Weekend Wrap-Up

All in all, a good week. I love it when Sundays consist of being home all day, which is what we're doing.

To work backwards, yesterday my family got together to celebrate my birthday which was very nice. We went to one of my favorite Mexican restaurants, and then back to my parents' house for coffee, cake and presents. I'm addicted with the gift from my dad, a book appropriately titled Obsessed with Hollywood, a trivia game of 2500 questions. My mom got me tickets to see Big Bad Voodoo Daddy and Manhattan Transfer at the Hollywood Bowl in July. Sylvia got me a bag and Riley got me a candle. My sister renewed my New Yorker subscription.



I made my monthly visit to Dream Dinners - I'm most excited about the Chicken Mirabella.

Sylvia's big news this week is that she won a friggin' iPod!! KIPP has this program called Scholar Dollars, where they get weekly paychecks as an incentive. If they've earned at least 85% of the Scholar Dollars possible by the end of the year, they get an all-expense paid field trip. Sylvia will be going to San Diego for 3 days in June. They also have auctions throughout the year where the kids can bid for items using their Scholar Dollars. Sylvia had more Dollars than any other 5th grader, and this was their last auction of the year so she was able to bid them all for the iPod. She was a little nervous that I wouldn't let her keep it (given my stance on no video game players allowed, she didn't know if iPods would apply, too), but I told her as long as Mommy can use it every now and then, she could keep it. The good news is, I don't have to listen to the Hannah Montana or the country songs that she downloaded!

From the race last weekend:


Riley had a big week, too - 2 field trips! On Monday, they went to the Natural History Museum, and on Friday, the Getty. Riley's favorite part was making masks at the Getty.
And how adorable is she in this pic from the race:


I watched about a half-hour of The Assassination of Jesse James before I gave up. I just didn't care at all. Luckily, HBO was showing a much better Brad Pitt flick: Fight Club.


I'm not quite as fanatical in my admiration of Brad as I am over George or Johnny...still, in a good movie, I find him quite enjoyable.

The girls were so excited about my birthday, you'd think it was one of theirs! Sylvia wrote me a lovely tribute, and Riley worked very hard at ensuring my happiness. My bosses took me out for a very nice lunch to another favorite Mexican restaurant.

And a dear friend got me this shirt which sums me up nicely:



Now I know this word drives some people crazy, and it is somewhat of a change of heart for me to adopt it. But for me, it represents the ability to let certain things go over which I have no control. I'm still a control freak, but I'm learning to accept the things I cannot change. At least, sometimes.

I'm almost ready for my meeting next week with the potential buyers of the condo. I'm working on a proposal of a 2-year lease to get me through Riley's elementary school years before she moves on to KIPP, at a rental price that I can afford. Hopefully, they will like the idea (as I've been told they're interested in the property as an investment), and all will be well. If not, I've got a Plan B. If Plan B doesn't work, well, then it's on to the old apartment-hunt.

I also watched the HBO documentary Autism: the Musical this week. I know, it's an odd title, but completely worth seeing. These kids, these parents...I can't imagine their daily existence. Just a glimpse into these families' lives humbled me while filling me with admiration for them and their strength.

I was a bit apprehensive leading up to my 35th birthday, and (semi) joked to Kori that I might spend the night crying into a bottle of wine. Granted, 35 no longer means middle-aged, but it's still hard to get away from that idea that...well, I'm not young anymore. But I can still act goofy when given the opportunity (as I did earlier in the week with a few friends - and had a blast), and then I can turn around later that night and put my daughters to bed while they're comforted by the knowledge that Mommy's here. No matter if I'm 30, 35, or 40 can't change the warmth that goes with that.