{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Inspired by my favorite blog: SouleMama

Right Now

At the breakfast table Isabella declared, "Oliver, you look like a Samaritan!"

Completely random.

Maybe Samaritans always had really bad mama haircuts???

Love

Nine years ago (yesterday) I married my best friend, my eternal companion, my adventurer, my techie, my walking encyclopedia, my comic, my perfect opposite, my true love.

Brian, I am so happy we will be together forever!  Life, with you, is so fun, amazing, and exciting.

P.S. I love you more!

2002: married for time and eternity in Oakland Temple

2002: taken with our first digital camera

2003: Paris

2003: first day on a weeklong bike trip

2011: raising three kids in NYC

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Inspired by my favorite blog: SouleMama

Plie´

My good friend and talented dance teacher, Maria, asked me to take some photos of her ballet class today.  It was so much fun!  Thanks for asking me, Maria!

Right Now

Getting ready for the free kids flicks at Clearview Cinemas in
Chelsea. Today's movie: MegaMind. Isabella is so excited for the "BIG
movie".

A Magical Childhood

If you hadn't noticed this little blog here has become our official family journal.  It was an intentional decision in January when I wanted to document more of our lives; mostly because I was forgetting so much of it (in my constant state of exhaustion).  I love photographing the kids and then organizing them a bit here to tell our life story.  (Before I was attempting to keep 3-5 different journals!)  But I haven't written as much as I would like about my journey into motherhood.  I often have several ideas floating around my unfocused mind.  And I'd like to focus on some of those that linger for a long time.  (Like what to do about chores.)

One idea is: what should childhood be like and how can I create that for my sweet little ones.  This has been at the forefront of my mind lately.  Especially with Isabella beginning school (in a month!) and going into that whole new world, full of rules and conformity.  While she is in my care, what do I want home life to be like and how can I create that?  It's been a struggle to figure it out and I'm still in the process (which I realize may never end) of understanding what childhood should be like.

A little while ago I heard someone describe their childhood as magical.  It was a complete "A-HA!" moment.  And since then I can't get it out of my head.  I want my children to have a magical childhood!

I feel like I've defined what childhood should be like, but now I've hit the hard part:

How?  

How do I create a magical childhood?  

I've been revisiting the memories of my own childhood and what elements made it magical.  Climbing trees, walking through deep flowing grass, playing cops and robbers while pretending locust leaves were money.  The parts of my childhood that were magical were spent outside, exploring, with very little adult supervision.  I'm not sure if these elements are necessary for a magical childhood, but it's what I know.

Unsupervised, free play in nature is not what is available to my kids' urban lifestyle right now.  But I believe they can still have a magical childhood in the city.  So, yes, I'm researching, thinking, and discovering the HOW!

My dear friends: 

Do you have any ideas how to encourage a magical childhood in the city?  

I consider any reader of my blog a good friend and I would really love to hear your thoughts (even if you don't have kids or live in the city)!  

Right Now

We headed down to the river for the free soccer class we've been
attending for the last month. Only to find out that last week was the last
session (which we missed). But we are loving the free, unstructured
play and the fantastic breeze.
This unplanned "chill" time is exactly what we needed.

Summer Streets 2011: week one

Summer Streets is right up there with blueberry picking and Florida in February.  I love it!  This is it's 4th year.  It occurs the first 3 Saturdays every August (it's only from 7am-1pm).  I think we've gone to it every single time.  And I still love it!

Last Saturday we didn't have our bikes (they are in storage in Connecticut) but we still did a part of it (E 23rd St to Spring St).  Brian rode his Dahon and I jogged pushing the kids in the stroller.  Isabella scooted some of the time and sat on the back of Brian's bike the rest of the time.  We had a great time.  But I am dreaming of biking the whole thing soon!

New Yorkers: even if you don't have bikes you should still got to at least part of it.  It is so fun to see the city from a whole new perspective (bring the camera). Whole Foods sponsors a block party with tons of free, yummy, organic food at E 24th & Park Ave.  (Seriously, you can walk away with a weeks worth of Stonyfield yogurt, Organic Valley cheese, Odwalla juices, etc.)  Other fun places to go: through the tunnel around Grand Central and on Spring St & Lafayette (there is a lot of fun stuff as well).  Here's the route map.

Every year I dream about how I could saddle up all the kids and take them on frequent bike rides.  We came across the Adams Trail-a-bike Tandem (super cool) last Saturday.  And I still love the Zigo that I first saw last year!

Cow milking by Organic Valley.  I got to tell my kids about how when I was little my daddy taught me how to milk a real cow.  (Thanks Dad!)

Free Ciao Bella gelato. 

Say, "gelato"!

Why I don't fold laundry anymore...

This morning I was reminded why I always fold laundry late at night, while the children are sleeping.

Unique New York

I'm grateful for good subway & street performers.  When they make good music it makes this city even more fun to live in!

Simon's New Skillz

Simon might be my busiest baby yet.

Friday Fun

On Friday, after all naps were done and accounted for we walked down to midtown to meet Brian.

Brian off work early + perfect weather = the most beautiful evening in the city

Stopping by Columbus Circle for a jump in the fountains. 

Isabella, "I like Times Square."
Me, "It's a fun place, isn't it?"
Isabella, "Mom, I knew this was Times Square!"
(In the last week she's developed a strong sense of places/areas in the city.  I'm amazed.)

Feeding pigeons in TriBeCa.

Enjoying the sunset and green grass in Battery Park.  The kids ran and ran and then rolled and rolled all over this lawn.

Not pictured: Dinner at Max Restaurant.  We found them via yelp, and I'm so glad we did.  The gnocchi alla sorrentina (homemade gnocchi w/tomato sauce, mozzarella & basil) was so soft and tender.  The spaghetti alla chitarra (lamb ragu over homemade spaghetti) was fantastic.  And the insalata di finocchio fresco (fennel salad w/parmigiano & balsamic vinegar) was so fresh, simple and delicious.  (We made the same fennel salad Sunday night.  It will make a regular appearance on our table now.)

Also not pictured: We walked almost all the way home along the Hudson River.  It was such a beautiful, perfect night.  The big kids slept in the stroller, Simon slept in the ergo.  We all slept extremely well once we were home and tucked in bed around 11pm.

Hired Help

Over the past year I've been going through an internal debate of how to handle "chores" with Isabella.  She use to always put the clean silverware away but at one point she stopped and I started nagging and tossing out threats and it was no good.  That's not how I want to run a home.

Then we had a standard morning routine where there was a list on the wall with a handful of things she needed to get done every morning (like get dressed, make bed, etc.).  It worked well for a week.  But one morning Isabella said, "I don't like doing the list.  I like it when you just ask me."  (Part of the issue was she felt like those things had to be done in the exact order as the list.  When things would mess up the order--like Oliver still sleeping in the room--she would get frustrated.)  Once that routine stopped working she no longer had chores.  And I was thinking I was failing as a mom.  Not teaching her the value of hard work and contributing to our home.

I asked some friends (moms I love and adore) for their advice.  One friend told me Isabella helps around the house and with the boys all the time! She encouraged me to just look at all Isabella does in our home.  It's amazing what those few words from my friend did.  I began seeing so much more.  Isabella loves helping all the time!  It was such a relief.  Isabella is contributing to our home and working hard; I just had to change my perspective.

But in the last few weeks Isabella has been consistently begging asking for some of her own money.  I didn't feel like just handing over some dough.  (That's definitely not a habit I want to get into.)  On the other hand, I was conflicted about getting into the habit of paying her to help around the house, since I feel she should contribute to our home, because a home is all of us working together, not because she will be paid.

I reminded myself, "Kiasa, it's not an all-or-nothing situation!"  (Yes, I have to yell these things to myself sometimes.)  If I pay her for a few things I don't have to pay her every single time she does something!  When I got that into my tired brain I relaxed.  Then I drew a super quick, simple list for her, showing her how many quarters she would receive by doing each one, gave her a sponge and a squirt bottle with water.  And she got busy.

I love that she added/drew the fridge.

She worked so hard for over an hour.  I was so impressed.  And she loved it!

The most surprising part was the huge sense of relief I felt.  It felt so good to have some extra help.  As she worked, I supervised and taught her.  And then I worked hard too.  Her excitement and dedication was contagious and motivating for me.  The house was so clean after about an hour.  It was the best $2.25 I ever spent.

The list is now in the garbage.  It worked and was fun for the time.  We might use something similar in the future, but I'm not planning on making a habit out of it.

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Inspired by my favorite blog: SouleMama