Yanni Voices Show at Baltimore's 1st Mariner Arena

Ok really? You can bring a glass of wine into the shows at Baltimore's 1st Mariner Arena? The night was starting off great. And that wine might be what lead to this...

Dancing with the Stars: Ender and Me!

Photo Credit: Resourceful Mom

Whether you're a Yanni fan or not, a little wine, some good company (Barb, Amy & Jill) and the amazing musicians and vocalists of Yanni Voices in Concert will put a smile on your face, and, at times, a little shake to your booty.

Here's Why:
This Yanni show is not at all about Yanni. It seems to have been created to highlight all the other musicians and performers on the tour. Of course Yanni himself is a great host for the evening, but the real stars are the four new vocalists (Chloe, Leslie Mills, Ender Thomas, Nathan Pacheco) and the incredible musicians including the violinists, the percussion and drummer, the classical guitarist, and the harpist.

Here are the highlights from the Yanni Voices concert in Baltimore as I experienced them.

Ender Thomas came out in a hot pink shirt and tight pants and the Grandma sitting next to us whipped out her binoculars. No Joke. I can only imagine what she was focused on....can you?

Leslie Mills' satin vocals and fabulous wardrobe.

Dueling drums....honestly, amazing.

Chloe performed Change and I swear she was really crying.

A family of young girls (ages 12 to about 7) sitting right in front of us completely enjoying the concert!

Classic Baltimore moment...the mom of the girls comes shuffling through mid-song with nachos and a 20 oz beer (see - loving the 1st Mariner Arena!)

Dueling violins - insane

Crazy Brazilian harp thing....doubly insane!

Nathan Pacheco gets a standing ovation and we learned later on that his family was in the audience.

Next: My Backstage Experience at Yanni Voices

Janine

We've Lost a Tooth! (Warning: this post may not be suitable for all ages.)

Frankly, this post is not suitable for me! It has taken me 2 days to even watch the video and y'all know how much I love seeing myself on tv.

M's tooth was wiggling so much she was getting really whiny and complaining that it was annoying her so much she just wanted it out.

Mister tried first but couldn't get a good grip (blaming it on his pudgy finger...puhhlease) and brought out the pliers...seriously.

So of course she decided it could wait another day, and it did...lucky me.

It just so happened that our neighbor was over and was willing to hold my Flip while Mr. held the 'real' video camera and L sat back with neighbor kids and watched the torture.

(All I can say is there was a moment when I thought I had broken the tooth and some was still in there, but thankfully, I was just nervous and wrong. It was a clean break.)

Here's what it felt like when I pulled (read: yanked, tugged, snapped) her tooth:
1. the Inquisition
2. the 'snap' of a crisp green bean
3. the wave of nauseousness that came with morning sickness
4. the sweaty clamminess of what I imagine menopause will be like

Oh, you mean you want to know how M felt?
This is my show people. All she had to do was sit back and dab the bloody tissue. I did all the work!

For the record, she said it didn't hurt, it just was a little scary. And it stopped bleeding soon after.

Just getting my appetite back,
Janine (torture queen)

Subway and NIH say WE CAN! Prevent Childhood Obesity (Part 1)

This is the first post in a series that will highlight the WE CAN program. _____________________________________________________

Last week I was invited to attend a very special PEP Rally where kids learned they need to "Play more, Eat right, and Push away the screen" if they want to maintain a healthy weight.

To get the kids excited, renowned athletes Laila Ali and Olympic soccer player Tab Ramos teamed up with Jared Fogle (who has a blog) for a pep talk and to show the kids fun ways to get off the couch and keep moving.

This is all part of a partnership between Subway® and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to promote the WE CAN! Education Program that will bring families and communities together to fight childhood obesity.

I had the pleasure of interviewing Laila and Jared (Tab got away but I'll get him next time).

Coming up next...
More on WE CAN and what you can do to get your community involved!
Then more from Jared and how he likes blogging!

Janine

Twincident #147: A broken swing can be fun with a twin

Did they break the swing on purpose? I have no idea - but they did seem to be having a lot of fun.

Have your kids had more fun with something after it broke?
Do tell!
Janine

Before the CAbi Clothing Party is the Twofer Fashion Show

Twice a year I host a CAbi (Carol Anderson by Invitation) clothing party at my house and invite friends and neighbors over to shop.

It works much like a Silpada, or Pampered Chef party where the rep brings samples to your house, gives a little demonstration, and then people shop afterward. The items purchased are ordered and shipped to the hostess about a week after the party. The hostess then distributes the items to her friends.
The hostess does not mind because her friends' shopping enabled her to get 5 items at half price and even a few, in this case, CAbi dollars - which means at least one of her items was free!

This time the Twofer, having been through the drill before, knew there was a little show and they wanted to be a part of it. And so my CAbi rep (and now dear friend) Charlie indulged them about 30 minutes before the moms came and put them each in a few CAbi outfits and let them do their best spin on the catwalk. Here's what happend:

Watch out Tyra! These girls just might be American Next Top Twin Models!
Janine