All Things Must Come to an End

Alex and I are so excited to see Harry Potter 7.2. It's sad to think that this will be the very last one. But, before that we have "Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader". You all know how very much we're looking forward to that movie.

Kata and I are also looking forward to Disney Channel's "Avalon High". It's based on Meg Cabot's book and hey, anything with the Arthur legend in it has got to be good, right?

So once again we learn that while one thing may end, there are other things to look forward to in the coming weeks and months.

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All Things It Was A Dark and Dreary Night.

Halloween. It's the beginning of the holiday frenzy for us. And sure enough, this year, we had a gazillion things to do - Halloween Parties, Pumpkin Carving, Pumpkin Seed Roasting, Costume Decisions to be made. The list was never ending.

But the costumes were chosen, at last. A Death Eater. A Witch. And for the second year in a row, A Sleeping Princess. Yes, Bella was determined to be Princess Aurora one more time. Here's to recycling!

I wore my Witches Hat again. I mean, if the hat fits then by all means, wear it. Right?


Here's a sampling of the pumpkins we carved. The Headless Horseman's Head was carved two times. Once for scouts (see post below) and once again on Halloween. Kata requested Snow White. And Bella really wanted Ariel (again) for the second year in a row. Are you noting a trend with her?? She's a Do-Over kind of person. Bella also gussied up a little pumpkin for her Preschool Contest. She won a ribbon for "Best Use of Glitter". She is so like her Mama. One can never have enough glitter in one's life.

Below is the pumpkin our dog "helped" carve. Yes folks, it was going to be Tinkerbell but I left it on the patio and uh-huh, the dog ATE it!

Before long, it was time for the little Trick Or Treaters to go out into the night to greet everyone. So they did. One door at a time.

While Ken took the kids out, I stayed home and passed out candy. Oh, it was so fun to see all our friends and neighbors stopping by. We had about 60 little ones.

I also enjoyed my wonderful set of Twilight Pumpkins that my talented friend, Annie, carved for me. And yes, I queued "Twilight" on the Blu-ray. Why not?? It was a necessary indulgence with my glass of merlot and the spotlighted pumpkins.

This was last year's pumpkin -

And debuting this year, The New Moon Pumpkin -

I know. Annie's uber talented. The carvings are unbelievably life-like.

And where was Ken, you ask?? Well he was scooping out FIVE pumpkins and helping with the costumes. But mostly, he was enjoying these -

Wishing you a peaceful start to what will no doubt be a busy holiday season. Enjoy.

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All Things Death Eaters.

I knew the day would come, when requests for Disney/Cartoon themed pumpkins and costumes would end. And so it has, for at least, Alex.

This year instead of a Disney Prince or a Knight, he wanted to be a Death Eater from Harry Potter. Okay, it's Harry Potter so I wasn't too sad.

Then he made the request for the pumpkin he took to his Cub Scout Pack meeting. He wanted it to look like The Headless Horseman. So I obliged. He won an award for "Best Eyes". Don't be too impressed, all the scouts get an award.


Another milestone is past us. Onto costumes that feature a cape, a mask and a hood. Hmmm. And scary pumpkin carvings. I can so get into all of those, really I can.

Enjoy letting go of some old traditions and accept the new with same amount of joy you reserved for the old. We'll try it out together and see what happens, okay?

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All Things Pawsitively Outstanding.

A pause to get all braggy about one of the kids. I know and you, yourself are pausing to think - what again?

Alex had a wonderful year in Fourth Grade. He has grown so much this year both physically and mentally. And in the last week of school, he received the Student of the Month award. What a way to represent a year full of reaching Above and Beyond. Sometimes, we all felt his strain as he learned a new concept or struggled with something that was just a bit out of reach. But, he made it through and we're so very proud.


So in tribute, I thought I'd present you with:


Ten Random Facts About Alex at Ten Years of Age -

1. He likes everything having to do with Harry Potter. And he finished six of the seven books during this past school year.


2. He still loves all things Star Wars, Indiana Jones and Narnia.


3. He no longer plays with his stuffed animals.


4. His stuffed bear, a.k.a. Rainbow Bear still sits on his bed.


5. Rainbow Bear has survived preschool, a move to a new state, too many time outs to count and a hernia operation (Alex's not the bear's) at Oakland Children's Hospital. Yes, Alex got to bring him in. I think Rainbow Bear may go to college with him.


6. He no longer orders vanilla ice cream. His tastes have expanded to include mint chocolate chip and cookie dough.


7. He still drinks water only. No milk. No juice. On occasion, a Gatorade after soccer.


8. He plays soccer, basketball and Quidditch.


9. He wants to be in choir next year.


10. He's an all around great kid, who bugs his sisters but loves nothing more than running to pick them up from school.

And as an extra bonus - Braggy Mama had to share his book report for Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. A shoebox diorama. Very, very cool. He worked hard on the diorama and even harder on the write up. Picture trying to summarize an 870-page book on the walls of a shoebox. The fact that he actually accomplished it sums up Alex, in a nutshell.




Now, go ahead, I dare you sum up your life right now. Don't think too hard. Give me Ten Random Facts, or even five, or okay, one comment. Either way, enjoy the current randomness that makes up unique little you.

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All Things Quidditch.

Alex had been waiting for what seems like forever for his Harry Potter birthday party. And finally, the day came. Thanks to one of my online friends for her recommendation, we had Harry Potter light up magic wands for the boys. They also had Harry Potter glasses and to add to the mix, I made them Triwizard Tournament jerseys (don't ask, it was one of those crafty moments for me).

The first thing they wanted to do was rush outside and play. My friends son (below) dressed like Han Solo. How adorable was he?? He had the white shirt, blue pants, boots and vest. I loved it! Yes, yes, there was even a blaster.

The four wizards (Alex is second from the left) were totally prepped for their magic filled moments. And Kata, acting as none other than Hermione, held the paper with all the magic spells used in every Harry Potter movie. And yes, she was "coaching" the boys from way up high. Nothing like a little sister.

My best-est Mommy Friend on the entire planet, the illustrious Ms. Brandi, not only drove two plus hours to bring her kids over but carried with her the much coveted Mommy Juice. How appropriate because she coined the very term. These are actual wine juice boxes from Tarjay. The merlot was not bad when chilled but the cab, well, just so-so. We so needed it with eight kids and one daddy who just wanted to watch the NHL playoffs.

The cake from Biggest Little Cake Shop rocked!!


And the friends gathered around...

And the candles were lit...

And a very serious wish was made (aside - I love his face in this shot)...

Thanks to his friends and sisters, Alex had a very magical birthday indeed. Now go practice a few spells yourself - expellaramus! Let's see who will look that one up.

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All Things Hogwarts - Not Really.

So the morning Alex and I left for our Cal excursion, I posted on twitter "9.5. yo son thinks Cal will be like Hogwarts. Yeah-No." And the @Cal Alumni twitter account picked that up and broadcast it on their twitter feed. I was pretty amused. But honestly, Alex knee deep wading through all the Hogwarts lore figured, well, it's a 140 year old university so there would have to be some Hogwarts-like things there. Right?


I wracked my brain to provide him just that. But our first stop was at Top Dog. Man, those hot dogs are the best. I so missed them. It was a toss up between those, Blondie's Pizza and Yogurt Park for our lunch menu. Top dog won out because it was the first place we found.



And there's a gratuitous shot of Telegraph Avenue. With all the vendors still lining the sidewalks. But I must admit, the stores are a lot more corporate than I remember. I missed Cody's Books. It was all shuttered and empty. So many good memories there. How I wish I could have spent an hour or two walking through their book shelves one more time. All those books. Mhmm. And the musty smell associated with really old bindings. Nothing like that on earth.

Okay, so we were back to search for Hogwarts-like places...sort of. The above is the library on campus. It used to be the third largest in the U.S. when I went there. Harvard and the Library of Congress held the top two spots.


Most of the Reading Rooms have been converted to accommodate laptops and resulting network connections. But, the North Reading Room still looked the same. How I remember sunsets lighting up those windows. And the accompanying moonlit nights when the only glow would be that of the lamps above the desks. Alex thought I'd hit the jackpot here with Most Hogwarts-like Ambiance.

Alex asked where would Dumbledore work. My guess was the Administration building. Home of thousands of famous protests on Sproul Plaza. Some even when I was there. None were happening on that day. It was sunny, beautiful and the steps held people enjoying the sunshine and their lunches.

Sather Gate. It leads up to Sproul Plaza. I caught this picture of Alex walking confidently towards it. I so hope that in about eight years, I can catch the same shot again. He'll be taller and an enrolled student there and he'll still be walking away from me.

Then in a moment of Let's Just Do It and mostly because my darling BFF Lorraine, was there encouraging me with goading comments and reminders that we met over two decades ago, we started the long walk up to International House. It was much longer than we expected or remembered. Dear God, the slow incline on a warm day nearly killed me and I wondered how did I do that several times a day?

We paused at the Pacific Film Archive because Alex asked me where the film classes were held. And seeing as I snuck into dozens of them in my time there, I knew the entrance rather well. Here's to my son, the future award winning director. May you go there. Or better yet, UCLA, if that's your chosen profession.

Finally, we made it to I-House. The fireplace still stood although on this unexpectedly warm day, it wasn't lit.

I remember endless moments spent waiting for friends on those couches and dozing off on them while waiting. There was, of course, someone doing that on the other side. Things change. Things stay the same. Like in spite of email, there are still the wonderful little mailboxes in the Mail Room. How I loved getting letters and cards from my friends.


Yes, in case you were wondering, I was scoring Big Time on Alex's Will It Be Like Hogwarts' Scale. Because I took him up to the Dining Commons.

And then to the patio in the middle of the four towers. And yes, the fountain still stands. We used to show movies on the walls above. I decided it would be wise to leave out the part about drinking and in general being a part of I-House's trouble-making contingent. It was all very mild, let me tell you and fun.

On our way back, we stopped by another Ritual Place, Cafe Strada although in my time it was known as Cafe Roma. It, too, looked unchanged.

Amazingly delicious iced mochas and a hug from my son for being a cool mom and showing him around her college.

And yes, that commemorative shot. My BFF, Lorraine and I. We met on the first day our little heels stepped on that campus. Our very first day at Cal. And we're still in touch. Still goofy. Still day-dreaming. Still snarky well beyond our years.


Wishing you a moment where you realize that in spite of some decades gone by, things are still the same. So here's to a well placed iced mocha with a friend who loves, cares and still worries about you. Cheers.

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All Things Tea Party.

There are some famous tea parties out there. The Boston Tea Party. The Mad Hatter's Tea Party. All valid in their own way.

But then, there are our tea parties. And they have their own themes and uses. This one was the Track Break's Almost Over and We're Killing Some Time So Let's Have A Tea Party. I am sure you've attended these before. If not, next time, we'll be sure to send you an invite.

See, first we make the tea. And set out our prettiest tea cups and saucers. Of course, there are plenty of biscuit-like cookie treats in lieu of scones and sandwiches. Or in a pinch, we clean out the Girl Scout cookies from our pantry.

We wear our grandest hats.


Invite the finest of our dolls. Sometimes there are even surprise guests.



And when it's all consumed and put away, we feel better. Isn't that the very purpose of tea time? Not sure, but this theory works for us.

In the mean time, yes, you noticed that Alex got a haircut. Finally. And I completed the infamous Gryffindor scarf. Track Break can now, indeed, end.





Wishing you a tea break. Enjoy. And yes, watch out for those surprise guests, some of them can be quite deadly (that's a nod to my Twilight friends).

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