December 1, 2010

• The week before Thanksgiving, both kids had ‘mini-feast’ celebrations at their school. In Zach’s class, they sang songs and had a potluck lunch. The next day, in Calie’s class, they had a Thanksgiving lunch catered by their cafeteria. I was glad I worked so close and was able to attend both!

    

   

  That Sunday, James and Zach went the Sacramento Kings vs New Jersey Nets basketball game. James was rewarded the tickets (box seats) from work for his contributions on our latest chipset. I was concerned Zachary might lose interest, but he had a great time! It helped that it was a very exciting/close game and the Kings won. At the end of the game, Zach asked,”So what other sports are there in the world?” Saturday, I took Calie to a trial pre-ballet class. She was the only 2 year old, but she did great. She wasn’t able to follow as well as the older girls, but she listened and tried her best. I don’t think I would have appreciated her social maturity as much had I not experienced her brother, who licked the mirrors at dance class a few years ago.

   

  Next up on the agenda – an afternoon/evening of celebration with my friends. In honor of Sandy and Melissa’s birthday, Karen and I joined them at Arden Hills Spa. I indulged in an 80 minute massage and also hung out in the complimentary jacuzzi and steam room. After our spa treatments, Sandy, Melissa, and I had a leisurely dinner at Mulvaney’s B&L in midtown. Happy birthday to Melissa and Sandy!

  

  Sunday, Zachary’s soccer team had their end of year party at SkyHigh. The boys had a great time jumping, followed by a pizza lunch and handing out of ‘participation’ trophies. It’s a great group of kids (and parents), and I hope they all decide to stay on the same team next season. They must have thought I did a decent job as team parent too, because I received a Thank You card with a $50 gift card to BJ’s restaurant.

   

  In the evening, we went to Dana’s house for a playdate followed by dinner. The kids had a great time playing, and the salad, potato soup (from a blender!), and grilled salmon was very delicious. Thank you Dana!

  

    

  I took Monday off to spend some extra time with the kids since it’s a nonacademic week for them. Unexpectedly, both kids said they wanted to go to school. Then Zach tried to negotiate half a day at home and half a day at school. We played at home for awhile and then went to SkyHigh for ‘Munchkin Monday’, which meant $5 for 2 hours of jumping. To maintain my status as “Parent of the Year”, we had pizza, nachos, and Dipping Dots for lunch!

   

  After SkyHigh, I gave Zach the option of going to school. He said,”Well, since you took the day off and that’s rare, it’s a special day for you … so I’ll stay home.” Gee… thanks, Zach. In the evening, Zachary invited a few classmates (Alex, Billy, Rohan, and Dylan) and their parents over for a Wii playdate. Since it was rainy/cold and I had the day off, I made my light version of Zuppa Toscana soup. I also picked up a loaf of jalapeno cheese bread for appetizer and white chocolate cinnamon bread for dessert – I love fresh bread with real butter. I am pleased to say that all the food was eaten. Success!

  

  Tuesday, I had planned to take the day off, but there was an escalation at work I needed to take care of. James also had to manage a roof repair on our rental home. The day wasn’t lost though – we got what we needed done by afternoon, had a late lunch at BJs (thanks soccer team!), and did some shopping before picking up the kids. Wednesday, James’ parents came … of course the kids were very happy about that!

   

  Thanksgiving morning, James, Zachary, and I went on a 5k run while James’ parents watched Calie at home. I knew I could run a 5k in slightly over half an hour, but I did not expect Zachary to be able to finish it. Therefore, the plan was for James to stay back with Zachary so that he would not get lost in the crowd. On the way to the race, I reminded Zachary he needed to pace himself. After about half a mile of pacing with me, I was done with Zach pestering me about running faster. I decided that if he wanted to learn a lesson about over exertion and cramping, then he could go ahead. James sped up to run at a faster pace and pretty soon, I couldn’t see them. At the 1 mile water stop, there was a big crowd, and I assumed Zachary and James were in the midst of it, probably needing to walk the rest of the way. Imagine my shock when I crossed the finish line at 32 minutes 44 seconds … and saw Zachary and James waiting (and eating Cheetos – is James trying to compete for my ‘Parent of the Year’ award?!). Zach’s official time was 29 minutes and 26 seconds. He ran the entire way, with only a few stops to wait for James. He was the fastest kid under 7-years-old, and there almost 4000 people running/walking the race. According to Zachary (who was way too smug), he could have run faster if he didn’t have to keep pace with his parents. While I was proud of him for performing so well, it was also a bit demoralizing for me. Is this when the new generation starts outperforming the previous? So early? I’m only 36-years-old … aside from video games, I should still be better at everything, right? Next goal for me …take a minute off my mile.

   

  We had a traditional Thanksgiving dinner with turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes etc. After dinner, everyone went to sleep so I headed to the outlets for early Black Friday shopping. The deals weren’t that great, but it’s the one time during the year where store are open after the kids are in bed. I shopped until past 2am!

  

  Saturday, James’ parents left and my sisters came to visit. We went to SkyHigh (again!), followed by a sushi dinner at Mikunis. After dinner, James took the kids home while my sisters and I hit Nordstroms Rack. We all had Groupons (paid $25 for a $50 gift card) and I ended up with a pair of black skinny jeans (Joes, size 27 … mismarked because I am not a 27) and a black cardigan for just $15 over my gift card – Score!

   

  Sunday, the kids had swim lessons. During the day, we played board games, read books, and set up our Christmas tree – this year, both kids could hang up ornaments. In the evening, we headed to the Rancho Cordova tree lighting. We went on a small train ride, the kids made some ornament crafts, and we had some of Tabitha’s warm cider (yummy!), but it was too cold to stay for the tree lighting. We left after an hour, and ended up going to La Favorita for dinner instead … very good Mexican food!

  

  

  And so that concluded our Thanksgiving week … family, food, and SkyHigh, I mean, fun. Back to work on Monday (actually Sunday evening, but we won’t talk about that.)

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