Busy March

Happy Birthday Sadie! and Happy St. Patrick's Day! Sadie turned three the day before St. Patrick's Day and we were so happy to have both sets of Grandparents and Sadie's Aunt Deni and Uncle Patrick to celebrate with us!

Sadie had so much fun with all the partying, and kept asking us if it was still her birthday. Jake was probably more excited than Sadie was, but that'll probably always be the case.




Note:  This post was in stuck draft for six years and six months.  Editors...

Snowstorm of a century

As of 2pm today we've had 55 inches of snow this winter. This breaks the previous record from 1898-1899 when DC received 54 inches. I think we can all agree, once and for all, that global warming is a hoax. In fact, I think this also debunks the "world is round" argument, because clearly a round earth wouldn't be able to sustain the 5 foot snowdrifts that are on my lawn right now. Only a FLAT earth could balance that load. We'll cover evolution in the next post, but suffice it to say that if evolution were real, I'd have a fur coat and a live 120V outlet on my elbow.

Luckily we only lost power for a couple of hours on Saturday morning. Heat would have been a problem, as would hot water. But the real crisis could have been having two toddlers at home for six (going on seven) days without television and dvds. They don't care about hot food, or heat, or hot water. They laugh at baths, have no need for food, and somehow generate their own heat through their unlimitless energy reserves. And to parents, these things are all secondary.....to sanity.

On Friday, Ali and I were really excited about the prospect of a day at home with the kids. Quality time, and all that. We baked, and arts and crafted, and played, and danced and such. And Saturday we had fun in the snow. And Saturday afternoon we.......started to get a bit of cabin fever. And then Sunday came and went. And Monday started to clear up a bit, but then Tuesday came with grey skies and dire forecasts. And then for crying out loud we had an actual BLIZZARD today.

Here are my top 10 Blizzard 2010 memories:

10. Jake wandering upstairs this afternoon and telling us he'd fallen asleep in the basement watching cartoons.
9. Sadie demanding to call her mittens "cakes". You don't argue with Sadie.
8. Jake and I starting a snow tunnel at opposite ends and finally meeting in the middle.
7. Getting our power back just as I had three bread doughs rising.
6. Seeing the neighborhood dogs having to poop in their own yards because of the snow.
5. Justifying purchase of four-wheel-drive minivan.
4. Having Jake come back again and again for slices of my homemade bread.
3. Getting $100 use out of a $10 Marshalls pool raft I bought Friday night on the way home from work.
2. Finally cooking a dinner (brined roasted chicken) that Sadie loved.
1. Having Ali here. Sappy? Maybe. But we make a good team and I couldn't have survived the past week without her!

Jake and Sadie on our driveway. Seriously, I've never seen snowbanks like these except at shopping mall parking lots.

Ali shoveling the stairs. Again.

Jake on our $10 Marhsall's pool raft with Tally and Piper.


Here's our 80's party (Violent Femmes in the background):


And here's us outside as the Blizzard was finally dying down:

Merry Christmas!

Funny story. It's Christmas Eve and we're all up in the Adirondacks getting ready for the big day. Everybody's going skiing at Gore Mtn and I decide to take Jake out for his first lesson. I haven't been skiing in 15 years, and only in the powdery and forgiving snow of Colorado, but after I get skis on, it seems to come back to me. Jake wasn't really in the mood to learn that day, but I was having a blast on the bunny hill, and feeling like it was just yesterday that I was skiing black diamonds in Aspen. We took a break for lunch and then Uncle Bob (here's where I would post a link to a blog entry about our near tragedy in the Pacific Ocean, but that was back before blogs) suggested I head up the mountain and ski with the big boys. At the time, I couldn't think of any better way to spend a sunny December afternoon.

We head down the slopes and I'm feeling great. But Bob points out that I'm snowplowing and need to keep the skis parallel. That sounds familiar so I put them together and start to remember how to turn. But something's different. Where is the powder up to my knees? What's all this icy snow doing here? Before long, I'm face down and feeling pain everywhere, but mostly in my right hand. I go to stand up and my thumb does not agree with the plan.

I made it down the mountain and for some reason decided to take the gondola up for another run. This time, I'm realizing my thumb is toast. I get down to the bottom again and head for the bar. An ice water for my thumb, and a nut brown ale for me.

Ali's Dad Mike takes me to the hospital, about 40 minutes away and they do X-Rays and confirm the break. It's still lined up, but I'll need to keep it in a splint so it heals properly. It's about 7:30pm by now and we're headed back to the lodge. I get the cellphone to call and let them know we're headed back and to see what we've been missing on Christmas Eve.

The phone rings and rings. It took a while for someone to answer, because Ali, expecting our call, had run to the phone and badly stubbed her toe on a table. And had broken it. The toe, not the table. No, I'm not kidding.

Of course, they didn't know at the time whether it was broken. When we finally got back to the lodge, Ali was being fed shots of whiskey and the Uncles were convincing her that they could manually correct the errant toe. We headed right back to the hospital.

The ER docs and nurses are probably still chuckling about us. They didn't even try to keep straight faces when we showed up with the second broken bone. And when the doctor found out we had two toddlers he really lost it. "So, how are you going to take care of them?? You can't walk and you can't carry anything! HAHAHHAHA!!!" It was a Christmas miracle that we were able to give these poor ER workers such amusement with our wounds. Isn't that the true spirit of Christmas?

Today we had our follow-up visit with the orthopaedist (why do they insist on the funny Greek spelling? It's not like we take the kids to Paediatricians) and we brought laughter and happiness to a whole new office of medical professionals. "Oh we couldn't wait when we saw that you were both coming in. What happened? Who beat up who? Did a thumb wrestling match go horribly wrong?"

Ali's Dad likes to call the whole episode a "Love Story," which I think is the best spin anyone could possibly put on this comedy of errors.

Here's to a healthy 2010!

Oh, Christmas was a blast, besides the injuries. Here are a few pictures from our trip to Warrensburg NY, including the crazy 80's party we had on 12/26. And here's a video of Jake playing his new drumset!!

Excited for Christmas!

I think this might be the longest I've gone without a blog entry. I blame Facebook, except that I haven't been posting there either. Tonight was such a great night. We didn't do anything special-- well we did go out for pizza at Flippin Pizza because Sadie asked so nicely. But otherwise it was just a nice fun family night. The kids are so excited about Christmas. Jake is literally counting down the days. Sadie is singing Frosty the Snowman. And with the snow coming (12" expected), they're even more excited. We let them stay up late tonight to see when the snow started falling. Around 9:00, we looked out the window and saw the first flakes start to collect on the ground. It was like a budget Norman Rockwell painting up in here. Jake and Sadie have been having so much fun together lately. They really seem like brother and sister these days-- looking out for one another, sharing, pretending together, and fighting too. And I love hearing them crack each other up. I love it more than food and Bo Diddley.

In a few days we're driving to upstate New York where Ali's Uncle Bob and Aunt Kate have a log cabin. Ali's whole family will be there, and my parents too. We're so lucky that our families not only get along, but have fun together. I'm looking forward to a week of playing in the snow, catching up with everyone, cooking, and maybe playing some ukulele.

Annapolis Pirate Adventure

All last week we kept thinking we'd take a day trip somewhere to take advantage of the beautiful fall weather. But we woke up Saturday morning and realized we didn't really know where we wanted to go. Just before giving up and playing out in the cul-de-sac, we decided on Annapolis. Ali did a quick search and found this pirate place, which we kept as a surprise for the kids.

When we got into town, we got lunch at Chick and Ruth's which makes a mean pastrami sandwich, and old fashioned egg creams and shakes and about 150 other menu items. From there, we strolled around town and found a big shady playground for the kids.

Finally, it was pirate time. I wasn't sure what to expect, but this place did a great job. After all the kids showed up, they took them outside to paint tattoos and beards and dress them up in pirate and mermaid gear.
And then for the rest of the adventure, they kept the kids in one group and parents in another. They told them how to be pirate-y, and got them all excited about our boat ride. On the pirate ship, all the kids sat in front and were entertained while the parents relaxed in the back and enjoyed a beautiful day on the bay. We searched for treasure, fired water cannons at Pirate Pete, and even drank some grog. It was a really fun time. And no, we had no idea it was International Talk Like a Pirate Day. Not kidding.


For dinner we went to Cantler's and had some of the best crabs I've ever had. Jake loved hammering the crabs, and even got some tips (and big crab bites) from the locals sitting next to us. Sadie tried a tiny bite, before switching to hush puppies and ketchup. We were there for almost two hours, which has to be a record with the kids. About halfway through, we switched them to strawberry cake and they were in heaven.

Great day trip!

More pics here.

Day 0 and day 1 of school year 2009-10

Before I start talking about the new school year, I first need to talk about this:


That's me and Deni in the back seat there, with Patrick and one of Smith Mountain Lake's barnstormers at the controls. For Patrick's birthday, Deni got him a flying lesson and when we showed up, it turned out the instructor had room for two more. Deni took her camera up in the plane, but I don't have those pictures so you'll have to take my word for it that it was beautiful and so much fun to see the lake from, oh, 3,000 feet?? I have no idea. My eyes were busy looking out the window at all the sights I'd seen from driving and boating around. I think Patrick may have been a little too focused to do much sightseeing, but he did a great job we only buzzed the control tower once, a la Top Gun. The best piece of advice I took away from it was, "fly it like you stole it," which is my new motto.

Yesterday the kids' school was closed to get ready for the new school year, so we went had a crazy adventure day. After we dropped Ali off, we drove up to Huntley Meadows Park for a morning hike. I've never been, but it was a great spot for exploring and running through the woods, and they also have a great boardwalk through the wetlands where you can pretend that you see all the animals they say live there. We did see the "beaver dam" they advertised, but it just looked like a ranger dropped a handful of twigs. Anyway, the kids loved it.

Here we are at a stoplight. I just held up the camera and took a quick shot since everyone was wearing sunglasses and we had MIA blasting on the system. It wasn't until we got home and I looked at the pics that I saw Jake giving me the tongue. On our way downtown, we stopped at the Maine Ave. fish market for a snack. This wasn't my best idea ever (forklifts, hobos, Sadie-sized spaces between the boats and the Potomuck), but the kids loved it. They got to touch the live crabs, and see all the giant fish. They also got to see that mackerel that Ali's always talking about (I told them this particular one wasn't "holy"). We got some oysters, shrimp, crab balls and hush puppies. Sadie didn't want any of it, but she finally tried a hush puppy and loved it. Then she thought she was getting another, but got a crab ball instead. She made a very sad face and returned the half chewed crab ball to me, and not wanting to risk repeating that experience again, she refused any more hush puppies.


We got down to the mall and ran around a bit. Here they are in front of two monuments (beat that, Sears Portraits!):



Then Sadie saw the Carousel and that was that. We got on and they picked their horses -- Sadie on the purple one, and Jake on the one with a big number "3" that I assumed they painted on to appease the NASCAR tourist lobby. I tied the little strap around Sadie's waist, and wondered, what the heck does that strap do anyway? As the vintage carousel started turning, I noticed the sign that required one adult per child. In about 30 seconds, we were spinning faster than any carousel I'd ever been on. I was feeling the G-Forces more than that plane ride, and I could see both kids tilting outward on their horses ("They're PONIES!" Sadie kept reminding me). I kept jogging back and forth between the kids, making sure they weren't about to fly off, and trying not to show any fear in my expression. I think the ride lasted 34 minutes. I was glad when it was over.
Next we went over to the American History museum to check out the transportation section, and then the kid-zone. We also did the ride simulator thing that they could probably do a better job explaining how it fits into American History, but whatever. Jake loved it, and Sadie "was a little bit scared". She reminded me tonight that she was a little bit scared. I told her we wouldn't ride it again, but she said she wanted to, except this time with Mommy, Daddy, Jake, Sadie......and Cousin Lyssa.

Ok, so the first day of school was today. It was a hectic morning here as we were running a bit behind schedule and Sadie insisted on SLOWLY finishing every.......last......bite.....of her waffle. In the meantime, I took a picture of Jake, sporting his new favorite comical expression: Here are both kids, ready for what turned out to be a great first day in their new classes!

8 hours in Baltimore

Jake was asking about Baltimore and the first description that popped into my head was "a fun version of Washington DC". Don't get me wrong, DC is a fun town with lots of character. But Baltimore is Baltimore and it has at least two things going for it: duckpin bowling and no congressional staffers.

Baltimore also has a pretty good roller derby team in the Charm City All Stars. Saturday night they soundly beat the #2 Philly Liberty Belles, 149-74. We left to get the kids home right after the opening bout in which Charm City's Female Trouble took a beating from Philly's Independence Dolls. Cousin Lyssa was with us representing Philly and we taught Jake to boo every time Lyssa cheered. It was a lot of fun and we even got to see some old friends. Here's Sadie helping Mya Bloody Valentine of the Charm City All-Stars sell tickets:


Sadie kept looking up at us to say "now Sadie roller skate". Maybe a few more years...

Before the bout, we had a ball at Port Discovery where Sadie fearlessly climbed every rope bridge she could find and Jake ruled the soccer field:

Maine recap

Maine was fun for a lot of reasons. We were excited to go up for our week-long vacation with the Bowers' and Wengles, but we also had Carolyn and Adrian's wedding so it was a nice bi-fecta. Downtown Portland was cute and happening and yet another place we could see ourselves living. The wedding great: fun, funny, short, and meaningful ceremony, and great party afterwards. Cousin Lyssa drove up from Philly in terrible traffic for something like 37 hours, so big thanks to her for watching the kids.

After the wedding, we packed up and got on a ferry to Great Diamond Island in the Casco Bay with the Bowers' (Mike, Stacey and Lily) and the Wengles (Fred and Erin). The island was the definition of relaxing. Well, relaxing with kids anyway. Fred and Erin seemed to be relaxed, and Stacey and Mike only have Lily so they trade off being relaxed. Ali and I were as relaxed as we could be with two kids who apparently plotted in advance to only nap simultaneously for 30 minutes the whole week. But they couldn't help it - it was such a beautiful spot right on the water with our own little beach and a big yard with old trees and tree swings.
We decided not to bring the port-a-crib that Sadie only fits in diagonally, and she slept in a real bed for the first time. Jake and Sadie shared a little room connected to our room that probably had the best view in the house. She did great in her big bed, although we did find her on the floor a couple of times. No crying, so she must have decided to relocate sometime during the night??

The island was pretty isolated, with only a little quickie mart and the random lobsterman on a bicycle with his catch of the day for food. The other option was to order from the mainland grocery store and have them deliver, which we took advantage of. The food came in cardboard banana shipping boxes which were the kids' toys for the whole week. Towers, mazes, art projects imaginary trains, and random games. Even if you don't live on an island, I recommend getting your food delivered in banana boxes if you have kids.


Jake loved his role as gang leader of Sadie and Lily. The two girls are both just two, and at the age where they're just starting to acknowledge and play with each other. Ali and I were both proud of how Jake looked out for the younger girls and tried to include them in his games. They had their issues of course, but overall the kids all played great together and I think next summer they'll all be able to play together even more. Fred and Erin did great too - no fights over toys!

It was so much fun. I think all of us left the island thinking, "so how many lobsters do you have to catch every day to live here full time?"
Check out more pictures here.

Off to Maine

Tomorrow morning we'll pile into the van and head north for Portland, Maine. If we can leave around 6:30, hopefully we'll arrive by 5:00. You never know with I-95 and Friday summer traffic. We'll hope for the best, and bring lots of DVDs and snacks.

We're headed up for our friends Carolyn and Adrian's wedding, and then a week-long vacation with the Wengles and Bowerss's on an island in the Casco Bay. We're so excited, but I think Jake is the most excited. There's a great book we read a lot called "The Story of Ferdinand" about a bull who just wants to smell the roses, but winds up fending off the Matadors. He lives in Spain. Well Jake has been telling his friends and teachers at school that he's going to Maine to meet Ferdinand. Maine, Spain just one consonant away, really. He's excited about Ferdinand and lobsters and catfish and the ocean and a pool and all sorts of fun things that may or may not actually be related to our vacation plans. But he's excited. Yesterday, we started to prepare him by saying that when we left on Friday, we'd need to get up early for a long drive. So this morning (Thursday), he stumbles into our room at 5:01, ready for the trip.

Sadie is excited, because Jake is. She's such a great combination of a little sister and her own strong personality. She looks up to Jake so much, and closely observes all his actions and emotions and mimics quite a bit. But she's definitely got a mind of her own.

Anyway, we're excited for the trip! Cousin Lyssa will be coming up with us for the weekend to help watch the kids during the wedding, and the kids are really looking forward to that. We've had a lot of fun with Lyssa this summer, so it'll be nice to see her again. Lyssa, we owe you big!

The island where we're staying is car-free. We'll take a ferry, and then have a golf cart to ride around in. There are only about 15 or 20 houses on the island, and one quickie mart which I think sells hot dogs, milk, beer and lobsters. We should be just fine.

By the way, tripdub readers, I've been trying to decide what to do about the Facebook vs. blog issue. I think the solution is to stick with tripdub and post links to tripdub on Facebook when I make posts, which will hopefully be more frequent.

Hope everyone's having a great summer. Stay tuned for photos of our lobster wrestling contests.

Sadie update

Sadie is now well into her second year and is developing a very different personality from Jake's. Where Jake needs to connect with his friends, Sadie is just fine working on her own projects. If Jake might be a little timid on a moonbounce, Sadie will jump right on. Jake tends to back down from confrontation in favor of reaching some agreement, and Sadie is......different. Sadie is determined and stubborn and patient and will.....get.....her........way. At two, she is our little CEO. And I love all of it. She is Daddy's Little Girl about 5 minutes a day. I can count on at least one genuine hug a day, but the rest of the time she is focused and has no time for that stuff.
But Sadie has a funny side too. She might have to work at it, but at two, she must already realize she needs a sense of humor to survive in this family. She and Jake share jokes all the time now. She does little dances to make us smile, and she'll stick out her tongue in staccato rhytyms at dinner if we're too serious for her. And she knows how to get what she wants and already plays Ali and I for our weaknesses. Most of the time, that means crying at Ali and being goofy with me.

Sadie is so stubborn we bought her a book called "Little Miss Stubborn", mostly for our own amusement. The other night she ripped it out of my hands and insisted on "reading" it. She wouldn't give it back no matter how many ways I tried to explain that she needed help with the reading business.

I love this picture of Sadie. She loves you, and she wants you to love her, but, get out of her way.

Happy Father's Day!

We had a pretty relaxing day today, after the craziness of Jake's birthday party yesterday. Actually, it wasn't that crazy. Jake was great, and seemed to have fun with his friends, and his family, and that made Ali and I really happy. Gram and Poppy came early and took the kids out Saturday morning to the Corcoran downtown so Ali and I could do our arts and crafts projects. We made a giant robot for the door, a racecar for pin the wheel on the racecar, robot cupcakes and robot costumes for a robot dance party contest.

So, if you're a regular tripdub reader, you'll of course rememeber this photo from last fall:
We had a great time with Stacey Mike and Lily at some farm thing, but this photo cracked us up because it makes Ali look like a tiny little leprechaun next to GIANT STACEY. So here's the photo-revenge shot where little leprechaun Lily gets matched up with GIANT SADIE!
Ok, not quite as dramatic, but a little chuckle, no?

Oh, Sadie

Yes, the dress is too short. Yes, she has red sparkly Wizard of Oz slippers on. Yes, with socks. And yes, she fell flat on her face at school on Friday, leaving that mark under her nose.

Sadie would not take these shoes off today. She wanted to go outside and play with the older kids, but I told her she'd have to put some real shoes on. She decided to stay inside.

Here's how much we love our deck

This weekend was beautiful and we finally got our furniture and umbrella and we spent 85 percent of our days out on the deck. We set up the baby pools and the kids had so much fun, which meant we got to enjoy a few nice meals outside while they played.

Spring Recital

Jake's class has been practicing for their spring recital for weeks now. The songs were supposed to be a surprise for the parents, and when we asked, Jake would only say that it was a secret between him and his brain.

A couple of weeks ago, as we were all piling into the van one morning, Jake started quietly singing, "Sunday Monday Happy Days, Tuesday Wednesday Happy Days..." Ali and I did a double take and asked where he'd learned that song -- it's not like we watch Happy Days re-runs around the house. He looked surprised that we'd heard him, and we quickly realized this was probably his super secret recital song.

Anyway, last week was finally the recital, and it was AWESOME! All the parents dropped the kids off backstage, and then we waited while they got into their costumes. When Jake's class came out, all the boys were in jeans and black dress shoes, with white t-shirts that had the sleeves rolled up, and 45rpm records shapes sewn onto the backs. And of course, they had their first initials sewn onto the fronts, Laverne and Shirley style. The girls looked great in pink poodle skirts and scarves, and everyone had sunglasses on.

Here's a shot from the performance:
And here he is at the "afterparty" with Grace, his main squeeze:
Here's the whole gang:


And here's a shot from the behind-the-scenes rehearsal:
See the full video here:

Memphis

Our trip to Memphis (two weeks ago) was so much fun. We were anxious about the 13 hour drive, but everybody did so well! To break up the trip, we spent the night in Johnson City, Tennessee with Jake's cousin Arjuna. It was the perfect rest stop - the kids got to play, and we got to hang out with Kerry and Mike and Carol.

Here's Jake in Memphis, right outside of Deni and Patrick's restaurant, the Majestic Grille, standing on the trolley tracks. The trolley was a big hit with the kids.


Mike and Pat (aka Gram and Poppy) drove down separately, and gave us a mini-vacation by taking care of the kids for two nights. I wasn't too worried about Jake handling the craziness of the trip, but Sadie really surprised me with how well she did with sleeping in three different places, and with all the driving. Here are Jake and Sadie with Gram and Poppy on their secret late-night excursion:

We had such a great fun-filled week in Memphis. We saw the Pink Palace, a Red Birds game, took trolley rides, went out to great restaurants, explored the River Walk, ate all kinds of BBQ at Memphis in May, went to the zoo, and went to the children's museum. Here are Jake and Sadie playing dress up, and Deni taking Sadie down a slide:


We also did some relaxing at Deni and Patrick's, and here is Sadie having fun brushing my hair:


One night we grilled out on Deni and Patrick's lovely patio:


Sunset on the Mississippi. What you can't see is the organized chaos directly behind us which was the national BBQ championships held during Memphis in May. Patrick's team was competing and cooked something like 400 lbs of pork, not to mention chicken, lamb and Spam.


It was a great vacation, and I think we may make an annual excursion out of it. More pictures here.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Wow! Thanks Ali for a GREAT birthday dinner! We had a beautiful roast rack of lamb with a balsamic red wine reduction, roast root veggies, and asparagus with lemon zest and parmesan and then these yummy coconut cupcakes!

Cheesecake

Since last week's post about the "incident", Jake has been completely back to normal. He saw some ripped pages from one of his books in the garbage a few days later (one of the casualties from the tantrum) and seemed pretty upset about it. But, my travels are over and now we're all looking forward to our big road trip to Memphis this weekend! We're calling it a "work trip" because I think Jake has felt left out from all of my work trips, so I told him we're taking the whole family on the next "work trip". I'm even going to make him turn in travel receipts so he gets the full experience.

In the above picture, Jake and Sadie are in Cheesecake Heaven, enjoying leftovers from my birthday cheesecake. Thanks Mom! And yes, Sadie is wearing a tiara. Earlier tonight she had on a pink princess cone hat thingy. She loves to accessorize. Jake is dressed up for the Mother's Day Tea Party his class hosted today. Ali said it was so much fun and that Jake was the cutest kid there. The story she couldn't wait to tell me was that Jake's teacher asked all the kids who their best friend was, and all the kids named someone in the class. But Jake looked around the room and said "Mommy!" And so he got cheesecake tonight.