Live | Wendy Damonte - Eat, Play and Live - a Lifestyle Blog

TWEETS I’VE NEVER TWITTERED

November 15, 2012 By Wendy D 1 Comment

I don’t tweet. Well, I do, but only because everything now a days is linked. So whatever I put on this blog or my Facebook page gets tweeted out. But I don’t tweet independently. Twitter scares me. I think because if I have a quippy thought to tweet, I’ll have to have another such thought the next day. And what happens when that doesn’t happen?? I’ll have all these followers who are expecting intelligent, funny, SHORT thoughts to come from me. That’s way too much pressure. So I don’t tweet. But IF I DID TWEET, here are some things I would say… or tweet:

*One day at work a woman named Mary spilled her milk and I literally got to say, “Mary, don’t cry over spilled milk.”

*Our work bathrooms have those sensors that turn the lights on when you walk in. But today, the sensors turned the lights off… and I was still in there.

*How is it that Modern Family makes me laugh like a child for 29 minutes and then cry like a baby that last 30 seconds.

*I like to mountain bike with my Little Friend Lynn… which is stupid. If a mountain lion decides to attack us, he’s definitely passing her up to come get the meatier me.

*I love it when my 9 year old daughter yells, “Mama’s having a baby child.” She randomly does that while we are cooking, cleaning, eating, driving, sleeping. Good Luck Charlie does have it’s bright moments.

*My son has been a trickster since he was 2. He once stuffed a bunch of cotton balls into a tissue box so when my husband pulled out a tissue, cotton balls went flying. We all laughed. The next night he put a brick under my pillow. That wasn’t so funny.

So there they are. My random tweet thoughts. I’ll be sure to list some more when they come to me. Because I’m sure twitter will still scare me at that point.

Filed Under: Live, Wendy Tagged With: Tweets

I’M GETTING OLD

November 13, 2012 By Wendy D 1 Comment

“NOOOOOOOOOOO” I screamed into the mirror this morning!!!! “This really isn’t happening!!!!!” But a second look confirmed it… I was going grey. But not like you might think. I mean I might have a few grey hairs on my head, but who would know. Those babies get colored every four weeks. Honestly, I haven’t seen my real hair color since 7th grade. I might be totally streaked with grey but I will never know… NEVER! No the hair I’m talking about IS ON MY CHIN! Let me explain. About 4 years ago, I noticed a black hair coming out of the left side of my chin. Really?? I thought to myself back then. But what are you going to do? You’re going to pluck, that’s what! So I’ve diligently kept my eye on that little sucker since then. Although sometimes, I would catch myself feeling it with my finger when it got long enough to be pokey. I would rub my chin as if I was a Harvard professor saying to my class, “Ah yes, Einstein did in fact give us two theories of relativity; special and general. And yes, it’s true, he married his cousin.” So this morning, I was once again checking for my hair and it was weird because I could feel it, but I couldn’t see it. So I leaned closer into the mirror and a quick shimmer caught my eye. Leaning even further I focused in on what was catching the light…and it was my hair… only it wasn’t black… IT WAS GREY!!!!! “NOOOOOOOO” I screamed into the mirror. “This really isn’t happening. I can’t be going grey on my chin hair!!” But it was true. As grey as grey can be, you might even describe it as silver. I could not pluck that baby out fast enough. AAAAHHHhhhhhhh life. Ya know! In your 20′s you have a little black dress. In your 30′s you have a little black hair. And in your 40′s you have a little grey hair. Oh my God, I’m going to be a blue hair before I know it!

Filed Under: Live, Wendy Tagged With: GROWING OLD

COSTUMES IN A CLOSET

November 8, 2012 By Wendy Leave a Comment

I was heading up to my God daughter’s 5th birthday party when something struck me. It was a costume party but surely just for the kids, right? Nope. A quick phone call to my friend confirmed I had to dress up too. Dammit! I’m never prepared!! So I turned the car around, stood in my closet and just stared. I had nothing, no costume. But I saw my cowboy shirt, my boots and hat and started grabbing these clothes… right off the hangers!! Not tucked away for special rodeo nights. Nope these clothes are hanging up right next to my suits and Banana Republic shirts. These clothes are worn waaay too often for my San Francisco self! On the way back through the ranch I stopped in the tack room to grab my husband’s chaps. I now not only looked the part but smelled it too!! So by the time I got to the party I was laughing at myself because my costume came from my closet. And the I saw my friend, Jeff, also from the San Francisco Bay Area, and he too pulled his costume out of his closet. Oh how Nevada changes you!

Filed Under: Live Tagged With: Holidays

WHERE HAVE I BEEN??

November 7, 2012 By Wendy 3 Comments

When I started this blog my goal was to write about 4 posts a week. I don’t want you to feel over burdened with updates from WENDY!!! Wendy all the time could get a little taxing… just ask my husband! But I haven’t posted anything in quite awhile. Yes life has been busy. Domi’s football team made it to the Superbowl!! So we’ve been planning for that this weekend. Eva has had cheer competitions and practices to get ready for the Superbowl. And yes there was a little something called Campaign 2012 that added to my workload. But those really haven’t been the main reasons to not post. I finally figured out what it comes down to is an overwhelming sense of anxiety caused by surviving the first year of holidays without my mom. It’s like I’ve been on a wave for the past year, paddling just to stay afloat, but the wave is growing and becoming monstrous and gigantic and threatening to bury me with an endless shower of tears. Forcing me under where I can’t breathe. Keeping me down in the darkness. I’m afraid of that wave crashing on top of me. But I know it’s coming, I sense it every day in the back of my throat as I gulp back tears. And sadness is not motivating. It makes me want to sit quietly and hope I don’t get noticed. And while I have lots of fun, quirky things to share with all of you from life on the ranch, my training, etc., suddenly it seems uninteresting. My sadness is dulling my sense of humor. And that’s why I’m writing this post. Because I have to get back out there. I needed to explain where I am in the hopes it will shed some layers of depression. I want to write funny posts but have felt like a fraud because deep within me I’m crying. So there it is. My purge. My crashing to the bottom of the ocean. My wave is on top of me… and I’m surviving it. I’ve taken the first small strokes to the surface by writing this post. The next two months will be about my slow swim back to the sunlight from the depths of my holiday sadness. And then I’ll start paddling out to sea in the hopes of catching another wave that I can ride for awhile. I know it too will crash on top of me but that’s ok. I’m surviving this wave and I’ll survive the next one too. Have you felt this way? Do you know what I’m talking about? Am I making any sense?? Man, grief messes with your mind!! And now I’m going to go eat a bowl of ice cream!

Filed Under: Live Tagged With: Grief, sports

WORLD WAR 4 HAS BEEN DECLARED IN MY HOME

October 31, 2012 By Wendy D 1 Comment

Yes, there was a World War 3. It was waged about 3 years ago. It had to do with getting the kids to sleep in their own rooms. Not beds… rooms! To fully understand you have to understand the shape of our house. It’s a U. The kids rooms are on the left side of the U. The bottom part is the living space; kitchen, family room, dining room, etc. And the right side of the U is the master bedroom… plus a nursery the kids used to sleep in when they were infants. So you can see how the kids would fight us on sleeping on their side of the U. It’s far away from Mom and Dad and it’s clearly where the boogie man resides. So finally, after 6 months of carrying the kids back to their rooms 2,3 sometimes 4 times a night… we surrendered. Twin beds were moved into the nursery and that’s where the kids still sleep to this day. World War 3 went to the kids. But now I’ve declared another one. And it has to do with my bathroom. I don’t mind them showering in my bathroom. God forbid they walk to their side of the house, where apparently the boogie man still lurks, and shower there. I really don’t even mind them leaving the towel on my floor. “Pick your battles, Wendy” is my daily mantra. But the toothpaste is where I draw the line!!! They wring its neck and leave it on the countertop without the cap. The toothpaste then dries out around the tip making the opening so small the paste comes out like a string of spaghetti instead of a nice fat ice blue log. AND THEN… most of the toothpaste ends up beneath the strangled neck of the tube making it impossible to get anymore out even though a 2 month supply still exists. So today I told my kids, “Look! There is a giant, black, hairy tarantula that now lives in the back of my toothpaste drawer and if you ever, EVER, open that drawer again, it will crawl up your arm and lay eggs in your ear that will continue to hatch for the next 5 years!”

Strangled Toothpaste

The kids just stared at me… their gaze going between my glare and the forbidden drawer. And then they turned and silently left the room. Ok fine! So I might have over parented that one just a touch. But this is war people! And I fully intend for World War 4 to go to the parents! Only I have to admit, I too am now a little afraid to open that drawer!

Filed Under: Live, Wendy Tagged With: KIDS

AND A BABY BELLA COMES HOME

October 30, 2012 By Wendy D Leave a Comment

“keep your mouth shut. Keep your Mouth shut. KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUUUUUUT” That was my mental affirmation as I entered Petsmart with my daughter, Eva, and her 9th birthday entourage. We were at the pet store for her to pick out a new pet. Apparently, a Barbie doll wasn’t going to cut it at age 9. The plan was for Eva and her friends to pick out the perfect pet and I didn’t get a say. Well, if I was a dog, my ears would have perked up as we entered the fish isle. This was my department. Fish don’t pee on the carpet. They don’t get their food all over the floor. And they don’t scratch the door just because I’m too slow at letting them in. FISH ARE THE PERFECT PETS! As I was about to point out a beautiful, flowy blue one, I saw Eva jet past me toward the reptile section. And her eyes stopped at the turtles. They became wide with enthusiasm. As if, “Mom, I have found my pet!!!” were about to come flying off her lips. My mind went instantly back to a conversation I had with a friend who said, “no matter what you do, don’t let her get a turtle. They live for 40 years!” So in 40 years, Eva will have gone off to college, traveled the world, married the love of her life and given birth to children all her own… and I will still be taking care of the damn turtle she got for her 9th birthday. NO…THANK…YOU!!! So when she headed to the hamster world, I was more than relieved. She considered a few of the normal $4.99 ones but ended up with a Fancy Russian hamster at $12.99. I figured the extra expense of a “fancy” hamster outweighed the future costs of a turtle that just might out live me. So off we went with a hamster, hamseter hamlet, alpine shavings and hamster food. Since the introduction of Baby Bella, we now live in a house where the number of pets equal the number of humans. So why do I feel so outnumbered???

Filed Under: Live, Wendy Tagged With: PETS

MAX

October 29, 2012 By Wendy 7 Comments

Never, EVER, will I be alone again as long as this cat is alive.

Which is weird because I ALREADY HAVE A SHADOW!

Filed Under: Live Tagged With: PETS

MY HOLIDAY TRADITION

October 26, 2012 By Wendy D Leave a Comment

When I was growing up in Walnut Creek, CA, my mom created many family traditions. But one thing was the same with all of them. They included just the four of us. My mom, dad, brother and me. My family was small. Both my parents were only children. My dad’s parents had both died by the time I came along. My mom was estranged from her mom and her dad and his wife lived up in Oregon and didn’t travel much. So family affairs meant a table of four. And I loved it. But now, I’ve married into a huge family plus we have many close friends we consider family, so family traditions often include 10 to 20 to 50 people. And I love it. Except this one holiday tradition. The tradition of making Nevada Day cookies. I’ve kept this tradition just for a table of three. Eva, Dominic and Me. Here’s how our day goes. I wake up completely squished between their two little bodies. Somehow they both come into my bed the night before and since I know this is going to end some day… I always let it happen. We finally get up and eat something quick and easy. And then the mess begins. Domi makes the dough as Eva sets up all the sprinkles, frosting, cookie cutters and anything else she can find on my baking shelf in the pantry. I then put a layer of dough in front of each child and they go to town making Nevada shaped cookies. They always throw in some bats, pumpkins and this year stars (not sure why!) since Nevada Day is so close to Halloween.

Officially, Nevada Day is October 31st, but years ago people voted to make the holiday on the last Friday of October. Oh yes! Did I mention it’s a state holiday?? We get the day off here… well most people do. I will eventually go to work in the afternoon, loaded down with plates of cookies. Because while my children love the tradition of making Nevada Day cookies, they don’t really eat them. For the kids, it’s all about the journey. For me, it’s all about the destination; a day spent with just my kids.

Best sugar cookie recipe ever! I found this in Parenting Magazine and have used it for years!

Filed Under: Eat, Live, Wendy Tagged With: HOLIDAY

FLYING SOLO

October 25, 2012 By Wendy D Leave a Comment

The kids in Italy

HUGE milestone in the Damonte family this summer. We let our 7and 8 year olds fly to Europe by themselves! Now before you think I’m a Mommy Dearest mom (do people even know that reference anymore??), know this. I was actually on the plane. But I didn’t fly with them! And it was glorious!! Let me explain. A travel agent booked our flight from Dallas to Italy putting two of us in the exit row. We had originally planned to board the plane and divide and conquer. I would sit with Eva, Darrin would take Domi. But since kids can’t sit in the exit isle…a family milestone was born! The kids sat 10 rows in front of us. They played their video games, they watched a movie, they ate meals together… even slept… and NOT ONE PEEP! Turns out our kids need an audience of at least one parent in order to fight. They loved it. We cherished the 9 hours of uninterrupted quiet. And when we arrived in Europe, I actually missed the little buggers. I was dying to hear how their trip went. I WANTED to be with them! So thanks to a booking error by our travel agent, I will never fly with my children again… even though I will always be on the plane.

Filed Under: Live, Wendy Tagged With: EUROPE, KIDS, TRAVEL

SIGNS, SIGNS, EVERYWHERE THERE’S SIGNS

October 24, 2012 By Wendy D 1 Comment

The other day I posted this picture of my coffee cup flirting with me on my KTVN Wendy Damonte Facebook page and it struck a chord with a lot of you. Nearly 200 liked it and dozens more commented. But one comment stuck with me for several days. It came from a woman named Brandy. She wanted to know why nothing like this ever happens to her. Well, Brandy, I bet it does. You just have to be willing to see it. Let me explain what happended moments before I took this picture. When I got back into my car (from walking the kids into school), I saw a bunch of steam blocking my view through my windshield. My fingers were just about to wipe the condensation away, when I stopped to take a second look. It appeared slightly like a heart. But it took a third look for me to actually drop my hand and sit back and see what was in front of me. Life is so busy, I think we miss a lot of things. We have to wipe the window to get to the next appointment. But signs

Kristen’s Pinecone of Hope

are everywhere and sometimes, it’s simply in HOW we see them. My co-anchor and dear friend, Kristen Remington, saw a pine cone struggling through the brutal winter months in Reno, clinging to the tree through wind and snow storms, as a sign of strength, courage and perseverence. Because inside her home, her husband was battling cancer. And if that pine cone could survive, so could Leonard. In her Facebook post she wrote, “Pastor Art at the Rock Church once challenged me to “find miracles in the mundane”… I think this is an example of that. It may look like just another pine cone to most people… but to me, it’s HOPE.”

And other times, we have to tell people about signs. Like the time I was mountain biking with my Little Friend Lynn right after her daughter’s wedding. She was saying how sad she was that her father had just passed away and missed the wedding. She went on to tell me that she and her dad always shared a love of dragonflies. We both wept as I told her a magnificent blue dragonfly hovered over her throughout the ceremony. See, Brandy? Signs are everywhere. But just like with love, you can’t go looking for them but you have to be willing to see them when they are right in front of you. Like a blog post written just for you. Sometimes they bring us to tears, other times they brighten our day and sometimes they make us go to the bar. Like on my 40th birthday, I’m pretty sure Lake Tahoe was telling me to have a martini. I did.

Golden Martini on Lake Tahoe

Filed Under: Live, Wendy