October 2006 Archives

Busy busy weekend, tired tired me. But let's do a quick recap for the record, shall we?

Friday night we went to Shabbat services at the synagogue, because 1) it was a special "welcome to religious education" blessing night for Kindergartners, and 2) it was Simchat Torah (which turned out to be a far more festive and fun holiday than we'd imagined--we're definitely going to do it again next year!). It was a little tough wrangling the crazy toddler during services--I spent a lot of the evening outdoors in the courtyard watching Isaac climb up and down the concrete steps--and Eli was feeling shy and tired and didn't want to dance and run around very much, but overall it was a relatively successful temple-going experience.

Yesterday (Saturday) started with a morning full of kid-wrangling while simultaneously house-cleaning (a combination that requires the ultimate in non-linear multi-tasking skillz, since you never really get to fully finish any one thing before you've followed the toddler into another room, and it can be minutes or hours until you pick up that particular task again--but somehow it all gets done eventually) and moved directly into an afternoon full of hostessing for the 7th annual "Swap 'n Shuffle". I don't think I've ever written about this event before on this blog--it's basically a women's clothing swap, where you invite tons of people and everyone cleans out their closet and brings over all those fabulous things that are just never going to fit or be worn, and then you all try on and take each others' stuff and whatever's left goes to charity. It's a very fun and supportive atmosphere--like shopping with a huge group of girlfriends, but with great backstories about certain items and the squishy good feeling of seeing your beloved skinny pants (or fat pants) going to someone else who will appreciate them. I got rid of a whole bunch of stuff (yay!) but didn't get too much back, I think partly because this time there weren't many people who were my size, and partly because I got distracted by hostessing and by baby-wrangling (Isaac inconsiderately woke up early, right in the middle of the event, and Josh was off at a playdate with Eli). But I did get some cute things and I know that other people really scored, so it was all good.

After all that swapping was over and the leftover clothes were all bagged up, Josh and I took the boys over to the Panda Room (kids' haircut place) for haircuts. It was Isaac's very first haircut, and he bore it stoically like the tough little dwarven prince he is (as opposed to his brother, who screamed and cried and threw an absolute hissy fit the first time he got his hair cut…and for a couple of years thereafter). He had a great time playing on the castle-with-slide and with the toys there while Eli was getting his hair cut, and then he was easily distracted by the basket of toys and soothed by the gentle manner of the hairdresser, so the whole thing went very smoothly. Whew! Eli was a total trooper too--his haircuts are sooooo much easier now than they used to be, and I am extremely glad for that.

After the haircuts were over we took our newly shorn boys out to the California Pizza Kitchen, which also went very smoothly. (It helps that they're a very kid friendly restaurant.) It was great to go out to dinner just the four of us, and the food was even decent (mmmm spinach artichoke dip). After that it was home, bedtime, and then cozying up on the couch with a good book for me. I've been reading a lot lately, which I always feel vaguely guilty about (I should be blogging! Writing! Processing pictures!) even though I try not to. I've needed the quiet downtime, I guess--and getting lost in someone else's words and stories is a great way for me to get it. (The only problem is that my eyes are not as strong as they used to be, so when I've read for an hour or two my vision starts to get really blurry. Eeek, I think I'm getting old(er)!)

Today I slept in a little and then Josh went off to a lecture and I had two playdates with the kids, one here at our house with two neighbor girls, and one at the park with a new friend of Eli's from Kindergarten. Both were much more entertaining for Eli than they were for me, but that's ok. Then we came back, met up with Josh, put Isaac down for a late nap, and just as I was getting myself some lunch, Josh's parents arrived for a visit. We spent the whole afternoon with them: we hung out around the house (Eli was very enamored of his Baba this visit and wanted him to color, do puzzles, play swords, and play board games with him), went for a quick visit to the local pumpkin patch, had a yummy elaborate Josh-cooked dinner and then put the kids to bed and visited a bit more before they left. And guess what? Now it's my bedtime. Miles to go tomorrow and a whole busy week ahead, of course. I really should be stricter about getting more sleep this week--this past week I didn't get more than 6.5 hours a night until the weekend came around, and it really started to take its toll. (I even had a cup of coffee on not one but two different days! Yikes! The long downhill slide back towards the daily caffeine habit has begun…)

Ok, ok, I give up, I'll do the meme. I like the idea of (relatively arbitrary) forced boundaries around creative endeavors--it's why in my paintings I've been repeating variations of female torsos over and over. Anyway, here goes:

Two Words:

1. Explain what ended your last relationship.
Different realities.

2. When was the last time you shaved?
Legs? Yesterday.

3. What were you doing this morning at 8 a.m.?
Rushing kids

4. What were you doing 15 minutes ago?
Kid bedtime

5. Are you any good at math?
Only basics

6. Your prom night?
Never went

7. Do you have any famous ancestors?
Define famous

8. Have you had to take a loan out for school?
Fortunately, no

9. Do you know the words to the song on your myspace profile?
There's songs?

10. Last thing received in the mail?
Wine shipment

11. How many different beverages have you had today?
Four? Huh.

12. Do you ever leave messages on people's answering machine?
Whenever necessary

13. Who did you lose your CONCERT virginity to?
Fleetwood Mac

14. Do you draw your name in the sand when you go to the beach?
When reminded

15. What's the most painful dental procedure you've had?
Root canal

16. What is out your back door?
Lawn, field

17. Any plans for Friday night?
Shabbat services

18. Do you like what the ocean does to your hair?
Not particularly

19. Have you ever received one of those big tins of 3 different popcorns?
Not personally

20. Have you ever been to a planetarium?
Many times

21. Do you re-use towels after you shower?
Almost always

22. Some things you are excited about?
Girlz Gamin'

23. What is your favorite flavor of JELLO?
Any red

24. Describe your keychain(s)?
Stripped down

25. Where do you keep your change?
Wallet pocket

26. When was the last time you spoke in front of a large group of people?
Often do

27. What kind of winter coat do you own?
Wool Beppa

28. What was the weather like on your graduation day?
Which graduation?

29. Do you sleep with the door to your room open or closed?
Cracked open

Hmm, now I have the urge to create a new one, with three words! Crazy!

Today was a sort of mashup of two recent entries: bra shopping and Sukkot. In the early part of the day, Dri and I went the big city Nordstrom's (where, as promised, they had a bigger selection in the lingerie department), and I got re-fitted (I think we're settling on 34G as the proper size, which I feel better about). Then after a good solid two hours of trying on various bras, I wound up with 4 very well-fitted and even reasonably pretty bras (my favorite one is black lace with pink flowers. Be still my heart!). So go me!

And then later in the afternoon when I got home, Josh and I and the kids headed back to the synagogue for yet another Sukkot celebration with our Sunday School class. The director of the school kindly volunteered to watch Isaac for much of the actual class session, so we could actually concentrate on what was going on, and it was a relatively interesting, if terribly earnest, class. We're all new to this "whole family education" concept, and we're all still relative strangers to one another, so it's still a little awkward, but we're all on our best behavior and trying really hard to find and make meaning out of what we're doing--and that's really what's important.

And now the kids are in bed and I'm worn out and ready to just power down in anticipation of another work-and-school week. So that's it for now.

Compared to last week, this was a relatively quiet week, with just the usual after-work activities (like yoga, gaming, and a bit of writing time) to entertain us. Tonight though we did something special: we went to a Sukkot party/Shabbat dinner at the synagogue. It was a really nice event, with lots and lots of families with small kids there. Eli was on (relatively) good behavior and seemed to really enjoy himself, and Isaac, though running around nonstop like the crazy toddler he is these days, also seemed to have a good time. It was all very warm and friendly, and it really is starting to feel more and more like we "belong" to this community.

In other news, I added another backstory blog entry and posted a whole bunch of pictures (including the wildly overdue Isaac picture update), so now I'm up to date! Go me! I'm really going to try to keep doing these backstory updates, so that the stories don't get lost even if I don't record them right when they happen. Even if no one else cares, I'm sure I'll enjoy looking back and be glad for the record later in our lives.

I just figured out that one of the biggest issues I have with this whole blogstipation thing is its very chronological-ness, its linear structure of day by day entry-making. Because if I miss too many days, I feel like I can't go forward until I go back, but it's too hard to go back all in one entry, it gets to be too much smorgasblog. So I'm taking a cue from Rebecca and going back and just filling in some short entries for all the things that happened this last week--because there were many stories I want to tell! And if this works out I might do some additional backdating. But I won't get too giddily ahead of myself just yet. Anyway, I put up another two blog entries, and hopefully there'll be more backstories to come soon. Keep an eye on that September archive.