They had a state dinner for Queen Elizabeth and Didn't Invite Us?

The invitation must have been lost in the mail. We had been practicing with our tiaras for a whole week prior. White tie!! Maybe it was our lack of sash that made them exclude us from the invitation list.

Clearly we need to check in with Mrs. Bush's social secretary. This cannot happen again.

In the Closet

Quick, someone call our social worker. Juliette is in the closet.

Evie was there Sunday.

Are they being punished?

Is something amiss?

Does anyone recall a closet scene in Mommie Dearest??

It isn't punishment. Rather, it is prime real estate for napping. Sunday, Evie requested to take her nap in Mommy's newly cleaned, vacuumed closet.

I immediately sniffed the whiff of opportunity. "I don't know.... you can't have stories or songs if you nap in the closet, because there isn't room for Momma AND Evie in the closet."

"OK."

(Not having to read stories and sing songs is like a get out of jail free card.) I immediately agreed to the request.

Juliette overheard. "but I wanted to nap in the closet."

Nope, if I would even allow for two people, books and songs would be back on the bargaining table and there would be no win for me.

Juliette, in tears, "I never get to sleep in the closet".

Me-"Evie asked first, you can sleep in the closet another day."

Juliette- "Evie always gets to go first" - a bigger untruth has yet to be spoken in the town that inspired such famous lines as "I did not have sex with that woman" and "I am not a crook".

Me - "you will have to wait your turn, today is Evie's turn because she asked first."

Consequently, two days later, Juliette is in the closet. (Well on her way to being asleep.) There is something about the odor of leather and dry cleaning that puts them out quicker than benadryl. If we could bottle the sleep intoxication of the closet, Bruce and could easily quit our jobs and devote ourselves to the millions paid by parents desperate to have have their little angels drift off to sleep more easily.

Or, maybe, rather than bedrooms, we should give Juliette and Evie and the rest of the cherubs those little pod dorms to sleep in like the Picadilly hotel in London or the Hotel Akasaka in Tokyo. We could have some cubbies at the end for a couple of momma's shoes to simulate the closet environment more completely....

Until the construction begins, during nap the girls will be taking turns sleeping on the floor in my closet.

It is true, I am tying my own shoes.

Career Day

Career day is coming up in Evie's class. I don't have to ask her what she wants to be, because she told me on the way to school today.

Momma, I want to ride a motorcycle inside the circle.

Does anyone know where I can find a crash helmet and motorcycle gear for a two year old in time for career day?

The stock market did WHAT today???

OT - Charlie Rose

Tonight, Charlie Rose is hosting President George Bush.

As you know from previous posts, I really like Charlie Rose's show. It is intelligent, thought-provoking and always an intelligent conversation about interesting topics.

Imagine my curiosity over this evening's program.

Many guests over the past year talk about the complications of the war in Iraq, this administration, and the troubled state of political discourse in the U.S.

What is tonight going to be like? What will Bush say? Will Charlie be nice (he's a Southerner, so yes) but will he hold back on hardball questions? Whatever made Bush decide to do Rose's show? What did Charlie have to agree to? Will it be completely done by script?

Last night they featured a whole hour on the Frost/Nixon play that just opened on Broadway. By the end of the hour, I was trying to figure out what basis I could lay for us to travel to NY and see the production.

Will I feel differently about Bush at the end of tonight's show? Will I see him more sympathetically?

With regard to television programming, I thought I was most looking forward to the return of the Sopranos, but it turns out I was wrong.

What isn't weird

It was a beautiful day in northern VA, temperatures were going to hit 72, there wasn't a cloud in the sky. Tulips and Kwanzaan Cherrys are in full bloom - yard sale and garden show signs were posted in anticipation for the weekend. Burl Ives was on the CD player as we ran errands.

Me - "Evie, what music do you want to listen to?"

Evie - "Christmas music."

Me - " Parumpumpum pum?"

Evie - "No. Holly Jolly"

Consequently Burl Ives.

And this isn't weird. Because my children love Christmas music all year long. A complete paradigm shift for seasonality. I'm not sure how it will impact me this holiday season. Will I even notice Christmas music? Unsure.

There are many shifts of thinking that are similar.

Eating at 5:30 isn't weird anymore. In fact, it ensures a pleasant meal from the finest restaurant like Ray's the Steaks (where we ate as a family tonight yum times four!) to Hong Kong Palace where we suck down the fantistic food. The children have a lower level of crazy at 5:30 and they are more likely to focus on food and not be running all over the place.

A temperature of 100 Degrees isn't much to fuss about. (103 is a different story!)

Having large plastic toys isn't that weird. (I can't believe I am even saying that one out loud!!!)

The list goes on.

Central

One of the biggest adjustments for me as a stay at home parent is the lack of fine dining in my life.

Many of you know I love a good meal, more than just a good meal, I especially love food that doesn't cost me a ton of money. I love expensive good food too, but I really love a "find" -- food that is rewarding without exacting usury. When Bruce and I went to Paris, we didn't do Michelen three stars, instead I dragged him to stand in line to go to Joel Robuchon's L'Atelier restaurant that had the atmosphere of a sushi bar (but he is a genius and inspiration to chefs around the world!)

When we went to L.A., it was In-N-Out burger. San Diego, Taco Surf. New York was a series of pizza places and an occasional upscale Italian adventure. NY always included bagels and hot dogs, natch.

While it doesn't happen all of the time in the land of stay at home mom, I am occasionally rewarded with a delicious repast with friends or Bruce worth noting. One of those meals was this evening.

Friends and I went to Michel Richard's new venue, Central. Michel Richard is famous for his restaurants around the world. He was trained as a pastry chef and definitely has a sense of humor. It is loud, my water wasn't refilled without request, and my knife mysteriously disappeared never to be replaced about a third of the way through the meal, but the food was great. It was a pleasure to be eating food so well thought through - onion tart, salad, and yes a hamburger were all way above average. And the dessert, well, it was truly a pleasure.

For those of you who live in D.C., Central is worth a visit. There are other restaurants downtown I frequent more regularly, but Central was truly a treat. Way more classy than Taco Surf, but not beyond an average budget.

Cherry Blossoms

We went to see the Cherry Blossoms Tuesday. Juliette took some pictures.

You can visit them at her blog, http://juliettegoesclick.blogspot.com

To check them out, visit Juliette goes click!

The Easter Hangover

A portrait of post-holiday sugar overload disorder.

Hope you had a Happy Easter!

Life isn't always a beach

We are at the beach in NC. Last night, we had a huge thunder and lightning storm. Crashing claps of thunder with brilliant light display. The cacaphony was really bad between 3 and 4 am. At 4, I gave up trying to sleep and decided to get some work done.

So, I come out of our bedroom only to discover the front door is wide open and it is raining in. Did the wind blow it open?

I immediately check on the girls in the room they are sharing. They are both sleeping on air mattresses on the floor to avoid falling out of the high bed in that room. Juliette is sleeping like an angel.

There is no sign of Evie.

She isn't in her bed.

She isn't on the floor next to her bed.

She isn't in the pile of pillows near her bed.

Panic wells. Where could she be? She wouldn't ever go out in such awful weather - only two houses away from the ocean, would she?

I wondered what I should do first - wake Bruce?

Check again?

She isn't in Juliette's bed with her, but I hear snoring.

I creep into the room and see a fragment of her fuzzy blue blanket.

She crawled under the big bed to escape the thunder and fell asleep.

Sigh.

Mom, don't bug me. I'm working.

OT - Random Thoughts

I've Bolded Key Elements so you can skip what BORES you!

Pop culture - saw Wordplay and Casino Royale while Bruce was away this weekend. Recommend them both.

Note - Bruce was AWAY THIS WEEKEND!!!!

I am not meant to be a single parent. In fact, I am quite sure that my little lovelies pray hard for their father's health every night for fear they would be left with only their mother.

Everything worth watching on network television is on hiatus. Hello, HBO and the Sopranos! You are coming back in the nick of time.

Owning your own business. Pearls definitely takes a back seat when consulting kicks in. No one should fear I will ever be the cover story on Entreprenuer magazine. However, knowing how many small businesses fail, I firmly believe self-discipline has to be the most critical element between success and failure rates of people owning their own business. The second most critical element has to be flexibility.

Speaking of the small business and consulting -- Doing your taxes when you are dealing with both is somewhere on par with getting your wisdom teeth pulled. Having turned it into a game with a spreadsheet, I cannot imagine how boring life would be without my Excel. Is there anything I can't quantify in those little boxes??? Ah, who remembers the naming process for Genevieve? You don't think we did that without several spreadsheets do you?

Frank Rich compared Alberto Gonzales to Fredo Corleone in today's New York Times! Politics aside - How hilarious is that??

Cherry blossoms are on their way! The precursor blossoms at the Pentagon were out late last week, any day now we'll be taking the girls down to the Tidal Basin for our annual pilgrimage.

Last Thursday, Juliette made her bed, made Evie's bed with Evie, made my bed. And when we got to the play area at Chik-fil-A, she told the big kids who were playing rough to be kind to Evie, because she was just a little kid.

Evie has mastered pedaling - thus she will soon be getting a bike of her own.

Bruce came back this afternoon. Hurray! I can honestly say I can't recall the last time I was so happy to see him!

This is twinkle twinkle little star...

I am a bumble bee (who is really concentrating)

scarves

You remember the freeze dance selection in swan lake, don't you?

The tune sounds sort of Irish...

Ballet Warm Ups

Getting ready for our ballet performance today

Yep, it is the last ballet class for Evie and Juliette today. We will post pictures later today or tomorrow.

Baaaaddd Mommy

Much of parenting occurs within the confine of your home. The private mommy. This mommy is only marginally referred to in group settings - "Mommy is grumpy" or "Mommy made popovers for breakfast."

Then, there is the semi-public mommy that can be found at the park, at the grocery store, the museum. People observing this mommy only see her once. People make flash judgements on this mommy all of the time. "She is such a good/bad mommy.....she does x, y, or z right or wrong"

Then, there is public mommy. You run into her every other day at school drop off or you play together publically. There is a fair amount of angst in my life over public mommy. This is where the real "good mommy/bad mommy" perception comes into play.

Why do I care what people think? I know, I know, I shouldn't but I do.

Minor bad mommy example - I went to a party and remembered flowers and my appetizer, but had no photographs of my children. A group of men wouldn't have cared, but this was a group of women.

Bad mommy.

Major bad mommy example -- sending a child to school with pink eye. In my defense, she had been on tobramycin for a day. The teachers let her into class, then she started clinging to me like it was the first day of school all over again. You could see it written all over their faces "Why is she insisting this poor ill child stay here?"

In my further defense, this child had sucked more one-on-one time with mommy in the past four days than since last year before school let out. We did art projects, stickers, played outside, ate treats, together ALL WEEKEND LONG. ALL WITHOUT HER SISTER!!!! We had already dropped her sister off in her class and she saw the golden opportunity to have MORE ALONE TIME WITH MOMMY. She felt fine, and was fine after I left. But up until I snuck away, you could see it in the teacher's eyes...

BAAAADDD Mommy!!!!!!

An Ode to Babysitters

There is nothing better than having your child wake up the morning after a parent night out and demand to know where the babysitter is.

Where is Miss Sarah?

Where is Auntie Beth?

Last night as Bruce and I were getting ready to leave, Evie was literally pushing me with all of her might, "Go away, Mama." Other parents might be disturbed by this, I say "Ok, see you later baby, " and give her a kiss.

"I am not a baby, I am a big girl, Mama."

Was the last thing I heard as I walked out the front door.

Last night was a big event for the girl's school, and it was interesting to see other parents sneak away to get home to put their kids to bed so the babysitter wouldn't have to. I contemplated a late night run to a movie, a bookstore, anything to not have to go home.

Alas, it was daylight savings time and considering my sleep track lately, we went home and crashed. Only to be woken to "Where is Miss Christine?????"

Juliette, Evie, and the Snow Bear

We made a snow bear to celebrate last week's storm. There is only a 3 inch snowball of the snowbear left as of today.

Sorry, Ju Ju!

Evie is becoming quite a prolific talker. Juliette is the best at translating the Evie dialect, but Bruce and I probably catch 60-80% of what she is telling us.

She loves to make up songs about school and her life when we are taking turns singing in the car. This is some of her most incomprehensible speech. Every once in a while I'll catch a line about Mrs. Huggins or Eli or Tyler (she never sings about Helen, Juliana, or MacKenzie) but whatever she is singing, it is hilarious to her. She'll laugh hysterically halfway through a line of a song that even Juliette can't interpret.

This morning I caught her with her second favorite toy - bat - over her shoulder, approaching her sister from behind. Muttering "Sorry Ju Ju!"

Sharing a Hotel Bed with Evie

Genevieve is, shall we say, an active sleeper. I had a pearl show in Pennsylvania where Bruce and I traded sharing our bed with each daughter.

The first night, no one got to sleep before 12 am. Bruce had Evie that night and experienced what it was like to be 39 months pregnant as the only place Evie would go to sleep (thereby allowing the rest of us to sleep) was laying directly ontop of her father's belly. So, in his next life, Bruce now has the experience to come back as a pachyderm.

While Juliette is a calmer sleeper, she tends to occupy the center of the bed, thereby leaving you on the brink of the abyss of the hotel floor when you share with her.

Night two, Daddy had primed both girls for a switcheroo all day so Mumma got sandbagged after dinner.

Evie climbed into bed and became the Vetruvian man illustrated above. What Vetruvian lacks and Evie has is the three-dimensionality akin to the device they use to prepare astronauts for orbit.

Needless to say, Mumma probably won't make it all the way through the Academy awards tonight.

Go, Departed!!

The Perfect Storm - Why it is great to be a stay at home mom!

When I was a kid in Dalton, Massachusetts, we lived for sledding in the winter. I remember hoping against hope that our friends sons would take us sledding at the golf course on their six foot wooden toboggan knowing that those trips would mean lots of free rides for me (the littlest one) up the hill as well as down.

When we moved to New Hampshire, the best thing about living there were summers and winters. Summers because my best friend and I would bike between each other's houses and swim the summer away, and winters for ice skating and sledding.

Sledding was great quality in Epsom. There were huge hills where all of the kids would congregate. We would use hard plastic, flexible flyers and best of all, inner tubes. I sprained many ankles, jammed many fingers but every suicidal run was worth it.

It all came rushing back when Washington got an ice storm last week. Not any ice storm, The World's most perfect ice storm. Ever. There are four inches of solid ice on every outdoor surface and the temperatures have remained cold.

The first morning school was canceled, I went to Target at 9 am. All of the earlybirds had cleaned out the sled section but that did not deter me. I headed straight for the pool section and grabbed two double chambered, handled inner tubes, took them home and pretended they were a gift for the children.

Now, where to take a four year old and two year old sledding? A parking lot of course, with an evil pitch that was sure to be unplowed. Forget that there are wooden posts every three feet, worrying about that kind of obstacle is for amateurs.

The big girl was instantaneously hooked. The little girl feared her parents' reckless abandon a little more openly. We sledded and sledded. It was fantastic.

The next morning, I rustled everyone back into their outdoor clothes (thank you grandma for the snowpants!) and off we went. The bad news was the ice had hardened even more and shredded both tubes on the first run.

We went shopping and finally tracked down two flexible flyers and a traditional hard plastic. Definitely not the kamikaze rush of the inner tube, but suitable for our small companions. When we got home, Evie's temperature was almost 102, thereby dashing any sledding hope for that day.

Next day, fever.

Next day, birthday party.

Next day, church & pearl stuff.

Ahhh today. Sleds in hand, everyone headed out to the parking lot. There was a man doing single luge runs that were olympic quality.

We took the sleds down further, to the point of the wooden posts (lest you think we are irresponsible) and took off on hugely long sled runs. At first we would go the length of the hill plus the length of a soccer field, but by the end it was the hill and the length of two soccer fields.

On the way to the car, Juliette said "That was the best sledding ever." (Which, by the way, it was.) It was a glimpse of what it was like to experience perfection at 4 years old.

Auntie Heidi and Uncle Howard came to visit! Hooray!!

They took Juliette on a photo adventure - check out Juliette's photo blog for details!

http://juliettegoesclick.blogspot.com/

Hello, Wednesday!

Hello Kitty

So, we rented our first (and last) Hello Kitty video.

First the positives - great Japanese pop music. It is reminiscent of the glory days of the techno pop boy bands of the 80's with just the right updating.

The negatives - squeaky Hello Kitty voice, just ripe for imitation if you happen to be four. Imitation is not a sincere form of flattery, instead it is a careful plot to take parents to their knees.

The disk was returned early under the cover of night to our local video and will not be mentioned again.

Top 5 ways an adult is likely to be awoken in the Manise Household

5. A very loud discussion next to their ear about how that individual is sleeping and everyone needs to be quiet.

4. A tap on the arm.

3. Hit in the head with a book with the demand "read to me" to soon follow.

2. Jumped on.

1. Serenaded by harmonica.

Queen Genevieve

Evie made this crown in school.

The world seems different today... hmmm. I wonder what is going on?

Do you mean to tell me I am already FOUR?

Ju Ju Bee at 12 months

Happy Four, Nutmeg!

Here is what you looked like at 18 months!

Is this panda bigger than me?

Which panda do I love more?

Rocknoceros

As we've mentioned in previous posts, the girls really love a local band named Rocknoceros. Dawna introduced us to their music in May and we've become full-fledged fans in the months following. For me, their music seems inspired by the eclectic list of bands: rem, beach boys, squeeze, james brown, and even a little ziggy marley.

The biggest fan is Evie. She will follow the lead singer around in a manner that as an adult would inspire a restraining order. Before she could talk, not only would she shadow the pied piper of vienna, she would also implore him with hand gestures for one of his shakers. She was almost always successful in obtaining one and would run it over to me in triumph. Now that she can talk, she demands to see them, and then reminds me to pack our shakers. If you catch a performance when she is there, you will no doubt see her bouncing up and down like a piece of popcorn in a hot skillet or a super ball in a rubber room.

This has earned her the nickname "Evie Mosh-pit" by her mother, father, and extended family.

All of this adulation has impacted me and Juliette. While a more elegant fan, Juliette will always join "Coach Cotton" in a round of ABC at the halfway point in the show. Juliette has also requested Rocknocerus t-shirts for her birthday. I too, have been bitten by the bug and will hum their tunes to myself when no children are around.

So, if you live in the DC area, check out Rocknoceros at Jammin Java or another location. For those of you in the wide world beyond the beltway, you can order their cd off Amazon.com. I promise you will be delighted by them.

How do them make fruit juice, Momma?

Despite my uneven vigilance against all things commercial, the last time we were at Costco, I was lobbied to buy the Sesame Street juice boxes.

Were they organic? Check.

Were they small in size to limit over-juice consumption? Check.

Were they cost-effective? Kinda check.

So we are in the midst of drinking juice during snack this afternoon and Juliette asks the aformentioned question.

I had to resist every urge in my brain to reply "They put Elmo on the rack, stretch him out some, and squeeze him until all the juice runs out."

Welcome 2007

What is in and out for Juliette and Evie as we greet the new year.

Juliette--

Out - pink
In- green

Out - skipping
In - sprinting

Out - Giada
In - Contessa

Out - Books without words
In - Books with words Juliette can figure out

Out - Reading stories
In - Doing Math problems

Evie--

Out - Wiggles
In - Rocknocerus (and I mean WAAAAAYYYY in!)

Out - Gymnastics
In - Ballet

Out - Dora
In - Ha, I wish. Dora is still in.

Out - Babydoll
In - Her giraffe from Grandma

Out - Vegetables
In - CANDY!

Christmas eve with Amelia.

Popping out to say hello.

A new kind of accessory

If you let us in, we promise not to try and ride the toy trains.

Enjoying the White House Christmas tree.

Did someone say cookie batter?

Eating your sugar cookie and having it too.

Many times when I talk to people I get the sense they envy some aspect of life that they are currently not doing. It could be -
1. staying at home with the kids if they are a working mom,
2. consulting back to an old job if they are a stay at home mom,
3. owning their own business if they are still with their job.

Well gentle reader, envy no more. Here is what my day looked like from 3 pm on.

3 pm - Christmas crafts with Juliette
4 pm - Christmas crafts with Evie
5 pm - Made dinner
6 pm - Ate dinner with family - husband cleaned up
6: 30 pm - fought with DHL about latest pearl delivery (lack thereof)
6:45 pm - made sugar cookie dough for Evie's class party
7 pm - a quiet hour alone unaware of the gathering perfect storm
8 pm - leave for DHL Alexandria office to get the darn pearls myself
9 pm - accept consulting assignment (due by tomorrow morning)
9 pm - realize the doctor has called and Juliette does not have appendicitis as we feared
9:30 pm - move laundry off bed so sick husband can sleep, check pearl inventory
9:45 pm - email all outstanding pearl orders, suggest drop off/pick up time
10:00 pm - bake Evie's sugar cookies, burn a third
10:30 pm - start consulting assignment
11:30 pm - realize I don't have all documents for consulting assignment
11:45 pm - realize don't have cards or gifts for all teachers for tomorrow's parties.
11:46 pm - realize I have not triple-booked tomorrow morning as I thought, I have quintauple booked tomorrow morning with deliveries, meetings, conference calls, and two class parties.
11:47 - in the midst of writing this, realize I don't care I'm booked up so much. Whatever happens, happens.

Rest easy gentle reader. The grass is definitely not greener here today and know that whatever will happen tomorrow will happen.

If bottoms could talk....

The scene--

Bruce working on the computer in the dining room.

Juliette walks in naked.

"Daddy, if bottoms could talk what would they say?"

Bruce, without looking up - "They would say put your clothes on."

Did you say Christmas is coming? Are you sure??

The Wiggles are Dead to Me

http://www.thewiggles.com.au/au/mediacentre/news/31

Greg is quitting the Wiggles due to orthostatic intolerance--
The symptoms for this condition may include the following:• Excessive Fatigue• Exercise Intolerance• Nausea• Tachycardia• Palpitations• Tremulousness• Weakness - most noticeable in the legs• Chest Discomfort• Shortness of Breath• Migraines and Other Headaches• Gastrointestinal Problems.

The Wiggles have been an everyday part of our lives over the past three years. Juliette fell quickly in love and Evie has followed suit. Indeed, much to Juliette's dismay, Evie ALWAYS chooses to listen to the Wiggles in the car when it is her turn. Not Rocknocerous (although she loves them) Not spanish music, not parumpum pum pum. Only the Wiggles. Ever.

Bruce has long hypothesized that Greg was the only one with talent although I harbor a fondness for each contribution that Murray Anthony and Jeff make. Greg was indeed the front man, with boyish charm and that sunny yellow shirt.

Although, when forced to vote - I voted Greg most likely to tarnish the Wiggle star by scandle. Perhaps it was the boyish Bob Crane-like looks...

Back to the diagnosis, I have at least five of those symptoms. I wonder if I'll be retiring soon.

No! It is the bumble - surprising where creative juices take you.

Is this mommy without coffee?????

Miss Momma

Many of you know Evie has referred to her teacher as "Huggins" since the beginning of the year. Apparently, Mrs. Huggins really likes the idea of a proper address.

Since about a week ago, I've become "Miss Momma".

Bruce is "Miss Daddy".

Juliette is "Miss Ju Ju".

In most of our conversations (especially if Evie is in one room and we are elsewhere in the house) a typical Evie conversation with herself goes like this-

"Miss Momma! More cereal, please!.... "

"Miss Momma??? "

"More cereal!!"

"Miss Daddy?"

You are thinking - Could this child be any cuter?

I offer the following contrast.

Evie's potty training continues in the typical sporadic Bruce and Jennifer fashion. Today's lesson involved pooping on the floor in the kitchen, stepping in it, and tracking it across the kitchen floor in under three seconds.

I swear I do not make this stuff up.

Happy thanksgiving from Evie!!

Happy Thanksgiving from Juliette!

The expression on Evie's face before she strikes - will it be a lunge? A hug? A jump off a cliff? You never know until it happens.

Ten ways to do a turkey

Since the little girls have gotten sick, we've been watching hours upon hours of the Food Network and drinking cans of ginger ale, aka nectar from the gods if you are four.

Here is a sampling of the ways we've seen the birdy prepared to celebrate Thanksgiving.

Deep-fried
Individual cornish hens stuffed
Turkey cutlets
Turkey under a brick
Turkey ravioli

Here is what they have made stuffing with-

Corn bread and sausage
Pumpkin muffins and zucchini
Cranberry muffins and onions
Cornbread, tomatoes and basil
Cornbread and oyster stuffing


It makes me long for the days that only PBS had cooking shows and Julia and Jacques Pepin would banter about the use of butter and how to debone a turkey.

Someone pour me another glass of gingerale, Alton Brown is about to teach me how to make the perfect gravy.

Mmm chocolate

On the Fifth Day of November

On the fifth day of November, Evie got sick. Since then we've had-

One Nasty virus
Two sick children
Two wonderful houseguests (who helped enormously with sick children)
Three bottles of Motrin (kidding)
Four grumpy family members
Five sleepless nights on an air mattress

and no work done!

When Life Hands You Lemons, Play Golf

I was making a recipe that called for the zest of 20 lemons Saturday morning. Saturday, Juliette had 2 birthday parties of classmates to attend. There was also card making, gift wrapping etc. to be done. Evie was devastated she wasn't getting to go to the party and consequently howled when Juliette left with Bruce.

To comfort her, I handed her a lemon. She put it on the floor and ran for her golf clubs.

Five Observations on Halloween

Yes, we celebrate it - Juliette and Evie traditionally with our friends Amelia, Rachel, Ming and Korrinna. I have a few observations on last night.

1. Halloween brings the girl out in our girls. Yes, Juliette may give a death sentence to an ant or person (more about that in a future blog) , but she is really afraid of everything. Evie, our bolder child, is even MORE afraid of everything than Juliette. This is ok. It means they are not jaded or worldly-wise, or destined to become so by the time they are five. So it limits the houses we can visit (deemed too scary) and may include a walk around the block to avoid said scary house or a spontaneous bursting into tears, but that is ok. We want them to be little for as long as they can.

2. Mind control doesn't work, packaging does. When Juliette is presented with an enormous bowl of candy and is told she may have ANY SIX SHE WANTS she goes straight for the nerds, starburst, and laffy taffy. Meanwhile, her mother is inwardly screaming - ALMOND JOY, REESES, dump the junk, GRAB THE 100,000 Bar! The clever bright packaging is a cruel reality for a chocolate-loving mama.

3. Costumes are all about accessories. We got two-dozen compliments on our off-the shelf cow costume - all because of our cow bell and milk pail. There is a lesson in there for me - I'm sure it has to do with makeup and manicured nails, but I just can't quite get it.

4. Halloween is way bigger for parents than kids up until age 8. There were so many dressed up parents. 80% of the women were witches. Why? Why not Dorothy, or Pippi Longstocking or Lara Croft or Wonder Woman? What is it about witches that is so appealing to adult women? We all own a 70% black wardrobe - is it to cut down on costume expense? (No, I do not dress up. I can't believe you even wondered it.)

5. On the eating end, Halloween is bigger than any other holiday for our children. They could NOT believe their mother was letting them eat all of that candy. I caught several sidelong glances of disbelief as they plunged into another lollipop or box of nerds or twizzler. Six little girls, six sugar hangovers. No one went to sleep until 3 am. K

pumpkins

You mean we get candy??

A practice run for tomorrow!

After apple picking

Is there any room left for momma and daddy?????

from the Juliette archives

Two years ago, when Juliette was just about two, she was my commuting buddy. Many of the roads around DC require two or more passengers and Juliette instantaneously made me roadworthy.

We drove a car w/o a cd player, so we sang. Or I sang. Bruce and I have songbook of odes to Juliette that spontaneously generated from the time we got her. She had ten songs in her songbook by the time she was two. One of them is the classic "I love you Conrad" from Bye Bye Birdie - In the car I'd sing it to Juliette, then to daddy, then gramma, you get the picture.

One day, just about two years ago. Juliette sang it back to me " I love you Mommy, oh yes I do..." She sang the whole song and my heart just swelled. Her first song ever was to her mommy.

Quiet for a moment. Then she started to sing to her little stuffed dog...

"I love you Doggie, oh yes I do..."

OT - What mommy has been up to

Enough anecdotes on small children - let's get back to me. Interesting sports fact, the Cardinals have the second worst season in history for a team in the World Series - who had the worst? The METS! How cruel is fate?

Books read recently - In the middle of "Heat" by Bill Buford. Loving it. Finished "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri. While, I liked Namesake, it made me starving for Indian food. Thus, a trip to Indian buffet was made last weekend. We will also be going to Indian buffet next week. I am convinced that my version of food in heaven will include the following ethnic breakdowns - 56% Indian, 10% Mexican (emphasis Oaxacan), 10% middle eastern/asian (pakistani, israeli, lebanese), 10% french and belgian chocolate, 10% Italian, 2% Chinese (preferably noodles and dim sum), 2% sushi.

If there was an extra 10 %, it would include ice cream, french fries, and sandwiches. I love a good sandwich.

Again, I digress.

Movies seen, only one "the Departed". I loved it. Recognizing Martin Scorsese's poetic violence is not for the faint at heart, I only recommend it to those readers with a stomach for mob violence. Graphic mob violence. Very graphic violence. It was not a perfect movie (as were the Godfathers) but was compelling and had good twists and was about the furthest thing from Dora the Explorer I can currently imagine.

Work I've done - being a consultant is a very different sort of beast. It takes what I liked about my work with the Council and distills it. I'm under tight deadlines (which I like) and the end of the day is based on what I accomplish (which I really like) but it can make for a cranky mommy during crunch times. ("Mommy, why are you yelling????")

The pearl business. Many of you know I am in the incubation stage of a new business - importing and selling freshwater pearls on behalf of worthy causes. I love the pearl side, and I really LOVE highlighting good charities. It is time to build a website and make online sales available, but I hesitate! Online sales are scary to me! Will I do it? Stay tuned.

The girls - We are settled into the school routine. Evie actually looks forward to seeing Mrs. Huggins. Juliette still loves school and her teachers and classmates. I love that they love school and like to help out at school when I can.

So, that is what is up with me. Next up, another pearl sale (fingers crossed that it will be a good one!) and Rory Stewart, the Prince of the Marshes.

We'll go back to cute stories about the girls in the next post.

I'm Sorry (I'm Sorry), So Sorry (So Sorry), Please Accept My Apology

For all of you under sixty, the above are the lyrics to a Brenda Lee song from the 50's. It should be Evie's theme song.

I believe we have mentioned Evie's penchant for mischief. She loves nothing more than to walk up to her sister, grab baby panda away and watch the sparks fly. There is not a malicious bone in her body, but she does love cause and effect like no one else.

She spends a fair amount of time in time out. More than a fair amount of time.

But time out doesn't end the Manise Inmate Regentrification Program for Time Out Participants (MIRPTOPC). The next step is the offender must apologize for whatever infraction, and the wronged must forgive. Finally, there must be a hug. The hug gives Evie a chance to tackle Juliette all over again.

Evie has to apologize all the time. All the time!

Consequently, sorry is her new favorite word. If you take something away from her, she says sorry, if you bump into her, she says sorry. If she brushes past you in the hall, she says sorry.

It is more than a little embarassing in public. I feel like I need to wait this one out. I never thought I would long for the "no mama, go away!" days again.

Goodbye, Huggins!

Humbled

We forget we are parents of Chinese girls. The girls are just the girls and most days it never occurs to us they came to be apart of our family in a non-traditional manner. Certainly in Northern Virginia, there are so many non-traditional families we blend in wherever we go.

So, we found ourselves in a funny situation a few weeks ago. Many of you know I pursue culinary excellence in an Indiana Jones-like manner. Yes, I use the Post Dining Guide, The Washingtonian, and Zagat rigorously to hunt down restaurants, but I trend toward the unpolished gems in those resources, versus a Citronelle or Maestro. This devotion led us to a new (to us) Chinese restaurant in Alexandria.

On the food side, it was some of the most authentic Chinese food we've found in the DC area. We love A&J for dim sum and love the higher end Chinese fare that is popular for hosting Presidents
diplomats but the solid tastes of Beijing at bargain prices have eluded us until this restaurant.

The food was evenly wonderful, some of the dishes were even great. We were only sad there weren't more of us eating to justify tasting more dishes, we will definitely return to this place - with more people!

Now, the humbling part. The restaurant is small, with maybe only about 10 or twelve tables. At least six of them were large round tables to eat in a group of 10- which is also very traditionally Chinese. We got there around 6 pm and got a smaller table right away.

Right after we arrived, a bus pulled up and the restaurant's larger tables filled with visitors from China. At this point, we were one of two tables of diners were not Chinese natives. This attracted some attention, and the visitors from the tour bus realized we weren't Chinese but the girls were.

Then the toasting started, and the thank you's, and the pictures. We feel so blessed by the girls being ours, we returned thank you's.

I couldn't help but wonder if I were in China and ran across kids from the U.S. who had been adopted by Chinese families if I would have had the same wonderful response. Bruce and I were incredibly blessed by the experience and their warmth to us. It was humbling to be thanked for something we feel we have benefited so much from!

We said goodbye, then we drove off and once again became the typical anonymous Northern Virginia family.

Juliette scraped her lip last week! Ouch!!

Top Ten Children's Books

We are big readers in this house. Each of us has our favorites. When I am asked what my favorite book is, I produce a list of 10.

Here are my top 10 favorites for the girlies! In no particular order, as that would be waaay too hard.

1. Zen Shorts (jon muth's illustrations and stories are uniformly strong)
2. The Quiltmakers Gift (again the illustrations! the story!!!!)
3. Jamberry (bruce degen transforms the world into berries with the most appealing rhymes)
4. Snoozers (we sing this book cover to cover)
5. The Big Red Barn (Margaret Wise Brown in top form!)
6. The Cat that Walked Across France (great impressionist art, puts small children to sleep - a perfect book, no?)
7. The Runaway Rice Cake (dumplings, noodles, nian gao, oh my!)
8. If You Give a Pig a Pancake (I like this book so much I rewrote it as satire and presented it to colleagues)
9. When Pigasso Met Mootisse - a Moosterpiece
10. The Giving Tree - delightful to read with a small girl who squeaks every last word in the sentence.

Email me your favorites!

Busted

Every person has their vice. Some of us have more than one.

Mine include:
Chocolate - preferably European
Iced Venti Americano from Starbucks
Project Runway

This post is about vice #2. For those of you who knew me a long time ago, you know I was a committed tea drinker. About five years ago, work became waaay more demanding and I found that an iced coffee could keep my energy up. It has since become a serious addiction.

Now, with two small children, I spend more at Starbucks than I do at the movies or on clothes or books. I get ornery when I don't get it. I plot travel based on drive thru locations, I had serious reservations about going to the Outer Banks this summer knowing I would be more than 50 miles away from the closest one.

So, yesterday was a busy morning before gymnastics. Too busy, in fact to make the requisite stop on the way to gymnastics. Juliette has an hour class first, then Evie and I go to Mommy & Me (sidebar: imagine me on a trampoline, yes it is that funny.)

I thought after kissing Juliette - why not find a coffee place close by? I asked a mom, got directions and took off, knowing Evie and I would be back in plenty of time to cheer Juliette through the rings and uneven bars.

Guess who had to go to the potty 5 minutes before I returned? When I walked through the door back into the building, 10 pair of mommy eyes were looking sympathetically at their peer who had been busted sneaking out to Starbucks.

Juliette came out, accusations flew. Thank heavens I had brought along a hot chocolate for her. Forgiveness was granted and an action plan was put in place in case I ever felt the need for coffee again. It would be ok, as long as I notified her in advance.

Here is what we looked like on the first day of school

The past week

So in the past week the following happened--

Sunday -- We had a birthday party for Evie - never give hairbrushes as a party gift because...

Monday -- We have a lice scare (and treatment) with Juliette - phone calls to all birthday party participants ensue (as well as school)

Tuesday -- Jennifer goes out with friends for the evening. Juliette throws up in Bruce's lap

Wednesday -- Evie catches a cold

Thursday -- Juliette, Evie, and Jennifer go the aquarium in Baltimore to meet friends, see dolphins. Cry! Dolphins splash small children, another parental error in judgement (they really WON'T splash us if we sit here in the splash zone.)

Friday -- House cleaned - Hurray! Mommy and Evie go to story time at the library and she isn't the wildest child in the room (double Hurray! Mrs. Huggins is working!!!) Juliette and Mommy go to Borders and read books. Highlights include Angelina's Halloween (Mommy is a sellout) and Sleeping Beauty (disney claptrap).

What will the weekend bring for pestilence, famine or plague? Stay tuned.

P.S. You haven't lived until you have heard the Manise sisters sing I've Been Working on the Railroad. Rush to the phone and dial us before they grow out of it!

Yesterday was the first anniversary of gotcha day for Evie

OT-

What I should be blogging about is the first week of school. The fact that on the first morning I broke into the house looking for my keys when I had been sitting on them. How Evie cries and tries to escape when she gets dropped off - but she's made it!

Instead, let's talk about pop culture a bit.

Television
Project Runway-Gotta love this show. It is my destination television.
As is Charlie Rose - who always makes me interested in delving more into whatever topic he is covering.

Books
The Places In Between - by Rory Stewart. Just finished it and LOVED it. Although I found myself getting frustrated with him about halfway through his walk across Afghanistan. Will be reading The Prince of the Marshes after my birthday.

Magazine I most want to read-
The New Yorker article on the Clinton legacy.

Magazine I will most likely read-
Cooking Light

Movies
Little Miss Sunshine - the only movie I have seen in the theater for the past six months. Those of you who know me well, know I saw40-50 movies a year pre-children, premarriage.

Cache - a rental, but a thoughtful one. This little French film with two big actors Juliette Binoche and Daniel Autiel sticks with you. You wonder what just happened?

Next up--
Work, work and more work.

Happy 2nd Birthday, Evie! We LOVE YOU!!

Top 5 Things Evie Doesn't Like

5. Time out - while she tolerates it pretty well, she is getting more and more obedient when we start counting. There are still days where she spends more time in the time out chair than in the real world. You all can report me for that.

4. Loud noises - ambulances, motorcades, low airplanes. She has no problem MAKING loud noises, but that is another story completely.

3. Vegetables. Why is it that little girls from China are such fantastic vegetable eaters until they are two? Is it because they have had the sweet ambrosia of Chik-fil-A once too often? Is once a month too often? Hopefully this is a stage.

2. Men with beards. She seems to be improving on this, but is not a fan of the fuzzy face.

1. HER PRESCHOOL CLASSROOM! It is the same as her Sunday classroom. Evie is NOT a fan of the nursery. It is pretty chaotic and crowded, and I completely understand where she is coming from on Sunday morning. Her two year old mind can't separate school from Sunday morning. We visited today and she clung like a barnacle. This is the same child who held a strangers hand from an office building across the parking lot to the car today. The same child who I had a stranger stop from running out in traffic on Tuesday - she has no fear except of the things listed above and her Sunday classroom. It is going to be interesting to see if she overcomes this.

Pictures and an update Monday.

On another note. Juliette cleaned her room herself today and did such a great job (even the shoes were put nicely in the closet.) She clearly takes after her father's side of the family.

A Visit from Cousin Missy

Bikini Lust

Probably there is no more frequent post on a parental blog than that of the quest for HER. The perfect babysitter.

Too serious in her studies to go crazy for boys, not overburdened with extra curriculars, loves kids. Won't burn down the house or do drugs. We know she exists, out there somewhere. We've heard of sightings in the upper Northwest area. We have yet to experience her ourselves.

Instead, we lust. Wherever we go. After teenage girls. At the pool, we know them by their bikinis. Everyone we categorize - too revealing, too sparkly, too come and get me, etc.

We meet parents with children our age. While only too happy to share the latest about college funds, the best pediatricians, where they go shopping for the baby's shoes, the same parents suddenly clam up and edge away when asked about who watches their kids when they go out.

At the mall, the teenage girls travel in packs. We ask people slightly older than us about their teenaged daughters. With the mall crowd and the friend's kids it is more difficult to discern if they would invite their boyfriend over or go through our stuff whereas the bikini tells us everything we need to know.

Last night we went out to dinner with my parents, the restaurant we were at lost power due to the storm. While everyone in the restaurant waited for the lights to return, one of the hostesses started playing with Evie.

Then, like manna from heaven it happened. "Do you ever need a babysitter?" She asked us. A college student, with serious glasses, no visible tattoos, studying child development psychology asking to watch our children. We exchanged vital information after I picked myself up from the floor.

Is it perfect? No, she lives too far away - but it could happen a couple of times.

Dinner and a movie. Not with her, but together. Blissfully together.

Alone.