There are forty-five minutes left of 12/21/12.  I may be going out on a limb but it looks like the Mayans were wrong suckas.  I hope I don't eat my words.  Last night, just before picking up Jerry from the train, I decided to call my mom just in case.  I told her a quick thank you and I love you, just to cover my bases.  Jer, Ella, Viv and I huddled in to watch the snow fall outside of our favorite noodle place.  I figured if this was the eve of the last day on Earth, hell if I'm cooking.  So we ate ramen.  This morning, I have to admit, I paused to make sure the sun did not turn black like sackcloth.  It did indeed rise and I did indeed need to go to work.  The girls found their way into our beds and we lingered.  Although it may not have been the end of the world for most, the news that cousin Allyn's flight would be delayed until Sunday night was the end of the world for our four year old (she'd say, four and eleven-twelfths...not that she's counting).  We now sadly add three more days to our count-down until their arrival.  Here's to a new era, unchartered Mayan territory.  Whee!

I live for trips.  I recently confessed to friends that I love the smell of O'Hare because it means that adventure is afoot.  Jer and I have taken some pretty exciting vacations together.  We honeymooned in the Greek Islands and lunched in Marmara, Turkey.  We've supped under the stars in a large courtyard in a Provencal winery.  We've nearly drowned in the Mediterranean.  We've gotten lost, really lost in the Mexican countryside before swimming in cenotes.  We got a nasty case of road rash after flipping off our scooter on an island off of Thailand, at night.  I distinctly remember the locals rushing to our aid as we allowed unknown salves and ointments to be slapped on our skin.  We thrive on adventure, on getting lost, on befriending questionable locals and eating off of food trucks that would make Anthony Bourdain lose his lunch.  We generally like to take a slight detour from the beaten path.  Some people bring home t-shirts, others souvenir shot glasses; Jer and I like to come home with a story. 
This September we will be celebrating our ten year anniversary.  Jerry and I have tossed around the idea of going to Portugal.  I think I may have even written about it hopes that if it was typed then it must become a reality (I think that's what forced me to run my first marathon).  But plans for a master bathroom may be usurping plans for international travel.  So as we mull over ideas for plumbing and fixtures I keep searching for the perfect mini-vacation spot for our anniversary.  And I think I found it.  Drum roll please......Glacier National Park!  There is wildlife (fulfilling an element of danger), there is opportunity for fly fishing and rock climbing (we love trying new things), and plenty of diner dining with a promising pool of local characters.  I'm envisioning a lot of banana cream pie and Brokeback Mountain look-alikes.  Who doesn't love Jake Gyllenhaal in flannel?  Not sure if Jer shares my enthusiasm for that last bit...he is a Baker's Square fan though. 
Anyway, I look forward to our next adventure since it's been a while.  I'm also looking forward to the natural beauty just a short plane ride away.     

Fa la la la la



Come December 1st the mad dash begins to check off all things HOLIDAY.  With egg nog in the fridge and Santa's visit behind us, cookies have been baked and shared, ornaments made and the holiday cards mailed, we decided to do something new this year.  Caroling.  Surprisingly it wasn't a hard sell for our neighborhood buddies.  Come to find out, some of these guys have show choir on their resume.  We left the music selection in the capable hands of a real life madrigal singer while Jerry and I contributed our home for a practice space and mulled wine station.  Our neighbors graciously opened their doors and smiled as the littles tried to bum rush their porches.  Not sure if the kids were clear that unlike Halloween the homeowners do not pass out candy this go-around.  After several rounds of Jingle Bells we landed at the Enlows and were treated to hot cocoa and desserts.  There is already talk about next year.  Maybe we'll throw a little Run DMC "Christmas in Hollis" in the mix.            

Santa trying to read the kids "naughty" or "nice"  auras.   Is it me or does Viv look nervous?

Cookie Decorating with Mimi

Space suit at Home Depot

It's the night before the annual cookie party and I've used the "f" word against a harmless bowl of dry ingredients...twice.  Tomorrow I need to present five dozen cookies that are globally inspired...a twist on our traditional gathering.  All I know is that I should have thought twice before choosing a recipe from a blog called "Ambitious Kitchen".  Seriously, what was I thinking?  Next year I will certainly seek out recipes that are more my speed. 

Mental Notes:  Must google "inferior culinarian blog" or "unremarkable chef blog".  Food Network, I may be on to something here. 
 

So the brown-buttered, salted caramel, nutella dough that now sits in my fridge tastes interesting at best.  That was literally what I said to myself, "interesting", when tasting the batter.  That can't be good.  Anyway, I hope I keep getting invited to this party before someone figures out that I'm there just to score other people's cookies.  Because damn these girls can bake.  Wish me luck tomorrow.

It was a Tuesday, we had completed a round of errands and made it home before stomachs started howling for lunch. I allowed them five minutes with full access to my lipstick and a gaudy palate of Wet and Wild body glitter. They felt royal. With great care they slipped into their finest and requested that pictures be taken for posterity. All of these poses were completed unprompted. Ella's eyes batted like a hummingbird's wings as Viv worked hard on her technique. When Ella puts on this dress she is transformed. She will cup Vivian's chin with her red gloved hand and murmur sweet nothings to her sister in a whispered song.   She does not shout or jump, she does not encourage Vivian to wag her heiney or whisper "poop" under her breath. She is poised, she is prim, she is a parent's dream. And Vivian follows suit.  I can't help but think that Santa will have to work miracles to top this gift from the Czerkies...for both the girls and I.

Batted Eyes

Demure I

Demure II

Cheeky

Jerry's Mashed Sweet Potato Recipe

Yet another recipe that cannot go without mention. My aunt's swoon over Jerry's mashed sweet potatoes. In part, no doubt, that it was made by a man...whee! Let that fact not overshadow it's greatness.

Topping
1 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1/4 cup chilled butter, cut into 1/4 inch piece

5 pounds red-skinned sweet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces

4 large eggs
3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix sugar and butter in a small bowl. Cover and chill until ready to use.
Butter 13x9x2 inch baking dish. Cook sweet potatoes in a large pot of boiling salted water until very tender, about 12 minutes. Drain. Let stand in colander 15 minutes. Mash the heck out of them.
Beat eggs, syrup, vanilla, lemon juice and salt in a large bowl. Mix in mashed sweet potatoes. Transfer the sweet potato mixture to prepared dish. Sprinkle topping over mixture.
Bake until sweet potato mixture is set and topping bubbles, about 1 hour. Let stand 15 minutes and serve.
Serves 12-14

Mimi's Famous Chocolate Pecan Pie

My mother, the epitome of health and nutrition deflates a little each year after making this decadent Thanksgiving dessert.  The thing is, she doesn't have a choice.  If this rich little lovely didn't make it's way to the Thanksgiving table there would be Anarchy.  I inquired this year about the recipe, half expecting it to be a state secret.  Turns out that it's on the side of the Karo Syrup bottle!  She just adds one cup of chocolate chips.  That's right...my mother uses corn syrup and we are still alive to talk about it!   

1 cup Karo® Light OR Dark Corn Syrup

3 eggs

1 cup sugar

2 tablespoons butter, melted

1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract

1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) pecans

1 (9-inch) unbaked or frozen** deep-dish pie crust

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
   
2. Mix corn syrup, eggs, sugar, butter and vanilla using a spoon. Stir in pecans. Pour filling into pie crust.
   
3. Bake on center rack of oven for 60 to 70 minutes. Cool for 2 hours on wire rack before serving.
   
4. **To use prepared frozen pie crust: Place cookie sheet in oven and preheat oven as directed. Pour filling into frozen crust and bake on preheated cookie sheet.

A trip to Pilsen last week left two little girls happily filled with churros.  We stopped by the Mexican Museum of Art before heading out to play at the local jungle gym. 

Two and a half drinks over the course of an evening with friends and reality has sunk in.  I can no longer hold my alcohol...none.  It's like I'm 16...I mean 21 all over again.  Only now after a few sips I'm ready to slip into my cozy pants and watch a marathon of Hoarders.  I'm no longer the social butterfly I once was.  Last night, however, I hopped on to the coat-tails of some well-healed, "in the know" friends and cavorted with them until the wee hours (9:30 p.m.).  We ate at Hubbard Inn and then found our way to one of those unmarked, un-named, basement clubs for a round of Moscow Mules.  It was great.

I'm always reassured by others that I will hit my social stride once again.  That I will no longer forget what it was I was saying or trail off into some awkward dialogue with myself...and that's before I've even been offered a drink.  Hey parenting young kids can be exhausting.  The timing of our adult-night couldn't have been better as earlier in the day I had hit a new low when I accompanied Ella to a four-year old's birthday party and felt "so hip" watching the kids dance around to One Direction.  LAME in all capitals!  So it was nice to be reminded last night that I still have "it" in me, if only once every few months.  What was even nicer was knowing that I'm not alone in these feelings.  Our one friend felt like he had been "roofied" (he wasn't) and was on his way to his daughter's cheerleading competition this morning.  An auditorium filled with spirited girls?  The epitome of a parent hangover.     

In preparation for Concordia's Thanksgiving Program, parents received the following emailed instructions.

"We know that this service is a wonderful photo and video opportunity for parents. We have put up some chains separating the children’s sitting area and the rest of the chapel and we request that you stay behind those chains when taking pictures or videos. Please be respectful of families behind you and of the students who are sharing their gifts of songs when documenting your child’s participation in the service."

This was no doubt in response to the antics of a few bad apples during the 2011 performance.  I don't know what kind of parent would cross the chains, scale the side of the stage just to get a picture of their child, do you?  This year, Jerry and I sat obediently in our pew as throngs of paparazzi parents pulled out their telephoto lenses to get that close up of their toddler wailing on stage.  Seriously it was a circus of Kardashian proportions.  And God-bless the teachers for their enthusiam.  They swayed and sang about Jesus's love as Vivian sat open-mouthed, her classmates crying, runing amok or both.  The teacher's dedication almost made me feel OK with the heavy religous rhetoric that is included in our steep tuition rates.  Oy, the hours spent on choreography and dress rehearsals!  Ella's class faired better.  She had been excited about "the stage" since her debut dance performance last May.  Although we didn't get any pictures, we were so proud.  I'm also proud to annouce that Jerry and I are officially off of school probation for good behavior. 

Pics From A Family Shoot This Summer

Only days into November and Christmas has been given the official green light.  We took the girls to Woodfield Mall on Saturday only to see lines thirty people deep loaded down with armfuls of stuff.  We decided to bypass the mayham at H and M and took shelter at the Rainforest Cafe.  Even the waitstaff seemed like they had already had their fill of crowds as they trudged to tables, pasted on a frozen smile and managed to clap along to a Happy Birthday number before filing back into the kitchens with scowls on their faces.  Ah, the holidays.  As I have the last several years, I will be enjoying my Christmas shopping from my couch.  Taking all present requests via Amazon wishlist.  

Jerry and I voted today. Ella had a mock election in her classroom yesterday. She voted for "duck" who apparently won the race by only two votes against "Farmer Brown". I have to admit, I'm kind of envious of her candidate selection. This is my fifth election and wondering if people always enter into a "jaded phase" in their thrities. I know that some of my idealism from the early millenium has worn off some. But should it have really worn off this much?

Happy Halloween!

Shielded from the elements.

Spent too much time on these mother-loving costumes...needed to snap a picture.

Back to the more weather-resistant marching band costumes.

Romping in the leaves with buddy Jackson.

Add "ruined Halloween costumes" to the long list of Hurricane Sandy's destruction.  Who knew that her wrath would reach all the way to Chicago?  Jerry and I should have checked the weather patterns before racing home from work to blow up a bunch of balloons and weave their baskets.  Within five minutes of leaving the house, the balloons were wrapping themselves around the girls' heads, weaving a spider web of helium filled disaster.  Smiles turned to frowns and a near trick or treating boycott.  Luckily, we had our marching band costumes as back up.  In addition to keeping a closer eye on the weather, I would like to document some other "take aways" from this year's Halloween festivities.  They all seem to revolve around the same theme:  Home-made costumes.  Home-made costumes, in theory, are supposed to be cheaper.  Their costumes consisted of feathers, poster board, gold duct tape, gold cording, buttons and balloons.  Their baskets were made from Trader Joe bags that the girls painted brown.  So why is it that I feel totally spent after each October 31st?  Home-made costumes.  Why do Jerry and I find ourselves splayed out on the kitchen floor on the days leading up to Halloween cursing the fact that we didn't just go to Party City and get the "Princess in a Bag"?  Home-made costumes.  And this being only two days out from our Halloween Hell can you guess what I have planned for next Halloween?  Yes...Home-made costumes.  Much like child-birth, the home-made costume amnesia sets in quick.

 Guess who spoke too soon?

Ella's art has been added to the school's gallery.

Guess who is basically out of diapers?

I let the margarita wash over me last night as we sat in a dark booth at Maria's up the street.  I settled in closer to Jerry as we looked across at our two girls.  The last twenty-four hours had been rough.  With each sip I started to feel my body once again.  My chest was tight, my neck was sore.  Ella shared no resemblance with the girl we saw on Thursday.  She stared up as the roving guitarist made his way to our table and smiled.  She fought her sister for the last tortilla chips.  Thursday's Ella was strapped to a metal bed in a sad tiger hospital gown.  There were tears, a catheter, instructions that a non-sedated four year old should not have to follow .  Two worried parents standing helplessly at her side with bulky lead aprons.  It was a whirlwind of horrible images.  It was a very dramatic process for a very un-dramatic diagnosis.  She has grade 1 reflux which will likely resolve on it's own in the next few years.  Next week we see the urologist and unless he/she makes a very compelling argument otherwise, we will not be moving forward with the typical protocol for this diagnosis.  She will not have to go through this again unless new evidence of symptoms arise.  Jerry and I have decided.  How parents do this day in and day out, I cannot fathom.  Our beginning, middle and (hopefully) end of this whole process was a quick few weeks, four visits and an end result that is extremely promising.  In fact, if this is all we ever have to deal with medically speaking, we've won the lottery.  In the end, my friend Mandy pointed out that Ella felt loved and 100% supported,  and as parents that is about all we could do.  Moving forward.            

Before leaving for California, we had a strep throat scare and a UTI all within days.  Ella's little body was worn out.  After ten days of antibiotics we are awaiting a second possible round because things are still not 100%.  With my history of wonky kidney and ureter structure, Ella's doctor wanted her to undergo an ultrasound.  So away to Children's we went on Tuesday of last week.  Ella performed beautifully.  At that point, I figured there were three ways this whole thing was going to play out.  Let's just say it wasn't the worst (she doesn't need immediate surgery; her insides don't mimic her mother's) and it wasn't the best (we're not off the hook yet).  She will be undergoing a VCUG sometime soon to determine next steps.  This involves catheterization (this I dread) and one four year old trooper.  I just want to fast forward a bit so that we can get on with "a plan".  I help people manage crises for a living...wish I knew how to manage this itty bitty one for myself.   Whoever said, "having a child is like having your heart walk around outside your body", wasn't kidding.

Trip Report

Lounging at "our pool"

This....

helps you deal with this.

Tom Foolery at the Beverly Hilton Poolside

Jerry and the girls flanked by two big guys.

Disney Magic...compete with that Santa!

Ella's First Roller-coaster...Whee!

Artsy Dumbo shot...is that possible?  It just captures the sunny mood of the day.

Dumbo in Flight

$20 Minnie Mouse Ears....check.  $10 Lollipop....check.

Santa Monica Pier

It was a whirlwind week to say the least.  The first half of our trip was spent east of Los Angeles.  I’m not sure how far exactly but it was one hot and sweaty car ride.  In and Out Burger just outside of LAX kicked off the trip on a good note.  Jer drove, my mom sat shot gun and I shared the back seat with the kids.  Viv had her first taste of the famous burger, “animal style”, and I thought I saw Jerry well with pride from the rear view mirror.  We had rented a three bedroom house with swimming pool for the four days we were in town and didn’t regret that decision for a minute.  The girls were amazed and were quite disappointed in the accommodations provided later in the trip in Los Angeles at the Beverly Hilton because, gasp...we didn’t have our own pool.  We got to see where Josh and Jen live.  A beautiful mountain town that is the perfect mix of hippy and bikers...in a really good way.  The whirlwind did not let up on the second half of our trip.  Jer and I are now able to cross off “Disneyland” on our list of parental duties.  The kids have reached the pinnacle of kid-dom and it did not disappoint.  Disneyland truly is magical.  There was nary a melt-down to be had.  Viv slipped into a sweet coma half way through the day and woke refreshed, ready for more happy.  Ella got to meet the princesses and although she clammed up and could only manage to thrust her autograph book into their gloved hands, she left fulfilled.  Side note:  Snow White took my breath away.  Jerry heard me murmur to myself, “she could sing to birds” and gave me crap about it for the rest of the trip.  You could say I was smitten.  Where do they find these girls?  Clearly none of them are mothers.  

The remainder of the trip was spent at the beach because what is more California than that?  We went to Leo Carillo State Park and explored tide pools, watched surfers and climbed rocks.  We then went to Malibu Seafood.  I was half hoping to run into the cast from the OC but was pleased enough with the ahi tuna and shrimp.  Speaking of food, we dined at Momed in Beverly Hills and Marix in West Hollywood.  We had ice cream for lunch at Sprinkles and fell in love with the cupcake ATM.  It was a stellar week.  I was so happy that the four, sometimes five (including Mimi), sometimes seven (Josh and Jen too), could disconnect from everything else and connect with each other.  Pretty impressive with a wedding and everything.  I’m home now.  I’m sitting in the basement as the laundry churns.  Nanang and Tatang picked us up from the airport with a home cooked meal waiting for us in Oak Park.  I am a lucky girl.  I am a tired girl.

Josh & Jen

It was such an honor being a part of Jen and Josh’s big day.  They were married last Saturday, September 22nd in Hemet, California.  There were so many reasons to be excited about their nuptials.  First and foremost, Josh picked the right girl.  I’m pretty sure my mom and I did a collective “phew” when he told us he was going to pop the question.  So it was with great happiness that we add to the Karela name.  Secondly, Ella and Viv got top billing in the events as Flower Girl and Ring Bearer, respectively.  I’m not sure if flailing on the ground, refusing to be part of the photographs and covering their homemade dresses in grass stains was in the job description...but eh, we blame it on the jet lag and hope that Josh and Jen were so blinded by their love for one another that two misbehaving nieces could be forgiven.  **  Third, I got to sit at a table full of Johnsons and Karelas.  I can’t underscore how tremendous this was for me.  Really tremendous.  Lastly, I got to toast my brother.  It’s not often in life that you get to speak publicly about the ones you love.  I think we should task ourselves to do this much more often.  Even though the act of public speaking is somewhere in between having my shoulder dislocated and eating Vegemite in terms of things that I like to do; the actual process of writing the speech and having the opportunity to honor my brother was an exercise that brought me great happiness...because he is an amazing man...and I take full credit.  Just kidding!

I can’t wait to see the pictures.     

Mother of the Groom, getting ready

A deliriously tired but happy big sis...where am I even looking?

**And how does one discipline two children when you are wearing heels and a bridesmaid dress?  How does one try to redirect their child as vows are being exchanged and all of your family and your brother’s new family looks on?  Answer is, you don’t.  You do your best impersonation of a ventriloquist, threats spewing from your tight smile, hoping one will have an impact and then get a glass of wine and ignore.  Thanks Aunt Judy for the advice ; )