"Police Navidad"

Rory had his preschool Holiday Concert this past Wednesday night, and although we video taped it (like every other parent there!), the video didn't turn very well and you couldn't really hear Rory singing. And since I've had the distinct pleasure of listening to him practice over and over for the past couple of weeks, I didn't think it would be fair if you couldn't experience it as well. (I know, I know, I'm just TOO kind!) So, here he is, singing his little heart out (in Spanglish, no less!):

Learning the Fine Art of Total Embarassment

A few weeks ago, Rory and I are at church looking for Hoby. Rory is running around going, "Daddy? Daddy? Where are you?!". Finally, a man turns around and points to some guy with a mustache and says, "Hey there, little guy - is THAT your daddy?" So Rory says very matter of factly, "Nope, my daddy doesn't have a mustache... but my mommy does! She shaves hers off though." I thought I would DIE from embarassment! And as if that wasn't bad enough, I now get to see that guy EVERY FREAKIN' SUNDAY.

Thanks alot, Ro.

Michigan Trip 2008

Last weekend I took at trip to Michigan.
Yup, you heard that right.
MICHIGAN.

Now, when I say that to most people, their response is usually, "Hmmmm, Michigan? Why would you want to go there? In NOVEMBER?". So I end up explaining that I grew up just outside of Detroit, and that Erika, a good friend of the family - someone I actually consider to be family - got married and it was our good fortune that the wedding was taking place right near our old family stomping grounds. I spent the first thirteen years of my life in Michigan, and believe it or not, I LOVED growing up there as you will probably be able to tell by the ridiculously large amount of pictures to follow. Having the opportunity to go back there after all these years was amazing and at the risk of sounding like a complete sap, it was quite possibly one of the best family trips I've ever taken.

Okay, prepare yourself for a pictorial essay on my childhood!
Are you ready?

Well, to start with, here is how we officially knew we had entered the Midwest - below was the sign outside the door of our hotel's lobby:


You won't see that in California!

Below is the West Bloomfield Jewish Community Center (otherwise known as the JCC) which was where we spent the majority of our childhood. My mom worked here for years, and this enormous building was essentially our playground. Growing up in this place was the reason why I went to college and got a degree in Recreation Administration and Business. It was always my dream to come back and work here someday (but alas, Michigan is kind of a far commute from California!):


This is the first house I ever lived in on Tammerlane Drive in a subdivision called Old Farm. Boy, it seemed so much bigger when I was little!


Here I am in front of where I went to kindergarten at Ealy Elementary School:


This is the house on Strathdale Lane that we moved to when I was in third grade. We lovingly refer to it as "The Sinking House" because the foundation was actually sinking, something that we didn't realize until we spent several years having to trim our vertical blinds like hair because they kept "growing" and hitting the floor. Ah, good times!



We lived right down the street from a park that was located on Moon Lake. I used to ride my bike to the park, walk down the path to the dock, and catch tad poles for hours. I never realized how breathtakingly beautiful it was down at the lake!:









The next place we went was our old elementary school, Pine Lake, that had an awesome wooded path that we used to walk through everyday on our way to school. It looked exactly like it did when we were kids:







And not only did the path and the school look the same, but we were amazed to find that they even still had the same playground equipment that had been there when we were kids twenty something years ago! Unbelievable! Of course, I had to take pictures to prove it:







After freezing our butts off playing on old school yard equipment, we headed out to one of our favorite childhood restaurants, Olga's.



The last time we were at this particular Olga's, about 25 years ago, our whole family got a nasty case of food poisoning. We figured that by now they probably got that worked out and we wolfed down some deliscious food that tasted better than I remembered it. But in an odd (and somewhat amusing) twist of fate, Jer ended up getting food poisoning AGAIN later that night. Okay, well, maybe it wasn't that funny to Jer (sorry, Bro!), but I figured we could all laugh a bit at his expense.

After lunch, we decided that we couldn't truly experience fall in Michigan without stopping by the old Franklin Cider Mill, the site of countless school field trips and autumn weekends during my childhood. The Cider Mill uses an old fashioned water wheel to power the apple presses that are used to make the cider.





They have the BEST apple cider and homemade old fashioned donuts I've ever tasted - it is AMAZING. Of course, we had to take some to go!



Later that night, we got dressed up and headed to the wedding, which was beautiful:




Here's a picture of the happy couple - Erika and Ron, who, as I write this, are probably having drinks on a beach in Buenos Aires! Congrats, you two!:


The entire weekend I walked around with a big sappy smile on my face. What was so darn great about a weekend near Detroit? Well, I got the chance to see old friends that mean the world to me:

Amy Jablin with Baby Mia and "The Kids" together again, Jer, Amy, Erika and Me


My dad and his best buddy, Alan Jablin, and my mom with her old friend Margery Jablin


But more importantly, I had the opportunity to spend some quality time walking down memory lane with my brother Jeremy and my parents (Rory and Hoby sat this trip out and stayed home.) I don't think the four of us have been alone together on a trip in years and it was bittersweet considering all that we've been going through this year since my dad's cancer diagnosis. I think that we were able to wrap ourselves up in a warm, fuzzy blanket of nostalgia and take our minds off the harshness of reality, even if it was only for a little while.

So, yes, I spent the weekend in Michigan - cold, run down, middle of no where Michigan. And you know what, I wouldn't have missed it for the world...

Halloween 2008

Ah, Halloween - is there anything better for a three year old? Dressing up in costume, knocking on random doors, strangers giving out candy, and your parents actually letting you eat some! As Rory would say, Halloween is "pure awesomeness"! We are still in the process of detoxing that three year old from eating his weight in candy...

The lead up to Halloween this year was pretty entertaining. At the beginning of October, I asked Rory what he wanted to be, and his answer was "a Starbucks Maker"(which translates to a Starbucks barista). Not hard to tell that this kid practically grew up in a Starbucks, is it? It sounded kind of odd to me until I realized that this costume basically required only a green apron and a pair of tan pants - it doesn't get much more low maintenence than that! - so I was totally onboard. However, about a week later, I went to pick Rory up from school and his teacher came up and said, "I asked your son what he wanted to be for Halloween and do you know what he said?" I smiled politely, thinking that she meant a Starbucks barista, but she started to laugh and said, "He wants to be a Chuck E. Cheese token!" Uh, WHAT?? Where on Earth did THAT come from? Rory had only been to Chuck E. Cheese once before when he was much younger, and they don't even have tokens anymore! I had no idea where he got the idea, but from then on, he was totally stuck on it.

There went my low mainetenece costume! I had to figure out how to turn my kid into a token! My idea was to use cardboard and cut out two large circles to create a sort of sandwich board that he could wear over his shoulders, then take a picture of a token and have it blown up to cover the cardboard. Sounds good in theory, doesn't it? However, I quickly realized that this was going to be heavy and hard to move around in - and trust me, my child NEEDS to move! On to Plan B. I bought some light weight poster board, figuring this might be easier to get around in, but when I did a test drive with it, Rory ended up crushing it within the first five minutes of wearing it. This was turning out to be even harder than I thought. Darn that Chuck E Cheese and his tokens!

So enter Plan C - convince Rory that he REALLY wanted to be a barista after all! I quickly ordered a little Starbucks apron online and started talking it up like it was going to be the best costume in the world. And you know what? It worked!!!

Check out the cutest "Starbucks Maker" you've ever seen:





Can't wait to see what he comes up with for next year...

The Potty Train Has Finally Arrived at the Station...

I'm happy to announce that Rory has graduated from training and is now officially potty trained! Hallelujah! I have to admit that a few weeks ago I thought this day would NEVER come. Rory would go a couple times in the toilet every now and then (and we would shower him with praise, treats, etc. in hopes that THIS time it would stick for good!), but then when it came time to "go" again, he would cry for a diaper. And I mean CRY. Heart-wrenching, big crocodile tears crying like he was dying until I finally gave in and put one on him. And then he would go sit on the toilet. IN HIS DIAPER. It was starting to drive me crazy. Okay, BEYOND crazy. I had tried every trick in the book and nothing worked.

So what finally did it? Actually, I had almost nothing to do with it! Here's how it went down: About two weeks ago, I took him to Babies R Us and let him pick out the potty seat of his choice. Not that we didn't already have two different kinds at home already, but I thought maybe if he chose for himself, he might be more motivated to use it. I let him sit on every model they had, and he chose the one he thought was most comfortable. I talked it up all the way home in the car ("Aren't you excited to use your new seat? Isn't comfy? We won't need those diapers anymore, no siree!"), and he seemed pretty enthusiastic about it...until it came time to actually put it to use. He went back to begging for a diaper - and my friends, I was begging for mercy.

A few days later, however, we had some friends over who have a daughter a year younger than Ro who also doesn't like to use the toilet. When Rory came up to me later that evening and asked for a diaper so he could go potty, his little friend looked at him and said, "You still use a diaper? But you're a big boy!" Now I know that he really likes how his friend looks up to him as the "older kid", so I could see the wheels of his brain turning as he realized that he was about to lose some face. So he thinks for a minute and then says, "Nope, I don't need a diaper! Come on, I'll show you!" and he took her in the bathroom and "showed" her how he can poop in the toilet. She was totally in awe of him, and he was so proud of himself - I think that was the real turning point.

The next day, when he said he needed a diaper, I just popped him on his new potty seat and reminded him of how proud he was of himself the night before, and next thing I knew, he had gone again! I think even HE was suprised! We made a sticker chart so he could earn a trip to Chuck E Cheese and I just kept putting him back on the toilet every time he asked for a diaper. He would whine a bit, but he wasn't hysterically crying like he had been, and once he went, we were both estactic.

This week has been AMAZING. Wednesday, he came up and instead of saying, "Mom, I have to go poopy in my diaper," he actually said, "Hey Mom, I have to go poopy on the toilet!". ON THE TOILET!!!! WOW! I put him on his potty seat and got ready to read him a book, but he just said, "That's okay, Mom, I need my privacy" and he kicked me out and shut the door! I almost fell over!! A few minutes later, he yelled for me and he had gone ALL BY HIMSELF! I practically cried with joy.

But the crowning moment was definitely yesterday, when we were at a park. He came up and said the magic words again, "I have to go poopy on the toilet, Mom!" and so I grabbed my little fold up potty seat (which we've never used before)and he actually went and willingly sat on the toilet. And then HE POOPED AT THE PARK! Pooping while we're out at a public place - I couldn't believe it. I never thought this day would come!!

We have now gone almost two whole weeks without using a diaper to poop...
and I am ONE PROUD MAMA!

Way to go, Ro!

The Joy of Raising a Boy

A good friend of mine recently found out that she was pregnant with a boy and was more than a little stunned. A few of us decided to take action and try to put something together that might make her more excited about having a bouncing baby boy. At first I had a TERRIBLE case of writer's block - even though I've actually been in this very position before myself. I had been so sure that Rory was going to be a girl that I practically had to be picked up off the examining room floor when the doctor announced, "It has a penis!" However, once I finally figured out what to write about, I have to say that I'm kinda proud of the words that came out. And since this blog also acts as my version of a baby book for Rory, I thought I should include this letter so that someday he can read it, too:

When I was first told I was having a boy, I was in a state of shock. A BOY? What did I know about boys? My fantasies of tame little tea parties, picking out cute clothes, and playing with each others’ hair were dashed in an instant. A boy would be loud. A boy would be rambunctious. A boy was NOT part of my plan.

Fast forward to almost four years later, and I have to say that my original thoughts were not far off from the truth – I most definitely knew NOTHING about boys. I didn’t know that my son would have a huge, tender heart and that he would always be the first to run over to console his friends whenever they get upset or hurt. I didn’t know that he would love being “The Kiss Monster” and coming over to smother my face with wet little smooches and giggles. I didn’t know that he would jump at the chance to be my helper, and that he would get more enjoyment out of vacuuming and dusting than I certainly ever did. And I certainly did not know how much the words; “Mommy, you look beautiful!” would mean so much more to me when said by my little boy.

I also never realized that having a son around would be so darn handy! There is now always someone around to help me kill spiders and sweep away cobwebs (and he doesn’t make fun of me for being squeamish about bugs!). Hoby now has someone who actually ENJOYS accompanying him on those mundane male tasks that need to be done on Saturdays – like going to Home Depot or having the oil changed – so I am free to pass on these activities without feeling the least bit guilty. Having a son means there is always someone who wants to help you dig in the dirt, and who actually volunteers with enthusiasm to mow the lawn, blow the leaves off the porch, and use the weed whacker with gusto. And aside from just being handy – which is definitely an added bonus! – I’m also finding that watching Rory play gives me a glimpse of what Hoby must have been like as a child. I get the chance to learn more about the man I love just by having his son. An added perk that I never knew existed, but that I feel very blessed to have.

So while I may not be having tame little tea parties or getting to pick out cute, pink party dresses, I honestly can say that I don’t feel like I’m missing out on much. Every day with a son is a new adventure, and I look forward to being pleasantly surprised about what I “didn’t know” about the joys of raising a boy.

Malibu Nautica Triathlon

Last weekend, Hoby participated in his very first organized race - the Malibu Nautica Triathlon, which included a half mile swim, an eighteen mile bike ride, and ending with a four mile run. Now I don't know about you, but I don't run unless I'm chased, so watching him do this (and enjoy it!) was totally amazing.

We had to wake up at 3am the day of the race to get to Zuma Beach early enough to be able to get a parking spot. There were 3000 people competing in this event, not to mention all the people who were coming to cheer them on, so we knew that parking would be a nightmare if we didn't get there early. We thought we'd be able to just grab Rory, pop him in the car, and that he'd sleep until right before the race started. Yeah, right! As soon as we put him in his car seat, he popped his eyes open and said, "Hey, we're awake during the dark time! I'm in the car in my jammies! Cool!", and then he was too excited to even think about closing his eyes. So much for catching a nap before the race!

We got one of the "coveted" parking spaces and hung out there for awhile while we waited for the sun to come up, and watched a sea of humanity walk by our car. There were A TON of people! I've never been to a triathlon before (or any other kind of race, for that matter!) so I had no idea what I was in for. Trying to manuever a little three old through the throngs of people was unbelievably hard!

When it was finally time for the race to get started, everyone had to get together in their "waves", which were broken down by age groups. Hoby was in Wave #7, the 35-40 year old men's group, and a gun went off every five minutes for another wave of racers to hit the water (so we had 35 minutes of gun shots - by the end, I had to pry poor Rory's hands off his ears - he was scared to death!).

Here we are just before Hoby went off to join his wave:


Here's Hoby with all his swim gear on:


When it was almost time for Hoby to go, I grabbed Rory and elbowed through about a million people so that I could see him. Amazingly, not only did I get to the front, but Hoby and I saw each other almost immediately! Here he is waving at us from the middle of his "wave" of guys:



And then they were off!


While we were waiting for Hoby to complete the first leg of the triathlon, Ro got his face painted at the Disney tent:



We had "parked" our stroller full of stuff behind some of the hospitality tents, and it turns out we were right next to the VIP area for celebrities. We were able to see Jennifer Lopez, John Cryer, Matthew McConaughney, Eliza Dushku, Eric Close, and some other famous people walk right by us - which was kind of a nice perk!

Eventually, Rory and I made it through the masses of people to the transition area, and we were able to catch Hoby coming in from the 18 mile bike ride and starting to head out on the four mile run:



Here we are catching up with Hoby at the very end of the race - hurray for Hoby!:



Hoby finished the race in two hours and four minutes, which was an awesome time, especially for someone who has never done a triathlon before! We're so proud of him!



And here's Ro after a long, action packed morning (only 10:30am, but he's been awake for seven and a half hours already - what a trooper!):



All in all, a very exciting day! Hoby's already talking about doing it AGAIN!

Quotes from the Kid

We're trying to get Rory ready for bed and my kid, King of Procrastination, pulls the ever popular "I need a drink of water" excuse. So Hoby gets him a drink, and Rory sits down at his little table in the kitchen. He grabs something to "read", settles himself down in his chair, takes the tiniest sip of water and then smacks his lips like he just tasted some well-aged congnac.

"This," he says very seriously, "could take a WHILE."

I'd say we have our hands full...

Summer Vacation 2008

Every summer, we round up my side of the family - my folks, our family of three, and sometimes, if we're lucky, my brother - and go on a trip together. This time around, we went on a seven day cruise to the Mexican Riviera and I'm happy to report that it was absolutely wonderful (WAAAAAY better than the first cruise we took as a family two years ago to Hawaii, thank goodness!).

It helped enormously that we didn't have to fly anywhere. Plane rides with Rory are never fun - I start to dread them WEEKS in advance - so knowing that we didn't have to get on a plane made getting ready for this trip seem almost too easy. I didn't even start packing until the day before we left, which for me, Queen of the Obsessive Compulsive Suitcase Packers, is nothing short of amazing. Then, we literally just hopped in our car, drove less than an hour to the Port of Long Beach, and walked right onto the ship. It doesn't get much easier than that!

Now, honestly, I'm not a huge fan of Mexico - it's not the cleanest place on the planet and I hate being accosted by people who are trying to sell me chicklets and various other crap that is "almost free for you, Senorita!" - but I managed to ignore that stuff for the most part and concentrate on having fun with the fam.

The cruise ship was huge and had plenty of things to keep us all busy, including a camp for kids that we were able to check Rory into for a few hours a day, which he absolutely loved (THANK GOD!!). This enabled the adults to have some ADULT fun, which included a bit of gambling in the casino, playing ping pong (my brother actually brought his OWN ping pong paddles! Sorry Jer, I just couldn't pass up mentioning that!) and having a few drinks with little umbrellas in them. Okay, maybe more than a few...I can't ever turn down a Malibu and Pineapple.

Usually after dinner, we would pick Rory up from the evening session of camp and take him to see the shows, which he LOVED, not that we were suprised. Singing, dancing, music, and lights - Rory was in absolute heaven! And most nights, while we were sitting in the balcony seats and waiting for the show to start, Rory would be so excited that he would start dancing like crazy. I mean, my kid can REALLY shake his booty when he wants to! I don't know where he gets his moves from - certainly not his father (sorry, honey!)- but there is no doubt that he has them! I wish I had a good video if it, but I was laughing too hard to hold the camera steady. People were watching him from all over the theater, pointing to him up in the balcony, but he was totally oblivious and just boogied down until he wore himself out or the show started. And for the rest of the cruise, people would come up to him and say, "Hey, you're that little dancing kid! Thanks for the pre-show!" Maybe I should have been embarassed, but honestly, I was so proud of my little entertainer.



We went to several different ports in Mexico - Cabo, Mazatlan and Puerta Vallarta - and in two of them, we found resorts that had awesome pools to play in. Our favorite was El Cid in Mazatlan - it had slides, rocks to climb up, small pools on top of a waterfall, and even a cliff to jump off of into the pool. I had been worried that Rory had inherited my fear of heights, but after seeing him do this, I guess I don't have to worry anymore:



Rory, of course, wanted me to jump, too. And since my THREE YEAR OLD was able to do it (not to mention some little bugger who was even younger than him!), it was either jump or look like a total chicken shit in front of my kid who already has some serious respect issues - so after a couple of drinks and a tiny push from my brother, I jumped, too:



Thank God there is photographic evidence because I don't think it's likely I'll be throwing myself off a cliff, even a small one, anytime soon. (Unless, of course, these three year old tantrums don't end soon, in which case I might consider it. Ha ha.)

I'm sure that pictures will show a lot more than I can describe, so here's a sampling of some of the better ones:


Playing checkers with beer bottle caps in the pool - SO classy!


Rory and his Uncle Jer (who obviously doesn't have kids by the "I'm pretending to like this but really I'm SO ready to give you your kid back" expression on his face!)


The view from the pool at the Krystal Resort in Puerta Vallarta that kinda makes me forget why I don't like Mexico


Rory getting pummelled by waves in Cabo at Lover's Beach


Rory's favorite pool at the top of the waterfall at El Cid Resort in Mazatlan


We griped about packing our fancy clothes, but I have to say we actually clean up pretty darn good! This year's picture for our Christmas cards, perhaps?


A very happy, healthy looking Poppi (taken by Rory!)

All in all, it was one amazing trip and we can't wait to see what next summer's adventure will be! Getting back to "reality" this week has been a hard adjustment for everyone, but whenever I start to feel stressed out, I just watch this, and everything gets better:



Thanks to Grandma Jo and Grandpa Al for an awesome vacation sponsored by everyone's favorite bank, NBD (National Bank of Dad).

We love you!