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I always enjoy hearing an artist do a stripped down version of his or her work. Some of my favorite CDs are unplugged compilations, so I was quite excited to review the new Bare Bones CD from Bryan Adams.
Adams says Bare Bones is inspired by his 1996 MTV Unplugged album. After that experience, he wanted to pare it down even more and just use a guitar and his voice. While on tour singing acoustic versions of his hits, he had so many requests for those arrangements that he decided to record a few shows.
I think you have to be a fan of Bryan Adams to truly appreciate this album. I'm a fan, so this wasn't a problem. You'll find all his biggest hits on here, including"Cuts Like a Knife," "Summer of '69," and "(Everything I Do) I Do it For You." It was really fun to hear his acoustic version of all these songs. He relies only on his guitar, a harmonica and a piano.
I will admit, I'm not a huge fan of "concert" albums. I want to enjoy the music. I don't want to hear fans screaming in the background or singing along. Fortunately, the concert setting doesn't take away from the overall experience of this album. Besides, I think some of the "rawness" of this album would have been taken away if Adams had recorded this in a studio, rather than during a performance.
Want to hear this album for yourself? Decca Records is giving a copy to one lucky Buried in Laundry reader. This giveaway is open to U.S. residents. The deadline to enter is 9 am MST Friday Dec. 3, 2010. To enter you must have a valid email address. The winner will have 48 hours after notification to provide me with a mailing address or a new winner will be chosen.
To enter (this step is mandatory) leave me a comment telling me what artist you would like to hear do an acoustic version of his or her work.
For additional entries: (leave a separate comment for each entry)
- Become a follower of Buried in Laundry (or leave a comment if you already are a follower)
- Blog about this giveaway and link back to this post
Again, please remember to leave an email address in your comment.
Disclosure: While no monetary compensation was given for this post, Decca Records provided me with a complimentary copy of Bare Bones and is providing a copy of the album for the winner.
I enjoy a good board game. A holiday in my family was not complete without a fun game after the big meal. My daughters, thank goodness, enjoy games, too, but I have a feeling I'm teaching them some bad habits.
The best example is Candy Land. If you have played the game, you probably know what my big pet peeve is... the dreaded card that takes you to Candy Cane Forest. I hated that card as a kid, I hate it as an adult. One of my girls will be soooooo close to winning and them BAM! she draws the candy cane card. I've started taking it out of the deck, along with some of the other picture cards that take you back near the beginning... but lately they've started questioning why they never seem to draw that card.
My daughters have, fortunately, reached an age where they can make it through a board game without becoming distracted. They're really starting to grasp the concept of games. The problem is, if the game is taking too long, I won't point out when they skip a square here and there. I know I need to start becoming a stickler for rules, but for now, I guess we'll just make up the rules as we go.
A friend of mine posted this on her Facebook page and I just had to give it a try.
The picture is my creation. As you'll read later, my girls had some issues with theirs, but the cookies were still tasty. It was a pretty fun and quick treat to make.
You'll need:
- Oreo cookies (Double Stuff works best... I chose the non-chocolate version)
- miniature peanut butter cups
- candy corn
- white frosting (the directions call for white gel icing, but it didn't hold the peanut butter cups in place, which is why pictures of the girls' creations are not on display)
Take an Oreo apart. This will be the base of your turkey. Stick another Oreo into the "base" cookie. (Remind your children to be gentle, as the frosting easily "cracks"). Use the icing to secure a peanut butter cup to the cookie. (This might work better if you set the head on the "base". It will still look like it's near the middle of the "body"). Insert candy corn, pointy piece down, into the filling of the Oreo "body." (This is another "gentle" task or your cookie will break, which happened to us). Use gel icing to make the eyes on the peanut butter cup. Break a piece of candy corn and use the pointy end for the beak. Use the icing/frosting to secure the beak on the peanut butter cup. Enjoy!
The other day I was reading a blog by a mom of triplets, who also happens to in my moms of multiples group. A repairman was at her house and asked her if she was running a day care. This inspired her to make a video with some of the funny and/or annoying comments she has heard about having triplets. Since I know I've written multiple times about the comments that have annoyed me, I thought I would share some of the humorous things I have heard (or overheard) when I'm out with my girls:
- So, are you a nanny or something?
- Woman 1: Look, quadruplets! Woman 2: No, one of them looks smaller. I think it's triplets, but they didn't want the younger one to feel left out so they dressed her like the other three. (You think I'm joking about this one, don't you?)
- How much do you charge for babysitting?
- (seeing me load up on milk) You must have a house full of teenagers! At least they'll be out of the house soon. (nope, so imagine how much milk I'll be buying in 10 years!)
OK, so those are the only ones that stand out in my mind right now... but I wanted you to know I do have a sense of humor. It's actually very rare that someone's comments truly annoy me.
Ever since my daughters were born, Christmas cards have been a big deal. Their first Christmas I think I sent more than 150 cards. I didn't include a picture with their birth announcement because they were still so tiny. So at Christmas I sent a photo card to everyone I knew.
This year I've really been trying to cut costs and trim the list. But I may not have to trim it as much as I thought. Shutterfly is giving bloggers 50 free cards in exchange for writing about the company. Since I already use Shutterfly, this was an opportunity I couldn't pass up.
I actually started using Shutterfly long before my daughters came along, mainly to print my pictures. One year I made a calendar using a bunch of pictures my dad had taken while visiting us in Michigan. After my girls arrived, I made photobook. It took a lot of work, but it was also a lot of fun.
I like the ease of Shutterfly. I organize my pictures by month (and year), so it's really easy to find and print older pictures. I also appreciate being able to have my title printed on the back of each picture... no more going through a stack of pictures with a pen trying to document who is who.
Each year, I try to put some thought into what our card will look like. This year, I'm thinking about having my girls pose in their Christmas dresses. My favorite card, by far, is this one... but I think I'll keep it simple. I like to do a card that allows people to cut out and keep the picture (which then cuts down the number of school portraits I have to buy!), so I'll probably choose this one.
For all you bloggers out there, there's still time to participate in this promotion. Just click here for more details. (Disclosure: I was not given any monetary compensation for this post. Shutterfly is going to provide me with 50 free for writing this post).
Today Bloggers are taking time to raise awareness about prematurity. When I found out I was pregnant with quadruplets, I was told my babies would be born early. How early was hard to predict. There are so many "magic numbers" when you're dealing with multiples. My pregnancy became all about countdowns to various weekly milestones.
The first countdown was to week 5. This is the week I went for my first ultrasound to see how my pregnancy was going. It was also the week we found out I was carrying quadruplets.
The next countdown was to week 10. This is the first appointment I had with my obstetrician since becoming pregnant. He took one look at me and I could see the panic on his face. Since week 5 I had not been able to keep down much food. I was rapidly losing weight. He was concerned on a personal level because a close friend and patient had just lost her triplets at 19 weeks.
I tried not to focus on 19 and instead counted to 18 weeks... when we could find out the genders. My perinatologist jumped the gun at 16 weeks and excitedly announced one of the babies was a boy. At 18 weeks we found out all four babies were girls. This was a fun revelation, but meant the names Gavin and Wyatt were no longer on our short list of potential baby names.
Then I nervously counted to 19 weeks. It came. It went. We made it.
The biggest "week" was yet to come. We were informed from the beginning that I had to carry these babies to 28 weeks in order to deliver them at our local hospital. If I went into labor earlier than that I would be transferred 2+ hours away to the nearest facility with pediatric specialists. There was no way I was going to have my babies in a hospital so far away. Two hours? No, I wanted my babies to be delivered 20 minutes from my house so I could visit them every day once I was discharged.
At exactly 28 weeks we toured the NICU and talked with someone from the hospital about the "quad delivery game plan." Then I went home to begin my countdown to my scheduled c-section at 32 weeks. I made it two days into that particular countdown before my four fragile little girls arrived in this world.
It has been a crazy ride, full of ups and downs. In that first year, I never would have imagined having four five-year-olds. Now my countdowns are to fun milestones... such as the first day of kindergarten next year!
Last year was the first year my daughters grasped the concept of Santa. They finally understood that if you ask him for something, it's probably going to be under the tree Christmas morning. Last September they started asking for Pillow Pets and never strayed from that request. So, Christmas morning, they each found a Pillow Pet under the tree.
This year is proving to be tricky. They are constantly seeing something they want... a bike, a scooter, a doll, you name it. I've tried explaining to them that just because you want something, doesn't mean you will get it... you need to pick one thing and stick to it. Frankly, Santa is done shopping in our house. I buy throughout the year and purposely try to finish shopping before the crowds are out.
It doesn't help that a certain relative essentially told my daughters that Santa is going to bring them the stuffed animals you see at the registers at Kohl's. When I told her I had no intention of buying them, she told the girls "You can ask Santa for whatever you want, just don't expect him to give it to you."
Before you think my daughters are spoiled, I should point out that I know they'll be happy with whatever they find under the tree Christmas morning. I've also talked with them about the less fortunate and how we can help. Our finances are tight, but I'm hoping I can take them to pick out a gift for Toys for Tots or a similar local organization.
Still, the fact that they believe in Santa has its upside. I can still say "You need to behave because Santa is watching," and find myself faced with four well-behaved girls!
