Staycation, please stay longer!

The past 7 days have been the McGee Official 2012 Staycation!  And it has been Fabulous!! 

But even more important than the Staycation are all the great happening with our friends & families this week...  A very happy Welcome to the World to sweet Lola Noelle, and congrats to Missy, Tom & Big Brother Dylan!   

So Gorgeous!!

Congrats to our cousins PJ and Ally for graduating from high school.  College will be some of the most fun years of your life, enjoy!!  And Congrats to our Uncle Bob and our new Aunt Elaine (and 3 new cousins!) on their recent vows and celebration tonight.  We are thinking of you and wish we were with you to enjoy it! 

           

We decided a few months back that with the Beanette on the way we should take some time to relax, work on some house projects, and perhaps save some $$ for all of Beanette's necessities (crib, furniture, car seat(s), hair bows, legwarmers, tutus, etc, etc).

It's not over until Tuesday morning (which makes writing this less painful) but here are some major highlights of the week so far:

• 54 holes of golf for Denny
• 36 holes of golf for me including a few pars and even a birdie!
• 28 hours in Ohio visiting my family, Sara, and some friends from our tap-dancing days.
• 22 week pregnancy mark!  We hit it Tuesday and can't believe how quickly our little girl will arrive (although my closet is clearly aware when I stare at it everyday and say/whine "Oh no, NOTHING fits me")
• 9 hours of garage cleaning and organizing (finished result now includes shelves for organizing and sense of relief that we won't lose our daughter in there once she starts moving)
• 7 hours of neighbor fun at annual Memorial Day picnic (thanks Kocialskis for another great year!)
• 6 hours at the Buffalo zoo!  Denny's 1st visit since moving to Buffalo over 7 years ago.
• 5 miles worth of enjoying tax dollars while strolling along the Lancaster Bike Path
• 4 baskets of tortilla chips accompanied by salsa, guacamole and cheese dip with our friends at La Tolteca, yum! 
• 3 great daycare tours and happiness knowing Beanette will have wonderful care while we work.  We're not sure if she'll end up being a little DoodleBug, an EduKid or a Briarwood Baby but we did dispel the myth that all daycares give their kids sleeping pills each day to keep them quiet (thanks again Grandma for telling me about that rosy newspaper article, but please end your subscription to the Dire News Daily immediately)
• 2 matching his & hers farmer tans.  Hey, it's what happens when an Irish couple spends a day in the sun.
• 1 great husband that has spent 7 days with me tolerating my Staycation To Do lists, pregnancy hormones, and sneak peek of what our life will be like someday far in the future when we grow old and retire by the water.

Monday is my last day of vacation so I figured it would best be spent getting a little pampering, but I'm in no rush for that to get here.  Staycation, please feel free to take your time.  Put your feet up and enjoy a cold glass of lemonade... that's why you're here after all, right?

The Hunger Games

Its seems only appropriate to be blogging about some of the hot conversations in pop culture society so here goes my thoughts on the Hunger Games...

Be warned, this is my personal twist on the Hunger Games.  The post is not about Katniss and it does not take place in Panem.  In fact, I still haven't even read the books on my Kindle (the first trimester tired-ness hasn't let me stay awake to do much reading lately).  Instead this post is about the McGee Hunger Games that take place on a nightly basis when Denny or I bravely ask the question of "What do you want for dinner?"  My Grandma always likes to remind me that marriage is not all about champagne and roses, and I'm rudely reminded of it every night at about 5:50 when I'm NOT zipping around the kitchen in a cute apron sauteing, marinating and offering my husband "try this" samples on a fancy wooden spoon.

Instead of "June Cleavering" we embark on what I like to call "Hunger Games Circuit Training."  We both sulk around the kitchen and stare blankly into the fridge, then we move to the pantry and stare blankly into it, and the we pause at the counter to pretend to be think of a fabulous recipe.  This continues for about 5-7 minutes, and then we start a game of Hunger Games Ping-Pong
"Hm, what do you want for dinner?"
"Dinner? Hmm"    (as if this is a surprise)
"Yeah, dinner"
"Uhhh, what do you want?"
"Not sure, that is why I'm asking you."
"Umm, how about chicken?"
"Nope had that last night... burgers?"
"Nope, no buns."
            and back and forth and back and forth. 

Don't get me wrong.  I enjoy cooking... I enjoy eating... and I enjoy shopping (I excel at it), but I seem to fail about 80% of the time in getting all three of these together before the first whistle signals the start of the hunger games. 
Every weekend I try to get a meal plan together and then shop accordingly.  Sometimes it is a success. 
Every Sunday I try to figure out what need thawed/what needs to stay frozen/what needs prepped.  Sometimes it is a success. 
So as a result, we occasionally eat healthy, balanced, pre-planned meals (and my cute apron gets used).  When that happens, we are both happy and I feel one step closer to a Katniss and Peeta eternal love! 

When that doesn't happen, we get stuck in the Hunger Games Circuit Training session.  Luckily Denny is a very good husband and a good cook and he often saves the day.  But more often than I like to admit, we end up supporting the Velveeta Mac & Cheese stock price or worse we end up jumping in the car to Eat Fresh or get a Hot & Ready. 

Fortunately this is not the biggest problem in the world, and clearly neither of us are close to starving, but I'm always looking for ways to win the Hunger Games.  If anyone else has walked away a Hunger Games champ, please tell your secrets!!  I'm in training and could use a little help! 

Will You...

Five years ago tonight I returned home after a trip to Albany to our humble little apartment.  Granted the complex often had the smell of curry wafting through the halls, and granted the kitchen had its last facelift before TVs were in color, it was our first shared address and I loved it!    When I opened the door, I found a boyfriend who spent the day laying rose petals and pouring champagne so he could ask me a very important little question...

Will You Marry Me? 

YES!!  My answer was Yes!  A resounding Yes! 

It amazes me five years later all the meanings to that 4-word question.  Yes, Denny was asking me to walk down the aisle and be his bride, and yes he was asking me to wear a gorgeous shiny ring (heck yesss!) and be his wife, but we are continuing to learn the additional meaning of that sentence each day we spend together.  We had no idea all that came along with those four little words!
Tonight for instance the question was, Will You... shop with me for a love seat and deal with my neurotic tastes.  That cushion is too fluffy, that arm of the couch is too round, that pillow pattern is too frumpy.

We've also learned some other Will Yous during this journey...
Will You... go house hunting with me?
Will You... hand me the remote?
Will You... help me study for the GMAT?
Will You... mind if I go golfing, again?
Will You... pour me another cup of coffee to survive studying this statistics test?
Will you... pick up the pizza tonight?
Will you... take me to the hospital?  Something is wrong.
Will you... go with me to the appointment?  We get to hear our baby's heartbeat!

The phrase following the Will You hasn't always been good and it hasn't always been greeted with a pleasant response, but we are in it for the long haul, and it is fun to learn all the questions we will get to answer together.

And if I came home today to find my cute husband down on one knee, asking me "Will You Marry Me... again?"  My answer would be absolutely the same as it was five years ago tonight.