Always the Last to Know

Is Anderson Cooper gay? Have I been under a rock somewhere?

Re-Wired

Cory forwarded me this really interesting article.
Speaking of which, we are almost done with the final season of The Wire. I will miss it sorely.

Try Something New- October

So I failed during my first month of "Try Something New." The month is coming to a close and I never took a Zumba class. I will put that back on the list for future months.

So, hmmm, what did I do that was new this month? Well I did go to a seminar on raising independent children. It was definitely out of my comfort zone. It was at a local Unitarian church. Our nanny takes Beatrice to playgroup there. The talk was very interesting and the women were very nice. There was some God-talk but not enough that I felt uncomfortable or too out of place. (I am not devoutly religious.)

The only bad part was the icebreaker. I hate icebreakers. I realize that while I am a chatty person with my friends, I am not really all that good in a group where I don't know anyone. It felt very 'first day of a new school. '

It was ironic that the topic for discussion was Raising an Independent Child because my little miss was not so much into being independent when I dropped her off at the day care there. There was crying. Lots of crying. More like wailing. But she did eventually calm down with a nice caretaker who took her for a walk. By the time I picked her up all was forgotten. Let's hope she does better at next month's session. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

I did learn a lot in the seminar. Often times, we as parents (I do this especially) age our children. We think that by 2 they should be off on their own, running around without a glance back at us. Some kids will do this but others most certainly will not. You need to gauge your child's independence and see what they're comfortable with and you need to work with their innate personality. It definitely made me feel better because Beatrice is not one of those kids who'll jump into a new situation feet first. It takes her at least 20 minutes to warm up. That's just her nature. I think she'll always be like that but as she ages and matures, she'll come up with coping mechanisms (let's hope crying isn't one of them.) I think our job as her parents is to expose her to new situations little by little, to encourage her to be comfortable with new people, but above all to let her know that she's always safe and loved.

Meal Planning

Monday- Nanny's
Tuesday- Beef Stew *
Wednesday- fend for yourself night
Thursday- Chicken pot pie & salad
Friday- I am at a loss. I'll think of something as the week wear's on.
* Nanny ended up making beef stew for dinner last Monday so I scrapped mine.

Have a Good Weekend

I hope you have fun plans for the weekend. We are headed to a wedding tonight, then a spooky Halloween party at my mom's tomorrow**, then dinner with the gals on Sunday. What are you doing?

** While making our costumes last night, my husband did utter the words "I totally married right." So you know our costumes are totally abnormal. I'll post pics next week.

The Monthly Give- October 2009

I just dropped off the kids winter coats I collected this past month. Thank you to everyone who donated a coat. The woman at Project Just Because told me that their needs have doubled this year.

I Hear the Sleigh Bells Ringing...

I bought my first Christmas gift today. I know, it seems psychotic, especially with it not even being Halloween yet, but I wanted to take advantage of this great Kodak deal. I ordered one of those photo coffee mugs. It was only $5 (shipping cost.) Christmas will be here before we know it.

My First Power Lunch

I am taking part in this literacy program at a local South Boston school. My new friend is an 8 year old third grade girl. We meet every other week to read books and eat lunch. Today was our first day. We got to talking about Halloween costumes and she told me she's going to be Madea. Fantastic.

When it was time to leave, she went to the door to line up with her buddies and I turned around to start packing up our books. Then I felt two little arms wrap around my waist. Without a word, she hugged me lightly, then got back in line. I think I'm in love.

Meal Planning

Monday- Nanny's
Tuesday- Tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches
Wednesday- This is back to fend for yourself night now that Cory plays basketball on this night.
Thursday- Beef Stew
Friday- Tacos

On an unrelated note. Snow. Really.

Happy Larry Bird, Sister

My sister turns 33 today. I love palindrome birthdays. It is rumored that in the years leading up to this birthday, my sister vowed to wear a Larry Bird jersey every day this entire 33rd year of life. We'll see if she's a woman of her word.

In honor of this momentous occasion, here are 33 tidbits about my sister.

1. She is a Libra.
2. 5 years ago, she was a television commercial and print media star.
3. She has lived in 6 different countries for varying lengths of time.
4. She was in labor for 24 hours. It ended with a c-section and a healthy baby boy.
5. She is the least competitive person I know.
6. She is the best gift giver I know.
7. She was one of those annoying pregnant women that only gained weight in her basketball belly.
8. Old people and babies love her.
9. She is bi-lingual.
10. She says what's on her mind.
11. She is a great mom.
12. She was in AmeriCorps/TeachAmerica.
13. She was in the Peace Corps.
14. She has a great sense of direction.
15. She is creative and thoughtful.
16. When she was 27, she kicked breast cancer's ass.
17. She is a snazzy dresser.
18. She's usually up for anything.
19. She Beatrice's most favorite person on the planet (she beats out Arthur by a hair.)
20. She hates baking. Don't ask her to build you a cake.
21. She ran a 5K this year.
22. She is Beatrice's godmother.*
23. She was an elementary school teacher for a couple of years.
24. She can talk the paint of a wall. You never have to worry about her fitting in at a party.
25. She was a vegetarian for a couple of years.
26. She is one of those annoying people that can wear their hair short or long and it looks great (and she can even rock a bald head.)
27. She was a hippie in college.
28. She is loud and boisterous.
29. Beatrice is her namesake (her middle name is Isabel.)
30. She lived in Phoenix, AZ.
31. She got married at the Phoenix Room (not in AZ.)
32. The only sports players she knows by name are Larry Bird and Joey Namath.**
33. If you have a sister, she's probably a great gal, but sorry, my sister is way better than your's.

* Well not really because we didn't baptize Bea but if we did go that route, she would totally be our first pick to lead her into a life of Christ should anything, g-d forbid, happen to us.

** About 5 years ago, we were on the same team for Trivial Pursuit, playing against Dave and Cory. We landed on the last pie we needed to win the game. When Dave announced it was a sports question, Isabel exclaimed exasperated, "Uggh, the only sports player I know is Joey Namath." Who calls him Joey. Awesome.

Randomania

• Last week when I got back from the Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me taping, Cory asked me how it was. I gave him the details and then commented that the guest, Ashley Judd, was "charming." He made fun of me. I think "charming" is an appropriate descriptor. Maybe I should have just left it at "she was hot."
• This weekend, we pulled out the old Halloween costumes from the attic. Beatrice wandered in and saw her skunk costume** from last year. She has become increasingly obsessed with it, asking to put it on from the minute she wakes up to right before she goes to bed. By 6:30 am she is usually in full skunk garb, hat included. She even wears the hat outside like a winter hat. And the best part is that for some reason she thinks that her new Hello Kitty rain boots are part of the costume so those go on too. I had some other ideas for a costume for her this year but I don't know if I'll be able to get her out of the skunkie long enough. Here she is last Halloween.

• Ryan is right. This show, Modern Family, is funny. Watch or DVR it tonight on ABC.
• It's damn cold. This morning there was frost on my window. Maybe it's time to put away the lawn furniture and tear out the garden. I pulled the last of the carrots yesterday. They tasted very perfume-y for some reason. And Beatrice ate the last 2 ripe tomatoes. She'll eat them straight from the garden but forget it if you try to give them to her on a plate.
• This is a good freebie for you Facebookers: FREE Shutterfly Photo Book: Just Pay Shipping!

**You might be wondering where one finds a skunk costume. It was the one item that Cory bought the baby in utero. It was on sale after Halloween for $1.97 at The Children's Place. Best $1.97 we ever spent.

Meal Planning

I am a little late to the meal planning post this week but here goes.

Monday- Nanny's
Tuesday- Fall roasted vegetables (carrots, squash, leeks, & brussel sprouts) over couscous & salad

Wednesday- Cory plays basketball this night so I know that I'll need to be really motivated to follow through with dinner. When I'm eating alone, I usually go for breakfast for dinner. I'm on an egg kick lately so we'll go with that.
Thursday- Dinner at Alli's. Most likely, Cory will eat some beef or pork products and no sides.
Friday- Dinner for Isabel's birthday.

I am getting off really easy this week.

See You in April

We went to the Red Sox game yesterday. Rats. It was a fantastic outing until the 8th inning. Despite the season ending loss, I did take time too look around and reflect on the wonder that is Fenway Park and Red Sox fans. We were behind a die-hard lady who claimed to have 75 jerseys, 150 t-shirts, 50 pennants, and 10 coats. She also had a huge purse from which she pulled out snack after snack. The icing on the cake was when she pulled out the Red Sox scratch tickets. On numerous occasions she did say she was going to have a heart attack. I think she was only half kidding. I love that kind of passion.

The First Time I'd Ever Pass On a Cupcake

I don't usually get too political here. I'm of the mind that if I haven't done my research or don't know all sides of the issue, I shouldn't really share my opinion (in 'print' that is. When we're talking current events in person, I'll make like I have a Masters in Journalism, Economics, and Healthcare Policy.)

I don't care how you feel about abortion but jesus christos, there are some sick ass pro-life puppies out there.

Goin' Nerdin'

Tonight I'm going with my mom, aunt, and sister to a taping of NPR's Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. Any length of time spent with my mom and aunt usually amounts to a lot of good blog material. I should really take notes.

I don't think they call it the Wang anymore. That's probably a good thing. I was listening to the local news last night and they arrested this guy named Wang something for lewd and lascivious behavior. I tried searching for it online but do you know what type of shit comes up when you enter 'wang' and 'lewd and lascivious behavior' in Google.

P.S. If there is a God up there, I think he sounds just like Carl Kassell.

I Got Nuthin'

I don't have much to share today. It's a rainy, gloomy Wednesday. I've been dealing with annoyances lately. We had to replace our credit card due to a 'security breach.'** It's a pain to change over all the things that get auto-paid on your credti card. I finally got a hold of the woman from the daycare we were supposed to send Bea to for a couple of mornings a week. There aren't any openings. Would have been nice if she was on the ball and told me that 2 months ago when we visited. So back to square one on that task. I finally got around to making doctors appointments, flu shot appointments, blah, blah, blah. I'm procrastinating on a work project I don't want to tackle. It's just one of those days.Tomorrow will be better.

** Did you know that the vendor isn't obligated by law to disclose to its customers that their databases were compromised? The credit card company doesn't necessarily get the info either. What the hell, I want to know.

Potty Mouth

I was catching up on my jezebel.com reading and saw this.

It made me laugh out loud because we gave Beatrice that book and her new potty last month. Since then there has been a lot of talk about poops and pee-pee. (In case you haven't deduced, the Chase household is full of over-sharing.)

She's yet to actually do any of her business in the potty but she likes to pretend she's taking a poop. She'll make you strip her down (shoes and all) and she sits atop it grunting and making faces. Then she says poop and stands up, all proud of herself.

Addition to "Enough Talking/More Doing" List

Yesterday, while I was organizing the under-the-sink bag area (exciting stuff) I found a Lululemon reusable bag. One of the quotes on the bag is "Do one thing a day that scares you."
That's dumb. I hate getting scared (scary movies- out, roller coaster-out, spooky shit-out, etc.)

The other good inspirational quotes did get me thinking though. (As did this blog that I regularly read: mightygirl.com . The author, Maggie Maggie Mason, lucked out and had her life list sponsored by Intel.)

Put simply, I need to try new things. I don't want to become one of those people that gets old and stops finding new experiences. So I'm going to add to my "Enough Talking/More Doing" List: Try something new each month.

At the beginning of each month, I'll post about what I'll be doing. It doesn't need to be anything earth shattering, just something new (and possibly out of my comfort zone), like trying a new class, or recipe, or going somewhere I've never been before.

So this month, I will try a Zumba class. I have no rhythm, 2 left feet, and sweat a lot. Sexy.

Meal Planning Attempt

It's time to get back to meal planning. The summer was kind of tough when it came to planning ahead. Now that vacation is over and we are into Fall, I think (hope) it will get easier.


Monday- Nanny's house.
Tuesday- Fresh mozzarella and avocado salad, toasted french bread
Wednesday- Asian shrimp skewers and potstickers
Thursday- Going nerdin' @ a live NPR taping of Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. We'll grab dinner in the Theater District. I don't even care what this does to my street cred.
Friday- Steak tips, rice pilaf, salad