Shopping hiatus, week 1

Week 1 flew by with very few temptations. We did do a bit of thrifting over the weekend, looking for very specifically sized filing cabinets (struck out) and I couldn't resist this sugar bowl and creamer set.

{"new" sugar bowl and creamer}

They're English china and I love the simple design. They are thrifted, so they don't break my rules. At $7, they were also a pretty good deal.

Sadly, I was forced to buy something new. My nose stud lost its gemstone and I had to bite the bullet and order a new one. Despite the obvious fact that I can't purchase something like that used (ick), there is only one retailer who stocks appropriately subtle, thin gauge, solid gold nose studs (the only kind my nose will tolerate). Bummer.

We had a documentary viewing marathon on Sunday and many of them were relevant to the shopping hiatus.

What Would Jesus Buy? was not quite as amazing as I had hoped. I thought that it was an actual church, rather than a performance/activist protest group. It was still interesting.

Maxed Out was an excellent look at our country's increasing reliance on credit and it almost made me cry.

Surfwise was not technically about finances, but it was an amazing documentary that touched on earning money vs. living the life you want. It's about a couple who raise their nine (!) kids in a camper van and drive around the country surfing and living a really simple life. The beginning is hysterically funny and then it gets a bit sad. Highly recommend.

Not at all related to the hiatus, but awesome: we also watched Valentino: The Last Emperor. Full of lots of couture eye candy and a pack of adorable pugs.

Thinking of Spring

I found this picture and decided Opening Day would be the subject of my first blog. It's timely with spring training underway. It's also one of my favorite unofficial holidays.

That's me and Kelly who was marching behind the Fox19 news team. She's 11 and was walking in support of greyhound adoption. Her mother sent me the picture.

At 5 this morning I set out to write my first blog entry ever. I had a great subject, a good picture, but what I didn't have were skills. I download songs from itunes, tweet on twitter, and take care of emails on my Blackberry. Until this morning I had no idea how technically unsavy I am.

I had a hard time logging on, and posting that picture above took hours. I had to ask Frank and Sara for help over again. Frank talked about me the way I talk about my parents and their inability to reset the clock on the VCR.

Hopefully this blogging thing will eventually be easier than my 4 hour odyssey this morning. Our bosses have encouraged us to post everyday during the show. Should be interesting. So check back and read posts from Sheila, Meghan, Frank, Sara and me.

Oh yeah, can't wait for Opening Day and the parade.

Yummy Goodness

Good morning, Sara Celi here.

I love to travel. This is no secret.

I also love to eat. It's a love affair I've romanced for years, sometimes to my peril, but lately with control.

Lately and for a number of reasons, I've been spending a lot of my weekends in sunny SoCal with my husband, Sean.

It's been a nice break from the cold and wintry Midwest.

It's also given me a chance to see some of the nooks and crannies that make up the area, and a chance to see there is so much more to Los Angeles than Hollywood.

Often, this discovery involves food. In LA, there is a lot of that.

On my last visit Valentine's weekend, I stumbled on the promised land.

It happened on the Redondo Riviera, a fabled section of Redondo Beach, just two blocks from the Pacific.

You can tell by the attached photo that what I found was gelato, at the shop 22 Degrees.

Friends, we are not talking about just any gelato.

This gelato is not only made in the correct Italian way (with a smoothness that is oh so hard to replicate), it's also sold to you with full calorie information.

Nothing is held back.

Want to know how much fiber is in a serving? Got it. How many calories? No problem. If the gelato's gluten free? Not an issue.

As I looked at the 20 or so delectable selections, I saw it-- a little number I thought I recognized.

"What does the 3 mean?" I asked the clerk,but sure I already knew.

"That's for the people who are on Weight Watchers,"she said.

I couldn't believe it. That, friends, is when I took this picture.

You may not believe it, but Weight Watchers has helped me lose 37 pounds,

I am pretty open about it. I'm proud of myself. I made a decision in August 2007 to get healthy, and I have managed to do it. The real challenge comes in sticking to it.

At 22 Degrees on a February afternoon, I didn't have to worry about how a treat might affect my points for the day. I had the answer right in front of me.

My only question is, when can we get one in Cincinnati?

My Headache of Our Snowiest February On Record

Good Day Friends,

Frank Marzullo here...

I do not have to tell you it has been a long and rough winter here in the Tri-State. As we approach the end of February we have already seen the snowiest February ever with 23.6 inches of snowfall. To put that in perspective we have had 35.9 inches for the season which is around 20 inches above average. Now I can sit here with my TV Weatherman hair and talk about how it causes school delays, slippery roads, tricky travel, snow removal costs, finding child care for snow days, or how annoying it is that everyone goes to the store before a storm, I will address the headaches differently. The biggest HEADACHE, my dog is tracking all this dirty nasty snow into my house!!!

I have made mention of him before in fact Mr. Benson made his first television appearance on Thanksgiving morning, I had only had him for 5 days and he was a perfect gentleman. However, now he is getting wiser and knows how to push my buttons and this snow does not help. I live in Covington in a loft that has hard wood floors, now at first you may think hey easy clean up, but it is endless. Mr. Benson's bladder is really small, he reminds me of the little cousin in Home Alone, who Kevin did not want to share a bed with since he wet the bed all the time. He takes a sip of water and has to go to the bathroom so we are constantly running outside down the stairs. Everything is covered in snow so we spend time wandering and he dives into the snow, he licks the snow, he covers himself in the snow, and then he does his business.

Then when we go back in my crib he jumps out of my hands, before I dry him off and runs all around like a horse at the Derby! He leaves in his wake a mess, now I have dirty / salty snow all over my floors, and he decides to rub himself dry on my area rug. So needless to say my biggest headache is that I use my floor steamer every single day to get his little paw prints off the floor. You have to realize I am a obsessed with neatness, a little embarrassing and it will prob not help my dating life, but when I was in 6th grade I asked for a label maker for Christmas. I thought it would be cool to label everything and be organized, so yes it has taken me a little time to get used to Mr. Benson not following my cleanliness rules, but I love the little dude.

Ron Burgundy in Anchorman had Baxter and I have Mr. Benson, still trying to get the station to allow him to be in the weather center with me, I mean come on Cincinnati needs a Doppler Dog, what do you think?

Have A Great Day!

No School Delays!

Hi, Sheila here.

I have to tell you I was shocked on Sunday when my daughter Katie said she was glad it wouldn't snow Sunday night, so her school would not call for a delay or a snow day!

I think she was tired of the uncertainty after two weeks of not knowing from one day to the next whether she'd have school or a chance to sleep in.

Rob, Frank, Bruce, and I had a little bet going last week on what would be the first day without a school delay.

We all lost when the snow forecast for Sunday night turned into a rain forecast instead. LOL!

I, like Katie, am glad things are back to normal.

I'm more ready than ever for spring!

Vampire Weekend - Giving up the Gun

We had a very crazy weekend -- our 3-year-old daughter ended up fracturing her arm and will have surgery and pins put in tomorrow, yikes! In honor of V, I thought I would share a recent video from one of her favorite bands, "Vampire Weekend". I love the tennis theme and the Jake Gyllenhaal and other cameos crack me up. Do you or your kids have a favorite band or songs you like to hear lately?

my baby bloomer bump...5 months!

My prego belly...5 months today! Can't believe how time flies {although I'm told that I may not feel that way at month 8!}.