American Idol top 11 wrap up

So American Idol, Elton John week: AMAZING. EJ has been a family favorite all of my life and I was super excited to see the Idols perform his stuff. A couple of my faves were left out:
1. Harmony (my #1 fave EJ song)
2. This Train
3. I Want Love
I am happy no one did The Lion King soundtrack.

I have to say, I am starting to "get" Jacob. His voice is smooth and easy to listen to but he is beginning to remind me of Billy Ocean (see what I mean here)

I think Paul should have performed Harmony. It would have been PERFECT for him. I am starting to feel like he is losing his flare in this competition. His voice is still amazing but he reminds me of Chris Cornell post Sound Garden excluding Audio Slave, incredible voice, not singing the right songs.

I hate Niema.
I hate Stefano.

I like Thea's voice but I find her to have zero personality :-/

I LOVED Lauren Alaina's performance.

I think James Durban is okay but highly over rated and SUPER cocky. Did you catch last week when he said "I got to save something for the finale?!" Skewz me?!?!

Pia irritates me too. More because it seems like she has tractor beams for Paul which I find hilarious. Their kids would have amazing musical talent though ;)

LOVE Haley Reinhart, I like her best of all the ladies. Love her growl.

I won't miss Scotty McCreery when he's gone. Sowee.

I wouldn't have missed Casey...

I almost DIED when Paul was in the bottom 3! Not cool. I voted online so I did my part.

Questionable propriety

I finally got my little man to take a nice long nap solo!
Two whole hours.
Just long enough to organize our closet and sort through some clothes.

However, as you can see, he is silently protesting...

Grandma Ducks!!

I want to wish my Grandma a very happy birthday. She is so good to me and my family. I love her very much and love when I get to spend time with her. I just wish it was more often!



Hannah, Greta, my Mom, James, and I all met up in Southern California at my Grandma's house 2 weeks ago. There were a lot of us, and there was a lot going on but it was such a great time and it was all thanks to Grandma.
Love you!!

Belated St. Patrick's Day

What do leprechaun's do after St. Patrick's Day?



Apparently they hibernate and look very grumpy and cute while doing so.

Side note, yes James has redish hair (think strawberry blond) but in this photo he looks like a full blown ginger baby. Although I wouldn't mind, I think it's just a trick of the lighting.

side note: ginger isn't a negative thing to call a red head right? I am operating under the assumption that it's like calling someone raven-haired or toe head.

The Great Debate

Sam and I have been having an on going "discussion" about what to do with his lovesac. It is huge, it is black, and it has no place in our apartment. We used to keep it in the living room of our other apartment, but I refused to allow in my new living room which is smaller, and a bit more restrictive of furniture. When we moved to a 2 bedroom we literally stuffed it into the closet in James' room (he has an entire wall of closet which he doesn't necessarily need) but it broke the closet doors and ultimately did not fit. Somehow, it ended up in James' bedroom:

As you can see it takes up a lot of space and throws off the baby vibe I was attempting to create for our kiddo.
We have 2 balconies. I told Sam his options were:
1. Selling it on Craigslist.
2. Storing it at a friend's house and allowing them to use it.
3. Putting it on the balcony.
He didn't like any of the 3 options. His idea was to leave it where it is because it "wasn't in the way". I mean if it is blocking the dresser drawers and taking up the place where the rocking chair is supposed to go I'd say it was in the way but that's me;)

Today I discovered the answer a Sport Utility Cover:

This way we can safely store the lovesac on the balcony! Hooray! James' room can now be anything I want it to be :)

It's Baby Signing Time

Little known fact about me: I know sign language.

I wouldn't say I am fluent, but I am decent. I started taking classes in 7th grade and continued through college.

That said, I decided a couple weeks ago to try to teach James a few signs. Mom, Dad, Milk, and More. He didn't seem very interested. So I went to the library and grabbed a book on teaching your baby to sign and a couple DVDs. Since he is so young I decided to switch up my strategy and do one sign at time. I decided to teach him,"up" since it's easy to sign and easy to demonstrate. Well what do you know a short 4 days later and he's got it! In hindsight maybe up wasn't the best one to teach him because if he signs it, I have to do it to reinforce his sign. So I am picking him up just seconds after putting him down. Oh well, there is nothing cuter than a little 4 month old signing, I love it.

St. Patrick's Day Romper

I dressed Jammer up in a cute romper, previously owned by his cousin Luke. It's brown with a light blue pattern. Sam insisted it made James look like a girl. He begged me to change him but I wouldn't. Sam then said, "This is an outfit you put your son in and people ask if your baby is a boy or girl." I ignored him. Fast forward 20 minutes, we are checking out at Safeway and the cashier says, "Oh SHE is watching you." Yep called my little man a she. Thank you random checker for proving Sam's point :-/

Note: Never before has my manly baby been mistaken for a girl; not once.

American Idol pick- Paul McDonald

I thought I may have jinxed Alex Lambert last season, with my early prediction and his premature departure. But now that he has a record deal, a TV show and a career maybe I didn't jinx him after all. That said, my season favorite for the men:

Paul McDonald.

I'm obsessed with his amazing voice. He is an incredible performer. And he's got a great look.

His duet of Blackbird was the best I've heard from any performers this season:

I also found this little gem. It's his band, The Grand Magnolias, performing what I assume is an original song:

Okay so although I love him, Maggie May?! Really? I get that he has the same rasp of Rod Stewart but um hello little teeny boppers are the faithful idol voters, not my grandparents. You may want to choose a more current song. It was well performed but this week is SOOO important. They are cutting so many people. Not a good week to choose Maggie May.

I wasn't super impressed with anyone else. James is pretty good but I am not sure butt rock is right for Idol either.

Last "Idol" thought. Jacob Lusk. I don't get it. I don't think he is original. I don't enjoy listening to him. Is it just me?

PS. I dreamed they called me as a wild card pick to perform on American Idol and I performed "Stay" by Lisa Lobe. So random.