The time has come...

....to say good bye to my blogger site.  You may be wondering what has prompted this migration, this spontaneous exit from one site to another.  Just like the impulse to start my blog, and similarly to my need to re-arrange furniture every now and then....I needed a change. (Rocket for the record, prefers this site because the new one is not as "pretty."--and though I will miss my ability to change the fonts and colors, I now have tabs!  Woo Hoo!!!)

So, the adventures of Cara Mamma, Principessa, & Rocket (not to forget Cara Mamma the Elder and Papi the Brain, and the lovely Red) can now be found at:  http://caramammasdayinthelife.wordpress.com/.

I hope you will follow us through this journey....it has only just begun!  

So much for a quiet relaxing evening...

.... as I thought that all was well with the world....and that Principessa was happily playing with her barbies I went to check in on her.  It was then that I became witness to a crime. 

You might wonder...what does a pair of nail scissors have to do with a barbie.  If you look very closely---just under the hand of this dear barbie....are tufts of hair. My wonderful Principessa became a hairdresser tonight--because she "wanted to take the rubber bands on her neck off." She "could not really see it and it would not stay up, so..." she cut it.

She might have even gotten away without me noticing....oh right-not so much.  The trail of Barbie hair from the bathroom to her bedroom told the story.  I understand that children are growing up faster now compared to 30 years ago...but cutting hair already?  Principessa the tortuous hair cutter...yikes!

A special day...two months and counting...

Thursday January 14, 2010. A regular Thursday---nothing particularly special about 1/14/10 in history.....it was however, an important date for many reasons:

• Two months from now- Rocket and I will be exchanging vows. Hopefully the good weather from today bodes well for the same day in March.  Sun is welcome but not necessary--- 50 plus degrees on the other hand....that would work well.  :) 

• It was on this date that Rocket and I met again with Rabbi Cool....above and beyond his good counsel, ideas, and thoughts--he made us laugh (alot) on this special day.   He even offered to help write vows for me to use during our ring exchange--something about Rocket always and forever agreeing with everything I say.... he he he :) 
  

• Rabbi Cool did also present us with some news.....our beloved Rabbi has to have back surgery.  Yes, you read correctly--- and oh right- this will be his 4th surgery...so there will be fusions and fun things that make the recovery....lets just say more difficult. Cara Mamma the Elder also needs this surgery, but she is driving Papi the Brain and I crazy with excuses to push it off.  Rabbi Cool, on the other hand, a wise man, is electing to have the surgery....hopefully in mid February.  Lets be honest--- I want him to be well and all...but seriously???   Fingers crossed for a mid-February surgery so that he can be back on his feet and making us all giggle on March 14th. 

• And then...came dinner.  Rocket and I ventured to a restaurant that I had been suggesting (for months).  My highly intelligent fiance finally came to his senses and agreed to try Bazin's on Church--and it was there that we discovered "That Old Black Magic."  A lovely Syrah-Greanche blend....the name says it all.....it was--simply--magical.   This bottle of wine found me at during a time...that lets just say---I needed to find something that spoke to me.  I needed a reminder of how magical life can be...that there are good days and bad days, and that the goal should be that the good outnumber the bad...but even then, that life be savored and enjoyed.  

So now, one day shy of two months pre-nuptials....I remember. I remember loved ones and friends that are no longer with us- or no longer part of our every day existence. I remember the power of laughter...and I remember, the power (and taste!) of That Old Black Magic. 

Stepping Out

I did it. I took a step that was so not "me" this evening.  All day my stomach was just a little uneasy, my drive home was filled with trepidation, and then one foot in front of the other---I took the final step---into the dance studio...for Zumba class.

I had heard about Zumba... and was always intrigued by it.  But I am not a dancer. I am not coordinated, nor am I gifted with grace or rhythm.   But in my "the wedding is two months away" and stuck in a workout/training rut head....I googled Zumba last week. Lo and behold there is a local studio that had a New Years Resolution Fitness Pass for other curious, "wanna be" dancing queen people..... and tonight, I faced my comedic like first try....and LOVED it!!!!

The music was a mix of merengue, hip hop, belly dancing, salsa, and flamenco..... and while my hips do not move like those of my instructor, nor can I do "Egyptian" arms (jellyfish arms on the other hand, those are my specialty)....but I swear that I walked out of the studio standing taller, more confident, (sweaty), and so excited to go back for more!

With 6 weeks before my 14k and 2 months before the wedding----stepping out and attempting Zumba may be the best thing that I could do for myself....(and probably for Rocket, Principessa, Cara Mamma the Elder, and Papi the Brain----they appreciate me having "outlets" for my....umm...."personality").  Who knows, I might even take the next step and try hip hop or belly dancing!

Wedding plans alla Principessa

Principessa has formally announced that she, as an adult, will be marrying one of her classmates- "P."  She has laid out the details of the wedding in what could be a stand up comedy act.

The synopsis:  She will be wearing a white dress with a crown and curtain on her head.  Her guests will be seated- unless of course they are saying prayers, in which case they will be standing.  A rabbi will lead her whole family, and there will of course be a prayer book.  After the wedding, we will go upstairs to a big open space that will have flowers all around, for lots of yummy food.   As far as beverages go....her event will be well stocked:  wine, chocolate milk, regular milk to suit the purists, juice and water.  The wedding cake will be chocolate and will have flowers on the side...and for the musically inclined, there will be "music people"---and though Principessa does not want to sing, "P" can if he would like.

Almost two months prior to the big day for Rocket and I....I am wondering if in addition to flower girl, bridesmaid, and maid of honor--we should have given the wedding planner role to Principessa since she seems to have understood the gist of what a wedding should be:  family, friends, faith, fun, and yummy food. Not sure it can get any simpler.  Maybe we could turn her dreams into a career and market this kind of wedding?  So many brides get sooo worked up about all the details (says the bride that had to go through two dresses before finding "the" one in dress #3).....is it really worth all the stress?  Really....what does one really remember about a wedding..... the people that were there to make it special, the funny behind the scene moments that made you laugh, the maybe not so funny moments that made you crazy, and ....oh right--then the most important thing--the love.  If you are lucky, the dress makes you look like a knock out, the flowers add pops of color to the photos that will document the event for the ages, and hopefully the food is tasty....

What Principessa does not know is that the video interview of her wedding plans is being archived in multiple places so that when she does become an adult, and finds her own Rocket Romeo, her dream has already been laid out. She, as many young girls do, will have the "dream wedding" planned since childhood... and since, according to her rules for adult behavior, adults are not allowed to change their minds...there will be no adding or substitutions.  :)

Starting points, Babysteps, and Goals....one generation to the next...

We all need goals. Big or small---a goal is a goal.  With goals come starting points, and starting points come baby steps with which we monitor the bigger goals.  For some, a goal- or the journey toward a goal can be invigorating.  For others, it is excruciating, and for others, the progress- the baby steps are never enough.

My running a four mile race on New Year's Eve was a starting point- a way to start my new year off through running...the next event in February (Virginia is for Lovers 14K, Virginia Beach) doubling the mileage...and then a ten miler in April.  Running through the cold, wet, and dark streets of Fairfax City on New Year's Eve (did I mention it was cold and wet??) I felt good--who wouldn't....wet, cold, and breathing heavy---the new year had to be off to a good start!   I felt even better when in the third mile, on a hill (hill=steep=unhappy Cara Mamma), I passed the woman with whom I had been playing bumper cars all evening.  It had started early on during the first mile---I was ahead, then her, then me---and before I knew it,  the ultimate it baby steps was formed---to pass her once and for all.  Beating the time that I had confidently hoped for was great--but passing on a hill.....that, that was magic. 

Principessa apparently has inherited some of my goal oriented behaviors....she has been playing on our Wii Fit the last few days.  She exerts so much energy and enthusiasm -(who knew getting all the balls to go through the holes in what seems like a human billiards game could be so fun)...but then waits with trepidation, to find out if her Mii will be "happy" or "sad" with the score.  Luckily, the creators of Wii Fit were smart enough to include alot of positive reinforcement and feedback--so even if her little Mii is steeped over in despair, a little ding is heard, and Principessa waits and then squeals with excitement when out of the darkness appears..."a new job!"  These baby steps keep her going- as does the little mantra that she chants to her self about not giving up and trying again and again to get better (though hmm....I wonder, is that really a confidence boosting mantra, or might it be an attempt to not go to set the table or go to bed??). 

So yes, like mother like daughter....poor Rocket is going to have to live with two goal setting competitive junkies!  We just might need the new Wii Fit Plus! 

I guess it would be bad to go into the Wii right now and try to beat all of her scores, right?  :)

"Adults" according to Principessa

The wise beyond her years Principessa alerted me to a very curious and frightening fact yesterday...according to her: adults are not allowed to change their minds!  Yes, that is right---according to the experts...the four and five year olds that spend their days creating, imagining, and oh right--changing their mind (and mood) every few minutes....we adults cannot, must not- change our minds.

Just wondering---but when exactly did this memo come out?  And um....can I just say "uh-oh!" This conversation came out of Principessa saying that she wanted to be a "space girl" when she grows up.  This made me laugh because at an early age I wanted to be an astronaut (or a writer, or a teacher)....I told Principessa about how she has lots of time and can change her mind...that I infact, thought I wanted to be an astronaut.  She was quite perplexed by this and by the fact that now my choice was to "be in school" and then told me about this rule that adults cannot change their minds (apparently it made for a good playground conversation with her little friends). 

I am pretty sure that 2009 was a monumental year as far as changing my mind....which it looks like now, is going to lead to big trouble! 

Changing of my mind three times about "the" wedding dress,  changing my job....pretty much a big changing of the mind there, and ....... I am sure there are many examples.... but I am guessing I should plead the fifth. 

Not sure that I can stick to this new rule....though it makes me wonder--- what if we just made a decision and never looked back?  No--- wonder schmunder, the truth is that the mind changing police will be writing me lots of tickets in the near future!