you can’t always get what you want
24 Apr 2013 4 Comments
in I need to tell you about this right now Tags: Alergy, Bike Riding, children, Creek, Family, freedom and independence, health, humor, Kids, Life, mental-health, parenting, Park, Photography, Picnic, transportation, Water
This is a state park near us. We go to walk, to picnic, to lay about – actually that’s what I go for.
My family goes there to bike.
I think I’ve told you before. Haven’t I? It’s no biggie. Everyone has something. Some people can’t eat a peanut. Some can’t have dairy (the horror). Some are diabetic. I too have a debilitating challenge. I can’t ride a bike. Well, technically I may be able to actually ride a bike without killing myself, but I really really don’t want to.
My family tried to have an intervention a couple of years ago. They were horrified for me. My husband lived on his bike throughout his childhood. Both my kids adore their bikes. They gave me a long list of reasons why I’d love it. The freedom! The independence! So I finally caved in and they bought me a fancy bike. Took me out every night to practice. And I tried. I acted excited. I seemed enthused. It was awful.
I don’t like riding a bike. It makes me nervous. It makes me feel out of control. It gives me zero happiness. Freedom and independence are not for me. Sorry.
This causes great sadness in my family. I’m like a traitor among them. An alien. They’ll never be able to ride like a full family.
They’ll get over it.
Do you world Promise?
13 Mar 2013 1 Comment
in Brave New World Tags: Baby, Brothers, Family, humor, Kids, Life, Only child, parenting, Photography, Siblings, Sisters
These two monkeys live in my house and yell and fight and laugh all day long.
They’ve been at it since she was 5 and he was born.
They are 5 years apart. Two little Scorpios.
She was going to be an only child – imagine that! But then we came to our senses and added the ying to her yang.
They are so different. And so alike. They write each other letters of love and devotion – and then sell each other out at the drop of a hat.
She’s his best friend – says him.
He’s her best friend – says him.
When they tell each other secrets they make a “world” promise. The biggest, most powerful kind of promise. A promise that, if broken, can have dire circumstances. These usually involve hidden candy in their rooms, newly learned bad words or inappropriate videos on YouTube. The usual world promise stuff.
Last night I was writing another blog post and my girl asked what the topic was. When I told her what I was writing about she said,”oh. you should write about me and Jack.” So there you go.
I have a dream…
21 Jan 2013 6 Comments
in I need to tell you about this right now Tags: Blogging, Life, marriage, parenting, Time, work, Writing
that I’ll start writing this blog again one day!! What’s happened? Where is WMEP? Saving the world? Moving mountains? Not really. Just working and mothering and wife’ing. Time is on hyberdrive and I cannot keep up – are you all shaking your head in unison or shaking your head in revolt? Don’t tell me. Just hang in there. All 2 of you. The posts will be back soon. Really.
Just another Scorpio Sunday
18 Nov 2012 1 Comment
in I need to tell you about this right now Tags: Baby, baby food, Birthday, cake, Childbirth, Daughter, Family, humor, kiddies, Life, Manhattan, parenting, Photography, Scorpio, skin tone, Taxi, transportation, upper east side
I’m a Gemini mom married to a Cancer dad livin’ in a Scorpio world with my two kiddies. My oldest, my goldest, turned 14 today. Gulp. I know she doesn’t want me to post about her, but I have to. It’s a blogging law.
So in 1998, at 5am ish I woke my hubby up. He was sleeping on the couch because we’d had a fight and I needed the entire queen mattress to myself to get over it…..we walked down our railroad apartment on the Upper East Side of Manhattan (passing uncle Larry as he was about to walk Gracie). We hailed a cab and headed to Lenox Hill Hospital – about 10 blocks South of us. My water broke in the cab but the driver had us there in 5 minutes (we tipped big for the clean up!).
She was born shortly after, the first grandkid for both our families. There have been lots of great moments in between, each worthy of its own post. Like when she was a few months old and I fell asleep feeding her on the couch and dropped her, or when she ate so much cake at her 1st birthday party that she passed out from the sugar high, or when everyone told me she was turning yellow from all the baby food and I told them it was just her skin tone. Good times.
Smart, Beautiful, Funny, and most importantly ours!
The Road to Hell?
28 Aug 2012 6 Comments
in Brave New World Tags: earrings, Family, High School, humor, Jewelry, Life, parenting, Photography, Rules
So tomorrow, at 6:30am, my little girl starts high school. Yes. I know. High School.
But….but…she was just born yesterday. How did this happen? Make it stop.
At the beginning of the summer, she started talking about getting her cartilage pierced. Then she talked about it for 90 days and 2,160 minutes non-stop.
Last week, mission accomplished. Finally.
What I forgot to tell her was to ease our family into it. Most of her aunts, cousins, etc. love it. But some folks, aka MY MOTHER, were mortified. Why? Why? She asked. She didn’t say it – but I knew what she was thinking. This is an open door, this is the start of delinquency, what’s next – Crack? No. No. And No.
Between you, me and the world – I had no issues with it. Dating, Facebook, the World Wide Web? I have issues with. A second earring? Not so much. My two cents on this – as long as she’s a good human being in the world and isn’t hurting herself or anyone else (and not a crack addict) – go for it.
Her Dad was a little more reluctant and unsure, but he knows she’s a good kid and went for it (ok, he didn’t go for it but he didn’t block the door). We’ll take it.
Danke
07 Aug 2012 4 Comments
in I need to tell you about this right now Tags: Award, Death, Family, Friends, humor, Life, parenting
Liebster is German for beloved, favorite or darling. It’s also a blog award – who knew you could get awards for public rambling? Well you can. And I did.
A big thank you very much to squirrelcircus.wordpress.com for thinking of me. You shouldn’t have, but I’m so excited you did. Could it have been pity for my pathetic day yesterday? Maybe. Maybe Liebster really means you-poor-sad-fool-you-need-this-badly. I’ll take that too. All of you should check her blog out – it’s funny, smart and sassy.
Per the “rules” I have to answer the following questions. I love an award that forces me to be even more self focused and self obsessed.
Favorite quote, and why?
“Demented and sad, but social” — The Breakfast Club
I don’t know why. I can recite the entire movie with no explanation too. Every time I meet a really messed up person at work or at life – I always think of this line.
One thing about you that people wouldn’t assume by looking at you?
I have a mini obsession with Jay Z. No. Not with Beyoncé. With J. Nuff said.
Would you rather forgive something said about you or verbally lash the person who said it?
I think I would say I forgive – and others would say I lash out. Tomato – potato.
Something about you that makes you really proud
Easy. The two little Scorpios that rule my world.
A single favorite book you wouldn’t mind reading twice or thrice. Why?
hmmmm. Does a really long Vanity Fair article count?
One person whose death would change you? Why?
One person? There’s a list of people whose death would derail me for all the human reasons that you can imagine.
What’s that which you desire the most from life?
Happiness and safety for the aforementioned Scorpios.
Your favorite word.
Yes.
Beauty comes from ______ ?
wine colored glasses.
Five things that life is about.
In this order: laughter, family, friends, cheese, and chocolate.
Sweet sweet summer
29 May 2012 1 Comment
in Brave New World Tags: Diet, food, humor, Ice Cream, Kids, Life, parenting, Photography, Summer
It’s hot here. Really hot. Frizzy hair hot. The kind of hot that only a large body of water can help. Not that I would ever swim in an ocean, or a pool – but that’s another story.
Anyway, it’s this heat that inspired this post. My kids, like all kids, love the summer. Their father taught them how to swim – and they do – like fish. We try to head towards the ocean come July. When I started looking at some of our old water migration photos – I noticed a trend. See if you can spot it….or lick it.
I call these – the ice cream chronicles. From Montauk, to Lake George, to Mexico and Cape Cod. We’ve eaten treats all over the hemisphere. Like mother like kids. The last two shots were taken by my daughter, who will no longer let me take sloppy food shots of her (doesn’t she love me?).
Smells like teen spirit…and it really is Nirvana
01 May 2012 8 Comments
in I need to tell you about this right now Tags: Friendships, Girls, Growing up, humor, Ireland, Life, parenting, Teenagers
Girls. Teen girls. Preteen girls. Here they are in their natural state.
No one giving a mandatory peace sign while they stick their tongue out a la Miley Cyrus.
My girl is the one in the back – her two best buds are the cuties in the front (their mother is one of MY best buds, didn’t that work out well?)
This was taken at a local St. Patrick’s Day parade this year – I had taken 100 pictures of the three of them. Each one identical (see note above re: peace sign). This was 101. Snuck in. A surprise. It’s my favorite.
As mothers we know what’s coming. Relationships, break-ups, college, jobs, and if they choose…love-marriage-kids.
But for now, for today. I like to see them like this. Giggling, silly, happy, wearing appropriate holiday attire and not trying to grow up too fast.
Let the wild rumpus start! (anyone? anyone?)
27 Apr 2012 6 Comments
in Brave New World Tags: Boys, Family, humor, Kids, Life, parenting
This is my boy and his best bud. When they aren’t wilding the neighborhood (more on that later) – they climb.
Trees, fences, big rocks, barriers to sewers – nothing can stop them. They pack a snack, they make plans, and they go.
Sometimes they come back with a nice wild flower or funny story. Most times they have be hunted down and brought to justice for being late for soccer or baseball or piano or life.
After raising a girl who likes to do “inside” things like her Mom, it was a shock to my system to get this little monkey. But I’m catching on. I yell. A lot.
There are more than just these two hooligans in the gang – but I need to ease you into this life of crime.
