About Me

Washington, DC, United States
Heather Capell Bramble is mother of two kaleidoscoping kids, Jonah and Vera. She has a magical kaleidoscope, often in her back pocket, and it usually helps her turn her normally chaotic life into something beautiful. Her goal is to have as much fun and try to be as happy as they can while on the uncharted journey of motherhood. This means doing lots of arts and crafts, going on crazy adventures, and celebrating all kinds of holidays - and yes, trying to laugh along the way!

Saturday, July 28, 2012

WTF...

Those three letters can mean so many things...

In this case, they mean more than one.  They mean what you think they mean... and more...

They also mean:

What a Terrific Friend!

When is This Finished?

Wonderful, Terrific & Fantastic?

Wow, This is Fun!

Want To Fade away into nothing...

I've had all these feelings/thoughts this week...

Monday morning Jocelyn left for a two week work trip.  For some reason we also lost our Internet on Sunday night?!?!  WTF

Should have known something was up then!

The week was filled with great moments and these varied WTF moments. 

We went swimming in two different pools with two different buddies - that was the "Wow, This is Fun" moments!

We bumped into a number of friends in a number of places - some we haven't seen in years, some we haven't seen in months, other in weeks - but it was great to see all of them - however long it had been! Wonderful, Terrific, & Fantastic!

We also managed to lose a set of car keys and lock ourselves out of our residence twice - in two different ways on two different days - that was the "When is This Finished" and "Want To Fade away into nothing" moments (and definitely the traditional WTF meaning?!?!).

Tonight, I was going to write about something else - but I just had to write this instead.  I don't think I would be able to fall asleep if I didn't. WTF

Overall we had a great day.  We went to an awesome Olympic themed 4th birthday party this morning - Jonah & Vera had a wonderful time and they were really well behaved.  Jonah got this little gold medal that he has been wearing all day and telling everyone that he got his "gold medal" because he behaved in the "limpics" - too funny.  He is totally into medals and rings right now... What Terrific Fun!

After the party, we drove over to our best buddy and Auntie C (in Virginia...)to give her a housewarming gift and Jonah & Vera terrorized her kitty cats in the best way possible.  Will Travel for Friend!

Then we all needed a little break. Vera took her nap.  I finally took a shower.  Jonah hung out with the babysitter for two hours.  We all got up, cleaned up had a predinner dinner and then we were on the road again to another party back in Virginia.   I've been going to this friend's BBQ for years and was excited to go.  I wanted to bring the kids, but I was tired and hesitant because I was without Jocelyn and I really didn't know anyone there besides the hosts - but I threw caution to the wind and went for it.  The babysitter helped me get the kids ready to go and packed into the car and I dropped her off at the bus stop.  She locked my front door... Wasn't Thinking Forward...

Of course I went the wrong way to the BBQ so instead of it taking us 25 minutes it took us almost an hour.  I hate my GPS!!!!  We got there and headed straight to the big back yard.  Within minutes Jonah was playing with two older boys, 8 and 10 and one of them was also a Jonah.  Jonah was ecstatic and happy, happy happy!  They played for an hour.  Vera was walking and talking to everyone.  We ate chips, watermelon, mozzarella salad - had drinks and had a great time!!!  What a Fun Time! 

Then the storm came and it was late.  I gathered my crew and before we could leave the skies opened.  I had an executive decision to make.  We were parked way down the street- did I take them into the rain and get really wet or try to wait it out in the house.  I waited a few minutes but my kids were super tired, the house was super nice, there were too many people, it wasn't going to go well - so we made a run for it! Wet, Tired, & Fussy!
We got soaking wet but made it back to the car and drove home - this time armed with much better directions.  We got home quick but wet.  As I drove up to our house, I had a flash - I don't think I have my keys... WTF?!?!

KEY/LOCK BACK STORY

On Tuesday somehow I lost my car keys?!?!  I drove the car home and had them then, but then on Wednesday when I wanted to take Jonah to camp... no key... I am sure I must have thrown them out... because I still have not found them.  We have another set but it was with Jocelyn in Chicago?!?!  I thought very quickly and found the valet key.  Jonah got to camp on time and I started to make calls to figure out how to get another car key.  Jocelyn FedEx'd me the second key and on Friday I went and had another key made by the dealer and then programmed with all my current keys.  $150 later we have another key, but as I checked out I realized it did not include the remote????  That is another $150, and needs to be programmed as well.  For now, we only have one remote. WTF.
On Thursday afternoon after hanging out with some fun buddies at the pool, we got back tired and wet and - guess what? we could not get in the front door.  I had my keys but the door would not open.  I ended up getting in through a side door - that I had the key for... and then after another discussion with our amazing lock guy figured out that somehow this little button on the side of the front door got pushed (I am sure by one of my kids) that makes it impossible to open the door even if you have the key...  WTF.

On Friday, I decided I would hang up  my key holder so I would not lose my keys anymore.  The new routine would be to keep the keys on the key holder and check the buttons before I leave... I can succeed if I have a routine... at least that is what I told myself.  In the old house, I always kept my keys on the key holders so I would not lose them.  I never got around to putting the key holder up in the new house and I was just keeping them in my purse.  I decided it was time to go back to my old method.

So there we were.  It was 9:30 on Saturday night after a long day (a pretty good one).  My kids were exhausted and so was I.  We were wet and I did not have my keys to get into my house.  WTF WTF WTF....

I called the friend we visited this afternoon with the new house.  She was exhausted and in the shower.  She got dressed and drove her butt over to open my door (she has my keys) - SHE IS AWESOME!!!  What a Terrific Friend!

Before she could get to me, I changed my kids into dry clothes/diapers in the back of the car and we went to the Burger King drive thru for treats... french fries (Vera's favorite) and chocolate shake (Jonah's favorite).  Our Auntie arrived, we got into the house.  My house keys were hanging on my key holder... WTF.

I have mentioned it before - I think... who knows because I can not remember anything....

But these days I am tired and I can't remember anything.  It freaks me out a bit, but I am so busy I don't have time to think about it too much - until on nights like tonight and I don't have a choice.

I kept thinking about a few things tonight... I can remember when I was studying for the Bar exam and I could not remember anything like keys, phone numbers, or where my study books were.  I started taking gingoba... I am sure it was because I was studying all the time, I was anxious and stressed about the test, but not really indulging in feeling anxious or stressed because that is not my thing... so my brain had to give somewhere and not remembering things not associated with the Bar exam was how it worked...  Lately I feel a little bit like that... WTF?

But then I talk to parents, and they all tell me - it is just PARENTHOOD... having kids makes you loose your mind!  sort of in a good way.... WTF?

And then I keep thinking about the NPR story on menopause that I managed to listen to a few months ago and there was a good 5 minutes on how when some woman go through it they start completely losing the memory and they feel like they are going crazy.  I am so making a gyno appointment this week.  I am going to be 42 and the women in my family have gone through it very early.... WTF?

Finally, I think about my grandma who is 95 and has basically no short term memory.  We have been dealing with her losing her memory (memories) for a number of years now.  I do sometimes worry about it.  I know that sort of thing can be genetic.  It is hard to watch someone you love lose their ability to remember.  Our minds are what makes us who we are.  Forgetting where your keys are is no big deal, forgetting who you are - well that is a whole different story. Or forgetting who your kids are, your loved ones are... that is heart breaking.  My grandmother isn't there yet, but it is still hard to watch someone you love with your whole heart age and lose pieces of who she once was. WTF.

It is way past my bedtime.  My kids are finally asleep.  Tomorrow is another day. 

What will I forget tomorrow? I don't know...

WTF...


chocolate shake

fries

it's a party on a Saturday night when Mommy loses her keys!  WTF!




Friday, July 27, 2012

Forting Around...

The other day I decided to kaleidoscope up our routine up a little to see how it worked.  On the way home from camp I decided we'd go to a new playground I had seen one day while driving in our new neighborhood.

Usually we come home after camp and hang around until Vera takes her second nap.  I figured why not do something outside and fun then Vera would really nap (albeit a little later) and Jonah could just chill a bit until the late afternoon routine commenced.

Our destination: Fort Bayard Park (see other info here)

I especially like that it has a bit of historical value.  Wikipedia tells us that:

Fort Bayard was an earthwork fort constructed in 1861 northwest of Tenleytown in the District of Columbia as part of the defenses of Washington, D.C. during the American Civil War. It never faced major opposition during the conflict and was decommissioned following the surrender of Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. Named after Brigadier General George Dashiell Bayard, who was killed at the Battle of Fredericksburg, the site of the fort is in Boundary Park, located at the intersection of River Road and Western Avenue NW in Washington, D.C.

That is kinda cool.  There is no Fort standing today and there is a whole history about the ownership of the land, etc. - check out the Wikipedia site for the info.  What is there today is a very cute "tot lot" that has a nice amount of shade - which is key in this Washington, DC summer that we are having these days!

There is a climbing structure with slides, baby swings, a sand box, and a ton of little "vehicles" for the kids to play with that people have left there - including one of those little "roller coaster" things.  It is an enclosed lot that is in the middle of a huge green area.  There are some picnic tables and bench seating and lots of shady trees.

There were only two other kids there when we were there.  Jonah & Vera had a blast!  It is about 1.5 miles from us, so I think we will go back.  And Vera took a nice nap when we got home and Jonah chilled out - so I guess the plan worked...























Thursday, July 26, 2012

Partying in Pittsburgh!

We had a good time in Pittsburgh.  We hung out with family and some old friends.  And we got to go to a wedding!

I LOVE WEDDINGS!  Really love weddings!

As in I used to watch that show "A Wedding Story" obsessively and I still love reading the New York Times wedding announcements every week.  Also, I have been "in" a ton of weddings and until we moved I still had every bridesmaid dress that I had ever worn - but then we moved and decluttered and I donated them.  There were at least 12 of them circa 1995 to 2010... that is some time span...  but I digress.

Saturday night was the big night.  Big night for us and big night for the kids!

We were in a new city where did not really know anyone other than my family, the groom's family, and a few other family friends.  We were going out with adults for the Saturday night wedding.  The kids were staying in the hotel with a babysitter. 

This sounds simple.  But it isn't.  First off, thanks to my reliable mommy friends in Washington DC, I secured a babysitter of a mom who lives in Pittsburgh who is a friend of my friend.

Then, we weren't really going to be hanging out with our "friends" - it was more of a hang out family night.  I love my family (my brother, his wife, and my mom), but you know it could go many different ways - as in we could all get into some stupid family squabble, or we could have a good time.  We actually haven't really hung out all of us sans kids in forever?!?! 

Turns out the wedding plan was super amazing.  They got married in Pittsburgh because (1) she is from Pittsburgh and (2) they are both huge Pittsburgh sports team fans - especially the Steelers.  They met in New York, at Scruffy Duffy's, a sports bar in Hell's Kitchen (now closed) while rooting for the Steelers.  It is a great story.  He is a great guy. He "bar tended" for my bridal wedding tea... She seems like a great girl.  The are an awesome looking couple. The wedding was gorgeous and fantastic.  And they seemed super happy.

We all had a great time.  The wedding was at Heinz Field.  That is just cool! They had the ceremony and party on the club level.  We were staring out these huge windows at the Pittsburgh skyline and the baseball stadium.  It was a fabulous view.  And at some point (when the baseball game ended), we were treated to a full on fireworks show! 

The wedding ceremony was really beautiful.  I cried the whole time they read their individually written vows...

My family had a good time together at the wedding.  Everyone was on their best behavior.  We all had fun and enjoyed each other and the party.  Maybe it is a sign that we are all maturing... maybe.

As an added treat, we were able to check out the field and walk around the stands.  That was super cool.

On the ride back from Pittsburgh, Jocelyn and I talked about it and overall it felt like the wedding was a perfect mix of the bride and groom and that is really a great way to have a wedding!

Back at the hotel, my kids seemed to love the babysitter, Abby.  She was young, happy and armed with an iPhone!  My brother's kids were four doors down the hall in the hotel, with a family friend staying with them.  One of the cousins ended up hanging out with Jonah in our room and that made him happy.

There was one blip in the night.  Abby texted me that Jonah threw up but all was well... what the hell?????  They had ordered room service dinner (this is the partying the kids did) and he sort of "choked" on his grilled cheese and threw up but then was fine...

Sometimes I feel like that kind of stuff only happens in my family... but I know I am wrong and it was no big deal - and could have been a million times worse...

They ordered pay per view Dora and SpongeBob movies... Abby said they were good as gold.  Vera went to sleep in 5 minutes after she was in the crib and Jonah went to sleep at his bedtime???? THANK YOU ABBY!

We got back after a wonderful adult evening and the kids were asleep?!?! 

Not a bad Saturday night. 

Of course all hell broke loose on Sunday morning when both of my kids clearly had behaved enough on Saturday for the rest of the weekend and thus, they were done on Sunday.  We literally had to leave the "wedding brunch" early (kicking and screaming) and did not go with our cousins to the Ducquesne Incline.  We just packed it up after Jocelyn got off 3 different conference calls and headed back to home.

I've learned the hard way -

Quit while you are ahead & take the good stuff where you can!

Thank you Steve and Kristi for a great excuse to visit Pittsburgh and a wonderful time! 

We wish you only happiness, health and love!

MAZAL TOV!

room service food and eating on the bed!!


pay per view Dora!!! whoop whoop!


eating treats on the bed and watching DVDs!!! 


Mom & Me at Heinz Field!



Our Gang at the wedding!*

adult time... not such a bad thing...*


*These photos were taken by the mother of the groom and swiped off the sister of the groom's Facebook page...

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Cousins Conquer Carnegie...


After our (my) profound experience at Fallingwater on Friday (See my post here), we (I) decided to go to the standard kid friendly museum route on Saturday morning.  I had researched all the "places to go with kids" and decided we should go to the Carnegie Science Center - it was an easy choice - they had a miniature train village?!?! 

We met up with my brother's gang and arrived at the Carnegie Science Center 15 minutes before it opened!  Go me!

We had a plan (well, my brother & sister-in-law had a plan - they are good with stuff like that), all of us we visit the submarine first, then go to the train room and then probably split up... older kids going one place, younger kids going another.

The plan worked.  The submarine was very cool.  It was fun to see all the cousins completely taking over the submarine - submarines are weird spaces, tiny, complicated with tons of knobs and lights - super cool for kids!

There was a snack break and then onto the train exhibit. I was sure Jonah would LOVE it!  Well, he loved the one train outside the exhibit you could move back and forth on the track?!?! Vera loved the whole model train exhibit.  Jonah was sort of in a mood - but we got through it.  But it was clearly time for some hands-on stuff for the younger crew. 

My sister-in-law and I took the three youngest (Vera, Jonah and Cousin X (5)) to the Exploration Station Jr area - and it was a HUGE hit!  The ids got to run around, play with water, throw balls, put on a nature puppet show, plant vegetables and DO stuff!  These cousins did it all and had fun and they were very well behaved - except for the incident when Jonah after I told him not to one thousand times put his little train he had been carrying around into the "ball bucket" and cranked it up the ball bucket mountain... and then it was gone... Thankfully a kind soul rescued said train and returned it to us.

After the Exploration Station, we split up again.  I took my crew for lunch/snacks at the cafe.  That was uneventful - which is the way I like it.  Then we took a drive to the Pittsburgh airport to pick up Nana!  Kids fell asleep in the car and Nana arrived safe and sound! 

SUCCESSFUL MORNING - GOOD JOB PITTSBURGH (and us)!


 



Pittsburgh



















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this is my favorite shot - the boys are manning the canon/torpedos and the girls - I am pretty sure they are checking their undersea coordinates and fuel gages...


dancing cousins




snacking cousins







Vera found Fallingwater



Exploration Jr







Jonah put his train in there...