Be Back Soon

Next week!!!

D, K and I are about to embark on our Mexican adventure. That sounds more exotic than saying we are leaving to relax at a beautiful resort, it will be an adventure though. Seven straight days of non stop togetherness with no phone calls or emails interrupting the fun. Seven straight days of meals served to us without a dish to wash or fish to fry (I actually don't fry anything, but it sounded cool). Seven straight days of someone else making my bed and cleaning my bathroom. Seven straight days of not worrying about my diet or not drinking because I have to drive. Seven straight days of NOT DRIVING!!! Wow, for a while yesterday I was worried I'd be bored being away for a week now I can't wait.

I hope you all have a wonderful week. We'll be doing our best to stay out of trouble (as well as the sun) and to make the most of our time away. I have a few books that have been waiting patiently for me and I'm looking forward to fulfill their destiny. Hopefully I'll come back refreshed, recharged and ready to tackle the summer with K.

Let the wild rumpus start!!

Why you need a vacation

We're going on vacation tomorrow, first one in a long time. At least one that isn't an oblication (a phrase I coined after one too many family visits). I'm thrilled to be getting away for a whole week of R and R but am utterly exhausted by the preparation for it. Besides making sure we have everything we need like clothing, sunscreen, medication (just in case) first aid (because I know my daughter), reading material, stocked iPods, cute bathing suits (that's just me) and comfy shoes (so NOT me) I need to make sure we are safe. I know I'm overly protective here but we're going to a place that has been hit with incidents. When I found out we were landing at night I went ballistic. I insisted D call the resort and secure a shuttle for us. I've been to parts of Mexico already, I know the annoyance of dealing with transportation to the resorts. I actually felt kinda sick until I saw the email from the resort guaranteeing our ride. That helped.

Today K and I went for mani/pedis, a vacation must, who wants yucky hands and feet while traveling? We also picked up a few last minute things like beach shoes for me, when I purged my closet a few months ago I got rid of all my old shoes. I also needed shorts. I hate shorts and prefer skirts but decided to try to find some, Old Navy is perfect for this. I also got a casual dress to wear over swimsuits. I can pretty much tell you now that I will be living in this dress the whole week. K got another pair of flip flops. I swear that girl has a pair for every day. Her orange and green toes look very cute in her new bright pink flip flops, didn't we used to call them thongs? All of my new beachy shoes look cute with the bright pink toes I am sporting, K loves to pick out my color and she chose well this time.

We came home and started pulling clothes, actually I pulled clothes and K put her plane bag together. I wish I knew what her thought process was, the things she deems as necessities baffle me. After we discussed the reasons she didn't need 10 dry erase markers and doll shoes I filled it with Junnie B Jones books, a journal, her iPod and some markers. I have a feeling she won't use any of this stuff anyway, we are also bringing the ultimate babysitter.

People keep asking me what we have planned during our stay and I tell them nothing. No running around from tourist trap to silly trinket markets, we'll be lounging by the pool, playing in the giant water part our resort has, running on the beach (OK, playing on the beach), and eating, lots and lots of eating. I'm glad my vacation wardrobe is elastic. I'm actually pretty proud of my suitcase ready-pile, so is D, I'm bringing a few skirts, tanks and some dresses (and of course swimsuits and shoes) not only a tiny amount of clothing but tiny items of clothing. I better make sure I don't eat too much or I'll be coming home in an oversize t-shirt.

Oh yeah, no wi-fi at the hotel which means no Facebook, no email, no texting and NO BLOGGING! I'm pretty bummed about the last one, I've managed to have some sort of entry for every day since I started this. The resort does have a computer center so if I am totally jonesing for the interwebs I'll be able to get a quick fix. A whole week without online ranting might do permanent damage to my psyche. I will have my iPhone because it is now my iPod, if I get really desperate at least I'll have that. Just don't tell D, I'll worry about that when the bill comes in, or when he reads this, whichever comes first.

I'll say my goodbyes tomorrow so for now adios!!

Rock Star!

Rock Star (film): Audition for Steel Dragon

I love the movie Rock Star and not just because Marky Wahlberg is so cute. Isn't is every music lover's dream to be chosen as the lead singer (or guitar player, drummer, whatever) of the band they love? I have these fantasies daily, too bad I can't sing or play an instrument. I guess that's why I love this movie, besides Marky Mark of course. I get to live vicariously as Chris the lead singer of a Steel Dragon tribute band becomes Izzy the lead singer for real. It's just good unclean fun, until it falls apart of course.

Last week I told D that I wanted to see this movie again and today it was on and uncut, so I got to see it without commercials and all the language and sex. Cool. I did have to endure Jennifer Aniston but Mark makes it worth it. This clip is when Chris (Wahlberg) is called to audition for Steel Dragon, he really is adorable.

Rock on!

\m/ \m/

Smile!

I went back to the dentist today, usually that would be followed by a :( but today it can be a ! I finally got the temp thing replaced by the permanent one and it feels so much better. Last week when they had to cancel my appointment I was bummed. I got a call on Friday letting me know there was a cancellation and I could come in on Tuesday, cool, I figured I would drop K off with D and not have to worry, I'd just have to drive to Hollywood and then again to get her. On Monday I got an email from one of K's friend's mom, she wanted to know if I could drop K off for a playdate. Perfect, their house was on the way to my dentist, I dropped her off and told her I'd be back at 2:00PM

I thought this appointment would be quick and I'd have time to get a latte and maybe do some shopping, I mean why not, K was occupied right? I got to the office early and had to wait, glad I brought my book. Then I waited some more. When he finally entered the room I was half asleep. He immediately went to work without the Novocaine, I preferred not to have it unless it was necessary, last time it made me feel awful when it wore off. He fitted and tweaked for over an hour until he was sure the fit was right and then he made sure some more. Usually I just do whatever it takes to get out regardless of the outcome. This time I wanted to make sure it was perfect and I didn't just say it felt perfect when it wasn't. Even the dentist was surprised.

I guess when you finally get over a fear it takes you to the opposite end of that spectrum. I am now obsessed with teeth and have already made an appointment for my next cleaning. The dreams about teeth falling out and being ambushed to see a dentist have stopped. The anxiety I had when I saw the dentist's number on my caller ID is now gone, and I actually return the calls when I get them. Shocker.

This applies to other areas as well. I never liked dropping K off at playdates, especially when it was with the nanny but I realized that wasn't fair to K who wasn't able to do the things she wanted because of my paranoia. Even when the worst does happen: The very first time I dropped K off at a birthday party I was a wreck, we left her at her friend E's house and the parents took the kids horseback riding. I had to sign a waiver stating I would not sue if she fell of the horse. Awesome. After the ride they were going to dinner and K would be dropped off at home. I waited all day for a phone call, I had a feeling that something bad was going to happen. I never got a call. When the party was over and E's mom brought K home she told us that K had fallen on a table during dinner and her mouth was bleeding, they put ice on it and she was OK. I looked at saw her gum was red and she said her tooth hurt. Crap. I knew, just knew that her tooth was fractured and that it would eventually start to turn blue. This would freak any mom out, for sure, for me it freaked me out for a number of reasons. First, I hate to think that my child was in pain, second, I knew this would happen if I let her go somewhere without me and third, she's a model, she cannot have a blue tooth. What happened? Her tooth felt better in a few days, the tooth did turn blue because it was fractured, no real harm was done and she still booked jobs. The tooth is now back to normal and I don't freak out when dropping her off somewhere.

I guess all my phobias are somehow related to teeth.

K and I can both say cheese now.

Driving Miss Crazy Part III, the final chapter

OK, I really thought I was trying to be better about my issues with the roads of Los Angeles. I've been leaving early, taking maps, water and snacks for K, anything that eliminates the angst I get when our commute goes wrong. Today the only thing that could have helped me was a helicopter but given my fear of heights and enclosed places that wasn't an option even if one magically presented itself to me. All I could do was sit and wait. K had a 4:00PM photoshoot for our favorite designer in Laguna Beach, a ride that should have taken a little over an hour. We left with plenty of time. I got some cash at the ATM and filled up the car and was on the 10 freeway by 2:00PM. I figured we could get there early and scope out a place for dinner, the 10 was a breeze and we got to the 405 in record time, even that seemed light. Sweet, things were going well, better than well and then all of a sudden we drove into a see of red lights. Traffic slowed to a speed my speedometer didn't even register. I saw my GPS slowly change my arrival time: 3:10....3:12....3:15......3:30. The longer we sat there the later we were going to be. I called D for advice but there was nothing he could stay. I needed to stay on the 405. I could feel my blood pressure rise as I watched the estimated time of arrival rise and rise. I was irate when morons kept cutting in front of me for no reason. We weren't moving!!! I frantically looked on my phone's GPS for an alternate route (don't worry, when I say we weren't moving I mean it, I could have put my car in park)there really was no way around this traffic. I yelled and screamed for a minute and then looked at myself in the rear view mirror. So we were late, who cares? Most shoots we sit around and wait for hours, at least it was cool in the car and I was with my favorite gal pal. I relaxed. Finally after about an hour we crawled passed an accident that had been taken to the shoulder. Minutes later the road opened to a manageable speed. OK, we might just make it and on time. I started to feel better when the sea of red lights reappeared. I just laughed. Even K made a joke about it, she knew she was the only model and said that at least they couldn't start without her. I called the designer and told her we were stuck but on our way, sadly we weren't even halfway there!

K and I swapped stories, talked about what we wanted to do this summer and told each other jokes. I have no idea how long this delay took but once again it was another accident, this one didn't look as bad. Again we had a sort of open road ahead of us. Too bad it was now after 4:00PM and we were officially late. We drove the rest of the way uninterrupted by accidents and made it to the photographers house closer to 5:00PM than 4:00PM. They were happy when we arrived, more worried that we would want to just turn around and go home. This is a job that we do for the clothing, beautiful and expensive clothing, and for the designer whom we both adore.

It felt good to get out of the car, almost 3 hours without a break is crazy, K ran out of the car and into the arms of her favorite designer who offered up many apologies for having us endure such a horrible ride. Honestly it wasn't bad. It was all in the attitude, once I relaxed it made no difference to me. I got over the being late thing because I had no choice. I was extremely fortunate that I left early though, the traffic would have been worse. They took K dressed her and did something cute to her hair. Then we were off to Crystal Cove and we had to drive. I was spared that responsibility though, feeling my pain we all piled into A, the designer's huge truck. I relaxed on my booster seat insistence for a couple of reasons. I certainly did not want to drive again and I can't remove K's booster, I put it in wrong and it will be in there forever. Besides she's 6 and legally it was OK, we were all kind of squished together so I felt OK (and the location was close).

The park and the beach were beautiful, being surrounded by such beauty has a calming effect that was felt immediately. I stayed close and the girls (photographer, designer and stylist) did their thing. I watched and only had to direct K a few times. Mostly I just relaxed, that felt great. On a break K took off to follow what she thought was a squirrel (and what I hoped wasn't something else) it turned out to be a Roadrunner, I honestly had never seen anything like it before, except the cartoon of course. It was amazing to watch and K was fascinated!

The shoot was done, they were happy and got what was needed, A promised to send K a huge box of new clothes along with a CD of the photos. We said our goodbyes and went off in search of dinner. The town of Laguna is beautiful but we couldn't quite find a place to eat, we found a bunch of restaurants but not what we wanted. I decided to just get on the freeway and find something. We drove for a bit and then I saw a huge mall I used to frequent when visiting friends in the area. I got off the 405 and parked in what I thought was the mall. It wasn't, it was a whole movie theater complex, full of discount stores and eateries. I told K that the first one we pass wins, except Subway, I can't eat there. We walked out of the structure into Karl Strauss. It was perfect, it would have been more perfect if I could have some wine but I could wait. The food was awesome. Instead of drinking I carb loaded with a giant plat for pork filled mac and cheese. It was wonderful. K sat on my lap and we stuffed our faces and laughed at each other.

We made it home in record time. No kidding, I think I even beat the GPS estimated time. I shut it off when I knew where I was going. I am also grateful that the average speed at night is over 80.

Driving Miss Crazy? Hopefully this series is over!!

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to my wonderful husband and babydaddy D and my own awesome daddy L. I wanted to find a poem that embodied all I felt about the two amazing men in my life but I kept coming back to a song I heard a while ago. It's not one of the indie artists that spin uncontrollably from my iPhone. It's actually a song by legendary R&B singer Luther Vandross and I remember the first time I heard it, the tears were non-stop.

So to D from K and to my dad from me:

Dance With My Father

Back when I was a child, before life removed all the innocence
My father would lift me high and dance with my mother and me and then
Spin me around 'til I fell asleep
Then up the stairs he would carry me
And I knew for sure I was loved
If I could get another chance, another walk, another dance with him
I'd play a song that would never, ever end

How I'd love, love, love
To dance with my father again
When I and my mother would disagree
To get my way, I would run from her to him
He'd make me laugh just to comfort me
Then finally make me do just what my mama said
Later that night when I was asleep
He left a dollar under my sheet
Never dreamed that he would be gone from me
If I could steal one final glance, one final step, one final dance with him
I'd play a song that would never, ever end

'Cause I'd love, love, love
To dance with my father again
Sometimes I'd listen outside her door
And I'd hear how my mother cried for him
I pray for her even more than me
I pray for her even more than me
I know I'm praying for much too much
But could you send back the only man she loved
I know you don't do it usually
But dear Lord she's dying
To dance with my father again
Every night I fall asleep and this is all I ever dream

Author: Luther Vandross

Give me an A

I never was one to stress over grades, I did the work and was rewarded for it. I knew what expectations my parents had for me (don't fail so we have to deal with it) and I never disappointed them. I always tell K to do her best, in school and in life. In school it's a challenge sometimes, she likes to be like her friends. Last year during our first parent/teacher conference K's teacher Mrs. G gave us a glowing report, she was doing really well. She told us by the end of the year K would be able to read a list of sight words. D and I looked at each other curiously, K already knew all her sight words and more. Mrs. G just smiled and took out a little notebook, she said that there were a few students in class this year who hadn't let on about their tricks. She said that it's normal for kids to keep accomplishments to themselves especially if their friends weren't at the same level.

I was happy Mrs. G knew this about K but a little shocked that our daughter could succumb to this behavior. When K was old enough to hold her own head up I was right there shoving flashcards in her face. I read everything to her: street signs, magazines, food labels in the supermarket, if it had words she heard it. When I diapered her I told her exactly what I was doing at each step. When we were driving I told her where we were going and who we were meeting. Once during a food shopping excursion when she was about 6 months I was doing my usual thing, letting her know what I was getting and how I was going to cook it. I did this all the time, anyway, a woman passed by and asked me if I thought my baby knew what I was saying. I replied that I always tell her what I'm doing regardless of what she is capable of understanding, she looked at me like I was nuts and walked away. She didn't get too far, another woman came up next to us and said that she was a child psychologist and told us there's proof that constant talking and explaining to babies was extremely helpful in their development. She told me that I giving a huge gift to my child and I should just keep doing what I'm doing. I thanked her and we chatted for a bit, the other woman just looked at both of us and shook her head.

I never stopped reading and talking to K. One day my friend A and I were in Ross with our daughters who were about 18 months or so, K was calling out letters and A asked her what she was saying, K pointed to a sign and read each letter "r..e..s..t..r..o..o..m..s" I had one of those stupid "My kid rules!" look on my face. It was cool to have this with A, she knew all about my relentless pursuit of baby perfection. I had books like "How To Teach Your Baby To Read"
and about ten different sets of flashcards. I had her counting and spelling before preschool, most likely the reason she was so bored there, sorry K!!

I remember last year during Kindergarten orientation Mrs. G told all the parents exactly what our kids will know by Winter Break, D and I slyly glanced at each other, K already knew all that. Her report cards reflected that as well, all the worries we had about placing her in kindergarten early were gone. We were a little nervous when first grade started but again, K did well. She had more obstacles to overcome this year, the biggest was a bully who threatened K with "telling the principal" if K wasn't nice to her. This didn't last very long. K's emotional growth this year was on par with her academic achievements.

She was nervous about her final report card even though she knows that the grades were secondary to her effort in the classroom. LAUSD doesn't give letter grades only 1 - 4, with 1 being not proficient and 4 for advanced. My little worried overachiever brought home a perfect report card. When I opened it I feigned surprise and asked her in my stern mommy voice "what is this??" She looked up at me eyes wide and filling with tears "what Mama, what?" When I showed her the line of straight 4s she got mad at me for scaring her. When I asked why she was scared she told me that she was afraid of getting 2s and 3s because she knows she did her best and she knows that she's smart. She doesn't have to worry about how far up I set the bar, the one she set for herself is already pretty high.

Am I happy that she got all 4s? Of course, she deserves it. Would I be mad if she didn't? No, I knew she did her best, I'm just happy that her best is truly remarkable.

Congrats to my now second grader!!