Organic grocery delivery

     Last week, I went to LIOrganicDelivery.com and signed up to have vegetables, fruit, and a carton of milk delivered to my door. Today, I got my first delivery!

     I'm so excited that this service is available! I ordered the small box, which is intended to feed only one person, just for testing purposes. I must say that I am impressed and I shall be upgrading my order to the larger box. Just a little info that I wanted to share with you guys!

And then there was snow...

     I awoke this morning to the rumbling sound of a snow plow. I excitedly jumped up to look out the window and there was my snow! You can never really tell what is going to happen with the prediction of snow, so I wasn't going to get my hopes up. I must say, that I am impressed with the way the snow plows handled the snowy streets. They passed nearly every thirty minutes and the roads stayed clear. They even waved and honked the horn at Dylan. Nothing nicer than a friendly snow plow guy.
    The tradition in this neighborhood is to walk (sled in tow) over to the golf course, where you will find the fence to have been cut by some random unidentified neighbor, and then you must sled to your heart's content until the cops come to chase everyone away. I am not usually a law breaker, but you can't argue with tradition now can you?

     That person in the foreground is Dylan trudging to the hill. We were only able to sled a few times, unfortunately, because Dylan got snow in his boots. Once that happens, fun time is over. All in all, it was a good day filled with snowball tossing, warm hot chocolate, trespassing, and of course... dog walking.

See that big smile? He's having fun!

Yours Truly,

     

Willy the Caterpillar

     Yesterday, while walking home from school, Dylan discovered a "wooly bear" caterpillar! I'm no expert on caterpillars, but it seems a little strange that we would see one in the middle of January in 30 degree weather! In case you don't know what a "wooly bear" looks like, here's a pic:

     I'm sure that you've seen one of these guys before... if you live in America. Anyway, we couldn't just leave him there curled up in a ball out in the cold, but I know that some caterpillars sting, so I picked the guy up with a poop bag and carried him home. Dylan has a butterfly habitat kit that he got for Christmas so we put him in there. I thought for sure that the thing was dead but after about 30 minutes, he uncurled and started exploring. 

     Now we have a new issue; I can't find any leaves for him to eat because it is winter. I put some grass in there to see what he would think of that. If he doesn't like it, I suppose that I will have to go to the grocery store to get him some lettuce. And so, Project Rescue-the-Caterpillar has begun...

       Have a good day everyone!

No more snow...

     I was very excited last night because I was checking the weather forecast and they were predicting snow! I know that most adults don't get excited over snow because they visualize snow shovels, tire chains, and icy steps. But all I can think of is snow sculpting.
     Every year, I go outside and build crazy snowmen until my face and hands go numb. Last year, I built a pyramid, a sphinx, and this guy...

I loved this snowman. I was quite sad when he melted. It was kind of like when Tom Hanks lost Wilson the volleyball on the movie Cast Away. I kind of got attached.... but how could you not love a face like that?
     Anyway, at about 10 pm I looked outside and sure enough, there was snow! I was so happy and I couldn't wait to see Dylan's face in the morning. Unfortunately, I was unaware that when snow comes to Long Island from a southern-ish direction, it is always washed away with rain afterwards. Sadness...
Only when the snow comes from the North does it actually stick around. It does make sense when you think about it.
     So this morning I looked outside at my melted dreams of snowman sculpting, and I decided that I'm ready for spring. This has been a dull winter as far as snow goes, and my poor heart cannot take anymore disappointment.

Sorry about my absence...

My laptop was not working but now I am back in action! Expect a post soon :)

The Jolly Bell Ringers...

Yesterday, we went to Macy's on 34th to see Santa.

This is what we saw by Penn Station:

     There is no better place to be for the holidays than New York City. Festivity and happiness are overflowing around every corner. Remember my last post? When I said that chivalry was dead? It is alive and well in this city when the cheer starts spreading around. Someone let me have their seat on the train! That NEVER happens. Never.

     Anyway, these bell ringers were having so much fun (despite the dreary, rainy atmosphere), that I wanted to jump right in there myself! My mom, son, and I were on our way to see the tree at Rockafeller Center so there was no time for dancing. We also saw Santa, as I mentioned before, and he was amazing, as usual. You guys are aware that the REAL Santa hangs out at Macy's until Christmas Eve, right? Well he does....

And the elves...                                              They are real too.

      

      So that's about all I have for today. It's bitterly cold outside. A gusty wind blew through last night and I awoke a few times hearing pelting sleet or hail. I didn't get up to investigate, however, in the wee hours of the morning, I did rush out to collect my home made christmas card paper (it was drying outside) before it blew away. I would have been highly upset if I would have lost it. I'm going to be staying indoors and being snuggly with my golden retriever, Phoenix. Have a great day out there guys!

Chivalry is dead, indeed

     I do wish that men would start acting like gentlemen, and that women would behave like ladies. I don't know anyone who looks back on the 1940's without longing for that sense of gallantry and beauty that people used to convey. Why are we all so careless and unkempt these days? Yes, women do wanted to be treated as equals but we still deserve respect and courtesy. Holding doors open, pulling out chairs, ladies first... those things made us feel respected.

     I want to go back to the days where women were women and men were men. Where elegance meant something. These modern times are a pitiful embarrassment. 

Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade 2011!

Oh yes we did....
    And it was actually quite enjoyable! I thought for sure that everyone would be ready to punch each other in the face to get a better spot, but everyone was smiling and so full of joy! Our viewing point was from Central Park West and we got there just before it started so we were pretty far back. It was ok with us though, because the balloons are so huge that you can see them from any spot and have a perfect view. The temperature was slightly cool, the air was still, and the sun was shining brightly in cloudless sky. As the parade went on, we kept scooting closer and closer to the front. Eventually, we ended up by the barricade leading to the "VIP" area (in other words, you have to know somebody to get reservations) and a wonderful member of team NYPD let us go into the MUCH less crowded VIP zone! Just in time to see Santa :)
  
     After our parade viewing, Dylan went out in the street to play with confetti. Then we walked through the park, got toasted almonds from a street vendor, and took a nice relaxing subway ride back to Woodside. Yes, I said a nice relaxing subway ride! The people on the subway were SMILING. Can you believe that? Two musicians jumped on board and started playing. The passengers, who normally don't bat an eye at performers, actually applauded! It was like the holiday fairy just passed over New York City and sprinkled happy dust on everyone.
  
     Anyway, I love the holiday season in NY. The sparkles, the smiles, the beautiful shop windows... I love it all. 

Grumpy day in New York town...

     Today should have been a great day, because I was asked to go to my son's Kindergarten class to make corn muffins for the Thanksgiving feast. I decided that I needed an energy boost so I drove over to Starbucks beforehand. In the drive thru (which typically, I don't even use) I scooted a little too close to the car in front of me and made a tiny screw head sized scrape on her bumper. In the past on two separate occasions, I have had college aged girls bump into and make dents and I just let it go But when I make a teeny little scrape, an old lady jumps all over me. Shouldn't I be having good karma for being so nice to strangers?
    
     Oh well, I guess that I have to have a really crappy day every now and then, otherwise I wouldn't appreciate the great days. After all, I did make it to the corn muffin project, and Dylan's little sunshine smile made me feel better. It's easy to forget the important things in life when you start concentrating on upsetting events. In my little family, we are all healthy and thriving and that is really all that matters. What is life about anyway? It's certainly not worth wasting my energy on being upset about a little accident.

     No matter how trivial your impact on the world may seem, you are a significant part of someone's life. Whether it be your children, your spouse, your extended family, friends, or even just yourself. Each and every one of us play an important role. We all should just be happy and grateful that we have the honor of playing a part in the play, with all of its positive and negative attributes. That alone is enough to make me realize that I shouldn't be upset about such a silly thing. After all, they are called bumpers for a reason; I just made it live up to its name :)

     I don't feel so grumpy anymore...

 This is the view that I described to you of the multiple colored trees intertwining...

This image was so beautiful with the golden sunshine illuminating the leaves. The camera didn't capture the true colors...