Summer '09, we're going to Florida!

Sorry, honey, I know we haven't discussed this yet, but um...

HARRY POTTER IS COMING TO FLORIDA!!!!!!!

So, yeah. Summer '09. Vacation is planned.

Support Live Theatre! (And Malka's Eemahot at the SAME time...)

Go see Radio Golf. It's an amazing show, up for 4, that's FOUR Tony Nominations, and, well, it's just not as popular as Wicked. but it's still pretty great!


So go see it, and go tell your friends, and your friends of friends of friends to go see it.

Thanks.

Arts and Crafts!

the colors look MUCH better all mixed up!
Originally uploaded by shellipsm

I have been swamped at work, and at home, so I haven't had much time to post, but I'm still working on a lovely response to a few posts ago, where I get to share all that I adore about some of my fellow IVP...

So I leave you with some of Saturday morning's activities...

(shhhh, don't tell grandpa, this is his father's day card!)

My running list of shit that pisses me off...

In my bag, I have a pen that I keep handy, and a Metro-North receipt that's blank on the back.

When I think of, or encounter a randomly odd or disturbing thing, I write it down on the back of that little receipt.

Here's my list:

-People that clip their nails in public - UGH - EWWW - GROSS - leave it in the bathroom, folks!

-People that talk LOUDLY on their cellphones in quiet places, and then look at YOU rudely when you seem annoyed.

-Next3l. Ugh. Enough said.

-When the cats INSIST on using the litter box the SECOND I clean it.

-Improper comma usage.

-Calling people "troops." Um, they're HUMAN BEINGS, not some random technological term. But if you feel better saying that there are currently 3500 dead TROOPS in Iraq, than so be it. Just KNOW that a troop is a PERSON.

What's yours?

Jack Sprat...

Jack Sprat could eat no fat
His wife could eat no lean
And so betwixt the two of them
They licked the platter clean.

So that is life at House Hydrangeas since Monday. Malka Palka Pooka Palka, being UNDER 2 years old, needs FULL FAT foods for her brain development. That's full fat dairy, full fat cottage cheese, full fat yogurt, you get the picture.

Eemah, however, needs low or NO fat foods. Because, well, Eemah needs to lose a few...

WW is going well. I found myself wanting to cry this am when Narda left for work, because I thought she had left without saying goodbye. I called her on her cell phone to ask her why she hadn't come downstairs (I was doing laundry) to say good bye. There was hurt in my voice, and a quiver in my lip. She said she had gone downstairs, but I wasn't there, and to open the door. I did, and there she was; she kissed me good bye, and gave me that look of: "Oh, my silly baby."

I FORGOT what it's like to let a few emotions come creeping in. Because, you know, I was eating them away.

Silly me. So yeah, it SUCKS, but it's working already. I HATE having to account for what I put in my mouth, but there's NO other way. I simply cannot be trusted around food. Sad, really. But I'm glad I went back. It feels good.

I'm going back...

To somewhere that can help me find a sense of control, and keep me accountable.

It's been a long time since I've counted points, and I think that might help me.

I'm off to Weight Watchers tonight.

I hope the leader is a good one...

Small Victories...

As you all know, I tend to worry (*just a smidge*...) about Malka's development. Mostly about her talking, but I'm sure it's all fine. but I still worry. Because, you know, I inherited that "Jewish Worry Gene" (JWG) from Bubbe, z"l, and I'm her Eemah, so of course I worry about every silly little thing.

In addition to English, I speak to her mostly in Hebrew, and we kind of do a half-assed sign with her, plus she gets a lot of Spanish at daycare, and also from her babysitter, "Tia Raquel" (one of her teachers at daycare).

So this morning, as we were hanging out in the living room, she stops dancing, gets "that face" on, and then... and then... and THEN! She SIGNS BATHROOM! All! on! her! own! And I ask is she's making a poop. She shakes her head no, but continues to sign bathroom.

YEAH! Communication. it's a "good thing."

We are SO Kosher!

We are LEGALLY Malka's Eemahot.

More to write, our judge was AWESOME.

I'm exhausted, having been up since 5am (see previous post...), and yes, I have to do the dishes.

You see, to answer Cali's question, it appears that I'm always "doing" the dishes, because I typically do them towards the end of the evening. After I put Malka to bed, around 7:00 or so, the LOGICAL thing to do would be to do my chores FIRST, then chill out for the rest of the evening, right? But all I can do is plop on the sofa and chill for a bit, FIRST, as the Cheeky can WEAR an Eemah OUT!, then usually do my chores before I go to bed - that includes the dishes, cat litter, and tidying up. Sometimes, however, "the box" has pretty colors and sounds to lure me from duty...

So yes, pardon me, while I watch "Lost: The search For Answers," and do the dishes during commercials...

Oh no, he didn't!

Oh, yes, he did.

And I understand WHY - Narda had JUST tossed him off of her head with a stern warning, (he likes to munch on her hair, which admittedly, may not be a pleasant sensation at 4:30am); Quincy had been chasing him for a while, and that just stresses him out; although the litter boxes are clean, they haven't been "totally dumped and washed" in a while; he IS 15 years old; he tends to go once every 36 hours or so (which his vet is QUITE proud of, the ability to concentrate urine is a good thing in small animals), so he REALLY had to go.

He peed on my pillow. Except my HEAD was still ON IT.

So needless to say, here it is, 6am, and I've already showered, done my hair, and am in the process of doing laundry. I never KNEW how much one could accomplish between 5:00 and 6:00am when properly motivated....

Poor little guy. He LOVES snuggling on my pillow with me, so this was a serious need. Narda, alack and alas, doesn't see it that way. She sees this as an opportunity for Cougie-Bear to "go to that special place." I just see it as a need to scrub out the litter boxes and get a refill for the Feliway plug-ins...

NO Freaking WAY!

I SO thought it would be Melinda and Blake.

Wow.

I'm SO confident in Melinda's talent, however, that I look forward to seeing her ALL over the map.

But still.

WOW.

I've been working on the response to the "Friendly little meme," but now Lost is on, and I have the rest of the dishes to do, so I'll have to finish it later.

And think good weather thoughts for us tomorrow, it's a BIG day!

She made me do it...

My dear Jennifer tagged me, and since the dishes need to be done, I figured I'd answer this instead!

"Seven Things You May Not Know About Me."

Hmmm, I tend to share a LOT on this blog, so it's going to be a bit tough, but here goes:

1) I spent a good chunk of my 20's as a bulimic. I even had a "bulimia buddy." This guy named Rob and I would go out to dinner, then excuse ourselves to our respective restrooms, come back to the table and exchange breath mints. (sick, sick, sick!) I look back at pictures of myself during that time, and I was thinner, but SO unhappy. I'm still working on some of my food issues, but I've been "purge free" for about 5 years now.

2) The main ringer on my cell phone is Copacabana, by Barry Manilow. I saw him in concert when I was in High School. With my parents. I LOVE me some Barry Manilow. 'nuff said.

3) I had sex with a guy. It was my early 20's, the "affair" lasted about 3 months or so. He was a friend from my theatre program in college. I didn't want to be a lesbian, and tried to give the whole "straight thing" a shot. Needless to say...

4) I went to a community college for my first two years of college education. After I graduated High School, I lived in Israel for a year. At the time, I had still wanted to be an actress. The last 3 months there, I had an internship with the Beer-Sheva Theatre, and we took Comedy of Errors, the MUSICAL, in HEBREW around the country, and I was a general PA (production assistant). I fell in LOVE with technical theatre right then and there, came back to Portland for the summer, and went to Kingsborough Community College (I had auditioned for NYU, but they took one look at my academic record and pretty much laughed - I was WAY too busy doing theatre to focus on academics in High School). And then transferred to Hofstra after getting my Associates degree.

5) I was OBSESSED with the Movie: Escape To Witch Mountain. I recall being enthralled with the lead actor, Ike Eisenmann - I WANTED to be his ESP sister. I think I even pretended to HAVE ESP for a while after seeing the movie. I would tell friends that I would "know moments before" my mother would call me in for dinner. Looking back, I had a WILD imagination, and that's just one of the bonuses of being an only child, I guess. I still get flashes of the movie in my mind on occasion, and I really think it played a huge part in my desire for a sibling when I was younger...

6) Bambi and Watership Down ruined me. To this day, I CANNOT and WILL NOT watch a movie where an animal is the main character. This includes Lassie, Old Yeller, Flicka, Flipper, Charlotte's Web, you name it. I'm too afraid of them getting hurt. I don't know WHAT I'll do when Malka wants to go see movies like that - maybe Mommy Narda will have to take her, because I'd just be covering my eyes and hyperventilating the entire time.

7) I THINK I'm a good bowler, but I'm just OK. I was on the Broadway Show Bowling League for a while, but I mainly enjoyed bowling because it's one of the few sports where you can drink AND smoke at the same time...

OK, I now tag the following people:

Cat
Miss S
Jen and Cait
Marisa
Mason
Adam

Enjoy!

Mazal Tov, baby!

Narda's show, Radio Golf, received 4 Tony Noms today!

I'm SO proud!

a Friendly little meme...

Hope did this one, and I thought I'd play along...

How about you?

Basically, you comment to this post and I'll answer these questions about you.

1. Tell you why I friended you (or read your blog)
2. Associate you with something - a song, a color, a photo, etc.
3. Tell you something I like about you.
4. Tell you a memory I have of you.
5. Associate you with a character.
6. Ask something I've always wanted to know about you.
7. Tell you my favorite user picture of yours.
8. In return, I ask you to post this in your journal/blog.

Their reply was:

1. We met over at FF and now read each other's blogs
2. New York City - I can't think of the city and not think of you.
3. You are extremely kind and generous
4. Taking a long walk and eating breakfast with you and the other moms
5. Peter Petrelli or maybe Hiro Nakamura. I couldn't decide.
6. (This one from Megan) She thinks that maybe you are working on a
covert second adoption. Is this true? (You don't have to answer)
7. You don't have user pics, but this is my favorite photo of you.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/172/452756399_d388ed51dd_m.jpg

8. In return, I ask you to post this in your journal/blog.

And to reply to the asked question - there's no covert second adoption. We are simply working on when we'll "go back into pool." We are thinking in the next few months....

Changing the list...

So I re-post what I wrote last year. My heart HURTS that parts of the second section hasn't changed....

For many of us, this Sunday is a first. A first day to celebrate a coming through the murkiest sludge of pain into the light that we have known. A first as partners to share in a new experience. A first to hear what we have so long wanted to hear for so many years. To my dear friends who are now mothers, I say to you, Happy Mother's Day!

Jen and Cait
Em and Brooke
Trista and Kristen
Mrs. and Mr. Miao
Jennifer and SusanArt Sweet and Pili
Estelle and Jean
Maria
Dora and Erin
Hope and Megan
Conchita and Ann
Mamma Mo
Jess and Andy
Ilyse
Co and Lo
Jenny and Ezra!
Bri!

For many of you who read this, you are still struggling with your own journey, and are frustrated as to the length of the path. It is impossible to know the actual square footage of the path you are on, but it does have an end, and a joyous one at that. I know you may not see that now, but I pray that you can trust me on this, and therefore, to YOU I say happy Mother's Day!

S, dear, sweet, S
Caliope
Tex and Blondie
Sophia
Little Pea's J & S

My heart is happier knowing each of you.

Thank you.

Because she hates when I just "wing it"

My Bubbe, z"l, used to make the most amazing food. My mother and I always tried to watch her and remember how she did it. I always fantasized about writing a book called: "A Little Bit of This, a Little Bit of That; Stories and Recipes From the Old Country."

I have clearly inherited this form of cooking. This has proven to be beneficial and annoying to my beloved. When I "score" in the kitchen, I can rarely repeat it to the letter, because, well, I winged it. But if a recipe fails to provide the taste buds with glee, well, I can't repeat it, either.

Tonight, however, I whipped up a (if I do say so myself) YUMMY roasted asparagus and barley salad. And I had a BRILLIANT idea. Before I put the entire dish in the fridge for tomorrow's lunch and let the memory of its creation slip through the sieve that is my memory, I took pen to paper, and wrote it down.

And I share it with you.

Roast some asparagus in a 500 degree oven - break off the bottom bits, rinse, drain, spread out on a cookie sheet, drizze olive oil, sprinkle salt, put in oven for 10 minutes, turn OFF heat, DO NOT OPEN DOOR for about 3 more minutes or so.

Try not to eat all of the asparagus as it cools...

AS asparagus is cooling, put one cup of RINSED barley in the rice cooker with 3 cups of water, turn on; take Malka downstairs to put clothes in dryer, take cute picture of her in basket with clothes, send to flickr.

Come back upstairs, and cut up asparagus that is now cool. Leave out on cutting board, give Malka dinner.

Check to make sure barley is still cooking, give Malka bath, put her to bed.

Pull out big mixing bowl, put asparagus in, add barley that has now cooked, drizzle olive oil, add salt, mix well. Pull out cube of basil from freezer, nuke for 30 seconds, add in, mix.

Dice up 1/2 a pear, add in about 3/4 a cup of raisins, salt, nutmeg and cumin, mix.

Serve yourself a bowl before putting the rest in the fridge, pat yourself on back for remembering to write it down.

Small stings burn longer sometimes...

I didn't really think about it until later on today, well after Malka went to bed, and I started tidying up, placing the Mother's Day card made "by Malka" on the table for Narda to see when she comes home tonight.

It's REALLY cute, actually. Hand prints and Polaroid picture, glittery lettering done by the "teachers" at daycare.

When it was presented to me upon picking up Malka, Louise said: "I have something for you." She presents me with this beautiful card "To Mommy." All in gold glitter letters. It was really very sweet. I then said, "I'm Eemah." And she said: "Well, it's for both of you." (or something like that).

I later realized that although Narda and I are treated equally at daycare, that the acknowledgement of who we are is kind of swept under the rug. The only teacher who made an effort to call me Malka's Eemah was Suzanne, from the baby room.

Now granted, Malka is cared for, nurtured, changed, encouraged, and all of those things, and the fact that she has two moms isn't all that big of a deal for them. So in reality, it's a wonderful situation. It's just that small step that would have been nice.

Because I AM her Eemah, and it would be great if other people could recognize it.

What IS it about the #7 and it's friends?

My mother was born on 6/7/47
I was born on 7/27/70
Narda was born on 3/17/70
Malka was born on 12/17/05

Malka's finialization appointment is 5/17/07

Malka's Mikveh appointment?

6/7/07

There HAS to be some Kabbalistic significance in the number 7 for me. I just have to find it. Any Kabbalah experts out there?

Jacob=Locke?

Someone pointed out that Jacob might actually BE Locke...

hmmm, that could make a LOT of sense.

What do YOU think?

I got my top 3 wish

So it's all good.

Melinda, Jordin and Blake - I'd be happy if any of them won.

Pictures, as promised

Go here for a slide show of shots taken on Opening Night last night.

THANK YOU, Ben...

As in Ben Brantley, NY Times Theatre Critic. Your words, hopefully, will enable Malka's mommy to have a job this summer.

THANK YOU.

Pictures from the wonderful opening night party to come...

OH MY G-D! We have a DATE

Thursday, May 17th at 11:30am, Malka, Mommy and Eemah have been called to the NY Surtrogates Court to FINALIZE MALKA'S ADOPTION!



SQUEEEEEEEEEE!~

She's fine, so let's talk about my toe...

Outside of a small wake up at 3am, which I would normally ignore, but went to her, for fear of seeing a hugely swollen face and such (but didn't), she simply needed a diaper change, a re-dose of Motrin, and a snuggle.

And then she woke up at 8am. Ahhhhhh.

So she's totally fine, but THANK you all for helping to alleviate my fears. And we seriously won't give her any more until she's OH, 30 or so!

So I think I have my first ingrown toenail. OUCH. I'm doing a twice or thrice daily soak with hot hot water and salt, and then putting anti-biotic ointment on it and band aid. the band aid helps relieve some of the pain, but dammit! This is my first one, and I'm hoping it will just resolve itself, because there's too much going on at work for me to go to the doctor right now...

ugh.

So any of you lovelies have "ingrown toenail" experience?

And for the record, if you do a Google image search? Mine's like the "mild" picture - none of the nastiness yet, but it still HURTS!

Of peanut butter and bonk-a-boos.

IF peanut butter IS going to have a reaction.... How long does it take?

Narda is really keen on my introducing wheat to Malka now that warm, humid weather is approaching (better for her skin) to "test" if the wheat is REALLY an eczema trigger for her, or just something we were avoiding out of being overly cautious.

So we've been giving her a bit of wheat every now and then.

And she's doing just fine - no eczema flare ups afterwards, etc.

So tonight, after Malka's pulls a tantrum at daycare, you know, the arching back kind, and her teacher lost her grip and I HEARD Malka's head go thunk into the floor (at least the part that had moderate carpeting) and she WAILED for ages, after almost 30 seconds of "the silent scream," and oodles of cuddles, hugs and kisses, I decide to give her a treat after dinner; and I notice that Narda has some girl scout cookies in the fridge.

So I give her one

She's in HEAVEN.

Two bites in, I realize - HOLY SHIT, IT'S THE PEANUT BUTTER ONES! I grab the cookie from her, and basically "pull an oreo" and lick all the peanut butter off and give it back to her.

This was at oh, 6:50 or so, and she went to bed at 7:15, and she has been fine. I gave her motrin for the head bonk, and a puff on her inhalor, "just in case."

So IF she were going to have a reacton, it would have happened by now, right?

She's peacefully sleeping, and of course, I'll go check on her a GAZILLION times before I go to bed...

But I'm TOTALLY freaked out that I let her eat PEANUT BUTTER!

OY.

It's like Thunder, Lightning*....

Back in 1994, I spent the summer as a PA (production assistant) at the Porthouse Theatre in Kent, Ohio. My fondest memories? Standing at the top of a hill in Tonado alley to watch a funnel cloud form, meeting Scott "Doc" Davis, and Summer lightning storms in Ohio. They are WICKED cool! They can light up the entire sky, making it green.

I was always one of those odd kids who wasn't afraid of thunder and lightning. I LOVE it.

Right now, NYC is having a REALLY cool lightning storm. I've seen streaks and the sky light up - it's great!


*I don't want to lose the good thing that I've got
If I do, I will surely, I will lose a lot

For your love is better than any love other I've know
It's like thunder, lightning
The way you love me is frightening
I better knock on wood
Baby

I got superstitious about you, but I can't take change
You got me spinning, baby, spinning in a trance
But your love is better than any other love I've known
It's like thunder, lightning
The way you love me is frightening
You better knock on wood

It's no secret, but that woman fills my lovin' cup
She sees, so ready, that I get enough
And her love is better than any other love I've known
It's like thunder
It's like lightning
The way you love me is frightening
I better knock on wood
Baby

Better, yes, better
(Yes you better knock, knock, knock on wood) Yes, I better
(Yes you better knock, knock, knock on wood) Oh, knock on wood
(Yes you better knock, knock, knock on wood) You know I would, would
(Yes you better knock, knock, knock on wood) It's no secret
(Yes you better knock, knock, knock on wood) No, oh, better
(Yes you better knock, knock, knock on wood) Hangin' above me
(Yes you better knock, knock, knock on wood) I can't leave her
(Yes you better knock, knock, knock on wood) Oh no, baby

Knock on wood, WOO!

I LOVE me some Blake!

He simply ROCKS THE HOUSE!

Blake and Melinda as my top two.

'nuff said.

(I mean I have to do SOMETHING while folding Malka's laundry, right?)