I need a mommy coach

I think I need a mommy coach. You know, someone who can guide me through the ins and outs of being a mom, especially a mom of a pre-schooler.

I had a near traumatic experience on Tuesday morning, Valentine's Day. I woke up early to get some work done before my early meeting. CJ had a Valentine's Day party during school and I checked his school newsletter to check the time.

As I read the announcement about the party more closely, it said, "please make sure you bring a valentine for every child in class." Oh my god, I realized that the valentines that CJ had made in school were not sufficient. My child was expected to bring a valentine for every child in the class. So here it was, 6am, I need to be in Maryland by 9am and I hadn't showered or eaten.

I ran around like a crazy woman, looking for supplies. Luckily, CJ and I had made a bunch of paper snowflakes the previous weekend. I decided to make Valentine's Day cards with the snowflakes. Problem was, I could not find the glue stick. I actually called the nanny at home at 6:30am to find out where she keeps the glue stick.

I did it. I made 15 Valentine's Day cards, got dressed, got CJ dressed and ready for school, and was only 15 minutes late to my meeting. CJ did not have to endure the trauma of being the only child without valentines for his classmates. Phew. Saved by the snowflakes.

So I definitely need a mommy coach. Someone who will remind me to buy CJ's Halloween costume in September, tell me what snacks are good for pre-schoolers, teach me about playdate etiquette, and tell me about upcoming craft projects. Dear God, CJ is only 3.

I'm interested in politics again

I have two degrees in International Relations and I used to be very interested in domestic and international politics. I campaigned for a few candidates and I faithfully read the Post, the Economist, the Far Eastern Economic Review, TIME. But over the past few years, I just lost interest in politics. Although I have never missed voting in a general election (I have even voted in all but one primaries), I just lost interest.

This year, like many people I suspect, is different. I am reading about the presidential campaigns, I'm reading the detailed profiles of the candidates from both parties, and I'm staying up (not too late, but still staying up) to watch the returns. I'm excited that the Democrats will make history with their candidate this year, and it's fun to see a real race for the Republican nomination for a change.

I'm sure the campaign leading up to the November election will get really ugly, really soon, but for now, it's great to be interested again.

No bubble bath

I am finally using the fancy jacuzzi tub in our master bathroom. On weekends when I have time, Maki lets me soak for an hour in hot, bubbly water. I think it's a leftover from our trip to Japan last November, when I rediscovered the joys of hot baths at the ryokan (Japanese inn) in Kyoto.

So here's my beef. I ran out of bubble bath last week and trooped over to Bed Bath & Beyond. It's a bath store, they have to have bubble bath, right? Well guess what? Bed Bath & Beyond does NOT carry bubble bath (I asked three salespeople). How is that even possible? No idea. They did have a bath pillow, which has made my baths even more relaxing, but no bubble bath.

For bubble bath, I had to go to Target. God bless Target, which even had several choices of bubble bath. I now favor the Aveeno bubble bath coz it's got fancy moisturizers.

I love Amtrak

Last week, I took the train up to New York City to make a presentation at a client's Board meeting. Did I think about flying up to NY from DC? Not for one minute. Here are the many reasons I love taking the train to NY:

1. I can get my tickets last minute. Of course, there is always the chance that a specific train will sell out, but I almost never have trouble buying a ticket the night before.
2. I can get to the train station 30 minutes before the train leaves and still have plenty of time to park my car, go downstairs, go to the bathroom and grab coffee before boarding.
3. 9 times out of 10, the train leaves on time and arrives on time. On the few occasions that the Acela or Metroliner has been late, it has been by 5-10 minutes. How often does that happen with a commercial flight?
4. When I arrive in NY, I am less than 10 minutes away by cab from pretty much anywhere I need to go, and there is a civilized taxi line.
5. It takes less time to get to NY from my house on the train, door to door, than flying.
6. There is AC power on the train so I can work on my laptop.
7. There is plenty of legroom.
8. Although the food is not great, there are lots of options. I can always get by on a bagel and yogurt or pepperoni pizza.
   
9. The Arrive magazine actually has some good suggestions for events and restaurants in NY and Washington.
10. I can use my cell phone if I need to, or go into the quiet car if I want absolutely peace and quiet.
11. I have a lot of interesting people on the train.
12. I met my husband on the train! No kiddng!

I'm back on the treadmill

So I'm finally back on the treadmill and it feels great. They say it takes 28 days (or is it 21?) to make or break a habit, so I'm day 12 into a new routine. What's the routine? 5 minutes of stretching and 25 minutes on the treadmill, at a fast walk, with small weights. I'm going to work up to 30 minutes on the treadmill and heavier weights, but I'm trying to just get back into the habit of exercising.

The first week was brutal. It was just sooooo hard to get up, put on my sports bra, and just start stretching, much less get on the treadmill (that black piece of equipment that mocks me every time I enter the basement). Of course, it helped that the scale showed I had lost 3 lbs, but that's probably mostly water.

A presentation by Joe Dillon (http://www.thejoedillondifference.com) at my CEO group meeting earlier this month did the trick. He gave us flabby CEOs a routine we can follow: 30 minutes of fast walking with weights 3 times a week + lean protein and carbs at every meal. I'm not quite ready to throw out ALL of the sugar in my diet, but I'm being more careful, especially after the sweets of the Christmas season.

I need to make a few more workout CDs to make exercising interesting, but that's why God made iTunes, right?

If I can lost 10 pounds, I will feel like a million bucks. Stay tuned on my progress.

Flight 93 Crash Site

Last Sunday, January 13, I went out to Shanksville, PA to visit the Flight 93 crash site with my brother Alex and friend Andrew. We were told by friends who had visited that we would be moved the experience and that turned out to be an understatement.

Getting to Shanksville is not hard; the crash site is not far from I-70 and the roads are good. But it does require a commitment of over 3 hours each way from the DC area. When you get to Lambertsville Road, you wind down an unpaved road for a few miles and eventually reach a former strip mining area where the plane crashed. The place is pretty desolate in the winter.

Like the other 9/11 sites, there isn't an official memorial yet. The National Park Service and the Flight 93 Memorial Fund are raising money to construct the official memorial and visitor center - http://www.honorflight93.org

There is, however, a temporary memorial that is amazing to see. The NPS and local township erected a small shack, two flagpoles and a plaque. But there are thousands and thousands of memorials and artifacts that have been left by visitors. There are marble and granite plaques, t-shirts, sculptures, signs, stickers, pins, license plates -- all manner of expressions of grief, thanks, and respect. The Park service volunteer we spoke with (Donna, who volunteers her time at the memorial twice a week) says the NPS has over 30,000 artifacts in the archives.

While we were at the crash site, despite the cold, windy weather, there was a steady stream of people who came to visit. What brings people to this place, so far from an urban area? One man with a baby said it was his third visit, that his family likes to pay their respects every time they come down to visit family in MD. Another NPS volunteer says military personnel about to be shipped off to Iraq come to visit with their families, and they explain that Flight 93 is the reason they are going off to duty.

If you get a chance to go, go.

Pythagoras Switch

About six months ago, Maki's dad sent us a DVD of a program that had aired on Japanese television. The DVD is called Pitagora Suicci or Pythagoras Switch. It seems there is a huge underground of Rube Goldberg fans in Japan: schools host competitions, programs are aired on TV, and there are countless videos on YouTube devoted to what CJ calls "marble games." CJ calls them marble games because many involve rolling marbles through elaborate mazes, tracks and contraptions.

Here's a video from the Japanese program
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3uv1eFphpLQ
-- at the end of each segment, you hear "pitagora suicci" or Pythagoras Switch
-- if this is what they are airing on Japanese TV, no wonder the schoolkids are so interested in math and science!

Here's one of our favorites. It involves rolling balls and marbles up and down ramps to finally create a bowl of ramen.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kvdq8cRNBM

Remember the Honda Rube Goldberg ad? It's on YouTube!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UScbWzhieNc&NR=1

Here's a French Rube Goldberg Video Involving Pool Tables and Dominos - unbelievable!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fPnsCPGhvE

We are addicted to these videos and watched a ton of them on New Year's Day, courtesy of the Apple TV! Hope you enjoy them, too!