Pankcake Madness

Sundays are often pancake day.

The girls get in line early in order to help daddy make the pancakes. They eagerly wait in front of the green bowl for the ingredients to arrive. Once we add the mix, the oil, the milk and the sun (egg), then it's time for each girl to get a chance to stir it up.

If there's any batter left in the bowl after mixing then it's time to cook the pancakes. While waiting for the cooking part, each girl gets a little container of chocolate bits to munch on.

The photo included here is the "line" that forms in the kitchen as they await the fresh, hot pancakes. Kinda looks like they've been camped out overnight.

Stella's First Snow Day

A blizzard passed through last night and deposited 8-12 inches of snow on Brooklyn. In a very rare occurrence, New York City canceled public schools for today. WTF!

Bathing Suit Night

In the dead of winter we decided that it was time to make sure our bathing suits still worked. And so Bathing Suit Night was created. Please note that Stella insisted on this pose. And then insisted on several others (not included here). Please also note Marni's look of incredulity.

Rest assured... all bathing suits were fully functional and awaiting their first 2009 trial at Stefanoff's pool.

Overheard #14

The word "actually" popped into Stella's vocabulary more than a year ago. As in, "Actually, I don't want to eat my peas". It seems to be a popular term for many of the 4-year-olds that Stella hangs out with. It made me smile to hear it when Stella started to use it. Now I'm smiling again as Marni has picked it up.

It's not unusual for Marni to say something like, "Actually, I want apple juice".

It's a small thing, but I just wonder where it all started from.

Dancing Duo

Sporting their fabulous new tutus from Sherri Bubbles and Laurie and Rickie, the girls were unleashing their inner ballerina at Creative Arts Studio.

This surveillance video just goes to prove that Marni is a nut and Stella is a princess.

The "Me Museum"

Stella's Pre-K class is pretty cool. At least to me. Her teacher is really great and they do such fun things there.

One fun thing they do is called the "Me Museum". Every student gets to create what is essentially a week-long museum exhibit about themselves. The exhibit includes a book entitled "All About...", plus a few items from their lives. Toys. Books. Dolls. Whatever the kids want to bring in. In addition, the parents get to come in on the first day of their child's Me Museum and help to present everything.

Stella and daddy toiled very hard on her "All About Stella" book. She told me what pages she wanted. We took pictures. And Stella wrote out words for each page. You can click here to see the book (PDF).

Then we picked out which "artifacts" to bring. Stella chose her nutcracker, her Russian music box, her bear and her moose. She also brought along two books: "Pinkalicious" and "The Little Mermaid".

Stella was very excited on Me Museum Day. She really liked the fact that both mommy and daddy would go with her to school. When we all arrived, Stella set up three chairs for us in the front of the class. She sat there and beamed as the class gathered around us and as Miss Cassens told everyone to pay attention to Stella and her parents.

We read the "All About Stella" book and then Stella took questions from the audience. Most questions dealt with princesses.

Then daddy read "Pinkalicious" for the class. They were riveted.

Next... we whipped out the music box and nutcracker. They loved it!

Soon it was time to go. Stella waved goodbye to us from the window. She had a smile a mile wide.

Catching Up

Now for a rapid-fire wrap-up of what's been going on here for the past month:

As daddy was jetting his way to San Francisco for the winter Fancy Food Show; Marni was taking her first plane ride ever! Marni joined Stella and Lisa on a long weekend in Texas at the Rapps. They cooked, shopped, ate, went to a zoo and generally had a great time. I was very stressed about their trip, but everything went fine. The girls had a lot of fun on the plane and mommy Lisa took great care of them.

We also spent time in Albany visiting with Papa Harold who is working his way back to health in the local rehab center. The girls entertained staff and residents as they zoomed up and down the halls. Get well soon Papa Harold!

Signs of Reading

Stella and I were looking at a list of her classmates this morning. She's been able to pick out her own name for several weeks. She can also recognize Marni, Lisa and Steve.

But I was very surprised when she was able to accurately read the names of all of her classmates. Pretty cool. Progress!

Marni Rocks!

Marni's been feeling a little heavier lately. But only when she's outside. This was a bit puzzling until we checked her coat pocket.

It seems that Marni has been carrying around with her a rather hefty rock from Jill and Brian's landscaping.

The theft apparently occurred last weekend while visiting with cousins Tyler and Delia. The kids were all playing outside for awhile and were moving rocks and leaves around the yard. Marni took a liking to a particular rock and decided to keep it. So she pocketed it.

It remained in her pocket for nearly a week before we pulled it out. She immediately lost a pound. The rock is now living in our apartment awaiting a reunion with its brothers and sisters in New Jersey.

Christmas Break 2008

Christmas Break started on December 24th with a road trip to Nana and Papa's in Natick.

On Christmas day we headed to Karen and Glenn's for dinner. After the initial 15 minutes of girls-meet-dogs mayhem, we all settled down to a lovely afternoon. Dinner was spectacular. The best turkey I've ever had. The secret is brining.

On Saturday we moved the show on to Albany. Tyler, Brian and Delia joined us for the weekend. It was one packed and crazy house! We played inside. We played outside. We played upstairs. We played downstairs.

By Wednesday it was time to go home. The only thing standing in our way was a big snow storm. It was slow going on the road to Brooklyn, but we eventually made it safe and sound. That night was New Years Eve and we rang in 2009 quietly.

Thursday was our annual New Years Day at the Asanovics party. This year we were joined by Lisa Stefanoff's boyfriend's four girls.

Friday was a relaxing day that included a trip to the grocery store for Daddy, Stella and Marni. On Saturday we headed off to New Jersey to spend the day with the Hoffmans. And Sunday was spent in Prospect Park.

Great Wolf Lodge

Stella and Marni (and mom and dad) have found their new favorite winter place to visit.

Last Friday we headed out to Great Wolf Lodge for a weekend of wet and wild fun. It only took me about a half hour to chip the car out of its icy casing. A nasty snow, sleet, hail and rain storm had passed through the day before and really did a number on the car. Only one door would open and the other four were frozen shut. Finally, I hacked away enough ice to open the other doors. I quickly shoved in our bags, and then our children, and we were off!

The trip was fast and we got to the lodge at around 1:00. But our room wasn't ready and we decided to do some shopping and lunching while we waited. I got a nice pair of Merril boots and the nearby outlet center. Then, off to Friendly's for lunch.

We finally checked in at 4:00.

The room was fantastic. Two separate bedrooms. A living room, kitchen, two bathrooms, and a gas fireplace. The kids were loving it. After we decided who was going where, we changed into our bathing suits and headed for our first water park adventure.

We were greeted at the entrance to the water park by a blast of hot and humid air. The building was gigantic and filled to the brim with every imaginable type of water gizmo. Water was squirting everywhere. The ladies and I did a recon mission to scope out what our options were. It was decided to go for the wave pool first (which eventually became known as "the beach").

Stella and Marni immediately started playing in the warm water and very realistic waves. Next stop was the kid pool where it never gets more than about 2 feet deep. Stella decided to try out some of the small water slides and did great. Marni tried once or twice, but eventually chickened out. We then took a leisurely float down Crooked Creek.

Dinner was some yummy pizza from the in-hotel Pizza Hut Express. We ate in front of the fireplace and then changed into PJs (the kids that is). First stop was a visit to see Santa Claus in the lobby. As expected, they wouldn't actually sit on his lap, but agreed to stand near enough to him for a photo op. Every night at 8:00 is story time in the lobby in front of an enourmous animatronic stage. The show lasted about 15 minutes and was surprisingly well done. Then, as an added attraction for the winter, the animated characters sang holiday songs as "snow" fell from the rafters. Well done.

Day two included a morning and afternoon trip to the water park separated with lunch, naps, and some fun in the snow. Lisa also managed to fit in a trip to the gym and the spa. My high point of the day was my first ride down a big, scary water slide. We escaped the lodge for dinner at Red Robin. Then... Hanukkah gifts.

Our final day included, of course, one more trip to the water park. And this trip included my first ride down the super-big water slides (on a raft). Lisa and I each took turns trying to outdo each other with the scarier rides.

A trip to the outlet mall rounded out the perfect weekend. The girls slept all the way home. We're already planning the trip back there next winter.

Class of 2021

Marni and Stella dance to Tom

The girls have long known about Tom Jones.

They know we played his song at our wedding ceremony. They know we danced to his song at the reception. I sing them two Tom Jones songs almost every night. But they hadn't really ever seen Tom perform before.

So the other night I threw on a DVD of Tom's 1970's tv show. While Stella danced on and off, Marni danced steadily through both "It's Not Unusual" and "What's New Pussycat".

Later they threw their panties and diapers at the tv set.

Thanksgiving 2008

This was our 5th Thanksgiving with Stella and our 3rd with Marni. And this year we celebrated in Natick.

Traffic up to Natick on Thursday morning was reasonable. Audrey, Harold, Karen, Glenn, the dogs, and Glenn's sister Kathy and family joined us later in the afternoon. At 5:30 we all headed to The Sherborn Inn for a delicious turkey day dinner. We even had our own room, so the girls could roam free without disturbing others.

Friday we headed to Audrey and Harold's hotel to make use of their pool. The girls had a blast and made quite an impression on the other guests as they walked through the lobby in their swimming attire. Later that day Audrey and Lisa went on a shopping spree at the Natick Collection.

On Saturday I broke out the Lincoln Logs from my youth. An instant hit with the kids. I also brought out the toy soldier stuff which was a bit dirty and a lot less interesting to the girls. A little later we went outside so Stella and Marni could run through the giant pile of leaves that Papa Art left for them in the backyard. Much fun. That night Lisa and I headed off to the Natick Collection and Metro 9 for "date night" and the girls enjoyed "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" with Nana and Papa.

We headed home Sunday morning. We tried to miss the traffic, but ended up sitting in it most of the way home. It also snowed, hailed, and rained most of the way.

All-in-all a very relaxing and fun visit (even though Marni tumbled down the stairs a couple of times).

Makeup Time

Overheard #13

Marni did something to Stella and apologized to her by saying sorry. Stella's response was "Sorry doesn't cut it".

Halloween 2008

Ooops. It seems that I forgot to mention Halloween 2008.

This year, Stella was dressed as Ariel (from The Little Mermaid) and Marni was Flounder (also from The Little mermaid).

My concern about these choices is the stereotyping of Stella as the princess in the family and Marni as the chubby fish. Now don't get me wrong, the girls each chose their own costumes. We didn't force them into anything. But maybe next year we can suggest that Marni dress as Marilyn Monroe and Stella dress as Buddy Hacket. Enough of that for now.

Mommy Lisa created each of the costumes with great skill. I am more of a "buy the damn thing" kinda guy, so she was on her own. And she did a great job. The Ariel costume even allowed Stella to buy and wear her first bra. Great!

This year Stella and Marni had special guests to accompany them on their trick-or-treating... Nana Beverly and Papa Art.

The six of us made our way up 5th Street toward the Halloween Parade on 7th Avenue. Stella and Marni did a great job going from house to house doing their trick-or-treat thing. Stella even told us that "it was hard work".

We all watched the parade go by and then worked our way home on 3rd Street (still trick-or-treating). The girls scored a lot of yummy stuff and mommy and daddy were more than happy to help them eat it.

Cousins

Tyler and Delia came to visit on Sunday.

Once all the toys in the house became boring, it was time to wreak havoc in the playground. Four kids and only two scooter/bikes equals a lot of crying. Marni, not so happy. Delia, not so happy. But once we got there, all was ok. Marni biked and scooted while the big kids played on the slides and swings. Delia was very happy climbing up the steps and sliding down the slides.

On the way home Marni got the scooter. A little more crying from the big kids who had to share the bike.

Once we got home, we put on the Disney Channel and cooked up two pizzas.

Overheard #12

Stella is now very fond of "What the heck!?" She uses it all the time for all sorts of reasons. It is accompanied by a goofy face.

At least she is using the "clean" version. One less battle to fight.

NYC Marathon 2008

This special artwork was commissioned from Stella Shepard to commemorate the Shepard's Marathon Brunch 2008.