http://chungliphotography.blogspot.com/

The photographer posted some on his site. Amazing. I can't wait to see the rest!

Tonight is our last swim class. What idiot thought that two solid weeks with swimming every night for both children and me (parent/tot class with Will) was a good idea? Oh yeah… me. Idiot.

Anyway, the kids have done great. Signa doesn't seem so afraid anymore and William… well, he's just happy as a clam like he was our first class. But he kicks more and can blow bubbles on command now, so it was worth it I suppose.

Our first class, they handed out a swim pass and I called it Will's prize. He still has it at home- this wadded up crinkled hot pink, piece of paper. "My prize, Momma! My prize, Dad-day!" He loves that thing. Can't wait to scrapbook it to show his friends when he's a teenager.

My friend Lisa is having her baby today via c-section. Everyone think healthy baby, healthy momma, and happy breastfeeding thoughts for her!

* Signa has a stuffed animal named Doma. Marc asked her if she wanted to bring Domo to gymnastics to watch her one day and she looked at him like he was stupid and said, "Domo is nocturnal. He would sleep right through it."

* There was a big cross in the side of a hill nearby and it said, Jesus loves or saves or something. Signa pointed at it and said, "Wow! That sure is a big 'T'!"

* William and Signa play quietly in the living room most mornings. The other day, Marc heard Will yell, "I WIN!!!" and then Signa respond, "I wasn't even playing anything with you!" He just suddenly got up from what he was doing and ran his own personal race. And won.

* William loves to sing the song by Andrea True Connection, "More, More, More." It's funny to hear him singing, "Mo Mo Mo how do you yike it how do you yike it".

* In order to get Will to do anything anymore, you have to make him think that Sister gets to do it first.
Us: "Will, do you want to take your bath now?"
Will: "NO!!!!"
Us: "Okay, then Signa, would you like your bath now?"
Will: "NO!!! Will's turn!!!"

Saturday was my brother's wedding and Friday night was the rehearsal dinner. Both were spectacular. The rehearsal dinner was in downtown Mountain View at a wonderful restaurant that I will definitely eat at again. It was really very nice, with great food and great service. Joanne's family and friends were so nice and it was great to get to see Todd's old friends again, too. I'm sorry if I embarrassed Todd in my speech with props showing off his nice qualities, but he's just going to have to live with knowing that other people can sometimes see that. HA!
The wedding was in Menlo Park at the Stanford Park Hotel- they also did a fantastic job and I will recommend them highly for weddings. It was so pretty and done so well.

Joanne's family is filled with musicians, so during the ceremony, her mom and aunt sang a song and then a friend of theirs did a reading. The "preacher" was a wonderful speaker and did a beautiful job.

After the ceremony, we all moved to the reception area where we milled about visiting and snacking and drinking until Joanne and Todd were finished with pictures with her family. They served dinner later that was delicious and then a to-die-for browning cake thing for dessert. Once the dancing began, I never again saw my children off the dance floor area.

At one point, someone announced that there was "dancing until 9:30". Signa ran back to our table with the most excited look I've ever seen on her face EVER. "MOMMA!!! DADDY!!! There is dancing until NINE THIRTY!!!" (like 9:30 is the latest time she's ever heard of). Then she ran back to the dance floor.

After the wedding and reception, there was an "after party" at this big bar in Palo Alto. We dropped the kids with Mom and went to it and about 10 people there told me that Signa was the dancing police. They'd stop dancing to go back to their table and she'd dance on over and tell them, "YOU DON'T HAVE TO STOP! THERE IS DANCING UNTIL ***NINE THIRTY***!!!"
The after-party was wonderful, too. Joanne's musical family from Ireland played guitars and sang wonderful songs for hours and hours. We closed the place down at 2am, and I'm sure they must have all been completely exhausted, as I sure was and all I did was listen!

So now my baby brother is married and they are off to a trip around the world in just a couple of weeks. I hope there is time to say goodbye before they go.

We had a fun weekend with kid things AND adult things. After a day of Gymboree and shopping with Will, (and Marc's day of seeing Hellboy II with Signa) Marc and I went to some friends' house for dinner. It was an odd night- odd in that we had a really great time with people we recently met and did so without any reservation at all about them. We rarely find people that we not only both like, but we like their kids, too. These friends more than fit that bill. Our new friends actually feel more like old friends who we've known forever. Delightful!

Sunday I took Signa for a cousin day at Six Flags/Marine World/Whatever it's called now. She had a great time with the Gould's and their friend and I had a great time connecting with her for some one-on-one Momma/Daughter time. She is certainly adorable, if I do say so myself. She was all smiles all day. If I smiled that much, my cheek muscles would explode, but I guess she exercises hers enough.

I do have to tell about my new nails, though. During our shopping excursion on Saturday, Will fell asleep so I decided to get my nails done. Since I've got swimming all week (oh my God, I have to shave my legs every day this week for swim lessons, since I have to get in the pool with William. What was I thinking when I signed up for this?!??!), I realized my natural nails would look crappy by the Friday/Saturday Todd's Wedding Extravaganza.

So I decided to get gel put over my natural nails and then painted for the wedding. I explained this to the overly hurried man who didn't speak English. "Do you do something like this?" I asked nicely after explaining. "Yes. Yes. Sit. I do." He rushed around and then threw some crap on my nails (acrylic, not gel) and then said, "You done."

He did not make them all one length and he did not paint them. I said, "But I need paint. Polish."

"Yes. I polish. Clear. I polish clear."

"But I wanted something else, not clear."

"Yes, I polish clear. You done." And he moved on.

I stood there for a minute. What do I do? He didn't understand me and so I went to get a bottle of polish I like so that I could show him. Then William woke up and I had to leave. Never ever going there again. For anything. Ever. And I will write them a letter, too. In English.

And my Signa-ism for the day:
Signa was taking a bath while I was using the potty (tell me that I did not just use the word, "potty" outside of the home…). I put a new roll of toilet paper on the holder and Signa shot up in the tub. She stared at me in astonishment and then started to clap and gasp with joy and pride. "You did it, Momma! You did it! You learned how to change the toilet paper! I told Daddy you could learn! I'm so proud of you!"

Note to everyone: When you say things like, "Doesn't Momma even know how to put new roll of toilet paper on the holder?" to a nearly 6-year-old, she may not know you are joking…

Art. Art is definitely one of those things that is in the eye of the beholder. I can look at something and find it amazing and you can look at it and wonder what the hell I am smoking in finding that piece of crap amazing. It is because of this that I think all art is amazing, as SOMEONE SOMEWHERE is going to think it's a piece of brilliance.

This is not true of my own kids' artwork. Their art is truly a piece of amazing brilliance. Everything they do, in fact, is art to me. Give William a crayon and a piece of paper and he makes a circle, announces, "Draw Go Racer, Momma!" (translation: I drew the Speed Racer car, Momma!) and that is brilliance. Give Signa a coloring book and she makes all the hair a perfect pink- art. I love their art more than I love any masterpiece in any museum anywhere.

With this love of their art, comes great responsibility. I want to foster it, yet not discourage it. Encourage the growth of it without pointing out any "flaws" in the current stages of the brilliance.

So we put Signa in art class. It's a one-hour class all week long. Monday was Self Portrait Water Color Day. Tuesday was “paint a turtle” day (or so Signa said- we are pretty sure it was some other instruction, but it apparently came home today as a painting of an underwater turtle).

Anyway, the self portrait had to dry so she didn’t bring it home until yesterday. Marc told me on the phone that it was awesome and he was amazed, but honestly, I'm at a loss for words on its wonderment. Brace yourselves…

She is the most beautiful girl in the world.
-Debbie

P.S. Do they do tax-exempt savings accounts like the 529 plans, but for future psychotherapy, rather than college?