Filed under: The Adventures, The Peeps | Tags: 8 Minute Abs, exercise videos, working out
So, it’s possible that I may be the only person left on earth who actually owns the 8 Minute Abs workout tape. In fact, I was such a fan that I own not only the VHS version of the workout, but a more recent DVD version with the bonus 8 Minute Arms workout, too. After too many close calls with my aging VCR, I couldn’t risk not having a back up on hand.
There was a time when Mama Z and I sprawled out on our ugly grey apartment carpeting daily to basic crunch, push through, and toe touch our way to rock hard, er slightly less distended, abs with Jaime Brenkus and his two faithful exercise pals. And, after several weeks of hard work and dedication, we totally rocked that workout.
We knew every move by heart. We could recite Jaime’s entire dialogue at a moment’s notice. We laughed and mocked when our then boyfriends, Papa Z and Spider-Husband, had to take a breather mid-tape. It was awesome.
Sadly, that time has long since passed.
This evening Spider-Husband and I decided to revisit the glory days and bust out the 8 Minute Abs DVD. After all, “these exercises are safe, effective, and they are fun!”
Yeah, not so much.
Filed under: The Disaster Twins, The Peeps | Tags: foster dogs, Great Pyrenees, Indianapolis Great Pyrenees Rescue, shelter dogs
My friend Wandering Bella works with the Indianapolis Great Pyrenees Rescue and has been a truly awesome foster mom to so many dogs who are in need of a good home. Today she posted about two Great Pyrs that have just been taken in by the Indianapolis Rescue – Milo and Emma – and who have been horribly mistreated and are very ill.
Their story broke my heart, and I was instantly overcome by tears when I saw their pictures and the horrible conditions they’ve been left in. So, I’m joining her cause and asking people to read her post, and if they are as moved as I was, to make a small donation to help get Milo and Emma one step closer to the happy, healthy life they deserve. Just a word of warning…these doggies are in bad shape and their pictures reflect that.
The Disaster Twins were part of a litter of puppies that were dropped off at Animal Care and Control when they were barely six weeks old. Between parvo, respiratory illness, and the other problems that come with being a puppy and living in a crowded shelter, only three puppy sisters survived. Halas and Lombardi will be two this coming Thanksgiving, and I can’t imagine what our family would be like without them.
They are brats. They are goofy. They are fickle. They are fuzzy. They are ridiculous. And, they certainly have issues. But, they are ours.
And, not a day goes by when I don’t think about how lucky we are to have them in our lives.
Good luck Milo and Emma. You’ve got big fans here in the Blonde household.
Filed under: The Adventures, The Peeps | Tags: bad vacation photos, rhinoceros, vacation photos, Zany Zebras
You’d think that there might be a picture or two of me and the Zany family together since both Mama Z and I had our cameras with us the entire weekend.
Two cameras, not a single shot of all of us together.
That’s not to say there aren’t pictures. I somehow ended up with several pictures of Zany Janie’s back at both the aquarium and the animal park.
And several more of Wacky Zacky’s back at both the aquarium and the animal park…
And, perhaps the best shot of all with me and the Zany kids…
…where all three of us are looking in different directions while trying not to slide off of a large metal rhinoceros. Classy.
Models we are not.
Nor photographers do we make either.
At least the kids are cute. That’s gotta’ count for something.
Filed under: The Adventures, The Peeps | Tags: Akon, Dangerous, hip hop music, Kardinall Offishall, singing in the car
Let me tell you something you might not know.
California is a big state. Not just big…huge, massive, even. So, it’s not really that uncommon to have to drive a couple of hours or more to visit local attractions, like, oh say, the Long Beach Aquarium or the San Diego Wild Animal Park.
That’s a lot of time to be trapped in a car with two children…even the very cool Zany children – Wacky Zacky and Zany Janie – so music is a must. I’ll admit I was a little concerned that my patience for “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star”, “The Alphabet Song”, and “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” might wear thin after oh, about ten minutes, but who could have predicted that it was Papa Z’s song du jour that would do the trick.
Back in the day when Papa Z was still a lowercase G, he partook of the rap music and from time to time would be caught belting out his own version of Jay-Z, Snoop, Dre or Luda, especially while driving. But, there’s always a favorite. A song that no matter how many times we’d heard it before, we had listen to again and again and every time it was on. And, several years later, not much has changed.
And, thus, I give you “Dangerous”…
The song I can now say I’ve heard at least fifty times within a 48-hour period. That’s gotta’ me some kind of record.
Good stuff, the first ten times? Yes. But, times eleven through fifty? Noticing you…torturing me.
But, hey, at least it wasn’t “The Owl and the Pussycat”…now that’s some dangerous stuff.
Filed under: The Adventures, The Peeps | Tags: Long Beach Aquarium, San Diego Wild Animal Park, Two Zany Zebras, Venice Beach
One of my oldest friends, Mama Z, and her Zany Zebras live outside of Los Angeles, so I decided to stick around California a few days after SIGGRAPH to visit with the Family Z.
This was my first visit to the Zany abode since Mama and Papa Z moved out Californey way when they got hitched back in 2002. I was totally stoked. Seriously, don’t laugh…that’s how they talk in California. : )
During my whirlwind adventure, we visited the Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific, Venice Beach, the San Diego Wild Animal Park, some local wineries…oh, and I even babysat. And, yes, it does count as babysitting even if it is for less than an hour.
Too much fun for a single blog post, so stay tuned for some of our adventures over the next few days.
Filed under: The Peeps | Tags: Amy, Audrey, Cheeseburger in Paradise, college roommates, dinner with friends, girls night out
This is my college roomate, Amy, and her how unbelievably cute daughter, Audrey.
I haven’t seen Amy since my wedding back in 2005 and haven’t seen Audrey in, well, forever. Literally. Amy was pregnant with the youngster at the wedding, and the last picture I saw was from Audrey’s first Christmas.
And, boy has she ever grown up.
The girls were in town for a few days visiting Grandma Joyce while Daddy Seth was away on a business trip, so we all met up for a Girls’ Night Out dinner at Cheeseburger in Paradise. It was great fun to catch up with Amy and to chat with Audrey, who I learned loves pickles, had “pink” ice cream that afternoon, saw a little boy get spanked by his Mom after running in front of a car earlier (she was very worried about him), absolutely must have a napkin when she eats, and thinks Curious George is a crazy monkey. She’s a busy gal for two and a half.
I was super excited to see everybody and was thrilled to have the very rare chance to hang out with the girls and dish on…well, all the crap girls dish on.
Filed under: The Peeps | Tags: baby boy, congratulations, new baby, The Family Gal
It’s Baby Mania this summer. Coming in with Birth Number Three – it’s The Family Gal, one of my favorite former coworkers.
Melissa’s very adorable second son, Camden Jack, arrived with a bang on the Fourth of July causing the Blonde and the rest of the voting public (all nine of us) to fold on the “When Will Baby 2.0 Arrive?” pool. This is so why I don’t gamble.
If he’s anything like his Big Brother, he’ll be a total rock star.
Kiddo C. could possibly be my favorite kid ever- you earn big points when you opt not to scream your head off when your Mommy thrusts you into my arms before she even pauses to hear the answer to the most feared question for those of us without child, “Do you wanna’ hold him?” : )
I generally avoid holding infants due to my general awkwardness and overall clumsiness. I prefer to wait until the toddler stage so when I accidentally drop the child, his or her skull is well on its way to fusing together so there’s less chance of actual damage. Plus, I figure by the time the kid’s two, he’ll have figured out that life’s rough and be less likely to suffer any type of emotional trauma for the rest of his life.
Therapy ain’t cheap.
So, it takes a special kind of person to have actually witnessed the kind of damage I can do and still find the inner strength to toss her child on my lap. And, that’s just the kind of friend Melissa is. In fact, if Spider-Husband and I ever get up the courage to breed, you’ll have her in some small way to thank…or blame. : )
Congrats to Mommy, Daddy, and Kiddo C.!
Filed under: The Peeps | Tags: baby-boy-to-be, coworkers, fruit puffs, ice cream, maternity leave, Pampers
My coworkers and I are now officially in mourning. Ashley, one of our two rock star marketing coordinators, not to mention one of my coolest pals, is now on maternity leave, leaving most of our team to wonder how we’ll figure out how anything works, where anything goes, and who we might be able to call to figure it all out, and more importantly, leaving me wondering who will listen to me rant, whine, and throw a tantrum when I’m stunned by the latest drama du jour.
I mean really. Who does she think she is taking time off to have another baby? : )
We threw a baby shower for her and her baby-boy-to-be a couple of weeks ago and celebrated her last day with a trip to Handels. Nothing says “Please don’t leave. We’ll take turns watching your son-to-be at our desks until it’s time for kindergarten. We’ll take up a collection for Pamper Swaddlers and Gerber fruit puffs. We’ll sleep on your couch and take turns getting up with him in the night. Hell, we’ll start a college scholarship fund as long as you’ll stay and remind us what deadline we’ve missed and what meeting we’re ten minutes late for…” quite like an ice cream cone from Handels.
Enjoy your time away from the mayhem and madness, Ashley, and don’t think about work at all.
Lord knows, there’ll be plenty of crazy to go around when you get back.
Filed under: The Family, The Peeps, Uncategorized | Tags: Amazon.com, birthdays, books, Family, friends, Jodi Picoult
Very cool things were waiting for me when I returned from my business trip last night. Um, can you say presents?
A birthday card from Gramma’ B.
A birthday card from SpiderHusband and the hounds.
Two new Jodi Picoult books – Nineteen Minutes and Salem Falls – courtesy of my friend Jill and the Zany family.
An Amazon.com gift card from Judi and Glen.
And, the last of several new dresses and skirts that my Mom bought for me, even though we were at the mall to shop for her instead.
Rock on.
Filed under: The Peeps | Tags: away from home, birthdays, coworkers, Italian food
Well, it’s my birthday, too.
As luck would have it, my birthday happens to fall right in the middle of my company’s annual May Sales Meeting, so I’m spending the big day with a handful of my coworkers in Sarasota. Fortunately, my coworkers are a pretty thoughtful bunch, which made it much easier to be away from home.
SpiderHusband and the Disaster Twins kicked off my day with a “Happy Birthday” phone call – what a lovely way to start the morning.
Throughout the day, I received e-cards from my family and friends, a very amusing rendition of the “Happy Birthday” song on my voice mail from one of my San Francisco colleagues, an “Aloha” greeting from another colleague in Phoenix, a super cool birthday card from the Sybex and Tech Marketing teams (see pic below), another equally kooky “Happy Birthday” song courtesy of my friend Jill, several Facebook birthday wishes, and two delightful Amaretto Sours courtesy of my publisher. And, that was just before dinner.
My team went out to a local Italian restaurant, Mediterraneo, and I spent most of the evening laughing my head off. Dinner was not the same sans my other Tech Marketing partners in crime – Alison, Ashley, and Colleen – but I was glad I got to chat with them online and via phone anyway.
Not a bad way to spend a birthday away from home.
So, thanks guys.
