11.5 years and counting

A friend recently asked on FB: What do you remember from your wedding day?

I wrote....


‎1.) It was surreal to have people from all different parts of my life in one room. 2.) The rabbi called my husband a 'prophet.' 3.) My parents were alive and there. 4.) The DJ was horrible. 5.) The weather was beautiful (warm and sunny). 6.) My father-in-law thought the holy water font was an ashtray and almost threw a gum wrapper in it. 7.) It was magical when the priest and the rabbi conducted the ceremony together. 8.) My husband had more hair. 9.) My red-haired 80-something grandmother meeting my husband's red-haired 80-something grandmother. 10.) Of course, the kiss that sealed the deal! I think we clocked in around 45 seconds!

My parents being alive is the the most distinct memory. It seems like a different lifetime--a luxury--to be able to call either parent whenever. With Christmas approaching, it's been extra tough to work through the grief. I miss my parents so much.

Happy 3rd Birthday to Baba!

Baba turned 3 two weeks ago...I can't believe how much she's grown.

Disney!

3 months later...

Wow, my goal to write daily or, more likely, once a month seemed to evaporate as it's been 3 months. Alas, lots has happened.

My wonderful dad--who I wrote about on this blog when we went to Greece last year--passed away unexpectedly in May. He had complications from heart surgery, and he passed away on the fifth anniversary of my mom's death. It's been difficult dealing with this loss. Earlier tonight, I had an urge to finally neatly put away some DVDs that had belong to my dad. In the process, I found a book I must have received when I was working at the Trib. It's called "Always Too Soon: Voices of Support for Those Who Have Lost Both Parents" by Allison Gilbert. It's a fantastic collection of essays by famous and non-famous people, and I was in tears by page 1.

The only bright spots during the grieving process are my daughters. Eena and Baba are always there, always happy, and they continue to give me strength.

Happy 4th Birthday to Eena!

I can't believe my baby is 4 today. We've been celebrating her birthday since Saturday with a party with friends, and yesterday, we had cupcakes with her cousins. Today, we are going to have more cupcakes:) Baba loves celebrating too, especially because Eena is so good with sharing.

Through all of this happiness, I think about the deep sadness her birth parents must feel during this time of year. I hope they somehow know that the baby born on 4-6-06 is a very happy, sweet, smart and beautiful 4 year old who is loved more than words can say.

Improv--ing parenting

I've been a mother for almost three years. It's crazy to think that three years ago, my husband and I were enjoying our final days of being child-free as we toured Beijing for several days before meeting our first beautiful daughter for the first time (and six months before meeting our second beautiful daughter.)

Before becoming a mom, I remember reading parenting books, magazines and even taking a "new parents" course. The books and magazine were kind of useful in calming my fears about what to expect. The course taught me how to change a diaper, clean a baby, what to feed her, etc. It wasn't until recently, though, that I discovered what helped better than any parenting book or course (or part-time nanny, which, by the way, helps immensely too if you have no family nearby).

The thing that every parent-to-be or frenzied parent should do is take an improv class or two or, in my case, a year and counting. Improv has taught me how to be patient, live in the moment, listen, tell more creative stories, be spontaneous, stop saying 'no' and much more. I just finished my year of beginning improv at the Second City Training Center, and now I'm taking improv classes at iO Chicago.

My daughters love being silly with me...now I just need them to let me practice my accents and characters...they only want me to sound like "Mommy."