Article: The perks of the VIP theme-park pass

Tae and I work pretty hard to live the life we want for ourselves and our scrumptious daughters.  On a recent trip to Disney World in mid-December, the busiest time of the year, I wondered, "Can we pay someone somewhere so we don't have to wait on line?"  I couldn't find anything on the website or anywhere else on the web (maybe I didn't look hard enough) then.  However, I just found this article.  Though it doesn't mention Disney World specifically, there are other options and maybe with enough searching, I'll find one for Disney World as well.  I'm capturing this for future reference!  We promised the girls to take them again when Lauren is 7 and Elizabeth is 5. 

My urban legend baby

Ebi's crib for the past 3.5 years

I had one of those urban legend babies w/ E.  At 10 weeks, she decided on her own to sleep peacefully through the night w/o any intervention from me.  No sleep training.  No cry-it-out. Suffice to say, if it were up to me, I would have kept her in a crib for at least another three months until she turned 4.  However, after our recent weekend to Rocking Horse where she shared a queen-sized bed w/ Lauren, putting her to bed in her crib seemed wrong.  I mean, at 3 years old, her pediatrician said she was already the size of a 4-year-old.  So presumably, she's now close to a 5-year-old.

I reluctantly got her a "big bed" (mattress and box spring) but took my time making the switch w/ all sorts of excuses.  For instance, I told Tae, "We have to wait until I get back from Seattle.  We don't want to move her to a big bed when I'm not home."  Slowly but surely, I ran out of excuses and Tae called me out on all my feet-dragging.  Right before lunch today, we converted her crib into a full-size bed.  After lunch, per usual, I put her down for her nap and she slept well w/o incident.  Tonight was her first "nighttime" sleep so hopefully we will make it through another peaceful night like we have been so fortunate to enjoy w/ both our amazing daughters.  

Converted into a big-bed today!

Lauren, my little pianist

For nearly every week for the past year, my mom has driven Lauren to Little Neck after school for 30-minutes of piano lesson at her teacher's home.  Week by week, practice session by practice session, lesson by lesson, Lauren got great!  Up until recently, I didn't have the opportunity to hear Lauren play much.  But now that she caught the 'piano is fun' bug, she plays every chance she gets, which means she even plays when Tae and I get home from work.  Lauren loves her piano teacher.  The teacher's daughter is in college and is also a talented pianist.  She performs for Lauren when she happens to be home during her lesson.  The hand gestures and accented play, according to my mom, is influenced by watching her teacher's daughter.  See, so important to surround your kids with positive influences! 

Here's a brief clip of Lauren playing at 5 years old.

Article: Best eats at 20 busiest U.S. airports

Inevitably as a frequent flier, I find myself at the airport or in a lounge somewhere eating mediocre-at-best food waiting for a flight.  I ran across this article on cnn.com that I wanted to share.  It'll be valuable to keep your in your back pocket as you travel the country some day.

Among them:
1. For my monthly trips to Seattle

# 19. Seattle-Tacoma International (SEA)

Anthony's Restaurant started as a single seafood joint in 1969. Now the company consists of 22 locations and a private fleet of fishermen.  Each location -- yes, even the one in the Central Terminal -- serves seasonal Pacific seafood and shellfish from the Northwest, Alaska and Hawaii. The mountain blackberry cobbler is an addictive Cinnabon alternative.

2. For our next trip to Disney World

# 17. Orlando International (MCO)

Orlando airport seems to be unaware of the current revival in airport restaurants. Nonchain options are limited.  You can try your luck with a latte at ZaZa's Cuban Coffee or the sliders at Johnny Rivers' Grill and Market. But you might be just as happy going with what you know at Qdoba, Burger King or Outback.

3. Upcoming trip to Phoenix in June

# 10. Phoenix Sky Harbor International (PHX)

Ask any Phoenician where to find the best tamale and they'll point you to El Bravo in Sunnyslope. No time to get there during your trip? Check in at the airport early and snag one there.

The family team makes its famous green chile tamales at its original outpost every morning and drops them off, so you're getting quality.  "People will try one for lunch and like them so much they'll buy a dozen frozen ones to take home," says Monique Othon, whose grandmother created the original recipe.

4. And of course my home-town airport, JFK. 

#11. John F Kennedy International, New York City (JFK)

Chef Andrew Carmellini's New York restaurants -- The Dutch and Locanda Verde -- are always packed.

Can't be bothered? Stop by Croque Madame in Terminal 2 and grab his food to go. On offer: French-inspired open-faced sandwiches, crepes and made-to-order salads.

Elizabeth learns the alphabet!

March 2012

"Don't compare your children" is what many wise parents advise.  As a second child myself, I didn't like being compared to my brother.  In fact I hated it!  But I couldn't help but write this because it is a very big deal in our household.

Before Lauren celebrated her 2nd birthday, she knew her alphabet front and back - upper case and lower case.  She loved to memorize books like Chica Chica Boom Boom and pretend to read at that tender age.

Naturally, with Elizabeth, we expected the same thing.  By the time Elizabeth celebrated her 2nd birthday, she knew maybe three letters.  E, L and O.  When we tried to teach her, she would make funny faces, silly noises or simply state, "I don't want to learn."  Lo and behold!  After six months of Nursery and due to the patient and diligent work of E's nursery school teachers Ms. Lori and Mrs. Carioscia, Elizabeth now knows all 26 letters of the alphabet!  Upper case only.  ;-)  She is so proud of herself and of course we are all so proud of her!

Reading response

Lauren has homework twice a week.  She has to read one of two books she brings home on Mondays and Wednesdays, then complete a Reading Response activity in her notebook.  Examples of a reading response can be:

1. What was your favorite part and why?
2. What was the problem and how was it fixed?
3. Can you relate the story to something in your own life?

Just six short months ago when she was at reading level C, her reading response looked like this:

Lauren's reading response entry September 2012.

And an entry from March 2013.

Experiencing her growth and development in Kindergarten has been freakishly amazing.  There is just about two more months left until she will be ready for 1st grade.  Surreal.  I have to remind myself yet again to live in the moment and cherish every day.

My take on Lean In

I was a born feminist.  Even as a toddler, I just hated the words, "You can't do that because you are a girl."  My mother didn't know any better, that was her normal.  I have a brother who is just 16 months older so I grew up doing everything he did - playing tag football after church and challenging each other in games like Battleship and Stratego.

Early on in my career, a lot of my cultural upbringing had a profound impact on how I presented myself at work.  I was the quiet one that produced great work.  I never seeked recognition.  I always trusted that the right people would notice my hard work.  I didn't dare disagree with my boss and did everything I was asked of.

Through years of experience, I started to figure things out.  I learned that it's quite powerful to have a strong point of view about something, lead with conviction, and speak openly about what's on my mind.  I'm still, and always will be, a work in progress.  I'm also conscious of my fears in the work place and make a conscious effort not to let it paralyze me.  Even just a few years ago, if someone asked me, "What's your biggest fear?"  I would have responded, "Failure."  Now I know that being afraid to fail is failure itself.  It prevents growth, prohibits any sort of risk-taking and makes you believe you are not good enough.  I am no longer afraid of failure!  That's a BIG deal for me!   

Before having Lauren and Elizabeth, it was easy to focus on work.  Last-minute 6 p.m. conference call?  No problem!  You need me in Seattle next week for a 3-hour meeting?  I'll be there!  Now?  I need to be diligent about scheduling, maximize every minute at work and establish necessary boundaries.  I am fortunate to work in an exceptional work environment at Amazon where I am empowered and even encouraged to work this way.  I work from home on Fridays so I can have the wonderful experience of picking up my children from school at least once a week.  I am in the office no earlier than 9:30 (I do drop-off before work) and usually leave at 5 p.m. to catch the 5:29 at Penn Station or get to the store by 5:30 the days Tae and I come home together.  I primarily work with folks in Seattle and it's only 2 p.m. there when I leave.  That means I'm back online after QT with the girls, putting them down and having dinner.  Except for tough weeks, I don't mind this at all.  I even enjoy it most evenings.  This is my solution for 'Leaning In."  So far (yes, I realize my oldest is only 5!) I have never missed a parent-teacher conference or major school event like the Thanksgiving Assembly.  Some days are nuts like the day I took a weekly call in one of the science rooms at Buckley because I volunteered to do something that day at the school.  However, I recognize that this is my solution to 'having it all.'    

 

Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook's COO, came out with a book this month called 'Lean In.'  I love what she stands for.  I respect that she is driving change based on the belief that men and women can both accomplish great things at home and work through partnership.  She has become an inspiration to me and sometimes when I feel doubt, I ask myself, "How would Sheryl Sandberg solve this problem?"  During my first MBR (Monthly Business Review) with my team's execs, I made sure I 'sat at the table' and presented myself with confidence.  Going back to my work-in-progress statement earlier, I still have a ton of room to grow but at least I am truly aware and know what I have to do.   

I was even compelled to gift the book to my best friends.  Today, I wrote them this email:

By the end of the day at the latest, you will have received a little Amazon box from me.  In it, is a book called ‘Lean In’ authored by someone who has been an inspiration to me in the last few years, Sheryl Sandberg.  (I don’t think I ever shared this but she was one of the key reasons I decided to pursue something outside of MSFT!)  You must have seen and read a ton of press as she has been promoting her book big time.  Though the core messages may have varying degrees of importance to you (empowering women, leadership, ambition, men’s responsibility in all this), the two key themes that have boiled down to me are 1. we as individuals have a voice and 2. fear shouldn’t hold us back in doing what we want, whatever that want is. 

In that spirit, I wanted to share this book with five of the strongest women I know.  I give three people credit for allowing me to live the life I have chosen to live and that’s my mother, Tae and the five of you (collectively you are one!).  If you decide to take the time to read it J, I hope you take away whatever resonates w/ you individually and perhaps walk away being more open to taking risks, being less afraid, and feeling more powerful and aware of what you can accomplish in this life we have been given.  Additionally, maybe you will become inspired to say and do things a little differently w/ our daughters, sons, nieces and nephews.

I believe in the power of all human beings.  I believe that one person can make a difference.  I believe that one person can be me.  I hope L & E will read this one day and know they have the power to accomplish extraordinary things, be a mom and be happy with their life choices.