Chris' Graduation

Had to post this when I got it today....my little baby cousin graduated from high school this weekend. He's the last of our generation and now he's going to college. I feel so old! I remember when he was born! Anyways, congratulations Chris and good luck at Auburn! War Eagle!

Fun Baby Things....

Okay, so I have no idea where my dad found this...but I just wanted to post a quick pic of what might be the most awesome binkie EVER!!!

Whine Connoisseur????

How perfect is that...little Millie is so spoiled (and so are her parents!)

Wines for the Weekend...

Barefoot Bubbly ($9-$11)
Ahhhhh.....I am finally back in a routine to do my weekly "Wines for the Weekend" post. This week, however, I'm feeling a little worn out and weary, so I'm going to write about an easy standby of mine: Barefoot Bubbly.

My love for Barefoot Bubbly was really thrust on me by chance. Every summer when D and I were living in Boca Raton we would work the Miami Boat Show and come home with 5 or 6 cases of the stuff. What were we to do but enjoy a bottle (or two) whenever we felt like it! It began to become tradition at the 'Berg household. A great, fizzy pick-me-up that was perfect whether we were having cocktails with friends or watching Heroes on Monday nights.

We prefer the Extra-Dry, bringing a touch of sweetness that matches perfectly when paired with Dole's Orange-Mango-Papaya juice that they sell at the grocery store. THE perfect mimosa...

Now there are a total of 5 varietals: the original Brut and Extra Dry, a Sparkling Chardonnay, Sparkling Pinot Grigio, and a Sparkling White Zinfandel. All to add some variety to your standby sparkling. ( The latter will soon undergo a namechange and become "Sparkling Rose".) I urge you to pick up a bottle or five to have at the house for unexpected guests. Because what's more unexpected than having a nice, refreshing glass of bubbly in the fridge for lounging on a hot weekend afternoon?

Coming along...

We arrived home Saturday from a rainy one-day journey to Nowhere, AL to see my Mom's "people," as she calls her relatives. It was an exhausting day, only to become an exhausting week as D and Dad continued with their wainscoting project in Miller's room. I was hoping to post some 'finished product' pics by now, but unfortunately I only have 'coming along' pics. It's turning out that making all of the fine measurements, cuts, and miters have taken a little longer than expected.

Dad and D worked together like PB & J

Lacking chair railing and crown molding, hopefully to be finished today

Started painting last night (don't worry, low VOC paint here, people) You can barely tell the color difference in this picture.

R.I.P. Slammerhead!!!

Once the chair railing and crown molding pieces start going up the project will start coming together at a faster rate. We are so excited to have it all done so that we can start training Nellie to stay out of the room. She's starting to learn that she should stop at the door and lay down (which is really cute) but it will take months of repetition to make sure that she knows that Baby Miller's room is off-limits.

Vacation's Over...

So we are back in Nashville and the vacation is definitely over (even though we still have 4 days left). Mom and Dad will be rolling into town today and the list of projects to be done is overwhelming! We will start the process of moving D's office upstairs, which means a tad more than just your typical spring cleaning. Getting all of his papers and gear transferred to a new spot will take all of the energy I have stored up so far on our restful week.

(P.S. Rest in Peace Wine Fridge...unfortunately we have no room for wine storage in our new nursery, darn!)

At least I'm looking forward to finally decorating the new baby room. My Dad and D are putting up wainscoating this weekend (see inspirational picture) and soon we will have baby furniture to buy. Thankfully we're not painting the room...we're going to leave it the same khaki-ish color with white wainscoting. I'm hoping it turns out in real life like it is pictured in my head.


Okay, so it won't be as fancy as the inspiration room, but I think you can get the general effect. I'm thinking that it will really help this room have some identity, being that it is the only one in the house without any real architectural feature to it.

I'm also really excited about our first gift for the room. Lately D and I have been like the Goldilocks of Glider/Rockers. This one's too small, too big, too Grandma, too right-off-the-set-of-Miami-Vice...there really are some ugly, ugly rocking chairs out there. My Mom finally found the PERFECT combo for D and I and I'm really still just in shock that she dug it up. (And it even has a recliner, to make those sleepless nights and little easier to take naps through!) I can't wait until everything's finished!

Here's Dad and Nellie checking it out!

And Oh, Joy! It is finally time to say bye-bye to Slammerhead...may he rest comfortably in the garage...(see original post)

Rothenbergs on Vacation

“The Gastonian” circa 1868
Darren and I arrived in Savannah yesterday for a 3-day babymoon/anniversary/last vacation we’ll ever take by ourselves trip. We’re trying to soak it all in and unfortunately it’s soaking outside as well. But what we’re lacking in activities our B&B is making up for in charm. The Gastonian was built in 1868 and we’re directly across from the beautiful Forsyth Park in Historic Downtown Savannah. Our room is quaint with a real working fireplace (that may come in handy since it’s only about 55 degrees outside at the moment.) Our room is the “Mary Hillyer” room, named after the wife of the president of the Savannah Gas Company in the 1940’s. From what I can tell she was very involved in the historical preservation movement in downtown Savannah after the war. The once-family-residence has a beautifully restored parlor and kitchen where they serve high tea in the afternoons, cordials in the evening, and family-style breakfast with the other vacationers in the morning.

There are actually two residences that are a part of this bed & breakfast, connected by a wrought iron passageway over a perfectly maintained courtyard. We’ve peeked into all of the opened rooms in each building already, all but one. The Caracalla Suite. Listed as one of the “1000 Places to See Before you Die,” we’re strategizing as to how we will sneak a look inside the first-floor suite before we leave. Any ideas, please let us know.

(We made it! Here's a picture of the bathroom in the suite...a-MA-zing!)

Last night Darren surprised me with a lovely dinner at the famous “Olde Pink House” restaurant. It was superb for both of us, although D agreed that the braised pork shank I ordered was to-die-for. Yum.

Well, we’re about to head out to explore. Toodle-ooo!

The Olde Pink House...too bad the girl who took our picture couldn't work the flash!

Must-See Movies....

Waitress
Starring Keri Russell, Cathy Hines, Adrienne Shelley, Nathan Fillion

This quickly became my one of my favorite movies of all time (and not just because I love Keri Russell from her days as Felicity, THE best tv show of all time.) The story is sad, but the comedic genius of the three main actresses keep you roaring laughing. I can't even describe, so I'm going to post a video clip....



P.S. This gets the Darren stamp of approval....he even jokes around with me with one of the quotes from the movie: "Now you have to promise you will NOT love this baby more than you love me!" So funny.

What I'm Listening to....

Eric Hutchinson Sounds Like This

Okay, I'm gonna make this post short because I'm about to head out to work.

He looks like that nerdy guy that sat behind you in Accounting 202 tapping his pencil annoyingly on his desk. He sounds like 70 degrees and sunny driving with the sunroof open on the highway. I know you know what I mean....check him out!

Eric Hutchinson "Rock & Roll"
by brienta

Baby Jitters

After all the daily doses of prenatal vitamins and DHA supplements I have been taking, my body should be a fortress when it comes to advancing bugs and germs. Sadly, this is not the case. Don't worry, folks, it's not the (shhh.....Swine flu). It seems that I have picked up a virus that's been floating around my office for the past week or so. No fun. And since sitting upright has become a job in itself, I have decided to take the next couple of days off to rest. Great, right??

Wrong.

Watching Erin Brockovich this morning was the highlight of my day. I started drinking hot tea with honey first thing, being that this is the only healthy sore-throat remedy that exists when you've got a baby in your tummy. The irony is that baby doesn't like said "tea." The nausea set in within minutes. It was all I could do to change the channel. Which I shouldn't have done....

Enter Baby Story and Bringing Home Baby and Listen to Mommy Scream Bloody Murder during Labor. For the first time I began to genuinely fear D-Day. I had to distract myself. I grabbed my laptop and began surfing the web. I had seen a commercial for a Nashville-Mom's networking sight and decided to log on. Maybe I'd get my sense of hope back about the miracle of birth.

Nope, wrong again.

Here I was overloaded with product placement ads and the general consumer-goods push of "What you need for Baby" marketing tactics. It was overwhelming to say the least! Boppy's and Bottles and White-Noise Emitting Teddy Bears, OH MY! We haven't even started thinking about these things yet! Here were thousands of people posting what color scheme they're using for their new baby's coordinating carseat and onesies and I'm still trying to figure out if I look pregnant or if I just look fat!

Maybe I'm overthinking things and I'll start becoming more Mommy-minded once we find out IT's gender on Monday. Either way, the Baby Jitters have definitely got me rattled...

To be continued...

American Idol Recap

Rock Night!

First thing Darren says is "Randy Bedazzled his T-Shirt!" It's going to be a great show tonight.

Here goes....

Adam Lambert Whole Lotta Love

H: I completely agreed with Slash's advice...stick to the lower register, which Adam just threw out the window. I think he looks horrible in his outfit tonight. Sorry, but this didn't do it for me.

D: Uhhhmmmm.....pretty good, pretty darn good, pretty freakin' good.

Allison Iraheta Cry Baby

H: Love Allison's Hair! She sounds like the female version of Steven Tyler. Yes, I said that...rewind it on the DVR and see for yourself!

D: I'm feeling Randy...it only showed off her belting-it-out abilities.

DUET Kris and Danny

H: I thought it was pretty awesome, although Kris totally kicked Danny's butt. For some reason Gokey was a little pokey

D: Danny looked so nervous...like he didn't want to be there or he didn't want to share the stage.

Kris Allen Come Together

H: Kris is definitely holding his own, which is awesome because I think his voice is the least "rockish" out of the top 4.

D: He doesn't look very happy with his performance.

Danny Gokey Dream On

H: Did not like this at all. Danny needs to go BYE-BYE!

D: That was terrible!!!!! No. THAT was TERRIBLE!!! I think I can do that last note better than he did.

DUET Adam and Allison

H: Allison's outperforming Adam, I think. Hated the song choice. Hated it.

D: It was fun. They were good.

Rainy Day Wines

Okay, so I got so busy last week I forgot to post my usual Friday "Wines for the Weekend" suggestion.

Actually, that's a lie.

I was just so gosh-darn lazy from all of the yucky weather lately I failed to do anything but curl up on on the couch. So here are my suggestions for wines that are great to sip while reading books or watching sad movies on a rainy afternoon:

1) Angeline Pinot Noir ($15-$17) This Pinot Noir is a very clear, deep ruby-red color with aromas of raspberry, strawberry and a soft whisper of vanilla. Great for snuggling in with a nice bowl of soul-warming mushroom soup.

2) Red Rock Merlot ($9-$11)This is a fairly simple, but good Merlot. Perfect for a long lazy day of sipping. Medium-bodied and fruity, the aroma is full of plum and blackberry with a bit of an herbal note on the finish.

3) NxNW Columbia Valley Cabernet ($25-$27) What better rainy-day wine than one from the Pacific Northwest. Flavors of blackberry, caramel, and roasted coffee make this a yummy choice for the sluggish cab-lover out there.

Twitter @hanacarina, @droth77

Since I have been on a good roll with the whole "Blogging" thing lately (and I have learned all about joining Twitter from The Broads on XM155 earlier in the week) Darren and I are now officially twittering. We're new at this, and really feel like old farts because of it, but please follow us if you're also Twittering!