The Somewhat (infrequent) Daily Quote

Catalina is a cat. And she says meeoooow because she wants to eat! (Yep, that about sums things up.) And babies say waaaaaaaaaaa. Like my baby cousin Ellie. She says waaaaaaaaaa!

-Ian Burpo, Age 3, noted while getting ready to eat breakfast this morning.

Bonus quote (just heard):

I'd like some more cereal. With milk, please. And that will be all.

Until I write again.

Visiting the orangutans

It was a gorgeous, albeit chilly, day here in Portland today. So, we went to the zoo with our friends Tabitha and baby Marshall. Here are Ian and Marshall getting up close and personal with the orangutans:

Until I write again.

Our brush with fame. Sort of.

As long as I can remember I have been loyal to NBC television, especially when it comes to news. I'm not sure exactly why or how it started, but that is how it is. I teared up when Tom Brokaw and Bob Hager retired, though have since warmed up to Brian Williams and Tom Costello. And of course we won't even talk about Tim Russert. In DC, I only watched WRC-TV for local news. And when we moved to Portland, it didn't even occur to me to check out any other station before turning straight to local NBC affiliate KGW. For what it's worth, the news quality of NBC does seem to surpass other broadcasts - though please recognize that I use that term quality loosely when referring to local news sometimes, especially in the Portland market. But KGW was also the first station in Portland to start broadcasting in HD last year, which is a nice little bonus.
So, of course it piqued our interest early last year when KGW started running fancy-smancy, yet somewhat secretive, ads announcing that their new "Studio on the Square" was "coming soon". It was clear that they were building a new studio with a window on Pioneer Courthouse Square - the centerpiece of downtown Portland - ala the Today Show. Several months went by and eventually the ads disappeared with no word spoken about the "Studio on the Square". It seemed that maybe KGW's new venture somehow hadn't quite worked out as planned. Until a couple of months ago. As quickly as they disappeared, the ads started reappearing on TV and finally, one day, an actual announcement that the studio was near completion and that they would begin broadcasting the morning, noon and 7pm broadcasts from the new location. Last week there was coverage of a special launch party and another announcement that they would host an open house for the public to come and see the new studio on Saturday morning. Sweet. We are always looking for weekend adventures, large and small. Plus, I guess I happen to have some interest in the inner workings of television given that whole PR career path and all. (And I did have the chance, through work, to tour the local ABC affiliate in Washington some years back. Kathleen Matthews, the evening anchor at the time - and wife of the infamous Chris Matthews - gave us the tour, which was kind of cool.)

Now, as I often do, this is where I have to back up for a minute. Earlier this past week, I took Ian on his first MAX train ride (MAX is Portland's light rail system). And I guess I should admit here...my first as well. We hopped on at a station near our house and rode downtown to Pioneer Courthouse Square, walked around a bit, ate some lunch and then headed back. It was nice. In many ways it was like an instant flashback to my daily trips on Metro in DC and reminded me how nice it is to have that as a travel option, but in other ways it seemed like a much different experience. However - my observations aside - Ian LOVED it. And you can only imagine that we've been hearing about the ride on the "electric train" nonstop since then. Along with the seemingly constant sound of "ding, ding, ding, ding, ding" ringing throughout the house as he simulates the sound of a railroad crossing. So, I suggested to Jeff that we hop on the train again and ride back downtown on Saturday morning to take him on a tour of the new KGW studio. And that's what we did.

Ian's second train ride was no less exciting to him than the first. We got off the train at Pioneer Courthouse Square and were a bit surprised to find that there was a line to get in the studio. They were shuffling people inside in groups and it took about 15 minutes in between each group. It was cold out and threatening rain, so it didn't take me long to launch into complaint mode noting they should have planned for more people and done more of a constantly moving line through the studio. Keep 'em moving. Keep 'em moving. That was my recommendation for maximum efficiency, though clearly no one asked me.

However, once inside - I realized that no, they were doing this the Portland way. Meaning, they weren't doing this just to see how many folks they could shuffle through in a few hours. They actually cared about locals - their viewers - having the opportunity for an "in depth" look at their proud new home. First there was a brief orientation in the hall with the news producer and managing news director who talked a bit about the history of the studio, took questions and even asked for some viewer input on one of their Friday morning segments. Then, we were moved inside the studio where we were able to walk around and see all the cameras, computers and of course the new anchor desk in front of the window on the square. In the middle of everything, seated at a round table, were almost all of the anchors and reporters we see on TV everyday, talking with all the guests, thanking them for coming and signing autographs. There was no pretentiousness going on - only smiles, friendly faces and seemingly genuine excitement and gratitude that we had taken the time to come down. Ian proudly introduced himself to Business Reporter Joe Smith and I got my picture taken with Weather Guy Dave Salesky (who is extremely tall, by the way). Jeff took pictures. All in all, it seemed kind of silly yet kind of fun. Before we knew it, we were back outside and heading back home on the train. With one very excited three-year-old. Mission accomplished.

Until I write again.

All aboard!

As I believe I've eluded to previously, yesterday - President's Day - was about oh, the 50th time between December and February by my count that Ian stayed home on a day when we were paying for him to be in preschool. (With December being the huge winner, of course, thanks to all that wintry weather.) I mean, hey, I enjoy throwing money out the window was much as the next person - but I must admit that sometimes it gets a little frustrating. I think if he were in school full time I wouldn't notice it as much - but take away that precious Monday, Wednesday or half-day Friday and I'm in agony! Okay, well maybe not agony - but it is noticeable. Lately I've been trying to put a little spin on it and look at it as a valuable donation to the institution that is helping to educate my son in these critical early childhood years. Sometimes it works.

Okay - so venting aside, it became clear fairly early on in the morning that we were going to be in need of some sort of activity outside the home. I don't know, it might have had something to do with the fact that I must have heard, "I want to go in the car. I want to go in the car!" about 10 times by 9am. Alrighty, fine - we'll go in the car. But where? This is always the big debate. I can't tell you how many mornings I spend running through activity options in my head - most of which get crossed off the list for one reason or another...too cold outside...too crowded....we just went there...you always get sick after we go there. This is one of the reasons why the Tuesday Sports Class was so great. I didn't have to think about it...it was just on the schedule. And of course it's particularly challenging in the winter. So, after going back and forth over several options in my head yesterday, I looked at the relatively decent weather out the window and settled on the zoo. Even though I was positive that similar conversations were going on at that very moment all over Portland - and that we would all be converging on the same parking lot within the next hour. Ugh. However, before I could use it as an excuse to change my mind, I asked Ian about it - in the form of a choice, of course: "Ian, would you like to go to the zoo this morning or play at home? As if I didn't already know the answer. But hey, I gave him a choice which in little kid speak means control, right? So, off we went.

The Oregon Zoo parking lot delivered on its promise and more. The place was more frantic than me trying to get to free cone day at Ben & Jerry's. Just when I was about ready to give up and had announced to Ian that it looked like he was going to have to settle for a park visit instead, there it was: a spot! After some quick screeching and a few donut maneuvers in the parking lot - we had procured a location to leave the car so that we could peruse the wildlife. So really, it had been a successful day already and we hadn't even approached the gate yet.

One of the great things about our zoo here is that it comes complete with a miniature railroad. And in case I haven't mentioned it before or you haven't witnessed it, our kid is a big fan of trains. Probably somewhat similar to every other three-year-old boy in America. And at the zoo, Mom is a big fan of the train as well. I mean, all I do is get us on board and then just sit there and enjoy the scenery - and he's as entertained and excited as can be. What is there not to like? We got to the ticket stand just as the Zooliner (cute, yes?) was about to leave and amazingly, there was still room on board. So on board we got and off we went. In the summer, the train usually makes close to a half hour loop through the zoo and through Washington Park which is yet another fabulous Portland offering that adjoins the zoo grounds. However, as we learned yesterday, in the winter (when the train only runs on weekends...and apparently holidays) they significantly shorten the trip to around 10 minutes just around the zoo. Still enough time to see the elephants (we have a baby here now who is so cute!), wolves, the bald eagle and other various wildlife.

After our train ride, we went to visit the African area of the zoo where they have the cutest darn giraffe you've ever seen (I think these may be a new favorite animal for me these days), some pretty zebras, the monkeys, two hippos (who only wanted to show us their back side) and let's see...that's all I can think of right now because my brain is not working well. I will say though that seeing all these cool African creatures may have secured the safari theme for Ian's new bedroom (which I'm still giving thought to, of course). But after that it was well past lunchtime so we scurried back to our parking spot which I gave up after - taking a chapter from the Rod Blagojevich school of business - I sold it to someone who wanted it for equal the amount we had paid in Ian's school tuition for that day.

Today - my normal day with Ian - we went to storytime at the central Beaverton library. They do a nice little program for preschoolers with a few books and songs, which he seems to enjoy. Of course it also gave us the opportunity to pick up some additional tractor/truck/train/general construction reading materials. I was more enthusiastic than usual about loading up on these themes in hopes that they will serve as a hearty in-flight distraction for our Thursday travel to Texas. I don't know, but something gives me the feeling that I'm going to be up to my eyeballs in reading about excavators by the time we reach Houston. This trip will of course mark the end of Ian's 1.25(ish) year ban on flying due to consistent demonstration of demon-like behavior on airliners (except in his early months...he was great then!). There's been a lot of "prep work" happening...reading Amazing Airplanes, having discussions about what to expect, how we behave on airplanes, sitting in our seats, keeping our seat belts on (or harness, in his case), being patient, talking quietly....we'll see if it pays off. If you don't hear from me again, that might mean it didn't go so well. Oh, and did I mention that Ian will be missing school this Friday and again next Monday?

Until I write again.

My not-so-funny Valentine's story

I feel that I've learned a fair number of things about parenting since I became one a few years ago. I mean, if I were to say, major in parenting - I think I'd definitely be beyond the basic courses at this point and into the advanced course work. (At least in the early childhood major.) And like all good courses of study, it's not all easy going. Every now and then an exercise comes up that really stumps you. Which is exactly what happened to me this week:

So, as everyone knows - tomorrow is Valentine's Day. Day of Cupid, true love, bows and arrows, blah, blah, blah. When we got Ian's class newsletter at the beginning of this month there was a big reminder on the front (and only) page: We'll be having our class Valentine's party on Friday, February 13 this year! See attached list for names of everyone in the class! My very first thought was, Huh? And then my very second thought was, Oh, right, Valentines! I think I vaguely recall some required exchange of little cards with silly sayings on them. Of course, I also recall things being a little less politically correct back in my day and being crushed to death when Fred didn't give me a Valentine, or that girl who I wanted to be best friends with so badly...of course not bad enough that I remember her name right now. And my third thought was, Oh goody - another item to add to the to-do list!

Anyway, in my attempt to be an involved parent I signed up the next day to bring apples in for the big bash. And, I figured I'd just stop in at Freddie's (notice how they seem to get a lot of publicity on this blog?) and pick up a box of those cute little Snoopy Valentines I remember from 30ish years ago, fill them out and call it a day. Fast forward to Monday of this week. I was picking up Ian when one of his teachers said, "Oh, so just to let you know - we decided to change the party from this Friday to this Thursday because the librarian is coming into the class on Friday." Which, for me, now meant that I needed to have the Valentines ready by end of day on Wednesday since Ian doesn't goes to school on Thursdays. This also meant that he wouldn't able to attend the Valentine's party, which was a bit of a bummer. However, for some reason, the Wednesday Valentine deadline didn't actually occur to me until Tuesday evening. Still, I thought, Oh, no big deal. I'll run out and get them after I drop Ian off tomorrow morning, fill them out and give them to the teacher when I pick him up Wednesday afternoon to distribute on Ian's behalf Thursday morning.

Enter Wednesday morning. By this point, I already knew that our Freddie's did not in fact have any Valentines (at least that I saw) - so I headed straight for Target after dropping off Ian. Now, let me say here that I must admit that one of the huge benefits of being unemployed...or excuse me, not working outside of the home...is being able to go to stores like Target on weekdays. Really, it spoils you from ever wanting to have to out shopping on a weekend again (though don't get me wrong - I do it anyway). So, I walk in and immediately soak up the calmness that is Target on a Wednesday morning. Ahhhh! Of course I don't go straight to where I need to go because, duh, I'm in Target. So I meander a bit, hitting the toy section to scope out some potential new mini gadgets to surprise Ian with on our plane trip to Texas next week. Of course, not that this "occupy them with new toys" strategy I keep reading about has ever worked for us before, but it doesn't mean we stop trying. Anyway, it's there in the toy section that I'm confronted with Super Annoying Mom #1. (Which, by the way, is a trade off of shopping on weekdays.) You know, the one roaming the aisles with the cell phone glued to her ear, not paying attention to her cart or where she is, but instead yapping nonstop about how little Johnny didn't sleep a wink last night. Meanwhile, she has this cute little girl trailing along behind her who she's paying zero attention to, except to turn every once in a while and yell, "Come on, Madison!" And she's just like Visa: Everywhere I want to be.

Next, I venture over the Valentine's section. Which is where I discover that the store wasn't as quiet as I thought it was. Because every person from at least half the cars in the parking lot was pretty much within this two aisle radius. Which I guess shouldn't have been all that surprising given the proximity to the official Hallmark holiday of the year. But I couldn't take it so I retreated for the main greeting card area which - big surprise - is where the other half of the people were. Ugh. Still, I had no choice so I suffered through before moving back to the Vday section where I encountered Super Annoying Moms #2, 3, 4 and 5. Maybe more. I lost count. There was all sorts of stuff going on in these aisles...little bins of picture frames, pencils, you name it - they had it. But what they didn't appear to have was a box of Valentines. Finally, I located them in a relatively small area. They looked a little different than I remembered. And there was no Snoopy or anything relatively cute or neutral. The choices were Hannah Montana, SpongeBob, Batman, Cinderella and a couple of other options I can't recall now. But let's just say they weren't good. And they definitely weren't like I remembered. I was confused. I kept thinking...there must be something I'm missing here! But not really. I mean, there was one box of "Make your own cards!" that involved a bunch of foam, some pens, some beads...I didn't really understand it so I put it back. Now I was getting a bit frustrated. This was supposed to be a quick outing and I had other things I wanted to get done that day while Ian was in school. You know, things that might actually lead to a paycheck at some point. But never fear! I had another idea! I'd just go down the way to my new favorite store Michael's and they would have exactly what I needed. Michael's never disappoints (at least they didn't when I re-discovered them over Christmas)!

So, I walked in the front door of Michael's fully expecting to be overcome with heart paraphernalia. Instead, I was overcome by plastic flowers (spring is coming, after all). I wandered around for a bit before coming across one measly display area of red stuff. It was right next to the measly display of green stuff for St. Patty's day. And oh yeah, they definitely had some Valentines...but it was the exact same stuff they had at Target. Apparently Miley Cyrus is making a killing off Valentine royalties this year. Plus a couple more "do it yourself" kits laying around that made no sense to me. It was at this point that I started aimlessly wandering around Michael's getting panicked. I had approximately five hours to deliver some Valentines to Ian's class and I was totally stumped! I knew I only had one choice: I needed to find my inner Martha. But I didn't even know what a Valentine was supposed to look like! How big are they? What do I write? Do I need envelopes? Luckily this saleswoman must have noticed me looking frazzled because she offered to help me and I was more than happy to oblige. And even better, she had young children. So, after a crash course in Kid Valentines 101 and a few ideas, I set about collecting my own materials. That's right - I was just going to make my own, darn it!

Approximately 2.5ish hours after I had dropped off Ian, I finally arrived back home armed with Valentine-making materials. By the time Jeff got home that afternoon, I was knee-deep in colored card stock, scalloped scissors, foam heart stickers, and gold and silver pens. Along with the class name list, of course. And now all I kept thinking was, Who are you and what did you do with Melinda? But seriously, talk about how I didn't intend on spending my day! And of course in the middle of all this I realized that it was only right that Ian have the opportunity to be involved in this little art activity. I mean, why should I have all the fun? So, I got a good start on everything else and left the stickers for him to place on the front when he got home that night. When I picked him up, I told his teacher that we'd have to drop off Ian's Valentines in the morning at which point she said, "Well, why don't you just bring him and leave him for a couple of hours?" Really?? Well, since you offered... (Oh, and by the way, it's not like we haven't already paid for about a million days over the past couple of months where he didn't actually go to school - including another day this upcoming Monday for the President's Day holiday. So I didn't mind taking her up on her offer for him to be there for a couple of hours on one of his "off days". Plus, I knew he'd really enjoy being at the party.)

On Wednesday night, Ian - with some help from Mom and Dad - had a great time putting the finishing touches on the Valentines for his school friends. We also cut up and put a small sheet of stickers as a little gift inside each Valentine. In the end, we had a lot of leftover stickers, which made Ian very happy. He was in heaven spending the rest of the evening - and Thursday - putting heart stickers all over new "cards" he made. On Thursday morning, he went to his Valentine party and came home with a whole bag of Valentines, most of them Hannah Montana, Cinderella, Batman... (um, can you say overachiever?) He also had some other special treats and a big smile on his face. So I think it's safe to say that his first class Valentine experience was a success. And of course I just can't wait until next year! Or even the next holiday, really.

Of course it also hit me at some point in this whole process that we needed to get Ian a little something for Valentine's Day. So, in honor of the fact that he does seem to be taking to chocolate these days, I got him some chocolate hearts from See's, a card and a little teddy bear (from Freddie's of course), which will actually be the first teddy bear he owns. As for Jeff and I, we are bucking our trend of staying in and making a nice meal at home and actually going out to dinner this year to a place we haven't been before called Lucy's Table. We figured what the heck, especially since it's on a Saturday this year and these days we'll pretty much look for any excuse to get out for a nice meal. And, if things go well, we may even get really wild and go out dancing afterwards!

So, Happy Hallmark Holiday...er, I mean, Valentine's Day to all!

Until I write again.

The great bedroom debate

So, a couple of weeks ago we took Ian to the pediatrician for his three-year well visit, which went swimmingly well, by the way. And yes, he's still in the 90th percentile for height and weight, for anyone who might be wondering. But during the course of the visit something came up about Ian and his crib. As soon as the word came out of my mouth, I could tell there was slight pause and some sort of look going on as if the doctor was pondering whether or not she should go in our file and immediately pull our Parenthood card. So I quickly added, "But we are transitioning him soon!"

Of course I've been planning to transition him "soon" for at least six months now. But honestly, the deal is that most kids are out of a crib by now because they have been forced out - either by circumstances beyond their control or by learning to scale the side to escape - neither of which has been an issue in our household. Sure, every now and then I've gone in his room to get him up from a nap he has his leg hoisted over the side ready to take matters into his own hands - at which point I say something like, "Ian, please don't do that - it's dangerous," and the kid actually listens and retreats until I lift him down. Must be my Super Mom powers in action again. Still, I understand that while we all cherish the confines of the crib - it might look a little funny when his friends come over in high school and he's still got the rails going on in his room. Plus there will be a sizing issue happening at some point, I imagine.

But here's the deal: It's not like I haven't tried to make this switch. Or thought about it, oh, at least five out of seven days each week. Because I have. Really, besides being slightly reluctant to give up the prison-like sleeping arrangements, it's a decor issue. As in, I'm concerned about the look - which might make me look a little bit shallow at this point, but let's face it, these are some of the things I spend my time thinking about (when I'm not consumed with thoughts of world peace, of course). I've been searching high and low for some time now for the right new accommodations and can't seem to have that "Aha!" moment, as I believe Oprah would call it. (Though I think she actually means something meaningful or spiritual rather than bedding choices. Perhaps designer Nate would be better to consult for an appropriate term in that arena.)

Of course the centerpiece of the new setup is the bed itself. And in that respect, I've kind of been like Goldilocks. No, this one's too high. No, this one's too low. This one's not kid-friendly enough. This one won't clean well. This one looks too cheap. And this one looks too expensive! However, while there seems to be a lot that I'm not sure about with regard to this new decorating challenge - there are indeed a few things I am sure about. And here they are:

1. I'm not really into "kid" furniture. Sure, with a few clicks of a mouse I could order up something overpriced from Pottery Barn Kids. But besides that not really fitting into our one-income budget these days...why in the world would I want to pay $900ish for a bed that has about 100 pieces of wood too many on it and has "I'm 10 therefore this is what kind of bed I am licensed to have in my room" written all over it. Plus, what it really comes down to is that most "kid" furniture is on the traditional side and I'm not much of a traditional decor type of gal. So, whatever bed we choose has to be some sort of combo of being kid-friendly without really looking like a traditional kids' bed. Which is somewhat difficult to locate, I must admit.

2. The bed has to be a platform bed. In case you have no clue what I'm talking about, these are beds that don't use a box spring and are therefore lower to the ground. This is the type of bed we have and I'm a big fan. Lower beds make rooms seem larger and more open, and I personally don't notice a comfort difference. Plus, given that we are bypassing a "toddler bed" that some parents transition kids to at this point - a full size platform bed will give him room to grow while still being safer for him at this young stage if he falls out. It also avoids us having to make yet another bed switch in the not-too-distant future. Oh, and while we're at it, I'm also not a huge fan of footboards. I prefer the end of the bed to be open, also making the room feel larger and more open.

3. I'm not really into "kid" bedding, either. Now, this where things get tricky. Because I'm not so awful of a parent to know this isn't about me...it's about Ian. Or at least that's what I keep reminding myself. So, themes like Thomas Train or Bob the Builder or SpongeBob whatever-his-name-is are not really under consideration at this point in time. Now, that's not to say that more subdued "themes" like general car sheets, airplane sheets, etc., with some sort of solid comforter would be out of the question. I just don't want it to be...overboard, shall we say. And for what it's worth, as of right now, I still I have some reasonable control over this situation in that, unlike his mother, I really don't think Ian has spent a lot of time thinking about what type of comforter he wants on his new bed. Which could have something to do with the fact that he has no idea that he'll be getting a new bedroom set soon, but that's beside the point.

So, the bottom line is to say that I've been all over the board on this new bedroom thing is an understatement. But after seemingly endless searching for an economical, yet nice looking, yet kid-friendly bedroom set - I hesitate to say that I think I've come back full circle to going with something from....drum roll please....IKEA. Yep, trusty ole' IKEA. And to think at one point in my life it was my goal to rid our house of every piece of IKEA furniture. Clearly that was pre-kid. I'm going back and forth between a couple of different sets there, but here's the most recent finalist in case anyone is interested (color TBD).

The bed is really low, which is great, and it's a clean and simple design (just like IKEA says!). Plus, you can't beat the price, that's for sure. We would get the tables that hook on the side with a slot for magazines - or in our case kids' books. I think that would be kind of fun. I'm not completely in love with the big, chunky style dresser that goes with it, but it may happen anyway. This isn't the final choice, granted, just a strong finalist at this point, I'd say. As my next move, I might go check out a couple retro furniture stores around Portland to see what they have in the way of mid-century modern secondhand used furniture that might look cool in a boy's room. I saw a Danish modern dresser online earlier today that looked kind of fun and different.

As for the "theme", if you will, well, one day I think I'm going to paint the walls blue with a red comforter and airplane sheets and the next day I hate that idea. So who knows. My most recent idea that I'm still kind of liking is a safari theme. I personally think animals are always a good thing to be surrounded with - except maybe if they are small and furry and have names that start with a Z and a C. But the safari thing came to mind while I was perusing the PB web site last weekend and came across this duvet cover. I thought something like that would be fun with maybe some of this type of artwork on the walls. Or this. Of course, I've also started a small collection of Ian's "artwork" that I had planned on framing and incorporating into his new bedroom when he got one...and I don't know how that all fits in, but we'll get it figured out (that is, unless I change my mind tomorrow). Come to think of it, some of the painting is pretty "wild", so there you go! And then of course there are things like a new wall color. While I'd personally love something in the chocolate brown category with that type of theme (somewhat similar to the IKEA photo earlier, actually), I think that something perhaps more along the lines of a nice red might be a little more fun for a preschooler. (You see, I'm really not totally oblivious!)

And so the quest for a new bedroom for Ian continues. However, I can assure you that Change is Coming! Soon...

Until I write again.

Witness to history