Friday, May 29, 2009

My Madsen Is HERE!


It arrived and very quickly I might add. The above photo shows all of my boys in the new kid mover, a.k.a Madsen cargo bike.

For those of you who don't know, I used to be an avid cyclist. When I say avid, I mean every day, mountain or road, loved it. Loved it so much that I took off for two months on a solo road bike trip across the Pacific Northwest and ended up in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. (Gorgeous country I might add). Freedom and a bike with a trailer lugging camping gear across a variety of mountain terrain. (I still hope to do a family trip some time either by bike or airstream). Since I've gotten married, it has been the longest I've ever stayed in one place at a time. SO, I feel like I always have this incredible wanderlust boiling beneath my surface and I have to tame it, because you can't just take off on a whim once you have a family (although some sadly do). I am hoping that the Madsen will offer me a compromise of sorts between lifestyles, pre-life and now-life, life with husband, kids, dogs and cats.

The test ride that we took yesterday confirmed the kids excitement. They absolutely loved it! By the way, before you spank me for not wearing a helmet, we all usually wear helmets. The Hubs and I were so excited too that we took off around the block without ours. Our oldest really never outwardly, nor voluntarily cares about his younger brother, but after he took his test ride, he told his dad that he should go back to the house and get Evs. Awww, those moments just melt 'ya. A glimmer of hope in a sibling rivalry-filled world. See folks? The Madsen brings people together.

P.S. I even got to ride in the back!

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Bandwagon


Okay, I just now hopped on the Twilight bandwagon. Probably because I am a 36 year old mom of two.
If you have no idea what I'm talking about then go here. Twilight is a phenom with the teen crowd (think Harry Potter)
Twilight started out as a series of books and came out as a movie last fall. Another movie is scheduled to release this fall. Folks, I just passed by the book while I was at Costco, it was only $6 so I picked it up and thought, "what the heck, let's see what the buzz is about". I have two kids under 4 running around all day long needing my attention. It was a 500+ page book and I read it in 3 days. It was jaw dropping. I think what made it so interesting was the incredible dynamic of forbidden love. Think Romeo and Juliet but with vampires and in my opinion much more of a connection. OH that is another thing, I don't consider myself a vampire-novel-movie etc type of girl but dang, this book has got me hooked.
Additionally, what has me so inspired that this is a book created over a summer by a mom of three boys. Read her story here. She has done a great job writing and keeping her audience hooked. I can't say enough good things about this series and I look forward to making the time to read the next book!

Thursday, May 21, 2009

I bought a Madsen!

I'm very excited about towing the family around town in this


Instead of this


For more information go here.

photos courtesy of Madsen Cycles and some random minivan pimping website

Monday, May 4, 2009

Photo Booth Junkie


Hello, my name is Melissa and I am a photo booth junkie. I have been one since my early twenties and I don't plan on changing, I really don't see why I should. When I lived near the Mission in San Francisco, one of my favorite things to do on the weekend was head up to 16th and Valencia and pop into this store where they had a vintage photo booth. I'd cram into the booth with whichever one of my friends was with me at the time and sometime it would be my dog Charlie-Toast. We'd be out on a walk and would pop in for a quick photo op. I love those photos of him, young and shiny. A reminder of the good 'ole days. C-Toast is almost 12 years old now, he has a lot more gray and moves at a much slower pace. (Don't we all)
I have photos of my husband kissing my belly, before we knew we were pregnant and then him kissing my very round pregnant belly. Four little frames which captured the hope and excitement of the arrival of our first son. Strips of both of our sons, of great grandparents and cousins and friends. Those images won't fade over time. All of those cheap, digital rip-offs trying to dupe unsuspecting paramours, hoping to capture their moment in black and white, or a faded color strip. You won't fool me and hopefully with this tidbit of information, you won't break anymore hearts either.
To find the nearest ''old-school" photo booth near you, go here.


Photo courtesy of Ron Cowan on photobooth.net