Bartenders Workout! Vote for the Video of the Month!

If you haven’t seen or heard of the “bartenders workout” here is a clip from youtube.com http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQml3k24PKc

Basically, the bartenders workout is a short series of workouts created by a group of men in the inner city. The idea is that you can workout anywhere, a playground, a train, a classroom, it doesn’t matter. They show you how to use your surroundings to get a good workout (great way to save some money on gym membership fees during this economy).

The men in our family have been doing these workouts (off and on) during the summer time, so it has become a bit of a family “joke”. Don’t get me wrong, the workouts work and have been proven to produce excellent results, we just have a good time watching each other do these workouts.

Jerome and Drudys own the “Doorway Gym – Chin Up Bar”, so when we come over, we usually goof around on it. The last time, I happened to catch it on video!

So I decided to change things up a bit for November’s video of the month. I want all of you to vote for the best bartenders workout clip. To vote reply to this post with the name of the person you are voting for. Let the games begin!!!!

Vote for your favorite video here

LucYvens

Jerome

Kerlee

Ena

Ava (assisted by LucYvens)/Mirlina

(vote for Ava or Mirlina separately)

Good luck everyone! The results will and the video will be posted on the family website.

 

Building Nico’s House

Home Depot delivered all the materials we needed to build Nico’s outdoor home. We went to Home Depot last week and purchased 9 – 2”x10”x12’ and 5 – 4”x4”x8’ pressure treated pieces of lumber, a deep freezer, a dog igloo, and a kennel. We had all the materials delivered together so that we only paid for one delivery fee.

I was gone for half of the day so Curtis started without me. He had already built the wooden floor section of the project by the time I got home. He basically screwed the pieces of lumber together (vertically and horizontally) to create the floor for Nico’s dog run. Since the wood is pressure treated we don’t have to worry about splinters or water damaging the wood.

When I arrived home we started on the actual kennel. It was a pain to get all the tangled kinks out but once we did that, the rest was a piece of cake. The base was built and then we wrapped the outer part of the kennel along the base and then clipped them together. We had to secure the top and the bottom of the kennel so that it was sturdy. Curtis did the top and I did the bottom.

Once the wooden floor was all set and the kennel was put together, we placed the kennel on top the wooden floor. The wooden floor had to be bigger than the dimension of the kennel so that Nico could not get to the grass.

Next, Curtis transported the dog house in to the kennel. It was too big to fit through the door so he had to lift it up and let it rest on the kennel to put it inside.

Once the dog house was inside the kennel, it was completed.

We got Nico and let him go in and sniff around. All his toys were in there and we also put his water and food bowls in there. He would run in and out, he seemed to like it. Only time will tell.

 

We Got Our Puppy!!!

Nico Bolden is the new addition to our family. He is a 10 week old German Shepard.

Curtis went to pick him at the airport in Kansas City, Missouri because it was one of the closest airports to our home that had direct flights from Boston. It took Curtis about 4 hours to get to the airport and then 4 hours to return to Rogers, AR, so he spent a good amount of time in the car but it was all worth it.

The first thing I noticed about Nico was how handsome he was. He is extremely cute and cuddly. When we let him out of his kennel to walk around, he immediately started sniffing around to familiarize himself with his new environment. He was so excited to be out of his kennel. He was sniffing me for a while (made me a little self-conscious). I was thinking, “Man do I stink or something?” You have to remember, I have never had a pet before because of my paralyzing fear. So I have tons to learn about dog behavior and wat not.

This first week that has passed by, Nico has been in his kennel (the one he arrived in) in the garage when we are at work, when we eat, and when we sleep. Curtis comes home for lunch everyday around 11:00ish and lets him out to “potty” and to spend some one-on-one time with Nico. He goes back in the kennel and I get home just before 5 pm and let him out to potty, run around and do some easy training. When Curtis gets home we’ll usually go for a walk if I haven’t walked him already. Nico loves walks.

Soon he’ll have his doggy run and house in the backyard. Curtis and I are going to build it soon. After his home outside is set up, we won’t have to worry too much about getting home to make sure he goes out because he’ll be out most of the day.

 

Celebrating 60 Years of Life….Mi Papa

On October 22, 1949 in a small town in Haiti, my father was born. 60 years and 4 children later, we celebrate him and all that he means to us. When I think about my childhood, I always remember being “daddy’s little girl”, come to think of it, I was also “mami’s little princess”. Yes, I was spoiled but I like to refer to it as being unconditionally loved.

I could do no wrong in the eyes of my parents. I think a lot of that came from a sense of guilt from having to leave us in Venezuela to travel to the states for months at a time. Our grandma took care of all of us while they were gone. Our parents sacrificed so much to start all over in the states and it was all to provide us with a better life. For that, I will be forever grateful to them. There were times when we got to travel with them and I don’t remember those years of my life but the pictures allow me to see the love my dad had for me.

There is a particular story that captures the essence of my relationship with my father that I want to share with you. When we arrived to the states, I was 6 years old. I was just the right age to start elementary school. I hated leaving my parents and as a result of that attachment, I hated school. I thought it was torture. I remember my dad walking me to school every morning. My elementary school, John Marshall Elementary was just up the street from my house. Even though it was a 5 minute walk from my house, it seemed like a long journey to me. It wasn’t because I was six and I thought it was a long walk. It was because there were stray dogs all over the street and my anxiety every morning was through the roof. I already hated school because I was away from my parents and to top it off I had to deal with my fear of animals as well. Every morning was like an “Armageddon”. When my father started to notice how afraid I was of these dogs, he would pick me up and put me on his shoulders. I was the happiest girl in the world. He was my savior. I thought he was the best dad in the world!

As time went on, my anxiety of being in school without family faded. I started to enjoy school and my friends. I no longer felt afraid of being attacked by animals because I knew that if there were dogs in the street my dad would carry me on his shoulders. Looking back at my childhood, I see that this has been a reoccurring theme. Whenever I felt afraid, my father was there to pick me up and take my fear away.

I appreciate my father for all the little things he has done and continues to do for me. My dad is not a flashy man that boasts about the things he has done or his accomplishments. His accomplishment is his family. He is a very humble man with a servant heart and I admire him and thank him for being that way. He finds pleasure in the simple things in life. Bringing us hot cocoa during cold Boston winter nights, shoveling the snow from our cars before we would wake up, cooking with love to show us how much he cared, and being a listening ear when we needed to vent are just a few of the many little things my father has done.

Now that he is 60, I look back at my life and appreciate him so much more. Time flies by but it is always important to look back and reflect on the important things in life.

Happy Birthday Dad. I love you.

 

Building Our New Shed…Getting Ready for Our Puppy

Our puppy is finally ready to be shipped to us from Boston. The reason why it has taken us a while to get it is because we had to wait eight weeks after it was born because he needed his mom’s milk and all that good stuff…

So because we’ll be getting him in a week, we’ve started preparing for his arrival. The first thing we did was buy a shed for the backyard so that we could put all of our gardening tools in the shed to make space in the garage. It took us all morning but we built the shed and YES, I actually helped. It was a two person job!

The shed was delivered early in the morning and once it arrived, we got straight to work.

We opened it up and started transporting it piece by piece to the corner of the backyard (where it would be located). The pieces were a bit heavy but nothing to overwhelming. Curtis and I have been going to the gym so I had no excuse.

Curtis had to prep the area where we were going to put the shed by making sure that it was even. Once the dirt is evened out we placed pavers on the dirt so that the shed would be stable and balanced.

Then we opened the instructions and made sure we had all the tools needed to assemble the shed. We had all the tools necessary except for a rubber mallet but Curtis fists worked fine. We read the directions and completed every step and in no time we built our shed!

Building a dog-run and buying a dog-house will be the next thing on our list. We will keep you updated!

 

Our Home is Officially An Eagle’s Nest!

As you all know Curtis and I are both Boston College Eagles. We are a proud Eagle family. For months now, we’ve wanted to put a Boston College flag in front of our house. Last month when we went to Boston for grandma’s funeral, we stopped by campus and went bananas inside the campus bookstore. We bought sweats, golf equipment, license plate holders, shirts, and of course, a BC Flag.

We also stopped by certain places around campus that will always be special to us. For example, “The Rat” where I first saw Curtis, sitting with his boys Clue and Jerome. I can still remember the dreads and the stank attitude…

We stopped by the bench that Curtis sat in that hot day in the fall of my freshman year when he noticed me in my short shorts and wanted to get my number.

Also, just outside of McElroy, the corner where I had my first actual conversation with Curtis. We realized how much we had in common and it went from being a physical attraction to something deeper.

We took pictures around campus and then went to visit some of Curtis’ old coaches. The new Eagle “Hall of Fame” was a-m-a-z-i-n-g! I see where my money is going!

This past weekend, Curtis and I decided to go to Lowes and purchase the flag holder so that we could screw it into the house and hang our flag. After purchasing the flag holder (the selection was not great) we got home and put up the flag. I should say Curtis put up the flag, but of course I was there with the camera catching all the action. I also put the flag into the pole; Curtis did all the hard stuff.

It was a very windy day and the flag pole did not hold up. The pole snapped and so we have to buy a new one. We have to find a sturdier pole to hold our flag secure. It was definitely defective.

 

My Ray Charles Sunglasses…

Curtis has convinced me. I need to get contacts. Prior to the wedding last year, I had worn contacts ever since high school. So if you do the math, that’s almost ten years! After our wedding, I just got sick of wearing contacts and said “No more!!”

Curtis and I try to go out from time to time. We’ll go to dinner or go out with friends and I either have my glasses on or on my head or hanging on my shirt. I guess Curtis was slowly getting tired of it (and of me leaving my glasses everywhere) because one day, I believe it was after Rickey and Brittany’s wedding, he leans over to me with a puppy dog face and says “Ena, can you please get contacts.” I started laughing and then he got really honest and said “You look so beautiful and then you throw on those ugly glasses and it messes everything up.” I thought it was funny but I had to admit, I will dress up and look fabulous and then throw on my rinky dink glasses and mess up the look I was going for….

So I called the nearest eye doctor and got an exam. I got my eyes dilated for the first time and that is where the “Ray Charles” sunglasses come into play.

After the dilation, you are supposed to wear sunglasses because your eyes are fully dilated and super sensitive. So my eye doctor pulls out this little paper sleeve with a dark thing inside and as she’s handing it to me, I think to myself, “Surely these are not the sunglasses she said she was going to give me.” Guess what? They were. I pulled them out of the paper sleeve and I was so embarrassed to put them on. I was acting like these people didn’t see this every day. I walked out of the eye doctor’s office and faced the world.

So what do divas do in situations like these? We make the “Ray Charles” looking sunglasses fabulous! I got home and was whipping my hair around like someone was taking pictures of me. They kept falling off because they had no legs. Then I pulled out my own camera and started taking pictures of myself. Curtis gets home shortly after I get home and so he comes in the house, sees me with the sunglasses on and starts laughing so hard tears come out of his eyes. He enjoys making fun of me. I usually get upset but this time I started laughing right along with him. This was definitely a blog entry moment. It was so funny.

From now own, I will empathize with those I see with “Ray Charles” sunglasses because I now know the struggle.

 

Experiencing A Taste of Koto’s Line (Project Runway)

I am huge fan of the show Project Runway on Bravo. I love television so it doesn’t take a lot to sell me on a show, but I have found that these days I am less and less tolerant of the reality craze. Project Runway is one of those shows that although it falls under the “reality television” category, it is not as annoying. I think it’s because I find excitement in the concept of having  24 hours to create a work of art. I think it is B-A-N-A-N-A-S how these contestants do it, and some like the talented Koto, do it very well.

I was talking to Leslie and Sarah the other week in the kitchen and saw a flier about Koto coming to the University to debut her new line. I quickly emailed the department arranging the event and I was able to get Curtis and I VIP tickets for after the show. We almost didn’t make it because Curtis had to work late and I knew from earlier that day that it would be a well-attended event. We got there and it was packed!!! So I barely got any pictures of her models and the designs but I must say that she had some very beautiful, bright pieces. I naturally stay away from color because I am attracted to darker tones but I would definitely rock some of her pieces. It really reminds me of Sammy’s style.

It was a cool experience. Here are some pictures of that event:

 

First Year of Marriage

I cannot believe it has been a year since Curtis and I got married. I remember the wedding and all the events leading to the wedding like it was yesterday. It’s funny, when I first started working as an academic counselor I decided to write in detail what I do on a daily basis so that it could be a reminder of what to do for the following year. I took a look at last August and this is what I saw:

I remember being super excited about leaving the week before the wedding to Boston. As I reflect on special moments, it makes me feel so fortunate to have such a loving group of people help me in every aspect of the wedding. My wedding shower was beautiful; it was better than what I had envisioned it would be. Thanks Tara, Nena, Drudys and everyone who put it together. I had so much fun at my bachelorette party, specially the karaoke song with Sam “You will never find a love as good as this…so you better represent…cause my love is the shhhh…bomb baby, bomb bay” I didn’t remember that song when we got on stage but I will never forget it. Thank you. Our rehearsal dinner at Maggiano’s was so classy and intimate, just the way Curtis and I wanted it to be. Thanks Mom & Dad. I just think back at those moments and it makes my heart smile.

The wedding day was beautiful and just perfect. I can close my eyes and remember saying my vows to Curtis. It makes me feel butterflies. I thank God for my husband, for family and friends. Thank you all for all of your emails and facebook notes. Curtis and I went to Ruth’s Chris (steak house) to celebrate and we had a very romantic evening. I got red roses and three cards because he couldn’t decide which one to choose. He’s so sweet. I gave him my vows written in a card to remind him that I will never break those vows I promised to keep.

May God continue to bless our marriage with joy and His love. May He bless us with many many many more years….

 

Bolden Family-Summer 2009 Highlights

This summer has been action packed so I really didn’t have time to update you all on every detail. I am actually ashamed to admit that I totally forgot about my blog for a couple of months.  I promise to be more consistent. Our new family website is forcing me to make sure I keep you all up to date…so don’t worry I am back on track.

So here it goes, the highlights of this summer:

MAY

Kerlee and Chantal set things of for us when they came to visit us at the end of May. This was their first time in Arkansas and boy oh boy did they have a great time. Everyone knows that I am a planner. I had their itinerary ready weeks before they got here (we were so excited) and then Kerlee calls us and tells us that he has a boot on his foot (basketball injury). That changed our plans a bit but we still made it work. We ate at a New Orleans style restaurant, we had some Japanese cuisine, and we also grilled out. We went shooting, had a Wii tournament, toured Arkansas, etc. We had a blast.

Here are some pictures of their visit:

JUNE

Dad came to visit us the first week of June and we played golf ALL WEEKEND. Curtis and Curtis worked on the 442 Oldsmobile for a while and then we grilled out.

Really nice weekend.

Curtis and I took separate trips the third week in June, I went to visit my sister in Maryland and Curtis went to South Carolina for a golf trip.

We had a great siblings weekend. I really enjoyed spending time with my brother and sister. I just wish Beto, Tara and Ava could have been there. We toured the DC area, went to the White House, we went to church, and we also took a trip to the African American Wax Museum.

Then, my parents came to visit us in Arkansas, the last week in June. We had a very relaxing weekend. My Dad cooked for us and we just spent time together as a family. My parents really enjoyed touring Fayetteville and I took them to the farmer’s market to walk around and take pictures.

JULY

For the 4th of July, Curtis and I flew to Savannah, GA to spend time with my favorite in-laws! It’s always a good time when we’re together. Love them!! We went to the beach (Hilton Head) in South Carolina, we had a BBQ at Uncle and Nursey’s lovely home, Mom and I spent time with aunt Yvonne while the guys went golfing, and we also went to church. I look forward to many more weekends like these.

The end of July was very hard for me because I had a lot going on at work. I added extra responsibility on myself by volunteering to teach Spanish I to our students this summer. It was a rewarding experience and it allowed me to bond with students I wouldn’t normally have one-on-one everyday contact with. No complaints here. At the end of the summer we took our students to Kansas City, MO and then a week later we took our graduating seniors to Kansas City as well. So you are correct if you are assuming that for the moment I am a little sick of Kansas City. I did have a good time with the students….

AUGUST

After working hard all summer, we deserved a break. Our trip to Los Cabos, San Lucas (Mexico) couldn’t have been at a more perfect time. Curtis’ hard work at ConAgra paid off and we got an all expenses paid trip to Mexico on the company. You all know we have been to many beautiful places but in a natural aspect, Cabo is the most beautiful place I have ever seen. Just gorgeous. We stayed at the Fiesta Americana Resort & Spa from August 6-10. Their downtown reminded me a lot of Venezuela, the way the streets were filled with life and the air smelled of delicious cuisine coming from small “hole-in-the-wall” restaurants.

We usually had dinner with Curtis’ co-workers but during the day we would go to the beach, the pool, in to town to shop (mostly window shop) and eat. One of the most beautiful things I saw were these huge boulders that came out of the ocean. I could stare at them forever. The Pacific Ocean is very rough, perfect for surfing. We did not surf but we did zip from mountain to mountain hundreds of feet from the ground. I am officially not afraid of heights anymore.

We strongly recommend Cabo. We had a great time. The only bad thing that happened was that my camera lens broke. I dropped it while trying to pick up the camera bag that was not closed properly. That hurt my heart. Curtis promised to get me a new one by Thanksgiving (hint hint) so my pictures will not be the same quality until then…sorry guys.

To finish off the summer, we took a trip to Little Rock and had a great time at a place called Cajuns. It was a restaurant/dance club with a live band. It was really fun to dance and listen to soul and R&B for once. We went with our friend Patrice and had an awesome time. We will definitely go back. We are actually going to Little Rock on September 16 for a John Legend concert.

We were down in southern Arkansas because my co-worker was getting married in Pine Bluff, AR. Seeing south Arkansas was an experience. I felt like we went back in time. Sad, very sad. The wedding was nice. Curtis was cracking up at this one usher in the wedding that had a high top fade. Here are some photos of our trip.