“Ding Dong the Witch is Dead” just gets better and better when Sophie the Sparkly Witch sings them. And her lyrics are much more enjoyable than the original version, I might add.
Category Archives: Treasures from the Archives
Au Revoir, Harry Potter
We heard the patter of not-so-little feet last night at 10 pm. As they made their way down the stairs, we knew it was Chloe. She approached us with a bittersweet smile on her face and asked “Can I stay up to finish Harry Potter? Please? Please?” She had made it to the epilogue of the final tome – how could we say no?
Chloe was excited and sad at the same time. “I don’t want it to end.” She was unabashedly proud of her accomplishment – a total of 4,198 pages read in less than four months. Her favorite part of the series came near the end, when Harry and his friends battled Voldemort and the Death Eaters. Dumbledore and Ron were her favorite characters and the saddest part for her was when Dumbledore died. She was most surprised by the truth about Snape (who wasn’t nearly as evil as she once suspected).
Chloe is going to miss Harry Potter and is looking for the next series to dig her teeth into. Suggestions are welcome. She’s understandably afraid she’ll never find another series that she’ll love as much as Harry Potter. “J.K. Rowling is such a good author,” Chloe said wistfully. Perhaps Chloe will be the next J.K. Rowling…
School!
On January 20, we may be inaugurating a new president, but in equally exciting news (at least for our family), Sophie will be starting preschool – three mornings a week. So that she’s all ready for full-time pre-K in September. She’s constantly talking about her little friends who are going to school and smiles whenever she mentions it.
Now she’s going to get her chance to join the ranks of the toddler students. Learning her ABCs, her numbers and maybe even how to spell her name. Her papa is particularly excited about what will surely be her sooner-than-expected ability to spell “Papa.” We’ll see about that. One step at a time.
When I explained to her that she’d be starting school in a few days, she asked whether she’d be going by herself. When I responded yes, she replied, “Cool!” I love my girls. They make me laugh (when they’re not fighting).
Better Late Than Never…Hanukkah 2008
I just realized that I had been meaning to post a photo of Hanukkah 2008 since the last day of Hanukkah. Yet another example of time just getting away from me. I am truly convinced that it’s an age thing – you turn 40 and all goes to hell. My eyes have also been bothering me.In any case, back to Hanukkah. It was very nice this year. Chloe, as you can see from the photo, loves playing with fire. The only problem is that we have this miniature menorah – it wouldn’t be out of place in a dollhouse – that has a hard time holding candles. I think we’re going to have to invest in a new menorah next year.
Sophie’s one obsession during the Hanukkah festivities was blowing out the candles. We had to repeatedly tell her that such a thing was not possible. And every time, she’d puff out her cheeks and huff in disappointment. Oh well. Life is tough sometimes.
I Should Have Known Better
It was inevitable, I suppose. I should have listened to my brain last night before I went to sleep because it was screaming, “Take some sleeping pills, you dope!” Needless to say, I didn’t heed my brain’s sage advice, and I spent half the night fighting insomnia, thinking about all of the work stuff I had avoided thinking about during my vacation. The upside to this was that I arrived at work this morning knowing pretty well what I needed to do. The downside is that I felt like puking all day long from lack of sleep.
So here I am at home, having barely survived my first day back at the office, wondering if I’m feeling so crappy because I’m exhausted, or because I’m coming down with something. I hope it’s the former and not the latter.
In the meantime, because I am now lying in bed (and it’s only 7:15 pm!) being lazy and trying desperately to feel less nauseous, I will not be spending much time on this blog entry. Luckily, you have the privilege of viewing our future female Kurt Mazur conduct her own version of the Electric Light Orchestra.
Back to Work
Sadly, tomorrow is around the corner. Which means it’s back to work. Tomorrow marks my year anniversary at the firm. Time flew.
It’s nice having a vacation at the end of the year – I feel renewed and ready for the new year. As long as it doesn’t bring too much negative news. But 2008 was so bad on so many fronts that I truly believe things will start to get better (perhaps not before some additional economic hiccups, however).
Chloe has started to write a chapter book about a girl named Melanie, who is on an adventure to solve a mystery. Once she’s finished (who knows when that will be!), I may serialize it on the blog. And look for a publisher…I’m hoping to live vicariously through my daughter. Having always dreamed of writing a book myself, I suppose the second best thing would be to have a daughter who might actually do it!
Hamster in a Ball
I’m getting more daring using Apple’s iMovie program. This is Gloup exercising to the tune of Amy Winehouse’s “Rehab.” I think you’ll find that there’s a certain cheekiness to my song choice that works well with the hamster action depicted in the video.
January 1, 2009
Here we are closing in on the end of the first day of 2009. It was a fairly uneventful day, as I’ve found most New Year’s Days to be. We lounged around in our pajamas until 11 AM, played board games and I escaped for a couple of hours to check out the sales at the mall – a disappointing excursion that didn’t yield much, except for two very cheap pairs of pants from J. Crew.
The girls were still going at it this morning, but they seemed to have reached a bit of a truce this afternoon. They even expressed love for each other – without adult prompting. Sophie initiated it, and those three simple words, “I love you,” brought a big smile to Chloe’s face and an “I love you” back.
Three more days left of vacation, and back to the office on Monday, which will mark my one year anniversary at the firm. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, time has flown by this year. I hope 2009 brings better tidings for everyone – family, friends, strangers…less war, a better economy, happiness and health for my girls, a good teaching job for my brother…and if we can swing it, a nice vacation in July for my husband and me, to celebrate our 40th birthdays and our 15th wedding anniversary. Oh – and hopefully, no more drama with the house.
Au Revoir 2008
This is how we’re ringing in the new year. With a demolished sunroom that was collapsing because a previous owner didn’t bother to pour a foundation when it was built. The good news is that it’s now on its way to being cured. The bad news is that we have to do rebuild it in the first place. At least one thing is sure about the imminent arrival of 2009: it will be memorable for the new and improved room.
The last few days of 2008 have been notable for the increased frequency of sibling fighting. Chloe baits Sophie, Sophie hits and kicks. Sophie baits Chloe, Chloe hits and kicks. They seem to be doing this for our benefit – because our babysitter often remarks as to how well behaved they are when she’s on duty. But the constant bickering of the last 10 days is definitely taking its toll on the parents.
We’re not quite sure how to make them understand that it’s too much. That life is too short for them to lose time not appreciating one another. That they’re sisters – and that Chloe should know better than to let Sophie get the best of her. They’ve been banned from TV tomorrow – which I know is going to cause Sophie to melt down in the morning because she won’t remember the punishment when she wakes up.
Suffice to say, I will admit to the fact that with every new argument I’m looking slightly more forward to returning to work on Monday. Ugh. We’re definitely going to have to find a way to nip this in the bud before they grow up hating each other.
My New Year’s Resolutions:
– find a way to keep Sophie and Chloe from attacking each other;
– cook more on the weekends, and recruit Sophie and Chloe as sous-chefs;
– save more money.
Happy New Year!
Our Hamster Friends
Chloe has bonded with her hamsters. They like Sophie too, as long as both kids offer sunflower seeds and other assorted treats, like apples, blueberries and greens. My brother has requested a video of the hamsters frolicking in their ball – stay tuned. In the meantime, you can enjoy Gloup as he frolics with Chloe and Sophie.