What Ana Does

The Backyard, Sure Beautiful at First But a Few Months Later -- UGH!  February is the absolute worst month.  And the fact that it's one of our shortest months is only testament to how rotten and awful it is; it just wouldn't be fair to make it a normal 31 days. The cold and horrible weather is unrelenting with no end in sight. Unfailingly, my thoughts turn to Summer. From the freezing bottom of February I'm making serious promises not to squander the beautiful weather and variety of things to do in those short, happy months. And, as it so happens, camp registration starts in February and there are several programs I'd love the girls to do, like week-long soccer and tennis camps. So I've made a BOLD decision: I'm taking the last two weeks of June off! I'll pull the girls out of full-day day care and enroll them in fun camp programs. Then, we'll spend those weeks on the soccer field, tennis court, the pool club and other nice-weather activiti...

Lots of snow since yesterday ... and it's still going. Our landscapers came by with their plow and cleaned out the driveway, leaving a HUGE pile of snow just outside my door.

Audiobook: The Whole Brain Child by Daniel J. Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson Read by: Daniel J. Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson Genre: Parenting As a parent I'm always on the lookout for some advice on how to raise well-adjusted (eg. not live in my basement) adults. My library has a small selection of parenting guides on audiobook and not many of them sound very appealing. This one did, so I nabbed it ... hoping by the end I'd be a better Mama. I got some good advice for dealing with meltdowns and crisis -- but this book isn't about how to get them to eat their vegetables. It feels like my kids meltdown more than others. But I'm sure all mothers feel that way. This book explores how to give your child the tools to deal with their "waves of emotion" by understanding the fundamentals on how the brain works. And, really, that's where the fun of this book lies. You get to go over all the facts you probably forgot from your senior-level biology class. ...

I think I may have hit upon the color right shade of gray for my living room/dining room. It's called Ozark Shadows by Benjamin Moore. I don't think the following pictures do the shade justice, but hopefully you'll notice isn't not reading very blue, it's not too light and it plays well with the ubiquitous beige that's just everywhere ... The Winning Color is on the Right! I Painted Large Swaths of Color on One Wall Here's the Winning Gray Color on the Column Pedestal  The next real question is WHEN will I have time to clear out the room and start rolling on the color?? I'll wait until Spring to make that decision. It's too cold to paint now. Another reason to Think Spring! 

This Sunday morning I'm attempting to get through a bunch of household and personal project on the computer and around the office (where are my 2011 taxes!?!). And, as usual, I'm not alone. My Little Buddy I pulled out the toddler mattress (from the bed we no longer use) and placed it on the floor for Alice, who is watching videos on Amazon Prime ... and providing me commentary. She was outside playing in the snow but her pants got wet -- I think her snow pants are officially too small. Another To Do item on my list. Meanwhile, I haven't seen Leah in a few hours. Hope she doesn't turn into a snowman out there. Relate posts: More more and more Alice

Nothing makes me happier than a smile on this 4-year-old face. Good morning!

I will spend the next few weeks coming up with an adequate description of this place ... this capital of debauchery and indulgence. This completely unreal and strange city in the sand. Sin City, indeed. Paris? Well, Not Really ... 

Audiobook: Rebel Angels by Libba Bray Read by: Josephine Bailey Genre: YA Lit I read the first book in this series called  A Great and Terrible Beauty  a few years ago. It was a little too Victorian paranormal dramatic for me, but it was kinda entertaining. And Libba is such a YA author celebrity, so when I saw Rebel Angels , the second book, I had to see what it was all about. I wasn't disappointed and might even consider listening to the third and final book of the trilogy. This series is difficult to summarize. Jemma was the new girl at a boarding school who discovers a secret society of sorceress that her late-mother was once a member. They are caretakers for a dreamy land, like purgatory, where people pass through when they die. This land is filled with magic and dangers and strange creatures. See? I little tough to explain. Oh! And Jemma has nasty visions. And one of her best friends died and is stuck in that realm. It's definitely mor...

OH MY GOOD LORD David got the trip to Paris! We're going. Together. Free flights and hotel. Like, in May. Our nine-year-wedding anniversary, coincidentally. To Paris. In Paris. The Louvre, AKA My Happy Place I hadn't given much thought to it. Returning to Paris was on my five-year plan, sure, but not until the end of it. And his was one of several projects in the running for the Best Project of the Year prize, or whatever it's called. So I hadn't seriously considered it. Hadn't let my thoughts get too far into the details. But now, my mind is a blur… The Louvre, obviously. The d’Orsay … finally! Versailles … rioting French rebels couldn't keep me away. Notre Dame … without a screaming 4-year-old, YES! Where is my passport? Does it need to be renewed? The kids?! What to do about the kids?! Go! Go! Go!

Being new to the whole Las Vegas scene I don't even know what to expect. I'm worried that the years of seeing the casinos and strip on TV, and fantasizing about it, will lead to a supreme let down. That's the problem with having a very active imagination; places are always better in my head then in real life. I will say the wild photos of seen, the excess of everything, my imagination can't be far off. Where We're Staying...

Lots of heavy, wet snow last night. Made for a very pretty backyard! And a nice excuse to work from home. White Backyard

As someone who spend a lot of time reading books and about books and following authors and trends, etc. (I'm what they call bookish ) I get passionately annoyed when I see a bad cover design. GOLD This book has been getting some buzz lately and its cover makes me crazy because ... I LOVE it! It's gorgeous, no? Looking at it, you think modern-day fairy tale? A crown? A castle? Princess? I look at this yellow cover and my mind clicks: "I want to read that!" Gold by Chris Cleave But it's a trick! This book is about OLYMPIC CYCLING , people! And about fighting for a gold medal. And two friends who end up in the Olympic finals. Um, really? That's it? Shouldn't there be a BIKE on the cover -- at least? See the full description here. This alternative cover design version makes a bit more sense to me, but still, says nothing about the story. Some context here: The author, Chris Cleave's previous book Little Bee was a Times's best seller ab...

Leaving New Jersey we had some serious goals. I mean, we didn’t just pick-up and leave, right? I think about those goals everyone once in a while and stifle a laugh. Then, a sob. Because some of those goals were not met. Not even close. And it frustrates me. Killing my commute time was high on this list. In New Jersey, I was reliant on NJ transit to get me into New York City each day. There was a train strict schedule, so every morning and evening I felt the stress of hitting all the milestones that meant I would be on time for the train. And home to the kids. One of the catalysts for the big move out was to be freed of train schedules and that hectic morning stress. Not to mention the 2.5 hours a day that was spent in transit between work and home each day. Sure, I read a lot and got to talk to my friend Sonja, but getting home at 6:30, throwing together something frozen or pasta -- or even toast -- was not going to fly once elementary school homework and after-school extracurri...

It's always a happy day in my world when the next book in a beloved series is released. Today is such a day. Ally Carter's teenage thief series released its third book called Perfect Scoundrels . Kat Bishop, the main character, is a teenage master thief, in a family of master thieves. And she's spent the last two books robbing criminals, plotting complicated heists (a la Oceans Eleven ) and -- of course -- there's a boy. Here's the description: Katarina Bishop and W.W. Hale the fifth were born to lead completely different lives: Kat comes from a long, proud line of loveable criminal masterminds, while Hale is the scion of one of the most seemingly perfect dynasties in the world. If their families have one thing in common, it's that they both know how to stay under the radar while getting--or stealing--whatever they want. More... Now the only question is what medium to purchase it in ... audiobook (for commuting pleasure), Kindle or hardcopy. Decisions...

Audiobook: French Women Don't Get Fat by Mireille Guiliano Read By: Mireille Guiliano Genre: Diet / Memoir I've already mentioned my Francophile-ness. And a place where women eat bread, cheese and yogurt and manage to stay thin is someplace I want to be. Plus, it's the new year, so it's time to examine my diet. I checked it out. This book is half diet tips and half memoir. The harrowing tale of teenage Mireille who spends a year in a Boston suburb eating brownies, gains 20lbs and is told by her father "you look like a sack of potatoes" when she gets off the boat. The family doctor, known as Dr. Miracle, puts her on a diet (leek soup!) and explains to her the habits most French women have cultivated to stay slim -- despite all the bread and cheese. Oui! Then, the time-worn secrets of French women are revealed in chapters of tips and practical stories. Most are common sense, some are just great to consider or be reminded of, including: all things i...

Audiobook: Blood, Bones and Butter: The Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef by Gabrielle Hamilton Read by: Gabrielle Hamilton Genre: Memoir I was turned off by "blood" in the title, but the subhead made me wonder "what made her so reluctant?" And who wouldn't want to get some insider tips from a recognized chef. So, I checked it out. I never got my answer about the "reluctant" part, but enjoyed hearing about Gabrielle's twisty-turny life very much. And the blood was minimal. Gabrielle runs a pretty successful small restaurant in the East Village and has for several years. The restuarant business in NYC is cut-throat, so anyone who manages to stay open and profitable in that business, has my admiration. And her journey to Prune includes underaged waitressing (drugs), line-cooking, high-society catering and even chefing at an upstate camp. So what I didn't understand is how Gabrielle considered herself reluctant. She's in ...