Birthday weekend

This past Shabbat/Saturday, my girl turned 2. T-W-O. Her age is now in years - it's PLURAL!!

Crazy.

My husband's dad and his wife flew in for the weekend and we had a fantastic time. They sponsored a lovely kiddush at our shul, which was followed by a great lunch at our house, which was followed by a too-brief nap, which was followed by playtime with my nephew and my sister and included a special post-Shabbat party so we can light a candle and sing Happy Birthday to my daughter for the second time that day (although the candle actually burned itself out so then we sang it a third time, albeit in a different language).

Sunday morning we met friends and all headed out to the zoo. We had more cupcakes.

This morning was her birthday celebration in school. I think she actually got tired of all of the hoopla because she had a bored look on her face the whole time. And I captured it all on video.

I'm so proud of my little girl.

Happy birthday to me

Today is my birthday and I can definitely say that last year at this time, I did not think I would be where I am today. I have two beautiful kids, and my girl is in preschool and loving it. My boy is growing rapidly and already has two front bottom teeth! Although I am unemployed and haven't worked at all this calendar year, I am delighted to have the opportunity right now to be home with the kids, even though it is a bit of a financial stress for us. So many things have changed, and at the same time, so many things have stayed the same. Every day is an opportunity to do something new, learn something new, and to redirect my life towards the greater good.

Modeh ani lefanecha...

Snapshot: Things found in my purse today

In addition to the usual wallet (need a new one)/cell phone/pen:

• A fruit leather strip (never leave home without a snack - for the kid)
• A baby sock (only one?)
• Mouthwash
• Tons of receipts
• A toothpick (used? not sure)
• Loose change
• A hairband
• A hair clip that mostly operates as a toy
• Photos of kiddo #1 that are over 18 months old
• Ultrasound image of kiddo #2
• A highlighter (for highlighting on the go? Not sure why that's there)
  

A milestone today

I feel like lately there have been lots of BIG THINGS going on in our family life. I had a baby, returned to work from maternity leave, got laid off a week later, sprained my ankle a week later (my first injury!), Rosh Hashana started a week later, and now today. Today marks a new chapter in our life, for today is the day that our daughter started preschool.

That's it. No more full days at home with the nanny or with mommy until holidays, school vacation, or, Gd forbid, an illness.

My daughter is attending the Jewish Montessori school every day in the morning. My nephew is also attending and they are in the same class. I *heart* the Montessori method. So, I was very excited for her to start school.

In fact, I was so excited that I was slightly un-prepared lunch-wise. I had to improvise and grab my husband's old lunch sack (black) and make up a lunch from whatever is in the house (dairy/parve only). I intend on getting her a proper lunchbox VERY soon. Although - my daughter was VERY proud of her lunchsack.

Me? I was anxious about this. My baby is going to school! From now on, time will FLY along with the school schedule. Before I know it, she'll be coming home with arts and crafts, telling me stories (in a language I can understand), participating in school plays, going to first grade, going to high school, getting married - ACK! I can't deal. As we were walking in, the head of school was outside and asked, "Are you ready for school?" I have no idea if she was talking to me or to my daughter, who was holding my hand (can she hold my hand forever?), but I shook my head no because I couldn't speak because if I would open my mouth, I would have cried since my eyes welled up with tears.

When I picked her up from school, she was happy as a (kosher) clam. I think I can do this.

The High Holidays are here

Yes I know that we have already done 2/3 of the holidays this month, but I am telling you....the Thanksgiving/Christmas season has NOTHING on this month of Jewish holidays. Next year, maybe I will hire an event coordinator for me because I am in serious meal/invitation management mode. No joke - there are scheduling templates out there to manage all of the meals, including the menu and the guests (with space for candlelighting and reminders).

For several years now, it feels as though the holidays are really all about the food. The schedule is about the food. The big buzz is who is going where. You have to take into consideration the weather and where guests will be shlepping from, not to mention where they are going after the meal (as in, do they live far from you? nearby?). You have to factor in kids (nap schedules, number of kids you can handle at one time, picky eaters). You have to have a nice balance of marrieds & singles, kids & no kids, older & younger. You need to know who gets along with whom.

Thanksgiving is one giant fest about turkey. Christmas is a lovely holiday of which many wonderful movies are made. But they don't hold a candle to the craziness I am experiencing right now.

(of course, I am saying nothing about the weekly Shabbat meal schedule.)

So at the end of the (holi)day, I am exhausted from entertaining. I actually enjoy the entertaining part, but the whole management of it tires me out. And I am bummed that I don't get to enjoy the holiday for what it is, the spirituality of it, the meaning of it. I suppose that means that I am doing something wrong, and I try to be better about it (like, selecting easy recipes or obvious winners instead of something new and complicated) with every holiday, but dude I don't have time. It's time to plan for Shabbat...

What's for dinner?

What a great question! I have officially run out of ideas. I need ideas other than pizza, hot dogs + baked beans, mac + cheese, and leftovers. Please comment! We are flexitarians so meat/chicken is not a necessity for us during the week. Help!

The down economy hits home

I have officially become a statistic in the ever-changing story of the global economy. While I anticipated that I would not be a consultant at a Big 4 forever, I didn't think the end would happen so soon. It's ok, though. I had an excellent 3 years at the firm and I worked with some terrific people and learned an enormous amount. I hope to maintain some connections as I move forward.

The good news is that I live in Houston, and the Texas Medical Center - world's largest medical center - is in my backyard (almost), so if I want to look for a healthcare job, I'm in a good place. Yesterday was a shocker. Today was a calm, back-to-reality day. Tomorrow is Wednesday, and that's always a good thing! I guess now I have a bit more time to plan for the High Holidays...