Me Too You

My #Best09...Inspired by @GwenBell - Best Insight or Aha! Moment, Best Social Web Moment, Best Stationery, Best Laugh, Best Ad, Resolution

Continuing @GwenBell 's #best09 Blog Challenge...

Read all of my #best09 here.

December 26 - Insight or aha! moment

There are ways that I can do less while making more of an impact

Running around crazy doesn't do anyone much good. On a crisp weekend last March, I was near Yosemite for my nephew's birthday. My mom and I were talking about the book The Power of Less (my #best09 book). The previous week, I had been talking to some fellow board members at Explorer Preschool about the next year and what we were all up for. I was the membership chair and my thought was that I would continue in the position for the following year, since I felt like I had just gotten my head around everything and could now work on some improvements. But...as I talked with my mom that weekend I realized that if I stepped up to be President of the Board, I could actually do less (in terms of daily, administrative work), but have more of an impact at the school.

Aha!

Both paths would be valuable, but which would save my sanity and which would have more impact for the school and for me? (By the way, sure, I could have quit the board, but it is very important to me to give back to an organization that has had such an impact on me and on my family.) So I took the path that was less intensive hour-wise, but had more of an impact. Even though being President SEEMS like more work, it really isn't (or, it doesn't have to be). The hours that I spend are less in number, but have a greater impact and that feels good for me in my life right now.

December 27 - Social web moment

This was hard...since I work IN social web, there are so many social web moments. Going to conferences and events is one big, continuous social web moment. I often say in my head "She/he looks so familiar to me...oh, right, because I look at her/his profile photo on twitter every day. Oh yeah." I suppose it has happened so much this year that I am starting to just get used to it. There are still some big moments that stand out for me in 2009, namely: $1 from Jessica Gottlieb during a cab ride after the Social Luxe Lounge party at BlogHer means all her secrets are safe with me, a lovely lunch with Ciaran Blumenfeld (@momfluential) at the lovely (did I already say lovely?) Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel (I think I could talk to her for hours, oh right, I did), meeting @DearBadKitty and immediately feeling at home with her, celebrating Stefania's birthday and signing karaoke to the Backstreet Boys, seeing all of the insightful, witty and fun Silicon Valley Moms Blog bloggers at our holiday party this year and feeling like at this point we are all old friends and family, seeing all my IRL friends join twitter after Oprah did, taking an awkward photo with @BackpackingDad at BlogHer'09 and then repeating it at the SV Moms holiday party. But the biggest social web moment for me of 2009 was...

Random limo reunion with moburns67 at BlogHer'09

After flying into Chicago for BlogHer'09 with my friend Carla, we waited outside for our pre-arranged car to meet us. We were both in a rush to get to different events and were hoping this limo would whisk us quickly to the hotel, so we wouldn't have to, you know, stand in an annoying taxi line (which actually looked like it was going fast and not annoying at all). We waited and waited and waited. Soon we noticed that other people looked like they were waiting. Soon it was determined that the limo company had grouped us all together and instead of a private ride, there would be 14 of us in the limo together. No problem at all, the more the merrier. Except...not all of the 14 of us were there. Heavy. Sigh. Annoyed. Very annoyed.

Then I noticed that one of the people standing there waiting was someone that I knew. From a long time ago. 16 years ago, moburns67 and I worked together and were good friends. We had lost track of each other somewhere along the way. I walked up to her and said "Hi. I think I know you. Maura?" She said "Yes." (Well, of course, we are in social web land, where of course she would have people coming up to her saying they "know" her.) "No, I mean I KNOW you. I'm Lin? We used to work together?" "Oh! Right! Wow! Hi!" It was quite random to run into an old friend like that. I was not surprised to find out that she is so active on twitter. After all, she used to play scrabble via email, I believe. So ahead of the times. Since then we've gotten together for coffee and talked tweetups. Hopefully another coffee date is on the books for this next week. It has been so nice to reconnect, virtually and in real life. Here's to that terrible limo company who made it happen.

December 28 - Stationery

Well, it is not paper, it is Pingg.com

Now I am really thinking I should go look for some new stationery and write some handwritten notes. But...my find for the year for invites and ecards is Pingg.com. My friend Jane told me about this company and I used it to send Mother's Day cards via facebook and email to all of my friends who are mothers (and to my mother, of course!). I love that you can upload your own photo (or choose one of their designs, which are so cool and varied) and use a lot more capabilities than evite has. You can turn RSVP on or just use it was a card. Happy ecarding :) Now I have to run to the stationery store (Paper Source anyone?)

December 29 - Laugh

TOP SECRET, CONFIDENTIAL

Many laughs I am thinking of from 2009 need to be protected. Seriously, I am under an obligation of confidentiality, which I take very seriously. So any retreat hairstyles and subsequent bar visits (shhhh....) must be kept entirely under wraps. ROTFL.

December 30 - Ad

Somewhere in my subconscious...

I think I largely avoid ads....TIVO and a crazy, busy life helps me in this endeavor. But, of course, I still see them from time to time. Wait, did I even watch the SuperBowl in 2009? I don't recall...I think all ads are just fed directly into my subconscious, so that I am not even aware of seeing them. And I certainly can't remember any. I will have to pay closer attention...

December 31 - Resolution I wish I kept..

Presence

I just went back and reread a post I wrote on Simplicity Sake (a blog my sister and I started last year, but haven't kept up...hmm...this does not bode well, eh?) about New Year's Resolutions from 2009. My resolution last year to be more PRESENT in my life.

While I feel like I made progress on this last year, I think this is always something I have to keep in mind. And I need to remind myself of it. It is easy to get sucked into this, that and the other thing. Especially as I take on new challenges with work and step up my travel schedule (which is definitely on the books for 2010).

The first thing that comes to my mind is being present with my kids and my family. Especially as the kids get older, it is easy to think they are ok, they are fine, they don't need me as much. True, not as intensely and maybe not as much time, but still...they need my presence. I feel like this year I may need to build some things INTO the schedule. Things like:

• adjusting my schedule so that I'm working from 9-2 and then with (and PRESENT) with the kids from 2pm on
• making one-on-one time with each of the kids a priority
• getting a new babysitter so Jeff and I can have our alone time on a regular basis

Another resolution for 2010: Jeff and I have made a goal to run a half marathon in 2010 - we estimate that it is about 13.1 miles from our house to the Los Gatos Dam (and then there is the #tiarathon and #shredheads of course...). Yoga once a week should round things out. Hold me to it?

Happy 2010 and THANKS Gwen!

Happy 2010! And thank you SO MUCH, Gwen, for inspiring this series of posts. I am so glad I made the time to do this, to look back at 2009, to look at 2010 with this perspective. Now that I am done, I look forward to reading everyone else's #best09 posts and learning from them as well.

My #Best09...Inspired by @GwenBell - Tea of the Year, Word or Phrase, Best Shopping, Best Car Ride, Best New Person

Continuing @GwenBell 's #best09 Blog Challenge...

Read all of my #best09 here.

December 16 - Tea of the Year

Fancy Nancy Tea Party

Lily and Ava were invited to our neighbor's five-year-old birthday fancy tea party (ala Fancy Nancy) and it was so...fancy. If you are ever planning a little girl tea party, take a cue from Michelle (the five-year-old's mom). The table was beautifully set, with feather boas thrown across on all of the chairs. Each girl had white gloves, a pretty berry and marshmallow bowl and a little jar of fudge for dipping at her place setting. Trays of flower and heart shaped sandwiches were in the middle of the table. Tea pots of tea, hot chocolate and milk were on the table - love those choices! Michelle confided to me that she found the glass tea cups at Goodwill for cheap, cheap! The girls got their own little cakes (pre-frosted) to decorate after their lunch.

Other fancy activities included: making bead necklaces, face painting, makeup, nail polishing, and...just playing in the backyard (my girls did a pretty even split of fanciness and playtime). Ava was probably a little young to sit still for the whole tea party, but the five-year-olds did very well.

Stupendous, splendid, fancy!

December 17 - Word or Phrase

"2009 was about letting go."

At the beginning of 2009, I found myself over-committed and tried to trying to live up to being supermom/perfect lawyer. I wanted to start letting go of a few things and being ok with disappointing people from time to time. But it wasn't easy. In fact, it wasn't happening. As soon as I let go of one thing, I replaced it with another. Ok, maybe the other, new thing was more what I wanted to do, but it was still taking cycles and not freeing up my schedule much.

Then, in September 2009, Ben and Lily started kindergarten. Although I anticipated this to some degree, this change completely rocked my world. This was a MAJOR change for us - not only the place, but the time (after enjoying lazy afternoon preschool, leaving for school with 3 kids all ready to go for the day at 7:30am was...ahem....hard, VERY hard), the philosophy, the expectations, everything. Jeff was not around to help due to his work schedule and I was...barely keeping above water. I was worried that I would have to home school (and I am NOT a teacher!), because things were just going so badly with the adjustment. I decided that I would need to take a leave of absence from my law practice. With that...I felt a great sense of relief. I was able to focus on my family during that big adjustment time. I have had to let go of their babyhood and also of the notion of control. There are things I am still not happy with (homework in kindergarten, for instance!)...but I have let go a bit. After all, it is not possible for me to be as involved with their school as I have been with their preschool.

What the leave did for me was to free up my mind to consider other things. And what happened after that month leave was that I was offered the chance to become a partner at Silicon Valley Moms Group, one of my long-time clients. I am now happy to be able to use more than just my law degree, but also my business degree and all of the experience that a bunch of volunteer positions on the board of Gemini Crickets and Explorer Preschool has given me. I am still doing deals, which I love. I am still negotiating and drafting contracts, which I love. I am doing a ton of writing, which I love. I am doing a lot more creative stuff, which I love. And I am a part of a team, which I love and which is something I have missed these past several years being on my own in my solo law practice.  I still have a couple of law clients, but for the most part I am focusing my work on SV Moms and having a blast.

It feels good to let go of pressure, to do something a bit new, to take a risk and to just see what happens. By the way, if you haven't already, please subscribe to the SV Moms Group newsletter (just go to www.svmoms.com and click on the box on the far right that says "receive the SV Moms Group Newsletter") and follow SVMoms on twitter. Thanks! :)

December 18 - Shop

Anthropologie

I adore this store and my twin sister Robin and I have a new annual birthday tradition of shopping together at Anthropologie for our birthday. We used to buy things for each other and now we just...buy things for ourselves while we are together around our birthday. I love the romantic, eclectic look. They have great, classic kid toys and gorgeous kitchen items too. I could seriously spend A LOT of money in there. I usually do very little shopping during the year, so I do save up to splurge on this once a year. Above are some of our favorite finds of 2009. Robin bought Jeff and I the new bedding for Christmas - ocean....ah...thank you very much!

December 19 - Car Ride

All around Oregon, Jeff and I's 10 year wedding anniversary

For our 10 year wedding anniversary, Jeff and I went to Portland, Oregon, last minute. We decided to stay a few different places during our 4 day getaway, so we ended up doing quite a bit of driving. We drove to Mt. Hood, past the Columbia River Gorge, from Portland to Eugene and into the woods by the river, then to the beach, along the coast and back to Portland. It was reminiscent of our life before kids, when we would just go for a drive as something to do together. We fought a bit over iPod playlists - we discovered that, left to my own devices, I tend to go for cover tunes...I have quite a few of them on my iPhone... - and I read aloud quite a bit from a book we bought at Powell's Books in Portland, Outliers by Malcom Gladwell. More pictures, etc. from our trip here. We talked A LOT. We put our hands out the window and did that little wave thing. It was nice, very nice.

December 20 - New person

Maxine

Maxine, as I mentioned to you on the evening of our daughters' preschool sleepover at school, I had no idea I would find such a GOOD friend in you this year. We met at the beginning of the 4Day class and our daughters quickly became best friends. Who knew that I would soon find myself hanging out at your house drinking wine and eating your delicious food (OMG, my kids LOVE your mac and cheese to this day!), planning camping trips, talking life and politics and dreams. You helped me, coached me (really, truly) to stop living such a crazy life and to focus on the important stuff. I loved being on the preschool board with you (pilates at the board retreat, anyone?) and participating in your French day at school (Tour de Explorer!). Thank you for sharing your friendship, your family, your "bugs", your wine, your exuberance for life, your perspective, and your swimming pool. I look forward to many more years of friendship to come!

My #Best09...Inspired by @GwenBell - Best Trip, Best Restaurant Moment, Best Article, Best Book, Best Night Out

December is almost over. My Christmas decorations are all put away and I am ready for the New Year. Every few days, I see a tweet from Gwen Bell about her Best of 2009 Blog Challenge #best09 and promptly email myself the link, as a to-do. Since I like to procrastinate and do things Right Before They Are Due, I am jumping in....now. Better late than never, right? Here are Days 1-5:

Read all of my #best09 here.

December 1: Trip

Sandwich, Cape Cod, July & August 2009

   



There were a few great trips in 2009: Jeff and I's 10 year anniversary trip to Oregon, our annual Disneyland trip with friends. But my best trip in 2009 was to Cape Cod. Though it was a husband-less 3 weeks (Jeff had to work, annoyingly), Ben, Lily, Ava and I had the best time with my best friend Jen and with my twin sister Robin. It was a very relaxing three weeks, really the first true vacation I have had in a really, really long time. I did no work, very little stuff online and didn't pressure myself to DO much of anything. I mean, except for take care of the kids (that goes without saying, right?) Robin and I would wake up and say "what should we do today?" We had rules for the kids like: say please and thank you, clean up after yourself and have ice cream every day. I wrote this while I was there...

At the beach cottage I have my own room. It is all mine. Not that I spend a lot of time in it, except for sleeping. But I appreciate just having the space. No one sleeps in there with me. Sometimes one of the kids will tiptoe in during the day, somehow knowing it is sort of of-limits, to help me pick out what to wear for the day, but it never lasts long. They vacate quickly.

At the beach cottage, there are seashell lamps, a mermaid stone, mismatched chairs in shades of ocean and beach, American flags, a "no smoking" sign in a simple wood-carved plaque in beachy colors that blends into the cottage walls.

At the beach cottage, there is noise of the five kids, playing and fighting...and fighting and playing. There is noise of our iPod playlists - Sting, Bebel Gilberto, Jack Johnson - and, sometimes the Grease and Mama Mia soundtracks. There is noise of conversation about life, how to enjoy it, when not to work and what kind of work is the "best fit" for us, about the kids and the funny things they do, the challenges they and we have, their upcoming school year.

At the beach cottage there is a new nighttime routine of wine and chocolate and early bedtime. But before that, at time, there is trashy TV, which we suck down with our wine and chocolate - Big Brother 11 (or whatever number) when we can catch it, otherwise Punk'd, That 70's Show and, once, Dr. Horrible's Sing Alng Blog when nothing was on and we thankfully had the internet to turn to.

At the beach cottage there is less yoga than I though there would be, but also less guilt. At the beach house, there is solace.

December 2 - Restaurant Moment

Sharky's Cantina, Martha's Vineyard, August 2009

This one is also from Cape Cod. It was a horrible day. We had gone to Martha's Vineyard - Robin and I with all 5 kids, no husbands. Sam had a bad burn on his ankle from the previous day during a jogging stroller incident (be careful when putting too many children in a jogging stroller!) and Robin was having a tough time with him (whining and crying All Day). We went on a pedicab ride out to the beach and back. We had ice cream. We tried....but we were honestly ready to throw in the towel and leave. We decided to quickly get something to eat and take the early boat back to the Cape. We went to Sharky's Cantina on a recommendation from the lovely people at Vineyard Pedicab. It is truly amazing what a couple of margaritas, a plate of nachos and some toy sharks will do for a family's mood. It turned into a late night - we got a second wind, bought Black Dog sweatshirts since it has turned cold, rode the carousel (trying to get the brass ring!) and took the night boat back, a beautiful sight. Sharky's truly saved our day and we thank you and your margaritas.

December 3 - Article

How to create your personal manifesto, how to want very little, and the Shriver Report

The article blew me away this year? This is hard. There are so many good ones and I am not that good about using Delicious (I am restarting right now...getting my password reset...right. now.). I am torn between a couple:

• Gwen Bell's How To create your personal manifesto
• David Turnbull's guest post on Zen Habits How to want very little

This year has been for me about getting to the core of what I want to do and a lot of that has to do with letting go of a lot of things, both material and ideal. And not fighting what I naturally gravitate towards. I am finding myself a lot happier at the end of this year that I was at the beginning. Both of these articles have really helped me gain a lot of perspective on life and what I truly want and need. So many more good ones! Delicious is restarted...now! 

Also, a series of articles that I read over Thanksgiving after I went to the 2009 California Women's Conference as press for Silicon Valley Moms Group blew me away in so many ways: The Shriver Report. I was amazed by the statistics, the stories, and the impacts that having half of the U.S.'s breadwinners being women is having. Things I learned: Women after not necessarily opting-out, but being forced out of the work place. Companies with women in the board room are more profitable. And work-life balance is a HUGE issue for all of us - not just women, but men. After all, women and men are sharing home duties more than ever. The notion that jobs are designed for people who have no home life (or do have a home life, but have a full-time stay-at-home wife to take care of said home life) makes me appreciate my flexible work, but know that companies (and government and society) has a lot of work to do to deal with this new reality.

December 4 - Book

The Power of Less by Leo Babauta

My mom, my sister Robin and I have all been reading and re-reading The Power of Less by Leo Babauta all year long. The main tenant is focusing on the "essential." I really like Leo's writing style (very simple and easy) and have had many conversations with friends (hi, Jane!) about these ideas. Sometimes my mom and I will take the kids on a day trip to the San Francisco Zoo or the Monterey Bay Aquarium and she'll read me a chapter during the hour or so drive. I think I will be reading this book for years to come.

December 5 - Night Out

 
There were two nights out that were memorable for me in 2009. The first was the night before BlogHer '09 in Chicago. I was out with my roommates, Carla and Ana. We were at different spots for the beginning of the night. I started out at the Social Luxe Lounge party (a client of mine), then headed over to the Silicon Valley Moms Group party, where I co-hosted with my partner Beth Blecherman. Carla had been at a BlogHer event, she being the official photographer for BlogHer '09. Ana was getting pampered and had a modeling session for a cute LBD. I met Ana at the SV Moms party, then we hooked up with Carla and Chris, a colleague of hers, at the (somewhat crazy) Room 704 party. Funny things were said by Ana ("Are you here for a conference?"), I was honored to pose for a photo with the Clever Girls Collective founders (a client of mine), we drank some apple martinis, we decided to head out on a tour of Chicago led by Chris. First up was the Chicago theWit beautiful rooftop bar - $32 for 4 kamikazes?....Ok! Then we went...somewhere else and...somewhere else. We danced and danced and danced and....I fell into a champagne ice bucket. Don't worry, my iPhone in my back pocked was perfectly fine. Whew! Carla did tease me about it for the rest of the trip (well, really, to this day she brings it up...), but no matter. It was so fun and I will always remember that night as one of the best nights out ever. Great ladies, a fun tour guide, beautiful views of a city that I had only been to once before, losing ourselves in dancing...embarrassing moments...ahh....

The second night out from 2009 that was so much fun was a girls night out with my best friend Jen right before she moved away to Cape Cod. Jen and I have danced the night away many a night (we have known each other for almost 20 years, since we met as sophomores in college), but this night all the cards aligned to make it a perfect going away/not going away party (we were not allowed to be sad or say the words "going away" the entire night, otherwise she threatened to leave). Present were other friends Laura and Marya and Jen's sister Christy. The V Bar in Santana Row kicked us off (no, we did not order 5 chocolate cakes like birthday cakes, we ordered 5 chocolate cakes like the shot!), then we crashed a 70's/80's party next door (Marya has a way of acting like she belongs places and making fast friends) where we danced to Journey and made fun of older ladies in go-go boots (we really should have been embarrassed to be there, but we hung in there). When that party ended, it was time for Rosie McCann's, where there was a long line, but Jen batted her eyelashes and got us a jump pass. There, we danced and danced and danced. It was 3am by the time we got home. Truly, a night to remember.

O Christmas Tree...but this time with wine tasting

For the past three years, we have headed to Crest Ranch in the Santa Cruz Mountains with some of our best friends to cut down a Christmas tree. We love the experience of making a day of it, trekking around to find the perfect tree, getting cold, warming up with some hot cocoa, maybe getting a little car sick (some people don't like all of this experience stuff and that's just fine too). This year, our best friends have moved away to Boston, but other best friends of ours suggested we meet and go together and they suggested a new place. Well, new to us.

Ward Ranch (here's a link for direction and info...scroll down....) is not far from Crest Ranch, but it is much smaller, more relaxed...and did I mention it is right down the road from Beauregard Vineyards tasting room? We met for wine tasting and then headed to Ward Ranch for the afternoon. Loveliness. I want to go again tomorrow. Oh, except I'm going to Disneyland tomorrow to meet my sister and celebrate our 30th birthdays (...again) and yes, we are going without kids (yay! and also bummer!). But, seriously, it was THAT good. Don't swarm the place, now, or else it will lose its charm. But if you are looking for that experience, I highly recommend this slice of heaven.

First...the winery. Beauregard Vineyards in right in the heart of Bonny Doon, a teeny tiny town in the Santa Cruz Mountains, which has been hit by forest fires the past two summers. Get your cute Boony Doon Volunteer Fire & Rescue shirts (and baby onsies!) and fresh lavender bath items while you sip your Chardonnay (my fav).

 

Down the road at Ward Ranch, the kids said "wheee!" in the swing hanging from a HUMONGOUS tree, surfed on the see-saw, found the perfect tree (via Ben), made glitter star ornaments, played with magnets, ate freshly popped popcorn from the fire, drank hot cocoa, bought handmade scarves. I loved that the crafts, popcorn and cocoa were not nickle and dime operations - it was just there. We chatted with the family owners and only left because Ava started to get pretty chilly.

 

 




Our tree is in the house, but not yet decorated. Here we go into the holidays...

This could be me or you - support "For Heidi Family Run" on Sat Dec 12th at Hogue Park

Last week, new guidelines were releases regarding the frequency and timing of mammograms.

My friend Susan from Toddler Planet and founder of Mothers With Cancer, writes in defense of mammograms: "Earlier today, the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF) issued new recommendations on regular mammograms for women in their 40’s.  In short, they’re against them." Read the rest of the post here. 

As I read Susan's twitter feed on Tuesday morning, she was counting down the minutes until TV crew arrived at her house to interview her on the subject; I was headed to my yearly OB/GYN appointment, my main objective being to leave with an order for a mammogram and breast MRI. I am 36, but an MRI is recommended for women younger than 40 with risk factors - my risk factors? Chemotherapy and radiation to the chest 8 years ago when I battled Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Other risk factors can include, for instance, having a sister or mother who had breast cancer. I was fairly sure I would leave with the order - cancer in your health history can do that for you!

I left the office with my order, but immediately thought of a fellow Farnham Elementary School mom, Heide, whose girls my girls adore. We both have girls named Ava and those two girls have played together at the park close to our school. "Hi Ava, want to come play in the sand, Ava?" "Ok, Ava." They are SO cute! My little Ava loves her little Ava. And Lily loves to play with Ava's older sister, Genevieve. Genevieve is in 1st grade, but had Lily's kindergarten teacher last year. They run around in the grass together, giggling about I don't know what. 

Heide always seems to have a smile on her face and she is always fashionably dressed - you know, one of those moms you are always thinking "she really has it together!" She is the kind of person you can see enjoying a mani and pedi with and just laughing about what your girls get up to together. And then having a deep conversation about the meaning of life right after that. I don't know Heide well, but I feel like I do.

Heide has been battling cancer for 18 months. It started out as breast cancer, she went into remission, then it returned...and now is in all of her major organs, including her brain and bones. She has come to the end of all FDA approved treatments and has been given little hope. Her grace and strength through all of this has impressed everyone around her. It breaks my heart thinking of little Ava and Genevieve growing up without their wonderful mother. Heide also has a twin sister, like I do. It is so hard to imagine life without your twin...

Heide's many friends from our school are coming together to hold a benefit run, the "For Heide Family Fun Run" on Saturday, December 12th from 10am - 1pm. The purpose is to raise money for the Medina Family Fund. It is just $25 for an entire family to run (or walk) and easy course at Houge Park (our neighborhood park) in San Jose, CA that day. There will be a bake sale, face painting, a silent auction and a gift card drive. 

Really, this could be me. This could be you. This could be ANY ONE OF US. Please help me support and rally around Heide, her husband Ric, and their lovely girls Ava and Genevieve. Come join me at the run. Save the date and RSVP via the evite here: http://www.evite.com/pages/invite/viewInvite.jsp?inviteId=QEIBXEZDEHDJVRADKKAK.

If you can't be there in person, you can donate to the Medina Family Fund on Heide's website.

Hope to see you on December 12th!

Time on the Cape: a three week chronicile of vacationing with three kids and no husband

On the heels of BlogHer '09 in Chicago, I returned home for one day to unpack my swag and repack for a trip to Cape Cod with my three kids. My best friend just moved to Sandwich, Massachusetts on the Cape, after her husband (who is a Boston native and has had this summer house on the Cape for about 10 years) was transferred to Boston for his work. My twin sister, Robin, her husband and their kids also joined us there.

I never thought I would be one of those moms who takes her kids on vacation without her husband...but there I was. We hoped that Jeff would be able to join us at some point, but his work made it impossible. That, and ticket prices were just too high to justify coming for just a weekend.

It was...lovely. Yes, I missed Jeff (we all did - the kids, our friends, my sister, my brother-in-law), but it worked out fine. And we all got some time off. I got time off from my work (mostly) - I took a long, long break (thanks to all of you who let me do this!), I got very accustomed to going to bed early, not getting on my computer at night after the kids got to bed, to just being idle. My sister and I spent a lot of time just listening to music, reading, writing, talking about life, the universe and everything. I have not taken a break like that in a long time. I did post photos to Facebook quite often to keep Jeff and my parents up on what we were doing and we had webcam conversations with Jeff, but apart from that, I was pretty turned off.

I will be trying to work in some limits to my every day life as a result of this trip. It is something I have been working on for the past year, but this long three weeks on the Cape really did me good and showed me that it is possible to just turn it all off for a bit, stick my feet in the sand and live in the present.

Some highlights from our trip are coming soon....

Re: Smores, Fremont Peak Camping, Wknd of July 11-12

Hi Mommy Max!

Thanks so much for camping with us this last weekend at Fremont Peak. We had so much fun with you guys. It is always nice to group camp, don't you think? I so appreciate that you did all of the cooking. I can really only be trusted to do easy things like salads for dinner and sandwiches for lunch...oh, and dole out appetizers and wine. You, on the other hand, were quite the gourmet camper, with that homemade spaghetti sauce and chili. Mmmmmm.....it all hit the spot.

And the SMORES! I think I am still dreaming of the smores (or is it s'mores?). The kids need a little more practice with patience on the toasting of the marshmellows, so we will have to be sure to do it again soon.

Anyway, here are some photos from our trip. I know you took some great ones too (like that group photo we took with the timer right in front of the Fremont Peak plaque), so please share them when you have a chance.

Until next time!
Linsey

 

Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique at Disneyland

Part of our trip to Disneyland this year included a special birthday surprise for my friend, Jen's daughter, Sarah, just turned 4. Sarah, her sister Emily, and my girls Lily and Ava, all went to the Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique in Sleeping Beauty's Castle at Disneyland. The boutique just opened up this April and was not too crowded, since I don't think many people know about it yet. The fairy godmothers helped the girls pick out princess dresses and shoes, which the birds then set out in the changing rooms. The girls all got their hair done - they all picked the "Fairytale Princess" style (big surprise...) - had their nails painted and their makeup done. Over the top? Yes. A bit disturbing to see 3 and 4 and 5 year olds in makeup and the whole thing? Oh, yes. But..the girls loved it (for about 2 hours...and then off it all came!) and I think the way it was done was in a very magical, true-to-Disney way. The fairy dust was everwhere for days, which actually helped to dry some tears throughout the weekend when a fall happened or a shoe was lost. We took photos in the carriage, which turned out really cute (I don't have a copy of the professional photos yet, the below photos were just taken with my trusty iPhone). Will we do it again? Probably not. But for a birthday celebration with 4 little girls, it was quite a special experience.

It's a Small World at Disneyland: Friends and a Happy Father's Day

Every year that we have gone to Disneyland, we have gone with friends or family. Last year, we went with my twin sister, Robin, and her family. The year before, we went with our good friends, the Gouldrup family (they are actually in my very first blog post on this blog!). This year, it was once again a trip with the Gouldrups. Jen and I have been best friends since college, we were pregnant together (our oldest kids were born 3 weeks apart), we vacation together often, throw parties for one another, and are really a part of each other's families. Next week, she is moving across the country to Boston and I will miss her terribly. (Don't tell her that though, she is in denial and doesn't want to hear any sort of goodbyes. At. All.) I am going to Cape Cod for 3 weeks this summer with the kids to spend time with her there, so I will see her soon. It is NOT goodbye (is that good, Jen?). It's a small world, after all. :)

Some other friends were at Disneyland too. My good friend, Tina, from Gemini Crickets, and her twin girls (Ava's baby friends from the Good Samaritan Hospital breastfeeding support group) moved to Southern California last October and we have missed them since. She's had a new baby too (very much like our story...surprise!). They just happened to be coming to Disneyland for Father's Day, so we got to meet up with them...where else but at the It's a Small World ride! It was a short visit - too short - but at least it was something. It was great to see the girls, who have changed so much, and to meet baby Lauren. We forgot to take a picture, which I'm so bummed about. We will have to meet up again soon...

Speaking of Father's Day, we celebrated Father's Day by having a BBQ lunch at Big Thunder Ranch with Woody and Jessie. I have to say, it was really cool. The kids played with Woody the whole time, who stood right behind our table taking photos with people - he did the robot, played peek-a-boo with them and was generally a really nice guy...um, toy. Really, really good food too (Ben discovered he loves ribs...yum....). Note: a bit pricey (I think it was about $30 for each adult and $13 for each kid) and you may need reservations (we walked in around 11:30 and got in about 20 minutes later, but it got pretty packed right after that). 

The last small world coincidence of the day was that Jeff's dad then ended up being in LA (surprise!), so we were lucky enough to be able to meet him for a Father's Day dinner in Downtown Disney as well. The grandkids tortured him a bit by spilling their milk on the floor of the Grand Californian Hotel & Spa lobby (oh no!!!) and making him run around after them. (I relaxed a bit while this was all happening, I have to say.)

Packing for Disneyland

It has been a year since we have been to Disneyland and we are SO ready to go! I usually don't build things up with the kids. I like to instead stealthily pack and then wake them up one morning and say "Guess what? We're going to Disneyland! Hop on up into the car." Because you know what can happen with kids and life. Someone will get sick or Jeff or I will have to work. The Real Reason: I hate the questions.  My kids asking me every single day for a month: "Is TODAY the day we are going to Disneyland?" and then when I say "No, honey, we are going in 2 weeks/1 week/6 days/5 days/4 days/3 days/2 days/tomorrow. We just have to be patient." I get in response "Awwwwww! But MOM!" is not my idea of a good time.

But this time, I actually have told my kids and I told them a while ago. You see, I did this because, honestly my darling husband was a bit on the fence about whether he would be able to take time off from work to go. So...I asked Ava over a month ago, before her birthday, if she wanted to go to Disneyland for her birthday. Of course, she accepted the invitation (squeal!) and then went and told asked Daddy if we could go, with puppy dog eyes.  He, of course, caved. We are going with our good friends, Jen, Steve, and their 3 kids, who are moving to the East Coast the week after our trip. We have vacationed with them for years (including our first trip to Disneyland), so it will be a special trip. We drive down from San Jose this coming Friday and will be there through the next Monday. Father's Day at Disneyland - woo hoo!

I LOVE Disneyland. I really have to be dragged out of the park when it closes. This time around, I am really looking forward to some new stuff that Disneyland has going on this summer - the new Fantasmic show might be a little too old for our kids, but we will definitely be staying up to see the new Dumbo "Magical" fireworks show, heading to Pixie Hollow (Ava and Lily love Tinkerbell!), and checking out the new electrical light parade floats. I wish we could have timed it so that it was someone's birthday (did you know you can get in FREE to Disneyland on your birthday?), like our TWINS' birthday would have been nice. Oh well. Come January, perhaps we'll be back. (The twins in our twins club, Gemini Crickets, all signed up for free tickets - what a bargain for parents of multiples!) A friend also told me that the new Toy Story Mania ride in California Adventure (the park hopper tickets allow you to go to both parks and they are right next to each other) is fantastic - she described it as similar to Astroblasters in Disneyland, but better and with 3D glasses (not sure my kids will REALLY like the 3D, but we shall see...).

Also, our trip happens to coincide with an event that Disneyland has going on that I have been invited to take part in and write about here on Me Too You. About the event: Disneyland had a contest over Mother's Day with Macy's in which it awarded a trip to Disneyland AND Disneyworld to a mom from each of the 50 states and DC. These special moms and their families will enjoy VIP treatment (for instance, a sunrise breakfast at Disneyland, a sunset dinner at Disneyworld) and will see a lot of these new things that Disney has going on.

We will be staying at the Grand Californian Hotel right above/next to Downtown Disney, which I am so excited about! I love craftsman-style architecture and it looks very plush. I don't really know a huge amount about the hotel, so I'll be sure to take some photos and share our experiences at the hotel. We have stayed at the Disneyland Hotel once and at an off-park hotel another time. Staying at the park hotels really do have some special things, in my limited experience. First of all, you have easy access to the park, but you can also get into the park 1 hour early on one day of your stay and you can easily go to character breakfasts and other fun events. And there are just little touches of Disneyland everywhere. Our favorites from the Disneyland hotel: the Tinkerbell glow in the dark wallpaper banner, the life-sized Ariel sitting beside the hot tub, the Captain Hook pirate ship in the pool.

So I'm packing a bit already (princess dresses - check, Jedi Training shirt - check). And following Disneyland on Twitter. I ordered my Vacation Planner DVD (its available to anyone who asks for one at www.disneyland.com and it is supposed to have lot of tips to plan your days in the park). And, yes...I'm counting down the days and putting up with all of the annoying questions. 5 days until we leave!

(FULL DISCLOSURE: Disneyland is footing part of our bill for our trip, as I will be covering the Moms event. Disneyland doesn't do this very often at all, but it was just the perfect opportunity since our family was already headed to the park this particular weekend anyway.)