Happy Birthday Sophie!!

And so the birthday marathon comes to an end. Sophie is 5 today. She woke up excited for her big day and asked where her presents were. I told her she had to wait for Brian to get home, but she was allowed to have her card and Mason's gift. Before she opened his gift she guessed correctly (Black Lab Webkin) what it was as she explained to me that Mason got his webkin for his birthday and she knew it came from the same store. Smartass.

She went to school announcing to everyone that it was her birthday and brought in ice cream for her birthday treat.

Later on we will hang out with the neighborhood at our monthly summer block party. A great way to celebrate the day.

I also checked out the addition to the Ma and Pa trail at Annie's Playground today. It isn't officially open until June 7th, but I have heard people have been using it.
They did a great job with it and it is really scenic with lots of footbridges along the way.

We went to Cold Stone last night for ice cream and we figured out how they are dealing with this economy. Smaller portions. The portions were definitely smaller by about 50%. In a way I'm thankful for the smaller portions because no one needs the sizes they used to give..but $4.00 now seems like a rip-off.

Carrie Bradshaw I am not.

But, like the Sex and the City heroine, I do adore my shoes. While the value of my shoes don't come nearly as close as the four women in the show, I have quite a collection..some on the pricey side and some that are just damn right bargains.


I got the pictured shoe ten years ago in an indoor flea market in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. I was with my 3 girlfriend enjoying some time in Boca Raton before going on a cruise. My girlfriend Beth and I bought these shoes for $5. Let me tell you, this was $5 that was so well spent. They are so light and so comfortable. I have worn these shoes to death, with shorts, capris, in pajamas to run out and get the paper and actually with a dressy dress. They have moved with me to 3 houses and even though I have 4 or 5 other pairs of black sandals..I always turn to these.

So, you can imagine my grief when I discovered that one of the straps have broken off the sandal. You think they could have been better constructed for $5. I'm seriously looking into getting them repaired..although it will probably be 3x as much as my original investment.

If anyone sees these shoes anywhere (in a size 9!)let me know! I don't even know the maker, since it has been long worn off!

Happy Birthday Mason!

Our little one is 3 today! I'm looking at my watch right now and thought back to where I was 3 years ago today. Sixteen minutes ago I had just given birth to my baby boy. Wow..time had flown. it's been over 1000 days and our screaming, never napping baby (who we affectionately called "LB"..little bastard) has grown into a very loving and happy toddler. Wait...is 3 still a toddler? I'll have to refer to my developmental books for the answer on that one. Regardless, toddler or preschooler, we are anxiously awaiting Mason's next milestone. Potty Trained. I feel we are so close. It is all up to him now. He has to want it. We have Thomas trains, Blues Clues handy dandy notebooks and Webkins lined up on the counter to entice him.

Sophie was running a fever yesterday afternoon and some Motrin seemed to turn her around. I peeked in her ears and it appeared one was a little red. She woke up this morning and was crying she did not feel good. The fever was back and high..so off to Patient First we went. Two hours later, we had amoxycillen in hand to treat an ear infection and tonsilitus. Looks like we are relaxing at home this Memorial Day weekend..which is fine with me. I'm working on a good book anyway.

Let Them Eat Cake!

Haven't we done this earlier in the week? Oh yeah, we did. Here we are on cake #2. As Marie Antoinette famously said "Let them eat cake!". So the Schorrs do again! Brian's dad and Shelly came down for day to see the kids for their birthdays. So dessert was...cake. And who am I to turn down buttercream.

Speaking of baked goods, how stupid is this..
We are in the supermarket today getting a few things for dinner tonight and Brian ventures into the bakery department. He starts looking through the goods and see a box of a dozen DAY OLD donuts for $1.99. Well, Mr. Genius thinks this is a great deal, since one FRESH donut is 50 cents, so he is saving so much by buying a dozen donuts that he will eat himself. Since every person need their own dozen donuts. (In addition to birthday cake) He got home and ate 2 of them..and I swear he is finishing every last one of those donuts if I have to serve them to him for dinner just to prove my point.






Finally some beautiful weather. The kids got to play outside. We got out the t-ball set and the soccer ball. They loved playing in the sandbox too.






I could not resist this moment to capture on the camera. Mason called me from upstairs to look at his work of art that he did on the easel. A future Picasso.




Happy Memorial Day to all. Sophie asked me what what Memorial Day was this morning and I tried to explain to her the best way I can for a 5 year old. I told her that we remember all the people that protect our country and protect her from bad things. Sometimes those people die while working to protect us. She kept saying that her mom-mom (who passed away last year) and Grandpa and Grandma Shelly's dog were protecting America. Interesting how a five year old pieces things together.

A plug for my friend

One of the websites I have been addicted to as of lately is Etsy. It's basically an online handmade crafts market. You can get anything on Etsy and I have. Jewelry, clothing, wallets, journals, the best cupcakes under the sun,our website image, soap, shampoo and more. I admit I spend way too much on this site. I wish I was crafty enough to sell my wares. My friend Elena told me about Etsy back in November. She was also addicted and buying everything in sight. Her husband dared her to make something to sell to support her Etsy addiction.

So she did. Enter NayaDesigns. She came up with a concept of a bracelet to count food points on (aka..Weight Watchers) and smartly came up with the name "skinny bitch". In addition to her best selling bracelets, she makes gorgeous earrings and necklaces as well...go Elena!




I got Brian on the Etsy bandwagon as well. He has managed to get me a few cute things.

Nothing else really new on the homefront. Apparantly the teachers in her room have the "Easy Listening" station on at daycare during rest time. Since Sophie does not nap anymore, she has managed to learn many of the songs she hears. She cam home today singing Prince "Kiss". What a character.

How long have I lived here?

It will be 6 years this summer since we moved down to Maryland. In that time I've gotten used to being below the Mason-Dixon line. I love being close to Baltimore (even though I miss Philly). We have found more than enough great restaurants and cultural activities to keep us happy.

I've been going to the gym to get my exercise for the last 4 years..same couple machines, same classes and it's been ok. I really do not like exercising, but do it cause I pretty much have to. I have always heard of the Ma and Pa trail in Bel Air and finally checked it out today. It was great! It's basically a 5 mile walking trail that is gravely road in the woods. It was hilly in parts which made my 2 mile walk a little more challenging. What a novelty to walk and actually go somewhere (instead of going round and round on a treadmill. I used to live right by the Wissihickon Park in Philly and it reminded me of the old days.

It was great to be in the fresh air with my iPod, hoefully I can convince some of my friends to join me for a "walk and talk"...to make the time go by even faster.

I can't believe it took me almost 6 years to get there.

You say it's your Birthday...

Oh yeah.... The birthday fanfare is about to hit the Schorr house. We got 3 birthdays in 10 days starting tomorrow with Brian. Because we love to get freebies and deals we are fully taking advantage of the birthday deals. So read on..if it is your birthday or if it is coming up...here are some tips for free treats!

Coldstone Creamery gives you a free ice cream creation for your birthday. The portions are huge there..so we usually all end up sharing one. Times that deal by 3 (in one week)..we will be frequenting this place.

Friendly's gives all kids a free meal on their birthday and adults free ice cream. Guess we will be eating dinner there in the next couple weeks. I'm not a big fan of Friendly's food (although I am all over the ice cream)..however, the kids meals there are impressive.

ToysRUs sends the kids small gift cards ($3) for their birthdays. I know, not much to buy with 3 bucks..but they can manage to find something!

It's great to get all these freebies..but it would have been nicer to have them spread out. That's what I get having 2 kids 5 days apart in the month of May.

Don't knock it till you try it.

So, last night we had a treat of a babysitter and we were able to go out for dinner that did not involve chicken tenders on the menu. Since it was Brian's birthday coming up we went to Salt in Butchers Hill.
We have had this place on on list for a couple years, and they recently started taking reservations for parties of less than 6. So we jumped all over that. One of their signature appetizers are duck fat french fries.




Yep..you heard that right, potatoes, deep fried in duck fat. Sounds a little sketchy...but oh my goodness..so good. Everyone had the paper cones at their table filled with the heart-attack helper. Plus they add 3 types of aioli (fancy name for mayonnaise) to dip them in. That's a healthy dish! Anyway..that plus some drinks, to die for entrees and dessert and no one's food to cut up or blow on..made for a great evening. We do need to get out more!



So, here is a picture of Mason I snapped yesterday morning..I have no words.

Pardon the Interuption...

Yes, it has been forever and a day since the last blog and no, I really don't have an excuse. But in a nutshell..lets see what you have missed. School is winding down..Sophie is registered for kindergarten. Mason and I are having the willful battle of toilet training and he is winning. Although, he has relented a bit and been able to pee in the potty occasionally! Yes! I can't wait to burn those diapers!

Brian and I have both been very busy with the kids, work and life in general. We finally got our webstore up and running. Sales have been sporadic, but we hope that it will solidly be in place come the busy holiday time. Check us out at www.younamethegame.com

The birthday marathon will soon be upon us as we celebrate 3 birthdays in 10 days in the Schorr home. Brian is first, on the 20th, Mason is the 25th and Sophie closes us out on the 30th. Throw my dad in there on the 29th too. Lots of cake to be had! The birthday parties are planned and everyone is excited to turn another year older. (Except maybe Brian. Check with him).

We had a big weekend. We had everyone down on Saturday to celebrate Mothers Day and go to Sophie's first dance recital. She took jazz this year at daycare. Daycare Dance Institute (DDI) is a great program for working parents. The dance instructor goes into the schools for classes during the day, so parents don't have to take one of their precious Saturdays..or weekday nights to run around and go tto dance classes. Sophie has Ms. Sarah this year and loved it. She performed her routine to "Boot Scootin Boogie" and brought the house down! In the hot pink costume, complete with a cowboy hat, she was reminiscent of Jon Benoit Ramsey...eerie...

The postings will continue!

The Times, they are a changin

Oh ok, I know its been a while since I posted lasted, but the holidays had us crazy with everything and I've barely had time to breathe. Its been a whirlwind month, everyone was sick at one point or another. But back to normal.

Big news on the Schorr homefront...

Mason is now in a bed! Oh how exciting! We gave him Sophie's bed and bought Sophie a full size bed. It's such a huge bed for our little princess and she knows it. We made the transfer today and everything went smoothly. We took down the crib, moved Sophie's bed in Mason's room and put together Sophie's new bed. Mason loved his new digs and took a nice long nap in it this afternoon.

That's about it for now. I'm pretty much hooked on Etsy lately. If you haven't had a chance check it out. www.etsy.com. I'ts a great sight for buying and selling handmade items. I'm positively addicted. I have bought bags, wallets, jewelry, signs, and so many other things. I need to stop!

Sharing Hanukkah Traditions!

Sophie enjoying latkes

Will was the best latke eater!
Sophie and Becke posing at the menorah

The kids enjoying the dreidel game


Sometimes being Jewish is tough. Being Jewish in Harford County, Maryland is even tougher. While the county is slowly becoming less homogeneous, the amount of Jewish families in the area is slim. That being said, its tough for Sophie and Mason in December. Everything is red and green, Santa and Rudolph and Jingle Bells. So, we decided to have several of Sophie and Mason's little friends over to enjoy some of the Jewish traditions of Hanukkah.

We ate latkes, spun the dreidel and lit the menorah. The kids all had a great time, and Sophie and Mason (particularly Sophie) was really happy to share her customs with her friends. It was really cool to see several of her friends already know about the rules of dreidel and different aspects of the holiday.

Tomorrow night we are headed to the synagogue in Harford County for a Hanukkah party. That should be fun!

On a scary note, I was in Target last week and asked an employee where the Hanukkah paper, bows, etc was. He replied "We don't do that here". Hmph!

It's so much fun to share customs and traditions. I truly believe it makes people more tolerant, accepting and loving to all people when you can step outside the box. When the Hanukkah hoopla dies down next week and Christmas celebration kicks into high gear, hopefully the kids will learn new things and experience the fun of the Christmas season!

First Snow of the Season!

Well, the calender may still say its Autumn, but we got our first blast of winter today with a little snow! The grass is covered and we probably got an inch or two. The streets mostly remained wet, so it didn't slow me down on my day off with tons of errands to do.

The kids loved seeing the snow fall from he sky and Sophie tried to catch snowflakes in her mouth. They wanted to go out and play, but it's getting dark out now..hopefully tomorrow.

I work tomorrow, so I'm curious to see how Maryland calls it. Traditionally, the schools close in Maryland at the first flake, so I'd be content with a snow day or a delayed opening!

We had the first night of Hanukkah last night and Mason got a V-Tech toy and Sophie got High School Musical dolls. The highly coveted Troy and Gabriella. They are excited to open up another one tonight!

Countdown to Candle Lighting!

I spent Friday night knee deep in wrapping paper getting all the Hanukkah presents wrapped. As my parents did for us growing up, we always had a few days to eye the gifts and strategize which one to open up first. The kids came downstairs on Saturday very excited to see all the presents out. However, in true kid style Sophie comments "Mason got more than me". I assured her that her counting was off, they both had exactly 8 gifts, and that I treat both kids equally. Although Sophie definitely got a better haul this year. Since Mason is only 2, what does he know?

Hanukkah kicked off a little early yesterday since my parents won't be able to make it down during the week. The kids got great gifts. A Leap Frog Leapster for Sophie and an awesome train table for Mason.

First candle tomorrow night!

A Walk on the Feminine Side

Mason is home with me today as he has been under the weather the past couple days. Yesterday he coughed so much that he threw up in school. He was really miserable yesterday. So, I kept him home today and he is doing much better. He is happy, not coughing nearly as much and playing. He keeps telling me he wants to go to school.

I went down to check on him in theplayroom, and there he was..standing at the play kitchen with a pretend ice cream cone and wearing Sophie's princess shoes. He loves the Belle ones the best as they are yellow.

I'm sure we will be able to blackmail him in the future at his football banquet with this picture.

The Turkey is finished, let the retail madness begin!

Well, Thanksgiving is over. We had my mom and dad down, along with my sister, brother and law and my two nieces. Have you ever stopped to think about how long you spend preparing a Thanksgiving dinner and how long it takes to eat it? Well, with some down time last night I did. I shopped for food for probably 2 hours, got table accessories on my afternoon off, started preparing side dishes the night before and basically did not sit down all of Thanksgiving day (That's with my mom making the turkey and my sister bring the pies..the 2 hardest tasks). We sat down to eat and were finished the main meal in under 40 minutes. Yep. Do the math..it doesn't seem very productive, does it?

All in all, the food was good. The kids were as good as 4 children under the age of six can be. Brooke and Mason were amongst the pickiest of the eaters, but no one walked away hungry.

I went to sleep early last night, thinking I can score some good Black Friday deals and get an early workout at the gym. I was out of my house at 6:00 am, only to discover that the coveted GPS we were thinking of getting flew out of the stores within 5 minutes of opening. I was able to score some good scrap booking supplies at a nice discount. This Black Friday thing is maddening. It is so wild to see no parking at 6:00 in the morning and lines wrapped around the stores. Next year, I'm buying online. I'll still have to wake up early to catch to deals, but at least I can do it from under the covers.

Enjoy the shopping! Although I don't think it can be classified as retail therapy today!

New York, baby!

Brian and I recently celebrated our 6th anniversary with a long weekend jaunt to the Big Apple. We dumped the kids off at Brian's mom's house and set off for 3 days without dependents. It was so weird to be driving and looking at the seats in the back without car seats.

We had a few setbacks on our trip. First, we check in to our hotel and we are informed that the only room they have left was a smoking room with a queen bed. So, before we can be pissed off we were offered a free night at the hotel across the street with a promise our room will be ready tomorrow. Not too bad..we slashed our hotel bill in half.

As we were getting dressed on Saturday to head down to Tix for discount theatre tickets we see on the news that a strike on Broadway is looming. The Stage Handlers decide to pick the weekend I go away to fight for more fair pay. So, most of all the popular shows are shut down. There were 8 shows available that were not part of the striking union. It worked out ok, cause one of the shows was the Putnam County Spelling Bee. What a great show..absolutely hysterical. We had it on our list of ones we wanted to see so we weren't disappointed.

We took to the streets, mostly on foot, partly by subway and did the 5th avenue stroll..as I lingered in the windows of Tiffany's, Fendi and Cartier, Brian picked up the pace. After the show, we had a yummy dinner in Little Italy.

On the way home Sunday, we stopped at Harold's Deli..a famous stop on the New Jersey Turnpike for monstrous sandwiches and other Jewish delicacies. Brian and I shared a single sandwich and had enough leftovers for 3 sandwiches. It was crazy good and as good as it was, it was even more fun to watch other people get their meals. We attached a picture of the monstrous corned beef sandwich.

When we got to Brian's mom's house..both kids pitched a fit to go home with us. Sounds like everything went well and we can plan our next getaway sans kids soon.

Break out the fleece!

There is an autumn chill in the air! We have not turned on the heat yet, but getting close. I have already gotten the comfy, cozy pajamas out for the kids to keep them toasty when they sleep. Mason gave us a tough time with the "feeties". He tried to peel them off as fast as we put them on.

Generally, Mason is a good kid. However, we had a "time-out" incident in school today. He and another one of his partners in crime decided to pull all of the library books off the shelf in his room and jump on them, pretending they were a pile of leaves. They did not stop despite warnings and both ended up in the time out chair. His teacher said the two boys sat in the chairs and laughed. Great.

Sophie has finally graduated to a booster seat in the car. She is thrilled to be out of the car seat, and she really looks like she aged once we made the transfer.

Brian and I are off to NY for the weekend to celebrate our 6 year anniversary. Brian's mom is taking the kids for a few days while we get some adult time. Hopefully the kids will be good so she will want to do it again! This is our first time leaving the kids overnight (actually 2 nights!) so we will see how that goes.

Knee Deep in Candy!

Halloween came and went and we are now coming off our sugar high.

Sophie celebrated yesterday at school. Mason had his celebration today with a parade and party. Everything went well, and Mason surprisingly kept his hat on the entire time. I was worried that was one part of his costume he would not tolerate.

After school we gathered up the costumes again, got out the candy buckets and had an outside pizza party at our neighbors before trick or treating. The kids ate next to nothing, so I resolved myself that candy was going to be the main course tonight. Oh well, it's once a year. I may not get the mother of the year award, but I can live with that.

Sophie and Mason had a great time trick or treating. Since it was a fairly mild night, most people sat outside to give out the treats. We only covered half the neighborhood at the very most and got a huge haul.

The kids know the rules. They can have 2 pieces a day. I figure if I don't touch it myself (yeah right) it should last until next summer. I'm going to need to get this out of my house..or hope the kids and Brian gobble it all up and leave me with the sweet tarts. Yuck.

Happy Halloween!

Twas the Night Before Halloween..

Everyone is very excited for Halloween in the Schorr house! Sophie had her Halloween party at school today. Smart teachers. THey know she is going to be so sugared up tomorrow, they decided to celebrate a day early. Mason has his parade and party tomorrow.
The kids are very excited to go trick or treating. We plan on meeting a bunch of families for an outdoor pizza party around the fire and then off for the big candy run.
Sophie helped me get the jack-o-lanterns ready tonight by scooping out the pumpkin seeds and the guts. Brian got creative with the faces.
Check back soon for pictures of the kids dressed in their costumes!

Armed for the Winter

We went out on a wet, miserable morning to get everyone (except Brian) our annual flue shots. The Harford County Health Department sets up clinics in and around the area to get immunizied for the winter flu season. This is always such a pleasant experience for Sophie, who does so well (note sarcasm) with shots. She woke up suprisingly well this morning and knew she was getting her shot, but as we got closer and closer to the actual event, the crying, turned into screaming and then turned into Sophie trying to run away.

Mason on the other hand did really well. When he saw me roll up my sleeve, he started to do the same. Unfortunately, Mason's shot went in his leg. A little crying after and Mason was pacified by a lollipop.

Brian likes to play Russian Roulette and not get the flu shot. Says he never got the flu. Let's hope his current record stands. I don't feel like playing nurse to him this winter.

Thank goodness this ordeal is over with for another year.