Reunited

I have to admit, my 20th reunion was really fun! I guess I'm used to having a decently fun time hanging out with people I hardly know, so connecting with people I used to know was pretty cool.

The event was in the old Mater Dei gym, which was just as I remembered it. The campus, however, was unrecognizable. They even have their own pool now (I was a swimmer, so this mattered!!!). I didn't take a tour, but got plenty lost enough getting in and out of the place that I was able to see the basics.

The question of the evening was: "What have you been up to?" What kind of question is that to ask someone you haven't seen in 20 years? Totally unanswerable. But what else is there to say, really to get a conversation started.

A good person to ask that question to is Larry, one of my best friends' (Ann) husband. I think he knew more people at the end of the night than I did! Hanging out with Ann and Larry was definitely a highlight. I even got some dancing in with some dips!

It was also interesting to remember some of the stories that I would have totally forgotten. A woman named Amy came up to me and said: "Remember how we started a huge powder fight in the locker room freshman year? I got detention for that!" I did too, but would have never remembered that!

Bad hair was also fun to remember. Everyone had photos on their badges and thank god -- there are some people who I would have never recognized. Imagine, there are some women living in my community with new last names and kids the same ages as my kids. We could be in school or other activities together and I would never know that we hung out together in high school! That is a bit sad on my part, I guess. The price of being clueless -- but to my defense, if you totally change your look and your name, I don't have to remember you!!!

It was interesting to talk to people who thought being "out of sorts" in high school was unique to them. I think that was the night's biggest lesson: We were so high school and didn't know it!

Reunited and it feels so good ... and now it's DONE! : )

Plain Vanilla

My 20th reunion is this Saturday. It's being held in my old high-school gym -- how's that for ordinary!

But maybe ordinary isn't all bad. I'm sure not the one to make that call. I mean, how can you help but face your 20-year reunion with a "what have I accomplished since high school" question. At least a fleeting one.

Can I play the piano? No. Dance a waltz? No. Speak another language? No (except the Spanish that Dora the Explorer has taught me). Have I traveled the world? No. Made a million bucks? No. Run a marathon? No. What's my hobby? Uh, I don't know... Heck, I'm even sure to lose a game of trivial pursuit.

I guess I'm a bit more plain vanilla than that. But you know what? I like vanilla! And when I look at my wonderful family and how much I enjoy the day-to-day experiences of my life, who cares about whether it registers as extraordinary or just plain vanilla.

Here's some things I CAN do (and I sure hope this list is not exhaustive, that would be sad!):

• Make a jammin' PBJ sandwich
• Take a decent photo
• Shine my sink
• Bring home the bacon... : )
• Downward dog
• Give a pretty good massage
• Make the best of just about anything
• Ice skate (I'm learning, anyway!)
• Soothe an owie
• Stay calm in a (tantrum) storm
• Juggle, theoretically at least
• ... but wait, there's more! (I'm just done writing for now)

Yes, I do like plain vanilla. And every once in a while it's fun to add a drizzle of sauce, whipped cream and a cherry on top. But the best part is still the ice cream. Plain and simple.

I'll Never Get it All Done...

Today was quite a whirlwind. Luckily, I had a few lines from a Francine Jarry song in my head:

I'll never get it all done
Might as well take my time
I never can get it wrong
I know that will ease my mind
I go where I want to go
And do what I want to do
With joy.

...And now, it's time to set up my new Blackberry... : )

Planned Parenting

John is on his annual hunting trip in South Dakota, so it's me and the kids. We all miss him and the kids just love it when he calls. Jack still thinks Daddy is at the airport, since that's where he dropped him off. It's pretty cute when I tell people that John's in South Dakota and Jack says, "No, mama! Daddy is at the airport!"

I've had to change up some routines to juggle two solo, but it's been interesting to try new things and learn. The last few days, I've been avidly pre-planning critical parenting times and it's been working!

Sometimes I forget to visualize what I want out of ordinary day-to-day life. But with John gone, that upped the ante on having smooth mornings and evenings especially. I've been imagining everyone happy, choosing clothes that they love, eating their meals without complaint, being healthy and happy. At night as I put them in bed, I've been imaginging their angelic little faces as they sleep.

Everything has been so smoothly! We've been early to school and activities. Jack even wore a non-orange shirt today (he is very particular!) without any fuss at all. Meals have been a breeze. And both kids have gone to sleep in their own beds easily, right on time. I'm going to have to keep this up even when John's back!

What other "ordinary" things can I visualize over the next few days?

Grandma Update

I spoke with my grandma today and the news was positive! No follow-up treatment required!

Invisible Man

There was a news story today about how scientists have developed a cloak of invisibility, sort of Harry Potter style.

Unfortunately, I can't think of any reason that I'd want one, except maybe to cover my pile of unopened mail or unread catalogs. And of course if my kids were older, I'd probably want to throw one on and quietly follow them around, but I'm not there yet. I can think of quite a few reasons I wouldn't want someone else to have one, though.

I wonder if "evidence collected while cloaked" will be insubmissible in court the same way that illegal wiretapping once was. With the Internet, we're already pretty used to the idea of our day to day online interactions are not private but now, there's the possibility that nothing will be.

Of course, it won't be long and there will be special light waves that "uncloak" invisibility cloaks. And then we'll be off and running with a whole new industry...

It's amazing to think how things will change in my lifetime and in my children's lifetime. Sometimes I get caught up in the sheer massive idea of it all. That's when Dory from Nemo pops into my head, "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming, just keep swimming, swimming, swimming..."

Back to Basics

This evening I had one of those thrilling moments that every parent craves. I've been working on reading with my 5-year old daughter and she is just loving it. We're into more complex paragraph books now (ARI2 of the I See Sam follow ups) and as she was reading, the story was making her laugh so hard she could hardly continue. After we finished, she re-read the book silently and cracked herself up all over again.

Reading is fundamental. What a great experience it is as a mom to know that I've contributed so substantially to the life of my sweet girl, effortlessly teaching her to read and to love reading. I am so proud of our work together and that we didn't leave it up to the schools to teach something so important. It takes commitment and consistency, but has truly been nothing but enjoyable.

As I put her to bed tonight, I started thinking of the other things that I consider so critical that I provide for both my kids; commitments that I have taken on as a parent but have largely left unstructured and unsaid. I'm sure the list is incomplete here, but this will give me something to reference as I formalize it in writing as a way to reaffirm my commitment as well as share with John.

As a parent, I am committed to providing:

• Unconditional love
• Instilling a love of self and respect of others
• A nurturing of spiritual awareness
• A safe, nurturing and loving home
• A strong family structure that nurtures close relationships with family
• Access to a great education
• Exposure to a variety of activities that allow them to discover themselves, what they are capable of and what they love
• A solid foundation of practical life skills (such as reading)
• A practical foundation of spiritual skills (such as appreciation, the creative process, prayer, "trusting their gut")
• An unwavering belief in their wellbeing
• Consistent visualization of that wellbeing

I'm sure there's much more, but quiet time calls...

Thoughts of Grandma

Tonight my thoughts are with my grandma. She turns 90 in December. Recently she had a biopsy and she gets results on Thursday. Waiting must be the hardest part.

Grandma lives in South Dakota. My family and I all went to visit her this summer -- John, the kids, even my brother and his family. I wanted Jenna and Jack to know the farm and know grandma on the farm. Something about that place is very special to me, even though I haven't spent much time there.

When I met John, he reminded me of the farm -- the prairie, more specifically. It was a feeling I got with him that set him apart from everyone else in the world. That's particularly strange since I really only visited the farm or the Midwest a couple of times growing up and I don't think John spent much more time than that. But our connection ran deep and the rest is history.

Grandma is a part of that and tonight my thoughts are with her. She's an amazing lady -- looking through her old photos and hearing her stories about times long ago you learn about an adventurous girl who traveled throughout the United States. She flew on planes when flights were new, moved to Oregon with her boyfriend (my grandfather) in times when that was highly unusual, worked at Chrysler in the 30s, owned multiple businesses until she retired back in the home she was born in, on a small South Dakota farm, that my great grandfather homesteaded over a hundred years ago.

But you wouldn't know about those things unless you asked her.

On Thursday, the "guys" all go back to South Dakota for opening season. I'm glad they'll be there with her.

I hope the news is good.

Keeping the Dream Alive

Extraordinary!

As YouTube gets purchased by Google for $1.6 billion, I'm reminded of how extraordinary technology is. Wow!

Most of the time, I go about my life simply expecting technology to deliver on its promise to keep me connected. I expect my email to come, my phone to work, my wireless access to be seamless. I routinely use digital video and photos to record and share information. Heck, I just emailed Santa some Mapquest directions to my home for a party. Seriously!

But when I stop and think of how technology -- especially tools like YouTube, Google and Blogger--have given ordinary people access to information and a voice they never had before, I am truly blown away. Technology can harness what's extraordinary in all of us and with a click, broadcast that to the world. With another click, I can tap that information. I'm speechless.

I'm no gadget junkie by any means. What I love is the idea and the possibility that technology has to impact lives and change the world. I love seeing how it already has. No wonder financial dreams are strapped to its back.

I'd better slow down; don't want to let too much of my dotcom passion out! I've been keeping it expertly hidden for quite some time as skeptics continue to point to the "crash." But the truth is, from the time I asked the question at Macromedia in 1992: "What's the difference between this (CD-ROM games) and television?" to the exit of Toyota at iStarSystems that resulted in the entire company being liquidated in 2001, I loved being a part of that industry, which harnesses imagination and passion to create something new. It allows two goofy guys like Chad and Steve to make a difference and be recognized for it.

I have a feeling that it hasn't seen its heyday just yet...

Business 2.0 writes that the YouTube/Google deal should scare us because it was about the future of advertising. They write that advertisers know more about individuals now than ever before and that customized advertising is in our future. Is that all bad? If I came across advertising I liked, maybe I wouldn't zap it. And heck, maybe I’d learn about something new (and buy it). I’m the eternal optimist, of course.

But for now, congratulations to Chad and Steve and those like them that keep the dream alive.

The Prettiest Girl in the Whole School

"Today I'm going to be the prettiest girl in the whole school!" exclaimed my daughter on a recent morning as she prepared to go to kindergarten.

It seems innocent enough, the type of thing a little girl just coming out of the "princess stage" might say. But as she got ready, I could see that she was serious about being the prettiest and that got my mind turning...

I found myself faced with one of those split-moment parenting decisions at 6:30 am...How do I respond? Encourage her as a way to reinforce her confidence? Discourage her as a way to steer her away from vanity? She's barely five, for goodness sakes, does it matter?

It mattered to me, so I took the took the middle route: "Jenna, you are so very beautiful, but I don't know if you can actually be the prettiest girl in whole school."

That got her attention: "Why?" she asked.

"I just don't know if there is such a thing, Jenna," I said. "Beauty is a personal thing."

"But I want to be the prettiest girl in school!" she countered.

So I explained to her that people were a little bit like flowers, with so many beautiful kinds of flowers and colors. Which was the prettiest: a rose, a daisy, a lily, a sunflower? Which color was the best? She might have a favorite, but what would her brother choose? Would it be the same one that I would choose?

She seemed to understand.

As we pulled up to school, she said, "Mommy, I still want to be the prettiest girl in school."

"Then there's one thing you can do, Jenna," I said. "Have a smile on your face and love in your heart and you will be as beautiful as you can be."

And as she skipped away pulling her pink butterfly camouflage backpack, I thought she was the prettiest girl in the whole school.

Doing the Hustle

"Work Smarter, Not Harder," is a popular phrase and one that I've been thinking about lately. As my days fill up with endless numbers of tasks, I've found that one of the hardest things for me to do is keep my commitment to "working smarter."

It's not that I don't want to. Planning and visualizing is one of the most enjoyable things that I do and is what I have translated "working smarter" to mean for me.

But as any working mom knows, balancing family and full-time work means overtime hustle. I consistently streamline, delegate and automate as much as possible to create that 30 minutes of quiet time at the beginning and end of the day. Let me clarify -- 30 minutes of alert quiet time is what I'm after, not 30 minutes of more sleep (though that would be nice too!).

Ultimately, I want to use the time to create the space in my day in order to create alert quiet time more often in order to create the space in my day in order to create alert time more often...see what I'm getting at?

So in just my few minutes of rambling here, I've talked myself into it... it's time to create!

Extraordinary

Aaaaw, of course this defines extraordinary. I'm such a proud mommy...

Your Voice is Your Calling

I just came across a little line of inspiration that has kicked me into gear to begin writing again:

"Regardless of whether you are writing a book, starting a business, cobbling together a career, or simply living a life, it all makes far more sense when you’ve found your voice, and then travel down a path that serves as a place for you to sing."

Written by Tom Ehrenfeldblog (remember What Color is Your Parachute?) the post titled Your Voice is Your Calling was a great reminder of how important it is to be authentic, be who you really are and let the world know. That's definitely something I need some work on! And the only way to do that is to practice.

And what better place to practice than here. Hooray for blogger!