Growing Up Savvy Posts
I was browsing Netflix the other day to replenish some children’s offerings. I added “The Croods” to our queue for Sophia to see. Always striving to be helpful, Netflix started to suggest other cartoons including Dora the Explorer and Blue’s Clues. I recall seeing snippets of these and others while flipping through channels years ago but have not had to sit through any of them as a parent. We are not keen on sitting our kids in front of the TV though Sophia watches a bit while eating and we sometimes do a movie night with homemade popcorn. The making of popcorn is just an enjoyed as the product itself and is a science lesson in its own right.
But I digress… I have noticed that Sophia’s tastes in movies/shows/cartoons are esoteric ranging from the very typical Curious George to Nu Pogodi, to Misha Masha, Cheburashka, Snoopy, MotorWeek Trends, and even a YouTube channel of a hairdressing archeologist. Sophia has watched many Disney fairy tales and is, like every other little girl and some big kids too, in love with Frozen. She also loves Winnie the Pooh. And while fairy tales are essential to a childhood, I believe it is this very emergence of esoteric tastes that will undergird the development of her unique persona. I believe she will grow up to be someone who is fascinating. Meanwhile and because today is #TBT, here’s a photo of a 9 month old Sophia at our old pool club.
Every parent dreams of the moment the kids are asleep when you can just kick back and take a moment for yourself. I caught myself wishing a tired and grumpy Eliza would just go to bed and let me have a few precious moments all to myself before my own bedtime. And then, as I cradled her softly humming a melody she enjoys, I started regretting my very own wish.
Her head resting on my shoulder, she drifted between sleep and wakefulness. Her little arms haphazardly piled atop my shoulders she felt and smelled divine. That young baby smell that seems to fade more with every month, with every new milestone. Her soft hair tickling my neck, I suddenly and finally relished it—her babyhood. Now that it is slipping away so quickly and knowing that it is my last chance to relish it—since our family is complete—I suddenly cannot get enough of it. Ironic, no?
The last six months flew by, each month faster than the last. It must have been like this with Sophia, but I don’t remember. Back then, I wanted to rush through her milestones because … because I was a different mother and in a different place. Because I knew then that I would have another chance. And while I can’t get enough of Eliza and her babyhood, I catch myself madly and utterly besotted with Sophia. True, no longer a baby, she is magical.
And then, there are moments like this one. She’s napping on her snoopy pillow, cradling her new snoopy stuffy no doubt dreaming of Charlie Brown which happens to be her very new favorite cartoon.
Due to extremely unfortunate circumstances, our nanny was not able to take care of the girls the past three days. Since we’re an egalitarian household and both work full-time, we split the childcare responsibilities. I took Monday and admit that I was nervous about what I was going to do with Sophia and Eliza for a whole day. That’s eleven hours for those of you who are counting. Eleven.
Alas, I rose to the challenge, perspired and persevered ;-). There were the usual shenanigans including crafts, music and dancing for Sophia and then there was time in the bouncy chair and the interactive walker for Eliza and then there was a nap which was their nap but entirely for me. A standout activity of which I am proud was an applied chemistry lesson. I have previously blogged about our philosophy on involving Sophia in cooking and that has now translated itself to applied sciences. Sophia loves to play with pasta in the kitchen, so going with the kitchen activity theme, I suggested that we see what things in the kitchen can melt. We talked about candles and ice cream and then I asked her if salt would melt or dissolve in water. She didn’t know, so I set up a little station for her with kosher salt, water and a few containers and let her explore. It was the best idea to occupy her for 30 minutes and in the end, she learned a great deal, too. Considering Sophia is just three, I’d say that this Mommy’s science bootcamp was a success.
Despite our most sincere efforts, it has unfortunately been well over a year since my sister and I have enjoyed an outing on our own. Actually, before last time which was to celebrate her milestone birthday, we hadn’t gone out since before I got married—six years ago! Like most people, I make new year’s resolutions and I promptly got to work on my most important one—to spend more time with my sister.
We both enjoy Downton Abbey and the Winterthur Museum was having a Downton Abbey costumes exhibit. I had also never been to Winterthur before despite spending my teenage years a mere 15 minutes away. Attending a fashion exhibit at a new (to me) mansion with my sister seemed like the perfect way to kick off the new year. Before we saw the costumes the actors wear during filming of the series, we toured the house made famous by its builders and occupants, the DuPont family. The house is beautiful and I was amazed how well the last owner of the house decorated and remodeled the house with antiques and previously used materials while still staying true to the style and aesthetic of the residence.
The house was decorated for Yuletide and the trees showcased in the many rooms were magnificent. One tree stood out in particular called the Dried Flower Tree which is a Christmas tree decorated entirely with dried flowers. A video (from a few years ago) of the process of decorating this tree is available here.
Walking these magnificent rooms during this magical season made let me envision the life at this beautiful home as it was nearly a century ago. It was a splendid afternoon made truly amazing by my company.
I gather you’ve seen that Growing Up Savvy has been a bit quiet as of late. It isn’t because I’ve tired of the blog or was out of thoughts to share, rather because we snuck away on a getaway to somewhere sunny and warm. I sound just like everyone when I say that we really needed to get away, but we really just needed to get away. We haven’t been on a proper vacation since December of 2013 and since then we had a baby, renovated a bathroom, moved, changed nannies and listed our house for sale. It has been a busy year and not just my body, but my soul needed a change of scenery to recharge to. And what a change of scenery it was! Azure and green waters, a light wind blowing the salty air onto the shore and sand between my feet. I have to say that packing and airline travel with two kids is nothing short of a military operation that we approached with the appropriate strategic plan. Alas, we’re back and recovering from the stunning scenery.
This recovery will take a while but I’ve decided to ease the process by whipping up a delicious milkshake that I had while on vacation. It sounds simple enough, just four ingredients that I always have in my pantry and fridge but just haven’t thought to use that way. And so I present to you a cinnamon-banana milk shake which is just a banana milkshake with a bit of island spice added to it. 
Light, foamy and refreshing, this shake takes mere minutes to whip up and satisfies everyone in the family. My shake in hand, I can now look through the rest of the pictures from our recent getaway just to ease the symptoms of vacation withdrawal.
{this moment} ~ A Friday ritual. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. Original here.
Every year, my sister and I try to make something homemade for Hanukkah for the kids. Last year, we made aprons, cookie and chocolate milk mixes. This year, we decided to treat our 5 year old cousin, who we know is going to be a fashionista one day, to an accessory. I took a crash course on beading from my mother-in-law and spent a bit of time honing my skills. And in learning how to bead a little bracelet, I learned that I enjoy this craft very much.
Some of my best childhood memories involve the New Year’s holiday. We, like absolutely everyone else in the former Soviet Union had a «ёлка» (pronounced “yolka”): a new year’s tree. Since neither Hanukkah nor Christmas were allowed to be observed, people channeled all of their celebration into the one secular holiday of the season. I grew up with big trees decorated with elaborate and amazing ornaments, candies, and presents. Every New Year’s Day, my sister and I would open presents, watch our favorite cartoons (or maybe they were MY favorite cartoons and she just went along?) and ate Russian potato salad, caviar, and herring under a fur coat. There were baked sweets, candies, and lots of family time. These are some of my favorite things today and perhaps that is where my family-oriented nature took hold.
A year ago, Evan and I resolved to give a new year’s tree a try. When we fulfilled that promise this year, there was pure joy on both Sophia’s and Evan’s faces as they decorated the tree for the first time with great abandon. In addition to teaching Sophia and Eliza that the tree is called a “yolka,” we further ensured that they are only marginally confused about their Jewish heritage by already having not one, but two preemptive Hanukkah celebrations: one with my sister and one with Evan’s family.
There will be a smaller one during the week with just the four of us. After all is said and done there will have been more latkes and sufganiyot than in previous years and this will indeed ensure our children grow up with warm memories of Hanukkah.
