It's funny how some things stay with you from childhood, even when you become an adult. When Daniella and I were kids, Mom and Dad used to take us to a place they called the "Private Park." It was private because you needed a key to unlock the big gate at the entrance, which was chained up except for members who must have paid an annual fee every year to join. We went to the park in all seasons -- winter, fall, spring and summer -- and it was entirely nature; no play structures or carousels or another distractions. Just trees and creeks and wooden bridges over the creeks. There was a network of trails that seemed to go on forever, but I'm sure the park isn't as big in reality as I though it was in my imagination. We'd go there a lot, sometimes on Yom Kippur, or around Thanksgiving. I saw my first frogs' eggs there; I got stung multiple times on my leg by a bee there; it was the place where I really learned to look inside logs and at leaves. Daniella and I ran races and held hands while we walked through the woods. It was a really special place and I've never found anywhere like it.
Until today.
This morning we decided (well, actually, we decided to this a few days ago) that because it was such a beautiful, sunny (if a little brisk outside) day, we were going to take a hike somewhere. We decided to go to Great Falls Park, run by the National Park Service. A friend of mine from high school, Ed Stephenson, had told me about it just before he moved away from here a few months ago. It's in McLean, about a 40-minute drive from our house, and after a big breakfast of bacon and pumpkin and cinnamon bread from Great Harvest, we set off. We got there around 1:30, clambered out of the car and began walking along the Potomac. The park runs along the river and there are three spectacular overlooks where you can see a magnificent set of waterfalls. At first we walked along the part of the trail that led to a dam where the water flowed uniformly over; there was an island in the middle of the water that we walked onto that Rachel announced we were "jumping to conclusions" because we had to hop amidst rocks to get out here (and the reference was a sly one, to a part of "The Phantom Tollbooth" that Mom and Dad gave to me a long time ago). We decided to turn around and walk toward the falls, and the view from the falls was incredible -- we got to see kayakers ride the rapids, and hang over the fence and just stare at the water. At one point Rachel turned to me, jumped in my arms and gave me a big hug. "THANK YOU for taking me here!" she exclaimed. "I thought it would be much boring!" You're welcome, sweetie.
I hiked for myself for a bit after the others decided to hit the visitors center, and I saw not one, not two, not three, but FOUR deer cross my path and head into the woods. Magical! And then I looked up with a bunch of tourists and saw turkey vultures in the trees. The weather was perfect, the leaves were magnificently colored and it was hard to believe we were only 15 miles outside D.C.
Then we decided to have an early dinner at a place Anne found called "Amoo's House of Kabob" in McLean. Totally unpromising name and decor but my LORD, the food was amazing. I have never in my life tasted Persian food so good. We are definitely going back there, even though Rachel refused to eat her chicken -- I told Drew we will force food on her if we have to, but we are going back. One clue as to how good it was: lots of locals eating there.
It was so early still that we decided to get cupcakes in Shirlington at a place near the hotel where Darryl, Daniella and Valerie stayed when they were here last month. The place we went to was called "Cakelove" (the place we had gone to before was wiped out of desserts by the time we arrived around 8 or so) and we picked up six cupcakes. Then we headed home and had "Family Movie Night," watching "Enchanted," a clever sendup of Disney fare with Patrick Dempsey and Amy Adams. Anne and David had the right spirit and LOVED IT, as do Rachel, Drew and I, and Rachel cuddled in my lap, and Drew's, for most of the movie. When it was over, she and Drew danced around the family room and he lifted her up a few times -- she really does know how to pose like a ballerina in the air -- and then he took her up to bed while I cleaned up dessert. Altogether, a terrific, terrific day.
Saturday, November 9, 2013
Thursday, November 7, 2013
Rachel wants a sibling
Conversation between Rachel and me in the car on the way to get flu shots on Tuesday:
Rachel: I wish I had a sister.
Me: Why?
Rachel: 'Cause then I could play with her instead of just my toys.
Me (slowly, turning around from the front seat): Well, Rachel, you know that I tried to give you a sibling but it didn't work, right?
Rachel: (nodded).
Me: And besides...you are MORE than enough for us.
Rachel (relief flooding her face): Thanks, Mom.
Hope I handled that OK. It breaks my heart every time she says she wants someone to play with, because there's nothing more I would love than two kids playing with each other every night before dinner. But it didn't happen, and hopefully Rachel will be OK with it when she's older.
***
Totally forgot to mention that I voted in a booth Tuesday, the first time in 15 years. Oregon has vote by mail, and I missed getting a nonpartisan Voters Pamphlet to help me decide what candidates to vote for; the Washington Post doesn't bother with local races so I left one office blank because I truly didn't know about the candidates and didn't feel I could make an informed decision. Sigh.
As I approached the nice elderly woman at the check-in table, she said: "We have new technology." (Turns out you vote onscreen. No more levers to push or ballots to punch with a pencil).
"I'm from Oregon, and we vote by mail," I said smugly. "I haven't been inside a voting booth for 15 years!"
She didn't appear impressed.
Rachel: I wish I had a sister.
Me: Why?
Rachel: 'Cause then I could play with her instead of just my toys.
Me (slowly, turning around from the front seat): Well, Rachel, you know that I tried to give you a sibling but it didn't work, right?
Rachel: (nodded).
Me: And besides...you are MORE than enough for us.
Rachel (relief flooding her face): Thanks, Mom.
Hope I handled that OK. It breaks my heart every time she says she wants someone to play with, because there's nothing more I would love than two kids playing with each other every night before dinner. But it didn't happen, and hopefully Rachel will be OK with it when she's older.
***
Totally forgot to mention that I voted in a booth Tuesday, the first time in 15 years. Oregon has vote by mail, and I missed getting a nonpartisan Voters Pamphlet to help me decide what candidates to vote for; the Washington Post doesn't bother with local races so I left one office blank because I truly didn't know about the candidates and didn't feel I could make an informed decision. Sigh.
As I approached the nice elderly woman at the check-in table, she said: "We have new technology." (Turns out you vote onscreen. No more levers to push or ballots to punch with a pencil).
"I'm from Oregon, and we vote by mail," I said smugly. "I haven't been inside a voting booth for 15 years!"
She didn't appear impressed.
Family!
Well, we've been having a great time with Anne and David. A sampling:
--Tuesday Rachel and I got flu shots at a free health clinic in one of the local high schools, the one Rachel will be going to if we stay in the area. We could have gone to a pediatrician on Drew's health plan, but we've been so busy and frazzled with other things that as soon as I saw the announcement about the clinic, I jumped on it. It was a huge, huge relief for me to have us both get shots, because I've been feeling irresponsible for not doing so until now. On the way out of the clinic we ran into a bake sale and I got to chatting with the woman in charge of it, who happens to be a journalist and we had a long talk about the public affairs/journalism world out here. These encounters are what I'm beginning to call Quintessential Arlington Moments.
Then we all drove to the Ballston Metro parking garage, hopped on the train and David, Rachel and I went to the Air & Space Museum on the Mall while Anne visited some other museums. I got a great shot of David and Rachel under the Voyager, which David helped build, and he seemed to enjoy taking her around the museum and explaining the concepts of thrust and other engineering terms. We went outside to take a break at one point -- it was a beautiful day, in the high 60s -- then went back inside to see a movie at the Planetarium. At 5 we met up with Anne, having taken a pedicab from our side of the Mall to where she was, and then we continued on to the great Mexican restaurant they'd chosen for dinner. The pedicab driver was so nice, he was enchanted with Rachel and sang "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and threw some D.C. landmarks into the lyrics. She cracked up, she's so easily amused these days. Drew joined us around 6:15 and we all shared small plates.
The food was fabulous but on the Metro on the way home I began feeling queasy, probably because I don't eat Mexican food that often. When we got home, I had to go upstairs and lie down for a while until I felt better.
--Wednesday I had a lunch meeting, so Anne and David took the Metro with me. I got off at Pentagon City..only to have my lunch date forget about meeting me. Grumpily I decided to take the Metro into D.C. and meet Drew for lunch, which of course was great, and then when I got home the day was so gorgeous that I decided to take a late afternoon bike ride down the W&OD trail. I got almost all the way to Vienna. The sunset alone was worth it. I'm still in the Portland frame of mind that says I MUST be outside whenever there's sun because it could disappear all in one moment and I'll be facing six months of rain. Dad, this is probably a demented version of your 10 o'clock rule on weekends. If so, it's definitely working.
When we all got home, Drew warmed up the turkey soup he made from the carcass of last weekend's turkey at Dan and Beryle's. Paired with my parsley-flecked dumplings, it was a great meal and David and Anne were profusely glad we'd made it. We all had the last of the pumpkin cocoa cake for dessert.
--Today Anne and David were on their own; I considered going into D.C. to do museums with Anne but then got caught running errands in the morning (including FedExing a copy of the law school magazine to Montana for a contest) and then really wanted to swim this afternoon, so I ended up working at home (answering emails, organizing my list of jobs I want to apply to) and then making chocolate chip cookies for Ivy's dad, Billy, whose birthday is tonight. They weren't home when Rachel and I stopped over after school, so hopefully I'll be able to deliver them tomorrow. In the meantime, there's plenty left for us (including Anne and David, of course, who are staying until Sunday)....
--Tuesday Rachel and I got flu shots at a free health clinic in one of the local high schools, the one Rachel will be going to if we stay in the area. We could have gone to a pediatrician on Drew's health plan, but we've been so busy and frazzled with other things that as soon as I saw the announcement about the clinic, I jumped on it. It was a huge, huge relief for me to have us both get shots, because I've been feeling irresponsible for not doing so until now. On the way out of the clinic we ran into a bake sale and I got to chatting with the woman in charge of it, who happens to be a journalist and we had a long talk about the public affairs/journalism world out here. These encounters are what I'm beginning to call Quintessential Arlington Moments.
Then we all drove to the Ballston Metro parking garage, hopped on the train and David, Rachel and I went to the Air & Space Museum on the Mall while Anne visited some other museums. I got a great shot of David and Rachel under the Voyager, which David helped build, and he seemed to enjoy taking her around the museum and explaining the concepts of thrust and other engineering terms. We went outside to take a break at one point -- it was a beautiful day, in the high 60s -- then went back inside to see a movie at the Planetarium. At 5 we met up with Anne, having taken a pedicab from our side of the Mall to where she was, and then we continued on to the great Mexican restaurant they'd chosen for dinner. The pedicab driver was so nice, he was enchanted with Rachel and sang "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and threw some D.C. landmarks into the lyrics. She cracked up, she's so easily amused these days. Drew joined us around 6:15 and we all shared small plates.
The food was fabulous but on the Metro on the way home I began feeling queasy, probably because I don't eat Mexican food that often. When we got home, I had to go upstairs and lie down for a while until I felt better.
--Wednesday I had a lunch meeting, so Anne and David took the Metro with me. I got off at Pentagon City..only to have my lunch date forget about meeting me. Grumpily I decided to take the Metro into D.C. and meet Drew for lunch, which of course was great, and then when I got home the day was so gorgeous that I decided to take a late afternoon bike ride down the W&OD trail. I got almost all the way to Vienna. The sunset alone was worth it. I'm still in the Portland frame of mind that says I MUST be outside whenever there's sun because it could disappear all in one moment and I'll be facing six months of rain. Dad, this is probably a demented version of your 10 o'clock rule on weekends. If so, it's definitely working.
When we all got home, Drew warmed up the turkey soup he made from the carcass of last weekend's turkey at Dan and Beryle's. Paired with my parsley-flecked dumplings, it was a great meal and David and Anne were profusely glad we'd made it. We all had the last of the pumpkin cocoa cake for dessert.
--Today Anne and David were on their own; I considered going into D.C. to do museums with Anne but then got caught running errands in the morning (including FedExing a copy of the law school magazine to Montana for a contest) and then really wanted to swim this afternoon, so I ended up working at home (answering emails, organizing my list of jobs I want to apply to) and then making chocolate chip cookies for Ivy's dad, Billy, whose birthday is tonight. They weren't home when Rachel and I stopped over after school, so hopefully I'll be able to deliver them tomorrow. In the meantime, there's plenty left for us (including Anne and David, of course, who are staying until Sunday)....
Sunday, November 3, 2013
Happy pre-Thanksgiving!
Thank heavens for Daylight Savings Time, because it helped me make a great Thanksgiving dinner (if I do say so myself). Got up at 7:30 a.m., which was really 6:30 a.m., to prep the turkey before putting it in the oven this morning; we were due at Dan and Beryle's between noon and 1 p.m. I made the pumpkin cocoa cake last night, plus the cornbread and stuffing, so all I had to do this morning after the turkey was to prep the salad and make the gravy after the turkey came out. I was worried that a 9-lb. bird wouldn't be enough, but we had leftovers! Also leftover cornbread and stuffing! It's true what Drew says, I always make too much food even when I don't think I make enough. Anyway...David and Anne took great care of Rachel while I bustled around and Drew went out to the farmer's market. David, great guy that he is, loaded some math (!) games on his smartphone and Rachel apparently mastered all of them. She also did a lot of cuddling with David and helped Anne bring a chair in from outside where Anne had been sitting -- like me, Anne grabs at any chance to be outside when it ISN'T RAINING. I have to get used to the idea that there are lots of sunny days here.
We got to Dan and Beryle's at 1. David and Anne ran to the grocery store to get apple cider -- perfect with the dinner -- and we all made a toast before eating. Everyone loved the dinner, including Rachel who couldn't say enough about the turkey and the cake. We sat around and talked about the government shutdown, about the places Beryle has lived, about all kinds of things while it slowly grew dark outside. Rachel was extremely well-behaved, as usual, and gave a big hug to Dan and Beryle as we left. They really seemed to enjoy our presence, and we're hoping that we can do this again next year if Anne and David are in town around the same time as this year.
Then we went home and had an abbreviated version of Family Movie Night. Anne and David spent the night in Rockville; Rachel and Drew and I weren't hungry, so Drew went grocery shopping for the week while Rachel and I watched some "Angelina Ballerina" movies. Just as she was whining about Drew not being around to read a book to her and give her a bath, he arrived home. I cleaned up from the turkey (we brought everything to Dan and Beryle's, including knives to carve the turkey) and was dismayed to see that the lemons I'd put on the bottom of the pan to flavor the chicken broth had eaten through the coating on the pan. ARGGHH...yet another chore to deal with this week...
We will see Anne and David several times this week, and on Tuesday we're all going into the District to play during the day (the kids have off school for Election Day) after I vote and Rachel and I get flu shots. So great to know that Anne & David haven't forgotten us even though we're on the East Coast!
We got to Dan and Beryle's at 1. David and Anne ran to the grocery store to get apple cider -- perfect with the dinner -- and we all made a toast before eating. Everyone loved the dinner, including Rachel who couldn't say enough about the turkey and the cake. We sat around and talked about the government shutdown, about the places Beryle has lived, about all kinds of things while it slowly grew dark outside. Rachel was extremely well-behaved, as usual, and gave a big hug to Dan and Beryle as we left. They really seemed to enjoy our presence, and we're hoping that we can do this again next year if Anne and David are in town around the same time as this year.
Then we went home and had an abbreviated version of Family Movie Night. Anne and David spent the night in Rockville; Rachel and Drew and I weren't hungry, so Drew went grocery shopping for the week while Rachel and I watched some "Angelina Ballerina" movies. Just as she was whining about Drew not being around to read a book to her and give her a bath, he arrived home. I cleaned up from the turkey (we brought everything to Dan and Beryle's, including knives to carve the turkey) and was dismayed to see that the lemons I'd put on the bottom of the pan to flavor the chicken broth had eaten through the coating on the pan. ARGGHH...yet another chore to deal with this week...
We will see Anne and David several times this week, and on Tuesday we're all going into the District to play during the day (the kids have off school for Election Day) after I vote and Rachel and I get flu shots. So great to know that Anne & David haven't forgotten us even though we're on the East Coast!
Saturday, November 2, 2013
A perfect day
Anne and David are visiting us from Seattle, and today we had the most perfect day we possibly could have had. We all woke up late -- Drew and I didn't get to bed until 1 a.m. -- and had homemade gingerbread for breakfast. Drew ran out to do some errands, Anne and David spent the morning working (David in the dining room, Anne outside because the weather was so warm and lovely), and so I decided to enlist Rachel's help in making a pumpkin cocoa cake for our early Thanksgiving celebration with Dan and Beryle tomorrow. I volunteered to bring a turkey with all the trimmings to their apartment.
Rachel was such a help; she now knows how to RUN THE MIXER ALL BY HERSELF! I was so proud of her. She's also a champion egg cracker, a skill I didn't master until much later than 5 years old. The cake isn't hard to make, but it's complicated because it involves multiple steps, so I was able to give her a task or two while I finished the rest of the cake-prep process. I really love having her in the kitchen with me, so much so that when she's not there, I feel kind of lonely.
When Drew got back we all went for a walk along a bike trail, although Rachel and I rode bikes. We can now do mother and daughter bike rides! Yay! I'm sure we'll do lots of rides together as long as the weather holds. Then Anne decided we should walk to the Metro station together; she was very impressed by how close it is to our house.
When we got back home, Drew helped Rachel do some extra math homework that her teacher gave to the kids while I made stuffing and cornbread. Then we all went to dinner at a Lebanese place near our house that I love. We had a fabulous dinner, I had a good conversation with David, plus two apple-flavored martinis that left me quite pleased with life in general. I think we've all decided that as soon as Rachel goes to college we're going to end up in a cool D.C. neighborhood together (Anne and David spending part of the year there, Drew and I living there, in Dupont Circle or somewhere else, full-time).
Altogether a perfectly wonderful, relaxing day!
Rachel was such a help; she now knows how to RUN THE MIXER ALL BY HERSELF! I was so proud of her. She's also a champion egg cracker, a skill I didn't master until much later than 5 years old. The cake isn't hard to make, but it's complicated because it involves multiple steps, so I was able to give her a task or two while I finished the rest of the cake-prep process. I really love having her in the kitchen with me, so much so that when she's not there, I feel kind of lonely.
When Drew got back we all went for a walk along a bike trail, although Rachel and I rode bikes. We can now do mother and daughter bike rides! Yay! I'm sure we'll do lots of rides together as long as the weather holds. Then Anne decided we should walk to the Metro station together; she was very impressed by how close it is to our house.
When we got back home, Drew helped Rachel do some extra math homework that her teacher gave to the kids while I made stuffing and cornbread. Then we all went to dinner at a Lebanese place near our house that I love. We had a fabulous dinner, I had a good conversation with David, plus two apple-flavored martinis that left me quite pleased with life in general. I think we've all decided that as soon as Rachel goes to college we're going to end up in a cool D.C. neighborhood together (Anne and David spending part of the year there, Drew and I living there, in Dupont Circle or somewhere else, full-time).
Altogether a perfectly wonderful, relaxing day!
Friday, November 1, 2013
Halloween night
Well, we apparently live in Mayberry. The day before Halloween I came home from a dispiriting day of running errands to find some cookies on my doorstep and a note: "Happy first Virginia Halloween!" signed by our neighbors. Immediately cheered me up. Then McKinley Elementary, where Rachel goes to school, had a school-wide parade Thursday at 2 p.m., the day of Halloween. I went, because I figured that if I didn't go, and next year this time if I have a job, then I'll kick myself that I didn't attend this school event when I could easily do so.
It was epic. Really.
The parade was led by the Arlington Police; they closed the surrounding streets. At the head of the parade was the Swanson Middle School band, wearing "help the homeless" t-shirts and playing "Louie, Louie," -- their "theme song," explained the band director. Each class had a banner, all the teachers and their aides were dressed up in costume, and Rachel and a classmate, Marat (who speaks Greek at home, he told me today) held the banner. Rachel looked adorable in her little Ariel costume. (She complained it was itchy last week, and Drew was really mad that he had bought a costume she didn't want to wear, so I offered to sew cloth inside the parts she said were itchy, which I did, which took three hours and all of my really bad stitching...only to have her announce on the morning of Halloween that she would wear a t-shirt underneath, which if she had agreed to do so last week would have saved me a lot of time and work and I never would have stabbed myself in the thumb with a needle. Suffice to say that, Mom, I can't believe you made all those dresses of ours when we were kids and I TOTALLY SALUTE YOU).
Anyway.
So, the kids marched around the block while I madly took pictures and teared up, because, really, where else does this happen? Rachel looked SO happy to see me when I just showed up (I had warned her I might not be able to come because I had a dentist appointment for a sore tooth, and even though it took longer than I thought it would, I was still determined to make the parade). I watched the parade with a mom whose son is in Rachel's class; she was there with her FOURTH child, a toddler, and I marveled at her patience and her slim figure. The high school band played a few numbers when they got back, including "In the Mood." They sounded pretty decent. When the band members were done I went to Rachel's class and watched her eat candy and make a pumpkin face out of an orange paper plate and some black construction paper, then went home to...
prepare for the onslaught of trick or treaters I just KNEW we were going to have. I lit two tea candles in the pumpkin Rachel and Drew carved last week, put the bowl of candy on the hall table and..waited...and...waited. Got the neighbor kids at 5:30, our across the street neighbors at 6:30 and a bunch 'o kids between 7 and 7:30. Drew, meanwhile, took Rachel out trick or treating with Ivy. They squabbled a bit about who would get to say "trick or treat!" first, and he noted later to me that while Ivy is a nice kid, she can be kind of bossy (she's in 2nd grade, I told him, of course she's bossy). We had a fast dinner of warmed-up brisket and cornbread, and Rachel got to eat two small pieces of candy before she went to bed. I kept away from the candy although I was sorely tempted to indulge. As a friend of mine from Portland said last year: must remember to keep away from the fun-sized candy if I want to have a fun-sized body.
And then Drew and I stayed up until 12:30 unrolling our new rug in the family room, hanging art and re-shelving the books, CDs and knickknacks, all of which had to be moved to get the rug in place. Happy Halloween, everyone!
It was epic. Really.
The parade was led by the Arlington Police; they closed the surrounding streets. At the head of the parade was the Swanson Middle School band, wearing "help the homeless" t-shirts and playing "Louie, Louie," -- their "theme song," explained the band director. Each class had a banner, all the teachers and their aides were dressed up in costume, and Rachel and a classmate, Marat (who speaks Greek at home, he told me today) held the banner. Rachel looked adorable in her little Ariel costume. (She complained it was itchy last week, and Drew was really mad that he had bought a costume she didn't want to wear, so I offered to sew cloth inside the parts she said were itchy, which I did, which took three hours and all of my really bad stitching...only to have her announce on the morning of Halloween that she would wear a t-shirt underneath, which if she had agreed to do so last week would have saved me a lot of time and work and I never would have stabbed myself in the thumb with a needle. Suffice to say that, Mom, I can't believe you made all those dresses of ours when we were kids and I TOTALLY SALUTE YOU).
Anyway.
So, the kids marched around the block while I madly took pictures and teared up, because, really, where else does this happen? Rachel looked SO happy to see me when I just showed up (I had warned her I might not be able to come because I had a dentist appointment for a sore tooth, and even though it took longer than I thought it would, I was still determined to make the parade). I watched the parade with a mom whose son is in Rachel's class; she was there with her FOURTH child, a toddler, and I marveled at her patience and her slim figure. The high school band played a few numbers when they got back, including "In the Mood." They sounded pretty decent. When the band members were done I went to Rachel's class and watched her eat candy and make a pumpkin face out of an orange paper plate and some black construction paper, then went home to...
prepare for the onslaught of trick or treaters I just KNEW we were going to have. I lit two tea candles in the pumpkin Rachel and Drew carved last week, put the bowl of candy on the hall table and..waited...and...waited. Got the neighbor kids at 5:30, our across the street neighbors at 6:30 and a bunch 'o kids between 7 and 7:30. Drew, meanwhile, took Rachel out trick or treating with Ivy. They squabbled a bit about who would get to say "trick or treat!" first, and he noted later to me that while Ivy is a nice kid, she can be kind of bossy (she's in 2nd grade, I told him, of course she's bossy). We had a fast dinner of warmed-up brisket and cornbread, and Rachel got to eat two small pieces of candy before she went to bed. I kept away from the candy although I was sorely tempted to indulge. As a friend of mine from Portland said last year: must remember to keep away from the fun-sized candy if I want to have a fun-sized body.
And then Drew and I stayed up until 12:30 unrolling our new rug in the family room, hanging art and re-shelving the books, CDs and knickknacks, all of which had to be moved to get the rug in place. Happy Halloween, everyone!
Halloween weekend, cont'd
...so the day after my friend Charon's Halloween party (exactly this time last week; I'm a little late catching up, I know) we had two other parties -- one, a neighborhood party from 10 to noon. Actually it was a parade around the Dominion Hills neighborhood, with a party and food at the neighborhood park afterward. I brought gingerbread and it was gone. I mean, GONE, within an hour. The guy who organized the event sounded very disappointed that he lost out on tasting a piece. Found out that the park is actually owned by the neighborhood association; the county helps maintain it but the neighbors keep it clean, mulch the ground, make sure the grass is cut, etc. They even leave toys near the play structure for the kids to play with! Anyway, I had a nice time chatting with some of the folks there, including one Jewish family who advised me what synagogue around here that would work for interfaith couples.
After the event we drove to a place that was having a gigantic sale on carpet remnants and bought one for the half-finished basement area, which we now refer to as "the family room." It's beige, with a wonderful pile, and we hung a bunch of really cool posters so it's a great space to watch TV and listen to music, rather than the pile of boxes and CD crates we worked around during "family movie night" on Saturdays (whereupon we make a special exception to the "no eating away from the dining room" rule, order pizza and maybe Drew brings home cupcakes, and we watch a Barbie movie, put Rachel to bed and then watch a grownup movie. This is how Drew and I catch up on movies that everyone else in the universe has seen, oh, three years ago). Lately Ivy has been joining us, so Drew re-named our routine "Family Fun Night," and we all have a great time together.
We dropped by a consignment store to get Rachel some winter clothes (alas, consignment stores here aren't nearly as good as the ones in Portland), and she started complaining that her stomach hurt, her head hurt, her whole body hurt, and when we got back all she wanted to do was cuddle with me on the couch and listen to a Laura Ingalls Wilder CD. She insisted she felt well enough to go to the Halloween party Ivy's parents were having, but as soon as we got there I could tell it was a mistake. Rachel tried to play upstairs, but then came into the living room, put her head on my lap and started bellyaching so loudly that I finally scooped her up and we went back home. She crashed for two hours in her bed ("will you please check on me?" she asked forlornly, and of course we said YES), and then woke up, ready for family movie night. We watched a Barbie movie together, and then Drew and I watched "Django Unchained."
After the event we drove to a place that was having a gigantic sale on carpet remnants and bought one for the half-finished basement area, which we now refer to as "the family room." It's beige, with a wonderful pile, and we hung a bunch of really cool posters so it's a great space to watch TV and listen to music, rather than the pile of boxes and CD crates we worked around during "family movie night" on Saturdays (whereupon we make a special exception to the "no eating away from the dining room" rule, order pizza and maybe Drew brings home cupcakes, and we watch a Barbie movie, put Rachel to bed and then watch a grownup movie. This is how Drew and I catch up on movies that everyone else in the universe has seen, oh, three years ago). Lately Ivy has been joining us, so Drew re-named our routine "Family Fun Night," and we all have a great time together.
We dropped by a consignment store to get Rachel some winter clothes (alas, consignment stores here aren't nearly as good as the ones in Portland), and she started complaining that her stomach hurt, her head hurt, her whole body hurt, and when we got back all she wanted to do was cuddle with me on the couch and listen to a Laura Ingalls Wilder CD. She insisted she felt well enough to go to the Halloween party Ivy's parents were having, but as soon as we got there I could tell it was a mistake. Rachel tried to play upstairs, but then came into the living room, put her head on my lap and started bellyaching so loudly that I finally scooped her up and we went back home. She crashed for two hours in her bed ("will you please check on me?" she asked forlornly, and of course we said YES), and then woke up, ready for family movie night. We watched a Barbie movie together, and then Drew and I watched "Django Unchained."
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