i madonnari 2009

My favorite SB festival is i madonnari. In the 7 years I have lived here we've never missed this event...until this year. The event is always Memorial Day weekend but this year we decided to visit our precious family at Kevin's parent's home in Phoenix.

This year we visited the drawings a week after they were created and it was so great! No crowds. No pushing. No limited range of vision. Just casually strolling the grounds with the ability to see the entire plaza in a single eyeful! It was perfect. Brody could run wild -- avoiding the art, of course -- and we could still keep an eye on him while admiring the amazing work.

Don't get me wrong. If we can, we'll be there again next year. There is such a cool vibe to be amongst working creativity like that. The smell of chalk and sweat in the air, folk music being played live on the lawn, turkey legs and sno cones, checking in on the Meaney family. It's marvelous and only something as sweet and special as time w/the Sturms would make me pass up the opportunity.

But there was definitely something sweet about seeing all the completed works at one time. Being able to stand and stare at the art w/o feeling like you need to hurry along so that everyone else can have their turn. If you didn't make it to the festival, you really must check it out. Go be blown away...before the work is blown away...

;)

Deal of the Week: Crocs!

Found these beautes at Ross in Phoenix last week for $7! Yahoo! They are on sale online for $14.99.

Week 2

Monday, May 25th: Brody and Kevin got to go to a Diamondbacks game with the Janos! Nikki got to say "PLAY BALL" at the start of the game (so cool!!) and Brody got to meet the Bobcat. Brody's first baseball game :)

Tuesday, May 26th: The kids were amazing on the looooong drive home from Phoenix. At one point I turned around and both kids had their heads covered with their blankets. Brody was watching the iPod under his blanket. Mia was watching Brody and doing as he did...

Wednesday, May 27th: Papa Joe arrives!



Thursday, May 28th: Papa Joe took us out to dinner to celebrate my birthday (still partying!). Of course, I chose Fresco -- my most fav restaurant in town! Mia enjoyed some chocolate.

Friday, May 29th: Papa Joe, Brody and I got to run around and play on Friday afternoon during Mimi's nap. Dad let us buy him some new clothes at Old Navy (yahoo!). Afterward we headed toward the children's play area at the Santa Barbara Museum...it was closed for repairs. And DRAMA ensued. Plan B was the turtle fountain in La Arcada court.


Saturday, May 30th: One of the chalk drawings from the i madonnari festival. Love me some Rockwell.

Sunday, May 31: After a long but fun couple of weeks we made a family trip to Butterfly beach. We walked on the wall and played in the sand (some of ate a couple of handfuls of sand...) and just enjoyed being a family. So sweet.

Week 1

The first week of my Project 52 happens to be during our visit to Phoenix! This made it a little tricky to organize photos for the week but I think I got it done.

May 18th 2009 - Mia longingly watching everyone swim at Mor Mor and Papa's house in 112 degree Arizona heat.

May 19th, 2009 - Gramps got all the great-grandkids (and grandkids and Mor Mor & Papa) a Wii for their bdays this year. We have had SO much fun playing and working out every day. I never expected to enjoy sweating so much! Check out my Mii compared to my sweet hubby ;)

May 20th, 2009 - This is the speedometer from the new Ford Focus that Papa bought at auction. We took pics to post on Craigslist. Love that Dad has such an entrepreneural personality. And that he loves a 'bargin'. Such a great man!

May 21st, 2009 - Brody enjoying the wide open spaces (and mass quantities of toys) at Mor Mor and Papa's house.

May 22nd, 2009 - Bathing Beauties. Briella is 1 month older than Mianna. It has been so fun seeing them play together and watch each other. The beginning of a beautiful friendship, for sure.

May 23rd, 2009 - Entertaining the troops at the mall while Mor Mor and Aunt Tammy shoe shop. Thank goodness for Cousin Nicole who is amazing with Brody and Malena and a ton of fun to be around.

May 24th, 2009 - Malena, Aunt Michellie and I were given a joint-bday party. Michelle and I are 36 and Lanie is 3 :) Burgers and guac and yum-o cake. A great way to end a great week!

Bar Food Friday: Pizza

My favorite food? Bar food. Give me a menu from a sports bar and it'll take me 20 minutes to decide what to order! Wings? Cheese sticks? Nachos? Burger? POTATO SKINS?? Getting munchie just thinking about it!

I really try to cook healthy and wholesome throughout the week but on Friday -- we like to party. Which means Bring on the High Calorie High Fat High Cholesterol Heart Attack on a Pizza Stone Fun Food!!

We eat home-made pizza at least once a week. It's so easy to bake and so much healthier than from the box. It's also a fun way to get the kids involved in baking process!

BBQ Chicken, Hawaiian, Chicken and Broccoli, Veggie, Margarita, Everything-But-The-Kitchen-Sink...I mean, seriously, is pizza not the best way to get rid of all the various leftover ingredients hanging out in your fridge at the end of the week?

This week we went for: Sausage, Pepperoni, Onion, Black Olive, Bell Pepper and Garlic. Used some shredded cheddar-jack and leftover spaghetti sauce on top of a Pillsbury Dough (from the can)! I bake the crust for about 10 minutes before putting on the toppings b/c I kept getting uncooked dough in the middle.

On days that I'm feeling really inspired, I'll make my own dough which is a lot of fun. Whole wheat, honey, herb...I'll post about these another time.

20 minutes to melt the cheese and finish off the crust. Deeeelish!

What are your favorite pizza toppings or variations? I'm always looking for new ideas!

Happy Birthday To Me.

I'm 36 years old today.

I'm 36 years old today.

Felt like I needed to say it twice. I don't like the old part in that sentence. Let's change it to:

I am 36 today!

Thirty-six is not a remarkable year. It's actually pretty random. But for me - I'm thinking 36 is going to be a really remarkable year.

My sister keeps a journal - the contents of which I will now disclose...not really. It's a little blue leather journal and on the front she's written:

UNSURE...BUT CERTAIN.

That is how I feel. I'm unsure about our future....job, babies, home, life, etc. But I'm absolutely CERTAIN that God has a plan for us. A big one. And this year will be a significant chapter in our journey to recognizing that plan.

Most people mark a new year by the first of January. My 'new year' is marked by my kids' birthdays which happen to be 2 days apart from each other in April. I wasn't together enough to start blogging again in April so I chose my birthday to start anew. So, here I go again. Come with me as I leap into a "new year". I plan to do focus on the things that I'm currently passionate about & the new things I hope to learn. I will keep a weekly Project 52 journal here. I will have a couple of weekly events: Deal of the Week & Bar Food Friday. I hope to have a monthly post dedicated to highlighting magazine articles & blog posts that really caught my attention in that month. But wait! There's more....you'll just have to keep checking in to find out exactly what I've got planned :)

You know what? I am 36 today. What a great age to be.

Change.

I'm getting back in the mood for blogging! Starting with some changes to my layout. Hoping to 'launch' new blog sometime around my birthday...May 13th for those wishing to send gifts.

Maybe I'll throw a LAUNCH PARTY like this guy! Be sure to check out his very sweet website while you're there.