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!