Benjamin could not have been more excited to put out flags and see the parade. What’s even more exciting is that he is finally (FINALLYYYYYY!) riding his tricycle at the age of almost 4. I have no idea why he was so opposed to pedaling, but he was. So, from a pure kid-development perspective, I was thrilled to see him go after it. Here are some of my favorite shots from the weekend.

As we got ready for the parade, Husband noticed he had a stowaway on him. This little guy hung around for close to 10 minutes and wouldn’t go away. Isn’t it good luck when a butterfly lands on you?

Okay! Time to get our parade face on! Woo Hoo!

And now – a peek into our neighborhood parade. Here are snapshots of all sorts of folk gettin’ their Amurica on — my favorite is the hunting vehicle. As it should be.

There are a lot of folks in Washington who have forgotten what America is about. It’s nice to get a peek at the folks who still get it. G-d bless the men and women who have fought for our freedoms, died for them, and for their families who so bravely stand behind them so that we can dress up in stupid costumes to celebrate the land they choose to defend.

Hope wherever you are you had a great weekend full of fun, freedom, family, food and friends. G-d Bless, America.

“Go get my sister, Mommy.”

You got it, buddy. In just a few days.

Husband and I were talking last night about how we didn’t miss her until now and is that okay? I think it is. The pictures below are stolen (quite outright) from the camp’s website (thus the crappy resolution, sorry) so we’ve gotten to see her happy and having fun and this is good because waiting for letters from her and trying to get any details out of her in those letters is a futile, futile exercise in futility.

Before she left we needed some time apart. You know that feeling. But now? After seeing the fun and big goofy nutjob smile on her face? I want to see her and that smile and have some fun with her again.

Six days. Six days, buddy and we’ll go get her.

Sometimes all of those things collide in explosive and overwhelming ways and days and days go by with no time to sit and just “be”. Sometimes it’s not about to-do lists because the amount of things that need to get done and the time they need to be done in blow that idea of organization out of the water and the paper the to-do list was written on may as well be Kleenex.

I’ve spent the past 8 weeks traveling for some portion of every week. It is, not surprisingly, exhausting. I signed up for it because it was a finite amount of time that could be managed as opposed to a lifestyle choice. I also agreed because, well, it’s part of my job. Truth be told I like traveling and I like meeting and talking with people and I like conferences. Most of this travel has just been in one night and out the next which isn’t so fun.

The fallout from all of this is a house that’s slightly out of kilter. Routines are mostly kept, laundry is not. The cleaning service still comes but you’d never know it was every here the next day. Grocery shopping is not totally thorough, but no one’s starving. The kids hate the sight of a suitcase now.

I had the past week off from traveling. I came home on Thursday night and was really looking forward to a Friday to do nothing once a few calls were finished that morning. Husband was also tired from doing double-duty and was taking the half day off as well. Then the phone rang at 12:30 and a large, complicated, ridiculous timeline deal showed up and all hell broke loose and there went my day of nothing. That week off from traveling ended up being hair on fire deliverables, demos, conference calls and pricing and expectation setting.

Did I mention Benjamin was home sick that week as well? Hmmmm, yes. With Pink Eye and fever. He was kind enough to share the pink eye.

It’s been nonstop since… well since ever it feels like. Yesterday I came home from a wedding shower, changed into play clothes, hopped into bed and fell asleep for two hours without even thinking about it. I haven’t done that in months.

Today I have nothing on my calendar aside from usual carpool stuff. It’s a glorious sight. Today I’m choosing to do very little. Today the mere mindless Administrivia acts of the post office, the cleaners, the grocery store and making the bed are comforting. I’m giddy thinking about the lack of thought.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got laundry to do. Ah…

Then it was off to a quick lunch and back home for nap time.  Ah, nap time.  Then up and awake to go visit my mom and then come home and get ready to have dinner with my MILtastic and Jacktastic.

At the end of the night, as I was lying in bed, it occurred to me I didn’t really get to hang out with the kids very much – and that made me a little sad.  It’s no one’s fault, just the consequence of a busy schedule not entirely under our control.

But, then I realized that every day is Mother’s Day around here.  I have some ridiculously cute and energetic and silly and challenging and sweet and loving kiddos.  I am lucky that my current job affords me the luxury of working out of my home office (otherwise known as my bed).  We have a great dress code here – Jeans on Fridays, but Jammies all the other days.  You should try it.

Every day they let me know that I am part of the center of their little silly world.  Most weeks I get little handwritten notes addressed to me with almost intelligible messages in them all ending in “I love you, Mommy!”  I get hugs every day.  I get kisses and giggles and the occasion “crash” from Benjamin.  I get love.

Yesterday I got a special poem from Leah that she did at school:

Thank You

Thank you for helping me when I need help with my homework,

For always giving me comfort when I am afraid,

And for letting me go to my best friend forever’s house.

Thank you for reminding me to wake up when I didn’t set my alarm,

For taking care of me when I am sick,

And for picking me up at school.

Thank you for always making me laugh,

For driving me to a really fun birthday party,

And for a new backpack when my old one killed my shoulders.

I know I don’t say it enough, thank you, Mom, for just being YOU!

Leah #9

Oh, silly girl – It is I who should thank you.

But, it’s spring. SANDALS. So I did this.

Leah took this picture

And then Leah and Benjamin and I went outside to do this.

And Benjamin’s little friend had to come along, too.

I also got this:

Pretty cool, huh?

The first step, which I got to do last week, was meet with Owner/Chef Bruce and brainstorm the dish with some favorite ingredients. This became harder than originally imagined because when the opportunity was presented to me it was, well, winter. I had a dish and favorite ingredients all picked out. But then I hurt my back, the whole house got sick after sick after sick and, lo, there was The Asthma. Somewhere along the way I blinked and now it is Spring – and I had to change my game plan.

But last week the inspiration hit me. CRAB. I have some really great spring and summer growing-up memories around crab boils – and when I think of this season I taste crab in my mouth. So, there it was. The center of the dish.

Different from a Cajun crab boil, this would be a little more refined, but still fun. I decided to try a stacked salad that was pretty to look at and could work as a lunch entrée or a starter salad for dinner. Bruce helped add a great kick to it with the addition of a hit of chili paste/oil. Here is the final dish:

Crab Collonnade
From the bottom layer up… All tossed in a mustard vinaigrette.

Jumbo lump crabmeat
Julienned arugula & diced roasted asparagus
Diced tomatoes
Diced avocado

Mustard vinaigrette drizzled around the plate with large drops of chili paste/oil on four sides.

I wish I could bring you all to dinner to taste it – it’d be a helluva party.

I have a problem with this. I’m trying not to, but I do.

There is a big part of me that thinks it’s a little pervy for a young girl to wear a two-piece. Especially the triangle top ones. Those triangles are meant for breasts. Breasts are not part of an eight-year-old. It’s just a little too – I don’t know – sexual for me.

And I know that’s not the point of why she wants a two-piece, but good lord she’s got the REST OF HER LIFE to wear one. Why do we need to start now?

These little girls are BOMBARDED with sexual images day in and day out. I’ve been pretty lucky in that her school is not full of “hooker chic” dressed peers – but she’s clearly seen it somewhere. (And, yes, I do wear a bikini but I haven’t busted mine out yet this year.)

I’m thinking of a little compromise and letting her do a tankini this year. I’m trying not to make this a big thing that turns into a larger discussion that turns into a body image mess. Maybe that’s the middle ground?

Am I nuts?

The kids are skating and Husband is skating and I was the only one not skating and I decided that was NOT the equation I wanted so as soon as I was cleared by my most awesome physical therapist I went directly to the sporting goods store to buy me a pair of tiny wheelz. And gear. A helmet, too. Accessories!

So yesterday was a magnificent spring day here and right after the hour-and-a-half nap that was thrust upon me from G-d knows where I jumped up and was all, “OK, come ON! Get the skates we’re going outside!” Tiny feet scattered everywhere amongst little squees of joy and I began strapping on 900 different pads to keep everyone and myself from ending up back in physical therapy for another 3 months.

Here’s an aside that will become important in a moment. Make a note of this. Do you know that in skates you’re like 4” taller than you normally are? I felt like Godzilla in a Japanese village once I had my blades on – I might have ducked going through some doorways.

We have rule in this house and anyone who has ever lived with a toddler will understand this rule immediately. We go potty before just about every activity. I’m sure this bears no explanation. So everyone is done and ready to go and then I realize I need to go potty myself. I stand there for a second realizing I’m totally suited up skates and all but shrug my shoulders and roll myself to my bathroom where things are promptly taken care of. (You get no more details than that.)

So I’m done and ready to get up and go outside and I realize I’m…. stuck. See, those extra 4 inches? Well, they put your knees higher than your hips which gives those of us with weaked lower backs and legs a SIGNIFICANT PROBLEM because you can’t get good, uh, leverage to stand up. Like AT ALL.

Another lesson: You can’t really use the side walls of the potty room to help because you have FUCKING WHEELS ON and they will roll right the hell out from under you and that ends in crashing back down on a potty seat that really cannot take the kind of impact.

So there I sit, helmet on, pads on, pants around my blade-covered ankles… air drying more than I’d ever choose to. Upon realizing the RIDICULOUSNESS of the situation I actually started laughing out loud. Around that exact moment Leah came rolling into the bathroom all, “COME ON, Mommy!” and I had to ask her to go find Husband.

Bet you know where this is going.

“What?”

“Well, I’m stuck.”

{laughter} If he’d had a drink in his mouth he’d have spit it out in fine cinematic form.

“Okay. Hang on. Grab around my neck…”

“All right – just remember I have wheels on.”

{laughter}

“Shut up! And we shall never speak of this again.”

“No well shall not.”

I’m happy to report that blading was awesome and I could do all that I used to be able to do and OMG did I feel good to be outside exercising. Also? And this is a total WIN – I woke up NOT SORE the next day.

I should totally give my physical therapist a cupcake for that miracle.

For the past several summers, Leah has gone to a great sleepaway camp. The rest of the weeks she attends a day camp here in town and has done all sorts of programs from sporty stuff to performing arts. It’s a large camp program and she has a few friends that she sees there every year.

It’s February – so that means that it’s time, yet again, to figure out her summer schedule.

It is also time for me to freak out on how much it costs.

OMGGGGGG how much it costs!

For roughly six weeks of camp (combined) I will shell out close to $4,500. And that should be more but because she is going to the “full” session at her sleepaway camp for the first time (as opposed to the introductory little kids’ session) we get a $1,000 discount.

Oh, goodie!

It is EXTRAORDINARY to me how much this costs. And, truth be told, the sleepaway camp costs are high, but that’s sleepaway camp. All in. I can swallow that (mostly). It is a terrific camp that she really enjoys and fosters some great things in her and for her. She is making memories there that will last a lifetime – and I love that.

It’s the DAY camp costs that piss me off beyond all belief. I hate it. And really? I’m just not a huge fan of the program in general, but it’s the best option in the city.

But wait. There’s more.

That’s only six weeks of the summer. There is another 3 weeks not accounted for there. Sure, there are play dates and mommy days and daddy days…. But…. THREE WEEKS. So, we’ll look at a trip to take (more cost) and don’t forget the cost of getting ready for sleepaway camp. G-d forbid she stay the same size.

Oh, look . I’m bitching about my child growing healthily. See what summer does?

It’s enough to vote for year-round school schedules.

Am I alone in this? Or is camp outrageous wherever you live?

Needless to say the grocery shopping in this house has changed fairly dramatically since then. Some additional books have been purchased and I am sadly watching some food commercials with more nausea than interest these days.

Leah has been quick to notice the changes in the pantry and started questioning almost immediately why we are buying so much organic stuff. And NO this cereal does NOT taste the same as COCOA PUFFS and WHERE is the “REGULAR” cheese?!

I took some time trying to decide how and how much to explain to Leah about our decisions. She’s bright but can be terribly sensitive about certain things. I didn’t want her to go down a rat hole of fear regarding day to day food, but it was important for her to know the story. Finally I decided she needed to see parts of Food, Inc for herself. Yes, it’s slightly horrifying, but that’s the point, isn’t it? And if it became overwhelming, well, we could always turn it off.

Last night we watched it. Or at least parts of it. I had to stop and pause the DVD a few times to simplify some concepts or really make sure she understood a certain statement, but, not surprisingly, she caught on quick. And, bless her little magnificently linear brain, she did, indeed, go straight down a rat hole in horror. But I let her for awhile because I was proud of her for realizing certain facts without my telling her.

You see, at one point she sat straight up, looked at me with huge eyes of realization and said, “Mommy?! Does my school use organic food?!”

“No, sweetie. It doesn’t.”

One of the most exciting things in the world for her is to buy her lunch at school. I guess that’s sort of a right of passage in third grade. But she doesn’t want to do that any longer. She now wants to bring her lunch. EVERY DAY. AND DON’T LET ME FORGET, MOMMY!

I’m okay with that.

There were some real, fearful tears, a SHITLOAD of questions, a discussion of the science of bacteria, and more questions. She hit the wall of information pretty quickly and sat up and looked right at me and said, quite seriously, “I want to turn this off now.” So we did. She got the point. We didn’t need to give her nightmares.

I did explain to her that this doesn’t mean from time to time Mommy isn’t going to want a cheeseburger at the local family grill or a badass pizza at the joint attached to the ice rink. Because Mommy likes her grease. And it’s fine. Do we risk bad food and dangerous bacteria? Yep. But we can’t live in a complete bubble and we will do the best we can.

We will do our best to make better bad decisions.