Thursday TV...

Thursday has a tricky 7 pm time slot but that's what OnDemand is for. Shows being watched are Vampire Diaries, Bones, Community, 30 Rock, and The Office. I watched the first episode of Outsourced and it got axed because it is stupid.

You can't do any better than the eye candy on Vampire Diaries...



Bones has great chemistry. I don't think I really have to watch this show in first run but I still do.
Community just cracks me up. I haven't watched it yet this season since I have a bunch on the DVR and I watch that OnDemand. Joel McHale is funny.

Not warm and fuzzy, 30 Rock is smart comedy. The subtle humor is the best.

The Office. Steve Carell's last season. I don't think the show can go on without him. One of the shows that I will actually watch in reruns.

Outsourced was just stupid. How many people want to watch a show where the company sells deer heads that sing Sweet Home Alabama?

Book Review: The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender

This book is beautifully written. She has a certain way with the words. That being said, I didn't like it! She never uses quotation marks for dialogue. WHY NOT?? I have no idea! It's hard to follow conversations. I thought it was going to be more Sarah Addison Allen but it was weird and led nowhere. The ending was very abrupt, you never find out what the hell is wrong with one of the characters (He turns into furniture?? I think?? Yeah, it is as weird as that sounds.), and just drags. It took me forever to read because I'd fall asleep after a couple of pages. Boo. Not reading Aimee Bender again.

Wednesday TV...

The Wednesday night shows I watch... The Middle, newbie Better With You, Modern Family and Cougar Town. Basically the ABC Wednesday night comedy block.

The Middle is funny. Just like your family funny. All three of the kids are well done- Brick is quirky, Sue is clueless and Axl is always walking around in his underwear...

I watched Better With You last week and while it might get canceled I thought it was funny. There were parts where I actually laughed aloud. Like the clueless guy saying 'You'll be Uncle Ben. 'That was funny. There is a lot of canned laughter that I am not a fan of but I will give this show another shot.


Modern Family won Outstanding Comedy for a reason. It's a great show!! Did you know that the kid who plays Luke is actually a genius? Or a Mensa member or whatever. Hey I didn't say I was really smart, that kid is...

Cougar Town is a little too much. I thought it was going to be really dumb but there is some good stuff in there. You can tell it is by Bill Lawrence because there is a lot of 'Scrubs' humor in there. I am partial to the men on the show. They have great chemistry with each other and I wouldn't mind hanging out with their characters. Although they do seem to always be drinking and I don't think I could keep up!

How I know I live with a preschooler Tuesday...

The set up: I am picking up AJ from preschool, his teacher, another mom and her son, E, are in the hallway.

E to AJ: You didn't say thank you for my birthday cookie. (Yes, I did think this was rude because AJ probably did say thank you.)
E's mom: E! That wasn't very nice!
AJ to E: You're welcome!
Mom, teacher, me: Giggle
E is standing there with his hands out and palms up. AJ takes E's hand and shakes it.
AJ to E: Nice to meet you!
Mom, teacher and me: Crying we are all laughing so hard!
:)
I just hope stuff continues to roll off him like this and he is always so laid back (and funny)!

Tuesday TV...

Finally! I think I am going about it in a totally roundabout way but LOOK!! Text above the picture!!!

Tuesdays lineup is as follows: Glee, trying out No Ordinary Family, Raising Hope and Running Wilde, Life Unexpected and Parenthood...

Glee, I love it! I am a total Gleek!! What are they going to do when these kids 'graduate' though?

No Ordinary Family- Gonna try it tonight. We'll see...

Raising Hope was good but they showed too much in the trailers for it so it wasn't as funny as it could have been if I hadn't seen the commercials about a bajillion times. Martha Plimpton is great in this! This role was designed for her.



Running Wilde was pretty awful considering it has 2 decent actors in it. I will give it another shot since I have a total girl crush on Keri Russell. For a long time. Felicity- one of my favorite shows ever! And Arrested Development is another one of my favorite shows of all time and it is by the same creators and 2 of the same actors are in this (Will Arnett and David Cross). Get your act together and make this one a winner! I wanted this to be funny but it just wasn't. The funniest thing on this show from last week was that they had a photo of a building and it said 'Vandalay Industries' and that is a total shout out to Seinfeld and George Costanza. I think that was this one anyway. I chuckled.

Life Unexpected is darling and all the actors are people I'd hang out with. If I knew them. Oh, and if they were real...

Parenthood was a show that I gave a shot last year mid-season and I loved it! It seems very real to me. I know this is just TV but the issues are relevant. And the looks Adam (Peter Krause) is shooting William Baldwin's Gordon (Adam's boss) when he flirts with Adam's sister, Sarah (Lauren Graham) are priceless. He's got the 'Are you kidding me?' look down!

Monday TV...

Monday night's lineup includes Chuck, How I Met Your Mother, newbie Lone Star and Castle. Gossip Girl was 86'd.

Chuck is fun and Zachary Levi (Chuck) is adorable. I like spy shows. And nerds. :)

How I Met Your Mother's Barney Stinson (Neil Patrick Harris) is hilarious. Can't get enough of the womanizer. But who the heck is the mother? I am in it for the long haul until we figure it out. Frankly, I don't really care. It's that good.

Lone Star- I tried this newbie out. I liked it. I look forward to see where it is going. The star (James Wolk) has charisma. And he's easy on the eyes. That doesn't hurt. Critics are liking it but are they gonna pull the plug before fans get a chance to? Maybe... Boo Fox if you do!

Castle is another of my favorites on TV right now. I love the chemistry. I love the mystery. It's like a fun mystery novel on TV. It's got page turner appeal.

Oh, Gossip Girl... you're outta here! Boring. But I will miss all the hot toddies on the show. All of them! They sure know where to get the good looking actors. Except for Jenny. Can't stand her. Whining will not get you any points in my book.

P90X Week 2 Done!

So now that I have done all the routines at least twice, this is really getting addicting! We really don't like the Yoga X so I think we are going to switch things up a bit a try Beth Shaw's Yoga Core. 90 minutes is just too long, one, and two, it's kind of boring because it is very repetitive. As far as Yoga goes I don't think we are interrupting the program by doing something else. I also talked to my friend Kerri (the yoga teacher) again and she thought the routine was very advanced and SHE got bored and thought it was too long. Kenpo X (mixed martial arts) is still my favorite. What can I say... I like pretending to kick someone's ass! On Sundays our son joins in on the fun for Chest & Back and Abs for at least the warm-ups and giggles the whole time. Last night in the bathtub he was doing chin-ups on the bar on the side. That kid cracks me up. Also, if I can figure out how to post a video on here, I have a cute one of him and P90X.

I have so much more energy and I am excited to get up and workout. Even though it is intense, it really is fun. Today was Plyometrics. Lots of sports oriented things- tires, basketball shots, etc. I really can feel myself getting stronger, especially my abs. And it is fun having my hubby as my workout buddy!

Sunday TV...

Sorry, but I still can't get any words to go above the first picture. It is very frustrating! I am surprised that I haven't done a post yet about TV since as you know I am obsessed and it is fall and premiere week was last week... Boo! Bad TV blogger!

So Sunday shows I watch are Dexter, Desperate Housewives, the new Boardwalk Empire and the (supposedly) last season of Brothers & Sisters.

Dexter is by far and away, one of my favorite shows on TV right now. The books were terrible in comparison. They had no depth. Michael C. Hall is fantabulous. Can't wait to see what they do with him this season with 3 kids and no wifey. Last season was spectacular with John Lithgow. Wondering how they will top it!

Desperate Housewives is getting a little boring and predictable but I like it because its an over-the-top soap. We'll see if it stays on the DVR this season... Entertain me DH!

Boardwalk Empire is splashy and trashy. The set & costumes are phenomenal. Steve Buschemi gives me the willies. He is not attractive but he plays the role so well. Smarmy. This one is gonna be good.

Brothers & Sisters is going into its last season which is good. I don't know if I can take much more of the Walkers' misery. But it is acted superbly. How Matthew Rhys (Kevin) can make his Welsh accent sound American amazes me. Why, oh why, did you have to get rid of the forever hottie, Rob Lowe though?

You are sooooo good looking!

I needed a blogging break!

Last week was busy. We (my husband and I) started a new workout, new diet and a new get up time (4:50 am) which is really early. So far so good though. P90X is intense and I was aching. Sunday- Chest & Back and Abs (LOTS of push-ups and pull-ups), Monday- Plyometrics ('jump' training), Tuesday- Arms & Shoulders and Abs (Arms were a little too easy to be called 'intense'), Wednesday- Yoga. 90 minutes of intense Yoga. I gave it to my friend, Kerri, who is a yoga teacher and she said there was 'A LOT of Vinyasa' which after looking it up, I'm still not quite sure what she means or if that is good or bad or hard or what. I'll be lucky (and happy), really lucky, to be able to do the crane (above photo) after 90 days. But after P90X, I do plan to take a class from Kerri! Thursday- Legs & Back and Abs. Lots of lunges. Friday- Kenpo, which is cardio boxing/mixed martial arts. Kenpo is my favorite. Very fun but I feel like such a clod.

The diet. I have never eaten so much meat in my life! So much protein... I want my carbs back!! Three days last week I ate 6 egg white scrambles with 3 oz of chicken in them and a little parmesan and fresh basil. It took up 1/2 a dinner plate! It is good and I am not that crazy about eggs but the whites are better. My husband just laughs as he looks at my plate.

The new wake up time is fine with me. I am a morning person but I like to stay up a little later because of the little one. I still want some 'me time' and new shows are starting... Where am I going to find the time for all my shows? I may have to 86 some. Oh well.

How I know I live with a preschooler Tuesday...

Lately, the last couple of months or so, AJ is afraid of thunderstorms. So the other day after a rainy night (there wasn't any thunder but the rain was driving against the outside of the house by his bedroom and it was loud), he came into our room and told us how the thunder woke him up late last night (which, of course, we knew because he woke us up in the middle of the night and wanted to sleep in the living room (?) another thing lately...). He then asked, "How come we can't turn the thunder off, daddy? It's so loud and it goes boom.' :)

TV Time: Vampire Diaries

I am so happy Vampire Diaries is back because now I get to see this guy's mug every Thursday (or Friday depending on when I watch it) night! Mmmmm, I love Ian Somerhalder. Especially as Damon. As Boone on Lost... just didn't do it for me. He's sooooo good looking.

The it's Friday, I'm in love series

Well, it's Friday so it's time to tell you what I am in love (and not so much in love with at the end...) with this week...

1. Bloggers uniting for a blogger friend and her family...

Remember Summer? She is this awesome, awesome gal over at b is for.... brown, breathe & believe. Her daddy is down in Louisiana while she is in NYC. He has stage 3 lung cancer and was in remission but did some cautionary brain radiation which has effected him worse than all the chemo and chest radiation combined. What's worse is that the oil spill left him without a job and he lives quite a ways from the hospital where he has his treatments. So Summer started 'A Dollar and a Card for Daddy' to help cheer him up and ease the stress of paying for gas to go to treatments. She is a good soul and I pray for a speedy recovery for her daddy and her heart. I sent my card of to Butch yesterday with a fiver because it's the least I could do. Head over to her site to get his address to send him a card and a dollar! Make his (and her) day!

2. Jeans & sweatshirt weather!! I love the 60s- degrees that is!

3. Best of... in our local free paper, City Pages...

This annual survey cracks me up and makes me wonder. My favorite local restaurant, Basil, took the #1 spot for both 'Best New Restaurant' and 'Most Creative Cuisine'. Yum, yum, I love me some Basil! It doesn't hurt that we are friends with the owners and their daughter is one of our #1 babysitters. There is continuously one restaurant (uhmmm... 2510... uhmmm) on there that places in different categories that I just don't understand Wausau's fascination with. I think they are offering their customers a percentage off if they vote for them. Anyway, they have some funny categories on there like 'Grossest Bathrooms' where Wal-Mart tied for 2nd with porta potties. Hey, I won't go to the bathroom at Wal-Mart...

4. Filling my etsy shop with more to come. Go visit, NOW!! :)

5. An organized office!!

I cleaned and organized all my paper and whatnots this past weekend! Yay!! It was out of control in here.

6. Polito's Pizzeria's Garlic Knots...

Hell yeah. And after Wednesday night's gorge fest I will not eat another one for 3 months. Not because I don't want to but because of P90x. Which starts on Sunday. Which scares the bijimminies out of me. But I keep thinking of my super svelte bod in 3 months time and I will persevere!

7. It's Artrageous in Wausau this weekend.

This is my favorite weekend in this town! Tonight we will be hosting a table at the Woodson Art Museum's dinner after the preview of the 35th Annual Birds In Art Exhibit. We have two very talented artists at our table that I will tell you all about next week! Saturday I am going to the Festival of Arts with my mom after the Farmer's Market (gotta stock up the veggies for next week!). Sunday we are going to the Rib Mountain Fire Station Open House which AJ is pumped for. Nice little weekend, huh? Not sure if we'll get to Bed Bath & Beyond or Home Depot though. Don't know if we'll have any time. Hahaha...

Oh and one thing I don't love so much... Blogger's annoying spacing thing has got me frustrated!

Finley's Birth Announcement

One of my best friends had a baby girl in March and asked me to do her birth announcements. She wanted pink & orange and paisleys. This is what I came up with. It came out pretty cute, don't you think?

Cinnamon Apple Cake

You may find this surprising but I do not love cake. Well, that's not exactly true. I don't like frosting. Or whipped cream. Or most cakes... I like pound cake, coffee cake and butter cake. This Cinnamon Apple Cake... LOVE. It's from Cooking Light so it's not ALL bad for you. You can eat it for dessert or breakfast and not just cause you want to eat cake for breakfast. Technically, it falls under a coffee cake. It is moist, delicious and feels like fall. I served it as a dessert with the Salted Caramel Ice Cream that I wrote about last week. I didn't use Rome apples, I had some small Paula Reds, the first apples of the season at the Farmer's Market. While they took me forever to peel because they were so small and I had to use a dozen to make three cups, I was glad that I used the first pickings. This is one cake I will make again and again and again...

Summer Glitter Mix

The Black Keys

Michael Franti- he's pretty hot, ain't he?

The Constellations

A new mix has made it onto my itunes. Aaaahhhh, how I love music! :)

1. Dog Days Are Over * Florence + The Machine
2. Never Tear Us Apart * INXS
3. Style Monkeys * Lambchop
4. You're Not My Girl * Ryan Leslie
5. Everlasting Light * The Black Keys
6. Tightrope * Janelle Monae featuring Big Boi
7. When the Night Comes * Dan Auerbach
8. I and Love and You * The Avett Brothers
9. Beauty in the World * Macy Gray
10. Little Lion Man * Mumford & Sons
11. Kiss With a Fist * Florence + The Machine
12. Felicia * The Constellations
13. No Trust * The Black Keys
14. Devil Inside * INXS
15. The Sound of Sunshine * Michael Franti & Spearhead
16. 2 Atoms in a Molecule * Noah and the Whale
17. Blood Bank * Bon Iver
18. Beg Steal or Borrow * Ray LaMontagne & The Pariah Dogs
    
19. Manteca * Dizzy Gillespie

So I got a couple songs from Mel at Chicago Girl Gone Mild. Thank you, Mel, especially for the introduction to The Constellations. Love Felicia! My friend Jayne has a mad crush on Michael Franti and usually has his music on the mixes she makes for me so in turn her birthday mix will have the fun and upbeat, The Sound of Sunshine. It just makes you want to dance, like a lot of his music does. Ryan Leslie has a JT vibe. The Black Keys have a great classic rock feel (which you know is my fave style). Tightrope makes me want to dance as well while Dan Auerbach makes me want to kick back and relax with When the Night Comes. I couldn't resist putting a little Diz on here as well. Hope you found something you like!! Enjoy!

The it's Friday, I'm in love series

Summer

1. PRESCHOOL: Well, I am always in love with this little guy- not just on Fridays!! But I am glad that he has started school, is loving it and I am getting back awesome reports about my little man.

2. Taylor Kitsch/Tim Riggins: Best thing to hit TV in a long time. I love Friday Night Lights, his character and mmmmm, just him! I am going through FNL withdrawal right now... How could you not think this guy is F-I-N-E, fine?!?!

3. Booking an Art Studio Tour trip with my mom in October. We're going to areas of Wisconsin I have never explored before. First up is the Fall Fresh Art Tour in towns along the Mississippi River like Stockholm and Lake Pepin and then we are heading a little farther east (but not too far) for the Falling Leaves Art Studio Tour in towns like Fairchild, Augusta and Fall Creek. Never heard of them? Not surprised, they are tiny! Well, you may have heard of Pepin because if you were a Little House On the Prairie nut (I was NOT.) it is where Laura Ingalls Wilder was born. Little factoid for you. I am really looking forward to hitting Abode in the town of Stockholm. My mom bought me a cool wall plaque from there last year for my birthday last month.

Art by Gail Pommerening

4. My paper order! Pretty papers came this evening and I can't wait to use them! I am in love with plaids, paisleys, and surfboards. Never been surfing but I am kind of obsessed with surfboards. For a long time, like 10 years... I know, I am weird. Love these that came- Oh the colors! :)

Paisley Parade by ki memories

Rusted Sun collection from Fancy Pants Design

Brooke Line from Crate Paper

There you have it. My first Friday Love Series post. Happy weekend to you all! We have plans to do... NOTHING! Don't you love those weekends too?

Jimmy Fallon performs live on America's Got Talent - He's SO darn cute!

Totally ANNOYED!

I am so annoyed at Blogger right now... When I posted yesterday, I couldn't get any space between the top picture to type anything. My post tomorrow morning I can't get any text before or after the video, so it is JUST the video. What the heck am I doing wrong? Do I need to now post my pictures after I type text in (because before it would reformat it for you which was also annoying)? Help PLEASE!

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!

On Saturday I made this Salted Caramel Ice Cream from Cooking Light to bring to a friend's house for dessert after a dinner party. OMG! It is SO good! I had to adapt it a little since I have a Cusinart Electric Ice Cream Maker versus the old-fashioned kind that the recipe called for. So basically after you put the pan over ice to cool it, I put it in the freezer can of the ice cream maker, let it spin for a half hour and then popped it in the freezer. I didn't scoop it out of the freezer can before I stuck it in the freezer but I would recommend putting it into a plastic container after it finishes spinning. The taste... YUM! I put a little fleur de sel on top before serving it instead of the flake salt because I didn't want to buy flake salt just for this. Make this ice cream pronto!