KvellCorner

May 15, 2013 admin Uncategorized No Comments

The Seven Dwarfs of May

Hi Ho. Hi Ho. It’s off to work I go.

In the last 15 days, I have become the emodiement of all seven dwarfs.

Happy – There is something about seeing my little girl on stage that fills my heart with joy.  I first experienced this feeling when she was 2 years old and watched her in her first dance recital.  She danced to The Rainbow Connection and as soon as they played those first few notes, I was done for. There was not a dry eye in that row of relatives that day. That feeling has not left me, even when I watch my little girl - who is now one of the tallest girls – play a singing leaf in the 6th grade play.

My mom used to gush about the time when I was the “I” in SPRING in my nursery school play.  I never knew what the big deal was until I became a parent myself.  Now, it doesn’t matter if she is an oompa-loompa or a leaf or whatever – that feeling never goes away. And I’m sure I’ll be telling her future husband all about it.

Sleepy – Why am I falling asleep on the couch every night??  I’m seriously turning into my dad – hopefully without the snoring.  Just like him, I work all day and then come home to be the personal chef, driver, errand runner, and refree. Once dinner is over and the table is cleared, I like to take a few minutes to sit on the couch and see some of the Phillies game. The next thing I know, it is 10:47 pm!  I vaguely even remember putting my kids to bed – but I know I did.

Sneezy – Ugh! It is springtime. The flowers are blooming. The grass is growing. The landscapers are out in full force spreading pollen and clippings everywhere.  Let’s face it  – we are all sneezy.

Bashful – Okay, so I’m not THAT bashful except maybe in the blog department. I’ve been a little shy lately about writing anything. A blogger asks herself the same question every time she sits down to write –  How much do I want to write about my life for the world to see? 

And I am bashful about my politics and beliefs.  And I’ve been meaning to tell youabout how scared I am to send my children to the bus stop after I watch the news about those 3 girls who were kidnapped and held for over a decade –  by their bus driver. 

I’ll get better about this. Just give me a little more time.

Doc – (If you think I’m going to talk about a particular Phillies pitcher here - that is a topic for a different post. Sorry.)

Is Doc the smart one or the one who takes care of all the other dwarfs and their boo-boos?  I’m trying to be very smart about my weight loss these days. But I dropped out of Weight Watchers (again!).  I am being very careful about what I eat and I’m still going to the gym 2-3 mornings a week. 

Just as I said in my New Year’s Resolutions, my health is still my main priority. My blood pressure is down and I want to keep it that way. The Doc is in the house.

Grumpy – Yes, I’ll admit it. I am grumpy. There are lots of changes and there are those things that will never change. People are coming and going in my life and I won’t see them as much as I usually do. I went through this last year and it is not any easier the second time around.

Is there a sad dwarf? If so, that would be me.

Dopey – When you have an eye infection and can’t wear your contacts for 10 days and you go outside to yell for your husband who is standing 25 feet away talking to your neighbor, it is very easy to look like a complete dope.

There have been many dopey moments lately that I’ll try to mention at other times.  The point is that it is good to continue to laugh at myself when I do these things.  It is a good way to counter the grumpy. It’s good for me.

May 4, 2013 admin Uncategorized No Comments

My Mother’s Day Gift Ideas

On Kveller.com, the editor asked her contributors to pick 3 things they want for Mother’s Day  that you  can buy and the one thing you can’t buy. I’m not a contributor, but here is my list anyway:

Bedroom Closet Makeovers – We have 3 bedrooms and 4 closets that need attention.  Each closet has its own issue.  Jenna’s closet is double the width in size which makes it a black hole for anything and everything we throw  in there.  Andrew’s closet is set up for baby clothes.  My closet has nooks and crannies that are useless.  We have a junk closet with no shelving and plenty of vertical space. G-d knows what is in there!

I want closets that I’m not afraid to open and have something fall down on top of me.   I may be exaggerating a tad here but I don’t think it is too much to ask to be able to find my favorite sandals or my child’s team shirt in less than 10 minutes.

A Personal Chef – I want her. Or someone just like her. If you are a loyal reader of my blog, you know that I don’t like to cook.  Wouldn’t it be so nice to hire someone to answer that age old, mind blogging question – “what’s for dinner?”  I’m so tired of making the same things every week and I’m not normally inspired to go out of my cooking comfort zone. Nor do I have the time and I’m always out of that one essential ingredient.  And I rarely substitute.

A personal chef would be just the ticket.  I’ll pay for her to shop for ingredients, let herself (or himself) into my home, cook up a meal and have it ready by 5:30 pm. 

I’ll even do the dishes.

 Another trip to Disney World – I am Facebook friends with Mickey Mouse.  Well, kind of…he sends me photo a day from one of the Disney Parks.  That is how much I love Disney World.   I have been there more times than I can count and each time is special. I know that I should want to go to a new vacation destination at this point like a national park or Europe, but I just can’t shake that Zippidy-Doo-Da feeling. Not to mention the fact that it is only acceptable to wear that Goofy hat in certain public places. 

With all of the sad things that are going on in our world today, I feel a strong need to be at the happiest place on earth.  And I want to do it soon while our kids are at an age when they can still appreciate how much fun it is to be with their parents.

And the one thing I want for Mother’s Day that I can’t buy would be a time machine. It doesn’t have to be made out of a Delorian, but having Michael J. Fox as a fellow time traveler would be nice.  I would love to go back in time and take a family road trip and treat my little sister better than I did when we were kids. 

I’d like to listen to my favorite songs, but not on the oldies station.

I want to eat sweet and sour meatballs and snack on milano cookies while watching a Phillies game with my grandparents.  I want to sit at a Passover seder table  in 1984 with my relatives who are truly missed.

I want to go back to Israel as a 20 year old knowing what I know now and having a even better appreciation and love for my Jewish homeland. 

I want to go back and take pictures of my old college friends and some great memories of the best times I’ve ever had. Or maybe it is better that I don’t have any photographic evidence.

If I was allowed to change one thing, I would have liked the chance to live on my own in a city before I got married. I probably would  have learned to cook for myself. But then, I may not have what I have today. You have to be very careful with time machines. 

I want to meet my husband for the first time again, so that I can remember the actual date that we met! I would love to go back to that slow dance at the Rock Lobster – thinking that we were the only two people in the whole place.

Yeah, a time machine would be really great.

April 18, 2013 admin Uncategorized No Comments

I Know What It’s Like

I know what it is like to be evacuated from a building and be separated from your loved ones. It’s scary.

About a week after the Oklahoma City bombing, I was sitting at my office at 6th and Chestnut Street in Philadelphia.  Like any other weekday, I was sitting in my cubicle hard at work on a manuscript at a publishing company.

An alarm went off.  This was not a drill. We had to leave. No one was allowed to take the elevators.  Everyone made their way in a somewhat orderly fashion to the stairwell.  Some people wanted to go get their purses and coats first before they left. But we were instructed to leave everything behind and get out immediately.

Our office made up the entire 12th floor – the top floor of my building. A bomb threat was called into the ATF offices of the building a few floors down. 

There was idle chatter in our jam packed stairwell. Many people were praying. Many more were crying. Some were in a panic. Others started singing the theme song to the musical Oklahoma. Everyone had a different way of coping with the situation.

So many thoughts were running through my head.  How can this be the only way out of the building? Why aren’t people on the stairwell moving faster? Why have we stopped moving?

Then, I started to count.  I counted the steps. I counted the floors. How many more steps and floors would it take to get outside? It became my own personal math challenge. It kept me calm and rational in a moment even though I knew that the walls and ceilings could cave in at any minute. I’m sure I was in shock.

Once we got outside, there were bomb sniffing dogs and police everywhere.  We made our way to the next block over right in front of Independence Mall near the Liberty Bell. Our officemates huddled together in comfort and strength.

Then, we counted again to make sure that all of our friends and colleagues were out of the building and safe.

All I wanted to do was call my family to let them know I was okay, but there were very few cell phones back then. I couldn’t let them know that I was safe.

Then, we heard the news. It was a false alarm. We were allowed to go back into the building.  A new feeling of both relief and fear came upon us.  How did they know it was safe? Did they check everywhere in the building? Was it really okay to go back to our desks and carry on? 

Yes, it was okay and so we did.  But, I’ve never forgotten that day and every time I see a tragedy like the ones on 9/11 or in Boston and in Texas last night - I think about my time in the stairwell. I pray that the runners and the rescuers, the hereos and heroines, the children and their parents will all be okay. I pray that they will be able to go back to their lives – like I did.

I’m a firm believer that we can never let them win. We must move on. We must go to work, send our kids to school, go to concerts and Phillies games and live our lives. Even if we are afraid.  

I know what it is like to be afraid.  I’m still afraid, but I’m not going to let it stop me.

April 12, 2013 admin Random Thoughts No Comments

The New Spring Cleaning

My Real Simple magazine came in the mail last week and it’s bright yellow cover almost inspired me to begin that time honored tradition of spring cleaning.  Almost…

The cover was so cheerfully deceptive with its sparkling cleaning supplies. How come my cleaning brushes don’t look like that? Maybe because I clean with them.  

The articles on the front cover were supposed to entice me with revolutionary cleaning products that would make my life so much easier. But, that didn’t work either. I know all about Mr. Clean’s Magic Eraser – thank you very much.

Maybe, if the cover came with a scratch and sniff feature that smelled like Lysol, I’d be more inclined to dive in and see how my house can smell like that.  So I scratched and sniffed the cover – (yes I did) – but no such luck.

When I hear the words “spring cleaning,” I get a strong urge to quickly find something  - anything – else to do.  Spring cleaning usually involves quite a bit more housework than I already take on.  So I ask myself – Is it really necessary? 

By the time I finish the dishes, laundry and general de-cluttering, I’m just not in the mood to start taking down curtains and washing windows.  Maybe I’ll reorganize a closet or two, but that’s as far as I’m willing to take this.

 There are other things that need some spring cleaning around here such as:

• My kids - Boy do they grow fast! Wasn’t it just yesterday that I bought them new sneakers and clothes? It is time to turnover their closets from sweaters to short sleeves and see what fits and what goes to Purple Heart. At least the kids are fun to shop with and personally I’d rather burn off calories by shopping rather than scrubbing.  
• My blog -  I’m writing way too many articles on housework (oops!) and my lack of cooking skills.  I need  some fresh ideas.  I’ve been inspired by so many things lately. I’m going to start a list. Stay tuned.
• My car –  I spend a good amount of time in the car every day.  It could always use some TLC. Last week, my husband took out the seats in the van to make room fo bags of mulch and underneath we discovered things that had disappeared from sight.  I found about $5 in change, a few lollipops, and -a ha! – my favorite lipstick that I thought was gone forever. I always find a seasonal cleaning of my car to be quite rewarding. 
• My brain – There are too many big lofty goals floating around in my head with no place to land.  It’s time for some action plans.  Once a pIan is in place- there is a pretty good chance that I will reach those goals.

  As I say goodbye to winter, it’s time to sweep away the cobwebs and uncover the sparkling clean path that is ahead of me.
Happy Spring!

April 4, 2013 admin Uncategorized No Comments

Parental Advice

When I was growing up and I was told to go and look something up, I had several wonderful options in front of me:

• Go to the library, scan the card catalog, search the stacks and take out a book;
• Sit in a chair and go through miles of microfilm and microfiche (remember that?);
• Look on my bookshelf for an encylopedia or a dictionary;
• Phone a friend.

In the 21st century, when you tell someone to look it up – it takes on a whole new meaning.  They could:

• Go to the library and take out a book (yeah, right!);
• Google it;
• Ask a question about it on Facebook;
• Surf the ‘net;
• Do all of the above on their smartphone, iPad, Tablet, laptop, etc.

All of these options are right at your fingertips and great for fast answers. But as a parent – may I offer a word of advice? When your child asks you a question, you may not want to tell them to  “look it up” without knowing exactly what and where they are going for the information. 

Trust me – there is a big difference between pictures in the dictionary and pictures on the Internet.  And you are only one quick smartphone grab, google search, and mouse click away from a whole lot more than you bargained for.

That’s all I’m saying…

April 1, 2013 admin Uncategorized No Comments

Keeping Passover

It’s an old joke that many of the Jewish holidays are based on 3 simple principles:

1. The Jews were persecuted.
2. They were saved.
3. Let’s eat!

At Hanukkah, we tell the story of Judah Maccabee and his soldiers fighting for religious freedom. On Purim, we read about how Queen Esther saved her people from the evil Haman who wanted to kill us all. Each time, we give gifts, eat sweets and rejoice in our new found freedom.  On Passover, we also rejoice, but in a different way.  Instead of giving gifts and eating sweets (with the exception of those delicious macaroons) – we give up the freedom to eat whatever we want for one week. 

This holiday is not as easy as some of the others we celebrate. There is quite a lot of thought and planning involved from the seder table to what the heck are we eating for breakfast?!  I endure lots of trips to the supermarket for more matzah and Kosher for Passover muffins as well as any new kind of salad- (sans croutons) -that I can get my hands on.

The other day, I was tempted to break Passover. I mean seriously – how many times can I walk around the mall smelling those delicious Auntie Anne’s pretzels without giving in? But, I didn’t give in and here are some of my reasons why.

Yes, my ancestors probably wouldn’t want me to suffer as they did thousands of years ago.  They made matzah out of necessity because they had to leave town really, really fast. Did they mean for future generations to eat it for an entire week and suffer along with them?  Probably not. 

But, I want to do it anyway.  I want to remember to appreciate all of the freedoms that I have today. I am well aware that I live in a world where there are still people who are enslaved by the laws of our land – and yes I’m talking about my friends in the gay community who don’t get to enjoy the same rights as I do.   Even in the 21st century, there are those who still fight for their freedom while the rest of us rejoice in ours. 

Oprah talks a lot about gratitude. She keeps her journals. I eat my matzah. 

I also keep Passover because I want my kids to continue the tradition when they have their own families someday. I want them to remember how we took hot dogs off the buns at the baseball stadium in Florida. And I want them to remember the fried matzah that I make with love on my stovetop. I hope one of their fondest Jewish memories is watching me lead out family seders every year.

Oprah encourages everyone to live their best life. I wouldn’t be able to do that without following the traditions I hold dear and passing them on to those I love. Happy Pesach to all who celebrate!

March 31, 2013 admin Uncategorized No Comments

Not Yet

She is growing up very fast.  Too fast. 

Every morning, she wakes up and comes to my room to stand next to me – checking to see if she is taller than me. Not yet.

She wants to sit in the front seat of the car, but I won’t let her because I don’t think it is particularly safe or necessary. Not yet.

She wants me to take her to see the movie Admission with Tina Fey & Paul Rudd. It is rated PG-13, but anything with Paul Rudd in it might as well be rated R to me. Can she go? Not yet.  

There are plenty of things that she is ready for – like being a 6th grader who keeps Passover, goes to overnight camp, trains for her Bat Mitzvah & is responsible for her cell phone. These are things I’m willing to give in to because they are small steps to reaching adulthood.

One could argue that the other things which I am opposed to -for now – are also part of growing up.  And while I know that someday she will tower over my 5’2″ frame while sitting next to me in the front seat as I drive her to a PG-13 movie, I feel that I am well within my parental rights to slow things down just a little bit.  As her mother, I’m just not ready – at least- not yet.

March 3, 2013 admin Uncategorized No Comments

Thank You Dr. Seuss

I’ve been cheating on my blog with books.  I don’t have a ton of free time these days, but when I do I am either at the gym or writing my next blog post. Recently,  I found two great books that I just could not put down.

I’ve always loved to read and it all started with Dr. Seuss.

When I was little, I wanted to constantly be read to.  I have been told that I would stand in the kitchen and point to the top of the fridge and say “book, book.”   (Why my books were kept on the top of the fridge is beyond me).

It turned out that I became an early reader.  When I was three,  I surprised everyone with my ability to read One Fish, Two Fish.  Someone would turn to a random page just in case I knew it by memory – but I would always read what was on the page they turned to.

I did so like Green Eggs & Ham – thank you, thank you Sam I Am!

And the antics of The Cat In The Hat always kept me on the edge of my seat.

“And this mess is so big
And so deep and so tall,
We cannot pick it up.
There is no way at all!”

Would it get all cleaned up before Mom got home? Would they tell her what they had on that cold, cold wet day?

My favorite Dr. Seuss book is Oh The Places You’ll Go – which was given to me as a gift upon my college graduation.  It is written in the same style as Green Eggs & Ham & The Cat in the Hat. But there is so much more wisdom in there.  It was only appropriate that Dr. Seuss come along with me as I moved on to a new stage of life.

“You won’t lag behind, because you’ll have the speed.
You’ll pass the whole gang and you’ll soon take the lead.
Wherever you fly, you’ll be best of the best.
Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.

Except when you don’t.
Because, sometimes, you won’t.”

Leave it to Dr. Seuss to give me some words to live by.

As a parent, I did not forget about Dr. Seuss.  I read Green Eggs & Ham out loud when I was pregnant with Jenna.  I wanted her to like it as much as I did.  I remember her kicking inside of me when I got to the long rhythmic parts.  I know Hop On Pop by heart – at least I used to. When the kids got a little cranky in the car, I would recite the entire book to them from the front seat and they would settle down and listen.

Dr. Seuss has had that kind of affect on my children and on me.

So, Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss! May you always be remembered for your humor and your wisdom for generations to come.

February 25, 2013 admin Uncategorized No Comments

That’s What Friends Are For

I am not a wealthy woman.  I don’t live in a big house.  I don’t have fancy clothes.  I drive a minivan.  But, I am rich… with the most amazing friends.

Fourteen years ago this week, we moved into our neighborhood.  We knew the school district was terrific.  Our house was everything we wanted – except for not having a basement.  But, I wasn’t sure if we would stay in that house for long because there weren’t a lot of young families there.  The neighborhood had not turned over and many of the original owners were still living there.  This was fine with us because they were lovely people.  But, we were secretly hopeful to find some families our own age.

Two years later, Jenna was born and soon after that, the neighborhood started to change.  Our next door neighbors moved in with their two children.  A family with 2 kids and one on the way moved in 3 doors down.  Two families with children moved in on either side of them.  Across the street, a family for 5 arrived.  On both ends of our street, more families came.

I am so happy to call these people my friends.  They are probably some of the best friends I’ve ever had.  Growing up, I had a few great friends, but they lived far away.  I always had trouble making friends in school.  My BFF in 7th grade dumped me for a new group of friends in 8th grade.  After that, I was very cautious about making friends.  Luckily, I found a small circle of girls who were terrific.  I wish I could see them more often (Thank G-d I found them on Facebook)!

This morning, I dropped something off at Michelle’s house.  She told me that my daughter left her lunch on her kitchen table.  She knew I had to get to the office and so she offered to drop it off for me at school.  I protested, but she assured me that it was not a problem.  Michelle is one of the kindest people I know.

Jill and her family unexpectedly took Jenna in for a few hours this weekend after she was a little freaked out while staying home by herself.  She fed her dinner and let her wait there until one of us got home.  We do these kinds of things for each other all of the time.

Caran wakes up early in the morning & goes to the gym with me.  Michelle goes too.  The gym is so much more fun now with them on the treadmill next to me.  We are very supportive of each other’s goals.

My blog is hosted by my neighbor, Rashmi, who is a whiz at WordPress.  She created my website and offers me the best technical support in the world.  She also offers me her brilliant smile and great sense of humor.     

I thought I couldn’t get any luckier and then my son was born.  He opened us up to a whole new set of friends who are also our neighbors.  They offer endless opportunities for playdates and girl talk.

Could I BE any luckier?!  I guess so since our husbands and children are also the best of friends.  From block parties to Phillies games, we are always together.  I look forward to more Halloween parties, prom and graduation pictures, and sharing our lives together.  We often joke that we may all wind up in the same retirement home someday boring people to death with our great stories about the old neighborhood. 

I am not a wealthy woman.  But I’ve certainly hit the jackpot.  If I won the lottery tomorrow, I would never (ever!) move away.  But, maybe I’d hire people to dig me out a new basement.

February 22, 2013 admin Uncategorized No Comments

Every Day Powers

My nephew loves his superheroes.  People who seem normal with super human strength to boldly go where no man has gone before.

Oops – that’s Star Trek (sorry).

Anyway,  I don’t want to be a superhero.  Too much pressure.  And do you ever notice that superheroes don’t have assistants?  Sidekicks don’t count.  They are just annoying and only come in handy when you are in real trouble.

Once, I was Wonder Woman for Halloween.  You will never see that photo on Facebook.  Perhaps there are some highly productive days when I think I could really pull off that title - but definitely not the costume.  

I just want some every day powers that other people have but I don’t.  Off the top of my head, I can make a wish list of some normal powers that would be life changing.

1. I’d like to be a good cook.  Not a great cook because I don’t really like to cook all that much.  Just good enough so that it doesn’t take 2 stressful hours for me to plan and make a nutritional dinner that everyone will eat.
2. I’d like to know how to put on eye makeup.  I always put on too much or it comes out crooked.  I see an eye makeup case and I have no idea which color is for what part of my eye. So I just don’t wear any.  But, it would be good to know for special occasions.
3. I’d like to be able to walk in a shoe store and buy a few pairs of shoes that are exactly what I’m looking for.  I also need to be able to walk and dance in them and they have to go with everything I own. 
4. I’d like the power to stay up to watch The Daily Show & The Colbert Report without falling asleep in the middle.  On Demand and Hulu are good back ups, but I want the real deal.
5. I’d like to not be allergic to cats and dogs anymore.  I feel bad that my kids have to settle for fish & hermit crabs for pets.
6. I’d like to be able to donate to every charity that I want to support - The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research would be one of my first benefactors.
7. I would like to learn to swim again.  I used to know how but I’ve pretty much forgotten by now.  And it isn’t like riding a bike when you don’t like being in the water to begin with.  I can float, doggie paddle and tread water pretty good, but I can’t swim laps like my kids do.  And I feel like I miss out on some of the fun things in life such as water parks and swimming with dolphins.
8. I’d like to be able to travel on a moment’s notice. There are so many places I want to see and not enough money or time to get to them all. 
9. I’d like to be able to say the right thing at the right time and not think about what I should have said 10 minutes after the other person walked away.

I don’t think I’m asking for much.  What every day power would you like to possess?