My Black Friday Recap

What a busy weekend!

I'm finally sitting down and trying to collect my thoughts. Thanksgiving was great. We enjoyed some good food. My mom kept trying to get Angry Toddler to eat, which was a no-go. He finally ate after they left, a piece of pumpkin pie nonetheless.

During the day on Thanksgiving, I caught some deals on Rue la la ,Leapfrog, and Harvey's Seatbeltbags. I got Tommy Bahama shirts on Rue la la for my dad. They were half price. I also got a Leapster case, an AC adapter, and six Leapster games from LeapFrog for $67 shipped. All of these items have been shipped already, and they should be here by the beginning of the week.

I really had no plans for Black Friday. When I say no plans, I mean, I didn't have the entire mall mapped out with my attack plan. Really, there weren't any deals, that I HAD to get. We DO NOT need any more electronics. There are no MUST HAVE toys.

My mom arrived at my house at about 6:15am...late compared to others..and we were off on our journey. We parked the car and headed in. Really, the mall wasn't that busy. Maybe the early risers got their deals and left. Our first stop was at babyGap. My mom picked up some fleece pull-overs for gifts, we then wandered around the rest of the mall. We hit several other stores. Yes, we did make a large dent at the Apple Store. Ok, so we got some electronics, but ironically they were NEEDED items, umm bigger hard drive. I've got to store all my fabulous pictures somewhere, right?

Stacey, the BFF, and her daughter, Stella, came to hang out with us, umm save me! She wandered the mall with us. She listened to my mom and her usual rambling. We ate lunch at Farrell's. We squished into a tiny tiny parlor table. But we avoided a HUGE one hour plus line.

After eating lunch, Stacey and Stella headed on their way home. My mom and I headed to Sak's Fifth Avenue. You are thinking, wow, isn't Sak's expensive? Why, yes, yes it is. We get our BEST DEALS, every Black Friday at Sak's. It's our little secret spot. We've gotten tons of clothing for Angry Toddler in the past. Think...Ralph Lauren Polo's for under $10. Now that he's so picky, we shop for ourselves.

Most of the shopping that we did at the mall on Friday was umm for us, not gifts. There were some great deals out there. But drumroll..........

My BEST BLACK FRIDAY DEAL was this BCBG Dress, Retail $258, BF Price low $60s. It's strapless. Now I just need to find somewhere to wear it. I got it at Sak's Fifth Avenue.

The top photo is a pair of massagers from Bath and Body Works. Stacey, the BFF, got bored. She was trying to district me from sensory overload. The smells in that store are STRONG!

P.S. If you want the play by play on my Black Friday Shopping, you can check out my Whrrl Story.

Holiday Traditions for the Angry Family

It seems that the Holidays bring around family, and lots of traditions. The two sometimes don't always agree with each other, that is, families and traditions. In the past fifteen years, well give or take a few, I've had to arrange the Holidays between Angry Husband's and my family.

Thanksgiving-Always with my family. Arguing over what to eat. We ended up with a pre-made meal from Claim Jumper. My parents came over, and we relaxed. The food prep took a little less than two hours, organizing etc. I realized yet again, we need more serving utensils and bowls.

Day After Thanksgiving-Black Friday, of course. Shopping. My mom and I go shopping. Probably 80% of the things that we buy on Black Friday are not gifts. We really go for the sales, and to window shop. I think we are crazy like that. My mom also loves to frustrate me every year too. I tell her to be at my house at a certain time, she arrives like an hour later. What a way to start the day.

Pictures with the Kids-Stacey, my BFF, and I torture our kids with photos every year. Or least we try too..I'm sure in a year or so, they will hate each other and refuse to do this. We are going to try and enjoy it as long as we can. See photo above. I added some snow with Picnik.com's help. I got a little creative.

Christmas Eve-We used to go to my Grandma's (my dad's mom), when I was a kid. I would hide in the corner and read the latest book I was into, Sweet Valley High, or something similar. I could not stand all the attention that my cousin's got. They were awful too. We then started going to my mom and dad's friend's house. And the past few years, we've gone to other family friends. This year, Angry Husband's grandparents will be here for the Holidays. I have no clue on what the agenda is...oh, and that's Angry Husband's Birthday too!!! Happy 36 Angry Husband on December 24th.

Christmas Day-We hang out at our house, and Santa arrives the night before. My parents will come over for dinner and then we will unwrap gifts. We usually have ham, and I bitch about it all day long. I hate ham. Thankfully, we are having Turkey this year. YAY! We usually watch some choice movies like Christmas Vacation, and A Christmas Story. Angry Toddler will get over-stimulated by toys, and pass out. Good times!

Day after Christmas-Angry Husband and I hit Target for after-Christmas sales. In reality, we need nothing, no more decorations, no more lights, no more boxes-NOTHING. Yet we always go, because really, we need another lawn deer, right?

But really, we do give to Charity and participate in events for the less fortunate. I volunteered with the Junior League and The Orange County Child Abuse Prevention Center to deliver presents to needy families last year. We also donate to the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation.

The Angry Family tries to give a little back each year. I hope to contribute more this year. My friend, Shannon, is also having a Holiday Challenge to Feed a Family. Be sure and check the info on her blog.

I try and make a new Holiday tradition or memory every year. I'm still looking for the "perfect Christmas Tree topper", still haven't found that diamond... I hope everyone makes new Holiday memories and traditions this year. Even if it means something like, "refusing to go to your relatives because they really annoy you, and you are finally putting your foot down". It took years before my parents realized I hated go to my Grandmother's for Christmas Eve.

Holiday and Black Friday Shopping Sites

It seems that everyone has thought about is starting their Holiday Shopping. I know I think about it constantly. I'm trying to find the best deals this Holiday Shopping Season. I should really make some kind of table or document. I'm looking at Black Friday Ads, websites, coupons, and comparing them all into my mental lists. I'm also calculating shipping costs and sales tax. I'm an instant gratification girl, I think all my friends know that. But I also realize that I can save some taxes and shipping fees if I map it all out.

I wanted to share a few websites that I'm using to do my Holiday shopping. Some of these links are affiliate codes, but some people have never heard of them, so I thought I would get the word out.

GIZMODO: Black Friday Deals, The Only List You Will Need (Electronics)

Black Friday Info-A List of all the Ads

Bfads.net-Black Friday Ads Forum

Ebates-Rebates, Cash Back, Discount Coupons, Online Coupons

Slick Deals dot Net

Fishing For Deals dot Com

RetailMeNot-Coupon Codes and Discounts for over 40,000 online stores

AFullCup-Savings by the Cup Full

fatwallet

bing

CASHBAQ

Mr. Rebate$

ShopAtHome dot Com

Rue la la

Amazon's Black Friday Deals-I refer to Amazon mostly when checking prices. It might be cheaper to buy here with no tax and free shipping if you have Prime.

Amazon Prime-Free 2-Day Shipping

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving!

May all the residents of the U.S.A. participating in festivities today, enjoy their food, not fight with their family too much, and be thankful. I'm off today, and will be spending it with my Angry Husband, Angry Toddler, and my Husband. I think, we may try to organize some Christmas stuff early in the afternoon. Our HOA (Homeowner's Association) allows to officially decorate outside today! Yippee!!

P.S. Picture was from Angry Toddler's Thanksgiving Feast earlier this week. They sang cute songs that I videotaped, but umm, Mr. Angry wasn't singing...I guess he only likes classics like Lady Ga Ga..

Wordless Wednesday: Holiday Fireworks

What I Learned This Week

With the Holidays slowly approaching life is getting even more hectic. I'm starting to deal with the wants vs. haves and the want-to-do vs. need-to-do. I hope I make sense.

I love my blog and my Interwebz soo very much. It is a place to hide (yes, I can hide here), vent, hang out, and it also enables my Internet Addiction. YES, I have an addiction to the Interwebz as much as I do to my Monster Energy Drinks, and my iPhone.

I've slowly realized that I'm not getting certain things done, because I just want to read one more blog, do one more tweet, or finish up one more post. I say ten more minutes, but in reality, it's an hour or more. I know that I can't do it all. I've started to slow down with the invitations that I RSVP to, the committees I join, and the activities I participate in. It's just too much.

I've decided to start with a one-day break, every Wednesday, starting tomorrow. That's right, I will not open my laptop to get on the Internet, unless it's bank related, because really I hate talking to people in India on the phone when I'm trying to transfer funds. I will not tweet, I will not read....but there will be posts. I will pre-schedule posts, because I do have a lot to say. It's all stored up in that big brain of mine, or partially written in draft. Hopefully, I can get some things done, along with my lists, oh the lists are growing..

I also learned to not attempt to vlog, video yourself while in dog pj's from your mom. I'm such a dork. I opened the Photo Booth program on my Macbook and attempted to ramble. All I saw was this girl, wearing blue pj's, with somewhat messy hair, who kept looking down at the keyboard. I don't know if I will ever be a vlogger, but I'm not going to post those videos. Bad, bad, bad...

This is why I need to step away from my computer. Angry Husband was gone that night, and Angry Toddler was at my mom's house. I had my Saturday night free, and I was doing this, I even took pictures of my self.

Check out more What I Learned This Week posts on Musings of a Housewife. She does this every week. I should probably do this every week to keep myself in check and realize why I still blog. She also made me re-think the Walt Disney World (WDW) trip we were going to plan for next year. I'm still unsure about taking Mr. ADD Angry Toddler all the way to Florida.

Since I'm taking my little Internet break, I need to go and work on some posts now!

Thanksgiving Cupcakes For Kids

This is a really simple, easy and fun treat to make with your kids for Thanksgiving. These cute turkey cookie cupcakes will have people gobbling them up! Gobble gobble. Heh heh.

What you’ll need:

Pumpkin cupcakes (from Very Best Baking):

1 package (18.25 oz.) spice cake mix
1 can (15 oz.) LIBBY'S® 100% Pure Pumpkin
3 large eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup water

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350° F. Paper-line or grease 24 muffin cups.

Blend cake mix, pumpkin, eggs, oil and water in large mixer bowl until moistened. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Pour batter into prepared muffin cups, filling 3/4 full. Using a cookie scoop makes for easy scooping and level cupcakes.

Bake for 18 to 23 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Cranberry Buttercream (Kristin's Recipe):

2 sticks of unsalted butter, room temperature
Tip – if you forgot to pull the butter out of the fridge in advance, just fill a bowl with warm water and float the stick of butter in the water for about 5 mins. Shake off before unwrapping.
1.5 lbs of powdered sugar
1.5 tsp of vanilla extract
1 tsp of lemon juice
scant ¼ cup of milk
1 tbsp cranberry apple butter (I bought mine at Trader Joes)

*Alternatively, if you don’t want to make your buttercream from scratch or don’t have time, you could buy a container of white, buttercream or cream cheese frosting and just mix it with your beaters until fluffy and add the cranberry apple butter to taste.

*1 package of Pillsbury Ready Bake cookies, Thanksgiving turkeys baked and cooled as directed.
*Sprinkles or decorating sugar in fall colors


Let’s get started:

Once the cupcakes have cooled, frost with the buttercream. I used a 1M tip in these pictures but you can use whatever you want. A butter knife will do just nicely. Make sure you put a mound on though because you want it to come over the sides a bit when you top it with the cookie.

Place one cookie on top of the buttercream frosted cupcake. Push down a bit so some of the buttercream starts to show on the sides.

*Pour some of your decorations in a bowl. With the cupcake in one hand and the bowl in the other or on the counter, roll the edges of the cupcake in the decorations. Here I am using some fall sparkling sugar I bought at Home Goods.

*Turn the cupcake in the sugar making sure not to press too hard but getting enough coverage.

*That’s it! You’re done! Aren’t they cute? So easy to make. A great activity for kids to do on Thanksgiving too. Just have all the cupcakes and cookies baked and the frosting and decorations ready.
*You can also do this for other holidays. Pillsbury sells these pre-cut sugar cookies in all types of decorations for the holidays. I’ve seen Christmas, Halloween, Easter and Valentines Day. These would also make a great treat to deliver to your kids school right before Thanksgiving break.

Hope you enjoyed this tutorial. If you make some, please let us know!

My friend, Kristin, from Meringue Bake Shop wanted to share this with my reader's. She loves to try out new things. I love her cupcakes. It's a win win situation!

White and Tasty

I've noticed a trend on Twitter, Facebook, and my blogs this week. You know what I'm talking about, hmmmm...that movie...you know, the one. Well, I'm not a fan of anything fantasy or sci-fi. Yes, I will call it fantasy. Well, in actuality, I will call it freaky. I don't get the appeal. When I was 15, I lusted over movies like Sixteen Candles (hot Jake), Top Gun (yummy Val Kilmer, not the other twerp, you are thinking about). I didn't lust over pasty white guys in skinny jeans.

White and Pasty

So while everyone is tweeting, chatting, and posting about Mr. White Pasty Man in skinny jeans, I will stick to my standard ole' White and Tasty Men. What am I watching right now, Fighting with Channing Tatum. Does it have a plot? Not really? I think they are fighting or something, do I care? Not really. He's hot and that's all that matters.

White and Tasty

I still love all my followers, reads, and friends who ummm, like that movie...but I know there's also a large group of people, who don't get it. I'm a member of the "I don't get the appeal of vampires, and stuff like that, and not a member of any teams..."

The Sofa

Dear Santa,

Angry Julie would like the Cotswold Sofa from Anthropologie. Do you think your elves could make something similar? Angry Julie cannot afford $4400 plus 8.25% tax for this sofa. She has been lusting over it for several months. It's the perfect basic for her home. She loves how it looks aged. It is quite comfortable also. Can't you see how cute Angry Toddler and his BFF, Stella, look on it?

Angry Julie can imagines hours upon hours of family bonding on this couch. Did you know that it fits three adults. With this neutral color, it would look fabulous!

Please grant my Christmas Wish.

I believe!

Love,

Angry Julie

The Magical Holiday Season at Disneyland

On Saturday, we went to Disneyland for my birthday. It was the second day of the "Holiday Season" at the Disneyland Resort. Stacey, the BFF, wanted to experience everything "Holiday" related while we were there. She doesn't go very often, and she wanted the "Disney Experience" sans child. We decided to sit down and wait for the Christmas Fantasy Parade. We never wait for the parades, because honestly, Angry Toddler won't sit still. We waited about fifteen minutes, and the Parade was great, it really put you in the Holiday mood.

Stacey and I headed towards Space Mountain after the parade. We were very eager, like little kids, giggling. We waited in line for about 45 minutes. Stacey made me laugh, because she told a teenager off. He was being quite annoying, and she told him that she left her 4 year old at home. Angry Husband called us while we were in line, he was on his way to join us.

After getting off Space Mountain, we met up with Angry Husband. We headed toward the Matterhorn. It was a quick 15 minute wait. We saw some interesting people. You can fit two people in the seats on the Matterhorn. It's a pretty tight fit, when I'm in Angry Husband's lap area. It was even more interesting to a see a large teenager, think 400 lbs., try to squeeze another person in his lap. They stopped the ride and made them get out before it made it too far. CRAZY and sad at the same time. We then headed over to It's a Small World. I'm sure you've seen those fabulous commercials. Well, it is beautiful. The exterior of the ride was covered in multi-color lights. The actual ride was closed down due to the fireworks show which was in less than an hour. But we were able to snap a few pictures while there.

After playing with my camera for umm, about 20 minutes, we headed towards Main St. USA, to prepare, ok more like stake out, our spot for the "Believe in Holiday Magic Fireworks" show. People were everywhere. We were lucky that we didn't have strollers as we could pretty much squish in. The fireworks show was amazing, and ended with snowflakes....how cool is that! Well the uncool part, was the people were stopping dead in their tracks and making out on Main St. Ok, people move along now, there are children here, we do not want to see your tongue kissing. It's fake snow...this is not Central Park.

After the Fireworks, we headed over to The Haunted Mansion, we got on that relatively easy. Stacey had never seen it decorated for the Holidays. After the ride, we parked our butts down to prepare for Fantasmic. We had never scene the show with the new dragon.

After all was said and done, it was almost midnight, and we were freezing. Angry Husband didn't have a jacket with him. But we got to see everything that we wanted too. Next time we go, I'm totally hitting up the Holiday desserts. Oh yes, there will be a next time. We are Annual Passholders. And yes, you can go to Disneyland without your children. It's not weird. You have to be able to enjoy the Magic of Disney, as an adult before you can enjoy it with your children. I mean really, I would not go as much as we do, if I didn't like the place. Who tortures themselves that much?

Stop Laughing, Right Meow...

I've seen this video a few times already, and it makes me laugh out loud, seriously...

I've worked in law enforcement for over twelve years now. I think I would lose it, if one of my co-workers told me that this happened to them...



but seriously, this video made me totally think of this Super Troopers scene...

Wordless Wednesday: Holiday Balloons At Disneyland

Do you take your kids to the grocery store?

Question of the day:

Do you take your children to the grocery store?

This is a constant struggle with our family. We cannot and almost completely avoid taking Angry Toddler to the grocery store with us. It's a complete pain and gives Angry Husband and myself, great anxiety. A fifteen minute trip into the store for one item, turns into forty-five minutes with that original item, a piece of candy, and some band-aids. My kid has a serious addiction to character band-aids.

Because of this, Angry Husband calls me on his way home every day. We have the usual conversation, "I'm on my way home, do we need anything from the store?" We live very close to the store and tend to shop European style, as in shopping for a particular meal, not for the week. We are lazy like that, and we constantly change our minds. We do keep snacks in the house, but we don't plan meals in advance. Our schedules fluctuate so much and we never know if the entire family is going to be home at the same time.

I think my hate for the grocery store was programmed into me, early in life. My parents both work(ed) in the grocery industry and one of my first jobs was a courtesy clerk (bagger) at a grocery store. My mom was a checker and hated shopping, and we always heard the good ole' saying, "she didn't want to bring her work home, and get the hell out of dodge while you can". I grew up eating out a lot, and having my mom shop "Euro Style" also.

You should see me when I'm in the grocery store. I wander around the isles, clueless. I just throw random things in the cart. I do shop with coupons, when I remember to bring them. Thankfully, Angry Husband does most of our shopping.

Recently, around Halloween time, I saw an entire family with two very small children (both under 3) shopping at the store. They were doing their "big" weekly shop, I could tell because the cart was full. The kids were running around like animals. Both parents were present. I kept thinking to myself, why doesn't one parent just stay home with the kids? I just shook my head.

I thought I would tempt fate on Friday night. Angry Husband was working late, so I attempted to run some errands with Angry Toddler after preschool. We went to the bank (he drew his name on deposit slips), we went to a surf store (had to purchase some shirts for family pictures), and then...well the grocery store. Angry Toddler was being sooo good, I mean beyond normal good. He had a great time at the surf store, well maybe the pretty female employee who "watched" him for me, was a good start. And then it started.

I went to the pricey, very pretty grocery store. That store with the higher prices, but oh my gosh, it's so beautiful, I want to eat off the floors displays... I asked Angry Toddler if he wanted snacks. He agreed and we put the specific things, that HE WANTED, in the cart. It was all about him. I even asked what he wanted for dinner. He told me spaghetti, which he pointed out the expensive service deli kind, fine. We then hit the produce department, oh the shiny beautiful polished exotic fruits and vegetables.

Yes, Angry Toddler started "molesting" the fruit. He is 4, I know.. He's completely into textures and touching things, I get that. But seriously, he molested the fruit. He fondled the fruit. He walked around almost every fruit display and breathed on it, caressed it, and picked the fruit up. I got those looks. You know the snobby, I only shop at the expensive store, because I live in Orange County, and I can, looks. They saw the 4 year old boy, with his grubby little hands, the finger paint stained shirt, fondling the fruit. I did what any other Angry Mom would do, I grabbed him by the bicep with the "death grip" and pulled him away from the display. Well he spun around, got those eyes, the eyes of Satan, and ran. Oh and he ran...He ran like a parolee with a no bail warrant (got to give some laughs to my co-workers). He did not look back.

What did I do? I reacted. I yanked my purse out of the cart, and took off after him. Perhaps, I screamed several four-letter curse words during my chase. I finally caught up with him, and promptly marched him towards my car. I gave the lecture, "What the hell were you thinking? Why did you run?" I knew it was fruitless. He was done. I left the cart standing in the middle of the produce aisle, stranded.

Angry Husband was able to pick up some things on the way home. He then gave me the lecture when he got home. What was I thinking, taking him to the store? I knew better. He turns into an animal. Etc.. Etc...

The next morning, out of the blue. Angry Toddler comes up to me and says, "I'm sorry for running off at the grocery store. I will never ever do that again. I promise to be good. I will be good mama". It was completely random. Angry Husband had left the house prior to that. Angry Toddler knew he was wrong.

But really, why do I torture myself at the grocery store?
And why, do other people do this to themselves too?

My Crazy, Birthday Saturday

I posted on Saturday about my love/hate of my birthday. I was in a pretty cranky mood Friday night. I knew that Saturday would be crazy so I had to do some prepping. Since I work weekends, it's very hard to get the Angry Family all in one place at one time. Angry Husband promised me over two years ago, that we could take a family photo. Angry Husband hates photos, so we don't have any family photos. Angry Toddler is four and a half. I think it's time.

We met up with Jen Johnson, a fellow blogger, friend, and photographer. She is now the "Official Angry Julie Photographer". She's taken all my awesome profile photos for my blog. I had coordinated outfits for the photo shoot, that matched, but were no matchy-matchy. I decided against something seasonal since we might not get another family picture for a few years. Angry Toddler had mud all over his pants and shoes by the time it was all over. Jen took the photographs at this beautiful location in Orange County. It's the same place that had the Pumpkin Patch that we visited in October.

After running around like crazy people, the Angry Family headed to a birthday party. Not my party, but one of Angry Toddler's friends. His friend's mom told us that it was a "dress up party" and that Angry Toddler should wear his Halloween costume, Jango Fett. I looked all over the house for that costume Saturday morning, and I could not find it. I should have known better, because it was in the rear cargo area of my Tahoe. Angry Toddler put on/removed that costume at least five times during the party. He is a sweaty kid. I knew all that bouncing around would make him hot. The big surprise at the birthday party was a "guest appearance" by Obi-Wan and Darth Vader. Seriously the kids went crazy. These guys were truly awesome. The kids all received light sabers and battled with Darth Vader.

I hung out in the background, took 200 or 300 photographs and talked with the other moms. Yea, we all decided, we are screwed. How can we top this? I mean Obi-Wan and Darth Vader don't come to hang out every day? Angry Toddler was hilarious though. He came and whispered to me, "that is not the real Darth Vader. He is wearing a costume. Ok mama." I can only imagine what he will say when it's time for Santa this year.

After leaving the party and napping for umm, about 30 minutes, I headed to Disneyland with The BFF, Stacey. Stacey's birthday was last week, and she didn't get a chance to take advantage of her free birthday ticket. Since I'm a annual passholder, I used my birthday gift aka ticket to get her in. I was pretty excited because it was the second day of their Holiday decorations. Amazing, and we weren't disappointed at all. Our first stop was the parade, we watched in amazement. We then headed to the "big kid" rides. Angry Husband had taken Angry Toddler to my mom's house for the night. He wasn't feeling well earlier, but he decided to make a detour and head to Disneyland. He enjoyed a few rides with us, fireworks, and Fantasmic.

Stacey jumped for joy, a tiny bit in the parking structure. She had realized how nice it was, to be going to Disneyland without a stroller, and kid. We love the kids, but sometimes, we "adults" need to have some fun at Disneyland too. It was fun to run around, careless, and not worry about whining and/or jackets, and/or hunger, and/or whining.

Yes, we had to get these beautiful headbands. We were festive like that. I have serious issues with flash pictures. My eyes also close, and Stacey, well she was bright eyed. Angry Husband took the photo for us.

As for the rest of the Disney photos...you will see them throughout the next two months in my Disney Wordless Wednesdays, and other posts. I took, umm, a few hundred or so.

I think I got over my birthday blues, once the sparkly headband made it onto my head!

Thirty-Four

Today is my 34th Birthday. My mom was due on Halloween. I think Halloween would have been a much cooler day for a birthday. Can you imagine all the costume parties, I could have had? But none the less, two weeks after Halloween.

I write about this every year, but I get the Birthday Blues. Some people tell me that it's because I have a child now, but this happened BC (Before Child) too. I think my Type-A personality has something to do with it, and expectations.

So I will spend the day devoted to my usual activities...family photographs, taking my son to a birthday party, and then maybe I can head over to Disneyland with my BFF, Stacey.

Closet Makeover Part #2

This is part two of my current home makeover project. I posted a before picture on November 4th. It's a work in progress. Stacey, The BFF, came over two weeks ago and helped me paint the closet. Well actually, she painted and I sat on a step stool watching her. I did buy her a tasty lunch from Chili's. That's gotta count for something, right?

The closet is almost finished. I need to add a few more things. Angry Husband is sooo over this makeover. I have so many more projects in my head, I can't wait!

Oh, and the painting, yea my asthma is bad with paint. Paint and Christmas trees are my enemies!

I Need More Soap

I need more soap is what he screamed from the bathroom. He said that the shower was very dirty and that he needed to clean it. He used an entire bottle of body wash. But I really don't care, because in the end...I had a clean kid, and a clean shower.

My Parents Obsession with Clean Cars

My parents have this "thing" with clean cars. They obsess over it. It is pretty annoying. My dad spends all weekend long "detailing" and washing cars. I'm that person who pays $20 once a month or so to get my car washed. I just don't have the time.

My mom will literally not drive her car if it is raining. She's will say, "It was just cleaned, I don't want to get it all messed up". This is the story of my life. Well, I'm quite busy. I don't have the free time to spend 2-3 hours washing and detailing my car. It would take at least an hour to vacuum all the goodies that Angry Toddler leaves in his carseat, yuck!!

Well last weekend, I parked under a very nasty tree at work. It's an olive tree, but evil birds like to sit it in. My car was ATTACKED! It looked like something puked all over my car. I saw olives and bird poop all over it when I came out of work that day. It looked like that olives fell from the tree, the bird had eaten olives and spit them all over my car, and the birds pooped out olives. I went straight home after work, and didn't wash it off. Once again, busy working mom.

Well the next day, my mom drove by my work. YES, she does that. She lives 5 minutes away. She completely lost her mind. She was shrieking about my car. Like I didn't know about it. I got off work at 5 the night before, picked up Angry Toddler from preschool, and went home. I think relaxation and sleep is a priority after working 10+ hours. I think she called me at least 5 more times throughout the day, bitching about my car, and "what people will think of me".

I got my car washed that night. Angry Toddler had some spare change, ok like $6 in his pocket. We went through the drive-thru carwash at the local gas station. I kid you not, at 8:05 the next morning, my mom started calling me AGAIN. She asked, did you get your car washed, do you need me to take it to the carwash, does daddy need to detail it?

Woman!!! The car got washed. Relax!!!

Wordless Wednesday: Matterhorn & Finding Nemo Submarines

Junior League of Orange County, Christmas Company

I'm a member of The Junior League of Orange County, CA. I've been a member for one year now, and I really enjoy it. This weekend is our Annual Christmas Company Boutique. The theme this year is "A Vintage Holiday".

If you live locally or somewhat locally near Orange County, you can e-mail me angryjuliemonday@gmail for a FREE entrance pass. The entrance fee is $10 without the pass.

The Christmas Company is November 12-15th and there are some FABULOUS events scheduled. You can check the schedule here.

You can also find out more about membership here.

United States Marine Corps 234th Birthday

Today is the 234st Birthday of the United States Marine Corps.

If you've read my blog for awhile, you would know that I met Angry Husband while he was in the Marine Corps. I was just an eighteen year old girl, on a night out with my wild sorority sisters. Who would have thought, fifteen years later, we are still putting up with each other.

I endured two six-month deployments while he was on Active Duty. We were only able to attend one Marine Corps Birthday Ball. I was trying to find the pictures from that, but it's a no-go. Ever other year, he was deployed during the Annual Birthday Celebration.

To the Marines, Past and Present-HAPPY 234TH!
SEMPER FI

Photo above is Angry Husband, overseas, during a deployment.

Blogger Tip: Tag Your Posts

I'm going to throw out a little tip to people today. This is mainly for bloggers, or people whom have blogs. Try and "tag" or "label" your posts with as many terms or search words as possible. It makes things easier to search on the Internet, if you want it searched, that is. Plus, when you are trying to look for one of your own older posts, it makes things much easier.

*I use my "labels" a lot when working on blog posts. Sometimes, I want to link back to old posts and/or sometimes, I want to see if I've blogged about something before.

More tips about this subject:

search engine land-Effective Tagging For Both Usability & SEO

fuelmyblog-Why "tag" or "label" or "link" in blog posts

Pink in a Sea of Black

Tanya from Design Action Studios and Angry Julie

I went out for a little retail therapy with the bff, Stacey, last week. Lately retail therapy could be called, "let's look and not buy, cause we are poor and/or Christmas is coming". We hit the usual places...Pottery Barn, Z Gallery, and one of my favorite boutiques. I always look for some great finds in this boutique, but most of the time, their things run a tad small. I saw a sale rounder with a 50% sign on it, whoppee..

Well of course, a bright pink coat was screaming my name. I didn't even look at the price and tried it on. I squeeled, because it fit. Talk about exciting! I hadn't even looked at the price yet, which was $56.99 by the way. It was mine, all mine!!

I knew that I was going to a Twitter meet-up or otherwise known as Tweet-Up (I loathe that word) that same night. I questioned the weather and if I could wear the coat. I put my hands in the air, and said why not! So I paired the coat with a black shirt, jeans, and black shoes.

When I arrived, I saw that most everyone was wearing black. I stuck out like a sore thumb in the crowd, it was a sea of black. It was a good thing that I chose to wear the coat, because the event was on an outside patio at a restaurant. And yes, talk about being noticed, everyone came to introduce themselves, to the girl in the pink coat.

Erin from Boutiquing and Angry Julie

Text Message of the Day: Legos

From Angry Husband:

"Kid comes in and says his nose hurts. I ask why and he says because there is a Lego stuck up there. I asked why it's in there and he says, cause it fit at first."

Happy Birthday BFF!!!

Who is Stacey?

Who isn't she?

Sorority sister, met through alumna messes
Preggo Partner 2004-2005
Baby Mentor
Babysitter
The person who answers my fifteen phone calls a day with "WHAT NOW"?
Co-Eater/Co-Weight Watcher
Vent-er/Vent-ee
Rainbow Sandal Wearing
Starbucks Drinking
Foodie
Best Friend
Almost Birthday Twin, by One Week

and the BIRTHDAY GIRL!!!!!!!

Happy 34th BFF!!

I promise not to rub it in, that you are one week older.
Moment of silence for 2002...inside BFF joke.

P.S. Doesn't she look like an awesome mentor. Teaching Angry Toddler and Stella, the power of the iPhone.

It's Turkey Time!

I'm trying to be a bit more organized lately. I love decorating for the Holidays, but sometimes I need a bit more organization. We recently got a new dining room table, which I need to post about soon. Maybe I'll post once I get an awesome centerpiece for it. But I saw this display at Pottery Barn yesterday, and swoon, isn't it lovely. Not that I would decorate this extravagent, cause Angry Toddler would probably thrash it, but it did give me ideas.

We usually have Thanksgiving at our place, with just my immediate family. I'm an only child, so it's just my parents, Angry Husband, and Angry Toddler. My stove/oven are unpredictable and we are quite lazy. We have pre-purchased a Thanksgiving meal at Claim Jumper for the past two years, and it's quite delicious. It's also cheaper than preparing everything on our own. We do add some extra side dishes, like this Watergate Salad. And really, is it considered a salad when there's marshmallows in it?

In 2006, we headed to Disneyland for Thanksgiving. They have the BEST Buffet EVER in their Grand Ballroom at The Disneyland Hotel (call (714) 781-DINE for info). Angry Toddler was eighteen months old at the time. My friend, Ruth, suggested this event, as we were looking for something fun to do. The food was to-die-for, the desserts were over the top. I could have feasted all day long. One of the best parts of that day, was the character interaction. They had a ton of characters there where you could take pictures. They also had beautiful decorations, but of course they did, it's Disney! Angry Toddler was a bit skeptical of the Chip and Dale. Would you be too? Chipmunks aren't supposed to be six foot tall.

Oh la la..I love..Rue la la

I hate wearing socks on my days off. I wear thick socks when I'm working, and they make those awful lines around my ankles. You know what I'm talking about.

So on my days off, I lean towards my Rainbow Sandals, Birkenstocks, and now these beautiful shoes, Keen's Berkeley in Seal Brown. I love shoes like these Keen's because they cover my toes. Sometimes, I wait a few weeks to get a pedicure, and my toes are not so pretty on those in-between weeks.

But these retail for $85 plus tax. Quite expensive, even though they are super comfy.

I didn't pay $85 for them. I paid $45 plus shipping. The shipping was $10. You get shipping on everything all day long for $10.

Where did I get them for this awesome price? Rue la la

What is Rue la la?
Rue La La is... an exclusive, invitation-only online destination where Members discover premier-brand, private sale Boutiques, each open for just a brief window of time. Our focus is a well-edited collection of sought-after offerings from the best brand names in the world - combined with helpful service.

Membership is free. It's also invitation-only. Members shape the community by inviting new Members - and getting a $10 Rue La La Credit when each new friend places their first order.

The discovery of something unexpected, something that imbues the day-to-day with a little magic - these are the "ooh la la moments" we long for. And you'll find them here.

I was able to get a personal link for invites, you can go here and sign-up!

The brands change daily. I get an e-mail from them every morning. I've seen some great brands.

But really, aren't these shoes cute! Oh and the cropped pants I'm wearing. It's very sad, but they are supposed to be capris, but my legs are short, so they become clam diggers.

My Current Home Makeover Project

I walk by this door, several times a day. I cringe when I open it. The contents may look simple, but they give me anxiety. I know that this space has a bigger purpose. I have several ideas for it. My best friend, Stacey, came over last week and helped me start the remodel process. I can't wait to show the finished product to everyone.