wonder Women out there.

I have been on the road meeting with all of my new accounts and new customers. On the weekends, I have been hanging with the Tali boys and engaging in all of their spring activities. Those boys stay busy!

I have a couple of developments to share. My company has an annual incentive trip for the top sales professionals in the organization. In order to win the trip, you have to exceed your sales goals by 15% for all four quarters of the year. Guess who won the trip for her efforts last year? (cues the jeopardy theme song) Yup…ME.

The trip was for two people to a luxurious Beach Resort. Free airfare, free hotel, free drinks, free spa and one night we will have a huge award banquet where the CEO will hand me my award. Pretty cool  huh? Since the trip was free for me and Mr. 1969, we decided to pay for the boys so they could attend. In addition, my Dad and his family will be in that area for a wedding over the same dates so we will get to see them as well. Pretty cool.

This weekend is my Sorority conference in DC so I am also packing and getting ready to get out of Dodge for the weekend. This April marks 20 years that I have been a member of my sorority. My line sisters and I are already planning a nice dinner in April in Brooklyn to celebrate.

In other news, I got an early birthday gift from one of my dearest friends….she bought tickets for us to go to the Maxwell-Jill Scott concert in Philly in June. *sigh* You already know!

As you can see, I have a lot on my plate. I apologize for the sporadic posting but hey, you have to live life to have something to write about. I am out being me. Life is hectic right now but it’s what I do. Hope everyone is enjoying the Spring. See ya next week.

Weekend Recap

I don’t know about you but this was a great weekend. First off, the weather here in Philly was about 75 and beautiful.

We started our Saturday with the Tali’s headed to swimming lessons. Tali 1 started taking lessons last year but it was the first time out for your boy Tali 2.

He started with a warmup stretch…see?

*sigh* No speedos. LMAO!

He started to get a little anxious when he realized that he wasn’t going in with his big brother but he was a trooper. I think he’ll be swimming in no time.

After swimming, we headed out to help our community. The boys joined me for a service project with my sorors. We played BINGO with some *cough* seasoned citizens in Germantown.

The best part? You know the seniors take their bingo seriously right? Well, we made a little kids table for the kids on the side. After the first round when one lady didn’t win, she exclaimed extra loud “Hmph. I’m gonna need those kids to be quiet. I can’t hear my numbers!” LMAO! Once she won a round, she was nice as pie to those kids. Pure hilarity.

After that? Mama was T-I-R-E-D so we hit one of our favorite neighborhood spots for dinner. Hell, Mr. 1969 was out of town and you know, we lounge when he’s gone

Yeah…that’s how they acted at the restaurant. LOL

On Sunday, we decided to cook for Mr. 1969′s return home. What do you know about my curry shrimp?

Yup. That was good stuff!

All in all, my typical crazy, exhausting type of weekend. The best part was crashing on my couch after the kids were asleep watching history be made as America voted for Healthcare Reform. I am so proud of Mr. Obama for not giving up this fight and for introducing this legislature. We need this for all of our citizens and it’s a step in the right direction.

Hope you guys had a great weekend too. Happy Monday.

20 year olds, eat your hearts out.

Just sharing some of the beautiful 40 something year old women that inspire me now that I am 40.

And my favorite? You already know. She’s styling on you fools….

The Randomness

1. Have you returned your census form? I have four people in my house and it only took me five minutes to fill out. DO IT PEOPLE.

2. Tiger Woods has decided to go back to golfing. Why is this news breaking? He’s a golfer.

3.  Now that I work from home, I spend more days out making sales calls. It can get hectic being out and about all day but I do not miss sitting behind a desk. Besides, I am sure I will enjoy it even more now that the sun is out.

4. Speaking of sun….I LOVE YOU!

5. I slacked from working out for the last five days. I was in Brooklyn since last Thursday. Let me tell you, I hit the ground running this morning and I feel so much better. I am not trying to live my life without exercise….I feel like crap when I am not doing something. It’s not about a weight, it’s about being healthy.

6. Mi.cha.el Ba.isde.n. YOU SUCK. Grown folks radio? More like masterpiece coonery theater.

7.  My husband and I are enjoying our marriage so much right now. It took one huge issue we both had to work through and now? We are feeling like a happy partnership. I truly feel blessed to have him by my side and thank God for patience and communication.

8. Did I mention I have a new car? It’s silver and shiny and I love it. Mel….where are we going Chica?

9. Swimming lessons start again for the boys on Saturday. I am seriously considering making Tali 2 wear a speedo just for the entertaining keepsake photos. LMAO!

10. I left the house to run in my tights this morning and Mr. 1969 shouted after me….”Don’t go back to that Dunkin Donuts!” *sigh*

How many of us have them?

This past weekend was my undergraduate chapter anniversary. It was a mini reunion of old friends past and present. On my ride home, I sat back and reflected on a few things. Mainly the nature of friendship.

My best friend still lives in Brooklyn. I talk about her all the time and having grown up around nothing but boys, you already know she is near and dear to me. She is truly the sister I never had. We have been friends since we were 13 years old and we have never looked back since meeting in Health class.

As we have gotten older, work and our families (we both have two children) have definitely become the focal point of our lives. We don’t talk on the phone as much as we used to. We don’t get to hang out like we did back in the day. However, when you and someone are truly friends, seeing them is like slipping right back into a natural routine. Somehow, we instantly pick up where we left off no matter how long we’ve been apart. There’s never any tension and definitely no drama.

On the flip side, I am sure we all have those types of friends and family in our lives where everything is about them and what they’re feeling. “Where have you been?” “How come you never call me?” “How come you hung out with so and so and nobody told me?”  Meanwhile, they NEVER call you either. *sigh*

Being reunited with some of my old friends was truly great but there is always that one individual that makes you gnash teeth. Sure enough, as soon as she saw me, she unleashed and started talking. I swear for three hours, all I heard about was her life, her husband, her kids and her drama. No offense, but my life is stressful enough. You can tuck your personal baggage right back into your Birkin and keep it moving.

When I walk away from people like this, I do a little self reflection. I hope people will keep it real with me and tell me when  I am so self absorbed that I never stop to ask “How are YOU doing?” Being a real friend goes both ways. Sure, people that love you can put up with hearing all of your issues. They can listen with patience and offer advice because they know you. However, are you ever there for them if they need you? Do you ever call just to see how they’re feeling or are you always unloading on someone without ever thinking about your actions?

I know I want to be a better friend for the people I love. How about you?

The little kid blues.

On Saturday morning, Mr. 1969 took Tali 1 up to Harrisburg for a boys weekend. He and a few of his childhood friends had plans to take their sons to an indoor football game. Due to the ages of the kids that were going, Tali 2 stayed home with me.

I took him to the Please.Touch.Museum and to Mickey D’s for lunch. We were having a great day. When we got back home, I went in the kitchen to start making dinner. I heard him crying in the living room. When I came back into the room, I asked him what was wrong.

“I MISS MY BROTHER! I WANT TO GO WITH TALI 1!”

He proceeded to cry for ten good minutes. I did what I could to cheer him up. We read books, we played games but I continued to get the sad face. See?

He was beside himself. Every time I made him laugh, a few minutes later he would ask me when they were coming home. *sigh* He finally fell asleep on my lap.

This morning, I promised to make him pancakes. As he was eating them, he stopped and said “Mommy, do you ever miss Tali 1?” I swear, my heart is breaking.

He’s in the bathtub taking a bubble bath and playing with all of his cars. Hopefully he will make it to this afternoon when his brother returns.

I wonder if he misses me this much when I am gone? LOL I doubt it. After all, I’m not his big brother.

Shady Acres Retirement Home

I am supposed to start working at 8am everyday. Today, I am in my home office. On days where I am not out on sales calls, I wake up and immediately head out to the gym so I can be back in the house at 8am just in case anyone is looking for me.

Luckily, since I started the new job, I don’t have to wake up at 5am anymore. Now I can get up around 6:30 and be at the gym before 7am.

Today, after working out, I stopped by my local Dunkin Donuts because I promised to drop off munchkins for Tali 2′s school celebration today. For some reason, I opted not to go through the drive thru. Instead, I went in. I was in my gym clothes and an oversize hoody. Nothing special.

Lo and behold there are about 20 old men hanging out in the Dunkin Donuts. They have their coffee, muffins, donuts, etc and are posted up being loud and laughing. Now I live near a University so this Dunkin gets a ton of young co-eds. Clearly, this must be the spot for these men every morning. They are just scoping out the young girls and giggling and cackling like a pack of 12 year old boys.

I order the munckins and walk over to the side to grab a handful of napkins. All of the old men start saying “Shhhhhh” to each other.

Then one says to me “I like those pants you’re wearing.”

Me: “Leggings?”

Gramps: “Yeah…leggings. Those are nice.”

Me: “Uh…thanks.”

As soon as I turn around and start walking away….they all bust out laughing and high fiving him.

I could so picture my husband and his frat brothers in there after they retire. *SIGH*