Fall photo shoot 2010

J and E spent some time together in the park today and, at my request, brought the camera for her annual nature shoot. We have this adorable shot of J and his twin brother from when they were babies...

...and it is my hope to take similar pictures of E each year. 2 years down, 16 or so to go. Last year I took them in Prospect Park, and this year we stuck to our regular hangout, Carroll Park. Imagine, nature in Brooklyn! Don't look too closely or the cars and fences will spoil the illusion.

Back to our regular programming...

Okay, I'm over it. Thanks for listening.

And I'm ready to discuss this NaNoWriMo business. After a wonderfully productive morning during which my husband and daughter amused themselves in the park, I banged out about 2600 words, bringing my word count up to 21,928 and leaving me only about 1400 left until I'm caught up. I really want to be at 25,000 by the halfway point, which is tomorrow at midnight. I think I can do it. I'm hoping for a long nap tomorrow. I had read that Week 2 was the most difficult one and, though I only have two weeks to go on, I would have to agree. After some minor hiccups this week with traveling and a mild case of writer's block as I tried to figure out where the heck my story was going, we're back on track and the words are tumbling forth once more.

On to cuter things, here are a few shots of E following in her father's footsteps...although if he heard me say that a veterinarian is a real doctor he might die of shame...

Cute, right? Even cuter is hearing her say Stess-O-Soap! in person.

You know what else is cute, but only because it comes from a toddler? Hearing her pick up on what mama and dada say and accidentally use it in the perfect context. An example...preparing her oatmeal and hearing "Alright, woman! Giddyup!" And here I was worried about the swear words.

Incidentally, we got dad back later at the park when he was too tired to chase her duckies around. "Man up, dada!" That's my girl.

Ranty McRanterson

For those of you hoping for a cheery post about my daughter's cuteness or something similar, you may not get what you're looking for here. But if you're looking for a good old fashioned I'm-fed-up-and-want-to-complain rant, then tune in Tokyo, because this girl's about to go off.

I'm torn. I can't seem to find a happy medium. Here are the things I hate:

1/ I hate the tendency of people these days to feel no obligation to fulfill promises and be reliable, to show an utter lack of consideration and common decency, and to just be generally and unabashedly selfish. It drives me absolutely up the wall when someone says "Sorry!", when they have the opportunity to fix whatever it is that they are "Sorry!" for, but choose not to because, quite frankly, they suck.

How do I get to the point where that doesn't bother me? Every time I am flummoxed by someone's crappy behaviour, I try to tell myself to lower my standards. I can't tell you how many times I've said it. If I just don't expect anything from anyone, I can't be disappointed. It sounds good on paper, but in reality it just leads to the other thing I hate...

2/ I HATE it when people absolve themselves and others of responsibility, and refuse to hold themselves accountable to anything. I'm so tired of hearing people blame everyone and everything except themselves. I want to take the phrase "doesn't know any better" and wring someone's neck with it. If you're over the age of 10, you know better.

So I'm left to either stew in my own frustration, or to do something about it. But here's the thing: people aren't going to change. So I can make a big deal and rant and rave and force them to say "Sorry!" when that won't change a thing, or I can let people be who they're going to be and accept them. It's that accepting part that I'm having trouble with. I'm not good at accepting that people are going to treat me, or anyone for that matter, poorly. It's a fact of life, yes. I don't have to like it.

Just to clarify...in case you were wondering...I'm not actually perfect. I've bailed on people, I've scapegoated myself out of taking the blame and I've treated people like crap. But I guarantee that it doesn't happen without a boatload of guilt and remorse. I try not to be that person. Because who wants to be that person? And how have we gotten to that place where so many people out there don't mind being that person?

Also to clarify, my husband is not in the doghouse.

And, in case you're wondering, the count is 18,811, I'm about 3000 words behind and I don't want to talk about it.

xoxoxo

Edamame Puddlejumpers...and other Toddler-isms

We have never had much need to play the "airplane game" with E as a means to get her to eat. If anything, we need to slow her down sometimes. Which is a good problem to have, in my mind. Recently though, she has become a little more picky, and we have been known to butt heads a few times over dinner. One day last week, when she was refusing to eat the pasta that I knew she loved, I decided to try pulling out the old airplane spoon trick and yelling "Open the hangar!" so that it could "fly" into her mouth. Worked like a charm. And now we've created a monster. Now not only does she demand to "Play airplane game!" at dinner, but she's also insisting that we expand our fleet, with "Now helicopter!" The other night she was digging the edamame we were popping out of pods...not such a fan of the spicy tuna rolls...when I had the bright idea of introducing the "Puddlejumper" plane, "splashing" the spoon in for a landing. She loved it. The rest of the night was spent to the soundtrack of "EDAMAME PUDDLEJUMPER!!!" When this girl grabs on to something, she runs with it.

She really loves to say thank you. Every morning I let her stand on the toilet so I can put on my make-up and she can play with all of the fun things you find in mom's make-up drawer. This morning, after getting down safely she said "Thank you mama stand on toilet!" The other day we had to wait for the mall to open in Connecticut, and when we finally got inside she said "Thank you mall open!" When we're at the park and someone is playing with a toy she wants, she waits (usually patiently) until they're finished and then yells "Thank you!" as soon as they walk away from it. Or sometimes she just takes it from them, but at least she still says "Thank you!" as she's ripping it from their fingers. She's nothing if not polite.

She's always grinding Ralph's gears about barking, and now she's even started to frame the poor guy. She'll say "Ralph says, Woof! Woof!", and then goes over to Ralph and wags her finger at him, saying "No barking Ralph!" Sometimes she stands at the door of the laundromat yelling at him while he's tied up: "Ralph! No barking ever, ever, EVER!!!" He's developing a complex.

She has two chores - feeding Ralph and grinding coffee beans - that she performs with exuberance every day. When Ralph was recently on medication she even reminded us every day after putting food in his bowl: "Hey! Medicine! Ralph sick!" She loves to check the mail, she loves to dictate her mode of transportation ("Ergo! Not single stroller, not double stroller, not walking, not car. ERGO!") Or whichever one she's decided on that day. She has loads of sympathy, and says "poor guy" or "too bad" or "oh, mama" all the time for anything from seeing a baby crying at the park to missing a phone call.

And last night she made her first real joke. She was asking Dada what he was doing in the other room ("Doin' Dada?"), when she thought it would be funny to change his name to Baba. Hilarity ensued.

She is wonderful, and I can't get enough of her.

Coincidence? Or Kentucky???

So how's this for weird?

A few years ago I started writing a book. It was during J's first year of medical school when I had oodles of time and buckets of inspiration at my fingertips. The project got waylaid at some point, but it took place in Brooklyn. I had no way of knowing at the time that I would end up living in Brooklyn, let alone a 15 minute walk from where my main character lived. When I picked up the story again earlier this year, I was struck by the coincidence.

Fast forward to present day. I am currently writing another book. It takes place partly in New York, partly in Europe, but at one point it travels to Louisville, Kentucky. Why Kentucky? I'm not sure. I was going for a random city in the United States, one that I didn't know much about and that wasn't a major center. Louisville just kind of popped in to my head. And later that day...that day, people...J got an interview for a residency program at the University of Louisville, in Kentucky.

Pretty weird, right?

So...maybe Kentucky?

By the way, am I the only one who thought the Colonel was from the deep south? Kentucky is just down the road! Somehow fried chicken from the Midwest just doesn't seem like the real deal. Which kind of explains KFC, now that I think about it.

Butterflies!

J's parents were in town this week, just in time for E to figure out her two sets of grandparents. Up until now she's just had two "Gramma's" and two "Papa's". But this week she spent some quality time with Gramma Leslie and Papa Mike here in Brooklyn, and had a lively Skype chat with Gramma Barby and Papa Ger too.

Today E, mama and Gramma Leslie went to the Butterfly Conservatory at the American Museum of Natural History. She was thrilled. She kept asking to go back to the "Butterfly room!" to see "More butterflies!"

P.S. NaNoWriMo update: Day 6. 10,488 words. 486 words ahead of schedule. Not divorced yet.

Hallowe'en in Brooklyn

I never fail to be impressed by the enthusiasm with which Brooklyners tackle the decoration of their homes for all holidays, major and otherwise. See for yourself:

Now have a look at the unofficial winner of Cutest Baby on the Trick or Treating Scene 2010. And her parents.

Yes, we took E trick or treating and we had a great time.

Yes, I let her eat some candy.

Yes, I will probably eat most of her candy.

No, I don't feel guilty about it.

Happy Hallowe'en!

Eat your veggies

I roasted cauliflower for the first time last night. I suggest you try it. Especially if you have a toddler into whom you are always looking to cram more vegetables. What's that? You're not a fan of cauliflower? Well, guess what? You need to eat your veggies too, superstar. And just for you, I made a lovely creamy cheese sauce to go on top. You're welcome.

Roasted Cauliflower

1 small-ish head of cauliflower

a few glugs of olive oil

salt and pepper

Slice cauliflower vertically into 1/4" slices. Chunks will break off, that's fine. Put the slices (and chunks and random crumbs) into a bowl with olive oil, salt and pepper and toss lightly with your fingers. Spread onto a baking sheet in a single layer and roast at 450 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes, turning once halfway through.

Cheese Sauce

2 tbsp butter

1 tbsp flour

1 cup whole milk

1 cup grated cheddar cheese

salt and pepper

Melt butter in small saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and cook for about two minutes, stirring often. Add milk and heat to a simmer. Remove pan from heat and add cheese, salt and pepper, stirring until cheese is melted and mixture is creamy.

You can either drizzle the sauce over the cauliflower or, if you're more of a dunker, fill a ramekin with the sauce to serve on the side.

We had it with leftover Peter Luger steak, but I'm sure regular old chicken or pork chops would work too. Next time I will roast some garlic slices with the cauliflower. Garlic makes everything even better.

Day 3, as promised

I remember two things that I read about NaNoWriMo before I started. The first is that I would find myself on Day 3 writing something completely different than what I had intended. The second is that NaNoWriMo is essentially a waste of time because the time spent editing the crap you write in that thirty days will likely take longer than taking the time to write well in the first place.

It is Day 3 and I am, in fact, writing something completely different than I had intended. Despite the great idea that came to me during a rare moment of peace in the shower. Despite the fairly detailed outline that I came up with as a result of my shower-time inspiration. Despite starting off exactly as I had planned, I am now off in another direction entirely. Which is just fine. The words are pouring out, and I'm happy.

Which also brings me to point number two. I am, no doubt, writing some crap. Hopefully a mix of good and crap, but I'm not kidding myself into thinking that it's all pure genius. But whatever it is, it's a heck of a lot more than I had written in the last...well, let's not quantify that time frame. And that's something I've been trying to do for years. To get myself to just sit down and write every single day. It has only been three days, but I have made time each of these three days to focus on writing, and I am proud of that. Even if I only make it through one week, I've improved as a writer. I don't mean that to sound defeatist. I will make it to 30 days and I will write 50,000 words. But my point is that this is in no way a waste of time. This is exactly what I need. It's a kick in the butt. Often kicks in the butt don't just come and find you. You need to stick your butt out a little and invite them in.

Oh, and if you're getting tired of hearing about this NaNoWriMo business, then maybe you should check back on December 1st. :)

Bear with me...

I have big plans for this month. Not only am I still trying to keep up with this blog by writing more each month, but if you'll remember from a few posts back I started a huge challenge yesterday. I am writing a novel this month. Yep, a whole novel. The goal is 50,000 words, which breaks down to 1,667 words per day. I just hit 3,341 words, putting me an impressive 7 words ahead of schedule.

Now I have 20 minutes to eat lunch, prepare E's lunch and get ready to leave for yoga. That's assuming she wakes up. She's having a wonderfully long nap today, for which her glued-to-the-computer mom is ever so grateful. Then this evening it's back to our friend Mr. Luger's for dinner of "tasty steak and spinach too!" with Grandma Leslie and Papa Mike. Big day. And I've already met my writing goal. Who said this writing business is difficult?

Stay tuned for day three...