She looks too pure to be pink

Cousin Annie was a Pink Lady for Halloween last year. So Harper was a Pink Lady this year. Cousin Annie was a fairy this year. So Harper will be a fairy next year. This is too easy.

Bette Midler planted a tree on our street today

Oh, and Mayor Bloomberg was there, too. After brief presentations to mark the one year anniversary of MillionTreesNYC and a rendition of Happy Birthday by some local school children, the mayor, Ms. Midler and their entourage moved to the street, grabbed a gold shovel and heaved some dirt on the zelkova tree already in the ground. It was official.

The top half of the commemorative tree

The top half of Bette Midler

Ducks at the park

Harper ate the bread we left for the ducks. Hard to believe we were outside feeding them in our t-shirts yesterday. Today we stayed inside where it was warm and dry.

A bright spot on a really crumby day

Whoever said "Milk: It does a body good" hasn't tasted Trader Joe's Organic Whole Milk French Vanilla Yogurt

Harper is having a tough time transitioning from a bottle to a sippy cup. We should have introduced it earlier, I know. We can usually convince her to drink her milk from a regular cup or glass or something. But not today. She refused to drink milk. And gulped water whenever it was offered, thankfully. By evening she was desperate for some of the good stuff. But when I opened the refrigerator she lunged for yogurt instead. She wouldn't let us feed it to her, she wanted to drink it straight from the container. That's one way to get her calcium intake for the day but it doesn't look like she's any closer to getting that calcium from a sippy cup. In a much more civilized manner.

Frisbee in the park with pancakes

On one of the last lovely days before Old Man Winter blew into town, we walked to the park for some frisbee. Harper made us stop at the swings first. We obliged.

Showing good form.


Not so good here.


Eating macaroni and cheese pancakes. Try them. You may like them. You will see.

You've really outdone yourself this time

That is what I told Marc nearly every night last winter and spring when I came home from work to a delicious home cooked meal. He always said he was just setting a precedent. I got nervous and wondered how many different ways I could dress up spaghetti noodles. And how many nights per week we could realistically handle eating said noodles. (The answer is one).

I have been cooking on my own for the last month or so. I have even offered a couple of meals to make the mouth water. Imagine my delight this week when the recipe on the back of a bag of beans (17 different kinds!) knocked Marc's socks off.

30 today

What's the point in knowing your password if I can't use it once in a while.
-li'l sis

October really is the best month of the year

Happy Rosh Hashanah. We used this mid-week break from school to speed to Vermont in the hopes of seeing the lovely fall colors without the crowds. Full success. 

I love fall
Camel's Hump State Park

The top of the camel's hump. Sometimes the wind would blow the clouds away so we could see something. From the glimpses we did get we could tell this was some place. Even the perfect place to see fall colors for miles. We tried to enjoy the alpine tundra instead.

Now We Are One

Task: to get one-year-olds to understand that they are supposed to be excited about their birthdays

Method: lots of sugar

Analysis: Birthday girls, Harper and Lucia, appeared to appreciate the cake, but were not appropriately enthusiastic about their birthdays and appeared confused by the barrage of flash photography and the large expectant crowd; subjects commiserated among themselves and shared cake

If only we could force our children to live and feel what they're supposed to. At least we can dress them ...

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