Weekly Highlights #2

The boy brought home pink eye (one of my most hated childhood illnesses because it’s so contagious and so, well, icky) last week which was bringing things down. Fortunately the little girl and her papa were spared, but I was not so lucky and will have to toss a new mascara and new set of contacts. On the upside, we are almost done with those annoying drops and should be totally clear for a thanksgiving weekend away… I bought myself an adorable one-shot Bialetti stovetop espresso maker. (It’s so tiny Co thinks I got it for her play kitchen.) I’m a tea drinker too but like an Americano every now and then. The ever lovin’ has pretty much ditched café in favor of green tea so I’m on my own with the espresso. I was using our 6 shot Bialetti but felt compelled to drink all the coffee it produced, which cannot have been good for my nervous system… My kids have suddenly been plunged full on into Star Wars mania (without having seen any of the movies). How does it happen? An old friend has a theory that there’s a Star Wars gene that automatically manifests in 5-year-old boys which seems like a reasonable explanation to me. We’ve been checking out zillions of SW books from the library and I now know pretty much everything about every single character in the Clone Wars… Christian and I used a kid-free Saturday to clear off the front porch, which was looking just a little too white trash for my taste. And finally, the woman who last year did all of her Christmas shopping at Target on December 22 proudly announces she has completed more than half of it in November without leaving her desk. Progress!

Weekly Highlights #1

I should really just admit to myself that I can’t keep up with this space and throw in the towel. There seems to be so much going on that’s been taking priority. For example, I’ve been trying to get some exercise to keep from losing my mind (not sure that it’s working but never mind). But I can’t give it up: that would mean giving in to brain dead housewifery. So until I can figure out how to get it together, I’ve decided to try something new: weekly highlights. I think I can handle that, and maybe get a few interstitial posts in between. Plus, it’s in line with my recent efforts to focus on the positive (yeah I watched The Secret). So here goes:

If CDs had grooves, we’d be wearing them out on Elizabeth Mitchell’s new record. With apologies to Dan Zanes, she is hands down the best kids singer out there. My kids sing those songs in the car, in the house, morning and night (I have Shoo Lie Loo going through my head right now). It’s so good I might actually buy a copy instead of just checking it out from the library.... Hank brought home his first report card, which I would describe as totally respectable. His only “below standard” was in counting money. Really cannot blame him though as he comes from a long line of Presbyterians…Coco started taking dance class and is the cutest Amazon ballerina in town… I am (as always) trying to rejoice in the small things: Wednesday morning yoga, a steaming Americano and clearance sunglasses from Marshall’s… We finally got season 7 of MI-5 from the library featuring the cute/unfortunately named Richard Armitage as the new anti-hero. It’s going to take me a few episodes to get used to him as the good guy as he was such a twat in the BBC’s Robin Hood…Got the results of my first ever mammogram (normal thank goodness or I’d have to call this weekly lowlights)… And finally, the holiday issue of Wegmans Menu magazine is out. Totally bourgeois right but I love it. I’ve been using several of their recipes for use with great success for years and credit them for opening my eyes to the joys of roasted Brussels sprouts which, belonging to the much beloved (by me anyway) crucifera family, will hopefully mean many years of normal mammograms to come…