My Hungry Little Caterpillar Turned ONE!

Hope everyone had a great weekend! As I mentioned in the blog last week, this weekend was a busy one for me. On Saturday we threw a party for our little man who just turned one and it was a blast! I'll share a few pictures at the end of this post as promised :)

But first, I want to share some snapshots from the Wedding Fair yesterday. As always, I met some really great brides and grooms who I am very excited to work with! It's always fun to hear all of the different travel ideas, dreams and preferences, and (although this sounds cheesy, I'm still going to say it...) my goal is to help make each of those wishes come true! I truly do love helping couples find the perfect place to escape.

Since decor and dresses are two of of my favorite wedding aspects, I'll share pictures of those:

We had such a great time celebrating Blake's birthday with our very favorite people on Saturday! I decided on a 'Hungry Little Caterpillar' theme which is very fitting, considering Blake's favorite thing to do is EAT. I still have yet to find something he doesn't like. As a result he seems to grow out of his clothes waaay too often but I have to say, I love how easy it is to feed him!

Goodie bags for the other little ones with caterpillar sippy cups and sets of crayons. 

Gotta love the dollar section at Target!

Yummy treats! Colorful Trix crispies, caterpillar cake pops and an assortment of cupcakes.

We served baked spaghetti, pizza, my favorite Barefoot Contessa salad and good ol' bread & butter. I thought it was pretty delish!

Blake and his Daddy

Blake and his Mommy - Cannot believe I have a one year old!

Blake and his Mimi

Waiting patiently for his dessert

 *Happy Birthday to you! *

1st cupcake ever and what a surprise -- He loved it!

I'm ONE!

Ok enough reminiscing about my weekend... Time to get to work!! Have a great day everyone!

25 Things with Andrea...

Well it is my turn to let y’all know 25 things about me. I came up with 25 things in a flash but actually writing them out for the blog happened much more slowly.  But here goes!

1.  The sound of an airplane makes me drowsy.   Typically I am sleeping prior to the aircraft leaving the runway.

2.  I am a closet Nascar fan! Tony Stewart sends my heart fluttering.   Not only do I watch Nascar on TV, I’ve actually been to Nascar races and they are a BLAST!

3.   I HATE chain letter/emails. Please don’t ever send me one as I will be the person to break the chain.

4.  I am obsessed with flossing my teeth. I have dental floss everywhere – in my kitchen, in my car, in my purse, in my desk – well, you get the point.

5.  I hope my husband isn’t reading this.  If he is, I will deny I wrote this. I am a terrible driver. I pretend I’m a good driver, but I know I am not. I have dented three different sides of my husbands truck. All of these accidents happened in the same parking ramp (although not on the same day - hey - that makes a difference).  And in my defense, the poles in ramp are large and the parking spots very small. ;-)

Here I am with my husband Jon and sons, JT and Parker, soaking up some Mexican sun!

6.  If I may insert a bit of advice... Ladies, be sure to visit only reputable hair salons! A few years ago when I was feeling “broke” and didn’t want to spend a weeks pay on a cut and color, I visited a discount salon. I left the salon with a Leather Tuscadaro haircut and two weeks later my hair starting falling out in clumps! So much fell out I had to use Rogain. Well, if I’m being totally truthful, I actually didn’t want to pay the price for Rogain so I bought Walgain (the Walmart brand). Lesson learned…..pay the money to the professionals. It is so worth it!

7.  My favorite vacation spot is St. John, United States Virgin Islands.  Can't wait to go back in April!

8.  My very first concert was Journey at the St. Paul Civic Center. I was so close to the stage that when Steve Perry was singing in front of us some of his sweat landed on my arm. Don’t stop believin’……

9.  I have sang karaoke once and only once.  Luckily I was with two friends so I didn't have to face the shame alone.  It was such a bad experience that 2 out of the 3 of us have never tried it again!  And that was 20 years ago!  Of course our song choice may have been our demise.  'Crocodile Rock' isn't an easy song to sing!

10.  My most recent celebrity meeting was Flo Rida at the grand opening of the Hard Rock Cancun (fab, fab hotel!). We tossed one back at the bar. We parted with Flo saying “God Bless You”.  Not quite what I expected from the Wild One.

My and my close buddy Flo rockin it at Hard Rock Cancun!

11.  I always try to be on time. I don’t like being late!

12.  I have owned nothing but Nike sneakers since 1979. I am a brand loyalist. Nike is my longest running relationship. Nothing other than Nikes for 34 years. Check out my new Christmas present to myself.

Merry Christmas Self!

13.  I am a full fledged sleep walker. At this point I could entertain you with over 100 pages of stories, but you're just going to have to take my word for it. Or you could ask Theresa about the time we were on a cruise.  She awoke at 3am to me frantically trying to escape a swarm of bees by trying to get out on the balcony (I could've sworn our room was full of them).  I'm still unsure what I was going to do once I got out on the balcony.  Thank God I was too short to reach the lock on the door and she was able to convince me to get back in my bed.

14.  Growing up, my mom was so worried about getting into a car accident, she made me and my sisters ride in the backseat until we got our driving permits. In addition, we were not allowed to talk when she was driving on the highway. She always reminded us of this rule in a very loud, very stern voice. “I’M ON THE HIGHWAY. NO TALKING! NONE!”

15.  I come from an Italian family. I have 2 cousins named Tony.  While this alone is not uncommon for an Italian family, what makes it a little unusual is that we have Tony, and then we have “Baby Tony”. Baby Tony is now a police officer in New York City with a wife and two beautiful daughters.  Yet he is still called Baby Tony by my entire family!  Better yet?  He answers to it!!! Gotta love the Italians!

16.  What makes me mad? Everything. I can go from 0 to 10 in three seconds!

17.  I have watched each and every season of the Real World on MTV since its debut in 1992. If I had to pick a favorite season it would probably be the first Las Vegas season.

18.  I do not have wisdom teeth. I realize lots of folks don't have wisdom teeth.  But, I never had them!  I was born without them. I am hoping the same for my two boys.

19.  At times throughout the work day, someone will throw out a movie quote and the rest of us have to guess the movie.  I'm terrible.  Much to the constant ribbing of my co-workers, I will admit that I have never seen the Sound of Music, Miracle on 34th Street, the Karate Kid and many other “classics”.  (I did finally see Saturday Night Fever about 10 years ago as my parents had forbidden me to see it when it originally came out).

20.  If I wouldn’t gain weight, I would eat pizza and popcorn everyday all day.

21.  I am a true Rock ‘n Roll girl at heart. On my iTunes you will find Van Halen, AC/DC, Aerosmith, Guns ‘n Roses, Kid Rock, ZZ Top.

22.  In 8th grade I wrote my life ambition was to be a Cruise Director. I was a big fan of the 'Love Boat'. Well, I didn’t quite get a job on a cruise ship, but I certainly love being a passenger.

23.  My least favorite holiday is Halloween. I've never liked dressing up. I am not creative, so trying to come up with a costume was always very stressful to me.

24.  I hate winter and cold weather but I love to ski – as long as it is a warm day.

That's me on the slopes with my younger son, Parker

25.  My second job in high school was at Orange Julius. I think I lasted a week. We had to wear the same polyester smock and visor as the person that worked the shift before us, all the while juicing 5 cases of oranges. Yuck!

Well, there it is.  Now you know me a little better than some of my closest friends!

Funky Friday ~ How some of the MTS Family spent the Holidays!

T.G.I.F.!!!  I don't mind that so much as I do 'Happy Friday'!  For some reason, my 'Happy Friday' isn't so happy when someone says that to me.  It then turns into 'Crabby Friday'.  Now that I've given you one of my deep, dark secrets, let's move on before I really digress...

It's been so crazy busy here and last week as you know I was enjoying Ixtapa so I didn't have the opportunity to share some of our family photos with all of you!  I sent an email out to our 'Escape Artists' asking them to share some of their Holiday photos with us.  I think it's so fun to see their personalities and the faces of their families who wait patiently, especially this time of the year, until Mommy finishes her tasks for the day!  A few of them are a bit blurry - the downside of cell photos - but I think their smiles still show through!  Enjoy!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hope you enjoyed that little 'peek' into our lives!  Have a great weekend!

Until next time...

Funky Friday ~ A December Reflection ~

Today is my oldest son's 12th birthday, and represents the end of the usual December scramble in our family. With three birthdays and Christmas all in one month, trying to fit it all in while making each person feel special and celebrated is no small task. I know I should love it, but truthfully I'm relieved it's coming to an end ~ which is kind of sad.

Last night my 10 and 8 year old were getting into their seemingly daily argument and I had to intervene. They share a room, a love of competition, and a need to get under each other's skin. I tried to explain to them that I know deep down they would do anything for each other, and they agreed if someone was coming after their brother they would...well, we really don't need to get into details, do we?

 

Here are the culprits, enjoying an ice cold root beer after a baseball game.

But I started to tell them that they really only have to put up with each other full-time for about eight more years, then they ~ GULP ~ eight more years??? So, wait, Matthew will only be around here for six more years? And Michael for eight? And George for ten? Then I will just have one at home? For only five more after that??? Wasn't I just holding them in my arms? Eight more years? Why didn't someone tell me this would be so short? So I only have six more Decembers with them all in the house?

The relief that had washed over me moments ago with December coming to an end has now turned into panic. I have come to love this organized chaos that we call home, and I can't imagine it without any one of them! I know, I know, the birthdays and celebrations will continue. They'll come home from college (and may even move back in for periods of time after that), but these years of us all being together are moving too fast. As my mom says, we are living the best time of our family life right now, when we can lock the doors at night and know that our kids are tucked safely in bed.

I'm just not ready yet. When someone mentions 1992 I feel like it was just five years ago, not 20. Eight years is nothing, and the busier we get, the faster it goes. 

Family photo from Christina's wedding a few years ago. They clean up nice, don't they?

So what does this have to do with travel? Nothing, and everything. I travel a lot, but the last time my family all got on a plane together was nine years ago, and I only had two kids. It's just so expensive for a family to travel, so we haven't. But we will. This year, I'm making it a priority. I'm saving for it. I'm working towards it. I will not let these few years slip by without our family enjoying each other in a destination that's new and different, to take us out of our routines and daily annoyances, to really leave it all behind and just get silly.

So I'm telling you to travel as a family. And I know times are tough. And I know it would be nice to get a newer car this year and that the roof needs repairing. I know travel is seen as a luxury and not a necessity. I know it falls to the bottom of the priority list because it has on mine, too. But I regret that. I could have made coffee at home every day and not gotten a $4.89 latte. We could have eaten out one less time each week and put that money away. Eventually that stuff does add up, and even if it means going somewhere once every two or three years, it's better than not at all.

I've been to a lot of places. I know all the fanciest resorts to take your kids where you'll all be entertained every minute of the day, and if you have the money for that then that is simply excellent. Go for it! They are truly amazing experiences. But if you don't, and you've been setting aside $50 each paycheck until you have enough saved, I also know of some more modest places that offer wonderful family experiences because I have been to them, checking them out for you, and someday soon, for me and my family too.

So, travel. Move it up the list. Set your goal and work towards it. Don't let these few years that you still have your kids' attention pass you by. Before you know it they will have careers, families, and responsibilities of their own, and it will be more and more difficult for you all to get together. Now is the time. Carpe diem. Do something you'll never forget, and will never regret. See the world together.

 Give the kids a pool and some slides and they are happy! Who wouldn't be?

Have a wonderful and blessed New Year!

25 Things...with Theresa

Keeping the '25 Things You Don't Know About Me' alive - and now it's my turn!  My first thoughts when I sat down with fingers to keyboard was this was going to be a really hard assignment.  However, once I got started, it wasn't hard at all and in fact, it was quite fun!  I realized I like myself and at 48 years old I can say I am mostly happy with the person I am (not in a conceited way - just a Sally Field kind of 'I'm proud of the person I am' way! :) )

So here goes...

1.  I'm obsessed with commas, and use, WAY, too, many of them!

2.  I love to be silly. My kids say I'm weird!

{A 'Selfie' from a recent trip - sending kisses home to my hubby and girls - That's me (Mimi) and the love of my life - Blake}

3.  I am a Grandma! (anyone who follows this blog knows this already, but I just wanted to say it out loud ~ again!)

4.  I am addicted to Nacho Cheese Doritos...seriously. If you don't believe me, come in the office and   check out all of my orange finger-printed papers!

5.  I can be pretty bossy ~ just ask my business partners!

6.  I'm blind as a bat and I don't wear contacts or glasses. Warning - move over when you see me coming!

7.  I prefer cats to dogs, but I have no cats and 2 dogs.

8.  I love ANYTHING to do with hair/skin care/make-up and have been known to spend upwards of 3 hours at Ulta! If the travel biz wasn't my passion, I would definitely be an esthetician or in the beauty field in some way. Until then, I practice on myself!

{Before and after hair shot - any blondes out there looking for the most amazing colorist - I have the perfect one!}

9.  I HATE professional sports. I actually don't care for sports in general but I LOVE to watch my daughter Lexie, a fastpitch softball pitcher, do her thing.

10.  I don't like the Beatles or Elvis. I mean, I really don't like them.

11.  I prefer seafood to any kind of meat and don't consider a salad a meal.

12.  I'm definitely a pool person but like the beach for walking.

13.  I don't like gardening, but I love gardens. Every year I vow to make a change and I plant tons of flowers in May. By end of June, they're dead. Every year.

14.   I'm a reality TV addict. I'm too embarrassed to list all of the shows on my TIVO.

15.  In relation to #14, I tease my kids that if, God forbid, we ever had a house fire, I'd grab my TIVO box before the family photos!  J/K (I think).

16.  I have 3 amazing girls and I'm nuts about them!! See #8. What would I have done with boys?

17.  I subscribe to 9 monthly magazines and People is the only one I religiously read cover to cover.

18.  I can't touch my toes with my legs straight (actually I'm not sure my finger tips even go past my knees, but who's measuring?).

19.  I'm obsessed with reading blogs. I especially love blogs about home design and beauty. I don't follow any other travel blogs... I think ours is the best!

20.  I think I'm a pretty good dancer.

21.  I'm not such a good driver.

22.  I think Dr. Phil is the smartest man alive.

23.  I totally believe in 'The Secret.'

24.  In relation to #23: I believe that God is all-knowing and has a plan for all of us.... A plan to give us hope and a future.  I'm so thankful for Him and for all of the blessings He has given me.

25.  Someday I'm going to be one of the travel experts for the 'Today Show.' Think that's far fetched?  Wait and see!

Until next time...