Above and Beyond

As we get ready to leave for Germany, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on Christmas so far. And I really must say I have not only gone above and beyond in my motherly duties but all of the events we planned to do before we left also went above and beyond my expectations. Let’s take a walk down Christmas Town memory lane

Thanksgiving: we kicked off the holiday season with a week up at Dunsmuir. My parents joined for most of the time and Cody and Brenda came down for two nights before heading over to Pillsbury for a long weekend. I love this tradition and hope it continues. I would love it even more if Dana and her family joined as well. 

Attempting to get a family photo up at Bunny Flats

The Lighted Tractor Parade: when Oskar was born I stumbled upon a story about the Lighted Tractor Parade in Calistoga that happens every year in December. I added it to the list of fun things to do with the family once the kids were old enough to stay up to see it. And this was the year we were going to do it. The parade and overall weekend did not disappoint: it was everything I had envisioned and so much better. On top of the parade (truly the highlight) the kids also loved swimming in the hotel pool before dinner (I should note it was raining and cold, but the pool was heated by thermal springs) and on the way home Martin used the opportunity to stop by a house he designed for us to see. 

Parenting Overdo #1 - The Advent Puzzle: one of Martin's friend's sister-in-law's best friend’s cousins started a tradition of giving a few pieces of legos to the friend's son everyday in an advent calendar so at the end of the 24 days, they had built a new Lego creation. Martin wanted to do this same idea but with puzzle pieces for our kids. The concept seemed easy enough and, being the puzzle lover between the two of us, I took on the task of buying the puzzle. While the concept was straightforward, execution was another story. The kids typically do 200 piece puzzles in an hour so I would need to buy one with more pieces… if it was to go in their advent calendar, 1,000 pieces seemed like the right size. But then I realized, in order for the kids to have fun putting it together, they would need to have matching pieces in each bundle. Which meant I had to put together a 1,000 piece puzzle in November before leaving for the week at Dunsmuir so I could take it apart and wrap it up.  If that isn’t going above and beyond on this idea I don’t know what is. 

Parenting Overdo #2 - Packing the Gifts: this is our first year back to Germany since Oskar was 3.5 and Alva wasn’t even walking. Christmas presents were slightly different back then, so when we started prepping for the trip I naturally assumed that we would take all of our presents with us to Germany for the kids to open there. I mean, it’s Christmas, you have to have presents under the tree right? Apparently not! Everyone I talked to thought we were crazy (and I can’t say they were wrong). One family leaves the presents under the tree for when the family comes home from their travels. Another suggested just bringing one or two and leaving the rest behind. Of course I didn’t talk to anyone until after we committed and reconfirmed with the kids that Santa would in fact deliver presents to Germany. Instead of disappointing, I did what I had to do, I bought two large extra suitcases to pack it all up to Germany and then back to San Francisco. I really hope we find a better solution next time. 

Nutcracker: this year we got to introduce the kids to the Nutcracker at the SF ballet. And we did it right. We (meaning I) bought great seats, the first row of the grand tier, so the kids could stand and look over the side for an unobstructed view of the dancers. I pre-ordered apple cider and champagne for us to enjoy during intermission.  We prepped the kids ahead of time, telling them the story and explaining what to expect and as a result, they loved it!  And even better Alva and I participated in the Nutcracker Dance Along later that weekend to learn some of the dances at the real ballet studio. 

Crab and Raviolis: as mentioned before, for my family Christmas is all about the tradition rather than the date on the calendar. This is incredibly helpful when leaving for Germany and not being in town for the main event. So Christmas for my family was planned for the weekend before we left for Germany. As always, it was a loud, fun evening filled with love and laughter and a few elbows thrown to get the last crab claws out of the bowl.  

Christmas celebrations could end now I would still be happy.

Alva’s “First “ Birthday Party

Yes Alva turned four this year and yes her birthday was in July. But we still threw her a birthday this past weekend since we were gone most of the summer and this was the first weekend we could make it work. I should also confess this was her first true birthday party, complete with friends, cupcakes, etc since Covid has ruined our plans the last two years.

We made it a Princess in Black theme to cover both princesses and monster fighting super heroes. And not to brag, but I think I nailed it. Why? It is simple really. 

But before I share my secret first let me tell you all of the reasons that didn't factor into the success of the day: it wasn’t because of the balloons, well planned activities, party favors or decorations. We didn’t have those. It wasn’t because we went to a fancy all-inclusive location or had an on-site bouncy house. We didn’t do that, we hosted at our local park. And it wasn’t due to the gourmet appetizers, custom charcuterie boards or artisan made cupcakes. Nope, we had golden boy pizza and home made cupcakes.

In spite of the lack of flair that is normally at a kid's party (mostly for the adults I might add), Alva had a great time. And you want to know why?

When asked if she had fun and what her favorite part was she said it was the best day ever and she loved the presents (although we asked people not to bring any) and the snacks.  Gotta love my daughter. Let's hope she is this easy going forward. 

Alva sitting at the table eating snacks while everyone else played

Martin's home made chocolate cupcakes

Alva showing off her new necklace from her friend Alec 

Introvert or Exhaustion?

We all know how susceptible I am to the power of suggestion. Two minutes into the trailers at a movie theater and I want popcorn, I listen to a few stand up comedians and think I could do it too, I read a book about introverts and convince myself I am one. You get the picture. 

However, I must say, this last point might have merit to it. After a full ten days of socializing, travels, parties and visitors I am spent.  I just want to curl up in a dark room by myself for at least 24 hours to recharge my batteries. So this is a serious question: can a person become an introvert overtime, has Covid made me socially out of shape or am I suffering from a serious case of exhaustion?

Maybe it will help if I give you a cliff notes overview of the last few days

Wednesday: Participate in a fireside chat in front of the entire Finance organization about my participation in the Black Owned Business Mentorship program

Thursday to Sunday: Travel to Colorado for the annual Halloween girls weekend with McKane

Monday to Wednesday: Coordinate and host a team offsite with my entire team in town, meaning full days in the office and two big dinners out on the town

Wednesday: Participate in another fireside chat at an ESG training to talk about my team's structure and our accomplishments in ESG reporting

Wednesday to Thursday:  Host my new friend Jessica (Juliet’s daughter) during her visit to California including a full day off work on Thursday for us to hang out

Thursday:  Bring on the mom guilt. Oskar had to have his eyebrow glued back together after a minor accident at school.  Martin was there to console him while I was off galivanting around town with Jessica

Saturday:  Organize and host Alva’s birthday party at the local playground

Monday: Go trick or treating for Halloween

Thank goodness Martin and I have a weekend getaway with just the two of us this upcoming weekend. I need a break!

Scratch that. Martin got sick so we cancelled the trip. But the kids still really wanted to go to the parents house so I ended up with a free night to myself downstairs. Which honestly might be even better than Napa. Here's to hoping we all get a break soon. 

Thank goodness I got a spa day in Colorado.  I wouldn't have made it through the week otherwise

Lollipops always help

Carving pumpkin the Sunday before Halloween

Oskar gave up carving his pumpkin (delegated to Martin) but Alva did hers all by herself

Trying on a few wigs before heading out to Trick or Treat

My princess and race car driver

Half Assed

It might surprise most who read this blog, but I do actually take some time writing up each entry. I typically create a general framework of what I want to write about real time, then build it out and proof read it a few times before posting. When inspired, this process can be very quick (e.g. I can have a full blog written in a day on my phone or notebook and then I just need to proofread it on my computer) or, in the case of the past two months, it can take two months or longer.

Since my big dump of stories from our European vacation, I have started the shell of at least 5 blogs but have lost the motivation and inspiration to finalize them. So, in an effort to clear my plate or clean the slate and get caught up, I am posting my half assed, not finished streams of consciousness in the following posts.  

Welcome to the creative process aka the crazy storm inside my brain.