And We're Back!

Bloomberg may have closed schools for the rest of the week but my boss said "uh uh." This has to be the strangest week ever. Halloween has come and gone. M was a (half naked) flamenco dancer and J zorro (with a burnt cork drawn on moustache). The babies refused to wear their monkey costumes, but hey, at least I wasted some money on those. I will get a damn picture in those outfits before I donate them! My thoughts are with all of Sandy's victims. Damn nature. Relentless sometimes.

Recent Lines, Occurrences

M: We have to observe energy

J on the floor with a pillow: I am waiting for a romantic smoosh with you.

M: You are the best mom in this content.
Me: Content? Continent?
M: Yeah, there is nobody that is more comforting.

V would not come into the apt so I closed the door. I put my ear to the door and did not hear anything. I opened the door and he was on his toes pressing the elevator button!

Me: I am so tired I am going to go to sleep right there (point to sidewalk).
M: No, then homeless cannon balls will eat you.

A wore goggles all the way back from swimming on Saturday. She looks like a bad ass in them!
She tries to do a backbend in the umbrella stroller, arching her back and grabbing the handles (where my hands go). This girl is cuckoo!

Damn You Sandy!

I hear the wind. I read and watch the news. I cannot believe this storm will be as bad as they say. I hope not. But I do hope for something. Some strong rain at least. I have two actual living breathing mini hurricanes in this apartment. I cannot describe the damage they wreak on our small space. They climb and spill, bang and clatter, hit and open and break and close and... tío G was over here for an hour and left exhausted. They NEVER stop moving, exploring. No outside time, no stroller, no fresh air. I might have to go stand in the storm later to take a little break. No school tomorrow either. Damn! No MTA. No nada. Thank G-d F did not make it to Canada!

Beautiful Wedding!

T & M finally did it! C's song performance was fabulous. The bride and groom looked gorgeous and the ceremony was short and original. Dancing on my 11th anniversary was a blast and seeing my mother and I tear up the dance floor cracked me up!  I hope they dance like that at my next party! I feel like I got married more than 11 years ago, but I also love F as if I were a crazy teenager. Cannot wait for our 40/20 party (remember 30/10)? To love!

Recent Chatter

M: Mamá's butt smells beautiful, aka like roses.

J's teacher trying to teach him to make his lower case "q" in his name not look like a "g": Does your name end in "gin"- there is no g sound in your name.
J: There is no "w" in it either but you call me "wah-keen."

J when he found a drawing of his in the recycling and out it back on the fridge: Is that how you treat love? In the recycling?

My Answers to A's Questions- You Can Answer Too!

1. If you could choose any president, past or present, that you could date, who would it be? (men can answer too)

Sadly I used to be an US History geek and can barely remember the presidents at this point. I like Barack yo, I think I might choose him.

2. What collective year has been the best of your life/why?

Cannot choose. The best moments were those with family for sure and the three days my kids were born were amazing moments but I do not know about "best."

3. If you had to dress in just one color for the rest of your life, which would it be?

Easy. Black.

4. Which is the best holiday?

Christmas because of Christ. Actually, it is because of VT.

5. What worries you most (on a daily basis)?

Doing a good job at school and at home.

6. What’s your dream job?

I think it would be impossible to have. I would have to use my mind a lot, contribute to society, make money, and have a great schedule. I do have some of the above so I cannot complain.

7. If you were an inanimate object, what would you be?

Not a napkin. Maybe a car, they see a lot of action.

8. If you could be anywhere in the world right now, where would you be?

Buenos Aires

9. What’s your favorite word? (any language)

bruja, pepino, bugiarda (liar in italiano), liublu (love in russian)

10. What single item would you need to have somewhere to call that place home?

nothing. my kids. and i need a digital watch at all times.

11. How long do you brush your teeth for, on average?

too short. 30-45 seconds?

La Vida Loca

The last many days have been so busy that I have not been able to write much. Thank you to my good friends who helped me with childcare and to my brother D and of course, the irreplaceable L, without whom, our whole life would be in disarray. Last week was rough, as F was away all week. Last weekend we celebrated our 11th wedding anniversary (one week early) in a lovely B&B in Hudson, NY. What a difference a 22 hour get away can make. Lovely. On our actual anniversary we will be celebrating M& T's wedding. Yahoo! Next weekend is the marathon, the one after M's bday, then Philly for a conference and a few days later it is Thanksgiving. The fall is flying by! More later skater(s).

Evening Comments

M as she saw the FBI warning at the beginning of the video: Don't you think five years is an exaggeration?
J: No, it is illegal to copy movies.
M: J, your whole life has only been five years.
_________
J chewing his chicken cutlet (milanesa): There is like a bone in here (unlikely).
Me: A bone?
J: Yeah, like a rib.

Am Comments

J: Why did the cow moo?
Because she liked the blues.

M: Someone is going to have to tickle me for picture day so I can smile good.

From Our Building Manager- Now I Get It?!%!&^!#

This is the note from Elevator technician for your information only:
 
I was on site at 6 am this morning. Lady in 1A gave me access. Upon further investigation an intermittent control problem was noted. When the car would go to run the motor control would hesitate run signal to motor. This condition was not apparent with old motor due to binding caused by the misalignment and bad bearings. When new motor was installed it allowed the elevator to "roll back" on occasion when starting causing the car to go on the final limit at the top landing shutting it down on the 5th floor. This problem pretty much goes unnoticed at other floors because roll back is always up and no other safety device can be tripped.
Further investigatin showed there has been motor control issues before we acquired job. Motor drive had been replaced. Motor encoder had been removed. And other boards have been replaced. Also the controller prints that were on site from previous company were missing the pages that specifically relate to this problem. New prints need to be acquired for continued troubleshooting. Tricon controller. OT173993/MCE2005048287
This problem will be addressed and corrected in a timely fashion.

HOW ABOUT WHY THE FUCK DOES THE ELEVATOR KEEP BREAKING WHEN I AM ALONE WITH 4 KIDS, RUSHING OUT THE DOOR WITH A STROLLER AS BIG AS A MACK TRUCK???

Recently...

M, when I asked her why I found children's Pepto in the washing machine: When I was six, I used to put things in my pocket just in case I needed them and I guess it just made it through the wash the first few times

M: Will AleVit go to St H & H?
Me: I am not sure.
J: Yes, they are going. It is our decision.

J and I went to pee together and after he went, I squatted to pee, J: Why don't you sit?
Me: Because I do not want to touch the toilet seat and I am lazy.
J: I will put the paper down for you.

Me to M: What are you going to do during J's piano lesson now that your homework is done?
M: Oh, I have so many activities I can do. I like to look at people, organize my bag....

J: Do you know that when people are old they shrink?

Me to M about a TV show: How did you watch that? Isn't it about teenagers and inappropriate?
M: I was looking at the bright side and thinking "mamá does not know this show. maybe it is appropriate."

J to me: How many days until I am your age?
Me: I do not know.
M: Just count the years and multiply by 365.

J The Mobster

I tried taking off the damn glue from his eyebrow and made it worse as for two days he had a strip of glue with a piece of eyebrow just dangling from his face. Yesterday I said "this is it" and decided to bribe him. He is a funny guy. He asked for gum, candy, a dollar, 4 quarters, a movie night and a toy. Any time I offered something he would go in the opposite direction and add to his requests. I explained that this is not how one bargains. In the end, he got the money (well he does not have it yet but it will go into his Truck or Treat box for City Harvest), a movie night (which he would get anyway) and gum. What a scammer. It took one second to rip off that damn glue and now he does not look like a "freakin' freak." Remember that this is the kid, when we almost got run over by a motorcycle on the sidewalk (two years ago so he was three and change!) that said: When I grow up, I am going to run over him and his family. Mafia blood?

Thank Goodness for Binders!

Without these, Romney would have never met any intelligent women to hire. So hard to come by and foreign that he had to look in binders!

I Type as I Hear (Ay Ay Ay)

M to J: Adam is a myth. Like they think that G-d put Adam and Eve on earth and they had kids and so on and so on, but I do not believe that because there are more than two families on earth.

J: The people who are Jewish think it was nature and G-d

M: I think it was revolutions of nature. Some people think G-d and Mother Nature were the first people alive
J : Yeah,  some think they are married. And then they think he got divorced and married to another lady and had Jesus.
M: No Jesus is from Mary and the other man. No Joseph and Mary were longing for a child and G-d gave them a child.
Me; I do not believe that
M: Either do I. Jesus is for sure real right?
J: D said that some religious people say that G-d went down to earth like 90 years ago and because people were mean, he and Jesus thought that if he killed someone, people would be good. So they put Jesus on a stack with stuff in his hands (shows being on the cross) and he died like 49 years ago Before papi was born. Actually right before D(elia) was born.

M: The reason X resembles religion, is that Jesus was put in an X and he had no food and no water.

J: No, nails were stapled into him and that is why he died. But his head wasn't stapled.

Weekend Survived

We went to swim, we made it to family festival, back in time for F to return the car to the airport and to leave for Italia. M slept at her friend's house. I snuggled with J. I hung with the younger three at home until tía D came for bagels (yum) and then L came to take over. Gave J to tía S, tutored east, tutored west, got M at the playground from her friend (26 hour play date?) and came home. All are fed and bathed. Two are asleep. Two are reading. I am ready for adult time! J has glue and eyebrow hanging off of his face and is furious at me (oops). This week is going to be looooong without F but we have an anniversary (one week early ) getaway on Sat night so woo hoo!

J J J

With his arms outstretched: I am using my special force to make the toys come to me

to me: Why don't you have work?
I do.
Where?
Oh right.
But you do not have a big Spanish room (I do). I want you to have a better one.

Me: Can you not day damn at school please?
I don't.
I heard you put it on the list.
Damn is a d word. I put it on the list. I did not use it.

I have seen some funky cool teenagers, and even adults spit on the street.

J and I have been wrestling and negotiating for weeks to remove the glue from his face (from a cut in early Sept). He would not stay still, i was trying to remove it and part of his eyebrow came with it. It is dangling and he will not let me remove it and screamed: Now I look like a freaking freak.

Email From J's Teacher

For some added humor, I thought you would like to know the words that J has attempted to add to our word list this week (coupled with the definition of the word.) 

'Damn'-not the things beavers do. The word. You know "Damn it"

'Dick'- "No, not Dip, Dick. The word my sister says. It's a mean word.

I had to turn around for both words because he was straight-faced I was laughing so hard.

Go Go Go!

As V would say. His new obsession is CLEAN! He runs around gleefully with his plastic broom set, cleaning the whole house (the toy looks putrid already). Conversely, if he even glances at the closet with the vacuum in it, he starts to cry. I digress. Yesterday was exploding with activity but also with weird tidbits. See how many you can point out. I went to school and had a light day (one class was away on a trip). I took the train to tutee number one (73 St and Broadway) and had this weird feeling that school would need me. I uncharacteristically bought an ice cream from a food truck outside the subway. I asked for the smallest size. $5. Interesting. I tutored and thought "is my phone off?" A split second later my boss was calling me to ask something about my rug (renovation still not done!) I tutored when I got into the elevator I was in the biggest fart bubble of my life. I could not breather and then wondered if I would have the pleasure of trying to convey that it was not me. Thankfully nobody joined me. On my way to Mannes to meet MoJo (L picked them up), I stopped at the movie theater for my third attempt to get credit for stubs I got without my cool AMC rewards card. As I waited, I noted that a large soda is 52 oz, 1020 calories and $5.75. A large popcorn will set you pack 950 calories and $8. Fascinating. Once at Mannes, where the elevator was broken, I thought it weird that they were not downstairs. I went down, no kids. Up, no kids. Called. They were on the wrong floor. Winded. During class, I went down to buy a Suzuki book they did not have. More stairs. We headed home on the subway. Got home. Long wait for elevator. Broken. Stairs. Met babies and L. Dinner. Baths/showers. Tío D came. I asked him to give F his unlimited. I texted F to take D's unlimited. I went to tutor. Walked from home to 96 and 5th before a bus came. Love the MTA!! Finished tutoring on Park and 87 St. Splitting headache. Asked my mother to text F to bring Alleve. Met at theater. He brought me food (another request but no Alleve). $14 greasy grilled cheese with nasty tomato soup (easy to eat in the dark!). He did not bring the unlimited. How much money can we waste in one day? Long film. Sad. Slow. Piercing headache made me want to cry on the subway. Can I pay you to stop fucking playing the sax like crap? Held my head all the way home while F lamented a deep pain in his hand. Came home and fell asleep holding my head, while F rubbed his hand with tiger balm. Weird Wednesday. Here comes Thursday!        

J's Aphorism

You had your ship ready but it sailed away.

Weekend MoJo

J, holding a broken piece of his scooter - Can I have a rememory box? I will put all the things that were important to me in the rememory box.

M on what a popular (read mean) girl told her on a dress down day- She said I should have a bit more fashion and wear a suit because that is what the boys like. I should dress more practical (formal?) to get the boys.

F while out skateboarding with J- This is a crappy helmet
J- What do you expect? Santa probably does not know anything about skateboarding. He probably has like fifty or sixty elves helping him. I bet they are dumb, they probably have no brain.

M with Gatorade in her hand- This stuff is for real hydrating.

J on his five mile bike ride, exhilarated- Cause I was born in New York, I live in New York, and I will stay forever in New York!

J to M, his skateboard master- I want you to come every Saturday and every Whenday for four hours.

M- When you get pregnant you lose the joy of the belly button ring.

How Booked Is Too Booked?

I just looked at my planner and I want to cry. On Wednesday afternoon, I have to be in four different places at the same time. I (stupidly) got NYFF tickets for every night of the week except for Tuesday. That night I am tutoring. Oh and I am tutoring Wed afternoon and evening before the film. Oh, and Friday is a doubleheader. Saturday morning we rented a car. We will all go to swimming class, drive to family festival (school event on Travers Island), and then come home in time for F to catch a flight to Italia. From Sat afternoon to Friday afternoon I will be on my own for evenings and mornings. Thank goodness for L, without whom I could not live! Better go take a nap now while AleVit sleeps, father and son bike, and M melts her brain with TV.

MoJo Banter

J when he found $1 on the subway platform: This has been my dream for a long time. All of the bills I have are from abuelo L.
__
J: M says she is going to run away but I am going to stay with my parents to have the chance for them to protect me.
__
J on the subway out of the blue: I am the luckiest boy in the world!
__
M: Do you know that men eat men?
Me: Yes, they are called cannibals.
J: Do girls eat girls?
__
J's Chinese piano teacher: The day you eat is the day you practice.
J, a couple of days later: I guess I am not eating today.

J's Am Thought

I am awake but I cannot open my eyes because of the eye buggers next to them.
__
Can you put more milk in the (finished cereal) bowl so I can Scottish it?
(apparently means drink out of the bowl to him?!$@)