Giving Thanks...Albeit 5 Days Late

I will go on record to say that this year's Thanksgiving ranked as one of my favorite of all time. I've come to terms with Thanksgiving not being a quiet, relaxing and peaceful affair. I've divorced that notion with the birth of our first child. My acceptance of this fact has left me infinately happier. The scurrying, the crowds, the road trips to far off lands (Plainfield). With over a week of festivities, I've narrowed down the top ten high-iights of this year's celebration.
1. Thanksgiving nearly a week early at Tita Cora and Tito Joe's house. The table full of chafing dishes held the traditional goodies: Pancit, deniguan and italian beef. The dessert table was piled high with ensaymada and siao pao all made by Jerry's "crazy" Tito Joe. I've never met someone that can tell a dirty joke like he can and then turn around and make the sweetest, lightest pastries. It's truly a gift. It also turns out that he is quite the videographer. Old home movies playing on the tv revealed my mini skirted mother in law and Jerry's aunts and uncles dancing with infants on their hips. Confident smiles, knowing that even though they had just immigrated to America, that they had each other. And here we are, Jerry, Jon, Joanne and I, kids on our hips, looking a bit less stylish (speaking for myself of course) and realizing just that same. We have each other. Also realizing that maybe we need a video camera. Our next big purchase.
2. An afternoon with the Muppets. I was crying in the theater it was so beautiful. Kermit took my breath away.
3. Once again sitting at the "kid table" for the Thanksgiving feast at my moms. I hadn't been there for over twenty years. The kid table used to be where all the fun happened. This year it is where four hungry adults wolfed down their Thanksgiving plates in time to wipe sweet potatoes off my shoe and head off a one year old before climbing on the glass coffee table. The last time my family was around a house full of little ones, MC Hammer was too ligit to quit. Bless my family for their enthusiasm over my kiddos. I couldn't talk them into swapping places at the kids table though.
4. Tea at the Ritz - an annual tradition with my mom. This year my mother did not have to endure the company of a sleep deprived, unbalanced mother of a newborn. I think we had a much better time this year, right mom?
5. Watching Ella and Viv in their Thanksgiving program at their daycare. Jerry, sweating through his clothes after a gallant sprint from the train station. His meeting ran late but his determination to be there for the opening number was what makes me so thankful to be married to this man.
6. Catching moments like the ones above. The kids creating memories with each other. And creating such happy memories for us.

I Wish She Was Just Singing

This kid gets an "A" in the drama department. Woe is her.

Movember

So glad November is drawing to a close. In honor of men's health awareness month, Jerry attempted a beard and mustache for two weeks. Above is the end product. I couldn't even recognize him ; )

Alliances are Made

And some are solidified.

I come to your rooms each and every night. I can't go to bed without doing so. Every evening, I gently kiss your cheeks or run my hands over your hair as your night-light looks on. Every night I say a little prayer over your quiet, sleepy heads. Seeing you still lets me take in the small details that often get overlooked in the daylight hours as we rush off to the next thing. Your chapped lips, your soft hands, the smell of your breath. One last "check-in" with you is the last thing I do before I go to bed myself. Here you were tonight.

Two Weeks Notice

Dear Family,
I am tendering my resignation as head chef and personal shopper. There are only so many times you can hear "I don't like that" before things start feeling personal. So before I loose my cool I hearby announce that Trader Joe's freezer section will take over all duties relating to food preparation. Gone are the home-made beef stews and pasta sauces. Even my homemade pizza received jeers. That night I played around with garam masala? A distant memory. Basil? Boo. Goat cheese? Gag. Cumin? Are you crazy? Ella and Viv your wish is my command. Frostbitten chicken tenders and canned creamed corn are your siren song. I simply cannot compete.
Love,
Mom
p.s. Karma truly is a "b"...so sorry Mom!

My love for on-line shopping reached new heights yesterday. Ella and I had just finished seeing "Pinkalicious" at the Water Tower Theater. High off of her first play and trailing four of her gal pals, we braved the mall crowds to get to Mity Nice Grill for a post-play luncheon. There, standing guard at every entrance was an army of evil, so insidious, so sinister yet so irresistibly cute. American Girl Doll officially had Ella and I held hostage. For one second I found myself holding Ella up in front of a case of over thirty dolls with varying eye, hair and skin colors asking her which one she thought was the prettiest. Bi-racial kids fear not...there is a doll for you! A $100 dollar doll. I was actually considering the $30 "fiesta picnic set" because who doesn't need a 1 1/2 inch pinata? Luckily, the girls we were with were seasoned veterans to the American Girl scene. We would have simply self-combusted with magic, the whole entire mall, were they newbies like us. I plan to continue with my holiday shopping on Amazon. No lines, no snippy sales ladies and no ambush marketing tactics aimed at the innocent (and their mothers). Ella's narrow view of the world of toys was pried right open yesterday...still awaiting the fall-out. It's been over eighteen hours since the last mention of the dolls. I hope it will be much like the Halloween candy, forgotten in two days. Although she did ask for a "kitty cat" aka Kit Kat today.