Bean has a love of music that has gotten a lot of recognition at daycare. She loves to dance and bop her head to the music. You can tell, that music really makes her happy.

She is also somewhat of a whiz on the computer. It's amazing but true, she has this uncanny ability to turn things on, off, louder, quieter with no assistance from us whatsoever. More often than not, she leaves Eddie shaking his head in disbelief at what she has been able to quickly accomplish. A few times, she has preformed tasks on the computer that Eddie, has no clue how she was able to do what she did. Need your computer defragged? Bean's on it! Want to skip that song and listen to something else? MixMaster Bean aka DJ Bean has it down!

(And I should add, good thing she is most interested in Eddie's computer and not the extensive set of kitchen knives to her immediate left. Fortunately, she doesn't pay any attention to them and we are always paying attention to her when she climbs up to spin some tunes!)

Here you can see the pro in action...

Lulu made the above piece in school for the Thanksgiving holiday. I'm not sure who exactly came up with the words, but it cracks me up every time I look at it, and I see it often because it is displayed on one of the kitchen cabinet doors (our own impromptu gallery for Lulu's ever growing craft projects from school).

This original art, is going to take a little more explanation. From right to left is me, Zachary, Lulu, and Bean. You're probably wonder who Zachary is, right? Well, Zachary and Lulu go to preschool together, and they decided last week, that they are going to get married. Yes, married! I know, they really do grow up quicker than you ever realize. One day she's at preschool, the next moment, planning her wedding.

So, we were driving home on Monday from school and Lulu announces to me that when "...she and Zachary are grown-ups and a family, they are going to get married!"

Okay, I replied calmly. She continued that Eddie and I were invited to the wedding.

At home, she told Eddie her news, and later in the basement, brought up to him that she had decided what kind of wedding cake she was going to have. I can also tell you that she is suddenly enamoured with my wedding dress, tiara, veil and gloves. And the ice blue shoes I wore. She's only seen the pictures in our wedding album, but she is very much on board with wearing these items I already have. And she is very keen on the Frog Prince movie from Disney, so the fact that I already own "Tiana gloves" gets big points with her, too.

I'll have to get a picture of her and Zack together. "Lulu Zuckerman" has an interesting ring to it, don't you think? Zachary Zuckerman, well, he almost sounds like a crime fighter or a private-eye!

Here is the Bean from Thanksgiving. Lulu had a dress in a similar pink and black plaid, complete with fancy black patent shoes. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of Lulu from Thanksgiving.

Bean loves to wear dresses, especially if they are a bit fancy. And fancy shoes. She is such the girly girl! More so than Lulu was at the same age. And I have to add the shoes were Lulu's when she was a year and a half. I bought them for our last family Christmas photo before we moved from Vegas to Portland. They are gorgeous shoes, made in Italy by a label called Elephantito, and cost me a small fortune back then. I'm sure they are still a small fortune if they were to be purchased today. And I am glad that we can get some use out of them this upcoming holiday season with the Bean! (The benefit of having two girls...)

My mom made these adorable penguin warrior appetizers for Thanksgiving. Way to go, Mom! I was very impressed. She said they were a lot of work to do, but you kind of find your rhythm after making a few so they aren't so bad. Still, she only made enough so we could each have two a piece. I guess the idea was in one of her cookbooks or something from long ago.

The bodies are made with black olives and cream cheese. The beaks are carrots as are the feet. Then the decorative toothpicks hold everything together. If I was going to try making these, I'd add a little liquid smoke to the cream cheese to give it a little oomph or maybe mix in some smoked salmon. Just plain cream cheese with the olives and carrots was a little bland for my tastes. But they were too cute for words!

I will never forget an interview I read featuring the actress Kate Winslet a few years ago, and what she tells her family to give her children for gifts when it gets close to the Christmas holidays: just hats and mittens, coloring books and crayons, please!!!

Now that I have two young children, I really get it.

The girls have so many toys, it's unbelievable. I try to edit when they are not around or at school, but its almost like these things multiply when no one is looking.

So this year, if anyone asks or is curious of gift ideas of the girls for Christmas or any time of the year, this is what we will tell them (and what I bet any parent of young children will tell you if you were to ask them, too!):

1. Your time.

I can't think of a better gift than their spending time with the people who love them the most. This is specifically directed to our family and relatives. Experiences and the memories created are much better presents than the latest toy or gadget everyone is clamoring for or clothes or DVD. Come and visit us. Take a walk with them. Make cookies together. Hang out with them. Plan to do an activity with them. Anticipation of an upcoming event with you is just as fun as doing the event itself!

2. Coloring / Activity books.

It's true, they are wonderful! They let kids be creative, they don't take up a lot of space, and are great distractions in the car and at restaurants or other places in public where you need to keep them occupied. They also tend to keep them fairly quiet. It's harder than you think to color and be a chatty-kathy at the same time.

3. Notepads or Doodle Pads

Lulu loves to practice writing her letters, spelling her name, and writing out her numbers. She does this when we drive to school in the morning and I'm finding one can never have enough of these items, either. You can keep them stashed in each car and have them in the house. And at Grandmas. They come in so many different sizes and with white and colored paper assortments, too. So simple and cheap, yet genius!

4. Socks & Tights

If it's one thing I think people never can have enough of, it's socks. Same goes for kids. They grow so fast, and then you tend to lose them when it's time to do the laundry so you end up with one of each pattern and/or color you own. Not that Lulu minds. She likes to mix it up that way. One of Lulu's favorite pair of socks to wear are these big, fluffy, white and pink striped, stretchy knit Hello Kitty socks one of Eddie's sisters bought for her about a year ago. Lulu is all about comfy clothes, so these socks totally fit the bill. Plus, she loves Hello Kitty. And SpiderMan. Tights are good, too, especially under skirts and dresses for added warmth. Lulu is rough and tumble on the playground, so her tights are constantly getting holes in the knees. She is tall, though. I'd say she is a size 5 in kids socks and tights, even though she is four and a half.

5. Puzzles

Puzzles, like books, are great for kids. Especially, floor puzzles. They are fun to do, the pieces are larger in size and the kids love the sense of accomplishment when they've put it all together. Plus, it's a fairly quiet activity. Mom and Dad really appreciate that...

6. Pajamas

Like socks, kids never seem to have enough pajamas. It's always good to have back-ups as one never knows when the laundry isn't going to get done in time for bed, or something gets spilled on them, or someone gets sick in the middle of the night.

7. A Science Project-Based Gift

Lulu is fascinated with space and the planets and our solar system. She loves to discuss electricity and has chatted up perfect strangers when we're out in public about her most recent studies and discoveries. She is mesmorized by the wonders of the sea and jelly fish when she reads about them in books and then visits the aquarium. We want to encourage her as much as possible to become interested and involved in the world of science. The world needs more female scientists, by the way.

Just Say No To:

Stuffed Animals.

Toys with Small Parts and Pieces.

Purses and Backpacks.

Loud Toys.
(Unless it includes a bottle of something alcoholic for mom and dad to tolerate it...)

Stickers.
(Really. Stickers designed for sticker books rarely make it to their intended destination and instead end up on hardwood floors, walls, garbage cans, bed frames, hair brushes, bathroom tiles, etc.)

Anything with Magnets.
(A serious danger if swallowed by small children.)

This morning we had a family skate date.

Oaks Park has an indoor, year-round roller skating rink that was built back in 1905. It is among the oldest in the US. (A side note, I remember going there back when I was in the third and fourth grade with my dad on Saturday and Sundays. Good times!) Tuesdays and Wednesday mornings the rink offers a PreSchool Skate. From 10 am to 11:30 am kids under the age of 6 can get a skate rental, rollerskating lesson, snack (cookies and milk) and strollers and street shoes are allowed on the rink floor during that time.

I've been wanting to do this for nearly a year, now, and today was finally the [perfect] day!

Lulu learning how to get up in rollerskates and what to do if you feel like you are going to fall.


Eddie relived his youth by zipping around the rink, and quite well, I might add.
It's been years since he's put on a pair of rollerskates but you would never know it by watching him.

I nicknamed him the "Flash"...

Lulu saying hi to Chip, the Oaks Park Chipmunk mascot. He gave hugs to all the kids and did the chicken dance with everyone when it came on the speakers. Lulu told me when we got home that next to rollerskating, Chip was her favorite part of the day today.

Bean loved being pushed around the rink. It was a great workout for me, too.

Boy...I know I'm gonna feel that in my legs tomorrow!

Lulu didn't do too bad on her own for this being her first time rollerskating. She took quite a few tumbles, but managed to get where she needed to across and around the rink when necessary.

Me and the Bean!

We will definitely become regulars at the rink as the girls get bigger!

Good, wholesome fun.

The snow accumulation was disappointing last night. However, it's absolutely freezing out there, temperature-wise. Our cinnamon rolls for breakfast on the other hand, delicious!

Tonight it is to get down into the teens.

I'm glad I am not a neighborhood squirrel or cat, even with their fluffy fur coats for warmth!

Snowing, that is! I just looked out the window and saw the snow flutter past. Outside, the car tops look like someone dusted them with powdered sugar. And the wind is blowing hard. I'm glad, and fortunate, to be inside where it is warm and cozy. (Thanks, Agatha!)

The girls are asleep, I am getting close myself. Looking forward to what tomorrow brings!

No snow this morning, just rain. (No cinnamon rolls this morning, either.)

The snow is expected to begin this afternoon and into tomorrow...Of course, as this is the Pacific NW, where no one can accurately predict the weather in this region, even if that is what their day-job is.

The first sign of a snowflake out my office window and I'm outta here to pick up my girls!

We have an Artic weather pattern coming through,which evidently means one thing: Snow!

I just checked the hour-by-hour weather forecast and it is supposed to start snowing at 4 am and into the morning. Tuesday, more snow.

If it looks like this photo above when I wake up in the morning, I will be working from home tomorrow. (The photo is from the great winter storm of 2008!)

Definitely, cinnamon rolls for breakfast...

Lulu left a message for me on my voicemail at work today. In her own words, she admitted that she wasn't paying attention (in the kitchen) and had fallen off one of the kitchen stools, landing hard on her bottom. In her message she said she had cried. She sounded so sad, on the verge of tears in her voicemail. She asked me to call her back.

When I called the house, Lulu answered the phone. She sounded like her usual chipper self. I asked her what happened and she regaled me with how she hadn't been paying attention and had fallen on the floor. She had cried, but she was okay, now.

I said, "So, you learned your lesson?" to which she replied very matter-of-factly, "Nope, not yet!"

Well, there you have it.

Dear Keen Footwear:

I want a pair of these sneakers my daughter has on, for myself, please. I want them to look exactly like hers. I want the velcro strap, the two elastic laces, and the squared off toe-box. I want the pink rubber trim around the shoe. I'll even take the cute penguin mom and kid patch on the side. And they have to be the purple suede. It really does go with everything!

Unfortunately, you don't offer this same shoe for grown-ups. What you do offer doesn't look like this at all. The toddler-version is cool AND practical. Traditional shoe laces are not practical. For anybody, anymore. They get dirty quickly and get stretched out so they require needing to be tied in a triple-bow knot to keep them from dragging on the ground (and thus, getting even dirtier). Frankly, the less I have to worry about in regards to my shoes at this stage of my life, the better.

So, back to my request for this shoe style for adults. Give it some thought, please? I think you'd find you'd have a definite market for them. I'd buy a pair in a heartbeat, if they existed. When my daughter and I are out and about, you wouldn't believe how many compliments she receives on her shoes and then without fail followed with, "Do they have those in my size?!"

If you change your mind, please let me know. My office is only two blocks away from your corporate headquarters...I can be there in a minute, flat.

Kind regards,

Darling Dearie

Eddie brought to my attention the other night that Lulu had tucked a number of her stuffed animals in-between towels (convenient stand-in's for blankets) on the floor of her room.

As if we don't already have enough stuff to try to manuever around on her floor on a daily and nightly basis...

I asked Lulu to get her shoes on yesterday so we could leave for a playdate.

She replied, "Okay, Jose!"

Except, she pronounced Jose as "Hose-Er."

Me: "Lulu, it's 'Okay, [enunciating phonetically for her benefit] Hoe-Zay.' "

Lulu: "Okay, Hose-Er!"

Me: "No! It's Hoe-Zay!!!"

Lulu: "Mom, I'm saying it in Spanish...'Okay, Hose-Er!"

Me: (muttering and rolling eyes heaven-ward) "Whatever..."

Last night we checked out the Two Man Gentleman Band at the Kennedy School. They are doing a three night music residency with free, all-ages shows. If you like fun retro-styled music by the Squirrel Nut Zippers, Janet Klein and her Parlor Boys or even Agent Ribbons, you'll love the Two Gents!

Here is their web site for more info and songs to listen to: http://www.thetwogentlemen.com/

Eddie's favorite is "Fancy Beer" though Andy Bean really enjoyed Eddie's enthusiasm of yelling "Boo" during the audience participation parts throughout the song, "My Baby's Off the Market".

Lulu dressed up in her Tinkerbell costume and danced and bopped around on the dance floor. Bean danced, separately, with mom and dad, when she wasn't trying to commandeer the (full) pints of beer of the nice stranger sharing our table at the show was trying to drink.

During the Gents mid-show break, we purchased a couple of their CD's and took advantage of snapping a photo of two Beans together.

(Photo Above: Fuller Condon, Eddie, Bean, Andy Bean)

Circa 1972

Circa 2006

Circa 2010

I am not a fan of Rachael Ray. In fact, she really irritates me, in general.

That said, there have been a few recipes in her monthly magazine (passed on to me from my mom) that we think are worth mentioning. This salad, is one of them. It's made with shredded Brussel sprouts and has apples, nuts and cheese in it. If you've never been a big fan of Brussel sprouts, I encourage you to give this a try. It's delicious!

When we make this again, we are going to add dried cranberries, avocado and garlic croutons. It was styled as a wilt-proof salad to take as a side to a Thanksgiving celebration.

You can get the recipe, here: http://www.rachaelraymag.com/recipes/rachael-ray-magazine-recipe-index/salad-recipes/Brussels-Sprouts-Salad-with-Apples--Pecans-and-Manchego

Happy Day of the Dead Day to you!

Below, some images we wanted to share in celebration of this annual autumn holiday.

The label for my "Mexican By Marriage" line of jewelry and accessories (another website soon forthcoming) from a diorama we received as a wedding shower gift.

The DOTD bridal couple that adorned the alter during our wedding ceremony. I pulled all the hair off the groom skull prior to the big day so he would be bald, just like Eddie!

The DOTD couple, given to us an early wedding present, that adorned our colorful wedding cake. The cake was inspired by the opening scenes from the movie, "Spy Kids"...

Our animal brood at the time we were married (clockwise): Seamus, (The Divia Miss) Sophie, Maki, Charlie. I made the cats myself, as they didn't make DOTD cats back in 2003-2004. They turned out very well and paved the way for my Mexican By Marriage line of DOTD inspired jewelry and accessories.