Socal Mom by Donna Schwartz Mills

Rabbit, Rabbit!

2010-02-01T07:33:00-08:00

On the first of the month, my husband calls his mum in Wales and shouts "Fat Rabbit."

From what I could glean from the Internet gods, it is an old English superstition that yelling "Rabbit, Rabbit" on the first ensures good luck. I haven't seen anything on the web mentioning a variation describing the lagomorph as plump - but as you can see, I did discover the word "lagomorph," which is what rabbits are (and all this time, I thought they were rodents).

It must be a Welsh rabbit thing.

At any rate, I'm beginning this month with a rush job for a new client... plus a new project I've taken on for the MOMocrats (more on that below).

I may not be posting much over the next couple of weeks - but I'm really happy to be so busy on activities that are going to be kind of fun.

I would love it if you would become a fan of the MOMocrats over on Facebook -- an while you're there, please consider subscribing to our new MOMocrats Messenger newsletter (which I'll be editing).

And don't forget to shout "Rabbit, Rabbit!"

Assuming Motherhood

2010-01-29T14:16:27-08:00

My daughter was born one month before my 40th birthday.

At that point in time, I had been in the work force for over 20 years.

I felt I was a strong, capable, intelligent woman. I knew that with motherhood, my life would be transformed in many profound ways, and I was prepared... for the obvious changes.

But as "smart" as I thought I was, I had NO IDEA that a baby would throw my life completely off-kilter.

I had not realized (and no one thought to tell me) that an act as simple as taking a shower would require the planning of a wartime battle. It never occurred to me that shopping with an infant in tow would become an exercise in distraction, or that the baby would accumulate so much stuff that we would need to find a larger home.

And I didn't think motherhood would put much of a crimp in my then-career as a meeting and conference planner. Sure, I knew I'd need to find child care - but it couldn't be all that hard, right?

It did not take long to learn the truth of the saying about making assumptions: "When you assume makes an 'ass' of 'you' and 'me.'"

Nearly fourteen years have passed and you'd think I'd have learned that lesson well enough not to repeat my old mistakes.

Ha!

Three weeks ago, I told my family I was on board with getting a dog. "As long as I am not the one who does everything to take care of it," I said to my daughter.

"But of COURSE you will have to be responsible for it while I'm at work and Megan is at school," my husband said.

Yeah. Of course. I'm home. They're not.

But that wouldn't be a big deal, right? We have a nice, big backyard. As long as someone else was responsible for cleaning up the dog poop, I figured the addition of a dog to our family wouldn't take up a lot of my time.

You longtime dog owners are ROFL now, aren't you?

Mac is a sweetheart. He is good natured, playful, and loving. He even came to us already housebroken.

But he's kind of needy.

He cannot handle being left alone for any period of time. He cannot be left alone in the backyard.

So now, I get up 30 minutes earlier each morning so he can go on a walk. I take him on a longer walk before lunch.

And I'm the one who is cleaning up most of the dog poop.

My daughter walks him after school - unless she has too much homework. Or if it's raining really hard (as it was almost all last week).

My husband walks him before he goes to bed at night. Unless he falls asleep early on the couch. Which he did the last two nights.

The upside of all this dog-walking is that I'm getting some much-needed exercise. But it does cut into the time I have carved out for work.

And then, there was yesterday. I DID need to get some work done in the morning, so even though I could see he wanted to go out earlier than usual, I wasn't ready to take him.

He ended up pooping in the kitchen.

So that was my fault. It was a little on the watery side, so I was grateful it was on the tiled floor and not the new carpet. After I cleaned it up, I decided to take him out so he could finish whatever he needed to do.

As he'd already gone twice (and these were BIG poops), I did not think I needed to take a bag for cleanup with me. Again, this was a bad assumption. As we made our way around the block, I could see he wanted to go again and I had nothing I could use for clean up.

So I did the only thing I could think that might distract him: I started to run. I thought if we could just make it home, he could go in our own yard and I would have access to cleanup materials.

We ran the rest of our route... until we were about three houses away from home, and I needed to catch my breath.

And he immediately stopped to poop... on our neighbor's driveway. While he was in his car, ready to back out.

My dog had diarrhea.

I apologized to the man and his wife and told them I would return immediately to clean it up. I was grateful that they were dog owners themselves, and understanding. ("It happens to everyone," they said. I'm not so sure.)

Cleanup was kind of messy. I'm not sure I did it in the most efficient way. I would have liked to have used my neighbors' hose, but I felt funny taking it without their permission. I just have to say that I'm glad I had a box of Swiffer wet wipes in the house.

He pooped two more times yesterday. And then, last night, he vomited.

So now, I'm worried about the dog and am searching the web on his symptoms; trying to find a WebMD for pets.

Diarrhea alone isn't anything to worry about if it only lasts a day or two. One instance of vomiting is also not a big deal. Diarrhea and vomiting together might warrant a visit to the vet. Or not.

So I'm having this deja vu experience, just like when Megan was a baby and I wondered when it was appropriate to call the pediatrician.

So far today, I've managed not to make the call. Mac is not as peppy as usual, but he seems OK. The websites I looked at last night advised against giving him food or water for six hours, so he did not drink anything until this morning, and the only food he's had was some rice I cooked up for him. He has not vomited again and hasn't pooped yet today -- But that's not surprising, as I doubt there's anything left in his intestines after yesterday.

I hope I'm doing the right thing.

Which is a phrase I should have tattooed on my arm. After all, I'm a mom.

UPDATE - FEBRUARY 1

For those of you who read through the comments, Mac seemed to be getting better and then relapsed yesterday so we were responsible parents and took him to the vet, who gave him a shot of anti-nausea meds and a prescription for antibiotics.

He was a very listless doggie yesterday afternoon - but started to perk up in the evening. And today, he's his usual happy, bouncy self. I think it helps that he had a nice meal of rice and leftover turkey after his walk this morning.

And yes - I am still having flashbacks to my baby daughter's first bout with intestinal nastiness. I was pretty clueless then, too.

Healthy Eating the Farmers Market Way

2010-01-28T10:23:26-08:00

One of the many self-improvement goals I've set for myself recently is to eat more sustainably, which is often at odds with the other big goal of being more economical.

Experts are always advising us that we can kill two organic free-range chickens with one stone by buying more locally grown food at farmers markets. This sounds great - in theory.

You see, up where I live (in the northern San Fernando Valley), we don't have a lot of great farmers markets to choose from. The most convenient one is in Northridge - but it's held on Wednesday nights... from April to October.

You can see the problem, right? It's January, and I don't have a good local farmers market to go to.

Yeah, I suppose I could hit ones held in Studio City or Encino on the weekend. But if I'm going to get in the car and drive that far, I may as well drive a little farther and visit the Grand Poobah of markets in the L.A. area: Santa Monica.

Fortunately, my foodie friend Deena agrees with me. So yesterday, after dropping our kids at school, we journeyed down the 405 to the Third Street Promenade, where we ooh'd and aah'd over some of the most gorgeous fruits and vegetables I've ever seen.

I went there without any kind of agenda or meal plan in mind. All I knew was that I had some chicken breasts I wanted to use. I was hoping for some inspiration...

...which I found at a stand featuring all kinds of Asian greens. I picked up a bag of baby bok choy and took it from there.

I grabbed a bag of fresh scallions (75 cents) and some garlic (three bulbs for $1.00). In addition to the chicken, I already had broccoli and carrots (a shame, because the Costco veggies in my fridge didn't hold a candle to the beautiful produce in Santa Monica).

Unrelated to dinner, I also grabbed a three-pack of raspberries and blueberries. And Deena and I split a similar pack of strawberries.

We made it back to the Valley around noon - which gave us plenty of time to put our bounty away before school got out.

This was such an easy and fun way to shop, we are planning to do it more often. Weekly might be difficult - but at least, we can get there on a monthly basis.

Multitasking Blues

2010-01-26T09:02:00-08:00

I am multi-tasking. I would prefer to focus on one thing at a time, and I think I am more successful when I am able to do that. But in 21st century America, nobody gets to mono-task any longer.

I can't help but reminisce about the old Carousel of Progress at Disneyland, which used (for that time) state-of-the-art animatronic figures to illustrate how the development of state-of-the-art (for that time) household appliances freed us (women) from the drudgery of housework.

I don't know whether to be grateful... or regretful. After all, the ability to accomplish so much at once is the reason why everyone expects so much from us (you know, we partners who stay at home).

It is 9:00 AM. I have already:

Brewed (and consumed) a pot of coffee
Made lunch and drove the child to school
Walked and fed the dog
Cleaned the cat box
Emptied and reloaded the dishwasher
Wiped down the counters
Wiped down the stovetop
Vacuumed the kitchen and bathroom, wiped down floor
Checked and answered email

And that's not all. While I am writing this, I am

Doing laundry (I have to put away two loads done yesterday, but hamper is overflowing again. How does a family of three generate that much laundry?
Cleaning the oven (Yes, it is self-cleaning - but I still have to manually handle the racks and door)
Researching scripts for new web design client

I'm trying to think of good topics to write about (because this one blows). I owe people material - posts at other sites, reviews I promised to write but somehow never got around to. I need to put some effort into updating THIS site... but by the time I get to it, my energy and brain power are shot. Must do better.

But family and finances come first. I vowed to make use of our new kitchen by entertaining our friends more. (We have to - can no longer afford to meet them at restaurants as often). We had a small dinner party Sunday night, which was loads of fun. But I spent most of yesterday cleaning up...

...and trying to fulfill my second vow, which was to save money. This was actually one I'd made LAST year, when our income plunged because of the recession. That vow kind of went out the window when we had to delve into savings to repair and renovate our home. I'm trying to get back on track now, but it's tough when you get hit with things like last week's power outage (which resulted in a fridge and freezer full of spoiled food). I spent a small fortune over the weekend replacing some of the stuff that had to be tossed.

But this week, I'm trying to get back on track. Sunday night's roast chicken was turned into stock yesterday and is going to be the base tonight for chicken noodle soup. And last night, some of Sunday's leftover veggies starred in an impromptu pasta dish for meatless Monday.

Neither of those meals are exactly low-carb/low-calorie. So while I might be succeeding on the financial front, I'm failing miserably with my struggle to maintain my weight.

I dream of a day when I can feel successful in all areas of my life: family, friends, home, work (the fulfilling kind - as opposed to housework), finances, health. It's rare to feel that way simultaneously in all and maybe it isn't possible. Maybe I should just get used to patting myself on the back when I do well in one or two categories in one day and start with the others the next morning (thereby finding some kind of balance of the course of a week or a month or a year).

Powerless

2010-01-20T06:44:40-08:00

On Monday, Southern California was hit with the first of four powerful winter storms (we're bracing for #3 today).

I don't like driving in the rain, which seems to spur other drivers to do crazy things. It feels like taking your life in your hands. So I was perfectly happy to be staying home with the dog, while my daughter (out of school for the Martin Luther King holiday) went to a movie with friends (whose parents were doing the driving).

Of course, I had tasks that I could have done - but nothing pressing. So I thought I'd take advantage of the relative quiet and watch a Netflix DVD that had been sitting around the house for weeks.

Midway through the movie (around noon), the power went out.

It was still off when my daughter returned home at 4:00 PM. It was still out when my husband came home at 6:00 to a very dark and cold house. And it was still out at 8:00, when the entire family came home from dinner at a nearby Italian restaurant. (Well, I couldn't really be expected to cook without the use of my oven or stove, could I?)

The LA DWP had estimated a 10-12 hour turnaround before a crew could come out to our neighborhood and fix the problem. That was around 1:00. It was going to be a long, cold night.

With the electricity out, we huddled in the living room around a Coleman lantern, which did not give off quite enough light to read comfortably. We listened to weather updates on a battery operated radio. I kept up on email with my Blackberry (which I used at a minimum, because I would not be able to recharge the battery). We bundled up under mass quantities of blankets, because we had no heat.

And without lights or heat or the distraction of television, we all retired to bed early.

I'd love to say that the experience brought our family closer, but that's not the case. We bickered over dinner and bemoaned about how unfair it was that the lights were on in the homes across the street. And I confess that I can't sleep without being lulled by the sound of our television droning into the wee hours of the night - so I reran the first three episodes of "Mad Men" and an old "Office" on my iPod.

And I reminded myself that it could be so much worse. We are fortunate that we were not in any of the neighborhoods devastated by fire last fall, so are not facing these rainstorms with the fear of mudslides and evacuation. It was cold in our house, but as this is SoCal, it wasn't dangerously so -- we were uncomfortable but safe under our layers of blankets. We have a (brand new) roof over our heads.

It was an inconvenience, and a temporary one at that.

The power returned early yesterday morning. I made coffee, only to discover that after 18 hours, the milk in our fridge had soured. I drank it black.

And then I made another donation to the Red Cross for relief in Haiti.

El Nino 2010

2010-01-18T08:02:18-08:00

I awoke at 5:30 AM this morning to the news that there were already two SigAlerts on SoCal freeways.

That's right: We've been hit by the first of four winter storms expected this week.

This clip - sent to me by my sister - perfectly illustrates what happens in Los Angeles when we get to experience a little "weather." It cracked me up - because it's just so true. (And I am one of the first ones to freak out if I have to drive on wet roads.)

Macallan and Me

2010-01-15T14:23:31-08:00

Macallan is doing well in his new home. Everyone who meets him agrees that he's an absolute sweetheart. I think we'll have a long and happy life together.

If he doesn't give me a heart attack first.

On Tuesday, I had to chase him for the better part of a block after he broke loose from his leash.

On Wednesday, he decided he just HAD to get into the room where the cats were hiding... at the exact moment when one of my clients was having a crisis and my husband was on a conference call. My daughter and I could not figure out how to get the dog to stop barking, so I ended up taking him on a really long walk (and prayed he wouldn't repeat the trick with the leash).

Yesterday, I returned home after picking my daughter up from school and found him wedged in a corner of our yard, between the concrete block wall and a post holding up our pool fence. I had not thought the space was wide enough for that to happen... but obviously, I was wrong. The poor dog must have been on his hind legs to reach a spot that was just wide enough to poke his head through...

...and then he got stuck like Pooh. He was understandably a very unhappy and uncomfortable boy.

Megan and I spent about a half hour trying to lift him back up to get him out of his predicament. We couldn't budge him. I was worried he would choke or wind up badly scraped and after about 30 minutes of trying, I called my friend Mary Ellen (who is a dog person) to see if she had any suggestions.

She sent her husband, who picked Mac up from behind while I guided his head up through the rift.

Then, he set about blocking the rift with plastic netting to prevent it from happening again.

I am thankful I have some really good friends.

I've been housebound this week, only leaving the dog alone when I have to drive my daughter to and from school. Now, I'm not so so sure I can even do that. When I got back from the drive this morning, I saw that Mac had already destroyed the netting Henry put up yesterday.

I did try taking him with me on Monday morning's drive, but he was a very bad passenger. He did not want to stay in the back seat, and once the kid had left the vehicle, he managed to crawl into the space she vacated. He also turned on my windshield wipers - twice. My husband is convinced that he's somehow going to tear up the car's leather seats, so since then, I've had to put him in the backyard on the few occasions I've had to leave the house.

I see a lot of folks on the road with large dogs and nice cars, so there must be something they use to protect their leather seats, right? I need to research that.

Believe me, when I thought about getting a dog, I did not envision being stuck in the house for days on end. I know this is a transition period - just like having a newborn. And right now, we're in the "we're afraid we'll hurt him" stage. Which isn't too far off the mark.

I had planned to catch up with some of my girlfriends at Panera this morning. Lucky for me, they're an understanding bunch and had no problem moving our meeting to our house. Everyone agrees that Mac is a great dog, and they suggested that we try crate training.

This is something Mary Ellen also swears by, but I had rejected the idea because I figured my husband would not be on board.

I'm now desperate ready to give it a try.

Welcome to Animal Kingdom

2010-01-13T13:40:48-08:00

Over at Los Angeles Moms blog today, you can read about our family's decision to add a dog to our little family, which consists of one child, two cats and two fish. I started writing that post on Friday...

...and over the weekend, we became dog owners.

When I told my daughter she could go ahead and start calling the animal rescue organizations listed at Petfinder.com, I figured we'd still have a bit of time to prepare for a new addition to our family. I knew that some of the dogs listed on the site would already be promised to others, and that when we found one we all agreed upon, there would still be some delay while the organization did a background check on US.

I hadn't realized how determined my HUSBAND was. He clicked on the "adopt" links at lightning speed.

"This is bullshit," he said upon downloading the three-page application we had to fill out to even be considered as adoptive pet owners from one rescue organization.

I have to admit that I wasn't relishing the idea of strangers coming by to inspect our home for suitability, either. What if they show up on a day when I've skipped cleaning the cat box? (It always comes down to my fear of being judged as a bad housekeeper, doesn't it?)

"Maybe we should check out the animal shelter," I suggested.

One hour later, we were at the most beautiful animal facility I've ever seen. L.A.'s West Valley shelter was rebuilt and reopened in 2007, and it's impressive: 50,000 square feet which include 152 indoor/outdoor dog kennels that allow the animals to remain in air conditioned comfort when it's hot outside, a windowed grooming area (where we could view dogs as volunteers were bathing them), and gated patios where families can get to know their prospective pets. The areas for cats and other animals are just as extensive.

But finding the right dog was not going to be easy.

As one might expect, the shelter houses a lot of pitbull-type breeds. I understand that the breed has gotten a bad rap, but I don't feel knowledgeable enough about canines to be able to tell a sweet-tempered bulldog from one that's likely to be too aggressive, nor do I feel confident that I can devote enough time to train one. And the last thing I want is to have our new dog kill one of our old cats. So I walked past the rows and rows of American Staffordshire mixes and tried not to feel guilty that I couldn't take one of them.

Sadder still were the older dogs; animals that had been in loving homes for eight or nine or ten years. Many suffer from the infirmities of old age, which means that anyone who adopts them would have to be prepared for hundreds of dollars in veterinary bills. There are probably people out there who are less selfish than we (and can afford to take that on), but I have a feeling that most of those dogs will finish their lives at the shelter, and that's kind of heartbreaking.

What we had in mind was a younger pet - but not a puppy in need of housebreaking. My daughter and I were thinking of small to medium size breeds, and she fell in love with a little Corgi mix. Her dad did not agree.

This gave me hope that we might be able to delay the acquisition of a dog for a little longer. It could take years to find one that appeals to all of us.

And then I saw him: a German shepherd-collie mix with bright eyes and a friendly manner. According to the card displayed on his kennel door, he was 18 months old, already neutered and chipped and had all his shots. He was larger than what I had in mind; but he appeared to have such a sweet personality that I could overlook that.

He would be available for adoption on Sunday.

We showed up 30 minutes before the Shelter opened the following morning. There were already other families in line ahead of us; all there to adopt a dog. We chatted with one another warily - none of us wanted to tip our hand and possibly lose the animal we had chosen as pets. We relaxed when it turned out that each of us had fallen in love with a different dog.

"What should we call him?" Megan asked. None of us loved the name listed on the dog's info card: "Laddie."

I opined that since he was a collie-shepherd mix, that we might want to pick a name that was either German or Scottish. "Like Hans. Or Hamish," I said.

Everyone agreed that Hamish was an even worse choice than Laddie.

"Well then, how about naming after a single-malt Scotch? We could call him Glen - for Glenfiddich."

Megan had a bad experience with a Glen, so that was a no-go -- as were Glenlivet and Glenmorangie. No Glens.

But my husband loved the idea of naming him for Scotch whisky. We thought about - and rejected - Talisker, Oban, Chivas and Johnny Walker Red.

"How about Macallan?" I asked. He'd be known as Mac. Short and sweet.

So that's how this big guy became the latest member of our family:

Mac is as sweet as he is handsome. We were delighted at the low cost of adopting him from the shelter: Just $62. Of course, we promptly spent an additional $200 on pet supplies - but we would have had to do that whether we'd bought an overpriced puppy from a pet store or adopted from a rescue society.

As for the cats: They are not super happy about their new big little brother, but we are confident they'll adjust.

Mac is changing all aspects of our family life... even on my weight loss blog.

Vicarious Travel: Havana, Cuba

2010-01-11T06:00:00-08:00

My mother emigrated to the United States from Cuba back in 1953, when she was just 17. Four years later, she returned to Havana as a young married woman with an infant daughter (ME).

The revolution had begun. My mom never returned. She never saw her father again - he passed away in 1966.

I have heard my mom's tales of growing up in Havana all my life -- the pristine beaches, the swanky hotels and night clubs, the poverty in the cities. And I've always known that we still have family living there.

There was a period during the Carter administration when it looked as if relations with the Cuban government would thaw enough to allow Americans to travel there, and my dad looked into arranging for the family to visit. But when we learned that the Cubans (who apparently did not recognize my mom's naturalized US citizenship) would not allow us to all stay together in the same hotel, my dad abandoned that plan. Another 30 years passed before it became possible for Cuban-Americans to legally visit family on the island again.

Since then our family has grown: My folks have two sons-in-law and four grandchildren, so when my dad decided to give Cuba a second shot, he sprung for tickets for my niece (who just graduated from college) and nephew (who will be doing so himself...some day). My sister and brother-in-law decided to tag along with their youngest. It promised to be the trip of a lifetime.

And then there was our family. Thanks to the never-ending home renovation, we concluded that we just couldn't swing it right now.

So I had to live vicariously through emails from my sister and her husband during their visit. They have given me permission to publish some excerpts here:

December 28, 2009:

We have arrived in Havana, and are just getting started on our first day here (except for Carly and Alex, who arrived here a few days ago).

Last night we went to a restaurant that Linda's cousin Jose knew of and it was excellent with fried platains and the whole works, including our first mojitos, which weren't as sweet but stronger than what we have. yum yum.
,

There are plenty of old cars that look like the interiors have been well maintained, but they could all use a paint job. palm trees everywhere of course. Today we are going into (Habana Vieja) Old Havana as soon as the relatives get down here. The others seem to be on Cuban time, but we are still on American time. we are ready to go!

We have a view of the ocean from our hotel room. The hotel is very nice and our short trip so far is fun and exciting.

December 30, 2009

We've had two very busy days here. Monday we went into Old Havana, which was everything you've heard and read about. Colonial style buildings, cobblestone narrow streets, lots of people, beautiful parks, monuments, etc., and of course music (more Caribbean than salsa) and mojitos. We also went to the place where mojitos were invented named La Bodeguita del Medio, which reminded us of Hussons in Encinada.

Yesterday we took a long bus ride into Cienfuegos to meet family and see the city. Lunch was at a paladar, which is a restaurant out of a person's home. It was on a bay and the fish was very fresh obviously. Lots of banana chips, rice and beans of course. Seeing the countryside was worth the trip.

We've had your mom's childhood friend and a Cuban cousin with us the whole time. Villi, the cousin, even took the whole week off to be with us. They, and cousin Jose from Panama who is with us, have been a great help as well as a lot of fun.

Alex is enjoying the cigars with your dad, as well as the drinking he can do here legally. Carly is enjoying the mojitos and is taking a bazillion pictures. Maddy is picking up the Spanish pretty well and is joining Carly with the picture taking.

Thank you, Donna, for your camera!

Hasta luego,
Mark, Linda, Carly, Alex, and Maddy

December 31, 2009

Hola and Feliz Ano Nuevo to all...

A bit late on this report, and getting ready to celebrate the New Year her, but here's some quick bits.

Wednesday was spent seeing various attractions in and around Havana, with our extended family [10 in the group!]. We drove to the Marina Hemingway [yes, there are yachts visiting here - no photos of any US ones, of course], and then to the Plaza de la Revolucion. There is a large memorial to Jose Marti there, a large image of Che Guevarra on the Interior Ministry building, and other sites [eg, library]. Also saw the University of Havana, and the Havana Libre [former Hilton], on our way to the Castillo de Morro and Cabana. This last site is across the bay from Old Havana and is two large fortresses with cannons, huge walls, moats, etc built by Spain - very impressive. Did some shopping later and visited a cousin's daughter for cerveza in an outdoor plaza...

The evening included a late dinner and a visit to the nightclub at Havana Libre - on the 25th floor with beautiful views and a ceiling that opens to the night air and sky. The band was excellent - salsa and carribean - but no one was dancing! All tourists we guessed, and Mark and Linda were not brave enough to go it alone... We'll have to find a more local club...

Today we spent the morning visiting a cemetery east of Havana were several relatives are buried, including our grandfather who died in 1966 after Mama had left the country. This was quite emotional as she had not been back since before his death. All-in-all, the experience was rather uplifting. We also visited the neighborhood where she grew up, and were able to visit with a neighbor who remembered her family. Much more to this morning's story, but really a remarkable experience in many ways.

We spent the afternoon back in Old Havana for a little shopping and lunch at La Floridita [a Hemingway hangout], but mostly walking through ore interesting cobblestone streets and plazas. Some run down, some being restored, and some quite nice. But always the people are friendly [some a little too friendly...]. Very comfortable and seemed like a bit of a European feel. A lovely afternoon...

Tonight, we're off to cousin Villi's to spend New Year's Eve with family.

Hasta luego.

Mark, Linda, Carly, Alex, Maddy

The family returned home last week and I've yet to get the full report - or see the photos my sister took. Until then, feel free to check out her Flickr stream (which features over 1,000 taken by my niece - where I stole the ones in this post).

Stinkin' Resolutions

2010-01-10T10:01:32-08:00

This month's topic Yahoo! Motherboard topic had to do with the January ritual of making New Year's Resolutions:

Year after year, millions of people make New Year's Resolutions and most of the time those resolutions are made knowing they'll most likely be broken. From losing weight, to paying off debt, to planning vacations, and quitting smoking or other bad habits, it seems like the resolution making process is the same song and dance for just about everyone. Experts say, some resolution-makers last a week keeping their New Year's resolutions, and some stick it out all the way to Feb. 1, but very few manage to achieve their goal.

At my age (going on 54!!) this is something I've stopped doing. You can find out why over at 50-Something and Los Angeles Moms blog.

For more responses on this topic, see:

Tales of the Crib
It's All About Balance
This Mama Cooks on a Diet
My Ladybug Picnic
Hormone Colored Days

Also, there will be a Twitter party on the subject on Wednesday, January 20 at 9:00 PM EST. I am going to try to be there - I hope you will, too. Hashtag: #newyearsresolution

A view of our entryway [Flickr]

2009-12-17T10:25:54-08:00

socalmom posted a photo:

A view of our entryway [Flickr]

2009-12-17T10:25:48-08:00

socalmom posted a photo:

Living Room [Flickr]

2009-12-17T10:25:44-08:00

socalmom posted a photo:

From the dining room [Flickr]

2009-12-17T10:25:39-08:00

socalmom posted a photo:

From the dining room [Flickr]

2009-12-17T10:25:35-08:00

socalmom posted a photo: