This past week or so has been full of reasons to celebrate--- well 2 reasons I can think of upfront--Aubrey and Presley's birthday! We also celebrated Mother's Day this past weekend and that was a treat as well! I'll put my 2 cents in on those 2 items at the end. Other than that, it's the same ol' same ol' to update you on. Enough intro chit-chat, let's do it:
Already in Heels...lookout Daddy!
Brooklyn seems to be more comfortable in my heels than I do...lol!
Natural (and other) Hair Update
The first few pics you'll see on this update is how I managed to style one of my bangs wigs. I finally got smart enough to put the thing on a mannequin head and style it before I put it on my head. I really like this particular style and have gotten a lot of compliments on it. I like it because it frames my face and looks great with makeup. Plus, when my forehead starts shining halfway throughout the day especially since it's warmed up outside, you really can't tell :-)
The second set of pics shows you who are interested that I'm still keeping up with my natural hair. It's been so long since I've seen it anyway but cornrowed down and under a wig that I let it breathe for a brief moment this past weekend. I even straightened it out to do a length check and it's still growin so that's always good to know. Check me out:
Suzy Homemaker
On this edition of Suzy Homemaker we feature a super simple recipe for semi-homemade spaghetti and meatballs. Guess this is sort of a selfish dish of mine because I think I'm the one who likes it the most...lol! Kelvin and Brooklyn like it too, but I like it best. Why? Well, because it's super tasty for one. Also, it's super simple to make. I can literally whip this one up in 30 minutes. So, you want the secret? How did I do it? Alright here it is:
Boil 1/2 pack of spaghetti (or however much you think you'd eat). Heat one jar of your favorite
spaghetti sauce and add a pack of McCormick Thick and Zesty Spaghetti sauce mix to it. In a bowl, mix together 1 pound of ground turkey, 1 packet of McCormick meat loaf seasoning mix, and the ingredients that pack requires (although if you only use 1 pound of meat you'll only add in half the amount the ingredients the pack lists which includes bread crumbs, egg, and milk). You take your meat mixture and roll into balls and fill a baking sheet sprayed with Pam with them. Bake them at 375 degrees for 15 minutes. Add them and your cooked spaghetti to the sauce pot and let simmer all together about 10 minutes and WHOA!!! Mamma Mia!! Lol!!
A Little Lotta Spring Cleaning
I recently took an entire morning to finally go through all my closets and drawers and apply my 1 year rule. If I didn't wear it anytime in the past year, I got rid of it (for the most part). Well, that translated into bags and bags full of shoes, clothes, and purses some that date back to high school...lol!! (yes Mama and Kelvin I finally gave that tan corduroy coat to the Goodwill). Let me just say on that note that the coat I'm speaking of is one of the first things I bought myself when I got my first job back when I was in the 11th grade. It was a very prized possession in my closet and I could still wear it as a quick throw on when I needed to go to the store. However, I finally got tired of stuffing coats and clothes in the closet and needed some room so it had to go (sniff..sniff)
It's been so nice having everything all neat and organized...at least for a little while...
Blast from the Past...
You know...talking about my high school years has me feeling a little nostalgic. So, I'm putting a throwback pic on this post with a few of my BFFs from my childhood/early adulthood. Here's me, Cheryl, and Michelle J taking a quick pic before we took to the town to turn a few heads one night...lol! Look at how little and cute I was! I was barely 20 years old on this pic but you couldn't tell me I was not a grown woman...lol!
Brooklyn Goes Shimmer...Brooklyn recently made Shimmering Star at her school which is the epitome of stardom for the kiddos. This rank earned her a princess crown and a goodie bag in addition to her filled-up star chart and and multiple strings hanging from her star. Wow!! All because she made good choices all year long at school. Such a proud Mommy I am!
Family Night Out
This past weekend we kicked off our weekend with a Family Night Out to Dinner at On the Border. Brooklyn has really matured when it comes to going to restaurants and she took that 40 minute wait like a champ...whoo hoo!! Lookout restaurants...we're baaaaack...lol!!
Somewhere...over the rainbow...way up high...
Sing with me now...lol! Ok ok this was a few pics I snapped while Kelvin and I were on our way to the Series closeout for the Grizzlies and Lakers in Memphis the week before last. Most brilliant rainbow either one of us had ever seen! I've certainly never seen one span an entire arc before. Amazing!!!
We Don't Bluff!!
Yes I did just mention that the Grizzlies closed the first round of the playoffs against the Clippers out!! The blog is a little behind so we're working on the Thunder as we speak. Of course the highlight of the game for me was this amazing Hot Dog I have pictured below...lol! It was called a Nach-Yo dog and oh my was it tasty! It had nacho cheese, pico, jalepenos, and sour cream on it...just a few of my favorite things. The weather was way chillier than we would have liked it, but once the streets were full of excited fans after the Grizz won...it was perfect!!
Oh I almost forgot the other highlight of the night...dancing at B.B. King's...make that me dancing at B.B. King's. What could get this girl on the dance floor you ask? They played the "Wobble" and "Cupid Shufle" back to back!!! Anyone who knows me knows there was no way I could have resisted that...lol!
Girls Weekend!!!
A few weekends ago we had an entire girls weekend together with Aubrey and Presley---fun!! Didn't really do much Saturday night because all the girls had birthday parties to go to. Stopped by Mickey D's for a few cheeseburgers on the way home which they all gobbled up before all 3 of them going straight to bed and straight to sleep...ahhh the joy of the after-effects of going to birthday parties on kiddos...lol! The first pic illustrates what I found on my side of the bed when I was ready to go to bed that Saturday night...
Sunday, it was time for some fun though.
All 3 of the girls had a blast at church and then we were all off to Benihana for lunch...yum!! O.k. maybe that part was more for me than anything nevertheless the girls had a good time and I think Uncle Kelvin did too. We came home and (some of us) took a much-needed nap.
After that, we hit the streets literally with all of Brook's mobile toys. I must admit Brooklyn's become quite the pro at all her stuff so she was able to try and teach her cousins the basics of getting around besides walking and running. Wasn't long before they decided to just take things in their own hands.
We finished off the day at another one of Aunt Porsche's fave places...lol! Krispy Kreme! The girls gobbled their free donut right up and so did I!! Although the hot light wasn't on when we drove up they flipped the switch as soon as walked in the door...imagine the luck!!
Now on to the Celebrations!!!...
Last Wednesday, Aubrey and Presley turned 4 years old!! I really can't believe it. So, I have to tell my version of their birth story. About a week before they were born, Mama frantically called me to tell me that Brandi's water had broken. Of course, it was still early for her to have them so we were all concerned that the babies would be ok. After about a week's stay in the hospital, she was scheduled to have them delivered. At the time, I was still working at Walmart and was scheduled to be there to close that evening so it actually worked out well. My co-worker covered me throughout the mid-day so I could stay at the hospital all day for the new arrivals. Mama, Daddy, and I all got to the hospital early that morning and ate some cheese danishes in the waiting area while we waited for the big announcment. I remember being so excited about the thought that I was about to have my very own little twin nieces. I still remember how the 3 of us all got on the edge of our seats when we saw their Daddy walk down the hall to tell us that our girls were here and doing well!! What an awesome feeling!! The day went for a scary turn with Brandi but she recovered and I went to work to gush with pride for the rest of the evening. As soon as I got off work, I picked Kelvin up and off to the hospital we went!! I can still remember the smell of the soap in the NICU. To this day, that soap smell still reminds me of how exciting it was to go and visit them. When I walked in their rooms and laid my eyes on them the first time, I burst into tears. My eyes are watering just typing this. I have loved those girls with all my heart ever since then. They are my absolute favorite girls in the whole world!! ( in addition to another very little special girl we all know and love ) I've always tried to make a big deal out of their birthday every year and I always will!!
Well...back to the celebrations. On their actual birthday, Brooklyn and I took some sprinkle cupcakes over from Brown Sugar Bakeshop and had cupcakes and candles with them although they had already eaten cupcakes at their school. But hey, a girl can never have too many cupcakes.
Once everyone was done with their treats, Papa and Mama Pat took us all to the UniverSoul Circus. My review of the circus...I'll be fine if I never go back again. It was a little late at night for preschoolers and the first half didn't end until after their bedtime. It was full of what seemed to be repetitive dancing and contortion acts and only one animal appearance. So, we all pretty much threw in the towel during intermission. Especially since all the girls were yawning by then. A co-worker of mine told me the animals came in the 2nd half. I hate we missed them, but I think the girls had a ball with what we saw up to the point we did. I will say all 3 of them were most looking forward to the animals though. The highlight of my night there was buying all 3 girls the little twirly lights they each had in the pics. I always wanted those when I was growing up and we would go to the circus. See how I made that all about me?...lol!
On Saturday, we celebrated with the rest of their friends, their Daddy, and Aunt Brandi at Jump Zone. As you can see all the pics I have are from the party room because I decided to use their play time to chill since there were so many family members keeping an eye on all the kiddos...ahhhh...yes it was nice...lol!
Mother's Day 2013
This year Mother's Day was fantastic as usual! We started out the day with Mama, Brandi, Aubrey and Presley joining us at church and even got the chance to take some free family pics while we were there. I haven't gotten a hold of them yet, but I did manage to take a few snapshots out in the hallway.
From there all the ladies and little ladies headed to Mimi's Cafe for an hour and a half wait to eat breakfast!!! All 3 girls were well behaved considering the circumstances. We also did our gift exchange which is always nice!
After that, we picked Kelvin up and headed to the cemetary so Brooklyn and Kelvin could give her Grandma Rose, Great Grandma Maxine, and other Loring mothers some flowers. That was followed by my fabulous gifts that Kelvin and Brooklyn got for me... gift cards to all of my most frequented establishments!! I've already used that Subway one! Check out the huge card Brooklyn got for me too! After I opened gifts, Kelvin detailed my car for me and Brooklyn and I had a little Mommy/Daughter time outside. She rode all her mobile toys and played on her playground and I enjoyed the nice breeze, my healthy daughter, and the thoughts of how blessed I am to have such a great family! We ended the day with Brooklyn's Granny-Gran at Outback Steakhouse and it was absolutely delicious! We only waited 10 minutes for our table too! Although we waited 20-30 minutes for our food, but nevertheless a good experience! So good I forgot to take some pics...oops. Anyhow, I just love Mother's Day!!
