Best Resolutions For Turning 40 in 2010!

I have only one resolution, one thing I will do for the year 2010. Have more fun and adventure! I need to be like Auntie Mame and Live Live Live!

Remember: "Life is a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death!"

I want to do 40 New Things In My Fortieth Year. For this exciting task I have created a whole new blog called: Forty Things To do Before Forty. Now I am going to give myself my whole fortieth year to do the forty things. I can't do it all by April when my birthday is!

Who's with me? Who wants to have more fun?

Santa Was Gooooood to US!

Santa really came through this year. Remember my list?

J Crew Earrings?


Silver baby charm necklace?
Jonathan Adler wallpaper?
Picket fence?

Yep! Santa brought it all! Picket fence will be coming! I will post pics!

I also got:

The necklace to match my earrings from J Crew...



A Victoria's Secret Nightie to show off the new tummy...


and $500 dollars to shop for new flat tummy clothes!!


Landon and Coco had a ball with their toys from Santa..

Coco loves her Playskool Busy Lil Garden butterfly! It rolls and sings!



Her pink pony rocking horse..



and her Playskool Step Start Walk and Ride!



Landon loves his kawasaki musical keyboard!






and his Razor Jr. folding kiddie kick scooter..



We're very happy over here in the Mrs. household. We are ready to ring in 2010 with a bang. And by bang I mean staying home and falling asleep by 10pm!!! LOL.

Tagged! What Makes Me Happy!

I was tagged to tell the ten things that make me happy!

1. Sex and The City- I was a fan of the show but the movie made my heart sing. I didn't realize how much I missed those girls! The other night I was at the movies and saw a preview for Sex and The City 2 and I started clapping and screaming. I cannot wait!

2. New Flat tummy- I strolled into the Lilly Pulitzer store "Cabana" on Montana and tried things on. I was so happy I could finally fit in Lilly! Goodbye pregnant tummy, hello new clothes and back to the gym!

3. Decorating- whether it's my table for Christmas dinner, my kitchen remodel, or wrapping a gift, I love to decorate. It's so fun to put things together in new combinations and reflect your own personal style!

4. Seeing Landon and Coco loving each other. I know I can't take credit for all of it, but when I see them playing together or Landon trying to make Coco laugh and her adoring him it just melts my heart.

5. Costume jewelry- I'm sure if I was Ivanka Trump I would have a love for diamonds, but I really love costume jewelry. Big bold statement pieces, colorful exciting cocktail rings, cuff bracelets...just make me happy! Wait till I tell you where I just found some incredible jewelry. You won't believe it!

6. Christmas Cards- I love to get them and I love to send them. I am looking at fifty on my mantle right now!

7. Shoes- No matter what size you are, shoes always look great. I was at the London Sole sale yesterday and picked up two ballet flats to die for. Will post later!

8. Lilly Pulitzer- something about her happy prints make me think of all the things I love. Tropical vacations, mojitos, fabulous dinners out, jewelry, fun! I love everything they make!

9. Glee- If you haven't watched it you need to! It is hilarious and the musical talent on there is so fun to see. They keep you reeled in with the high school drama, and then entertain you with singing mash ups!

10. Travel- I love our trips to Tahoe, and Virginia. Hoping to get to London, Paris, Tahoe and maybe Hawaii next year!!

Now ten bloggers that make me happy, tagging you to tell what and who makes you happy!

Mom Times Two- I feel like were friends and we've never met!

Privilege- Her posts are thought provoking and witty. Just adore her! Plus her kids are older so I get to see what it will be like in my future!

Linnys Vault- we share a love of Dr. Pepper and many other things! I feel like she's the younger version of me! LOVE her!

My Blonde Reality- My new best friend. Where has she been all my life! We became twitter friends first!

Weasels Journey- Love her style, her family and her! Can't we be neighbors or something!?

Love, Marriage, and someday a Baby Carriage- She's my favorite newlywed along with Muffy Martini! She is so fun and excited about the future!

Muffy Martini- She loves all things preppy and is cute as a button. Met her myself!

Biscuits Are Never Boring- She's one of my first blog friends and still is today. Beautiful family and a fabulous Mother.

Tres Poshe Preppy- Still one of my favorites since the beginning of my blogging. She is tres fabulous.


Chronicles of a Happy Housewife- She's private now, and I was lucky enough to come along. I wish we lived next door to each other. We are blog friends and now real friends.

Christmas 2009, The Year Of The Flat Tummy!

Twas a very good Christmas. Merry Merry!!!

Christmas Eve Menu- To Die For!

This year we are hosting twelve family members at our house. Hubby, the Top Chef of our family, Mimi (my mom) and I have concocted the perfect menu.

Appetizers:
Caprese on a skewer
Asparagus wrapped in prosciutto
Mushroom crostini

First Course:

Mini Broccoli Casseroles in ramakins

Second Course:

Endive, pear, and Blue cheese salad with champagne vinaigrette.

Third Course: (Torn from the pages of Lilly Pulitzer Holidays Book aka The Preppy Bible of Holidays, as well as Willams Sonoma aka the way to perfection!)

Three Ingredient Prime Rib Roast (from Food and Wine Mag)

Madeira Carrots (Lilly Pulitzer Holiday Menu)

and

Scalloped Potato and Leeks Au Gratin (Williams Sonoma)

For Dessert?

Bouche De Noel (both from Gelsons)
and
Fruit Tart

We Flock You A Merry Christmas! Flocking Your Christmas Tree!

I can't take credit for this tree. You see it was hubby, who last year, when we were planning Christmas at our house, dreamed this up. Both of us had grandmothers who would often do a tree with cardinals and red bows (my Grandmommie used red gingham, adorable!). He wanted to kick it up a notch with a flocked tree.

Prior to this, I felt towards flocked trees, what I feel towards T shirts that say: "I went to (insert place) and all I got was this lousy T-shirt". Like they were tacky and just CRAP. Well, I have had my eyes opened to the gorgeous snowy look of a flocked tree. We get no snow here in California so this is fun for me! I think it looks fabulous!

How about you? Do you flock?

Getting Through The Holidays With Your Parents!

This was something Gwyneth P sent out in Goop newsletter. I thought it was too good. I had to pass it along. Holidays bring up some crazy stuff. I know this is a Kabballah thing, but it's interesting! I'm being all LA!! Maybe this will help someone!!

Michael Berg:

The Wrong Why

There are no coincidences in this life. When it comes to the topic of family, we are each born into our situations for a specific reason. This reason is called tikun.

Tikun is a kabbalistic concept that means “correction.” In order for us to be happy and fulfilled, to reveal our potential, and to accomplish what we came to this world to accomplish, there must be a process of change we go through. Sometimes that change is effected simply by ourselves; other times it is people or events that push us in ways that force us to change.

Our parents are one of our greatest catalysts for change.

All the personality quirks and negative patterns created by our parents are, in fact, exactly what our souls had asked for in the upper worlds, where they chose the mother and father to whom they would be born. All the good and bad things we experienced growing up are meant to lead us towards a change that each of our souls needs to go through in order to achieve the purpose for which it came into this world.

Some of us are born to parents who judged, ignored, or hurt us. The choice for us becomes, are we going to be a slave to our past – “Why did they do this to me?” – or are we going to grow from the pain – “Why did I need them to do this to me?” One focuses on blame and victimhood; the other puts us in control of our lives.

Too often we ask the wrong why, and it becomes very difficult to move on.

We are meant to change the way we react to our parents’ behaviors. If we are responding now, as we did as children, clearly we are not growing from the situation – and we are missing an opportunity. The goal with our family is to get to a point where we can deactivate the buttons that our parents and family know all too well how to push.

This is a great way to gauge how much of a correction we have made. How diminished is my reaction? How much kinder can I be, even in the face of those old patterns and habits that our parents have? If our reaction changes in small or even great ways, then we can know we are achieving our correction.

But if we are many years out of childhood and yet still blaming our parents and reacting to them in the same old ways, then we are not correcting and doing the work we came here to do. However, if we have developed and evolved, then our reaction to our upbringing will be different. When we realize our soul needed to come into this particular household in order to break through, to grow from, and to become the person we need to become, we begin to let go of the anger, blame, disappointment – and all the guises of the victim mentality. When we realize how necessary this was for us, we can then forgive and grow thankful. Ultimately, when we reach this level of thankfulness, having gone through the stages of change, transformation, letting go, growth, and forgiveness, we come to a point where we can start helping our parents.

It is easy to forget that our parents have their own tikun. They need us just as much as we need them to effect their own change and correction. We can assist them, provided we understand this concept and integrate it into our lives in a very real and practical way. Then we can open a window to shine Light into their lives.

I have one last thing to add regarding thankfulness. Sometimes there is a great opening for healing when we simply respect the fact that, whatever it is we experienced growing up, our parents gave us life and sustained us materially, if not always emotionally. How quickly we negate this fact by focusing only on the bad things they had done. That is why it is such a beautiful consciousness to have, especially during times of family get-togethers, to find those good aspects within them; to awaken a level of thankfulness for the positive things we know they’ve done, and to change our perspective so that we may see them in a new light.

When you are sitting around the dinner table this holiday, rolling your eyes and shaking your head, remember to ask yourself:

* What does my soul need to learn from my family?
* What beautiful qualities do my parents possess?

This will create a powerful - if not perfect - connection within your family. And it will deepen understanding of your soul’s purpose in this world.

Michael Berg is a Kabbalah scholar and author. He is co-Director of The Kabbalah Centre, www.kabbalah.com. You can follow Michael on twitter, twitter.com/inspiringchange. His latest book is, What God Meant.

The Bright Side- Bonding While Bead Ridden!a

One sweet and unexpected thing to come out of this whole Tummy Tuck thing, is Landon and I are bonding. He will come and visit me in my bed and we will watch Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders Making The Team. Oh yes, I have him hooked.

The other night we were in hysterics, the two of us, as I pretended to smell his foot and then pass out. Oh yes, I know three year old humor. He literally threw his head back, laughing so hard, he almost fell over. I am loving his sense of humor. Well, I should. It's the same as mine!

I have been getting around a bit, even made it to my beloved Marshalls over the weekend. I must not be losing my touch because I happened to spot two Lilly Pulitzer items at 20 paces. One, was such a find, but alas I cannot post about it until I give it to the person! They may be reading this! Trust me when I say it is a pink and green find of the year!!

Heading to the doctor today with neighbor Sheila, hopefully I will be getting the second drain out. Over the weekend I attended our other neighbors Latke party with Sheila and we had a ball. Actually the real fun happened while I was at home getting ready. It was there, in my closet, that I dug out some outfits I have previously shunned due to the PPS (Permanently Pregnant Tummy). Low and behold, I tried some things on and they looked (as JJ used to say) DY-NO-MITE! I was fabulous! Hope everyone is feeling good and ready for your families to descend upon you!!

Don't miss tomorrow's post on keeping the peace with your parents over the holidays!

The Mrs. Christmas Wish List

Let's start small shall we? I don't want to overwhelm Mr. Claus. On this list is a big kind of miracle on 34th street wish as well as some other things I think he can handle!!!
1.


J Crew's Infinity Earrings- Saw them n Kathryn Heigl. OMG. They must be mine! All of J crews jewelry and necklaces and bracelets are to die for. Hint. Hint.




I have a gold one now I would like the silver version!! I love these charms with kids names on them from www.blissliving.com.


You remember that I am still redoing my kitchen...I really want 5 rolls (could I get more specific?) of this Jonathan Adler Bamboo Green wallpaper!








I think this would make meals oh so lovely:



The Williams Sonoma Slow Cooker With Ceramic insert.










Then Santa, and this is big, I would like this!!! A picket fence to make my little storybook house look even cuter and a place for the kids and dog to run wild! What do you think Santa? Have I been a good girl? I say YES!

Nights In Rodanthe- One Fab Mom's Review!

There is a lot to love about this movie. Richard Gere is beautiful to look at, Diane Lane is fabulous, and the setting is amazing. Richard Gere is good at playing an enigmatic guest at the Inn Diane Lane is running. They are both trying to escape their demons, both needing a friend.

Good chick flick to rent, not sure hubby's would approve. Sad ending so prepare yourself for a night of tissues and tears!!

I give it four out of five cosmos!

Christmas! Wrappers Delight!

I am obsessed with wrapping Christmas gifts. The perfect paper, bow, and little piece of holly or ornamentation...I like to wrap every gift differently with a different bow. I come from a long line of wrap obsessed people.

Grandmommie (Coco's namesake), would send a huge box to our house for Christmas with every gift wrapped more fabulously than the next. There would be purple gifts with celedon green bows, and blue gifts with beaded orange bows. I couldn't wait to get her box to add her gifts under the tree. It made everything look so magical!

You can bet my mom's gifts this year will be wrapped fab-u-lously!

Cut to me, wrapping all this week before surgery to fulfill my wrappers delight. Here are some of my favorites:

The pink and red is foil paper I found at Marshalls, love the idea of a pink bow! Foil paper is really the best to work with. It's very thick and malleable.

The green paper gift is velvet in the damask. Too fabulous. Would make great wall paper!

The red stripe is from target and so is the red velvet, snowflake ribbon! Not easy to work with but too good to pass up!!

Tummy Tuck UPdate:
One Drain out and one to go. Saw the fabulous Dr. Ordon from the Doctors, and he says my result is perfect and amazing considering where we started! Miracle worker! Next drain out Friday!

Christmas House Tour With The Nester!

I have seen this all over so doggone it I am in!!!

The Living Room Tree is full of family keepsake ornaments....



everything from a glitter lion from our trip to Africa,







to a paper ornament we sent out as a card when we were engaged!! (Yes, The Mrs. used to be fine young lass)


Each year I give Landon, Coco and Hubby and ornament. This year was Landon's first year of preschool so he got a school house...




Coco got a baby's first Christmas ornament.



Also in the living room, the mantle, which is starting to fill up with Christmas cards! Notice the cats and dogs stockings too.



On to the den with our flocked Christmas tree of cardinals and red ball ornaments. More on this in another post.



The mantle I keep simple because I want to keep my pictures up. Silver tinsel and silver/blue ornaments.



That concludes my tour! Join up with The Nesting Place for the tour! Let me know if you do so I can see!!

Tummy Tuck Diaries- Day 7- It's a head game

I am realizing this tummy tuck business is a huge mental challenge. They ask you on the questionnaire before you go in, if you are of sound mind. Now that I have been in this all too tight girdle, with two drainage tubes coming out either side of my waist (TMI), laying around unable to even sit up, for one whole week, I have come to one conclusion.

I AM GOING INSANE.

Oh yes. I am going KOOKOO. I have watched a millions movies, done two hundred Christmas cards, and blogged away. I am being productive, but I am a bad patient. The Mrs is not one to let ANYONE do ANYTHING for her. In fact it is I, who like doing for others and being a helper. Now I have people waiting on me (sometimes begrudgingly!), cooking for me, and popping me up.

I have not left this house but once in a week. I smell. My hair is yucky and I am hating sweatpants. If I never see another pair of sweatpants I will be happy. After this is over I am dressing like I am on the set of the Sex and The City Movie part two (CANNOT WAIT).

I am mean to hubby because he couldn't possibly do everything as well as I can (hahha), my back hurts from hunching and I want to hold Coco! I miss her! I feel like every day is ground hog day. My light at the end of the tunnel is my doctors appointment tomorrow. I think he will take one or both drains out but I hear it's gonna hurt!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have to keep the faith. I can't go insane! I'm One Fabulous Mom DAMNIT!!!!

Four Christmases- One Fab Mom Review!

Four Christmases stars Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn. With that kind of line up it has to be good right? Ehhhhh, not so much. There are some funny gags, and Reese and Vince are cute together but the story falls apart. It's not really believable that they avoid their families for years on end and only end up going to see them because they are caught on TV while at the airport. All four parents were watching TV at that exact moment? All four parents live that close? Um, no.

It is a Christmas movie and still fairly fun and cute so I will give it 3 out of 5 cosmos. Mostly because I love Reese and Vince!

This is no Love Actually or The Family Stone, but it's not a total waste of time.

Real Houswives of OC- HOLY DRAMA! EVERYONES IN THE POOR HOUSE!

Leave it up to the Housewives in OC to keep the drama rolling.

I was shocked to see how the economy has affected everyone. Don't they get big paychecks from the show? Were they all living paycheck to paycheck? Insane.

Jeanna has to sell her house? Asked to borrow money from Vicky and now they aren't friends? Is leaving the show!? I can see why Jeanna is done. It seems the whole tone of the show has become one fake bitchfest. I think Jeanna is realizing family is all she has.

Tamara was down right nasty as usual no matter what Gretchen has done. She's losing her house too. Her and Simon are not getting along at all. Truthfully, he wasn't nice to her when they did have money. He would always act like she was an idiot. Now he is pissed they have no money and still mad he married her. No real change there. I am still amazed how Tamras face does NOT MOVE when she cries.

Tamra is so jealous of the new houswife it's insane. I'm sure all hell will break lose soon.

Gretchen and Slade? I don't buy it. I think it's an arranged thing and Slade is "managing" her. First of all who in their right mind would even be with someone named Slade? What the hell is Slade an SUV? Buy the new mercury "Slade! They don't ever hug, kiss or anything. I smell a fake.

Lynn is still a giant delusional idiot. Her thinking her obsession with her looks is a good example for her daughters is retarded. Mother daughter plastic surgery? HORRIFYING. Good Lord. Her daughters are rude, over sexualized, insecure and jealous all because of Lynn. Not to mention the drinking, drugs and no goals in life except to model bikinis!!

I think the biggest surprise was Vicky. She's still with her husband and they seem to actually like each other! She's still hyper and insane, but it's weird her and Jeanna aren't friends. They did kind of have a love/hate thing going though. Vicki is so smug though about how well she is doing, which is not nice.

The new housewife is the most plastic, fake thing ever. I love how she and the hubs are the "new christians." God first, then each other, then kids. Didn't they mean money and plastic surgery first? I love how she wouldn't try on lingerie at the La Perla show and yet she wears a bikini to Tamras that looks exactly like lingerie!!! LOL!

Oh the OC girls. I am starting to like Atlanta better. Scary.

Hello Ambien My Old Friend...TT Diaries, Day 5

One of the hardest things about recovering from the TT has been the nights. At the Pearl I had the kraft-matic (ha!) adjustable bed to wiggle myself into various positions. Now that I am home it's so hard to get comfortable. I feel like Carol Burnett whipping all around throwing pillows. I prop up a million pillows but keep sliding down, shove them between my legs, trying to sleep! I keep waking up from the pain!

I tried to take extra Darvaset to off set the pain the other night, BIG MISTAKE. I started freaking out, thinking things were attacking me and feeling claustrophobic about my stomach brace.

I have a stomach brace on that is so tight it makes my yummie tummie seem like a hula hoop. I am sucked and tucked with tubes coming out for drainage. GORGEOUS. Too bad. I have a flat tummy! Hooray!

Anyway, nights have been awful and torturous.

The answer? Ambien. Ambien kisses you on the cheek and says "night night darling". I slept well last night. Hubby even said "you didn't move all night!". I know he was thrilled to not be woken up every two minutes.

I now know only one Darvaset every 4-6 hours. Poor hubby having to adjust me around and put up with my tantrums. I feel bad for him. He will be glad though when he's got a hot wife in a bikini!!! (Right, probably a cute one piece)

Overall doing well. Going to the doctors today for a little check up so I'll let you know what they say also.

On board for this weekend?
Christmas lights up
Finishing wrapping gifts
Finishing up Christmas Cards

You?

Christmas Cards- Thinking Pink Once Again!

Here's what I am sending out this year (adorable kids in the pic are not mine!) I just love this card and I even copied the text.

"Have yourself a pink little Christmas!" in honor of Miss Coco.


I just love Boatman Geller. They are just preppy fabulous.

The transition home was not at all smooth due to animals and babies missing their mother too much!!! Tantrums, accidents in the pants, an all out assault! Well, at least I had two nights of quiet at the Pearl! Thank you ladies!!!

Tummy Tuck Diaries- Day 3 Homeward Bound

Yes, I am leaving my fancy hotel digs today. I am leaving my adjustable bed with remote, flat screen TV with remote (That no one is asking me to put Barney on), my view of the Hollywood Hills, my monogrammed feather down comforter and 1000 thread count sheets.

Yes, I am leaving today and I couldn't be happier. I MISS HUBBY and THE CHILDREN! I miss Landon asking me" Mama? What doing?". I miss Coco smiling at me and hugging me, I miss hubby and my witty reparte...I am looking forward to being in my own bed. In my bed there is a blonde labbish (rescue so who knows) dog who sleeps at my feet, and cats who love to snuggle.

Since I am already out the door I will tell you I have been staying at the SLS hotel. They have a hospital floor called "The pearl", where you can recover in private and in style. It's so fabulous.

Off to nap, Darvaset kicking in...zzzzz...zzzzz...more later.

Tummy Tuck Diaries- Day 2!

Hi everyone!!

I am happy to report, that the Tummy Tuck was a huge success! I am writing to you from a super secret fancy hotel location where I am being waited on hand and foot! The surgery itself was a pretty extensive. They marked me with a sharpy as if there was going to be a big shark bite out of my stomach.

I was so nervous and scared going in. Cried in the car after saying goodbye to Landon. Thank God my preacher met me at the plastic surgery office! We said a prayer before I went in.

Just before I went into surgery I had a little talk with Jesus, just him and me. I told him not to leave me. Guess what? He didn't. On to the surgery:

When they went in, they found my muscles had torn both vertically and horizontally. The only thing holding my intestines in, was a paper thin wall of muscle. Wow.

When I woke up apparently I said two things:

"Did they do it?"
and
"I feel like Rip Van Winkle!"
Yep. Even under sedation I still got the funny.

The pain is very similar to a C section so I really feel okay. Just taking the drugs and hunched over like a 99 year old grandma.

And...
Of course I am wearing my BYOG gown!!!
The Sunday before surgery I was like a whirling dervish of Christmas. Tree up, decorated, mantle adorned and gifts wrapped. Looks good though!

Thank you for your prayers, tomorrow I go home and I am sure to have culture shock. It's so quiet and dreamy here in my room in Beverly Hills!