Double Your Pleasure

double your fun
with double good,
double good,
double twin fun!!




Day 2 in a life with 16 month old twins:

Back Dat Thing Up The girls can come downstairs backwards on their tummys

and after breakfast and playtime....maybe just
CHILLIN' ON THE COUCH.....NOT!!
Sundays are good GARDEN days....and this garden is going CRAZY!!!!


Look what Sweet Pea Popped Up in the garden----BOSTON!!


A walk out front with BFF's Lucy & Linus (they are besties due to Boston sharing entire handfuls of Cheerios with Linus at snacktime) B loves sitting in the rocks but doesn't want to put her hands on them to get back up!
Afternoon naptime ended with a bit of DRAMA!! Teagan had taken off her diaper and soaked the pack n play thru while Boston had filled her pants so much that a big glop ran down her leg and left a nice dollop (and I thought I used that adjective only for ice cream) on the upstairs landing!(no time to run down for the camera!) Well, a little bath time BEFORE dinner never hurt anyone, right?
A girl can never have too many SHOOOOSE....Teagan was fond of the jewelry.

Bedtime was a happy time for all of us today. :)
Note to self: never put babies down for a nap without pants or shorts OVER the diaper.

Pappa Joe & Ninny-2
t&b-0

Two Times

Day 1 in a life with 16 month old twins:

Forgot the sunglasses for the trip to drop off Mom and Dad at Phoenix Sky Harbor International airport (because dad has thug dark tint on his truck and this is the first time seeing the sun in about 4 months)! On the way back to the ranch, a stop for Ninny's java at Dutch Bros. The girls will get to know all the folks that work there this week!

Nothing better than looking out the windows to see what's out there--


Play time wouldn't be complete without the grape scented "boogie wipes"-- I swear that's what they are called-- and these two love to huff 'em.


After a super duper nap and lunch-- the girls are off with Pappa Joe and Ninny to their very first festival down at Tempe Lake Beach Park....how apropos that the Moreno gals go to the Salsa Festival!! Now it took a mechanical genius to get this stroller to unlock and into the right position for take off since we didn't take a lesson before the parents left us, but we made it!

After a thorough dose of sunscreen as these girls are as fair as Snow White, we listened to the band,Chadwicks, for a while....not salsa music or la cucaracha or anything, but old tunes everyone knew. Miss Boston LOVED running around and seeing everyone...persnickity Teagan wasn't too fond of grass on her feet so she stuck close by
Enough sun and fun for everyone..Joe especially enjoyed all the HUGE maracas on display......gotta get a photo with the Giant BEER bottles.


Hey- It's Candy Day! Saturday is Candy Day! When my kids were little I had Candy Day on Saturday to keep them from driving me crazy for candy all week long..let me explain this--- growing up we were friends with the Bruners...and in this little town they kind of owned the local grocery store. In their home they had these cannisters on their kitchen counter of different kinds of candy and whenever you went to their home it was just a drooling experience, but they had a rule that you could only eat the candy on Saturdays...and they never tried to sneak any out or anything like that! So when I had my own kids...and they always wanted candy....I reverted to Candy Day!

It's all about controlling the insanity!!!
So we stopped thru Dutch Bros. for this....
Dutch Freeze! Now it looks a little funny because at the top of the straw.....for your candy day pleasure.....whippped cream! YUMMO!(Rachel Ray would say) When it was gone...here is Teagan's take
Arriving back at the ranch, we let the girls show their maturity and walk to the door from the car. Here's Boston...she loves to just walk right out on the rock and just scoot all around in it while her sissy can't walk beyond the crack in the side walk....she freezes and we help her across each crack....maybe she heard the rhyme--"don't step on the cracks or you'll break your mothers back." Once inside she found herself (literally) and gave kisses and kisses to the 'baby' in the mirror
After nap and a little dinner it's time to
PARTAY

After a not so good idea to try a quick shower, we made it to a little get together in the Foothills.


The girls spent most of the evening going up and down this step....mesmerizing!!


One day down....one fantastic day


Ninny & Pappa Joe 1
t&b 0

Winners!

Yep, we won a very wonderful 4 days at the Loew's Ventana Canyon Resort in Tucson through Univera! We were joined there by about 475 other folks from across North America. It was so nice to be pampered and spoiled all the while getting to know so many people.

The first day there we got to play golf on the lovely Ventana Canyon course with the CEO of Univera, Regan Miles.
He was so gracious and a great golfer, too! He birdied #1 and #10--- great fun to watch. Joe beat me that day and hasn't let me forget about that, for sure. I stunk it up but still had a great time.

The weather was perfect...sunny and warm. The last day we had a team building event where Joe got to exercise his big and versatile skills in the blow up sumo wrestling, joust and bungee race.

Ahhhhhh Baldoson
The sumo wig wouldn't fit his head and his opponent was a well endowed woman that he promptly threw down out of the circle.


Tons of fun but the next day he wasn't movin' around so well-- maybe it was the mechanical bull that took him down! Ride 'em Tex


It was a welcome rest for the two of us as well as inspiration to grow ourselves as well as our business! Univera really is a self improvement program with a compensation plan attached!

Cardinale

3/31/01 My wedding day!

For our anniversary celebration, instead of going out to dinner, I told Joe I would rather have a 90 day plan at the gym that includes a training session for us each month. I guess he was good with that as we are scheduled to begin this Saturday with trainer Steve...hello sore muscles and goodbye extra fat!

Oh yeah...soon to be me.....(sort of!)



So....I actually cooked!! Pretty spectacular and special since Joe does most of the cooking in this house. He just makes up his recipes as he goes along. However...I had this great dish in Portland a while back and decided to try it for myself! Cabbage just doesn't have that heavenly "aire" to it (no pun intended) --- but it really is delicious!

Cabbage Lasagne

1 med to large head of cabbage
1 T. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 med. onion, chopped
1 c. sliced mushrooms
1 lb. ground beef
1 6 oz. can tomato paste
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
1 t.dried oregano
1-2 t. salt
1-2 t. black pepper
1 c. grated mozzarella
1 c. cottage cheese
1/2 c. grated Parmesan

Preheat oven to 350. Wash cabbage and remove tough outer leaves. Cut head in half. Carefully peel back the leaves, trying to keep them intact; these will serve as the "noodles". Steam in steamer until nearly tender- 3-5 minutes. Set aside.

Saute garlic, onion and mushrooms in olive oil until onion is translucent. Add ground beef and brown thoroughly. Add tomato sauce, paste, and seasonings and combine well.

Coat a 9x12 baking pan with olive oil. Line the bottom with cabbage leaves. Top with half of the meat mixture. Add a third of mozzarella and half of cottage cheese. Add another layer of cabbage leaves, the remaining half of the meat mix, another third of the mozzarella, and remaining half of the cottage cheese. Top with remaining mozzarella and finish by scattering the Parmesan on top.

Bake, covered, for about 20 minutes. Uncover and bake for 5-10 minutes more.





Our garden provided the makings for the salad! We selected curly, red leaf and romaine lettuces as well as some spinach. Oh, yes--- we added a few sprigs of basil, too! YUM!
It was at this point in the evening that I had my "I grow my own food just like Martha Stewart" moment. (even without the New Hampshire carriage house)







AAAHHHHH- the best part of the meal---decanted perfection!!
We paired our feast with an incredible bottle of wine we set back several years ago--- a 2002 Cardinale cabernet. This particular vineyard has scrumptious, big red wines and a fantastic tasting experience.
This one fit the occasion and was smooth "like buttah". If you like reds and are ever in Napa.....do not miss it!

Joe brought home the flowers we had at our wedding....very romantic.

9 down and about 48 more to go.

Mary, Mary

Mary Mary, Quite Contrary, How Does Your Garden Grow?


Plan the 8x8 foot space. Rent a massive big machine and get your 6'5" husband to till it up and add a little mulch to try and help the cause.

Build a box for the raised bed. Good to have husbands for this, too.


Add 30 HUGE bags of super duper garden soil that will produce giant vegetables.

Plant the tomatoes (roma and celebrity), lettuce (romaine, red leaf & curly green leaf), herbs (basil, mint, rosemary and cilantro), strawberries, peppers (red & yellow bell and jalepeno), zucchini, yellow squash, spinach, green beans, cantelope and one stalk of corn. Whew!

Always good to have help from a ginger haired grandson in plantin' the strawberries.



Wait a while and see what happens!!

YUM!

The Perfect Day

My friend, Susie, came to visit from Portland. She is a fun gal that has her own business selling Cabi clothing. We had a couple evenings of fun where all my friends could try on all the clothes and just play dress up. :)

During her visit we had A Perfect Day

7:45 Wake up and leisurely enjoy morning coffee in your pj's all the while chatting about your family and years of memories.

9:30 Go through my closet piece by piece and let her "purge" all the frocks that looked good back in the day....maybe. I would say trust had been accomplished at this point.

11:00 Put on some make up to head out for lunch. Jump into a very sexy white 350Z convertible and enjoy the fresh Arizona scenery and sunshine.



Now you must know, at this point it is non-weather. This happens when you are not cold, you are not hot, there is no wind and you are entirely, perfectly comfortable.

12:15 We arrive for lunch at The Royal Palm. The valet greets us with a smile and comments on how "stylin" we are. perfect.

One of the best spots in a city full of nice resorts is T Cooks. Our lunch was savory and completed with a glass of dry rose (you have to try it) for Susie and predictable but scrumptious cab for me.

1:45 Back in the Z to head out to the ShiShi Scottsdale Fashion Square mall. Since Susie has a "passion for fashion" to say the least, I knew she would LOVE this place. We head down to the perfume counter at Nordies to try a new scent as we walked around the stores, perusing the spring sandal styles in the shoe salon, and strolling our way to the store where my joy is to feel the purses(like buttah) as they are definitely WAY out of my price range. Pressing on, we got to Nieman's where Susie found what she was looking for- a lovely lingerie to put "the girls" where they should be....perfect.

3:00 Weary from mall overstimulation, we headed home, but stopped at my FAV coffee place-- DUTCH BROS. The girl there commented on how much she loved our style.(exactly what two fifty-somethings want to hear!) Again, perfect.

3:45 We arrive home to prepare for the Cabilicious party. I turn on my IPOD and the Steely Dan tune Hey 19 comes on.....PERFECTOMUNDO! When that happens you are instantly transported into a good place.

7:00 Friends descend and go crazy throwing clothes everywhere and trying on everything. Hallelujah for a little spandex I say. ...perfect

Perfect Days End note to self: Aahhhhh....relaxing and enjoyable and now an even better friendship.

Life is partly what we make it, and partly what is made by the friends we choose.-Hsich