Jammin' On the One...

Thanks to a half dozen of my fabulous friends, I found a SWEET deal on Mountain Jam tickets this morning!  I'm super excited to see Ryan Montbleau, the Avett Brothers, and Michael Franti... and even more excited to see Marcy D, Sue Bee, Sam Sam, and the family rocking out on an early summer afternoon.

Apple Paltrow & Felix
have similar headgear.
Too bad Felix freaks
whenever his come near
his dome!

We might have grown up and had a baby... but we certainly haven't out grown rock and roll.

Now, if we could just get him used to his live music headphones we'd be all set!  So far, he's not too keen on 'em.  Maybe we'll have to do some practice runs in the next few days...  The kid wears any hat you put on his head (and looks damn good in them, if I do say so myself) but you slap these noise canceling muffs on him and he loses it!  Gotta protect those baby ear drums though!

Well... We're crossing fingers for sunshine and a smiling baby on June 4th!




P.S.  Props to anyone who can identify where "Jammin' On the One" originated.

Tonight, "I have a dream."

Shepard Fairey - my favorite contemporary artist -
created this poster in reaction to the
California Proposition 8.  

A few weeks ago, I posted a link to this story on my facebook with the following status update:

"If Felix wants to paint his toenails pink, my only objection will be if he wants to use Wet n' Wild - that stuff chips too easy!"

Today, I read an installment from another favorite blog, FridayPuppy.com.  FridayPuppy is spear headed by my friend Matt and also includes entries written by his entourage.  If you know my friend Matt, you understand that he truly is fabulous enough to qualify for an entourage.  He's handsome, generous (he just was named the Leukemia Lymphoma Man of the Year thanks to his serious fundraising efforts), successful and (*sigh, single ladies*) gay.  His newest blogger, Craig from London, is also gay (and, as far as I can tell, also fabulous).  He wrote a post about how he recently explained his sexuality to his beloved nieces... and it struck a similar chord as the story I linked to above.

Obviously, transgender/cross-dressing/etc. have no real relation to homosexuality.  However, due to societal norms they are often forced to hide out in neighboring closets.  My reaction to both blog pieces is that I hope Felix's generation become more and more understanding of our differences, learning to accept one another on the grit that really counts - not on the color of their skin, what sex they are, who they want to marry, or what toenail polish the choose.

The end.  Goodnight.

Words of advice from a typical Italian mother.

I've read the "What to Expect" books.  I thumbed through The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding (which I highly recommend).  I've referred to a hand-me-down copy of Breastfeeding for Dummies  (it's actually quite useful).  I'm a regular on the websites of Dr. Sears, La Leche League, and KellyMom.com.  All of my resources seem to agree:  if a baby is healthy and gaining weight, there is no reason to feed him anything but breast milk for at least the first 6 months of life.  Some of my resources even said a year!

...  but at about 3 and a half months, I couldn't help feeling Felix wanted a more substantial dinner.

Inside the lines of an artsy mommy.

For Mother's Day this year, I wanted to give my mother something really special.  She deserves it...  we've continued to take over the majority of her living space, her free time, and (probably) her sanity.  However, my budget as a stay-at-home mom is super tight right now so the gift "from Felix" was the best kind of gift... homemade.  

I'm no gLeek...

...but I can't help falling for the adorable kids at PS22 & their amazing voices!  They sing with such heart and soul (and I don't mean that cheesy piano duet).

P.S.  I hope you set aside a few hours... Once you start watching one of these videos, you'll find ten more equally as good.  I also recommend their versions of Adele's "Rolling in the Deep" and the Talking Head's "This Must Be The Place."  WOW!

Carly in the Kitchen: Last Night's Dinner

Falafel in Pitas with a Romaine Lettuce, Cucumber, Tomato, Red onion, & Tzatziki salad.  Served with sides of Tabouli and Garlic Naan.  YUM!

I must confess... all this stuff came from a box.  Falafel mix from the "international" aisle, Near East Tabouli, Garlic Naan right from the grocery store bakery, and pre-made Tzatziki.  

Carly in the Kitchen: Mint Chocolate Chip Cheesecake

I don't like to brag... but Ric Orlando once deemed me "the cheesecake queen" as he scooped handfuls of my cheesecake in to his Food Network Show Chopped winning palatte.  This was following quite a few glasses of wine and a pretty serious dance off... but none the less, my cheesecake recipe kicks major ass.

I adapted my Grandmother's vanilla cheesecake recipe a bit for the hubby's birthday, since he is a major fan of Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream.  My sister-in-law thinks I should sell this somewhere.  My husband thinks I should make it every weekend.  My scale says I should rip up this recipe and start doing crunches... you decide:

I went overboard with the decorations... but the taste was perfect.

Recipe after the jump...