sound sleeper

Seriously, does this look comfortable?

the bad kind of quiet

I don't know about the rest of the moms out there, but a little silence is about the best thing in the world. Whether it is in the morning before the kids wake up, during nap time, or at night when they are both asleep. I love them to death, but a little quiet goes a long way for my sanity. Yesterday I experienced the bad kind of quiet. You know, that silence that happens when your child goes downstairs, plays by himself, and everything seems well...quiet.

I got carried away by it yesterday. Little boy went downstairs between lunch and nap time and it got quiet. I sat down at my computer, started checking e-mail, changed the laundry, paid the bills, ate my own lunch and then it dawned on me...why is it so quiet? So I went down to see what was going on. And as you can see from the photo to the right...what I experienced was the "bad kind of quiet"

I have to admit though, if I had to do it all again, I'd let the destruction happen all over for another 15 minutes of quiet in the middle of the day!

Reality TV...or just comedy

So, as we all know there is nothing on TV these days. The writers strike has made all of us desperate for anything new. Read a book? Nahh...we'll just suffer through all the reality TV that is on.

So tonight, we see an ad that gives us hope for the next couple of months.

The Baby Borrowers


The premise is that there are 6 teen couples who think that they can handle having a baby. And we get to watch them find out the truth.

The catch phrase is, "It's not reality tv, it's birth control"

Set the TIVO, I'm there for the trainwreck.

I'm so glad I had a ....

Boy

Seriously he is the funiest kid I have ever met. All he does is try to make people laugh, make them happy, and of course be the center of attention (i would have to say that he comes by this all very naturally!) He gets up is the middle of dinner because "I just have to dance" a la Dazed and Confused...We often ask, "where did he come from?" wink, wink

But what makes me love him and his father even more is their love for all dangerous, risk taking, outdoor activities that I really have no interest participating in. For instance...it snowed 3 days ago, so this morning in the 22 degree weather, the 2 of them bundle up in their snow gear, head outside and find the only portion of steep hill that still has some snow left and decide to go sledding. Yes this hill goes right into a stream, yes this hill has a pipe drain on one side of it, and yes, I think that there is some sort of monster living at the bottom of this hill...but who am I to question their adventure? They trek out there, move snow around so there is one continuous path, and sled until frostbite and broken limbs are nearly imminent.

But let's rewind to yesterday when we go to our friend's 3 year old birthday party. It's at this awesome place called Ultimate Playzone. Sure it took us over and hour to get there...but it was SO worth it. Bouncy houses everywhere and no sharp corners to speak of. And getting back to my risk-taking, fearless duo...they had nothing to fear. There were bouncy houses, slides, a pirate ship, basketball nets and nothing else to cause injuries...or was there? It seems that it took my husband about 5 minutes to dive into the bouncy house with the gaggle of 3 year olds and start propelling my son into the air. This is their schtick...rough house and wrestle. It seemed like a good idea until our son cannon-balled himself right onto an unsuspecting little girl also at the party. She never saw it coming, that 46 pounds of boy careening right toward her head! Luckily there were no major injuries to report, but bloody noses, cut lips, and lots of tears later everyone returned to the party.

The party was still a huge success (I mean seriously, it had a Diego cake from Graul's) and much fun was had.

And as we drove home we asked the little boy "What was your favorite part today?"

He thought for a minute and responded with a straight face, "Well....I know it definitely was not when you threw me and hurt me Daddy...definitely not that part."

Touche kiddo, touche.

If you are going to London...

Today was a sad day in dressing my children. You see, while my parents lived in London, I always wanted to shop. But if you have ever been to London then you know that a pound is a wee bit stronger than a dollar so shopping is never a sound investment (actually my mother's friends could justify a flight back to the States citing the amount of money they would save from shopping)

Anyhow, one Christmas my mother decided to follow the advice of Time Out and shopped at Marylebone High Street. Sure you have to push yourself through the crowds of sigh *tourists* sigh again waiting to get into Madame Toussad's to get there, but once you arrive...it is a European shopping heaven. No deals to be found, but a mecca nonetheless. My sister, however, might complain that there was no Jigsaw, but nothing is ever perfect. So that Christmas we were introduced to Space NK Apothecary, The Conran Shop, Skandium, Brora (the most beautiful cashmere you have ever seen!) and of course, the point of my story, The Little White Company.

I think that it started innocently enough with a pair of Christmas pijamas and it just snowballed from there. Not only are the pjs made from the most luxorious thick 100% cotton, they are simple, downright adorable, AND cheaper than pjs at the Gap. I covet these pjs, saving them for special nights...nights when the boy has taken a bath, when someone besides us is going to see him, or when I just need a good hug from a kid in the comfiest pjs around.

My last visit to The Little White Company was in May. My parents were packing up to move home, and I was stocking up for my little boy and my in-utero little girl. We bought just about everything in the store that we didn't already have...and then some. But today I realized that we didn't buy enough. Today, I put the last new outfit on our little girl. I have no more stock-piled pjs to hold on to for the next special occasion...we're back to stocking up at the Gap and other such places. So today, I am sad. I miss going to London for so many reasons, but The Little White Company might be the biggest of all.

is paying $50 in shipping too much for pjs???

Not my future career

OK, so I have been dwelling a lot on what I want to do when I grow up my kids grow up. But I'll tell you one job I'll never get. President of the United States.

I have been amazed this week at the amount of press Hillary Clinton has gotten because she teared up in New Hampshire.

She teared up for god's sake. Not cry, not sob, just got a little choked up, verklempt if you will. She's tired, she thought she was losing, and she is human after all.

Now, let us just for one moment imagine that I was in her position. No sleep for about 10 months, thought my life goals were about to go down the toilet, and asked a raw, emotional question. This is what it would have been like for me.(because it is the important things in life that usually get me going!)

It doesn't matter if I am tired, sad, angry, or overjoyed...I cry. It is a characteristic that I come by honestly and genetically and there is nothing I can do about it. Just ask my parents, sister, husband, former bosses, and the nasty man who yelled at me because he thought I took his parking space. I'm a crier and proud of it.

Say Peas!

Oh how I love solid food. And so does she. We are now sleeping through the night, not cranky, and well adjusted (I'm talking about me, not her!).

Hallelujah!

A New Year: A New Me

I have to make a change. No, I am not just talking about the jeans that I have been wearing for 3 days straight or the 6 pounds I gained over the holidays. (the women at weight watchers were nice enough not to gasp and just tell me that they were proud that I even came back)

I am talking about my career...or lack there of at this point.

Every day I struggle to be a good mom. And to be honest, I don't think that I am doing that well. In fact, the other day I was asked which I loved more, a good meal or my children. That answer is obvious when I revealed my 6 pound weight gain, right? Noooo...I love my kids to death, but I just am not the crafty, make a project out of pipe cleaners, paper plates, and all the leaves they dragged into the house stay at home mom..so I question what am I good at?

• spending no less than $100 at Target
• wasting 4 hours of free-school time
• taking 4 days to wash 3 days worth of laundry

Can I make a career out of any of these talents?

No...but I think I had my eureka moment this morning when trying to figure out what we were going to do (a no plan day is always the scariest day of all!) and all I wanted was a cup of coffee and all my 3 year old wanted to do was play with friends.

So that's it. I'm going to start a business...and no I'm not joking here...a drink and play cafe**. Have a cup of coffee, enjoy wireless internet and watch your child play with all the toys you don't want to have in your house (picture kitchens, work benches, big blocks and everything else you don't want to store *) Of course, there will be a fantastic person to watch the children, make sure everyone shares, takes their turn, and leaves you alone while you check your e-mail, pay your bills, or even google your 8th grade boyrfriend. Doesn't that sound fantastic?

I'm on it.

*add to that list the flat screen tv in the corner that I promised my husband will exclusively play ESPN on Saturday and Sunday mornings to attract the Daddy congregation.

**very strange coincidence that Monkey Business has had the same thought recently too!