I'm an emotional wreck

Just when I thought I had lost hope; that all hope was lost.

I woke to this news this morning: That Hillary Clinton will be visiting my town tomorrow, a Saturday of all days. Any other day it wouldn't work. But, a Saturday ... oh, my.

And, then this afternoon, I learned this: That Hillary Clinton will be visiting in my town in the very spot of the sidewalk where I walk my girls weekly. She will be just blocks from my home.

I am a teary mess of renewed hope and fear of rising hopes; of dreams and inspiring ambitions, of potential and real, significant change. This afternoon, I will walk Jadyn and Liana into the local campaign office and find something to wear for their first attempt at learning about the power of women.

But, what will we wear?? If only I had ordered T-shirts. Will we get close enough for her to see our future women leaders?

(And, to let you know how BIG this moment is for us here in PA my house has been visited and called on twice by Hillary volunteers in the last two hours).

Maybe there's a chance I'll get to do that scrapbook after all. Maybe, just maybe, someone who needs to know it, will learn that she is nice. (If that's what it will take to get a woman president -- for her to be nice than so be it.)

If not, at least I have these blog posts. And, drippy mascara on my face. And, two daughters who hopefully will get a better, more fair chance at the podium.

I will blog about the event tomorrow evening.

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Shake, shake, shake ...

Our letting go of the rules fun this week was going to be about traveling to Daddy's work, hitting a kid museum ... but then this morning we were struck by the Fun Bug that I wanted to share. I didn't get any pictures ...

But, for Easter Mom Mom gave Dan a box of Easter eggs filled with candy. We hid them from the Monsters because they aren't child-friendly and we don't give them candy anyway.

I just remembered that they were hidden this morning. I got them down to inspect them and realized as I pulled them out of the box that they would be more than just Easter eggs. They are clear plastic and filled with bright colored hard candies like carrots.

Perfect! Music is the one element of fun that I try to mix into our day, whether it be making our own, listening or dancing. It always brings a certain vibrancy to our day and so I know it's an essential ingredient to our better days.

They were already made shaker eggs, which among our clan is a big, big, big deal.

So, in a circle before the breakfast dishes were cleared we had this fun:

Shake them
Shake them up high
Tap them on the floor
Shake them behind your back
Shake them by your ears
Shake them on your belly
Shake them between your legs
Shake them down low
Shake them to the side
Shake them to the other side
Tap them together
Shake them fast
Shake them slow
(and the last two were so popular that we did that a few times)

We ended with Roll Them, which became a new game in itself.

To make your own egg shakers go here. I suspect that next year, I'll find some new items to store inside to mix it up a bit. But, for now, I think we've found a new fun game to start our mornings with ... add a little music, and let the FUN begin.


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Fun, fun, fun

Do you have any new Fun for Moms ideas to share this week? Time has slipped before my eyes and I have evidence of fun, but it will have to be posted later today.

In the meantime, how about linking to a post you've written in the past that involved having some Fun with your Kids ... doesn't have to include pictures or it could. Doesn't have to be long, but it may be.

What's your idea of having fun with your kids? Leave a comment or a link with Mr. Linky.



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No Hablo Toddlerese

This post started from a comment on Karen's blog until I realized that I, perhaps, had a little more to say than just a passing comment. (Eh-hem)

A book, perhaps. Or, a series of books.

As you know, I've been studying the younger set for a little bit now and, well, I've come to realize that I'm absolutely clueless.

I just don't get it. I'm starting to think jumping off the rooftop in front of a tractor trailer would be more pleasing at times.

Like when one of my girls stuffs her mouth with all of her snack, and her sister's so that her mouth is so filled a milky slobber dribbles from her lips and onto the clean floors.

Or, when they pull out the claws over a booster seat. No, silly, not the OTHER booster seat. I'm talking about THAT one, the one that isn't the OTHER one that looks EXACTLY like it. The one that is worth SCRATCHING an eye out over because it's NOT the other one.

Or, why they will chatter all morning about going outside or going in the car, but the second we're supposed to actually GO OUTSIDE OR GO IN THE CAR, they are suddenly no where to be found or found sheepishly hiding atop the stairs, waiting. And, by the way, no amount of pleases, come heres or threats work. My butt has to go. upstairs. and. get. her. Rinse and Repeat on some mornings. Some. Very. Bad. Mornings.

And, then there's this: It's perfectly fine to get soaking wet after, oh, a half hour playing in dirty water outside, but if a single drop of water gets on her shirt sleeve while washing her hands in the sink all bets are off, and so is that shirt. Or else. There is no reasoning, either. Just. Remove. Shirt. Rinse. Repeat. Five, maybe Six. Times. A. Day.

But, toddlerese isn't the only thing I can't translate. I don't really understand husbandese either these days. You know, when he tells me that I'm worrying "too much" and I respond with your not worrying enough. But, I'm considered to be "attacking" and this is why he's harmed for life you see. (I won this one, by the way.)

No, I'm not really understanding people right now. They are all too wishy-washy for me. No one can make a decision, yet no one likes any of my decisions.

So, yeah, life is feeling a lot like being in another country, and I do not speak the native language.

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Review: Your Baby Can Read

Reading is the most enjoyable part of our day. Well, mostly. Not when my twin daughters fight over who gets to turn the page or what book we'll read. But when they really get into a story and laugh and point at the pictures, it's perfect and just how I envisioned my days as a Mama.

So, when I was asked by the Parent Bloggers Network to review Your Baby Can Read Starter DVD and Volume 1 DVD I was pretty excited at the concept.

To read the rest of this review please go here.

An Urban Love-Hate Affair

My feet hit the pavement in rough taps as I remembered just how much energy it takes to move one leg in front of the other for more than a few steps at a time.

This is what it feels like to move again, to live again.

Winter had turned me into a caged monster. A lethargic, cranky beast who nearly forgot what it was like to feel the sunshine warming her cheeks or to feel a breeze shift her hair into her face. It feels as if I curled up under a dark blanket and slept for three months. Everything is the same again, and I find it comforting.

Each step brought me closer to more of the same. It all felt new. I felt alive, awake. I soaked it all in as smells of Puerto Rican spices wafted through the air mixing with the smoke-filled exhaust from passing buses. We stopped to smell pansies next to the newly installed trash cans. We stepped carefully around shattered glass to hurry to watch the day care children giggle and play in the courtyard.

This is what it means to be in love. To remember to love what you hate. To forget the hate for all that you love. This is what it means to feel a part of something.

Walking is a form of meditation for me. My mind wanders with each stride, and these days it truly is the only time my mind can just settle into one complete thought instead of a million fragments. Sentences, new phrases, new ideas zoom into my mind like the Subway to its next stop: fast, furious and fierce. It's why I carry a notebook; to catch the pristine moments and distinguish them from the junk.

This is what it feels like to dream, again. To remember how good dreams can feel as they wash over your body and as you take it all in and smile.

Our walks are always more like tours through a museum -- one filled with life and color and familiar objects. Fire trucks! Look at that truck. The red buses. The blue bird. The dogs. The busy dogs. Looky, there ... I see a baby. Sleeping baby.

In the farmer's market we oooh and aahh and wow over the red California strawberries and the especially green green beans. We weave through stand after stand filled with food -- glorious, homegrown food.

This is what community is about, this is where I left it last fall when the weather turned cold. I left it here, at the farmer's stand, where the colors are vivid and the cycles of seasons stare me in the face.

I was amazed that after not riding in the stroller that my daughters were eager to sit and let the sights wash over them for 10 blocks with nary a squabble or slap. In fact, they hugged on the ride back. They were just as awake as I to the renewal feeling that spring brings along with it. They felt it.

There is so much to learn from these walks, and despite my mixed feelings on leaving this city, I am so in love with it when the weather is perfect and my fellow community members come out of their hiding places and convene on the sidewalks. Their toothless grins, and stern, hopeless-filled eyes move me to appreciate my path all the more. They humble me and inspire me and fill me with great inspiration. To write again. To live again. To love again.

This is what compassion feels like. This is eternal bliss. This feeling of walking on air and passing the world by with smiles and busy lives. This is my neighborhood. These people are my reality. They are my whole world.

I am in awe. Always. Forever. In awe.

An interview to share

If you haven't gotten enough of me by now ... you can learn a few more things by going to Bella's place to read her interview with me. Thanks, Bella, for choosing me to interview along with so many FANTASTIC women. I'm so honored.

In other news: My first article in a consumer magazine is on stands now in Pregnancy. Check it out! I can't find it online so you'll have to go to the store and read it in person. Drink a coffee while you're there. My thanks to all of you who participated in the interviews. You have been quoted.

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