Holidays 2013!

Its Christmas Time!

Enjoying the holiday season.

Some highlights of the two months; Jordan and I went on a segway tour of the city. We had a great time, even after I fell off ...lol. We also went to State Penn haunted Tour, which he closed his eyes through the entire walk and kept stepping on my boots. We watched some fun movies like Thor, Gravity, Bad Grandpa, Best Man Holiday, & Captain Phillips.

We all went to bbq at Steve's friend's house in Reading, PA. Ate a lot of food and had lots of fun. We tried a new Korean place,GIWA,  for lunch. It was very good. We enjoyed Bobby McFerrin in concert at the Kimmel Center. We attended the "Taste of Philly" event and tried a lot of yummy food. We went to dinner and good music at Warmdaddy's. We even went to see Beauty and the Beast show and had a nice dinner at Ruth Steakhouse. We got to see the Christmas tree lighting at Love Park. We joined the running of the Santas. After we went to Chinatown and bought some fresh lobsters and crabs for dinner. The apartment building hosted their annual holiday party with lots of good food and prizes. Dad has come to stay with us a few times and spent some quality time with us. We had Thanksgiving at home and just finished the last of the Turkey leftovers...yum. I went to visit mom a few times and enjoyed having dinner with her. I also spent some time working on the house prepping it for new renters.

Our area has been getting some snow and we are enjoying the wintery look. But we are missing the nice weather. I decided to book an exotic vacation for February to celebrate Jordan's 16th birthday. We are going to Fiji for a week...yippee!!

Work has been good and busy. I have attended a few ribbon cuttings, trainings, and conferences. We hired 3 new people in our unit and are training them now. Work hosted a great Holiday brunch with good food and music.

Christmas is only 10 days away! Wow! 2014 is upon us. I look forward to the adventures and experiences that the new year will bring. 

It's October!

I can't believe it's Fall and soon will be Christmastime again!

Some of the highlights the last few months include enjoying a menu sampler at Morimoto. We visited beautiful Longwood Gardens.  We went to see the show Wicked on the last night in Philadelphia and got to see them loading the trucks. We enjoyed a Northern Liberties neighborhood Festival where some of Jordan's music classmates were doing a concert. We took a couple of walks in Chinatown and through the Fairmount neighborhood. We attended a Blue October Concert and visited the Barnes Museum.

Jordan sang at two concerts in August for the first time. Jordan also spent a week at Zoo camp and had a great time. We also went to the Renaissance Fair. Some movies we watched include The Butler, Insidious 2, The Conjuring, and Cloudy with Chance of Meatballs 2. Jordan just started 10th grade and is doing very well.

I did some refurnishing of the bedroom, which created more space and organization. I did have some dental issues this past two months and had to get two root canals. Awful! I hope I don't have any more of that for a long time. I am getting ready to rent my house again. The last tenants just moved out.

Work has been great. I attended a meeting at the Horticultural Center and enjoyed a nice walk in the area. I also attended two trainings, which were really interesting, Sexual Harassment and Labor Relations.

I am looking forward to the holiday season and some hibernation time. 

Summer in full swing....

Summer is in full swing! Lots of great activities and experiences have come our way.

We met Robert Irvine from Restaurant Impossible, a show on Food Network. Steve's boss gave him tickets. We had a great time! We got to hang out with Robert and his construction guy Tom, all evening. Tried a new place in the city called Lukes Lobster for lucnch with great lobster rolls. We also tried the breakfast buffet at the Sofitel Hotel...great spread! We finally tried Percy Street BBQ for dinner, and I am still full from it...lol. Went to Vango for dinner as well, love their calamari salad. We went to Cirque du Soleil for the first time....WOW! That's all I can say about that. We also went to Comic Con for the first time. Lots of fun! Jordan loved it!

Family activities included going to Clementon Park for some fun rides! We enjoyed going to the movies to watch Man of Steel, Pacific Rim, Grown Ups 2, Now You See Me, and Monsters U. We also went to a Big Time Rush Concert  which Jordan enjoyed very much, especially with all the screaming girls....lol. We even went to pick out 2 live chickens to make for dinner at a place on Spring Garden! Who would've thought?? Jordan said he wouldn't eat them knowing they just killed them for us to eat that day, but once the chicken was cooked, he did not back down..lol.

Jordan will be singing in a concert on August 9th and 10th. I am so excited! He has been practicing and sounds great! He continues to take guitar and voice lessons. He also continues to do karate twice a week. He will be participating in teen camp week at the Philadelphia Zoo the end of August learning about all the animals.

We took a nice vacation end of May and went to Paris for 6 days. It was great! We did lots of walking, touring the Louvre, Eiffel Tower, the Catacombs, Champ Elysees, Arc de Triumph, Notre Dame, Versailles, and nearby neighborhoods, eating yummy french food every chance we got like crepes, escargot, macaroons, and french bread. We also had some adventures on the metro, trying to find our way around. I need to plan to take nice trips like that more often.

Been trying to walk more in the city since I like to eat so much. On real hot days though, I try to climb the stairs in my office building instead. It makes me feel like I am walking off all that yummy food I eat. Yes......I have gained 15 pounds since I moved to the city. I can't imagine why though....lol.

Still have about 6 weeks left of summer and plan to enjoy every bit of it! Hope everyone else does too.

3 Months later....

I can't believe it's been three months since I last posted. So much has happened......

We visited the Franklin Institute and saw the Titanic Exhibit. I managed to do my taxes in February. I try to get them done as early as possible, especially if I expect something back. We went to the Home Show at the Philadelphia Convention Center. We also went to the Helium Comedy Club and Sportz Comedy Show for some good laughs. For Valentine's Day Steve and I went to a Dinner Theater Show at Bistro Romano. We went to Spring Mountain tubing for a day. We also attended an A Cappella Choir Concert at the Kimmel Center. We have been spending as much time as possible outdoors at parks enjoying the spring weather. We enjoyed the PIFA events outdoors with lots of food and fun activities for all. We also watched some good movies including The Phantom, The Call, Evil Dead, and Oz. I have visited some good restaurants like the Oyster House, Morimoto, DiNardos, Rose Tattoo, Joe's Crab Shack, Tony Lukes, Fratellis, Spiga, Cracker Barrel, and Morris Cafe-Outdoors.

I did some out of the ordinary things this quarter....like did a sexy photo shoot. It was lots of fun! We toured the Masonic Temple downtown. We also booked a trip to Paris for the end of May, which I  have been dreaming of returning to for a few years now. I also tried a hypnosis session, which I have always been curious about. It was an interesting experience. We also crashed a party at Rooftop thinking it was a spring scheduled public event. We ended up having a buffet dinner and drinks on the conference taking place there!

Work has been busy, good, and stressful at times. I am working on phasing in new housing programs and an implementation of a new database system. Lots to do in a short amount of time. We celebrated Emily's birthday with cake and a pinata and Secretary's day for Amirah with a Dammit doll and cupcakes...lol. I also attended a two-day housing conference in Harrisburg recently, which I enjoyed very much.

Jordan continues to learn guitar, karate, and is now also taking voice lessons. He was just asked to be part of a show by the director of the music school. He is a bit shy, but has a great voice. He has made a good friend at Karate and is spending time with him at his place and at our place. He also spent some time with his friend Allen in Norristown. He will be starting tutoring this month once a week to help him get ready for the annual high school state tests.

Allergies have been acting up but not too badly. I am enjoying the good weather by eating outdoors, taking walks and spending time in the park. I love the mild sunny days of Spring. I do look forward to warmer weather, but don't enjoy the heat and humidity.

Looking forward to the coming vacation, summer, and opportunities for more adventures and joy. 

New Year!

The holidays were good. We spent it with family and friends. We celebrated Jordan's 15th birthday early January with family as well. I took him to see Jeff Dunham at Wells Fargo Center as part of his birthday gift. He loved it! Jordan got a new Android/Samsung Galaxy phone for Christmas...ouch, not cheap. We went to NY for Christmas Eve, visited the Natural History Museum, Central Park, and Rockefeller Center. As we were getting back on the bus to return to Philly in the evening it started to snow. It was a great day! We spent New Year's Eve at Warmdaddy's, eating good food, listening to great music, and dancing the night away. The singer, Amazing Grace, even sang to Jordan and tried to get him to sing along......lol. We went to a Sixers game and they actually won! I treated myself to a massage and facial this month, which I think has helped relieve some stress.

Jordan continues to take guitar and voice lessons. He is in "like" with one of the girls who is taking guitar lessons. We continue to visit one of my favorite spots, DiNardo's, where Jordan gets a NY strip steak and I get the garlic crabs....Yummo! We visited the Helium Comedy club this month for some good laughs with friends. We have enjoyed watching movies like: MAMA, Zero Dark Thirty, Django, Today is 40, Haunted House, and Le Miserable.

My job is going well. The program I manage is growing and it's very exciting. Three people from department are retiring January-February so we have had/having 3 luncheons to wish them all well and thank them for their service.

As the winter is in full force, I think about what I want to accomplish this year; some travel, excel at work, help Jordan be more independent, and a few other things. I pray that 2013 is full of adventures, love, and lots of wonderful experiences.

Happy Holiday!

Happy Holidays!

So much has happened since my last entry. We continue to enjoy some of our favorite things like going to DiNardo's and Joe's CrabShack for dinner, going to movies and saw- Cloud Atlas, Lincoln, Life of Pi, and Skyfall. Jordan started taking voice lessons, continues his guitar lessons, and goes to Karate twice a week. He has finished his first school semester with a bit of struggle, but is working to improve. He is interested in a cute gal that takes guitar lessons also. He is trying to build up the nerve to ask her out. It's so cute to see him learning how to relate to girls. He is a good and decent kid.

Highlights for the last two months include going to a Halloween local play, visiting MerryMead Farm for a hayride, going for dessert to Silk City in the evening outdoors, meeting Andrew McCarthy at a book signing, listening to M. Night Shyamalan talk about his movie Signs and his new project-New Earth, going to dinner with coworkers to Buddhakan, going to see former President Clinton at Univ of Penn before election, going to Laff House and seeing Tom Green at Helium Comedy Club, going to Thanksgivng Day Parade, trying out South Street Diner for the first time, enjoying The Christmas Village at Love Park, especially the crepes, funnel cakes, and bratwursts, going to see a former classmate's new play at the Walnut theater, finding a great lunch vegetarian place on Chestnut Street with yummy hummus and falafel, and trying out Monk's Cafe for the first time, which pretty good.

We held out well during storm Sandy. We were lucky, but others weren't. Work has been busy. I am working on phasing in new programs within our unit, lots of meetings and planning. I get home pretty tired, but satisfied that I am working and contributing in a meaningful way. We have a holiday luncheon, holiday dinner, and Pollyanna planned.

As 2012 comes to a close I reminisce about the past months. 2012 was quite a stressful year for me due to my lay off, unemployment, new job, and a troubled relationship. However, I have managed to enjoy every minute possible by doing some of my favorite things and having new adventures.

I vow to do more traveling, more socializing, and have more adventures with those I love in 2013. I also vow to take better care of my health in every way. I look forward to an exciting new year.

Fall is in full bloom....

So much has happened since I last wrote in my blog.

Jordan has been pretty busy. He finished a summer music workshop where he participated in performing a new soundtrack to the movie "Nosferatu" with the School of Rock kids. He seemed to enjoy that a lot. He started a new school year via PA Virtual Charter School. He is doing very well so far. He has Algebra, Earth Science, English, Technology, and PE. He gets PE credit for attending karate twice a week. He also gets credit for Music for taking guitar lessons.

We visited a couple of his favorite places this past month, Longhorne Steakhouse, and now DiNardo's, where he gets a nice big steak, and I feast on crabs! Yum! He recently broke up with his girlfriend, and was a bit sad about that, but he is focusing on all the other fun things in his life and is doing very well.

We visited the "Magic Gardens" glass art museum on South Street. What a great place to visit! We also went to see the " How to Train Your Dragon" show at the Wachovia center. He loved it! I like that he still enjoys live shows. We may go to see "Spiderman" on Broadway for Christmas. He's been wanting to see it for sometime. I went to a child support hearing with Jordan's dad, who has been very detached from his life. He, unfortunately, has not made much effort to keep in contact with Jordan. Thankfully, Jordan has a lot of love in his life and he is doing well.

I have been enjoying the city this past month. I have visited a couple of regular places I enjoy like the Clef Club for great live jazz music, and the Erotic Salon for some live erotic poetry readings. I have tried some new places to eat including Drinker's for tacos, El Rey for spicy corn on the cob, La Famiglia for good Italian food, and a new BBQ place on South Street for some awesome pecan pie. I also checked out the Memphis Tavern in Northwest Philly, which had a nice pork and watermelon salad, and Silk City for some great weekend brunch. We have gone to Joe's Crab Shack in King of Prussia a couple of times and have enjoyed their spicy crab bucket. One of the highlights this past month included going to see and hear Sheila E. at Penns Landing. She's still rocking! We also went to a screening of the movie "Midnight In Paris" which was being held at the Art Museum.

We have seen a lot of movies, one of our favorite things to do, this past month, including, Timothy Green, Posession, ParaNorman, Total Recall, Loopers, and Hotel Transylvania. A nice mix of kid-friendly and not so kid-friendly movies.

Work has been great! I am growing into the position, learning the politics, policies, and programs. The job requires constant networking, collaboration, strategic planning and development, which keeps me very busy. I am pretty exhausted in the evenings and on Fridays, when the work week wraps up. I am happy to be working with people who are dedicated and skilled in what they do. I am
also learning about people's personalities and quirks, and how to best work together. I was able to go to Harrisburg and attend a conference, and I have been working on implementing a new database system for our unit. We also recently hired an administrative assistant, who we needed desperately to help support our unit.

Near work I have been trying to find good spots for lunch. I found a great Asian Fusion place undergroung, by Suburban Station, where they serve yummy Ramen soup with a ginger salad. I also like to go to a little park around Chestnut and 17th Street on good weather days and take a packed lunch. The park has a water fountain and plenty of seats to enjoy lunch outdoors. I also got to meet mom and my aunt for lunch one afternoon while they were in town. That was a nice treat!

I need to start taking good care of myself, work on taking vitamins and calcium. I hurt my back twice this past month cleaning and twisting. I also got a bad cold that I am just getting over. Need to focus on keeping healthy and strong as the year wraps up.

Looking forward to the holiday season!