Painted

Lily, our family artist, loves the idea of face painting. She can't help herself. She begs to get it done. Promises a clean room for a week. Traded in several IOUs to get a face painting book/kit.

But once it's actually on her face...start your clocks. 10 minutes post-painting, she starts to melt down. Go figure. Perhaps she just needs to add an extra dose of drama to overshadow the "drama" on her face. If it's not washed off within seconds of her realization that she loves the idea of face painting more than the reality of it, nuclear melt down. Sigh.

Puppy Lily @ the Taste of Arlington. Perhaps her speechlessness should have been an early indicator of where things were headed. Note, videos of Anna riding a little train at this same event all include a SOBBING Lily in the soundtrack.

Lily asked my mother to turn her in to a butterfly using the face painting kit. 10 minutes after this picture was taken she was furiously at work in the bathroom, working to scrub it off.

At least it looks super cute for the few minutes that it's on!

Imagination no longer required

You don't have to squint and try to imagine... You don't even have to reference the elevation and interior drawings any more. You can now look and see a house. It happened overnight. Damm it's amazing what dry wall can do!

Looking up at the tray ceiling in the dining room -- future home of my grandmother's crystal chandelier

From the stairs looking down at the kitchen/family room

From kitchen to family room...

And vice versa...

One of the rock star workers, with his "magic legs"

Our bedroom, complete with claw foot tub

Future home of said tub.

Nettie and the girls trying to pick out bedroom colors

One last peak before the walls were closed in...spray foam insulation, a bizarre look.

I have a very special friend and Mommy is her name-o!

Mother's day started early this year with the Spring Fling concert and art show at Lily's school on Friday. The concert was adorable. And hilarious. Between Lily's side of the risers being about a sentence ahead of the rest of the school...and the little boy next to her making faces during the entire show...I didn't have a chance to get sentimental. It was, after all, her LAST. PRESCHOOL. EVENT. Sigh...kindergarten here she comes!

Think someone instructed the kids to clasp their hands while filing in???

Part of the Tulip class...ready for action.

Don't ask...

Class clown? He had me laughing the entire concert.

As is always the case, we were all blown away by the art show. Last year's favorite of mine was an aboriginal-style painting. This year the jury is still out. Although I'm scratching my head over Lily's "self-portrait," a painting that, according to my mother, is technically quite good (for a 5 year old that is) but that, according to everyone who has seen it, looks more like Anna that Lily. Hmm...


The celebration of all things mom-related involved me sleeping LATE today (the best gift of all!), brunch at my mother's, a visit with my brother (who was in town for the weekend...yay!), Skyping with my dear friend, Ellen, and a delicious dinner at home with Noah and the girls. The day concluded with me flexing my mama muscles by making chicken soup. From scratch. Tomorrow night's menu = Jewish penicillin. Because all four of us need it.

Happy Mother's Day to my mom and all my mommy friends!

Vital Stats

Just about a month late...but better late than never...Anna had her two year well-visit at the pediatrician's today.

She just about knocked their socks off when they saw her Hello Kitty underpants peaking out from under her dress. She DID totally knock their socks off when she started speaking Spanish with the doctor. She weighed in at 27 pounds 12 ounces and 34 1/2 inches tall (although measuring height is the least exact science...it's a borderline joke).

And at the ripe-young age of 2, she can blow out candles like a champ!



That's my girl!

A very special birthday

35 years (and a smidge) ago, my mother ended up at Sibley Hospital where she delivered yours truly. A day later, she ended up getting a roommate...a FABULOUS roommate. My mom had a girl...moi. Mary Virginia had a girl...Lisa. And even though they met in a hospital across town, it turned out that they lived blocks from each other on Capitol Hill. The rest is, well, history.



Fast forward a few decades...


History has a way of repeating itself I guess. Lisa now has two girls. I, of course, do too. Her older one, Lauren, is a Fall baby, as is Lily. Her younger one is a Spring chickie just like Anna.

Yesterday we celebrated little Claire's first birthday. The sun was shining. The entertainment was a plenty thanks to Oh Susannah. The moon bounce was in full swing. The kids were on cloud nine. It was a slightly surreal moment, though...looking down at our four little girls. I still can't believe we've come so far and, yet, not so very far at all.


Happy birthday sweet baby Claire Proctor. Thanks for including us in your wonderful celebration!

My very own dancing princesses

Last weekend, the girls and I went to see the Twelve Dancing Princesses at a local theater; for everyone in the DC area, I highly recommend Imagination Stage (we are season ticket holders and LOVE going there!!).


Our performance happened to be followed by a pirate and princess parade, which gave all the little theater-goers a chance to walk across the stage for their moment in the spotlight.


Although her closet is FULL (read overflowing) with incredible princess costumes and Disney gear, Lily now claims that she's "over" princesses and refused to wear any of them. Right before we left for the show, though, she changed her mind and decided to create her own costume. One Tinkerbell nightgown + one tutu + one feather boa + one sequined headpiece + one pair of sparkly shoes. Hey, watch out Broadway...my daughter may have a future in costume design!


Anna, on the other hand, has yet to be bit by the princess bug and flat-out refused to wear anything (including her shoes). I was, however, still able to sneak a few photos!



Princess-clad or not, I loved the outing with my girls!

Plain old fun

I have two aunts who have said on many occassions, "a dirty child is sign of a child who has had a lot of fun."

To that I say, fun is good but I. HATE. DIRT.

I know, I know, dirt and kids go hand in hand. It was one of the hardest things for me to reconcile when I became a parent. For the most part I have come to terms with it. With just a few exceptions, that is. Playdough, which is totally banned from my house, and sand, which seems to be in every nook and cranny (and between each of the girls' toes at night) at my house.

Sigh...

A dear high school friend of mine -- yes, we've now officially been friends for more than half our lives! -- came over last weekend with her son. Justin has been closely following the house project via the blog and Facebook, so we thought it would be fun for him to see it in person. Afterwards we took the kids across the street to the park where they immediately snubbed the amazing slides, jungle gyms and swings in favor of...you guessed it....SAND.







Do you know how hard it was for me to bite my tongue and just let them roll around in the sand? Fear not... I DID bite my tongue, and they did have tons of fun!

It really IS a house!

Thanks in large part to Noah, project manager extraordinaire, progress (by contractor standards) continues at a breakneck pace.

Our roof has shingles... Our windows have trim (well, most of them do)... Our walls have plumbing (done) and wiring (in progress)... Our family room has a fireplace... Our foyer has a STAIRCASE (a huge improvement since we have been using a ladder to get from the first floor to the second for the past few weeks)... Next up is insulation and then, OMG, drywall!

Front porch foundation should be poured this week (I think/hope!)

NO. MORE. LADDER!

View from family room out to what will be the terrace

My fingers are crossed that we'll be in some time in June. Please cross your fingers too!!

Totally (but not yet terribly) two

I just don't even know what to say. Look at those eyes. The curls. That sweet, sweet little girl...

She's wonderfully loving, fiercely independent. She's feisty yet sensitive. She silly and serious...and sometimes, esp. when she pretends to fall asleep (even mid-bite), she's seriously silly.

She speaks English and Spanish. She's a dancer. She's a runner. And boy oh boy she's a screamer. She's practically potty trained -- yee ha!


She loves her thumb. And her silky "la la" blanket. She loves her "Tru-ee" (Truman). She adores -- she idolizes -- her Lily.

She's her own little person. She's wonderfully Anna. She's also my baby, for which I'm so grateful. It's hard to remember our family without her in it.

Saturday she turned two. And yesterday we celebrated. Family. Friends. Lots of friends. Together we cheered for our dear, sweet Anna.

It's still hard to believe that it's been two years... Happy birthday Anna Lake!!

We had a major Yo Gabba Gabba party, complete with DJ Lance Rock (you know, the tall white Jewish version!)

The very handsome Will (aka Willie), beau #1 from school.

Lauren sporting her Foofa headband -- you too can get your own if you go see Yo Gabba Gabba Live!

Beau #2 from school (one for each arm!), Ryan

I swear we didn't plan on having a very yellow day...

MY birthday buddy -- 35 years later!

If Peter and Anna married...holy blue eyed babies!

Will 1, Cupcake 0

She may be little, but boy can Claire-bear party!!

Brobee headbands -- thanks Aunt Sara!!

There's a party in my tummy, so yummy, so yummy...

Our sweet Caroline -- next one in line to turn two!

Three of the six GWU MBA "babies"...