Tag Archives: Vivien

Travel You Pay For

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Not in the money sense but in the exhaustion, dirty house, cranky child way.

We got back to LA from NYC late last night. God, was I glad to leave. Love NYC, but when the urine on the street mixes with a heat wave, the smell fills your nostrils and makes you wonder why people pay so much in rent to live there. (More later on plane travel with a toddler. Oy vey.)

I got up early for work today and was looking forward to that nap with Vivien. Prior to her nap she was in a fit state I have rarely seen. As I was trying to deal with her, my stepson was watching TV and I thought, hmm, no wonder he rarely brings friends over here. You know when your kid is really wound up and you can’t figure out why? Except for the fact that her time clock is off? And there it is, yes, snot out of the nose; Viv has a little cold. It made me stay calmer. I didn’t lose my cool.

Finally got her to sleep and I drifted off to sleep for a few glorious minutes. Then the phone rang. Twice. I understand murder.

Helicopter Mom

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Before I had a kid, I thought most moms were too overprotective about their kids. As an aunt, I threw my nephew Charlie up and around and he loved it. With Vivien, I am way more uptight. But I’m trying to be cognizant of not allowing her to get dramatic about her falls and trying not to interfere if she and another kid get in a tussle.

I know I got bloodied and bruised when I was kid. It was great to get my mom to kiss it and make it feel better and then go back to playing. You don’t want a wimpy crybaby kid, right? Well, maybe not. There is a new book Nation of Wimps that says too often parents are overprotective to a fault. How do you keep your kid from being a wimp?

I Hate This Book

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When my daughter Vivien was about a year, she really loved The Chicken Sisters. I had to read it all the time. One day I hid it. It was gone for weeks and I was relieved, but her sitter found it and put it out again. But, like a relationship that has weathered a fight, I fell in love with The Chicken Sisters anew. This is my tale of a grown woman reading rudimentary literature.

Hello Knuckles, My Old Friend

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Our snake Knuckles died today, and I am the only one that cares. Knuckles was my stepson Oliver’s snake; he bought him when he was a little boy. But since I’ve been in Oliver’s life, he hasn’t cared much for Knuckles.

Vivien and Knuckles the snake

A few years back, Knuckles shed his skin. Oliver looked at him and said, “This is the most exciting thing Knuckles has ever done.” Snakes don’t fetch or cuddle or lick. A nice Albino corn snake, Knuckles just wanted to be warm and hang out. Don’t we all.

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Dining with Kids in Tow

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Remember when you used to meet your girlfriends out to try a new restaurant? Or you would have a couple of cocktails after a movie? Yes, good times. Well, the easy going times out where you don’t worry about how much the sitter is costing may be gone, but I refuse to totally surrender my love of going out to restaurants. Granted, I have to if I want to see my husband since he owns a restaurant and works a lot. Even though he is the chef I still need my daughter to behave so as not to scare the paying customers off. So, I have summed up my helpful hints for dining with the little ones. It’s not the same as dining with your gal pals, but it’s great to be out and be served!

Mother-in-Law’s Day?

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I’m fortunate that I have a mother-in-law who likes me. And I like her, as well. Not that bumps in the road don’t arise sometimes. Which is probably why Cafe Mom has a support group to deal with the in-law. I also love the the site where you can rag on your husband’s mom anonymously.

I have found that I have to share Mother’s Day – “my day” – with her. Of course, the irony is that right after I did this Vlog, she told me she is going to see my sister-in-law for Mother’s Day weekend, and my stepson is to be with his mom. But my husband is still working, so it was just me and Vivien. She’s too young to give me breakfast, but I got some hand-picked flowers from the weeds in the sidewalk! Fine with me. I’m so happy I have my daughter.

And by the way, if you do want to complain about mother-in-law here, please feel free. A lot of them aren’t that net savvy.

Dancing with a Toddler

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Here’s what a dork I am. I just frittered away a good ten minutes of my life looking up the bios on Dancing with the Stars, and not just the celebs but the dancers and the judges too. I mean who is Carrie Ann Inaba anyway? I also wanted to know who that hot Latin “star” was. He was in the first season of Ugly Betty. He played the photographer who pretended to be in love with Alexis the transgender sister of Daniel.

As a host I can be very critical of my brethren. Initially I thought Tom Bergeron was a generic, white man, tool. But, he has impressed me with his ability to improvise. Samantha Harris is annoying just because she has great arms and a tiny figure 4 minutes after giving birth. Her job is kind of thankless. How many times can you ask, “The judges were kind of hard on you out there. How do you feel?”

I love DWTS. It’s a show I can watch with my daughter because it’s not scary (she can’t distinguish botched plastic surgery) and we often get up and dance during the show. Lately, DWTS and Ugly Betty are the only shows Vivien allows me to watch –with humans–without whining. It’s hard for me to even get to American Idol this season. After 5 minutes she says, “Momma, I no like this show.” And my old favorite Hardball? Forget about it! Not enough movement.