We survived

The high holidays came and went and we survived. We even had a few moments of intense spirituality thrown in while chasing after the "under 5 crowd" in the play room next to the shul (keep reading).

We spent all of the time as a family and even managed to be part of the Meyerland community for a minute or two...

Yoni didn't get sick at all until the holidays were all over and, drum roll please my baby Yaeli learned to walk - unaided - at the playroom at shul on Yom Kippur in front of all the other mothers who were chasing their little ones to get them to sit down and eat something. I was so proud, but sad too, as she is REALLY no longer a baby. And of course to punctuate that point the newborns were there and she is a giant next to them, but petite in her own class.

Also to punctuate the point, I was feeling blue as my body adjusts to this new phase (maybe it was actually fasting again for YK that did it) and generally yucky as I forgot how hot it is walking to shul in Houston after 10 AM. I REALLY wanted a shower after that and the ripe smell of all the other unwashed bodies was a little overwhelming if not distracting in shul.

So there - I felt more spirituality running after the children and watching them interact with each other than I did in shul for the few minutes I actually made it in there. I took Yaeli in shul there to fall asleep for a few minutes since there was so much activity that it was impossible for her to relax and get a nap which she desperately needed. Yoni was having none of it - he was WAY too busy having fun. When we went home for break is when he finally succumbed.

We may have…

Toothage.

Yaeli my darling sweet baby is maybe, finally getting that first terrible tooth that makes her especially clingy and cranky and adorably squeezable.

She has spent the entirety of the RH holiday and even a might before that with her lips and gums firmly clamped around her passy. It has been a series of pacifiers as they indubitably get changed around and fall on the ground, etc.

So she stands alone unaided for a few seconds at a time and is even coordinated enough to clap her hands at the same time. So taking the customary step or two is now usual fare rather than an accident. Why she can’t figure out how to move her feet as well as she moves her hands to clap is a little beyond me. Maybe she just has to figure out how to balance that small frame of hers.

She better not wait 7 more months to walk on my birthday like her brother. In a few weeks time is Bubbe’s birthday and that would be just fine for me. Then she would have a special sentiment on each of her grandmother’s birthdays (She was born on Safta Yosefa’s b-day)

Wowie zowie...

So this is another post about the weather, but OMG! We were in the middle of the dirty side of Tropical Storm/Depression Erin and after all the wet weather here already this summer it was a doozy! Working in downtown Houston with a view of the rainstorm from the 57th floor has its advantages, especially when there is a lightning storm going on and the buidling next door has a grounded communication tower that acts as a lightning rod. I was watching the storm out of one of the engineer's windows and we saw no less than 3 direct strikes in a matter of less than 10 minutes. It was AMAZING to say the least. I was in such a mood that I was flabbergasted rather than scared (or too stupid to realize that that could have hit our building if it were not for the fact that the tower was higer than our 71 floors up.) The soundtrack in the background was the firetrucks on the ground and the faint of heart swooning nearby. Luckily this all played out around lunchtime and the less hearty could descend into the tunnels and the bowels of the buildings to escape the show.

This was the scene on Highway 288 just before Holly Hall. Where I go by almost daily from downtown to get the kids from school. Good thing I went to get Eran on 59 first, but that was under water earlier in the day, too.

We (Houston and South Texas in general) just have no place for the water to go since we are so over-saturated at this point. Some places have had more than 36" of rain in the past 2 months. It's been a great summer for Eran, except for that fainitng spell, but not so much heat - except for those few days of over 105 in the shade heat advisory days...

Oh so cute…

Pic from Disney, but still applicable

Yaeli is progressing by leaps and bounds, or at least one step at a time.

We wave bye-bye to ourself (and even on cue, like she know what it means), babble a little and even....(drum roll please)

started standing independently for a few seconds last Thursday (which the day-care lady neglected to inform me till) I was all excited about it this AM.

This weekend she even accidentally took a step or two.

It’s official, we are now a toddler.
LOOK OUT WORLD, HERE WE COME!!!
Yay Yaeli!

in case you were wondering

Mother Nature has decided to play games with us this summer. First it was the summer of endless rain, now it is the super heat we are usually accustomed to. See here the REAL heat advisory that the NWS felt compelled to issue for several Texas counties. They should title these things, "use your common sense, stupid!"

heat advisory now in effect until 7 pm cdt Wednesday
The heat advisory is now in effect until 7 pm cdt Wednesday.
Greater than normal relative humidities will lead to a stretch of afternoons with heat indices of 105 to 109 degrees for the next several days. Heat indices will reach around 100 degrees by noon, and peak between 2 and 5 pm. Heat index values near 100 degrees may persist as late as 7 pm. Overnight low temperatures will only drop to between 75 and 80 degrees. [Ed: That’s reasonable enough]

If possible, seek shelter from the afternoon heat in air conditioned areas [Ed: Duh!]. Direct exposure to sunlight can increase the heat index by another 15 degrees. If you plan to be outside, avoid prolonged exposure or strenuous physical activity. [Ed: Duh!] Your body can lose up to a gallon of water an hour through perspiration. Drink plenty of fluids to avoid dehydration. [Ed: Duh!] Alcoholic and caffeinated beverages can increase the rate of water loss in your body, increasing the risk of heat exhaustion or stroke. Wear lightweight, light- colored, loose-fitting clothing. [Ed: Duh!] Wear a hat to shield yourself from the sun. Always use a sunscreen to reduce possible sunburn. [Ed: Duh!] If children will be outdoors playing or practicing sports make sure they stay hydrated and keep a sharp eye for signs of heat exhaustion. [Ed: Duh!]
Pets can also succumb to the effects of excessive heat. Insure [Ed: Uh, spelling, much?!] pets have adequate drinking water and a shady place to rest. [Ed: Duh!] Do not keep pets [Ed: or kids, see this recent sad story] in cars with windows rolled up, even partially. Temperatures inside a car with the windows up can reach over 150 degrees quickly, resulting in heat stroke and death.

A heat advisory is issued when a heat index of 108 degrees or higher is expected in the advisory area. The heat index is a measure of how hot it feels when the effects of humidity are combined with the temperature. A heat index of 105 degrees is considered the level where many people begin to experience extreme discomfort or physical stress [Ed: Duh!].

The Greatest Show in Houston

So we went to the circus and we saw this version which was actually quite a nice change, since there was only one ring and your attention was not too divided to enjoy all the acts. We walked in the door and this was the first thing we did even before we got to the pre-show festivities.


Guess we're big on getting the souvenir photo op everywhere we go, along with that twirly, spinning light-up toy. We got one of those with a piroutte-ing elephant on top.

Here are some pics of the Namer family "clowning around" at the Circus





I could have lived my whole life quite happily without the stupid acts with the cat and dog tricks that I found to be silly and boring, and a waste of time (or at least filler time). I'm sorry, but I'll just never be able to be excited about a dressed-up poodle, carrying its own hoops to jump through, in its mouth.

We really loved the second act though which was the live elephants and tigers and cossacks horse tricks and flying acrobats and an amazing display by the Shenzhen Acrobatic Troupe and "video game" and the last act was the most amazing of all. Read more about the Yunnan Flyers and these other acts here. The Motorcycle Mania thing was really awesome as the closer. I even caught myself with my mouth open catching flies. The best part was an exhausted Yoni sitting on my lap and me whispering to him in awe "Wow, how'd they do that?" As we were leaving, Yoni was perched on Abba's shoulders and he says so precociously - "Wow, That was amazing, How did they DO that?" in the most awe-filled innocent voice. It was a priceless moment, with no prompting, that I just had to share.

As I said, Yoni was exhausted. So much excitement for such a little one and he missed his afternoon nap to top it all off.
So here we a have another priceless gem...He was so tired he fell asleep in the car with his snack pretzel in his mouth.
Abba removed it only when we saw it at home and only after we had a good laugh and snapped a few pics of the event for posterity.

So that was a run-down of our trip to the circus. Yael was clositered at Bubbe's house and meanwhile learned how to get around on the walker. Guess we're in for a quick learner with her as she's not even 9 months and does all kinds of (in my non-biased mother's opinion) amazing, circus worthy, cute baby tricks!

cuteness!

So this has nothing to do with my cuties from home, but it amused me so you in blog land get to hear about it.
I work on the 58th floor and have to take several elevators to get to my floor. In the evenings as everyone is trying to go all at the same time, the elevators can tend to get “cozy” and all the gentlemen will generally defer to the ladies to let them get on first. Well this woman was holding her golf umbrella (since Noah is making a comeback – literllay we have had rain for 37 of the last 48 days – since June there have only been 4 days without rain of some kind, not to say that there haven’t been periods of lets say “not rain” rather than sunshine)

Anyway, she reminded me of my mother’s cousin Roselle – cropped non-colored hair, sporty glasses, strappy sandals, leather briefcase and stylish but youngish outfit.
The second elevator came and all the ladies entered in as per the custom. Then we arrived at the tunnel level and she was now in the back part of the elevator with the gentlemen standing in front near the doors. Well the men started to part ways to let the women pass. There were a few younger gentlemen there and this particular lady just started to beat them with her umbrella in a jovial way. She was kidding that the gentlemanly ways need to go out the window in elevators in a tunnel and to just move on outta the way. It may have been on of those “you-had to be there kinda moments, but it made me smile all the way to the car – which is actually quite a hike in the tunnel. Usually I take the street if possible (not raining) just cause it’s a bit shorter, but I still get stopped by crosswalks at street corners and have to inhale the food smells, and the occasional homeless person, and police whistles while directing traffic, and fumes from buses and cars the whole way. Also have to push my way through the throngs of people waiting for the buses to come. But I like the idea of walking outside.
So there!


Here is a cute picture of my little doctor from our Purim in July day at Camp! I told him he was a surgeon in his Spiderman do-rag and sent him with his doctor case with his stethoscope and bloodpressure cuff. The coat must be from their dress-up clothes at camp! Isn't he adorable?

camp bami

Supposedly the kids are supposed to go swimming everyday, but it rained for 2 weeks solid here so that didn't quite happen. Despite that, Jonathan has definately made some improvements in the Waterfront area. In Florida I was able to convince him that he could use floaties and finally let up on the death grip on momma...Now he has real lifeguards who have taught him to blow bubbles - which I couldn't do all on my own...Baby steps. At least I know he's learning water safety!

Here are a couple of Summer Camp pictures of my camper.

Here are some busy bees making an art project for posterity...


Here is Dancing Yoni at the Pajama Day Parade. We're still working on snapping our fingers, but isn't he cute for trying

Walt and the girls

Minnie, Yaeli and momma with Pappa Walt

corporate readjustment and other general chaos

So I think I am finally over the intial shock of the announcement that the powers that be (read: the money hungry executives in corporate America) have decided to sell off my division of our company. Now there are several things that are strange about this decision (irreverent of its effect on me personally and my immediate coworkers)
We are the Gulf Coast Division of my company. Our company now has several offices, including a large one in Tulsa which covers a different region. We are in the corporate office in Houston which houses the executives and another region besides the Gulf Coast.
Our executives and HR just recently moved their offices to the 58th floor of our building (from the 8th) and the other region to the 55th (also from the 8th) The Gulf Coast is on the 57th and the Accounting and IT Depts are on the 56th floor. This has been within the last month. The announcement about the sale of our division came about 2 weeks ago. Now why would they spend and invest all kinds of time and money on moving to sandwich the Gulf Coast if they knew they were going to put it on the market??
We may be bought out all together and not have any jobs going forward, or we may all have jobs with the new company or some may go on with other positions in our current company or some may not be offered jobs with either company.

I just know that I can't afford to be without a job or medical insurance.

This announcement was made a few days before my birthday. My birthday itself SUCKED!
There were high points: I went to lunch "off-campus" at a favorite restaurant with my co-workers, but there was really no "celebration" as the pall of the the announcement made us all a little off kilter. Last year I got balloons and confettia and a card and and and. This time, I didn't even get a cake on my actual birthday, even from my family (mom and dad were in Israel, to be fair) and that's pretty yucky! Kids love birthdays and I want to do all of them up special, but mine was lacking - definately not one for the record books. Eran did bring me some beautiful roses which he had to walk home with from the store, but it garnered us a dinner invitation for Shabbat where the hostess went out of her way to get me a parve triple chocolate birthday cake and surprise me with it! That was so NICE that it saved my birthday from being a total wash.

And of course, I have been thouroughly lambasted by my internist for having the insides of a 57 year old, considering the amount of high blood pressure and cholesterol in my body for such a long time. I think she hates me since she rushes around as if she is SO busy and its a huge incovenience to see me - and I hate going to the doctor as it is. I hate the fact that I am now on so much damn medication, I hate the fact that I now have a "condition" or two that just adds stress to my life!
And she took me off the meds that make it easier to take, claiming they induce weight gain and that is contra to the other health issues I should be facing. So I joined the gym and have even been once during lunch.

Then of course there is the fact that we were overextended from the renovations of half of the Houston Levine homestead. They went to Israel and we went to work (or at least Eran did) Eran went a little crazy and just kept going with all the changes...Luckily, I talked him out of painting over the wooden kitchen cabinets. It would have been a disaster!

So there you have it - Thank goodness my beautiful children are growing every day.
Yaeli is crawling quite nicely now and babbling "da-da" and waving - mostly to herself. She can squeal with delight and always lights up when she sees me, even when I came in the middle of the day to pick up Yoni. She is desperately trying to walk, pulling up on everything and getting frustrated when her legs give out.
Yoni is still struggling lately with laboured breathing but because of his runny nose and being off his asthma medicine. There have been a lot of issues with his camp class being out of control and not such a great environment for all of the kids. And to illustrate that point there was one morning (before nap time and right before Yoni got really sick from his lymph gland - which is still pretty swollen and sometimes tender to the touch) when the counselor called and told us that Yoni had hit a kid, bit someone else and choked a kid with his hands so hard that the other child was shaking. That is simply NOT the child I know and love. They always present it in such a way that you never know what exactly happened and which children were involved, but it was a definate reflection on the chaos that abounded in that classroom. There have since then been several staff changes, which is also difficult on this age group, but a lesser of the evils at this point, unfortunately, but hopefully the dynamics of the staff are now such that the overcrowding in the room won't be such an issue.

Back to Reality

Once we survived the madness that was Disney and Universal and the trip to and from Orlando, we returned tired and lighter in the wallet and on our feet.

Jonathan was of course over-extendeded and had to get sick the following week. He started out with an enlarged gland on his face right below his earlobe that looked like he swallowed a golf ball. We went to the doctor and I mistakenly thought I should take both kids in on my own. Yael had her overdue 6 mo well baby chcekup including vaccinations -she is only a little over 15 lbs, but started to crawl and pull up on things already. Yoni also had some blood drawn for a CBC on the spot, so I had 2 screaming unhappy children to contend with as I paid my money and slinked out the door.

Countdown to Disney World, etc...

T- minus not enough hours to sleep.
We hope to be packed and in the car tomorrow AM at the crack of morning thirty.

I still need to be sure to get the potty chair from my mother's along with the video camera. Right now I have the new DVD player and the car charger for my phone, but I can't seem to lay my hands on the damn camera. I think I even know where the new battery is.

Need sleep...

This is where we are staying. Click here. Thanks Aunt Carol.

But first we must make it to Mobile for the evening with the kiddos. I really love that Heavenly Hash - wonder if I'll be able to find some...
Hope Aunt Goldie and Uncle Himey are up for a visit.

The family wedding and recent other nightmares

Needless to say, that stress fest is behind us.
It made me so sick at the wedding (probably the hearty amount of salt-ingested while eating out in New Orleans had a little something to do with it too) that I had a horrible migraine that completely debilitated me for the wedding reception.
About the only good thing is that I did get a chance to leave some nice comments for the bride and groom on their pages that they left on the table to make up their memory book from later.
But the wedding food was 1. too rich or 2. not something I could put in my mouth in my kosher style eating habits. They had oyster rockerfeller and shrimp alfredo sauce over pasta and sushi and roasted vegetables and rack of lamb and mashed potatoes with butter and cheese and bacon bits...
We were also all stressed out by the lack of common courtesy from the hosts who seemed unable to let old grudges and hurtful sentiments lie. [Was that worded enigmatically enough to not count as lashon harah?]
My mother was uncomfortable, my father was not happy that my mother was uncomfortable {physically}, my brother was uncomfortable, my sister in law was uncomfortable, my husband was uncomfortable (we left our precious sleeping children in the care of a total stranger in a strange city with a pool in the backyard of the house - luckily Eran had the foresight to buy a toy train set and keep it hidden so that when Jonathan woke up he was instantly distracted by the new favorite toy)
All of these already uncomfortable adults then had to deal with me being totally incapacitated at a family affair where all I really wanted to do was hang out and spend time with everyone.

Then the ride back to Houston was a nightmare. I nearly fell asleep at the wheel several different times. So much so that I stopped off in Baton Rouge for a cat nap and then again somewhere else at a truck stop. Also we had frog choker storms along the way too not to mention bathroom and food and cranky Yael stops right off the interstate that lost us a lot of time too. It was a really long ride!

Also, as if the migraine and the terrible drive home weren't enough, I started coughing and getting sick on Friday afternoon - I'll blame it on the New Orleans germ pool for lack of a more acceptable excuse!
I spent the whole weekend ferrying people to and from birthday parties and Chuck E Cheese and running errands while hacking my lungs up about once every 10 minutes or so. And then I had to spend Monday morning catching up on rest and putting my life back together to get ready for the next trip with 2 small children - that is of course after dropping off the kiddos at pre-camp where we had to search to find Jonathan's new classroom and remembering that Yael is in a different classroom too - my routine is just shaken that much. Then took Eran to the post office and his office and by then he was running too late to even pick up a bagel for lunch, so he'll be super hungry later!

And I wanted to do the mounds of laundry that have piled up, thinking that Monday was a good day because everyone would be at work. NOT SO. All 6 washers were full and there was still a line. How frustrating when I planned on that to be effective use of my sick time on the couch. I washed dishes and picked up the living room instead! Gotta go now and get that laundry in before it gets too late...

Whew- glad that's over!

We survived the New Orleans family wedding only slightly worse for wear.

Our next family "vacation" is on the horizon. I think I'm going to have to take special vitamins to make it through.

Yoni and Yael made a few special appearances at the family events such as the evening deseert reception and the Sunday morning brunch before everyone left town.

Luckily Sam and Carlye were guests at the hotel for the duration of the weekend otherwise I would not have survived the wedding. I came down with a severe (high blood pressure induced-I'm sure) migraine that was only worsened by the reverberating of the bass of the cover band in my chest. I had to retire upstairs 3 different times because I came down too early so that my husband would have a chance to enjoy the festivities.

family tree

In light of Carlye & Sam's request for a quick rundown on the family of who might be at next week's wedding, and since I couldn't reach you again to find out exactly what you wanted, I put together a little flowchart of the family tree. This is only one side of the immediate family - for those who might be attending the wedding in New Orleans [And of course I left out the skeletons in the closet and interesting tidbits like the wives and children we don't talk about-we'll save that for an in person discussion]. Hope this helps - excpet for the few blanks I drew, I did this off the top of my head with a headache. Study and learn!
And if you wanted to know where Ellen and Perry and Marla fit in, they are all on Mom's father's side of the family...I can do that next week if you want, but Ellen knows more details...

stop the world - I want to catch my breath

These last few weeks have been BUSY.
After I got my wake-up call from the doctor that I need to take better care of myself if I want to be around to see my kids grow up, we've had all kinds of things going on.
We have the Ladies Luncheon Salad Pool which originated with me complaining that we were eating out way too much at work and wouldn't it be fun if a bunch of us pitched in and brought a few items from home - around a $5 per person contribution. The idea was that we could have a healthy alternative and that it would last for a few days and it wouldn't go bad and we wouldn't waste it - what a jewish mother I am.
It has taken off. One lady made humus to go with her cold tuna and chicken salad and that was a big hit. The salads have grown into themed luncheons. This week it was Mexican in honor of Cinco de Mayo.
We had nachos (with all the differnt fixins - pico de gallo and guacamole and sour cream and cheese and beans and and and....)
Next week we are having smoked salmon (lox) and spinach with asparagus.
It has become a real treat and we even had one of the VPs join us for lunch before our weekly staff meeting. He's been the only male brave enough to join us. Fun, fun, fun!

There were some industry "events" lately that I mostly skipped out on - crawfish boils and evening socials and the like (partly because I don't eat those things and why would I want to be around them and smell like that all day and partly because I truly cherish the few hours I do get to spend daily with my kiddos and my family)...but at one of these functions, some co-workers ran into one of the former ladies I worked with and she informed them that my nemisis is still jobless. I'm sure its because her reputation preceeds her. I really don't wish her any ill will, but its funny how things tend to work out if you just wait it out long enough. Guess you could call it all part of the divine plan.

I think I finally may have gotten a handle on using this program to do my reports.

And it seems Yoni may have turned a corner as far as his health is concerned. He did recently have one incident - we'll call it a spell -where he threw up, but then he was better and we got back on schedule with his meds and it seems to be controlling things better.

And of course the daycare ladies and my mother have started feeding my Yaeli Gerber foods.

I would have waited at least until she was 6 months to even start her off, but I have to rationalize it to myself that they have done this much more than I have...They are professionals and this is what they do and they haven't killed one yet. She has tried applesauce (mixed with her yucky rice cereal), squash, sweet potatoes and peaches. Good thing babies are resilient. I have only just mastered the art of the bottle and she has only tried eating cereal with me when she had another spoon to play with.

Maybe the medication has finally hit the correct levels because it doesn't make my head spin anymore (that I notice) and I am much calmer about lots of the mains stressors in my life. We'll see tomorrow when I go for some tests.


Yoni and Yaeli and I watched the impending rainstorm for about 45 minutes outside on the porch at the top of the stairs. I sat down on the concrete and fed Yaeli and watched the lightning show with Yoni. I explained that it is not at all scary as long as we are safe and dry. And isn't it a beautiful light show that Hashem made for free for us to enjoy? It was truly one of those moments where you hope it is meaningful, but it was beautiful anyway.

Recent Yoni-isms:
He wants to get married and he wants to be a doctor- I am a happy momma :)
"Mickey House" is still tops - He loves to watch the Easter special disk.
He has grown taller and filled out in his face a little...pictures don't do the transformation justice
Stop stop stop and chicken nuggets aer some of his favorite phrases
Understands Hebrew - still won't answer back
I noticed on some of his art projects - both stand alone and in comparison to other kids' work - he likes to have the whole surface area covered and won't even consider moving on to something else till he is satisfied with it - a little compulsive???
This morning out of the blue on the way down the stairs he told me it was a beautiful day - and it was!

ummm...trendy news?

My mother and I have started a trend.
I let her enjoy time with her grandchildren, but we take a leisurely walk around the neighborhood.
Once we stopped at the neighbors and once we took Yoni with us. So is 2 times enough to call it a trend. I hope the trend will continue cause its good for both of us.
It also only works because in Houston it stays light till almost 8 PM.
Otherwise we wouldn't be having so much fun. We did this once before with Jonathan so I could show her that it is possible to do this for her with Mr J only because you can easily distract him if she gets tired.
And it gets us both out of the house and off the couch. I can't speak for her, but I like it cause I feel good about having walked - if only around the block and only for a little while. That first step is the hardest one sometimes.
And we're eating healthier at work too. A bunch of us ladies have been bringing in a variety of salad fixings. This week's theme was Cinco de Mayo. This is now the 3rd week we've done it. It isn't going exactly as we envisioned it -I thought we would eat on it throughout the week, most people are doing it on Mondays and then not so much on Tuesdays and the rest of the week.
"Not so much" is my newest catch phrase lately.
The end.

Medication, and dry contacts, and a general stressiness at work and a lack of sleep makes me little less than coherent a lot of the time lately. . . oh well.
Love

Mother's Words of Wisdom

You are paying the doctor lots of money to worry for you.
Do what you can, but let her get gray over it.

Rodeo

So Michael Duke's mother is married to the only Jew in Houston who has committed to wearing a cowboy hat all the time - not just during the rodeo. How do I know this?
Well, the Meyerland Minyan gala event was held during rodeo season in Houston and I just happened to sit at the table next to the gentleman wearing a black cowboy hat. So out of nosy curiosity I asked Mr Levy if he was affiliated with the rodeo since I noticed his hat. His answer was yes, he did support the Houston Rodeo (read monetarily, I'm sure-he's a big wig with the Jewish Herald Voice, which I also didn't know) but that he chose to wear a cowboy hat year round. I forgot his exact reason, but it makes a definate statement and I sure won't forget him anytime soon.

Speaking of the Rodeo, Eran and I got to see a show this year at the 75th annual Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. There were some tickets from a vendor floating around at the office for the "Sugarland" show and I snapped them up. We even got a parking pass. Here's the thing. When I took the tickets I didn't know who we were going to meet and greet, where we were going to be sitting or that parking passes are hard to come by. We parked in the Teal Lot - two steps from Reliant Center, directly across the street (parking pass alone worth between 75-105 bucks) We went in the arena and up the stairs with the masses until we got to the third floor. Then we looked at our seats. They were for section 202. Look at this map. We were in an unmarked section that turned out to be a private booth party complete with food (bar-b-que, of course, roasted peanuts, etc) and an open bar and several flat screen tv screens, etc, etc. We ended up at a private party for a vendor that we work with. It was great fun. Eran was in awe. I was quite enjoying myself as well. We met the president of the Louisiana based company and his Houston salesman Ken Rothstein. He has to be one of the only Jews in Louisiana in the oil bizness. Since I read all the reports daily that come in from the field, I recognized the name of the company and look forward to seeing Ken again when he comes to the office. Then they had an ice cream cart with souveneir cowboy hats as bowls that we got to take home

Been busy

Just a little note to say hi to blogger-land and to admit that we have been busy leading our lives, not leaving much time for blogging.

Here are a few highlights:

• Yael went on her first buggy ride at school this week. And the daycare ladies still fawn all over her, its even a little embarrassing already. For example, they mentioned that she only had winter clothes in her cubby for changes and that I should really bring some lighter stuff for her. One of them even commented "Don't make me go to the store!" Every day I dress her in a onesie and something on her legs and I think that maybe they wait till I hit the parking lot to strip her down to just the onesie and sometimes the socks.
• Jonathan's has been a little pukey lately, and struggled for a long while with a barky cough, but we are overcoming those hurdles by giving him more medicine and a little more to drink and hoping for the best. Meanwhile his doctor gave him a stronger dose of steroids so as to avoid us going back in the hospital. So far so good. Kudos to the pulmonologist!
• He has also MOSTLY mastered the art of using the bathroom - at every opportunity, in every public place we go. Of course he sometimes misses the toilet and pees all over his feet and shirt and shoes and socks - so even if we make it to the potty, we sometimes still need a wardrobe change.
• We had class pictures at school and I remembered to send my kiddos in cute outfits, although my daughter was wearing a cute little hat that made her look like a silly little stupid orange flower.
• Eran and I endured the Magic of Meyerland Minyan 6th year anniversary Gala Dinner. It was actually quite nice, a silent auction, live music, kosher fleshig buffet, free drinks, some honored guests, lots of chit-chat, the usual drill. And I sat at the table next to Michael Duke's mom - what a blast from the past and such a small world. Guess I do know people (and have connections from way back when) and when the time comes I should be able to get our article for Aleh published in the Jewish Herald Voice. Remind me to post the story about the rodeo and how it relates to the dinner.
• We survived 2 Pesach seders (me and the kids while Eran "went to English class") We were invited to share them both with Aunt Carol and her father and the kids' grandparents, with other assorted family and guests. Thank goodness for the 4 cups of wine to get us through this stressful year.
  
• That was also the week I found out my blood pressure was through the roof - so much so that the doctor put me on medication immediately. But since I am my mother's daughter, the doctor ran an EKG in the office and changed the dosage of one of the meds before I even finished paying my co-pay and making my next appointment. Luckily, she reduced it to half a pill a day so I could make them last longer. But it is to bring down my pressure and to stave off my recurrent migraines and I hate the fact that I am ONLY 32 and have to be taking BP medication!
• Eran basically singlehandedly moved our apartment (with some muscle help from his friends - many thanks to Ben and to Ariella for sharing him, Javi, George, David, Brad, etc...) and right before Pesach - this is becoming a trend, the second time we have done that...Boy were my parents sick of me and my kids.

And the biggest news...

• Jonathan had his first haircut, and he looks like a different kid!

It was really much ado about nothing as I finally decided on Easter Sunday that it was enough already. I sat him down on a chair on a towel, grabbed the kitchen shears (the ones that are made to cut through chicken bones, but have never seen anything tougher than twine) and snipped away all his beautiful ringlets :(
He has one small spot that is slightly bald and one side that is longer that the other since he got wiggly towards the end, but I must admit that he doesn't look like I took a soup bowl to his head - I did alright for my first (and hopefully only) attempt at a haircut. Lets see if Eran will let me at him with the shears :)
I promise to post more pictures soon....