spring photopalooza

Mr. B is now SIX.  Six!  Can you believe it?  He has started karate classes and he's loving it.  And I love it, because it seems like it's channeling his energy into something really positive.  The teacher, Mr. Jason, is so good with the kids--expects a lot, but has a kind and humorous manner to which B responds well.  It may be a coincidence, but Barrett's behavior charts have improved significantly since he started these classes.  Oh, and another benefit: we had his birthday party there.

A little karate instruction, a few games, obstacle courses, a Sonic the Hedgehog pinata, and cake.  Cut, of course, with an enormous samurai sword:

It was the best birthday party EVER.  I've never been so relaxed.  Jason and his assistant Mr. Ty (sp?) took care of EVERYTHING, and the parents and I just sat back and enjoyed watching the kids participate, "yes SIR!"ing and "hiYA!" ing at full volume.

Funny: the Sonic pinata would not break, even though the kids were giving it full whacks without blindfolds on.  Finally, Mr. Jason had to bust out his nunchucks to finish the job--and the pinata DENTED the nunchucks.  That is one tough hedgehog.

Ella has decided she wants to wear more girly clothes, instead of just T-shirts and leggings.  This is her dressed up as "a celebrity."

We dyed eggs at the last possible minute.  I returned from California on Friday night, and Saturday morning I woke up and remembered "the eeeeeeggggggs!" Put the eggs on to boil and raced to Walgreens for a PAAS kit.  We finished at 10:32 and brought them down just in time for the big kids to do the hiding.

Really the best parts of that party (in the kids' opinion) are  a) the donut holes and b) the zipline.

We ventured out to the Science and Technology Fest in DC last weekend.  My superstar dad drove us down, dropped us off, then biked to join us.  The kids loved all the interactive exhibits.  I was a little overwhelmed by the crowds--having trade show flashbacks.

Speaking of which, I went to Indianapolis for a trade show and to Clovis for a week of work meetings, mainly because we have a new salesperson for MultiSight!  Who is awesome and fun and funny and full of great ideas.

And now I'm back, and spring is sprung and the dogwoods and azaleas are blooming and the birds are chirping through my open windows and I just LOVE Virginia.  (Cue music... "and I think to myself...what a wonderful world.")

snow big deal

Ella received a joke book for Christmas, so it's been Joke (and Pun) Central up in here.  Some she reads from the book, others she creates herself.  Example: today her class was reading different Aesop's Fables, including the one about Peacock and Juno.  Ella's joke: Knock knock.  Who's there?  Juno.  Juno who? Juno who I am?  Open this door.

I thought that was pretty good.

Barrett's need a little more explaining.  "What's Abraham Lincoln's favorite food?"  "Hamburger!" "..." "Like in AbraHAM, he likes HAMburgers." "Ah!  Hahahaha!"

I'm not sure Abe gets it

Barrett has been getting lots of numbers on his behavior chart at school and I'm at my wit's end.  Every day this chart comes home with him in his folder.  A star or sticker indicates a good day with no issues.  A number represents a particular rule violation, like "I was talking out of turn" or "I hurt a friend on the outside." And then there are notes of explanation like "Barrett had a lot of trouble controlling his body during circle time."  I talk to him seriously and impose a consequence, like no screens or no dessert each time he gets a number, but it seems like the behaviors are getting worse, not better.  And he wants to blame others or excuse himself by saying "I want to be good but it's hard to remember!" Maybe this is just a phase, or maybe he's not getting enough sleep, or maybe I need to find a consequence that he really cares about.  He's expressing interest in karate--maybe the sensei at the dojo can whip him into shape.  We'll see.

notice what his shirt says

Ella has participated in jump rope club this winter.  When we received the announcement of the club's performance, I wondered what that would entail.  Wouldn't they just be...jumping?  But no, they jump in different patterns, to music, with stops and starts.  It was actually pretty cool.  And Ella had to brave to get out there in front of all of those high school kids at the TJ basketball game.

jump rope BFFs

Sibling rivalry continues unabated, with quarrels and constant checking to be sure someone didn't get more/better/first of anything, especially Mommy's attention.  But E and B have also developed a really cool friendship.  They crack each other up and play together in a way that's new--elaborate games of pretend, with complicated story lines that carry over from day to day.  And Legos are a source of mutual joy, always.

Ninjago temple construction on a snow day

I should acknowledge the snow.  There has been a LOT this year.  I think someone said we'd had 8 named snowstorms.  And almost that many snow days.  We've made up 1 day already, and have 1 more to go, provided that we don't have any more closures.   Funny how we come to expect delays and closures--we had 2 inches this morning and I was shocked that everything ran on time.

channeling Olaf

picturesque snowfall--it still thrills me

And just 3 days ago, it looked like this.  Ella spent the afternoon in shorts and flip-flops while B taught himself to ride a bike.

soaking up the sun in DC

I continue to deal with severe headaches about once a month.  I've found a medicine that works, but it also makes me sick to my stomach.  This feels more manageable than just suffering through headaches that last for days and necessitate time in dark, quiet rooms.

B had some poor health last month.  We spent a nerve-wracking evening in the ER, and were relieved to learn that his abdominal pain had a straightforward cause and cure: megadoses of Miralax and plenty of water.  I think I've written this before but I'll write it again: I am deeply grateful to have insurance that allowed me to get B evaluated, and a hospital like INOVA Fairfax with such a fantastic pediatric ER.

5 hours in the ER

I've been enjoying making new connections and renewing old ones.   I meet friends once or twice a week for coffee, and have been meeting separately with Laura for life coaching--really helpful and encouraging. I attended a wonderful meditation retreat at the UU Church in Bethesda, led by Tara Brach and a monthly women's group Laura is starting up (trying desperately not to think of this SNL skit).

vision board!  (no yogurt)

I'm still going to book club and I volunteered twice at my church's hypothermia prevention shelter--this was such a good way to connect more directly with people from the congregation.  I have pushed myself out of my comfort zone to arrange playdates with E and B's classmates and get to know some other moms, as well as having a few low-stress playdates with Tay and his kids.

good buddies

I am trying to be more intentional about spending time with my parents.  It helps to plan ahead, because all 3 of us are busy and we just have to put dates on the calendar even if it seems like that shouldn't be necessary.  We had dinner together last week, and this weekend Mom and I are going out to a matinee.

And we're all enjoying Oliver, now that we've figured out he prefers to sit NEXT TO people rather than ON them.

see how happy he looks (yeah he looks pretty much the same when he's unhappy too)

So, emotionally things are wonderful.  Financially, I'm feeling a bit pinched--I need to get a grip on my budget.  All of this socializing, and coming and going adds up.  And it adds up physically too--exercise hasn't been a priority AT ALL.  I keep thinking motivation will hit me again and I'll find some activity I can do consistently, but so far...nothing.

I haven't posted links for a while but it's 11:10 pm, so instead of links, here are a few items I recommend (maybe I'll link 'em later):

• Books: Life After Life by Kate Atkinson and Gulp by Mary Roach
• TV Shows: The Bletchley Girls, Call the Midwife, The Fall, Luther (yes I'm on a BBC kick)
• Movie: American Hustle and Frozen
• Websites:  Girl's Gone Child has been writing some beautiful and intense posts the last few weeks.  And hey look, we revamped MultiSight.com (so proud of this site--mad props to Amanda Tjahjadi!)
• Songs: Pompeii by Bastille, Pop Danthology 2013, Diamond by Lightning Dust
• Twitter feed: @capitalweathergang -- the very best source for snow and ice info round these parts
• Pandora station: Breathe Owl Breathe radio
• Podcasts: Snap Judgment and RadioLab (last few have been crazy-good).

Quarterly update?

yeesh, I haven't posted here since JULY?  What?  Huh?  Wha...?  I won't even try to catch up.  Just give a brief snapshot of what's up here, now, on the eve of November.

Kids are out trick or treating with Nigel.   Please to meet the Rainbox Fox and the Blue Ninja. (Maskless at the moment, because it's warm.)

Ella originally wanted to be a werewolf but after studying pictures and the costume shop options, she changed her plan.  Cuter.  And the rainbow aspect was a bonus.  Check out those mitts!

So I'm here answering the door and puttering.  Just about time to put on my "tonight pants." (Hat tip to Andrew from TBTL--perfect expression for the clothes I put on when I know I'm not leaving the house again.)

I have morning pants too.  Now that Nigel is in training to be a bus driver and leaves the house at 5:30, I'm in charge of getting the kids on the bus.  And kindergarteners need to be accompanied by a grown-up so there's none of this shoving them out the door and saying "have a nice day!"  I have to get shoes on and get out there myself.  It's still dark at that hour.

I am having trouble getting the hang of kindergarten.  With Ella, I was so BRACED for it, I inspected every paper that came home and made sure E was on top of her homework.  With B, I have lagged.  Books and papers go astray in our house, so I'm returning things late or not at all.  I haven't done a damn thing for the PTA yet.

I guess I should give myself SOME credit.  I signed the kids up for drama class, and Ella for jump rope club.  And I volunteer once a week in their classrooms--well, with Barrett, I'm in his art class which is fun and a lot of work.  I am on the go the WHOLE time. (Natalie, I do not know how you do this without an aide.)

The kids go to after-school care this year (finally made it off the waiting list!) and we all love this. When I come to pick up the kids, they groan  And they're both finishing up their fall soccer season (praise be!).  It felt extra-hassly this fall with overlapping schedules and different locations for games and practices--after the first few weeks, I was ready to quit, but we hung in there.  I showed up for all the games (except last weekend when I was in NYC) and I brought the snacks when it was my turn but I freely admit that I often stayed in the car during practices.  Gung-ho soccer mom I am not.

 
Boy, it's a good thing I take pictures or I would have no memory of the last 3 months.

We have pumpkin patched:

And apple-picked:

And hiked and paddle-boated:

And traveled to California where we visited and hotel-buffeted and hot-tubbed:

And came home where we birthday-partied (like 4 weekends in a row):

And ate dinner out way too often: Subway, Ledo's Pizza, Elevation Burger, Greene Turtle, Flippin' Pizza, Wendy's:

The kids ran a 5K fundraiser for school and I wogged one to commemorate 9/11:

We also had our first go-round with lice.  'Nough said about that.  Move along, nothing to see here...

All in all, life is grand.  Truly.

Petland, party, summer camps, and spectacles

Last Tuesday I drove to Columbus, Ohio to observe the installation of our system at our second REAL customer: Petland.  I drove because the date kept shifting, and I wasn't sure how many days it would take.  Doing the 2 locations ended up taking 3 full days, but I left on Friday morning, so that I could be home to see my kids.  (In retrospect, driving wasn't a terrific idea--that was a lot of hours in the car, and Enterprise gave me a goddamn Toyota Yaris, which has NOTHING to recommend it, at least the version I had) (driver's cupholder on the LEFT?  speedometer in the middle?  tiny unobtrusive gas gauge?  completely non-intuitive radio controls?  It's the little stuff--seems like they changed standard elements just to be different, rather than to be more usable.  End rant.)

I stood around and took notes and pictures while this guy did all the work

Spending so much time in a pet store was actually kind of fun.  The Petland animals are well cared for (both the fancy breeds and the rescues), the staff are friendly, and the customers' enthusiasm is contagious.  Especially all of the little kids playing with puppies.  And bunnies and guinea pigs and hamsters.  Eeeeeeeee!  Serious cute overload.

It was hot.  Petland gave their customers (and me) free water.  (You had to pay for the pig's ears.)

I got home Friday in time to prep for Ella's belated birthday fest.  We went to see Despicable Me 2--very enjoyable--at Rave Cinemas Fairfax Corner, then right next door to California Pizza Kitchen, for lunch, presents, cake, and ice cream.  Oh, and then a detour to jump in the fountains.  Ella and her friends went all in.  It was a little annoying to have to haul everything with me to the theater and restaurant (Wegman's cake in a Trader Joe's insulated bag) but on the whole, this was the easiest party I've ever hosted--really minimal hosting involved, and everyone had a smashing time.  

the girls at lunch

yeah, that's right, cake AND ice cream

T couldn't believe it either

that water felt so good

me and sweet E

Ella received some lovely presents including a Lego Friends set (Lego for girls).  This is the new favorite toy for both E and B, especially when we throw a little Ninjago action into the mix too.  

Goldy the Ninjago dragon serves as a school bus for the Lego girls 

The kids enjoyed Vacation Bible School last week--they're still singing about Zaccheus (did you know he was a wee little man?  A wee little man was he?).  And this week, they are in Junior Camp R.O.C.S. through Fairfax County Parks and Rec.  So far so good there too.  They love their teenaged counselors, swimming every day, making tie-dyed T-shirts, eating packed lunches with special treats, and using their new backpacks.  And *I* love getting to put in full days at the office.  More productive mommy by day makes for a much happier and patient mommy by night.  Win-win-win.

first day of camp (looks like first day of school)

Last update item: I got new glasses.  Updated my prescription, and I really hope that this will take care of my stinkin' headaches for good.  

nerd alert

have to start somewhere

When this much time has elapsed between posts, it's difficult to know where to begin.  Pictures help remind me of major events, but they never tell the whole story.  (Apologies for reposting some photos that I've posted elsewhere, but I like to have them here on the blog, to help me keep the timelines straight.)

We went to Beverly Beach, on the Chesapeake Bay.  Just a day trip, but the awesomeness of water, sand, and sky cannot be overstated.

 We celebrated the end of school.  B had Wild West Days in May.  And in June E and her class played games outdoors.

B had no interest in un-moustaching himself when Wild West Days were over.

Sad to say goodbye to Mrs. Exum.  Hope this picture conveys a little bit of how wonderful she is.

Memorial Day weekend was a time for hanging with dear friends.

hello pretty ladies!

And their amazing children.

ice cream treats poolside

We also managed to schedule a playdate for Mr. B (poor guy just about never gets playdate time because this mom is too lazy to organize them).

B and his buddy

In June, we celebrated Fairfax at the county fair.  Spent too much, but the petting zoo and the butterfly tent made it all worthwhile.

my brave kids

I went to Dallas for an event to promote MultiSight, and connect with the folks who will be selling it eventually.

Bonus: BBQ dinner at South Fork ranch. I think I was the only one of my group who was over-the-top thrilled by being at the home of the Ewings.

I came home and proceeded to Maximize Fun (anyone W&M folks remember Matthew Gillen saying that?).   Started with a trip to Roosevelt Island with Grandpa.  All went well until young Master Barrett wandered into some nettles.

by the TR memorial (notice the purple winter boots -- oy!)

We've been dealing with lots of attitude from B. this summer.  Sulkiness, defiance, pushing and hitting.  I'm hoping this is just a stage.  In the meantime, meet Thundercloud Boy (aka Stands with a Pout).  

His sunny disposition reemerged during a quick trip to Lake of the Woods (courtesy of Jane and her wonderful family).  These 3 had so much fun playing together, swimming, drawing with chalk, digging in sand, and watching Madagascar.  Jane, Rick, and I had so much fun hanging at the lakeside tiki bar.  

fun in an outdoor shower

life jackets were not optional

The morning after we returned from the lake, I hopped on a plane to Clovis.  Arrived to hear the Prop 8 and DOMA decisions, so of COURSE I went to the rally at City Hall.   Spent Thursday in Clovis, then a day up in Los Altos, visiting a potential customer, and eating lunch with Amity (bonus!), then heading back for dinner at the Cracked Pepper with my dear friend Elana.  Headed for home on Friday but didn't make it back until Saturday night.

No H8

delicious eggplant appetizer and my delightful companion

In an effort to be adventurous, we tried bone marrow.  DID NOT LIKE.  

It was hot in Fresno.  I complained about it.  A lot.

I got stuck in Phoenix overnight.  It was hot there too.

On to July!  The Fourth at Mt. Vernon was not as hellishly hot as last year, but the kids still had trouble holding it together.  We took refuge in the museum--A/C yay! scary animatronic soldier under a blanket rolling towards us and scaring the crap out of B not-yay!  (Two weeks later and he's still talking about it.  Reminds me very much of Charlie's "Remember that bad old train?  That SCARED me.")

snuggle-bear

And finally, the great day arrived--Ella's 7th birthday.  Boy oh boy was she ready for that day to come.  Like last year, we lunched at Red Robin with my parents.  New this year: a treasure hunt with rhyming clues to find gifts I'd hidden throughout the house.  No party planned--just a girls' day out with her 3 girl friends planned for this Saturday--we'll have lunch and go to see Despicable Me 2.

hula hoop was a hit (Ella can go and go; me and B, not so much)

Thrilled by the birthday song from the Red Robin servers

The neighborhood party was on the 6th.  I felt so much more at ease this year.  I know a few more people, and I had the kids nap in the afternoon so that they would be in good form and last all the way through the fireworks show.   They did it!  They ziplined for hours a nd participated in a massive glowstick project with all the other kids in the neighborhood.

Don't ask me how but Barrett bit through a glowstick -- apparently, they don't taste as pretty as they look

You still there?  Almost done now.  This past weekend, we met Jane and Julian at Lake Accotink.  Beautiful day, marred only by a stupid headache which haunted me for 2 1/2 days.

hiking, boating, mini-golf, a carousel, and a lovely lake to boot 

Sunday, after church (Fairfax Pres, just up the road), we tried roller skating at a Manassas roller rink:  Bad Idea Jeans.  Hot.  Crowded. Loud.  And my kids did not like being on wheels.  We beat a hasty retreat to the snack bar.  That was more our speed.

This week is Vacation Bible School for the kids and a roadtrip to Columbus OH for me.  Good times all around.

Now that I'm caught up, I RESOLVE not to let myself get so backlogged again.  (Yeah, right.)