Making it Look Easy

Ellie worked really hard these past few months, preparing for her Broadway Jazz recital and Ugly Duckling play. She practiced her routines and learned her lines (more than 70!), and put up with rehearsal after rehearsal. But it was all worthwhile, because my friends, come recital time, she made it look easy. We were all really proud of how we did. She's not sure if she wants to keep up with the theater and dance, but if she does, watch out. Because she makes it look so dang easy.



Taking a bow after Ugly Duckling - Ellie was Mother Duck

Ellie and her friend Avari, who is also part of the Broadway Jazz group

Getting Our Geek On

I tell you, we are really getting our Geek on with Jack's monthly Tinker Crate deliveries. Each month there's a cool science project, that teaches a scientific concept but that also leaves you with a cool toy. Jack has made trebuchets and spin art machines and infinity mirrors and circuits and all kinds of cool stuff. And the best part? The instructions are easy enough that even Mom understands how to make the science projects. And that's saying something, since even the most basic of scientific concepts simply confounds me, and thus I have explained most of them to my children as "magic."

Lookey here at Jack's cool hydro-powered claw. And pay no mind to the fact that he's wearing pajamas. I have it on good authority that Thomas Edison refined the light bulb filament in his jammies. True story.

Bad News / Good News

Well, the bad news is that apparently, the Leprechaun missed our house this St. Patrick's Day. The kids weren't thrilled with that, but I think we need to give that leprechaun a break. I mean, he's got a full-time job, like, chasing rainbows and making lucky charms and what-not, and sometimes a leprechaun just FORGETS. OK, can we give the poor leprechaun a break?

But at least, the good news is that Jack and Ellie at least had their green shirts, so they were blessedly pinch-free this St. Patrick's Day.

So that's something to be happy about, right? So can we give that poor leprechaun a break?

Best of Both Worlds

You know me by now, right? So you know that I don't like skiing. That's practically sacrilegious to say in Jared's Family O' Skiers, but there, I said it, I don't like it. But thanks to some Dutch ingenuity, I've discovered the best of both worlds - Jared and the kids get to ski, and I get to STAY WARM, DAMNIT, but still see them, thanks to Snow World, the indoor ski resort in the Netherlands. Jared and the kids have gone their a few times, but this time we decided to make a quick vacay out of it. We went up the day before and spent a bit of time in Maastricht. Then we checked out the alpine slides at the resort. The next morning, Jared and the kiddies got up early and hit the 'slopes,' while I sat comfy-cozy in the restaurant and watched them through the window. They had fun - I stayed warm - best of both worlds, baby!

Getting ready for the alpine slides

You would think that Ellie would drive like a maniac, but on the first run, she was actually a bit slow, and even stopped at one point. And yup, Lydia then slammed into the back of her, and got fussed at by the Angry Dutchman. I don't think that was his name, but it should have been.

Go, Jack and Ellie!

And there's my man! We rode together on a couple of runs, but Mr. Jared got a bit too handsy, so I sat this one out. We are in public, Mr. Jared.

For those for whom reading is a religious experience, please take note. This is the Boekhandel Dominicanen, a bookstore housed in an old Dominican church. It's really cool-looking, and has some English-language books.

Isn't that cool?

After going to church, well, of course, you must stick with the theme and get a Jesus burrito. I did! Warning, though - it's got sweet potato in it. That's just weird.

Wandering around Maastricht

You know when you are in the Netherlands when .... bikes, bikes, bikes

Cozying up in the lodge before heading out for some early-morning skiing

This is my version of skiing - a book, a mocha, and a warm spot to sit and watch the family

I tried to get a good photo of the kids skiing, but by the time I'd notice them coming down, it was too late to catch a good shot

Hello, My Skiers!

Spoiled Rotten

OK, so in looking back at the photos from our London trip this past weekend, one thing is quite evident - it would appear that we're just a wee bit spoiled. OK maybe a lot spoiled. OK, maybe spoiled rotten. So, for the record let me state that it's NOT typical for us to be getting personal kitchen tours at fancy restaurants, or shopping-til-we-drop at posh department stores, or seeing sold-out shows. OK? OK.

Now, with that out of the way, boy oh boy, did we have a fun weekend in London. We started off the weekend with a big treat for Ellie (part of her birthday present, actually) - a 7-course meal at Gordon Ramsey's Maze restaurant. Ellie loves cooking competition shows, and Gordon Ramsey is her favorite, so when she heard that there was a Gordon Ramsey restaurant in our hotel, she asked for a dinner there as part of her birthday present. The meal was lovely - but was even better was that, when they discovered Ellie's birthday, they took her and Jack on a tour of the kitchen, and let her make her own dessert. Which was quite brave of them, since it involved giving Ellie a blowtorch.

The next day - since we hadn't quite gorged ourselves on food yet - we took a food tour through East London. It included everything from bacon sandwiches to bread pudding to curry, and yes, everything was yummy. And yes, it was a ton of food. But yes, I did my duty and tasted it all. I mean, we wouldn't want to hurt their feelings, right?

That evening was Part 1 of the Cursed Child, the Harry Potter play that Jack has been dying to see. We had to buy tickets a year in advance, but it was worth the wait. Even Jared, who is not a fan of Harry Potter, enjoyed it.

On our last day, we wandered through the Knightsbridge area, and did some shopping in Harrod's. We also made sure that the kids got a bit of the London experience - taking the tube (they liked), having some afternoon tea (they didn't like), and trying to understand what the taxi drivers were saying to us (I'm fairly certain it was in English, but I can't confirm that).

All in all, we had a great - and very spoiled - weekend in London. Cheers, London!


Ellie, in the kitchen of Maze. They let her assemble her dessert, which was a lemon-passion fruit tart.

Look at her eyeing that blowtorch - she asked if she can get one for her next birthday.

Now it's her turn!

She gives her creation a thumbs-up

She also got to have some dry ice fun

Jack and Chef Ellie

Let's start our food tour with a good ol' bacon sandwich. Because you just can't go wrong with bacon, even if it is English bacon

Then, since we're all about healthy eating, we'll have some bread pudding - after pouring some liquid custard all over it. More fat, please!

Then we tried two kinds of English cheese

Oh, that's our tour guide, Madi. She was lovely. She's an up-and-coming actress, so we can say that we 'knew her when.'

Well, you gotta have fish and chips while you're in London, right? Of course these were apparently a 'healthy' version, which means they weren't as good.

Oh, and did I mention Lenny the Cat? He's apparently semi-famous. He lives at the Pride of Spitalfields.

Jack and Ellie, enjoying some lemonade in the pub.

By the time the Bangladeshi curries came around, we were pretty darn full - but we soldiered on.

And we were REALLY full when it came time for the corned beef bagels. But never worry, Lydia is a trooper.

Our kids tried everything on the tour - even the tea, which they declared to be nasty. Of course, they probably should have been arrested for the way they messed up the tea. I don't think Her Majesty would approve.

Luckily, there is always room for dessert - in this case, salted caramel chocolate tart.

Although we mainly took taxis, we did take the underground once.

And now to the important part - according to Jack - Cursed Child

You know it's a good show when all four of us can agree on it.

Choices, Choices, Choices

When someone thinks you're pregnant when you're not:

(1) You re-evaluate the 'slimming qualities' of that tunic and leggings outfit you're wearing

(2) You start to think that maybe you need to amp up your ab routine

(3) You seriously consider creating an international incident by kicking her skinny Croatian ass in the library parking lot


For the record, my Croatian friend (who is kind and lovely, despite thinking I was pregnant) is still alive and kicking. And I AM reevaluating that particular outfit. As to amping up my ab routine? Well, we'll put that in the "I'll start that NEXT week" pile.