Yankee Doodle Dandies

A few weeks ago the girls joined me for an outdoor screening of one of my favorite movies, Yankee Doodle Dandy. Anyone who knows me well knows that James Cagney is my favorite movie star of all time. Not only could he play roles that ranged from gangsters to song-and-dance men, he was also a very fine human being.

Well, much to my delight, the girls have picked up on the title tune from the movie and we all go around the house singing Yankee Doodle Dandy. They can both pretty much sing it on their own. It's even become one of our nighttime lullabies.

So things like this blow my mind. I've been watching this movie for probably 40 years. And now I have 2 kids who are also watching (and digging) this movie. How can you even imagine this stuff?

Fun at Nana and Papa's... Again

While we were away at Randy and Rochelle's wedding this past weekend, the girls had a nice couple of days alone with my parents.

From what I hear, activities included a trip to Boston Common, a swan boat ride, a trip to the Children's Museum, and lots of ice cream and french fries. You know, the normal grandparent stuff.

The highlight was when Marni got stuck in a large climbing tower at the Boston Children's Museum and had to be rescued. But they had a lot of fun and were returned to us in good health (except for a splinter which daddy removed from Marni's finger).

This visit was a milestone in that it was the first time my parents had both kids on their own. Job well done!

Your Normal Voice

Sometimes Stella can get a little over-tired near bed time if she's had an exhausting day. This leads to irrational behavior. You parents all know what I'm talking about.

On this particular evening, Stella decided to have a meltdown as she prepared to go to bed. She was inconsolable about... whatever, and there was nothing we could do to appease her. At this point, she was pissed off at me so the only person she wanted to talk to was Lisa.

Stella sobbed and screamed and tried to explain to Lisa why she was so upset. But Stella got it into her head that Lisa was talking to her in a funny voice (she wasn't). No matter what Lisa did, every time she spoke, Stella would scream "Talk in your normal voice" and would get even more upset. Over and over again Lisa would try to speak to her to calm her down but all Stella would do was scream louder about using a normal voice.

At this point I was rolling on the floor (I know I shouldn't).

Eventually a time-out was invoked to defuse the situation and peace eventually returned to the household.

Luckily there hasn't been a repeat of the "normal voice" episode. But boy do kids get wacky when they haven't had enough sleep.

Summer Love

It seems as though Stella has a boyfriend.

Ok, he's 18 and lives in Germany, but no big deal.

We've had two very nice German teenagers staying with us for the past week while visiting the U.S. for the first time. Manuel and Philipp. Philipp is the son of friends of Lisa's and she's known him since birth. Now, evidently, he is going to be our son-in-law. At least as far as Stella is concerned.

After a few days of visiting, Stella began to warm up to Philipp. Eventually she would slip into bed between the two boys when we were all getting up in the morning. She would cuddle with "the blond boy". Once Lisa caught her staring at him from inches away while he was busy texting. Yesterday I noticed her playing with the hair on his leg while snuggled next to him in bed. He was texting and oblivious.

A day or two ago she started actually referring to him as her boyfriend and said she loved him. Yesterday, before he left, she took a video of him promising that he was her boyfriend and that she could come visit him whenever she wanted.

Smart girl to get it on tape. Next, I will teach her about pre-nups.

But, sadly, like most summer loves, this one had to end. Philipp and Manuel headed off to the flughafen and I had one sobbing girl on my hands ("I miss my boyfriend".). I actually had two sobbing girls on my hands. Marni was sobbing "Mommy!" as Lisa drove off to JFK.

Only time will tell if this love will last. We are scheduled to visit with Philipp and his family in October. But, by then, Stella may be on to the next love of her life.

Stars Sighting

The P.S. 39 "Stars" had a little mid-summer get-together on Saturday.

Stella (and Marni), Sean, Zacarias, Zane, Adam, Uma and Cobe all showed up with family in tow and enjoyed eating, running and playing behind the Picnic House in Prospect Park.

We had a very special surprise quest, Ms. Cassens, who took a break from her summer activities to join us. She even brought brownies. Ms. Cassens (and the brownies) were the hit of the day.

Stella made sure to get a little private time with her favorite teacher.

Best Picure of the Summer (So Far)

Taken at Merwin Meadows Park in Wilton, CT.

Overheard #18

Lately we've been getting a lot of "It's all about..." from Stella. There's usually nothing pleasant about an "it's all about" sentence. For example:

• "It's all about those kids", when a group of children will not relinquish the use of playground swings.
• "It's all about Marni", when more attention is paid to her sister than herself.
• "It's all about me", when she demands that it is now Stella-time.

When imagining Stella and an "it's all about..." sentence, it is best to also include a scowl.

Monkey See, Monkey Do

Observant and absorbent. We know that kids pick up on all the sights and sounds, and feelings and emotions that surround them. But this one made me laugh.

We were running some errands with the girls the other day. Each had their own stroller and babies to push around. But Stella was especially slow in keeping up with us as we walked down the street. I looked back at her and noticed that she was attempting to push the stroller with one hand while talking on her (non-functional) cell phone with the other.

Just like she sees her mommy and many other mommies do on the streets of Park Slope.

She even was carrying on one side of a conversation ("Yes. Right. I know that. To the store.").

Maybe we need to get her a non-functional Bluetooth headset.

Good Enough To Eat

Well, that's what the dog thought when he took a nip at Marni's face last night.

We were visiting some friends at their home. We'd already been there for about 45 minutes and the girls and Max the dog were getting along fine. But all of a sudden Marni started screaming. No one had been watching her so we had no idea what had happened. The dog was nowhere in sight. But Marni was clearly in pain. I looked around to see if she had touched something hot in the kitchen. No clues.

I picked her up and noticed that she was scratched and beginning to bleed. We asked her if the dog bit her and she nodded yes. We cleaned up the blood and calmed her down. She explained that the dog bit her on her face.

The dog was banished for the remainder of the night and, after about 2 minutes, Marni was back to normal... but with a bandage on her face. She didn't seem particularly traumatized by the event.

We cleaned her up a little more once we got home. Today I took her into the doctor to make sure all was ok. Marni was happy to relate the whole story to the doc who didn't think it was much of a bite. Just keep in clean and use some anti-scarring potion for the next few weeks.

And there you have it. It'll be interesting to see if the kids keep their distance from dogs going forward. They certainly have been warned!

This Says It All

Presenting: My Geek Dad

Marni is proud to present her geek dad, resplendent in his embarrassing pool attire.

Go-To Dad

It certainly would never have occurred to me before my kids were born that I would be the kind of dad the kids would flock to for fun and frolic. But apparently, that's the case. Especially with the four cousins.

And, actually, there's nothing I love more than to get down on the floor and mix it up with the kids.

This weekend we were in Albany, and even though we were at temple and I had a nasty back ache (some people would say the back ache was psycho-semitic), I was down on the floor and loving every minute of it.

When I'm not on the floor, I'm into some other sort of mischief with the kids. For example... I was serving the kids all sorts of imaginary food at the Hoffman's 1970's-era downstairs bar.

Even little cousin Delia is beginning to warm to my charms!

Fire Restaurant

"The Fire Restaurant" is what Stella and Marni call the local hibachi restaurant, Ginza. They've been there four times already. The first time was so traumatic for both of them that we figured they'd never want to go back. When the flames shot up, Marni was literally shaking with fear.

But, regardless of their fear, they kept talking about the place and kept insisting they wanted to go back. So they went back again with me and Lisa. They were anxious about the fire, but definitely not as scared. Then they went again with my parents. And this past week they went again with me and Lisa.

As you can see from the video (which runs a little fast for some reason), Stella is still wary and tended to observe the fire from 50 yards away. Marni, on the other hand, stood her ground. She's especially fond of when the little water-squirting doll "pees" on her.

Pre-K Grad

Although she missed the festivities due to a fever and tummy ache, Stella, nonetheless, got her diploma yesterday upon returning to school.

I am (all at the same time):

• Proud beyond words.
• Shocked that the year passed so quickly.
• Thankful to her wonderful teachers Miss Cassens and Miss Henry who helped Stella grow so much.
• Sad that Pre-K is all over for her (and me).
• Amazed at how great her classmates are.

Today is her last day. A half day. I have lost my grip and will probably let Lisa take her. No need for the kids to ask, "why is Stella's dad crying?".

Stella's Pre-K 108 Dance Performance

On June 8th P.S. 39 presented its annual dance festival. Unfortunately, the weather didn't participate and the event (which usually closes off 6th Avenue) was moved into Camp Friendship.

Stella doesn't have a stellar record of performing in performances. Usually she will sit it out on the sidelines. As she explains it to us, she will perform when "her brain is ready". Ok.

But this year, Miss Kelly and Miss Cassens finally solved the problem that has stumped so many teachers before them. They devised a special "solo" for Stella to perform that got her brain's seal of approval.

We didn't know the details of the performance ahead of time, but I knew it had something to do with a balloon because I helped her carry it to Camp Friendship in a shopping bag.

Lisa and I and some of the other parents from Pre-K 108 took our seats on the floor and awaited the magic. Pomp, circumstance, Pre-K 105, and then it was time for Ms. Cassens' class to do their thing. While the rest of the class performed, Stella sat on the sidelines with her balloon. What was she going to do with it we wondered?

The performance by her classmates was spectacular.

Hafway through the dance, Stella got up and did her thing. Her performance piece was to keep the white balloon (which represented the moon) up in the air. And what a job she did! In front of the whole auditorium! Even while still holding the shopping bag under her arm.

It was so great to see her finally participate in a performance. Kudos again to Miss Kelly and Miss Cassens for listening to Stella and creating a very special part for her that her brain would sign off on.

Marni's "Graduation"

It's "get a grip, man" season... the time of year when kids graduate from one grade to another or from one school to another. A couple of years ago when Stella had her first graduation ceremony at daycare I was balling like a baby. I thought to myself, "get a grip, man".

The next year Marni graduated from one daycare to another. Again... balling like a baby.

So Friday was Marni's graduation ceremony at Raindrops and I was preparing for the waterworks.

After a nice brunch with the other parents, the kids performed two numbers and, unlike the past two years with Stella, Marni actually performed with her classmates. Quite a difference from the Stella era where her shyness prevented her from taking part in the performances.

And were there waterworks? Nope, not this year.

But Stella's "stepping up" ceremony is next week. It may be time again to "get a grip". Stay tuned and send me a case of tissues.

The Marni Whisperer

Nana Bev and Papa Art were taking care of the kids this past weekend while Lisa and I were away celebrating our 7th anniversary.

On Saturday night Marni started to complain about diaper rash. This is interesting if for no other reason than she really no longer wears diapers. She continued to pull at her underwear and got pretty agitated. Nana Bev took her to their bedroom where Marni demanded that she get diaper cream. Even after slathering herself with the cream, Marni was still upset and crying.

It was just about bed time, so my mother put her in her bed. But the crying continued unabated.

Enter Stella (The Marni Whisperer).

Our little Florence Nightingale knelt over her sobbing sister and applied the gentle forehead and nose "massage" that I have done to Stella over the past year or two. According to Nana Bev, after a minute or two of the massage, Marni was sound asleep for the night.

I smiled when I heard this sweet story from my mother and from Stella. Not only was I happy to hear that Stella finds the massage enjoyable enough to share with others, but I was especially touched to see Stella step up and help her little sister feel better.

I'm very proud of her.

Marni's Class Picture

Marni took her first class picture last month and here is the result. Please note the alternate spelling of her name at the bottom right. Looking good Marini!

The Tail of the Snails

It started with Stefan Rose... a little snail that Stella found in the playground. I didn't intend on the snail coming to live with us, but Stella had other plans.

A day or two after Stefan Rose joined us, Stella found another snail (the girl has special talent). With the addition of snail number two, Stella did some renaming. Snail #1 became Stella Rose and snail #2 became Stefan Rose. Depending on what day it is, the snails are either both girls or a girl and a boy.

When Lisa was carrying the new snail home in our snail house, she said she felt the little house shake and noticed that the new snail was on top of and "attacking" the first snail. Later that night I had to explain to Lisa what sex was all about. This is strange considering we already have two kids.

In any event, Stella is a proud mom and daddy gets to take care of the snails and clean their poop. BTW... the snail on the left is Stefan Rose and the snail on the right is Stella Rose.

The Artist Currently Known As Stella

Have I mentioned that the PTA at Stella's school is a money making machine? Their latest scheme was an Art Fair.

They gave out special paper to all the classes at the school. Each kid in each class created some sort of artwork on the paper. They then collected all the artwork, framed it, and put it up for sale at the Art Fair. Then they invited all the parents to come and buy their kid's artwork. Quite a racket. Great idea.

So we did our part and went to the Art Fair. Stella excitedly showed me to the Pre-K area. All of Miss Cassen's class did their art in charcoal. Luckily, her art was pretty good (I hate to buy bad art)! I whipped out the debit card and did my part to support P.S. 39.

The beautiful piece of art is now proudly hanging in our main bathroom (where it fits in perfectly with the gray paint job). Come to think of it, all of Stella's great art is hanging in bathrooms (the other installation being in a law firm in Salem, Mass.).