Somebody call the waaa-mbulance!

I'm sick. Stuffy head, icky cough, runny nose - the whole nine yards. Boo.

Of course, I am sure that last night didn't help matters. It was the pups' first evening in our new home and nobody could relax - the big guy was barking and howling up a storm.

At about 1:30 in the morning, I couldn't take it anymore - thinking that maybe one of them needed to go potty, I stumbled down the stairs and let them out. While the little one ran straight into the backyard, the big guy would not go out unless I went with him. No big deal, except for the fact that it was about 35 degrees out and I was wearing just a t-shirt and pajama pants (no shoes).

So, I walk out onto the deck and stood there for about a minute, until the big one finally went outside. I turn and head back to the house, go to open the door - and nothing. The damn door is locked. Right away, I start to bang on the door and rattle the handle, hoping that hubby will hear me and let me in. Nope. It's not like I can just yell up to him without waking up the entire neighborhood. About that time I start to panic, thinking that I am going to be stuck outside until the morning and will end up freezing to death on the back porch.

All of a sudden, a lighbulb goes off in my head. The front door! I just need to ring the doorbell and hubby will come down and let me in. Now, getting to the front door will be no easy task. First, I had to walk through the entire yard in my bare feet. Next, I need to figure out how to open up the gate to the fence, holding the big one's collar the whole time so he doesn't run away. Finally, I have to pray that the little one doesn't get out in the few minutes I will need to leave her alone.

My plan in place, I make my escape, dragging the big guy along with me. I get to the front door, start ringing the doorbell repeatedly - and nothing. Nobody comes to save me from the wrath of Mother Nature. In my final moment of clarity, I try to open up the front door, which amazingly, is unlocked. Safe at last!

I let the big guy in, round up the little one and put them in bed. Frozen and cranky as hell, I make it back up to bed. I crawl under the covers and hubby turns to me and says, Did you hear the doorbell ringing?

All I have to say is that the hubby should be pleased that I didn't suffocate him as he slept last night...

Huh?

So, the hubby and I worked on the house again all day today. He was in the basement, doing "boy stuff" - hooking up electronics and all that jazz - and I was unpacking the linen closet upstairs when the doorbell rings.

I bound down the stairs to see a man, a woman and two kids (all dressed up) at my front door. Immediately, I think, "oh shit, these people here celebrate Halloween on Sunday," and run to get the candy. Of course, when I open the door, they tell us that they were not there to trick-or-treat - they were there to bring us some goodies and welcome us to the neighborhood.

I was so confused - when we moved into our last home, the first time I met a neighbor was when the guy who lived next door yelled at us for being too loud one night (in our defense, it was only 7:00 at night - give me a break!). No cookies, no nice note - nothing.

But I did feel like an asshole - thankfully, I was able to explain my ignorance by telling them that we moved from NJ.

Guess I have to write a thank-you note...

A quick update...

We have landed!

After a very hectic/crazy week, we are finally in our new home. The movers cleared out our house in NJ on Tuesday, we closed in NJ on Wednesday, and closed here on Thursday. Of course, I missed the whole thing, as I was traveling my way across the Midwest all week: Monday - Minneapolis, Tuesday - Minneapolis to Milwaukee, Wednesday - Milwaukee to Chicago, Thursday - home! But hubby did a fantastic job ensuring that everything ran smoothly - with only one minor (major) flip-out. But we have our Internet and our DirecTV - I mean, who really needs a refrigerator and washer/dryer?

I want to put together my thoughts on this whole experience when I have a little bit more time, but right now, just the highlights...

The people who bought our house in NJ are a bunch of assholes - but I am convinced that karma will end up getting them someday.

The people who we bought our new house from are probably the nicest people ever. They left us their (nice) wooden swingset (yes, hubby and I are already planning on playing on the swings this weekend), their outdoor furniture set next to the pool, almost all of their window coverings. They also must have been cleaning fanatics - according to our neighbors, they had the carpets steam-cleaned on Monday. Of course, the whole cleanliness factor will go downhill soon enough...

Our new house is big. I think that our closet is the same size as our spare bedroom in NJ. Our dining room table looks like it shrunk. It will probably take the hubby an entire day to mow the lawn or shovel the driveway. And going from one and a half bathrooms to three? We have actually asked each other, "What bathroom should we use?"

I think that we are the only people in the whole neighborhood without kids. Our neighbors (who have three little ones) said that everybody was excited to see how many kids we had. Sorry to disappoint. But at least we can watch the neighborhood Halloween parade on Sunday - and we were told to expect 75-100 kids on Halloween.

Anybody want to come over and help us unpack???

Hubby just said "I still can't believe that this house is ours." That's the general sentiment around here these days.

Speaking of hubby, please stop by and:

1. congratulate him - he just found out yesterday that he was the recipient of his company's "Unsung Hero" award... I am so proud of him!
2. tell him to feel better - obviously, he just found out yesterday that he was also the recipient of someone's nasty cold (not mine, though - hmmm...)

Have a great Saturday!

Meet the Bloggers...

Last night was the big blog meet. I have to admit that I was a little nervous beforehand - what if they didn't like me? What if I drank too much and made an ass out of myself? And, of what if these people were a bunch a of lunatics? (Hubby and I covered that base by making sure what we had a good excuse to leave if they turned out to be psychos - or 16-year-old boys and 60-year-old men.)

Of course, none of that happened and we had a great time. Debby and Laura are two of the nicest people we have ever met - they are every bit as smart, as funny, as genuine in person as they are online. I was absolutely overwhelmed by their hospitality - they took us on a tour of their beautiful home (so clean... I'm jealous!), kept our drinks filled all night, and made the most delicious dinner - and yummy desserts! Their stories kept us laughing all night, and as much as they kid around with each other, it's obvious they they are so in love.

We also had the pleasure of meeting Brighton - she is so cute, with her Reese Witherspoon accent, and such a character! We loved the stripper shoes (I have to get a pair of them, even though I will tower over hubby) and we actually got to see a menu for her infamous restaurant (mmm, "pastami").

T was also great - so nice, and totally cracked us up by rearranging all of Laura's Halloween decorations.

Debby's friend Erik rounded out the night (and her son - you know, the one who was dating the girl with the slammin' body - also made a guest appearance).

Some things that we learned last night:

* Laura does not care for pastrami sandwiches and kosher dill pickles from shady establishments
* Debby really truly does wear a tiara around the house
* The definition of "shootin' the bunny", rodeos and the hidden meaning behind "Miss Kitty"
* What actually happens to the foreskin at a bris :-)

Thanks again Laura and Debby!

Firsts and lasts...

Everyone has their firsts...
First best friend: Definitely my mom, she has always been my best friend - as for a "non-family" best friend, I would have to say that my first true best friend was Brandao (you never lose your best friends)
First screen name: C21AmberB (guess where I used to work??)
First funeral: John Roan, a family friend who died way too young from cancer
First CD: REM - Automatic for the People
First pet: Duke and Dapehne - Duke was a doxie; Daphene, a doxie/chihuahua mix
First piercing/tattoo: my ears, when I was four years old or so (I had very cute Raggedy Ann earrings)/no tattoos
First big trip: Disneyland, 1985 - I was 8 years old
First flight: see above
First concert: Debbie Gibson
First job: Sales associate at Caldor

Everyone also has their lasts…
Last car ride: From Moe's to our house (had to pick up dinner after the drive from NY to NJ, but the coupon was at home!)
Last time you cried: Monday - I cry every Monday when I leave the hubby
Last movie you watched: Not sure - either Wedding Crashers or Must Love Dogs
Last food you ate: Moe's vegetarian burrito (I'm not a vegetarian, though) and Diet Coke
Last temptation: Getting a snack at the McDonald's on the Thruway - I resisted temptation!Last item bought: Dinner
Last annoyance: People who don't bother showing up for a job interview (yeah, that happened today)
Last shirt worn: Long-sleeved ZTA t-shirt
Last concert: Don Henley at NJPAC (same as hubby)
Last phone call: My mom
Last time at the mall: Last night (had dinner at The American Cafe after looking at flooring samples with my parents)
Last fight: Not sure, I am not much of a fighter - I tend to either sulk or get sarcastic

Who to tag??? Well, since hubby stole Brandao, I guess that I will pick Terri.

Little Miss Cranky Pants...

Excuse me while I whine and moan for just a minute:

* I hate the rain.

* Because of said rain, it took me over 3.5 hours to get to NJ last night. Not fun.

* Stanley decided that he wanted to wake up early this morning - 5:30 a.m., to be exact. Surprisingly enough, hubby didn't move a muscle... I swear that he was pretending not to hear him. So, guess who has been up since 5:30?

* I just finished packing about 20 boxes or so. Hubby went with his friend to the movies.

* I have to brave the rain once again to go to the grocery store and pick up snacks for hubby and his friends, who will be coming over tonight for pizza and beer. With only two more weekends left in this home, it's just great that hubby is so confident we will get everything packed and done in time... no need to use this weekend to get our act in gear.

Sigh. On a lighter note, Ashlee Simpson will be on SNL tonight. That should be amusing (or annoying, depending on her performance).

Have a great Saturday.

Best Friends

On Sunday, I participated in the baptism of her little one - as the godmother, or "Auntie Amber," it was a very important day for me. During our time at the church and at the reception afterwards, I had lots of things running through my mind (besides wanting to beat the hubby senseless for checking the score of the Giants game every two minutes and announcing it to the rest of the party). Mainly, I was wondering how on earth did I get so lucky to have such a good friend in my life, someone who actually loves me and trusts me enough to ask me to be her child's godmother?

As I looked around the table at the restaurant, filled with my three best friends in the whole world and their significant others, I had never felt so happy, so filled with love in my whole life.

First, there's Brandao. We met as RAs my sophmore year of college and have been the closest of friends ever since... even when we drifted apart for periods of time during our younger years, we always found our way back to our friendship. The one friend who always indulged my somewhat crazy side, we would spend hours drinking wine, smoking cigarettes and talking about boys. We dressed up as hookers for one Halloween (where we won the award for best costume), shared hundreds of fountain sodas from Quick Chek, spent days at the Livingston Mall, summer Sundays down the shore, and evenings hitting the movies (smuggling in wine), drinking and flirting with boys at Bennigans or the Palm Grill, and almost getting ourselves into some deep trouble (such as our "made for TV movie" night in Lake Hopatcong). We could freely laugh at each other because we never really laughed at each other - it was more about laughing at the circumstances. She is now married to one of the nicest men I have ever met - she was a maid of honor at my wedding, and I was the matron of honor at hers. When we were younger, we always planned on living next door to each other, with our husbands (or our cats, if we ended up old maids). Even though that part didn't work out, and we now live hundreds of miles away, we are closer than ever.

Then there's Huxy - who should really start her own blog, by the way :-). Even though we were sorority sisters for years, our friendship really developed once she had graduated from college and came to visit me almost every weekend during my senior year. I will never forget how much fun the four of us (me, Huxy, Brandao and Jennifer) had the first time we really hung out together - New Year's Eve, ringing in 1999 at Double D's (damn those incriminating pictures!). We had so many great times in college (nights at the Palm Grill, sleepovers in my suite, breakfast at the Bagel Chateau) as well as post-college (Ari's surprise birthday party, planning Brandao's bridal shower, ringing in the new millenium together, dinners, and lots of gossip). We have comforted each other while drunk, and laughed our heads off during strange circumstances (one night at Summerfield Suites, where all I could hear was "who's your daddy?" is one in particular). We have been through each other's loves and heartbreaks, and she also was there for me as a maid of honor (and kept me quite calm) at my wedding. She is dating a great guy who is now a part of some of my most special Huxy memories.

And there is Jennifer - who also needs to start blogging. She is sooo pregnant right now, and she and her husband will be welcoming their son to this world later this month. We met early on in my college career, but it wasn't until we both became RAs that we became good friends. I see Jennifer almost as my sister - she is often a voice of reason, and my protector - if someone is giving me a hard time, she is there to stick up for me. We have also spent many a night together drinking at the Palm Grill, hitting the Morristown Diner after a fire drill at 3:00 in the morning, flirting with guys, frequenting McDonalds (and you wonder why I had a weight problem in college!) and just having a fun time. Since college, we have done numerous shopping trips (she is as addicted to shopping as I am!), road trips and lots of time scrapbooking. Her mother, father and sister are also wonderful... her family has become my NJ surrogate family of sorts. I was fortunate enough to be in her wedding, and she was my matron of honor - and took care of anything that stressed me out or got in my way that day, which I will be eternally grateful for. She is also married to a wonderful man who has become a friend to me as well.

Sometimes, thinking about my friends makes me sad. We have grown a lot in the years since we all met - we all have jobs, separate lives, and most of us live a long distance apart. Sometimes I wish that the four of us could go back to our college days and relive that excitement all over again. But we are fortunate enough to still have each other, and I think that we have a friendship that will stand the test of time and the circumstances that life will throw our way.

Someone once told me that a true friend usually comes into your life only once. So, I guess that I am extra special, or just extra lucky - I have three.

P.S. to Peanut: Congratulations on your baptism! I am honored and humbled that you, your mommy and your daddy asked me to be your godmother, and I will do everything I can to help you as you grow up. Every time I hold you, I can't believe how perfect you are, and how much I love you. :-)