Creepy Selfie of a Creepy Cat Lady...

This is what I wake up to every morning.
Hey Girl walking around my head. 

Single for ever.

A milllllion pounds of mulch and gnomes

For the past few weeks I have been working on my yard.  Slowly but surely I got it done.  I can't remember how many bags of mulch I used but I am pretty sure it was 38. 

38!

3 flats of flowers.

3 bags of dirt.

5 new perennials.

And a ton on gnomes!

Now I just need visitors!

It's what I do...it's who I am

Surprised Lucy and her class on Friday with Popsicles! 

Pretty much seals the deal that I am the best Aunt ever.

 

Roxie's first trip of the 2013 camping season

The Pam101 Family headed to a KOA in Ohio for a little camping.  

The kids fished, rode ponies, played mini golf...sat by the campfire, ate Smores and jumped in puddles. 
Can't wait for the next Roxie adventure. 
Oh' and Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

It's genetic

Every time I plant a flower, vegetable or herb I think of my grandfather and grandmother. 

My mom's dad aka Poppy loved to have flowers around his house and he loved to have fake animals, birds, etc throughout his yard. 

My dad's mom loved to plant flowers too. I swear she could grow anything in the backyard of her inner city row house.

I too love to plant.

I too love knick knacks in my yard.

I miss them.

I think about them both often.

Life According to my iBaby

only three little mice made their winter stay in Roxie

The Pam101 family is heading out with my amazing vintage Shasta camper, Roxie.  We got Roxie all cleaned up from her winter hibernation and ready for her summer of new adventures.  First up is a trip to Ohio for a little family weekend.  Lucy and Will want to go fishing and take some pony rides.  Aunt Pam is packing wine and a few magazines.  Bring on the weekend! 

Lucy and our newest edition to Roxie, our Hula Girl.

Happppppy Birthday to my favorite little Superhero!

My nephew, Superhero Will, celebrated his 4^th Birthday this past Sunday.  

My sister-in-law threw an awesome Superhero themed bash! Homemade capes for the kids, vintage superhero figures displayed on a homemade tiered cake stand and I am pretty sure she wrote Mother Nature a note because she got some perfect weather!  The kids had fun, the adults had fun and most importunely our little HULK had in his words “an awesome day!”

 

Happy Birthday Will!  Aunt Pam101 loves you so much her heart is ready to pop open like the Hulks t-shirt.

my friends inspire me!

Pam101’s good friends Kylie and Nora ran the Pittsburgh half marathon this past Sunday.  Spice and I got our marathon gear assembled:  2 bottles of water requested by the runners, a quickly homemade RUN NORA RUN and RUN REAL DEAL KYLIE NEAL sign, and of course we stopped to get donuts AND then we made our way to the West End area of Pittsburgh to cheer on the runners. 

 

You guys. Marathons are some seriously emotional business. I pretty much cried the first 20 minutes.  All these runners pushing their limits, some wearing Boston Strong t-shirts, a few carrying American flags,  some look like it is a piece of cake and others look like they want to collapse.  It was really powerful.   Spice and I kept scanning for Kylie and Nora.  Seas of runners in neon colors and a few costumes blazed by us, I especially loved the bacon costume runner.

 

We keep looking. How will we ever see them?  Kylie told me, “we will see you before you see us.”  We get the water bottles they requested ready. We are ready to make the pass.  I am holding my sign up for Kylie and Nora.  My arm is hurting at this point but I figure these people are running for over 20 miles I can deal with my shoulder hurting.  And then we hear…

 

“PAM!”  And there they were.  Two water bottles get thrown at us, I drop my sign, we all scream, exchange a very fast/sweaty/awkward hug, they grab their new waters and turn around to run.  BUT WHAT ABOUT MY PICTURE! (Yes, I did have my camera ready for an amazingly awesome photo of the two of them sprinting by like a Nike ad and I am pretty sure Eye of the Tiger would be playing) What I got was the two of them turning around to wave.

 

And it captured the moment perfectly.

 

Job well done to Kylie and Nora. You two inspire me. 

Well, to be honest anyone who runs marathons, half-marathons, 5K’s is an inspiration. 

my wish for diana's baby girl

One of the many charming stations at McHottie’s baby shower was to fill out a wish for the parents to be.  Of course I had no idea what to write.  I mean what do I write? I wish you don’t get puked on? I wish you get some sleep?  I had no creativity.  I am sill not happy with what I did write on my little star fish cut out.   But as I drove home that night with Spice, I kept coming up with better ideas for my wish.  So, let’s see if I can get my thoughts right this time. And to make it more official…I will use McHottie’s real name (only this one time).  

 

My Wish for Diana’s Baby.

 

Dear Baby Girl,

 

I just celebrated you at your baby shower this past weekend.  And what a shower of love it was! You got so many wonderful things. You got some lovely new outfits, lots of things you will need as you get older, some great beach hats to wear and all of your beach houses and don’t even get me started on the styling Stuart Weitzman shoes NYCathy got you.   Your mommy loved everything you got.  How can you not love tiny little outfits with a whale or a baby crab on the butt of your little onesies? Too cute for words.  Because as your Mommy opened up all of your wonderful presents, I am sure she was envisioning how precious you will look in all of them.  Your squishy little face cooing and smiling and thinking, “Oh no, Mom, not the nautical onesie again.”   Or you lying and playing on the quilt I made you (that will be a good story for you someday).  But more importantly I am sure your Mommy was thinking about how much she loves you.  Because that’s what Mommy’s do.  They love.  They love hard and unconditionally. 

 

And that is my wish for you little baby girl.  

 

To know how hard you are loved and always will be loved.  You haven’t even made your debut to the world yet and you are so loved.  I saw the love in your Mommy, Daddy, Grandma (or Nonna- you can pick the name), your Grandpap, your Uncles and all of the friends that love your Mommy who came to celebrate you. 

 

Life will be tricky.  Let’s use a beach analogy.  As soon as you think you have the sandcastle of life all perfect a wave will probably come in and mess up a portion of that perfect sandcastle.  Don’t be too upset because with everything…you will find a way to make it right again.  That is how life is.  But your sandcastle already has a perfect foundation filled with love.   

 

A few years ago, I met your Mommy when we worked in the same office.  We became fast friends because we found that we shared a love for coffee, cheesy books (you can’t read them till you are at least 18), and a love for life.  We made each other laugh.  And with many jobs in DC you move on to the next pretty quick.  So, when I got a new job and eventually moved to a whole different city, we made it a point to stay friends.   In fact, I think it is safe to say we became better friends.  See a wave came in but we put the sandcastle together again.  That’s just how life is. 

 

Let your crazy faux Aunt Pam wrap this up. 

 

My wish is all about love.  I am sure your parents will tell you everyday they love you.  You will hear this a million times.  Through all good times, bad times, happy times, sad times…remember the love.  I will conclude this with the line from one of the greatest songs of all time, All You Need Is Love.

 

And baby girl…you got it.

 

xoxoxo,
Aunt Pam101 from Pittsburgh

Beach Baby Shower

Spice and I drove to the charming town of Shady Side , Maryland on Saturday to celebrate the upcoming arrival of McHottie’s baby girl aka McNugget.  This little baby girl was showered with so much love (and fashionable clothes)!  Hostess with the mostess: Alex, Kacie and Mama McHottie threw such a wonderful Beach Baby themed shower. Not a detail wasn’t thought of. And we all know I loved the details. 

 

The shower was held at Mama McHottie’s adorable, lovely and charming home that was decorated perfectly for this Beach Baby Shower: beach balls, beach umbrellas, sand toys, pink swirly paper straws with cute little whales, etc covered the house.  Absolutely adorable. 

 

It was a picture perfect day filled with lots of love, happiness and so many well wishes for baby McNugget.   We all can’t wait to meet her! 

The Hostess: Alex, Kacie and Mama McHottie

This onesie said, "Dear Pittsburgh...I love you!"