Pre-school Christmas Show

  This year was Liv's first Christmas sing-a-long at her preschool.

Day Fourteen: Playdate with Friends

We spent time with friends during this holiday season and enjoyed being around such great company.

Day Thirteen: Caroling

                           For the past four years I've organized a caroling event for my friends.

Day Twelve: Local Shopping

 Liv was at her dads so my friend Alys and I headed out for some Local Christmas shopping. I did get some great local presents for my family at Bazaar Bizarre. Taking this day to check out Cleveland, reminded me of how much I love it here! I've often debated moving when my schooling was done and living somewhere else.

 I moved around a lot growing up. I was born in Houston Texas, but lived in Boston, Liverpool, Long Island, Ithaca, Syracuse, Chlimsferd, Reading Pa, and finally Cleveland. I also moved away for a period of time to Akron Ohio, and San Fransico for a summer. I enjoy traveling and trying out other people's lifestyle, but ultimately finding my place in the world is important.

Day Eleven: Frog Prince Movie!

 Liv and I got all gussied up and went to lunch at Yours Truly and went to see the Princess and the Frog. We had a great time being together. The movie was a little long, but we really had a great time. I was excitied especially because Disney movies use to come out at Christmas time around my birthday and we would go see them.. I was very happy to share this with Liv.

Day Seven, Eight, Nine

 Nothing was really done this week.. I had finals at school and didn't want to plan anything that would be hard to do. We got our Christmas cards together and sent them out, again it did feel good to have them all sent out when we wanted them.

Day Seven: Write Christmas Letter

 I've never thought my life was important or interesting enough for me to write out a Christmas letter. This year however I had a lot to be thankful for and many people I've been pleased to have relationships with and wanted to share my joys with. We sent our letters along with our Christmas photo! It was a great Christmas tradition, and I look forward to it again next year!

Day Six: Holiday Circle Fest

  Day six was a great evening at Holiday Circle fest! While it wasn't as elaborate as parade the circle, it was a great winter evening outing. We started off at the Natural History Museum and then headed over to the parade. We all thought the NHM was great, but the parade was ok.. We ended our evening with a yummy dinner at Tommy's!

Day Five: Cookies!

 Day five gave a good patch of vegan sugar cookies! Liv was an awesome helper and we managed to crank out a little over a dozen. I'm sure we'll make more through out the month, but at least we were able to get started and have some cookies to share!

Day Four: Santa Day!

Day Four was family photo day..Hooray! Then downtown with everyone to meet Santa. We had a great time seeing the downtown lights and going through the inventionasium tour..Liv was definitely overwhelmed by all the costumes and activities flurring around her.. I was reminded of how little she is and how things may scare her. Anyone who knows my child, knows that for the most part she is pretty fearless and doesn't get scared easily..She often judges her level of fear by what others around her are scared of..

 The tour was a lot of fun! Come time to meet Santa, everything was fine, Liv let Santa hold her and she told him what she wanted. Santa was extremely friendly and also very accommodating to my "shy three-year old." When it came time for the picture, Liv panicked and said she didn't want to take the photo.. I didn't have enough time to see if she was just being a gomungine because she could, or because she was genuinely scared. Regardless of not getting the photo-op, we had a great time window shopping and being together!

Christmas Countdown Day Three

Day three was relatively uneventful. My initial plan was to print out our family photo, but realized it probably needed to be taken on Friday.. So I ran over to Target and printed out a princess photo of Liv and Cinderella from Halloween and put in a Disney Princess photo frame a friend of ours gave us. Liv loved it and it's sitting in her room on her shelf. I didn't get chance to take a picture of it-but right now I'm just trying to stay on top pf things and I will post one soon!

Christmas Countdown Day 2

Well this morning got off to a late start.. Liv crawled into my bed at some point last night and the two of us stayed in bed until 9! Which has been a rarity in this house. After Liv watched a couple episodes of Spiderman o n Hulu we headed down stairs to begin our next project.

 I got a recipe (from another blogger ;)  about making borax snowflakes. The process was fairly easy and didn't take too much time. We are now letting our snowflakes sit in their mixture..I'm hoping that they will turn out okay!
http://chemistry.about.com/cs/howtos/ht/boraxsnowflake.htm

Christmas Countdown Day 1

To kick off our advent/Christmas countdown, we started by decorating our tree. Liv didn't really get the idea of opening the letter each day, but does enjoy doing the activities... Liv really got into decorating the tree, and looking at all her ornaments. I already have three years worth of memories with that little person..I can't believe it! I do find it really exciting that each Christmas I see her getting more and more excited about everything that is going on. She loved seeing all the pretty ornaments that were hers and being in charge of the candy cane placements. After we decorated our tree, I was feeling a little corky for breakfast and made the two of us pancakes and dino chicken nuggets..yum! I didn't have time to bust out the waffle maker and do chicken and waffles, but the substitute did the trick!

 I will say that I am having a bit of a hard time getting into it all.. I think part of it is the Christmas season happened so fast! I feel like I'm somewhere in September still. The other factor could be I'm still in school. Finals, meetings, and papers are still heavy on my mind and it's hard to stop and appreciate the moments.  Next week I can just enjoy being with Liv and Jack and really get into everything!

Thanksgiving!

  This Thanksgiving was the most relaxed we've had in  awhile.My brother was able to fly in from Albany! The visit was short, but I know we'll see each other soon! Mom and I cooked and hung out. In actuality there isn't much to report about this particular holiday, other than it was truly about family and enjoying each others company!

  The Saturday following Daley, Mama, Liv and I all bundled up and headed out to get a tree. I know this kind of early, but we're starting our advent which is Tuesday! So we wanted to have everything in ready so we could begin on time.

The Girl in Red!

Finally we got a new memory card! Just in time to collect more holiday memories! After Church Liv and I along with our friend Alys headed over to Chagrin Falls for the Cleveland Handmade Market. While we didn't find any treasure we absolutely had to have, we did have a wonderful time being outside hanging out together! It's so amazing that November 22 and we're still enjoying such amazing weather!

So off to do homework so I can relax and enjoy the holiday week with the fam! Planning on checking out Bazaar Bizarre! http://www.bazaarbizarre.org/cleveland.html
Let the local challenge begin!

Shopper's Paradise Here in C-town!

After a lot of research, reviews, and notes from last year, I finally feel I'm able to shop totally local this holiday season. While I can't share with you specifics of what I'm going to purchase (bc it might be for you ;) I will say that I will be able to get a gift for everyone that will come from some place in Cleveland!

I encourage everyone to accept this challenge and shop local this holiday season. I know you will have so much pride in your purchases and your friends and family will feel so special that you put in the time and effort for them! For further ideas of places to go or to participate in another contest opportunity check out this site!

http://www.chefswidow.com/2009/11/16/the-350-project-cleveland-holiday-challenge/

Let's Go Shopping!

Christmas Advent for Family

After getting inspired by other mama blogs and deciding that it would be a great idea to combine and organize our family traditions, I've come up with 24 days of activities leading up to Christmas. I think it's a fantastic idea to have everything planned out in advance, that way anyone who wants to be involved can be and I also think it will make the holidays go a little more smoothly.

My plan is to organize dates next week during Thanksgiving!

24 Days to Christmas Countdown:


1. Kris Kringle Dec. 4th 6pm
2. Frog Prince Movie Night(Opens Dec. 11)
3. Local Christmas shopping day ec. 12
4. Holiday Shoppe downtown
5.Make Christmas Cookies
6.Decorate Tree
7. Donate toys
8.Caroling(Dec. 13th)
9.Nature Walk
10.Read Christmas books
11.Watching Christmas movies
-Polar Express, Dora's Christmas etc..
12.Breakfast for Dinner in Christmas attire
13.Send out Christmas Cards together
14.Holiday Circle Fest
15. Make paper snow flakes for the windows
16. Build Gingerbread house
17. Nighttime Walk
18. Green Bubblebath Night
19.Snow-drops Adventure game
20. Sleepover w/ Uncle Daley and Mommy!
21. Drive Around looking at Lights
22. Zoo to visit Reindeer
23. Read Twas The Night Before Christmas
24. Unwrap Presents and Enjoy the Day!

Kris Kringle Dec. 4th!

When I was younger, my family always went to the city for Christmas. When I was really little it was Manhattan, Macy's and Rockefeller Center! When we moved to Ohio it was Tower City. Both were magical for me and my brother.

Due to busy schedules, college, work, school etc.. We weren't able to continue the tradition for a couple years. Now that I am around my family again, I decided that I would rekindle that tradition and encourage Mama and Papa to join Liv and me for a trip to Tower City again! Last year the three of us went to Kris Kringle's Inventionasium. It was fantastic! Liv was a little overwhelmed, but all the "grown-ups," were excited by everything and had a wonderful time!

I just reserved our tickets for this year, and would like to encourage anyone who needs a Santa option to please consider heading downtown for this event: http://mrkringle.com/ The event is really well organized and everyone who worked when we went was very kind to Liv. I was very impressed and happy to support this and would hope that more people ventured downtown for it..

My Time of the Year!

I love the Holidays. I love coming up with new recipes for Thanksgiving. I love the frantic task of getting Christmas cards together, and wrapping dozens of presents for the family I love. I get gitty at Christmas displays and sharing the tradition of Caroling with Liv. I know that all sounds mushy, but it means a great deal to me that I have harnessed the meaning of Christmas and I don't give into shinny new things and just shoving them under a tree..

This year I'm going to do my best to get excited and encourage Liv to get excited about the Holidays. Not just about the getting stuff, but about family tradition, giving to make others happy, and spending time with people who care about her.

So I believe this is just the beginning of a series of postings about my traditions and gearing up for the Holidays. We just got a new memory card! I plan to document our advent schedule, caroling, and my quest for local/homemade gifts! As well as all those awesome homemade treats :)

Cleveland Food is the Best Food!

I am a huge advocate for Cleveland's food community! There's a ton of fantastic places in this town, and it has been my quest to go to as many of them as I can find..Hey a girl's gotta eat right?

Happy Dog: Eric Williams owner of Momocho (God of Guacamole!) recently took over this place and while I haven't been there yet, I'm pumped about it's reviews!
http://cleveland.metromix.com/bars-and-clubs/bar_review/inside-happy-dog/1601302/content


Shout out to the Food Show in Cleveland!
http://www.fabulousfoodshow.com/

"Ballad of the Bullet"

I've been reading a lot of Dr. King lately.. Yes it is for a class, but lately my interest in African American History, has gone much deeper. I have shunned much of my heritage. I don't know poverty, I don't know discrimination(platen) and I don't approve of the modern African American's pattern of pre-martial sex, high prison population, thug admiration, and dependency on government aid. I have asked myself why should anyone be proud of violence,inferiority, and other atrocities? Why should I admire people who say "fiddy" instead of "fifty," yells at people all the time and shows no respect for the home and children?

I've been contemplating this a lot, and reading material that reminded me of the power and strength of the African American society. Mainly I've been reflecting on the writings of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King jr. It is my belief that these two men are the last of our NOBLE African American leaders. Them and Bobby Seale.. I say this because they were important to the cause of righteousness and truth. They all give our history strength and knowledge about different aspects of what was going on then and how that has impacted us now!

While I haven't figured out everything, I have begun to read and contemplate a lot on this issue of race in America. While I don't believe it's not necessarily about race anymore, it is important to recap and understand my history. I do want to be involved with helping change the social climate of our society. I've picked three speeches that I think sum up civil rights, the importance of having a voice, and the foundation of "change."

http://www.blackpanther.org/TenPoint.htm

http://www.mlkonline.net/jail.html

http://www.malcolm-x.org/speeches/spc_120463.htm

I Belong Somewhere

I know I've been posting a lot of angry, emotional, and vague comments lately. I've been struggling a great deal about several things...

Jack hasn't been his best these past couple weeks, which meant I lost my better half. I had no idea how much I needed him, until he could no longer lift me up. My mother has expressed her disappointment in my dependency on Jack. She thought of me as a stronger individual who did not require the emotional support of someone else. I believe in ying and yang when it comes to love. I truly believe I have found the individual meant for me in Jack. I know I am a person who requires to support of others. At the end of the day I need someone to confide in and lean on. Jack is that person for me.

My other struggle has been with Olivia's biological father. I use those words to emphasis how basic he relationship is with Liv. He offers no emotional support and willingness to treat her as anything more than property. Because of his need for control, he constantly belittles me and tries his darnedest to control my life. ex: being on his beckon call for getting Liv or picking her up, choosing the Holidays he'll have her for etc. It takes all that I have to love him even though he is my enemy. I've been reading a lot of Martin Luther King jr. lately and he constantly treats his opposition as brothers and sisters. His courage is amazing and his words comforting. I found hating Liv's father hasn't gotten me anything, but guilt for letting Liv go with, tears from being bullied by him, and anger wanting to seek revenge. None of those are healthy for me, or for Olivia. I claim to be a believer in God and I started to putting that to truth! I pray constantly, not for God to do what I want, but to place me on the path he wants me to be on, and to remember that it his will for me to be on that path. God will protect our journey, and because we asked he will provide the courage we require to go through life.

So this is what I take solace in. I am constantly internalizing what has been going on and believing that in time a new chapter will begin for Liv and I. I focus on our relationship letting her know what I've told her since she was in the womb..it's just you and me kid..

Where Does the Anger Go?

This past week has been a whirlwind, my stomach tightens just thinking about everything. Since last weekend Jack has been completely out of commission, which forced me to move in with my parents for a couple days, so Liv and I could gain some form of normalcy. I found this week that my family is complicated, filled with heavy emotions that I cannot suppress. I know that sounds really vague, but I'm not sure how far down the rabbit hole I want to go..

My school/work schedule has been crazy this week, and I'm so relieved that it's over! I also started carpooling this week (which makes me an official mom in my book!) While the basic idea seems great, I'm still on the fence about it. I'm not sure being responsible for a total three kids and making extra stops is something that I'm finding worth while? It's not a huge inconvenience, but as someone who is naturally prone to chaos, I appreciate less complication and my own routine.

Last night I came home and my mother informed me that a man was robbed at gun point right in front of our neighbor's house! It was 10pm Tuesday night and one of the neighbor boys witnessed it. She was talking to another neighbor and we are all organizing a neighborhood watch. That should've calmed my nerves, but it hasn't yet. For several reasons..

The first reason is we just went through an election and no one new was elected into office! There were many people who had fantastic ideas and some I didn't agree with, but none the less none of them were elected! What is that about? I can't stand the functions of our council and how they look out for their own interests see article: http://www.heightsobserver.org/read/2/11/status-quo This town is divided between rental/slummy and elitist liberals. It's hard to explain that to many of my friends because they are in the elitist group and as much as I love them, I truly believe they don't care because it's not affecting them..

The second reason is, I grew up in Cleveland Heights. My family moved here from New York when I was ten. I was homeschooled in this community before attending high school. Our roots were layed down here, I brought my daughter home to the same home I grew up in! I have a strong sense of community and I feel like mine needs me. I don't want to be worried about taking a walk, or going for an evening winter stroll with my family. I don't want to worry that the dogs are barking at something other than a squirrel! I want my immediate environment to be safe. Who else cares about that?

The third reason is, who the hell is patrolling? We pay the CHUH police to protect us, but they sit on their kisters and ticket "speeders," and expired meters.. I rarely even see them patrol the neighborhoods when school is out. If you tell me its budgets cuts or the economy I'm going to slap you! Get out there and make our neighborhoods safe! That's your job!

My personal plan is to get to know my neighbors(except the one I had a confrontation with when I was six months pregnant! another time..) I want to be involved in neighborhood watch and participate in whatever makes everyone feel comfortable. I also plan on understanding more about the politics here. I've been doing extensive work in Cleveland proper learning about families, the economy, and understanding why policies work and who they work for. Now I think it's time to apply that to CH. I will support anyone who is more concerned about safer schools, safer streets, and a safer community than they are about "climate change," "green living," or how many starbucks we have! Sorry but I know about green living, and doing my part for Mama earth, I don't need my tax dollars going to someone who just wants to explain it to me. I want people who believe in this community as much as I do. Know what it means to be attached and not transient. I want this town to be stronger, not weakened and ignored.

Now that I've written all this out, I feel a lot better. My nerves are feeling better and I'm going to try to apply positive energy to this. I pray too that God will provide the proper path and also put serious conviction into others who live here and want to stand their ground!

This is my Blog Thus MY Soapbox!

Don't have much time to blog today, but as always have lot's to say! Anyways I just wanted to say how proud I am of my conservative comrades coming out and voting yesterday! I think balance is slowly making a come back and it's very encouraging..

I know some of my dem. friends(which frankly is the majority of my friends..) will be offended by this post, and when I have time I plan on going into a more detailed explanation of my standard, beliefs and values, I hope you all will be anxious to hear :)

For now I wanted to post this!
http://townhall.com/news/politics-elections/2009/11/04/gop_sweep_big_governor_victories_in_virginia,_nj?page=2

Boo at the Zoo

We love Halloween in this house! To me it kicks off the Holiday season. Last weekend Mama, Liv and I headed to the zoo for the annual Halloween party. It was a ton-o-fun! Didn't have tons of space on my card for pics, but we all love this one with Cinderella!

Shepard Fairey and His Posse

I've been following all sorts of media coverage and personal coverage of politics lately. I'm finding everything to be so relevant, and for the first time feel like my voice matters. I have developed a desire to an active participant in politics and what it means to be a citizen of this country.


Lately I've been reading a lot about Shepard Fairey. Fairey became popular because of his Obama Hope Poster: http://hisvorpal.files.wordpress.com/2009/03/obama-hope-sheppard-feirey1.jpg I've become interested in his art and how he represents it. During my reading I discovered
that the Andy Warhol museum was opening a Fairey exhibit. I decided to throw cosh into the wind and head over to Pittsburgh to check it out.

His art is amazing! Even though its model..dare I say copied from Andy Warhol... It was really cool. Jack and I kinda felt like we were in the "in crowd," because we took the opportunity to go. However, I do think his work to a certain extent is a little cliche and over rated. I think because he became famous he lost a lot of street-cred.. Who knows what history will say about him.

I definitely recommend taking the quick road trip to Pittsburgh and not only checking out hus exhibit, but also the amazing town!

Triathlon 2009

I have discovered something about myself over the course of this summer. I am a woman who functions on a roller coaster of energy. Some days or even weeks I am beyond motivated to push myself and participate in 5k's and really feel not only good about myself, but also feel like I've conquered some goals. Then aspects of my life take over, and I am sleeping in, making poor food decisions and not motivated..

The triathlon was no exception. I started off feeling really energized and ready to do it! Then the summer became hanging out by the pool, attending a class, and getting ready for vacation. How was I suppose to then concentrate on the triathlon? I ended up going through with it, and founded it to be quite the triumph!

San Fransico

This vacation was the highlight of our summer, and also firming our family.. Jack, Liv and I ventured to San Fransisco as a true Trio! Flying there and our first day was pretty hectic, mainly because we didn't understand what we needed to do in order for everyone to feel comfortable. Once Jack and I figured out that we just needed to work together, we had a wonderful time.

I love traveling, and I am especially grateful that we had the opportunity to travel to California. The fact that I am able to share those memories with Liv and Jack are incredible. Taking chances and exploring life I think will be what defines our family..

July-August Coming Soon!

Its been a crazy couple weeks, filled with televison interviews, out of town guests, and an awesome trip to San Francisco! I promise shortly I will have both July's posts and August out soon.. I really want them out before we get into September back to school stuff!

My Love for Food on the Food Network!

So a while back I was both channeling surfing and web surfing when I came across one of my favorite shows "Diners, Drive-In's and Dives," I love how Guy Fieri (the host) travels from place to place and explores awesome, local, funky, and yummy looking food! I noticed however that the show never ventures to Ohio..mainly Cleveland!
At the end of every show they say that you the viewer can write in and mention your favorite place. I decided that I would write in and picked MELT bar and grilled in Lakewood as the place I would mention. The premise of Melt is they make specialized grilled cheese sandwiches.. They serve an awesome variety of beer and offer a fun atmosphere..nevermind its usual a 45min wait!
I decided that Melt symbolized everything I find great about Cleveland-funky, self motivating, and creative. I probably could picked a couple of other places, but I really thought Melt would be the best bet..so here is what I wrote:

Hello!

My name is Kate Baker. I am an avid Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives viewer and I wanted to try my luck and recommend a place in Cleveland. I noticed that the show does a lot of Mid-west places, but has yet to show any place in Ohio. I'm from Cleveland and know many wonderful places that are on par with the places I've seen on the show.

I would like to recommend MELT located in Lakewood Ohio. They specialize in amazing grilled cheese sandwiches , the atmosphere is funky and exciting, and the staff is a lot of fun! What I also really like about MELT is that they are all about participating in the local community.They buy their dairy products from Amish markets, and their meats they purchase from West Side Market (a local historical market). I consider myself to be an advocate for buying local and taking advantage of local produce and knowing that MELT participates in their local economy is really assuring.

I hope you consider MELT for any of your future sites!


http://www.meltbarandgrilled.com/

Thanks,
Kate Baker

2881 Meadowbrook blvd.
Cleveland hts. Ohio, 44118
216-321-5386

I emailed and totally forgot about it. Several months past and I got a call from the food network! My email had been picked and we were to appear on the show! I told everyone I knew.. The whole idea of writing about something you believed in and having it recognized made me very proud!
Day of the shoot comes and I bring along my brother, mom, Liv and Jack. We were approved to have that many people at my table, but come actual shoot time I was asked to pick just one person. I ended up choosing Jack, leaving my brother, mom, and Liv behind. I felt awful that my family was turned away.. I tried to remain positive but that was definitely the beginning of a series of let downs..
We had to wait patiently for awhile Guy and Matt Fish (the owner) filmed in the kitchen. I ordered my usual "The Popper" herbed cream cheese, cheddar cheese, jalapeno peppers all deep fried! Jack has been dying to have one of his own, but the producers wanted him to get something different from me..he ended up with the Tokyo Tuna which was tasty in its own right, but would not have been good deep fried..
They filmed us eating which was weird. Being the food consumer that I am, felt totally awkward stuffing my face with greasy fatty goodness on camera... I was also intimated when I was finally interviewed by Guy! I believe I stumbled over my words and pretty much no sense...
The final blow that made the whole event seem a little bittersweet was when we were getting ready to leave the waitress from Melt gave us the bill! We had to pay for the f*ing meal! I was floored and really upset.
So my emotions following my evening was again bitter and followed by email to Matt the owner:
Dear Mr. Fish,

My name is Kate Baker. I am one the patrons who wrote the food network about MELT. I attended the taping and wanted to take a second and express some feelings regarding my experience. I was honored that my email was chosen and received a lot of positive feedback. and was very excited at the chance to be a part of the filming. However, some aspects of the occasion left me feeling disenchanted.

I wrote food network several months ago when I noticed they had not featured any restaurants in Cleveland. I decided I would write to them about MELT. I thought MELT was the best up and coming restaurant, and met all my expectations in dining (except maybe the long wait..) I wrote about how MELT was locally owned, supported the community and offered awesome food! For a better understanding here is my original letter:


Imagine my surprise when I received a phone call from the production company of Diners, Drive-In's and Dives, asking if I was available to come to a filming at MELT! I wrote about it on my blog, invited my family, and promoted the restaurant to everyone I knew.. I was honored and excited that a place, I wrote about, was being nationally recognized, and wanted very much the opportunity to share that excitement with everyone.

Prior to the day of filming, the producer informed me that my meal would be covered and it would be fine if I invited my immediate family. So, my mother, brother, daughter and boyfriend accompanied me. When we arrived we were told by a DDD staffer that I could only have one guest. While I completely understood the explanation that it would be too tight if we all were seated, we were all disappointed nonetheless.

My boyfriend and I remained intrigued and excited to participate in the filming. As we waited patiently for the kitchen filming to end we were told what to order by the DDD staff. Though we didn't have our first choices we, as always enjoyed our food and were delighted to be interviewed by Guy Feiri! We enjoyed all the pleasantries of meeting a celebrity.

When it came time for us to leave, I was again confused and a little disappointed to find a bill waiting for us. Not that I am upset we had to pay for our meal, but rather that there was no acknowledgment from your staff or you (the owner), that I or the other viewer Frank, were the two people who took the time to write about your restaurant and wanted very much for you and your staff to be recognized on the show.

While I'm very happy everything went so well, thrilled I will be on the show and happy for your recognition, I did want to convey my disappointment. I think what is most frustrating is we were the ones who thought enough of your restaurant, to go above and beyond the average, and you and your staff did not think as much of us.

Sincerely,
Kate Baker

With the hour I received an email back from Matt:

Hello Kate,

I am terribly sorry to hear about your disappointment with how you were treated during the filming.

I feel that I must explain the situation to you.

The filming began at 6am on that Wednesday. Myself and my staff were involved in a very intense and time sensitive day from the beginning. The production crew from DDD was fabulous to work with, but they did not give us much information. We were told that viewers were coming in and that they were going to be interviewed by Guy on camera. I apologize, but we were not told about the compensation offer. We should have offered it to you ourselves, but with all the craziness we simply forgot. I am not sure if my front of the house staff knew exactly who the viewers were, but I did not. I apologize for not thanking you personally, but I was involved in a very intense day and simply had to stay on the schedule that the production crew set up for me. Things were being added to the shoot and taken away from the shoot very fast. It was a struggle just to keep up with what they wanted or needed. The shooting day finally wrapped up at 7:30pm.

I want to extend my apologies and my thanks to you. I apologize that you did not feel recognized or that you had to pay for your meal. I thank you very much for all your efforts to help get us on the Food Network program.

I am going to send you out a $50.00 gift card to compensate you for your meals on the shoot day and also to thank you for all your efforts.

I again apologize for not thanking you and recognizing you on the shoot day. I was extremely focused and needed to keep every aspect of the restaurant perfect for the shoot.

Please accept my sincere apologies and the gift card.

You are a very important person to myself and Melt Bar and Grilled.

I hope that this experience does not tarnish your positive view of Melt Bar and Grilled.

There was some further dialogue between us, but nothing that I need to mention you get the idea..

This whole event to me is a clear example of standing up for yourself, and advocacy.. I know it was just for a restaurant, but I think its every little step to making a difference..

First Week of July..

So the family kicked off our summer plans, by attending Ingenuity fest in downtown Cleveland. It was really fun and not as chaotic as other fests we've attended. We ended our trip by rocking out to some Mifune! Liv fell in love with the lead singer and wanted very much to say hi to everyone in the band.. She did accomplish that and scored a free demo cd! My kid definitely knows how to network!

Jack and I enjoyed a picnic at Blossom for 4th of July. Fireworks were beautiful and exciting, but I always enjoy hear the 1812 overture!

Bringing June to a Close..

I've managed to grab a few minutes, drink some coffee and write a little. It's hard to figure out how best to use the little free time. You only get a few choices and you can't do them all..because that would be considered wasting your day.
So as I continue to get a hold on this blog and figure out what direction to go in, I wanted to express my new idea. To update it monthly instead of daily. So that way I can gather my thoughts and photos and just take one day or two to write and document that month. So far I have done this for May and June. I think its going well and sparking that desire to write and try to properly document whats going on.
To wrap up June, it has been a great month. I sorta attempted to begin Triathlon training.. Its been going ok, meaning I've been running diligently, but my actual biking for mileage needs a little work, and my swimming has been nonexistent these past two weeks. I'm starting to feel that if I'm really committed to do this I think the best I can hope for is registering for the Super Sprint. (.5m swim, 4m bike, and 1.5 m run) I feel great about the running, and I know I can tackle the bike ride, but that swim is a little intimidating and I just don't want to panic!
So new update on my quest for weight loss, I finally bit the bullet and signed up for Weight Watchers.. I know! I already sorta regret it. Last night I went out for a fabulous dinner with Jack, and tonight I'm having dinner at my favorite restaurant MELT with my friend Kristi.. So as with anything I try to attempt this will be off to a rocky start.. More updates to come.
So that's pretty much it for June. We went camping, danced in a Parade, and begin some new goals. I know July will busy as well; Carlos @ Wade Oval July 1! Trip to PIB, wrapping up my summer semester, and other adventures on the horizon!

Bug Juice!

Our first camping trip was a lot of fun. We did have our fair share of mishaps; forgotten bathing suit for me, not enough under wear for Liv, no folding chairs, no flipper to turn burgers, no pillow for Jack, and it rained! All in all it was fun!
I will say this here and be fully honest, I AM NOT A CAMPER! Spending too much time outside makes me cranky...and cranky I was! It was either too hot or too cold, too dry, too wet, too dirty too buggy, I wasn't hungry, I was starved, I was enjoying my child, I wanted to throw my child in the pond... and so on. It was hard for me to be comfortable and remember that it was my idea to do this as a family.
I tried to channel my inner Eustace Conway and accept my elements, but as always the elements got the best of me. I suffered dehydration, bug bytes, and my final morning met me with a sinus headache. I'm fairly certain I pissed off Jack, but he kept his smile and stuck by me.
As I reflect however, I will say that this was a great experience for Liv. Actually for Liv and Jack. They had the best time together and the joy for being outside, and their willingness for adventure was great! They got along really well and I think it was great opportunity for Liv to further build her trust in him and for them to bond. I am so proud of the two of them.
Our trip has turned into an awesome memory! A pure memory. Filled with laughter and smiles, holding hands and drying tears. I appreciate these memories, I am grateful that these memories are what I can provide Liv.

Parade the Circle!

My daughter was such a performer! Why am I so surprised? I truly believe Liv thought the whole parade was for her! She was fantastic and friendly. I was so proud of her attitude and the way she so confident parading around with everyone. I find her beyond amazing and Parade the Circle was just another example!

Might I add.. She took a Three Hour NAP! when we got home!

Liv and I had an absolute blast!

Our Fans!