It's a good thing...

..that he's cute,

...that I love him,

...and that I'm going to a workshop tonight and Dad has to take over.

Because, otherwise, Ryan wouldn't make it to his 2nd birthday tomorrow!

Grrrrrr..... :\

Mom is a DOPE!

How was I supposed to know that Pampers Easy Ups come in a girl version and a boy version? Arrrgh! No Ryan isn't potty training, I just wanted to use them as a diversion tactic when he doesn't cooperate with his diaper changes.

Now that I've opened the package, we have to use them! I hope he doesn't have a gender identity crisis because his Easy-Ups are pink with Dora the Explorer on them!

My kid can count...

...to NINE! I'm really not trying to brag about this amazing kid of ours, I'm just really surprised!

Ryan usually wakes up REALLY grumpy. We've figured out that it's usually because he's hungry. The problem these days is that he's so picky that he doesn't want anything that we suggest! Today was another one of those days where we wanted to just put him back to bed for a while.

Muffins to the rescue! :)

This is something that Ric and I can have Ryan help us make. He pours the Jiffy mix into the bowl, adds the milk, and the egg (after we've cracked it into a bowl for him.) He also tries to mix it, but needs help from us. His favorite part is putting the papers into the muffin pan.

While I was getting everything ready, I had Ryan do his "muffin paper" duties. All of a sudden I hear "one...two...feee....four...fibe...six...seben...ate...nine..." as he was putting 6 papers into the pan. Ummmm....is this normal? He actually understood as he put each paper in that one more meant another number (or two.)

WOW - the things this kid does every day is just amazing! :)

ps - when I asked him what came after nine, he said "two!" I guess we have a little more work ahead of us! At least he knows how old he's going to be on Saturday!

A thought...for our 200th post. :)

If Barbie was so popular....why did we have to buy friends for her?? :)

Hmmmm....

Punkin Pie!

Believe it or not...I made this! :)

I saw part of Martha Stewart show last Friday where a chef (from Rhode Island actually - Sakonnet River Pie Company!) made a pumpkin praline pie. I didn't make that exact pie, BUT, I did copy his idea for a decorative crust!

Check this out - it's the easiest thing ever! First, you put your pie crust into the pan and cut it flush with the lip of the pie. Then you take a "tear drop" cookie cutter and cut out little pieces of crust to roll up and place around the crust.

Now...since I don't have a tear drop cookie cutter, I used a small heart cutter that I happened to have (I don't know if I've ever used it before now!) and I cut the hearts in half. I did use an egg wash (beaten egg + water) to stick everything together.

Aside from the giant split in the middle of the pie that formed when I put it in the fridge, it's a gorgeous pie - if I do say so myself! :)

According to Ric...

...the best part about Thanksgiving?

Our dishwasher! :)

Happy Thanksgiving!

We decided to stay home today. It's been a FABULOUS day! No running around, waiting for dinner to cook, cranky kids, etc.



It's almost 3:00 in the afternoon and the turkey is in the oven, the cider is warming up and we're planning a nice little dinner at our normal dinner time.




Lately, it's just best if we stick to normal nap times, otherwise...well, it's just not pretty!







So while the kids were napping (At the same time - it's rare, but it does happen!) Ric and I finished cutting the trim for our kitchen...we're getting closer to a finished dining room at least!



Once Ryan and Megan woke up, and because it's such a nice day outside, we set up the tripod, got the remote and tried to take an informal family picture. Let's just say that 3 of us cooperated. :)

If you look closely, you can see the remote in my hand, I kept snapping pictures, hoping that at least ONE would be nice enough to share!




As you can see, it was a challenge to get Ryan to look at the camera, much less smile! He was more interested in seeing us through the viewfinder on the other side!




We did get a couple of nice ones though!

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Just what every girl needs...

...ruffles on her bum! Am I right ladies? :)













LOVE this cute outfit! Ruffles and all!

Giant Chicken

Dad: What's that Ryan? (After seeing the K-Mart commercial with the Blue Light Bulb riding a Turkey.)

Ryan: Giant chicken

Mom: (Chokes and almost falls out of her chair laughing!)

Ode to our Neon

Goodbye Neon, goodbye.

Since 1995 you have been a trusted friend.

You brought two "celestial sistah's" across the country in style.

You didn't complain when someone smashed tomatoes on you in Bay Ridge.

Though you "gave up the clutch" under the Brooklyn Bridge (and then again in North Providence,) you were still reliable. (Thank goodness for extended warranties!)

You became the "take dad to work" mobile when mom had to graduate to a mini van.

I had you from just 23 small miles, until the very end at 135,244 - who knew that we'd be together for so long?

But times change, kids just don't work inside a little thing like you. No more will we have to drive with our 'butts' dragging on the ground!

So long....Audrey...so long! :)

We may have something here...

...if I get up at 6:00 am, I can actually get something done! Hmmm...no distractions (i.e. Ryan competing for my attention), no noise, no anything!

Something to think about... :)

Amazing progress for a Sunday

It's amazing how much yard work you can get done when you don't have to go to church, stake conference or meetings for 3-4 hours! I realize the blessings aren't as rich, but having my yard looking respectful again is a blessing in itself. This will probably be the last time we can rake leaves and mow the grass until next spring, so we just had to take advantage of the beautiful day.

Ric

Grocery Game - Week 1 Results

I remember my mom being the coupon queen when I was younger. Now that I have kids - and kids are expensive - I completely understand why!

So when I saw a news report last week about The Grocery Game, I had to try it out!

A couple of things before I give you the results from my first week playing the "game."

• If you're going to do this, you have to be willing to shop at more than one store, basically go where the sales are. (even drug stores carry groceries!)
  
• You also change your way of shopping...instead of shopping for what you need for the week, you stock up on what's on sale (except for the essentials, i.e. milk, eggs). For example, I came home last night with 2 large containers of Mayo - obviously, we won't use them in one week, but when we need a new jar, we'll have it. It takes a few weeks before you are really stocked up.
• Last, you have to cut coupons from the Sunday paper - and have them handy until they expire. The Grocery Game has a pretty sophisticated database that keeps track of sales (advertised or not) and tells you when to use the coupons for a "rock bottom" price.

---------------
Week 1 Results:

Stores: Stop & Shop, Shaw's, and Walgreens
Grocery Value: $248.07
Amount Paid: $117.63
Savings: $130.44 (53%)

Fabulous buy of the week: L'Oreal Minerals Makeup on sale at 2 for 1. Regular price $14.99 each. PLUS, I had two $2 off coupons that they let me use. So, I got two for only $11.99, saving $17.99 (60%) Woo Hoo!
---------------

Here's the cool thing...I wasn't just buying things because I had coupons, I bought groceries that we all consume in our family! I would have bought the same products at some point anyway! Why not save a bundle while I'm at it!

Anyway, I get referral credits if someone signs up (at www.thegrocerygame.com) and lists my email address, so if you do, use marni@thelevetts.com.

What's the cost? For me (because I want the lists for 3 stores) it's ONLY $20 every 8 weeks! You can't afford NOT to do it at that price! (You can sign up for just $1 for 4 weeks to try it out too!)

Sitting Up! (Kind of...)

OK, so she's propped up on all sides, but she's trying! I'm sure it will be another month or more before she can sit on her own, but for now, this will work!










LOVE that smile! :)













Once again...Ryan has to get in on the action and show Meg how this sitting thing is REALLY done.

Big Bro & Little Sis

Whenever Megan is on the floor, Ryan has to be right there with her! If she rolls over, he rolls over too.

(He's also there to steal her "B!")









Look at how she just adores him! (Let's hope that lasts!)

Munkin Boy!

It's his latest obsession? Dunkin Donuts Munchkins! Which one of us introduced them to him, we'll never know (dad), but now we're hearing all about them!

In fact, when they are all gone - THEN we hear "buy more munkins - big box munkins."

Hmmm...

Since there's a DD on every corner and in all the supermarkets around here, it's hard to get away from them! (At least buying a small box keeps him occupied while I'm shopping!)



But he can't just eat them....of course he has to play with them too!


(By the way, in case I haven't mentioned it before, Ryan wears his hats like that on purpose - I put them on correctly, but he turns them around.)

Bob the Builder & Little Miss Spider

Could this picture be any more yellow? :)

Anyway...this is the ONLY picture we could get of Ryan as Bob the Builder. You can't even see his tool belt! He wouldn't keep his hat on (who could blame him, it didn't fit!)

At least his "B" matched the hat!









And Little Miss Spider - cute as can be in her little purple, sparkly tu-tu and purple spider shirt. (Blowing bubbles was something she added on her own to the costume.)


These pictures were taken at the Scarecrow Festival at Church. Right after dinner and games, we went out to the parking lot and had a "trunk or treat." It didn't take long for Ryan to figure out that if he holds up his bag, and tries to say trick or treat that someone will give him something! Woo Hoo!

Halloween Pumpkins!

Finally getting caught up from the past few weeks! Here you go!

Carving our pumpkins for the BIG NIGHT!











Ryan wasn't old enough last year to understand what pumpkins were all about. But now, he never misses a chance to tell us when he sees one!

Eeeeeewwww....Pumpkin guts!








No...I'm not cutting with his finger right there! It's one of those "posed" shots. :)












Here they are that night!

(At the time I was taking this picture, Ryan was having a fit about keeping his costume on. Soooo....no good Trick-Or-Treat pictures this year! Bummer!)

Look what I did!

What do you think of my new roman shade? I found the fabric at JoAnn's at 50% off, so I was able to get enough for both windows, and I sewed it up yesterday!

I love it! Pretty simple to do too!

Now...if we could just finish all the trim! (What you see up is just temporary, tacked up to make sure we cut it right!

A Tale of "10 FOR 10"

Ric and I drink a lot of soda. (Yes, we know it's not the best thing for us.) We're always watching the sales at our local supermarkets to get the best deals, usually the best thing we can find is a 10 for $10 sale.

A couple of weeks ago, I went into Stop and Shop on a Saturday afternoon to pick up some groceries, and some soda. The only thing I drink is Diet Mountain Dew (hereafter known as DMD.) At least it's diet! Regular Mountain Dew - unless it's from a fountain - is just too sweet!

I walk into the aisle and see that there is no DMD on the shelves, which is sometimes the case - I guess it's popular! The Pepsi guy was actually in the aisle restocking, and he had a full pallet of DMD - BUT he was walking away with the pallet leaving the shelf empty! (eeeek!)

I stopped him and asked if there was more DMD in the store somewhere (sometimes they put it on the end caps, etc.) and he said "no." Then I asked if I could have a few bottles of the ones he was carting away and he said "no" again! Hmmmm....

I went home a little MIFFED and WITHOUT my DMD. Later that night, Ric had to run out, so he stopped by another Stop and Shop to see if they had any, and their shelves were empty too! WHAT? We were starting to think that it was a conspiracy!

Well...I decided that being told "no" by the Pepsi guy was unacceptable. Wouldn't you WANT your product to be sold? So I started to poke around the Pepsi website to see if I could find a place to send a (tasteful) email and complain. It was funny, I poked around for a while and couldn't find any way to let them know my displeasure. So instead, I went to the Stop and Shop website. I was able to leave a comment there - I felt much better!

Less than 48 hours later, I got a phone call - the caller ID said "Stop and Shop." It was the general manager for th Stop and Shop in Warwick that I usually go to. He told me that he got my email and was very upset that this had happened in his store. He said that he had called his Pepsi people to see what the deal was, AND to tell them that they were going to pay for 10 bottles of DMD so that he could give them to me. He wanted me to ask for him the next time I was in the store so he could load up my cart.

I really didn't think that was necessary, I just wanted someone to know what had happened, but he insisted.

Now here's the funny part, when I went to the store the next time, I did ask for him, BUT there was STILL no DMD on the shelves! (Uh Oh....) He was SO embarassed! I kind of felt bad for him because he had just finished telling me that he had asked the Pepsi guys to make sure that the shelves were stocked! (He even checked in the back room.)

Anyway...I was back in Stop and Shop today. As I was getting ready to check out, I saw that the manager was at the front and said hello again. (He made me promise to find him the next time I was there!)

He loaded me up with 10 bottles of DMD - and he also said that I shouldn't feel funny about taking the free soda because Pepsi is a billion dollar company and Stop and Shop is a million dollar company. (He even bagged my groceries too!)

Thanks so much to Steve Russo, the manager at the Warwick Avenue Stop and Shop - he's earned my loyalty because of this whole experience!

---------------------------------------
On a related note, I've started playing The Grocery Game! There was a news story on it last week, so I thought I try it out. Just so you know, I spent $30 for $50 worth of groceries ($60 if you count the free DMD!) I'll be tracking my savings for a few weeks and let you know how it goes! Anything to save $$ on groceries! (If you do take a look at the website and decide to sign up, make sure you put my email address - marni@thelevetts.com - in as your referral!)

Overheard...

...while blessing the food...

Megan: ~squeal~ ~laugh~ ~bubbles~

Ryan: Fold arms Megan

Needless to say...Mom had to bite her lip to keep from laughing!

Levett Family Portrait - circa 1973

Just a quick scan and post of this picture. Ric actually doesn't remember having this taken. When he found it he told me that he didn't even know a complete family portrait existed! What a WONDERFUL find!

We're thinking that Ric is about 9 years old in the picture, so it was taken around 1973. In the picture are Peter Levett (Dad), Sharon Levett (Mom), Ric and Sue (in the back), and Stacey (in the front.)

I love this picture - I promise we'll get everyone copies soon!

(Ric doesn't look anything like his dad, does he? hehe)

Who is this kid?

I'll tell you this...it's not Ryan! :)

We've been going through a lot of pictures and papers that Ric collected from his dad's house. We're actually planning to scan everything and send out CD's to everyone in the family so we all have copies - there are a TON of them! (To me, they are priceless, maybe it's the genealogy nerd in me!)

Anyway...back to THIS picture! Ric's mom is holding TJ when he was probably about 2 years old. TJ is Ryan's older cousin, who lives in Florida now. I can't believe how much he looks like Ryan! Blame those "Levett Genes" :)

So many posts...so little time!

I can't tell you how many things I've wanted to post here in the last few weeks - and yet, I just can't find the time to get them up!

*sigh*

So....hopefully in the next few days, I'll have them up for you - in no particular order. :)

(As I'm typing this...I hear "...fin...noggin...dude..." coming from the living room - Dad AND Ryan! If you have kids, you probably know what movie this line is from!)

Dad update

I've just returned from PA this morning. Here's a partial update on dad's death and the current status of things:

1. As best we can estimate, he either was seen, bought milk at the store or spoke to a friend between September 28th and October 3rd. He was found at home by his friend Mary on October 24th, which is the official date of death on the certificate.

2. He did have a will although it was very old. All listed executors and beneficiaries have since passed away with the exception of me, Sue and Stacey. I filed the will with the county court and I've been legally assigned trustee of his estate. This was a terrific achievement while we were out there so I wouldn't have to make a second trip out there if I could avoid it. This gives me access to his bank account (for now) and allows me to sell his car and take care of his affairs as they need to be addressed.

3. I have a TON of papers, mail and bills to review and sort out. Dad fell into a very severe depressive state when he was at home and didn't bother to open his mail. This will take some time to work through.

4. Dad has some wonderful, sincere and downright nice friends back in Aliquippa; both from work and his favorite bar. I can't stress enough how lucky we are that Mary and Sonny were always there for dad over the past 20+ years and I will always be grateful to them for all they did for Stacey and me these past 4 days. I'm sure I can count on them in the future as I continue to get this mess taken care of over the next year. Everyone we came across was so kind and spoke highly of dad's loyalty and friendship to many of them.

5. "Pappy" LOVED his grand kids (and kids too), but especially his grandchildren. Although the house was cluttered, there were photos of all the grand kids everywhere and almost in every room regardless of whether they were framed or not.

There's a lot more I could say about my trip, but this isn't the place to talk about it so for now I'll leave this update. We'll plan a proper memorial and burial for dad in the spring and allow everyone time to make plans to be here for it. The picture above is about 6 years old from when he retired from US Airways and boy was he happy!

Ric