February 23, 2011

• (What another blog so quickly? Why yes, I am procrastinating ... folding laundry can wait!)

  Dana's celebration continued Friday after work. Sandy, Melissa, Janis, and I met up with her in Sacramento to see 'The Musical of Musicals', a parody of different musicals. It was quite good - the singers were all strong and since it was a local production in a small theater, we had great seats! After the show, we headed to Pizza Rock for a late dinner ... and we also peeked inside the 'Dive Bar' to see their mermaid. Got home about midnight, which was way past my bedtime. What a fun girl's night out!

   

   

  (Thanks Dana for the photos!)

   

  On Saturday, after Calie's dance class,  I had Melissa, Rachel, Karen and their families over for Chinese hot pot. Rachel and Karen brought their hot pots, and I provided the ingredients - fish balls, thin slices of meat, shrimp, sprouts, napa cabbage, rice noodles, and the oh-so-critical "funny man" sauce. Jeff impressed me by asking for a raw egg to mix with the sauce.

   

  

   

  Aside from a few moments when Nicole and Calie came asking for bites, the kids entertained themselves and kept out of any trouble. The adults were able to converse at the dining room table without constantly catering to or monitoring kids. We had some good laughs about aging, especially when Karen debated getting new skiis because,"I don't know how long I'll be using them."

   

  

   

  After Zach's basketball practice/game, I took the kids on a 4+ mile walk to redeem a coupon for a free cupcake. Then it was off to Bennihanna's for a family dinner. James picked this place for entertainment value and because no one really opposed it. There is an on-going 'battle' in our household when it comes to eating out. The boys like pizza and mexican food, while the girls liked ethnic foods, specifically sushi and Chinese.

   

   

   

  On Sunday, after swim lessons, we took the kids to Brew It Up for lunch (I had a soon-to-expire Groupon) followed by ~3 hours of running around at Southside park. What a terrific park ... space themed with lots of playstructures to explore and a fenced off pond filled with ducks. Zachary loved all the spinning rides (no surprise), while Calie liked the slides and unfortunately also the sand pit. The weather was so perfect that we stayed alittle longer to play basketball and soccer ... had we known there were tennis courts, we would have brought our rackets/balls too. The only negative was the restroom, so bring lots of hand sanitizer ... and your own roll of toilet paper! 

   

   

   

   

  After we got home,  I went on a 4 mile run with Zachary even though I already ran 4 miles that morning with my running buddies. It was my attempt to compensate for yet another meal out. For dinner, we joined Melissa's family at Piatti's. On Sunday evenings, they have a family special: Casear salad, garlic bread, spaghetti with meatballs, and gelato for $15.99. Plus kids eat free. It was really good, and even better yet, all the kids cleaned their plates. Crayons and paper 'tablecloth' kept them occupied when they weren't eating; Zach and Alex drew scenes from the Cover Orange iPhone game and practiced their cursive. After the kids went to bed, I headed out for late night mahjongg with Melissa, Sam, and Karen. I won my first hand ever (came in strong with a 1-pointer), but still lost the game pretty badly!

   

  

   

  Monday was a day off work. In the afternoon, I took Zachary to RollerKing, where we met up with John. Zach's first attempt around the rink was pretty miserable. Lots of falling, some tears, and hanging on the wall with both hands. That said, the same characteristic that drives me insane (stubbornness), surprised me in a positive way. I was so sure he was going to ask me to take him home, but he wanted to keep trying. To encourage him, I told him he could earn 5 minutes of Wii or iPhone time for every lap. By the end of the skate session, we were skating hand in hand at 'regular' speed ... and Zachary earned over 6 hours of video games.  He was the very last person off the rink (76 laps) and asked when they were going to open again. On the other hand, I was beat. Over 2 hours of nonstop rollerblading was more than my now-aching body could handle!

   

   

   

  You may be asking ... so where was Calie? Since she naps better at daycare, we used that as an excuse to drop her off half day while James did our taxes. So there you have it. Happy President's Day! Hope everyone had a great 3-day-weekend.

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