The joys of being an Aunt

This weekend I went to Winchester to babysit for Dori and Brian while they went to a Bed &
Breakfast. I had so much fun I can't possibly write about everything in this blog. I will however, write about the highlights.

This is a picture that even I would not believe had I not actually taken the picture myself. The boys (Robbie 5 yrs and Shane 3 yrs) and I made pizza's for dinner. I could tell CeCe was tired during dinner but she managed to eat a slice of cheese pizza. I started cleaning up and looked over at her and she had pulled her shirt over her head. I noticed a minute later that it had not moved ~ I went over to her to play "peek-a-boo" thinking she was patiently waiting for me to say something to her and I realized she was ASLEEP! It was hilarious!


This is her right after her bath and AFTER I woke her up. She fell asleep around 8 so I put her in her crib. Robbie, Shane and I always sleep on an air mattress in the living room (on the main level) whenever I spend the night. CeCe woke up around 9 o'clock and started yelling "Ya Ya" from her crib. Robbie was the only one still awake and we had been talking and watching T.V. We decided to let CeCe cry for 5 minutes and then if she didn't put herself back to sleep we would go up and sing to her. Well, right before we were going to go up to her room, Robbie said "let's say a prayer so that CeCe goes to sleep".......so Robbie proceeded to say a prayer. As soon as he said "AMEN" she stopped crying...I mean INSTANTLY. We looked at each other in astonishment and Robbie throws both arms in the air and yelled " IT WORKED". We both busted out laughing and he flings his little hand over my mouth so CeCe can't hear us laughing. (which made me laugh more and LOUDER) We laughed for 5 minutes straight and I had tears streaming down my face. Our laughing fits are becoming a common event when I spend the night now. I swear you would think Robbie was a teenager with the humor he has and the things he "gets". The last time I was there and we had a laughing fit, Shane was throwing up in the bathroom and we got the giggles so bad! It was terrible and so funny all the same.


We had a WONDERFUL ice storm too. I am a little disappointed that we did not get the snow that was expected but we woke up to ice coated trees and it was beautiful.

It was a great weekend. I am always so happy when I spend time with my neices and nephews - I am so blessed to have such an amazing family!!!!

P.S. I STILL believe in Santa

1.Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper with really pretty ribbon

2. Real tree or artificial? I have both. The real one is a more formal one upstairs and the artificial one is downstairs and it is the "santa" tree.

3.When do you put up the tree & decorate? I usually decorate the day or weekend after Thanksgiving

4. Favorite gift received as a child? Hmmm..I really liked all of my presents as a child. My parents always did very well. I think my FAVORITE was a chalkboard. I LOVED to play school.

5. Do you like eggnog? RAW EGGS? OH H*#!! NO!

6. Do you like Hot Buttered Rum? I probably would if I drank alcohol.

7. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes, it's from Mexico

8. Hardest person to buy for? No one really....I can usually find something for everyone

9. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail

10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? Slippers that were 3 sizes too big and a REALLY ugly gold frame.

11. Favorite Christmas Movie? Miracle on 34th Street(original and remake) plus I LOVE LOVE LOVE It's A Wonderful Life and I like White Christmas too (1954 - Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye)

12. When do you start shopping for Christmas? I actually shop in January for some things when everything is on sale. I like to do a lot of my shopping on the internet so I REALLY start shopping around August.

13. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Probably more times than I should've

14. Favorite Christmas Treat? Edy's Peppermint Ice cream and Peppermint Hot Chocolate w/LOTS of whip cream

15. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Clear on the formal tree, colored on the "santa" tree

16. Favorite Christmas song? The First Noel and The Little Drummer Boy

17. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Well, this year I will be at Dori and Brian's Christmas Eve/morning and then at Trav and Shawnie's for the day

18. Favorite Christmas Family Tradition? Japanese food and a movie on Christmas...Oh wait...never mind

19. Angel on the tree top or a star? Star

20. Open the presents Christmas Eve or Christmas morning? One present Christmas Eve which are always pajamas to sleep in that night then the rest Christmas morning

21. Most annoying thing about this time of year? TRAFFIC and really loud annoying music at the MAC makeup counter

22. Favorite ornament theme or color? My formal tree is Gold and Silver - very classic. My santa tree is all over the place - silver garland and everything - kind of retro and tacky but I love it.

23. Favorite full Christmas dinner? Turkey or Ham, mashed potatoes, rolls, green been casserole, orange cottage cheese salad, deviled eggs, 7-layer bean dip, veggie tray, pickle/olive tray and Rock Creek GRAPE SODA

24. When do you take the tree/decorations down? New Year's Day

THE Cruise

My mother, my neice Hannah and I just went on a 7-day cruise! It was a lot of fun! We went to Grand Cayman, Honduras, Belize and Mexico. It was the first time for my mother and Hannah but I have cruised before. I have to say, I will never cruise Carnival again. I have previously cruised on Royal Caribbean and it is so much better. I told my mother that Carnival is like Las Vegas and Royal Caribbean is like Beverly Hills.

Hannah and I went snorkeling in Belize. It is supposed to be the 2nd largest barrier reef.....2nd to Austrailia. It was so much fun and BEAUTIFUL! Hannah was hilarious....I had to hold her hand for the first 15 minutes....she did very well though. We saw a bunch of Barracuda fish too.....it was awesome.

This was on one of our formal nights. Hannah took over 250 pictures - she was a maniac with her camera. We took some very funny/cute pictures though.

Okay....so Hannah thought that she was so cool that she could go into a bar and they wouldn't kick her out. So, we went to every bar/lounge on the boat so she could take a picture. This is her pretending to be drunk....pretty believable, eh? She fell in love with one of my favorites.....the virgin pina colada.

This is Granny, Hannah and Anthony. Hannah recieved her first kiss from a "boy" on this cruise.....from Anthony.

We loved Anthony. He was amazing. He liked us too. We told him we'd be back.

Every night we would have the cutest animals made out of our towels. This was my favorite.....especially since he is holding chocolate.

All throughout the cruise, I tried to scare Hannah. I got her REALLY good one night when she was coming out of the bathroom. She screamed BLOODY MURDER - I was impressed. This is us re-enacting the scare. (not sure why her date is off on her camera)

AHHHHH...this is our beloved Melting Chocolate Cake. It was sooo good....we got it every night. It looks like it's nothing....but it's packed with a delightful surprise. I miss it already. Hannah is going through withdrawals.

Every night we saw the sunset while at dinner. We had a great table right by the window. It was beautiful. Cruising is the only way to go. I highly recommend it.

Turkey Recipe

This recipe is from my 5 year old nephew Robbie. He told his teacher how to make turkey and she wrote it down. He then asked his mother who would be making the turkey this year and she said "Yaya". Dori was instructed by Robbie to call me and give me his recipe so I could make it on Thursday.




Ingredients:
Chicken
Meat
Eggs
Squid
Turkey

Directions:
Cook it in the oven for 19 minutes

Oven Temp:
19 degrees

It's my Birthday and I'll cry if I want to!

So, it's my birthday and ONCE AGAIN I am sick. It seems like bronchitis again. Seriously, it's ridiculous. It makes me want to cry.

So, one of my staff (a massage therapist from Thailand) brought this in for me today. I THINK she meant to say "Happy Birthday Kara Tull" but I'm not certain. It's funny and very kind all the same. I unfortunately won't be eating any today but will save it for tomorrow when hopefully my throat won't feel like I have swallowed several daggers.

I also recieved a dozen long stem peach roses that are EXQUISITE! They were sent from my friend Rob who knew that the very best gift I could get are flowers. I love them. They make me happy.

Other than the fact that I am sick, this is a GREAT birthday.

I see a pattern here.....

A good friend of mine sent this to me and said it was me to a "T".....(of course, one part of this is yet to be determined....read on)

A Fixed Water sign, Scorpios are said to be stable in character, but also very sensitive and emotional. Scorpio is emotionally the strongest and is considered the most profound and intense character in the zodiac sign of the Zodiac. Scorpios are considered to be gifted.

Scorpio is ruled by Mars, the planet associated with activity and power. Scorpios are dynamic, powerful, and passionate. The Scorpio is one intense little creature, with enough poison in its own tail to disable or kill a much larger opponent. Scorpio personality can sting when hurt or angered. They never forget a wrong act towards them and usually seek revenge, even if years later. Otherwise, however, Scorpios are extremely loyal and can be quite compassionate as well as passionate.

The Scorpio can be the toughest enemy as they are often one step ahead of the game with their powers of perception, steely intuition, and suspicious nature. Their intuition can be so developed that they border on the clairvoyant; yet, outwardly they can look as if they don't suspect a thing. They are the supreme chess players of the Zodiac. Often showing an extreme sense of calmness and stability, Scorpios are infamous for holding their emotions within. Thus, they appear calm and stable, but could really be ready to burst at any moment.

Scorpio is a very sexually driven sign and is the most passionate of the Zodiac. They are extremely powerful in bed and can overtake a less courageous partner. Making love for them is a spiritual act and partners feel they are taken to a higher level as deep emotion and physical action are involved. Scorpions are fiercely loyal and love one partner only. Beware however, cross a scorpion in love and you will regret it.

Scorpions are well known for their intense and powerful natures. Scorpios are very passionate, causing them to be exciting and magnetic to other people. In other words, they are extremely likeable for their intuitive traits. They are rarely found in the center of the activity but will always know just what is going on. They watch and take mental notes. Their deep sensitivity makes them the best and the most loyal friend but the same quality makes them the most treacherous of enemies. They excel at everything and anything, when they combine their energy, self-confidence, ambition and generosity toward others. They can be demanding of others but will never ask someone to do what they won't be able to do themselves.

Their passion and intensity lead them to lofty and important goals and anyone who has not earned their respect will fall to the wayside. They like to take charge and can effect changes with nothing but their sheer will.

Scorpions are a go anywhere type of bunch that love to travel. Scorpios prefer interesting places where things can be learned to places with pretty scenery and landscapes. Scorpios should never be taken lightly. They are dead serious when it comes to learning about others and will not stop their investigations into anything until they get to the absolute bottom of things. You won’t get much out of a Scorpio about themselves, though, as they are complex and secretive and too much prying can push them away. They live in a black and white world with no use for a grey area.

Scorpios are extremely resourceful in every sense, whether it is money or ideas and are ideal to have around in a tight situation. Their determined take-charge attitude can cause others to follow without realizing they are being led. Scorpios are fearless and determined to succeed, focusing on the beginning and ending of things and not much in the middle. They work hard to feel satisfied and have an uncanny ability to find the truth. They lead by example and if their aggressiveness can be controlled, Scorpios can accomplish and achieve anything they set their mind to. Challenge and competition are the Scorpion’s strengths.

It's a Wonderful Life

The first fire of the year. This makes me so happy. I love coming home from work and making a fire, putting on music and making dinner. It's a wonderful life.

Of course, Dori and the kids were there to share this with me as they are with most events in my life right now. I don't know what I would do without them. It's true bliss.

A Few of my FAVORITE things

This past Saturday was quite a busy day for me. I hosted a bridal shower for Megan who is as close to me as a sister. I love her dearly and will miss her as she begins her new life in Oklahoma!






She will kill me when she sees that I have posted a picture of my gift to her. (but doesn't she look GORGEOUS?)
Anyway, we had about 22 women over and it was a lot of fun.

My sister Dori made the cake - it feeds 60 but I saw a picture of this cake and wanted her to make it. Needless to say, we have some cake left over.






After the bridal shower, I changed gears and set up my dining room table for a dinner with my sisters and mother. Every month we meet for "Granny's Goombata" (Goombata in Italian means "special ones" and my mother formed our group after my step-father passed away last year. It has been great - just the women in my family meet once a month for dinner. We have a great time) This particular Granny's Goombata we were going to celebrate my birthday (since it is on the 19th) and I wanted to eat dinner at my house instead of a restaurant. I thought it would be nice and more intimate so we orderd take out from The Cheesecake Factory. One of my favorite restaurants. I was very happy.

I got my FAVORITE cake from Pastries by Randolph (in Arlington). It's a raspberry buttercream and it is DIVINE. My sisters and mother got me my first thing ever from TIFFANY'S. I absolutely love it.






From Left to right: Cameron, Mom, Dori, Mandy. Usually my sister-in-law Shawnie comes but she was on her way back from a week in Cancun with my brother. They bought a time-share! I'm glad they had a great time.






This is one of the pictures I love from the night. It's a classic Tull Sisters moment.





This is typical Cameron. I grew up sharing a room with her until I went to college. I get my silliest with her. There was one year where my mother banned us from sitting next to each other at holidays from that time forward. (We were in our 20's too.....laughing fits are pretty standard with us)







Okay....Dori had this strange alfalfa thing going on. We couldn't figure out why she had this crazy piece of hair that stood straight up! I couldn't stop laughing.











This is Robbie and Shane. They came over after dinner and spent the night with me. It was the perfect ending to a perfect day. I am sure you can see why all of these things are a few of my favorite things.

Forbidden Fruit?

I went out last week to get Chineese food and my fortune said "Forbidden Fruit causes many jams."~

First of all, that's not really a fortune as much as it is a foreboding. Don't you agree?

Second of all, I prefer jam over jelly any day.
Just a thought.

DISCLAIMER: Not to worry....this is not a confession. I just like jam.

One of those days...weeks....years????

So, I'm just going to call it like it is. 2007 has been an "off" year for me. Among ALL of my sicknesses, deaths in the family, sickness among family members etc. etc. I am ready to lay this year to rest.

Today has already been an interesting day. (it's 9am) I have to say, what I am about to share with you is probably one of the DUMBEST things I have EVER done. With that said.....let me tell you about my LOVELY boots I just bought. Macy's has GREAT shoe sales and I happened to be at the mall when the sale was going on. I have been looking for a while so when I saw these boots I was very happy..they were just what I wanted. I tried them on....well, right foot only and KNEW they were perfect. The next day I wore them to a party. When I put the left one on, it felt VERY tight and I thought to myself...."I know my left foot is not THAT much bigger/wider than my right" and thought it was so strange that it hurt so badly after about 3 hours of wearing the left boot. I wore them to work on Monday and by the end of the day could not believe that the boot did not stretch one bit and that my left foot was killing me. So this morning I go to put my boots on again (yes...I will endure PAIN for fashion) and I realized that my left boot was very stiff - unlike my right one. I stuck my hand in my boot and this is what I pulled out.


CAN YOU BELIEVE IT? I mean, how dumb can I be AND how the (insert your own swear word) did I NOT REALIZE it was in my boot. I mean REALLY.....
So, I pulled it out, put my boot on and it was Heaven. No pain, not even a little discomfort...imagine that.


So, after that little epiphany, I get in my car to drive to work. Those of you that know me, know that I listen to music (sometimes rather loudly) in my car. At this particular moment, I was listening to Michael Jackson's BILLIE JEAN and I noticed an odd beat in the song. I then realized that it actually wasn't coming from my iPod - it was my car. So I turned off my music to see if I could hear it better. BOY HOWDY - it sounded like I had a flat - but my car was not shaking, and my steering was fine. I've had enough flats to know what they feel like. Nevertheless, I pulled over and got out to inspect my tire. I was almost expecting to see a dead animal stuck in the wheel or something. Lucky me, no dead animal and I could not see anything wrong....so, I got back in my car and continued on my way to work. Well, the noise seemed to be getting louder and people in their cars were looking at me so I called work and spoke to my friend Carlos. I even stuck my phone out of my window so he could hear the noise. He heard it and said maybe something had come loose. We just couldn't figure it out.

I called my mechanic and he said I could come in around 11am. I drive an Audi and they are expensive to fix and you have to go to a certified mechanic. Anyway, I have a mechanic that I really like. So, I came home and came inside to clean my house etc (it's what I do when I have a day off) I ran back out to my car to get a bottle of water and decided to look at my tire one more time to see if I could find anything. Lo and behold....look what I saw.


That thing is so big no wonder it sounded like I had a dead animal in my wheel. So, I called my mechanic and told him there was a STAKE in my wheel and he could kill dracula with it. He laughed his arabic laugh and told me that he would order a tire and he could have it by 2pm. So, alas, everything will be alright and I'll be back on the road tomorrow. With the way this year has gone though, I'd be afraid...very afraid.

My new Goal

Well, I have a new goal. I want to visit each of the 7 continents sometime in my life. I have been to Northern America (of course) and Europe. I ALMOST made it to Africa when I was in Spain but decided not to go. Now, I really wish we had gone. I just looked up cruises to Antartica and it's not nearly as pricey as I had expected. This is a very attainable goal and I am excited to complete it!

So there you have it. My new goal in life. Wish me luck. I am going on a cruise in 2 weeks (Grand Cayman, Mexico, Honduras, Belize) and then to the Czech Republic in the Spring....so after I get through those vacations, I will definitely work on my goal. Anyone who wants to come with me to one or more of the continents, let me know.

Happy Halloween

Robbie asked me to come out to Winchester for Halloween~I left work a little early and drove out there to spend Halloween night with the Spadetti's. Dori made chili (which was VERY good) and I brought a salad and bread. Dori is ALWAYS doing nice things for her neighbors and decided at the last minute to bring some chili to two of her neighbors so they would not have to cook. She is the most selfless person I know.

As soon as we were done eating, the kids were clammoring to get out and get some CANDY!!!! I stayed at their house while Dori and Brian took the kids (and Dixie their dog) trick or treating. I was happy to stay so that Dori and Brian could go together.

CeCe was a "dancing with the stars" dancer. This picture makes me laugh. She's a natural centerfold.....we will have to keep an eye on her. She is getting quite a personality and I love her so much. When I leave her house to go home, she goes to the door and tries to open the door and yells "Ya Ya! Ya Ya!" Dori called me the other night and said "listen to this" and held the phone out so I could hear CeCe crying at the door and saying "Ya Ya, Ya Ya"....she melts my heart.

I call this "Popcorn Prayer".......I wonder what she was REALLY thinking!

It was a fun evening. I'm always sad to leave their home. I will be so happy when they move closer!!!!

2nd Annual Nephew Halloween Party

I love Halloween because it signifies (to me at least) that the Holidays are here. I have started doing a yearly Halloween party for my nephews - they come in their costumes and we eat, play games and then run around outside for a while. This year was a little different because Sterling is now living in Idaho (we miss him so much) and Robbie was suffering from a horrible headache due to his spinal tap earlier that week. He wanted so badly to be a part of everything but would scream in pain when he was up and around. He absolutely wanted to dress up in his costume for the pictures - so, here they are:



This is Drake. He is seven. Travis and I cracked up when I was taking his picture because he was totally posing. This "clone trooper" from Star Wars belongs on the cover of GQ. ( I mean really, he's even looking off in the distance...sooo funny!)







This is Luke. He is 4 and is a Gargoyle. You HAD to see this costume in person. ADORABLE!











This is Mason. He is 3. He was a dragon. Check out his "fierceness". LOVE IT.









This is Robbie. He is 4. He was outside a total of 4 minutes. Dori didn't have to do much make up around his eyes because he was still so sick. He was a vampire - with blood dripping from his mouth (though you can't really tell in this picture)








This is Shane. He is 3. He was a power ranger. Check out his muscles! I love Shane's smile !











This is CeCe. She was an honorary guest. She got into the chocolate. She was a dancing with the stars dancer but the picture will follow in a later blog.

It was a fun afternoon and I am glad that everyone was able to come. Can't wait until next year.



I just had to add this picture. Robbie spent most of the afternoon on my bed. CeCe climbed up and layed on him for about 10 minutes....just hugging him and giving him kisses. It was so cute it made me tear up. I have the best family ever.

Oh What A Night!

So, I get a voicemail from my sister Dori at 7:02pm last night. My sister starts out by saying "I am at the Emergency Room with Robert. They think he has meningitis and they have to do a spinal tap." Then she breaks down and starts sobbing and I can't understand much of what else was said except "come here, I need you, I need you, come now". I cannot even put into words what I felt at that very moment - I mean, first of all, this was ROBBIE and second of all my youngest sister "NEEDS" me for support. I wasn't sure how much support I was going to be because, let's face it, this was ROBBIE, the keeper of my heart. I was on my way to run an errand and quickly made a U-turn and headed toward Winchester, VA hospital.......a hospital I LOATHE. (Natalie will remember our little 9 hour jaunt to that very hospital when I severly burned my hand last year. Not a fun experience) I called Dori back and Brian picked up. He was calling someone from church to come over so they could give Robbie a blessing. He sounded very scared and very rattled. I called my neice Hannah because I knew she would be by a computer. I had her google "meningitis" and "spinal tap" because I wanted to know exactly what we might be dealing with. I also called my cousin Michelle who is a nurse to get some more facts.

I pulled up to the ER and Brian was waiting outside for me-looking scared to death. He brought me back to Robbie who was sitting on the bed with Dori. He was pretty out of it. He was happy to see me. Dori said he had been asking when YaYa was going to get there. He really liked the thing on his finger that made it glow red. Poor thing had to be stuck 6 times for them to get blood! You can see in this picture on his right arm all of the little cotton balls and tape he has on his arm! They were finally able to put an IV through his hand and that is why it is bandaged up so he couldn't pull it out. Anyway, we sat there for about 45 minutes as nurses kept coming in to check on him. He was pretty zoned out and just starred a lot. The Dr. finally came in to do the spinal tap. They LUCKILY put him under and we had to leave the room.

This is him just waking up from the spinal tap. He just starred for quite a while. I went around the bed to talk to him and he could only move his eyebrows. It was actually quite cute. The fluid was clear which meant he did not have bacterial meningitis which is much worse and very contagious. The Dr.'s think it might be viral meningitis so he was admitted for at least 2 days. It takes 24 hours to see if it's viral. He still had a headache and his fever was still high, plus, it still hurt his neck to move his head. The nurse had to stay in the room to observe him while he was waking up and stayed an additional 30 minutes after he was awake. THEN they could finally put him in his room. He was excited to go to his room because he had an X-box in there. The first thing he said when we got to the room was "this is a girls room, there are butterflies" Sure enough, the border around the ceiling was butterflies. Once he saw the nintendo though he was okay with the room. He was still very out of it and a very sick little boy. It was 11:45 by this time and I was getting ready to leave and Dori wanted to run home to get some clothes and things for Robbie since he'd be staying for a couple days. Brian stayed with Robbie and they put on video games while Dori ran home. I wish I could've seen Robbie play video games because he was SOOO out of it when I left, I am sure it was hilarious.

So, that was my night. Very scary and highly emotional. I am so happy that Robbie will be okay. I am sad he had to have a spinal tap....it did not look like a proceedure I would ever want to have. Poor thing....he was very brave. It really stinks to see a little 4 year old so sick and you can't do anything about it. I love this kid SOOOOO much.

Really? REALLY??????

So, I was driving on New York Avenue today and saw a church that advertised "Blessing of the Animals. We will even bless your stuffed animals" WHAT THE HECK? So, I googled this and evidently, it's a world wide effort. I never knew! I'm sure you all knew about this.....but I have never heard of this. Anyway, below is info from one of the churches I googled. Seriously, this is wrong on so many levels I just don't know what to say....

Blessing of the Animals
Sunday, October 7, 2007
12:30 P.M. (immediately after church)
Open to the whole community!

We will celebrate the "Blessing of the Animals" on the Sunday after St. Francis of Assisi day (October 7) and the following Sunday (October 14) . This custom is conducted in remembrance of St. Francis of Assisi's love for all creatures.

You are encouraged to bring your pets and stuffed animals/toys with you or bring photos of your furry and scaly friends to receive a belssing in the garden.