It looks like some other parents had the same idea -- the 3 boys seated across the aisle from my kids were flying solo, and each of them had a PSP!
This is my Wordless Wednesday post. For more WW posts, click here.
On the Plane
Since we didn't have preassigned seats for today's flight to Chicago, I had to sit several rows away from the kids. The airline rep managed to get them all seats in the same row, so they didn't care. It was actually great to be able to say, "Sorry kids, you'll have to sort all your squabbles by yourselves, I'm all the way up here and I can't get past the line to the bathroom"! They were good as gold, keeping themselves busy with their activity books and the PSP:
It looks like some other parents had the same idea -- the 3 boys seated across the aisle from my kids were flying solo, and each of them had a PSP!
This is my Wordless Wednesday post. For more WW posts, click here.
It looks like some other parents had the same idea -- the 3 boys seated across the aisle from my kids were flying solo, and each of them had a PSP!
This is my Wordless Wednesday post. For more WW posts, click here.
When Just a Spoonful of Sugar Isn't Enough
Remember my post a couple of days ago about Jammy's first day of camp? To recap, he woke up with pains in his legs and didn't want to start summer camp. I diagnosed nervousness, gave him some mints medicine and let the excitement of camp work its magic on him. I was feeling all wise and smug and Mary Poppins and all, happy that I got him to forget his pain.
Boy, when you're wrong, you're wrong. He woke up the next day with even more pain, unable to walk normally, hobbling around like a ninety-year old cowboy. I kept asking him to point and flex his toes, convinced that he probably just had some kind of bad strain. But I took him to the doctor anyway, because what 6-year old wakes up one day unable to walk?
Turns out, a 6-year old with benign acute childhood myositis. The symptoms fit like JLo's Versace outfit -- he had just gotten over a viral illness, had stiffness in his calves and pain while walking or flexing his feet. Which is exactly what I was forcing him to do in order to "walk away the pain". Oops. Hello, mommy guilt, you are here to stay, aren't you?
So much for placebo pills. Next time I'll leave the faith healing to the shamans.
Boy, when you're wrong, you're wrong. He woke up the next day with even more pain, unable to walk normally, hobbling around like a ninety-year old cowboy. I kept asking him to point and flex his toes, convinced that he probably just had some kind of bad strain. But I took him to the doctor anyway, because what 6-year old wakes up one day unable to walk?
Turns out, a 6-year old with benign acute childhood myositis. The symptoms fit like JLo's Versace outfit -- he had just gotten over a viral illness, had stiffness in his calves and pain while walking or flexing his feet. Which is exactly what I was forcing him to do in order to "walk away the pain". Oops. Hello, mommy guilt, you are here to stay, aren't you?
So much for placebo pills. Next time I'll leave the faith healing to the shamans.
PSP Summer Family Fun
I'm thrilled to have been selected by Sony Corporate Entertainment America to participate in their PSP Summer Family Fun blogger program! They have generously provided my family with a PSP-3000 and some games to load on it so we can try the PSP out and make it a part of our summer. Our Summer Family Fun package arrived a few weeks ago, and it was like Christmas all over again. Check out the smiles on their faces:
Over the next six weeks I'll be sharing thoughts, photos and videos about how the PSP is helping to fill all the "Are-We-There-Yet" time that's sure to crop up on our summer travels to Chicago, England and France. Since they're on summer vacation, I'm letting them have more videogame time, but I also want to share my thoughts on how to balance onscreen time (not just time on video games but also tv and computer). Once we get the hang of this system I'll post a review of the PSP on my review blog, Bonggamom Finds. But for now, here's a great giveaway to get the program started -- I'm giving away a $50 PlayStation Network gift card over on Bonggamom Finds!
Over the next six weeks I'll be sharing thoughts, photos and videos about how the PSP is helping to fill all the "Are-We-There-Yet" time that's sure to crop up on our summer travels to Chicago, England and France. Since they're on summer vacation, I'm letting them have more videogame time, but I also want to share my thoughts on how to balance onscreen time (not just time on video games but also tv and computer). Once we get the hang of this system I'll post a review of the PSP on my review blog, Bonggamom Finds. But for now, here's a great giveaway to get the program started -- I'm giving away a $50 PlayStation Network gift card over on Bonggamom Finds!
First Day of Camp
Jammy hasn't been feeling well all weekend, so he was overjoyed last night when I pronounced him fever-free for 24 hours and gave the green light to attend summer camp. So I was slightly surprised to find him subdued and tearful this morning. I took his temperature and all was normal, but he said his leg hurt. Alfie and I assured him that he had probably cramped up in the night from sleeping in one of his weird positions and the pain would go away.
He hobbled downstairs for breakfast and insisted that he was still in pain. He was somber and his voice quavered, and after a number of comments I began to suspect what was really ailing him:
Maybe I should skip this first day of camp and rest my leg.
What if I can't run around during recess and lunch?
What if I don't have any fun?
Can you come to camp with me?
So I did what any parent would do. I medicated him.
Here you go, Jammy. Here's some medicine that will take away the pain. It might take 30 minutes or so for the pain to go away but by the time we sign in to camp your leg will be fine.
When he said goodbye to Alfie, Alfie asked how his leg was, and Jammy replied that it still hurt, but mama had given him medicine. Alfie looked at me with raised eyebrows and asked, What medicine? I told him (with Jammy listening),
I gave him a placebo pill, you know the one I keep in the cabinet for stuff like this? It's got a nice minty taste so Jammy didn't have any problem chewing it.
On the drive to camp, Jammy said his leg was feeling better, but he was still a bit worried. As we arrived and lined up to register, we saw a grownup wearing a chicken hat. I could see the gears in his mind cranking, thinking, reevaluating. When he saw his and his brother's nametags on the table, he perked up, and when he saw his friend's nametag on the same table he began to grin.
By the time the camp counselor gathered them together for an aerial tour of the campgrounds, Jammy had forgotten all about the pain in his leg.
Looks like those placebo pills did work after all.
He hobbled downstairs for breakfast and insisted that he was still in pain. He was somber and his voice quavered, and after a number of comments I began to suspect what was really ailing him:
Maybe I should skip this first day of camp and rest my leg.
What if I can't run around during recess and lunch?
What if I don't have any fun?
Can you come to camp with me?
So I did what any parent would do. I medicated him.
Here you go, Jammy. Here's some medicine that will take away the pain. It might take 30 minutes or so for the pain to go away but by the time we sign in to camp your leg will be fine.
When he said goodbye to Alfie, Alfie asked how his leg was, and Jammy replied that it still hurt, but mama had given him medicine. Alfie looked at me with raised eyebrows and asked, What medicine? I told him (with Jammy listening),
I gave him a placebo pill, you know the one I keep in the cabinet for stuff like this? It's got a nice minty taste so Jammy didn't have any problem chewing it.
On the drive to camp, Jammy said his leg was feeling better, but he was still a bit worried. As we arrived and lined up to register, we saw a grownup wearing a chicken hat. I could see the gears in his mind cranking, thinking, reevaluating. When he saw his and his brother's nametags on the table, he perked up, and when he saw his friend's nametag on the same table he began to grin.
By the time the camp counselor gathered them together for an aerial tour of the campgrounds, Jammy had forgotten all about the pain in his leg.
Looks like those placebo pills did work after all.
Aloha Friday - Summer Edition
Yahoo, school's out! It's the first day of summer and I'm so ready to chill. I'm looking forward to long, lazy days when I can let the kids out to play while I plant myself in front of the computer and blog to my heart's content.... but I know that's not going to happen. I have a feeling that between visits to the pool and the library and day trips to the beach or the museum, not to mention summer travel and summer camps, my blog is going to be sadly neglected. So I'm taking charge and making sure I don't let it happen! And just like I join exercise classes to help keep my fitness goals on track, I'm going to make an effort to join some blog memes to keep my blogging goals on track.
And since it's summertime, what better meme to join than Aloha Friday? Aloha Friday is a fun, simple meme from Kailani at An Island Life. Every Friday she asks a simple question on her blog, invites participants to answer her question in the comments section, then invites participants to ask a question of their own on their own blogs. Every day feels like a summer Friday over in Hawaii, so I'm making Aloha Friday one of my summer blogging goals -- to join the meme every Friday until school starts!
My first Aloha Friday question: What are your big summer plans?
This summer is going to be crazy-busy. I've signed the kids up for just a couple of weeks of summer camp, but I bought a family membership to the Oakland Zoo and to Gilroy Gardens so we can visit both places as often as we want. And we have a trip to the UK in the works! While we're there, Alfie and I will sneak away for some couple time in Amsterdam, we're driving down to Paris with the kids, and we're all touring the Cadbury Chocolate Factory. And let's not forget the BlogHer conference in New York! Hmmm, I wonder if we have time to squeeze in a camping trip before school starts....
What about you? Any vacations on the horizon? Any road trips? Will your kids be in the pool or summer school? What are your plans?
The last time I had a bubble bath
When I found out that this week's theme for the Photo Hunt was bubbles, I knew exactly which photo I wanted to use. What shocked me is that I found it in my 2006 folder. Has it really been FOUR YEARS since I last had a bubble bath? And I had to go all the way to Calistoga for that one!When Alfie and I were dating, we'd have bubble baths all the time. We had large jars of bath salts in several different fragrances and candles all ready to burn around the tub. But it seems to be one of those things that slid down the drain once the kids were born. The kids have had numerous bubble baths, but not me. No wonder I'm still looking for Bongga Mom. She's hidden underneath a layer of dry, scaly dishpan-skin, waiting to be pampered and soaked and slathered with beauty products. Now that the kids are older I need to start taking care of myself more!
This photo was inspired by the Photo Hunt theme of the week. Feel free to leave links to your own Photo Hunt entries below. And for more bubbly things, click here.
American Girl Place, LA
When my sister and I went to LA for the American Idol finals at the end of May, we had a free day to see the sights and hang out. I told my sister there were only two things I was really interested in hitting given the limited time we had: Grauman's Chinese Theater and American Girl Place. Not exactly the stuff that fills up travelogues, but I've already been to the AG Places in Chicago and New York, so I figured I'd round it out and get an American Girl Place hat trick (if you don't know what that means, brush up on it because you might be hearing that phrase a lot during the upcoming World Cup 2010).
I think the American Girl Place in LA might be my favorite of the Big Three. The inside of the store is similar to the other two, but the store is located in The Grove, an outdoor shopping center that screams of chic, relaxed SoCal lifestyle. Walking around is an absolute pleasure, and when you see the familiar red awning, you know you've arrived at little girl heaven.
Now I have to figure out an excuse to visit Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Denver, and Minneapolis. And start a petition to get an American Girl store out here in San Francisco (Hello, American Girl! Why are you not in the Bay Area yet? Do you know how many dot-com millionaires there are in Silicon Valley just dying to spend their money on their darling daughters??). Hopefully I'll get to cross some of those off my list before The Pea outgrows American Girl. Oh, well, there's always the grandkids.
For more photos of the American Girl Place in LA, check out my American Girl photoset on Flickr.
Wordless Wednesday: Click herefor more Wordless Wednesday entries. Feel free to leave the link to your WW post below, I promise I'll drop by!
I think the American Girl Place in LA might be my favorite of the Big Three. The inside of the store is similar to the other two, but the store is located in The Grove, an outdoor shopping center that screams of chic, relaxed SoCal lifestyle. Walking around is an absolute pleasure, and when you see the familiar red awning, you know you've arrived at little girl heaven.
Now I have to figure out an excuse to visit Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Denver, and Minneapolis. And start a petition to get an American Girl store out here in San Francisco (Hello, American Girl! Why are you not in the Bay Area yet? Do you know how many dot-com millionaires there are in Silicon Valley just dying to spend their money on their darling daughters??). Hopefully I'll get to cross some of those off my list before The Pea outgrows American Girl. Oh, well, there's always the grandkids.
For more photos of the American Girl Place in LA, check out my American Girl photoset on Flickr.
Wordless Wednesday: Click herefor more Wordless Wednesday entries. Feel free to leave the link to your WW post below, I promise I'll drop by!
Sparkle and shimmer versus glassy and bright
1) Always keep an open mind.
2) I'm no interior decorator.
This photo was inspired by the Photo Hunt theme of the week. Feel free to leave links to your own Photo Hunt entries below. And for more sparkly things, click here.
Learning a few lessons from my son
Yesterday I did a mean thing: I spilled one of 3Po's secrets. I told The Pea about something funny that happened to 3Po a couple of months back. In my defense, I didn't think it was embarrassing at all, just cute, and I wanted to share it with her (in fact, it's so cute I'm dying to blog about it, but I won't because I'm in enough trouble already from telling The Pea). And even though he protested and asked me not to tell her, he was laughing as he said it, so I was dismayed to see him dissolve into tears after I told her.
In hindsight, it was a stupid thing to do and I shouldn't have done it. I apologized as best as I could and both The Pea and I swore not to tell anyone, not even Alfie. Not surprisingly, he said he didn't trust either of us -- so I came up with a guarantee.
In hindsight, it was a stupid thing to do and I shouldn't have done it. I apologized as best as I could and both The Pea and I swore not to tell anyone, not even Alfie. Not surprisingly, he said he didn't trust either of us -- so I came up with a guarantee.
Have a heart, have a sole -- It's National Barefoot Week
Today I published a post on the Silicon Valley Moms Blog griping about how I can never find cute and comfy shoes to wear. It's meant to be humorous, but the truth is that people all over the world don't even have enough money to buy one pair of shoes, let alone worry about whether they look chic or not. In fact, almost 1.5 billion people in this world (and over 300 million of them are children) don't have shoes!
This week Nashville-based charity Soles4Souls is celebrating National Barefoot Week to raise awareness of how easily we can help put shoes on the feet of people in need. From June 1-7 all kinds of events will be held, including shoe drives, fun runs & walkathons, retail trade-in events, concerts, festivals and more.
FYI, if you don't know what Soles4Souls is, they distribute donations of gently used shoes to people in need. Since 2005, they've given away over 7 million pairs of new and gently worn shoes (currently donating one pair every 9 seconds.) The shoes have been distributed to people in over 125 countries, including Kenya, Thailand, Nepal and the United States.
I think initiatives like this are fabulous. Everyone has unused pairs of shoes rotting in their closet, and parents of growing kids always have a pair that needs to be put aside since their kid has outgrown them before they've had a chance to wear out. Soles4Souls gives you an earth-friendly, humanitarian way to dispose of your shoes -- donate them to a person who needs them. You can visit their website for more information and drop-off locations. I found one less than 3 miles from home, so this week I'll be getting rid of some soles and gaining some soul!
How else can you get involved?
* Clean out your own closets and donate your gently used shoes (visit Soles4Souls for drop-off locations).
* Blog about National Barefoot Week to raise awareness of the initiative among your readers.
* Go barefoot around the blogosphere -- post your barefoot photo on your blog, Facebook or Twitter profile! Here's mine:
Have fun going barefoot this week!
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