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| Mickey & Minnie with the girls |
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Wednesday, May 31, 2006
Memorial Weekend in Elkton, MD Recap
Me, Phil, Sophia, Olivia drove to Kenn's house to switch cars. Since Kenn had a much bigger (and fancier) car than
ours, it was a no-brainer that we should travel together. Kenn makes a great companion on the trip- he's got tons of
gossip to dish out. Plus listening to Fred's '80s 2044 countdown on XM radio made the ride hella fun.
We arrived at the house first. The Victorian house had three bedrooms plus a full bathroom upstairs. Downstairs
had one bedroom and a bathroom, kitchen and dining room. The backporch was wrapped around, sealed off with a screen
to prevent bugs from coming in. From there you can see the beautiful sunsets. It's quite picturesque.
Docked boats bobbed up and down in the Chesapeake Bay. You could fish and crab there too (though crabbing happens later
in the season when they make their way up north).
Also included in the house was an inground pool. Too bad it wasn't heated. We could have turned into raisins.
We brought an inflated pool so Sophia can splash to her heart's content (we ended up boiling hot water to mix with the
pool's water).
The first night us five went out to eat dinner at Baker's restaurant because we were starving and missed lunch. What I thought was weird about this restaurant- they didn't have much veggie
selections. I ordered a chicken caesar's salad (I always have to try one everywhere I travel to), Phil ordered the veal
cutlet, Kenn ordered hot wings and crab dip and Sophia had the chicken fingers with fries from the kid's menu.
Food wasn't too bad.
The rest of the weekend we cooked in. We had the usual Memorial weekend menu- burgers, hot dogs, chicken, coldcuts and side
salad. We bought crabs from a place called "Crab Shack." According to Phil, it was literally a hole in the wall
that sold dirt cheap crabs that were seasoned and steamed for you. I don't eat crabs, so I can't tell you if it was
any good, but everyone seemed to enjoy eating it. The best was when Judy took out the cutting board and sliced up an
array of cheeses, olives, garlic olive oil and baguettes she bought from Gourmet Garage. We opened up some bottles of reds and whites and gathered around the kitchen table and chitchatted (after the
girls were tucked in). It was probably my highlight of the weekend.
We visited the Elk Neck State Park. The trail to the lighthouse was a short and easy two mile walk. I didn't think about packing my Baby Bjorn,
so everyone took turns holding Olivia (I couldn't hold her because I was wearing flip flops and was afraid I would trip and
drop her). Luckily the lighthouse sold cold drinks to cool us off. The view at the lighthouse was spectacular.
Too bad my knees started to buckle at the foot of the cliff. I'm not a fan of heights (especially on Santorini island
in Greece).
On our way to Kenn's house, Sophia threw up in the car. At first I thought it was the milk she drank that morning.
She kept telling us her tummy was hurting. I dimissed it though I should have listened. The next day, she was
running a fever. I forgot to pack kid's Tylenol, so Phil ran out to buy it. She was a bit listeless
and I was beginning to get worried. I told Phil we were going to leave a day early if she doesn't get better. I
called my mother and she figured Sophia ate something wrong that got stuck in her tummy. She told my friend Julie to
give Sophia a massage. Sophia fell asleep while Julie massaged her gently and voila, the minute she woke up, she was
back to her own self. Amazing, huh? Thanks Julie ee-mo! But after that day, Sophia had a mind of her own.
We were expecting to hit traffic on our way back home. But we didn't expect to be sitting in a complete standstill
on the New Jersey Turnpike for over an hour and a half between exits 2 and 3 (probably the longest stretch on the NJT).
Judy, Rolly, Julie and Andy lucked out- they mistakenly took I95 to Philly and beat us home (we left at 3:30p and got home
at 9:30p). At least Sophia and Olivia were well-behaved. And Kenn and I had fun listening to XM's 80s countdown.
It reminded us of the days when we would listen to WDRE/WLIR (defunct radio station broadcasted from Long Island). I
even guessed The Smiths "How Soon Is Now" would be in the top 10 list (it ended up on number 2)!
Some interesting things:
-Confederate flags flew almost everywhere we went. I was told it was more of a decoration rather than a racist
thing. Didn't matter, I still felt a bit uneasy seeing it.
-Along with the flag, we came across many Southerners who were quite friendly, saying, "How ya'll doing?" I immediately
thought of Heather L.
-We went food shopping at Red Lion on Friday night around 7:30p. There was no more than fifteen people (including
cashiers and stock boys) there. It was pretty damn eerie.
-We saw a bunch of Amish kids at the state park's trail. It kind of threw me off because I thought they weren't allowed to use any form of electricity.
But I remembered they go through a period of "finding themselves." Also, they had a Chinese teenager in the car.
I guess he was an exchange student.
-What used to take us 15 minutes to get of the house with one kid, it now takes us over an hour and a half with two kids
(trying to pack and remember what to bring). A frickin' nightmare. And shit that we had to schlep along.
Double nightmare.
-I finished watching Winter Sonata. It was alright. Too much frickin' chicks crying and even grown men too. Drama galore. It didn't
help that my father gave away the plots...he's such a spoiler! Next on my movie list is " 2046" (Ooh, Tony Leung- HOT!, borrowed from Kenn) and then " Endless Love" (another Korean mini-series, borrowed from my nanny). Incase you didn't know, " The Lake House" starring Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves is a movie derived from a Korean mini-series called " Siworae."
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
Break
In replacement of my Grey's Anatomy addiction on Sundays, I've started watching Winter Sonata, a Korean soap opera. Therefore, I probably won't have time to write as much. Okay, maybe a recap after our trip
from MD.
Have a great Memorial Weekend!
Monday, May 22, 2006
Weekender Recap
So busy for the past few days.
Friday, I was out with two of my girlfriends, Linda and Angela (Angela was in town for the week for work). We went
out to eat at Kana Tapas Bar. Yummy food, great sangria, BUT it got rather noisy and it made it difficult to hear our conversation
(tables were close together). The other con was $25 minimum per person. Anyhows, it didn't put a dampen on the
night. It was wonderful catching up with one another. Phil went out to eat with Dave, Jay and Olivia. Sophia
was at my parent's house. I also bumped into Scott Padden aka P-Train (ex-marketing assistant at Elektra) on the way
over to the tapas bar.
Saturday, Sophia went to the doctor's office to get blood taken (part of her 3 year old annual exam). We didn't
do it the last time because she was sick with the stomach flu. Plus I needed the doctor to fill out school health
forms. She didn't cry when she was pricked. She was treated with Micky Dee's happy meal and chocolate milk
(yes, militant mom let this one slide). I later went to a yoga class near Union Square and bumped into Sherry Ring (ex-publicist
for Elektra).
Sunday, Phil, Sophia and I did a 5k run on the West Side Highway (I walked/ran and came out unscathed, phew!).
Sophia sat in the jogger stroller. I finished in 38 minutes, not bad considering this was my third run of the year.
My father and Olivia waited for us at the finish line. After the run, they had a BBQ (dogs, burgers, steak, cole
slaw, potato salad, mac salad, watermelon, apples, bananas, chips, pretzels). Plus there was a kiddie race. Every
kid who ran got a medal.
We proceeded to Battery Park where there was a mini carnival. I met up with Linda, her two sons and her in-laws.
Sophia managed to get on the swing ride (that turns round and round) before the rain came. We made a dash back
home. Oh, and I saw Michael Imperioli (and his kids) from the Sopranos in BP.
This weekend, we're off to Maryland with Judy & Rolly and our friends to fish for some crabs (I don't eat them, I
just like catching them) and chill at the pool. Wee!
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
GA Finale Summary
Man oh man. Where to begin??????
I was drenched in tears within the last half hour episode of GA. When Meredith and McDreamy had put Doc
to sleep, it killed me. It brought back memories of when my sisters and I had to put our beloved dog, Peppy, down.
We stayed with Peppy all the way to his last breath. Perhaps what Mer was feeling was losing Doc AND McDreamy.
Then they killed Denny! ACK! I was so upset (not as upset as I was when the FBI guy was blown up)!
I don't think Izzie is coming back for season 3 after what she did. And she kinda went bonkers in the last few
episodes, what's up with that! I guess starring in a movie with Steven Seagal does that to you. I was surprised Karev was the only one who was able to get Izzie off the bed. When he was
consoling her, I lost it again. You knew he still loved Izzie.
Sandra Oh will definitely be nominated for a Golden Globe and SAG (and hopefully win!). When she was
interrogated by the chief, her speech to him how she was losing her edge, was absolutely stunning. She had me in tears. And
at the end, instead of running away from her feelings for Burke, she came to a realization and held onto his hand to
support him. What an amazing performance! I didn't understand though, why she couldn't help Burke while he was
on the operating table. Was it because she wouldn't let her guard down?
Did anyone feel that Der was "marking his territory" with Mer because of Finn?
How Chief Webber and Der had similiar stories. I have to watch and listen closely again to what they said
(I missed part of this).
And the furtive glances that Mer and Der gave each other at the prom. LOVED. IT. So HOT.
Eyes sure tell a lot in a person. BTW, kinda weird having a prom at the hospital, but it sure brought back a lot of
memories for me, particularly my junior high school prom.
By 10:59p, I had so much tears in my bowl of vanilla ice cream. I was seriously upset. Too many questions
were looming over my head! Who is Mer gonna pick (I think we all know she will not pick Der just to prolong the story)?
Will McSteamy be back? Will Burke be a surgeon again? Will George finally tell Callie that he loves her?
Will Denny's death bring Karev and Izzie together again? Will Izzie be back? Will someone find Mer's black knickers???
Best line- Bailey: WHERE ARE MY SUCK-UPS???
I'll have to re-watch the show in order to analyze it closely. (I was in the middle of putting the
girls to sleep and was constantly interrupted by Sophia having to tinkle three million frickin' times.) Like what Lesterhead said, I know it's fiction and it's TV...but still. The characters were well written. The writers did a remarkable
job. The show felt very real! Cannot wait for season three...in *gasp* three months! Wah!!!
PS- My favorite dress is probably Izzie's, but Mer's dress was flaming hot!
PPS- I sure miss working in an office to swap stories...blegh.
PPPS- Did you know they're moving GA to Thursday nights at 9p? So, so wrong.
Monday, May 15, 2006
Addicted
Great...just when I got Olivia to sleep in the big crib while she was sleeping through the night, she became dependent
on the pacifier. For the past week, she's been waking up in the middle of the night around 2:30a, looking for the
pacifier. Then an hour later again (the paci fell out of her mouth). Then again around 5a. At that point,
I'll feed her, but not at 2:30a. I think I'll cut back on her paci use during the day. And use it only when she
needs to fall asleep. But after that, I'm pulling that sucker out of her mouth and pray she won't wake up for it.
I'm hoping that will work. Otherwise, I'm so fucked.
***
GA finale tonight. Will Cristina let her guards down after Burke's been shot? Addison finally sees the flaw
in her marriage. Is she gonna walk away from it? Will Mer dump Finn for Der? Is Denny going to die on Izzy?
Will Callie be part of the team? On top of it all, Bush is having his immigration speech.
I wonder how will that affect the show...
Sunday, May 14, 2006
A Word From Grandpa
My grandparents came over to drop off some extra cooked chicken to us. First thing Sophia says to my grandparents
in Chinese, "Mui Mui foong gao." In other words, don't disturb the baby.
Fifteen minutes later, Olivia wakes up from her short nap, is a bit cranky. Grandma held onto Olivia while
Grandpa cooed to Olivia. He probably got too close to her because he made her burst out crying.
His words, "Shiiieet." Classic!
Saturday, May 13, 2006
Fay Joot Joot
For those who doesn't speak Cantonese, the post title pretty much means "chubby." I've been trying to slim down
not really for vanity reasons, but because I need to get back into my old clothing without having to shop for new clothes.
It would have been fine if I had money or a job to buy new stuff, but because I'm 0-2 in that department, I'm just better
off trying to lose the weight. Key word, TRYING.
It doesn't help that every night I "treat" myself to a mini ice cream sundae. I looooooove having a banana
with a couple of nice sized dollop of ice cream (try Turkey Hill's Black Cherry- it's sooo good). They go great after
a day of dealing with the two crazy banshees. I need to get rid of the carb intake too. Basically, I need to change
my eating habits after eating whatever I wished for while I was preggers.
After having Sophia, I was able to lose all the pregnancy weight pretty quickly, probably within four months. I
only gained 35 pounds total when I was carrying her (same with Olivia). It probably helped that I barely ate and didn't
sleep well, thanks to my postpartum depression. With Olivia, I'm battling with two areas- my beer belly and hips.
In the past month, I've gone jogging twice, doing situps and lifting 3lb weights for arms every other day. I see
zero improvement!
Looks like I'm not wearing any of my old clothes for awhile, so I better start looking for my old tent sized dresses.
Sunday, May 7, 2006
The Protector
When I am out with the girls, I usually bump into strangers or friends who are eager to take a peek at Olivia.
Most of the time the stroller's canopy is generally down, blocking the sun or wind from the little one.
Yesterday an elderly woman whom I kinda know from the neighborhood took a peek at Olivia and was chatting how cute she
was, blah blah, until BAM! Sophia came charging into the elderly woman as if she was LT (Lawrence Taylor) and the elderly
woman was Joe Theissman. Sophia quickly snapped the canopy down, nearly knocking the woman down. Who knew Sophia
would have it in her to protect her baby sister.
Sweet, shy Sophia she ain't no more.
Friday, May 5, 2006
A Beautiful Day
A warm, beautiful day today and I decided to wear my flip flops. I didn't care if it wasn't neatly painted with
my usual pink ballet slipper nail polish. Today was just that day to wear flip flops and breaking the no flip flops
and white shoes/pants rule (fashionistas know you can't wear 'em before Memorial Day or after Labor Day).
Sophia, Olivia and I headed out to the Seaport, packed with strawberries and blueberries in a chilled cooler and water
in tow. I thought about putting Sophia in shorts, but incase it was too hot, it would be too hot to go on the
slide. So I packed a pair of summer pants if she got too sweaty.
There was a street fair of some sort. I usually hate to buy street food since I don't if it's really sanitary but
the warm weather definitely lured me to be more carpe diem. After Sophia ran around to her heart's content, we bought
rice and beans, chicken on a skewer and tostones and walked over to where the boats come in and out of the Seaport. I
just love latin food. We polished it all...it was delish!
We headed back to the park for shelter. Being under the sun made us all sweaty and hot. Even Olivia was melting
in her stroller. We ate our berries and I let Sophia play for another ten minutes before heading back home for her afternoon
nap.
Then on the way back home, I realized I had put on two different flip flops (hey, the closet is dark!). Oh well,
it didn't matter. Plus Olivia laughed for the first time. Days like this makes me smile and say to myself
that life is too short, Mommy. Have fun while the babies are young.
It was definitely a beautiful day indeed.
Tuesday, May 2, 2006
Changing of the Guards
For the past few nights, Olivia has been tossing and turning quite often while she sleeps. Because she has been
sleeping in our bedroom, the noise from her cradle bassinet (I would personally never buy such a thing, it was a hand me down
from sister in law) keeps waking Phil and I up. So I prepped Sophia that Olivia will be sharing her room with her that
night. There was no comment from her, so I wasn't sure if that was a good sign or not.
They both go to bed at the same time, making the whole bedtime ritual process a total nightmare. I need two extra
hands to handle the both of them. Maybe when Olivia can sit on her own, I can toss her in the tub along with Sophia,
but for now, it's just not in the cards. Hopefully I can figure out a better solution on handling this soon.
The time came for Sophia and Olivia to go to bed. They each both got their baths. Olivia, her bottle of milk.
I thought she would have problems because she was in a new environment. Nope, she went to bed without a hitch.
Sophia didn't get a bedtime story because she was testing Phil's patience all night (lack of discipline there). After
I tucked her in bed, Sophia was constantly coming in and out of the bedroom, asking to go to the bathroom and telling me to
clean a piece of booger off her finger. She even took a peek at Olivia who was sleeping. I thought
it would take a lot longer for Sophia to fall asleep because she normally hums and sings herself to sleep. But she went
to sleep about the same time as if she was alone in her room.
We set up the baby monitor in the rooms. Truthfully, I don't think we need it since Olivia's lungs are quite healthy
and our room's are adjacent to one another. Plus the monitor's static noise was irritating the shit out of me, so tonight
I might just unplug the damn device. Olivia woke up around 2:30a. Not sure what was wrong, but I got up to plop
her a paci in her mouth. She used to NEVER wake up early. But for the past few weeks, she would wake up once or
twice doing jumping jacks in the crib and her eyes wide open. Phil was worried Olivia's crying would wake Sophia
up. I told him what difference did it make- this way Sophia can get up and pee and not wake me up later when I was asleep.
Besides, Sophia better get used to it!
Olivia woke up again for a 5a feeding and fell back asleep after 2ozs. At 7a, she startled me because she woke
up crying. I think she's becoming attached to her pacifer because she keeps waking up for it. God forbid it falls
out of her mouth while she's napping. She goes nuts. She used to never depend on it in the middle of the night,
but now, I think she has. UGH. Maybe she's dependent of it because she's teething. Even Sophia
is helping us dab the drool off her chin.
But all in all...sleeping arrangement accomplished. YAY!
***
We had to switch bottles on Olivia. We were using Avent, but now we're switching to Dr. Brown's. The leaking has stopped. Not sure if it's the nipples or if it's the bottle, but whatever it is, it stopped.
Olivia would go through bibs and paper towels like no tomorrow. Sometimes the milk would seep through and get all over
her clothes. So much for saving all those Avent bottles from Sophia. I guess I'll give them away to friend's who
are having kids or save them for Judy (she'll need to start MAKING a kid first).
***
I hate spring. It's not the rain that bothers me. It's hayfever allergies. For the past few days, I've
been dealing with congested, sneezing non-stop, itchy eyes, watery eyes. Total nightmare. A friend mentioned I
could get a shot for it, so I might just look into it before I get any worse.
I also hate the month of May. Mother's Day (I don't care for this day), massive family birthday
gatherings, where we should go for Memorial weekend bullshit...UGH. So much crap is going on. I can't be bothered
with going out to eat, buying flowers and cards. What for? It'll be tossed in the garbage the next week.
***
My parents have been gone for less than a week. Damn...could it speed up any faster???
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