Road Trip

Last Wednesday we set off on our annual cross country road trip. This year we decided to head east, rather than west. Our first stop was Northampton, Massachusetts where the B Team lives. It was 1300 mile journey.



We spent our whole first day in Tennessee. I entertained myself taking pictures of the kids in the backseat.







The monkeys played on their electronic devices, played "chest," ate sugary treats, and even caught up on a little sleep.

We had lunch in Nashville and later camped out in Warrior's Path State Park near Bristol. It was a good first day.

It feels good to get away.

Camp Report, Week 3

Last week the monkeys attended Harry Potter Camp in the morning and LEGO Camp in the afternoon at GSL. They grumbled a bit in the beginning ("We don't care about Harry Potter"), but once they got there, they loved it. The teacher read to them from the books, they watched some of the movies, they did Harry Potter activities, talked about their favorite characters, and even made magic wands.

But nothing could compare to LEGO Camp. Basically they had their pick of LEGO sets and spent all afternoon building them. They could work together or in groups.



There were plenty of sets they had never seen before, so there was no chance of them being bored. On Wednesday, they happily showed me what they were working on, and by Friday's open house there were several masterpieces to show off.




They were also both very impressed with the LEGO board games. Soccer was the clear favorite.



I was surprised that there were wasn't a stash of regular LEGOS for them to build from their imaginations, but maybe that would be too wild?

Both of these camps were almost all boys their age, so they had a blast and made lots of new friends. The only downside is that they now want me to buy them lots of new LEGO sets.

Skate park!

Guess what? We're finally getting a skate park! We went to the groundbreaking ceremony on Thursday to celebrate.



The designs are fantastic and the park will have something for all levels. It will also be well lit, family-friendly, and just plain awesome.



Word on the street is that it should be completed by fall. We're SO excited. A huge shout out to Aaron Shafer and all of the skaters and City employees who fought to make this happen.



It's going to be awesome. I'm definitely starting the Skateboard Moms & Aunties Club now!

Head Injury #2

It's been almost three years since we had to get Jiro's head glued together. The first time was in Kansas, at midnight.

There have been plenty of close calls and many a butterfly bandages since, but we had to take a second trip to the ER.

On Wednesday I thought it would be fun to take the monkeys swimming after camp. We were there for about 30 minutes before Jiro busted his head open on a metal pipe near the small green slide. He and Satchel were chasing each other and he tripped on something. I was sitting about ten feet away, but managed to miss the entire episode.

I saw the lifeguard run over, so naturally I did too. Jiro was wailing and holding his head. I picked him up and the lifeguard told me I could get a band aid if I needed one by the locker rooms. I started walking that way and by the time we got there, Jiro's face was covered in blood. Naturally it freaked him out, but I have to say I was extremely calm. I know heads bleed a lot, and Jiro has banged his up enough that I've stopped panicking.

Erin, the head lifeguard, also stayed calm. She did a very nice job stopping the bleeding, and once I could actually see the cut, I said, "I guess we should head to the ER, huh?" Had Warren been on duty, he might have opted for a butterfly bandage from Walgreens, but I was erring on the side of caution.

Erin bandaged Jiro up, Satchel went and got him a snack, and I took pictures. I actually had to tell him not to smile in this one.



We put on our cover ups, got our stuff together, and drove to Germantown Methodist. Thankfully it was not a busy night. Head injuries get you moved through pretty quickly though regardless. We were in triage after about 4 minutes and had a room maybe 5 minutes after that.

We were quite a sight in our toweled hoodies. As we walked to our room all of the nurses joked, "I wonder where you guys have been."



The doctor came to the room right away, and our only trauma of the evening was getting the JCC bandage off of Jiro's head so the doctor could see the cut. He thankfully said we could glue it, rather than stitch it, and went to get ready.

Meanwhile I tried to convince the monkeys that South Park was not an acceptable show to watch in the ER. Thankfully they changed the channel before the doctor came back. Jiro's head was glued in a matter of minutes and we were told to wait ten minutes before leaving. During that time a sweet nurse brought the boys each a popsicle and a cup of ice water.



Jiro has a nice bump, and can't swim for 5-10 days, but he's going to be just fine.

The Big Apple

This week's column, Weekend trip to New York just what mom needed, gave a little peek into my weekend getaway in New York. Colleen and I had a great time. Our reasons for going--beyond just taking a break from the daily grind--was to check out the Renegade Craft Fair (Colleen) and do a lot of eating (me).



It just so happens that Colleen's sister-in-law, the lovely and super talented Allison Smith, has an apartment in Brooklyn just a hopskip from where the craft fair was being held. Allison kindly agreed to let us stay with her and even better--she took us to all of the best restaurants and bars her awesome little neighborhood (Greenpoint) had to offer.



Hanging out in Brooklyn was awesome. So neighborhoody and cozy and hip. Some highlights:

Everyone rides bikes. (Allsion actually knew this woman and despite what you are thinking, she is not in the roller derby.)



Just about every street has bike lanes. You have to look for both cars and bikes before crossing.



Art is everywhere.



Really, everywhere:



Allison took us to her studio, which was amazing. This building pictures is all studios!



Inside Allison's studio, she has all kinds of treasures. Her latest medium is old bike tires. This is the turtle and the hare.



I also loved her series of gun targets. That Allison--so talented!



On Saturday night we went to an opening in Williamsburg for Pat Shaw, a friend of Allison's. Isn't her work cool?



The best part about the opening? The after party at Good Company Bar, where everything was on the house! They had house infused liquors and a giant Jenga game out back on the patio.

A lot of bars and restaurants had secret patios, which I thought was pretty cool. A new place near Allison had giant glass garage doors that opened so that the whole bar was open air. A lot of places had sidewalk seating and it was very common to see to go windows on the street.



And there were food trucks everywhere! Coffee, ice cream, cupcakes, yogurt, tacos, you name it. Allison told us about a few places that outgrew their trucks and became actual restaurants. Very cool.



We ate at some really good places. Five Leaves was my favorite. We went there twice. The Five Leaves Burger with pineapple, pickled beet, and an over easy egg with a side of truffle fries was YUM.



So was the giant bucket of mussels that we ate.



And I loved the grilled octopus salad at Cafe Collette.



Oh and I had some amazing beverages--grapefruit margaritas, the El Jardin with cilantro infused gin, and the Saint 75 (a St. Germaine twist on a French 75).



I could have stayed in Brooklyn forever, but it seemed silly not to go into Manhattan at least for a day. I loved seeing the hip subway performers.



And the doormen in Soho were pretty easy on the eyes too.



I spotted some emerging food trends, like this rice pudding bar. Who knows, we might get one sometime in the next ten years!



We also had to visit the High Line. The landscaping was amazing.



It had all sorts of arty features, like this very practical bird feeder.



And I was a huge fan of the DIY billboard.



And there was an interesting inflatable play area at the end.



The High Line also had food vendors, but we were there late in the day and most were sold out. I was sad about missing out on the paletas, but we found the mothership, People's Pops, at the nearby Chelsea Market. Colleen and I both had the Stumptown Coffee pop.



That should give you a little taste of what New York had to offer. (You can see all of my pictures here.)

A HUGE thank you to Colleen for inviting me along and a HUMONGOUS thank you to Allison for taking care of us while we were there.

I love New York!

Taekwondo Fix

I've skipped several testing cycles and been lax in reporting the monkeys' quick progress in Taekwondo. While I was in New York, they completed another testing cycle. Warren was nice enough to document the experience, so I am sharing here.

Jiro was testing for his Blue Belt, which requires sparring. I have to tell you that seeing Jiro spar is one of the cutest things on the planet. At one practice last week, he accidentally knocked down his sparring partner. He paused and helped his partner up. The partner, however, used one hand to be assisted in getting up and the other to punch Jiro in the face. Hilarious.



Satchel, who is now testing for his high rank Blue Belt, had to break a board with his foot. He later told me that he accidentally broke it on his practice strike.



Here they are looking very handsome proud of themselves.



Originally we had planned to send them to a week long Taekwondo camp this week, but since it is a sleep away camp, they got cold feet before I pulled the trigger. I didn't tell them, but I was glad they changed their minds. I don't think I could stand to have them gone for a whole week yet!

Camp Report: Week 2 Wrap Up

The monkeys gave All Sports Camp and enthusiastic thumbs up. They made friends, they learned new games, and they went on some super fun field trips to Putt Putt, the bowling alley, and the skating rink.

Satchel never did agree to swim, but he had a friend who didn't swim either, so they kept each other company all week.



I went with Warren to drop them off on Friday, hoping to snap a few pictures, but this is all that I got. As you can see, the monkeys preferred to be among the faction of boys who used the "free time" in the mornings and at lunch to play games. We had a bit of an issue mid-week when I realized that Jiro was opting to help his friends beat their games rather than actually eating during his lunch break, but we quickly worked that out.

What we weren't able to work out though was Satchel "losing" his iPod on Friday. By his report he put it in his locker before they left to go skating and it was gone when he got back. By the time he told Warren at pick up, most of the kids had already left, and it was pretty much too late to do anything about it.

I was in New York over the weekend and didn't get to talk to the camp director until Tuesday (my emails went unanswered over the weekend). She was sweet about trying to track it down, but since an entire weekend had passed since the incident I had little hope of it actually turning up.

I'm really upset about the whole situation. I'd like to go back in time and just not let the monkeys take their iPods and/or DSes to camp in the first place. When I signed them up for sports camp, it was to get them away from their electronics after all! But, being a softie, I wanted them to do what they wanted to do. They have an easy time relating to other kids through games, and I told myself it would help them adjust to their new environment.

What's most frustrating is that Warren actually gave Satchel a lock for his locker, which wasn't required. I argued on the side of, "If they let the kids bring the stuff to camp then they should provide a safe storage space," while Warren erred on the side of "You can never be too careful." Now as to why Satchel chose not to use the lock, well, he said it was hard to unlock. (He also said, "Mommy said I didn't need it.")

I'm also mystified as to why he would just put his iPod in his locker rather than in his bag in his locker. Or in his bag in his basket in his locker. I can only assume that being at Evergreen for all of these years where everyone knows everyone has made him unaware of the dangers of leaving expensive items in plain sight.

Sadly, we're having to chalk this up to learning a lesson the hard way.

And since week 3 of camp is also at Grace-St. Luke's, the monkeys are now among the kids who (wisely) do not bring electronics to camp.

Mid-Week Camp Report, Week 2

This week the monkeys are at All Sports Camp at Grace-St.Luke's. On Monday, Warren and I set them loose in the gymnasium with about 50 other kids--mostly boys, mostly their age. The camp started off with a bang--they immediately took everyone to Putt Putt. Having just been there the day before for a birthday party, I think the monkeys felt good about jumping right in.

I was actually pretty impressed with their overall positive attitudes about doing something new with new people. (I think starting them off with a small, intimate camp was definitely the way to go.) I was the one who left with a pit in my stomach and the words, "I just left my babies with total strangers who are driving them across the city!" ringing through my head. But, obviously, I wouldn't leave the monkeys if I didn't think they were in good hands.

Jiro has the advantage again this week due to his best buddies Santi & Enrique also being in attendance. An All Sports Camp is definitely going to be an easier fit for the three of them since they like to walk on the wild side!

When I picked them up from Taekwondo Monday evening (Warren did the camp to Taekwondo shuttle), they were bursting with information. They got to play all three courses at Putt Putt, they got to buy drinks, they went swimming, they had a snack later that afternoon, other kids brought DSes and iPods to lunch and they wanted to too, etc.

Satchel, who still insists on wearing jeans every day, informed me that he did not go swimming. Part of this has to do with him being extra sensitive about the birthmark/monkey spot on his leg and part of it has to do with probably not wanting to change in front of other kids in the locker room. Jiro and Satchel were both amazed by the fact that pretty much all of the other kids changed clothes in front of each other with no modesty. I can only guess that the majority of them attend GSL and are pretty used to doing so. (I've ordered Satchel extra long swim trunks, but for whatever reason they are taking forever to arrive. If you know of some locally PLEASE let me know!)

I asked both boys if they'd made new friends. Jiro said yes and Satchel said no. When pressed, Satchel admitted that one girl did talk to him and some other girls were poking him in line at Putt Putt. "A girl came over and looked at my Rock-n-Romp shirt and told me she'd been to Rock-n-Romp before," he said. Before I could say anything, he continued (in a too-cool-for-school tone), "I told her, 'Yea, my mom started Rock-n-Romp. I've been to every one.'"

HA!

I must admit that I was somewhat pleased that he was showing pride in RnR for the first time EVER, but I thought that he could use a little coaching on how to make friends. I advised him on smiling, asking people their names, telling people his name, etc. I told him that he could ask the girl which RnR she'd been to, ask what school she goes to, etc. He looked at me like "Do you really think I am going to talk to a GIRL?"

By Tuesday evening, Satchel did report that he had made a friend. I can't remember said friend's name, but he sounds very interesting. Satchel told me how his friend once super-glued his sleeping bag to a ceiling in Japan and slept in it and how his friend got a free Play Station from Dell when he wrote a letter detailing his "extra height" disease.

After several of these stories, I finally had to tell Satchel that his new friend might be a bit of a liar, but he didn't believe me. (Said friend apparently has a scar to prove that he fell from the sleeping bag glued to the ceiling.)

Today they are going bowling. I can't wait to hear the next report!

Three Faces of Jiro

X-Men at the Drive In

Even though it was sweltering all weekend, we could seem to stay out of the heat. I'm determined to acclimate this year! The kids were begging to see X-Men on Saturday, so we decided to load up the car with snacks, beverages, and a friend and head over. When Warren added a football to the items piled up in my trunk, I thought it was cute. I was pretty sure that neither monkey had ever caught a football, but hey, no time like the present to learn!




It didn't take long for the kids to choose Ring Pops and pizza over the football.



Warren also made special blend popcorn and we had lots of cold beverages. A few squirts of bug spray and we were ready to go. The movie was actually pretty good. I'd say it was a very successful evening.

The kids started to get pretty sleepy, and I found out that the way the seats fold down in my car makes for perfect drive in viewing. A friend told us recently that he and his wife used to take two cars to the drive-in. (One for adults and one for kids.) I think we may try that next time.



By the time we got home, the monkeys were sound asleep.