Blog: November 2007
Holiday Radio Rant
Can someone explain why the moment Thanksgiving Day arrives, radio stations decide it's time to dust off all the holiday CDs and torture listeners with every rendition of Little Drummer Boy they can dredge up? From Rod Stewart to Barry Manilow to Mariah Carey to Madonna to Josh Groban (who happens to be the only singer who should be allowed to sing holiday songs), I can't tell you how many times I've gotten into my car in the last two weeks only to find myself being tortured by another version of "Santa Baby."
It's not like I'm a Scrooge or anything. In fact, I happen to enjoy a nice rendition of "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire" from time to time. But if I have to hear one more Jewish crooner singing another Christmas tune, I'm going to hurl. Wouldn't it be refreshing to hear Barry Manilow or Barbara Streisand for that matter belt out their own version of "Dreidel, dreidel, dreidel?" Sure the song is a little redundant, but maybe it's time for someone to spice up some Hanukah tunes so we can have some equal opportunity holiday radio play during the month of December.
Just imagine going out for a leisurely drive on a crisp fall day with your family, you flip on the radio and the next thing you know, Hannah Montana is singing Hava Nagila. Sure we still have the Adam Sandler Hanukah song that was a hit back in the 90's but other than that, no one has taken a stab at rocking out the festival lights like they do with Christmas. So I say, let's give a shout out to some other holidays. Hey - I'm sure there are some Kwanza songs that they can be playing on the radio. And maybe, Barry Manilow can rediscover his roots, cook up a few latkes, gather around the Hanukah bush and entertain us with some festive jingles straight from the holy land. And for those of you struggling to think of a Hanukah song that you can sing with your family, here's a tune that'll get you into that crazy eight day spirit.
Hanukah, oh Hanukah come light the menorah,
Blah, bi di blah, oh blah bi di blah, I sometimes read the torah,
Gather round the candles, but don't touch the flame,
I wish I knew the words to this song cause it now sounds kind of lame,
Oh who am I kidding. I guess I'll be brushing up on my Menorah tunes along with Barry and Barbara. Then again, maybe the three of us can record a new version of Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire. If you can't beat 'em (or remember the words), then join 'em.
Happy Holidays!
Posted in: Blog, Role Mommy Confessions on 11/30/2007
NEW ROLE MOMMY RECOMMENDS CONTRIBUTOR...THREE LOVELIES!
Offering some great holiday shopping tips is our brand new contributor, Whitney Chianese, founder of Three Lovelies - a fabulous website to purchase gifts for babies, moms and the special women in your life.
The holidays are here and shopping season has officially begun! In my opinion, the two biggest obstacles with holiday shopping are finding the time (I?m convinced the days go by faster in December!) and scouring for the perfect gift. Here are a few tips to keep in mind while shopping both in-store and online ? the goal is to be efficient and have some fun in the process!
CRUISING THE AISLES:
1. Create a game plan ? shopping without a plan can leave you feeling lost. Create a list that includes stores, names of who you?re shopping for and the type of gifts you need. This will not only save time, but also reduce stress?especially if the kids are in tow.
2. Pack snacks ? shopping on an empty stomach leaves you feeling lethargic and ready to throw in the towel. Pack healthy snacks such as a bag of nuts or a piece of fruit to keep you energized. You can also always grab a latte for a shot of caffeine and a dose of calcium!
SHOPPING ONLINE:
1. Set a time limit ? make a date with your computer and stick with it. Online shopping is a fabulous, time-saving tool, however, many people get sucked into cyberspace and find themselves browsing the web aimlessly. Limit your online shopping to a set period of time (one hour perhaps), this will make you stick to your goal and stay focused.
2. Visit a favorite designer?s website ? many designer?s include a list of online retailers that carry their merchandise. Since these stores already carry a product line that you love, chances are good that they?ll carry other items that are right up your alley as well.
3. Explore the Blogosphere ? blogs are an amazing resource for gift ideas. Many smaller businesses not only advertise on blogs, but are also discussed by blog members. Spend some time reading other people?s suggestions and I guarantee you?ll find some amazing gifts that everyone will be raving about.
One final thought ? a gift doesn?t always have to be a tangible item wrapped in a bow. Think about conversations you?ve had with family and friends in recent months - have they joined a new organization or charity, expressed interest in a new activity, talked about that one thing they?ve always wanted to do? It could be dancing lessons for someone who loves to dance or a donation to a meaningful charity, as long as it has meaning to the recipient.
And to get your juices flowing, and maintain your shopping momentum, I?ve featured a few gift ideas from my website www.threelovelies.com - check out the photos above for a sneak peak!:
· For the new mom, these sweet long-sleeve tee sets with holiday inspired icons are sure to be a hit.
· Women on the go will enjoy an exquisite (and spacious!) red python tote with faux snakeskin lining.
· The ?hostess with the mostess? can entertain with a sassy Zebra Party Tray.
· And for a little holiday splurge, the bracelet featured above is a must-have in any woman?s wardrobe!
And as my holiday gift to you, please enjoy a 10% discount on ALL merchandise at www.threelovelies.com through December 31st! Just enter RMHOLIDAY at checkout. I hope these tips (and gift suggestions) help guide you through the craziness of holiday shopping and that you get as much as you give! --------
Posted in: Blog, Role Mommy Recommends on 11/29/2007
The Mac Book Pro
Oh happy day! I have talked about buying a Mac computer for years and yet for some bizarre reason, I've always shied away - perhaps it was the price tag or the fact that it was easier to purchase those Dells, Gateways and Toshiba computers but then when I brought them home and began tooling around with it, somehow the machine became slower and slower with each passing day. Fed up with Internet Explorer and the way it always seems to corrupt my computer, I broke down and decided it was time to bite the bullet and hit the Apple store.
I had a fabulous conversation with one of the sales girls, a graphic designer who showed me the ropes with all the macs and we decided I was a perfect candidate for the MacBook Pro. And then I plunked down my credit card and a few moments later, I had entered the world of the Apple.
I have to admit - it is great fun - attempting to edit video and import music. Plus, I love the keyboard and am totally hooked on the sticky note thingy that helps you remember your to-do list without having to remember where you wrote it down.
So if you've got plans to buy yourself a computer this holiday season, then I say give the Mac Book pro a whirl...let the kids play with your slow computer and you can relish the fact that you have a brand new toy of your own!
Posted in: Blog, Role Mommy Recommends on 11/25/2007
The Eyes Have It
Overheard at the Ice Rink... Dad to precocious daughter... "I just saw what you did and you better cut it out or we're not going ice skating today." "How did you see me daddy, you weren't even looking at me?" "I have eyes in back of my head." "Oh no you don't, only Mommy does." --------Posted in: Blog, Kiddy Commentary on 11/21/2007
Old Yeller
I finally volunteered for my very first class trip this past week and it was truly an experience I won't forget. When I first arrived, I was pleased to see many of my favorite mom friends had volunteered for the trip too so we gossiped a bit in the hallway while we waited for the class to head our way and hit the bus. After about 15 minutes, we finally saw their smiling faces accompanied by a shrill voice that instantly harkened back memories of the time I came face to face with a teacher I'd like to call Old Yeller.
Before I share my childhood tale, let's go back to the school trip. All the kids boarded the bus and then the parents filed in and grabbed the remaining seats and suddenly, the voice erupted again, shocking everything and everyone in its wake. If you can think of the most piercing, nasal sound that can pretty much be heard in the next county, then you can imagine what we all encountered when Old Yeller started reprimanding kids left and right for talking too loud, sticking out their hands in the aisle, singing, turning around in their seats - if someone was making trouble, Old Yeller was right on the case. And she literally scared the beejezus out of me because I was directly in back of her!
As she kept on shouting out threats to the kids - "This will be your last school trip if you do that again," I began to reminisce, or shall I rephrase that by saying my encounter with this drill sargeant brought back frightful memories of a teacher's aide who used to rule the lunchroom at my elementary school in Brooklyn, NY. Her name was Mrs. Boyarsky and honestly, I don't know if she's still alive today because she was probably close to fifty back then and that was over 30 years ago. Mrs. Boyarsky was the original Old Yeller. If someone was acting up in the lunchroom, you could hear her voice clear across the room honing in on the offender and then pulling them out against the wall where they spent the rest of their lunch facing the gated windows and re-thinking that wedgie they gave their fourth grade classmate.
For real trouble makers, if Mrs. Boyarsky caught you doing something really out of line - like wrestling or fighting over who had the better bologna sandwich that day, she'd be on you like a prison warden and would pull you out of your seat, you'd stand for the rest of the period on her makeshift police line-up and then hit the Principal's office.
While I was a self-proclaimed goody two shoes and even turned in a bully during my time at P.S. 276, I did have one run-in with Old Yeller that I will never forget. It was the year "Grease" came out so let's say it was circa 1978. For some reason, during that year there was a comic book that was all the rage among fourth graders. The book was filled with color photos of all the characters from the movie with dialog written in comic strip form. All the kids in my class were clamoring to get that book and it was pretty hard to come by. Lucky for me, my parents tracked it down at a local comic book store so for a fleeting moment, I became the most popular girl in school - and as a chubby kid who was constantly teased for eating one two many twinkies, I was on top of the world.
As we sat in line after our lunch during what was called "Quiet Time," I began showing the book to my friends and the whispers gradually grew louder and louder as the girls passed the book down the row. When someone let out a squeal - they must have hit the Greased Lightning page - I heard the voice. The piercing voice that can send cats and dogs scouring for refuge. Old Yeller wanted to know whose book that was. And suddenly the room went silent. You could hear someone's lunch money drop. My momentary flirtation with popularity quickly faded away when the kids on my line turned around and pointed directly at me. I could feel my face hotten - I always turned beet red when I got nervous - and suddenly, Mrs. B. pulled me off the line and sent me to stand against the wall where kids pointed and ridiculed me in hushed tones. She then confiscated my book and to this day, I never did know what happened to "Grease: The Comic Book."
Needless to say, I never did talk out of turn or bring in items that would stir up the crowd, but that one experience with Old Yeller made me realize that I never wanted to be embarrassed again. If she bellowed that it was "Quiet Time" I pretty much kept my trap shut until I hit the sixth grade and left her to torment other little kids in her wake. I'm sure many of my former classmates have tales of Mrs. B and I'm absolutely positive that the kids on this week's class trip, or other children who have a tough teacher with a piercing voice will never forget how she ran a tight ship and didn't let anyone get away with anything. I know I have my Old Yeller moments too so I can't fault her for the technique - but I do hope the kids in her class also remember her for being an inspiring teacher who put them on the right track to greatness. Nobody ever wants to be remembered for being the nastiest teacher in the school. Only time will tell - for me and my brush with Mrs. Boyarsky - I know she was only doing her job and if I were in her position I might have done the same thing. My only regret - never getting my "Grease" book back - I still Google it to this day. So if anyone finds a "Grease" comic book please let me know - I promise not to cause a free-for-all this time around.
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Posted in: Blog, Undercover Mom on 11/19/2007
The Double Whammy
Can someone please explain to me the sick joke that the man upstairs pays on me when I'm preparing for a major event, am two days away from that major event, and both of my kids come down with strep! They've never even had strep before - but of course, today, as I had planned to tie up loose ends my son woke up with a strange rash and my daughter seemed perfectly fine - I even went with her on a school trip but when it was time to head home, she said she was feeling dizzy and tired and her throat ached and the next thing we knew, my husband, who lucky for me came home to take my son to the doctor so I could go on the school trip, ran back out to take my daughter to the doctor while I stayed home with my son and my trusty BlackBerry.
While responding to emails and crossing off dozens of items from my to do list, Dylan insisted we play a game. The guess which animal I'm thinking of game. I pretty much went through every animal I could think of and he aced the subject - next time I'll throw in a weevil just to keep it interesting. He then ate a few bites of dinner, refusing his veggies of course, and then I whipped out a special treat - we were going to bake smores cookies - you gotta love Pillsbury to cheer up any kid with a bacterial infection.
The diagnosis for my daughter - you guessed it - strep throat. And hence the name of this blog - Double whammy. A double whammy always seems to hit me when I'm busiest and maybe it's a wake up call that I've gone into overdrive since launching my two companies. Thank goodness my event will be over at 4:01 pm on Saturday and then I can relax and think about what culinary masterpiece I'll be purchasing for Thanksgiving when we entertain over a dozen relatives. Funny how people stress over what they're cooking for Thanksgiving, stress over work, stress over gaining weight, stress over carpool schedules and yet the biggest stress of all trumps everything hands down when your kids get really sick.
Thankfully my two kids are on antibiotics - one pink, one white with skin cream for his weird pimples and of course, they'll both be out of school tomorrow. According to the pediatrician, they should be fine by Saturday but if not, my hubby will be holding down the forte at home while I host a casting call for "Supernanny," over 30 vendors, performers, authors, an illustrator, Miss Teen New Jersey and a kid's fashion show that my daughter has been talking about for months. Life always has a funny way of throwing me curve balls, but no matter how busy I get or how many hats I wear, at the heart of everything is that I'm the one everyone depends on. I am mommy hear me roar. If Helen Reddy could see me now.
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Posted in: Blog, Role Mommy Confessions on 11/15/2007
Wii for Me!
My family has officially migrated over to the technological dark side. While we are pretty antiquated when it comes to embracing advances in new technology - like buying an HDTV or getting the kids Nintendo DS's three years after they were actually popular, we have finally entered the 21st century and are the proud owners of a Wii.
It's not because my husband and I camped out at Target at 8am to purchase said product, but luckily for us, my in-laws did instead. When I received a call at 8:20am this morning from my mother-in-law who informed us they had just snagged one of the last Wii's in the store, I have to admit, I was giddy with excitement. What is it about the Wii that has eveyone going wild?
We picked up the Wii tonight and after spending an hour hooking the thing up (not the Wii's fault, my new HDTV is totally not cooperating), my kids started to play baseball and I was amazed. You literally feel as if you are pitching and hit the ball! Now I have to tell those folks at Nintendo, they should give the players on the field legs, but other than looking like odd weeble wobbles with goatees and menacing looks, the games are pretty freakin' fun.
Granted, I haven't had a chance to play the game just yet. I am actually waiting for the kids to go to sleep (it's currently 10:38 pm) so that I can try my hand at tennis. Considering I've blown off the retirement league these last few weeks, maybe I can get my game up before I head back into the yenta tennis fray.
So here's to the Wii - I am officially part of the club, and I'm pretty psyched. Now if only my kids would go to sleep so we (my husband and I) can play a round of golf, tennis and bowling without ever getting off the couch. I'm going to have the most toned arms in Westchester - my butt and thighs are a whole different story but maybe next year's version will come with a stationery bike.
To return to Role Mommy, Click Here.
Labels: games, hdtv, kids, nintendo, wii
--------Posted in: Blog, Role Mommy Confessions on 11/11/2007
JESSICA BENSON, AUTHOR OF CARPOOL CONFIDENTIAL
This week I had the chance to meet Jessica Benson, the author of the fabulous new mom lit read Carpool Confidential. Jessica shares the story of how she changed careers and left a job in PR in the publishing industry to become a full-time novelist. Plus, she also talks about her family's recent move from Brooklyn to London and gives readers the inside scoop on her favorite authors and mom blogs she visits on a regular basis.Jessica Benson was bitten by the writing bug early on in her career when she was a publicity and rights director for David Godine. Realizing that she had more to do in the publishing world than simply promote someone else's books, Jessica enrolled in NYU where she received a Master's Degree in Journalism. While she initially thought she'd pursue a career as a magazine writer, Jessica quickly realized that juggling a newborn and writing about top 10 breast feeding tips were just not her cup of milk. "Every time I was about to do an interview, I'd have a diaper explosion on my hands," she recalls. Had she been 22 years old with no kids, Jessica says she may have been travelling to remote destinations to cover hard news pieces, instead, she found herself writing informative stories for new moms and says she pretty much became bored with these features and decided instead to venture into new territory as an aspiring novelist.
Jessica hired a babysitter so she could head to Starbucks and write her first book and she soon found herself finding success as a romance novelist. After three successful turns in the romance world, Jessica tried her hand at mom lit - writing about what she knew best - being a mom in Brooklyn who experiences a big change in her life when her husband decides to turn their family's life upside down when he leaves his stable finance job behind to produce a Barry Manilow retrospective. In Jessica's case, she's still happily married with two kids who are now 10 and 14, but her family recently experienced a major change in their lives when her husband got a new job overseas and they all made the move from Brooklyn to London.
Jessica says it took her at least a year and a half to write Carpool Confidential and says she did some of her research online - reading lots of mom bloggers who share their stories on a daily basis. Jessica says she checked out Dooce, Manic Mom and author Meg Cabot's blog plus dad blogs and hundreds of others. "I was transfixed by their stories," she says. "The fact that these people put out their personal stories for all the world to see."
For mom bloggers interested in becoming authors, Jessica says the work of a novelist takes discipline. "While it may feel indulgent, you need to carve out time to write every day," she advises. In fact, Jessica says that she's currently at work on three different ideas for books and is currently deciding which one she's going to write next.
As for what's on her own bookshelf, Jessica says some of her favorite authors include Nora Ephron, Ian McKwan, Meg Cabot, Nancy Mittford, Jilly Cooper, Nigel Slater, Marian Keyes and of course, Helen Fielding's "Bridget Jones Diary." Now that she's living in London, Jessica is surrounded by some of the best chick-lit and mom lit writers in the world - something tells me Jessica needs to start a mom group with that illustrious bunch - just imagine the fun they'd have!
To order Jessica Benson's new book, Carpool Confidential, Click Here or, to read our latest review of Jessica's book, then Click Here instead.
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Posted in: Blog, Moms of Reinvention on 11/04/2007
Who are the Real Freaks on Halloween by Joanne Rendell
I party-pooped all over Benny?s fourth birthday by not throwing him some sugared-up extravaganza with clowns, bouncy castles, bells and whistles. And I have to admit I party-pooped with Halloween too.
Although this time, in my defense, I was following Benny?s lead.
Benny?s imagination is in full and colorful flight at the moment. He plays and talks endlessly with his toys and lives in all kinds of interesting and fanciful worlds. I love watching him, hearing him. However, this growing imagination comes with the inevitable flipside. The bad dreams, the sensitivities, the fears of even the smallest, most innocent seeming things.
Although I am very careful about what Benny watches and reads (even ?Finding Nemo? is considered too scary in our house), dreams of monsters still wake him up at night. Books with even a vaguely dark or creepy cover are thrown back on the library shelves. Fighting or shouting on television makes Benny immediately snap it off. And even, sometimes, the New York skyline at night looks to Benny like a ?huge scary dinosaur.?
I knew, then, the moment the plastic Jack-o-Lanterns started appearing in the stores, Halloween wasn?t going to be Benny?s favorite time of year. And I was right. As soon as he smacked eyes on the lanterns and the creepy costumes in the Halloween store in our neighborhood, he was horrified.
Last week, in the run up to the big night, I thought I better explain in more detail what this whole Halloween thing is all about. (Benny?s not doing the preschool thing, so he doesn?t have a group of excited peers to explain the ins and out of ghouls, ghosts, and trick or treating). When I?d finished with my explanation and asked if he wanted to dress up, he looked at me with a firm gaze and said, ?No. I don?t like Halloween. It?s scary.?
So, the other night when Halloween rolled around, Benny and I ducked out of the parties we?d been invited too, ignored the trick or treating knocks on the door, and laid low with not a costume in sight.
Later in the evening we nipped out to the store to get some milk and on our short walk were confronted by numerous concerned people asking Benny ?where?s your costume?? ?did you get any candy?? ?do you want my scary mask?? (cue terrified glances and near-tears from Benny). It occurred to me, as I tried to dodge and escape these well-meaning people, that in not joining in the Halloween-mania, Benny and I were perhaps the biggest, most ghoulish Halloween freaks of all.
Although this time, in my defense, I was following Benny?s lead.
Benny?s imagination is in full and colorful flight at the moment. He plays and talks endlessly with his toys and lives in all kinds of interesting and fanciful worlds. I love watching him, hearing him. However, this growing imagination comes with the inevitable flipside. The bad dreams, the sensitivities, the fears of even the smallest, most innocent seeming things.
Although I am very careful about what Benny watches and reads (even ?Finding Nemo? is considered too scary in our house), dreams of monsters still wake him up at night. Books with even a vaguely dark or creepy cover are thrown back on the library shelves. Fighting or shouting on television makes Benny immediately snap it off. And even, sometimes, the New York skyline at night looks to Benny like a ?huge scary dinosaur.?
I knew, then, the moment the plastic Jack-o-Lanterns started appearing in the stores, Halloween wasn?t going to be Benny?s favorite time of year. And I was right. As soon as he smacked eyes on the lanterns and the creepy costumes in the Halloween store in our neighborhood, he was horrified.
Last week, in the run up to the big night, I thought I better explain in more detail what this whole Halloween thing is all about. (Benny?s not doing the preschool thing, so he doesn?t have a group of excited peers to explain the ins and out of ghouls, ghosts, and trick or treating). When I?d finished with my explanation and asked if he wanted to dress up, he looked at me with a firm gaze and said, ?No. I don?t like Halloween. It?s scary.?
So, the other night when Halloween rolled around, Benny and I ducked out of the parties we?d been invited too, ignored the trick or treating knocks on the door, and laid low with not a costume in sight.
Later in the evening we nipped out to the store to get some milk and on our short walk were confronted by numerous concerned people asking Benny ?where?s your costume?? ?did you get any candy?? ?do you want my scary mask?? (cue terrified glances and near-tears from Benny). It occurred to me, as I tried to dodge and escape these well-meaning people, that in not joining in the Halloween-mania, Benny and I were perhaps the biggest, most ghoulish Halloween freaks of all.
For more of Joanne's musings, visit her blog at www.joannerendell.blogspot.com. To return to Role Mommy, Click Here.
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Posted in: Blog, Laptop Naptime Mama on 11/02/2007
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