29 October 2006

Guess what

Somehow the phrase "Guess what" has made it into Zoë's vocabulary and the usage is heavy to the point of abusive these days. She will tell a story and it will go something like this:

Zoë: Guess what Michael did today.
Me: What?
Zoë: He stuck his tongue out at Miss Jen and guess what.
Me: What?
Zoë: Miss Jen gave him a time out, but guess what.
Me: What?
Zoë: He kept sticking his tongue out from time out so guess what.
Me: What?
Zoë: He had to go to the office and guess what.
Me: What?
Zoë: He was crying.

That has been my entire weekend.

26 October 2006

Website of the Week: Grey Matter

I admit it. Like millions of others I am a huge Grey's Anatomy fan. Therefore I probably don't even need to tell you how disappointed I was to realize that there is not a new episode on tonight. Ugh! I was so looking forward to getting into bed and firing up the Tivo.

For nights like tonight and any other moment I am having a Grey's Anatomy jones, I have discovered a great site, really it's a blog, from the writers of the show. It's called Grey Matter. The writer of that week's episode posts so there is one posting per week. They don't give away plot details, but there are lots of nice insights into the show's development. And if you're into it, there are about 500 to 700 comments per post.

So, go get your fix because 7 days can be a long, long time.

25 October 2006

Costume craziness

Every year without fail Zoë has a last minute change of heart when it comes to what she wants to be for Halloween. Not inlcuding the first one when she couldn't talk or walk -- ah the good old days! It doesn't matter if she picked out the costume herself or if I bought it for her. She did not disappoint this year.

This past Spring we took her to the huge Toys R Us in Times Square. She had received a $50 gift card for her birthday and we were there to spend it. Among other things, she picked out a Snow White dress and declared that she would wear it for Halloween, despite the fact that Halloween was 6 months away. I wasn't counting on her sticking with being Snow White and when the first costume catalogs began to arrive I asked her if wanted to look through them to pick out a costume. She insisted she was going to be Snow White.

Finally, about a month ago, I gave up and decided she absolutely would be Snow White. And then this past weekend it happened.

"Mom, I changed my mind. I don't want to be Snow White. I want to be a cheerleader," she whined to me.

I know what Party City is like in the weeks before Halloween and I didn't want to experience it again this year so I firmly put my foot down and told her it was too late to change her mind. "Besides, Snow White is way cooler than a cheerleader," I added to my firm "absolutely not."

She seems to have accepted that she is stuck with Snow White. Quite a nice Snow White costume, I should add.

22 October 2006

The Cosmetics Counter

First of all, I apologize for my prolonged absence and complete lack of posts. I was traveling first for business, then for pleasure. It has taken me an additional 4 days to catch up with my life. However, I did put my quiet time to good use -- I thought of another feature for the blog. Starting today, I will be celebrating my love for make-up, nail polish, perfume, soaps, etc. I am calling this feature "The Cosmetics Counter" and each week I will discuss a new product that I have tried.

This week's product is Clinique In the Pink lipstick $14.00.

First of all $10.00 from your purchase helps support The Breast Cancer Research Foundation’s quest to find a cure. Besides my never ending love of lipsticks that was the primary motivation for purchasing this product. I am happy to report that it is a really nice shade of pink and the lipstick itself feels really good on your lips. It is very smooth and the look is slightly glossy. And one of my favorite things about Clinique lipsticks is that there is no odor to them. Because it is also relatively sheer, this is a flattering shade for anyone who can wear pink lipsticks.

13 October 2006

I Sad

I have been away on a business trip since Wendesday morning. Just before I left home, I left a note for a still sleeping Zoë on her chalkboard/easel. It said "I love you. See you soon! Mommy."

Wednesday night, all on her own, Zoë: wrote on the chalkboard "I sad Mommy miss." She's only 4! I am now completely convinced of my daughter's genius. She managed to impress me with her intelligence as well as make me feel guilty for being away in one swoop!

Amazing.

08 October 2006

Website of the Week: Picasa

At home I am a Mac user, but at work I am forced to use a PC. So, here's one for all you PC users who don't have iPhoto...Picasa!

Picasa (brought to you by Google, of course) is software that helps you instantly find, edit and share all the pictures on your PC. Every time you open Picasa, it automatically locates all your pictures (even ones you forgot you had) and sorts them into visual albums organized by date with folder names you will recognize. Picasa also makes advanced editing simple by putting one-click fixes and powerful effects at your fingertips.

Picasa also makes it a snap to share your pictures – you can email, print photos at home, and make gift CDs. And with the new Web Albums feature, you can upload your photos to the web very easily. It syncs amazingly well with popular web albums like Kodak's (formerly Ofoto). And it even lets you publish directly to popular blog sites like the one I use. The photo of Zoë in the previous post was published through Picasa in about 10 seconds.

It really is incredibly easy to use and is almost as good as having iPhoto on a PC.

05 October 2006

04 October 2006

Motor Mouth

There are some days that go by when I feel like Zoë has not stopped talking the entire day. And even though I was not with her for 8 hours of the day while I was at work, this definitely feels like one of those days. It has been and endless barrage of "How come?" and "Watch this!" and "I want" and a lot of other non-sensical stuff.

Jeez I have a headache!

Of course, on the days that she is quiet I worry that she is sick or upset and try to get her to talk. Can I never be satisfied?

01 October 2006

Website of the Week: eBeanstalk

eBeanstalk.com is the gift that keeps on giving for babies and kids. As a matter of fact every 3 months a new gift arrives for the kid of your choice. Place your order by age and and every three months they’ll send a new toy — every one chosen by development experts and moms to correspond to the child's age.

For Birthdays and Births simply click on the appropriate age category and you will be taken to a page where you can select one of the recommended gift series, or customize your own. Their reccommended series are great and keeps the need to think for yourself down to a real minimum.

For non Birthdays you can click the 'shop by age' button. And deliveries include instructions explaining why the toy is so perfect, which skills it will help develop, and the best ways to play with it together.

The only bad thing is that for kids older than 5 you're on your own. Their age ranges end at 4 to 5.