Worth as the Baby Jesus

Worth, age 2 months, is going to be in his first motion picture event this Christmas.  He is the baby Jesus in the Christmas Pageant at St. Johns!  As his godmother, I am VERY proud!











Isn't he the sweetest?

Maybe Christmas, Perhaps, Means a Little Bit More!

I remember my mom mentioning how tiring it was to prepare for Christmas.  I also remember rolling my eyes when she mentioned it (teenagers are so supportive).  Christmas should be about joy and anticipation...right?

I still believe that it SHOULD be about those things..but I now understand how easy it is to get amped up!  The decorations, the malls, the tree, the lights on the tree, the CARDS, the whole lot of it.  As I slowly turn into my mother...I am infinitely more grateful for her work to make our Christmases so jolly!

Despite my tiredness and griping (Christmas grinchiness, if you will) -  I believe that decorating for the holidays is well worth the time spent.*  This year we have a very pretty tree covered in white lights (an ode to the Richardsons - who we will miss this Christmas).  It is also covered with ornaments that have meaning to us and ours:  Tack and my first Christmas ornament a gift from Juba and Stuart - pictures of little Tacka through grade school - ornaments painted by my grandmother - an ornament from our honeymoon - and the list goes on!  There are many reminders of our blessings from the past years - and available space for new reminders! 

*Tacka please remind me of this post when the griping commences next year....

4S

Purchased! Attached is my first photo! Picture is obviously enhanced by dusty's supreme stud-li-ness! Excited for what is to come....

Katherine!

I was finally able to meet Katherine Claybrook Turnbull!  She is such a little nugget!  I was there for over an hour and she just slept and snuggled!  Not one peep - not even when she was changed! 


Mom and Dad looked fantastic!  They made it seem so easy - you would think that they were operating on a full night sleep!


Congratulations to Sarah and Ned!  We are so excited about the first little girl! She is Beautiful!!! 

Worth!

This past weekend - after a slow start -  Lizzie and I made our way to L'burg to meet Worth, my sweet godson!  I am totally biased, but he is perfect!  He was such a little stinker - healthy, sleepy, and loving!

I could not be more proud of Kate - she handled childbirth like an old pro.  I lived with Kate for 7 years...despite my hot-headed temperament...our apt was a no fuss zone.  However, I thought that this might be different.  This was bigger and infinitely more stressful than our run-of-the-mill college antics. We always joked that she was born for this - but it seems even more true now that Worth has arrived!

Worth, you have so many people that love you!!  We cant wait to see who you become!!

Happy Halloween!

Little Little...why are you so cute?!?   You are supposed to be SPOOKY on Halloween!

New Look

There is just no getting around it...my hair had gotten too long.  When given the appropriate amount of attention, it looked nice!  On any normal day, it looked less than nice.  Let's be honest....there is no reason to have Middleton locks if you are not going to style and/or cant afford to get it styled by a team of professionals. 

After months of ponytails and buns - the pressure of an impending conference - and an itch for a new look...voila!

a

Go big or go home! Right?  

The best part of my new look - I was able to donate my Kate Middleton Hair to Locks for Love!  Happy Cancer Awareness Month!!!

Fellow Bloggers (or Lawyers)....

I noticed this morning that brilliant friend and blogger, chelsea, sites her photos. Honestly, it never occurred to me to site pictures that I find on the Internet.  Since I fancy myself a detective...I googled "public domain."  For the record, things found on the Internet are not necessarily in the public domain....they are just in the public. (Note to self:  Even though you watch a lot of Law and Order - you are not a lawyer or a detective)

Am I unknowingly committing a blogging faux pax?  or worse copyright infringement?

Thanks in advance for your input and/or free legal advice!

PS. I am going to be so disappointed if I have to site sources - it is like college all over again.  grrrr.

Ground Zero Memorial

The task of reminding our country, and the rest of the world, what was lost in the attacks on September 11^th and how we have rebuilt our individual lives and our national spirit seemed like an impossible challenge – but I thought that the Ground Zero Memorial struck all of the right chords.  It is both personal and universal.  It is representative of the emptiness that was left in place of the twin towers and the depth of loss that was felt by the people affected.  Further, the Freedom Tower stands as a symbol for rebuilding, perseverance, and a tangible rejection of violence as a tactic for destroying our national fabric.  I pray that this memorial is a place of comfort and reflection for the people that lost family members, friends and colleagues in the 9/11 attacks.

Ground Zero Memorial by Night: 

I also pray that seeing the memorial and watching the national response to the 10^th anniversary of these attacks - gave hope and resolve to our military and their families who continue to make sacrifices to prevent further action against the USA and our ideals.  

Upgrade...

I am due for a phone upgrade.  For the moment, I plan to join the throngs of iphone devotees. For years I have pretended not to be impressed by the superior features of the iphone bc I am a loyal Verizon customer. 

Summary:
I love a cool gadget…. but not as much as good cell service staying on the family plan! 

I am hoping that this upgrade will do wonders for Snappy Cas- just think about all of the moments I will be able to capture on that cute little smartphone.

Look out blog!  You will be seeing more of me in October.  Scary thought, huh?

August was just a bad month to blog...

I am not exactly sure why it seemed infinitely more difficult to blog in August vs. June - but it did seem more difficult!!

Perhaps it is because…..

the royal family has been hunkering down, or
I have no good  news to share about my house (which happens to be flooding as we speak), or
my pumpkin patch died at the hands of a particularly vicious squirrel, or
we have not seen much of Sophia The Sweet, or
I joined pinterst, which has provided a new SoMe fix, or
I have been flat lazy

Most likely it is because….

August was full of fun adventures, beautiful weddings, and Tack’s Birthday (translation:  I was having too much fun to stop and blog about it), or

I have been flat lazy

Since laziness is not something to aspire to...I am going to go with...Too Much Fun!!! 

Cheers!

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

The Good:
Kate Middleton's hat for Zara Phillips' wedding
Sophia, my precious niece
Rose
So You Think You Think You Can Dance Finale
Britney's Promo for the VMAs
Summer Nights
DC Traffic in August

The Bad:
FedEx Field
Vacations plans that never come to fruition
Blue Nail Polish

The Ugly:
Congress
The Redskins

It's Britney Betch!

I could not be more excited for this weekend!  Two of my favorites are arriving in the DC area!  The first – Olivia (Boliv) Bulcao, my littlest sister!  The second – Britney Spears, pop icon and favorite troubled celeb!  I have been “possessed” with Britney since the 90s!  This included the “Blackout” period when she shaved her head, dated a fugly paparazzo, and fired the genius team that led her to stardom! 

Even though I have remained a loyal fan of Ms. Spears – I have never sprung to see her in concert – UNTIL NOW!

Why Pippa? Why?

While I thought the princess looked very nice on her tour of Canada, it is a bit premature to call Kate a "style icon."  She spent 65K on her wardrobe for the trip.  She bought wrap dresses, crocheted blouses, patent navy pumps, and some horrible blue dress with an awkward slit. For those tempted to rock these "trends" - Please dont.  You are not 90, you are not 90 lbs, and you are NOT a princess.  Donning multicolored pumps is a small price to pay if you are going to become the Princess of Wales, but I am certain that if Kate had her druthers she would have nabbed some cute sandals and ditched the stockings.

Pippa on the other hand - WHAT THE HECK!?!  Pippa has money, a great figure, and no obligation to be frumpy.  If I were in her place - regularly photographed - I would see a stylist ASAP.  Her footwear is terrible, the coat should not need mentioning, and the full nude outfit with brown purse and white shoes is ugg...should I even go on?  Dear Pippa - you are too cute for this.  

Hail to the Chef!

Tack always says, “there are people that eat to live and people that live to eat.”  We are the latter. 

When I was contemplating what to give Tack for our first Christmas – I settled on cooking lessons.   Culinaerie is a recreational cooking school in the heart of DC! It is run by a talented (and witty) chef, who left one of the city’s finest restaurants to start a cooking school.  She was trained in France…which is not important but very JC (Julia Child that is)!

Since December, Tack has been in search of the perfect class.  We wanted to learn a new skill and come away with a few good recipes!  Last week we attended, “Where the Beef?” 

Great Class.  We learned….

-how to purchase meat

-which cuts are better cooked with dry v. wet heat

-how to mince garlic without the press

-when NOT to marinade a steak

-what temperature is appropriate for various cuts…

Additionally, we took home fabulous recipes.  Ate three cuts of delicious beef.  Drank copious amounts of vino.  Made two new friends (Kelly and Dirk – fellow foodies). 

 All in all, a great Wednesday!

Here are some pictures of us making sirloin with a garlic and herb butter.  Kelly and Dirk are in the background working on the flank steak in a red wine and shallot sauce.  Yum!

One Year!

Thank you, Tack!  You have made me very happy!

Cutting our Wedding Cake!  July 10, 2010

Cutting the top tier of our Wedding Cake!  July 10, 2011

WTF?

I grew up thinking that squirrels were sweet woodland creatures that snacked on nuts and berries.  That was before I met the Alexandria Squirrel, a ferocious scavenger.

Let's start at the very begining...

One of the exciting things about homeownership is that you have a place to put your pumpkins and welcome trick-or-treaters.  My first year in Alexandria (renting), I bought loads of candy for the local kids.  We did not have a single trick-or-treater.  It was very sad - and fattening.

Last October, Tack and  I purchased three pumpkins at a church sale.  As I was displaying them on my porch, I noticed that we were the only house with pumpkins.  Odd?   I thought so too!  In actuality, my neighbors are not mean spirited…they are seasoned squirrel fighters.

Tack found the carnage when he left for work the next morning.  The squirrels had eaten half of the large pumpkin during the night.  When we came home from work they were out there – chowin’ down.  They would even look at you and keep eating.  WTF?

Fast Forward...

When we were planting our garden this spring – we saw this small plant growing by our door.  My mother-in-law said that the previous owners must have planted a squash in the flower bed.    It was not until a few weeks ago that my neighbor said, “I like your pumpkin plant!”  Those dang squirrels planted a pumpkin patch in our yard!  It is VERY tacky, but we don’t have the heart to tear it out.  I would like to introduce….

THE RICHARDSON PUMPKIN PATCH

Around the same time that we discovered that we had pumpkin patch, we also noticed that something was clawing at Dusty’s food bin (pictured below).  I thought it was a raccoon.  It was not until a few days later that I walked out the door and a damn squirrel was eating the rubbermade container and looking at me as if I interrupted.  WTF?

Moral of the story: BEWARE OF SQUIRRELS!  They are dangerous!!!

Dear Loser (Chris)!

Pending:  Pictures of SSI, Tack and I cutting the top tier of our wedding cake (Happy 1 Year Anniversary, Tacka - I am a lucky girl), and some other shots from the past two weeks!

In the meantime: I am going to share a special You Tube treat.  Unfortunately, I cant take credit for uncovering this gem.  Olivia and Sloane- thank you for sharing!  I died laughing.

I am going to see 8/10 of my girls this weekend!  Hooray! 

I know, I know...

I am shaping up to be a poor blogger.  No posts in 12 days!!! 

My Excuse:
I spent the past 10 days on St.Simon's Island with family!  Yes, I could have blogged while on vacay.  However, I was hesitant to break rule one of the Richardson Family Social Media Policy - "Thou shall not discuss vacation plans on any social media site in advance of said vacation."

Rule one is the ONLY rule in the Richardson Family Social Media Policy, which makes it very important.  I think that advertising your vacation is not only braggadocios (the ppl reading your blog are likely at work ) - it is unsafe!

A pre-vacation blog post is similar to putting a note on your door that says,

"Dear Robbers,

Welcome!  Please see below for a diagram showing how to locate my Hide-a-Key!  

Best,
The Richardsons 

PS: I have some milk in the fridge that might go bad - we are going to be gone for a LONG time - please help yourself!"

Apologies to my loyal readers (all 5 of you)!  In my defense, I have been brainstorming topics while I have been away!

Sisters, Sisters....

I am a huge fan of show tunes.  "Show tunes" is my favorite musical genre second only to pop!  However, this video was not included in an attempt to highlight my love of musical theater, Christmastime, or the Haynes sisters! 

I included this masterpiece as a means for introducing my sister, Julie.  Julie is... older!  hehe – I kid!  Julie is....a wonderful writer, a fashion merchandiser by trade, an amazing cook, the wife of a blogger, and an overall taste guru!

Yesterday, Julie called me to discuss the blog!  She is the only reason that "Snappy Casual" has more than 15 page views (very supportive).  She was also quick to point out my grammatical errors.  Yikes! 

As I was considering the merits of having Julie (also referred to as "Juba" or "Jules") as my editor - It occurred to me -  Juba should be a regular contributor to Snappy Casual!  In many ways, Julie is the Yin to my Yang.  We have many similarities but we have different interests, strengths, and personalities. 

After some heavy coaxing - she has agreed to contribute to "Snappy Causal" as a guest blogger and editor!   I can say with confidence that our readers will be excited to find - better grammar, fresh topics, and a little less of ...me! 

Jules, welcome to the blogosphere.  I am so excited that you will be making your debut on Snappy Casual!  Olivia, you are next!

A Light Treat!

I spent last night catching up with my good friend, Margee!  Luckily, she was in charge of the menu.  Margee is a great cook -  I am a huge fan of her chocolate and peanut butter buckeyes (Surprise! Surprise! Margee is an Ohio Native and avid Ohio State Football Fan) - but last night she treated me to something much lighter!  I thought that I sould share the wealth!

Spinach Chicken Salad - a la Margee! 

Ingredients:

• 5 cups cubed cooked chicken (about 3 whole breasts)
• 2 cups green grape halves
• 1 cup snow peas
• 2 cups packed torn spinach
• 2-1/2 cups sliced celery
• 7 ounces spiral pasta or elbow macaroni, cooked and drained
• 1 jar (6 ounces) marinated artichoke hearts, drained and quartered
• 1/2 large cucumber, sliced
• 3 green onions with tops, sliced
• Large spinach leaves, optional
• Oranges slices, optional

DRESSING:

• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon dried minced onion
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

Directions:

• In a large bowl, combine the chicken, grapes, peas, spinach, celery, pasta, artichoke hearts, cucumber and green onions. Cover and refrigerate. In a jar with a tight-fitting lid, combine the remaining ingredients; shake well. Cover and refrigerate.
• Just before serving, shake dressing and pour over salad; toss to coat. If desired, serve on a spinach leaf and garnish with oranges. Yield: 8-10 servings.

Light! Healthy! Delicious! Hats off to the Chef!

Bragging Rights

This my niece chillin by the pool.  Taking a little nap.  Catching some rays. 

Blowouts and Burgers (or lack thereof)

I have been borderline obsessed with the royal family from a young age. 

With that said, you can imagine that since HRH Prince Wills announced that he was marrying Kate Middleton - my love affair with all things royal has been rekindled.  Thanks to my favorite trashy publications and blogs (People, US Weekly, and PopSugar), I have been able to get more than enough tid bits about the newlyweds.  Some of the tidbits have been VERY useful, such as:

The importance of a "blowout."  Kate doesn’t roll out of bed with a perfect "curtain" of hair.  She has her stylist blow-dry her hair before big events.  This is a pretty cost effective way to up the ante.   I am a recent adopter and rave supporter of the blowout.

Even though I think that Kate is gorg -I have noticed that she is looking seriously skinny these days.  Admittedly, her svelte figure has inspired me to get of my noticeably-larger-post-wedding rear to the gym (please see TaeBo post).  However, I dont think that Kate has so much as looked at a carb since they announced their engagement.  I think that she is going to make those Hollywood types feel like fatties. 

Exhibit A:  Let’s examine Kate's Wimbledon outfit from yesterday

Please keep in mind:


1.  The camera adds 10lbs
2.  She is wearing white
3.  She has a ruffle at her hipline.


Given all of these potentially unflattering elements - she should not look like a malnourished teen!!!


I hope that Kate is able to hit up "In and Out" burger during your trip to LA!  In the meantime,  I will be dialed in to see what she wears on her trip to North America!  Bon Voyage Kate and Wills!

No. Try not. Do or Do not. There is no Trying.

About a month ago, my gym announced that Billy Blanks was coming to Old Town Sport and Health to teach a few TaeBo Classes!  I know, what a Coup!  (Coincidentally, BB is promoting a new work out that incorporates EVIL “cardio resistance bands”  into the traditional Tae Bo work out.   This leads me to believe that it was less of a coup and more of a stop on a long promo tour – but let’s not split hairs. )

Even though I just started Tae Bo class – and typically look like an idiot with a leg twitch – I decided to sign up!  This decision was followed by a lot of anxiety about looking bad front of Billy Blanks.   I shared this fear with my sister.  Our exchange went something like this:

Me:  “Juba, I need to prepare for Billy”

Juba:  “Yeah,  you should purchase a Billy Blanks DVD to practice.  If that fails go to lululemon and get a cute TaeBo outfit.”

Advice noted.

This Saturday was this big event.  Billy Blanks was everything that I expected and more.   He introduced the packed class to his EVIL cardio resistance bands, did a little traditional TaeBo, and ended with a motivational speech!  I cant share all of his wisdom in this post.  However, the title of this blog post is just a little teaser.

“No. Try not. Do or Do not.  There is no Trying."
                          - Billy Blanks and Yoda

I know what you are thinking…what do Billy Blanks and Yoda have in common?

1.       Yoda trained Luke Skywalker.  Billy Blanks has trained…me and Maura, my good friend.

2.       Yoda is bald.  Billy Blanks is Bald.

3.       You can watch Yoda on DVD.  Billy Blanks is also on DVD.

Enough said.  Thanks Billy!

TESTING 123

I have decided to blog.

I have not decided.....

1. Why am I writing a blog
2. What I intend to discuss on this blog
3. Who will actually read my blog
4. How long my flirtation with blogging will last

Note: I am not operating under the illusion that I have anything particularly smart or witty to say - but I feel unsaid social pressure to "get with the times!"