life is beautiful

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Only my boys could find two ordinary sticks on the beach and turn them into weapons.

Can't say that I'm complaining though. These newly-discovered tools of destruction allowed me a few hours of peace and quiet to reflect on the beauty and wonder that is our Pacific. To reflect uninterrupted on the fantastic life that I do lead.

There was no whining for snacks.

No need to race screaming to the bathroom gripping our privates, desperately trying to make it in time. Seagulls became enemy soldiers. My blanket was base camp. Hannah went blissfully un-teased.

There was no fighting.

We found peace through pretend violence. How much more of a paradox can we be? I love it. Life is good.

[P.S. No seagulls were harmed in the making of this imaginary world (Chase, our own PETA representative, saw to that).]

this week's lessons

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  • Josh's disease-fighting "guys" are not as tough as he thinks they are. He WILL get sick like the rest of us.
  • Chocolate-covered strawberries will not keep and should be eaten as soon as possible.
  • Chase makes a fantastic Abraham Lincoln, and will knock the socks off his first grade class.
  • Rediscovering The Phantom of the Opera on DVD makes me happy, and makes running on the treadmill go by like THAT (insert finger-snapping sound here).
  • It really does make me feel old that my baby brother is now somebody's father. (CONGRATS ANDY AND MELISSA!!)
  • I do love my new cell phone, even if it's a nasty, bright pink.
  • When running late, I will always make wrong turns and get stuck in traffic.
  • Cleaning the bathrooms will ALWAYS be a chore I detest. ALWAYS.
  • I cannot start reading blogs in the morning when I only have 20 minutes to shower and get out the door. I will be late, and I will end up looking like a mess.
  • When strangers in the grocery store start asking you about baby back ribs, DO NOT, under any circumstance, admit that you use bottled sauce. It will make them angry.
  • Favorite gadgets this week: TIVO and my camera.

Having a girl changes EVERYTHING

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I took stock of my life yesterday - and realized I am a completely different person than I was five years ago. Where did this dramatic self-introspection take place, you ask? It was none other than the very poetic, very thought-provoking T-Mobile store in La Jolla. Let me explain...

Five years ago, my closet was filled with khaki, white, black, and gray - and for those days I felt really wild - maybe red thrown in. I opted for a simple, blending-in kind of look. Maybe not the most fashionable, but I was a mother of two boys and - truth be told - didn't have much time or inclination for frills. My life was spent making sure these rough and tumble boys were safe. Heels would NEVER have worked as I chased after them, saving them from passing cars. I never got manicures and pedicures. There was nobody to tell me my earrings didn't match my shirt. Nobody shoved me out of the way so they could get to MY make-up. We never had to have matching plates and cups. Nobody cared what color our hand soap was. Nobody wanted to hang up hundreds of Valentine's Day decorations.

I was in control.

And I had a black cell phone.

Fast forward to today - my closet is filled with all the colors of the rainbow. Yes, I even wear pink now and then. ME. The person who ordered loving grandmothers not to buy anything in pink for their new granddaughter. I now have my outfits critiqued by a four-year-old who would dress like a Disney princess every day. I get weekly mani/pedi treatments. I wear shoes that were not designed solely for comfort. Things have changed. I now have this tiny, talking shadow. I have a daughter.

And this precious angel, with powers of persuasion stronger than any communist interrogator, TALKED ME INTO GETTING this phone yesterday:




I was powerless to resist. The store clerks found her hilarious and charming. They just don't know her like I do. They don't know that I have surrendered complete control of my life to this CHILD. She has a way of nagging/pleading/asking until you will give her whatever she wants - just to get THREE MINUTES OF QUIET.

While I certainly don't attribute my new self solely to this little person, I do feel glad to have some girly company in my otherwise boy-oriented life. I look forward one day to many Broadway shows, shopping trips, and spa days with this little friend. (I also feel certain that someday McKay and Chase will fully appreciate having a sister as they will not be forced along on these kinds of outings).

Yeah, I do love her to pieces. Even if I have no say in the color of my cell phone.