Category Archives: Real Life : Alix

Wolfie’s Bouncey House Olympic Sized Birthday!

Kiddo Parties, Real Life, Real Life : Alix, ,

Last week was Wolfie’s birthday and this weekend we had a party. Now I have a confession to make. Last year he turned 6 on April 6th. And I was SO excited! “Hurray! It’s your Golden Birthday!! You are turning SIX on the SIXTH!!!” Wolfie was really into the Winter Olympics last year and we had a plan to do a fantastic Olympics Themed Party with an obstacle course in the back yard and everything. Cute, right?? Only…..it rained. And rained. And did I mention the rain? The party was postponed and postponed yet again and then ultimately…..he never had a party at all. Ugh. What’s that old saying, “The Cobblers Children Always Go Barefoot”?? I felt SO badly. Here I’m blogging about all these fab parties and my own little guy gets screwed. Nice job, mama.

Needless to say this year I was gonna do it right. I had grand plans to bust out the crafting supplies and design a 4 star birthday! Only….Wolfie had other plans. “Can we please have my party at Pump It Up?” “Um, really? You don’t want to have a fun party at our house? In the back yard?” “No.”

Argh. For those of you haven’t experienced the magic of Pump It Up, it’s a colossal party space that houses several GIGANTIC bouncy house and inflatable structures. On the up side, the party is totally contained and organized by the staff. The kid’s arrive, they get a little spiel on the rules and then they get to go into the room where they bounce like maniacs. The staff sets up and cleans up. Easy peasy! The down side? It’s pretty commercial. The place doesn’t really let you personalize your party. You can’t decorate. You have to use their food. And while it’s loads of fun for the kiddos, it sure ain’t perty. At least, my kinda perty. But as your child gets older you realize they have opinions and their own tastes and it’s less about creating a Martha-style party and more about wanting them to have something fun and “them”. And after last years fiasco, I wanted Wolfie to run the show. So what to do?

Wolfie wanted a Pokemon theme at the Bounce House Extravaganza. I wanted to unload some of the Olympics stuff I had bought last year. Which left us with this:


Ah yes, the Poke-Olympics! I had no clue if this was going to work, but I thought it couldn’t hurt to try. Of course I neglected to realized this place is really popular and the only times they had open were 9am and 7pm….so we had it at the crack o’ dawn.

I made these little “passports” for the kids and before they watched the “rules” video I passed out Pokemon terry cloth wristbands and made a little speech explaining how this was all going to work.

There were six spots on their passport and I told each kiddo they’d get a stamp every time they went on one of the bouncy things. I didn’t want anyone to feel like that had to go on something if they were nervous (the bouncy slide, for example, is a little steep) so I said that they could earn bonus points for striking a special dismount “victory pose” whenever they exited a bouncer.  Greg demonstrated some awesome poses (which got some laughs from the kids). Get all your stamps and you get a prize! The kids sat there kind of stunned…and definitely intrigued!

Here they are listening in rapt attention to my AMAZING speech. hah! Just kiddin’….they were watching the little safety video.

Wolfie got a special crown and scepter as the Birthday King. Please note the crazy casino carpeting. Oof!

So shut mah mouth because the kids had a blast! They kept racing back and forth between the bouncys and me—trying to get stamps in their booklets.

The “victory poses” were the funniest. They’d shoot down the slide and strike a pose!

At the end of their session they all lined up to go into the “party room”. We hummed the Olympics theme and it was time for the medal ceremony. Wolfie got a slightly bigger medal (hey, you only turn 7 once….never mind that the back of the medal said “Happy 6 on the 6th!” Ahem.)

The kids looooooooooved the medals. They had USA on them and the Olympics logo so all the kids thought they were REAL. OLYMPICS. MEDALS. Huzzah! It was awesome.

From there my little Olympiates went to the party room where they ate pizza and fruit and admired each others medals. SO CUTE. Wolfie got to sit on a giant inflatable throne which he was shyly pleased by.

(I can’t lie….the colors….the COLORS! It’s too much. And I love color….but not like this. Yee gads, who decorated this place??)

Please note Sir Wolfgang is wearing his “comfy loungers” and Pokemon tee. Sure I love dressing him up but there is a place and time for everything…and bouncing isn’t a fashion show, it’s about BOUNCIN’ IN COMFORT!

I made pretty simple goodie bags—I forgot to take a picture, but I just used a plain brown paper lunch bag with a little red ribbon and pokemon label (kinda like this). Most parents I know have a love-hate relationship with the goodie bag. They can get a little outta control. And part of me wants to rebel against doing them, but then when it comes down to it, it makes the kids happy and what the heck…yer only little once. The bags had lots of silly little trinkets like lollipop ring pops, red white and blue whistles and these cool spinning tops that lit up (Go Party Supply Store!). I also wrapped big ol’ chocolate chip cookies in aluminum foil and added a ribbon to make them look like medals. These were a big hit!

I bucked the system and we opened presents at the party. I’m not sure how it is where you guys live, but out here there is a growing trend to NOT open presents in front of the kids and wait til you get home (or if you are at home, wait til everyone leaves). I’m not sure if it’s to avoid the chaos/mess of paper or if people think it’s too long for the kids to sit patiently through or they are worried presents will get ruined…BUT, I’m not a fan of this trend. Call me old fashioned, but I think half the fun as a guest is watching the birthday kiddo open up your present! [some of my best friends are in the non-present opening camp so, you know, no offense if you are too….but I’m still gonna make you open your present from me while I’m there! heh]

I will admit, it was a little chaotic, with paper bits flying….but the kids were so cute ooohing and ahhing and giggling over everything!

Wolfie was grinning from ear to ear the whole time. The staff was totally great AND they did all the clean up. So despite my initial reservations….it was pretty awesome! Goes to show you what do I know??

Afterwards we had to race off to Little League…and then we ended the night watching a movie, eating leftover pizza and talking about how awesome his birthday weekend was. An action packed day to be sure.


BUT THAT’S NOT ALL FOLKS

In the middle of the night, Wolfie woke up doubled over in pain moaning and sobbing. We ended up spending over 4 hours in the emergency room and it was pretty awful. Wolfie is a really stoic little guy and to see him crying for two hours straight was heart breaking. He couldn’t even walk so we had to take him in a wheel chair to get his x-rays…by 3:00am we had determined it wasn’t his appendix or any obstructions. It was extreme gas and poopage (sorry….gettin’ all TMI on you guys here). A tad embarrassing but we were just relieved it wasn’t anything worse. We went to bed at 4:30am, emotionally and physically exhausted! What a crazy end to our fantastic day!!

So to end on a positive note, we finally woke up  the next day at 1:30 in the afternoon!!!!!!!! (unheard of). Wolfie was feeling 100% better and we had a great brunch and wandered around in the sunshine.

When we got home, Wolfie and Greg recorded “I’m in a Wheelchair,” a goofy fun song they made up about his ordeal the night before.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY one last time, my little monkey. Thank you for being so sweet and fun….and for letting mama put you in pants that “sorta look like clown pants” and thinking they were cool. I love you!

Vintage Monday :: The Dames Hit the Town

Mama Style, Real Life : Alix, Real Life : Dottie, , , ,

Last month I told you about a new, monthly supper club that Dottie and I started with some great gal pals: The Dames. It was the brain child of our friend Doe, who is one of the most creative, organized and talented people I know! We realized that we wanted to see each other more—and we wanted to connect with other cool mamas. The concept? Get 10 or so rad mamas who love dressing up and once a month we hit a retro restaurant and have a fun night out! Last month we went to Joe’s of Westlake, an old school Italian restaurant with fab architecture. This past month The Dames decided to go to the historic John’s Grill—a cool seafood joint made famous as a setting in Dashiell Hammett’s novel The Maltese Falcon.

BUT before we met at the restaurant, our friend Shona suggested we meet at the Union Square Macy’s 6th Floor bathroom. “The Macy’s Bathroom? Whuhhh?” Sounds a tad strange, but hear me out. The Macy’s 6th Floor Bathroom is somewhat historic. Upon entering, you pass through an unremarkable, generic bathroom with the classic row of white sinks. Turn a corner, however, and you are suddenly met with this:

Off the main restroom is a square room made of green and cream marble. There are pedestal wash basins, a lovely crystal chandelier and a gilded ceiling. It’s FABULOUS! The walls are covered with floor-to-ceiling mirrors and it’s not until you push on the mirrors that you realize that all of the stalls are hidden behind them.

One of the snazzy metal and marble wash basins. The faucet got cut off but it was golden…

The bathroom was actually designed as part of the old I. Magnin department store back in 1948. I’m not sure why it was never renovated—but we were sure glad it survived! While we waited for everyone to show, we took pictures. I think everyone who actually had to *use* the restroom thought we were crazy. Festive! But crazy.

Dueling leopard was glamorously hilarious!

I look so serious! haha

Finally we made it to John’s Grill! This time there were 9 of us—and we branched out to include some “non-mama” friends but very groovy girlies. Alas, Dottie couldn’t make it this time but she was very missed! The beauty of The Dames is that it’s low stress—can’t make it one month? No biggie, just show up the next month!


For some reason our table only had half the place settings. I snuck around and grabbed them off the other tables, “I think they had us confused with The Broads…..we’re The DAMES, dammit!”

The elusive Maltese Falcon, used in the movie of the same name. I am not quite sure why there is an Emmy in the case too but any chance to pose next to an award? I’ll take it!

The food was fab and the company even more delicious. I was just so nice to get out and get to know this lovely group of ladies. I highly recommend starting your own little monthly supper club! You don’t have to be vintage obsessed—mix it up! Here’s all you have to do:

1.  Invite a great mix of ladies. You can get together with your besties, but  you don’t have to even know everyone well. Honestly it’s kind of more fun when you don’t. Our group is a mix of a few women who are already good friends and a handful I didn’t really know that well to start—but I’m soooo enjoying getting to know them better! Start with 2-4 people and let each person invite one extra!

2. Pick your “thang”. For us, it’s finding retro, old timey restaurants, but there are so many options. You can pick the newest restaurants in your town (and discover new favorites), you can explore different cultures (thai! sushi! ethopian!), you can pick a favorite food (pasta? pizza, seafood?) and try all the spots in town in a quest for the best….the possibilities are endless.

Getting a little time out on your own is so important for a mama—and even if you don’t have kiddos, quality hang time with your ladies can be so rejuvenating. Once a month isn’t a big commitment either. Give it a whirl! And be sure to let us know if you try it! Do you belong to any other groups? Reading groups? Crafting circles? Or do you just have a standing date with a best girlie? I’d love to hear!

PS  Pssst! Due to a nasty looming cold, I wasn’t able to go to the third installment of The Dames, which was held last week at Spenger’s Fish Grotto. Miss Dottie was there representin’ and I must say it looks like she had things alllll under control. Dottie rules!

 

Celebrity Dork Out :: When {Clean House} Came to the Bay

Real Life, Real Life : Alix, ,

I love home makeover TV shows. I have this fantasy that one of them will come over to my house and help me weed out allllllll the clutter and turn it into a pristine palace of serenity. Ahhhh. Wouldn’t that be nice?? So when I found out that Clean House was coming to the Bay Area I got all kinds of excited. I loved Niecy Nash (the hostess) and was bummed to hear she had left….but guess who the new hostess is?? Tempestt Bledsoe! Yep, Vanessa Huxtable.

The house that was being “Cleaned” belonged to some friends of friends. These people are major collectors and have lots of good loot, so I was pretty excited to snap up some fun vintage stuff. I grabbed Wolfie and we hit the road! Here is my little indie boy….he decided to bring this little satchel with some toys and his DS, just in case he got bored. I {heart} Wolfie!

As we looked for parking THIS crazy thing was cruising down the street in front of us. Wolfie was impressed.

When we finally got to the sale, there was a line to get in—but it moved quickly. There was tons of great stuff, but I have to say all the cameras made you feel a tad self conscious. And the prices were all really high because they wanted you to haggle on camera. My fab friends Doe and Otto (of the equally fabulous Tiki Oasis) came with their two little boys. They were dressed in a fantastic matching Tiki outfits (I’m pleased to report that Doe’s green 70s blazer was from my Vintage Boutique sale!). While they were checking out a bamboo book shelf, Mark, the show’s designer, zipped on over with the camera crew. It was awesome!

Wolfie, Vander and Dashiell were awesome. They were SOOOOOO unimpressed by the whole thing. They had fun hanging out together and Wolfie was actually in a great mood despite the “i’m so over this” look.

Here is “Matt,” the Go-To Guy who builds stuff….he had on a grass skirt and a coconut bra and was really lively. The whole “vibe” was def kitschy cool.

FINALLY! We spied Tempestt. She was in this Mae West style ensemble and looked very perty. Doe kept nudging me to go over and chat with her but I felt a little shy—plus she always had people around her and I didn’t want to be a big ol looky loo!

I found some vintage kid’s books (of course) and a kooky 70s kitty bank. There was tons more stuff cool stuff but really I needed these people to come to MY house to clean up, not be shoppin’ at their sale! I went over to the fella who was actually part of the couple who was going to be on the show and he was super sweet and gave me an awesome deal on all my stuff! Clutching my sales slip I wandered off to figure out where to pay.

All of a sudden there was a HUGE crash—someone broke something and the camera crew went flying over to get it on film. And well well well….look who I found myself standing next to??

It was perfect. No camera crew just me-n-Tempestt! Our exchange went something like this:

TEMPESTT: Ooooh, you finding some good bargains today?

ME: Yes! I got some fun books and this cute kitty bank for $3.

TEMPESTT: Hold on a second $3? For the kitty kat bank? Oh no, nononono!

ME: No? (i was confused)

TEMPESTT (snatching the pay slip from my hand): NO.

ME: Soooooo, you’re gonna give me a better deal??

TEMPESTT: Better deal? I’m gonna give you a WORSE deal! That’s too cheap! We’re here to make money girl!

ME (laughing but thinking “OH lord is she really gonna charge me more for this stupid cat thing??”): Oh no!

TEMPESTT: Listen, I gotta be kept in boas!

ME (trying to be charming): Oooooh wait…..did I say $3? I mean THIRTY Dollars! That’s what he charged me!!

And we laughed and laughed and traded makeup tips. OK not really. But she did laugh and sent me on my way…..and YES THE CAMERAS CAUGHT THE WHOLE THING. My friend Karen was watching and she said “Oooh, you just had a ‘bit’ with Tempestt!”

Me, Doe and Karen……cleanin’ house!

The weather was soooo glorious! Wolfie and I went to the cafe with Doe and Dash. We got some ice coffees for the mamas and milk and cookies for the little fellers. It was a super fun day! And who knows…we just might might it on CLEAN HOUSE. Now if I could only convince them to come and actually CLEAN our house.

So that’s my most recent celeb dork out!

Semi-Homemade Valentines= Everybody Happy.

Real Life, Real Life : Alix, , ,

I love pretty, homemade valentines. Wolfie, however, wanted to impress the kids at school with some ALL ACTION Bakugan blinkie hologram valentines. For those who don’t have kiddo’s old enough to experience the glory that is Bakugan, let’s just say they are in the “crazy Japanese anime” cartoon world and are one of the hot “it” show & toy combos. Basically, everything I DON’T want in a Valentine. Therein lay the dilemma. On the one hand, the prefab valentines are soooo not cute. Or even remotely pretty. On the other hand, when you are a 6 year boy , “pretty” and “cute” are definitely not top priorities when trying to make a statement. What to do, what to do?? Do I force my desire for glittery handmade goodness on my boy? Or do I let him be independent and pick his own Valentines?? We compromised and did a little bit of both! I’m pleased to report that while they were pretty darn simple….. they were both bad ass AND pretty!

We took double sided tape and glued the little Bakuagan hologram Valentine in the center of a pretty heart-shaped paper doilie. Then we glued the doilie on to to a square of construction paper. We picked black because we thought it would show off the heart the best. Then Wolfie used a gold crayon to write his name (and his classmates). We also made those rockin’ lollipops I showed you guys on Friday. And when I say “we” I mean “me”.

Awww, here’s my boy bringing mama flowers! So sweet….he did complain they were reeeeeally heavy. “A little help over here!” [fyi, he’s wearing his Michigan snow boots even though it’s totally sunny out]

Wolfie’s classroom made these cool little paper backpacks as a Valentine’s carrier:

The valentines fit in the top of the yellow part. I thought it was pretty clever!

We had a lovely day. I made Wolfie heart shaped waffles and was silly and cut his PB&J into a heart shape—annnnnd of course he didn’t eat it. Ah well. Wolfie got to be the Person of the Day for his first grade (which was super cute….it meant he got to lead the class to lunch and to the playground and got to check the class thermometer etc etc).

I was thrilled to discover that my Mini Heartlette Crown arrived just in time (it’s sooooo fab I love it). Greg and I actually went to a real-life grown up movie (WOW! no talking animals!). We saw The King’s Speech and it was really amazing. Colin Firth is fab and Jeffrey Rush was utterly brilliant. I still couldn’t escape kid’s movies, though, because I kept whispering things like, “Hey Greg, is that Dumbledore??” and “Look! It’s totally Peter Pettigrew as Churchill!” and “How funny that Helena Bonham Carter was playing Bellatrix LeStrange at the same time as she did this!” We are a Potter family for sure.

I hope you had a special day…lotsa love from us to you.

Kiddo 80s Flashback :: Alix’s Valentine’s Dance

Real Life : Alix

Like most towns, my high school in Flint, Michigan always had these little dances as school fundraisers. They weren’t formal (that was the PROM) and were held in the gym (of course). During my sophomore year, I was the Class Vice President and one of my main duties was to work the Valentines dance—manning the front desk, selling tickets, selling photo packages etc. Todd Richardson, our class treasurer, was working the same shift with me. The dance was pretty well attended and we were feeling all happy. As we sat there, this guy Lance from my choir class (yes. choir. I was Glee before Glee, ya’ll.) strolls up in work out gear and casually asks, “Hey what’s going on here?” Obviously he didn’t see the GIGANTIC hearts and streamers. So I tell him it’s the Valentines Dance. (duh) Now Lance was a nice looking guy and fancied himself a bit of a ladies man. He was also convinced that he *was* Prince and was workin’ that 80s Prince hair. I guess he kinda liked me because after a little chit chat he said, “Hey, so if I come back dressed up, will you dance with me??” I sort of grinned awkwardly not sure what to say. To sweeten the deal he added, “We can get our picture taken!” I wasn’t sure how to respond and stuttered lamely, “Uh…well.. I’m kind of working.” I look pleadingly at my buddy Todd, who totally pimped me out, saying, “You can totally dance. I’ll cover.” Then to Lance, “She’ll definitely dance with you!!” Lance grinned and sauntered out the door. I was peeved, but Todd looked at me all indignant, “We need to sell tickets! It’s a fundraiser!” *sigh*

To Lance’s credit, he got cleaned up pretty quickly—to my surprise he strolled in 15 minutes later in a plum colored Miami Vice suit. Hot! We share an awkward dance to Union of the Snake by Duran Duran and then get in line to get our picture taken. Bear in mind I’m totally NOT dressed up and look like a huge dork. Not to mention the photography set up was sooo low budget—it was literally a chair next to a tall skinny table with a rose on it. Lance thanks me and leaves immediately after getting our pic taken. So much for our date. I trot back to the table where Todd asks me “How was the dance?” I shoot him a look. I’m thinking, “How weird…I’m going to have all these photos of me and Lance….” Cut to the end of the night. Our photographer comes over and says, “Hey, you two kids have been working so hard all night. How about a picture on the house??” Todd lights up. “Sure!” Good lord, so now I have to take another awkward wierd photo with ANOTHER non-date??? This was turning out to be the most random dance EVER.

Two weeks later I was presented with not one, but TWO sets of photos, courtesy of my two charming dates. I was now the proud owner of multiple 5x7s and far too many wallet pics. Of course I handed them out to all my friends. “Would you like something from the Lance Collection or the Todd Series?” I would offer. Do you wanna see the photos? Oh you KNOW you do. Presenting:

TODD. Rockin’ the high waisted jeans and running shoes.

LANCE. Plum trousers and grey leather skinny tie. Suave.

I’m not sure why Lance took his sport jacket off (probably because we had worked up such a sweat Cabbage Patchin’ to Duran Duran. Ahem.). All I know is I look like hell in these photos. It’s a testament to how much I love you guys I’m sharing ’em. Now that I have divulged the PHOTOS, I wanted to clarify a few issues I’m SURE are burning in your mind:

1) YES I am wearing some black lace scrap in my hair. We don’t know why. Maybe I think I’m madonna?
2) YES the photographer made me sit with my legs demurely crossed like that.
3) NO I was not jaundiced.
4) NO I did not weight 500 pounds, as the picture would indicate. I swear I was normal weight in high school. College? That’s another story….*cough* It’s really just my outfit.
5) Speaking of my outfit. What the hell am I wearing? I look like the Easter Bunny. I have on this GOD AWFUL Esprit pink sweatshirt that was all 80s and had no defined sleeves…the hood was also “freeform,” hence the pink linebacker effect. I think I have on pink cords and weird grey sneakers shoes that look suspicously like jazz shoes. Which are actually in style again, so hell, maybe I’m not as far off as I thought.
6) On the plus side (HEY! I said PLUS SIDE not plus size….) I am wearing a lovely vintage rhinesone necklace. Which you can’t really see. But trust me. It’s perty. Can I get a few points for that?? This is me again. Slightly better photo.

I was made fun of by my friends for YEARS afterwards. I had actually pushed the whole sordid affair back into the far corners of my mind, when I got a Valentine’s Day card  from my friend Jennifer, who I had lost touch with. Inside were the two wallet sized pics of me—one with Lance and one with Todd. I couldn’t help it, a small tear welled up in my right eye. Not from nostaligia, but from the realization that I was wearing Madonna-style lace gloves, but ONLY in the picture with Lance. It’s true. Scroll back up if you don’t believe me. Happy Valentines Day, my Kiddo Cuties.